Nurallah joined the Student Teacher program last year with the intention to teach local children the dance drama, Tara Tames the eight Fears.
She writes….
Watching the DVD Tara Tames the 8 Fears – Children Point The Way To Emotional Health, was the spark of inspiration guiding me to enter the Tara Dhatu Educational Program. But maybe it all began long , long ago, in the mind of the Goddess, before our world was even created. Even before I realized my connection to the Divine Mother, Her connection to me was in the works. I love to ponder this mystery.
I lived at the Abode of the Message from 1993 – 1995 and assisted in the Kindergarten at The Mountain Road School. In the video, Prema and Anahata taught all the children of the school over the course of a week, culminating in a performance for parents and friends. Seeing these same children a few years older so engaged with Prema, responding to Tara’s song of beauty, I had a strong urge to bring it to my hometown, Gainesville, Florida.
A local church invited me to teach three separate age groups for three Sundays, 45 minutes a day. I began with a Story of Long ago, before Jesus was born, in a village in Tibet. I had a map to give them an idea of where we are and where Tibet is and it was easy for them to imagine such a far away land with tall mountains and jungle valleys. The people were afraid of many dangers; snakes and robbers, lions and thieves, fires and floods, demons and elephants.
The children sat in a semi-circle facing a beautiful picture of Tara with the words “On a Rainbow Lotus Flower” (which we sang) and “Namo Aria Tara” beneath her. Around TARA on the Wall hung the Eight Fears with their corresponding emotions, because Tara’s real interest is in the fire of anger, the thief of wrong ideas. I asked the children, “Do you know what the snake of jealousy feels like? The children responded with incidents & stories and I guided them to act out their feelings.
Each age group was unique. The last 2 occasions Hakima joined me with her guitar. This was a great help! We did the exercise of “open up the LOVE DOOR” & the final words to every fear……”The Important thing is that you love every single day”…..
We ended with the prayer “Mother Tara, today I will do my best”…
The following week the children painted a huge Mural of Tara. The adults that witnessed the painting were captured by the ideas depicted. With the Christian background in mind I was careful to mention Jesus’s mercy & forgiveness as well as the mercy of his Blessed Mother. I love it that Prema calls Tara a Tibetan Angel. That made it easy to bridge the cultural difference as well.
Thanks to Prema & Anahata for bringing this to our children! I hope I get more opportunities to share this material, I learn so much and I know it makes a big difference to the children to have their feelings acknowledged and to show that we can work with our feelings. And remain in love.
Om Tare.
