New View 4th Quarter – Autumn 2010

Shanti Seva – Peace and Selfless Service
by Eric Fairman

If indeed the qualities such as love, patience, tolerance, und forgiveness are what happiness consists of, and if it is also true that compassion, defined as concern for others, is both the source and the fruit of these qualities, then the more we are compassionate, the more we provide for our own happiness.
(Dalai Lama)

It had long been my desire to visit Kathmandu, a place which has a certain mystic ring in its name, conjuring-up visions of ancient 'silk trade routes', eastern cultures and not least, the stupendous Himalayan mountain range. As our flight made its final approach to Tribhuvan airport we were treated to the awe inspiring view of the snow-capped mountains shimmering in the late afternoon sunlight. An unforgettable beginning to my visit!

After landing, I quickly found my senses of sight, sound and smell being bombarded and overwhelmed by a myriad of new sense impressions. Whilst I had no clear plans as to what I would do during the three weeks I planned to be in Kathmandu, I was particularly interested in discovering what initiatives existed that had arisen out of an anthroposophical impulse. Having been a Steiner-Waldorf class teacher for many years, my particular interests lie in that field of endeavour. Prior to my visit, my investigations, mostly on-line, had revealed a surprising number of undertakings embracing everything from bio-dynamic farming to education to social-health initiatives.

Within walking distance of the airport sprawls the run­down area of Gaushala and Tilganga, home to the poor and destitute, amongst whom are the 'untouchables', folk who, through no fault of their own, suffer from challenging afflictions, including leprosy. It is here, surrounded by sickness, squalor and abject poverty, that a beacon of light and hope has arisen in the form of Shanti Seva (pronounced Shiva) Griha, a community centre, offering shelter, food, health care and skills training to those challenged with leprosy, polio, other illnesses and with nowhere else to go. The initiative for the establishment of Shanti, an anthroposophically inspired project, arose almost by accident a little over 30 years ago.

On her first visit to Kathmandu in 1973, the founder, Marianne Grosspietsch, a 'Waldorf mother', was overwhelmed by the "disastrous consequences of leprosy" in the ghetto. As a direct result, the Grosspietsch family decided to sponsor Puskal, a young boy from the leprosy ghetto. He was enrolled in a prestigious boarding school in the city, but within one year the headmaster was forced to ask Puskal to leave, as influential parents in the school objected to a child of a family suffering from leprosy being educated in the same class as their children. The decision was then made to adopt Puskal. lt was fortuitous that the Grosspietsch family had met Princess Shanti, the elder sister of King Birendra, for the princess signed all the adoption papers making it possible for Puskal to travel to Germany to be cared for and educated. On Puskal's graduation from high school, Marianne and her family returned to Kathmandu to visit Puskal's parents in the leprosy ghetto. This was a truly traumatic time for all concerned, for Puskal's father failed to recognise his son. Leprosy had left him blind and without hands or feet. He died within a few days.