Gladiolus murielae

Abyssinian Gladiolus, Peacock Orchid, Fragrant Gladiolus

Message of the Flower

The Vital's Possibility of Perfection

The Mother’s Comment

The day the vital will be converted, it will have much to give.

Spiritual Message by the Mother/ Quotes by Sri Aurobindo

The vital has to be carefully distinguished from mind, even though it has a mind element transfused into it; the vital is the Life nature made up of desires, sensations, feelings, passions, energies of action, will of desire, reactions of the desire soul in man and of all that play of possessive and other related instincts, anger, fear, greed, lust etc. that belong to this field of the nature.

Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I: The Mind

The vital proper is the life-force acting in its own nature, impulses, emotions, feelings, desires, ambitions etc. having as their highest centre what we may call the outer heart of emotion, while there is an inner heart where are the higher or psychic feelings and sensibilities, the emotions and intuitive yearnings and impulses of the soul. The vital part of us is, of course, necessary to our completeness, but it is a true instrument only when its feelings and tendencies have been purified by the psychic touch and taken up and governed by the spiritual light and power.

Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I: The Vital Being and Vital Consciousness

It is when there is this death of desire and this calm equal wideness in the consciousness everywhere, that the true vital being within us comes out from the veil and reveals its own calm, intense and potent presence. For such is the true nature of the vital being, prāṇamaya puruṣa; it is a projection of the Divine Purusha into life,—tranquil, strong, luminous, many-energied, obedient to the Divine Will, egoless, yet or rather therefore capable of all action, achievement, highest or largest enterprise.

Sri Aurobindo, The Synthesis of Yoga - I: The Ascent of the Sacrifice - II

There are four parts of the vital being—first, the mental vital which gives a mental expression by thought, speech or otherwise to the emotions, desires, passions, sensations and other movements of the vital being; the emotional vital which is the seat of various feelings such as love, joy, sorrow, hatred, and the rest; the central vital which is the seat of the stronger vital longings and reactions, e.g. ambition, pride, fear, love of fame, attractions and repulsions, desires and passions of various kinds and the field of many vital energies; last, the lower vital which is occupied with small desires and feelings, such as make the greater part of daily life, e.g. food desire, sexual desire, small likings, dislikings, vanity, quarrels, love of praise, anger at blame, little wishes of all kinds—and a numberless host of other things. Their respective seats are (1) the region from the throat to the heart, (2) the heart (it is a double centre, belonging in front to the emotional and vital and behind to the psychic), (3) from the heart to the navel, (4) below the navel.

Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I: The Vital Being and Vital Consciousness

Colour

White, maroon

Family

Iridaceae

Person who named the flower

J.G. Baker

Flower Size

2 to 3 inches across

Flower Texture

Soft, delicate

Number of Petals

Typically 6 petals

Floral Symmetry

Bilateral

Fragrance of Flower

Strongly fragrant, especially in the evening

Leaf Texture

Smooth, sword-shaped

Leaf Arrangement

Basal, forming a fan-like shape

Leaf Color

Green

Structural Variation (Shrub or Tree)

Herbaceous perennial

Life Cycle

Perennial

Blooming Period

Late summer to early fall

Climate

Prefers temperate climates

Water Requirements

Moderate, requires well-drained soil

Soil Type

Loamy, well-drained

Temperature Ranges

Frost-sensitive, prefers temperatures above freezing

Sun or Shade

Full sun to partial shade

Susceptibility to Insects and Diseases

Susceptible to thrips and fungal diseases like rust and smut

Pollinators

Attracts bees and butterflies

Habitat

Native to East Africa, cultivated in gardens globally

Role in the Ecosystem

Ornamental, provides nectar for pollinators

Quotations

None noted

Ornamental

Valued for striking appearance and fragrance

Uses in Other Aspects of Life

Primarily ornamental in landscaping and floral design

Endangered Status

Not listed as endangered