The Tao Of Parenting

Alternative, Pagan and Wholistic Parenting

Aromatherapy, Astrology, Astrological Signs, Candles, Crystals and Gemstones, Earth Celebrations,

Heavenly Bodies, The Five Elements, Chakras, Medicine Wheels, Energy, Essential Oils, Flower Essences, Alternative Parenting,

Healing Herbs, Incense, Smudging, Music, Runes, Tarot, Spiritual Guides and Teachers, Sacred Sexuality

Welcome to the 'Tao of Parenting'

We will be featuring Alternative Schooling and related subjects and interests.

Schools, articles, artwork, links, books, and music

about Waldorf and alternative wholistic, spiritual and pagan parenting

systems for your child and yourself -full of interactive potential

to advance the consciousness and responsibilities of conception.

If you would like to contribute, in any way, please contact SunInMoon below.

On Children
And a woman who held a babe against her bosom said, "Speak to us of Children."
And he said:
Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts.
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;
For even as he loves the arrow that flies, so He loves also the bow that is stable.

-Kahlil Gibran-

To view Gibran's beautiful artwork please visit our Tao of Spiritual Guides and Teachers.

Alternative Schools

School For Designing A Society

The School for Designing a Society, as a concept, arose out of a class taught in 1981 and 1984 by Marianne (Manni) Brun, an instructor at Unit One, an experimental program for undergraduate students at the University of Illinois. The class was called "Designing Society" and focused on articulating social desires, studying the current social system with a critical eye, and working on conceiving of a society based the social desires of the class and in avoidance of the current social problems.

Almost a decade later, friends of Manni’s revived the idea. The friends were part of a group of music composers and performers called the Performer’s Workshop Ensemble (PWE) which formed in 1978. From 1995-1998 PWE took to touring around Germany and the United States performing concerts that mixed music with theater. In 1992, PWE decided to form an expanded, summer-long variation on Manni’s class. The first attempt was held locally in Urbana, but from 1993 through 1996, the school was held at the Gezundheit Institute, a project to build a free silly hospital in West Virginia; at a meditation center in Sioux Falls South Dakota; at Horizon’s School, an alternative high school in Atlanta, Georgia; and at Dreamtime Village, an ecovillage in rural Wisconsin. At these sites, the school took on more of the qualities of a community since participation involved cooking, eating, and sleeping in close quarters with few distractions and little contact with outsiders.

"We want to compose ourselves, and, in so doing bring forth a world. Our interrelationships bring forth ourselves and one another; we want to romance and theorize and carefully alter our interrelations. We want the world and the people in it to live and thrive collectively. We want to wear lively, funny hats made out of deadly serious newspapers. We are interested in the creation of new problems. We are interested in the significance of experiment for the realization of social change."
-- William Gillespie

There are no more than a handful of schools, in any country, based on the desire for social change; this school proposes in addition, that social change be based on desires. In no other school are the desires of its students given such a high priority.
This school is organized by people who make a point of knowing how to accept an invitation.
There are no administrators.

Designing Society

Gesundheit Institute

(Patch Adams)
To bring fun, friendship, and the joy of service back into health care.
The Gesundheit! Institute is dedicated to upholding a radical socio-political vision replacing greed and competition with generosity, compassion and interdependence.

J.Krishnamurti

THE OAK GROVE SCHOOL
The intent of the Oak Grove School is for students to develop the skills necessary to function in the modern world, and at the same time to develop a foundation for inquiry into perennial questions of human life.
Consistent with the views of its founder, J. Krishnamurti, the school does not subscribe to any creed or ideology. Rather, it assists students in the open-minded investigation of enduring human issues.
Krishnamurti said about the school, "The school is concerned with freedom and order. Freedom is not the expression of one's own desire, choice or self-interest. That inevitably leads to disorder. Freedom of choice is not freedom, though it may appear so; nor is order, conformity or imitation. Order can only come with the insight that to choose is itself the denial of freedom.
In school one learns the importance of relationship which is not based on attachment and possession. It is here one can learn about the movement of thought, love and death, for all this is our life. From the ancient of times, man has sought something beyond the materialistic world, something immeasurable, something sacred. It is the intent of this school to inquire into this possibility."

