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Day 2 – Cauvery Diaries: Of Motorcycles and a Mystic

Field Stories
04 September, 2019
9:05 AM

On Day 2, Sadhguru travels through the tiger country of Nagarhole and makes his way to the small town of Hunsur for the next public event of Cauvery Calling. Stay tuned to the live blog!

Day 2 – Cauvery Diaries: Of Motorcycles and a Mystic

Sep 1 - 2 Days To Go || Sep 2 - 1 Day To Go || Sep 3 - Day 1 || Sep 4 - Day 2 || Sep 5 - Day 3 || Sep 6 - Day 4 || Sep 7 - Day 5 || Sep 8 -Day 6 || Sep 9 - Day 7 || Sep 10 - Day 8 || Sep 11 - Day 9 || Sep 12 - Day 10 || Sep 13 - Day 11 || Sep 14 - Day 12 ||  Sep 15 - Day 13 || Sep 16 - Day 14 || Sep 17 - Day 15

Sadhguru and actress Ragini Dwivedi have a light hearted moment during their conversation by the backwaters of the scenic Krishnaraja Sagar.

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Sadhguru with actors Rakshit, Diganth and their biker friends from Bengaluru who've been riding all the way till the backwaters of Krishnaraja Sagar. The group that rode back to Bengaluru today promised to work for the cause of Cauvery Calling until the mission for 242 crore trees is fulfilled.

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Fine Dining in the Lap of Cauvery

Participants reached Unduvadi and were treated to specialties of north Karnataka cuisine cooked by Sushila Bodhi and Sadhana Bodhi, a mother-daughter duo. These volunteers came all the way from Bengaluru 130 km away, just to give the participants of the Chamundi Sacred Walks the pleasure of tasting local delicacies. Participants were found indulging in Havre Kalu (a type of lentil), a staple of Karnataka.

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Hon’ble Governor of Telangana, Smt. Tamilisai Soundararajan adds her voice in support of Cauvery Calling

6:30pm - Sadhguru and riders take in the view of Blue Lagoon Island

Sadhguru and his motley crew of riders had made it to Blue Lagoon view point. A short break, fitting enough, on the ride of a lifetime to save Cauvery.

Little Arjun Raj of Class III donated Rs. 42 to Sadhguru near Hunsur.

Leaving the Hunsur venue, Sadhguru and his bevy of riders set out to Unduvadi

5.50 pm The guava seller couldn’t believe his good fortune and Sadhguru’s group of riders couldn’t have been more thankful for the reprieve, as Sadhguru halted near this guava seller to treat them all to delicious guavas. Sadhguru’s compassion and the juicy guavas made for all the more of an amazing experience for our hungry riders.

Actors and Politicians Join the Cause at Hunsur

Sadhguru made a strong argument as to how Cauvery Calling is beneficial to all. “What is good for farmers is good for the soil, and what is good for the soil is good for the nation. If we don’t save the soil, the country won’t be saved.” Sadhguru warned about the looming civil war if Cauvery doesn’t reach her destination. “Actually 50% of the river water has to reach the sea, or at least 25% should reach. If not, the salt water will start flowing in reverse. This will lead to 1/3rd of the land becoming uncultivable, and all those people will migrate to where water is available, it cannot be stopped.”

MLA H. Vishwanath delivered a heartfelt message on what Cauvery means to us. “Cauvery is not just a river or water, it’s life for us. People call her mother, name their kids as Cauvery. Sadhguru has awakened us when we forgot these feelings for Cauvery.”

Dr. MA Shankar spoke about how important soil was for us and how agroforestry can become the ultimate solution. He said, “If humans die, we go into the soil. But what do we do when the soil itself is dead? All of us have been taking in food and nutrients from the soil. In a similar way, Bhoomi Maa has the capacity to hold a lot of water within her. In order to facilitate this, agroforestry comes in as the best solution.”

Ragini Dwivedi made a fiery appeal to the youth of the nation and pledged her support to the endeavor to save Cauvery. “When the youth head out to restaurants, they spend ₹500, ₹1000 or ₹2000 in one go. How much does a tree to save Cauvery cost? Just ₹42. We should all come forward and loosen our purse strings. Cauvery Maa has given me food and water. She has given me the strength to stand here and talk about this cause. So I am willing to do whatever I can to support."

