Shavuos, a holiday that celebrates receiving the Torah, is coming in just another week. The Lubavitcher Rebbe said that every man, woman and child, regardless of age, should attend synagogue on Shavuos so that they can hear the Torah reading, the Ten Commandments. But why should young infants attend? Aren't they too young to understand?
Modern science is starting to verify what Torah has always taught - That we are influenced by our surroundings even before birth. A recent study asked women to read a children's book daily while their children were in the womb. Afterwards, when the mother would read the story to the newborn, the child reacted and showed signs of remembrance. They concluded that children are effected and aware while inside the womb.
There once was a great tzadik, or righteous person, who later went astray. The Talmud refers to him as Acher, or other - His sin was so great that his name was erased and is not to be mentioned. The question is - Why did a great, learned man go astray? They say that when his mother was pregnant with him, she was invited over to a gentile's home where they were cooking non-kosher food. Because she inhaled the fumes of the non-kosher food, they say her son was effected by this, creating a weakness, that later caused him to fall from the proper ways.
[Note: This is not to say that he was "doomed" from day one. G-d gives every person a chance, and there is always repentance. The point is that he might have been weakened by this exposure.]
So we see, both from Torah and from science, that our environment effects us. There are many ways to give your child a head start, even before he's old enough to "understand". Some of the following ideas are geared towards newborns, and other ideas are better for toddlers. Whatever you do, have fun with it!
- Morning and bedtime rituals
In the morning, sing Modeh Ani with your child. You can find the words in the front of most prayer books. Some have a custom to ritually wash their children's hands, just as adults are required to do. The Chazon Ish said that properly washing the hands has been known to ward off depression. (Passionate Judaism, Rabbi Weiss) To ritually wash the hands, pour water from a cup over the right hand, then left, then right, then left and then right and left again - Alternating hands, three times, starting with the right hand.
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