A troupe of Merasi rehearse in the Thar DesertOn the surface, the Merasi (musicians) live in expansive poverty. Yet valuing a community based on what they are not is a fundamentally disrespectful approach to change. Human substance does not reside in what we are not, but in what we are. And the Merasi are many, many things.
The Merasi are a community of musicians who narrate the folk culture of their Indian desert landscape in ancient song systems. They stir chai (tea), lay bricks, horns, inhale in rhythm. Music is the beginning, middle and end, and as the global hand of modernization sweeps across India, that music is on the cusp of extinction.
The Merasi School exists solely to support community-driven change. While the world calls the Merasi ‘Manganiyar,’ meaning beggar, the Merasi define themselves by their artistic prosperity rather than their social poverty.
Through daily academic and music classes, we supports the development of creative minds, hearts and hands capable of social transformation. There is no poverty at The Merasi School, only the loud, relentless rhythm of possibility.
2 comments:
Your posts are so powerful that I am often at a loss of words, but this quotation speaks to the astounding spirit of the Merasi community and the communities that it has touched:
"We may affirm absolutely that nothing great in the world has been accomplished without passion." Hegel
For imparting this spirit with us all, thank you--
This is my first reading of your blog from the rural huts of Kenya and from the WISER world to yours, I echo EVERY word you have written. You are, as our good friend Christine said, an amazing advocate and beacon to those who want to do more than just help, but rather empower and ignite lasting change. From my hut to yours, keep it up!
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