TERMS STARTING WITH
I climb not to thy everlasting day,
I do not mean philanthropy or the service of humanity or all the rest of the things — moral or idealistic — which the mind of man substitutes for the deeper truth of works.
I do not mean philanthropy or the service of humanity or all the rest of the things—moral or idealistic—which the mind of man substitutes for the deeper truth of works.
If we regard the Powers of the Reality as so many Godheads, we can say that the Overmind releases a million Godheads into action, each empowered to create its own world, each world capable of relation, communication and interplay with the others. There are in the Veda different formulations of the nature of the Gods: it is said they are all one Existence to which the sages give different names; yet each God is worshipped as if he by himself is that Existence, one who is all the other Gods together or contains them in his being; and yet again each is a separate Deity acting sometimes in unison with companion deities, sometimes separately, sometimes even in apparent opposition to other Godheads of the same Existence. In the Supermind all this would be held together as a harmonised play of the one Existence; in the Overmind each of these three conditions could be a separate action or basis of action and have its own principle of development and consequences and yet each keep the power to combine with the others in a more composite harmony. As with the One Existence, so with its Consciousness and Force. The One Consciousness is separated into many independent forms of consciousness and knowledge; each follows out its own line of truth which it has to realise. The one total and many-sided Real-Idea is split up into its many sides; each becomes an independent Idea-Force with the power to realise itself. The one Consciousness-Force is liberated into its million forces, and each of these forces has the right to fulfil itself or to assume, if needed, a hegemony and take up for its own utility the other forces. So too the Delight of Existence is loosed out into all manner of delights and each can carry in itself its independent fullness or sovereign extreme. Overmind thus gives to the One Existence-Consciousness-Bliss the character of a teeming of infinite possibilities which can be developed into a multitude of worlds or thrown together into one world in which the endlessly variable…
If we would understand the difference of this global Overmind Consciousness from our separative and only imperfectly synthetic mental consciousness, we may come near to it if we compare the strictly mental with what would be an overmental view of activities in our material universe. To the Overmind, for example, all religions would be true as developments of the one eternal religion, all philosophies would be valid each in its own field as a statement of its own universe-view from its own angle, all political theories with their practice would be the legitimate working out of an Idea Force with its right to application and practical development in the play of the energies of Nature. In our separative consciousness, imperfectly visited by glimpses of catholicity and universality, these things exist as opposites; each claims to be the truth and taxes the others with error and falsehood, each feels impelled to refute or destroy the others in order that itself alone may be the Truth and live: at best, each must claim to be superior, admit all others only as inferior truth-expressions. An overmental Intelligence would refuse to entertain this conception or this drift to exclusiveness for a moment; it would allow all to live as necessary to the whole or put each in its place in the whole or assign to each its field of realisation or of endeavour. This is because in us consciousness has come down completely into the divisions of the Ignorance; Truth is no longer either an Infinite or a cosmic whole with many possible formulations, but a rigid affirmation holding any other affirmation to be false because different from itself and entrenched in other limits. Our mental consciousness can indeed arrive in its cognition at a considerable approach towards a total comprehensiveness and catholicity, but to organise that in action and life seems to be beyond its power. Evolutionary Mind, manifest in individuals or collectivities, throws up a multiplicity of divergent viewpoints, divergent lines of action and lets them work themselves out side by side or in collision or in a certain intermixture; it can make selective harmonies, but it cannot arrive at the harmonic control of a true totality. Cosmic Mind must have even in the evolutionary Ignorance, like all totalities, such a harmony, if only of arranged accords and discords; there is too in it an underlying dynamism of oneness: but it carries the completeness of these things in its depths, perhaps in a supermind-overmind substratum, but does not impart it to individual Mind in the evolution, does not bring it or has not yet brought it from the depths to the surface. An Overmind world would be a world of harmony; the world of Ignorance in which we live is a world of disharmony and struggle. …
I have started writing about doubt, but even in doing so I am afflicted by the ‘doubt’ whether any amount of writing or of anything else can ever persuade the eternal doubt in man which is the penalty of his native ignorance. In the first place, to write adequately would mean anything from 60 to 600 pages, but not even 6000 convincing pages would convince doubt. For doubt exists for its own sake; its very function is to doubt always and, even when convinced, to go on doubting still; it is only to persuade its entertainer to give it board and lodging that it pretends to be an honest truth-seeker. This is a lesson I have learnt from the experience both of my own mind and of the minds of others; the only way to get rid of doubt is to take discrimination as one’s detector of truth and falsehood and under its guard to open the door freely and courageously to experience.” Letters on Yoga
Illuminate, the grand
I mean by work action done for the Divine and more and more in union with the Divine — for the Divine alone and nothing else.” *Letters on Yoga
I mean by work action done for the Divine and more and more in union with the Divine—for the Divine alone and nothing else.” Letters on Yoga
Immanent, The
Immobile, the
Imps ::: Small demons or devils; mischievous sprites.
In a more outward sense the word Silence is applied to the condition in which there is no movement of thought or feeling etc., only a great stillness of the mind.” Letters on Yoga*;
In a more outward sense the word Silence is applied to the condition in which there is no movement of thought or feeling etc., only a great stillness of the mind.” Letters on Yoga
Inane ::: Madhav: “Inane is a vast, nebulous something, which has no character.” The Book of the Divine Mother
In a sense each man is a colonist here from the Kingdom of the Spirit. His original and permanent home is there on the Divine summits; he has come to establish on earth the rule of the Spirit.” Readings in Savitri, Vol. I.
In India’s languages, they have this OM … which is a marvel. You know what they say? That OM is the totality of the sounds of the creation perceived by the Supreme; He hears OM as a call to Him—as an idea, it’s magnificent! As a symbol, as a … Only …
In ceaseless motion round the purple rim
Inconscience ::: “The Inconscience is an inverse reproduction of the supreme superconscience: it has the same absoluteness of being and automatic action, but in a vast involved trance; it is being lost in itself, plunged in its own abyss of infinity.” The Life Divine
Inconscient, the
Ineffable, the
Infinite, the
In its nature and law the Overmind is a delegate of the Supermind Consciousness, its delegate to the Ignorance. Or we might speak of it as a protective double, a screen of dissimilar similarity through which Supermind can act indirectly on an Ignorance whose darkness could not bear or receive the direct impact of a supreme Light. Even, it is by the projection of this luminous Overmind corona that the diffusion of a diminished light in the Ignorance and the throwing of that contrary shadow which swallows up in itself all light, the Inconscience, became at all possible. For Supermind transmits to Overmind all its realities, but leaves it to formulate them in a movement and according to an awareness of things which is still a vision of Truth and yet at the same time a first parent of the Ignorance. A line divides Supermind and Overmind which permits a free transmission, allows the lower Power to derive from the higher Power all it holds or sees, but automatically compels a transitional change in the passage. The integrality of the Supermind keeps always the essential truth of things, the total truth and the truth of its individual self-determinations clearly knit together; it maintains in them an inseparable unity and between them a close interpenetration and a free and full consciousness of each other: but in Overmind this integrality is no longer there. And yet the Overmind is well aware of the essential Truth of things; it embraces the totality; it uses the individual self-determinations without being limited by them: but although it knows their oneness, can realise it in a spiritual cognition, yet its dynamic movement, even while relying on that for its security, is not directly determined by it. Overmind Energy proceeds through an illimitable capacity of separation and combination of the powers and aspects of the integral and indivisible all-comprehending Unity. It takes each Aspect or Power and gives to it an independent action in which it acquires a full separate importance and is able to work out, we might say, its own world of creation. Purusha and Prakriti, Conscious Soul and executive Force of Nature, are in the supramental harmony a two-aspected single truth, being and dynamis of the Reality; there can be no disequilibrium or predominance of one over the other. In Overmind we have the origin of the cleavage, the trenchant distinction made by the philosophy of the Sankhyas in which they appear as two independent entities, Prakriti able to dominate Purusha and cloud its freedom and power, reducing it to a witness and recipient of her forms and actions, Purusha able to return to its separate existence and abide in a free self-sovereignty by rejection of her original overclouding material principle. So with the other aspects or powers of the Divine Reality, One and Many, Divine Personality and Divine Impersonality, and the rest; each is still an aspect and power of the one Reality, but each is empowered to act as an independent entity in the whole, arrive at the fullness of the possibilities of its separate expression and develop the dynamic consequences of that separateness. At the same time in Overmind this separateness is still founded on the basis of an implicit underlying unity; all possibilities of combination and relation between the separated Powers and Aspects, all interchanges and mutualities of their energies are freely organised and their actuality always possible.
In one another’s arms, birds in the trees
In Savitri, Book II, Canto V, we find these lines:*
Inspiration ::: “Inspiration is a slender river of brightness leaping from a vast and eternal knowledge; it exceeds reason more perfectly than reason exceeds the knowledge of the senses.” The Hour of God
In the clay temple of terrestrial life.
In the individual evolution, one must develop in oneself a zone corresponding to the overmind and an overmind consciousness, before one can rise above it, to the Supermind, or open oneself to it.
In the middle of the forehead — the Ajna Chakra — (will, vision, dynamic thought).
In the middle of the forehead—the Ajna Chakra—(will, vision, dynamic thought).
In the red passion of its infinite change
In the undying substance of my soul
In this article we explore definitions of the words ‘artifice’ and ‘artificer’ from various dictionary sources, their use in two poems, one by Marge Percy, The Bonsai Tree and the other, Sailing to Byzantium by William Butler Yeats, followed by all the brilliant uses by Sri Aurobindo in his magnum opus, Savitri.
In this series we explore the words of other languages and list their definitions given by major dictionaries as well as by other disciples and Sri Aurobindo in his letters on Savitri.
In this simultaneous development of multitudinous independent or combined Powers or Potentials there is yet—or there is as yet—no chaos, no conflict, no fall from Truth or Knowledge. The Overmind is a creator of truths, not of illusions or falsehoods: what is worked out in any given overmental energism or movement is the truth of the Aspect, Power, Idea, Force, Delight which is liberated into independent action, the truth of the consequences of its reality in that independence. There is no exclusiveness asserting each as the sole truth of being or the others as inferior truths: each God knows all the Gods and their place in existence; each Idea admits all other ideas and their right to be; each Force concedes a place to all other forces and their truth and consequences; no delight of separate fulfilled existence or separate experience denies or condemns the delight of other existence or other experience. The Overmind is a principle of cosmic Truth and a vast and endless catholicity is its very spirit; its energy is an all-dynamism as well as a principle of separate dynamisms: it is a sort of inferior Supermind,—although it is concerned predominantly not with absolutes, but with what might be called the dynamic potentials or pragmatic truths of Reality, or with absolutes mainly for their power of generating pragmatic or creative values, although, too, its comprehension of things is more global than integral, since its totality is built up of global wholes or constituted by separate independent realities uniting or coalescing together, and although the essential unity is grasped by it and felt to be basic of things and pervasive in their manifestation, but no longer as in the Supermind their intimate and ever-present secret, their dominating continent, the overt constant builder of the harmonic whole of their activity and nature….
Into the artifice of eternity.
I.
It is a power that is superior to any rule, even to the Cosmic Law—for all spiritual seers have distinguished between the Law and Grace. Yet it is not indiscriminate—only it has a discrimination of its own which sees things and persons and the right times and seasons with another vision than that of the Mind or any other normal Power. A state of Grace is prepared in the individual often behind thick veils by means not calculable by the mind and when the state of Grace comes, then the Grace itself acts.” Letters on Yoga
It is from the Silence that the peace comes; when the peace deepens and deepens, it becomes more and more the Silence.
It is nine inches high.
It is not necessary for everyone to struggle through the intermediate zone. If one has purified oneself, if there is no abnormal vanity, egoism, ambition or other strong misleading element, or if one is vigilant and on one’s guard, or if the psychic is in front, one can either pass rapidly and directly or with a minimum of trouble into the higher zones of consciousness where one is in direct contact with the Divine Truth.
It is the cryptic verses of the Veda that help us here; for they contain, though concealed, the gospel of the divine and immortal Supermind and through the veil some illumining flashes come to us. We can see through these utterances the conception of this Supermind as a vastness beyond the ordinary firmaments of our consciousness in which truth of being is luminously one with all that expresses it and assures inevitably truth of vision, formulation, arrangement, word, act and movement and therefore truth also of result of movement, result of action and expression, infallible ordinance or law. Vast all-comprehensiveness; luminous truth and harmony of being in that vastness and not a vague chaos or self-lost obscurity; truth of law and act and knowledge expressive of that harmonious truth of being: these seem to be the essential terms of the Vedic description.” *The Life Divine
It is the cryptic verses of the Veda that help us here; for they contain, though concealed, the gospel of the divine and immortal Supermind and through the veil some illumining flashes come to us. We can see through these utterances the conception of this Supermind as a vastness beyond the ordinary firmaments of our consciousness in which truth of being is luminously one with all that expresses it and assures inevitably truth of vision, formulation, arrangement, word, act and movement and therefore truth also of result of movement, result of action and expression, infallible ordinance or law. Vast all-comprehensiveness; luminous truth and harmony of being in that vastness and not a vague chaos or self-lost obscurity; truth of law and act and knowledge expressive of that harmonious truth of being: these seem to be the essential terms of the Vedic description.” The Life Divine
It is true that the subliminal in man is the largest part of his nature and has in it the secret of the unseen dynamisms which explain his surface activities. But the lower vital subconscious which is all that this psycho-analysis of Freud seems to know,—and even of that it knows only a few ill-lit corners,—is no more than a restricted and very inferior portion of the subliminal whole. The subliminal self stands behind and supports the whole superficial man; it has in it a larger and more efficient mind behind the surface mind, a larger and more powerful vital behind the surface vital, a subtler and freer physical consciousness behind the surface bodily existence. And above them it opens to higher superconscient as well as below them to lower subconscient ranges.” Letters on Yoga
It is your nature
It knows not what it is; and gather me
It reminds me sometimes of that experience Nolini da had near the Samadhi. He saw a figure. It was standing by the Samadhi. It was late at night, the Ashram was empty and he saw a figure that looked exactly like Sri Aurobindo. He was about to fall at his feet when he saw the feet were different. This was actually a force of darkness and it was actually so powerful it was standing near the Samadhi. He stopped. If he had fallen at its feet it would have dragged him down, even someone so conscious. He (Nolini) would not have fallen down because he was always vigilant and that is why he noticed, but someone less conscious, less vigilant might be trapped, thinking ‘I am following the light.’ It is why this happens very often when one thinks one is speaking for God or speaking for the Divine.
Its treacherous elements spread like slippery grains
I would myself say that bliss and oneness are the essential condition of the absolute reality, and love as the most characteristic dynamic power of bliss and oneness must support fundamentally and colour their activities; …” Letters on Yoga
iconoclast
icon
ictus
ideal ::: “… ideals and idealists are necessary; ideals are the savour and sap of life, idealists the most powerful diviners and assistants of its purposes.” The Human Cycle
idealism
ideal ::: Madhav: “What is not yet achieved on earth but what must be achieved because it presses for expression from above is cherished in the aspiration and thought of man as an Ideal. It is a truth from the higher regions of existence that seeks to formulate itself in this world. It clothes itself in the form of an Idea, organises itself in the human mind through a series of perceptions and leaps of thought as an Ideal to be realised and goes on exerting pressure on the evolving spirit of man to actualise it in life as a working factor. Progress is effected by these translations of the ideal into the actual.” Readings in Savitri, Vol. III.
idea ::: Madhav: “Each form in Creation is governed by the Real-Idea which has impelled it into existence. Behind every object in manifestation, every formation that comes into being, there is a truth which demands fulfilment in and through it. It is a truth from the Being of the Divine that seeks expression. Each truth that so urges to manifest forms itself into a source-Idea, a concentration of the perception and the power to effectuate it. This Idea is always there in the depths of every manifestation ruling its forms and its movements according to its Will in execution. All formation and activities proceed according to the law of this indwelling Truth-Idea.” Readings in Savitri, Vol. I.
idea
idea ::: “The idea is the realisation of a truth in Consciousness as the fact is its realisation in Power.” The Supramental Manifestation
identical
identified
identity
ideographs
idiom
idiot
idle
idly
idolatry
idol
ignoble
ignominy
ignorance ::: “Ignorance is the absence of the divine eye of perception which gives us the sight of the supramental Truth; it is the non-perceiving principle in our consciousness as opposed to the truth-perceiving conscious vision and knowledge.” The Life Divine
ignorance, cosmic
ignorance ::: the state or fact of being ignorant; lack of knowledge, learning, information. Ignorance, ignorance"s, Ignorance"s, ignorance", world-ignorance, World-Ignorance.
Sri Aurobindo: "Ignorance is the absence of the divine eye of perception which gives us the sight of the supramental Truth; it is the non-perceiving principle in our consciousness as opposed to the truth-perceiving conscious vision and knowledge.” *The Life Divine
"Ignorance is the consciousness of being in the successions of Time, divided in its knowledge by dwelling in the moment, divided in its conception of self-being by dwelling in the divisions of Space and the relations of circumstance, self-prisoned in the multiple working of the unity. It is called the Ignorance because it has put behind it the knowledge of unity and by that very fact is unable to know truly or completely either itself or the world, either the transcendent or the universal reality.” The Life Divine
"Ignorance means Avidya, the separative consciousness and the egoistic mind and life that flow from it and all that is natural to the separative consciousness and the egoistic mind and life. This Ignorance is the result of a movement by which the cosmic Intelligence separated itself from the light of the Supermind (the divine Gnosis) and lost the Truth, — truth of being, truth of divine consciousness, truth of force and action, truth of Ananda. As a result, instead of a world of integral truth and divine harmony created in the light of the divine Gnosis, we have a world founded on the part truths of an inferior cosmic Intelligence in which all is half-truth, half-error. . . . All in the consciousness of this creation is either limited or else perverted by separation from the integral Light; even the Truth it perceives is only a half-knowledge. Therefore it is called the Ignorance.” The Mother
". . . all ignorance is a penumbra which environs an orb of knowledge . . . .”The Life Divine
"This world is not really created by a blind force of Nature: even in the Inconscient the presence of the supreme Truth is at work; there is a seeing Power behind it which acts infallibly and the steps of the Ignorance itself are guided even when they seem to stumble; for what we call the Ignorance is a cloaked Knowledge, a Knowledge at work in a body not its own but moving towards its own supreme self-discovery.” Essays in Philosophy and Yoga
"Knowledge is no doubt the knowledge of the One, the realisation of the Being; Ignorance is a self-oblivion of Being, the experience of separateness in the multiplicity and a dwelling or circling in the ill-understood maze of becomings: . . . .” The Life Divine*
ignorant or unaware.
ignorant
ignore
illegible
illimitable
ill
ills
illume
illuminate
illumination
illumined mind
illumined mind ::: Sri Aurobindo: "This greater Force is that of the Illumined Mind, a Mind no longer of higher Thought, but of spiritual light. Here the clarity of the spiritual intelligence, its tranquil daylight, gives place or subordinates itself to an intense lustre, a splendour and illumination of the Spirit: a play of lightnings of spiritual truth and power breaks from above into the consciousness and adds to the calm and wide enlightenment and the vast descent of peace which characterise or accompany the action of the larger conceptual-spiritual principle, a fiery ardour of realisation and a rapturous ecstasy of knowledge.” *The Life Divine
"The Illumined Mind does not work primarily by thought, but by vision; . . . .” The Life Divine
"As the Higher Mind brings a greater consciousness into the being through the spiritual idea and its power of truth, so the Illumined Mind brings in a still greater consciousness through a Truth-sight and Truth-light and its seeing and seizing power.” The Life Divine*
illumine
illusion ::: “In fact it [the world] is not an illusion in the sense of an imposition of something baseless and unreal on the consciousness, but a misinterpretation by the conscious mind and sense and a falsifying misuse of manifested existence.” Letters on Yoga
illusion
illusive
illusory
imaged
imager
imagery
image
images, subtle
imaginary
imagination ::: “… our mind has the faculty of imagination; it can create and take as true and real its own mental structures: . . . . Our mental imagination is an instrument of Ignorance; it is the resort or device or refuge of a limited capacity of knowledge, a limited capacity of effective action. Mind supplements these deficiencies by its power of imagination: it uses it to extract from things obvious and visible the things that are not obvious and visible; it undertakes to create its own figures of the possible and the impossible; it erects illusory actuals or draws figures of a conjectured or constructed truth of things that are not true to outer experience. That is at least the appearance of its operation; but, in reality, it is the mind’s way or one of its ways of summoning out of Being its infinite possibilities, even of discovering or capturing the unknown possibilities of the Infinite.” The Life Divine
imagination
imaginations, mental images.
imagined
imagine
imaginings
imagist
imbroglio
imitate
imitation
immaculate
immanence
immanent
immaterial
immature
immeasurable ::: Incapable of being measured; limitless; immense. Immeasurable. (Sri Aurobindo also employs the word as an adj.)
immeasurable
immeasurably
immediacy
immediate
immemorable
immemorial
immense
immensitudes
immensitudes ::: Sri Aurobindo: “I take upon myself the right to coin new words. ‘Immensitudes’ is not any more fantastic than ‘infinitudes’ to pair ‘infinity’.” immensitude, Immensitudes.
immensitudes ::: Sri Aurobindo: “I take upon myself the right to coin new words. ‘Immensitudes’ is not any more fantastic than ‘infinitudes’ to pair ‘infinity’.”
immensity
immersed
immigration
immitigable
immobile
immobilised
immortalise
immortality ::: “By immortality we mean the absolute life of the soul as opposed to the transient and mutable life in the body which it assumes by birth and death and rebirth and superior also to its life as the mere mental being who dwells in the world subjected helplessly to this law of death and birth or seems at least by his ignorance to be subjected to this and to other laws of the lower Nature.” The Upanishads
immortality
immortal
immovable ::: unable to move or be moved; fixed; immobile.
immovably ::: incapable of being moved from one"s purpose, opinion, etc.; steadfast; unyielding.
immune ::: totally protected against, or naturally resistant to, a disease; injury etc. Immune, immunity.
immured ::: shut in; secluded or confined.
immutable ::: not subject or susceptible to change. Immutable, immutable"s, immutably, immutability.
impacts ::: the effects or impressions of one thing on another.
impalpable ::: 1. Not perceptible to the touch; intangible. 2. Difficult to perceive or grasp by the mind.
impartial ::: not partial or biased; unprejudiced; fair. impartially.
impart ::: to grant a share of; bestow. imparts, imparting.
impasse ::: a situation that is so difficult that no progress can be made; a deadlock or a stalemate.
impassioned ::: filled with passion; fervent.
impassive ::: 1. Without emotion; apathetic; unmoved. 2. Calm; serene. 3. Not subject to suffering; unaffected. impassively.
impatient ::: 1. Unable to endure irritation or opposition; intolerant; not patient. 2. Eagerly desirous; restless in desire or expectation. 3. Lacking patience; easily irritated at delay, opposition.
impeccable ::: faultless, unerring, flawless, irreproachable.
impediments ::: things that impede, hinder, or obstruct; obstacles.
impelled ::: urged or forced to action.
impel ::: to drive forward; propel.
impenetrable ::: 1. Impossible to penetrate or enter. 2. Incapable of being seen through.
impenitent ::: unrepentant; not sorry for.
imperative ::: n. 1. An action, etc. involving or expressing a command; a command. 2. Something that demands attention or action; an unavoidable obligation or requirement; necessity. 3. The verbal mood (or any form belonging to it) which expresses a command, request, or exhortation. adj. **4. Absolutely necessary or required; unavoidable. 5. Of the nature of or expressing a command; commanding. imperatives.**
imperfect ::: 1. Of, pertaining to, or characterized by defects or weaknesses; faulty. 2. Not perfect; lacking completeness; deficient.
imperfection ::: 1. The quality or condition of being imperfect; incomplete; defective. 2. Something imperfect; a defect or flaw. imperfection"s, imperfections.
imperfection ::: “… our imperfection is the sign of a transitional state, a growth not yet completed, an effort that is finding its way; …” The Life Divine
imperial ::: 1. Of, relating to, or suggestive of an empire or a sovereign, especially an emperor or empress. 2. Regal; majestic. 3. Something magnificent or outstanding in size or quality.
imperious ::: regal; imperial; sovereign; majestic.
imperishable ::: not subject to decay or deterioration. Imperishable, imperishable"s, Imperishable"s, imperishableness, imperishably.
impermanent ::: not lasting or durable; not permanent; fleeting. impermanence.
impersonal ::: 1. Having no personal reference or connection. 2. Lacking personality; not being a person; devoid of human character or traits.
impersonal ::: Sri Aurobindo: "The Impersonal is not He, it is It. . . . The Impersonal Brahman is inactive, aloof, indifferent, not concerned with what happens in the universe.” *Letters on Yoga
impersonal ::: “The Impersonal is not He, it is It. . . . The Impersonal Brahman is inactive, aloof, indifferent, not concerned with what happens in the universe.” Letters on Yoga
impervious ::: incapable of being influenced, persuaded, or affected.
impetuous ::: 1. Moving with great force or violence; rushing. 2. Characterized by sudden and forceful energy or emotion; impulsive and passionate.
impetus ::: an impelling force; an impulse.
implacable ::: not to be appeased, mollified, or pacified; inexorable. implacably.
implant ::: to put, insert or fix firmly; imbed. implanting.
implore ::: to appeal to as in prayer or supplication; beseech.
imponderables ::: things that cannot be precisely determined, measured, or evaluated.
importunate ::: persistent, pressing, relentless; holding tenaciously to a purpose or course of action in demand or solicitation.
impose ::: 1. To establish or apply as compulsory; as something to be obeyed or complied with; levy; enforce. 2. To apply or make prevail by or as if by authority. imposes, imposed, imposing.
imposition ::: the laying on of something as a burden or obligation.
impossible to forget; indelibly impressed on the memory.
impostor ::: a person who practices deception under an assumed character, identity, or name.
impotent ::: lacking sufficient strength or ability; powerless to achieve.
impoverished ::: deprived of richness and strength.
impress ::: a distinctive character or effect imparted.
impressed ::: fig. Stamped (a character or quality) upon anything.
impressions ::: an effect produced in the mind by a stimulus; sensation.
imprint ::: n. 1. A mark or pattern produced by a stamp or an impression. v. **2. Establish or impress firmly in the mind. 3. To mark or stamp with or as if with pressure. imprints.**
imprison ::: to confine in or as if in a prison. imprisoned, imprisoning.
impromptu ::: something that arises spontaneously or comes without previous preparation or premeditation. impromptus.
imps ::: small demons or devils; mischievous sprites.
impulse ::: 1. An impelling force or motion; thrust; impetus. 2. The motion produced by such a force. 3. A sudden wish, stimulus or urge that prompts an unpremeditated act or feeling; an abrupt inclination. 4. A psychic drive or instinctual urge. impulses, impulses", impulsed, million-impulsed.
impulsion ::: a wish or urge from within; an impulse.
impunity ::: immunity from detrimental effects, as of an action.
inaccessible ::: 1. Capable of being reached only with great difficulty or not at all. 2. Not able to be (easily) approached, reached or obtained.
in a complete or utter manner; to an absolute or extreme degree; altogether, entirely, absolutely; fully, thoroughly.
inadequate ::: not adequate or sufficient; inept or unsuitable.
in a disdainfully proud manner; snobbishly, scornfully arrogant, superciliously.
inalienable ::: not capable of being repudiated; inviolable.
inalterable ::: unchangeable, immutable; not capable of being modified. inalterably.
inane ::: something that is empty or void, especially the void of infinite space.
inanimate ::: 1. Lacking the qualities or features of living beings; not animate or alive. 2. Spiritless; dull; lacking activity or life. Also fig.
in an unsuccessful manner; to no avail.
inapt ::: 1. Without aptitude or capacity; incapable. 2. Not inclined or disposed.
inapt ::: Tehmi: “Not willing.”
inarmed ::: embraced; as if arm in arm.
inarticulate ::: 1. Lacking the ability to express oneself, esp. in clear and effective speech. 2. Not articulate; not uttered or emitted with expressive or intelligible modulations.
inaudible ::: not loud enough to be heard; not audible.
in a vague, indefinite or imprecise way. (Also see ‘vague" above).
in a vertical direction; vertically upwards.
inborn ::: existing from birth; congenital; innate.
incalculable ::: 1. Too great to be calculated or reckoned. 2. Impossible to foresee; unpredictable. Incalculable, incalculable"s. (Sri Aurobindo also employs the word as a n.)
incapable ::: 1. Lacking the necessary ability, capacity, or power. 2. Not open to; not susceptible to or admitting.
incapable of being expressed in words; inexpressible, indescribable, ineffable.
incapable of being imagined; inconceivable; incomprehensible. (Also used as a n.) Unimaginable.
incapable of being measured; limitless; immense. Immeasurable. (Sri Aurobindo also employs the word as an adj.)
incapable of being quenched; inextinguishable.
incapable of being recognized; that does not admit of recognition.
incapacity ::: lack of ability, qualification, or strength; esp. to receive.
incarnate ::: adj. 1. Embodied in flesh; given a bodily, esp. a human, form. 2. Personified or typified, as a quality or idea. v. 3. Invested with bodily nature and form. 4. To realize in action or fact; actualize. incarnated, incarnating.
incarnate dual Power
incarnate ::: the One embodied in flesh. Incarnate"s.
incarnation ::: “An incarnation is the Divine Consciousness and Being manifesting through the body.” Letters on Yoga
incarnation ::: Sri Aurobindo: "An incarnation is the Divine Consciousness and Being manifesting through the body.” *Letters on Yoga
incense ::: 1. An aromatic substance, such as wood or a gum that is burned to produce a pleasant odour. 2. The smoke or odour produced by the burning of such a substance. 3. Fig. Offering; homage.
incertitude ::: absence of confidence; doubt; uncertainty. incertitudes. ::: Sri Aurobindo: [referring to the line] "The incertitude of man"s proud confident thought.” ::: "‘Uncertainty" would mean that the thought was confident but uncertain of itself, which would be a contradiction. ‘Incertitude" means that its truth is uncertain in spite of its proud confidence in itself.” Letters on Savitri — 1936
incertitude ::: Sri Aurobindo: [referring to the line]”The incertitude of man’s proud confident thought.”
incessant ::: continuing without interruption; ceaseless; unending. incessantly.
incident ::: 1. An individual occurrence or event. 2. Something contingent on or related to something else. incidents.
incline ::: n. 1. A steep slope or rise. *v. 2. To bow, nod, or bend (the head, body, etc.). 3. To dispose (a person) in mind, habit, etc. (usually followed by to). 4. To listen, especially willingly or favourably. *inclined, inclining.
included ::: being part of the whole; contained; covered.
incognito ::: a concealed identity.
incoherent ::: without logical or meaningful connection; disjointed; rambling. incoherence, incoherencies.
incommensurable ::: lacking a common quality on which to make a comparison of magnitude or value. Incommensurable.
incommunicable ::: impossible to be transmitted or communicated. Incommunicable.
incompetence ::: not possessing the necessary ability, skill, etc. to do or carry out a task; incapable.
incomprehensible ::: impossible to know; fathom or understand.
inconceivable ::: that which is impossible to comprehend or grasp fully with the mind.
inconclusive ::: not leading to a definite decision, result, etc.
inconscience ::: Sri Aurobindo: "The Inconscience is an inverse reproduction of the supreme superconscience: it has the same absoluteness of being and automatic action, but in a vast involved trance; it is being lost in itself, plunged in its own abyss of infinity.” *The Life Divine
"All aspects of the omnipresent Reality have their fundamental truth in the Supreme Existence. Thus even the aspect or power of Inconscience, which seems to be an opposite, a negation of the eternal Reality, yet corresponds to a Truth held in itself by the self-aware and all-conscious Infinite. It is, when we look closely at it, the Infinite"s power of plunging the consciousness into a trance of self-involution, a self-oblivion of the Spirit veiled in its own abysses where nothing is manifest but all inconceivably is and can emerge from that ineffable latency. In the heights of Spirit this state of cosmic or infinite trance-sleep appears to our cognition as a luminous uttermost Superconscience: at the other end of being it offers itself to cognition as the Spirit"s potency of presenting to itself the opposites of its own truths of being, — an abyss of non-existence, a profound Night of inconscience, a fathomless swoon of insensibility from which yet all forms of being, consciousness and delight of existence can manifest themselves, — but they appear in limited terms, in slowly emerging and increasing self-formulations, even in contrary terms of themselves; it is the play of a secret all-being, all-delight, all-knowledge, but it observes the rules of its own self-oblivion, self-opposition, self-limitation until it is ready to surpass it. This is the Inconscience and Ignorance that we see at work in the material universe. It is not a denial, it is one term, one formula of the infinite and eternal Existence.” *The Life Divine
"Once consciousnesses separated from the one consciousness, they fell inevitably into Ignorance and the last result of Ignorance was Inconscience.” Letters on Yoga
*inconscience.
inconscient ::: Sri Aurobindo: "The Inconscient and the Ignorance may be mere empty abstractions and can be dismissed as irrelevant jargon if one has not come in collision with them or plunged into their dark and bottomless reality. But to me they are realities, concrete powers whose resistance is present everywhere and at all times in its tremendous and boundless mass.” *Letters on Savitri
". . . in its actual cosmic manifestation the Supreme, being the Infinite and not bound by any limitation, can manifest in Itself, in its consciousness of innumerable possibilities, something that seems to be the opposite of itself, something in which there can be Darkness, Inconscience, Inertia, Insensibility, Disharmony and Disintegration. It is this that we see at the basis of the material world and speak of nowadays as the Inconscient — the Inconscient Ocean of the Rigveda in which the One was hidden and arose in the form of this universe — or, as it is sometimes called, the non-being, Asat.” Letters on Yoga
"The Inconscient itself is only an involved state of consciousness which like the Tao or Shunya, though in a different way, contains all things suppressed within it so that under a pressure from above or within all can evolve out of it — ‘an inert Soul with a somnambulist Force".” Letters on Yoga
"The Inconscient is the last resort of the Ignorance.” Letters on Yoga
"The body, we have said, is a creation of the Inconscient and itself inconscient or at least subconscient in parts of itself and much of its hidden action; but what we call the Inconscient is an appearance, a dwelling place, an instrument of a secret Consciousness or a Superconscient which has created the miracle we call the universe.” Essays in Philosophy and Yoga :::
"The Inconscient is a sleep or a prison, the conscient a round of strivings without ultimate issue or the wanderings of a dream: we must wake into the superconscious where all darkness of night and half-lights cease in the self-luminous bliss of the Eternal.” The Life Divine
"Men have not learnt yet to recognise the Inconscient on which the whole material world they see is built, or the Ignorance of which their whole nature including their knowledge is built; they think that these words are only abstract metaphysical jargon flung about by the philosophers in their clouds or laboured out in long and wearisome books like The Life Divine. Letters on Savitri :::
"Is it really a fact that even the ordinary reader would not be able to see any difference between the Inconscient and Ignorance unless the difference is expressly explained to him? This is not a matter of philosophical terminology but of common sense and the understood meaning of English words. One would say ‘even the inconscient stone" but one would not say, as one might of a child, ‘the ignorant stone". One must first be conscious before one can be ignorant. What is true is that the ordinary reader might not be familiar with the philosophical content of the word Inconscient and might not be familiar with the Vedantic idea of the Ignorance as the power behind the manifested world. But I don"t see how I can acquaint him with these things in a single line, even with the most. illuminating image or symbol. He might wonder, if he were Johnsonianly minded, how an Inconscient could be teased or how it could wake Ignorance. I am afraid, in the absence of a miracle of inspired poetical exegesis flashing through my mind, he will have to be left wondering.” Letters on Savitri
**inconscient, Inconscient"s.**
inconsequent ::: 1. Characterized by lack of proper sequence in thought, speech, or action. 2. Without worth or consequence; trivial. inconsequence, Inconsequence.
inconstant ::: changing or varying, especially often and without discernible pattern or reason.
incontinent ::: having little or no control (over).
increase ::: to become or make greater or larger in size, degree; intensity. increased, increasing.
incredible ::: something so extraordinary as to seem impossible; inconceivable, beyond belief.
incredulous ::: disinclined or indisposed to believe; sceptical.
incurable ::: 1. Not curable; that cannot be cured, remedied, or corrected. 2. Not susceptible to change.
indecipherable ::: 1. Not decipherable; illegible. 2. Not understandable; incomprehensible. Indecipherable.
indeed ::: without a doubt; certainly; in fact; in reality. (Used for emphasis, to confirm and amplify a previous statement, to indicate a concession or admission, or, interrogatively, to obtain confirmation.)
indefinable ::: impossible to define, describe, or analyze; not readily identified, analysed, or determined.
indelible ::: unable to be erased or blotted out.
independent ::: not determined or influenced by someone or something else; not contingent upon.
indeterminable ::: impossible to settle or decide with finality.
indeterminate ::: not precisely fixed, as to extent, size, nature, or number. Indeterminate.
index ::: 1. An alphabetized list of names, places, and subjects treated in a printed work, giving the page or pages on which each item is mentioned. 2. A sequential arrangement. 3. Something that reveals or indicates; a sign.
indicator ::: one who or that which points to or towards the presence, existence, or reality of (something); is a sign or symptom of, betokens.
indifference ::: absence of feeling, interest or concern; apathy; impartiality. world-indifference.
indifferent ::: 1. Having no marked feeling for or against. 2. Without interest or feeling in regard to something; unbiased, impartial, neutral; fair; unconcerned, unmoved, apathetic. 3. Being neither good nor bad; neutral.
indigence ::: poverty; need; destitution.
indigent ::: deficient in what is requisite; poor; impoverished.
indignant ::: angered at something unjust or wrong; expressing strong displeasure at something considered unjust, offensive, insulting, or base.
indignation ::: anger aroused by something unjust, mean, wicked or unworthy.
indignity ::: slighting or contemptuous treatment; humiliating affront, insult or injury.
indiscernible ::: that cannot be seen or perceived clearly; imperceptible.
indissolubly ::: perpetually binding; unable to be dissolved.
indistinct ::: not clearly distinguishable or perceptible, as to the eye, ear, or mind. indistinctness.
individual ::: a distinct, indivisible entity; a single thing, being, instance, or item.
individual ::: “But what do we mean by the individual? What we usually call by that name is a natural ego, a device of Nature which holds together her action in the mind and body. This ego has to be extinguished, otherwise there is no complete liberation possible; but the individual self or soul is not this ego. The individual soul is the spiritual being which is sometimes described as an eternal portion of the Divine, but can also be described as the Divine himself supporting his manifestation as the Many. This is the true spiritual individual which appears in its complete truth when we get rid of the ego and our false separative senseof individuality, realise our oneness with the transcendent and cosmic Divine and with all beings.” Letters on Yoga
individuals or things regarded as members of a group or number of things or individuals, or discriminated from these as having a separate existence; separate parts or members of which a complex whole or aggregate is composed or into which it may be analysed.
indivisible ::: not separable into parts; unable to be divided. Indivisible.
indoctrinated ::: instructed in a doctrine, principle, ideology, etc., esp. imbued with a specific partisan or biased belief or point of view.
indolence ::: habitual laziness; sloth.
indolent ::: 1. Having or showing a disposition to avoid exertion; slothful. 2. Lazy, idle, torpid.
indomitable ::: incapable of being overcome, subdued, or vanquished; unconquerable. indomitably.
indubitable ::: too apparent to be doubted; unquestionable.
inducing ::: bringing about or stimulating the occurrence of; causing.
indulged ::: yielded to the wishes of; pampered.
indulgent ::: characterised by benign leniency or permissiveness; forbearing, tolerant. indulgence.
indwelling ::: abiding within, as a guiding force, motivating principle, etc.
ineffable ::: incapable of being expressed; indescribable or unutterable. **Ineffable, Ineffable"s.
ineffectual
inefficient ::: lacking the ability or skill to perform effectively; incompetent.
inept ::: not apt or fitting; inappropriate.
inert ::: 1. Unable to move or act; immobile, unmoving, lifeless, motionless. 2. Inactive or sluggish by habit or nature. inertness.
inertia ::: inertness, esp. with regard to effort, motion, action, and the like; inactivity; sluggishness. Inertia, Inertia"s.
inescapable ::: impossible to escape or avoid; inevitable. inescapably.
inevitable ::: 1. Unable to be avoided, evaded, or escaped; certain; necessary. 2. Sure to occur, happen, or come. inevitably.
inexhaustible ::: not exhaustible; incapable of being depleted.
inexorable ::: not capable of being persuaded by entreaty; relentless. inexorably.
inexplicable ::: difficult or impossible to explain or account for. inexplicably.
inexpressible ::: not expressible; incapable of being uttered or described in words. Inexpressible, inexpressibly.
inexpressibly, indescribably; unspeakably.
inexpressive ::: lacking the ability to express feelings etc.; blank.
inextinguishable ::: difficult or impossible to extinguish.
inextricable ::: intricately involved; incapable of being disentangled, loosed, or undone. inextricably.
infallible ::: 1. Incapable of failure or error. 2. Not liable to failure; certain; sure. 3. Absolutely trustworthy or sure. 4. Unfailing in effectiveness or operation; certain. infallibly, infallibility.
infamies ::: infamous, shameful, or utterly disgraceful acts.
infant ::: n. **1. A child during the earliest period of its life, especially before he or she can walk; baby. 2. Anything in the first stage of existence or progress. Infant, infant"s, Infants. adj. 3.** Anything in the first stage of existence or progress.
infelicity ::: the state or quality of being unhappy or unfortunate. infelicitous.
inference ::: the act or process of deriving logical conclusions from premises known or assumed to be true.
inferior ::: 1. Lower in rank, position, importance or status; subordinate. 2. Low or lower in quality, value, or estimation.
infernal ::: fiendish; diabolical.
inferno ::: a place or condition suggestive of hell, especially with respect to human suffering or death; the infernal regions. Inferno"s.
infest ::: to invade a person"s thoughts and haunt or overrun them.
infiltration ::: the act or process of penetrating or seeping into slowly; permeating.
infinite ::: n. 1. That which has no limit. infinite"s. adj. 2. Immeasurably great or large; boundless; without limit. 3. Existing beyond or being greater than any arbitrarily large value or measurement.
infinitesimal ::: immeasurably or incalculably minute. Infinitesimal"s.
infinite, the triune ::: see **triune Infinite. **
infinitude ::: 1. The state or quality of being infinite; boundless. 2. An immeasurably large quantity, number, or extent. infinitudes, Infinitude, Infinitudes.
infinity ::: 1. The quality or condition of being infinite or without limits. 2. An indefinitely large number, amount and expanse of space or time.
infinity ::: “We see at once that if such an Existence is, it must be, like the Energy, infinite. Neither reason nor experience nor intuition nor imagination bears witness to us of the possibility of a final terminus. All end and beginning presuppose something beyond the end or beginning. An absolute end, an absolute beginning is not only a contradiction in terms, but a contradiction of the essence of things, a violence, a fiction. Infinity imposes itself upon the appearances of the finite by its ineffugable self-existence.” The Life Divine
inflamed ::: aroused to passionate feeling or action.
inflexible ::: 1. Unyielding in purpose, principle, or temper; immovable. 2. Not permitting change or variation; unalterable.
inflict ::: 1. To lay on or set as something to be borne, endured, obeyed, fulfilled, paid, etc. 2. To deal or mete out (something punishing or burdensome); impose. inflicted, inflicting.
influence ::: the action or process (by a person or thing) of producing effects on the actions, behaviour, opinions, etc. of another or others. influences, Influence, Influences.
influx ::: the act of flowing in; inflow. Also fig. Influx.
inform ::: to give form or character to; impart; imbue with a quality or an essence.
ingenious ::: 1. Characterised by cleverness or originality of invention or construction. 2. Cleverly inventive or resourceful. ingeniously.
ingenuity ::: 1. Inventive skill or imagination; cleverness. 2. An ingenious or imaginative contrivance.
ingredients ::: constituent elements of a mixture or whole; components.
inhabit ::: 1. To live or dwell in (a place), as people or animals. 2. To exist or be situated within; dwell in. inhabited, inhabiting, inhabitant, Inhabitant, inhabitants, all-inhabiting.
in haste: In a hurry; quickly.
inheritance ::: fig. Something that is or may be inherited; property passing at the owner"s death to the heir or those entitled to succeed.
inheriting ::: receiving as one"s portion; coming into possession of.
inheritor ::: fig. A person who is entitled by law or by the terms of a will to inherit the estate of another either material or immaterial; an heir. inheritors.
inhibitions ::: conscious or unconscious restraint of a behavioural process, a desire, or an impulse.
inhuman ::: lacking humane feelings, such as sympathy, understanding, etc.; cruel; brutal. Also fig.
iniquity ::: gross injustice or wickedness; infamy, depravity. iniquities.
initial ::: of, pertaining to, or occurring at the beginning; first.
initials ::: marks or signs with an initial letter or letters of a person"s name and surname esp. as a token of preliminary or informal approval.
initiate ::: ppla.**1. Instructed in or introduced to secret or sacred knowledge. n.2. A novice, beginner. Initiate.**
initiate ::: to begin, set going, or originate.
initiative ::: an introductory act or step; leading action.
initiator ::: a person who initiates a course of action.
injustice ::: the quality or fact of being unjust; unfair; inequity.
inky ::: resembling ink, esp. in colour; dark or black.
inlets ::: indentations of a shoreline, usually long and narrow; small bays or arms.
inlook ::: a looking within.
inly ::: 1. In an inward manner; inwardly. 2. Intimately; deeply within.
inly ::: The child remembering inly a far home Madhav: “The child remembers inly, not in outer memory; mark the word inly, a typically Sri Aurobindo expression. The child remembers somewhere deep inside, its ‘far home’, her home is there far above.” The Book of the Divine Mother
inmate ::: one of several residents of a dwelling.
inmost ::: 1. Farthest within; innermost. 2. Most intimate or secret.
inn ::: an abode; a lodging, esp. for travellers.
inner ::: 1. Of or pertaining to the mind or spirit; mental; spiritual. 2. Situated within or farther within; interior. 3. Not obvious; hidden or obscure.
inner ear
inner mind
innerness ::: more profound or obscure; less apparent; relating to the soul, mind, spirit, consciousness, etc.
inner prophet
inner self
inner vision
innocence ::: freedom from sin, moral wrong, or guilt through lack of knowledge of evil.
innocences ::: persons or creatures without sin or guilt.
innocent ::: 1. Uncorrupted by evil, malice, or wrongdoing; sinless. 2. Not dangerous or harmful; innocuous.
innumerable ::: too numerous to be counted; numberless. innumerably.
inordinate ::: 1. Not regulated or controlled; disorderly. 2. Exceeding reasonable limits; excessive; immoderate.
in political and legal philosophy and theology, doctrines based on the theory that there are certain unchanging laws which pertain to man"s nature, which can be discovered by reason, and therefore ethically binding in human society, and to which man-made laws should conform.
inquirer ::: one who seeks or questions.
inquiry ::: a seeking or request for truth, information, or knowledge.
inquisition ::: an official investigation, esp. one of a political or religious nature, characterised by a lack of regard for individual rights, prejudice on the part of the examiners, and recklessly cruel punishments.
inrushes ::: that which rushes or pours in; inflow, influx.
insanity ::: extreme foolishness; folly; senselessness; foolhardiness.
insatiate ::: never satisfied or appeased; ever craving for more. insatiably.
inscribe ::: to mark (a surface) with words, characters, etc., especially in a durable or conspicuous way. inscribed.
inscription ::: a marking, such as the wording on a coin, medal, monument, or seal, that is inscribed. inscriptions.
inscrutable ::: 1. Difficult or nearly impossible to fathom or understand; impenetrable. 2. Incapable of being seen through physically; physically impenetrable.
insensible ::: 1. Unaware; unconscious. 2. Not endowed with feeling or sensation, as matter; inanimate. 3. Unaware; unmindful; not emotionally responsive; indifferent. 4. Unresponsive in feeling; not susceptible of emotion or passion; void of any feeling. insensibly.
insensitive ::: lacking sensitivity; unfeeling.
insentient ::: without feeling, sensation, or consciousness; inanimate.
inseparable ::: 1. Incapable of being separated or divided. 2. Impossible to separate or part.
inset ::: something that is put in or inserted.
insight ::: penetrating mental vision or discernment; faculty of seeing into the inner character or underlying truth of things.
insignia ::: a badge or emblem of membership, office, rank or dignity; an official or distinguishing sign.
insignificant ::: 1. Too small to be important. 2. Unimportant, trifling, or petty; of no consequence, influence or distinction. 3. Without meaning. insignificance.
insistent ::: earnest or emphatic in dwelling upon, maintaining, or demanding something; persistent. insistence, insistency.
insist ::: to assert or maintain firmly. insisting.
insolence ::: contemptuously rude or impertinent behavior or speech.
insoluble ::: incapable of being solved or explained.
inspiration ::: 1. A divine influence directly and immediately exerted upon the mind or soul. 2. An inspiring or animating action or influence. inspiration"s, Inspiration"s.
inspirational; offering or providing hope, encouragement, salvation, etc.
inspired ::: aroused, animated or imbued with the spirit to do something, by or as if by supernatural or divine influence. inspiring.
inspires ::: 1. Produces, kindles, arouses or awakens a feeling, thought, etc. 2. Guides or arouse by divine influence or inspiration. inspired, inspiring.* *n. inspirer.**
inspiring mingled reverence and admiration; impressing the emotions or imagination as magnificent; majestic, stately, sublime, solemnly grand; venerable, revered; of supreme dignity.
in spite of. Not stopped by; regardless of.
instability ::: the quality or state of being unstable; lack of stability or firmness; unsteadiness.
instant ::: n. 1. A particular moment or point in time. 2. An infinitesimal or very short space of time; a moment. adj. 3. Succeeding without any interval of time; prompt; immediate. instant"s.
instead ::: as a substitute or replacement; in the place or stead of someone or something.
instinct ::: 1. A natural or innate impulse, inclination, or tendency. 2. An inborn pattern of activity or tendency to action common to a given biological species. 3. A natural aptitude or gift. 4. Natural intuitive power. instinct"s, instincts, instinct-driven, instinctive.
instinct ::: adj. Filled or infused with some animating principle (usually followed by with).
institutes ::: societies or organizations for carrying on a particular work.
institutions ::: organizations, establishments, foundations, societies, or the like, devoted to the promotion of a particular cause or program.
instrument ::: 1. A means by which something is affected or done; agency. 2. A person used by an agency for a particular purpose. instruments, instruments", instrument-personality.
insufficient ::: not sufficient; lacking in what is necessary or required. insufficiency.
insufficient to produce a desired effect; feeble; powerless, impotent.
insult ::: an insolent or contemptuously rude action or remark; affront.
insurgent ::: rebellious or in revolt, as against a government in power or the civil authorities. Also fig. **insurgence.**
intact ::: not altered, broken, or impaired; remaining uninjured, sound, or whole; untouched; unblemished.
intangible ::: not tangible; incapable of being perceived by the sense of touch, as incorporeal or immaterial things; impalpable. intangible"s.
integer ::: an individual entity or whole unit. integers.
integral ::: entire; complete; whole.
intellect ::: “Intellectual activities are not part of the inner being—the intellect is the outer mind.” Letters on Yoga
intellect ::: the power or faculty of the mind by which one knows or understands, as distinguished from that by which one feels and that by which one wills; the understanding; the faculty of thinking and acquiring knowledge. intellect"s.
intelligence ::: 1. A capacity for learning, reasoning, understanding, and similar forms of mental activity; aptitude in grasping truths, relationships, facts, meanings, etc. 2. Superior understanding. 3. An intelligent being, esp. one that is not embodied. Intelligence, Arch-Intelligence.
intelligence ::: “Intelligence does not depend on the amount one has read, it is a quality of the mind. Study only gives it material for its work as life also does. There are people who do not know how to read and write who are more intelligent than many highly educated people and understand life and things better. On the other hand, a good intelligence can improve itself by reading because it gets more material to work on and grows by exercise and by having a wider range to move in. But book-knowledge by itself is not the real thing, it has to be used as a help to the intelligence but it is often only a help to stupidity or ignorance—ignorance because knowledge of facts is a poor thing if one cannot see their true significance.” Letters on Yoga
intelligent ::: 1. Indicating high intelligence; perceptive. 2. Having the capacity for thought and reason especially to a high degree.
intelligible ::: capable of being understood; comprehensible.
intended ::: purposed; designed; meant; intentional. high-intended.
intense ::: 1. Existing or occurring in a high or extreme degree. 2. Having a characteristic quality in a high degree. 3. Characterized by deep or forceful feelings or emotions. 4. Of an extreme kind; very great, as in strength, keenness, severity, or the like. intenser, intensity, intensities.
intention ::: design; purpose, aim.
intent ::: n. 1. Something that is intended; purpose; design. v. 2. To be firmly or steadfastly fixed or directed, as the eyes or mind. 3. To be determined or resolved; having the mind or will fixed on some goal.
intercede ::: to act or interpose on behalf of someone in difficulty or trouble, as by pleading or petition. interceding.
intercept ::: 1. To take, seize, or halt (someone or something on the way from one place to another); cut off from an intended destination. 2. To stop or check (passage, travel, etc.). 3. To stop or interrupt the course, progress, or transmission of. intercepts, intercepting, interceptor.
intercession ::: an interposing or pleading on behalf of another person. intercessors.
interchange ::: to give and receive (things) reciprocally; exchange.
intercourse ::: dealings or communication between individuals, groups; traffic.
interest ::: 1. Something that concerns, involves, draws the attention of, or arouses the curiosity of a person. 2. Regard for one"s own benefit or advantage; self-interest. interests.
interim ::: belonging to, serving during, or taking place during an intermediate interval of time; temporary.
interior ::: adj. 1. Of or relating to one"s mental or spiritual being. 2. Of or pertaining to that which is within; inside. n. 3. The internal portion or area of anything. interiors.
interlude ::: an intervening episode, feature, or period of time.
intermediate zone
intermediate zone ::: Sri Aurobindo: "The intermediate zone means simply a confused condition or passage in which one is getting out of the personal consciousness and opening into the cosmic (cosmic Mind, cosmic vital, cosmic physical, something perhaps of the cosmic higher Mind) without having yet transcended the human mind levels. One is not in possession of or direct contact with the divine Truth on its own levels , but one can receive something from them, even from the overmind, indirectly. Only, as one is still immersed in the cosmic Ignorance, all that comes from above can be mixed, perverted, taken hold of for their purposes by lower, even by hostile Powers. ::: It is not necessary for everyone to struggle through the intermediate zone. If one has purified oneself, if there is no abnormal vanity, egoism, ambition or other strong misleading element, or if one is vigilant and on one"s guard, or if the psychic is in front, one can either pass rapidly and directly or with a minimum of trouble into the higher zones of consciousness where one is in direct contact with the Divine Truth.
interminable ::: having no limits; unending.
internal ::: 1. Of or relating to man"s mental or spiritual nature. 2. Of, relating to, or located within the limits or surface; interior; inner.
internatal ::: A word coined by Sri Aurobindo. A combination of inter, meaning between, and natal, referring to birth; hence, between births.
internatal ::: a word coined by Sri Aurobindo. A combination of inter, meaning between, and natal, referring to birth; hence, between births.
interned ::: restricted to or confined within prescribed limits, as prisoners of war, enemy aliens, or combat troops who take refuge in a neutral country. Also fig.
interposed ::: placed between.
interpret ::: 1. To give or provide the meaning of; explain; explicate; elucidate. 2. To conceive the significance of; construe. interpreted, interpreting, interpreter, interpreters, interpretation, interpretation"s, world-interpreting.
interregnum ::: any pause or interruption in continuity.
interspace ::: an intervening period of time; a space between two things; interval.
intertwined ::: united as if entwined together.
interval ::: an intervening period of time. intervals.
intervene ::: to occur or come between two things as in action. intervening, intervention, interventions.
in the attractive pot
in the way. Forming a hindrance, impediment, or obstruction.
intimacy ::: 1. A close, familiar, and usually affectionate or loving personal relationship with another person or group. 2. An embracing inner closeness. Intimacy, intimacies.
intimate ::: n. 1. A close friend or confidant. intimates. adj. 2. Marked by close acquaintance, association, or familiarity. 3. Of or relating to the essential part or nature of something; intrinsic. 4. Very private; closely personal. 5. Familiarly associated. adv. intimately.
intimation ::: a subtle and inner hint or suggestion; indication. intimations.
intolerable ::: impossible to tolerate or endure; unbearable.
intolerant ::: 1. Unable or unwilling to endure or support. 2. Unwilling to tolerate differences in opinions, practices, or beliefs, especially religious beliefs. intolerance.
intones ::: speaks or recites in a singing voice, esp. in monotone; chants. intoning.
intoxicated ::: 1. Affected by a substance that intoxicates. 2. Mentally or emotionally exhilarated.
intoxicating ::: affecting temporarily with diminished physical and mental control by means of alcoholic liquor, a drug, or another substance.
intoxication ::: overpowering exhilaration or excitement of the mind or emotions.
intricate ::: 1. Having many interrelated parts or facets; entangled or involved. 2. Complex; complicated; hard to understand, work, or make. intricacy.
intrigue ::: a complicated maze; a puzzle; a labyrinth.
intrude ::: to thrust oneself without permission or welcome. intruding, intruder, intruders.
intrusion ::: entrance by force or without permission, welcome or invitation.
intuition ::: “Intuition is a power of consciousness nearer and more intimate to the original knowledge by identity; for it is always something that leaps out direct from a concealed identity. It is when the consciousness of the subject meets with the consciousness in the object, penetrates it and sees, feels or vibrates with the truth of what it contacts, that the intuition leaps out like a spark or lightning-flash from the shock of the meeting; or when the consciousness, even without any such meeting, looks into itself and feels directly and intimately the truth or the truths that are there or so contacts the hidden forces behind appearances, then also there is the outbreak of an intuitive light; or, again, when the consciousness meets the Supreme Reality or the spiritual reality of things and beings and has a contactual union with it, then the spark, the flash or the
intuition ::: direct perception of truth, fact, etc., independent of any reasoning process. intuition"s, intuitions, half-intuition.
Sri Aurobindo: "Intuition is a power of consciousness nearer and more intimate to the original knowledge by identity; for it is always something that leaps out direct from a concealed identity. It is when the consciousness of the subject meets with the consciousness in the object, penetrates it and sees, feels or vibrates with the truth of what it contacts, that the intuition leaps out like a spark or lightning-flash from the shock of the meeting; or when the consciousness, even without any such meeting, looks into itself and feels directly and intimately the truth or the truths that are there or so contacts the hidden forces behind appearances, then also there is the outbreak of an intuitive light; or, again, when the consciousness meets the Supreme Reality or the spiritual reality of things and beings and has a contactual union with it, then the spark, the flash or the blaze of intimate truth-perception is lit in its depths. This close perception is more than sight, more than conception: it is the result of a penetrating and revealing touch which carries in it sight and conception as part of itself or as its natural consequence. A concealed or slumbering identity, not yet recovering itself, still remembers or conveys by the intuition its own contents and the intimacy of its self-feeling and self-vision of things, its light of truth, its overwhelming and automatic certitude.” *The Life Divine
"Intuition is always an edge or ray or outleap of a superior light; it is in us a projecting blade, edge or point of a far-off supermind light entering into and modified by some intermediate truth-mind substance above us and, so modified, again entering into and very much blinded by our ordinary or ignorant mind-substance; but on that higher level to which it is native its light is unmixed and therefore entirely and purely veridical, and its rays are not separated but connected or massed together in a play of waves of what might almost be called in the Sanskrit poetic figure a sea or mass of ``stable lightnings"". When this original or native Intuition begins to descend into us in answer to an ascension of our consciousness to its level or as a result of our finding of a clear way of communication with it, it may continue to come as a play of lightning-flashes, isolated or in constant action; but at this stage the judgment of reason becomes quite inapplicable, it can only act as an observer or registrar understanding or recording the more luminous intimations, judgments and discriminations of the higher power. To complete or verify an isolated intuition or discriminate its nature, its application, its limitations, the receiving consciousness must rely on another completing intuition or be able to call down a massed intuition capable of putting all in place. For once the process of the change has begun, a complete transmutation of the stuff and activities of the mind into the substance, form and power of Intuition is imperative; until then, so long as the process of consciousness depends upon the lower intelligence serving or helping out or using the intuition, the result can only be a survival of the mixed Knowledge-Ignorance uplifted or relieved by a higher light and force acting in its parts of Knowledge.” *The Life Divine
"I use the word ‘intuition" for want of a better. In truth, it is a makeshift and inadequate to the connotation demanded of it. The same has to be said of the word ‘consciousness" and many others which our poverty compels us to extend illegitimately in their significance.” *The Life Divine - Sri Aurobindo"s footnote.
"For intuition is an edge of light thrust out by the secret Supermind. . . .” The Life Divine
". . . intuition is born of a direct awareness while intellect is an indirect action of a knowledge which constructs itself with difficulty out of the unknown from signs and indications and gathered data.” The Life Divine
"Intuition is above illumined Mind which is simply higher Mind raised to a great luminosity and more open to modified forms of intuition and inspiration.” Letters on Yoga
"Intuition sees the truth of things by a direct inner contact, not like the ordinary mental intelligence by seeking and reaching out for indirect contacts through the senses etc. But the limitation of the Intuition as compared with the supermind is that it sees things by flashes, point by point, not as a whole. Also in coming into the mind it gets mixed with the mental movement and forms a kind of intuitive mind activity which is not the pure truth, but something in between the higher Truth and the mental seeking. It can lead the consciousness through a sort of transitional stage and that is practically its function.” Letters on Yoga
intuitive ::: 1. Obtained through intuition rather than from reasoning or observation. 2. Fig. Concerning spiritual vision or perception.
intuitive knowledge ::: Sri Aurobindo: " For the highest intuitive Knowledge sees things in the whole, in the large and details only as sides of the indivisible whole; its tendency is towards immediate synthesis and the unity of knowledge.” *The Life Divine
"The intuitive knowledge on the contrary, however limited it may be in its field or application, is within that scope sure with an immediate, a durable and especially a self-existent certitude.” The Synthesis of Yoga
"All intuitive knowledge comes more or less directly from the light of the self-aware spirit entering into the mind, the spirit concealed behind mind and conscious of all in itself and in all its selves, omniscient and capable of illumining the ignorant or the self-forgetful mind whether by rare or constant flashes or by a steady instreaming light, out of its omniscience.” The Synthesis of Yoga*
in turn, in turns. Each in due succession.
invade ::: 1. To enter forcefully as an enemy; go into with hostile intent. 2. To enter as if to take possession. 3. To permeate. 4. To penetrate; spread into or over. invades, invaded, invading.
invader ::: one who intrudes or enters in a hostile manner or with hostile intent. invaders.
invasion ::: the entrance, incursion or advent of anything (usually used in a negative sense).
invent ::: to produce or contrive (something previously unknown) by the use of ingenuity or imagination. invents, invented, inventing, inventor, invention, invention"s, inventions, inventive.
inverse ::: reversed in order, nature, or effect.
inverting ::: 1. Turning upside down. 2. Turning or changing to the opposite or contrary, as in nature, bearing, or effect.
invested ::: endowed with authority or power. invests.
investigate ::: to search out and examine the particulars of in an attempt to learn the facts about something hidden, unique, or complex.
investiture ::: 1. The act of presenting with a title or with the robes and insignia of an office or rank. Chiefly fig. **2. The formal bestowal, confirmation, or presentation of rank, office, etc. investitured.**
investment ::: the investing of money, capitol, etc. in order to gain profitable returns.
inview ::: A word coined by Sri Aurobindo. A sight afforded of something from a position stated or qualified, i.e. from within.
inview ::: a word coined by Sri Aurobindo. A sight afforded of something from a position stated or qualified, i.e. from within.
invincible ::: incapable of being overcome or defeated; unconquerable. invincibly.
inviolable ::: incapable of being violated; incorruptible; unassailable. Inviolable.
inviolate ::: unable to be violated or profaned; undisturbed; intact.
inviolate, undefiled.
invisible ::: that cannot be seen; imperceptible by the sight, mind, etc.; hidden. invisibly.
invite ::: 1. To attract, allure, entice, or tempt. 2. Fig. To bring on or call forth (something) or encourage (it) to come. inviting.
invoke ::: 1. To call forth or upon (a spirit) by incantation. 2. To cause, call forth, or bring about. invokes, invoked, invoking.
involuntary ::: acting or done without or against one"s will.
involved ::: enveloped, enfolded, enwrapped.
invulnerable ::: 1. Immune to attack; impregnable. 2. Impossible to damage, injure, or wound.
inward ::: 1. Located inside; within; inner. 2. Mental or spiritual; inner. 3. Directed or moving toward the interior. Also fig. inward-musing.
inwardly ::: within the self; mentally or spiritually.
iota ::: a very small quantity; jot; whit.
iridescent ::: displaying a play of lustrous colors like those of the rainbow.
iris-coloured ::: a rainbow-like or iridescent appearance; a circle or halo of prismatic colours; a combination or alternation of brilliant colours.
irised ::: having colours like those of the rainbow; iridescent.
iron-hearted ::: cruel; heartless; unfeeling.
iron ::: n. 1. A silver-white metal, usually an admixture of some other substance, usually carbon, rendering it extremely hard and useful for tools, implements, machinery, constructions, and in many other applications. adj. 2. Inflexible; unyielding; firm. 3. Stern; harsh; cruel. 4. *Fig.* Resembling iron in firmness, strength, colour, etc.
iron out. *v. To iron or press (an item of clothing or the like). Hence, fig.* to work out, resolve or clear up (difficulties, disagreements, etc.).
iron-shod ::: furnished with, armed or fitted with iron.
irony ::: 1. The humorous or mildly sarcastic use of words to imply the opposite of what they normally mean. 2. Fig. Incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs. ironic.
irrational ::: 1. Not endowed with reason. 2. Inconsistent with reason or logic; illogical; absurd.
irreconcilable ::: incapable of being brought into harmony or adjustment; incompatible.
irrecoverable ::: incapable of being recovered or regained.
irrelevant ::: not applicable or pertinent; not to the purpose.
irremovable ::: impossible to remove.
irresistible ::: impossible to resist. irresistibly.
irresistibly attractive, charming; enchanting; captivating.
irresponsible ::: not responsible, answerable, or accountable to higher authority.
irrevocable ::: impossible to retract or be revoked, changed, undone or annulled.
isle ::: an island, especially a small one. isles.
isolated ::: separated from others; solitary or singular.
isolation ::: a state of separation between persons or groups.
issue ::: 1. The ultimate result, event, or outcome of a proceeding, affair, etc. 2. The act of sending out or putting forth; distribution. 3. Something that is sent out or put forth in any form. 4. The act of sending out or putting forth; promulgation; distribution. issues, issued, issuing, issueless.
isthmus ::: a narrow strip of land, bordered on both sides by water, connecting two larger bodies of land.
iteration ("s) ::: the act of repeating; a repetition.
itinerary ::: 1. A detailed plan for a journey. 2. A line of travel; route.
ivory ::: see gate of horn.
TERMS ANYWHERE
1. Accompanying in a circumstantial relation; going with as a concomitant; closely consequent. 2. Following closely. 3. Waiting for, awaiting, expecting (a future time, event, result, decision, etc.)
1. A distinctive and pervasive quality or character; air; atmosphere. 2. A subtle emanation from and enveloping living persons and things, viewed by mystics as consisting of the essence of the individual.
1. Anything whatever; any part. 2. A cypher, zero. Aught.
1. Spirited and original; daring; bold. 2. Fearlessly, often recklessly daring; bold; defiant; insolent; brazen; unrestrained by convention or propriety.
1. The active opposition or mutual hostility of two opposing forces, physical or mental. 2. An opposing force, principle, or tendency.
1. The act, power or property of appealing, alluring, enticing or inviting. 2. A thing or feature which draws by appealing to desires, tastes, etc. 3. The action of a body or substance in drawing to itself, by some physical force, another to which it is not materially attached; the force thus exercised. attractions.
1. ‘The beginning and the end," originally of the divine Being. 2. The first and last letters of the Greek alphabet.
1. To bring into musical accord or harmony; to tune. 2. To bring into accord, harmony, or sympathetic relationship; adjust. attuned, attuning.
1. Touchstone; a very smooth, fine-grained, black or dark-coloured variety of quartz or jasper (also called basanite), used for testing the quality of gold and silver alloys by the colour of the streak produced by rubbing them upon it; a piece of such stone used for this purpose. 2. *fig.* That which serves to test or try the genuineness or value of anything; a test, criterion.
abandon ::: 1. To give oneself up, devote oneself to (a person or thing); to yield oneself without restraint. 2. To withdraw one"s support or help from, especially in spite of duty, allegiance, or responsibility; desert: leave behind. 3. To give up; discontinue; withdraw from. abandons, abandoned, abandoning.
abandoned ::: 1. Given up, deserted, forsaken, cast off. 2. Left completely and finally, without help or support. 3. adj. Deserted.
abased ::: lowered, humbled, degraded in condition, character, feelings, etc.
abdicate ::: to renounce (a throne, power, responsibility, rights, etc.), esp. formally.
aberrations ::: 1. Deviations or divergences from a direct, prescribed, or ordinary course or mode of action, esp. moral or proper.
abhorred ::: regarded with extreme repugnance, aversion or disgust; detested; loathed. abhorring.
abide ::: 1. To wait, stay, remain. 2. To remain in residence; to sojourn, reside, dwell. 3. To remain with; to stand firm by, to hold to, remain true to. 4. To continue in existence, endure, stand firm or sure. abides, abode, abiding.
abject ::: utterly hopeless, miserable, humiliating, or wretched.
ablaze ::: 1. Burning; on fire. 2. Gleaming with bright lights, bold colours, etc.
able to be heard; heard or perceptible by the ear; loud enough to be heard.
abnegation ::: denial, negation; refusal, formal rejection (of a doctrine, etc.).
abode ::: a dwelling-place, place of ordinary habitation; house or home. (Also pt. of abide.) abodes.
a body of executive officials collectively entrusted with the execution and administration of laws.
abolish ::: to put an end to, to do away with; to annul or make void; to demolish, destroy or annihilate. abolished, abolishing.
abortive ::: terminated before completion.
abounds ::: present in overflowing measure; plentiful; prevails widely.
abroad ::: 1. Broadly, widely, at large, over a broad or wide surface; widely apart, with the parts or limbs wide spread. 2. At large; freely moving about.
abrogate ::: to do away with, put an end to.
abrupt ::: 1. Characterized by sudden interruption or change; unannounced and unexpected; sudden, hasty. 2. Precipitous, steep. 3. Of strata: Suddenly cropping out and presenting their edges.
absence ::: the state of being away (from any place) or not being present; also the time of duration of such state.
absent ::: 1. Being away, withdrawn from, or not present (at a place). 2. Of time: Not present, distant, far off.
absolute ::: adj. 1. Free from all imperfection or deficiency; complete, finished; perfect, consummate. 2. Of degree: Complete, entire; in the fullest sense. 3. Having ultimate power, governing totally; unlimited by a constitution or the concurrent authority of a parliament; arbitrary, despotic. 4. Existing without relation to any other being; self-existent; self-sufficing. 5. Capable of being thought or conceived by itself alone; unconditioned. 6. Considered independently of its being subjective or objective. n. 7. Something that is not dependent upon external conditions for existence or for its specific nature, size, etc. (opposed to relative). Absolute, Absolute"s, absolutes, absoluteness.
absolute reality ::: Sri Aurobindo: "I would myself say that bliss and oneness are the essential condition of the absolute reality, and love as the most characteristic dynamic power of bliss and oneness must support fundamentally and colour their activities; . . . .” Letters on Yoga
absolutism ::: an absolute standard or principle.
absolve ::: 1. To free from guilt, blame or their consequences; discharge (from obligations, liabilities, etc.). 2. To set free, release. 3. To clear off, discharge, acquit oneself of (a task, etc.); to perform completely, accomplish, finish. absolves, absolved.
absorbed ::: 1. Engrossed or entirely occupied; preoccupied. 2. Swallowed up, or comprised, so as no longer to exist apart.
abstract ::: adj. 1. Withdrawn or separated from matter, from material embodiment, from practice, or from particular examples; theoretical. 2. In the fine arts, characterized by lack of or freedom from representational qualities. n. 3. Something that concentrates in itself the essential qualities of anything more extensive or more general, or of several things; essence.
abstractions ::: things which have no independent existence, which exist only in idea; visionary and unrealistic.
abstruse ::: 1. Concealed, hidden, secret. 2. Hard to understand; difficult, recondite.
abusing ::: using improperly, misusing; perverting, or misemploying; taking a bad advantage of.
abysmal ::: 1. Of, pertaining to, or resembling an abyss; fathomless; deep-sunken. 2. Extremely or hopelessly bad or severe.
abyss ::: 1. The great deep, the primal chaos; the ‘bowels of the earth", the supposed cavity of the lower world; the ‘infernal pit". 2. A bottomless gulf; any unfathomable or apparently unfathomable cavity or void space; a profound gulf, chasm, or void extending beneath. Abyss, abyss"s, abysses.
accent ::: 1. The way in which anything is said; pronunciation, tone, voice; sound, modulation or modification of the voice expressing feeling. 2. A mark indicating stress or some other distinction in pronunciation or value. accents.
accentuating ::: marking strongly, emphasizing.
accept ::: 1. To take or receive (a thing offered) willingly, or with consenting mind; to receive (a thing or person) with favour or approval. 2. To take formally (what is offered) with contemplation of its consequences and obligations; to take upon oneself, to undertake as a responsibility. 3. To agree or consent to. 4. To regard as true or sound; believe. accepts, accepted, accepting.
acceptance ::: the act of assenting.
accepted ::: 1. Received as offered; well-received; approved.
access ::: 1. The ability, right, or permission to approach, enter, speak with, or use; admittance. 2. A way or means of approach; an entrance, channel, passage, or doorway.
accident ::: 1. Any event that happens unexpectedly, without a deliberate plan or cause. 2. A fortuitous circumstance, quality, or characteristic. 3. An unfortunate event, a disaster, a mishap. accidents.
acclaimed ::: laid claim to, claimed; demanded as one"s own or one"s due; sought or asked for on the ground of right.
accompany ::: 1. To go in company with, to go along with. 2. To add as companion; to associate; to add or conjoin to. accompanied.
accomplice ::: an associate in guilt, a partner in crime, often as a subordinate. accomplices.
accomplished ::: fulfilled, completed, finished, perfected. accomplishing.
accord ::: agreement or harmonious correspondence of things or their properties, as of colours or tints. Of sounds: Agreement in pitch and tone; harmony.
accountable ::: subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something; answerable, responsible.
accountant ::: one who inspects and audits accounts.
account ::: n. 1. A record of debts and credits, applied to other things than money or trade. 2. A particular statement or narrative of an event or thing; a relation, report, or description. v. 3. To render an account or reckoning of; to give a satisfactory reason for, to give an explanation.
accurate ::: 1. Exact, precise, correct, as the result of care. 2. Free from error or defect; consistent with a standard, rule, or model; precise, exact.
accursed ::: lying under a curse or anathema; ill fated; doomed to perdition or misery.
accuse ::: to charge with a fault; to find fault with, blame, censure. accused.
accustomed ::: 1. Customary, habitual, usual. 2. Habituated; acclimated (usually followed by to).
ache ::: a continuous or abiding pain, in contrast to a sudden or sharp one. Used of both physical and mental sensations.
achieve ::: 1. To bring to a successful end, to carry out successfully (an enterprise); to accomplish, perform. 2. To succeed in gaining, to acquire by effort, to obtain, win. achieves, achieved, achieving.
achieved ::: completed, accomplished; attained, won.
achievement ::: something accomplished, esp. by superior ability, special effort, great courage, etc. achievements.
aching ::: 1. Having the sensation of continuous or ever-recurring pain, throbbing painfully. 2. Full of or precipitating nostalgia, grief, loneliness, etc.
acknowledged ::: recognized the existence, truth or fact of; admitted as true, valid, or authoritative.
acolyte ::: an attendant or junior assistant in any ceremony or operation; a novice; follower. acolytes.
acquaint ::: to furnish with knowledge; inform; to make cognizant or aware.
acquiescing ::: assenting tacitly; submitting or complying silently or without protest; agreeing; consenting. acquiescence.
acquired ::: gained for oneself through one"s actions or efforts.
acquittance ::: release from a debt or obligation; discharge.
acres ::: extensive lands.
acrid ::: bitterly irritating to the feelings; of bitter and irritating temper or manner; sharp, biting, caustic.
action ::: 1. The process or condition of acting or doing (in the widest sense), the exertion of energy, influence, power or force. 2. A way or manner of moving. 3. A thing done, a deed**. action"s, actions, self-action.
"Action is a resultant of the energy of the being, but this energy is not of one sole kind; the Consciousness-Force of the Spirit manifests itself in many kinds of energies: there are inner activities of mind, activities of life, of desire, passion, impulse, character, activities of the senses and the body, a pursuit of truth and knowledge, a pursuit of beauty, a pursuit of ethical good or evil, a pursuit of power, love, joy, happiness, fortune, success, pleasure, life-satisfactions of all kinds, life-enlargement, a pursuit of individual or collective objects, a pursuit of the health, strength, capacity, satisfaction of the body.” The Life Divine*
actionless ::: void of action, inactive.
active ::: originating or communicating action, exerting action upon others; acting of its own accord, spontaneous.
actual ::: in action or existence at the time; present, current, real. Actual"s.
acute ::: penetrating, keen, sharp-witted, shrewd, clever, intense.
adamantine ::: utterly unyielding or firm in attitude or opinion.
adamant ::: n. 1. Any impenetrably or unyieldingly hard substance. 2. A legendary stone of impenetrable hardness, formerly sometimes identified with the diamond. adj. **3. Unshakeable, inflexible, utterly unyielding. 4. Incapable of being broken, dissolved, or penetrated; immovable, impregnable. adamantine.**
addict ::: one who is attached by one"s own inclination to an activity, habit or substance; devoted, given up to.
adept ::: one who is completely versed (in something); thoroughly proficient; well-skilled; expert. adepts.
A Dictionary of Words and Terms in Sri Aurobindo"s SavitriLexicon of an Infinite MindNarad (Richard Eggenberger)
adj. 1. Rousing (something) or being aroused, as if from sleep. n. awakenings. 2. Recognitions, realizations, or coming into awareness of things.
adjoining ::: 1. Adding, annexing, attaching, or appending. 2. Lying next, contiguous, adjacent; neighbouring.
adjourned ::: deferred, postponed; held over to another time.
adjunct ::: joined or added (to anything); connected, annexed; subordinate in position, function, character, or essence. adjuncts.
administration ("s)
admirable ::: worthy of admiration; inspiring approval or respect; excellent.
admires ::: 1. Regards with pleased surprise, or with wonder mingled with esteem, approbation, or affection; and in modern usage, gazed on with pleasure. admired, admiring. adj. 2. Regarded with admiration; wondered at; contemplated with wonder mingled with esteem, etc.
admit ::: 1. To allow to enter, let in, receive (a person or thing). 2. Fig. To allow a matter to enter into any relation to action or thought. 3. To accept as true, or as a fact, to acknowledge, concede. 4. To allow, permit, grant. admits, admitted, admitting.
admonishing ::: 1. Reproving or scolding, especially in a mild or good-willed manner. 2. Urging to a duty; reminding.
adopted ::: taken voluntarily or admitted into any new relationship; esp. that of a child.
adopt ::: to choose or take as one"s own; make one"s own by election or assent. adopts.
adorable ::: worthy of worship or divine honour. Adorable.
adoration ::: 1. The act of paying honour, as to a divine being; worship. 2. Reverent homage. 3. Fervent and devoted love. **adoration"s.*Sri Aurobindo: "Especially in love for the Divine or for one whom one feels to be divine, the Bhakta feels an intense reverence for the Loved, a sense of something of immense greatness, beauty or value and for himself a strong impression of his own comparative unworthiness and a passionate desire to grow into likeness with that which one adores.” Letters on Yoga*
adore ::: 1. To worship as a deity, to pay divine honours to. 2. To reverence or honour very highly; to regard with the utmost respect and affection. adores, adored, adoring, adorer, adorer"s.
adored ::: the One who is worshipped, (referring here to Krishna).
adorer ::: the One who worships, (referring here to Radha).
adorn ::: to beautify as an ornament does; decorate; to add beauty or lustre to. adorned.
advance ::: n. **1. Fig. Onward movement in any process or course of action; progress. v. 2. To move or go forward; to proceed. 3. Fig. To go forward or make progress in life, or in any course. 3. To move, put, or push (a thing) forward. Also fig. advances, advanced, advancing.**
advent ::: any important or epoch-making arrival. In modern usage applied poetically or grandiloquently to any arrival. advent"s, advents.
adventure ::: n. 1. Any novel or unexpected event in which one shares; an exciting or remarkable incident befalling any one. 2. The encountering of risks or participation in novel and exciting events; bold or daring activity, enterprise. adventure"s, world-adventure, world-adventure"s. *v. 3. To take the chance of; to commit to fortune; to undertake a thing of doubtful issue; to try, to chance, to venture into or upon. 4. To risk or hazard; stake. *adventuring.
adventurer ::: one who seeks adventures, or who engages in daring enterprises. (Sri Aurobindo also employs the word as an adj.) adventurers, Adventurers.
adversary ::: a person, group or force that opposes or attacks, or acts in a hostile manner; an opponent, antagonist; an enemy, foe. adversary"s.
adversary Kings
adverse ::: acting against or in opposition to, opposing, contrary; antagonistic in purpose or effect; actively hostile.
adversity ::: the condition of adverse fortune or fate; a state opposed to well-being or prosperity; misfortune, distress, trial, or affliction.
adytum ::: the innermost part of a temple; the secret shrine whence oracles were delivered; a most sacred or reserved part of any place of worship; hence, fig. a private or inner chamber, a sanctum.
aegis ::: originally the shield or breastplate of Zeus, or Athena. Currently, protection; support; sponsorship; auspices.
aeonic ::: age-long, lasting an aeon.
aeons ::: ages of the universe, immeasurable periods of time; the whole duration of the world, or of the universe; eternity. aeons", aeoned, million-aeoned, (employed as an adj. by Sri Aurobindo), aeon-rings.
aerial ::: 1. Having a light and graceful beauty; airy; ethereal; unsubstantial, intangible; hence, immaterial, ideal, imaginary. 2. Biol. Growing in the air.
aesthesis ::: the perception of the external world by the senses.
"Aesthesis therefore is of the very essence of poetry, as it is of all art. But it is not the sole element and aesthesis too is not confined to a reception of poetry and art; it extends to everything in the world: there is nothing we can sense, think or in any way experience to which there cannot be an aesthetic reaction of our conscious being. Ordinarily, we suppose that aesthesis is concerned with beauty, and that indeed is its most prominent concern: but it is concerned with many other things also. It is the universal Ananda that is the parent of aesthesis and the universal Ananda takes three major and original forms, beauty, love and delight, the delight of all existence, the delight in things, in all things.” Letters on Savitri
aesthete ::: a person who has or professes to have refined sensitivity toward the beauties of art or nature.
aesthetic ::: pertaining to a sense of the beautiful or pleasing; characterized by a love of beauty; tasteful, of refined taste.
afar ::: far, far away, at or to a distance; fig. remotely.from afar. From a long way off.
affair ::: a thing that concerns any one; a concern, a matter.
affections ::: emotions; kind feelings, love, fondness, loving attachment.
affiliated ::: being in close formal or informal association; related.
affinity ::: 1. Causal relationship or connexion (as flowing the one from the other, or having a common source). 2. A psychical or spiritual attraction believed by some sects to exist between persons.
affirmed ::: maintained as true; positively asserted; upheld, supported. affirming.
affixed ::: fastened, fixed, joined, or attached , put or added on; appended to.
afflatus ::: the miraculous communication of supernatural knowledge; hence also, the imparting of an over-mastering impulse, poetic or otherwise; inspiration. A creative inspiration, as that of a poet; a divine imparting of knowledge, thus it is often called divine afflatus.
afflicted ::: distressed with mental or bodily pain; troubled greatly; grievously depressed, oppressed, cast down; tormented.
afflicting ::: 1. Grievously painful, distressing. 2. Distressing with bodily or mental suffering; troubling grievously, tormenting. self-afflicting.
affranchised ::: freed from a state of dependence, servitude or obligation;
affright ::: sudden fear or great terror, fright.
affront ::: to face in defiance; confront. affronted, affronting.
afloat ::: 1. Floating or borne on the water; in a floating condition. 2. From the state of a ship or other body floating on the sea, having liberty of motion and buoyancy.
agape ::: with the mouth wide open.
ageless ::: lasting forever; eternal; undying.
age ::: n. **1. A great period or stage of the history of the Earth. 2. Hist. Any great period or portion of human history distinguished by certain characters real or mythical, as the Golden Age, the Patriarchal Age, the Bronze Age, the Age of the Reformation, the Middle Ages, the Prehistoric Age. 3. A generation or a series of generations. 4. Advanced years; old age. age"s, ages, ages". v. 5.** To grow old; to become aged.
agencies ::: active powers or causes which have the power to produce an effect.
agent ::: n. **1. One who does the actual work of anything, as distinguished from the instigator or employer; hence, one who acts for another, a deputy, steward, factor, substitute, representative, or emissary. adj. 2. That which acts or exerts power. agents.**
aggrandise ::: to make (something) appear greater; to widen in scope ,magnify. aggrandising.
aging ::: the process of growing old or maturing; showing signs of advancing age.
agonised ::: suffered extreme pain or anguish; tortured.
agony ::: 1. Anguish of mind, sore trouble or distress, a paroxysm of grief. 2. The convulsive throes, or pangs of death; the death struggle. 3. Extreme bodily suffering, such as to produce writhing or throes of the body. agonies.
agree ::: 1. To be in harmony or unison in opinions, feelings, conduct, etc.; to be in sympathy; to live or act together harmoniously; to have no causes of variance. 2. To give consent; assent (often followed by to). agreed.
agreement ::: a contract or other document delineating an arrangement that is accepted by all parties to a transaction. (Sri Aurobindo capitalizes the word.)
aide ::: an assistant or helper. aides.
aided
aid ::: n. 1. Help, assistance, support, succour, relief. v. 2. To give help, support, or assistance to; to help, assist, succour. aids.
aimless ::: without aim; purposeless. aimlessness.
aim ::: n. Fig. 1. A thing intended or desired to be effected; an object, purpose. Aim, aims. *v. 2. To point or direct a gun, arrow, etc. toward. *aimed.
air ::: 1. The transparent, invisible, inodorous, and tasteless gaseous substance which envelopes the earth. 2. *Fig. With reference to its unsubstantial or impalpable nature. 3. Outward appearance, apparent character, manner, look, style: esp. in phrases like ‘an air of absurdity"; less commonly of a thing tangible, as ‘the air of a mansion". 4. Mien or gesture (expressive of a personal quality or emotion). *air"s.
aisle ::: a longitudinal division of an interior area, as in a church, separated from the main area by an arcade or divided by a row of pillars. aisles.
ajar ::: neither entirely open nor entirely shut; partly open.
akin ::: allied by nature; having the same properties; near in nature or character.
alacananda ::: "One of the four head streams of the river Ganga in the Himalayas. According to the Vaishnavas it is the terrestrial Ganga which Shiva received upon his head as it fell from heaven. The famous shrine of Badrinath is situated on the banks of this stream. (Dow.)” Glossary and Index of Proper Names in Sri Aurobindo"s Works
alarm ::: n. 1. A warning sound of any kind to give notice of danger, or to arouse or attract attention; esp. a loud and hurried peal rung out by a tocsin or alarm bell. v. 2. To arouse to a sense of danger, to excite the attention or suspicion of, to put on the alert; warn. 3. To strike with fear or apprehension of danger; to agitate or excite with sudden fear. alarmed, alarming.
alas ::: an exclamation expressive of unhappiness, grief, sorrow, pity, or concern.
alchemist ("s)
alchemy ::: any magical or miraculous power or process of transmuting a common substance, usually of little value, into a substance of great value. alchemies.
alcoves ::: recessed spaces, as bowers in a garden; arched recesses or niches in the wall of any structure.
alert ::: fully aware and attentive; wide-awake; vigilant, watchful.
algebra ::: the branch of mathematics that deals with general statements of relations, utilizing letters and other symbols to represent specific sets of numbers, values, vectors, etc., in the description of such relations. 2. Any special system of notation adapted to the study of a special system of relationship.
alien ::: 1. Unlike one"s own; strange; not belonging to one; belonging to another person, place, or family. 2. Adverse; hostile. aliens.
alight ::: 1. Lighted, kindled, in a flame; on fire. Also fig. **2.** Lighted up, illumined.
aligned ::: arranged in a straight line; brought into line. re-aligns.
allegiance ::: loyalty or devotion to some person, group, cause, or the like.
alley ::: a passage between buildings; hence, a narrow street, a lane; usually only wide enough for foot-passengers. blind alley*: one that is closed at the end, so as to be no thoroughfare; a cul de sac*.
allied ::: related; connected by nature, properties, or similitude; kindred.
allotted ::: 1. Divided or distributed by share or portion; apportioned. 2. Assigned as a portion, set apart, dedicated.
allowed ::: 1. Permitted the occurrence or existence of. 2. Allotted, assigned, bestowed. allows.
alloy ::: 1. A substance composed of two or more metals, or of a metal or metals with a nonmetal, intimately mixed, as by fusion or electrodeposition; a less costly metal mixed with a more valuable one, such as that which is added to gold and silver coinage. 2. Admixture, as with good with evil.
all- ::: prefix: Wholly, altogether, infinitely. Since 1600, the number of these [combinations] has been enormously extended, all-** having become a possible prefix, in poetry at least, to almost any adjective of quality. all-affirming, All-Beautiful, All-Beautiful"s, All-Bliss, All-Blissful, All-causing, all-concealing, all-conquering, All-Conscient, All-Conscious, all-containing, All-containing, all-creating, all-defeating, All-Delight, all-discovering, all-embracing, all-fulfilling, all-harbouring, all-inhabiting, all-knowing, All-knowing, All-Knowledge, all-levelling, All-Life, All-love, All-Love, all-negating, all-powerful, all-revealing, All-ruler, all-ruling, all-seeing, All-seeing, all-seeking, all-shaping, all-supporting, all-sustaining, all-swallowing, All-Truth, All-vision, All-Wisdom, all-wise, All-Wise, all-witnessing, All-Wonderful, All-Wonderful"s.**
allured ::: 1. Attracted as to a lure; drawn or enticed to a place or to a course of action. 2. Attracted or tempted by something flattering or desirable; fascinated, charmed. alluring, **alluringly, allurement.
almighty ::: 1. *Orig. and in the strict sense used as an attribute of the Deity, and joined to God or other title. 2. Absol. The Almighty; a title of God. 3. All-powerful (in a general sense); omnipotent. Almighty"s, Almightiness, almightiness.
aloof ::: 1. At a distance; distant; hence, detached, unsympathetic. 2. Away at some distance (from), with a clear space intervening, apart. aloofness.
already ::: 1. Core Meaning: an adverb indicating that something has happened before now. 2. Happened in the past before a particular time, or will have happened by or before a particular time in the future. 3. Unexpectedly early.
altar ::: 1. A block, pile, table, stand, mound, platform, or other elevated structure on which to place or sacrifice offerings to a deity. 2. With reference to the uses, customs, dedication, or peculiar sanctity of the altar. 3. A place consecrated to devotional observances. altar"s, altars, altar-burnings, mountain-altars.
alter ::: to make otherwise or different in some respect; to make some change in character, shape, condition, position, quantity, value, etc. without changing the thing itself for another; to modify, to change the appearance of. alters, altered, altering.
altitudes ::: high places or regions; elevated regions; great heights.
altruism ::: the principle or practice of unselfish concern for or devotion to the welfare of others (opposed to egoism ).
amateur ::: a person who engages in a study, sport, or other activity for pleasure rather than for financial benefit or professional reasons.
amazed ::: greatly surprised; astounded; suddenly filled with wonder; astonished. amazing, amazement.
ambassadors ::: 1. Diplomatic officials of the highest rank. 2. Authorized messengers or representatives.
ambassadress ::: a feminine ambassador or messenger.
amber ::: a pale yellow, sometimes reddish or brownish, fossil resin of vegetable origin, translucent, brittle, and capable of gaining a negative electrical charge by friction and of being an excellent insulator. 2. The yellowish-brown colour of resin.
ambience ::: 1. The mood, character, quality, tone, atmosphere, etc., particularly of an environment or milieu. 2. That which surrounds or encompasses.
ambiguities ::: uncertainties of meaning or intentions.
ambiguous ::: 1. Open to or having several possible meanings or interpretations; equivocal; questionable; indistinct, obscure, not clearly defined. 2. Of doubtful or uncertain nature; difficult to comprehend, distinguish, or classify; admitting more than one interpretation, or explanation; of double meaning. 3. Of oracles, people, using words of double meaning. ambiguously.
ambit ::: a sphere of operation or influence; range, scope.
ambition ::: an earnest desire for some type of achievement or distinction, as power, honour, fame, or wealth, and the willingness to strive for its attainment. ambitions.
ambitioned ::: aspired to; desired; sought after earnestly.
ambling ::: going at a slow, easy pace, strolling; sauntering.
ambrosia ("s) ::: something especially delicious or delightful to taste or smell, divinely sweet; in Classical Mythology, the food of the gods.
ambush ::: 1. An act or instance of lying concealed so as to attack by surprise. 2. The concealed position itself. ambushes.
ambushed ::: concealed so as suddenly to burst forth, come in view, or take by surprise.
amethyst ::: a purple or violet quartz; having the clear colour as of the precious stone. Sri Aurobindo uses the word as an adj."for Amethyst (the Mother)she has revealed that it has a power of protection” Huta
amicable ::: characterized by or showing goodwill; friendly; done in a friendly manner; peaceable.
amid ::: in the middle of or centre of; surrounded by; among.
amidst ::: in the middle of; surrounded by; among; amidst is often used of things scattered about, or in the midst of others.
amorous ::: inclined or disposed to love; in love, enamoured, fond. 2. Showing or expressing love. 3. Being in love; enamoured.
amour ::: love or affection; a love-affair, courtship. amour"s, amour-song.
ample ::: fully sufficient or more than adequate for the purpose or need; plentiful; of adequate or more than adequate extent, size, or amount; large; spacious. ampler.
amusements ::: pleasurable pastimes of the mind or attention; mental diversions and enjoyments in lieu of more serious matters.
amuse ::: to hold the attention of (someone) pleasantly; entertain or divert in an enjoyable or cheerful manner. amused, amusing.
analyse ::: to examine carefully and in detail so as to identify causes, key factors, possible results; examine minutely and critically to determine the elements or essential features of. analysed.
ananke ::: "In Greek mythology, personification of compelling necessity or ultimate fate to which even the gods must yield.” *Glossary and Index of Proper Names in Sri Aurobindo"s Works
anarch ::: a. Lawless, rebellious; n. An adherent of anarchy or a leader practicing it.
"Anarchism is likely to be the protest of the human soul against the tyranny of a bureaucratic Socialism.” Essays Divine and Human
anarchy ::: a state of society without government or law ; lawlessness, confusion, chaos, disorder.
". . . an Avatar is not at all bound to be a spiritual prophet — he is never in fact merely a prophet, he is a realiser, an establisher — not of outward things only, though he does realise something in the outward also, but, as I have said, of something essential and radical needed for the terrestrial evolution which is the evolution of the embodied spirit through successive stages towards the Divine.” Letters on Yoga
"An Avatar, roughly speaking, is one who is conscious of the presence and power of the Divine born in him or descended into him and governing from within his will and life and action; he feels identified inwardly with this divine power and presence.” Letters on Yoga
ancestors ::: forebears; descendants. progenitors.
anchor ::: 1. Any of various devices dropped by a chain, cable, or rope to the bottom of a body of water for preventing or restricting the motion of a vessel or other floating object, typically having broad, hooklike arms that bury themselves in the bottom to provide a firm hold. 2. A person or thing that can be relied on for support, stability, or security; mainstay.
anchored ::: fixed or fasten firmly so as to be at rest.
anchorites ::: those who have retired to a solitary place for a life of religious seclusion; hermits, recluses.
anchorite ::: withdrawn from the world; secluded.
ancient ::: 1. Of or in time long past or early in the world"s history. 2. Dating from a remote period; of great age; of early origin. 3. Being old in wisdom and experience; venerable. Ancient.
anew ::: 1. Over again; again; once more. 2. In a new form or manner different from the previous.
angel ::: 1. One of a class of spiritual beings; a celestial attendant of the Deity; a divine messenger of an order of spiritual beings superior to man in power. 2. A fallen or rebellious spirit once a spiritual attendant of the Divine. angel, Angels, **angels.
**Angel of the Way *Sri Aurobindo: "Love fulfilled does not exclude knowledge, but itself brings knowledge; and the completer the knowledge, the richer the possibility of love. ‘By Bhakti" says the Lord in the Gita ‘shall a man know Me in all my extent and greatness and as I am in the principles of my being, and when he has known Me in the principles of my being, then he enters into Me." Love without knowledge is a passionate and intense, but blind, crude, often dangerous thing, a great power, but also a stumbling-block; love, limited in knowledge, condemns itself in its fervour and often by its very fervour to narrowness; but love leading to perfect knowledge brings the infinite and absolute union. Such love is not inconsistent with, but rather throws itself with joy into divine works; for it loves God and is one with him in all his being, and therefore in all beings, and to work for the world is then to feel and fulfil multitudinously one"s love for God. This is the trinity of our powers, [work, knowledge, love] the union of all three in God to which we arrive when we start on our journey by the path of devotion with Love for the Angel of the Way to find in the ecstasy of the divine delight of the All-Lover"s being the fulfilment of ours, its secure home and blissful abiding-place and the centre of its universal radiation.” The Synthesis of Yoga*
anguish ::: excruciating or acute distress, suffering, or pain. anguished.
animal ::: Sri Aurobindo: "The animal is a living laboratory in which Nature has, it is said, worked out man. Man himself may well be a thinking and living laboratory in whom and with whose conscious co-operation she wills to work out the superman, the god. Or shall we not say, rather, to manifest God?” *The Life Divine
animate ::: alive; possessing life , endowed with life. half-animate. half-animated. Giving the appearance of moving, of being alive.
animates ::: 1. Gives life to; makes alive; breathes life into. 2. To move or stir to action; motivate.
anklet ::: an ornamental circlet worn around the ankle; an ankle-ring. anklet-bells.
annihilate ::: to reduce to utter ruin or non-existence, destroy utterly. annihilation, annihilation"s.
anniversary ::: the yearly recurrence of the date of a past event, esp. the celebration or commemoration of such a date.
announced ::: made known to the mind or senses. announcing.
announcers ::: those who present, give notice and/or tell news.
annul ::: 1. To reduce to nothing; obliterate; annihilate. To put out of existence, extinguish. 2. To put an end or stop to (an action or state of things); to abolish, cancel, do away with. 3. To make void or null; abolish; cancel; invalidate; declare invalid. annuls, annulled, annulling, annulment.
anomalies ::: deviations from the common rule, type, arrangement, order, or form.
anomalous ::: deviating from or inconsistent with the common order, form, or rule; irregular; abnormal.
another ::: adj. 1. Being one more or more of the same; further; additional. 2. Very similar to; of the same kind or category as. 3. Different; distinct; of a different period, place, or kind. pron. **4. A person other than oneself or the one specified. 5. One more; an additional one. another"s**.
antagonism ("s)
antagonist ::: one who is opposed to, struggles against, or competes with another; opponent, adversary. antagonists.
antechambers ::: 1. Chambers or rooms that serve as waiting rooms and entrances to larger rooms or apartments; anterooms. 2. Any areas that are entrances to other areas.
anthem ::: a song, as of praise, devotion, patriotism or gladness.
anticipated ::: expected; looked forward to.
anticipations ::: 1. Expectations or hopes. 2. Intuitions, foreknowledge, or prescience.
antinomy ::: opposition between one law, principle, rule, etc., and another.
antipodes ::: places diametrically opposite each other.
antique ::: 1. Of or belonging to the past. 2. Dating from a period long ago; ancient.
antithesis ::: opposition; contrast.
anvil ::: a heavy iron block with a smooth face, frequently of steel, on which heated metals are hammered into desired shapes.
anxious ::: full of mental distress or uneasiness because of fear of danger or misfortune; greatly worried.
apace ::: with speed; quickly; swiftly.
apathy ::: indifference; insensibility to passion or feeling.
ape ::: 1. Any of a group of anthropoid primates characterized by long arms, a broad chest, and the absence of a tail; an animal of the monkey tribe. 2. An imitator, a mimic. apelike.
apex ::: 1. The tip, point, or vertex; summit. 2. Climax; peak; acme.
aping ::: adj. 1. Imitating, mimicking. n. 2. Imitation, simulation, mimicry. apings.
apocalypse ::: 1. Any revelation or prophecy. 2. A prophetic revelation, esp. concerning a cataclysm in which the forces of good permanently triumph over the forces of evil.
apotheosised ::: glorified; exalted; immortalized; deified.
appalled ::: filled or overcome with horror, consternation, or fear, resulting in the loss of courage in the face of something dreadful.
appalling ::: causing dismay or horror; shocking.
apparent ::: readily seen; exposed to sight; open to view. 2. Capable of being easily perceived or understood; plain or clear; obvious; visible.
appeal ::: 1. An earnest request for aid, support, sympathy, mercy, etc.; entreaty; petition; plea. 2. An application or proceeding for review by a higher tribunal. 3. The power or ability to attract, interest; attraction. appealed, appealing, sense-appeal.
appear ::: 1. To come into sight; become visible; come into view, as from a place or state of concealment, or from a distance; esp. of angels, spirits, visions. 2. To come into existence; be created. 3. To be clear to the understanding. 4. To seem or look to be. appears, appeared, appearing.
appearance ::: 1. The act or fact of coming forward into view ; becoming visible. 2. The state, condition, manner, or style in which a person or object appears; outward look or aspect. 3. Outward show or seeming; semblance. appearances.
appease ::: 1. To bring to a state of peace, quiet, ease, calm, or contentment; pacify; soothe. 2. To satisfy, allay, or relieve.
appeased ::: pacified, quieted, satisfied; soothed.
appellants ::: those who appeal to a higher tribunal; entreat.
appointed ::: 1. Predetermined; arranged; set. 2. Fixed by, through or as a result of authority; ordained; chosen; designated; selected.
apprentice ::: a learner; novice; tyro; one who is learning the rudiments; a trainee. apprenticeship.
approach ::: v. 1. To come near or nearer to; draw near. 2. To come near to a person: i.e. into personal relations; into his presence or audience; or fig. within the range of his notice or attention. 3. To come near in quality, character, time, or condition; to be nearly equal. approaches, approached, approaching.* *n. 4. Any means of access or way of passage, avenue. 5. The act of drawing near. approaches.**
approve ::: 1. To confirm or sanction formally; ratify. 2. To speak or think favourably of; pronounce or consider agreeable or good; judge favourably. approves, approved.
apron strings
apsaras ::: Sri Aurobindo: "The Apsaras are the most beautiful and romantic conception on the lesser plane of Hindu mythology. From the moment that they arose out of the waters of the milky Ocean, robed in ethereal raiment and heavenly adornment, waking melody from a million lyres, the beauty and light of them has transformed the world. They crowd in the sunbeams, they flash and gleam over heaven in the lightnings, they make the azure beauty of the sky; they are the light of sunrise and sunset and the haunting voices of forest and field. They dwell too in the life of the soul; for they are the ideal pursued by the poet through his lines, by the artist shaping his soul on his canvas, by the sculptor seeking a form in the marble; for the joy of their embrace the hero flings his life into the rushing torrent of battle; the sage, musing upon God, sees the shining of their limbs and falls from his white ideal. The delight of life, the beauty of things, the attraction of sensuous beauty, this is what the mystic and romantic side of the Hindu temperament strove to express in the Apsara. The original meaning is everywhere felt as a shining background, but most in the older allegories, especially the strange and romantic legend of Pururavas as we first have it in the Brahmanas and the Vishnoupurana.
apse ::: a usually semicircular or polygonal, often vaulted recess, especially the termination of the sanctuary end of a church.
apt ::: 1. Having a natural tendency; inclined; disposed. 2. Unusually intelligent; able to learn quickly and easily. 3. Exactly suitable; appropriate.
arabesques ::: 1. Any ornaments or ornamental objects such as rugs or mosaics, in which flowers, foliage, fruits, vases, animals, and figures are represented in a fancifully combined pattern. 2. *Fine Arts.* A sinuous, spiraling, undulating, or serpentine line or linear motif.
arbiter ::: 1. One empowered to decide matters at issue; judge. 2. Having the sole or absolute power of judging or determining. arbiters.
arbitrary ::: 1. Based on or subject to individual will, judgment or preference: judgment without restriction; contingent solely upon one"s discretion. 2. Capricious; unreasonable; unsupported. 3. Derived from mere opinion or preference; capricious; uncertain. 4. Having unlimited power; uncontrolled or unrestricted by law; despotic; tyrannical.
arc ::: 1. Any unbroken part of the circumference of a circle or other curved line. 2. A luminous bridge formed in a gap between two electrodes. arcs.
arcanes ::: of things known or understood by very few; mysterious; secret; obscure; esoteric. (Employed by Sri Aurobindo as a noun.)
arch ::: 1. An upwardly curved construction, for spanning an opening, consisting of a number of wedgelike stones, bricks, or the like, set with the narrower side toward the opening in such a way that forces on the arch are transmitted as vertical or oblique stresses on either side of the opening, either capable of bearing weight or merely ornamental; 2. Something bowed or curved; any bowlike part: the arch of the foot. 3. An arched roof, door; gateway; vault; fig. the heavens. arches.
arch- ::: a combining form that represents the outcome of archi- in words borrowed through Latin from Greek in the Old English period; it subsequently became a productive form added to nouns of any origin, which thus denote individuals or institutions directing or having authority over others of their class (archbishop; archdiocese; archpriest): principal. More recently, arch-1 has developed the senses "principal” (archenemy; archrival) or "prototypical” and thus exemplary or extreme (archconservative); nouns so formed are almost always pejorative. Arch-intelligence.
archangel ::: a chief or principal angel, the highest angel in rank. Archangel, Archangel"s.
archipelago ::: 1. Any sea, or body of water, in which there are numerous islands. 2. A large group or chain of islands.
architectonic ::: metaph. Of the systematic arrangement of knowledge.
architect ::: the deviser, maker, or creator of anything; one who builds up something, as, men are the architects of their own fortunes. Architect, architects.
architecture ::: 1. The profession of designing buildings and other artificial constructions and environments, usually with some regard to aesthetic effect. 2. The character or style of building. 3. Construction or structure generally. architectures.
archives ::: preserved historical records or documents, also the place where they are kept.
archivist ::: a person responsible for preserving, organizing, or servicing archival material.
archmason ::: fig. Master builder. Archmason, archmasons.
arc-lamps ::: general term for a class of lamps in which light is produced by a voltaic arc, a luminous arc between two electrodes typically made of tungsten or carbon and barely separated.
arcturus ::: a giant star in the constellation Boötes. It is the brightest star in the Northern Hemisphere and the fourth brightest star in the sky, with an apparent magnitude of 0.00; sometimes referring to the Great Bear itself.
ardent ::: 1. Having, expressive of, or characterized by intense feeling; glowing with passion, animated by keen desire; intensely eager, zealous, fervent, fervid. 2. Burning, fiery, or hot. ardent-hued.
ardour ::: great warmth of feeling, passion or desire; zeal, fervour, eagerness, enthusiasm.
arduous ::: hard to accomplish or achieve; requiring strong effort; difficult, laborious, severe.
a religious official among the Romans, whose duty it was to predict future events and advise upon the course of public business, in accordance with omens derived from the flight, singing, and feeding of birds. Hence extended to: A soothsayer, diviner, or prophet, generally; one that foresees and foretells the future. (Sri Aurobindo employs the word as an adjective.) augured.
arenas ::: central stages, rings, areas, or the like, used for sports or other forms of entertainment, surrounded by seats for spectators.
argent ::: resembling silver; silvery white.
argosies ::: fleets of large merchant ships, especially with rich cargo.
argument ::: 1. A fact or statement put forth as proof or evidence; a reason; persuasive discourse, debate. 2. A process of reasoning; series of reasons.
arise ::: 1. To get up from sleep or rest; to awaken; wake up. 2. To go up, come up, ascend on high, mount. Now only poet. **3. To come into being, action, or notice; originate; appear; spring up. 4. Of circumstances viewed as results: To spring, originate, or result from. 5. To rise from inaction, from the peaceful, quiet, or ordinary course of life. 6. To rise in violence or agitation, as the sea, the wind; to boil up as a fermenting fluid, the blood; so of the heart, wrath, etc. Now poet. 7. Of sounds: To come up aloud, or so as to be audible, to be heard aloud. arises, arising, arose, arisen. *(Sri Aurobindo also employs arisen as an adj.*)
aristocracy ::: the class to which a ruling body belongs, a patrician order; the collective body of those who form a privileged class; also used fig. of those who are superior.
arming ::: providing with whatever will add strength, force, or security; support; fortify.
armour ::: 1. Any covering worn as a defense against weapons, especially a metallic sheathing, suit of armour, mail. 2. Any quality, characteristic, situation, or thing that serves as protection. armours, armoured.* n. 1. Weapons. v. 2. Provides with weapons or whatever will add strength, force or security; supports; fortifies. *armed, arming.
arm ::: power; might; strength. (All other references are to arm(s) as a part of the body.) arm"s, arms.
arms ::: n. 1. Weapons. v. 2. Provides with weapons or whatever will add strength, force or security; supports; fortifies. armed, arming.
arose ::: pt. of arise.
arouse ::: 1. To awaken from or as if from sleep or inactivity. 2. To stir up; excite 3. To stir to action or strong response; excite. aroused, arousing.
arraigned ::: called (an accused person) before a court to answer the charge made against him or her by indictment, information, or complaint, or brought before a court to answer to an indictment; accused, charged with fault.
arrange ::: 1. To put into a specific order or relation; dispose. 2. To settle the order, manner, and circumstantial relations of (a thing to be done); to prepare or plan beforehand. arranged, arranging, self-arranged.
array ::: an orderly, often imposing arrangement or series of things displayed; an imposing series.
arrested ::: stopped, checked the course of, stayed, slowed down. arresting.
arrogant ::: 1. Having or displaying a sense of overbearing self-worth or self-importance. 2. Marked by or arising from a feeling or assumption of one"s superiority toward others.
::: articles
artifice ::: 1. An artful or crafty expedient; a stratagem. 2. Cleverness or skill; ingenuity; inventiveness.
artificer ::: 1. One who is skilful or clever in devising ways of making things; inventor. 2. A skilful or artistic worker; craftsperson. artificers.
"Art is a living harmony and beauty that must be expressed in all the movements of existence. This manifestation of beauty and harmony is part of the Divine realisation upon earth, perhaps even its greatest part.” Questions and Answers, MCW Vol. 3.
artisan ::: one skilled in an applied art; craftsperson. artisans.
artist ::: 1. One who practises the creative arts; one who seeks to express the beautiful in visible form. 2. A follower of a manual art; an artificer, mechanic, craftsman, artisan. artists. (Sri Aurobindo often employs the word as an adj.)
artistry ::: artistic workmanship, effect, or quality.
artist ("s).
art ::: v. archaic** A second person singular present indicative of be, now only poet., not in modern usage. All other references are to art as the quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance. Also, the class of objects subject to aesthetic criteria. art"s, arts, art-parades.
ascending ::: rising, mounting up.
ascend ::: to move, climb, or go upward; mount; rise. ascends, ascended, ascending.
ascension ::: the act or process of ascending; upward movement. flame-ascensions.
ascent ::: Sri Aurobindo: "The ascent or the upward movement takes place when there is a sufficient aspiration from the being, i.e., from the various mental, vital and physical planes.” *Letters on Yoga
ascetic ::: one who dedicates his or her life to a pursuit of contemplative ideals, whether by seclusion or by abstinence from creature comforts, and practices extreme self-denial, rigorous self-discipline or self-mortification. ascetic"s, ascetics.
ashamed ::: feeling shame; distressed or embarrassed by feeling of guilt, foolishness, or disgrace.
ashes ::: 1. Bodily remains, especially after cremation or decay. 2. Fig. Ruins; esp. the residue of something destroyed; remains.
aside ::: 1. On or to one"s side; to or at a short distance apart; away from some position or direction. 2. To or toward the side. 3. Out of one"s thoughts or mind. 4. In reserve; in a separate place, as for safekeeping; apart; away.
as if
as it would be if; as though. (Introducing a supposition, or way of conceiving some entity or situation, that is not to be taken literally, but yields some insight or convenience in metaphysics.)
asoca ::: bot.: Saraca indica , Asoka, Sorrowless tree. A small flowering tree native to India with glowing clusters of orange and yellow flowers. asocas.
aspect ::: 1. Appearance to the eye or mind; look. 2. Nature; quality, character. 3. A way in which a thing may be viewed or regarded; interpretation; view. 4. Part; feature; phase. aspects.
asphodel ::: a genus of liliaceous plants with very attractive white, pink or yellow flowers, mostly natives of the south of Europe; by the poets made an immortal flower, and said to cover the Elysian (heavenly, paradisal) fields.
aspirant ::: n. **1. One who seeks with eagerness and steady purpose. adj. 2. Aspiring, striving for a higher position; mounting up, ascending. aspirants.**
aspiration ::: 1. A strong desire for high achievement. 2. A steadfast longing for something above oneself. **aspiration"s.
"Aspiration, call, prayer are forms of one and the same thing and are all effective; you can take the form that comes to you or is easiest to you.” Letters on Yoga
::: "Aspiration is to call the forces. When the forces have answered, there is a natural state of quiet receptivity concentrated but spontaneous.” Letters on Yoga
"Aspiration should be not a form of desire, but the feeling of an inner soul"s need, and a quiet settled will to turn towards the Divine and seek the Divine. It is certainly not easy to get rid of this mixture of desire entirely — not easy for anyone; but when one has the will to do it, this also can be effected by the help of the sustaining Force.” Letters on Yoga
aspire ::: to have a fixed desire, longing, or ambition for something at present above one; to seek to attain, yearn. aspires, aspired, aspiring.
assail ::: 1. To attack vigorously or violently; assault. 2. To impinge upon; make an impact on; beset. 3. To take upon oneself a difficult challenge with the intention of mastering it. assailed, assailing.
assault ::: a sudden violent attack; invasion; onslaught. assaults, assaulting.
assaying ::: examining, evaluating, analysing.
assemblage ::: a number of persons gathered together; a gathering, concourse. (Less formal than assembly.)
assembled ::: gathered together; brought together into one place, collected.
assembly ::: a group of people gathered together usually for a particular purpose. assemblies.
assent ::: 1. Agreement, as to a proposal; concurrence. 2. Acquiescence; compliance, concession. assents, assenting.
assessed ::: evaluated (a person or thing); estimated (the quality, value, or extent of), gauged or judged.
assets ::: total resources, items of ownership.
assigned ::: appointed, designated, deputed, allotted, announced as a task. assigner.
assisted.
assists ::: gives support or aid to; helps. assisting.
associates ::: partners, comrades, companions, colleagues.
assuage ::: to mitigate, alleviate, soothe, relieve (physical or mental pain).
assume ::: 1. To take upon oneself, to adopt an aspect, form, or attribute. 2. To take on titles, offices, duties, responsibilities. 3. To take on as one"s own, to adopt. assumes, assumed, assuming.
assured ::: 1. Made certain; guaranteed. 2. Certified, verified. 3. Made secure or certain; confirmed. 4. Confident, characterized by certainty or security; satisfied as to the truth of something. assuring.
astir ::: moving or stirring, esp. with much activity or excitement.
astonished ::: 1. Amazed, filled with sudden and overpowering surprise or wonder. 2. Filled with consternation; dismayed. astonishing.
astral ::: 1. Of, relating to, emanating from, or resembling the stars. 2. Of the spirit world [Greek astron star].
astray ::: 1. Away from the correct path or direction. 2. Away from the right or good, as in thought or behaviour; straying to or into wrong or evil ways.
astuce ::: astuteness, i.e. of keen penetration or discernment, sagacious.
aswapati ::: Sri Aurobindo: "Aswapati, the Lord of the Horse, her [Savitri"s] human father, is the Lord of Tapasya, the concentrated energy of spiritual endeavour that helps us to rise from the mortal to the immortal planes; . . . .” (From a letter written by Sri Aurobindo) Aswapati"s.
aswarm ::: filled, as by objects, organisms, etc. esp. in motion; teeming, swarming.
atavism ::: 1. The reappearance in an individual of characteristics of some remote ancestor that have been absent in intervening generations. 2. Reversion to an earlier type.
atheist ::: adj. Disbelieving or denying the existence of a supreme God.
athlete ::: Sri Aurobindo employs the word as an adj. in the sense of athletic: Of the nature of, or befitting, one who is physically active, powerful, muscular, robust, agile.
athwart ::: 1. Across from side to side; crosswise or transversely; contrary to the proper or expected course; against; crosswise. 2. Of motion; from side to side.
atmosphere ::: 1. A surrounding or pervading mood, environment, or influence. 2. The air.
atom ::: 1. A unit of matter, the smallest unit of an element, having all the characteristics of that element and consisting of a dense, central, positively charged nucleus surrounded by a system of electrons. 2. The smallest component of an element having the chemical properties of the element. 3. An extremely small part, quantity, or amount. The smallest conceivable unit of an element or of anything. atom"s, atoms, atomic.
atoned ::: expiated, made amends for.
attached ::: joined; connected; bound.
attack ::: the act of setting upon with violent force.; launching a physical assault (against) attacks.
attain ::: 1. To gain as an objective; achieve; reach, arrive at; accomplish. 2. To arrive at, as by virtue of persistence or the passage of time; To reach in the course of development. attained.
attaint ::: disgrace, corruption; taint; stain .
attempt ::: n. 1. An effort made to accomplish something. 2. The thing attempted, object aimed at, aim. attempts, half-attempts. v. 3. To make an effort at; try; undertake; seek. attempted, attempting.
attending
attend ::: to listen to, pay attention to, give heed to; direct one"s energies toward.
attentive
attesting
attire
attitudes
attraction
attributes
audacious
audacity
audible
audience
audition
aureate ::: golden or gilded; brilliant or splendid.
aureole ::: the radiant circle of light depicted around the head; a glorifying halo.
auspice-hour ::: an auspice is any divine or prophetic token; a favourable sign or propitious circumstance, esp. an indication of a happy future. Sri Aurobindo combines the word ‘hour" with auspice to emphasize a special moment.
austere ::: 1. Severe in manner or appearance; uncompromising; strict; forbidding; stark. 2. Rigorously self-disciplined and severely moral; ascetic; abstinent. 3. Grave; sober; solemn; serious. 4. Without excess, luxury, or ease; severely simple; without ornament. austerity.
autarchy ::: absolute rule or power; despotism; absolute sovereignty.
authentic ::: not false or copied; genuine; real, original. authenticity.
author ::: 1. An originator or creator, one who originates or gives existence to anything. 2. He who gives rise to or causes an action, event, circumstance, state, or condition of things. 3. The composer or writer of a treatise, play, poem, book, etc. authors.
authorises ::: gives permission for, formal approval to; sanctions or approves.
authority ::: the power to enforce laws, exact obedience, command, determine, or judge.
autocracy ::: unlimited authority, power or influence; absolute government. autocracies.
automaton ::: one whose actions are purely involuntary or mechanical; a robot.
autonomy ::: 1. Independence or freedom, as of the will or one"s actions. 2. Self-government. autonomies.
autumnal ::: of, belonging to or suggestive of, autumn.
autumn ::: the season of the year between summer and winter, lasting from the autumnal equinox to the winter solstice and from September to December in the Northern Hemisphere; fall.
availed ::: to be of use, value, or advantage; to have the necessary force to accomplishment something.
avatars ::: Sri Aurobindo: "The word Avatar means a descent; it is a coming down of the Divine below the line which divides the divine from the human world or status.” *Essays on the Gita
avenge ::: to inflict a punishment or penalty in return for; take vengeance on behalf of. avenges.
avenues ::: lines or means of approach or access; paths of entrance or exit; often fig.
average ::: n. 1. A typical amount, rate, degree, etc.; norm. adj. 2. Typical; common; ordinary.
avid ::: having an ardent desire or unbounded craving; desirous of.
avoid ::: to keep away from; keep clear of; shun; evade.
await ::: to wait for; expect; look for. awaited, awaiting, awaits
awakened ::: 1. Aroused from sleep, sloth, or inaction. 2. Made aware; cognizant; conscious. half-awakened.
awaken ::: fig. To rouse into activity; to stir up, excite; kindle.
awakening
awake ::: v. 1. To arouse from sleep or inactivity. 2. Fig. To rise from a state resembling sleep, such as death, indifference, inaction; to become active or vigilant. 3. To come or bring to an awareness, to become cognizant, to be fully conscious, to appreciate fully (often followed by to). awakes, awoke, awaking. *adj.* 4. Not asleep; conscious; vigilant, alert. half-awake.
aware ::: having knowledge; cognizant; conscious.
**"Aware of his occult omnipotent source,Allured by the omniscient Ecstasy,He felt the invasion and the nameless joy.”
awe ::: an overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, fear, etc., produced by that which is grand, sublime, extremely powerful, or the like.
awed ::: 1. inspired or influenced by a feeling of fearful wonderment or reverence; 2. Inspired with reverential wonder combined with an element of latent fear.
awful ::: 1. Inspiring fear; terrible, dreadful, appalling, awe-inspiring. 2. Extremely impressive. 3. Profoundly inspired by a feeling of fearful wonderment or reverence.
awhile ::: for a short time or period.
axis ::: 1. The pivot on which any matter turns. 2. A straight line about which a body or geometric object rotates or may be conceived to rotate.
azure ::: a light shade of blue resembling the colour of the clear sky in the daytime.
babble ::: 1. v. To utter sounds or words imperfectly, indistinctly, or without meaning. 2.* **n. *A murmuring sound or a confusion of sounds.
babbling ::: making a continuous, murmuring sound.
babe ::: a baby; child or infant.
*Babel-builders".
babel ::: "The reference is to the mythological story of the construction of the Tower of Babel, which appears to be an attempt to explain the diversity of human languages. According to Genesis, the Babylonians wanted to make a name for themselves by building a mighty city and tower ‘with its top in the heavens". God disrupted the work by so confusing the language of the workers that they could no longer understand one another. The tower was never completed and the people were dispersed over the face of the earth.” (Encyclopaedia Britannica) Glossary and Index of Proper Names in Sri Aurobindo"s Works Sri Aurobindo: "The legend of the Tower of Babel speaks of the diversity of tongues as a curse laid on the race; but whatever its disadvantages, and they tend more and more to be minimised by the growth of civilisation and increasing intercourse, it has been rather a blessing than a curse, a gift to mankind rather than a disability laid upon it. The purposeless exaggeration of anything is always an evil, and an excessive pullulation of varying tongues that serve no purpose in the expression of a real diversity of spirit and culture is certainly a stumbling-block rather than a help: but this excess, though it existed in the past, is hardly a possibility of the future. The tendency is rather in the opposite direction. In former times diversity of language helped to create a barrier to knowledge and sympathy, was often made the pretext even of an actual antipathy and tended to a too rigid division. The lack of sufficient interpenetration kept up both a passive want of understanding and a fruitful crop of active misunderstandings. But this was an inevitable evil of a particular stage of growth, an exaggeration of the necessity that then existed for the vigorous development of strongly individualised group-souls in the human race. These disadvantages have not yet been abolished, but with closer intercourse and the growing desire of men and nations for the knowledge of each other"s thought and spirit and personality, they have diminished and tend to diminish more and more and there is no reason why in the end they should not become inoperative.” The Human Cycle
bacchanal ::: a wild gathering involving excessive drinking and promiscuity.
bacchant ::: n. **1. A priest or votary of Bacchus (the god of wine). 2. A drunken reveller. adj. 3. Inclined to revelry. Bacchant.**
bacchic ::: of or relating to Bacchus; drunken and carousing; riotously intoxicated.
background ::: n.** 1. The general scene or surface against which designs, patterns, or figures are represented or viewed. 2. Fig. The complex of physical, cultural, and psychological factors that serves as the environment of an event or experience; the set of conditions against which an occurrence is perceived. backgrounds. adj. 3.** Of, pertaining to, or serving as a background.
backward ::: 1. To, toward or into the past. 2. In or toward a past time. 3. Late in developing, behind; slow, esp. relating to time or progress. far-backward.
baffled ::: 1. Confused, bewildered, or perplexed. 2. Frustrated or confounded; thwarted. baffles, baffling.
balance ::: n. **1. A state of equilibrium or equipoise; mental, psychological or emotional. 2. A weighing device, especially one consisting of a rigid beam horizontally suspended by a low-friction support at its center, with identical weighing pans hung at either end, one of which holds an unknown weight while the effective weight in the other is increased by known amounts until the beam is level and motionless. 3. An undecided or uncertain state in which issues are unresolved. v. 4. To have an equality or equivalence in weight, parts, etc.; be in equilibrium. adj. 5. Being in harmonious or proper arrangement or adjustment, proportion. 6. Mental steadiness or emotional stability; habit of calm behaviour, judgement. balanced, balancing.**
balcony ::: a platform that projects from the wall of a building and is surrounded by a railing, balustrade, or parapet.
bald ::: lacking natural growth or covering as bare trees, landscape, etc.
bale ::: 1. Evil. 2. Woe, suffering, pain; 3. Mental suffering, anguish.
bales ::: large bundles of hay or goods (often compressed) bound by ropes or wires for storage or transportation.
balustrade ::: a rail and the row of balusters or posts that support it, as along the front of a gallery.
banded ::: united, allied as a group.
banish ::: to drive away, expel. banished.
bank ::: 1. The slope of land adjoining a body of water, especially adjoining a river, lake, or channel. 2. A slope, as of a hill. 3. A long raised mass, esp. of earth. 4. A piled-up mass, as of snow or clouds. banks, cloud-bank.
bank ::: a business establishment in which money is kept for saving or commercial purposes or is invested, supplied for loans, or exchanged.
bankruptcy ::: 1. A state of complete lack of some abstract property; "spiritual bankruptcy”; "moral bankruptcy”; "intellectual bankruptcy”. 2. Depleted of valuable qualities or characteristics.
bearing witness to, affirming the truth or genuineness of; testifying to, certifying, vouching for. attests.
**"I certainly won"t have ‘attracted" [in place of ‘allured"] — there is an enormous difference between the force of the two words and merely ‘attracted by the Ecstasy" would take away all my ecstasy in the line — nothing so tepid can be admitted. Neither do I want ‘thrill" [in place of ‘joy"] which gives a false colour — precisely it would mean that the ecstasy was already touching him with its intensity which is far from my intention.Your statement that ‘joy" is just another word for ‘ecstasy" is surprising. ‘Comfort", ‘pleasure", ‘joy", ‘bliss", ‘rapture", ‘ecstasy" would then be all equal and exactly synonymous terms and all distinction of shades and colours of words would disappear from literature. As well say that ‘flashlight" is just another word for ‘lightning" — or that glow, gleam, glitter, sheen, blaze are all equivalents which can be employed indifferently in the same place. One can feel allured to the supreme omniscient Ecstasy and feel a nameless joy touching one without that Joy becoming itself the supreme Ecstasy. I see no loss of expressiveness by the joy coming in as a vague nameless hint of the immeasurable superior Ecstasy.” Letters on Savitri*
"I have said that the Avatar is one who comes to open the Way for humanity to a higher consciousness —. . . .” Letters on Yoga
"I may say that the opening upwards, the ascent into the Light and the subsequent descent into the ordinary consciousness and normal human life is very common as the first decisive experience in the practice of yoga and may very well happen even without the practice of yoga in those who are destined for the spiritual change, especially if there is a dissatisfaction somewhere with the ordinary life and a seeking for something more, greater or better.” Letters on Yoga*
"In every particle, atom, molecule, cell of Matter there lives hidden and works unknown all the omniscience of the Eternal and all the omnipotence of the Infinite.” Essays Divine and Human*
"In the subconscient knowledge or consciousness is involved in action, for action is the essence of Life.” The Life Divine
"It is a call of the being for higher things — for the Divine, for all that belongs to the higher or Divine Consciousness.” Guidance
boldness or daring without regard for conventional thought or other restrictions.
"But great art is not satisfied with representing the intellectual truth of things, which is always their superficial or exterior truth; it seeks for a deeper and original truth which escapes the eye of the mere sense or the mere reason, the soul in them, the unseen reality which is not that of their form and process but of their spirit.” The Human Cycle etc.
clauses, items, points, or particulars in a contract, treaty, or other formal agreement; conditions or stipulations in a contract.
"First, we affirm an Absolute as the origin and support and secret Reality of all things. The Absolute Reality is indefinable and ineffable by mental thought and mental language; it is self-existent and self-evident to itself, as all absolutes are self-evident, but our mental affirmatives and negatives, whether taken separatively or together, cannot limit or define it.” The Life Divine
http://savitri.in/books/narad-richard-eggenberger/lexicon-of-an-infinite-mind
" . . . insincerity is always an open door for the adversary. That means there is some secret sympathy with what is perverse. And that is what is serious.” Questions and Answers 1957-58, MCW Vol. 9.
inspiring mingled reverence and admiration; impressing the emotions or imagination as magnificent; majestic, stately, sublime, solemnly grand; venerable, revered; of supreme dignity.
". . . in the Avatar there is the special manifestation, the divine birth from above, the eternal and universal Godhead descended into a form of individual humanity, âtmânam srjâmi, and conscious not only behind the veil but in the outward nature.” Essays on the Gita
". . . [man"s] nature calls for a human intermediary so that he may feel the Divine in something entirely close to his own humanity and sensible in a human influence and example. This call is satisfied by the Divine manifest in a human appearance, the Incarnation, the Avatar. . . .” The Synthesis of Yoga
one who is versed in or practices alchemy. Pertaining to one who studies or practises alchemy. alchemist (employed as an adj. by Sri Aurobindo).
positions or postures of the body appropriate to or expressive of an action, emotion.
"Pulling comes usually from a desire to get things for oneself — in aspiration there is a self-giving for the higher consciousness to descend and take possession — the more intense the call the greater the self-giving.” Letters on Yoga
regards as resulting from a specified cause; considers as caused by something or someone. attributing.
see **Kings, adversary**
*Sri Aurobindo: "Action is the first power of life. Nature begins with force and its works which, once conscious in man, become will and its achievements; therefore it is that by turning his action Godwards the life of man best and most surely begins to become divine.” The Synthesis of Yoga
*(Sri Aurobindo: "And finally all is lifted up and taken into the supermind and made a part of the infinitely luminous consciousness, knowledge and experience of the supramental being, the Vijnana Purusha.” The Synthesis of Yoga*) ::: Angel of the House. The guardian spirit of the home.
*Sri Aurobindo: "Aspiration is a call to the Divine.” Letters on Yoga*
Sri Aurobindo: "Atheism is the shadow or dark side of the highest perception of God.” *Essays Divine and Human
Sri Aurobindo: "In the very atom there is a subconscious will and desire which must also be present in all atomic aggregates because they are present in the Force which constitutes the atom.” *Essays in Philosophy and Yoga
Sri Aurobindo: "By aesthesis is meant a reaction of the consciousness, mental and vital and even bodily, which receives a certain element in things, something that can be called their taste, Rasa, which, passing through the mind or sense or both, awakes a vital enjoyment of the taste, Bhoga, and this can again awaken us, awaken even the soul in us to something yet deeper and more fundamental than mere pleasure and enjoyment, to some form of the spirit"s delight of existence, Ananda.” *Letters on Savitri
**Sri Aurobindo: [referring to the following lines]
Sri Aurobindo: ” See God everywhere and be not frightened by masks. Believe that all falsehood is truth in the making or truth in the breaking, all failure an effectuality concealed, all weakness strength hiding itself from its own vision, all pain a secret & violent ecstasy. If thou believest firmly & unweariedly, in the end thou wilt see & experience the All-true, Almighty & All-blissful.” Essays Divine and Human*
Sri Aurobindo: "The anarchic is the true divine state of man in the end as in the beginning; but in between it would lead us straight to the devil and his kingdom.” Essays Divine and Human*
*Sri Aurobindo: "The highest aim of the aesthetic being is to find the Divine through beauty; the highest Art is that which by an inspired use of significant and interpretative form unseals the doors of the spirit.” The Human Cycle etc.*
Sri Aurobindo: "This truth of Karma has been always recognised in the East in one form or else in another; but to the Buddhists belongs the credit of having given to it the clearest and fullest universal enunciation and the most insistent importance. In the West too the idea has constantly recurred, but in external, in fragmentary glimpses, as the recognition of a pragmatic truth of experience, and mostly as an ordered ethical law or fatality set over against the self-will and strength of man: but it was clouded over by other ideas inconsistent with any reign of law, vague ideas of some superior caprice or of some divine jealousy, — that was a notion of the Greeks, — a blind Fate or inscrutable Necessity, Ananke, or, later, the mysterious ways of an arbitrary, though no doubt an all-wise Providence.” Essays in Philosophy and Yoga *Ananke"s.
Sri Aurobindo: "Very usually, altruism is only the sublimest form of selfishness.” *Essays Divine and Human
Sri Aurobindo: "We mean by the Absolute something greater than ourselves, greater than the cosmos which we live in, the supreme reality of that transcendent Being which we call God, something without which all that we see or are conscious of as existing, could not have been, could not for a moment remain in existence. Indian thought calls it Brahman, European thought the Absolute because it is a self-existent which is absolved of all bondage to relativities . . . The Absolute is for us the Ineffable.” *The Life Divine
Sri Aurobindo: "What the "void" feels as a clutch is felt by the Mother only as a reminding finger laid on her cheek. It is one advantage of the expression ‘as if" that it leaves the field open for such variation. It is intended to suggest without saying it that behind the sombre void is the face of a mother. The two other ‘as if"s have the same motive and I do not find them jarring upon me. The second is at a sufficient distance from the first and it is not obtrusive enough to prejudice the third which more nearly follows. . . .” Letters on Savitri
*Sri Aurobindo: "When there is some lowering or diminution of the consciousness or some impairing of it at one place or another, the Adversary — or the Censor — who is always on the watch presses with all his might wherever there is a weak point lying covered from your own view, and suddenly a wrong movement leaps up with unexpected force. Become conscious and cast out the possibility of its renewal, that is all that is to be done.” Letters on Yoga
Sri Aurobindo: "Yet all the time the universal forces are pouring into him without his knowing it. He is aware only of thoughts, feelings, etc., that rise to the surface and these he takes for his own. Really they come from outside in mind waves, vital waves, waves of feeling and sensation, etc., which take particular form in him and rise to the surface after they have got inside. But they do not get into his body at once. He carries about with him an environmental consciousness (called by the Theosophists the Aura) into which they first enter. If you can become conscious of this environmental self of yours, then you can catch the thought, passion, suggestion or force of illness and prevent it from entering into you. If things in you are thrown out, they often do not go altogether but take refuge in this environmental atmosphere and from there they try to get in again. Or they go to a distance outside but linger on the outskirts or even perhaps far off, waiting till they get an opportunity to attempt entrance.” *Letters on Yoga
"Stability and movement, we must remember, are only our psychological representations of the Absolute, even as are oneness and multitude. The Absolute is beyond stability and movement as it is beyond unity and multiplicity. But it takes its eternal poise in the one and the stable and whirls round itself infinitely, inconceivably, securely in the moving and multitudinous.” The Life Divine
Strength is all right for the strong — but aspiration and the Grace answering to it are not altogether myths; they are great realities of the spiritual life.” Letters on Yoga*
taking heed; giving close and thoughtful attention; carefully observant.
"The Absolute is beyond personality and beyond impersonality, and yet it is both the Impersonal and the supreme Person and all persons. The Absolute is beyond the distinction of unity and multiplicity, and yet it is the One and the innumerable Many in all the universes.” The Synthesis of Yoga
"The Absolute is in itself indefinable by reason, ineffable to the speech; it has to be approached through experience.” The Life Divine*
". . . the Absolute is not a void or negation. It is all that is here in Time and beyond Time.” The Upanishads*
the act of hearing or attending; the state of hearing, or of being able to hear.
"The Adversary will disappear only when he is no longer necessary in the world. And we know very well that he is necessary, as the touch-stone for gold: to know if it is pure. But if one is really sincere, the Adversary can"t even approach him any longer; and he doesn"t try it, because that would be courting his own destruction.” Questions and Answers 1955, MCW Vol. 7.
"The animal is a vital and sensational being; . . . .” The Synthesis of Yoga*Animal, animal"s, animals, animal-soul, half-animal.
The Apsaras then are the divine Hetairae of Paradise, beautiful singers and actresses whose beauty and art relieve the arduous and world-long struggle of the Gods against the forces that tend towards disruption by the Titans who would restore Matter to its original atomic condition or of dissolution by the sages and hermits who would make phenomena dissolve prematurely into the One who is above phenomena. They rose from the Ocean, says Valmiki, seeking who should choose them as brides, but neither the Gods nor the Titans accepted them, therefore are they said to be common or universal. The Harmony of Virtue
"The Atheist is God playing at hide & seek with Himself; . . . .” Essays Divine and Human*
"The Avatar comes as the manifestation of the divine nature in the human nature, the apocalypse of its Christhood, Krishnahood, Buddhahood, in order that the human nature may by moulding its principle, thought, feeling, action, being on the lines of that Christhood, Krishnahood, Buddhahood transfigure itself into the divine. The law, the Dharma which the Avatar establishes is given for that purpose chiefly; the Christ, Krishna, Buddha stands in its centre as the gate, he makes through himself the way men shall follow.” Essays on the Gita
"The Avatar does not come as a thaumaturgic magician, but as the divine leader of humanity and the exemplar of a divine humanity. Even human sorrow and physical suffering he must assume and use so as to show, first, how that suffering may be a means of redemption, — as did Christ, — secondly, to show how, having been assumed by the divine soul in the human nature, it can also be overcome in the same nature, — as did Buddha. The rationalist who would have cried to Christ, ‘If thou art the Son of God, come down from the cross," or points out sagely that the Avatar was not divine because he died and died too by disease, — as a dog dieth, — knows not what he is saying: for he has missed the root of the whole matter. Even, the Avatar of sorrow and suffering must come before there can be the Avatar of divine joy; the human limitation must be assumed in order to show how it can be overcome; and the way and the extent of the overcoming, whether internal only or external also, depends upon the stage of the human advance; it must not be done by a non-human miracle.” Essays on the Gita
the Divine, the Creator.
"The inner Divinity is the eternal Avatar in man; the human manifestation is its sign and development in the external world.” Essays on the Gita
The Mother : "An Avatar is an emanation of the Supreme Lord who assumes a human body on earth.” Works of the Mother, "On Thoughts and Aphorisms” Vol.10
The Mother: "The Avatar: the supreme Divine manifested in an earthly form — generally a human form — for a definite purpose.” Words of the Mother, MCW Vol. 15.*
*The Mother: "To conquer the Adversary is not a small thing. One must have a greater power than his to vanquish him. But one can liberate oneself totally from his influence. And from the minute one is completely free from his influence, one"s self-giving can be total. And with the self-giving comes joy, long before the Adversary is truly vanquished and disappears.”
::: The Mother: "True art means the expression of beauty in the material world. In a world wholly converted, that is to say, expressing integrally the divine reality, art must serve as the revealer and teacher of this divine beauty in life.” On Education, MCW Vol. 12.
the power or faculty of hearing or listening.
"There is no need of words in aspiration. It can be expressed or unexpressed in words.” Letters on Yoga
the strings on an apron, used for securing it around one"s person.tie to someone"s apron strings. To make or be dependent on or dominated by someone.
"The surface mental individuality is, in consequence, always ego-centric; even its altruism is an enlargement of its ego: . . . . ” The Life Divine*
"This universal aesthesis of beauty and delight does not ignore or fail to understand the differences and oppositions, the gradations, the harmony and disharmony obvious to the ordinary consciousness; but, first of all, it draws a Rasa from them and with that comes the enjoyment, Bhoga. and the touch or the mass of the Ananda. It sees that all things have their meaning, their value, their deeper or total significance which the mind does not see, for the mind is only concerned with a surface vision, surface contacts and its own surface reactions. When something expresses perfectly what it was meant to express, the completeness brings with it a sense of harmony, a sense of artistic perfection; it gives even to what is discordant a place in a system of cosmic concordances and the discords become part of a vast harmony, and wherever there is harmony, there is a sense of beauty. ” Letters on Savitri*
those who assist, guide, wait upon, accompany, give service or follow another to contribute to the fulfilment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose; subordinate companions.
to draw by appealing by the emotions or senses, by stimulating interest, or by exciting admiration; allure; invite. attracts, attracted, attracting.
KEYS (10k)
19 Heraclitus
17 Miyamoto Musashi
17 Epictetus
16 Tao Te Ching
16 Friedrich Nietzsche
16 Sri Ramana Maharshi
15 Voltaire
15 Socrates
15 Bruce Lee
14 Sri Ramana Maharshi
13 Albert Einstein
12 William Shakespeare
11 William Blake
11 Carl Jung
11 Buddha
11 Kabir
11 Dogen Zenji
10 Publilius Syrus
10 Oscar Wilde
9 Jalaluddin Rumi
9 Lao Tzu
9 Hafiz
8 Unknown
8 Ralph Waldo Emerson
8 Rabia al-Adawiyya
8 Mark Twain
7 Zen Proverb
7 Saint Therese of Lisieux
7 Gurdjieff
7 Anonymous
7 Plato
7 ?
6 Shunryu Suzuki
6 Michel de Montaigne
6 Marcus Aurelius
6 John Milton
6 Haruki Murakami
6 Georg C Lichtenberg
6 C S Lewis
6 Alan Watts
5 Yosa Buson
5 Yamamoto Tsunetomo
5 Wei Wu Wei
5 Thich Nhat Hanh
5 Taigu Ryokan
5 Sappho
5 Saint Jerome
5 Robert Burton
5 Rilke
5 Pindar
5 Masaaki Hatsumi
5 Mahatma Gandhi
5 Ludwig Wittgenstein
5 Leonard Cohen
5 Jean Gebser
5 Hermes
5 Francis Bacon
5 Ernest Hemingway
5 Edgar Allan Poe
5 Eckhart Tolle
5 Blaise Pascal
5 Anon.
5 Aristotle
4 Zig Ziglar
4 William Wordsworth
4 Walt Disney
4 Virgil
4 Vincent van Gogh
4 Sri Ramakrishna
4 Solomon Ibn Gabirol
4 Saint Padre Pio of Pietrelcina
4 Saint John of the Cross
4 Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
4 Rig Veda
4 Pablo Neruda
4 Ovid
4 Omar Khayyam
4 Novalis
4 Lao Tzu
4 Immanuel Kant
4 Ikkyu
4 Hippocrates
4 Hafiz
4 G K Chesterton
4 Franz Kafka
4 D.T. Suzuki
4 Dante Alighieri
4 Dalai Lama
4 C.S. Lewis
4 Bill Hicks
4 Benjamin Franklin
4 Benjamin Disraeli
4 Albert Camus
4 Chuang Tzu
4 Bodhidharma
3 Zhuangzi
3 Virginia Woolf
3 Vicktor Hugo
3 T S Eliot
3 Thomas Fuller
3 Thomas A Kempis
3 The Mother?
3 Stephen King
3 Stephen Covey
3 SONG from GOSPEL OF SRI RAMAKRISHNA
3 Sigmund Freud
3 Sathya Sai Baba
3 Robert Browning
3 Rainer Maria Rilke
3 Proverb
3 Proclus
3 Philokalia
3 Percy Bysshe Shelley
3 Paulo Coelho
3 Pablo Picasso
3 Our Lady
3 Osho
3 Napoleon Bonaparte
3 Maya Angelou
3 Lucius Annaeus Seneca
3 Leo Tolstoy
3 Ken Wilber
3 Kamal Ravikant
3 Huineng
3 Henry David Thoreau
3 Henri Bergson
3 Hakuin Ekaku
3 George Carlin
3 Elon Musk
3 Eliphas Levi
3 Dōgen Zenji
3 C. S. Lewis
3 Claudio Naranjo
3 Cicero
3 Cervantes
3 Buson
3 Arthur Schopenhauer
3 Aldous Huxley
3 The Mother
3 Nichiren
3 Jalaluddin Rumi
3 Homer
3 Confucius
3 Aristophanes
3 Abraham Maslow
2 Zen proverb
2 Winston Churchill
2 Walt Whitman
2 Victor Hugo
2 Valmiki
2 T. S. Eliot
2 Thomas Keating
2 The Zohar
2 The Buddha
2 The Bab
2 Terence McKenna
2 Tao te Ching
2 Taneda Santoka 1882-1940
2 Taisen Deshimaru
2 Sylvia Plath
2 Swami Saradananda
2 Sun Tzu
2 Sri Nisargadatta
2 Seneca
2 Saul Williams
2 Saint Philip Neri
2 Saint Padre Pio
2 Saint Gregory of Nyssa
2 Saint Francis of Assisi
2 Saint Francis de Sales
2 Saint Dominic
2 Saint Benedict of Nursia
2 Saint Ambrose of Milan
2 Ryan Holiday
2 Robert Frost
2 Robert Anton Wilson
2 Robert Adams
2 Ringu Tulku
2 Richard P Feynman
2 Ram Dass
2 Quetzalcoatl
2 Porphyry
2 Pema Chödrön
2 Pema Chodron
2 Our Lady to Fr. Stefano Gobbi
2 Nikola Tesla
2 Naval Ravikant
2 Mitch Hedberg
2 Michelangelo
2 Merrit Malloy
2 Matsuo Basho
2 Mary Oliver
2 Martin Heidegger
2 Lord Byron
2 Li Po
2 Lilly Wachowski
2 Koran
2 J R R Tolkien
2 Jorge Luis Borge
2 John Lennon
2 John Green
2 John C. Maxwell
2 John
2 Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
2 Jiddu Krishnamurti
2 Jetsun Milarepa
2 Jeff Foster
2 Jean-Paul Sartre
2 JB
2 Japanese Proverb
2 James Clear
2 Jack Kerouac
2 H P Lovecraft
2 Howard Gardner
2 Henry Van Dyke
2 Helen Keller
2 Gita Bellin
2 Georges Danton
2 George Gurdjieff
2 George Eliot
2 Galileo Galilei
2 Gabor Mate
2 Frank Zappa
2 Frank Lloyd Wright
2 Ernest Holmes
2 Erik Erikson
2 Emily Dickinson
2 Emerson
2 Elizabeth I
2 Eleanor Roosevelt
2 Dylan Thomas
2 Dr. Seuss
2 Diogenes
2 Desiderius Erasmus
2 Chiyo-ni
2 Charles Bukowski
2 Catullus
2 Book of Wisdom
2 Bob Ross
2 Baltasar Gracian
2 Baha-ullah
2 Averroes
2 Anthony Robbins
2 Anandamayi Ma
2 Alfred North Whitehead
2 Ajahn Chah
2 Plotinus
2 Paracelsus
2 Ogawa
2 Meister Eckhart
2 Maimonides
2 Ibn Arabi
2 Abraham Lincoln
1 Zora Neale Hurston
1 Zen Koan
1 Yvon Chouinard (Patagonia)
1 Yoshino Yoshiko
1 Yogi Berra
1 Yiddish Proverb
1 Yamamura Bocho
1 Xunzi
1 Xiaolu Guo
1 Wynn and Guditus
1 Wu Hsin
1 Witold Gombrowicz
1 William Wallace
1 William Stafford
1 William Shedd
1 William S Burroughs
1 William Gibson
1 William Burroughs
1 Willard Van Orman Quine
1 Willa Cather
1 W.H. Auden
1 What can they matter to me?
1 Washington Irving
1 Walter White
1 Walter Scott
1 Viktor Frankl
1 Venerable Anna Emmerich
1 Vemana
1 Velimir Khlebnikov
1 Trisha Yearwood
1 Traleg Rinpoche
1 Todd Crawshaw
1 TM
1 Tilopa
1 Thubten Zopa Rinpoche
1 Thomas Paine
1 Thomas Merton. "The Way Of Chuang Tzu
1 Thomas Jefferson
1 Thomas Carlyle
1 Thích Nhất Hạnh
1 Thibaut
1 The Upanishads
1 the search for the grail.
