Upon reaching Maharashtra I am hosted at a place that resembles Safai vidyalaya. Here’s a family who has dedicated their lives in area of environment and sanitation.

Shri Shrikant Naverkar runs a place by the name of Nirmal gram. They organize sanitation training programs and also engaged in organic farming. Following their father’s footsteps they live Gandhian values of simplicity, discipline and service to others. Before evening meal the entire family gathers for an all religion prayer followed by a reading from Vinoba ji’s book. This is their daily routine since past couple of decades. Shrikant ji’s sister Neelu Tai who has stayed for a long time at Vinobaji’s Ashram at Pavnar, shared the story of her father Bhausaheb, who participated in Bhoodan movement and wished to dedicate his life to sanitation. He had an option of taking up a pensionable job and supporting his family, instead he chose to serve people and so he was offered land by govt. to create a sanitation centre. For this work of sanitation he gave away his most dear art form known as scissor cutting, Bhau Saheb was an artist of cutting paper to create beautiful designs, some of his designs are so intricate that you wonder whether it is paper cutting. He passed away before he could set up sanitation space so NeeluTai and Shrikantji decided to surrender to their father’s dream and built Nirmal gram brick by brick as they had nothing in all literal sense except that piece of land. Upon asking what made them surrender so easily to such a herculean task she replied that it was a deep inner calling and so they never gave mind a chance to meddle with it. Staying and praying with them offered much solace and clarity to follow heart’s path.

The next week was spent at Igatpuri in serving a Vipassana course. For the first time it felt that serving was much tougher than sitting a course. You are tested for your balance of mind every passing hour. From a peaceful service week I drive into the hustle bustle of Mumbai and find myself amongst lovely MBL community there. Serendipitously some chains of events take place and I am in front of a lady named Ushaben who teaches how to use spinning wheel at schools! Teacher who teaches spinning wheel in Mumbai..my mind was just trying to place it rightJ As we interacted she immediately connected me with an old Gandhian who stayed very close by and it was decided that I will meet him the following day. Next day we went to Daniel Dada’s home. He came across as a very gentle and loving soul who has dedicated his life to Jagat Maitri-universal friendship and his home is known as a Maitri centre. He went to explain that it all started when Vinobaji was engaged in Bhoodan movement there would be a constant flow of people from all over the world coming to understand and be a part of his walking pilgrimage. So Vinobaji asked Daniel dada to open a Friendship space at Mumbai where he would host anyone flying in and orient them in the movement before they join Vinoba ji. He has been holding this space for more than two decades now. He further connected me with two of his friends who I was to meet at Pune.

As he learnt about MBL he urged that youth should commit to serving a cause and in doing that the inner journey is strengthened.
Attended a lovely Awakin evening with Deven and a community he has built. Some known and a lot of unknown people came and became friends. Before leaving for Pune I got a chance to visit Yogeshbhai’s centre and he shared his inspiring journey of walk he had just completed. More was shared through silence then words and we parted with a blessing in our hearts.

A school without walls

Have you heard of a school without walls? A school where kids decide what they want to study and create their own learning projects? We reach such a school amidst hills and natural beauty of sindhudurg area. We are given a tour of the school by a 10 year old and she surprises us by her explanations on farming, engineering, cooking, construction and many more experiential labs that they have. Upon inquiring what inspired the couple to take this leap of faith? The answer was – their daughter. They wanted to give their daughter a holistic upbringing and that was possible only at School without Walls. For realising this dream they have converted their 150 years old family home to this school. Kids come and stay with them and learn through different projects they take up. Their kids have graduated and joined large multinationals or further education programs like IIT and symbiosis. However, Sachin father to all these kids is not happy with the progress diverted in direction of more urbanisation. The ideology they wish to inculcate is sustainable living and learning within the rural areas and maintaining environment. They also make and sell organic products. This is one part of what they do. The other deeper part is the connect they have built with local community and the work they do to integrate with farmers around them. They have been a catalyst in creating change in the ways of farming. One entire village has moved into organic farming and understanding the eco-friendly ways of living. They also introduced us to their friend who comes from a tribal community and has created a museum at home that showcases the long forgotten methods of tribal living. It was interesting to note that tribal God is nature and they pray in front of a leaf and bronze vessel filled with water covered with a green cloth and decorated with peacock feather. They say all this signifies presence of nature. He showed us handmade musical instruments that they still play during their cultural functions. To revive their lost heritage both his sons have left job in the city and have decided to be with the family. This one place brought a lot of clarity about community and sustainable living.

