Orphanage: An Unapologetic Reality!

Writing this article was one of the hardest things I did this year. 2025 - a year of pain, realization, and transformation — has shattered my old beliefs into pieces and helped me revive myself with a new purpose and guidance from the divine.

Disclaimer: This article contains raw and unapologetic reflections on the experiences that shaped my resilience during difficult times. My goal is to share my truth in the hopes that it offers you strength and peace. However, I recognize that personal stories can be perceived in many ways. If any part of this writing feels hurtful or disrespectful to you, please reach out to me directly; I value open dialogue and your perspective.

I surrender myself to the omnipresent who lives in everyone of us. Om Namah Shivaya!

I pray to my Mahadev to protect and guide the souls in deep trouble.

One truth about life that’s been teaching me from the moment I started observing myself and the world around me is: Change is inevitable. I asked myself, “ Why do some people suffer miserably and others enjoy the beautiful part of life?” The responses that I received over years confused me rather than guiding me. The responses were: #1. It’s part of destiny. You can’t escape. #2. The world is a cruel place. There’s no place for good people here. #3. You must have done something wrong, so you deserve it.

None of these answers satisfied my “explorer” attitude. I couldn’t exactly find out why until I started searching for answers deep within.

What I realized through meditation was, “Everything starts with you and ends with you,” but I wanted to find a connection between the responses I received from the people and the inner voice that whispered this message. I have been through many difficult phases in my life where I am humiliated and fooled, that made me question the beliefs that were once dear to me. My daughter, my source of happiness and unconditional love, every day welcomed me home with warm hugs after a tiring day at work - is now staying away from me for months now. I miss her everyday. The deep, questionable introspection and painful experiences led me to visit the orphanage.

The following horrible stories transformed me into a whole new person:

1. Two years old child was left at the orphanage a few meters away from the parents’ residence because she was the second female child to them. All relatives including parents are alive and healthy. None visit the child.

2. Being cheated in the name of love, a woman just after delivering a few months old baby left at the orphanage and fled to far away country. Never tried to contact the child.

3. Abusive father married another woman after his first wife’s death. Grown up kid is left at the orphanage.

4. Two people run the orphanage with little of their earnings and a few donations they receive to take care of 45+ children of different age groups (Both Male & Female).

Now, what does these stories teach? Let’s analyse people’s response in connection to these stories.

1.  It’s part of destiny. You can’t escape. - Is life this brutal only to a few? Couldn’t the parents accept their second girl child born from them?

2. The world is a cruel place. There’s no place for good people here. - Does that make these children bad people by default then?

3. You must have done something wrong, so you deserve it. - What did these children do? Being born is something that they did wrong? Was it in their control?

My Introspection: “Everything starts with you and ends with you,” - Being born with a consciousness and a breath is a blessing in itself. What comes after - the environment, the suffering, the mindset, is all conditioned and some part of it are out of our control. If an observer stays as an observer, he would excel in it (One of the consequences of being an observer). If he decides to be a painter for a few years and switches to be comedian later, he can but the consequences are inevitable for that too. If we choose to be the victim, the consequence is stagnation. In other words, If we choose to be the creator, the consequence is transformation.

So, the hidden message this blessing reveals that (not often talked about) the power resides in you. If you let your relations, past experiences, trauma, happiness, or any emotions or experiences define you - it’s a choice that you have made. As long as there is consciousness and a breath in your body, you always have a choice to either choose or not to choose the external factors, actions, and reactions to define you. It doesn’t matter where you are born or in which environment you are living in (that’s mostly out of your control anyway), as long as you are making a choice (a conscious choice) to stay in it or walk out of it… you are signing up for the consequences of your own decisions.

So yes, everything starts with you and ends with you. It’s a loop that changes based on your every day choices. It’s was never a marathon. Your past cannot continue to define you. The power to change is in you. That's why there isn't a person exists who hasn't committed any mistakes. The power that lies in you is to recognize those and correct them. It's not for others but for yourself. For your greater good. For your happiness and prosperity. World is what it is. It existed before you and it will exist after you. Make a choice that's worth living for.

Question to ponder: Are we all part of one big family (Vasudaiva Kutumbakam)? Or are we all alone / unique in our own and different way (Aham Brahmasmi)?

Image: The Orphanage I visited in Bengaluru, Karnataka 560037. Faces hidden for privacy reasons.