Bali Tourism News

Experiencing the simple life at Ashram Gandhi

January 25th, 2008

Luh De Suriyani, Contributor, The Jakarta Post, Karangasem

Chris Doran, an Australian geography lecturer, woke up in the Ashram Gandhi\Candi Dasa building in Karangasem, Bali, on the first day of 2008.

A knocking sound coming from a bamboo bell alerted him to join 13 other Ashram residents for breakfast.

This was Doran’s last breakfast with Ashram residents since he was to return to Australia that day, but this made him a little more excited. He even asked for a plate of rice — he usually only ate a cup of sweet potato porridge with brown sugar and grated coconut.

Ashram residents eat one cup of rice, vegetables with noodles and a slice of fried tempeh. There is no meat on the menu because they are all vegetarians.

“This is a very quiet place and I really enjoyed New Year’s Eve here,” he said.

In the Ashram, Doran said, he could experience a different side of Bali, unlike the one seen in advertisements and the media at home, which often presented Bali as an iconic “second home” for Australians.

“The second home for Australians is Kuta not Bali,” Chris said, adding that the icon had hidden Bali’s spiritual tourism objects like Ashram Gandhi.

He said Ashram Gandhi had rejuvenated his spirit and peace of mind after he attended the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (UNFCC) for two weeks in Nusa Dua.

The spiritual atmosphere at the Ashram is not only developed by the devotions practiced by the Ashram’s residents (they devote every morning, noon and afternoon) but also by their mutual cooperation and philanthropic actions.

Every morning, all the residents clean the Ashram area. They cook, wash, take care of the cows or do gardening.

When they eat, nobody tries to get in first ahead of the others. They wait patiently for each other to eat together.

The late Gedong Bagoes Oka, the Balinese woman who established Ashram Gandhi in 1976, aimed to allow people an opportunity to adopt and experience the life principles of (Mahatma) Gandhi in daily life.

During the 32 years of its establishment, Ashram has been visited by those interested in joining an anti-violent, vegetarian and swadeshi (self sufficient) community which implements principles of religious tolerance.

Consequently, Ashram residents, most of whom are Hindu, are used to living with Christians, Muslims, Buddhists and people of other beliefs, including those considered heretical by the Indonesian government.

To keep its simplicity and spirituality intact, Ashram guests are not allowed to smoke, drink alcohol or have sex.

Source: The Jakarta Post

Entry Filed under: Bali Tourism News