Prefiguring Utopia: The Auroville Experiment

by Suryamayi Aswini Clarence-Smith

Overview

Auroville in Tamil Nadu, South India, is an internationally recognized endeavour in prefiguring an alternative society: the largest, most diverse, dynamic and enduring of intentional communities worldwide.

This book is a critical and insightful analysis of the utopian practice of this unique spiritual township, by a native scholar. The author explores how Auroville’s founding spiritual and societal ideals are engaged in its communal political and economic organization, as well as various cultural practices and what enables and sustains this prefiguratively utopian practice.

This in-depth, autoethnographic case study is an important resource for understanding prefigurative and utopian experiments – their challenges, potentialities and significance for the advancement of human society.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781529230789
Publisher:	Bristol University Press
Publication date:	10/24/2023
Series:	Alternatives to Capitalism in the 21st Century
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	202
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x (d)

About the Author

Suryamayi Aswini Clarence-Smith is a scholar, activist and educator based in Auroville, India, the largest intentional community in the world, where she is affiliated with the Sri Aurobindo Institute of International Educational Research.

Table of Contents

Foreword - Bem Le Hunte

1. All Life is Yoga: An Introduction

Part 1: Culture

2. Auroville Is …

3. A Spiritually Prefigurative Culture: The Uniqueness of Auroville’s Utopian Practice

Part 2: Polis

4. Divine Anarchy? The Development of the Auroville Polity

5. Spiritually Prefigurative Politics in Practice: An Embodied Account of an Auroville Community Decision-Making Process

Part 3: Economy

6. 'No Exchange of Money'? The Development of Auroville’s Communal Economy

7. The Institutional Potential of Prefigurative Experiments: The Evolution of Collective Accounts in Auroville

8. Auroville and Beyond: The Grounded Hopes and Horizons of Spiritually Prefigurative Practice – A Conclusion

Afterword - Ana Cecilia Dinerstein

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Clarence-Smith’s exploration of Auroville tracks the ideas, challenges and evolution of counter-institutional practice along with the small-scale experimental projects that inhabited and advanced its collectivist vision. A wonderful, thoughtful study of intentional community life.” Davina Cooper, King’s College London

“In a spiritually barren and broken world, utopian thinking is a necessity, not a luxury. We need to reconfigure our society based on spiritual principles which is what Auroville does. This brilliant rendering of Auroville’s story evokes much-needed hope and love. I strongly recommend this book to scholars, artists and activists who seek a better world.” Sarath Davala, Sociologist, Chair, Basic Income Earth Network

“We live in a moment of unprecedented change. As the world casts about for new solutions and models, this book offers valuable lessons – both positive and cautionary – about utopian practice and societal transformation. An ambitious, nuanced and honest account of a unique community, with potentially global application.” Akash Kapur, Princeton University

“For those searching for a hopeful practical example and inspiring prefigurative practices of how we can enact progressive societal change, this is the book you need.” Jenny Pickerill, University of Sheffield