NEW SHOOTS

I haven’t written this blog since 2024 and this is the first time in 2025. The last few months have been busy in many ways and I have felt very unclear about a lot of things. This being mirrored by the situation in Buddha Garden to which I returned on the second day of 2025.

The first three months of the year are always a busy time in ‘Guest Season Auroville’ when there are a lot of both international and local visitors. I found myself in many meetings with people from all over the world who want to help Auroville, especially Auroville farms. I talked to a lot of people about the new Auroville reality, especially about how this has affected farmers and how they are responding to the new challenges.

Unsurprisingly it made me think more deeply about the ongoing situation in Buddha Garden and our response so far. Where a new VIP road is planned together with using the farmland for car parks for the nearby Visitors Centre.

One of the new shoots is that in Buddha Garden we are sharing more consciously is both our experience and seeds as part of what we still have to give.

At the end of April I came to Malaysia where I ran a workshop about seed saving in Kebun Kebun, a community garden in Kuala Lumpur.

Responding to this very uncertain situation has been difficult, but now it feels that along with some clarity new shoots are arising. And it is these that I have written about in my first piece in the ‘Reflections’ section of this website ‘A New Vision for a New Reality’. Which examines how a new physical reality in Buddha Garden farm has given rise to a new vision for the place and our role within it. This despite the uncertainty we face and not knowing whether or when the farm will cease to exist.

I returned to Chempaka Kuning farm in the north of Malaysia and continue to help Ashok with setting it up.

You can find the latest video about this, plus all the recent videos about Buddha Garden at my Earth Friendly Food Growing video channel on YouTube