“Village Action Group” is taking care of more than 50 villages around Auroville. This organization, which combines Aurovilians and salaried employees, tries to help villagers (especially women and youth) to organize themselves into self-help groups, for personal and economical development (micro-credit) and village development (micro-project). Other activities also supported by Village Action are education, sports, culture, health, ecology… Anbu has worked for 20 years in AVAG; he now directs its activities under a trust of “Village Action Group”.

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“My name is Swamynathan. I studied in Kanchipuram, but I came to the village of Irumbai to work in the temple there, which is actually our family temple. I have been working there for the past four years performing puja. Irumbai temple is a very ancient one. It is said that long ago Thirunanna Sambanther came to this temple, singing a song regarding Kaduvali. In front of the temple there's a Banyan tree, where he had sat in meditation, as for the past year there had been no rain. During that time his only food was the leaves of the Banyan tree.”

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Here some words by Sunder who is in process to apply as New Comer. “I am Sunder from Edayanchavady. I work at Buddha Garden, doing animal care; there are many different things to take care for. Right now I work as a volunteer. I am interested in most of the things I do and love working with animals. I start early morning, around 6 o'clock and work until 9 a.m. It means doing farming in the morning and afterwards I start animal care around 10 a.m. I feel farm work is an important thing in the life. I have done my BBA and after that I got a job in Auroville... so I'm happy to work in Auroville and would like offer fully to Auroville.”

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Have you ever wondered how people party in the village? Tuesday, February 24th marked the end of a nearly week-long festival in honor of the Hindu Goddess Kali. AurovilleRadio attended the festivities of the final evening in the village of Alankupam and caught glimpses of a Tamil festival atmosphere. Play the following selection to learn about the Goddess Kali and hear an interview with Vika asking Shaktivel, a local resident, to explain how the festival unfolds.

mp3/2009_02_24_magazine_kali_festival_english_lite.mp3 Also, click READ MORE to see photos from the event. Read more

Would you like to save money, eat less, feel better, and help the environment all at once? A new revolution in eating, the raw food diet may lead you to do all of this and more. This edition of Towards Sustainability will delve into inner as well as outer sustainability. Are you familiar with Prana: the life force? According to Anandi, Prana is most available to humans in raw food. Listen to the following interview with Anandi from KOFPU to learn more about the benefits of raw food, her personal journey, and upcoming workshops so you can learn to cook and eat raw as well. “You are what you eat!”

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Last Tuesday His Holiness the Dalai Lama visited Auroville  for the third time since 1973, this time to inaugurate the newly completed Pavilion of Tibetan Culture. Prior to his public address he made a brief visit to Matrimandir, accompanied by a small entourage of monks and security guards.  Approximately 3,000 people, including school children, sat quietly to listen to him speak on the of theme ‘Human Unity and Universal Responsibility.'  At the completion of his talk the Dalai Lama responded to a number of questions from the audience.

Read more

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Quite some time ago, on Tuesday the 23rd of December, there was a great cultural Program at Udavischool. Students from nearly all grades presented; play, dance, and singing. And once again it was showed up what great work is happening at the Udavischool project. There was English as well as French play, and Tamil as well as Sanskrit singing. And even if it is not possible to let you feel the whole energy that was in the air, here is at least the audio from this very nice performance.

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Golus last day is saraswathy pooja. 9 days we pray to ambal. By praying to God this way we get sakthi in ourselves. On the 10 day it is iyida pooja which is for iyadam (weapons). Only in indian culture we pray with weapons, and cows. We thank the cows and weapons because we use them for our uses. We make Golu a interesting day for kids by tell stories and placing dolls shaped like god on shelves. We give prasadam to people.

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In a rainy day of the end of November Prahlad Tipanya came to reunite 70 Aurovilians in an improvised choir to sing Kabir. Kabir, the mystic poet, openly criticized all sects and gave a new direction to the Indian philosophy. This is due to his straight forward approach that has a universal appeal. It is for this reason that Kabir is held in high esteem all over the world. Aurovilians were happy to celebrate singing this unifying poetry.