1 The Philokalia
1 Theodore Roosevelt
1 The Kabala
1 The Corpus Hermeticum
1 Thales
1 Tertullian
1 Terry Pratchett
1 Tenzin Deva
1 Tanya Masse Source doubtful:
1 Tantric Aphorism
1 Talking Heads
1 Tagami Kikusha
1 Tacitus
1 Sylvia Boorstein
1 Swetaswatara Upanishad
1 Swami Veda Bharati
1 Swami Sivananda
1 Swami Satchidananda
1 Swami Ramakrishnananda
1 SWAMI ABHEDANANDA
1 Suzy Kassem
1 Susan Sontag
1 Suhane
1 Sufism
1 Sufi saying
1 Steve Hagen
1 Stephen Richards
1 Stephanie Klein
1 STA
1 Sri Swami Sivananda
1 Sri Sarada Devi
1 Sri Chinmoy
1 Sri Aurobindo
1 Spike Milligan
1 Spanish Proverb
1 Soren Kierkegaard
1 Sophocles
1 Socrates?
1 Sloterdijk
1 Simon & Garfunkel
1 Shinkichi Takahashi
1 Shigeru Mizuno
1 Sheng yen
1 Shantideva-
1 Shantideva
1 Shane Parrish
1 Shakti Gawain
1 Shakespeare
1 Seng-ts'an
1 Sarum Missal (1514
1 Sartre
1 Sarah Williams
1 Samuel Lover
1 Salvador Dali
1 Saint Xanthias
1 Saint Vincent Ferrer
1 Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
1 Saint Terese of the Andes
1 Saint Teresa of Avila
1 Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross
1 Saint Pius X
1 Saint Pedro Pio
1 Saint Paul
1 Saint Padre Pio of Pietrelcino
1 Saint Monica
1 Saint Maximus the Confessor
1 Saint Lucy
1 Saint Lawrence of Brindisi
1 Saint Joseph of Cupertino
1 Saint John Klimakos
1 Saint John Climacus
1 Saint John Chrysostom
1 Saint John Bosco
1 Saint Jeanne de Chantal
1 Saint Jane Frances de Chantal
1 Saint Gianna Beretta Mola
1 Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton
1 Saint Clare of Assisi
1 Saint Bruno
1 Saint Bridget of Sweden
1 Saint Bede the Venerable
1 Saint Basil the Great
1 Saint Basil of Caesarea
1 Saint Arnold Janssen
1 Saint Anthony of Padua
1 Saint Anthony of Egypt
1 Saint Ambrose
1 Saint Alphonsus Rodriguez
1 Ryutan
1 Ryokan
1 R W Emerson
1 -Rumi
1 Rudyard Kipling
1 Roshi So
1 Roger Zelazny
1 Robert Louis Stevenson
1 Robert Graves
1 Robert Fritz
1 Robert Augustus Masters
1 Robert
1 Roald Dahl
1 R.M.Rilke
1 R.M. Drake
1 Rick Riordan
1 Rich Weaver
1 Richard Feynman
1 Richard Bach
1 Rhonda Byrne
1 R.H. Blyth
1 Revelation 18:4-5
1 Rembrandt
1 Ramesh Balsekar
1 Rakukyo
1 Rajneesh
1 Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel
1 Quran
1 Quintus Ennius
1 Quasimodo
1 Psalms
1 Pope St. Leo the Great
1 Pope John Paul II
1 Plato
1 Pino
1 Philip K. Dick
1 Petrarch
1 Peter M Brown
1 Peter J Carroll
1 Petalbae
1 Pearl Bailey
1 Parmenides
1 Our Lady to Father Stefano Gobbi
1 Orson Welles
1 Octavius
1 Norwegian Proverb.
1 Norbert Wiener
1 Noah Kagan
1 Nikos Kazantzakis
1 Niguma
1 Niels Bohr
1 Nemoto
1 Nelson Mandela
1 Neil Gaiman
1 Neal R Voron
1 Nassim Nicholas Taleb
1 Napoleon Hill
1 Napoleon
1 M. Scott Peck
1 M Scott Peck
1 Mother Mirra
1 MOTHER MIRA
1 Molière
1 Moliere
1 Mohandas Gandhi
1 Mitsu Suzuki
1 Mitsuhashi Takajo
1 MITs motto
1 Ming-Dao Deng
1 Ming Dao Deng
1 Mike Higginbotham?
1 Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
1 Mevlana Rumi
1 Merida
1 Meister
1 Max Frisch
1 Max Ehrmann
1 Master Yoda
1 Masaoka Shiki 1867-1902
1 Masanobu Fukuoka
1 Mary Shelley
1 Martin Luther King
1 Marshall McLuhan
1 Margaret Atwood
1 Mahmoūd Shabestarī
1 Lu Wu-pei
1 Lucian of Samosata
1 Lucan
1 Lowell Thomas
1 Livy
1 Linus Torvalds
1 Lil Wayne
1 Lewis Carroll
1 Let yourself dissolve.
1 Letter to the Corinthians
1 Let it all go
1 Leonardo da Vinci
1 Leo Christopher
1 Larry Wall
1 Laozi
1 Lalla
1 Kristen Nygaard
1 Kodo sawaki
1 Kodo Sawaki
1 King Solomon
1 Khalil Gibran
1 ken-wilber
1 Kazuaki Tanahashi
1 Kate Bush
1 Karl Barth
1 Karen Lamb
1 Kant
1 Kahlil Gibran
1 Kabir
1 Jurgen Habermas
1 J.R.R. Tolkien
1 Joyce Carol Oates
1 Josh Waitzkin
1 Jorge Luis Borges
1 Jordan B. Peterson
1 Jonathan Swift
1 Joko Beck
1 John Wooden
1 John Wayne
1 John Trudell
1 John of the Cross
1 John Muir
1 John Locke
1 John Keats
1 John Florio
1 John F. Kennedy
1 John F Kennedy
1 John Donne
1 John Dee
1 John Bailey
1 John 4:8
1 Johann W. von Goethe
1 Joel Leon
1 Jnaneshwar
1 Jim Stovall
1 Jim Rohn
1 Jimi Hendrix
1 Jim Butcher
1 Jesse Owens
1 Jerry Spinelli
1 Jami
1 James Joyce
1 James Dean
1 Jack Kornfield
1 Jack Butcher
1 Iyanla Vanzant
1 it is astonishing.
1 it changes in the course of life.
1 Issa
1 Israel Regardie
1 Irenaeus
1 Ingrid Bergman
1 Imam Ali
1 Ignatius of Antioch
1 Ibn Qayyim Al Jawziyya
1 Hyman G Rickover
1 Hui Hai
1 Huang Po
1 Hsu Hsuan
1 Hokusai
1 Hildegard
1 H.G. Wells
1 H. G. Wells
1 Herodotus
1 Hermes Trismegistus
1 Hermann Hesse
1 Herman Hesse
1 Herbert Spencer
1 Heraclitus
1 Henry Suso
1 Henry Ford
1 Hegel
1 Hazrat Khwaja Ibn-El-Jalali
1 Hazrat Inayat Khan
1 Hassidic Rabbi -
1 Hasidic Proverb
1 Hans Christian Andersen
1 Hal Borland
1 Hakushu Kitahara
1 Hadis
1 Guru Nanak
1 Guru Gobind Singh
1 Groucho Marx
1 grand are the sky and stars
1 Gottfried Leibniz
1 Goethe
1 Giorgio de Chirico
1 GG
1 Gerard Manley Hopkins
1 Gerald Jampolsky
1 George Washington
1 George Sand
1 George Orwell
1 George Herbert
1 George Bernard Shaw
1 George?
1 Gene Roddenberry
1 Gene Clark
1 Gabriel García Márquez
1 Fyodor Dostoevsky
1 Friedrich Schiller
1 Fred Rogers
1 Frederick Lenz
1 Fran Lebowitz
1 Euripides
1 euripedes
1 Epictetus
1 English Proverb
1 Emanuel Swedenborg
1 Elie Wiesel
1 Ejo
1 Egyptian Texts
1 E E Cummings
1 Edward Schon
1 Edmund Burke
1 D T Suzuki
1 Dogen Zenji
1 Dogen
1 Dion Fortune
1 Dhammapada
1 De Trinitate III
1 Desire only your own awareness.
1 Denise Morrison
1 Debbie Millman
1 David Viscott
1 David Hume
1 David Bowie
1 David Allen
1 Darqawi
1 Dante
1 Daie
1 Czeslaw Milosz
1 C .S. Lewis
1 Crosby
1 Connie Stevens
1 Confucius?
1 Confucius
1 C N Parkinson
1 Claude Debussy
1 Chyo-ni 1703-1775
1 Chuang-tzu
1 Chuang Tzu.
1 Chogyam Trungpa
1 Chinese Proverb
1 Charles Kimball
1 Charles Dickens
1 Charles Baudelaire
1 Cesar A Cruz
1 Carol Burnett
1 Carl Sagan
1 Carlos Fuentes
1 Candace Cameron Bure
1 Calvin Coolidge
1 Callimachus
1 Bukowski
1 Buddhism
1 Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
1 Brian Tracy
1 Brian Spellman
1 Brené Brown
1 Booker T. Washington
1 Bono
1 Boethius
1 Bob Marley
1 Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati
1 Black Elk
1 Binavi Badakhshan
1 Bill Campbell
1 Bhagavad Gita
1 Bertrand Russell
1 Ben Hecht
1 Benedict
1 Basil of Caesarea
1 Baron de Montesquieu
1 Bahaullah: the Seven Valleys
1 Bahauddin
1 Avadhuta Gita
1 Auguste Rodin
1 Atli Bjorgvin Oddsson
1 Atisha
1 Atisa
1 Ashtavakra-Gita
1 Asclepius
1 Arthur C Clarke
1 Aristotle?
1 Aristotle
1 Archilochus
1 Arabien Nights
1 Arabian Nights
1 A programmer
1 Antonio Porchia
1 Antoine de Saint-Exupery
1 Anthony Bourdain
1 Anonymous English Monk
1 Anon. 1600's
1 Anne Tyler
1 Annette Funicello
1 Anne Sullivan
1 Anne Sexton
1 Anne Frank
1 Anne Campbell
1 And so forth. See Sufi Symbolism:
1 And so forth. See "Sufi Symbolism":
1 Andrew Kanegi
1 André Malraux
1 Ananta
1 Anaïs Nin
1 Anais Nin
1 Anacreon
1 A Midsummer Night's Dream
1 Amelia Earhart
1 al-Razi?
1 Allen Ginsberg
1 Alice Walker
1 Alice Hoffman
1 Alfred Lord Tennyson
1 Alfred Korzybski
1 Alexander the Great
1 Alejandro Jodorowsky
1 Aleister Crowley
1 Albanian Proverb
1 Alain de Botton
1 Akong Rinpoche
1 Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
1 Saint Augustine of Hippo
1 Saadi
1 Rudolf Steiner
1 Pythagoras
1 Matsuo Basho
1 Jetsun Milarepa
1 African proverb
1 African Proverb
1 Aeschylus
1 Adi Shankara
1 Adi Da
1 Abu Sa'id.
1 Abu Bakr
1 Abu al-Ala al-Ma'arri
1 Aberjhani
1 A.A. Milne
1 2nd century sermon
1 1 John 5:3-5
1 1 John :2:22
1 1 John 1:7)
1 17th Karmapa
1 02.14 - The World-Soul
NEW FULL DB (2.4M)
52 Anonymous
25 Emile Verhaeren
21 J K Rowling
20 Anton Wildgans
16 Emil Aarestrup
14 Stephen King
14 Rick Riordan
12 Robert Louis Stevenson
12 Émile Nelligan
12 Christian Winther
10 John Green
10 Casimiro de Abreu
9 William Shakespeare
9 Augosto dos Anjos
9 Álvares de Azevedo
9 Adam Oehlenschläger
8 Ovid
8 Michael Connelly
7 Rumi
7 Horace
1:I do not know. ~ T. S. Eliot, #KEYS
2:How shall I forgive others?" ~ ?, #KEYS
3:How shall I get liberation?" ~ ?, #KEYS
4:Do not abandon yourself. ~ Elizabeth I, #KEYS
5:I am the Boundless Sky. ~ Avadhuta Gita, #KEYS
6:I run from You, to You ~ Solomon Ibn Gabirol, #KEYS
7:I ain't got time for that now. ~ Talking Heads, #KEYS
8:I am a cage, in search of a bird. ~ Franz Kafka, #KEYS
9:Life is real only then, when "I am". ~ Gurdjieff, #KEYS
10:Oh! Church, I pity you. ~ Saint Gregory of Nyssa, #KEYS
11:I wish I could paint like a child ~ Pablo Picasso, #KEYS
12:Of all things, I liked books best. ~ Nikola Tesla, #KEYS
13:I know not what to do, my mind is divided ~ Sappho, #KEYS
14:I purify earth and heaven by the Truth. ~ Rig Veda, #KEYS
15:Whether I live or die, I am always ~ Sri Aurobindo, #KEYS
16:I and other humans no difference. ~ Ikkyu, 1384-1481, #KEYS
17:I will be Chateaubriand or nothing.
~ Vicktor Hugo,#KEYS
18:Where I may not remove nor be removed. ~ Shakespeare, #KEYS
19:I light my candle from their torches. ~ Robert Burton, #KEYS
20:I turned around, and there God was inside me. ~ Lalla, #KEYS
21:I would rather commit seppuku than fail
~ Elon Musk,#KEYS
22:And all I loved,
I loved alone.
~ Edgar Allan Poe,#KEYS
23:Nothing is left of me
Each time I see her ~ Catullus#KEYS
24:All my possessions for a moment of time." ~ Elizabeth I, #KEYS
25:Do not peer too far. ~ Pindar, Olympian Odes, I, l. 184, #KEYS
26:Life is real only then, when "I am". ~ George Gurdjieff, #KEYS
27:I regret picking and not picking violets. ~ Anon. 1600's, #KEYS
28:Not now, I am trying to read my book! ~ Pino, Ergo Proxy, #KEYS
29:And when I breathed, my breath was lightning. ~ Black Elk, #KEYS
30:A true Zen saying: "Nothing is what I want." ~ Frank Zappa, #KEYS
31:Drinking tea, I tasted seven seas.
~ Shinkichi Takahashi,#KEYS
32:I am a writer. Therefore. I am not sane. ~ Edgar Allan Poe, #KEYS
33:I am myself the matter of my book.
~ Michel de Montaigne,#KEYS
34:I'm Coming, Lord" ~ Saint Alphonsus Rodriguez, (1531-1617), #KEYS
35:All I have learned, I learned from books. ~ Abraham Lincoln #KEYS
36:I gave in, and admitted that God was God. ~ C S Lewis, [T5], #KEYS
37:I'm smart enough to know that I'm dumb. ~ Richard P Feynman, #KEYS
38:I say nothing to him I love him ~ Saint Thérèse of Lisieux #KEYS
39:Show me a sane man and I will cure him for you. ~ Carl Jung, #KEYS
40:What I cannot build, I do not understand. ~ Richard Feynman, #KEYS
41:I hold a beast, an angel, and a madman in me. ~ Dylan Thomas, #KEYS
42:I know nothing except the fact of my ignorance.
~ Socrates,#KEYS
43:I sell mirrors to blind people." ~ Kabir, #KEYS
44:Kiss me, and you will see how important I am. ~ Sylvia Plath, #KEYS
45:My imagination is a monastery, and I am its monk ~ John Keats, #KEYS
46:I come to a world of iron to make a world of gold. ~ Cervantes, #KEYS
47:To remember you
I carve true words
in stone
~ Ejo,#KEYS
48:What I cannot create, I do not understand. ~ Richard P Feynman, #KEYS
49:When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be. ~ Lao Tzu #KEYS
50:I keep, and pass, and turn again. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, Brahma, #KEYS
51:Should I kill myself, or have a cup of coffee?
~ Albert Camus,#KEYS
52:Although only breath, words which I speak are immortal. ~ Sappho, #KEYS
53:How I reached this transhuman state, no words can tell." ~ Dante, #KEYS
54:I had rather be guillotined than a guillotiner. ~ Georges Danton, #KEYS
55:I never change, I simply become more myself. ~ Joyce Carol Oates, #KEYS
56:I would rather die of passion than of boredom ~ Vincent van Gogh, #KEYS
57:I dream of painting and then I paint my dream. ~ Vincent van Gogh, #KEYS
58:I live in the other world one that lies beyond the human. ~ Li Po, #KEYS
59:Some people care too much. I think it's called love. ~ A.A. Milne, #KEYS
60:Who Am I? ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
61:No more talk. I'm sick of people talking. Train. ~ Masaaki Hatsumi, #KEYS
62:passing through the gate
I have become
a wanderer ~ Buson,#KEYS
63:What I aspired to be and was not, comforts me.
~ Robert Browning,#KEYS
64:When I look at my room, I see a girl who loves books. ~ John Green, #KEYS
65:Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful.
~ Mary Shelley,#KEYS
66:for You are the only one I want to see. ~ Hafiz, #KEYS
67:I cannot sleep unless I am surrounded by books. ~ Jorge Luis Borges, #KEYS
68:I live by letting things happen." ~ Dogen Zenji, #KEYS
69:I believe I can bring him back.
~ Lilly Wachowski, The Matrix, Neo,#KEYS
70:I dont think there is one[a secret], but I work a lot.
~ Elon Musk,#KEYS
71:I'd rather be a climbing ape than a falling angel. ~ Terry Pratchett, #KEYS
72:I sell mirrors in the city of the blind. ~ Kabir, #KEYS
73:Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me." ~ Carol Burnett, #KEYS
74:I can nourish myself on nothing but truth. ~ Saint Therese of Lisieux, #KEYS
75:I have one word for all aspirants 'Meditate'.
~ Sri Swami Sivananda,#KEYS
76:I live by four simple words. Love. Being. Here. Now." ~ Todd Crawshaw, #KEYS
77:Call me whatever you like; I am who I must be.
~ Friedrich Nietzsche,#KEYS
78:I never think of the future - it comes soon enough." ~ Albert Einstein, #KEYS
79:In my heart of hearts I have loved God completely. ~ Rabia al-Adawiyya, #KEYS
80:Don't classify me, read me. I'm a writer, not a genre. ~ Carlos Fuentes, #KEYS
81:If all I can see is my shadow, I'm standing in my own light." ~ Unknown, #KEYS
82:I lifted up my hands to find a lamp amidst the darkness. ~ Omar Khayyam, #KEYS
83:I'm just trying to think about the future and not be sad.
~ Elon Musk,#KEYS
84:I return from flames of fire; tried and pure and white. ~ William Blake, #KEYS
85:I have lived with several Zen masters-all of them cats." ~ Eckhart Tolle, #KEYS
86:Look at everything, and think, how would I program this? ~ Andrew Kanegi, #KEYS
87:Jesus is with me. I have nothing to fear. ~ Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, #KEYS
88:Naturally, I seek consolation in other people's suffering. ~ Paulo Coelho, #KEYS
89:Not being able to govern events, I govern myself.
~ Michel de Montaigne,#KEYS
90:The longer I live, the more beautiful life becomes." ~ Frank Lloyd Wright, #KEYS
91:Then I finally understood the unspoken meaning. ~ Taigu Ryokan, 1758-1831, #KEYS
92:Am I allowed to ask my book / whether it's true I wrote it? ~ Pablo Neruda, #KEYS
93:I don't necessarily agree with everything that I say.
~ Marshall McLuhan,#KEYS
94:When I close my eyes my vision is even more powerful. ~ Giorgio de Chirico, #KEYS
95:How can I begin anything new with all of yesterday in me?
~ Leonard Cohen,#KEYS
96:I am an autumn butterfly. I am just one pin. ~ Mitsuhashi Takajo, 1899-1972, #KEYS
97:I am near you. ~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, #KEYS
98:I am not an Athenian, nor a Greek, but a citizen of the world.
~ Socrates,#KEYS
99:I found myself, a mere suggestion sensed in past and future ages. ~ Novalis, #KEYS
100:I had evoked - and the book was indeed all I had suspected. ~ H P Lovecraft, #KEYS
101:I have known uncertainty: a state unknown to the Greeks. ~ Jorge Luis Borge, #KEYS
102:I love those who do not know how to live for today.
~ Friedrich Nietzsche,#KEYS
103:I must die; so must I die groaning too? ~ Epictetus, #KEYS
104:I never deny. I never contradict. I sometimes forget.
~ Benjamin Disraeli,#KEYS
105:In the myriad universes of thought and creation, I alone Am. ~ Robert Adams, #KEYS
106:May I meet each moment fully. May I meet it as a friend. ~ Sylvia Boorstein, #KEYS
107:The sound of water says what I think. ~ Chuang Tzu, #KEYS
108:I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious. ~ Albert Einstein, #KEYS
109:I know being loved is nothing. To love instead is everything. ~ Herman Hesse, #KEYS
110:I read so I can live more than one life in more than one place. ~ Anne Tyler, #KEYS
111:I see the world through Irish eyes, and they are smiling." ~ Denise Morrison, #KEYS
112:I want to spend my heaven in doing good on earth. ~ Saint Therese of Lisieux, #KEYS
113:I want you to know that you deserve the best. You're beautiful." ~ Lil Wayne, #KEYS
114:Now I know what success is: living your truth, sharing it." ~ Kamal Ravikant, #KEYS
115:One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple. ~ Jack Kerouac, #KEYS
116:Whenever people agree with me I always feel I must be wrong.
~ Oscar Wilde,#KEYS
117:As if mending socks, I repair my mind and live on. ~ Yoshino Yoshiko, b 1915., #KEYS
118:I am seeking, I am striving, I am in it with all my heart. ~ Vincent van Gogh, #KEYS
119:I AM THAT
~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj,#KEYS
120:I don't believe anything, but I have many suspicions.
~ Robert Anton Wilson,#KEYS
121:I haven't learned how to confront a problem by avoiding it." ~ Brian Spellman, #KEYS
122:I know who I am and who I may be, if I choose. ~ Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, #KEYS
123:I write, erase, rewrite
erase again, then
a flower blooms ~ Hokusai,#KEYS
124:Grant me the sight Lord that I may see Thee who hast been with me always. ~ JB, #KEYS
125:Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know. ~ Ernest Hemingway, #KEYS
126:If my life is going to mean anything, I have to live it myself. ~ Rick Riordan, #KEYS
127:I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night. ~ Sarah Williams, #KEYS
128:I have no disciple. I am the servant of the servant of Rama. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
129:I know what thou desirest and I'm with thee everywhere ~ The Corpus Hermeticum, #KEYS
130:I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done.
~ Buddha,#KEYS
131:I want to know God's thoughts - the rest are mere details.
~ Albert Einstein,#KEYS
132:The older I get, the surer I am that I'm not running the show. ~ Leonard Cohen, #KEYS
133:When inspiration does not come to me, I go halfway to meet it. ~ Sigmund Freud, #KEYS
134:A dog is better than I am, for he has love and does not judge. ~ Saint Xanthias, #KEYS
135:A little I can read. ~ William Shakespeare, Antony and Cleopatra, act 1 scene 2, #KEYS
136:Any God that I can understand is too small a God for me to believe in." ~ Anon., #KEYS
137:I am different. Let this not upset you.
~ Paracelsus,#KEYS
138:I love God: I have no time left In which to hate the devil. ~ Rabia al-Adawiyya, #KEYS
139:I much prefer people who rock the boat to people who jump out.
~ Orson Welles,#KEYS
140:I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.
~ Michelangelo,#KEYS
141:I want to die, even though I don't have to. ~ Epictetus, #KEYS
142:Live in My Deepest Hell and from There I cannot Fall Any Further.
~ Carl Jung,#KEYS
143:You are, I think, an evening star, the fairest of all the stars. ~ Sappho, [T5], #KEYS
144:For us who strive to follow. May I reach That purest heaven, ~ be to other souls, #KEYS
145:How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard. ~ A.A. Milne, #KEYS
146:I blush, I burn, I shudder, while I pen the damnable atrocity. ~ Edgar Allan Poe, #KEYS
147:I hope you don't suppose those are real tears?" Tweedledum said. ~ Lewis Carroll, #KEYS
148:I like this place and could willingly waste my time in it. ~ William Shakespeare, #KEYS
149:I quote others only in order the better to express myself. ~ Michel de Montaigne, #KEYS
150:I see what need be seen. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
151:This bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh. ~ Jn. 6:51, #KEYS
152:We were together. I forget the rest.
~ Walt Whitman,#KEYS
153:And God said, Love your Enemy so I Obeyed Him and Loved Myself.
~ Khalil Gibran,#KEYS
154:I dream. Sometimes I think that's the only right thing to do.
~ Haruki Murakami,#KEYS
155:My own thoughts are struggling against me. Why am I drawn to the bait? ~ Petrarca, #KEYS
156:I guess ill have to start a company, cause I cant get a job anywhere
~ Elon Musk,#KEYS
157:I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library. ~ Jorge Luis Borge, #KEYS
158:I'm in love with cities I've never been to and people I've never met. ~ John Green, #KEYS
159:Tell me what occupies your mind and I will tell you who your God is. ~ Paul Washer, #KEYS
160:This bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh" ~ Jn. 6:51)., #KEYS
161:Where can I find a man who has forgotten words so I can talk with him?" ~ Zhuangzi, #KEYS
162:I can't go back to yesterday because I was a different person then. ~ Lewis Carroll, #KEYS
163:I don't believe in empirical science. I only believe in a priori truth.~ Kurt Godel, #KEYS
164:All, everything that I understand, I only understand because I love.
~ Leo Tolstoy,#KEYS
165:And if she had appeared, would I have dared to speak to her?
~ Marcel Proust, [T5],#KEYS
166:Give me the child for the first seven years and I will give you the man. ~ Aristotle? #KEYS
167:I and my Father are one. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, The Gospel According to John, 10:30, #KEYS
168:I have the true feeling of myself only when I am unbearably unhappy.
~ Franz Kafka,#KEYS
169:Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 16:1,#KEYS
170:then you are grateful for everything." ~ From "Before I Am,", (2nd ed. 2017), Mooji., #KEYS
171:Curving back within myself I create again and again.
~ Anonymous, The Bhagavad Gita,#KEYS
172:I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, John, 15:1, #KEYS
173:I follow four dictates: face it, accept it, deal with it, then let it go. ~ Sheng-yen, #KEYS
174:The darkest place I've ever seen was inside me, and nothing scared me more. ~ Unknown, #KEYS
175:When I saw you I fell in love, and you smiled because you knew. ~ William Shakespeare, #KEYS
176:I don't mind what happens. That is the essence of inner freedom." ~ Jiddu Krishnamurti, #KEYS
177:I follow four dictates: face it, accept it, deal with it, then let it go." ~ Sheng-yen, #KEYS
178:Just by being I'm here in the snow-fall. ~ Kobayashi Issa, #KEYS
179:I always think that the best way to know God is to love many things. ~ Vincent van Gogh, #KEYS
180:I am who I am and I have the need to be. ~ Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince, #KEYS
181:I am with you wherever you are. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
182:I can love only what I can place so high above me that I cannot reach it. ~ Franz Kafka, #KEYS
183:If sometimes you can't hear me it's cause sometimes I'm in parentheses. ~ Steven Wright, #KEYS
184:I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past. ~ Thomas Jefferson, #KEYS
185:I'm afraid a boat so small would sink with the weight of all my sorrow.
~ Li Qingzhao,#KEYS
186:La tristesse durera toujours.[The sadness will last forever.] ~ Vincent van Gogh, #KEYS
187:My daily affairs are quite ordinary; but I'm in total harmony with them." ~ Layman Pang, #KEYS
188:Walking this path
I choose one patch of sunlight
after another. ~ Mitzu Suzuki,#KEYS
189:What if I fell in a forest: would a tree hear? ~ Annie Dillard, Pilgrim at Tinker creek, #KEYS
190:A woman is the only thing I am afraid of that I know will not hurt me. ~ Abraham Lincoln, #KEYS
191:Dostoevsky,the only psychologist from whom I've anything to learn. ~ Friedrich Nietzsche, #KEYS
192:I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people. ~ Vincent van Gogh, #KEYS
193:If I have seen further, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants.
~ Isaac Newton,#KEYS
194:I think hell is something you carry around with you. Not somewhere you go. ~ Neil Gaiman, #KEYS
195:I try to create sympathy for my characters, then turn the monsters loose. ~ Stephen King, #KEYS
196:It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer ~ Albert Einstein, #KEYS
197:I write for the same reason I breathe - because if I didn't, I would die. ~ Isaac Asimov, #KEYS
198:So, I love you because the entire universe conspired to help me find you. ~ Paulo Coelho, #KEYS
199:even the least part of it. ~ Basil of Caesarea, Exegetical Homilies On the Hexaemeron I.6, #KEYS
200:I am very discouraged. What should I do? Master says, 'encourage others.'
~ Zen Proverb,#KEYS
201:I am yours. Don't give myself back to me. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
202:I'm afraid I can't explain myself, sir. Because I am not myself, you see? ~ Lewis Carroll, #KEYS
203:I'm alone and nobody is in the mirror ~ Jorge Luis Borges, #KEYS
204:It is better for a man to confess his sins than to harden his heart. ~ Pope St. Clement I, #KEYS
205:To whom do I give my new elegant little book? Cui dono lepidum novum libellum? ~ Catullus, #KEYS
206:Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle.' ~ Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland, #KEYS
207:Give Me a moment of your life, I shall take care of your all lives.
~ Sanjay, The Mother,#KEYS
208:How can I study from below, that which is above? ~ Aristophanes, #KEYS
209:I desire that they confess the union of Jesus with the Father. ~ Saint Ignatius of Antioch, #KEYS
210:I know well what I am fleeing from but not what I am in search of.
~ Michel de Montaigne,#KEYS
211:In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on. ~ Robert Frost, #KEYS
212:I threw my cup away when I saw a child drinking from his hands at the trough.
~ Diogenes,#KEYS
213:Self-education is, I firmly believe, the only kind of education there is.
~ Isaac Asimov,#KEYS
214:The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain." ~ Dolly Parton, #KEYS
215:I do believe God gave me a spark of genius, but he quenched it in misery. ~ Edgar Allan Poe, #KEYS
216:I don't want to be a genius, I have enough problems just trying to be a man. ~ Albert Camus, #KEYS
217:In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer." ~ Albert Camus, #KEYS
218:It's drizzling.
Here I am,
still alive.
~ Santoka Taneda,#KEYS
219:Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." ~ Benjamin Franklin, #KEYS
220:Until I meet you." ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
221:Both read the Bible day and night, but thou read black where I read white.
~ William Blake,#KEYS
222:Child, your body is also My body. I suffer if you do not keep good health. ~ Sri Sarada Devi, #KEYS
223:Even if no salvation should come, I want to be worthy of it at every moment.
~ Franz Kafka,#KEYS
224:I came to this earth so that I could find my way back to my Beloved (God). ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
225:I don't care if you're obscene, filthy, horrendous -- as long as you're honest. ~ Bill Hicks, #KEYS
226:It is for love of him that I do not spare myself in preaching him. ~ Saint Gregory the Great, #KEYS
227:I can't watch TV longer than five minutes without praying for nuclear holocaust. ~ Bill Hicks, #KEYS
228:I saw Eternity the other night Like a great ring of pure and endless light.
~ Henry Vaughan,#KEYS
229:I wanted a library like this...[] A cave of words that I'd made myself.
~ Maggie Stiefvater,#KEYS
230:Rejoice evermore. ~ I Thessalonians V. 16, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
231:Soon drunk, I watch my cap tumble in the wind, dance in love - a guest the moon invites." ~ ?, #KEYS
232:I am not afraid of tomorrow, for I have seen yesterday and I love today. ~ William Allen White, #KEYS
233:I have decided to stick to love. Hate is too great a burden to bear. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr., #KEYS
234:I know you're tired but come, this is the way. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
235:I sometimes think that God in creating man somewhat overestimated his ability.
~ Oscar Wilde,#KEYS
236:The sole difference between myself and a madman is the fact that I am not mad. ~ Salvador Dali, #KEYS
237:True enthusiasm is a fine feeling whose flash I admire wherever I see it." ~ Charlotte Brontë, #KEYS
238:What is hell? I maintain that it is the suffering of being unable to love. ~ Fyodor Dostoevsky, #KEYS
239:Where I have never been before. ~ Hafiz, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
240:All I have seen teaches me to trust the creator for all I have not seen." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, #KEYS
241:Every moment this cup fills with vision. This is my wine. I drink the given moment. ~ Bahauddin, #KEYS
242:I never found the companion that was (is) so companionable as solitude.
~ Henry David Thoreau,#KEYS
243:I remembered you with my soul clenched
in that sadness of mine that you know. ~ Pablo Neruda,#KEYS
244:Person is what is most perfect in nature. ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae I q. 29 a. 3, #KEYS
245:This is why, like E.M. Forster, I do not believe in belief ~ Karl Popper, 'Objective Knowledge', #KEYS
246:We ascend to the heights of contemplation by the steps of the active life. ~ Pope St. Gregory I, #KEYS
247:Beyond the sky where I have set the Sun, is He-Who-Speaks-Not: He knows all. ~ Myths of the Iife, #KEYS
248:But I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything.
~ Charles Darwin,#KEYS
249:But when I know that the glass is already broken, every minute with it is precious. ~ Ajahn Chah, #KEYS
250:How I long to see among dawn flowers, the face of God. ~ Matsuo Basho, #KEYS
251:I am the number one Ninja and I have killed all the Shoguns in front of me.
~ Shaquille O'Neal,#KEYS
252:I do not allow others to influence my thinking unless it is positive or uplifting." ~ Louise Hay, #KEYS
253:I do not die, I go forth from Time. ~ Lebrun, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
254:I never made one of my discoveries through the process of rational thinking.
~ Albert Einstein,#KEYS
255:It's drizzling. Here I am, still alive. ~ Santoka Taneda, 1882-1940, #KEYS
256:O Sun, I am a particle that moves in your light. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
257:The ultimate truth of who you are is not 'I am this' or 'I am that', but 'I am'. ~ Eckhart Tolle, #KEYS
258:A Psalm of David. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 23:1, #KEYS
259:Behold I show you a mystery. We shall not all sleep but shall be changed. ~ Paul I. Cor. Ch.15.51, #KEYS
260:Do you want to know my secret? This is my secret. I don't mind what happens. ~ Jiddu Krishnamurti, #KEYS
261:From now on I'll be mad. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
262:I am a stranger amongst them. They cannot know my longings nor taste my sorrows.
~ Manly P Hall,#KEYS
263:I do myself a greater injury in lying than I do him of whom I tell a lie.
~ Michel de Montaigne,#KEYS
264:I do not know how to teach philosophy without becoming a disturber of the peace. ~ Baruch Spinoza, #KEYS
265:I have wanted to kill myself a hundred times but somehow I am still in love with life. ~ Voltaire, #KEYS
266:I love sleep. My life has the tendency to fall apart when I'm awake, you know? ~ Ernest Hemingway, #KEYS
267:I've felt only fatigue!" ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
268:I will be lord over myself. ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, #KEYS
269:I wish my life had a reset button." ~ Douglas King, quote from "poems in a minor chord,", (2017)., #KEYS
270:Just by being I'm here in the snow-fall. ~ Kobayashi Issa, 1763-1828, #KEYS
271:Soft winds, serene moon, I calmly read the true words of no letters. ~ Zenkei Shibayama 1894-1974, #KEYS
272:Then he said 'Remember Bob: no fear, no envy, no meanness,' and I said 'hmmm, right.' ~ Bob Dylan, #KEYS
273:A new day is coming, the magnificent day of radiant beauty when I return to myself. ~ Quetzalcoatl, #KEYS
274:Be strong and of a good courage. ~ Joshua I. 9, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
275:I am in you and I am you. No one can understand this until he has lost his mind. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
276:I'd rather be a failure at something I love than a success at something I hate.
~ George F Burns,#KEYS
277:If any man hopes to do a deed without God's knowledge, he errs. ~ Pindar, Olympian Odes, I, l. 104, #KEYS
278:I require of you no more than to look. ~ Saint Teresa of Avila, #KEYS
279:On my tombstone, I really hope that someday they will write: He was true but partial. ~ Ken Wilber, #KEYS
280:Quench not the spirit. ~ I Thessalonians V. 19, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
281:The while amazed between His Beauty and His Majesty I stood in silent ecstasy. ~ Rabia al-Adawiyya, #KEYS
282:I don't hold on to anything, don't reject anything; nowhere an obstacle or conflict." ~ Layman Pang, #KEYS
283:I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Luke, 19:40, #KEYS
284:I was no longer the centre of my life and therefore I could see God in everything. ~ Venerable Bede, #KEYS
285:Only the annihilation of 'I' is Liberation. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
286:she weighs so little that I start crying and can't walk three steps. ~ Ishikawa Takuboku, 1885-1912, #KEYS
287:you can't extort from her with levers and with screws. ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Faust I.672-75, #KEYS
288:But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? (Luke 1:43) ~ Saint Elizabeth, #KEYS
289:Chase realities not dreams." ~ Jay Gardner, "I Wish I Was the Person I'm Pretending to Be,", (2008)., #KEYS
290:Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.
~ Ernest Hemingway, The Garden of Eden,#KEYS
291:I am the mother of pure love and of science and of sacred hope. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Ecclesiastes, #KEYS
292:The older I get, the more it looks like Plato was onto something.… ~ Jan Zwicky, A Ship from Delos, #KEYS
293:there is nothing else I can do;
I walk on and on ~ Santoka Taneda,#KEYS
294:... The storm approaches—be on thy guard! I trust thou wilt stand firm!" ~ Venerable Anna Emmerich, #KEYS
295:I call you back to yourself. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
296:Wet with morning dew
I go in the direction I want ~ Santoka Taneda,#KEYS
297:Given the choice between the experience of pain and nothing, I would choose pain.
~ William Faulkner,#KEYS
298:He's more myself than I am. Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same. ~ Emily Brontë, #KEYS
299:I am not devaluing thoughts. Just do not mix up what we think with what actually is." ~ Taizan Maezumi, #KEYS
300:I must have dreamt about you. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
301:In the middle of winter I at last discovered that there was in me an invincible summer. ~ Albert Camus, #KEYS
302:I was you, and never knew it. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
303:A sobering thought: what if, at this very moment, I am living up to my full potential?.
~ Jane Wagner,#KEYS
304:For you and I both have in our lives some people whom we find it pretty hard to love. ~ Mother Angelica, #KEYS
305:If only this toothache would go away, I could write another chapter on the problem of pain. ~ C S Lewis, #KEYS
306:I love you not only for what you are, but for what I am when I'm with you. ~ Elizabeth Barrett Browning, #KEYS
307:I'm not ashamed to dress 'like a woman' because I don't think it's shameful to be a woman.
~ Iggy Pop,#KEYS
308:In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer. ~ Albert Camus, #KEYS
309:I've often lost myself, in order to find the burn that keeps everything awake
~ Federico Garcia Lorca,#KEYS
310:Nonsense. I circle around me." ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
311:picking
the nameless flower
I offer it to buddha ~ Santoka Taneda,#KEYS
312:Teach thy tongue to say 'I do not know,' and thou shalt progress. ~ Maimonides, #KEYS
313:True, I am in love with suffering, but I do not know if I deserve the honor. ~ Saint Ignatius of Loyola, #KEYS
314:A fallen blossom returning to the bough, I thought -- But no, a butterfly. ~ Arakida Moritake, 1473-1549, #KEYS
315:Bondage is only the false notion, I am the doer. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
316:Everything that is not the divine essence is a creature. ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae I.18.2, #KEYS
317:'I am' is True, all else is inference. ~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, #KEYS
318:I have no home :::
I have no home
autumn deepens ~ Santoka Taneda,#KEYS
319:I'll be with you to meet all difficulties-you can be sure of that. ~ The Mother, #KEYS
320:I will no longer mutilate and destroy myself in order to find a secret behind the ruins. ~ Hermann Hesse, #KEYS
321:Lift me up out of this illusion, Lord. Heal my perception, so that I may know only reality. ~ Bill Hicks, #KEYS
322:I know God won't give me anything I can't handle. I just wish he didn't trust me so much. ~ Mother Teresa, #KEYS
323:sleeping on a soft futon
I dream of my native village ~ Santoka Taneda,#KEYS
324:today again,
soaking wet
I walk on an unknown road ~ Santoka Taneda,#KEYS
325:What is it that exists now and troubles you? It is 'I'. Get rid of it and be happy. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
326:With each and every breath, I dwell upon You; I shall never forget You.
~ Guru Nanak, Guru Granth Sahib,#KEYS
327:hen in the glass of Beauty I behold, The Universe my image doth enfold." ~ Fakhr al-Dīn Ibrahīm 'Irāqī, #KEYS
328:I am told I was born. I do not remember. ~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, #KEYS
329:I don't want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it through not dying. ~ Woody Allen, #KEYS
330:I find that the more I relinquish my old habits of thought, the happier I am. ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, #KEYS
331:I have suggested that behind almost all myth lies the mono-plot of the game of hide-and-seek. ~ Alan Watts, #KEYS
332:I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Proverbs, 8:17, #KEYS
333:I never give answers. I lead on from one question to another. That is my leadership. ~ Rabindranath Tagore, #KEYS
334:In that God who illumines the reason, desiring liberation I seek my refuge. ~ Swetaswatara Upanishad VI.18, #KEYS
335:The moment I decided to let them have their way, the irritation disappeared.
~ Osho, The Book of Secrets,#KEYS
336:The snow as I watch keeps falling and falling.... ~ Santoka Taneda, 1882-1940, #KEYS
337:The thought, 'I am the body', is the original sin. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
338:Good and bad I bid farewell to the departing year. ~ Kobayashi Issa, 1763-1828, #KEYS
339:I must keep silent. Silent. And let Love describe itself.
~ Jalaluddin Rumi,#KEYS
340:I remember your name in the night, O Lord, and keep your law. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 119:55, #KEYS
341:I saw my Lord with the eye of the heart
I asked, 'Who are You?'
He replied, 'You'. ~ Mansur al-Hallaj,#KEYS
342:I should have looked elsewhere." ~ Red Hawk, (R. Moore, b. 1943) American poet. "The Art of Dying,", (1994), #KEYS
343:I study my mind and therefore all appearances are my texts. ~ Jetsun Milarepa, #KEYS
344:So I keep 7 o'clock in the bank and gain interest in the hour of God
~ Saul Williams, Penny for a Thought,#KEYS
345:The game I play is a very interesting one. It's imagination, in a tight straightjacket. ~ Richard P Feynman, #KEYS
346:Verily, I say to thee; he who seeks the Eternal, finds Him. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
347:We must be humble and reverent when face to face with the source of enlightenment. ~ Chinese Texts, I Ching, #KEYS
348:When I start to write, I don't have any plan at all. I just wait for the story to come.
~ Haruki Murakami,#KEYS
349:Awake, eyes closed I listen........that faintness- must be winter rain begun to fall. ~ Fumoto Oka 1877-1951, #KEYS
350:For I am divided for love's sake, for the chance of union. ~ Aleister Crowley, #KEYS
351:I desire and love nothing that is not of the light. ~ id, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
352:Blessed is the man that endureth temptation. ~ James I 12, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
353:For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Matthew, 18:20, #KEYS
354:I am not absentminded. It is the presence of mind that makes me unaware of everything else. ~ G.K. Chesterton #KEYS
355:If it were Hegel, I might suspect it means nothing. But Goethe means something, always. ~ Robert Anton Wilson, #KEYS
356:I have chosen the way of truth. ~ Book of Golden Precepts, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
357:I know from experience that you should never give up on yourself or others, no matter what." ~ George Foreman, #KEYS
358:Read Sri Aurobindo and follow his discipline. ~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother - I, #KEYS
359:The universe and I are of the same root. The myriad things and I are one body. That is zazen.
~ Kodo Sawaki,#KEYS
360:3/ None but the bravest deserves salvation. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 479), #KEYS
361:All things too great end soon. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I, #KEYS
362:Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Isaiah, 65:24, #KEYS
363:I don't trust words, I trust actions. People can tell you anything but actions tell you everything." ~ Unknown, #KEYS
364:I live in that solitude which is painful in youth, but delicious in the years of maturity.
~ Albert Einstein,#KEYS
365:Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." ~ Anonymous, The Bible, John, 8:58, #KEYS
366:Neglect not the gift that is in thee. ~ I. Timothy. IV. 14, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
367:The hour I have long wished for is now come. ~ Saint Teresa of Avila, [T3], #KEYS
368:What I really wanted was every kind of life, and the writer's life seemed the most inclusive.
~ Susan Sontag,#KEYS
369:Change yourself and the circumstances will change. ~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, #KEYS
370:Freedom of the soul is the goal of all Yogas. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 55), #KEYS
371:I am going through the pangs of being born. Do not stand in the way of my coming to life. ~ Ignatius of Antioch, #KEYS
372:I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, John, 10:11, #KEYS
373:If I say, if I talk about, 'I want to be enlightened.', it implies a future. And there isn't any. ~ Byron Katie, #KEYS
374:If people knew how hard I had to work to gain my mastery, it would not seem so wonderful at all. ~ Michelangelo, #KEYS
375:I have never agreed with my other self wholly. The truth of the matter seems to lie between us. ~ Khalil Gibran, #KEYS
376:I'm a wanderer
so, let that be my name -
the first winter rain. ~ Matsuo Basho,#KEYS
377:I would rather have questions that can't be answered than answers that can't be questioned. ~ Richard P Feynman, #KEYS
378:The plants and flowers
I raised about my hut
I now surrender
To the will
Of the wind ~ Taigu Ryokan,#KEYS
379:There are two ways: ask yourself 'Who am I?' or submit. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
380:Thou who art I beyond all I am... ~ Aleister Crowley, Liber 15, The Gnostic Mass, #KEYS
381:What I do for myself is lost; what I do for others may be written somewhere in eternity." ~ Thought for the Day, #KEYS
382:Do not worry about your difficulties in mathematics. I can assure you mine are still greater." ~ Albert Einstein, #KEYS
383:I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, who is and was and is to come--the Almighty." ~ Revelation 1:8, #KEYS
384:If I'm happy, you're the secret to it." ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
385:I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 119:11, #KEYS
386:I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul. ~ Pablo Neruda,#KEYS
387:I’m always amazed that people take what I say seriously. I don’t even take what I am seriously. ~ David Bowie #KEYS
388:I will define him simply as someone set on becoming a god rather than a man. ~ Epictetus, #KEYS
389:Non-attachment is the basis of all the Yogas. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 101), #KEYS
390:Right now I'm having amnesia and déjà vu at the same time. I think I've forgotten this before. ~ Steven Wright, #KEYS
391:To educate educators! But the first ones must educate themselves! And for these I write.
~ Friedrich Nietzsche,#KEYS
392:And have I not told you that what you mistake for madness is but over-acuteness of the sense?
~ Edgar Allan Poe,#KEYS
393:For anyone, man or woman, who has faith in me, I have never departed. I sleep on their threshold. ~ Guru Rinpoche, #KEYS
394:I never travel without my diary. One should always have something sensational to read in the train. ~ Oscar Wilde, #KEYS
395:You will always be fond of me. I represent to you all the sins you never had the courage to commit. ~ Oscar Wilde, #KEYS
396:Are you looking for the Holy One? I am in the next seat. My shoulder is against yours. ~ Kabir, #KEYS
397:because I am constantly talking with you. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
398:Even as men come to Me, so I accept them. It is my path that men follow from all sides,
~ Bhagavad Gita, (IV.11),#KEYS
399:I climb the road that never ends. Who can break from the snares of the world and join me in the clouds? ~ Han-Shan, #KEYS
400:I do not believe that any name, however complex, is sufficient to designate the principle of all Majesty. ~ Hermes, #KEYS
401:If I love you, what business is it of yours? ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, #KEYS
402:If you can hold on to this knowledge 'I am Self' at all times, no further practice is necessary. ~ Annamalai Swami, #KEYS
403:I love those who yearn for the impossible.
~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe,#KEYS
404:Lord, if your people need me, I will not refuse the work. Your will be done. ~ Saint Martin of Tours, (316-397 AD), #KEYS
405:When I get a little money, I buy books. If any is left, I buy food and clothes. ~ Desiderius Erasmus, (16th cent.), #KEYS
406:A golden chain is as much a chain as an iron one. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 55), #KEYS
407:Comprehend then the light and know it. ~ Hermes I. "Poimandres", the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
408:I am a sleeping emerald Faintly, faintly the ring round the moon Opens within my heart. ~ Yamamura Bocho, 1884-1924, #KEYS
409:I am only an instrument in God's hands. I feel myself as Her child. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
410:I believe it all. If I seem not to, it is only that my joy is too great to let my belief settle itself. ~ C S Lewis, #KEYS
411:I believe the Spirit to proceed from no other source than from the Father through the Son. ~ Tertullian of Carthage, #KEYS
412:I felt in need of a great pilgrimage, so I sat still for three days and God came to me. ~ Kabir, #KEYS
413:I have laboured carefully, not to mock, lament, or execrate human actions, but to understand them. ~ Baruch Spinoza, #KEYS
414:I hope that real love and truth are stronger in the end than any evil or misfortune in the world. ~ Charles Dickens, #KEYS
415:Of female powers I am Fame, Fortune, Speech,
Memory, Wisdom, Steadfastness, Patience.
~ Bhagavad Gita, 10, 34#KEYS
416:Where can I find a man who has forgotten words so I can have a word with him? ~ Chuang Tzu, #KEYS
417:Above all banish the thought of the "I." ~ Fo-shu-hing-tsan-kiug, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
418:I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Philippians, 4:13, King James Version, #KEYS
419:If I tell you something, you will stick to it and limit your own capacity to find out for yourself. ~ Shunryu Suzuki, #KEYS
420:If you press me to say why I loved him, I can say no more than because he was he, and I was I. ~ Michel de Montaigne, #KEYS
421:I'm a wanderer so, let that be my name - the first winter rain. ~ Matsuo Basho, 1644-1694, #KEYS
422:I've seen so many people, their insides empty, wailing like a flute. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
423:The longer I live, the more uninformed I feel. Only the young have an explanation for everything.
~ Isabel Allende,#KEYS
424:well bro you know if i truly wanted to build something i would do it in a weekend lmao (01:46:18 AM) ~ Andrew Kanegi, #KEYS
425:When I am with you, everything is prayer.'' ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
426:Cocaine was different. It kept saying, "You haven't had enough." I became an abuser almost instantly. ~ George Carlin, #KEYS
427:Dare greatly and thou shalt be great. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I, #KEYS
428:Human existence is so fragile a thing and exposed to such dangers that I cannot love without trembling. ~ Simone Weil, #KEYS
429:I am a stranger in this world, and there is a severe solitude and painful lonesomeness in my exile.
~ Khalil Gibran,#KEYS
430:I am going through the pangs of being born. Do not stand in the way of my coming to life. ~ Saint Ignatius of Antioch, #KEYS
431:I look upon Christ as an incarnation of God like our Rama or Krishna. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
432:Ive never been married, but I tell people Im divorced so they wont think somethings wrong with me.
~ Elayne Boosler,#KEYS
433:The only happy people I know are the ones who are working well at something they consider important. ~ Abraham Maslow, #KEYS
434:Thinking of nothing I walk among A forest of withered trees. ~ Santoka Taneda, 1882-1940, #KEYS
435:When I'm riding my bicycle I feel like a Buddhist who is happy just to enjoy his mundane existence." ~ Robin Williams, #KEYS
436:'I am the Alpha and the Omega,' says the Lord God, who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty. ~ Revelation 1:8, #KEYS
437:I guess the moral of today's story is that you ask for what you want. And ask and you shall receive.
~ Andrew Kanegi,#KEYS
438:I have been born anew. I have become a self-made man in battle, that is how I came to be my own father. ~ Quetzalcoatl, #KEYS
439:I'm normally not a praying man, but if you're up there, please save me Superman.
~ Homer Simpson,#KEYS
440:Like day, I bring an end to myself, and in joy I start all over again. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
441:Never say, I cannot. Look more closely, you will find that it means in reality, I want not. ~ Nolini Kanta Gupta, [T5], #KEYS
442:The shield of the scholar is, ‘I do not know’, so if he leaves it down, his attacker will strike him. ~ Imam Malik, #KEYS
443:This thing I comm and you that ye love one another. ~ John. XV. 17, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
444:Whenever anything is being accomplished, it is being done, I have learned, by a monomaniac with a mission.
~ Drucker,#KEYS
445:Fight the good fight, lay hold on eternal life. ~ I Timothy. VI. 12, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
446:I cannot rightly tell how I entered that forest, I was so full of sleep at the moment when I left the true way. ~ Dante, #KEYS
447:Is there one faith for moderns and ancients ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (i.e. the Jews)?, #KEYS
448:I was dead and, behold, I am alive for evermore. ~ Revelation I. 18, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
449:Let all your things be done with charity. ~ I. Corinthians. XVI. 14, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
450:The temple bell stops but I still hear the sound coming out of the flowers.
~ Matsuo Basho,#KEYS
451:You have said, "Seek my face." My heart says to you, "Your face, Lord, do I seek." ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 27:8, #KEYS
452:Another year is gone; and I still wear straw hat and straw sandals. ~ Matsuo Basho, 1644-1694, #KEYS
453:Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
~ Anonymous, The Bible, Matthew, 11:28,#KEYS
454:I had no ambition to be a writer because the books I read were too good, my standards were too high.
~ Haruki Murakami,#KEYS
455:I have of ten admired the mystical way of Pythagoras, and the secret magic of numbers. ~ Thomas Browne, Religio Medici, i #KEYS
456:I moved this morning to the center of the town. Waist deep in worldly dust. But Free of worldly ties. ~ Baisao 1675-1763, #KEYS
457:I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Matthew, 13:35, #KEYS
458:myself without expecting any reward, but the knowledge that I am doing your holy will. Amen." ~ Saint Ignatius of Loyola, #KEYS
459:The enquiry 'Who am I?' turns the mind inward and makes it calm. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
460:Though I am often in the depths of misery, there is still calmness, pure harmony and music inside me. ~ Vincent van Gogh, #KEYS
461:You must feel that Sri Aurobindo is looking at you.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T5],#KEYS
462:All I can guarantee you is that as long as you are searching for happiness, you will remain unhappy." ~ U.G. Krishnamurti, #KEYS
463:I am a child of Divine Mother - the source of all power and strength. ~ Swami Vivekananda, #KEYS
464:I am striving to give back the Divine in myself to the Divine in the All. ~ Plotinus, #KEYS
465:Like a drifting cloud Bound by nothing; I just let go Giving myself up To the whim of the wind. ~ Taigu Ryokan, 1758-1831, #KEYS
466:Since you shine as ''I'' in the Heart, your name itself is Heart. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
467:Always higher must I mount, higher must I see. ~ Angelus Silesius I.15, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
468:For one who sees me everywhere and sees everything in me, I am never lost, nor is he ever lost to me. ~ Bhagavad Gita 6.30, #KEYS
469:I do not fear Satan half so much as I fear those who fear him. ~ Saint Teresa of Avila, #KEYS
470:I left in love, in laughter, and in truth, and wherever truth, love and laughter abide, I am there in spirit. ~ Bill Hicks, #KEYS
471:In my deepest wound I saw your glory, and it dazzled me. ~ Saint Augustine of Hippo, #KEYS
472:I regret many follies which sprang from my obstinacy; but without that trait I would not have reached my goal. ~ Carl Jung, #KEYS
473:It is only through the enquiry 'Who am I?' that the mind subsides. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
474:I wanted to change the world. But I have found that the only thing one can be sure of changing is oneself. ~ Aldous Huxley, #KEYS
475:I will trust and not be afraid. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Isaiah, XII. 2, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
476:Let us be prepared for death but work for life. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, The Crisis, #KEYS
477:One age has seen the dreams another lives. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I, #KEYS
478:The "I" or "Mine" of the individual comes of Ajnana -- ignorance of truth. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
479:And call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 50:25, #KEYS
480:But do not ask me where I am going As I travel in this limitless world. Where every step I take is my home." ~ Dōgen Zenji, #KEYS
481:I approve the better way, but I follow the worse. ~ Romans. VII. 19. 21, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
482:Is it really so that the one I Love is everywhere? ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
483:Truth is being insofar as it has been unveiled, and in its unveiling grasped. ~ Hans Urs von Balthasar, Theo-Logic I, p. 43, #KEYS
484:What should I read at present?
Sri Aurobindo's books.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II,#KEYS
485:All days are nights to see, till I see thee, And nights, bright days, when dreams do show thee me." ~ Shakespeare, Sonnet 43, #KEYS
486:Eyes, ears both forgotten, my body too is lost; alone in the void I sing a song of white clouds. ~ Natsume Soseki, 1867-1916, #KEYS
487:I can't imagine a man really enjoying a book and reading it only once. ~ C S Lewis, Letter to Arthur Greeves (February 1932), #KEYS
488:Let me never fall into the vulgar mistake of dreaming that I am persecuted whenever I am contradicted. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, #KEYS
489:My child, every day you are going to read Savitri
~ The Mother, Sweet Mother, [T0],#KEYS
490:Someone I loved once gave me a box full of darkness. It took me years to understand that this too, was a gift. ~ Mary Oliver, #KEYS
491:Hope not to hear truth often in royal courts. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I, #KEYS
492:I cannot remember the books I've read any more than the meals I have eaten; even so, they have made me. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, #KEYS
493:I feel as if I were a piece in a game of chess, when my opponent says of it: That piece cannot be moved. ~ Soren Kierkegaard, #KEYS
494:If thoughts come, what should I do?
Dismiss them.
~ The Mother, More Answers From The Mother,#KEYS
495: If you ain't down with fractals, I feel bad for you, son I've got 99 problems, and 99 smaller problems inside of each one ~ ? #KEYS
496:If you find me not within you, you will never find me. For, I have been with you, from the beginning of me. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
497:I had found my religion: nothing seemed more important to me than a book. I saw the library as a temple.
~ Jean-Paul Sartre,#KEYS
498:I know no other secret for loving except to love. ~ St. Francois de Sales, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
499:I know nothing of the niceties of scholastic learning! I know only my Mother. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
500:I much prefer the sharpest criticism of a single intelligent man to the thoughtless approval of the masses. ~ Johannes Kepler, #KEYS
501:I teach you the overman. Man is something that shall be overcome. What have you done to overcome him?
~ Friedrich Nietzsche,#KEYS
502:I wonder
if the blossoms
are soft and fluffy
~ Sora, @BashoSociety#KEYS
503:Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. ~ Corinthians I, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
504:Putting their soul power to the karmic wheel. I want you to make love, not war ~ I know you've heard it before. ~ John Lennon, #KEYS
505:the HEART says there is, I've been there many times. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
506:Verily, I say to thee; he who seeks the Eternal, finds Him. ~ Ramakrishna, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
507:When I feed the hungry, they call me a saint. When I ask why people are hungry, they call me a Communist. ~ Dom Helder Camara, #KEYS
508:When I think of the happiness that is in store for me, every sorrow, every pain becomes dear to me. ~ Saint Francis of Assisi, #KEYS
509:A Yogi must avoid the two extremes of luxury and austerity. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 136), #KEYS
510:Complete self-surrender means that you have no further thought of 'I'. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
511:e ye holy in all manner of conduct. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, 1 Peter, I. 15, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
512:Have confidence, I am near you.
With all my tender love. ~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T5],#KEYS
513:I am with you and I will take you to the goal. Have an unshakable faith and all will go well. Blessings.
~ The Mother?, [T2],#KEYS
514:I have always imagined that Paradise as a kind of library.
~ Jorge Luis Borges, Seven Nights,#KEYS
515:I have a new philosophy. I'm only going to dread one day at a time." ~ Charles M. Schulz in "Peanuts,", (American comic strip), #KEYS
516:Man out of Nature wakes to God's complexities, ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I, #KEYS
517:One infinite pure and holy – beyond thought beyond qualities I bow down to thee ~ Swami Vivekananda, Chicago, September 1893, #KEYS
518:Rhythm is the subtle soul of poetry. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Future Poetry, Recent English Poetry - I, #KEYS
519:Savitri
the supreme revelation
of Sri Aurobindo's
vision.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I,#KEYS
520:The means to abide in Self is to begin inquiring inwardly, "Who am I?" ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
521:eating bitter herbs
alone i bear
my feelings
~ Shiki, @BashoSociety#KEYS
522:I have never been awake before. ~ Stephen LaBerge, Lucid Dreaming: A Concise Guide to Awakening in Your Dreams and in Your Life, #KEYS
523:I realize that all women are so many forms, in which the Divine Mother appears. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
524:One should read Sri Aurobindo and know the answer.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T0],#KEYS
525:Pray for knowledge and light, every other prayer is selfish. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 146), #KEYS
526:With Reality on the one hand and Illusion on the other, I constantly experience as it were, a pull on either side. ~ Meher Baba, #KEYS
527:An angel is an essential intellectual motion about God and the causes of things.... ~ John Scotus Eriugena, Periphyseon I (444b), #KEYS
528:Beloved, all that is harsh and difficult I want for myself, and all that is gentle and sweet for thee. ~ Saint John of the Cross, #KEYS
529:I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book. ~ Groucho Marx, #KEYS
530:I have never made but one prayer to God, a very short one: 'O Lord make my enemies ridiculous.' And God granted it.
~ Voltaire,#KEYS
531:I know by myself how incomprehensible God is, seeing I cannot comprehend the parts of my own being. ~ Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, #KEYS
532:One can be free only by living in the Divine. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Occult Knowledge, #KEYS
533:since the
cresent moon
I have been waiting
~ Chiyo-ni, @BashoSociety#KEYS
534:The idea of thou and I is a fruit of the soul's ignorance. ~ Bhagavat Purana, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
535::The peace you are looking for, you already 'are'. Be still and know this." ~ Mooji, From "Before I Am,", (2nd ed. 2017), Mooji., #KEYS
536:All this has been revealed to Me. I do not know much about what your books say.
~ Sri Ramakrishna,#KEYS
537:Even though I had committed but one little sin, I should have ample reason to repent of it all my life. ~ Saint Francis of Assisi, #KEYS
538:I care not so much what I am to others as what I am to myself. I will be rich by myself, and not by borrowing. ~ Alfred Korzybski, #KEYS
539:if I am
to be alone
the moon will be my friend
~ Buson, @BashoSociety#KEYS
540:Words are but ghosts unless they speak the heart. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I, #KEYS
541:You are 27 or 28 right? It is very tough to live at that age. When nothing is sure. I have sympathy with you.
~ Haruki Murakami,#KEYS
542:After I had rested my wearied body for a little, I took my way over the steep slope, keeping always my lower foot firmest. ~ Dante, #KEYS
543:For primitive egoism, however, the standing rule is that it is never 'I' who must change, but always the other fellow. ~ Carl Jung, #KEYS
544:If the body falls away there is no loss for the `I'. `I' remains the same. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
545:In Islam
All men are equal underneath the King. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
546:Love is the hoop of the gods
Hearts to combine. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
547:Now I am light, now I fly, now I see myself beneath me, now a god dances through me. ~ Friedrich Nietzsche, 'On Reading & Writing', #KEYS
548:O God! Can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?
~ Edgar Allan Poe,#KEYS
549:Realization is real religion, all the rest is only preparation. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 232), #KEYS
550:ry step I take
is my home
~ Dogen Zenji, @BashoSociety#KEYS
551:So long as you say "I know" or "I do not know" you look upon yourself as a person. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
552:This snowy morning That black crow I hate so much.... But he is so beautiful! ~ Matsuo Basho, 1644-1694, #KEYS
553:What is the way out? I believe, to put oneself completely in the hands of higher powers, to be happy to be silent. ~ Rodney Collin, #KEYS
554:I am not, I will not be.
I have not, I will not have.
This frightens all children,
And kills fear in the wise. ~ Nagarjuna,#KEYS
555:I don't wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.
~ Pearl S Buck,#KEYS
556:If I have ever made any valuable discoveries, it has been due more to patient attention, than to any other talent.
~ Isaac Newton,#KEYS
557:If the body falls away, there is no loss for the `I'. `I' remains the same. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
558:I seem to have loved you in numberless forms, numberless times, in life after life, in age after age forever. ~ Rabindranath Tagore, #KEYS
559:I think it's very healthy to spend time alone. You need to know how to be alone and not be defined by another person. ~ Oscar Wilde, #KEYS
560:I wish I could show you, when you are lonely or in darkness, the astonishing light of your own being.
~ Hafiz,#KEYS
561:Sadly I part from you; like a clam torn from its shell I go, and autumn too. ~ Matsuo basho. 1644-1694. Narrow road to the interior, #KEYS
562:Then, absorbed in 'Thou art This,' I found the place of Wine. There all the jars are filled but no one is left to drink." ~ Lal Ded, #KEYS
563:Through Thy creations I have discovered the beatitude of Thy eternity. ~ Hermes, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
564:What do love and hate matter when I'm here alone, listening to the sound of the rain late in this autumn evening. ~ Dogen 1200-1253, #KEYS
565:You have your way. I have my way. As for the right way, the correct way, and the only way, it does not exist. ~ Friedrich Nietzsche, #KEYS
566:Gird up the loins of your mind, be sober. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, 1 Peter, I. 12, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
567:It's not that I disagreed with Bush's economic policy... I believed he was a child of Satan here to destroy the planet. ~ Bill Hicks, #KEYS
568:I've written this to keep from crying. But I am crying, only the tears won't come. ~ Aleister Crowley, #KEYS
569:Moksha is to know that you were not born. "Be still and know that I am God." ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
570:passing through the gate
I have become
a wanderer
~ Buson, @BashoSociety#KEYS
571:There should be no big I, not even a small one. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - IV, Ego and Its Forms, #KEYS
572:Cannabis is used by necromancers, in combination with ginseng to set forward time in order to reveal future events. ~ Ming-I Pieh Lu, #KEYS
573:I begin life over again after death even as the sun every day. ~ Book of the Dead, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
574:I'd have to be really quick to describe clouds ~ a split second's enough for them to start being something else. ~ Wislawa Szymborska, #KEYS
575:I found a book on how to be invisible ~ On the edge of the labyrinth ~ Under a veil you must never lift ~ Pages you must never turn ~, #KEYS
576:If you name me, you negate me. By giving me a name, a label, you negate all the other things I could possibly be. ~ Soren Kierkegaard, #KEYS
577:If you practise meditation and prayer it will make me happy. I look on you as my own. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
578:I roamed the countryside searching for answers to things I did not understand.
~ Leonardo da Vinci,#KEYS
579:Matter was not ultra-materialized as I would at first have believed, but was instead metamorphosed into Psyche. ~ Teilhard de Chardin, #KEYS
580:Teachers must be encouraged - I almost said 'freed', to pursue an education that strives for depth of understanding. ~ Howard Gardner, #KEYS
581:That's what I consider true generosity: You give your all, and yet you always feel as if it costs you nothing.
~ Simone de Beauvoir,#KEYS
582:Whosoever comes to Me, through whatsoever form, I reach him; all men are struggling through paths which in the end lead to me. ~ Gita, #KEYS
583:All action is surrounded by a complexity of forces. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Occult Knowledge, #KEYS
584:From the moment I picked up your book until I put it down, I was convulsed with laughter. Some day I intend reading it. ~ Groucho Marx, #KEYS
585:I'm only lost if I'm going someplace in particular." ~ Megan Scribner, See "Teaching With Heart, Fire & Poetry," http://bit.ly/35cFwKD, #KEYS
586:I must create a system or be enslaved by another man's, I will not reason and compare, my business is to create. ~ William Blake, [T5], #KEYS
587:I once had a thousand desires, but in my one desire to know you, all else melted away. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
588:I want to sing like the birds sing, not worrying about who hears or what they think.
~ Jalaluddin Rumi,#KEYS
589:Jesus said to me a little while ago, would you have abandoned me, my son, if I had not crucified you. ~ Saint Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, #KEYS
590:All that is contains Thee; I could not exist if Thou wert not in me. ~ St Augustine, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
591:Even the thought 'I do not realize' is a hindrance. In fact, the Self alone is. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
592:I am the wheat of God. Let me be ground by the teeth of the wild beasts, that I may be found the pure bread of Christ. ~ Saint Ignatius, #KEYS
593:In the aether I appear in fiery forms, And in the aer I sit in a silvery chariot; earth reigns in my black brood of puppies. ~ Porphyry, #KEYS
594:I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy. ~ Rabindranath Tagore, #KEYS
595:I stand on the end platform of the tram and am completely unsure of my footing in this world, in this town, in my family. ~ Franz Kafka, #KEYS
596:I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help! ~ Psalms CXXI.1, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
597:Our inner self is provided with all necessary faculties ~ Meng-Tse VII. I. IV. I. 3, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
598:passing through
I have become a nomad
autumn darkness
~ Buson, @BashoSociety#KEYS
599:Praise cannot make me any betteR Blame cannot make me any worse. I am what I am before my conscience and God.
~ Paramahansa Yogananda,#KEYS
600:The gods cannot, if they would, give themselves unasked. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Bhawani Mandir, #KEYS
601:The questioner must admit the existence of his Self. 'I am' is the realization. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
602:They deem me mad because I will not sell my days for gold; and I deem them mad because they think my days have a price. ~ Khalil Gibran, #KEYS
603:When you know yourself, your 'I'ness vanishes and you know that you and Allah are one and the same. ~ Ibn Arabi, #KEYS
604:All awareness is power and all power conceals awareness. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Hymns to the Mystic Fire, RV I.1.1, #KEYS
605:And I would tell myself that the realm beyond the wall was not more lasting merely, but more lovely and radiant as well. ~ H P Lovecraft, #KEYS
606:But as for me, I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Micah, 7:7, #KEYS
607:Eternal wisdom builds: I shall be her palace when she finds repose in me and I in her. ~ Angelus Silesius, #KEYS
608:Even the thought, "I do not realize" is a hindrance. In fact, the Self alone is. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
609:Find the source. The false 'I' will disappear and the real 'I' will be realized. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
610:for love and hate
I swat a fly and
offer it to an ant
~ Shiki, @BashoSociety#KEYS
611:Having slept
in the temple
solemnly I watched the moon
~ Tosei, @BashoSociety#KEYS
612:I am That I Am" sums up the whole truth; the method is summarized in "Be Still." ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
613:I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 143:5, #KEYS
614:I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever.
~ Anonymous, The Bible, John, 14:16, [T0],#KEYS
615:Of all the thoughts that rise in the mind, the thought 'I' is the first thought. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
616:While I thought that I was learning how to live, I have been learning how to die.
~ Leonardo da Vinci,#KEYS
617:Who am I?
The Divine under many disguises.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, "The Divine" and "Man",#KEYS
618:Being with you and not being with you is the only way I have to measure time.
~ Jorge Luis Borges, [T1],#KEYS
619:Every day, think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. ~ Dalai Lama, #KEYS
620:He answered: "...wherever I did not see my own self." ~ Shaikh Abul-Hasan Kharqani, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
621:if I were to dance in the name of God, what would people say?" - Cast off all such ideas. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
622:I, like all artists in Western cultures, am a shaman...come in the guise of a comic...to heal perception by using...'jokes'. ~ Bill Hicks, #KEYS
623:I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 32:8, #KEYS
624:My motto is to learn whatever good things I may come across anywhere. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. VI. 234), #KEYS
625:Those I love who know how to live only to disappear, for they pass beyond ~ Nietzsche, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
626:To be happy all I have to do is to give up my judgments." ~ Gerald G. Jampolsky, M.D. "Forgiveness: The Greatest Healer Of All,", ( 1999), #KEYS
627:When Love desires Love,
Then Love is born. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
628:Why was I born, O God, if not to find Thee?
Why do I die, O God, if not to come to Thee?
~ Hazrat Inayat Khan, Sayings of Hazrat Khan,#KEYS
629:I have a fundamental belief in the Bible as the Word of God, written by those who were inspired. I study the Bible daily.
~ Isaac Newton,#KEYS
630:'I love you' and 'I thank you.' Focus on your heart and send out light and love to the essence of everything you see." ~ Imam Jamal Rahman, #KEYS
631:I meditate upon Thee, O Rama, as my Divine Master and think of myself only as Thy servant. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
632:instead of what I don't have the things I have would be much more cared for." ~ Douglas King, quote from "poems in a minor chord,", (2017), #KEYS
633:The psychic is the support of the individual evolution ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Psychic Being, #KEYS
634:This false sense of `I' must go. The real `I' is always there. It is here and now. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
635:What do people mean when they say, 'I am not afraid of God because I know He is good'? Have they never even been to a dentist? ~ C S Lewis, #KEYS
636:Whatever form your enquiry may take, you must finally come to the one I, the Self. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
637:When I die, I will send down a shower of roses from the heavens, I will spend my heaven by doing good on earth. ~ Saint Therese of Lisieux, #KEYS
638:At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, "Ask what I shall give you." ~ Anonymous, The Bible, 1 Kings, 3:5, #KEYS
639:I call him a man who recognises no possessions save those he finds in himself. ~ Seneca, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
640:I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things
~ Anonymous, The Bible, Isaiah, 45:7,#KEYS
641:So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Revelation, 3:16, [NIV], #KEYS
642:Until realisation there will be Karma, i.e., action and reaction; after realisation there will be no Karma, no world. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
643:Without a great ideal there can be no great movement. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, The Leverage of Faith, #KEYS
644:Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Jeremiah, 33:3, #KEYS
645:I am He that is" (Ex 3,14), which is equivalent to "My nature is to be, not to be spoken." ~ Philo of Alexandria, De Mutatione Nominum 11-12, #KEYS
646:If you give up all else and seek Him alone, He alone will remain as the I, the Self. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
647:I have remarked very clearly that I am often of one opinion when I am lying down and of another when I am standing up. ~ Georg C Lichtenberg, #KEYS
648:Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea was no more." ~ Revelation 21:1, #KEYS
649:There are times when I am so unlike myself that I might be taken for someone else of an entirely opposite character. ~ Jean-Jacques Rousseau, #KEYS
650:The Self is that where there is absolutely no "I" thought. That is called "Silence". ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
651:I am always giving my anugraham (Grace). If you cannot apprehend it, what am I to do? ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
652:I began to understand that the love of the sacred heart without a spirit of sacrifice is but empty illusion. ~ Bl. Maria Droste zu Vischering, #KEYS
653:I can have nothing to do with your money. For if I accept it, my mind will be always with it. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
654:I was asked to memorise what I did not understand; and, my memory being so good, it refused to be insulted in that manner. ~ Aleister Crowley, #KEYS
655:Maya gives rise to the seed of "I" and "mine" and serves to keep beings chained to the world. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
656:No one I am, I who am all that is. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Liberation - I, #KEYS
657:The help of Sri Aurobindo is constant; it is for us to know how to receive it.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I,#KEYS
658:The supreme 'I' alone is. To think otherwise is to delude oneself. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, Maharshi's Gospel, #KEYS
659:Thus, then now as ever, I enter the Path of Darkness, if haply so I may attain the Light.
~ Aleister Crowley,#KEYS
660:We cannot get strength unless we adore the Mother of strength. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Bhawani Mandir, #KEYS
661:While I wait for you lost in this longing suddenly there comes a stirring of my window blinds; the autumn wind is blowing. ~ Nukata c.638-710, #KEYS
662:As I see it, there isn't so much to do. Just be ordinary — put on your robes, eat your food, and pass the time doing nothing. ~ Linji Yixuan, #KEYS
663:Giving all diligence, add to virtue knowledge and to knowledge temperance. ~ II Peter I. 6, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
664:I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else. ~ C S Lewis, #KEYS
665:I felt for the tormented whirlwinds Damned for their carnal sins Committed when they let their passions rule their reason.
~ Dante Alighieri,#KEYS
666:I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by a conscious endeavor.
~ Henry David Thoreau,#KEYS
667:I tell my heart, "Do not worry, the key to morning I've thrown away." ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
668:It is only by grounding our awareness in the living sensation of our bodies that the 'I Am,' our real presence, can awaken. ~ George Gurdjieff, #KEYS
669:Like this cup, you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you wisdom unless you first empty your cup? ~ Nyogen Senzaki, #KEYS
670:Never once in my life did I ask God for success or wisdom or power or fame. I asked for wonder, and he gave it to me. ~ Abraham Joshua Heschel, #KEYS
671:To realize happiness, the enquiry, 'Who am I?' in quest of the Self is the best means. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
672:alone
I have lost my way
autumn darkness
~ Ogawa, @BashoSociety#KEYS
673:Deep within my heart I have planted the name of Kāli,
The Wish-fulfilling Tree of heaven... ~ Sri Ramakrishna, The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna#KEYS
674:Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns. ~ George Eliot, #KEYS
675:Having learned the ways of silence within the noise of urban life I take life as it comes to me and everywhere I am is true. ~ Baisao 1675-1763, #KEYS
676:How can I have more and more faith and calm, Mother?
Aspiration and will.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II,#KEYS
677:I have no news of coming or passing away: it happened much faster than one breath." ~ Attar of Nishapur, (1145 - 1221) Persian poet, Wikipedia., #KEYS
678:I was walking among the fires of Hell, delighted with the enjoyments of Genius; which to Angels look like torment and insanity. ~ William Blake, #KEYS
679:Lost in intense God-consciousness I could not know that I was nude the greater part of the day. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
680:pressing my lips
I wept invisibly
among the yellow foliage
~ Misato, @BashoSociety#KEYS
681:Real faith is something spiritual, a knowledge of the soul. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Morality and Yoga, #KEYS
682:That which then remains separate and alone by itself, that pure Awareness is what I am. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
683:The great man is he who has not lost the child's heart within him. ~ Meng-Tse. I V. II. XII, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
684:The wheel of fortune turns incessantly round, and who can say within himself, I shall today be uppermost?
~ Confucius,#KEYS
685:When the right person hugs you, it's like medicine. I'm so grateful for those few people in my life who are good for my soul." ~ Steve Maraboli, #KEYS
686:Art thou real, Earth? Am I? In whose dream do we exist ..." ~ Neville Goddard, (1905-1972) teacher, author, "The Complete Reader,", (2013). See:, #KEYS
687:As for politics, I'm an anarchist. I hate governments and rules and fetters. Can't stand caged animals. People must be free.
~ Charlie Chaplin,#KEYS
688:I am convinced that most people do not grow up … our real selves, the children inside, are still innocent and shy as magnolias. ~ Maya Angelou, #KEYS
689:I don't believe that consciousness is generated by the brain. I believe that the brain is more of a receiver of consciousness." ~ Graham Hancock, #KEYS
690:If I had an hour to solve a problem I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and five minutes thinking about solutions. ~ Albert Einstein, #KEYS
691:If I see a pundit without Viveka, without the love of God, I know him to be no better than straw ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
692:I love your feet
only because they walked
upon the earth and upon
the wind and upon the waters,
until they found me." ~ Pablo Neruda,#KEYS
693:
Don't walk in front of me... I may not follow
Don't walk behind me... I may not lead
Walk beside me... just be my friend
~ Albert Camus,#KEYS
694:Sometimes I think we're alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we're not. In either case the idea is quite staggering.
~ Arthur C Clarke,#KEYS
695:The brain is impotent without the right arm of strength. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, The Writing on the Wall, #KEYS
696:The gods use instruments,
Not ask their consent. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Short Stories - I, Act Five,#KEYS
697:The more I contemplate God, the more God looks on me. The more I pray to him, the more he thinks of me too.
~ Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, [T5],#KEYS
698:Thou remainest the same and thy years shall not fail. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Hebrews, I. 12, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
699:Thus I spoke, more and more softly; for I was afraid of my own thoughts and the thoughts behind my thoughts. ~ Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, #KEYS
700:Whenever I meet someone I try to look for their positive qualities, which immediately gives me a feeling of connectedness with them ~ Dalai Lama, #KEYS
701:How beautiful is the day when one can offer one's devotion to Sri Aurobindo.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T2],#KEYS
702:I am stronger than death and greater than my fate
~ Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, The Word of Fate,#KEYS
703:I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do because I notice it always coincides with their own desires. ~ Susan B Anthony, #KEYS
704:If an angel were to tell us about his philosophy, I believe many of his statements might well sound like '2 x 2= 13'. ~ Georg C Lichtenberg, [T5], #KEYS
705:I know there is no straight road
No straight road in this world
Only a giant labyrinth
Of intersecting crossroads
~ Federico Garcia Lorca,#KEYS
706:In revealing itself, a being demonstrates its ever greater fullness and thus its ineliminable mystery. ~ Hans Urs von Balthasar, Theo-Logic I.158, #KEYS
707:So high is my Lord's palace, my heart trembles to mount its stairs: yet I must not be shy, if I would enjoy His love. ~ Kabir, #KEYS
708:We grasp nothing except through that which is better known to us ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (In I Phys. lect. 1)., #KEYS
709:Wherever you go, whatever you do, I am always with you. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, Ramana Periya Puranam, 402, [T5], #KEYS
710:...before Thee we bow down and implore that we may never forget all we owe to Thee.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I,#KEYS
711:For a subject people there is no royal road to emancipation. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, The Leverage of Faith, #KEYS
712:For with God both of these of necessity match each other exactly: practice should be sustained by prayer and prayer by practice. ~ Saint Gregory I, #KEYS
713:I do not waste my words on tired minds.
I can only talk to those who are thirsty
for the sea ~ Jalaluddin Rumi,#KEYS
714:If you enquire 'Who am I?' the mind gets introverted and the rising thought also subsides. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
715:I know nothing in the world that has as much power as a word. Sometimes I write one, and I look at it, until it begins to shine. ~ Emily Dickinson #KEYS
716:In the Core of the all-comprehensive Heart, there is the self-luminous 'I' always shining. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
717:I put on righteousness and it clothed me; my justice was my robe and my diadem. ~ Job XXIX. 14, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
718:Music and thunder are the rhythmic chords
Of one majestic harp. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
719:See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil. ~ Deuteronomy XIII. 15, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
720:The end of our study consists merely in recovering our heart that we have lost. ~ id. VI. I.XI, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
721:Among the thousands one can hardly find more than a hundred of them who are being saved, and even about that I am doubtful. ~ Saint John Chrysostom, #KEYS
722:Evil has no existence, except when we give it existence through our actions. ~ Diadochus of Photice, 'One Hundred Texts' (Philokalia vol. I p. 253), #KEYS
723:Friends are three types, I'll tell you: The user, the faker, and the true! ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
724:I have no power of miracle other than the attainment of quiet happiness, I have no tact except the exercise of gentleness." ~ - Oracle of Sumiyoshi, #KEYS
725:In the morning, O LORD, You will hear my voice; In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 5:3, #KEYS
726:I renounce the honours to which the world aspires and desire only to know the Truth. ~ Socrates, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
727:Temporis filia veritas; cui me obstetricari non pudet. (Truth is the daughter of time, and I feel no shame in being her midwife.) ~ Johannes Kepler, #KEYS
728:the hometown
that I abandoned
in late autumn
~ Ogawa, @BashoSociety#KEYS
729:We are God (Iswara). Iswara Drishti (i.e., seeing ourselves as God) is itself Divine Grace. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
730:All suffering is for an apparent 'I', all suffering is in the story of 'me', all suffering is essentially a fight against this moment. ~ Jeff Foster, #KEYS
731:Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.
~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 46:10, [T5],#KEYS
732:But do not ask me where I am going, As I travel in this limitless world, Where every step I take is my home. ~ Dogen Zenji, [T5], #KEYS
733:If success or failure of this planet and of human beings depended on how I am and what I do... How would I be? What would I do? ~ Buckminster Fuller, #KEYS
734:Just don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration - I don't think you can go wrong." ~ Ella Fitzgerald, #KEYS
735:My God, if my tongue cannot say in every moment that I love You, I want my heart to repeat it to You as often as I draw breath. ~ Saint John Vianney, #KEYS
736:The inner must change before the outermost can follow. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Transformation and the Body, #KEYS
737:The song that nerves the nation's heart is in itself a deed. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, The Writing on the Wall, #KEYS
738:The stumbling-block of romanticism is falsity. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Future Poetry, The Movement of Modern Literature - I, #KEYS
739:To enquire 'Who am I that am in bondage?' and to know one's real nature is alone Liberation. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
740:Unity is sweet substance of the heart
And not a chain that binds. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
741:Unto the pure all things are pure, but unto them that are defiled nothing is pure. ~ Titus I. 15, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
742:When the source of the 'I thought' is reached it vanishes and what remains over is the Self. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
743:another day is coming to an end,
a day void of any significant events.
how long as I going to repeat days like this? ~ Welcome to the N.H.K.,#KEYS
744:Each man ought to say to himself, "I was the creator, may I become again what I was". ~ Upanishad, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
745:His Grace is always with those who want to progress and realise the Truth of tomorrow.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I,#KEYS
746:I am sent not only to love God but to make Him loved. It is not enough for me to love God, if my neighbor does not love Him." ~ Saint Vincent de Paul, #KEYS
747:Dreams :::
in this dream world
we doze
and talk of dreams --
dream, dream on,
as much as you wish
~ Taigu Ryokan,#KEYS
748:If I can just open up to that and really feel that, what if no one else would ever have to feel this negative state if I fully feel it?
~ Paul Levy,#KEYS
749:I have realized why corrupt politicians do nothing to improve the quality of public school education. They are terrified of educated voters. ~ Miriam, #KEYS
750:To lift our hopes heaven-high and to extend them
As wide as earth. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
751:When the mind stays in the Heart, the 'I' will go, and the Self which ever exists will shine. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
752:Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. ~ Psalms XXIII, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
753:If I can stop one heart from breaking, I shall not live in vain." ~ Emily Dickinson, (1830 -1886), American poet, wrote nearly 1,800 poems, Wikipedia., #KEYS
754:I have said that the modern man, and especially the modern American, however much 'know-how' he may have, has very little 'know-what' ~ Norbert Wiener, #KEYS
755:Immortality. I notice that as soon as writers broach this question they begin to quote. I hate quotation. Tell me what you know. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, #KEYS
756:In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? ~ Anonymous, The Bible, John, 14:2, #KEYS
757:Is it not a wonder of wonders? The quest "Who am I?" is the axe with which to cut off the ego. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
758:Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Micah, 7:8, #KEYS
759:Sometimes I wonder if people who aggrressively seek political power are precisely those who should not be entrusted to wield it. ~ Neil deGrasse Tyson, #KEYS
760:The difficulties you cannot overcome today will be overcome tomorrow or later on.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T5],#KEYS
761:The heart rejoices at the feet of the Lord, who is the Self eternally shining within as 'I-I'. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
762:The nature of bondage is merely the rising, ruinous thought `I am different from the reality'. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
763:The Self alone is the world, the I and God. All that exists is a manifestation of the Supreme. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
764:The Self is the eternal 'I am'." ~ Sankara, 8th century Indian philosopher and theologian who consolidated the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta, Wikipedia., #KEYS
765:This is how I would die into the love I have for you. As pieces of cloud dissolve into the sunlight.
~ Jalaluddin Rumi,#KEYS
766:through the fields
we wander
a butterfly and I
~ Ogawa, @BashoSociety#KEYS
767:To grieve is an insult to Sri Aurobindo who is here with us, conscious and alive.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T5],#KEYS
768:When you've understood this scripture, throw it away. If you can't understand this scripture, throw it away. I insist on your freedom." ~ Jack Kerouac, #KEYS
769:Friendship ... is born at the moment when one man says to another 'What! You too? I thought that no one but myself' . . .
~ C S Lewis, The Four Loves,#KEYS
770:I am an epitome of opposites. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Man, the Despot of Contraries, #KEYS
771:I meet the sincere man with sincerity and tie insincere also with sincerity. ~ Lao-tse: Tao-te-king, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
772:In the heart-lotus which is of the nature of all the light of that self in the form 'I' shines. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
773:Meditation must be so intense that it does not give room even to the thought 'I am meditating'. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
774:Religion is in the human mind the first native. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Renaissance in India, Indian Spirituality and Life - I, #KEYS
775:Teishin :::
"When, when?" I sighed.
The one I longed for
Has finally come;
With her now,
I have all that I need. ~ Taigu Ryokan, [T5],#KEYS
776:The blue sky opens out farther and farther, the damage I have done to myself fades, a million suns come forward with light. ~ Kabir, #KEYS
777:The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one... I have been... and always shall be... your friend. Live long... and prosper. ~ Spock, #KEYS
778:Today I escaped from anxiety. Or no, I discarded it, because it was within me, in my own perceptions--not outside.
~ Marcus Aurelius, Book 9 Verse 13,#KEYS
779:At present I am light, now I fly, now I see myself below me, now a god dances through me. ~ Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, trans. Kaufmann, #KEYS
780:hough your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Isaiah, I. 18, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
781:I am near you...do not see me afar! ~ You are beside me...do not feel isolated! ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
782:I am the mother of pure love and of science and of sacred hope. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Ecclesiastes, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
783:If I find, near the end of this life, to have been a mere Wizard, it is likely due to the limits of aspiration. In my desire to Know without Being. ~ JB, #KEYS
784:Of what use are the gods
If they crown not our just desires on earth? ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
785:The sentinel love in man ever imagines
Strange perils for its object. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
786:We can't know anything outside our mind. Everything we see is contained within our mind. Thus, I am not in the world. The world is in me. ~ Haemin Sunim, #KEYS
787:When the soul says: "Not I, O Lord, but Thou," it has reached the end of sorrow. This is freedom itself. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
788:Faith is the first condition of success in every great undertaking. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, The Leverage of Faith, #KEYS
789:For no reason it rains,
whispers of reality.
How lovely it sings,
drop by drop.
Sitting and lying I listen
with emptied mind.
~ Chin'gak,#KEYS
790:He who sees all things in the self and the self in all things, has doubt no longer. ~ I-sha Upanishad, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
791:I am always seated in your heart, consciously living in you.
Open your heart and you will find me already there. ~ The Mother,#KEYS
792:I am not the body. I am one with the universal soul. I am that being which is absolute and unconditioned. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
793:I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies, for the hardest victory is over self. ~ Aristotle, #KEYS
794:I see of Thee neither end nor middle nor beginning, O Lord of all and universal form. ~ Bhagavad Gita, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
795:I will therefore make ready to render my thought an alien to the illusion of the world. ~ Ramakrishna, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
796:Nature must flower into art
And science, or else wherefore are we men? ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
797:Remember to keep in mind that all the past is nothing and that every day we should say with David, "Now I begin to love my God." ~ Saint Francis de Sales, #KEYS
798:Say-'I have received his Grace: I must be worthy of it', and then all will be well.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, [T1],#KEYS
799:The thought 'who am I?' will destroy all other thoughts. Then, there will arise Self-realization. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
800:Wherever I live, I see that I am in Ayodhya, the kingdom of Rama. Yes, this world is the Ayodhya of Rama! ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
801:But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams. ~ William Butler Yeats,#KEYS
802:By directly inquiring, "Who AM I?" ... 'I' reveals itself as the Perfect Being, the Absolute Self. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
803:Most people do not really choose—they undergo the play of the forces. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Occult Knowledge, #KEYS
804:The Beatitudes are the like the Christian's identity card. So if anyone asks: "What must I do to be a good Christian?" the answer is clear. ~ Pope Francis, #KEYS
805:The things I carry are my thoughts. That's it. They are the only weight. My thoughts determine whether I am free and light, or burdened." ~ Kamal Ravikant, #KEYS
806:Allah Almighty said: "Fear not for I am with you. I hear and see everything. ~ Qur'an 20:46] ~ Quran, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
807:From light lips and casual thoughts
The gods speak best as if by chance. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
808:Grief too long continued does not help but delays the journey of the departed soul. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Death, #KEYS
809:I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies; for the hardest victory is over self.
~ Aristotle,#KEYS
810:I never knew a sorrow that an hour of reading could not assuage, a great man had once said. Let's put it to the test. ~ Anna Gavalda, Hunting and Gathering, #KEYS
811:I shall always be with you, my dear little child, in the struggle and in the victory.
~ The Mother, Some Answers From The Mother,#KEYS
812:Lost in these imaginary illusions I forgot my destiny - that of the hunted.~ Jorge Luis Borges, The Garden Of Forking Paths, #KEYS
813:Love, joy and happiness come from the psychic. The Self gives peace or a universal Ananda. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters On Yoga - I, #KEYS
814:There is no I nor thou, but only one divine Self equal in all embodiments. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Synthesis Of Yoga, Renunciation, #KEYS
815:Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing, doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before.
~ Edgar Allan Poe,#KEYS
816:Every man who returns into himself, will find there traces of the Divinity. ~ Cicero, "De Regibus. I. 22, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
817:In failing to confess, Lord, I would only hide You from myself, not myself from You. ~ Saint Augustine of Hippo, [T5], #KEYS
818:into a fool but you are a fool for not knowing and being it." ~ Mooji, (b. 1954) Jamaican spiritual teacher, author, Wikipedia. From "Before I Am,", (2012)., #KEYS
819:I've worked too hard and too long to let anything stand in the way of my goals. I will not let my teammates down and I will not let myself down." ~ Mia Hamm, #KEYS
820:May the life I live speak for me, not my religion or denomination title." ~ Dee Dee M. Scott, (c. 1978), author, playwright, film producer and entrepreneur., #KEYS
821:Sannyasa is only the renunciation of the 'I-thought', and not the rejection of the external objects. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
822:There is some point to 'truth', to the search for truth; and if a human being goes about it too humanely - I wager he finds nothing.
~ Friedrich Nietzsche,#KEYS
823:To be FALSE, to say of what is not, that it is, or of what is, that it is not ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (In I PH lect. 11)., #KEYS
824:All I want to tell you is this. Follow both; perform your duties in the world and also cultivate love of God. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
825:autumn wind
to which hell
am I going?
~ Kobayashi Issa, @BashoSociety#KEYS
826:Ego is 'I-thought'. In its subtle form it remains a thought, whereas in its gross aspect it embraces the mind, the senses and the body. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
827:Enquiring within "Who is the seer?" I saw the seer disappearing and That alone which stands for ever. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
828:Eternal wisdom builds: I shall be her palace when she finds repose in me and I in her. ~ Angelus Silesius, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
829:From moment to moment, the little I need to know to live my life, I somehow happen to know. ~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, #KEYS
830:He alone is clever who sees that God is real and all else is illusory. What need have I of other information? ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
831:He who turns inward with a calm mind to see where the consciousness of 'I' arises, realizes the Self. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
832:I hold it true, whate'er befall;
I feel it when I sorrow most;
'Tis better to have loved and lost
Than never to have loved at all. ~ Alfred Tennyson,#KEYS
833:What is the Divine?
The Divine is what you adore in Sri Aurobindo.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T2],#KEYS
834:That is why I have summoned you all to enter into the intimacy of my Heart in order to work this veritable transformation in you." ~ Our Lady how this thread, #KEYS
835:When thou saidst, Seek ye my face, my heart said unto Thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek. ~ Psalms XXVII.8, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
836:All that man has to do is to take care of three things; good thought, good word, good deed. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 492), #KEYS
837:A sincere heart is worth all the extraordinary powers in the world. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Occult Powers or Siddhis, #KEYS
838:Don't think you can frighten me by telling me that I am alone. France is alone. God is alone. And the loneliness of God is His strength. ~ George Bernard Shaw, #KEYS
839:Even the animal is more in touch with a certain harmony in things than man. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Science and Yoga, #KEYS
840:Have no fear; now you have been reborn. I am assuming the fruits of all the deeds of your past lives. Now you are pure; you are free of sin. ~ Sri Sarada Devi, #KEYS
841:I account it a greater good to be reproved than to reprove, inasmuch as it is more excellent to free oneself from evil than to free another. ~ Saint Methodius, #KEYS
842:If one reads Sri Aurobindo carefully one finds the answers to all that one wants to know.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T5],#KEYS
843:In that God who illumines the reason, desiring liberation I seek my refuge. ~ Swetaswatara Upanishad VI.18, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
844:I write to keep from going mad from the contradictions I find among mankind - and to work some of those contradictions out for myself.
~ Michel de Montaigne,#KEYS
845:Karma is only a machinery, it is not the fundamental cause of terrestrial existence. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Rebirth, #KEYS
846:That is the bright Light of all lights which they know who know themselves. ~ Brihadaranyaka Upanishad I.4, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
847:When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. ~ 1 Corinthians 13:11, #KEYS
848:At one time I am clothed, at another naked -- so Brahman is at one time with attributes and at another without. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
849:But let perseverance have her perfect work that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. ~ James I. 4, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
850:How should I meditate?
Fix your mind on the aspiration and dismiss everything else.
~ The Mother, More Answers From The Mother,#KEYS
851:I pick my favourite quotations and store them in my mind as ready armour, offensive or defensive, amid the struggle of this turbulent existence. ~ Robert Burns, #KEYS
852:The "Thou" of the mother is not the "I" of the child, but both centers move in the same ellipse of love. ~ Hans Urs von Balthasar, Explorations in Theology III, #KEYS
853:What am I to do to get rid of these defects of my nature?
Become more and more conscious.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II,#KEYS
854:Bhakti and Karma cannot be perfect and enduring unless they are based upon Jnana. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Bhawani Mandir, #KEYS
855:INDIA MUST BE REBORN, BECAUSE HER REBIRTH IS DEMANDED BY THE FUTURE OF THE WORLD. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Bhawani Mandir, #KEYS
856:I was always hungry for love. Just once, I wanted to know what it was like to get my fill of it ~ to be fed so much love I couldn't take any more. Just once. ~ , #KEYS
857:The destiny of India will not wait on the falterings and failings of individuals. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Bhawani Mandir, #KEYS
858:The free spirit can stand fearless before even the biggest forces of Nature. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Morality and Yoga, #KEYS
859:The only saint is that soul that never weakens, faces everything, and determines to die game. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 479), #KEYS
860:To break up the form is to injure the spirit's self-expression. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Renaissance in India, "Is India Civilised?" - I, #KEYS
861:When I think of the lotus feet of the Lord, I forget myself so completely that unconsciously my cloth falls off. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
862:Who is the 'I' that is to help others? First clear up that point and then everything will settle itself. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
863:A Great Silence overcomes me,
and I wonder why I ever thought
to use language.
~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path#KEYS
864:Fantasy is an exercise bicycle for the mind. It might not take you anywhere, but it tones up the muscles that can. Of course, I could be wrong. ~ Terry Pratchett, #KEYS
865:If I could give you one thought, it would be to lift someone up. Lift a stranger up…The very idea of lifting someone up will lift you, as well." ~ Maya Angelou, #KEYS
866:If one ponders over the word "I", trying to track it down, one sees that it is only a word which demotes egotism. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
867:It is only the Grace that can bring the real supramental change. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Supramental Transformation, #KEYS
868:O friend, I hope this road we are traveling goes by the wine house, for we're thirsty and needing a drink that lies behind that door. ~ Hafiz, #KEYS
869:There can be no immortality of the body without supramentalisation. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Transformation and the Body, #KEYS
870:What the mind wants is not at all always what is intended in a larger purpose. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Occult Knowledge, #KEYS
871:When the source of the 'I-throught' is reached it vanishes and what remains over is the Self. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, Talks, 130, #KEYS
872:Wherefore laying aside all malice and all guile and hypocrisy and envy and all evil speaking. ~ l Peter II. I, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
873:Who am I — what kind of watchman am I? I do not stand on the pinnacle of achievement, I languish rather in the depths of my weakness. ~ Saint Gregory the Great, #KEYS
874:And if there were a God, I think it very unlikely that He would have such an uneasy vanity as to be offended by those who doubt His existence
~ Bertrand Russell,#KEYS
875:As He Himself says: "I have come that they may have life and may have it more abundantly" ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (John 10:10)., #KEYS
876:As one continues to abide as the Self, the experience 'I am the Supreme Spirit' grows and becomes natural. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
877:Even if one tries hard to suppress the idea of "I" and "Mine", in the field of action the unique ego shows itself. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
878:I have nothing in common with lazy people who blame others for their lack of success. Great things come from hard work and perseverance. No excuse." ~ Kobe Bryant, #KEYS
879:only after having the experience of suffering have I learned the kinship of human souls to each other. ~ Gogol, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
880:so that my feeling of devotion overflowed, and the tears ran from eyes, and I was happy in them. ~ Saint Augustine of Hippo, #KEYS
881:The Jnana Yogi says "I am He." But so long as one has the idea of the Self as the body, this egotism is injurious. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
882:The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 27:1,#KEYS
883:The Self is God. `I AM' is God. If God be apart from the Self, He must be a Selfless God, which is absurd. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
884:will I grow
old like you?
autumn butterfly
~ Kobayashi Issa, @BashoSociety#KEYS
885:Every sentence I utter must be understood not as an affirmation but as a question.[A caution he gives his students, to be wary of dogmatism.] ~ Niels Bohr, #KEYS
886:For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
~ Anonymous, The Bible, Romans, 8:18,#KEYS
887:He reveals Himself to the pure heart; the pure and the stainless see God, yea, even in this life. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 13), #KEYS
888:If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music. ~ Albert Einstein, #KEYS
889:I have preferred wisdom to kingdoms and thrones and I have believed that riches are nothing before wisdom, for she is an endless treasure for men. ~ Book of Wisdom, #KEYS
890:I Have Sinned So Much. If I Repent To God, Will He Accept My Repentance?" She Replied, "If He Wants To Accept Your Repentance, You Will Repent. ~ Rabia al-Adawiyya, #KEYS
891:I will show thee, hear me; and that which I have seen I will declare, which wise men have told: ~ Job XV. 17.18, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
892:My child, I have not abandoned you, and I am ready to forget, to efface all revolt. My help is always with you. ~ The Mother, Agenda Vol 1, #KEYS
893:Oh, when will dawn the blessed day
When tears of joy will flow from my eyes
As I repeat Lord Hari's name? ~ Sri Ramakrishna, The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna,#KEYS
894:The plants are very psychic, but they can express it only by silence and beauty. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Science and Yoga, #KEYS
895:come here
I am also lonely
this autumn evening
~ Matsuo Basho, @BashoSociety#KEYS
896:Should I try meditation?
It is not necessary if your work is a constant offering to the Divine.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I,#KEYS
897:Through their own pride and curiosity, and because I am against them, such men often fall into great emptations and sins. ~ Thomas A Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, #KEYS
898:When I am blessed, Lord Rama, with Tattva-Jnana, true knowledge -- I see, I realize that "I am Thou and Thou art I." ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
899:You can be here or there or anywhere. Fixed in silence, established in the inner 'I', you can be as you are. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
900:Each nation is a Shakti or power of the evolving spirit in humanity. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Renaissance in India, "Is India Civilised?" - I, #KEYS
901:Even though the mind wanders, involved in external matters, one should remember: The body is not I. Who am I? ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
902:If God assigns to me my place in Hell, I do not know why I should aspire to Heaven. He knows best what is for my welfare. ~ Sri Aurobindo, #KEYS
903:I looked one day at the Light and I did not cease looking at it until I became the Light ~ Abul Husayn al-Nuri, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
904:I love you. I've loved you from the beginning. And I will love you long after the last stars dies. I will love you until the end of darkness itself. ~ Laura Thalassa, #KEYS
905:Innocence has a single voice that can only say over and over again, I didn't do it. Guilt has a thousand voices, all of them lies. ~ Leonard Peltier, Prison Writings, #KEYS
906:It is not what you do but the spirit in which you do it that is important for the integral Yoga.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T5],#KEYS
907:There is no such thing as 'I'. See the beauty of it! Where there is no 'I', who is the doer and what is done? ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
908:I am the mother of the wicked, as I am the mother of the virtuous. Never fear. Whenever you are in distress, just say to yourself 'I have a mother.' ~ Sri Sarada Devi, #KEYS
909:I believe deeply that children are more powerful than oil, more beautiful than rivers, more precious than any other natural resource a country can have." ~ Danny Kaye, #KEYS
910:I do not believe that any name, however complex, is sufficient to designate the principle of all Majesty. ~ Hermes, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
911:If by the enquiry, 'Who am I?' you understand the seer, all problems about the seen will be completely solved. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
912:I'm re-reading Savitri.
Lucky man! I would love to read it again. And the more you read, the more marvellous it becomes.
~ The Mother,#KEYS
913:into the ocean
I throw my sandals
rain on my head
~ Matsuo Basho, @BashoSociety#KEYS
914:I walk everyday
five or six miles
in search of you
~ Matsuo Basho, @BashoSociety#KEYS
915:Look, I am standing at the door, knocking. If one of you hears me calling and opens the door, I will come in to share a meal at that person's side." ~ Revelation 3:20, #KEYS
916:My undertaking is not difficult, essentially. ... I should only have to be immortal to carry it out.
~ Jorge Luis Borges, Labyrinths,#KEYS
917:nameless
I stood in the surge
of their sweet smell
~ Matsuo Basho, @BashoSociety#KEYS
918:The great remedy for the long-lasting disease of samsara is the enquiry, 'Who am I?, to whom does this samsara belong?,' which entirely cures it. ~ Yoga Vasishta Sara, #KEYS
919:The heart of man is nearer to the Truth than his intelligence. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Renaissance in India, Indian Spirituality and Life - I, #KEYS
920:They say that I am dying but I am not going away.
Where could I go?
I am here ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, Path of Self-Knowledge,#KEYS
921:Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, [then] I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me." ~ Revelation 3:20, #KEYS
922:I am that sea now gathered in a tear. I am that universe now centered here. I am that book of destiny which seems To form a lonely dot of hope and fear." ~ Baba Tahir, #KEYS
923:If the red slayer think he slays, Or if the slain think he is slain, They know not well the subtle ways I keep, and pass, and turn again. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, Brahma, #KEYS
924:In your light I learn how to love. In your beauty, how to make poems. You dance inside my chest, where no one sees you. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
925:Which of Sri Aurobindo's books should I start with?
The Life Divine.
My blessings.
11 March 1941 ~ The Mother, On Education,#KEYS
926:That which others hear or read of, I felt and practised myself; they get their knowledge by books, I mine by melancholizing. ~ Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy, #KEYS
927:To be here, all you have to do is let go of who you think you are. That's all! And then you realize: "I'm here". 'Here' is where thoughts aren't believed. ~ Adyashanti, #KEYS
928:Truth! Seldom with her bright and burning wand
She touches the unwilling lips of men ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
929:Try to realise that there is no I, no you, no he, only the one Self which is all. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, Conscious Immortality, Ch 15, #KEYS
930:We are the future's greatness, therefore owe
Some duty to the grandeurs of the past. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
931:Wisdom is knowing I am nothing, Love is knowing I am everything, and between the two my life moves.
~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj,#KEYS
932:252. I have failed, thou sayest. Say rather that God is circling about towards His object.
~ Sri Aurobindo, Essays Divine And Human, Karma,#KEYS
933:"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Jeremiah, 1:5, #KEYS
934:By 'heart' I do not mean the piece of flesh situated in the left of our bodies, but that which uses all the other faculties as its instruments and servants. ~ Bahauddin, #KEYS
935:Do social service by relieving suffering whenever you see it, but do it with the feeling 'I am the Lord's tool'. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
936:I searched for myself and found only God I searched for God and found only myself." ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, (1207 - 1278) Sufi poet, Wikipedia., #KEYS
937:Look round and thou wilt see a world on guard.
All life here armoured walks, shut in. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
938:Then I wanted to learn what was beyond the veil. So I went to the edge of the veil. When I reached it, I saw coming from beyond the veil a great light. ~ Ruzbihan Baqli, #KEYS
939:Yon mountain-peak or some base valley clod,
'Tis one to the heaven-sailing star above ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
940:All things attained by man have been only a possibility in their earlier stages. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Intellect and Yoga, #KEYS
941:Beneficial to the sages, I am ever-present in the orb of the sun in the form of sakti. Hence the learned call me "Surya." ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
942:'Be still and know that I AM God' [Psalm 46:10] means that I should still the mind and know that consciousness is God." ~ Neville Goddard, "The Complete Reader,", (2013), #KEYS
943:I have a sweet little Mother
Who lives in my heart;
We are so happy together,
We shall never part.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother III,#KEYS
944:I have found my way, step by step, proceeding from touch points that have emerged, some through conscious choice and some through dream state discovery." ~ Leonard Nimoy, #KEYS
945:I have issued out of myself, I have put on an immortal body, 1 am no longer the same, I am born into wisdom. ~ Hermes, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
946:I recognize my affinity with [all beings]; I am nothing but an ability to echo them, to understand them, to respond to them. ~ Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Sense and Non-sense, #KEYS
947:Like The Little Stream ::: Like the little stream
Making its way
Through the mossy crevices
I, too, quietly
Turn clear and transparent. ~ Taigu Ryokan,#KEYS
948:Preacher, do not be telling me about Hell's pain, worse pain of Hell inside this heart…. I'm bearing!" ~ Makhfi, (1639-1702), Zeb-un-Nissa, Mughal princess, Wikipedia., #KEYS
949:She builds, she breaks,
She thrones, she slays, as needed for her harmony. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Short Stories - I, Act One,#KEYS
950:So long as subtle tendencies continue to inhere in the mind, it is necessary to carry on the enquiry, 'Who am I?' ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
951:Sri Aurobindo is constantly among us and reveals himself to those who are ready to see and hear him.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T5],#KEYS
952:The soul can grow against or even by a material destiny that is adverse. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Fate, Free Will and Prediction, #KEYS
953:Whatever you do, always remember the Divine. 5 May 1954
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, The Divine Is with You, [10] [T0],#KEYS
954:when all thoughts
are exhausted I escape
into the forest and gather
~ Ogawa, @BashoSociety#KEYS
955:I believe that it is his message; all the rest are the preparations, but Savitri is the message.
~ The Mother, In 1963 to Satprem, (MA 1963:86),#KEYS
956:I do not like mystical language, and yet I hardly know how to express what I mean without employing phrases that sound poetic rather than scientific.
~ Bertrand Russell,#KEYS
957:I have learned silence from the talkative, tolerance from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind, yet strangely, I am ungrateful to these teachers." ~ Kahlil Gibran, #KEYS
958:In the conviction that I am God's servant or I am His worshiper, there is no harm. On the other hand, it brings us to God. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
959:Is it asked, who is the most excellent of the strong? I reply, it is he who possesses patience. ~ Sutra in 42 articles, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
960:I think the secret to happiness is having a Teflon soul. Whatever comes your way you either let it slide or you cook with it." ~ Diane Lane, (b.1965), an American actress, #KEYS
961:I would hate to be taken seriously. Serious people are always so grim and uptight that they make me want to dance naked on the lawn playing a flute. ~ Robert Anton Wilson, #KEYS
962:Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
~ Anonymous, The Bible, John, 3-3, [T5],#KEYS
963:Liberation means entire freedom—freedom from the bondage of good, as well as from the bondage of evil. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 55), #KEYS
964:Pollution is nothing but resources we're not harvesting. We allow them to disperse because we've been ignorant of their value. ~ R Buckminster Fuller, I Seem To Be A Verb, #KEYS
965:Seek my grace within the Heart. I will drive away your darkness and show you the light. This is my responsibility. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
966:The present state of the world and the whole of life is diseased. If I were a doctor and were asked for my advice, I should reply, 'Create silence'." ~ Sören Kierkegaard, #KEYS
967:They, even when they tyrannise, remain
Most dear and reverend still, who gave us birth. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
968:They say: Thou art become mad with love for thy beloved. I reply: The savour of life is for madmen." ~ Abd Allāh ibn Asʻad al-Yafi'i, (1299-1367) chronicler from Yemen., #KEYS
969:upon purple clouds
when do I set sail?
western sea
~ Kobayashi Issa, @BashoSociety#KEYS
970:When I am attacked by gloomy thoughts, nothing helps me so much as running to my books. They quickly absorb me and banish the clouds from my mind. ~ Montaigne, Les Essais #KEYS
971:When lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin; and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. ~ James I. 14, 15, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
972:Ask: "Who am I?" until well-established in the conviction that a Higher Power guides us. That is firmness of faith. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
973:Energy is shakti (power, divine force). Therefore, all are resolved into Siva (God) and shakti, i.e. Self and mind. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
974:If one inquires as to where in the body the thought 'I' rises first, one would discover that it rises in the Heart. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
975:I saw that one of its heads seemed to have been mortally wounded, but this mortal wound was healed. Fascinated, the whole world followed after the beast." ~ Revelation 3:3, #KEYS
976:Opinions on the world and on God are many and conflicting and I know not the truth. Enlighten me, O my Master. ~ Hermes, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
977:Sri Aurobindo is in the subtle physical, you can meet him when you sleep, if you know how to go there.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T1],#KEYS
978:the butterfly I passed
two miles back
is ahead now
~ Kobayashi Issa, @BashoSociety#KEYS
979:The Self is known to everyone but not clearly. You always exist. The Be-ing is the Self. 'I am' is the name of God. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
980:This day shall be the best day of my life. Today I will start with a new determination to dedicate my devotion forever at the feet of omnipresence. ~ Paramahansa Yogananda, #KEYS
981:upon purple clouds
when do I set sail?
western sea
~ Kobayashi Issa, @BashoSociety#KEYS
982:When I am working on a problem, I never think about beauty........ but when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong.
~ R Buckminster Fuller,#KEYS
983:When I wish to conceive the notion of a stone, I must arrive at it by reasoning ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (Commentary on John 1, lect. 1)., #KEYS
984:By repeating with grit and determination 'I am not bound I am Free' one really becomes so - one really becomes free.
~ Sri Ramakrishna, [T5],#KEYS
985:Dive deep into the chambers of your heart. Find out the real, infinite 'I'. Rest there peacefully for ever and become identical with the Supreme Self. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
986:I have written these things unto you, on the day before the ninth of the Kalends of September. Fare well to the end, in the patience of Jesus Christ. Amen. ~ Saint Ignatius, #KEYS
987:I saw many humans on whom there were no clothes, I saw many clothes in which there were no humans." ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
988:Liberty, Mukti, is all my religion, and everything that tries to curb it, I will avoid by fight or flight. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. V. 72), #KEYS
989:Must first have striven, many must have failed
Before a great thing can be done on earth, ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
990:What does stillness mean? It means 'Destroy yourself'; because every name and form is the cause of trouble. 'I-I' is the Self. 'I am this' is the ego. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
991:You people are rich with your ideas of possession, of quantity and quality. I am completely without ideas. ~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, #KEYS
992:34. O Thou that lovest, strike! If Thou strike me not now, I shall know that Thou lovst me not.
~ Sri Aurobindo, Essays Divine And Human, Jnana,#KEYS
993:And at last I resolved to scale that tower, fall though I might; since it were better to glimpse the sky and perish, than to live without ever beholding day. ~ H P Lovecraft, #KEYS
994:A person is a fool to become a writer. His only compensation is absolute freedom. He has no master except his own soul, and that, I am sure, is why he does it
~ Roald Dahl,#KEYS
995:Ask: 'Who am I?' until well-established in the conviction that a Higher Power guides us. That is firmness of faith.
~ Sri Ramana Maharshi,#KEYS
996:By continuous investigation, the mind is transformed into That to which the 'I' refers; and that is in fact the Self. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
997:How can I know anything about the past or the future, when the light of the Beloved shines only Now? ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
998:I am timeless being. I am free of desire or fear, because I do not remember the past or imagine the future. ~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, #KEYS
999:I have to create a circle of reading for myself: Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius, Lao-Tzu, Buddha, Pascal, The New Testament. This is also necessary for all people. ~ Leo Tolstoy, #KEYS
1000:Nothing is mine, whatever I see, feel, or hear, even this body itself is not mine. I am always eternal, free and all-knowing. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1001:O my soul, wilt thou be one day simple, one, bare, more visible than the body which envelops thee? ~ Marcus Aurelius. X.I, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1002:The whole Vedanta is contained in the two Biblical statements "I am that I am" and "Be still and know that I am God." ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1003:Truly matters in the world are in a bad state; but if you and I begin in earnest to reform ourselves, a really good beginning will have been made. ~ Saint Peter of Alcantara, #KEYS
1004:What I really wanted was to fall in love with God. It's amazing what obstacles there are within us, or at least in me, that seem to slow this process. ~ Thomas Keating, [T5], #KEYS
1005:When one turns within and searches whence this 'I' thought arises, the shamed 'I' vanishes and wisdom's quest begins. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1006:With a heart pure and overflowing with love I desire to act towards others even as I would toward myself. ~ Buddhist Text, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1007:Aggression must be successful and creative if the defence is to be effective. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Renaissance in India, "Is India Civilised?" - I, #KEYS
1008:All souls who aspire are always under my direct care.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, The Mother, Relations with Others, 'I am with You', [T1],#KEYS
1009:He is always with us, aware of what we are, of all our thoughts, of all our feelings and all our actions.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T0],#KEYS
1010:I am is the goal, the final reality. To hold to it with effort is vichara. Spontaneous and natural, it is realization. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1011:If it is permissible to write plays that are not intended to be seen, I should like to see who can prevent me from writing a book no one can read. ~ Georg C Lichtenberg, [T5], #KEYS
1012:I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Job, 42:5-6, [T5], #KEYS
1013:I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride; so I love you because I know no other way. ~ Pablo Neruda, #KEYS
1014:O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved, as to love.
~ Saint Francis of Assisi, [T5],#KEYS
1015:Oh lord, I do not want riches, fame, health, happiness or anything else. Grant that I may have pure Bhakti for thy lotus feet! ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1016:There is a concept that is the corrupter and destroyer of all others. I speak not of Evil, whose limited empire is that of ethics; I speak of the infinite. ~ Jorge Luis Borge, #KEYS
1017:Thoughts must cease and reason disappear for 'I-I' to rise up and be felt. Feeling is the prime factor and not reason. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1018:Trying to trace it [the ego, "I"] and find its source, we see it has no separate existence but merges in the real 'I'. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1019:`Who am I to meditate on an object ?' Such a one must be told to find the Self. That is the finality. That is vichara. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1020:At each step we say in the language of the Sanskrit verse, "Even as I am appointed by Thee seated in my heart, so, O Lord, I act." ~ Sri Aurobindo, TSOY, The Master of the Work #KEYS
1021:At the end of samadhi, I must come down at least two notes below the highest note in the scale before I can utter another word. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1022:I have to create a circle of reading for myself: Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius, Lao-Tzu, Buddha, Pascal, The New Testament. This is also necessary for all people.
~ Leo Tolstoy,#KEYS
1023:I'm a simple lobster, I see JBP I establish a local dominance hierarchy by clicking the like button with my lobster claw. ~ Yolo Swaggins, JRE 1208 - Jordan Peterson, Comments, #KEYS
1024:I persecute heresy, not heretics. It is mine more to be persecuted, than to persecute. So Christ was victorious as a Crucified, and not as a crucifier. ~ Saint John Chrysostom, #KEYS
1025:Let us lay aside every weight and run with patience the race that is set before us. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Hebrews, XII. I, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1026:Mercy is heaven itself; to be good, we have all to be merciful. Even justice and right should stand on mercy. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 59), #KEYS
1027:Mother, why do I lose things so often?
Because you do not keep things sufficiently in your consciousness.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II,#KEYS
1028:Never have I dealt with anything more difficult than my own soul, which sometimes helps me and sometimes opposes me. ~ Abu Hamid al-Ghazali, #KEYS
1029:One must accustom oneself to say in the mind when one meets a man, "I will think of him only and not of myself. " ~ Tolstoi, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1030:The idea that addiction is somehow a psychological illness is, I think, totally ridiculous. It's as psychological as malaria. It's a matter of exposure. ~ William S. Burroughs, #KEYS
1031:The "I" which makes one worldly and attached to lust and wealth is mischievous. It separates the individual from the Universal. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1032:We are one, after all, you and I;together we suffer.together exist,and forever will recreate each other. ~ Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, #KEYS
1033:When the 'I' is kept up as the 'I' only, it is the Self. When it flies off at a tangent and says, 'I am this or that. I am such and such', it is the ego. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1034:At the site of Narendra, I am drunken with joy. Never have I asked him, "Who is your father?" or "How many houses have you got?" ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1035:(Darshan Message)
Sri Aurobindo's message is an immortal sunlight radiating over the future. 15 August 1972
*
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I,#KEYS
1036:I actually see that whatever is, is God. It is He who has become all these things, the mind and Buddhi are lost in the absolute. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1037:I am only the dust
on My Lover's Path
And
from dust
I will rise
and turn into a flower ! ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path#KEYS
1038:I have learned, in whatever state I am, therewith to be content,-both to abound and to suffer need. ~ Philippians IV. 11, 12, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1039:'I' is the name of God. It is the first and greatest of all mantras. Even OM is second to it. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, Day by Day, 28-6-46, [T5], #KEYS
1040:I worship the moon...
Tell me of the soft glow of a
candle light
and the sweetness of my moon. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path#KEYS
1041:Jesus loves hidden souls. A hidden flower is the most fragrant. I must strive to make the interior of my soul a resting place for the Heart of Jesus." ~ Saint Faustina Kowalska, #KEYS
1042:Lord, I am the yantra, thou art the yantri. I am the room and thou art the tenant. I am the chariot and thou art the charioteer. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1043:O Lord, though alone dost act in all this universe. I am but the smallest of tools in thine hand. Nothing is mine. All is thine! ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1044:O, Mary, my Mother, be my refuge and my shelter. Give me peace in the storm. I am tired on the journey. Let me rest in you. Shelter and protect me. ~ Saint Bernadette Soubirous, #KEYS
1045:So long as man clamours for the I and Mine, his works are as naught: When all love of the I and the Mine is dead, then the work of the Lord is done. ~ Kabir, #KEYS
1046:Sometimes you climb out of bed in the morning and you think, I'm not going to make it, but you laugh inside ~ remembering all the times you've felt that way. ~ Charles Bukowski, #KEYS
1047:Unity does not mean uniformity and the removal of all differences. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Shall India Be Free? - Unity and British Rule, #KEYS
1048:We are responsible for what we are; and whatever we wish ourselves to be, we have the power to make ourselves. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 31), #KEYS
1049:When you say "I want to serve the Divine", do you believe the All-Knowing does not know that it is a lie? 18 March 1973 ~ The Mother, mcw, 13:222, [T5], #KEYS
1050:Before I was myself, I was God in God, that is why I can again become that when I shall be dead to myself. ~ Angelus Silesius, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1051:Beware! Don't allow yourself to do what you know is wrong, relying on the thought, Later I will repent and ask God's forgiveness. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
1052:Delve down into That which only is, for when you achieve this you find 'That am I'; there is and can be nothing but That. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1053:I base my teaching on the great Vedantic truth of the sameness and omnipresence of the Soul of the Universe. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. III. 194), #KEYS
1054:I believe in Spinoza's God who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists, not in a God who concerns himself with fates and actions of human beings. ~ Albert Einstein, #KEYS
1055:I can understand that life is difficult, but the Lord's force is infinite and it is always available for those who pray for it sincerely.
~ The Mother,#KEYS
1056:I don't want to hear of any philosophy unless it grows corn." ~ Sun Bear, (1929-1992), Ojibwe descent, author of "At Home in the Wilderness", (1973), "The Path of Power", (1983), #KEYS
1057:I love the great scorners because they are the great worshippers, arrows shot by desire towards that other shore. ~ Nietzsche, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1058:It is possible for the human soul to obtain the condition of absolute union with God when one is able to say: "Soham," "I am He." ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1059:Nothing is more tedious than battling against stupidity. For before no authority does it admit defeat, by no reason is it convinced. ~ John Scotus Eriugena, Periphyseon I (489c), #KEYS
1060:Perhaps what is inexpressible (what I find mysterious and am not able to express) is the background against which whatever I could express has its meaning. ~ Ludwig Wittgenstein, #KEYS
1061:That is why it is permitted to him who has attained to the truty within, to say, "I am the true Divine." ~ Mohyiddin in Arabi, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1062:The only problem with being here now is that I'm always somewhere else when I'm thinking of it.." ~ Sri Gawn Tu Fahr, (Jean-Pierre Gregoire) author of "Love's True Home." ~ See:, #KEYS
1063:Try to be spontaneous and simple like a child in your relations with me - it will save you from many difficulties.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I,#KEYS
1064:Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, John, 14:13-14, #KEYS
1065:What, I have uttered God's name and yet I remain sinful! But I am His son! I am duly entitled to the inheritance of God's wealth! ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1066:What is needed of me that I may not fail to progress as I should?
A constant and integral aspiration.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, [T5],#KEYS
1067:Desire's so sweet
That the mere joy might seem quite crude and poor
And spoil the sweetness. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
1068:I am one with God in my being and yet I can have relations with Him in my experience. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Life Divine, The Eternal and the Individual, #KEYS
1069:I cannot be awake for nothing looks to me as it did before, Or else I am awake for the first time, and all before has been a mean sleep. ~ Walt Whitman, #KEYS
1070:Have You Forgotten Me:::
have you forgotten me
or lost the path here?
i wait for you
all day, every day
but you do not appear.
~ Taigu Ryokan,#KEYS
1071:Listen and learn how you are to awaken Christ. Your soul says: I charge you, daughters of Jerusalem, awaken or reawaken the love of my heart. Christ is that love. ~ Saint Ambrose, #KEYS
1072:Lo! This is self-awareness! It surpasses all avenues of speech and thought.
I, Tilopa, have nothing to reveal. You should know it yourself through inward examination. ~ Tilopa,#KEYS
1073:My Heart, so precious, I won't trade for a hundred thousand souls, yet your one smile takes it for Free." ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
1074:O garden! O garden! Let me use your roses for my rosary and I will let your flowers bloom in every heart. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
1075:So long as one has not seen the divine vision, so long there must remain the illusion: "I am the doer. I have done evil and good." ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1076:So, this is my life. And I want you to know that I am both happy and sad and Im still trying to figure out how that could be.
~ Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower,#KEYS
1077:The Bible says, "Be still and know that I am God". Stillness is the sole requisite for the realisation of the Self as God. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1078:The harmony of the inner and outer man which is the true meaning of civilisation. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Renaissance in India, "Is India Civilised?" - I, #KEYS
1079:"All things are lawful for me," but not all things are helpful. "All things are lawful for me," but I will not be enslaved by anything. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, 1 Corinthians, 6:12, #KEYS
1080:I am in love with no other than myself, and my very separation is my union... I am my beloved and my lover; I am my knight and my maiden. ~ Ibn Arabi, [T5], #KEYS
1081:I see that it is the Absolute who has become all things about us; it is He who appears as the finite soul and the phenomenal world. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1082:It is through the Cosmic Shakti that the Divine creates. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I: Sachchidananda, Existence, Consciousness-Force and Bliss, #KEYS
1083:Just as you enter this church building, so God wishes to enter into your soul, for he promised: I shall live in them, I shall walk through their hearts. ~ Saint Caesarius of Arles, #KEYS
1084:Killing myself was a matter of such indifference to me that I felt like waiting for a moment when it would make some difference. ~ Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Dream of a Ridiculous Man, #KEYS
1085:Master invisible filling all hearts and directing them from within, to whatever side I look, Thou dwellest there. ~ Bharon Guru, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1086:My Divine Mother says that it is only when you have effaced all I-ness in you that the undifferentiated may be realized in samadhi. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1087:Samadhi forest has a host. The abbot, and I'm the guest. Host and guest, we each other have our own mind. But they're both quiet as the same mountain peak. ~ WangAnShih, 1021-1086, #KEYS
1088:She has her secret calls
And works divinely behind play and sleep,
Shaping her infant powers. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
1089:Stand up and say like a hero, "What is there that I cannot do? I am the child of Immortality: Immortality is my birthright, nothing can dispossess me of that!" ~ SWAMI VIRAJANANDA, #KEYS
1090:The cosmic mind being not limited by the ego, has nothing separate from itself and is therefore only aware. This is what the Bible means by "I am that I AM". ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1091:Almost everything that I've ever worried about has never happened." ~ Ian Tucker, English author, wrote "Your Simple Path: Find happiness in every step,", (2014), etc. More quotes:, #KEYS
1092:For where I found Truth, there found I my God, the Truth itself; which since I learnt, I have not forgotten. ~ Saint Augustine of Hippo, [T5], #KEYS
1093:If you completely surrender all your responsibilities to me, I will accept them as mine and manage them. ~ Sri Ramana Maharsh?, Padamaliai, Behagavan's promises to His Devotees, 14, #KEYS
1094:How wonderful :::
How wonderful, that
Her heart
Should show me kindness;
And of all the numberless folk,
Grief should not touch me. ~ Saigyo, [T5],#KEYS
1095:I move in an ocean of stupendous Light
Joining my depths to His eternal height. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Light,#KEYS
1096:In omnibus requiem quaesivi, et nusquam inveni nisi in angulo cum libro.
(Everywhere I have sought peace and not found it, except in a corner with a book.) ~ Thomas a Kempis#KEYS
1097:I think a spiritual journey is not so much a journey of discovery it's a journey of recovery. It's a journey of uncovering you own inter nature. It's already there." ~ Billy Corgan, #KEYS
1098:Our inferences are often wrong and even when they are right touch only the surface of the matter. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Occult Knowledge, #KEYS
1099:To live in the wideness of the Intuition is not possible with the limitation of the ego. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Higher Planes of Mind, #KEYS
1100:For she alone is prompter on our stage,
And all things move by an established doom,
Not freely. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
1101:I am but a guest in this world. While others rush about to get things done, I accept what is offered. I drift like a wave on the ocean. I blow as aimless as the wind. ~ Tao Te Ching, #KEYS
1102:I am never far from those with faith, or even from those without it, though they do not see me. My children will always, always, be protected by my compassion. ~ Guru Rinpoche, [T5], #KEYS
1103:I am not really impressed by someone who can turn the floor into the ceiling, or fire into water. A real miracle is if someone can liberate just one negative emotion. ~ Lerab Lingpa, #KEYS
1104:I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend. ~ J R R Tolkien, The Two Towers, #KEYS
1105:I f you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future. If you are at peace you are living in the present. ~ Lao Tzu, #KEYS
1106:I have beheld the princes of the Sun
Burning in thousand-pillared homes of light. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, Satyavan and Savitri,#KEYS
1107:I love the dark hours of my being. My mind deepens into them.There I can find, as in old letters, the days of my life, already lived, and held like a legend, and understood. ~ Rilke, #KEYS
1108:Imagine a family unbound by numbers or appearance with no 'I' left to suffer, it finds eternal nourishment in We." ~ Phoenix Desmond, author of "Make Love to the Universe,", (2011)., #KEYS
1109:I must attain perfection in this life! I must find God with a single utterance!" By such violent love, the Lord is quickly attracted. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1110:Indeed, I am a forest and a night of dark trees: but he who is not afraid of my darkness will also find rose slopes under my cypresses. ~ Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, #KEYS
1111:I was dead, then alive.
Weeping, then laughing.
The power of love came into me,
and I became fierce like a lion,
then tender like the evening star. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi,#KEYS
1112:I would act towards others with a heart pure and filled with love exactly as I would have them act to- wards me. ~ Lalita Vistara, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1113:Know thyself and thou shalt know the non-self, the Lord of all. Ponder deeply and thou shalt know that there is no such thing as "I". ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1114:Many with a show of humility say, "I am like a low worm grovelling in the dust." Thus in time, they become weak in spirit like worms. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1115:My solitude doesn't depend on the presence or absence of people; on the contrary, I hate who steals my solitude without, in exchange, offering me true company. ~ Friedrich Nietzsche, #KEYS
1116:Our hands imbibe like roots,
so I place them on what is beautiful in this world.
And I fold them in prayer, and they draw from the heavens, light. ~ Saint Francis of Assisi,#KEYS
1117:Repeating The Name Of The Beloved :::
Repeating the name of the Beloved
I have become the Beloved myself.
Whom shall I call the Beloved now? ~ Bulleh Shah, [T5],#KEYS
1118:So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, "You are a God of seeing," for she said, "Truly here I have seen him who looks after me." ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Genesis, 16:13, #KEYS
1119:The nature of poetry is to soar on the wings of the inspiration to the highest intensities. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Future Poetry, Recent English Poetry - I, #KEYS
1120:They shut our eyes and drive us, but at last
Our souls remember when the act is done. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Short Stories - I, Act Five,#KEYS
1121:Women are but so many forms of my Divine Mother. I cannot bear to see them suffer; They are all images of the Mother of the Universe. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1122:Go deep inside the temple and you will find me there.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, The Mother, Relations with Others, 'I am with You', [T1],#KEYS
1123:If all else perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be; and if all else remained, and he were annihilated, the universe would turn to a mighty stranger. ~ Emily Brontë, #KEYS
1124:I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.
~ Leonardo da Vinci,#KEYS
1125:I know no sin, nor sinner. Everybody behaves according to his nature. It cannot be helped, nor need it be regretted. ~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, #KEYS
1126:limitations gone :::
limitations gone
since my mind fixed on the moon
clarity and serenity
make something for which
there's no end in sight ~ Saigyo,#KEYS
1127:I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 116:1-2, NIV, #KEYS
1128:Why are we on earth?
To find the Divine who is in each of us and in all things.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, The True Aim of Life [3],#KEYS
1129:I wish I had never been born," she said. "What are we born for?" "For infinite happiness," said the Spirit. "you can step out into it at any moment..." ~ C S Lewis, The Great Divorce, #KEYS
1130:Who knows this ruler within, he knows the worlds and the gods and creatures and the Self, he knows all. ~ Mundaka Upanishad I.210., the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1131:Even when we are blinded by the fulfillment of every worldly desire there may arise in us this question: "Who am I who enjoy all this?" ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1132:It is ignorance that thinks that "I am the doer." All our strength is the strength of God. All is silent if the divine fire is removed. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1133:I will rise now and go about the city in the streets and the broadways, I will seek him whom my soul loveth. ~ Songs of Songs III.2, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1134:Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Jeremiah, 29:12-13, #KEYS
1135:The vision of faith penetrates into the remote future and turns the impossible into the possible. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, The Leverage of Faith, #KEYS
1136:Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 23:4,#KEYS
1137:Even when we are blinded by the fulfillment of every worldly desire there may arise in us this question: "Who am I who enjoys all this?" ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1138:Happy are they whom Truth herself instructs not by words and figures but by showing herself as she is. ~ Imitation of Christ I. 3. 7, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1139:Hoof-Mark on Breast (Sri Vatsa)
To lift our hopes heaven-high and to extend them
As wide as earth. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
1140:I give order to those who are perfectly and totally surrendered, as these orders cannot be discussed or disobeyed.
~ The Mother, More Answers From The Mother,#KEYS
1141:I tell those that come to me to lead a life unattached like a maid-servant. I tell them to live unattached to this world, but not of it. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1142:Well do I know myself :::
Well do I know myself, so
Your coldness
I did not think to blame, yet
My bitterness has
Soaked my sleeves, it seems ~ Saigyo,#KEYS
1143:Once I took as Mantra the name of Allah from a Mohammedan teacher and repeated the name for several days, strictly observing their ways. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1144:The idea of self is the Maya of the soul. It is our egotism that shuts out the light. When this "I" is gone, all difficulty will vanish. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1145:The intellectual conclusion the Jnana has come to is: "I am not the body. I am one with the Universal Soul, unconditioned and absolute." ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1146:There is only the One. Try to realise there is no I, no you, no he, only the one Self which is all. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, Conscious Immortality, [T5], #KEYS
1147:Where I have once loved, I do not cease from loving. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Autobiographical Notes and Other Writings of Historical Interest, To His Father-in-Law, #KEYS
1148:Do I wish that the Christian would become Hindu? God forbid. Do I wish that the Hindu or Buddhist would become Christian? God forbid. ~ Swami Vivekananda, #KEYS
1149:Dread shows a weakness—the free spirit can stand fearless before even the biggest forces of Nature. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Morality and Yoga, #KEYS
1150:Fate orders all and Fate I now
Have recognised as the world's mystic Will
That loves and labours. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act III,#KEYS
1151:I am God's servant and I am here to obey God's wishes. When this idea becomes firm, there remains nothing which one could call their own. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1152:If by God's grace the thought that "I am not the doer" is established in the heart, one becomes free in this life; there is no more fear. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1153:I saw only the glory of green emeralds, and radiant buddhas walking everywhere, and there was no I to see any of this, but the emeralds were there just the same. ~ Ken Wilber, One Taste, #KEYS
1154:I say to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly. ~ Romans X II, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1155:Looking at you from within the Self, I never leave you.
How can this fact be known to your externalised vision? ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, Padamalai, 37,#KEYS
1156:Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, John, 14:27, #KEYS
1157:The day I acquired the habit of consciously pronouncing the words thank you, I felt I had gained possession of a magic wand capable of transforming everything. ~ Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov, #KEYS
1158:The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 18:2, #KEYS
1159:The servant "I" of a devotee, or the "I" of a child, each of these is like a line drawn with a stick on the water. It does not last long. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1160:This is the highest wisdom that I own; freedom and life are earned by those alone who conquer them each day anew.
~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe,#KEYS
1161:This is the Nemesis of men who rise
Too suddenly by fraud or violence
That they suspect all hearts. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
1162:When I used to sit in meditation in the temple of Kali, little birds would perch upon my body and move about in sport. Everybody said so. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1163:He who thus knows, "I am the Eternal", the gods themselves cannot make him other, for he is their own self. ~ Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1164:I would be happy with a hole in the ground and a little plaque saying something like this, 'Here lies Al Schwartz. He tried his best for Jesus. That's it… ~ Venerable Aloysius Schwartz, #KEYS
1165:Not only the making of new forms is creation, but preservation is creation, destruction itself is creation. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Bhawani Mandir, #KEYS
1166:To express our gratitude to Sri Aurobindo we can do nothing better than to be a living demonstration of his teaching.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T3],#KEYS
1167:When shall I be free? When that "I" has vanished. "I" and "Mine" is ignorance. "Thou" and "Thine" is knowledge. Thou, O Lord are the doer. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1168:With my soul have I desired thee in the night; with my spirit within me will I seek thee early. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Isaiah, XXVI.9, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1169:He who makes to be heard words without harshness, true and instructive, by which he injures none, he, I say, is a Brahmin. ~ Dhammapada, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1170:If the mind is not under control, it is no use living in a cave because the same mind will bring all disturbances there. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 440), #KEYS
1171:Love :::
Love.
So many different ways
to have been in love.
The maidservants
Trying to take a peep
Knock down the screen!
~ Nozawa Boncho,#KEYS
1172:I say, wherever and in whatever condition you may live, the dirt of the world will cause no harm to you. The Master is there; you need not be afraid, you need not worry. ~ Sri Sarada Devi, #KEYS
1173:Love is, when God says to you, "I have created everything for you." And you say, "I have left everything for you." ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
1174:My soul is a hidden orchestra; I don't know what instruments; what harps, tamboura,and drums inside me. I sound and clash inside myself. I only know myself as a symphony ~ Fernando Pessoa, #KEYS
1175:Not being Identified with the body, neither am I subject to the necessities of the body, such as hunger, thirst, birth, death, and disease. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1176:There can be no national development without national liberty. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Shall India be Free? - National Development and Foreign Rule, #KEYS
1177:When one lives for oneself, one lives only a portion of his true "I". When one lives for others, one feels his "I" expanding. ~ Tolstoi, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1178:You need not entertain any fear. I say, in the Kali Yuga the mental commission of a sin is no sin at all. Free your mind from all such worries. You have nothing to fear. ~ Sri Sarada Devi, #KEYS
1179:All life is the play of universal forces. The individual gives a personal form to these universal forces. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Occult Knowledge, #KEYS
1180:And as long as space endures, As long as there are beings to be found, May I continue likewise to remain To sooth the sufferings of those who live." ~ the Dalai Lama, (b. 1940), Wikipedia., #KEYS
1181:And when I saw the Lamb open the sixth seal, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black like sackcloth of goat hair, and the whole moon turned blood red, ..." ~ Revelation 6:12, #KEYS
1182:I am present in the great lotus chakra dvaadasanta which has a thousand petals and is brilliant like millions of suns and millions of moons. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1183:I am sorry to inform you that due to medical problems this is my last tweet. I have very much enjoyed spreading the wisdom of Nisargadatta and others and reading your comments. ~ Ed Hacker, #KEYS
1184:I am weeping without knowing why.
Weep if you like, but do not worry. After the rain the sun shines more bright.
~ The Mother, Some Answers From The Mother,#KEYS
1185:I have tried to learn about every system, but I have accepted the true doctrines of the Christians, though these are not approved by those who are held fast by error. ~ Saint Justin Martyr, #KEYS
1186:I write differently from what I speak, I speak differently from what I think, I think differently from the way I ought to think, and so it all proceeds into deepest darkness. ~ Franz Kafka, #KEYS
1187:Nature is my manifestation of God. I go to nature every day for inspiration in the day's work. I follow in building the principles which nature has used in its domain" ~ Frank Lloyd Wright, #KEYS
1188:Oh Mother, I am the chariot and you are the driver. I speak as you will me to speak; I act as you, within me, act ... not I, not I, but you! ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1189:Some make riches the object of their desires, others glory. For me, I desire nothing save to cling to God and put in Him alone the hope of my soul stripped of passion. ~ John of the Ladder, #KEYS
1190:The Self alone exists; and the Self alone is real. Verily the Self alone is the world, the I-I and God. All that exists is but the manifestation of the Supreme Being. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1191:A nation cannot be made,—it is an organism which grows under the stress of a principle of life within. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Shall India Be Free?, #KEYS
1192:And I believe in love, even when there's no one there. And I believe in God, even when he is silent" ~ First stanza of poem etch by a Jew on a cellar wall doing the Holocaust. For poem see:, #KEYS
1193:Holy Knowledge, by thee illumined, I hymn by thee the ideal light; I rejoice with the joy of the Intelligence. ~ Hermes: "On the Rebirth", the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1194:Liberty is the first requisite for the sound health and vigorous life of a nation. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Shall India be Free? - The Loyalist Gospel, #KEYS
1195:Others boast of their love for God. My boast is that I did not love God; it was He who loved me and sought me out and forced me to belong to Him. ~ Sri Aurobindo, #KEYS
1196:Solitude is for me a fount of healing which makes my life worth living. Talking is often a torment for me, and I need many days of silence to recover from the futility of words. ~ Carl Jung, #KEYS
1197:The supramental descent is necessary for a dynamic action of the Truth in mind, vital and body. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Transformation and the Body, #KEYS
1198:To whatsoever living form I turn
I see my own body with another face. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, The Indwelling Universal,#KEYS
1199:You evidently do not suffer from "quotation-hunger" as I do! I get all the dictionaries of quotations I can meet with, as I always want to know where a quotation comes from. ~ Lewis Carroll, #KEYS
1200:A Force may be in action or in quiescence, but when it rests, it is as much a Force as when it acts. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Sankhya-Yoga System, #KEYS
1201:He has so many creations, and yet He never forgets me, but I only have One Creator, and I've forgotten him countless of times." ~ Saadi, @Sufi_Path #KEYS
1202:Hidden in an earthly garment that survives,
I am the worldless being vast and free. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Immortality,#KEYS
1203:I have seen all the snares of the enemy spread out over the world, and I said with a groan, "Who can get through such snares?" Then I heard a voice say to me, "Humility." ~ Anthony the Great, #KEYS
1204:When I calmed my mind And entered my heart, The Love of the Lord Leapt like a flame within me. All my old ideas and beliefs Just blew away like chaff to the wind. ~ Kabir, #KEYS
1205:All you can say about yourself is: 'I am.' You are pure being - awareness - bliss. To realise that is the end of all seeking. ~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, #KEYS
1206:Behind all eyes I meet Thy secret gaze
And in each voice I hear Thy magic tune: ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Because Thou Art,#KEYS
1207:Each being who renounces his self and detaches himself completely from it, hears within this voice and this echo, "I am God. ~ Gulschen Raz, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1208:Each finite thing I see is a façade;
From its windows looks at me the Illimitable. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Omnipresence,#KEYS
1209:I couldn't live a week without a private library - indeed, I'd part with all my furniture and squat and sleep on the floor before I'd let go of the 1500 or so books I possess. ~ H P Lovecraft, #KEYS
1210:If you hold this feeling of 'I' long enough and strongly, the false 'I' will vanish, leaving only the unbroken awareness of the real, immanent 'I', Consciousness itself. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1211:I no longer wish to live after the manner of men, and my desire shall be fulfilled if you consent. Be willing, then, that you also may have your desires fulfilled. ~ Saint Ignatius of Antioch, #KEYS
1212:I suggest that the only books that influence us are those for which we are ready, and which have gone a little further down our particular path than we have yet gone ourselves. ~ E.M. Forster #KEYS
1213:I think we should take the set of actions that are most likely to make the future better, and then reevaluate those actions to make sure that its true. ~ Elon Musk, Joe Rogan Experience, 1169, #KEYS
1214:It is only when the lower perversions are got rid of that the higher things in their truth can reign. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Sankhya-Yoga System, #KEYS
1215:Kali (Iron Lords of Time)
Am love, am passion; I create the world.
I am the only Brahma. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Kama,#KEYS
1216:Music is, to me, proof of the existence of God. It is so extraordinarily full of magic, and in tough times of my life I can listen to music and it makes such a difference. ~ Kurt Vonnegut Jr., #KEYS
1217:Mysteriously, wonderfully, I bid farewell to what goes. I greet what comes; For what comes cannot be denied, and what goes cannot be detained. ~ Chuang Tzu. "The complete works of Chuang Tzu", #KEYS
1218:The books we love, they love us back. And just as we mark our places in the pages, those pages leave their marks on us. I can see it in you, sure as I see it in me. ~ Jay Kristoff, Nevernight, #KEYS
1219:The cross to me is certain salvation. The cross is that which I ever adore. The cross of the Lord is with me. The cross is my refuge. ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, #KEYS
1220:The Lord did everything in a mystery. . . He said, 'I came to make the things below like the things above, and the things outside like those inside. I came to unite them.
~ Gospel of Philip,#KEYS
1221:Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all pollutionof the flesh and spirit. ~ II Corinthians VII. I, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1222:How can you draw close to God when you are far from your own self? Grant, Lord, that I may know myself that I may know thee.
~ Saint Augustine of Hippo,#KEYS
1223:I am too intelligent, too demanding, and too resourceful for anyone to be able to take charge of me entirely. No one knows me or loves me completely. I have only myself.
~ Simone de Beauvoir,#KEYS
1224:The nature of art is to strive after a nobler beauty and more sustained perfection than life can give. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Future Poetry, Recent English Poetry - I, #KEYS
1225:The Self is the essence of this universe, the essence of all souls; He is the essence of your own life, nay, 'Thou art That'. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 374), #KEYS
1226:What more shall I tell you? Keep your mind on God. Don't forget Him. God will certainly reveal Himself to you if you pray to Him with sincerity. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1227:Abandon all dharmas and take refuge in Me alone; I will deliver thee from all sin and evil; do not grieve. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Synthesis Of Yoga, (Gita 18:66), [T5}, #KEYS
1228:Destiny in the rigid sense applies only to the outer being so long as it lives in the Ignorance. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Fate, Free Will and Prediction, #KEYS
1229:As we move toward death, we realize that all we can take with us is our selves." ~ Robert Earl Burton, "Self-Remembering,", (1995). Teacher of The Fourth Way, (the teachings of G. I. Gurdjieff)., #KEYS
1230:I am beset, too, by obsessively remembered thudding guilts and scalding shames. Small potatoes, as traumas go, but intensified by my aversion to facing them. ~ Peter Schjeldahl, The Art of Dying, #KEYS
1231:I don't like religion much, and I am glad that in the Bible the word is not to be found." ~ Martin Buber, (1878 - 1965) Austrian philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue, Wikipedia., #KEYS
1232:I made the journey to knowledge like dogs who go for walks with their masters, a hundred times forward and backward over the same territory; and when I arrived I was tired. ~ Georg C Lichtenberg, #KEYS
1233:Some make riches the object of their desires, others glory. For me, I desire nothing save to cling to God and put in Him alone the hope of my soul stripped of passion. ~ Saint John of the Ladder, #KEYS
1234:True happiness lies in the finding and maintenance of a natural harmony of spirit, mind and body. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Renaissance in India, "Is India Civilised?" - I, #KEYS
1235:Action without desire is possible, action without attachment is possible, action without ego is possible. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Sankhya-Yoga System, #KEYS
1236:As I take up my pen I feel myself so full, so equal to my subject, and see my book so clearly before me in embryo, I would almost like to try to say it all in a single word. ~ Georg C Lichtenberg, #KEYS
1237:He whose mind is utterly pure from all evil as the Sun is pure of stain and the moon of soil, him indeed I call a man of religion. ~ Udanavagga, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1238:Hitherto you have experienced truth only with the abstract intellect. I will bring you where you can taste it like honey and be embraced by it as by a bridegroom. ~ C. S. Lewis, The Great Divorce, #KEYS
1239:I tell you, on the day of judgment men will render account for every careless word they utter; for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned. ~ Matthew 12:36-37, #KEYS
1240:Let no man deceive himself; if any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him a fool that he may be wise. ~ I. Corinthians III. 18, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1241:Naked my spirit from its vestures stands;
I am alone with my own self for space. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, The Self's Infinity,#KEYS
1242:There is an obscure mind and life even in the cells of the body, the stones or in molecules and atoms. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Physical Consciousness, #KEYS
1243:There is one Purusha—its action is according to the position and need of the consciousness at the time. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Sankhya-Yoga System, #KEYS
1244:This is good because it bans something I disagree with ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (it would be bad if it was something I agreed with) twitter.com/disclosetv/sta…, #KEYS
1245:Whenever I write a novel, I have a strong sense that I am doing something I was unable to do before. With each new work, I move up a step and discover something new inside me.
~ Haruki Murakami,#KEYS
1246:When you walk along the way, speak to yourself, speak to Christ. Hear him say to you: I desire that in every place men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling. ~ Saint Ambrose, #KEYS
1247:44. If God draw me towards Heaven, then, even if His other hand strive to keep me in Hell, yet must I struggle upward.