We came across a teacher turned organic farmer Anand Mayekar. We had no plans or even a reference to meet him but somehow we landed up in his farm and found that we were in front of a farmer who is a writer, poet and a deeply spiritual person. In every moment with him we were connected with nature. Sitting under a mango tree we ate lots of mangoes. The moment a mango would fall off the tree Anandji will say if you do not eat this one the tree will be disappointed! He then invited us for dinner and stay at the farm. We accepted it humbly and we had dinner under a bright full moon in the farm and slept in the open, praying that no mango will fall while we were asleep! We had a heart to heart conversation with him and as he talked about his job as a teacher and his shift to becoming a farmer and staying on his own farm we immediately related to the transition he has gone through in his life. The realisation in that moment was all of us are heading towards the same divine through different routes we take.

Crossing borders

That day was my driving test! I drove almost 300 kms. Through winding Ghats and forest area to reach a beautiful town Kundapur. We were hosted by a friend’s friend Dinesh Kamat who is a businessman by habit but at the core of his being you can see genuine service attitude. More importantly we came to know that this village operates as a one big community. So if there’s a marriage in some family they just inform others and every one volunteers to make sure the festivities are taken care of. This village has an ancient lake that was filled with algae and a lot of impurities. The villagers took it upon themselves to clean it up and 5000 people gathered and did the job. No help taken from government, not a rupee used as they came with cleaning material from home. In that brief stop we were witnessing virtues in community living. Not to mention we were fed with love and well rested before we headed out.

What would you call peels of vegetables, leftover rotten food, used tea bags? If you say its waste, she retorts by saying “don’t call it waste, it is a natural resource”, she is Jyoti shah. Who has truly converted fruit and vegetable peels to fruit trees and vegetable garden. If the thought is she is a farmer who has a big farm, she again proves us wrong as all this is done on the terrace of her flat. She calls herself urban farmer. We met her at her terrace garden in Pune. She proudly showcases 26 years of her hard work that has transformed into sugarcane, sapota, pomegranate, mangoes, herbs, tomatoes and other vegetables. Her success mantra any bio degradable material is not waste it is a natural resource and should go back to nature. She has been propagating urban farming and has successfully converted spaces to green spaces. The only requirement for such a garden is a space where there is sunlight for 4hrs a day. We were lucky to meet this green warrior who has been spreading the green word in the busy city of Pune and works with various organizations, companies, and schools to promote urban gardening. Her core message is nature is ready to provide you do you have the willingness to do it? She is open and willing to share her knowledge with anyone anywhere in the world who wants home grown food. Her success story of home grown Coccinia grandis at London served as a proof of what she does.

Pune to Kolhapur

Two co-traveller joined me, Pratik and Bhoomi. We are hosted by a friend Divya to her home at Kolhapur. She was out of town but opened her home to us to stay and rest.
We visit a Naturopathy centre Anand Kunj that focuses on urine therapy. Anand Kunj is on a hilltop surrounded by beautiful Sahyaadri mountain ranges. This centre is started by Dr.Shashi Patil and has treated our former Prime Minister Shri Morarji Desai. Today Dr. Patil’s two sons and their families have taken over the centre and work dedicatedly with values of service. Dr. Sarang shared that to break free of the disease you need to break the routine and once a certain routine is broken the pattern is broken. I started applying the thought to our deep rooted inner patterns and found this to be true. Senior Dr. Shashi shared that whatever we do in the end will result in a big zero-shunyata. We all should be aware about this zero and not get attached to our own glory!

That evening was Wednesday and it became a special Awakin Wednesday. As I reached Kolhapur i realized I had forgotten my phone at the centre -50kms away. We call up the Ashram and to my relief I learn that there is one auto rickshaw guy who has gone from the city and will be returning in sometime. They assure me safe return of my phone. After that we go to the famous Mahalakshmi temple and conduct our Awakin session there. The moment silence gets over we are informed by one of the priests that today is full moon day and there will be special aarti. So we wait for that. As we are soaking ourselves in prayers and hymns being sung we get a call from the auto guy that he has arrived at the temple gates with the phone! He patiently waits for us till we finish our prayers. We share our concern on his coming so far to which he says we believe that “guest is God” and you are on a pilgrimage so this is my offering to your journey. He leaves us stunned. God indeed appears in different forms.

