After nearly three decades of engaging with Auroville (along with over 100 other ‘sustainable communities’ around the world), a twice-aborted Newcomer process (first due to Covid and then to pursue my ‘dream job’ as Director of Education at the Findhorn Foundation in Scotland), and having just spent of 2.5 months there, I would like to share a few radical questions about the future of Auroville for your consideration.

Maurice Shukla grew up as a child in the Mother's School and now helps wherever he can be useful at the Ashram: translating, editing, teaching and, evidently, forever learning.

Bonjour! My name is Nivetha Narayanaswamy, and this is the story of how I came to master French. Growing up in Auroville, I never could have guessed the journey I would be taking when my father expressed his desire for one of his daughters to speak French.

Some years ago, when I lived in Hong Kong, I hosted my friend Alan Watson Featherstone when he gave a series of talks on “Restore the Earth’.

In a few decades, perhaps, it will be clearer to take an account of what did we lose, what did we gain, and overall, what we did learn that will help us to take another small step together, collectively.

Manoj Pavithran is an integral yoga practitioner, educator and filmmaker. He was drawn to Sri Aurobindo in 1989 and eventually joined Auroville in 1995.

La Terrace coffee shop above the Solar Kitchen is a special place. Not only because of the quality of the food but also, perhaps especially, because of the warm welcome and excellent service offered by Sudhakar and Ramu.

Working in Auroville has its own specialty. As novice honorary volunteers, drawn to the idea of Auroville and with stars in our eyes, several years can go by slightly tinted.

Nikethana is a resident of Anitya community, the first community in the Joy of Impermanence (JOI) project, which aims at creating community spaces based on impermanence and self-sufficiency.

Home birth is rather common and very accessible here in Auroville, and I was one of those lucky children to evacuate my warm private cocoon straight into what would be my home for my first 19 years.

In 2020, one subject attracted maybe as much attention as the pandemic itself: “masks”. This simple but nowadays also potent word is able to trigger emotions, opinions, reflection and action.

After touring Pablo Picasso’s museum in Barcelona, we could not resist buying a print of his masterly sketch of Don Quixote and his companion Sancho Panza, the characters from Miquel de Cervantes’ novel about the adventures of Don Quixote.

At my father’s funeral, my mother disclosed to me that I was their love child. What this means is that there was a moment in time when two people united and created a chemistry, such as that of the cauldron that Obelix fell into.

Nothing happens by chance and we are therefore entitled to wonder what is the meaning of the crisis which has been shaking Auroville for some time.

Valentina Beatriz is a 29 year old Chilean filmmaker who joined Auroville two years ago. She is progressively discovering the vision of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother, after having studied and experiencing the teachings of other masters.

Recently, the Youth Center has been holding ‘conscious learning nights’. In mid December, they invited Aurovik (Vikram Mani) to share his experience of living in Auroville for the past 15 years.

What does Auroville represent to its immediate neighbours? To the average person in Pondicherry? To the average tourist? Despite it being a popular sightseeing destination on the Pondicherry itinerary, how is this town and its inhabitants viewed and understood by many Indians?

I moved to Auroville in January 2018, and as a Newcomer I must admit I am still adapting to this very special place. While exploring different working places and activities, and trying to create a more conscious lifestyle, I find myself getting rid of many old conditionings in the way I used to conceive of work as the main activity and outer goal of my life.

I am currently 50, I live in Denver Colorado with my husband, Murugan and my 13 year old daughter, Rasam. My son Chidambaram is a junior at Harvard.

I am Mitali Joshi, 24, born and bred in Bombay, India, I have been volunteering with Thamarai Educational Projects as content writer, editor and facilitator in the after-school program.

Special events are celebrated in all parts of the world. Have you ever been in a big city, like Paris or London, when they are celebrating something like Christmas or the New Year?

I do not remember when and from whom I heard about the idea of Auroville, but it appeared to me natural, almost inevitable, in the context of The Mother’s Dream of a place where people could lead a life according to the dictates of the highest and also her warning that it had become imperative for men, countries and continents to choose between Truth or the Abyss.

Bindu reflects upon Auroville as a social experiment.

Traveling during the early seventies through the Indian subcontinent brought me to Agra. One afternoon, I found myself sitting on the borders of the Yamuna River while watching a sand barge being loaded right behind the Taj Mahal.

It is easy to remember because it hasn’t really changed in 48 years: the same scanty grove of eucalyptus trees; the same flat expanse of fields now dotted with scrawny cashew trees and small, shadeless neems; the same playing fields of Certitude; the same blast of sun that, along with the traffic, grinds the road into a fine dust coating its wayside shrubs from green to a diseased brown.

David Hutchinson has been deeply involved with the Integral Yoga for 35 years. He has been a member of the Sri Aurobindo Association in the U.S., co-editor of the magazine Collaboration, organizer of AUM conferences, and moderator of several online lists on yoga.

On Auronet, Auroville’s internal internet, a clock is already counting down the days to Auroville’s 50th birthday. However, not everybody is enthusiastically awaiting what is being planned for the event.

It seemed that the skies would never relent. One woke up to the sound of the heavy, steady rain. One went to bed with that sound reverberating in one’s mind.

The article “Auroville’s spirituality” in the August-September 2015 issue of Auroville Today contains a section on the Auroville schools. Concern is expressed that many of Auroville’s youngsters hardly know of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother and that most of the Auroville schools do not communicate anything of their vision.

A friend of mine would regularly examine the annual 21st February bonfire to see if the coming year would be a good or a bad one for the Auroville community.

A young boy stood at the table, his pencil hovering over his paper, his mind searching for what to write. He had spun a colourful wheel in the “Quality Game” at the Festival of Ideas held on Mother’s birthday, February 21, and had landed on the word, “Courage”.

Bindu gives her opinion on the recent ruling against the Puducherry Government by the National Green Tribunal (Chennai branch) on the Karuvadikuppam dump site.

Money has become an integral part of the exchange between Aurovilians and the increased monetization of our interactions is a genuine cause of concern.

Alain Bernard, a trustee of Auroville Village Action, introduces the Sustainable Livelihood Institute (SLI) project, a joint project of Auroville and the Government of Tamil Nadu.

The thing about a communication situation like Auroville’s is that since most information sharing is by word of mouth, what little remains to be recorded in print is only what isn’t worth the verbal interspersion.