If we look deeper – we all stand out in our own way!!

So we took a walk & approached some strangers to dig the oh-so-ordinary within them that could inspire us in subtle ways. And here is the result of the walk.

1.     Diving into Faith

This was his customary Chai after work. That’s when he let it out.

“So I quit today!”

Why?

“I don’t hate working for someone as such. I tried thinking that it was completely mine, putting in all my effort without even caring about the money I make! But I miss the logic of this corporate world which dissolves the trust between human souls and even the things that I manage are not under my control. Subsequently, the work might have satisfied the ego of people but it never satisfied my inner self. So this is like a happy realization”

So, now what?

“Well, I don’t have much money. I will work on some independent CSR projects, gather capital and soon build a business of eco-friendly stationery introducing biodegradable books, bags and pens!”

And he just smiled casually as I gaped at him. My respect and jealousy both went out to this maverick.

 

2.     Happiness in Hopelessness

“The poorest look the happiest here!”

He is an exchange student in an architecture school in Ahmedabad.

“It is different back home in Paris. The poor there live in a false hope that they’ll make it big someday and spend every day in disappointment and disillusion. Here, they have no false hope! They somehow know they will remain where they are and they find satisfaction in it!”

“Their lack of hope keeps them Happy!”

Thrilled with this new perspective of life, he does not sound keen on booking his return tickets. He is chasing the satisfaction of hopelessness!

 

3.     The sacrifices of an artist.. 

“I wonder if an artist has any way of making money just through his indulgence in art! Eventually we all give in to the rat race. We start creating art for others, not for our own self, that’s where art loses its essence! And its even worse when we talk of poverty in India, if you have no money here, you have no lifestyle, no dignity and hence no life. Doesnt matter how much talent you have! That’s the reality. I think we are all fucked up, big time”

After being a teacher, musician, painter and an architecture graduate, he felt compelled to get a masters degree for financial survival.

 

4.     Surviving, against all odds!

“I wonder why society is so hypocritical; they all want their daughters to be well educated and independent. Yet, if I were to stand with a guy in my locality, I will be rumoured to be sleeping with him. I will suddenly become an outcast, a girl who doesn’t know her limits!”

“My parents do not mind, but they have to take bullshit from my so called well-wishers! If only we could tell them to mind their own business!”

A 19 year old Engineering student – she is one of the five girls in a 160 student class.

 

5.     Chasing someone else’s Happiness?

“We all need to know what we want out of our lives. What does us in is our innate habit to compare. Some of us can afford a job, some can afford a shop, you can afford your writing and I can afford my cleaning job. While I’m happy with my 50 bucks, some are happy with their 100 and there still are others who are disappointed with their Lacs”

“We are a ridiculous set of people; we do not know what we want!” He murmured to me as he swept the floor!

 

6.     A simpleton’s solution!

Why do you want Ahmedabad to turn into a Mega city?

“I worked 12 years for SRF police force, still I am paid very little. What keeps me motivated is my belief in change. The day will come when Ahmedabad will turn into a megacity and it will have much more budget for our salaries. More income, less need for corruption.”

 

7.     Selfishly Selfless…

I asked  him “If there was one thing to change in society what would that be?”

“That’s a hard one.” He chuckles, “I know it is not possible but it would be nice to see people being less selfish. I am not saying people are bad. Even the ones, who pretend to be good, put their own selves first and that is very damaging. That is on a larger scale damaging the Society, the Earth and the Nature. If only all of us can figure out that collective oneness! In Buddhism the concept of self does not exist”

After being let go from his IT job in Sydney, he has had a very enriching experience on his spiritual journey around Asia. Currently he is living in a Buddhist monastery in Southern India, getting to know himself better.