Listening to Your Inner GPS: A Roadmap to Self-Discovery | Sonam Kalra | TEDxPlaksha University

13 Aug 2024 (1 month ago)

Finding Your Voice and Truth

The speaker suggests that getting lost, both literally and figuratively, can lead to self-discovery.
They encourage listeners to disregard external pressures and listen to their inner voice, their intuition.

The speaker emphasizes the importance of believing in oneself and taking action, even if it means going against societal expectations.
They share their personal journey, highlighting how they pursued their passion for music despite initial doubts and societal pressures.
The speaker quit their job without notice and lost their voice for a year due to laryngitis, fitis, and nodules on their throat.
Despite this, the speaker was determined to succeed and viewed the challenges as tests from the goddess Saraswati.
The speaker received numerous learning opportunities, including television shows, travel programs, and a car show.
The speaker learned on the job and embraced every experience as a learning opportunity.
After a year, the speaker's voice recovered, and they resumed studying music.
Three years after quitting their job, the speaker's mother was diagnosed with stage four cancer and given four months to live.
The speaker learned the power of positivity from their mother, who remained optimistic despite her illness.
The speaker's mother defied medical expectations and lived for a year after her diagnosis.
After their mother's illness, the speaker lost their voice again and turned to theater as an outlet for their emotions.
Two weeks later, the speaker received a call to audition for a play.
The speaker discusses their journey in theater, highlighting how they were initially afraid to step out of their comfort zone but eventually pushed themselves to do so.

The speaker mentions a quote about allowing children to learn music, dance, and write, not for the sake of becoming good at it, but for the growth of their souls.
The speaker shares their experience working with Amal Alana, the head of the National School of Drama, who taught them the importance of seeking truth in their art rather than perfection.
They use the analogy of a perfectly autotuned song versus a raw, emotional performance to illustrate the power of truth in art.
The speaker emphasizes the importance of finding their own truth and story to tell through their music, stating that they wouldn't perform until they had something meaningful to share.

They mention a guru who told them that to sing, one must have lived, and reflect on their own experiences, including the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the 2004 Asian tsunami in Sri Lanka.
The speaker experienced a personal journey of questioning faith and spirituality, particularly after losing their mother.
This journey led them to a deeper understanding of forgiveness, acceptance, and questioning religious institutions.
The speaker developed a faith in humanity, finding God in love, compassion, and kindness.

The Sufi Gospel Project was created to blend different voices of faith and religion, aiming to create a universal voice of faith.
The speaker believes that each individual can find their own truth, regardless of their religious background or place of worship.
The speaker advocates for acceptance over tolerance, emphasizing the importance of embracing and seeing all truths as equal.
The Sufi Gospel Project is a fusion of ideologies, blending different belief systems from various regions and religions.
The speaker highlights the commonalities across different faiths and religions, citing examples from Kabir Das, Rabia Al Basri, and Baba Bulleh Shah.
The speaker criticizes the use of labels, arguing that they create divisions and limit understanding.
The speaker believes that true faith lies within the heart and that we should see God in everyone and everything around us.
The speaker believes that the only religion that matters is the religion of humanity, which emphasizes compassion and unity.
The speaker's Sufi Gospel Project aims to blur the lines between different religions and demonstrate the commonalities between them.

The speaker's music is a call for people to listen to each other, recognize shared values, and speak out against injustice.
The speaker believes that the power of the individual voice is strong, but the power of the collective voice is even stronger.
The speaker uses the examples of the Jessica Lal murder case, the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), and the COVID-19 pandemic to illustrate the power of collective action.
The speaker encourages listeners to remember the religion of humanity and use their voices to advocate for equality, justice, and compassion.
The speaker emphasizes that everyone is a child of the same land and the same greater humanity.
The speaker's journey is about reminding people of this shared connection.