Gardens of Inspiration

''A thousand years ago people wore different clothes. They had different instruments at their disposal. But that is not the essence. Back a thousand years ago, just like today, people had the same feelings. Feelings are not subject to time''

 - Anastasia (book 1)

Hi everyone! Good health to your thoughts :)


Wow so where to begin? So much has been happening recently, it has been so incredible to watch this divine process unfold. Through Santosha I have connected with so many amazing beings and many of them share the desire to create a space of love. Truly, we are all now connected by the grand energy of co creation!


More and more I find myself haunted (in a good way) by visions of Santosha. It constantly occupies my thoughts and I can picture the future in greater detail every passing day. 


I have begun a new exercise regime where I wake in the early morning and power walk around my neighbourhood. I find I can cover a large distance every morning, giving me the chance to explore streets I have never walked down before. There is a magical energy in the early morning and very few people around. I love looking at peoples gardens, picking the trees and plants that I like and mentally placing them somewhere on my domain. When I get home I soak my feet in water, pour them on my vegetables and water the garden. Then its a shower, 20 minutes of Yoga followed by meditation. This new regime gives me a chance to think about life and about what I want to create :)



It turns out I am not the only one who is haunted by visions of Santosha. Check out these incredible photos of artwork done by future kinsmen of Santosha, David.


This incredible work is done on his cedar necklace. I got so excited when I first saw it, I think it's absolutely stunning! For my part, I have taken up drawing with water colours. I have found them extremely easy to use, and have really enjoyed sketching out scenes of our future domain!


Though summer has its own charm, I am really looking forward to Autumn this year, as I have plans to gather up the seed pods of all the trees I have admired from around Perth. After weeks of not finding any Oak trees anywhere in Perth, it seems I am now seeing them everywhere!!


I have been guilty of taking longer routes home, just so I can drive past an Oak tree! I didn't even know what an Oak tree looked like until this year, but now I have fallen in love with them. When I looked at the shape of the leaf, it awakened a cellular memory inside of me, possibly from lifetimes ago in Europe. That first night, whenever I closed my eyes I saw the shape of the leaf...


On that note, in our facebook group, we have created an album featuring pictures of some of the most common European trees. Hopefully this should serve as inspiration and education, as we gradually learn to differentiate between a Beech tree and an Elm (I cant tell the difference though!!).


http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.300519403326350.73630.222417754469849&type=1


However, a picture can only do so much, so for people who are really interested in learning all the different trees and choosing vegetation for their future domain, I want to share three of our favourite places to go to for inspiration. 




Golden Valley Tree Park


This place is my absolute favourite! This place is literally a 'Tree Museum' where tree's from around the world grow so people can come and enjoy them. I have been back three times now and I intend on visiting it again and again. This arboretum features Birches, Oaks, Cedars, Willows, Ash, Maples, Amber's, Elms and a massive variety of fruit trees. All of the trees have plaques so you can learn the names of the trees and they also have the year they were planted! This is so helpful so you can understand how many years it takes for a tree to grow to that height. The energy is just spectacular, I give this place my highest possible recommendation!!


http://www.goldenvalleytreepark.org.au/




King's Park

King's park truly is a treasure. It is immaculately maintained all year round and the staff are always friendly and happy to answer questions about the flora. They have now put plaques underneath most of the trees to help people identify them. It was at King's park that we first discovered the 'Australian Cedar' tree! Many of the trees are from across the globe, tree's we have never heard of before. If you live in Perth, I suggest checking it out in the evening. Give yourself a treat and go for a walk among the trees. Let them fuel your dreams of co creation :)


http://www.bgpa.wa.gov.au/kings-park




Wanneroo Botanical Gardens

I had never been to this amazing place before this year, but some friends and I headed out there one weekend to play miniature golf (so much fun) and just loved it! The gardens are incredible. The gazebo's and footpaths are blended seamlessly with massive tree's, vines, flowers, ferns and streams. The whole place was so lush! We even picked bananas off the tree's and ate them :) 


http://www.botanicgolf.com.au/




The Legal Structure


And now down to some of the business side of Santosha. Since we first wrote the blog, there have been many changes to the proposed legal structure for Santosha, though these are mostly technical changes. We still intend for the legal structure to be extremely thorough, so there is no doubt about people's legal rights to their land and we still intend for the structure to be founded on the principles of equality and democracy.