Bhaav Jatra moves to interior parts of Saurashtra. The first day we have Satsang with an 80 year old man about who shared stories about his guru. At a remote place called Dhari that is in middle of the Gir forest we are hosted by a friend. One of their friends invited us over for some herbal tea at his home and to our surprise we find out pictures of Sri Aurobindo and mother in his sitting room. Upon asking he takes us to Sri Aurobindo ashram space right there in Dhari! This place is blessed by relics of Sri Aurobindo and mother and offers a serene meditative environment. He also gives us the ‘blessings packet’ the mother as we depart.

From there we reach a town named Sutrapada. This town houses Gujarat Heavy chemicals Ltd. Factory and most of the residents work in this place. Bhupat our host for the day takes us around various places one of which is a siddi community. They are people from Africa but speak colloquial Gujarati. They were brought to India some 500 years ago by the king as slaves and they stayed back as they found the land more rewarding and liveable. This again proved the openness of our land in accepting people from all over the world as one of us.

We then found ourselves amongst a bunch of men who belonged to quarry workers families. They have worked hard and studied to become teachers, MBA’s, Engineers and have formed a forum called “career group” to help the youth who are currently in their high schools. We conducted a small circle of sharing where we asked them what service meant to them and slowly shared the 3 key aspects of service space- no fund raising, completely volunteer driven and focus on small. They picked up the idea quickly and we had a discussion around how they can frame the career group based on these principles. As we were sharing, my heart was in deep gratitude to noble friends who shared this with us. What we received from that circle was a lot of joy, hope reflecting in the eyes of the group members and love from them. One of the volunteers openly offered to conduct trainings for them and also help them select and source appropriate books needed to prepare for exams.

Thereafter, we reach Gandhiji’s birth place – Porbander. We come across some magical experiences here. To start with we were hosted at a home that was frequented by Vimala Thaker, Ram Dulari and Swami Vivekanada! I was humbled by the mere thought of sleeping in the same room that Vimala Tai had stayed in, I prayed to Lord to make me worthy enough to absorb the energies coming my way. Our hosts Dr. Pathak had invited a few of his doctor and professor friends for a circle of sharing. We were speechless to hear some stories of RAK from them as we learned that there are people who have been doing this as a daily practice for more than 15-20 years! One of them just like our service warrior Raghu – is delivering lunch boxes everyday to the relatives of people admitted in the hospitals. He doesn’t know who will eat today but every single day he is there to serve. This group of friends also do so many things anonymously one of being free medicines, surgery and education for the underprivileged. We also shared some of our MBL stories and as we were sharing, one friend and a disciple of Sri Aurobindo suddenly offered us a blessing and an invitation to speak to his students the next day.

Before we knew, we were in front of 100 to be teachers who were a couple of months away from graduating. We had no preparation of what to say or even a presentation, we visualized our dearest friends and started with a question “How would today’s Gandhi be?” based on the question we shared how small acts can bring big change, inner transformation and a little on Bhaav yaatra. This group is super inspired and two women come up to us and share that this is the first time they have seen that out of Gujarat there are people who think about all this and there’s so much hope. In a couple of days we find out that one of the students who is also a reporter with a daily newspaper has printed an article about this whole talk! We thank him for the hard work and share that this is not about publicity but about ripples to which he replies that this talk has given him a chance to create ripples in this way! We receive this with grace and move on.

As we move towards Dwarka – A holy place of Lord Krishna, we come across 1000’s of people on walking pilgrimage on the occasion of holi. One of them was bowing on the road at every step – This is called Dandvati yaatra. We bow down to take his blessings and offer him some sweets in that one moment there is exchange of energy and well being and we are left motionless absorbing that energy. Faith can indeed make anything possible.

Bhaav Yatra – Week 3 & 4: From confusion emerges clarity

My pilgrimage was going in its 5th gear when suddenly I had to slow down as my parents fell ill and needed care. I was confused and felt stuck when I had to be home, I had all thoughts coming about when and how I will proceed. A noble friend helped me a lot when he messaged me “Taking care of family is purest and holiest pilgrimage just like Lord Ganesha”, this changed my perspective and everything became clear and I started flowing once again with love and prayers of healing for everyone around me.

