Liebe zur Erde... - Liebe zur Erde

A new project: Eurythmy for Asia!

Here we go again: Asia is calling, this time for traveling and a second purpose:

During the summer we will spend our vacation in China. After a visit to the Phoenix farm in Beijing and the local Waldorf school heads south: To Hong Kong, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore to Indonesia and possibly even further.

Pictures of Phoenix Farm - a real Demeter organic operating farm in the mountains west of Beijing - here is still plowed with man power, because it is better for the earth ...





Up to now I was either professionally or privately on the way, traveling mostly alone. This time there is additional another intention:

In Southeast Asia, there is hardly anthroposophical initiatives - and even fewer colleagues who sometimes just can do something with the eurythmy and eurythmy therapy. So it happened already occasionally that the one or other did ask me to come along. When I'm already off the road - so my thought this time - then I can pass the places where there might be an interest in the thing. The first contacts are linked, and I'm curious what will emerge from it at the end.

To this purpose, this new website was designed to deal specifically with the eurythmy and eurythmy for this Asian project: many images for eurythmy and eurythmy and descriptions that are closer to the Asian way of speaking:

http://www.heileurythmie.eu/index.html

And at Facebook there is a separate page which should help to establish the connection to the people in the countries and maintain the contact:

https://www.facebook.com/EurythmyTherapyForAsia201314

Inasmuch the weeks are now dominated by intense travel arrangements. Here on this blog everything is updated, which is associated with the trip, the countries, landscapes and people. The eurythmy events in Asia can be traced on the blog on the website mentioned above. There is also a guest book (hopefully that works...).

I look forward to travel together with you, the reader which will accompany me on this journey!

Eurythmy in India - Pictures from Inside the Work

Once again, it carried me with the Eurythmy to the hostels in Pune, this time there were courses mainly for the kids, because the introductions and presentations for the adults were already done last time.

... - And every time I'm thrilled again! This not even necessarily because of the children and the youth that touch me so - they are mostly open, curious and at ease, as anywhere else in India. It is rather the way the homes are managed and cared for and how the supervisors create and prepare on the very small space an open and cheerful atmosphere. The children will feel obviously at home here, -  mainly the girls' home has considerably more space to offer.

Actually - I should cut it once in a movie. But for now, you have to stay with the pictures. On my travel blog and on Facebook and Diaspora, I already have a couple of pictures and detailed descriptions - here on this blog I can neither create galleries nor other special things, so the viewer has to do with more scrolling.





It's very tight in the Boys hostel: On the floor over this one there is again as much space, around which are arranged circumferentially cabinet drawers for personal items and there are stacked also on top mats and blankets. Here we see the discipline of the boys who can thus sit in place for an hour and more – it seems to me that ADHD is for these poorest obviously unknown and makes me suspect again that ADHD is just a disease of civilization, which is nursed by the all day media consumption, gameboys, and “narrow timetable”- parents which live the modern life of today.  




Images from the work::


Beginning with the kids from Boys Hostell:

The group of big guys: they were our "Best ones", we have intensively trained on skills such as concentration and coordination skills, overall view and independence. Particularly to have and to follow own original thoughts was a real challenge!!

And yes - our team:

Amar Gaikwad made himself free to serve for the time as a translator - and that was really needed! Vivekbhadra, the head of the hostel, has made all the photos and videos and accompanied the events in a wonderful way!











Also from the girls hostel we have some pictures, but not as many as Vivekbhadra could come only an evening:





There was in addition to the treatments mainly the eurythmy group of the oldest girl - and that was a close bond tightly connected friends – No one did anything without the other. Although in social aspects something beautiful, but for eurythmy, which promotes independence and calls for it, too – it was in the beginning a  real drama! We must walk our own path, without the possibility  to orientate at the fellow friend ?  - First: impossible. How proud was the group when they realized: they can do it!

























And at the end the call: "Bye bye..."

And again - India!


In Germany it's snowing. In Waldorf schools sound carols from each classroom, the rooms are decorated for chrismas. Candles, stove, incense, tea - for us it is homey and world and conciousness moves inward. Advent - oh how I wish I could be here!

But no - according to the rules of our art it has to be now:  back off to India. So I have to leave. And somehow I have a feeling I'm just escaping constantly the snow which is constantly on my heels. Even the pilots must be defrosted in the morning before take of.






Is that in the distance the mountain Ararat? - I love flying!








At night I arrive in Mumbai. My hotel in this noisy city is right on the water near the docks. 30 ° C and the wonderful sea breeze take me in and welcome me - and Advent is forgotten!





My dear Andreas has set this post via email in the home computer. Those who follow me and what to see more can do so at the following link or on Facebook:  - click here for the Travel Blog:

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http://reisen.liebe-zur-erde.eu/#home
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China is calling ...




