The circle, the reality, the non-negotiables

The Town Development Council, in a message to the community, acknowledged the major impediments to the completion of the Crown as (1) concerns related to the existing structures and some valuable trees; (2) concerns regarding the mobility; and (3) concerns about privately owned lands. 

In the general meeting at Kalabhumi on August 20th, one of the TDC members clarified his personal views that the Galaxy’s beautiful components have been very slow to manifest, “so in that sense, we are happy [that things are now moving]. On the other side, we see very clearly that it is not an easy thing. Things will happen, and perhaps people have to move. But we like everything to go [forward] in harmony, as much as possible.”

He acknowledged that there is a strong urge by some to manifest the Crown, “which is easy to say, but not so easy to do.” He stressed that a road is just one element of the Crown. “The Crown is much more. It includes parks, services, residences, it is very green and the road inside it is only meant for cyclists, pedestrians and emergency traffic. We made a mistake with the stretch of road that exists already [from the Solar Kitchen to Kalabhumi eds.]. We do not want a wide lane where you can drive at 100 kilometres an hour. That is ridiculous and was never foreseen.” He acknowledged that regulating access to the Crown road will be difficult. “The traffic in Auroville is now completely out of control, with an increasing number of cars and motorbikes. This has to be addressed. We may have to close the Crown for some types of traffic at certain times. For if we would open the Crown to all traffic, we’ll have chaos.” In fact, in addition to Aurovilians using Auroville’s roads, there are 5000 villagers coming daily for work, as well as guests and tourists, and people using Auroville roads as a shortcut.

Asked if there are non-negotiables, such as whether the Crown or the Crown road should be a perfect circle, he stated that it is too early to give an exact response. “We at the TDC do not have a plan at the moment for the simple reason that we do not know what we’ll encounter. That’s why we started the survey: to show what exists on the ground such as trees, buildings, canyons, village land and the terrain level differences. Once we know precisely where it all is, we’ll present the outcome of the survey in meetings and then the process will start.” He was reminded that the Crown even includes an archaeological site, with burial remains from the megalithic Dravidian era (circa 500 BCE - 100 CE) and he agreed that “the jewels of the Crown also lie below our feet”.

“The Crown road is envisaged as a circle of 16.7 metres wide. But there will be areas where we will have to reconsider. It is too easy to say ‘it should be a perfect circle and that we are going through everything’, which is what some people are saying. It would also be too easy to take the other position that ‘it doesn’t matter, and let’s go from one side to the other.’ We want a circle as much as possible. But we know from experience that when you go from an ideal to the ground reality, you meet things. This is where the discussion starts. If we can do that in an open and transparent way, most people –  I am not saying everybody – will be happy.” 

He was reminded that flexibility is a quality: “Mother adjusted many aspects of Auroville, such as its location and the diameter of the city, in response to the reality on the ground,” noted one participant. “We need to adapt our Master Plan to reality, to adjust to the situation as it is. We can manifest the symbol together.”

At an earlier meeting, an Aurovilian remarked that residents were living in fear: fear of the Crown happening and what that implies; and fear of the Crown not happening. “Essentially, we are facing different expressions of faith,” he said. “We all have faith in The Mother; we all express that, and that’s why we are here. But this faith expresses itself in very different ways. There is a group in the community that feels that the Crown is an important part of the expression of their faith to the point that the road part of the Crown should be a perfect circle. There are others who have a different view.” And he asked if it would be possible to de-link the perfection of the Crown circle from the Crown road and so move forward together in a creative and energetic way. “Would a symbolic circle, such as a perfect brass circle, satisfy the members in the community who wish a perfect circle? Then the road can move away from the perfection of the circle, and we can allow the manifestations on the ground which have already come into existence –  the Youth Centre, the Darkali Forest and the residences in Centre Field –  to continue to exist and let the process evolve over the next years.”

Yet a circle, as another Aurovilian pointed out, “as one of the major platonic shapes, has naturally a compelling significance, especially, when it encompasses the peace area and Matrimandir as the spiritual centre of Auroville. In terms of infrastructure, it represents the shortest possible way and is therefore favoured by engineers and financiers. The danger: once violated, it becomes a precedence and excuse for further violations and therefore loses its compelling advantages. But a perfect circle is probably impossible to carry through. Small violations I think are okay. Bigger ones should be avoided under all circumstances.”  

Another resident emphasized the power of symbols. “There is a reason why there are 12, not 13, qualities of the Mother. There is a reason why Auroville Township is akin to a galaxy and the Crown is round. Not because of dogmatic, religious superstition, but because of a knowledge which is beyond the narrowness of the rational utilitarian mind, which has a hard time appreciating beauty or spirituality or the feminine power.”

However, a very practical note was struck by a planner/architect who has made a preliminary evaluation of Auroville’s developmental needs. From this, she concluded that “It is evident that the Crown that is already paved serves the needs of the projected population bench mark of 10,000 persons by 2025. So, it is not the lack of Crown road from Kalabhumi to PTDC that is preventing Auroville from growing or developing. Maybe the stagnation of Auroville is elsewhere and not because of circular roads or underground cables.”