The Federation of Damanhur, often called simply Damanhur, is a commune,

ecovillage An ecovillage is a traditional or intentional community with the goal of becoming more socially, culturally, economically, and/or ecologically sustainable. An ecovillage strives to produce the least possible negative impact on the natural e ...

, and spiritual community situated in the

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

region of northern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

about north of the city of

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The ...

. It is located in the foothills of the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...

in the

Chiusella Valley The Chiusella valley (in Italian ''Valle Chiusella'' or, simply, ''Valchiusella'') is a valley in the Province of Turin (Piedmont, Italy). Etymology Valchiusella takes its name from Chiusella, a right-hand tributary of the Dora Baltea which flow ...

, bordering on the Gran Paradiso National Park. The community has its own constitution and currency, the ''Credito''. Damanhur is named after the

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

ian city of

Damanhur Damanhur ( ar, دمنهور ', ; Egyptian: ''Dmỉ-n-Ḥr.w''; cop, ⲡϯⲙⲓⲛ̀ϩⲱⲣ '; ; grc, Ἑρμοῦ πόλις μικρά ') is a city in Lower Egypt, and the capital of the Beheira Governorate. It is located northwest of Cai ...

which was the site of a temple dedicated to Horus. It was founded in 1975 by

Oberto Airaudi Oberto Airaudi (29 May 1950 – 24 June 2013) was an Italian philosopher and artist, who founded the Federation of Damanhur. Airaudi also went by the name of Falco (Hawk), based on the Damanhur practice of adopting animal names. He was born in Ba ...

with around 24 followers, and by 2000 the number had grown to 800. The group holds a mix of

New Age New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars consi ...

and neopagan beliefs. Damanhur's supporters claim the growth and activity of the community has revitalized the local area. The Federation of Damanhur has centers in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

, America, and Japan.

Life at Damanhur

The constitution began with 3 bodies of Damanhur: The School of Meditation (ritual tradition) Social (social theory, social realization) and The Game of Life (experimentation and dynamics, life as a game, change). A fourth body was recently added, Technarcate (individual inner refinement). Citizens participate in one of 4 levels, depending on their desired involvement: A, B, C, or D. Class A citizens share all resources and live on site full-time. Class B citizens contribute to financial goals and live on site a minimum of 3 days a week. Class C and D citizens live anywhere. (page 102, Merrifield, 2006) Class A & B citizens participate fully in The School of Meditation, Social, and the Game of Life. Class C citizens participate fully in The School of Meditation. Citizens participate in one of several ways, depending on their personal nature. Ways include the Way of the Oracle, the Way of the Monk, the Way of the Knight, the Way of Health, the Way of the Word, the Way of Art & Work, and many others. Most citizens live in houses of 10-20 people each, federated together into the Federation of Damanhur. Marriage works on a renewal basis, for a period of so many years before renewal. Conception is timed for auspicious birthdays of children. From 1983 onwards, members have assumed animal names (Sparrow, Prawn, Mole, etc.).

Controversy

* According to the President of the National Psychological Abuses Observatory, Patrizia Santovecchi, among the characteristics of Damanhur there are those typical of sects, including the lack of possibility to go out freely due to blackmail, manipulation through the siege syndrome, for which outside the sect are all the enemies constituted by negative energies, and, moreover, the impossibility of criticism and the imposition of total obedience, the estrangement from family members, the complete depersonalization in the individual under various aspects, including for example the assignment of a new name within the community, the deprivation of any kind of decision-making capacity, the need to ask the guru what to do.

Notes

References

* * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Damanhur 1975 establishments in Italy Ecovillages Micronations New Age communities New religious movements Religious organizations established in 1975 Subterranea (geography) Utopian movements