The KDC Charter

Khula Dhamma – meaning “to grow on the path of awakening”- is the founding and core intention of our community. Thus we have come together to create an environment that nurtures our spiritual growth, that promotes a diverse and peaceful coexistence among people, and that helps restore our sacred balance and conscious interconnectedness with Nature.

We recognise KDC to be a holographic spark of a surging global movement that is illuminating the path towards a wise, just and sustainable human existence. We perceive that building spiritually and ecologically sensitive, human-scale settlements is a natural step in our conscious evolution and a vital step for humanity’s survival. Indeed we feel that the simple and low-impact lifestyle we are creating is attainable for anyone who chooses it.

We all feel enormously fortunate to be shaping Khula Dhamma into a space of holistic healing. Where we are free to express ourselves and live our lives based on the values of cooperation, trust, openness, responsibility & integrity. It is our hope that by creating a new way of mindful living and being, we will inspire and support others to do the same.

We believe that the agreements and practices we have set out in this document are an accurate reflection of our vision and intentions. We understand that our charter should not be seen as “rules” that we must abide by, but rather as an expression of how we naturally aspire to be. As such we choose to periodically review our charter and always remain open to discussion so that it may change and grow as we do.

OUR VISION

We envision our Khula Dhamma Community becoming a vibrant and exploratory village where:

• People of all ages, races and creeds live together in harmony and devote their goodwill, intelligence, capital and labour to meet the common goals of living a peaceful and meaningful existence while honouring and nurturing all life-systems.

• Spiritual growth is the pervasive essence and reason for all our actions and interactions. To support this we will build a retreat centre specifically for meditation and mindfulness practices.

• We all support and care for each other, and where our children are given the freedom, guidance and relevant education to reach their full potential.

• Each individual has a voice in decisions that affect them and/or the community as a whole

• Where conflicts are given the immediate and necessary attention to be resolved peacefully.

• A constructive and rewarding livelihood can be gained without sacrificing time for family, friends, play, and creativity.

• Much attention and time are given to bonding and connecting with Nature.

• Aside from bartering certain goods with other organic farms and surrounding villages, we are completely self-sufficient.

• We grow our own food, build our own dwellings, generate our own electricity, and turn our waste into nutriment for the land.

• We help to preserve and restore indigenous, nature-based knowledge systems.

• We develop innovative methods and materials that reflect of our ongoing quest to minimise our impact on the Earth.

• To help promote and guide the ecovillage movement in South Africa we are building a learning, healing and resource centre where we will be hosting workshops, retreats and conferences related to conscious, natural and community living.

May we become one of the many beacons of light and hope
that are exploring conscious co-creative community living
for the benefit of future generations and all life on Earth.

SPIRITUAL GROWTH

We understand that it is vital for the health and development of the community as a whole, that we each take responsibility for our own spiritual growth. In shaping our spiritual and cultural environment, we aim to create a space that is conducive to healing and exploration.

We believe that the fulfilment of human spiritual potential culminates through consciously transcending the illusion of separateness to realise our oneness with all creation. While we appreciate the diversity of spiritual paths, it is from our own experience that we collectively choose moment-to-moment awareness and self-observation as the path to awakening.

We recognise that all the misery and degradation we are witnessing on Earth is rooted in the ignorance of the human mind.

In our ignorance we have allowed ourselves to become dominated by self-serving political and economic power structures. We have subserviently built a frenetic ‘free market’ culture that thrives on self-interest and is leading to massive ecological breakdown as well as vast social and economic imbalances. As much as those structures of destruction and divisiveness are acknowledged by us to be part of the ‘cosmic plan’, so do we appreciate their value as catalysts for change.

As our delicate web of life falters, rapidly growing numbers of people are realising that our very survival (and thus the potential for unsurpassed harmonious living) is hanging by two strands. The first is our awakening consciousness; and the second is urgent and concrete action to preserve and restore our biosphere.

Reflecting the unlimited possibilities of human potential, KDC aspires to contribute towards the shifting consciousness and social and cultural transformation currently taking place on a planetary level. We direct our intention towards collective awakening while addressing the challenges of our time by advocating justice, independence, co-operation and an appreciation for the necessity of self-observation.

• We meditate together at least once a week and foresee this becoming a daily practice for many residents. We honour spiritual discussion (satsang) as a valuable means for sharing questions, insights and understanding. Group wisdom work and joint meditation enhance our collective growth.

• By choosing to live in community we are deliberately immersing ourselves into a space where our views and conditioning are constantly mirrored back at us. How we approach and engage in personal relationships lies at the heart of our experiential awakening (sadhana).

• We are aware that our thoughts, feelings and actions all have consequences so we take full responsibility for the circumstances that we have co-created.

