Onam festival is a quintessential part of the identity of Keralites. Onam is truly an all-inclusive festival that is celebrated across caste-religious divides in Kerala. However, the understanding of the origins of Onam festival and the central figures in its legend Vāmana and Mahabali seems to have undergone many distortions to the extent that most Malayalis who celebrate the festival today do not know of many of its significant aspects. It came as a shock to me few years back when I did some reading on this festival, and realised how little I knew of this most important event in Kerala. And so began my attempt to rediscover Onam for myself.

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What is Onam?

Onam is a festival that celebrates the birth of Mahā Vishnu’s ‘Vāmana’ avatār. The legend of Onam is derived from Srimad Bhāgavata Purāna (Canto 8 / Chapters 15 to 21). The popular misunderstanding is that Onam is a celebration of the annual visit of an ancient King of Kerala by the name ‘Maveli’ or ‘Mahābali’. While Vāmana and Mahabali have a direct connect which is found in many scriptural references. However, there is no connection established between Mahābali and Onam.

Onam celebration is linked to the Trikkākkara temple in Cochin which has Mahā Vishnu in the form of Vāmana mūrti as the presiding deity. Trikkākara temple is one of the very rare temples where festival happens during Dakhinayana (Pitr Paksha). Dakshinayana is the six-month time period between Summer solstice and Winter solstice, when the Sun travels to the South of the celestial sphere. According to Puranas, Dakshinayana marks the period when the Gods and Godesses are in their celestial sleep.

King Mahabali in Puranas

In the fight that ensued after the Samudra Manthan, Devas had defeated Asurās. Indrasena is the original name of Bali mentioned Puranas. He was the grandson of Prahlāda, the famous Vishnu devotee and son of Hiranya Kashipu. Asuras under the leadership of Indrasena and guidance of their guru Shukracharya’s Vishwa Jeet Yāgam, conquered all the three worlds including Deva Lokam. Owing to his tremendous strength (Balam), Indrasena came to be known as Bali. To attain the status of Indra, Bali started preparations for the 100-th yāgam. Vāmana was born to subdue the arrogance of King Bali. Only when King Bali surrendered himself by bowing the head in front of Vāmana did he became ‘Mahābali’.

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Birth of Vāmana

When Bali and the army of asuras conquered all the three worlds, Devas pleaded to Mahā Vishnu for a resolution. Bali was a great devotee of Vishnu, and so he did not want to take any direct action against Bali. However, Vishnu promised to be born to Deva Māta Aditi (mother of Indra) to find a resolution for the sorrow of the Devās.

Vishnu took birth as Upendra to Kashyapa and Aditi. Upendran literally means younger brother of Indra. Since he was transformed into a Bāla Brahmachari immediately upon birth, he came to be known as Vāmana.

Bali – Vāmana Encounter

As Vāmana entered the Yāgashāla, Bali immediately recognised that this boy was not who he seemed to be. However, he welcomed Vāmana in accordance with all the ritualistic requirements. Bali then offered Vāmana to ask for anything from him. However, Vāmana simply asked for 3 feet land for doing tapas (penance). Bali’s guru Shukracharya sensed danger at this point and urged Bali not to proceed. However, Bali was adamant that he should keep his word. Shukracharya curses Bali to lose all aishwaryam (abundance) as he disobeyed the Guru. Bali proceeded with the promise of allowing Vāmana to take three steps of land that he needs.

When Bali was about to pour water into Vāmana’s hands to seal his oath, Shukracharya entered the vessel after reducing his body in size, and blocked the hole from which water flow. As if to remove the small blockage, Vāmana inserted a straw into the hole and struck the eye of Shukracharya, who left in utter pain. The water then flowed freely into the lotus hands of Lord Vamana. (Nrisimha Purana 45.34–37).

Vāmana immediately grows in size to become Trivikrama. With one feet, he covers the entire Earth. With the second feet, he covered the swarga lokam. Having no land left, Vāmana asks Bali where to take the third step. Bali woke up to his arrogance and surrendered with all humility in front of Vāmana offering his head as the place where he could take the third step.

The third step of Vāmana on the head of King Bali is an instance of Tiru-adi Dīksha tradition. With Vāmana’s blessing, the ignorance of King Bali was removed and he attained Mukti and became ‘Mahābali’. Mahābali was promoted to ‘Sutalam’ (auspicious region). Vishnu confirmed that once the present Indra steps down from his position, Mahābali would be granted the next Indra status. Not just that Vishnu also blessed Mahābali with the ability to see him at all times. What greater joy can a devotee have?

A popular misconception is Vāmana ‘punished’ Mahābali and sent him to ‘Pātālam’ (netherworld). This is a complete distortion of the story depicted in Purānas.

Was Mahabali a King of Kerala?

The yāgashāla according to Bhāgavatam was set up to the North of River Narmada in a place called Bhrigu Gaccham. Some scholars say this is present-day Rann of Kutch while others opine it is Bharuch. There are reports that cite remote sensing, geological, and archaeological evidences in recent times suggest a large river flowing through Rann of Kutch in ancient times. However, there is no reference to Kerala. Ancient scriptures also talk of ocean to the West of the Western Ghats. Today, Kerala is to the West of Western Ghats and then we reach ocean. Kerala is also characterised by an abundance of Calcium Carbonates in the soil of Kerala. General consensus among scholars is that this level of Calcium Carbonate deposits are usually found in landmasses which used to be submerged in ocean earlier. The rock formations in Kerala also match the kind of rock formations that are found under water in sea (rounded mostly). These indicate present-day Kerala may have been below sea in ancient times.

All this implies it may be incorrect to equate Mahabali to Kerala. However, there is no way to assert it is true or false. All we can do is to look at some of the historical writings in the context of Kerala to arrive at an educated guess.

Sri Kodungallur Kunjikuttan Thampuran (Rāma Varma), renowned poet who is famous for translating the Mahabharata to Malaylam verse-by-verse is known as Kerala Vyāsa. In his khanda kāvyam (epic poem) ‘Keralam’, mentions how the Venād Adikal (rulers of Venād) conquered Kochi Kingdom and remained at the Trikkakara Temple in Kochi to receive offerings from the elite of Kochi Kingdom. Trikkakara temple is a renowned temple of Vāmana Mūrti in Kerala. It is believed that the procession leading up to the temple to give offerings to Venād Adikal culminated in the celebration which became Onam. There is version which talks of Ittu Ravi as the King who started this tradition. However, Indian historian Ālappāt Sridharan Menon in his books on Kerala mentions Raja Kulaśekhara Āzhvār as the one who instituted Onam as a festival of the Chera Nādu (Chera Kingdom). Either ways, he also clearly establish that there is no relationship between Onam festival and Mahābali.

While Mahābali may have been a noble King of the Pauranic times, it is incorrect to say he was a King of Kerala. If you read the legend of Vāmana in conjunction with the next avatār of Vishnu, Parashurāma (Rāma with an axe or Paraśu), this becomes even more evident. Legend has it that Kerala was a gift from Arabian Sea to Sree Parashurāma, a.k.a Bhārgava, who threw his axe across the Sea from Gokarna to Kanyākumāri, and water receded up to the spot where his axe fell. This is also the reason why this region which includes Kerala is referred to as “Bhārgava Kshetram” or “Paraśurāma Kshetram”. If one were to believe Mahābali ruled a land during the times of Vāmana, then clearly it is illogical then to say that land was Kerala which was formed during the time of Paraśurāma who came after Vāmana.

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Political Distortions of Onam in Modern Times

Honestly, I could not figure out when the legend of Mahābali crept into the celebration of Onam. However, the importance of understanding important festivals such as Onam that form part of the identity of a population becomes very evident when one looks at the ways in which the distortions to the legend of Onam and Mahābali is being used to further identity politics of various kinds.

For instance, few years ago Mr. Thomas Issac, former Finance Minister of Kerala and a Central Committee member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), tweeted a controversial statement which promotes the popular misconception around Onam.

It is understandable if a layman passes off statements of this kind out of their ignorance. But coming from a responsible Cabinet Minister of a ruling government, it is very unfortunate. The only way to counter statements such as these for petty political brownie points is to spread awareness of the truth of Onam to the maximum number of people.

It is very interesting to note that even popular literary writers from Kerala have went along with this version of Onam – Mahābali connection.

I’ve also come across ‘woke’ Malayalis who goes with the current trend of creating content that propagates these distortions. While it may be fashionable now to interpret anything and everything as a subaltern resistance against savarna domination, it may be good to dig a little deeper as sooner or later, such activism and activists are bound to lose their credibility when the layman starts understanding the truth and essence of Onam.

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Rediscovering & Reclaiming Onam

Rediscovering and reclaiming Onam is a ṛnam (duty) that every Keralite owe to their ancestors. Let each Onam bring greater connect to the Vāmana Mūrti at the center of that pookkalam (floral carpet), reminding us of the eternal Purusha within that enlivens the Prakrti and allow us to unfold and bloom into our full potentiality.

The legend of Vāmana and Mahābali has great potential to evoke a self-reflective journey for an individual. To me, this story clearly drives home the importance of the idea of īśvarapranidhana (surrender to a higher entity that one believes in) mentioned in Kriya Yoga (Tapas, Svādhyāya, Īśvarapraṇidhana). As long as I hold on to my sense of self that is rooted in my past experiences (desires and aversions), I will not be able to allow my highest potential to manifest. Can I trust the flow of life and allow the grace of the guru parampara to flow through me, and be a joyous witness to the life divine that unfold effortlessly? This is what I am staying with after yet another Onam and revisiting the journey of Bali to Mahābali by the grace of Vāmana.

How are you evoked when you delve into the story of Vāmana and Mahābali? I’d love to hear your thoughts and reflections.

