PROFILE

Reconnecting with Spirit through Nature

Aikya has lived in Auroville for the past twenty two years. Here she describes how her quest to
understand the meaning of life led her to a deeper understanding of the natural world.

A
s a child, while I felt like a stranger secret memories of childhood. Mother said that the we already know intuitively,
on this earth I did have a profound dreams of the children of today are the realities of although very often the mental
experience of the infinity of the tomorrow, and she encouraged the children to intervenes and then we get it
Universe. I knew that I would have believe in their dreams. wrong.
to wait until I was grown up to have I was invited by SAIIER to research this topic I dont think my role is to
this mystery unraveled. and this resulted in a book called Glimpses of become an animal communicator.
I had a very normal upbringing in the north of Wonder. I am still doing the World Game, now with Although we learned that every-
Belgium. We had a lot of animals at home and I the children of The Learning Community (TLC). body can do it, you have to devote
could relate with great joy to the simplicity and puri- For the past eight years, this has happened in my a lot of time to it and be really
ty of animals and the natural world. place in Anusuya, which is like a fairy house and centred all the time. But still, it is
When I grew up I thought psychology would forest garden full of secret connections made over very present in my daily life and I
give me some clues to the mystery of life but I soon time. I feel this fits perfectly to the vision of TLC of feel the connection to the mes-
discovered the answers didnt go very far. using Auroville as a place of learning. sages of nature as living symbols.
Nevertheless, I studied it for five years. Then I However, after a time I began to feel some lim- It has also inspired me to incorpo-
decided to travel to the Far East for eight months. itation with the sandbox play, and wanted to open rate intuition games into my ses- Aikya
Some years later, in 1990, I got introduced to the World Game out into the natural world. So I sions with the children. Since then, several people in the thirteen laws of LionHearted leader-
Auroville where I lived close to nature in Revelation started nature and spirit sessions, letting nature Aurovilians have asked me to give an introduction ship, which are based on natures laws.
and Samriddhi Communities. Although touched by guide us into its mysteries and secret laws as we and share my experiences and I will surely do this in It is very easy for us in Auroville to relate to
The Mothers words, still I did not get the answers I make flower mandalas, collages and small movies the near future. these because of the links with the Integral Yoga.
needed because here nothing was structured: you etc. The thirteen laws are related to the fact that you
The White Lions
had to find your own way. Then I met a Tibetan must go deep into yourself to discover your purpose
Animal communication
Buddhist teacher and was invited to study in a Recently I returned to South Africa for one and what you must become and stand for.
newly-opened International Buddhist Institute in The next chapter, which came as a continuation month because I received a scholarship from the When I returned, I spoke to the children in The
New Delhi, which I did for three years. of my love for nature, came when one of my dogs Linda Tucker Foundation (with additional support Learning Community about my experience and
This is where I started to get answers. But I was in pain. I was at a loss about what to do but I from Aurovilles MT&D programme) to participate invited them to make videos for an international
began to wonder, Where does life fit into all this? knew of somebody who was doing animal commu- in the White Lion Leadership Academy. Here I Talent Challenge which Linda was organizing last
Thats when I got a vision of Auroville in a rain- nication and wrote to her. I sent a picture of my dog was plunged not only into the world of animal August. The background to this is that these lions
blow of colours. and she wrote back telling me that it was his time to communication but also into collective and shaman- are still trophy-hunted in South Africa: hunters pay
leave and giving me some advice about how to ease istic dreamwork, evolutionary astrology etc. up to 100,000 dollars to be allowed to make a kill
Return to Auroville
his passing. It all began when I read a book called Mystery and there is no statutory protection for the lions. As
By now I felt I understood a little better how to I recalled that Mother had deep connections of the White Lions: Children of the Sun God, which there was an upcoming meeting of CITES (the
bring spirit and life together. with animals and trees and did a lot of research with is Linda Tuckers first-hand account of her journey Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Before coming here, I had worked as a psychol- cats. But it was natural for me to want to learn more into the mysteries of the most sacred animal on the Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) Linda wanted to
ogist in Belgium: I was the director of a centre for about animal communication. Nancy Windheart, African continent: the White Lion. put pressure on delegates to stop this practice by
suicide prevention. We were dealing daily with who had given me advice about my dog, invited me Its a true story which begins when she was getting children around the world to Roar for the
existential issues. It was interesting work and I had to participate in two online courses. Later, in 2014, I saved from lions by a local woman who walked lions through videos that highlighted their plight.
a wonderful team. got the chance to go to South Africa and study for a calmly among them. Linda went back to England This really resonated with the kids from The
But when I came back to Auroville I did and resumed her successful modelling Learning Community. With eleven of them we
PHOTO COURTESY WHITE LION LEADERSHIP ACADEMY

