Loving Community Brochure

May your heart open hereMay your heart open hereLoving Community

May your heart open here

Love All, Serve All

symbol of your choicesymbol of your choice

“To say that a single

human being,

because of his birth,

becomes an untouchable,

unapproachable,

or invisible, is to deny God.”

G A N D H I J I

history

[ 6 ] Loving Community manavsadhna.org

historyThe Gandhi Leprosy Seva Sangh was originally settled

along a dry riverbed in Ahmedabad, Gujarat 40 years ago—the origin of the community being the exiling of

a leprosy-infected sect of people believed to be endangering the healthy population. Forced to fl ee native villages—sometimes facing very real danger of being burned alive—leaving family be-hind, rejected from society and the communities in which they

were living, men and women affl icted with the disease travelled for miles from varying states in India (mostly from the South) reaching Ahmedabad, fi nding a place where they could live with some semblance of acceptance—a place where they could escape from the stigma of leprosy and live out their lives with a sense of peace and dignity.

From this initial movement of fear and rejection, something quite special evolved on its own. People of diff erent cultures, faiths, beliefs and lifestyles came together to live as a close and supportive family due to the one commonality they all shared: the disease that caused them to be rejected from society. A con-vergence of disparate, affl icted people has become a community fi lled with love and togetherness.

In the early years, the Gandhi Leprosy Seva Sangh members would spend nine months of the year building their community, their homes and their lives, then during monsoon season it would all be washed away, with this cycle being repeated each year. The Lion’s Club of Ahmedabad became involved after a successful plea and helped the community organize, secure land, and build functional homes. Initially, they searched for a convenient site where access to basic needs could be met, however this was not possible due to the social stigma of the disease, and thus ended up securing land from the government on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, in Amraiwadi, approximately 45 minutes by car from the Gandhi Ashram.

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manavsadhna.org Loving Community [ 7 ]

Today, though, Amraiwadi is very much a part of Ahmedabad, as a result of the population growth and development of the city. The homes and structures of the Gandhi Leprosy Seva Sangh have grown to accommodate over 430 residents; second and third generations of the native settlers have emerged. All the leprosy patients have received medical treatment and as a result are not contagious and the disease has stopped spreading—there have been no new cases in the community.

Residents are proud of their community and maintain impressively clean homes and surrounding areas—they are committed to making a good life for themselves and their children. Despite the community being relatively fi nancially poor, it is not typical of a slum environment. The evolution from rejection and despair to the creation of a thriving community is both remark-able and inspiring.

4]

1] There have been no

new cases of leprosy in

the youth

2] The Ram Mandir (Temple)

3] A resident bathing

outside

4] Priyanka enjoying her

mother’s love


“Can I beg with you?


historycoNNecTING HearT To HearT

A few years ago, Jayesh Patel (left) of Manav Sadhna, joined 30 friends, volunteers, and karyakartas on a “walk of forgiveness” in

response to religious tensions and confl ict, which resulted in violence in Ahmedabad. The walk began from the hallowed prayer ground at the Gandhi Ashram and ventured through the city visiting vari-ous religious houses of worship, including a Hindu temple, Islamic mosque, and Christian church. The group interacted with people they met during the inspired walk, and in a spirit of unity sang songs and performed small acts of service along the way.

As the group left the Christian church, Jayesh was deep in thought about the unconditional love of Jesus, when he saw two leprosy-infected beggars begging for change. He immediately approached one, touched her disfi gured foot, and said, “Can I beg with you? I am your son.” The beggars were shocked, in total disbelief. They declined his off er. Regardless, they went to a local chai shop, shared tea and sweet rolls, and then parted ways.

faTed eNcoUNTerS

About a year later, Jayesh visited Ram Roti, a sadhu in Ahmedabad, who serves meals to several hundred poorest of the poor daily. It ended up being the fi rst of several visits. The two got to know each other personally, as Jayesh became involved with the meal program by assisting in the serving and cleaning up.

One day, Ram Roti asked Jayesh to bring some excess grain to a leper community he had been hear-ing about to see if they had use for it. Jayesh made the trip, and lo!—amazingly—he encountered the two lepers whom he had met the year before at the church living in the community.

