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Questioner: Dada can you explain the difference between pampering and loving our children?
Dadashri: After being away from his child for two years, a father is so overwhelmed that he hugs his child in a very tight embrace. The child feels smothered and bites his father's arm so that he would release him. Is this the way to show your love for your child?
Questioner: So what should a loving father do?
Dadashri: He should be gentle. He should simply pat the child gently or stroke his hair. This would make the child happy. (P.121)
Never hit your child. Instead, gently run your hand over his head and explain things to him calmly. He will become good when you give him love. (P.123)
(7) BAD HABITS ARE OVERCOME IN THIS WAY
Dadashri: Do you drink alcohol? Do you contaminate your body in this way?
Questioner: Yes, sometimes I do, when there is stress at home. I am being honest with you.
Dadashri: Stop your drinking. You have become a slave to it.
It is not right for you. This is Dada's agna, so you must not touch alcohol at all. Only then will your life run smoothly and you will no longer need to drink. If you read the Charan Vidhi (booklet given after the Gnan Vidhi), you will not need to drink at all. The Charan Vidhi will fill you with bliss. (P.126)
Questioner: How can I be free from addiction?
Dadashri: You must be convinced that the addiction is wrong and this belief will free you from it. Your conviction should not falter at all and your resolve to be free of the addiction should never change. Only then will you overcome it. But if you say that there is nothing wrong with your habit, then you will remain addicted and bound by it. (P.127)
Questioner: They say that if a person has been drinking and using drugs for a long time, that it will affect his mind and the effects will last for a long time afterwards. How can one become free from such chronic effects?
Dadashri: These remaining effects are the reactions from the addiction. All the sub-atomic particles within the body (parmanoos) need to be cleansed. Once the drinking stops, what should he do then? He needs to keep repeating to himself that it is wrong to drink. He should never say that drinking alcohol is good. He must be absolutely convinced that drinking alcohol is wrong and that it is harmful. In this way he will be free from his addiction. If he ever supports the drinking by thinking or