Raising adopted
children is no different than raising your genetic offspring. However I
recommend that one should do a few rituals for the spiritual cleansing of the
adopted child. Spiritual cleansing is required for every child be it your own
or adopted. But in case of an adopted child, it becomes very important. The
reason is very simple that often times, we really do not know about the background
of the adopted child, his or her biological parents, the circumstances in which
it was conceived, and left on his or her own. If one has adopted a child of a
relative or a known person, it is still OK to delay the spiritual cleansing
ritual, but otherwise, it is advisable to do it as early as you can.
Why is spiritual cleansing
so important?
The children at
the orphanages or adoption agency offices are often times picked up or brought
by someone in a bad shape. These children are in agony. They suffer a lot. Like
any other soul, these tiny creations of God are thoroughly traumatized. This
trauma leaves them with permanent scars on their soul. Though it is very
difficult to remove such scars permanently from someone’s soul, still we can
always take a few corrective steps to make the little ones comfortable in our
loving arms.
If the parents
(guardians) of the adopted child follow a religion, it is recommended that the
rituals of that religion be followed. If the parents follow no religion then
also there are a few rituals that can be performed to make the child
comfortable in his or her new home. This is one ritual that can be followed by all,
irrespective of the religion one follows or not, or even if it is your own
child and not an adopted one.
Clean the house
and swab all the rooms with salt water. Use plenty of yellow color for
decoration in the form of flowers, upholstery, rangoli, crockery, or anything
that is yellow in color. Yellow color symbolizes pure energy. You may consider
lighting candles, using incense sticks for fragrance etc. Put some nice chants,
or soothing, flowing music. Cook something nice, a sweet dish is a must have.
You always have a sweet dish made for auspicious occasion right?
Bring the baby in
the house with utmost love and affection in your heart. For infants, just one
drop of salt water is enough. Even if you take a little salt water on a cotton
swab, and wipe the palms and soles of the baby with it; it is enough. Please remember
that their skin is too tender. They may develop some kind of allergy. So, do
not be over enthusiastic in wiping with salt water. Just a little water, and
that’s it.
You should keep
yourself clean whenever you go near the baby. Make it a habit to wash your
hands with soap and water before touching the baby. You may also take a bath
with salt water, and rinse with plain water afterwards. While you take the baby
for sleeping, make sure that you have enough time to be with him or her. During
sleep, the baby can listen to your voice, and can feel your emotions, thoughts.
So please talk about good things. Reassure your baby that he or she will have a
very comfortable life with you. Such loving thoughts and words will slowly and
steadily reduce the trauma scars from the baby’s soul.
The genes are
very important for the growth of a child, and so is the environment the baby is
being raised. You have no control over the genes of the adopted child, but you
do have full control on the environment the baby will live in. Provide the best
of sanskaars, the best of education—moral as well as academic. Help the child
build a character that will help him or her carve a beautiful life for him/
herself in the later years of life.
I personally
believe in spiritual cleansing for myself and my family members on a regular
basis. We all have a salt water bath on every Sunday. And I wipe the floor of
my house every now and then with salt water. I put morning and evening chants,
Mantras and bhajans, and light a lamp (diya) in the morning and evening. It is
very important to keep the atmosphere of the house positive and vibrating with
golden energy. For this one should always learn to be happy, keep the negative
thoughts away, lead a satisfactory and meaningful life, and try to follow
certain discipline in his or her life. All these things raise positive
vibrations in your home, and you feel happy and content.
