Girivan Project

About a week ago, I had the opportunity to visit the Indian countryside. In order to truly understand and appreciate this country and its people, it is necessary to visit their roots--in the hills and mountains of the rural areas. Only an hour drive outside of the chaos in Pune, there exists a world of the other extreme. In contrast with the noise and commotion of Pune, the countryside is placid and serene. Farmers patiently at work replace IT employees. Rivers and hills take the place of tall buildings and shopping malls. The juxtaposition of these two worlds couldn't be more severe. All this exists only kilometers outside the city.

As we drove further into the hills, people became scarce and houses were few. We were driving to what is called the Girivan Project, a collection of small plots owned by various people and managed by one company. Farmers work the land and live in the vicinity, while the owners visit infrequently for quiet weekends away from the city. I was struck immediately by the honesty of those hills and its people. They lived simply, without the many things we in America would deem necessary. And yet, they were happier than most Americans. Happiness in India exists in abundance, whereas back home it rarely exists in its purest form. We may think that happiness comes from material possessions, but I am beginning to believe that the Buddhist philosophy that "attachment to material goods leads to suffering" is more than correct. We'll see if, in reality, I can reconcile my American consumerism with this philosophy.