Sheer Inspiratiion

Mataji is now in her late 80s.  Her stories from Bharat interested me greatly but what was even more heartening was the part Rashtirya Sevika Samiti had played in her life.  She had been an ardent karyakarta of Samiti during her younger days in Bharat, working tirelessly in various different fields towards the empowerment of women.  She was a big advocate of the philosophy of ‘letting your actions do the talking’ and one evening she did just that.

It was around 7pm and is the tradition in most houses in New Zealand it was time for the evening walk.  Despite the fact that Mataji walks with a limp, she makes a point of walking every day in order to give her body some exercise.   Generally she would walk to the end of the street and back, a walk that took her on average the best part of an hour.  However, on this occasion after that hour had elapsed she was nowhere to be seen.  We contacted her cell phone to see where she had gone only to realise that she had left it in her room.  Her son (current karyakarta in Auckland) then suggested she may have taken a different route so we waited in anticipation for another ten minutes but to no avail.  At that moment panic set in.  We got into the car and circulated the local vicinity hoping of some sighting of her but after a full further twenty minutes of searching, a further few enquiries with the general public, we arrived home with nothing.  As we were about to call some other karyakartas, Mataji calmly walked through the front door.  Some heated discussion ensued as to where she had gone and why she had not taken her cell phone with her.  She calmly sat down, got her breath back and then narrated what had happened. 

After becoming tired from walking to the end of the street, she took a seat on a wall outside a house.  She wasn’t seated for long as from within the house she could hear voices speaking in Hindi.  Without a moment’s hesitation she knocked on the door and introduced herself and from what was a chance interaction she ended up having tea and biscuits with her newly acquainted family.  She then went onto to say that the young family had two children who were now interested in coming to shakha!   

If there was ever a need to highlight the effectiveness of sampark, this example would surely silence any critics.  More than anything it showed and emphasised just what result can occur if we put ourselves out of our comfort zones and take a risk.  As a result of her pro activeness there was another family introduced to the Sangh parivaar, another family that would surely benefit from shakha and its activities, all through the actions of one person.

Praising Mataji is certainly one thing but it is also important to highlight exactly where such qualities and skills had originated from – none other than Samiti itself.  She never boasted about this and to be honest she didn’t have to.  The incident above is just one example of how a women in her 80s still possess the confidence, strength, belief and passion in Sangh work to such an extent that she would go and knock on the front door of a complete stranger to introduce them to the concept of Sangh.  And this is the effect that Samiti can have – the ability to create strong, independent women, with a sense of identity ready to go out into the world to make a difference.  Contrast that to some years ago and even today in some parts of the world where women are downtrodden and shoved to the side.  What we fail to realise is that the empowerment of women in society is arguably more important than anything else, even to that of men.  Imagine a society where all the women had a similar character to Mataji, what a different world we would live in if that was the case!  

  

Changing Perceptions

Of the many questions I was faced with on vistaar the most prevalent by far was whether or not I was from India.  Naturally my response to such a question was always a categoric ‘yes’ (I am Indian after all), but when I went onto describe the fact that I was born and brought up in the UK, the reaction of most parents was something to behold. 

I remember one particular incident in New Zealand that stands out amongst the rest for exactly this reason.  As is the case with most, if not all senior Sangh karyakartas there is a tendency to initiate conversations in Hindi.  I’d be lying if I said my Hindi is perfect because to be quite frank and honest, it isn’t.  I can however rustle together the basics without seeming too much like an NRI (Non Resident Indian).  Greetings over, this particular senior karyakarta began talking about Shakha in New Zealand, his own personal Sangh history, the challenges he had faced and various other topics of interest, all in Hindi of course.  Then after a full twenty minutes of one way dialogue he asked me a question which I didn’t understand.  At this stage, I revealed to him that I was actually from England and therefore my ability to speak Hindi was rather limited.  Suddenly his face went from normality to something I can’t even quite describe in words.  To say that he was shocked would be an understatement.  I remember him putting his cup down in a frenzy and quite literally running into the kitchen.  He was so shocked that he had gone to call his wife and two daughters into the room and without a moment’s hesitation he delivered the revelation that I was infact a vistaarak not from India… but from the UK!      

