We can change our job, home, and life, but a Guru can change our state of mind
This is a small account of how meditation helped my wife and I make it through the lockdowns, quarantines, and migration down under, all when the world was and is still going through the struggles of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The initial days of lockdown in 2020 bring bittersweet memories to me. My wife and I worked as design engineers in an aerospace company recently acquired by new management. We, being seniors in the company, were assigned new roles and more responsibilities. And the pressure to perform and impress the new management was mounting more than ever before. I was made a project coordinator for a new drone project with a very stringent timeline and very few resources to work with. Although it was a valuable project, the company was pursuing other immediate goals where all the resources had been allocated, and almost everyone worked in those, full time. When we drew up the schedule, it gave us little room for relaxation, and required all hands on the drone and to work hard every day. That's when COVID struck and the lockdown was issued.
For the first time, we were forced to stay within the walls of our house, and not even work would be able to draw us out of it. Both of us converted our living rooms to office space. The boundaries blurred and there was no difference between office work and personal life. Tempers were mounting and the atmosphere got quite hot and there was occasional verbal sparring. The meditation challenge from The Art of Living was a godsend and I cannot be thankful enough for the timing, effort, and thoughtfulness of Guruji and the Art of Living online team.
Yoga and meditation were not new to me. But this time it was special, maybe because of the time in our lives. The first day was just about trying out something to get hold of life again. But when I heard those words "at this moment there is nothing to know, nothing to do either", something changed in me. I felt at once more relaxed and there was more space inside me. I felt more aware of the surroundings, the same place where we had spent so many years, felt quite different and endearing. We followed the entire challenge and eagerly waited for the next dose of wisdom. As we explored more in Art of Living channels, on Youtube, we uncovered a wealth of content in the subsequent days.
It was my wife who started the Padma Sadhana practice, which she continues to date. Our landlord, who had initially forbidden access to the terrace, finally let us through in the lockdown period and that became our "yoga studio". Every morning, we would head to the terrace and start the day with 20 minutes of Padmasadhana followed by any guided meditation from Guruji. Padmasadhana is a genius yoga practise that blends in so many yoga asanas into one fluid extended asana. We started to love this small locality in Domlur 2nd stage, Banglore more than ever. We appreciated the squirrels and birds, which I never noticed before, roaming in and out of our compound frequently. We even partially adopted a stray, "Bobby", and formed a deeper bond between ourselves and with the surroundings.
It was then we could think together about our future with more clarity. We had received a PR status in Australia and were not quite sure to make a shift. We took a leap of faith and booked tickets to Australia in July. Alas! The spread of COVID in Australia led to a travel ban and we could not fly. And we had already let go of the rental place and resigned from our jobs. It was testing time and an agonizing wait to secure tickets on a repatriation flight. The house where we lived for the past two and half years was now empty but for our suitcases, a mattress and a few utensils which we hadn't sent away. Although it seems less dramatic and less intense than what many had to go through as COVID ripped through India in later days, to be in such a situation from the life we were used to, it seemed too much to take. If it was not for the practice of yoga and meditation, this phase could have been full of turmoil. However, we survived, and in the next one month after 2 more cancelled flights, we were able to board another repatriation flight to Sydney where we spent another 2 weeks in hotel quarantine. But we were at peace, knowing we had succeeded partially in what could have been a disastrous decision.
Although the time zones had changed, we still tuned into the Youtube channel, to listen to Guruji and his comforting words which gave us hope and calmness in turbulent times. It might be just half an hour but it makes space in our minds, to let go of the struggles and emotional baggage, and think clearly to move ahead in life. Today, I am sitting in Perth, and looking forward to a better life. A Whatsapp forward from my wife brings back memories of the challenges we went through, and how those few words from Guruji, which I jokingly repeat to my wife every day, made a profound change in my life and outlook.
By: Sreekanth Hariharan
A little note: As community conversation facilitators, we believe in giving an individual the autonomy of expression. The views expressed in this piece are the author's own.
