Whan Aviram and Yorit began reforesting Sadhana Forest, their aim was to inspire a community in which they would be able to live and raise their children based on particular core values. here are some of the values that I have observed at Sadhana Forest:
-Seva: Sadhana Forest was founded as an act of seva, which is a sanskrit word meaning "selfless service." This has conceptually been around since ancient times, and relies on the realization that meeting the needs of the whole of the community is meeting the needs of the "self," since the wellness of one depends on the wellness of others. Seva is artfully giving with no particular expectation of recieving, where the act is a gift to everyone involved. In Sadhana, this value has been applied daily. A list of tasks that need to be performed in order for the community to run are have been agreed upon every Sunday, and volunteers can choose to pursue any of the jobs as a week long commitment. Otherwise, volunteers gather every morning before dawn for a "Seva Circle" and express additional community needs for the day, in which volunteers can then commit to a responsibility for that day.
Examples of Sevas include:
-tree planting and hole digging (of course!) an tree care which includes watering trees, mulching and applying natural pesticide.
-Kitchen: volunteers can choose to work in the kitchen preparing brekfast, lunch or dinner for the community (including and guests/visitors that drop by- usually cooking for about 100 people in the evening)
-"Bees and Termites"- this usually involves primarily removing and plants that are encroaching on wood huts and removing them if they are making it easier for any unwanted species to infest the hut and includes patroling for infestation or nests.
-Wood Chopping- all fire wood is gathered from loose wood in the forest and chopped for cooking meals
-Zero Waste Hut: This involves sorting ALL of the thrown away objects aka MOOP (Matter Out of Place :) ) and putting it "in place." A service called eco-services in Auroville collects all of the plastic, paper, and metal. Cardboard is reused as mulch in the forest, paper is used to start fire in the kitchen, non-syntheic fabric and food and composted, plastic bags are stored for reuse, and some objects are collected to use in the community for building purposes or any other creative needs.
-Toilet, wasting stations and bathroom cleaning
-"Compost and Compound:" holes are dug to fill with food waste. waste from the toilets are stirred, composted and used as fertilizer in the forest. Urine is also used as a fertilizer for new baby trees.
-Washing Solar Panels
- Gift Economy: Sadhana was created without the goal of monetary gain, but with the purpose to give freely to others. Yorit and Aviram were given stewardstip of this 70 aces of degraded and empty land based on their own commitment to transform it. the first volunteer at Sadhana came unexpextedly, with the willingness to support others that he didn’t know, and Yorit and Aviram had the openness to accept his gift. One volunteer has expressed, "Each of us has given without the expectation of receiving. Each of us knows the rewards of doing so. Sometimes the joy felt by those giving can even seem to outweigh that of the ones receiving."
here is a link in which Jamey, who has volunteered at Sadhana Forest for many years, discribes his experience with gift economy:
http://www.resilience.org/stories/2015-02-10/experiencing-the-gift-economy
-Abstaining from eating or using animal products and not using animal labor "vegan eating." Living here, I have acknowledged that the intelligence of human beings does not entitle us to control animals, but instead I see how our consciousness and high intellect, if anything, translates as responsibility to identify how to do little harm and live in harmony with other beings.
Food is sourced primarily from nearby organic farms and every meal I have eaten there has contained nothing that used to be an animal- including dairy. I have been feeling well norished and satisfied by the taste-- it has been difficult not to habitually over eat because I enjoy the food so much (and there is so much available! Also, I have gotten to experience a creative blend of different cultural traditions and cuisines in each meal!
-Non-violence
-Abstaining from acting competitively
-Human Unity: Sadhana is "owned by noone." People of all nations and creeds are welcome to contribute and work together if they agree with the intention of the project and volunteers have come from all over the world.
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