In short, now we are creating a co operative, rather than a company. A co operative is the ideal structure for what we are creating at Santosha, and the process is well under way. We have been writing the 'rules' or 'contracts' for weeks now. It is a very intense process that has taken many many hours, and we are still not complete yet. At the moment, we have about 30 questions that were sent a few weeks ago to the department of commerce (who have been very friendly and helpful) and we are still waiting on their reply. The questions we asked were quite in depth, and the legislation is very new and so they told us it may take some time for a response. Once we receive answers to these questions, we will work hard to finish writing all of the legalities as quickly as we can.


At that stage we will be sending out those documents to people who have had a dialogue with us to review. They will not be finalised at that point, but shared with the Santosha community to bring in more people to the process and ensure there is nothing important that we have missed. 


In addition to the legal rules we will also be sending out 'Alex's Guide to the Contract' which puts the rules in easy to understand terms, though we expect people will want to read both. We didn't want to send out just the rules because the legal language can be very intimidating at first glance. Already the contract is 27 pages long and it could easily double!


This is to cover the many contingencies that are unlikely to ever occur, but nonetheless provide a safety net. Reading the document, however, might give the wrong impression that Santosha is all legalistic and complicated, when we intend it to be anything but! Santosha will be a magical place of gardens and children, but we feel that having a solid legal framework in place is the key to unlocking paradise :)


These new developments do make some of the information in the initial series of blog posts obsolete, so once we have finalised the new legal structure, we will update the information there. 




Dialogues


The excitement of Santosha continues along, and Emily and I have had a number of dialogues recently. These dialogues are so much fun, as we chat and laugh about the Ringing Cedars and what kind of life we picture at Santosha.


Though there is a lot of interest, it is still hard to gauge exactly how many people are committed as 'definite' until we have the legal structure set up and have taken deposits. I would say that we probably have 8 or so families who are absolutely sure that they will sign up, with perhaps that many again having expressed strong interest. It's hard to say, but there is just so much momentum at the moment that it feels like everything could be happening very soon. 


In a very exciting development, after having a dialogue with us, one family indicated that they might be interested in purchasing more than one domain, giving the option for families to buy them at a later date. This is something we are currently exploring, as it will allow us to buy the land much sooner. 


For those who see the writing on the wall and know that self sufficient living is the way for the future, this opens up conscious investment opportunities. For families who are unsure, or who haven't heard of Santosha yet, this gives them the option of joining Santosha when it is already a thriving, established community. We haven't figured out all of the details yet, but options like these will allow us to be proactive in securing the land for Santosha :)



We have also been in contact with an eco village on the other side of Australia called Bindarrabi, who have been kind enough to share their legal documents with us. There is much to be gained with this kind of co operation, and we expect this to continue into the future. Emily is flying to the Eastern States for a few weeks in January and she will be visiting Bindarrabi to be shown around the property. The people who have created this community have been really friendly and we hope to be able to share resources with them in the future.


http://www.bindarrabi.com/


We have also been in contact over email and Skype with a couple in Southern Queensland who are looking to create a community similar to Santosha. It has been such a wonderful experience to connect with these people from across the country and feel their positive energy and inspiration :) If anyone is reading this blog in the Eastern States, check out their thread on the Ringing Cedars Revolution website:


http://www.ringingcedarsrevolution.com/group/australia/forum/topics/gold-coast-kins-domain


And so the journey goes on and on. Every step is beautiful...


Our blog has had almost 1500 views already! If you have been following the progress of Santosha with keen interest, and are considering joining us, be sure to get in personal contact with Emily and I so that we can have a dialogue :)


Also be sure to sign up for email updates in the side bar. This will notify you when there is a new blog post up, so you stay well informed with all the goings on. 

We know Santosha won't be the only large scale domain community in Western Australia. Within the decade there may be hundreds, or thousands! We invite you to the future. We invite you to co creation. We invite you to Santosha!


Many many blessings x


''Now you and a lot of people will be able to see this splendid future materialised. The energy of her thought is extraordinarily strong, and her strength has no equal anywhere in space. It is perfect and quite specific, but the main thing is that she keeps on gaining strength thanks to the help of other people's thinking. She is no longer alone''


 - The Energy of Life (book 7)

(9) The Way Forward

That is no made-up story, but a projection of the future. The names and locales are not important. What is important is the essence, the idea, the dream! And if my story has evoked positive feelings, then people will certainly project its essence into the future, and many people will add their own details and infuse the projection with their own great meaning and conscious awareness.


