European Youth At Heartfulness Headquarters

ALESSANDRA VEGLIA is a second year student from the University of Trieste, Italy. She is doing a Master’s Degree in Diplomacy and Development Cooperation, and is currently doing an internship at Kanha Shanti Vanam, the Heartfulness Center near Hyderabad in India, as part of her degree. She has been interacting with other visiting fellows and interns from around the world, who are currently also training and volunteering in various capacities in the campus, and took this opportunity to interview them.

- Alessandra Veglia

I have always left the job of interviewing to others where possible, because of a sense of uneasiness in intruding upon people’s lives. But here in Kanha, it is unthinkable to run away from weakness, so not surprisingly I was asked to interview some of the Europeans staying in the ashram, to explore the impact of Heartfulness on their lives. After accepting the idea, I ended up enjoying the task immensely, for I could frame the interviews in the guise of a lively chat, and together with my questions I shared my own experience and opinions with those in front of me.

I decided to limit my research to youth between the ages of 16 and 28, and the first very willing victims were three girls from France, the eldest being 17. They came to Kanha because of their interest in environmental issues, and after ten days concluded that this is the ideal venue when looking for inspiration. They founded an association to raise awareness on ecology and to address others in their own age group. The creation of their own website is in progress. At Kanha, they did field research, collected data, worked on an environmental curriculum for school students, and they are now ready to create a movie. In their local Heartfulness center in France, they participate in an initiative called Cine Meditation, where a movie is followed by discussion and a meditation session.

Did I mention yet that one of them just started practicing meditation a month ago? So, what else could I do but be deeply impressed and congratulate them? They are so young, eager, full of ideas and ideals, and yet able to shape them into concrete outcomes.