Journey - Sayok

My learning so far

By Sayok Sarkar

On a chilly winter morning of November, I arrived at the Delhi station. Ready to unfold a wonderful chapter in my life. From being a participant at a regional youth conference in Jamshedpur, then experiencing the eight-days National Youth Conference twice to now being selected for the first LMAD fellowship program, I feel I am blessed to have this opportunity.

Everyday disciplined morning Quiet Time followed by sharing with Viral Bhai and the fellows took me back to Asia Plateau. Listening to my inner voice I could get clarity on topics that I was struggling with. The peer group that I have here, at every moment, constantly pushes me towards being better. Insights from the conversation with Bhisham Bhai that we had on the dining table and the little talks I had with him personally gave me strength to overcome my shyness. Induction was quite intense with learnings about the four core values of Purity, Honesty, Unselfishness and Love and a thorough understanding of Quiet Time. Discussions on various topics namely spirituality, religion, detachment, anger, relationship, and so on were an eye-opener.

Meeting people has been an important aspect of the fellowship, from interacting with Mr. Prabhat Kumar and Mr. Shanti Narayan of ICCfG over lunch to having a rendezvous with a prominent journalist Mr Rahul Dev and a Japanese Diplomat, Mr. Shingo Miyamoto gave me diverse perspectives.

I had always heard only great things from my parents about the December workshop. This December, I got the chance to experience it in person. Every question asked during the Quiet Time was just exceptional, it shook me to the core and made me realize who I am, what I want to be, how much time I wasted, my habits that have shaped me and finally what my vision is and how I am going to achieve it. The amount of clarity I could achieve is phenomenal.

A month and a half prior to the Uttarakhand conference, at Delhi Fellowship Home, we were constantly learning something new about the Haridwar district which is identified as an aspirational district by Niti Aayog. The facts about the district were quite informative and it helped us form the survey specific to the Rishikesh region. We prepared a list of contacts of different schools and colleges in the district and started to call. I took up the task of acquainting the concept of LMAD to the person concerned of different educational institutes and to fix an appointment with them on our first visit. The whole experience of making a call was quite intimidating as I was not sure of the kind of people I would encounter over the call, but at the same time I was getting better at my communication skills with each call I made.

Being on the ground in person and talking at prayer assemblies, to teachers, co-ordinators, Vice-Principals, Principals, Head of Departments of various faculties at different universities and colleges was so enriching. Pulling off a conference of this nature in a pandemic situation was astounding. Being a volunteer for a conference was a desire that I could realize at the Uttarakhand Youth Conference. Many mistakes were made and I learnt a lot from it. Learning during the preparation for the conference was huge. From doing away with the social anxiety and fear of crowds and audiences to handling the accounts of the entire conference was a phenomenal experience.

In hindsight, my two months of Fellowship has been a huge learning curve. From traveling alone in a train and evolving as a person in various aspects to meeting eminent personalities and being a part in establishing a conference from scratch gave me confidence that I can achieve anything if I want it to happen. I will always be grateful for this opportunity.