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Ganesha is known as the remover of all obstacles (vighna vināshaka). Here is one personal story from my family history that epitomises this quality in action.

A Brief Family History

My mother's side of the family is part of the ancient royal lineage of the Pandya dyansty which ruled with their capital as Madurai in Tamil Nadu for many centuries. Few centuries back, following an invasion, the family moved from Madurai to the hills of Poonjar carrying with them the procession idols of Madurai Meenakshi and Sundareshwar as well as the treasury of Madurai Kingdom. They bought land from the Travancore Kingdom and thus was born the Kingdom of Poonjar. The Kingdom established many temples under its jurisdiction over time.

In 1956, with the formation of Kerala State and land reforms that were implemented, most of the lands of the Poonjal Koyikkal got redistributed to the intermediaries who were managing them. This led to an immense loss of revenue for the family and many temples went into a state of oblivion and dilapidation over time. Many temples were handed over to the local communities to manage locally.

Finding the Missing Ganesha Temple

In the early 2000s, I recall there was a very significant 'Ashtamangala Prashnam', a very sophisticated Kerala-style astrological practice that seeks answers to dilemmas or questions through the use of 8 auspicious objects - ghee lamps, mirror, gold, milk, yogurt, fruits, a book, and a white cloth. The Ashtamangala Prashnam was organised by the family to look into some of the causes for certain difficult situations within the larger family (over 500 members at that point). If you are curious to know more about this process, you may watch the video below before reading further.

This brought out the existence of an ancient Ganesha temple that belonged to the family which according to the astrologer was the root of all prosperity for the family. Strangely, most elders (some of them in their 80s) in the family could not recall any such temple in their memory. The astrologer gave broad coordinates of where this temple could be and it ended up in the vicinity of the area near where my grandmother had built her home, a small high range town called Kothamangalam.

As the family started looking up old partition records, they found an allocation of 8 acres of land for the maintenance of this particular temple. This was a surprise for everyone as such an important temple of the family was not in the memory of most family members. Many suggested that perhaps in the aftermath of the land reforms, the concern of most of the family members went into making a livelihood to support the daily concerns of their families.

Within a few months, my mother and uncle located remnants of this temple in East Kothamangalam. A broken vigraha (idol) of the Ganesha was found under a pāla tree (Scholar tree or Alstonia Scholaris). This was in a small plot of 25 cents. Vigrahas of Nāga Rāja, Nāga Yakshi, and Vana Durga were also recovered from the same plot. There was a big well and remnants of thidapally (place where naivedyam or offering is prepared in a temple) were also found here.

As they spoke to the locals around the plot, they said they have no memory of how this idol came to be there and they made it a practice to light a lamp near the idol every day. Some said they heard of a temple which was lost to fire many decades ago. We also got to hear stories of the many attempts that were made to encroach upon this land, even by government officers, but somehow or the other each attempt faced an obstacle by way of a health issue or a transfer posting of the person involved which foiled their plans.

Our family members shared the story of the Ashtamangala Prashnam and shared about the family history and the details of the temple that existed in that place to the locals and expressed interest to renovate this temple with their support. Local residents were very happy to hear this and expressed their support in our efforts.

This led to the organising of a Deva Prashnam, a set of astrological procedures to ascertain the will of the deity during a crisis in a temple. A tantri was requested to identify the form of Ganesha in the temple. There are 64 forms of Ganesha. He set up a tent in the plot and after a week-long meditation identified the form in this space as that of ‘Trailokya Mohana Ganapathy’, a symbol of prosperity.

In the Shree Yantra, trailokya mohana or bhūpura is the outer most āvaraṇa (enclosure) of the Shree Yantra. Our family has followed the tradition of Shree Viyā upāsana through generations. It is part of the Shākta tradition, influenced by Kashmir Shaivism, and focuses on Lalitā Tripurasundari (beautiful goddess of the three worlds) as the main form of Mahādevi. Gaṇapati is an important deity in this tradition.

The Deva Prashnam led to the establishment of a Bālālaya Prathishta (a temporary structure) in April 4-5, 2009 (1184 Meenam 21-22). Renovation works started under the guidance of Kaaranathumana Shri. K.P.Sreedharan Nampoothiri. Two small structures were built for Ganesha and Vana Durga for daily pooja. A temple committee was formed with local representatives and two members of the Poonjar royal family to oversee the renovation.

Ganesha in Action

This entire temple renovation proposal came up as an unplanned endeavour for my family. I recall numerous moments of crisis during this phase where none knew how resources for the next step will be arranged for the progress of the renovation. Once we begin an initiative like this there are certain steps we need to take in a time sensitive fashion. Each of the persons involved were already having their hands full with the commitments (both time and financial) of the life that they were already leading.

Still I remember the unshakeable shraddha (faith) and vīryam (courage) with which my mother and uncle led this renovation initiative firmly convinced that it was Ganesha who led us to find this place, and he himself will see us through each crisis. And each step of the way resources came together from known and unknown sources at the right moment in helping the renovation move forward seamlessly. Even in moments when there were some delays, it turned out the option that materialised was even better than the earlier one. My mother used to say in a light hearted way, “Our Gaṇapati loves only the best. So, whatever that materialises will be accordingly.” And it was true!

And so the renovation proceeded and completed successfully within few years. On this Vināyaka Chaturthi, which also coincided with my mother’s birthday, as I spoke to her she was on the way back from a pooja at the fully functioning Ganesha temple, now known as the ‘Edathil Mahā Gaṇapati’ temple in East Kothamangalam. Each time she recounts the experience of this temple renovation, I can feel the conviction in her that it was Ganesha who decided after 55 years of oblivion to come back to his glory.

One of the reflections of this conviction is her refusal to put her name on any part of the temple, which is a common practice these days in many temples. She believes whatever resources came together through her was part of Ganesha’s plan and she deserves no mention for it. And in her mind, Ganesha has blessed her with more than what she has wished or asked for. In a world that is craving for acknowledgements, I find her presence and attitude to this endeavour a true practice of īśvara praṇidhāna.

ईश्वरप्रणिधानाद्वा ॥

īshvara-praṇidhānād-vā (Yoga Sūtrās, 1.23)

Below is the video I took two years ago when I visited this temple, now fully functioning with daily pooja for Gaṇapati, Vana Durga, Nāga Yakshi, and Nāga Rāja.

There are countless of stories of family members and villagers around of how the deity has blessed through their difficulties in the past decade.

On this auspicious day of Vināyaka Chaturthi, I bow down to this divine intelligence that continue to inspire and bless us all.

Origins of Vishu

Vishu word comes from the root word, vishuwat, i.e., samam (or equal). Traditionally, Kerala follow Solar calendar. Thus, Vishu marks the time when the Sun cross the equator, enter Meda rāśi, and starts its movement into the Northern Hemisphere. This is celebrated as a new year. The name given for the year 2025 is called Viśwāvasu. Interestingly, in Kerala we celebrate 3 new years! But that’s story for another day.

On the 10th day after Vishu, the Sun is directly over Kerala. This day is celebrated as Pathāmudayam (10th sun rise) in many Kerala temples, especially Devi temples. Traditional oil lamps are lit with 10 wicks to mark the ten sunrises after Vishu. This day also marks the start of the Theyyam (living gods) festival season in the Northern Malabar region of Kerala in the Kāvūs (sacred groves) after four months of silence.

The Vishu Celebration

Growing up I’ve fond and nostalgic memories of my grandmother, parents, and other elders in the house preparing Vishu Kaṇi late night on the eve of Vishu.

The curation of a Vishu Kaṇi includes Kindi (a type of pitcher) filled with water, njorinja vastram (fresh cloth), vālkaṇṇādi (a unique Kerala mirror with a handle), puthari (newly harvested rice), kaṇi konna (Cassia Fistula) flowers, swarṇam (gold), grantham (religious scripture, usually Devi Mahātmyam in Kerala), phalam (seasonal fruits such as mango, jackfruit, etc.), nava dhānyam (nine grains that represents the nine planets in the Hindu cosmology).

Kaṇi denotes the first thing you see upon waking up. On the morning of Vishu, my grandmother would wake me up, close my eyes with her palms and gently guide me towards the altar in the pūja room which is beautifully curated with an assortment of elements that invoke a feeling of abundance and beauty. As we open our eyes, we first have the darśanam (sight) of Kṛṣṇa vigraham (Krishna idol), then the auspicious objects around, and then take the mirror and look at ourselves through the mirror.

At this time, we sing a song that describes the journey of transcending our baser instincts to invoke the divinity within us. The elders in the family, then, offer a coin to the younger ones as Vishu Kaineettam.

Vishu Kaṇi ritual is a unique practice in the sense that it takes a departure from the usual practice of stepping into a pūja room or space of prayer after completing one’s morning rituals and ablutions.

Mythology, Symbols & Metaphors

Vishu celebration has a mythology, and certain key rituals and elements that create a rich tapestry of symbolism and metaphors for self-discovery.

Vishu Kaṇi

What are we really seeing when see a Vishu Kaṇi?

At Vishu Kaṇi, we first see Kṛṣṇa bhagavān. The Sanskrit word bhagavān has its root in bhaga which means “opulence” and vān means “one who possesses it”. Thus, bhagavān embodies the qualities of richness, abundance, courage, beauty and renunciation.

The idea is to start the new year with an experience of seeing this embodiment in front of us. The act of looking at the mirror after this is a reminder to ourselves that this potential is within us. Thus, we begin the new year with a intent and vision to awaken this potential within us as we engage with the world.

This is very much in alignment with one of the significant śānti mantras in the Vedic literature:

ॐ भद्रं कर्णेभिः शृणुयाम देवाः।
भद्रं पश्येमाक्षभिर्यजत्राः

Om! May whatever I hear through my ears be auspicious.