Then we were invited at Baroda for a Karma kitchen we were hosted by Pandya family. The warmth and hospitality that flowed for the next couple of days was mind blowing. I was at receiving end when everyone showered love and care constantly. For the preps we went to another volunteer’s home only to find out that they had done almost everything. The most touching moments arrived when we got to know that her father chanted the whole day so all food is blessed. They also refused to eat till all of us finished our food. We were all deeply moved by the humility that they showed and again a question popped up in my brain..do we need training to be humble? Isn’t it about who we are? At the karma kitchen we had 5 enthusiastic kids who took over serving all the guests! Their fervor kept us all going till the end of the evening and for me the learning was to keep the child within me alive to absorb, learn and also find true joy in every bit.

The highlight of this trip to Baroda was a chance meeting with a Lama who had come all the way from Hawaii at one of the friend’s home. We got about an hour with him and he spoke about faith being the fuel to everything. He shared his experience of coming to India in 1959 just a couple of months before The Dalai Lama came, he said he walked from Tibet with one pair of clothes and a bottle of water. When they came there was nothing and now there are monasteries and dwellings for people who have come from Tibet. He said this is the result of faith on Universe that keeps them going. When we asked “how do you know that now you have the grace of God in your journey”, he smiled and replied “God’s grace is flowing forever, the moment you doubt it is lost, so have faith that it is there always”.

We spent a day at Ahmedabad recharging our soul batteries in the company of MBL family. Here we learnt that a lot of friends are going on different journeys this year, instantly this line came “all roads leads to Lord”. As I proceed to leave Nimeshbhai (Nimojiiiiiiii) bows down in front of my car the group hugs the car and blesses my journey ahead. It felt like the entire universe has embraced me and is holding me at all times. Wishing Nimo a blessed “Empty hands” tour.

Spent next three days in silence with Mukeshanandji, experienced the depth of silence when mind was rested and there was peace all over. Met a lady just outside the ashram who sells snacks, after a brief conversation she looks into my eyes and says “please pray that I can go on a pilgrimage to Mecca soon, I believe that Lord listens to prayers of a pilgrim quickly”, her faith made me promise her that I shall surely pray for her. We visit another saints place called “Maun (silence) madir (temple)” so literally temple of silence. This is the space where there are rooms where people meditate in silence. The beauty of the space was a banyan tree that had grown multifold and one could not make out the origin of it all.

Back to Baroda I stop and join friends who have offered to clean Arundada’s home. Arundada who’s Volunteered with Vinobaji in Bhoodan movement. He shared beautiful songs. One of his experiences that he shared was about his neighbor who once tried to encroach upon the house Dada lives in and Dada at the age of 80 stands up to his bullying with peace, firmness and compassion. Arundada cultivates a loving relationship with him and now he daily wishes dada a good day before he would proceed to work. Upon hearing the story we were asking how can you be compassionate to someone who is a drunkard wants to beat you up? Dada smiles and asks “If he were my son will I condemn him for what he was doing?” he adds “If you treat everyone as a loved one it becomes easier to forgive and be in a state where compassion keeps flowing”. Indeed, that is what the purpose of my yatra is. Feeling one with everyone and seeing my loved ones everywhere. Feeling deep gratitude to Dada for this reminder. If all this is not enough he offers his space for a circle of sharing about the pilgrimage with other friends in Baroda. He smilingly adds, this is not to honor you as a person but this is for the pilgrim within you who will share experiences that can inspire other friends too.

~ More Stories to Keep Flowing ~ Jai Jagat ~

Ashrams near Narmada and co-traveler finding purpose in life at the border of Gujarat

We go to an Ashram at Garudeshwar and meet an old dada who manages the whole place for past 40 years. As he’s sharing his journey he says all of us have one of the three paths in our life “that of karma (doing), that of Bhakti (prayer in surrender) and Samadhi (being)”. Some people are strong in doing and are supported by other two and vice versa. But the most important aspect is maintaining absolute purity on any path you take. Once you walk on it universe will conspire everything for you. He simplified something very complex and it immediately resonated a lot with what all of us go through so many times, of finding our real path or calling.

