What happens when an 84 year old Gandhian, decides to sit in a circle of listening with 30 young servant ladders, to hear their stories of inner transformation?
Recently we had the privilege of Ela Ben Bhatt, (a remarkable Gandhian, a Lawyer, a Philanthropist and an incredible human being) visit the ESI campus in Sughad. Ela Ben's journey quite exemplarily highlights the seeds of her Organization SEWA (Self-Employed Women's Association of India) that birthed during a serendipitous encounter in a protest with unemployed Mill laborers. It was then where she saw how the wives of these laborers worked to run their homes and bring food to the family while their husbands marched towards their justice and protests for days at stretch. This experience of observing the strength and courage of women, turned out to be a milestone that shaped the trajectory of her life's choices and ultimately led to her quitting the practices of a lawyer. SEWA continues to inspire and empower women towards a holistic livelihood.
It was a humble effort to come together in a listening circle between many 'Be The Change' servant ladders of the eco system and her, over a simple yet deep reflection on "How is our work of service deepening our values and journeys in being the change we wish to see in the world? How do we cultivate the spirit of inner transformation in our volunteer / service roles and how does that affect the self, society and world at large?"
The circle included youngsters who've dedicated their lives to strengthen the local village ecosystem to folks who've committed a decade and more towards an idea / project that continue to run in the spirit service, to karyakartas who's inner adrenaline runs high when they see a child, a sister or a mother empowered, to house holders to teachers to artists who's absolute single identity thrives in their passion to serve towards any opportunity that knocks on their doorstep, to elders like Kanchan mama and Jayesh Bhai who have steadfastly held the circumference of this collective with their dedication, perseverance and love towards one vision - Jai Jagat, Love Jagat.
The circle held hearts and ears towards each individual that shared their own journeys and narratives within their work of service, where giving and receiving were a constant melody that echoed in the experiences that they shared. The stories of humility, generosity, kindness and inner cultivation that emerged in the shares were absolutely palpable. The gratitude towards the lineage and of our elders at Gandhi Ashram was a vivid proof of the backbone of all the shares expressed in the circle. Even after a few days of this circle, this experience remains fresh and alive.
Below are a few highlights that Ela Ben shared on what stood out for her after she spent an hour and a half of 'deep listening' through the lens of a beginner.
"Work and Seva are not different. They are the same. The spirituality that emerged from the stories here inspired me. Till we don't connect Manav Seva with spirituality, then all the visible and invisible will fail to connect with consciousness. I realized this from your stories today. Each experience, each person, each living being is a story.
How can a story become History. History is past - in no moment, present becomes past - always facing the future. With time and flow of life - we move.
I was listening about giving - give and take is mutual. World is made of mutuality. We are co-related. Stars, walls, paintings are all our relatives. We are related to ourselves, to individuals, society and nature all the time. We miss out to co-relate sometimes. When I was touring the campus, we were talking about a broom. Look at the life, birth and death of a broom. How it grows from Earth, dissolves in the Earth, and returns again. How light is that? That is ideal. That cannot happen unless we learn about our relationship with each other.
Action of drinking tea has an impact for me, my health, my low sugar, illness - it is all related to me. But it is also related to society. Where does tea come from? How does the rain, earth and oxygen support the growth of these plants? How many people are a part of growing tea, collecting tea, manufacturing tea and bringing it to households. This - keeps us together. It comes out in the form of Universal goodness. When we throw a stone in the water, we see that one stone creates ripples that travels thousands of miles - what you drop remains there. Nothing is lost. If I give sweetness, it will reach thousands of miles. When we think co-relatedly then our actions will be more meaningful. Then we will be able to live a life of service, peace and creativity.
Society is not thankless. The values still exist, but we have lost trust in them. We should continue our trust and faith in humanity, put trust in people - Lok Shakti. Then we wont worry about clothes, food & shelter. People have the capacity to solve their problems. We need to keep faith. It is the people who will bring change."
She concluded, "There is a need of holistic approach. Then we will see some positive impact. In our SEWA they do seva with a lot of heart, but spirituality is lacking. That is what I saw in each share here. Be original. The answer is always there. Keep faith in Lok Shakti (People Strength) and Atma Shakti. (Soul Strength)"
This circle became an instrument in the cross pollination of sharing and learning of the eco system through the essence of interconnection and inner connection of the 'Akhand Parivaar' (Incessant Family). The spirit that shone in the collective intention of Jai Jagat through the diversity of circle; from Food+Love, Women Empowerment, Value - Based Education, Holistic Employment, Youth, Art etc; gave an opportunity to learn from one another. What was strikingly more prominent was a deeper understanding that the harmony of service and spirituality go hand in hand. It is the 'secret sauce' that keeps the fuel of 'Lok Shakti' and 'Atma Shakti' burning stronger and longer.
Indeed, the evening concluded with smiles, reverence and a new inspiration to keep walking further, together.
I'm reminded of this poignant reflection of an elder, "When we will all see our roles in society as servants, we will light up the sky like million stars on a moonless night".
