the Aaahh

Gharnapatee

(a communal experiential approach to communication and self-realization)

The Osharam (the Osha)

The paradoxical ecological being Oshas are people who, through practices, meditations and being part of a community (group), have been able to access their unconscious and integrate, to one extent or another, the dissociated aspects of themselves. They have reached a level of intuitive perception that can react with moment-to-moment events as they arise, and linger, then finally dissipate. They have been able to reach a level where they can synthesize conflicts, discrepancies and paradoxes, using very few analytical faculties.

An active Osha engages directly with the community. The passive Osha is more dedicated to their personal development practices. Although they can affect the group by their very presence, passive Oshas don't usually exert influence in a direct manner.

The active Osha is a person who, in a given situation, attempts, by enacting either an emotional engagement or a disassociation, to induce a cathartic experience. Such an experience can help people to a point of personal/community balance. This suits some of us who are prone to both fluctuations and great blockages, when there is no continuity between these two aspects of ourselves.

The balanced Osha, through unorthodox expressions, can reflect individual and communal imbalance, and thus help to restore the flow. In a sense, they are placed in a prominent position, not in an official, rigid, authoritarian way, but rather to exert an influence in an indirect way, through example and service. Placing a clown-philosopher-psychologist, a childlike "village idiot", in an informal, but exemplary position, can shift community social consciousness.

The Osha attempts to increase a person's awareness of their own addictive, destructive or habitual behavior. They serve as a vehicle, a mirror for emotional expression or release, without having to use articulate language. More than that, the Osha should be able to channel chaos into creative expression.

As we mentioned before, this very moment is what really counts. For example: if I can alter my physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual energies and react in a more positive way to this very moment, then I have achieved a great deal. This not only for myself, but also for everything that surrounds me. I have become a channel and I can neutralize negatives, or change some negatives into positives. The Oshas respond and interact with group members on an intuitive level. In a non-verbal way, they may express strongly positive or negative emotions towards members or to a given situation. Members can interact with them in the same way, but the Oshas have the final word, meaning that they can stop such an exchange at any time.

Spiritual practices have traditionally emphasized foregoing some material comforts in the pursuit of self-cultivation. For most of us, it is not easy to give up material comforts. The Oshas and the Helpers are willing to do this voluntarily and try not to be too much affected by this most powerful desire, which seems to lie at the very core of our being. With the present climate change imperative, population growth, and depletion of resources, role models like the Oshas and Helpers can serve as an inspiration to all of us. Nothing's wrong with resources or money used for the benefit of all, but for most of us, this is very difficult to do.

The Oshas are a living model and are acknowledged for their general integrity by the community. For those of us who know that there is a limit to our exploitation of the earth, and who strongly feel about the environment, the Oshas and Helpers are an example of an authentic ecological being. They are an embodiment of what most ancient wisdom traditions recommend - living with little and simply. They are the torch-bearers of the community.

However, the Aaahh approach holds that we should pursue personal development at our own pace. Encouragement is provided to those who are ready and willing to speed up, in a balanced way, their spiritual journey. The Oshas and the Helpers have, in varied degrees of engagement, undertaken the journey of experimentation and self-discovery more intensely. Because of their highly sensitive relationship, the 'communal pulse' is taken, in the form of a daily vote by the members, on the efficacy of the Oshas. They serve as a mirror and catalyst for the members, who in turn, provide the necessary brakes to prevent undesirable extremes.

The Oshas interact and challenge group members, both at meetings and privately, by means of strange language, unintelligible speech, a mixture of sense and nonsense, dramatic gestures and other behavior. In this way, they stimulate and challenge the group members through non-intellectual means and bring about:

• an increase in self-awareness.

• a defusing of developing conflict, and the development of a sense of humor and light-heartedness.

• the promotion of real human interactions.

• a breaking of coldness and excessive formality.

• an exposure of the underlying emotional motives present amongst the group's members.

The Oshas try to live a very simple lifestyle and are vegetarians, due to their enhanced respect for living creatures. They may be female or male, have a family or be single. The Osha is skilled in emotional and communication literacy, leading individuals and the community from fragmentation to a more balanced and focused awareness. A relationship with an Osha can be established on either a permanent or a casual basis. The role of both the active and the passive Oshas are very important in the Aaahh. They complement each other.

Above all, the Osha serves as a democratic barometer. An Osha is essential to the formation of a group. They are free to interact with both practicing and non-practising members. Groups tend to become rigid and very exclusive. The Osha ensures that such tendencies do not become dominant. In this way, they act as catalysts for the continuing progress of the group and for individual members. They have been able to balance, to high a degree, our existential predicament by going beyond the narrow ego and highlighting our communal self. Such people can enhance the Aaahh culture and, therefore, are nurtured and supported by the group. They are not nominated or selected from above, but come into being by a mutual agreement between the group and the member willing and able to serve in such a vital role.