First, to Navadarshanam and then to Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospital and back to PV

At lunch the other day, sometimes our eyes are bigger than our stomachs...

But somehow we still make room for icecream

For our final CSIM training session as a GSE group we went on a field trip to explore two different types of enterprises, the first was Navadarshanam which means new vision. Navadarshanam is an organization that concentrates on an ecological and spiritual alternative form of living that is inspired by Ghandi. The second stop was at Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospital where cardiac care is the primary focus. Here I was able to see some truly incredible work.

Water, Energy and Waste

At our first stop we met with R. Rajagopalan at Navadarshanam. This is an ecological sanctuary that has been around for 21 years and is situated on 110 acres of land in Tamil Nadu (the same state as Ooty and next door to Karnataka). When Navadarshanam was first initiated, there were only 3 trees throughout all of the 110 acres, but through the implementation of solar fences, they have been able to keep the the cows from grazing and since countless native species of plants have grown back and the biodiversity has been entirely regenerated. There are still many cows on site and they are useful for their dung for bio gas, and for grazing the fire lanes, but no longer disrupt the land's native species. The property is completely off of India's power grid and primarily runs on solar energy (the org. has experimented with wind energy and other renewable forms of energy, but did not find success). The power grid in India is extremely unreliable, which I am finding to be true at the apartment also! Because Navadarshanam is in a rural area, electricity may be cut 12-14 times a day, and since it is so far removed from any city, the concerns and cries of the people at Navadarshanam are not heard . India as a whole is extremely centralized so power, pollution, waste, etc.all aggregate to the cities.

Rajagopala-ji

Cows grazing the fire lanes

     The idea of Navadarshanam was to develop a group of people to live and farm on these acres; people who would concentrate on spiritual health and environmental sustainability. However, Rajagopalan-ji was extremely honest with us about the hardships that the organization has faced throughout the decades; the primary concern has been attracting people. It has proved to be a struggle to convince others to leave their urban, modern lives for a life of positive development (of mind and environment) in rural Tamil Nadu. In order for the organization to progress they must have people to farm and sustain the land, but leaving a modern life for Navadarshanam often also means leaving your family.
     The trust that started the business is depleting too fast to uphold the entire organization, and so Navadarshanam has found greater sustainability by producing healthy food items to sell in Bangalore. They have found success in 6 million turnovers thanks to devoted buyers and stores. Their fiscal activity consists of visitors, workshops, and selling their organic farming products.

Navadarshanam

     R. Rajagopalan spent most of our conversation together expressing his concern for the future of the world in terms of environmental sustainability. He expressed that it is only a matter of time (likely a decade or so) until the depletion of water, gas, power, etc. collide and we face a striking struggle. He went on to talk about how he served his full sentence in the modern world, before joining Navadarshanam (2 years back) and seemed to diligently choose the word sentence, but also chose not to elaborate. He has decided to minimize the footprint he leaves on the world, but admits with remorse that Navadarshanam's footprint extends beyond its immediate surroundings. He travels all around the country and world preaching his concern through workshops and has empowered many people to live more conscientiously. Nonetheless, it is difficult to get others to compromise what they see as comfort, and oftentimes people's comforts take a toll on the natural world. He is afraid that the window of opportunity for society to improve this world is shrinking rapidly and time may exhaust before enough people agree to make changes.

Skylights

     As we listened to R. Rajagopalan speak, we sat in a building that was crafted entirely by Eco-friendly and sustainable resources. This particular home is made of stabilized mud blocks. The concept of creating mud blocks is really wonderful; they are made from natural materials that use up less conventional energy that is harmful to the environment. But also, when the materials are to be done away with, they can go right back into the earth where they came from, unlike concrete or metal. The roof has holes that are crafted in a way that light can come in to minimize the use of light bulbs, but rain cannot, and through convection all of the hot air is released so there is a constant comfortable, natural air conditioning occurring. There are countless simple solutions like these architectural ones  that can make a significant impact without compromising comfort and security.

