Last weekend, four of us visited an ashram (the Auroville ashram…renamed “horror” ville by one of the other volunteers!) outside of Pondicherry (a 14 hour bus trip). Friederike (my friend from Germany) and I got food poisoning and we were extremely out of it for most of the weekend. It was probably one of the most unpleasant experiences of my life and I’m glad to be feeling better now. We were in an un air-conditioned hut and our fan wasn’t working (120 degrees outside!) I think I lost six pounds in two days. Auroville itself was unbelievably unfriendly and unwelcoming; it was clear they did not want us there. Auroville started in 1968 as an “ideal township” dedicated to “experimentation in human unity.” Here is what the brochure reads: “The purpose of Auroville is to realise human unity – in diversity. Today Auroville is recognized as the first and only internationally endorsed ongoing experiment in human unity and transformation of consciousness, also concerned with - and practically researching into - sustainable living and the future cultural, environmental, social and spiritual needs of mankind.” It sounds okay on paper, (maybe a little strange to most people) but it’s just not reality. After staying there for two days, I got the impression that people came to Auroville to hide from the world’s problems, not to help solve them. I would recommend going to the website (http://www.auroville.org/index.htm).
Posted by Chelsea at 2:21 AM Monday, July 16, 2007
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