Sunday, February 28, 2010

Perhaps Gandhi was right

Matrimandir at dawn with a bonfire celebrating the 42nd Anniversary of Auroville

I recall that Gandhi said something to the effect that you should be the change that you want to see in the world. - Actually, he said "You must be the change you want to see in the world" - I looked it up rather than ramble based on my aging memory.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to visit another project in a village near Auroville. In this case, what I saw was the effort of a smallish group of people who are bridging Auroville with the Tamil communities nearby. This one was taking place in the village of EDAIYANCHAVADI.

Here I was introduced to a community healing centre where, amongst other things, some of the women are being introduced to yoga which has allowed them to get off things like medications. They are also learning ways to preserve some of the historical healing methods as well as receive some healing activities like massage.

There is also a centre for the children where there is a playground as well as a renovated Tamil home that serves as the centre. Here children hear stories read in English to help their language developemnt, play and are also offered opportunities to do their homework. This is a very active centre.

Both buildings needed significant renovation. It runs on donations.

One might consider that these are small efforts that are unlikely to impact the larger social issues within Tamil Nadu - you might be right. There are large scale issues here for sure. The Hindu today spoke about research that shows that 53% of children in India have been sexually abused. Changing that level of activity within a national social fabric is quite difficult. But, if you don't start somewhere, how will change occur.

So, on this the 42nd anniversary of Auroville, seeing a small group at work in one village willing to be the change they want to see is an example of how change can occur.

The day finished, as by chance for me, with seeing a mandala being put together in the terrace near next to an Aurovuille coffee shop. It was created by various people just joining in. A meditation was held and then, in accordance with the laws of impermanence, it was then destroyed.




If you want to know more about mandalas, check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandala

During the break up of the meditation, I took a picture that shows the full moon but also a plethora of orbs. These are evidence of a strong spiritual presence. If you think I am crazy, check out the book by in this link:


What was rather fun was to see people who had just stopped by for coffee getting involved. Great fun!

Thursday, February 25, 2010

OK - maybe we are crazy

Life in India has been pretty good. Frankly, we are not missing Calgary or work even one iota. The heat here is getting more intense. The mid day high has been 34C for the last few days. Sitting in the shade, reading a book and having a cup of chai today, I was sweating just sitting there. Thus, we have had to adjuist to heat knowing that in May it can be about 10 degrees higher. But for now, we are drinking lots of water, sunscreen, staying out of the mid day sun as much as possible - and - a moped:

The intrepid April - who now loves riding a moped and may be getting one upon return to Calgary

I also quite like it. The dirt roads here mean that you often cover your mouth and nose so as to not such in the dust. Helmets are virtually non-existant here. We rode into the suburbs of the city near here, Pondicherry. We haven't had the nerve to go all the way in yet. When you drive, you mix with buses, trucks, cars, motorcycles, dogs, cows, carts, goats, pedestrians - all wanting the same space.



There is an art that we are coming to appreciate about how the space on the roads work. Essentially, you can occupy any space as long as either someone bigger doesn't want it or someone faster doesn't get it. Seems fair!

One of the other aspects of being out of the country for a perid - Canadian politics are too distant to care about; Indian politics are so corript and complicated one can't care too much and coverage of the Olympics is completely non existant. You also learn patiencce here. For example, the internet has been dow for about 2 days; power shortages occur daily and that is just the way it is! Accept it because sweating it won't get you anywhere. It is fun to watch Westerners sweat it - they get all upset; complain loudly and nothing changes. But it is an entertaining sport to watch.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Village Visit

April and I had the opportunity yesterday to visit a nearby village where there are some interesting programs taking place. For example, when we arrived, there was a yoga class underway with boys and girls. This was in a community centre. These programs are the regular activity in the centre that occurs every Saturday morning. We also saw girls learning traditional Indian dancing, boys learning a martial arts program that originated in the forests and jungles to portect against wild animals and a group of children doing watercolours.

Yoga Underway

What impressed me was the very keen interest with which these children pursued the activities. This is not a wealthy village and without this community action program, it is highly improbabale that these opportunities would be available.  Regrettably, most villages of this small size don't have these programs.


