Auroville

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Based on the teachings of the Mother and Sri Aurobindo, Auroville is a unique international community striving towards the transformation of life into the Supramental consciousness. Aurovilian Mita Radhakrishnan offers an insider's view of the inner path.

The very first thing one can say about Auroville, is that it is NOT an Ashram, and that it confounds all commonly held notions about spirituality. Auroville is a spiritual experiment based, not on any abandonment of the world, but on an active engagement with life and matter.

Auroville is an international city dedicated to Human Unity. Located in the middle of villages of Villupuram District, Tamil Nadu, it is a growing and vibrant community of presently about 1500 persons from over 30 countries. It is a community that is not a commune.

The spiritual basis of Auroville, its raison d'être, lies in the teachings of Mother and Sri Aurobindo. The Mother founded this community of individuals on February 28, 1968 and gave the following as the Charter of Auroville:

Auroville is conceived as a city with four zones: Residential, Cultural, Industrial and International, surrounding a central area of Peace. The city itself will have parks and green spaces, but it will also be surrounded by a huge green belt, of forests and farms, meant as a buffer between the city and the outside. The plan of the city is in the spiral form of a galaxy.

At the physical centre of Auroville, in the zone of Peace, is a huge Banyan tree, next to which stands the Matrimandir, or Auroville’s soul, a structure built exactly to the specifications of Mother. It symbolises the human aspiration towards the Divine and the Divine’s answer to that aspiration.

It is a place for quiet concentration. The Inner Chamber of Matrimandir, made in white marble, is a zone of total silence. In its centre stands the world’s largest crystal ball, which is illuminated by a single ray of light. This is the spiritual centre of Auroville.

Around the physical structure are the Matrimandir Gardens, 12 in all, each one highlighting one aspect of the Divine Mother based on her symbol.

Called by Mother’s message to "all young people of goodwill" to build this city of 50,000 inhabitants, people came from all over, including the local villages, to join Auroville and dedicate themselves to its manifestation. Since then, Auroville has grown into an extremely diverse community with a variety of activities, which include (and this is a far from exhaustive list):
Afforestation: The barren wasteland of 1968 was converted into a verdant semi-forest by the plantation of over 3 million trees. Aurovilleans are also involved in protection of indigenous species and raising plant and tree nurseries.
Watershed Management and rain water harvesting for the whole region
Organic Farming;
Research into Alternative Medicine, including Ayurvedic massage, Reiki, pranic healing, polarity therapy, kinesiology, acupuncture, homeopathy, flower remedies, foot reflexology etc
Research into a new system of education that meets the needs of the soul, for both adults and children;
Language Education in the 4 Auroville languages (Tamil, French, Simplified Sanskrit and English);
Research into alternative energy such as wind, solar, bio-gas and experiments in waste water management;
Research into appropriate building technologies such as ferro-cement and mud-earth construction;
Experiments in alternative transport such as electric mopeds and cycles, gas-powered cars;
Research into food production and processing;

* a range of services covering anything from repairing vehicles, hairdressing, ecological waste management services, medical care, as well as infra-structural services such as electricity and water; town planning; architectural services, house-building and construction; printing presses and desk-top publishing services;

* businesses run in beautiful surroundings which manufacture an extraordinary range of products (including incense, pottery, clothes and garments, carpets, shoes, paper lanterns, UPS systems, furniture and carpentry, solar lanterns, windmills and earth-construction presses, water purifiers, etc.).

There are also activities related to magazines and journals; sports; restaurants; film showings; and a wide range of cultural activities including dance (Bharatnatyam, Odissi, Butoh, modern western dance etc), music (both Indian classical and western classical as well as modern rock, jazz, etc), art (sculpture, painting, photography, computer-aided art), theatre.

There are activities that are part of Auroville’s ‘safety net’. For example, the "Free Store" where one can go and pick up what one needs, such as clothing, and drop off what one doesn’t need/use anymore, thus creating a circulation of goods within the community.

This enormous variety of work is undertaken as Karma Yoga, work done in dedication to the Divine, and not an end in itself. Work is seen as a means for inner progress. Through work one has the opportunity of becoming an instrument of the Divine and to help in the process of divinising matter. The Yoga of Perfect Work is the goal of action in Auroville.

Unique Utopia - here and now

There are some interesting elements of Auroville that make it stand out from other communities:

* there is no private property. All land is owned in the name of the community by the Auroville Foundation, which is a body set up by an Act of Indian Parliament, to give a supportive structure to the vast human experiment that is Auroville. All assets created by Aurovilians, including houses, etc., are considered to belong to the community as a whole and individuals are seen as trustees of the land they live on and of the assets they create and use.

