Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

8th wonder of the world and sustainable conscious community in one. My personal next travel destination. I'm speechless. A few people just got together and DID IT. We have a lot to learn.

The Community:
http://community.gaiam.com/gaiam/p/Utopian-Intentional-Community-Has-Thrived-for-30-Years.html

The Temple:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=495538&in_page_id=1811

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

I have seen this link before but the temple link was not mentioned. What beautiful work.
The principles by which they are living are beautiful too.

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

Beautiful.  Thanks for posting this- was very excited to see it. :)

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

I just wanted to say… This is the sort of thing I expect from Gaia community. We get together and DO the wonderful, truly magical things. Today, Now.

Who needs building permission if it's the future we build?

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

Who needs building permission if it's the future we build?

WE are all the permission WE need.  :)

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

Zet, do you mean a community that is physically living together, like at Damanhur; or a virtual one, like Zaadz is?

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

But we ARE living together, Meenakshi. Zaadz and Gaia is becoming the infrastructure that will bring us, virtual neighbours, closer together, physically. So people from around the world can organise their own conscious business, their own charity, their own education centre, write their own books, etc. all with very physical real impact on the world. If a virtual community is the one that lives online and has little effect and contact physically, and a physically joined community is the one linked by an area with little “virtual” contact, then Gaia is to become both of those together.

I think the planet is already reminding us quite noticably of the fact that, however far, we actually do live physically together.

Long before Zaadz I had a dream of a place online where such an infrastructure of beautiful, magical temples could be constructed, that would be a combination of thousands, millions, of small, physical, individual “temples”. To create global resonance of our actions, and our hearts.

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

Thanks for 'getting it' Zet. :)

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

Awesome Zet!  We are definitely on the same wave ~ 

Gaia is definitely becoming both a virtual and physical community.  As we interact virtually we are effecting our physical worlds and more physical relationships are being cultivated. 

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

The whole beauty of zaadz/Gaia is the barriers we tear down to enable us to co-create within a global multi faith cross fertilisation and cooperation,  and what we take back from it to our local communities,

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action... Zet & Meenakshi

I understand I am unintroduced, yet…

Zet, an excellent explanation and also a brilliant dream… !
At present I am living in a Shambhala community, where the aim inherent in the physical existence both of the Damanhur and of us at Gaia/Zaadz is inherent in our daily living together.  (In addition to organic farming…) in the Shambhala mandala we heed traditional teachings (which evolve effectively and arrive with seeming effortlessness from the teachers) that are holistic, consistent and plain, but alive and always relevant.  There is continual practice and study, and a genuine, living sense of fearlessness toward …sharing the world we create (or creating the world that we share!).
“It is the Shambhala view that every human being has a fundamental nature of goodness, warmth and intelligence.”
Personally, I would love to make my experience within this tradition and my experience of the world as a whole more unified.
Furthermore, I would invite anyone seriously looking into creating or becoming part of a new community–and I am all for it–to invest at least some time into becoming familiar with the experience and principles of loving-kindness per the Shambhala lineage.

If this seems a bit ranty, or immature, then I would want to simply pay attention that this is living the myth of the dream of resonance, and I'd ask your forgiveness.
It would (or will!) be my honor to coexist wakefully with you in a new global society!
<3

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

Zet - so great that this article about Damanhur is in the Gaiam site – their own website is definitely worth a visit too. I've known about them for years, but never met someone who actually went there. I remember once hearing that community members 'all wear white' which slighty put me off, but hey, white's nice :-)

And I'd love to hear from anyone who has actually visited the community.

Absolutely yes to the fact that we are living together - in fact I see / experience 'us' here in Gaia as living together in a very real way, not only creating real-time connections and closing the physical 'gap' via the internet.

 actually physically experience 'rooms' here on zaadz/gaia - some are noisy, some are quiet, some are exciting, some are inspiring. Although I have met quite a few members in 'real life' – and hope to continue to do so, there are many people here I feel so close to it is as if we have met. 

I remember being slightly horrified when I heard about the 3D virtual world, Second Life, but in some ways I do experience my 'life' here on the internet and on zaadz/gaia in particular as being as absolutely real and three dimensional and as 'valuable' as my non-virtual life - and, more particularly being very much an integral part of my non-virtual life (just to note that since Gaia has a 'mission', it differs drastically from Second Life, and I'm personally not interested in playing a different 'role' via an avatar, this 'real' life is far too exciting already!).

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action.

Zet! Beautiful, and this community in italy is beautiful, but only because, as Zet suggests, they are consciously one: meaning, in their actions, they reflect community.

But we are all community, and when our actions do not reflect community, well… they don’t serve us quite so well.

We don’t need permision! To quote ffloyd, “we don’t need no- education-”

all we need to do is BE community, as they are.

It’s a WONDERFUL model for the future we’ll build! Isn’t it?

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action

I just wanted to let everyone know that there is a pod here called Tribe: Choosing Intentional Community, started by Wren, who lives in a small one called Heathcote. There may be other pods with similar focus, I'm not sure.

I believe there is an enormous urge towards living in intentional community and that as these actually manifest more and more, they will be a powerful inter-connected force for change in the world - and I'm now including online 'intentional communities' (I mention this vision in a comment in my blog Taking the Leap into Gaia )

Almost everyone I speak to these days wants to live in 'community'. So perhaps we can 'feed' this flow by sharing our views / experiences / information / questions in the above pod?

Love,
Sandra

Re: Damanhur: an example of enlightened action

Western society has deviated so far from tribal living. Now with so many of us yearning for deeper connection to the earth, ourselves and each other, it is no wonder that so many intentional communities are sprouting up all over the planet, and previously existing ones are becoming more acceptable by the mainstream. I lived and got married at such such a place 18 years ago, Woodburn Hill Farm. Now we live near Sirius, a sister community of Findhorn. We hope to visit many IC's over the next 5 years and find a place that feels like a new long term soul home.

Just today I watched a special piece called, “Embracing Change” that featured an alternative to assisted living and such. It is an IC for elders called “Elder Spirit”.

Thanks for the wonderful community links in this thread and the added zest to my community musings. i just joined the pod you reminded us of, Sandra. Maybe I will see you there!