This young lad sat quietly in the courtyard - quite unassuming - when I went to look at his watercolor, I discovered his talent. He was rather shy about showing it but it was very much there. I looked at several of his drawings - I am not sure what can be done to develop him but he is quite talented - but it is  not a talent in rural India that puts rice on the table.

This young lad was engaged in the martial art and quite proud of his effort. He knew his routines well and was anxious to show his instructor - a young man who would twirl these sticks like some of us might twirl a pen.



Like many villages around India, however, there is the constant problem with garbage. As we walked over to meet a group of boys learning to do the funeral music, we passed piles of garbage lying about and a garbage fire burning. These fires are seen throughout India and act as a major source of pollution. They also coat the air in some areas. Thus, one can face smoke, piles of garbage and open sewers all in the same block. Add to that the problem of plastic which cows and other roaming animals eat.

Example of a garbage fire

A fascinating area for me has been meeting some mothers who have talked about the impact that the west is having in their families. One, a middle calss mother, described the challenges she is having with her 13 year old daughter who is caught between both cultures. She is engaged in Indian dance lessons like those seen below while she also wants to watch the TV show Friends. Culturally and emotionally she is not able to manage the themes in Friends and, as a parent, this mother does not have the history from her own upbringing to know what these themes are about. These mothers talk about been trapped between their family moral code that they grew up with and the pressures from the west that they don't know hwo to manage.

Another interesting area is how parenting is changing - partially as a result of western influences that have made brought so many different attitudes about things like discipline. Thus, some of the abusive things that have been happening are getting slowly talked about.This may be good. It is also increasing awareness in at least middle and upper classes about education for girls including post secondary.


A pose from the traditional dance

Another feature of our recent days has been learning to drive a moped. It is getting too hot for the bicycle. The challenge has been getting a good one. We tried an electric one but the charge doesn't seem to last more than about 15 km. So today we will switch to a gas one which I deeply regret. We are keeping the bicycles for early trips in the mroning such as over to meditation.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

A changing India

I woke this morning to the sounds of chanting to ancient sanskrit. The peacocks began their morning ritual of calling to each other. The almost daily sounds of a funeral following historical patterns could be heard from one of the nearby villages. This is an ancient culture with long standing traditions. But it is also a culture under seige from the west.

India is thought to be a booming eceonomy - and in the cities the middle and upper classes are doing well. The lower classes are still struggling with many deep in poverty. The minimum wage here is R100 or about $2.23 per day. There are many here who are employed at below that yet there is little they can do about it. I am told that even here in Auroville, a city established to bring a higher level of consciusness, there are people who pay their Amas (household servants really) below the minimum wage. Indeedm servants continue to be the norm with all most westerners and Indians alike.

Consider that the minimum wage went up from R80 after been at that level for abolut 2 years. In the meantime, the cost of things like fruits and vegetables has more than doubled. Inflation is high here although costs are very low on western standards.

Another part of the daily ritual for me is the India Times and the Deccan Chronical whihc are delivered to our table each morning. The latter one in particular features stories of western movie stars, Indian stars and a variety of the "party" class doing their thing in clothing that would be anything but Indian. What is amazing here is the way that the west is colonizng India thruogh the cultural influences that these images, TV, and the internet bring. Yet, for many, particularly in the more rural areas, they are very ill prepared for these changes.

I spoke yesterday with a lady who is trying to get some schools to talk about issues related to abuse. She faces huge obstacles and must be very careful about the language that she uses. Teachers are amongst her strongest opponents. She tells me that boys are more prone to see lack of protection in the larger world (war, environment) whereas girls are more open to talking about what may be going on more personally. I guess some things don't change from one culture to the next.

Abuse is rampant but it is very hard to get the dialogue going and they lack materials in Tamil language that they can use with the children and parents.

This same lady also said that she was trying some gentle sex education. One mother told me that, while she understood what a girl goes through with menstraution and the like, she has no idea how to answer her daughter when she asks such things as what a boy goes through or even if he does.

Thus, we have all these western influences in a culture that really doesn't know what to do with them or even how to talk about them.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Marathon Day

Being somewhat close to the equator, in an environment where the mid day sun can get quite hot, it isn't natural to think that there may be a marathon run here in Auroville, south India - but there you are. Indeed, one was run today. Given the heat, it may not be surprising to learn that the run starts at 6 a.m.  It is barely light at that time.

