A day in the life of Damanhur: The largest Italian spiritual community told by someone who lives there

By Stambecco Pesco

Forty years of Damanhur story, told by those who experienced them in person. The story of the day of a Damanhurian, to understand how you live, you think, it grows into what is now the largest secular spiritual community in Italy.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Publishdrive
• Release date: Feb 29, 2016
• ISBN: 9788899652142

Book preview

Stambecco Pesco

(Ibex Peach, Silvio Palombo)

A day in the life of Damanhur

The largest Italian spiritual community told by someone who lives there

DAMANHUR

A day in the life of Damanhur

Stambecco Pesco (Silvio Palombo)

First edition: 2011 (ALTRIPARAGGI EDIZIONI)

First Digital Edition: March 2016

ISBN 978-88-99652-14-2

COPYRIGHT©2016 DEVODAMA

Devodama srl, Vidracco (TO) - Italy

www.devodama.it

www.damanhur.org

www.unostambeccoadamanhur.it

www.damanhurblog.com

All right reserved. No part of this book or its images may be reproduced, utilized, transmitted, or stored in any retrieval system in any form or by any means, including, without limitations, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the express written and prior permission of Devodama srl.

Stambecco Pesco (Silvio Palombo, 1960) operates in the disciplines of meditation and sensitivity development and is responsible for publishing and communication. Published Gaia and The underground city.

Forty years of Damanhur story, told by those who experienced them in person. The story of the day of a Damanhurian, to understand how you live, you think, it grows into what is now the largest secular spiritual community in Italy.

Sommario

Preface

6.50 to 8.00 AM - Chapter one

My community

8.00 to 9.30 AM - Chapter two

Lots of work

9:30 to 11:00 AM - Chapter three

Changing the world

11:00 to 11:30 AM - Chapter four

What am i doing here?

11:30 AM to 12:30 PM - Chapter five

Backbiters

12:30 to 1:00 PM - Chapter six

Meditate people, meditate

1:00 to 2:00 PM - Chapter seven

Politics and politicians

2:30 to 6:00 PM - Chapter eight

The magical temples

6 PM to 7 PM - Chapter nine

The legacy of Adriano

7:00 to 7:30 PM - Chapter ten

Extraordinary everyday people

7:30 to 8:30 PM - Chapter eleven

My friend Falco

8:30 PM to … - Chapter twelve

A new project?

Epilogue

Afterword

References

Damanhur,

Federation of Communities

Preface

This book tells us what Damanhur, Federation of Communities, is today as seen through the eyes of a Damanhurian.

When I began writing I had a purpose in mind: to be able to talk about Damanhur by telling the reader of my everyday life. I wanted to make it evident that Damanhur is made of principles, values, ideals and–in a similar measure of intensity–of emotions and thoughts of its people. Damanhur is well represented by its Constitution, its development, its initiatives in the cultural and social fields, but also by the passion and the commitment which its citizens put to good use every day.

Writing this book has been a pleasure for that reason, because talking about what you love is always wonderful and more so if you imagine being read by interested and curious people.

Since My Damanhur was first published, a number of things have changed. Change is one of the constants of our lives and those who come here from time to time–or visit our website, or meet Damanhurians engaged in various activities around the world–will always find something different, transformed. Damanhur has grown and has modified parts of itself as it always has done. Moreover, in 2013 Damanhurians’ spiritual guide, Falco Tarassaco, left his body, as you probably know …

But these transformations, these events, do not modify the meaning of our adventure, so I have not changed anything in my account, I have just mentioned some of these events in my afterword.

When you come and visit us, you will discover those differences for yourself.

What remains unaltered is the spirit that pervades these pages: Damanhur changes and transforms itself, ensuring that the dream of its creators remains the same and becomes a little more real every day.

S.P.

A day in the life of Damanhur

6.50 to 8.00 AM - Chapter one

My community

This morning I woke up earlier than usual. The alarm that wakes me up, and also my wife, rings at 6:50 am, but today, my eyes have already been open for a while.

