‘Man Making’ and Not Just ‘Bread Making’ Lessons from my fourth trip to the Bihar School of Yoga, Oct 2013

‘Man Making’ and Not Just ‘Bread Making’

Lessons from my fourth trip to the Bihar School of Yoga, Oct 2013

Ah, with two cups of coffee and some potatoes and parotas down the hatchet, one is ready! The quiet and sanitized conditions of the lounge in Kolkata airport and the flight back to Madras provide an ideal opportunity to look back over the past week spent at the Bihar School of Yoga (BSY) ashram in Munger, Bihar. This note is less about BSY’s World Yoga Convention, but more about the ways this experience has touched me.  I will highlight five particular learnings in this note.

Undoubtedly, the highlight of the trip was away from the Convention. The warm and genuine hospitality of Shantanu’s parents has taught me so much. Shantanu is my yoga teacher who has been my guide over the past two years as I have dived into the world of better health, self-analysis and improvement through the tools of yoga.  As I write this note, I realize that I don’t even know his father’s name, and hence I will refer to him as what I found myself calling him ‘Babuji’ (‘respected elder’). I had met Babuji for the first time almost two years ago when I had made my first visit to the BSY campus in Munger. It was a very brief encounter, but I recall telling both him and Shantanu that I look forward to spending some time at their home the next time I come to Munger. I had forgotten about this, but sometime this week it occurred to me that this had indeed come to pass!

Babuji is a retired staff member of the local court in Munger. His very low key, soft spoken and unassuming nature communicate a sense of calm which come from keeping life very simple.  He reminded me of my favorite ‘Nani’ uncle in this regard. As nature tends to ordain, his wife ‘Umaji’ is a bubbly effervescent lady who wears her emotions on her sleeve. She regaled us with stories of Shantanu as a prankster during college – something that we will indeed use at the opportune moment. This lovely couple and Shantanu’s organizing prior to our arrival ensured that six additional guests traveling from Madras were looked after really well. Oh yes, there were three additional guests who had come before us and yup, that makes it 12 people living in this simple and warm home. So, here is Lesson #1: It’s not the size of your home that matters, but the size of your heart that makes the difference. I recall my wife Lata making this observation almost a decade ago after we had spent a lovely week in Raji’s (Lata’s sister) small but yet large home. This lovely reminder is timely indeed. I find that many of us have become so inflexible that even having one guest over is something that upsets our routine!

During my three previous visits to the ashrams of BSY, my fellow travelers (at least a few of them) and I had connected really well. My first trip had a nice mixture of Europeans and Indians all of whom I had never really interacted before, but with whom I had struck an easy rapport with. My last trip earlier this year was with a smaller ‘core’ group of my closest fellow spiritual travelers. These trips afforded wonderful opportunities for in-depth conversations about spirituality (quest for improvement), yoga and a myriad of related subjects that played a big role in shaping the overall experiences. On this trip, there were very nice fellow travelers, but alas none that I particularly connected with.  Shantanu and Divya (my ’core’ team) were fully occupied in helping out with the convention and one got to see them only very briefly in the evenings. The company of like-minded people (‘satsang’) is regarded as very important in one’s spiritual journey and this experience indeed brought that message home (Lesson #2).

An important leitmotif running through the convention caught my attention – Modern Science that is barely 400 years old has been established as the norm. Whereas, Vedic Science and other traditional practices which are over 2000 years old are regarded as being ‘alternate’ (to the norm) Lesson #3. The thought first occurred to me in a conversation with my dear friend Arjun on how the philosophies (not sure they exist), policies and practices taught by the leading business schools in the West are based on just about 100-150 years of experience, whereas, texts and practices (with more emphasis on values) honed over hundreds/thousands of years in more traditionally rich cultures have been overlooked. A similar point was brought up by Yash (the founder of the 136.1 Yoga Studios) a few weeks ago, when he asked me to consider the following disruptive thought – “Yoga is the traditional medicine and allopathy should be seen as the ‘alternative.”

Four different speakers at the convention highlighted this point in different ways. Dr. Alex Hankley captured it best for me –“Modern science simply does not have the theory, structure and tools to understand subtle issues as it generally tends to focus only on gross material issues. “ Dr. Narendernath, a colleague of Dr. Hankley and like him has fused western education (Ph.D from MIT and University of Chicago) with science of Vedanta and vedic practices. They highlighted how the initial goal of modern science (barely 400 years old) was to try and understand how the physical world worked. Understanding why anything falls etc were the initial questions that scientists set out to answer. Now that we have almost totally understood the physical world, the next step is to better understand the subtle world (where we have hardly made a dent). This is where the knowledge from Indian scriptures can come in.

