Teaching Children the Importance of Care and Endurance : หน้า 56/207

2) If they do not keep the second Precept (No stealing) then: They might engage in corruption. 3) If they do not keep the third Precept (No sexual misconduct) then: They might engage in prostitution. 4) If they do not keep the fourth Precept (No lying, divisive speech, idle chatter, or harsh words) then: They might commit fraud. 5) If they do not keep the fifth Precept (No consumption of intoxicating substances, such as alcohol or drugs) then: They will exacerbate the breadth of the roads to ruins, (Apāyamukha), i.e. gambling, alcohol consumption, nightclubbing, etc. Raising a Child to Show Care towards Others For children that demonstrate care towards others, they must be taught to take care of themselves. Then, they will be capable of helping others. To achieve this, parents must train children to have endurance. At first glance, it seems like it is enough for children to be wholesome and smart, but the truth is, it is not enough. When one is born as a human being, one must bring benefit to others as well. Let's suppose that we plant a fruit tree. We care for it by watering it, and plowing and fertilizing soil. Ten years pass and it still bears no fruit, so we decide to cut it down. In comparison, if children do not assist others, no one will want to help them when they are adults. Life will be difficult for them and they will be poor throughout life. When they need help no one will want to help them, because they are careless towards others. Parents can teach their children to have care for others by teaching them to help themselves by having endurance at four levels: 1) Endurance towards physical hardship. Children will learn to work hard and not be afraid of hard work and physical hardship. 2) Endurance towards pain and suffering. Children will be aware of the need to care for their own health. They will not be deceptive and will never pretend to be sick to get out of school. 3) Endurance towards conflict. Children will learn to be a team player. They will not have an inferiority or a superiority complex. They will not consider themselves equal to adults. They will know their place when interacting with others.