Save Soil Movement Rows Its Way to Venice

The Save Soil team awoke ready for another day on the road. After receiving a fond farewell in the city of Ljubljana, Slovenia, Sadhguru headed to Venice on the 30th March, driving through heavy rains. When asked whether we should take a pit stop to wait for the rain to subside, Sadhguru said, “5:30 we have a meeting in Rome with the Agriculture Minister. We must get there. Rain or no rain, we got to get there. Road is a bit challenging, but it’s alright.”

Pulling up in a ferry at the Università Ca’ Foscari, Sadhguru was received by an exhilarated crowd. At the university, Sadhguru spoke about the importance of protecting the world’s soil in a panel discussion with experts. He spoke about the disgrace of calling ourselves environmentalists or ecologists, stating that we ourselves are the ecology.  

To a panel member’s question about whether harmony between men and women is a needed requirement to save soil, Sadhguru responded that the nature of the masculine is to conquer and the nature of the feminine is to preserve and unite. At a time when we are trying to protect the earth’s soil, it’s the feminine nature that needs to be more dominant rather than the masculine. He alluded to the fact that every human has both masculine and feminine qualities, and that it’s time our feminine qualities of preservation to become more dominant. 

Following the panel discussion, a meditator offers Sadhguru a gondola ride, expressing that it was a lifelong dream to take Sadhguru on a gondola. Hoards of people gathered at the bridge and around the canal singing the Soil Song and cheering for Sadhguru. 

Meanwhile, Hilal and Sabina from the logistics team welcomed everyone at the reception with warm smiles. They took care of allocating rooms for the team, always arriving in advance of the rest of us to check that all the arrangements are happening on the ground as had been planned. They even became drivers when the situation required. Hilal joked, “I normally manage global initiatives for a big firm, but this is the craziest logistical challenge I have seen so far!” 

Hilal shared, “I have never been working with a group of people who are so willing to help work and not even complain when things do not go as planned. So this was super impressive to see—if you have a cause that brings people together, see how much they’re willing to do.” 

Sabina expressed how beautiful and different it was to see events happening in multiple cities. She went on to explain that no matter how tired she was, she would always get a burst of energy to continue. Humbled by the experience, “It’s really something what we’re doing here,” she said. 

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