A mandala begins with one dot and ends wherever the artist finds the nerve to stop. Circles inside circles, patterns answering patterns, the whole thing balanced like a held breath. Monks make them from sand and then sweep them away, because the point was never permanence.

Ours takes the opposite route. The mandala is printed in water-soluble ink on handmade seed paper, upcycled cotton scrap with seeds pressed inside, and instead of being swept away it gets planted. Soak it overnight...

A mandala begins with one dot and ends wherever the artist finds the nerve to stop. Circles inside circles, patterns answering patterns, the whole thing balanced like a held breath. Monks make them from sand and then sweep them away, because the point was never permanence.

Ours takes the opposite route. The mandala is printed in water-soluble ink on handmade seed paper, upcycled cotton scrap with seeds pressed inside, and instead of being swept away it gets planted. Soak it overnight after the festival, tuck it under soil, water it with patience. It sprouts into herbs, flowers or vegetables, depending on the batch.

The monks were right. Nothing lasts. Some things compost.

Inside the pack: one seed paper mandala rakhi on a plantable holder, cotton string.

Materials: upcycled cotton scrap seed paper, water-soluble ink. Handcrafted in Agra, solar-powered workshop.