 - The New Civilization (book 8.1)


It seems as though the journey is coming to an end, the last of our information notes. Appearances, however, can be deceptive. Remember the words shared between Adam and God in Co Creation (book 4):


''Where is the edge of the Universe? What will I do when I come to it? When I myself fill everything, and have created everything I have conceived?''


'''My son. The Universe itself is a thought, a thought from which was born a dream, which is partially visible as matter. When you approach the edge of all creation, your thought will reveal a new beginning and continuation. From obscurity will arise a new and resplendent birth of you, and it will reflect in itself your soul, your dreams, your whole aspirations. My son, you are infinite, you are eternal. Within you are your dreams of Creation.'''


It only appears that we have reached the end, but truly we have only really just begun. Santosha exists in the minds and hearts of hundred of people now, all contributing their own unique energy to this grand co creation. This energy will continue to grow in strength and beauty...


There is so much enthusiasm. People want to know more information, they want to visit the property and I get many offers from people who want to know if they can help in some way. I know how they feel. Once you are excited about the future, it can't come quick enough! You just want to be busy every day, somehow contributing to your dream and bringing it that little bit closer. Well I am pleased to say, there is much that can be done! There is no need to sit on your hands and wait, for we can all be proactive in helping to create Santosha. Lets look at the path ahead :)


The Books

The first step I recommend to anyone who is interested in Santosha is to read the books. If you have already read the books, my recommendation is to re read the books!


Santosha is a community crafted from the ideas of the Ringing Cedars series. If what you have read on this blog has appealed to you so far, and you think that Santosha might be your future, then come back to the books and then listen to your soul. Feel the words of Anastasia ripple across your being and fill you with inspiration. Re-connect with your own dreams of creation. 


All official publishers of ''The Ringing Cedars of Russia' series of books are presented at the following link: http://vmegre.com/en/representatives/


Please subscribe to the latest news at Vladimir Megre official site www.vmegre.com to have updated information on all editions.


Choose Your Destiny


After reading the books, and looking at all the information we have here about Santosha, take some time to really think about your life. What do you picture in 5 years? What do you picture in 20 years? What kind of world do you want to raise children in? Talk it over with your friends, your parents, your partner. This is a major decision. If after this period of contemplation, you realise that Santosha is for you, then its time to get VERY EXCITED!!


From Now to Santosha


Dialogue


There is much to do! Your first step is to schedule a dialogue with Emily and Myself. (For more information on the 'dialogue' process, see our previous not (8) Promoting peaceful co-existence and harmony within the community).


You can find our contact details on the sidebar of this blog. We look forward to hearing from you :)


Deposit


After the dialogue, the next step is to secure yourself a place at Santosha. You can choose which of the housing timeframes will best suit you, and then make a deposit (For more information on this, see our previous notes (6) Housing) and (7) The Legal Structure). 


The deposit is $3 000, and only available to people who have had a dialogue. This money goes to pay costs necessary before we actually purchase the land. They also determine the order of choice when it comes to selecting domains. 


Buying the Land

Once we have enough people (or money) to purchase the land, then it comes time to purchase shares in the company. This will only be made available to people who have made a deposit. The shares will be $60 000. The combined cost of the both of the blocks that we want to purchase is $1.4 million. That means that $50 000 of the $60 000 will go to paying the cost of the property. The other $10 000 will be set aside for community funds. This will pay for council rates, roads etc. 


Once the land is ours, we will divide it into domains and allow people to begin selecting their future home!


Don't wait, Create!

As you can see, there is much to do! We must start planning for our future now. When you go for a walk around the neighbourhood, start taking notice of the different trees that you like. Soon you will be deciding what to plant in your space of love!


Start researching planting techniques and the growth cycles of plants. Make drawings of your future domain. Allow inspiration to BECOME you!


Equally important is the practical side of all this preparation. There is money that must be raised. Granted, if you consider that we are buying land in the most desirable part of the South-West region, the cost involved in Santosha is relatively inexpensive. For the same cost that we will be getting 1.5 hectares, a sustainable house and beautiful neighbours, here in Perth city, you would probably only be able to afford an apartment. 