I am your son.”


historyTHe loVING coMMUNITy

Jayesh and others from Manav Sadhna started visiting the community regularly, sharing meals and tea with the residents, getting to know them

personally. It was during these visits that everyone rec-ognized how loving and warm the community members were—so a new name was given that focuses on something other than the disease: the Loving Community. Anyone who visits soon fi nds out why and is typically struck by the loving atmosphere that opens the heart.

Manav Sadhna began to identify genuine needs within the community. There were infrastructure needs, sanitation issues, leprosy patients who needed medical treatment, and there were emotional needs as well—to regain love, compassion and acceptance lost when residents devel-oped leprosy and were cast out of their native homes. After some time, Manav Sadhna started to discuss areas for improvement with the residents and community leaders.

Formal projects sprouted naturally from these visits and discussions and it has been a hand-in-hand collaboration since.

projects


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1] Cataracts are a common side effect of

leprosy

2] Untreated leprosy causes a slow, painful

erosion of the fi ngers and toes

3] With no use of her legs, this resident

must rely on a makeshift wheel barrow

for mobility and begging

projectsMedIcal TreaTMeNT

The fi rst project was the most urgent—providing a diverse selection of medical/health-related treatment to commu-nity members.

This treatment not only provides benefi ts to the community itself, it also aff ects the larger public, as many of the leprosy patients spend all day in public spaces begging with open, festering wounds. The disease still carries a stigma and there is acute concern over catching it.

Elements of the ongoing program have included:

• Free medical supplies to treat wounds

• Free medical camps with MD visits to the community to check patients, diagnose and prescribe treatment for leprosy symptoms such as skin irritations and sores, hand and feet issues, nerve and vascular problems, and pain

• Free dental camps with DDS visits to the community to treat dental problems

• Free eye camps with ophthalmologist visits to the community to treat blindness, a common symptom, and other vision-related problems

• Free, specialized leprosy sandals by partnering with a local organization, designed to provide walking comfort, as leprosy grossly aff ects the extremities, making walking in normal shoes uncomfortable or impossible


photos

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projectsTree PlaNTaTIoN

A t Manav Sadhna, we get to know who we are working with personally fi rst and

let the people tell us what they need and want to improve their living conditions. We also observe commu-nity activities and dynamics to see what is working and what changes may be benefi cial—we never want to impose our idea of what should be, as this is the root of ego-based activism that strips away the dignity of those who we are serving.

It was the residents of the Loving Community who expressed their love of and desire to have new trees planted, which they could care for and in turn, help beautify their area. We listened to this request and or-ganized a tree plantation. The trees that were planted have contributed to the beautifi cation of the commu-nity, provide shade, and have created an area that has become an attractive place for resting and congregating.

Manav Sadhna builds heart-centered

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projectsToIleT INSTallaTIoNS

Over 30 homes in the com-munity were without toilets when we arrived, so we part-

nered with the NASA organization to construct functional, low-cost toilets at no charge to the residents.

This particular sanitation program helped to mitigate the risk of health hazards in the community by provid-ing a hygienic and dignifi ed solution for human waste elimination. The improvement is particularly important during the monsoon sea-son, as people walk around barefoot through potentially contaminated running water.

relationships fi rst—before any work begins.

1] Community grandmothers gather in

the cool shade

2] “Sanitation is a way of life”

projects

2]


projectsloVING ceNTre coNSTrUcTIoN

Due to the generous support of the Katherine and Rohit Desai Family Foundation in New York City, we were able to coordinate the construction of a Rs. 19L community centre, known as the Loving Centre, in the heart of the community in 2009.