May whatever I see through my eyes be auspicious.

As a daily practice, this is also an invitation for us to actively set an intention to be aware of our own meaning making processes and develop the capacity to welcome the events in life through the lens of the aishwaryam and act from that sense of auspiciousness and abundance within.

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Mythology As Mirror

There are two stories from Indian mythology that is associated with the celebration of Vishu. One is from the Indian epic Rāmāyaṇa and the other from Bhāgavata Purāṇa.

Rāmāyaṇa

Bhāgavata Purāṇa - Story of Narakāsura

A more popular story associated with Vishu is the story of the asura (demon) Hiranyākṣan.

Hiranyākṣan is the son of Diti and Sage Kashyapa. Through his austerities and penance towards Brahma, one of the Trinity Gods in Hindu pantheon, he gains the boon of invulnerability of being killed by neither God, man, nor beast. He goes on to capture Bhūmī Devi (Earth Goddess) and pulled her deep beneath the Cosmic Ocean. Other deities appeal to Viṣnu to save Bhūmi Devi and creation. Answering their plea, Viṣṇu takes the avatār of a varāha (wild boar), kills Hiraṇyākṣa, and rescues Bhūmi Devi.

Hiraṇyākṣan kidnapped Bhūmi Devi. Narakāsura was his son through Bhūmi Devi. Narakāsura got a boon from Brahma after an intense penance that only with the support of his mother (Bhūmi Devi) he can be killed. After receiving this boon, he grew stronger and started wreaking havoc across the different worlds. Devendra, the King of the Devās (gods), approached Śrī Kṛṣṇa with the request to kill Narakāsura. Śrī Kṛṣṇa was with his consort Satyabhāma at that point. Satyabhāma was Bhumi Devi’s avatār. Śrī Kṛṣṇa leaves to kill Narakāsura with Satyabhāma by his side. First, they encounter and kill Murāsura who guards the borders of Prāgjyotiṣa, the capital city of Narakāsura. And finally, Narakāsura is killed with Sudarshana chakra by Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Vishu is a celebration of the death of Narakāsura at the hands of Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

Inner Transformation

So, what is the archetypal import of this story for our own self-discovery and growth?

It is important to understand that Naraka is not a hell that you visit upon death. Naraka is a space that is created in the here and now based on how we live our life.

त्रिविधं नरकस्येदं द्वारं नाशनमात्मनः ।
कामः क्रोधस्तथा लोभस्तस्मादेतत्त्रयं त्यजेत् ॥

trividhaṃ narakasyedaṃ dvāraṃ nāśanamātmanaḥ
kāmaḥ krodhastathā lobhastasmādetattrayaṃ tyaje (B.G. 16:21)

Bhagavad Gīta (Chapter 16, Verse 21) speaks of three doors through which one enters naraka (hell), viz., lōbham (greed), krōdham (anger - wrath), and kāmam (desire - lust). These three are inter-connected. Once you develop a compulsive desire to get something, and when you do not get it, you experience great anger. Even when the desire is satisfied, it fuels the greed for more. The assumption that getting the object of desire will bring happiness is the root cause for this pattern to exist. Therefore, an intelligent person will take action to give up these three tendencies (lōbham, krōdham, kāmam).

In the story of Narakāsura, Bhūmi Devi represents one’s essence and fundamental truth. Hiraṇyākṣan is derived from the root words Hiraṇyam (gold) and Akṣam (eyes). Thus, Hiraṇyākṣan represents the quality of lōbham (greed) in our life. When our essence becomes enjoined by such greed, we become Narakāsura and create naraka (hell) for ourselves in our lives.

The boon Narakāsura received is that he can be killed only with the support of his own mother (Bhūmī Devi). That is, one needs to decide for oneself to kill the form of Narakāsura within through the integration of myself with the divine (Śrī Kṛṣṇa) in me. The five-headed Murāsura who protects the palace of Narakāsura represents the five organs of action and perception that aids creating the world of desires and greed. Mastery of the five senses is what will help one eliminate the hell created by the desire and greed-ridden mind. Sudarśanam implies cultivating the right vision (su - right or auspicious, darśanam - vision). Thus, Śrī Kṛṣṇa killing Narakāsura with Sudarśanam represents our capacity to overcome our own suffering created through greed by cultivating the right perspective while engaging with the world.

Thus, as one sees the Viṣu Kaṇi with the Śrī Kṛṣṇa, it serves as a reminder to nurture the right vision (sudarśanam) towards life. But is the right vision alone enough in life?

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The Neuroscience of Vishu Through Somatic & Transgenerational Lens

The right vision without action will remain a fantasy or imagination. For real transformation, one needs to combine the right vision with the right action. So, what is the right action that is proposed in Indic thought? How does unreleased trauma in the nervous system impact this transformation? Let us explore.

Indian Knowledge Traditions propose that one’s actions need to align with the

repaying of the five debts with which each of us have taken birth in this world. These are:

1. Deva Ṛṇam - We are all graced by unseen energies that enable us to live life. Repaying this debt through the acknowledgement and remembrance of this grace with gratitude is called Deva Yajñam.

2. Pitṛ Ṛṇam - Acknowledging and revering the ancestors whose sacrifices and efforts helped shape me to be who I am. Even modern healing modalities such as Family Constellations speak of healing transgenerational trauma through restoring of fundamental principles of reverence, giving and receiving, and sense of belonging to one’s parents and their ancestral lineage. One practice that one can adopt is to visualise receiving the gift of strength from one’s father and gift of love from the mother.

3. Bhūta Ṛṇam - Knowing I am part of the inter-connected web of life along with all other beings (bhūta) while living in this world. Being compassionate and taking care of the fellow non-human beings around us such as fostering a cat, adopting a dog, feeding cows, choosing to use cruelty-free products, etc. can potentially become part of our practice of repaying this debt.

4. Manushya Ṛṇam - To support the well-being of fellow human beings. Practicing seva for fellow human being around you in whatever capacity that you are able to forms part of repaying this debt.

5. Ṛṣi Ṛṇam - Achāryās or teachers from whom we have learnt creates this debt. To share and teach what has been learnt from one’s teachers is the way to repay this debt.

When one is engaged in repaying these five debts as part of the daily living, it is unlikely for the mind to have the space to distract itself into unhealthy patterns.

Somatic Experiencing Principles in Vishu

The multi-sensorial nature of Vishu celebration is an excellent process of resourcing. Resourcing involves finding what supports us to feel present, grounded, and safe. This is a critical aspect in trauma resolution in Somatic Experiencing. The Vishu Kaṇi with all its varied rich and bountiful visual metaphors, Vishu song and firecrackers, elaborate feast, fragrance from the flowers, incense, and freshly prepared food, and the touch of new clothes, gifted coins, and ritual materials presents a powerful resource to anchor one’s attention for a new beginning.

This complete sensory engagement creates what psychologists call as “state-dependent memory”. State-dependent memory refers to the psychologial phenomenon where information learned in a specific physiological or psychological state is more easily recalled when the person returns to the same state.

Today we live a over stimulated and fragmented sensory world most of the time. The integrated multi-sensorial experience of Vishu offers a coherent sensory narrative that is increasingly rare. This synchronised engagement of all senses in a meaningful context creates what neuroscientists call “coherent neural oscillation” - a state where different brain regions synchronise their activity, promoting integration and well-being.

Transgenerational Healing Aspects of Vishu

Transgenerational healing occurs when individuals are able to become aware and break dysfunctional patterns carried across generations within a family system. The design of Vishu celebration enables this process through:

• Power of Rituals - By collectively envisioning abundance at the start of a new year, families metaphorically interrupt patterns of anticipated lack through rituals that consciously focus on symbols of prosperity. Like with all rituals, the power of a ritual resides in the meanings held by the individuals who perform the ritual and the repetitive nature of rituals.

• Temporal Bridge Across Generations - When children participate in the same rituals their grandparents and ancestors experienced, they enter a psychological continuum that extends beyond individual life spans. This sense of continuity provides an existential security and sense of being part of something larger and more enduring than oneself. This is a crucial need in today’s times when identities are becoming increasingly fragmented and isolated through individualisation.

• Role Transmission - Younger ones in the family witnessing the elder ones in ceremonial roles which they will eventually inherit in the family allow for a graceful transmission of familial authority and a metaphorical apprenticeship. The roles taken up by the matriarch to arrange the Kaṇi, the elders giving Kaineettam to younger ones, etc. signify this role transmission across generations.

• Intergenerational Comfort - For children, the multi-sensorial experience of abundance and prosperity becomes a formative experience. The combined sensory experience creates what psychologists call “safe attachment memories” - experiences of feeling secure and valued.

My deep gratitude to Brahmachāri Sudheer Chaitanya of Chinmaya Mission whose talk on the occasion of Vishu in 2024 is the inspiration behind this post.

Once upon a time, a fierce Samurai went to a Zen master to ask about heaven and hell. “Tell me the nature of heaven and hell!”, demanded the Samurai. The Zen master was not impressed by the aggression displayed by the Samurai. “You’re nothing but a fool! You’re too stupid to understand such things. Go away!”, said the Zen master in disdain. Enraged by this insult, the Samurai drew out his katāna (a fierce long sword), and was about to strike the Zen master. The master calmly said, “This is hell.” Having realised how his rage and violence created his own suffering, the Samurai lowered his sword and bowed in gratitude. “And this is heaven.”, added the Zen master. This Zen story beautifully captures the innate potential in human beings to be both violent as well as to grow through awareness and realise their highest potential.

We live in a world that is increasingly torn by war and a media that thrives on the human tendency to feed on violence. So how does this collective preoccupation with violence impact individual well-being? Perhaps, the ability to discover non-violence (ahimsa) is key to our individual and collective well-being.

