Introduction

I first came to the Findhorn Foundation for a weekend in ~974.

I was not a spiritual type but I certainly was looking for some-

thing. Having left my home in South Africa with an over-

whelming sadness at the separation in every aspect of that

society, I dreamt of an idyllic utopia where everyone had a

common unity and purpose. What power that could generate!

I didn t know how to create the harmony I longed for in my

world, so I went looking for it.

My first impression of the community growing at Findhorn

was that the ~5o people I met there also wanted to live in har-

mony, and were setting about creating it themselves. So I

stayed for a weekend.., then a few weeks.., then a year,

which stretched to ten.., and more.

What appeared at first glance to be just a group of nice

people living happily together turned out to be much more.

The community lifestyle was very busy - delicious vegetarian

meals were produced twice a day in the spotless kitchen, the

community centre was kept immaculate, there were

gardeners digging, planting and weeding in the lovely flower

and vegetable gardens, and other people worked in the craft

studios or the Publications department, which had a dark-

room and printing press and had published several books.

The community was also about to break ground to build a new

Hall to accommodate their ever increasing numbers. And

there was something special about the place I couldn t define

- a kind of magic.

In my quest for harmony I had set one foot on a path which

was to lead me into worlds far beyond my dreams - towards a

new understanding of Self, and of the very purpose of life.

One of my first steps along this path as a new member of the

Findhorn Community was to clean Peter and Eileen Caddy s

bungalow each morning. Only years later did I learn that I was