Location: On the north-east corner of the Ashram. The main gate of the Meditation House opens on Rue François Martin to the east and is opposite the Ashram Dispensary.
Siginificance: This is the house where Sri Aurobindo and the Mother lived from 1927 onwards.
Name: The name seems to have been derived from the two Meditation Halls in this house (one upstairs and the other downstairs), where the Mother held collective meditations for the sadhaks of the Ashram between 1927 and 1938.
Sri Aurobindo's room | Supreme
Manifestation upon earth
1-3
Sitting room | Krishna's Ananda
2-1
Central Hall | Perfect Creation
2-2
Dressing room | Divine's Love
3-1
Staircase from the ground floor — upper flight |
Spiritual Intensity
3-2
Meditation Hall upstairs | Purified Worship
3-3
Darshan room | Divine
Consciousness
4-1
Stores — third room | Material
Prosperity
4-2
Stores — second room | Riches
4-3
Stores — first room | Wealth
S1
Outer staircase from terrace to the roof
Here Sri Aurobindo lived in his room from 1927.
Sri Aurobindo and the Mother's bathroom on the first floor of the Meditation House has three doors. One of them (on the west wall) opened to the terrace of the Old Secretariat and provided a connection between the Meditation House and the Old Secretariat. Next door — to the east — opened into Sri Aurobindo's own room. The third door — to the south — opened in front of the staircase landing. When the New Secretariat was built in 1932, the first door (to the west) was connected to the corridor leading to Pavitra's new room on the first floor of the New Secretariat.
Soon after coming back from Calcutta I heard that the house adjoining ours was vacant. I don't know what impelled me to go and see it. I casually mentioned it to Mother Mirra. She wanted to see it too. We did not know at the time that this house would be Sri Aurobindo's abode and the very centre of the Ashram buildings. Mother might have felt something of the kind but she did not give us any inkling until I actually took her there.
A Bengali young man from Hyderabad (the Nizam's capital) was in correspondence with me at this time on Yoga and kindred matters. He mentioned one Ibrahim in his letters, a young Mahomedan idealist, who wanted to come to Pondicherry and take up Yoga. Ibrahim subsequently wrote to me and actually came for a short visit. He was stout, fair, very quiet and unobtrusive, with large lustrous eyes and a great hankering for things spiritual. He went away promising to come later, renouncing the world for good and sit down at the feet of the great Master to learn Yoga.
As soon as the key of the new house was procured, the Mother went to inspect it. So far as I remember, it was a sweet and clear morning with white fleecy clouds suspended in the blue sky. Ibrahim had returned by this time. He also accompanied us. As Mother Mirra went up the grand staircase of the new house, she fell into a trance. Gently she entered the hall, looked about in her peculiar dreamy and absorbed way. Turning to me with her luminous mystic smile, she said, ‘I see untold wealth here, Dara has brought it with him.’ She moved about the house in a tense indrawn state.
Ibrahim was later renamed Dara (after the eldest brother of Emperor Aurangzeb) by the Master. She at once began negotiating for the purchase of the house. The owner wanted as much as Rupees 14000, an exorbitant sum for it. Mother said money wasn't of any consequence as this house meant so much for the future of the colony. So it was purchased and repaired for Sri Aurobindo to live in. Gradually, all the four houses in this block of buildings were taken on rent. The dividing walls were either demolished or doors were opened in them and the entire block became the living beehive of the new spiritual colony.
The rental agreement was signed for a monthly rent of Rs. 75 for a period of three years starting from 1 January 1927. An advance of Rs. 450 was paid on the condition that a few repairs would be carried out to the building before occupation. But within a fortnight, Sri Aurobindo and the Mother decided to buy the house.
The house was rented last but purchased first. Sri Aurobindo had signed an agreement of sale after paying the first instalment of Rs. 7000 to Raghava Chettiar, the previous owner of the Meditation House.
The Mother's letter to her son André2 16 January 1927
Our community is growing more and more; we are nearly thirty (not counting those who are scattered all over India); and I have become responsible for all this; I am at the centre of the organisation, on the material as well as the spiritual side, and you can easily imagine what it means. We already occupy five houses, one of which is our property3; others will follow. New recruits are coming from all parts of the world. With this expansion, new activities are being created, new needs are arising which require new skills.
The Mother
1927.02.07
SRI AUROBINDO AND THE MOTHER MOVED TO THE MEDITATION HOUSE
Sri Aurobindo and the Mother moved from the Library House to the Meditation House after carrying out minimum repairs.
