Spirituality

In 2018, Amrit published ‘Children of Change’, a memoir recounting his early life and the difficult years in Auroville when he and others chose not to take sides in the bitter conflict between the Sri Aurobindo Society (SAS) and the then-dominant Auroville collective.

The seven volumes of The Mother’s Entretiens (Questions and Answers) are a treasure trove. They cover a wide range of topics in considerable depth, giving us a glimpse not only of Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s vision of life and the future of humanity, but also providing many answers to questions on how to live one’s life and follow the spiritual path.

A year ago, architect David Nightingale talked about how Spiral Dynamics could provide one way of understanding the present situation in Auroville.

A few weeks ago a new biography of The Mother was published. The Mother: A Life of Sri Aurobindo’s Spiritual Collaborator is written by Peter Heehs, a reputed historian who has been a researcher in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Archives for over 50 years, writing biographies of Sri Aurobindo and publishing papers on related topics.

Those who have put forward the idea of a “Spiritual and Material Refresher programme” [a condition for living in Auroville mentioned in the Auroville Residents Criteria Standing Order] to be given at regular intervals to Auroville Residents have either – at worst – not read Sri Aurobindo’s works or – at best – have only read them superficially.

Born in Paris, Nathalie grew up surrounded by the evocative scents of her grandfather’s painting studio. At the age of seven, her life took a profound turn when her family moved to India, eventually settling in Auroville.

From November 15th to December 4th, the Centre d’Art brought together two contemplative exhibitions: Pujasree Burman’s "Sacred Echoes" and Vasandan Virappan’s "The Symbol of Meditation."

In January this year, a project was launched called “Seeking Our Inner Being”. It aimed to gather information on individuals’ connections with their inner being or psychic being, as defined by Sri Aurobindo and The Mother.

Seza is Auroville’s first Newcomer from Türkiye (Turkey). She moved here 1.5 years ago after her first visit eight years earlier. She describes her journey from Istanbul to Auroville as a quest for meaning, self-discovery, and transformation.

Long-term Aurovilian Goupi (Jean-Pierre Bunel) peacefully passed away at Marika’s Home in the evening of Monday, June 24th. He had just turned 82 years old.

The 29th February, 2024 will be the 17th ‘Golden Day’. The first one was celebrated on 29th February, 1960. An English visitor, Dick Batstone, described how the dominant colour in the Ashram compound that day was gold: Mother was dressed in gold, she stood on a gold silk cloth, her balcony was hung with golden embroidered satin, and even the flowers in the courtyard were gold.

The Unity Pavilion and Shaktikumbh 2024 organising team are inviting the community to participate in what they describe as “a unique nine day spiritual and experiential immersion based on the philosophical significance of numbers in an integrated Indian context” between 21—29 February in the Unity Pavilion.

A few months ago, announcements appeared on various Auroville forums and in the News and Notes inviting Aurovilians to share their own experiential journey of seeking their inner/ psychic being.

Many years ago, Kireet Joshi gave a series of talks about Auroville’s organisation. As the architect of the Auroville Foundation Act, about which there is so much discussion and litigation at present, it is important to understand how he envisaged the role of the Residents Assembly in particular.

Recently, our Chairman is reported to have asked whether Auroville was not meant to take sanatana dharma to a higher level and create gnostic beings.

In November 1988, thirty-four years ago, Auroville Today began life, and this month marks our 400th issue. Peter Lloyd, one of our most loyal subscribers and a recent addition to our editorial team gives his reflection.

One of humanity’s oldest fears – perhaps, the oldest fear of all – is fear of the unknown: of how the world was created, why the sun disappeared every night, why winter followed summer etc.

I used to call myself a wanna-be hippie who missed the boat. Born in 1964 to a French Canadian father and American mother, it was too late for the Woodstock ride.

In Future School, students can choose to follow an elective course in which the writings of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother as well as the ideology of Auroville are discussed in an informal manner.

Vega is a facilitator of Nonviolent Communication, a “language of compassion” focused on deep listening and deep awareness of what we perceive, feel, and need.

Spirituality is a very perilous word because its meaning can be adapted to whatever you feel like at any given moment. It is the magic hat of consciousness.

The couplets and songs of the fifteenth century Indian poet-saint, Kabir, have been woven into the cultural fabric of north India for centuries.

Kailas Jhavery passed away on May 10th, 2021 at the age of 94. Kailash had become a member of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in 1964, after studying and working for more than ten years in New York, USA.

“Sri Aurobindo announced that mankind will enter the subjective age, that a new civilisation is going to come where the primary thrust will be inwards,” says Shraddhavan.

Knowing the end approaches He asks what we should all ask – What would I truly wish to do With the rest of my life? How do I make my time on this planet count?

Alan Watson Featherstone is a long-term member of the Findhorn community as well as a former Trustee of that community. He is also the Founder of Trees for Life, which has restored 10,000 acres of the Caledonian Forest in the Highlands of Scotland.

Dear Aurovilians, I was particularly happy to read the cover article by Guy Ryckaert in the February edition of Auroville Today in which he has stressed the fact that the Mother looked upon Auroville as the spiritual workshop for the development of overmenhood.

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.

I am Portuguese and 31 years old. I graduated as a nurse, but I consider myself firstly as a change-maker, a totally passionate defender of our environment and our planet.

The Government of India recently appointed Dr K. Parameswaran, Associate Professor of Law and Dean of External & Alumni Relations of the Gujarat National Law University in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, as Member of the Governing Board of the Auroville Foundation.

The Auro Vidya Retreat, a branch of the Pondicherry-based Sri Aurobindo Centre for Advanced Research (SACAR) directed by Dr. Ananda Reddy, was inaugurated at its location near Auroville on September 9, 2018.

For six days, progressive researchers held a conference in Auroville

In September 2017, the Chinese Ambassador to India Mr. Luo Zhaohui visited Auroville and the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. Addressing a gathering at the 68th anniversary celebrations of the People’s Republic of China at New Delhi soon after his visits, Ambassador Zhaohui remembered Hu Hsu.

“My last works were on the theme of circles,” says Nele, showing paintings dominated by strong expressive brushstrokes. She explains how she starts with a concept, a theme, and over a long period, sometimes extending to a year, does innumerable drawings and paintings on that theme, over and over again.

Johannes Hohlenberg had important contacts with both The Mother and Sri Aurobindo in the early years of the century, and was the first writer to introduce the Integral Yoga to Europe.

“Death is the question Nature puts continually to Life and her reminder to it that it has not yet found itself.” (Sri Aurobindo in “The Supramental Manifestation upon Earth”)

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.

“Auroville is created to realize the ideal of Sri Aurobindo who taught us the Karma Yoga. Auroville is for those who want to do the Yoga of work.

These are extracts from an interview with the Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, by François Gautier on the 24th of February, 1988.