"Auroville will be the place of an unending education, of constant progress, and a youth that never ages”. These words were read out by The Mother on February 28 1968 as representatives of 124 nations and all states of India placed handfuls of earth from their homelands into a marble-clad urn to symbolise human unity – the stated purpose behind the birth of Auroville. More than 5,000 people gathered on inauguration day at the amphitheatre that had been built along with Matrimandir (the Temple of The Mother) in what was to become the central core of the city, now known as the Peace Area. The Peace Area also contains 12 main gardens around Matrimandir (which are in varying stages of completion), peripheral green spaces and a surrounding lake, all planned by the late French architect Roger Anger, who had been appointed by The Mother to oversee the physical development of Auroville. Auroville is a self-governing, international city located 5km off the coast of the Bay of Bengal.
Matrimandir Gardens of Life and Power
The Matrimandir gardens are part of Anger’s Galaxy Plan and were each assigned a spiritual theme by The Mother, along with a list of flowers that she had chosen for them. They are the embodiment of the spiritual teachings of Sri Aurobindo, and together with Matrimandir symbolise the spirit of unity that gave birth to Auroville. In essence, the 12 gardens aspire to reveal specific spiritual qualities to those walking through them before entering Matrimandir for silent meditation.
In 2019, the Matrimandir Executives announced an open call to design four of the the 12 gardens around Matrimandir—Light, Life, Power, and Wealth. Three shortlisted team were invited to Auroville in March 2021 to present their designs to the community of residents. As a result, three architects—Anandit Sachdev, Rupal Rathore, and Vir Shah—came together as a team to arrive at one integrated proposal for the four gardens.
Ultimately, the gardens of Life and Power were approved to be built over a span of 10 months, from November 2021 to August 2022. The designs were manifested by incorporating critical feedback provided by the community, and inputs from irrigation, landscape, and civil construction experts.
“Life energy is not physical in itself; it is not material energy, but rather a different principle supporting Matter. It supports and occupies all forms and without it, no physical form could have come into being or could remain into being.”
— Sri Aurobindo [Kena and Other Upanishads]
Matrimandir Garden of Life is designed as a journey through different elements in nature, with water signified as the genesis of life. The organic form of the garden is retained with curved walls clad in rough granite and red agra sandstone. A winding pathway of yellow kadappa stepping stones ties together the two lily ponds, hibiscus and adenium clusters, groups of boulders, and raised planters. The bigger lily pond is constructed as a two-step bowl with the outer, shallow layer comprising reeds and water-loving plants that support a self-cleansing mini-ecosystem, while also acting as a safety buffer. Surrounded by a bed of tiny pebbles, the pond evokes the refreshing memory of a desert oasis.
“Power means strength and force, Shakti, which enables one to face all that can happen, and also to carry out what the Divine Will proposes. It is not an individual strength depending on certain personal capacities, but the Divine Power using the individual as an instrument.”
— Sri Aurobindo [Letters on Yoga]
The adjacent Matrimandir Garden of Power is designed to kindle the experience of aesthetic beauty that brings individuals together for collective action. Taking inspiration from traditional Japanese gardens that feature a minimal assembly of sand, pebbles, grass, and rock, this garden draws primary focus to a set of sculptural pots or ‘urlis’ placed in a bed of white marble chips. The white circle is surrounded by a soft grass cover dotted with pink hibiscus shrubs and low-height boulders. A curved granite bench cantilevers out from the retaining wall facing Matrimandir, seamlessly merging at the ends. The pathway – an alternating textural pattern of thin strips of polished stone and crushed grit – flows along one of the curving edges to afford a panoramic view of the garden against the backdrop of the Banyan tree.
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Location: Auroville, Tamil Nadu, India
Status: Completed 2022
Size: 972 sqm
Client: Matrimandir Executive Team (representing the entire Aurovillian community)
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Anandit Sachdev
Anandit Sachdev is a researcher in the field of sonic studies and the built environment. He holds an M.Sc. in Revitalization of Historic City Districts from Brandenburg Technical University, Germany. Currently, Anandit works as an Assistant Professor at Jindal School of Art and Architecture, OP Jindal Global University, India.
Rupal Rathore
Rupal Rathore is an architect, writer and yoga enthusiast based in India. She is a regular contributor of long-form articles at Disegno Journal and Damn Magazine that explore the intersections between design, culture, and politics. Currently, she works with the architecture communications company Future–Future Global.
Vir Shah
Vir Shah is an architect and film enthusiast from Ahmedabad, India. He is interested in exploring the convergence of the two disciplines—cinema and human-made environments. Vir is presently pursuing a Masters in Architecture and Urban Design at GSAPP Columbia University, USA.
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Civil Work: Selvam and Murugan Anna
Irrigation: Luca
Electrical Engineering: Kalaiarasan
Plant Selection: Narad
Photographs: Alessandra Silver
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