Talk on Emotional Wellness at ConsciousLab, London

 This event was seeded by Martin by introducing me to Rohini  of ConsciousLab. Rohini did a lot of spade work to shape this event and Claudia, Director of ConsciousLab put the finishing touches. It was unfortunate that Claudia couldn’t be present on the day of the event as she was traveling but Shilpa, co-founder of ConsciousLab fulfilled the role of the hostess very effectively and gracefully. Harsh was to help with the video and related arrangements. I have not met any members of the ConsciousLab Team earlier.

 One of the aspects that bothered me about this event is that I prefer workshop mode. My preference is based on my opinion that participants can be left with an experience that opens up new ways of being, doing and having. Talks, in general, get to be more oriented towards giving more information and knowledge. (Of course, there are exceptions like Ekhart Tolle). So, it was a dilemma for me on how to create an experiential event in about 90 minutes. Finally, I decided on an experiment to use video clips, slides and demonstration leading to a guided meditation. From the feedback I received, I am happy and grateful that the experiment was well received.
  I must share the incident about how I met Harsh. I was finding it difficult to locate the building in which the event was to be hosted and went up and down. Finally, I saw an Indian and thought I would take his help and approached him. He immediately recognized me form the picture and introduced himself. That is synchronicity! After the event, he invited me for dinner and it was a pleasure to meet such a young person who is in a spiritual quest.
 An interesting aspect was I discovered another layer of Indra’s Mani Haara (web of jewels) not only in the ConsciousLab team but also among the participants. Rohini was in Auroville earlier and will be going to Auroville again for six months as a volunteer. Shilpa comes to Pondicherry every year on her birthday to meditate in the room of Sri Aurobindo in the morning and at Matri Mandir in the evening. Claudia and Harsh visited Auroville multiple times. Claudia and Divya are planning to bring a group to Auroville later this year. I got to know Helen, when she was in Auroville twice as a volunteer. She came to attend the event with three of her friends. There were another 4 people who met me after the talk and told me that they were at Auroville. So, the network of Integral Yoga is actually manifesting Human Unity.
 Helen has so kindly offered to take me around and show London. I really enjoyed the day in her company. I was very fortunate to have her guidance in experiencing this great and historic city. We walked a lot, talked a lot, went on a Thames cruise, had a picnic lunch at St. James Park and attended the Evensong service at Westminster Abbey.  This is the best way to experience a city like London.
 London must be the most multi-cultural and multi-racial metros in the world and I am very happy that I had an opportunity to be in this city and have a sense of how England is contributing to the actual manifestation of Human Unity.
I am grateful to Martin, Rohini, Clauadia, Shilpa, Harsh and Helen for this extraordinary week-end in London. I am grateful to Martin for making this connection!

Integral Wellness Retreat at Robertsbridge, Kent (UK)

 When I first thought of the trip to Europe, UK was not in my plans because of two factors. UK needs a separate visa and I thought that I don’t know anyone in UK. I now understand that the world is full of people touched by the Integral Yoga of the Mother and Sri Aurobindo. There is already a network like the Indra’s net-of-jewels. Discovering this is another step in my journey of awareness.
UK  came into the picture when I got  a mail from John that he would like to attend the workshop in one of the places (like Germany), if it is going to be in English. I was more than happy to respond in the affirmative. I also said that I would be happy to go over to UK, if he could organize an event. There the matter rested till I met Martin and Dany in Auroville. They attended one of the Pranayama workshops and Martin came up to me and said that he is the Secretary of AVI, UK and mentioned that John sent me a mail. It was a pleasure meeting Martin and Dany and thanks to their large hearts, a warm friendship sprouted. Martin was instrumental in making this event happen.
 John received me very kindly at Heathrow and drove me to the venue, even though he was suffering from severe cough and cold. The venue was Sonia’s beautiful home in Robertsbridge, Hastings (Kent) an abbey that dates back to the 11th century. It was converted into an Oast House in 1832 and Sonia has remodeled it into a beautiful house. Sonia has an extraordinary aesthetic sense and it was wonderful to stay at her home and enjoy her warm hospitality. Sonia was the Chairperson of Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore for two decades before she relocated to UK. She is a scholar of Savitri and the writings and teachings of the Mother and Sri Aurobindo. She is so active and energetic – I would love to be like that when I am eighty. She invited Sara, her charming daughter to help her in providing an extraordinary hospitality with delicious food and great comfort to all of us. Dany was co-creator of some of the culinary delights we enjoyed.
Martin and Dany drove down in their caravan and picked up Vikas on the way. Vikas is the name given to him by the Mother and he lived in Auroville for a decade in the very early stages. Martin was initiated into Integral Yoga by his mother when he was quite young and had a pivotal role in the creation of AVI. I felt diffident and apprehensive about facilitating an “Integral Wellness” retreat for such jewels who have been walking the path of Integral Yoga for decades. I am grateful that they put me at ease and we had a wonderful event.
There are a couple of things that I would always remember from my stay in Sonia’s home. The first is the enlightening chat I had with her during which I received a very important message – “in the triangle of Fraternity, Equality and Freedom; Fraternity belongs in the base of the triangle.”The other unforgettable event is the long walk that we all went as a group and I enjoyed the charming scenery.
From Robertsbridge, Martin and Dany took me to their cozy home in Surlingham, where Martin was brought up as a youngster. They made me feel at home and one of the highlights of may stay was that we did Pranayama together for 4 days! That was really great for me. Martin and Robert took me around Surlingham and Norwich. The walk to the lake (called ‘broad’ along the river with idyllic scenery and pristine beauty was superb. I went for steam engine train ride after more than 30 years! I had a long discussion about ICITI project with Martin and the message I got was “Persevere”.

