Life Is Indeed A Song To Sing…

[Rahul Hasija volunteered for the first time at a recent Moved By Love retreat and shares his heart-warming reflections and insights post three days of serving with love.]

As little Reva would often say, "I am half volunteer and I am half participant" - I feel volunteering indeed got me more participating than I was when I actually attended the retreat as a participant. All the days of retreat and preparation taught me many beautiful insights that I feel were my takeaways for my life as well as for my work and living space at Swaraj University.

The acknowledgement from Moved by Love hosting team in one of the first interactions of volunteer briefing that 'this coming together is not meant to answer something or some issue or it is not an act of saving the world' was beautifully put across as it lay the foundation of creating the humble space for gratitude, love and compassion to grow and blossom. In today's world, where all efforts are pushed towards 'changing the world', this acknowledgement was a gentle yet powerful reminder to look within, pause and accept ourselves and the world as it is.



One of the biggest gifts I'm taking back from the retreat is the sense of being alive to life and to the small acts of love. I am deeply moved by the power of small acts of love that I was witness to at the retreat. "She was here on earth to grasp the meaning of its wild enchantment, and to call each thing by its right name. By its right name" This line from one of my inspiring movies 'Into The wild' sums up this experience for me. Having names for brooms, tables, chairs, rooms, and every possible element around made me feel that I'm around my relatives, whom I can relate to, love and nurture and get nurtured by.

I cherish and am deeply in love with how some stories were flipped, that subtly nudged the status quo, coming from the heart rather than from just the head. By inviting the Heart into all the processes - Presentation to Prem-station, Disability to Dil-ability, TEd to SpiriTed, Newton's reverse apple story - I felt it created a much richer ground for our participation and co-creation. The three companions of Vinobha - Jhadu (Hands), Musical instrument (Heart), Book (Head) - were a good reminder of bringing together these elements of life in any act we get into.

I am also taking back lots of energy and love to hold the space and team at Swaraj, a space that already is inviting and caring, yet has scope for beauty, care and spaciousness to emerge. 'Labour of Love' is something that resonates deeply and would love to go deeper into what it means and see how it manifests.



Today morning when I was actually planting seeds in my garden, I remembered the planting seeds song and the amazing musical night we had at Seva Cafe and I fondly remembered my time at one of our heart circles, sitting in one the small meditation huts, listening to the sharing of participants and listening to the beautiful wind chimes slowly whispering into my ears saying "Life is indeed a song to sing, hum and cherish."emembered my time at one of our heart circles, sitting in one the small meditation huts, listening to the sharing of participants and listening to the beautiful wind chimes slowly whispering into my ears saying "Life is indeed a song to sing, hum and cherish."