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Leaving the Mountain - Chinese Sannyasins relocate to start New Commune

At the beginning of the year Sannyasnews published news of the first Sannyas Commune in China - here, nine months later we continue their story.

This May we had to leave the mountain where our old commune was and search for a new space. After a long journey, covering many places in mainland China, finally we found a new field. The scenery is beautiful here, it is natural and silent.
 
For the new commune we have different ideas. First of all this is a self-sufficent commune, we have to feed ourselves Even we get some donation or help from outside and friends, it is momentary. And from the end of this year we will not accept any donation from anybody. If we still can not be self-sufficient then, the commune will be dismissed. As Sandesh (our mentor) has said, it simply means we are impotent, and to keep such a commune is meaningless.
Secondly, this is a commune for meditation, so everything has something to do with meditation, every action is a kind of device to transform oneself.

And the base of our commune is a trinity. The first is the organic farming. It has two purposes, first we can plant the organic vegetables to eat, and then we can also sell it to the travellers visiting here. After we succeed in the experiment on organic farming, we are going to spread the whole process of organic farming to the village nearby so that they can be healthy and rich too. Of course we can also get some income from their benefit. Now our experiment is going on, you can see the photos. The house we live now has not been used for a long time, so almost everything need to be renewed. And many many things need to be considered, the water, the electricity, the bathroom, the toilet.... the buddhahall... because it is not only for us, it is also for people who come here for visiting or meditation. And yes, this can be another way for our income.

Finally meditation. Because of needing to be careful with public relationships, we do the laughing meditation in the morning instead of the Dynamic, we do the Kundalini everyday in the afternoon, and we hold the group I told you before in the end of each month. Of course, meditation is not only these exercises, it is contained in everything.
 
Sandesh puts all the energy in the process of running the commune. He always tells us: "Be the master of the commune and be the master of yourself. If you know the commune well, you will know yourself more clearly. "He says we should treat us all as the boss here and we must see what our problems are and find methods to solve them. This is a kind of practice for our awareness. Many times, when a problem arises, if somebody says he or she does not know this problem as if then this is none of their business. He will say: "Why don't you know? If you are the master year end you do not know what is going on in your home? You do not put yourself into it!" And the same is true when we face a problem which we are not familiar, he says: "I do not know it there about I just have the desire to solve it, and the solution comes out." And really, his solution is always simple, direct and effective.
 
We hold meetings every night to discuss the problems we encounter. At first we discuss too much and the solution is always complicated and not practical. Once we set up the pipe of the toilet, we discussed the whole afternoon and the pipe was as same as before hand he came to finish the work within a few minutes. I asked Sandesh why, he said that is our habit:to make simple things so complicated that we are not able to do them at all, then we can be at ease for not to do them, because now we have good excuse: I do not know how to do!!!
 
He also emphasizes the efficiency of our work. He says: ”When you are thinking about how to do, I have already finished it. Because things are simple and clear, just taking action is enough, but you are confused and you make everything complicated.” And certainly the efficiency is not from long terms of mechanical practice but from the clarity out of awareness. So he does not leave any corner for us to hide our habits, if sometimes our habits are too much. He will hit us and shake the whole team. He wants to awaken us in every possible way, he ask us to be centered in work, in daily activities so that everything can be transformed into meditation. And that is what really going on here.
 
 
Feel welcome to visit our new commune!!!
Many more photos and information are on our 'GreenField' Health Commune Website 

With love and joy,
 
Vilas 
On behalf of the Greenfield Commune

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