Is Violence Inherent To Us?

“The nature of himsa (violence) is very much a part of our nature. Hence, in Patanjali’s Yoga Sūtras, the practice is articulated as that of ahimsa, acknowledging that violence is part of our very being.”, says Saraswathi Vasudevan, student of Yoga Ācharya Sri TKV Desikachar and co-founder of YogaVahini Foundation, Chennai.

All living beings have a natural urge for self-preservation. When we perceive a threat, this deep seated urge springs forth. Trauma healing modalities such as Somatic Experiencing, speak of fight, flight, or freeze energies that arise and get stuck in the nervous system during such moments. Yoga speaks of the ways in which flow of one’s prāṇa (life force) can get blocked due to knotting up of the nādīs (energy pathways) leading to illnesses.

Albert Einstein once stated that the most important decision we will every make is whether we believe in a friendly or a hostile universe. If our perception of the world is it being a hostile place, then our response to life and beings around us will carry seeds of violence that will ultimate impact our own health and well-being. So, how does one nurture a way of being that is anchored in a sense of friendliness (maitri) and compassion (karuṇa) towards ourselves and the world?

Understanding Violence Through Yogic Lens

“We can truly understand and practice non-violence (ahimsa) only by understanding our own intrinsic potential to inflict violence (himsa) on ourselves and others.”, says Saraswati, as she reflects on the practice of ahimsa.

“vitarkā himsā-ādaya: kṛta-kārita-anumoditā lobha-krodha-moha-pūrvakā mrdu-

madhya-adhimātrā dukha-agnyāna-ananta-phalā: iti pratipakṣa bhāvanam.” - Y.S. 2.34

Patanjali’s Yoga Sūtrās mention three ways in which one can create violence. One can inflict violence directly (krta) by oneself, indirectly (kārita) by instigating others to act, or by being an approving bystander watching violence committed by another (anumodita). Also, it specifies six human traits that create discolorations of the mind and instigate violence, viz., lust (kāma), anger (krodha), or delusion (moha), greed (lobha), intoxication (mada), and envy (mātsarya). The intensity of compulsion one feels to act out in violence may be mild (mrdu), medium (madhyama), or intensely strong (adhimātra).

In my coaching and therapy sessions with clients, I have often observed how the onset of various health issues begins with violation of some of the basic elements of healthy living. This include repression of emotions, irregular diet and sleep, lack or excessive exercise routines, etc. “I remember the first time I started working out and focusing on my body, I also started prioritizing my food and other schedules in life. The more I understood myself, more was my capacity to understand others and systems.”, says Dhvani Thakkar, a peacebuilder, educator, and designer based out of Costa Rica.

Discovering Ahimsa

Yamas in Aṣtāṇga Yoga are a set of practices around inter-personal conduct of which ahimsa is the foundational practice.

ahimsā-pratiṣṭāyām-tat-sannidhau-vaira-tyāga: - Y.S. 2.35

Yoga Sūtras state that in the presence of a person who has renounced (tyāgam) violence (vairam) from within themselves and is anchored ((pratiṣta) in a deep sense of equanimity (śāntam), anyone holding on to violence can experience the dropping away of violence from their inner space and feel connected to the śāntam within themselves. Practice of ahimsa becomes possible when you are able to discover a location within you from where you are not dislocated by the experiences of the world.

For this, you need to cleanse the residues accumulated from life experiences from your system through a right set of practices. “The whole purpose of Aṣtāṇga Yoga is to purify oneself of all the impurities that one has gathered in the past, continue to gather in the present, and will continue to gather in the future.”, says Saraswati. “Through the practice of āsana, prāṇāyāma, and pratyāhāra I can see what patterns of himsa I am holding on to in my life, what are its roots, intensity, and discover who would I be if I did not have these in my life.”, adds Saraswati.

“Ahimsa is not about being too cautious about getting hurt or hurting others too, as I believe this comes from an inner location of victimization and vigilance. Ahimsa, on the other hand, comes from a space of deep clarity and compassion to oneself and the other.”, says Anita, a yoga therapist and healing facilitator, and founder of Vishoka in Coimbatore. “Ahimsa to me is being sensitive and understanding of what can harm me or others and therefore to avoid harming others or being harmed.”, adds Anita.

Practicing Ahimsa

Yoga Sūtras state that the way to end the cycle of violence arising out of one’s innate traits is to imagine in one’s mind as to how these actions will create the experience of grief and ignorance as an unending consequence. This process is referred to as pratipakṣa bhāvana.

Dhvani designed a game called Dialog which enables a self-reflective context in which one can practice heartful conversations through a series of prompts. “The practice of sharing in the circle during the game enables discovery of who we really are as a person and be vulnerable. This gives us a real chance to discover what peace and compassion may look like for ourselves.”, says .

“At the end of each day, go through the day in your mind while observing your breath and body. As you revisit an experience, if you notice any disturbance in your breath or body, know that you are holding some residue from that experience. The pratyāhāra practice then will be to consciously let go of that energy from your system.”, shares Saraswati.

Our sense of well-being is defined by our mind. Our sense of well-being begins to improve only when we begin to see our reality differently. “When I develop the capacity to see that I am not separate from this world, and that what I see as a problem with the world is also inside me, then I can look at life experiences in a lighter manner.”, shares Saraswati.

“Only if we slow down we can practice Ahimsa.”, says Rajni Bakshi, author and founder of the YouTube channel ‘Ahimsa Conversations’. “This would mean different things to different people. Creating fallow spaces and unstructured time in everyday life will create the necessary conditions for this.”, adds Rajni.

Perhaps singer John Lennon captured the spirit of ahimsa in his campaign towards world peace as he sang in Imagine:

“You may say I’m a dreamer,

But I’m not the only one.

I hope someday you’ll join us,

And the world will live as one.”

P.S.1: This article was originally published on Mint Lounge on 29th October 2024. You may read it here.

A study published in the Journal of Personal and Social Psychology in 2023, Seeing Your Life story as a Hero’s Journey Increases Meaning in Life, shows that whether your answer to the above question was Luke Skywalker, Harry Potter, Arjuna, Karna, or Draupadi, seeing your life through the lens of hero archetypes can have a significant impact on your well-being by helping you find meaning in life.

The template of a hero’s journey

Research indicates that by the time we are in our early 20s, most of us have constructed a narrative identity, i.e, an internalised and evolving life story, that explains how we became the person we are, and where our life might go in the future. The stories we tell ourselves about our lives influence how alive and purposeful we feel in our lives.

World renowned mythologist Joseph Campbell in his seminal work, The Hero With a Thousand Faces, published in 1949, provides a structure for heroic journeys in mythologies and blockbuster movies, which he describes as a monomyth, i.e., a singular template of transformation. At its most basic form, a hero responds to an inner calling and goes on an adventure, emerges victorious from a defining crisis, and then returns home changed for the better. Campbell is of the view that if a person doesn’t respond to their inner calling and follows a programmatic life instead, they will inevitably fall sick. “I think what we are really seeking is an experience of being alive. Myths are clues to the spiritual potentialities of human life,” he says in the TV series, The Power of Myth.  

Multiple studies show that the hero’s journey predicts and can causally increase people’s experience of well-being in life. “Perceiving your life as a ‘hero’s journey’ is associated with psychological benefits such as enhanced well-being, greater life satisfaction, feeling like you are flourishing, and reduced depression,” says Benjamin A. Rogers, an assistant professor of management and organisation at Boston College and author of the study mentioned earlier.

Hero archetypes in Indian epics

Campbell in his books and talks has often acknowledged the richness of Indian mythology and its implications for helping one live life more fully. “All the gods, heavens, hell and worlds are within us. This is the great realisation of the Upanishads of India...,” he notes in The Power of Myth.

India has a rich tradition of purānās and itihāsās, which are replete with powerful archetypes that serve as mirror for self-exploration. Serving as a map of our inner psyches, these stories enable us to go on a journey of self-discovery. To tap into this awareness, one needs to learn to look at a myth in its connotative form instead of the denotative form. For instance, Arjuna is a quintessential Indian hero archetype. Arjuna represents the heroic potential that unfolds when one can anchor oneself in a state of dhyāna (meditative silence). This opens up the possibility for an individual to access the inherent intelligence from one’s Unconscious. This is metaphorically represented as the dialogue between Arjuna and Krishna in the Mahābhārata.

“The purānās are meant to be mirrors unto yourself, enabling you to nurture the seeds within,” says Raghu Ananthanarayanan in his TedX talk, Mahābhārata as a mirror to the Self. Ananthanarayanan is a behavioural scientist and yoga practitioner who has done pioneering work with archetypes from Mahābhārata in self-exploration and leadership contexts.

Chaturvedi Badrinath, author of the Sahitya Akademi award winning book, The Mahābhārata: An Inquiry in the Human Condition, talks about how the Mahābhārata is a systematic philosophical and political inquiry into the human condition. In his book, he examines the epic in the light of human life and relationships, showing that the epic is, at its core, a meditation on the order underlying human relationships.

The Mahābhārata in our lives

India has a rich Mahābhārata performance tradition which creates a reflective space that aids individual and collective well-being. Bhāratakoothu is a large-scale, month- long Mahabharata festival that has been performed in over 200 villages in Tamil Nadu for over the past 1300 years. The site of the festival is usually the temple of Draupadi Amman (Goddess Draupadi), who is the village deity in many parts of northern Tamil Nadu. The celebrations, according to Indian encyclopaedic resource Sahapedia, include ‘daily morning processions and rituals, narration of the Mahābhārata by professional storytellers, and nightly koothu performances of episodes from the epic’. These performances are participatory and have the audiences involved as citizen characters, the Sahapedia article by M.D. Muthukumaraswamy notes.