Photo: Richard Schuckman


The last few weeks flow by: I had so much work that there was no time for this site or other things. And as it goes: at the end of March I will fly to Beijing to visit a still very small Waldorf Initiative, which has invited me and the doctor Olaf Koob because they desire medical support. I will stay there 4 weeks, more details you will find on my travel blog, which I will update with all the news:
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http://reisen.liebe-zur-erde.eu/#home
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If you want to contact me during that period, please use the contact form from my website
http://www.liebe-zur-erde.eu/kontakt.html
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China and Waldorf school? Some people will wonder, perhaps, but in fact the Chinese have in their country a lot more opportunities to choose from, as it does for Western observers initially seem. Springing up all across the country are initiatives and I am very curious as to what I will find there in Beijing.

China is one of the oldest and toughest cultures around the globe and ha, throughout its long history seen much activity, falls and breaks together. But the people always managed to come together to form a new unit. The country is so vast and so diverse in its landscape that the Chinese had in their history never really serious encounters with other great civilizations and so their feeling of being the Middle Kingdom, could get preserved. And they also look at the world from this point of view.




Photo: Richard Schuckman


Even now, the country experiences unprecedented changes is a fast pace: while a majority of the population in rural areas still cultivate the fields, on the coast are developing futuristic metropolises and mega cities. A new middle class seeks and gains wealth and prosperity. The highest good of the country is  the education and the training of the usually only child. There are no social systems which provide the life and health in old age, so every growing child is shouldering the security and existence of both the parents and grandparents, which means  6 people on his back for which it has to supply later - for the adolescents and for parents a tremendous burden.

In this environment are now the Waldorf schools springing up. In Beijing there are 2, one has class 3 or 4, the other - my hosts, have only the first class and the related kindergarten. The school is located about 30 km away from the city center surrounded by green mountains, the teachers say it is beautiful there. A few pictures from the place I put here:







These children have the luxury of growing up in the sight of trees. Beijing has in terms of dealing with its nature quite a history (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peking the "development of the housing situation"), which is corrected only in recent years. Especially the daily smog and the Olympics have since provided a rethink.

I'm very curious how this will be there. As a notorious loner who prefers living in silence, listening to nature and indulges his own thoughts, the understanding of the Chinese people of hospitality will be a major challenge: I've only now discovered that it is - like for us the air we breathe – for the Chinese means to bless a guest with a 24 hours socially very busy and noisy round service, which also includes frequently several hours eating marathons: food is obvious to the Chinese almost the most important thing in life and their cuisine has with our German Chinese restaurants nearly only the name in common. Chinese food has an incredible varyity and is world famous for that ... Well, and that with me, who I  actually can also live 3 months of kebabs and fruit...

And again an adventure is approaching. The interested reader can follow me on my travel blog, here is the address – I will do my best to write in both languages, German and English:
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http://reisen.liebe-zur-erde.eu/#home
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Eurythmy therapy in India – how did it came to that?




On my long Trek 2007 (see the website at http://www.liebe-zur-erde.eu/lang1/trekking_in_ladakh.html) we had to cross about every 4 weeks the 450 km-long road from Leh to Manali and take a break from trekking to go on a shopping tour: because we ran out of food. So this was what happened after almost two months trek: quite exactly halfway between Leh and Manali, we came on the road in the middle of nowhere - there are about 200 km in both directions to the nearest settlement. Our Nomad Kunga remained for the care of our ponies, my Tibetan Ponyman Namgang set out to Leh to see the Dalai Lama and I went myself the next morning to the street to stop a vehicle. 200 km through the Himalayas, with over 5,000 m high passes - that does not sound like much, but it is almost a day's journey, no matter in which direction. There is not much traffic there - but on the other hand, not every driver will meet regularly in the nowhere at 4600 m altitude a single half wild female tourist. The first car that came was a small Indian car - with four well-fed Indians in there. The stopped immediately because they thought there might have happened an accident - and to see whether I might be a mirage. When they heard my story, they were really amazed, skidded along in the car and gave me very willingly a ride to Keylong. One of them was Dr Gaikwad, a pediatrician, with whom I am still in touch. He is an very active and committed person, who professionally helps at charities, organizes retreats and trainings. I have sent him to a seminar on Waldorf education, where he got some experience with the eurythmy. He got interested and wants me now there in Pune to see what the eurythmy therapy might be able to do. What a surprise..






There are a number of facilities in Pune. Dr. Gaikwad – or Jivak, as he is also called -  himself is working in one of the local hospitals. Additional he cares for two hostels from the Karuna Trust for very poor children (from the SC/ST groups: Scheduled Castes  and the Scheduled Tribes, more to that on Wikipedia), where the children live and can go to school. There is a Kindergarten within the slums and a project for children of sex workers.


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But everything will be in India - a country that has partially catapulted itself into the modern in incredible speed-, in the other hand, time seems still endless available,  hours have a different meaning to our standards in Germany, appointments take place at some point and everything can happen this way or that – or not at all. In this respect, this first visit will serve as an initial orientation - for me and the people there.





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21.1.2012

When I'm back home in Germany, there will be an benefiz-evening to India (German language) - who wants to participate may feel invited, please use the contact-form (http://www.liebe-zur-erde.eu/kontakt.html) or send directly an e-mail to me.
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