* Auroville has experimented with many forms of organising its economic life and to create an economy that is neither communist nor capitalist, but which expresses a higher truth. Money is seen as belonging to the Divine, to be used for a Divine purpose.

Each person contributes how and what they can, in work kind or money, to the life of the community. There is no authority that individuals have to answer to or submit to except that of the Divine. Businesses are also expected to contribute. People do not receive salaries, but the community takes care of the needs of its members through a system of "maintenance".

Mother specifically gave the goal of "no circulation of money" within Auroville. This has proved extremely difficult to achieve, especially since Auroville is still in the building stage, but the community is making many attempts to reach this goal. Foremost is an account system, which reduces cash exchange, if not money, exchange to a minimum.

Auroville is meant to be a self-governing and self-regulating community. There is no army, no police. According to Mother’s specific guidelines, "no rules" were to be rigidly set down on paper, but evolved in a vast and flexible manner. So while there are no rules on paper (other than the Rules of the Auroville Foundation Act, which the community had to put into place as a requirement of the Act of Parliament), in practice there are numerous guidelines that govern relations within Auroville.

Auroville is also meant to be self-sufficient. However, in the areas of food, building materials, educational materials, Auroville is dependent on the outside world and rather far from self-sufficiency. Though more and more land is being brought under cultivation, food self-sufficiency is a prospect rather far off.

Thus, Auroville is a vibrant place, resonating with activity. It has been called Utopian, but the experiment is very much in the here and now. Translating the ideal into reality requires not only huge individual effort, an individual Yoga, but also the moulding of discrete disparate and hugely "different" individuals into one community.

Many visitors and residents feel a palpable energy force pulsating through Auroville; others are more attracted to the ideals and want to participate in their realisation. And certainly, something larger than the residents themselves has to be at work, otherwise such an experiment simply wouldn’t continue to exist and grow. (Read more about Shri Aurobindo in our Guru Section.)

The multiple realities of Auroville are not immediately revealed to the outsider or the passer-by. One has to come and stay within Auroville for a period of time before it starts revealing its secrets. A minimum of a three-month period will allow you to go beneath the surface, to discover and experience what is hidden to the eye and the mind with its judgements and workings. However, there is no fixed time restriction for visiting Auroville.

Coming to Auroville as a guest, and coming with the intention of joining Auroville, are two different things entirely. Before taking the steps for the latter, it is highly recommended (actually, required) to come to Auroville first as a guest.

Contact Information

Specific information for guests may be obtained through email from avguests@auroville.org.in.

Questions related to joining Auroville (there is an official process and there are specific visa requirements for non-Indian passport holders) may be addressed to The Entry Group by email: entry@auroville.org.in.

Official information related to the Auroville Foundation can be obtained from workingcom@auroville.org.in.

There are Auroville International Centres in several countries, whose addresses may be obtained from the website www.auroville.org.

There is no specific, fixed schedule of courses. The Auroville News (also available on the AV website) has details of courses and when they are offered.

You can take courses in Hatha yoga, Vipassana, Ayurvedic massage, Pranic Healing, Reiki, Foot Reflexology, French, Tamil, Sanskrit, English, African Dance, Butoh, Singing – Indian and Western classical, Art, Computers, Earth-Building, etc.

Certain specialised courses and seminars also take place, especially in the area of alternative health and medicine. Always contact the teacher of the specific class or course organiser beforehand.

In general, guests have to pay a fee of between Rs.150-Rs.200 per class (seminars/courses may have their own fee structure) which goes not to the individual teachers but towards building maintenance and equipment costs.

The main guest season is from December-March; another is from July-Sept. The weather is more pleasant at these times, with the summer heat and the heavy monsoon rains either finished, or yet to come. Sometimes, as in this year, the monsoons get delayed, and one can get rained out in August.

On New Years Day, August 15th (Sri Aurobindo’s birthday and India’s Independence Day), February 28 (Auroville’s birthday), there are bonfires held at dawn at the Amphitheatre close to Matrimandir. For many, these are very special events.

Some people prefer to come to Auroville in February, between February 21 and February 28, or Birthday Week, there is a plethora of activities packed in together. For the very serious, of course, any time is possible.

How to get there

Auroville is about 10 kms north of Pondicherry, in South India. The nearest metro is Chennai. Depending on the budget, one can get to Auroville via Pondicherry by:

Taxi: Around Rs 2500; cost is around half of that if you book an Auroville taxi to come pick you up: Rs 1050 from Madras Central (the railway station); Rs 950 from the Airport.