According to Chennai-based cinematographer and independent filmmaker Sashikanth Ananthachari, listening to and participating in the epic at the Dharmaraja/Draupadi Amman temples allows participants to relive the Mahābhārata of their own lives. “I’ve seen how strained relationships between family members have healed and restored at the end of a 21-day performance because it gave them the opportunity to reflect on their own actions and make course corrections,” says Ananthachari. A filmmaker who has done extensive research on the Mahābhārata performance traditions in Tamil Nadu for the past 15 years, Ananthachari is currently running an online course on the performance traditions of Tamil Nadu for IIT-Madras and NPTEL. 

“People find it easy to reflect upon their actions and life when they start seeing the Duryodhana, Bheema, and Draupadi in themselves. With the participants undergoing this experience annually, each repetition adds more nuances to the understanding of the epic and of their own engagement with the world. This continuous revisiting of one’s life patterns and action choices through the Mahābhārata characters makes it distinct from the linearity of Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey.,” Ananthachari explains. This idea of returning to the oneself time and again is also captured in the Yogic idea of abhyāsa, or a personal reflective practice that helps you discover more of who you are.

The archetypes inherent in our personal mythologies, or the heroes we think we embody, enable us to make sense of the world and our experiences at a depth that often languages fail to articulate. I got to see a practical application of this theory in one of my recent leadership coaching sessions where a senior corporate leader was feeling challenged by a situation at work. As we engaged with the dilemma at a deeper level through reflective art, the picture that emerged for him was of Sri Kṛṣṇa on a chariot in the middle of the Kurukshetra battle-field. The picture helped him connect the dots and make sense of the nuances of his dilemma as a leader to take the next step. 

Riffing off on the millennial phrase, ‘main character energy’ that exhorts one to claim your life as if you are the protagonist, here are questions for you to mull over. What does your choice of the hero in the movie of your life tell you? Can you discover more about yourself when you look at this hero archetype as a mirror into your own self?

Note: This article was originally published in the Mint Lounge on 1st Oct 2024. You may find it here.

I first got introduced to theatre in my high school days when the Sanksrit teacher at our school (Chinmaya Vidyalaya, Tripunithura) selected me for the main theatre production for the school annual day. The drama titled 'Ooru bhangam' was the final scene of the Mahābhārata battle when Duryodhana is defeated by Bhīma at the end of a fiercely fought fight. Though in Malayalam, the drama followed the principles of Sanskrit theatre and had a 'Sūtradhār' at the beginning of the play who sets the context for the play with a touch of impromptu humour and entertaining the audience even while describing the story leading up to the scene of the play. I was trained for over a month a traditional Chākyār artist to play the role of the Sutradhār in that drama.

I relished the role, of course, but more importantly, this was also my first experiential introduction to the power of theatre in creating social dialogue. The Chākyār or Sūtradhār had a special place in the scheme of the play as traditionally they held the power to mock and tease even the King or authority figures using their sharp satire. This was often used to bring to light pertinent issues of the masses in a light hearted yet serious manner from the unarticulated to the articulated space. Perhaps, this is also the first time I experienced the idea of 'Serious Play' without knowing that term.

Many years later, I once again experienced the transformative power of theatre when I became part of Ritambhara and experienced the offerings designed by Sri Raghu Ananthanarayanan such as Mahābhārata Immersion. As I started working with theatre and its application in the space of self-exploration and healing, I got excited to delve deeper into it. In 2022, I completed a certification program in the Theatre of the Oppressed (TO) offered by the Centre for Community Dialogue & Change (CCDC) in Mumbai.

Theatre of the Oppressed (TO) is a form of interactive theatre invented by Brazilian dramatist Augusto Boal. It is a participatory art form that is meant and applied as an empowering and liberating practice that inspires individual and collective transformation. Uniqueness of TO, also sometimes referred to the Forum Theatre, is that the spectators become performers or spect-actors, acting out solutions to social problems that the play depicts. Some of the key ideas in TO pedagogy are:

• Acknowledge there is oppression.

• Name the oppression.

• Identify the Oppressor and the Oppressed in a situation of oppression.

While I enjoyed working with the theatre games and processes in TO and integrated many of these ideas into my own inner work and yoga workshops and retreats, I always felt ambivalent and conflicted about the pre-occupation of TO pedagogy with the dichotomy of the Oppressor & the Oppressed.

In a world that is already torn apart by the processes of 'othering', do we need to accentuate this by getting hung up with calling out the Oppressor and the Oppressed?

How can this pre-occupation create a dialogic space where the Oppressor and the Oppressed can discover possibility for reconciliation and healing?

As I stayed with these questions, I discovered Theatre for Living (TfL) designed by David Diamond, a student of Augusto Boal. I got oriented to this pedagogy in 2023 when I got an opportunity to attend a workshop hosted by CCDC in Bangalore.

TfL weaves together TO, Systems Theory and the groundbreaking work of Fritjof Kapra, and David's own over 25 years of practical community-based popular theatre. Personally, I resonated a lot more with the ideas and approach of the TfL which attempts to go beyond the pre-occupation with the Oppressor and the Oppressed. Some of the questions TfL engages with are:

• From a perspective of Biology & Sociology, how is a community a living thing?

• How do we design a theatre practice to consciously work with living communities to help them tell their stories?

• How do we accomplish this without demonizing those characters with whom we disagree?

• Must we constantly do battle to defeat an endless stream of oppressors, or can we imagine a world in which we stop creating them?

• What practical games and exercises can we use to awaken group consciousness?

So, obviously when I got an opportunity to be part of a online dialogue with David Diamond two weeks ago, hosted by CCDC, I was quite excited and eager to hear more about David's perspective on this approach.

One of the questions I was curious to know about what a reference David made in his 2024 paper 'The Revolution We Need is Bridge-Building'. In this paper, he mentions about how the 'Oppressed/Oppressor' way of seeing is rooted in a Judeo/Christian model of good and evil, heaven and hell. He shared how the attitudes of 'You attack me, I annihilate you.' and looking at nature as a resource to exploit are originating in the Old Testament. He believes that today science has come a full circle back to indigeneous wisdom. The idea of interconnectedness is established in the relational space through a rediscovery of the indigenous wisdom. David was also humble and authentic enough to acknowledge that he does not believe TfL by itself will not solve all problems. However, it can create deeper spaces for dialogue.

This conversation left me reflecting on how it is now more than ever critical for us to start looking at embodied ways of re-integrating our identities and healing our sense of belonging. This work in practice is also part of the process of decolonisation of our minds, which is otherwise primed to label and divide furthering the process of 'othering'.

As long as we are stuck in the narrative of the Victim and the Oppressor, the search for a Saviour will never stop. How does one reclaim the authorship of one's life experience and act from a space of true choice? How does one experience the interconnectedness of the web of life and its wholeness?

This would be evident when one is able to act in a way that can enliven the self, the other, and the context simultaneously. And that could perhaps open up the possibility for a Dharmic rediscovery of our interconnected wholeness.

This practice always brought me great sense of anchorage and strength. I’ve conducted few online Vedic Chanting orientation workshops and listening sessions for healing chants during Covid lockdown time. It is then I realised how deeply the chants can bring a healing touch even in the online medium to the listeners.

It is only last year I started teaching Vedic Chanting to a small group of keen participants online. Yesterday, one of my students was going through a tough health situation and requested that I share what different chants could help him with.

I recited two chants with a simple visualisation practice (bhāvana) to him. First, I recited the Ārogya Mantra (Viraja Mantra) after listening to which he shared how the process brought in a lot of stillness within and he was in touch with the image of a rotating flame through the listening. This was followed by the recitation of Laghu Nyāsam, invoking the healing energies of elements of nature. At the end of the recitation, he shared of the sensation of sitting under a stream of water feeling refreshed and replenished, and of a visceral sense of toxins flowing out of the body, a feeling of returning to self.

I am in awe and reverence to the magical power of the healing chants in bringing about healing in intangible and mysterious ways. Pranams to the Gurus who led me on this path! 🙏

Is the world a happier place today than the past? Are you feeling happy? Different cultures and languages perceive the idea of happiness differently. The American Dream built on the idea of ‘Pursuit of Happiness’ mentioned in the Declaration of Independence is a largely economic idea of happiness referring to a sense of economic security and new beginning. In English, the term ‘happy’ can refer to a wide array of situations ranging from an experience of surprise while receiving a gift to a deeply contemplative joyous state. In Danish, happiness is often translated to lykke, which is an every day sense of well-being which can be brought up with a good cup of coffee.

World Happiness Report 2024

Recently, UN released the World Happiness Report 2024 with very insightful patterns and trends of how people across the world experience happiness. The report considers six factors of happiness, viz., social support, GDP per capita, healthy life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and perception of corruption.

Worldwide women are less happy than men. In North America, the young people (15-24 years) are reportedly less happy than their older peers. In India, older age is associated with higher life satisfaction. While these reports and data make for a fascinating read and interesting debates on news channels, it is worth taking a closer look at how we experience the idea of happiness in our lives and its impact on our sense of well-being.

“Economic prosperity alone is not the key to happiness.”, says Dr. Vivek Murthy, who is serving as the 21st US Surgeon General, in an interaction on CNN. “We are pulling further and further apart from one another with the efficiencies and benefits of modern technologies and way of life. We have fewer friends that we trust and fewer relationships that we can rely on, and that has a direct upon our wellness and wellbeing.”, adds Dr. Murthy.

Social media silos and smartphones are leading to a spike in anxiety amongst younger generation. In a Surgeon General’s advisory issued on social media and youth mental health last year, he pointed out to the fact that when young people are using social media for more than three hours a day, they double their risk for anxiety and depression symptoms.

