“WE ARE MERE FACILITATORS”
For becoming a catalyst who disperses ancient Indian wisdom to those who most want to receive it through a series of private teachings and public lectures.
Astudent of physics at Imperial College, London; a farmer who spent a year working on a 30-acre spread in Majorca, Spain; the owner of Vana, a 21-acre retreat near Dehradun which helps guests attain equilibrium with themselves, society and nature; the son of Analjit Singh, founder of Max Healthcare and Max Bupa Insurance. Veer Singh is all of this and more. With Vidyaloke, an initiative that connects teachers of ancient Indian wisdom with prospective students, he has his feet planted firmly in the country’s intellectual tradition. He is most impressed with the wisdom of Buddha. “Isn’t it amazing that Tibetan Buddhists, who are the fount of Indian wisdom, are regarded as refugees by us?” he asks. Singh is beginning an initiative where one can learn from the masters, starting with the Dalai Lama. Three hundred and thirtythree people between 16 and 40 will be selected to listen to the Dalai Lama’s talks over three days in February in Delhi, in what he hopes will eventually be a monthly event. There will also be other public lectures. “It will not be a VVIP affair. No one will have bragging rights. The texts will be sent to the potential students two weeks before the event. It’s a journey, not a one-night stand,’’ insists Singh, who is himself now reading the Patanjali Yoga Sutra. He says he was prompted by the considerable unhappiness and dissatisfaction around him, even in the Age of Netflix and Infinite Choice. “We do not want to become an organisation, or a spiritual movement. We are mere facilitators,’’ he adds.
“This is our legacy, but we don’t need bricks and mortar to preserve it.”