Buses to Pondicherry leave from Parry’s Bus Station (not far from Madras Central), either via the Chinglepet, Tindivanam route (avoidable; usually 4 hours) or by the East Coast Road via Mahabalipuram (quicker: 2.5-3 hours, far more scenic). Bus fare is around Rs. 35.

Once in Pondicherry, you can reach Auroville by autorickshaw (Rs 100 or so), or taxi (Rs. 135). The Auroville taxi service (local phone 622183), available 24-hours, will come to pick you up. Taxi is a better option from Pondicherry because its much quicker, more comfortable, gets you directly to the place you want to go, (unlike auto drivers who tend to get lost in Auroville) and comparatively not much more expensive.

Local buses from the "Old Bus Station" (about a kilometre from the new bus station) are also available: ask for the bus going to Allankuppam/Sanjeev Nagar via Auroville, and ask the driver to drop you near the AV Visitors Centre.

If you get to Pondicherry late at night, it is advisable to stay the night there before making your way over to Auroville (unless you have booked yourself beforehand into a guest room in Auroville).

The best place to arrive in Auroville for the first time, without having made any arrangements beforehand, is the Auroville Visitors Centre. Here, you can find information about places to stay, find out if rooms are available, etc. (If you arrive by taxi, make it wait while you do this, otherwise you will be left with bag and baggage, and without a means to get to your Guest House!).

Once you have a place to stay, have filled in your arrival forms (ask your Guest House manager), found a vehicle and registered with the Guest Service, you are ready to explore Auroville. How you organise your day is entirely up to you.

Postal Address:
Auroville International
Bharat Nivas
Villupuram District
Auroville - 605101
Tamil Nadu,
India.
Tel: (91-413)-622 121, 622 927
Fax: (91-413) 622 274
Email: avi@auroville.org.in

Accommodation

There is wide range of accommodation, but if you have come during the season time, you must book beforehand. Prices, (and facilities available), range from very basic, Rs. 75 to well equipped at Rs. 750. The lower end guest houses are simple keet (palm frond) houses with a separate, sometimes shared bathroom, while upper end guest houses are pucca, with attached bathrooms etc.

Mostly, there are prices in-between; about Rs. 275 a night will get you a decent, clean pucca room, with breakfast and laundry, and a cycle thrown in. For those with tighter budgets, there is some dormitory style youth accommodation available. Details of accommodation are available at the Auroville Visitor’s Centre.

Since the communities are extremely spread out, getting from one place to another can be quite difficult. It is very useful to know how to ride a cycle or drive a two-wheeler (moped, scooter or motorbike), because that allows you to rent a vehicle (Rs. 60 to 100 a day).

Those with fat wallets may take taxis for trips within AV, but otherwise, if you can’t drive a two-wheeler, you have to walk. No restrictions on hitchhiking and if you are lucky, someone or the other will pick you up and drop you at least part of your way.

Cycles are good exercise, and you get to see a lot more riding along Auroville’s shady cycle path system. There is a collective community transport with a specific route which is not very regular, but it is another option, that combined with walking can get you where you need to be.

Guidelines for Guests
All guests, Indian or non-Indian, are expected to inform the AV Visa Service of their arrival in Auroville. Usually this is done at the Guest House, but can also be done directly at the Visa Service office. Non-Indian guests are required by Indian immigration authorities to fill in an arrival form giving details of their passport, visa, and travel schedule/plans.

In addition, all guests are requested to register with the AV Guest Service (which has offices at the Community Solar Kitchen and at the Financial Service). Here, on payment of a Guest Charge of Rs. 60 a day, you receive a "Guest Card" (Note that this charge is Rs. 50 a day if you stay for more than 30 days, and Rs. 30 a day if you are a student).

This pass identifies you as a guest of AV, allows you entry into Matrimandir, and gives you a Guest Account, which you can open at the Financial Service. The Guest Account allows you to access all other facilities of AV such as the grocery shop (no cash), restaurants, the community bus (which goes to Pondicherry three times a week), Pitanga Hall (where Hatha Yoga and other classes take place), and all other facilities and services availed of by Aurovilians.

Note that Aurovilians also contribute a part of their maintenance daily to the needs of the township. The AV economy runs on Aurovilian contributions, guest contributions, contributions from the units/businesses and services, as well as donations for specific projects. The Guest Contribution is therefore an important way that guests can contribute to the community. Note also, that the Guest charge is in addition to what you would pay for accommodation or for any specific class you take.

