Auroville

Auroville

After Chennai and Mahabalipuram, we have been to Auroville. Auroville, a couple of kms away from Pondicherry (Puducherry –most of the cities have two names as before and after independence-), is an alternative living project, open to everybody all around the world, which is founded by The Mother (Mirra Alfassa) and following her principles. Like anybody else, who visits Auroville for the first time, we go to Visitor’s Centre first. Our exploration begins after settling in one of the guesthouses of Auroville. Population of Auroville, which is designed for 50.000 people to live in a self-sustainable way, is about 2500 at present. Because of that, settlements are dispersed and far from each other, also not completely self-sustainable yet. Both visitors and residents are riding motorbikes in Auroville, but we prefer to rent a bicycle. At the center of the settlement, there is Matrimandir, the symbol of Auroville. To enter the building, which is designed like a huge globe, reservation is needed. It is all white inside, as it’s mostly made by using marble, and white socks are given to the visitors. At the center of the globe, meditation room stands. In the middle of the room, there is a small glass globe, in which the vision of the sky is reflected by the optical mirrors at the top of the building. For the landscape of the garden of Matrimandir, a lot of work has done. At the center of the garden, a huge and old banyan tree exists. For us, it’s enough for meditation and simpler. Town Hall, the governing center of Auroville, and Solar Kitchen, where the community...