Victor’s Way

Victor’s Way was designed as a contemplation (or meditation) space for adults between the approx. ages of 28 and 65 who feel the need to take some quality time out for R&R&R (i.e. rest, recovery & spiritual reorientation). Since it started in 1996 Victor’s Way has evolved as a Pantheist monastery (more precisely in Hinduspeak as a Brahmanashram).

The garden contains 7 major and 37 minor black granite sculptures upon which the visitor superimposes his or her (early life) capacity for wonder. The park took 25 years to complete so far. At the moment 3 more sculptures are being carved (at a cost of approx. €80,000, hence the extra €5). The major sculptures represent 7 phase transitions of a (creative) life cycle. Victor’s Way also offers the opportunity for forest bathing. All the sculptures were designed in Roundwood and then hand cut in a dedicated workshop in Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu in India by the artists T. Baskaran and D.V. Murugan.

Victor’s Way is not!!! a fun park for families. It’s a fun park for solitary adults seeking the bliss of being enveloped by the awesome wonder of the natural world.

Ideally chatty companions, children and dogs, all of which disrupt the serenity of the contemplative ambience, should not be brought. Here the use of mobile phones (save for photography) is a no-no. Ideally the visitor should walk alone, slow down to half speed and therefore experience twice as much. Ideally the visitor should sit down on the benches and forest recliners provided and absorb into his or her inner (future, hence perfect) world and/or the serene forest atmosphere and contemplate the wider canvas of life.

The garden covers some 20 acres. The contemplation path is 2kms long. It takes about 1 hour to get around. There are several unsecured ponds, meaning that extreme care should be taken if accompanied by children. Unless the weather is perfect, wearing outdoor clothes and watertight shoes is a must.

The admission fee, €10.- per adult (children go in free), helps defray the running costs of the garden, crowd funds the 3 sculptures currently being carved and supports my end-of-life fantasy of owning my own ventilator.

Victor’s Way for contemplatives