Yet another Native Trees plantation done at nisargshala. We planted two native species of trees. Kumbha and bherli Maad. Also see in this video a herb which locals use while making tea at home, the furious river at nisargshala and as usual the beauty of nature. या वेळी दोन स्थानिक प्रजाती लावण्यासाठी प्रयत्न केले. यातील एक म्हणजे कुंभा व दुसरे भेरली माड. सोबतच या व्हिडीयोमध्ये पहा, चहात टाकण्यात येणारे बारकावळी वेल, निसर्गशाळेच्या नदीला आलेलं उफान आणि नेहमीप्रमाणेच नितांतसुंदर निसर्ग.
You don’t have to be an expert astronomer for star gazing with kids; you can learn right alongside them. Stargazing as a family can be a lot of fun, but what you do need is time and patience—if you have a hard time locating objects in the sky, imagine how hard it can be for a 6 year old! The most important thing that you can do for your child is to help them to appreciate the beauty of the night sky, and to help them become children who look up and wonder. Provide opportunity One of the roadblocks for parents stargazing with their children is the timing—it obviously has to happen at night, right? While actual “star”gazing needs to happen when it’s dark, there are some astronomical events that can be seen in the daytime such as eclipses, viewing the moon at certain phases, and rare planet transits across the sun. These can provide some great introductory opportunities for children, but the real excitement definitely happens at night. It is certainly a great idea to learn a constellation or two, or find out which planets are in the sky so that you can point them out to your children on the way to the car after seeing a late night movie. These can be great learning opportunities for your children, but to really inspire a sense of wonderment about the sky, you need to be intentional about setting aside “stargazing time”. If you are a family that regularly camps, this can be a great time to stargaze. You are often already up later than usual, and normally in a dark area away from city lights. Another idea is to set up a “family stargazing party” in your own backyard or someplace close to home—just keep in mind that the amount of light around will determine how many objects you will be able to see in the night sky. Comfortable environment The best way to ensure a positive experience for you and your child is to provide a relaxing and cozy setting. Standing up with your neck craned to look up is only comfortable if you plan to be out for just a short time. If your plan is to be out for longer than a few minutes, have a blanket to lie down on or reclining beach-style chairs to relax in. Have with you any materials that you might need—a planisphere, a flashlight (paint the lens with red nail polish so that it’s not too bright), and guidebooks from the local library. Snacks Snacks are a great thing to have for children if they start to get bored—why not go with the theme and get Moonpies or make Meteorite Krispie Treats. This can inspire a lot of fun with young children, and you can re-name almost anything with a “space” name— i.e. “Cosmic Crackers” or “Martian Milk Chocolate”. For older children, bring their favorite snack along as a special treat. While a nice summer night is probably the most comfortable, consider stargazing in the winter. Early winter nights are ideal for children who have earlier bedtimes. Just put on your winter gear and don’t forget the hot chocolate! Bring something else to do While we would all love for our children to have the time of their lives gazing up at the sky for hours, this might not be a reality for most children. Have some things planned other than just stargazing. Bring along your Stargazing Diary. Have your iPhone programmed with a special playlist of space-themed songs, or just a few of everyone’s favorites.Check out a few astronomy books from the library and take some time to read various constellation myths. Whatever you do, please take this time to put away the media devices! This is a great opportunity to “unplug” with your child. Resist the temptation to quickly check your email, messages, whatsapp or send that text that you forgot about earlier in the day. Your children will take your lead on this. If you bring your laptop along, it won’t be long before they are begging to watch that YouTube video or check Facebook. Does it work? how? Keep the developmental stage and attention span of your children in mind as you begin to look at constellations and other objects. I have found that one or two new constellations are about all that most people (including adults!) can remember at a time. It’s best to focus on remembering one constellation than introducing 7 or 8 that you can’t remember. The ability to “connect the dots” of a constellation in the sky can be very hard for children depending on their developmental stage. For children who have a hard time “seeing” the constellations, encourage them to find their own. They can look for different shapes that the stars make in the sky, or find the first letter of their name in the stars. Utilize your child’s imagination—have them make up their own myths about constellations that they see. Check out books from the library on constellation myths and use this time to tell a few stories. Why wait? Get out and go star gazing with kids For any query regarding booking, kindly contact – 09049002053 / 07709007641 Note – If both the mobile numbers above are not reachable call 09822042117
Who doesn’t want such an vicinity where there is absolutely no disturbance and where there is thorough peace. We all love such an experience. However, you can get such an ambience only when you trek, hike, camp in the real nature, up the mountains.