The Loving Centre has become a focal point of the community and provides residents with a beautiful, shared space to call their own. It is an impressive facility, which serves to uplift the community by providing such services as:

• Houses Manav Sadhna workshops and educational programs

• Serves as a venue for festival gatherings and shared meals

• Hosts community-wide meetings and programs

• Provides outdoor courtyard with a cooler, clean area for sleeping for residents whose homes get extremely hot in the summer

• Provides indoor shelter for residents whose homes are prone to fl ooding during monsoon season

• Provides lighted area for children to congregate and study, as well as play

• Serves as site for the free Dinner Program for some of the most needy members of the community

1] 2]

1] Outside courtyard of Loving Centre with

adjoining kitchen

2] Inside the spacious hall used for programs

and special events

3] The Loving Centre houses a room (“Gandhi’s

room”) for offi ce and overnight guest use

3]


projectsaNGaNWadI — SerVING oUr cHIldreN

Since the beginning, Manav Sadhna has focused on serving women and children, as they are the key to building a better future in poverty-stricken areas

and typically the most willing to embrace positive change. Our Anganwadi Program for underserved pre-school chil-dren is run in conjunction with the government of Gujarat. It is one of Manav Sadhna’s core programs and one of the most successful.

Manav Sadhna cur-rently employs over 150 Anganwadi teachers and reaches over 9,000 children in slum areas. We are in the process of building 66 pre-schools in Ahmedabad’s larg-est Tecro slum, home to 170,000 residents. The students are given value-based educa-

tion, including lessons on health, hygiene, and nutrition through stories, songs, dances and occasional fi eld trips. Anganwadi seeks to change the fate of children—a fate that often includes disease due to poor diet and hygiene, death in some cases, tobacco and alcohol addiction, and a sense of hopelessness and resignation about improving one’s circumstances, all of which contribute to the continuation of the poverty cycle.

The Anganwadi launched at the Loving Community in 2010 and is taught by Aruna Chuhan (right), a full-time resident of the community, and serves children ages 3 to 6.



projectsPlaNTING SeedS — loVING leaderSHIP ProGraM

K rishna initiated this program a few weeks after arriving at the Loving Community, along with Aruna Chuhan,

noticing that there were a group of children who had a certain glow to them and somehow stood out. They all, according to him, “demonstrated extraordinarily caring characters—caring about nature, caring about fellow human beings. They are almost (smile) always willing to lend a help-ing hand, even if something more fun is going on around them, and they all have emotional maturity well beyond their years.”

We thought it would be a good idea to provide special training to this group to formally develop their natural, loving, leadership abilities. The training included shared time together, medita-tion, prayer, fi eld trips, interaction with Manav Sadhna karyakartas, team-building exercises, and community-based service projects—all revolving around the Nature-derived values of: Seva, Harmony, Life Promotion, Self Knowledge, Initiative, and Problem Solving.

Despite being a process-oriented and value-based program, there are two main ideas driving it.

The fi rst is to create future community (world even!) service leaders. The Loving Community will need caring individuals who are willing to listen to neighbors’ problems, take responsibil-ity for community issues, problem solve, and set good examples for future generations to follow.

The second is to cultivate a sense of optimism (as opposed to hope) that if these children want to, they can change their life circumstances and pursue their dreams despite beliefs about impossibility. Part of the

“Love is Seva,


training is designed to disrupt the common mindset that can develop in poverty situations, where one can feel as if life is resigned to the way always known, that there is no way to make a change, if desired.

The children have grown considerably as a result of the program and have become a beloved addition to the Manav Sadhna family—ask any one of them what Seva is and they will enthusiastically (and loudly) respond, “Love is Seva, Seva is Love!”

photos

Seva is Love!”


projectsNUTrITIoN, GeNeroSITy aNd coMPaNIoNSHIP — dINNer ProGraM

In April 2011, Manav Sadhna, in collaboration with the Loving Community, launched a daily Dinner Program that provides a free, nutritious meal to a special group of approximately 23 leprosy patients living at the community who beg and are without family, having fl ed native

villages upon developing the disease. The opening of the kitchen doors was an energetic event that sent a warm, loving charge throughout the community, creating many smiles along the way.

The Dinner Program was created to fi rst, provide a free, nutritious meal to a group of some of the neediest residents of the community (most beg to earn Rs. 20 daily, so one less meal to worry about is a big deal to them). Second, to create a daily community-wide event with a foundation based in seva, in love, where residents can get together, pray, help serve meals, and otherwise engage in en-lightened community where there wasn’t one before.

