A letter from 2022 addressing and asking questions of the Governing Board about respecting the Master Plan. Also highlighting the importance of youth in Auroville according to the Mother.
Written November 2022
A spiritual community
Aurovilians have been striving over the years to find ways to incorporate spirituality into all aspects of their daily lives, including the administration and decision-making of Auroville. One of the most salient of these efforts has been the inception and coordination of a special group of residents, called “Silent Presence Keepers”, whose roles are to attend meetings from a space of deep inner concentration so as to uphold the spiritual atmosphere of meetings. Nowhere else in the modern world has such an experiment been conducted to uplift organisational and administrative structures.
Diversity as a key
Auroville’s richness, strength and victory lies in its multiplicity and diversity. Auroville is a universal township aimed at the growth and evolution of consciousness above all existing limitations and boundaries, including nationality and religion. Although Auroville exists thanks to the welcoming soul of India and is an attempt to be a living embodiment of India’s international and spiritual identity as envisioned by the Mother and Sri Aurobindo, its spiritual achievement cannot be gauged or measured from the perspective of any specific spiritual tradition — however ancient or holistic that existing tradition may be. Auroville is an attempt to create something totally new, never attempted before; and this requires the active participation of all existing diversities.
Reflections on Unity
The Unity that Auroville stands for is that of diversity and vastness. Organising events in which different human beings can learn to better know each other beyond and through their differences is, I believe, a way to achieve such Unity. It is for sure more effective at doing so than the current practice of ‘othering’ those that may see the world through different eyes and may entertain a complementary interpretation of Auroville. Yes, Unity is key; and the core component to achieving Unity is the willingness to meet on equal footing, with open-mindedness and flexibility.
On the Master Plan
I would like to put three questions before you:
1. How is the Governing Board currently complying with the Master Plan’s requirements that Detailed Development Plans, Implementation and Layout Plans, Environmental Impact Assessments and many more such studies and documents are required before the implementation of large-scale projects can start?
2. How is the Governing Board intending to address the need for the development of Auroville to be sustainable, flexible and integrated — as mentioned in the Master Plan document itself? How is the Governing Board intending to involve the Auroville experts and residents in the process of planning and developing Auroville, as also mentioned in the Master Plan document itself?
3. How is the Governing Board aligning itself with Roger Anger and the Mother’s instructions, who mentioned that Auroville needs to be built by the Aurovilians themselves — without which the project would inevitably fail to achieve its true purpose and meaning?
On the central role of Youth in Auroville
In 1968, when Auroville was inaugurated in the presence of the Mother 1, some youth were selected to represent the then 124 nations of the world and 23 states of India. It is also to the youth of the world that the Mother has extended her invitation to join and build Auroville. It is therefore with great dismay — and symbolically evocative — that we saw that in December 2021, the first target for bulldozing was the international Youth Center.
Aurovilians are committed to building Auroville according to its original vision and ideals; and I hope that a fruitful collaboration based on mutual trust can be rebuilt between the Auroville Residents’ Assembly and the Governing Board. Auroville is far from perfect, and the Aurovilians are the first ones to admit it — residents are critical of Auroville’s current limitations and keep looking towards the future. However for the past 54 years, Auroville has been growing every day closer to its true self, and Aurovilians are dedicated to this continued flourishing. I truly hope that the Governing Board will join the residents’ efforts in this endeavour, and contribute to it by restoring the sense of safety, security and stability that has always prevailed within Auroville, and is necessary for the experiment to take place truly and integrally.
By anonymous
1. Ed: The Mother was not physically present for the inauguration, but she sent a message.
A letter to the Chairman of the Governing Board, November 2022