There were also a 10, 5 and 2 km runs today. This was not the only marathon in the area.  There was also one in the nearby city of Pudicherry where some 8500 people were registered. They started handing out shirts and regitration at 4 a.m. with that run starting also at 6 a.m.

Having done a marathon at one point in my life, I have tremendous respect for anyone who can do it. Here in Auroville, there was the furher challenge of the pavement - or at times lack of it. There were spots of running on paved road, then dirt road, then sandy trails, amongst traffic, in the trees and so on. No trail pampering here.

The fastest time for the marathon was a chap from Chennai (about 3 hours from here) who finished in 3 hours 10 minutes.

In the west (and I suspect wealthier parts of India) there is concern with running gear - having the right shoes that fit the foot - does it pronate and so on. Here, some runners have solved that problem - they run barefoot. You will also note that there is no fance running short, shorts, headband and so on. Just your good old fashioned basic runner.


Then, of course, there is this young lady out on the 10k course wearing tradition churida nd no shoes - doing quite fine thank you



The runners were also seranded by a drumming group from a local drum workshop. This was quite cool as these are drums made here and the performance was by local musicians. The rhythym was quite magical and the runners were pleased to have the encouragement. I likeed this guy who ran past giving a wave of victory as he encountered the drummers.



As I watched the runners come through the early morning, I was reminded of the book, The Lonliness of the Long Distance Runner.


It was quite wonderful to see this event taking place. The runners made their way not only through Auroville but also out into a bit of the communiites nearby. Its hard to guage what the average villager thought of the whole thing - but I suspect they thought most of the runners were somewhat made - why would you run around when there is so much work to do?

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Deepam School

Every now and then, you have the opportunity to meet a person who isnpires by their presence and the belief in what they do.  Today, I had such an opportunity meeting Angelika Ehrle. She is an occupational therapist from Germany who has been in Auroville for about 18 years. She, along with Silva, runs a school for children who are handicapped. The emotional energy from Angelika is warm, trusting and caring for the children that she has worked with over the years. Some of the children are now young adults and stil at the program. Most have, over time, been integrated into productive activities within the community.

Angelika Ehrle

She describes that the children often enter the school project malnoursihed. Their hemoglobins are very low and they often have iron deficiency. This is from the poor diet that often exists in the communities. As a result, initial efforts with the children are not about rehabilitation but rather about getting them healthy. There is a need to do the most basic work.

Theier goal is to reahbilitate the chidlren to the point where they can leave the program and operate within teh community. Some of the children come for full time efforts and others are offered services on an outpatient basis. They may need suppotrs such as hearing aids.

She also talks about having to take the children now and again to one of the governemnt hospitals where conditions can be quite deplorable - feces and vomit on the hallway floors, for example. Families may ahve to travel significant distances and wait for hours. If the family member is admitted, then someone has to stay to look after needs such as food as the hospital does not addrses that. Surgeries are urgent only.

There is a growing second tier of private hospitals for those who can afford them (Hey Canadians, does that sound familiar).

The children are open, warm and delightful.


This is one of the longer term particpants. Her picture appears in the Deepam brochure and she was delighted to show me.


This young lady came to the program late. Her eyesight could not be repaired. She was tried in a community schooling arrangement but that did not work out. Ultimately, they have hired her in the kitchen where she is proudly working and earning a living.

The program is run entirely on donations. Thus, they fundraise from wherever they have contacts. The funds are well spent. Initially Angelika raised money from her own relatives in Germany.\

They also have volunteers coming from various countries. There were two younf ladies from Germany who were volunteering in the day care. The program only takes professionals who can volunteer for at least 6 months and non professionals for a year. This is done because it can take the children 3-4 months to build a relationship.

I was impressed with what I saw, the care the children receive and the dedication of those who work with the children. Have a look at the website http://www.auroville.org/health/care_disabled.htm

Next, I will have an oppotrunity to meet with some people who are working on the issues of child abuse.