Sri Aurobindo marked in his letter to Rajani Palit
that the change to the Meditation House from the Library House marked the change
in the sadhana on the vital to the sadhana on the physical level. Rajani Palit
asked the Mother, “Mother, last night during my personal meditation I saw a
cat, probably one of your cats, the one which sleeps on the staircase; it came
and entered my drawing room where I was meditating. But I at once opened my
eyes. Kindly let me know the meaning of this cat and why I opened my eyes.” This is Sri Aurobindo's reply:
If it is the cat Bushy, she has some strange connection with the siddhi in the physical consciousness. It was she who ushered us into our present house running before us into each room. The change to this house marked the change in the sadhana on the vital to the sadhana on the physical level.
One afternoon all the inmates of the Ashram houses were told to go out; the gates were locked and the Mother led Sri Aurobindo to the new house. When we came back we knew that the great Master had removed to the new house, which would henceforth be his abode. I, Nolini Kanta Gupta, K. Amrita, and a few others removed there too. The old building at Rue de la Marine was used for housing the Library and the stores department. Sri Aurobindo's room was given to Anilbaran Roy, the Congress leader of Bankura (a district of Bengal) who had come to the Ashram sometime back straight from jail after his release from internment.
The Mother's letter to her son André7 16 February 1927
I think I told you about our five houses;8 four of them are joined in a single square block which is surrounded on all sides by streets and contains several buildings with courtyards and gardens. We have just bought, repaired and comfortably furnished one of these houses9 and then, just recently, we have settled there, Sri Aurobindo and myself, as well as five of the closest disciples10.
We have joined the houses together with openings in some of the outer walls and outbuildings, so that I may walk freely in our little realm without having to go out into the street – this is rather nice. But I am busier than ever now, and I can say that at the moment I am writing to you in a hurry.
Sri Aravind signed on the deed for the house he has purchased in the presence of local French citizens as per French law. Among the citizens were Philippe13, M. Potel (husband of Madame Potel), David (barrister), Doraiswamy (not as a citizen but at Babuji's invitation), and the house owner. When everything was arranged in one of the rooms on the first floor of his house, the above named people went upstairs. Chairs were already placed there. First, Matushri 14 came and saw if all had come. Then she went inside. Next, they both came out, Sri Aravind in front and Matushri behind him. Doraiswamy made sashtanga-dandavata. Sri Aravind's seat was, as always, immediately beside the door. Everyone folded their hands. He himself was very serious. Taking the deed from the owner, Doraiswamy gave it to him. He read the whole of it. Meanwhile, Doraiswamy took the pen from the table, opened it and put it in Matushri's hand. She was standing beside his chair. Then he said, “Where have I to sign?” Doraiswamy pointed out the place. After signing, he immediately got up, bowed with folded hands to all and, without saying or doing anything, went inside.
Doraiswamy was saying that his body appeared very tender and much fairer than before. This was the first time he came out after November15.
Write the above account to Chandulal at Bombay. To identify the room, write that this was the room where Matushri and Sri Aravind sit for meditation.
14 July 1927
1953 THE MOTHER'S ROOM ON THE SECOND FLOOR OF THE MEDITATION HOUSE WAS BUILT
The room that was built on the roofof the Meditation House by Soli Albless in 1953. It is on the west overlooking the Samadhi.
Today the room is opened for Darshan on her birthday (21st February) and the day of her passing away (17th November). The Mother also stayed in other rooms of the Ashram main building at different times, though these are not known as “Mother's Room”.
The Mother did not have a room of her own [until 1953]. She used to rest in a hall [the Salon] adjoining Sri Aurobindo's rooms. But it was a sort of public hall. People were constantly coming in and going out, so the Mother was never left in peace. But being the Divine Mother, she never uttered a word against it. She was accustomed to putting up with all kinds of discomfort, disturbance and inconvenience. But this caused great pain to Dyuman. He began thinking of how to have a separate room for the Mother.
One day she felt indisposed and returned from the Playground before nightfall. She called Dyuman and said, “Get me a pillow. I want to lie down fiat.”
Dyuman rushed to bring a pillow and gave it to her. The Mother put off the lights and rested for half an hour. Dyuman became pensive. He mused, “The Mother does not have a private room where she can rest undisturbed during the day. The coming and going of people stops late at night and only then can she rest for some time.” He found this situation unbearable. He told the Mother, “Mother, where will you rest if you fall ill during the daytime? Where can you lie down? This is a sort of a common room. Should you not have a private room?”