I couldn’t understand why he had created such a great scene to highlight something as trivial as this!  And to highlight what?  The fact that I was from the UK and not from India?  Exactly!  This stereotypical notion that western Hindu youth lack any sort of real passion to sustain their Hindu identity is one at the forefront of many of our seniors’ minds.  And for very good reason at that!  The picture that we present of us as a generation isn’t always pretty to say the least.  Yet the question we should ask then is what exactly are we doing to change this perception?  What efforts are we putting into upholding our Dharma?  If we do not heed to the calls of our seniors then I'm afraid there is no hope for us as a faith, nor as a generation.  Call me a pessimist you may but this last year has taught me more than anything, that there has never been a greater need to re-energise our youngsters.  Don’t get me wrong, there are still thousands of us who are engaged with who we are but there are even more that are slowly drifting away. 

We are well versed in academia but what does this matter when we do not have the ability to stop forced conversion of our people, to challenge major companies in the face of what can only be described as absurd misuse of our deities?  We forget that it was only some ten to fifteen years ago that our now current senior generation were organising yearly Hindu marathons that attracted thousands!  1984 saw the largest gathering of Hindus at the Viraat Hindu Samelan in Milton keyenes where some 10,000 Hindus came together in a show of strength and unity.  Where are we now?  We are young, educated and as of yet not able to take the Hindu samaj forward.  Speaks volumes really and it is therefore little surprise that we still haven't changed this perception as inactive Hindu youth!       

It is time for us to wake up from our slumber.  The world needs hard workers and academics but it also needs young men and women to go out and solve the worlds’ problems, to uphold their identity and to give something back to the community we live in..  We worship the feet of Vivekananda and the likes of Shivaji as if none such persons will come along for the next century!  Instead of waiting for that person, it is time for us to become that person, to put life into the quotes we preach.  'Be the change you wish to see' we say, well its time we start being that change.    

The materialistic scourge

Be content with what you have.  The problem with us human beings and in particular those of us that live in the western environment, is that we are never content with what we have and so beaconing any other message to dispute this will undoubtedly fall on deaf ears.   We know very well the more we have of what we want, the more powerful or invincible we deem ourselves to be.  Ego and greed go hand in hand in this world and where one is in abundance the other is not too far behind.

This theory is not one we can claim to be unfamiliar with either.  It is there for every one of us to see on full view in all its glory.  Take for example, the craze that has swept through the entire Auckland region.  Having a car that gets you from A to B is just not good enough if you are under the age of 30 here.  Your car has to have a humongous exhaust pipe.  It has to have an oversized body kit.  It has to have the darkest of window tints and the loudest of sound systems.  For if it doesn’t have any of these features, then I’m afraid you are just not ‘cool’ enough.  Without a moments hesitation you are thrown into the category with the other well disciplined intellectuals and civilised individuals.  In fact it was just last week I was speaking to a twelve year old boy.  He mentioned to me that by the age of eighteen he wanted to have a BMW.  When asked how he would fund such a pricey commodity he replied, “I’m going to take an $8000 loan out from the bank.”

Can you imagine ten or maybe even just twenty years ago the youth having such a mindset?  What a great shame that our society has stooped to such a level where the topic of discussion amongst twelve year olds is not how they will do their homework, or what they will do with their friends, it is about purchasing high performance cars!  This is verily the pressure that western society puts on those who inhabit these parts of the world.  This is just a small snippet of what our society is progressing towards. 

