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April 01
United about diversity
The Auroville Economy 2001 Seminar
- by Carel
The month of
February saw the blossoming of the patient work of a group of
Aurovilians who had been studying various economic systems, attempting
to bring them together to give a new direction for Auroville's
development.
It was a busy month. In the
field of alternative economy two experts were invited. Gilbert Thiaffey
gave a two day workshop on alternative currencies in French, Prof.
Margrit Kennedy gave two lectures on the principles of complementary
currencies and interest free money. On a Saturday morning in Transition
School, a panel of Aurovilians described the state of the present
Auroville economy, farming, accounting, and business.
The next Sunday a full day
seminar took place in Vérité. The organizing team asked the nearly 60
participating Aurovilians to explore different economic possibilities.
The exploration was done on the basis of Mother's symbol, the outer
petals representing qualities, the inner ones the four powers of The
Mother as described by Sri Aurobindo. Those opting to discuss the
Maheshwari aspect were asked to concentrate on the aspect of prosperity,
on no exchange of money within Auroville, and on the full surrender to
and trust in the Divine. Those opting for the Mahakali aspect were asked
to investigate the power of money and how it could be re-conquered for
the Divine. The participants in the Mahasaraswati group discussed
Auroville as a self-supporting township and, connected to that, the
possibility of introducing another means of exchange, complementary to
the existing one. The Mahalakshmi group discussed sharing and caring,
the promotion of awareness about the each other's needs as a step
towards human unity, and the "circle" experiment which has
been ongoing for a year. At the end of the day there was a general
feeling that all of the proposed models were valid options for Auroville
to explore.
Two days later, on the eve
of Auroville's 33rd birthday, the organizing team proposed to a
gathering of about 250 Aurovilians and guests that all these models
should co-exist, stating that they would enhance and support one
another, and that each individual should have the freedom to choose to
participate in only one model or in several models at the same time. The
present economy based on money would thus co-exist with economic models
that experiment with the ideal of 'no exchange of money', as well as
with a model based on a new, complementary means of exchange for
internal transactions.
Practically, it was proposed
to find means to attract money for business development and for building
the city; to create two new circles - a Prosperity circle where all
basic needs are met (similar to the prosperity model set up by Mother in
the Ashram), and a Maheshwari circle for those who want to do away with
money exchange altogether; and, in addition, to start an experiment with
a new electronic means of exchange, called Aurose, which would run
parallel to the existing system. Aurose, it was said, would stimulate
collective abundance, promote the manufacture of goods for internal
consumption, and be a means to progressively arrive at a 'no exchange of
money' economy in Auroville. These models will have to be further
elaborated in the weeks to come, and all interested Aurovilians were
asked to join in this work.
After some inner contemplation and a question-and-answer session, it was
apparent that most of those present experienced a sense of satisfaction
and agreement with the proposals. There was also a feeling of excitement
that finally something in the field of the Auroville economy was moving
again, even though none present could predict in which way the proposals
would ultimately develop. What was truly amazing was the sense of joy
and quiet power that the people experienced in the final meditation .
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