This past week the 33 of us had the wonderful opportunity of splitting up into small groups and conducting research for case studies. We all visited very impactful organizations that called to our attention that much good can come of focused efforts.
My first stop was the Tribal Health Initiative in the very rural Sittilingi valley of the state of Tamilnadu. It was a program established by two amazing doctors, Dr. Regi and Dr. Lalitha, who (after receiving years and years of education and training, and gaining respect in modern society) packed up their things and settled down in a place where there is nothing for miles but tribal villages. I will forever be in awe of how these people decided to completely forgo their credibility and sustained the hard work of gaining the trust of tribal communities that had been exploited and in other ways mishandled by “experts” time and time again.
The success of their efforts (besides instituting an accessible, affordable, and well trusted health facility) had much to do with the fact that they actually trained and employed tribal women as health workers and auxiliary nurses!! Luckily, my group happened to be at THI the one night out of the month that these women convened, and with a translator we were able to find out about their lives and impactful work. Without a translator, we learned their cultural dances, and taught them one of ours–the hokey pokey! (Possibly an even more surreal experience than counting cows on the way to class).
I also got the chance to visit a site called Navadarshanam (“New vision” or “Vision of Reality”)- an organization dedicated to promoting and actualizing an alternative way of life that is non-exploitive for both humans and nature. Guided by Gandhian principles of non-violence and economic interdependency in communities, the establishment utilized minimally damaging energy resources (from solar panels to compost) built eco-friendly houses, ate their own organically grown crops, and allowed forest restoration by fencing out grazers and elephants. (No joke, during our night stay we heard the watchman playing drums loudly to keep out these large stampeders).
The idea that governs this effort is that all beings originate from and contain the same basic life force and make up one body, so when any exploitation occurs it is the equivalent of one hand harming the other. When a mutually beneficial relationship is established between people and nature, both life and health are self-sustainable and the “life force” becomes allowed to rejuvinate itself. The amazing food we received was straight from the garden, and I even got to drink milk that came right from the cows! Call it a good meal, call it therapy from the “life force”, call it whatever- but I can tell you that after eating it I felt invincible. You can’t visit this place and not feel that there is a certain magic about it.
During our interviews, I asked both of the different organization’s leaders what they felt was an unforseen reward they received from their efforts. After much deep thought on both parts, I got answers that will stay with me for a long time.
Annatu, an establisher and current member of the Navadarshanam community, spoke of the wonderous way that all things naturally restore themselves without personal efforts. In a world full of need for fixing, this is definitely an important recognition. It is not that positive efforts need to be placed on circumstances that are negative- these do not exist naturally. Rather, what is needed is the alleviation of the negative forces that impinge upon the natural livelihood and thriving that exists in everything and everyone.
Dr. Lalitha from THI, who abandoned her well-earned medical repetoir in the modern world for the selfless purpose of bettering humanity (one Sittilingi tribal person at a time) told me about the blessing of realizing your ignorance. One can gain a formal education with extensive formal knowledge, and in an instant it can be meaningless without the trust of your community and patients. After all, this stuff is more important, and getting treated is a people thing. Realizing my ignorances has been an integral part of my very humbling learning experience. They are inevitable, though inadvertantly held, and having the opportunity to discard them (piece by little piece) has indeed been a blessing.