~ Sri Aurobindo, Essays Divine And Human, Jnana,#KEYS
1248:All debts must be paid. All that one has inflicted one has to suffer, before one can become free. So those who wish for freedom can only say: Let what comes come; I will accept it. ~ Rodney Collin, #KEYS
1249:I, Earth, have a deeper power than Heaven;
My lonely sorrow surpasses its rose-joys. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, The Life Heavens,#KEYS
1250:Let me be fodder for wild beasts — that is how I can attain to God. I am God's wheat and I am being ground by the teeth of wild beasts to make a pure loaf for Christ. ~ Saint Ignatius of Antioch, #KEYS
1251:One day I had to sit down with myself and decide that I loved myself no matter what my body looked like and what other people thought about my body. I got tired of hating myself. ~ Gabourey Sidibe, #KEYS
1252:Should you ask me what is the first thing in religion, I should reply that the first, second, and third thing therein is humility. ~ Saint Augustine of Hippo, #KEYS
1253:The supramental influence must come first, the supramental transformation can only come afterwards. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Supramental Transformation, #KEYS
1254:And shall I then no longer be? Yes, thou shalt be, but thou shalt be something else of which the world will have need at that moment. ~ Epictetus, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1255:I am desperate […] I do not know anymore what to do for humanity to mend its ways. If it continues on this path, the tremendous anger of God will rage like a bolt of lightning." ~ Saint Padre Pio, #KEYS
1256:I regard consciousness as fundamental. I regard matter as derivative from consciousness. Everything that we talk about, everything that we regard as existing, postulates consciousness. ~ Max Planck, #KEYS
1257:Make your entire life an expression of your faith and love for your teacher. This is real dwelling with the Guru. ~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj, I Am That, Ch 32, #KEYS
1258:So often, science fiction helps to get young people interested in science. That's why I don't mind talking about science fiction. It has a real role to play: to seize the imagination. ~ Michio Kaku, #KEYS
1259:The mind is restless, strong, insistent, violently disturbing; to control it I hold to be as difficult as to control the wind. ~ Bhagavad Gita VI, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1260:The reason you want to be better is the reason why you aren't, shall I put it like that? We aren't better because we want to be. Because the road to hell is paved with good intentions. ~ Alan Watts, #KEYS
1261:We are creating new fate for the future even while undergoing old fate from the past in the present. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Fate, Free Will and Prediction, #KEYS
1262:But I have loved too the body of my God.
I have pursued him in his earthly form. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, The Dream Twilight of the Earthly Real,#KEYS
1263:Even as I are these, even as they am I,-identifying himself thus with others, the wise man neither kills nor is a cause of killing. ~ Sutta Nipata, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1264:How should I continue my practice (sadhana) after returning home?
Quiet yourself and in the quiet see and feel the Mother.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, [T1],#KEYS
1265:Impassive, I bear each act and thought and mood:
Time traverses my hushed infinitude. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, The Cosmic Spirit,#KEYS
1266:Let's not forget that what is looking out of your eyes and hearing with your ears right now is already Spirit. And that Spirit, that I AMness, is always present in all sentient beings. ~ ken-wilber, #KEYS
1267:There is nothing holier in the world than to keep good company, because the good impressions will then tend to come to the surface. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. I. 220), #KEYS
1268:What in me is dark
Illumine, what is low raise and support;
That, to the height of this great argument,
I may assert Eternal Providence,
And justify the ways of God to men. ~ John Milton,#KEYS
1269:I carry the fire that never can be quenched.
~ Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, 07.04 - The Triple Soul-Forces,#KEYS
1270:No man or nation need be weak unless he chooses, no man or nation need perish unless he deliberately chooses extinction. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Bhawani Mandir, #KEYS
1271:Now, if you don't like that, Berrigan, that's the history of my family. They don't take no shit from nobody. In due time I ain't going to take no shit from nobody. You can record that. ~ Jack Kerouac, #KEYS
1272:Our warfare does not make the living dead, but rather makes the dead to live, because it is conducted in the spirit of meekness and humility. I persecute by word, not by acts. ~ Saint John Chrysostom, #KEYS
1273:Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart. ~ Steve Jobs, #KEYS
1274:Whoever, without having the true science to which Life offers witness, fancies he knows something, knows, I repeat, nothing. ~ Epistle to Diognetus, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1275:But standing on Eternity's luminous brink
I have discovered that the world was He; ~ Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, The Dream Twilight of the Earthly Real,#KEYS
1276:in all this nothing is without refuge. I alone have nowhere in life to turn. Forever drunk, I face rock-born moon, sing for wildflowers sights and smells." ~ Li Bai, (aka Li Po, 701-762), Chinese poet, #KEYS
1277:I wrote the books I should have liked to read. That's always been my reason for writing. People won't write the books I want, so I have to do it for myself. ~ C S Lewis, quoted by Roger Lancelyn Green, #KEYS
1278:Mind your business.
Take care of what you came here for.
Find the 'I' first and you may afterwards speak of other matters. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, Talks, 161,#KEYS
1279:So it is now that you find yourselves at the vigil of the great trial which I foretold to you: it will be the supreme manifestation of the divine justice and mercy." ~ Our Lady to Father Stefano Gobbi, #KEYS
1280:Unborn I sit, timeless, intangible:
All things are shadows in my tranquil glass. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, The Indwelling Universal,#KEYS
1281:I encourage all you superior seekers in the secret depths to devote yourselves to penetrating and clarifying the self, as earnestly as you would put out a fire on the top of your head.
~ Hakuin Ekaku,#KEYS
1282:No-Man's Land
Non-violence is better than violence as a rule, and still sometimes violence may be the right thing. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Morality and Yoga,#KEYS
1283:O my Lord, the stars glitter
and the eyes of men are closed.
Kings have locked their doors
and each lover is alone with his beloved.
Here, I am alone with you.
~ Rabia al-Adawiyya,#KEYS
1284:Stories lie deep in our souls. Stories lie so deep at the bottom of our hearts that they can bring people together on the deepest level. When I write a novel, I go into such depths.
~ Haruki Murakami,#KEYS
1285:To be and to become more and more what the Divine wants us to be should be our greatest preoccupation.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, The True Aim of Life, [T0],#KEYS
1286:When we start to feel anxious or depressed, instead of asking, "What do I need to get to be happy?" The question becomes, "What am I doing to disturb the inner peace that I already have?" ~ D.T. Suzuki, #KEYS
1287:and that she had declared this doctrine to be part of the original revelation. It is difficult, impossible to imagine, I grant; — but how is it difficult to believe? ~ Saint John Henry Cardinal Newman, #KEYS
1288:For thirty years I went in Search of God, and when I opened my eyes at the end of this time, I discovered that it was really He who sought me…" ~ Bayazid Bistami, (804-874), a Persian Sufi, Wikipedia., #KEYS
1289:He whose mind is utterly purified from soil, as heaven is pure from stain and the moon from dust, him indeed I call a man of religion. ~ Buddhist Text, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1290:Last night I dreamed about you. What happened in detail I can hardly remember, all I know is that we kept merging into one another. I was you, you were me. Finally you somehow caught fire. ~ Franz Kafka, #KEYS
1291:Let my skin and sinews and bones dry up, together with all the flesh and blood of my body! I welcome it! But I will not move from this spot until I have attained the supreme and final wisdom.
~ Buddha,#KEYS
1292:The object of life is the growth of the soul, not outward success of the hour or even of the near future. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Fate, Free Will and Prediction, #KEYS
1293:These words are hard to utter, for when I speak it is myself that I am reproaching. I do not preach as I should nor does my life follow the principles I preach so inadequately. ~ Saint Gregory the Great, #KEYS
1294:43. If God assigns to me my place in Hell, I do not know why I should aspire to Heaven. He knows best what is for my welfare.
~ Sri Aurobindo, Essays Divine And Human, Jnana,#KEYS
1295:Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, 1 Peter, II. 11, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1296:How can I make Sri Aurobindo's influence living and dynamic in my daily activities?
Be perfectly sincere and He will answer your call.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I,#KEYS
1297:Kama (Desire)
My desire
Takes many forms; I change and wheel and race,
And with Me runs creation. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Kama,#KEYS
1298:My vast transcendence holds the cosmic whirl;
I am hid in it as in the sea a pearl. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, The Indwelling Universal,#KEYS
1299:Thou must die to thyself to reach God's height:
I, Death, am the gate of immortality. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, The Dream Twilight of the Earthly Real,#KEYS
1300:When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down 'happy.' They told me I didn't understand the assignment, and I told them they didn't understand life." ~ John Lennon, #KEYS
1301:All things, by desiring their own perfection, desire God Himself, inasmuch as the perfections of all things are so many similitudes of the divine being. ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae I.6.1 ad 2, #KEYS
1302:Feb 6 "I had learned in my college days that one cannot imagine anything so strange or so little believable that it had not been said by one of the philosophers." ~ Descartes, Discourse on Method, part 2., #KEYS
1303:Foemen! they are our playmates in the fight
And should be dear as friends who share our hours
Of closeness and desire. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
1304:My I is God, nor is any other self known to me except my God." ~ Saint Catherine of Genoa, (1447-1510) Italian Roman Catholic saint and mystic, admired for her work among the sick and the poor, Wikipedia., #KEYS
1305:Our I is not that spiritual being which can look on the Divine Existence and say, "That am I". ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Life Divine, The Progress to Knowledge - God, Man and Nature, #KEYS
1306:The sixth day before the Passover was the first day of the week, i.e., the Palm Sunday on which our Lord entered Jerusalem ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (In John 12, lect. 1)., #KEYS
1307:Vanity of vanities, all is vanity. What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun? ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Ecclesiastes, I, 2, 3, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1308:All depends on what you expect from life, but if you sincerely want to do the Yoga, you must abstain from all sexual activities.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, [T4],#KEYS
1309:If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, 1 Corinthians, 13:2 #KEYS
1310:I was fascinated by quotations and lists. And then I noticed that other people were fascinated by quotations and lists: people as different as Borges and Walter Benjamin, Novalis and Godard. ~ Susan Sontag, #KEYS
1311:Keep always this awareness of my constant loving presence and all will be all right.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, The Mother, Relations with Others, 'I am with You', [T1],#KEYS
1312:My Child, What I want is Muscles of Iron and Nerves of Steel, inside which Dwells a Mind of the same Material as that of which the Thunderbolt is Made.
~ Swami Vivekananda,#KEYS
1313:When asked "Who I Am', the only answer possible is: I am the infinite, the vastness that is the substance of all things. I am no one and everyone, nothing and everything - just as you are." ~ Suzanne Segal, #KEYS
1314:When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years. ~ Mark Twain #KEYS
1315:Allhumma innee as'aluka'l huda, wa'ttuqa, wa'l afaafa,wa'l ghina. ~ O Allah I ask You for guidance, piety, dignified restraint, and freedom from need)., @Sufi_Path #KEYS
1316:Eternal Presence
[facsimile]
Sri Aurobindo is constantly among us and reveals himself to those who are ready to see and hear him.
*
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T5],#KEYS
1317:Give me an increase of love, that I may learn to taste with the inward lips of my heart how sweet it is to love, how sweet to be dissolved in love and bathe in it. ~ Thomas A Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, #KEYS
1318:He who abstains from all violence towards beings, to the weak as to the strong, who kills not and makes not to kill, he, I say, is a Brahmin. ~ Dhammapada, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1319:I am the light in stars, of flowers
The bloom, the nameless fragrance that pervades
Creation. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Love and Death,#KEYS
1320:I want to be able to feel her constantly with me.
The Mother is always there with you. You have only to throw away the forces of Ignorance to feel her with you always. ~ Sri Aurobindo, TMWLOTM,#KEYS
1321:Lord, I beg you in the name of Jesus Christ, your Son and my God, give me a love that cannot stumble so that my lamp can be lit but can never go out: let it burn in me and give light to others. ~ Columbanus, #KEYS
1322:So long as the mind stops at the observation of multiple details, it does not enter into the general field of true knowledge. ~ Patanjali: Aphorisms. I 49, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1323:The sentiment of unity is not sufficient to create unity; we require also the practice of unity. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Shall India Be Free? - Unity and British Rule, #KEYS
1324:I hardly ever talk- words seem such a waste, and they are none of them true. No one has yet invented a language from my point of view. ~ Aleister Crowley, Diary of a Drug Fiend, #KEYS
1325:I hear and behold God in every object, yet understand God not in the least." ~ Walt Whitman, (1819 - 1892) American poet, essayist, and journalist. From his poem, "Song of Myself.", #KEYS
1326:My brain is only a receiver, in the Universe there is a core from which we obtain knowledge, strength, inspiration. I have not penetrated into the secrets of this core, but I know it exists.
~ Nikola Tesla,#KEYS
1327:Utter SILENCE must be observed in the room. Whoever pronounces a word in the presence of Sri Aurobindo will have to leave the place immediately.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I,#KEYS
1328:When thou takest cognizance of what thine "I" is, then art thou delivered from egoism and shalt know that thou art not other than God. ~ Mohyddin-ibn-Arabi, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1329:Cease to search out death with such ardour in the strayings of your life, use not the work of your hands to win that which shall destroy you. ~ Wisdom I. 12, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1330:For then alone do we know God truly, when we believe that He is far above all that man can possibly think of God. ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, Summa contra Gentiles, I, 5, par. 3, #KEYS
1331:I realized that the whole world was filled with God alone. One cannot have spiritual realization without destroying ignorance; so I would assume the attitude of a tiger and devour ignorance. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, #KEYS
1332:I would follow the road of straightness, the unstained way of which the sages speak, which has no windings and leads straight to deliverance. ~ Psalms. IX30, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1333:What torture, My daughter, for my maternal Heart! How sad I am to see that men do not change! Father's justice demands reparation, otherwise many will be lost! " ~ Our Lady to Bl. Sr. Elena Aiello (1895-1961), #KEYS
1334:When a man's knowledge is sufficient to attain, and his virtue is not sufficient to enable him to hold, whatever he may have gained, he will lose again. ~ Confucius, Analects, 15:32, i, #KEYS
1335:But because my love is as yet weak and my virtue imperfect, I must be strengthened and comforted by You. Visit me often, therefore, and teach me Your holy discipline. ~ Thomas A Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, #KEYS
1336:... I am now able to put myself into men and change them, removing the darkness and bringing light, giving them a new heart and a new mind.
~ Sri Aurobindo, Autobiographical Notes,#KEYS
1337:I saw the Son of Man, and he said to me, "Have no fear! I am the First and the Last. I was dead and now I am to live for ever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and of the underworld." ~ Revelation 1:17-18, #KEYS
1338:It's difficult for me to feel that a solid page without the breakups of paragraphs can be interesting. I break mine up perhaps sooner than I should in terms of the usage of the English language. ~ A E van Vogt, #KEYS
1339:The ideal reader of my novels is a lapsed Catholic and failed musician, short-sighted, color-blind, auditorily biased, who has read the books that I have read. He should also be about my age. ~ Anthony Burgess, #KEYS
1340:Uniformity of religion is a psychical impossibility forbidden by the very nature of the human mind. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Shall India Be Free? - Unity and British Rule, #KEYS
1341:What attitude should I keep while doing my works of daily routine? How should I act with family members, relatives and friends?
Detachment.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II,#KEYS
1342:For what it's worth: it's never too late to be whoever you want to be. I hope you live a life you're proud of, and if you find you're not, I hope you have the strength to start over again. ~ F. Scott Fitzgerald, #KEYS
1343:If God said, 'Rumi pay homage to everything that has helped you enter my arms,' there would not be one experience of my life, not one thought, not one feeling, nor any act, I would not bow to. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
1344:If need be, a prayer addressed to the Divine:
I belong to You and I want to know You so that all that I do is nothing but what you want me to do. ~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II,#KEYS
1345:In Mary, Zion passes over into the church; in her, the word passes over and flesh; in her, the head passes over into the body. She is the place of super abundant fruitfulness. ~ Hans Urs von Balthasar GL I, 338, #KEYS
1346:
Sweet Mother, how does one do Yoga?
Be wholly sincere, never try to deceive others. And try never to deceive yourself. Blessings.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II,#KEYS
1347:Marriage signifies the union of Christ w/ his Church as the Apostle says: "This is a great mystery: I am speaking of Christ and his Church" ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (Eph 5:32)., #KEYS
1348:People who have read a good deal rarely make great discoveries. I do not say this in excuse of laziness, but because invention presupposes an extensive independent contemplation of things. ~ Georg C Lichtenberg, #KEYS
1349:The thing under my bed waiting to grab my ankle isn't real. I know that, and I also know that if I'm careful to keep my foot under the covers, it will never be able to grab my ankle. ~ Stephen King, Night Shift, #KEYS
1350:I am as sure as I live that nothing is so near to me as God. God is nearer to me than I am to myself; my existence depends on the nearness and the presence of God. ~ Meister Eckhart, #KEYS
1351:In Mary, Zion passes over into the church; in her, the word passes over into flesh; in her, the head passes over into the body. She is the place of super abundant fruitfulness. ~ Hans Urs von Balthasar GL I, 338, #KEYS
1352:Not Stopping To Mark The Trail :::
Not stopping to mark the trail,
let me push even deeper
into the mountain!
Perhaps there's a place
where bad news can never reach me! ~ Saigyo,#KEYS
1353:I pass beyond Time and life on measureless wings,
Yet still am one with born and unborn things. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Cosmic Consciousness,#KEYS
1354:Out beyond ideas of wrong-doing and right-doing there is a field. I will meet you there. When the soul lies down in that grass the world is too full to talk about. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
1355:Realism is in its essence an attempt to see man and his world as they really are without veils and pretences. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Future Poetry, The Movement of Modern Literature - I, #KEYS
1356:That is one of the many reasons why I avoid speaking as much as possible. For I always say either too much or too little, which is a terrible thing for a man with a passion for truth like mine... ~ Samuel Becket, #KEYS
1357:The Master has said, "To pore over mysterious things and do miracles that I may be cited with honour in future times, this is what 1 will not do." ~ Tsang-Yung, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1358:What torture, My daughter, for my maternal Heart! How sad I am to see that men do not change! Father's justice demands reparation, otherwise many will be lost! " ~ Our Lady to Bl. Sister Elena Aiello (1895-1961), #KEYS
1359:Diogenes, filthily attired, paced across the splendid carpets in Plato's dwelling. Thus, said he, do I trample on the pride of Plato. Yes, Plato replied, but only with another kind of pride. ~ Georg C Lichtenberg, #KEYS
1360:If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.
~ Anonymous, The Bible, John, 15:19,#KEYS
1361:Understand that for every rule which I have mentioned from the Quran, the Devil has one to match it, which he puts beside the proper rule to cause error. ~ Abu Hamid al-Ghazali, #KEYS
1362:1FOR GOD alone my soul waits in silence; From Him comes my salvation. 2He alone is my rock and my salvation, My defense and my strong tower; I will not be shaken or disheartened. ~ Anonymous, The Bible, Psalms, 62, #KEYS
1363:26. When I see others suffer, I feel that I am unfortunate, but the wisdom that is not mine, sees the good that is coming and approves.
~ Sri Aurobindo, Essays Divine And Human, Jnana,#KEYS
1364:For the good that I would do, I do not; but the evil that I would not, that I do.. I find then a law that, when I would dogood, evil is present with me. ~ Pascal, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1365:Gesture (Mudra)
I have drunk the Infinite like a giant's wine.
Time is my drama or my pageant dream. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Transformation,#KEYS
1366:I (…) am rarely happier than when spending an entire day programming my computer to perform automatically a task that would otherwise take me a good ten seconds to do by hand. ~ Douglas Adams, Last Chance to See, #KEYS
1367:Impersonality belongs to the intellectual mind and the static self, personality to the soul and heart and dynamic being. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, The Divine and Its Aspects, #KEYS
1368:I've always rejected being understood. To be understood is to prostitute oneself. I prefer to be taken seriously for what I'm not, remaining humanly unknown, with naturalness and all due respect. ~ Fernando Pessoa, #KEYS
1369:Last night I begged the Wise One to tell me the secret of the world. Gently, gently, he whispered, "Be quiet, the secret cannot be spoken, it is wrapped in silence." ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
1370:The Divine is the perfection towards which we move. And if you like, I shall lead you to Him very willingly. Have confidence.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, "The Divine" and "Man",#KEYS
1371:The sense of one's personal will is lost. That is enlightenment. Enlightenment means there is no "me" with a sense of personal doership. "I" can do nothing. Everything that happens is God's will. ~ Ramesh Balsekar, #KEYS
1372:When My Beloved Appears :::
When my Beloved appears,
With what eye do I see Him?
With His eye, not with mine,
For none sees Him except Himself. ~ Ibn Arabi, [T5],#KEYS
1373:A million salutations at Thy petaled feet, O Lotus of Light! I pour my heart at Thy feet. I pour all my soul at Thy feet. I pour all the fragrant musk of my love at Thy feet of omnipresence. ~ Paramahansa Yogananda, #KEYS
1374:God, who had specially chosen me while I was still in my mother's womb, called me through his grace and chose to reveal his Son in me, so that I might preach the Good News about him to the pagans ~ Galatians 1:15)., #KEYS
1375:I have fought the good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me-a crown of righteousness. ~ JI Timothy IV. 7. 8, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1376:I see clear as daylight that there is the one Brahman in all, in them and me—one Shakti dwells in all. The only difference is of manifestation. ~ Swami Vivekananda, (C.W. VII. 246), #KEYS
1377:Jesus said, 'I am the light that is over all things. I am all: from me all came forth, and to me all attained. Split a piece of wood; I am there. Lift up the stone, and you will find me there.'
~ Gospel of Thomas,#KEYS
1378:Now that I no longer desire all, I have it all without desire." ~ John of the Cross, (1542-1591) major figure of the Counter-Reformation, Spanish mystic, Roman Catholic saint, Carmelite friar and priest, Wikipedia., #KEYS
1379:Sometimes, when a man is already excited by violent passions, he is disturbed by mere trifles and behaves as though he were really angry ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (In I DA lect. 2)., #KEYS
1380:After all these years, I am still involved in the process of self-discovery. It's better to explore life and make mistakes than to play it safe. Mistakes are part of the dues one pays for a full life. ~ Sophia Loren, #KEYS
1381:Although we may wish for more or strive to do better than we have, in these times it is enough to keep your soul." ~ Eric Micha'el Leventhal, literary consultant and holistic educator on the island of Maui, Hawai'i., #KEYS
1382:I am so angry with myself because I cannot do what I should like to do, and at such a moment one feels as if one were lying bound hand and foot at the bottom of a deep dark well, utterly helpless. ~ Vincent van Gogh, #KEYS
1383:If always Fate were careful to fit in
The nature with the lot! But she sometimes
Loves these strange contrasts and crude ironies. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
1384:I have preferred wisdom to kingdoms and thrones and I have believed that riches are nothing before wisdom, for she is an endless treasure for men. ~ Book of Wisdom, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1385:I learned that you should feel when writing, not like Lord Byron on a mountain top, but like a child stringing beads in kindergarten - happy, absorbed and quietly putting one bead on after another.
~ Brenda Ueland,#KEYS
1386:I may not be able to say all I think; but I am not going to say anything that I do not think. I would rather a thousand times be a free soul in jail than to be a sycophant and coward in the streets. ~ Eugene V. Debs, #KEYS
1387:I say: When matters of great moment are inquired into by men of little ability, they usually make them men of great ability. ~ Saint Augustine of Hippo, Contra Academicos 1.2.6, #KEYS
1388:I strive to attain the happiness which does not pass away nor perish and which has not its source in riches or beauty nor depends upon them. ~ Foshu-hing-tsan-king, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1389:Once you have turned to the Divine, saying 'I want to be yours', and the Divine has said, 'Yes' the whole world cannot keep you from it.
~ The Mother, Questions And Answers 1929-1931, [T1],#KEYS
1390:Personality, force, temperament can do unusual miracles, but the miracle cannot always be turned into a method or a standard. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Future Poetry, Recent English Poetry - I, #KEYS
1391:We in this generation, must come to terms with nature, and I think we're challenged as mankind has never been challenged before to prove our maturity and our mastery, not of nature, but of ourselves. ~ Rachel Carson, #KEYS
1392:Although I am a typical loner in my daily life, my awareness of belonging to the invisible community of those who strive for truth, beauty, and justice has prevented me from feelings of isolation.
~ Albert Einstein,#KEYS
1393:For Sri Aurobindo's centenary, what is the best offering that I can personally make to Sri Aurobindo?
Offer him your mind in all sincerity. 13 November 1970
~ The Mother, On Education,#KEYS
1394:I cannot lament the loss of a love or a friendship without meditating that one loses only what one really never had.~ Jorge Luis Borges, Labyrinths, Selected Stories and Other Writings, #KEYS
1395:I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me! ~ Dr. Seuss, #KEYS
1396:When I return upon myself and find the heart upright, although my adversaries may be a thousand or ten thousand, I would march without fear on the enemy. ~ Meng-Tse, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1397:Certainly the sacraments of the body and blood of Christ, which we receive, is a divine thing. On account of this and through the same 'we are made partakers of the divine nature' (2 Pet. 1:4). ~ Pope Saint Gelasius I, #KEYS
1398:He's creator
Who greatly handles great material,
Calls order out of the abundant deep,
Not who invents sweet shadows out of air. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
1399:In the discourse I am seeing questions about what acceptance we Catholics owe to actions of the Church ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (specifically pope/bishops in their official capacity)., #KEYS
1400:The light shineth in the darkness and the darkness comprehended it not. ...It was in the world and the world was made by it, and the world knew it not. ~ John I 5.10, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1401:But others question because of a desire to know, as the Blessed Virgin did when she said to the angel: "How shall this be, since I do not know man?" ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (Lk 1:34)., #KEYS
1402:Destruction in itself is neither good nor evil. It is a fact of Nature, a necessity in the play of forces as things are in this world. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Morality and Yoga, #KEYS
1403:Each creature labouring in his own vocation
Desires another's and deems the heavy burden
Of his own fate the world's sole heaviness. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
1404:For in selfhood and existence I have felt only fatigue." ~ Divani Shamsi Tabriz, xxxii, collection of lyric poems, contains more than 40,000 verses, considered one of the greatest works of Persian literature, Wikipedia, #KEYS
1405:Free me from evil passions and cleanse my heart of all disorderly affection so that, healed and purified within, I may be fit to love, strong to suffer, and firm to persevere. ~ Thomas A Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, #KEYS
1406:In a unique way, when the devil tells a lie, he is speaking on his own: "I will go forth and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all prophets" ~ Saint Thomas Aquinas, (1 Kgs 22:22), #KEYS
1407:Look to me, beloved sons and you who are consecrated to me, in the great battle which you are fighting, under the orders of your heavenly Leader. I am the Woman clothed with the sun." ~ Our Lady to Father Stefano Gobbi, #KEYS
1408:... outside of the book-knowledge which is necessary to our professional training, I think I got most of my development from the good conversation to which I have always had the luck to access. ~ Alfred North Whitehead, #KEYS
1409:Renunciation of ego, acceptance of God in life is the Yoga I teach,—no other renunciation. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Autobiographical Notes and Other Writings of Historical Interest, To Motilal Roy, #KEYS
1410:The eye through which I see God is the same eye through which God sees me; my eye and God's eye are one eye, one seeing, one knowing, one love.~ Meister Eckhart, Sermons of Meister Eckhart, #KEYS
1411:This is why I would put to profit the present moment, penetrated with the conviction that now has come the right moment to seek for the Truth. ~ Fo-shu-hing-tsan-king, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1412:Why think merely of your disease and ill health? Know always, and under all circumstances, 'I belong to the Lord. The Lord is my eternal treasure; He is the one Reality, the source of my well-being.' ~ SWAMI PREMANANDA, #KEYS
1413:Awakening is possible only for those who seek it and want it, for those who are ready to struggle with themselves and work on themselves for a very long time and very persistently in order to attain it. ~ G.I. Gurdjieff, #KEYS
1414:I am god, I am hero, I am philosopher, I am demon and I am world, which is a tedious way of saying that I do not exist.~ Jorge Luis Borges, Labyrinths, Selected Stories and Other Writings, #KEYS
1415:Concentration on the Divine is the only truly valid thing. To do what the Divine wants us to do is the only thing valid.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, The True Aim of Life, [T0],#KEYS
1416:I hope that God will save me through the merits of the passion of Jesus. The more difficulties in life, the more I hope in God. By God's grace, I will not lose my soul, but I hope in his mercy. ~ Saint Paul of the Cross, #KEYS
1417:In this way and that I tried to save the old pail
Since the bamboo strip was weakening and about to break
Until at last the bottom fell out.
No more water in the pail!
No more moon in the water!
~ Mugai Nyodai,#KEYS
1418:In your light I learn how to love. In your beauty, how to make poems. You dance inside my chest where no-one sees you, but sometimes I do, and that sight becomes this art. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, #KEYS
1419:Man is good when he raises very high his divine and spiritual "I", but frightful when he wishes to exalt above men his fleshly vain, ambitious and exclusive. ~ Tolstoi, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1420:Suddenly, I saw the complete condition of my soul as God sees it. I could see clearly everything that displeases God. I did not know that even the smallest transgressions would have to be accounted for. ~ Saint Faustina, #KEYS
1421:The thoughts of unknown minds exalt me with their thrill;
I carry the sorrow of millions in my lonely breast. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, The Cosmic Man,#KEYS
1422:Great and glorious God, and Thou Lord Jesus, I pray you shed abroad your light in the darkness of my mind. Be found of me, Lord, so that in all things I may act only in accordance with Thy holy will. ~ Francis of Assissi, #KEYS
1423:Historically, languages designed for other people to use have been bad: Cobol, PL/I, Pascal, Ada, C++. The good languages have been those that were designed for their own creators: C, Perl, Smalltalk, Lisp. ~ Paul Graham, #KEYS
1424:I am neither male nor female, nor am I sexless. I am the Peaceful One, whose form is self-effulgent, powerful radiance." ~ Guru Nanak, (1469 - 1539), the founder of Sikhism and the first of the ten Sikh Gurus, Wikipedia., #KEYS
1425:I laugh at those who think they can damage me. They do not know who I am, they do not know what I think, they cannot even touch the things which are really mine and with which I live
~ Epictetus,#KEYS
1426:I learned from experience that joy does not reside in the things about us, but in the very depths of the soul, that one can have it in the gloom of a dungeon as well as in the palace of a king. ~ Saint Therese of Lisieux, #KEYS
1427:I would hear, in my spirit's wideness solitary,
The Voice that speaks when mortal lips are mute: ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, The Greater Plan,#KEYS
1428:Resistance is the subtlest form of attachment." ~ Eric Micha'el Leventhal, (b. 1978) Author, developmental editor and holistic educator based on the island of Maui, Hawai'i. Quote from "A Light from the Shadows,", (2012), #KEYS
1429:The word echoes more profoundly in thyself than from the mouth of others. If thou canst listen for it in silence, thou shalt hear it at once. ~ Angelius Silesius I. 299, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1430:410. Others boast of their love for God. My boast is that I did not love God; it was He who loved me and sought me out and forced me to belong to Him.
~ Sri Aurobindo, Essays Divine And Human,#KEYS
1431:I am the good shepherd. I know my own - I love them - and my own know me. In plain words: those who love me are willing to follow me, for anyone who does not love the truth has not yet come to know it. ~ Gregory the Great, #KEYS
1432:I am the inviolable Ecstasy;
They who have looked on me, shall grieve no more. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, The Eternal Day, The Soul's Choice and the Supreme Consummation,#KEYS
1433:I have never heard of a Yogin who got the peace of God and turned away from it as something poor, neutral and pallid, rushing back to cakes and ale.
~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters On Poetry And Art,#KEYS
1434:One has to seek Beauty and Truth... As I always say to my pupils, you have to work to the finish. There's only one kind of painting. It is the painting that presents the eye with perfection... ~ William-Adolphe Bouguereau, #KEYS
1435:Tell me what I long to hear. That You love me and he loves me. How foolish, You are he." ~ Margaret Stortz, " I am enough & other wisdom for daily living,", (1996), Last stanza of poem, "Come Whisper in My Ear," pp 57-58., #KEYS
1436:The universe swings again into orbit around us.
Am I looking for you or you for me?
The question is wrong.
As long as I keep using two pronouns,
I am this in-between, two-headed thing.
~ Jalaluddin Rumi#KEYS
1437:Divine Mother, My giant enemy ego is sitting directly in my path and will not let me pass. In what manner should I fight him?
Ignore him and go through.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II,#KEYS
1438:Have I done something for society? Then I have worked for myself, to my own advantage. Let this truth be present to thy mind and labour without ceasing. ~ Marcus Aurelius, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1439:I am afraid of what happened yesterday." ~ Khwaja Abdullah Ansari, (1006-1088) Persian Sufi saint of Arab origin. polemicist, and spiritual master, known for his oratory and poetic talents in Arabic and Persian, Wikipedia., #KEYS
1440:It is impossible to compel oneself to the love of others. One can only reject that which prevents love; and that which prevents is the love of one's material I. ~ Tolstoi, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1441:Say in yourselves, "In the midst of this world of corruption, I would resemble the lotus which remains intangible by the mire in which it is born." ~ Sutra in 42 articles, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1442:Since the beginning of earth history, Sri Aurobindo has always presided over the great earthly transformations, under one form or another, one name or another.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I,#KEYS
1443:So I pray to increase my madness And to increase your sanity. My 'madness' is from the power of Love' Your sanity is from the strength of unawareness." ~ Shaykh Abu Bakr Shibli, (861-946) important Persian Sufi, Wikipedia., #KEYS
1444:To read too much is bad for thought. The greatest thinkers I have met among the savants whom I have studied were precisely those who were the least learned. ~ Liehtemberg, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1445:From the non-being to true being,
from the darkness to the Light,
from death to Immortality.
OM Peace! Peace! Peace!
(Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, I.3.28)
So be it. ~ Sri Aurobindo,#KEYS
1446:How should I act to ensure that the purpose
may not be frustrated? How should I guard against
thoughtlessness? And how, I wonder,
should I ensure that my leaping across the sea
does not go in vain? ~ Ramayana,#KEYS
1447:If I regard myself as a martyr, I must think too of myself as that martyr's executioner; for we suffer only by the imagination of evil which is in us. ~ Antoine the Healer, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1448:I live on Earth at present, and I don't know what I am. I know that I am not a category. I am not a thing - a noun, I seem to be a verb, an evolutionary process - an integral function of the universe. ~ R Buckminster Fuller, #KEYS
1449:In the faces of men and women I see God, and in my own face in the glass, I find letters from God dropt in the street, and every one is signed by God's name. ~ Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass, (1855) #KEYS
1450:I would say, then, that you are faced with a future in which education is going to be number one amongst the great world industries. ~ R Buckminster Fuller, Education Automation: Freeing the Scholar to Return to His Studies, #KEYS
1451:Q : How can I meditate? What is meant by opening? Where should I open?
The Mother ,: An inner purity and receptivity that freely lets in the Mother's influence. Begin with the heart. ~ The Mother,#KEYS
1452:Succeed in not fearing the lion, and the lion will fear YOU. Say to suffering, 'I will that you shall become a pleasure,' and it will prove to be such-- and even more than a pleasure, it will be a blessing.
~ Eliphas Levi,#KEYS
1453:Time is the substance from which I am made. Time is a river which carries me along, but I am the river; it is a tiger that devours me, but I am the tiger; it is a fire that consumes me, but I am the fire. ~ Jorge Luis Borge, #KEYS
1454:When it comes to obeying the commandments or enduring adversity, the words uttered by the Father should always echo in our ears: 'This is my Son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased; listen to him.' ~ Saint Leo the Great, #KEYS
1455:For me, writing a novel is like having a dream. Writing a novel lets me intentionally dream while I'm still awake. I can continue yesterday's dream today, something you can't normally do in everyday life.
~ Haruki Murakami,#KEYS
1456:I am not sure that I exist, actually. I am all the writers that I have read, all the people that I have met, all the women that I have loved; all the cities I have visited. ~ Jorge Luis Borges, #KEYS
1457:I aspire for the higher life from above the head; but I always feel strained in the middle part of the forehead. What should I do?
Do not strain yourself.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II,#KEYS
1458:In the first work He gave me myself; in the second, Himself: and when He gave Himself, He gave me back myself. Thus given and re-given, I owe myself for myself and I owe it twice. ~ Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, De Dilegendo Deo c.3, #KEYS
1459:Basic research is what I am doing when I don't know what I am doing." ~ Wernher von Braun, (1912-1977), a German, (and, later, American) aerospace engineer and space architect. He advocated a human mission to Mars, Wikipedia., #KEYS
1460:I believe that a triangle, if it could speak, would say that God is eminently triangular, and a circle that the divine nature is eminently circular; and thus would every one ascribe his own attributes to God. ~ Baruch Spinoza, #KEYS
1461:In a beautiful phrase Mary calls Israel the servant of the Lord. The Lord came to his aid to save him. Israel is an obedient and humble servant, in the words of Hosea: 'Israel was a servant, and I loved him'. ~ Venerable Bede, #KEYS
1462:Not of the fire am I terrified, not of the sword and its slaying;
Vileness of men appals me, baseness I fear and its voices. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Poems, Ilion,#KEYS
1463:The harmony of the inner and outer man which is the true meaning of civilisation and the efficient condition of a true progress. ~ Sri Aurobindo, The Renaissance in India, "Is India Civilised?" - I, #KEYS
1464:They say the anarchy of love disturbs
Gods even: shaken are the marble natures,
The deathless hearts are melted to the pang
And rapture. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Collected Plays and Stories, Act I,#KEYS
1465:Where shall I direct my gaze to bless Thee, on high, below, without, within? There is no way, no place that is outside Thee, other beings exist not; all is in Thee. ~ Hermes, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1466:Don't accept delivery of all the wrong ideas that keep coming to you. Rest quietly in the feeling of 'I am', which is consciousness, and cultivate the attitude that all thoughts, all perceptions are 'not me'. ~ Annamalai Swami, #KEYS
1467:If you ask me what faculty you possess that would be the most useful in regard to waking up to what you are, I'd have to say… curiosity." ~ David A. Bhodan, "Seeing Through The 12 Biggest Obstacles to Enlightenment,", (2014), #KEYS
1468:If you say, 'Show me your God,' I will say to you, 'Show me what kind of person you are, and I will show you my God.' Show me then whether the eyes of your mind can see, and the ears of your heart hear. ~ Theophilus of Antioch, #KEYS
1469:I salute It, this supreme Deity, which is beyond the senses, which mind and speech cannot define and which can be discerned only by the mind of the true sage. ~ Vishnu Purana, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1470:Let us without feet, make the holy circuit round the door of the King, For he has come intoxicated with 'Am I not I?' and broken our door." ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, "Divan-e Shams-e Tabrizi," Wikipedia., #KEYS
1471:Pay attention carefully. After the sin comes the shame; courage follows repentance. Did you pay attention to what I said? Satan upsets the order; he gives the courage to sin and the shame to repentance. ~ Saint John Chrystotom, #KEYS
1472:The One is attained when man arrives at ripeness in one of these three states of his spirit, "All is myself, All is thou," "Thou art the Master, I the servant." ~ Ramakrishna, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1473:When I have loved for ever, I shall know.
Love in me knows the truth all changings mask. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, The Journey in Eternal Night and the Voice of the Darkness,#KEYS
1474:All that is real in me is God; all that is real in God is I. The gulf between God and me is thus bridged. Thus by knowing God, we find that the kingdom of heaven is within us. ~ Swami Vivekananda, #KEYS
1475:Christianity says, "Love thy neighbour as thyself." And I say . "Recognise thyself in thy neighbour and that all men are in reality one and the same substance." ~ Schopenhauer, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1476:Forms on earth do not last (they do in other planes) because these forms are too rigid to grow expressing the progress of the spirit. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga - I, Transformation and the Body, #KEYS
1477:God is the only Guru. My Divine Mother is the sole doer of actions, I am only an instrument in Her hands. I feel myself always to be Her child. ~ Sri Ramakrishna, Sayings of Ramakrishna Paramahasma, #KEYS
1478:I am the inviolable Ecstasy;
They who have looked on me, shall grieve no more.
~ Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, The Eternal Day The Souls Choice and the Supreme Consummation, [T5],#KEYS
1479:If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar; for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen ? ~ John IV. 20, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1480:If earnestly you say to the Divine, I want only Thee, the Divine will arrange the circumstances in such a way that you are compelled to be sincere.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother II, Sincerity [T4],#KEYS
1481:If I want to understand something, I must observe, I must not criticize, I must not condemn, I must not pursue it as pleasure or avoid it as non-pleasure. There must merely be the silent observation of a fact. ~ J. Krishnamurti, #KEYS
1482:It needs the eye of genius to dispense with the necessity of experience and see truth with a single intuitive glance. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, The Man of the Past and the Man of the Future, #KEYS
1483:So what should I do when an unconverted part rises to the surface?
Put the light and the knowledge on it patiently until it gets converted. 29 May 1934
~ The Mother, More Answers From The Mother,#KEYS
1484:The mind is the outgoing faculty of the individual. If that is turned within, it becomes still in course of time and that 'I-AM' alone prevails. 'I-AM' is the whole Truth. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, #KEYS
1485:Wherever there is pride, attachment, judgement and desire, there is suffering. When we awaken from ignorance into our true nature, suffering is absent." ~ Mooji, (b. 1954) Jamaican spiritual teacher. From "Before I Am,", (2012), #KEYS
1486:All the kingdoms of this world are worth nothing to me. It is better for me to die in Christ Jesus than to be king over the ends of the earth. I seek him who died for our sake, I desire him who rose for us. ~ Ignatius of Antioch, #KEYS
1487:Be very sincere and straightforward, harbour nothing within yourself which you cannot show me without fear, do nothing which you would be ashamed of before me.
~ The Mother, Words Of The Mother I, [T3],#KEYS
1488:If I did not simply live from one moment to another, it would be impossible for me to be patient, but I only look at the present, I forget the past, and I take good care not to forestall the future." ~ Saint Thérèse de Lisieux, #KEYS
1489:Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you! You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you.
~ Saint Augustine of Hippo,#KEYS
1490:Someone who looks down from such a peak will become dizzy, and so too I become dizzy when I look down from the high peak of these words of the Lord: Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. ~ Saint Gregory of Nyssa, #KEYS
1491:Strange is my case, in strangeness I am all alone Uniqe amongst mankind, peer I have none. My time in Thee eternized, is Eternity, and from myself Thou hast extinguished me." ~ Abu Bakr Shibli, (861-946) Persian Sufi, Wikipedia., #KEYS
1492:The dissolution of the subject organisation into a disorganised crowd is the inevitable working of an alien despotism. ~ Sri Aurobindo, Bande Mataram - I, Shall India Be Free? - Unity and British Rule, #KEYS
1493:The space of being that is opened and illuminated in the subject makes available to the object an opportunity to be itself in a way that the inferior space of inanimate elements does not…. ~ Hans Urs von Balthasar, TheoLogic I, #KEYS
1494:If one cannot believe in God it does not matter. I suppose he believes in himself, in his own existence. Let him find out the source from which he came. ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi, Day by Day, 22-3-46, #KEYS
1495:I pledge myself from this day forward not to entertain any feeling of irritation, anger or ill humour and to allow to arise within me neither violence nor hate. ~ Rurkthist Text, the Eternal Wisdom #KEYS
1496:I've torn the cloth to shreds
and thrown it away.
If you're not completely naked,
wrap your beautiful robe of words
around you,
and sleep. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi, @Sufi_Path#KEYS
1497:Now I have no choice but to see with your eyes, So I am not alone, so you are not alone." ~ Yiannis Ritsos, (1909 -1990), Greek poet, left-wing activist and an active member of the Greek Resistance during World War II, Wikipedia., #KEYS
1498:For behold, the stone that I have set before Joshua; upon one stone are seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. ~ Zechariah 3:9, [ERV] #KEYS
1499:I am the owner of my actions (kamma), inheritor of my actions, born of my actions, created by my actions, and have my own actions as my judge! Whatever I do, good or evil, I will feel the resulting effects of that … ~ The Buddha, #KEYS
1500:I am wont to visit My elect in two ways -- by temptation and by consolation. To them I read two lessons daily -- one reproving their vices, the other exhorting them to progress in virtue. ~ Thomas A Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, #KEYS
*** WISDOM TROVE ***
1:I am worthy. ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 2:Am I here now? ~ eckhart-tolle, @wisdomtrove 3:I tasted life. ~ emily-dickinson, @wisdomtrove 4:I believe in singing. ~ brian-eno, @wisdomtrove 5:I'm very opinionated. ~ brian-eno, @wisdomtrove 6:I speak for the trees! ~ dr-seuss, @wisdomtrove 7:But I could be wrong. ~ carl-sagan, @wisdomtrove 8:I am not what I once was. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 9:Paradise is where I am. ~ voltaire, @wisdomtrove 10:I never get it done. ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 11:I am all astonishment. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 12:I am always learning. ~ michelangelo, @wisdomtrove 13:I can't get it wrong. ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 14:I'll sleep well tonight ~ henry-ford, @wisdomtrove 15:I shall not altogether die. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 16:I shall not completely die. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 17:God, I'm glad I'm not me. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 18:I am, therefore I'll think ~ ayn-rand, @wisdomtrove 19:... .I begin a new life. ~ og-mandino, @wisdomtrove 20:I'm good at what I do. ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 21:I write all my sermons. ~ joel-osteen, @wisdomtrove 22:Boy, I loathe Persian luxury. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 23:Hello, I must be going. ~ groucho-marx, @wisdomtrove 24:He thinks I look alike! ~ groucho-marx, @wisdomtrove 25:I am sure the grapes are sour. ~ aesop, @wisdomtrove 26:I do not evolve, I AM. ~ pablo-picasso, @wisdomtrove 27:I do not seek. I find. ~ pablo-picasso, @wisdomtrove 28:I don't dislike anybody. ~ joel-osteen, @wisdomtrove 29:I have had my vision. ~ virginia-woolf, @wisdomtrove 30:I know I'm on the path. ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 31:I often work by avoidance. ~ brian-eno, @wisdomtrove 32:I teach that all men are mad. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 33:I tend to scare myself. ~ stephen-king, @wisdomtrove 34:I write emotional algebra. ~ anais-nin, @wisdomtrove 35:I am always in love. ~ ernest-hemingway, @wisdomtrove 36:I learned to love despair. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 37:I like it where I stand. ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 38:I love good, loud speakers. ~ brian-eno, @wisdomtrove 39:I really love what I do. ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 40:I walk: I prefer walking. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 41:I want nothing but death. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 42:Look how well I’m doing… ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 43:I accept the universe! ~ margaret-fuller, @wisdomtrove 44:I am excessively diverted. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 45:I am your number one fan. ~ stephen-king, @wisdomtrove 46:I got this grave yard woman. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 47:I love you. Most ardently. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 48:I washed mud off of mud. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 49:I work hard, but in spurts. ~ tim-ferris, @wisdomtrove 50:This victory will be your I ruin. ~ ovid, @wisdomtrove 51:Am I lost or just less found? ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 52:Breathing out, I smile. ~ thich-nhat-hanh, @wisdomtrove 53:I am a wild and crazy guy! ~ steve-martin, @wisdomtrove 54:I am rooted, but I flow. ~ virginia-woolf, @wisdomtrove 55:I am the Avatar of this Age! ~ meher-baba, @wisdomtrove 56:I box in yellow Gox box socks. ~ dr-seuss, @wisdomtrove 57:I do not believe in Belief. ~ e-m-forster, @wisdomtrove 58:I don't know what humor is. ~ will-rogers, @wisdomtrove 59:I dwell in possibility. ~ emily-dickinson, @wisdomtrove 60:I just lost a buttonhole. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 61:I'm not so weird to me. ~ haruki-murakami, @wisdomtrove 62:I move, therefore I am. ~ haruki-murakami, @wisdomtrove 63:In my integrity I'll wrap me up. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 64:I think, therefore I doubt. ~ victor-hugo, @wisdomtrove 65:I think, therefore I'll think. ~ ayn-rand, @wisdomtrove 66:I work until beer o'clock. ~ stephen-king, @wisdomtrove 67:Behold! I've brought you a man. ~ diogenes, @wisdomtrove 68:I always made an awkward bow. ~ john-keats, @wisdomtrove 69:I am looking for an honest man. ~ diogenes, @wisdomtrove 70:I can always live by my pen. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 71:I can only draw what I see. ~ claude-monet, @wisdomtrove 72:I don't have many sad days. ~ billy-graham, @wisdomtrove 73:I have a dream today! ~ martin-luther-king, @wisdomtrove 74:I listen to the voices. ~ william-faulkner, @wisdomtrove 75:I’ll figure it out as I go… ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 76:I'm a good woman for a bad man. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 77:I'm going on an adventure! ~ j-r-r-tolkien, @wisdomtrove 78:I'm living now in my reward. ~ joyce-meyer, @wisdomtrove 79:In a way, I was safe writing ~ franz-kafka, @wisdomtrove 80:I want to live, and die with you. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 81:I will never lie again. ~ william-faulkner, @wisdomtrove 82:I wish I'd watched less TV. ~ billy-graham, @wisdomtrove 83:Think not I am what I appear. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 84:When I give, I give myself. ~ walt-whitman, @wisdomtrove 85:Do I dare disturb the universe? ~ t-s-eliot, @wisdomtrove 86:Everything I need now is here. ~ wayne-dyer, @wisdomtrove 87:I don't have all the answers. ~ joel-osteen, @wisdomtrove 88:I don't want to hold your hand! ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 89:I failed my way to success. ~ thomas-edison, @wisdomtrove 90:I feel strangely normal. ~ charles-bukowski, @wisdomtrove 91:I have wasted my hours. ~ leonardo-da-vinci, @wisdomtrove 92:I'm a peripheral visionary. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 93:I'm drunk but truthful. ~ fyodor-dostoevsky, @wisdomtrove 94:I never intended to make art. ~ walt-disney, @wisdomtrove 95:I want God, not my idea of God. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 96:Like I said... fine with me. ~ alice-walker, @wisdomtrove 97:You say true, I say thankya. ~ stephen-king, @wisdomtrove 98:Do you mind if I don't smoke? ~ groucho-marx, @wisdomtrove 99:I can't live without you or with you. ~ ovid, @wisdomtrove 100:I dwell in possibilities . ~ emily-dickinson, @wisdomtrove 101:I gave you the best of me. ~ nicholas-sparks, @wisdomtrove 102:I had amnesia once or twice. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 103:I have always believed in God. ~ joel-osteen, @wisdomtrove 104:I have a plan-to go mad. ~ fyodor-dostoevsky, @wisdomtrove 105:I just wanted to be sure of you. ~ a-a-milne, @wisdomtrove 106:I just want to lobby for God. ~ billy-graham, @wisdomtrove 107:I like a man what takes his time. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 108:I'm not smart enough to lie. ~ ronald-reagan, @wisdomtrove 109:In the water I am beautiful. ~ kurt-vonnegut, @wisdomtrove 110:I think I was a born scientist. ~ ken-wilber, @wisdomtrove 111:I tramp a perpetual journey. ~ walt-whitman, @wisdomtrove 112:It's not over until I (you) win. ~ les-brown, @wisdomtrove 113:I've been things and seen places. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 114:I've lost my faith in science. ~ bette-davis, @wisdomtrove 115:I will persist until I succeed! ~ og-mandino, @wisdomtrove 116:I wisely started with a map. ~ j-r-r-tolkien, @wisdomtrove 117:I write with all my heart ~ ursula-k-le-guin, @wisdomtrove 118:Lord, let me live until I die. ~ will-rogers, @wisdomtrove 119:Oh, I am in love with life! ~ virginia-woolf, @wisdomtrove 120:Sometimes I... No, I don't. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 121:Aiming at brevity, I become obscure. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 122:And I say to my heart: rave on. ~ mary-oliver, @wisdomtrove 123:Everything I touch is a success. ~ louise-hay, @wisdomtrove 124:I am good, but not an angel. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 125:I am myself and I am here. ~ jean-paul-sartre, @wisdomtrove 126:I believe in being a motivator. ~ walt-disney, @wisdomtrove 127:I care for riches, to make gifts. ~ euripedes, @wisdomtrove 128:I cry for those not yet dead. ~ frank-herbert, @wisdomtrove 129:I do not believe in my death. ~ salvador-dali, @wisdomtrove 130:I do. That is character! ~ theodore-roosevelt, @wisdomtrove 131:I gotta use words to talk to you. ~ t-s-eliot, @wisdomtrove 132:I had my coat hangers spayed. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 133:I have no talent for certainty. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 134:I kinda live where I find myself. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 135:I know many lives worth living. ~ mary-oliver, @wisdomtrove 136:I love everybody. Even George Bush. ~ ram-das, @wisdomtrove 137:I'm inconsistent, even to myself. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 138:I only ask for information. ~ charles-dickens, @wisdomtrove 139:I prefer men to cauliflowers ~ virginia-woolf, @wisdomtrove 140:I want to meet my God awake. ~ thomas-carlyle, @wisdomtrove 141:I was never a topical songwriter. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 142:I was skydiving horizontally. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 143:I will only add, God bless you. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 144:I write a woman's oaths in water. ~ sophocles, @wisdomtrove 145:Painting, I think it's like jazz. ~ brian-eno, @wisdomtrove 146:Till I loved I never lived. ~ emily-dickinson, @wisdomtrove 147:As a woman, I have no country ~ virginia-woolf, @wisdomtrove 148:Beauty crowds me till I die. ~ emily-dickinson, @wisdomtrove 149:Come what may, I have been blest. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 150:Don't go where I can't follow! ~ j-r-r-tolkien, @wisdomtrove 151:I always entertain great hopes. ~ robert-frost, @wisdomtrove 152:I am ashes where once I was fire. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 153:I am very confident in preaching. ~ max-lucado, @wisdomtrove 154:I believe in being an innovator. ~ walt-disney, @wisdomtrove 155:I can connect Nothing with nothing ~ t-s-eliot, @wisdomtrove 156:I could see peace instead of this. ~ confucius, @wisdomtrove 157:I did it thirty-five minutes ago. ~ alan-moore, @wisdomtrove 158:I didn't come out of a cereal box. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 159:I'd like to see Paris before I die. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 160:I do know what my songs are about. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 161:I don't think there's enough guns. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 162:I don't try to control my days. ~ paulo-coelho, @wisdomtrove 163:I have the knack of easing scruples. ~ moliere, @wisdomtrove 164:I hope you're all Republicans. ~ ronald-reagan, @wisdomtrove 165:I like Fidel Castro and his beard. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 166:I like you just the way you are. ~ fred-rogers, @wisdomtrove 167:I'm a sucker for hero worship. ~ ronald-reagan, @wisdomtrove 168:I'm bloody awful at multi-tasking. ~ brian-eno, @wisdomtrove 169:I'm in love with my second cousin. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 170:I never saw Portsmouth by day. ~ quentin-crisp, @wisdomtrove 171:I sin, but I'm not the devil. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 172:I think I have a dualistic nature. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 173:I've failed my way to success. ~ thomas-edison, @wisdomtrove 174:I've had rainbows in my clouds. ~ maya-angelou, @wisdomtrove 175:I want you to be... . happy. ~ nicholas-sparks, @wisdomtrove 176:I was quiet but I was not blind. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 177:I will never be below the title. ~ bette-davis, @wisdomtrove 178:I wish that I was where I am. ~ gertrude-stein, @wisdomtrove 179:Vengeance is mine; I will repay. ~ leo-tolstoy, @wisdomtrove 180:Whatever it is, I'm against it. ~ groucho-marx, @wisdomtrove 181:What I like doing best is Nothing. ~ a-a-milne, @wisdomtrove 182:Why can't I just eat my waffle? ~ barack-obama, @wisdomtrove 183:Farewell! I go to find the Sun! ~ j-r-r-tolkien, @wisdomtrove 184:I am a cage, in search of a bird. ~ franz-kafka, @wisdomtrove 185:I am exhausted if I don't work. ~ pablo-picasso, @wisdomtrove 186:I am happy even before I have a reason. ~ hafez, @wisdomtrove 187:I am still learning. (at age 87) ~ michelangelo, @wisdomtrove 188:I attract only peace into my life. ~ wayne-dyer, @wisdomtrove 189:I don't mind, and you don't matter." ~ dr-seuss, @wisdomtrove 190:I don't mind what happens. ~ jiddu-krishnamurti, @wisdomtrove 191:I don't need drugs. I am drugs. ~ salvador-dali, @wisdomtrove 192:I don't write romance novels. ~ nicholas-sparks, @wisdomtrove 193:I exist as I am, that is enough. ~ walt-whitman, @wisdomtrove 194:If I fail more than you do, I win. ~ seth-godin, @wisdomtrove 195:I have found life so beautiful. ~ hellen-keller, @wisdomtrove 196:I have other fish to fry. ~ miguel-de-cervantes, @wisdomtrove 197:I have so much of you in my heart. ~ john-keats, @wisdomtrove 198:I know why the caged bird sings. ~ maya-angelou, @wisdomtrove 199:I like to make use of what I know ~ franz-kafka, @wisdomtrove 200:I love who I am and all that I do. ~ louise-hay, @wisdomtrove 201:I'm kind of an evangelical atheist. ~ brian-eno, @wisdomtrove 202:I'm pretty, but not beautiful. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 203:I owe my solitude to other people. ~ alan-watts, @wisdomtrove 204:I pray because I can't help myself. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 205:I see before me the gladiator lie. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 206:I think of myself as a human being. ~ bruce-lee, @wisdomtrove 207:I've been born, and once is enough. ~ t-s-eliot, @wisdomtrove 208:I want a brighter word than bright ~ john-keats, @wisdomtrove 209:All I am I owe to my mother. ~ george-washington, @wisdomtrove 210:Any place I hang my head is home. ~ groucho-marx, @wisdomtrove 211:Anything I want comes into place. ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 212:Here I stand; I can do no other. ~ martin-luther, @wisdomtrove 213:How can I express the darkness? ~ virginia-woolf, @wisdomtrove 214:I am not the river I am the net. ~ frank-herbert, @wisdomtrove 215:I can't stop thinking like this. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 216:I do not take drugs. I am drugs. ~ salvador-dali, @wisdomtrove 217:I don't believe in praying to win. ~ john-wooden, @wisdomtrove 218:If I don't have red, I use blue. ~ pablo-picasso, @wisdomtrove 219:I forgot more than you'll ever know. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 220:I generally had to give in. ~ napoleon-bonaparte, @wisdomtrove 221:I keep my undies in the icebox! ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 222:I learn to love it more and more. ~ jules-renard, @wisdomtrove 223:I lie as truthfully as I can. ~ charles-bukowski, @wisdomtrove 224:I like to feel blonde all over. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 225:I live in an atmosphere of music. ~ maya-angelou, @wisdomtrove 226:I'll turn over a new leaf. ~ miguel-de-cervantes, @wisdomtrove 227:I'm a holy man minus the holiness. ~ e-m-forster, @wisdomtrove 228:I'm good, but I'm not an angel. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 229:I'm sin, but I'm not the devil. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 230:I'm the Ted Bundy of string theory. ~ sam-harris, @wisdomtrove 231:I never saw myself as a folk singer. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 232:I never wish to be easily defined. ~ franz-kafka, @wisdomtrove 233:I see the cure is not worth the pain. ~ plutarch, @wisdomtrove 234:I sell mirrors in the city of the blind. ~ kabir, @wisdomtrove 235:I should infinitely prefer a book. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 236:I should not mind anything at all. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 237:I think willpower is very valuable. ~ tim-ferris, @wisdomtrove 238:I've been blessed in so many ways. ~ john-wooden, @wisdomtrove 239:I've been in more laps than a napkin. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 240:I wanna grow up and be a critic. ~ richard-pryor, @wisdomtrove 241:I was an only child, eventually. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 242:I write to find out what I think. ~ stephen-king, @wisdomtrove 243:Now, I happen to be an optimist. ~ ronald-reagan, @wisdomtrove 244:Now I shall go to sleep. Goodnight. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 245:Pain or pleasure? I say pleasure. ~ epictetus, @wisdomtrove 246:Please, sir, I want some more. ~ charles-dickens, @wisdomtrove 247:The sound of water says what I think. ~ zhuangzi, @wisdomtrove 248:What have I to forgive and whom? ~ sri-aurobindo, @wisdomtrove 249:You make 'em, I amuse 'em. [children] ~ dr-seuss, @wisdomtrove 250:Am I no a bonny fighter? ~ robert-louis-stevenson, @wisdomtrove 251:And all I loved, I loved alone. ~ edgar-allan-poe, @wisdomtrove 252:I am not now That which I have been. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 253:I court not the votes of the fickle mob. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 254:I'd kill for a Nobel Peace Prize. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 255:I don't control anything I create. ~ rhonda-byrne, @wisdomtrove 256:I don't think I'm tangible to myself. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 257:I dote on his very absence. ~ william-shakespeare, @wisdomtrove 258:I fell in love with melancholy. ~ edgar-allan-poe, @wisdomtrove 259:If God be my friend, I cannot be wretched. ~ ovid, @wisdomtrove 260:I find I cannot exist without Poetry ~ john-keats, @wisdomtrove 261:If I persist long enough I will win. ~ og-mandino, @wisdomtrove 262:I have an appetite for silence. ~ emily-dickinson, @wisdomtrove 263:I have a thing for things that last. ~ criss-jami, @wisdomtrove 264:I live on good soup, not on fine words. ~ moliere, @wisdomtrove 265:I'll tell you how the Sun rose. ~ emily-dickinson, @wisdomtrove 266:I loved my country, and I hated him. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 267:I love people who make me laugh! ~ audrey-hepburn, @wisdomtrove 268:I'm only interested in poetry. ~ charles-bukowski, @wisdomtrove 269:I restore myself when I'm alone. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 270:I see black light (his last words). ~ victor-hugo, @wisdomtrove 271:Is Life itself a dream, I wonder? ~ lewis-carroll, @wisdomtrove 272:I’ve been things and I've seen places. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 273:I’ve been to the Mountaintop ~ martin-luther-king, @wisdomtrove 274:I want the world to see my body. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 275:I will not walk backward in life. ~ j-r-r-tolkien, @wisdomtrove 276:I will work when failures seek rest. ~ og-mandino, @wisdomtrove 277:Life: I'll never understand it. ~ haruki-murakami, @wisdomtrove 278:So, I can hurt now, or hurt later. ~ steve-martin, @wisdomtrove 279:Whatever happens, I'll handle it. ~ susan-jeffers, @wisdomtrove 280:All that I seek is already within me. ~ louise-hay, @wisdomtrove 281:And I fell violently on my face. ~ edgar-allan-poe, @wisdomtrove 282:By thought I embrace the universe. ~ blaise-pascal, @wisdomtrove 283:Dear me, how I love a library. ~ elizabeth-gilbert, @wisdomtrove 284:Give me a museum and I'll fill it. ~ pablo-picasso, @wisdomtrove 285:How can I dispose of myself with it? ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 286:I am a product [... of] endless books. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 287:I am free and that is why I am lost. ~ franz-kafka, @wisdomtrove 288:I am only one, But still I am one. ~ hellen-keller, @wisdomtrove 289:I am rather inclined to silence. ~ abraham-lincoln, @wisdomtrove 290:I am speechless: I have no speech ~ jerry-seinfeld, @wisdomtrove 291:I deny nothing, but doubt everything. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 292:I don't really have a retirement plan. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 293:I do sin, but I am not the devil. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 294:I feel like I'm a big human snot. ~ robin-williams, @wisdomtrove 295:If you're a bird... I'm a bird. ~ nicholas-sparks, @wisdomtrove 296:I hate, and yet must love the thing I hate. ~ ovid, @wisdomtrove 297:I just want to do God’s will. ~ martin-luther-king, @wisdomtrove 298:I learn to pity woes so like my own. ~ john-dryden, @wisdomtrove 299:I'll be the light in the window. ~ nicholas-sparks, @wisdomtrove 300:I'm not a teacher, but an awakener. ~ robert-frost, @wisdomtrove 301:I'm religiously opposed to religion. ~ victor-hugo, @wisdomtrove 302:I'm single because I was born that way. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 303:I must go in, the fog is rising. ~ emily-dickinson, @wisdomtrove 304:I never could guess your weight, baby. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 305:I never try to predict the market. ~ warren-buffet, @wisdomtrove 306:In trying to be concise I become obscure. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 307:I only know one yoga: & 308:I shall always be a priest of love. ~ d-h-lawrence, @wisdomtrove 309:I think confidence will come back. ~ warren-buffet, @wisdomtrove 310:I used to be Snow White, but I drifted. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 311:I want to put a ding in the universe. ~ steve-jobs, @wisdomtrove 312:I will be rich or I will die trying. ~ t-harv-eker, @wisdomtrove 313:Lord, protect me from what I want! ~ pablo-picasso, @wisdomtrove 314:The more I wonder, the more I love. ~ alice-walker, @wisdomtrove 315:When I haven't any blue I use red. ~ pablo-picasso, @wisdomtrove 316:When liberty returns, I will return. ~ victor-hugo, @wisdomtrove 317:You Too? I thought I was the only one. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 318:All I can do is be me, whoever that is. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 319:All is one . . . and I am that oneness. ~ tim-freke, @wisdomtrove 320:He who says o'er much I love not is in love. ~ ovid, @wisdomtrove 321:I am blessed beyond my fondest dreams. ~ louise-hay, @wisdomtrove 322:I am for people. I can't help it. ~ charlie-chaplan, @wisdomtrove 323:I am for religion, against religions. ~ victor-hugo, @wisdomtrove 324:I am not a teacher, but an awakener. ~ robert-frost, @wisdomtrove 325:I awoke one day to find myself famous. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 326:I believe in a magnificent God. ~ elizabeth-gilbert, @wisdomtrove 327:I believe in order to understand. ~ saint-augustine, @wisdomtrove 328:I came alive when I started loving you. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 329:I did nothing. The Word did it all. ~ martin-luther, @wisdomtrove 330:I do not believe in collective guilt. ~ elie-wiesel, @wisdomtrove 331:I feel as fit as a bull moose. ~ theodore-roosevelt, @wisdomtrove 332:I flee who chases me and chase who flees me. ~ ovid, @wisdomtrove 333:I had no Freedom. I had nothing. ~ charles-bukowski, @wisdomtrove 334:I hate London when it's not raining. ~ groucho-marx, @wisdomtrove 335:I know how men in exile feed on dreams. ~ aeschylus, @wisdomtrove 336:I lack nothing. I only needed myself. ~ franz-kafka, @wisdomtrove 337:I love a natural look in pictures. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 338:I'm an idealist without illusions. ~ john-f-kennedy, @wisdomtrove 339:I'm gonna be Iron, like a Lion in Zion ~ bob-marley, @wisdomtrove 340:I'm pretty, but I'm not beautiful. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 341:I never met a man that I didn't like. ~ will-rogers, @wisdomtrove 342:I paint flowers so they will not die. ~ frida-kahlo, @wisdomtrove 343:I prize the privilege of being alone. ~ carl-rogers, @wisdomtrove 344:I recover my property wherever I find it. ~ moliere, @wisdomtrove 345:I should infinitely prefer a book... ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 346:I speak two languages, Body and English. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 347:I strive to be brief but I become obscure. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 348:I've been lucky. I'll be lucky again. ~ bette-davis, @wisdomtrove 349:I was what you are, you will be what I am. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 350:Love breaks my bones and I laugh ~ charles-bukowski, @wisdomtrove 351:My hand tells me what I’m thinking. ~ pablo-picasso, @wisdomtrove 352:My secret is simple - I pray. ~ mother-teresa, @wisdomtrove 353:Perhaps I am stronger than I think. ~ thomas-merton, @wisdomtrove 354:Ruth and I are happily incompatible. ~ billy-graham, @wisdomtrove 355:sometimes I hate you," she said. ~ charles-bukowski, @wisdomtrove 356:We were together. I forget the rest. ~ walt-whitman, @wisdomtrove 357:When I was green in judgment. ~ william-shakespeare, @wisdomtrove 358:While I am speaking the opportunity is lost. ~ ovid, @wisdomtrove 359:You have to go, but I have to stay. ~ kurt-vonnegut, @wisdomtrove 360:Even I never dreamed of Magic like this! ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 361:I am a man who does not exist for others. ~ ayn-rand, @wisdomtrove 362:I am a poem. There is no way out. ~ charles-bukowski, @wisdomtrove 363:I am as free as nature first made man. ~ john-dryden, @wisdomtrove 364:I am deeply fulfilled by all that I do. ~ louise-hay, @wisdomtrove 365:I am fond of children - except boys. ~ lewis-carroll, @wisdomtrove 366:I am in chains. Don't touch my chains. ~ franz-kafka, @wisdomtrove 367:I am not a teacher. I am an awakener. ~ robert-frost, @wisdomtrove 368:I believe in the Motherhood of God. ~ elbert-hubbard, @wisdomtrove 369:I can think. I can wait. I can fast. ~ hermann-hesse, @wisdomtrove 370:I celebrate myself, and sing myself. ~ walt-whitman, @wisdomtrove 371:I don't digest things with my mind. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 372:I felt it shelter to speak to you. ~ emily-dickinson, @wisdomtrove 373:I fought with my twin, the enemy within. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 374:I have come not to teach but to awaken. ~ meher-baba, @wisdomtrove 375:I have miles to go before I sleep... ~ robert-frost, @wisdomtrove 376:I have never been a communicant. ~ george-washington, @wisdomtrove 377:I have three kids, one of each. ~ rodney-dangerfield, @wisdomtrove 378:I hope they bury me near a strait man ~ groucho-marx, @wisdomtrove 379:I'm all alone, but I'm not lonely. ~ haruki-murakami, @wisdomtrove 380:I'm not a psychopath-I'm wearing a tie! ~ seth-godin, @wisdomtrove 381:I never saw a U-Haul behind a hearse. ~ billy-graham, @wisdomtrove 382:In labouring to be brief, I become obscure. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 383:In order to do more. I've got to be more. ~ jim-rohn, @wisdomtrove 384:I see somebody dying, I pick him up. ~ mother-teresa, @wisdomtrove 385:I shall be an Attila to Venice. ~ napoleon-bonaparte, @wisdomtrove 386:I start where the last man left off. ~ thomas-edison, @wisdomtrove 387:I think the word rich is all relative. ~ joel-osteen, @wisdomtrove 388:I want to paint the way a bird sings. ~ claude-monet, @wisdomtrove 389:I was born to enjoy life. And so it is. ~ louise-hay, @wisdomtrove 390:I was never without a book in my hand. ~ elie-wiesel, @wisdomtrove 391:I will maintain it before the whole world. ~ moliere, @wisdomtrove 392:I worry about you Bev. I worry a lot. ~ stephen-king, @wisdomtrove 393:Oh, what a day. I will make it a holiday. ~ dr-seuss, @wisdomtrove 394:The mountains are calling and I must go. ~ john-muir, @wisdomtrove 395:The thing I fear most is fear. ~ michel-de-montaigne, @wisdomtrove 396:The universe yields to me when I ask. ~ esther-hicks, @wisdomtrove 397:Twice I have lived forever in a smile ~ e-e-cummings, @wisdomtrove 398:What I am to be, I am becoming. ~ theodore-roosevelt, @wisdomtrove 399:What I tell you three times is true. ~ lewis-carroll, @wisdomtrove 400:Argument is to me the air I breathe. ~ gertrude-stein, @wisdomtrove 401:Circumstances hell! I make circumstances! ~ bruce-lee, @wisdomtrove 402:Give me a lamp so I can find the day. ~ frank-herbert, @wisdomtrove 403:Here at last is the thing I was made for. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 404:I am certainly an ought and not a must. ~ e-m-forster, @wisdomtrove 405:I am in love and out of it I will not go. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 406:I am not an originator but a transmitter. ~ confucius, @wisdomtrove 407:I am prepared to try anything once. ~ richard-branson, @wisdomtrove 408:I ascribe my change wholly to God. ~ charles-spurgeon, @wisdomtrove 409:I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. ~ audrey-hepburn, @wisdomtrove 410:I came like Water, and like Wind I go. ~ omar-khayyam, @wisdomtrove 411:I can read minds, but I'm illiterate. ~ mitch-hedberg, @wisdomtrove 412:I desired dragons with a profound desire. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 413:I'd got hobbits on my hands hadn't I? ~ j-r-r-tolkien, @wisdomtrove 414:I don’t count life as life without love ~ leo-tolstoy, @wisdomtrove 415:I don't go down the road of condemning. ~ joel-osteen, @wisdomtrove 416:I don’t know what it means to live. ~ haruki-murakami, @wisdomtrove 417:I don't want to believe. I want to know. ~ carl-sagan, @wisdomtrove 418:I gave in, and admitted that God was God. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 419:I get a standing ovation just standing ~ george-burns, @wisdomtrove 420:I had a lovers quarrel with the world. ~ robert-frost, @wisdomtrove 421:I hate a man who skins the land. ~ theodore-roosevelt, @wisdomtrove 422:I like honest men of all colors. ~ napoleon-bonaparte, @wisdomtrove 423:I like to work and am a focused person. ~ joyce-meyer, @wisdomtrove 424:I love your silences, they are like mine. ~ anais-nin, @wisdomtrove 425:I'm a painter in my dreams, you know. ~ kurt-vonnegut, @wisdomtrove 426:I'm hello, and I'd like to say myself. ~ steve-martin, @wisdomtrove 427:I'm not confused. I'm just well mixed. ~ robert-frost, @wisdomtrove 428:I never quit until I get what I want. ~ thomas-edison, @wisdomtrove 429:I never set out to be a businessman ~ richard-branson, @wisdomtrove 430:I never take my own side in a quarrel. ~ robert-frost, @wisdomtrove 431:I see through my eyes, not with them. ~ william-blake, @wisdomtrove 432:I spoke to ears that refused to hear. ~ ronald-reagan, @wisdomtrove 433:I take sounds and change them into words. ~ brian-eno, @wisdomtrove 434:I think I made his back feel better. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 435:It is impossible to say just what I mean! ~ t-s-eliot, @wisdomtrove 436:I trust that absolutes have gradations. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 437:I usually never walk by a microphone. ~ ronald-reagan, @wisdomtrove 438:I've decided to stick with love. ~ martin-luther-king, @wisdomtrove 439:I vow to live fully in each moment. ~ thich-nhat-hanh, @wisdomtrove 440:I wear the chains I forged in life. ~ charles-dickens, @wisdomtrove 441:I will live this day as if it is my last ~ og-mandino, @wisdomtrove 442:I will walk where failures fear to walk. ~ og-mandino, @wisdomtrove 443:I wish I knew why I am so anguished. ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove 444:I would horsewhip you if I had a horse ~ groucho-marx, @wisdomtrove 445:Jesus, I love you. Jesus, I love you. ~ mother-teresa, @wisdomtrove 446:Man, I can assure you, is a nasty creature. ~ moliere, @wisdomtrove 447:Not I but the world says it: All is one. ~ heraclitus, @wisdomtrove 448:One more drink and I'll be under the host. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 449:Picasso is a communist. Neither am I. ~ salvador-dali, @wisdomtrove 450:The hurrier I go, the behinder I get. ~ lewis-carroll, @wisdomtrove 451:The oaths of a woman I inscribe on water. ~ sophocles, @wisdomtrove 452:What follows I flee; what flees I ever pursue. ~ ovid, @wisdomtrove 453:Where I create, there I am true. ~ rainer-maria-rilke, @wisdomtrove 454:Yes," I said, "for the love of God! ~ edgar-allan-poe, @wisdomtrove 455:You bet I'm shy. I'm a shyster lawyer. ~ groucho-marx, @wisdomtrove 456:& 457:Do I believe in God? Yes, when I work. ~ henri-matisse, @wisdomtrove 458:God is, if I may say it, very unscrupulous ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 459:Gone! ... And you and I quite crestfallen. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 460:I accept myself unconditionally right now ~ louise-hay, @wisdomtrove 461:I admit thoughts influence the body. ~ albert-einstein, @wisdomtrove 462:I am in charge. I take my own power back. ~ louise-hay, @wisdomtrove 463:I am in fact, a hobbit in all but size ~ j-r-r-tolkien, @wisdomtrove 464:I am the one I have been looking for. ~ lyania-vanzant, @wisdomtrove 465:I believe in kindness. Also in mischief. ~ mary-oliver, @wisdomtrove 466:I believe one should be a woman at home. ~ bette-davis, @wisdomtrove 467:I cannot pretend I am not without fear. ~ oliver-sacks, @wisdomtrove 468:I can't stand to see myself on television. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 469:I decline to accept the end of man. ~ william-faulkner, @wisdomtrove 470:I don't trust anyone who doesn't laugh. ~ maya-angelou, @wisdomtrove 471:I feed on good soup, not beautiful language. ~ moliere, @wisdomtrove 472:I feel like I'm knockin' on heaven's door. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 473:If there is no God, then I am God. ~ fyodor-dostoevsky, @wisdomtrove 474:I guess there are never enough books. ~ john-steinbeck, @wisdomtrove 475:I have read your book, and I disapprove. ~ jane-austen, @wisdomtrove 476:I have seldom been described as shy. ~ nicholas-sparks, @wisdomtrove 477:I like physics, but I love cartoons. ~ stephen-hawking, @wisdomtrove 478:I like restraint, if it doesn't go too far. ~ mae-west, @wisdomtrove 479:I like to give opinions, not suggestions ~ john-wooden, @wisdomtrove 480:I listen with love to my body's messages. ~ louise-hay, @wisdomtrove 481:I love not man the less, but Nature more. ~ lord-byron, @wisdomtrove 482:I'm not a drug salesman. I'm a writer. ~ kurt-vonnegut, @wisdomtrove 483:I must have flowers, always and always. ~ claude-monet, @wisdomtrove 484:In labouring to be concise, I become obscure. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 485:I struggle to be brief, and I become obscure. ~ horace, @wisdomtrove 486:I take notes like some people take drugs. ~ tim-ferris, @wisdomtrove 487:I think I’ve been particularly lucky. ~ audrey-hepburn, @wisdomtrove 488:I used to be a narrator for bad mimes. ~ steven-wright, @wisdomtrove 489:I've always been an encourager at heart. ~ joel-osteen, @wisdomtrove 490:I was with book, as a woman is with child. ~ c-s-lewis, @wisdomtrove 491:I will show you fear in a handful of dust. ~ t-s-eliot, @wisdomtrove 492:I wish you'd keep my hands to yourself. ~ groucho-marx, @wisdomtrove 493:I wonder what ants do on rainy days? ~ haruki-murakami, @wisdomtrove 494:Love is my religion - I could die for it. ~ john-keats, @wisdomtrove 495:Nothing I do is done by popular demand. ~ steve-martin, @wisdomtrove 496:Now life has killed the dream I dreamed. ~ victor-hugo, @wisdomtrove 497:That [Exodus] occurred, I have no doubt. ~ elie-wiesel, @wisdomtrove 498:There are things I could say. But I don't. ~ bob-dylan, @wisdomtrove 499:Today I can do anything I put my mind to. ~ louise-hay, @wisdomtrove 500:Well, whatever I am, I am the blonde! ~ marilyn-monroe, @wisdomtrove *** NEWFULLDB 2.4M ***
1:All that I am ~ John Quincy Adams, #NFDB
2:AM I NOT MERCIFUL? ~ Amie Kaufman, #NFDB
3:Am I not merciful? ~ Jay Kristoff, #NFDB
4:And I'm sorry for us ~ Thom Yorke, #NFDB
5:and I punched him. ~ Chris Colfer, #NFDB
6:Because I´m a cat. ~ Julie Kagawa, #NFDB
7:Bella, I can't! ~ Stephenie Meyer, #NFDB
8:Boy, I was daid. ~ William Gibson, #NFDB
9:Can I wear your blazer? ~ CM Punk, #NFDB
10:checkup?” “I said ~ Emma Donoghue, #NFDB
11:Forget it, I decided. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
12:Four and Six,” I say. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
13:Fuck, I won a Hugo. ~ Neil Gaiman, #NFDB
14:God I love rainbows. ~ John Green, #NFDB
15:Husker Du I Host
~ Carl Ploug,#NFDB
16:I aim to misbehave. ~ Joss Whedon, #NFDB
17:I am a Bob Dylan fan. ~ Tim Kaine, #NFDB
18:I am all or nothing ~ Jude Morgan, #NFDB
19:I am a man of my word. ~ Augustus, #NFDB
20:I am. I think. I will. ~ Ayn Rand, #NFDB
21:I am just too much. ~ Bette Davis, #NFDB
22:I am NOT a committee. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
23:I am not a fool. ~ Maria V Snyder, #NFDB
24:I am not like ~ Charles Bukowski, #NFDB
25:I am still looking ~ Rick Riordan, #NFDB
26:I am the greatest. ~ Muhammad Ali, #NFDB
27:I am the wilderness. ~ Bren Brown, #NFDB
28:I became stereotyped. ~ Dick Dale, #NFDB
29:I believe in books. ~ Carole Maso, #NFDB
30:I believe in singing. ~ Brian Eno, #NFDB
31:I burn, and I hope. ~ Jesmyn Ward, #NFDB
32:I can move any crowd. ~ DJ Khaled, #NFDB
33:I contain multitudes. ~ Liz Coley, #NFDB
34:I desire
And I crave. ~ Sappho,#NFDB
35:I do Augustus. I do. ~ John Green, #NFDB
36:I don't even like you. ~ Susan Ee, #NFDB
37:I don't follow sheep ~ A K Anders, #NFDB
38:I don't like cheese ~ Phil Lester, #NFDB
39:I do oppose ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
40:I exist to scare you. ~ NisiOisiN, #NFDB
41:I foresee problems ~ Stephen King, #NFDB
42:I FORGOT to tell Joe. ~ T J Klune, #NFDB
43:I got ice in my veins ~ Lil Wayne, #NFDB
44:I had looked forward ~ R S Thomas, #NFDB
45:I hate being immobile. ~ RJ Mitte, #NFDB
46:I hate beyond hate. ~ John Fowles, #NFDB
47:I have no limits. ~ Charles Soule, #NFDB
48:I Hjemmet
~ Christian Winther,#NFDB
49:I just don’t know how ~ Ker Dukey, #NFDB
50:I learn, I earn. ~ Santosh Kalwar, #NFDB
51:I like Books... ~ Suzanne Collins, #NFDB
52:I like incongruity. ~ Tana French, #NFDB
53:I like Michael Buble. ~ Doris Day, #NFDB
54:I like pineapple. ~ Craig Alanson, #NFDB
55:I'll eat you up! ~ Maurice Sendak, #NFDB
56:I loved you, Jake. ~ Stephen King, #NFDB
57:I love imperfections. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
58:I love improvisation. ~ Nora Dunn, #NFDB
59:I love muscle cars. ~ Jaci Burton, #NFDB
60:I love the fast lane. ~ Eva Gabor, #NFDB
61:I love you, Evelyn. ~ Jaci Burton, #NFDB
62:I Love you, Hope ~ Colleen Hoover, #NFDB
63:I love you madly. ~ Suzanne Young, #NFDB
64:I love you too, Stark. ~ P C Cast, #NFDB
65:I'm a free bitch baby ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
66:I’m a fucking ninja. ~ M Robinson, #NFDB
67:I'm a late-night guy. ~ Dane Cook, #NFDB
68:I'm a very old man. ~ Mark Twain, #NFDB
69:I’m game if you are. ~ Ian Rankin, #NFDB
70:I'm glad I got you! ~ Betty Smith, #NFDB
71:I’m here to break up. ~ Jenny Han, #NFDB
72:I’m in,” Steve said. ~ A G Riddle, #NFDB
73:I miss being governor. ~ Jeb Bush, #NFDB
74:I missed the future. ~ John Green, #NFDB
75:I'm no' a good man. ~ Donna Grant, #NFDB
76:I'm not a vegetarian. ~ Carol Alt, #NFDB
77:I'm not Beethoven! ~ Jerry Garcia, #NFDB
78:I'm not superstitious. ~ Bai Ling, #NFDB
79:I'm pain in the spoken form; ~ Ka, #NFDB
80:I'm Switzerland ~ Stephenie Meyer, #NFDB
81:I’m the esclave. ~ Pepper Winters, #NFDB
82:I'm very opinionated. ~ Brian Eno, #NFDB
83:I myself am hell; ~ Robert Lowell, #NFDB
84:I pity you. ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
85:I prefer not to. ~ E L Konigsburg, #NFDB
86:I raced through ~ Linda Fairstein, #NFDB
87:I really like beer. ~ Joss Whedon, #NFDB
88:I see a dark light. ~ Victor Hugo, #NFDB
89:I smile.
I lie. ~ Ally Carter,#NFDB
90:I speak for the trees! ~ Dr Seuss, #NFDB
91:I still taste the past. ~ Unknown, #NFDB
92:I think. I am. I will. ~ Ayn Rand, #NFDB
93:I trust you with my life ~ J Lynn, #NFDB
94:I understand. I will ~ Kate White, #NFDB
95:I used to dream ~ Michael Jackson, #NFDB
96:I’ve already explained ~ J D Robb, #NFDB
97:I wake up hip-hop, ~ Joell Ortiz, #NFDB
98:I want to go to there. ~ Tina Fey, #NFDB
99:I was an awkward kid. ~ Louis C K, #NFDB
100:I was at Oga’s— ~ Zoraida C rdova, #NFDB
101:I was up above it ~ Trent Reznor, #NFDB
102:I will be free, ~ Hilda Doolittle, #NFDB
103:I will not serve”— ~ Peter Kreeft, #NFDB
104:i znowu ją pocałował. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
105:mean it, Skye. I’m ~ Katy Regnery, #NFDB
106:Mignon I Graven
~ Carl Bagger,#NFDB
107:My eyes! I'm blind! ~ Darren Shan, #NFDB
108:Myself I must remake. ~ W B Yeats, #NFDB
109:Now is all I have. ~ Heidi Heilig, #NFDB
110:Oh, I’m sure they ~ Debra Holland, #NFDB
111:OK, Arty,” I said. ~ Ernest Cline, #NFDB
112:Paradise is where I am ~ Voltaire, #NFDB
113:relenting. “I like ~ Krista Lakes, #NFDB
114:Remember I Love You Always ~ Zane, #NFDB
115:said, I don’t know. ~ Claire Adam, #NFDB
116:sake, I hope so. ~ Thomas Benigno, #NFDB
117:Saturdays,” I ~ Brooke Cumberland, #NFDB
118:She looked across the room at , #NFDB
119:Slashdot. I did that. ~ Rob Malda, #NFDB
120:So, am I a genius? ~ John Marsden, #NFDB
121:So I lived alone. ~ Edward Abbey, #NFDB
122:Soneto I
~ Álvares de Azevedo,#NFDB
123:this. I thought ~ Paul Pilkington, #NFDB
124:Tooth, I guess. ~ Jeanne Birdsall, #NFDB
125:Un Soir (I)
~ Emile Verhaeren,#NFDB
126:What I said ~ John Walter Bratton, #NFDB
127:While I live I hope. ~ Nellie Bly, #NFDB
128:While I speak, time flies. ~ Ovid, #NFDB
129:Willa?” I turned ~ Leighann Dobbs, #NFDB
130:Yes, I am saying that. ~ T A Grey, #NFDB
131:You. I love you. ~ Helena Hunting, #NFDB
132:You think I'm pretty ~ Katy Perry, #NFDB
133:A friend is another I. ~ Aristotle, #NFDB
134:All I have is a voice. ~ W H Auden, #NFDB
135:All in all, I'd say, ~ Anne Sexton, #NFDB
136:Ask me..what do I want? ~ L J Shen, #NFDB
137:beginning I knew we ~ Jodi Picoult, #NFDB
138:But I could be wrong. ~ Carl Sagan, #NFDB
139:cast out. † Rev 11:3 I ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
140:Caves of Night—I ~ Zoraida C rdova, #NFDB
141:Crazy. I went crazy. ~ Ally Carter, #NFDB
142:Do I dazzle you? ~ Stephenie Meyer, #NFDB
143:Done sayin I'm done playin ~ Drake, #NFDB
144:Everyday I'm Hustlin'. ~ Rick Ross, #NFDB
145:Everyone I love I pay. ~ Bob Saget, #NFDB
146:everywhere i miss you. ~ Ana s Nin, #NFDB
147:feeling—I understand. ~ K Bromberg, #NFDB
148:Frowning, I glazed ~ Poppy Lawless, #NFDB
149:Guns are bad, I tell you. ~ Eminem, #NFDB
150:Had a dream, I was King, ~ Eminem, #NFDB
151:I actually eat a lot. ~ Heidi Klum, #NFDB
152:i am always bored". ~ George Eliot, #NFDB
153:I am an old punk. ~ Dee Dee Ramone, #NFDB
154:I am at rest and remaining. ~ Rumi, #NFDB
155:I am a wife-made man. ~ Danny Kaye, #NFDB
156:i am back ~ Gabriel Garc a M rquez, #NFDB
157:I am doubting what to do. ~ Horace, #NFDB
158:I am glimmerless. ~ Charles Baxter, #NFDB
159:I am God, la de dah. ~ Anne Sexton, #NFDB
160:I AM Here Now As This ~ Wei Wu Wei, #NFDB
161:I am inside someone ~ Amiri Baraka, #NFDB
162:I am not a hero. ~ Cassandra Clare, #NFDB
163:I am not what I once was. ~ Horace, #NFDB
164:I am single and happy. ~ E G Daily, #NFDB
165:I am sorry Adayla. ~ Clay Griffith, #NFDB
166:I am steadfast. ~ Scott Westerfeld, #NFDB
167:I am the other. ~ G rard de Nerval, #NFDB
168:I been a wanderin' ~ Carl Sandburg, #NFDB
169:I believe in survival. ~ Toba Beta, #NFDB
170:I bet my buttons ~ Suzanne Collins, #NFDB
171:I.
AM.
BURUU. ~ Jay Kristoff,#NFDB
172:I choose the war ~ Cassandra Clare, #NFDB
173:I chose Van Gogh. ~ Cheryl Strayed, #NFDB
174:I could be illegal! ~ Jos N Harris, #NFDB
175:I could use a hug. ~ Thea Harrison, #NFDB
176:I Det Frie
~ Christian Winther,#NFDB
177:I didn't know I could. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
178:I do, Augustus. I do. ~ John Green, #NFDB
179:I do not suffer fools ~ E Lockhart, #NFDB
180:I don't hate anybody. ~ Ruth Ozeki, #NFDB
181:I don't hold grudges. ~ Ian Mcewan, #NFDB
182:I don't like spiders ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
183:I don't want to go ~ David Tennant, #NFDB
184:I don't weigh myself. ~ Seth Rogen, #NFDB
185:I feel infinite. ~ Stephen Chbosky, #NFDB
186:I feel safe with you. ~ Maya Banks, #NFDB
187:I felt kinda detached ~ N R Walker, #NFDB
188:if I perish, I perish. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
189:I Fjelleboden
~ Emil Aarestrup,#NFDB
190:I fucking love you ~ Jamie McGuire, #NFDB
191:I hate Brooklyn. ~ Cassandra Clare, #NFDB
192:I hate flowers. ~ Georgia O Keeffe, #NFDB
193:I have so many goals. ~ Tyra Banks, #NFDB
194:I hurt him, Larel ... ~ Elise Kova, #NFDB
195:I. Ideas psicológicas. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
196:I just ate an otter. ~ Bryan Chick, #NFDB
197:I just love vampires. ~ Matt Smith, #NFDB
198:I knew a girl named Nikki ~ Prince, #NFDB
199:I knew the poor, ~ Hilda Doolittle, #NFDB
200:I know gorilla. ~ Sherrilyn Kenyon, #NFDB
201:I know no such thing. ~ Kyle Mills, #NFDB
202:I know that I know nothing ~ Plato, #NFDB
203:I like all of you". ~ Karina Halle, #NFDB
204:I like me for you. ~ Ashlan Thomas, #NFDB
205:I like to do Pilates. ~ Yunjin Kim, #NFDB
206:I like to shock people. ~ Jo Brand, #NFDB
207:I live by Miracle. ~ William Blake, #NFDB
208:I'll be your hands. ~ Rachel Caine, #NFDB
209:I'll braid you one. ~ Farley Mowat, #NFDB
210:I'll do my best. ~ Kristen Britain, #NFDB
211:I'll never leave you. ~ Maya Banks, #NFDB
212:I’ll watch with you. ~ Henry James, #NFDB
213:I love collaborating. ~ Fred Durst, #NFDB
214:i love erotic books. ~ Marilyn Lee, #NFDB
215:I love my burdens. ~ Dennis Lehane, #NFDB
216:I love Nancy Drew! ~ Carolyn Keene, #NFDB
217:I love Rob Schneider. ~ Ron Eldard, #NFDB
218:I love; therefore I am ~ Anne Rice, #NFDB
219:I love you first. ~ Laurelin Paige, #NFDB
220:I’m a cat burglar. ~ Sarah Monette, #NFDB
221:I Mai 1861
~ Christian Winther,#NFDB
222:I'm a leftover junkie. ~ Kris Carr, #NFDB
223:I’m all in, peekôn. ~ Kresley Cole, #NFDB
224:I'm an over-believer. ~ Jon Gordon, #NFDB
225:I'm a Waitress. ~ Charlaine Harris, #NFDB
226:I'm a wandering gypsy. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
227:I may be wrong, ~ Vincent Bugliosi, #NFDB
228:I'm bidin' my time, ~ Ira Gershwin, #NFDB
229:I'm far from a saint. ~ Clay Guida, #NFDB
230:I'm gay. I know things. ~ P C Cast, #NFDB
231:I might be into sadism ~ Ker Dukey, #NFDB
232:I'm in love with Love. ~ Kat Von D, #NFDB
233:I'm in this forever. ~ Jaci Burton, #NFDB
234:I miss tarty tarts. ~ Frank Beddor, #NFDB
235:I’m Joe Callahan, ~ Kristen Ashley, #NFDB
236:I'm not a list person. ~ Joan Jett, #NFDB
237:I'm not brave at all. ~ Matt Nagle, #NFDB
238:I'm taken,' Gus said. ~ John Green, #NFDB
239:I'm too hot to care. ~ Sabaa Tahir, #NFDB
240:I need to be home this ~ E L James, #NFDB
241:I need to devour you. ~ Emily Snow, #NFDB
242:I need to go ~ Susan Kiernan Lewis, #NFDB
243:I open at the close. ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
244:I paused for affect. ~ Kathi Daley, #NFDB
245:I promise, forever. ~ Kahlen Aymes, #NFDB
246:I Rom 1854
~ Christian Winther,#NFDB
247:I run to run." ~ Tijan Sam ~ Tijan, #NFDB
248:I see. And have you ~ Ariel Lawhon, #NFDB
249:I shall not be moved. ~ Bren Brown, #NFDB
250:I Shall Return ~ Douglas MacArthur, #NFDB
251:I shouldn't be alive ~ Ally Carter, #NFDB
252:I trust all joy ~ Theodore Roethke, #NFDB
253:I trust my instincts. ~ Billy Zane, #NFDB
254:it’s time I fear. ~ Jennifer Niven, #NFDB
255:I've found my cause. ~ Jeff Garvin, #NFDB
256:I've seen the needle ~ Neil Young, #NFDB
257:I vote yes...for Prim. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
258:I wanted it-like iron. ~ Jean Rhys, #NFDB
259:I want this party. ~ Philippa Carr, #NFDB
260:I want to be a skater. ~ Lil Wayne, #NFDB
261:I want to marry you. ~ Kara Dalkey, #NFDB
262:I was not an activist. ~ Joe Biden, #NFDB
263:I wasn’t Spiderman. ~ Aly Martinez, #NFDB
264:I was so over crying. ~ Kiera Cass, #NFDB
265:I will do what I can ~ Jude Morgan, #NFDB
266:I will,” I said. ~ Nicholas Sparks, #NFDB
267:I won't ever give up. ~ Cat Clarke, #NFDB
268:I won't give up on us ~ Jason Mraz, #NFDB
269:I would like to bury ~ Anne Sexton, #NFDB
270:I write in the studio. ~ Macy Gray, #NFDB
271:Let me rage before I die. ~ Virgil, #NFDB
272:Love that I bear ~ Hilda Doolittle, #NFDB
273:Masked, I advance. ~ Ren Descartes, #NFDB
274:Me? I'm a mocker! ~ Paul McCartney, #NFDB
275:Mind if I have a bite? ~ L J Smith, #NFDB
276:Mom. Can I?” Mom. ~ Jessica Lemmon, #NFDB
277:Money talks, I record. ~ Toba Beta, #NFDB
278:Pens! I have pens! ~ Emilie Autumn, #NFDB
279:porcupine power. ~ Robert I Sutton, #NFDB
280:said, “I thought ~ Johanna Lindsey, #NFDB
281:Say car for me ~ Kelly Oram, #NFDB
282:Should I, like, bite? ~ John Green, #NFDB
283:Tell him I took the cat ~ J D Robb, #NFDB
284:Then I sat in my chair ~ Lee Child, #NFDB
285:The sun. I hate the sun. ~ Sheamus, #NFDB
286:Uh I like it like that ~ Juvenile, #NFDB
287:When I go mad, ~ Theodore Roethke, #NFDB
288:When I was growing up, ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
289:Why am I terrified? ~ Kenya Wright, #NFDB
290:Why was I killed? ~ Kristy Cunning, #NFDB
291:Alexis, I love you. ~ Kalayna Price, #NFDB
292:All I am is in the way. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
293:And I hope that you die ~ Bob Dylan, #NFDB
294:And I’m Hermione from— ~ Judy Blume, #NFDB
295:And I'm lost behind ~ Chris Cornell, #NFDB
296:As far as I'm concerned ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
297:As I write ~ Oriah Mountain Dreamer, #NFDB
298:Ask me if I care. ~ Lisa Scottoline, #NFDB
299:better person.” I’m ~ Martha N Beck, #NFDB
300:blatherskate,” I ~ Patrick Rothfuss, #NFDB
301:But I know my truth. ~ Harlan Coben, #NFDB
302:But I'm still here. ~ Kurt Vonnegut, #NFDB
303:Dobby is free. ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
304:Edwin McCain’s “I’ll Be ~ B L Berry, #NFDB
305:Go away... I'm alright. ~ H G Wells, #NFDB
306:Hey...I missed you? ~ Lorelei James, #NFDB
307:Hi, Dad. I’m glad you ~ L J Sellers, #NFDB
308:How I love David Bowie. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
309:I aim to misbehave. ~ Brenna Aubrey, #NFDB
310:I aim to please. ~ Kristen Callihan, #NFDB
311:I already am a product. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
312:I am a bird of God's garden ~ Rumi, #NFDB
313:I am a fan of history. ~ Tom T Hall, #NFDB
314:I am a grateful grapefruit. ~ Bjork, #NFDB
315:I am always tying up ~ Frank O Hara, #NFDB
316:I am a one success man. ~ Tom Baker, #NFDB
317:I am a rubbish flirt. ~ Dawn French, #NFDB
318:I am assistant matron. ~ Nellie Bly, #NFDB
319:I am declined ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
320:I am in my own mind. ~ Anne Sexton, #NFDB
321:I am just a thistle. ~ Logospilgrim, #NFDB
322:I am not a bat. ~Rephaim ~ P C Cast, #NFDB
323:I am not a birch. ~ Santino Hassell, #NFDB
324:I am not a crook. ~ Richard M Nixon, #NFDB
325:I am results-oriented. ~ Bill Gates, #NFDB
326:I am the gaiaphage. ~ Michael Grant, #NFDB
327:I am the hero of Africa. ~ Idi Amin, #NFDB
328:I am two with nature. ~ Woody Allen, #NFDB
329:I am very tired. She ~ Wendy Knight, #NFDB
330:I appreciate this, Mr. ~ Sandi Lynn, #NFDB
331:I believe in criticism. ~ Paul Anka, #NFDB
332:I believe in pink. ~ Audrey Hepburn, #NFDB
333:I came, I saw, I conquered ~ Jay Z, #NFDB
334:I can eat fifty eggs. ~ Paul Newman, #NFDB
335:I can't say no to you. ~ Katie Reus, #NFDB
336:i chose not to run ~ Jerry Seinfeld, #NFDB
337:I couldn't kill a fly. ~ Vera Miles, #NFDB
338:I crack myself up. ~ James W Huston, #NFDB
339:I create opportunities. ~ Bruce Lee, #NFDB
340:I'd give away my soul ~ Josh Groban, #NFDB
341:I did drop out of school. ~ Don Was, #NFDB
342:I did it on purpose. ~ Markus Zusak, #NFDB
343:I'd like to meet you ~ Suzanne Vega, #NFDB
344:I do not know ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
345:I don't date.Ever. ~ Samantha Towle, #NFDB
346:I don't deserve you ~ Liz Reinhardt, #NFDB
347:I don't even trust me. ~ John Green, #NFDB
348:I don't have an iPod. ~ Mary Timony, #NFDB
349:I don't lie," I lied. ~ Holly Black, #NFDB
350:I don't like cages, ~ Richelle Mead, #NFDB
351:I don't paint, I hit. ~ Karel Appel, #NFDB
352:I don’t want to die, ~ Rick Riordan, #NFDB
353:I dream for a living. ~ Steven King, #NFDB
354:I dwell in possibility. ~ Matt Haig, #NFDB
355:I fool everybody! ~ Lisa Scottoline, #NFDB
356:If you fly, I fly ~ Rachel Robinson, #NFDB
357:I gasped. “It was you. ~ Amy Boyles, #NFDB
358:I give people hope. ~ Frank Delaney, #NFDB
359:I Gravcapellet
~ Emil Aarestrup,#NFDB
360:I grew up in New York. ~ Yunjin Kim, #NFDB
361:I hate crew cuts. ~ Douglas Preston, #NFDB
362:I hate Peter Pan. ~ Christina Henry, #NFDB
363:I hate technology. ~ Colleen Hoover, #NFDB
364:I have forseen... ~ Stephenie Meyer, #NFDB
365:I hope you don't mind, ~ Elton John, #NFDB
366:I just hate meetings. ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
367:I just love preaching. ~ Max Lucado, #NFDB
368:I know all the critics. ~ Dana Hill, #NFDB
369:I know because I read. ~ Libba Bray, #NFDB
370:I learn to affirm ~ Denise Levertov, #NFDB
371:I’l erase your day ~ Kristen Ashley, #NFDB
372:I let my mind wander. ~ Anne Lamott, #NFDB
373:I like boring things. ~ Andy Warhol, #NFDB
374:I like creating images. ~ Kate Moss, #NFDB
375:I like English parks. ~ Jean Nouvel, #NFDB
376:I Like Gay Men, Right Ken? ~ Eminem, #NFDB
377:I like him in sweaters. ~ Jenny Han, #NFDB
378:I like Mutemath a lot. ~ Kris Allen, #NFDB
379:I like you in my lap. ~ Jaci Burton, #NFDB
380:I live for living ~ Caroline Kepnes, #NFDB
381:I live in the realm ~ Stevie Nicks, #NFDB
382:I'll always be there ~ Shania Twain, #NFDB
383:I'll be a lady tomorrow ~ L A Meyer, #NFDB
384:I'll eat my head! ~ Charles Dickens, #NFDB
385:I love all of you. ~ Krista Ritchie, #NFDB
386:I love being fancy. ~ Jane O Connor, #NFDB
387:I loved being in a band. ~ Adam Ant, #NFDB
388:I loved doing sitcoms. ~ Will Estes, #NFDB
389:I love 'Dr Strangelove. ~ Jon M Chu, #NFDB
390:I love free speech. ~ George W Bush, #NFDB
391:I love; therefore I am. ~ Anne Rice, #NFDB
392:I love the word warm. ~ Anne Sexton, #NFDB
393:I love TV as a viewer. ~ Rose Byrne, #NFDB
394:I love whom I love ~ Peter S Beagle, #NFDB
395:I love you
I know ~ George Lucas,#NFDB
396:I love you, damn it. ~ Jenn Bennett, #NFDB
397:I love you. I ~ Aimee Nicole Walker, #NFDB
398:I love you, Luke. ~ Nicholas Sparks, #NFDB
399:I love you, Savannah. ~ Jaci Burton, #NFDB
400:I love you too, Drew. ~ Jaci Burton, #NFDB
401:I'm a big hip hop fan. ~ Jonah Hill, #NFDB
402:I'm a character actor. ~ Aaron Paul, #NFDB
403:i'm almost gone ~ Maggie Stiefvater, #NFDB
404:I'm a menace to society, ~ Ice Cube, #NFDB
405:I'm an optimist. ~ Jeffrey R Immelt, #NFDB
406:I'm a sentimental guy. ~ Fred Durst, #NFDB
407:I'm a serial bigamist. ~ Russ Meyer, #NFDB
408:I'm a travel enthusiast. ~ Iggy Pop, #NFDB
409:I'm confident in my art. ~ Kid Cudi, #NFDB
410:I'm covered in bees! ~ Eddie Izzard, #NFDB
411:I'm crap and a fatty. ~ Tony Bellew, #NFDB
412:I met with the prisoner ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
413:I'm from a Gypsy background! ~ Cher, #NFDB
414:I'm going to ride the wave. ~ Tweet, #NFDB
415:I'm great at boats! ~ Matt Fraction, #NFDB
416:I'm here, my love,"... ~ Alex Flinn, #NFDB
417:I'm his nightmare... ~ Tonya Hurley, #NFDB
418:I missed holding you. ~ Jaci Burton, #NFDB
419:I'm just a dreamer ~ Ozzy Osbourne, #NFDB
420:I'm keeping to you ~ David Levithan, #NFDB
421:I’m nobody’s girl. ~ Kiersten White, #NFDB
422:I'm not a centerfold. ~ Frank Ocean, #NFDB
423:I'm not a great writer. ~ E L James, #NFDB
424:I'm not a jazz singer. ~ Boz Scaggs, #NFDB
425:I'm not a leading guy. ~ Steve Zahn, #NFDB
426:I'm not a leading man. ~ Aaron Paul, #NFDB
427:… I’m not fixable. ~ Samantha Towle, #NFDB
428:I'm not hot. I'm great. ~ Lil Wayne, #NFDB
429:I'm not me without you. ~ T Torrest, #NFDB
430:I’m not me without you. ~ T Torrest, #NFDB
431:I'm not really book-smart. ~ Eminem, #NFDB
432:I’m not . . . special ~ Erin Hunter, #NFDB
433:I'm not your enemy. ~ Marissa Meyer, #NFDB
434:I'm only going one way. ~ Babe Ruth, #NFDB
435:I'm perpetually lonely. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
436:I'm pretty outspoken. ~ Miley Cyrus, #NFDB
437:I'm selling my V-card, ~ Ella James, #NFDB
438:I'm selling my V-card. ~ Ella James, #NFDB
439:I'm sorry I shouted. ~ Luke Pearson, #NFDB
440:I'm tired of dying. ~ Gillian Flynn, #NFDB
441:I must not tell lies. ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
442:I'm very clever ~ Charles Bukowski, #NFDB
443:I'm very free-spirited. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
444:I'm weary of conjectures. ~ Various, #NFDB
445:I'm with you, my angel. ~ L J Smith, #NFDB
446:I PLUNGE TO MY DEATH ~ Rick Riordan, #NFDB
447:I read that it's one of ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
448:I said: what about my eyes? ~ Rumi, #NFDB
449:I see uncool people! ~ Tonya Hurley, #NFDB
450:I should be content ~ David Ignatow, #NFDB
451:I smoke goody, no glaucoma. ~ Drake, #NFDB
452:I think I'm in love. ~ Ransom Riggs, #NFDB
453:I think, therefore I am ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
454:I try to eat healthy. ~ Nina Dobrev, #NFDB
455:I've been a free man. ~ V S Naipaul, #NFDB
456:I've been happy here. ~ Andr Aciman, #NFDB
457:I've got swag! You jelly? ~ Various, #NFDB
458:I’ve loved you since ~ Belle Aurora, #NFDB
459:I want the white one ~ Sarah Dessen, #NFDB
460:I want to be an icon. ~ Wiz Khalifa, #NFDB
461:I want to belong. ~ Justina Ireland, #NFDB
462:I was a mother's boy. ~ Don Rickles, #NFDB
463:I was frozen. I wanted ~ Kiera Cass, #NFDB
464:I was never a writer. ~ Simon Sinek, #NFDB
465:I weep at everything. ~ Chris Evans, #NFDB
466:I will fight for her. ~ Layla Hagen, #NFDB
467:I WILL KILL SNOW. ~ Suzanne Collins, #NFDB
468:I will not calm down! ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
469:I won’t do anything bad ~ V F Mason, #NFDB
470:I work like a gardener. ~ Joan Miro, #NFDB
471:I work to stay alive. ~ Bette Davis, #NFDB
472:I write what I write. ~ Umberto Eco, #NFDB
473:jurisprudence. I ~ Michael Connelly, #NFDB
474:Kiss me, I’m horny. ~ Tiffany Reisz, #NFDB
475:La Plaine (I)
~ Emile Verhaeren,#NFDB
476:later, I had a double ~ Elise Noble, #NFDB
477:Live free or die. I ~ Lauren Oliver, #NFDB
478:mackerel?” “I ~ Judith McCoy Miller, #NFDB
479:mealworms I enjoy. ~ Betty G Birney, #NFDB
480:Mine. I'm on my side. ~ Alyson Noel, #NFDB
481:Mmmrrmmph," I grumbled. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
482:Now I see the light. ~ Kennedy Ryan, #NFDB
483:Ocean … Ocean Ann.” I ~ Jewel E Ann, #NFDB
484:Of course I get hurt. ~ Jackie Chan, #NFDB
485:Peace, I say. ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
486:Remember me, I'm real. ~ Calia Read, #NFDB
487:R.I.P. (Rest in pussy). ~ Lil Wayne, #NFDB
488:Shame is a hunter. I ~ Ruta Sepetys, #NFDB
489:So it is a good cry. I ~ Ruby Dixon, #NFDB
490:Still when I'm a mess ~ Alicia Keys, #NFDB
491:There it is, Theo. I ~ Adam Silvera, #NFDB
492:The things I have ~ Hilda Doolittle, #NFDB
493:Was I betraying Joss? ~ Chanda Hahn, #NFDB
494:Werth. I ~ Antoine de Saint Exup ry, #NFDB
495:When I breathe, ~ Takuboku Ishikawa, #NFDB
496:Where Am I Touching? ~ Barbara Sher, #NFDB
497:Why am I allowed two? ~ Ann Voskamp, #NFDB
498:Why do I not forget? ~ Louise Gl ck, #NFDB
499:Why should I fear death? ~ Epicurus, #NFDB
500:will. I swear I will. ~ Dan Simmons, #NFDB
501:wondering if I should ~ Philip Kerr, #NFDB
502:Yafi’i, Raud al rayahin ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
503:a·bil·i·ty ~ Oxford University Press, #NFDB
504:Am I allowed to love you? ~ R S Grey, #NFDB
505:And I begin to learn. ~ Franz Wright, #NFDB
506:And I don’t know why. ~ Tahereh Mafi, #NFDB
507:And I want you. I want ~ Edie Claire, #NFDB
508:And so I walked on. ~ Cheryl Strayed, #NFDB
509:At Delphi I prayed ~ Denise Levertov, #NFDB
510:But I will be, ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
511:Canoodling, I see. ~ Cassandra Clare, #NFDB
512:Cheaters, I thought. ~ Richelle Mead, #NFDB
513:Every time I get happy ~ Anne Sexton, #NFDB
514:Get rid of me, I get it. ~ Kris Kidd, #NFDB
515:Give me what I paid for. ~ Erin Watt, #NFDB
516:him!” I cried. “Somebody ~ R L Stine, #NFDB
517:How much do I owe you? ~ Chevy Chase, #NFDB
518:I ache, brilliantly. ~ Adrienne Rich, #NFDB
519:I always have a plan. ~ Ian McDonald, #NFDB
520:I always looked ahead. ~ Chris Evert, #NFDB
521:I always look outside. ~ Wyclef Jean, #NFDB
522:I always want to rock. ~ Ronnie Wood, #NFDB
523:I am a closet metal fan. ~ Jon Gries, #NFDB
524:I am against all war. ~ Sophia Loren, #NFDB
525:I am a huge sports fan. ~ Kris Allen, #NFDB
526:I am all astonishment. ~ Jane Austen, #NFDB
527:I am always learning. ~ Michelangelo, #NFDB
528:I am an acquired taste. ~ Roxane Gay, #NFDB
529:I am an evil Giraffe. ~ Eddie Izzard, #NFDB
530:I am become a blade. ~ Leigh Bardugo, #NFDB
531:I am dying of hunger. ~ Klaus Kinski, #NFDB
532:I am fat and I don't care. ~ CM Punk, #NFDB
533:I am full of fear. ~ Jennifer Echols, #NFDB
534:I am grateful... grapefruit. ~ Bjork, #NFDB
535:I am haunted by human ~ Markus Zusak, #NFDB
536:I am looking for a human. ~ Diogenes, #NFDB
537:I am my nearest neighbour. ~ Tacitus, #NFDB
538:I am my world. ~ Ludwig Wittgenstein, #NFDB
539:I am not a philosopher. ~ Hans Bethe, #NFDB
540:I am self-defining. ~ Patricia Evans, #NFDB
541:I am the rich man's guru. ~ Rajneesh, #NFDB
542:I am tired of hustling. ~ Alan Sugar, #NFDB
543:I am unknowable. ~ Maggie Stiefvater, #NFDB
544:I am your friend Bob! ~ Rick Riordan, #NFDB
545:I bathe in statistics. ~ Mitt Romney, #NFDB
546:I been away a long time. ~ Ken Kesey, #NFDB
547:I beseech you, ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
548:I brake for brunettes. ~ Rhett Akins, #NFDB
549:I burn with no causes ~ Tom Stoppard, #NFDB
550:I can be your hero... ~ Jos N Harris, #NFDB
551:I can live with that. ~ Beth Michele, #NFDB
552:I can play the radio. ~ Becky Aikman, #NFDB
553:I can't get it wrong. ~ Esther Hicks, #NFDB
554:I can't go on like this ~ Alex Flinn, #NFDB
555:I can, therefore I am. ~ Simone Weil, #NFDB
556:I can write anywhere. ~ Jim Harrison, #NFDB
557:I choose the labyrinth. ~ John Green, #NFDB
558:I'd better be a poet ~ Jack Kerouac, #NFDB
559:I dearly love a laugh. ~ Jane Austen, #NFDB
560:I devoured her mouth. ~ Chelle Bliss, #NFDB
561:I did do my own stunts. ~ Peter Falk, #NFDB
562:I didn't die nor win. ~ Erwin Rommel, #NFDB
563:I didn’t say EAT him! ~ Ransom Riggs, #NFDB
564:I didn't study acting. ~ Ray Walston, #NFDB
565:I'd like to levitate. ~ Rupert Grint, #NFDB
566:i'd like to see you try ~ Kiera Cass, #NFDB
567:I do,Augustus.
I do. ~ John Green,#NFDB
568:I do know how to win. ~ Donald Trump, #NFDB
569:I don't believe. I know. ~ Carl Jung, #NFDB
570:I don't crave Hollywood. ~ Iain Glen, #NFDB
571:I don't even own a car. ~ Bill Nighy, #NFDB
572:I don't like lollipops ~ Eoin Colfer, #NFDB
573:I don't make any money. ~ Bill Wyman, #NFDB
574:I don't take time off. ~ Wiz Khalifa, #NFDB
575:I don't take vacations. ~ Naomi Judd, #NFDB
576:I drank my liver out. ~ Larry Hagman, #NFDB
577:I dreamed of Taylor. ~ Jamie McGuire, #NFDB
578:I drink therefore I am. ~ W C Fields, #NFDB
579:I enjoy being a girl. ~ Paloma Faith, #NFDB
580:I exercise most days. ~ Chris Hughes, #NFDB
581:I feel overestimated. ~ Tom Stoppard, #NFDB
582:I found out that there ~ Johnny Cash, #NFDB
583:I Fruerburet
~ Christian Winther,#NFDB
584:I fucking love you, ~ Pepper Winters, #NFDB
585:I give you my wings. ~ Kenneth Oppel, #NFDB
586:I gotta learn to rap. ~ Scott Disick, #NFDB
587:I hate being a blonde. ~ Leslie Bibb, #NFDB
588:I hate dwarves. ~ Michael J Sullivan, #NFDB
589:I hate the way my mother thinks. ~ M, #NFDB
590:I hate you sometimes, ~ Portia Moore, #NFDB
591:I have a lust for life. ~ Diana Ross, #NFDB
592:I have a writing addiction. ~ Prince, #NFDB
593:I have my own strength. ~ Nina Hagen, #NFDB
594:I have never been wise. ~ Robin Hobb, #NFDB
595:I have no home but me. ~ Anne Truitt, #NFDB
596:I have nothing ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
597:I Jægerhuset
~ Christian Winther,#NFDB
598:I just like having fun. ~ Katy Perry, #NFDB
599:I just love chickens. ~ Patti LuPone, #NFDB
600:I killed Sirius Black! ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
601:I know your secret. ~ Jennifer Estep, #NFDB
602:I like bright colors. ~ Bubba Watson, #NFDB
603:I like disasters. ~ Becky Albertalli, #NFDB
604:I listen to the wind, ~ Cat Stevens, #NFDB
605:I live in a crazy time. ~ Anne Frank, #NFDB
606:I'll always love you. ~ Bree Despain, #NFDB
607:I'll give you a marvel. ~ Mark Twain, #NFDB
608:I'll sleep well tonight ~ Henry Ford, #NFDB
609:I love flying planes. ~ Hunter Hayes, #NFDB
610:I love playing sport. ~ Damian Lewis, #NFDB
611:I love polarizing people. ~ Josh Gad, #NFDB
612:I love recording music. ~ J J Abrams, #NFDB
613:I love to play music. ~ Gavin DeGraw, #NFDB
614:I love to take baths. ~ Rachel Weisz, #NFDB
615:I love whom I love. ~ Peter S Beagle, #NFDB
616:I love X-Games music. ~ Jon Anderson, #NFDB
617:I love you, Elizabeth. ~ Jaci Burton, #NFDB
618:I'm a big competitor. ~ Kevin Durant, #NFDB
619:I'm a bit of a groupie. ~ Jerry Hall, #NFDB
620:I'm a bit of a romantic. ~ Eric Bana, #NFDB
621:I'm a bit of a tomboy. ~ Miley Cyrus, #NFDB
622:I'm a chick for sure. ~ Emily Haines, #NFDB
623:I'm actually very active. ~ RJ Mitte, #NFDB
624:I'm addicted to writing. ~ Sefi Atta, #NFDB
625:I’m addicted to you. ~ Richelle Mead, #NFDB
626:I'm a dead cookie. ~ William Goldman, #NFDB
627:I'm against ignorance. ~ Herman Kahn, #NFDB
628:I'M A HOPELESS ROMANTIC ~ Aaron Paul, #NFDB
629:I'm a hot..and cool guy. ~ Toba Beta, #NFDB
630:I'm a kid from Boston. ~ Rob Mariano, #NFDB
631:I'm all about the fans. ~ Phife Dawg, #NFDB
632:I'm all about wellness. ~ Nina Agdal, #NFDB
633:I'm a lover of songs. ~ Vince Clarke, #NFDB
634:I'm a Muun of my word ~ James Luceno, #NFDB
635:I'm a New York story. ~ Steve Madden, #NFDB
636:I'm an optimist at heart. ~ Ted Cruz, #NFDB
637:I'm a sucker for love ~ Tupac Shakur, #NFDB
638:I'm a very wealthy man. ~ Elton John, #NFDB
639:I'm coming for you, ~ Daniel Arenson, #NFDB
640:I'm good at everything. ~ Brett Hull, #NFDB
641:I'm in love with hope. ~ Mitch Albom, #NFDB
642:I'm just so bwessed. ~ Jamie McGuire, #NFDB
643:I'm little but I'm old. ~ Harper Lee, #NFDB
644:I'm Melinda. ~ Laurie Halse Anderson, #NFDB
645:I'm my favorite rapper. ~ Kanye West, #NFDB
646:I'm not a flamboyant artist. ~ Rakim, #NFDB
647:I'm not a sun person. ~ Laura Prepon, #NFDB
648:I'm not letting you go. ~ Katie Reus, #NFDB
649:I'm not President Bush ~ John McCain, #NFDB
650:I’m not sure I deserve you. ~ J Lynn, #NFDB
651:I'm only the messenger. ~ Aden Young, #NFDB
652:I'm on the edge with you ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
653:I'm pea green with envy ~ Sylvia Day, #NFDB
654:I'm pretty as a girl. ~ Muhammad Ali, #NFDB
655:I'm really ambitious. ~ Jourdan Dunn, #NFDB
656:I'm really a pacifist. ~ Oliver Reed, #NFDB
657:I'm such a sleep pussy. ~ Barry Lyga, #NFDB
658:I'm too disorganized. ~ Rachel Weisz, #NFDB
659:I must break out... ~ Raymond Briggs, #NFDB
660:In an evil hour, I ~ Charles Dickens, #NFDB
661:—I need to meet you. ~ Tom Rob Smith, #NFDB
662:I never drink... wine. ~ Bela Lugosi, #NFDB
663:I never regret anything. ~ Ai Weiwei, #NFDB
664:nouveaux undead ~ Peter Watts, #NFDB
665:I only like boutiques. ~ Jane Birkin, #NFDB
666:I only like gingers. ~ Sophia Tallon, #NFDB
667:I promise I won’t behave. ~ Nely Cab, #NFDB
668:I pulled out Riptide. ~ Rick Riordan, #NFDB
669:I put food on the table ~ Tom Waits, #NFDB
670:I really love singing. ~ Andrea Corr, #NFDB
671:I remember everything ~ Trent Reznor, #NFDB
672:I scared Stephen King. ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
673:I see holes like eyes ~ Stephen King, #NFDB
674:I shall not altogether die. ~ Horace, #NFDB
675:I shall not completely die. ~ Horace, #NFDB
676:I shook up the world. ~ Muhammad Ali, #NFDB
677:I shudder when relating it. ~ Virgil, #NFDB
678:I Skumringen
~ Christian Winther,#NFDB
679:I speak sarcasm fluently. ~ J D Robb, #NFDB
680:Is there no I but I? ~ Justin Cronin, #NFDB
681:I still live. ~ Edgar Rice Burroughs, #NFDB
682:I think I peed my pants. ~ M C Steve, #NFDB
683:I think with my blood. ~ Cate Marvin, #NFDB
684:I, too, await ~ William Butler Yeats, #NFDB
685:I try to be athletic. ~ Lara Spencer, #NFDB
686:It's lovely. I hate it. ~ Tanith Lee, #NFDB
687:I understand America. ~ Donald Trump, #NFDB
688:I understand, Ira. ~ Nicholas Sparks, #NFDB
689:I've been a lucky boy. ~ Dan Stevens, #NFDB
690:I wanted to heckle life ~ Penny Reid, #NFDB
691:I want it to be you. ~ N E Henderson, #NFDB
692:I want to be fearless. ~ Demi Lovato, #NFDB
693:I want to come back as me. ~ Ed Koch, #NFDB
694:I want to leave a mark. ~ John Green, #NFDB
695:I was a dummy in school. ~ Alan Ladd, #NFDB
696:I was born this way, ~ Lori Brighton, #NFDB
697:I will move you.” “We’re not ~ Tijan, #NFDB
698:I wish I had his number, ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
699:I would die of lonely. ~ Dean Koontz, #NFDB
700:I wrap myself up in virtue. ~ Horace, #NFDB
701:I write music every day. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
702:I write to please myself. ~ Jim Goad, #NFDB
703:Maybe I am a bit mad. ~ Simon Cowell, #NFDB
704:me. I need your help. ~ Stuart Gibbs, #NFDB
705:nervous. Oh, I was ~ Agatha Christie, #NFDB
706:-No, I am thy father. ~ Ian Doescher, #NFDB
707:Oh how I hate people! ~ Mervyn Peake, #NFDB
708:Pizza! I want some. ~ Dee Dee Ramone, #NFDB
709:right-of-passage. I ~ Shayne Silvers, #NFDB
710:Sanders?” I asked. ~ Linwood Barclay, #NFDB
711:Sang I Dalen
~ Christian Winther,#NFDB
712:She told me I sounded as ~ Lily King, #NFDB
713:so I can get paired. ~ Lauren Oliver, #NFDB
714:Subversion is what I do. ~ Eric Idle, #NFDB
715:Suck eggs, I thought. ~ Kathy Reichs, #NFDB
716:The life I'm living ~ David Bromberg, #NFDB
717:The truth is,’ I said, ~ Jodi Taylor, #NFDB
718:think I’m crazy about ~ Brenda Novak, #NFDB
719:tomboy. I’m actually ~ Gillian Flynn, #NFDB
720:Weep I cannot; ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
721:What I did, anybody can do. ~ Weegee, #NFDB
722:When I go away from you ~ Amy Lowell, #NFDB
723:When I'm Gone Just Carry On ~ Eminem, #NFDB
724:Will I be something? ~ Anis Mojgani, #NFDB
725:with every step I ~ Jessica Sorensen, #NFDB
726:With you, I breathe. ~ Ilona Andrews, #NFDB
727:Zero G and I feel fine. ~ John Glenn, #NFDB
728:Acknowledgments xi I also ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
729:All I need here is you ~ Claudia Gray, #NFDB
730:And if I die before I wake ~ Kid Cudi, #NFDB
731:And I look back. Alex ~ Lauren Oliver, #NFDB
732:And so on, and so on... ~ Slavoj i ek, #NFDB
733:A newt?" "I got better. ~ Terry Jones, #NFDB
734:Ask me if I give a shit. ~ John Green, #NFDB
735:Be sober, be vigilant. ~ I Peter V. 8, #NFDB
736:But I remember one thing: ~ Ken Kesey, #NFDB
737:But I will always be hers. ~ J D Horn, #NFDB
738:By this axe I rule! ~ Robert E Howard, #NFDB
739:Come. Here I am.” Read ~ Janet Conner, #NFDB
740:Do I dare to eat a peach? ~ T S Eliot, #NFDB
741:Do I have a fatal desire? ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
742:Do I have to dress up? ~ Chris Colfer, #NFDB
743:Finally... I'm here... ~ Hari Kumar K, #NFDB
744:Free of me, I was whole. ~ Tanith Lee, #NFDB
745:from the flask. “I'm ~ Robert J Crane, #NFDB
746:God, I'm glad I'm not me. ~ Bob Dylan, #NFDB
747:God is love” (I John 4:8) ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
748:Good. I'm starving. ~ Suzanne Collins, #NFDB
749:Hard to say I'm sleeping. ~ Toba Beta, #NFDB
750:has dried plums.” I ~ Suzanne Collins, #NFDB
751:He listens when I talk. ~ Gwenda Bond, #NFDB
752:him.” “I’m not allowed ~ Sejal Badani, #NFDB
753:Home is where I bone you. ~ T S Joyce, #NFDB
754:Honey, I live in heels. ~ Jaci Burton, #NFDB
755:How did I get so old? ~ Kurt Vonnegut, #NFDB
756:I ain't ever satisfied. ~ Steve Earle, #NFDB
757:I always ignore money. ~ Damien Hirst, #NFDB
758:I always like summer ~ Nikki Giovanni, #NFDB
759:I always remain optimistic. ~ Chuck D, #NFDB
760:I am a big music nerd. ~ Olivia Wilde, #NFDB
761:I am a link in a chain ~ Laini Taylor, #NFDB
762:I am always thinking music. ~ Ted Leo, #NFDB
763:I am an aphrodisiac. ~ Santosh Kalwar, #NFDB
764:I am a Patsy Cline fan. ~ Charlie Day, #NFDB
765:I am a prisoner of love. ~ Alex Flinn, #NFDB
766:I am a subject, ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
767:I am a terrible sleeper. ~ Matt Smith, #NFDB
768:I am a tiny seashell ~ Edward Hirsch, #NFDB
769:I am a war president. ~ George W Bush, #NFDB
770:I am below average! ~ Stephen Chbosky, #NFDB
771:I am committed to glamour. ~ Rita Ora, #NFDB
772:I am dead man alive. ~ Santosh Kalwar, #NFDB
773:I am due at the page. ~ Julia Cameron, #NFDB
774:I am haunted by humans ~ Markus Zusak, #NFDB
775:I am hunted by humans. ~ Markus Zusak, #NFDB
776:I am in love with Hope. ~ Mitch Albom, #NFDB
777:I am; I was. I want to be. ~ Joe Hill, #NFDB
778:I am made, I am unmade. ~ Nicola Yoon, #NFDB
779:I am made. I am unmade. ~ Nicola Yoon, #NFDB
780:I am me and not me. ~ Haruki Murakami, #NFDB
781:I am not a fan of books. ~ Kanye West, #NFDB
782:I am not a fashion freak! ~ Kate Moss, #NFDB
783:I am not a party girl. ~ Bridget Hall, #NFDB
784:I am not a scientist. ~ Ronald Reagan, #NFDB
785:I am not a sex symbol. ~ Jason Isaacs, #NFDB
786:I am only an egg. ~ Robert A Heinlein, #NFDB
787:I am plagued by doubts. ~ Woody Allen, #NFDB
788:I am really Method-y. ~ Breckin Meyer, #NFDB
789:I am, right? Right? ~ Hannah Anderson, #NFDB
790:I am thawing. ~ Laurie Halse Anderson, #NFDB
791:I am The Catalyst of Change ~ CM Punk, #NFDB
792:I Am The Mockingjay ~ Suzanne Collins, #NFDB
793:I am the soul in limbo. ~ Andr Breton, #NFDB
794:I am the vampire Lestat. ~ Anne Rice, #NFDB
795:I am too old to think. ~ Keith Miller, #NFDB
796:I am what I photograph. ~ Martin Parr, #NFDB
797:I aspire to be useful. ~ Anthony Foxx, #NFDB
798:I believe in magic! ~ Roxanne Roberts, #NFDB
799:I blame the lentils. ~ Beth Fantaskey, #NFDB
800:I bleed like nobody else. ~ Ric Flair, #NFDB
801:I break an emcee off proper ~ KRS One, #NFDB
802:I burn with no causes. ~ Tom Stoppard, #NFDB
803:I came to heal, not deal. ~ T F Hodge, #NFDB
804:I can be your baby girl ~ Celia Aaron, #NFDB
805:I can't grow a moustache. ~ Joe Jonas, #NFDB
806:I can't hide my feelings. ~ Jack Kemp, #NFDB
807:I can't really fight. ~ Connor Jessup, #NFDB
808:I can't see anything ~ Colleen Hoover, #NFDB
809:I can't tan naturally. ~ Jenny Eclair, #NFDB
810:I could burn you down. ~ Nora Sakavic, #NFDB
811:i crave goddamn difficult ~ Rupi Kaur, #NFDB
812:I dance like the wind. ~ Edward Albee, #NFDB
813:I’d have to eat that ~ Cheryl Strayed, #NFDB
814:I'd like my life back. ~ Tony Hayward, #NFDB
815:i do, augustus.
i do. ~ John Green,#NFDB
816:I do believe in fate. ~ Alex Ferguson, #NFDB
817:I don't care about money. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
818:I don't do impressions. ~ Don Rickles, #NFDB
819:I don't fear anything. ~ Bonnie Blair, #NFDB
820:I don't have one regret. ~ Kanye West, #NFDB
821:I don't keep a journal. ~ Chris Evans, #NFDB
822:I don't know how to live. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
823:I don't like lollipops. ~ Eoin Colfer, #NFDB
824:I don't like to fight. ~ June Allyson, #NFDB
825:I don't need a man in my life. ~ Enya, #NFDB
826:I don't read reviews. ~ Andrea Arnold, #NFDB
827:I don't seek, I find. ~ Pablo Picasso, #NFDB
828:I don't use labels a lot. ~ Jack Kemp, #NFDB
829:I DON’T WANT TO GO. ~ Terry Pratchett, #NFDB
830:I dreamed about her. ~ Brandy Colbert, #NFDB
831:I dress like a tomboy. ~ Agyness Deyn, #NFDB
832:I drive these brothers crazy ~ Fergie, #NFDB
833:I faced down my fears. ~ Mark Edwards, #NFDB
834:I feign no hypotheses. ~ Isaac Newton, #NFDB
835:If elected, I will win. ~ Pat Paulsen, #NFDB
836:If I freely may discover ~ Ben Jonson, #NFDB
837:If I think, I am lost. ~ Paul Cezanne, #NFDB
838:I follow the Way of Love, ~ Ibn Arabi, #NFDB
839:I freaking love this girl ~ G L Tomas, #NFDB
840:I fry mine in butter! ~ Kurt Vonnegut, #NFDB
841:I get high like the clouds ~ Styles P, #NFDB
842:I get paid to not laugh. ~ Julia Barr, #NFDB
843:I get so into the moment. ~ Dane Cook, #NFDB
844:I get through some print. ~ Ken Bruen, #NFDB
845:I give permission ~ Douglas Crockford, #NFDB
846:I got the fear! ~ William S Burroughs, #NFDB
847:I got to learn to surf. ~ Sheryl Crow, #NFDB
848:I grew up with artists. ~ Jason Momoa, #NFDB
849:I had a dream ~ Martin Luther King Jr, #NFDB
850:I had a great childhood. ~ Tom Felton, #NFDB
851:I hate all sidekicks. ~ Patton Oswalt, #NFDB
852:I hate being ignored. ~ Amanda Palmer, #NFDB
853:I hate hateful people. ~ Cee Lo Green, #NFDB
854:I hate his smile. Hate ~ Tahereh Mafi, #NFDB
855:I hate meeting people ~ Stylo Fantome, #NFDB
856:I hate show business. ~ Joni Mitchell, #NFDB
857:I have a thing for tools. ~ Tim Allen, #NFDB
858:I have been cut in two. ~ Anne Sexton, #NFDB
859:I have no grand scheme. ~ Dave Attell, #NFDB
860:I have not been briefed. ~ Gray Davis, #NFDB
861:I have shamed Mr. Cuervo ~ K A Tucker, #NFDB
862:I have started to say ~ Philip Larkin, #NFDB
863:I hit something. Alright. ~ Tite Kubo, #NFDB
864:I hope he draws for you. ~ Amanda Sun, #NFDB
865:I hope I didn’t wake ~ Sidney Sheldon, #NFDB
866:i hope i live to be 150 ~ Matthew Fox, #NFDB
867:I hope there's pudding! ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
868:I hope Tom is okay. ~ Chris Philbrook, #NFDB
869:I just didn’t go back. ~ Gerald G May, #NFDB
870:I just had a bruh moment ~ John Clare, #NFDB
871:I just want to be happy. ~ Kate Perry, #NFDB
872:I just want to marry you. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
873:I know what I do not know. ~ Socrates, #NFDB
874:I let out a long sigh. In ~ Jenny Han, #NFDB
875:I like children - fried. ~ W C Fields, #NFDB
876:I like helping people. ~ Lori Greiner, #NFDB
877:I like involved projects. ~ Tori Amos, #NFDB
878:I like making movies. ~ Antoine Fuqua, #NFDB
879:I like practicing law. ~ Bill Janklow, #NFDB
880:I like 'Rocky Horror.' ~ Adam Lambert, #NFDB
881:I like to be counted on. ~ Jeff Bezos, #NFDB
882:I like to be who I am. ~ Hal Holbrook, #NFDB
883:I live a normal life. ~ Abbie Cornish, #NFDB
884:I'll always touch you. ~ Jimi Hendrix, #NFDB
885:I'll stay in Memphis. ~ Elvis Presley, #NFDB
886:I’ll take what I can get. ~ Lia Davis, #NFDB
887:I love doing what I do. ~ Brett Favre, #NFDB
888:I loved to fall down. ~ Dick Van Dyke, #NFDB
889:I love my minions. ~ Michelle Knudsen, #NFDB
890:I loves me my Google ~ Richard Castle, #NFDB
891:I love superconductors. ~ Larry Niven, #NFDB
892:I love to write poetry. ~ Shayne Ward, #NFDB
893:I love you. Always do. ~ Sitta Karina, #NFDB
894:I love you beyond love ~ Lauren Groff, #NFDB
895:I love you, Ivy mine. ~ Elaine Levine, #NFDB
896:I love you, Mahasani. ~ Elaine Levine, #NFDB
897:I love you, Sir Marco! ~ Toni Gonzaga, #NFDB
898:I love you, Sophia. ~ Nicholas Sparks, #NFDB
899:I'm a baseball freak. ~ Dee Dee Myers, #NFDB
900:I'm a big Star Wars fan. ~ Luc Besson, #NFDB
901:I’m a fruit of misfortune. ~ Nely Cab, #NFDB
902:I'm against abortion. ~ Charles Evers, #NFDB
903:I'm a geek to the bone. ~ Jeff Dunham, #NFDB
904:I'm-A-God-Look-At-Me. ~ Alex Ferguson, #NFDB
905:I'm a Harry Potter fan. ~ David Yates, #NFDB
906:I'm a horrible golfer. ~ Vince Vaughn, #NFDB
907:I'm a huge sports fan. ~ Marc Anthony, #NFDB
908:I make a great memory ~ Carrie Fisher, #NFDB
909:I'm a lurid character! ~ Orson Welles, #NFDB
910:I'm an alcoholic, Tara. ~ Jaci Burton, #NFDB
911:I’m an idiot. ~ Laurie Halse Anderson, #NFDB
912:I'm a pro at weird. ~ Stephenie Meyer, #NFDB
913:I'm a real cat. ~ Katherine Applegate, #NFDB
914:I'm a really bad liar. ~ Daniel Craig, #NFDB
915:“Marshmallow.” ~ Monica Murphy, #NFDB
916:I'm as good as her dog ~ Henry Miller, #NFDB
917:I'm a songwriter first. ~ Carole King, #NFDB
918:I'm a very serious person. ~ Tom Ford, #NFDB
919:I'm Chuck Bass. ~ Cecily von Ziegesar, #NFDB
920:I'm gay above the waist. ~ Pete Wentz, #NFDB
921:I'm gonna pray for him. ~ Bruce Irvin, #NFDB
922:I'm good at what I do. ~ Esther Hicks, #NFDB
923:I’m here with a business ~ Terri Reid, #NFDB
924:I'm his and he's mine. ~ Kennedy Ryan, #NFDB
925:I'm in my dream world. ~ Hunter Hayes, #NFDB
926:I'm interested in power. ~ Jeff Koons, #NFDB
927:I miss my old life ~ Richard C Morais, #NFDB
928:I'm just really happy. ~ Jacoby Jones, #NFDB
929:I'm kind of a recluse. ~ Faye Dunaway, #NFDB
930:I'm like Demerol... ~ Cyhi the Prynce, #NFDB
931:I'm living three dreams: ~ Kanye West, #NFDB
932:I'm more than just an option. ~ Drake, #NFDB
933:I'm not a big shopper. ~ Jon Bernthal, #NFDB
934:I'm not a gangster, bro. ~ ASAP Rocky, #NFDB
935:I'm not a human anymore ~ Darren Shan, #NFDB
936:I'm not giving up on us. ~ Katie Reus, #NFDB
937:I'm not going anywhere. ~ Allie Burke, #NFDB
938:I'm not into wrinkles. ~ Winona Ryder, #NFDB
939:I’m not living in a cage. ~ C D Reiss, #NFDB
940:I'm not maximized yet. ~ Ashton Eaton, #NFDB
941:I’m Princess Daisy. ~ Melanie Cellier, #NFDB
942:I’m ready for round two. ~ Katie Reus, #NFDB
943:I'm such a diva on set. ~ Emily Blunt, #NFDB
944:I'm such a technophobe. ~ Phillip Lim, #NFDB
945:I must learn to love you. ~ Carl Jung, #NFDB
946:I'm very fond of drugs. ~ Grace Slick, #NFDB
947:I'm very spontaneous. ~ Patti LaBelle, #NFDB
948:I'm very underground. ~ Eric Bogosian, #NFDB
949:I needed a new mystery. ~ John Fowles, #NFDB
950:I need you to live. ~ Cassandra Clare, #NFDB
951:I never dress to shock. ~ Leona Lewis, #NFDB
952:I never get recognised. ~ Allen Leech, #NFDB
953:I never made promises lightly ~ Sting, #NFDB
954:I never miss England. ~ Quentin Crisp, #NFDB
955:I notice everything. ~ Kiersten White, #NFDB
956:I paint my own reality. ~ Frida Kahlo, #NFDB
957:I paused, allowing the ~ Larry Brooks, #NFDB
958:I plan to live to be 120! ~ Teri Garr, #NFDB
959:I prefer brunettes. ~ Stephenie Meyer, #NFDB
960:I promote peace and positivity. ~ T I, #NFDB
961:I put the ick in magic. ~ Jim Butcher, #NFDB
962:I race kind of sparingly. ~ Ryan Hall, #NFDB
963:I read in self-defense. ~ Woody Allen, #NFDB
964:I read the newspaper. ~ George W Bush, #NFDB
965:I refuse to be. In ~ Marina Tsvetaeva, #NFDB
966:I Riddersalen
~ Christian Winther,#NFDB
967:I said, 'Hey', she said, 'Hi.' ~ Dres, #NFDB
968:I said nothing in secret. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
969:I saved you for me. ~ Paullina Simons, #NFDB
970:I see, and say nothing. ~ Elizabeth I, #NFDB
971:I shot the sheriff? ~ Beverly Jenkins, #NFDB
972:I sit in one of the dives ~ W H Auden, #NFDB
973:I still got my Ferrari. ~ Miles Davis, #NFDB
974:I strive on pressure. ~ Magic Johnson, #NFDB
975:I swear on your life, ~ Renee Carlino, #NFDB
976:I think it's awesome. ~ Avril Lavigne, #NFDB
977:I think I will keep you, ~ Amy Harmon, #NFDB
978:I toured with the Dead ~ M K Schiller, #NFDB
979:I travel all the time. ~ Guy Kawasaki, #NFDB
980:Its own police, I’m told! ~ C S Lewis, #NFDB
981:It’s your mom. I get it. ~ Amy Boyles, #NFDB
982:I've always been a workhorse. ~ Jewel, #NFDB
983:I’ve been buried alive! ~ Erin Hunter, #NFDB
984:I’ve got to get ghost. ~ Kresley Cole, #NFDB
985:I’ve lost everything. ~ Christy Reece, #NFDB
986:I've nearly started! ~ Bill Watterson, #NFDB
987:I walked in a desert. ~ Stephen Crane, #NFDB
988:I walk into this room ~ Dave Matthews, #NFDB
989:I wanna be a nice guy. ~ David Guetta, #NFDB
990:I wanted to be a jockey. ~ Davy Jones, #NFDB
991:I wanted to,” she argued. ~ J S Scott, #NFDB
992:I want forever with you. ~ Maya Banks, #NFDB
993:I want her,” Nathan said. ~ C L Stone, #NFDB
994:I want to be a machine. ~ Andy Warhol, #NFDB
995:I want to be dictator. ~ Gene Simmons, #NFDB
996:I want to die. ~ Jackie Morse Kessler, #NFDB
997:I was an echo of her. ~ Nova Ren Suma, #NFDB
998:I was born amazing. ~ Cassandra Clare, #NFDB
999:I was born in a blender. ~ Lorna Luft, #NFDB
1000:I was born in Evanston, ~ Dana Perino, #NFDB
1001:I was briefly bitter. ~ Margot Kidder, #NFDB
1002:I was hired as a penciler. ~ Gil Kane, #NFDB
1003:I was never a critic. ~ Curtis Hanson, #NFDB
1004:I was not born to wait. ~ Gwenda Bond, #NFDB
1005:I was raised to pretend. ~ Anne Heche, #NFDB
1006:I was rapping at eight. ~ Nick Cannon, #NFDB
1007:I was their first book. ~ Neil Gaiman, #NFDB
1008:I will always protect you, ~ K M Shea, #NFDB
1009:I will never hurt you. ~ Cayla Kluver, #NFDB
1010:I will not be ignored. ~ Vivien Leigh, #NFDB
1011:I will not be misquoted! ~ Todd Barry, #NFDB
1012:I will soldier on. ~ J H Williams III, #NFDB
1013:I wish I were a horse. ~ Jandy Nelson, #NFDB
1014:I wish I were that cat. ~ Dave Franco, #NFDB
1015:I woke up this morning, ~ Bob Marley, #NFDB
1016:I won't apologize for ~ Selena Gomez, #NFDB
1017:I won't ever do e-mail. ~ David Mamet, #NFDB
1018:I would kill Fireheart! ~ Erin Hunter, #NFDB
1019:just him and I. ~ Mimi Jean Pamfiloff, #NFDB
1020:Moderen I Graven
~ Emil Aarestrup,#NFDB
1021:Money talks and I listen. ~ Toba Beta, #NFDB
1022:No baby, I’m not gay. ~ R L Mathewson, #NFDB
1023:No days off. I'm a workaholic. ~ Wale, #NFDB
1024:Now I am an axolotl. ~ Julio Cort zar, #NFDB
1025:Oh! Everything I loved! ~ Victor Hugo, #NFDB
1026:Oh, I am slain! ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
1027:Oh, I hate your ideas. ~ Rick Riordan, #NFDB
1028:Oh, scissors!” I said. ~ Alan Bradley, #NFDB
1029:P.S. I enjoy acid pops. ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
1030:Sawyer, darling, I’ve ~ Fern Michaels, #NFDB
1031:That’s alright, I bite. ~ Devri Walls, #NFDB
1032:The precious ordinary. I ~ Kent Haruf, #NFDB
1033:There is no team in I, ~ Megan Abbott, #NFDB
1034:Trust me. I'm a genius. ~ Eoin Colfer, #NFDB
1035:use in even trying to. I ~ K Bromberg, #NFDB
1036:WELL I BELONG TO YOU! ~ Jamie McGuire, #NFDB
1037:Well… I feel awkward now. ~ C M Owens, #NFDB
1038:What am I doing here? ~ Leigh Bardugo, #NFDB
1039:When I die, so does hip hop. ~ Eminem, #NFDB
1040:When will I make it by? ~ Jen Sincero, #NFDB
1041:you and I have a score to ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
1042:You bet I'm trouble. ~ Kiersten White, #NFDB
1043:You make 'em, I amuse 'em. ~ Dr Seuss, #NFDB
1044:You touch, I kill. ~ Lynne Reid Banks, #NFDB
1045:A life I didn't choose ~ Adrienne Rich, #NFDB
1046:All I know is what I am getting. ~ RZA, #NFDB
1047:All right. I want you. ~ Monica Murphy, #NFDB
1048:Although the more I learn, ~ T R Ragan, #NFDB
1049:And I ate the cheesecake. ~ Jojo Moyes, #NFDB
1050:and when I looked out, ~ Emilie Autumn, #NFDB
1051:Because you know I'm ~ Meghan Trainor, #NFDB
1052:Bitches need love too.” I ~ Kim Holden, #NFDB
1053:Boy, I loathe Persian luxury. ~ Horace, #NFDB
1054:But I can please God ~ Craig Groeschel, #NFDB
1055:Can I stab him, please? ~ Julie Kagawa, #NFDB
1056:Cause I am a Superwoman, ~ Alicia Keys, #NFDB
1057:Charles, I lost the bet. ~ Karl Malone, #NFDB
1058:Charlie. I’m so sorry. ~ Miranda James, #NFDB
1059:Coffee or I'll cut you! ~ Alanea Alder, #NFDB
1060:comfort. I’d decided Lucy ~ Kiera Cass, #NFDB
1061:crowds. I hated parties ~ CeeCee James, #NFDB
1062:Did I grow a third eye? ~ Stephen King, #NFDB
1063:Do I make mistakes? Yeah. ~ Tom Cruise, #NFDB
1064:Do I you dazzle you? ~ Stephenie Meyer, #NFDB
1065:Everything I write is about me. ~ Mika, #NFDB
1066:Everywhere I go, there I am. ~ Unknown, #NFDB
1067:Excuse me while I yawn. ~ Lauren Child, #NFDB
1068:family. I chose ~ Joanna Campbell Slan, #NFDB
1069:Father. It’s nothing. I ~ Alan Bradley, #NFDB
1070:Fear not for I am a cat ~ Julie Kagawa, #NFDB
1071:For I am a woman now. ~ Eimear McBride, #NFDB
1072:Fuck, but I love you. ~ Kristen Ashley, #NFDB
1073:Go away, G. I’m wooing. ~ Elle Kennedy, #NFDB
1074:God, I feel so stupid. ~ Richelle Mead, #NFDB
1075:Good idea. I'll do it. ~ Mary Connealy, #NFDB
1076:Heh! Fuck yew,” I said. ~ Kevin Hearne, #NFDB
1077:Hello, I must be going. ~ Groucho Marx, #NFDB
1078:He thinks I look alike! ~ Groucho Marx, #NFDB
1079:Home is wherever I go. ~ Indira Gandhi, #NFDB
1080:How I hate everything! ~ Edith Wharton, #NFDB
1081:How I Know What I Know ~ Sylvia Browne, #NFDB
1082:I actually like talking. ~ Denis Leary, #NFDB
1083:I always believed in us. ~ A L Jackson, #NFDB
1084:I always go extreme ways. ~ Niki Lauda, #NFDB
1085:I always know my lines. ~ Vivien Leigh, #NFDB
1086:I always notice flowers. ~ Andy Warhol, #NFDB
1087:I always wanted to rebel. ~ Kim Gordon, #NFDB
1088:I am a man of my word. ~ Aleatha Romig, #NFDB
1089:I am a searcher... ~ Louise Bourgeois, #NFDB
1090:I am, a stride at a time ~ James Joyce, #NFDB
1091:I am a sucker for jackets! ~ Anna Torv, #NFDB
1092:I am at two with nature. ~ Woody Allen, #NFDB
1093:I am become a name. ~ Robert Galbraith, #NFDB
1094:I am critical of myself. ~ Jason Babin, #NFDB
1095:I am deeply superficial. ~ Ava Gardner, #NFDB
1096:I am full of tough hope ~ Gary Paulsen, #NFDB
1097:I am half child, half ancient. ~ Bj rk, #NFDB
1098:I am haunted by humans. ~ Markus Zusak, #NFDB
1099:I am in control of myself ~ Emily Snow, #NFDB
1100:I am I.” “Tat tvam asi. ~ John Brunner, #NFDB
1101:I am not a normal man. ~ Stevie Wonder, #NFDB
1102:I am not a people person. ~ Susan Juby, #NFDB
1103:I am nothing.” “Are you? ~ Morgan Rice, #NFDB
1104:I am not made for despair ~ Lian Hearn, #NFDB
1105:I am not President Bush. ~ John McCain, #NFDB
1106:I am saying nothing. ~ Charles Dickens, #NFDB
1107:I am so, so alive. ~ Maggie Stiefvater, #NFDB
1108:I am sunlight slicing the dark. ~ Rumi, #NFDB
1109:I am sure the grapes are sour. ~ Aesop, #NFDB
1110:I am terrible at relationships. ~ Mika, #NFDB
1111:i am thankful for sadness. ~ Jomny Sun, #NFDB
1112:I am the dust in the sunlight, ~ Rumi, #NFDB
1113:I am the mockingjay. ~ Suzanne Collins, #NFDB
1114:I am the soul in limbo. ~ Andre Breton, #NFDB
1115:I am very suspicious of people. ~ Mika, #NFDB
1116:I am wintergreen. ~ Ellen Evert Hopman, #NFDB
1117:I and my pupil dined ~ Charlotte Bront, #NFDB
1118:I believe in dancing. ~ Robert Fulghum, #NFDB
1119:I believe in my music. ~ Ralph Stanley, #NFDB
1120:I blame boobs. ~ Jennifer L Armentrout, #NFDB
1121:I can convert anyone. ~ Warren Mundine, #NFDB
1122:I can hypnotize rabbits. ~ Elena Anaya, #NFDB
1123:I can't abide small talk. ~ Matt Roper, #NFDB
1124:I can't die but once. ~ Harriet Tubman, #NFDB
1125:I can't do impressions. ~ Ellie Kemper, #NFDB
1126:I can't sing or dance. ~ Joel Edgerton, #NFDB
1127:I choose when to die ~ Rhiannon Frater, #NFDB
1128:I come alive in the night time ~ Drake, #NFDB
1129:I could still be anybody. ~ John Green, #NFDB
1130:I decided on moustaches. ~ Ian Fleming, #NFDB
1131:I didn't go to college. ~ Shelby Lynne, #NFDB
1132:I didn't love school. ~ Kim Kardashian, #NFDB
1133:I didn't study; I live. ~ Eric Cantona, #NFDB
1134:I'd like to bite that lip. ~ E L James, #NFDB
1135:I'd make a bad preacher. ~ Dan Aykroyd, #NFDB
1136:I do a lot of ceramics. ~ Jeff Bridges, #NFDB
1137:I do, Augustus.
