The Importance of Being Connected in an Intentional Community : Exploring Beliefs and Practice in Araucaria

Abstract

This thesis describes life in Araucaria, an intentional community in the hinterlands of Australia s Sunshine Coast. Through eight months of participatory fieldwork, I have concerned myself with how the inhabitants purposefully attempted to increase their sense of unity and their intentional way of living. I have examined this through following processes in which the inhabitants wished to both strengthen their bonds to each other as individuals and to strengthen their individual bonds to the community as a whole. This includes an exploration of how they understood the world and their place in it, where I have described their beliefs and use of the term interconnectedness . This term has been embedded in the community practice since its founding, and entails a wish for stronger connections to each other, to their own selves and to their surroundings. I illustrate how this includes a way of relating to nature as full of sentient beings (plant life in particular) that are equal to humans – which is nothing less than an attempt at an ontological shift where the division between humans (culture) and nature are broken down. As I show how their beliefs are part of what strengthen their bonds to each other, I also emphasize how different beliefs could threaten to divide them. Following this, I explore how ritualistic behavior and carefully structured ritual settings were meant to deal with these threats. These were intentional means to further enact and foster common values, commitment to the group, and deeper connections between individuals. To further explain how they create a sense of unity I also delve into their use and perception of the land they inhabit. This shows how dealings with nature were a source of enacting their values and beliefs.