We have to be conscious of and at the same time keep at the forefront of our minds exactly who we are.  We are HINDUS, proud followers of the ancient civilisations set in stone by our forefathers.  We represent a Dharma that worships the feet of a Rama, a Krishna and a Shivaji.  It was Rama himself who at the immediate discovery of the fact that he was to be dispelled to the forest, left without a moments hesitation.  He understood the fact that King Dashratha his father, had made a grave mistake, yet he still went to seek his aarshivaad.  Such was the dedication and conviction ingrained in his heart!  Can we learn from this and implement into our lives today?  Would we drop everything we owned and possessed in terms of riches at the say so of our parents? 

Then there is Vivekananda that says we must serve each other before we serve our own hunger.  He insists we must use our education for the benefit of those down trodden in society for they are gods and goddesses too.  The point he makes is a valid one.  Whilst millions of our fellow human beings are struggling to afford even one grain of rice, we are basking ourselves in unnecessary commodities.  This is where we need to change our mindset.  I’m just as guilty on this front, but Vistaar has made me realise this.  The day we realise that a person is a person on the basis of their values and principles rather than their possessions, that will be the day when we restore some of mankinds dignity, until then we stand here tittering on the edge...waiting for that to happen.              

Our Mother...Mother Earth

Bold words and bolder people are what is required in this society. The age old cliché of saying one thing then acting another has haunted our planet since the day we incepted it. ‘Be the change you wish to see’ we roar, ensuring every living organism has heard the reverberating mantras taught to us by our forefathers. And yes, on the surface the concept of ‘being the change’ is an exceptionally good one, no one shall argue with that but is ‘being the change’ a part time hobby or a life long sentiment so deeply embedded within us that not even the strongest of man dare move it, that it stands there imbibed in our lives to such an extent that it doesn’t flinch in a hurricane of thoughts? This is the question we need to answer.

One of the families I met some time ago were devotees of this very mantra. I observed their actions on the day the father had given a lecture about doing our bit for the environment. He spoke emphatically about our total disregard for the planet, claiming that it was high time we woke up from our slumber and realised just what we were doing to the environment. It was a wonderful lecture, something that any environmentalist or climate change campaigner would have been proud of. And he was spot on with what he said, our unnecessary greed has transformed us from one time human beings to barbaric monsters ready to take another chunk out of the earth and its surroundings. Yet what was interesting about this particular man was once he had delivered his award winning speech, he jumped into his rather lavish, gas gozelling 4 x 4 and drove off into the sunset. How ironic that a man who at one moment was dancing to the tune of ‘I love the earth’ was now sat at the wheel of one of the most polluting vehicles that exist on our roads! This man is by no means an isolated case. Me, you, all of us may seem on the surface to be doing ‘our bits’ but are we really practising what we preach, twenty four hours a day, seven days a week? Is it even possible?

The answer to these simple questions is a resounding yes, of course we can. Its about time we took the cap off our reality tanks because in ten years time merely delivering speeches and performing one off acts of environmental friendliness will not be nowhere near enough. This is not news to us, the indications are already there for us to see; rising fuel costs, changing climate, do we need much more of a hard hitting message for us to change our ways? In the end this may not affect us directly but believe me it will affect those we love the most, our children. This is the price we will have to pay for our negligence today.

One of the most beautiful aspects of our Dharma is that we see and equate this planet to the same status as that of our Mothers and our Mothers are verily referred to as Goddesses incarnate. The earth provides us with shelter, food, energy, resources, everything we need to survive and live a comfortable life. Our relationship with our own mothers is never one of simply take, is it? It is a relationship of care, of love and divine worship. In our Sangh Prathanaa we say ‘namaamo bhoomimataram’ which translates to ‘we bow down to thee mother earth.’ If we say that our earth is like our mother, its high time we started treating it like just like our mother...

Don't complain; just work harder

It’s rather ironic that in a world far from perfect we add to the imperfections with our narrow minded mindset. If the bus is late by ten minutes or there is a tube strike of some sort then rather than just accept the situation and move on, we propel ourselves onto the bandwagon of discontentment. And this unfortunate plight is particularly prevalent amongst our Hindu Samaj. If you present any opportunity for a person from our community to complain, they will take it from you faster than you can imagine and in the process they will obliterate it with a sea of negativity.