A confident young man I met

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

These curious white people

Indians tend to vie,w us as these rather odd people that descend on their nation. I was told the other day that, for example, teh mosquitos are a much bigger problem for us than for Indians because mosquitos like white skin better than Indian skin. That is why we whities buy so much mosquito repellant.

Then there is the curious habit we have of trying to dress like them. What of course they don't undertsand, is we don't have clothes that work here. We don't make clothes that come even close to being able to handle the heat here. Yet young Indians are busy dressing more like us with jeans etc.

Then we Westerners seem so impatient. For example, we have a leak from tyhe sink in the washroom. I felt that washing my hand or brushing my teeth should not be met with the liquid remains on the bathroom floor. It has been announced that the problem is the tube from the sink to the drain. For a day, it was removed. Then, the very same tube was reinstalled with a pronouncement that it would be replaced any day. That was over a week ago. The problem is not the tube but a hole in the drain. That will not be considered, however, until the tube is replaced. After all, that is the problem. Only address the new problem after the old one (which is  not a problem) has been addressed. - AH I am wrong - thus proving that people can't be predicted. I have convinced them that it is a hole. I have been told that will require a different repair. When? Coming, no problem! We'll see.

When us whities get impatient, we are told something to the effect - "No problem, coming, 10 minutes". If it is determined that you know nothing about how to fix something, then there is no need to really do it or at least no need to do it properly.

Then there is the question of whether or not you are a sucker. Children will be sent to beg - offering to sell you some small bag or something that has little value but of course, us whities would want to help feed the child. If you say no to the bag, then the inevitable action of looking at your  food and using a hand action indicating I'm hungry please feed me. Learning a steely no to this scam is needed. A yes, leads to the next level of scam moving in on you.

At airports, you have to watch out for the taxi scam. You get half way into town and get told it is another "x" rupees more or you have to get out. There are many honest taxi drivers but they are not aggressive getting you in. At the railway stations, there is the no train today scam which is part of - let me sell you a new ticket. Now one might think these scams are illegal and to be punished rapidly. You learn quickly that the police are of absolutely no value. Indeed, I have observed in my trips to India absolutely no evidence that the police you see from day to day actually do anything but drive around fast, stand still and drink copius amounts of chai. If, as a whitie, you have aporblem, no doubt you caused it so why are you complaining.

On the other hand, we have met maginificent Indians but they see us as curiously as we see them - two peoples from different lands trying to understand the other.

What embarasses me, however, is the way we Westerners deal with our impatience. We can be down right rude. When I pointed this out to a Western local (e.g. someone who lives here) I was told that being rude has its place here. I was also told that Westerners tend to idolize the India that we think exists through our romantic notions. Yes, there are those elements but then I was told Indian society is actually quite aggressive and Westerners are prone to let themselves be walked over. As I reflected on this, I can certainly recall situations where I have been shoved out of line, shoved away from a view because the other person wanted it, argued at about taxi prices that I knew were total exaggerations and so on.

But then I imagine and Indian coming to Canada will look at us askance as well.

Solitude Farm

Today, in growing heat, we took a tour of Solitude Farm in Auroville. It has a quite different approach to farming. They rotate crops within crops. For example, as one crop is about to be harvested, the next is planted within the existing crop. The old crop, once harvested, will have the plants left to rot in the field offering sustenance to the earth. They weed very little, use cows for plowing rarely and have only used mecahnical plowing once in the past 6 years.

It is run by Krishna - an ex pat Brit and his wife who are passionate about changing the way farming is done. They mulch like crazy reducing the need for water and keep the soil quite rich.


Krishna and his wife run the farm - Here he shows letuc growing in a mulched field

Much of the labour is provided by young people staying in grass huts for various lengths of time - most failry short term.

Their description is: "we are a sustainable farm in auroville, tamil nadu, south india. we grow oil seeds, lentils, vegetables, fruits, rice and millets. and we have cows...! we run an organic vegan restaurant on the farm."

One of the things that needs to be understood is that this is not an organic farm in the way we might understand it. Rather, this is antural farming based on the ideas of Masanobu Fukuoka. He believed that you could create small organic farms where there was no need to weed, apply pesticides or fertilizers nor would you have to till. He is of the view, as are the people at this farm, that organic farming is still within the same paradigm of land management that regualr farms have. They don't allow nature to do what nature is capable of accomplishing. Krishna shows, as an example, bananas growing with this method yielding the same volumes and qualities as a commercially produced tree will yiled.

