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The Mother / Pondicherry (Puducherry)
Biography
The Mother was born in Paris on 21st February 1878. Mirra, as the child was named, received
her early education at home and at a private school. Later she attended an art studio in Paris belonging to the Academie Julian. An accomplished painter, some of her works were
exhibited at the Paris Salon. She was also a talented pianist and writer.
Concerning her early spiritual life the Mother has written: "Between 11 and 13 a series of
psychic and spiritual experiences revealed to me not only the existence of God but man's possibility of uniting with Him, of realising Him integrally in consciousness and action, of
manifesting Him upon earth in a life divine." In 1906 and 1907, while in her mid-twenties, the Mother voyaged to Tlemcen, Algeria, to study occultism with the Polish adept, Max Theon,
and his wife Alma. Returning to Paris she founded a group of spiritual seekers. Between 1911 and 1913 she gave several talks to various groups in Paris.
In 1914 the Mother visited Pondicherry to meet Sri Aurobindo. She saw him on March 29 and
at once recognised him as the one who for many years had inwardly guided her spiritual development. After a stay of eleven months she returned to France for a year and then went
to Japan for a period of nearly four years.
On 24th April 1920 the Mother rejoined Sri Aurobindo in Pondicherry. During the next few
years the number of disciples around them gradually increased. This informal grouping eventually took shape as the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. From its inception in November 1926, Sri
Aurobindo entrusted the full material and spiritual charge of the Ashram to the Mother. Under her guidance, which covered a span of nearly fifty years, the Ashram has grown into a large,
many-faceted community of about 1400 persons. Among the Mother's other accomplishments during this period were the creation of the Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education and the initiation of Auroville.
After Sri Aurobindo's passing in 1950, the Mother continued their endeavour to bring down
upon earth the spiritual consciousness they called the Supramental, This new consciousness manifested in the earth's atmosphere, she said, on 29th February 1956. For the rest of her
life the Mother sought to transform her body through the working of the supramental consciousness and force.
The Mother personally directed the daily activities of the Ashram until the age of eighty-four.
From March 1962 she remained in her room, but from there continued to guide the Ashram and receive people regularly. On 17th November 1973, at the age of ninety-five, the Mother left her body.
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