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This week, Savannah and I will be editing the project website by adding information for each of our pages; “Home Page”, “About the Authors”, “History”, “Interviews”, “Life and Responsibilities”, “Photographs”,”Principles of the Community”, and “Programs Offered”. We currently don’t have enough information to supply some of the pages like “Life and Resposibilites”, “Photographs”, and “Principles of the Community”, but we will add more as we get interviews from its members and founders.

We have to figure out how to re-order the list of pages on out project website, so that they aren’t alphabetical and so that the home page pops up when arriving at the site.

I spent last week into the weekend applying for an IRB review of my future visit to MorningSun, and it should be getting approved today. I will visit MorningSun by the end of the week, most likely on Sunday. I’m very eager and excited to go to MorningSun in order to fill in all the gaps in my understanding of their community. I know that there are only 9 members of MorningSun, according to the website, and I really want to know if they live there full time or not, and how much of their resources that they’re able to get from their own land and work.

Namo Avalokiteshvara, have compassion on me, listen to my sufferings…..
Namo Avalokiteshvara, have compassion on those loved ones around me, listen to their sufferings…..
Namo Avalokiteshvara, have compassion in the world, listen to all sufferings…..

This Buddhist phrase is chanted to honor the Bodhisattva of compassion, someone who can reach nirvana but delays doing so in order to help suffering people. In the case of the MorningSun community in New Hampshire, an extension of the Plum Village tradition, the meaning behind this chant is the basis for their foundation – a community centered around mindfulness and compassion.

Here is a video showing a ceremony of compassion held by the members of MorningSun:

The Plum Village tradition, which MorningSun practices, originates from the geographic location of the Buddhist village in France and from the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk who was instrumental in bringing Buddhism to the western hemisphere by establishing monasteries. Co-founders of MorningSun – Fern Dorresteyn and Michael Ciborski lived at the Plum Village for nine years, training as a nun and monk under Thich Nhat Hanh for seven. Then, after returning to lay life in the states, they decided to start Mindful Living Initiative, a non-profit organization, and were then able to purchase 243 acres of beautiful land in Alstead, New Hampshire. The traditions of MorningSun represent strong ideals of peace, and represent its possibility even though the community is small in numbers.

 

In passage five of the section “Where I Lived, and What I Lived” in Walden, by Henry David Thoreau, he seems to be talking about productivity here, in reference to his seeds and how when he does decide to plant them, in time, he will likely be satisfied from what they bring, instead of hastily planting seeds that may not sprout without the intended patience and placement. I think this carries through to his view on people, which he goes on to recommend that people live free and uncommitted to the mechanism of daily life because it makes little difference.

Little difference in what? The whole of humanity? That seems to be what Thoreau is pointing towards with his words. I understand his point that, people should be patient with their application to this world, and not be eager to settle into routine for the sake of hastily doing something. Rather, people do not need to worry about that in Thoreau’s eyes. Maybe he isn’t telling people that they should avoid working or routines, but rather they shouldn’t blindly commit themselves to a job or routine. Maybe he is saying that people do need to work to sustain theirs and others lives, but that they should remain open to whatever is needed at the time and not be concerned with over compensating with their labor. After all, Thoreau isn’t too concerned with maintaining a society, but he is concerned with humans maintaining their connection to nature.

Is this sustainable or unsustainable thought? That would be a good debate! I believe that adapting to the idea of not working unless needed could work but only in a cooperative society where all people socialize and perform tasks together. 

This weed we read articles by Kanter and Sosis that highlighted different issues in group life. For the most part from what I’ve read,  a communities biggest struggle is usually to stay united and motivated to keep together. Kanter shows us how there are ways to measure the success of an intentional community; degree of congruence from original ideals to its actual existence, satisfaction of members, and sometimes longevity. Maintaining ideals that are consistent with a groups original intentions brings up the question of religion, which Sosis addressed. Religion is the most successful way of equally sharing commitment to groups in communes. Not to say that communities can’t exist based on things like socialism, but it shows that those communities don’t usually last.

It is important for the people in these groups to feel a sense of purpose, to which it helps to have a leader that can uphold central ideals, and a group that is constantly working for the betterment of the lives of themselves and everyone else. Maintenance of the community in itself can offer personal satisfaction with safety, security, and building deep stable relationships with the group. Not to mention work is a source of pride and self esteem by being an important part of something successful – by the members being active in their work and sharing their possessions. This makes it harder for people to get a free ride off the work of others, which becomes harder in religious communities where the purpose is centered around belief instead of working for a purpose.

 

The common theme that I’ve found in the communities of Twin Oaks and Acorn is that they need to be small and like minded. Maybe this is obvious, but egalitarianism seems hard to maintain if there isn’t a smaller population, as well as an egalitarian form of government.

Here is a photo of the Twin Oaks village and some of the (very happy) residents:

What I found most interesting is when Reece is in Twin Oaks and Adder explains to him their socialist philosophy and how it works. At Twin Oaks, there is “zero motivation to work hard, perform well, or to be innovative or creative” (167), yet the commune members all engage in art making, personal growth, creating/maintaining business. The motivation at Twin Oaks is intrinsic, and springs from the concept of that a positive, healthy environment will maintain positive, healthy people that will sustain the environment.

At both Twin Oaks and Acorn, however, they rely on the American capitalist system by selling a company hammocks, tofu, or seeds.

I wonder if the people of these communes generally live under a utopian illusion where their commune is entirely self sustaining, or if they are okay with their minimal participation in the capitalist economy.

Something Reece says, in part, answers my question; “their purpose seems more about honoring the blueprint for a cooperative, nonexploitive living, not taking down the system they have fled” (175). The mission of these communes appears to be to coexist quietly and humbly within the frame of American society, not to detest it and exist separately as many would think of when hearing of a “hippy commune”.

I think the ideas of Thoreau’s self reliance and his emphasis on minimalism provides a sustainable philosophy for intentional communities. If one takes his or herself away from desires of luxury and focuses on basic needs from himself then people can maintain themselves, by themselves, with the company of nature.

A utopian community strives for “sharing as a means to better realize the country’s founding principles”(4), according to Eric Reece, author of Utopia Drive.

A utopian community is not run on consumer culture

 

Glad this started working for me, it took a while to get my password reset for some reason.

So far, reading “The Virtual Community” has been an interesting read. Many parts of it leave me without a conclusion but moreso with a lot of information about how these different online communities were started, which is great, but I haven’t come to an informed assessment on what it all means quite yet.  The intentions behind every community vary greatly from small ones based on discussion boards to people pushing the PC movement foreword. 

I’m excited to start talking with Savannah about what her interests are in what communities she would like to study, I think we can find a good common ground having come from the same prerequisite class last semester that was based on the principle of democracy.

For now, I’m going to keep reading and trying to put together the core ideas of “The Virtual Community”.

 

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