Join Estelle Willemse as she wwoofs at Khula Dhamma eco-village near East London to learn the ins and outs of eco-friendly, sustainable living… [for part 1]

Saturday, 22 November, 2008

It’s Saturday, and I’ve been here almost 2 weeks. This week has gone by particularly fast as there’s so much happening around the community. Everyone is working hard to complete different projects, from building houses to digging in the garden.

It’s 4pm and I’m lying in a hammock overlooking the farm and the valleys beyond. I’m enjoying the sound of birds and the faint murmurs of a group of residents talking & sharing while completing some work on the grass in front of the house. I’ve finished work for the day. It’s a good feeling, having put in a conscious effort & seeing the results of the work you’ve done. It’s the perfect atmosphere in which to learn responsibility and discipline, because here, if you don’t do something yourself, it simply won’t get done.

I’m patiently waiting for 6pm, by when we will attend the daily Vipassana meditation (a technique/method of self purification through sustained self-observation). These daily practices help create the atmosphere of harmony, engaged spiritual growth & the overall intention of betterment of humanity that all of the residents and most visitors share.

Here nothing else seems to matter. I haven’t read a newspaper or heard any negative news since I came here. This is quite different from the fast-paced life I’m used to. Crime, suffering and corruption… here all outside worries seem to fade away. Not being influenced by these negative forces has a significant effect on your state of mind.

Through living here at Khula Dhamma; experiencing living in a close community and forming new relationships, I am realizing the importance of respect, mindfulness and love in our every day lives. Love for yourself, and love for your neighbour…these are aspects that will catalyze our transformation into the next stage of our growth as a species.

James Redfield gives a hauntingly beautiful explanation of our current state in his book the Tenth Insight_ An Experiential Guide (A must read to anyone interested in a better future-also his previous book the Celestine Prophecy) :

“As our level of consciousness expands, our vision of the world is transformed & we get a glimpse into the heart of creation. And as we learn how thought and visualization precede reality, we can begin to harness them to benefit our own future and that of the earth.”

“This awareness is causing you to make a response, like the man who asked: So what now? We’re used to being active, controlling our universe -or trying to- and getting results. But so far we have been pre-occupied with doing something to the outer world, not working on our inner world in which consciousness is king and queen. In order to make the shift, we have to deconstruct our old methods and views. That’s what the paradigm shift is all about. Can we deconstruct and de-condition our minds, take off our blinkers and let the light in fast enough to save ourselves, and our planetary habitat? That’s the question that makes us wake up at 3 and 4 in the morning.” [read part 1 of life in an eco village]