“Be the Change that you want to see in the World” But what should I do now?

In India we are part of a so-called democratic system which is operated by a group of people who think that they are leading the country towards prosperity but is the growth meaningful? I used to tell my friends that India is the land of Harmony in Chaos, but that has already become history. The country in which I was born was different; the stories which I heard from my father and grandmother sounded like they came from another age. The story in which everyone was treated equally, took care of each other and nature, and lived a peaceful life feels like a myth. And what I see now looks like complete chaos, where forests are destroyed, water exploited, farm lands mined, big cities built higher and higher, prosperous villages abandoned, food becoming a commodity to buy and people running after money.

Pause, take a moment: where are we in all this? Who are we? What can we do? Where is this going? Do we want to let the world run towards its own ruin? Is this all we are capable of giving to our children for their future?

Personally I cannot let this happen, I cannot let these lands be wasted and leave nothing but chaos and misery for our future generations. I need to be the change I wish to see in the world.

Let me tell you my story:

Coming from a conventional middle-class family from Tamil Nadu, I stayed in a rented house for 20 years, took loans to do my university studies, was an average student yet somehow I managed to graduate. Those four years of studying concepts, single lines and sketching up models, following the herd like a blind sheep just because the society wanted me to do so, meant that I graduated in 2017 as an architect.

But then something happened during my internship. When most of my friends spent their time in front of the computer, I decided to go spotting tigers, elephants and people who were actually protecting the forest in the deepest valleys of South India. This is how I deeply realised the importance of nature and the role of humans in creating a harmonious world. This encounter with nature pushed me to go find my own roots to know where I come from and how my ancestors used to live.

After some research, I came across the mysterious place of Chettinad in south India, where my ancestral roots are located. I found out that it had an incredibly rich history of culture, community spirit and economy. It was also a living example of Tamil architecture and town planning, and a trading hub for sea trades. I became completely fascinated by this place and what it represented. It was a country on its own. It looked like my ancestors were linked to an unbelievable source of knowledge and wisdom that our current civilization is not able to reach. I dreamed of living in such a society. But then something extremely intriguing struck me; this thriving community and one of the oldest civilizations collapsed into ruins and lost its spirit forever.

This made me wonder about my life and what I wanted to do with it: should I just accept that this kind of ideal life is gone forever? That I have to go back to the herd and live a meaningless life?

In June 2017 I came to Auroville to settle for a bit, not knowing at all what this place was about. As a young architect, my dream was to create spaces with my own hands but it was hard for society to accept such a change from the conventional system. So, I took this as a challenge, trying to break the conventional myth of professionalism by grooming myself as a Barefoot Architect, following the footsteps of my ancestors, and I started learning all the life skills required for creating my own world.

But then something really unexpected struck me while staying here; Auroville is not like any other place! At first I didn’t understand what this place was about, but then I realised I had to explore it and get to know why I was here. My entrance door was YouthLink which opened the way for me to learn about earth masonry, carpentry, permaculture, natural farming, community building, public speaking, facilitation, conflict resolution and so on. Learning in Auroville is an endless process which keeps you evolving and learning new things every day. You learn how to be you, rather than being how you are wanted to be (or how people want you to be).

I saw myself transforming from a playful kid, a reckless teen, into a responsible adult and a complete being who wishes to change something by being in action, by manifesting in the very matter which has made us.

I know the way is still very long, but every day when I wake up I feel so glad to be living this adventure; the adventure of consciousness and joy. I don’t dream anymore of a certain life, I am actually living my dream. And because of this, I will be eternally grateful to Auroville and all the people who made the dream possible and to those who are keeping it alive. So when I face criticism from friends and family regarding my future career, I always stand by Auroville and say that this will be the future of mankind.

It has been almost two years now that I have been going through this process of self-realisation to find my way of being in service to the community. So many things have changed and transformed since the time I came to Auroville. But somehow, when it comes to the basic needs such as food or a place to stay it is very difficult for youths to find a way to sustain themselves in Auroville without money. If this is how things are going to evolve in this city that the earth needs and if money is going to define the service that volunteers, like me, are offering to this place, I really wonder what the future of this city will be. I can feel in me the fear of seeing such a gift to humanity disappear like my ancestors’ place did, Chettinad. I think Mother said, “Will you help?” And yes, I want to help!

To conclude, I feel that I have been at my full potential while being in service to Auroville, and I will keep progressing. But in this journey of being a willing servitor for the divine consciousness, I have this one question which keeps coming back to me: what else can I do now? I guess that Auroville will find its own very particular way to show me the answer.