The kitchen team, led by Jyoti Koli, a wife and warmhearted mother of three, pre-pare the meals in the spirit of service and love. The dinner is conducted in a sacred manner, starting with an all-religions prayer and is like medicine for the guests, who are the poorest of the poor, leprosy infected, and alone. Children from the Loving Leadership Program are involved, who often assist in the cleaning of the area beforehand, as well as the prayer.


Each guest was asked how they feel about the Dinner Program.

Two answers kept repeating: appreciation for the social activity and

for having one less meal to worry about. When you earn as little as

they do, one free meal a day makes a big di� erence.


projectsSaTHya SHaKTI fITNeSS ceNTre

In poverty conditions, one of the greatest investments that can be made is in physical fi tness and health, as fi tness boosts the immune system to help protect against diseases (critical at the Loving Com-

munity, as diseases transmit easily due to its small size). When physical health suff ers, already-limited funds funnel to doctor’s visits and poten-tially ineff ectual medical treatments, taking away from the essentials of school fees, supplies and food.

Keeping fi t also instills a sense of purpose for something outside of daily, grinding work and family routines. It helps to keep an optimistic outlook on life and eliminates the feeling of being burdened by relatively restricted life circumstances. Often too, when people start getting into a better state of mind and health, their appetite for health detractors diminishes—they no longer desire tobacco, alcohol, sugary, overly oily or processed food, items that traditionally reap havoc in poor communities.

Fitness additionally instills optimism that if one works hard enough toward a goal, it can be achieved. Needless to say, aff ordable access to high-quality gym equipment isn’t typically possible for people who struggle fi nancially.

Manav Sadhna launched the Sathya Shakti (True Strength) Fitness Centre in August of 2011 and it was a welcome addition to the Loving Com-munity. The philosophy of the gym is to use new found health and strength for the benefi t of the community. It is managed by a full-time resident of the community and charges token membership dues of Rs. 50/month to make access to it as easy as possible.


projects

Hum aabhaari hain!(We are grateful!)

IMProVING QUalITy of lIfe — GoVerNMeNT-aPProVed ProJecTS

A s Manav Sadhna’s work has grown in visibility and reputation, the organization has been fortunate to catch the attention of busy community leaders and

government offi cials. The Mayor of Ahmedabad, Asit Vora, and other members from the AMC (Ahmedabad Municipal Corpo-ration) paid a personal visit to the Loving Community early in 2011 to see how the men, women and children were faring and what types of needs they have.

As a result of the visit, several projects that will have tremen-dous impact on the community were approved, including:

• Creation of a large garden in the back of the community on what is a fi lthy, abandoned piece of land that collects trash and is a breeding ground for disease

• Installation of a paved foot path along the main road enter-ing the community to keep pedestrians safe from the constant fl ow of incoming and outgoing traffi c

• Solid waste management program and the distribution of large, sturdy waste bins in areas of the community where trash tends to collect

• Rs. 2L renovation of an old, run-down structure that will house the Anganwadi and Fitness Centre

• Tree plantation in a barren area of the community that collects trash and waste

The Loving Community received a major blessing by the Mayor and AMC taking the time to pay a visit and approve these im-portant projects. The residents know that Ahmedabad has vast areas with many people in need, and are thankful to the Mayor and city government offi cials for their care and support.

“People will forget

what you said, people

will forget what you did,

people will never

forget how you made

them feel.”

M AYA A N G E LO U

people


people

Poshaiya, 73, arrived at the Gandhi Leper Seva Sangh in 1978, just three short years after the community was founded in 1975.

He was born in Hyderabad and treated early for leprosy, but like many others suff ering from the disease, he fl ed to seek the safety and acceptance of a leprosy community in Ahmedabad. He has been in the community since the beginning and has been a part of every major change and evolution, including the time when it was more like a slum.

When Poshaiya arrived at the community, the situ-ation there was disorganized and dire. People had so many problems. No money. Health issues. Slum-like housing—typically makeshift tents that were decimated in the monsoon season each year. People were struggling for survival. There was no leader-ship—nobody with the vision to see how to help improve the situation. Until Poshaiya. He was able to bring direction to the chaos. Because he was edu-cated and spoke a little English and a little Gujarati, he was able to make a professional proposal to the Lion’s Club chapter in Ahmedabad for assistance, which they accepted.

