Sustaining the Soul, nurturing the Earth

LIAA KUMAR and LAYA IYER explore the relationship between peace and our connection with the natural world.

- LIAA KUMAR and LAYA IYER

It’s an unlikely story: a lush, ecological paradise in the middle of a desert. Kanha Shanti Vanam, the global headquarters of the Heartfulness Institute, emerges from the barren landscape like a mirage. A few hundred sprawling acres of dense forest, rich soil and an abundance of greenery is situated, almost improbably, just forty kilometers outside the bustling and smog-filled city of Hyderabad.

In Kanha, the trees arch gracefully overhead as they hang heavy with fruit ripe for plucking; stars sweep across the night sky, undiluted by any light pollution. The breeze is gentle and scented sweetly by the gardens bursting with colorful flowers weaving amongst the rows of endangered plants. Amidst it all, there is a striking sense of peace, simplicity, and profound connection with the natural world all around you.

Kanha opened its gates in 2017 with a world-changing vision: to create a modern model of a sustainable spiritual life guided by innovative technology in conservation and ecology. It’s a global center of spirituality unlike any other, built to be a refuge not only for the soul but for nature as well, allowing people to tune into their inner and outer worlds. Looking around, it’s easy to forget that before the ashram was introduced to the world as a fertile sanctuary, it was home to nothing more than endless acres of dry and barren land. So how did a physical and spiritual oasis take root here?