Religion and World Cultures Class at Oak Grove
By Patrick Foster, High School Teacher
In our weekly high school relationship classes, teachers and students confront typical issues concerning how we relate to friends, to nature, and to ourselves. In the senior religion and world cultures class we look at the ways we relate to spiritual issues.
Academically, we distinguish between how participants in a religion look at that faith and how religious studies scholars look at it—giving the student several, often contrasting, points of view. We also explore the difference between the complex theology of a religious tradition and the popular understanding of the ordinary person. Before we take up the study of several major world religions, we look at the animistic, mythological, and mystical aspects of all religions. We learn that there are many ways to look at religions, that religions have different dimensions, and that our purposes for exploration determine the perspectives we take.

Reflectively, we look at our own spiritual conditioning, at our beliefs regarding the soul, God, and death, for example. We come to realize that accepting others’ beliefs is living a second-hand life, and that to be individuals we need to examine all our beliefs and see the world from our own place. We also learn, as scholars and as human beings, the significant part words play in our lives, especially in our understanding of spiritual matters. In examining the descriptions of the experiences and the ideas of religious founders, participants, and apologists, we see how we typically settle for vague or meaningless descriptions and explanations and how vagueness often masks inherited beliefs and fears.
The religion and world culture class at Oak Grove thus becomes a place to learn to think critically, to see religions very closely, and to explore our own conditioning in spiritual matters.

Visit Oak Grove School

220 West Lomita Avenue

Ojai, California 93023

Phone: (805) 646-8236

Fax: (805) 646-6509

FEATURED ARTICLE

COMING SOON!

Books & Music

The Prophet

"This book, which is Gibran's masterpiece, has become one of the beloved classics of our time. Published in 1923, it has been translated into more than twenty languages, and the American editions alone have sold more than nine million copies.

Gibran considered The Prophet his greatest achievement. He said: "I think I've never been without The Prophet since I first conceived the book back in Mount Lebanon. It seems to have been a part of me...I kept the manuscript four years before I delivered it over to my publsher because I wated to be sure, I wanted to be very sure, that every word of it was the very best I had to offer."

My experience with The Prophet changed the way I view the World and our culture-especially in the 60s, when I was given my first copy. We are never without it, wherever we journey. It's lessons and stories are wise beyond the ages, and still hold up to be true today. We have featured Gibran in our Tao of Spiritual Guides and Teachers during January--view his writings and his incredible artwork.-

The Crystal Children: A Guide to the Newest Generation of Psychic and Sensitive Children
by Doreen Virtue

"Crystal Children reflect the new generation that has come to the Earth plane after the Indigo Children. They are approximately ages 0 through 5, although some members of the first wave of Crystal Children are as old as 7. These children are like Indigos—highly psychic and sensitive—but without the dark edge and the anger energy.
The term Crystal Children is already taking hold worldwide, and people everywhere are talking about these special kids. Since Doreen is the only researcher who is publicly giving speeches on the subject, her audiences have been asking her for a book on the topic. It’s a natural sequel to her book The Care and Feeding of Indigo Children.As babies, Crystal Children may take longer than normal to begin talking. They are highly telepathic, and their tuned-in mothers communicate with them nonverbally. Because they’re so sensitive, the Crystal Children babies may fuss and cry a lot in crowded places. They’re also very fond of nature. Doreen once watched one Crystal Child walk from tree to tree, giving each one a big hug.
Crystal Children are beautiful inside and out, like magnificent little high-priests and priestesses. One look in their eyes, and you’ll recognize Divine love and wisdom. Their auras are bright, radiant, and opalescent—they seem to glow from the inside! They talk about past lives, distant galaxies, and profound insights concerning peace and love. Most Crystal Children’s parents are aware that their kids are special, and they’re thrilled to be parenting such delightful children.
The book includes many interviews with Crystal Children, their parents, and teachers. It discusses parenting and teaching methods that are essential to keeping these children happy and healthy, and how to avoid pitfalls that could spoil their special gifts." (Amazon Review)

The Care and Feeding of Indigo Children
by Doreen Virtue, Doreen, Phd Virtue

Doreen explores the psyche of these special kids and offers alternative solutions to Ritalin based on her extensive research and interviews with child-care experts, teachers, parents, and the Indigo Children themselves. Read the accounts of these remarkable children as they explain why they act-out, are aggressive or withdrawn; and what they want from the adults in their lives.

Pagan Parenting: Spiritual, Magical and Emotional Development of the Child by Kristin Madden.