In fact to give you an example, I was at one of Auckland’s many Mandirs a few days ago where I came across a well respected gentleman whom I thought I would approach. Now most of my interactions have been generally positive with those whom I meet at the Mandir. However, as I began to interact with this particular gentleman it became evidently clear that he wasn’t one who held the Hindu youth in high regard. In fact he was one of the many, might I add, who felt that the modern day Hindu youth had no concept of what the word Hindu even meant, let alone where we come from! And to be quite frank and honest, I agreed with him! I’m not going to deny that we’re facing a challenge in motivating our youth to become more ‘Hindu’. I’m not going to deny that there are many Hindu youth that have completely lost track of who they are.  So I asked him what exactly he was doing about it? What efforts was he putting in to tackle this challenge that has been verily put forth in front us? Nothing. Absolute silence.

Now, I’d like to stress that this wasn’t a debate of any sort. No, not at all. This was a response to a statement. A statement that has been said by many a different person for many a year in many a different arena. In fact the same point was mentioned by one of our supposedly highly respectful leaders at a conference two years ago. He received a similar response and one that emphasised the fact that this should be a joint effort. This is simply not a problem that the youth themselves can deal with, this is OUR problem and the solution will only come when EVERYONE begins to work at it. When Arjuna was perplexed during the Mahabharata, it was Krishna Bhagawan himself that took it upon his shoulders to see that Arjuna saw the right path. The entire 18 chapters and 700 shlokas of the Bhagavad Gita is a testament to that!  The point that I’m trying to make is two fold; rather than complaining, let us work harder. Complaining or whining is not the answer. Instead can we use ourselves as a glaring example in the face of the society to manifest this point? Or is this yet another blog post, yet another article that we read and fail to act upon?

The second point highlights the manner in which we silence our critics.  The world has utmost respect for the person who proves a doubter wrong but the world would have even more respect for the person who both proves his doubter wrong and is also able to say in the process that his doubter is now his friend. Friendship is more important than a battle of wits and it is friendship that will help us in our cause to unite this society, not ego or power. In the end, if we believe in this concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the whole world is one family), Vishwa Dharma (universal dharma) and Vishwa Shanthi (universal peace), then at some stage our actions have to begin to express these concepts, right?

Understanding what we do...

I'm not sure if it is possible to travel to India and not come back inspired and motivated.  It's one of those countries that holds an air of uniqueness about it, fittingly some would say that there is no other country on this planet that can match it.  On this occassion, my inspiration came at the Vishwa Sangh Shibir, a gathering of over 500 karyakartas (workers) from well over 40 different countries.  VSS, as it is more commonly known, takes place once every five years.  I had heard many different experiences about it, mostly positive might I add, that this was a shibir like no other and believe me it certainly was just that - a shibir like no other.

Of the many influential swayamsevaks present at the shibir, there was one in particular that caught my eye.  I hadn't had much interaction with him, none at all in fact but I will never forget the incident that I am about to narrate to you below.  I'm referring to one of the first men who started shakha outside of Bharat on a boat (yes, a boat) to Kenya, Shri Jagdish Shastry ji.  Jagdishji is like few of us on this planet, he is a pioneer.  As a result of his action, shakhas have now sprung up around the world in their thousands.  One could argue that even if he hadn't raised our sacred Bhagwa Dhwaj on the deck of that particular ship, the expansion of shakha overseas was inevitable.  And I would probably agree with anyone who makes such a statement.  However, saying is one thing doing is another. And the point that I'm trying to make is that we should all strive to be pioneers.  We need to remove the self made cap on our minds and broaden our horizons.  In one of his many books, Swami Vivekananda uses the example of Newton.  He narrates, "We say Newton discovered gravitation.  Was it sitting anywhere in a corner waiting for him?  It was in his own mind; the time came and he found it."  I think that says it all, no need to dwell further.