The Lion’s Club helped organize the community, secured offi cial land from the government, got the leprosy patients medical treatment, and built homes for them. This shift marked the beginning of the Loving Community—the situation improved consid-erably from there.

Because of his leadership early on, Poshaiya is highly respected in the community to this day and he is still the primary decision maker for community matters. When asked about Manav Sadhna, he says their in-volvement “felt like an answer to a prayer”—as soon as they got involved “everything changed.” He talks about the attention they began to get from the city government, the many new faces that came to visit, the people who wanted to do programs, and the new rush of loving energy that energized the community.

Though not a formal Gandhian, Poshaiya does sub-scribe to Gandhi’s values of non-violence, love, and seva that permeate throughout the community. For over a year, the community sponsored a Rs. 10,000/month lunch service project to homeless, mentally ill people living outside of the Loving Community. Unfortunately, this program has ended due to insuf-fi cient donations to continue it.

Poshaiya lives a peaceful life with his wife, Laxmi, and the rest of his community. With the knowledge he possesses from his long legacy of involvement and his kind nature, he expects to continue to serve for the remainder of his years by delivering grand-fatherly advice to the community he helped shape.

PoSHaIya MeSTIrI — PreSIdeNT of THe loVING coMMUNITy



peopleShe stands out from the crowd—and always draws one to her. Her will is strong and her vision is clear.

Aruna, just 19, has a dream to attend professional dance school to become a dance teacher—it is a dream that combines her love of dance with her love of teaching. She is unique in the Loving Community. Most

girls growing up in India do not pursue dreams or higher education or think about having their own careers be-cause their traditional way is to serve husbands and family. The mere fact that Aruna is going against the grain like this and pursuing her dream, says a lot about who she is.

Everybody that meets Aruna is typically inspired by her star quality and how bright, strong, and talented she is for her young age. Born and raised in the Loving Community—her father recently died from leprosy—Aruna

arUNa cHUHaN — No SUcH THING aS SMall


comes from a large family, with two sisters and three brothers. Her mom being chief among her inspirations.

When she was a bit younger, Aruna admits to being “mischievous,” but after meeting Jayeshbhai and getting exposed to Manav Sadhna and the Gandhi Ashram a few years ago, she says her life changed and she started cultivating positive habits and

being more caring toward herself, others and her environment.

She is a fast, avid learner and is at school level Stan-dard 11—most girls do not go past the 10th grade. She learned English on her own (a feat that can’t be emphasized enough considering her lack of access to quality English instruction)—and has achieved basic conversational fl uency. She learned dancing too, on her own, by studying Bollywood videos on TV at home—and she has become a great dancer, usually found with several young girls bouncing and smiling around her wanting to learn.

Basically, anything Aruna puts her mind to, she accomplishes—which is what makes her such a great teacher. And with Manav Sadhna, teaching the Anganwadi Program at the Loving Community, has been Aruna’s primary role. She is excellent with children. Tough, yes, but also very loving. If she’s tough, she says it’s because “a principle is involved” and she wants her children to “develop good habits,” such as no public spitting, brushing teeth and wash-ing hands, as well as respect for the community, by not littering. She says she learned everything about working with children from her mother.

Aruna is a natural leader. Her core value is humil-ity—something she wants to foster in others. When asked about what her message to the world is, she says that “small acts of service, such as picking up trash, smiling at a stranger, planting a tree, are not really small.”

Besides being the teacher of the Anganwadi Program, Aruna also helps Manav Sadhna organize community programs and events. Because leader-ship and hard work come naturally to Aruna, she does this job exceptionally well and is an invaluable asset to Manav Sadhna and the community.



peopleSrINIVaS aNd JyoTI — a coUPle MoVed By loVe

For Srinivas and Jyoti Koli, seva is a way of life. The couple and their three young children live in the Loving Community and deliver love daily (in the

form of meals) to others in need. Their motto is, “work fi rst, rest second.”

