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01. Within the next few months, work on the large Petals, the small petals, and
on the landscaping of the Oval, will be complete, and we have a fairly large
labour force that must be employed properly and usefully without any break.
02.
The realisation of the Inner Gardens, Lake and Outer Gardens in their
entirety signifies an enormous amount of work, representing tremendous
inputs of energy, dedication and service over several years. This realisation
has been delayed for too long, and the Matrimandir must be given its true
environment so that its symbol is complete and ready for the full
manifestation of the consciousness it stands for.
03.
The expectation that was placed on all of us to unite in a true spirit of
collaboration has been, in our view, consistently betrayed by Roger A’s
persistent will to impose his own concept through means that have been
less than ethical. In this sense we feel now free to make the choice we must
make, of realising Her dream in Matter. And it may well be that, further on,
we shall all meet again in the work and find all together the joy that will
justify all the labour.
3 – Plan of action.
We will therefore outline here our plan of action.
A.
Finalise all the pathways in the Oval, with their percolation trenches,
infrastructural routings and slopes.
B.
Prepare for the excavation of further sections of the lake, moving the soil to
the landscaping of the Outer Gardens North and East of the Oval.
C.
Select one or two Inner Gardens with their corresponding elements in the
Outer Gardens, lay down their structure and begin their detailing and
planting work.
D.
Prepare the ground for a permanent Reception Pavilion at the Western end
of the Peace Area.
Regarding the completion of the sphere, inside and outside, as well as that of the
Petals, we shall be happy to proceed with all the work as per Roger A’s instructions,
provided that he respects and accepts the few requests which have been made to
allow for better access, safety and maintenance, and to observe the proper use of
symbols.”
(Written by Divakar)
Note: Kusum had become over the years a most cherished member of our team, a
mother and an elder sister and a friend; she had lived an exemplary life; a Jain by
birth and upbringing, in a very orthodox family of Gujarat, she had run away at the
age of 16 to live her life with her beloved; for that she was banned from most of
her family and her social set for many years; but her husband and her were soon
engaged in the fight for the freedom of the nation from the British Empire. Her
husband died, just around the time of the birth of the Indian Republic, of an
“accident”, when their sons were only small children, and she was then alone, in a
new nation, a single mother in a society where widows were still supposed to follow
their spouse into death or to at least withdraw from active life altogether. She was
already well acquainted with the Gandhians, and went on tours with the Acharya
Vinobha Bhave; she became a manager of one of the Khadi concerns, and raised