Clowning glory

Clowns have been around for a long time, according to Shiven.“They appear in many guises, in many times and places and in every culture. They meet the need we have to laugh at ourselves, our faults, our foibles and failures. Clowns are mirrors of the mankind through all times,” he discloses.

Originally from Germany, Shiven has been a high school teacher, TV presenter, writer/producer, journalist and an actor. At 36, he finally adopted this much-loved career. “I met Osho and rediscovered my desire to be a clown,” says Shiven, “it was like a volcano that wants to burst out.”

When he was five he lost his father to the World War II. “I was a sad child”, he recalls. “The clowns at the circus made me laugh with joy and happiness.” And children make him happy, because he feels their innocence takes away the pain and the gloom. Favourite age group? “Children from four to ninety four!” Humour has a healing power, he declares. “My father wanted me to be a doctor. That’s who I am. I heal through the heart,” says he. No minute is wasted if you enjoy it. To enjoy every moment one must have open and a receptive heart. But, he believes this can be achieved only if you have tremendous self-love and self-respect. “Before you love others, you have to love yourself,” he states. This is the purpose of his shows and seminars. He reveals to people things about themselves and others that they never dreamt of discovering. This, according to him, is why in spite of working together for years, people don’t know anything about each other.

“My message to the world every university should have a professor to teach joy and laughter.” But he has been questioned by teachers as to where can this be integrated? He retorts,“Tell me, where can you not integrate joy and laughter? ”

As a rule he never makes fun of others. “I am the idiot. If I laugh, I laugh with you, not at you.” Having performed in thirty different countries for people speaking fifty different languages, he believes situations are the same everywhere. He has been to India thrice before. “I have learnt a great deal from the works of Tagore, Ramakrishna, Vivekanand and Satya Sai Baba,”he explains, “People are surprised to listen to what I have to say, but it’s your country that always had this basic philosophy.” He finds the Indian audience most wonderful and receptive. Shiven also lets on that he will be at the East Cape, New Zealand, to witness the first sunrise of the new millennium.

So here’s an individual who not only believes, but also practices what he believes – “there’s not much laughter in medicine, but there’s much medicine in laughter.”