Hidden in the Italian Alps, in a village called Baldissero de Canavese, a spiritual society was born that is called Damanhur. This federation of communities is a working experiment of a new way of living, based on ancient knowledge and spiritual rules that aim to replace the typical organization of a community governed by laws and punishment. In Damanhur every citizen follows, apart from the Damanhurian constitution, a set of laws that are created from the person itself and reviewed by the community.
Damanhur is located on one of the numerous energy spots (vortexes) of earth. According to Damanhurian philosophy earth has synchronic lines which are like streams of energy that circulate around the globe. At the crossing of the synchronic lines the vortexes are created. Damanhur lives at the crossing of four synchronic lines.
Exactly at this point the first Damanhurians decided to excavate inside the mountain an enormous labyrinth of rooms, which form the Temples of Humankind. Each temple has the size of a small chapel up to a big church and is accessible by an underground tunnel that reaches a staggering 30 meters depth. To enter the underground labyrinth, one has to enter through one of the holes in the mountain. The labyrinths have main paths as well as mystic paths which are not visible, but are activated either mechanically or electronically, very similar to the mystic paths of the pyramids of Egypt. The corridors are decorated with symbols that form a language which is called by Damanhurians the "sacred language" and is believed to have been spoken on earth at the time of Atlantis. The ancient language has proper characters (symbols), phonetics and a dance where each meaning (symbol) has a certain move. In this way a meaning can be spoken, written or danced.
Damanhurians are doing extensive research on ancient, partly lost, teachings, mainly ancient Egyptian, Mayan, Babylonian and Greek. One of the results of this research is the discovery of the Selficas, which are copper wire systems that aim to concentrate and direct energy. Selficas are also used for time traveling, which is widely researched in the organization, as well as for prana healing. Extensive research has also been performed on alchemy, which is taught by the Damanhurian University. Apart of alchemy the university offers many other courses, for example on energy, the sacred language and symbols and the esoteric physics, which include the principles of Selfica.
Damanhur is based on 4 pillars (or bodies): The first one is the school of meditation, a school of ancient thoughts and knowledge. The second pillar is the game of life which is a way to break habits, bring energy, stimulate people through games, travels and competitions. The third one is the social organization: Damanhur is a federation of communities which is organized with guides (reelected every 6 months), region representatives and nucleo representatives). The last one is «tercnacato», a personal way of transformation because, according to the Damanhurian philosophy, we can't change the world if we not start by changing ourselves.
The citizens of Damanhur follow the Damanhurian constitution, use the optional currency of Credito and are organized in spiritual communities called "nucleo". Most of the nucleos are situated around Baldissero Canavese, but there are also numerous Damanhurian nucleos around the world that follow the principles of Damanhur. The main purpose of this social experiment is to form the rules of the ideal spiritual community. There are four different categories of Damanhurian citizens, based on location and commitment and there is also a 3-month program for non-Damanhurians to experience life in Damanhur.
Out of my short visit in Damanhur I got a very positive image on what is heading to be the most active research of spirituality, mysticism and energy around in the world. Damanhur is worth visiting for persons who are interested in spirituality, ecosystems and community living. Also people who are not interested in them will find a value in visiting the underground temples which are well worth the 60 Euros of a half day visit guided tour. For people interested in spiritual research I would recommend checking the schedule of courses and seminars in their website before going. Generally the cost of a course is about 100 Euros per day.