Having said that, in Santosha you cannot take out a mortgage on the house. For us young people, we don't have the money simply sitting around waiting to be spent. Emily and I have had to make budgets, investments (silver) and plans for the future so that we can raise enough money to pay for this amazing future. In the short term, it means working a lot. 


It is a labour of love though. Each day of studying, or working brings us one step closer to our dream. It is important to formulate a financial plan for how you can pay for your share of Santosha. Don't work toooo hard though. Remember, if your not having fun then your doing something wrong :P


Can we Help?


It is so heartening to say, that one of the most common questions I get is - ''Is there anything I can do to help''? I am pleased to say that YES THERE IS!!! :)


We can absolutely use your help. In fact it is essential!


Right now, Santosha is in the 'promotional' stage of its development. We are currently making ourselves known to the world. We rely on word of mouth for the dream of Santosha to reach the ears of those who have read the Ringing Cedars of Russia series. Please share our information with your email lists. Please pass our information on to anyone who has read the books and is interested in living in a domain community. At parties, if the subject comes up, please tell everyone about what we are creating at Santosha. 


Truly, it is through your words that Santosha will come into being. If you are planning to live with us at Santosha, then talk about your future to everyone you meet. If you have read this blog, but are not planning on living at Santosha, please keep this information in the back of your head so that when the universe delivers to you someone for whom this information is intended, you can help destiny along by pointing them in our direction. For all the generous words spoken about Santosha so far, and for all of the words spoken in the future, I offer my heartfelt thankyou!


In the future, there may be other opportunities for people to help out (in fact i'm certain of it) but for now, we need help in sharing this information all over Perth (and the world!).


The Collective Dream Circle


Once we start taking deposits, and we can officially recognise the future kin of Santosha, then will begin our collective dream circles. Can you recall in the Ringing Cedars series when Anastasia elucidates the virtues of collective thought? She tells Vladimir how to create a flying saucer using the mental energy of a dozen individuals who possess conscious awareness and purity of thought. She also explains how the Vedruss civilisation learned to even control the weather with collective thought. 

The lesson appears to be that, while one individual possesses enormous energy with their thoughts, many individuals together can significantly boost their strength, and bring about creations with greater speed and accuracy. We aim to utilise the potential of this energy when creating Santosha. 


Occasionally we will be hosting gatherings called 'The Collective Dream Circle'. Don't be intimidated though, these events are just a chance for you to get to know your future neighbours and chat about Santosha and the Ringing Cedars. After people have had a chance to chat, we will then begin the Collective Dream Circle. People are free to speak their hearts about the future they see with Santosha, and we can all hold the beautiful energy of that vision. Our collective thoughts will undoubtedly see the rapid manifestation of these dreams :)


The Blog Lives On!


This is not the end of the blog. The blog will continue to be a place where we share information about Santosha. There are new developments all the time, and I will keep you updated on all of these goings on by this blog. That way, everyone is up to date on Santosha and you can follow the progress live as it happens! Look on the side-bar of this blog, you will find an option that says 'Follow us on email!'. Be sure to enter your email address here, so that you can stay up to date with all things Santosha!

We are also planning our 'Santosha Kin' series. This will be a series of interviews with the future kin of Santosha (people who have secured their place by deposit). This will give blog readers a chance to get to know all the lovely people that have heard the calling of Santosha and are ready to begin their new life. We will ask them about how they found out about the Ringing Cedars, why drew them to Santosha and what their plans are for the future. 


Hopefully we can all take heart from the stories of Santosha's future kin. It is inspiring to see anyone who has a dream of creation, and is living their life to put that dream into practice. In the words of Anastasia's Grandfather in The Ringing Cedars of Russia (book 2)


''A breathtaking dawn of a new day is something to be admired''

And so here we are. At the end of our information notes, and at the beginning of a new dawn. The journey is far from over. Indeed, more people join the journey every day. For this is not just about Margaret River or 28 families. This is not just about Australia. This is about a new consciousness that is sweeping across the Earth and being felt in every corner of the universe. 


For the first time in so many years, God has heard talk about the perfection of His creations. Millions of his sons and daughters now aspire to create their kin's domains, their own space of love. At the time of writing this, I am actually very emotional....


Blessings to you all x


Thank you, sons and daughters, for your aspirations.