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For the english magazine of today, a talk about Aurovilles present and future with Tixon. A young Indian, born in Auroville, who tells us how he found his way to Auroville and what made him come back after finishing his school in England. He talks about both: the positive influences of western culture, as well as the positive influences of the surounding villages, giving their piece to the diversity of Auroville. To listen to the whole Interview, you can click here.

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Sathyamurthy and Anbu are from Ediyanchavadi. They both work at Thamarai in the role of social worker. Sathyamurthy also works at the Botanical Garden as an environmental teacher. He explains Thamarai's activities: what they are doing for the people, children and adults. Nearly one hundred children attend, learning different classes such as dance, drama, yoga, pottery, sports, mathematics, and so on. Kathy and Bridget are the two main persons who started Thamarai in Edaiyanchavadi; they have worked hard to develop its activities.

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Everyone was warmly invited to Thamarai on the evening of 23rd October. The children of Thamarai community centre, Edayanchavadi, were sharing with us the songs they love to sing, along with Anicca, Tiago, Jivan and Sangara. They even recorded a CD which will travel and be sung by children all around the world. It was an unforgettable evening, with an unbelievable amount of energy in the air.

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Raji, from Alankuppam, is a member of the Sri Aurobindo Women's Group. This five year old group is part of Village Action. Their work includes public social work such as helping people clean their village and helping children who attend night school in their village. They receive advice or help as needed from the Village Action Group as well as attending the meeting in village action monthly. They come from several different villages: Kottakkari, Pudhupakkam and Allankuppam, all members of the Village Action Group. Initially they began with one group and increased in number, expanding creatively what they do with the recycled paper.

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Seenuvasan, living in the village Irumbai, presently works in an employment profit-fund office in Auroville. He first came to Auroville in 1989 working in construction at Matrimandir. The following year he found work at Bharat Nivas as an editing assistant in the Secretary's office. Sreenevasan has also worked evenings at Ilaigarkal School. He appreciates that many tourists come here as well as villagers, for the peace and harmony offered in a place like Auroville.

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Bharat Nivas Group organized a food festival called 'Paratha Wali Gully' at Kala Kendra from 29-31 August, 2008. Rangeeta Murada, chef and restauranteur who lives in Pondicherry initiated the idea and managed the kitchen. Some 300 people tasted her parathas over the 3 days and the festival was very successful. She speaks about parathas, the festival, her background and future plans.

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Puja is an ancient Indian habitual practice  that people from villages  surrounding Auroville still continue in their daily lives. One can learn with two local Indian women, Zerina and Harini, from  Life Education Center (located in Kotakarai) how  people here in Tamil Nadul perform their consecrations, which day is dedicated to each god, and the annual rhythm of the pujas. One can dip into this village custom by asking for a CD copy.  You can also listen to the beginning of the interview (just click the logo play).

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Here is part of the story of the Siva Temple in Irumbai, according to the people's knowledge: It was built approximately 1400 years ago and people have been worshipping at this Siva Temple for the last eight generations. One of the many stories about how this temple came to be; once there was a Maharishi who meditated for many years and suddenly the land became dry, many animals died. The village people wondered what had happened. They discovered that through the Maharishi's meditation, drought had come to the land.

Read more

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Between June and July Auroville's surrounding villages commemorate their annual Temple Festival. This time of happiness, gathering and celebration can last from 2 to 21 days depending on the size of the village. All of these festivals share common faith, gods (Mariamma, Ganesh, Shiva...), ornamentation of flowers, music and women wearing brand new sarees as they cook pongal around the temple. One can dip in the village festivals by asking a CD at the radio or sending an email here . You can also listen to the beginning of the interview (just click the logo play). View photos by clicking on 'READ MORE'. Read more

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In the second program of the series 'Experience Tamil Culture' one can know more about an ancient Indian meditation. The Kolam is a drawing done every day in the space in front of the house. Much more than simple beautiful patterns, kolam is a prayer to welcome the sun god, the good spirits and also the friends. Only women are allowed to do this early morning ritual, the knowledge of which passed from mother to daughter for generations. One can create a lot of different designs, but the tradition requires it to be done bending all the body (as in yoga asanas) and to use white rice powder (a symbolic way to provide food to the ants and insects). Read more

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To listen to the singing of the women of Auroville's neighboring villages, Poothurai and Kottakarai, is like going back to the common origin of mankind... The leader of the songs is followed by the group clapping or singing, creating a sound where the rhythm meets the melody.  Here, in the presence of the ancestor of socialisation, the sound becomes harmony. All the questions have an answer. Thank you Sudakar for this recording.

