Auroville: So close yet so far!

Auroville touts itself to be the city of the future. Such a claim, among numerous interesting points, drew a bunch of my friends and myself to Auroville in May this year.

Its not very often that you come across a community that has the audacity to claim to be the 'evolutionary playground' for the human race and yet show no signs of presumptuousness. Auroville is green- the kind that you rarely see in a human inhabited place anymore. People wear loose fitting, comfortable clothes- I thought to myself wait a minute.

Here I was looking at the future of human settlements, and there is such a strong similarity between this place and our villages. Both wear clothes that suit the climate. It seems like something so intuitive- to dress in accordance to the temperature/humidity outside. And yet, it hits me only because in the urban spaces we now live to ape the west for its attire- often in a fashion that is completely disjoint from our surroundings. Call it the British colonial hangover; call it aping globalization but in my books such a simple, intuitive, human move says a lot. Auroville-1 Rest of the India-0.

Don't let the clothes mislead you though. Auroville is no hippie landscape. Sure the people are relaxed- they are not stressed but there is excellence. Look at the architecture- innovation through simplicity. Stones- that would fight the fiery heat to keep the indoors cool. Passages for air to move; light such that it dances its way across from dawn through dusk. And this is with shelter, you may go ahead to find something similar with energy production- a solar kitchen that harness the sun's energy and converts it into steam that can be used for cooking for the community. Its the only of its kind in the world. Scientific innovation- last thing you'd expect at face value, but its a reality. in my view, however, its not even this that highlights Auroville's greatest strength. It is the way in which their strong spiritual background humanized such innovations. Take for example the water we drink- is it nurtured? What the hell does that even mean right?

Well, here's something to think about. I had always heard of the experiment that goes to prove that plants respond to the external environment. Even sound. You put one in soothing tunes, and the other to some crass metal and the latter one will wither. Similarly, some researchers in Auroville posit that water has a DNA that responds similarly. Said they, "you will never find, in nature, that water running down a natural path will have sharp or sudden turns. They are usually soft turns, especially close to the point of collection. Taking from nature, Auroville has devised a process of purification that incorporates these learnings. Really- how many water purification units would you find in the world where one stage is just meant to resonate 'Om' chants in the water. This is done at Auroville- not out of some hippie, Utopian spurt but out of a higher spiritual belief that it works. And its backed by science.

Even with the skepticism with which I approached Auroville, I came out thinking- well, if they want to live this way, and they believe in it, more power to them. It isn't as if the outside society does not give in to ridiculous beliefs. For an Aurovilian, leading a life that is stressful, load and machine like, intentionally and knowingly, is as flippant and useless a practice as chanting mantras to invigorate water. I for one am glad that there is someone questioning how we are evolving in our lifestyles and is concerned about how detached from nature we are becoming.

After all, it is a question of how do live better. No just in terms of urban planning, but more importantly in terms of shaping our life practices. If a more machine like living pattern becomes the norm, and spirituality and nature become short-change for quick fixes, than Auroville is doing a far more evolved job than any of our other Indian urban centres.

Perfect Heath

No good way to start this but talk about whats on my mind right now. Its a book on eo f my friends recently recommended me to read. No slight heads up before I mention the title- its a Deepak Chopra book. Now I know the instant turn off to spirituality, and person profiteering of Yoga and Ayurveda many people (including me) possess. But I went ahead anyways and learned something that I would not have otherwise.

He talks about perfect health alright. A stage where your body, mind and spirit are in complete equilibrium. In India, especially the one I know, maybe less than a percent possess this perfect health. He explains that the body possesses a prakriti- which consists of the 3 doshas: Vatta, Pitta and Kapha. Every human alive possesses some combination of these 3 doshas. Ayurveda believes that there is a pre-ordained balance that nature provides each human with. Therefore, each person will have different levels of the doshas. The idea is that once you know what your current levels are you are better equipped to balance it- which you must.

For instance, Vatta refers to a person who has a thin build, is erratic, has many mood swings and usually operates in cycles of energy bursts and exhaustion. Pitta refers to the type that have medium builds, have warm palms and feet, sweat a lot and have a ravenous thirst and appetite. They are also the kinds who are intelligent. Kapha refers to people who are calm and pleasing. They also have a big build. Ayurveda posits that every human, while they definitely possess all 3 doshas, are usually a combination of 2 of the above in varying levels.

Either way, the point is that there is a need for us to balance our lives. I find it intuitive that there is a certain way that we are built in accordance with our nature and environment. For those who want to call it science, genetics and evolution- it is that and for those who want to credit it to a god- to each their own. What is essential is that the way we lead our lives, and the way we are must balance themselves. If we are meant to be hot-headed, we should learn to cool down. There must be a way in which people need to spend more attention to understanding their own bodies and selves. The lacking of this has potentially grave consequences, some of which we are already beginning to see.

You see, the capitalism framework, where often the lowest cost is given precedence over customization leads to the 'one size fit all' concept. One drug for everyone dealing with a cold, one burger for an entire nation and so on. This is at dire straits with the simple fact that every human being has a different composition. One persons food patterns must never exactly match the others. And yet, we proliferate a world around us that looks towards standardization- same clothes, one kind of shampoo, soaps, mosquito repellants.

Yoga looks for balance in the human. Its essential to understands one's self before one charts out a balance with one's external environment. There is a connection to friends, family, clothes, food, lifestyle- the implications of which will never be as quantifiable as will be important. Don't wait for a scientific research on the how each variable affects which part of your life for it will never come. And even if it does, it will be too late. Look deep within and see where that imbalance lies and mend it. For we do choose to live in an external environment, in contact with other people and objects. Just like an architect would want her master piece to be in complete harmony with its surroundings, must we all look and consider if we're even close!

The beginning

This blog is going to be a collage. A collage of thoughts and memories, raging critiques on movies, society and economics interspersed with pictures of this and that. A snapshot of the social environment that we live in and grow in, if at all.