The Bauhaus, founded in 1919 at Weimar, Germany by Walter Gropius, was arguably the most influential school of design in modern times, set up in the form of a residential creative community of designers, craftsmen, architects and artists. As part of its central ideal, Water Gropius, the founder of the Bauhaus, envisaged a world made up of creative communities united spiritually in and around a materialized soul, which he likened to "a crystal cathedral." Today, Bauhaus influenced architecture is ubiquitous as the symbol of world modernity, but Gropius' dream is far from fulfilled. This article explores the historical dimensions of this ideal, the causes for its failure and the possible conditions for its postmodern manifestation.   more »

Consisting of more than 100 settlements spread over 20 square kilometers, around 1900 residents from some 40 nations live together as one community in Auroville. Auroville was founded by the ‘Mother’, a disciple of Sri Aurobindo, in February 1968 as an international cultural township on the outskirts of Puducherry where a community of people of different nationalities, from different ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds, could live and work together in a spirit of mutual respect and collaboration.

The true purpose of Auroville is a place for the realization of international understanding, peace and human unity in diversity based upon an inner discovery and transformation of consciousness, the way as shown by Sri Aurobindo and The Mother. ...   more »

Click on the 'more >' link to see these beautiful new photos of the Matrimandir at Auroville, courtesy of Bhavana & friends:

Matrimandir is emerging from the soil of Auroville,

Inspiring the sky to also aspire

For That which is beyond the sky, beyond the soil,
beyond Auroville. ...   more »