I took one week off , the first week of Jan 2021, when people were revamping themselves and getting ready to dive back in mainstream hustle, I wanted to sit back and contemplate on various aspects of life , the year ahead, kids, aftermath of 2020 , work , slowing down etc. The precious 7 days were not for any fancy vacation , grand places but for some quiet and solitude.

“What if home is exotic enough for me. “ was my mantra for these coming days. Saint Augustine said “Men go abroad to wonder at the heights of mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motions of the stars, and they pass by themselves without wondering. “ It takes courage to dive deep beyond what we see , experience , feel or fathom. My mini venture revolved around the principles that I am trying to imbibe in my life like Fearlessness (Abhaya), Non-Violence (Ahimsa), Non-Attachment (Asanga) and Joy (Ananda). These are the 4 primal qualities worth striving for as per our wisdom traditions.

1. Walks: Took to long distance walking alone. Yes alone. It’s good to have company every now and then pulling in kids , friends or husband. But sometimes you just have to be with your thoughts, feelings, anxiousness. Can you smell the grass, hear the birds, see what other people are doing, feel the wind, touch the flowers or just be reverberating at the same wavelength as the rest of creation. Humans are such a tiny drop in this vast universe, yet they push the needle towards controlling others. Is there a more subtle way to stop trying to change the world, to let go of the worries and be fearless (Abhay). “Nature doesn’t seem to hurry or worry and yet everything is accomplished.” A snow storm, volcano or torrential rains come what may if we allow ourselves to sway on low and high tides, undaunted twilight may just be around the corner.

2. Creativity: Lately I realized that we are more at peace with ourselves (Ahimsak) when we are creative and engaged in meaningful little adventures. We don’t have to go out of the way and join an art class for that , it could be as basic as creating a new recipe. When we are cooking we are actually using all our five senses of smell, touch, sight, sound and taste. It’s a wholesome experience. “It’s how you look at your pantry either you feel trapped in it or it opens up a world of possibilities.” If we try to put ourselves in beauty’s way by doing small things like growing herbs rosemary, thyme, oregano for herbal teas, knitting a scarf, writing a journal instead of consuming news, social media , too much Television we are purposefully tipping ourselves towards real from unreal. These are insignificant bouts of inventiveness , originality rooting us in zen of all things. The more we engage in them , the more grounded we feel.

3. Disown: The week off was also an attempt to clean up my house with all that was not needed. When you empty a space , light rushes in and magic happens. It’s like shedding of loads of baggage, removing all the layers so that we can see what is at the core. If we try to live light and detached (Asang) being an observer , witnessing the drama around but not letting it impact us then perhaps it frees up just a tiny bit of time and space. The less you own , the less owns you.

4. Slow living: We need to take a pause or a u-turn from the fast pace of life. I took naps , cuddled up with new books , just sat on our swing watching the sky, read poems, filling up my well so I can tend to others , doing things slowly pausing after each task to breathe. “What life is, we know not. What life does, we know well”, said Lord Perceval. If we watch our grandmas or our ancestors they were so happy and healthy because they embraced ordinary mundane things with such devotion grinding the spices , bending several times a day to sweep the floor , pounding food in pestle to release its aroma, making rangolis outdoors. Theirs was an old fashioned life orderly, undistracted , leisurely, pared down yet so noble. They did not have to search for joy (Anand) anywhere else it was always within themselves.

Happy exploring:

Good books: 1.The Signature of all things – Elizabeth Gilbert, 2. State of Wonder – Ann Patchett

Good Movies: Sunita Bhave short films 1. Sparsh 2. Sakhrepeksha goad

Blogs : https://slowyourhome.com