 Vikas also took a ride with Martin and Dany on the way back from Robertsbridge and kindly invited me to his home. I was more than happy to slightly alter my program and enjoyed  a day (after London –Btah-Chipping Campden on my way to Budapest) with Vikas and Sara. Their home is right on a river along which we enjoyed a walk for a couple of miles. Vikas took me to Cambridge and the visit to Kings College where Sri Aurobindo studied is something that I would always remember. The King’s college Chapel is a jewel of Gothic Architecture. It is somewhere in Cambridge that I got the message through Vikas that it is time to accelerate the manifestation of the Dream in Auroville.
I am grateful to Martin for making it all happen and help me to discover the Indra’s net-of-jewels and enjoy a wonderful trip to UK.
One of the things that occurred to me was that UK has a main contribution in the manifestation of Human Unity by making English the link language. This is in spite of the centuries of occupation by the Romans, Saxons and ….. ruling more than half of the world. It is a miracle that this country is in good terms with almost everyone in the world!

Pranayama Workshop on a boat cruise in the Aegean Sea, Turkey

When I started contemplating the tour of Europe, Turkey was not even in my thoughts. It was Ashish who suggested Istanbul as a venue and connected me with Gunnur Basar, who is the Coordinator or Auroville International in Turkey. It was my good luck that Gunnur, along with her husband Tugay and daughter Ada were visiting Auroville in February 2013. Gunnur is an innovative healer with fusion of homeopathy and psychotherapy. Tigay plays naei (a long flute like instrument) and listening to him takes me to another world. He also conducts workshops in body percussion and gives interactive music performances and concerts.

Bade and Satish gave me an opportunity to offer a PranayamaWorkshop for an international student group. They know Basars well and they also connected me with Gunnur, strengthening the network. I had no idea how the Universe was conspiring to give one of the most delightful experiences of my tour of Europe. Actually, just not this tour, it is an experience of my life.

To cut a long story short, I came to Istanbul despite the concerns related to the protests in Taksim (insert link). The long bus ride from the Airport appeared to be very short as the beauty of this magnificent city is so captivating that you hardly remember anything else. I was thrilled to travel on the bridge that connects the Asian side and European side! The architectural splendor with the fusion of the various styles over centuries and millennia is beyond words. Gunnur was away and Tugay was my host and his hospitality can only be experienced; it is difficult to describe. I had a day to experience the great city. The walk from Galata Tower on the Galata bridge to Sofya, Topkapi Palaces and Cistern was like walking through History and Evolution of mankind. Galata bridge connects Asia and Europe and I was not in this world when I was crossing from one continent to another, in just a 10 minute walk! Every person I met and talked to was courteous and helped me with a pleasant smile. 

The next day I flew to Dalaman and went to Marmaris, where the boat trip starts. I was received by Elif, a friend and collaborator of Gunnur. I had no idea that I would be staying at her home for the evening. It was one of the most pleasant surprises for me to meet, talk and enjoy the hospitality of Elif and Guray. Guray is orthopedic specialist who went to Kerala to train himself in Ayurveda and now runs a healing center where he is blends the ancient (oriental) wisdom with modern (western) science . Elif is a Homepathy practitioner and a yoga teacher, who has gone through intensive training in India.

