YOGA OUTREACH 2023
Honouring the mandate of celebrating the centenary year of Swami Satyananda Saraswati, I would like to report here a small experiment in responsibility that I have engaged in for the last ten years with sincerity. This is my involvement with the differently-abled orphaned (some abandoned) girls of the Nirmal Jyothi Charitable Society near my place in Delhi.
I visited this home for differently-abled girls, managed by a few Sisters of the St Joseph’s Congregation (based in Kottayam, Kerala) to donate some old clothes. What struck me was the severe attitude of the Sister-in-Charge, who told me that they do not accept worn out clothes in a bad state of repair for the inmates of the home. This was the first instance of a fiercely protective motherly love for close to 20 girls, of varying ages and differing degrees of both physical and mental abilities.
What affected me even more was the girls themselves. I had never seen such levels of limitation that one can face. In my first encounter, I saw a wheelchair-bound girl who could not even swallow her food, her hands and feet twisted to a point of not being of any use for any kind of work, completely non-verbal but with twinkling eyes and a slight smile in her permanently open mouth at a kind touch from the Sisters.
My initial visits were that of any other curious visitor, moved to a point of kindness and charity due to the severity of the condition of these girls. I have analysed that these encounters, though frequent, lacked a serious sense of ‘responsibility’, as I never felt I belonged to them or they to me. It was my Rikhia visit in 2012 that changed my perception of ‘responsibility’ as well as appropriate giving or daan. The change that Swami Satyananda could bring about in a place like Rikhia deeply affected me at many levels and upon return, the nature of my engagement with the inmates changed from a kind occasional donor to a person who became ‘responsible’ for their well being.
The first small project that happened was a small travel fund in the name of Swami Niranjan, from my personal savings with the aim of achieving maximum fun. The reason was that I had written to the Ashram seeking Swamiji’s guidance on how to help the girls. In my ignorance, I had personally planned educational events for improving their knowledge and expected something similar as guidance. On the other hand, the advice that I received by email indicated that I should focus on generating happy memories for the girls.
Upon further reflection on what can garner ‘happy memories’, I realized that the greatest regret of these girls was their inability to travel out of the confines of their home on a regular basis. Some of the girls did attend school for the differently-abled, but the scope for fun outings in the open air or amidst the rest of society was extremely limited due to the condition of some of the girls. The travel fund was to ensure that we now were equipped financially to regularly engage in ‘maximizing fun’ by 1. going out for day-long picnics in farmhouses around Delhi, 2. going to parks in and around Delhi and most importantly, 3. regular visits to the movies.
The last one was very challenging initially, as I had to convince the multiplex movie halls that my girls would not cause trouble for the rest of the customers. However, each movie visit, we target at least two in a year, has been worth it! The children and girls do not sleep with excitement the night before the movies and over time, have learnt the etiquette of going out, settling down into their seats and enjoying the snacks while the movie goes on. This also is a necessary break for the Sisters and the helpers, who work tirelessly not only for the girls but also for some school projects in slum areas in remote parts of Delhi.
I now see the wisdom of the advice imparted to me: not only have I observed a change in the behaviour of some of the inmates which is remarkably less violent compared to earlier instances, but also physical improvement in terms of health and ability to speak; some non-verbal girls can now speak, though haltingly. Once our bus broke down in the middle of the journey to the movie hall, and all the girls, even the ones who could not speak, expressed their tension, involvement and excitement in whichever way they could. We were certain that our prayers to reach the movie hall on time was heard in the heavens up there! That their cognition has improved significantly is clear to all. What has probably worked like magic is the creation of happy memories due to our access to the Swami Niranjan Travel Fund, and the motto of ‘maximizing fun’!
My involvement has also led me to many heart-touching moments: one girl (wheelchair-bound) found her husband in a man afflicted with polio who walks with crutches, after meeting him in a nearby computer centre she was working in. The Sisters had sent her there to learn skills to become independent. Despite family opposition, this girl is now well- settled and mother to two healthy children. What I shall always remember is the day of the marriage. It was very Bollywood-style, with the groom hiding from his mother and me engaging in action movie-style driving around lanes of the Chattarpur Mandir to finally sign on the marriage registry papers! The way the Sisters cried and held the bride and the gifts given to the newly-weds was a real lesson in ‘responsibility-in-action’ for me.
Over the years, my involvement has grown with the girls and the Sisters. I look at the motto of Nirmal Jyothi ‘Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ (Matthew 25: 40–45.) and I find that my involvement is now no longer to get brownie points from God. It is not an act of charity or kindness either. I realize that now I feel responsible for all the inmates of Nirmal Jyothi. I am as protective about all of them as the first Sister I had met, who frowned on the old clothes that I had brought with me for donation. I now care for all the inmates from a sense of responsibility, as I would care for my own family. I am not Christian, but my connection with the Sisters and the girls is beyond the confines of religion. For all the enrichment that Project Nirmal Jyothi has brought to my life, I can only thank the true inspiration that I found in Swami Satyananda’s work and in Swami Niranjan’s statement regarding ‘responsibility’:
There is a greater sense of responsibility when you feel that you belong.