 - The Energy of Life (book 7) 

(8) Promoting Peaceful Co-Existence and Harmony within the Community

The Truth has been there right from the start in each one's soul. Not tomorrow, but here today each Man may be happy and whole! The creator has filled each moment of every year with gladness. And in his thought there is no room for His beloved child to feel torment from sadness.


 - Space of Love (book 3)




We want Santosha to be a place of divine creation, where people feel happy and free and each day brings exciting new challenges! We have many grand ideas of what life will be like, living on our domains, and I am confident that they will all come true! All of the amazing feelings of inspiration that you felt when reading the Ringing Cedars, we hope to embody that energy with our gardens and our way of life. 


In the process of creating Santosha, I have done a lot of research into other eco-communities, particularly those in Russia. Its amazing how many flourishing domain communities already exist in Russia, inhabited by conscious beings who feel their connection to the earth. Many children are being born in these communities. Gardens have been planted!


However, in the mixture of all this positive news, there have also been reports of failed communities and conflict. From my research, I have ascertained that the main cause of this has been poor planning. The organisers of these communities were not realistic in their expectations for how people would relate to each other. We all know that we are returning to our pristine origins, and soon every interaction and relationship will be spiritually fulfilling. Having said that, I don't believe it helps to be hopelessly idealistic. People sometimes have disagreements. Even 'spiritual' people have gotten into arguments before. 


In this blog post what I want to talk about is how we plan to minimise conflict and promote harmony within the community. Our focus will be on Freedom and Prevention.




Freedom

Im a big fan of freedom. Montessori education (where I have worked and studied) is based on the philosophy that each individual child knows best what to study, and so they are granted that freedom. In this way, the child maintains a passion for learning and embraces the responsibility of shaping their own destiny.


The philosophy of liberty communicates great respect to those granted freedom. I have made mistakes before in my life, but those close to me did not forbid me from making those mistakes. They trusted me. They believed that I could learn from every experience and so did not try and control me. If a parent is overly controlling of their child, the child senses that their parents to not really trust them. 


We feel that is is absolutely essential that each person at Santosha can stand up their own domain, feel their connection to the land and KNOW that they are free. 


Santosha is a community. However, the word community can mean many different things. In my research I came across a domain community that was being formed in New Zealand, where every person was going to be an employee of the community. There would be mandatory work hours in the collective fruit orchard amongst other things, and people would be allocated a wage. Perhaps this kind of arrangement might suit some people, but it is very different from Santosha. 

We envisage a domain community as a union of independent families. Each family is given their freedom and autonomy. 


To this end, Santosha will not be a place with a lot of rules. Some rules perhaps are necessary. For example, no genetically modified seeds will be allowed, because the wind will blow them to the next domain and compromise the neighbours ability to grow healthy produce. 


For the most part though, there will be as few rules as possible. Santosha must grow organically, based on the voluntary actions of people expressing their creativity. 


Leonid Sharashkin gave the example of one community that mandated that every person meet in the community hall every morning for a group meditation. Great idea! I think group meditations are wonderful, and I would enjoy participating in an event like this. However, just because I think this message has a lot of merit, I would never want to create a rule FORCING people to attend.


What if someone doesn't feel like meditating one morning? Will there be some kind of punishment? Ridiculous! hahaha!!


Events like this need to be organised on a voluntary basis. If I think it would be a good idea to have group meditations in the morning, I will suggest the idea and encourage people to join me if they choose. They are completely free in their decision. I would not go to the shareholders meeting and try and enforce participation by the creation of a rule. The philosophy of liberty encourages us to trust individuals and feel confident that change is best affected by voluntary means, not coercion.




Prevention


Two people can read the same book and get two completely different interpretations. Just look at Christianity. Although all Christians claim the bible is the source of their religion, there are over 39 000 different denominations operating in the world today!

In a similar way, people may have read the Ringing Cedars series and foresee a completely different future for themselves than what we are creating with Santosha. That is wonderful! There is nothing wrong with diversity. How dull the world would be if everyone was the same. I believe that Santosha will be a very diverse place, with each family expressing their freedom in their own unique way. 

However, it may happen that the differences between our vision and someone else's may be so vast that it makes more sense that we each 'do our own thing'. If we have vastly different ideologies operating within the same community, there is potential for conflict. It would be preferable that we both say to each other, ''I fully respect your right to live your life however you choose but it makes practical sense that we live in different communities. That way, we can admire each others differences from a distance rather than butt heads as neighbours.''


