Explain this to a 4 yr old......... "What is Spirit?"?

Question

Last night I was talking to my daughter about the upcoming holiday, Memorial Day. I told her that its a day to remember our loved ones that have died. Then the conversation changed we started talking about my grandma, she died when I was a child and my daughters middle name is after her, I told my daughter that her great grandmas spirit is still alive and watches over us. I told that when our body dies our spirit still lives but we can't see or hear it. Then my 4 yr old daughter looks up and says "Whats Spirit?" So now I'm thinking, ooohhh crap how do I explain this !!!!!

I'm not religious though I am spiritual, I haven't found a specific belief that feels right to me. If you can't answer this question without trying to convert me to your belief then please don't bother answering.

I would like advice from a non-religious and open-minded perspective. Thanks.

Do you people not realize that you can be spiritual without having a religious belief ?? Come on. I do belief in Spirits and afterlife, I believe in a higher power of some sort, I just don't have a name for it. Its called Agnostic, which basically means believing in something but not knowing what.

I just can't think of how to explain the basics of Spirit and afterlife on a level that she will understand.

Answer 1

Spirit is when somebody dies, they still watch over you with their mind to make sure your okay

Answer 2

Try explaining it through the concept of right and wrong (but I'm afraid religion would come in there too!). Try telling her that the good ones will be rewarded in after life and the bad ones punished. But how will it be done when we have phyisically turned to dust. Then tell her that is why there is a "spirit" in every human being, somethnig which is not material and which would be there at the end to bear thr fuit of our deeds in this life. I guess this should do :)

Btw. I was just wondering if you DO believe that a supreme being exists then does it not soemtimes really gnaw you to find out the truth about that being? I mean I would be biting my nails in agitation if I believe in something yet am not able to fully formulate my opinion about it.

Answer 3

I have no belief in anything called spirit. The fact that you can't explain this in basic terms to a four year old suggests that "spirit" isn't anything that can be understood, even if it did exist. You told your daughter that spirits watch over you. If that is your definition then just teach her as you believe.

Or you could honestly say,"I don't know." and let her find her own way when she's older.

Answer 4

i do no longer probable comprehend what you propose once you're saying she made it appear like a huge crime, while you evaluate that could desire to selection everywhere from feigning it being a huge deal so he might desire to get the factor, or she might have been screaming at him on the subject of the police coming to him because of the fact he's a criminal. So, i visit anticipate that the instructor had the terrific intentions and purely needed your son to comprehend that taking toys is misguided. additionally, you in no way comprehend, perhaps he does it a lot. perhaps she's had many conversations with him in an identical way you probably did. in specific situations while toddlers do issues like this, "undesirable" yet technically purely what young toddlers that age do, instructors do no longer carry it up suited away with mothers and fathers in an attempt to no longer freak them out over some thing while it extremely isn't any longer an ordinary subject. (eg. I labored with infants. mothers and fathers did no longer pay attention approximately every time their youngster hit, because of the fact its very consumer-friendly toddler habit. They did pay attention approximately it while the youngster began hitting others extra frequently than frequent). So, perhaps it extremely is transforming into to be a ordinary subject and he or she had to hold it up in front of you so as which you may notice. it would desire to no longer yet be a huge sufficient subject to truly meet with you approximately it. Introducing subject concerns like this includes careful recommendations-set. It shouldn't come of nowhere if she has to certainly meet with you to talk it, whether it is likewise extremely no longer suited to make a huge take care of a gathering or pulling the be certain aside if the placement isn't yet a real subject, fairly with consumer-friendly young toddlers behaviors. If there have been different mothers and fathers in the room might or no longer it extremely is extra embarrassing for her to tell your baby to no longer scouse borrow and pass away the door open so which you will deal with it later, or for her pull you aside in case you're nonetheless in the college room the place different mothers and fathers can needless to say see what's happening (and helpful pay attention!) and the place it is going to look like a extra physically powerful deal? I guess the different mothers and fathers thought no longer something of it. I guess if she pulled you aside it would have appeared like a huge deal and been fairly awkward. i think of you may desire to be overreacting slightly.

Answer 5

Well seeing as you do not want a religious definition of spirit all I can think of for you to say is,Grandma is like Casper the friendly ghost!

Answer 6

I would probably answer her like this, "God gave us a soul. We can't see it or feel it, like the air, but it's inside us in our hearts. When we die, our body stays here but our soul goes to God, just like how grandma did."

Hope this helps. I have a 4 year old nephew
who was asking about the Virgin Mary and watched my father try to explain it to him. They're smarter than we think, LOL!

God bless.

Answer 7

Spirit is something people use for an excuse when they lose loved ones. They want to think the will see them again but they wont. Their spirit is in your head your memories of them are there spirit. So spirit is the memories of lost loved ones that you will never see or hear from again. Maybe in a dream or something but thats really not them it is your memory their spirit.

Answer 8

Well you shouldn't lie to children. It's cruel. You said yourself you don't know what you believe. You like to believe in spirits because it makes you feel better or whatever. But just because this works for you does not mean it is good to fill the child's head with lies.

Answer 9

I would tell her what i tell my son when I talk about Jesus. I said, "Jesus was a man who lived on Earth once but then his body stopped working one day, so he had to leave it. Now, he goes anywhere he wants and we can feel him fore than we can see him. But he's always there. Talk to him all the time. He will always hear you."

Answer 10

The spirit is like electricity you can't see it but when you turn on the light switch it is there!