The Mother agreed with him, but added immediately, “Dyuman, you may construct a room for me, but see that you do not spend any Ashram money for it.”
Dyuman accepted the Mother's condition. He wrote to his close friend Navajata in Bombay to send a lakh of rupees for the construction of the Mother's room. What was it that Navajata would not do for the Mother? He immediately sent the money and Dyuman built a room for the Mother.
It was also during 1953 that a disciple offered to construct a new room for the Mother above the first floor of the Meditation House. Soli Albless, another disciple, was one of the architects entrusted with the task of designing and building the room overlooking Sri Aurobindo's Samadhi. The spacious room was completed and properly furnished by the first week of December and was ready for occupation.
On the morning of the 9th December, 1953, after meditation, Mother informed Dyuman that she would go up to her new room on the second floor from that night. Thereafter she spent the nights there. And now and then she would spend some time there during the daytime also.
In Albless' design, the windows were jutting out and Mother had no end of problems with the rains getting in. So we had to put a verandah all around to protect the windows from the rains. The verandah was added later on [in 1958]. We had put in concrete cantilever beams for the verandah into the wall below, and then we could cast the verandah and, over that, the asbestos roof was provided.
1962.05.11 THE MOTHER'S BATHROOM ON THE SECOND FLOOR
The Mother fell ill in March 1962. As her room on the second floor (the room overlooking the Samadhi) had only an attached toilet, plans for a new bathroom were immediately drawn and executed. The new bathroom on the second floor was ready on 11 May 1962.
1962.12.15 THE MOTHER'S MUSIC ROOM AND BALCONY ON THE EAST WERE COMPLETED
The Music Room (also known as her Reception Room) was built by Udar Pinto in 1962. It is located on the second floor of the Meditation House (to the east from “The Mother's Room”) and has the balcony on the east.
Mother had been presented with a wonderful Wurlitzer Electric Organ on which She would play regularly. It was kept in Pavitra's room. This also She could not use now. Then one day I said to Her that unless She played on the organ from time to time it would get spoiled, and none of us would like to play on Her organ. So Mother asked me what was to be done and I suggested that we bring the organ up to Her new room [the room overlooking the Samadhi]. She refused to agree to this as She said that there was no space for the instrument in Her room: it would upset the balance of the furnishing of the room. So then I suggested that we build a special room next to Her bathroom as there was enough place on the terrace for it. Mother agreed to have a small room specially for the organ, and we set about to design it.
Now my Aunt Mary had given to Mother a beautiful carpet, an Aubusson, which she had herself received from the Maharaja of Mysore. Mother liked the carpet very much but did not know where She could use it. So we decided to put it into the Music Room that we were designing. We then did a strange thing: we designed the size of the room to fit the carpet instead of getting, as is usual, a carpet to fit a room. This made the room quite large and then there was still some space left between the end of the room and the eastern extremity of the building. That space, we felt, could well be used for a covered balcony which could be carried round to the south side also. This change we kept rather secret and did not even inform Mother about it. It also meant quite a bit more expense. So Dyuman, who had to find the money for all the work, was annoyed at this additional expenditure which had not been sanctioned by Mother, and he expressed himself quite strongly.
When all had been built I informed Mother that everything was ready for Her to see, and She came to see. She liked very much the large Music Room in which we had already installed the organ. Then She looked out east and saw the balcony and She said: “Udar! What is this you have done? A balcony! Do you expect me to start giving Darshans again from here?” I replied: “Mother, I expect nothing but only that You are happy with what we have done. So please come out and see this balcony.” And Mother came out. In the meanwhile, we had sent word around that Mother might come on the new balcony, and so there were people all about, on the street and on each surrounding terrace, etc. Almost the whole Ashram had turned out and they all had a Darshan of Mother, after such a long time. Mother gave a real Darshan, standing some time looking at all as She did whenever She gave Darshans. All were so happy and Dyuman came to me and embraced me warmly and said: “Udar, forget all I said before. Our people have had Mother's Darshan at last. This is worth all that has been spent and even more; I am very, very happy.” This brought tears to my eyes because I am very fond of Dyuman and was not happy that he had been angry with us. Now it was all wonderful.
This, then, is how the new balcony came to be and Mother gave Her Darshans on every Darshan Day from there. The Music Room was also very useful to Her, not only for Her to play the Organ but also to give Her interviews: She could be quiet and undisturbed there. So on every count it was a very happy thing brought about by Mother's Grace and by Her Love.