Onwards we march. Jai Jagat. Love Jagat.
(More photos here)
Recently we had the privilege of Ela Ben Bhatt, (a remarkable Gandhian, a Lawyer, a Philanthropist and an incredible human being) visit the ESI campus in Sughad. Ela Ben's journey quite exemplarily highlights the seeds of her Organization SEWA (Self-Employed Women's Association of India) that birthed during a serendipitous encounter in a protest with unemployed Mill laborers. It was then where she saw how the wives of these laborers worked to run their homes and bring food to the family while their husbands marched towards their justice and protests for days at stretch. This experience of observing the strength and courage of women, turned out to be a milestone that shaped the trajectory of her life's choices and ultimately led to her quitting the practices of a lawyer. SEWA continues to inspire and empower women towards a holistic livelihood.
It was a humble effort to come together in a listening circle between many 'Be The Change' servant ladders of the eco system and her, over a simple yet deep reflection on "How is our work of service deepening our values and journeys in being the change we wish to see in the world? How do we cultivate the spirit of inner transformation in our volunteer / service roles and how does that affect the self, society and world at large?"
The circle included youngsters who've dedicated their lives to strengthen the local village ecosystem to folks who've committed a decade and more towards an idea / project that continue to run in the spirit service, to karyakartas who's inner adrenaline runs high when they see a child, a sister or a mother empowered, to house holders to teachers to artists who's absolute single identity thrives in their passion to serve towards any opportunity that knocks on their doorstep, to elders like Kanchan mama and Jayesh Bhai who have steadfastly held the circumference of this collective with their dedication, perseverance and love towards one vision - Jai Jagat, Love Jagat.
The circle held hearts and ears towards each individual that shared their own journeys and narratives within their work of service, where giving and receiving were a constant melody that echoed in the experiences that they shared. The stories of humility, generosity, kindness and inner cultivation that emerged in the shares were absolutely palpable. The gratitude towards the lineage and of our elders at Gandhi Ashram was a vivid proof of the backbone of all the shares expressed in the circle. Even after a few days of this circle, this experience remains fresh and alive.
Below are a few highlights that Ela Ben shared on what stood out for her after she spent an hour and a half of 'deep listening' through the lens of a beginner.
"Work and Seva are not different. They are the same. The spirituality that emerged from the stories here inspired me. Till we don't connect Manav Seva with spirituality, then all the visible and invisible will fail to connect with consciousness. I realized this from your stories today. Each experience, each person, each living being is a story.
How can a story become History. History is past - in no moment, present becomes past - always facing the future. With time and flow of life - we move.
I was listening about giving - give and take is mutual. World is made of mutuality. We are co-related. Stars, walls, paintings are all our relatives. We are related to ourselves, to individuals, society and nature all the time. We miss out to co-relate sometimes. When I was touring the campus, we were talking about a broom. Look at the life, birth and death of a broom. How it grows from Earth, dissolves in the Earth, and returns again. How light is that? That is ideal. That cannot happen unless we learn about our relationship with each other.
Action of drinking tea has an impact for me, my health, my low sugar, illness - it is all related to me. But it is also related to society. Where does tea come from? How does the rain, earth and oxygen support the growth of these plants? How many people are a part of growing tea, collecting tea, manufacturing tea and bringing it to households. This - keeps us together. It comes out in the form of Universal goodness. When we throw a stone in the water, we see that one stone creates ripples that travels thousands of miles - what you drop remains there. Nothing is lost. If I give sweetness, it will reach thousands of miles. When we think co-relatedly then our actions will be more meaningful. Then we will be able to live a life of service, peace and creativity.
Society is not thankless. The values still exist, but we have lost trust in them. We should continue our trust and faith in humanity, put trust in people - Lok Shakti. Then we wont worry about clothes, food & shelter. People have the capacity to solve their problems. We need to keep faith. It is the people who will bring change."
She concluded, "There is a need of holistic approach. Then we will see some positive impact. In our SEWA they do seva with a lot of heart, but spirituality is lacking. That is what I saw in each share here. Be original. The answer is always there. Keep faith in Lok Shakti (People Strength) and Atma Shakti. (Soul Strength)"
This circle became an instrument in the cross pollination of sharing and learning of the eco system through the essence of interconnection and inner connection of the 'Akhand Parivaar' (Incessant Family). The spirit that shone in the collective intention of Jai Jagat through the diversity of circle; from Food+Love, Women Empowerment, Value - Based Education, Holistic Employment, Youth, Art etc; gave an opportunity to learn from one another. What was strikingly more prominent was a deeper understanding that the harmony of service and spirituality go hand in hand. It is the 'secret sauce' that keeps the fuel of 'Lok Shakti' and 'Atma Shakti' burning stronger and longer.
Indeed, the evening concluded with smiles, reverence and a new inspiration to keep walking further, together.
I'm reminded of this poignant reflection of an elder, "When we will all see our roles in society as servants, we will light up the sky like million stars on a moonless night".
Onwards we march. Jai Jagat. Love Jagat.
(More photos here)
Reflections
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