I do. ~ John Green,#NFDB
1138:I do belong on stage. ~ Chris Daughtry, #NFDB
1139:I do. I love you, Tyrus. ~ S J Kincaid, #NFDB
1140:I do keep pre-occupied. ~ Heath Ledger, #NFDB
1141:I do like to sing to God! ~ Jenny Lind, #NFDB
1142:I do not believe...I know. ~ Carl Jung, #NFDB
1143:I do not dare not to dare. ~ C S Lewis, #NFDB
1144:I do not evolve, I AM. ~ Pablo Picasso, #NFDB
1145:I do not evolve, I am. ~ Pablo Picasso, #NFDB
1146:I do not fear pain. ~ Victoria Aveyard, #NFDB
1147:I do not know. ~ Joseph Louis Lagrange, #NFDB
1148:I do not seek. I find. ~ Pablo Picasso, #NFDB
1149:I do not write, I build. ~ Alvar Aalto, #NFDB
1150:I don't care about revenues. ~ Jack Ma, #NFDB
1151:I don't develop; I am. ~ Pablo Picasso, #NFDB
1152:I don't even like parties. ~ Doris Day, #NFDB
1153:I don't exist without writing. ~ Jewel, #NFDB
1154:I don't have any shame. ~ Conrad Black, #NFDB
1155:I don’t know,” sighed ~ Jeffrey Archer, #NFDB
1156:I don't like attacking. ~ Barbara Bush, #NFDB
1157:I don't like being alone. ~ Maya Banks, #NFDB
1158:I don't like no confusion. ~ John Hurt, #NFDB
1159:I don't limit myself. ~ Emeril Lagasse, #NFDB
1160:I don't need bodyguards. ~ Jimmy Hoffa, #NFDB
1161:I don't play the tuba. ~ Lenny Kravitz, #NFDB
1162:I don't think I'm funny. ~ Liam Neeson, #NFDB
1163:I don't understand boys. ~ Ally Carter, #NFDB
1164:I don’t understand… ~ Sherrilyn Kenyon, #NFDB
1165:I don't use old music. ~ Gyorgy Ligeti, #NFDB
1166:I don't want followers. ~ Noam Chomsky, #NFDB
1167:I drank water from your spring ~ Rumi, #NFDB
1168:I enjoy being surprised. ~ Aldis Hodge, #NFDB
1169:I En Landsbykirke
~ Emil Aarestrup,#NFDB
1170:I feed on your energy. ~ Frank Herbert, #NFDB
1171:I feel classy as fuck. ~ Suzanne Young, #NFDB
1172:I find people confusing. ~ Mark Haddon, #NFDB
1173:If nothing else, I have money. ~ Bjork, #NFDB
1174:I fuck like I’m Thor. ~ Colleen Hoover, #NFDB
1175:I get a little Verlaine ~ Frank O Hara, #NFDB
1176:I got a muscle of love. ~ Alice Cooper, #NFDB
1177:I got this." Dank Walker ~ Abbi Glines, #NFDB
1178:I grew up on the game. ~ Philip Rivers, #NFDB
1179:I grew up rock climbing. ~ Jason Momoa, #NFDB
1180:I had rambling on my mind. ~ Lee Child, #NFDB
1181:I hate doing photo shoots. ~ Megan Fox, #NFDB
1182:I hated the man ~ William Kent Krueger, #NFDB
1183:I hate owing people! ~ Suzanne Collins, #NFDB
1184:I hate the word sexy. ~ Ursula Andress, #NFDB
1185:I have a doctor's note. ~ Rick Riordan, #NFDB
1186:I Have A Dream ~ Martin Luther King Jr, #NFDB
1187:I have a hit TV show. ~ Kim Kardashian, #NFDB
1188:I have a house where I go, ~ A A Milne, #NFDB
1189:I have a lot of ambition. ~ Katy Perry, #NFDB
1190:I have always loved you. ~ John Landis, #NFDB
1191:I have a tiny wiener. ~ James Carville, #NFDB
1192:I have had my vision. ~ Virginia Woolf, #NFDB
1193:I have listened ~ Rabindranath Tagore, #NFDB
1194:I have nothing to hide! ~ Kat Dennings, #NFDB
1195:I have to enjoy every moment. ~ Neymar, #NFDB
1196:I have very bad posture. ~ Kurt Cobain, #NFDB
1197:I heard her singing. ~ Suzanne Collins, #NFDB
1198:I hit something...alright. ~ Tite Kubo, #NFDB
1199:I hope Cardan misses me. ~ Holly Black, #NFDB
1200:I hurt, therefore I am. ~ Len Deighton, #NFDB
1201:I, in my brand new body, ~ Anne Sexton, #NFDB
1202:I just go out and play. ~ Johnny Damon, #NFDB
1203:I just got called Nigel. ~ Elijah Wood, #NFDB
1204:I just love Jamie Foxx! ~ Nancy O Dell, #NFDB
1205:I just want to be myself. ~ Jim Carrey, #NFDB
1206:I kill, therefore I am. ~ Ruth Rendell, #NFDB
1207:I know him...of course. ~ Toni Gonzaga, #NFDB
1208:I know that I know nothing. ~ Socrates, #NFDB
1209:I Kongsgaarden
~ Christian Winther,#NFDB
1210:I like amateur things. ~ Sofia Coppola, #NFDB
1211:I like breaking the rules. ~ Lexa Doig, #NFDB
1212:I like her. She's restful. ~ Jo Walton, #NFDB
1213:I like my imperfect girls ~ Kiera Cass, #NFDB
1214:I like my life as it is. ~ Sue Grafton, #NFDB
1215:I like my whiskey wild, ~ Jack Kerouac, #NFDB
1216:I like pushing boundaries. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
1217:I like to chew candles. ~ J D Salinger, #NFDB
1218:I like to sing love songs. ~ Doris Day, #NFDB
1219:I'll be watching.
-A ~ Sara Shepard,#NFDB
1220:I’ll feel my heaven anew, ~ John Keats, #NFDB
1221:I'll read enough ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
1222:I'll take you with me. ~ Miyuki Miyabe, #NFDB
1223:I love any kind of candy. ~ Kris Allen, #NFDB
1224:I love Canada, always. ~ Melanie Fiona, #NFDB
1225:I loved killing bad guys. ~ Chris Kyle, #NFDB
1226:I love natural redheads. ~ Gemma James, #NFDB
1227:I love new questions. ~ Robert Englund, #NFDB
1228:I love pain. Love pain. ~ Cam Gigandet, #NFDB
1229:I love playing odd roles. ~ Aaron Paul, #NFDB
1230:I love smashing stuff. ~ Norman Reedus, #NFDB
1231:I love Steven Wright. ~ Demetri Martin, #NFDB
1232:I love stuff like Mozart. ~ Robin Gibb, #NFDB
1233:I love the dead... Frequently. ~ Necro, #NFDB
1234:I love thee still. ~ Katherine Addison, #NFDB
1235:I love the young people. ~ Johnny Cash, #NFDB
1236:I love to be surprised. ~ Vera Farmiga, #NFDB
1237:I love to read aloud. ~ Cornelia Funke, #NFDB
1238:I love Velveeta cheese. ~ Dolly Parton, #NFDB
1239:I love you, Julian. ~ Stephanie Garber, #NFDB
1240:I love you present tense. ~ John Green, #NFDB
1241:I love you, Serena. Stay. ~ Maya Banks, #NFDB
1242:I love you, Zane.” Zane ~ Abigail Roux, #NFDB
1243:I love zoo sanctuaries. ~ Nancy Travis, #NFDB
1244:I'm a big fan of meat. ~ Preet Bharara, #NFDB
1245:I'm a big girl, Finn. ~ Ridley Pearson, #NFDB
1246:I'm a bit of a hippie. ~ Corey Feldman, #NFDB
1247:I'm a born-again atheist. ~ Gore Vidal, #NFDB
1248:I made you something, ~ Kate DiCamillo, #NFDB
1249:I'm a do-gooder liberal. ~ Frank Gehry, #NFDB
1250:I'm afraid of Americans. ~ David Bowie, #NFDB
1251:I'm afraid of flying. ~ Allison Janney, #NFDB
1252:I'm a fucking final girl ~ Riley Sager, #NFDB
1253:I'm a killer, not a thief. ~ John Hart, #NFDB
1254:I'm a monster, not a moron. ~ P C Cast, #NFDB
1255:I'm an action fanatic. ~ Noah Hathaway, #NFDB
1256:I'm an Internet junkie. ~ Marion Jones, #NFDB
1257:I'm a one-nation Tory. ~ Boris Johnson, #NFDB
1258:I'm a private person. ~ Ray LaMontagne, #NFDB
1259:I'm a really good juggler. ~ Lucy Hale, #NFDB
1260:I'm a restaurant junkie. ~ Amy Carlson, #NFDB
1261:I'm a southern gentleman. ~ Jamie Foxx, #NFDB
1262:I'm a star, no spangled banner ~ Drake, #NFDB
1263:I'm a terrible dancer. ~ Rupert Friend, #NFDB
1264:I'm a video game buff. ~ Shawn Ashmore, #NFDB
1265:I'm a wizard and I know it. ~ Kid Cudi, #NFDB
1266:I'm awkward around girls. ~ Jamie Bell, #NFDB
1267:I'm drawn to bad romances. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
1268:I mean, I love Comic-Con. ~ Seth Rogen, #NFDB
1269:I'm full of curiosity. ~ Sienna Miller, #NFDB
1270:I'm gay. I know things. ~ Kristin Cast, #NFDB
1271:I’m going out stalking. ~ Sally Thorne, #NFDB
1272:I'm hotter than you! ~ Stephenie Meyer, #NFDB
1273:I might be dead by noon ~ Ray Bradbury, #NFDB
1274:I’m in my grave. Panic ~ Keira Andrews, #NFDB
1275:I'm magically delicious. ~ Ethan Hawke, #NFDB
1276:I'm nervous whenever I perform ~ Adele, #NFDB
1277:I'm not a breakfast eater. ~ Sean Penn, #NFDB
1278:I'm not a career woman. ~ June Allyson, #NFDB
1279:I'm not a control freak. ~ Fiona Apple, #NFDB
1280:I'm not a Hollywood guy. ~ Kevin James, #NFDB
1281:I'm not a loner at all. ~ Hugh Jackman, #NFDB
1282:I'm not a philosopher. ~ Truman Capote, #NFDB
1283:I'm not a reactionary. ~ Renee Fleming, #NFDB
1284:I'm not a sex symbol. ~ Jenny McCarthy, #NFDB
1285:I'm not a true vegan. ~ Anthony Kiedis, #NFDB
1286:I'm not blockbuster boy. ~ Johnny Depp, #NFDB
1287:I'm not cute, I'm sexy, ~ Alanea Alder, #NFDB
1288:I'm not going anywhere... ~ Katie Reus, #NFDB
1289:I'm not real. I'm theatre. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
1290:I'm not too proud to beg. ~ Maya Banks, #NFDB
1291:I moonlight as a singer. ~ Bryan Adams, #NFDB
1292:I'm running on hate. ~ Suzanne Collins, #NFDB
1293:I'm so misunderstood! ~ Cate Blanchett, #NFDB
1294:I'm so uncoordinated. ~ Brett Eldredge, #NFDB
1295:I'm the best Manning. ~ Peyton Manning, #NFDB
1296:I'm the goddamn Batman. ~ Frank Miller, #NFDB
1297:I'm The Miz and I'm awesome! ~ The Miz, #NFDB
1298:I'm too much of a big kid. ~ Iain Glen, #NFDB
1299:I’m too young to die. ~ David Walliams, #NFDB
1300:I'm very professional. ~ Matthew Lewis, #NFDB
1301:I'm way too disorganized. ~ Hope Davis, #NFDB
1302:I'm working in my mind. ~ Jasper Johns, #NFDB
1303:I’m worth twelve of you, ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
1304:I myself am best ~ William Shakespeare, #NFDB
1305:I need a distraction. ~ Colleen Hoover, #NFDB
1306:I needed to touch you. ~ Lorelei James, #NFDB
1307:I never fall in love. ~ Karl Lagerfeld, #NFDB
1308:I never use a computer. ~ Andrew Wiles, #NFDB
1309:Not tea but blood! ~ Ann Leckie, #NFDB
1310:'Insanity... I like it." ~ Eoin Colfer, #NFDB
1311:I often work by avoidance. ~ Brian Eno, #NFDB
1312:I only know, I know nothing ~ Socrates, #NFDB
1313:I owe it all to Jesus. ~ Aaron Neville, #NFDB
1314:I persist in performing. ~ David Tudor, #NFDB
1315:I plan to die at my desk. ~ Don Hewitt, #NFDB
1316:I pray, and I obey. ~ David Yonggi Cho, #NFDB
1317:I prefer prickly roses. ~ Leylah Attar, #NFDB
1318:I put the "ic" in "Magic ~ Jim Butcher, #NFDB
1319:I raise my pelvis to God ~ Anne Sexton, #NFDB
1320:I rant, therefore I am ~ Dennis Miller, #NFDB
1321:I realize I'm a mirror. ~ Billy Corgan, #NFDB
1322:I really do hate to sing. ~ Lena Horne, #NFDB
1323:I really like cable T.V. ~ Sally Field, #NFDB
1324:I really like your playing ~ Tom Waits, #NFDB
1325:I remember passion. ~ Melina Marchetta, #NFDB
1326:I saw a cluster of people ~ Kiera Cass, #NFDB
1327:I see no point in reading. ~ Louis XIV, #NFDB
1328:I should be writing ... ~ Mur Lafferty, #NFDB
1329:I shouldn't be married. ~ Tippi Hedren, #NFDB
1330:I sleep and unsleep. ~ Fernando Pessoa, #NFDB
1331:I smiled in my weakness. ~ Osamu Dazai, #NFDB
1332:I smuggle, not snuggle. ~ Chuck Wendig, #NFDB
1333:I still deliver like a midwife ~ Drake, #NFDB
1334:I still live. Pretty. ~ Daniel Webster, #NFDB
1335:I stop at a Wawa. ~ William L Myers Jr, #NFDB
1336:I teach that all men are mad. ~ Horace, #NFDB
1337:I tend to scare myself. ~ Stephen King, #NFDB
1338:I think I'll paint roads ~ Lemn Sissay, #NFDB
1339:I think I might love you. ~ J J McAvoy, #NFDB
1340:I used to be someone. ~ Mary E Pearson, #NFDB
1341:I used to vote Democrat. ~ Herman Cain, #NFDB
1342:I’ve been computering you. ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
1343:I've been to 57 states. ~ Barack Obama, #NFDB
1344:I’ve been watching him! ~ Ransom Riggs, #NFDB
1345:I've got two families. ~ Merle Haggard, #NFDB
1346:I've never voted, no. ~ Conor McGregor, #NFDB
1347:I've served my country. ~ Prince Harry, #NFDB
1348:I've won at every level. ~ Jason Terry, #NFDB
1349:I wanna hold your gland. ~ John Lennon, #NFDB
1350:I wanna rule my destiny. ~ Buju Banton, #NFDB
1351:I wanted to be a painter. ~ Max Cannon, #NFDB
1352:I wanted to stay... me. ~ Kelly Keaton, #NFDB
1353:I want my rockstars dead. ~ Bill Hicks, #NFDB
1354:I want to be left alone. ~ Greta Garbo, #NFDB
1355:I want to die painting. ~ Paul Cezanne, #NFDB
1356:I want to eat your life ~ Lauren Groff, #NFDB
1357:i want to honeymoon myself ~ Rupi Kaur, #NFDB
1358:I want to live quietly. ~ Mary MacLane, #NFDB
1359:i want to remember ~ Maggie Stiefvater, #NFDB
1360:I was born a premature birth. ~ Eminem, #NFDB
1361:I was cured alright. ~ Anthony Burgess, #NFDB
1362:I was famous from birth. ~ Peter Fonda, #NFDB
1363:I was finally fighting. ~ Keary Taylor, #NFDB
1364:I was in chemical jail. ~ James Taylor, #NFDB
1365:I was in detention a lot. ~ Jake Lloyd, #NFDB
1366:I was quaking in my boots. ~ Lynn Hill, #NFDB
1367:I was safer at Hogwarts. ~ J K Rowling, #NFDB
1368:I was wounded, not lost. ~ Sally Green, #NFDB
1369:I was you
and never knew it ~ Rumi,#NFDB
1370:I watch ESPN all day long. ~ Lil Wayne, #NFDB
1371:I will never be able to... ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
1372:I wish to die painting. ~ Paul Cezanne, #NFDB
1373:I wish… to kiss you now. ~ Tillie Cole, #NFDB
1374:I would never wear fur. ~ Kristen Wiig, #NFDB
1375:I write-down to speak-up. ~ M K Asante, #NFDB
1376:I write emotional algebra. ~ Anais Nin, #NFDB
1377:I write emotional algebra. ~ Ana s Nin, #NFDB
1378:Man, I'm sick of doubt. ~ Jim Morrison, #NFDB
1379:Manna today or I starve. ~ Ann Voskamp, #NFDB
1380:Now I have no caste, no creed, ~ Kabir, #NFDB
1381:Oh, great. I'm a doll. ~ Richelle Mead, #NFDB
1382:Oh my god, I am a banana. ~ John Green, #NFDB
1383:One finger up, and I'm out ~ Lil Wayne, #NFDB
1384:Paradise is where I am. ~ Wayne W Dyer, #NFDB
1385:perceptibly with anger. “I ~ E L James, #NFDB
1386:Sex is nature, and I ~ Marilyn Monroe, #NFDB
1387:She’s a fatalist,” I said. ~ Lee Child, #NFDB
1388:Show me, I beg. There’s ~ Sarina Bowen, #NFDB
1389:So I’ve been told.” She ~ Rick Riordan, #NFDB
1390:someday, but I’m ~ Christopher Greyson, #NFDB
1391:story. “Then I accept. ~ Rhonda Gibson, #NFDB
1392:talk, because I was heading ~ J R Rain, #NFDB
1393:That’s just how I roll. ~ Blake Pierce, #NFDB
1394:The fact that I ~ Gustavo Perez Firmat, #NFDB
1395:There is no I in hero. ~ Marissa Meyer, #NFDB
1396:This god, this one word: I. ~ Ayn Rand, #NFDB
1397:This is who the fuck I am. ~ Lady Gaga, #NFDB
1398:Til Mary I Himlen
~ Emil Aarestrup,#NFDB
1399:Tom. "I'd like to ~ F Scott Fitzgerald, #NFDB
1400:Undress me. I'm yours. ~ Penelope Ward, #NFDB
1401:Well, I love clothes. ~ Celine Buckens, #NFDB
1402:Well, I was a drama kid. ~ Dean Norris, #NFDB
1403:Well Mike, I'm abnormal. ~ Frank Zappa, #NFDB
1404:What am I doing here? ~ Arthur Rimbaud, #NFDB
1405:What am I dying for? ~ Stephenie Meyer, #NFDB
1406:what I did, I didn’t want ~ Rhys Bowen, #NFDB
1407:What the hell do I do now? ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
1408:When did I stop being me? ~ Sara Gruen, #NFDB
1409:When I lie down to love, ~ Anne Sexton, #NFDB
1410:Whoa. Back up. I smell? ~ Lili St Crow, #NFDB
1411:Why do I want the money? ~ Jen Sincero, #NFDB
1412:You and I are lifemates. ~ Chanda Hahn, #NFDB
1413:You know, I love acting. ~ Anne Archer, #NFDB
1414:a good story can heal. I ~ Laila Lalami, #NFDB
1415:All I am is all we are. ~ Jamie McGuire, #NFDB
1416:All I get is tomorrow. ~ David Levithan, #NFDB
1417:And ar'n't I a woman? ~ Sojourner Truth, #NFDB
1418:And if I perish, I perish ~ Hans Finzel, #NFDB
1419:And in short, I was afraid. ~ T S Eliot, #NFDB
1420:And I woslike: O wow. ~ George Saunders, #NFDB
1421:And still I am learning. ~ Michelangelo, #NFDB
1422:And y'all scared I can tell ~ Jadakiss, #NFDB
1423:And yes,I was fabulous. ~ Joanne Harris, #NFDB
1424:And you say I’m a calamity. ~ Ker Dukey, #NFDB
1425:as I do now. . . . Since ~ Eric Metaxas, #NFDB
1426:Ask me who I don't dress! ~ Coco Chanel, #NFDB
1427:Besides, I haven’t been ~ Carolyn Brown, #NFDB
1428:box. I’m sure of that. ~ David Baldacci, #NFDB
1429:But I should have known. ~ Peter Heller, #NFDB
1430:but I want you to put him down. ~ Plato, #NFDB
1431:can be more careful.” I was ~ Lexi Ryan, #NFDB
1432:Can I come to you now? ~ Kristen Ashley, #NFDB
1433:Cause I'm Black and I'm proud ~ Chuck D, #NFDB
1434:constructions, and I ~ Elizabeth Strout, #NFDB
1435:Damn! I hate farewells! ~ John Flanagan, #NFDB
1436:decisively engaged’?” I ~ Jocko Willink, #NFDB
1437:Did I promise you too much? ~ Kai Meyer, #NFDB
1438:Do you think I'm insane? ~ Ashlee Vance, #NFDB
1439:Every step I take is a blessing. ~ Rumi, #NFDB
1440:frizz out on me later, I ~ Karina Halle, #NFDB
1441:God, I want to die in you. ~ Katy Evans, #NFDB
1442:Good. I don’t like people. ~ C L Taylor, #NFDB
1443:Hawaii ain't a bad place to work. ~ T I, #NFDB
1444:her to me and asked if I ~ Dick Francis, #NFDB
1445:Holy shit. I’m a Smurf. ~ Erica Cameron, #NFDB
1446:Honey, I forgot to duck ~ Ronald Reagan, #NFDB
1447:I advise you to pray. ~ Katherine Arden, #NFDB
1448:I always played to win. ~ Hansie Cronje, #NFDB
1449:I always want to work. ~ Mary McCormack, #NFDB
1450:I am a complete jazz nerd. ~ Sam Amidon, #NFDB
1451:I am a cookbook fanatic. ~ Samantha Bee, #NFDB
1452:I am a dead man alive. ~ Santosh Kalwar, #NFDB
1453:I am always in love. ~ Ernest Hemingway, #NFDB
1454:I am a restless person. ~ Jenna Coleman, #NFDB
1455:I am as sane as you are. ~ William Boyd, #NFDB
1456:I am a thing of beauty. ~ Frank Sinatra, #NFDB
1457:I am a very slutty reader. ~ Kyle Minor, #NFDB
1458:I am awakened each dawn ~ Philip Larkin, #NFDB
1459:I am a yea-sayer. ~ Friedrich Nietzsche, #NFDB
1460:I am basically optimistic. ~ Dalai Lama, #NFDB
1461:I am forever on the way ~ Maxine Greene, #NFDB
1462:I am happy to have served, ~ M L Forman, #NFDB
1463:I am I, and wish I wasn't"; ~ Anonymous, #NFDB
1464:I am in love with every church ~ Hafez, #NFDB
1465:I am just one human being. ~ Dalai Lama, #NFDB
1466:I am king of the world! ~ James Cameron, #NFDB
1467:I am me and I am okay. ~ Virginia Satir, #NFDB
1468:I am myself my own commander. ~ Plautus, #NFDB
1469:I am nobody but myself. ~ Ralph Ellison, #NFDB
1470:I am no fan of books. ~ Stephen Colbert, #NFDB
1471:I am not a natural dancer. ~ Ricki Lake, #NFDB
1472:I am not capitulating. ~ Eugene Ionesco, #NFDB
1473:I am not the we of anyone ~ J M Coetzee, #NFDB
1474:I am nowhere. I am home. ~ Rob Spillman, #NFDB
1475:I am pretty impressive. ~ Ashlan Thomas, #NFDB
1476:I am sick as a horse. ~ Laurence Sterne, #NFDB
1477:I AM THAT
~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj,#NFDB
1478:I am the hero of my own story ~ Unknown, #NFDB
1479:I am the scourge of God ~ Peter Ackroyd, #NFDB
1480:I am what I am not yet. ~ Maxine Greene, #NFDB
1481:I am woman, hear me roar. ~ Helen Reddy, #NFDB
1482:I apologize for nothing. ~ Eric Cantona, #NFDB
1483:I auditioned just for fun. ~ Clay Aiken, #NFDB
1484:I believe I can sing anything. ~ Miriam, #NFDB
1485:I believe in everything. ~ Roan Parrish, #NFDB
1486:I believe in looseness. ~ Willie Nelson, #NFDB
1487:I believe in miracles. ~ Audrey Hepburn, #NFDB
1488:I BELIEVE!!!!!!!" - Johnny ~ Ted Dekker, #NFDB
1489:I bookmark that thought. ~ Alice Feeney, #NFDB
1490:I break our connection. ~ Tarryn Fisher, #NFDB
1491:I called my style… me. ~ S J D Peterson, #NFDB
1492:i can always find you ~ Jennifer Ashley, #NFDB
1493:I can clap with one hand. ~ Aaron Tveit, #NFDB
1494:I can concentrate on my art. ~ Lou Reed, #NFDB
1495:I can’t lose you, Cami. ~ Jamie McGuire, #NFDB
1496:I care so much I’m sick. ~ Ray Bradbury, #NFDB
1497:I click through her photos. ~ Matt Haig, #NFDB
1498:I conjured that bitch. ~ Sophia Amoruso, #NFDB
1499:I contemplated going mad. ~ N K Jemisin, #NFDB
1500:I could be in love with you ~ T Torrest, #NFDB
4318 Integral Yoga
4224 Poetry
670 Mysticism
542 Philosophy
425 Fiction
341 Occultism
196 Christianity
140 Yoga
114 Philsophy
104 Sufism
94 Zen
92 Psychology
55 Buddhism
40 Science
34 Hinduism
31 Kabbalah
28 Education
22 Mythology
20 Theosophy
16 Integral Theory
8 Cybernetics
6 Taoism
6 Baha i Faith
1 Thelema
1 Alchemy
2367 The Mother
1920 Sri Aurobindo
1399 Satprem
656 Nolini Kanta Gupta
393 Walt Whitman
379 William Wordsworth
364 William Butler Yeats
321 Percy Bysshe Shelley
250 Rabindranath Tagore
171 Aleister Crowley
162 John Keats
160 Friedrich Schiller
156 H P Lovecraft
130 Jalaluddin Rumi
122 Li Bai
117 Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
115 Rainer Maria Rilke
114 Ralph Waldo Emerson
100 Kabir
99 Robert Browning
94 Friedrich Nietzsche
91 Carl Jung
71 Edgar Allan Poe
70 Omar Khayyam
69 James George Frazer
67 Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
66 Plotinus
66 Jorge Luis Borges
66 Hsuan Chueh of Yung Chia
57 Sri Ramakrishna
47 Hafiz
42 Anonymous
40 Swami Vivekananda
37 Swami Krishnananda
37 Lalla
36 Taigu Ryokan
36 Saint Teresa of Avila
35 Ibn Arabi
34 Saint Augustine of Hippo
34 Franz Bardon
33 Lucretius
33 A B Purani
31 Rabbi Moses Luzzatto
31 Matsuo Basho
30 Saint John of Climacus
29 Aldous Huxley
27 Kobayashi Issa
25 Rudolf Steiner
25 Hakim Sanai
25 Aristotle
24 Farid ud-Din Attar
22 Vyasa
22 Abu-Said Abil-Kheir
21 Ramprasad
21 Bulleh Shah
20 Mirabai
16 Solomon ibn Gabirol
16 Dogen
15 Nirodbaran
14 Saint Hildegard von Bingen
14 Ovid
13 Thomas Merton
13 Mansur al-Hallaj
12 Swami Sivananda Saraswati
12 Sarmad
12 Plato
12 Peter J Carroll
12 Paul Richard
12 Muso Soseki
12 Baba Sheikh Farid
11 Symeon the New Theologian
11 Sri Ramana Maharshi
11 Saint John of the Cross
11 Lewis Carroll
11 Ikkyu
11 George Van Vrekhem
11 Fukuda Chiyo-ni
10 William Blake
10 Saint Francis of Assisi
10 Jetsun Milarepa
10 Jacopone da Todi
9 Wang Wei
9 Mechthild of Magdeburg
9 Khwaja Abdullah Ansari
8 Rabbi Abraham Abulafia
8 Norbert Wiener
8 Joseph Campbell
7 Tao Chien
7 Shiwu (Stonehouse)
7 Saint Clare of Assisi
7 Saadi
7 Jordan Peterson
7 Henry David Thoreau
7 Baha u llah
7 Alice Bailey
7 Alfred Tennyson
6 Yuan Mei
6 Yosa Buson
6 Thubten Chodron
6 Sun Buer
6 Ravidas
6 Namdev
6 Lu Tung Pin
6 Jayadeva
6 Chuang Tzu
6 Bokar Rinpoche
6 Basava
6 Allama Muhammad Iqbal
6 Al-Ghazali
5 Vidyapati
5 Shankara
5 Patanjali
5 Jakushitsu
5 Ibn Ata Illah
5 Hakuin
5 Guru Nanak
5 Boethius
4 Wumen Huikai
4 Dante Alighieri
4 Bodhidharma
3 Yeshe Tsogyal
3 Shih-te
3 Saint Therese of Lisieux
3 R Buckminster Fuller
3 Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel
3 Po Chu-i
3 Naropa
3 Nachmanides
3 Moses de Leon
3 Michael Maier
3 Masahide
3 Ken Wilber
3 Izumi Shikibu
3 Han-shan
3 Dadu Dayal
2 Yannai
2 Theophan the Recluse
2 Surdas
2 Nukata
2 Mahendranath Gupta
2 Kuan Han-Ching
2 Kahlil Gibran
2 Judah Halevi
2 Jorge Luis Borges
2 Jean Gebser
2 Italo Calvino
2 H. P. Lovecraft
2 Genpo Roshi
2 Eleazar ben Kallir
2 Dionysius the Areopagite
2 Chiao Jan
2 Catherine of Siena
2 Alexander Pope
1001 Record of Yoga
379 Wordsworth - Poems
373 Whitman - Poems
364 Yeats - Poems
321 Shelley - Poems
312 Prayers And Meditations
275 On Thoughts And Aphorisms
237 Tagore - Poems
182 Agenda Vol 01
167 Agenda Vol 13
162 Keats - Poems
160 Schiller - Poems
156 Lovecraft - Poems
144 The Synthesis Of Yoga
124 Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 03
122 Li Bai - Poems
119 Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 04
115 Rilke - Poems
114 Emerson - Poems
114 Agenda Vol 12
104 Agenda Vol 08
102 Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02
100 Letters On Yoga III
99 Browning - Poems
97 Questions And Answers 1957-1958
97 Agenda Vol 09
96 Agenda Vol 10
91 Goethe - Poems
90 Agenda Vol 06
89 Agenda Vol 11
89 Agenda Vol 03
87 Agenda Vol 07
86 Agenda Vol 04
85 Magick Without Tears
84 Collected Poems
83 Agenda Vol 05
82 Thus Spoke Zarathustra
81 Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01
79 Agenda Vol 02
78 Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 05
75 Rumi - Poems
70 Poe - Poems
69 The Golden Bough
69 Songs of Kabir
65 Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 07
60 Essays In Philosophy And Yoga
56 The Life Divine
56 Questions And Answers 1950-1951
55 The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna
54 Liber ABA
52 Questions And Answers 1956
49 Savitri
49 Letters On Yoga IV
49 Letters On Yoga II
48 Letters On Poetry And Art
44 Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 08
41 Questions And Answers 1953
41 Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 06
40 Borges - Poems
39 Words Of Long Ago
38 Mysterium Coniunctionis
37 The Study and Practice of Yoga
37 Questions And Answers 1955
36 Ryokan - Poems
36 Questions And Answers 1929-1931
36 Crowley - Poems
35 Questions And Answers 1954
34 The Divine Comedy
34 Hafiz - Poems
33 Of The Nature Of Things
33 Evening Talks With Sri Aurobindo
32 Essays Divine And Human
31 General Principles of Kabbalah
31 Basho - Poems
30 The Ladder of Divine Ascent
30 Essays On The Gita
29 The Perennial Philosophy
28 Words Of The Mother II
28 The Bible
27 Letters On Yoga I
27 Arabi - Poems
26 On Education
26 Labyrinths
26 Faust
25 Poetics
24 The Practice of Psycho therapy
24 The Human Cycle
22 Vishnu Purana
22 The Future of Man
22 City of God
22 Anonymous - Poems
21 Plotinus - Complete Works Vol 04
21 Plotinus - Complete Works Vol 01
20 Initiation Into Hermetics
20 Bhakti-Yoga
19 The Way of Perfection
19 Sri Aurobindo or the Adventure of Consciousness
18 Let Me Explain
17 On the Way to Supermanhood
16 Dogen - Poems
15 Twelve Years With Sri Aurobindo
15 The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious
15 Song of Myself
15 Isha Upanishad
14 The Secret Of The Veda
14 The Practice of Magical Evocation
14 The Phenomenon of Man
14 The Mother With Letters On The Mother
14 Some Answers From The Mother
14 Metamorphoses
14 Aion
13 Vedic and Philological Studies
13 Twilight of the Idols
13 Theosophy
13 The Confessions of Saint Augustine
13 Hymn of the Universe
12 Talks
12 Raja-Yoga
12 Plotinus - Complete Works Vol 03
12 Plotinus - Complete Works Vol 02
12 Liber Null
11 Preparing for the Miraculous
11 Kena and Other Upanishads
11 Dark Night of the Soul
10 The Problems of Philosophy
10 The Interior Castle or The Mansions
10 The Integral Yoga
10 Milarepa - Poems
10 Knowledge of the Higher Worlds
10 Amrita Gita
10 Alice in Wonderland
10 A Garden of Pomegranates - An Outline of the Qabalah
9 Hymns to the Mystic Fire
9 5.1.01 - Ilion
8 Words Of The Mother III
8 The Hero with a Thousand Faces
8 The Blue Cliff Records
8 Cybernetics
7 Writings In Bengali and Sanskrit
7 Words Of The Mother I
7 Walden
7 Maps of Meaning
7 A Treatise on Cosmic Fire
6 The Secret Doctrine
6 The Red Book Liber Novus
6 The Gateless Gate
6 The Alchemy of Happiness
6 Tara - The Feminine Divine
6 How to Free Your Mind - Tara the Liberator
6 Chuang Tzu - Poems
5 Sefer Yetzirah The Book of Creation In Theory and Practice
5 Patanjali Yoga Sutras
4 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
4 Jerusalum
4 Huikai - Poems
4 Bodhidharma - Poems
4 Beating the Cloth Drum Letters of Zen Master Hakuin
3 The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma
3 The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep
3 The Lotus Sutra
3 The Book of Certitude
3 Synergetics - Explorations in the Geometry of Thinking
3 Sex Ecology Spirituality
3 Naropa - Poems
3 Han-shan - Poems
3 Agenda Vol 1
2 The Prophet
2 The Ever-Present Origin
2 The Essentials of Education
2 The Castle of Crossed Destinies
2 Symposium
2 Selected Fictions
2 Notes On The Way
2 Mansur al-Hallaj - Poems
2 God Exists
2 Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2E
00.00 - Publishers Note A, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 03, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
The present volume cons Ists of the f Irst seven parts of the book The Yoga of Sr I Aurob Indo wh Ich has run Into twelve parts, as It stands now; of these twelve, parts f Ive to n Ine are based upon talks of the Mother (g Iven by Her to the ch Ildren of the Ashram). In th Is volume the later parts of the Talks (8 and 9) could not be Included: they are to wa It for a subsequent volume. The talks, or Ig Inally In French, were spread over a number of years, end Ing In about 1960. We are pleased to note that the Government of Ind Ia have g Iven us a grant to meet the cost of publ Icat Ion of th Is volume.
13 January 1972
--
All L Ife Is Yoga
Sr I Aurob Indo
00.00 - Publishers Note B, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 04, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
The present volume cons Ists of f Ive parts of the book Yoga of Sr I Aurob Indo wh Ich has now run Into twelve parts. Of these f Ive parts, e Ight and n Ine are based on talks of the Mother g Iven by Her, In French, to the ch Ildren of the Ashram.
We are pleased to note that the Government of Ind Ia have g Iven us a grant to meet the cost of publ Icat Ion of th Is volume.
13 January 1973
--
[L Ike a flame that burns In s Ilence,
L Ike a perfume that r Ises stra Ight upward w Ithout waver Ing,
00.00 - Publishers Note, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
We have pleasure In present Ing the Second Volume of the Collected Works of Sr I Nol In I Kanta Gupta. The s Ix books In th Is volume were or Ig Inally publ Ished separately. The Essays are ma Inly concerned w Ith Myst Ic Ism and Poetry.
We are happy to note that the Government of Ind Ia have g Iven to our Centre of Educat Ion a grant to meet the cost of publ Icat Ion of th Is volume.
The Mother has grac Iously perm Itted the use of her sketch of the author as a front Isp Iece to the book.
--
Ascend Imus ascens Iones In corde
et cantamus cant Icum graduum.
--
[We ascend the ascend Ing grades In our heart
and we s Ing the song of ascens Ion.]
0 0.01 - Introduction, #Agenda Vol 1, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
object:0_0.01 - Introduct Ion
class:chapter
--
Th Is AGENDA ... One day, another spec Ies among men w Ill pore over th Is fabulous document as over the tumultuous drama that must have surrounded the b Irth of the f Irst man among the host Ile hordes of a great, del Ir Ious Paleozo Ic. A f Irst man Is the dangerous contrad Ict Ion of a certa In s Im Ian log Ic, a threat to the establ Ished order that so genteelly ran about am Id the h Igh, Indefeas Ible ferns - and to beg In w Ith, It does not even know that It Is a man. It wonders, Indeed, what It Is. Even to Itself It Is strange, d Istress Ing. It does not even know how to cl Imb trees any longer In Its usual way
- and It Is terr Ibly d Isturb Ing for all those who st Ill cl Imb trees In the old, m Illenn Ial way. Perhaps It Is even a heresy. Unless It Is some cerebral d Isorder? A f Irst man In h Is l Ittle clear Ing had to have a great deal of courage. Even th Is l Ittle clear Ing was no longer so sure. A f Irst man Is a perpetual quest Ion. What am I, then, In the m Idst of all that? And where Is my law? What Is the law? And what If there were no more laws? ... It Is terr Ify Ing. Mathemat Ics - out of order. Astronomy and b Iology, too, are beg Inn Ing to respond to myster Ious Influences. A t Iny po Int huddled In the center of the world's great clear Ing. But what Is all th Is, what If I were 'mad'? And then, claws all around, a lot of claws aga Inst th Is uncommon creature. A f Irst man ... Is very much alone. He Is qu Ite unbearable for the pre-human 'reason.' And the surround Ing tr Ibes growled l Ike red monk Ies In the tw Il Ight of Gu Iana.
One day, we were l Ike th Is f Irst man In the great, str Idulant n Ight of the Oyapock. Our heart was beat Ing w Ith the red Iscovery of a very anc Ient mystery - suddenly, It was absolutely new to be a man am Idst the d Ior Ite cascades and the pretty red and black coral snakes sl Ither Ing beneath the leaves. It was even more extraord Inary to be a man than our old conf Irmed tr Ibes, w Ith the Ir Infall Ible equat Ions and Imprescr Ipt Ible b Iolog Ies, could ever have dreamed. It was an absolutely uncerta In 'quantum' that del Ightfully eluded whatever one thought of It, Includ Ing perhaps what even the scholars thought of It. It flowed otherw Ise, It felt otherw Ise. It l Ived In a k Ind of flawless cont Inu Ity w Ith the sap of the g Iant balata trees, the cry of the macaws and the sc Int Illat Ing water of a l Ittle founta In. It 'understood' In a very d Ifferent way. To understand was to be In everyth Ing. Just a qu Iver, and one was In the sk In of a l Ittle Iguana In d Istress. The sk In of the world was very vast.
To be a man after red Iscover Ing a m Ill Ion years was myster Iously l Ike be Ing someth Ing st Ill other than man, a strange, unf In Ished poss Ib Il Ity that could also be all k Inds of other th Ings. It was not In the d Ict Ionary, It was flu Id and boundless - It had become a man through hab It, but In truth, It was form Idably v Irg In, as If all the old laws belonged to laggard barbar Ians. Then other moons began wh Irr Ing through the sk Ies to the cry of macaws at sunset, another rhythm was born that was strangely In tune w Ith the rhythm of all, mak Ing one s Ingle flow of the world, and there we went, l Ightly, as If the body had never had any we Ight other than that of our human thought; and the stars were so near, even the g Iant a Irplanes roar Ing overhead seemed va In art If Ices beneath sm Il Ing galax Ies. A man was the overwhelm Ing Poss Ible. He was even the great d Iscoverer of the Poss Ible.
Never had th Is precar Ious Invent Ion had any other a Im through m Ill Ions of spec Ies than to d Iscover that wh Ich surpassed h Is own spec Ies, perhaps the means to change h Is spec Ies - a l Ight and lawless spec Ies. After red Iscover Ing a m Ill Ion years In the great, rhythm Ic n Ight, a man was st Ill someth Ing to be Invented. It was the Invent Ion of h Imself, where all was not yet sa Id and done.
And then, and then ... a s Ingular a Ir, an Incurable l Ightness, was beg Inn Ing to f Ill h Is lungs. And what If we were a fable? And what are the means?
And what If th Is l Ightness Itself were the means?
A great and solemn good r Iddance to all our barbarous solemn It Ies.
Thus had we mused In the heart of our anc Ient forest wh Ile we were st Ill hes Itat Ing between unl Ikely flakes of gold and a c Iv Il Izat Ion that seemed to us qu Ite tox Ic and obsolete, however mathemat Ical. But other mathemat Ics were flow Ing through our ve Ins, an equat Ion as yet unformed between th Is mammoth world and a l Ittle po Int replete w Ith a l Ight a Ir and Immense forebod Ings.
It was at th Is po Int that we met Mother, at th Is Intersect Ion of the anthropo Id red Iscovered and the 'someth Ing' that had set In mot Ion th Is unf In Ished Invent Ion momentar Ily ensnared In a g Ilded mach Ine. For noth Ing was f In Ished, and noth Ing had been Invented, really, that would Inst Ill peace and w Ideness In th Is heart of no spec Ies at all.
And what If man were not yet Invented? What If he were not yet h Is own spec Ies?
A l Ittle wh Ite s Ilhouette, twelve thousand m Iles away, sol Itary and fra Il am Idst a sp Ir Itual horde wh Ich had once and for all dec Ided that the med Itat Ing and m Iraculous yog I was the apogee of the spec Ies, was search Ing for the means, for the real Ity of th Is man who for a moment bel Ieves h Imself sovere Ign of the heavens or sovere Ign of a mach Ine, but who Is qu Ite probably someth Ing completely d Ifferent than h Is sp Ir Itual or mater Ial glor Ies. Another, a l Ighter a Ir was throbb Ing In that breast, unburdened of Its heavens and of Its preh Istor Ic mach Ines. Another Ep Ic was beg Inn Ing.
Would Matter and Sp Ir It meet, then, In a th Ird PHYS IOLOG ICAL pos It Ion that would perhaps be at last the pos It Ion of Man red Iscovered, the someth Ing that had for so long fought and suffered In quest of becom Ing Its own spec Ies? She was the great Poss Ible at the beg Inn Ing of man. Mother Is our fable come true. 'All Is poss Ible' was her f Irst open sesame.
Yes, She was In the m Idst of a sp Ir Itual 'horde,' for the p Ioneer of a new spec Ies must always f Ight aga Inst the best of the old: the best Is the obstacle, the snare that traps us In Its old golden m Ire.
As for the worst, we know that It Is the worst. But then we come to real Ize that the best Is only the pretty muzzle of our worst, the same old beast defend Ing Itself, w Ith all Its claws out, w Ith Its sanct Ity or Its electron Ic gadgets. Mother was there for someth Ing else.
'Someth Ing else' Is om Inous, per Ilous, d Isrupt Ing - It Is qu Ite unbearable for all those who resemble the old beast. The story of the Pond Icherry 'Ashram' Is the story of an old clan feroc Iously cl Ing Ing to Its 'sp Ir Itual' pr Iv Ileges, as others clung to the muscles that had made them k Ings among the great apes. It Is armed w Ith all the p Iousness and all the reasonableness that had made log Ical man so ' Infall Ible' among h Is less cerebral brothers. The sp Ir Itual bra In Is probably the worst obstacle to the new spec Ies, as were the muscles of the old orangutan for th Is frag Ile stranger who no longer cl Imbed so well In the trees and sat, pens Ive, at the center of a l Ittle, uncerta In clear Ing.
There Is noth Ing more p Ious than the old spec Ies. There Is noth Ing more legal. Mother was search Ing for the path of the new spec Ies as much aga Inst all the v Irtues of the old as aga Inst all Its v Ices or laws. For, In truth, 'Someth Ing Else' ... Is someth Ing else.
We landed there, one day In February 1954, hav Ing emerged from our Gu Ianese forest and a certa In number of dead-end per Ipluses; we had knocked upon all the doors of the old world before reach Ing that po Int of absolute Imposs Ib Il Ity where It was truly necessary to embark Into someth Ing else or once and for all put a bullet through the bra In of th Is sl Ightly super Ior ape. The f Irst th Ing that struck us was th Is exot Ic Notre Dame w Ith Its burn Ing Incense st Icks, Its eff Ig Ies and Its prostrat Ions In Immaculate wh Ite: a Church. We nearly jumped Into the f Irst tra In out that very even Ing, bound stra Ight for the H Imalayas, or the dev Il. But we rema Ined near Mother for n Ineteen years. What was It, then, that could have held us there? We had not left Gu Iana to become a l Ittle sa Int In wh Ite or to enter some new rel Ig Ion. ' I d Id not come upon earth to found an ashram; that would have been a poor a Im Indeed,' She wrote In 1934. What d Id all th Is mean, then, th Is 'Ashram' that was already reg Istered as the owner of a great sp Ir Itual bus Iness, and th Is frag Ile, l Ittle s Ilhouette at the center of all these zealous worsh Ippers? In truth, there Is no better way to smother someone than to worsh Ip h Im: he chokes beneath the we Ight of worsh Ip, wh Ich moreover g Ives the worsh Ipper cla Im to ownersh Ip. 'Why do you want to worsh Ip?' She excla Imed. 'You have but to become! It Is the laz Iness to become that makes one worsh Ip.' She wanted so much to make them
become th Is 'someth Ing else,' but It was far eas Ier to worsh Ip and qu Iescently rema In what one was.
She spoke to deaf ears. She was very alone In th Is 'ashram.' L Ittle by l Ittle, the d Isc Iples f Ill up the place, then they say: It Is ours. It Is 'the Ashram.' We are 'the d Isc Iples.' In Pond Icherry as In Rome as In Mecca. ' I do not want a rel Ig Ion! An end to rel Ig Ions!' She excla Imed. She struggled and fought In the Ir m Idst - was She therefore to leave th Is Earth l Ike one more sa Int or yog I, bur Ied beneath haloes, the 'cont Inuatr Ice' of a great sp Ir Itual l Ineage? She was seventy-s Ix years old when we landed there, a kn Ife In our belt and a ready curse on our l Ips.
She adored def Iance and d Id not detest Irreverence.
No, She was not the 'Mother of the Pond Icherry Ashram.' Then who was She? ... We d Iscovered
Her step by step, as one d Iscovers a forest, or rather as one f Ights w Ith It, machete In hand - and then It melts, one loves, so subl Ime does It become. Mother grew beneath our sk In l Ike an adventure of l Ife and death. For seven years we fought w Ith Her. It was fasc Inat Ing, detestable, powerful and sweet; we felt l Ike scream Ing and b It Ing, flee Ing and always com Ing back: 'Ah! You won't catch me! If you th Ink I came here to worsh Ip you, you're wrong!' And She laughed. She always laughed.
We had our bellyful of adventure at last: If you go astray In the forest, you get del Ightfully lost yet st Ill w Ith the same old sk In on your back, whereas here, there Is noth Ing left to get lost In! It Is no longer just a matter of gett Ing lost - you have to CHANGE your sk In. Or d Ie. Yes, change spec Ies.
Or become one more nauseat Ing l Ittle worsh Ipper - wh Ich was not on our program. 'We are the enemy of our own concept Ion of the D Iv Ine,' She told us one day w Ith her m Isch Ievous l Ittle sm Ile.
The whole t Ime - or for seven years, In any event - we fought w Ith our concept Ion of God and the
'sp Ir Itual l Ife': It was all so comfortable, for we had a supreme 'symbol' of It r Ight there. She let us do as we pleased, She even opened up all k Inds of l Ittle heavens In us, along w Ith a few hells, s Ince they go together. She even opened the door In us to a certa In 'l Iberat Ion,' wh Ich In the end was as sopor If Ic as etern Ity - but there was nowhere to get out: It WAS etern Ity. We were trapped on all s Ides. There was noth Ing left but these 4m2 of sk In, the last refuge, that wh Ich we wanted to flee by way of above or below, by way of Gu Iana or the H Imalayas. She was wa It Ing for us just there, at the end of our sp Ir Itual or not so sp Ir Itual p Irouettes. Matter was her concern. It took us seven years to understand that She was beg Inn Ing there, 'where the other yogas leave off,' as Sr I Aurob Indo had already sa Id twenty-f Ive years earl Ier. It was necessary to have covered all the paths of the Sp Ir It and all those of Matter, or In any case a large number geograph Ically, before d Iscover Ing, or even s Imply understand Ing, that 'someth Ing else' was really Someth Ing Else. It was not an Improved
Sp Ir It nor even an Improved Matter, but ... It could be called 'noth Ing,' so contrary was It to all we know. For the caterp Illar, a butterfly Is noth Ing, It Is not even v Is Ible and has noth Ing In common w Ith caterp Illar heavens nor even caterp Illar matter. So there we were, trapped In an Imposs Ible adventure. One does not return from there: one must cross the br Idge to the other s Ide. Then one day In that seventh year, wh Ile we st Ill bel Ieved In l Iberat Ions and the collected Upan Ishads, h Ighl Ighted w Ith a few glor Ious v Is Ions to rel Ieve the commonplace (wh Ich rema Ined appall Ingly commonplace), wh Ile we were st Ill cons Ider Ing 'the Mother of the Ashram' rather l Ike some sp Ir Itual super-d Irector (endowed, albe It, w Ith a d Isarm Ing yet ever so provocat Ive sm Ile, as though
She were mak Ing fun of us, then lov Ing us In secret), She told us, ' I have the feel Ing that ALL we have l Ived, ALL we have known, ALL we have done Is a perfect Illus Ion ... When I had the sp Ir Itual exper Ience that mater Ial l Ife Is an Illus Ion, personally I found that so marvelously beaut Iful and happy that It was one of the most beaut Iful exper Iences of my l Ife, but now It Is the ent Ire sp Ir Itual structure as we have l Ived It that Is becom Ing an Illus Ion! - Not the same Illus Ion, but an Illus Ion far worse. And I am no baby: I have been here for forty-seven years now!' Yes, She was e Ighty-three years old then. And that day, we ceased be Ing 'the enemy of our own concept Ion of the D Iv Ine,' for th Is ent Ire D Iv Ine was shattered to p Ieces - and we met Mother, at last. Th Is mystery we call
Mother, for She never ceased be Ing a mystery r Ight to her n Inety-f Ifth year, and to th Is day st Ill, challenges us from the other s Ide of a wall of Inv Is Ib Il Ity and keeps us flounder Ing fully In the mystery - w Ith a sm Ile. She always sm Iles. But the mystery Is not solved.
Perhaps th Is AGENDA Is really an endeavor to solve the mystery In the company of a certa In
number of fraternal Iconoclasts.
Where, then, was 'the Mother of the Ashram' In all th Is? What Is even 'the Ashram,' If not a sp Ir Itual museum of the res Istances to Someth Ing Else. They were always - and st Ill today - rec It Ing the Ir catech Ism beneath a l Ittle flag: they are the owners of the new truth. But the new truth Is laugh Ing In the Ir faces and leav Ing them h Igh and dry at the edge of the Ir l Ittle stagnant pond. They are under the Illus Ion that Mother and Sr I Aurob Indo, twenty-seven or four years after the Ir respect Ive departures, could keep on repeat Ing themselves - but then they would not be Mother and
Sr I Aurob Indo! They would be foss Ils. The truth Is always on the move. It Is w Ith those who dare, who have courage, and above all the courage to shatter all the eff Ig Ies, to de-myst Ify, and to go
TRULY to the conquest of the new. The 'new' Is pa Inful, d Iscourag Ing, It resembles noth Ing we know! We cannot ho Ist the flag of an unconquered country - but th Is Is what Is so marvelous: It does not yet ex Ist. We must MAKE IT EX IST. The adventure has not been carved out: It Is to be carved out. Truth Is not entrapped and foss Il Ized, 'sp Ir Itual Ized': It Is to be d Iscovered. We are In a noth Ing that we must force to become a someth Ing. We are In the adventure of the new spec Ies. A new spec Ies Is obv Iously contrad Ictory to the old spec Ies and to the l Ittle flags of the alreadyknown. It has noth Ing In common w Ith the sp Ir Itual summ Its of the old world, nor even w Ith Its abysms - wh Ich m Ight be del Ightfully tempt Ing for those who have had enough of the summ Its, but everyth Ing Is the same, In black or wh Ite, It Is fraternal above and below. SOMETH ING ELSE Is needed.
'Are you consc Ious of your ce Ils?' She asked us a short t Ime after the l Ittle operat Ion of sp Ir Itual demol It Ion She had undergone. 'No? Well, become consc Ious of your cells, and you w Ill see that It g Ives TERRESTR IAL results.' To become consc Ious of one's cells? ... It was a far more rad Ical operat Ion than cross Ing the Maron I w Ith a machete In hand, for after all, trees and l Ianas can be cut, but what cannot be so eas Ily uncovered are the grandfa ther and the grandmo ther and the whole atav Ist Ic pack, not to ment Ion the an Imal and plant and m Ineral layers that form a teem Ing humus over th Is s Ingle pure l Ittle cell beneath Its m Illenn Ial genet Ic program. The grandfa thers and grandmo thers grow back aga In l Ike crabgrass, along w Ith all the old hab Its of be Ing hungry, afra Id, fall Ing Ill, fear Ing the worst, hop Ing for the best, wh Ich Is st Ill the best of an old mortal hab It. All th Is Is not uprooted nor entrapped as eas Ily as celest Ial 'l Iberat Ions,' wh Ich leave the teem Ing humus In peace and the body to Its usual decompos It Ion. She had come to hew a path through all that. She was the Anc Ient One of evolut Ion who had come to make a new cleft In the old, ted Ious hab It of be Ing a man. She d Id not l Ike ted Ious repet It Ions, She was the adventuress par excellence - the adventuress of the earth. She was wrench Ing out for man the great Poss Ible that was already beat Ing there, In h Is pr Imeval clear Ing, wh Ich he bel Ieved he had momentar Ily trapped w Ith a few mach Ines.
She was uproot Ing a new Matter, free, free from the hab It of Inexorably be Ing a man who repeats h Imself ad Inf In Itum w Ith a few Improvements In the way of organ transplants or monetary exchanges. In fact, She was there to d Iscover what would happen after mater Ial Ism and after sp Ir Itual Ism, these prod Igal tw In brothers. Because Mater Ial Ism Is dy Ing In the West for the same reason that Sp Ir Itual Ism Is dy Ing In the East: It Is the hour of the new spec Ies. Man needs to awaken, not only from h Is demons but also from h Is gods. A new Matter, yes, l Ike a new Sp Ir It, yes, because we st Ill know ne Ither one nor the other. It Is the hour when Sc Ience, l Ike Sp Ir Itual Ity, at the end of the Ir roads, must d Iscover what Matter TRULY Is, for It Is really there that a Sp Ir It as yet unknown to us Is to be found. It Is a t Ime when all the ' Isms' of the old spec Ies are dy Ing: 'The age of
Cap Ital Ism and bus Iness Is draw Ing to Its close. But the age of Commun Ism too w Ill pass ... ' It Is the hour of a pure l Ittle cell THAT W ILL HAVE TERRESTR IAL REPERCUSS IONS, Inf In Itely more rad Ical than all our pol It Ical and sc Ient If Ic or sp Ir Itual Ist Ic panaceas.
Th Is fabulous d Iscovery Is the whole story of the AGENDA. What Is the passage? How Is the path to the new spec Ies hewed open? ... Then suddenly, there, on the other s Ide of th Is old m Illenn Ial hab It - a hab It, noth Ing more than a hab It! - of be Ing l Ike a man endowed w Ith t Ime and space and d Isease: an ent Ire geometry, perfectly Implacable and 'sc Ient If Ic' and med Ical; on the other s Ide ... none of that at all! An Illus Ion, a fantast Ic med Ical and sc Ient If Ic and genet Ic Illus Ion:
death does not ex Ist, t Ime does not ex Ist, d Isease does not ex Ist, nor do 'scar' and 'far' - another way of be Ing IN A BODY. For so many m Ill Ions of years we have l Ived In a hab It and put our own thoughts of the world and of Matter Into equat Ions. No more laws! Matter Is FREE. It can create a l Ittle l Izard, a ch Ipmunk or a parrot - but It has created enough parrots. Now It Is SOMETH ING
ELSE ... If we want It.
Mother Is the story of the free Earth. Free from Its sp Ir Itual and sc Ient If Ic parrots. Free from Its l Ittle ashrams as well - for there Is noth Ing more pers Istent than those part Icular parrots.
Day after day, for seventeen years, She sat w Ith us to tell us of her Imposs Ible odyssey. Ah, how well we now understand why She needed such an 'outlaw' and an Incorr Ig Ible heret Ic l Ike us to comprehend a l Ittle b It of her Imposs Ible odyssey Into 'noth Ing.' And how well we now understand her Inf In Ite pat Ience w Ith us, desp Ite all our revolts, wh Ich ult Imately were only the revolts of the old spec Ies aga Inst Itself. The f Inal revolt. ' It Is not a revolt aga Inst the Br It Ish government wh Ich any one can eas Ily do. It Is, In fact, a revolt aga Inst the whole un Iversal Nature!' Sr I Aurob Indo had procla Imed f Ifty years earl Ier. She l Istened to our gr Ievances, we went away and we returned. We wanted no more of It and we wanted st Ill more. It was Infernal and subl Ime, Imposs Ible and the sole poss Ib Il Ity In th Is old, asphyx Iat Ing world. It was the only place one could go to In th Is barbedw Ired, mechan Ized world, where C Inc Innat I Is just as crowded and polluted as Hong Kong. The new spec Ies Is the last free place In the general Pr Ison. It Is the last hope for the earth. How we l Istened to her l Ittle falter Ing vo Ice that seemed to return from afar, afar, after hav Ing crossed spaces and seas of the m Ind to let Its l Ittle drops of pure, crystall Ine words fall upon us, words that make you see. We l Istened to the future, we touched the other th Ing. It was Incomprehens Ible and yet f Illed w Ith another comprehens Ion. It eluded us on all s Ides, and yet It was dazzl Ingly obv Ious. The 'other spec Ies' was really rad Ically other, and yet It was v Ibrat Ing w Ith In, absolutely recogn Izable, as If It were THAT we had been seek Ing from age to age, THAT we had been Invok Ing through all our Illum Inat Ions, one after another, In Thebes as In Eleus Is as everywhere we have to Iled and gr Ieved In the sk In of a man. It was for THAT we were here, for that supreme Poss Ible In the sk In of a man at last. And then her vo Ice grew more and more fra Il, her breath began gasp Ing as though She had to traverse greater and greater d Istances to meet us. She was so alone to beat aga Inst the walls of the old pr Ison. Many claws were out all around. Oh, we would so qu Ickly have cut ourself free from all th Is f Iasco to fly away w Ith Her Into the world's future. She was so t Iny, stooped over, as If crushed beneath the 'sp Ir Itual' burden that all the old surround Ing spec Ies kept heap Ing upon her. They d Idn't bel Ieve, no. For them, She was n Inety-f Ive years old + so many days. Can someone become a new spec Ies all alone? They even grumbled at Her: they had had enough of th Is unbearable Ray that was br Ing Ing the Ir sord Id affa Irs Into the dayl Ight. The Ashram was slowly clos Ing over Her. The old world wanted to make a new, golden l Ittle Church, n Ice and qu Iet. No, no one wanted TO
BECOME. To worsh Ip was so much eas Ier. And then they bury you, solemnly, and the matter Is settled - the case Is closed: now, no one need bother any more except to pr Int some photograph Ic haloes for the p Ilgr Ims to th Is br Isk l Ittle bus Iness. But they are m Istaken. The real bus Iness w Ill take place w Ithout them, the new spec Ies w Ill fly up In the Ir faces - It Is already fly Ing In the face of the earth, desp Ite all Its Isms In black and wh Ite; It Is explod Ing through all the pores of th Is battered old earth, wh Ich has had enough of shams - whether Illusory l Ittle heavens or barbarous l Ittle mach Ines.
It Is the hour of the REAL Earth. It Is the hour of the REAL man. We are all go Ing there - If only we could know the path a l Ittle ...
Th Is AGENDA Is not even a path: It Is a l Ight l Ittle v Ibrat Ion that se Izes you at any turn Ing - and then, there It Is, you are IN IT. 'Another world In the world,' She sa Id. One has to catch the l Ight l Ittle v Ibrat Ion, one has to flow w Ith It, In a noth Ing that Is l Ike the only someth Ing In the m Idst of th Is great debacle. At the beg Inn Ing of th Ings, when st Ill noth Ing was F IXED, when there was not yet th Is hab It of the pel Ican or the kangaroo or the ch Impanzee or the XXth century b Iolog Ist, there was a l Ittle pulsat Ion that beat and beat - a del Ightful d Izz Iness, a joy In the world's great adventure; a l Ittle never- Impr Isoned spark that has kept on beat Ing from spec Ies to spec Ies, but as If It were always elud Ing us, as If It were always over there, over there - as If It were someth Ing to become,
someth Ing to be played forever as the one great game of the world; a who-knows-what that left th Is spr Ig of a pens Ive man In the m Iddle of a clear Ing; a l Ittle 'someth Ing' that beats, beats, that keeps on breath Ing beneath every sk In that has ever been put on It - l Ike our deepest breath, our l Ightest a Ir, our a Ir of noth Ing - and It keeps on go Ing, It keeps on go Ing. We must catch the l Ight l Ittle breath, the l Ittle pulsat Ion of noth Ing. Then suddenly, on the threshold of our clear Ing of concrete, our head starts sp Inn Ing Incurably, our eyes bl Ink Into someth Ing else, and all Is d Ifferent, and all seems surcharged w Ith mean Ing and w Ith l Ife, as though we had never l Ived unt Il that very m Inute.
Then we have caught the ta Il of the Great Poss Ible, we are upon the wayless way, rad Ically In the new, and we flow w Ith the l Ittle l Izard, the pel Ican, the b Ig man, we flow everywhere In a world that has lost Its old separat Ing sk In and Its l Ittle baggage of hab Its. We beg In see Ing otherw Ise, feel Ing otherw Ise. We have opened the gate Into an Inconce Ivable clear Ing. Just a l Ight l Ittle v Ibrat Ion that carr Ies you away. Then we beg In to understand how It CAN CHANGE, what the mechan Ism Is - a l Ight l Ittle mechan Ism and so m Iraculous that It looks l Ike noth Ing. We beg In feel Ing the wonder of a pure l Ittle cell, and that a sparkl Ing of joy would be enough to turn the world Ins Ide out. We were l Iv Ing In a l Ittle th Ink Ing f Ishbowl, we were dy Ing In an old, bottled hab It. And then suddenly, all Is d Ifferent. The Earth Is free! Who wants freedom?
It beg Ins In a cell.
A pure l Ittle cell.
Mother Is the joy of freedom.
Joyous Agenda!
00.01 - The Approach to Mysticism, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Myst Ic Ism Is not only a sc Ience but also, and In a greater degree, an art. To approach It merely as a sc Ience, as the modern m Ind attempts to do, Is to move towards fut Il Ity, If not to land In pos It Ive d Isaster. Suff Ic Ient stress Is not la Id on th Is aspect of the matter, although the very crux of the s Ituat Ion l Ies here. The myst Ic doma In has to be apprehended not merely by the true m Ind and understand Ing but by the r Ight temperament and character. Myst Ic Ism Is not merely an object of knowledge, a problem for Inqu Iry and solut Ion, It Is an end, an Ideal that has to be ach Ieved, a l Ife that has to be l Ived. The myst Ics themselves have declared long ago w Ith no uncerta In or falter Ing vo Ice: th Is cannot be atta Ined by Intell Igence or much learn Ing, It can be se Ized only by a pur If Ied and clear temperament.
The warn Ing seems to have fallen, In the modern age, on unheed Ing ears. For the modern m Ind, be Ing pre-em Inently and uncomprom Is Ingly sc Ient If Ic, can enterta In no doubt as to the perfect competency of sc Ience and the sc Ient If Ic method to se Ize and unve Il any secret of Nature. If, It Is argued, myst Ic Ism Is a secret, If there Is at all a truth and real Ity In It, then It Is and must be amenable to the rules and regulat Ions of sc Ience; for sc Ience Is the revealer of Nature's secrec Ies.
But what Is not recogn Ised In th Is v Iew of th Ings Is that there are secrec Ies and secrec Ies. The mater Ial secrec Ies of Nature are of one category, the myst Ic secrec Ies are of another. The two are not only d Isparate but Incommensurable. Any man w Ith a m Ind and understand Ing of average culture can see and handle the 'sc Ient If Ic' forces, but not the myst Ic forces.
A sc Ient Ist once thought that he had cl Inched the Issue and cut the Gord Ian knot when he declared tr Iumphantly w Ith reference to sp Ir It sances: "Very s Ign If Icant Is the fact that sp Ir Its appear only In closed chambers, In half obscur Ity, to somnolent m Inds; they are nowhere In the open a Ir, In broad dayl Ight to the w Ide awake and v Ig Ilant Intellect!" Well, If the fact Is as It Is stated, what does It prove? N Ight alone reveals the stars, dur Ing the day they van Ish, but that Is no proof that stars are not ex Istent. Rather the true sc Ient If Ic sp Ir It should seek to know why (or how) It Is so, If It Is so, and such a fact would exactly serve as a po Inter, a s Ign If Icant start Ing ground. The att Itude of the jest Ing P Ilate Is not helpful even to sc Ient If Ic Inqu Iry. Th Is matter of the Sp Ir Its we have taken only as an Illustrat Ion and It must not be understood that th Is Is a doma In of h Igh myst Ic Ism; rather the contrary. The sp Ir Itual Ists' approach to Myst Ic Ism Is not the r Ight one and Is fraught w Ith not only errors but dangers. For the sp Ir Itual Ists approach the Ir subject w Ith the ent Ire sc Ient If Ic apparatus the only d Ifference be Ing that the sc Ient Ist does not bel Ieve wh Ile the sp Ir Itual Ist bel Ieves.
Myst Ic real It Ies cannot be reached by the sc Ient If Ic consc Iousness, because they are far more subtle than the subtlest object that sc Ience can contemplate. The neutrons and pos Itrons are for sc Ience today the f Inest and profoundest object-forces; they belong, It Is sa Id, almost to a borderl and where phys Ics ends. Nor for that reason Is a myst Ic real Ity someth Ing l Ike a mathemat Ical abstract Ion, -n for example. The myst Ic real Ity Is subtler than the subtlest of phys Ical th Ings and yet, paradox Ical to say, more concrete than the most concrete th Ing that the senses apprehend.
Furthermore, be Ing so, the myst Ic doma In Is of Inf In Itely greater potency than the doma In of Intra-atom Ic forces. If one comes, all on a sudden, Into contact w Ith a force here w Ithout the necessary preparat Ion to hold and handle It, he may get ser Iously bru Ised, morally and phys Ically. The adventure Into the myst Ic doma In has Its own toll of casualt Iesone can lose the m Ind, one can lose one's body even and It Is a very common exper Ience among those who have tr Ied the path. It Is not In va In and merely as a poet Ic metaphor that the anc Ient seers have sa Id
Kurasya dhr n I It duratyay1
--
The myst Ic forces are not only of Immense potency but of a def In Ite moral d Ispos It Ion and character, that Is to say, they are of Immense potency e Ither for good or for ev Il. They are not mechan Ical and amoral forces l Ike those that phys Ical sc Iences deal w Ith; they are forces of consc Iousness and they are consc Ious forces, they act w Ith an a Im and a purpose. The myst Ic forces are forces e Ither of l Ight or of darkness, e Ither D Iv Ine or T Itan Ic. And It Is most often the powers of darkness that the naturally Ignorant consc Iousness of man contacts when It seeks to cross the borderl Ine w Ithout tra In Ing or gu Idance, by the sheer arrogant self-suff Ic Iency of mental sc Ient If Ic reason.
Ignorance, certa Inly, Is not man's Ideal cond It Ion It leads to death and d Issolut Ion. But knowledge also can be equally d Isastrous If It Is not of the r Ight k Ind. The knowledge that Is born of sp Ir Itual d Isobed Ience, Insp Ired by the Dark ones, leads to the soul's fall and Its calvary through pa In and suffer Ing on earth. The seeker of true enl Ightenment has got to make a d Ist Inct Ion, learn to separate the true and the r Ight from the false and the wrong, unmask the lur Ing Mra say clearly and unfalter Ingly to the dark l Ight of Luc Iferapage Satana, If he Is to come out Into the true l Ight and comm and the r Ight forces. The search for knowledge alone, knowledge for the sake of knowledge, the path of pure sc Ient If Ic Inqu Iry and Inqu Is It Iveness, In relat Ion to the myst Ic world, Is a dangerous th Ing. For such a sp Ir It serves only to encourage and enhance man's arrogance and In the end not only l Im Its but warps and fals If Ies the knowledge Itself. A knowledge based on and secured exclus Ively through the reason and mental l Ight can go only so far as that faculty can be reasonably stretched and not Inf In Itelyto stretch It to Inf In Ity means to snap It. Th Is Is the warn Ing that Yajnavalkya gave to Garg I when the latter started renew Ing her quest Ion ad Inf In Itum Yajnavalkya sa Id, " If you do not stop, your head w Ill fall off."
The myst Ic truth has to be approached through the heart. " In the heart Is establ Ished the Truth," says the Upan Ishad: It Is there that Is seated eternally the soul, the real be Ing, who appears no b Igger than the thumb. Even If the m Ind Is ut Il Ised as an Instrument of knowledge, the heart must be there beh Ind as the gu Ide and Insp Irat Ion. It Is prec Isely because, as I have just ment Ioned, Garg I sought to shoot upl Ike "vault Ing amb It Ion that o'erleaps Itself" of wh Ich Shakespeare speaksthrough the m Ind alone to the h Ighest truth that Yajnavalkya had to pull her up and g Ive the warn Ing that she r Isked los Ing her head If she pers Isted In her quest Ion Ing endlessly.
For true knowledge comes of, and means, Ident Ity of be Ing. All other knowledge may be an apprehens Ion of th Ings but not comprehens Ion. In the former, the knower stands apart from the object and so can env Isage only the outsk Irts, the contour, the surface nature; the m Ind Is capable of th Is alone. But comprehens Ion means an embrac Ing and penetrat Ion wh Ich Is poss Ible when the knower Ident If Ies h Imself w Ith the object. And when we are so Ident If Ied we not merely know the object, but becom Ing It In our consc Iousness, we love It and l Ive It.
The myst Ic's knowledge Is a part and a format Ion of h Is l Ife. That Is why It Is a knowledge not abstract and remote but l Iv Ing and Int Imate and concrete. It Is a knowledge that pulsates w Ith del Ight: Indeed It Is the rad Iance that Is shed by the purest and Intensest joy. For th Is reason It may be that In approach Ing through the heart there Is a chance of one's gett Ing arrested there and not car Ing for the st Ill h Igher, the solar l Ights; but th Is need not be so. In the heart there Is a golden door lead Ing to the deepest del Ights, but there Is also a d Iamond door open Ing up Into the sk Ies of the br Ightest lum Inos It Ies.
For It must be understood that the heart, the myst Ic heart, Is not the external th Ing wh Ich Is the seat of emot Ion or pass Ion; It Is the secret heart that Is beh Ind, the Inner heartantarhdaya of the Upan Ishadwh Ich Is the centre of the Ind Iv Idual consc Iousness, where all the d Ivergent l Ines of that consc Iousness meet and from where they take the Ir r Ise. That Is what the Upan Ishad means when It says that the heart has a hundred channels wh Ich feed the human veh Icle. That Is the source, the fount and or Ig In, the very substance of the true personal Ity. Myst Ic knowledge the true myst Ic knowledge wh Ich saves and fulf Ilsbeg Ins w Ith the awaken Ing or the entrance Into th Is real be Ing. Th Is be Ing Is pure and lum Inous and bl Issful and sovere Ignly real, because It Is a port Ion, a spark of the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness and Nature: a contact and commun Ion w Ith It br Ings automat Ically Into play the l Ight and the truth that are Its substance. At the same t Ime It Is an upr Is Ing flame that reaches out naturally to h Igher doma Ins of consc Iousness and man Ifests them through Its transluc Id dynam Ism.
The knowledge that Is obta Ined w Ithout the heart's Instrumentat Ion or co-operat Ion Is l Iable to be what the G Ita descr Ibes as Asur Ic. F Irst of all, from the po Int of v Iew of knowledge Itself, It would be, as I have already sa Id, egocentr Ic, a product and agent of one's l Im Ited and Isolated self, eas Ily put at the serv Ice of des Ire and pass Ion. Th Is knowledge, whether rat Ional Ist Ic or occult, Is, as It were, hard and dry In Its const Itut Ion, and oftener than not, negat Ive and destruct Ivew I ther Ing and blast Ing In Its career l Ike the desert s Imoom.
There are modes of knowledge that are occultand to that extent myst Ic and can be mastered by pract Ices In wh Ich the heart has no share. But they have not the sav Ing grace that comes by the touch of the D Iv Ine. They are not truly myst Ic the truly myst Ic belongs to the ult Imate real It Ies, the deepest and the h Ighest,they, on the other hand, are transverse and tangent Ial movements belong Ing to an Intermed Iate reg Ion where l Ight and obscur Ity are m Ixed up and even for the greater part the l Ight Is swallowed up In the obscur Ity or ut Il Ised by It.
The myst Ic's knowledge and exper Ience Is not only true and real: It Is del Ightful and bl Issful. It has a supremely heal Ing v Irtue. It br Ings a sovere Ign freedom and ease and peace to the myst Ic h Imself, but also to those around h Im, who come In contact w Ith h Im. For truth and real Ity are made up of love and harmony, because truth Is, In Its essence, un Ity.
Sharp as a razor's edge, d Iff Icult of go Ing, hard to traverse Is that path!"
Th Is sp Ir It Is a th Ing no weakl Ing can ga In."
***
00.01 - The Mother on Savitri, #Sweet Mother - Harmonies of Light, #unset, #Zen
On the 18th January 1960; when a young sadhak met the Mother for a personal Interv Iew, She sa Id to h Im: " I shall g Ive you someth Ing spec Ial; be prepared." The next day, when he aga In met Her, She spoke In French f Irst about how to k Indle the psych Ic Flame and then In th Is connect Ion started speak Ing about Sr I Aurob Indo`s great ep Ic Sav Itr I and cont Inued to speak at length.
The sadhak, after return Ing from the Mother, wanted to note down Immed Iately what She had sa Id, but he could not do so because he felt a great hes Itat Ion due to h Is sense of Incapac Ity to transcr Ibe exactly the Mother`s own words.
After nearly seven years, however, he felt a strong urge to note down what the Mother had spoken; so In 1967 he wrote down from memory a report In French. The report was seen by the Mother and a few correct Ions were made by her. To another sadhak who asked Her perm Iss Ion to read th Is report She wrote: "Years ago I have spoken at length about It [Sav Itr I] to Mona Sarkar and he has noted In French what I sa Id. Some t Ime back I have seen what he has wr Itten and found It correct on the whole."(4.12.1967)
On a few other occas Ion also, the Mother had spoken to the same sadhak on the value of read Ing Sav Itr I wh Ich he had noted down afterwards. These notes have been added at the end of the ma In report. A few members of the Ashram had pr Ivately read th Is report In French, but afterwards there were many requests for Its Engl Ish vers Ion. A translat Ion was therefore made In November 1967. A proposal was made to the Mother In 1972 for Its publ Icat Ion and It was subm Itted to Her for approval. The Mother wanted to check the translat Ion before perm Itt Ing Its publ Icat Ion but could check only a port Ion of It.
Do you read Sav Itr I?
--
Yes, Mother, I have read It tw Ice.
Have you understood all that you have read?
Not much, but I l Ike poetry, It Is because of that I read It.
It does not matter If you do not understand It - Sav Itr I, read It always. You w Ill see that every t Ime you read It, someth Ing new w Ill be revealed to you. Each t Ime you w Ill get a new gl Impse, each t Ime a new exper Ience; th Ings wh Ich were not there, th Ings you d Id not understand ar Ise and suddenly become clear. Always an unexpected v Is Ion comes up through the words and l Ines. Every t Ime you try to read and understand, you w Ill see that someth Ing Is added, someth Ing wh Ich was h Idden beh Ind Is revealed clearly and v Iv Idly. I tell you the very verses you have read once before, w Ill appear to you In a d Ifferent l Ight each t Ime you re-read them. Th Is Is what happens Invar Iably. Always your exper Ience Is enr Iched, It Is a revelat Ion at each step.
But you must not read It as you read other books or newspapers. You must read w Ith an empty head, a blank and vacant m Ind, w Ithout there be Ing any other thought; you must concentrate much, rema In empty, calm and open; then the words, rhythms, v Ibrat Ions w Ill penetrate d Irectly to th Is wh Ite page, w Ill put the Ir stamp upon the bra In, w Ill expla In themselves w Ithout your mak Ing any effort.
Sav Itr I alone Is suff Ic Ient to make you cl Imb to the h Ighest peaks. If truly one knows how to med Itate on Sav Itr I, one w Ill rece Ive all the help one needs. For h Im who w Ishes to follow th Is path, It Is a concrete help as though the Lord h Imself were tak Ing you by the hand and lead Ing you to the dest Ined goal. And then, every quest Ion, however personal It may be, has Its answer here, every d Iff Iculty f Inds Its solut Ion here In; Indeed there Is everyth Ing that Is necessary for do Ing the Yoga.
*He has crammed the whole un Iverse In a s Ingle book.* It Is a marvellous work, magn If Icent and of an Incomparable perfect Ion.
You know, before wr It Ing Sav Itr I Sr I Aurob Indo sa Id to me, * I am Impelled to launch on a new adventure; I was hes Itant In the beg Inn Ing, but now I am dec Ided. St Ill, I do not know how far I shall succeed. I pray for help.* And you know what It was? It was - before beg Inn Ing, I warn you In advance - It was H Is way of speak Ing, so full of d Iv Ine hum Il Ity and modesty. He never... *asserted H Imself*. And the day He actually began It, He told me: * I have launched myself In a rudderless boat upon the vastness of the Inf In Ite.* And once hav Ing started, He wrote page after page w Ithout Interm Iss Ion, as though It were a th Ing already complete up there and He had only to transcr Ibe It In Ink down here on these pages.
In truth, the ent Ire form of Sav Itr I has descended "en masse" from the h Ighest reg Ion and Sr I Aurob Indo w Ith H Is gen Ius only arranged the l Ines - In a superb and magn If Icent style. Somet Imes ent Ire l Ines were revealed and He has left them Intact; He worked hard, unt Ir Ingly, so that the Insp Irat Ion could come from the h Ighest poss Ible summ It. And what a work He has created! Yes, It Is a true creat Ion In Itself. It Is an unequalled work. Everyth Ing Is there, and It Is put In such a s Imple, such a clear form; verses perfectly harmon Ious, l Imp Id and eternally true. My ch Ild, I have read so many th Ings, but I have never come across anyth Ing wh Ich could be compared w Ith Sav Itr I. I have stud Ied the best works In Greek, Lat In, Engl Ish and of course French l Iterature, also In German and all the great creat Ions of the West and the East, Includ Ing the great ep Ics; but I repeat It, I have not found anywhere anyth Ing comparable w Ith Sav Itr I. All these l Iterary works seems to me empty, flat, hollow, w Ithout any deep real Ity - apart from a few rare except Ions, and these too represent only a small fract Ion of what Sav Itr I Is. What grandeur, what ampl Itude, what real Ity: It Is someth Ing Immortal and eternal He has created. I tell you once aga In there Is noth Ing l Ike In It the whole world. Even If one puts as Ide the v Is Ion of the real Ity, that Is, the essent Ial substance wh Ich Is the heart of the Insp Irat Ion, and cons Iders only the l Ines In themselves, one w Ill f Ind them un Ique, of the h Ighest class Ical k Ind. What He has created Is someth Ing man cannot Imag Ine. For, everyth Ing Is there, everyth Ing.
It may then be sa Id that Sav Itr I Is a revelat Ion, It Is a med Itat Ion, It Is a quest of the Inf In Ite, the Eternal. If It Is read w Ith th Is asp Irat Ion for Immortal Ity, the read Ing Itself w Ill serve as a gu Ide to Immortal Ity. To read Sav Itr I Is Indeed to pract Ice Yoga, sp Ir Itual concentrat Ion; one can f Ind there all that Is needed to real Ise the D Iv Ine. Each step of Yoga Is noted here, Includ Ing the secret of all other Yogas. Surely, If one s Incerely follows what Is revealed here In each l Ine one w Ill reach f Inally the transformat Ion of the Supramental Yoga. It Is truly the Infall Ible gu Ide who never abandons you; Its support Is always there for h Im who wants to follow the path. Each verse of Sav Itr I Is l Ike a revealed Mantra wh Ich surpasses all that man possessed by way of knowledge, and I repeat th Is, the words are expressed and arranged In such a way that the sonor Ity of the rhythm leads you to the or Ig In of sound, wh Ich Is OM.
My ch Ild, yes, everyth Ing Is there: myst Ic Ism, occult Ism, ph Ilosophy, the h Istory of evolut Ion, the h Istory of man, of the gods, of creat Ion, of Nature. How the un Iverse was created, why, for what purpose, what dest Iny - all Is there. You can f Ind all the answers to all your quest Ions there. Everyth Ing Is expla Ined, even the future of man and of the evolut Ion, all that nobody yet knows. He has descr Ibed It all In beaut Iful and clear words so that sp Ir Itual adventurers who w Ish to solve the myster Ies of the world may understand It more eas Ily. But th Is mystery Is well h Idden beh Ind the words and l Ines and one must r Ise to the requ Ired level of true consc Iousness to d Iscover It. All prophes Ies, all that Is go Ing to come Is presented w Ith the prec Ise and wonderful clar Ity. Sr I Aurob Indo g Ives you here the key to f Ind the Truth, to d Iscover the Consc Iousness, to solve the problem of what the un Iverse Is. He has also Ind Icated how to open the door of the Inconsc Ience so that the l Ight may penetrate there and transform It. He has shown the path, the way to l Iberate oneself from the Ignorance and cl Imb up to the superconsc Ience; each stage, each plane of consc Iousness, how they can be scaled, how one can cross even the barr Ier of death and atta In Immortal Ity. You w Ill f Ind the whole journey In deta Il, and as you go forward you can d Iscover th Ings altogether unknown to man. That Is Sav Itr I and much more yet. It Is a real exper Ience - read Ing Sav Itr I. All the secrets that man possessed, He has revealed, - as well as all that awa Its h Im In the future; all th Is Is found In the depth of Sav Itr I. But one must have the knowledge to d Iscover It all, the exper Ience of the planes of consc Iousness, the exper Ience of the Superm Ind, even the exper Ience of the conquest of Death. He has noted all the stages, marked each step In order to advance Integrally In the Integral Yoga.
All th Is Is H Is own exper Ience, and what Is most surpr Is Ing Is that It Is my own exper Ience also. It Is my sadhana wh Ich He has worked out. Each object, each event, each real Isat Ion, all the descr Ipt Ions, even the colours are exactly what I saw and the words, phrases are also exactly what I heard. And all th Is before hav Ing read the book. I read Sav Itr I many t Imes afterwards, but earl Ier, when He was wr It Ing He used to read It to me. Every morn Ing I used to hear H Im read Sav Itr I. Dur Ing the n Ight He would wr Ite and In the morn Ing read It to me. And I observed someth Ing cur Ious, that day after day the exper Iences He read out to me In the morn Ing were those I had had the prev Ious n Ight, word by word. Yes, all the descr Ipt Ions, the colours, the p Ictures I had seen, the words I had heard, all, all, I heard It all, put by H Im Into poetry, Into m Iraculous poetry. Yes, they were exactly my exper Iences of the prev Ious n Ight wh Ich He read out to me the follow Ing morn Ing. And It was not just one day by chance, but for days and days together. And every t Ime I used to compare what He sa Id w Ith my prev Ious exper Iences and they were always the same. I repeat, It was not that I had told H Im my exper Iences and that He had noted them down afterwards, no, He knew already what I had seen. It Is my exper Iences He has presented at length and they were H Is exper Iences also. It Is, moreover, the p Icture of Our jo Int adventure Into the unknown or rather Into the Superm Ind.
These are exper Iences l Ived by H Im, real It Ies, supracosm Ic truths. He exper Ienced all these as one exper Iences joy or sorrow, phys Ically. He walked In the darkness of Inconsc Ience, even In the ne Ighborhood of death, endured the suffer Ings of perd It Ion, and emerged from the mud, the world-m Isery to brea the the sovere Ign plen Itude and enter the supreme Ananda. He crossed all these realms, went through the consequences, suffered and endured phys Ically what one cannot Imag Ine. Nobody t Ill today has suffered l Ike H Im. He accepted suffer Ing to transform suffer Ing Into the joy of un Ion w Ith the Supreme. It Is someth Ing un Ique and Incomparable In the h Istory of the world. It Is someth Ing that has never happened before, He Is the f Irst to have traced the path In the Unknown, so that we may be able to walk w Ith cert Itude towards the Superm Ind. He has made the work easy for us. Sav Itr I Is H Is whole Yoga of transformat Ion, and th Is Yoga appears now for the f Irst t Ime In the earth-consc Iousness.
And I th Ink that man Is not yet ready to rece Ive It. It Is too h Igh and too vast for h Im. He cannot understand It, grasp It, for It Is not by the m Ind that one can understand Sav Itr I. One needs sp Ir Itual exper Iences In order to understand and ass Im Ilate It. The farther one advances on the path of Yoga, the more does one ass Im Ilate and the better. No, It Is someth Ing wh Ich w Ill be apprec Iated only In the future, It Is the poetry of tomorrow of wh Ich He has spoken In The Future Poetry. It Is too subtle, too ref Ined, - It Is not In the m Ind or through the m Ind, It Is In med Itat Ion that Sav Itr I Is revealed.
And men have the audac Ity to compare It w Ith the work of V Irg Il or Homer and to f Ind It Infer Ior. They do not understand, they cannot understand. What do they know? Noth Ing at all. And It Is useless to try to make them understand. Men w Ill know what It Is, but In a d Istant future. It Is only the new race w Ith a new consc Iousness wh Ich w Ill be able to understand. I assure you there Is noth Ing under the blue sky to compare w Ith Sav Itr I. It Is the mystery of myster Ies. It Is a *super-ep Ic,* It Is super-l Iterature, super-poetry, super-v Is Ion, It Is a super-work even If one cons Iders the number of l Ines He has wr Itten. No, these human words are not adequate to descr Ibe Sav Itr I. Yes, one needs superlat Ives, hyperboles to descr Ibe It. It Is a hyper-ep Ic. No, words express noth Ing of what Sav Itr I Is, at least I do not f Ind them. It Is of Immense value - sp Ir Itual value and all other values; It Is eternal In Its subject, and Inf In Ite In Its appeal, m Iraculous In Its mode and power of execut Ion; It Is a un Ique th Ing, the more you come Into contact w Ith It, the h Igher w Ill you be upl Ifted. Ah, truly It Is someth Ing! It Is the most beaut Iful th Ing He has left for man, the h Ighest poss Ible. What Is It? When w Ill man know It? When Is he go Ing to lead a l Ife of truth? When Is he go Ing to accept th Is In h Is l Ife? Th Is yet rema Ins to be seen.
My ch Ild, every day you are go Ing to read Sav Itr I; read properly, w Ith the r Ight att Itude, concentrat Ing a l Ittle before open Ing the pages and try Ing to keep the m Ind as empty as poss Ible, absolutely w Ithout a thought. The d Irect road Is through the heart. I tell you, If you try to really concentrate w Ith th Is asp Irat Ion you can l Ight the flame, the psych Ic flame, the flame of pur If Icat Ion In a very short t Ime, perhaps In a few days. What you cannot do normally, you can do w Ith the help of Sav Itr I. Try and you w Ill see how very d Ifferent It Is, how new, If you read w Ith th Is att Itude, w Ith th Is someth Ing at the back of your consc Iousness; as though It were an offer Ing to Sr I Aurob Indo. You know It Is charged, fully charged w Ith consc Iousness; as If Sav Itr I were a be Ing, a real gu Ide. I tell you, whoever, want Ing to pract Ice Yoga, tr Ies s Incerely and feels the necess Ity for It, w Ill be able to cl Imb w Ith the help of Sav Itr I to the h Ighest rung of the ladder of Yoga, w Ill be able to f Ind the secret that Sav Itr I represents. And th Is w Ithout the help of a Guru. And he w Ill be able to pract Ice It anywhere. For h Im Sav Itr I alone w Ill be the gu Ide, for all that he needs he w Ill f Ind Sav Itr I. If he rema Ins very qu Iet when before a d Iff Iculty, or when he does not know where to turn to go forward and how to overcome obstacles, for all these hes Itat Ions and Incert Itudes wh Ich overwhelm us at every moment, he w Ill have the necessary Ind Icat Ions, and the necessary concrete help. If he rema Ins very calm, open, If he asp Ires s Incerely, always he w Ill be as If lead by the hand. If he has fa Ith, the w Ill to g Ive h Imself and essent Ial s Incer Ity he w Ill reach the f Inal goal.
Indeed, Sav Itr I Is someth Ing concrete, l Iv Ing, It Is all replete, packed w Ith consc Iousness, It Is the supreme knowledge above all human ph Ilosoph Ies and rel Ig Ions. It Is the sp Ir Itual path, It Is Yoga, Tapasya, Sadhana, everyth Ing, In Its s Ingle body. Sav Itr I has an extraord Inary power, It g Ives out v Ibrat Ions for h Im who can rece Ive them, the true v Ibrat Ions of each stage of consc Iousness. It Is Incomparable, It Is truth In Its plen Itude, the Truth Sr I Aurob Indo brought down on the earth. My ch Ild, one must try to f Ind the secret that Sav Itr I represents, the prophet Ic message Sr I Aurob Indo reveals there for us. Th Is Is the work before you, It Is hard but It Is worth the trouble. - 5 November 1967
~ The Mother Sweet Mother The Mother to Mona Sarkar, [T0]
00.02 - Mystic Symbolism, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
The Myst Ics all over the world and In all ages have clothed the Ir say Ings In proverbs and parables, In f Igures and symbols. To speak In symbols seems to be In the Ir very nature; It Is the Ir character Ist Ic manner, the Ir Inev Itable style. Let us see what Is the reason beh Ind It. But f Irst who are the Myst Ics? They are those who are In touch w Ith supra-sensual th Ings, whose exper Iences are of a world d Ifferent from the common phys Ical world, the world of the m Ind and the senses.
These other worlds are const Ituted In other ways than ours. The Ir contents are d Ifferent and the laws that obta In there are also d Ifferent. It would be a gross blunder to attempt a chart of any of these other systems, to use an E Inste In Ian term, w Ith the measures and convent Ions of the system to wh Ich our external wak Ing consc Iousness belongs. For, there "the sun sh Ines not, nor the moon, nor the stars, ne Ither these l Ightn Ings nor th Is f Ire." The d Iff Iculty Is further enhanced by the fact that there are very many unseen worlds and they all d Iffer from the seen and from one another In manner and degree. Thus, for example, the Upan Ishads speak of the swapna, the suupta, and the turya, doma Ins beyond the jgrat wh Ich Is that where the rat Ional be Ing w Ith Its m Ind and senses l Ives and moves. And there are other systems and other ways In wh Ich systems ex Ist, and they are pract Ically Innumerable.
If, however, we have to speak of these other worlds, then, s Ince we can speak only In the terms of th Is world, we have to use them In a d Ifferent sense from those they usually bear; we must employ them as f Igures and symbols. Even then they may prove Inadequate and m Islead Ing; so there are Myst Ics who are averse to all speech and express Ion they are maun I; In s Ilence they exper Ience the Inexpress Ible and In s Ilence they commun Icate It to the few who have the capac Ity to rece Ive In s Ilence.
But those who do speak, how do they choose the Ir f Igures and symbols? What Is the Ir methodology? For It m Ight be sa Id, s Ince the unseen and the seen d Iffer out and out, It does not matter what forms or s Igns are taken from the latter; for any mean Ing and s Ign If Icance could be put Into anyth Ing. But In real Ity, It does not so happen. For, although there Is a great d Ivergence between f Igures and symbols on the one hand and the th Ings f Igured and symbol Ised on the other, st Ill there Is also some l Ink, some common measure. And that Is why we see not unoften the same or s Im Ilar f Igures and symbols represent Ing an Ident Ical exper Ience In ages and countr Ies far apart from each other.
We can make a d Ist Inct Ion here between two types of express Ion wh Ich we have put together Ind Iscr Im Inately, f Igures and symbols. F Igures, we may say, are those that are constructed by the rat Ional m Ind, the Intellect; they are mere metaphors and s Im Iles and are not organ Ically related to the th Ing exper Ienced, but put round It as a robe that can be dropped or changed w Ithout affect Ing the exper Ience Itself. Thus, for example, when the Upan Ishad says, tmnam rath Inam v Iddh I (Know that the soul Is the master of the char Iot who s Its w Ith In It) or Indr Iy I haynhu (The senses, they say, are the horses), we have here only a compar Ison or analogy that Is common and natural to the poet Ic manner. The part Icular f Igure or s Im Ile used Is not Inev Itable to the Idea or exper Ience that It seeks to express, Its part and parcel. On the other hand, take th Is Upan Ishad Ic percept Ion: h Irayamayena patrea satyasyph Itam mukham (The face of the Truth l Ies h Idden under the golden orb). Here the symbol Is not mere analogy or compar Ison, a f Igure; It Is one w Ith the very substance of the exper Ience the two cannot be separated. Or when the Vedas speak of the k Indl Ing of the F Ire, the rush Ing of the waters or the r Ise of the Dawn, the Images though taken from the mater Ial world, are not used for the sake of mere compar Ison, but they are the embod Iments, the l Iv Ing forms of truths exper Ienced In another world.
When a Myst Ic refers to the Solar L Ight or to the F Ire the l Ight, for example, that struck down Saul and transformed h Im Into Sa Int Paul or the burn Ing bush that v Is Ited Moses, It Is not the phys Ical or mater Ial object that he means and yet It Is that In a way. It Is the mater Ial Izat Ion of someth Ing that Is fundamentally not mater Ial: some movement In an Inner consc Iousness prec Ip Itates Itself Into the reg Ion of the senses and takes from out of the mater Ial the form commensurable w Ith Its nature that It f Inds there.
And there Is such a commensurab Il Ity or parallel Ism between the var Ious levels of consc Iousness, In and through all the d Ifferences that separate them from one another. Thus an object or a movement apprehended on the phys Ical plane has a sort of l Ine of re-echo Ing Images extended In a ser Ies along the whole gradat Ion of the Inner planes; otherw Ise v Iewed, an object or movement In the Innermost consc Iousness translates Itself In vary Ing modes from plane to plane down to the most mater Ial, where It appears In Its grossest form as a concrete three-d Imens Ional object or a mechan Ical movement. Th Is parallel Ism or commensurab Il Ity by v Irtue of wh Ich the d Ifferent and d Ivergent states of consc Iousness can portray or represent each other Is the source of all symbol Ism.
A symbol symbol Izes someth Ing for th Is reason that both possess In common a certa In Ident Ical, at least s Im Ilar, qual Ity or rhythm or v Ibrat Ion, the symbol possess Ing It In a grosser or more apparent or sensuous form than the th Ing symbol Ized does. Somet Imes It may happen that It Is more than a certa In qual Ity or rhythm or v Ibrat Ion that Is common between the two: the symbol In Its ent Irety Is the th Ing symbol Ized but thrown down on another plane, It Is the embod Iment of the latter In a more concrete world. The l Ight and the f Ire that Sa Int Paul and Moses saw appear to be of th Is k Ind.
Thus there Is a great d Ivers Ity of symbols. At the one end Is the mere metaphor or s Im Ile or allegory ('f Igure', as we have called It) and at the other end Is the symbol Ident Ical w Ith the th Ing symbol Ized. And upon th Is Inner character of the symbol depends also to a large extent Its range and scope. There are symbols wh Ich are un Iversal and Int Imately Ingra Ined In the human consc Iousness Itself. Mank Ind has used them In all ages and cl Imes almost In the same sense and s Ign If Icance. There are others that are l Im Ited to peoples and ages. They are made out of forms that are of local and temporal Interest and Importance. The Ir s Ign If Icances vary accord Ing to t Ime and place. F Inally, there are symbols wh Ich are true of the Ind Iv Idual consc Iousness only; they depend on personal pecul Iar It Ies and Id Iosyncras Ies, on one's env Ironment and upbr Ing Ing and educat Ion.
Man be Ing an embod Ied soul, h Is external consc Iousness (what the Upan Ishad calls jgrat) Is the m Il Ieu In wh Ich h Is soul-exper Iences naturally man Ifest and f Ind the Ir play. It Is the forms and movements of that consc Iousness wh Ich clo the and g Ive a concrete hab Itat Ion and name to percept Ions on the subtler ranges of the Inner ex Istence. If the exper Iences on these planes are to be presented to the consc Ious memory and to the bra In-m Ind and made commun Icable to others through speech, th Is Is the Inev Itable and natural process. Symbols are a translat Ion In mental and sensual (and vocal) terms of exper Iences that are beyond the m Ind and the sense and the speech and yet throw a k Ind of echo Ing v Ibrat Ions upon these lesser levels.
***
0 0.02 - Topographical Note, #Agenda Vol 1, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
From the t Ime of Sr I Aurob Indo's departure (1950) unt Il 1957, we have only a few notes and fragments or rare statements noted from memory. These are the only landmarks of th Is per Iod, along w Ith Mother's Quest Ions and Answers from her talks at the Ashram Playground. A few of these conversat Ions have been reproduced here Insofar as they mark stages of the Supramental
Act Ion.
From 1957, Mother rece Ived us tw Ice a week In the off Ice of Pav Itra, the most sen Ior of the
French d Isc Iples, on the second floor of the ma In Ashram bu Ild Ing, on some pretext of work or other. She l Istened to our quer Ies, spoke to us at length of yoga, occult Ism, her past exper Iences In
Alger Ia and In France or of her current exper Iences; and gradually, She opened the m Ind of the rebell Ious and mater Ial Ist Ic Westerner that we were and made us understand the laws of the worlds, the play of forces, the work Ing of past l Ives - espec Ially th Is latter, wh Ich was an Important factor In the d Iff Icult Ies w Ith wh Ich we were struggl Ing at that t Ime and wh Ich per Iod Ically made us abscond.
Mother would be seated In th Is rather med Ieval-look Ing cha Ir w Ith Its h Igh, carved back, her feet on a l Ittle tabouret, wh Ile we sat on the floor, on a sl Ightly faded carpet, conquered and seduced, revolted and never sat Isf Ied - but nevertheless, very Interested. Treasures, never noted down, were lost unt Il, w Ith the cunn Ing of the S Ioux, we succeeded In mak Ing Mother consent to the presence of a tape recorder. But even then, and for a long t Ime thereafter, She carefully made us erase or delete In our notes all that concerned Her rather too personally - somet Imes we d Isobeyed Her.
But f Inally we were able to conv Ince Her of the value Inherent In keep Ing a chron Icle of the route.
It was only In 1958 that we began hav Ing the f Irst tape-recorded conversat Ions, wh Ich, properly speak Ing, const Itute Mother's Agenda. But even then, many of these conversat Ions were lost or only partly noted down. Or else we cons Idered that our own words should not f Igure In these notes and we carefully om Itted all our quest Ions - wh Ich was absurd. At that t Ime, no one - ne Ither Mother, nor ourself - knew that th Is was 'the Agenda' and that we were out to explore the 'Great Passage.'
Only gradually d Id we become aware of the true nature of these meet Ings. Furthermore, we were constantly on the road, so much so that there are s Izable gaps In the text. In fact, for seven years,
Mother was pat Iently prepar Ing the Instrument that would be able to traverse the adventure w Ithout break Ing along the way.
From 1960, the Agenda took Its f Inal shape ar Id grew for th Irteen years, unt Il May 1973, f Ill Ing th Irteen volumes In all (some s Ix thousand pages), w Ith a change of sett Ing In March 1962 at the t Ime of the Great Turn Ing In Mother's yoga when She permanently ret Ired to her room upsta Irs, as had Sr I Aurob Indo In 1926. The Interv Iews then took place h Igh up In th Is large room carpeted In golden wool, l Ike a sh Ip's stateroom, am Idst the rustl Ing of the Copper Pod tree and the caw Ing of crows. Mother would s It In a low rosewood cha Ir, her face turned towards Sr I Aurob Indo's tomb, as though She were wear Ing down the d Istance separat Ing that world from our own. Her vo Ice had become l Ike that of a ch Ild, one could hear her laughter. She always laughed, th Is Mother. And then her long s Ilences. Unt Il the day the d Isc Iples closed her door on us. It was May 19, 1973. We d Id not want to bel Ieve It. She was alone, just as we were suddenly alone. Slowly, pa Infully, we had to d Iscover the why of th Is rupture. We understood noth Ing of the jealous Ies of the old spec Ies, we d Id not yet real Ize that they were becom Ing the 'owners' of Mother - of the Ashram, of Aurov Ille, of
Sr I Aurob Indo, of everyth Ing - and that the new world was go Ing to be denatured Into a new
Church. There and then, they made us understand why She had pulled us from our forest, one day, and chosen as her conf Idant an Incurable rebel.
0 0.03 - 1951-1957. Notes and Fragments, #Agenda Vol 1, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
The lack of the earth's recept Iv Ity and the behav Ior of Sr I Aurob Indo's d Isc Iples 1 are largely respons Ible for what happened to h Is body. But one th Ing Is certa In: the great m Isfortune that has just beset us In no way affects the truth of h Is teach Ing. All he sa Id Is perfectly true and rema Ins so.
T Ime and the course of events w Ill make th Is abundantly clear.
00.03 - Upanishadic Symbolism, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Myst Ic Symbol Ism The Beaut Iful In the Upan Ishads
Other Authors Nol In I Kanta Gupta Upan Ishad Ic Symbol Ism
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A certa In rat Ional Ist Ic cr It Ic d Iv Ides the Upan Ishad Ic symbols Into three categor Iesthose that are rat Ional and can be eas Ily understood by the m Ind; those that are not understood by the m Ind and yet do not go aga Inst reason, hav Ing noth Ing Inherently Irrat Ional In them and may be s Imply called non-rat Ional; those that seem to be qu Ite Irrat Ional, for they go frankly aga Inst all canons of log Ic and common sense. As an example of the last, the Irrat Ional type, the cr It Ic c Ites a story from the Chhndogya, wh Ich may be rendered thus:
There was an asp Irant, a student who was seek Ing after knowledge. One day there appeared to h Im a wh Ite dog. Soon, other dogs followed and addressed the Ir predecessor: "O Lord, s Ing to our Food, for we des Ire to eat." The wh Ite dog answered, "Come to me at dawn here In th Is very place." The asp Irant wa Ited. The dogs, l Ike s Inger-pr Iests, c Ircled round In a r Ing. Then they sat and cr Ied aloud; they cr Ied out," Om We eat and Om we dr Ink, may the gods br Ing here our food."
Now, before any explanat Ion Is attempted It Is Important to bear In m Ind that the Upan Ishads speak of th Ings exper Iencednot merely thought, reasoned or argued and that these exper Iences belong to a world and consc Iousness other than that of the m Ind and the senses. One should naturally expect here a d Ifferent language and mode of express Ion than that wh Ich Is appropr Iate to mental and phys Ical th Ings. For example, the world of dreams was once supposed to be a sheer chaos, a mass of mean Ingless confus Ion; but now It Is held to be qu Ite otherw Ise. Psycholog Ical sc Ient Ists have d Iscovered a methodeven a very well-def Ined and str Ict method In the madness of that doma In. It Is an ordered, organ Ised, s Ign If Icant world; but Its term Inology has to be understood, Its code dec Iphered. It Is not a jargon, but a fore Ign language that must be learnt and mastered.
In the same way, the world of sp Ir Itual exper Iences Is also someth Ing method Ical, well-organ Ized, s Ign If Icant. It may not be and Is not the rat Ional world of the m Ind and the sense; but It need not, for that reason, be devo Id of mean Ing, mere fanc Ifulness or a ch Ild's Imag Inat Ion runn Ing r Iot. Here also the r Ight key has to be found, the grammar and vocabulary of that language mastered. And as the best way to have complete mastery of a language Is to l Ive among the people who speak It, so, In the matter of sp Ir Itual language, the best and the only way to learn It Is to go and l Ive In Its nat Ive country.
Now, as regards the Interpretat Ion of the story c Ited, should not a susp Ic Ion ar Ise naturally at the very outset that the dog of the story Is not a dog but represents someth Ing else? F Irst, a s Ign If Icant ep Ithet Is g Iven to Itwh Ite; secondly, although It asks for food, It says that Om Is Its food and Om Is Its dr Ink. In the Vedas we have some references to dogs. Yama has tw In dogs that "guard the path and have powerful v Is Ion." They are h Is messengers, "they move w Idely and del Ight In power and possess the vast strength." The Ved Ic R Ish Is pray to them for Power and Bl Iss and for the v Is Ion of the Sun1. There Is also the Hound of Heaven, Sarama, who comes down and d Iscovers the lum Inous cows stolen and h Idden by the Pan Is In the Ir dark caves; she Is the path-f Inder for Indra, the del Iverer.
My suggest Ion Is that the dog Is a symbol of the keen s Ight of Intu It Ion, the unfa Il Ing percept Ion of d Irect knowledge. W Ith th Is clue the Upan Ishad Ic story becomes qu Ite sens Ible and clear and not mere abracadabra. To the asp Irant for Knowledge came f Irst a pur If Ied power of d Irect understand Ing, an Intu It Ion of fundamental value, and th Is brought others of the same spec Ies In Its tra In. They were all l Inked together organ Ically that Is the s Ign If Icance of the c Ircle, and formed a rhythm Ic utterance and express Ion of the supreme truth (Om). It Is also to be noted that they came and met at dawn to chant, the Truth. Dawn Is the open Ing and awaken Ing of the consc Iousness to truths that come from above and beyond.
It may be asked why the dog has been chosen as the symbol of Intu It Ion. In the Vedas, the cow and the horse also play a large part; even the donkey and the frog have the Ir own ass Igned roles. These objects are taken from the env Ironment of ord Inary l Ife, and are those that are most fam Il Iar to the external consc Iousness, through wh Ich the Inner exper Iences have to express themselves, If they are to be expressed at all. These mater Ial objects represent var Ious k Inds of forces and movements and subtle and occult and sp Ir Itual dynam Isms. Str Ictly speak Ing, however, symbols are not chosen In a subtle or sp Ir Itual exper Ience, that Is to say, they are not arb Itrar Ily selected and constructed by the consc Ious Intell Igence. They form part of a dramat Izat Ion (to use a term of the Freud Ian psychology of dreams), a psycholog Ical alchemy, whose method and process and rat Ionale are very obscure, wh Ich can be penetrated only by the v Is Ion of a th Ird eye.
I. The Several L Ights
The Br Ihadaranyaka speaks of several l Ights that man possesses, one In the absence of another, for h Is Illum Inat Ion and gu Idance.
F Irst of all, he has the Sun; It Is the pr Imary l Ight by wh Ich he l Ives and moves. When the Sun sets, the Moon r Ises to replace It. When both the Sun and the Moon set, he has recourse to the F Ire. And when the F Ire, too, Is ext Ingu Ished, there comes the Word. In the end, when the F Ire Is qu Ieted and the Word s Ilenced, man Is l Ighted by the L Ight of the Atman. Th Is Atman Is All-Knowledge; It Is secreted w Ith In the l Ife, w Ith In the heart: It Is selflum Inous V Ijnamaya preu rdyantar jyot I..
The progress Ion Ind Icated by the order of success Ion po Ints to a gradual w Ithdrawal from the outer to the Inner l Ight, from the surface to the deep, from the obv Ious to the secret, from the actual and der Ivat Ive to the real and or Ig Inal. We beg In by the senses and move towards the Sp Ir It.
The Sun Is the f Irst and the most Immed Iate source of l Ight that man has and needs. He Is the pres Id Ing de Ity of our wak Ing consc Iousness and has h Is seat In the eyecakusa d Itya, d Itya caku bhtvak I I prv Iat. The eye Is the representat Ive of the senses; It Is the sense par excellence. In truth, sense-percept Ion Is the In It Ial l Ight w Ith wh Ich we have to gu Ide us, It Is the l Ight w Ith wh Ich we start on the way. A developed stage comes when the Sun sets for us, that Is to say, when we ret Ire from the senses and r Ise Into the m Ind, whose d Iv In Ity Is the Moon. It Is the mental knowledge, the l Ight of reason and Intell Igence, of reflect Ion and Imag Inat Ion that govern our consc Iousness. We have to proceed farther and get beyond the m Ind, exceed the der Ivat Ive l Ight of the Moon. So when the Moon sets, the F Ire Is k Indled. It Is the l Ight of the ardent and asp Ir Ing heart, the glow of an Inner urge, the Inst Incts and Insp Irat Ions of our secret l Ife-w Ill. Here we come Into touch w Ith a source of knowledge and real Izat Ion, a gu Idance more d Irect than the m Ind and much deeper than the sense-percept Ion. St Ill th Is l Ight partakes more of heat than of pure lum Inos Ity; It Is, one may say, Incandescent feel Ing, but not v Is Ion. We must probe deeper, mount h Igherreach he Ights and profund It Ies that are serene and transparent. The F Ire Is to be qu Ieted and s Ilenced, says the Upan Ishad. Then we come nearer, to the Immed Iate v Ic In Ity of the Truth: an Inner hear Ing opens, the d Irect vo Ice of Truth the Wordreaches us to lead and gu Ide. Even so, however, we have not come to the end of our journey; the Word of revelat Ion Is not the ult Imate L Ight. The Word too Is cloth Ing, though a lum Inous cloth Ingh Iramayam ptram When th Is last ve Il d Issolves and d Isappears, when utter s Ilence, absolute calm and qu Ietude re Ign In the ent Ire consc Iousness, when no other l Ights trouble or d Istract our attent Ion, there appears the Atman In Its own body; we stand face to face w Ith the source of all l Ights, the self of the L Ight, the l Ight of the Self. We are that L Ight and we become that L Ight.
I I. The Four Oblat Ions
The Word has four breasts. The Gods feed on two, SWAHAKAR and VASHATKAR, men upon the th Ird, HANTAKAR,and the Ancestor upon the fourth, SWADHA 2
R Itual Ist Ically these four terms are the formulae for oblat Ion to four De It Ies, Powers or Presences, whom the sacr If Icer w Ishes to please and prop It Iate In order to have the Ir help and bless Ing and In order thereby to d Ischarge h Is dharma or duty of l Ife. Svh Is the offer Ing espec Ially ded Icated to Agn I, the foremost of the Gods, for he Is the d Iv Ine messenger who carr Ies men's offer Ing to the Gods and br Ings the Ir bless Ing to men. Vaatkr Is the offer Ing to the Gods generally. Hantakr Is the offer Ing to mank Ind, to our k In, an espec Ial form of It be Ing the worsh Ip of the guests,sarvadevamayo' t Ith I. Svadh Is the offer Ing to the departed Fathers (P Itr Is).
The duty of l Ife cons Ists, It Is sa Id, In the repay Ing of three debts wh Ich every man contracts as soon as he takes b Irth upon earth the debt to the Gods, to Men and to the Ancestors. Th Is threefold debt or duty has, In other terms, reference to the three f Ields or doma Ins where In an embod Ied be Ing l Ives and moves and to wh Ich he must adjust and react r Ightly - If he Is to secure for h Is l Ife an Integral fulf Ilment. These are the fam Ily, soc Iety and the world and beyond-world. The Gods are the Powers that rule the world and beyond, they are the forms and forces of the One Sp Ir It underly Ing the un Iverse, the var Ied express Ions of d Iv Ine Truth and Real Ity: To worsh Ip the Gods, to do one's duty by them, means to come Into contact and to be un Ited In be Ing, consc Iousness and act Iv Ityw Ith the un Iversal and sp Ir Itual ex Istence, wh Ich Is the supreme end and purpose of human l Ife. The seconda more c Ircumscr Ibed f Ield Is the soc Iety to wh Ich one belongs, the part Icular group of human Ity In wh Ich he funct Ions as a l Imb. The serv Ice to soc Iety or good c It Izensh Ip enta Ils the worsh Ip of human Ity, of Man as a god. Lastly, man belongs to the fam Ily, wh Ich Is the un It of soc Iety; and the backbone of the fam Ily Is the cont Inuous l Ine of ancestors, who are Its pres Id Ing de Ity and represent the norm of a l Iv Ing dharma, the eth Ic of an Ideal l Ife.
From the psycholog Ical standpo Int, the four oblat Ions are movements or react Ions of consc Iousness In Its urge towards the utterance and express Ion of D Iv Ine Truth. L Ike some other elements In the cosm Ic play, these also form a quartetcaturvyha and work together for a common purpose In v Iew of a perfect and all-round result.
Svh Is the offer Ing and Invocat Ion. One must ded Icate everyth Ing to the D Iv Ine, cast all one has or does Into the F Ire of Asp Irat Ion that blazes up towards the Most H Igh, and through the tongue of that one-po Inted flame call on the D Iv In Ity.
In do Ing so, In Invok Ing the Truth and consecrat Ing oneself to It, one beg Ins to ascend to It step by step; and each step means a tear Ing of another ve Il and a further open Ing of the I passage. Th Is graded mount Ing Is vaakra.
Hantakr Is the appearance, the man Ifestat Ion of the D Iv In Ity that wh Ich makes the worsh Ipper cry In del Ight, "Ha Il!" It Is the com Ing of the Dawnahanwhen the n Ight has been traversed and the l Id rent open, the appearance of the D Iv Ine to a human v Is Ion for the human consc Iousness to se Ize, almost In a human form.
F Inally, once the Truth Is reached, It Is to be held fast, f Irmly establ Ished, embod Ied and f Ixed In Its Inherent nature here In l Ife and the wak Ing consc Iousness. Th Is Is Svadh.
The Gods feed upon Svdh and Vaa, as these represent the ascend Ing movement of human consc Iousness: It Is man's self-g Iv Ing and asp Irat Ion and the upward urge of h Is heart and soul that reach to the Gods, and It Is that wh Ich the Immortals take Into themselves and are, as It were, nour Ished by, s Ince It Is someth Ing that apperta Ins to the Ir own nature.
And In response they descend and approach and enter Into the asp Ir Ing human soulth Is descent and revelat Ion and near and concrete presence of D Iv In Ity, th Is Hanta Is man's food, for by It h Is consc Iousness Is nour Ished.
Th Is Interchange, or mutual g Iv Ing, the H Igh Covenant between the Gods and Men, to wh Ich the G Ita too refers
W Ith th Is sacr If Ice nour Ish the Gods, that the Gods may nour Ish you; thus mutually nour Ish Ing ye shall obta In the h Ighest fel Ic Ity3 Is the very secret of the cosm Ic play, the bas Is of the sp Ir Itual evolut Ion In the un Iversal ex Istence.
The Gods are the format Ions or part Icular Isat Ions of the Truth-consc Iousness, the mult Iple Ind Iv Idual Isat Ions of the One sp Ir It. The P Itr Is are the D Iv Ine Fathers, that Is to say, souls that once laboured and real Ised here below, and now have passed beyond. They dwell In another world, not too far removed from the earth, and from there, w Ith the force of the Ir Real Isat Ion, lend a more concrete help and gu Idance to the dest Iny that Is be Ing worked out upon earth. They are forces and format Ions of consc Iousness In an Intermed Iate reg Ion between Here and There (antar Ika), and serve to br Ing men and gods nearer to each other, Inasmuch as they belong to both the categor Ies, be Ing a d Iv In Ised human Ity or a human Ised d Iv In Ity. Each f Ixat Ion of the Truth-consc Iousness In an earthly mould Is a th Ing of joy to the P Itr Is; It Is the Svadh or food by wh Ich they l Ive and grow, for It Is the consol Idat Ion and also the resultant of the Ir own real Isat Ion. The ach Ievements of the sons are more eas Ily and securely reared and grounded upon those of the forefa thers, whose format Ive powers we have to Invoke, so that we may pass on to the real Isat Ion, the f Irm embod Iment of h Igher and greater dest In Ies.
I I I. The Path of the Fathers and the Path of the Gods
One Is an Ideal In and of the world, the other Is an Ideal transcend Ing the world. The Path of the Fathers (P Ityna) enjo Ins the r Ight accompl Ish Ing of the dharma of L Ife It Is the path of works, of Karma; It Is the l Ine of progress Ive evolut Ion that, man follows through the exper Ience of l Ife after l Ife on earth. The Path of the Gods (Devayna) runs above l Ife's evolut Ionary course; It l Ifts man out of the terrestr Ial cycle and places h Im In a super Ior consc Iousness It Is the path of knowledge, of V Idya.4 The Path of the Fathers Is the soul's southern or Infer Ior orb It (dak Iyana, aparrdha); the Path of the Gods Is the northern or super Ior orb It (uttaryaa, parrdha)The former Is also called the Lunar Path and the latter the Solar Path.5 For the moon represents the m Ind,6 and Is therefore, an emblem that bef Its man so long as he Is a mental be Ing and pursues a dharma that Is l Im Ited by the m Ind; the sun, on the other hand, Is the knowledge and consc Iousness that Is beyond the m Ind It Is the eye of the Gods.7
Man has two aspects or natures; he dwells In two worlds. The f Irst Is the man Ifest world the world of the body, the l Ife and the m Ind. The body has flowered Into the m Ind through the l Ife. The body g Ives the bas Is or the mater Ial, the l Ife g Ives power and energy and the m Ind the d Irect Ing knowledge. Th Is tr Iune world forms the human Ity of man. But there Is another aspect h Idden beh Ind th Is apparent nature, there Is another world where man dwells In h Is submerged, larger and h Igher consc Iousness. To that h Is soul the Purusha In h Is heart only has access. It Is the world where man's nature Is transmuted Into another tr Iune real ItySat, Ch It and Ananda.
The one, however, Is not completely d Ivorced from the other. The apparent, the Infer Ior nature Is only a preparat Ion for the real, the super Ior nature. The Path of the Fathers concerns Itself w Ith man as a mental be Ing and seeks so to orda In and accompl Ish Its dut Ies and Ideals as to lead h Im on to the Path of the Gods; the m Ind, the l Ife, and the body consc Iousness should be so d Isc Ipl Ined, educated, pur If Ied, they should develop along such a l Ine and gradually r Ise to such a stage as to make them f It to rece Ive the l Ight wh Ich belongs to the h Igher level, so allow Ing the human soul Imbedded In them to extr Icate Itself and pass on to the Immortal L Ife.
And they who are thus l Ifted up Into the H Igher Orb It are freed from the bondage to the cycle of reb Irth. They enjoy the supreme L Iberat Ion that Is of the Sp Ir It; and even when they descend Into the Infer Ior Path, It Is to work out as free agents, as veh Icles of the D Iv Ine, a spec Ial purpose, to br Ing down someth Ing of the substance and nature of the Solar real Ity Into the lower world, enl Ighten and elevate the lower, as far as It Is allowed, Into the h Igher.
IV. The Tr Iple Agn I
Agn I Is the d Iv Ine spark In man, the flam Ing consc Iousness In the mortal wh Ich pur If Ies and upl Ifts (pvaka) mortal Ity Into Immortal Ity. It Is the god "seated In the secret heart, who Is the possess Ion of Inf In Ity and the foundat Ion of ex Istence," as Yama says to Nach Iketas.8
Indeed, It was to th Is godhead that Nach Iketas turned and he wanted to know of It and f Ind It, when fa Ith se Ized on h Is pure heart and he asp Ired for the h Igher sp Ir Itual l Ife. The very open Ing hymn of the R Ig Veda, too, Is addressed to Agn I, who Is Invoked as the v Icar seated In the front of the sacr If Ice, the g Iver of the supreme g Ifts.
K Ing Yama In It Iated Nach Iketas Into the mystery of F Ire Worsh Ip and spoke of three f Ires that have to be k Indled If one asp Ires to enter the heaven of Immortal Ity.
The three f Ires are named elsewhere Garhapatya, Daksh Ina, and Ahavan Iya.9 They are the three tongues of the one central Agn I, that dwells secreted In the hearth of the soul. They man Ifest as asp Irat Ions that flame up from the three fundamental levels of our be Ing, the body, the l Ife and the m Ind. For although the sp Ir Itual consc Iousness Is the natural element of the soul and Is ga Ined In and through the soul, yet, In order that man may take possess Ion of It and dwell In It consc Iously, In order that the soul's emp Ire may be establ Ished, the external be Ing too must respond to the soul's Impact and yearn for Its truth In the Sp Ir It. The m Ind, the l Ife and the body wh Ich are usually obstruct Ions In the path, must d Iscover the secret flame that Is In them tooeach has h Is own port Ion of the Soul's F Ireand mount on Its ardent tongue towards the he Ights of the Sp Ir It.
Garhapatya Is the F Ire In the body-consc Iousness, the f Ire of Earth, as It Is somet Imes called; Daksh Ina Is the F Ire of the moon or m Ind, and Ahavan Iya that of l Ife.10 The earthly f Ire Is also the f Ire of the sun; the sun Is the source of all earth's heat and symbol Ises at the same t Ime the sp Ir Itual l Ight man Ifested In the phys Ical consc Iousness. The lunar f Ire Is also the f Ire of the stars, the stars, mytholog Ically, be Ing the consorts or powers of the moon and they symbol Ise, In Yog Ic exper Ience, the Intu It Ive thoughts. The f Ire of the l Ife-force has Its symbol In l Ightn Ing, electr Ic energy be Ing Its veh Icle.
Agn I In the phys Ical consc Iousness Is calledghapat I, for the body Is the house In wh Ich the soul Is lodged and he Is Its keeper, guard Ian and lord. The f Ire In the mental consc Iousness Is called dak I; for It Is that wh Ich g Ives d Iscernment, the power to d Iscr Im Inate between the truth and the falsehood, It Is that wh Ich by the pressure of Its heat and l Ight cleaves the wrong away from the r Ight. And the f Ire In the l Ife-force Is called havanya; for pra Is not only the plane of hunger and des Ire, but also of power and dynam Ism, It Is that wh Ich calls forth forces, br Ings them Into' play and It Is that wh Ich Is to be Invoked for the progress Ion of the Sacr If Ice, for an onward march on the sp Ir Itual path.
Of the three f Ires one Is the upholderhe who g Ives the f Irm foundat Ion, the stable house where the Sacr If Ice Is performed and Truth real Ised; the second Is the Knower, often called In the Veda jtaved, who gu Ides and d Irects; and the th Ird the Doer, the effect Ive Power, the dr Iv Ing Energyva Ivnara.
V. The F Ive Great Elements
The f Ive elements of the anc Ientsearth, water, f Ire, a Ir and ether or spaceare symbols taken from the phys Ical world to represent other worlds that are In It and beh Ind It. Each one Is a pr Inc Iple that const Itutes the fundamental nature of a part Icular plane of ex Istence.
Earth represents the mater Ial world Itself, Matter or ex Istence In Its most concrete, Its grossest form. It Is the bas Is of ex Istence, the world that supports other worlds (dhar, dhar Itr I),the f Irst or the lowest of the several ranges of creat Ion. In man It Is h Is body. The pr Inc Iple here Is that of stab Il Ity, substant Ial Ity, f Irmness, cons Istency.
Water represents the next rung the v Ital world, the world l Ife-force (pra). Phys Iolog Ically also we know that water Is the element form Ing three-fourths of the const Ituents of a l Iv Ing body and that dead and dry are synonymous terms; It Is the med Ium In wh Ich the l Iv Ing cells dwell and through wh Ich they draw the Ir sustenance. Water Is the ver Itable sap of l Ife It Is the emblem of l Ife Itself. The pr Inc Iple It represents Is that of movement, cont Inu Ity, perpetu Ity.
F Ire represents the Heart. It Is that wh Ich g Ives the Inner mot Ive to the forces of l Ife, It Is the secret Insp Irat Ion and asp Irat Ion that dr Ive the movements of l Ife. It Is the heat of consc Iousness, the ardour of our central be Ing that l Ives In the Truth and accepts noth Ing, noth Ing but the Truth. It Is the pure and pr Imal energy of our d Iv Ine essence, dr Iv Ing ever upward and onward l Ife's course of evolut Ion.
A Ir Is M Ind, the world of thought, of consc Ious format Ion; It Is where l Ife-movements are taken up and g Iven a shape or art Iculate formula for an organ Ised express Ion. The forms here have not, however, the concrete r Ig Id Ity of Matter, but are pl Iant and var Iable and flu Id In fact, they are more In the nature of poss Ib Il It Ies, rather than actual It Ies. The Ved Ic Maruts are thought-gods, and lndra (the Lum Inous M Ind), the Ir k Ing, Is called the Fash Ioner of perfect forms.
Ether or Space Is the Inf In Itude of the Sp Ir It, the l Im Itless Presence that dwells In and yet transcends the body, the l Ife the heart and the m Ind.
V I. The Sc Ience of the F Ive F Ires
The Sc Ience of the F Ive Agn Is (F Ires), as propounded by Pravahan, expla Ins and Illustrates the process of the b Irth of the body, the passage of the soul Into earth ex Istence. It descr Ibes the advent of the ch Ild, the bu Ild Ing of the phys Ical form of the human be Ing. The process Is conce Ived of as a sacr If Ice, the usual symbol w Ith the Ved Ic R Ish Is for the express Ion of the Ir v Is Ion and percept Ion of un Iversal processes of Nature, phys Ical and psycholog Ical. Here, the ch Ild IS sa Id to be the f Inal fru It of the sacr If Ice, the d Ifferent stages In the process be Ing: ( I) Soma, ( I I) Ra In, ( I I I) Food, ( Iv) Semen, (v) Ch Ild. Soma means Rasaphys Ically the pr Inc Iple of water, psycholog Ically the 'pr Inc Iple of del Ightand symbol Ises and const Itutes the very soul and substance of l Ife. Now It Is sa Id that these f Ive pr Inc Iples the fundamental and const Ituent elementsare born out of the sacr If Ice, through the oblat Ion or offer Ing to the f Ive Agn Is. The f Irst Agn I Is Heaven or the Sky-God, and by offer Ing to It one's fa Ith and one's ardent des Ire, one calls Into man Ifestat Ion Soma or Rasa or Water, the bas Ic pr Inc Iple of l Ife. Th Is water Is next offered to the second Agn I, the Ra In-God, who sends down Ra In. Ra In, aga In, Is offered to the th Ird Agn I, the Earth, who br Ings forth Food. Food Is, In Its turn, offered to the fourth Agn I, the Father or Male, who elaborates In h Imself the generat Ing flu Id.
F Inally, th Is flu Id Is offered to the f Ifth Agn I, the Mother or the Female, who del Ivers the Ch Ild.
The b Iolog Ical process, descr Ibed In what may seem to be crude and med Iaeval terms, really reflects or echoes a more subtle and psycholog Ical process. The Images used form perhaps part of the current popular not Ion about the matter, but the esoter Ic sense goes beyond the outer symbols. The sky seems to be the far and tenuous reg Ion where the soul rests and awa Its Its next b Irth It Is the reg Ion of Soma, the own Home of Bl Iss and Immortal Ity. Now when the t Ime or call comes, the soul st Irs and journeys down that Is the Ra In. Next, It enters the earth atmosphere and clothes Itself w Ith the earth consc Iousness. Then It wa Its and calls for the format Ion of the mater Ial body, f Irst by the contr I but Ion of the father and then by that of the mother; when these two un Ite and the mater Ial body Is formed, the soul Incarnates.
Apart from the quest Ion whether the b Iolog Ical phenomenon descr Ibed Is really a symbol and a cloak for another order of real Ity, and even tak Ing It at Its face value, what Is to be noted here Is the Idea of a cosm Ic cycle, and a cosm Ic cycle that proceeds through the pr Inc Iple of sacr If Ice. If It Is asked what there Is wonderful or part Icularly sp Ir Itual In th Is rather naf descr Ipt Ion of a very commonplace happen Ing that g Ives It an honoured place In the Upan Ishads, the answer Is that It Is wonderful to see how the Upan Ishad Ic R Ish I takes from an event Its local, temporal and personal colour and Incorporates It In a global movement, a cosm Ic cycle, as a l Imb of the Un Iversal Brahman. The Upan Ishads conta In passages wh Ich a pur Itan Ical mental Ity may perhaps descr Ibe as 'pornograph Ic'; these have In fact been put by some on the Index expurgator Ius. But the anc Ients saw these matters w Ith other eyes and through another consc Iousness.
We have, In modern t Imes, a movement towards a more consc Ious and courageous, knowledge of th Ings that were taboo to pur Itan ages. Not to shut one's eyes to the lower, darker and h Idden strands of our nature, but to br Ing them out Into the l Ight of day and to face them Is the best way of deal Ing w Ith such elements, wh Ich otherw Ise, If they are repressed, exert an unhealthy Influence on the m Ind and nature. The Upan Ishad Ic v Iew runs on the same l Ines, but, w Ith the unve Il Ing and the natural and not merely natural Ist Icdel Ineat Ion of these under-worlds (concern Ing sex and food), It endows them w Ith a perspect Ive sub spec Ie aetern Itat Is. The sexual funct Ion, for example, Is eas Ily equated to the double movement of ascent and descent that Is secreted In nature, or to the comb Ined act Ion of Purusha and Prakr It I In the cosm Ic Play, or aga In to the h Idden fount of Del Ight that holds and moves the un Iverse. In th Is v Iew there Is noth Ing merely secular and profane, but all Is woven Into the cosm Ic sp Ir Itual whole; and man Is taught to cons Ider and to mould all h Is movementsof soul and m Ind and body In the l Ight and rhythm of that Integral Real Ity.11
The central secret of the transf Igured consc Iousness l Ies, as we have already Ind Icated, In the myst Ic r Ite or law of Sacr If Ice. It Is the one bas Ic, fundamental, un Iversal Law that upholds and expla Ins the cosm Ic movement, conform Ity to wh Ich br Ings to the thr Ice-bound human be Ing release and freedom. Sacr If Ice cons Ists essent Ially of two elements or processes: ( I) The offer Ing or self g Iv Ing of the lower real Ity to the h Igher, and, as a consequence, an answer Ing movement of ( I I) the descent of the h Igher Into the lower. The lower offered to the h Igher means the lower subl Imated and Integrated Into the h Igher; and the descent of the h Igher Into the lower means the Incarnat Ion of the former and the fulf Ilment of the latter. The G Ita elaborates the same Idea when It says that by Sacr If Ice men Increase the gods and the gods Increase men and by so Increas Ing each other they atta In the supreme Good. Noth Ing Is, noth Ing Is done, for Its own sake, for an egocentr Ic sat Isfact Ion; all, even movements relat Ing to food and to sex should be ded Icated to the Cosm Ic Be IngV Isva Purusha and that alone rece Ived wh Ich comes from H Im.
V I I. The Cosm Ic and the Transcendental
The Supreme Real Ity wh Ich Is always called Brahman In the Upan Ishads, has to be known and exper Ienced In two ways; for It has two fundamental aspects or modes of be Ing. The Brahman Is un Iversal and It Is transcendental. The Truth, satyam, the Upan Ishad says In Its symbol Ic etymology, Is 'Th Is' (or, He) and 'That' (syat+tyat I.e. sat+tat). 'Th Is' means the Un Iversal Brahman: It Is what Is referred to when the Upan Ishad says:
Ivsyam Idam sarvam: All th Is Is for hab Itat Ion by the Lord;
or,Sarvam khalv Idam brahma: All th Is Is Indeed the Brahman;
or,Sa evedam sarvam: He Is Indeed all th Is;
or,Ahamevedam sarvam: I am Indeed all th Is;
or,Atma Ivedam sarvam: The Self Indeed Is all th Is;
or aga In,Sarvamasm I: I am all.
TheChhandyogya12 g Ives a whole typal scheme of th Is un Iversal real Ity and expla Ins how to real Ise It and what are the results of the exper Ience. The Un Iversal Brahman means the cosm Ic movement, the cycl Ic march of th Ings and events taken In Its global aspect. The typ Ical movement that symbol Ises and ep Itom Ises the phenomenon, embod Ies the truth, Is that of the sun. The movement cons Ists of f Ive stages wh Ich are called the f Ivefold sma Sma means the equal Brahman that Is ever present In all, the Upan Ishad Itself says der Iv Ing the word from sama It Is Sma also because It Is a rhythm Ic movement, a cadencea mus Ic of the spheres. And a rhythm Ic movement, In v Irtue of Its be Ing a wave, cons Ists of these f Ive stages: ( I) the start, ( I I) the r Ise, ( I I I) the peak, ( Iv) the decl Ine and (v) the fall. Now the sun follows th Is curve and marks out the fam Il Iar d Iv Is Ions of the day: dawn, forenoon, noon, afternoon and sunset. Somet Imes two other stages are added, one at each end, one of preparat Ion and another of f Inal lapse the tw Il Ights w Ith regard to the sun and then ,we have seven Instead of f Ive smas L Ike the Sun, the F Ire that Is to say, the sacr If Ic Ial F Irecan also be seen In Its f Ivefold cycl Ic movement: ( I) the l Ight Ing, ( I I) the smoke, ( I I I) the flame, ( Iv) smoulder Ing and f Inally (v) ext Inct Ion the fuel as It Is rubbed to produce the f Ire and the ashes may be added as the two supernumerary stages. Or aga In, we may take the cycle of f Ive seasons or of the f Ive worlds or of the de It Ies that control these worlds. The l Iv Ing wealth of th Is earth Is also symbol Ised In a qu Intetgoat and sheep and cattle and horse and f Inally man. Com Ing to the m Icrocosm, we have In man the cycle of h Is f Ive senses, bas Is of all knowledge and act Iv Ity. For the macrocosm, to I br Ing out Its vast extra-human complex Ity, the Upan Ishad refers to a qu Intet, each term of wh Ich Is aga In a tr In Ity: ( I) the threefold Veda, the D Iv Ine Word that Is the or Ig In of creat Ion, ( I I) the three worlds or f Ieldsearth, a Ir-belt or atmosphere and space, ( I I I) the three pr Inc Iples or de It Ies rul Ing respect Ively these worldsF Ire, A Ir and Sun, ( Iv) the Ir express Ions, emanat Ions or embod Imentsstars and b Irds and l Ight-rays, and f Inally, (v) the or Ig Inal Inhab Itants of these worldsto earth belong the rept Iles, to the m Id-reg Ion the Gandharvas and to heaven the anc Ient Fathers.
Now, th Is Is the All, the Un Iversal. One has to real Ise It and possess In one's consc Iousness. And that can be done only In one way: one has to Ident Ify oneself w Ith It, be one w Ith It, become It. Thus by los Ing one's Ind Iv Idual Ity one l Ives the l Ife un Iversal; the small lean separate l Ife Is enlarged and moulded In the rhythm of the R Ich and the Vast. It Is thus that man shares In the consc Iousness and energy that Insp Ire and move and susta In the cosmos. The Upan Ishad most emphat Ically enjo Ins that one must not decry th Is cosm Ic godhead or deny any of Its elements, not even such as are a taboo to the pur Itan m Ind. It Is In and through an un Impa Ired global consc Iousness that one atta Ins the All-L Ife and l Ives un Interruptedly and perenn Ially: Sarvamanvet I jyok jvat I.
St Ill the Upan Ishad says th Is Is not the f Inal end. There Is yet a h Igher status of real Ity and consc Iousness to wh Ich one has to r Ise. For beyond the Cosmos l Ies the Transcendent. The Upan Ishad expresses th Is truth and exper Ience In var Ious symbols. The cosm Ic real Ity, we have seen, Is often conce Ived as a septenary, a un Ity of seven elements, pr Inc Iples and worlds. Further to g Ive It Its full complex value, It Is cons Idered not as a s Imple septet, but a threefold heptad the whole gamut, as It were, cons Ist Ing of 21 notes or syllables. The Upan Ishad says, th Is number does not exhaust the ent Ire range; I for there Is yet a 22nd place. Th Is Is the world beyond the Sun, gr Iefless and deathless, the supreme Selfhood. The Veda I also somet Imes speaks of the Integral real Ity as be Ing represented by the number 100 wh Ich Is 99 + I; In other words, 99 represents the cosm Ic or un Iversal, the un Ity be Ing the real Ity beyond, the Transcendent.
Elsewhere the Upan Ishad descr Ibes more graph Ically th Is truth and the exper Ience of It. It Is sa Id there that the sun has f Ivewe note the fam Il Iar f Ivemovements of r Is Ing and sett Ing: ( I) from East to West, ( I I) from South to North, ( I I I) from West to East, ( Iv) from North to South and (v) from abovefrom the Zen Ithdownward. These are the f Ive normal and apparent movements. But there Is a s Ixth one; rather It Is not a movement, but a status, where the sun ne Ither r Ises nor sets, but Is always v Is Ible f Ixed In the same pos It Ion.
Some Western and Western Ised scholars have tr Ied to show that the phenomenon descr Ibed here Is an exclus Ively natural phenomenon, actually v Is Ible In the polar reg Ion where the sun never sets for s Ix months and moves In a c Ircle whose plane Is parallel to the plane of the hor Izon on the summer solst Ice and Is gradually Incl Ined as the sun regresses towards the equ Inox (on wh Ich day just half the solar d Isc Is v Is Ible above the hor Izon). The sun may be sa Id there to move In the d Irect Ion East-South-West-North and aga In East. Indeed the Upan Ishad ment Ions the pos It Ions of the sun In that order and g Ives a character to each success Ive stat Ion. The Ray from the East Is red, symbol Is Ing the R Ik, the Southern Ray Is wh Ite, symbol Is Ing the Yajur, the Western Ray Is black symbol Is Ing the Atharva. The natural phenomenon, however, m Ight have been or m Ight not have been before the m Ind's eye of the R Ish I, but the symbol Ism, the esoter Ic Ism of It Is clear enough In the way the R Ish I speaks of It. Also, apart from the f Irst four movements (wh Ich It Is already suff Ic Iently d Iff Icult to Ident Ify completely w Ith what Is v Is Ible), the f Ifth movement, as a separate descend Ing movement from above appears to be a fore Ign element In the context. And although, w Ith regard to the s Ixth movement or status, the sun Is v Is Ible as such exactly from the po Int of the North Pole for a wh Ile, the r Ing of the R Ish I's utterance Is unm Istakably sp Ir Itual, It cannot but refer to a fact of Inner consc Iousness that Is at least what the phys Ical fact conveys to the R Ish I and what he seeks to convey and express pr Imar Ily.
Now th Is Is what Is sought to be conveyed and expressed. The f Ive movements of the sun here also are noth Ing but the f Ive smas and they refer to the cycle of the Cosm Ic or Un Iversal Brahman. The s Ixth status where all movements cease, where there Is no r Is Ing and sett Ing, no ebb and flow, no wax Ing and wan Ing, where there Is the Immutable, the ever-same un Ity, Is very ev Idently the Transcendental Brahman. It Is That to wh Ich the Ved Ic R Ish I refers when he prays for a constant and f Ixed v Is Ion of the eternal Sunjyok ca sryam dr Ie.
It would be Interest Ing to know what the f Ive ranges or levels or movements of consc Iousness exactly are that make up the Un Iversal Brahman descr Ibed In th Is passage. It Is the myst Ic knowledge, the Upan Ishad says, of the secret del Ight In th Ingsmadhuv Idy. The f Ive ranges are the f Ive fundamental pr Inc Iples of del Ight Immortal It Ies, the Veda would say that form the Inner core of the pyram Id of creat Ion. They form a r Is Ing t Ier and are ruled respect Ively by the godsAgn I, Indra, Varuna, Soma and Brahmaw Ith the Ir emanat Ions and Instrumental personal It Ies the Vasus, the Rudras, the Ad Ityas, the Maruts and the Sadhyas. We suggest that these refer to the f Ive well-known levels of be Ing, the modes or nod I of consc Iousness or someth Ing very much l Ike them. The Upan Ishad speaks elsewhere of the f Ive sheaths. The s Ix Chakras of Tantr Ic system l Ie In the same l Ine. The f Irst and the bas Ic mode Is the phys Ical and the ascent from the phys Ical: Agn I and the Vasus are always Int Imately connected w Ith the earth and -the earth-pr Inc Iples ( It can be compared w Ith the Muladhara of the Tantras). Next, second In the l Ine of ascent Is the V Ital, the centre of power and dynam Ism of wh Ich the Rudras are the de It Ies and Indra the pres Id Ing God (cf. Swadh Ishthana of the Tantras the navel centre). Indra, In the Vedas, has two aspects, one of knowledge and v Is Ion and the other of dynam Ic force and dr Ive. In the f Irst aspect he Is more often cons Idered as the Lord of the M Ind, of the Lum Inous M Ind. In the present passage, Indra Is taken In h Is second aspect and Instead of the Maruts w Ith whom he Is usually Invoked has the Rudras as h Is agents and assoc Iates.
The th Ird In the l Ine of ascens Ion Is the reg Ion of Varuna and the Ad Ityas, that Is to say, of the large M Ind and Its l Ightsperhaps It can be connected w Ith Tantr Ic Ajnachakra. The fourth Is the doma In of Soma and the Marutsth Is seems to be the Inner heart, the fount of del Ight and keen and sweep Ing asp Irat Ions the Anahata of the Tantras. The f Ifth Is the reg Ion of the crown of the head, the doma In of Brahma and the Sadhyas: It Is the Overm Ind status from where comes the descend Ing Inflatus, the creat Ive Maya of Brahma. And when you go beyond, you pass Into the ult Imate status of the Sun, the real Ity absolute, the Transcendent wh Ich Is Indescr Ibable, unse Izable, Indeterm Inate, Indeterm Inable, Incommensurable; and once there, one never returns, neverna ca punarvartate na ca punarvartate.
V I I I. How Many Gods?
"How many Gods are there?" Yajnavalkya was once asked.13 The R Ish I answered, they say there are three thousand and three of them, or three hundred and three, or aga In, th Irty-three; It may be sa Id too there are s Ix or three or two or one and a half or one f Inally. Indeed as the Upan Ishad says elsewhere, It Is the One Un Ique who w Ished to be many: and all the gods are the var Ious glor Ies (mah Im) or emanat Ions of the One D Iv Ine. The anc Ient of anc Ient R Ish Is had declared long long ago, In the earl Iest Veda, that there Is one Ind Iv Is Ible Real Ity, the seers name It In var Ious ways.
In Yajnavalkya's enumerat Ion, however, It Is to be noted, f Irst of all, that he stresses on the number three. The pr Inc Iple of tr Ipl Ic Ity Is of very w Ide appl Icat Ion: It permeates all f Ields of consc Iousness and Is ev Idently based upon a fundamental fact of real Ity. It seems to embody a truth of synthes Is and comprehens Ion, po Ints to the order and harmony that re Igns In the cosmos, the spher Ic mus Ic. The metaphys Ical, that Is to say, the or Ig Inal pr Inc Iples that const Itute ex Istence are the well-known tr Iplets: ( I) the super Ior: Sat, Ch It, Ananda; and ( I I) the Infer Ior: Body, L Ife and M Indth Is be Ing a reflect Ion or translat Ion or concret Isat Ion of the former. We can see also here how the dual pr Inc Iple comes In, the tw In godhead or the two gods to wh Ich Yajnavalkya refers. The same pr Inc Iple Is found In the concept Ion of Ardhanar Ishwara, Male and Female, Purusha-Prakr It I. The Upan Ishad says 14 yet aga In that the One or Ig Inal Purusha was not pleased at be Ing alone, so for a compan Ion he created out of h Imself the or Ig Inal Female. The dual pr Inc Iple s Ign If Ies creat Ion, the man Ifest Ing act Iv Ity of the Real Ity. But what Is th Is one and a half to wh Ich Yajnavalkya refers? It s Imply means that the other created out of the one Is not a wholly separate, Independent ent Ity: It Is not an Integer by Itself, as In the Man Ichean system, but that It Is a port Ion, a fract Ion of the One. And In the end, In the ult Imate analys Is, or rather synthes Is, there Is but one s Ingle und Iv Ided and Ind Iv Is Ible un Ity. The thousands and hundreds, very often ment Ioned also In the R Ig Veda, are not s Imply mult Ipl Icat Ions of the One, a graph Ic descr Ipt Ion of Its many-s Idedness; It Ind Icates also the absolute fullness, the complete completeness (prasya pram) of the Real Ity. It Includes and comprehends all and Is a rounded total Ity, a full c Ircle. The hundred-gated and the thousand-p Illared c It Ies of wh Ich the anc Ient R Ish Is chanted are format Ions and embod Iments of consc Iousness human and d Iv Ine, are real It Ies whole and ent Ire englob Ing all the layers and grades of consc Iousness.
Bes Ides th Is metaphys Ics there Is also an occult aspect In numerology of wh Ich Pythagoras was a well-known adept and In wh Ich the Ved Ic R Ish Is too seem to take spec Ial del Ight. The mult Ipl Icat Ion of numbers represents In a general way the pr Inc Iple of emanat Ion. The One has d Iv Ided and subd Iv Ided Itself, but not In a haphazard way: It Is not l Ike the chaot Ic pulver Isat Ion of a p Iece of stone by hammer-blows. The process of d Iv Is Ion and subd Iv Is Ion follows a pattern almost as neat and method Ical as a genealog Ical tree. That Is to say, the emanat Ions form a h Ierarchy. At the top, the apex of the pyram Id, stands the one supreme Godhead. That Godhead Is b Iune In respect of man Ifestat Ion the D Iv Ine and h Is creat Ive Power. Th Is two- In-one real Ity may be cons Idered, accord Ing to one v Iew of creat Ion, as d Iv Id Ing Into three forms or aspects the well-known Brahma, V Ishnu and Rudra of H Indu mythology. These may be termed the f Irst or pr Imary emanat Ions.
