In a world racing through digital distractions and the urge for constant connectivity, a Pune-based artist is helping people hit the pause button by balancing rocks.
Gautam Vaishnav, a professional rock balancer and teacher, has turned what seems like a visual illusion into a form of meditative art. Vaishnav has been turning heads at riverbanks, hillocks, and parks across the city with his gravity-defying temporary stone "sculptures".
"At first glance, people think it's magic. But there's no trick. It's just gravity, patience, and complete focus," said the 32-year-old, who has done BTech in Computer Science.
Start of the journey
Vaishnav began his journey into rock balancing in Maharashtra's coastal Mahad region after watching a social media post by his friend Chintan Vaishnav. Unsure at first, he was challenged to balance a brick on one of its corners.
"I struggled with frustration, stress, and anxiety for 45 minutes, but when I finally did it, I felt weightless - like a butterfly," he recalled.
That breakthrough led him to adopt rock balancing not just as a passion but also as a teaching tool. "This art form trains the mind to slow down, focus, and develop a never-give-up attitude. It's about decision-making, patience, and letting go," he said.
Here's how he does it
The process, Vaishnav explained, is deceptively simple. One carefully stacks rocks on narrow points of contact without using glue, magnets, or external support. "The only glue we use is gravity," he quipped.
Over time, he began conducting workshops for students, professionals, and even visually impaired individuals. "Teaching blind students was an eye-opening experience. I had to close my eyes, feel the rocks, and explain their texture, shape, and balance point just by touch. It was deeply moving," he said.
Vaishnav said he believes the practice is a natural antidote to modern urban stress.
"People are caught in loops of overthinking, screen addiction, and decision fatigue. When they try balancing rocks, they are forced into stillness. It's like I'm making them meditate without them knowing it." He said school children take it as a fun challenge, often spurred by friendly competition.
"If you hit their ego a bit and say, 'you can't even balance a rock?' they get curious and try harder. It pulls them away from screens and into the moment, he said.
In sessions with corporate professionals and IT workers, the aim is different, according to Vaishnav. "They work in enclosed cubicles. Here, they come outdoors, touch natural objects, and reconnect with the environment," he added.
Globally, rock balancing is a growing art form. Practitioners in other countries use it for installations, therapy, and performance. Vaishnav said its roots may go back to the Stone Age.
"Early humans likely stacked stones for shelter or markers. What we do now is just a refined, meditative evolution of that instinct," he told PTI.
While still a niche pursuit in India, the art is slowly gaining interest. "I want people to pick up a rock and try balancing it in a way no one else has. You may not keep it forever, but in that moment, you create something unique," he said.
For Vaishnav, rock balancing is not just an art but a philosophy. "It teaches you that everything is temporary. You put all your focus into creating something beautiful, and then walk away. That, to me, is life," he said while trying to balance a rock.
Vaishnav said he also tries his hand at every possible object, be it motorcycles, glasses, bricks or flowerpots, to create "unbelievable" formations.