not think of taking up this kind of work. career, but at a certain point she want- made videos, which we managed to send off just
Instead what presented itself to me was the ed to understand what had happened before the deadline. Two of the kids, Asia and Yam,
flowers - there were so many flowers here! It and returned to South Africa to look are among the international winners. As their prize,
brought back my early love of the beauty of for this woman. She discovered it was in March they, together with one parent, will be vis-
creation. And when I heard that Mother had Maria Khosa, who was known as a iting the White Lion Heartlands in South Africa and
given significances to the flowers and met lion shaman. In an initiatory process will experience the White Lions themselves.
Richard Pearson from the Ashram, it added supervised by a high African shaman, This shows that children who grow up here
another dimension. Maria told Linda that she would be the have a strong potential to express their heart quali-
At that time, if you wanted to work with next Keeper of the White Lions, that ties in things that matter. They are very concerned
flowers you went to work in the Matrimandir this was her mission and she had to be about the disappearance of wildlife at a rate that
Nursery, which is what I did for some time. ready to die for them. might leave us without free-roaming elephants or
In 2000, I met Barbara who introduced me The white lions appear only in one lions by the time these kids grow up.
to energy and consciousness work using the region of South Africa called
Where I am now
essences of Mothers flowers. This was the Timbavati, literally the place where
start of diving deep into the mysteries of life. the star lions come down. African Now my dream is to spread the message of
Then I was invited to do flower arranging elders look upon the white lions as the Nature and Spirit to children and adults in
in the Solar Kitchen. This opened up a whole king of kings and there are many leg- Auroville, and to continue learning from and coop-
new field for me because now I could create a ends about them. According to local erating with fellow Aurovilians who are also
particular atmosphere. I aspired to sensitise White Lion indigenous knowledge, the white lions exploring and deepening the links between nature
people to beauty through flowers and their have returned now to give a message to and spirit. I am grateful to get the opportunity to
silent vibrational influences. few days with Anna Breytenach, a famous animal humanity: that it is the end of a period, a critical learn together with the children of The Learning
People were very happy with this initiative and communicator. moment, and people must go back to the source for Community in a joyful, spontaneous way. And Im
some of them began to bring flowers for me to The indigenous people, like the San people, wisdom. in a long inspiring relationship with Barbara
arrange. In the early days there seemed to be many know very well how to connect with animals and When Linda met Maria, all the white lions were (Ritam), learning about truth rhythms which, like
more flowers in Auroville and the children knew Anna was in close connection to them. On a scien- in captivity in zoos, circuses and blood lion camps earth rhythms, are applicable to all levels of life.
Mothers names for them. Now that knowledge tific level, Anna explains animal communication in where they were raised to be trophy-hunted. But Nature and Spirit is about reconnecting with
seems to be less present. quantum terms. At this level everything is connect- Maria had a vision that a white lion would be born spirit through nature and its multitude of expres-
ed and part of a common field, so if you access this to be released into the wild in the Timbavati region. sions through sacred, protected spaces like the one
Reawakening Wonder
field, you can receive telepathic communications. Soon after, Linda heard that a white lion cub called in Anusuya forest where the activities are based. It
At that point, I felt I wanted more contact with Anna taught us that to enter into communica- Ma-Ra had been born on Christmas Day, 2000, just is an invitation to deep silence from where expres-
people again, so I initiated nature projects at tion, firstly, we have to get rid of all our preconcep- outside a small town in South Africa called sion can flow.
Deepanam School to support the sense of wonder in tions regarding animals, then we need to become Bethlehem.... In terms of the yoga, the next step we need to
children. I also started the World Game (or very still and make a clear intention to connect, After a huge struggle, for the cub was born in a take is to access the intuitive consciousness and
Sandplay). In this, the children are given small through the heart, with a particular animal (or plant). blood lion camp, Linda obtained Ma-Ra who, by nature is a very good way to develop these faculties.
objects representing people, trees, animals, houses Then the actual communication can be extremely this time, was an adult lioness with three cubs. Mother also showed us how nature can help us
etc. and are invited to create their own world by fast and can come through an image, sound, word or Linda purchased land, and now she has managed to come into contact with our psychic heart centre.
arranging them in a tray with sand. The objects are, feeling. reintroduce three prides of white lions into the wild Today, we tend to forget the sacred that is in
of course, symbolic, and in one way this drew upon I experienced this in an exercise she gave us. in a protected area. everything. I feel my mission is to bring glimpses
my psychology background, but I did not want to go She brought us to an animal dropping and asked us However, this is much more than a conserva- of remembrance of the vibrant aliveness and wis-
into analysing the children. I wanted to offer them a to identify the animal. Initially, I had no idea but I tion project; it is also about leadership and address- dom of all that surrounds us to inspire us to build
magical space where they could express their focussed and at once I saw very clearly the face of ing the most urgent crises of today. After observing together, with a Lion Heart, the New World for
dreams and, if need be, their concerns. an ostrich: it was an absolutely clear image. lions for a long time, she decided to set up her White which Auroville aspires.
When they are older they often remember the Through exercises like this, we learned how much Lion Leadership Academy. Here she started to train From an interview with Alan

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