Dear friends,
We would like to inform you that we have invited His Holiness the Dalai Lama, our
Patron, to inaugurate the Pavilion of Tibetan Culture sometime at the end of 2008
or the beginning of 2009.
During an audience in Ahmedabad, Claude Arpi requested His Holiness to come
again to Auroville and inaugurate the Pavilion. He agreed in principle. Later a
formal letter of invitation was sent to his Office. The official acceptance has now
been received, though the exact date has yet to be fixed.
You may remember that His Holiness first visited Pondicherry and Auroville in
1973. On January 17th, he met the Mother in the Ashram and the next day he
visited Auroville site. Some photos of Dominique Darr are witness to this
momentous event.
Twenty years later, on December 23 and 24, 1993, His Holiness paid his second visit to Auroville to lay the foundation stone of the Pavilion.
Since then, the Pavilion has slowly emerged from the ground. It has organized countless activities such as exhibitions, medical camps, workshops, seminars and frequently hosts ‘quiet' meetings for members of Auroville and friends. The Guest House is regularly used by not only Tibetans, but also by students and friends from all over the world. We are proud to be one of the most active centers in Auroville's cultural life. It will be highly symbolic that the Pavilion representing the culture of the Roof of the World will be the first one to be completed in Auroville We have an immense task in front of us: to finish the construction of the building before the visit.
The main parts which remain to be completed are:
The front courtyard
The inner decoration and painting
The final polishing of all the floors
And most importantly and time-consuming, the slanted walls around the Pavilion.
The Auroville Building Center of the CSR estimates that between 18 and 20 lakhs of rupees (around $ 50,000 or Euros 35,000) will be required. This will include the arrangements for the visit.
We would like to appeal to all our friends and well-wishers to help us to find the necessary funds to complete the Pavilion in time for His Holiness' visit. Large, medium and small contributions are welcome.
We have opened a special Account in the Auroville Maintenance Fund for the completion of the building and organization of His Holiness' visit:
A/c No 0477 ‘HH the Dalai Lama's Visit'.
Foreign cheques should be made in favour of Auroville Fund and sent with a covering letter to Pavilion of Tibetan Culture.
Thank you for supporting the Pavilion and His Holiness' vision of a more peaceful world.
The Pavilion Team
I feel very strongly that Tibetan culture will have a future role to play in humanity. So therefore, wherever there are spiritual centres like Auroville, if Tibet can participate it can be a way or a channel to communicate Tibetan culture to other people.
HH The Dalai Lama
Auroville 605101 TN India
Tel: 91-413-2622401/2622136 Fax: 91-413-2622062
Email: tibpav@rediffmail.com
Printable .pdf.zip copy of the letter "To all friends of Auroville"
for downloading
French Version of same letter
