Copyright CoEvolve 2010
SANTHAN’S STORY
2008. I was part of a Yoga class that was being taught by Saraswathi or Saras, as we
fondly call her. She has an easy, flowing style of teaching and a loving presence. All of
us felt comfortable and, during the course of the year, she helped each of us encounter and surpass some of our biggest challenges.
We were all in awe of Saraswathi's style of teaching. It was natural to assume that she
was gifted in some divine way. Can you imagine how exciting it was for me when Saras told us we could learn to do the same? She said her teaching turned 180 degrees once she attended the Tao of Facilitation (ToF). Many of us instantly wanted to attend the program, and in a couple of months, during an unusually rainy August, Kiran and ToF came to Hyderabad.
It was a difficult time for me in many ways. I had an unrest within me. I cannot describe it very well, but in the moments that I was all by myself, I had a frown on my forehead those days. I was in my first year of marriage, and those who are married will probably relate to the rollercoaster ride of this adjustment period.I had quit my job a year ago, and still hadn't really settled into a new one. I was working part-time as a writer. And barely meeting expenses. I had a rocky relationship with my father, and actually, I am still figuring that one out :-)
Being in the ToF for four days helped me a lot. At first it was a strange experience. Not
in a bad way, but in an intriguing sort of way. There were twenty five of us sitting along the wall of a large rectangular room. Most of us had never met before and yet, we were sharing our deepest passions and darkest secrets as if it wasn't a big deal. I had never experienced that level of openness between people before. It seemed surreal, and yet more real than anything else. Am I making any sense?
During that first ToF I learnt how to feel at ease with myself. Somehow my life in all its
imperfections began to feel acceptable. Nothing really needed to change. And I started
believing that everything was going to be alright. In the many conversations I have had since with Kiran, my own life purpose became clearer. I was doing a lot of introspection on my own. Teachers like Saras have made a great impact. The ToF's contribution has been significant too.
As it became increasingly clearer to me what my purpose is, I started Deep Red Ink with Deepti, who I connected with at ToF. Really that is the most precious gift of the ToF - the people. Through Kiran and ToF I've met almost all the people that I now work with. I met Mujeeb, with whom I am now involved in a city-wide youth leadership initiative and a nation-wide citizen's movement to build the nation. I met Vijay and Nilima, with whom I am involved in creating a unique holistic and integrated health resource for cancer patients and their families. I met the entire Chittasangha - a group of people working together to bring a change in the education, health and business sectors. The Chittasangha is now giving our start-up company more work than we can handle.
Life is good right now. My marriage, now three years old, rests on a rock-solid
foundation of trust and love. My dad and I get along so much better. And I am doing
work that I love and enjoy. Work and life have seamlessly melded into one. I can clearly see myself as Santhan before ToF, and Santhan after ToF. My unrest has not
completely left, nor have all my problems vanished. Most have improved, and some new problems have cropped up but I look at them differently now. I don't frown much when I am alone.
Santhan
