Scenic view of rolling green hills and mountains in a rural landscape.

Southwest Sufi Community

  • Communities

About the Communities

  • Established
  • Spiritual
  • Rural

Founding year

  • 1995

What we do

The Southwest Sufi Community (SSC), located near Silver City, New Mexico, is first and foremost a spiritually oriented community, promoting understanding of the Sufi message, but welcoming to students of inclusive spiritual paths. We deepen our spiritual path through direct experience and eat, dance, and pray together. The community, begun in June 1995, is a retreat center, a nature preserve, and a residential village on 1,500 acres along year-round Bear Creek. We host group and individual retreats with inclusive spiritual themes.
People interested in residency at the Southwest Sufi Community want to have the pioneer spirit, be financially self-sufficient or resourceful, and in good health. Since the land is remote from town, it is not practical to commute. People will need to support themselves in creative ways. Those interested in establishing cottage industries on the land are especially encouraged to come and check us out.
The best way to get to know the community is to come for a visit, or attend one of our camps or retreats We offer limited indoor accommodations, camping, vegetarian meals, classes, and time in nature. We welcome visitors at other times, too, especially on weekends. Please write or email before planning a visit and tell us you saw this listing in the Communities Directory.

Our Mission

Spiritual retreat & inclusive spiritual community.

  • Purpose
  • Spiritual
  • Community type
  • Spiritual Retreat Centers
  • Sustainability practices
  • Renewable energy systems
  • Permaculture design
  • Activities
  • Experiences

Commemorative dates

  • January 1, 1995
  • Started planning
  • January 1, 1998
  • Started living together
  • 16 Total members
  • Open to new members
  • Open to visitors
Total
16

How to join

Request information from our Host/Coordinator at: ss****@***il.com
We are seeking emotionally mature, cooperative people to join us in creating inclusive spiritual community – including organic growers, people with mechanical and engineering skills, artists, entrepreneurs, families with children.

Basic expectations or agreements for members

Start with an email, letter. We’ll arrange a time for a visit that suits you and us. We also have a variety of accommodations available for individual retreats, including a secluded retreat cabin. See our website for more information:
southwestsuficommunity.org

Decision-making process

  • Modified Consensus

Generally seek agreement, but have backup methods when consensus isn’t reached.

Governance structure

  • Collaborative/Horizontal

Power and responsibility are shared relatively equally among members.

Conflict resolution approach

We take turns as facilitator of the weekly community meeting. One volunteer acts as Host/Coordinator for visitors. phone, email requests..
The Participants Weekly Meeting and the Board of Directors Meetings.
Our Community Participants meet weekly to conduct community business.
Our Community strives for consensus, but it is not a rigid standard. Our Board of Directors works by consensus minus one.

Economic model

  • Independent Finances

Members maintain separate personal finances with minimal sharing.

Economic scenarios for this community

  • Members need to pay fees, dues, or similar to live there on a per month or per year basis
  • There is a labor obligation
  • Members typically need to have their own job or other personal source of income to cover their expenses while living in the community?

Additional economic information

Regular fees: Yes
Labor: Encouraged or suggested
Members with pre-existing debt: allowed
Any debts are an individual responsibility.
There is no specific requirement. Participants volunteer to help with the work of the community.
Participants pay a $125 participation fee monthly and $100 to $200per month rent depending upon the accomodations.

Shared resources and amenities that are accessible to everyone in the community

Common House, Garden(s), Greenhouse(s), Library, Workshop, Outbuilding(s), Swimming pond or pool, Outdoor Kitchen, Large Scale Kitchen, Tractor & Farm Equipment, Internet

Frequency of communal meals

  • About once a week

Dietary type

  • Vegetarian Only

Dietary restriction

  • People can cook and eat what they want in their own residence

Community activities and engagement

  • Volunteer, Internship, or Apprenticeship, or WWOOF’ing
  • Festivals, Conferences, Events

Substance use culture

  • Substance use appears in public spaces but no pressure
  • Religions
  • Sufi

Gender composition

  • Roughly balanced (no group over 60%)

Age demographics

  • Mixed adults (few or no children)

Property status

  • Privately owned

Property owner

  • By a Community Land Trust or some other kind of nonprofit

Setting

  • Rural

Countryside locations with significant distance from urban centers.

Community type

  • Spiritual Retreat Centers

    Residential communities focused on providing space for meditation, spiritual practice, and personal growth retreats.

Sustainability approach

  • Renewable energy systems
  • Permaculture design

Land practices in our community

  • The community practices permaculture

Self-produced energy

  • 33 - 66%

Energy sources used

  • Photovoltaic Solar

Self-produced food

  • Up to 33%

Local, organic, or fair trade food

  • 33 - 66%

Food systems

  • Community garden
  • Greenhouse / aquaponics

Guest Book

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Location

  • New Mexico, United States

Needs and Offers

Offer
Offer
  • Marketplace
6 years ago

Cohousing: A Contemporary Approach to Housing Ourselves Books for Sale

Cohousing: A Contemporary Approach to Housing Ourselves, Charles Durrett and Kathryn McCamant introduce Cohousing with stories and pictures of both Danish and American communities. Beautiful photographs and line drawings illustrate the warmly written account of how these communities came to be. Specific information on legal and financial aspects of working with developers, group process, and design issues make this book informative as well as inspiring. This is the book which brought Cohousing to North America. This book is the much prized second edition which has become a rarer and somewhat of a collectors item. Its community case studies were not included in the more recent publication. It preceded Creating Cohousing which is widely available. I acquired 25 cases from a local distributor who closed down. If you would like three or more copies for yourself, to share with your friends or to market your group, please let me know. I would love for them to be made useful and find great homes. Books are paperback (hard copy was not an option at the time from the publisher) all brand new, in Oakland (CA) so could be picked in Oakland or mailed to you. I would very much like to recuperate what I paid which is $10 per book. So, If you would like three or more shipped, I will add the postage, packing and handling fees. I have sold several cases (18 books per case) for $150 per case ($8 per book). I have a little wiggle room on the pricing. Please let me know if you are interested. Use the Send Message button on this page.

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Communities

A residential project: people live here as their primary home.

Organizations

An institution, business, network, or project that isn’t a residence (e.g. a learning center, farm, or network with no one living there full-time).

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