Hunsur Raghavendra, a native of Hunsur had a way with words in nailing the problem, “We are right now living in two extremes. During drought, when we have no water, government gives us 1 lakh rupees each and during floods when they come and give us water bottles and biscuits. But what we need right now is a permanent solution to this problem.”

A pizza outlet is going to plant 100 trees for the wrong delivery.

The story goes like this, Vishal Gupta had ordered a pizza. For all those who’ve had a pizza, the wait is always worth it! But exceptions do happen, and usually, people ask for a replacement or refund. But this young man is an avid follower of Cauvery Calling. He asked the pizza outlet to donate 100 trees as a replacement for the pizza. You might wonder, is this for real?

Yes, it is, and if every foodie starts doing this, the cities will turn lush green in no time.

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3:40pm - On the way from Nagarhole to Hunsur, Sadhguru made a pit-stop at a farm to apprise the riders about agroforestry and interacted with a farmer who grows pepper, coconut, arecanut and other trees in a coffee plantation. "Thank you for taking care of the soil..." he told the farmer Gangadhar, who was grateful to receive the appreciation.

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Sadhguru takes a safari ride through one of the most well-known national parks in India

Nagarhole – Serpentine Streams

Our motorcyclists went out this morning on a safari in Nagarhole.

A national wildlife park and tiger reserve, it is a major attraction for travelers who visit this place for its rich flora and fauna.

The name “Nagarhole” is a combination of two Kannada words: “naga” which means snake and “hole” which means streams. Presumably it got this name because of the serpentine streams here. Despite such a beautiful name, there are dry spells in this region which are forcing wildlife into nearby farms in search of water. These ‘surprise visits’ to the hamlets bordering the park pose risks to the villagers.

Sadhguru's Heartfelt Appeal to Every Indian

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Sadhguru.Cauvery Calling (@sadhguru) on

The Terrible Tale of Tobacco Farming

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During the Farmer Outreach Campaign, volunteers encountered Kumar, a farmer from Haraganahallu, Hunsur Taluka, a tobacco-growing village. 80% of the farmers are cultivating this same crop for the last 40 years.

Tree cover is minimal and the climate is getting hotter year after year. Kumar shares that all the trees were cut in order to grow and process tobacco leaves. They needed to create a heat chamber to process the leaves, for which firewood is used as fuel.

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He tells us about the rapidly depleting conditions of the soil, water and health of the people. He likens the soil to ‘thermocol’ in resignation, referring to the lifeless state it is in. Children here have not fully developed physically or mentally, and the adults are regularly sick. There is simply no hope for this place as its soil is unable to produce any more crops without the usage of massive amounts of inputs. They are at a complete dead-end as even the tobacco companies have refused to renew their lease due to the high agrichemical content in the leaves.

Meet Our Motorcyclists - ILAKIYA SUDAR

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Riding from the age of 8, Ilakiya Sudar’s love for bikes is unending. Joining Sadhguru on this trip, she is one of the fastest yet sturdiest riders of the group. Interior designer by profession and biker by passion, this is Ilakiya’s first time on a 650 cc bike as her previous rides were not more than 350 cc. Her excitement is palpable as she shares a selfie she took with Sadhguru.

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Today the campaign reaches Hunsur. In this taluka, volunteers have been reaching out to farmers in villages to encourage them to take up agroforestry as a profitable solution to their woes. Here we share some pictures from the ground from last month’s Farmer Outreach Campaign.

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Shravannahalli village, Hunsur Taluka. Even before morning dairy rounds start, registration was in full swing. Villagers understand that agroforestry is the way out of the problem of drying rivers.

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Even the little pre-school children in Maraduru know that Cauvery is Calling!

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Early in the afternoon in Nagarhole, Sadhguru had an interview with reporter Bhavana from Kannada channel Suvarna TV

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All Kinds of Reactions to Cauvery Calling

Not only donations, but also heartfelt experiences keep pouring in from volunteers who are on the ground spreading awareness about Cauvery Calling.

Gayathri was part of a group standing with brochures and placards for Cauvery Calling, when an elderly man approached and berated them for wasting their time. She just folded her hands and let him know that his view was respected and that he could research for himself about Cauvery Calling. Not expecting such a response from Gayathri instead of an argument, he was dumbstruck and took the brochures and promised to research and write about it on social media.

