One of the themes that André pursues with enthusiasm is alternative conceptions of reality. He exemplifies this with the Findhorn Foundation - a spiritual community and eco-village founded in northeast Scotland in 1962.
Having lived at that community for eight years and taken considerable interest in the myths surrounding it and the care with with which they are sustained, I feel like I can write with some authority on the subject. Sorry if this spoils your favourite belief system, but it is all complete nonsense. There *is* a Universal Hall - I worked in it for several years. However, the roof stays in place, even in the fierce gales which are common in that part of the world. It does not mystically rise, turn or anything similar. The only things that are mystical about the Universal Hall are that it was ever completed at all, given the many financial problems of the Foundation, and the electrics, which are held together by good intentions.
Equally, there were never any giant cabbages produced by miraculous devic powers - that is a myth started by one of the founders, Peter Caddy, who was a nice guy who possessed the marketing ethics of Microsoft.
Finally, Eileen Caddy, another of the founders, was a very nice person but she did not talk to God. The 'still, small voice within' is better seen as Eileen, talking to herself and others, saying the things she was unable to put her own name to.
The only real miracle of Findhorn is how so many people can be so gullible for so long. It is a great testament to the power of appealing fantasies over less attractive but truly miraculous realities. Which brings us back to André and the film...
Having lived at that community for eight years and taken considerable interest in the myths surrounding it and the care with with which they are sustained, I feel like I can write with some authority on the subject. Sorry if this spoils your favourite belief system, but it is all complete nonsense. There *is* a Universal Hall - I worked in it for several years. However, the roof stays in place, even in the fierce gales which are common in that part of the world. It does not mystically rise, turn or anything similar. The only things that are mystical about the Universal Hall are that it was ever completed at all, given the many financial problems of the Foundation, and the electrics, which are held together by good intentions.
Equally, there were never any giant cabbages produced by miraculous devic powers - that is a myth started by one of the founders, Peter Caddy, who was a nice guy who possessed the marketing ethics of Microsoft.
Finally, Eileen Caddy, another of the founders, was a very nice person but she did not talk to God. The 'still, small voice within' is better seen as Eileen, talking to herself and others, saying the things she was unable to put her own name to.
The only real miracle of Findhorn is how so many people can be so gullible for so long. It is a great testament to the power of appealing fantasies over less attractive but truly miraculous realities. Which brings us back to André and the film...