Jagdishji is now wheel chair bound and like most of our seniors despite the inherent will he possesses to be active, his physical body is unable to match his strong willed determination.  It was at the start of one of the first shakhas at the shibir.  Jagdish ji was sat a few rows in front of me.  The exceptionally humid morning in Pune was proving a difficult challenge for most of us foreign NRIs.  As soon as the order daksha was given the formalities kicked in and as per normal the Dhwaj parmukh made the short journey to the Dhwaj pole, Dhwaj in hand.  Suddenly, Jagdishji began shuffling as if he wanted to stand up.  At first I thought he may have just been in some discomfort but then to my amazement, he began pushing up even further on the handle bars of his wheelchair.  At that moment, it was clear he wanted to stand and without a moments hesitation, the swayamsevaks around him helped him gingerly to his feet.  He stood for the most part of ten seconds, conducted the pranaam, still supported by those around him and then was helped back into his chair.

Can we ever get to such an extent where the mere sight of the Bhagwa Dhwaj, the eptiomy of everything we stand for conjours up such emotion and passion that we can do the same if we were in Jagdishji's situation?  What immense respect, love and understanding he must have for our cause!  Do we share the same feelings?  If we ever needed reminding that shakha is much more than just one hour of exercises and games, that it is much more than kabaddi and kho kho, then that reminder is here, right in front of us.  Therefore, the understanding of our work is key. Why do we hold shakhas?  What is or aim?  What are we trying to do? Why do so many people devote so much of their time to this cause?  Such questions should be at the forefront of our minds as young karyakartas.  It is only once we have full conviction and dedication to our work, that we can do our work selflessley.  The same can be said about any task we take on.  If the understanding is there, then the conviction will also naturally be there.

Impossible Is Nothing

A few weeks back before I embarked on the next leg of my journey to New Zealand, I came across a man who happened to be at one of the mandirs I was visiting. Niceties over, I explained that I had taken a year out of my life to do vistaar. As is the case with many people, such terminology is somewhat alien to one’s vocabulary, so some explanation as to what I was doing with my life ensued. In the last three months, I’ve given largely the same explanation to many different persons and the reaction is predictable to say the least. A nod of the head, a smile and the words “very good” being muttered has been the general norm so far but this was soon to change...

Without going into too much detail the common reoccurrence of one word in particular summed up our conversation perfectly – impossible. Supposedly, what I was trying to achieve together with our organisation was in a nutshell completely and utterly inconceivable. Now, I’ll be the first one to admit that organising the society for the better is no easy job! I mean look around us. How can we a group of individuals, organise the society to such an extent that we are not constantly at logger heads with each other? Soldiers in Afghanistan losing their lives, innocent civilians caught up in warfare in the middle east and the constant reminder of children dying from disease and hunger. This is just today. On the surface that one word answer is quite fitting but if our mentality is such then we might as well stamp that answer on our foreheads and create a fuss over nothing.

If you told me that Lance Armstrong would win the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times after having survived testicular cancer, I would have said impossible. If, twenty years ago, you would have told me that Apple computers would begin to surpass Windows, I would have said impossible. If someone had told me that a single man going by the name Mohandas Karmachand Gandhi would lead India away from despair, I would have said impossible. Yet impossible is possible. David Blaine, the high profile American endurance artist once said that ‘in truth, the only restriction on our capacity to astonish ourselves and eachother are imposed by our minds.’ This coming from a man who many of us deem crazy but what we fail to realise is that through his actions and his stunts he makes a mockery of the word impossible.

Let this be a lesson to us all. Our lives have impossible written all over them in every sphere, in every dimension. The world will tell us we can’t do what we want to do, we can’t become what we want to become but the defining moments boil down to you, no one else...