Rituparna had a very different reaction in an incident in Kolkata. She was passing by with placards for Cauvery Calling, when she was stopped by a roadside cosmetic vendor, in his thirties, who enquired what the brochure was about. As she began to explain about Cauvery Calling, she was interrupted by him as he said, “Yeah! I know about this river and this project by Sadhguru,” and went on to scan the QR code to pay for a tree.

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An avid motorcyclist, Sadhguru interacts with his fellow riders and checks out their bikes earlier this morning

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Also this morning, Sadhguru conversed with Rahul Mahajan, editor of Rajyasabha TV, in Nagarhole

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Today, Sadhguru will be in Hunsur 

A volunteer shares about the inspiring support of one lady in Hunsur Taluk: “Smt. Mani Prabhakar - Somanahalli Panchayat member, Hunsur Taluk - became an active campaigner of Cauvery Calling. We approached her at her home and informed her about the campaign and requested her to inform other Panchayat members and the farmers. While we were doing door to door campaigning of Sadhguru's event, we found her doing the same too at Somanahalli village.”

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The voices of Isha Vidhya Vanavasi students reach door to door

These enthusiastic youngsters are painting the town blue with Cauvery Calling awareness songs and slogans. They aim to reach as many people as possible and make it happen for Cauvery!

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10:10am - Pledging their undying support to Sadhguru in yesterday’s event at Madikeri, actors Rakshit Shetty and Diganth stood by their words as they rode with Sadhguru on this trip.

Rakshit and Diganth caught up with Sadhguru in an informal walk and talk, as they asked questions to Sadhguru, to their heart's content.

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Rakshit, ever the actor, started out with questions about Sadhguru’s favorite movie. Sadhguru told him about Roman Holiday. He continued to ask questions about Sadhguru’s riding experiences when Sadhguru narrated how a king cobra slithered onto his arm.

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When Rakshit began a question stating how Sadhguru was born and brought up in Mysuru, Sadhguru chimed in to make a wisecrack, “No I was not brought up by anyone, I just grew up.”

On the Chamundi trails, Sadhguru shared untold stories of the time he spent there and stood in a place where he “grew” up.

Stay tuned for more updates on the Mystic’s tete-a-tetes.

8:00am - “Many motorcyclists have ridden for a cause and this cause is one of the highest one could pitch for,” Sadhguru begins the new day reminding the riders about their important mission. He casually started catching up with the riders and then took them on a trip down memory lane to his youth, where a large part of his life was spent on bikes. The master storyteller left everyone listening in a trance - they all sat like nomads breezily passing their evening in a desert.

Shifting gears, the storytelling turned into an introduction session as Sadhguru asked each of them to introduce themselves along with the beauties that they rode on. Ever the hardcore motorcyclist, the Mystic enquired about the technical details of the bikes, inspecting a few bikes, revving up a few others. He recounted some of his fun bike adventures of his youth - from his friend being hit by a tusker trunk, to being shot at by forest inspectors, Sadhguru had done it all...

When Sadhguru opened the floor for questions, one question that stood out was,”What do you think while riding? Do you get into a zone while riding” to which Sadhguru wittily replied, “I anyway don't think anything; I am always in a zone and never come out of it.”

The riders bubbling with unbridled excitement poured out their experience of riding out with Sadhguru. One young rider, Kumaraguru Kannan who was never permitted to ride on roads by his parents, explained that that this trip happened only because his parents knew he would be riding alongside Sadhguru.

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Kumaraguru actually has participated in many national championships, but he practices on tracks. He let out the secret that this is his first time riding on roads!

Yet another rider, Sathyu, turned poet and let his words flow

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It was a cloudy morning when I left my home
To join my folks n hit the road
To get away from this rat race
To feel the wind hit my face
Down the memory lane
I'm talking about riding in the rain…

Sathyu rides a KTM 390 Duke. He has been riding since the age of 19, he also rides on race tracks and dirt tracks.

At 9.15 am, while Sadhguru was with the riders for a breakfast chitchat, a bunch of participants of the Cauvery Calling journey, returned after 2 long hours of a jungle safari in Nagarhole trying to spot tigers. Sadhguru couldn’t help but quip as their cart wheeled in, “Oh! One seat is empty, one seat is empty! Who was eaten by tiger?” lifting himself off his chair a bit to peer at them.

A quick recap of last night.

8:05pm – Sadhguru reached Nagarhole and was greeted with birthday wishes. Festivity was in the air as locals offered a vibrant tribal dance performance. Volunteers even managed to produce a birthday cake and Cauvery Calling chocolates!

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