An Indic Perspective & Flow Theory

According to Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras (2.32), santoṣam is mentioned as one of the five niyamas or internal disciplines that one needs to cultivate in life. santoṣam means well-being, equanimity, and an inner celebration of life in all actions. It is the state of being anchored in an inner space of peace and joyousness. When one is able to invest in this inner quality of santoṣam, one is able to celebrate life whether the external situation is perceived as a pleasurable or painful experience. Thus, ‘santoṣam’ is an experience that is anchored in a personal practice that is in alignment with who each of us are in our deepest selves, i.e., our svabhāva.

This idea is quite different from the popular notion of ‘happiness’. It invites one to start from an inner space of fulfilment and delight while engaging with life. This attitude is not dependent on how much one has acquired in their life, what status they have achieved, or what they have become, but rather it is anchored in what is the nature of being that one has nurtured in oneself.

Paying attention to the question “Who am I being?” instead of “What am I becoming?” opens the possibility for one to discover and nurture with the gifts that one is bestowed with in the here and now. This is the beginning of pursuing a path that is anchored in a deep sense of contentment and celebration of life and its myriad experiences.

In the 1970s, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi postulated the ‘Flow Theory’ in psychology. A person is said to be in a state of flow when they are completely absorbed in their experience of the here and now. It is not possible to enter a state of flow if one’s mind is either caught up with regrets from the past or anxieties about the future. All Yogic and many Classical Indian Art practices are designed to bring this level of total attention and absorption of one’s mind to the present moment. One is then acting from a space of complete awareness and presence and the experience is complete in itself. Investing in appropriate personal practices is a cornerstone to be able to live life in this manner.

Practices for a Pursuit in Happiness

At a practical level, transitioning from a path of pursuit of happiness to pursuit in happiness involves consciously shifting one’s focus from the standard of living to standard of life itself. Standard of living brings one’s attention to the material possession and nurtures an acquisitive mind that is perhaps good for the economy but not great for living a content life. Standard of life invites one’s attention to more intangible things in life such as the quality of one’s relationship with oneself, others, and nature at large even as one goes about doing what is necessary to make a living. Given the reality of an increasingly virtual world, here are three practices that can make a definite impact on your sense of well-being and get you started on this path.

Digital Detox

Taking time off digital media and devices has a direct impact on the well-being of an individual. A surfer and therapist who quit social media few months ago shared with me how she could experience an expansion in her vision and sight and see the world more clearly after quitting social media cutting down on the screen time.

Real World Connect

Taking time to connect with people in the real world builds the context to learn and grow through a tangible experience of life. It is worth exploring how a warm hug from a close friend or a meaningful conversation with a stranger can radically improve the sense of well-being than hours of doom scrolling on social media.

Crafting Your Definition of Happiness

In a world that is promoting and selling ideas of what can make you happy and complete, it is an act of courage to define what happiness will look like in your life. Have you ever tried sitting down with yourself for a joyful and restful few hour in nature, and checking honestly with yourself what makes you happy at the core of your being?

Don’t be surprised if you discover that perhaps taking an extra ten-minute power nap in the afternoon or having the freedom to doodle away your worries under a tree or going up on stage for that spoken word poetry fest show up as your definitions of being happy and celebrating life.

Perhaps we can begin by giving ourselves the permission to discover our own ways of being happy. Let it be playful, joyful, creative, and silly! And you might have stumbled upon the secret sauce of getting into the state of flow in your own life.

The zeitgeist of our times is rationality and logic. While we use our intellectual and analytical capabilities to make sense of the world, it is important not to overlook the gifts of our intuitive and emotive sides. 

The practice of the arts can be a great way to harness their inherent healing potential. Art practice helps one cultivate mindfulness, lessen anxiety, and experience a wide range of emotions, which make life and living more fulfilling. It also offers a pathway for the practitioner to process life experiences and heal through an embodied process. In an otherwise predictable and monotonous world, art offers the possibility of creating new meanings for oneself. 

“The need for meaning and relevance in daily experience is one of the fundamental driving forces in artistic creation and engagement," wrote psychologist and Holocaust survivor Viktor Franklin in his book, Man’s Search for Meaning.

“There is an intense link between my sense of well-being and my theatre practice. Being part of a process to create something makes all the difference. The moment I’m part of a play, my energy levels go up. Connecting to that space and the people involved improves my sense of well-being," says Aparna Gopinath, who dons many roles as an actor, director and a clown. 

Psychologists have been looking into the application of the arts in a variety of situations such as healing emotional injuries, improving self-awareness, developing capacity for self-reflection, and altering behaviours and thinking patterns. 

As a coach and facilitator, I have experienced how the arts enable a person to access parts of themselves that are otherwise held in critical judgement or pain, with compassion and curiosity, creating a context for healing. It enables one to connect both to oneself as well as to the community of practitioners, thereby creating a sense of expansiveness. 

Music and Mental Health
Indian classical music offers a very powerful possibility for reconnecting with oneself. “Many times, I sing when I feel disturbed internally. After this process, I start to feel lighter," says Shruti Bode, a Hindustani music practitioner and faculty at the Indian Music Experience (IME), Bengaluru. “The me-time—setting up the space and feeling healthy in my body—helps me to get into a deep riyaaz space."

Bode says a number of homemakers she teaches have told her that practising music helps them untie the knots of everyday hustle. “They are not looking for external validation in the form of certificates or posting their songs on social media. They continue to learn and practice just to sing all by themselves," says Bode. Vidushi Rajam Shanker, an Indian classical music therapist and author of
The Healing Power of Indian Rāgās, explains in her book how she has used ragas for therapeutic purposes.

In the Rāga Yoga workshops and retreats that I have designed with Shruti Bode (Hindustani Musician) and Aarti Sivakumar (Voice Artist & Carnatic Musician), I integrate practices from Indian classical music and yoga, and I have seen significant shifts in the mental health of participants when they immerse themselves in the music and connect to their body, breath and mind.

Rediscovering Life’s Rhythm
Movement art therapy is on the upswing in many parts of India. Engaging the whole body through mindful movements has the potential to help relieve anxiety and process difficult emotions. Many classical dance practitioners attest to its healing potential in their disciplines. 

“There was a phase when I was depressed and didn’t want to leave the house, or meet anyone. During that time, dance was my therapy. It was a meditative exercise that helped me understand my body and thoughts, and connect with my inner senses," says Uttara Unni, an actor, author, and dancer based in Kochi. The physical movements in Bharatanatyam, Unni says, help release anger, tension and the frustration she feels.

Shreema Upadhyaya, a Bengaluru-based Bharatanatyam dancer, is of a similar view. “Being a dancer, and practising and creating art consistently, has taught me discipline, mindfulness, observation of surroundings, empathy and communication," she says. 

Deepening Connections
Practising an art form is considered a means to free one’s mind from an unhealthy preoccupation with self-limiting beliefs, according to ancient Indian texts. It helps the individual immerse themselves in a deeper reality of love, beauty or creativity. “According to the Natyashastra, dance, drama and music can show the path to a more fulfilled life as well as to a deep spiritual development," writes R. Sriram, a yoga therapist and student of Sri TKV Desikachar in his book, Nātya Yoga. 

For a society that is increasingly struggling with short attention spans, compulsive binge eating and watching, the practice of arts of any kind offers a pathway to nurture a new possibility for healthy living. “From my experience, classical dance and yoga balance the physical and mental aspects of our lives. All known forms of art have been proven to be therapeutic, letting us enjoy the beauty and aesthetic of this otherwise mundane world," says Upadhyaya.

“Today, many people believe that to be healthy means to have a certain body type. It needn’t be so. I believe that one needs to work on their mental health as much as physical health, and the arts help us do that," says Unni. 

This observation underscores the importance of taking up the practice of the arts as a personal discipline. When a practitioner can move beyond the goal of being a performer to becoming an explorer of the self through the arts, they can realise the ultimate goal: of being at home in oneself.

Originally published in the Live Mint Lounge on 19th March 2024.

The Indian nation passed a critical moment in its history with the prāṇa pratiṣta of the Bhavya Ram Mandir in Ayodhya yesterday. Depending upon which side of the ideological divide you may find yourself in, this would have evoked or provoked you. Irrespective of the politics behind your personal response, this is a moment that holds potential for nurturing a new possibility for all communities.

“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.” - Carl Jung, Psychologist, Philosopher & Researcher of the human mind

As the day progressed, my timeline on social media and WhatsApp got filled with competing narratives of victory, victimhood, joyous celebration, and contemplative questioning of the meaning of it all. Honestly, it did feel overwhelming to me.

As I restrained my temptation to get into the arguments and take sides, there was a moment of self check-in which brought me back to a central question":

• Whither Ayōdhya? What is the future or possibility of a world devoid of conflict and war?

• Who am I being in today’s context?

• What is the impact and the price I am paying for my choices - at the level of intent, word, and action?

Personally, I felt very joyous and celebratory about the entire event and what it means to the civilisation that I belong to. As I engaged with the barrage of texts questioning the celebration, for every point I realised I had a ready counter in my mind. For every image of the Preamble of the Constitution of India shared, I had the image of Part 3 of the Constitution of Indian which carried the image of Rāma, Sīta, and Lakshmaṇa, on top of Fundamental Rights. Then there was this part of me which could see the intensity of the provocation, the rage that comes with feeling unseen and unheard by the other. And in giving in to that rage, I could feel the stuckness I experienced in extending a feeling of maitri (friendship) to those who hold a different view and perspective from me. That was the moment I knew that the more I give in to this pattern of ‘othering’, the more the space of Rāma and Ayōdhya will be out there in the world and not within me.

