"If you make it Happen, they will Come, Capt."- my days at SRI LOVELY

 

The call of the wild is becoming more and more of a rarity these days as the wild is slowly but surely diminishing if not disappearing totally
being replaced by what man calls progress or development. The raw deal is no more there where living life in the primal state is a challenge towards not only of attaining courage and ingenuity but also a test of faith and wisdom - spiritual survival. The hut was built by one who lived {perhaps still is} on the fringe or away from the rest of his society. Not an outcast but simply because he wanted it to be so for reasons quite unknown even to himself when I had the opportunity to sit and talked with him. 

A solitary man, a simple minded forest dweller making a living by foraging and providing services when in need, but steering away from the rest of the community whenever he chooses to do so. He had chosen the life of solitude and detachment without even knowing so as it was nor that he had no choice, he had his friends and family to turn to had he chosen to do live among others. He had survived on bare necessities and always taking life with a 'silly grin on his face that revealed  two rows of yellow teeth that most probably never tasted a toothpaste nor felt the tooth brush. It seemed like he was in perpetual joy and harmony within that exuded through his eyes when he laughed at my jokes. There was wisdom in those eyes that were not expressed in words but in presence, pure unadulterated presence and unconditional acceptance of being who he was. We called him Adi or 'Are-dee' or to the young, Pok Di.

The location of this small village is at the foothills of Kampung Lintang where the edge of the jungle began and the surrounding area was once cultivated for hill rice growing however was later abandoned by the nearby villagers who lived in and around the Belantik Dalam, area of Sik, a small prefecture in the state of Kedah. When I first found myself in the area and learned what was happening to it, I knew that this was where I needed to be. My heart felt that I had been steered to this area by some inner urge like I was steered at one time to a place called Green Gulch Farm in Marin Country California where I had spent two years being a practicing Zen Student. This small piece of landscape invited me to become a part of its community that was on the eve of transformation. I knew I had found my 'place of Power' just i had felt it when I was at green Gulch.

I had decided to take a drive in my small 'Kancil' automobile and check out the rural parts of the country by just randomly driving into areas where I felt was in some ways interesting to visit and the then move on. While waiting for my car to be fully checked and upgrade by my mechanic friend, Ah Huat of Huat Huat Auto Airconditioning at Sungai Dua in Penang, I struck a conversion with a Malay gentleman who was also waiting for his vehicle being taken care of. Upon learning of my intention he insisted that his village of Belantik was where I should make my first destination, which I did. Upon arrival he took me around the area of Belantik and ended up finally at Kampung Lintang making a long and interesting story short and there I met the  retired 'Kaptain', Zakaria Amantasha, {whose rank was acutally a Major}but was rather preferred to be called Kaptain by everyone. From our chats later I learned that he was once a Battalion Commander for the UN Security Forces in Kosovo during the heavy fighting there. A very unique man and one who could move mountains or at least made things happen. I knew i had found my Guru or Zen master and asked his permission to stay and was given a small hut as a roof over my head.

I had planned to stay for two days at the village and moved on, however after two months I was still stuck in the village cutting and clearing and burning. Eating and sleeping like I was my friend Adi whose hut was located a stone throw from where I was just on the fringe of the farm. I was the only soul in the area at the end of the evening as all of the farm hands including the Captain would leave for their homes in Belantik about three Kilometers out. Being alone sleeping in a hut in an abandoned village located on the fringe of the jungle was my Zen Practice. Here I had my share of understanding what fear of the unknown was all about and what being alone was not loneliness but an inward journey of self discovery.

A river runs alongside the farm with cool clear water from the hills beyond and across lies the forest. Wild boars and tigers sometimes made their way here to drink but rarely due to the gathering human activities. Every morning one is woken by the loud voices of gibbons high up in the tree and numerous songs of birds and domesticated chickens. Watching and listening to the wild waking up every morning was food for the soul especially when one is alone and the mind was not cluttered by unnecessary thoughts and sounds of motors and vehicles. The peacefulness of the whole valley and the verdant green for as far as the eyes can see fed the creative spirit and work became my karma yoga.

Over the next few years I was able to witness the revival of the rice fields as more and more hands came to work land primarily to grow rice and it was a labor of love more than anything else as most of the crew were not properly paid due to lack of funds and the Captain at times was found with his head in his palms on the verge of giving up. However a man does not command a battalion of the UN Security Council if he was not a resilient and persevering man in the face of defeat and this I witnessed in my friend and Zen Master what will power meant in an individual. This was the man who made the SRI LOVELY Organic Farm at Kampung Lintang a Reality. It was blood, sweat and tears of a few dedicated men who literally had forged this community to life. The acronym LOVELY stands for Lintang Organic Valley and Organic is the key to the principle of the agriculture practice here. 

 Over the years since 2012 when I first stepped into the valley they cam from all over the world to learn about organic farming and sharing the local life of the kampung Malays. This led to an eventual official visit by the State of Kedah Chief Minister that helps to  put the farm on the map and the project was even mentioned in the Cabinet sitting of the Federal Government as an example to be followed. The Captain's contribution did not go unnoticed as he was awarded a professorship by one of the leading agricultural universities. Unfortunately COVID-19 ended it all for awhile.

Adi , the solitary man of Kampung Lintang had his story to tell and I had mine as we swapped tales of our journey in life while sitting on his verandah sipping sweet black coffee. 

My days at SRI LOVELY