Soulbath Peace Foundation Workshop
'World Disability Day' - Dec' 3rd, 2009, Mumbai
"Discovering Oneness in Existence with Soulbath Peace Foundation"
It is World Disability Day on Dec 3rd, celebrated & marked around the world. To celebrate this day with unique individuals in our lives who now have a special place in our hearts, volunteers from SPF (Soulbath Peace Foundation) reached Om Creations, Mumbai. Om Creations is a non profit organization that helps create products that are specially made by empowered women who are mentally challenged from different walks of life.
Om Creations is located in a lush green, quiet and secluded place in Mumbai. As SPF Volunteers, we walked through the campus carrying loads of materials for our interaction as we were welcomed by warm smiles and helping hands to lead us to the space. Our interactions with friends at Om had already begun.
The participants were extremely social, wanting to be beside us to lead the group and so we began talking and working through flowers. Creativity knew no bounds as we saw the participants wanting to be in special collaborative groups to communicate their thoughts. Each group had volumes of hidden emotions to speak but what remained common is their style and similar words that excited them all – companionship, friends and partners. This reflects a lot about the synthesis that happens inside each of our minds and still at a base level we are the same.
The Silent experience
Listening to one another and cheering as each group added on their views about life from this context became the foundation to lead into a deeper introspection space. Our objective was to understand and gift them the uniqueness of Sri Raj Bhowmik's message of 'CORPORitual Values of Living' and primarily “Meeting Yourself in Silence”.
“Peace is Silence” as Monica uttered was a loud statement that broke the silence and helped us reach a deeper resonance within. It was a revelation to us as we saw how true and pure they were with very little conditioning and their innocence that sparkled through their eyes, their warm hugs and their ways of connecting to the world. At one point my awareness went into myself where I had read that “Being like a child” was the simplest way to tap that inner space in each person.
Friends at Om through this interaction made it more aware that though they were living life through that same essence life was harmonious, balanced and it was the most easiest to be that way. We learnt how to make bags with their help and learned the complex processes of fine-motor skills that went along with creating these specially designed bags.
In our world today we have classes of abled, specially abled and maybe dis-abled and along with a special day that we recognize to celebrate their essence. But our interaction at Om only made us more aware that we are all the same at our deepest centres and each one in our world is specially abled or disabled. The only difference being their ways of connecting and expressing to the world are different. But aren’t we all different as individuals having our own unique essence.
The more we are conditioned – the more there is accountability in “I” am telling “You” but the biggest take away from Om that day was “WE” are all “One”. “We feel a lot of love ….and we show it to the world by being who we are- simple as we are”
Soulbath Peace Foundation Volunteer Testimonial
An Experience – By Shubha Godbole,
SAHHEAL Healing Consultant
Women from Om Creation were in the age group of 18 to 50+, with Downs Syndrome and other forms of mental retardation. At first I was very apprehensive as to what is it that we can do with this group. Definitely more of cognitive therapy or the like was out of question because I wasn’t sure how much each would grasp. Some may but most won’t. It was my first workshop so with all these question marks in my mind , I went along to Om Creation.
We started with introductions and that was the first step in ice-breaking. The girls/women were very friendly, at times shy and at times wanting to put the best foot forward. Most of them or rather all of them understood Gujarati. So I could reach out to them in their language and the comfort level was immediately achieved. We did some group activities like flower Rangoli, where all got involved and enjoyed themselves. We asked them to draw. Their drawing spoke volumes.
The only language they understand is that of love…a holding of the hand, a hug, a pat on the back, a touch, a smile of appreciation is all that they want. That is the only thing that each one of them sought…albeit in very unspoken words…
Even after the workshop ended, though I was feeling good about what we had done, the full impact of our work was to come to me only later…3 days later. On December 4, 2009, 3 days after our workshop, I was at SPJ Sadhana high schools’ Annual day fun fair function. SPJ Sadhana High School and Om Creation are closely related. In fact the women at Om Creation are pass outs from Sadhana High School. It is a school for children with special needs. I had volunteered to help their vocational section in baking and handling the cake stall for the two day event. On that day I was at the stall with my friend and two children from the school. Just then Om Creation’s bus arrived with these women from the workshop for the fun fair. These women entered the gate and the moment they saw me, they flocked to me, smiling and laughing and hugging. My friend who was with me at the stall was amazed at their reaction. “Wow”, she said. “They are so happy to see you…they almost look at you as if you are God”. That is when the full impact hit me, of what we have achieved with our workshop in terms of touching these women somewhere deeper than their conscious understanding.
(Shubha Godbole is a certified SAHHEAL Healing Consultant and a Theatre artiste and Banking professional)
SAHHEAL Healing Consultant
Women from Om Creation were in the age group of 18 to 50+, with Downs Syndrome and other forms of mental retardation. At first I was very apprehensive as to what is it that we can do with this group. Definitely more of cognitive therapy or the like was out of question because I wasn’t sure how much each would grasp. Some may but most won’t. It was my first workshop so with all these question marks in my mind , I went along to Om Creation.
We started with introductions and that was the first step in ice-breaking. The girls/women were very friendly, at times shy and at times wanting to put the best foot forward. Most of them or rather all of them understood Gujarati. So I could reach out to them in their language and the comfort level was immediately achieved. We did some group activities like flower Rangoli, where all got involved and enjoyed themselves. We asked them to draw. Their drawing spoke volumes.
The only language they understand is that of love…a holding of the hand, a hug, a pat on the back, a touch, a smile of appreciation is all that they want. That is the only thing that each one of them sought…albeit in very unspoken words…
Even after the workshop ended, though I was feeling good about what we had done, the full impact of our work was to come to me only later…3 days later. On December 4, 2009, 3 days after our workshop, I was at SPJ Sadhana high schools’ Annual day fun fair function. SPJ Sadhana High School and Om Creation are closely related. In fact the women at Om Creation are pass outs from Sadhana High School. It is a school for children with special needs. I had volunteered to help their vocational section in baking and handling the cake stall for the two day event. On that day I was at the stall with my friend and two children from the school. Just then Om Creation’s bus arrived with these women from the workshop for the fun fair. These women entered the gate and the moment they saw me, they flocked to me, smiling and laughing and hugging. My friend who was with me at the stall was amazed at their reaction. “Wow”, she said. “They are so happy to see you…they almost look at you as if you are God”. That is when the full impact hit me, of what we have achieved with our workshop in terms of touching these women somewhere deeper than their conscious understanding.
(Shubha Godbole is a certified SAHHEAL Healing Consultant and a Theatre artiste and Banking professional)