ABOUT
VISION
We are delighted to introduce AS IT IS, a project born out of a profound reverence for the nondual dance between the wisdom of love and the love of wisdom. For thousands of years, the Indian subcontinent has been the site for the study, contemplation and practice of various systems of non-duality, the experiential embodiment of which holds an outrageous promise – that of infinite peace and harmony – for individuals, communities, and all sentient beings.
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Seeking to share this precious gift with contemporary audiences, AS IT IS* organises transdisciplinary programs spanning arts, activism, buddhism, science and sustainability. We value secular and creative frameworks that address systemic power differentials along complex intersectional lines. In the realm of Dharma, we are filling an important gap by creating safe, affirmative spaces of healing for those marginalised based on their abilities, caste, class, gender, religion, sexual orientation and more.
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*Founded in 2020, AS IT IS was formerly known as Sisters in Spirit (SiS).
FOUNDER DREAMER
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Tejal Shah (she/they) is a life-long student, a contemporary visual artist, educator and cultural organiser who loves working with the earth, animals and people in equal measure. Their praxis intersects queer-feminism, Buddhist thought and eco-poetics. Tejal feels passionately that all people should have access to the knowledge and methods that lead to the most profound healing of their bodies, hearts and minds. To further this dream, they founded AS IT IS in 2020.
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Their experimental films, video installations and multimedia works have been exhibited in museums, galleries and film festivals worldwide. They hold a BA
BA in Photography from Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. Since 2017, they have been formally studying Nalanda Buddhist philosophy at Tibet House, New Delhi; Buddhist Dialectics from Lama Tsongkhapa Institute, Italy; Contemplative Psychotherapy from the Nalanda Institute of Contemplative Science, San Francisco and Non-violent Communication from the NVC academy.
LEFT-HAND WOMAN
Nivita (she/her) is a young student of Buddhism and mindfulness. After graduating from college in 2019 in New York City, she went to Nepal seeking respite from the "rat race" of New York, where she had been working in reformative prison education and alternative childhood pedagogy. In Nepal, she came across Buddhist meditation at Kopan Monastery, and never turned back. She now serves various FPMT centres and dharma initiatives, while advancing her own practice through retreat and study. Eventually, she hopes to help develop childhood educational systems in India rooted in practices that harmonize Eastern and Western psychology.
"You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make."
Jane Goodall