Nymphaea rubra

Water Lily, Red Water Lily, Red Lotus

Message of the Flower

Wealth in the Vital

The Mother’s Comment

Comes willingly to generous natures.

Spiritual Message by the Mother/ Quotes by Sri Aurobindo

All wealth belongs to the Divine and those who hold it are trustees, not possessors. It is with them today, tomorrow it may be elsewhere. All depends on the way they discharge their trust while it is with them, in what spirit, with what consciousness in their use of it, to what purpose.

Sri Aurobindo, The Mother with Letters on The Mother: The Mother - IV

Most spiritual disciplines insist on a complete self-control, detachment and renunciation of all bondage to wealth and of all personal and egoistic desire for its possession. Some even put a ban on money and riches and proclaim poverty and bareness of life as the only spiritual condition. But this is an error; it leaves the power in the hands of the hostile forces. To reconquer it for the Divine to whom it belongs and use it divinely for the divine life is the supramental way for the Sadhaka.

Sri Aurobindo, The Mother with Letters on The Mother: The Mother - IV

The ideal Sadhaka in this kind is one who if required to live poorly can so live and no sense of want will affect him or interfere with the full inner play of the divine consciousness, and if he is required to live richly, can so live and never for a moment fall into desire or attachment to his wealth or to the things that he uses or servitude to self-indulgence or a weak bondage to the habits that the possession of riches creates. The divine Will is all for him and the divine Ananda.

Sri Aurobindo, The Mother with Letters on The Mother: The Mother - IV

Colour

Magenta pink

Family

Nymphaeaceae

Person who named the flower

Carl Linnaeus

Flower Size

Can vary, generally large

Flower Texture

Soft, silky

Number of Petals

Multiple; can vary due to natural variation and cultivation.

Floral Symmetry

Radial

Fragrance of Flower

Mild to no fragrance

Leaf Texture

Smooth, waxy surface

Leaf Arrangement

Radial, floating

Leaf Color

Green, sometimes with purplish undersides

Structural Variation (Shrub or Tree)

Aquatic perennial

Life Cycle

Perennial

Blooming Period

Late spring to early autumn

Climate

Tropical to subtropical

Water Requirements

Aquatic, requires a pond or similar body of fresh water

Soil Type

Loamy, aquatic soil

Temperature Ranges

Warm temperatures preferred

Sun or Shade

Full sun to partial shade

Susceptibility to Insects and Diseases

Susceptible to aphids and water lily beetles; rot in poor conditions

Pollinators

Aquatic insects, bees

Habitat

Freshwater bodies like ponds and slow-moving streams

Role in the Ecosystem

Provides habitat and food for aquatic organisms; oxygenates water

Ornamental

Grown for its decorative flowers and foliage in water gardens

Uses in Other Aspects of Life

Primarily ornamental and spiritual significance

Endangered Status

Not listed as globally endangered, but habitat degradation could affect local populations