There is no imposed dress code. However, the local Tamil culture is still quite conservative. In terms of safety, normal guidelines of travel should be followed. Wallets, passports etc should be kept safely and out of reach of windows. Women are advised not to walk or cycle alone at night; or to at least go out in twos/groups: it’s simply safer.

Meals

Most guest houses provide breakfast. If not, Pour Tous, the AV grocery store, has stuff you can buy for breakfast such as fruit, cereals, bread, jams, milk, yoghurt, etc. Many people eat lunch at the Solar Kitchen, where one has to register beforehand, and can get a full wholesome meal for Rs. 35/-.

Otherwise, for lunch and dinner, there are some other eating places offering a range of cuisine, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian, Indian and continental. You should budget about a minimum of Rs 60 per meal if you are vegetarian and Rs. 100 if non-vegetarian. Pondicherry also has a host of restaurants. A few guest- houses offer facilities so you can cook your own meals.

Things To Bring

Most things you need will be available at the grocery store or in Pondicherry. During monsoon time, a proper raincoat and umbrella is a must; gumboots are also very useful.

It also gets surprisingly chilly, so come equipped with a sweater or a jacket. A swimming costume is a good idea because Auroville happens to be located on the Bay of Bengal, and one can swim nearly the whole year around. A torch and mosquito repellent will also be useful.

Other Info
If you want to participate actively in the life of the community, contact the Guest Service for job opportunities. Some people simply start by helping serve in restaurants, work at the Solar Kitchen, etc.

If you are in Auroville for a longer period, there are more opportunities to get involved because, then, you can give a specific commitment to a particular project. Some guests who come to Auroville for 3 months or more, sometimes offer courses in their area of expertise, or simply language classes, which are always necessary. Village Action also has lots of such opportunities to join in.

Regarding Visas, restrictions of stay etc.

Need for registration has already been mentioned for both Indian and non-Indian guests. There is no specific restriction on stay for non-Indian guests, except that imposed by the duration of their Tourist Visa (usually 6 months, which can be renewed once only from a nearby country, such as Sri Lanka or Nepal). However, when it comes to joining Auroville, it is a different matter.

Joining Auroville
Auroville has very specific guidelines regarding Entry. Persons wanting to join Auroville have to indicate this wish to Auroville’s Entry Group. They have to spend a minimum of 3 months as a guest, acquainting themselves with Auroville and deciding if they really want to take the step to join.

For non-Indian passport holders, this means coming to Auroville on a Tourist Visa. Once a person has decided s/he wants to join Auroville, s/he has to spend a ‘probationary’ year as a "Newcomer", which allows her/him to further explore the community, participate actively, and allows the community to get to know him/her.

Non-Indians have to return to their home countries and come back with an Entry Visa specifically for this purpose; Home Ministry policy does not allow conversion of tourist visas into entry visas. The newcomer is assigned a contact person from the Entry Group, who provides a point of contact and ‘guidance’ during the newcomer period.

At the end of the year, if there are no problems of integration, the person is interviewed by the Entry Group, and recommended to the community for acceptance as Aurovilian. After a two-week further feedback period, the process is completed by the addition of the person’s name to the AV Master List and to the Register of Residents.

At the moment, Auroville is reviewing these guidelines and therefore is not taking any new members; but this is expected to change shortly. All interested are welcomed to come as guests for the moment.

Further information on all aspects of Auroville is available on the AV website and in the Auroville Handbook, on sale at the Visitor’s Centre. The Visitor’s Centre also has a bookshop where one can buy books such as The Mother on Auroville: a collection of Mother’s numerous messages regarding the city, as well as other works of Mother and Sri Aurobindo.

Amongst Sri Aurobindo’s works which provide guidance are The Synthesis of Yoga, and The Life Divine. His epic poem Savitri, written over 40 years, outlines the story of life and death and reveals the secrets of existence. Evening Talks with Sri Aurobindo, written by one of his disciples who met him daily, is a wonderful way to approach Sri Aurobindo, revealing his sense of humour and incredible mind/presence.

Foremost among Mother’s works is Mother’s Agenda, her gift to those who love her. This is an amazing work of 13 volumes, in which she describes in detail her discovery of the "mind of the cells", which holds the secret of the work of the transformation of human kind into a superior species. In fact, Auroville is meant to be a "laboratory for this new evolution". (Read more about Mira Alfassa in our Guru Section. )