From thereon we moved ahead to meet a banker turned organic farmer couple to learn more from their lives and most importantly to understand what made them shift from city life to village life from boardroom to fields. Amongst a lot of other things they shared the one that struck a chord with me was to connect with nature and learn from nature more than any other way.

They sent us to their senior friend who had guided them through the whole process of shift. When we reached that friend’s place we came to know that they were taking their first Vipassana course and we were greeted by their two sons in their twenties.

These guys were far from being in their twenties, they had been homeschooled and had knowledge about a lot of things that is usually rare in that part of the world. There house was a live eco-friendly model powered by solar lights, water recycling and a windmill of its own! Of course, with a cow in the shed and fruit trees all around. My body was tired but I was so alive and soaking everything around me, including juicy fruits!
As we all cooked together we discussed everything from farm to homeschooling to development and national politics as it was election time. The views that one of the boys had on development really put me to thought, questioning the whole definition of “development” as we think about it. He presented the ugly side of so called development and the pain of the uneducated people who get cheated in the process. This showed a brighter side also that the youth is becoming so aware and there’s hope. As some saint shared with us that today is the product of yesterday’s thought and tomorrow will come from what we manifest today. So we should focus on our thoughts today and create a beautiful tomorrow from it.

Over to Chanod a known place to Narmada pilgrims that houses a lot of Ashrams and we were lucky to stay at Ma Anandmayi’s ashram. This is a serene and silent space which offered good reflection time for us. My Sahyaatri Trilok uncle and I were discussing our paths and how we are on this yatra together and he shared that when he joined me it was more from a space of giving me support so I am not alone, but as the yatra proceeded he was feeling supported from within and was able to see life from a different lens as we kept meeting inspiring souls.

Next day we land up at Oasis a centre for learning where programs for kids, parents and teachers are undertaken. Here we meet Mehul who has spent 12 years in developing this space without distorting the nature around it. He was very kind to take out time for us and we could see the twinkle in his eye when he fervently shared the work they do. The programs they run are focused on learning from nature and trusting the eco system. They believe in nurturing children and bringing out the best in them by allowing them the freedom of expression rather than coaching or teaching them. As we were leaving I left some smile decks behind for him to experiment with kids.

We were then warmly welcomed at Paragbhai’s home in Surat and pampered in all possible ways. Paragbhai and Meetaben is this couple whose humility is beyond words. As we shared about their work and life, my co-traveller Trilok uncle had a beautiful moment of realization that he was nearing his purpose in life and felt immense gratitude for Paragbhai. We had a circle of sharing in the evening where a lady comes up and asks if she can suggest a place where I should go next if my yatra is not too fixated. I openly accepted her invitation and it turned out to be a universal blessing.

We found ourselves in the last village of Gujarat –Maharashtra boarder where Suchiben’s husband Muni ji does water restoration projects. He comes across as a man of science who tunes into science of nature and creates magic through his work. We interacted effortlessly with an uncommon vibrancy. He quoted lines from spiritual texts to explain the importance of human body. He further explained that God has given us this beautiful vehicle for effective use and when God takes human forms he also uses this vehicle so body should be given as much importance as a temple. He also showed us his work with childlike fervor and admitted that he has four stents in his heart so he has nothing to be afraid of even if he passes away and the beauty of it is that he is enjoying his work and the learning that comes from that. Here was a person in his seventies fearless and filled with joy and inner strength to utilize every minute in service to humanity.

In that moment, tears were rolling down Trilok uncle’s eyes and he suddenly decided that he found his calling in that space and he would stay back and volunteer with Muniji in his projects. We all sat in silence and welcomed Trilok uncle’s arriving back and coming alive.

From there on, I had to continue on my path all alone crossing borders of Gujarat and being welcomed by mountain ranges of Maharashtra. As I drove past the border area there was a check point where police stopped me to inspect my car and moreover I could read questions they were mulling over as to – why a lone lady on highway? What is the painting on the car all about? Was this a part of some political campaign owing to election time? Before they could ask anything, I pulled out heart pins and put it on them and shared about my journey. They were shocked and happily surprised at the same time and bid me a smiling goodbye, wishing me luck on my way!

