How this came about is a story of serendipitous synchronicity: I met the Master, Muz Murray, at the bank one day, close to Christmas in 2025. As we began talking, we quickly discovered that we had many common interests, such as spirituality and gardening. I am absolutely passionate about creating a garden from scratch, and excited that the old hermit has given me permission to restart an actual garden here in 2026, whereas his original Gandalf’s Garden was a shop and magazine only.

Muz Murray founded Gandalf’s Garden in London in 1968. It was a mystical community project and a spiritual teaching centre, where teachers and gurus came from all over the world to share their knowledge.

I asked Muz why he called the project Gandalf’s Garden when there was actually no garden at the shop premises in the suburbs of World’s End, on the King’s Road.

Credits: Supplied Image; Author: Cor Jaring;

Muz replied that it symbolised the ‘Garden of the Spirit’—the garden of the heart and the soul, and a place of wisdom and learning.

That’s what we want to create here.

Choosing the garden as a spiritual metaphor applies really very well to my way of seeing things—a space of contemplation, maybe even a state of Zen, manifesting a natural mandala in the wilderness.

And isn’t that what we all need from time to time? A place to rest, enjoy beauty and calmness, going into a deeper resonance with nature. It is the thing we are hoping to cultivate here. Working with the physical garden is quite a challenge in the prickly bush, with all the rough, ubiquitous smilax aspera vines, full of thorns, climbing the trees, but patience and dedication can move mountains. Liberating the old olive trees from the wilderness that blocks the light is a privilege for me.

A garden requires care and attention, where timing is important, and it is a life-learning process, as nature speaks back to us slowly, revealing its true form as it works.

It’s rather like when we developed our pictures in the darkroom, back in the day: when the white paper slowly revealed its forms, and the picture magically appeared. Similarly, order in the garden emerges from a more chaotically tangled field. Moving the soil, framing areas, and adding plants brings everything into place as the garden starts to grow and show its beauty. To me, it is the poetry of soft fascination.

Watching plants softly waving in the wind, the light shining through leaves, and birds singing are all aids to calming down our nervous system, as we can move into a contemplative space with the garden. Surrounded by garden beauty, we can slow down and observe ourselves.

Philosopher Hartmut Rosa explains how the term resonance relates to a dialogue between ourselves and the world. It describes a meaningful relationship that invites an active response to a garden, an artwork, or a relationship. Resonance operates according to unpredictability, the rhythms of the weather, the garden’s flow, seasons, and growth. In this fluid responsiveness and openness, we can take part and even sense the garden as a counter-space to our fast and modern lifestyle. Resonance encourages us to slow down and absorb a more embodied experience of time. Amidst the garden’s splendour, we can connect with the earth and notice our surroundings, reflect, and come into the present moment.

The garden can mirror states of mind back to us and sometimes bridges inner and outer circumstances, bringing more clarity, or showing us a forgotten field in our life that may need attention.

Plants and flowers seem to draw us in, and we look upon them with a soft fascination. They can hold the secrets of growth and the wonder of life itself. A garden is a fascinating place to visit, like an echo of our soul’s inner garden.

And a garden can show us endless patterns of contrast between rocks, soft curving lines, a wide range of colours, water and fire, all the elements in composition or in relation to each other.

Credits: Supplied Image; Author: Muz Murray;

With our team of friendly Woofers,* we intend to develop this project into a truly magical space called Gandalf’s Gurukulam—a place where seekers can hang out and imbibe gardenlore, wisdom and mystical understanding at the home of our resident gñani—or spiritually realised mentor—widely known as the ‘Maverick Mystic.’

*Woofers are enthusiastic gardening volunteers who enjoy working and learning on organic farms
and smallholdings.

Woofing in Portugal: https://wwoof.pt/en/

Working Weekends On Organic Farms grew to become World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (and Gardens).

Email: lisalarsson73@hotmail.com