To listen you can pass by the radio and ask for a CD.

The weather in Auroville is "maussade' like the French will say in other words is overcast but rain is not expected.In today's English news we have an interview with Surya regarding her practice of Aikido one of the many martial arts practised in Auroville (tai chi, capoeira, judo etc) and we have also an announcement about "Micro project 2008". or in the picture.

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This week's Tamil program features Thiruvengadam, originally from Pondicherry,  He tells the story of his life in and around Auroville. Thiruvangadam's work experience includes time at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram located in Pondicherry and in Auroville as a carpenter. He knows Auroville for forty years; he married a girl from Edayanchavady (a nearby local village) and has both bought and sold Auroville land. Thiru is a man who has grown up with all different kinds of environments.

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In today's English news there are a number of announcements: Blue Light offers a variety of opportunities, there's office/studio space at one of the new housing projects, sustainable farming can be experienced at Buddha Garden, a reminder to keep pets vaccinated against rabies and, Russian Bells can still be rung at Unity Pavilion. or in the picture.

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Talking to your baby from day one will help the two of you get to know each other, assist your child learning to talk and gives your child a great start. If you could sing a song to your child, that would be the best! If you have songs or stories in Tamil for children, please mail us or contact us at www.avradio.org   It will benefit more people like you. Hope you all enjoy the songs from Bhuvanasundhari and an interview from Dhamu. To listen to the interview click on the logo play.

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For this week's Tamil program Bhuvanasundari tells the story of the importance for workers on Labour Day, or May Day, which can refer to various labour celebrations conducted on May 1 that commemorate the fight for an eight hour day. May Day in this regard is called International Workers Day, or Labour Day. The first Workers Memorial Day was observed in 1989. April 28 was chosen because that is the anniversary of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

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La radio de Auroville es una pequeña torre de Babel, en la que quedan representados algunos de los idiomas usados en esta ciudad. Esta semana hablamos con una parte del equipo de “esta jaula de grillos”, en la que se practica el idioma mas importante; el querer entenderse. Este programa es una muestra de ello. Diferentes individuos, diferentes lenguas. Read more

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This week's Tamil program we have a very special guest Ranganayaki who is from Kottakari village is giving us the essence of the village Music in Tamil Nadu. In villages where farming was the primary work, the ladies who work in the fields used to sing kulavai songs. Tamil music is sometimes categorised into Devotional, Classical and Popular Folk music. Rythms of popular folk music express a vitality which stems from the closeness of its contact with the life of the people.

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This week's Tamil program features Subash of Isai Ambalam School. The School was started in 1982, initially catering to the learning needs of young adults from villages in the immediate Auroville area in the age group of 8 to 15 years,  considered to be drop-outs from other learning establishments.  Subash joined Auroville in 1993; he is presently the school's principal. Here he shares some of his experiences with lots of joy and surprises. mp3/2008_03_17_interview_subash_isai_ambalam_tamil_lite.mp3

Kottakarai Organic Food Processing Unit was started by Sharanam, an Aurovilian (Spanish) with 10 years of experience in the field of agro-chemistry and food technology in Spain, took the initiative to set up an organic food-processing unit in Auroville. Since Saranam went back  Anandi an Indian Aurovilian with a background in nutrition and traditional food production, took over and developed new recipes using varagu, a local grain, and millet mix.

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Mirra Women's Group organized a circle dance and singing programme on March 8th 2008 on account of International Women's Day at the SAWCHU building (Bharat Niwas). Women from the villages were invited to sing their traditional Kummi songs and taught the dance in which several ladies from the group and from Auroville participated. Mirra Women's Group is a group of women from in and around Auroville who meet twice a month and conduct and participate in workshops in activities like tailoring, jewellery making, painting etc, to enrich themselves.

To downlod this program (in Tamil) click . 

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