Parenting from conception to older children. My parents were reading and getting advice from Dr. Spock and Betty Crocker. Goddess Bless Them!

"Kristin Madden is Karl's Mom and was raised in a shamanic home. Alone and with her family, she has explored many Eastern and Western mystic paths. She is a shamanic deathwalker and is a Druid and tutor in the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids. She is the author of Shamanic Guide to Death and Dying and served on a master's degree thesis committee for a program involving the use of visual imagery in therapy with ADD/ADHD children.
Kristin is a former environmental chemist and currently works part-time as a wildlife biologist and avian rehabilitator. She has done graduate work in both environmental chemistry and wildlife biology." (Amazon Review)

Pagan Kid's Activity Book by Amber K

SunInMoon is about ready to write one herself but in the meantime this is a great resource to help your children find heartfelt and nature born activities away from the TV and Computer.

"This is a terrific coloring/activity book for Pagan kids, or any children raised to respect all religions. Geared for the under-13 age level, it covers all the basics. It's largely influenced by traditional Witchcraft teachings (perhaps some Dianic in there, too), which is wonderful but could raise a lot of questions from the kids if your family is a bit more eclectic (although I haven't yet met a Pagan parent who objected to questions!)." (Amazon Review)

Raising Witches: Teaching The Wiccan Faith To Children by Ashleen O'Gaea.

Charms, spells, songs, guided meditations and educational activities. A great basic parenting book for Earth Mothers and Fathers and their children.

"More and more Wiccan families are looking for specific advice about raising their children in the faith. Here is the first book to give parents the means to teach Wicca in a more formal fashion than just "chatting with the kids" around the kitchen table. Featuring a Wiccan curriculum for each of the five age groups, Raising Witches offers a variety of sample lessons and both a structure and a prototype for readers who want to develop "Sun Day School" or "Moon School" classes. There's also the material you would expect-This book includes charms, spells, songs, and guided meditations in addition to practical ideas for educational activities. It includes a glossary and a recommended reading list as well. Featuring detailed discussions of how children grow and learn so that Wiccan parents can teach their Tradition effectively, Raising Witches finally gives parents the means to communicate the rudiments of their faith to their children." (Amazon Review)

Dharma Girl: A Road trip Across the American Generations by Chelsea Cain.

This memoir by 24-year-old Chelsea Cain, who grew up on a commune in the Iowa outback, recounts her nostalgia for her toddler years, when her parents picked berries, smoked pot, and played the banjo while the outside world seemed to be going straight to hell. This is a journey about finding home and self-discovery. A memoir about motion.

Wild Child: Girlhoods in the Counterculture. Edited by Chelsea Cain and foreword by Moon Zappa.

We recommend Wild Child to anyone with a vested interest in hippiedom-for instance, parents seeking validation for their child-rearing methods. It's also a fine antidote to hippie-bashing, considered sophisticated now even by those who once embraced the lifestyle. The truth is, it was a brilliant and optimistic moment in history. If it didn't transform the world completely, well, it did affect future generations-as Wild Child eloquently testifies. Essays on several young women who have experienced being raised by us hippies. Dig it!

Little Miss Strange by Joanna Rose.

A great story about the era of 'free love.' A young woman's brave attempt to understand the secret of who she is.

LINKS

Camp Winnarainbow
Our camp provides the opportunity for children (and adults) to discover new realms of personal achievement, communion with nature, and have BIG FUN at the same time.  For over 30 years kids (and adults) have run away to join our circus in beautiful Mendocino County, in Northern California.

Small Planet Institute

Frances Moore Lappé and Anna Lappé founded the Small Planet Institute to bring to light the emergence of "living democracy," a rewarding, inclusive, learned practice that creates communities that work for all. On every continent, people are bringing this democracy to life by discovering their power to act on their values. At the Institute we further this historic transition through books, articles, speeches, and other media.

Creationship Fine Art for Children
Creationship has proven to be a highly effective after school art program with life enhancing benefits for children.
This fun and unique after-school program focuses on exploring fine art with children.

928-204-0878
rhea@creationship.com

Earth Mama.Org

Joyce Johnson Rouse
Earth Mama Productions
"Helping Heal the Planet One Song at a Time"
Joyce “Earth Mama” Rouse presents high-content, high entertainment musical motivational programs to diverse audiences, inspiring actions for healthy living and a healthy planet. Concerts, workshops, keynotes, classes, and FUN.

 

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