For example, we have noted differences from some of the people we have chatted to regarding our emphasis on freedom. One person felt that we should make it mandatory that every person in the community is vegetarian. Another felt that we should have tight restrictions on intellectual property, so that neighbours don't copy each others techniques for growing vegetables etc.


I understand that some people might be passionate about being vegetarian, and there is nothing wrong with that. I suspect that some time in the future, vegetarianism is something I too will consider. However, if I ever made the change from eating meat to being vegetarian, I would want to make that decision myself, not because some rule forced me to or because someone made me feel guilty. To exercise my freedom to make that decision would be an empowering experience. 


The main tenet of our strategy of prevention is a process that we call 'dialogue'.




Dialogue


A dialogue is the last step before making a deposit. Its where you sit down with Emily and I and we chat about life, and about Santosha. It is designed to see if we are on the same page about what we want out of a Domain Community. It is our hope that by ensuring that we have like minded people in the community, inspired by the vision of freedom, that we will have a very peaceful and harmonious future.  


We will have questions for people, and we hope that they have questions for us! Joining a community like Santosha is not a small decision. We want people to feel comfortable to ask any question they like, to bring up any concern. We also encourage people to make suggestions of their own. Of course, we have our own vision for Santosha, but there is great freedom within that vision. 


If we picture very different things for Santosha, it will quickly become clear during the dialogue and at that point we will part ways. There can be numerous Domain Communities throughout the South-West, each with a different focus. They can co-exist in cooperation, rather than competition. Such is the beauty of freedom.


We will now share some of the things we will be talking about during these dialogues.






The Ringing Cedars Books


Santosha is a domain community inspired by the ideas of Anastasia and Vladimir Megre. The philosophy that guides our vision is contained within the Ringing Cedars series. We have had one person ask us why the Ringing Cedars, why not just an eco-community? Its because we LOVE the Ringing Cedars!!!

These books have changed my life. I feel as if I have found some piece of myself that I lost long ago. My appreciation of nature, my views on children, on God! It is my soul that feels this connection, but the Ringing Cedars pointed me there. The Ringing Cedars contains a complete philosophy of life. 


Before a dialogue it is essential to have read the books. We will talk about the concepts contained within. Was there anything in the books that you did not agree with, or any parts that have got you especially excited?




Children


Emily and I are especially interested in discussing how to raise children, if you have children already or if you have plans to start a family. When I first read what Anastasia said about raising children, my heart sang with joy. It was such a revelation and it resonated so strongly with me. Her insights into the nature of children, along with conception and birth, are so incredible, she may be the first person in thousands of years to elucidate a philosophy so beautiful.

The potential for raising happy children, eating food grown on your own domain, in close connection with nature is extremely exciting. From one perspective, her ideas seem utterly simple. Be authentic when talking with children. Allow them to communicate with nature. Avoid interrupting their thoughts. Listen attentively when they speak. Honour the purity and wisdom that every child is capable of expressing. 


However, from the perspective of the old paradigm, this method of child raising could be seen as bizarre or even extreme. See what Anastasia says about playing with toys:

Anastasia, along with all her forebears, treat a newborn as a deity or an immaculate angel. They consider it totally unacceptable to interfere with a child's thought process. Anastasia says that the very moment I observed little Vladimir contemplating something in the grass, he was becoming aware not only of the bugs but of all creation.

According to her, a bug is a more perfect mechanism than any manufactured product. A child provided with the opportunity to communicate with these perfect beings will himself become more perfect than through communication with primitive lifeless objects. Artificial objects have no connection to the universe and do not arrange priorities and values in the child's brain in the right way.

 - Space of Love (book 3)

You might think that this is common sense to anyone who has read the Ringing Cedars, but we feel it is an important area of discussion. Emily and I once visited a family who was setting up a kin's domain along the lines of the Ringing Cedars series. They were a lovely family, and the father spoke very eloquently about the ideas of the Ringing Cedars. One thing that we found strange, however, was the number of toys in the house. We felt it would be impolite to ask about them, but we wondered why this family had all these toys for their child? It seemed to be antithetical to the philosophy that guided the rest of their lives.

The lesson I took from this experience is that, just because two people have read the Ringing Cedars books does not mean that they automatically agree on how to best implement those ideas. 