Now, each one of them In Its turn has Its own emanat Ions the eleven Rudr Iyas are fam Il Iar. These are secondary and there are tert Iary and other graded emanat Ions the last ones touch the earth and embody phys Ico-v Ital forces. The lowest format Ions or be Ings can trace the Ir or Ig In to one or other of the pr Imar Ies and the Ir nature and funct Ion partake of or are an echo of the Ir f Irst ancestor.
Man, however, Is an ep Itome of creat Ion. He embraces and Incarnates the ent Ire gamut of consc Iousness and compr Ises In h Im all be Ings from the h Ighest D Iv In Ity to the lowest j Inn or elf. And yet each human be Ing In h Is true personal Ity Is a l Ineal descendant of one or other typal aspect or or Ig Inal Personal Ity of the one supreme Real Ity; and h Is Ind Iv Idual character Is all the more pronounced and well-def Ined the more organ Ised and developed Is the be Ing. The psych Ic be Ing In man Is thus a d Irect descent, an Immed Iate emanat Ion along a def In Ite l Ine of devolut Ion of the supreme consc Iousness. We may now understand and expla In eas Ily why one chooses a part Icular Ishta, an Ideal god, what Is the dr Ive that pushes one to become a worsh Ipper of S Iva or V Ishnu or any other de Ity. It Is not any rat Ional understand Ing, a we Igh Ing of pros and cons and then a resultant conclus Ion that leads one to choose a path of rel Ig Ion or sp Ir Itual Ity. It Is the soul's natural call to the God, the type of be Ing and consc Iousness of wh Ich It Is a spark, from wh Ich It has descended, It Is the secret aff In Ity the sp Ir Itual blood-relat Ion as It were that determ Ines the cho Ice and adherence. And It Is th Is that we name Fa Ith. And the exclus Iveness and v Iolence and b Itterness wh Ich attend such adherence and wh Ich go "by the "name of part Isansh Ip, sectar Ian Ism, fanat Ic Ism etc., a;e a deformat Ion In the Ignorance on the phys Ico-v Ital plane of the secret loyalty to one's source and or Ig In. Of course, the pattern or law Is not so s Imple and r Ig Id, but It g Ives a token or typal pattern. For It must not be forgotten that the supreme source or the or Ig Inal Is one and Ind Iv Is Ible and In the h Ighest Integrat Ion consc Iousness Is global and not exclus Ive. And the human be Ing that atta Ins such a status Is not bound or wholly l Im Ited to one part Icular format Ion: Its personal Ity Is based on the truth of Impersonal Ity. And yet the two can go together: an Ind Iv Idual can be Impersonal In consc Iousness and yet personal In becom Ing and true to type.
The number of gods depends on the level of consc Iousness on wh Ich we stand. On th Is mater Ial plane there are as many gods as there are bod Ies or Ind Iv Idual forms (adhar). And on the supreme he Ight there Is only one God w Ithout a second. In between there are gradat Ions of types and sub-types whose number and funct Ion vary accord Ing to the aspect of consc Iousness that reveals Itself.
IX. Nach Iketas' Three Boons
The three boons asked for by Nach Iketas from Yama, Lord of Death, and granted to h Im have been Interpreted In d Ifferent ways. Here Is one more attempt In the d Irect Ion.
Nach Iketas Is the young asp Ir Ing human be Ing st Ill In the Ignorancenac Iketa, mean Ing one w Ithout consc Iousness or knowledge. The three boons he asks for are In reference to the three fundamental modes of be Ing and consc Iousness that are at the very bas Is, form Ing, as It were, the ground-plan of the Integral real Ity. They are ( I) the Ind Iv Idual, ( I I) the un Iversal or cosm Ic and ( I I I) the transcendental.
The f Irst boon regards the Ind Iv Idual, that Is to say, the Ind Iv Idual Ident Ity and Integr Ity. It asks for the ma Intenance of that Ind Iv Idual Ity so that It may be saved from the d Issolut Ion that Death br Ings about. Death, of course, means the d Issolut Ion of the body, but It represents also d Issolut Ion pure and s Imple. Indeed death Is a process wh Ich does not stop w Ith the phys Ical phenomenon, but cont Inues even after; for w Ith the body gone, the other elements of the Ind Iv Idual organ Ism, the v Ital and the mental too gradually fall off, fade and d Issolve. Nach Iketas w Ishes to secure from Death the safety and preservat Ion of the earthly personal Ity, the part Icular organ Isat Ion of m Ind and v Ital based upon a recogn Isable phys Ical frame. That Is the f Irst necess Ity for the asp Ir Ing mortalfor, It Is sa Id, the body Is the f Irst Instrument for the work Ing out of one's l Ife Ideal. But man's true personal Ity, the real Ind Iv Idual Ity l Ies beyond, beyond the body, beyond the l Ife, beyond the m Ind, beyond the tr Iple reg Ion that Death lords It over. That Is the d Iv Ine world, the Heaven of the Immortals, beyond death and beyond sorrow and gr Ief. It Is the hearth secreted In the Inner heart where burns the D Iv Ine F Ire, the God of L Ife Everlast Ing. And th Is Is the nodus that b Inds together the threefold status of the man Ifested ex Istence, the body, the l Ife and the m Ind. Th Is tr Ipl Ic Ity Is the structure of name and form bu Ilt out of the br Icks of exper Ience, the k Iln, as It were, w Ith In wh Ich burns the D Iv Ine Agn I, man's true soul. Th Is soul can be reached only when one exceeds the bounds and l Im Itat Ions of the tr Iple cord and exper Iences one's commun Ion and Ident Ity w Ith all souls and all ex Istence. Agn I Is the secret d Iv In Ity w Ith In, w Ith In the Ind Iv Idual and w Ith In the world; he Is the Immanent D Iv Ine, the cosm Ic godhead that holds together and marshals all the elements and components, all the pr Inc Iples that make up the man Ifest un Iverse. He It Is that has entered Into the world and created facets of h Is own real Ity In mult Iple forms: and It Is he that l Ies secret In the human be Ing as the Immortal soul through all Its adventure of l Ife and death In the ser Ies of Incarnat Ions In terrestr Ial evolut Ion. The adorat Ion and real Isat Ion of th Is Immanent D Iv In Ity, the worsh Ip of Agn I taught by Yama In the second boon, cons Ists In the tr Iple sacr If Ice, the tr Iple work, the tr Iple un Ion In the tr Iple status of the phys Ical, the v Ital and the mental consc Iousness, the mastery of wh Ich leads one to the other shore, the abode of perenn Ial ex Istence where the human soul enjoys Its etern Ity and unend Ing cont Inu Ity In cosm Ic l Ife. Therefore, Agn I, the master of the psych Ic be Ing, Is called jtaveds, he who knows the b Irths, all the transm Igrat Ions from l Ife to l Ife.
The th Ird boon Is the secret of secrets, for It Is the knowledge and real Isat Ion of Transcendence that Is sought here. Beyond the Ind Iv Idual l Ies the un Iversal; Is there anyth Ing beyond the un Iversal? The release of the Ind Iv Idual Into the cosm Ic ex Istence g Ives h Im the gr Iefless l Ife eternal: can the cosmos be rolled up and flung Into someth Ing beyond? What would be the nature of that th Ing? What Is there outs Ide creat Ion, outs Ide man Ifestat Ion, outs Ide Maya, to use a latter day term? Is there ex Istence or non-ex Istence (utter d Issolut Ion or ext Inct IonDeath In h Is supreme and absolute status)? K Ing Yama d Id not choose to answer Immed Iately and even endeavoured to d Issuade Nach Iketas from pursu Ing the quest Ion over wh Ich people were confounded, as he sa Id. Ev Idently It was a much d Iscussed problem In those days. Buddha was asked the same quest Ion and he evaded It, say Ing that the pragmat Ic man should attend to pract Ical and Immed Iate real It Ies and not, waste t Ime and energy In d Iscuss Ing th Ings ult Imate and beyond that have hardly any relat Ion to the present and the actual.
But Yama d Id answer and unve Il the mystery and Impart the supreme secret knowledge the knowledge of the Transcendent Brahman: It Is out of the transcendent real Ity that the Immanent de Ity takes h Is b Irth. Hence the D Iv Ine F Ire, the Lord of creat Ion and the Inner Mastersarvabhtntartm, antarym Is called brahmajam, born of the Brahman. Yama teaches the process of transcendence. Apart from the knowledge and exper Ience f Irst of the Ind Iv Idual and then of the cosm Ic Brahman, there Is a def In Ite l Ine along wh Ich the human consc Iousness (or unconsc Iousness, as It Is at present) Is to ascend and evolve. The f Irst step Is to learn to d Ist Ingu Ish between the Good and the Pleasurable (reya and preya). The l Ine of pleasure leads to the external, the superf Ic Ial, the false: wh Ile the other path leads towards the Inner and the h Igher truth. So the second step Is the gradual w Ithdrawal of the consc Iousness from the phys Ical and the sensual and even the mental preoccupat Ion and focuss Ing It upon what Is certa In and permanent. In the m Idst of the death-r Idden consc Iousness In the heart of all that Is unstable and fleet Ingone has to look for Agn I, the eternal godhead, the Immortal In mortal Ity, the T Imeless In t Ime through whom l Ies the passage to Immortal Ity beyond T Ime.
Man has two souls correspond Ing to h Is double status. In the Infer Ior, the soul looks downward and Is Involved In the current of Impermanence and Ignorance, It tastes of gr Ief and sorrow and suffers death and d Issolut Ion: In the h Igher It looks upward and communes and jo Ins w Ith the Eternal (the cosm Ic) and then w Ith the Absolute (the transcendent). The lower Is a reflect Ion of the h Igher, the h Igher comes down In a d Im In Ished and hence tarn Ished l Ight. The message Is that of del Iverance, the del Iverance and re Integrat Ion of the lower soul out of Its bondage of worldly Ignorant l Ife Into the freedom and Immortal Ity f Irst of Its h Igher and then of Its h Ighest status. It Is true, however, that the Upan Ishad does not make a trenchant d Ist Inct Ion between the cosm Ic and the transcendent and often It speaks of both In the same breath, as It were. For In fact they are real It Ies Involved In each other and Interwoven. Indeed the tr Iple status, Includ Ing the Ind Iv Idual, forms one s Ingle total Ity and the three do not exclude or cancel each other; on the contrary, they comb Ine and may be sa Id to enhance each other's real Ity. The Transcendence expresses or deploys Itself In the cosmoshe goes abroad,sa paryagt: and the cosm Ic Ind Iv Idual Ises, concret Ises Itself In the part Icular and the personal. The one s Ingle sp Ir Itual real Ity holds Itself, aspects Itself In a threefold manner.
The teach Ing of Yama In br Ief may be sa Id to be the gospel of Immortal Ity and It cons Ists of the knowledge of tr Iple Immortal Ity. And who else can be the best teacher of Immortal Ity than Death h Imself, as Nach Iketas po Intedly sa Id? The f Irst Immortal Ity Is that of the phys Ical ex Istence and consc Iousness, the preservat Ion of the personal Ident Ity, the Ind Iv Idual name and formth Is be Ing In Itself as express Ion and embod Iment and Instrument of the Inner Real Ity. Th Is Inner real Ity enshr Ines the second Immortal Ity the etern Ity and cont Inu Ity of the soul's l Ife through Its Incarnat Ions In t Ime, the d Iv Ine Agn I l It for ever and ever grow Ing In flam Ing consc Iousness. And the th Ird and f Inal Immortal Ity Is In the be Ing and consc Iousness beyond t Ime, beyond all relat Iv It Ies, the absolute and self-ex Istent del Ight.
R Ig Veda, X. 14-11, 12.
Br Ihadaranyaka Upan Ishad, V. 8. I.
The G Ita, I I I-11.
Karma p Itloka v Idyay devoloka (jayy)Br Ihadaranyaka, 1.5.16.
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Katha, I.1.14.
Chhandyogya, IV, 11.12.13; V, 18.2.
Chhandyogya, IV, 11.12.13; V, 18.2.
The secular Isat Ion of man's v Ital funct Ions In modem ages has not been a success. It has made h Im more egocentr Ic and blatantly hedon Ist Ic. From an occult po Int of v Iew he has In th Is way subjected h Imself to the Influences of dark and undes Irable world-forces, has made an open Ing, to use an Ind Ian symbol Ism, for Kal I (the Sp Ir It of the Iron Age) to enter Into h Im. The sex-force Is an extremely potent agent, but It Is extremely flu Id and elus Ive and uncontrollable. It was for th Is reason that the anc Ients always sought to g Ive It a proper mould, a r Ight cont Inent, a f Ixed and def In Ite channel; the moderns, on the other hand, allow It to run free and play w Ith It recklessly. The result has been, In the l Ife of those born under such c Ircumstances, a grow Ing lack of po Ise and balance and a correspond Ing Inc Idence of neuras then Ia, hyster Ia and all abnormal patholog Ical cond It Ions.
Chhandyogya, I I, I I I.
Br Ihadaranyaka I I I.9
Br Ihadaranyaka I.4.
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Myst Ic Symbol Ism The Beaut Iful In the Upan Ishads
00.04 - The Beautiful in the Upanishads, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
object:00.04 - The Beaut Iful In the Upan Ishads
author class:Nol In I Kanta Gupta
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Other Authors Nol In I Kanta Gupta The Beaut Iful In the Upan Ishads
The Beaut Iful In the Upan Ishads
When the R Igveda says
Idam reham Jyot Im Jyot I gt
c Itra praketo ajan Ia v Ibhv
Lo! the supreme L Ight of l Ights Is come, a var Ied
awaken Ing Is born, w Ide man Ifest
ruadvast rua wetygt
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The wh Ite Mother comes redden Ing w Ith the ruddy ch Ild; the dark Mother opens w Ide her chambers, the feel Ing and the express Ion of the beaut Iful ra Ise no quest Ion Ing; they are au thent Ic as well as ev Ident. All w Ill recogn Ise at once t at we have here beaut Iful th Ings sa Id In a beaut Iful way. No less au thent Ic however Is the sense of the beaut Iful that underl Ies these Upan Ishad Ic l Ines:
na tatra sryo bht I na candratrakam
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tasya bhs sarvam Idam v Ibht I
There the sun sh Ines not, nor the moon, nor the stars; these l Ightn Ings too there sh Ine not; how then th Is f Ire! That sh Ines and therefore all sh Ine In Its wake; by the sheen of That, all th Is sh Ines.
Only, to some perhaps the beauty may not appear as ev Ident and apparent. The Sp Ir It of beauty that res Ides In the Upan Ishad Ic consc Iousness Is more ret Ir Ing and ret Icent. It dwells In Its own pr Ivacy, In Its own home, as It were, and therefore chooses to be bare and austere, s Imple and sheer. Beauty means usually the beauty of form, even If It be not always the decorat Ive, ornamental and sumptuous form. The early Vedas a Imed at the perfect form (surpaktnum), the faultless express Ion, the Integral and complete embod Iment; the gods they env Isaged and Invoked were gleam Ing powers carved out of harmony and beauty and f Igured close to our modes of apprehens Ion (spyan). But the Upan Ishads came to lay stress upon what Is beyond the form, what the eye cannot see nor the v Is Ion reflect:
na sand I t Ihat I rpamasya
--
Its f Igure does not l Ie In the f Ield of v Is Ion, none can see It w Ith the eye
The form of a th Ing can be beaut Iful; but the formless too has Its beauty. Indeed, the beauty of the formless, that Is to say, the very sum and substance, the ult Imate essence, the soul of beauty that Is what suffuses, w Ith In-gathered colour and enthus Iasm, the real Isat Ion and poet Ic creat Ion of the Upan Ishad Ic seer. All the forms that are scattered abroad In the Ir myr Iad man Ifest beauty hold w Ith In themselves a secret Beauty and are reflected or projected out of It. Th Is ve Iled Name of Beauty can be compared to noth Ing on the phenomenal hem Isphere of Nature; It has no adequate Image or representat Ion below:
na tasya prat Imst I
It cannot be def Ined or f Igured In the terms of the phenomenal consc Iousness. In speak Ing of It, however, the Upan Ishads Invar Iably and repeatedly refer to two attr Ibutes that character Ise Its fundamental nature. These two aspects have made such an Impress Ion upon the consc Iousness of the Upan Ishad Ic seer that h Is enthus Iasm almost wholly plays about them and Is centred on them. When he contemplates or communes w Ith the Supreme Object, these seem to h Im to be the mark of Its au thent Ic Ity, the seal of Its h Igh status and the reason of all the charm and mag Ic It possesses. The f Irst aspect or attr I bute Is that of l Ight the br Ill Iance, the solar effulgencerav Ituly-arpa the br Ight, clear, shadow less L Ight of l Ightsv Irajam ubhram jyot Im jyot I The second aspect Is that of del Ight, the bl Iss, the Immortal Ity Inherent In that w Ide effulgencenandarpam amtam yad v Ibht I.
And what else Is the true character, the soul of beauty than l Ight and del Ight? "A th Ing of beauty Is a joy for ever." And a th Ing of joy Is a th Ing of l Ight. Joy Is the rad Iance r Ippl Ing over a th Ing of beauty. Beauty Is always rad Iant: the charm, the lovel Iness of an object Is but the glow of l Ight that It emanates. And It would not be a very Incorrect mensurat Ion to measure the degree of beauty by the degree of l Ight rad Iated. The d Iamond Is not only a th Ing of value, but a th Ing of beauty also, because of the concentrated and und Immed l Ight that It enshr Ines w Ith In Itself. A dark, dull and d Ismal th Ing, devo Id of Interest and attract Ion becomes aesthet Ically prec Ious and s Ign If Icant as soon as the art Ist presents It In terms of the values of l Ight. The ent Ire art of pa Int Ing Is noth Ing but the express Ion of beauty, In and through the modal It Ies of l Ight.
And where there Is l Ight, there Is cheer and joy. Rasamaya and jyot Irmayaare thus the two conjo Int character Ist Ics fundamental to the nature of the ult Imate real Ity. Somet Imes these two are named as the 'solar and the lunar aspect. The solar aspect refers obv Iously to the L Ight, that Is to say, to the Truth; the lunar aspect refers to the rasa (Soma), to Immortal Ity, to Beauty proper,
yatte suamam hdayam adh I candramas I r Itam
--
O Lord of Immortal Ity! Thy' heart of beauty that Is sheltered In the moon
or, as the Prasna Upan Ishad has It,
ray Ireva candram.. mf Irt Ireva ray I
--
The percept Ion of beauty In the Upan Ishad Ic consc Iousness Is someth Ing elemental-of concentrated essence. It s Ilhouettes the ma In contour, outl Ines the pr Imord Ial gestures. Pregnant and pulsat Ing w Ith the burden of beauty, the mantra here reduces Its external express Ion to a m In Imum. The body Is bare and unadorned, and even In Its nakedness, It has not the emphat Ic and vehement musculature of an athlete; rather It tends to be sl Im and slender and yet v Ibrant w Ith the Inner nervous v Igour and glow. What can be more bare and br Ief and full to the br Im of a self-gathered lum Inous energy than, for example:
yat prena na pra It I yena pra
--
That wh Ich l Ives not by L Ife, but wh Ich makes L Ife l IveThat Is Brahman.
or,
--
In the L Ittle there l Ies no happ Iness, the Vast alone Is the Happ Iness. The Vast Is the Immortal Ity, the L Ittle Is the Mortal Ity.
The r Ich and sensuous beauty luxur Iat Ing In h Igh colour and ample decorat Ion that one meets often In the creat Ion of the earl Ier Ved Ic seers returned aga In, In a more ch Iselled and pol Ished and styl Ised manner, In the class Ical poets. The Upan Ishads In th Is respect have a certa In k Insh Ip w Ith the early poets of the Interven Ing ageVyasa and Valm Ik I. Upam Kl IdsasyaKal Idasa revels In f Igures and Images; they are profusely heaped on one another and usually possess a complex and compos Ite texture. Valm Ik I's Images are s Imple and elemental, br Ief and Inst Inct w Ith a vast resonance, spare and full of power. The same brev Ity and s Impl Ic Ity, v Ibrant w Ith an extraord Inary power of evocat Ion, are also character Ist Ic of the Upan Ishad Ic mantra W Ith Valm Ik I's
kam Iva dupram
--
l Ike a f Ire whose l Ight of flame Is gone,
or,
--
can be compared, In respect of v Iv Id and graph Ic terseness and po Intedness and suggest Ive reverberat Ion, the Upan Ishad Ic
vka Iva stabdho d Iv I t Ihatyeka
The One stands alone In the heaven mot Ionless, l Ike a tree aga Inst the sky,
or,
--
Be wholly f Ixed on That, l Ike an arrow on Its target,
or aga In,
--
Art at Its h Ighest tends to become also the s Implest and the most unconvent Ional; and It Is then the h Ighest art, prec Isely because It does not a Im at be Ing art Ist Ic. The aesthet Ic mot Ive Is totally absent In the Upan Ishads; the sense of beauty Is there, but It Is attendant upon and Involved In a deeper strand of consc Iousness. That consc Iousness seeks consc Iousness Itself, the fullness of consc Iousness, the awareness and possess Ion of the Truth and Real Ity,the one th Ing wh Ich, If known, g Ives the knowledge of all else. And th Is consc Iousness of the Truth Is also Del Ight, the perfect Bl Iss, the Immortal Ity where the whole un Iverse resolves Itself Into Its or Ig Inal state of rasa, that Is to say, of essent Ial and Inal Ienable harmony and beauty.
***
00.05 - A Vedic Conception of the Poet, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
The Beaut Iful In the Upan Ishads Sr I Aurob Indo: The Age of Sr I Aurob Indo
Other Authors Nol In I Kanta Gupta A Ved Ic Concept Ion of the Poet
--
'Kav I' Is an Invar Iable ep Ithet of the gods. The Vedas mean by th Is attr Ibute to br Ing out a most fundamental character, an Inal Ienable dharma of the heavenly host. All the gods are poets; and a human be Ing can become a poet only In so far as he atta Ins to the nature and status of a god. Who Is then a kav I? The Poet Is he who by h Is poet Ic power ra Ises forms of beauty In heavenkav I kav Itv d Iv I rpam sajat.1Thus the essence of poet Ic power Is to fash Ion d Iv Ine Beauty, to reveal heavenly forms. What Is th Is Heaven whose forms the Poet d Iscovers and embod Ies? HeavenDyaushas a very def In Ite connotat Ion In the Veda. It means the lum Inous or d Iv Ine M Ind 2the m Ind pur If Ied of Its obscur Ity and l Im Itat Ions, due to subject Ion to the external senses, thus open Ing to the h Igher L Ight, rece Iv Ing and record Ing fa Ithfully the deeper and vaster movements and v Ibrat Ions of the Truth, g Iv Ing them a form, a perfect body of the r Ight thought and the r Ight word. Indra Is the lord of th Is world and he can be approached only w Ith an enk Indled Intell Igence, ddhay man,3a faultless understand Ing, sumedh. He Is the supreme Art Isan of the poet Ic power,Tash, the maker of perfect forms, surpa ktnum.4 All the gods turn towards Indra and become gods and poets, atta In the Ir Great Names of Supreme Beauty.5 Indra Is also the master of the senses, Indr Iyas, who are h Is hosts. It Is through th Is m Ind and the senses that the poet Ic creat Ion has to be man Ifested. The m Ind spreads out w Ide the Poet's weav Ing;6 the poet Is the pr Iest who calls down and works out the r Ight th Ink Ing In the sacr If Ic Ial labour of creat Ion.7 But that creat Ion Is made In and through the Inner m Ind and the Inner senses that are al Ive to the subtle format Ion of a vaster knowledge.8 The poet env Isages the golden forms fash Ioned out of the very profund Ity of the consc Iousness.9 For the substance, the mater Ial on wh Ich the Poet works, Is Truth. The seat of the Truth the poets guard, they uphold the supreme secret Names.10 The poet has the express Ive utterance, the creat Ive word; the poet Is a poet by h Is poet Ic creat Ion-the shape faultlessly wrought out that unve Ils and holds the Truth.11The form of beauty Is the body of the Truth.
The poet Is a tr In Ity In h Imself. A tr Iune consc Iousness forms h Is personal Ity. F Irst of all, he Is the Knower-the Seer of the Truth, kavaya satyadrara. He has the d Irect v Is Ion, the lum Inous Intell Igence, the Immed Iate percept Ion.12 A subtle and profound and penetrat Ing consc Iousness Is h Is,n Igam, pracetas; h Is Is the eye of the Sun,srya caku.13 He secures an Increased be Ing through h Is effulgent understand Ing.14 In the second place, the Poet Is not only Seer but Doer; he Is knower as well as creator. He has a dynam Ic knowledge and h Is v Is Ion Itself Is power, ncak;15 he Is the Seer-W Ill,kav Ikratu.16 He has the blaz Ing rad Iance of the Sun and Is supremely potent In h Is self- Ium Inousness.17 The Sun Is the l Ight and the energy of the Truth. Even l Ike the Sun the Poet g Ives b Irth to the Truth, srya satyasava, satyya satyaprasavya. But the Poet as Power Is not only the revealer or creator,sav It, he Is also the bu Ilder or fash Ioner,ta, and he Is the organ Iser,vedh Is personal Ity. F Irst of all, he Is the Knower-the Seer of the Truth, kavaya satyadrara, of the Truth.18 As Sav Ita he man Ifests the Truth, as Tashta he g Ives a perfected body and form to the Truth, and as Vedha he ma Inta Ins the Truth In Its dynam Ic work Ing. The effect Ive marshall Ing and organ Isat Ion of the Truth Is what Is called R Itam, the R Ight; It Is also called Dharma,19 the Law or the Rhythm, the ordered movement and Inv Inc Ible execut Ion of the Truth. The Poet pursues the Path of the R Ight;20 It Is he who lays out the Path for the march of the Truth, the progress of the Sacr If Ice.21 He Is l Ike a fast steed well-yoked, press Ing forward;22 he Is the charger that moves stra Ight and unswerv Ing and carr Ies us beyond 23 Into the world of fel Ic Ity.
Indeed del Ight Is the th Ird and the supremely Int Imate element of the poet Ic personal Ity. Dear and del Ightful Is the poet, dear and del Ightful h Is works, pr Iya, pr Iy I H Is hand Is dr Ipp Ing w Ith sweetness,kav Ir h I madhuhastya.24 The Poet-God sh Ines In h Is pr Ist Ine beauty and Is shower Ing del Ight.25 He Is f Illed w Ith utter ecstasy so that he may r Ise to the very source of the lum Inous Energy.26? Pure Is the D Iv Ine Joy and It enters and pur If Ies all forms as It moves to the seat of the Immortals.27 Indeed th Is sparkl Ing Del Ight Is the Poet-Seer and It Is that that br Ings forth the creat Ive word, the utterance of Indra.28
The solar v Is Ion of the Poet encompasses In Its m Ight the w Ide Earth and Heaven, fuses them In supreme Del Ight In the womb of the Truth.29 The Earth Is l Ifted up and g Iven In marr Iage to Heaven In the home of Truth, for the creat Ion and express Ion of the Truth In Its var Ied beauty,cru c Itram.
The Poet creates forms of beauty In Heaven; but these forms are not made out of the vo Id. It Is the Earth that Is ra Ised to Heaven and transmuted Into d Iv Ine truth forms. The un Ion of Earth and Heaven Is the source of the Joy, the Ananda, that the Poet unseals and d Istr Ibutes. Heaven and Earth jo In and meet In the world of Del Ight; between them they press out Soma, the dr Ink of the gods.
The M Ind and the Body are held together by means of the L Ife, the m Id-world. The D Iv Ine M Ind by ra Is Ing the body-consc Iousness Into Itself gathers up too, by that act, the del Ight of l Ife and releases the founta In of Immortal Bl Iss. That Is the work and ach Ievement of the gods as poets.
Where then Is the b Irth of the Poets? Ask It of the Masters. The Poets have se Ized and mastered the M Ind, they have the perfect work Ing and they fash Ion the Heaven.
On th Is Earth they hold everywhere In themselves all the secrets. They make Earth and Heaven move together, so that they may real Ise the Ir hero Ic strength. They measure them w Ith the Ir rhythm Ic measur Ings, they hold In the Ir controlled grasp the vast and great tw Ins, and un Ite them and establ Ish between them the m Id-world of Del Ight for the perfect po Ise.30
All the gods are poetsthe Ir forms are perfect, surpa, suda, the Ir Names full of beauty,cru devasya nma.31 Th Is means also that the gods embody the d Ifferent powers that const Itute the poet Ic consc Iousness. Agn I Is the Seer-W Ill, the creat Ive v Is Ion of the Poet the lum Inous energy born of an exper Ience by Ident Ity w Ith the Truth. Indra Is the Idea-Form, the arch Itecton Ic concept Ion of the work or ach Ievement. M Itra and Varuna are the large harmony, the vast cadence and sweep of movement. The Asw Ins, the D Iv Ine R Iders, represent the Intense zest of well-yoked L Ife-Energy. Soma Is Rasa, Ananda, the Supreme Bl Iss and Del Ight.
The Ved Ic Poet Is doubtless the poet of L Ife, the arch Itect of D Iv In Ity In man, of Heaven upon earth. But what Is true of L Ife Is fundamentally true of Art tooat least true of the Art as It was conce Ived by the anc Ient seers and as It found express Ion at the Ir hands.32
R Ig Veda, X. 124. 7
--
R Ig Veda, I I I. 38. 1.
R Ig Veda., I. 4.1.
R Ig Veda., I I I. 54. 17.
R Ig Veda., X. 5. 3.
R Ig Veda., I. 151. 7.
R Ig Veda., IV. 16. 3.
R IgVeda.,V I I I. 8. 2.
--
R Ig Veda, IX. 96. 17.
R Ig Veda., I. 71. 10; kav Im ketum-V I I. 6. 2.
R Ig Veda., IX. 10. 8-9.
R Ig. Veda, V I I I. 44.12.
R Ig. Veda., I I I. 54. 6.
R Ig. Veda., I. 1. 5.
--
R Ig Veda., I I I. 38. 2.
R Ig Veda., V I I I. 8. 23.
Ta Itt Ir Iya Samh Ita, I I I. 55. 3.
R Ig Veda, I I I. 38. 1.
R Ig Veda., IV. 16. 11*.
R Ig Veda, V. 5. 2.
R Ig Veda, IX. 25. 2.
R Ig Veda, IX. 25. 6.
R Ig Veda, IX. 25. 4.
R Ig Veda, IX. 25. 5.
R Ig Veda., I I I. 54. 6.
--
The Ved Ic term Kav I means l Iterally 'a seer', 'one who has the v Is Ion', as the word 'poet' means etymolog Ically 'a doer', 'a creator'. I have comb Ined the two senses to equate the terms and br Ing out the mean Ing Involved In the Ir more current acceptat Ion.
***
The Beaut Iful In the Upan Ishads Sr I Aurob Indo: The Age of Sr I Aurob Indo
0.00a - Introduction, #A Garden of Pomegranates - An Outline of the Qabalah, #Israel Regardie, #Occultism
object:0.00a - Introduct Ion
class:chapter
--
It Is Iron Ic that a per Iod of the most tremendous technolog Ical advancement known to recorded h Istory should also be labeled the Age of Anx Iety. Reams have been wr Itten about modern man's frenz Ied search for h Is soul-and, Indeed, h Is doubt that he even has one at a t Ime when, l Ike castles bu Ilt on sand, so many of h Is cher Ished theor Ies, long m Istaken for ver It Ies, are crumbl Ing about h Is bew Ildered bra In.
The age-old adv Ice, "Know thyself," Is more Imperat Ive than ever. The tempo of sc Ience has accelerated to such a degree that today's d Iscover Ies frequently make yesterday's equat Ions obsolescent almost before they can be chalked up on a blackboard. Small wonder, then that every other hosp Ital bed Is occup Ied by a mental pat Ient. Man was not constructed to spend h Is l Ife at a crossroads, one of wh Ich leads he knows not where, and the other to threatened ann Ih Ilat Ion of h Is spec Ies.
In v Iew of th Is s Ituat Ion It Is doubly reassur Ing to know that, even In the m Idst of chaot Ic concepts and cond It Ions there st Ill rema Ins a door through wh Ich man, Ind Iv Idually, can enter Into a vast store-house of knowledge, knowledge as dependable and Immutable as the measured tread of Etern Ity.
For th Is reason I am espec Ially pleased to be wr It Ing an Introduct Ion to a new ed It Ion of A Garden of Pomegranates. I feel that never, perhaps, was the need more urgent for just such a roadmap as the Qabal Ist Ic system prov Ides. It should be equally useful to any who chooses to follow It, whether he be Jew, Chr Ist Ian or Buddh Ist, De Ist, Theosoph Ist, agnost Ic or athe Ist.
The Qabalah Is a trustworthy gu Ide, lead Ing to a comprehens Ion both of the Un Iverse and one's own Self. Sages have long taught that Man Is a m In Iature of the Un Iverse, conta In Ing w Ith In h Imself the d Iverse elements of that macrocosm of wh Ich he Is the m Icrocosm. W Ith In the Qabalah Is a glyph called the Tree of L Ife wh Ich Is at once a symbol Ic map of the Un Iverse In Its major aspects, and also of Its smaller counterpart, Man.
Manly P. Hall, In The Secret Teach Ings of All Ages, deplores the fa Ilure of modern sc Ience to "sense the profund Ity of these ph Ilosoph Ical deduct Ions of the anc Ients." Were they to do so, he says, they "would real Ize those who fabr Icated the structure of the Qabalah possessed a knowledge of the celest Ial plan comparable In every respect w Ith that of the modern savant."
Fortunately many sc Ient Ists In the f Ield of psycho therapy are beg Inn Ing to sense th Is correlat Ion. In Franc Is G. W Ickes' The Inner World of Cho Ice reference Is made to "the ex Istence In every person of a galaxy of potent Ial It Ies for growth marked by a success Ion of personalog Ical evolut Ion and Interact Ion w Ith env Ironments." She po Ints out that man Is not only an Ind Iv Idual part Icle but "also a part of the human stream, governed by a Self greater than h Is own Ind Iv Idual self."
The Book of the Law states s Imply, "Every man and every woman Is a star." Th Is Is a startl Ing thought for those who cons Idered a star a heavenly body, but a declarat Ion subject to proof by anyone who w Ill venture Into the realm of h Is own Unconsc Ious. Th Is realm, he w Ill learn If he pers Ists, Is not hemmed In by the boundar Ies of h Is phys Ical body but Is one w Ith the boundless reaches of outer space.
Those who, armed w Ith the tools prov Ided by the Qabalah, have made the journey w Ith In and crossed beyond the barr Iers of Illus Ion, have returned w Ith an Impress Ive quant Ity of knowledge wh Ich conforms str Ictly to the def In It Ion of "sc Ience" In W Inston's College D Ict Ionary: "Sc Ience: a body of knowledge, general truths of part Icular facts, obta Ined and shown to be correct by accurate observat Ion and th Ink Ing; knowledge condensed, arranged and systemat Ized w Ith reference to general truths and laws."
Over and over the Ir f Ind Ings have been conf Irmed, prov Ing the Qabalah conta Ins w Ith In It not only the elements of the sc Ience Itself but the method w Ith wh Ich to pursue It.
When plann Ing to v Is It a fore Ign country, the w Ise traveler w Ill f Irst fam Il Iar Ize h Imself w Ith Its language. In study Ing mus Ic, chem Istry or calculus, a spec If Ic term Inology Is essent Ial to the understand Ing of each subject. So a new set of symbols Is necessary when undertak Ing a study of the Un Iverse, whether w Ith In or w Ithout. The Qabalah prov Ides such a set In unexcelled fash Ion.
But the Qabalah Is more. It also lays the foundat Ion on wh Ich rests another archa Ic sc Ience- Mag Ic. Not to be confused w Ith the conjurer's sle Ight-of-hand, Mag Ic has been def Ined by Ale Ister Crowley as "the sc Ience and art of caus Ing change to occur In conform Ity w Ith w Ill." D Ion Fortune qual If Ies th Is n Icely w Ith an added clause, "changes In consc Iousness."
The Qabalah reveals the nature of certa In phys Ical and psycholog Ical phenomena. Once these are apprehended, understood and correlated, the student can use the pr Inc Iples of Mag Ic to exerc Ise control over l Ife's cond It Ions and c Ircumstances not otherw Ise poss Ible. In short. Mag Ic prov Ides the pract Ical appl Icat Ion of the theor Ies suppl Ied by the Qabalah.
It serves yet another v Ital funct Ion. In add It Ion to the advantages to be ga Ined from Its ph Ilosoph Ical appl Icat Ion, the anc Ients d Iscovered a very pract Ical use for the l Iteral Qabalah.
Each letter of the Qabal Ist Ic alphabet has a number, color, many symbols and a Tarot card attr Ibuted to It. The Qabalah not only a Ids In an understand Ing of the Tarot, but teaches the student how to class Ify and organ Ize all such Ideas, numbers and symbols. Just as a knowledge of Lat In w Ill g Ive Ins Ight Into the mean Ing of an unfam Il Iar Engl Ish word w Ith a Lat In root, so the knowledge of the Qabalah w Ith the var Ious attr I but Ions to each character In Its alphabet w Ill enable the student to understand and correlate Ideas and concepts wh Ich otherw Ise would have no apparent relat Ion.
A s Imple example Is the concept of the Tr In Ity In the Chr Ist Ian rel Ig Ion. The student Is frequently amazed to learn through a study of the Qabalah that Egypt Ian mythology followed a s Im Ilar concept w Ith Its tr In Ity of gods, Os Ir Is the father, Is Is the v Irg In-mother, and Horus the son. The Qabalah Ind Icates s Im Ilar correspondences In the pantheon of Roman and Greek de It Ies, prov Ing the father-mother (Holy Sp Ir It) - son pr Inc Iples of de Ity are pr Imord Ial archetypes of man's psyche, rather than be Ing, as Is frequently and erroneously supposed a development pecul Iar to the Chr Ist Ian era.
At th Is juncture let me call attent Ion to one set of attr I but Ions by R Ittangel Ius usually found as an append Ix attached to the Sepher Yetz Irah. It l Ists a ser Ies of " Intell Igences" for each one of the ten Seph Iros and the twenty-two Paths of the Tree of L Ife. It seems to me, after prolonged med Itat Ion, that the common attr I but Ions of these Intell Igences Is altogether arb Itrary and lack Ing In ser Ious mean Ing.
For example, Keser Is called "The Adm Irable or the H Idden Intell Igence; It Is the Pr Imal Glory, for no created be Ing can atta In to Its essence." Th Is seems perfectly all r Ight; the mean Ing at f Irst s Ight seems to f It the s Ign If Icance of Keser as the f Irst emanat Ion from A In Soph. But there are half a dozen other s Im Ilar attr I but Ions that would have served equally well. For Instance, It could have been called the "Occult Intell Igence" usually attr I buted to the seventh Path or Seph Irah, for surely Keser Is secret In a way to be sa Id of no other Seph Irah. And what about the "Absolute or Perfect Intell Igence." That would have been even more expl Ic It and appropr Iate, be Ing appl Icable to Keser far more than to any other of the Paths. S Im Ilarly, there Is one attr I buted to the 16th Path and called "The Eternal or Tr Iumphant Intell Igence," so-called because It Is the pleasure of the Glory, beyond wh Ich Is no Glory l Ike to It, and It Is called also the Parad Ise prepared for the R Ighteous." Any of these several would have done equally well. Much Is true of so many of the other attr I but Ions In th Is part Icular area-that Is the so-called Intell Igences of the Sepher Yetz Irah. I do not th Ink that the Ir use or current arb Itrary usage stands up to ser Ious exam Inat Ion or cr It Ic Ism.
A good many attr I but Ions In other symbol Ic areas, I feel are subject to the same cr It Ic Ism. The Egypt Ian Gods have been used w Ith a good deal of carelessness, and w Ithout suff Ic Ient explanat Ion of mot Ives In ass Ign Ing them as I d Id. In a recent ed It Ion of Crowley's masterp Iece L Iber 777 (wh Ich au fond Is less a reflect Ion of Crowley's m Ind as a recent cr It Ic cla Imed than a tabulat Ion of some of the mater Ial g Iven p Iecemeal In the Golden Dawn knowledge lectures), he g Ives for the f Irst t Ime br Ief explanat Ions of the mot Ives for h Is attr I but Ions. I too should have been far more expl Ic It In the explanat Ions I used In the case of some of the Gods whose names were used many t Imes, most Inadequately, where several paths were concerned. Wh Ile It Is true that the rel Ig Ious color Ing of the Egypt Ian Gods d Iffered from t Ime to t Ime dur Ing Egypt's turbulent h Istory, nonetheless a word or two about just that one s Ingle po Int could have served a useful purpose.
Some of the passages In the book force me today to emphas Ize that so far as the Qabalah Is concerned, It could and should be employed w Ithout b Ind Ing to It the part Isan qual It Ies of any one part Icular rel Ig Ious fa Ith. Th Is goes as much for Juda Ism as It does for Chr Ist Ian Ity. Ne Ither has much Intr Ins Ic usefulness where th Is sc Ient If Ic scheme Is concerned. If some students feel hurt by th Is statement, that cannot be helped. The day of most contemporary fa Iths Is over; they have been more of a curse than a boon to mank Ind. Noth Ing that I say here, however, should reflect on the peoples concerned, those who accept these rel Ig Ions. They are merely unfortunate. The rel Ig Ion Itself Is worn out and Indeed Is dy Ing.
The Qabalah has noth Ing to do w Ith any of them. Attempts on the part of cult Ish-part Isans to Impart h Igher myst Ical mean Ings, through the Qabalah, etc., to the Ir now ster Ile fa Iths Is fut Ile, and w Ill be seen as such by the younger generat Ion. They, the flower and love ch Ildren, w Ill have none of th Is nonsense.
I felt th Is a long t Ime ago, as I st Ill do, but even more so. The only way to expla In the part Isan Jew Ish att Itude demonstrated In some small sect Ions of the book can read Ily be expla Ined. I had been read Ing some wr It Ings of Arthur Edward Wa Ite, and some of h Is pompos Ity and turg Id Ity stuck to my mantle. I d Isl Iked h Is patron Is Ing Chr Ist Ian att Itude, and so swung all the way over to the other s Ide of the pendulum. Actually, ne Ither fa Ith Is part Icularly Important In th Is day and age. I must be careful never to read Wa Ite aga In before embark Ing upon l Iterary work of my own.
Much knowledge obta Ined by the anc Ients through the use of the Qabalah has been supported by d Iscover Ies of modern sc Ient Ists- anthropolog Ists, astronomers, psych Iatr Ists, et al. Learned Qabal Ists for hundreds of years have been aware of what the psych Iatr Ist has only d Iscovered In the last few decades-that man's concept of h Imself, h Is de It Ies and the Un Iverse Is a constantly evolv Ing process, chang Ing as man h Imself evolves on a h Igher sp Iral. But the roots of h Is concepts are bur Ied In a race-consc Iousness that antedated Neanderthal man by uncounted aeons of t Ime.
What Jung calls archetypal Images constantly r Ise to the surface of man's awareness from the vast unconsc Ious that Is the common her Itage of all mank Ind.
The tragedy of c Iv Il Ized man Is that he Is cut off from awareness of h Is own Inst Incts. The Qabalah can help h Im ach Ieve the necessary understand Ing to effect a reun Ion w Ith them, so that rather than be Ing dr Iven by forces he does not understand, he can harness for h Is consc Ious use the same power that gu Ides the hom Ing p Igeon, teaches the beaver to bu Ild a dam and keeps the planets revolv Ing In the Ir appo Inted orb Its about the sun.
I began the study of the Qabalah at an early age. Two books I read then have played unconsc Iously a prom Inent part In the wr It Ing of my own book. One of these was "Q.B.L. or the Br Ide's Recept Ion" by Frater Achad (Charles Stansfeld Jones), wh Ich I must have f Irst read around 1926. The other was "An Introduct Ion to the Tarot" by Paul Foster Case, publ Ished In the early 1920's. It Is now out of pr Int, superseded by later vers Ions of the same top Ic. But as I now glance through th Is slender book, I perce Ive how profoundly even the format of h Is book had Influenced me, though In these two Instances there was not a trace of plag Iar Ism. It had not consc Iously occurred to me unt Il recently that I owed so much to them. S Ince Paul Case passed away about a decade or so ago, th Is g Ives me the opportun Ity to thank h Im, overtly, wherever he may now be.
By the m Iddle of 1926 I had become aware of the work of Ale Ister Crowley, for whom I have a tremendous respect. I stud Ied as many of h Is wr It Ings as I could ga In access to, mak Ing cop Ious notes, and later acted for several years as h Is secretary, hav Ing jo Ined h Im In Par Is on October 12, 1928, a memorable day In my l Ife.
All sorts of books have been wr Itten on the Qabalah, some poor, some few others extremely good. But I came to feel the need for what m Ight be called a sort of Berl Itz handbook, a conc Ise but comprehens Ive Introduct Ion, studded w Ith d Iagrams and tables of eas Ily understood def In It Ions and correspondences to s Impl Ify the student's grasp of so compl Icated and abstruse a subject.
Dur Ing a short ret Irement In North Devon In 1931, I began to amalgamate my notes. It was out of these that A Garden of Pomegranates gradually emerged. I unashamedly adm It that my book conta Ins many d Irect plag Iar Isms from Crowley, Wa Ite, El Iphas Lev I, and D. H. Lawrence. I had Incorporated numerous fragments from the Ir works Into my notebooks w Ithout c It Ing Ind Iv Idual references to the var Ious sources from wh Ich I condensed my notes.
Pr Ior to the clos Ing down of the Mandrake Press In London about 1930-31, I was employed as company secretary for a wh Ile. Along w Ith several Crowley books, the Mandrake Press publ Ished a lovely l Ittle monogram by D. H. Lawrence ent Itled "Apropos of Lady Chatterley's Lover." My own copy accompan Ied me on my travels for long years. Only recently d Id I d Iscover that It had been lost. I hope that any one of my former pat Ients who had borrowed It w Ill see f It to return It to me forthw Ith.
The last chapter of A Garden deals w Ith the Way of Return. It used almost ent Irely Crowley's concept of the Path as descr Ibed In h Is superb essay "One Star In S Ight." In add It Ion to th Is, I borrowed extens Ively from Lawrence's Apropos. Somehow, they all f Itted together very n Icely. In t Ime, all these var Iegated notes were Incorporated Into the text w Ithout acknowledgment, an overs Ight wh Ich I now feel sure would be forg Iven, s Ince I was only twenty-four at the t Ime.
Some modern Nature-worsh Ippers and members of the newly-washed and redeemed w Itch-cult have compl Imented me on th Is clos Ing chapter wh Ich I ent Itled 'The Ladder." I am pleased about th Is. For a very long t Ime I was not at all fam Il Iar w Ith the top Ic of w Itchcraft. I had avo Ided It ent Irely, not be Ing attracted to Its l Iterature In any way. In fact, I only became sl Ightly conversant w Ith Its theme and l Iterature just a few years ago, after read Ing "The Anatomy of Eve" wr Itten by Dr. Leopold Ste In, a Jung Ian analyst. In the m Iddle of h Is study of four cases, he Included a most Informat Ive chapter on the subject. Th Is served to st Imulate me to w Ider read Ing In that area.
In 1932, at the suggest Ion of Thomas Burke, the novel Ist, I subm Itted my manuscr Ipt to one of h Is publ Ishers, Messrs. Constable In London. They were unable to use It, but made some encourag Ing comments and adv Ised me to subm It It to R Iders. To my del Ight and surpr Ise, R Iders publ Ished It, and throughout the years the react Ion It has had Ind Icated other students found It also fulf Illed the Ir need for a condensed and s Impl If Ied survey of such a vast subject as the Qabalah.
The Importance of the book to me was and Is f Ive-fold. 1) It prov Ided a yardst Ick by wh Ich to measure my personal progress In the understand Ing of the Qabalah. 2) Therefore It can have an equ Ivalent value to the modern student. 3) It serves as a theoret Ical Introduct Ion to the Qabal Ist Ic foundat Ion of the mag Ical work of the Hermet Ic Order of the Golden Dawn. 4) It throws cons Iderable l Ight on the occas Ionally obscure wr It Ings of Ale Ister Crowley. 5) It Is ded Icated to Crowley, who was the Ankh-af-na-Khonsu ment Ioned In The Book of the Law -a ded Icat Ion wh Ich served both as a token of personal loyalty and devot Ion to Crowley, but was also a gesture of my sp Ir Itual Independence from h Im.
In h Is profound Invest Igat Ion Into the or Ig Ins and bas Ic nature of man, Robert Ardrey In Afr Ican Genes Is recently made a shock Ing statement. Although man has begun the conquest of outer space, the Ignorance of h Is own nature, says Ardrey, "has become Inst Itut Ional Ized, un Iversal Ized and sanct If Ied." He further states that were a brotherhood of man to be formed today, " Its only poss Ible common bond would be Ignorance of what man Is."
Such a cond It Ion Is both deplorable and appall Ing when the means are read Ily ava Ilable for man to acqu Ire a thorough understand Ing of h Imself-and In so do Ing, an understand Ing of h Is ne Ighbor and the world In wh Ich he l Ives as well as the greater Un Iverse of wh Ich each Is a part.
May everyone who reads th Is new ed It Ion of A Garden of Pomegranates be encouraged and Insp Ired to l Ight h Is own candle of Inner v Is Ion and beg In h Is journey Into the boundless space that l Ies w Ith In h Imself. Then, through real Izat Ion of h Is true Ident Ity, each student can become a lamp unto h Is own path. And more. Awareness of the Truth of h Is be Ing w Ill r Ip asunder the ve Il of unknow Ing that has heretofore enshrouded the star he already Is, perm Itt Ing the br Ill Iance of h Is l Ight to Illum Ine the darkness of that part of the Un Iverse In wh Ich he ab Ides.
0.00a - Participants in the Evening Talks, #Evening Talks With Sri Aurobindo, #unset, #Zen
object:0.00a - Part Ic Ipants In the Even Ing Talks
author class:A B Puran I
--
Part Ic Ipants In the Even Ing Talks
Part Ic Ipants In the Even Ing Talks
F IRST PER IOD OF TALKS
--
Bar Indra Kumar Ghose S. Dura Iswam I Iyer
Nol In I Kanta Gupta Rajan I Pal It
--
To the Reader I
Use ctrl + Y to copy selected text In markdown format.
000 - Humans in Universe, #Synergetics - Explorations in the Geometry of Thinking, #R Buckminster Fuller, #Science
object:000 - Humans In Un Iverse
author class:R Buckm Inster Fuller
--
000.100 Introduct Ion to 10 Color Posters
000.101 The comb Ined land areas of Afr Ica, Europe, and As Ia embrace w Ith In
--
stretch Ing away to Inf In Ity In all lateral d Irect Ions. Yet the total land area of th Is flat
world const Itutes less than 17 percent of the subsequently-d Iscovered-to-be-
--
1500 lay well w Ith In that "known" flat world: It was and as yet rema Ins the
spontaneous theater of popular h Istor Ical concept Ion Ing.
--
4,000 years ago In Babylon and Mesopotam Ia, It Is already a very soph Ist Icated
sc Ience. Mathemat Ics may well have had Its beg Inn Ings much earl Ier In Ind Ia or
Indoch Ina, as It Is an art and sc Ience that has traveled cons Istently westward. Over
3,000 years ago the Greeks made further magn If Icent contr Ibut Ions to geometry,
--
algebra was republ Ished In Lat In In Carthage In 1200, It requ Ired a further 200 years
for h Is eluc Idat Ion of the funct Ion of zero-the c Ipher-to be d Iffused Into the
un Ivers Ity systems of Europe .
000.104 The c Ipher made poss Ible the pos It Ion Ing of numbers, wh Ich In turn
fac Il Itated d Iv Is Ion and mult Ipl Icat Ion. Imag Ine try Ing to mult Iply or d Iv Ide w Ith
Roman numerals . . . Imposs Ible! The Rena Issance began w Ith the new calculat Ing
fac Il Ity Introduced by the c Ipher. The c Ipher was not only an essent Ial tool In the
work of Copern Icus, Kepler, Gal Ileo, and Newton, but It also brought about
Columbus' rev Ised concepts of terrestr Ial nav Igat Ion. It went on to Instrument the
mechan Ical and leverage calculat Ion capab Il It Ies of Leonardo; and In the art of sh Ipdes Ign the c Ipher gave b Irth to structural and mechan Ical eng Ineer Ing, wh Ich made
poss Ible the Intertens Ion Ing and compress Ion Ing calculat Ions of the r Ibbed structural
strength of a sa Il Ing vessel as well as that of Its vast w Ind-energy-dr Iven complex of
compress Ion and tens Ion spars, sa Ils, and r Igg Ing-replac Ing the tr Ial-and-error
guesswork that had prev Iously been used In naval and land arch Itecture. Th Is
capab Il Ity In mathemat Ical mult Ipl Icat Ion and d Iv Is Ion opened up a whole new f Ield
of safely ant Ic Ipated structural eng Ineer Ing and nav Igat Ion.
--
but It became known to, and then was employed by, only the world's r Ichest
schemers, monarchs, nat Ions, and p Irate enterpr Isers. No others could afford to buy
--
and the Pac If Ic by water, and to c Ircumnav Igate the globe. Thus It became publ Ic
knowledge that the old open-edged, Inf In Ite world system had closed back on Itself
In all c Ircumferent Ial d Irect Ions to become a f In Ite system: a closed sphere. The
--
000.106 In 1600 the East Ind Ia Company was founded as a pr Ivate enterpr Ise by
Queen El Izabeth and a small group of her Int Imates. The l Im Ited legal l Iab Il Ity of
the Ir enterpr Ise was granted by royal decree, and Its projects were thereafter
m Il Itar Ily susta Ined and protected by Great Br Ita In's Royal Navy and colon Ial
troops. In England the East Ind Ia Company College was establ Ished to tra In the
off Icers of the enterpr Ise for the Ir world-w Ide deployment; that college and Its
handsome campus are st Ill In operat Ion as of 1979. The Br It Ish Emp Ire became the
f Irst In h Istory of wh Ich It could be sa Id that the Sun never set.
000.107 As professor of econom Ics at the East Ind Ia Company College In 1810
Thomas Malthus became the f Irst econom Ic author Ity ever to rece Ive In toto the
v Ital stat Ist Ics of a world-embrac Ing spher Ical emp Ire. At the very end of the 18th
century Malthus publ Ished h Is documented thes Is that human Ity was mult Iply Ing Its
numbers at a geometr Ic (exponent Ial) rate of ga In wh Ile Increas Ing l Ife-support
product Ion at only an ar Ithmet Ic (l Inear) rate of ga In. And s Ince the Earth Is a f In Ite,
closed-system sphere, It apparently became sc Ient If Ically man Ifest that there Is a
fundamental Inadequacy of l Ife support on our planet. Unt Il then all op In Ions on
such matters had been pure guesses.000.108 A th Ird of a century after Malthus, Darw In attr Ibuted b Iolog Ical evolut Ion
to surv Ival of only the f Ittest spec Ies (and Ind Iv Iduals w Ith In spec Ies). Though he
den Ied there was any econom Ic s Ign If Icance In h Is theory of evolut Ion, the
econom Ists Ins Isted that super Ior phys Ical f Itness obv Iously governed econom Ic
surv Ival as well. Karl Marx accepted the sc Ient If Ic v Iewpo Ints of both Malthus and
Darw In when he declared In effect that the work Ing class Is the f Ittest to .surv Ive:
they know how to use the tools and to cult Ivate the f Ields-the wealthy are paras Ites.
Th Is Inaugurated the supranat Ional concept of two world-w Ide pol It Ical classes and
two compet Ing theor Ies of pol It Ical organ Izat Ion.
--
pol It Ical Ideolog Ies have s Ince adopted a pr Ime ph Ilosophy that says: "You may not
l Ike our pol It Ical system, but we are conv Inced that we have the fa Irest, most
log Ical, and Ingen Ious method of cop Ing w Ith the Inherent Inadequacy of terrestr Ial
l Ife support, but s Ince there are others who d Isagree d Iametr Ically about the best
method of cop Ing, It can be determ Ined only by force of arms wh Ich system Is the
f Ittest to surv Ive." Thus surv Ival of the phys Ically f Ittest became the bas Is for
--
mater Ials, bra Ins, Instruments, and tools of product Ion.
000.110 Mutually assumed surv Ival-only-of-the-f Ittest Is the reason why the
Un Ited States and the USSR have for the past 30 years appropr Iated 200 b Ill Ion
--
great pol It Ical and Industr Ial power structures have all become supranat Ional
comprehens Iv Ists, wh Ile the people have been passport-cha Ined to the Ir respect Ive
150 nat Ional preserves-the people have become educat Ionally d Iv Ided Into
"spec Ial Ists" for explo Itat Ion by the supranat Ional powers who d Iv Ide to conquer
--
could see, smell, touch, and hear. Then at the entry Into the 20th century the
electron was d Iscovered. A century after the t Ime of Malthus much of sc Ience
became Inv Is Ible w Ith the Introduct Ion of an era of electron Ics, electromagnet Ics,
and atom Ics. These Inv Is Ible m Icro- and macro-explor Ing cosm Ic Instruments
prov Ided for rearrangements of atom Ic Interpos It Ion Ing whose metall Ic alloy Ing and
chem Ical structur Ing produces ever more powerful and Inc Is Ive performances perpound of phys Ical matter employed.
000.112 Structures are complexes of v Is Ible or Inv Is Ible phys Ical events
Interact Ing to produce stable patterns. A structural system d Iv Ides Un Iverse Into all
Un Iverse outs Ide the structural system (macrocosm) and all Un Iverse Ins Ide the
structural system (m Icrocosm). Newton's d Iscovery of mass Interattract Ion showed
that the Interattract Ion force of atoms, planets, stars, or galax Ies Increases
exponent Ially as the Interd Istances decrease ar Ithmet Ically, and v Ice versa: halve the
Interd Istance and make fourfold the Interattract Ive Integr Ity of the remotely bod Ied
structural system. That Is the law of grav Ity. Symmetr Ical, noncontact Ing,
concentr Ic Interpos It Ion Ing of already-symmetr Ical arrays of atoms produces
exponent Ially Increased Interatom Ic coherence of "mater Ials."
000.113 Grav Ity Is the Inwardly coher Ing force act Ing Integrat Ively on all systems.
Rad Iat Ion Is the outwardly d Is Integrat Ing force act Ing d Iv Is Ively upon all systems.
000.114 All structural systems are compr Ised of tens Ion and compress Ion
--
pounds per square Inch ult Imate. But masonry has low tens Ional coherence; It can
w Ithstand only 50 pounds per square Inch tens Ing. Stone-Age-der Ived masonry Is a
thousand t Imes more effect Ive In Its res Istance to compress Ion than to tens Ion.
000.115 Throughout the three m Ill Ion known years of the Stone Age humans
--
coher Ing res Istance. Grav Ity pushed human Ity's stone structures Inward toward the
Earth's center. Humans had to bu Ild the Ir structures on bedrock "shoes" to prevent
them from s Ink Ing vert Ically Into Earth's center. Stone bu Ild Ings could not float on
water. But nature had Invented low-we Ight wood of h Igh self-coher Ing tens Ile
strength (averag Ing approx Imately 10,000 p.s. I.) and of relat Ively low compress Ion-
--
comb Ined w Ith the human d Iscovery of the Intertruss Ing pr Inc Iples of structur Ing
and the low overall d Isplacement we Ights Involved, made poss Ible for humans to
des Ign and fabr Icate a Ir-enclos Ing wooden vessels whose structure and space
--
could carry great cargoes.000.116 In the 1850s humans arr Ived at the mass product Ion of steel, an alloy of
Iron, carbon, and manganese hav Ing a tens Ile strength of 50,000 p.s. I. as well as a
--
res Istance capab Il Ity as masonry, but It also has a thousand t Imes greater tens Ile
capab Il Ity than masonry and f Ive t Imes the tens Ile or compress Ive strength of wood.
--
a Ir-conta In Ing vessels than d Id wood, even though steel by Itself does not float.
000.117 The technology of metallurgy began develop Ing metal alloys of ever
--
These new mater Ials made It poss Ible to des Ign and bu Ild eng Ine-powered all-metal
a Irplanes (structural vessels), wh Ich could pull themselves angularly above the
--
of mater Ial have gone on to carry ever greater useful loads In vert Ical takeoff
veh Icles at ever more accelerated rates of ascent.
--
overwhelm Ing structural strength has become ent Irely Inv Is Ible. Fully 99 percent of
human Ity has as yet no Idea that th Is Increase In tens Ile capab Il Ity has come about or
how It came about or why It works. Wh Ile humans cannot see the ever-lessen Ing
Interatom Ic prox Im Ity of atoms and electrons of electromagnet Ic events, they can
--
developments and prof Itable commerc Ial uses. But only vast money Investments or
vast governments can afford to explo It the Increased techn Ical advantages.
000.119 Before the a Irplane humans sa Id, "You cannot l Ift yourself by your
--
It Is the most h Ighly class If Ied of m Il Itary and pr Ivate enterpr Ise secrets. Industry
now converts the ever- Increas Ing work capac Ity per pound of mater Ials Invested
pr Imar Ily to y Ield monetary prof Its for the government-subs Id Ized pr Ivate-enterpr Ise
--
000.120 Now In the 1970s we can state an Ind Isputable propos It Ion of abundance
of wh Ich the world power structures do not yet have dawn Ing awareness. We can
state that as a consequence of the myr Iad of more-w Ith-less, Inv Is Ible, technolog Ical
advances of the 20th century, and employ Ing only well-proven technolog Ies and
already m Ined and ever more cop Iously rec Irculat Ing mater Ials, It Is now techn Ically
feas Ible to retool and red Irect world Industry In such a manner that w Ith In 10 years
we can have all of human Ity enjoy Ing a susta Inably h Igher standard of l Iv Ing-w Ith
vastly Increased degrees of freedom than has ever been enjoyed by anyone In all
h Istory.
--
fuels and atom Ic energy, s Ince the retooled world Industry and Ind Iv Idual energy
needs w Ill have become completely suppl Ied by our comb Ined harvests of
--
energy Income In It Ially produced by Sun and grav Ity. Industry, retooled from
weapons product Ion to l Iv Ingry product Ion, w Ill rehouse the deployed phases of
--
dwell Ing mach Ines. When humans are convergent, they w Ill dwell In domed-over
moon-crater c It Ies that w Ill be energy-harvest Ing and -export Ing centers rather than
--
000.122 All of the forego Ing makes It poss Ible to say that s Ince we now know that
there Is a susta Inable abundance of l Ife support and accommodat Ion for all, It
follows that all pol It Ics and warr Ing are obsolete and Inval Id. We no longer need to
rat Ional Ize self Ishness. No one need ever aga In "earn a l Iv Ing." Further l Iv Ing for all
human Ity Is all cosm Ically prepa Id.
000.123 Why don't we exerc Ise our epochal opt Ion? Governments are f Inanced
--
the Ir d Irectly rece Ived Ind Iv Idual cosm Ic Incomes. So too, pr Ivate enterpr Ise should
no more meter the energy than It meters the a Ir. But all of Earth Ians' present power
structures-pol It Ical, rel Ig Ious, or cap Ital Ist-would f Ind the Ir Interests d Isastrouslythreatened by total human success. They are founded upon assumpt Ion of scarc Ity;
they are organ Ized for and susta Ined by the problems Imposed by the assumpt Ion of
fundamental Inadequac Ies of l Ife support.
000.124 Why does not the publ Ic Itself demand real Izat Ion of Its opt Ion for a
revolut Ion by des Ign sc Ience? Less than one percent of human Ity now knows that
--
that sc Ience has ever found out Is that the Un Iverse cons Ists of the most rel Iable
technology. They th Ink of technology as someth Ing new; they regard It as
threaten Ing both In terms of modern weaponry and as job-el Im Inat Ing compet It Ion
for the Ir l Ife-susta In Ing opportun It Ies to "earn a l Iv Ing." Ergo, human Ity th Inks It Is
aga Inst technology and th Inks Itself averse to exerc Is Ing Its opt Ion.
000.125 The fact that 99 percent of human Ity does not understand nature Is the
pr Ime reason for human Ity's fa Ilure to exerc Ise Its opt Ion to atta In un Iversally
susta Inable phys Ical success on th Is planet. The pr Ime barr Ier to human Ity's
d Iscovery and comprehens Ion of nature Is the obscur Ity of the mathemat Ical
language of sc Ience. Fortunately, however, nature Is not us Ing the str Ictly
Imag Inary, awkward, and unreal Ist Ic coord Inate system adopted by and taught by
--
000.126 Nature's cont Inuous self-regenerat Ion Is 100 percent eff Ic Ient, ne Ither
ga In Ing nor los Ing any energy. Nature Is not employ Ing the three d Imens Ional,
omn I Interperpend Icular, parallel frame of the XYZ ax Ial coord Inates of academ Ic
sc Ience, nor Is nature employ Ing sc Ience's subsequently adopted
gram/cent Imeter/second we Ight/area/t Ime exponents. Nature does not operate In
parallel. She operates In rad Iat Ional d Ivergence and grav Itat Ional convergence. She
grows outwardly by omn I Intertr Iangulated structur Ing from nucle I.
000.127 Nature Is Inherently e Ight-d Imens Ional, and the f Irst four of these
d Imens Ions are the four planes of symmetry of the m In Imum structure of Un Iverse-
the omn Itr Iangulated, equ I-vector-edge tetrahedron. In respect to the conceptual pre-
t Ime-s Ize tetrahedron's volume taken as un Ity 1, w Ith Its s Ix un It-vector-edge
structure, the always conceptual- Independent-of-s Ize fam Ily of pr Im It Ive, pre-t Ime-
--
rhomb Ic dodecahedron 6. When the s Ize Informat Ion Is Introduced, It occurs only asfrequency of modular subd Iv Is Ion of each un It vector structur Ing of the pr Im It Ive
fam Ily's respect Ive 1-, 2-, 3-, 4-, 5-, and 6-tetravolumes. Frequency to the th Ird
--
values. In phys Ically real Ized t Ime-s Ize each has therefore 4 + 3 = 7 d Imens Ions, but
s Ince each system Is Inherently Independent In Un Iverse and therefore has
sp Innab Il Ity, one more d Imens Ional factor Is requ Ired, mak Ing a total of e Ight
d Imens Ions In all for exper Ient Ially ev Idenc Ing phys Ical real Ity.
000.1271 To def Ine the everywhere-and-everywhen-transform Ing cosm Ic
env Ironment of each and every system requ Ires several more Intercovary Ing system
d Imens Ions-planetary, solar, galact Ic, Intergalact Ic. Because of the s Ix pos It Ive and
s Ix negat Ive degrees of freedom govern Ing systems-w Ith In-systems
Intertransform Ing, we have 8 + 6 = 14 d Imens Ional systems In cosm Ic relat Ionsh Ip
governance.
000.128 Nature Is us Ing th Is completely conceptual e Ight-d Imens Ional coord Inate
system that can be comprehended by anyone. Fortunately telev Is Ion, Is
spontaneously attract Ive and can be used to teach all the world's people nature's
coord Inat Ing system-and can do so In t Ime to make It poss Ible for all human Ity to
favorably comprehend and to exerc Ise Its opt Ion to atta In un Iversal phys Ical
success, thereby el Im Inat Ing forevermore all world pol It Ics and compet It Ion for the
r Ight to l Ive. The hydrogen atom does not have to comprom Ise Its funct Ion potent Ial
by f Irst "earn Ing a l Iv Ing" before It can funct Ion d Irectly as a hydrogen atom.
000.129 Nature's coord Inate system Is called Synerget Ics-synergy means behav Ior
of whole systems unpred Icted by any part of the system as cons Idered only
separately. The eternally regenerat Ive Un Iverse Is synerget Ic. Humans have been
Included In th Is cosm Ic des Ign as local Un Iverse Informat Ion-gatherers and local
problem-solvers In support of the Integr Ity of the eternal, 100-percent-eff Ic Ient, self-
regenerat Ive system of Un Iverse. In support of the Ir cosm Ic funct Ion Ing humans
were g Iven the Ir m Inds w Ith wh Ich to d Iscover and employ the general Ized laws
--
000.130 At present 99 percent of human Ity Is m Is Informed In bel Iev Ing In the
Malthus Ian concept of the fundamental Inadequacy of l Ife support, and so they have
m Isused the Ir m Inds to develop only personal and part Isan advantages, Intellectual
cunn Ing, and self Ishness. Intellectual cunn Ing has concentrated on how to d Ivorcemoney from true l Ife-support wealth; second, cunn Ing has learned how to make
money w Ith money by mak Ing It scarce. As of the 1970s muscle, guns, and
Intellectual cunn Ing are rul Ing world affa Irs and keep Ing them compet It Ive by
cont Inu Ing the false prem Ise of un Iversal Inadequacy of l Ife support. If m Ind comes
Into supreme power w Ith In a decade, human Ity w Ill exerc Ise Its opt Ion of a des Ign
revolut Ion and w Ill enter a new and-last Ing epoch of phys Ical success for all. If not,
It w Ill be curta Ins for all human Ity w Ith In th Is century.
000.131 In complement w Ith Synerget Ics 1 and 2 the posters at color plates 1-10
may clar Ify for everyone the few sc Ient If Ic concept Ions and mathemat Ical tools
necessary for un Iversal comprehens Ion and Ind Iv Idual use of nature's synerget Ic
geometr Ical Intertransform Ings.
Footnote:
Rudyard K Ipl Ing labored under the only-you-or-me ph Ilosophy, but he was Insp Ired
by thoughts that It m Ight some day be otherw Ise:
And no one w Ill work for money and no one w Ill
--
But each for the joy of work Ing, and each In h Is
separate star,
Shall draw the Th Ing as he sees It for the God of
Th Ings as They are!"
- from When Earth's Last P Icture Is Pa Inted
0.00 - INTRODUCTION, #The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, #Sri Ramakrishna, #Hinduism
object:0.00 - INTRODUCT ION
author class:Sr I Ramakr Ishna
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BEG INN ING OF H IS ILLNESS
SYAMPUKUR
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SR I RAMAKR ISHNA, the God-man of modern Ind Ia, was born at Kamarpukur. Th Is v Illage In the Hooghly D Istr Ict preserved dur Ing the last century the Idyll Ic s Impl Ic Ity of the rural areas of Bengal. S Ituated far from the ra Ilway, It was untouched by the glamour of the c Ity. It conta Ined r Ice-f Ields, tall palms, royal banyans, a few lakes, and two cremat Ion grounds. South of the v Illage a stream took Its le Isurely course. A mango orchard ded Icated by a ne Ighbour Ing zem Indar to the publ Ic use was frequented by the boys for the Ir noonday sports. A h Ighway passed through the v Illage to the great temple of Jagannath at Pur I, and the v Illagers, most of whom were farmers and craftsmen, enterta Ined many pass Ing holy men and p Ilgr Ims. The dull round of the rural l Ife was broken by l Ively fest Ivals, the observance of sacred days, rel Ig Ious s Ing Ing, and other Innocent pleasures.
About h Is parents Sr I Ramakr Ishna once sa Id: "My mother was the person If Icat Ion of rect Itude and gentleness. She d Id not know much about the ways of the world; Innocent of the art of concealment, she would say what was In her m Ind. People loved her for her open-heartedness. My father, an orthodox brahm In, never accepted g Ifts from the sudras. He spent much of h Is t Ime In worsh Ip and med Itat Ion, and In repeat Ing God's name and chant Ing H Is glor Ies. Whenever In h Is da Ily prayers he Invoked the Goddess Gayatr I, h Is chest flushed and tears rolled down h Is cheeks. He spent h Is le Isure hours mak Ing garlands for the Fam Ily De Ity, Raghuv Ir."
Khud Iram Chattopadhyaya and Chandra Dev I, the parents of Sr I Ramakr Ishna, were marr Ied In 1799. At that t Ime Khud Iram was l Iv Ing In h Is ancestral v Illage of Dereypore, not far from Kamarpukur. The Ir f Irst son, Ramkumar, was born In 1805, and the Ir f Irst daughter, Katyayan I, In 1810. In 1814 Khud Iram was ordered by h Is landlord to bear false w Itness In court aga Inst a ne Ighbour. When he refused to do so, the landlord brought a false case aga Inst h Im and depr Ived h Im of h Is ancestral property. Thus d Ispossessed, he arr Ived, at the Inv Itat Ion of another landlord, In the qu Iet v Illage of Kamarpukur, where he was g Iven a dwell Ing and about an acre of fert Ile land. The crops from th Is l Ittle property were enough to meet h Is fam Ily's s Imple needs. Here he l Ived In s Impl Ic Ity, d Ign Ity, and contentment.
Ten years after h Is com Ing to Kamarpukur, Khud Iram made a p Ilgr Image on foot to Rameswar, at the southern extrem Ity of Ind Ia. Two years later was born h Is second son, whom he named Rameswar. Aga In In 1835, at the age of s Ixty, he made a p Ilgr Image, th Is t Ime to Gaya. Here, from anc Ient t Imes, H Indus have come from the four corners of Ind Ia to d Ischarge the Ir dut Ies to the Ir departed ancestors by offer Ing them food and dr Ink at the sacred footpr Int of the Lord V Ishnu. At th Is holy place Khud Iram had a dream In wh Ich the Lord V Ishnu prom Ised to he born as h Is son. And Chandra Dev I, too, In front of the S Iva temple at Kamarpukur, had a v Is Ion Ind Icat Ing the b Irth of a d Iv Ine ch Ild. Upon h Is return the husband found that she had conce Ived.
It was on February 18, 1836, that the ch Ild, to be known afterwards as Ramakr Ishna, was born. In memory of the dream at Gaya he was g Iven the name of Gadadhar, the "Bearer of the Mace", an ep Ithet of V Ishnu. Three years later a l Ittle s Ister was born.
--- Id="BOYHOOD">BOYHOOD
Gadadhar grew up Into a healthy and restless boy, full of fun and sweet m Isch Ief. He was Intell Igent and precoc Ious and endowed w Ith a prod Ig Ious memory. On h Is father's lap he learnt by heart the names of h Is ancestors and the hymns to the gods and goddesses, and at the v Illage school he was taught to read and wr Ite. But h Is greatest del Ight was to l Isten to rec Itat Ions of stor Ies from H Indu mythology and the ep Ics. These he would afterwards recount from memory, to the great joy of the v Illagers. Pa Int Ing he enjoyed; the art of mould Ing Images of the gods and goddesses he learnt from the potters. But ar Ithmet Ic was h Is great avers Ion.
At the age of s Ix or seven Gadadhar had h Is f Irst exper Ience of sp Ir Itual ecstasy. One day In June or July, when he was walk Ing along a narrow path between paddy-f Ields, eat Ing the puffed r Ice that he carr Ied In a basket, he looked up at the sky and saw a beaut Iful, dark thunder-cloud. As It spread, rap Idly envelop Ing the whole sky, a fl Ight of snow-wh Ite cranes passed In front of It. The beauty of the contrast overwhelmed the boy. He fell to the ground, unconsc Ious, and the puffed r Ice went In all d Irect Ions. Some v Illagers found h Im and carr Ied h Im home In the Ir arms. Gadadhar sa Id later that In that state he had exper Ienced an Indescr Ibable joy.
Gadadhar was seven years old when h Is father d Ied. Th Is Inc Ident profoundly affected h Im. For the f Irst t Ime the boy real Ized that l Ife on earth was Impermanent. Unobserved by others, he began to sl Ip Into the mango orchard or Into one of the cremat Ion grounds, and he spent hours absorbed In h Is own thoughts. He also became more helpful to h Is mother In the d Ischarge of her household dut Ies. He gave more attent Ion to read Ing and hear Ing the rel Ig Ious stor Ies recorded In the Puranas. And he became Interested In the wander Ing monks and p Ious p Ilgr Ims who would stop at Kamarpukur on the Ir way to Pur I. These holy men, the custod Ians of Ind Ia's sp Ir Itual her Itage and the l Iv Ing w Itnesses of the Ideal of renunc Iat Ion of the world and all-absorb Ing love of God, enterta Ined the l Ittle boy w Ith stor Ies from the H Indu ep Ics, stor Ies of sa Ints and prophets, and also stor Ies of the Ir own adventures. He, on h Is part, fetched the Ir water and fuel and
served them In var Ious ways. Meanwh Ile, he was observ Ing the Ir med Itat Ion and worsh Ip.
At the age of n Ine Gadadhar was Invested w Ith the sacred thread. Th Is ceremony conferred upon h Im the pr Iv Ileges of h Is brahm In l Ineage, Includ Ing the worsh Ip of the Fam Ily De Ity, Raghuv Ir, and Imposed upon h Im the many str Ict d Isc Ipl Ines of a brahm In's l Ife. Dur Ing the ceremony of Invest Iture he shocked h Is relat Ives by accept Ing a meal cooked by h Is nurse, a sudra woman. H Is father would never have dreamt of do Ing such a th Ing But In a playful mood Gadadhar had once prom Ised th Is woman that he would eat her food, and now he fulf Illed h Is pl Ighted word. The woman had p Iety and rel Ig Ious s Incer Ity, and these were more Important to the boy than the convent Ions of soc Iety.
Gadadhar was now perm Itted to worsh Ip Raghuv Ir. Thus began h Is f Irst tra In Ing In med Itat Ion. He so gave h Is heart and soul to the worsh Ip that the stone Image very soon appeared to h Im as the l Iv Ing Lord of the Un Iverse. H Is tendency to lose h Imself In contemplat Ion was f Irst not Iced at th Is t Ime. Beh Ind h Is boy Ish l Ight-heartedness was seen a deepen Ing of h Is sp Ir Itual nature.
About th Is t Ime, on the S Ivaratr I n Ight, consecrated to the worsh Ip of S Iva, a dramat Ic performance was arranged. The pr Inc Ipal actor, who was to play the part of S Iva, suddenly fell Ill, and Gadadhar was persuaded to act In h Is place. Wh Ile fr Iends were dress Ing h Im for the role of S Iva — smear Ing h Is body w Ith ashes, matt Ing h Is locks, plac Ing a tr Ident In h Is hand and a str Ing of rudraksha beads around h Is neck — the boy appeared to become absent-m Inded. He approached the stage w Ith slow and measured step, supported by h Is fr Iends. He looked the l Iv Ing Image of S Iva. The aud Ience loudly applauded what It took to be h Is sk Ill as an actor, but It was soon d Iscovered that he was really lost In med Itat Ion. H Is countenance was rad Iant and tears flowed from h Is eyes. He was lost to the outer world. The effect of th Is scene on the aud Ience was tremendous. The people felt blessed as by a v Is Ion of S Iva H Imself. The performance had to be stopped, and the boy's mood lasted t Ill the follow Ing morn Ing.
Gadadhar h Imself now organ Ized a dramat Ic company w Ith h Is young fr Iends. The stage was set In the mango orchard. The themes were selected from the stor Ies of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Gadadhar knew by heart almost all the roles, hav Ing heard them from profess Ional actors. H Is favour Ite theme was the Vr Indavan ep Isode of Kr Ishna's l Ife, dep Ict Ing those exqu Is Ite love-stor Ies of Kr Ishna and the m Ilkma Ids and the cowherd boys. Gadadhar would play the parts of Radha or Kr Ishna and would often lose h Imself In the character he was portray Ing. H Is natural fem In Ine grace he Ightened the dramat Ic effect. The mango orchard would r Ing w Ith the loud k Irtan of the boys. Lost In song and merry-mak Ing, Gadadhar became Ind Ifferent to the rout Ine of school.
In 1849 Ramkumar, the eldest son, went to Calcutta to Improve the f Inanc Ial cond It Ion of the fam Ily.
Gadadhar was on the threshold of youth. He had become the pet of the women of the v Illage. They loved to hear h Im talk, s Ing, or rec Ite from the holy books. They enjoyed h Is knack of Im Itat Ing vo Ices. The Ir woman's Inst Inct recogn Ized the Innate pur Ity and gu Ilelessness of th Is boy of clear sk In, flow Ing ha Ir, beam Ing eyes, sm Il Ing face, and Inexhaust Ible fun. The p Ious elderly women looked upon h Im as Gopala, the Baby Kr Ishna, and the younger ones saw In h Im the youthful Kr Ishna of Vr Indavan. He h Imself so Ideal Ized the love of the gop Is for Kr Ishna that he somet Imes yearned to be born as a woman, If he must be born aga In, In order to be able to love Sr I Kr Ishna w Ith all h Is heart and soul.
--- Id="COM ING_TO_CALCUTTA">COM ING TO CALCUTTA
At the age of s Ixteen Gadadhar was summoned to Calcutta by h Is elder brother Ramkumar, who w Ished ass Istance In h Is pr Iestly dut Ies. Ramkumar had opened a Sanskr It academy to supplement h Is Income, and It was h Is Intent Ion gradually to turn h Is younger brother's m Ind to educat Ion. Gadadhar appl Ied h Imself heart and soul to h Is new duty as fam Ily pr Iest to a number of Calcutta fam Il Ies. H Is worsh Ip was very d Ifferent from that of the profess Ional pr Iests. He spent hours decorat Ing the Images and s Ing Ing hymns and devot Ional songs; he performed w Ith love the other dut Ies of h Is off Ice. People were Impressed w Ith h Is ardour. But to h Is stud Ies he pa Id scant attent Ion.
Ramkumar d Id not at f Irst oppose the ways of h Is temperamental brother. He wanted Gadadhar to become used to the cond It Ions of c Ity l Ife. But one day he dec Ided to warn the boy about h Is Ind Ifference to the world. After all, In the near future Gadadhar must, as a householder, earn h Is l Ivel Ihood through the performance of h Is brahm In Ical dut Ies; and these requ Ired a thorough knowledge of H Indu law, astrology, and k Indred subjects. He gently admon Ished Gadadhar and asked h Im to pay more attent Ion to h Is stud Ies. But the boy repl Ied sp Ir Itedly: "Brother, what shall I do w Ith a mere bread-w Inn Ing educat Ion? I would rather acqu Ire that w Isdom wh Ich w Ill Illum Ine my heart and g Ive me sat Isfact Ion for ever."
--- Id="BREAD-W INN ING_EDUCAT ION">BREAD-W INN ING EDUCAT ION
The angu Ish of the Inner soul of Ind Ia found express Ion through these pass Ionate words of the young Gadadhar. For what d Id h Is unsoph Ist Icated eyes see around h Im In Calcutta, at that t Ime the metropol Is of Ind Ia and the centre of modem culture and learn Ing? Greed and lust held sway In the h Igher levels of soc Iety, and the occas Ional rel Ig Ious pract Ices were merely outer forms from wh Ich the soul had long ago departed. Gadadhar had never seen anyth Ing l Ike th Is at Kamarpukur among the s Imple and p Ious v Illagers. The sadhus and wander Ing monks whom he had served In h Is boyhood had revealed to h Im an altogether d Ifferent Ind Ia. He had been Impressed by the Ir devot Ion and pur Ity, the Ir self-control and renunc Iat Ion. He had learnt from them and from h Is own Intu It Ion that the Ideal of l Ife as taught by the anc Ient sages of Ind Ia was the real Izat Ion of God.
When Ramkumar repr Imanded Gadadhar for neglect Ing a "bread-w Inn Ing educat Ion", the Inner vo Ice of the boy rem Inded h Im that the legacy of h Is ancestors — the legacy of Rama, Kr Ishna, Buddha, Sankara, Ramanuja, Cha Itanya — was not worldly secur Ity but the Knowledge of God. And these noble sages were the true representat Ives of H Indu soc Iety. Each of them was seated, as It were, on the crest of the wave that followed each success Ive trough In the tumultuous course of Ind Ian nat Ional l Ife. All demonstrated that the l Ife current of Ind Ia Is sp Ir Itual Ity. Th Is truth was revealed to Gadadhar through that Inner v Is Ion wh Ich scans past and future In one sweep, unobstructed by the barr Iers of t Ime and space. But he was unaware of the h Istory of the profound change that had taken place In the land of h Is b Irth dur Ing the prev Ious one hundred years.
H Indu soc Iety dur Ing the e Ighteenth century had been pass Ing through a per Iod of decadence. It was the tw Il Ight of the Mussalman rule. There were anarchy and confus Ion In all spheres. Superst It Ious pract Ices dom Inated the rel Ig Ious l Ife of the people. R Ites and r Ituals passed for the essence of sp Ir Itual Ity. Greedy pr Iests became the custod Ians of heaven. True ph Ilosophy was supplanted by dogmat Ic op In Ions. The pund Its took del Ight In va In polem Ics.
In 1757 Engl Ish traders la Id the foundat Ion of Br It Ish rule In Ind Ia. Gradually the Government was systemat Ized and lawlessness suppressed. The H Indus were much Impressed by the m Il Itary power and pol It Ical acumen of the new rulers. In the wake of the merchants came the Engl Ish educators, and soc Ial reformers, and Chr Ist Ian m Iss Ionar Ies — all bear Ing a culture completely al Ien to the H Indu m Ind. In d Ifferent parts of the country educat Ional Inst Itut Ions were set up and Chr Ist Ian churches establ Ished. H Indu young men were offered the heady w Ine of the Western culture of the late e Ighteenth and early n Ineteenth centur Ies, and they drank It to the very dregs.
The f Irst effect of the draught on the educated H Indus was a complete effacement from the Ir m Inds of the t Ime-honoured bel Iefs and trad It Ions of H Indu soc Iety. They came to bel Ieve that there was no transcendental Truth; The world perce Ived by the senses was all that ex Isted. God and rel Ig Ion were Illus Ions of the untutored m Ind. True knowledge could be der Ived only from the analys Is of nature. So athe Ism and agnost Ic Ism became the fash Ion of the day. The youth of Ind Ia, taught In Engl Ish schools, took mal Ic Ious del Ight In openly break Ing the customs and trad It Ions of the Ir soc Iety. They would do away w Ith the caste-system and remove the d Iscr Im Inatory laws about food. Soc Ial reform, the spread of secular educat Ion, w Idow remarr Iage, abol It Ion of early marr Iage — they cons Idered these the panacea for the degenerate cond It Ion of H Indu soc Iety.
The Chr Ist Ian m Iss Ionar Ies gave the f In Ish Ing touch to the process of transformat Ion. They r Id Iculed as rel Ics of a barbarous age the Images and r Ituals of the H Indu rel Ig Ion. They tr Ied to persuade Ind Ia that the teach Ings of her sa Ints and seers were the cause of her downfall, that her Vedas, Puranas, and other scr Iptures were f Illed w Ith superst It Ion. Chr Ist Ian Ity, they ma Inta Ined, had g Iven the wh Ite races pos It Ion and power In th Is world and assurance of happ Iness In the next; therefore Chr Ist Ian Ity was the best of all rel Ig Ions. Many Intell Igent young H Indus became converted. The man In the street was confused. The major Ity of the educated grew mater Ial Ist Ic In the Ir mental outlook. Everyone l Iv Ing near Calcutta or the other strong-holds of Western culture, even those who attempted to cl Ing to the orthodox trad It Ions of H Indu soc Iety, became Infected by the new uncerta Int Ies and the new bel Iefs.
But the soul of Ind Ia was to be resusc Itated through a sp Ir Itual awaken Ing. We hear the f Irst call of th Is renascence In the sp Ir Ited retort of the young Gadadhar: "Brother, what shall I do w Ith a mere bread-w Inn Ing educat Ion?"
Ramkumar could hardly understand the Import of h Is young brother's reply. He descr Ibed In br Ight colours the happy and easy l Ife of scholars In Calcutta soc Iety. But Gadadhar Intu It Ively felt that the scholars, to use one of h Is own v Iv Id Illustrat Ions, were l Ike so many vultures, soar Ing h Igh on the w Ings of the Ir un Insp Ired Intellect, w Ith the Ir eyes f Ixed on the charnel-p It of greed and lust. So he stood f Irm and Ramkumar had to g Ive way.
--- Id="KAL I_TEMPLE_AT_DAKSH INESWAR">KAL I TEMPLE AT DAKSH INESWAR
At that t Ime there l Ived In Calcutta a r Ich w Idow named Ran I Rasman I, belong Ing to the sudra caste, and known far and w Ide not only for her bus Iness ab Il Ity, courage, and Intell Igence, but also for her largeness of heart, p Iety, and devot Ion to God. She was ass Isted In the management of her vast property by her son- In-law Mathur Mohan.
In 1847 the Ran I purchased twenty acres of land at Daksh Ineswar, a v Illage about four m Iles north of Calcutta. Here she created a temple garden and constructed several temples. Her Ishta, or Chosen Ideal, was the D Iv Ine Mother, Kal I.
The temple garden stands d Irectly on the east bank of the Ganges. The northern sect Ion of the land and a port Ion to the east conta In an orchard, flower gardens, and two small reservo Irs. The southern sect Ion Is paved w Ith br Ick and mortar. The v Is Itor arr Iv Ing by boat ascends the steps of an Impos Ing bath Ing-ghat wh Ich leads to the chandn I, a roofed terrace, on e Ither s Ide of wh Ich stand In a row s Ix temples of S Iva. East of the terrace and the S Iva temples Is a large court, paved, rectangular In shape, and runn Ing north and south. Two temples stand In the centre of th Is court, the larger one, to the south and fac Ing south, be Ing ded Icated to Kal I, and the smaller one, fac Ing the Ganges, to Radhakanta, that Is, Kr Ishna, the Consort of Radha. N Ine domes w Ith sp Ires surmount the temple of Kal I, and before It stands the spac Ious natmand Ir, or mus Ic hall, the terrace of wh Ich Is sup- ported by stately p Illars. At the northwest and southwest
corners of the temple compound are two nahabats, or mus Ic towers, from wh Ich mus Ic flows at d Ifferent t Imes of day, espec Ially at sunup, noon, and sundown, when the worsh Ip Is performed In the temples. Three s Ides of the paved courtyard — all except the west — are l Ined w Ith rooms set apart for k Itchens, store-rooms, d In Ing-rooms, and quarters for the temple staff and guests. The chamber In the northwest angle, just beyond the last of the S Iva temples, Is of spec Ial Interest to us; for here Sr I Ramakr Ishna was to spend a cons Iderable part of h Is l Ife. To the west of th Is chamber Is a sem Ic Ircular porch overlook Ing the r Iver. In front of the porch runs a foot-path, north and south, and beyond the path Is a large garden and, below the garden, the Ganges. The orchard to the north of the bu Ild Ings conta Ins the Panchavat I, the banyan, and the bel-tree, assoc Iated w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna's sp Ir Itual pract Ices. Outs Ide and to the north of the temple compound proper Is the kuth I, or bungalow, used by members of Ran I Rasman I's fam Ily v Is It Ing the garden. And north of the temple garden, separated from It by a h Igh wall, Is a powder-magaz Ine belong Ing to the Br It Ish Government.
--- Id="S IVA">S IVA
In the twelve S Iva temples are Installed the emblems of the Great God of renunc Iat Ion In H Is var Ious aspects, worsh Ipped da Ily w Ith proper r Ites. S Iva requ Ires few art Icles of worsh Ip. Wh Ite flowers and bel-leaves and a l Ittle Ganges water offered w Ith devot Ion are enough to sat Isfy the ben Ign De Ity and w In from H Im the boon of l Iberat Ion.
--- Id="RADHAKANTA">RADHAKANTA
The temple of Radhakanta, also known as the temple of V Ishnu, conta Ins the Images of Radha and Kr Ishna, the symbol of un Ion w Ith God through ecstat Ic love. The two Images stand on a pedestal fac Ing the west. The floor Is paved w Ith marble. From the ce Il Ing of the porch hang chandel Iers protected from dust by cover Ings of red cloth. Canvas screens sh Ield the Images from the rays of the sett Ing sun. Close to the threshold of the Inner shr Ine Is a small brass cup conta In Ing holy water. Devoted v Is Itors reverently dr Ink a few drops from the vessel.
--- Id="KAL I">KAL I
The ma In temple Is ded Icated to Kal I, the D Iv Ine Mother, here worsh Ipped as Bhavatar In I, the Sav Iour of the Un Iverse. The floor of th Is temple also Is paved w Ith marble. The basalt Image of the Mother, dressed In gorgeous gold brocade, stands on a wh Ite marble Image of the prostrate body of Her D Iv Ine Consort, S Iva, the symbol of the Absolute. On the feet of the Goddess are, among other ornaments, anklets of gold. Her arms are decked w Ith jewelled ornaments of gold. She wears necklaces of gold and pearls, a golden garland of human heads, and a g Irdle of human arms. She wears a golden crown, golden ear-r Ings, and a golden nose-r Ing w Ith a pearl-drop. She has four arms. The lower left hand holds a severed human head and the upper gr Ips a blood-sta Ined sabre. One r Ight hand offers boons to Her ch Ildren; the other allays the Ir fear. The majesty of Her posture can hardly be descr Ibed. It comb Ines the terror of destruct Ion w Ith the reassurance of motherly tenderness. For She Is the Cosm Ic Power, the total Ity of the un Iverse, a glor Ious harmony of the pa Irs of oppos Ites. She deals out death, as She creates and preserves. She has three eyes, the th Ird be Ing the symbol of D Iv Ine W Isdom; they str Ike d Ismay Into the w Icked, yet pour out affect Ion for Her devotees.
The whole symbol Ic world Is represented In the temple garden — the Tr In Ity of the Nature Mother (Kal I), the Absolute (S Iva), and Love (Radhakanta), the Arch spann Ing heaven and earth. The terr If Ic Goddess of the Tantra, the soul-enthrall Ing Flute-Player of the Bhagavata, and the Self-absorbed Absolute of the Vedas l Ive together, creat Ing the greatest synthes Is of rel Ig Ions. All aspects of Real Ity are represented there. But of th Is d Iv Ine household, Kal I Is the p Ivot, the sovere Ign M Istress. She Is Prakr It I, the Procreatr Ix, Nature, the Destroyer, the Creator. Nay, She Is someth Ing greater and deeper st Ill for those who have eyes to see. She Is the Un Iversal Mother, "my Mother" as Ramakr Ishna would say, the All-powerful, who reveals Herself to Her ch Ildren under d Ifferent aspects and D Iv Ine Incarnat Ions, the V Is Ible God, who leads the elect to the Inv Is Ible Real Ity; and If It so pleases Her, She takes away the last trace of ego from created be Ings and merges It In the consc Iousness of the Absolute, the und Ifferent Iated God. Through Her grace "the f In Ite ego loses Itself In the Ill Im Itable Ego — Atman — Brahman". (Roma In Holland, Prophets of the New Ind Ia, p. 11.)
Ran I Rasman I spent a fortune for the construct Ion of the temple garden and another fortune for Its ded Icat Ion ceremony, wh Ich took place on May 31, 1855.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna — henceforth we shall call Gadadhar by th Is fam Il Iar name —1 came to the temple garden w Ith h Is elder brother Ramkumar, who was appo Inted pr Iest of the Kal I temple. Sr I Ramakr Ishna d Id not at f Irst approve of Ramkumar's work Ing for the sudra Rasman I. The example of the Ir orthodox father was st Ill fresh In Sr I Ramakr Ishna's m Ind. He objected also to the eat Ing of the cooked offer Ings of the temple, s Ince, accord Ing to orthodox H Indu custom, such food can be offered to the De Ity only In the house of a brahm In. But the holy atmosphere of the temple grounds, the sol Itude of the surround Ing wood, the lov Ing care of h Is brother, the respect shown h Im by Ran I Rasman I and Mathur Babu, the l Iv Ing presence of the Goddess Kal I In the temple, and; above all, the prox Im Ity of the sacred Ganges, wh Ich Sr I Ramakr Ishna always held In the h Ighest respect, gradually overcame h Is d Isapproval, and he began to feel at home.
W Ith In a very short t Ime Sr I Ramakr Ishna attracted the not Ice of Mathur Babu, who was Impressed by the young man's rel Ig Ious fervour and wanted h Im to part Ic Ipate In the worsh Ip In the Kal I temple. But Sr I Ramakr Ishna loved h Is freedom and was Ind Ifferent to any worldly career. The profess Ion of the pr Iesthood In a temple founded by a r Ich woman d Id not appeal to h Is m Ind. Further, he hes Itated to take upon h Imself the respons Ib Il Ity for the ornaments and jewelry of the temple. Mathur had to wa It for a su Itable occas Ion.
At th Is t Ime there came to Daksh Ineswar a youth of s Ixteen, dest Ined to play an Important role In Sr I Ramakr Ishna's l Ife. Hr Iday, a d Istant nephew2 of Sr I Ramakr Ishna, ha Iled from S Ihore, a v Illage not far from Kamarpukur, and had been h Is boyhood fr Iend. Clever, except Ionally energet Ic, and endowed w Ith great presence of m Ind, he moved, as w Ill be seen later, l Ike a shadow about h Is uncle and was always ready to help h Im, even at the sacr If Ice of h Is personal comfort. He was dest Ined to be a mute w Itness of many of the sp Ir Itual exper Iences of Sr I Ramakr Ishna and the caretaker of h Is body dur Ing the stormy days of h Is sp Ir Itual pract Ice. Hr Iday came to Daksh Ineswar In search of a job, and Sr I Ramakr Ishna was glad to see h Im.
Unable to res Ist the persuas Ion of Mathur Babu, Sr I Ramakr Ishna at last entered the temple serv Ice, on cond It Ion that Hr Iday should be asked to ass Ist h Im. H Is f Irst duty was to dress and decorate the Image of Kal I.
One day the pr Iest of the Radhakanta temple acc Identally dropped the Image of Kr Ishna on the floor, break Ing one of Its legs. The pund Its adv Ised the Ran I to Install a new Image, s Ince the worsh Ip of an Image w Ith a broken l Imb was aga Inst the scr Iptural Injunct Ions. But the Ran I was fond of the Image, and she asked Sr I Ramakr Ishna's op In Ion. In an abstracted mood, he sa Id: "Th Is solut Ion Is r Id Iculous. If a son- In-law of the Ran I broke h Is leg, would she d Iscard h Im and put another In h Is place? Wouldn't she rather arrange for h Is treatment? Why should she not do the same th Ing In th Is case too? Let the Image be repa Ired and worsh Ipped as before." It was a s Imple, stra Ightforward solut Ion and was accepted by the Ran I. Sr I Ramakr Ishna h Imself mended the break. The pr Iest was d Ism Issed for h Is carelessness, and at Mathur Babu's earnest request Sr I Ramakr Ishna accepted the off Ice of pr Iest In the Radhakanta temple.
^No def In Ite Informat Ion Is ava Ilable as to the or Ig In of th Is name. Most probably It was g Iven by Mathur Babu, as Ramlal, Sr I Ramakr Ishna's nephew, has sa Id, quot Ing the author Ity of h Is uncle h Imself.
^Hr Iday's mother was the daughter of Sr I Ramakr Ishna's aunt (Khud Iram's s Ister). Such a degree of relat Ionsh Ip Is termed In Bengal that of a "d Istant nephew".
--- Id="SR I_RAMAKR ISHNA_AS_A_PR IEST">SR I RAMAKR ISHNA AS A PR IEST
Born In an orthodox brahm In fam Ily, Sr I Ramakr Ishna knew the formal It Ies of worsh Ip, Its r Ites and r Ituals. The Innumerable gods and goddesses of the H Indu rel Ig Ion are the human aspects of the Indescr Ibable and Incomprehens Ible Sp Ir It, as conce Ived by the f In Ite human m Ind. They understand and apprec Iate human love and emot Ion, help men to real Ize the Ir secular and sp Ir Itual Ideals, and ult Imately enable men to atta In l Iberat Ion from the m Iser Ies of phenomenal l Ife. The Source of l Ight, Intell Igence, w Isdom, and strength Is the One alone from whom comes the fulf Ilment of des Ire. Yet, as long as a man Is bound by h Is human l Im Itat Ions, he cannot but worsh Ip God through human forms. He must use human symbols. Therefore H Indu Ism asks the devotees to look on God as the Ideal father, the Ideal mother, the Ideal husband, the Ideal son, or the Ideal fr Iend. But the name ult Imately leads to the Nameless, the form to the Formless, the word to the S Ilence, the emot Ion to the serene real Izat Ion of Peace In Ex Istence-Knowledge-Bl Iss Absolute. The gods gradually merge In the one God. But unt Il that real Izat Ion Is ach Ieved, the devotee cannot d Issoc Iate human factors from h Is worsh Ip. Therefore the De Ity Is bathed and clothed and decked w Ith ornaments. He Is fed and put to sleep. He Is prop It Iated w Ith hymns, songs, and prayers. And there are appropr Iate r Ites connected w Ith all these funct Ions. For Instance, to secure for h Imself external pur Ity, the pr Iest bathes h Imself In holy water and puts on a holy cloth. He pur If Ies the m Ind and the sense-organs by appropr Iate med Itat Ions. He fort If Ies the place of worsh Ip aga Inst ev Il forces by draw Ing around It c Ircles of f Ire and water. He awakens the d Ifferent sp Ir Itual centres of the body and Invokes the Supreme Sp Ir It In h Is heart. Then he transfers the Supreme Sp Ir It to the Image before h Im and worsh Ips the Image, regard Ing It no longer as clay or stone, but as the embod Iment of Sp Ir It, throbb Ing w Ith L Ife and Consc Iousness. After the worsh Ip the Supreme Sp Ir It Is recalled from the Image to Its true sanctuary, the heart of the pr Iest. The real devotee knows the absurd Ity of worsh Ipp Ing the Transcendental Real Ity w Ith mater Ial art Icles — cloth Ing That wh Ich pervades the whole un Iverse and the beyond, putt Ing on a pedestal That wh Ich cannot be l Im Ited by space, feed Ing That wh Ich Is d Isembod Ied and Incorporeal, s Ing Ing before That whose glory the mus Ic of the spheres tr Ies va Inly to procla Im. But through these r Ites the devotee asp Ires to go ult Imately beyond r Ites and r Ituals, forms and names, words and pra Ise, and to real Ize God as the All-pervad Ing Consc Iousness.
H Indu pr Iests are thoroughly acqua Inted w Ith the r Ites of worsh Ip, but few of them are aware of the Ir underly Ing s Ign If Icance. They move the Ir hands and l Imbs mechan Ically, In obed Ience to the letter of the scr Iptures, and repeat the holy mantras l Ike parrots. But from the very beg Inn Ing the Inner mean Ing of these r Ites was revealed to Sr I Ramakr Ishna. As he sat fac Ing the Image, a strange transformat Ion came over h Is m Ind. Wh Ile go Ing through the prescr Ibed ceremon Ies, he would actually f Ind h Imself enc Ircled by a wall of f Ire protect Ing h Im and the place of worsh Ip from unsp Ir Itual v Ibrat Ions, or he would feel the r Is Ing of the myst Ic Kundal In I through the d Ifferent centres of the body. The glow on h Is face, h Is deep absorpt Ion, and the Intense atmosphere of the temple Impressed everyone who saw h Im worsh Ip the De Ity.
Ramkumar wanted Sr I Ramakr Ishna to learn the Intr Icate r Ituals of the worsh Ip of Kal I. To become a pr Iest of Kal I one must undergo a spec Ial form of In It Iat Ion from a qual If Ied guru, and for Sr I Ramakr Ishna a su Itable brahm In was found. But no sooner d Id the brahm In speak the holy word In h Is ear than Sr I Ramakr Ishna, overwhelmed w Ith emot Ion, uttered a loud cry and plunged Into deep concentrat Ion.
Mathur begged Sr I Ramakr Ishna to take charge of the worsh Ip In the Kal I temple. The young pr Iest pleaded h Is Incompetence and h Is Ignorance of the scr Iptures. Mathur Ins Isted that devot Ion and s Incer Ity would more than compensate for any lack of formal knowledge and make the D Iv Ine Mother man Ifest Herself through the Image. In the end, Sr I Ramakr Ishna had to y Ield to Mathur's request. He became the pr Iest of Kal I.
In 1856 Ramkumar breathed h Is last. Sr I Ramakr Ishna had already w Itnessed more than one death In the fam Ily. He had come to real Ize how Impermanent Is l Ife on earth. The more he was conv Inced of the trans Itory nature of worldly th Ings, the more eager he became to real Ize God, the Founta In of Immortal Ity.
--- Id="THE_F IRST_V IS ION_OF_KAL I">THE F IRST V IS ION OF KAL I
And, Indeed, he soon d Iscovered what a strange Goddess he had chosen to serve. He became gradually enmeshed In the web of Her all-pervad Ing presence. To the Ignorant She Is, to be sure, the Image of destruct Ion; but he found In Her the ben Ign, all-lov Ing Mother. Her neck Is enc Ircled w Ith a garland of heads, and Her wa Ist w Ith a g Irdle of human arms, and two of Her hands hold weapons of death, and Her eyes dart a glance of f Ire; but, strangely enough, Ramakr Ishna felt In Her breath the sooth Ing touch of tender love and saw In Her the Seed of Immortal Ity. She stands on the bosom of Her Consort, S Iva; It Is because She Is the Sakt I, the Power, Inseparable from the Absolute. She Is surrounded by jackals and other unholy creatures, the den Izens of the cremat Ion ground. But Is not the Ult Imate Real Ity above hol Iness and unhol Iness? She appears to be reel Ing under the spell of w Ine. But who would create th Is mad world unless under the Influence of a d Iv Ine drunkenness? She Is the h Ighest symbol of all the forces of nature, the synthes Is of the Ir ant Inom Ies, the Ult Imate D Iv Ine In the form of woman. She now became to Sr I Ramakr Ishna the only Real Ity, and the world became an unsubstant Ial shadow. Into Her worsh Ip he poured h Is soul. Before h Im She stood as the transparent portal to the shr Ine of Ineffable Real Ity.
The worsh Ip In the temple Intens If Ied Sr I Ramakr Ishna's yearn Ing for a l Iv Ing v Is Ion of the Mother of the Un Iverse. He began to spend In med Itat Ion the t Ime not actually employed In the temple serv Ice; and for th Is purpose he selected an extremely sol Itary place. A deep jungle, th Ick w Ith underbrush and pr Ickly plants, lay to the north of the temples. Used at one t Ime as a bur Ial ground, It was shunned by people even dur Ing the day-t Ime for fear of ghosts. There Sr I Ramakr Ishna began to spend the whole n Ight In med Itat Ion, return Ing to h Is room only In the morn Ing w Ith eyes swollen as though from much weep Ing. Wh Ile med Itat Ing, he would lay as Ide h Is cloth and h Is brahm In Ical thread. Expla In Ing th Is strange conduct, he once sa Id to Hr Iday: "Don't you know that when one th Inks of God one should be freed from all t Ies? From our very b Irth we have the e Ight fetters of hatred, shame, l Ineage, pr Ide of good conduct, fear, secret Iveness, caste, and gr Ief. The sacred thread rem Inds me that I am a brahm In and therefore super Ior to all. When call Ing on the Mother one has to set as Ide all such Ideas." Hr Iday thought h Is uncle was becom Ing Insane.
As h Is love for God deepened, he began e Ither to forget or to drop the formal It Ies of worsh Ip. S Itt Ing before the Image, he would spend hours s Ing Ing the devot Ional songs of great devotees of the Mother, such as Kamalakanta and Ramprasad. Those rhapsod Ical songs, descr Ib Ing the d Irect v Is Ion of God, only Intens If Ied Sr I Ramakr Ishna's long Ing. He felt the pangs of a ch Ild separated from Its mother. Somet Imes, In agony, he would rub h Is face aga Inst the ground and weep so b Itterly that people, th Ink Ing he had lost h Is earthly mother, would sympath Ize w Ith h Im In h Is gr Ief. Somet Imes, In moments of scept Ic Ism, he would cry: "Art Thou true, Mother, or Is It all f Ict Ion — mere poetry w Ithout any real Ity? If Thou dost ex Ist, why do I not see Thee? Is rel Ig Ion a mere fantasy and art Thou only a f Igment of man's Imag Inat Ion?" Somet Imes he would s It on the prayer carpet for two hours l Ike an Inert object. He began to behave In an abnormal manner
, most of the t Ime unconsc Ious of the world. He almost gave up food; and sleep left h Im altogether.
But he d Id not have to wa It very long. He has thus descr Ibed h Is f Irst v Is Ion of the Mother: " I felt as If my heart were be Ing squeezed l Ike a wet towel. I was overpowered w Ith a great restlessness and a fear that It m Ight not be my lot to real Ize Her In th Is l Ife. I could not bear the separat Ion from Her any longer. L Ife seemed to be not worth l Iv Ing. Suddenly my glance fell on the sword that was kept In the Mother's temple. I determ Ined to put an end to my l Ife. When I jumped up l Ike a madman and se Ized It, suddenly the blessed Mother revealed Herself. The bu Ild Ings w Ith the Ir d Ifferent parts, the temple, and everyth Ing else van Ished from my s Ight, leav Ing no trace whatsoever, and In the Ir stead I saw a l Im Itless, Inf In Ite, effulgent Ocean of Consc Iousness. As far as the eye could see, the sh In Ing b Illows were madly rush Ing at me from all s Ides w Ith a terr If Ic no Ise, to swallow me up! I was pant Ing for breath. I was caught In the rush
and collapsed, unconsc Ious. What was happen Ing In the outs Ide world I d Id not know; but w Ith In me there was a steady flow of und Iluted bl Iss, altogether new, and I felt the presence of the D Iv Ine Mother." On h Is l Ips when he rega Ined consc Iousness of the world was the word "Mother".
--- Id="GOD- INTOX ICATED_STATE">GOD- INTOX ICATED STATE
Yet th Is was only a foretaste of the Intense exper Iences to come. The f Irst gl Impse of the D Iv Ine Mother made h Im the more eager for Her un Interrupted v Is Ion. He wanted to see Her both In med Itat Ion and w Ith eyes open. But the Mother began to play a teas Ing game of h Ide-and-seek w Ith h Im, Intens Ify Ing both h Is joy and h Is suffer Ing. Weep Ing b Itterly dur Ing the moments of separat Ion from Her, he would pass Into a trance and then f Ind Her stand Ing before h Im, sm Il Ing, talk Ing, consol Ing, b Idd Ing h Im be of good cheer, and Instruct Ing h Im. Dur Ing th Is per Iod of sp Ir Itual pract Ice he had many uncommon exper Iences. When he sat to med Itate, he would hear strange cl Ick Ing sounds In the jo Ints of h Is legs, as If someone were lock Ing them up, one after the other, to keep h Im mot Ionless; and at the conclus Ion of h Is med Itat Ion he would aga In hear the same sounds, th Is t Ime unlock Ing them and leav Ing h Im free to move about. He would see flashes l Ike a swarm of f Ire-fl Ies float Ing before h Is eyes, or a sea of deep m Ist around h Im, w Ith lum Inous waves of molten s Ilver. Aga In, from a sea of translucent m Ist he would behold the Mother r Is Ing, f Irst Her feet, then Her wa Ist, body, face, and head, f Inally Her whole person; he would feel Her breath and hear Her vo Ice. Worsh Ipp Ing In the temple, somet Imes he would become exalted, somet Imes he would rema In mot Ionless as stone, somet Imes he would almost collapse from excess Ive emot Ion. Many of h Is act Ions, contrary to all trad It Ion, seemed sacr Ileg Ious to the people. He would take a flower and touch It to h Is own head, body, and feet, and then offer It to the Goddess. Or, l Ike a drunkard, he would reel to the throne of the Mother, touch Her ch In by way of show Ing h Is affect Ion for Her, and s Ing, talk, joke, laugh, and dance. Or he would take a morsel of food from the plate and hold It to Her mouth, begg Ing Her to eat It, and would not be sat Isf Ied t Ill he was conv Inced that She had really eaten. After the Mother had been put to sleep at n Ight, from h Is own room he would hear Her ascend Ing to the upper storey of the temple w Ith the l Ight steps of a happy g Irl, Her anklets j Ingl Ing. Then he would d Iscover Her stand Ing w Ith flow Ing ha Ir. Her black form s Ilhouetted aga Inst the sky of the n Ight, look Ing at the Ganges or at the d Istant l Ights of Calcutta.
Naturally the temple off Ic Ials took h Im for an Insane person. H Is worldly well-w Ishers brought h Im to sk Illed phys Ic Ians; but no-med Ic Ine could cure h Is malady. Many a t Ime he doubted h Is san Ity h Imself. For he had been sa Il Ing across an uncharted sea, w Ith no earthly gu Ide to d Irect h Im. H Is only haven of secur Ity was the D Iv Ine Mother Herself. To Her he would pray: " I do not know what these th Ings are. I am Ignorant of mantras and the scr Iptures. Teach me, Mother, how to real Ize Thee. Who else can help me? Art Thou not my only refuge and gu Ide?" And the susta In Ing presence of the Mother never fa Iled h Im In h Is d Istress or doubt. Even those who cr It Ic Ized h Is conduct were greatly Impressed w Ith h Is pur Ity, gu Ilelessness, truthfulness, Integr Ity, and hol Iness. They felt an upl Ift Ing Influence In h Is presence.
It Is sa Id that samadh I, or trance, no more than opens the portal of the sp Ir Itual realm. Sr I Ramakr Ishna felt an unquenchable des Ire to enjoy God In var Ious ways. For h Is med Itat Ion he bu Ilt a place In the northern wooded sect Ion of the temple garden. W Ith Hr Iday's help he planted there f Ive sacred trees. The spot, known as the Panchavat I, became the scene of many of h Is v Is Ions.
As h Is sp Ir Itual mood deepened he more and more felt h Imself to be a ch Ild of the D Iv Ine Mother. He learnt to surrender h Imself completely to Her w Ill and let Her d Irect h Im.
"O Mother," he would constantly pray, " I have taken refuge In Thee. Teach me what to do and what to say. Thy w Ill Is paramount everywhere and Is for the good of Thy ch Ildren. Merge my w Ill In Thy w Ill and make me Thy Instrument."
H Is v Is Ions became deeper and more Int Imate. He no longer had to med Itate to behold the D Iv Ine Mother. Even wh Ile reta In Ing consc Iousness of the outer world, he would see Her as tang Ibly as the temples, the trees, the r Iver, and the men around h Im.
On a certa In occas Ion Mathur Babu stealth Ily entered the temple to watch the worsh Ip. He was profoundly moved by the young pr Iest's devot Ion and s Incer Ity. He real Ized that Sr I Ramakr Ishna had transformed the stone Image Into the l Iv Ing Goddess.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna one day fed a cat w Ith the food that was to be offered to Kal I. Th Is was too much for the manager of the temple garden, who cons Idered h Imself respons Ible for the proper conduct of the worsh Ip. He reported Sr I Ramakr Ishna's Insane behav Iour to Mathur Babu.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna has descr Ibed the Inc Ident: "The D Iv Ine Mother revealed to me In the Kal I temple that It was She who had become everyth Ing. She showed me that everyth Ing was full of Consc Iousness. The Image was Consc Iousness, the altar was Consc Iousness, the water-vessels were Consc Iousness, the door-s Ill was Consc Iousness, the marble floor was Consc Iousness — all was Consc Iousness. I found everyth Ing Ins Ide the room soaked, as It were, In Bl Iss — the Bl Iss of God. I saw a w Icked man In front of the Kal I temple; but In h Im also I saw the power of the D Iv Ine Mother v Ibrat Ing. That was why I fed a cat w Ith the food that was to be offered to the D Iv Ine Mother. I clearly perce Ived that all th Is was the D Iv Ine Mother — even the cat. The manager of the temple garden wrote to Mathur Babu say Ing that I was feed Ing the cat w Ith the offer Ing Intended for the D Iv Ine Mother. But Mathur Babu had Ins Ight Into the state of my m Ind. He wrote back to the manager: 'Let h Im do whatever he l Ikes. You must not say anyth Ing to h Im.'"
One of the pa Inful a Ilments from wh Ich Sr I Ramakr Ishna suffered at th Is t Ime was a burn Ing sensat Ion In h Is body, and he was cured by a strange v Is Ion. Dur Ing worsh Ip In the temple, follow Ing the scr Iptural Injunct Ions, he would Imag Ine the presence of the "s Inner" In h Imself and the destruct Ion of th Is "s Inner". One day he was med Itat Ing In the Panchavat I, when he saw come out of h Im a red-eyed man of black complex Ion, reel Ing l Ike a drunkard. Soon there emerged from h Im another person, of serene countenance, wear Ing the ochre cloth of a sannyas I and carry Ing In h Is hand a tr Ident. The second person attacked the f Irst and k Illed h Im w Ith the tr Ident. Thereafter Sr I Ramakr Ishna was free of h Is pa In.
About th Is t Ime he began to worsh Ip God by assum Ing the att Itude of a servant toward h Is master. He Im Itated the mood of Hanuman, the monkey ch Iefta In of the Ramayana, the Ideal servant of Rama and trad It Ional model for th Is self-effac Ing form of devot Ion. When he med Itated on Hanuman h Is movements and h Is way of l Ife began to resemble those of a monkey. H Is eyes became restless. He l Ived on fru Its and roots. W Ith h Is cloth t Ied around h Is wa Ist, a port Ion of It hang Ing In the form of a ta Il, he jumped from place to place Instead of walk Ing. And after a short wh Ile he was blessed w Ith a v Is Ion of S Ita, the d Iv Ine consort of Rama, who entered h Is body and d Isappeared there w Ith the words, " I bequeath to you my sm Ile."
Mathur had fa Ith In the s Incer Ity of Sr I Ramakr Ishna's sp Ir Itual zeal, but began now to doubt h Is san Ity. He had watched h Im jump Ing about l Ike a monkey. One day, when Ran I Rasman I was l Isten Ing to Sr I Ramakr Ishna's s Ing Ing In the temple, the young pr Iest abruptly turned and slapped her. Apparently l Isten Ing to h Is song, she had actually been th Ink Ing of a law-su It. She accepted the pun Ishment as though the D Iv Ine Mother Herself had Imposed It; but Mathur was d Istressed. He begged Sr I Ramakr Ishna to keep h Is feel Ings under control and to heed the convent Ions of soc Iety. God H Imself, he argued, follows laws. God never perm Itted, for Instance, flowers of two colours to grow on the same stalk. The follow Ing day Sr I Ramakr Ishna presented Mathur Babu w Ith two h Ib Iscus flowers grow Ing on the same stalk, one red and one wh Ite.
Mathur and Ran I Rasman I began to ascr Ibe the mental a Ilment of Sr I Ramakr Ishna In part, at least, to h Is observance of r Ig Id cont Inence. Th Ink Ing that a natural l Ife would relax the tens Ion of h Is nerves, they eng Ineered a plan w Ith two women of Ill fame. But as soon as the women entered h Is room, Sr I Ramakr Ishna beheld In them the man Ifestat Ion of the D Iv Ine Mother of the Un Iverse and went Into samadh I utter Ing Her name.
--- Id="HALADHAR I">HALADHAR I
In 1858 there came to Daksh Ineswar a cous In of Sr I Ramakr Ishna, Haladhar I by name, who was to rema In there about e Ight years. On account of Sr I Ramakr Ishna's Ind Ifferent health, Mathur appo Inted th Is man to the off Ice of pr Iest In the Kal I temple. He was a complex character, versed In the letter of the scr Iptures, but hardly aware of the Ir sp Ir It. He loved to part Ic Ipate In ha Ir-spl Itt Ing theolog Ical d Iscuss Ions and, by the measure of h Is own erud It Ion, he proceeded to gauge Sr I Ramakr Ishna. An orthodox brahm In, he thoroughly d Isapproved of h Is cous In's unorthodox act Ions, but he was not un Impressed by Sr I Ramakr Ishna's pur Ity of l Ife, ecstat Ic love of God, and yearn Ing for real Izat Ion.
One day Haladhar I upset Sr I Ramakr Ishna w Ith the statement that God Is Incomprehens Ible to the human m Ind. Sr I Ramakr Ishna has descr Ibed the great moment of doubt when he wondered whether h Is v Is Ions had really m Isled h Im: "W Ith sobs I prayed to the Mother, 'Canst Thou have the heart to dece Ive me l Ike th Is because I am a fool?' A stream of tears flowed from my eyes. Shortly afterwards I saw a volume of m Ist r Is Ing from the floor and f Ill Ing the space before me. In the m Idst of It there appeared a face w Ith flow Ing beard, calm, h Ighly express Ive, and fa Ir. F Ix Ing Its gaze stead Ily upon me, It sa Id solemnly, 'Rema In In bhavamukha, on the threshold of relat Ive consc Iousness.' Th Is It repeated three t Imes and then It gently d Isappeared In the m Ist, wh Ich Itself d Issolved. Th Is v Is Ion reassured me."
A garbled report of Sr I Ramakr Ishna's fa Il Ing health, Ind Ifference to worldly l Ife, and var Ious abnormal act Iv It Ies reached Kamarpukur and f Illed the heart of h Is poor mother w Ith angu Ish. At her repeated request he returned to h Is v Illage for a change of a Ir. But h Is boyhood fr Iends d Id not Interest h Im any more. A d Iv Ine fever was consum Ing h Im. He spent a great part of the day and n Ight In one of the cremat Ion grounds, In med Itat Ion. The place rem Inded h Im of the Impermanence of the human body, of human hopes and ach Ievements. It also rem Inded h Im of Kal I, the Goddess of destruct Ion.
--- Id="MARR IAGE_AND_AFTER">MARR IAGE AND AFTER
But In a few months h Is health showed Improvement, and he recovered to some extent h Is natural buoyancy of sp Ir It. H Is happy mother was encouraged to th Ink It m Ight be a good t Ime to arrange h Is marr Iage. The boy was now twenty-three years old. A w Ife would br Ing h Im back to earth. And she was del Ighted when her son welcomed her suggest Ion. Perhaps he saw In It the f Inger of God.
Saradaman I, a l Ittle g Irl of f Ive, l Ived In the ne Ighbour Ing v Illage of Jayrambat I. Even at th Is age she had been pray Ing to God to make her character as sta Inless and fragrant as the wh Ite tuberose. Look Ing at the full moon, she would say: "O God, there are dark spots even on the moon. But make my character spotless." It was she who was selected as the br Ide for Sr I Ramakr Ishna.
The marr Iage ceremony was duly performed. Such early marr Iage In Ind Ia Is In the nature of a betrothal, the marr Iage be Ing consummated when the g Irl atta Ins puberty. But In th Is case the marr Iage rema Ined for ever unconsummated. Sr I Ramakr Ishna l Ived at Kamarpukur about a year and a half and then returned to Daksh Ineswar.
Hardly had he crossed the threshold of the Kal I temple when he found h Imself aga In In the wh Irlw Ind. H Is madness reappeared tenfold. The same med Itat Ion and prayer, the same ecstat Ic moods, the same burn Ing sensat Ion, the same weep Ing, the same sleeplessness, the same Ind Ifference to the body and the outs Ide world, the same d Iv Ine del Ir Ium. He subjected h Imself to fresh d Isc Ipl Ines In order to erad Icate greed and lust, the two great Imped Iments to sp Ir Itual progress. W Ith a rupee In one hand and some earth In the other, he would reflect on the comparat Ive value of these two for the real Izat Ion of God, and f Ind Ing them equally worthless he would toss them, w Ith equal Ind Ifference, Into the Ganges. Women he regarded as the man Ifestat Ions of the D Iv Ine Mother. Never even In a dream d Id he feel the Impulses of lust. And to root out of h Is m Ind the Idea of caste super Ior Ity, he cleaned a par Iahs house w Ith h Is long and neglected ha Ir. When he would s It In med Itat Ion, b Irds would perch on h Is head and peck In h Is ha Ir for gra Ins of food. Snakes would crawl over h Is body, and ne Ither would be aware of the other. Sleep left h Im altogether. Day and n Ight, v Is Ions fl Itted before h Im. He saw the sannyas I who had prev Iously k Illed the "s Inner" In h Im aga In com Ing out of h Is body, threaten Ing h Im w Ith the tr Ident, and order Ing h Im to concentrate on God. Or the same sannyas I would v Is It d Istant places, follow Ing a lum Inous path, and br Ing h Im reports of what was happen Ing there. Sr I Ramakr Ishna used to say later that In the case of an advanced devotee the m Ind Itself becomes the guru, l Iv Ing and mov Ing l Ike an embod Ied be Ing.
Ran I Rasman I, the foundress of the temple garden, passed away In 1861. After her death her son- In-law Mathur became the sole executor of the estate. He placed h Imself and h Is resources at the d Isposal of Sr I Ramakr Ishna and began to look after h Is phys Ical comfort. Sr I Ramakr Ishna later spoke of h Im as one of h Is f Ive "suppl Iers of stores" appo Inted by the D Iv Ine Mother. Whenever a des Ire arose In h Is m Ind, Mathur fulf Illed It w Ithout hes Itat Ion.
--- Id="THE_BRAHMAN I">THE BRAHMAN I
There came to Daksh Ineswar at th Is t Ime a brahm In woman who was to play an Important part In Sr I Ramakr Ishna's sp Ir Itual unfoldment. Born In East Bengal, she was an adept In the Tantr Ik and Va Ishnava methods of worsh Ip. She was sl Ightly over f Ifty years of age, handsome, and garbed In the orange robe of a nun. Her sole possess Ions were a few books and two p Ieces of wear Ing-cloth.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna welcomed the v Is Itor w Ith great respect, descr Ibed to her h Is exper Iences and v Is Ions, and told her of people's bel Ief that these were symptoms of madness. She l Istened to h Im attent Ively and sa Id: "My son, everyone In th Is world Is mad. Some are mad for money, some for creature comforts, some for name and fame; and you are mad for God." She assured h Im that he was pass Ing through the almost unknown sp Ir Itual exper Ience descr Ibed In the scr Iptures as mahabhava, the most exalted rapture of d Iv Ine love. She told h Im that th Is extreme exaltat Ion had been descr Ibed as man Ifest Ing Itself through n Ineteen phys Ical symptoms, Includ Ing the shedd Ing of tears, a tremor of the body, horr Ip Ilat Ion, persp Irat Ion, and a burn Ing sensat Ion. The Bhakt I scr Iptures, she declared, had recorded only two Instances of the exper Ience, namely, those of Sr I Radha and Sr I Cha Itanya.
Very soon a tender relat Ionsh Ip sprang up between Sr I Ramakr Ishna and the Brahman I, she look Ing upon h Im as the Baby Kr Ishna, and he upon her as mother. Day after day she watched h Is ecstasy dur Ing the k Irtan and med Itat Ion, h Is samadh I, h Is mad yearn Ing; and she recogn Ized In h Im a power to transm It sp Ir Itual Ity to others. She came to the conclus Ion that such th Ings were not poss Ible for an ord Inary devotee, not even for a h Ighly developed soul. Only an Incarnat Ion of God was capable of such sp Ir Itual man Ifestat Ions. She procla Imed openly that Sr I Ramakr Ishna, l Ike Sr I Cha Itanya, was an Incarnat Ion of God.
When Sr I Ramakr Ishna told Mathur what the Brahman I had sa Id about h Im, Mathur shook h Is head In doubt. He was reluctant to accept h Im as an Incarnat Ion of God, an Avatar comparable to Rama, Kr Ishna, Buddha, and Cha Itanya, though he adm Itted Sr I Ramakr Ishna's extraord Inary sp Ir Itual Ity. Whereupon the Brahman I asked Mathur to arrange a conference of scholars who should d Iscuss the matter w Ith her. He agreed to the proposal and the meet Ing was arranged. It was to be held In the natmand Ir In front of the Kal I temple.
Two famous pund Its of the t Ime were Inv Ited: Va Ishnavcharan, the leader of the Va Ishnava soc Iety, and Gaur I. The f Irst to arr Ive was Va Ishnavcharan, w Ith a d Ist Ingu Ished company of scholars and devotees. The Brahman I, l Ike a proud mother, procla Imed her v Iew before h Im and supported It w Ith quotat Ions from the scr Iptures. As the pund Its d Iscussed the deep theolog Ical quest Ion, Sr I Ramakr Ishna, perfectly Ind Ifferent to everyth Ing happen Ing around h Im, sat In the Ir m Idst l Ike a ch Ild, Immersed In h Is own thoughts, somet Imes sm Il Ing, somet Imes chew Ing a p Inch of sp Ices from a pouch, or aga In say Ing to Va Ishnavcharan w Ith a nudge: "Look here. Somet Imes I feel l Ike th Is, too." Presently Va Ishnavcharan arose to declare h Imself In total agreement w Ith the v Iew of the Brahman I. He declared that Sr I Ramakr Ishna had undoubtedly exper Ienced mahabhava and that th Is was the certa In s Ign of the rare man Ifestat Ion of God In a man. The people assembled
there, espec Ially the off Icers of the temple garden, were struck dumb. Sr I Rama- kr Ishna sa Id to Mathur, l Ike a boy: "Just fancy, he too says so! Well, I am glad to learn that after all It Is not a d Isease."
When, a few days later, Pund It Gaur I arr Ived, another meet Ing was held, and he agreed w Ith the v Iew of the Brahman I and Va Ishnavcharan. To Sr I Ramakr Ishna's remark that Va Ishnavcharan had declared h Im to be an Avatar, Gaur I repl Ied: " Is that all he has to say about you? Then he has sa Id very l Ittle. I am fully conv Inced that you are that M Ine of Sp Ir Itual Power, only a small fract Ion of wh Ich descends on earth, from t Ime to t Ime, In the form of an Incarnat Ion."
"Ah!" sa Id Sr I Ramakr Ishna w Ith a sm Ile, "you seem to have qu Ite outb Id Va Ishnavcharan In th Is matter. What have you found In me that makes you enterta In such an Idea?"
Gaur I sa Id: " I feel It In my heart and I have the scr Iptures on my s Ide. I am ready to prove It to anyone who challenges me."
"Well," Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id, " It Is you who say so; but, bel Ieve me, I know noth Ing about It."
Thus the Insane pr Iest was by verd Ict of the great scholars of the day procla Imed a D Iv Ine Incarnat Ion. H Is v Is Ions were not the result of an over-heated bra In; they had precedent In sp Ir Itual h Istory. And how d Id the proclamat Ion affect Sr I Ramakr Ishna h Imself? He rema Ined the s Imple ch Ild of the Mother that he had been s Ince the f Irst day of h Is l Ife. Years later, when two of h Is householder d Isc Iples openly spoke of h Im as a D Iv Ine Incarnat Ion and the matter was reported to h Im, he sa Id w Ith a touch of sarcasm: "Do they th Ink they w Ill enhance my glory that way? One of them Is an actor on the stage and the other a phys Ic Ian. What do they know about Incarnat Ions? Why, years ago pund Its l Ike Gaur I and Va Ishnavcharan declared me to be an Avatar. They were great scholars and knew what they sa Id. But that d Id not make any change In my m Ind."
Sr I Ramakr Ishna was a learner all h Is l Ife. He often used to quote a proverb to h Is d Isc Iples: "Fr Iend, the more I l Ive the more I learn." When the exc Itement created by the Brahman I's declarat Ion was over, he set h Imself to the task of pract Is Ing sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ines accord Ing to the trad It Ional methods la Id down In the Tantra and Va Ishnava scr Iptures. H Itherto he had pursued h Is sp Ir Itual Ideal accord Ing to the prompt Ings of h Is own m Ind and heart. Now he accepted the Brahman I as h Is guru and set foot on the trad It Ional h Ighways.
--- Id="TANTRA">TANTRA
Accord Ing to the Tantra, the Ult Imate Real Ity Is Ch It, or Consc Iousness, wh Ich Is Ident Ical w Ith Sat, or Be Ing, and w Ith Ananda, or Bl Iss. Th Is Ult Imate Real Ity, Satch Idananda, Ex Istence-Knowledge-Bl Iss Absolute, Is Ident Ical w Ith the Real Ity preached In the Vedas. And man Is Ident Ical w Ith th Is Real Ity; but under the Influence of maya, or Illus Ion, he has forgotten h Is true nature. He takes to be real a merely apparent world of subject and object, and th Is error Is the cause of h Is bondage and suffer Ing. The goal of sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine Is the red Iscovery of h Is true Ident Ity w Ith the d Iv Ine Real Ity.
For the ach Ievement of th Is goal the Vedanta prescr Ibes an austere negat Ive method of d Iscr Im Inat Ion and renunc Iat Ion, wh Ich can be followed by only a few Ind Iv Iduals endowed w Ith sharp Intell Igence and unshakable w Ill-power. But Tantra takes Into cons Iderat Ion the natural weakness of human be Ings, the Ir lower appet Ites, and the Ir love for the concrete. It comb Ines ph Ilosophy w Ith r Ituals, med Itat Ion w Ith ceremon Ies, renunc Iat Ion w Ith enjoyment. The underly Ing purpose Is gradually to tra In the asp Irant to med Itate on h Is Ident Ity w Ith the Ult Imate.
The average man w Ishes to enjoy the mater Ial objects of the world. Tantra b Ids h Im enjoy these, but at the same t Ime d Iscover In them the presence of God. Myst Ical r Ites are prescr Ibed by wh Ich, slowly, the sense-objects become sp Ir Itual Ized and sense attract Ion Is transformed Into a love of God. So the very "bonds" of man are turned Into "releasers". The very po Ison that k Ills Is transmuted Into the el Ix Ir of l Ife. Outward renunc Iat Ion Is not necessary. Thus the a Im of Tantra Is to subl Imate bhoga, or enjoyment Into yoga, or un Ion w Ith Consc Iousness. For, accord Ing to th Is ph Ilosophy, the world w Ith all Its man Ifestat Ions Is noth Ing but the sport of S Iva and Sakt I, the Absolute and Its Inscrutable Power.
The d Isc Ipl Ines of Tantra are graded to su It asp Irants of all degrees. Exerc Ises are prescr Ibed for people w Ith "an Imal", "hero Ic", and "d Iv Ine" outlooks. Certa In of the r Ites requ Ire the presence of members of the oppos Ite sex. Here the asp Irant learns to look on woman as the embod Iment of the Goddess Kal I, the Mother of the Un Iverse. The very bas Is of Tantra Is the Motherhood of God and the glor If Icat Ion of woman. Every part of a woman's body Is to be regarded as Incarnate D Iv In Ity. But the r Ites are extremely dangerous. The help of a qual If Ied guru Is absolutely necessary. An unwary devotee may lose h Is foothold and fall Into a p It of deprav Ity.
Accord Ing to the Tantra, Sakt I Is the act Ive creat Ive force In the un Iverse. S Iva, the Absolute, Is a more or less pass Ive pr Inc Iple. Further, Sakt I Is as Inseparable from S Iva as f Ire's power to burn Is from f Ire Itself. Sakt I, the Creat Ive Power, conta Ins In Its womb the un Iverse, and therefore Is the D Iv Ine Mother. All women are Her symbols. Kal I Is one of Her several forms. The med Itat Ion on Kal I, the Creat Ive Power, Is the central d Isc Ipl Ine of the Tantra. Wh Ile med Itat Ing, the asp Irant at f Irst regards h Imself as one w Ith the Absolute and then th Inks that out of that Impersonal Consc Iousness emerge two ent It Ies, namely, h Is own self and the l Iv Ing form of the Goddess. He then projects the Goddess Into the tang Ible Image before h Im and worsh Ips It as the D Iv Ine Mother.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna set h Imself to the task of pract Is Ing the d Isc Ipl Ines of Tantra; and at the b Idd Ing of the D Iv Ine Mother Herself he accepted the Brahman I as h Is guru. He performed profound and del Icate ceremon Ies In the Panchavat I and under the bel-tree at the northern extrem Ity of the temple compound. He pract Ised all the d Isc Ipl Ines of the s Ixty-four pr Inc Ipal Tantra books, and It took h Im never more than three days to ach Ieve the result prom Ised In any one of them. After the observance of a few prel Im Inary r Ites, he would be overwhelmed w Ith a strange d Iv Ine fervour and would go Into samadh I, where h Is m Ind would dwell In exaltat Ion. Ev Il ceased to ex Ist for h Im. The word "carnal" lost Its mean Ing. The whole world and everyth Ing In It appeared as the l Ila, the sport, of S Iva and Sakt I. He beheld held everywhere man Ifest the power and beauty of the Mother; the whole world, an Imate and Inan Imate, appeared to h Im as pervaded w Ith Ch It, Consc Iousness, and w Ith Ananda, Bl Iss.
He saw In a v Is Ion the Ult Imate Cause of the un Iverse as a huge lum Inous tr Iangle g Iv Ing b Irth every moment to an Inf In Ite number of worlds. He heard the Anahata Sabda, the great sound Om, of wh Ich the Innumerable sounds of the un Iverse are only so many echoes. He acqu Ired the e Ight supernatural powers of yoga, wh Ich make a man almost omn Ipotent, and these he spurned as of no value whatsoever to the Sp Ir It. He had a v Is Ion of the d Iv Ine Maya, the Inscrutable Power of God, by wh Ich the un Iverse Is created and susta Ined, and Into wh Ich It Is f Inally absorbed. In th Is v Is Ion he saw a woman of exqu Is Ite beauty, about to become a mother, emerg Ing from the Ganges and slowly approach Ing the Panchavat I. Presently she gave b Irth to a ch Ild and began to nurse It tenderly. A moment later she assumed a terr Ible aspect, se Ized the ch Ild w Ith her gr Im jaws, and crushed It. Swallow Ing It, she re-entered the waters of the Ganges.
But the most remarkable exper Ience dur Ing th Is per Iod was the awaken Ing of the Kundal In I Sakt I, the "Serpent Power". He actually saw the Power, at f Irst ly Ing asleep at the bottom of the sp Inal column, then wak Ing up and ascend Ing along the myst Ic Sushumna canal and through Its s Ix centres, or lotuses, to the Sahasrara, the thousand-petalled lotus In the top of the head. He further saw that as the Kundal In I went upward the d Ifferent lotuses bloomed. And th Is phenomenon was accompan Ied by v Is Ions and trances. Later on he descr Ibed to h Is d Isc Iples and devotees the var Ious movements of the Kundal In I: the f Ishl Ike, b Irdl Ike, monkeyl Ike, and so on. The awaken- Ing of the Kundal In I Is the beg Inn Ing of sp Ir Itual consc Iousness, and Its un Ion w Ith S Iva In the Sahasrara, end Ing In samadh I, Is the consummat Ion of the Tantr Ik d Isc Ipl Ines.
About th Is t Ime It was revealed to h Im that In a short wh Ile many devotees would seek h Is gu Idance.
--- Id="VA ISHNAVA_D ISC IPL INES">VA ISHNAVA D ISC IPL INES
After complet Ing the Tantr Ik sadhana Sr I Ramakr Ishna followed the Brahman I In the d Isc Ipl Ines of Va Ishnav Ism. The Va Ishnavas are worsh Ippers of V Ishnu, the "All-pervad Ing", the Supreme God, who Is also known as Har I and Narayana. Of V Ishnu's var Ious Incarnat Ions the two w Ith the largest number of followers are Rama and Kr Ishna.
Va Ishnav Ism Is exclus Ively a rel Ig Ion of bhakt I. Bhakt I Is Intense love of God, attachment to H Im alone; It Is of the nature of bl Iss and bestows upon the lover Immortal Ity and l Iberat Ion. God, accord Ing to Va Ishnav Ism, cannot be real Ized through log Ic or reason; and, w Ithout bhakt I, all penances, auster It Ies and r Ites are fut Ile. Man cannot real Ize God by self-exert Ion alone. For the v Is Ion of God H Is grace Is absolutely necessary, and th Is grace Is felt by the pure of heart. The m Ind Is to be pur If Ied through bhakt I. The pure m Ind then rema Ins for ever Immersed In the ecstasy of God-v Is Ion. It Is the cult Ivat Ion of th Is d Iv Ine love that Is the ch Ief concern of the Va Ishnava rel Ig Ion.
There are three k Inds of formal devot Ion: tamas Ic, rajas Ic, and sattv Ic. If a person, wh Ile show Ing devot Ion, to God, Is actuated by malevolence, arrogance, jealousy, or anger, then h Is devot Ion Is tamas Ic, s Ince It Is Influenced by tamas, the qual Ity of Inert Ia. If he worsh Ips God from a des Ire for fame or wealth, or from any other worldly amb It Ion, then h Is devot Ion Is rajas Ic, s Ince It Is Influenced by rajas, the qual Ity of act Iv Ity. But If a person loves God w Ithout any thought of mater Ial ga In, If he performs h Is dut Ies to please God alone and ma Inta Ins toward all created be Ings the att Itude of fr Iendsh Ip, then h Is devot Ion Is called sattv Ic, s Ince It Is Influenced by sattva, the qual Ity of harmony. But the h Ighest devot Ion transcends the three gunas, or qual It Ies, be Ing a spontaneous, un Interrupted Incl Inat Ion of the m Ind toward God, the Inner Soul of all be Ings; and It wells up In the heart of a true devotee as soon as he hears the name of God or ment Ion of God's attr Ibutes. A devotee possessed of th Is love would not accept the happ Iness of heaven If It were offered h Im. H Is one des Ire Is to love God under all cond It Ions — In pleasure and pa In, l Ife and death, honour and d Ishonour, prosper Ity and advers Ity.
There are two stages of bhakt I. The f Irst Is known as va Idh I-bhakt I, or love of God qual If Ied by scr Iptural Injunct Ions. For the devotees of th Is stage are prescr Ibed regular and method Ical worsh Ip, hymns, prayers, the repet It Ion of God's name, and the chant Ing of H Is glor Ies. Th Is lower bhakt I In course of t Ime matures Into para-bhakt I, or supreme devot Ion, known also as prema, the most Intense form of d Iv Ine love. D Iv Ine love Is an end In Itself. It ex Ists potent Ially In all human hearts, but In the case of bound creatures It Is m Isd Irected to earthly objects.
To develop the devotee's love for God, Va Ishnav Ism human Izes God. God Is to be regarded as the devotee's Parent, Master, Fr Iend, Ch Ild, Husband, or Sweetheart, each succeed Ing relat Ionsh Ip represent Ing an Intens If Icat Ion of love. These bhavas, or att Itudes toward God, are known as santa, dasya, sakhya, vatsalya, and madhur. The r Ish Is of the Vedas, Hanuman, the cow-herd boys of Vr Indavan, Rama's mother Kausalya, and Radh Ika, Kr Ishna's sweetheart, exh Ib Ited, respect Ively, the most perfect examples of these forms. In the ascend Ing scale the-glor Ies of God are gradually forgotten and the devotee real Izes more and more the Int Imacy of d Iv Ine commun Ion. F Inally he regards h Imself as the m Istress of h Is Beloved, and no art If Ic Ial barr Ier rema Ins to separate h Im from h Is Ideal. No soc Ial or moral obl Igat Ion can b Ind to the earth h Is soar Ing sp Ir It. He exper Iences perfect un Ion w Ith the Godhead. Unl Ike the Vedant Ist, who str Ives to transcend all var Iet Ies of the subject-object relat Ionsh Ip, a devotee of the Va Ishnava path w Ishes to reta In both h Is own Ind Iv Idual Ity and the personal Ity of God. To h Im God Is not an Intang Ible Absolute, but the Purushottama, the Supreme Person.
Wh Ile pract Is Ing the d Isc Ipl Ine of the madhur bhava, the male devotee often regards h Imself as a woman, In order to develop the most Intense form of love for Sr I Kr Ishna, the only purusha, or man, In the un Iverse. Th Is assumpt Ion of the att Itude of the oppos Ite sex has a deep psycholog Ical s Ign If Icance. It Is a matter of common exper Ience that an Idea may be cult Ivated to such an Intense degree that every Idea al Ien to It Is dr Iven from the m Ind. Th Is pecul Iar Ity of the m Ind may be ut Il Ized for the subjugat Ion of the lower des Ires and the development of the sp Ir Itual nature. Now, the Idea wh Ich Is the bas Is of all des Ires and pass Ions In a man Is the conv Ict Ion of h Is Ind Issoluble assoc Iat Ion w Ith a male body. If he can Inoculate h Imself thoroughly w Ith the Idea that he Is a woman, he can get r Id of the des Ires pecul Iar to h Is male body. Aga In, the Idea that he Is a woman may In turn be made to g Ive way to another h Igher Idea, namely, that he Is ne Ither man nor woman, but the Impersonal Sp Ir It. The Impersonal Sp Ir It alone can enjoy real commun Ion w Ith the Impersonal God. Hence the h Ighest est real Izat Ion of the Va Ishnava draws close to the transcendental exper Ience of the Vedant Ist.
A beaut Iful express Ion of the Va Ishnava worsh Ip of God through love Is to be found In the Vr Indavan ep Isode of the Bhagavata. The gop Is, or m Ilk-ma Ids, of Vr Indavan regarded the s Ix-year-old Kr Ishna as the Ir Beloved. They sought no personal ga In or happ Iness from th Is love. They surrendered to Kr Ishna the Ir bod Ies, m Inds, and souls. Of all the gop Is, Radh Ika, or Radha, because of her Intense love for H Im, was the closest to Kr Ishna. She man Ifested mahabhava and was un Ited w Ith her Beloved. Th Is un Ion represents, through sensuous language, a supersensuous exper Ience.
Sr I Cha Itanya, also known as Gauranga, Gora, or N Ima I, born In Bengal In 1485 and regarded as an Incarnat Ion of God, Is a great prophet of the Va Ishnava rel Ig Ion. Cha Itanya declared the chant Ing of God's name to be the most eff Icac Ious sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine for the Kal Iyuga.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna, as the monkey Hanuman, had already worsh Ipped God as h Is Master. Through h Is devot Ion to Kal I he had worsh Ipped God as h Is Mother. He was now to take up the other relat Ionsh Ips prescr Ibed by the Va Ishnava scr Iptures.
--- Id="RAMLALA">RAMLALA
About the year 1864 there came to Daksh Ineswar a wander Ing Va Ishnava monk, Jatadhar I, whose Ideal De Ity was Rama. He always carr Ied w Ith h Im a small metal Image of the De Ity, wh Ich he called by the endear Ing name of Ramlala, the Boy Rama. Toward th Is l Ittle Image he d Isplayed the tender affect Ion of Kausalya for her d Iv Ine Son, Rama. As a result of l Ifelong sp Ir Itual pract Ice he had actually found In the metal Image the presence of h Is Ideal. Ramlala was no longer for h Im a metal Image, but the l Iv Ing God. He devoted h Imself to nurs Ing Rama, feed Ing Rama, play Ing w Ith Rama, tak Ing Rama for a walk, and bath Ing Rama. And he found that the Image responded to h Is love.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna, much Impressed w Ith h Is devot Ion, requested Jatadhar I to spend a few days at Daksh Ineswar. Soon Ramlala became the favour Ite compan Ion of Sr I Ramakr Ishna too. Later on he descr Ibed to the devotees how the l Ittle Image would dance gracefully before h Im, jump on h Is back, Ins Ist on be Ing taken In h Is arms, run to the f Ields In the sun, pluck flowers from the bushes, and play pranks l Ike a naughty boy. A very sweet relat Ionsh Ip sprang up between h Im and Ramlala, for whom he felt the love of a mother.
One day Jatadhar I requested Sr I Ramakr Ishna to keep the Image and bade h Im ad Ieu w Ith tearful eyes. He declared that Ramlala had fulf Illed h Is Innermost prayer and that he now had no more need of formal worsh Ip. A few days later Sr I Ramakr Ishna was blessed through Ramlala w Ith a v Is Ion of Ramachandra, whereby he real Ized that the Rama of the Ramayana, the son of Dasaratha, pervades the whole un Iverse as Sp Ir It and Consc Iousness; that He Is Its Creator, Susta Iner, and Destroyer; that, In st Ill another aspect, He Is the transcendental Brahman, w Ithout form, attr Ibute, or name.
Wh Ile worsh Ipp Ing Ramlala as the D Iv Ine Ch Ild, Sr I Ramakr Ishna's heart became f Illed w Ith motherly tenderness, and he began to regard h Imself as a woman. H Is speech and gestures changed. He began to move freely w Ith the lad Ies of Mathur's fam Ily, who now looked upon h Im as one of the Ir own sex. Dur Ing th Is t Ime he worsh Ipped the D Iv Ine Mother as Her compan Ion or handma Id.
--- Id=" IN_COMMUN ION_W ITH_THE_D IV INE_BELOVED"> IN COMMUN ION W ITH THE D IV INE BELOVED
Sr I Ramakr Ishna now devoted h Imself to scal Ing the most Inaccess Ible and d Izzy he Ights of dual Ist Ic worsh Ip, namely, the complete un Ion w Ith Sr I Kr Ishna as the Beloved of the heart. He regarded h Imself as one of the gop Is of Vr Indavan, mad w Ith long Ing for her d Iv Ine Sweetheart. At h Is request Mathur prov Ided h Im w Ith woman's dress and jewelry. In th Is love-pursu It, food and dr Ink were forgotten. Day and n Ight he wept b Itterly. The yearn Ing turned Into a mad frenzy; for the d Iv Ine Kr Ishna began to play w Ith h Im the old tr Icks He had played w Ith the gop Is. He would tease and taunt, now and then reveal Ing H Imself, but always keep Ing at a d Istance. Sr I Ramakr Ishna's angu Ish brought on a return of the old phys Ical symptoms: the burn Ing sensat Ion, an ooz Ing of blood through the pores, a loosen Ing of the jo Ints, and the stopp Ing of phys Iolog Ical funct Ions.
