Mirra Alfassa, known as The Mother, was surrounded by a large circle of followers and disciples who recognized in her a living spiritual guide. From a certain point onward, seekers from India and abroad gathered around her and Sri Aurobindo in Pondicherry, dedicating themselves to the path of Integral Yoga and to the ideals they embodied. These individuals did not merely admire her from afar; many accepted her explicitly as their guru and regarded themselves as her disciples, orienting their lives around her guidance. In this way, her role was not abstract or symbolic but concretely expressed in the daily spiritual and communal life that formed around her presence.

As the spiritual center took shape, it crystallized in what became the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry, where she was regarded as the living spiritual guide. Many disciples and devotees lived permanently in the ashram, while others remained associated with it from a distance, yet still felt inwardly linked to her. Her influence extended beyond the physical boundaries of the ashram, reaching followers in different parts of India and the world who sought to live by her teachings. Some of these aspirants maintained their connection through correspondence and through her published writings, treating her written word as a continuation of her direct guidance.

Her disciples came from diverse backgrounds and nationalities, yet were united by a shared aspiration toward spiritual growth and transformation. They sought from her not only doctrinal instruction but a concrete guidance in sadhana, work, and the conduct of daily life. She responded through personal interviews, written replies, talks, and brief messages, using each medium as a channel for spiritual influence rather than mere communication. In this sense, discipleship to The Mother was not confined to formal initiation; it was expressed in an ongoing relationship of inner reliance and outer receptivity to her direction.

Over time, the community that gathered around her also expanded into new forms, including an international township that she directed, which drew additional followers committed to the ideals she articulated. Both the ashram and this wider community became collective expressions of the disciples’ aspiration to embody her vision in life, work, and relationships. Through these evolving forms, her role as spiritual guide remained central, and countless seekers continued to look to her as the axis around which their inner and outer lives could be organized.