Educating a child requires a delicate balance between love and encouragement on the one hand, and gentle disciplinary measures on the other. But abuse is absolutely forbidden, as `Abdu'l-Bahá explains:
It is notpermissible to strike a child, or vilify him, for the child's character will be totally perverted if he be subjected to blows or verbal abuse.[22]
Indeed, according to Gandhi sometimes it is better to allow children to learn on their own:
A wise parent allows the children to make mistakes. It is good for them once in a while to burn their fingers.[23]