We humans are nothing but an integral part of the nature, just like all other creatures incluging huge animals to micro-organisms. We are just like them. We have little upper hand as we can relate to past and draw assumptions to make future even better. And if we use this ability in right way we can take the entire world including all human beings and every single element in the nature to whole new height of harmony. If at all there is any creator, it must have thought of a big role to be played by human being in nature. Are we really playing the role of peace and harmony keeper in nature? A big question, isn’t it! We have even forgotten the basics, the roots of ours so no wonder we have already forgotten the noble role, awaiting for us to be acted upon. We have even forgotten that we are fundamentally nature. We are not something other than nature. If we restore these principles in life, our lives would thrive. Generations would feel the amazing ability to lead lives in peace and harmony. Today I am talking only about lives of human being however that’s not it! Let me tell you some fundamental benefits of being into the nature. We are quite away from these benefits now a days. We are on the verge of losing them forever. Common men and women, must learn these benefits so that, everybody in the society can benefit from those. Nature deficit disorder exists, and most of us have it. Richard Louv is a person I look up to all the time. He coined the term “nature deficit disorder” to describe the social, behavioral, and health consequences of alienation from the natural world. Although scientists are just beginning to understand the health impacts of urban, mostly indoor living, one thing is clear — we need to put down our devices and get outside. It’s good for your heart (mind) Japanese researchers have shown that forest bathing, the practice of sitting in the forest, lowers your blood pressure, pulse, and heart rate variability. It has also been shown to decrease stress hormone levels. We at nisargshala, do this activity for our guests. They feel the peace deep inside. You’re less likely to be overweight I am a good example of this. I was trapped in corporate living and overgrown my body weight to everyones surprise. In last two years, I am on the path of “Lets get outside” and the results are just amazing. In both kids and adults, access and exposure to nature has been shown to lower the risk of obesity. This relationship is most likely due to increased physical activity. Additional studies show that forest bathing decreases blood sugar and cortisol, both of which are also associated with obesity. Other precious benefits – You’ll be happier and improve your memory People who live close to nature experience less anxiety and depression. Walking in nature has been shown to improve mood and short-term memory in people with depression, as well as decrease rumination (repetitive, negative thoughts) and brain activity associated with mental illness. You’ll fight off illness more efficiently Again, let quote here, my own example. The last I was in ill-health, was in 2017. Not even seasonal illness could put me to rest in bed. Exposure to nature improves immune system function in otherwise healthy people, increasing the production of natural killer cells, an important part of our defense against viruses and cancer. We do better In children, time spent in natural settings decreased ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) symptoms. In adults, contact with nature improves focus, concentration, and work productivity. And for adults, it results in better productivity at work. Benefit of exercise without doing any Being outside is good for your health, even without the benefit exercise. But if you do choose to exercise in nature, studies show that you’ll feel a greater sense of revitalization, energy, enjoyment, and satisfaction. Nature is painkiller Just looking at nature scenery in a photo or out a window can reduce our experience of pain. Harmonize with nature’s rhythms Being outdoors, and away from artificial lights, helps synchronize your biology to natural circadian rhythms. Scientists investigating chronobiology, the study of biological rhythms, have shown that our connection to natural light/dark cycles helps to regulate our sleep, our moods, our stress levels, and our hormones. Indeed, feeling of gratification Setting aside artificial stimulation and immersing yourself in nature makes you more aware of your surroundings. You hear the rustle of leaves, the creaking of leaves, and the songs of the birds. It’s mindfulness meditation at its most simple. To our good luck, Pune is such a beautiful city, surrounded all round by amazingly striking natural world. If you keep exploring every weekend, it will take almost three years for you to see all the places. You can get most of these benefits even with sporadic exposure to nature. Even if you can only get out of the city infrequently, it will improve your health in countless ways. What are you waiting for? Regards Hemant S Vavale – 9049002053 Note – Author is engaged in offering nature experiences with the help of different activities in nature. Every weekend he organizes camping event near Pune, in Velhe. These excursions focus on posing direct; Guided experiences to men, women and kids from City, such as camping, hiking, trail walking , heritage walks, heritage hikes, stargazing, One-with-nature, adventure, etc.
