A Diwali Message From Shamli’s ‘Sarfaroshi’

A very wise guru, an inter-faith expert renowned the world over for his understanding of humanity came to us at the ‘Sarfaroshi’ Foundation on our first founder’s day event four years ago. Acharya Srivatsa Goswami of Vrindavan explained the shastras to us in a line. Nahao, dho, tel lagao’. Keep your body clean, it is the vessel for your soul and your being. As we turned five in August, we kept these words close, when the world around us describes religion in all sorts of fictional and fantastic and fanciful ways, mostly fantasies of hate. When the truth is very basic, commonsensical and simple. 

As we turned five, we also understood that what people we work with want most of all is a stable livelihood and self respect. We allied with a modern day God of small things, Vijay Mahajan who walked us through small steps of how to help entrepreneurs in this region build their trade and make a profit. 

The result this Diwali is that about a dozen small scale entrepreneurs have built and expanded their trade under our watch. One of them is Munesh didi, from the village Dhanena. Who has just started to make soaps. 

The rangoli you see here is a composite of the soaps Munesh didi makes, assembled into a rangoli, using A. I. to add the floral patterns and diyas in the background. 

The brown soap is made of haldi, chandan and neem leaves. 

The dark brown Munesh says is her version of the ‘Pears’ soap. 

The golden coloured ones are papaya based. 

The green are aloe vera. 

The fawn coloured or cream ones are goat milk and multani mitti. 

She is selling them for 30-50 rupees a soap depending on which one you pick. 

So if we tie in women having agency over their lives, by being able to earn, with what Acharya Goswami said religion is really about – keeping yourself healthy in body and soul, then there is no better image for Diwali than one composed of soap. 

Made by a leader in a village where the goal is to have syncretic teams, all castes and religions working together towards a wholesome, humane world. 

Happy Diwali everyone!