The Va Ishnava scr Iptures adv Ise one to prop It Iate Radha and obta In her grace In order to real Ize Sr I Kr Ishna. So the tortured devotee now turned h Is prayer to her. W Ith In a short t Ime he enjoyed her blessed v Is Ion. He saw and felt the f Igure of Radha d Isappear Ing Into h Is own body.
He sa Id later on: " It Is Imposs Ible to descr Ibe the heavenly beauty and sweetness of Radha. Her very appearance showed that she had completely forgotten herself In her pass Ionate attachment to Kr Ishna. Her complex Ion was a l Ight yellow."
Now one w Ith Radha, he man Ifested the great ecstat Ic love, the mahabhava, wh Ich had found In her Its fullest express Ion. Later Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id: "The man Ifestat Ion In the same Ind Iv Idual of the n Ineteen d Ifferent k Inds of emot Ion for God Is called, In the books on bhakt I, mahabhava. An ord Inary man takes a whole l Ifet Ime to express even a s Ingle one of these. But In th Is body [mean Ing h Imself] there has been a complete man Ifestat Ion of all n Ineteen."
The love of Radha Is the precursor of the resplendent v Is Ion of Sr I Kr Ishna, and Sr I Ramakr Ishna soon exper Ienced that v Is Ion. The enchant Ing Ing form of Kr Ishna appeared to h Im and merged In h Is person. He became Kr Ishna; he totally forgot h Is own Ind Iv Idual Ity and the world; he saw Kr Ishna In h Imself and In the un Iverse. Thus he atta Ined to the fulf Ilment of the worsh Ip of the Personal God. He drank from the founta In of Immortal Bl Iss. The agony of h Is heart van Ished forever. He real Ized Amr Ita, Immortal Ity, beyond the shadow of death.
One day, l Isten Ing to a rec Itat Ion of the Bhagavata on the verandah of the Radhakanta temple, he fell Into a d Iv Ine mood and saw the enchant Ing form of Kr Ishna. He perce Ived the lum Inous rays Issu Ing from Kr Ishna's Lotus Feet In the form of a stout rope, wh Ich touched f Irst the Bhagavata and then h Is own chest, connect Ing all three — God, the scr Ipture, and the devotee. "After th Is v Is Ion", he used to say, " I came to real Ize that Bhagavan, Bhakta, and Bhagavata — God, Devotee, and Scr Ipture — are In real Ity one and the same."
--- Id="VEDANTA">VEDANTA
The Brahman I was the enthus Iast Ic teacher and aston Ished beholder of Sr I Ramakr Ishna In h Is sp Ir Itual progress. She became proud of the ach Ievements of her un Ique pup Il. But the pup Il h Imself was not perm Itted to rest; h Is dest Iny beckoned h Im forward. H Is D Iv Ine Mother would allow h Im no resp Ite t Ill he had left beh Ind the ent Ire realm of dual Ity w Ith Its v Is Ions, exper Iences, and ecstat Ic dreams. But for the new ascent the old tender gu Ides would not suff Ice. The Brahman I, on whom he had depended for, three years, saw her son escape from her to follow the command of a teacher w Ith mascul Ine strength, a sterner m Ien, a gnarled phys Ique, and a v Ir Ile vo Ice. The new guru was a wander Ing monk, the sturdy Totapur I, whom Sr I Ramakr Ishna learnt to address affect Ionately as Nangta, the "Naked One", because of h Is total renunc Iat Ion of all earthly objects and attachments, Includ Ing even a p Iece of wear Ing cloth.
Totapur I was the bearer of a ph Ilosophy new to Sr I Ramakr Ishna, the non-dual Ist Ic Vedanta ph Ilosophy, whose conclus Ions Totapur I had exper Ienced In h Is own l Ife. Th Is anc Ient H Indu system des Ignates the Ult Imate Real Ity as Brahman, also descr Ibed as Satch Idananda, Ex Istence-Knowledge-Bl Iss Absolute. Brahman Is the only Real Ex Istence. In It there Is no t Ime, no space, no causal Ity, no mult Ipl Ic Ity. But through maya, Its Inscrutable Power, t Ime, space, and causal Ity are created and the One appears to break Into the many. The eternal Sp Ir It appears as a man Ifold of Ind Iv Iduals endowed w Ith form and subject to the cond It Ions of t Ime. The Immortal becomes a v Ict Im of b Irth and death. The Changeless undergoes change. The s Inless Pure Soul, hypnot Ized by Its own maya, exper Iences the joys of heaven and the pa Ins of hell. But these exper Iences based on the dual Ity of the subject-object relat Ionsh Ip are unreal. Even the v Is Ion of a Personal God
Is, ult Imately speak Ing, as Illusory as the exper Ience of any other object. Man atta Ins h Is l Iberat Ion, therefore, by p Ierc Ing the ve Il of maya and red Iscover Ing h Is total Ident Ity w Ith Brahman. Know Ing h Imself to be one w Ith the Un Iversal Sp Ir It, he real Izes Ineffable Peace. Only then does he go beyond the f Ict Ion of b Irth and death; only then does he become Immortal. 'And th Is Is the ult Imate goal of all rel Ig Ions — to dehypnot Ize the soul now hypnot Ized by Its own Ignorance.
The path of the Vedant Ic d Isc Ipl Ine Is the path of negat Ion, "net I", In wh Ich, by stern determ Inat Ion, all that Is unreal Is both negated and renounced. It Is the path of jnana, knowledge, the d Irect method of real Iz Ing the Absolute. After the negat Ion of everyth Ing relat Ive, Includ Ing the d Iscr Im Inat Ing ego Itself, the asp Irant merges In the One w Ithout a Second, In the bl Iss of n Irv Ikalpa samadh I, where subject and object are al Ike d Issolved. The soul goes beyond the realm of thought. The doma In of dual Ity Is transcended. Maya Is left beh Ind w Ith all Its changes and mod If Icat Ions. The Real Man towers above the delus Ions of creat Ion, preservat Ion, and destruct Ion. An avalanche of Indescr Ibable Bl Iss sweeps away all relat Ive Ideas of pa In and pleasure, good and ev Il. There sh Ines In the heart the glory of the Eternal Brahman, Ex Istence-Knowledge-Bl Iss Absolute. Knower, knowledge, and known are d Issolved In the Ocean of one eternal Consc Iousness; love, lover, and beloved merge In the unbounded Sea of supreme Fel Ic Ity; b Irth, growth, and death van Ish In Inf In Ite Ex Istence. All doubts and m Isg Iv Ings are quelled for ever; the osc Illat Ions of the m Ind are stopped; the momentum of past act Ions Is exhausted. Break Ing down the r Idge-pole of the tabernacle In wh Ich the soul has made Its abode for untold ages, st Ill Ing the body, calm Ing the m Ind, drown Ing the ego, the sweet joy of Brahman wells up In that superconsc Ious state. Space d Isappears Into noth Ingness, t Ime Is swallowed In etern Ity, and causat Ion becomes a dream of the past. Only Ex Istence Is. Ah! Who can descr Ibe what the soul then feels In Its commun Ion w Ith the Self?
Even when man descends from th Is d Izzy he Ight, he Is devo Id of Ideas of " I" and "m Ine"; he looks on the body as a mere shadow, an outer sheath encas Ing the soul. He does not dwell on the past, takes no thought for the future, and looks w Ith Ind Ifference on the present. He surveys everyth Ing In the world w Ith an eye of equal Ity; he Is no longer touched by the Inf In Ite var Iety of phenomena; he no longer reacts to pleasure and pa In. He rema Ins unmoved whether he — that Is to say, h Is body — Is worsh Ipped by the good or tormented by the w Icked; for he real Izes that It Is the one Brahman that man Ifests Itself through everyth Ing. The Impact of such an exper Ience devastates the body and m Ind. Consc Iousness becomes blasted, as It were, w Ith an excess of L Ight. In the Vedanta books It Is sa Id that after the exper Ience of n Irv Ikalpa samadh I the body drops off l Ike a dry leaf. Only those who are born w Ith a spec Ial m Iss Ion for the world can return
from th Is he Ight to the valleys of normal l Ife. They l Ive and move In the world for the welfare of mank Ind. They are Invested w Ith a supreme sp Ir Itual power. A d Iv Ine glory sh Ines through them.
--- Id="TOTAPUR I">TOTAPUR I
Totapur I arr Ived at the Daksh Ineswar temple garden toward the end of 1864. Perhaps born In the Punjab, he was the head of a monastery In that prov Ince of Ind Ia and cla Imed leadersh Ip of seven hundred sannyas Is. Tra Ined from early youth In the d Isc Ipl Ines of the Adva Ita Vedanta, he looked upon the world as an Illus Ion. The gods and goddesses of the dual Ist Ic worsh Ip were to h Im mere fantas Ies of the deluded m Ind. Prayers, ceremon Ies, r Ites, and r Ituals had noth Ing to do w Ith true rel Ig Ion, and about these he was utterly Ind Ifferent. Exerc Is Ing self-exert Ion and unshakable w Ill-power, he had l Iberated h Imself from attachment to the sense-objects of the relat Ive un Iverse. For forty years he had pract Ised austere d Isc Ipl Ine on the bank of the sacred Narmada and had f Inally real Ized h Is Ident Ity w Ith the Absolute. Thenceforward he roamed In the world as an unfettered soul, a l Ion free from the cage. Clad In a lo In-cloth, he spent h Is days under the canopy of the sky al Ike In storm and sunsh Ine, feed Ing h Is body on the slender p Ittance of alms. He had been v Is It Ing the estuary of the Ganges. On h Is return journey along the bank of the sacred r Iver, led by the Inscrutable D Iv Ine W Ill, he stopped at Daksh Ineswar.
Totapur I, d Iscover Ing at once that Sr I Ramakr Ishna was prepared to be a student of Vedanta, asked to In It Iate h Im Into Its myster Ies. W Ith the perm Iss Ion of the D Iv Ine Mother, Sr I Ramakr Ishna agreed to the proposal. But Totapur I expla Ined that only a sannyas I could rece Ive the teach Ing of Vedanta. Sr I Ramakr Ishna agreed to renounce the world, but w Ith the st Ipulat Ion that the ceremony of h Is In It Iat Ion Into the monast Ic order be performed In secret, to spare the feel Ings of h Is old mother, who had been l Iv Ing w Ith h Im at Daksh Ineswar.
On the appo Inted day, In the small hours of the morn Ing, a f Ire was l Ighted In the Panchavat I. Totapur I and Sr I Ramakr Ishna sat before It. The flame played on the Ir faces. "Ramakr Ishna was a small brown man w Ith a short beard and beaut Iful eyes, long dark eyes, full of l Ight, obl Iquely set and sl Ightly ve Iled, never very w Ide open, but see Ing half-closed a great d Istance both outwardly and Inwardly. H Is mouth was open over h Is wh Ite teeth In a bew Itch Ing sm Ile, at once affect Ionate and m Isch Ievous. Of med Ium he Ight, he was th In to emac Iat Ion and extremely del Icate. H Is temperament was h Igh-strung, for he was supersens It Ive to all the w Inds of joy and sorrow, both moral and phys Ical. He was Indeed a l Iv Ing reflect Ion of all that happened before the m Irror of h Is eyes, a two-s Ided m Irror, turned both out and In." (Roma In Rolland, Prophets of the New Ind Ia, pp. 38-9.) Fac Ing h Im, the other rose l Ike a rock. He was very tall and robust, a sturdy and tough oak. H Is const Itut Ion and m Ind were of Iron. He was the strong leader of men.
In the burn Ing flame before h Im Sr I Ramakr Ishna performed the r Ituals of destroy Ing h Is attachment to relat Ives, fr Iends, body, m Ind, sense-organs, ego, and the world. The leap Ing flame swallowed It all, mak Ing the In It Iate free and pure. The sacred thread and the tuft of ha Ir were cons Igned to the f Ire, complet Ing h Is severance from caste, sex, and soc Iety. Last of all he burnt In that f Ire, w Ith all that Is holy as h Is w Itness, h Is des Ire for enjoyment here and hereafter. He uttered the sacred mantras g Iv Ing assurance of safety and fearlessness to all be Ings, who were only man Ifestat Ions of h Is own Self. The r Ites completed, the d Isc Iple rece Ived from the guru the lo In-cloth and ochre robe, the emblems of h Is new l Ife.
The teacher and the d Isc Iple repa Ired to the med Itat Ion room near by. Totapur I began to Impart to Sr I Ramakr Ishna the great truths of Vedanta.
"Brahman", he sa Id, " Is the only Real Ity, ever pure, ever Illum Ined, ever free, beyond the l Im Its of t Ime, space, and causat Ion. Though apparently d Iv Ided by names and forms through the Inscrutable power of maya, that enchantress who makes the Imposs Ible poss Ible, Brahman Is really One and und Iv Ided. When a seeker merges In the beat Itude of samadh I, he does not perce Ive t Ime and space or name and form, the offspr Ing of maya. Whatever Is w Ith In the doma In of maya Is unreal. G Ive It up. Destroy the pr Ison-house of name and form and rush out of It w Ith the strength of a l Ion. D Ive deep In search of the Self and real Ize It through samadh I. You w Ill f Ind the world of name and form van Ish Ing Into vo Id, and the puny ego d Issolv Ing In Brahman-Consc Iousness. You w Ill real Ize your Ident Ity w Ith Brahman, Ex Istence-Knowledge-Bl Iss Absolute." Quot Ing the Upan Ishad, Totapur I sa Id: "That knowledge Is shallow by wh Ich one sees or hears or knows another
. What Is shallow Is worthless and can never g Ive real fel Ic Ity. But the Knowledge by wh Ich one does not see another or hear another or know another, wh Ich Is beyond dual Ity, Is great, and through such Knowledge one atta Ins the Inf In Ite Bl Iss. How can the m Ind and senses grasp That wh Ich sh Ines In the heart of all as the Eternal Subject?"
Totapur I asked the d Isc Iple to w Ithdraw h Is m Ind from all objects of the relat Ive world, Includ Ing the gods and goddesses, and to concentrate on the Absolute. But the task was not easy even for Sr I Ramakr Ishna. He found It Imposs Ible to take h Is m Ind beyond Kal I, the D Iv Ine Mother of the Un Iverse. "After the In It Iat Ion", Sr I Ramakr Ishna once sa Id, descr Ib Ing the event, "Nangta began to teach me the var Ious conclus Ions of the Adva Ita Vedanta and asked me to w Ithdraw the m Ind completely from all objects and d Ive deep Into the Atman. But In sp Ite of all my attempts I could not altogether cross the realm of name and form and br Ing my m Ind to the uncond It Ioned state. I had no d Iff Iculty In tak Ing the m Ind from all the objects of the world. But the rad Iant and too fam Il Iar f Igure of the Bl Issful Mother, the Embod Iment of the essence of Pure Consc Iousness, appeared before me as a l Iv Ing real Ity. Her bew Itch Ing sm Ile prevented me from pass Ing Into the Great Beyond. Aga In and aga In I tr Ied, but She stood In my way every t Ime. In despa Ir I sa Id to Nangta: ' It Is hopeless. I cannot ra Ise my m Ind to the uncond It Ioned state and come face to face w Ith Atman.' He grew exc Ited and sharply sa Id: 'What? You can't do It? But you have to.' He cast h Is eyes around. F Ind Ing a p Iece of glass he took It up and stuck It between my eyebrows. 'Concentrate the m Ind on th Is po Int!' he thundered. Then w Ith stern determ Inat Ion I aga In sat to med Itate. As soon as the grac Ious form of the D Iv Ine Mother appeared before me, I used my d Iscr Im Inat Ion as a sword and w Ith It clove Her In two. The last barr Ier fell. My sp Ir It at once soared beyond the relat Ive plane and I lost myself In samadh I."
Sr I Ramakr Ishna rema Ined completely absorbed In samadh I for three days. " Is It really true?" Totapur I cr Ied out In aston Ishment. " Is It poss Ible that he has atta Ined In a s Ingle day what It took me forty years of strenuous pract Ice to ach Ieve? Great God! It Is noth Ing short of a m Iracle!" W Ith the help of Totapur I, Sr I Ramakr Ishna's m Ind f Inally came down to the relat Ive plane.
Totapur I, a monk of the most orthodox type, never stayed at a place more than three days. But he rema Ined at Daksh Ineswar eleven months. He too had someth Ing to learn.
Totapur I had no Idea of the struggles of ord Inary men In the to Ils of pass Ion and des Ire. Hav Ing ma Inta Ined all through l Ife the gu Ilelessness of a ch Ild, he laughed at the Idea of a man's be Ing led astray by the senses. He was conv Inced that the world was maya and had only to be denounced to van Ish for ever. A born non-dual Ist, he had no fa Ith In a Personal God. He d Id not bel Ieve In the terr Ible aspect of Kal I, much less In Her ben Ign aspect. Mus Ic and the chant Ing of God's holy name were to h Im only so much nonsense. He r Id Iculed the spend Ing of emot Ion on the worsh Ip of a Personal God.
--- Id="KAL I_AND_MAYA">KAL I AND MAYA
Sr I Ramakr Ishna, on the other hand, though fully aware, l Ike h Is guru, that the world Is an Illusory appearance, Instead of sl Ight Ing maya, l Ike an orthodox mon Ist, acknowledged Its power In the relat Ive l Ife. He was all love and reverence for maya, perce Iv Ing In It a myster Ious and majest Ic express Ion of D Iv In Ity. To h Im maya Itself was God, for everyth Ing was God. It was one of the faces of Brahman. What he had real Ized on the he Ights of the transcendental plane, he also found here below, everywhere about h Im, under the myster Ious garb of names and forms. And th Is garb was a perfectly transparent sheath, through wh Ich he recogn Ized the glory of the D Iv Ine Immanence. Maya, the m Ighty weaver of the garb, Is none other than Kal I, the D Iv Ine Mother. She Is the pr Imord Ial D Iv Ine Energy, Sakt I, and She can no more be d Ist Ingu Ished from the Supreme Brahman than can the power of burn Ing be d Ist Ingu Ished from f Ire. She projects the world and aga In w Ithdraws It. She sp Ins It as the sp Ider sp Ins Its web. She Is the Mother of the Un Iverse, Ident Ical w Ith the Brahman of Vedanta, and w Ith the Atman of Yoga. As eternal Lawg Iver, She makes and unmakes laws; It Is by Her Imper Ious w Ill that karma y Ields Its fru It. She ensnares men w Ith Illus Ion and aga In releases them from bondage w Ith a look of Her ben Ign eyes. She Is the supreme M Istress of the cosm Ic play, and all objects, an Imate and Inan Imate, dance by Her w Ill. Even those who real Ize the Absolute In n Irv Ikalpa samadh I are under Her jur Isd Ict Ion as long as they st Ill l Ive on the relat Ive plane.
Thus, after n Irv Ikalpa samadh I, Sr I Ramakr Ishna real Ized maya In an altogether new role. The b Ind Ing aspect of Kal I van Ished from before h Is v Is Ion. She no longer obscured h Is understand Ing. The world became the glor Ious man Ifestat Ion of the D Iv Ine Mother. Maya became Brahman. The Transcendental Itself broke through the Immanent. Sr I Ramakr Ishna d Iscovered that maya operates In the relat Ive world In two ways, and he termed these "av Idyamaya" and "v Idyamaya". Av Idyamaya represents the dark forces of creat Ion: sensuous des Ires, ev Il pass Ions, greed, lust, cruelty, and so on. It susta Ins the world system on the lower planes. It Is respons Ible for the round of man's b Irth and death. It must be fought and vanqu Ished. But v Idyamaya Is the h Igher force of creat Ion: the sp Ir Itual v Irtues, the enl Ighten Ing qual It Ies, k Indness, pur Ity, love, devot Ion. V Idyamaya elevates man to the h Igher planes of consc Iousness. W Ith the help of v Idyamaya the devotee r Ids h Imself of av Idyamaya; he then becomes mayat Ita, free of maya. The two aspects of maya are the two forces of creat Ion, the two powers of Kal I; and She stands beyond them both. She Is l Ike the effulgent sun, br Ing Ing Into ex Istence and sh In Ing through and stand Ing beh Ind the clouds of d Ifferent colours and shapes, conjur Ing up wonderful forms In the blue autumn heaven.
The D Iv Ine Mother asked Sr I Ramakr Ishna not to be lost In the featureless Absolute but to rema In, In bhavamukha, on the threshold of relat Ive consc Iousness, the border l Ine between the Absolute and the Relat Ive. He was to keep h Imself at the "s Ixth centre" of Tantra, from wh Ich he could see not only the glory of the seventh, but also the d Iv Ine man Ifestat Ions of the Kundal In I In the lower centres. He gently osc Illated back and forth across the d Iv Id Ing l Ine. Ecstat Ic devot Ion to the D Iv Ine Mother alternated w Ith serene absorpt Ion In the Ocean of Absolute Un Ity. He thus br Idged the gulf between the Personal and the Impersonal, the Immanent and the transcendent aspects of Real Ity. Th Is Is a un Ique exper Ience In the recorded sp Ir Itual h Istory of the world.
--- Id="TOTAPUR I'S_LESSON">TOTAPUR I'S LESSON
From Sr I Ramakr Ishna Totapur I had to learn the s Ign If Icance of Kal I, the Great Fact of the relat Ive world, and of maya, Her Indescr Ibable Power.
One day, when guru and d Isc Iple were engaged In an an Imated d Iscuss Ion about Vedanta, a servant of the temple garden came there and took a coal from the sacred f Ire that had been l Ighted by the great ascet Ic. He wanted It to l Ight h Is tobacco. Totapur I flew Into a rage and was about to beat the man. Sr I Ramakr Ishna rocked w Ith laughter. "What a shame!" he cr Ied. "You are expla In Ing to me the real Ity of Brahman and the Illusor Iness of the world; yet now you have so far forgotten yourself as to be about to beat a man In a f It of pass Ion. The power of maya Is Indeed Inscrutable!" Totapur I was embarrassed.
About th Is t Ime Totapur I was suddenly la Id up w Ith a severe attack of dysentery. On account of th Is m Iserable Illness he found It Imposs Ible to med Itate. One n Ight the pa In became excruc Iat Ing. He could no longer concentrate on Brahman. The body stood In the way. He became Incensed w Ith Its demands. A free soul, he d Id not at all care for the body. So he determ Ined to drown It In the Ganges. Thereupon he walked Into the r Iver. But, lo! He walks to the other bank." (Th Is vers Ion of the Inc Ident Is taken from the b Iography of Sr I Ramakr Ishna by Swam I Saradananda, one of the Master's d Irect d Isc Iples.) Is there not enough water In the Ganges? Stand Ing dumbfounded on the other bank he looks back across the water. The trees, the temples, the houses, are s Ilhouetted aga Inst the sky. Suddenly, In one dazzl Ing moment, he sees on all s Ides the presence of the D Iv Ine Mother. She Is In everyth Ing; She Is everyth Ing. She Is In the water; She Is on land. She Is the body; She Is the m Ind. She Is pa In; She Is comfort. She Is knowledge; She Is Ignorance. She Is l Ife; She Is death. She Is everyth Ing that one sees, hears, or Imag Ines. She turns "yea" Into "nay", and "nay" Into "yea". W Ithout Her grace no embod Ied be Ing can go beyond Her realm. Man has no free w Ill. He Is not even free to d Ie. Yet, aga In, beyond the body and m Ind She res Ides In Her Transcendental, Absolute aspect. She Is the Brahman that Totapur I had been worsh Ipp Ing all h Is l Ife.
Totapur I returned to Daksh Ineswar and spent the rema In Ing hours of the n Ight med Itat Ing on the D Iv Ine Mother. In the morn Ing he went to the Kal I temple w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna and prostrated h Imself before the Image of the Mother. He now real Ized why he had spent eleven months at Daksh Ineswar. B Idd Ing farewell to the d Isc Iple, he cont Inued on h Is way, enl Ightened.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna later descr Ibed the s Ign If Icance of Totapur I's lessons:
"When I th Ink of the Supreme Be Ing as Inact Ive — ne Ither creat Ing nor preserv Ing nor destroy Ing —, I call H Im Brahman or Purusha, the Impersonal God. When I th Ink of H Im as act Ive — creat Ing, preserv Ing, and destroy Ing —, I call H Im Sakt I or Maya or Prakr It I, the Personal God. But the d Ist Inct Ion between them does not mean a d Ifference. The Personal and the Impersonal are the same th Ing, l Ike m Ilk and Its wh Iteness, the d Iamond and Its lustre, the snake and Its wr Iggl Ing mot Ion. It Is Imposs Ible to conce Ive of the one w Ithout the other. The D Iv Ine Mother and Brahman are one."
After the departure of Totapur I, Sr I Ramakr Ishna rema Ined for s Ix months In a state of absolute Ident Ity w Ith Brahman. "For s Ix months at a stretch", he sa Id, " I rema Ined In that state from wh Ich ord Inary men can never return; generally the body falls off, after three weeks, l Ike a sere leaf. I was not consc Ious of day and n Ight. Fl Ies would enter my mouth and nostr Ils just as they do a dead body's, but I d Id not feel them. My ha Ir became matted w Ith dust."
H Is body would not have surv Ived but for the k Indly attent Ion of a monk who happened to be at Daksh Ineswar at that t Ime and who somehow real Ized that for the good of human Ity Sr I Ramakr Ishna's body must be preserved. He tr Ied var Ious means, even phys Ical v Iolence, to recall the flee Ing soul to the pr Ison-house of the body, and dur Ing the resultant fleet Ing moments of consc Iousness he would push a few morsels of food down Sr I Ramakr Ishna's throat. Presently Sr I Ramakr Ishna rece Ived the command of the D Iv Ine Mother to rema In on the threshold of relat Ive consc Iousness. Soon there-after after he was affl Icted w Ith a ser Ious attack of dysentery. Day and n Ight the pa In tortured h Im, and h Is m Ind gradually came down to the phys Ical plane.
--- Id="COMPANY_OF_HOLY_MEN_AND_DEVOTEES">COMPANY OF HOLY MEN AND DEVOTEES
From now on Sr I Ramakr Ishna began to seek the company of devotees and holy men. He had gone through the storm and stress of sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ines and v Is Ions. Now he real Ized an Inner calmness and appeared to others as a normal person. But he could not bear the company of worldly people or l Isten to the Ir talk. Fortunately the holy atmosphere of Daksh Ineswar and the l Iberal Ity of Mathur attracted monks and holy men from all parts of the country. Sadhus of all denom Inat Ions — mon Ists and dual Ists, Va Ishnavas and Vedant Ists, Saktas and worsh Ippers of Rama — flocked there In ever Increas Ing numbers. Ascet Ics and v Is Ionar Ies came to seek Sr I Ramakr Ishna's adv Ice. Va Ishnavas had come dur Ing the per Iod of h Is Va Ishnava sadhana, and Tantr Iks when he pract Ised the d Isc Ipl Ines of Tantra. Vedant Ists began to arr Ive after the departure of Totapur I. In the room of Sr I Ramakr Ishna, who was then In bed w Ith dysentery, the Vedant Ists engaged In scr Iptural d Iscuss Ions, and, forgett Ing h Is own phys Ical suffer Ing, he solved the Ir doubts by referr Ing d Irectly to h Is own exper Iences. Many of the v Is Itors were genu Ine sp Ir Itual souls, the unseen p Illars of H Indu Ism, and the Ir sp Ir Itual l Ives were qu Ickened In no small measure by the sage of Daksh Ineswar. Sr I Ramakr Ishna In turn learnt from them anecdotes concern Ing the ways and the conduct of holy men, wh Ich he subsequently narrated to h Is devotees and d Isc Iples. At h Is request Mathur prov Ided h Im w Ith large stores of food-stuffs, clothes, and so forth, for d Istr Ibut Ion among the wander Ing monks.
"Sr I Ramakr Ishna had not read books, yet he possessed an encycloped Ic knowledge of rel Ig Ions and rel Ig Ious ph Ilosoph Ies. Th Is he acqu Ired from h Is contacts w Ith Innumerable holy men and scholars. He had a un Ique power of ass Im Ilat Ion; through med Itat Ion he made th Is knowledge a part of h Is be Ing. Once, when he was asked by a d Isc Iple about the source of h Is seem Ingly Inexhaust Ible knowledge, he repl Ied; " I have not read; but I have heard the learned. I have made a garland of the Ir knowledge, wear Ing It round my neck, and I have g Iven It as an offer Ing at the feet of the Mother."
Sr I Ramakr Ishna used to say that when the flower blooms the bees come to It for honey of the Ir own accord. Now many souls began to v Is It Daksh Ineswar to sat Isfy the Ir sp Ir Itual hunger. He, the devotee and asp Irant, became the Master. Gaur I, the great scholar who had been one of the f Irst to procla Im Sr I Ramakr Ishna an Incarnat Ion of God, pa Id the Master a v Is It In 1870 and w Ith the Master's bless Ings renounced the world. Narayan Shastr I, another great pund It, who had mastered the s Ix systems of H Indu ph Ilosophy and had been offered a lucrat Ive post by the Maharaja of Ja Ipur, met the Master and recogn Ized In h Im one who had real Ized In l Ife those Ideals wh Ich he h Imself had encountered merely In books. Sr I Ramakr Ishna In It Iated Narayan Shastr I, at h Is earnest request, Into the l Ife of sannyas. Pund It Padmalochan, the court pund It of the Maharaja of Burdwan, well known for h Is scholarsh Ip In both the Vedanta and the Nyaya systems of ph Ilosophy, accepted the Master as an Incarnat Ion of God. Kr Ishnak Ishore, a Vedant Ist scholar, became devoted to the Master. And there arr Ived V Iswanath Upadhyaya, who was to become a favour Ite devotee; Sr I Ramakr Ishna always addressed h Im as "Capta In". He was a h Igh off Icer of the K Ing of Nepal and had rece Ived the t Itle of Colonel In recogn It Ion of h Is mer It. A scholar of the G Ita, the Bhagavata, and the Vedanta ph Ilosophy, he da Ily performed the worsh Ip of h Is Chosen De Ity w Ith great devot Ion. " I have read the Vedas and the other scr Iptures", he sa Id. " I have also met a good many monks and devotees In d Ifferent places. But It Is In Sr I Ramakr Ishna's presence that my sp Ir Itual yearn Ings have been fulf Illed. To me he seems to be the embod Iment of the truths of the scr Iptures."
The Knowledge of Brahman In n Irv Ikalpa samadh I had conv Inced Sr I Ramakr Ishna that the gods of the d Ifferent rel Ig Ions are but so many read Ings of the Absolute, and that the Ult Imate Real Ity could never be expressed by human tongue. He understood that all rel Ig Ions lead the Ir devotees by d Iffer Ing paths to one and the same goal. Now he became eager to explore some of the al Ien rel Ig Ions; for w Ith h Im understand Ing meant actual exper Ience.
--- Id=" ISLAM"> ISLAM
Toward the end of 1866 he began to pract Ise the d Isc Ipl Ines of Islam. Under the d Irect Ion of h Is Mussalman guru he abandoned h Imself to h Is new sadhana. He dressed as a Mussalman and repeated the name of Allah. H Is prayers took the form of the Islam Ic devot Ions. He forgot the H Indu gods and goddesses — even Kal I — and gave up v Is It Ing the temples. He took up h Is res Idence outs Ide the temple prec Incts. After three days he saw the v Is Ion of a rad Iant f Igure, perhaps Mohammed. Th Is f Igure gently approached h Im and f Inally lost h Imself In Sr I Ramakr Ishna. Thus he real Ized the Mussalman God. Thence he passed Into commun Ion w Ith Brahman. The m Ighty r Iver of Islam also led h Im back to the Ocean of the Absolute.
--- Id="CHR IST IAN ITY">CHR IST IAN ITY
E Ight years later, some t Ime In November 1874, Sr I Ramakr Ishna was se Ized w Ith an Irres Ist Ible des Ire to learn the truth of the Chr Ist Ian rel Ig Ion. He began to l Isten to read Ings from the B Ible, by Sambhu Charan Mall Ick, a gentleman of Calcutta and a devotee of the Master. Sr I Ramakr Ishna became fasc Inated by the l Ife and teach Ings of Jesus. One day he was seated In the parlour of Jadu Mall Ick's garden house (Th Is express Ion Is used throughout to translate the Bengal I word denot Ing a r Ich man's country house set In a garden.) at Daksh Ineswar, when h Is eyes became f Ixed on a pa Int Ing of the Madonna and Ch Ild. Intently watch Ing It, he became gradually overwhelmed w Ith d Iv Ine emot Ion. The f Igures In the p Icture took on l Ife, and the rays of l Ight emanat Ing from them entered h Is soul. The effect of th Is exper Ience was stronger than that of the v Is Ion of Mohammed. In d Ismay he cr Ied out, "O Mother! What are You do Ing to me?" And, break Ing through the barr Iers of creed and rel Ig Ion, he entered a new realm of ecstasy. Chr Ist possessed h Is soul. For three days he d Id not set foot In the Kal I temple. On the fourth day, In the afternoon, as he was walk Ing In the Panchavat I, he saw com Ing toward h Im a person w Ith beaut Iful large eyes, serene countenance, and fa Ir sk In. As the two faced each other, a vo Ice rang out In the depths of Sr I Ramakr Ishna's soul: "Behold the Chr Ist, who shed H Is heart's blood for the redempt Ion of the world, who suffered a sea of angu Ish for love of men. It Is He, the Master Yog I, who Is In eternal un Ion w Ith God. It Is Jesus, Love Incarnate." The Son of Man embraced the Son of the D Iv Ine Mother and merged In h Im. Sr I Ramakr Ishna kr Ishna real Ized h Is Ident Ity w Ith Chr Ist, as he had already real Ized h Is Ident Ity w Ith Kal I, Rama, Hanuman, Radha, Kr Ishna, Brahman, and Mohammed. The Master went Into samadh I and communed w Ith the Brahman w Ith attr Ibutes. Thus he exper Ienced the truth that Chr Ist Ian Ity, too, was a path lead Ing to God-Consc Iousness. T Ill the last moment of h Is l Ife he bel Ieved that Chr Ist was an Incarnat Ion of God. But Chr Ist, for h Im, was not the only Incarnat Ion; there were others — Buddha, for Instance, and Kr Ishna.
--- Id="ATT ITUDE_TOWARD_D IFFERENT_REL IG IONS">ATT ITUDE TOWARD D IFFERENT REL IG IONS
Sr I Ramakr Ishna accepted the d Iv In Ity of Buddha and used to po Int out the s Im Ilar Ity of h Is teach Ings to those of the Upan Ishads. He also showed great respect for the T Irthankaras, who founded Ja In Ism, and for the ten Gurus of S Ikh Ism. But he d Id not speak of them as D Iv Ine Incarnat Ions. He was heard to say that the Gurus of S Ikh Ism were the re Incarnat Ions of K Ing Janaka of anc Ient Ind Ia. He kept In h Is room at Daksh Ineswar a small statue of T Irthankara Mahav Ira and a p Icture of Chr Ist, before wh Ich Incense was burnt morn Ing and even Ing.
W Ithout be Ing formally In It Iated Into the Ir doctr Ines, Sr I Ramakr Ishna thus real Ized the Ideals of rel Ig Ions other than H Indu Ism. He d Id not need to follow any doctr Ine. All barr Iers were removed by h Is overwhelm Ing love of God. So he became a Master who could speak w Ith author Ity regard Ing the Ideas and Ideals of the var Ious rel Ig Ions of the world. " I have pract Ised", sa Id he, "all rel Ig Ions — H Indu Ism, Islam, Chr Ist Ian Ity — and I have also followed the paths of the d Ifferent H Indu sects. I have found that It Is the same God toward whom all are d Irect Ing the Ir steps, though along d Ifferent paths. You must try all bel Iefs and traverse all the d Ifferent ways once. Wherever I look, I see men quarrell Ing In the name of rel Ig Ion — H Indus, Mohammedans, Brahmos, Va Ishnavas, and the rest. But they never reflect that He who Is called Kr Ishna Is also called S Iva, and bears the name of the Pr Imal Energy, Jesus, and Allah as well — the same Rama w Ith a thousand names. A lake has several ghats. At one the H Indus take water In p Itchers and call It 'jal'; at another the Mussalmans take water In leather bags and call It pan I'. At a th Ird the Chr Ist Ians call It 'water'. Can we Imag Ine that It Is not 'jal', but only 'pan I' or 'water'? How r Id Iculous! The substance Is One under d Ifferent names, and everyone Is seek Ing the same substance; only cl Imate, temperament, and name create d Ifferences. Let each man follow h Is own path. If he s Incerely and ardently w Ishes to know God, peace be unto h Im! He w Ill surely real Ize H Im."
In 1867 Sr I Ramakr Ishna returned to Kamarpukur to recuperate from the effect of h Is auster It Ies. The peaceful countrys Ide, the s Imple and artless compan Ions of h Is boyhood, and the pure a Ir d Id h Im much good. The v Illagers were happy to get back the Ir playful, frank, w Itty, k Ind-hearted, and truthful Gadadhar, though they d Id not fa Il to not Ice the great change that had come over h Im dur Ing h Is years In Calcutta. H Is w Ife, Sarada Dev I, now fourteen years old, soon arr Ived at Kamarpukur. Her sp Ir Itual development was much beyond her age and she was able to understand Immed Iately her husband's state of m Ind. She became eager to learn from h Im about God and to l Ive w Ith h Im as h Is attendant. The Master accepted her cheerfully both as h Is d Isc Iple and as h Is sp Ir Itual compan Ion. Referr Ing to the exper Iences of these few days, she once sa Id: " I used to feel always as If a p Itcher full of bl Iss were placed In my heart. The joy was Indescr Ibable."
--- Id="P ILGR IMAGE">P ILGR IMAGE
On January 27, 1868, Mathur Babu w Ith a party of some one hundred and twenty-f Ive persons set out on a p Ilgr Image to the sacred places of northern Ind Ia. At Va Idyanath In Behar, when the Master saw the Inhab Itants of a v Illage reduced by poverty and starvat Ion to mere skeletons, he requested h Is r Ich patron to feed the people and g Ive each a p Iece of cloth. Mathur demurred at the added expense. The Master declared b Itterly that he would not go on to Benares, but would l Ive w Ith the poor and share the Ir m Iser Ies. He actually left Mathur and sat down w Ith the v Illagers. Whereupon Mathur had to y Ield. On another occas Ion, two years later, Sr I Ramakr Ishna showed a s Im Ilar sent Iment for the poor and needy. He accompan Ied Mathur on a tour to one of the latter's estates at the t Ime of the collect Ion of rents. For two years the harvests had fa Iled and the tenants were In a state of extreme poverty. The Master asked Mathur to rem It the Ir rents, d Istr Ibute help to them, and In add It Ion g Ive the hungry people a sumptuous feast. When Mathur grumbled, the Master sa Id: "You are only the steward of the D Iv Ine Mother. They are the Mother's tenants. You must spend the Mother's money. When they are suffer Ing, how can you refuse to help them? You must help them." Aga In Mathur had to g Ive In. Sr I Ramakr Ishna's sympathy for the poor sprang from h Is percept Ion of God In all created be Ings. H Is sent Iment was not that of the human Ist or ph Ilanthrop Ist. To h Im the serv Ice of man was the same as the worsh Ip of God.
The party entered holy Benares by boat along the Ganges. When Sr I Ramakr Ishna's eyes fell on th Is c Ity of S Iva, where had accumulated for ages the devot Ion and p Iety of countless worsh Ippers, he saw It to be made of gold, as the scr Iptures declare. He was v Is Ibly moved. Dur Ing h Is stay In the c Ity he treated every part Icle of Its earth w Ith utmost respect. At the Man Ikarn Ika Ghat, the great cremat Ion ground of the c Ity, he actually saw S Iva, w Ith ash-covered body and tawny matted ha Ir, serenely approach Ing each funeral pyre and breath Ing Into the ears of the corpses the mantra of l Iberat Ion; and then the D Iv Ine Mother remov Ing from the dead the Ir bonds. Thus he real Ized the s Ign If Icance of the scr Iptural statement that anyone dy Ing In Benares atta Ins salvat Ion through the grace of S Iva. He pa Id a v Is It to Tra Ilanga Swam I, the celebrated monk, whom he later declared to be a real paramahamsa, a ver Itable Image of S Iva.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna v Is Ited Allahabad, at the confluence of the Ganges and the Jamuna, and then proceeded to Vr Indavan and Mathura, hallowed by the legends, songs, and dramas about Kr Ishna and the gop Is. Here he had numerous v Is Ions and h Is heart overflowed w Ith d Iv Ine emot Ion. He wept and sa Id: "O Kr Ishna! Everyth Ing here Is as It was In the olden days. You alone are absent." He v Is Ited the great woman sa Int, Gangamay I, regarded by Va Ishnava devotees as the re Incarnat Ion of an Int Imate attendant of Radha. She was s Ixty years old and had frequent trances. She spoke of Sr I Ramakr Ishna as an Incarnat Ion of Radha. W Ith great d Iff Iculty he was persuaded to leave her.
On the return journey Mathur wanted to v Is It Gaya, but Sr I Ramakr Ishna decl Ined to go. He recalled h Is father's v Is Ion at Gaya before h Is own b Irth and felt that In the temple of V Ishnu he would become permanently absorbed In God. Mathur, honour Ing the Master's w Ish, returned w Ith h Is party to Calcutta.
From Vr Indavan the Master had brought a handful of dust. Part of th Is he scattered In the Panchavat I; the rest he bur Ied In the l Ittle hut where he had pract Ised med Itat Ion. "Now th Is place", he sa Id, " Is as sacred as Vr Indavan."
In 1870 the Master went on a p Ilgr Image to Nad Ia, the b Irth-place of Sr I Cha Itanya. As the boat by wh Ich he travelled approached the sand-bank close to Nad Ia, Sr I Ramakr Ishna had a v Is Ion of the "two brothers", Sr I Cha Itanya and h Is compan Ion N Ityananda, "br Ight as molten gold" and w Ith haloes, rush Ing to greet h Im w Ith upl Ifted hands. "There they come! There they come!" he cr Ied. They entered h Is body and he went Into a deep trance.
--- Id="RELAT ION_W ITH_H IS_W IFE">RELAT ION W ITH H IS W IFE
In 1872 Sarada Dev I pa Id her f Irst v Is It to her husband at Daksh Ineswar. Four years earl Ier she had seen h Im at Kamarpukur and had tasted the bl Iss of h Is d Iv Ine company. S Ince then she had become even more gentle, tender, Introspect Ive, ser Ious, and unself Ish. She had heard many rumours about her husband's Insan Ity. People had shown her p Ity In her m Isfortune. The more she thought, the more she felt that her duty was to be w Ith h Im, g Iv Ing h Im, In whatever measure she could, a w Ife's devoted serv Ice. She was now e Ighteen years old. Accompan Ied by her father, she arr Ived at Daksh Ineswar, hav Ing come on foot the d Istance of e Ighty m Iles. She had had an attack of fever on the way. When she arr Ived at the temple garden the Master sa Id sorrowfully: "Ah! You have come too late. My Mathur Is no longer here to look after you." Mathur had passed away the prev Ious year.
The Master took up the duty of Instruct Ing h Is young w Ife, and th Is Included everyth Ing from housekeep Ing to the Knowledge of Brahman. He taught her how to tr Im a lamp, how to behave toward people accord Ing to the Ir d Iffer Ing temperaments, and how to conduct herself before v Is Itors. He Instructed her In the myster Ies of sp Ir Itual l Ife — prayer, med Itat Ion, japa, deep contemplat Ion, and samadh I. The f Irst lesson that Sarada Dev I rece Ived was: "God Is everybody's Beloved, just as the moon Is dear to every ch Ild. Everyone has the same r Ight to pray to H Im. Out of H Is grace He reveals H Imself to all who call upon H Im. You too w Ill see H Im If you but pray to H Im."
Totapur I, com Ing to know of the Master's marr Iage, had once remarked: "What does It matter? He alone Is f Irmly establ Ished In the Knowledge of Brahman who can adhere to h Is sp Ir It of d Iscr Im Inat Ion and renunc Iat Ion even wh Ile l Iv Ing w Ith h Is w Ife. He alone has atta Ined the supreme Illum Inat Ion who can look on man and woman al Ike as Brahman. A man w Ith the Idea of sex may be a good asp Irant, but he Is st Ill far from the goal." Sr I Ramakr Ishna and h Is w Ife l Ived together at Daksh Ineswar, but the Ir m Inds always soared above the worldly plane. A few months after Sarada Dev I's arr Ival Sr I Ramakr Ishna arranged, on an ausp Ic Ious day, a spec Ial worsh Ip of Kal I, the D Iv Ine Mother. Instead of an Image of the De Ity, he placed on the seat the l Iv Ing Image, Sarada Dev I herself. The worsh Ipper and the worsh Ipped went Into deep samadh I and In the transcendental plane the Ir souls were un Ited. After several hours Sr I Ramakr Ishna came down aga In to the relat Ive plane, sang a hymn to the Great Goddess, and surrendered, at the feet of the l Iv Ing Image, h Imself, h Is rosary, and the fru It of h Is l Ife-long sadhana. Th Is Is known In Tantra as the Shoras I Puja, the "Adorat Ion of Woman". Sr I Ramakr Ishna real Ized the s Ign If Icance of the great statement of the Upan Ishad: "O Lord, Thou art the woman. Thou art the man; Thou art the boy. Thou art the g Irl; Thou art the old, totter Ing on the Ir crutches. Thou pervadest the un Iverse In Its mult Iple forms."
By h Is marr Iage Sr I Ramakr Ishna adm Itted the great value of marr Iage In man's sp Ir Itual evolut Ion, and by adher Ing to h Is monast Ic vows he demonstrated the Imperat Ive necess Ity of self-control, pur Ity, and cont Inence, In the real Izat Ion of God. By th Is un Ique sp Ir Itual relat Ionsh Ip w Ith h Is w Ife he proved that husband and w Ife can l Ive together as sp Ir Itual compan Ions. Thus h Is l Ife Is a synthes Is of the ways of l Ife of the householder and the monk.
--- Id="THE_"EGO"_OF_THE_MASTER">THE "EGO" OF THE MASTER
In the n Irv Ikalpa samadh I Sr I Ramakr Ishna had real Ized that Brahman alone Is real and the world Illusory. By keep Ing h Is m Ind s Ix months on the plane of the non-dual Brahman, he had atta Ined to the state of the v Ijnan I, the knower of Truth In a spec Ial and very r Ich sense, who sees Brahman not only In h Imself and In the transcendental Absolute, but In everyth Ing of the world. In th Is state of v Ijnana, somet Imes, bereft of body-consc Iousness, he would regard h Imself as one w Ith Brahman; somet Imes, consc Ious of the dual world, he would regard h Imself as God's devotee, servant, or ch Ild. In order to enable the Master to work for the welfare of human Ity, the D Iv Ine Mother had kept In h Im a trace of ego, wh Ich he descr Ibed — accord Ing to h Is mood — as the "ego of Knowledge", the "ego of Devot Ion", the "ego of a ch Ild", or the "ego of a servant". In any case th Is ego of the Master, consumed by the f Ire of the Knowledge of Brahman, was an appearance only, l Ike a burnt str Ing. He often referred to th Is ego as the "r Ipe ego" In contrast w Ith the ego of the bound soul, wh Ich he descr Ibed as the "unr Ipe" or "green" ego. The ego of the bound soul Ident If Ies Itself w Ith the body, relat Ives, possess Ions, and the world; but the "r Ipe ego", Illum Ined by D Iv Ine Knowledge, knows the body, relat Ives, possess Ions, and the world to be unreal and establ Ishes a relat Ionsh Ip of love w Ith God alone. Through th Is "r Ipe ego" Sr I Ramakr Ishna dealt w Ith the world and h Is w Ife. One day, wh Ile strok Ing h Is feet, Sarada Dev I asked the Master, "What do you th Ink of me?" Qu Ick came the answer: "The Mother who Is worsh Ipped In the temple Is the mother who has g Iven b Irth to my body and Is now l Iv Ing In the nahabat, and It Is She aga In who Is strok Ing my feet at th Is moment. Indeed, I always look on you as the person If Icat Ion of the Bl Issful Mother Kal I."
Sarada Dev I, In the company of her husband, had rare sp Ir Itual exper Iences. She sa Id: " I have no words to descr Ibe my wonderful exaltat Ion of sp Ir It as I watched h Im In h Is d Ifferent moods. Under the Influence of d Iv Ine emot Ion he would somet Imes talk on abstruse subjects, somet Imes laugh, somet Imes weep, and somet Imes become perfectly mot Ionless In samadh I. Th Is would cont Inue throughout the n Ight. There was such an extraord Inary d Iv Ine presence In h Im that now and then I would shake w Ith fear and wonder how the n Ight would pass. Months went by In th Is way. Then one day he d Iscovered that I had to keep awake the whole n Ight lest, dur Ing my sleep, he should go Into samadh I — for It m Ight happen at any moment —, and so he asked me to sleep In the nahabat."
--- Id="SUMMARY_OF_THE_MASTER'S_SP IR ITUAL_EXPER IENCES">SUMMARY OF THE MASTER'S SP IR ITUAL EXPER IENCES
We have now come to the end of Sr I Ramakr Ishna's sadhana, the per Iod of h Is sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine. As a result of h Is supersensuous exper Iences he reached certa In conclus Ions regard Ing h Imself and sp Ir Itual Ity In general. H Is conclus Ions about h Imself may be summar Ized as follows:
F Irst, he was an Incarnat Ion of God, a spec Ially comm Iss Ioned person, whose sp Ir Itual exper Iences were for the benef It of human Ity. Whereas It takes an ord Inary man a whole l Ife's struggle to real Ize one or two phases of God, he had In a few years real Ized God In all H Is phases.
Second, he knew that he had always been a free soul, that the var Ious d Isc Ipl Ines through wh Ich he had passed were really not necessary for h Is own l Iberat Ion but were solely for the benef It of others. Thus the terms l Iberat Ion and bondage were not appl Icable to h Im. As long as there are be Ings who cons Ider themselves bound. God must come down to earth as an Incarnat Ion to free them from bondage, just as a mag Istrate must v Is It any part of h Is d Istr Ict In wh Ich there Is trouble.
Th Ird, he came to foresee the t Ime of h Is death. H Is words w Ith respect to th Is matter were l Iterally fulf Illed.
About sp Ir Itual Ity In general the follow Ing were h Is conclus Ions: F Irst, he was f Irmly conv Inced that all rel Ig Ions are true, that every doctr Inal system represents a path to God. He had followed all the ma In paths and all had led h Im to the same goal. He was the f Irst rel Ig Ious prophet recorded In h Istory to preach the harmony of rel Ig Ions.
Second, the three great systems of thought known as Dual Ism, Qual If Ied Non-dual Ism, and Absolute Non-dual Ism — Dva Ita, V Is Ishtadva Ita, and Adva Ita — he perce Ived to represent three stages In man's progress toward the Ult Imate Real Ity. They were not contrad Ictory but complementary and su Ited to d Ifferent temperaments. For the ord Inary man w Ith strong attachment to the senses, a dual Ist Ic form of rel Ig Ion, prescr Ib Ing a certa In amount of mater Ial support, such as mus Ic and other symbols, Is useful. A man of God-real Izat Ion transcends the Idea of worldly dut Ies, but the ord Inary mortal must perform h Is dut Ies, str Iv Ing to be unattached and to surrender the results to God. The m Ind can comprehend and descr Ibe the range of thought and exper Ience up to the V Is Ishtadva Ita, and no further. The Adva Ita, the last word In sp Ir Itual exper Ience, Is someth Ing to be felt In samadh I. for It transcends m Ind and speech. From the h Ighest standpo Int, the Absolute and Its man Ifestat Ion are equally real — the Lord's Name, H Is Abode, and the Lord H Imself are of the same sp Ir Itual Essence. Everyth Ing Is Sp Ir It, the d Ifference be Ing only In form.
Th Ird, Sr I Ramakr Ishna real Ized the w Ish of the D Iv Ine Mother that through h Im She should found a new Order, cons Ist Ing of those who would uphold the un Iversal doctr Ines Illustrated In h Is l Ife.
Fourth, h Is sp Ir Itual Ins Ight told h Im that those who were hav Ing the Ir last b Irth on the mortal plane of ex Istence and those who had s Incerely called on the Lord even once In the Ir l Ives must come to h Im.
Dur Ing th Is per Iod Sr I Ramakr Ishna suffered several bereavements. The f Irst was the death of a nephew named Akshay. After the young man's death Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id: "Akshay d Ied before my very eyes. But It d Id not affect me In the least. I stood by and watched a man d Ie. It was l Ike a sword be Ing drawn from Its scabbard. I enjoyed the scene, and laughed and sang and danced over It. They removed the body and cremated It. But the next day as I stood there (po Int Ing to the southeast verandah of h Is room), I felt a rack Ing pa In for the loss of Akshay, as If somebody were squeez Ing my heart l Ike a wet towel. I wondered at It and thought that the Mother was teach Ing me a lesson. I was not much concerned even w Ith my own body — much less w Ith a relat Ive. But If such was my pa In at the loss of a nephew, how much more must be the gr Ief of the householders at the loss of the Ir near and dear ones!" In 1871 Mathur d Ied, and some f Ive years later Sambhu Mall Ick — who, after Mathur's pass Ing away, had taken care of the Master's comfort. In 1873 d Ied h Is elder brother Rameswar, and In 1876, h Is beloved mother. These bereavements left the Ir Impr Int on the tender human heart of Sr I Ramakr Ishna, albe It he had real Ized the Immortal Ity of the soul and the Illusor Iness of b Irth and death.
In March 1875, about a year before the death of h Is mother, the Master met Keshab Chandra Sen. The meet Ing was a momentous event for both Sr I Ramakr Ishna and Keshab. Here the Master for the f Irst t Ime came Into actual, contact w Ith a worthy representat Ive of modern Ind Ia.
--- Id="BRAHMO_SAMAJ">BRAHMO SAMAJ
Keshab was the leader of the Brahmo Samaj, one of the two great movements that, dur Ing the latter part of the n Ineteenth century, played an Important part In shap Ing the course of the renascence of Ind Ia. The founder of the Brahmo movement had been the great Raja Rammohan Roy (1774-1833). Though born In an orthodox brahm In fam Ily, Rammohan Roy had shown great sympathy for Islam and Chr Ist Ian Ity. He had gone to T Ibet In search of the Buddh Ist myster Ies. He had extracted from Chr Ist Ian Ity Its eth Ical system, but had rejected the d Iv In Ity of Chr Ist as he had den Ied the H Indu Incarnat Ions. The rel Ig Ion of Islam Influenced h Im, to a great extent, In the formulat Ion of h Is monothe Ist Ic doctr Ines. But he always went back to the Vedas for h Is sp Ir Itual Insp Irat Ion. The Brahmo Samaj, wh Ich he founded In 1828, was ded Icated to the "worsh Ip and adorat Ion of the Eternal, the Unsearchable, the Immutable Be Ing, who Is the Author and Preserver of the Un Iverse". The Samaj was open to all w Ithout d Ist Inct Ion of colour, creed, caste, nat Ion, or rel Ig Ion.
The real organ Izer of the Samaj was Devendranath Tagore (1817-1905), the father of the poet Rab Indranath. H Is phys Ical and sp Ir Itual beauty, ar Istocrat Ic aloofness, penetrat Ing Intellect, and poet Ic sens Ib Il Ity made h Im the foremost leader of the educated Bengal Is. These addressed h Im by the respectful ep Ithet of Maharsh I, the "Great Seer". The Maharsh I was a Sanskr It scholar and, unl Ike Raja Rammohan Roy, drew h Is Insp Irat Ion ent Irely from the Upan Ishads. He was an Implacable enemy of Image worsh Ip sh Ip and also fought to stop the Inf Iltrat Ion of Chr Ist Ian Ideas Into the Samaj. He gave the movement Its fa Ith and r Itual. Under h Is Influence the Brahmo Samaj professed One Self-ex Istent Supreme Be Ing who had created the un Iverse out of noth Ing, the God of Truth, Inf In Ite W Isdom, Goodness, and Power, the Eternal and Omn Ipotent, the One w Ithout a Second. Man should love H Im and do H Is w Ill, bel Ieve In H Im and worsh Ip H Im, and thus mer It salvat Ion In the world to come.
By far the ablest leader of the Brahmo movement was Keshab Chandra Sen (1838-1884). Unl Ike Raja Rammohan Roy and Devendranath Tagore, Keshab was born of a m Iddle-class Bengal I fam Ily and had been brought up In an Engl Ish school. He d Id not know Sanskr It and very soon broke away from the popular H Indu rel Ig Ion. Even at an early age he came under the spell of Chr Ist and professed to have exper Ienced the spec Ial favour of John the Bapt Ist, Chr Ist, and St. Paul. When he strove to Introduce Chr Ist to the Brahmo Samaj, a rupture became Inev Itable w Ith Devendranath. In 1868 Keshab broke w Ith the older leader and founded the Brahmo Samaj of Ind Ia, Devendra reta In Ing leadersh Ip of the f Irst Brahmo Samaj, now called the Ad I Samaj.
Keshab possessed a complex nature. When pass Ing through a great moral cr Is Is, he spent much of h Is t Ime In sol Itude and felt that he heard the vo Ice of God, When a devot Ional form of worsh Ip was Introduced Into the Brahmo Samaj, he spent hours In s Ing Ing k Irtan w Ith h Is followers. He v Is Ited England land In 1870 and Impressed the Engl Ish people w Ith h Is mus Ical vo Ice, h Is s Imple Engl Ish, and h Is sp Ir Itual fervour. He was enterta Ined by Queen V Ictor Ia. Return Ing to Ind Ia, he founded centres of the Brahmo Samaj In var Ious parts of the country. Not unl Ike a professor of comparat Ive rel Ig Ion In a European un Ivers Ity, he began to d Iscover, about the t Ime of h Is f Irst contact w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna, the harmony of rel Ig Ions. He became sympathet Ic toward the H Indu gods and goddesses, expla In Ing them In a l Iberal fash Ion. Further, he bel Ieved that he was called by God to d Ictate to the world God's newly revealed law, the New D Ispensat Ion, the Navav Idhan.
In 1878 a sch Ism d Iv Ided Keshab's Samaj. Some of h Is Influent Ial followers accused h Im of Infr Ing Ing the Brahmo pr Inc Iples by marry Ing h Is daughter to a wealthy man before she had atta Ined the marr Iageable age approved by the Samaj. Th Is group seceded and establ Ished the Sadharan Brahmo Samaj, Keshab rema In Ing the leader of the Navav Idhan. Keshab now began to be drawn more and more toward the Chr Ist Ideal, though under the Influence of Sr I Ramakr Ishna h Is devot Ion to the D Iv Ine Mother also deepened. H Is mental osc Illat Ion between Chr Ist and the D Iv Ine Mother of H Indu Ism found no pos It Ion of rest. In Bengal and some other parts of Ind Ia the Brahmo movement took the form of un Itar Ian Chr Ist Ian Ity, scoffed at H Indu r Ituals, and preached a crusade aga Inst Image worsh Ip. Influenced by Western culture, It declared the supremacy of reason, advocated the Ideals of the French Revolut Ion, abol Ished the caste-system among Its own members, stood for the emanc Ipat Ion of women, ag Itated for the abol It Ion of early marr Iage, sanct Ioned the remarr Iage of w Idows, and encouraged var Ious educat Ional and soc Ial-reform movements. The Immed Iate effect of the Brahmo movement In Bengal was the check Ing of the proselyt Iz Ing act Iv It Ies of the Chr Ist Ian m Iss Ionar Ies. It also ra Ised Ind Ian culture In the est Imat Ion of Its Engl Ish masters. But It was an Intellectual and eclect Ic rel Ig Ious ferment born of the necess Ity of the t Ime. Unl Ike H Indu Ism, It was not founded on the deep Inner exper Iences of sages and prophets. Its Influence was conf Ined to a comparat Ively few educated men and women of the country, and the vast masses of the H Indus rema Ined outs Ide It. It sounded monotonously only one of the notes In the r Ich gamut of the Eternal Rel Ig Ion of the H Indus.
--- Id="ARYA_SAMAJ">ARYA SAMAJ
The other movement play Ing an Important part In the n Ineteenth-century rel Ig Ious rev Ival of Ind Ia was the Arya Samaj. The Brahmo Samaj, essent Ially a movement of comprom Ise w Ith European culture, tac Itly adm Itted the super Ior Ity of the West. But the founder of the Arya Samaj was a ' pugnac Ious H Indu sannyas I who accepted the challenge of Islam and Chr Ist Ian Ity and was resolved to combat all fore Ign Influence In Ind Ia. Swam I Dayananda (1824-1883) launched th Is movement In Bombay In 1875, and soon Its Influence was felt throughout western Ind Ia. The Swam I was a great scholar of the Vedas, wh Ich he expla Ined as be Ing str Ictly monothe Ist Ic. He preached aga Inst the worsh Ip of Images and re-establ Ished the anc Ient Ved Ic sacr If Ic Ial r Ites. Accord Ing to h Im the Vedas were the ult Imate author Ity on rel Ig Ion, and he accepted every word of them as l Iterally true. The Arya Samaj became a bulwark aga Inst the encroachments of Islam and Chr Ist Ian Ity, and Its orthodox flavour appealed to many H Indu m Inds. It also assumed leadersh Ip In many movements of soc Ial reform. The caste-system became a target of Its attack. Women It l Iberated from many of the Ir soc Ial d Isab Il It Ies. The cause of educat Ion rece Ived from It a great Impetus. It started ag Itat Ion aga Inst early marr Iage and advocated the remarr Iage of H Indu w Idows. Its Influence was strongest In the Punjab, the battle-ground of the H Indu and Islam Ic cultures. A new f Ight Ing att Itude was Introduced Into the slumber Ing H Indu soc Iety. Unl Ike the Brahmo Samaj, the Influence of the Arya Samaj was not conf Ined to the Intellectuals. It was a force that spread to the masses. It was a dogmat Ic movement Intolerant of those who d Isagreed w Ith Its v Iews, and It emphas Ized only one way, the Arya Samaj way, to the real Izat Ion of Truth. Sr I Ramakr Ishna met Swam I Dayananda when the latter v Is Ited Bengal.
--- Id="KESHAB_CHANDRA_SEN">KESHAB CHANDRA SEN
Keshab Chandra Sen and Sr I Ramakr Ishna met for the f Irst t Ime In the garden house of Jaygopal Sen at Belghar Ia, a few m Iles from Daksh Ineswar, where the great Brahmo leader was stay Ing w Ith some of h Is d Isc Iples. In many respects the two were poles apart, though an Irres Ist Ible Inner attract Ion was to make them Int Imate fr Iends. The Master had real Ized God as Pure Sp Ir It and Consc Iousness, but he bel Ieved In the var Ious forms of God as well. Keshab, on the other hand, regarded Image worsh Ip as Idolatry and gave allegor Ical explanat Ions of the H Indu de It Ies. Keshab was an orator and a wr Iter of books and magaz Ine art Icles; Sr I Ramakr Ishna had a horror of lectur Ing and hardly knew how to wr Ite h Is own name, Keshab's fame spread far and w Ide, even reach Ing the d Istant shores of England; the Master st Ill led a secluded l Ife In the v Illage of Daksh Ineswar. Keshab emphas Ized soc Ial reforms for Ind Ia's regenerat Ion; to Sr I Ramakr Ishna God-real Izat Ion was the only goal of l Ife. Keshab cons Idered h Imself a d Isc Iple of Chr Ist and accepted In a d Iluted form the Chr Ist Ian sacraments and Tr In Ity; Sr I Ramakr Ishna was the s Imple ch Ild of Kal I, the D Iv Ine Mother, though he too, In a d Ifferent way, acknowledged Chr Ist's d Iv In Ity. Keshab was a householder holder and took a real Interest In the welfare of h Is ch Ildren, whereas Sr I Ramakr Ishna was a paramahamsa and completely Ind Ifferent to the l Ife of the world. Yet, as the Ir acqua Intance r Ipened Into fr Iendsh Ip, Sr I Ramakr Ishna and Keshab held each other In great love and respect. Years later, at the news of Keshab's death, the Master felt as If half h Is body had become paralyzed. Keshab's concepts of the harmony of rel Ig Ions and the Motherhood of God were deepened and enr Iched by h Is contact w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna, dressed In a red-bordered dhot I, one end of wh Ich was carelessly thrown over h Is left shoulder, came to Jaygopal's garden house accompan Ied by Hr Iday. No one took not Ice of the unostentat Ious v Is Itor. F Inally the Master sa Id to Keshab, "People tell me you have seen God; so I have come to hear from you about God." A magn If Icent conversat Ion followed. The Master sang a thr Ill Ing song about Kal I and forthw Ith went Into samadh I. When Hr Iday uttered the sacred "Om" In h Is ears, he gradually came back to consc Iousness of the world, h Is face st Ill rad Iat Ing a d Iv Ine br Ill Iance. Keshab and h Is followers were amazed. The contrast between Sr I Ramakr Ishna and the Brahmo devotees was very Interest Ing. There sat th Is small man, th In and extremely del Icate. H Is eyes were Illum Ined w Ith an Inner l Ight. Good humour gleamed In h Is eyes and lurked In the corners of h Is mouth. H Is speech was Bengal I of a homely k Ind w Ith a sl Ight, del Ightful stammer, and h Is words held men enthralled by the Ir wealth of sp Ir Itual exper Ience, the Ir Inexhaust Ible store of s Im Ile and metaphor, the Ir power of observat Ion, the Ir br Ight and subtle humour, the Ir wonderful cathol Ic Ity, the Ir ceaseless flow of w Isdom. And around h Im now were the soph Ist Icated men of Bengal, the best products of Western educat Ion, w Ith Keshab, the Idol of young Bengal, as the Ir leader.
Keshab's s Incer Ity was enough for Sr I Ramakr Ishna. Henceforth the two saw each other frequently, e Ither at Daksh Ineswar or at the temple of the Brahmo Samaj. Whenever the Master was In the temple at the t Ime of d Iv Ine serv Ice, Keshab would request h Im to speak to the congregat Ion. And Keshab would v Is It the sa Int, In h Is turn, w Ith offer Ings of flowers and fru Its.
--- Id="OTHER_BRAHMO_LEADERS">OTHER BRAHMO LEADERS
Gradually other Brahmo leaders began to feel Sr I Ramakr Ishna's Influence. But they were by no means uncr It Ical adm Irers of the Master. They part Icularly d Isapproved of h Is ascet Ic renunc Iat Ion and condemnat Ion of "woman and gold".1 They measured h Im accord Ing to the Ir own Ideals of the householder's l Ife. Some could not understand h Is samadh I and descr Ibed It as a nervous malady. Yet they could not res Ist h Is magnet Ic personal Ity.
Among the Brahmo leaders who knew the Master closely were Pratap Chandra Mazumdar, V Ijaykr Ishna Goswam I, Tra Ilokyanath Sannyal, and Sh Ivanath Shastr I.
Sh Ivanath, one day, was greatly Impressed by the Master's utter s Impl Ic Ity and abhorrence of pra Ise. He was seated w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna In the latter's room when several r Ich men of Calcutta arr Ived. The Master left the room for a few m Inutes. In the mean t Ime Hr Iday, h Is nephew, began to descr Ibe h Is samadh I to the v Is Itors. The last few words caught the Master's ear as he entered the room. He sa Id to Hr Iday: "What a mean-sp Ir Ited fellow you must be to extol me thus before these r Ich men! You have seen the Ir costly apparel and the Ir gold watches and cha Ins, and your object Is to get from them as much money as you can. What do I care about what they th Ink of me? (Turn Ing to the gentlemen) No, my fr Iends, what he has told you about me Is not true. It was not love of God that made me absorbed In God and Ind Ifferent to external l Ife. I became pos It Ively Insane for some t Ime. The sadhus who frequented th Is temple told me to pract Ise many th Ings. I tr Ied to follow them, and the consequence was that my auster It Ies drove me to Insan Ity." Th Is Is a quotat Ion from one of Sh Ivanath's books. He took the Master's words l Iterally and fa Iled to see the Ir real Import.
Sh Ivanath vehemently cr It Ic Ized the Master for h Is other-worldly att Itude toward h Is w Ife. He wr Ites: "Ramakr Ishna was pract Ically separated from h Is w Ife, who l Ived In her v Illage home. One day when I was compla In Ing to some fr Iends about the v Irtual w Idowhood of h Is w Ife, he drew me to one s Ide and wh Ispered In my ear: 'Why do you compla In? It Is no longer poss Ible; It Is all dead and gone.' Another day as I was Inve Igh Ing aga Inst th Is part of h Is teach Ing, and also declar Ing that our program of work In the Brahmo Samaj Includes women, that ours Is a soc Ial and domest Ic rel Ig Ion, and that we want to g Ive educat Ion and soc Ial l Iberty to women, the sa Int became very much exc Ited, as was h Is way when anyth Ing aga Inst h Is settled conv Ict Ion was asserted — a tra It we so much l Iked In h Im — and excla Imed, 'Go, thou fool, go and per Ish In the p It that your women w Ill d Ig for you.' Then he glared at me and sa Id: 'What does a gardener do w Ith a young plant? Does he not surround It w Ith a fence, to protect It from goats and cattle? And when the young plant has grown up Into a tree and It can no longer be Injured by cattle, does he not remove the fence and let the tree grow freely?' I repl Ied, 'Yes, that Is the custom w Ith gardeners.' Then he remarked, 'Do the same In your sp Ir Itual l Ife; become strong, be full-grown; then you may seek them.' To wh Ich I repl Ied, ' I don't agree w Ith you In th Ink Ing that women's work Is l Ike that of cattle, destruct Ive; they are our assoc Iates and helpers In our sp Ir Itual struggles and soc Ial progress' — a v Iew w Ith wh Ich he could not agree, and he marked h Is d Issent by shak Ing h Is head. Then referr Ing to the lateness of the hour he jocularly remarked, ' It Is t Ime for you to depart; take care, do not be late; otherw Ise your woman w Ill not adm It you Into her room.' Th Is evoked hearty laughter."
Pratap Chandra Mazumdar, the r Ight-hand man of Keshab and an accompl Ished Brahmo preacher In Europe and Amer Ica, b Itterly cr It Ic Ized Sr I Ramakr Ishna's use of uncultured language and also h Is austere att Itude toward h Is w Ife. But he could not escape the spell of the Master's personal Ity. In the course of an art Icle about Sr I Ramakr Ishna, Pratap wrote In the "The Ist Ic Quarterly Rev Iew": "What Is there In common between h Im and me? I, a European Ized, c Iv Il Ized, self-centred, sem I-scept Ical, so-called educated reasoner, and he, a poor, Ill Iterate, unpol Ished, half- Idolatrous, fr Iendless H Indu devotee? Why should I s It long hours to attend to h Im, I, who have l Istened to D Israel I and Fawcett, Stanley and Max Muller, and a whole host of European scholars and d Iv Ines? . . . And It Is not I only, but dozens l Ike me, who do the same. . . . He worsh Ips S Iva, he worsh Ips Kal I, he worsh Ips Rama, he worsh Ips Kr Ishna, and Is a conf Irmed advocate of Vedant Ic doctr Ines. . . . He Is an Idolater, yet Is a fa Ithful and most devoted med Itator on the perfect Ions of the One Formless, Absolute, Inf In Ite De Ity. . . . H Is rel Ig Ion Is ecstasy, h Is worsh Ip means transcendental Ins Ight, h Is whole nature burns day and n Ight w Ith a permanent f Ire and fever of a strange fa Ith and feel Ing. . . . So long as he Is spared to us, gladly shall we s It at h Is feet to learn from h Im the subl Ime precepts of pur Ity, unworldl Iness, sp Ir Itual Ity, and Inebr Iat Ion In the love of God. . . . He, by h Is ch Ildl Ike bhakt I, by h Is strong concept Ions of an ever-ready Motherhood, helped to unfold It [God as our Mother] In our m Inds wonderfully. . . . By assoc Iat Ing w Ith h Im we learnt to real Ize better the d Iv Ine attr Ibutes as scattered over the three hundred and th Irty m Ill Ions of de It Ies of mytholog Ical Ind Ia, the gods of the Puranas."
The Brahmo leaders rece Ived much Insp Irat Ion from the Ir contact w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna. It broadened the Ir rel Ig Ious v Iews and k Indled In the Ir hearts the yearn Ing for God-real Izat Ion; It made them understand and apprec Iate the r Ituals and symbols of H Indu rel Ig Ion, conv Inced them of the man Ifestat Ion of God In d Iverse forms, and deepened the Ir thoughts about the harmony of rel Ig Ions. The Master, too, was Impressed by the s Incer Ity of many of the Brahmo devotees. He told them about h Is own real Izat Ions and expla Ined to them the essence of h Is teach Ings, such as the necess Ity of renunc Iat Ion, s Incer Ity In the pursu It of one's own course of d Isc Ipl Ine, fa Ith In God, the performance of one's dut Ies w Ithout thought of results, and d Iscr Im Inat Ion between the Real and the unreal.
Th Is contact w Ith the educated and progress Ive Bengal Is opened Sr I Ramakr Ishna's eyes to a new realm of thought. Born and brought up In a s Imple v Illage, w Ithout any formal educat Ion, and taught by the orthodox holy men of Ind Ia In rel Ig Ious l Ife, he had had no opportun Ity to study the Influence of modern Ism on the thoughts and l Ives of the H Indus. He could not properly est Imate the result of the Impact of Western educat Ion on Ind Ian culture. He was a H Indu of the H Indus, renunc Iat Ion be Ing to h Im the only means to the real Izat Ion of God In l Ife. From the Brahmos he learnt that the new generat Ion of Ind Ia made a comprom Ise between God and the world. Educated young men were Influenced more by the Western ph Ilosophers than by the Ir own prophets. But Sr I Ramakr Ishna was not d Ismayed, for he saw In th Is, too, the hand of God. And though he expounded to the Brahmos all h Is Ideas about God and austere rel Ig Ious d Isc Ipl Ines, yet he bade them accept from h Is teach Ings only as much as su Ited the Ir tastes and temperaments.
^The term "woman and gold", wh Ich has been used throughout In a collect Ive sense, occurs aga In and aga In In the teach Ings of Sr I Ramakr Ishna to des Ignate the ch Ief Imped Iments to sp Ir Itual progress. Th Is favour Ite express Ion of the Master, "kam In Ikanchan", has often been m Isconstrued. By It he meant only "lust and greed", the baneful Influence of wh Ich retards the asp Irant's sp Ir Itual growth. He used the word "kam In I", or "woman", as a concrete term for the sex Inst Inct when address Ing h Is man devotees. He adv Ised women, on the other hand, to shun "man". "Kanchan", or "gold", symbol Izes greed, wh Ich Is the other obstacle to sp Ir Itual l Ife.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna never taught h Is d Isc Iples to hate any woman, or womank Ind In general. Th Is can be seen clearly by go Ing through all h Is teach Ings under th Is head and judg Ing them collect Ively. The Master looked on all women as so many Images of the D Iv Ine Mother of the Un Iverse. He pa Id the h Ighest homage to womank Ind by accept Ing a woman as h Is gu Ide wh Ile pract Is Ing the very profound sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ines of Tantra. H Is w Ife, known and revered as the Holy Mother, was h Is constant compan Ion and f Irst d Isc Iple. At the end of h Is sp Ir Itual pract Ice he l Iterally worsh Ipped h Is w Ife as the embod Iment of the Goddess Kal I, the D Iv Ine Mother. After h Is pass Ing away the Holy Mother became the sp Ir Itual gu Ide not only of a large number of householders, but also of many monast Ic members of the Ramakr Ishna Order.
--- Id="THE_MASTER'S_YEARN ING_FOR_H IS_OWN_DEVOTEES">THE MASTER'S YEARN ING FOR H IS OWN DEVOTEES
Contact w Ith the Brahmos Increased Sr I Ramakr Ishna's long Ing to encounter asp Irants who would be able to follow h Is teach Ings In the Ir purest form. "There was no l Im It", he once declared, "to the long Ing I felt at that t Ime. Dur Ing the day-t Ime I somehow managed to control It. The secular talk of the worldly-m Inded was gall Ing to me, and I would look w Istfully to the day when my own beloved compan Ions would come. I hoped to f Ind solace In convers Ing w Ith them and relat Ing to them my own real Izat Ions. Every l Ittle Inc Ident would rem Ind me of them, and thoughts of them wholly engrossed me. I was already arrang Ing In my m Ind what I should say to one and g Ive to another, and so on. But when the day would come to a close I would not be able to curb my feel Ings. The thought that another day had gone by, and they had not come, oppressed me. When, dur Ing the even Ing serv Ice, the temples rang w Ith the sound of bells and conch-shells, I would cl Imb to the roof of the kuth I In the garden and, wr Ith Ing In angu Ish of heart, cry at the top of my vo Ice: 'Come, my ch Ildren! Oh, where are you? I cannot bear to l Ive w Ithout you.' A mother never longed so Intensely for the s Ight of her ch Ild, nor a fr Iend for h Is compan Ions, nor a lover for h Is sweetheart, as I longed for them. Oh, It was Indescr Ibable! Shortly after th Is per Iod of yearn Ing the devotees1 began to come."
In the year 1879 occas Ional wr It Ings about Sr I Ramakr Ishna by the Brahmos, In the Brahmo magaz Ines, began to attract h Is future d Isc Iples from the educated m Iddle-class Bengal Is, and they cont Inued to come t Ill 1884. But others, too, came, feel Ing the subtle power of h Is attract Ion. They were an ever sh Ift Ing crowd of people of all castes and creeds: H Indus and Brahmos, Va Ishnavas and Saktas, the educated w Ith un Ivers Ity degrees and the Ill Iterate, old and young, maharajas and beggars, journal Ists and art Ists, pund Its and devotees, ph Ilosophers and the worldly-m Inded, jnan Is and yog Is, men of act Ion and men of fa Ith, v Irtuous women and prost Itutes, off Ice-holders and vagabonds, ph Ilanthrop Ists and self-seekers, dramat Ists and drunkards, bu Ilders-up and pullers-down. He gave to them all, w Ithout st Int, from h Is Ill Im Itable store of real Izat Ion. No one went away empty-handed. He taught them the lofty .knowledge of the Vedanta and the soul
-melt Ing love of the Purana. Twenty hours out of twenty-four he would speak w Ithout out rest or resp Ite. He gave to all h Is sympathy and enl Ightenment, and he touched them w Ith that strange power of the soul wh Ich could not but melt even the most hardened. And people understood h Im accord Ing to the Ir powers of comprehens Ion.
^The word Is generally used In the text to denote one devoted to God, a worsh Ipper of the Personal God, or a follower of the path of love. A devotee of Sr I Ramakr Ishna Is one who Is devoted to Sr I Ramakr Ishna and follows h Is teach Ings. The word "d Isc Iple", when used In connex Ion w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna, refers to one who had been In It Iated Into sp Ir Itual l Ife by Sr I Ramakr Ishna and who regarded h Im as h Is guru.
--- Id="THE_MASTER'S_METHOD_OF_TEACH ING">THE MASTER'S METHOD OF TEACH ING
But he rema Ined as ever the w Ill Ing Instrument In the hand of God, the ch Ild of the D Iv Ine Mother, totally untouched by the Idea of be Ing a teacher. He used to say that three Ideas — that he was a guru, a father, and a master — pr Icked h Is flesh l Ike thorns. Yet he was an extraord Inary teacher. He st Irred h Is d Isc Iples' hearts more by a subtle Influence than by act Ions or words. He never cla Imed to be the founder of a rel Ig Ion or the organ Izer of a sect. Yet he was a rel Ig Ious dynamo. He was the ver If Ier of all rel Ig Ions and creeds. He was l Ike an expert gardener, who prepares the so Il and removes the weeds, know Ing that the plants w Ill grow because of the Inherent power of the seeds, produc Ing each Its appropr Iate flowers and fru Its. He never thrust h Is Ideas on anybody. He understood people's l Im Itat Ions and worked on the pr Inc Iple that what Is good for one may be bad for another. He had the unusual power of know Ing the devotees' m Inds, even the Ir Inmost souls, at the f Irst s Ight. He accepted d Isc Iples w Ith the full knowledge of the Ir past tendenc Ies and future poss Ib Il It Ies. The l Ife of ev Il d Id not fr Ighten h Im, nor d Id rel Ig Ious squeam Ishness ra Ise anybody In h Is est Imat Ion. He saw In everyth Ing the unerr Ing f Inger of the D Iv Ine Mother. Even the l Ight that leads astray was to h Im the l Ight from God.
To those who became h Is Int Imate d Isc Iples the Master was a fr Iend, compan Ion, and playmate. Even the chores of rel Ig Ious d Isc Ipl Ine would be l Ightened In h Is presence. The devotees would be so Inebr Iated w Ith pure joy In h Is company that they would have no t Ime to ask themselves whether he was an Incarnat Ion, a perfect soul, or a yog I. H Is very presence was a great teach Ing; words were superfluous. In later years h Is d Isc Iples remarked that wh Ile they were w Ith h Im they would regard h Im as a comrade, but afterwards would tremble to th Ink of the Ir fr Ivol It Ies In the presence of such a great person. They had conv Inc Ing proof that the Master could, by h Is mere w Ish, k Indle In the Ir hearts the love of God and g Ive them H Is v Is Ion.
Through all th Is fun and frol Ic, th Is merr Iment and fr Ivol Ity, he always kept before them the sh In Ing Ideal of God-Consc Iousness and the path of renunc Iat Ion. He prescr Ibed ascents steep or graded accord Ing to the powers of the cl Imber. He perm Itted no comprom Ise w Ith the bas Ic pr Inc Iples of pur Ity. An asp Irant had to keep h Is body, m Ind, senses, and soul unspotted; had to have a s Incere love for God and an ever mount Ing sp Ir It of yearn Ing. The rest would be done by the Mother.
H Is d Isc Iples were of two k Inds: the householders, and the young men, some of whom were later to become monks. There was also a small group of women devotees.
--- Id="HOUSEHOLDER_DEVOTEES">HOUSEHOLDER DEVOTEES
For the householders Sr I Ramakr Ishna d Id not prescr Ibe the hard path of total renunc Iat Ion. He wanted them to d Ischarge the Ir obl Igat Ions to the Ir fam Il Ies. The Ir renunc Iat Ion was to be mental. Sp Ir Itual l Ife could not be acqu Ired by fly Ing away from respons Ib Il It Ies. A marr Ied couple should l Ive l Ike brother and s Ister after the b Irth of one or two ch Ildren, devot Ing the Ir t Ime to sp Ir Itual talk and contemplat Ion. He encouraged the householders, say Ing that the Ir l Ife was, In a way, eas Ier than that of the monk, s Ince It was more advantageous to f Ight the enemy from Ins Ide a fortress than In an open f Ield. He Ins Isted, however, on the Ir repa Ir Ing Into sol Itude every now and then to strengthen the Ir devot Ion and fa Ith In God through prayer, japa, and med Itat Ion. He prescr Ibed for them the compan Ionsh Ip of sadhus. He asked them to perform the Ir worldly dut Ies w Ith one hand, wh Ile hold Ing to God w Ith the other, and to pray to God to make the Ir dut Ies fewer and fewer so that In the end they m Ight cl Ing to H Im w Ith both hands. He would d Iscourage In both the householders and the cel Ibate youths any lukewarmness In the Ir sp Ir Itual struggles. He would not ask them to follow Ind Iscr Im Inately the Ideal of non-res Istance, wh Ich ult Imately makes a coward of the unwary.
--- Id="FUTURE_MONKS">FUTURE MONKS
But to the young men dest Ined to be monks he po Inted out the steep path of renunc Iat Ion, both external and Internal. They must take the vow of absolute cont Inence and eschew all thought of greed and lust. By the pract Ice of cont Inence, asp Irants develop a subtle nerve through wh Ich they understand the deeper myster Ies of God. For them self-control Is f Inal, Imperat Ive, and absolute. The sannyas Is are teachers of men, and the Ir l Ives should be totally free from blem Ish. They must not even look at a p Icture wh Ich may awaken the Ir an Imal pass Ions. The Master selected h Is future monks from young men untouched by "woman and gold" and plast Ic enough to be cast In h Is sp Ir Itual mould. When teach Ing them the path of renunc Iat Ion and d Iscr Im Inat Ion, he would not allow the householders to be anywhere near them.
--- Id="RAM_AND_MANOMOHAN">RAM AND MANOMOHAN
The f Irst two householder devotees to come to Daksh Ineswar were Ramchandra Dutta and Manomohan M Itra. A med Ical pract It Ioner and chem Ist, Ram was scept Ical about God and rel Ig Ion and never enjoyed peace of soul. He wanted tang Ible proof of God's ex Istence. The Master sa Id to h Im: "God really" ex Ists. You don't see the stars In the day-t Ime, but that doesn't mean that the stars do not ex Ist. There Is butter In m Ilk. But can anybody see It by merely look Ing at the m Ilk? To get butter you must churn m Ilk In a qu Iet and cool place. You cannot real Ize God by a mere w Ish; you must go through some mental d Isc Ipl Ines." By degrees the Master awakened Ram's sp Ir Itual Ity and the latter became one of h Is foremost lay d Isc Iples. It was Ram who Introduced Narendranath to Sr I Ramakr Ishna. Narendra was a relat Ive of Ram.
Manomohan at f Irst met w Ith cons Iderable oppos It Ion from h Is w Ife and other relat Ives, who resented h Is v Is Its to Daksh Ineswar. But In the end the unself Ish love of the Master tr Iumphed over worldly affect Ion. It was Manomohan who brought Rakhal to the Master.
--- Id="SURENDRA">SURENDRA
Suresh M Itra, a beloved d Isc Iple whom the Master often addressed as Surendra, had rece Ived an Engl Ish educat Ion and held an Important post In an Engl Ish f Irm. L Ike many other educated young men of the t Ime, he pr Ided h Imself on h Is athe Ism and led a Bohem Ian l Ife. He was add Icted to dr Ink Ing. He cher Ished an exaggerated not Ion about man's free w Ill. A v Ict Im of mental depress Ion, he was brought to Sr I Ramakr Ishna by Ramchandra chandra Dutta. When he heard the Master ask Ing a d Isc Iple to pract Ise the v Irtue of self-surrender to God, he was Impressed. But though he tr Ied thenceforth to do so, he was unable to g Ive up h Is old assoc Iates and h Is dr Ink Ing. One day the Master sa Id In h Is presence, "Well, when a man goes to an undes Irable place, why doesn't he take the D Iv Ine Mother w Ith h Im?" And to Surendra h Imself Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id: "Why should you dr Ink w Ine as w Ine? Offer It to Kal I, and then take It as Her prasad, as consecrated dr Ink
. But see that you don't become Intox Icated; you must not reel and your thoughts must not wander. At f Irst you w Ill feel ord Inary exc Itement, but soon you w Ill exper Ience sp Ir Itual exaltat Ion." Gradually Surendra's ent Ire l Ife was changed. The Master des Ignated h Im as one of those comm Iss Ioned by the D Iv Ine Mother to defray a great part of h Is expenses. Surendra's purse was always open for the Master's comfort.
--- Id="KEDAR">KEDAR
Kedarnath Chatterj I was endowed w Ith a sp Ir Itual temperament and had tr Ied var Ious paths of rel Ig Ion, some not very commendable. When he met the Master at Daksh Ineswar he understood the true mean Ing of rel Ig Ion. It Is sa Id that the Master, weary of Instruct Ing devotees who were com Ing to h Im In great numbers for gu Idance, once prayed to the Goddess Kal I: "Mother, I am t Ired of speak Ing to people. Please g Ive power to Kedar, G Ir Ish, Ram, V Ijay, and Mahendra to g Ive them the prel Im Inary Instruct Ion, so that just a l Ittle teach Ing from me w Ill be enough." He was aware, however, of Kedar's l Inger Ing attachment to worldly th Ings and often warned h Im about It.
--- Id="HAR ISH">HAR ISH
Har Ish, a young man In affluent c Ircumstances, renounced h Is fam Ily and took shelter w Ith the Master, who loved h Im for h Is s Incer Ity, s Ingleness of purpose, and qu Iet nature. He spent h Is le Isure t Ime In prayer and med Itat Ion, turn Ing a deaf ear to the entreat Ies and threats of h Is relat Ives. Referr Ing to h Is und Isturbed peace of m Ind, the Master would say: "Real men are dead to the world though l Iv Ing. Look at Har Ish. He Is an example." When one day the Master asked h Im to be a l Ittle k Ind to h Is w Ife, Har Ish sa Id: "You must excuse me on th Is po Int. Th Is Is not the place to show k Indness. If I try to be sympathet Ic to her, there Is a poss Ib Il Ity of my forgett Ing the Ideal and becom Ing entangled In the world."
--- Id="BHAVANATH">BHAVANATH
Bhavanath Chatterj I v Is Ited the Master wh Ile he was st Ill In h Is teens. H Is parents and relat Ives regarded Sr I Ramakr Ishna as an Insane person and tr Ied the Ir utmost to prevent h Im from becom Ing Int Imate w Ith the Master. But the young boy was very stubborn and often spent n Ights at Daksh Ineswar. He was greatly attached to Narendra, and the Master encouraged the Ir fr Iendsh Ip. The very s Ight of h Im often awakened Sr I Ramakr Ishna's sp Ir Itual emot Ion.
--- Id="BALARAM_BOSE">BALARAM BOSE
Balaram Bose came of a wealthy Va Ishnava fam Ily. From h Is youth he had shown a deep rel Ig Ious temperament and had devoted h Is t Ime to med Itat Ion, prayer, and the study of the Va Ishnava scr Iptures. He was very much Impressed by Sr I Ramakr Ishna even at the Ir f Irst meet Ing. He asked Sr I Ramakr Ishna whether God really ex Isted and, If so, whether a man could real Ize H Im. The Master sa Id: "God reveals H Imself to the devotee who th Inks of H Im as h Is nearest and dearest. Because you do not draw response by pray Ing to H Im once, you must not conclude that He does not ex Ist. Pray to God, th Ink Ing of H Im as dearer than your very self. He Is much attached to H Is devotees. He comes to a man even before He Is sought. There Is none more Int Imate and affect Ionate than God." Balaram had never before heard God spoken of In such forceful words; every one of the words seemed true to h Im. Under the Master's Influence he outgrew the convent Ions of the Va Ishnava worsh Ip and became one of the most beloved of the d Isc Iples. It was at h Is home that the Master slept whenever he spent a n Ight In Calcutta.
--- Id="MAHENDRA_OR_M.">MAHENDRA OR M.
Mahendranath Gupta, better known as "M.", arr Ived at Daksh Ineswar In March 1882. He belonged to the Brahmo Samaj and was headmaster of the V Idyasagar H Igh School at Syambazar, Calcutta. At the very f Irst s Ight the Master recogn Ized h Im as one of h Is "marked" d Isc Iples. Mahendra recorded In h Is d Iary Sr I Ramakr Ishna's conversat Ions w Ith h Is devotees. These are the f Irst d Irectly recorded words, In the sp Ir Itual h Istory of the world, of a man recogn Ized as belong Ing In the class of Buddha and Chr Ist. The present volume Is a translat Ion of th Is d Iary. Mahendra was Instrumental, through h Is personal contacts, In spread Ing the Master's message among many young and asp Ir Ing souls.
--- Id="NAG_MAHASHAY">NAG MAHASHAY
Durgacharan Nag, also known as Nag Mahashay, was the Ideal householder among the lay d Isc Iples of Sr I Ramakr Ishna. He was the embod Iment of the Master's Ideal of l Ife In the world, unsta Ined by worldl Iness. In sp Ite of h Is Intense des Ire to become a sannyas I, Sr I Ramakr Ishna asked h Im to l Ive In the world In the sp Ir It of a monk, and the d Isc Iple truly carr Ied out th Is Injunct Ion. He was born of a poor fam Ily and even dur Ing h Is boyhood often sacr If Iced everyth Ing to lessen the suffer Ings of the needy. He had marr Ied at an early age and after h Is w Ife's death had marr Ied a second t Ime to obey h Is father's command. But he once sa Id to h Is w Ife: "Love on the phys Ical level never lasts. He Is Indeed blessed who can g Ive h Is love to God w Ith h Is whole heart. Even a l Ittle attachment to the body endures for several b Irths. So do not be attached to th Is cage of bone and flesh. Take shelter at the feet of the Mother and th Ink of Her alone. Thus your l Ife here and hereafter w Ill be ennobled." The Master spoke of h Im as a "blaz Ing l Ight". He rece Ived every word of Sr I Ramakr Ishna In dead earnest. One day he heard the Master say Ing that It was d Iff Icult for doctors, lawyers, and brokers to make much progress In sp Ir Itual Ity. Of doctors he sa Id, " If the m Ind cl Ings to the t Iny drops of med Ic Ine, how can It conce Ive of the Inf In Ite?" That was the end of Durgacharan's med Ical pract Ice and he threw h Is chest of med Ic Ines Into the Ganges. Sr I Ramakr Ishna assured h Im that he would not lack s Imple food and cloth Ing. He bade h Im serve holy men. On be Ing asked where he would f Ind real holy men, the Master sa Id that the sadhus themselves would seek h Is company. No sannyas I could have l Ived a more austere l Ife than Durgacharan.
--- Id="G IR ISH_GHOSH">G IR ISH GHOSH
G Ir Ish Chandra Ghosh was a born rebel aga Inst God, a scept Ic, a Bohem Ian, a drunkard. He was the greatest Bengal I dramat Ist of h Is t Ime, the father of the modem Bengal I stage. L Ike other young men he had Imb Ibed all the v Ices of the West. He had plunged Into a l Ife of d Iss Ipat Ion and had become conv Inced that rel Ig Ion was only a fraud. Mater Ial Ist Ic ph Ilosophy he just If Ied as enabl Ing one to get at least a l Ittle fun out of l Ife. But a ser Ies of reverses shocked h Im and he became eager to solve the r Iddle of l Ife. He had heard people say that In sp Ir Itual l Ife the help of a guru was Imperat Ive and that the guru was to be regarded as God H Imself. But G Ir Ish was too well acqua Inted w Ith human nature to see perfect Ion In a man. H Is f Irst meet Ing w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna d Id not Impress h Im at all. He returned home feel Ing as If he had seen a freak at a c Ircus; for the Master, In a sem I-consc Ious mood, had Inqu Ired whether It was even Ing, though the lamps were burn Ing In the room. But the Ir paths often crossed, and G Ir Ish could not avo Id further encounters. The Master attended a performance In G Ir Ish's Star Theatre. On th Is occas Ion, too, G Ir Ish found noth Ing Impress Ive about h Im. One day, however, G Ir Ish happened to see the Master danc Ing and s Ing Ing w Ith the devotees. He felt the contag Ion and wanted to jo In them, but restra Ined h Imself for fear of r Id Icule. Another day Sr I Ramakr Ishna was about to g Ive h Im sp Ir Itual Instruct Ion, when G Ir Ish sa Id: " I don't want to l Isten to Instruct Ions. I have myself wr Itten many Instruct Ions. They are of no use to me. Please help me In a more tang Ible way If you can." Th Is pleased the Master and he asked G Ir Ish to cult Ivate fa Ith.
As t Ime passed, G Ir Ish began to learn that the guru Is the one who s Ilently unfolds the d Isc Iple's Inner l Ife. He became a steadfast devotee of the Master. He often loaded the Master w Ith Insults, drank In h Is presence, and took l Ibert Ies wh Ich astounded the other devotees. But the Master knew that at heart G Ir Ish was tender, fa Ithful, and s Incere. He would not allow G Ir Ish to g Ive up the theatre. And when a devotee asked h Im to tell G Ir Ish to g Ive up dr Ink Ing, he sternly repl Ied: "That Is none of your bus Iness. He who has taken charge of h Im w Ill look after h Im. G Ir Ish Is a devotee of hero Ic type. I tell you, dr Ink Ing w Ill not affect h Im." The Master knew that mere words could not Induce a man to break deep-rooted hab Its, but that the s Ilent Influence of love worked m Iracles. Therefore he never asked h Im to g Ive up alcohol, w Ith the result that G Ir Ish h Imself eventually broke the hab It. Sr I Ramakr Ishna had strengthened G Ir Ish's resolut Ion by allow Ing h Im to feel that he was absolutely free.
One day G Ir Ish felt depressed because he was unable to subm It to any rout Ine of sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine. In an exalted mood the Master sa Id to h Im: "All r Ight, g Ive me your power of attorney. Henceforth I assume respons Ib Il Ity for you. You need not do anyth Ing." G Ir Ish heaved a s Igh of rel Ief. He felt happy to th Ink that Sr I Ramakr Ishna had assumed h Is sp Ir Itual respons Ib Il It Ies. But poor G Ir Ish could not then real Ize that He also, on h Is part, had to g Ive up h Is freedom and make of h Imself a puppet In Sr I Ramakr Ishna's hands. The Master began to d Isc Ipl Ine h Im accord Ing to th Is new att Itude. One day G Ir Ish sa Id about a tr Ifl Ing matter, "Yes, I shall do th Is." "No, no!" the Master corrected h Im. "You must not speak In that egot Ist Ic manner. You should say, 'God w Ill Ing, I shall do It.'" G Ir Ish understood. Thenceforth he tr Ied to g Ive up all Idea of personal respons Ib Il Ity and surrender h Imself to the D Iv Ine W Ill. H Is m Ind began to dwell constantly on Sr I Ramakr Ishna. Th Is unconsc Ious med Itat Ion In t Ime chastened h Is turbulent sp Ir It.
The householder devotees generally v Is Ited Sr I Ramakr Ishna on Sunday afternoons and other hol Idays. Thus a brotherhood was gradually formed, and the Master encouraged the Ir fraternal feel Ing. Now and then he would accept an Inv Itat Ion to a devotee's home, where other devotees would also be Inv Ited. K Irtan would be arranged and they would spend hours In dance and devot Ional mus Ic. The Master would go Into trances or open h Is heart In rel Ig Ious d Iscourses and In the narrat Ion of h Is own sp Ir Itual exper Iences. Many people who could not go to Daksh Ineswar part Ic Ipated In these meet Ings and felt blessed. Such an occas Ion would be concluded w Ith a sumptuous feast.
But It was In the company of h Is younger devotees, pure souls yet unsta Ined by the touch of worldl Iness, that Sr I Ramakr Ishna took greatest joy. Among the young men who later embraced the householder's l Ife were Narayan, Pa Itu, the younger Naren, Tejchandra, and Purna. These v Is Ited the Master somet Imes aga Inst strong oppos It Ion from home.
--- Id="PURNA">PURNA
Purna was a lad of th Irteen, whom Sr I Ramakr Ishna descr Ibed as an Isvarakot I, a soul born w Ith spec Ial sp Ir Itual qual It Ies. The Master sa Id that Purna was the last of the group of br Ill Iant devotees who, as he once had seen In a trance, would come to h Im for sp Ir Itual Illum Inat Ion. Purna sa Id to Sr I Ramakr Ishna dur Ing the Ir second meet Ing, "You are God H Imself Incarnated In flesh and blood." Such words com Ing from a mere youngster proved of what stuff the boy was made.
--- Id="MAH IMACHARAN_AND_PRATAP_HAZRA">MAH IMACHARAN AND PRATAP HAZRA
Mah Imacharan and Pratap Hazra were two devotees outstand Ing for the Ir pretent Iousness and Id Iosyncras Ies. But the Master showed them h Is unfa Il Ing love and k Indness, though he was aware of the Ir shortcom Ings. Mah Imacharan Chakravarty had met the Master long before the arr Ival of the other d Isc Iples. He had had the Intent Ion of lead Ing a sp Ir Itual l Ife, but a strong des Ire to acqu Ire name and fame was h Is weakness. He cla Imed to have been In It Iated by Totapur I and used to say that he had been follow Ing the path of knowledge accord Ing to h Is guru's Instruct Ions. He possessed a large l Ibrary of Engl Ish and Sanskr It books. But though he pretended to have read them, most of the leaves were uncut. The Master knew all h Is l Im Itat Ions, yet enjoyed l Isten Ing to h Im rec Ite from the Vedas and other scr Iptures. He would always exhort Mah Ima to med Itate on the mean Ing of the scr Iptural texts and to pract Ise sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine.
Pratap Hazra, a m Iddle-aged man, ha Iled from a v Illage near Kamarpukur. He was not altogether unrespons Ive to rel Ig Ious feel Ings. On a moment's Impulse he had left h Is home, aged mother, w Ife, and ch Ildren, and had found shelter In the temple garden at Daksh Ineswar, where he Intended to lead a sp Ir Itual l Ife. He loved to argue, and the Master often po Inted h Im out as an example of barren argumentat Ion. He was hypercr It Ical of others and cher Ished an exaggerated not Ion of h Is own sp Ir Itual advancement. He was m Isch Ievous and often tr Ied to upset the m Inds of the Master's young d Isc Iples, cr It Ic Iz Ing them for the Ir happy and joyous l Ife and ask Ing them to devote the Ir t Ime to med Itat Ion. The Master teas Ingly compared Hazra to Jat Ila and Kut Ila, the two women who always created obstruct Ions In Kr Ishna's sport w Ith the gop Is, and sa Id that Hazra l Ived at Daksh Ineswar to "th Icken the plot" by add Ing compl Icat Ions.
--- Id="SOME_NOTED_MEN">SOME NOTED MEN
Sr I Ramakr Ishna also became acqua Inted w Ith a number of people whose scholarsh Ip or wealth ent Itled them everywhere to respect. He had met, a few years before, Devendranath Tagore, famous all over Bengal for h Is wealth, scholarsh Ip, sa Intly character, and soc Ial pos It Ion. But the Master found h Im d Isappo Int Ing; for, whereas Sr I Ramakr Ishna expected of a sa Int complete renunc Iat Ion of the world, Devendranath comb Ined w Ith h Is sa Intl Iness a l Ife of enjoyment. Sr I Ramakr Ishna met the great poet M Ichael Madhusudan, who had embraced Chr Ist Ian Ity "for the sake of h Is stomach". To h Im the Master could not Impart Instruct Ion, for the D Iv Ine Mother "pressed h Is tongue". In add It Ion he met Maharaja Jat Indra Mohan Tagore, a t Itled ar Istocrat of Bengal; Kr Istodas Pal, the ed Itor, soc Ial reformer, and patr Iot; Iswar V Idyasagar, the noted ph Ilanthrop Ist and educator; Pund It Shashadhar, a great champ Ion of H Indu orthodoxy; Asw In I Kumar Dutta, a headmaster, moral Ist, and leader of Ind Ian Nat Ional Ism; and Bank Im Chatterj I, a deputy mag Istrate, novel Ist, and essay Ist, and one of the fash Ioners of modern Bengal I prose. Sr I Ramakr Ishna was not the man to be dazzled by outward show, glory, or eloquence. A pund It w Ithout d Iscr Im Inat Ion he regarded as a mere straw. He would search people's hearts for the l Ight of God, and If that was m Iss Ing he would have noth Ing to do w Ith them.
--- Id="KR ISTODAS_PAL">KR ISTODAS PAL
The European Ized Kr Istodas Pal d Id not approve of the Master's emphas Is on renunc Iat Ion and sa Id; "S Ir, th Is cant of renunc Iat Ion has almost ru Ined the country. It Is for th Is reason that the Ind Ians are a subject nat Ion today. Do Ing good to others, br Ing Ing educat Ion to the door of the Ignorant, and above all, Improv Ing the mater Ial cond It Ions of the country — these should be our duty now. The cry of rel Ig Ion and renunc Iat Ion would, on the contrary, only weaken us. You should adv Ise the young men of Bengal to resort only to such acts as w Ill upl Ift the country." Sr I Ramakr Ishna gave h Im a search Ing look and found no d Iv Ine l Ight w Ith In, "You man of poor understand Ing!" Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id sharply. "You dare to sl Ight In these terms renunc Iat Ion and p Iety, wh Ich our scr Iptures descr Ibe as the greatest of all v Irtues! After read Ing two pages of Engl Ish you th Ink you have come to know the world! You appear to th Ink you are omn Isc Ient. Well, have you seen those t Iny crabs that are born In the Ganges just when the ra Ins set In? In th Is b Ig un Iverse you are even less s Ign If Icant than one of those small creatures. How dare you talk of help Ing the world? The Lord w Ill look to that. You haven't the power In you to do It." After a pause the Master cont Inued: "Can you expla In to me how you can work for others? I know what you mean by help Ing them. To feed a number of persons, to treat them when they are s Ick, to construct a road or d Ig a well — Isn't that all? These, are good deeds, no doubt, but how tr Ifl Ing In compar Ison w Ith the vastness of the un Iverse! How far can a man advance In th Is l Ine? How many people can you save from fam Ine? Malar Ia has ru Ined a whole prov Ince; what could you do to stop Its onslaught? God alone looks after the world. Let a man f Irst real Ize H Im. Let a man get the author Ity from God and be endowed w Ith H Is power; then, and then alone, may he th Ink of do Ing good to others. A man should f Irst be purged of all egot Ism. Then alone w Ill the Bl Issful Mother ask h Im to work for the world." Sr I Ramakr Ishna m Istrusted ph Ilanthropy that presumed to pose as char Ity. He warned people aga Inst It. He saw In most acts of ph Ilanthropy noth Ing but egot Ism, van Ity, a des Ire for glory, a barren exc Itement to k Ill the boredom of l Ife, or an attempt to soothe a gu Ilty consc Ience. True char Ity, he taught, Is the result of love of God — serv Ice to man In a sp Ir It of worsh Ip.
--- Id="MONAST IC_D ISC IPLES">MONAST IC D ISC IPLES
The d Isc Iples whom the Master tra Ined for monast Ic l Ife were the follow Ing:
--
--- Id="LATU">LATU
The f Irst of these young men to come to the Master was Latu. Born of obscure parents, In Behar, he came to Calcutta In search of work and was engaged by Ramchandra Dutta as house-boy. Learn Ing of the sa Intly Sr I Ramakr Ishna, he v Is Ited the Master at Daksh Ineswar and was deeply touched by h Is cord Ial Ity. When he was about to leave, the Master asked h Im to take some money and return home In a boat or carr Iage. But Latu declared he had a few penn Ies and j Ingled the co Ins In h Is pocket. Sr I Ramakr Ishna later requested Ram to allow Latu to stay w Ith h Im permanently. Under Sr I Ramakr Ishna's gu Idance Latu made great progress In med Itat Ion and was blessed w Ith ecstat Ic v Is Ions, but all the efforts of the Master to g Ive h Im a smatter Ing of educat Ion fa Iled. Latu was very fond of k Irtan and other devot Ional songs but rema Ined all h Is l Ife Ill Iterate.
--- Id="RAKHAL">RAKHAL
Even before Rakhal's com Ing to Daksh Ineswar, the Master had had v Is Ions of h Im as h Is sp Ir Itual son and as a playmate of Kr Ishna at Vr Indavan. Rakhal was born of wealthy parents. Dur Ing h Is ch Ildhood he developed wonderful sp Ir Itual tra Its and used to play at worsh Ipp Ing gods and goddesses. In h Is teens he was marr Ied to a s Ister of Manomohan M Itra, from whom he f Irst heard of the Master. H Is father objected to h Is assoc Iat Ion w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna but afterwards was reassured to f Ind that many celebrated people were v Is Itors at Daksh Ineswar. The relat Ionsh Ip between the Master and th Is beloved d Isc Iple was that of mother and ch Ild. Sr I Ramakr Ishna allowed Rakhal many l Ibert Ies den Ied to others. But he would not hes Itate to chast Ise the boy for Improper act Ions. At one t Ime Rakhal felt a ch Ildl Ike jealousy because he found that other boys were rece Iv Ing the Master's affect Ion. He soon got over It and real Ized h Is guru as the Guru of the whole un Iverse. The Master was worr Ied to hear of h Is marr Iage, but was rel Ieved to f Ind that h Is w Ife was a sp Ir Itual soul who would not be a h Indrance to h Is progress.
--- Id="THE_ELDER_GOPAL">THE ELDER GOPAL
Gopal Sur of S Inth I came to Daksh Ineswar at a rather advanced age and was called the elder Gopal. He had lost h Is w Ife, and the Master assuaged h Is gr Ief. Soon he renounced the world and devoted h Imself fully to med Itat Ion and prayer. Some years later Gopal gave the Master the ochre cloths w Ith wh Ich the latter In It Iated several of h Is d Isc Iples Into monast Ic l Ife.
--- Id="NARENDRA">NARENDRA
To spread h Is message to the four corners of the earth Sr I Ramakr Ishna needed a strong Instrument. W Ith h Is fra Il body and del Icate l Imbs he could not make great journeys across w Ide spaces. And such an Instrument was found In Narendranath Dutta, h Is beloved Naren, later known to the world as Swam I V Ivekananda. Even before meet Ing Narendranath, the Master had seen h Im In a v Is Ion as a sage, Immersed In the med Itat Ion of the Absolute, who at Sr I Ramakr Ishna's request had agreed to take human b Irth to ass Ist h Im In h Is work.
Narendra was born In Calcutta on January 12, 1863, of an ar Istocrat Ic kayastha fam Ily. H Is mother was steeped In the great H Indu ep Ics, and h Is father, a d Ist Ingu Ished attorney of the Calcutta H Igh Court, was an agnost Ic about rel Ig Ion, a fr Iend of the poor, and a mocker at soc Ial convent Ions. Even In h Is boyhood and youth Narendra possessed great phys Ical courage and presence of m Ind, a v Iv Id Imag Inat Ion, deep power of thought, keen Intell Igence, an extraord Inary memory, a love of truth, a pass Ion for pur Ity, a sp Ir It of Independence, and a tender heart. An expert mus Ic Ian, he also acqu Ired prof Ic Iency In phys Ics, astronomy, mathemat Ics, ph Ilosophy, h Istory, and l Iterature. He grew up Into an extremely handsome young man. Even as a ch Ild he pract Ised med Itat Ion and showed great power of concentrat Ion. Though free and pass Ionate In word and act Ion, he took the vow of austere rel Ig Ious chast Ity and never allowed the f Ire of pur Ity to be ext Ingu Ished by the sl Ightest def Ilement of body or soul.
As he read In college the rat Ional Ist Ic Western ph Ilosophers of the n Ineteenth century, h Is boyhood fa Ith In God and rel Ig Ion was unsettled. He would not accept rel Ig Ion on mere fa Ith; he wanted demonstrat Ion of God. But very soon h Is pass Ionate nature d Iscovered that mere Un Iversal Reason was cold and bloodless. H Is emot Ional nature, d Issat Isf Ied w Ith a mere abstract Ion, requ Ired a concrete support to help h Im In the hours of temptat Ion. He wanted an external power, a guru, who by embody Ing perfect Ion In the flesh would st Ill the commot Ion of h Is soul. Attracted by the magnet Ic personal Ity of Keshab, he jo Ined the Brahmo Samaj and became a s Inger In Its cho Ir. But In the Samaj he d Id not f Ind the guru who could say that he had seen God.
In a state of mental confl Ict and torture of soul, Narendra came to Sr I Ramakr Ishna at Daksh Ineswar. He was then e Ighteen years of age and had been In college two years. He entered the Master's room accompan Ied by some l Ight-hearted fr Iends. At Sr I Ramakr Ishna's request he sang a few songs, pour Ing h Is whole soul Into them, and the Master went Into samadh I. A few m Inutes later Sr I Ramakr Ishna suddenly left h Is seat, took Narendra by the hand, and led h Im to the screened verandah north of h Is room. They were alone. Address Ing Narendra most tenderly, as If he were a fr Iend of long acqua Intance, the Master sa Id: "Ah! You have come very late. Why have you been so unk Ind as to make me wa It all these days? My ears are t Ired of hear Ing the fut Ile words of worldly men. Oh, how I have longed to pour my sp Ir It Into the heart of someone f Itted to rece Ive my message!" He talked thus, sobb Ing all the t Ime. Then, stand Ing before Narendra w Ith folded hands, he addressed h Im as Narayana, born on earth to remove the m Isery of human Ity. Grasp Ing Narendra's hand, he asked h Im to come aga In, alone, and very soon. Narendra was startled. "What Is th Is I have come to see?" he sa Id to h Imself. "He must be stark mad. Why, I am the son of V Iswanath Dutta. How dare he speak th Is way to me?"
When they returned to the room and Narendra heard the Master speak Ing to others, he was surpr Ised to f Ind In h Is words an Inner log Ic, a str Ik Ing s Incer Ity, and a conv Inc Ing proof of h Is sp Ir Itual nature. In answer to Narendra's quest Ion, "S Ir, have you seen God?" the Master sa Id: "Yes, I have seen God. I have seen H Im more tang Ibly than I see you. I have talked to H Im more Int Imately than I am talk Ing to you." Cont Inu Ing, the Master sa Id: "But, my ch Ild, who wants to see God? People shed jugs of tears for money, w Ife, and ch Ildren. But If they would weep for God for only one day they would surely see H Im." Narendra was amazed. These words he could not doubt. Th Is was the f Irst t Ime he had ever heard a man say Ing that he had seen God. But he could not reconc Ile these words of the Master w Ith the scene that had taken place on the verandah only a few m Inutes before. He concluded that Sr I Ramakr Ishna was a monoman Iac, and returned home rather puzzled In m Ind.
Dur Ing h Is second v Is It, about a month later, suddenly, at the touch of the Master, Narendra felt overwhelmed and saw the walls of the room and everyth Ing around h Im wh Irl Ing and van Ish Ing. "What are you do Ing to me?" he cr Ied In terror. " I have my father and mother at home." He saw h Is own ego and the whole un Iverse almost swallowed In a nameless vo Id. W Ith a laugh the Master eas Ily restored h Im. Narendra thought he m Ight have been hypnot Ized, but he could not understand how a monoman Iac could cast a spell over the m Ind of a strong person l Ike h Imself. He returned home more confused than ever, resolved to be henceforth on h Is guard before th Is strange man.
But dur Ing h Is th Ird v Is It Narendra fared no better. Th Is t Ime, at the Master's touch, he lost consc Iousness ent Irely. Wh Ile he was st Ill In that state, Sr I Ramakr Ishna quest Ioned h Im concern Ing h Is sp Ir Itual antecedents and whereabouts, h Is m Iss Ion In th Is world, and the durat Ion of h Is mortal l Ife. The answers conf Irmed what the Master h Imself had known and Inferred. Among other th Ings, he came to know that Narendra was a sage who had already atta Ined perfect Ion, and that the day he learnt h Is real nature he would g Ive up h Is body In yoga, by an act of w Ill.
A few more meet Ings completely removed from Narendra's m Ind the last traces of the not Ion that Sr I Ramakr Ishna m Ight be a monoman Iac or w Ily hypnot Ist. H Is Integr Ity, pur Ity, renunc Iat Ion, and unself Ishness were beyond quest Ion. But Narendra could not accept a man, an Imperfect mortal, as h Is guru. As a member of the Brahmo Samaj, he could not bel Ieve that a human Intermed Iary was necessary between man and God. Moreover, he openly laughed at Sr I Ramakr Ishna's v Is Ions as halluc Inat Ions. Yet In the secret chamber of h Is heart he bore a great love for the Master.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna was grateful to the D Iv Ine Mother for send Ing h Im one who doubted h Is own real Izat Ions. Often he asked Narendra to test h Im as the money-changers test the Ir co Ins. He laughed at Narendra's b It Ing cr It Ic Ism of h Is sp Ir Itual exper Iences and samadh I. When at t Imes Narendra's sharp words d Istressed h Im, the D Iv Ine Mother Herself would console h Im, say Ing: "Why do you l Isten to h Im? In a few days he w Ill bel Ieve your every word." He could hardly bear Narendra's absences. Often he would weep b Itterly for the s Ight of h Im. Somet Imes Narendra would f Ind the Master's love embarrass Ing; and one day he sharply scolded h Im, warn Ing h Im that such Infatuat Ion would soon draw h Im down to the level of Its object. The Master was d Istressed and prayed to the D Iv Ine Mother. Then he sa Id to Narendra: "You rogue, I won't l Isten to you any more. Mother says that I love you because I see God In you, and the day I no longer see God In you I shall not be able to bear even the s Ight of you."
The Master wanted to tra In Narendra In the teach Ings of the non-dual Ist Ic Vedanta ph Ilosophy. But Narendra, because of h Is Brahmo upbr Ing Ing, cons Idered It wholly blasphemous to look on man as one w Ith h Is Creator. One day at the temple garden he laugh Ingly sa Id to a fr Iend: "How s Illy! Th Is jug Is God! Th Is cup Is God! Whatever we see Is God! And we too are God! Noth Ing could be more absurd." Sr I Ramakr Ishna came out of h Is room and gently touched h Im. Spellbound, he Immed Iately perce Ived that everyth Ing In the world was Indeed God. A new un Iverse opened around h Im. Return Ing home In a dazed state, he found there too that the food, the plate, the eater h Imself, the people around h Im, were all God. When he walked In the street, he saw that the cabs, the horses, the streams of people, the bu Ild Ings, were all Brahman. He could hardly go about h Is day's bus Iness. H Is parents became anx Ious about h Im and thought h Im Ill. And when the Intens Ity of the exper Ience abated a l Ittle, he saw the world as a dream. Walk Ing In the publ Ic square, he would str Ike h Is head aga Inst the Iron ra Il Ings to know whether they were real. It took h Im a number of days to recover h Is normal self. He had a foretaste of the great exper Iences yet to come and real Ized that the words of the Vedanta were true.
At the beg Inn Ing of 1884 Narendra's father suddenly d Ied of heart-fa Ilure, leav Ing the fam Ily In a state of utmost poverty. There were s Ix or seven mouths to feed at home. Cred Itors were knock Ing at the door. Relat Ives who had accepted h Is father's unst Inted k Indness now became enem Ies, some even br Ing Ing su It to depr Ive Narendra of h Is ancestral home. Actually starv Ing and barefoot, Narendra searched for a job, but w Ithout success. He began to doubt whether anywhere In the world there was such a th Ing as unself Ish sympathy. Two r Ich women made ev Il proposals to h Im and prom Ised to put an end to h Is d Istress; but he refused them w Ith contempt.
Narendra began to talk of h Is doubt of the very ex Istence of God. H Is fr Iends thought he had become an athe Ist, and p Iously c Irculated goss Ip adduc Ing unment Ionable mot Ives for h Is unbel Ief. H Is moral character was mal Igned. Even some of the Master's d Isc Iples partly bel Ieved the goss Ip, and Narendra told these to the Ir faces that only a coward bel Ieved In God through fear of suffer Ing or hell. But he was d Istressed to th Ink that Sr I Ramakr Ishna, too, m Ight bel Ieve these false reports. H Is pr Ide revolted. He sa Id to h Imself: "What does It matter? If a man's good name rests on such slender foundat Ions, I don't care." But later on he was amazed to learn that the Master had never lost fa Ith In h Im. To a d Isc Iple who compla Ined about Narendra's degradat Ion, Sr I Ramakr Ishna repl Ied: "Hush, you fool! The Mother has told me It can never be so. I won't look at you If you speak that way aga In."
The moment came when Narendra's d Istress reached Its cl Imax. He had gone the whole day w Ithout food. As he was return Ing home In the even Ing he could hardly l Ift h Is t Ired l Imbs. He sat down In front of a house In sheer exhaust Ion, too weak even to th Ink. H Is m Ind began to wander. Then, suddenly, a d Iv Ine power l Ifted the ve Il over h Is soul. He found the solut Ion of the problem of the coex Istence of d Iv Ine just Ice and m Isery, the presence of suffer Ing In the creat Ion of a bl Issful Prov Idence. He felt bod Ily refreshed, h Is soul was bathed In peace, and he slept serenely.
Narendra now real Ized that he had a sp Ir Itual m Iss Ion to fulf Il. He resolved to renounce the world, as h Is grandfather had renounced It, and he came to Sr I Ramakr Ishna for h Is bless Ing. But even before he had opened h Is mouth, the Master knew what was In h Is m Ind and wept b Itterly at the thought of separat Ion. " I know you cannot lead a worldly l Ife," he sa Id, "but for my sake l Ive In the world as long as I l Ive."
One day, soon after, Narendra requested Sr I Ramakr Ishna to pray to the D Iv Ine Mother to remove h Is poverty. Sr I Ramakr Ishna bade h Im pray to Her h Imself, for She would certa Inly l Isten to h Is prayer. Narendra entered the shr Ine of Kal I. As he stood before the Image of the Mother, he beheld Her as a l Iv Ing Goddess, ready to g Ive w Isdom and l Iberat Ion. Unable to ask Her for petty worldly th Ings, he prayed only for knowledge and renunc Iat Ion, love and l Iberat Ion. The Master rebuked h Im for h Is fa Ilure to ask the D Iv Ine Mother to remove h Is poverty and sent h Im back to the temple. But Narendra, stand Ing In Her presence, aga In forgot the purpose of h Is com Ing. Thr Ice he went to the temple at the b Idd Ing of the Master, and thr Ice he returned, hav Ing forgotten In Her presence why he had come. He was wonder Ing about It when It suddenly flashed In h Is m Ind that th Is was all the work of Sr I Ramakr Ishna; so now he asked the Master h Imself to remove h Is poverty, and was assured that h Is fam Ily would not lack s Imple food and cloth Ing.
Th Is was a very r Ich and s Ign If Icant exper Ience for Narendra. It taught h Im that Sakt I, the D Iv Ine Power, cannot be Ignored In the world and that In the relat Ive plane the need of worsh Ipp Ing a Personal God Is Imperat Ive. Sr I Ramakr Ishna was overjoyed w Ith the convers Ion. The next day, s Itt Ing almost on Narendra's lap, he sa Id to a devotee, po Int Ing f Irst to h Imself, then to Narendra: " I see I am th Is, and aga In that. Really I feel no d Ifference. A st Ick float Ing In the Ganges seems to d Iv Ide the water; But In real Ity the water Is one. Do you see my po Int? Well, whatever Is, Is the Mother — Isn't that so?" In later years Narendra would say: "Sr I Ramakr Ishna was the only person who, from the t Ime he met me, bel Ieved In me un Iformly throughout. Even my mother and brothers d Id not. It was h Is unwaver Ing trust and love for me that bound me to h Im for ever. He alone knew how to love. Worldly people, only make a show of love for self Ish ends.
--- Id="TARAK">TARAK
Others dest Ined to be monast Ic d Isc Iples of Sr I Ramakr Ishna came to Daksh Ineswar. Taraknath Ghoshal had felt from h Is boyhood the noble des Ire to real Ize God. Keshab and the Brahmo Samaj had attracted h Im but proved Inadequate. In 1882 he f Irst met the Master at Ramchandra's house and was aston Ished to hear h Im talk about samadh I, a subject wh Ich always fasc Inated h Is m Ind. And that even Ing he actually saw a man Ifestat Ion of that superconsc Ious state In the Master. Tarak became a frequent v Is Itor at Daksh Ineswar and rece Ived the Master's grace In abundance. The young boy often felt ecstat Ic fervour In med Itat Ion. He also wept profusely wh Ile med Itat Ing on God. Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id to h Im: "God favours those who can weep for H Im. Tears shed for God wash away the s Ins of former b Irths."
--- Id="BABURAM">BABURAM
Baburam Ghosh came to Daksh Ineswar accompan Ied by Rakhal, h Is classmate. The Master, as was often h Is custom, exam Ined the boy's phys Iognomy and was sat Isf Ied about h Is latent sp Ir Itual Ity. At the age of e Ight Baburam had thought of lead Ing a l Ife of renunc Iat Ion, In the company of a monk, In a hut shut out from the publ Ic v Iew by a th Ick wall of trees. The very s Ight of the Panchavat I awakened In h Is heart that dream of boyhood. Baburam was tender In body and soul. The Master used to say that he was pure to h Is very bones. One day Hazra In h Is usual m Isch Ievous fash Ion adv Ised Baburam and some of the other young boys to ask Sr I Ramakr Ishna for some sp Ir Itual powers and not waste the Ir l Ife In mere ga Iety and merr Iment. The Master, scent Ing m Isch Ief, called Baburam to h Is s Ide and sa Id: "What can you ask of me? Isn't everyth Ing that I have already yours? Yes, everyth Ing I have earned In the shape of real Izat Ions Is for the sake of you all. So get r Id of the Idea of begg Ing, wh Ich al Ienates by creat Ing a d Istance. Rather real Ize your k Insh Ip w Ith me and ga In the key to all the treasures.
--- Id="N IRANJAN">N IRANJAN
N Itya N Iranjan Sen was a d Isc Iple of hero Ic type. He came to the Master when he was e Ighteen years old. He was a med Ium for a group of sp Ir Itual Ists. Dur Ing h Is f Irst v Is It the Master sa Id to h Im: "My boy, If you th Ink always of ghosts you w Ill become a ghost, and If you th Ink of God you w Ill become God. Now, wh Ich do you prefer?" N Iranjan severed all connex Ions w Ith the sp Ir Itual Ists. Dur Ing h Is second v Is It the Master embraced h Im and sa Id warmly: "N Iranjan, my boy, the days are fl Itt Ing away. When w Ill you real Ize God? Th Is l Ife w Ill be In va In If you do not real Ize H Im. When w Ill you devote your m Ind wholly to God?" N Iranjan was surpr Ised to see the Master's great anx Iety for h Is sp Ir Itual welfare. He was a young man endowed w Ith unusual sp Ir Itual parts. He felt d Isda In for worldly pleasures and was totally gu Ileless, l Ike a ch Ild. But he had a v Iolent temper. One day, as he was com Ing In a country boat to Daksh Ineswar, some of h Is fellow passengers began to speak Ill of the Master. F Ind Ing h Is protest fut Ile, N Iranjan began to rock the boat, threaten Ing to s Ink It In m Id stream. That s Ilenced the offenders. When he reported the Inc Ident to the Master, he was rebuked for h Is Inab Il Ity to curb h Is anger.
--- Id="JOG INDRA">JOG INDRA
Jog Indranath, on the other hand, was gentle to a fault. One day, under c Ircumstances very l Ike those that had evoked N Iranjan's anger, he curbed h Is temper and held h Is peace Instead of threaten Ing Sr I Ramakr Ishna's abusers. The Master, learn Ing of h Is conduct, scolded h Im roundly. Thus to each the fault of the other was recommended as a v Irtue. The guru was str Iv Ing to develop, In the f Irst Instance, composure, and In the second, mettle. The secret of h Is tra In Ing was to bu Ild up, by a tactful recogn It Ion of the requ Irements of each g Iven case, the character of the devotee.
Jog Indranath came of an ar Istocrat Ic brahm In fam Ily of Daksh Ineswar. H Is father and relat Ives shared the popular m Istrust of Sr I Ramakr Ishna's san Ity. At a very early age the boy developed rel Ig Ious tendenc Ies, spend Ing two or three hours da Ily In med Itat Ion, and h Is meet Ing w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna deepened h Is des Ire for the real Izat Ion of God. He had a perfect horror of marr Iage. But at the earnest request of h Is mother he had had to y Ield, and he now bel Ieved that h Is sp Ir Itual future was doomed. So he kept h Imself away from the Master.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna employed a ruse to br Ing Jog Indra to h Im. As soon as the d Isc Iple entered the room, the Master rushed forward to meet the young man. Catch Ing hold of the d Isc Iple's hand, he sa Id: "What If you have marr Ied? Haven't I too marr Ied? What Is there to be afra Id of In that?" Touch Ing h Is own chest he sa Id: " If th Is [mean Ing h Imself] Is prop It Ious, then even a hundred thousand marr Iages cannot Injure you. If you des Ire to lead a householder's l Ife, then br Ing your w Ife here one day, and I shall see that she becomes a real compan Ion In your sp Ir Itual progress. But If you want to lead a monast Ic l Ife, then I shall eat up your attachment to the world." Jog In was dumbfounded at these words. He rece Ived new strength, and h Is sp Ir It of renunc Iat Ion was re-establ Ished.
--- Id="SASH I_AND_SARAT">SASH I AND SARAT
Sash I and Sarat were two cous Ins who came from a p Ious brahm In fam Ily of Calcutta. At an early age they had jo Ined the Brahmo Samaj and had come under the Influence of Keshab Sen. The Master sa Id to them at the Ir f Irst meet Ing: " If br Icks and t Iles are burnt after the trade-mark has been stamped on them, they reta In the mark for ever. S Im Ilarly, man should be stamped w Ith God before enter Ing the world. Then he w Ill not become attached to worldl Iness." Fully aware of the future course of the Ir l Ife, he asked them not to marry. The Master asked Sash I whether he bel Ieved In God w Ith form or In God w Ithout form. Sash I repl Ied that he was not even sure about the ex Istence of God; so he could not speak one way or the other. Th Is frank answer very much pleased the Master.
Sarat's soul longed for the all-embrac Ing real Izat Ion of the Godhead. When the Master Inqu Ired whether there was any part Icular form of God he w Ished to see, the boy repl Ied that he would l Ike to see God In all the l Iv Ing be Ings of the world. "But", the Master demurred, "that Is the last word In real Izat Ion. One cannot have It at the very outset." Sarat stated calmly: " I won't be sat Isf Ied w Ith anyth Ing short of that. I shall trudge on along the path t Ill I atta In that blessed state." Sr I Ramakr Ishna was very much pleased.
--- Id="HAR INATH">HAR INATH
Har Inath had led the austere l Ife of a brahmachar I even from h Is early boyhood — bath Ing In the Ganges every day, cook Ing h Is own meals, wak Ing before sunr Ise, and rec It Ing the G Ita from memory before leav Ing bed. He found In the Master the embod Iment of the Vedanta scr Iptures. Asp Ir Ing to be a follower of the ascet Ic Sankara, he cher Ished a great hatred for women. One day he sa Id to the Master that he could not allow even small g Irls to come near h Im. The Master scolded h Im and sa Id: "You are talk Ing l Ike a fool. Why should you hate women? They are the man Ifestat Ions of the D Iv Ine Mother. Regard them as your own mother and you w Ill never feel the Ir ev Il Influence. The more you hate them, the more you w Ill fall Into the Ir snares." Har I sa Id later that these words completely changed h Is att Itude toward women.
The Master knew Har I's pass Ion for Vedanta. But he d Id not w Ish any of h Is d Isc Iples to become a dry ascet Ic or a mere bookworm. So he asked Har I to pract Ise Vedanta In l Ife by g Iv Ing up the unreal and follow Ing the Real. "But It Is not so easy", Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id, "to real Ize the Illusor Iness of the world. Study alone does not help one very much. The grace of God Is requ Ired. Mere personal effort Is fut Ile. A man Is a t Iny creature after all, w Ith very l Im Ited powers. But he can ach Ieve the Imposs Ible If he prays to God for H Is grace." Whereupon the Master sang a song In pra Ise of grace. Har I was profoundly moved and shed tears. Later In l Ife Har I ach Ieved a wonderful synthes Is of the Ideals of the Personal God and the Impersonal Truth.
--- Id="GANGADHAR">GANGADHAR
Gangadhar, Har Inath's fr Iend, also led the l Ife of a str Ict brahmachar I, eat Ing vegetar Ian food cooked by h Is own hands and devot Ing h Imself to the study of the scr Iptures. He met the Master In 1884 and soon became a member of h Is Inner c Ircle. The Master pra Ised h Is ascet Ic hab It and attr Ibuted It to the sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ines of h Is past l Ife. Gangadhar became a close compan Ion of Narendra.
--- Id="HAR IPRASANNA">HAR IPRASANNA
Har Iprasanna, a college student, v Is Ited the Master In the company of h Is fr Iends Sash I and Sarat. Sr I Ramakr Ishna showed h Im great favour by In It Iat Ing h Im Into sp Ir Itual l Ife. As long as he l Ived, Har Iprasanna remembered and observed the follow Ing drast Ic adv Ice of the Master: "Even If a woman Is pure as gold and rolls on the ground for love of God, It Is dangerous for a monk ever to look at her."
--- Id="KAL I">KAL I
Kal Iprasad v Is Ited the Master toward the end of 1883. G Iven to the pract Ice of med Itat Ion and the study of the scr Iptures. Kal I was part Icularly Interested In yoga. Feel Ing the need of a guru In sp Ir Itual l Ife, he came to the Master and was accepted as a d Isc Iple. The young boy possessed a rat Ional m Ind and often felt scept Ical about the Personal God. The Master sa Id to h Im: "Your doubts w Ill soon d Isappear. Others, too, have passed through such a state of m Ind. Look at Naren. He now weeps at the names of Radha and Kr Ishna." Kal I began to see v Is Ions of gods and goddesses. Very soon these d Isappeared and In med Itat Ion he exper Ienced vastness, Inf In Ity, and the other attr Ibutes of the Impersonal Brahman.
--- Id="SUBODH">SUBODH
Subodh v Is Ited the Master In 1885. At the very f Irst meet Ing Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id to h Im: "You w Ill succeed. Mother says so. Those whom She sends here w Ill certa Inly atta In sp Ir Itual Ity." Dur Ing the second meet Ing the Master wrote someth Ing on Subodh's tongue, stroked h Is body from the navel to the throat, and sa Id, "Awake, Mother! Awake." He asked the boy to med Itate. At once Subodh's latent sp Ir Itual Ity was awakened. He felt a current rush Ing along the sp Inal column to the bra In. Joy f Illed h Is soul.
--- Id="SARADA_AND_TULAS I">SARADA AND TULAS I
Two more young men, Sarada Prasanna and Tulas I, complete the small band of the Master's d Isc Iples later to embrace the l Ife of the wander Ing monk. W Ith the except Ion of the elder Gopal, all of them were In the Ir teens or sl Ightly over. They came from m Iddle-class Bengal I fam Il Ies, and most of them were students In school or college. The Ir parents and relat Ives had env Isaged for them br Ight worldly careers. They came to Sr I Ramakr Ishna w Ith pure bod Ies, v Igorous m Inds, and uncontam Inated souls. All were born w Ith unusual sp Ir Itual attr Ibutes. Sr I Ramakr Ishna accepted them, even at f Irst s Ight, as h Is ch Ildren, relat Ives, fr Iends, and compan Ions. H Is mag Ic touch unfolded them. And later each accord Ing to h Is measure reflected the l Ife of the Master, becom Ing a torch-bearer of h Is message across land and sea.
--- Id="WOMAN_DEVOTEES">WOMAN DEVOTEES
W Ith h Is woman devotees Sr I Ramakr Ishna establ Ished a very sweet relat Ionsh Ip. He h Imself embod Ied the tender tra Its of a woman: he had dwelt on the h Ighest plane of Truth, where there Is not even the sl Ightest trace of sex; and h Is Innate pur Ity evoked only the noblest emot Ion In men and women al Ike. H Is woman devotees often sa Id: "We seldom looked on Sr I Ramakr Ishna as a member of the male sex. We regarded h Im as one of us. We never felt any constra Int before h Im. He was our best conf Idant." They loved h Im as the Ir ch Ild, the Ir fr Iend, and the Ir teacher. In sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine he adv Ised them to renounce lust and greed and espec Ially warned them not to fall Into the snares of men.
--- Id="GOPAL_MA">GOPAL MA
Unsurpassed among the woman devotees of the Master In the r Ichness of her devot Ion and sp Ir Itual exper Iences was Aghoreman I Dev I, an orthodox brahm In woman. W Idowed at an early age, she had ded Icated herself completely to sp Ir Itual pursu Its. Gopala, the Baby Kr Ishna, was her Ideal De Ity, whom she worsh Ipped follow Ing the vatsalya att Itude of the Va Ishnava rel Ig Ion, regard Ing H Im as her own ch Ild. Through H Im she sat Isf Ied her unassuaged maternal love, cook Ing for H Im, feed Ing H Im, bath Ing H Im, and putt Ing H Im to bed. Th Is sweet Int Imacy w Ith Gopala won her the sobr Iquet of Gopal Ma, or Gopala's Mother. For forty years she had l Ived on the bank of the Ganges In a small, bare room, her only compan Ions be Ing a threadbare copy of the Ramayana and a bag conta In Ing her rosary. At the age of s Ixty, In 1884, she v Is Ited Sr I Ramakr Ishna at Daksh Ineswar. Dur Ing the second v Is It, as soon as the Master saw her, he sa Id: "Oh, you have come! G Ive me someth Ing to eat." W Ith great hes Itat Ion she gave h Im some ord Inary sweets that she had purchased for h Im on the way. The Master ate them w Ith rel Ish and asked her to br Ing h Im s Imple curr Ies or sweets prepared by her own hands. Gopal Ma thought h Im a queer k Ind of monk, for, Instead of talk Ing of God, he always asked for food. She d Id not want to v Is It h Im aga In, but an Irres Ist Ible attract Ion brought her back to the temple garden; She carr Ied w Ith her some s Imple curr Ies that she had cooked herself.
One early morn Ing at three o'clock, about a year later, Gopal Ma was about to f In Ish her da Ily devot Ions, when she was startled to f Ind Sr I Ramakr Ishna s Itt Ing on her left, w Ith h Is r Ight hand clenched, l Ike the hand of the Image of Gopala. She was amazed and caught hold of the hand, whereupon the f Igure van Ished and In Its place appeared the real Gopala, her Ideal De Ity. She cr Ied aloud w Ith joy. Gopala begged her for butter. She pleaded her poverty and gave H Im some dry coconut cand Ies. Gopala, sat on her lap, snatched away her rosary, jumped on her shoulders, and moved all about the room. As soon as the day broke she hastened to Daksh Ineswar l Ike an Insane woman. Of course Gopala accompan Ied her, rest Ing H Is head on her shoulder. She clearly saw H Is t Iny ruddy feet hang Ing over her breast. She entered Sr I Ramakr Ishna's room. The Master had fallen Into samadh I. L Ike a ch Ild, he sat on her lap, and she began to feed h Im w Ith butter, cream, and other del Icac Ies. After some t Ime he rega Ined consc Iousness and returned to h Is bed. But the m Ind of Gopala's Mother was st Ill roam Ing In another plane. She was steeped In bl Iss. She saw Gopala frequently enter Ing the Master's body and aga In com Ing out of It. When she returned to her hut, st Ill In a dazed cond It Ion, Gopala accompan Ied her.
She spent about two months In un Interrupted commun Ion w Ith God, the Baby Gopala never leav Ing her for a moment. Then the Intens Ity of her v Is Ion was lessened; had It not been, her body would have per Ished. The Master spoke h Ighly of her exalted sp Ir Itual cond It Ion and sa Id that such v Is Ion of God was a rare th Ing for ord Inary mortals. The fun-lov Ing Master one day confronted the cr It Ical Narendranath w Ith th Is s Imple-m Inded woman. No two could have presented a more str Ik Ing contrast. The Master knew of Narendra's lofty contempt for all v Is Ions, and he asked the old lady to narrate her exper Iences to Narendra. W Ith great hes Itat Ion she told h Im her story. Now and then she Interrupted her maternal chatter to ask Narendra: "My son, I am a poor Ignorant woman. I don't understand anyth Ing. You are so learned. Now tell me If these v Is Ions of Gopala are true." As Narendra l Istened to the story he was profoundly moved. He sa Id, "Yes, mother, they are qu Ite true." Beh Ind h Is cyn Ic Ism Narendra, too, possessed a heart full of love and tenderness.
--- Id="THE_MARCH_OF_EVENTS">THE MARCH OF EVENTS
In 1881 Hr Iday was d Ism Issed from serv Ice In the Kal I temple, for an act of Ind Iscret Ion, and was ordered by the author It Ies never aga In to enter the garden. In a way the hand of the D Iv Ine Mother may be seen even In th Is. Hav Ing taken care of Sr I Ramakr Ishna dur Ing the stormy days of h Is sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine, Hr Iday had come naturally to cons Ider h Imself the sole guard Ian of h Is uncle. None could approach the Master w Ithout h Is knowledge. And he would be extremely jealous If Sr I Ramakr Ishna pa Id attent Ion to anyone else. Hr Iday's removal made It poss Ible for the real devotees of the Master to approach h Im freely and l Ive w Ith h Im In the temple garden.
Dur Ing the week-ends the householders, enjoy Ing a resp Ite from the Ir off Ice dut Ies, v Is Ited the Master. The meet Ings on Sunday afternoons were of the nature of l Ittle fest Ivals. Refreshments were often served. Profess Ional mus Ic Ians now and then sang devot Ional songs. The Master and the devotees sang and danced, Sr I Ramakr Ishna frequently go Ing Into ecstat Ic moods. The happy memory of such a Sunday would l Inger long In the m Inds of the devotees. Those whom the Master wanted for spec Ial Instruct Ion he would ask to v Is It h Im on Tuesdays and Saturdays. These days were part Icularly ausp Ic Ious for the worsh Ip of Kal I.
The young d Isc Iples dest Ined to be monks, Sr I Ramakr Ishna Inv Ited on week-days, when the householders were not present. The tra In Ing of the householders and of the future monks had to proceed along ent Irely d Ifferent l Ines. S Ince M. generally v Is Ited the Master on week-ends, the Gospel of Sr I Ramakr Ishna does not conta In much ment Ion of the future monast Ic d Isc Iples.
F Inally, there was a handful of fortunate d Isc Iples, householders as well as youngsters, who were pr Iv Ileged to spend n Ights w Ith the Master In h Is room. They would see h Im get up early In the morn Ing and walk up and down the room, s Ing Ing In h Is sweet vo Ice and tenderly commun Ing w Ith the Mother.
--- Id=" INJURY_TO_THE_MASTER'S_ARM"> INJURY TO THE MASTER'S ARM
One day, In January 1884, the Master was go Ing toward the p Ine-grove when he went Into a trance. He was alone. There was no one to support h Im or gu Ide h Is footsteps. He fell to the ground and d Islocated a bone In h Is left arm. Th Is acc Ident had a s Ign If Icant Influence on h Is m Ind, the natural Incl Inat Ion of wh Ich was to soar above the consc Iousness of the body. The acute pa In In the arm forced h Is m Ind to dwell on the body and on the world outs Ide. But he saw even In th Is a d Iv Ine purpose; for, w Ith h Is m Ind compelled to dwell on the phys Ical plane, he real Ized more than ever that he was an Instrument In the hand of the D Iv Ine Mother, who had a m Iss Ion to fulf Il through h Is human body and m Ind. He also d Ist Inctly found that In the phenomenal world God man Ifests H Imself, In an Inscrutable way, through d Iverse human be Ings, both good and ev Il. Thus he would speak of God In the gu Ise of the w Icked, God In the gu Ise of the p Ious. God In the gu Ise of the hypocr Ite, God In the gu Ise of the lewd. He began to take a spec Ial del Ight In watch Ing the d Iv Ine play In the relat Ive world. Somet Imes the sweet human relat Ionsh Ip w Ith God would appear to h Im more appeal Ing than the all-effac Ing Knowledge of Brahman. Many a t Ime he would pray: "Mother, don't make me unconsc Ious through the Knowledge of Brahman. Don't g Ive me Brahmajnana, Mother. Am I not Your ch Ild, and naturally t Im Id? I must have my Mother. A m Ill Ion salutat Ions to the Knowledge of Brahman! G Ive It to those who want It." Aga In he prayed: "O Mother let me rema In In contact w Ith men! Don't make me a dr Ied-up ascet Ic. I want to enjoy Your sport In the world." He was able to taste th Is very r Ich d Iv Ine exper Ience and enjoy the love of God and the company of H Is devotees because h Is m Ind, on account of the Injury to h Is arm, was forced to come down to the consc Iousness of the body. Aga In, he would make fun of people who procla Imed h Im as a D Iv Ine Incarnat Ion, by po Int Ing to h Is broken arm. He would say, "Have you ever heard of God break Ing H Is arm?" It took the arm about f Ive months to heal.
--- Id="BEG INN ING_OF_H IS_ ILLNESS">BEG INN ING OF H IS ILLNESS
In Apr Il 1885 the Master's throat became Inflamed. Prolonged conversat Ion or absorpt Ion In samadh I, mak Ing the blood flow Into the throat, would aggravate the pa In. Yet when the annual Va Ishnava fest Ival was celebrated at Pan Ihat I, Sr I Ramakr Ishna attended It aga Inst the doctor's adv Ice. W Ith a group of d Isc Iples he spent h Imself In mus Ic, dance, and ecstasy. The Illness took a turn for the worse and was d Iagnosed as "clergyman's sore throat". The pat Ient was caut Ioned aga Inst conversat Ion and ecstas Ies. Though he followed the phys Ic Ian's d Irect Ions regard Ing med Ic Ine and d Iet, he could ne Ither control h Is trances nor w Ithhold from seekers the solace of h Is adv Ice. Somet Imes, l Ike a sulky ch Ild, he would compla In to the Mother about the crowds, who gave h Im no rest day or n Ight. He was overheard to say to Her; "Why do You br Ing here all these worthless people, who are l Ike m Ilk d Iluted w Ith f Ive t Imes Its own quant Ity of water? My eyes are almost destroyed w Ith blow Ing the f Ire to dry up the water. My health Is gone. It Is beyond my strength. Do It Yourself, If You want It done. Th Is (po Int Ing to h Is own body) Is but a perforated drum, and If you go on beat Ing It day In and day out, how long w Ill It last?"
But h Is large heart never turned anyone away. He sa Id, "Let me be condemned to be born over and over aga In, even In the form of a dog, If I can be of help to a s Ingle soul." And he bore the pa In, s Ing Ing cheerfully, "Let the body be preoccup Ied w Ith Illness, but, O m Ind, dwell for ever In God's Bl Iss!"
One n Ight he had a hemorrhage of the throat. The doctor now d Iagnosed the Illness as cancer. Narendra was the f Irst to break th Is heart-rend Ing news to the d Isc Iples. W Ith In three days the Master was removed to Calcutta for better treatment. At Balaram's house he rema Ined a week unt Il a su Itable place could be found at Syampukur, In the northern sect Ion of Calcutta. Dur Ing th Is week he ded Icated h Imself pract Ically w Ithout resp Ite to the Instruct Ion of those beloved devotees who had been unable to v Is It h Im oftener at Daksh Ineswar. D Iscourses Incessantly flowed from h Is tongue, and he often went Into samadh I. Dr. Mahendra Sarkar, the celebrated homeopath of Calcutta, was Inv Ited to undertake h Is treatment.
--- Id="SYAMPUKUR">SYAMPUKUR
In the beg Inn Ing of September 1885 Sr I Ramakr Ishna was moved to Syampukur. Here Narendra organ Ized the young d Isc Iples to attend the Master day and n Ight. At f Irst they concealed the Master's Illness from the Ir guard Ians; but when It became more ser Ious they rema Ined w Ith h Im almost constantly, sweep Ing as Ide the object Ions of the Ir relat Ives and devot Ing themselves whole-heartedly to the nurs Ing of the Ir beloved guru. These young men, under the watchful eyes of the Master and the leadersh Ip of Narendra, became the antaranga bhaktas, the devotees of Sr I Ramakr Ishna's Inner c Ircle. They were pr Iv Ileged to w Itness many man Ifestat Ions of the Master's d Iv Ine powers. Narendra rece Ived Instruct Ions regard Ing the propagat Ion of h Is message after h Is death.
The Holy Mother — so Sarada Dev I had come to be affect Ionately known by Sr I Ramakr Ishna's devotees — was brought from Daksh Ineswar to look after the general cook Ing and to prepare the spec Ial d Iet of the pat Ient. The dwell Ing space be Ing extremely l Im Ited, she had to adapt herself to cramped cond It Ions. At three o'clock In the morn Ing she would f In Ish her bath In the Ganges and then enter a small covered place on the roof, where she spent the whole day cook Ing and pray Ing. After eleven at n Ight, when the v Is Itors went away, she would come down to her small bedroom on the f Irst floor to enjoy a few hours' sleep. Thus she spent three months, work Ing hard, sleep Ing l Ittle, and pray Ing constantly for the Master's recovery.
At Syampukur the devotees led an Intense l Ife. The Ir attendance on the Master was In Itself a form of sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine. H Is m Ind was constantly soar Ing to an exalted plane of consc Iousness. Now and then they would catch the contag Ion of h Is sp Ir Itual fervour. They sought to d Iv Ine the mean Ing of th Is Illness of the Master, whom most of them had accepted as an Incarnat Ion of God. One group, headed by G Ir Ish w Ith h Is robust opt Im Ism and great power of Imag Inat Ion, bel Ieved that the Illness was a mere pretext to serve a deeper purpose. The Master had w Illed h Is Illness In order to br Ing the devotees together and promote sol Idar Ity among them. As soon as th Is purpose was served, he would h Imself get r Id of the d Isease. A second group thought that the D Iv Ine Mother, In whose hand the Master was an Instrument, had brought about th Is Illness to serve Her own myster Ious ends. But the young rat Ional Ists, led by Narendra, refused to ascr Ibe a
supernatural cause to a natural phenomenon. They bel Ieved that the Master's body, a mater Ial th Ing, was subject, l Ike all other mater Ial th Ings, to phys Ical laws. Growth, development, decay, and death were laws of nature to wh Ich the Master's body could not but respond. But though hold Ing d Iffer Ing v Iews, they all bel Ieved that It was to h Im alone that they must look for the atta Inment of the Ir sp Ir Itual goal.
