Sai Parenting Initiative
Plant in those tender hearts the seeds of love, sympathy, truth, justice, charity, compassion, repentance and self-control . That is the prime duty of all who deal with children. When the father asks the child to tell someone at the door that he is not at home, or...reply to a phone call, that he has gone out; the vice of dishonesty is implanted in the child. Do not burden the tender brains with all kinds of lumber, information that can never be put to use, facts that warp and twist truth, etc. Teach them only as much as they can use beneficially and as much as can be of direct help to them in their lives. Train character more than brains. The parents first and foremost, the teachers next, the comrades, playmates and companions next, and the various levels of society later, these shape the character of the children, and the destiny of the country.
Sri Sathya Sai Baba on January 19, 1969, SSSS vol 9, #2
As the primary role models and sculptors of a child’s personality, parents have a profound influence on their child’s spiritual growth. They play a pivotal role in cultivating an environment that nurtures the blossoming of human values. Therefore, since the inception of Sai Spiritual Education (SSE) classes in the United States, there has been a concerted effort to involve parents.