Did you ever notice how much of the social dialog in ISKCON revolves around the role of women? There is always some misogynist who, unable to garner the respect of women via his own prowess, uses the guise of “implementing varnashram” to advocate for a social system where women will have to respect him out of an enforced duty.

This has been going on for decades and has tarnished the concept of varna ashram with a yucky factor that will take a generation or more to be shed of. Meanwhile, for the vast majority of Hare Krishna chanters, this debacle of a debate has turned the International Society for Krishna Consciousness into the Irrelevant Society for Krishna Consciousness, a society based on a selective reading of scripture and theoretical ideas that bear little relevance to most devotees’ daily lives.

Think about it, when was the last time you heard an interesting or realistic discussion of how to deal with your children in an ISKCON based setting?

So, although it goes against the politically correct limits on what is discussed by devotees on the internet, here are some tips on child rearing in today’s society (click through to the whole article to see all the purports(from someone outside of ISKCON, due to the dearth of material on real world child rearing within ISKCON))

25 Ways to Simplify Your Life with Kids

Anyone who has kids knows that any life with kids is going to be complicated, at least to some degree. From extra laundry to bathing and cooking and shopping and driving and school and chores and crises and sports and dance and toys and tantrums, there is no shortage of complications.

You won’t get to ultra-simple if your life includes children … but you can find ways to simplify, no matter how many kids you have.

Take my life, for example: I have a house full of kids, and yet I’ve found ways to streamline my life, to find peace and happiness among the chaos. How is this magic trick accomplished? Nothing magical, actually, but just little things that have simplified my life over the years.

The main magic trick, however: making my family my top priority, and choosing only a small number of priorities in my life. If you have too many things you want to do, or need to do, your life will become complicated. But if you choose just a few things that are important to you, you can eliminate the rest, and simplify your life greatly.

What follows is a list that might seem complicated to some — 25 items! Trust me, I could easily double this list, but I don’t want to overwhelm you. Instead of trying to tackle everything on this list at once, choose a few things that appeal to you, and give them a try. Bookmark this page and come back to it from time to time to try out other ideas. Best yet, they might inspire new ideas of your own!

  1. Self-sufficiency. This one tip could simplify your life greatly, over time. However, it will make things more complicated in the short term. The idea is to teach your kids to do things for themselves as they get older and more capable…
  2. One calendar…
  3. Toy bins…
  4. Regular cleanups…
  5. Quiet bedtime routines. Kids thrive on routine, and no routine is better than the one before they go to sleep. Have a regular routine before bed…
  6. Prep the night before…
  7. Don’t schedule too much…
  8. Have dedicated family times…
  9. Simple clothing…
  10. Always prep early. I try to make it a point to look at the schedule in advance (usually the day before) to see what’s coming up…
  11. Always bring snacks…
  12. Baby wipes and emergency kit…
  13. Pack spare clothes…
  14. Create weekly routines…
  15. Communicate as a family…
  16. Go on dates…
  17. Create alone time for your spouse…
  18. Let things go sometimes. I’m not always good at this, but it’s something I work on constantly: don’t always be so strict. Let things go…
  19. Make decluttering a family event…
  20. Spend quiet time at home…
  21. Create traditions. Kids love traditions, from holiday traditions to family traditions…
  22. Make cooking and cleaning a family thing…
  23. Reduce commitments…
  24. Get active. These days, kids can become very inactive (and unhealthy) with all the TV, Internet and video games they consume. Get them active by going outside with them and taking walks, going for swims, playing sports. My family likes to play soccer or kickball…
  25. Focus on doing, not on spending. Too often we send messages to our kids about how to live life, based on what we do: we like to go shopping, and eat out, and go to the movies, and so our kids learn that having fun means spending money. We focus on material things, and therefore so do they. Instead, teach them (by talking but also by your actions) that what’s important is doing stuff, not buying stuff. Go for walks in the park, play outdoors, play board games, read, tell stories, play charades, cook and clean, go to the beach or lake, build stuff, wash the car. Spend quality time together, doing stuff that doesn’t cost money.