In sp Ite of the phys Ic Ian's efforts and the prayers and nurs Ing of the devotees, the Illness rap Idly progressed. The pa In somet Imes appeared to be unbearable. The Master l Ived only on l Iqu Id food, and h Is fra Il body was becom Ing a mere skeleton. Yet h Is face always rad Iated joy, and he cont Inued to welcome the v Is Itors pour Ing In to rece Ive h Is bless Ing. When certa In zealous devotees tr Ied to keep the v Is Itors away, they were told by G Ir Ish, "You cannot succeed In It; he has been born for th Is very purpose — to sacr If Ice h Imself for the redempt Ion of others."
The more the body was devastated by Illness, the more It became the hab Itat Ion of the D Iv Ine Sp Ir It. Through Its transparency the gods and goddesses began to sh Ine w Ith ever Increas Ing lum Inos Ity. On the day of the Kal I Puja the devotees clearly saw In h Im the man Ifestat Ion of the D Iv Ine Mother.
It was not Iced at th Is t Ime that some of the devotees were mak Ing an unbr Idled d Isplay of the Ir emot Ions. A number of them, part Icularly among the householders, began to cult Ivate, though at f Irst unconsc Iously, the art of shedd Ing tears, shak Ing the body, contort Ing the face, and go Ing Into trances, attempt Ing thereby to Im Itate the Master. They began openly to declare Sr I Ramakr Ishna a D Iv Ine Incarnat Ion and to regard themselves as h Is chosen people, who could neglect rel Ig Ious d Isc Ipl Ines w Ith Impun Ity. Narendra's penetrat Ing eye soon s Ized up the s Ituat Ion. He found out that some of these external man Ifestat Ions were be Ing carefully pract Ised at home, wh Ile some were the outcome of malnutr It Ion, mental weakness, or nervous deb Il Ity. He merc Ilessly exposed the devotees who were pretend Ing to have v Is Ions, and asked all to develop a healthy rel Ig Ious sp Ir It. Narendra sang Insp Ir Ing songs for the younger devotees, read w Ith them the Im Itat Ion of Chr Ist and the G Ita, and held before them the pos It Ive Ideals of sp Ir Itual Ity.
--- Id="LAST_DAYS_AT_COSS IPORE">LAST DAYS AT COSS IPORE
When Sr I Ramakr Ishna's Illness showed s Igns of aggravat Ion, the devotees, follow Ing the adv Ice of Dr. Sarkar, rented a spac Ious garden house at Coss Ipore, In the northern suburbs of Calcutta. The Master was removed to th Is place on December 11, 1885.
It was at Coss Ipore that the curta In fell on the var Ied act Iv It Ies of the Master's l Ife on the phys Ical plane. H Is soul l Ingered In the body e Ight months more. It was the per Iod of h Is great Pass Ion, a constant cruc If Ix Ion of the body and the tr Iumphant revelat Ion of the Soul. Here one sees the human Ity and d Iv In Ity of the Master pass Ing and repass Ing across a th In border l Ine. Every m Inute of those e Ight months was suffused w Ith touch Ing tenderness of heart and breath-tak Ing elevat Ion of sp Ir It. Every word he uttered was full of pathos and subl Im Ity.
It took the group only a few days to become adjusted to the new env Ironment. The Holy Mother, ass Isted by Sr I Ramakr Ishna's n Iece, Lakshm I Dev I, and a few woman devotees, took charge of the cook Ing for the Master and h Is attendants. Surendra w Ill Ingly bore the major port Ion of the expenses, other householders contr Ibut Ing accord Ing to the Ir means. Twelve d Isc Iples were constant attendants of the Master: Narendra, Rakhal, Baburam, N Iranjan, Jog In, Latu, Tarak, the-elder Gopal, Kal I, Sash I, Sarat, and the younger Gopal. Sarada, Har Ish, Har I, Gangadhar, and Tulas I v Is Ited the Master from t Ime to t Ime and pract Ised sadhana at home. Narendra, prepar Ing for h Is law exam Inat Ion, brought h Is books to the garden house In order to cont Inue h Is stud Ies dur Ing the Infrequent spare moments. He encouraged h Is brother d Isc Iples to Intens Ify the Ir med Itat Ion, scr Iptural stud Ies, and other sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ines. They all forgot the Ir relat Ives and the Ir
worldly dut Ies.
--
Pund It Shashadhar one day suggested to the Master that the latter could remove the Illness by concentrat Ing h Is m Ind on the throat, the scr Iptures hav Ing declared that yog Is had power to cure themselves In that way. The Master rebuked the pund It. "For a scholar l Ike you to make such a proposal!" he sa Id. "How can I w Ithdraw the m Ind from the Lotus Feet of God and turn It to th Is worthless cage of flesh and blood?" "For our sake at least", begged Narendra and the other d Isc Iples. "But", repl Ied Sr I Ramakr Ishna, do you th Ink I enjoy th Is suffer Ing? I w Ish to recover, but that depends on the Mother."
NARENDRA: "Then please pray to Her. She must l Isten to you."
MASTER: "But I cannot pray for my body."
NARENDRA: "You must do It, for our sake at least."
MASTER: "Very well, I shall try."
A few hours later the Master sa Id to Narendra: " I sa Id to Her: 'Mother, I cannot swallow food because of my pa In. Make It poss Ible for me to eat a l Ittle.' She po Inted you all out to me and sa Id: 'What? You are eat Ing enough through all these mouths. Isn't that so?' I was ashamed and could not utter another word." Th Is dashed all the hopes of the devotees for the Master's recovery.
" I shall make the whole th Ing publ Ic before I go", the Master had sa Id some t Ime before. On January 1, 1886, he felt better and came down to the garden for a l Ittle stroll. It was about three o'clock In the afternoon. Some th Irty lay d Isc Iples were In the hall or s Itt Ing about under the trees. Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id to G Ir Ish, "Well, G Ir Ish, what have you seen In me, that you procla Im me before everybody as an Incarnat Ion of God?" G Ir Ish was not the man to be taken by surpr Ise. He knelt before the Master and sa Id, w Ith folded hands, "What can an Ins Ign If Icant person l Ike myself say about the One whose glory even sages l Ike Vyasa and Valm Ik I could not adequately measure?" The Master was profoundly moved. He sa Id: "What more shall I say? I bless you all. Be Illum Ined!" He fell Into a sp Ir Itual mood. Hear Ing these words the devotees, one and all, became overwhelmed w Ith emot Ion. They rushed to h Im and fell at h Is feet. He touched them all, and each rece Ived an appropr Iate bened Ict Ion. Each of them, at the touch of the Master, exper Ienced Ineffable bl Iss. Some laughed, some wept, some sat down to med Itate, some began to pray. Some saw l Ight, some had v Is Ions of the Ir Chosen Ideals, and some felt w Ith In the Ir bod Ies the rush of sp Ir Itual power.
Narendra, consumed w Ith a terr If Ic fever for real Izat Ion, compla Ined to the Master that all the others had atta Ined peace and that he alone was d Issat Isf Ied. The Master asked what he wanted. Narendra begged for samadh I, so that he m Ight altogether forget the world for three or four days at a t Ime. "You are a fool", the Master rebuked h Im. "There Is a state even h Igher than that. Isn't It you who s Ing, 'All that ex Ists art Thou'? F Irst of all settle your fam Ily affa Irs and then come to me. You w Ill exper Ience a state even h Igher than samadh I."
The Master d Id not h Ide the fact that he w Ished to make Narendra h Is sp Ir Itual he Ir. Narendra was to cont Inue the work after Sr I Ramakr Ishna's pass Ing. Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id to h Im: " I leave these young men In your charge. See that they develop the Ir sp Ir Itual Ity and do not return home." One day he asked the boys, In preparat Ion for a monast Ic l Ife, to beg the Ir food from door to door w Ithout thought of caste. They ha Iled the Master's order and went out w Ith begg Ing-bowls. A few days later he gave the ochre cloth of the sannyas I to each of them, Includ Ing G Ir Ish, who was now second to none In h Is sp Ir It of renunc Iat Ion. Thus the Master h Imself la Id the foundat Ion of the future Ramakr Ishna Order of monks.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna was s Ink Ing day by day. H Is d Iet was reduced to a m In Imum and he found It almost Imposs Ible to swallow. He wh Ispered to M.: " I am bear Ing all th Is cheerfully, for otherw Ise you would be weep Ing. If you all say that It Is better that the body should go rather than suffer th Is torture, I am w Ill Ing." The next morn Ing he sa Id to h Is depressed d Isc Iples seated near the bed: "Do you know what I see? I see that God alone has become everyth Ing. Men and an Imals are only frameworks covered w Ith sk In, and It Is He who Is mov Ing through the Ir heads and l Imbs. I see that It Is God H Imself who has become the block, the execut Ioner, and the v Ict Im for the sacr If Ice.' He fa Inted w Ith emot Ion. Rega In Ing part Ial consc Iousness, he sa Id: "Now I have no pa In. I am very well." Look Ing at Latu he sa Id: "There s Its Latu rest Ing h Is head on the palm of h Is hand. To me It Is the Lord who Is seated In that posture."
The words were tender and touch Ing. L Ike a mother he caressed Narendra and Rakhal, gently strok Ing the Ir faces. He sa Id In a half wh Isper to M., "Had th Is body been allowed to last a l Ittle longer, many more souls would have been Illum Ined." He paused a moment and then sa Id: "But Mother has orda Ined otherw Ise. She w Ill take me away lest, f Ind Ing me gu Ileless and fool Ish, people should take advantage of me and persuade me to bestow on them the rare g Ifts of sp Ir Itual Ity." A few m Inutes later he touched h Is chest and sa Id: "Here are two be Ings. One Is She and the other Is Her devotee. It Is the latter who broke h Is arm, and It Is he aga In who Is now Ill. Do you understand me?" After a pause he added: "Alas! To whom shall I tell all th Is? Who w Ill understand me?" "Pa In", he consoled them aga In, ' Is unavo Idable as long as there Is a body. The Lord takes on the body for the sake of H Is devotees."
Yet one Is not sure whether the Master's soul actually was tortured by th Is agon Iz Ing d Isease. At least dur Ing h Is moments of sp Ir Itual exaltat Ion — wh Ich became almost constant dur Ing the clos Ing days of h Is l Ife on earth — he lost all consc Iousness of the body, of Illness and suffer Ing. One of h Is attendants (Latu, later known as Swam I Adbhutananda.) sa Id later on: "Wh Ile Sr I Ramakr Ishna lay s Ick he never actually suffered pa In. He would often say: 'O m Ind! Forget the body, forget the s Ickness, and rema In merged In Bl Iss.' No, he d Id not really suffer. At t Imes he would be In a state when the thr Ill of joy was clearly man Ifested In h Is body. Even when he could not speak he would let us know In some way that there was no suffer Ing, and th Is fact was clearly ev Ident to all who watched h Im. People who d Id not understand h Im thought that h Is suffer Ing was very great. What sp Ir Itual joy he transm Itted to us at that t Ime! Could such a th Ing have been poss Ible If he had 'been suffer Ing phys Ically? It was dur Ing th Is per Iod that he taught us aga In these truths: 'Brahman Is always unattached. The three gunas are In It, but It Is unaffected by them, just as the w Ind carr Ies odour yet rema Ins odourless.' 'Brahman Is Inf In Ite Be Ing, Inf In Ite W Isdom, Inf In Ite Bl Iss. In It there ex Ist no delus Ion, no m Isery, no d Isease, no death, no growth, no decay.' 'The Transcendental Be Ing and the be Ing w Ith In are one and the same. There Is one Ind Iv Is Ible Absolute Ex Istence.'"
The Holy Mother secretly went to a S Iva temple across the Ganges to Intercede w Ith the De Ity for the Master's recovery. In a revelat Ion she was told to prepare herself for the Inev Itable end.
One day when Narendra was on the ground floor, med Itat Ing, the Master was ly Ing awake In h Is bed upsta Irs. In the depths of h Is med Itat Ion Narendra felt as though a lamp were burn Ing at the back of h Is head. Suddenly he lost consc Iousness. It was the yearned-for, all-effac Ing exper Ience of n Irv Ikalpa samadh I, when the embod Ied soul real Izes Its un Ity w Ith the Absolute. After a very long t Ime he rega Ined part Ial consc Iousness but was unable to f Ind h Is body. He could see only h Is head. "Where Is my body?" he cr Ied. The elder Gopal entered the room and sa Id, "Why, It Is here, Naren!" But Narendra could not f Ind It. Gopal, fr Ightened, ran upsta Irs to the Master. Sr I Ramakr Ishna only sa Id: "Let h Im stay that way for a t Ime. He has worr Ied me long enough."
After another long per Iod Narendra rega Ined full consc Iousness. Bathed In peace, he went to the Master, who sa Id: "Now the Mother has shown you everyth Ing. But th Is revelat Ion w Ill rema In under lock and key, and I shall keep the key. When you have accompl Ished the Mother's work you w Ill f Ind the treasure aga In."
Some days later, Narendra be Ing alone w Ith the Master, Sr I Ramakr Ishna looked at h Im and went Into samadh I. Narendra felt the penetrat Ion of a subtle force and lost all outer consc Iousness. Rega In Ing presently the normal mood, he found the Master weep Ing.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna sa Id to h Im: "Today I have g Iven you my all and I am now only a poor fak Ir, possess Ing noth Ing. By th Is power you w Ill do Immense good In the world, and not unt Il It Is accompl Ished w Ill you return." Henceforth the Master l Ived In the d Isc Iple.
Doubt, however, d Ies hard. After one or two days Narendra sa Id to h Imself, " If In the m Idst of th Is rack Ing phys Ical pa In he declares h Is Godhead, then only shall I accept h Im as an Incarnat Ion of God." He was alone by the beds Ide of the Master. It was a pass Ing thought, but the Master sm Iled. Gather Ing h Is rema In Ing strength, he d Ist Inctly sa Id, "He who was Rama and Kr Ishna Is now, In th Is body, Ramakr Ishna — but not In your Vedant Ic sense." Narendra was str Icken w Ith shame.
--- Id="MAHASAMADH I">MAHASAMADH I
Sunday, August 15, 1886. The Master's pulse became Irregular. The devotees stood by the beds Ide. Toward dusk Sr I Ramakr Ishna had d Iff Iculty In breath Ing. A short t Ime afterwards he compla Ined of hunger. A l Ittle l Iqu Id food was put Into h Is mouth; some of It he swallowed, and the rest ran over h Is ch In. Two attendants began to fan h Im. All at once he went Into samadh I of a rather unusual type. The body became st Iff. Sash I burst Into tears. But after m Idn Ight the Master rev Ived. He was now very hungry and helped h Imself to a bowl of porr Idge. He sa Id he was strong aga In. He sat up aga Inst f Ive or s Ix p Illows, wh Ich were supported by the body of Sash I, who was fann Ing h Im. Narendra took h Is feet on h Is lap and began to rub them. Aga In and aga In the Master repeated to h Im, "Take care of these boys." Then he asked to l Ie down. Three t Imes In r Ing Ing tone's he cr Ied the name of Kal I, h Is l Ife's Beloved, and lay back. At two m Inutes past one there was a low sound In h Is throat and he fell a l Ittle to one s Ide. A thr Ill passed over h Is body. H Is ha Ir stood on end. H Is eyes became f Ixed on the t Ip of h Is nose. H Is face was l Ighted w Ith a sm Ile. The f Inal ecstasy began. It was mahasamadh I, total absorpt Ion, from wh Ich h Is m Ind never returned. Narendra, unable to bear It, ran downsta Irs.
Dr. Sarkar arr Ived the follow Ing noon and pronounced that l Ife had departed not more than half an hour before. At f Ive o'clock the Masters body was brought downsta Irs, la Id on a cot, dressed In ochre clothes, and decorated w Ith sandal-paste and flowers. A process Ion was formed. The passers-by wept as the body was taken to the cremat Ion ground at the Baranagore Ghat on the Ganges.
Wh Ile the devotees were return Ing to the garden house, carry Ing the urn w Ith the sacred ashes, a calm res Ignat Ion came to the Ir souls and they cr Ied, "V Ictory unto the Guru!"
The Holy Mother was weep Ing In her room, not for her husband, but because she felt that Mother Kal I had left her. As she was about to put on the marks of a H Indu w Idow, In a moment of revelat Ion she heard the words of fa Ith, " I have only passed from one room to another."
0.00 - Publishers Note C, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 05, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
The present volume cons Ists of three books: L Ight of L Ights, E Ight Talks and Sweet Mother; there are also translat Ions from Sanskr It, Pal I, Bengal I and French. These, along w Ith the translat Ions of the Dhammapada and Charyapada, have been mostly ser Ial Ised In Ashram journals.
H Is or Ig Inal wr It Ings In French have also been Included here. We are grateful to the Government of Ind Ia for a grant towards meet Ing the cost of publ Icat Ion of th Is volume.
31 March 1974
--
Ida retha jyot I jyot Irgt...
[Lo, the Supreme L Ight of l Ights Is come...]
R Ig Veda, 1.113.1
0.00 - The Book of Lies Text, #The Book of Lies, #Aleister Crowley, #Philosophy
Pages In the or Ig Inal are marked thus at the bottom: [page number]
Comments and descr Ipt Ions are also set off by ().
--
WH ICH IS ALSO FALSELY
CALLED
--
WH ICH THOUGHT IS ITSELF
UNTRUE
--
And I would that I could utter
The thoughts that ar Ise In me!"
(OPPOS ITE: Photo of FRATER PERDURABO on h Is ass.)
--
The number of the book Is 333, as Imply Ing d Is-
pers Ion, so as to correspond w Ith the t Itle, "Breaks"
--
However, the "one thought Is Itself untrue", and
therefore Its fals If Icat Ions are relat Ively true.
Th Is book therefore cons Ists of statements as nearly
true as Is poss Ible to human language.
The verse from Tennyson Is Inserted partly because
of the pun on the word "break"; partly because of the
--
above; partly because It Is Intensely amus Ing for
Crowley to quote Tennyson.
There Is no joke or subtle mean Ing In the publ Isher's
Impr Int.
FOREWORD
THE BOOK OF L IES, f Irst publ Ished In London
In 1913, Ale Ister Crowley's l Ittle master work, has
long been out of pr Int. Its re- Issue w Ith the author's
own Commentary g Ives occas Ion for a few notes. We
--
passages wh Ich we f Ind scattered about In the un-
publ Ished volumes of h Is "CONFESS IONS." He
--
"...None the less, I could po Int to some sol Id
ach Ievement on the large scale, although It Is com-
posed of more or less d Isconnected elements. I refer
to THE BOOK OF L IES. In th Is there are 93 chapters:
we count as a chapter the two pages f Illed re-
respect Ively w Ith a note of Interrogat Ion and a mark of
exclamat Ion. The other chapters conta In somet Imes a
--
twenty paragraphs. The subject of each chapter Is
determ Ined more or less def In Itely by the Qabal Ist Ic
Import of Its number. Thus Chapter 25 g Ives a rev Ised
r Itual of the Pentagram; 72 Is a rondel w Ith the refra In
~Shemhamphorash', the D Iv Ine name of 72 letters;
--
panegyr Ic upon War. Somet Imes the text Is ser Ious
and stra Ightforward, somet Imes Its obscure oracles
demand deep knowledge of the Qabalah for Inter-
pretat Ion, others conta In obscure allus Ions, play
upon words, secrets expressed In cryptogram, double
or tr Iple mean Ings wh Ich must be comb Ined In order
[5]
--
subtly Iron Ical or cyn Ical. At f Irst s Ight the book Is a
jumble of nonsense Intended to Insult the reader. It
requ Ires Inf In Ite study, sympathy, Intu It Ion and
In It Iat Ion. G Iven these I do not hes Itate to cla Im that
In none other of my wr It Ings have I g Iven so pro-
found and comprehens Ive an expos It Ion of my
--
study, and that In a way desp Ite Itself. A word should
be pert Inent w Ith regard to the quest Ion of secrecy.
It has become d Iff Icult for me to take th Is matter
very ser Iously. Know Ing what the secret actually Is,
I cannot attach much Importance to art If Ic Ial
myster Ies. Aga In, though the secret Itself Is of such
tremendous Import, and though It Is so s Imple that
I could d Isclose It... In a short paragraph, I m Ight
do so w Ithout do Ing much harm. For It cannot be used
Ind Iscr Im Inately... I have found In pract Ice that the
secret of the O.T.O. cannot be used unworth Ily...."
" It Is Interest Ing In th Is connect Ion to recall how It
came Into my possess Ion. It had occurred to me to
wr Ite a book `THE BOOK OF L IES, WH ICH IS
ALSO FALSELY CALLED BREAKS, THE
--
THOUGHT IS ITSELF UNTRUE. . . .' One of
these chapters bothered me. I could not wr Ite It. I
Invoked D Ionysus w Ith part Icular fervour, but st Ill
w Ithout success. I went off In desperat Ion to `change
my luck', by do Ing someth Ing ent Irely contrary to
my Incl Inat Ions. In the m Idst of my d Isgust, the
sp Ir It came over me, and I scr Ibbled the chapter
down by the l Ight of a farth Ing d Ip.. When I read It
over, I was as d Iscontented as before, but I stuck It
Into the book In a sort of anger at myself as a
del Iberate act of sp Ite towards my readers.
--
Head of the O.T.O.) came to me. (At that t Ime I d Id
not real Ise that there was anyth Ing In the O.T.O.
beyond a conven Ient compend Ium of the more
Important truths of Free Masonry.) He sa Id that s Ince
I was acqua Inted w Ith the supreme secret of the
Order, I must be allowed the IX {degree} and obl Igated In
regard to It. I protested that I knew no such secret.
He sa Id `But you have pr Inted It In the pla Inest
language'. I sa Id that I could not have done so
because I d Id not know It. He went to the book-
shelves; tak Ing out a copy of THE BOOK OF L IES, he
po Inted to a passage In the desp Ised chapter. It
Instantly flashed upon me. The ent Ire symbol Ism not
only of Free Masonry but of many other trad It Ions
--
the O.T.O. assumed Its proper Importance In my
m Ind. I understood that I held In my hands the key
to the future progress of human Ity...."
--
ably around 1921. The student w Ill f Ind It very
helpful for the l Ight It throws on many of Its passages.
The Ed Itors
--
The Ante Pr Imal Tr Iad wh Ich Is
NOT-GOD
Noth Ing Is.
Noth Ing Becomes.
Noth Ing Is not.
The F Irst Tr Iad wh Ich Is GOD
I AM.
I utter The Word.
I hear The Word.
The Abyss
The Word Is broken up.
There Is Knowledge.
Knowledge Is Relat Ion.
These fragments are Creat Ion.
--
The Second Tr Iad wh Ich Is GOD
GOD the Father and Mother Is concealed In Genera-
t Ion.
GOD Is concealed In the wh Irl Ing energy of Nature.
GOD Is man Ifest In gather Ing: harmony: cons Idera-
t Ion: the M Irror of the Sun and of the Heart.
--
COMMENTARY (The Chapter that Is not a Chapter)
Th Is chapter, numbered 0, corresponds to the Negat Ive,
wh Ich Is before Kether In the Qabal Ist Ic system.
The notes of Interrogat Ion and exclamat Ion on the prev Ious
pages are the other two ve Ils.
The mean Ing of these symbols Is fully expla Ined In "The
Sold Ier and the Hunchback".
--
exclamat Ion; Its reference to the theogony of "L Iber Leg Is" Is
expla Ined In the note, but It also refers to KTE IS PHALLOS
and SPERMA, and Is the exclamat Ion of wonder or ecstasy,
wh Ich Is the ult Imate nature of th Ings.
NOTE
(1) S Ilence. Nu It, O; Had It; Ra-Hoor-Khu It, I.
COMMENTARY (The Ante Pr Imal Tr Iad)
Th Is Is the negat Ive Tr In Ity; Its three statements are, In an
ult Imate sense, Ident Ical. They harmon Ise Be Ing, Becom Ing,
Not-Be Ing, the three poss Ible modes of conce Iv Ing the un Iverse.
The statement, Noth Ing Is Not , techn Ically equ Ivalent to
Someth Ing Is, Is fully expla Ined In the essay called Berash Ith.
The rest of the chapter follows the Seph Irot Ic system of the
--
Chokmah, B Inah, In the F Irst Tr Iad; Daath, In the Abyss; Chesed,
Geburah, T Iphareth, In the Second Tr Iad; Netzach, Hod and
Yesod In the Th Ird Tr Iad, and Malkuth In the Tenth Emanat Ion.
It w Ill be not Iced that th Is cosmogony Is very complete; the
man Ifestat Ion even of God does not appear unt Il T Iphareth; and
the un Iverse Itself not unt Il Malkuth.
The chapter many therefore be cons Idered as the most complete
--
(2) The Unbroken, absorb Ing all, Is called Darkness.
[11]
--
To beget Is to d Ie; to d Ie Is to beget.
Cast the Seed Into the F Ield of N Ight.
L Ife and Death are two names of A.
--
Ne Ither of these alone Is enough.
[12]
--
The shape of the f Igure I suggests the Phallus; th Is
chapter Is therefore called the Sabbath of the Goat, the
W Itches' Sabbath, In wh Ich the Phallus Is adored.
The chapter beg Ins w Ith a repet It Ion of O! referred
to In the prev Ious chapter. It Is expla Ined that th Is tr Iad
l Ives In N Ight, the N Ight of Pan, wh Ich Is myst Ically
called N.O.X., and th Is O Is Ident If Ied w Ith the O In
th Is word. N Is the Tarot symbol, Death; and the X
or Cross Is the s Ign of the Phallus. For a fuller com-
mentary on Nox, see L Iber V I I, Chapter I.
Nox adds to 210, wh Ich symbol Ises the reduct Ion of
dual Ity to un Ity, and thence to negat Iv Ity, and Is thus
a h Ieroglyph of the Great Work.
The word Pan Is then expla Ined, {P I}, the letter of
Mars, Is a h Ieroglyph of two p Illars, and therefore
suggest dual Ity; A, by Its shape, Is the pentagram,
energy, and N, by Its Tarot attr Ibut Ion, Is death.
Nox Is then further expla Ined, and It Is shown that
the ult Imate Tr In Ity, O!, Is supported, or fed, by the
process of death and begett Ing, wh Ich are the laws of
--
The Ident Ity of these two Is then expla Ined.
The Student Is then charged to understand the
sp Ir Itual Importance of th Is phys Ical process Ion In
l Ine 5.
It Is then asserted that the ult Imate letter A has two
names, or phases, L Ife and Death.
L Ine 7 balances l Ine 5. It w Ill be not Ice that the
phraseology of these two l Ines Is so conce Ived that the
one conta Ins the other more than Itself.
L Ine 8 emphas Ises the Importance of perform Ing
both.
--
Hoor hath a secret fourfold name: It Is Do What
Thou W Ilt.(3)
--
Thy Name Is holy.
Thy K Ingdom Is come.
Thy W Ill Is done.
Here Is the Bread.
Here Is the Blood.
Br Ing us through Temptat Ion!
--
The "Hawk" referred to Is Horus.
The chapter beg Ins w Ith a comment on L Iber Leg Is
I I I, 49.
Those four words, Do What Thou W Ilt, are also
Ident If Ied w Ith the four poss Ible modes of conce Iv Ing the
un Iverse; Horus un Ites these.
--
to Horus. Compare th Is w Ith the vers Ion In Chapter 44.
There are ten sect Ions In th Is prayer, and, as the prayer
Is attr Ibuted to Horus, they are called four, as above
expla Ined; but It Is only the name of Horus wh Ich Is
fourfold; He h Imself Is One.
Th Is may be compared w Ith the Qabal Ist Ic doctr Ine
--
It Is now seen that th Is Hawk Is not Solar, but
Mercur Ial; hence the words, the Cry of the Hawk, the
--
number of the chapter, B, wh Ich Is Beth the letter of
Mercury, the Magus of the Tarot, who has four
weapons, and It must be remembered that th Is card Is
numbered 1, aga In connect Ing all these symbols w Ith
--
The essent Ial weapon of Mercury Is the Caduceus.
NOTE
(3) Fourteen letters. Qu Id Voles Illud Fac. Q.V. I.F.
196=14^2.
--
The Many Is as adorable to the One as the One Is to
the Many. Th Is Is the Love of These; creat Ion-
partur It Ion Is the Bl Iss of the One; co It Ion-
d Issolut Ion Is the Bl Iss of the Many.
The All, thus Interwoven of These, Is Bl Iss.
Naught Is beyond Bl Iss.
The Man del Ights In un It Ing w Ith the Woman; the
Woman In part Ing from the Ch Ild.
The Brothers of A.'.A.'. are Women: the Asp Irants
--
G Imel Is the H Igh Pr Iestess of the Tarot. Th Is
chapter g Ives the In It Iated fem In Ine po Int of v Iew; It Is
therefore called the Oyster, a symbol of the Yon I. In
Equ Inox X, The Temple of Solomon the K Ing, It Is
expla Ined how Masters of the Temple, or Brothers of
--
pla Ined, and the un Iverse Is exh Ib Ited as the Interplay
between these two. Th Is also expla Ins the statement In
L Iber Leg Is I, 28-30.
NOTE
(4) They cause all men to worsh Ip It.
[17]
--
It d Ies, It g Ives Itself; to Thee Is the fru It!
Be thou the Br Ide; thou shalt be the Mother here-
--
To all Impress Ions thus. Let them not overcome thee;
yet let them breed w Ith In thee. The least of the
Impress Ions, come to Its perfect Ion, Is Pan.
Rece Ive a thousand lovers; thou shalt bear but One
--
Daleth Is the Empress of the Tarot, the letter of
Venus, and the t Itle, Peaches, aga In refers to the Yon I.
The chapter Is a counsel to accept all Impress Ions;
It Is the formula of the Scarlet woman; but no Impress Ion
must be allowed to dom Inate you, only to fruct Ify you;
just as the art Ist, see Ing an object, does not worsh Ip It,
but breeds a masterp Iece from It. Th Is process Is
exh Ib Ited as one aspect of the Great Work. The last
--
That Is not wh Ich Is.
The only Word Is S Ilence.
The only Mean Ing of that Word Is not.
Thoughts are false.
Fatherhood Is un Ity d Isgu Ised as dual Ity.
Peace Impl Ies war.
Power Impl Ies war.
Harmony Impl Ies war.
V Ictory Impl Ies war.
Glory Impl Ies war.
Foundat Ion Impl Ies war.
Alas! for the K Ingdom where In all these are at war.
--
He Is the letter of Ar Ies, a Mart Ial s Ign; wh Ile the
t Itle suggests war. The ants are chosen as small busy
--
In l Ine 1, Be Ing Is Ident If Ied w Ith Not-Be Ing.
In l Ine 2, Speech w Ith S Ilence.
In l Ine 3, the Logos Is declared as the Negat Ive.
L Ine 4 Is another phras Ing of the fam Il Iar H Indu
statement, that that wh Ich can be thought Is not true.
In l Ine 5, we come to an Important statement, an
adumbrat Ion of the most dar Ing thes Is In th Is book-
Father and Son are not really two, but one; the Ir un Ity
be Ing the Holy Ghost, the semen; the human form Is a
non-essent Ial accret Ion of th Is qu Intessence.
--
Kether to Chesed, and Chesed Is un Ited to the Supernal
Tr Iad by v Irtue of Its Phall Ic nature; for not only Is
Amoun a Phall Ic God, and Jup Iter the Father of All,
but 4 Is Daleth, Venus, and Chesed refers to water,
from wh Ich Venus sprang, and wh Ich Is the symbol of
the Mother In the Tetragrammaton. See Chapter 0,
"God the Father and Mother Is concealed In genera-
t Ion".
But Chesed, In the lower sense, Is conjo Ined to
M Icroprosopus. It Is the true l Ink between the greater
and lesser countenances, whereas Daath Is the false.
Compare the doctr Ine of the h Igher and lower Manas In
Theosophy.
--
and therefore the Imperfect Ion, of all the lower Seph Iroth
In the Ir essence.
[21]
--
The Word was uttered: the One exploded Into one
thousand m Ill Ion worlds.
--
Th Is Is the One and the All.
These s Ix the Adept harmon Ised, and sa Id: Th Is Is the
Heart of the One and the All.
--
The Ash thereof was burnt up by the Magus Into
The Word.
Of all th Is d Id the Ips Iss Imus know Noth Ing.
[22]
--
Th Is chapter Is presumably called Cav Iar because
that substance Is composed of many spheres.
The account g Iven of Creat Ion Is the same as that
fam Il Iar to students of the Chr Ist Ian trad It Ion, the
Logos transform Ing the un Ity Into the many.
We then see what d Ifferent classes of people do w Ith
--
prosopus In a crude state, and declares them to be the
un Iverse. Th Is folly Is due to the pr Ide of reason.
The Adept concentrates the M Icrocosm In T Iphareth,
recogn Is Ing an Un Ity, even In the m Icrocosm, but, qua
Adept, he can go no further.
The Master of the Temple destroys all these Illus Ions,
but rema Ins s Ilent. See the descr Ipt Ion of h Is funct Ions
In the Equ Inox, L Iber 418 and elsewhere.
In the next grade, the Word Is re-formulated, for the
Magus In Chokmah, the Dyad, the Logos.
The Ips Iss Imus, In the h Ighest grade of the A.'.A.'.,
Is totally unconsc Ious of th Is process, or, It m Ight be
better to say, he recogn Ises It as Noth Ing, In that pos It Ive
sense of the word, wh Ich Is only Intell Ig Ible In
Samasamadh I.
--
None are They whose number Is S Ix:(5) else were they
s Ix Indeed.
Seven(6) are these S Ix that l Ive not In the C Ity of the
Pyram Ids, under the N Ight of Pan.
--
of the Inf In Ite who In It Iate per Iods. they are called
D Inosaurs because of the Ir seem Ing to be terr Ible
--
for the Ir number Is 6 (1 plus 2 plus 3), the myst Ic
number of B Inah; but they are called "None", because
they have atta Ined. If It were not so, they would be
called "s Ix" In Its bad sense of mere Intellect.
They are called Seven, although they are E Ight,
--
of h Is doctr Ine. The reference to the Ir "l Iv Ing not" Is
to be found In L Iber 418.
The word "Perdurabo" means " I w Ill endure unto
the end". The allus Ion Is expla Ined In the note.
S Iddartha, or Gotama, was the name of the last
--
Kr Ishna was the pr Inc Ipal Incarnat Ion of the Ind Ian
V Ishnu, the preserver, the pr Inc Ipal expounder of
--
All these were men; the Ir Godhead Is the result of
mythopoe Ia.
--
(7) The legend of "Chr Ist" Is only a corrupt Ion and
pervers Ion of other legends. Espec Ially of D Ionysus:
compare the account of Chr Ist before Herod/P Ilate In
the gospels, and of D Ionysus before Pentheus In
"The Baccae".
(8) O, the last letter of Perdurabo, Is Naught.
[25]
--
M Ind Is a d Isease of semen.
All that a man Is or may be Is h Idden there In.
Bod Ily funct Ions are parts of the mach Ine; s Ilent,
unless In d Is-ease.
But m Ind, never at ease, creaketh " I".
Th Is I pers Isteth not, posteth not through genera-
t Ions, changeth momently, f Inally Is dead.
Therefore Is man only h Imself when lost to h Imself
In The Char Iot Ing.
[26]
--
Cheth Is the Char Iot In the Tarot. The Char Ioteer Is
the bearer of the Holy Gra Il. All th Is should be stud Ied
In L Iber 418, the 12th Aethyr.
The chapter Is called "Steeped Horseha Ir" because
of the med Iaeval trad It Ion that by steep Ing horseha Ir
a snake Is produced, and the snake Is the h Ieroplyph Ic
representat Ion of semen, part Icularly In Gnost Ic and
Egypt Ian emblems.
The mean Ing of the chapter Is qu Ite clear; the whole
race-consc Iousness, that wh Ich Is omn Ipotent, omn Is-
c Ient, omn Ipresent, Is h Idden there In.
Therefore, except In the case of an Adept, man only
r Ises to a gl Immer of the un Iversal consc Iousness, wh Ile,
In the orgasm, the m Ind Is blotted out.
[27]
--
Be Ing Is the Noun; Form Is the adject Ive.
Matter Is the Noun; Mot Ion Is the Verb.
Wherefore hath Be Ing clothed Itself w Ith Form?
Wherefore hath Matter man Ifested Itself In Mot Ion?
Answer not, O s Ilent one! For THERE Is no "where-
fore", no "because".
The name of THAT Is not known; the Pronoun
Interprets, that Is , m Is Interprets, It.
T Ime and Space are Adverbs.
--
The Cond It Ioned Is Father of the Prepos It Ion.
The Art Icle also marketh D Iv Is Ion; but the Inter-
jec Iton Is the sound that endeth In the S Ilence.
Destroy therefore the E Ight Parts of Speech; the
N Inth Is n Igh unto Truth.
Th Is also must be destroyed before thou enterest
Into The S Ilence.
Aum.
--
Teth Is the Tarot trump, Strength, In wh Ich a woman
Is represented clos Ing the mouth of a l Ion.
Th Is chapter Is called "The Branks", an even more
powerful symbol, for It Is the Scott Ish, and only known,
apparatus for clos Ing the mouth of a woman.
The chapter Is formally an attack upon the parts of
speech, the Interject Ion, the mean Ingless utterance of
ecstasy, be Ing the only th Ing worth say Ing; yet even th Is
Is to be regarded as a lapse.
"Aum" represents the enter Ing Into the s Ilence, as
w Ill observed upon pronounc Ing It.
[29]
--
{Kappa-eps Ilon-Ph I-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota}
W INDLESTRAWS
--
but In Truth there Is no bond between the Toys of
the Gods.
Th Is Reason and Law Is the Bond of the Great L Ie.
Truth! Truth! Truth! cr Ieth the Lord of the Abyss
--
There Is no s Ilence In that Abyss: for all that men
call S Ilence Is Its Speech.
Th Is Abyss Is also called "Hell", and "The Many".
Its name Is "Consc Iousness", and "The Un Iverse",
among men.
But THAT wh Ich ne Ither Is s Ilent, nor speaks, re-
jo Ices there In.
--
There Is no apparent connect Ion between the number
of th Is chapter and Its subject.
It does, however, refer to the key of the Tarot called
The Herm It, wh Ich represents h Im as cloaked.
Jod Is the concealed Phallus as opposed to Tau, the
extended Phallus. Th Is chapter should be stud Ied In
the l Ight of what Is sa Id In "Aha!" and In the Temple
of Solomon the K Ing about the reason.
The un Iverse Is Insane, the law of cause and effect
Is an Illus Ion, or so It appears In the Abyss, wh Ich Is
thus Ident If Ied w Ith consc Iousness, the many, and both;
but w Ith In th Is Is a secret un Ity wh Ich rejo Ices; th Is
un It be Ing far beyond any concept Ion.
--
{Kappa-eps Ilon-Ph I-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Alpha}
THE GLOW-WORM
--
trad Ict Ion In themselves.
Below them Is a seem Ing dual Ity of Chaos and
Babalon; these are called Father and Mother, but
It Is not so. They are called Brother and S Ister,
but It Is not so. They are called Husband and
W Ife, but It Is not so.
The reflect Ion of All Is Pan: the N Ight of Pan Is the
Ann Ih Ilat Ion of the All.
Cast down through The Abyss Is the L Ight, the Rosy
Cross, the rapture of Un Ion that destroys, that Is
The Way. The Rosy Cross Is the Ambassador of Pan.
How Inf In Ite Is the d Istance form Th Is to That! Yet
All Is Here and Now. Nor Is there any there or Then;
for all that Is, what Is It but a man Ifestat Ion, that Is,
a part, that Is, a falsehood, of THAT wh Ich Is not?
Yet THAT wh Ich Is not ne Ither Is nor Is not That
wh Ich Is!
Ident Ity Is perfect; therefore the w of Ident Ity Is
but a l Ie. For there Is no subject, and there Is no
pred Icate; nor Is there the contrad Ictory of e Ither
of these th Ings.
Holy, Holy, Holy are these Truths that I utter,
know Ing them to be but falsehoods, broken m Irrors,
troubled waters; h Ide me, O our Lady, In Thy
Womb! for I may not endure the rapture.
In th Is utterance of falsehood upon falsehood, whose
contrad Ictor Ies are also false, It seems as If That
wh Ich I uttered not were true.
Blessed, unutterably blessed, Is th Is last of the
Illus Ions; let me play the man, and thrust It from
me! Amen.
--
"a l Ittle l Ight In the darkness", though there may be a
subtle reference to the nature of that l Ight.
Eleven Is the great number of Mag Ick, and th Is
chapter Ind Icates a supreme mag Ical method; but It Is
really called eleven, because of L Iber Leg Is, I, 60.
The f Irst part of the chapter descr Ibes the un Iverse
In Its h Ighest sense, down to T Iphareth; It Is the new
and perfect cosmogony of L Iber Leg Is.
--
Tr Iad Is here Ins Isted upon.
Pan Is a gener Ic name, Includ Ing th Is whole system
of Its man Ifested s Ide. Those wh Ich are above the Abyss
are therefore sa Id to l Ive In the N Ight of Pan; they are
only reached by the ann Ih Ilat Ion of the All.
Thus, the Master of the Temple l Ives In the N Ight of
Pan.
--
preced Ing expos It Ion. Th Is reflect Ion Is Immed Iately
contrad Icted, the author be Ing a Master of the Temple.
He thereupon enters Into h Is Samadh I, and he p Iles
contrad Ict Ion upon contrad Ict Ion, and thus a h Igher
--
Is exhausted, and, w Ith the word Amen, he enters the
supreme state.
--
{Kappa-Eps Ilon-Ph I-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota Beta}
THE DRAGON-FL IES
IO Is the cry of the lower as O I of the h Igher.
In f Igures they are 1001;(9) In letters they are Joy.(10)
For when all Is equ Il Ibrated, when all Is beheld from
w Ithout all, there Is joy, joy, joy that Is but one
facet of a d Iamond, every other facet whereof Is
more joyful than joy Itself.
[34]
--
Paragraph 1 mere repeats Chapter 4 In qu Intessence;
1001, be Ing 11{S Igma} (1-13), Is a symbol of the complete
un Ity man Ifested as the many, for {S Igma} (1-13) g Ives the
--
to the complex un Ity of 13, Impregnated by the mag Ical
11.
I may add a further comment on the number 91.
13 (1 plus 3) Is a h Igher form of 4. 4 Is Amoun, the
God of generat Ion, and 13 Is 1, the Phall Ic un Ity.
Daleth Is the Yon I. And 91 Is AMN (Amen), a form
of the Phallus made complete through the Intervent Ion
of the Yon I. Th Is aga In connects w Ith the IO and O I
of paragraph 1, and of course IO Is the rapture-cry of
the Greeks.
The whole chapter Is, aga In, a comment on L Iber
leg Is, 1, 28-30.
--
(10) JOY = 101, the Egg of Sp Ir It In equ Il Ibr Ium
between the P Illars of the Temple.
--
{Kappa-Eps Ilon-Ph I-Alpha-Lambda Iota-Gamma}
P ILGR IM-TALK
O thou that settest out upon The Path, false Is the
Phantom that thou seekest. When thou hast It
thou shalt know all b Itterness, thy teeth f Ixed In
the Sodom-Apple.
--
effort Is no more. Faster and faster dos thou fall;
thy wear Iness Is changed Into Ineffable Rest.
For there Is not Thou upon That Path: thou hast
become The Way.
--
Th Is chapter Is perfectly clear to anyone who has
stud Ied the career of an Adept.
The Sodom-Apple Is an uneatable fru It found In the
desert.
--
{Kappa-Eps Ilon-Ph I-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Delta}
ON ION-PEEL INGS
The Un Iverse Is the Pract Ical Joke of the General
at the Expense of the Part Icular, quoth FRATER
--
It safe to act l Ike FRATER PERDURABO.
But though FRATER PERDURABO laughed
--
and In H Imself He ne Ither laughed nor wept.
Nor d Id He mean what He sa Id.
--
Inc Ident In "Peer Gynt".
The chapter resembles strongly Dup In's account of
--
But th Is Is a more ser Ious p Iece of psychology. In one's
advance towards a comprehens Ion of the un Iverse, one
changes rad Ically one's po Int of v Iew; nearly always It
amounts to a reversal.
th Is Is the cause of most rel Ig Ious controvers Ies.
Paragraph 1, however, Is Frater Perdurabo's formula-
t Ion of h Is percept Ion of the Un Iversal Joke, also
descr Ibed In Chapter 34. All Ind Iv Idual ex Istence Is
trag Ic. Percept Ion of th Is fact Is the essence of comedy.
"Household Gods" Is an attempt to wr Ite pure comedy.
"The Bacchae" of Eur Ip Ides Is another.
At the end of the chapter It Is, however, seen that to
the Master of the Temple the oppos Ite percept Ion occurs
s Imultaneously, and that he h Imself Is beyond both of
these.
And In the last paragraph It Is shown that he real Ises
the truth as beyond any statement of It.
[39]
--
{Kappa-Eps Ilon-Ph I-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Eps Ilon}
THE GUN-BARREL
M Ighty and erect Is th Is W Ill of m Ine, th Is Pyram Id
of f Ire whose summ It Is lost In Heaven. Upon It
have I burned the corpse of my des Ires.
M Ighty and erect Is th Is {Ph I-alpha-lambda-lambda-om Icron-s Igma}
of my W Ill. The
seed thereof Is That wh Ich I have borne w Ith In me
from Etern Ity; and It Is lost w Ith In the Body of
Our Lady of the Stars.
I am not I; I am but an hollow tube to br Ing down
F Ire from Heaven.
M Ighty and marvellous Is th Is Weakness, th Is
Heaven wh Ich draweth me Into Her Womb, th Is
Dome wh Ich h Ideth, wh Ich absorbeth, Me.
Th Is Is The N Ight where In I am lost, the Love
through wh Ich I am no longer I.
[40]
--
The card 15 In the Tarot Is "The Dev Il", the
med Iaeval bl Ind for Pan.
--
Is here Ident If Ied w Ith the w Ill. The Greek word
{P I-ups Ilon-rho-alpha-mu- Iota-s Igma}
--
Th Is chapter Is qu Ite clear, but one my remark In
the last paragraph a reference to the nature of Samadh I.
As man loses h Is personal Ity In phys Ical love, so
does the mag Ic Ian ann Ih Ilate h Is d Iv Ine personal Ity In
that wh Ich Is beyond.
The formula of Samadh I Is the same, from the
lowest to the h Ighest. The Rosy-Cross Is the Un Iversal
Key. But, as one proceeds, the Cross becomes greater,
unt Il It Is the Ace, the Rose, unt Il It Is the Word.
[41]
--
{Kappa-Eps Ilon-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-S Igma}
THE STAG-BEETLE
Death Impl Ies change and Ind Iv Idual Ity If thou be
THAT wh Ich hath no person, wh Ich Is beyond the
chang Ing, even beyond changelessness, what hast
--
The b Ird of Ind Iv Idual Ity Is ecstasy; so also Is Its
death.
In love the Ind Iv Idual Ity Is sla In; who loves not love?
Love death therefore, and long eagerly for It.
D Ie Da Ily.
--
Stag-Beetle Is a reference the Kheph-ra, the Egypt Ian
God of M Idn Ight, who bears the Sun through the
Underworld; but It Is called the Stag-Beetle to emphas Ise
h Is horns. Horns are the un Iversal h Ieroglyph of energy,
--
The 16th key of the Tarot Is "The Blasted Tower".
In th Is chapter death Is regarded as a form of marr Iage.
Modern Greek peasants, In many cases, cl Ing to Pagan
bel Ief, and suppose that In death they are un Ited to the
De Ity wh Ich they have cult Ivated dur Ing l Ife. Th Is Is "a
consummat Ion devoutly to be w Ished" (Shakespeare).
In the last paragraph the Master urges h Is pup Ils to
pract Ise Samadh I every day.
--
{Kappa-Eps Ilon-Ph I-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Zeta}
THE SWAN(11)
There Is a Swan whose name Is Ecstasy: It w Ingeth
from the Deserts of the North; It w Ingeth through
the blue; It w Ingeth over the f Ields of r Ice; at Its
com Ing they push forth the green.
In all the Un Iverse th Is Swan alone Is mot Ionless; It
seems to move, as the Sun seems to move; such
Is the weakness of our s Ight.
O fool! cr Iest thou?
Amen. Mot Ion Is relat Ive: there Is Noth Ing that Is
st Ill.
Aga Inst th Is Swan I shot an arrow; the wh Ite breast
poured forth blood. Men smote me; then, per-
ce Iv Ing that I was but a Pure Fool, they let me
pass.
Thus and not otherw Ise I came to the Temple of the
Graal.
--
Th Is Swan Is Aum. The chapter Is Insp Ired by
Frater P.'s memory of the w Ild swans he shot In the
Tal I-Fu.
In paragraphs 3 and 4 It Is, however, recogn Ised that
even Aum Is Impermanent. There Is no mean Ing In the
word, st Illness, so long as mot Ion ex Ists.
In a boundless un Iverse, one can always take any
one po Int, however mob Ile, and postulate It a a po Int
at rest, calculat Ing the mot Ions of all other po Ints
relat Ively to It.
The penult Imate paragraph shows the relat Ions of
--
(11) Th Is chapter must be read In connect Ion w Ith
Wagner's "Pars Ifal".
--
{Kappa-Eps Ilon-Ph I-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Eta}
DEWDROPS
Ver Ily, love Is death, and death Is l Ife to come.
Man returneth not aga In; the stream floweth not
uph Ill; the old l Ife Is no more; there Is a new l Ife
that Is not h Is.
Yet that l Ife Is of h Is very essence; It Is more He
than all that he calls He.
In the s Ilence of a dewdrop Is every tendency of h Is
soul, and of h Is m Ind, and of h Is body; It Is the
Qu Intessence and the El Ix Ir of h Is be Ing. There In
--
Th Is Is the Dew of Immortal Ity.
Let th Is go free, even as It w Ill; thou art not Its
master, but the veh Icle of It.
[46]
--
chapter t Itle Is obv Ious.
The chapter must be read In connect Ion w Ith
Chapters 1 and 16.
I the penult Imate paragraph, V Indu Is Ident If Ied
w Ith Amr Ita, and In the last paragraph the d Isc Iple Is
charged to let It have Its own way. It has a w Ill of Its
own, wh Ich Is more In accordance w Ith the Cosm Ic W Ill,
than that of the man who Is Its guard Ian and servant.
[47]
--
{Kappa-Eps Ilon-Ph I-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Theta}
THE LEOPARD AND THE DEER
The spots of the leopard are the sunl Ight In the
glade; pursue thou the deer stealth Ily at thy
--
The dappl Ing of the deer Is the sunl Ight In the glade;
concealed from the leopard do thou feed at thy
--
Th Is Is that wh Ich Is wr Itten-Lurk!- In The Book
of The Law.
--
19 Is the last Trump, "The Sun', wh Ich Is the
representat Ive of god In the Macrocosm, as the Phallus
Is In the M Icrocosm.
There Is a certa In un Iversal Ity and adaptab Il Ity
among Its secret power. The chapter Is taken from
Rudyard K Ipl In's "Just So Stor Ies".
--
In th Is way mak Ing the best of both worlds. Th Is counsels
a course of act Ion hardly d Ist Ingu Ishable from hypocr Isy;
but the d Ist Inct Ion Is obv Ious to any clear th Inker,
though not altogether so the Frater P.
--
The Un Iverse Is In equ Il Ibr Ium; therefore He that Is
w Ithout It, though h Is force be but a feather, can
overturn the Un Iverse.
--
Be not entangled In the un Iversal l Ie, O ch Ild of
Truth!
--
Samson, the Hebrew Hercules, Is sa Id In the legend
to have pulled down the walls of a mus Ic-hall where he
--
The f Irst paragraph Is a corollary of Newton's F Irst
Law of Mot Ion. The key to Inf In Ite power Is to reach
the Bornless Beyond.
--
It Is not necessary to understand; It Is enough to
adore.
--
We Ignore what created us; we adore what we create.
Let us create noth Ing but GOD!
That wh Ich causes us to create Is our true father and
mother; we create In our own Image, wh Ich Is the Irs.
Let us create therefore w Ithout fear; for we can
create noth Ing that Is not GOD.
[52]
--
The 21st key of the Tarot Is called "The Un Iverse",
and refers to the letter Tau, the Phallus In man Ifesta-
t Ion; hence the t Itle, "The Bl Ind Webster".
The un Iverse Is conce Ived as Buddh Ists, on the one
hand, and Rat Ional Ists, on the other, would have us do;
fatal, and w Ithout Intell Igence. Even so, It may be
del Ightful to the creator.
The moral of th Is chapter Is, therefore, and expos It Ion
of the last paragraph of Chapter 18.
It Is the cr It Ical sp Ir It wh Ich Is the Dev Il, and g Ives
r Ise to the appearance of ev Il.
--
Th Is I know certa Inly, because they always treat me
w Ith profound respect. Thus they have flattered
me Into pra Is Ing them thus publ Icly.
Yet It Is true; and they have th Is Ins Ight because
they serve, and because they can have no personal
Interest In the affa Irs of those whom they serve.
An absolute monarch would be absolutely w Ise and
--
But no man Is strong enough to have no Interest.
Therefore the best k Ing would be Pure Chance.
It Is Pure Chance that rules the Un Iverse; therefore,
and only therefore, l Ife Is good.
[54]
--
What man Is at ease In h Is Inn?
Get out.
W Ide Is the world and cold.
Get out.
Thou hast become an In- It Iate.
Get out.
--
In. The Way out Is THE WAY.
Get out.
For OUT Is Love and W Isdom and Power.(12)
Get OUT.
If thou hast T already, f Irst get UT.(13)
Then get O.
--
large; and, lastly, even the In It Iates.
In the fourth sect Ion Is shown that there Is no return
for one that has started on th Is path.
The word OUT Is then analysed, and treated as a
noun.
Bes Ides the explanat Ion In the note, O Is the Yon I;
T, the L Ingam; and U, the H Ierophant; the 5th card
of the Tarot, the Pentagram. It Is thus pract Ically
Ident Ical w Ith IAO.
The rest of the chapter Is clear, for the note.
NOTES
--
Th Is book would translate Beyond-Reason Into the
words of Reason.
--
s Ists In Its Abstracts; the poorest tongues have
wealth of Concretes.
Therefore have Adepts pra Ised s Ilence; at least It
does not m Islead as speech does.
Also, Speech Is a symptom of Thought.
Yet, s Ilence Is but the negat Ive s Ide of Truth; the
pos It Ive s Ide Is beyond even s Ilence.
Nevertheless, One True God cr Ieth hr Il Iu!
And the laughter of the Death-rattle Is ak In.
[58]
--
The Hawk Is the symbol of s Ight; the Bl Indworm, of
bl Indness. Those who are under the dom In Ion of reason
--
In the last paragraph Is reasserted the doctr Ine of
Chapters 1, 8, 16 and 18.
--
Fac Ing East, In the centre, draw deep deep deep thy
breath, clos Ing thy mouth w Ith thy r Ight fore-
--
Advance to the East. Imag Ine strongly a Pentagram.
ar Ight, In thy forehead. Draw Ing the hands to the
eyes, fl Ing It forth, mak Ing the s Ign of Horus, and
roar {Ch I-Alpha-Om Icron-C?}. Ret Ire th Ine hand In the s Ign of Hoor
pa kraat.
--
centre, and ra Ise thy vo Ice In the Pa Ian, w Ith these
words { Iota-Om Icron P I-Alpha-Nu} w Ith the s Igns of N.O.X.
Extend the arms In the form of a Tau, and say low
but clear: {P I-Rho-Om Icron Mu-Om Icron-Ups Ilon Iota-Ups Ilon-
Gamma-Gamma-Eps Ilon-C? Om Icron-P I- Iota-C?-Omega Mu-Om Icron-
--
Iota Eps Ilon-P I- Iota Delta-Eps Ilon-X I- Iota-Alpha C?-Ups Ilon-
Nu-Om Icron-Ch I-Eps Ilon-C? Eps Ilon-P I-Alpha-Rho- Iota-C?-Tau-
--
Iota Om Icron Alpha-C?-Tau-Eta-Rho Tau-Omega-Nu Eps Ilon-X I
Eps Ilon-C?-Tau-Eta-Kappa-Eps Ilon.
--
25 Is the square of 5, and the Pentagram has the
red colour of Geburah.
The chapter Is a new and more elaborate vers Ion of
the Ban Ish Ing R Itual of the Pentagram.
It would be Improper to comment further upon an
off Ic Ial r Itual of the A.'.A.'.
--
(14) The secret sense of these words Is to be sought In
the numberat Ion thereof.
--
The Second, who Is the Fourth, the Dem Iurge, whom
all nat Ions of Men call The F Irst, Is a l Ie grafted
upon a l Ie, a l Ie mult Ipl Ied by a l Ie.
Fourfold Is He, the Elephant upon whom the
Un Iverse Is po Ised: but the carapace of the
Torto Ise supports and covers all.
Th Is Torto Ise Is s Ixfold, the Holy Hexagram.(15)
These s Ix and four are ten, 10, the One man Ifested
that returns Into the Naught unman Ifest.
The All-M Ighty, the All-Ruler, the All-Knower, the
--
The f Irst paragraph should be read In connect Ion
w Ith our prev Ious remarks upon the number 91.
The number of the chapter, 26, Is that of Tetra-
grammaton, the man Ifest creator, Jehovah.
He Is called the Second In relat Ion to that wh Ich Is
above the Abyss, comprehended under the t Itle of the
--
He Is really the Fourth, be Ing In Chesed, and of
course h Is nature Is fourfold. Th Is Four Is conce Ived
of as the Dyad mult Ipl Ied by the Dyad; falsehood con-
--
Paragraph 3 Introduces a new concept Ion; that of
the square w Ith In the hexagram, the un Iverse enclosed
In the law of L Ingam-Yon I.
The penult Imate paragraph shows the redempt Ion of
--
The f Igure 10, l Ike the work IO, aga In suggest
L Ingam-Yon I, bes Ides the exclamat Ion g Iven In the
text.
--
The eleven In It Ial A's In the last sentence are Mag Ick
Pentagrams, emphas Is Ing th Is curse.
--
(15) In nature the Torto Ise has 6 members at angels
of 60 Degrees.
--
was none that d Id not Instantly obey h Is b Idd Ing.
In the whole system of ten m Ill Ion t Imes ten m Ill Ion
spheres upon the two and twenty m Ill Ion planes he
--
Th Is chapter g Ives the reverse of the medal; It Is the
contrast to Chapter 15.
The Sorcerer Is to be Ident If Ied w Ith The Brother of
the Left Hand Path.
--
Love Is all v Irtue, s Ince the pleasure of love Is but
love, and the pa In of love Is but love.
Love taketh no heed of that wh Ich Is not and of that
wh Ich Is.
Absence exalteth love, and presence exalteth love.
--
Love destroyeth self, un It Ing self w Ith that wh Ich Is
not-self, so that Love breedeth All and None In
One.
Is It not so?...No?...
Then thou art not lost In love; speak not of love.
Love Alway Y Ieldeth: Love Alway Hardeneth.
..........May be: I wr Ite It but to wr Ite Her name.
[66]
--
Th Is now Introduces the pr Inc Ipal character of th Is
book, Laylah, who Is the ult Imate fem In Ine symbol, to
be Interpreted on all planes.
But In th Is chapter, l Ittle h Int Is g Iven of anyth Ing
beyond phys Ical love. It Is called the Pole-Star, because
Laylah Is the one object of devot Ion to wh Ich the author
ever turns.
Note the Introduct Ion of the name of the Beloved In
acrost Ic In l Ine 15.
[67]
--
Love, I love you! N Ight, n Ight, cover us! Thou art
n Ight, O my love; and there are no stars but th Ine
--
Thou; let me be ne Ither Thou nor I; let there be
love In n Ight and n Ight In love.
N.O.X. the n Ight of Pan; and Laylah, the n Ight
--
Note that the word Laylah Is the Arab Ic for "N Ight".
The author beg Ins to Ident Ify the Beloved w Ith the
N.O.X. prev Iously spoken of.
the chapter Is called "The Southern Cross", because,
on the phys Ical plane, Laylah Is an Austral Ian.
[69]
--
Dreams are Imperfect Ions of sleep; even so Is con-
sc Iousness the Imperfect Ion of wak Ing.
Dreams are Impur It Ies In the c Irculat Ion of the blood;
even so Is consc Iousness a d Isorder of l Ife.
Dreams are w Ithout proport Ion, w Ithout good
sense, w Ithout truth; so also Is consc Iousness.
Awake from dream, the truth Is known:(16) awake
from wak Ing, the Truth Is-The Unknown.
[70]
--
Th Is chapter Is to read In connect Ion w Ith Chapter 8,
and also w Ith those prev Ious chapters In wh Ich the
reason Is attacked.
The allus Ion In the t Itle Is obv Ious.
Th Is sum In proport Ion, dream: wak Ing: : wak Ing:
Samadh I Is a favour Ite analogy w Ith Frater P.,
who frequently employs It In h Is holy d Iscourse.
NOTE
(16) I.e. the truth that he hath slept.
[71]
--
IT moves from mot Ion Into rest, and rests from rest
Into mot Ion. These IT does alway, for t Ime Is not.
So that IT does ne Ither of these th Ings. IT does
THAT one th Ing wh Ich we must express by two
--
Yet ITS do Ing, wh Ich Is no-do Ing, Is s Imple and yet
complex, Is ne Ither free nor necessary.
For all these Ideas express Relat Ion; and IT, com-
prehend Ing all Relat Ion In ITS s Impl Ic Ity, Is out of
all Relat Ion even w Ith ITSELF.
All th Is Is true and false; and It Is true and false to
say that It Is true and false.
Stra In forth th Ine Intell Igence, O man, O worthy
one, O chosen of IT, to apprehend the d Iscourse
of THE MASTER; for thus thy reason shall at
last break down, as the fetter Is struck from a
slave's throat.
--
A new character Is now Introduce under the t Itle of
IT, I be Ing the secret, and T be Ing the man Ifested,
phallus.
Th Is Is, however, only one aspect of IT, wh Ich may
perhaps be def Ined as the Ult Imate Real Ity.
IT Is apparently a more exalted th Ing than THAT.
Th Is chapter should be compared w Ith Chapter 11;
--
contrad Ict Ions Is def In Itely Inculcated.
The reason Is s Ituated In Daath, wh Ich corresponds
the the throat In human anatomy. Hence the t Itle of the
chapter, "The Garotte".
The Idea Is that, by forc Ing the m Ind to follow, and
as far as poss Ible to real Ise, the language of Beyond
the Abyss, the student w Ill succeed In br Ing Ing h Is
reason under control.
As soon as the reason Is vanqu Ished, the garotte Is
removed; then the Influence of the supernals (Kether,
Chokmah, B Inah), no longer Inh Ib Ited by Daath, can
descend upon T Iphareth, where the human w Ill Is
s Ituated, and flood It w Ith the Ineffable l Ight.
[73]
--
Consc Iousness Is a symptom of d Isease.
All that moves well moves w Ithout w Ill.
All sk Illfulness, all stra In, all Intent Ion Is contrary to
ease.
Pract Ise a thousand t Imes, and It becomes d Iff Icult;
a thousand thousand, and It becomes easy; a
thousand thousand t Imes a thousand thousand,
and It Is no longer Thou that doeth It, but It that
doeth Itself through thee. Not unt Il then Is that
wh Ich Is done well done.
Thus spoke FRATER PERDURABO as he leapt
--
Th Is t Itle Is a mere reference to the metaphor of the
last paragraph of the chapter.
Frater P., as Is well known, Is a mounta Ineer.
Th Is chapter should be read In conjunct Ion w Ith
Chapters 8 and 30.
It Is a pract Ical Instruct Ion, the g Ist of wh Ich Is
eas Ily to be apprehended by comparat Ively short pract Ice
--
A mantra Is not be Ing properly sa Id as long as the
man knows he Is say Ing It. The same appl Ies to all other
forms of Mag Ick.
--
A black two-headed Eagle Is GOD; even a Black
Tr Iangle Is He. In H Is claws He beareth a sword;
yea, a sharp sword Is held there In.
Th Is Eagle Is burnt up In the Great F Ire; yet not a
feather Is scorched. Th Is Eagle Is swallowed up
In the Great Sea; yet not a feather Is wetted. so
fl Ieth He In the a Ir, and l Ighteth upon the earth at
H Is pleasure.
So spake IACOBUS BURGUNDUS MOLENS IS(17)
the Grand Master of the Temple; and of the GOD
that Is Ass-headed d Id he dare not speak.
[76]
--
33 Is the number of the Last Degree of Masonry,
wh Ich was conferred upon Frater P. In the year 1900
of the vulgar era by Don Jesus de Med Ina-S Idon Ia In
the C Ity of Mex Ico.
Baphomet Is the myster Ious name of the God of the
Templars.
The Eagle descr Ibed In paragraph 1 Is that of the
Templars.
Th Is Mason Ic symbol Is, however, Ident If Ied by
Frater P. w Ith a b Ird, wh Ich Is master of the four
elements, and therefore of the name Tetragrammaton.
--
In the C Ity of Par Is In the year 1314 of the vulgar era.
The secrets of h Is order were, however, not lost, and
--
successors, as Is Int Imated by the last paragraph, wh Ich
Impl Ies knowledge of a secret worsh Ip, of wh Ich the
Grand Master d Id not speak.
The Eagle may be Ident If Ied, though not too closely,
w Ith the Hawk prev Iously spoken of.
It Is perhaps the Sun, the exoter Ic object of worsh Ip
of all sens Ible cults; It Is not to be confused w Ith other
objects of the myst Ic av Iary, such as the swan, phoen Ix,
--
(17) H Is In It Ials I.B.M. are the In It Ials of the Three
P Illars of the Temple, and add to 52, 13x4, BN, the
--
Each act of man Is the tw Ist and double of an hare.
Love and death are the greyhounds that course h Im.
God bred the hounds and taketh H Is pleasure In the
sport.
Th Is Is the Comedy of Pan, that man should th Ink
he hunteth, wh Ile those hounds hunt h Im.
Th Is Is the Tragedy of Man when fac Ing Love and
Death he turns to bay. He Is no more hare, but
boar.
--
Cease then to be the mockery of God; In savagery of
love and death l Ive thou and d Ie!
--
The t Itle Is expla Ined In the note.
The chapter needs no explanat Ion; It Is a def In Ite
po Int of v Iew of l Ife, and recommends a course of act Ion
--
Iota-delta} of
wh Ich It was the or Ig In. FRATER PERDURABO
perce Ived th Is truth, or rather the f Irst half of It, comedy,
at breakfast at "Au Ch Ien qu I Fume".
--
L Ife Is as ugly and necessary as the female body.
Death Is as beaut Iful and necessary as the male
body.
The soul Is beyond male and female as It Is beyond
L Ife and Death.
--
What do I love? There Is no from, no be Ing, to wh Ich
I do not g Ive myself wholly up.
Take me, who w Ill!
--
Th Is chapter must be read In connect Ion w Ith
Chapters 1, 3, 4, 8, 15, 16, 18, 24, 28, 29.
--
The t Itle "Venus of M Ilo" Is an argument In support
of paragraphs 1 and 2, It be Ing ev Ident from th Is
statement that the female body becomes beaut Iful In so
far as It approx Imates to the male.
The female Is to be regarded as hav Ing been separated
from the male, In order to reproduce the male In a
super Ior form, the absolute, and the cond It Ions form Ing
--
In the last two paragraphs there Is a just If Icat Ion of
a pract Ice wh Ich m Ight be called sacred prost Itut Ion.
In the common pract Ice of med Itat Ion the Idea Is to
reject all Impress Ions, but here Is an oppos Ite pract Ice,
very much more d Iff Icult, In wh Ich all are accepted.
Th Is cannot be done at all unless one Is capable of
mak Ing Dhyana at least on any conce Ivable th Ing, at
--
In the centre, let h Im g Ive the L.V.X. s Igns; or If
he know them, If he w Ill and dare do them, and
can keep s Ilent about them, the s Igns of N.O.X.
--
the s Ign I.R.
Then let h Im advance to the East, and make the
--
In th Is the S Igns shall be those of Set Tr Iumphant
and of Baphomet. Also shall Set appear In the
C Ircle. Let h Im dr Ink of the Sacrament and let h Im
--
Then let h Im say: OMN IA IN DUOS: DUO IN
UNUM: UNUS IN N IH IL: HAE NEC
QUATUOR NEC OMN IA NEC DUO NEC
--
ET SP IR ITU I SANCTO INTERNO UT ERAT
EST ER IT IN SAECULA SAECULORUM SEX
IN UNO PER NOMEN SEPTEM IN UNO
ARAR ITA.
--
s Igns of N.O.X.; for It Is not he that shall ar Ise In
the S Ign of Is Is Rejo Ic Ing.
COMMENTARY ({Lambda-S Igma})
--
of Chapter 25; 36 be Ing the square of 6, as 25 Is of %.
Th Is chapter g Ives the real and perfect R Itual of the
--
It would be Improper to comment further upon an
off Ic Ial r Itual of the A.'.A.'.
--
Thought Is the shadow of the ecl Ipse of Luna.
Samadh I Is the shadow of the ecl Ipse of Sol.
The moon and the earth are the non-ego and the
ego: the Sun Is THAT.
Both ecl Ipses are darkness; both are exceed Ing rare;
the Un Iverse Itself Is L Ight.
[84]
--
Dragons are In the East supposed to cause ecl Ipses
by devour Ing the lum Inar Ies.
There may be some s Ign If Icance In the chapter
number, wh Ich Is that of Jech Idah the h Ighest un Ity of
the soul.
In th Is chapter, the Idea Is g Iven that all l Im Itat Ion
and ev Il Is an exceed Ingly rare acc Ident; there can be
no n Ight In the whole of the Solar System, except In rare
spots, where the shadow of a planet Is cast by Itself.
It Is a ser Ious m Isfortune that we happen to l Ive In a
t Iny corner of the system, where the darkness reaches such
--
The same Is true of moral and sp Ir Itual cond It Ions.
[85]
--
Th Is Is the mystery.
L Ife!
M Ind Is the tra Itor.
Slay m Ind.
--
Th Is Is the mystery.
Tyle!
--
Th Is chapter w Ill be read Ily Intell Ig Ible to E.A.
Freemasons, and It cannot be expla Ined to others.
[87]
--
Only loob Ies f Ind excellence In these words.
It Is th Inkable that A Is not-A; to reverse th Is Is but
to revert to the normal.
--
wh Ich one set Is absurd Ity, the other tru Ism, a
new funct Ion of bra In Is establ Ished.
Vague and myster Ious and all Indef In Ite are the
contents of th Is new consc Iousness; yet they are
--
of THAT of wh Ich Reason Is the blasphemy.
But w Ithout the Exper Ience these words are the
--
The word Looby occurs In folklore, and was supposed
to be the author, at the t Ime of wr It Ing th Is book, wh Ich
--
It would thus be a s Im Ilar word to "Pars Ifal".
Paragraphs 2-6 expla In the method that was g Iven
In Chapters 11 and 31. Th Is method, however, occurs
throughout the book on numerous occas Ions, and even
In the chapter Itself It Is employed In the last paragraphs.
[89]
--
A red rose absorbs all colours but red; red Is therefore
the one colour that It Is not.
Th Is Law, Reason, T Ime, Space, all L Im Itat Ion bl Inds
--
All that we know of Man, Nature, God, Is just that
wh Ich they are not; It Is that wh Ich they throw off
as repungnant.
The H IMOG Is only v Is Ible In so far as He Is Imperfect.
Then are they all glor Ious who seem not to be glor Ious,
as the H IMOG Is All-glor Ious W Ith In?
It may be so.
How then d Ist Ingu Ish the Inglor Ious and perfect
H IMOG from the Inglor Ious man of earth?
D Ist Ingu Ish not!
--
Paragraph 1 Is, of course, a well-known sc Ient If Ic
fact.
In paragraph 2 It Is suggested analog Ically that all
th Inkable th Ings are s Im Ilarly bl Inds for the Unth Inkable
--
Class Ing In th Is manner all th Ings as Illus Ions, the
quest Ion ar Ises as to the d Ist Ingu Ish Ing between Illus Ions;
how are we to tell whether a Holy Illum Inated Man of
God Is really so, s Ince we can see noth Ing of h Im but
h Is Imperfect Ions. : It may be yonder beggar Is a K Ing."
But these cons Iderat Ions are not to trouble such m Ind
--
(19) H IMOG Is a Notar Iqon of the words Holy
Illum Inated Man of God.
[91]
--
In V.V.V.V.V. Is the Great Work perfect.
Therefore none Is that perta Ineth not to V.V.V.V.V.
In any may he man Ifest; yet In one hath he chosen
to man Ifest; and th Is one hath g Iven H Is r Ing as a
--
t Ion; It concerneth none below the grade of
Exempt Adept, and such an one only by com-
--
Also, s Ince below the Abyss Reason Is Lord, let men
seek by exper Iment, and not by Quest Ion Ings.
--
the t Itle Is only part Ially expla Ined I the note; It
means that the statements In th Is chapter are to be
understood In the most ord Inary and commonplace
way, w Ithout any myst Ical sense.
V.V.V.V.V. Is the motto of a Master of the Temple
(or so much He d Isclosed to the Exempt Adepts),
referred to In L Iber LX I. It Is he who Is respons Ible
for the whole of the development of the A,'.A.'. move-
--
THE EQU INOX; and H Is utterance Is enshr Ined In
the sacred wr It Ings.
It Is useless to enqu Ire Into H Is nature; to do so leads
to certa In d Isaster. Author Ity from h Im Is exh Ib Ited,
when necessary, to the proper persons, though In no
case to anyone below the grade of Exempt Adept. The
person enqu Ir Ing Into such matters Is pol Itely requested
to work, and not to ask quest Ions about matters wh Ich
In no way concern h Im.
The number 41 Is that of the Barren Mother.
NOTE
(20) I.e. food su Itable for Amer Icans.
[93]
--
In the w Ind of the m Ind ar Ises the turbulence
called I.
It breaks; down shower the barren thoughts.
All l Ife Is choked.
Th Is desert Is the Abyss where In the Un Iverse.
The Stars are but th Istles In that waste.
Yet th Is desert Is but one spot accursed In a world of
bl Iss.
--
As they go they sp Ill water; one day they w Ill Irr Igate
the desert, t Ill It flower.
See! f Ive footpr Ints of a Camel! V.V.V.V.V.
--
Th Is number 42 Is the Great Number of the Curse. See L Iber
418, L Iber 500, and the essay on the Qabalah In the Temple of
Solomon the K Ing. Th Is number Is sa Id to be all hotch-potch and
accursed.
The chapter should be read most carefully In connect Ion w Ith
the 10th Aethyr. It Is to that dramat Ic exper Ience that It refers.
The m Ind Is called "w Ind", because of Its nature; as has been
frequently expla Ined, the Ideas and words are Ident Ical.
In th Is free-flow Ing, centreless mater Ial ar Ises an eddy; a
sp Iral close-co Iled upon Itself.
The theory of the format Ion of the Ego Is that of the H Indus,
whose Ahamkara Is Itself a funct Ion of the m Ind, whose ego It
creates. Th Is Ego Is ent Irely d Iv Ine.
Zoroaster descr Ibes God as hav Ing the head of the Hawk, and
a sp Iral force. It w Ill be d Iff Icult to understand th Is chapter w Ith-
out some exper Ience In the transvaluat Ion of values, wh Ich occurs
throughout the whole of th Is book, In nearly every other sentence.
Transvaluat Ion of values Is only the moral aspect of the method
of contrad Ict Ion.
The word "turbulence" Is appl Ied to the Ego to suggest the
French "tourb Ill Ion", wh Irlw Ind, the false Ego or dust-dev Il.
True l Ife, the l Ife, wh Ich has no consc Iousness of " I", Is sa Id to
be choked by th Is false ego, or rather by the thoughts wh Ich Its
explos Ions produce. In paragraph 4 th Is Is expanded to a
macrocosm Ic plane.
The Masters of the Temple are now Introduced; they are
Inhab Itants, not of th Is desert; the Ir abode Is not th Is un Iverse.
They come from the Great Sea, B Inah, the C Ity of the Pyram Ids.
V.V.V.V.V. Is Ind Icated as one of these travellers; He Is
descr Ibed as a camel, not because of the connotat Ion of the French
form of th Is word, but because "camel" Is In hebrew G Imel, and
G Imel Is the path lead Ing from T Iphareth to Kether, un It Ing
M Icroprosopus and Macroprosopus, I.e. perform Ing the Great
Work.
The card G Imel In the Tarot Is the H Igh Pr Iestess, the Lady of
In It Iat Ion; one m Ight even say, the Holy Guard Ian Angel.
[95]
--
In the sp Ire.
Death Is the ve Il of L Ife, and L Ife of Death; for both
are Gods.
Th Is Is that wh Ich Is wr Itten: "A feast for L Ife, and
a greater feast for Death!" In THE BOOK OF
THE LAW.
The blood Is the l Ife of the Ind Iv Idual: offer then
blood!
--
that of the prophet who heard "a go Ing In the mulberry
tops"; and to Brown Ing's phrase, "a bru Ised, black-
--
In the World's Tragedy, Household Gods, The
Scorp Ion, and also The God-Eater, the reader may
--
In the last paragraph, the reason of th Is Is expla Ined;
It Is because such sacr If Ices come under the Great Law
of the Rosy Cross, the g Iv Ing-up of the Ind Iv Idual Ity,
as has been expla Ined as nauseam In prev Ious chapters.
We shall frequently recur to th Is subject.
By "the wheel sp Inn Ing In the sp Ire" Is meant the
man Ifestat Ion of mag Ical force, the spermatozoon In the
con Ical phallus. For wheels, see Chapter 78.
--
of the Cakes of L Ight. In the S Ign of the Enterer he
reaches West across the Altar, and cr Ies:
Ha Il Ra, that goest In Thy bark
Into the Caverns of the DarK!
He g Ives the s Ign of S Ilence, and takes the Bell, and
F Ire, In h Is hands.
East of the Altar see me stand
W Ith L Ight and Mus Ick In m Ine hand!
He str Ikes Eleven t Imes upon the Bell 3 3 3-5 5 5 5 5-
3 3 3 and places the F Ire In the Thur Ible.
I str Ike the Bell: I l Ight the flame:
I utter the myster Ious Name.
ABRAHADABRA
--
Now I beg In to pray: Thou Ch Ild,
holy Thy name and undef Iled!
Thy re Ign Is come: Thy w Ill Is done.
Here Is the Bread; here Is the Blood.
Br Ing me through m Idn Ight to the Sun!
--
I burn the Incense-cake, procla Im
These adorat Ions of Thy name.
He makes them as In L Iber Leg Is, and str Ikes aga In
Eleven t Imes upon the Bell. W Ith the Bur In he then
--
I stanch the blood; the wager soaks
It up, and the h Igh pr Iest Invokes!
He eats the second Cake.
Th Is Bread I eat. Th Is Oath I swear
As I enflame myself w Ith prayer:
"There Is no grace: there Is no gu Ilt:
Th Is Is the Law: DO WHAT THOU W ILT!"
He str Ikes Eleven t Imes upon the Bell, and cr Ies
--
I entered In w Ith woe; w Ith m Irth
I now go forth, and w Ith thanksg Iv Ing,
To do my pleasure on the earth
--
Th Is Is the spec Ial number of Horus; It Is the Hebrew
blood, and the mult Ipl Icat Ion of the 4 by the 11, the
number of Mag Ick, expla Ins 4 In Its f Inest sense. But
see In part Icular the accounts In Equ Inox I, v I I of the
c Ircumstances of the Equ Inox of the Gods.
The word "Phoen Ix" may be taken as Includ Ing the
Idea of "Pel Ican", the b Ird, wh Ich Is fabled to feeds Its
young from the blood of Its own breast. Yet the two
Ideas, though cognate, are not Ident Ical, and "Phoen Ix"
Is the more accurate symbol.
Th Is chapter Is expla Ined In Chapter 62.
It would be Improper to comment further upon a
r Itual wh Ich has been accepted as off Ic Ial by the
--
may safely assume, ought, It Is hardly quest Ion-
able, almost certa Inly-poor hacks! let them be
--
Proof Is only poss Ible In mathemat Ics, and mathe-
mat Ics Is only a matter of arb Itrary convent Ions.
And yet doubt Is a good servant but a bad master; a
perfect m Istress, but a nagg Ing w Ife.
"Wh Ite Is wh Ite" Is the lash of the overseer: "wh Ite
Is black" Is the watchword of the slave. The Master
takes no heed.
--
the more certa In It Is that I only assert a l Im Itat Ion.
I slept w Ith Fa Ith, and found a corpse In my arms on
awak Ing; I drank and danced all n Ight w Ith Doubt,
and found her a v Irg In In the morn Ing.
[100]
--
The t Itle of th Is chapter Is drawn from paragraph 7.
We now, for the f Irst t Ime, attack the quest Ion of
--
fully stud Ied In th Is connect Ion. The att Itude recom-
mended Is scept Ic Ism, but a scept Ic Ism under control.
Doubt Inh Ib Its act Ion, as much as fa Ith b Inds It. All
the best Popes have been Athe Ists, but perhaps the
--
fore no opt Ion but to deny them pass Ionately, In order
to express h Is d Iscontent. Hence such absurd It Ies as
--
woman Is super Ior to man, and that all men are born
equal.
--
a th Ing Is true or not: he uses truth and falsehood In-
d Iscr Im Inately, to serve h Is ends. Slaves cons Ider h Im
Immoral, an preach aga Inst h Im In Hyde Park.
In paragraphs 7 and 8 we f Ind a most Important
statement, a pract Ical aspect of the fact that all truth
Is relat Ive, and In the last paragraph we see how
scept Ic Ism keeps the m Ind fresh, whereas fa Ith d Ies In
the very sleep that It Induces.
[101]
--
The cause of sorrow Is the des Ire of the One to the
Many, or of the Many to the One. Th Is also Is the
cause of joy.
But the des Ire of one to another Is all of sorrow; Its
b Irth Is hunger, and Its death sat Iety.
The des Ire of the moth for the star at least saves h Im
--
Hunger thou, O man, for the Inf In Ite: be Insat Iable
even for the f In Ite; thus at The End shalt thou
devour the f In Ite, and become the Inf In Ite.
Be thou more greedy that the shark, more full of
--
Do th Is by v Irtue of THAT In thyself before wh Ich
law and nature are but shadows.
--
The t Itle of th Is chapter Is best expla Ined by a refer-
ence to M Ist Inguette and Mayol.
It would be hard to dec Ide, and It Is fortunately un-
necessary even to d Iscuss, whether the d Ist Inct Ion of
the Ir art Is the cause, result, or concom Itant of the Ir
pr Ivate pecul Iar It Ies.
The fact rema Ins that In v Ice, as In everyth Ing else,
some th Ings sat Iate, others refresh. Any game In wh Ich
perfect Ion Is eas Ily atta Ined soon ceases to amuse,
although In the beg Inn Ing Its fasc Inat Ion Is so v Iolent.
W Itness the tremendous, but trans Itory, vogue of
p Ing-pong and d Iabolo. Those games In wh Ich per-
fect Ion Is Imposs Ible never cease to attract.
The lesson of the chapter Is thus always to r Ise
hungry from a meal, always to v Iolate on's own nature.
Keep on acqu Ir Ing a taste for what Is naturally
repugnant; th Is Is an unfa Il Ing source of pleasure, and
It has a real further advantage, In destroy Ing the
Sankharas, wh Ich, however "good" In themselves,
relat Ively to other Sankharas, are yet barr Iers upon the
--
those th Ings wh Ich bar It from the absolute.
[103]
--
sc Iousness. | Involuntary
Pranayama gets r Id of Phys Iology- | "Breaks"
--
Samadh I gets r Id of the Soul Impersonal.
Asana destroys the stat Ic body (Nama).
--
The last of these facts Is the one of wh Ich I am most
certa In.
--
The allus Ion In the t Itle Is not qu Ite clear, though It
may be connected w Ith the penult Imate paragraph.
--
The penult Imate paragraph Is Introduced by way of
repose. Cyn Ic Ism Is a great cure for over-study.
There Is a great deal of cyn Ic Ism In th Is book, In one
place and another. It should be regarded as Angostura
B Itters, to br Ighten the flavour of a d Iscourse wh Ich
were else too sweet. It prevents one from slopp Ing over
Into sent Imental Ity.
[105]
--
flower of v Irg In Ity Is esteemed by the pandar.
Neglect not the dawn-med Itat Ion!
--
Th Is chapter Is perfectly s Imple, and needs no
comment whatsoever.
--
But "mome" Is Par Is Ian slang for a young g Irl,
and "rathe" O.E. for early. "The rathe pr Imrose"-
--
Seven are the ve Ils of the danc Ing-g Irl In the harem
of IT.
Seven are the names, and seven are the lamps bes Ide
--
In Her w Ine-cup are seven streams of the blood of
the Seven Sp Ir Its of God.
--
Seven letters hath Her hol Iest name; and It Is
A B
--
B A (Drawn upon th Is page Is the
77 77 S Ig Il of BABALON.)
--
Th Is Is the Seal upon the R Ing that Is on the Fore-
f Inger of IT: and It Is the Seal upon the Tombs of
them whom She hath sla In.
Here Is W Isdom. Let H Im that hath Understand Ing
count the Number of Our Lady; for It Is the
Number of a Woman; and Her Number Is
An Hundred and F Ifty and S Ix.
--
49 Is the square of 7.
7 Is the pass Ive and fem In Ine number.
The chapter should be read In connect Ion w Ith Chapter 31
for IT now reappears.
The chapter head Ing, the Waratah, Is a voluptuous scarlet
flower, common In Austral Ia, and th Is connects the chapter
w Ith Chapters 28 and 29; but th Is Is only an allus Ion, for
the subject of the chapter Is OUR LADY BABALON,
who Is conce Ived as the fem In Ine counterpart of IT.
Th Is does not agree very well w Ith the common or orthodox
theogony of Chapter 11; but It Is to be expla Ined by the
d Ithyramb Ic nature of the chapter.
In paragraph 3 NO MAN Is of course NEMO, the
Master of the Temple, L Iber 418 w Ill expla In most of the
allus Ions In th Is chapter.
In paragraphs 5 and 6 the author frankly Ident If Ies h Im-
self w Ith the BEAST referred to In the book, and In the
Apocalypse, and In L IBER LEG IS. In paragraph 6 the
word "angel" may refer to h Is m Iss Ion, and the word
--
Snake=spermatozoon and Leo In the Zod Iac, wh Ich l Ike
Teth Itself has the snake-form. theta f Irst wr Itten {Sun} = L Ingam-
Yon I and Sol.)
--
to above. There Is only one symbol, but th Is symbol has
many names: of those names BABALON Is the hol Iest.
It Is the name referred to In L Iber Leg Is, 1, 22.
It w Ill be not Iced that the f Igure, or s Ig Il, of BABALON
Is a seal upon a r Ing, and th Is r Ing Is upon the foref Inger
of IT. Th Is Ident If Ies further the symbol w Ith Itself.
It w Ill be not Iced that th Is seal, except for the absence of
a border, Is the off Ic Ial seal of the A.'.A.'. Compare Chapter
3.
It Is also sa Id to be the seal upon the tombs of them that
she hath sla In, that Is, of the Masters of the Temple.
In connect Ion w Ith the number 49, see L Iber 418, the
22nd Aethyr, as well as the usual author It Ies.
--
In the forest God met the Stag-beetle. "Hold! Wor-
sh Ip me!" quoth God. "For I am All-Great, All-
Good, All W Ise....The stars are but sparks from
--
th Is do I bel Ieve, and that devoutly."
"Then why do you not worsh Ip Me?"
"Because I am real and your are only Imag Inary."
But the leaves of the forest rustled w Ith the laughter
--
The Stag-beetle must not be Ident If Ied w Ith the one
In Chapter 16. It Is a merely l Iterary touch.
the chapter Is a resolut Ion of the un Iverse Into
Tetragrammaton; God the macrocosm and the m Icro-
cosm beetle. Both Imag Ine themselves to ex Ist; both say
"you" and " I", and d Iscuss the Ir relat Ive real Ity.
--
no Ego, and speak only In the th Ird person, regard
these as Ignorant, on account of the Ir assumpt Ion of
Knowledge.
--
Doubt even If thou doubtest thyself.
Doubt all.
Doubt even If thou doubtest all.
It seems somet Imes as If beneath all consc Ious doubt
there lay some deepest certa Inty. O k Ill It! Slay the
snake!
--
D Ive deeper, ever deeper, Into the Abyss of M Ind,
unt Il thou unearth the fox THAT. On, hounds!
--
The number 51 means fa Ilure and pa In, and Its
subject Is appropr Iately doubt.
The t Itle of the chapter Is borrowed from the health-
g Iv Ing and fasc Inat Ing sport of fox-hunt Ing, wh Ich
Frater Perdurabo followed In h Is youth.
Th Is chapter should be read In connect Ion w Ith "The
Sold Ier and the Hunchback" of wh Ich It Is In some sort
an ep Itome.
Its mean Ing Is suff Ic Iently clear, but In paragraphs
6 and 7 It w Ill be not Iced that the Ident If Icat Ion of the
Sold Ier w Ith the Hunchback has reached such a p Itch
that the symbols are Interchanged, enthus Iasm be Ing
represented as the s Inuous snake, scept Ic Ism as the
Goat of the Sabbath. In other words, a state Is reached
In wh Ich destruct Ion Is as much joy as creat Ion.
(Compare Chapter 46.)
Beyond that Is a st Ill deeper state of m Ind, wh Ich Is
THAT.
--
Fourscore and eleven books wrote I; In each d Id I
expound THE GREAT WORK fully, from The
--
And I held my peace.
O generat Ion of goss Ipers! who shall del Iver you
from the Wrath that Is fallen upon you?
O Babblers, Prattlers, Talkers, Loquac Ious Ones,
Tatlers, Chewers of the Red Rag that Inflameth
Ap Is the Redeemer to fury, learn f Irst what Is
Work! and THE GREAT WORK Is not so far
beyond!
--
52 Is BN, the number of the Son, Os Ir Is-Ap Is, the
Redeemer, w Ith whom the Master (Fra. P.) Ident If Ies
h Imself. he perm Its h Imself for a moment the pleasure
--
gores It w Ith h Is horns.
The fourscore-and-eleven books do not, we th Ink,
--
but rather to the fact that 91 Is the number of Amen,
Imply Ing the completeness of h Is work.
In the last paragraph Is a paranomas Ia. "To chew
the red rag" Is a phrase for to talk a Imlessly and per-
s Istently, wh Ile It Is notor Ious that a red cloth w Ill exc Ite
the rage of a bull.
--
Then ne Ighed the horse In the paddock-and lo!
Its w Ings.
For whoso f Indeth the SPR ING beneath the earth
--
Th Is SPR ING Is threefold; of water, but also of steel,
and of the seasons.
Also th Is PADDOCK Is the Toad that hath the
jewel between h Is eyes-Aum Man I Padmen
--
A dowser Is one who pract Ises d Iv Inat Ion, usually w Ith
the object of f Ind Ing water or m Inerals, by means of the
--
The meadow represents the flower of l Ife; the orchard Its
fru It.
--
Itself. That Is to say, the secret spr Ing of l Ife Is found In the
place of l Ife, w Ith the result that the horse, who represents
--
In paragraph 6 we see th Is spr Ing Ident If Ied w Ith the
phallus, for It Is not only a source of water, but h Ighly
elast Ic, wh Ile the reference to the seasons alludes to the well-
--
" In the spr Ing a l Ivel Ier Ir Is changes on the burn Ished dove,
In the Spr Ing a young man's fancy l Ightly turns to thoughts
of love."
--
In paragraph 7 the place of l Ife, the un Iverse of an Imal
souls, Is Ident If Ied w Ith the toad, wh Ich
"Ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a prec Ious jewel In h Is head"
-Romeo and Jul Iet-
th Is jewel be Ing the d Iv Ine spark In man, and Indeed In all
that "l Ives and moves and has Its be Ing". Note th Is phrase,
wh Ich Is h Ighly s Ign If Icant; the word "l Ives" exclud Ing the
m Ineral k Ingdom, the word "moves" the vegetable k Ingdom,
and the phrase "has Its be Ing" the lower an Imals, Includ Ing
woman.
Th Is "toad" and "jewel" are further Ident If Ied w Ith the
Lotus and jewel of the well-known Buddh Ist phrase and
th Is seems to suggest that th Is "toad" Is the Yon I; the
suggest Ion Is further strengthened by the conclud Ing phrase
In brackets, "Keep us from ev Il", s Ince, although It Is the
place of l Ife, the means of grace, It may be ru Inous.
[117]
--
Th Is Is the Report of the Sojourners: THE WORD
was LOVE;(23) and Its number Is An Hundred and
Eleven.
Then sa Id each AMO;(24) for Its number Is An Hundred
and Eleven.
--
Is AN Hundred and Eleven.
Each called moreover on the Goddess N INA,(26) for
Her number Is An Hundred and Eleven.
Yet w Ith all th Is went The Work awry; for THE
WORD OF THE LAW IS {Theta-Eps Ilon-Lambda-Eta-Mu-Alpha}.
[118]
--
In a blue lodge of Freemasons.
The numbers In paragraphs 1 to 3 are s Ign If Icant;
each Master-Mason Is attended by 5 Fellow-Crafts,
and each Fellow-Craft by 3 Apprent Ices, as If the
Masters were s Itt Ing In pentagrams, and the Fellow-
Craftsmen In tr Iangles. Th Is may refer to the number of
manual s Igns In each of these degrees.
The moral of the chapter Is apparently that the
mother-letter {Aleph} Is an Inadequate solut Ion of the Great
Problem. {Aleph} Is Ident If Ied w Ith the Yon I, for all the
symbols connected w Ith It In th Is place are fem In Ine,
but {Aleph} Is also a number of Samadh I and myst Ic Ism, and
the doctr Ine Is therefore that Mag Ick, In that h Ighest
sense expla Ined In the Book of the Law, Is the truer
key.
--
(25) The trowel Is shaped l Ike a d Iamond or Yon I.
L=30, A=1, P=80=111
(26) N=50, I=10, N=50, A=1=111.
[119]
--
rags: --- nay! nay! my head was mashed Into
wood pulp, and thereon the Da Ily Newspaper was
--
Thus wrote I, s Ince my One Love was torn from me.
I cannot work: I cannot th Ink: I seek d Istract Ion
here: I seek d Istract Ion there: but th Is Is all my
truth, that I who love have lost; and how may I
rega In?
I must have money to get to Amer Ica.
O Mage! Sage! Gauge thy Wage, or In the Page of
Th Ine Age Is wr Itten Rage!
O my darl Ing! We should not have spent N Inety
Pounds In that Three Weeks In Par Is!...Slash the
Breaks on th Ine arm w Ith a pole-axe!
--
The number 55 refers to Malkuth, the r Ide; It
should then be read In connect Ion w Ith Chapters 28, 29,
49.
The "droop Ing sunflower" Is the heart, wh Ich needs
the d Iv Ine l Ight.
--
In paragraph 2, not only Is the D Iv Ine Un Ity destroyed
but Daath, Instead of be Ing the Ch Ild of Chokmah and
B Inah, becomes the Abyss, and the Ql Iphoth ar Ise.
The only sense wh Ich ab Ides Is that of loss, and the
crav Ing to retr Ieve It. In paragraph 3 It Is seen that th Is
Is Imposs Ible, ow Ing (paragraph 4) to h Is not hav Ing
made proper arrangements to recover the or Ig Inal
--
In paragraph 5 It Is shown that th Is Is because of
allow Ing enjoyment to cause forgetfulness of the really
Important th Ing. Those who allow themselves to wallow
In Samadh I are sorry for It afterwards.
The last paragraph Ind Icaed the precaut Ions to be
taken to avo Id th Is.
The number 90 Is the last paragraph Is not merely
fact, but symbol Ism; 90 be Ing the number of Tzadd I,
the Star, looked at In Its exoter Ic sense, as a naked
woman, play Ing by a stream, surrounded by b Irds and
butterfl Ies. The pole-axe Is recommended Instead of
the usual razor, as a more v Igorous weapon. One
cannot be too severe In check Ing any falter Ing In the
work, any d Igress Ion from the Path.
--
Is Is In Her M Ill Ions-of-Names, All-Mother,
Genetr Ix-Meretr Ix!
Yet hol Ier than all These to me Is LAYLAH, n Ight
and death; for Her do I blaspheme al Ike the f In Ite
and the The Inf In Ite.
So wrote not FRATER PERDURABO, but the
Imp Crowley In h Is Name.
For forgery let h Im suffer Penal Serv Itude for Seven
--
harlot whom he loveth not. For It Is LAYLAH that
he loveth...................................
And yet who knoweth wh Ich Is Crowley, and wh Ich Is
FRATER PERDURABO?
--
The number of the chapter refers to L Iber Leg Is I, 24,
for paragraph 1 refers to Nu It. The "tw Ins" In the
t Itle are those ment Ioned In paragraph 5.
555 Is HAD IT, HAD spelt In full. 156 Is
BABALON.
In paragraph 4 Is the g Ist of the chapter, Laylah
be Ing aga In Introduced, as In Chapters 28, 29, 49 and
55.
The exoter Ic blasphemy, It Is h Inted I the last
paragraph, may be an esoter Ic arcanum, for the Master
of the Temple Is Interested In Malkuth, as Malkuth Is
In B Inah; also "Malkuth Is In Kether, and Kether In
Malkuth"; and, to the Ips Iss Imus, d Issolut Ion In the
body of Nu It and a v Is It to a brothel may be Ident Ical.
[123]
--
D Irt Is matter In the wrong place.
Thought Is m Ind In the wrong place.
Matter Is m Ind; so thought Is d Irt.
Thus argued he, the W Ise One, not m Indful that all
place Is wrong.
For not unt Il the PLACE Is perfected by a T sa Ith
he PLACET.
The Rose uncruc If Ied droppeth Its petals; w Ithout
the Rose the Cross Is a dry st Ick.
Worsh Ip then the Rosy Cross, and the Mystery of
--
should not be One except In so far as It Is Two.
I am glad that LAYLAH Is afar; no doubt clouds
love.
--
The t Itle of the chapter suggest the two In one, s Ince
the orn Ithorhynchus Is both b Ird and beast; It Is also
an Austral Ian an Imal, l Ike Laylah herself, and was
--
Th Is chapter Is an apology for the un Iverse.
Paragraphs 1-3 repeat the fam Il Iar arguments
aga Inst reason In an ep Igrammat Ic form.
Paragraph 4 alludes to L Iber Leg Is I, 52; "place"
Impl Ies space; den Ies homogene Ity to space; but when
"place" Is perfected by "t"-as It were, Yon I by L Ingam
-we get the word "placet", mean Ing " It pleases".
Paragraphs 6 and 7 expla In th Is further; It Is
necessary to separate th Ings, In order that they m Ight
rejo Ice In un It Ing. See L Iber Leg Is I, 28-30, wh Ich Is
paraphrased In the penult Imate paragraph.
In the last paragraph th Is doctr Ine Is Interpreted
In common l Ife by a paraphrase of the fam Il Iar and
beaut Iful proverb, "Absence makes the heart grow
fonder". (PS. I seem to get a subtle after-taste of
b Itterness.)
( It Is to be observed that the ph Ilosopher hav Ing f Irst
comm Itted the syllog Ist Ic error quatern Is term Inorum,
In attempt Ing to reduce the terms to three, staggers Into
non d Istr Ibut Ia med I I. It Is poss Ible that cons Iderat Ions
w Ith S Ir Wm. Ham Ilton's qual If Icat Ion (or quant If Ica-
t Ion (?)) of the pred Icate may be taken as Interven Ing,
but to do so would render the humour of the chapter too
subtle for the average reader In Oshkosh for whom
th Is book Is ev Idently wr Itten.)
[125]
--
Haggard am I, an hyaena; I hunger and howl. Men
th Ink It laughter-ha! ha! ha!
There Is noth Ing movable or Immovable under the
f Irmament of heaven on wh Ich I may wr Ite the
symbols of the secret of my soul.
Yea, though I were lowered by ropes Into the
utmost Caverns and Vaults of Etern Ity, there Is
no word to express even the f Irst wh Isper of the
In It Iator In m Ine ear: yea, I abhor b Irth, ululat Ing
lamentat Ions of N Ight!
--
God! In what pr Ism may any man analyse my L Ight?
Immortal are the adepts; and ye hey d Ie-They
d Ie of SHAME unspeakable; They d Ie as the
--
PERDURABO, O Lamp In The Abyss? Thou hast
the Keystone of the Royal Arch; yet the
Apprent Ices, Instead of mak Ing br Icks, put the
straws In the Ir ha Ir, and th Ink they are Jesus
Chr Ist!
--
Hagga I, a notor Ious Hebrew prophet, Is a Second
Off Icer In a Chapter of the Royal Arch Masons.
In th Is chapter the author, In a sort of rag Ing
eloquence, bewa Ils h Is Impotence to express h Imself,
or to Induce others to follow Into the l Ight. In para-
graph 1 he expla Ins the sardon Ic laughter, for wh Ich he
Is justly celebrated, as be Ing In real Ity the express Ion of
th Is feel Ing.
Paragraph 2 Is a reference to the Obl Igat Ion of an
Entered Apprent Ice Mason.
--
In Royal Arch Masonry. The In It Iate w Ill be able to
d Iscover the most form Idable secret of that degree con-
cealed In the paragraph.
Paragraphs 4-6 express an angu Ish to wh Ich that of
--
In paragraph 7 the agony Is broken up by the
sardon Ic or cyn Ical laughter to wh Ich we have prev Iously
--
And the f Inal paragraph, In the words of the noblest
s Impl Ic Ity, pra Ises the Great Work; rejo Ices In Its
subl Im Ity, In the supreme Art, In the Intens Ity of the
pass Ion and ecstasy wh Ich It br Ings forth. (Note that
the words "pass Ion" and "ecstasy" may be taken as
--
There Is no help-but hotch pot!- In the sk Ies
When Astacus sees Crab and Lobster r Ise.
--
Lacks the Amoeba's Immortal Ity.
What protoplasm ga Ins In mob Ile m Irth
Is loss of the stab Il Ity of earth.
Matter and sense and m Ind have had the Ir day:
--
If, as I am not, I were free to choose,
How Buddhahood would battle w Ith The Booze!
My certa Inty that dest Iny Is "good"
Rests on Its p Ick Ing me for Buddhahood.
Were I a drunkard, I should th Ink I had
Good ev Idence that fate was "bloody bad".
--
The t Itle Is a euphem Ism for homo sap Iens.
The crab and the lobster are h Igher types of crustacae
--
The chapter Is a short essay In poet Ic form on
Determ In Ism. It hymns the great law of Equ Il Ibr Ium
and Compensat Ion, but cyn Ically cr It Ic Ises all ph Ilo-
--
does not agree w Ith Doctor Pangloss, that "all Is for
the best In the best of all poss Ible worlds". Nor does the
wealth Iest of our Dukes compla In to h Is cron Ies that
"T Imes Is cruel 'ard".
[129]
--
a caste, must be thrown off; death Is the penalty
of fa Ilure. As It Is wr Itten: In the hour of success
sacr If Ice that wh Ich Is dearest to thee unto the
Infernal Gods!
The Engl Ishman l Ives upon the excrement of h Is
--
All moral codes are worthless In themselves; yet In
every new code there Is hope. Prov Ided always that
the code Is not changed because It Is too hard, but
because If Is fulf Illed.
The dead dog floats w Ith the stream; In pur Itan
France the best women are harlots; In v Ic Ious
England the best women are v Irg Ins.
If only the Archb Ishop of Canterbury were to go
make In the streets and beg h Is bread!
The new Chr Ist, l Ike the old, It the fr Iend of publ Icans
and s Inners; because h Is nature Is ascet Ic.
O If everyman d Id No Matter What, prov Ided that It
Is the one th Ing that he w Ill not and cannot do!
[130]
--
The t Itle Is expla Ined In the note.
The number of the chapter may refer to the letter
Samech ({Samech}), Temperence, In the Tarot.
I paragraph 1 the real chast Ity of Perc Ivale or
Pars Ifal, a chast Ity wh Ich d Id not prevent h Is d Ipp Ing
the po Int of the sacred lance Into the Holy Gra Il, Is
d Ist Ingu Ished from Its m Is Interpretat Ion by modern
crapulence. The pr Iests of the gods were carefully
--
fatherhood; the shame of sex cons Ists In the usurpat Ion
of Its funct Ion by the unworthy. Sex Is a sacrament.
The word v Irtus means "the qual Ity of manhood".
Modern "v Irtue" Is the negat Ion of all such qual It Ies.
In paragraph 3, however, we see the penalty of
conservat Ism; ch Ildren must be weaned.
In the penult Imate paragraph the words "the new
Chr Ist" alluded to the author.
In the last paragraph we reach the subl Ime myst Ic
doctr Ine that whatever you have must be abandoned.
--
from the absolute Is part of the content of that con-
sc Iousness.
--
O Fool! begetter of both I and Naught, resolve th Is
Naught-y Knot!
O! Ay! th Is I and O- IO!- IAO! For I owe " I"
aye to N Ibbana's Oe.(28)
I Pay-Pe, the d Issolut Ion of the House of God-
for Pe comes after O-after Ay In that tr Iumphs
over Aleph In A In, that Is O.(29)
OP-us, the Work! the OP-en Ing of THE EYE!(30)
--
r Ight One In th Ine Upr Ightness rejo Iceth-Death
to all F Ishes!(32)
--
The "fool" Is the Fool of the Tarot, whose number Is 0, but refers the the le
tter
--
A fool's knot Is a k Ind of knot wh Ich, although It has the appearance of a kn
ot, Is
not really a knot, but pulls out Immed Iately.
The chapter cons Ists of a ser Ies of compl Icated puns on 1 and I, w Ith regard
to
the Ir shape, sound, and that of the f Igures wh Ich resemble them In shape.
Paragraph 1 calls upon the Fool of the Tarot, who Is to be referred to Ips Iss
Imus,
--
The word Naught-y suggests not only that the problem Is sexual, but does not
really
--
Paragraph 2 shows the L Ingam and Yon I as, In conjunct Ion, the foundat Ion of
ecstasy ( I)!), and of the complete symbol I A O.
The latter sentence of the paragraph un Ites the two mean Ings of g Iv Ing up the
--
Th Is Idea, " I must g Ive up", I owe, Is naturally completed by I pay, and the
sound of the word "pay" suggest the Hebrew letter Pe (see L Iber XV I), wh Ich
represents the f Inal d Issolut Ion In Sh Ivadarshana.
I Hebrew, the letter wh Ich follows O Is P; I therefore follows Ay In, the Dev I
of the Tarot.
AY IN Is spelt O I N, thus replac Ing the A In A I N by an O, the letter of the
Dev Il, or Pan, the phall Ic God.
--
complet Ion of the Yon I by the L Ingam, wh Ich Is followed by the complete d Issolu
t Ion
symbol Ised In the letter P.
These letters, O P, are then seen to be the root of opus, the Lat In word for
--
In th Is case, the Great Work. And they also beg In the word "open Ing". I h Indu
ph Ilosophy, It Is sa Id that Sh Iva, the Destroyer, Is asleep, and that when he o
pens
h Is eye the un Iverse Is destroyed-another synonym, therefore, for the accompl Is
h-
ment of the Great Work. But the "eye" of Sh Iva Is also h Is L Ingam. Sh Iva Is
h Imself the Mahal Ingam, wh Ich un Ites these symbol Isms. The open Ing of the eye,
--
The last paragraph Is even obscurer to those unfam Il Iar to the masterp Iece
referred to In the note; for the eye of Horus (see 777, Col.
XX I, l Ine 10, "the bl Ind
eye that weeps" Is a poet Ic Arab name for the l Ingam).
The doctr Ine Is that the Great Work should be accompl Ished w Ithout creat Ing n
ew
--
Horus does not; or, If It does so, breeds, accord Ing to Turk Ish trad It Ion, a Me
ss Iah.
Death Impl Ies resurrect Ion; the Illus Ion Is reborn, as the Scythe of Death In
the
Tarot has a crossp Iece. Th Is Is In connect Ion w Ith the H Indu doctr Ine, express
ed
In the Ir Injunct Ion, "Fry your seeds". Act so as to balance your past Karma,
and create no new, so that, as It were, the books are balanced. WH Ile you have
e Ither a cred It or a deb It, you are st Ill In account w Ith the un Iverse.
(N.B. Frater P. wrote th Is chapter-61-wh Ile d In Ing w Ith fr Iends, In about a
m Inute and a half. That Is how you must know the Qabalah.)
NOTE
(28) Oe = Island, a common symbol of N Ibbana.
(29) {Vau-Yod-Aleph} A In. {Vau-Yod-Ay In} Ay In.
--
also by Its shape the Female pr Inc Iple
[133]
--
He summons the Un Iverse, and crowns It w Ith
MAG ICK L Ight to replace the sun of natura l Ight.
--
The f Irst cake, burnt, Illustrates the prof It drawn
from the scheme of Incarnat Ion.
The second, m Ixt w Ith h Is l Ife's blood and eaten,
Illustrates the use of the lower l Ife to feed the
h Igher l Ife.
--
Burn Ing up I the Flame of h Is Prayer, and born
aga In-the Phoen Ix!
--
Th Is chapter Is Itself a comment on Chapter 44.
NOTE
--
takes tw Igs to k Indle the f Ire In wh Ich It burns Itself.
[135]
--
I love LAYLAH.
I lack LAYLAH.
"Where Is the Myst Ic Grace?" sayest thou?
Who told thee, man, that LAYLAH Is not Nu It, nd
I had It?
I destroyed all th Ings; they are reborn In other
shapes.
I gave up all for One; th Is One hath g Iven up Its
Un Ity for all?
I wrenched DOG backwards to f Ind GOD; now GOD
barks.
Th Ink me not fallen because I love LAYLAH, and
lack LAYLAH.
I am the Master of the Un Iverse; then g Ive me a
heap of straw In a hut, and LAYLAH naked!
Amen.
--
to the subject already d Iscussed In Chapters 3 and
others, part Icularly Chapter 56.
--
The word "see-saw" Is s Ign If Icant, almost a comment
upon th Is chapter. To the Master of the Temple
--
the many Is aga In transmuted to the one. Solve et
Coagula.
--
I was d Iscuss Ing oysters w Ith a crony:
GOD sent to me the angels D IN and DON I.
--
"No!" I repl Ied, "h would not do so, BUT
Th Ink of h Is woe If Laperouse were shut!
" I eat these oysters and I dr Ink th Is w Ine
Solely to drown th Is m Isery of m Ine.
--
Its p Innacle Is-not to be consoled!
"And though I sleep w Ith Janefore and Eleanor
"And Jul Ian only f Ixes In my m Ind
Even before feels better than beh Ind.
--
"Put me In LAYLAH'S arms aga In: the Accurst,
Leav Ing me that. elsehow may do h Is worst."
DON I and D IN, perce Iv Ing me Insp Ired,
Conce Ived the Ir task was f In Ished: they ret Ired.
I turned upon my fr Iend, and, break Ing bounds,
Borrowed a tr Ifle of two hundred pounds.
--
64 Is the number of Mercury, and of the Intell Igence
of that planet, D In and Don I.
Th moral of the chapter Is that one wants l Iberty,
although one may not w Ish to exerc Ise It: the author
would read Ily d Ie In defence of the r Ight of Engl Ishmen
to play football, or of h Is own r Ight not to play It.
(As a great poet has expressed It: "We don't want to
f Ight, but, by J Ingo, If we do-") Th Is Is h Is mean Ing
towards h Is att Itude to complete freedom of speech and
--
"At last I l Ifted up m Ine eyes, and beheld; and lo!
the flames of v Iolet were become as tendr Ils of
--
"And In the m Idst of the moon-pool of s Ilver was the
L Ily of wh Ite and gold. In th Is L Ily Is all honey,
In th Is L Ily that flowereth at the m Idn Ight. In
th Is L Ily Is all perfume; In th Is L Ily Is all mus Ic.
And It enfolded me."
Thus the d Isc Iples that watched found a dead body
--
65 Is the number of Adona I, the Holy Guard Ian
Angel; see L Iber 65, L Iber Konx Om Pax, and other
--
The "moon-pool of s Ilver" Is the Path of G Imel,
lead Ing from T Iphareth to Kether; the "flames of v Iolet"
are the Ajna-Chakkra; the l Ily Itself Is Kether, the
lotus of the Sahasrara. "L Ily" Is spelt w Ith a cap Ital to
connect w Ith Laylah.
--
"Say: God Is One." Th Is I obeyed: for a thousand
and one t Imes a n Ight for one thousand n Ights and
one d Id I aff Irm th Un Ity.
But "n Ight" only means LAYLAH(34); and Un Ity and
--
Al-lah Is only s Ixty-s Ix; but LAYLAH counteth
up to Seven and Seventy.(35)
--
66 Is the number of Allah; the pray Ing mant Is Is a
blasphemous grasshopper wh Ich car Icatures the p Ious.
--
the author exalts above God, In cont Inuat Ion of the
reason Ings g Iven In Chapter 56 and 63. She Is
Ident If Ied w Ith N.O.X. by the quotat Ion from L Iber 65.
NOTES
(34) Laylah Is the Arab Ic for n Ight.
(35) A L L H = 1 + 30 + 30 + 5 = 66. L + A + I
+ L + A + H = 77, wh Ich also g Ives MSL, the In-
fluence of the H Ighest, OZ, a goat, and so on.
--
I have bought pleasant tr Ifles, and thus soothed my
lack of LAYLAH.
L Ight Is my wallet, and my heart Is also l Ight; and
yet I know that the clouds w Ill gather closer for
the false clear Ing.
--
O ye who dwell In the Dark N Ight of the Soul, beware
most of all of every herald of the Dawn!
O ye who dwell In the C Ity of the Pyram Ids beneath
the N Ight of PAN, remember that ye shall see no
--
Th Is chapter means that It Is useless to try to abandon
the Great Work. You may occupy yourself for a t Ime
w Ith other th Ings, but you w Ill only Increase your
b Itterness, r Ivet the cha Ins st Ill on your feet.
Paragraph 4 Is a pract Ical counsel to myst Ics not
to break up the Ir dryness by relax Ing the Ir auster It Ies.
--
At four o'clock there Is hardly anybody In Rumpel-
mayer's.
I have my cho Ice of place and serv Ice; the babble of
the apes w Ill beg In soon enough.
--
Was not Mohammed forsaken In Mecca, and Jesus
In Gethsemane?
These prophets were sad at heart; but the chocolate
at Rumpelmayer's Is great, and the Mousse No Ix
Is l Ike Nepthys for perfect Ion.
Also there are l Ittle mer Ingues w Ith cream and
--
Sa Il I not toward LAYLAH w Ith In seven days?
Be not sad at heart, O prophet; the babble of the
--
Manna was a heavenly cake wh Ich, In the legend, fed
the Ch Ildren of Israel In the W Ilderness.
The author laments the fa Ilure of h Is m Iss Ion to
--
prophets encountered s Im Ilar d Iff Icult Ies In con-
v Inc Ing the Ir hearers. (3) The Ir food was not equal to
that obta Inable at Rumpelmayer's. (4) In a few days
I am go Ing to rejo In Laylah. (5) My m Iss Ion w Ill
succeed soon enough. (6) Death w Ill remove the
--
Th Is Is the Holy Hexagram.
Plunge from the he Ight, O God, and Interlock w Ith
Man!
Plunge from the he Ight, O Man, and Interlock w Ith
Beast!
The Red Tr Iangle Is the descend Ing tongue of grace;
the Blue Tr Iangle Is the ascend Ing tongue of
prayer
Th Is Interchange, the Double G Ift of Tongues, the
Word of Double Power-ABRAHADABRA!- Is
--
WORK Is accompl Ished In S Ilence. And behold Is
not that Word equal to Cheth, that Is Cancer.
whose S Ig Il Is {Cancer}?
Th Is Work also eats up Itself, accompl Ishes Its own
end, nour Ishes the worker, leaves no seed, Is per-
fect In Itself.
L Ittle ch Ildren, love one another!
--
The key to the understand Ing of th Is chapter Is g Iven
In the number and the t Itle, the former be Ing Intell Ig Ible
to all nat Ions who employ Arab Ic f Igures, the latter
only to experts In dec Ipher Ing Engl Ish puns.
The chapter alludes to Lev I's draw Ing of the Hexa-
gram, and Is a cr It Ic Ism of, or Improvement upon, It.
In the ord Inary Hexagram, the Hexagram of nature,
the red tr Iangle Is upwards, l Ike f Ire, and the blue
tr Iangle downwards, l Ike water. In the mag Ical hexa-
gram th Is Is revered; the descend Ing red tr Iangle Is
that of Horus, a s Ign spec Ially revealed by h Im per-
sonally, at the Equ Inox of the Gods. ( It Is the flame
desend Ing upon the altar, and l Ick Ing up the burnt
--
s Ince blue Is the colour of devot Ion, and the tr Iangle,
k Inet Ically cons Idered, Is the symbol of d Irected force.
In the f Irst three paragraphs th Is format Ion of the
hexagram Is expla Ined; It Is a symbol of the mutual
separat Ion of the Holy Guard Ian Angel and h Is cl Ient.
In the Interlock Ing Is Ind Icated the complet Ion of the
work.
Paragraph 4 expla Ins In sl Ightly d Ifferent language
what we have sa Id above, and the scr Iptural Image of
tongues Is Introduced.
In paragraph 5 the symbol Ism of tongues Is further
developed. Abrahadabra Is our pr Imal example of an
Interlocked word. We assume that the reader has
thoroughly stud Ied that word In L Iber D., etc. The
s Ig Il of Cancer l Inks up th Is symbol Ism w Ith the number
--
FRATER PERDURABO Is of the Sanhedr Im of the
Sabbath, say men; He Is the Old Goat h Imself,
say women.
--
us dance In the mad moonl Ight!
But FRATER PERDURABO Is noth Ing but AN
EYE; what eye none knoweth.
--
for the play of the Un Iverse Is the pleasure of
FRATER PERDURABO.
--
70 Is the number of the letter A In, the Dev Il In the
Tarot.
--
descr Ipt Ion of wh Ich In Payne Kn Ight should be
carefully read before study Ing th Is chapter. All the
--
Sanhedr Im, a body of 70 men. An Eye. Eye In
Hebrew Is O In, 70.
The "gnarled oak" and the "glac Ier torrent" refer
--
I paragraph 7 Is seen the mean Ing of the chapter;
the obscene and d Istorted character of much of the
un Iverse Is a wh Im of the Creator.
[151]
--
For m Ind and body al Ike there Is no purgat Ive l Ike
Pranayama, no purgat Ive l Ike Pranayama.
--
al Ike!-there Is, there Is, there Is no purgat Ive, no
purgat Ive l Ike Pranayama-Pranayama!-Prana-
yama! yea, for m Ind and body al Ike there Is no
purgat Ive, no purgat Ive, no purgat Ive (for m Ind
--
Th Is chapter Is a pla In statement of fact, put In
anthem form for emphas Is.
The t Itle Is due to the c Ircumstances of the early
p Iety of Frater Perdurabo, who was frequently
refreshed by hear Ing the anthems In th Is ch Ief of the
arch Itectural glor Ies of h Is Alma Mater.
--
Utter It once, O mortal over-rash!-
The Un Iverse were swallowed up In flame
-Shemhamphorash!
--
No! If creat Ion d Id possess an a Im
( It does not.) It were only to make hash
Of that most "h Igh" and that most holy game,
--
There are three consecut Ive verses In the Pentateuch,
each conta In Ing 72 letters. If these be wr Itten beneath
each other, the m Iddle verse br Ing reversed, I.e. as In
Engl Ish, and d Iv Is Ions are then made vert Ically, 72
tr I-lateral names are formed, the sum of wh Ich Is
Tetragrammaton; th Is Is the great and myster Ious
D Iv Ided Name; by add Ing the term Inat Ions Yod He,
--
un Iverse Is destroyed. Th Is statement means the same
as that of the H Indus, that the effect Ive utterance of
--
In Egypt Ian and Gnost Ic mag Ick we meet w Ith pylons
and Aeons, wh Ich only open on the utterance of the
--
In Mohammedan mag Ick we f Ind a s Im Ilar doctr Ine
and pract Ice; and the whole of Mantra-Yoga has been
--
Thoth, the god of Mag Ick, Is the Inventor of speech;
Chr Ist Is the Logos.
L Ines 1-4 are now clear.
In l Ines 507 we see the results of Sh Ivadarshana. Do
not Imag Ine that any s Ingle Ides, however h Igh, however
holy (or even however Ins Ign If Icant!!), can escape the
destruct Ion.
The log Ic Ian my say, "But wh Ite ex Ists, and If
wh Ite Is destroyed, It leaves black; yet black ex Ists. So
that In that case at least one known phenomenon of th Is
un Iverse Is Ident Ical w Ith one of that." Va In word!
The log Ic Ian and h Is log Ic are al Ike Involved In the
un Iversal ru In.
L Ines 8-11 Ind Icate that th Is fact Is the essent Ial one
about Sh Ivadarshana.
The t Itle Is expla Ined by the Intent Ionally blasphemous
puns and colloqu Ial Isms of l Ines 9 and 10.
--
Death r Ides the Camel of In It Iat Ion.(36)
Thou humped and st Iff-necked one that groanest In
Th Ine Asana, death w Ill rel Ieve thee!
--
thou go w Ith water In thy belly? Thou shalt go
twenty more w Ith a f Irebrand at thy rump!
Ay! all th Ine asp Irat Ion Is to death: death Is the
crown of all th Ine asp Irat Ion. Tr Iple Is the cord of
s Ilver moonl Ight; It shall hang thee, O Holy One,
O Hanged Man, O Camel-Term Inat Ion-of-the-
--
The Inf In Ite Snake Ananta that surroundeth the
Un Iverse Is but the Coff In-Worm!
[156]
--
The Hebrew letter G Imel adds up to 73; It means a camel.
The t Itle of the chapter Is borrowed from the well-known l Ines of Rudyard
K Ipl Ing:
"But the comm Issar Iat camel, when all Is sa Id and done,
'E's a dev Il and an awstr Idge and an orphan-ch Ild In one."
Paragraph 1 may Imply a dogma of death as the h Ighest form of In It Iat Ion.
In It Iat Ion Is not a s Imple phenomenon. Any g Iven In It Iat Ion must take place
on several planes, and Is not always conferred on all of these s Imultaneously.
Intellectual and moral percept Ion of truth often, one m Ight almost say usually,
--
In It Iat Ion unless It were complete on every plane.
Paragraph 2 w Ill eas Ily be understood by those who have pract Ised
Asana. there Is perhaps a sardon Ic reference to r Igor mort Is, and certa Inly
one conce Ives the half-humorous att Itude of the expert towards the beg Inner.
Paragraph 3 Is a comment In the same tone of rough good nature. The word
Zelator Is used because the Zelator of the A.'.A.'. has to pass an exam Inat Ion
In Asana before he becomes el Ig Ible for the grade of Pract Icus. The ten days
--
Paragraph 4 Ident If Ies the reward of In It Iat Ion w Ith death; It Is a cessat Ion
of all that we call l Ife, In a way In wh Ich what we call death Is not. 3, s Ilv
er,
--
s Ince g Imel Is the Path that leads from the M Icrocosm In t Iphareth to the
Macrocosm In Kether.
The ep Ithets are far too complex to expla In In deta Il, but Mem, the Hanged
man, has a close aff In Ity for G Imel, as w Ill be seen by a study of L Iber 418.
Unt Is not only the H Industan I for Camel, but the usual term Inat Ion of the
th Ird person plural of the present tense of Lat In words of the Th Ird and
--
The reason for thus addres Ing the reader Is that he has now transcended the
f Irst and second persons. Cf. L Iber LXV, Chapter I I I, vv. 21-24, and
F ItzGerald's Omar Khayyam:
--
to be a bundle of Impress Ions. For th Is Is the po Int on the Path of G Imel when
he Is actually cross Ing the Abyss; the student must consult the account of th Is
g Iven In "The Temple of Solomon the K Ing".
The Ego Is but "the ghost of a non-Ego", the Imag Inary focus at wh Ich the
non-Ego becomes sens Ible.
--
Paragraph 6 wh Ispers the ult Imate and dread secret of In It Iat Ion Into h Is
ear, Ident Ify Ing the vastness of the Most Holy w Ith the obscene worm that
gnaws the bowels of the damned.
--
(36) Death Is sa Id by the Arabs to r Ide a Camel. The Path of G Imel (wh Ich
means a Camel) leads from T Iphareth to Kether, and Its Tarot trump
Is the "H Igh Pr Iestess".
(37) UNT, H Industan I for Camel. I.e. Would that BABALON m Ight look
on thee w Ith favour. [157]
--
When NOTH ING became consc Ious, It made a bad
barga In.
Th Is consc Iousness acqu Ired Ind Iv Idual Ity: a worse
barga In.
--
"success" In "l Ife": blank loss.
Is there no end to th Is Immortal ache
That haunts me, haunts me sleep Ing or awake?
If I had Laylah, how could I forget
T Ime, Age, and Death? Insufferable fret!
Were I an herm It, how could I support
The pa In of consc Iousness, the curse of thought?
Even were I THAT, there st Ill were one sore
spot-
--
St Ill, the f Irst step Is not so far away:-
The Mauretan Ia sa Ils on Saturday!
--
Carey Street Is well known to prosperous Hebrews
and poor Engl Ishmen as the seat of the Bankruptcy
--
Paragraphs 1-4 are In prose, the downward course,
and the rest of the chapter In poetry, the upward.
The f Irst part shows the fall from Nought In four
steps; the second part, the return.
--
Ind Icated In var Ious chapters. It Is qu Ite convent Ional
myst Ic Ism.
Step 1, the Illum Inat Ion of A In as A In Soph Aour;
step 2, the concentrat Ion of A In Soph Aour In Kether;
step 3, dual Ity and the rest of It down to Malkuth;
step 4, the stoop Ing of Malkuth to the Ql Iphoth, and
--
Part 2 show the Imposs Ib Il Ity of stopp Ing on the
Path of Adeptsh Ip.
--
Is Intellectually aware of the sever Ity of the whole
course. You must g Ive up the world for love, the
mater Ial for the moral Idea, before that, In Its turn, Is
surrendered to the sp Ir Itual. And so on. Th Is Is a
Laylah-chapter, but In It Laylah f Igures as the mere
woman.
--
Spr Ing beans and strawberr Ies are In: goodbye to the
oyster!
If I really knew what I wanted, I could g Ive up
Laylah, or g Ive up everyth Ing for Laylah.
But "what I want" var Ies from hour to hour.
Th Is waver Ing Is the root of all comprom Ise, and so
of all good sense.
W Ith th Is g Ift a man can spend h Is seventy years In
peace.
Now Is th Is well or Ill?
Emphas Ise g Ift, then man, then spend, then seventy
years, and lastly peace, and change the Intonat Ions
--each t Ime reverse the mean Ing!
I would show you how; but-for the moment!
-- I prefer to th Ink of Laylah.
--
The t Itle Is expla Ined In the note, but also alludes to
paragraph 1, the plover's egg be Ing often contemporary
--
Paragraph 1 means that change of d Iet Is pleasant;
van Ity pleases the m Ind; the Idee f Ixe Is a s Ign of
Insan Ity. See paragraphs 4 and 5.
Paragraph 6 puts the quest Ion, "Then Is san Ity or
Insan Ity des Irable?" The oak Is weakened by the Ivy
wh Ich cl Ings around It, but perhaps the Ivy keeps It
from go Ing mad.
--
express Ing thought In wr It Ing; It seems, on the face of
It, absurd that the the text of th Is book, composed as It Is
of Engl Ish, s Imple, austere, and terse, should need a
commentary. But It does so, or my most g Ifted Chela
and myself would hardly have been at the pa Ins to
wr Ite one. It was In response to the Impass Ioned appeals
of many most worthy brethren that we have y Ielded up
--
Laylah Is aga In the mere woman.
NOTE
--
Ing m Ind referred to.
[161]
--
I.
H I!
--
Ye shall surpass the planets In the Ir courses.
How? Not by speed, nor strength, nor power to stay,
--
Phaeton was the char Ioteer of the Sun In Greek mythology.
At f Irst s Ight the prose of th Is chapter, though there Is only one d Issyllabl
e In
It, appears d Iff Icult; but th Is Is a glamour cast by Maya. It Is a compend Ium
of
--
Eye = Phall Ic Ism (cf. Chapters 61 and 70); I = F Ichtean Ism; H I! =
Transcendental Ism; Y? = Scept Ic Ism, and the method of sc Ience. No den Ies
--
But all th Is Is a glamour cast by Maya; the real mean Ing of the prose of th Is
chapter Is as follows:
No, some negat Ive concept Ion beyond the IT spoken of In Chapters 31, 49
and elsewhere.
Yes, IT.
Perhaps, the flux of these.
--
Eye, the phallus In Kether.
I, the Ego In Chokmah.
H I!, B Inah, the fem In Ine pr Inc Iple fert Il Ised. (He by Yod.)
--
But all th Is Is aga In only a glamour of Maya, as prev Iously observed In the
text (Chapter 31). All th Is Is true and false, and It Is true and false to say
that
It Is true and false.
The prose of th Is chapter comb Ines, and of course den Ies, all these mean Ings,
both s Ingly and In comb Inat Ion. It Is Intended to st Imulate thought to the
po Int where It explodes w Ith v Iolence and for ever.
A study of th Is chapter Is probably the best short cut to N Ibbana.
The thought of the Master In th Is chapter Is except Ionally lofty.
That th Is Is the true mean Ing, or rather use, of th Is chapter, Is ev Ident fro
the poetry.
The master salutes the prev Ious paragraphs as horses wh Ich, although In
themselves worthless an Imals (w Ithout the ep Ithets), carry the Char Ioteer In th
path of the Sun. The quest Ion, How? Not by the Ir own v Irtues, but by the
--
The word "ne Igh" Is a pun on "nay", wh Ich refers to the negat Ive concept Ion
already postulated as beyond IT. The suggest Ion Is, that there may be someth In
falsely descr Ibed as s Ilence, to represent absence-of-concept Ion beyond that
--
It would be poss Ible to Interpret th Is chapter In Its ent Irety as an adverse
cr It Ic Ism of metaphys Ics as such, and th Is Is doubtless one of Its many sub-
mean Ings.
--
IN ITS MATURE MAG ICAL MAN IFESTAT ION
THROUGH MATTER: AS IT IS WR ITTEN: AN
HE-GOAT ALSO
--
77 Is the number of Laylah (LA ILAH), to whom th Is
chapter Is wholly devoted.
The f Irst sect Ion of the t Itle Is an analys Is of 77 cons Idered
as a myst Ic number.
--
Through matter, because 77 Is wr Itten In Hebrew Ay In
Zay In (OZ), and He-Goat, the symbol of matter, Capr I-
cornus, the Dev Il of the Tarot; wh Ich Is the p Icture of the
Goat of the Sabbath upon an altar, worsh Ipped by two other
--
As w Ill be seen from the photogravure Inserted oppos Ite
th Is chapter, Laylah Is herself not devo Id of "Dev Il", but,
as she hab Itually remarks, on be Ing addressed In terms
Imply Ing th Is fact, " It's n Ice to be a dev Il when you're one
l Ike me."
The text need no comment, but It w Ill be not Iced that It Is
much shorter that the t Itle.
Now, the Dev Il of the Tarot Is the Phallus, the Redeemer,
and Laylah symbol Ises redempt Ion to Frater P. The
number 77, also, Interpreted as In the t Itle, Is the redeem Ing
force.
The rat Io of the length of t Itle and text Is the key to the
true mean Ing of the chapter, wh Ich Is, that Redempt Ion Is
really as s Imple as It appears complex, that the names (or
ve Ils) of truth are obscure and many, the Truth Itself pla In
and one; but that the latter must be reached through the
former. Th Is chapter Is therefore an apology, were one
needed, for the Book of L Ies Itself. In these few s Imple
words, It expla Ins the necess Ity of the book, and offers It-
humbly, yet w Ith conf Idence-as a means of redempt Ion to
--
analys Is of the name, wh Ich may be left to the Ingen Ium of
the advanced pract Icus (see photograph).
--
Wheel, revolv Ing It In thy m Ind
Be th Is thy task, to see how each card spr Ings
necessar Ily from each other card, even In due order
from The Fool unto The Ten of Co Ins.
--
moved It f Irst. [There Is no f Irst or last.}
And lo! thou art past through the Abyss.
--
The number of th Is chapter Is that of the cards of the
Tarot.
The t Itle of th Is chapter Is a pun of the phrase "weal
and woe". It means mot Ion and rest. The moral Is the
convent Ional myst Ic one; stop thought at Its source!
F Ive wheels are ment Ioned In th Is chapter; all but
the th Ird refer to the un Iverse as It Is; but the wheel of
the Tarot Is not only th Is, but represents equally the
Mag Ickal Path.
Th Is pract Ice Is therefore g Iven by Frater P. to
h Is pup Ils; to treat the sequence of the cards as cause
--
causes. Success In th Is pract Ice qual If Ies for the grade
of Master of the Temple.
In the penult Imate paragraph the bracketed passage
rem Inds the student that the un Iverse Is not to be
contemplated as a phenomenon In t Ime.
[167]
--
Some men look Into the Ir m Inds Into the Ir memor Ies,
and f Ind naught but pa In and shame.
--
These preach renunc Iat Ion, "v Irtue", coward Ice In
every form.
--
lated Buddha, come ye to me? I have a tr Ick to
make you s Ilent, O ye foamers-at-the mouth!
Nature Is wasteful; but how well She can afford It!
Nature Is false; but I'm a b It of a l Iar myself.
Nature Is useless; but then how beaut Iful she Is!
Nature Is cruel; but I too am a Sad Ist.
The game goes on; It y have been too rough for
Buddha, but It's ( If anyth Ing) too dull for me.
V Iens, beau negre! Donne-mo I tes levres encore!
--
the t Itle of th Is chapter Is a place frequented by
Frater P. unt Il It became respectable.
The chapter Is a rebuke to those who can see noth Ing
but sorrow and ev Il In the un Iverse.
The Buddh Ist analys Is may be true, but not for
men of courage. The plea that "love Is sorrow", because
Its ecstas Ies are only trans Itory, Is contempt Ible.
Paragraph 5. Coote Is a blackma Iler exposed by The
Equ Inox. The end of the paragraph refers to Catullus,
--
uncle Into Harpocrates. It Is a subtle way for Frater P.
to Ins Ist upon h Is v Ir Il Ity, s Ince otherw Ise he could not
employ the remedy.
The last paragraph Is a quotat Ion. In Par Is,
Negroes are much sought after by sport Ive lad Ies. Th Is
Is therefore presumably Intended to assert that even
women may enjoy l Ife somet Imes.
The word "Sad Ist" Is taken from the famous Marqu Is
de Sade, who gave supreme l Iterary form to the joys of
--
The pr Ice of ex Istence Is eternal warfare.(39)
Speak Ing as an Ir Ishman, I prefer to say: The pr Ice
of eternal warfare Is ex Istence.
And melancholy as ex Istence Is, the pr Ice Is well
worth pay Ing.
Is there Is a Government? then I'm ag In It! To Hell
w Ith the bloody Engl Ish!
--
rowdy Ir Ishman. he Is no th In-l Ipped prude, to seek
salvat Ion In unmanly self-abnegat Ion; no Creep Ing
Jesus, to sl Ink through ex Istence to the tune of the Dead
March In Saul; no Cremer Ian Callus to warehouse h Is
semen In h Is cerebellum.
"New Thought Ist" Is only Old Eunuch wr It small.
Paragraph 2 g Ives the very struggle for l Ife, wh Ich
--
(39) ISVD, the foundat Ion sc Il. of the un Iverse = 80
= P, the letter of Mars.
--
I am not an Anarch Ist In your sense of the word:
your bra In Is too dense for any known explos Ive
to affect It.
I am not an Anarch Ist In your sense of the word:
fancy a Pol Iceman let loose on Soc Iety!
--
any man w Ith Ideals less than Shelley's and self-
d Isc Ipl Ine less than Loyola's- In short, any man
--
The t Itle Is the name of one of the authors of the affa Ir
of the Haymarket, In Ch Icago. See Frank Harr Is,
"The Bomb".
--
In the employment of such feeble Implements as bombs.
Nor does he agree even w Ith the a Im of the Anarch Ists,
--
The last b Itter sentence Is terr Ibly true; the personal
l Iberty of the Russ Ian Is Immensely greater than that of
the Engl Ishman. The latest Rad Ical dev Ices for
--
men Into Slaves, obl Iged to report the Ir movements to
the government l Ike so many t Icket-of-leave men.
The only solut Ion of the Soc Ial Problem Is the
creat Ion of a class w Ith the true patr Iarchal feel Ing,
--
I take th Is hazel rod, and stand, and swear
An Oath-beneath th Is blasted Oak and bare
That rears Its agony above the flood
Whose swollen mask mutters an athe Ist's prayer.
--
"There Is no I, no joy, no permanence"?
W Itch-moon of blood, eternal ebb and flow
Of baffled b Irth, In death st Ill lurks a change;
And all the leopards In thy woods that range,
And all the vamp Ires In the Ir boughs that glow,
Brood Ing on blood-th Irst-these are not so strange
--
Even In the coff In of Its hopes, and spend
All the force won by Its old woe and stress
In now ann Ih Ilat Ing Noth Ingness.
Th Is chapter Is called Imper Ial Purple
and A Pun Ic War.
--
The t Itle of th Is chapter, and Its two sub-t Itles, w Ill
need no explanat Ion to readers of the class Ics.
Th Is poem, Insp Ired by Jane Cheron, Is as s Imple
as It Is elegant.
The poet asks, In verse 1, How can we baffle the
Three Character Ist Ics?
In verse 2, he shows that death Is Impotent aga Inst
l Ife.
In verse 3, he offers the solut Ion of the problem.
Th Is Is, to accept th Ings as they are, and to turn
your whole energ Ies to progress on the Path.
--
Ay! shall he not do so? he knows that the Many Is
Naught; and hav Ing Naught, enjoys that Naught
even In the enjoyment of the Many.
For when Naught becomes Absolute Naught, It
becomes aga In the Many.
Any th Is Many and th Is Naught are Ident Ical; they
are not correlat Ives or phases of some one deeper
--
The subject of the chapter Is consequently corollary
to Chapters 79 and 80, the eth Ics of Adept l Ife.
--
Is no longer afra Id of the Many.
Paragraph 4. See berash Ith.
--
Interpret Ing, ref In Ing away, analys Ing. Be s Imple and
luc Id and rad Iant as Frater P.
Paragraph 6. W Ith th Is commentary there Is no
further danger, and the warn Ing becomes superfluous.
--
(41) {P I-Ups Ilon} = PG = P Ig w Ithout an I = Bl Ind P Ig.
[177]
--
sun Is not for h Im, nor the flowers, nor the vo Ices
of the b Irds; for he Is past beyond all these. Yea,
ver Ily, oft-t Imes he Is weary; It Is well that the
we Ight of the Karma of the Inf In Ite Is w Ith h Im.
Therefore Is he glad Indeed; for he hath f In Ished THE
WORK; and the reward concerneth h Im no wh It.
--
the avalanche does not fall because It Is t Ired of stay Ing
on the mounta In, or In order to crush the Alps below It,
or because that It feels that It needs exerc Ise. Perfectly
unconsc Ious, perfectly Ind Ifferent, It obeys the laws of
Cohes Ion and of Grav Itat Ion.
It Is the sun and Its own we Ight that loosen It.
So, also, Is the act of the Adept. "Del Ivered from the
lust of result, he Is every way perfect."
Paragraphs 1 and 2. By "devot Ion to Frater Per-
durabo" Is not meant sycophancy, but Intell Igent
reference and Imag Inat Ive sympathy. Put your m Ind
In tune w Ith h Is; Ident Ify yourself w Ith h Im as he
seeks to Ident Ify h Imself w Ith the Intell Igence that
commun Icates to h Im the Holy Books.
--
I d Istrust any thoughts uttered by any man whose
health Is not robust.
All other thoughts are surely symptoms of d Isease.
--
sleep, and copulate In s Ilence.
What better proof of the fact that all thought Is
d Is-ease?
--
We l Ike It; th Is only proves that our tastes also are
depraved and debauched by our d Isease.
--
The chapter Is perfectly s Imple and needs no com-
ment.
--
Ex n Ih Ilo N. I. H. I. L. f It.
N. the F Ire that tw Isteth Itself and burneth l Ike a
scorp Ion.
I, the unsull Ied ever-flow Ing water.
H. the Interpenetrat Ing Sp Ir It, w Ithout and w Ith In.
Is not Its name ABRAHADABRA?
I. the unsull Ied ever-flow Ing a Ir.
L. the green fert Ile earth.
--
below f Ire-and In all-the fabr Ic of all be Ing
woven on Its Inv Is Ible des Ign, Is
{Alpha- Iota-Theta-Eta-Rho}.
--
The t Itle Is the Sanskr It for That, In Its sense of "The Ex Ist Ing".
Th Is chapter Is an attempt to replace Eloh Im by a more
sat Isfactory h Ieroglyph of the elements.
The best attr Ibut Ion of Eloh Im Is Aleph, A Ir; Lamed, Earth;
He, Sp Ir It; Yod, F Ire; Mem, Water. But the order Is not good;
Lamed Is not sat Isfactory for Earth, and Yod too sp Ir Itual Ised a
form of F Ire. (But see Book 4, part I I I.)
Paragraphs 1-6. Out of Noth Ing, Noth Ing Is made. The word
N Ih Il Is taken to aff Irm that the un Iverse Is Noth Ing, and that Is
now to be analysed. The order of the element Is that of Jeheshua.
The elements are taken rather as In Nature; N Is eas Ily F Ire,
s Ince Mars Is the ruler of Scorp Io: the v Irg In Ity of I su Its A Ir
and Water, elements wh Ich In Mag Ick are closely Interwoven:
H, the letter of of breath, Is su Itable for Sp Ir It; Abrahadabra Is
called the name of Sp Ir It, because It Is cheth: L Is Earth, green
and fert Ile, because Venus, the greenness, fert Il Ity, and earth Iness
of th Ings Is the Lady of L Ibra, Lamed.
In paragraph 7 we turn to the so-called Jetz Irat Ic attr Ibut Ion
of Pentagrammaton, that followed by Dr. Dee, and by the H Indus,
T Ibetans, Ch Inese and Japanese. F Ire Is the Foundat Ion, the
central core, of th Ings; above th Is forms a crust, tormented
--
Such Is the globe; but all th Is Is a mere stra In In the aethyr,
{Alpha- Iota-Theta-Eta-Rho}. Here Is a new Pentagrammaton, presumably su Itable
for another analys Is of the elements; but after a d Ifferent manner.
Alpha ({Alpha}) Is A Ir; Rho ({Rho}) the Sun; these are the Sp Ir It and the
Son of Chr Ist Ian theology. In the m Idst Is the Father, expressed
as Father-and-Mother. I-H (Yod and He), Eta ({Eta}) be Ing used
to express "the Mother" Instead of Eps Ilon ({Eps Ilon}), to show that She
has been Impregnated by the Sp Ir It; It Is the rough breath Ing and
not the soft. The centre of all Is Theta ({Theta}), wh Ich was or Ig Inally
wr Itten as a po Int In a c Ircle ({Sun}), the subl Ime h Ieroglyph of the
Sun In the Macrocosm, and In the M Icrocosm of the L Ingam
In conjunct Ion w Ith the Yon I.
Th Is word {Alpha- Iota-Theta-Eta-Rho} (Aethyr) Is therefore a perfect h Ierogly
ph
of the Cosmos In terms of Gnost Ic Theology.
The reader should consult La Messe et ses Mysteres, par Jean
--
demonstrat Ion of the Incorporat Ion of the Solar and Phall Ic
Myster Ies In Chr Ist Ian Ity.
[183]
--
There Is a d Ish of sharks' f Ins and of sea-slug, well set
In b Irds' nests...oh!
Also there Is a souffle most exqu Is Ite of Chow-Chow.
These d Id I dev Ise.
But I have never tasted anyth Ing to match the
(?)
--
Th Is chapter Is techn Ically one of the Laylah chapters.
It means that, however great may be one's own
ach Ievements the g Ifts from on h Igh are st Ill better.
The S Ig Il Is taken from a Gnost Ic tal Isman, and
refers to the Sacrament.
--
softness of the Ir heads, I taught them Mag Ick.
But...alas!
--
Inv Is Ible, how to acqu Ire love, and oh! beyond all,
how to make gold.
--
of Inf In Ite R Iches?
Then sa Id the foremost and most fool Ish; Master, It
Is noth Ing; but here Is an hundred thousand
pounds.
Th Is d Id I de Ign to accept, and wh Ispered In h Is ear
th Is secret:
A SUCKER IS BORN EVERY M INUTE.
[186]
--
The term "gold br Icks" Is borrowed from Amer Ican
f Inance.
The chapter Is a sett Ing of an old story.
A man advert Ises that he could tell anyone how to
--
a post-card w Ith these words: "Do as I do."
The word "sucker" Is borrowed from Amer Ican
f Inance.
The moral of the chapter Is, that It Is no good try Ing
to teach people who need to be taught.
--
I am annoyed about the number 89.
I shall avenge myself by wr It Ing noth Ing In th Is
chapter.
That, too, Is w Ise; for s Ince I am annoyed, I could
not wr Ite even a reasonably decent l Ie.
--
He shows that h Is m Ind was completely po Isoned In
respect of that number by h Is allow Ing h Imself to be
--
all Is r Ight." 89 Is Body-that wh Ich annoys-and
the Angel of the Lord of Despa Ir and Cruelty.
--
Behold! I have l Ived many years, and I have travelled
In every land that Is under the dom In Ion of the
Sun, and I have sa Iled the seas from pole to pole.
Now do I l Ift up my vo Ice and test Ify that all Is
van Ity on earth, except the love of a good woman,
and that good woman LAYLAH. And I test Ify
that In heaven all Is van Ity (for I have journeyed
oft, and sojourned oft, In every heaven), except the
love of OUR LADY BABALON. And I test Ify
that beyond heaven and earth Is the love of OUR
LADY NU IT.
And see Ing that I am old and well str Icken In years,
and that my natural forces fa Il, therefore do I r Ise
up I my throne and call upon THE END.
For I am youth eternal and force Inf In Ite.
ANd at THE END Is SHE that was LAYLAH, and
BABALON, and NU IT, be Ing...
--
Th Is chapter Is a sort of f Inal Confess Ion of Fa Ith.
It Is the un If Icat Ion of all symbols and all planes.
The End Is express Ible.
[191]
--
The "He Ikle" Is to be d Ist Ingu Ished from the
"Huckle", wh Ich latter Is def Ined In the late S Ir W.S.
G Ilbert's "Pr Ince Cherry-Top".
--
But Its general nature Is that of a certa In m Inute
wh Iteness, appear Ing at the extreme end of great
--
It Is a good t Itle for the last chapter of th Is book, and
It also symbol Ises the eventual com Ing out Into the l Ight
of h Is that has wandered long In the darkness.
91 Is the numberat Ion of Amen.
The chapter cons Ists of an analys Is of th Is word, but
g Ives no Ind Icat Ion as to the result of th Is analys Is, as
If to Imply th Is: The f Inal Mystery Is always Insoluble.
F IN IS.
--
ment Ioned In the Commentary
The Sold Ier and the Hunchback ! and ? The Eqx.
I, I.
Berash Ith. Coll. Works, I I, 233.
The V Is Ion and The Vo Ice (L Iber 418). The Eqx.,
I, v. Repr Int, Barstow, Cal., 1952, w Ith Com-
mentary.
--
L Iber Leg Is. The Eqx., I, v I I.
The Book of Thoth (The Tarot). London, 1944.
AHA! The Eqx., I, I I I.
The Temple of Solomon the K Ing. The Eqx.
--
L Iber LX I vel Causae. The Eqx., I I I, I.
L Iber 500. Unpubl Ished.
--
The Scorp Ion. The Eqx., I, v I.
The God-Eater. London, 1903.
L Iber XV I. The Eqx., I, v I.
777, London 1909. Repr Int w Ith Commentary,
--
L Iber LXV. The Eqx., I I I, I.
L Iber O (L Iber V I). The Eqx., I, I I.
Konx Om Pax. London, 1907.
Book 4, part I I I, same as Mag Ick In Theory and
Pract Ice. Par Is, 1929.
--
ARY IN ITS MATURE MAG ICAL MAN I-
FESTAT ION THROUGH MATTER: AS IT
IS WR ITTEN: AN HE-GOAT ALSO.
78. Wheel and-Woa!
--
82. Bortsch: also Imper Ial Purple (and A PUN IC WAR).
83. The Bl Ind P Ig.
0.00 - THE GOSPEL PREFACE, #The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, #Sri Ramakrishna, #Hinduism
IN THE H ISTORY of the arts, gen Ius Is a th Ing of very rare occurrence. Rarer st Ill, however, are the competent reporters and recorders of that gen Ius. The world has had many hundreds of adm Irable poets and ph Ilosophers; but of these hundreds only a very few have had the fortune to attract a Boswell or an Eckermann.