In the wake of new times and modernity, our lives have changed drastically. For some of us, who are in their 40s to 50s, can still remember the time they have spent as a child, outdoors. Those were actually unstructured hours of daily life of any child, of that time. During that period of time spent outdoors, a kid unknowingly learnt loads of basic life principles. Apart from the life lessons, these hours spent outdoors, helped us keep our mental, emotional and physical states up to the mark. What has changed now? We remember, our elders (who could be in their 60s to 70s), scold us for spending time indoor, especially the TV time. The term idiot box, such came into existence and had acquired value in daily lives of many, those days. But still, TV time was there, so is now. What has changed in great deal now? The massive urbanization, especially in India, is the new thing, which embarked in the journey of development. Development or the process of development or the policies made for development unwillingly made such dramatic changes in the lives of citizens that, though we know we are destroying natural world, we must be exposed more often to nature, we can’t do it. Urbanization is the real threat; we, our present days kids, and the generations to come are exposed to in great extent. There has to be a fool-proof, long term solution to this major issue. This solution demands policy makers to think with this paradigm. However, what, as commoner, each individual, kid can do to minimize the ill-effects of this urbanization? Before understanding what we, as an individual can do, lets first try to understand what are the actual threats we are exposed to, as an individual. loss of green space Parental fears and control Traffic Perceived risk of nature Stranger danger Authorities ‘Arms-closed’ conservation These are effects and to some extent reasons to NDD! What is NDD? NDD is a term coined by Richard Louv, in his best seller book ‘The child in the woods’. NDD stands for Nature Deficit Disorder. It’s a disorder which, like any other disorder can be diagnosed and be cured with correct alternatives. How do we diagnose NDD? Because nature deficit disorder is not meant to be a medical diagnosi (and is not recognized as one), researchers have not assessed the effects of nature deficit disorder. However, Richard Louv uses the term to point to some negative effects of spending less time in nature: Children have limited respect for their immediate natural surroundings. Louv believes that the effects of nature deficit disorder on our children will be an even bigger problem in the future. “An increasing pace in the last three decades, approximately, of a rapid disengagement between children and direct experiences in nature…has profound implications, not only for the health of future generations but for the health of the Earth itself”. The effects from nature deficit disorder could lead to the first generation being at risk of having a shorter lifespan than their parents. Attention disorders and depression may develop. “It’s a problem because kids who don’t get nature-time seem more prone to anxiety, depression and attention-deficit problems”.[citation needed] Louv suggests that going outside and being in the quiet and calm place can help greatly. According to a University of Illinois study, interaction with nature reduces symptoms of ADD in children.[medical citation needed] According to this study, “exposure to ordinary natural settings in the course of common after-school and weekend activities may be widely effective in reducing attention deficit symptoms in children”.Attention Restoration Theory develops this idea further, both in short term restoration of one’s abilities, and the long term ability to cope with stress and adversity. Following the development of ADD and mood disorders, lower grades in school also seem to be related to NDD. Louv claims that “studies of students in California and nationwide show that schools that use outdoor classrooms and other forms of experiential education produce significant student gains in social studies, science, language arts, and math”. How to treat NDD? In an interview on Public School Insight, Louv stated some positive effects of treating nature deficit disorder, “everything from a positive effect on the attention span to stress reduction to creativity, cognitive development, and their sense of wonder and connection to the earth”. Researchers and medical practitioners have not confirmed these effects. A relationship between the length of time of exposure to sunlight (by being outdoors) and a lesser incidence of myopia has been observed. In Indian context, is this threat a real one? And if yes, how do we tackle it? Yes the threat is very much real for Indians and the generations to come. As stated earlier, we are facing it big way these days, compared to some decades before. And the reason, but obvious, is URBANIZATION. To safeguard yourself and your kids, you must go out in the nature quite often and play freely. That’s it! Regards Hemant S Vavale Pune