Why is this? Maybe there is something special to do today? In a sense, yes. Today is the day that I want to write about in a book. In this way, I can explain about daily life as a citizen of Damanhur. Maybe waking up prematurely is a way for me to concentrate…

I get up, trying not to wake up my wife. My wife’s name is Furetto Oliva (Ferret Olive). Damanhurians, if they wish to do so, take on a new name, an animal one and a plant one, to emphasize our connection with the forces of nature, to demonstrate the desire to innovate and play, making fun of ourselves a little. My name is Stambecco Pesco (Ibex Peach).

I wash up, get dressed and go out into the yard. We are near the end of summer, and even early in the morning, there is still enough light and heat to stay outside and collect my thoughts. Even though watching the mist that veils the alder and chestnut trees is a pleasure, if not for my neck, for the view itself.

The nucleo community I live in is called Casa del Lago (Lake House). Damanhur is made up of groups of about twenty people who live together like a big family, and these groups are called nucleo communities. Casa del Lago is in Tentyris, in the town of Lugnacco.

Amongst all these names, Lugnacco is the only one that can be found on a topographic map, provided that it also includes towns with less than 500 inhabitants. We are located about ten kilometers from the central area of Damanhur, where there are the most Damanhurian nucleo communities and businesses, extending through the neighboring lands of Baldissero Canavese and Vidracco.

I’ve lived in this house for many years, which, despite its name, is not located on the bank of a lake. In fact, the lake doesn’t even exist. A large pond was here until two centuries ago, so on the cadastral maps, the name is Casa del Lago, and we liked it and decided to keep it. We are in the midst of rocky hills full of chestnut trees, alders, and unfortunately, acacia weeds. There are many small streams, and within a kilometer radius, there are also the Damanhurian settlements called Magilla, Porta della Luna, and Dendera, for a total of about one hundred people comprising the region of Tentyris. I am very attached to these places. I have lived in Damanhur since 1981, and in the region of Tentyris since 1992. In the early years at Magilla, we settled on a farmstead without any water or electricity, making a small aqueduct for ourselves, one that was equipped with a turbine to create the energy necessary for the essentials, renovating the house little by little. Today, not only is Magilla a beautiful renovated farmhouse that is almost energetically self-sufficient and home to about twenty people, but the entire region of Tentyris has similar features: it is a region with a total of about one hundred people, two independent water systems, photovoltaic and solar panels on every roof, gardens, farm animals, and despite all this, a very low environmental impact.

I come back home, which slowly comes to life. Eleven people live here, single adults and couples with and without children. In our nucleo, there are two youth, one who goes to high school and one who’s in elementary school. Since Furetto and I are taking Avalo, the younger of the two to school, I go to make sure he is already up. At breakfast, I greet: Cormorano Sicomoro (Cormorant Sycamore), who is a lawyer and is leaving the house soon because he has a hearing in Turin, Gracchio Basilisco (Chough Basil) who is agriculturalist and is going to the nucleo community Pejda, where there is a greenhouse to be assembled, and Wallaby Pulsatilla, who instead stays at home, because she will be on duty at the hospital later on in the night, as she is an obstetrician, and she wants to take advantage of the morning to tidy up her things. I check the bulletin board to make sure it is not my turn at home tonight: the custom of Casa del Lago and many other nucleo communities is that there must always be at least one person present on the territory of the house, and we take turns, taking into account everyone’s needs. The morning and afternoon turns are fixed assignments, while in the evenings, we are on duty on a rotating schedule. Tonight it’s not my turn. Good, I’ll have time to finish the book I’m reading, which I have to return to the library.

Finally, everyone is ready and we leave. I drop off both Avalo and Furetto at school. Furetto is a volunteer for the education association. I arrive at the office of the editorial cooperative that I work for, in the central area of Damanhur that is currently called Damjl.

While driving, my attempt to listen to radio news was overruled by Furetto’s request to talk about a couple of things regarding the house. She is the leader, the regent of Casa del Lago, and she needed to pass on some information to me about my responsibilities. Our nucleo community is going through some particular times. We live in three small houses that are close to each other, but the lack of space prevents us from growing in numbers. We are the smallest community group in Damanhur, and