Who would Kiran be without the Tao? ..

Raj Mali, a beloved friend, coach, healer and more.. asked me this question recently, which led me to explore what is my essential art and somehow this word, rather, this world surfaced.. Heartistry. 

In the  3 journeys of one month of Tao 2.0 on Zoom this year a few arts weaved together with the Tao and gave birth to Heartistry which became Heartistree .. it brings the world of Trees into the game. 

1. The heart of many arts– especially singing, story crafting, writing, dance, film therapy, visual art, and possibly – baking, gardening, etc. And how it can enable you to discover your unique heartsong. A few of these are alive in my life since a year.

2. Together learning, living & loving. Integrating the 3 and  also livelihood. Inspired by.. 

“We live so that we may learn to love, We love so that we may learn to live”  – mikhail naimy, the book of mirdad

One key exploration will be through what modern society calls Mental Health. I recently had the clarity & courage to own the fact that I have been deeply challenged because of ADHD. Rhea is of one of the beings that inspired Heartistree This beautifu blog post speaks of how these challenges unravel your heartistry. Dyscalculia .. It counts.

3. its about embodiment & beWilder.ment – connecting deeply with the body, earth, wilderness and wild peace and wild love.. this will also bring in an exploration of Sexuality. A lot of creative energy is blocked because we are all sexually wounded. And exploring my own unique sexuality is opening up.

How it all came together?

This last year has been significant because of 2 major heartbreaks and also, paradoxically, a deeper dive into my heart song.  

I found myself consistently learning to sing every week from Radhika, a wonderful Sufi singer. We completed 55 weeks this month.  We started with this Gujarati song Kaachi chhe kaya tari. 

Also I discovered the story craft, with Siddharth Maskeri  and deepening into it. Yoga was regular with Latika, a gifted teacher. And also walking towards my essential heart thanks to a very dear friend, Raj Mali. And a few others. I was dancing a little more and hope to learn also. 

Above all, discovering the heart of all arts, my own S.elf. Which Rajee my teacher and a few gifted friends who are in touch with the beauty of the Self in different ways are helping me. Arjun Som, Rohit Sasvehalli, two very dear brothers from the Ark days. More recently Nakul and others.

On 2 Sept a few days back, a few meetings unravelled the next steps… with a Heartist in the field of money, entrepreneurship & relationships. An I Ching reading by Rhea along with Krishna which spoke of the Great Exceeding.

Dileepan is also very central in this unfolding- revealing the dance at the edge of friendship & a professional relationship. And Biroo with whom I am going into the for.rest tomorrow. Suresh, a very dear friend with whom I speak very often. A story writer.

Have been deeply inspired and co-facilitated the Tao & Tao-inspired work with a few including like Manish Jain (Swaraj, Shikshantar, Learning Societies & a lot else)..  Chittaranjan Kaul, Abhishek Thakore, Saraswathi Vasudevan, so many (will add later). I must do a blog post of the many many friend-teachers and fellow travellers of the heart who I feel grateful to for this birthing.

The quote that inspired this coming together of Heartistree as the next orbit of my life, work and lifework is this..

In many shamanic societies, if you came to a medicine person complianing of being disheartened, dispirited, or depressed, they would ask one of the four questions: When did you stop dancing? When did you stop singing? When did you stop being enchanted by stories? When did you stop finding comfort in the sweet territory of silence? – Gabrielle Roth