• We do not condone any action that harms or exploits humans or animals or the biosphere in anyway.

• We nurture and preserve both our physical and our mental health by mindful consumption. We give much attention to where our food comes from and to how it is produced and prepared. We also avoid intoxicants, films, books and conversations that numb our consciousness.

• We believe that it is our human birthright to engage in direct communication with Nature. Therefore we are consciously opening ourselves to this dialogue and guidance to explore the subtleties of our co-creativity.

• Equally we understand that there are sublime levels of communication happening within ourselves. Here, again, do we acknowledge the importance of stilling the mind as a way of opening our hearts for intuitive guidance to flow through.

• We recognise the importance of creative expression, playfulness and cultural stimulation as a way of celebrating life- having fun- and also as a means of forming deeper connections with each other and with our surroundings. We see celebration and humour as essential to the community’s way of preserving and promoting healing.

• We encourage and support each other to explore and realise our unique “Gift to Life”. We understand that the more we “come into our own”, the easier we will find our personal role and contribution within the community and in doing so will give of ourselves with evermore confidence and enthusiasm. We acknowledge ceremony such as “Vision Quest” to be immensely helpful in this regard.

ECOLOGICAL RESPONSIBILITY

As a community we are responding to the deep challenges of our time, and this requires a deep response.
Our first response/responsibility must be towards our own community and the land we have the privilege of living on and stewarding.
Our second response is to the planet as a whole, we could call it the web of life or the interconnectedness of all life, were we seek to ensure that our actions nurture all elements within this delicate web. This applies in particular to the way we produce the food we eat. Therefore we will only use methods of food production that are cooperative with nature. We might put names like Permaculture, Co-creative science, Biodynamic or Natural farming to these methods, although what we seek to do transcends these names.
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Our ecological ethos is based on an appreciation of the utter wonder and the sheer mystery of all of Nature.

• We recognise we have different requirements that need to be met on the land (residential, agricultural, learning & recreational; woodland and forestry, wilderness). We are developing a land-use plan through which these different requirements can be met in a holistic, low-impact, mutually supporting way. A way that is both ecologically sound and aesthetically pleasing and where natural energy flows and eco-system processes are taken into account to create a harmonious whole.

• We consider being as self-sufficient as possible to be the highest ecological priority- for our own health and for the health of the planet.

• It is our aim to restore the farm of Khula Dhamma back to its natural state as far as possible. This means the careful removal of some plants/trees and the replanting of more indigenous species.

• We aspire to ensure that the materials we use (from building to personal hygiene) and the methods we employ to meet our needs also enhance the quality of life for all beings. This applies

• We are committed to conscious consumption by favouring and supporting local, organic agriculture and small, ethical & fair trade businesses for our material needs. This means that we continually research and inform ourselves about how our choices impact Nature and our fellow beings.
CHILDREN

“In times of change, learners inherit the Earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.” - Eric Hoffer

We are at a very crucial and pivotal time in human history. We feel that the world our children will be inheriting will be very different to the one that we have grown up in and know now. When it comes to “education” we feel that with an informed and intuitive foresight of what is to come, it would be irresponsible to not prepare them on some level for the coming changes.

It is our joy and privilege to witness and nurture our children’s natural inherent curiosity for learning, their playfulness, their freedom of expression, their creative imagination, their unique talents and their “gift to the world”. At Khula Dhamma we are shaping a rare environment where we can only feel gratitude and excitement in bringing children into this world. Indeed, children who grow up in the loving support of a mindful and diverse community that cultivates a deep reverence for Nature and a relationship with all of Creation, are in quite a unique situation.

We are all here to learn- regardless of our age. We learn about ourselves, from our “mistakes”, from each other and, probably most pertinently, from Nature. Learning has no beginning and no ending. With regard to “formal education” there seem to be some very useful guidelines coming from existing “alternative” methods such as Montessori, Steiner, Freire etc. While these and other methods present many valuable insights and practices, we also feel it’s important not to attach or limit ourselves to any one methodology or system. We feel that this is a time of incorporating the available knowledge and experience into an intuitive and boundless progression that is in tune with humanity’s evolving consciousness.

On the practical level, education is about acquiring knowledge and learning how best to use that knowledge. A community with so many different projects and skills is a perfect environment for applied learning. On the reflective level, education is about imparting ethics, compassion, mindfulness, generosity, self-reflection and other such life skills.

As children grow so do their interests and the more they learn to actually govern their own learning process the more they will be empowered, independent and confident to explore wherever their heart takes them.

Structure and routine may be helpful for some at some time, but this is never imposed. Children may form their own “study groups” where common interests are shared. These groups may or may not be guided or supported by an elder.