Some point ahead I came across a couple, who had a flat car tyre so I stopped to help them in any way I could and again the same questions came up. A little later when we started driving, I saw that couple waving to me saying we are with you until this road ends. They almost drove 50 kms with me so I will not feel alone on the highway! Universe had once again won over all my fears and confirmed that we are being taken care of more than our brains can fathom.

Baroda offered a cozy stay with love that recharged the inner batteries to go ahead. At Arun dada’s home, a couple 60+ got super inspired and expressed their wish to become sahyaatri’s. So next day I proceed with 3 senior citizens as my co-travelers. The mind started throwing doubts about whether it was a great idea to allow all seniors to come; will they adjust with any condition? Well, we proceeded towards “kabirvad’ a place that houses a single banyan tree that covers the entire area of almost 3kms wide and 7 kms long with its branches, it is difficult to find out the original tree.

We stopped by at yet another gurudwara for lunch and heard that Guru Govindsinghji had stayed there during his Narmada pilgrimage. When we reached the banks of river Narmada we found out that we will have to take a boat to reach Kabirvad which was on the other side and we were almost near to the last boat departing. I was just thinking of next course of action when my cell phone rang, it was the person whom we were to visit next day. He was inquiring about our whereabouts. I shared the story of our reaching kabirvad and he suddenly puts me on hold and asks me to wait there for 5 min. Before those 5 min. were over we got a call from a person named Raju, who is friend of the first guy and he arranges our boat, stay and everything in under 10 minutes. We were all in deep gratitude to how universe operates and sends people your way. We did not know any of these guys at all and in 10 minutes we became good friends. All this while when the external magic was unfolding an internal magic was taking place – our old couple was starting to believe in flow and universal connect. Uncle, who was silent since we left Baroda started sharing. We had a circle of sharing at Kabirvad under the starry sky.

Next day we drove to another religious place known as Nareshwar that houses the Samadhi of saint Sri Rang Avadhoot. We had a good meditation sit. Then we proceeded to a small village that houses totally about 30 families known as Somaj. We were to stay in Somaj for the evening but the village people would just not allow us to leave and we stayed on for 2 days. What happened in those two days was like a dream, every moment was circle of sharing. We found that the whole village follows “swadhyaya” –inculcating teachings of Gita in practice as propounded by Rev. Pandurang Shastriji. They have daily prayers thrice a day; no one in the village has any vices of smoking, drinking or even family fights. They all have decided to lead life the Bhagvat Gita way. Every evening they have a prayer circle where they sing hymns and even kids participate. What a way to spread values among them. A question popped up-how many of us pray with our families every day? We talk about experiential value education in the cities and here I was witnessing it in a small village where not many were educated!

It is customary to visit every home in the village and have tea with them. So that day I had around 20 cups of black tea served with love and joy. At one such home they had bought a new tractor for farming and so the family made me inaugurate it with the belief that when pilgrim blesses it the farm will be blessed and abundance will flow. It was a very touching moment and I was thinking that we would look for some celebrity to inaugurate our new endeavor and here this person was honoring the pilgrim within me.

As we were strolling in the fields we came across this gentleman who was standing with a large tray in his hand and waiting. Upon inquiring we found that he was waiting for wind the moment there is some breeze he will move the tray to clear the husk off the grain. He was engaged in the work since noon as the wind starts blowing after that. Also he will change direction to suit the wind direction. His love and patience for nature was exemplary in that moment.

As we were absorbing learnings from nature around us soaking ourselves in the waters of Narmada river we met 3 pilgrims who were walking barefoot around Narmada. The oldest among the three was an 80 year old woman supported by two 70 year olds. I asked them “why would you take upon such a difficult pilgrimage at an old age”? Smilingly, all the three of them said “ we have finished all our karmic duties so we have informed our families that you be happy and lead life your way, even if we don’t come back (if we die), do not shed tears, be grateful to Ma Narmada (river Narmada is known as mother Narmada) for embracing us forever”. All we could do was bow down to their “renunciation”.

That night we had a gathering at the village temple where another old man summed up the day with a piece of wisdom. He said life is like a box of jaggery and we are all ants, we are so tied up in the box and its sweetness that even when the jaggery melts and the ant dies within, it does not realize that the end is near. Similarly, we are so attached to everything that we die within without realizing the time to renounce it all.