June saw the premiere of Catherine Boni 's latest book , "Auroville. A City of Dreams" dedicated to an experimental establishment in southern India, a neutral place to live that is supposed to be devoid of any political or religious overtones.
© loner wanderer
The city of Auroville was founded in 1968 in a desert area in the state of Tamilnadu. Initiated with the support of UNESCO, the project was carried out by Mirra Alfassa, the concept of the city was created in collaboration with French architect Roger Anger. The utopian, self-sufficient city is open to everyone, is to promote unity and peace, among other things, and its residents are to devote their time to education and development. It was intended that Auroville would function without money, without police or ownership of land or property. The center of the foundation covering an area of about 20 square kilometers is the imposing golden temple of Matrimandir, and today the city has a population of about three thousand from all over the world.
Place of action (literally): Auroville. A city in India's Tamilnadu state, one hundred and forty-five kilometers south of Chennai, ten kilometers north of the former French colony of Pondicherry, five kilometers west of the Bay of Bengal.
Place of action (literally and metaphorically): A city where you can get lost, because nothing here is what it seems. A forest that was once a red desert and before that a forest. A barren land where Tamils - the impoverished ghosts of the former splendor of the southern kingdoms - tell themselves the legend of newcomers from the west bringing prosperity. A city hidden in the jungle, where the newcomers from the west are a little longing for emptiness and a little afraid of the future. A small plateau from which the sea could be seen until recently, which has become a place of experimentation. An experiment both on reality and on dreams.
Place of action (metaphorically): look within yourself.
Time of action: A little over fifty years. A whole eternity. One life.
Characters of thedrama:
Mother.
The child.
A multitude of seekers (some find something, some don't).
A realized utopia.
Ego.
Illusion.
Dreams.
Reality.
You.
Catherine Boni, "Auroville. City of Dreams"
© Agora Publishing House
