So this past three days I have been in the lovely town of Santiniketan, which is where Tagore, a famous Indian philosopher and artist, began his specialized school. It was an incredibly interesting trip, and folks, it looked quite similar to Midwest! While we were driving through, there were fields laying endlessly stretched out on top of one another, and there were Indian tractors and okay so some people carrying crops on their head, but for the most part it was exactly like the Midwest! The jeep drive that we took was the best cure if you are ever feeling constipation or any other blockage issues. It was one long roller coaster of bumps and flights in the air, and thank the Lord for padded roofs! Our driver must have pent up dreams about becoming a Nascar driver, and he very strongly believes in the use of his break. He could make an exceptional stomp dancer. We arrived at Tagore's International School just outside of Santiniketan, and we were the first visitors to stay in the hostel. It was similar to camping inside! I never thought I would miss my board mattress at home either so that made me supremely happy.
Monday night we traveled to an Ashram and were even able to see a worship service. If there would have been Julia Roberts and an elephant I could have sworn I would have been an extra in "Eat. Pray. Love." It was such a wonderful opportunity to see the Ashram and the monks that are serving there. It's also a school for young boys, and some of the boys are even orphans that have been taken in by this order. The worship service that we were watching was dedicated to the elements of the world, such as the wind and rain. Also the worship service was in honor of the Guru who founded the mission, though I can't recall his name exactly. They came up to us towards the end of the service and brought a lighted lamp to us. We put our hand over the lamp and then put our hand on our head as a sign of blessing. To be honest, I have no idea what the blessing meant, but the children were adorable and so I found this quite joyful. After this, we saw traditional Bengali musicians that were called Baul. It was splendid music, and my favorite part was the man with the long, silver beard that was wearing a Joseph and the Technicolor robe. I wanted to be his friend so badly.
On Tuesday we went to the college and school that was started by Tagore. Tagore had the most stunning philosophy of what education should be for children and young adults. Whenever possible, they hold classes outside because Tagore felt that people should be one with nature when learning. It is natural for humans to feel a greater connection with studies when they are surrounded by dirt and grass and trees and such. He pioneered the idea behind a liberal arts education in India. He was exhausted from the strict regime of his education at St. Xavier’s that left him little room of learning what he truly enjoyed. His school is simply marvelous, and for some happy reason their dress code is sunshine yellow. What better way to stay in touch with nature and study philosophy than by looking like sunshine or butter?
After this we went to Tagore's home or shall I say homes. The man had, I believe, six homes, all five feet apart from each other. Word out is that he grew bored with each home and so he just built another. There was something about how each home made him feel more in touch with nature, but I think that is just a likely excuse to own more homes. Each of the homes were exquisite, but I think he could have made due with just one. I guess if he became bored with one home, he could travel to the other like musical chairs. Perhaps when I'm extremely rich and rolling in money in my career as a student of peace, I will own ten homes, and you can all come visit me and I'll tell you what each one means to me...Tagore might be on to something here...
After this we went to Amar Kutir, which is an artisan place where people are just radically cool. Seriously, I've never seen so many sweet hippies in my life. They may not consider themselves to be hippies, but I do and I want to live there. Amar Kutir was started by free riders, who were rebels during the freedom movement of India from British rule. See? Incredibly cool cats. Because so many refugees came there and were out of income, he set up trade posts where everyone worked on what crafts they were skilled in, and eventually it turned into a type of artisan place where goods are being sold. They make leather for several items such a purses, wallets, elephants, etc. They also make fabrics, and the art work is fantastic. If I could make leather or stitch, I would live there for the rest of my life.
Later than night we saw traditional tribal dancing at the hostel. Before that, however, our group entertained the students who were staying there, and I was able to break out my rendition of "Little Green Frog." I must say it was a huge hit with the little ones, and I think I may try it out in the cities when I get back. Perhaps I'm called to be an artist for children's tapes...I'll keep you all in the loop on this possible career change.
The trip was lovely, and I thoroughly enjoyed the many experiences that we came into contact with. I loved being able to spend time with the group again, and I also was able to eat two chocolate croissants, which I don't know how you can get any better than that in life. I found Tagore to be a pretty deep cat, and I wish I could say things as eloquently as he and have everyone "oohing" and "ahhing" over my words. So I will leave you with a few of his words, which I was tempted to pretend were my own: "My heart spreads itself out in the wind to feel the touch of the world spirit strained through consciousness. Now let me sit quietly with eyes open." Yeah, I know.
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