Jyoti is a wonderful cook. From the time she wakes up in the morning, until she fi nally feeds her own family late at night, Jyoti is constantly cooking and serving meals with love. She is the head chef for the daily Dinner Program, which feeds ap-proximately 23 elderly members of the community who spend their days begging and have no family of their own. Jyoti runs her kitchen with care and compassion. She squats in the hot, smoky quarters, rhythmically rolling perfectly round rotis and transferring them to the griddle, where they fi ll like balloons with hot air. She never misses a beat, all the while joking and laughing with the other cooks in the kitchen. There are days when Jyoti will not eat her own lunch until well past two o’clock, making sure that her guests have fi lled—and cleared—their own plates multiple times.

With the help of her husband, Srinivas, who drives an auto-rickshaw, they delivered home-cooked lunches seven days a week for over a year to mentally handicapped, homeless men and women living outside of the community. Unfortunately, this program recently ended due to insuffi cient community donations. Although driving the auto-rickshaw is an important means toward the family’s livelihood, Srinivas never hesitates to off er his services to his friends and neighbors in need at no cost.

These are some of the special qualities of Jyoti and Srinivas that make them so signifi cant to the community: They work hard and serve others, but not for recognition or thanks—they simply care and are moved by love.



people“KrISHNa”

Watching Christopher Lowman, or Krishnabhai, as he is aff ectionately known at the Loving Community,

interact with the elderly leprosy patients or play with the children who giggle and follow him around constantly, you would think he was born in the com-munity. But Lowman’s story began in a very diff er-ent place, with a very diff erent trajectory.

In 2001, Lowman, an American, was fi nishing up his degree in philosophy at New York University with aspirations to become a lawyer. Then, in his senior year, he met an Indian Ayurvedic doctor in London whose single treatment would completely alter his understanding and radically alter his path.

“I clearly realized that everything we would want from the outside world is derived from within,” he explains. “Traditional medicine is a way to remove deep-seated internal disharmonies that prevent our true and luminous potential from being realized; it’s also eff ective for mitigating or eliminating the symptoms of any kind of disease.”

It was then that Lowman abandoned his career path and embarked on a decade-long journey into the study and practice of an ancient form of Japanese medicine, as well as holistic approaches to trauma care that turned out to be ideal preparation for the life’s work he is doing today—bringing compas-sionate care to the people of the world. In 2009 and 2010, he traveled to Africa to treat young Rwandans who had survived the 1994 genocide, but had been orphaned and severely traumatized. Lowman came away from those experiences with a more solid understanding of how he would use his training. In 2011, Lowman decided to come to India for the

year to develop a program with Manav Sadhna and upon arrival, Jayesh Patel and Viren Joshi were both adamant about him spending time at the Loving Community.

Lowman lives and works full time at the Loving Community during the week where he provides traditional medical treatment, organizes programs and activities for the children, and helps to facili-tate basic community development. In addition, Lowman leads a group of 11 gifted youngsters—“Loving Leaders,” as he calls them—with the intent of creating future community service leaders and cultivating a sense of optimism that it is possible for them to pursue their dreams, despite beliefs about impossibility.

Jayesh renamed Lowman (as he is known to do) as Krishna when introducing him to the community because he considers Lowman to be a man of com-passion and love. With his new name, which char-acterizes the devotion and empathy that drives his work, Krishna meshes seamlessly with the residents he lives and works beside and has been accepted as one of the community’s own.


peopleGUrU — loVe KNoWS No BoUNdary

The 11-year old boy severely disabled from cerebral palsy Krishna met in February 2011, on the surface, appeared to be the

antithesis of the strength and wisdom that typically characterize a Guru. Krishna found the undernour-ished child lying with his weak limbs contorted on the fl oor of his home, wheezing uncomfortably with labored breaths. A mosquito net shielded his face from the fl urry of fl ies surrounding him because he is unable to swat them away due to his condition, which prevents any eff ective use of his body.