We would like to see all elders interact with each child as if he or she were “their own”. This would mean assuming a level of responsibility (comfortable for them) for noticing opportunities to spontaneously integrate applied learning. Or, if it feels right, to creatively trigger an opportunity.

How we as elders intend to support and guide our children’s learning:

• To spend ample time playing together and having FUN!
• To create a space where children can go, either alone or with others, and choose from a variety of games, learning materials and creative materials to play with or engage in at any time.
• To offer- just offer- collective or individual projects for children that will incorporate various aspects of learning. i.e. reading & writing, problem solving/ lateral thinking, creative thinking, maths, biology etc.
• To be receptive and responsive to integrate learning and sharing with children into our community projects, activities and practices.
• To not just give answers, but to reflect back their question in a way that they may discover their own answers.
• To ask them probing questions.
• To be clear and consistent about behavioural boundaries
• To be clear and consistent about safety issues.
• To integrate mindfulness, presence and self-awareness
• To offer structure and/or routine as and when needed
• To relinquish all structure and/or routine as and when needed.
• To share meaningful stories related to co-operation, sharing, communication, conflict transformation, communing with Nature.
• To explore and inform them of the different approaches to social, economical educational structures.

SELFLESS SERVICE

We are a caring community who are working together to provide a safe and loving environment to anyone within our community, members or visitors. We also strive to cultivate an attitude of participation where we are able to share our skills and attributes openly.
It is each of our desires to cultivate a space within ourselves where this giving comes from a space of freedom and not obligation and spreads naturally from our internal environment to the greater whole. Within our community, we will:

• have intentional holding of each other
• be willing to practice selfless giving, caring and participation
• offer physical support (getting things done) and emotional support (sensitivity)
• consciously make time and give effort to engage in things going on at KD.
• create an emotionally safe space that encourages support and openness so that members freely express their wishes and needs.
• practice equality
• be receptive to the giving

HOPE

To promote and serve the movement towards conscious, natural and community-based living we are building a Learning, Healing and Resource Centre designed to share skills and understanding with others who seek to restore the Earth and her people. By initiating and hosting a wide variety of innovative workshops, courses, retreats and conferences that promote personal and cultural transformation, we aim to explore creative solutions to the challenges of our time.
By building a learning centre in the heart of our community we intend to expand upon our vision of sharing the essential experiences and joys of ecovillage living within the very environment they are practiced and celebrated. Accordingly, we call this endeavour and the centre itself: Home Of Providence & Ecoliving or HOPE.
By providing an exceptional and congenial setting with all natural, eco-innovative facilities and delectable, wholesome food that is largely produced and prepared here on our farm, we hope to attract national and international facilitators who are pioneering their respective fields.
Furthermore, we have already begun to initiate outreach programs aimed at informing and empowering rural communities. All courses and conferences will accommodate participants from these communities through scholarships. As HOPE grows, so will our supportive and humanitarian embrace of rural community.

SEED

On the international level numerous KDC residents are actively working on and for a website that is promoting the rotation towards earth community. This website is called The Seed of the Tree of Tomorrow and will become a global Internet extension of both KDC and HOPE.

COMMUNICATION AND
DECISION-MAKING

We agree that open and honest communication is the lifeblood of our community’s harmony and growth. When we are speaking and listening with receptivity and honesty, true communication is taking place. In this way, we are connecting deeply with our self, the other and we tune into the ‘one mind’. We build our relationships on openness and integrity and make conscious decisions through dialogue not coercion.

Talking and Listening Circles (TLCs) are approached as sacred ceremony. In Talking/Listening Circles (TLC) all members are expected to share their views and knowledge. All decisions will be based on consensus among members. We:

• Express ourselves/our personal views with absolute honesty, while expressing our truth with kindness and as much clarity of thought as we are capable of.
• Listen with an open heart and without prejudice, to HEAR, giving undivided attention and support to the speaker regardless of our personal views.
• Listen with an open mind and with as much tolerance as we can muster.
• Honour our impulse to share our true feelings unequivocally and not to hold back because we might be afraid of being rejected or disapproved of by other members.
• To not feel pressured or coerced into views or decisions by more powerful, charismatic speakers.
• Examine our inner motives/reasons for saying things before we say them because we know that words have the power to hurt as well as heal.
• Only say things we know to be true and express ourselves with integrity.
• Clearly express any feelings we might have of “not being heard” and ask for clarification when needed.
• Approach disagreement and discord as an opportunity to strengthen our common understanding, tolerance and unity.
• Commit to never leaving a circle with confusion or unexpressed issues. If we feel an issue is unresolved then we shall reschedule a circle that will focus entirely on resolving the matter.
• All circles are approached with love, receptivity, commitment, patience, endurance and selflessness.