Over the past few years, I have been increasingly questioning the merits and efficacy of modern medicine in doing good in the long run. This question was brought to the forefront earlier this week as a close relative grappled with the tough choice of starting a ‘known’ yet harsh treatment regimen of allopathy versus an ‘unknown’ yet benign treatment offered by a Tibetan doctor based on traditional practices. Speakers at this convention nudged me away from allopathy as they presented arguments on how traditional medical practices focused on tackling deep rooted causes underpinned with a ‘do no harm’ philosophy that is lacking in the application of modern medicine. The following phrase captured it best ‘If I had to choose medical treatment between something that is barely 150 years old versus something tried and test for over 2000 years and tackles both the body and mind, I know where I would put my money.’ (Lesson #4).

A strong case for the re-introduction of knowledge of these subtle topics into our education system was made particularly since many parents are now unaware of the spiritual traditions and practices. This type of holistic education, which includes how to best manage the mind and emotions through techniques of yoga that were integral components on the ancient ‘gurukul’ system, is needed. Indeed, echoing Swami Vivekananda’s words, only by ‘bringing the effervescence of the Western and Eastern together’ can we transform our education system and expanded it from developing ‘bread making’ skills to one which is (holistic) ‘man making.’  (Lesson #5)

Other interesting Lessons Learned/Experiences

6. While there are lie detector tests, there are no truth detector tests. Why not? Truth is the natural state for us and hence there is no ‘anomaly’ to detect! 

 7. The calculated efforts of the British in undermining the indigenous heritage to facilitate their rule over India was something I had known a little about, but was powerfully communicated by a speaker. Lord McCauley is known for two major achievements in India – Creating the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the revamp of the education system.  The IPC that he created has stood the test of time and even now has barely been changed over a 100 years after it was crafted (as compared to the constitution which has had numerous amendments). This is testimony of his exceptional intelligence and capability.

His report on the revamp needed in the Indian education system (1875) is an eye opener and among the most influential thought pieces that has irrevocably changed India. In this report he notes how he has traveled the length and breath of the country and has hardly seen any poverty and has been astounded by the ‘unmatched heritage’ and overall wellbeing of the people across the various kingdoms. (I need to explore this more as I am a little skeptical about this). He goes on to say that that if Britain is to rule India, then its cultural heritage must be destroyed. This can only be done by revamping the education system and by establishing the dominance of the English language.

As one who has benefitted by being fluent in English, I can see how the mastery of this language has meant two things for me – a) an easier adoption of western values and practices (after all that’s where the books come from) and b) disdain/ contempt for most things which are vernacular/traditional. As I look around my friends and family, I can see that these sentiments are widely shared.

8. While modern medicine mainly focuses on the gross (for instance just on treating pain through medication), traditional medicine recognizes that the experience of pain depends on various factors such as:

·       Context – If a soldier gets hurt in a battlefield, he is likely not to feel pain then as he is occupied by trying to save his life. He is likely to feel the pain only when he can rest and feel safe.

·       Mood – When I am happy, I am less likely to feel the intensity of pain

·       Individual factors – Each of us has different pain thresholds.

Hence traditional medicine considers these aspects of pain and treats each person uniquely as compared to a ‘one-shoe fits all’ approach.

Another minor but interesting point made was that physiotherapy has taken bits and pieces from yoga practices.

9. Abhyas (consistent practice) and Vairagya (discrimination between the right and wrong) are like two wings that let us fly and help us manage our mind. Abhyas (consistent practice) on the following must be emphasized:

·       Education

·       Spiritual efforts

·       Charity

10. A very important and immediate action I need to take is to practice the set of yoga therapy postures that have been prescribed for my lower back pain. I found it difficult to sit without a backrest for more than an hour and clearly need to stop being lazy and practice consistently.

A Final Word:

This trip once again was a wonderful opportunity to be exposed to a part of India’s USP that is often unknown and neglected. Visits of these kinds do two things – a) they provide one with a few nuggets to bring back and practice in the real world and b) re-charge your batteries by interacting with like minded folks. Yup, this trip indeed did both!

Sanjay