Home Is Where The Hearth Is: A beacon of blessings

In this column, 'Home Is Where The Hearth Is', written by Navjyoti Dalal, we shine the spotlight on the immigrant experience. And, as a cultural exchange, get them to share food recipes they hold dear.

This week’s rendezvous is with Sneha Joshi, whose persona encapsulates two most common Indian exports to the world - information technology and yoga. The software engineer and Yoga instructor considers the wellness practice as her higher calling, which she shares with fellow Athlone natives each week.

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It is not possible to be untouched by yoga if you belong to India. I have myself been a witness to the everyday appearances it made in one's life.

From neck stretches and tree-pose straight after waking up, to a small session of asanas (poses) and breath-work at the school morning assembly, to your parents goading you to sit in a certain pose after meals, or watching your aunts/uncles doing the nail-rub (said to promote hair growth) when free... yogic practices are entwined with life.

For Sneha Joshi too yoga came into her life in a routine manner, nothing out of the ordinary. "But it is extraordinary the way it has come to my rescue, healed, and transformed me," says Sneha, a software engineer by the week, and yoga instructor and therapist by the weekend. The Athlone resident credits Ireland for rekindling her yoga love, and allowing the time and space for the little joys of life.

Yoga To Aid

Sneha grew up in the central Indian town of Amravati, in the state of Maharashtra, a land known to birth enterprising people. Light yoga was part of her regimen.

"But it wasn't until my early 20s when I saw its true magic. I had severe PCOD, which I was able to cure with a yogic practice. That's when I resolved to go deeper into it and learn more," says Sneha who got a chance to do that only in Ireland.

Her husband, Kunal Gandhre, received an opportunity to relocate to Ireland and work with a major IT company. Their daughter, Ovi, was barely two at the time. Parenthood became the vantage point from which they contemplated and decided to take a quantum leap, in 2022.

The uprooting was hard on Sneha, who says: "For the first time in 11 years I took an indefinite break from work, which had become my identity. It was difficult to reconcile with the idea of being a stay-at-home mum. The weather wasn't helping either, nor the fact that we had no familiar face in this town. Add to this the feeling of homesickness and displacement. I was depressed. We came here to live a calm and tranquil life, but the calmness started to irritate me."

This was when yoga made a reappearance. Sneha decided to utilise the newfound flexibility of her time to train as a yoga teacher. She insists I rephrase it. "Yoga is the teacher, not I. I was just training to share its countless boons. It held me, gave me hope and a sense of purpose. Previously yoga cured me physiologically, this time it healed me on a mental-emotional level," says Sneha, who soon found a job in an IT firm.

She also founded Aikyam Yoga to relay what she gained from yoga. She commits her weekend to teaching online, and in-person at St Mary's Hall. Among her students are young and elderly Irish ladies who, Sneha observes, are exceptionally dedicated.

"They are very sincere about learning yoga. Some of them have had surgeries of the knee or hip, so I modify their routine to one on chairs. I learn perseverance from them," says Sneha who is also designing a curriculum and schedule for children's classes.

An Irish Blessing

Sneha acknowledges Ireland's role in being a catalyst for her reconnection with yoga. The emotional abyss she found herself in after moving to Ireland, became the nursery that allowed for yoga deepening its roots in her.

"Ireland has been a beacon of blessings for me and my family. I have seen myself evolve in the last three years. There has been so much learning, and also so much to be grateful for. I love this country for allowing me to take up interests I could never do in India, for life's scale always tilted towards work. The work-life balance in Ireland is great," notes Sneha.

She finds it liberating to be able to taste the essence of life through learning new activities. Sneha is both happy and proud to build a life around things that give her joy.

"I go cycling on the rail trail, and sometimes when there aren't too many people around, I sing my favourite songs aloud. I am also learning to swim, aside from playing badminton as an enthusiast, " says Sneha, who is also making time to learn the Indian classical Bharatanatyam dance.

Sneha, Kunal and Ovi often take time out to travel the island and explore the wilderness. But it is Athlone where she feels at home. "Athlone truly captures the heart of Ireland. It has every Irish imprint possible, from sheep and cow farms, to pubs, to cute cafes, a bustling sports centre and her favourite, the old rail trail.

Recipe: Dry Fruit Laddoo (Dry fruit balls)

A perfect pick-me-up energy ball, these laddoos come with many benefits. Not only are they made without sugar, they also are a great source of vitamins, antioxidants,  minerals and essential fatty acids. While dates, raisins, figs, and ghee provide natural sugars and healthy fat, the nuts and seeds are great for brain and heart health.

The micronutrients are also good for stronger bones and hormonal balance.

There is no ratio or proportion to follow in ingredients, just add a handful of each and avoid nuts/seeds which you might be allergic to.

Ingredients:

Almonds, a handful

Cashews, a handful

Raisins, a handful

Pistachios, a handful

Walnuts, a handful

Pecan nuts, a handful

Desiccated coconut 1 table spoon

Flaxseeds 2 teaspoons

Pumpkin seeds 2 teaspoons

Sunflower seeds 2 teaspoons

Sesame seeds 2 teaspoons

Dates two handfuls

Dry figs two handfuls

Clarified butter (ghee) 2-3tbsp

Method:

Add 2 teaspoons of clarified butter (ghee) to a pan. Once hot, add the nuts and roast them, one type at a time. Do not roast too much, just for a couple of minutes.

Once done with dry fruits and seeds, switch off the gas flame and then roast the desiccated coconut in the same pan just for 20-30 seconds.

Let all the ingredients cool down and then add them to the mixer in smaller quantities and grind them to make powder (coarse or fine powder as per your preference). Grind the dates, figs and raisins at the end as they will be sticky. Then mix all the ground dry fruits and seeds together properly.

Add one or two teaspoons of ghee if needed to bind the laddoos together and make small balls of the mixture.