Choosing the Land/Farm

The Vision

Ideally, gather together your pioneers, the ones who will begin the venture. Your Homa farm will evolve nicely, but in the beginning you need dedicated partners with a clear, common vision. This applies whether it is a Homa family farm in the traditional sense or if it is a group of Agnihotra practitioners wanting to create a Homa oasis in a rural scene.

Once you establish your beginning group, discuss your visions of the place and see if you are all with similar focus. For example, if one person sees the farm as a retreat centre where silence reigns and another person sees it as a training centre where Homa volunteers or participants can take part in active workshops and eventually open the place up to the public for ongoing classes and seminars, you probably need to examine your priorities and see how or if it is possible for the same farm to accommodate both visions! Or you could come to a compromise or a decision may arise where one person realizes it is not his or her dream after all. Good to get all the preliminary visions in sync in the beginning, rather than later down the line when everyone has invested time and money and dissatisfactions arise.

Sit together, preferably at sunset Agnihotra. This is a simple way to envision your farm. Close your eyes and breathe deeply. Focus on your breath. Relax totally. Now imagine your Homa farm, see it in your mind’s eye. Feel how it feels to be there. Let your imagination lead, not your intellect. Who is there on the farm? Are there trees, meadows? Do you see animals? People? If you really get into it you may even smell flowers growing there or bread baking in the oven! Just allow yourself to see and feel. Don’t try to control what you
see. Let it flow.

Following this simple exercise, quietly, without speaking, write your vision on paper individually. After everyone has completed their writing, go around the room and read your visions aloud. A lively discussion is likely to follow! Enjoy the similarities, the new ideas and the varying feelings that come up. This is a beginning.

At Bhrugu Aranya, we do this occasionally to see what ideas come up or what visions reveal. It’s always inspirational at any stage, but in the very beginning it clarifies and helps to formulate your ideas, assisting manifesting dreams into reality. Employing subtle realms, even as simple as this method, brings a new perspective to the experience.

Actual Land

As you have decided what you are looking for, your idea for the land will come next. Since Homa Organic Farming relies on gardens, you will need to look for land which includes open acreage for gardens. Also, as most Homa Farms should have at least two cows in residence, you will need to look for land which includes pasture acreage to accommodate them. A wooded area also is handy. And rivers or streams, brooks, ponds add the water element.

Water rights should belong to the farm and not be shared water rights with any other property. This is important. Also, if a well is on the property, it should ideally be a deep well and it is advisable to have the water tested if you are seriously considering buying the farm.

It depends as to whether you want to build your own structures, homes, barns, or if you prefer to buy a property ready to move into. If it is the latter, for whatever reason–due to time considerations or price of new building materials being high–it is important to find the right place with a good solid home in good condition, out-buildings which can perhaps be turned into living quarters for guests or therapy huts, etc. You should also consider the heating source, which will cost quite a lot for a large property. Good if the buildings have alternate sources for heat. If it is wood heat, for example, good if it also has electric backup for when no one is at home on cold winter days. Of course, solar electricity is the very best. Be aware of flood plains and check for hidden water leakage in basements. See that the roof is in good condition, as this is quite costly to repair.

There are some excellent books available on starting communities, eco building and eco villages, but Homa farm communities is a very specific, new field. We are happy to share our experiences with Homa Therapy teachers and offer workshops on forming Homa Organic Farm communities. There is much more to cover and more specifics can be shared later. This is just a beginning. We hope there will be many more Arks of Fire.