Sadhana Forest: A Forest in the making 🏡

This is a visual blog with a lot of 📷

A volunteer-based organisation near Auroville, Pondicherry, where a group of dedicated people converted then barren land to now Sadhana forest! 🌳

When gazing skyward at Sadhana Forest's canopy, one is greeted with a stunning array of tree shades, diverse textures, hues, and foliage. One is forest bathing all the time! 🌞

The founders, Yorit and Aviram Rozin envisioned the transformation of 70 acres of severely eroded, arid land on Auroville's outskirts. Driven by a spirit of human unity, their goal is to introduce an increasing number of individuals to sustainable living practices, ensure food security through ecological restoration, reclaim wastelands, and promote veganism.

I couldn’t believe the power of community and collective efforts to save the environment when I first visited the lush green Sadhana forest. It is not just the surroundings; the Sadhana forest community is unique! The people are compassionate, understanding, and excellent listeners.

The main hut in Sadhana Forest

I had just started reading about and understanding veganism or the Satvic lifestyle when I visited this magical place. Visiting Sadhana Forest reaffirmed that there would still be a chance for humanity if such communities existed. So simple, mindful, grounded and present in every moment! They are indeed living with purpose ❤

As I talked to more people, I could see how veganism had transformed their physical bodies and made them much calmer and more aware. They truly cared about the environment and living cruelty-free. 🥗

Sadhana forest is all about the environment and practices one can follow daily to do their little or as we say —

CONSCIOUS LIVING! 🧘🏻‍♀️

I have highlighted a few practices I took with me.

💧 They had a unique two-bucket system to clean hands, which made me mindful of how little water we actually need for basic needs.

A central bucket is used to pour the water, and two small ones are attached to the stand above. The yellow liquid was a bioenzyme soap.

🧼 The soap they used for cleaning were organic bioenzymes, which were very gentle on the body. All of this system was directly connected to the plants nearby, so any water or soap was washed away to nearby plants, returning to its source :)

🥥 Ash and coconut husk were used to clean the reusable plates. They had a four — to five-step process to clean the plates in the right way, which was sun-dried later.

Several containers of water were employed, transitioning from dirty to clearer, in the process of cleaning the plates.

🍽️ The food wastes were divided into two parts- one for the dogs, cows and animals nearby, and the other could be used as compost.

🛜 They have limited access to wifi and a charging counter. This small change was crucial in disconnecting us from our mobiles and connecting us to present moments. Most of the time, you could find people in charging counters to talk to! It was a hang-out corner; everyone disconnected from their mobiles as it was being charged, and since you had nothing to do at that time, people would interact with each other :) 👯‍♀️

Charging station with rucksacks to sit and chat too!

🐄 They have a vegan Gaushala where they take care of cows but do not milk them :)

👕 They had a thrifting corner where you could pick up clothes and items of basic needs and leave if you had any extra.

🦷 They have organic tooth powders to brush teeth and two bucket water systems for cleaning. They also have plant-based biodegradable shower mixes for bathing :)

𝌱 There are wood fire stoves, and they offer free delicious vegan foods to visitors :)

🚽 They use compost toilets and bucket systems for cleaning. This all saves a lot of water!

Vegan yum food!

🌳 Although it can be scorching, the canopy of trees offers cool shade and shelters everyone who knocks at the Sadhana forest. They have little cute shady corners around the forest where people can disconnect and relax!

Or sit around with people and have tons of discussion! 🗣️

📖 They also offer free sessions to teach sustainable practices and educate people about the benefits of Veganism.

Forest-Bathing

Well, I was lucky to visit Sadhana for their Vegan forest festival, which was amazinggggg! If you happen to plan a trip there, which you should remember that one day isn’t enough to absorb what Sadhana offers. They look for volunteers all year round, so if you are looking for such opportunities, do sign up!

You can use the below link to 📧 them, and they will soon get back to you :)

Email Sadhana

And more on the Vegan Forest Festival later 🍃

Everyone is Vegan in Sadhana!