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Lotus-shaped urn: symbol of human unity

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A HOPEFUL VISION FOR INDIA & THE WORLD

"Auroville wants to be a universal town where men and women of all countries are able to live in peace and progressive harmony, above all creeds, all politics and all nationalities. The purpose of Auroville is to realize human unity". --The Mother

This was the first public statement made on Auroville by the Mother, founder of Auroville, in 1965. Three years later, at the inauguration ceremony of Auroville on 28th February 1968, youth representing 121 countries and 23 Indian States placed a handful of earth in a lotus-shaped urn, symbolizing the creation of a city dedicated to human unity, international understanding and a hopeful future for humanity.

Today, Auroville is an expanding community of about 1,500 people from India and some 30 other countries around the world. Located in a rural area of Tamil Nadu, South India, it is surrounded by 13 villages with a population of approximately 40,000 people.

The General Assembly of UNESCO unanimously passed in 1966, 1968, 1970 and 1983 resolutions of support for Auroville, inviting "member states and international non-governmental organisations to participate in the development of Auroville as an international cultural township designed to bring together the values of different cultures and civilizations in a harmonious environment with integrated living standards which correspond to man's physical and spiritual needs."

In 1988, the Government of India passed the Auroville Foundation Act to safeguard the development of the International Cultural Township of Auroville according to its Charter. Under this Act, an autonomous institution, the Auroville Foundation, has been established with a Governing Board presently chaired by Dr. M. S. Swaminathan, and an International Advisory Council. In his presentation of the Act before the Indian Parliament, Shri P. Shiv Shanker, the then Indian Minister of Human Resources Development, said:

Next: A LABORATORY FOR A SUSTAINABLE PLANET

This presentation on Auroville will be conducted by Guy Ryckaert and Shivaya, long time residents of Auroville.