Try rock balancing, a natural stress-busting therapy

Looking to leave behind the stress and fatigue of 2022 as you step into the New Year? Don’t head to the spa or plan that elaborate vacation, yet. Nature has another therapy that’s fun, cheap, and absolute Instagram gold! It’s rock balancing. 

Like its name, the art is about stones in different shapes and sizes placed one on top of another, in varying positions that are impossible to imagine and held together by the laws of physics. 

If you’ve played balancing or stacking games on your phone so far, this is the real deal. Folks in the West have taken to it a big way, sharing their land art sculptures on social media. Back home, too, it’s attracting a bunch of rock-balancing enthusiasts who are spreading the benefits of this recreation while cautioning others to stay out of protected areas and to carefully dismantle any balanced stone creations they make.

Balancing rocks actually dates back to prehistoric times with iconic formations found across the world like the Balancing Rocks of Zimbabwe, which feature on the country’s banknotes or the Golden Rock in Myanmar, Kimmakivi in Finland, and several in the US and Canada. India also has the famous Krishna's Butterball (also known as Vaan Irai Kal), a massive balancing rock resting on a short incline in Tamil Nadu. 

So, why is one of the oldest phenomena grabbing attention in the new age? YS Life delved into the lure behind this gravity-defying activity!    

Building rock castles

Some folks may avoid rocks and stones on their path. Gautam Vaishnav welcomes them. On any given weekend, you’ll find him stacking stone upon stone in the outskirts of the city, relishing every minute of it. 

“People always talk about travel and getaways, especially at the year end, with sightseeing and shopping and trekking, but if they add just a simple activity like rock balancing to it, this can totally enhance their vacation and it’s free,” he says. 

You simply head to an area by a riverbed or mountainside or just find rocks by the road. Pick up a few in different sizes and dimensions (begin with two). The idea is to make them sit atop each other on their edges. Yes, they will fall. But give yourself a few takes and lo, that patience will pay off! You’ll find a gravity-defying arrangement that may leave you stumped!

Gautam offers this key advice: “I have experienced that you never balance the rock; it is the rock that tells you how it will get balanced.” He explains that how the rock falls is an indication of the direction you need to place it in.

“If it falls towards the right, take it towards the left and vice-versa and if it falls both right and leftwards, the centre of gravity of the stone must be found somewhere in between,” he shares. Smaller formations can take about 60 seconds while larger ones can take two hours and more.

Do it anywhere

A digital marketer by profession, Gautam discovered rock balancing by accident. He shares how a friend told him about it after a vipassana course and he was impressed enough to give it a try. 

“We just headed to a construction site nearby where I had to balance a brick on another brick only on one corner. It took me a whole 45 minutes to do that! I felt everything from frustration to anger as I made so many attempts. But I kept going and finally, it just balanced. That moment gave me goosebumps. Suddenly, it felt light, like all my negative energies were drained away,” he remembers. It’s been a year and a half since, and Gautam now imparts his know-how to others.

Rock balancing is done in the most serene locations. Gautam has been to Tamhini Ghat near Pune, Lonavala, Goa, and even went to the Great Lakes of Kashmir just to do this. And every time, his pictures and posts grab instant reactions on social media. 

“Of course, people’s first reaction is always that it’s not possible. They wonder if I have used some adhesive to keep the rocks on top of each other. They’re astonished to learn that it’s not like that and even more so when I tell them anyone can do it. I’m just very particular to inform people not to disturb wildlife and to always dismantle any rock formations after making them. They should leave every place just they first saw it,” he adds.

Khyati Mistry, a Goa-based tarot card reader, says her penchant for this draws her to the beach at least thrice a week. “There’s an isolated spot at Anjuna Beach where I find quite a few rocks. I make the sculptures towards the waterline as the base is firmer. This is also challenging as it can get windy due to the tide, yes, but the sand also strengthens the balance of the rock sculpture.”

Indore-based mountaineer and artist Lokendra Jatthapi has carried out rock balancing near the city while he has gone camping. At Kalakund near Indore, the greenery gave him a choice of rocks. 

“Selecting the ones you want is important, because the formation won’t look as appealing if the rocks all have the same shape. I visualise first how I want it to look as per the location and then start to balance them.” What would take him an hour when he first started rock balancing, now takes just five to 10 minutes. “The practice is all the fun,” he admits.

Corporates take it up 

Gautam has started a community of rock-stacking lovers call Stack the Rocks, where people post their pictures and share their experiences. From corporates and homemakers to students and kids, a mixed and growing diaspora of people are taking to it. And the one thing they all say is that it’s been “healing”. 

Akshay Gurnani, Co-founder of advertising agency Schbang stumbled upon this trend at the most unlikeliest of places… LinkedIn! He found a post that seemed interesting and decided to do it with his team. 

“It not only got everyone off their phones, but it was also so destressing as all we were doing is focusing on the balancing in that one hour. The moment when the rock balances is surreal; it’s like a dopamine shot,” he says, adding, “I definitely want to try more rock formations now.”

Metaphor for life

You can’t rush into this activity as it requires patience and a sense of calm. It also brings to life that adage – ‘Fall down seven times, get up eight’ because you will keep failing until you finally succeed.

While Khyati recalls the countless times she failed at first and how it only made her more determined to not give up, Pawan Sohanda, Associate Senior Developer at Deutsche Bank, Pune, also shares the life lessons the practice gave him. 

“I had heard about how rock balancing removes distractions and negative thoughts, but I got to see this first hand. When I did it, first there was a voice inside asking, ‘Will I be able to do this?’. The next thought was, ‘This is just a hurdle and will get solved just like hurdles I’ve faced in the past’. As I continued, all other thoughts got shut down and I felt my focus shoot up.”

It’s on Pawan's agenda to continue rock balancing in 2023. “I want it to be a daily practice and I want my friends to experience it, too,” he says.   

Today, rock balancing is recognised in the West, with rock stacking championships and festivals organised in Texas, Italy, Corsica, and Scotland (home to Europe’s largest championships - The European Stone Stacking Championships). Stackers flaunt their skill in various categories to crate gravity-defying stone sculptures.

But it’s still in nascent stages back here in India.

Gautam pegs that down to the lifestyles we lead in metros, with upgraded buildings and avenues that are all about tar, cement and paver blocks, leaving little interaction with natural rock. That said, things are picking up and he’s taught 350 people in the last six months. 

“There is more curiosity now. People are asking for mini rock balance kits to try it at home and slowly, we hope to also see a rock balancing festival in India,” he says. 

It can help you heal in ways you may not have thought. “This is the new way of meditation, but one that’s done by keeping your eyes open. It helps you find that silence within, which is much needed in our demanding world,” Gautam says.