Gunnur arrived in the evening along with her daughter Ada and I got a sense of the exciting program ahead. Gunnur and Elif (befittingly) named the program Sifa Yoleuluġu (“Healing Journey”). It was planned in a chartered boat for 16 passengers with a crew of 4; with short bursts of sailing in the Aegean Sea and anchoring in a couple of bays per day. The program is a bold and innovative experiment to blend homeopathy treatment based on personality mapping and complemented with psychotherapy, Pranayama and the salubrious climate of the Agean Sea.

How lucky am I to offer a pranayama workshop on board a boat in the beautiful Agean Sea and enjoy a cruise which is out-of-this world. The sessions went off very well on the top deck of the boat; with the ozone charged, cool Mediterranean breeze in the turquoise blue waters with golden sun shine. It was an exhilarating experience in an ambience charged with positive energy.

I continue to be in awe of the commitment of the people I met for their spiritual progress, yoga and wellbeing (they are all One). The boat has yoga mats and cushions because many of their customers want to practice  yoga on the cruise. The participation was awesome! The case of Mr. Teken is interesting. He was suffering from insomnia for several years and was on a dosage of two sleeping pills per night; and finds it difficult to sleep till the early hours of the morning and sleeps for less than a few hours. He slept well with one pill and a simple practice of breath mindfulness. It is not the tool or technique or the teacher – but the participants who produces results with their practice. All others are pointers like the sign boards at the cross roads. To reach the destination, one has to walk the path! To witness that walk and share the exultation of the result is very satisfying and fulfilling to me.

On my way back, Guray picked me up at a small village along with Esra and Cağdaş; a couple who are his friends. On the way to Marmaris, we stopped at a quaint sea side village where Esra and Cağdaş were looking at a property for buying to switch to an entrepreneurial mode to provide high quality, affordable hospitality. This was a very interesting and novel experience for me.

When we reached Marmaris, I met Salma, Elif’s mother and Hayal, Elif’s daughter and Ada. I must have put on a lot of weight in the short time, thanks to the excellent Turkish and Mediterranean food that Salma served us with so much loving care and gracious hospitality. It was a boon to me that I could be part of this blessed home for a couple of days and I enjoyed every moment of it. We went to the beach and water world and it was fabulous to be with this wonderful family.

On the last evening, Esra and Cağdaş came over after dinner. It seems to me that Turkey made exemplary progress in all dimensions under the leadership of Ataturk. The most rapid and spectacular was the dimension of liberal life style that left the choices to the individual without restrictions based religion. My sense is that Turkey today is very similar to Amsterdam and is a model for others to emulate. This liberal aspect is coming under pressure and the people appear to dislike it and are protesting against the move to go back to restrictions. To participate in the protests, people either make a noise from their homes for about 5 minutes or go to the Town Square and stand in silence, holding placards. We went to the town square and it was an experience for me to stand there for a few moments and also observe the impromptu meeting after 10PM. It is an important event that I became part of and I am sure that the people of Turkey would win in their goal of freedom and peaceful life with individual choice. Starting from Moses, history has proved it again and again that the aspiration for freedom always wins. As Gandhi said “The dictators and oppressive leaders appear to gain control for some time. But they all fall”. I felt privileged to witness the aspiration for more freedom. Freedom is the foundation of Human Unity and my days in Turkey revealed to me that Human Unity is manifesting.

What I experienced is that the people of Turkey are fun loving, easy going and very pleasant and hospitable.  Now, I have been expanding my circle from the day I started this journey to stay with my family members in USA. It expanded to Auroville International and then to people of Amsterdam and now to the people of Turkey. I belong to mankind and we are all ONE. I take this experiential wisdom as I leave Turkey, with a heart filled with gratitude, peace, love and a sense that ‘I belong’. Thank you, Turkey. Thank you, the people of Turkey. My special gratitude to Tugay, who is peace personified; Gunnur, who smiles more than any other person I know and radiates such joy and happiness; Guray, who seems to be living in the moment, flowing with the stream of life; and Elif, who is a bundle of energy and a radiant presence that makes everyone to be at ease in her presence. I am lucky to have them in my life and their “Being” has greatly influenced my Being.