Holding this in my awareness for a while settled the heaviness and agitation within me. The beauty of the new mandir started seeping in and the chants started feeling soothing. In that moment of silent awareness, I feel I touched a space of beauty and silence within. A glimpse of the Ayōdhya when the inner conflict ceased, and a glance of the grace of Rāma space within. From this space, my intent, word or action can carry nothing but maitri. But can I stay in this Ayōdhya in me for long? Can I anchor in the Rāma space within when the world breaks havoc around me and my own compulsive patterns show up? That perhaps is the significance and essence of abhyāsa (practice). The more I practice moving towards my own Svabhāva, perhaps I can keep rediscovering traces of the treasure trove of Rāma and Ayōdhya within me.

Would you like to join me as a co-traveller on this journey to discover your own Rāma space and experience the Ayōdhya within?

Jai śrī Rām!

Haruki Murakami, the renowned Japanese author, follows a very specific daily ritual. “When I’m in writing mode for a novel, I get up at 4am and work for five to six hours. In the afternoon, I run for 10km or swim for 1500m (or do both), then I read a bit and listen to some music. I go to bed at 9pm. I keep to this routine everyday without variation. The repetition itself becomes the important thing; it’s a form of mesmerism”, writes Murakami in the Paris Review, Summer 2004. In these lines, Murakami describes to us the power of a personal ritual on one’s life and work.

Rituals are a phenomenon that have been observed to cut across time and space in cultures the world over. Their ubiquity and universality can be seen through their presence in all aspects of life: from pre-game and post-game rituals in sports to birth, marriage and rituals of death in personal life. We live in a world that is vulnerable, uncertain, complex and ambiguous in many ways. In this interconnected web of life, rituals offer a means to effect positive shifts towards a desired goal for the person or the community practising it. Many studies in the fields of psychology, anthropology, and neuroscience validate this. 

“A ritual is a structured event with predetermined actions. The actions are symbolic in that they relate to a reality that is unmanifested. For instance, you may have a ritual that addresses a whole universe of potential future action. This universe, being only a potential, is unmanifest at the time of performance of the ritual,” says Sushanta Banerjee, who has been at the forefront of developing the field of Applied Behavioural Sciences in India for over 50 years. Thus, a ritual holds the potential to influence a shift in the quality of the inner world of being and the outer world of behaviour for an individual or a community. Rituals can be personal, social, or communal. 

Rituals and Communal Well-being
At a community level, an appropriate ritual design can enhance the bond between members and create the context for synergy and collaboration. It can also prepare members for uncertain times and lean into changes within the organisation or in the context. 

Harsh Mariwala instituted the 4pm popcorn ritual in Marico, a Fortune India 500 company, as a way of creating informal networks and conversations across hierarchy and functions. The smell of popcorn would draw everyone towards the popcorn machine, bringing together people organically. The timing of the ritual was chosen to bring more energy to team members during the slowest part of their day. Mariwala himself kept the doors to his office open as a sign to encourage employees to strike him up with conversations. This ritual promoted the values of collaboration and transparency into Marico’s culture. 

“Every week, we practice intention setting through drawing for the 3 Big Things studio. This ritual has supported creating a sense of accountability, sense of ownership, and helps our team through the transitions and context switching during the day,”, says Shalini Raghunathan, co-founder of 3 Big Things, a behavioural design studio in Bengaluru. “I consider rituals to be thresholds between what was and what is in the here and now,” says Sunanda Pati, a Bengaluru-based arts and nature-based facilitator and writer. “When I create a ritual at the start of a workshop, it is a way for the participants to arrive at in the space that I create. A ritual allows them to acknowledge this and leave behind things that do not belong to the present moment,” she says.

Rituals and Personal Well-being
A ritual can help you feel anchored in life and make sense of the experience of life itself. The ‘mesmerism’ that Murakami refers to is indicative of the power of ritual in personal life. “Rituals can help you slow down, pay attention to bodily sensations, and listen to your feelings in personal life,” says Pati. 

“I try to anchor my day through my morning ritual which includes movement practices like yoga and running. I’ve experienced that a ritual of this kind brings about a sense of moving forward and looking forward to something no matter how difficult life gets,” she adds. Delineating professional and personal spaces is increasingly challenging in today’s context. Not carrying your office laptop home or keeping the mobile phone on silent before and after a specific time in the day are simple personal rituals many follow to create boundaries for themselves to address this challenge. 

In all my group and personal coaching sessions, I follow a ritual of inviting the person(s) to go through a breathing practice that helps them centre in the present moment and share how they are feeling before initiating any conversation. I have found that this helps the person do a much-needed check-in with themselves in an otherwise busy day. 

Through A Yogic Lens
Yoga and Ayurveda emphasise the importance of aligning one’s life with appropriate dina charya (daily routine) and ritu charya (seasonal routine) for optimal well-being. For every season, there is a recommended dietary and lifestyle ritual that can enable optimal health for an individual. For instance, in shishir ritu (winter), the environment is mostly cold and windy in many parts of India. This increases the kapha dosha and agni (catabolism) remains in a higher state. Hence, foods having amla (tarty) as the predominant taste are recommended, while those having katu (pungent), tikta (bitter), and kashāya (astringent) tastes are not recommended, as per Ayurveda. 

The widespread practice of a dip in the holy rivers during Makar Sankranti and invoking the energies of the Sun during this celestial event is also a powerful symbolic ritual of cleansing oneself off past residues and invoking a feeling of rejuvenation, and a new beginning.

Design Your Own Rituals
The intentionality of the person doing the ritual is what makes it powerful. You can design your own rituals for your personal and professional spaces. However, it is important to note that a ritual that is relevant for one person may not work for another. “Intentionality, consistency or repetition, and the number of people practicing it are all important elements of a ritual,” says Raghunathan. “A ritual is very personal. It is self-authored. So, it is an invitation and not an enforcement. Each person in a group may have a different intentionality while performing the same ritual,” she adds. 

Raghunathan and her partner, Param, recommend a simple three-step process to design your own rituals in their “Behavioural Design by Ritual” toolkit. 

Contemplate: Pause to reflect upon and articulate what is the challenge in the current behaviour, emotion or belief that you’d like to address. State the desired outcome of the ritual in terms of behaviour, emotion, and belief.

Contextualise: Explore what stories, cultural elements, symbols, and metaphors represent your intended outcome. Integrate and embody these in your ritual.

Choreograph: Curate activities that create a multi-sensorial experience. In doing so, define the rules, roles, tasks and time boundaries of how you will perform the ritual.

Start designing your own rituals and, more importantly, have fun doing it. 

Waking up in a world that is in a constant state of flux is not easy. Especially when the information and visuals remind us constantly of mortality, loss of life, and impending clouds of despair and anguish. Wars of all kind - military, information, AI - are kindling and fanning flames of distrust and vigilance across communities and nations. In such a context, what would it take to kindle life?

I am not naively holding a fantasy of a world devoid of any conflict or violence. I am asking myself where can I begin and what would I do if I were to take a step towards kindling life in my own small way in a world that is constantly telling me to take a side and unleash my rage on the 'other'.

Befriending My Breath

As I stay with this question, the first thing I get in touch with is my own breath. The oft-ignored unacknowledged friend who gives me early signs when my body and mind tense up in response to a provocation. As I remember to watch my breath and allow the life force (prāṇa) to move into my body, I can feel the body and mind easing up. Often in my coaching and yoga therapy sessions, I have integrated breathwork as a critical practice for clients who are going through a challenging phase of anxiety or panic. I've seen it help them regain the ground from where they can act with equanimity.

Decolonising My Body

Earlier this year, I was co-facilitating an intense lab with my mentor Raghu Ananthanarayanan, Steve Correa, and other friends at Ritambhara Ashram, exploring the processes of colonisation and the ways to engage with this trans-generational trauma in an embodied and experiential manner. Many experts in trauma work like Bessel van der Kork have written extensively on how our bodies hold trauma in their works such as 'The Body Keeps The Score'. This experience was a powerful realisation of how almost all of us across communities are carrying the trauma of colonisation in our bodies and it has a real impact on our health and well-being.

Recently, when I fell sick with an intense bout of viral fever, I ended up spending a week taking bed rest. I could feel myself becoming more sensitive to how my body responded to the sensory inputs from around me during those days. Each time I watched a violent scene on TV from a movie or news item, there was a palpable increase in body pain and fatigue. Instinctively, I switched to a Hindustani Classical music concert by Kaushiki Chakraborti on YouTube and in the next hour I could feel the whole body soften up and relax, and a tangible reduction in pain.

Stories I Tell Myself

Last week I came across a news item of a person supplying snake venom to some partygoers. Apparently many are taking up this as a way to feel 'alive' when regular drugs don't do the work. Listening to this story made me think how much numb are we becoming to life to rely so much on intoxicants and literally poison to feel something. The more we buy into stories that reinforce this narrative, the world will end up being a more unhealthy and violent place where unjust acts are justified through accusations and whataboutery.

Is this the world we want to live in? How do we seed stories of possibilities and love to create a different world for ourselves? Can I make a different choice on what I consume and what I put out there for others to consume, whether it be food or content?

Kindle Life & Light

Indic Knowledge Traditions often use framing powerful questions as a way to nudge and prompt us to delve deeper into ourselves. Taking inspiration from this tradition, I place before you three questions that could perhaps help you kindle life and light every day.

1. What can I do today to ease my breath and help receive the life force that is ever present all around me?

2. What practice can I take up for my body to help me uncover, process and create conditions for healing?

3. What is one thing that I will do differently today towards my fellow beings from a space of curiosity and compassion (maitri)?

On this Deepavali day, let us commit to kindle life and light within and all around us.

Shubh Deepavali!

