I got introduced to this term svarAjya through Gandhi in the context of the India’s sruggle for freedom from the colonizers.  The meaning that is often associated with this is “Self Rule” in which we assert our right and capability to rule the country by ourselves.

In the current context of this article, by this term, I am not referring to the governance of a country by its natives, but to self governance as an individual process –

• Are my actions governed by compliance (and/ or rebellion) to an external authority – para rAjya* (or)
• Am I willing and able to take full responsibility for my actions/ inactions  in the given context that I am in? – svarAjya

{*Its a term that I am using to distinguish from svarAjya. Another modern day term used by Dr Robert Kegan, an American psychologist, is “Socialized Mind”}

svarAjya ia about building my capacity to anchor myself in my convictions, in the face of ever challenging contextual demands (and not become a mere victim of the situations), is the need of the hour today. 

The current schooling system which is driven by performance based on content memorization and content regurgitation, only reinforces the latter in overt and subvert forms. As product of this schooling system, I am now able to see how this gets played out in me. We also find many parents, despite their good intentions, unconsciously put their wards into the same rat race that they personally despise; why – as they dont have any other choice given the context, which is essentially para rAjya. While kids will eventually grow up and learn to lead their life on their own feet sooner or later, having acquired some qualifications and certifications from reputed institutes, the underlying issues remain suppressed only to surface later, when the demands from life  far exceed one’s skills and content expertise.

What does it take for me to observe this in myself and acknowledge this? and dive deeper in to seeing  the underlying inner chakravyuha in which one is caught up? How can I as a teacher/ parent deal with my kid(s) so I can walk the path for my next generation to develop this capacity for svarAjya in their life? When I am disciplining them, all I am doing is socializing them and making them compliant (and many a times rebellious)! How do I engage with them so they can discover for themselves the underlying capacity for svarAjya?

This, we believe, is possible through svAdhyAya – practices that enable self reflection, a deeper understanding of oneself, ability to observe and acknowledge to oneself “How am I a part of the problem?” going beyond the accompanying one’s inner defenses and helplessness.