Nestled among the mountains of the Yarra Valley in Victoria, Anam Cara is a 50 acre farm that is home to a small group of radical humans living on the land, restoring connection with country, and working to heal both as individuals and as a collective back into right relationship with one another and with the natural world. Our inspiration and style of living draws from the wisdoms of the communities of the Findhorn Foundation, from our Celtic ancestors, from our Indigenous First People’s ancestors and from the living Earth herself. We are also deeply influenced by Vedic philosophy and the Yoga traditions.
Anam Cara is an Irish Gaelic phrase that loosely translates as “soul friend”. The Anam Cara relationship is one of sacred depth, and is founded in connection, authenticity, humility, trust and respect. Here at the homestead we seek to cultivate Anam Cara connections with one another, with our guests, and with all of the creatures, trees and rocks and non-human life that share this beautiful place with us.
Living life immersed in the Australian bush brings us close to the natural forces on a daily basis. We live consciously in rhythm with the cycles, the seasons, and the weather. We practice daily meditations, singing and rituals that restore and uphold our connection with Spirit. We live wide and deep expansive lives at Anam Cara!
Our vision for this community and the homestead is to live in as eco-friendly and sustainable way as is possible whilst co-creating, journeying, and remembering a more harmonious and sacred way of being human.
Anam Cara is a place of healing, growth, visioning and enacting our way out of the predicaments of Modernity. Anam Cara seeks to create a bridge between the old world and the new.
To live in a eco-friendly and sustainable way whilst co-creating, journeying, and remembering a more harmonious and sacred way of being human.
Anyone seeking residency needs to complete the four Anam Cara Experience Weeks as a prerequisite. This gives you a chance to see whether our lifestyle suits you, and also ensures that all residents have gone through a process of learning certain inter-relating skills by the time they become full residents. This is important because creating community in the modern world is hard! We all come with different agendas and perspectives as well as differing woundings and traumas. When these woundings intersect without skilful holding, heaven can very quickly become hell!
If you have arrived with us via work exchange and decide that you are interested in residency, you would still need to book in for the Experience Weeks at some point in your stay. We also require you to complete our Conscious Relating Retreat. If your long-term guest-ship and temporary residency applications are successful, all of these undertakings can be spread out throughout both of these periods to diffuse the costs.
There are three stages to residency, and in order to begin the residency process, you will need to have stayed with us for a 12 week period – either as an Anam Cara Experience Week guest, a volunteer, or a combination of both. At the end of this period, you will be invited to speak with each existing resident individually, followed by what we call First Attunement.
We’d love to invite you to be a part of this project. Every guest at Anam Cara is considered a valued co-creator with wisdoms and knowledges to share with us. There are several options available for visiting Anam Cara as detailed on our website.
A few people (not elected by the broader community) make the major decisions.
Decisions proceed unless someone has a reasoned objection.
Organized in circles or domains with distributed authority.
At Anam Cara Homestead we seek to attune to each other in making necessary decisions. In practice, this involves a mix of sociocracy and eldering (see our website for further details).
Members maintain separate personal finances with minimal sharing.
Regular fees: $500
Labor: Yes (25 hrs/week)
Members with pre-existing debt: allowed
At Anam Cara Homestead we work together for about five hours a day five days a week. In addition, we contribute to costs of shared meals. There are no other rental, dues, fees or expenses charged for residents at Anam Cara Homestead.
Common House, Garden(s), Workshop, Outbuilding(s), Swimming pond or pool, Fire pit, Swingsets & play areas, Internet
Countryside locations with significant distance from urban centers.
A residential project: people live here as their primary home.
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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