The past two weeks have seen a lot of cheer across India and abroad around the successful soft landing of India's Chandrayaan 3 mission on the Moon. Along with it also came a variety of opinions of all hues ranging from questioning the need for such a mission to a sense of vengefulness to the critics who mocked the last mission in 2019. It is in this context that Hari Krishnan and I got together to host dialogue on looking at the responses to this landmark event from the lens of archetypes in Mahābhārata. It was an exciting session with rich sharing and reflections from the group that showed up from diverse fields.

We acknowledged the import of this significant achievement for India while reflecting on the responses we observed on mainstream and social media. As we engaged with our evocations from these responses on media, we reflected on locating the different voices of the archetypes from Mahābhārata that we could sense in these responses.

We could see how this beautiful achievement could have been impossible without the coherent interplay of the power of order and structure (Yudhishtira), power of passion and creativity (Bhīma), power of compassion and care (Nakula), power of curiosity and knowledge (Sahadeva), and the power of being able to engage with polarities and dilemmas (Arjuna). We also observed how most of the popular responses seemed to start on an emotional high when the pride is evoked, and tend to ebb away as more technical and scientific details of the mission start coming out in the media.

We wondered what would this mean for us as individuals to learn and decide which propensity to nurture and grow in our own lives. You can watch the full dialogue below.

What did you feel as you listened to this dialogue? I would love to read. :)

“I would rather be a cat mom or a dog mom than marry and have kids.”

“I feel I am too independent to have a partner. How do I be helpless, so the person feels I need them when I date them?”

“What does love really look like? Me and my partner seem to be having very different love languages.”

Shared above is the paraphrased version of some of the statements and questions that I’ve listened to from my coaching clients. So, what does love really look like in a partnership? The fourth session of the Rāmāyaṇa Exploration*, where a lot of the conversations were around the partnership of Rāma and Sīta, brought back this question to my mind.

What is the Quality of The Partnerships That I Co-Create?

The group came together online to explore the Rāma - Sīta dynamic with a strong sense of curiosity and anticipation. It was interesting to watch the juxtaposition of the Daśaratha - Kaikéyi partnership where each was trying to snatch happiness from the other with that of Rāma - Sīta where each was trying to serve one another anchored in their dharma. This brought out rich evocations around the quality of partnership that we experience in our own lives. The members of the groups also shared about the price paid in relationship space when power play and control become the focus, and the lightness and love that is experienced when there is space for respect for differences and a dialogue.

Rāmās advice to Sīta on exercising caution while being around Bharata brought out questions around conformity and obedience in relationships. It brought out a reflective space to explore how we experience the need to control when we act out of fear for our loved ones. Some touched the judgements they hold in the close relationships where they experience this control. More importantly, it also enabled the group to acknowledge the fact of human frailties and the need to acknowledge it and act from a space of yukti (discernment) in specific life situations.

How Do I Hold Ideas of Perfection, Authenticity & Vulnerability In My Life?

Rāma’s vulnerability as a human came forth in his engagement with Sīta. There was space for the expression of his despondency, despair, and fears. This part of Rāma brought out a very interesting range of evocations from the group members. Many felt it comforting to see the human vulnerable side of Rāma. Lakshmana’s support to Rāma in fighting Viradha also brought to many in the group the importance of being open to seeking support and help from others when needed. For some in the group, this side of Rāma also brought questions of whether he is being authentic. This led us to reflect on how we hold our own frames of reference in life. When Rāma is calm in a challenging situation, we attribute ideas of perfection on to him. When we see him despondent and vulnerable, we question his authenticity.

I was left feeling how I hold vulnerability and its expression in my own life. When certain role boundaries require me to behave in a certain way, what happens to my emotional space? When I find space for emotional expression, what critical voices come up in me?

How Do I Experience My Agency & Choice-Making Capability?

Being the first instance in Rāmāyaṇa where we get to listen to Sīta’s voice, her entry evoked a sense of awe and inspiration to many in the group. The clarity and assertiveness of Sīta’s articulation of what she wanted when Rāma requested her to stay back in Ayodhya, brought out rich evocations about the importance of having the agency to make one’s own life choices in the most intimate of relationships.

One of the participants also shared how, as a woman it was important, that Sīta had a voice, opinion, and agency in her choice of whether to leave for Dandakāranya forest or stay in the palace in Ayodhya. This was unlike in the Greek epic Odysseus (Ulysses) how it was taken for granted that Penelope stayed back at home for 20 years when Odysseus left Ithaca to fight in the Trojan war.

Rāma - Sīta dialogue around the decision to leave for the forest also stirred questions around whether the choices we make are really our own choices or those that we take upon ourselves in our specific role identities as a wife or son. Sītā’s insistence to be where Rāma is whether it be a luxurious palace or a dangerous forest also evoked what such an expression of love means in today’s times when geographical mobility has also created the added pressure of decisions around where to be physically an important consideration in relationships.

For me, this again brought back the question of what does love look like in such critical life situations? Do I view a loved one’s choice of not moving cities as an indictment and lack of love in the relationship? What assumptions do I hold for others in close relationships? What is its implication on the health of the relationship?

Artist Arun Raman’s visualisation of Viradha capturing Sita.

What is the Dandakāraṇya In My Life?

The scary and vivid descriptions of the Dandakāraṇya brought out many metaphors of what this forest means to each of us. For some, the forest represented the uncertainty that pervades life. Forest also represents a self-sustaining, interconnected, complex system which has its own ways of replenishment and nourishment.

For another participant, personal freedom was non-negotiable in life and the price paid for this freedom is loneliness which the Dandaka forest represented. For her, Rāma represented the soul and Sīta the heart. Loneliness is experienced when the connection with the heart is broken. And one does not experience loneliness when one knows to listen to one’s heart.

If these questions resonate with you, I would love to read what they evoked in you. Feel free to share in the comments or email me at namaste@hariprasadvarma.com.

For more articles such as these, feel free to subscribe to my newsletter at https://zenseihari.substack.com.

Is There A Non-Negotiable For You in Your Life?

We live in a context where the written word carries weight and credibility over the spoken word in most situations. How many of us find it easy to truly trust another person’s word just like that, especially if it involves power, status, or wealth? Do we find it important or non-negotiable to keep a word that we have given to someone no matter what? How does one define the boundaries of what is negotiable and non-negotiable in life? Daśaratha’s dilemma over Kaikéyi’s demand to deliver on the two boons he promised her brought about some of these questions to my mind. The group also mulled over this dilemma with rich and diverse evocations.

This segment of the story took us to a time when trust rested on one’s word. Word itself was an unimpeachable contract. It made sense for a civilisation that thrived as a living heritage through an oral tradition for the longest time. It also brought forth the contrast in the value systems in today’s times and how we hold ourselves true to the promises we make in our own lives. The fundamental question that the group reflected upon was,

“What is it that I hold non-negotiable in my life, no matter what?”

How does this quality show up in my life?

What price do I have to pay to stay true to my deepest convictions in life?

What new possibilities do I experience when I discover the vīryam (courage) to practice this?

What is Dharmic Action For You?

Rāmās unquestioning loyalty to Daśaratha’s promise to Kaikéyi, Daśaratha’s role as a parent, Kaikéyi’s self-preservative action on behalf of her son….all of this brought up questions around what is a Dharmic action to members of the group during the exploration.

The father-son relationship came alive along with the double binds it brings with it. As a father, how does one decide when to speak up and when to remain silent? As a son, what meaning do I make of my father’s silence on some issues? Does it bring about guilt, shame or doubt within me? We also touched on the rage and letdown that one feels when those in positions of power (parent in this case) try to fight their battles using proxies.

Some participants got in touch with the need to act out of self-preservation in life when they entered the world of Kaikéyi’s móham (desires). Fears around how it would be viewed by society or those close to oneself, and the challenge to own up to this need without feeling shameful about it also showed up in the exploration.

What is Your Hook in Life?

We also got in touch with the realisation that each of us has a hook in our lives. For some, it could be a job that one is choosing to continue though it is not giving any happiness. For another, it could be binging on food that one knows is not going to add to their health.

What is my hook that takes away freedom from my life?

I would love to read how you engage with these questions in your life? Feel free to share them via comments or email with me on namaste@hariprasadvarma.com.

*Rāmāyaṇa Exploration Online is a flagship offering of Ritambhara Ashram. I'm co-facilitating the current cohort with Ajay Viswanath.

Sri Rāma by Artist Arun Raman

Some very critical questions about self and one's relationship with the systems around came alive in the past week's exploration.

• Ideas of Perfection - Rāmā's descriptions and actions evoked different ideas and associations of perfection for many of us. While for some it was aspirational, for many it also brought out the burden of meeting certain benchmarks one has created/accepted in their minds. Whose ideas of perfection have I imbibed and made my own? What is it in me that is making want to achieve perfection the moment I see it outside of me? Can one experience dukkha (sorrow) even when everything else is 'perfect'?

• Engaging with One's Fears - The attitude of Rāma and Lakshmaṇa while fighting with Tātaka brought out rich evocations around engaging with one's fears. For some, it opened up the possibility of engaging with what is ugly and frightening in life from a space of lightness. For others, it brought to the fore questions about the impact of socialisation on the identity and actions of children. The sense of betrayal that our younger selves have experienced when the elders in our lives let us down in moments when we needed their counsel also came alive for exploration.

• Discovering One's Place in the World - Rāma taking centre stage in the initial stories also mirrored questions around Lakshmana's role and importance for some in the group. We reflected upon what does it feel like when I take my place in the world? How much of this place is in comparison with others around me? When I feel I am in someone's shadows, how does it make me feel? What does it really mean to me?

For myself, this journey is bringing up questions that are letting me get a glimpse of the space of Rāma within and the impediments that are challenging me to access and experience this space within me.

*REO is a flagship offering of Ritambhara Ashram and I'm co-facilitating the current cohort with Ajay Viswanath.