If not discussed, this issue could become an area of conflict between families. One family may be keen to create a natural environment where their children play with animals and plants. Another family might fill their environment with plastic toys. This might concern the first family, that their children will be playing and their child will be exposed to objects that they had wanted to limit.

As we stated already, we don't believe that rules would help this situation. A rule such as 'No toys' would just generate resentment from people who don't appreciate being told how to live. I personally would not want to join a community that had such strict regulations. 

Having said that, we hope that we can avoid conflicts like this arising through the dialogue process. By ensuring that everyone is on the same page, there will be no unexpected surprises when we get to Santosha!

Organic Food

Man uses the fruits of nature for food, and if he begins to feed himself with mutant fruits, he will be gradually transformed into a mutant himself.

 - Who Are We? (book 5)

As I stated before, I assume that most of this is common sense for people who have read the Ringing Cedars books. We are interested in growing healthy, organic produce without the use of genetic modification or harmful chemicals.

Television

Of course there won't be any rules about use of television in Santosha, but we are curious to know peoples views on this. Personally, we don't plan on having a television in our house. I consider that for most of my life I was actually addicted to television. For many years I could not fall asleep without the TV on, which I'm sure was very harmful. 

In the Ringing Cedars series, television advertising is described as aggressive mental suggestions. We are particularly vulnerable to this kind of programming while watching TV, as we are in a vulnerable state. 

Ultimately, we want our children to be raised by nature, not be television. Television and video games are very seductive for children. One family having a playstation may have an influence that ripples throughout the whole community. 

Drugs and Alcohol

I have the personal belief that people should be allowed the freedom to use whatever substances they wish. I'm disappointed that our government thinks it is necessary to regulate what we put into our bodies, especially with regards to natural substances. Even though I don't use any of these substances, it seems bizarre that medicinal plants made by God are illegal.

Of course, there will be no rules against things that are already against the law. What we want to talk about is about peoples specific views on drugs and alcohol. Personally, the message Emily and I want to portray to our children is that there is no need alter their consciousness. There is nothing wrong with how they are already :)

Pets

Everyone loves animals, and as we talked about in our previous note '(5) The Property' part of the community is set aside specifically to keep animals. What we really want to chat about is cats and dogs.

This is mostly from the perspective of protecting peoples property rights. We want people to know that they don't need to worry about the neighbouring dog coming onto their domain and digging up their vegetables. Cats are known killers of native wildlife, and we want to ensure that Santosha is a sanctuary for native animals. 

None of this means that there can't be cats and dogs at Santosha. We want to make sure people are aware that it will be necessary to contain their pets by some method to their own domain.

Living on your Domain

One of the areas that I came across in my research which I had never really considered, that caused a lot of conflict in some of the Russian communities was the issue of kinsmen vs townsmen. 

A kinsmen is someone who is living on their domain all year round. A townsmen is someone who owns a domain, perhaps has a holiday there, but otherwise lives in the city. It turns out that these two groups have very different interests. According to my research, townsmen are often very reluctant to spend community funds, since they are not living in the community. Townsmen are also more idealistic about solutions, while kinsmen, living on their land, are more practical. 

Our solution to this problem is to make sure that we only attract kinsmen to Santosha. In the dialogues we will talk about our plans and intentions. We want to make sure that people who are signing up to Santosha are going to be living there. We want beautiful neighbours and children for our children to play with!

Your Questions!!

We do have a list of dialogue questions, and in our dialogues so far they have all stimulated fascinating discussions. However, this process is about more than our set list of questions. We want to get to know you, and we want you to get to know us. We are curious to know if there was anything about Santosha that you have heard or read about that concerns you or are interested to know more. 

We want to hear your questions!

In our experience so far with the dialogue process, mostly it has consisted of lots of creative energy and lots of excitement. There have been heaps of ideas about what we'll create in the future, lots of fun really. It is such a pleasure to be around people passionate about the Ringing Cedars. Especially when these people might be your future neighbours!!

Look and see, see the power of a woman, the power of pure love. At the very last moment before death it is capable of giving new life. Capable of lifting up any Man, rescuing him from the tenacious paws of darkness and carrying him into the brightness of infinity. Capable of surrounding him with the Space of Love and giving him new life, which is life eternal.

 - The Ringing Cedars of Russia (book 2)