Banana Tree

Wikiepedia has an interesting short article on the creator of this method - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masanobu_Fukuoka

Here is an example of the soil below the banana tree:







So, is this workable on a large scale? I don't know the answer but I certainly see that this community is making it work and bringing new ideas into play. They are producing sustainable crops on land that is being well managed to stay fertile and healthy.

And - for those who have never seen rice ready for harvest:




Sunday, February 7, 2010

I attended a Tsunami memorial event today that was more about empowerment for communities and women. The lady who founded Upasana was there – they were strongly behind the event . The Tsunami occurred just over 5 years ago.




She is quite an amazing lady and is acting as a strong force in the community. She understands the commnity and what it needs. She is providing activism by doing things that raise the consciusness of what is done, how it is done and the meaning of the work. See my previous post on Upasana.

The event was full of children with various moods evident on their faces. Some may well have lost fathers in the Tsunami but it was hard to tell what their stories were on an individual level. They are none the less quite beautiful children.



One of the things that was odd to me was the strong presence of westerners at the event. It is not that they should be absent but they were in a prominent role. This is not a western story. This is a story about the people in a region who experienced a horrible event – some died; some survived. This got me thinking about the ways in which Westerners come into regions feeling that they have something that they must give – yet it is quite unclear whether that has any meaning for the people here. This was their story but it got lost in this odd presence.

On the way over here, I was reading a book which my daughter gave me about Medecine Sans Frontier. They appear to try and go into an area with sensitivity to what is needed by all versus trying to impose a set of ideals on a people. In some respects, Westerners here appear to be tolerated. We have our way of doing things and believe it is better.

It also reminded me of a presentation in California in December by Dr. Alberta Bandura. He spoke of a program that he was involved in bringing forms of social education to various countries. One of the things that hos project insisted upon was that the stories, methods of telling the stories, who told the stories, the content - all be driven by those who lived in the country - not the group from the West whose role was to offer technical assistance. They also helped to develop the assessment measures. He gave an example in Tanzania where the community determined that the issue that needed social change was around HIV. They wanted to increase comdom use. It was their story, their priority, their dialogue, their work. This is an important difference over what I saw today of Westerners having a role in stories that were not thiers.

Today’s event also got me thinking about the degree to which groups hold on to trauma – it starts to define who they are. Thus, these families who have rebuilt houses and towns; found ways to survive without family members are seen as victims of a horrible event. Does that define them? Should a past event come to define any of us or should we see that as a part of our past and not our present? For many here, life goes on because it has to.

I also had a fascinating discussion about corruption which is very much a part of the Indian culture. This was in the context of how Monsanto and others are altering the ways in which farming is being done here (see previous post on farming). This spiritual person was offering the thought that activism will ultimately fail because these forces against which one is fighting are stronger. They suggested that in fighting then you incorporate their energy and you become defined by the enemy you fight. The enemy is so much a part of your thoughts, actions , emotions that their power invades who you are. They go on to suggest that, if you have these negative forces in a society, that is a reflection of the general consciousness of that society. It is that consciousness that must change before the negative forces will change. Reminds me of the argument that countries get the governments that they deserve.

Martin Luther King and Gandhi might have seen it differently. Instead of taking on a direct battle, my sense is that they changed the consciusness of a nation through what they said and how they behaved - non violence and creating a different presence. But again, it was the people who owned the story who drove the story.

This is the kind of light discussions that go on here. All to say that while I don't think today's blog answers anything - it certainly is indicative of the kinds of thuoghts, discussions and ideas that are being talked about here. Perhaps you change the world not by who you fight but rather by what you do, how you think and what ideas you express that alter consciusness at a personal, group or collective level.

There is quite a collection of people that move through. It is a mini United Nations. Tonight we had people from Canada (us), England, France, Spain and an expat French women who lives in India most of the year. People from the European Community are having harder times with visas – retaliation. They can only stay 3 months and then must leave for at least 2 months. So far, Canadians are not affected and we can still get 6 month visas.

