“When your heart opens up, you cannot but serve,” says global spiritual master and humanitarian Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. By transforming hearts and bringing peace to the minds of millions of volunteers, Gurudev has inspired a global climate movement—one rooted not in fear, but in compassion. The results have been both miraculous and deeply moving.
When climate change makes headlines, it’s usually through the lens of carbon credits, sea-level rise, and industrial reform. But in places like Marathwada, the crisis is personal. In this region of central India, erratic monsoons, groundwater depletion, and shrinking incomes have steadily eroded rural resilience.
Balasaheb Lomte, a second-generation farmer, tends to 16 acres of farmland on hilly terrain devoid of any natural lakes, canals, or visible water bodies. For much of his adult life, he followed a painful routine: six months of rain-fed agriculture, and the rest as a migrant labourer in Mumbai to support his family of five. Like many in the region, Lomte had resigned himself to failing borewells, dwindling yields, and mounting debt.
Then, three years ago, tragedy struck. Lomte’s eldest son, who worked in a factory and supported the family—died in a road accident on his way home for Diwali. Grief was a luxury he couldn’t afford. Someone had to tend the land and put food on the table.
Around the same time, Gurudev expressed concern over the growing number of farmer suicides and the deepening rural crisis. He assembled a team to devise a simple yet powerful solution to restore both water and hope. This gave birth to the JalTara project.
Lomte learned about The Art of Living’s JalTara, a grassroots water conservation initiative under Gurudev’s guidance. Unlike typical rural interventions bogged down by red tape, this one came with shovels, stones, and a spirit of community. The idea: dig simple recharge structures at the lowest point of a farm to trap rainwater and stop runoff.
Skeptical but desperate, Lomte agreed to install four recharge pits. Each 4x4x6 feet pit, layered with stone and gravel, allowed water to seep deep underground, bypassing the dense, impermeable topsoil. “We were used to droughts,” he says. “But even when it rained, water just washed away with the mud. Nothing stayed.” The pits changed that. Rainwater began to collect. Within a season, the water table rose. A year later, all three of Lomte’s previously abandoned borewells were yielding water, even during peak summer.
He returned to full-time farming. With water secured, he expanded beyond jowar and wheat to include onions, soybeans, and cotton. His income doubled. “Earlier, we grew only what needed the least water. Now I can take three crops a year,” he says. He even married off his two daughters. “Mentally, I’m in a peaceful place again. My farm is my life.”
India receives an average of 119 cm of rainfall annually, yet it still faces severe water scarcity, mainly due to excessive groundwater extraction. According to the Central Groundwater Board, India extracts about 241 billion cubic meters of groundwater each year, over 60% of which is unsustainably used. Deforestation, disrupted river flows, and unregulated usage mean over 78% of rainfall runs off into the oceans instead of replenishing aquifers. The result: dried rivers, eroded soil, and crippled agriculture.
In response, The Art of Living has built over 90,500 recharge structures—each a 4x4x6 feet pit strategically located to allow rainwater to percolate deep underground, thus reducing runoff, erosion, and crop loss.
Lomte’s story is one of thousands. Studies show the JalTara project has raised water tables by an average of 14 feet and increased farmer incomes by over 120%. Crop yields have risen by 42%, and the initiative has generated over six lakh workdays in rural India.
“The Art of Living hasn’t stopped at spiritual awakening. It has gone a step further,” says Shweta Singhal, District Collector, Satara. “Wherever it has worked, the impact is visible. At a community level, fights have ceased and people have united. In places like Satara, extensive watershed work has transformed tanker-dependent villages into water-rich communities.”
But Gurudev’s vision extended beyond water.
He recognized the deeper crisis: the harm caused by chemical farming—depleted soil, poisoned rivers, and farmer dependency. At the Sri Sri Institute of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, farmers are trained in the science of natural farming—free of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, yet rich in traditional wisdom. These short but intensive courses cover seed preservation, soil care, and sustainable practices.
Farmers trained in these methods aren’t just growing food—they’re healing the earth. Lomte is among the 30 lakh farmers trained in this eco-friendly approach. He has benefited from The Art of Living’s preservation of thousands of indigenous seed varieties that promote biodiversity and food security. Food forests are thriving, and over 100 million trees have been planted—including 7 lakh along riverbanks and community lands—to enhance soil health, air quality, and water retention.
These efforts dovetail with national missions like Namami Gange, aimed at reducing pollution and rejuvenating the Ganga. By promoting natural farming on its embankments, toxic runoff is stopped at the source.
Permaculture for Urban India
The Art of Living also brings permaculture—a regenerative design system that mimics nature—to urban spaces. At its Bengaluru ashram, thousands learn to grow food sustainably, even in tight city corners.
One such student, Nisha Agarwala from Kolkata, turned 20,000 kilos of kitchen waste into compost. Her 3,000 sq. ft. terrace is now a lush ecosystem growing over 300 edible plants: sweet potatoes, cucumbers, ash gourd, spinach, red okra, white brinjals, and even white bitter gourds. Her fruit basket includes custard apples, guavas, chikoos, and melons, with a herb section boasting coriander, celery, basil, parsley, and Italian thyme.
From recharge pits and natural farming to permaculture and afforestation, The Art of Living’s work is deeply interconnected. It offers a holistic, scalable solution to our ecological crisis—one that begins with inner change and manifests as environmental renewal.
Lomte’s journey—from loss and drought to prosperity and peace—is one of thousands. Across India, borewells flow again, soil breathes, and communities rise—empowered and self-reliant.
In a world urgently searching for sustainable models for food, water, and ecological balance, The Art of Living, under Gurudev’s guidance, stands as a shining example—merging scientific innovation with spiritual depth, grassroots action with global impact.