Moved deeply by the boy’s situation, Krishna ar-ranged with Guru’s family to treat him twice daily without any agenda other than to, in his words, “see what wants to happen.” This would turn out to be the start of a miraculous journey that has inspired and touched many lives—both here and abroad—and shown that love knows no boundary.

As treatment progressed through the months, changes were dramatic. The previously dissociated, trauma-stricken child, minimally responsive to external stimuli, began to connect with his envi-ronment and the people around him. The sounds of clapping hands or snapping fi ngers now caused Guru’s wide eyes to light up and his mouth to form into an unfamiliar smile. The sound of his brother giggling and gurgling brings Guru’s eyes to focus on the baby’s round face, showing a recognition that his family has never seen him express like this before. Guru’s frail frame began to show signs of growth, his breath quality improved and his bone structure (to everybody’s astonishment) even began

to show outward signs of improvement.

Since birth, Guru’s parents’ lives have been con-sumed with his around-the-clock care. They sit over him for hours, fanning the fl ies away from his face and wiping the drool he can’t control from his mouth. His mother provides water with a spoon, Guru’s under-developed muscles unable to swallow large amounts. Each small act they perform is fi lled with love and hope for the life their son may enjoy.


In May 2011, Guru’s treatment reached a major turning point. He began attending weekly appoint-ments with a team of cerebral palsy specialists at Blind People’s Association in Ahmedabad (BPA), a hospital that specializes in the free treatment of people with severe disabilities. Though they say it will take a long time, the doctors are confi dent that Guru will be able to start eating solid food, hold his head upright, and perform other basic functions.

The sight of Guru’s face breaking into a wide smile, and the obvious joy in his eyes when he experiences a new sound, or sees the familiar face of his mother, is a true inspiration. Confronting so many obstacles, the experiences of Guru’s family have been a subtle but powerful guiding force for the members of the Loving Community, showing how compassion and good will can enlighten even the darkest moments of an individual’s journey. The family who had all but lost hope is quite optimistic now about Guru’s future and quality of life.

“Humankind has not

woven the web of life.

We are but one thread

within it. Whatever we

do to the web, we do to

ourselves. All things are

bound together.

All things connect.”

C H I E F S E AT T L E

Support


SupportHoW yoU caN loVe all, SerVe all

A t Manav Sadhna, we do our best to practice Gandhiji’s philosophy to Love All, Serve All each day. By seeing God in every individual (Manav), charity is trans-

formed into sacred spiritual practice (Sadhna). Manav Sadhna is engaged in constructive humanitarian projects that cut across barriers of class and religion while addressing issues faced by socio-economically neglected segments of society. Manav Sadhna is guided by Gandhiji’s strong beliefs in Peace, Truth, Non-violence and Compassion.

If you are inspired by the Loving Community and want to be a part of our Love All, Serve All way of life, here are some ways to get involved.

To make a tax-exempt fi nancial contribution, make checks payable to Manav Sadhna and mail to:

Manav SadhnaGandhi AshramAhmedabad, 380027Gujarat, India

Consider serving with us in Ahmedabad. We graciously welcome volunteers for any duration of stay, from any part of the world. Contact [email protected], if interested in volunteering at the Loving Community or with any of our other projects.

Additionally, we always encourage people to do small acts of ser-vice with a lot of love in their neighborhoods and communities.

May your


heart open here

Be the changeyou wish to see in the world

Sarvetra sukhi na santo,sarve san tuni RamayaSarve bhadrani pashyantuma kaschid dukh mapniyatOm shanti, shanti, shanti

May all people become happy, become Self realized

May we look out for everyone’s well-beingThere should be no sadness for anybody

Peace, peace, peace

Prayer for World Peace

In service to humanity since 1986Find us on the Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad

www.manavsadhna.org

“I will give you a talisman. Whenever you are in doubt, or when the self becomes

too much with you, apply the following test. Recall the face of the poorest and

the weakest man whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you

contemplate is going to be of any use to him. Will he gain anything by it?

Will it restore him to a control over his own life and destiny? In other words, will

it lead to swaraj (freedom) for the hungry and spiritually starving millions?

Then you will fi nd your doubts and your self melt away.”

G A N D H I J I

Documents

Loving Community Brochure