On a less heavy note, wood here is a dangerous building material because of termites. So there is naturally adaptation. Fence posts are often made of granite:







There are other solutions as well. How about this fence which is made of cactus:





This is a society that works but not one that we Westerners understand. Regrettably, there is a growing evidence of Western influence here. The gossip pages in the daily newspapers show more and more Western dress, sexuality and stories about Western and Indian stars in the same way that we seem to believe that they should be idolized in the West. Pity!

Friday, February 5, 2010

Random visit to a village

Daily, April and I wander the trails around here. We will simply see one and go down it. Usually, this takes us around Auroville. We get to see some wonderful things. A couple of days ago, I forgot to bring my camera - a huge mistake. There was a shephard wandering down the street with his herd of goats indlcuding two babies born within the past hour. The umbilical cords were still wet. He had to carry the babies while moving the herd. The mother walked beside him, bleating up to him to hand her babies back. When he did put them down, the could barely stand.

It is spring here. Other signs include the cactus now blooming.

We also wandered through the woods where you see trees that grow in a gnarled branch system.



In addition, we wandered into a village from the backside. The dogs, of which there are many, knew immediately that there were strangers in the place. They barked loudly at us as we moved through the village. They announced to all that we were there.  As we moved through the town we were not sure how welcome us whities were but then sudenly we met one of the ladies who cleans our place. She welcomed us warmly and we were honoured by being invited into tea.


This is an honour to be invited in

In the village we also saw lots of kids who wanted their pictures taken. This happens whereveer we go. As I was doing this blog, the nht watchmen looked at the pictures and said he knew these kids who were from his village in Nepal.

These other kids invited us to take their picture - so I did. The mother saw what was happening and yelled to the kids to ask for money - which one does not do or you will be flooded with requests.

The walk finished with a stroll up the main highway in the area where we saw this classic structure of roofing made with various grasses.


Upasana

Today we had the opportunity to visit an interesting project underway for about 11 years in Auroville - Upasana. At first glance, one sees it as a place that makes organic cotton clothes for sale in relatively upscale stores. For example, a men's shirt costs around R750 or about $17 CDN. That is a lot of money for here.

As you dig deeper you start to understand that this is a project to bring change in at least some communities around Auroville. The cotton is organic grown in various places throughout India. It is harvested, weaved, coloured in the local communities. On really interesting story is Veranassi Weavers. The story can be seen on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3ZvxY8ZnCk

The patterns are then cut by the tailors at Upasana and then the patterns are sent to tailors in communities so that the work impacts the community directly.

They also have another project called small steps. In this one, for R100 or about $2.30CDN you buy a small cloth backpack to do your shopping. This brings an end to the plastic bag which is such a scourge here. This may not seem like such a big step given some stores in Calgary are replaicng plastic with cloth or paper - but here it is a big deal indeed. Plastic garbage lies about everywhere:
This is a typical street garbage scene

the small steps bag

They are also attempting to educate communities about the impact of everyday life on teh environment.

The fifth anniversary of the tsunami is occuring now. There is a celebration in the communities this weekend outlining many of the changes that have occured after the water hit. Many women lost husbands who were out fishing when the tsunami hit. Many children were also lost.

More about the Upasana story can be found at their website http://www.upasana.in/

This is one of the ladies who works there:



Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Ex Pat Groups

One suspects that any ex pat group in a country, when gathered in some collective form, can be rather difficult for others. In Auroville, the largest group is the native Tamil community. At times they have managed to dominate the Auroville governing council which has apparently thrown the community out of kilter. Auroville apparently works best when there is a reasonably balanced voice from the various groups that make up the community. The next biggest groups are French, German and Italian. There are 23 Canadians here. We met one last night - from Vancouver - who has been here for over 20 years.

The most visible ex-pat or Western group (both as residents and visitors) are the French. They are quite delightful as individuals but quite arrogant and overbearing when in collective groups. I don't mean to pick on the French (although it could be easin in the circumstance). It doesn't matter whether we are talking Americans, Brits, Canadians, Germans or French. As humans, we seem to revert to some kind of overbearing behavior when we get together within our national collectives.

I don't think that we realize how obnoxious to others we can be in such circumstances.

Simply some food for thought.