Next MBL laddership circle begins in a few days, and the volunteers are having a great time (read tough time) absorbing the applications - the diversity and richness of the applicant’s work and their commitment to inner practices.

Take for instance, Shreenabh Agrawal. His work spans across science, social service and literature. In this course, he has received 10 international awards, numerous national awards and published two books, authored over 65 articles. He has a keen eye to observe others’ pain and use his gifts to alleviate it, like his unique (patented) design to prevent loss of life due to children falling in open bore wells, designing a course on sustainable tourism to reduce environmental damage, his award-winning poetry empathizing with war victims, or his latest initiative ‘Oldy Goldy Club’ to help senior citizens tap into their gifts and become contributors again by engaging with young students.

To add, he has completed recital of Shrimad Bhagvad Gita and Ramcharitmanas and meditates every morning and evening. He tells us “When I get up in the morning, I thank God for a bright new day and promise myself that I will make good use of the day. At night I reflect not only upon my deeds but also upon my thoughts. If a negative thought had crossed my mind or heart, I question myself and counsel myself to let it go before I sleep. Inner reflection helps me to sleep peacefully and get up with a bright spirit every day.”

Shreenabh notices Parag’s email signature and now all his emails are also signed ‘in service’. In our call, we were blown away by his humility and a spark for learning. And did we tell you Shreenabh is 15 years old and studying in Standard 11th? Few months ago, in the board exam he secured 99.20% and was an All India 3rd Ranker. All I can say is, we are proud of you Shreenabh.


[Sreenabh (right behind) with friends and ‘GRAND’parent at the Oldy-Goldy Club]

From Shreenabh to Sangeeta Isvaran, our sense of bewilderment and delight continues. When we asked what events have triggered empathy or compassion in her life, Sangeeta who is a trained Bharatnatyam (and 50 other dance forms) dancer, says that its her dance training which sparked it. ‘Rasa’ she explains is the empathetic resonance created when an artist connects with audience, with herself and the universe around them. From the beginning, it was not the fancy performance venues but small NGOs, temples, etc., were the stages which attracted her most, using the art to connect with the less privileged and spread love.

She has researched into many performing and visual art traditions across the world, creating her own unique technique Katradi for empathy-based social transformation to support traumatized children and adults (sex abuse victims, sex workers, immigrants, survivors of genocide, etc.) For this, she was honored with the highest national award for young dancers ‘Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar’. She has performed in 40 countries over 5 continents, speaks 8 international languages, and has taught in over 20 universities and international organizations.

At Tedx, she has talked about the Katradi method and Abhaya (being without fear). Amidst all this external dance, she has skilfully integrated multiple practices “to fold inner-reflection into the structural design” of her life, like an hour of daily meditation and 10-day silent retreat atleast twice a year. She says “..it clarifies my path, helps me center myself on the principles of loving compassion and practice detachment and acceptance of all the experiences life throws at us. Most importantly, it helps me achieve a level of reflection that is not only logical, but also intuitive, an experience that dissolves the 'I' into 'we'. This I find helps me daily in my work with my NGO as a rights-based or empathy-based practice.” She (like myself) fails to understand why banks exist and why money has become the most important resource for social change in our world today.

Having designed numerous programs for NGOs, governments, schools to serve traumatized children and adults, she now wants to build a shelter home for girls rescued from trafficking and sex-abuse. When asked what draws her to laddership, she says “We live in a world of transactional relationships, but transaction-based solutions to conflict cannot succeed in the long run. I seek to deepen my own understanding and break my own habits of accumulation and transaction.”


[Sangeeta (rightmost) and children having some fun moments while practicing Katradi]

I am all hooked for the goodness that seems to be on the cards with Shreenabh, Sangeeta and many other inspiring changemakers, everyday heroes and seekers. Feeling grateful and humbled to be a part of this circle, and also inspired to step-up my own inner-and-outer journey.

On behalf of all volunteers!

Posted by Rohit Rajgarhia on Aug 5, 2019 | permalink