Auroville: the city without money, politicians, or religion

Our world never ceases to amaze us, and a clear example is this city located in southern India where there seems to be a strange (and surprising) utopian dream in which people from all nationalities can live in peace and harmony beyond religion, politics... or money.

Auroville was born on February 28, 1968, and was founded by the known figure "The Mother," who created the Auroville Charter. A kind of constitution that outlines the main ideas of a place aimed at self-sufficiency, with citizens coexisting without prejudices of nationality, race, or religion. But not everything in this village is as idyllic as it seems.

This city, termed "The City of Dawn," is designed for 50,000 inhabitants from around the world and has a nerve center: the Matrimandir, which they call the soul of the city, resembling an oval area surrounded by a lake.

Beyond this nerve center, four zones are distinguished within this city: the Industrial zone in the north; the Cultural zone in the northeast; the Residential zone in the southwest; and the International zone in the west. These four zones, as stated on their website, serve to differentiate the important aspects of life in this village. All of them are surrounded by a large green ring composed of wooded areas, farms, and sanctuaries.

A city that has the capacity for more than 50,000 people but currently houses only 3,300 individuals from 60 different nationalities. But in Auroville, it seems that not everything shines as it appears, as has been widely shared on social media, since they seem to appeal to persuasive and "divine" messages.

In fact, this city has a charter based on four principles, formulated one day by its founder: "The Mother." It is in this charter that we find certain indications of being a place that seeks freedom... at a very risky price.

This foundational charter explains the main ideals of this city that is not governed by anyone or anything. It states that "Auroville does not belong to anyone in particular. It does not belong to humanity." But it clarifies that anyone who wishes to live here must be "a voluntary servant of the Divine Consciousness." Words that give us the first hints of where this "idyllic" population is heading.

This charter also explains that Auroville "will be the place of endless education, constant progress, and a youth that never ages." They want to act, above all, "as a bridge between the past and the future," where "material and spiritual investigations predominate for a living embodiment of a real human unity." We know what you're thinking: Auroville may seem like a wonder... but its intentions are not entirely clear.

Although this population may clash with its primary ideals, the truth is that, like in any utopia, there are ideas that could be completely valid. Some of them can be found in what is called the "dream of Auroville."

This dream explains that this place seeks to be a territory "that no nation could claim as its own, where all human beings could live freely: a place of peace, of harmony in which to grow and develop." Also with an education "without exams or certificates, but enriching the existing faculties in individuals themselves." A territory where painting, sculpture, music, and literature are accessible to everyone.

Valid ideas, but once again they rest on a superior and divine vision, founded on the principles of "The Mother," written in June 1970. Is it a vision where everyone belongs, and there are no prejudices? Yes... but also a place with very marked supremacies where one must adhere to very strict rules to be considered "aurovilian."

In fact, one of the main guidelines for being recognized as part of this place is to "detach from all things material, work the land, and devote oneself eternally to the Divine." Or in other words: to live in service of a community that, under freedom, expects you to work without economic compensation and in which you must let yourself be guided by the fundamental principles of a "divine society."

This strange Indian city has an epicenter: Matrimandir, located in a large open area called 'Peace.' This site appears as a large golden sphere that seems to be emerging from the ground and symbolizes for them "the birth of a new consciousness."

This epicenter is surrounded by 12 parks with individual names such as "Harmony, Happiness, Perfection, Progress, or Consciousness," and each of them has a different variety of flowers, shrubs, and trees.

In fact, its name means "Temple of the Mother," which for them symbolizes the concept of the great evolutionary principle, conscious and intelligent of life, which seeks to help humanity overcome its current limitations to move on to the next: supramental life.

The truth is that Auroville, which has been a true revolution on Twitter, may have principles that attract a general audience. In a society agitated by political discontent, places like this can ignite instant passions based on misinformation. Yet the truth is that everything utopian has a background, and the background of this "new free society" makes us wonder... Are we willing to give everything up to live in such societies?