What I learnt from cycle touring Karnataka for 40 days
There is a lot one can learn from travelling. Especially when it is for 40 days across the length of an entire state such as Karnataka. The cultures, traditions, language, crops, food, and weather here change every 50 Km. If one gets ample opportunity to speak with the locals, there is a great deal to learn. In my 40-day trip across Karnataka, this is what I got to learn.
Compliments are underrated
Compliments can make a person while criticism and insult can break them. I see a lot of fluctuations in my mindset based on what people I meet have to say to me. On some days I see that my energy drains entirely in just a couple of minutes of speaking with a few people. The questions they ask can have a huge impact on my psyche. From being able to climb an entire mountain to wanting to just pack up, a world of difference can happen when certain people speak.
Being a 31-year grown-up man, if I can see such a drastic flip in mindset myself, how could it be with the kids? Compliments or vague criticism for that matter creeps subconsciously into one’s mind and alters their behaviour entirely. As much as I learnt to stay calm and not let either in, I also learnt to smile at people and look at what they are best at firstto ‘compliment them accordingly’.
At Haveri district, in a mutt called Hierekal Mutt, I spent quite a bit of time motivating a kid on his prospects. His eyes were lit with fire listening to all the possibilities of a bright future. The very evening, his teacher came over and threw one of the notebooks at his face for illegible handwriting. I could visibly see what that did to him. A ton of cortisol must have flushed through his entire body.
Practising kindness and compassion is the source of compliments. I realized I would never tell a kid he is weak at maths or science. I would rather tell him that he isn’t able to realize his potential. Positive reinforcements over negative ones.
Actions may seem like cult practices without understanding the language
On day 20 of my cycle touring journey, I had been to a church mass (Immaculate Conception Church, Kinnigoli), as a thankful gesture for the place they offered me to stay at on the 19th day. At the time I was going there, I didn’t know that the mass was happening in the native language of Konkani. For an entire hour, there was an elaborate procedure that the priests and the disciples followed. This involved standing up, kneeling, bowing down at each other, turning to all 4 corners of the hall, and chanting rhymes.
I felt out of place all the while. Although I wished not to judge, my mind kept hinting that their actions were cult practices. Many times we fail to understand others truly because of a language barrier. This applies to body language too. It is important to have the air cleared rather than to judge others for actions we don’t understand.
The moment you start an argument you have already lost
In my journey, I am noticing that every single person has their mindset. It is dictated by how and where they are born and brought up, what their situations in life are, what their professions are, and who they surround themselves with. Neither of them is entirely right in what they have to say and none of them are completely wrong. They are all right in their own perspectives.
A police officer suggests that I can still pursue IAS, a kid thinks I should be in the army because of my height, a poor man wishes that I take up a job, and a highly educated triple masters holder recommends that I should complete my journey. The list goes on. India is a nation of free advice and people give it every single day. As much as each one cares about their own perspectives, nobody cares about yours. This is just ground reality. There is nothing good or bad about this. Only you will have to care about your own perspectives, nobody else will.
At the same time, it is important not to explain your perspectives to people. Because they do not care, they will be reckless with it. They will try to shove their ideologies down your throat trying to prove a point that they are right. Listen with a smile and accept. ‘Understand where the person is coming from’. Even people who criticise think that they are right from their point of view. Once you have listened to them completely, they may respect your opinions. The moment you try to prove a point, you lose. ‘Because people don’t care, they leave’.
Think of it, who or why are you even trying to prove a point?
Girls never look at gadgets
This is not stereotyping. This is an honest observation. From kids to grown-ups, girls have never looked at my cycle twice. They look at it once and they look at me next. Boys have their eyes glued on the bike. The next thing they focus on is the odometer on the bike. As a control experiment, when I sit away from the bike I keep my eye out on people who pass by. Girls of small age pass right by it as though it is another bike parked by the roadside. Boys flock around!
What do you think this says?
Importance of culture
I have covered this elsewhere in another blog (read this article), but I will reiterate the fact. I find people who apply Vibuthi (ash) on their forehead much safer to approach than a person who chews on tobacco. I find approaching a house with a Tulsi plant on the veranda easier compared to the ones that don’t. I find it easier to believe that a plant eater by choice is not going to ‘harm’ another fellow being. These are not beliefs I share, these are experiences that I acquired in the journey.
I can tell that the people below are harmless based on their attire.
Food is a drug more than a source of energy
What you need, you just require. When you are greedy, you desire. Ideally one just needs food to survive. In the land of plenty, however, people can’t help themselves but eat.
I believe this leads to two issues.
- Allowing emotions to depend on food. People eat based on how they feel, but they feel lethargic once they eat!
- Lack of respect for food. One eats for taste more than nutrition. This means they can eat when they like rather than when their body wants!
As small bakeries and eatery spots are places where people aggregate, I tend to pull by there to interact with them and know the place better. All along in my journey, I have observed that people desire food unconsciously.
Next time you feel like picking up packeted food, ask yourself what is making you do it.
I am a 31 year young PhD graduate who has decided to travel the length and breadth of India on my cycle, to document the journey of meeting a vast array of people. In my journey, I intend to understand the characteristic features of the people of this nation and categorize them based on their demographics, age, profession, gender, traditions, and cultural differences.
Loved this short summary. I am experiencing something similar but through different experiences. Loved the perspective on bringing up children. Parents should read this for sure. I have a feel that these lessons or experiences will repeat during your journey again and again and your perspective will get deeper and deeper. Great going. Good luck