     Our use of water, energy, and our production of waste really needs to be reassessed. Collecting rainwater will vastly decrease the amount of water wasted, and help our drains; installing an LED system of lights, saving gas, and using a solar focused system of lighting (via solar panels or skylights) will help regulate our use of energy; and by simply separating organic and non-organic waste for compost we can significantly decrease the amount of waste that we procure. The poet, June Jordan said, "We are the one's we are waiting for". I think this thought is really powerful because not only does it convey a sense of urgency, but also a responsibility to all. I have accepted, with open arms, the responsibility I have been given as today's youth and a future adult, but it is important to understand that anyone who walks on this earth can take some sort of action and do some sort of good for the present, which could largely influence the future as well. Rather than waiting for the next generation to grow into its role, the youth can start making changes today (and so can the adults and even the elders.
 Rajagopalan-ji wove in a number of materials for learning more about the environment throughout our conversation. Laurie Baker is an Englishman architect that met with Ghandi and after which stayed in India and created a campus on how to build eco-homes.You can also follow Joanna Macy's travels and exploration in what she calls The Great Turning, watch Blessed Unrest by Paul Hawken or The Story of Stuff and What a Way to Go to learn more about some of the things that have inspired his work and the life he has chosen.

Fresh farmed food

Cardiac Care
     After Navadarshanam in Tamil Nadu, we headed back to Bangalore where we explored Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospital. Here I was truly  touched by the work of Dr. Davi Sheety. Dr. Sheety currently works to give top quality healthcare to all people in spite of financial burdens or impositions. So far, he has never had to turn a soul away because they couldn't afford treatment.

Religious center outside the hospital

     Before entering the hospital, there stands a religious building with four separate sections, all of which meet in the middle and share two common walls. Each section houses a different place of worship; a gurdwara, a temple, a mosque, and a church. Then, once you enter the hospital there is a vast and beautiful Ganesha idol. In Hinduism Ganesha represents success and well being through to the end of your endeavor, whatever that may be, and Narayana (the hospital's name) means preservation of life; what a cool synthesis for a hospital to hold.

Telemedicine

Sam and Amanda at the hospital

     Narayana is the second largest cardiac center in the world and does 32-36 cardiac surgeries a day! 10-12 of which are on children, making it the largest pediatric cardiac center in the world. The average doctor here does 3-4 surgeries a day, whereas in the US the average doctor might do that in a week. The difference is primarily population, but by completing  6 days of surgery a week (compared to 1 or 2 for a US doctor) the doctors truly become experts in their work. Dr. Davi Sheety has saved 17,000 lives in counting. He also has invested heavily in telemedicine, this is where a doctor can meet with patients all around the world via web cameras and have consultations when they are miles apart. Sometimes these consultations lead to the patient needing to come to Bangalore to meet Dr. Sheety in person, or to simply go to their nearest hospital where Dr. Sheety can convey to their local doctors what needs to be done. On our walk through the hospital, we were able to see telemedicine in action. We also walked through the prenatal and pediatric ICU where I was completely taken aback and had trouble holding back tears.. There were rows upon rows of babies all hooked up to tubes, motionless and with their eyes shut. Upon leaving the ICU  I was uplifted to know that so many children were being helped and are in the right hands, but at the time it was a struggle to see so many babies that must have been in a lot of pain.
In a BBC interview that I watched, Dr. Sheety claims he is an ordinary man, not doing charity, but simply helping his common humanity with the talent he possesses and that is nothing extraordinary.

CSIM Family

Both of these excursions were hosted by CSIM. CSIM has taught me so many valuable lessons and has exposed me to some really remarkable people and enterprises. I am really thankful for the opportunity to learn from those that are fully immersed in the social sector and hope to take these lessons into my own future, working with society.

Sari Day

At work today, Friday, we all wore our saris! It was so much fun! All the ladies on the quality team wore saris of all different colors and patterns while all the men wore traditional Indian tops. In the morning our boss created a beauty parlor/ changing room in the small conference room. The women helped wrap us up in the dresses and adorned us with bindis. After which, the entire PremaVidya company met in the main office and joined together in chanting, prayer and meditation for our boss Naresh-sir. He is undergoing tests today to see if his brother is the right match for the bone marrow transplant. I have stressed this before, but it truly is a beautiful community that I have the privilege of working for and amongst . Everyone cares so much for each other and the support is unconditional.We all sat around in a circle and Naresh-sir's best friend led the first chant. All of our voices echoed and I entered a state of complete relaxation, I have never before been able to enter a state of such deep meditation. We were also led in a prayer from the bible and in another meditation and song accompanied by bells, drums, and a guitar. At the end we ate the blessed bananas and milk and sent on the bananas that we blessed to Mr. Naresh. So, not only did he receive our spiritual energy, but he also will be able to recieve the tangible energy provided by the bananas that were blessed through the various ceremonious activities. I am so lucky to be an engaged part of this community and I am really going to miss all of the wonderful people that I have the pleasure of working with each and every day.