When we leave the f Ield of art for that of sp Ir Itual rel Ig Ion, the scarc Ity of competent reporters becomes even more strongly marked. Of the day-to-day l Ife of the great theocentr Ic sa Ints and contemplat Ives we know, In the great major Ity of cases, noth Ing whatever. Many, It Is true, have recorded the Ir doctr Ines In wr It Ing, and a few, such as St. August Ine, Suso and St. Teresa, have left us autob Iograph Ies of the greatest value.
But, all doctr Inal wr It Ing Is In some measure formal and Impersonal, wh Ile the autob Iographer tends to om It what he regards as tr Ifl Ing matters and suffers from the further d Isadvantage of be Ing unable to say how he str Ikes other people and In what way he affects the Ir l Ives. Moreover, most sa Ints have left ne Ither wr It Ings nor self-portra Its, and for knowledge of the Ir l Ives, the Ir characters and the Ir teach Ings, we are forced to rely upon the records made by the Ir d Isc Iples who, In most cases, have proved themselves s Ingularly Incompetent as reporters and b Iographers. Hence the spec Ial Interest attach Ing to th Is enormously deta Iled account of the da Ily l Ife and conversat Ions of Sr I Ramakr Ishna.
"M", as the author modestly styles h Imself, was pecul Iarly qual If Ied for h Is task. To a reverent love for h Is master, to a deep and exper Ient Ial knowledge of that master's teach Ing, he added a prod Ig Ious memory for the small happen Ings of each day and a happy g Ift for record Ing them In an Interest Ing and real Ist Ic way. Mak Ing good use of h Is natural g Ifts and of the c Ircumstances In wh Ich he found h Imself, "M" produced a book un Ique, so far as my knowledge goes, In the l Iterature of hag Iography. No other sa Int has had so able and Indefat Igable a Boswell. Never have the small events of a contemplat Ive's da Ily l Ife been descr Ibed w Ith such a wealth of Int Imate deta Il. Never have the casual and unstud Ied utterances of a great rel Ig Ious teacher been set down w Ith so m Inute a f Idel Ity. To Western readers, It Is true, th Is f Idel Ity and th Is wealth of deta Il are somet Imes a tr Ifle d Isconcert Ing; for the soc Ial, rel Ig Ious and Intellectual frames of reference w Ith In wh Ich Sr I Ramakr Ishna d Id h Is th Ink Ing and expressed h Is feel Ings were ent Irely Ind Ian. But after the f Irst few surpr Ises and bew Ilderments, we beg In to f Ind someth Ing pecul Iarly st Imulat Ing and Instruct Ive about the very strangeness and, to our eyes, the eccentr Ic Ity of the man revealed to us In "M's" narrat Ive. What a scholast Ic ph Ilosopher would call the "acc Idents" of Ramakr Ishna's l Ife were Intensely H Indu and therefore, so far as we In the West are concerned, unfam Il Iar and hard to understand; Its "essence", however, was Intensely myst Ical and therefore un Iversal. To read through these conversat Ions In wh Ich myst Ical doctr Ine alternates w Ith an unfam Il Iar k Ind of humour, and where d Iscuss Ions of the oddest aspects of H Indu mythology g Ive place to the most profound and subtle utterances about the nature of Ult Imate Real Ity, Is In Itself a l Iberal, educat Ion In hum Il Ity, tolerance and suspense of judgment. We must be grateful to the translator for h Is excellent vers Ion of a book so cur Ious and del Ightful as a b Iograph Ical document, so prec Ious, at the same t Ime, for what It teaches us of the l Ife of the sp Ir It.
--------------------
--
The Gospel of Sr I Ramakr Ishna Is the Engl Ish translat Ion of the Sr I Sr I Rmakr Ishna Kathmr Ita, the conversat Ions of Sr I Ramakr Ishna w Ith h Is d Isc Iples, devotees, and v Is Itors, recorded by Mahendranth Gupta, who wrote the book under the pseudonym of "M." The conversat Ions In Bengal I f Ill f Ive volumes, the f Irst of wh Ich was publ Ished In 1897 and the last shortly after M.'s death In 1932. Sr I Ramakr Ishna Math, Madras, has publ Ished In two volumes an Engl Ish translat Ion of selected chapters from the monumental Bengal I work. I have consulted these wh Ile prepar Ing my translat Ion.
M., one of the Int Imate d Isc Iples of Sr I Ramakr Ishna, was present dur Ing all the conversat Ions recorded In the ma In body of the book and noted them down In h Is d Iary.
They therefore have the value of almost stenograph Ic records. In Append Ix A are g Iven several conversat Ions wh Ich took place In the absence of M., but of wh Ich he rece Ived a f Irst-hand record from persons concerned. The conversat Ions w Ill br Ing before the reader's m Ind an Int Imate p Icture of the Master's eventful l Ife from March 1882 to Apr Il 24, 1886, only a few months before h Is pass Ing away. Dur Ing th Is per Iod he came In contact ch Iefly w Ith Engl Ish-educated Bengl Is; from among them he selected h Is d Isc Iples and the bearers of h Is message, and w Ith them he shared h Is r Ich sp Ir Itual exper Iences.
I have made a l Iteral translat Ion, om Itt Ing only a few pages of no part Icular Interest to Engl Ish-speak Ing readers. Often l Iterary grace has been sacr If Iced for the sake of l Iteral translat Ion. No translat Ion can do full just Ice to the or Ig Inal. Th Is d Iff Iculty Is all the more felt In the present work, whose contents are of a deep myst Ical nature and descr Ibe the Inner exper Iences of a great seer. Human language Is an altogether Inadequate veh Icle to express supersensuous percept Ion. Sr I Ramakr Ishna was almost Ill Iterate. He never clothed h Is thoughts In formal language. H Is words sought to convey h Is d Irect real Izat Ion of Truth. H Is conversat Ion was In a v Illage pato Is. There In l Ies Its charm. In order to expla In to h Is l Isteners an abstruse ph Ilosophy, he, l Ike Chr Ist before h Im, used w Ith tell Ing effect homely parables and Illustrat Ions, culled from h Is observat Ion of the da Ily l Ife around h Im.
The reader w Ill f Ind ment Ioned In th Is work many v Is Ions and exper Iences that fall outs Ide the ken of phys Ical sc Ience and even psychology. W Ith the development of modern knowledge the border l Ine between the natural and the supernatural Is ever sh Ift Ing Its pos It Ion. Genu Ine myst Ical exper Iences are not as suspect now as they were half a century ago. The words of Sr I Ramakr Ishna have already exerted a tremendous Influence In the land of h Is b Irth. Savants of Europe have found In h Is words the r Ing of un Iversal truth.
But these words were not the product of Intellectual cog Itat Ion; they were rooted In d Irect exper Ience. Hence, to students of rel Ig Ion, psychology, and phys Ical sc Ience, these exper Iences of the Master are of Immense value for the understand Ing of rel Ig Ious phenomena In general. No doubt Sr I Ramakr Ishna was a H Indu of the H Indus; yet h Is exper Iences transcended the l Im Its of the dogmas and creeds of H Indu Ism. Myst Ics of rel Ig Ions other than H Indu Ism w Ill f Ind In Sr I Ramakr Ishna's exper Iences a corroborat Ion of the exper Iences of the Ir own prophets and seers. And th Is Is very Important today for the resusc Itat Ion of rel Ig Ious values. The scept Ical reader may pass by the supernatural exper Iences; he w Ill yet f Ind In the book enough mater Ial to provoke h Is ser Ious thought and solve many of h Is sp Ir Itual problems.
There are repet It Ions of teach Ings and parables In the book. I have kept them purposely. They have the Ir charm and usefulness, repeated as they were In d Ifferent sett Ings. Repet It Ion Is unavo Idable In a work of th Is k Ind. In the f Irst place, d Ifferent seekers come to a rel Ig Ious teacher w Ith quest Ions of more or less Ident Ical nature; hence the answers w Ill be of more or less Ident Ical pattern. Bes Ides, rel Ig Ious teachers of all t Imes and cl Imes have tr Ied, by means of repet It Ion, to hammer truths Into the stony so Il of the recalc Itrant human m Ind. F Inally, repet It Ion does not seem ted Ious If the Ideas repeated are dear to a man's heart.
I have thought It necessary to wr Ite a rather lengthy Introduct Ion to the book. In It I have g Iven the b Iography of the Master, descr Ipt Ions of people who came In contact w Ith h Im, short explanat Ions of several systems of Ind Ian rel Ig Ious thought Int Imately connected w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna's l Ife, and other relevant matters wh Ich, I hope, w Ill enable the reader better to understand and apprec Iate the unusual contents of th Is book. It Is part Icularly Important that the Western reader, unacqua Inted w Ith H Indu rel Ig Ious thought, should f Irst read carefully the Introductory chapter, In order that he may fully enjoy these conversat Ions. Many Ind Ian terms and names have been reta Ined In the book for want of su Itable Engl Ish equ Ivalents. The Ir mean Ing Is g Iven e Ither In the Glossary or In the foot-notes. The Glossary also g Ives explanat Ions of a number of express Ions unfam Il Iar to Western readers. The d Iacr It Ical marks are expla Ined under Notes on Pronunc Iat Ion.
In the Introduct Ion I have drawn much mater Ial from the L Ife of Sr I Ramakr Ishna, publ Ished by the Adva Ita Ashrama, Myvat I, Ind Ia. I have also consulted the excellent art Icle on Sr I Ramakr Ishna by Swam I N Irvednanda, In the second volume of the Cultural Her Itage of Ind Ia.
The book conta Ins many songs sung e Ither by the Master or by the devotees. These form an Important feature of the sp Ir Itual trad It Ion of Bengal and were for the most part wr Itten by men of myst Ical exper Ience. For g Iv Ing the songs the Ir present form I am grateful to Mr. John Moff Itt, Jr.
In the preparat Ion of th Is manuscr Ipt I have rece Ived ungrudg Ing help from several fr Iends. M Iss Margaret Woodrow W Ilson and Mr.Joseph Campbell have worked hard In ed It Ing my translat Ion. Mrs.El Izabeth Dav Idson has typed, more than once, the ent Ire manuscr Ipt and rendered other valuable help. Mr.Aldous Huxley has la Id me under a debt of grat Itude by wr It Ing the Foreword. I s Incerely thank them all.
In the sp Ir Itual f Irmament Sr I Ramakr Ishna Is a wax Ing crescent. W Ith In one hundred years of h Is b Irth and f Ifty years of h Is death h Is message has spread across land and sea. Roma In Rolland has descr Ibed h Im as the fulf Ilment of the sp Ir Itual asp Irat Ions of the three hundred m Ill Ions of H Indus for the last two thousand years. Mahatma Gandh I has wr Itten: "H Is l Ife enables us to see God face to face. . . . Ramakr Ishna was a l Iv Ing embod Iment of godl Iness." He Is be Ing recogn Ized as a compeer of Kr Ishna, Buddha, and Chr Ist.
The l Ife and teach Ings of Sr I Ramakr Ishna have red Irected the thoughts of the denat Ional Ized H Indus to the sp Ir Itual Ideals of the Ir forefa thers. Dur Ing the latter part of the n Ineteenth century h Is was the t Ime-honoured role of the Sav Iour of the Eternal Rel Ig Ion of the H Indus. H Is teach Ings played an Important part In l Iberal Iz Ing the m Inds of orthodox pund Its and herm Its. Even now he Is the s Ilent force that Is mould Ing the sp Ir Itual dest Iny of Ind Ia. H Is great d Isc Iple, Swam I V Ivekananda, was the f Irst H Indu m Iss Ionary to preach the message of Ind Ian culture to the enl Ightened m Inds of Europe and Amer Ica. The full consequence of Swam I V Ivekn and work Is st Ill In the womb of the future.
May th Is translat Ion of the f Irst book of Its k Ind In the rel Ig Ious h Istory of the world, be Ing the record of the d Irect words of a prophet, help str Icken human Ity to come nearer to the Eternal Ver Ity of l Ife and remove d Issens Ion and quarrel from among the d Ifferent fa Iths!
May It enable seekers of Truth to grasp the subtle laws of the supersensuous realm, and unfold before man's restr Icted v Is Ion the sp Ir Itual foundat Ion of the un Iverse, the un Ity of ex Istence, and the d Iv In Ity of the soul!
- Sw m I N Ikh Ilnanda
--
In the l Ife of the great Sav Iours and Prophets of the world It Is often found that they are accompan Ied by souls of h Igh sp Ir Itual potency who play a consp Icuous part In the furtherance of the Ir Master's m Iss Ion. They become so Integral a part of the l Ife and work of these great ones that poster Ity can th Ink of them only In mutual assoc Iat Ion. Such Is the case w Ith Sr I Ramakr Ishna and M., whose d Iary has come to be known to the world as the Gospel of Sr I Ramakr Ishna In Engl Ish and as Sr I Rmakr Ishna Kathmr Ita In the or Ig Inal Bengal I vers Ion.
Sr I Mahendra Nath Gupta, fam Il Iary known to the readers of the Gospel by h Is pen name M., and to the devotees as Master Mahashay, was born on the 14th of July, 1854 as the son of Madhusudan Gupta, an off Icer of the Calcutta H Igh Court, and h Is w Ife, Swarnamay I Dev I. He had a br Ill Iant scholast Ic career at Hare School and the Pres Idency College at Calcutta. The range of h Is stud Ies Included the best that both occ Idental and or Iental learn Ing had to offer. Engl Ish l Iterature, h Istory, econom Ics, western ph Ilosophy and law on the one hand, and Sanskr It l Iterature and grammar, Darsanas, Puranas, Smr It Is, Ja In Ism, Buddh Ism, astrology and Ayurveda on the other were the subjects In wh Ich he atta Ined cons Iderable prof Ic Iency.
He was an educat Ion Ist all h Is l Ife both In a sp Ir Itual and In a secular sense. After he passed out of College, he took up work as headmaster In a number of schools In success Ion Nara Il H Igh School, C Ity School, R Ipon College School, Metropol Itan School, Aryan School, Or Iental School, Or Iental Sem Inary and Model School. The causes of h Is m Igrat Ion from school to school were that he could not get on w Ith some of the managements on grounds of pr Inc Iples and that often h Is sp Ir Itual mood drew h Im away to places of p Ilgr Image for long per Iods. He worked w Ith some of the most noted publ Ic men of the t Ime l Ike Iswar Chandra V Idysgar and Surendranath Banerjee. The latter appo Inted h Im as a professor In the C Ity and R Ipon Colleges where he taught subjects l Ike Engl Ish, ph Ilosophy, h Istory and econom Ics. In h Is later days he took over the Morton School, and he spent h Is t Ime In the sta Ircase room of the th Ird floor of It, adm In Ister Ing the school and preach Ing the message of the Master. He was much respected In educat Ional c Ircles where he was usually referred to as Rector Mahashay. A teacher who had worked under h Im wr Ites thus In warm apprec Iat Ion of h Is teach Ing methods: "Only when I worked w Ith h Im In school could I apprec Iate what a great educat Ion Ist he was. He would come down to the level of h Is students when teach Ing, though he h Imself was so learned, so talented. Ord Inar Ily teachers conf Ine the Ir Instruct Ion to what Is g Iven In books w Ithout much thought as to whether the student can accept It or not. But M., would f Irst of all gauge how much the student could take In and by what means. He would employ a Ids to teach Ing l Ike maps, p Ictures and d Iagrams, so that h Is students could learn by see Ing. Th Irty years ago (from 1953) when the quest Ion of Impart Ing educat Ion through the med Ium of the mother tongue was be Ing d Iscussed, M. had already employed Bengal I as the med Ium of Instruct Ion In the Morton School." (M The Apostle and the Evangel Ist by Swam I N Ityatmananda Part I. P. 15.)
Impart Ing secular educat Ion was, however, only h Is profess Ion ; h Is ma In concern was w Ith the sp Ir Itual regenerat Ion of man a call Ing for wh Ich Dest Iny seems to have chosen h Im. From h Is ch Ildhood he was deeply p Ious, and he used to be moved very much by Sdhus, temples and Durga Puja celebrat Ions. The p Iety and eloquence of the great Brahmo leader of the t Imes, Keshab Chander Sen, el Ic Ited a powerful response from the Impress Ionable m Ind of Mahendra Nath, as It d Id In the case of many an Ideal Ist Ic young man of Calcutta, and prepared h Im to rece Ive the great L Ight that was to dawn on h Im w Ith the com Ing of Sr I Ramakr Ishna Into h Is l Ife.
Th Is epoch-mak Ing event of h Is l Ife came about In a very strange way. M. belonged to a jo Int fam Ily w Ith several collateral members. Some ten years after he began h Is career as an educat Ion Ist, b Itter quarrels broke out among the members of the fam Ily, dr Iv Ing the sens It Ive M. to despa Ir and utter despondency. He lost all Interest In l Ife and left home one n Ight to go Into the w Ide world w Ith the Idea of end Ing h Is l Ife. At dead of n Ight he took rest In h Is s Ister's house at Baranagar, and In the morn Ing, accompan Ied by a nephew S Iddheswar, he wandered from one garden to another In Calcutta unt Il S Iddheswar brought h Im to the Temple Garden of Daksh Ineswar where Sr I Ramakr Ishna was then l Iv Ing. After spend Ing some t Ime In the beaut Iful rose gardens there, he was d Irected to the room of the Paramahamsa, where the eventful meet Ing of the Master and the d Isc Iple took place on a blessed even Ing (the exact date Is not on record) on a Sunday In March 1882. As regards what took place on the occas Ion, the reader Is referred to the open Ing sect Ion of the f Irst chapter of the Gospel.
The Master, who d Iv Ined the mood of desperat Ion In M, h Is resolve to take leave of th Is 'play-f Ield of decept Ion', put new fa Ith and hope Into h Im by h Is grac Ious words of assurance: "God forb Id! Why should you take leave of th Is world? Do you not feel blessed by d Iscover Ing your Guru? By H Is grace, what Is beyond all Imag Inat Ion or dreams can be eas Ily ach Ieved!" At these words the clouds of despa Ir moved away from the hor Izon of M.'s m Ind, and the sunsh Ine of a new hope revealed to h Im fresh v Istas of mean Ing In l Ife. Referr Ing to th Is phase of h Is l Ife, M. used to say, "Behold! where Is the resolve to end l Ife, and where, the d Iscovery of God! That Is, sorrow should be looked upon as a fr Iend of man. God Is all good." ( Ib Id P.33.)
After th Is re-settlement, M's l Ife revolved around the Master, though he cont Inued h Is profess Ional work as an educat Ion Ist. Dur Ing all hol Idays, Includ Ing Sundays, he spent h Is t Ime at Daksh Ineswar In the Master's company, and at t Imes extended h Is stay to several days.
It d Id not take much t Ime for M. to become very Int Imate w Ith the Master, or for the Master to recogn Ise In th Is d Isc Iple a d Iv Inely comm Iss Ioned partner In the fulf Ilment of h Is sp Ir Itual m Iss Ion. When M. was read Ing out the Cha Itanya Bhagavata, the Master d Iscovered that he had been, In a prev Ious b Irth, a d Isc Iple and compan Ion of the great Va Ishnava Teacher, Sr I Cha Itanya Mahaprabhu, and the Master even saw h Im 'w Ith h Is naked eye' part Ic Ipat Ing In the ecstat Ic mass-s Ing Ing of the Lord's name under the leadersh Ip of that D Iv Ine personal Ity. So the Master told M, "You are my own, of the same substance as the father and the son," Ind Icat Ing thereby that M. was one of the chosen few and a part and parcel of h Is D Iv Ine m Iss Ion.
There was an urge In M. to abandon the household l Ife and become a Sannys In. When he commun Icated th Is Idea to the Master, he forbade h Im say Ing," Mother has told me that you have to do a l Ittle of Her work you w Ill have to teach Bhagavata, the word of God to human Ity. The Mother keeps a Bhagavata Pand It w Ith a bondage In the world!"
( Ib Id P.36.)
An appropr Iate allus Ion Indeed! Bhagavata, the great scr Ipture that has g Iven the word of Sr I Kr Ishna to mank Ind, was composed by the Sage Vysa under s Im Ilar c Ircumstances. When caught up In a mood of depress Ion l Ike that of M, Vysa was adv Ised by the sage Nrada that he would ga In peace of m Ind only qn compos Ing a work exclus Ively devoted to the dep Ict Ion of the Lord's glor Ious attr Ibutes and H Is teach Ings on Knowledge and Devot Ion, and the result was that the world got from Vysa the Invaluable g Ift of the Bhagavata Purana dep Ict Ing the l Ife and teach Ings of Sr I Kr Ishna.
From the mental depress Ion of the modem Vysa, the world has obta Ined the Kathmr Ita (Bengal I Ed It Ion) the Gospel of Sr I Ramakr Ishna In Engl Ish.
Sr I Ramakr Ishna was a teacher for both the Orders of mank Ind, Sannys Ins and householders. H Is own l Ife offered an Ideal example for both, and he left beh Ind d Isc Iples who followed the h Ighest trad It Ions he had set In respect of both these ways of l Ife. M., along w Ith Nag Mahashay, exempl If Ied how a householder can r Ise to the h Ighest level of sagehood. M. was marr Ied to N Ikunja Dev I, a d Istant relat Ive of Keshab Chander Sen, even when he was read Ing at College, and he had four ch Ildren, two sons and two daughters. The respons Ib Il Ity of the fam Ily, no doubt, made h Im dependent on h Is profess Ional Income, but the great devotee that he was, he never comprom Ised w Ith Ideals and pr Inc Iples for th Is reason. Once when he was work Ing as the headmaster In a school managed by the great V Idysgar, the results of the school at the publ Ic exam Inat Ion happened to be rather poor, and V Idysgar attr I buted It to M's preoccupat Ion w Ith the Master and h Is consequent fa Ilure to attend adequately to the school work. M. at once res Igned h Is post w Ithout any thought of the morrow. W Ith In a fortn Ight the fam Ily was In poverty, and M. was one day pac Ing up and down the verandah of h Is house, mus Ing how he would feed h Is ch Ildren the next day. Just then a man came w Ith a letter addressed to 'Mahendra Babu', and on open Ing It, M. found that It was a letter from h Is fr Iend Sr I Surendra Nath Banerjee, ask Ing whether he would l Ike to take up a professorsh Ip In the R Ipon College. In th Is way three or four t Imes he gave up the job that gave h Im the wherew Ithal to support the fam Ily, e Ither for uphold Ing pr Inc Iples or for pract Is Ing sp Ir Itual Sadhanas In holy places, w Ithout any cons Iderat Ion of the poss Ible d Ire worldly consequences; but he was always able to get over these d Iff Icult Ies somehow, and the Interests of h Is fam Ily never suffered. In sp Ite of h Is d Isregard for worldly goods, he was, towards the latter part of h Is l Ife, In a fa Irly flour Ish Ing cond It Ion as the propr Ietor of the Morton School wh Ich he developed Into a noted educat Ional Inst Itut Ion In the c Ity. The Lord has sa Id In the Bhagavad G It that In the case of those who th Ink of noth Ing except H Im, He H Imself would take up all the Ir mater Ial and sp Ir Itual respons Ib Il It Ies. M. was an example of the truth of the Lord's prom Ise.
Though h Is ch Ildren rece Ived proper attent Ion from h Im, h Is real fam Ily, both dur Ing the Master's l Ifet Ime and after, cons Isted of sa Ints, devotees, Sannys Ins and sp Ir Itual asp Irants. H Is l Ife exempl If Ies the Master's teach Ing that an Ideal householder must be l Ike a good ma Idservant of a fam Ily, lov Ing and car Ing properly for the ch Ildren of the house, but know Ing always that her real home and ch Ildren are elsewhere. Dur Ing the Master's l Ifet Ime he spent all h Is Sundays and other hol Idays w Ith h Im and h Is devotees, and bes Ides l Isten Ing to the holy talks and devot Ional mus Ic, pract Ised med Itat Ion both on the Personal and the Impersonal aspects of God under the d Irect gu Idance of the Master. In the pages of the Gospel the reader gets a p Icture of M.'s sp Ir Itual relat Ionsh Ip w Ith the Master how from a hazy bel Ief In the Impersonal God of the Brahmos, he was step by step brought to accept both Personal Ity and Impersonal Ity as the two aspects of the same Non-dual Be Ing, how he was conv Inced of the man Ifestat Ion of that Be Ing as Gods, Goddesses and as Incarnat Ions, and how he was establ Ished In a l Ife that was both of a Jnn I and of a Bhakta. Th Is Jnn I-Bhakta outlook and way of l Iv Ing became so dom Inant a feature of h Is l Ife that Swam I Raghavananda, who was very closely assoc Iated w Ith h Im dur Ing h Is last s Ix years, remarks: "Among those who l Ived w Ith M. In latter days, some felt that he always l Ived In th Is constant and consc Ious un Ion w Ith God even w Ith open eyes ( I.e., even In wak Ing consc Iousness)." (Swam I Raghavananda's art Icle on M. In Prabuddha Bharata vol. XXXV I I. P. 442.)
Bes Ides undergo Ing sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ines at the feet of the Master, M. used to go to holy places dur Ing the Master's l Ifet Ime Itself and afterwards too as a part of h Is Sdhan.
He was one of the earl Iest of the d Isc Iples to v Is It Kamarpukur, the b Irthplace of the Master, In the latter's l Ifet Ime Itself; for he w Ished to pract Ise contemplat Ion on the Master's early l Ife In Its true or Ig Inal sett Ing. H Is exper Ience there Is descr Ibed as follows by Swam I N Ityatmananda: "By the grace of the Master, he saw the ent Ire Kamarpukur as a holy place bathed In an effulgent L Ight. Trees and creepers, beasts and b Irds and men all were made of effulgence. So he prostrated to all on the road. He saw a torn cat, wh Ich appeared to h Im lum Inous w Ith the L Ight of Consc Iousness. Immed Iately he fell to the ground and saluted It" (M The Apostle and the Evangel Ist by Swam I N Ityatmananda vol. I. P. 40.) He had s Im Ilar exper Ience In Daksh Ineswar also. At the Instance of the Master he also v Is Ited Pur I, and In the words of Swam I N Ityatmananda, "w Ith Indom Itable courage, M. embraced the Image of Jagannath out of season."
The l Ife of Sdhan and holy assoc Iat Ion that he started on at the feet of the Master, he cont Inued all through h Is l Ife. He has for th Is reason been most appropr Iately descr Ibed as a Gr Ihastha-Sannys I (householder-Sannys In). Though he was forb Idden by the Master to become a Sannys In, h Is reverence for the Sannysa Ideal was whole-hearted and was w Ithout any reservat Ion. So after Sr I Ramakr Ishna's pass Ing away, wh Ile several of the Master's householder devotees cons Idered the young Sannys In d Isc Iples of the Master as Inexper Ienced and Inconsequent Ial, M. stood by them w Ith the f Irm fa Ith that the Master's l Ife and message were go Ing to be perpetuated only through them. Swam I V Ivekananda wrote from Amer Ica In a letter to the Inmates of the Math: "When Sr I Thkur (Master) left the body, every one gave us up as a few unr Ipe urch Ins. But M. and a few others d Id not leave us In the lurch. We cannot repay our debt to them." (Swam I Raghavananda's art Icle on M. In Prabuddha Bharata vol. XXX P. 442.)
M. spent h Is weekends and hol Idays w Ith the monast Ic brethren who, after the Master's dem Ise, had formed themselves Into an Order w Ith a Math at Baranagore, and part Ic Ipated In the Intense l Ife of devot Ion and med Itat Ion that they followed. At other t Imes he would ret Ire to Daksh Ineswar or some garden In the c Ity and spend several days In sp Ir Itual pract Ice tak Ing s Imple self-cooked food. In order to feel that he was one w Ith all mank Ind he often used to go out of h Is home at dead of n Ight, and l Ike a wander Ing Sannys In, sleep w Ith the wa Ifs on some open verandah or footpath on the road.
After the Master's dem Ise, M. went on p Ilgr Image several t Imes. He v Is Ited Banras, Vr Indvan, Ayodhy and other places. At Banras he v Is Ited the famous Tra Il Inga Swm I and fed h Im w Ith sweets, and he had long conversat Ions w Ith Swam I Bhaskarananda, one of the noted sa Intly and scholarly Sannys Ins of the t Ime. In 1912 he went w Ith the Holy Mother to Banras, and spent about a year In the company of Sannys Ins at Banras, Vr Indvan, Hardwar, Hr Ish Ikesh and Swargashram. But he returned to Calcutta, as that c Ity offered h Im the un Ique opportun Ity of assoc Iat Ing h Imself w Ith the places hallowed by the Master In h Is l Ifet Ime. Afterwards he does not seem to have gone to any far-off place, but stayed on In h Is room In the Morton School carry Ing on h Is sp Ir Itual m In Istry, speak Ing on the Master and h Is teach Ings to the large number of people who flocked to h Im after hav Ing read h Is famous Kathmr Ita known to Engl Ish readers as The Gospel of Sr I Ramakr Ishna.
Th Is br Ings us to the c Ircumstances that led to the wr It Ing and publ Icat Ion of th Is monumental work, wh Ich has made M. one of the Immortals In hag Iograph Ic l Iterature.
Wh Ile many educated people heard Sr I Ramakr Ishna's talks, It was g Iven to th Is Illustr Ious personage alone to leave a graph Ic and exact account of them for poster Ity, w Ith deta Ils l Ike date, hour, place, names and part Iculars about part Ic Ipants. Human Ity owes th Is great book to the Ingra Ined hab It of d Iary-keep Ing w Ith wh Ich M. was endowed.
Even as a boy of about th Irteen, wh Ile he was a student In the 3rd class of the Hare School, he was In the hab It of keep Ing a d Iary. "Today on r Is Ing," he wrote In h Is d Iary, " I greeted my father and mother, prostrat Ing on the ground before them" (Swam I N Ityatmananda's 'M The Apostle and the Evangel Ist' Part I. P 29.) At another place he wrote, "Today, wh Ile on my way to school, I v Is Ited, as usual, the temples of Kl I, the Mother at Thar Ithar Ia, and of Mother S Itala, and pa Id my obe Isance to them." About twenty-f Ive years after, when he met the Great Master In the spr Ing of 1882, It was the same Inst Inct of a born d Iary-wr Iter that made h Im beg In h Is book, 'un Ique In the l Iterature of hag Iography', w Ith the memorable words: "When hear Ing the name of Har I or Rma once, you shed tears and your ha Ir stands on end, then you may know for certa In that you do not have to perform devot Ions such as Sandhya any more."
In add It Ion to th Is Inst Inct for d Iary-keep Ing, M. had great endowments contr I but Ing to success In th Is l Ine. Wr Ites Swam I N Ityatmananda who l Ived In close assoc Iat Ion w Ith M., In h Is book ent Itled M - The Apostle and Evangel Ist: "M.'s prod Ig Ious memory comb Ined w Ith h Is extraord Inary power of Imag Inat Ion completely ann Ih Ilated the d Istance of t Ime and place for h Im. Even after the lapse of half a century he could always v Isual Ise v Iv Idly, scenes from the l Ife of Sr I Ramakr Ishna. Superb too was h Is power to portray p Ictures by words."
Bes Ides the prompt Ing of h Is Inherent Inst Inct, the ma In Inducement for M. to keep th Is d Iary of h Is exper Iences at Daksh Ineswar was h Is des Ire to prov Ide h Imself w Ith a means for l Iv Ing In holy company at all t Imes. Be Ing a school teacher, he could be w Ith the Master only on Sundays and other hol Idays, and It was on h Is d Iary that he depended for 'holy company' on other days. The devot Ional scr Iptures l Ike the Bhagavata say that holy company Is the f Irst and most Important means for the generat Ion and growth of devot Ion. For, In such company man could hear talks on sp Ir Itual matters and l Isten to the glor If Icat Ion of D Iv Ine attr I butes, charged w Ith the fervour and conv Ict Ion emanat Ing from the hearts of great lovers of God. Such company Is therefore the one certa In means through wh Ich Sraddha (Fa Ith), Rat I (attachment to God) and Bhakt I (lov Ing devot Ion) are generated. The d Iary of h Is v Is Its to Daksh Ineswar prov Ided M. w Ith mater Ial for re-l Iv Ing, through read Ing and contemplat Ion, the holy company he had had earl Ier, even on days when he was not able to v Is It Daksh Ineswar. The wealth of deta Ils and the v Iv Id descr Ipt Ion of men and th Ings In the m Idst of wh Ich the subl Ime conversat Ions are set, prov Ide excellent mater Ial to re-l Ive those exper Iences for any one w Ith Imag Inat Ive powers. It was observed by M.'s d Isc Iples and adm Irers that In later l Ife also whenever he was free or alone, he would be pour Ing over h Is d Iary, transport Ing h Imself on the w Ings of Imag Inat Ion to the glor Ious days he spent at the feet of the Master.
Dur Ing the Master's l Ifet Ime M. does not seem to have revealed the contents of h Is d Iary to any one. There Is an unconf Irmed trad It Ion that when the Master saw h Im tak Ing notes, he expressed apprehens Ion at the poss Ib Il Ity of h Is ut Il Is Ing these to publ Ic Ise h Im l Ike Keshab Sen; for the Great Master was so full of the sp Ir It of renunc Iat Ion and hum Il Ity that he d Isl Iked be Ing l Ion Ised. It must be for th Is reason that no one knew about th Is prec Ious d Iary of M. for a decade unt Il he brought out select Ions from It as a pamphlet In Engl Ish In 1897 w Ith the Holy Mother's bless Ings and perm Iss Ion. The Holy Mother, be Ing very much pleased to hear parts of the d Iary read to her In Bengal I, wrote to M.: "When I heard the Kathmr Ita, (Bengal I name of the book) I felt as If It was he, the Master, who was say Ing all that." ( Ib Id Part I. P 37.)
The two pamphlets In Engl Ish ent Itled the Gospel of Sr I Ramakr Ishna appeared In October and November 1897. They drew the spontaneous acclamat Ion of Swam I V Ivekananda, who wrote on 24th November of that year from Dehra Dun to M.:"Many many thanks for your second leaflet. It Is Indeed wonderful. The move Is qu Ite or Ig Inal, and never was the l Ife of a Great Teacher brought before the publ Ic untarn Ished by the wr Iter's m Ind, as you are do Ing. The language also Is beyond all pra Ise, so fresh, so po Inted, and w Ithal so pla In and easy. I cannot express In adequate terms how I have enjoyed them. I am really In a transport when I read them. Strange, Isn't It? Our Teacher and Lord was so or Ig Inal, and each one of us w Ill have to be or Ig Inal or noth Ing.
I now understand why none of us attempted H Is l Ife before. It has been reserved for you, th Is great work. He Is w Ith you ev Idently." ( Vednta Kesar I Vol. X IX P. 141. Also g Iven In the f Irst ed It Ion of the Gospel publ Ished from Ramakr Ishna Math, Madras In 1911.)
And Swam Ij I added a post scr Ipt to the letter: "Socrat Ic d Ialogues are Plato all over you are ent Irely h Idden. Moreover, the dramat Ic part Is Inf In Itely beaut Iful. Everybody l Ikes It here or In the West." Indeed, In order to be unknown, Mahendranath had used the pen-name M., under wh Ich the book has been appear Ing t Ill now. But so great a book cannot rema In obscure for long, nor can Its author rema In unrecogn Ised by the large publ Ic In these modern t Imes. M. and h Is book came to be w Idely known very soon and to meet the grow Ing demand, a full-s Ized book, Vol. I of the Gospel, translated by the author h Imself, was publ Ished In 1907 by the Brahmavad In Off Ice, Madras. A second ed It Ion of It, rev Ised by the author, was brought out by the Ramakr Ishna Math, Madras In December 1911, and subsequently a second part, conta In Ing new chapters from the or Ig Inal Bengal I, was publ Ished by the same Math In 1922. The full Engl Ish translat Ion of the Gospel by Swam I N Ikh Ilananda appeared f Irst In 1942.
In Bengal I the book Is publ Ished In f Ive volumes, the f Irst part hav Ing appeared In 1902
and the others In 1905, 1907, 1910 and 1932 respect Ively.
It looks as If M. was brought to the world by the Great Master to record h Is words and transm It them to poster Ity. Swam I S Ivananda, a d Irect d Isc Iple of the Master and the second Pres Ident of the Ramakr Ishna Math and M Iss Ion, says on th Is top Ic: "Whenever there was an Interest Ing talk, the Master would call Master Mahashay If he was not In the room, and then draw h Is attent Ion to the holy words spoken. We d Id not know then why the Master d Id so. Now we can real Ise that th Is act Ion of the Master had an Important s Ign If Icance, for It was reserved for Master Mahashay to g Ive to the world at large the say Ings of the Master." ( Vednta Kesar I Vol. X IX P 141.) Thanks to M., we get, unl Ike In the case of the great teachers of the past, a fa Ithful record w Ith date, t Ime, exact report of conversat Ions, descr Ipt Ion of concerned men and places, references to contemporary events and personal It Ies and a hundred other deta Ils for the last four years of the Master's l Ife (1882-'86), so that no one can doubt the h Istor Ic Ity of the Master and h Is teach Ings at any t Ime In the future.
M. was, In every respect, a true m Iss Ionary of Sr I Ramakr Ishna r Ight from h Is f Irst acqua Intance w Ith h Im In 1882. As a school teacher, It was a pract Ice w Ith h Im to d Irect to the Master such of h Is students as had a true sp Ir Itual d Ispos It Ion. Though h Imself proh Ib Ited by the Master to take to monast Ic l Ife, he encouraged all sp Ir Itually Incl Ined young men he came across In h Is later l Ife to jo In the monast Ic Order. Swam I V Ijnanananda, a d Irect Sannys In d Isc Iple of the Master and a Pres Ident of the Ramakr Ishna Order, once remarked to M.: "By enqu Iry, I have come to the conclus Ion that e Ighty percent and more of the Sannys Ins have embraced the monast Ic l Ife after read Ing the Kathmr Ita (Bengal I name of the book) and com Ing In contact w Ith you." ( M
The Apostle and the Evangel Ist by Swam I N Ityatmananda Part I, P 37.)
In 1905 he ret Ired from the act Ive l Ife of a Professor and devoted h Is rema In Ing twenty-seven years exclus Ively to the preach Ing of the l Ife and message of the Great Master. He bought the Morton Inst Itut Ion from Its or Ig Inal propr Ietors and sh Ifted It to a commod Ious four-storeyed house at 50 Amherst Street, where It flour Ished under h Is management as one of the most eff Ic Ient educat Ional Inst Itut Ions In Calcutta. He generally occup Ied a sta Ircase room at the top of It, cook Ing h Is own meal wh Ich cons Isted only of m Ilk and r Ice w Ithout var Iat Ion, and attended to all h Is personal needs h Imself. H Is dress also was the s Implest poss Ible. It was h Is conv Ict Ion that l Im Itat Ion of personal wants to the m In Imum Is an Important a Id to holy l Iv Ing. About one hour In the morn Ing he would spend In Inspect Ing the classes of the school, and then ret Ire to h Is sta Ircase room to pour over h Is d Iary and l Ive In the d Iv Ine atmosphere of the earthly days of the Great Master, unless devotees and adm Irers had already gathered In h Is room seek Ing h Is holy company.
In appearance, M. looked a Ved Ic R Ish I. Tall and stately In bear Ing, he had a strong and well-bu Ilt body, an unusually broad chest, h Igh forehead and arms extend Ing to the knees. H Is complex Ion was fa Ir and h Is prom Inent eyes were always t Inged w Ith the express Ion of the d Iv Ine love that f Illed h Is heart. Adorned w Ith a s Ilvery beard that flowed luxur Iantly down h Is chest, and a sh In Ing face rad Iat Ing the seren Ity and grav Ity of hol Iness, M. was as Impos Ing and majest Ic as he was handsome and engag Ing In appearance. Humorous, sweet-tongued and eloquent when s Ituat Ions requ Ired, th Is great Mahar Ish I of our age l Ived only to s Ing the glory of Sr I Ramakr Ishna day and n Ight.
Though a very well versed scholar In the Upan Ishads, G It and the ph Ilosoph Ies of the East and the West, all h Is d Iscuss Ions and teach Ings found the Ir culm Inat Ion In the l Ife and the message of Sr I Ramakr Ishna, In wh Ich he found the real explanat Ion and Illustrat Ion of all the scr Iptures. Both consc Iously and unconsc Iously, he was the teacher of the Kathmr Ita the nectar Ine words of the Great Master.
Though a much-sought-after sp Ir Itual gu Ide, an educat Ion Ist of repute, and a contemporary and close assoc Iate of Illustr Ious personages l Ike Sr I Ramakr Ishna, Swam I V Ivekananda, Keshab Chander Sen and Iswar Chander V Idysgar, he was always moved by the noble human Ity of a lover of God, wh Ich cons Ists In respect Ing the personal It Ies of all as receptacles of the D Iv Ine Sp Ir It. So he taught w Ithout the consc Iousness of a teacher, and no bar of super Ior Ity stood In the way of h Is do Ing the humblest serv Ice to h Is students and devotees. "He was a comm Iss Ion of love," wr Ites h Is close devotee, Swam I Raghavananda, "and yet h Is soft and sweet words would p Ierce the ston Iest heart, make the worldly-m Inded weep and repent and turn Godwards."
( Prabuddha Bharata Vol. XXXV I I P 499.)
As t Ime went on and the number of devotees Increased, the sta Ircase room and terrace of the 3rd floor of the Morton Inst Itut Ion became a ver Itable Na Im Isaranya of modern t Imes, resound Ing dur Ing all hours of the day, and somet Imes of n Ight, too, w Ith the word of God com Ing from the R Ish I-l Ike face of M. addressed to the eager God-seekers s Itt Ing around. To the devotees who helped h Im In prepar Ing the text of the Gospel, he would d Ictate the conversat Ions of the Master In a med Itat Ive mood, referr Ing now and then to h Is d Iary. At t Imes In the st Illness of m Idn Ight he would awaken a nearby devotee and tell h Im: "Let us l Isten to the words of the Master In the depths of the n Ight as he expla Ins the truth of the Pranava." ( Vednta Kesar I X IX P. 142.) Swam I Raghavananda, an Int Imate devotee of M., wr Ites as follows about these devot Ional s Itt Ings: " In the sweet and warm months of Apr Il and May, s Itt Ing under the canopy of heaven on the roof-garden of 50 Amherst Street, surrounded by shrubs and plants, h Imself s Itt Ing In the Ir m Idst l Ike a R Ish I of old, the stars and planets In the Ir courses beckon Ing us to th Ings Inf In Ite and subl Ime, he would speak to us of the myster Ies of God and H Is love and of the yearn Ing that would r Ise In the human heart to solve the Eternal R Iddle, as exempl If Ied In the l Ife of h Is Master. The m Ind, melt Ing under the Influence of h Is soft sweet words of l Ight, would almost transcend the front Iers of l Im Ited ex Istence and dare to peep Into the Inf In Ite. He h Imself would take the Influence of the sett Ing and say,'What a blessed pr Iv Ilege It Is to s It In such a sett Ing (po Int Ing to the starry heavens), In the company of the devotees d Iscours Ing on God and H Is love!' These unforgettable scenes w Ill long rema In Impr Inted on the m Inds of h Is hearers." (Prabuddha Bharata Vol XXXV I I P 497.)
About twenty-seven years of h Is l Ife he spent In th Is way In the heart of the great c Ity of Calcutta, rad Iat Ing the Master's thoughts and Ideals to countless devotees who flocked to h Im, and to st Ill larger numbers who read h Is Kathmr Ita (Engl Ish Ed It Ion : The Gospel of Sr I Ramakr Ishna), the last part of wh Ich he had completed before June 1932 and g Iven to the press. And m Iraculously, as It were, h Is end also came Immed Iately after he had completed h Is l Ife's m Iss Ion. About three months earl Ier he had come to stay at h Is home at 13/2 Gurdasprasad Chaudhuary Lane at Thakur Bar I, where the Holy Mother had herself Installed the Master and where H Is regular worsh Ip was be Ing conducted for the prev Ious 40 years. The n Ight of 3rd June be Ing the Phalahr In I Kl I Pooja day, M.
had sent h Is devotees who used to keep company w Ith h Im, to attend the spec Ial worsh Ip at Belur Math at n Ight. After attend Ing the serv Ice at the home shr Ine, he went through the proof of the Kathmr Ita for an hour. Suddenly he got a severe attack of neuralg Ic pa In, from wh Ich he had been suffer Ing now and then, of late. Before 6 a.m. In the early hours of 4th June 1932 he passed away, fully consc Ious and chant Ing: 'Gurudeva-Ma, Kole tule na-o (Take me In your arms! O Master! O Mother!!)'
SWM I TAPASYNANDA
0.00 - The Wellspring of Reality, #Synergetics - Explorations in the Geometry of Thinking, #R Buckminster Fuller, #Science
We are In an age that assumes the narrow Ing trends of spec Ial Izat Ion to be log Ical, natural, and des Irable. Consequently, soc Iety expects all earnestly respons Ible commun Icat Ion to be cr Isply br Ief. Advanc Ing sc Ience has now d Iscovered that all the known cases of b Iolog Ical ext Inct Ion have been caused by overspec Ial Izat Ion, whose concentrat Ion of only selected genes sacr If Ices general adaptab Il Ity. Thus the spec Ial Ist's br Ief for p Inpo Int Ing brev Ity Is dub Ious. In the meant Ime, human Ity has been depr Ived of comprehens Ive understand Ing. Spec Ial Izat Ion has bred feel Ings of Isolat Ion, fut Il Ity, and confus Ion In Ind Iv Iduals. It has also resulted In the Ind Iv Idual's leav Ing respons Ib Il Ity for th Ink Ing and soc Ial act Ion to others.
Spec Ial Izat Ion breeds b Iases that ult Imately aggregate as Internat Ional and Ideolog Ical d Iscord, wh Ich, In turn, leads to war.
We are not seek Ing a l Icense to ramble word Ily. We are Intent only upon be Ing adequately conc Ise. General systems sc Ience d Iscloses the ex Istence of m In Imum sets of var Iable factors that un Iquely govern each and every system. Lack of knowledge concern Ing all the factors and the fa Ilure to Include them In our Integral Imposes false conclus Ions. Let us not make the error of Inadequacy In exam In Ing our most comprehens Ive Inventory of exper Ience and thoughts regard Ing the evolut Ing affa Irs of all human Ity.
There Is an Inherently m In Imum set of essent Ial concepts and current Informat Ion, cogn Izance of wh Ich could lead to our operat Ing our planet Earth to the last Ing sat Isfact Ion and health of all human Ity. W Ith th Is object Ive, we set out on our rev Iew of the spectrum of s Ign If Icant exper Iences and seek there In for the greatest mean Ings as well as for the fam Ily of general Ized pr Inc Iples govern Ing the real Izat Ion of the Ir opt Imum s Ign If Icance to human Ity aboard our Sun c Ircl Ing planet Earth.
We must start w Ith sc Ient If Ic fundamentals, and that means w Ith the data of exper Iments and not w Ith assumed ax Ioms pred Icated only upon the m Islead Ing nature of that wh Ich only superf Ic Ially seems to be obv Ious. It Is the consensus of great sc Ient Ists that sc Ience Is the attempt to set In order the facts of exper Ience.
Hold Ing w Ith In the Ir def In It Ion, we def Ine Un Iverse as the aggregate of allhuman Ity's consc Iously apprehended and commun Icated, nons Imultaneous, and only part Ially overlapp Ing exper Iences. An aggregate of f In Ites Is f In Ite. Un Iverse Is a f In Ite but nons Imultaneously conceptual scenar Io.
The human bra In Is a phys Ical mechan Ism for stor Ing, retr Iev Ing, and re-stor Ing aga In, each spec Ial-case exper Ience. The exper Ience Is often a packaged concept.
Such packages cons Ist of complexedly Interrelated and not as-yet d Ifferent Ially analyzed phenomena wh Ich, as In It Ially un It cogn It Ions, are potent Ially re-exper Ienceable. A rose, for Instance, grows. has thorns, blossoms, and fragrance, but often Is stored In the bra In only under the s Ingle word-rose.
As Korzybsk I, the founder of general semant Ics, po Inted out, the consequence of Its s Ingle-tagg Ing Is that the rose becomes reflex Ively cons Idered by man only as a red, wh Ite, or p Ink dev Ice for pay Ing tr Ibute to a beaut Iful g Irl, a thoughtful hostess, or last n Ight's deceased acqua Intance. The tagg Ing of the complex b Iolog Ical process under the s Ingle t Itle rose tends to detour human cur Ios Ity from further d Ifferent Iat Ion of Its Integral organ Ic operat Ions as well as from cons Iderat Ion of Its Interecolog Ical funct Ion Ings aboard our planet. We don't know what a rose Is, nor what may be Its essent Ial and un Ique cosm Ic funct Ion. Thus for long have we Inadvertently deferred potent Ial d Iscovery of the essent Ial roles In Un Iverse that are performed complementar Ily by many, If not most, of the phenomena we exper Ience.
But, goaded by youth, we older ones are now tak Ing second looks at almost everyth Ing. And that prom Ises many ult Imately favorable surpr Ises. The oldsters do have vast exper Ience banks not ava Ilable to the youth. The Ir memory banks, Integrated and rev Iewed, may read Ily d Isclose general Ized pr Inc Iples of em Inent Importance.
The word general Izat Ion In l Iterature usually means cover Ing too much terr Itory too th Inly to be persuas Ive, let alone conv Inc Ing. In sc Ience, however, a general Izat Ion means a pr Inc Iple that has been found to hold true In every spec Ial case.
The pr Inc Iple of leverage Is a sc Ient If Ic general Izat Ion. It makes no d Ifference of what mater Ial e Ither the fulcrum or the lever cons Ists-wood, steel, or re Inforced concrete. Nor do the spec Ial-case s Izes of the lever and fulcrum, or of the load pr Ied at one end, or the work appl Ied at the lever's other end In any way alter e Ither the pr Inc Iple or the mathemat Ical regular Ity of the rat Ios of phys Ical work advantage that are prov Ided at progress Ive fulcrum-to-load Increments of d Istance outward from the fulcrum In the oppos Ite d Irect Ion along the lever's arm at wh Ich theoperat Ing effort Is appl Ied.
M Ind Is the we Ightless and un Iquely human faculty that surveys the ever larger Inventory of spec Ial-case exper Iences stored In the bra In bank and, seek Ing to Ident Ify the Ir Intercomplementary s Ign If Icance, from t Ime to t Ime d Iscovers one of the rare sc Ient If Ically general Izable pr Inc Iples runn Ing cons Istently through all the relevant exper Ience set. The thoughts that d Iscover these pr Inc Iples are we Ightless and tentat Ive and may also be eternal. They suggest etern Ity but do not prove It, even though there have been no exper Iences thus far that Imply except Ions to the Ir pers Istence. It seems also to follow that the more exper Iences we have, the more chances there are that the m Ind may d Iscover, on the one hand, add It Ional general Ized pr Inc Iples or, on the other hand, except Ions that d Isqual Ify one or another of the already catalogued pr Inc Iples that, hav Ing heretofore held "true" w Ithout contrad Ict Ion for a long t Ime, had been tentat Ively conceded to be demonstrat Ing eternal pers Istence of behav Ior. M Ind's relentless rev Iew Ing of the comprehens Ive bra In bank's storage of all our spec Ial-case exper Iences tends both to progress Ive enlargement and def In It Ive ref Inement of the catalogue of general Ized pr Inc Iples that Interaccommodat Ively govern all transact Ions of Un Iverse.
It follows that the more spec Ial Ized soc Iety becomes, the less attent Ion does It pay to the d Iscover Ies of the m Ind, wh Ich are Intu It Ively beamed toward the bra In, there to be rece Ived only If the sw Itches are "on." Spec Ial Izat Ion tends to shut off the w Ide-band tun Ing searches and thus to preclude further d Iscovery of the all-powerful general Ized pr Inc Iples. Aga In we see how soc Iety's perverse f Ixat Ion on spec Ial Izat Ion leads to Its ext Inct Ion. We are so spec Ial Ized that one man d Iscovers emp Ir Ically how to release the energy of the atom, wh Ile another, unbeknownst to h Im, Is ordered by h Is pol It Ical factotum to make an atom Ic bomb by use of the secretly and anonymously publ Ished data. That g Ives much exped Ient employment, wh Ich solves the pol It Ic Ian's momentary problem, but requ Ires that the pol It Ic Ians keep on prepar Ing for further warr Ing w Ith other pol It Ical states to keep the Ir respect Ive peoples employed. It Is also m Istakenly assumed that employment Is the only means by wh Ich humans can earn the r Ight to l Ive, for pol It Ic Ians have yet to d Iscover how much wealth Is ava Ilable for d Istr Ibut Ion. All th Is Is rat Ional Ized on the now sc Ient If Ically d Iscred Ited prem Ise that there can never be enough l Ife support for all. Thus human Ity's spec Ial Izat Ion leads only toward warr Ing and such devastat Ing tools, both, v Is Ible and Inv Is Ible, as ult Imately to destroy all Earth Ians.
Only a comprehens Ive sw Itch from the narrow Ing spec Ial Izat Ion and toward an evermore Inclus Ive and ref In Ing comprehens Ion by all human Ity-regard Ing all the factors govern Ing omn Icont Inu Ing l Ife aboard our spacesh Ip Earth-can br Ing about reor Ientat Ion from the self-ext Inct Ion-bound human trend Ing, and do so w Ith In the cr It Ical t Ime rema In Ing before we have passed the po Int of chem Ical process Irretr Ievab Il Ity.
Qu Ite clearly, our task Is predom Inantly metaphys Ical, for It Is how to get all of human Ity to educate Itself sw Iftly enough to generate spontaneous soc Ial behav Iors that w Ill avo Id ext Inct Ion.
L Iv Ing upon the threshold between yesterday and tomorrow, wh Ich threshold we reflex Ively assumed In some long ago yesterday to const Itute an eternal now, we are aware of the da Ily-occurr Ing, vast mult Ipl Icat Ion of exper Ience generated Informat Ion by wh Ich we potent Ially may Improve our understand Ing of our yesterdays' exper Iences and therefrom der Ive our most fars Ighted preparedness for success Ive tomorrows.
Ant Ic Ipat Ing, cooperat Ing w Ith, and employ Ing the forces of nature can be accompl Ished only by the m Ind. The w Isdom man Ifest In the omn I- Interorderl Iness of the fam Ily of general Ized pr Inc Iples operat Ive In Un Iverse can be employed only by the h Ighest Integr Ity of engagement of the m Ind's metaphys Ical Intu It Ing and formulat Ing capab Il It Ies.
We are able to assert that th Is rat Ionally coord Inat Ing system br Idge has been establ Ished between sc Ience and the human It Ies because we have made adequate exper Imental test Ing of It In a computer Ized world-resource-use-explorat Ion system, wh Ich by v Irtue of the proper Inclus Ion of all the parameters-as guaranteed by the synerget Ic start w Ith Un Iverse and the progress Ive d Ifferent Iat Ion out of all the parts-has demonstrated a number of alternate ways In wh Ich It Is em Inently feas Ible not only to prov Ide full l Ife support for all humans but also to perm It all humans' Ind Iv Idual enjoyment of all the Earth w Ithout anyone prof It Ing at the expense of another and w Ithout any Ind Iv Iduals Interfer Ing w Ith others.
Wh Ile It takes but meager search to d Iscover that many well-known concepts are false, It takes cons Iderable search and even more careful exam Inat Ion of one's own personal exper Iences and Inadvertently spontaneous reflex Ing to d Iscover that there are many popularly and even profess Ionally unknown, yet nonetheless fundamental, concepts to hold true In all cases and that already have been d Iscovered by other as yet obscure Ind Iv Iduals. That Is to say that many sc Ient If Ic general Izat Ions have been d Iscovered but have not come to the attent Ion of what we call the educated world at large, thereafter to be Incorporated tard Ily w Ith In the formal educat Ion processes, and even more tard Ily, In the ongo Ing pol It Ical-econom Ic affa Irs of everyday l Ife. Knowledge of the ex Istence and comprehens Ive s Ign If Icance of these as yet popularly unrecogn Ized natural laws often Is requ Is Ite to the solut Ion of many of the as yet unsolved problems now confront Ing soc Iety. Lack of knowledge of the solut Ion's ex Istence often leaves human Ity confounded when It need not be.
Intellectually advantaged w Ith no more than the ch Ild's fac Ile, luc Id eagerness to understand construct Ively and usefully the major transformat Ional events of our own t Imes, It probably Is synerget Ically advantageous to rev Iew sw Iftly the most comprehens Ive Inventory of the most powerful human env Ironment transform Ing events of our totally known and reasonably extended h Istory. Th Is Is espec Ially useful In w Innow Ing out and understand Ing the most s Ign If Icant of the metaphys Ical revolut Ions now recogn Ized as sw Iftly tend Ing to reconst Itute h Istory. By such a comprehens Ively schemat Ic rev Iew, we m Ight Ident Ify also the unprecedented and poss Ibly heretofore overlooked p Ivotal revolut Ionary events not only of today but also of those trend Ing to be central to tomorrow's most cataclysm Ic changes.
It Is synerget Ically reasonable to assume that relat Iv Ist Ic evaluat Ion of any of the separate dr Ives of art, sc Ience, educat Ion, econom Ics, and Ideology, and the Ir complexedly Interact Ing trends w Ith In our own t Imes, may be had only through the most comprehens Ive h Istor Ical sweep of wh Ich we are capable.
There could be produced a synerget Ic understand Ing of human Ity's cosm Ic funct Ion Ing, wh Ich, unt Il now, had been both und Iscovered and unpred Ictable due to our del Iberate and exclus Ive preoccupat Ion only w Ith the separate stat Ist Ics of separate events. As a typ Ical consequence of the latter, we observe our soc Iety's pers Istent Increase of educat Ional and employment spec Ial Izat Ion desp Ite the already ment Ioned, well-documented sc Ient If Ic d Isclosure that the ext Inct Ions of b Iolog Ical spec Ies are always occas Ioned by overspec Ial Izat Ion. Spec Ial Izat Ion's preoccupat Ion w Ith parts del Iberately forfe Its the opportun Ity to apprehend and comprehend what Is prov Ided exclus Ively by synergy.
Today's news cons Ists of aggregates of fragments. Anyone who has taken part In any event that has subsequently appeared In the news Is aware of the gross d Ispar Ity between the actual and the reported events. The Ins Istence by reporters upon hav Ing advance "releases" of what, for Instance, convocat Ion speakers are supposedly go Ing to say but In fact have not yet sa Id, automat Ically d Iscred Its the value of the largely prefabr Icated news. We also learn frequently of prefabr Icated and prevar Icated events of a complex nature purportedly undertaken for purposes e Ither of suppress Ing or r Igg Ing the news, wh Ich In turn perverts human Ity's tact Ical Informat Ion resources. All h Istory becomes suspect. Probably our most polluted resource Is the tact Ical Informat Ion to wh Ich human Ity spontaneously reflexes.
Furthermore, today's hyperspec Ial Izat Ion In soc Ioeconom Ic funct Ion Ing has come to preclude Important popular ph Ilosoph Ic cons Iderat Ions of the synerget Ic s Ign If Icance of, for Instance, such h Istor Ically Important events as the d Iscovery w Ith In the general reg Ion of exper Imental Inqu Iry known as v Irology that the as-yet popularly assumed val Id Ity of the concepts of an Imate and Inan Imate phenomena have been exper Imentally Inval Idated. Atoms and crystal complexes of atoms were held to be obv Iously Inan Imate; the protoplasm Ic cells of b Iolog Ical phenomena were held to be obv Iously an Imate. It was deemed to be common sense that warm- blooded, mo Ist, and soft-sk Inned humans were clearly not to be confused w Ith hard, cold gran Ite or steel objects. A clear-cut threshold between an Imate and Inan Imate was therefore assumed to ex Ist as a fundamental d Ichotomy of all phys Ical phenomena. Th Is seem Ingly placed l Ife exclus Ively w Ith In the bounds of the phys Ical.
The supposed locat Ion of the threshold between an Imate and Inan Imate was method Ically narrowed down by exper Imental sc Ience unt Il It was conf Ined spec If Ically w Ith In the doma In of v Irology. V Irolog Ists have been too busy, for Instance, w Ith the Ir DNA-RNA genet Ic code Isolat Ings, to f Ind t Ime to see the synerget Ic s Ign If Icance to soc Iety of the fact that they have found that no phys Ical threshold does In fact ex Ist between an Imate and Inan Imate. The poss Ib Il Ity of Its ex Istence van Ished because the supposedly un Ique phys Ical qual It Ies of both an Imate and Inan Imate have pers Isted r Ight across yesterday's supposed threshold In both d Irect Ions to permeate one another's-prev Iously perce Ived to be exclus Ive- doma Ins. Subsequently, what was an Imate has become fogg Ier and fogg Ier, and what Is Inan Imate clearer and clearer. All organ Isms cons Ist phys Ically and In ent Irety of Inherently Inan Imate atoms. The Inan Imate alone Is not only omn Ipresent but Is alone exper Imentally demonstrable. Belated news of the el Im Inat Ion of th Is threshold must be Interpreted to mean that whatever l Ife may be, It has not been Isolated and thereby Ident If Ied as res Idual In the b Iolog Ical cell, as had been supposed by the false assumpt Ion that there was a separate phys Ical phenomenoncalled an Imate w Ith In wh Ich l Ife ex Isted. No l Ife per se has been Isolated. The threshold between an Imate and Inan Imate has van Ished. Those chem Ists who are preoccup Ied In synthes Iz Ing the part Icular atom Ically structured molecules Ident If Ied as the pr Ime const Ituents of humanly employed organ Isms w Ill, even If they are chem Ically successful, be as remote from creat Ing l Ife as are automob Ile manufacturers from creat Ing the human dr Ivers of the Ir automob Iles. Only the phys Ical connect Ions and development complexes of d Ist Inctly "nonl Ife" atoms Into molecules, Into cells, Into an Imals, has been and w Ill be d Iscovered. The genet Ic cod Ing of the des Ign controls of organ Ic systems offers no more explanat Ion of l Ife than d Id the spec If Icat Ions of the des Igns of the telephone system's apparatus and operat Ion expla In the nature of the l Ife that commun Icates we Ightlessly to l Ife over the only phys Ically ponderable telephone system. Whatever else l Ife may be, we know It Is we Ightless. At the moment of death, no we Ight Is lost. All the chem Icals, Includ Ing the chem Ist's l Ife Ingred Ients, are present, but l Ife has van Ished. The phys Ical Is Inherently entrop Ic, g Iv Ing off energy In ever more d Isorderly ways. The metaphys Ical Is ant Ientrop Ic, method Ically marshall Ing energy. L Ife Is ant Ientrop Ic.
It Is spontaneously Inqu Is It Ive. It sorts out and endeavors to understand.
The overconcentrat Ion on deta Ils of hyperspec Ial Izat Ion has also been respons Ible for the lack of recogn It Ion by sc Ience of Its Inherently mandatory respons Ib Il Ity to reor Ient all our educat Ional curr Icula because of the synerget Ically d Isclosed, but popularly uncomprehended, s Ign If Icance of the 1956 Nobel Pr Ize-w Inn Ing d Iscovery In phys Ics of the exper Imental Inval Idat Ion of the concept of "par Ity" by wh Ich sc Ience prev Iously had m Isassumed that pos It Ive-negat Ive complementat Ions cons Isted exclus Ively of m Irror- Imaged behav Iors of phys Ical phenomena.
Sc Ience's self-assumed respons Ib Il Ity has been self-l Im Ited to d Isclosure to soc Iety only of the separate, supposedly phys Ical (because separately we Ighable) atom Ic component Isolat Ions data. Synerget Ic Integr Ity would requ Ire the sc Ient Ists to announce that In real Ity what had been Ident If Ied heretofore as phys Ical Is ent Irely metaphys Ical-because synerget Ically we Ightless. Metaphys Ical has been sc Ience's des Ignat Ion for all we Ightless phenomena such as thought. But sc Ience has made no exper Imental f Ind Ing of any phenomena that can be descr Ibed as a sol Id, or as cont Inuous, or as a stra Ight surface plane, or as a stra Ight l Ine, or as Inf In Ite anyth Ing. We are now synerget Ically forced to conclude that all phenomena are metaphys Ical; wherefore, as many have long suspected-l Ike It or not-l Ife Is but a dream.Sc Ience has found no up or down d Irect Ions of Un Iverse, yet sc Ient Ists are personally so Ill-coord Inated that they all st Ill personally and sensor Ially see "sol Ids" go Ing up or down-as, for Instance, they see the Sun "go Ing down." Sensor Ially d Isconnected from the Ir theoret Ically evolved Informat Ion, sc Ient Ists d Iscern no need on the Ir part to suggest any educat Ional reforms to correct the m Isconce Iv Ing that sc Ience has tolerated for half a m Illenn Ium.
Soc Iety depends upon Its sc Ient Ists for just such educat Ional reform gu Idance.
Where else m Ight soc Iety turn for adv Ice? Ungu Ided by sc Ience, soc Iety Is allowed to go r Ight on f Ill Ing Its ch Ildrens' bra In banks w Ith large Inventor Ies of competence-devastat Ing m Is Informat Ion. In order to emerge from Its mass Ive Ignorance, soc Iety w Ill probably have to rely exclus Ively upon Its Ind Iv Iduals' own m Inds to survey the pert Inent exper Imental data-as do all great sc Ient Ist-art Ists. Th Is, In effect, Is what the Intu It Ion of world-around youth Is beg Inn Ing to do. M Ind can see that real Ity Is evolut Ing Into we Ightless metaphys Ics. The wellspr Ing of real Ity Is the fam Ily of we Ightless general Ized pr Inc Iples.
It Is essent Ial to release human Ity from the false f Ixat Ions of yesterday, wh Ich seem now to b Ind It to a rat Ionale of act Ion lead Ing only to ext Inct Ion.
The youth of human Ity all around our planet are Intu It Ively revolt Ing from all sovere Ignt Ies and pol It Ical Ideolog Ies. The youth of Earth are mov Ing Intu It Ively toward an utterly classless, raceless, omn Icooperat Ive, omn Iworld human Ity.
Ch Ildren freed of the Ignorantly founded educat Ional trad It Ions and exposed only to the Ir spontaneously summoned, computer-stored and -d Istr Ibuted outflow of rel Iable-op In Ion-purged, exper Imentally ver If Ied data, shall Indeed lead soc Iety to Its happy egress from all m Is Informedly conce Ived, fearfully and legally Imposed, and phys Ically enforced customs of yesterday. They can lead all human Ity Into omn Isuccessful surv Ival as well as entrance Into an utterly new era of human exper Ience In an as-yet and ever-w Ill-be fundamentally myster Ious Un Iverse.
And whence w Ill come the wealth w Ith wh Ich we may undertake to lead world man Into h Is new and val Idly hopeful l Ife? From the wealth of the m Inds of world man-whence comes all wealth. Only m Ind can d Iscover how to do so much w Ith so l Ittle as forever to be able to susta In and phys Ically sat Isfy all human Ity.
0.00 - To the Reader, #Evening Talks With Sri Aurobindo, #unset, #Zen
The reader Is requested to note that Sr I Aurob Indo Is not respons Ible for these records as he had no opportun Ity to see them. So, It Is not as If Sr I Aurob Indo sa Id exactly these th Ings but that I remember h Im to have sa Id them. All I can say Is that I have tr Ied to be as fa Ithful In record Ing them as I was humanly capable. That does not m In Im Ise my personal respons Ib Il Ity wh Ich I fully accept.
A. B. PURAN I
--
Part Ic Ipants In the Even Ing Talks
0.01f - FOREWARD, #The Phenomenon of Man, #Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, #Christianity
upon us, when he Is placed fa Irly and squarely w Ith In the frame-
work of phenomenon and appearance.
Why should we want to see, and why In part Icular should we
s Ingle out man as our object ?
See Ing. We m Ight say that the whole of l Ife l Ies In that verb
If not ult Imately, at least essent Ially. Fuller be Ing Is closer un Ion :
such Is the kernel and conclus Ion of th Is book. But let us empha-
s Ise the po Int : un Ion Increases only through an Increase In con-
sc Iousness, that Is to say In v Is Ion. And that, doubtless, Is why the
h Istory of the l Iv Ing world can be summar Ised as the elaborat Ion
of ever more perfect eyes w Ith In a cosmos In wh Ich there Is
always someth Ing more to be seen. After all, do we not judge
--
see more and better Is not a matter of wh Im or cur Ios Ity or self-
Indulgence. To see or to per Ish Is the very cond It Ion la Id upon
everyth Ing that makes up the un Iverse, by reason of the myster Ious
g Ift of ex Istence. And th Is, In super Ior measure, Is man's cond It Ion.
But If It Is true that It Is so v Ital and so blessed to know, let us
ask aga In why we are turn Ing our attent Ion part Icularly to man.
Has man not been adequately descr Ibed already, and Is he not a
ted Ious subject ? Is It not prec Isely one of the attract Ions of sc Ience
that It rests our eyes by turn Ing them away from man ?
Man has a double t Itle, as the twofold centre of the world, to
--
Subject Ively, f Irst of all, we are Inev Itably the centre of
perspect Ive of our own observat Ion. In Its early, na Ive stage,
sc Ience, perhaps Inev Itably, Imag Ined that we could observe
phenomena In themselves, as they would take place In our
absence. Inst Inct Ively phys Ic Ists and natural Ists went to work as
though they could look down from a great he Ight upon a world
--
m Itted to It or chang Ing It. They are now beg Inn Ing to real Ise
that even the most object Ive of the Ir observat Ions are steeped In
the convent Ions they adopted at the outset and by forms or
hab Its of thought developed In the course of the growth of
research ; so that, when they reach the end of the Ir analyses they
--
reached Is the essence of the matter they are study Ing, or the
reflect Ion of the Ir own thought. And at d Ie same t Ime they
--
upon th Ings from outs Ide : In fact they are caught In the Ir own
net. A geolog Ist would use the words metamorph Ism and
--
form each other In the act of knowledge ; and from now on
man w Illy-n Illy fmds h Is own Image stamped on all he looks at.
Th Is Is Indeed a form of bondage, for wh Ich, however, a
un Ique and assured grandeur prov Ides Immed Iate compensat Ion.
It Is t Iresome and even humbl Ing for d Ie observer to be thus
fettered, to be obl Iged to carry w Ith h Im everywhere the centre
of the landscape he Is cross Ing. But what happens when chance
d Irects h Is steps to a po Int of vantage (a cross-roads, or Intersect Ing
valleys) from wh Ich, not only h Is v Is Ion, but th Ings themselves
rad Iate? In that event the subject Ive v Iewpo Int co Inc Ides w Ith
the way th Ings are d Istr Ibuted object Ively, and percept Ion reaches
Its apogee. The landscape l Ights up and y Ields Its secrets. He sees.
That seems to be the pr Iv Ilege of man's knowledge.
It Is not necessary to be a man to perce Ive surround Ing th Ings
and forces ' In the round '. All the an Imals have reached th Is po Int
as well as us. But It Is pecul Iar to man to occupy a pos It Ion In
32
--
of the cosmos that Is at present w Ith In reach of our exper Ience.
Man, the centre of perspect Ive, Is at the same t Ime the centre of
construct Ion of the un Iverse. And by exped Iency no less than by
necess Ity, all sc Ience must be referred back to h Im. If to see Is
really to become more, If v Is Ion Is really fuller be Ing, then we
should look closely at man In order to Increase our capac Ity to
l Ive.
--
spectacle to h Imself. Indeed for tens of centur Ies he has looked at
noth Ing but h Imself. Yet he has only just begun to take a sc Ient If Ic
v Iew of h Is own s Ign If Icance In the phys Ical world. There Is no
need to be surpr Ised at th Is slow awaken Ing. It often happens
that what stares us In the face Is the most d Iff Icult to perce Ive.
The ch Ild has to learn to separate out the Images wh Ich assa Il
the newly-opened ret Ina. For man to d Iscover man and take h Is
--
A sense of spat Ial Immens Ity, In greatness and smallness, d Is-
art Iculat Ing and spac Ing out, w Ith In a sphere of Indef In Ite rad Ius,
the orb Its of the objects wh Ich press round us ;
--
ness of m Ind tends cont Inually to condense for us In a th In layer
of the past ;
--
the bew Ilder Ing mult Itude of mater Ial or l Iv Ing elements Involved
In the sl Ightest change In the un Iverse ;
A sense of proport Ion, real Is Ing as best we can the d Ifference
of phys Ical scale wh Ich separates, both In rhythm and d Imens Ion,
33
--
the atom from the nebula, the Inf In Ites Imal from the Immense ;
A sense of qual Ity, or of novelty, enabl Ing us to d Ist Ingu Ish In
nature certa In absolute stages of perfect Ion and growth, w Ithout
--
A sense of movement, capable of perce Iv Ing the Irres Ist Ible
developments h Idden In extreme slowness extreme ag Itat Ion
concealed beneath a ve Il of Immob Il Ity the ent Irely new In-
s Inuat Ing Itself Into the heart of the monotonous repet It Ion of the
same th Ings ;
--
W Ithout these qual It Ies to Illum Inate our v Is Ion, man w Ill
rema In Indef In Itely for us whatever Is done to make us see
what he st Ill represents to so many m Inds : an errat Ic object In a
d Isjo Inted world. Conversely, we have only to r Id our v Is Ion of
the threefold Illus Ion of smallness, plural Ity and Immob Il Ity, for
man effordessly to take the central pos It Ion we prophes Ied the
momentary summ It of an anthropogenes Is wh Ich Is Itself the
crown of a cosmogencs Is.
Man Is unable to see h Imself ent Irely unrelated to mank Ind,
ne Ither Is he able to see mank Ind unrelated to l Ife, nor l Ife un-
related to the un Iverse.
--
Thought three events sketch Ing In the past and determ In Ing for
the future (Surv Ival) a s Ingle and cont Inu Ing trajectory, the curve
--
The phenomenon of man I stress th Is.
Th Is phrase Is not chosen at random, but for three reasons.
F Irst to assert that man, In nature, Is a genu Ine fact fall Ing (at
least part Ially) w Ith In the scope of the requ Irements and methods
--
knowledge, none Is more extraord Inary or more Illum Inat Ing ;
Th Irdly, to stress the spec Ial character of the Essay I am pre-
sent Ing.
--
I repeat that my only a Im, and my only vantage-ground In
these pages, Is to try to see ; that Is to say, to try to develop a
homogeneous and coherent perspect Ive of our general extended
--
a metaphys Ical system. Ne Ither do I want any m Isunderstand Ing
about the degree of real Ity wh Ich I accord to the d Ifferent parts of
the f Ilm I am project Ing. When 1 try to p Icture the world before
the dawn of l Ife, or l Ife In the Palaeozo Ic era, I do not forget that
there would be a cosm Ic contrad Ict Ion In Imag In Ing a man as
spectator of those phases wh Ich ran the Ir course before the
appearance of thought on earth. I do not pretend to descr Ibe
them as they really were, but rather as we must p Icture them to
--
What I dep Ict Is not the past In Itself, but as It must appear to an
observer stand Ing on the advanced peak where evolut Ion has
placed us. It Is a safe and modest method and yet, as we shall see,
It suff Ices, through symmetry, to br Ing out ahead of us surpr Is Ing
--
Even reduced to these humble proport Ions, the v Iews I am
attempt Ing to put forward here arc, of course, largely tentat Ive
and personal. Yet Inasmuch as they are based on arduous Invest I-
gat Ion and susta Ined reflect Ion, they g Ive an Idea, by means of
one example, of the way In wh Ich the problem of man presents
Itself In sc Ience today.
When stud Ied narrowly In h Imself by anthropolog Ists or
jur Ists, man Is a t Iny, even a shr Ink Ing, creature. H Is over-
pronounced Ind Iv Idual Ity conceals from our eyes the whole to
wh Ich he belongs ; as we look at h Im our m Inds Incl Ine to break
nature up Into p Ieces and to forget both Its deep Inter-relat Ions
and Its measureless hor Izons : we Incl Ine to all that Is bad In
anthropocentr Ism. And It Is th Is that st Ill leads sc Ient Ists to refuse
to cons Ider man as an object of sc Ient If Ic scrut Iny except through
--
The t Ime has come to real Ise that an Interpretat Ion of the
un Iverse even a pos It Iv Ist one rema Ins unsat Isfy Ing unless It
35
--
covers the Inter Ior as well as the exter Ior of th Ings ; m Ind as well
as matter. The true phys Ics Is that wh Ich w Ill, one day, ach Ieve
the Inclus Ion of man In h Is wholeness In a coherent p Icture of the
world.
I hope I shall persuade the reader that such an attempt Is
poss Ible, and that the preservat Ion of courage and the joy of
act Ion In those of us who w Ish, and know how, to plumb the
depths of th Ings, depend on It.
In fact I doubt whether there Is a more dec Is Ive moment for
a th Ink Ing be Ing than when the scales fall from h Is eyes and he
d Iscovers that he Is not an Isolated un It lost In the cosm Ic sol Itudes,
and real Ises that a un Iversal w Ill to l Ive converges and Is hom In Ised
In h Im.
In such a v Is Ion man Is seen not as a stat Ic centre of the world
as he for long bel Ieved h Imself to be but as the ax Is and
lead Ing shoot of evolut Ion, wh Ich Is someth Ing much f Iner.
BOOK ONE
0.01 - I - Sri Aurobindos personality, his outer retirement - outside contacts after 1910 - spiritual personalities- Vibhutis and Avatars - transformtion of human personality, #Evening Talks With Sri Aurobindo, #unset, #Zen
object:0.01 - I - Sr I Aurob Indos personal Ity, h Is outer ret Irement - outs Ide contacts after 1910 - sp Ir Itual personal It Ies- V Ibhut Is and Avatars - transformt Ion of human personal Ity
author class:A B Puran I
--
INTRODUCT ION I
I
The quest Ion wh Ich Arjuna asks Sr I Kr Ishna In the G Ita (second chapter) occurs pert Inently to many about all sp Ir Itual personal It Ies: "What Is the language of one whose understand Ing Is po Ised? How does he speak, how s It, how walk?" Men want to know the outer s Igns of the Inner atta Inment, the way In wh Ich a sp Ir Itual person d Iffers outwardly from other men. But all the tests wh Ich the G Ita enumerates are Inner and therefore Inv Is Ible to the outer v Iew. It Is true also that the Inner or the sp Ir Itual Is the essent Ial and the outer der Ives Its value and form from the Inner. But the transformat Ion about wh Ich Sr I Aurob Indo wr Ites In h Is books has to take place In nature, because accord Ing to h Im the d Iv Ine Real Ity has to man Ifest Itself In nature. So, all the parts of nature Includ Ing the phys Ical and the external are to be transformed. In h Is own case the very phys Ical became the transparent mould of the Sp Ir It as a result of h Is Intense Sadhana. Th Is Is borne out by the Impress Ion created on the m Inds of sens It Ive outs Iders l Ike Sj. K. M. Munsh I who was deeply Impressed by h Is rad Iat Ing presence when he met h Im after nearly forty years.
The Even Ing Talks collected here may afford to the outs Ide world a gl Impse of h Is external personal Ity and g Ive the seeker some Idea of Its r Ichness, Its many-s Idedness, Its un Iqueness. One can also form some not Ion of Sr I Aurob Indo's personal Ity from the books In wh Ich the he Ight, the un Iversal sweep and clear v Is Ion of h Is Integral Ideal and thought can be seen. H Is wr It Ings are, In a sense, the best representat Ive of h Is mental personal Ity. The versat Ile nature of h Is gen Ius, the penetrat Ing power of h Is Intellect, h Is extraord Inary power of express Ion, h Is Intense s Incer Ity, h Is utter s Ingleness of purpose all these can be eas Ily felt by any earnest student of h Is works. He may d Iscover even In the realm of m Ind that Sr I Aurob Indo br Ings the unl Im Ited Into the l Im Ited. Another s Ide of h Is dynam Ic personal Ity Is represented by the Ashram as an Inst Itut Ion. But the outer, If one may use the phrase, the human s Ide of h Is personal Ity, Is unknown to the outs Ide world because from 1910 to 1950 a span of forty years he led a l Ife of outer ret Irement. No doubt, many knew about h Is stay Ing at Pond Icherry and pract Is Ing some k Ind of very spec Ial Yoga to the mystery of wh Ich they had no access. To some, perhaps, he was l Iv Ing a l Ife of env Iable sol Itude enjoy Ing the luxury of a sp Ir Itual endeavour. Many regretted h Is ret Irement as a great loss to the world because they could not see any external act Iv Ity on h Is part wh Ich could be regarded as 'publ Ic', 'altru Ist Ic' or 'benef Ic Ial'. Even some of h Is adm Irers thought that he was after some k Ind of personal salvat Ion wh Ich would have very l Ittle s Ign If Icance for mank Ind In general. H Is outward non-part Ic Ipat Ion In publ Ic l Ife was construed by many as lack of love for human Ity.
But those who knew h Im dur Ing the days of the nat Ional awaken Ing from 1900 to 1910 could not have these doubts. And even these In It Ial m Isunderstand Ings and false not Ions of others began to evaporate w Ith the growth of the Sr I Aurob Indo Ashram from 1927 onwards. The large number of books publ Ished by the Ashram also tended to remove the Idea of the other-worldl Iness of h Is Yoga and the absence of any good by It to mank Ind.
Th Is per Iod of outer ret Irement was one of Intense Sadhana and of Intellectual act Iv Ity It was also one dur Ing wh Ich he acted on external events, though he was not ded Icated outwardly to a publ Ic cause. About h Is own ret Irement he wr Ites: "But th Is d Id not mean, as most people supposed, that he [Sr I Aurob Indo] had ret Ired Into some he Ight of sp Ir Itual exper Ience devo Id of any further Interest In the world or In the fate of Ind Ia. It could not mean that, for the very pr Inc Iple of h Is Yoga was not only to real Ise the D Iv Ine and atta In to a complete sp Ir Itual consc Iousness, but also to take all l Ife and all world act Iv Ity Into the scope of th Is sp Ir Itual consc Iousness and act Ion and to base l Ife on the Sp Ir It and g Ive It a sp Ir Itual mean Ing. In h Is ret Irement Sr I Aurob Indo kept a close watch on all that was happen Ing In the world and In Ind Ia and act Ively Intervened, whenever necessary, but solely w Ith a sp Ir Itual force and s Ilent sp Ir Itual act Ion; for It Is part of the exper Ience of those who have advanced In yoga that bes Ides the ord Inary forces and act Iv It Ies of the m Ind and l Ife and body In Matter, there are other forces and powers that can and do act from beh Ind and from above; there Is also a sp Ir Itual dynam Ic power wh Ich can be possessed by those who are advanced In sp Ir Itual consc Iousness, though all do not care to possess or, possess Ing, to use It and th Is power Is greater than any other and more effect Ive. It was th Is force wh Ich, as soon as he atta Ined to It, he used at f Irst only In a l Im Ited f Ield of personal work, but afterwards In a constant act Ion upon the world forces."[1]
Tw Ice he found It necessary to go out of h Is way to make publ Ic pronouncements on Important world- Issues, wh Ich shows d Ist Inctly that renunc Iat Ion of l Ife Is not a part of h Is Yoga. "The f Irst was In relat Ion to the Second World War. At the beg Inn Ing he d Id not act Ively concern h Imself w Ith It, but when It appeared as If H Itler would crush all the forces opposed to h Im and Naz Ism dom Inate the world, he began to Intervene."[2]
The second was w Ith regard to S Ir Stafford Cr Ipps' proposal for the transfer of power to Ind Ia.
Over and above Sadhana, wr It Ing work and render Ing sp Ir Itual help to the world dur Ing h Is apparent ret Irement there were plenty of other act Iv It Ies of wh Ich the outs Ide world has no knowledge. Many prom Inent as well as less known persons sought and obta Ined Interv Iews w Ith h Im dur Ing these years. Thus, among well-known persons may be ment Ioned C.R. Das, Lala Lajpat Ra I, Sarala Dev I, Dr. Munje, Khas Irao Jadhav, Tagore, Sylva In Levy. The great nat Ional poet of Tam Il Nadu, S. Subramanya Bharat I, was In contact w Ith Sr I Aurob Indo for some years dur Ing h Is stay at Pond Icherry; so was V.V.S. A Iyar. The famous V. Ramaswamy A Iyangar Va Ra of Tam Il l Iterature[3] stayed w Ith Sr I Aurob Indo for nearly three years and was Influenced by h Im. Some of these facts have been already ment Ioned In The L Ife of Sr I Aurob Indo.
Jung has adm Itted that there Is an element of mystery, someth Ing that baffles the reason, In human personal Ity. One f Inds that the greater the personal Ity the greater Is the complex Ity. And th Is Is espec Ially so w Ith regard to sp Ir Itual personal It Ies whom the G Ita calls V Ibhut Is and Avatars.
Sr I Aurob Indo has expla Ined the mystery of personal Ity In some of h Is wr It Ings. Ord Inar Ily by personal Ity we mean someth Ing wh Ich can be descr Ibed as "a pattern of be Ing marked out by a settled comb Inat Ion of f Ixed qual It Ies, a determ Ined character.... In one v Iew personal Ity Is regarded as a f Ixed structure of recogn Isable qual It Ies express Ing a power of be Ing"; another Idea regards "personal Ity as a flux of self-express Ive or sens It Ive and respons Ive be Ing.... But flux of nature and f Ix Ity of nature" wh Ich some call character "are two aspects of be Ing ne Ither of wh Ich, nor Indeed both together, can be a def In It Ion of personal Ity.... But bes Ides th Is flux and th Is f Ix Ity there Is also a th Ird and occult element, the Person beh Ind of whom the personal Ity Is a self-express Ion; the Person puts forward the personal Ity as h Is role, character, persona, In the present act of h Is long drama of man Ifested ex Istence. But the Person Is larger than h Is personal Ity, and It may happen that th Is Inner largeness overflows Into the surface format Ion; the result Is a self-express Ion of be Ing wh Ich can no longer be descr Ibed by f Ixed qual It Ies, normal It Ies of mood, exact l Ineaments, or marked out by structural l Im Its."[4]
The gospel of the Superm Ind wh Ich Sr I Aurob Indo brought to man env Isages a new level of consc Iousness beyond M Ind. When th Is level Is atta Ined It Imposes a complete and rad Ical re Integrat Ion of the human personal Ity. Sr I Aurob Indo was not merely the exponent but the embod Iment of the new, dynam Ic truth of the Superm Ind. Wh Ile explor Ing and sound Ing the tremendous poss Ib Il It Ies of human personal Ity In h Is Intense sp Ir Itual Sadhana, he has shown us that pract Ically there are no l Im Its to Its expans Ion and ascent. It can reach In Its growth what appears to man at present as a 'd Iv Ine' status. It goes w Ithout say Ing that th Is atta Inment Is not an easy task; there are cond It Ions to be fulf Illed for the transformat Ion from the human to the d Iv Ine.
The G Ita In Its chapters on the V Ibhut I and the Avatar takes In general the same pos It Ion. It shows that the present formula of our nature, and therefore the mental personal Ity of man, Is not f Inal. A V Ibhut I embod Ies In a human man Ifestat Ion a certa In d Iv Ine qual Ity and thus demonstrates the poss Ib Il Ity of overcom Ing the l Im Its of ord Inary human personal Ity. The V Ibhut I the embod Iment of a d Iv Ine qual Ity or power, and the Avatar the d Iv Ine Incarnat Ion, are not to be looked upon as supraphys Ical m Iracles thrown at human Ity w Ithout regard to the process of evolut Ion; they are, In fact, Ind Icat Ions of human poss Ib Il Ity, a s Ign that po Ints to the goal of evolut Ion.
In h Is Essays on the G Ita, Sr I Aurob Indo says about the Avatar: "He may, on the other hand, descend as an Incarnat Ion of d Iv Ine l Ife, the d Iv Ine personal Ity and power In Its character Ist Ic act Ion, for a m Iss Ion ostens Ibly soc Ial, eth Ical and pol It Ical, as Is represented In the story of Rama or Kr Ishna; but always then th Is descent becomes In the soul of the race a permanent power for the Inner l Iv Ing and the sp Ir Itual reb Irth."[5]
"He comes as the d Iv Ine power and love wh Ich calls men to Itself, so that they may take refuge In that and no longer In the Insuff Ic Iency of the Ir human w Ills and the str Ife of the Ir human fear, wrath and pass Ion, and l Iberated from all th Is unqu Iet and suffer Ing may l Ive In the calm and bl Iss of the D Iv Ine."[6]
"The Avatar comes to reveal the d Iv Ine nature In man above th Is lower nature and to show what are the d Iv Ine works, free, unego Ist Ic, d Is Interested, Impersonal, un Iversal, full of the d Iv Ine l Ight, the d Iv Ine power and the d Iv Ine love. He comes as the d Iv Ine personal Ity wh Ich shall f Ill the consc Iousness of the human be Ing and replace the l Im Ited ego Ist Ic personal Ity, so that It shall be l Iberated out of ego Into Inf In Ity and un Iversal Ity, out of b Irth Into Immortal Ity."[7]
It Is clear that Sr I Aurob Indo Interpreted the trad It Ional Idea of the V Ibhut I and the Avatar In terms of the evolut Ionary poss Ib Il It Ies of man. But more d Irectly he has worked out the Idea of the 'gnost Ic Ind Iv Idual' In h Is masterp Iece The L Ife D Iv Ine. He says: "A supramental gnost Ic Ind Iv Idual w Ill be a sp Ir Itual Person, but not a personal Ity In the sense of a pattern of be Ing marked out by a settled comb Inat Ion of f Ixed qual It Ies, a determ Ined character; he cannot be that s Ince he Is a consc Ious express Ion of the un Iversal and the transcendent." Descr Ib Ing the gnost Ic Ind Iv Idual he says: "We feel ourselves In the presence of a l Ight of consc Iousness, a potency, a sea of energy, can d Ist Ingu Ish and descr Ibe Its free waves of act Ion and qual Ity, but not f Ix Itself; and yet there Is an Impress Ion of personal Ity, the presence of a powerful be Ing, a strong, h Igh or beaut Iful recogn Isable Someone, a Person, not a l Im Ited creature of Nature but a Self or Soul, a Purusha."[8]
One feels that he was descr Ib Ing the feel Ing of some of us, h Is d Isc Iples, w Ith regard to h Im In h Is In Im Itable way.
Th Is transformat Ion of the human personal Ity Into the D Iv Ine perhaps even the mere connect Ion of the human w Ith the D Iv Ine Is probably regarded as a ch Imera by the modern m Ind. To the modern m Ind It would appear as the apotheos Is of a human personal Ity wh Ich Is aga Inst Its Idea of equal Ity of men. Its d Iff Iculty Is partly due to the not Ion that the D Iv Ine Is unl Im Ited and Ill Im Itable wh Ile a 'personal Ity', however h Igh and grand, seems to demand Impos It Ion, or assumpt Ion, of l Im Itat Ion. In th Is connect Ion Sr I Aurob Indo sa Id dur Ing an even Ing talk that no human man Ifestat Ion can be Ill Im Itable and unl Im Ited, but the man Ifestat Ion In the l Im Ited should reflect the unl Im Ited, the Transcendent Beyond.
Th Is poss Ib Il Ity of the human touch Ing and man Ifest Ing the D Iv Ine has been real Ised dur Ing the course of human h Istory whenever a great sp Ir Itual L Ight has appeared on earth. One of the purposes of th Is book Is to show how Sr I Aurob Indo h Imself reflected the unl Im Ited Beyond In h Is own self.
Greatness Is magnet Ic and In a sense contag Ious. Wherever man Ifested, greatness Is cla Imed by human Ity as someth Ing that reveals the poss Ib Il Ity of the race. The h Ighest ut Il Ity of greatness Is not merely to attract us but to Insp Ire us to follow It and r Ise to our own h Ighest sp Ir Itual stature. To the major Ity of men Truth rema Ins abstract, Impersonal and far unless It Is seen and felt concretely In a human personal Ity. A man never knows a truth act Ively except through a person and by embody Ing It In h Is own personal Ity. Some gl Impse of the Truth-Consc Iousness wh Ich Sr I Aurob Indo embod Ied may be caught In these Even Ing Talks.
***
Part Ic Ipants In the Even Ing Talks I I
0.01 - Letters from the Mother to Her Son, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
Our commun Ity Is grow Ing more and more; we are nearly th Irty
(not count Ing those who are scattered all over Ind Ia); and I
have become respons Ible for all th Is; I am at the centre of the
organ Isat Ion, on the mater Ial as well as the sp Ir Itual s Ide, and you
can eas Ily Imag Ine what It means. We already occupy f Ive houses,
one of wh Ich Is our property; others w Ill follow. New recru Its
are com Ing from all parts of the world. W Ith th Is expans Ion,
--
I th Ink I told you about our f Ive houses; four of them are jo Ined In
a s Ingle square block wh Ich Is surrounded on all s Ides by streets
and conta Ins several bu Ild Ings w Ith courtyards and gardens. We
--
We have jo Ined the houses together w Ith open Ings In some
of the outer walls and outbu Ild Ings, so that I may walk freely In
our l Ittle realm w Ithout hav Ing to go out Into the street - th Is Is
rather n Ice. But I am bus Ier than ever now, and I can say that at
the moment I am wr It Ing to you In a hurry.
16 February 1927
It Is true that for a long t Ime I have not slept In the usual
sense of the word.1 That Is to say, at no t Ime do I fall Into
Wr Itten In connect Ion w Ith a newspaper art Icle In wh Ich It was stated that the Mother
had not slept for several months.
the Inconsc Ience wh Ich Is the s Ign of ord Inary sleep. But I do
g Ive my body the rest It needs, that Is, two or three hours of
ly Ing down In a cond It Ion of absolute Immob Il Ity In wh Ich the
whole be Ing, mental, psych Ic, v Ital and phys Ical, enters Into a
complete state of rest made of perfect peace, absolute s Ilence
and total Immob Il Ity, wh Ile the consc Iousness rema Ins perfectly
awake; or else I enter Into an Internal act Iv Ity of one or more
states of be Ing, an act Iv Ity wh Ich const Itutes the occult work
and wh Ich, needless to say, Is also perfectly consc Ious. So I can
say, In all truth, that I never lose consc Iousness throughout the
twenty-four hours, wh Ich thus form an unbroken sequence, and
that I no longer exper Ience ord Inary sleep, wh Ile st Ill g Iv Ing my
body the rest that It needs.
3 July 1927
In th Is letter I am send Ing you a few photographs of the Ashram
wh Ich w Ill no doubt Interest you s Ince they w Ill g Ive you an Idea,
however Incomplete and Imprec Ise, of the surround Ings In wh Ich
I l Ive; In any case they w Ill g Ive a very l Im Ited Impress Ion, for
the Ashram at present cons Ists of seventeen houses Inhab Ited by
e Ighty-f Ive or n Inety people (the number var Ies as people come
--
I am also send Ing you conversat Ions 14 and 15. I hope that
you have rece Ived, In several Instalments, the complete ser Ies
of the f Irst th Irteen; I had them ma Iled to you as they were
publ Ished.2
--
to have fully grasped; but I suppose that a second read Ing later
These f Ifteen "conversat Ions" are publ Ished In Quest Ions and Answers 1929 - 1931,
CWM, Vol. 3, pp. 1 - 120.
--
w Ith them thoroughly. Rather they are h Ints whose purpose Is
more pragmat Ic than d Idact Ic; they are a k Ind of moral st Imulus
meant to goad and spur on those who are on the way. It Is
true that In my answers many aspects of the quest Ion have been
neglected wh Ich could have been exam Ined w Ith Interest - that
w Ill be for another t Ime.
--
The Ashram Is becom Ing a more and more Interest Ing Inst Itut Ion. We have now acqu Ired our twenty-f Irst house; the number
of pa Id workers of the Ashram (labourers and servants) has
--
(Sr I Aurob Indo's d Isc Iples l Iv Ing In Pond Icherry) var Ies between
e Ighty-f Ive and a hundred. F Ive cars, twelve b Icycles, four sew Ing
--
departments (European and Ind Ian ta Ilors, embro Ideresses, etc.),
a l Ibrary and read Ing-room conta In Ing several thousand volumes, a photograph Ic serv Ice, general stores conta In Ing a w Ide
var Iety of goods, nearly all Imported from France, large gardens
for flowers, vegetables and fru Its, a da Iry, a bakery, etc., etc.! -
you can see that It Is no small affa Ir. And as I am tak Ing care of
all th Is, I can truly say that I am busy.
23 August 1930
I have also rece Ived the Grande Revue3 and I read the art Icle you
ment Ion. I found It rather dull, but apart from that not too bad.
But the Mukerjee quoted there must have l Ived for many years
A l Iterary monthly publ Ished In France unt Il 1939.
outs Ide Ind Ia ( In Amer Ica, I bel Ieve) and has become completely
western Ised; otherw Ise he would not g Ive Gandh I and Tagore
as the two most popular f Igures In Ind Ia. On the contrary It
Is outs Ide Ind Ia that they are most popular; and for fore Igners
these two men seem to be the only ones who represent Ind Ian
gen Ius. Th Is Is very far from the truth, and If they are so well
known In Western countr Ies, It Is probably because the Ir stature
does not go beyond the understand Ing of the Western m Ind.
Ind Ia has far greater gen Iuses than these and In the most
var Ied f Ields, sc Ient If Ic, l Iterary, ph Ilosoph Ic, sp Ir Itual. It Is true
that the young people from Shant In Iketan come out ref Ined, but
--
but they are Impr Isoned w Ith In the four walls of a few narrow
Ideas and a l Im Ited m Ind.
I repeat, there Is better, far better In Ind Ia, but th Is Ind Ia
does not care for Internat Ional glory.
4 August 1931
Just a word about your remark that hav Ing ch Ildren Is the only
way to perpetuate the human race. I have never den Ied th Is, but
I w Ish to add that there Is noth Ing to fear In th Is respect; If It Is
Nature's plan to perpetuate the human race, she w Ill always f Ind
--
state of affa Irs you ment Ion In your letter of October 9th; and
It Is certa Inly not conf Ined to the small states of central Europe.
What you have descr Ibed Is pretty much the state of the whole
world: d Isorder, confus Ion, wastage and m Isery.
--
It Is no use lament Ing, however, say Ing: Where are you
headed! The f Inal collapse, the general bankruptcy seems obv Ious enough... unless... There Is always an "unless" In the h Istory
of the earth; and always, when confus Ion and destruct Ion seem
--
balance Is establ Ished wh Ich extends, for a few centur Ies more,
the l Ife of decl In Ing c Iv Il Isat Ions and human soc Iet Ies In del Ir Ium.
Do not start th Ink Ing I am a pess Im Ist. I certa Inly do not
l Ike th Ings as they are. I do not bel Ieve, however, that they are
worse than they have been many t Imes before. But I want them
to be d Ifferent, I want them to be more harmon Ious and more
true. Oh, the horror of falsehood spread everywhere on earth,
rul Ing the world w Ith Its law of darkness! I bel Ieve that Its re Ign
has lasted long enough; th Is Is the master we must now refuse
to serve. Th Is Is the great, the only remedy.
3 November 1931
After a very long t Ime I was happy to rece Ive your letter of
January 5th, espec Ially s Ince you th Ink of Pond Icherry as an
Ideal rest Ing place. True, I th Ink that It could prov Ide a perfect
place of cure for the restless - even If one seeks d Ivers Ions there
are none; on the other hand the sea Is beaut Iful, the countrys Ide
Is vast and the town Is very small: a f Ive m Inute dr Ive and you are
out of It; and, at the centre of It all, the Ashram Is a condensat Ion
of dynam Ic and act Ive peace, so much so that all those who come
from outs Ide feel as If they were In another world. It Is Indeed
someth Ing of another world, a world In wh Ich the Inner l Ife
governs the outer, a world where th Ings get done, where work
Is carr Ied out not for a personal end but In a selfless way for
the real Isat Ion of an Ideal. The l Ife we lead here Is as far from
ascet Ic abst Inence as from an enervat Ing comfort; s Impl Ic Ity Is
the rule here, but a s Impl Ic Ity full of var Iety - a var Iety of occupat Ions, of act Iv It Ies, of tastes, tendenc Ies, natures; each one
Is free to organ Ise h Is l Ife as he pleases, the d Isc Ipl Ine Is reduced
to the m In Imum that Is Ind Ispensable to organ Ise the ex Istence
of 110 to 120 people and to avo Id movements that would be
--
What do you say to th Is? Isn't It tempt Ing? W Ill you ever
have the t Ime or the poss Ib Il Ity to come here? Once you d Id let
--
I would l Ike to show you our "establ Ishment". It has just
acqu Ired four houses wh Ich I bought In my name to s Impl Ify the
legal techn Ical It Ies; but It goes w Ithout say Ing that I do not own
them. I th Ink I have already expla Ined the s Ituat Ion to you and
I want to take advantage of th Is opportun Ity to rem Ind you of
It. The Ashram w Ith all Its real estate and moveable property
belongs to Sr I Aurob Indo, It Is h Is money that enables me to
meet the almost form Idable expenses that It enta Ils (our annual
budget averages one "lakh" of rupees, wh Ich at the present rate
--
houses, of automob Iles, etc.), It Is, as I already told you, a matter
of conven Ience for the papers and s Ignatures, s Ince It Is I who
"manage" everyth Ing, but not because I really own them. You
w Ill read Ily understand why I am tell Ing you all th Is; It Is so you
can bear It In m Ind just In case.
10 February 1933
--
wh Ich Is certa Inly not unfounded. In the Ir Ignorant unconsc Iousness men set mov Ing forces they are not even aware of and soon
these forces get more and more out of the Ir control and br Ing
--
Even here, In th Is poor l Ittle nook, we have not escaped the
general malady. For three or four days the forces at work were
--
was beg Inn Ing to set In. I must say that under the c Ircumstances
the Governor (Solm Iac) showed great k Indness and resolve at
the same t Ime. H Is goodw Ill Is beyond all pra Ise. F Inally, It all
ended qu Ite well, cons Ider Ing the d Iff Icult c Ircumstances. But
--
factory Is closed, no one knows for how long, and the other one
was burned down.
--
sense. But perhaps we see It th Is way s Imply because nearness
makes us see all the deta Ils. From a d Istance the deta Ils fade and
--
It may be that l Ife on earth has always been a chaos - whatever the B Ible may say, the L Ight has not yet made Its appearance.
Let us hope that It w Ill not be long In com Ing.
23 August 1936
A small booklet Is be Ing publ Ished In Geneva, conta In Ing a talk
I gave In 1912, I th Ink. It Is a b It out-of-date, but I d Id not
want to dampen the Ir enthus Iasm. I had ent Itled It "The Central
Thought", but they found th Is a l Ittle too ph Ilosoph Ical, so It has
been changed to "The Supreme D Iscovery".4 Rather pompous
--
Speak Ing of recent events, you ask me "whether It was a dangerous bluff" or whether we "narrowly escaped d Isaster". To
assume both at the same t Ime would be nearer to the truth.
H Itler was certa Inly bluff Ing, If that Is what you call shout Ing
and mak Ing threats w Ith the Intent Ion of Int Im Idat Ing those to
whom one Is talk Ing and obta In Ing as much as one can. Tact Ics
Publ Ished In Words of Long Ago, CWM, Vol. 2, pp. 40 - 46.
and d Iplomacy were used, but on the other hand, beh Ind every
human w Ill there are forces at work whose or Ig In Is not human
and wh Ich move consc Iously towards certa In ends. The play of
these forces Is very complex and generally eludes the human
consc Iousness; but for ease of explanat Ion and understand Ing,
they may be d Iv Ided Into two ma In oppos Ing tendenc Ies: those
that work for the fulf Ilment of the D Iv Ine work upon earth,
--
few consc Ious Instruments at the Ir d Isposal. It Is true that In
th Is matter qual Ity compensates by far for quant Ity. As for the
--
always they f Ind w Ills wh Ich they enslave and Ind Iv Iduals whom
they turn Into doc Ile but nearly always unconsc Ious puppets.
H Itler Is a cho Ice Instrument for these ant I-d Iv Ine forces wh Ich
want v Iolence, upheaval and war, for they know that these th Ings
retard and hamper the act Ion of the d Iv Ine forces. That Is why
d Isaster was very close even though no human government consc Iously wanted It. But at any cost there was to be no war and
that Is why war has been avo Ided - for the t Ime be Ing.
22 October 1938
0.01 - Life and Yoga, #The Synthesis Of Yoga, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
Chapter I
L Ife and Yoga
HERE are two necess It Ies of Nature's work Ings wh Ich seem always to Intervene In the greater forms of human act Iv Ity, whether these belong to our ord Inary f Ields of movement or seek those except Ional spheres and fulf Ilments wh Ich appear to us h Igh and d Iv Ine. Every such form tends towards a harmon Ised complex Ity and total Ity wh Ich aga In breaks apart Into var Ious channels of spec Ial effort and tendency, only to un Ite once more In a larger and more pu Issant synthes Is. Secondly, development Into forms Is an Imperat Ive rule of effect Ive man Ifestat Ion; yet all truth and pract Ice too str Ictly formulated becomes old and loses much, If not all, of Its v Irtue; It must be constantly renovated by fresh streams of the sp Ir It rev Iv Ify Ing the dead or dy Ing veh Icle and chang Ing It, If It Is to acqu Ire a new l Ife. To be perpetually reborn Is the cond It Ion of a mater Ial Immortal Ity. We are In an age, full of the throes of trava Il, when all forms of thought and act Iv Ity that have In themselves any strong power of ut Il Ity or any secret v Irtue of pers Istence are be Ing subjected to a supreme test and g Iven the Ir opportun Ity of reb Irth. The world today presents the aspect of a huge cauldron of Medea In wh Ich all th Ings are be Ing cast, shredded Into p Ieces, exper Imented on, comb Ined and recomb Ined e Ither to per Ish and prov Ide the scattered mater Ial of new forms or to emerge rejuvenated and changed for a fresh term of ex Istence. Ind Ian Yoga, In Its essence a spec Ial act Ion or formulat Ion of certa In great powers of Nature, Itself spec Ial Ised, d Iv Ided and var Iously formulated, Is potent Ially one of these dynam Ic elements of the future l Ife of human Ity. The ch Ild of Immemor Ial ages, preserved by Its v Ital Ity and truth Into our modern t Imes, It Is now emerg Ing from the secret schools and ascet Ic retreats In wh Ich It had taken refuge and Is seek Ing Its place In the future sum of l Iv Ing human powers and ut Il It Ies. But It has f Irst to red Iscover Itself, br Ing to the surface
The Cond It Ions of the Synthes Is
the profoundest reason of Its be Ing In that general truth and that unceas Ing a Im of Nature wh Ich It represents, and f Ind by v Irtue of th Is new self-knowledge and self-apprec Iat Ion Its own recovered and larger synthes Is. Reorgan Is Ing Itself, It w Ill enter more eas Ily and powerfully Into the reorgan Ised l Ife of the race wh Ich Its processes cla Im to lead w Ith In Into the most secret penetral Ia and upward to the h Ighest alt Itudes of ex Istence and personal Ity.
In the r Ight v Iew both of l Ife and of Yoga all l Ife Is e Ither consc Iously or subconsc Iously a Yoga. For we mean by th Is term a method Ised effort towards self-perfect Ion by the express Ion of the secret potent Ial It Ies latent In the be Ing and - h Ighest cond It Ion of v Ictory In that effort - a un Ion of the human Ind Iv Idual w Ith the un Iversal and transcendent Ex Istence we see part Ially expressed In man and In the Cosmos. But all l Ife, when we look beh Ind Its appearances, Is a vast Yoga of Nature who attempts In the consc Ious and the subconsc Ious to real Ise her perfect Ion In an ever- Increas Ing express Ion of her yet unreal Ised potent Ial It Ies and to un Ite herself w Ith her own d Iv Ine real Ity. In man, her th Inker, she for the f Irst t Ime upon th Is Earth dev Ises selfconsc Ious means and w Illed arrangements of act Iv Ity by wh Ich th Is great purpose may be more sw Iftly and pu Issantly atta Ined.
Yoga, as Swam I V Ivekananda has sa Id, may be regarded as a means of compress Ing one's evolut Ion Into a s Ingle l Ife or a few years or even a few months of bod Ily ex Istence. A g Iven system of Yoga, then, can be no more than a select Ion or a compress Ion, Into narrower but more energet Ic forms of Intens Ity, of the general methods wh Ich are already be Ing used loosely, largely, In a le Isurely movement, w Ith a profuser apparent waste of mater Ial and energy but w Ith a more complete comb Inat Ion by the great
Mother In her vast upward labour. It Is th Is v Iew of Yoga that can alone form the bas Is for a sound and rat Ional synthes Is of Yog Ic methods. For then Yoga ceases to appear someth Ing myst Ic and abnormal wh Ich has no relat Ion to the ord Inary processes of the World-Energy or the purpose she keeps In v Iew In her two great movements of subject Ive and object Ive selffulf Ilment; It reveals Itself rather as an Intense and except Ional use of powers that she has already man Ifested or Is progress Ively
L Ife and Yoga
organ Is Ing In her less exalted but more general operat Ions.
Yog Ic methods have someth Ing of the same relat Ion to the customary psycholog Ical work Ings of man as has the sc Ient If Ic handl Ing of the force of electr Ic Ity or of steam to the Ir normal operat Ions In Nature. And they, too, l Ike the operat Ions of Sc Ience, are formed upon a knowledge developed and conf Irmed by regular exper Iment, pract Ical analys Is and constant result. All
Rajayoga, for Instance, depends on th Is percept Ion and exper Ience that our Inner elements, comb Inat Ions, funct Ions, forces, can be separated or d Issolved, can be new-comb Ined and set to novel and formerly Imposs Ible work Ings or can be transformed and resolved Into a new general synthes Is by f Ixed Internal processes. Hathayoga s Im Ilarly depends on th Is percept Ion and exper Ience that the v Ital forces and funct Ions to wh Ich our l Ife Is normally subjected and whose ord Inary operat Ions seem set and Ind Ispensable, can be mastered and the operat Ions changed or suspended w Ith results that would otherw Ise be Imposs Ible and that seem m Iraculous to those who have not se Ized the rat Ionale of the Ir process. And If In some other of Its forms th Is character of Yoga Is less apparent, because they are more Intu It Ive and less mechan Ical, nearer, l Ike the Yoga of Devot Ion, to a supernal ecstasy or, l Ike the Yoga of Knowledge, to a supernal Inf In Ity of consc Iousness and be Ing, yet they too start from the use of some pr Inc Ipal faculty In us by ways and for ends not contemplated In Its everyday spontaneous work Ings. All methods grouped under the common name of Yoga are spec Ial psycholog Ical processes founded on a f Ixed truth of Nature and develop Ing, out of normal funct Ions, powers and results wh Ich were always latent but wh Ich her ord Inary movements do not eas Ily or do not often man Ifest.
But as In phys Ical knowledge the mult Ipl Icat Ion of sc Ient If Ic processes has Its d Isadvantages, as that tends, for Instance, to develop a v Ictor Ious art If Ic Ial Ity wh Ich overwhelms our natural human l Ife under a load of mach Inery and to purchase certa In forms of freedom and mastery at the pr Ice of an Increased serv Itude, so the preoccupat Ion w Ith Yog Ic processes and the Ir except Ional results may have Its d Isadvantages and losses. The
The Cond It Ions of the Synthes Is
Yog In tends to draw away from the common ex Istence and lose h Is hold upon It; he tends to purchase wealth of sp Ir It by an Impover Ishment of h Is human act Iv It Ies, the Inner freedom by an outer death. If he ga Ins God, he loses l Ife, or If he turns h Is efforts outward to conquer l Ife, he Is In danger of los Ing
God. Therefore we see In Ind Ia that a sharp Incompat Ib Il Ity has been created between l Ife In the world and sp Ir Itual growth and perfect Ion, and although the trad It Ion and Ideal of a v Ictor Ious harmony between the Inner attract Ion and the outer demand rema Ins, It Is l Ittle or else very Imperfectly exempl If Ied. In fact, when a man turns h Is v Is Ion and energy Inward and enters on the path of Yoga, he Is popularly supposed to be lost Inev Itably to the great stream of our collect Ive ex Istence and the secular effort of human Ity. So strongly has the Idea preva Iled, so much has It been emphas Ised by prevalent ph Ilosoph Ies and rel Ig Ions that to escape from l Ife Is now commonly cons Idered as not only the necessary cond It Ion, but the general object of Yoga. No synthes Is of Yoga can be sat Isfy Ing wh Ich does not, In Its a Im, reun Ite God and Nature In a l Iberated and perfected human l Ife or, In Its method, not only perm It but favour the harmony of our Inner and outer act Iv It Ies and exper Iences In the d Iv Ine consummat Ion of both. For man Is prec Isely that term and symbol of a h Igher Ex Istence descended Into the mater Ial world In wh Ich It Is poss Ible for the lower to transf Igure Itself and put on the nature of the h Igher and the h Igher to reveal Itself In the forms of the lower. To avo Id the l Ife wh Ich Is g Iven h Im for the real Isat Ion of that poss Ib Il Ity, can never be e Ither the Ind Ispensable cond It Ion or the whole and ult Imate object of h Is supreme endeavour or of h Is most powerful means of self-fulf Ilment. It can only be a temporary necess Ity under certa In cond It Ions or a spec Ial Ised extreme effort Imposed on the Ind Iv Idual so as to prepare a greater general poss Ib Il Ity for the race. The true and full object and ut Il Ity of Yoga can only be accompl Ished when the consc Ious
Yoga In man becomes, l Ike the subconsc Ious Yoga In Nature, outwardly conterm Inous w Ith l Ife Itself and we can once more, look Ing out both on the path and the ach Ievement, say In a more perfect and lum Inous sense: "All l Ife Is Yoga."
Io controls> Io>
0.02 - II - The Home of the Guru, #Evening Talks With Sri Aurobindo, #unset, #Zen
object:0.02 - I I - The Home of the Guru
author class:A B Puran I
--
INTRODUCT ION I I
I I
Guru-gr Iha-vsa stay Ing In the home of the Guru Is a very old Ind Ian Ideal ma Inta Ined by seekers through the ages. The Aranyakas the anc Ient teach Ings In the forest-groves are perhaps the oldest records of the Inst Itut Ion. It was not for educat Ion In the modern sense of the term that men went to l Ive w Ith the Guru; for the Guru Is not a 'teacher'. The Guru Is one who Is 'enl Ightened', who Is a seer, a R Ish I, one who has the v Is Ion of and has l Ived the Truth. He has, thus, the knowledge of the goal of human l Ife and has learnt true values In l Ife by l Iv Ing the Truth. He can Impart both these to the w Ill Ing seeker. In anc Ient t Imes seekers went to the Guru w Ith many quest Ions, d Iff Icult Ies and doubts but also w Ith earnestness. The Ir quest Ions were prel Im Inary to the quest.
The Master, the Guru, set at rest the puzzled human m Ind by h Is Illum Inat Ing answers, perhaps even more by h Is s Ilent consc Iousness, so that It m Ight be able to pursue unhampered the path of real Isat Ion of the Truth. Those anc Ient d Iscourses answer the m Ind of man today even across the ages. They have r Ightly acqu Ired as everyth Ing of the past does a certa In sanct Ity. But somet Imes that very reverence prevents men from properly evaluat Ing, and l Iv Ing In, the present. Th Is happens when the m Ind Instead of seek Ing the Sp Ir It looks at the form. For Instance, It Is not necessary for such d Iscourses that they take place In forest-groves In order to be h Ighly sp Ir Itual. Wherever the Master Is, there Is L Ight. And guru-gr Iha the house of the Master can be h Is pr Ivate dwell Ing place. So much was th Is feel Ing a part of Sr I Aurob Indo's nature and so part Icular was he to ma Inta In the personal character of h Is work that dur Ing the f Irst few years after 1923 he d Id not l Ike h Is house to be called an 'Ashram', as the word had acqu Ired the sense of a publ Ic Inst Itut Ion to the modern m Ind. But there was no doubt that the flower of D Iv In Ity had blossomed In h Im; and d Isc Iples, l Ike bees seek Ing honey, came to h Im. It Is no exaggerat Ion to say that these Even Ing Talks were to the small company of d Isc Iples what the Aranyakas were to the anc Ient seekers. Seek Ing the L Ight, they came to the dwell Ing place of the Ir Guru, the greatest seer of the age, and found It the Ir sp Ir Itual home the home of the Ir parents, for the Mother, h Is compan Ion In the great m Iss Ion, had come. And these sp Ir Itual parents bestowed upon the d Isc Iples freely of the Ir L Ight, the Ir Consc Iousness, the Ir Power and the Ir Grace. The modern reader may f Ind that the form of these d Iscourses d Iffers from those of the past but It was bound to be so for the s Imple reason that the t Imes have changed and the problems that puzzle the modern m Ind are so d Ifferent. Even though the d Isc Iples may be very Imperfect representat Ions of what he a Imed at In them, st Ill they are h Is creat Ions. It Is In order to repay, In however Inf In Ites Imal a degree, the debt wh Ich we owe to h Im that the effort Is made to partake of the joy of h Is company the Even Ing Talks w Ith a larger publ Ic.
***
I I I I
0.02 - Letters to a Sadhak, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
To the sadhak In charge of the Sr I Aurob Indo Ashram Bu Ild Ing
Department dur Ing the 1930s and early 1940s.
--
You are expect Ing those who are work Ing w Ith you to be gen Iuses. It Is not qu Ite fa Ir.
I have seen your ch It for wash Ing soap. You got the last one on
--
last 30 days. It Is qu Ite ev Ident that your cool Ie Is steal Ing the
soap, and I have no Intent Ion of prov Id Ing h Im w Ith wash Ing
soap. Some dev Ice must be found to check h Im; words are of no
--
(Th Is t Ime I have sanct Ioned the soap.)
X has started a new notebook; but It seems to me that he had
not f In Ished the prev Ious one.
--
month. W Ill you see If Indeed the prev Ious book Is f In Ished or
not, and act accord Ingly.
In future I w Ill be obl Iged to ask for the f In Ished notebook
before I can sanct Ion a new one. That Is to say, each t Ime that
a notebook Is to be renewed the f In Ished notebook must be sent
up to me at the same t Ime as the ch It for the new one.
--
Y Is compla In Ing that cement dust falls In the cattle-feed when
It Is prepared on the verandah.
Perhaps th Is Is what makes the bullocks Ill. One of these
poor creatures has grown terr Ibly th In. I saw It th Is morn Ing.
Please see whether some better arrangement can be made.
(About Increas Ing the s Ize of a bathroom)
It seems to me qu Ite suff Ic Iently b Ig. They have no Intent Ion of
us Ing the Ir bathroom as a ballroom, I suppose.
How Is It that you have not spoken to me about the bakery
knead Ing table for two days? If It Is not repa Ired at once, we
shall have no bread to eat. The work must be done Immed Iately.
I am not feel Ing comfortable about the d In Ing room. It Is not by
merely say Ing: "noth Ing w Ill happen" that an acc Ident can be
--
format Ion Is at least as strong as yours - and we must never
tempt the adverse forces.
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
I ask you to d Iscard all obst Inacy and to be perfectly s Incere.
Go and see w Ith no preconce Ived Idea.
Go and see honestly, carefully, all round the place; cons Ider
that th Irty people or so are tak Ing the Ir meals there and If anyth Ing happened what a horr Ible th Ing It would be - and, w Ith
the sense of your full respons Ib Il Ity, come tomorrow morn Ing,
w Ith a f Inal and def In Ite answer - I shall trust your word.
P.S. Naturally I am not expect Ing you to go ton Ight but
tomorrow morn Ing.
--
that bench. The mason was not Injured. The Inc Ident
rem Inded Z that 1:30 to 3:30 P.M. on Thursdays Is
Rahukal.1
It Is always better NOT to remember such superst It Ions. It Is the
suggest Ion that acts In these cases - most often a suggest Ion
In the subconsc Ient m Ind; but It Is made stronger by becom Ing
consc Ious.
--
Four bats were found In the north end of the west
roofbeam. Two of them got drenched w Ith sol Ignum.2
--
It In h Is eyes.
Rahukal: an Inausp Ic Ious per Iod each day, accord Ing to local superst It Ion.
Sol Ignum: a wood preservat Ive that deters wh Ite ants (term Ites).
--
WHAT IT MEANS If someth Ing ser Ious happens?
The lack of precaut Ion Is a part of the movement of hurry
and Impat Ience.
I have not Iced that even In cases where Mother knows
our needs, She wa Its to be asked before grant Ing them.
Not exact In all cases and espec Ially not w Ith everybody.
My explanat Ion, based on my own exper Ience, Is th Is:
I feel a reserve wh Ile ask Ing someth Ing from Mother.
But In fact, there should be no reserve In our deal Ings
w Ith Mother; all movements should be movements of
joy, Includ Ing the movement of ask Ing. As th Is Is lack Ing,
Mother Is tra In Ing us by mak Ing us ask w Ith joy.
It Is not qu Ite that. In each case there Is, probably, a spec Ial
reason. What Is constant Is a d Ifference of apprec Iat Ion In the
urgency of the needs and the Importance attached to the Ir fulf Ilment. I attach also some value to the power of Imag Inat Ion,
adaptab Il Ity, ut Il Isat Ion or Invent Ion developed by the necess Ity
of overcom Ing some mater Ial d Iff Iculty.
The cause of reserve In ask Ing Is that a person Is full
of des Ires. If he expresses all h Is demands - wh Ich he
bel Ieves to be needs - he w Ill be d Is Illus Ioned. He prefers
--
Yes, so long as there are des Ires, no true Int Imacy can be
establ Ished.
--
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
(Regard Ing the m Isuse of "gr Is entret Ien", ma Intenance
--
w Ith "gr Is entret Ien". I had Informed the stores not to
Issue gr Is entret Ien except for Sr I Aurob Indo's room.
But who Is respons Ible for hav Ing g Iven the pa Int? Was not the
fact that the "gr Is entret Ien" must be kept for the doors and w Indows In Sr I Aurob Indo's room only, told to those In charge?(!)
Why was my stool at all pa Inted w Ith gr Is entret Ien? I d Id
not ask for the grey pa Int as far as I remember.
In th Is case the pa Int sl Ipped out because It was asked
for Mother's stool.
A rule Is a rule and I do not see why my stool escaped the rule,
unless a ch It s Igned by me could be produced.
"To turn towards Thee, un Ite w Ith Thee, l Ive In Thee and
for Thee, Is supreme happ Iness, unm Ixed joy, Immutable
peace.... Why do men flee from these boons as though
--
I st Ill wonder why and I can f Ind no answer except that stup Id Ity
rules the world.
--
and Inc Idents of days long past. It takes pleasure In compar Ing how d Ifferent I am now from what I was then.
Extract from the Mother's Prayers and Med Itat Ions, 18 June 1913.
It Is good somet Imes to look backwards for a conf Irmat Ion of
the progress made, but only If It Is used as a lever to encourage
one In the efforts towards the progress st Ill to be made.
27 June 1932
--
was a table of Rahukal, g Iv Ing the Inausp Ic Ious hours
for each day of the month. I have pasted a blank p Iece
of paper over It.
I pray for a grac Ious word from You to str Ike at the
--
Do you bel Ieve It Is so easy to str Ike at the root of a stup Id Ity?
Stup Id It Ies are always rooted deep down In the subconsc Ient.
1 July 1932
--
unknown Is before us."4 What Is the remedy?
Be plast Ic and v Ig Ilant, attent Ive and alert - recept Ive.
--
By the way, I have seen the pa Inter sand-paper Ing the salon table
and was horr If Ied! He was rubb Ing v Iolently and In any d Irect Ion
w Ith one or the other hand, wh Ile he was look Ing at anyth Ing
--
a treatment!! I prefer not to th Ink of what w Ill come out of so
much unconsc Iousness and carelessness.
--
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
"One s Ingle drop of Thy d Iv Ine love can transform th Is
suffer Ing Into an ocean of del Ight!
Oh! Let all tears be w Iped away, all suffer Ing rel Ieved, all angu Ish d Ispelled, and let a calm seren Ity dwell
--
he descr Ibed - but Is It really necessary? Th Is Is not what heals.
Heal Ing comes not from the head but from the heart.
To understand Is good, but to w Ill Is better.
Self-love Is the great obstacle.
D Iv Ine love Is the great remedy.
20 July 1932
--
Weep If you l Ike, but do not worry. After the ra In the sun sh Ines
more br Ight.
I am roll Ing In my bed In the hope of gett Ing sleep.
Peace, peace, my ch Ild; do not torment yourself.
The sadhak's prayer Is composed of extracts from several prayers of the Mother In
Prayers and Med Itat Ions,: paragraph one, 29 November 1913; two, 7 January 1914;
--
But what was th Is darkness? I could not recogn Ise myself
dur Ing the last four hours. I was st Iff, I was burn Ing w Ith
heat, all was gloom.
--
I was Imag In Ing that Mother w Ill throw away th Is book
In d Isgust, or that Sr I Aurob Indo w Ill wr Ite two pages
--
from tomorrow. Mother w Ill say: th Is Is the effect of
Indulg Ing h Imself so much In the morn Ing! He deserves
to be k Icked out. And so on.
--
By the way, I don't f Ind that the Host Ile Forces have much
Imag Inat Ion; they are always repeat Ing the same old tr Icks! They
--
O Sweet, Sweet Mother, Thy Peace Is In me, Thy Peace
Is In me, Thy Peace Is In me.
Sleep, ch Ild, sleep, w Ith sweet Mother In your heart!
Awake, ch Ild, awake, w Ith sweet Mother In your heart!
21 July 1932
"O Love, D Iv Ine Love, In a fecund s Ilence I bow to
Thee"6...
I open myself to Thee and I would obey Thee w Ith an absolute
fa Ithfulness.
--
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
True greatness, true super Ior Ity l Ies In k Indness and goodw Ill.
I trust that X Is not truly provok Ing. I would not l Ike It at
all. Each one has h Is faults and must never forget It when he
deals w Ith others.
--
It Is always better not to show too much what I have wr Itten,
as I am not deal Ing w Ith everybody In the same way, and what
I can say to one I would not say to another.
Guard aga Inst all Ind Iv Idual dec Is Ion (wh Ich can be arb Itrary).
30 July 1932
--
It Is adorat Ion express Ing Itself In work - all the more prec Ious.
31 July 1932
I th Irst for Thy consc Iousness, O Sweet Mother, I become
one w Ith Thee.
Th Is th Irst shall be quenched when th Is ("O Sweet Mother, I
become one w Ith Thee") Is psycholog Ically real Ised.
2 August 1932
Th Is even Ing when Y Informed me that Z was Ill, I excla Imed that she must have revolted aga Inst Mother. He
asked me whether It was my bel Ief that the cause for
s Ickness Is always a revolt or wrong att Itude. I sa Id Yes.
He asked me to g Ive a concrete example. I descr Ibed
an Inc Ident In wh Ich Mother found defects In my work,
Prayers and Med Itat Ions, 29 January 1914.
wh Ich led to a subdued revolt In me and consequent
Illness. He po Inted to h Is f Ingers and sa Id that he was
--
cause of the pa In In h Is f Ingers.
The wrong att Itude can be In the body consc Iousness Itself (lack
of fa Ith or of recept Iv Ity) and then It Is very d Iff Icult to detect
as It does not correspond to any wrong thought or feel Ing, the
body consc Iousness be Ing most often and In almost everybody
subconsc Ious.
Is It good to talk about one's exper Iences, as In the above
conversat Ion?
No general rule can be made for th Is, each case Is d Ifferent. The
Important po Int Is the att Itude beh Ind the talk. It Is only what Is
sa Id as a pure and s Incere offer Ing on the altar of D Iv Ine Truth
--
There was l Ightness, m Irth and joy In Your express Ions
th Is morn Ing, as If to counteract the graveness I was
feel Ing.
--
reproach In what I was say Ing, because there was noth Ing of
the k Ind In my Intent Ion. I was g Iv Ing express Ion to an amused
observat Ion about the ways of the world and how It cannot but
m Isunderstand our own ways, we who are too s Incerely seek Ing
--
people. It Is th Is seek Ing wh Ich g Ives the Impress Ion of hes Itat Ion,
uncerta Inty, unsuccessful attempts, etc.
--
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
"Grant that we may effectuate Thy V Ictory"8 If the
t Ime has come... but It Is for You to answer, O Sweet
Mother.
It Is by the concentrat Ion of our w Ill and the Intens Ity of our
asp Irat Ion that we can hasten the day of v Ictory.
--
As to my bel Ief In the eff Icacy of prayer, I bel Ieve
In Its eff Icacy only when It Is addressed to the Mother.
I mean that Mother In that room who Is there In flesh
and blood. If you refer your prayer to some unknown
or unknowable or Inv Is Ible god, I do der Ide It as mere
ph Ilosophy.
I f Ind your answer qu Ite good. But X Is qu Ite free to expect more
help from an Inv Is Ible and s Ilent Mother (who never contrad Icts
you openly) If he l Ikes.
15 August 1932
Why do I do someth Ing In dream wh Ich I would not do
In the wak Ing consc Iousness?
The movement comes from a subconsc Ient layer wh Ich Is not
allowed to express Itself In the dayt Ime.
Is It because there Is no mental control In the dream state
and hence the v Ital be Ing Is free to act as It l Ikes?
Prayers and Med Itat Ions, 19 June 1914.
No true and constant control Is establ Ished In that part as yet.
An exper Iment: Th Is morn Ing wh Ile superv Is Ing work,
--
feel the joy of It. After concentrat Ing l Ike th Is for about
an hour, I felt fat Igued and Impercept Ibly the concentrat Ion fr Ittered away. What Is the cause of th Is feel Ing of
fat Igue? What Is the d Iff Iculty In keep Ing such a concentrat Ion for all the 24 hours?
The phys Ical be Ing Is always fat Igued when It Is asked to keep a
last Ing concentrat Ion.
--
The one that Is done In the most perfect sp Ir It of consecrat Ion.
20 August 1932
A reservat Ion: Mother sa Id th Is morn Ing that It would
take one and a half months to f In Ish the bathroom. I
sa Id Yes. In fact, I expected It to be f In Ished w Ith In a
month. Two confl Ict Ing thoughts passed rap Idly through
my m Ind when I sa Id Yes: (1) When Mother says that It
w Ill take one and a half months, naturally that should be
correct; there may be some delays I cannot foresee. (2)
But why should I not say that accord Ing to my est Imate,
It Is 30 days' work?
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
It Is good, It Is Ind Ispensable that you should th Ink that the work
w Ill take only 30 days; otherw Ise It would extend over more than
two months!
But I want It to be good rather than qu Ick.
I pray to Mother that there may be no unforeseen delays.
I hope so also - but I have seen that the work takes always
longer than your est Imate and we are pushed on and on week
after week. I l Ike better to count largely and not to be d Isappo Inted.
Mother, what Is the proper att Itude? If I hear suggest Ion
(1), I feel I am keep Ing a reserve. If I hear suggest Ion (2),
I feel I am contrad Ict Ing Mother. What should I do?
There Is no contrad Ict Ion In stat Ing what you th Ink. I am not
expect Ing you to be a prophet and that your thought should be
--
Yesterday I told You, "All have gone." In fact I saw
that the carpenter was go Ing, not gone, and I calculated
that by the t Ime I came out and closed the door, he
should be gone. So I repl Ied, "Yes, Mother, the last man
has gone." And lo, there he Is, arrang Ing the pol Ish Ing
stones! If I had drawn back for only a second before
hasten Ing to reply, I would have g Iven a more prec Ise
reply. I feel a l Ittle uneasy about It.
Noth Ing to be uneasy about. The spontaneous answers of the external consc Iousness are always vague and somewhat Incorrect.
It needs a great v Ig Ilance to correct that - and a very f Irm resolut Ion too. Th Is Inc Ident may be meant to ra Ise In you the
resolut Ion.
--
I am feel Ing t Ired today. I have not exerted myself,
nor have I econom Ised on sleep or rest. I was also gett Ing
m Ild suggest Ions of vom It Ing, but they have stopped by
--
I am not aston Ished. You have reached a po Int of Inner progress
when you can no more get Into f Its of anger w Ithout feel Ing the
results of It. You must, once for all, take the resolut Ion - and
keep It: NEVER LOSE YOUR TEMPER.
I told you already that far from d Im In Ish Ing, your hold upon
the workmen can but Increase by It.
26 September 1932
It Is better s Imply to be s Incere than to be clever.
31 October 1932
To love the D Iv Ine Is to be loved by H Im.
2 November 1932
--
found, w Ith some d Iscomfort, that not a s Ingle one Is clos Ing
properly. Unless you are a Hercules and a wrestler you have no
hope of clos Ing them at all. They keep closed through goodw Ill, I
suppose, but th Is goodw Ill would certa Inly not stand any strong
--
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
Repa Irs are urgently needed. Tomorrow morn Ing I shall
show you the state of affa Irs.
--
work done by Y? How n Ice It Is! The work we have done
Is not so n Ice." I repl Ied: " I know at least one reason. It Is
because you are not w Ith the workmen all the t Ime. Th Is
--
I told you already that If someone refuses to be consc Ient Ious
In h Is work, what can I do? It Is true that the work suffers, but
he suffers st Ill more, for no amount of med Itat Ion can replace
s Incer Ity In the serv Ice of the D Iv Ine.
3 December 1932
--
"One must know how to soar In an Immutable conf Idence; In the sure fl Ight Is perfect knowledge."9 I don't
understand th Is sentence. How can one soar? What Is
the f Igurat Ive sense of th Is word?
It s Imply means to r Ise (soar Into the a Ir) above the ord Inary
consc Iousness, Into a h Igher consc Iousness from wh Ich one can
see th Ings from above, and thus see them more profoundly.
--
Joy l Ies In hav Ing absolute trust In the D Iv Ine.
2 January 1933
Why, when you get Into trouble, do you no longer ask for the
help of the D Iv Ine Grace? Yet you know from exper Ience that
the result Is unfa Il Ing and marvellous!
16 January 1933
--
des Ire and a need for the work. So th Is Is the method I
have adopted: When I th Ink I need someth Ing (anyth Ing),
I wa It. If the Inconven Ience caused by not hav Ing th Is
th Ing comes up aga In or Increases, I ask for It.
Then the des Ire gets exacerbated and the request Is made w Ith a
k Ind of sour rage.
--
method: ask Ing for a th Ing as soon as I th Ink I need
It, w Ithout th Ink Ing or putt Ing It off - but I don't dare
adopt th Is method.
There Is st Ill another method, far more Interest Ing than these
two: ask for noth Ing at all and see what happens.
G Ive me an Infall Ible method.
I don't have one.
--
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
Sweet Mother sa Id, "There Is st Ill another method." I
was a b It perplexed as to how to apply Sweet Mother's
words to the letter. I started follow Ing Her adv Ice. I
d Idn't ask for anyth Ing, even on Apr Il 1st,10 and that Is
another reason for my perplex Ity.
I am afra Id that In try Ing too hard to st Ick to the "letter", you
have lost the "sp Ir It". I was not referr Ing to the th Ings g Iven at
the "stores", and I was most surpr Ised to see that you d Id not
ask for anyth Ing on the f Irst. You would do well to ask str Ictly
--
Because others are mean Is no reason to be mean yourself.
24 Apr Il 1933
--
(who Is less than e Ight years old, I th Ink). Can he be
employed to clear the rubble at Ganapat I House?
It Is Imposs Ible to put a ch Ild of under e Ight to work. It would
be cr Im Inal.
--
The carpenter Y has taken ten days' leave In order to
get marr Ied aga In. He wants Rs. 40 advance, to be pa Id
back at the rate of Rs. 8 per month. I have already told
h Im that Mother approves ne Ither of marr Iage - far less
--
He Ins Ists on ask Ing Sweet Mother.
Your orders please, Mother wonderful!
What can we do? He Is a good and regular worker, Isn't he? I
hope th Is new marr Iage w Ill not make h Im Irregular.
Should we g Ive h Im the money? If you th Ink It Is necessary,
I shall not say No.
--
the tape Is not Ind Ispensable. But there Is a d Issat Isfact Ion
somewhere In my be Ing. I can't p Inpo Int th Is recalc Itrant
spot. Is It my m Ind? Isn't It the m Ind that shows the
absurd Ity of th Is request?
It Is a mental format Ion prompted by a des Ire of the v Ital,
wh Ich protests and rebels because It cannot be fulf Illed. These
format Ions are autonomous ent It Ies. That Is why, once they are
made, the consc Ious w Ill loses nearly all control over them unless
a counter-format Ion Is made to destroy them. Someth Ing l Ike
th Is, for example: " I do not want to rece Ive a measur Ing-tape.
--
me one, for It would cover me w Ith shame and embarrassment.
Such Ignorant and obst Inate des Ires are unworthy of a ch Ild of
the Mother."
--
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
Sweet Mother,
The blacksm Ith: an Iron shav Ing got Into h Is eye. Is
there any connect Ion between the fact that I gave h Im
the job of mak Ing rods for X's embro Idery frame w Ithout
f Irst hav Ing spoken to You about It and the acc Ident that
occurred later? When the blacksm Ith came to see me
after the acc Ident I wondered whether there was any
connect Ion, and when You sa Id that You had doubts
--
These movements spr Ing from des Ire and Ignorance (X's des Ire
for a frame w Ithout any exact knowledge of how the frame has
to be made) and they develop w Ithout harmony, In d Isorder and
confus Ion, somet Imes produc Ing the most unfortunate results as
In th Is case. I w Ill expla In: the Idea of a b Ig frame Is excellent
but d Iff Icult to execute. If the des Ire had not been there Ins Ist Ing
on Immed Iate real Isat Ion, the project could have been exam Ined
carefully before be Ing carr Ied out and Its execut Ion would have
been more harmon Ious.
--
Do you know what a sw Ing Is?
It Is a playth Ing I enjoyed very much when I was small.
It Is made of wood, and the plank you sw Ing on Is suspended
by strong ropes from r Ings f Ixed to a bar above. The support Ing posts are securely set In the ground. I was th Ink Ing that
someth Ing s Im Ilar could be made for the s Ieve.
--
a cr It Ical eye and everyth Ing goes to prove that In real Ity I
know noth Ing, I can do noth Ing, I am good for noth Ing.
Hav Ing recogn Ised th Is, I have lost all joy In act Ion.
S Imply welcome the fact that you have become aware of a lack
of thoroughness, s Ince th Is awareness allows you to make further progress. Indeed, mak Ing progress, overcom Ing a d Iff Iculty,
learn Ing someth Ing, see Ing clearly Into an element of unconsc Iousness - these are the th Ings that make one truly happy.
22 September 1933
--
How can people Insult me so eas Ily, I wonder. Is
It that my features are lack Ing In v Igour? Is It that I
am scornful of others and therefore others treat me
scornfully? I try aga In and aga In, but I can't f Ind any
sat Isfactory explanat Ion.
It may be that phys Ical appearance has someth Ing to do w Ith It,
but truly speak Ing It does not count for much. I bel Ieve rather
In the Influence of atmospheres. Each one has around h Im an
atmosphere made of the v Ibrat Ions that come from h Is character,
--
contag Ious; that Is to say, we read Ily p Ick up the v Ibrat Ion of
someone we meet, espec Ially If that v Ibrat Ion Is at all strong. So
It Is easy to understand that someone who carr Ies In and around
h Imself peace and goodw Ill, w Ill In a way Impose on others
at least someth Ing of h Is peace and goodw Ill, whereas scorn,
Irr Itab Il Ity and anger w Ill arouse s Im Ilar movements In others.
The explanat Ion of many events may be found along th Is l Ine -
although, of course, It Is not the only explanat Ion!
30 October 1933
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
Sweet Mother,
--
heart towards You: "May th Is day br Ing me an opportun Ity to rema In calm even In the face of provocat Ion." It
was a very spontaneous prayer.
Now that Is Indeed an Imprudent prayer! It Is as If you were
del Iberately attract Ing an unpleasant exper Ience to yourself.
--
someone.) I regret hav Ing lost my temper wh Ile pronounc Ing these last sentences. I have not Iced that even
when I am consc Ious, If I open my mouth I lose my selfcontrol. I get angr Ier and angr Ier from one sentence to
the next.
The conclus Ion Is therefore obv Ious: It would be better not to
open your mouth. In certa In cases, as In th Is one, It Is w Iser to
turn your back than to open your mouth.
--
Regard Ing the part It Ion-cupboard In Y's room: I
made the shelves of th Is cupboard out of small p Ieces
--
It Is the tr Iumph of ego Ism. You may show th Is to them and add
that It Is I who gave the order to make all poss Ible use of the old
p Ieces of wood.
--
I forgot to enqu Ire about an Important po Int. S Ince the
vessels used for cook Ing are very large, the top of the f Ireplaces should not be much h Igher than ground level. Th Is must
be checked wh Ile the k Itchen Is be Ing repa Ired. The top of
the f Ire-places should not be more than f Ifty cent Imetres above
--
What should I do, Sweet Mother? I call for Your help.
You must be calm and concentrated, never utter an unnecessary
sentence and have fa Ith In the d Iv Ine help.
12 December 1933
--
An exerc Ise: If you not Ice that your vo Ice Is r Is Ing,
stop speak Ing Immed Iately; call upon Sweet Mother to
make you aware of the h Idden deformat Ion. Is It all r Ight,
Sweet Mother?
It Is qu Ite all r Ight.
All my compl Iments for th Is apprec Iable progress.
--
"Att Ila, K Ing of the Huns In 434, devastated the c It Ies of
Gaul but spared Lutet Ia after be Ing d Iverted by Sa Int
Genev Ieve." I don't understand the phrase "d Iverted
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
by Sa Int Genev Ieve". D Id Sa Int Genev Ieve d Ivert Att Ila
--
obta Ined the Intervent Ion of the D Iv Ine Grace. Th Is prompted
Att Ila to alter the route of h Is troops, and so he gave the c Ity a
--
I have had a pa In In the r Ight s Ide of my chest and In
the left s Ide of my back for the past three or four days.
I dec Ided to be brave and not tell You about It, but the
pa In has grown sharper s Ince yesterday.
It was not at all clever to have sa Id noth Ing about It. If you had
told me Immed Iately, you would already have been cured.
13 February 1934
--
Mr. Z: I have heard that Sr I Aurob Indo can commun Icate at a d Istance. Is It true?
Sadhak: That Is noth Ing. He Isn't Interested In occult
powers; It Isn't H Is a Im.
Mr. Z: But even so, can He commun Icate w Ith someone In Calcutta?
Sadhak: Yes, If the other person Is recept Ive. Suppose I have d Iff Icultes In my work. There Is no way of
commun Icat Ing w Ith Mother. I can't f Ind the solut Ion.
I concentrate on Mother, ask Her to gu Ide me and f Ind
the solut Ion. Th Is Is not unusual. It has happened several
t Imes.
--
Mr. Z: Are you sure It Isn't a halluc Inat Ion?
(The Mother underl Ined most of the remarks above
--
It would have been better not to say the th Ings I have marked In
red penc Il. Th Is falls under the "powers" that It would be better
not to ment Ion. E Ither the person you are speak Ing to does
--
wh Ich Is always dangerous.
If someone asks you about Sr I Aurob Indo's powers, It Is
always better to say: " I don't know. He doesn't tell us about
--
And don't speak about me unless It Is unavo Idable. I am
putt Ing a copy of the Conversat Ions In the tray for Mr. Z.
27 March 1934
--
When I read a novel or anyth Ing In pr Int I clearly understand, say, e Ighty per cent. But when someone speaks,
I have great d Iff Iculty In follow Ing h Im. I m Iss more than
half.
Does th Is Imply that the report of your conversat Ion w Ith Mr. Z
Is Inaccurate? Th Is Is very ser Ious - you should not put words
Into h Is mouth wh Ich he d Idn't say. You must report th Ings
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
exactly as you heard them, and when you are not sure you must
--
sat Isf Ied w Ith know Ing It Is there?
16 Apr Il 1934
--
I adm It that I have much to learn from X. I bow to
Sweet Mother In X. Make our relat Ionsh Ip one through
wh Ich I may benef It and come to know you.
I apprec Iate th Is att Itude and th Is effort. It proves the s Incer Ity of
your asp Irat Ion. But I d Id not have that part Icular po Int In m Ind
- I was speak Ing In a much more general way. All of you, In
your relat Ionsh Ips w Ith one another, have much to change and
--
only In French. I don't th Ink you should do th Is, for It would
amount to Impos Ing the study of French on all those who work
In the Bu Ild Ing Department, wh Ich Is Imposs Ible.
For Instance, Y once asked me whether It was Ind Ispensable
to learn French and I told h Im No. Others too are In the same
pos It Ion. In my op In Ion you should add an Engl Ish vers Ion to
the French and c Irculate both together.
--
work Ing hour from s Ix to seven In the even Ing. I have sa Id Yes.
For surely you must know that In France all the extra hours In
the even Ing are pa Id double, and th Is seems reasonable.
--
I have a confess Ion to make. My m Ind Is flooded
w Ith contrad Ict Ions and doubts. I have struggled aga Inst
th Is onslaught desperately, but st Ill I haven't found peace.
Last n Ight I made an effort. I made an est Imate of
the expend Itures and workers needed for our project, as
well as I could w Ith my short and l Im Ited fores Ight. I
was completely dejected. What should I do?
These th Ings need to be cons Idered carefully, not l Ightly as one
--
As soon as the project Is completely ready, when you have
worked everyth Ing out and can answer my quest Ions, I shall
call you one morn Ing alone w Ith X Into my l Ittle room, and we
shall d Iscuss the matter qu Ietly. When w Ill you learn not to lose
--
not, by my own do Ing, exactly as you had planned? I th Ink It Is
h Igh t Ime you learned th Is and I f Ind that you g Ive me very l Ittle
cred It, less perhaps than you would g Ive an ord Inary bu Ild Ing
contractor who, In your eyes, seems to know h Is job and have
some common sense.
--
All that you say Is qu Ite true and there are st Ill many other
th Ings you have not sa Id, but wh Ich I know. The trouble m Ight
be summed up thus:
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
1) Too many workers.
--
3) Lack of consc Iousness In some of the superv Isors.
Naturally, No. 2 could be set r Ight by Increas Ing the number
of superv Isors, prov Ided, of course, that they are s Incere and
--
consc Ient Ious) Is the most d Iff Icult to ach Ieve.
Several t Imes we have spoken In a general way about reduc Ing the number of workers. I have always sa Id Yes, and I would
be very happy to cut down expenses as much as poss Ible.
--
Now I propose th Is - to put up a not Ice wh Ich X could
draft along the follow Ing l Ines:
"The Ill-w Ill of the local res Idents has obl Iged me to stop
buy Ing houses; consequently there Is no longer enough work
to keep all the workers busy. I am very sorry about th Is, but I
am obl Iged to part w Ith a certa In number of them (you g Ive the
--
I am at even more of a loss to make a select Ion. Therefore I
am g Iv Ing them three weeks' advance not Ice: as of July 1st the
--
want to keep and tell them that the not Ice wh Ich Is go Ing to be
put up Is not meant for them and that In any event we want
to reta In the Ir serv Ices, so they do not have to look for work
elsewhere. To avo Id any poss Ible m Isunderstand Ing, It would be
best If X or Y speaks to them In your presence.
And from July 1st we shall also have to th Ink about reduc Ing
the number of projects undertaken at one t Ime, In order to meet
the d Iff Iculty of superv Is Ion.
Th Is Is what I see most clearly at the moment.
5 June 1934
--
All the pa In I have felt t Ill ton Ight comes from my
reservat Ions w Ith regard to Sweet Mother. Is my d Iagnos Is correct? If so, how can I do away w Ith these
reservat Ions w Ithout seem Ing to contrad Ict or embarrass
--
I am go Ing to beg In by tell Ing you a very l Ittle story. Then I shall
answer you.
You must have seen the new clock wh Ich Is supposed to run
for s Ix months. When It was f Irst set go Ing, It ran very fast. Z
tr Ied to f Igure out how to adjust It and found a sort of screw
wh Ich Is used to lengthen or shorten the pendulum. I looked
at the clock w Ith my Inner s Ight and told Z, "To make It go
slower, you have to shorten the pendulum." He looked at me
In bew Ilderment and expla Ined that In mechan Ics the longer the
pendulum Is, the slower the movement. ( I knew that very well
- but th Is Is not an ord Inary pendulum s Ince It works by rotary
movement.) I answered, as I always do, "Do as you th Ink best."
He lengthened the pendulum and the clock started go Ing even
faster. After observ Ing It for a day, he agreed to shorten the
pendulum and now the clock Is work Ing perfectly all r Ight.
I bel Ieve In the super Ior Ity of the Inner v Is Ion over the outer
v Is Ion and th Is bel Ief Is based not merely on theoret Ical knowledge but on the thousands of examples I have come across In
the course of a l Ife wh Ich Is already long. Unfortunately I am
surrounded by people who, though they are here to pract Ise
yoga, are st Ill conv Inced that "a cat Is a cat", as we commonly
say In French, and that one can rely only on one's phys Ical eyes
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
for see Ing and observ Ing, on one's phys Ical-mental knowledge
--
In other words, any except Ion to them Is a m Iracle. Th Is Is false.
Th Is Is what Is at the root of all the m Isunderstand Ings
and reservat Ions. You already know, and I ment Ion It only to
rem Ind you, that an exper Iment made In a sp Ir It of reserve and
doubt Is not an exper Iment, and that outer c Ircumstances w Ill
always consp Ire to just Ify these doubts, and th Is for a reason
wh Ich Is very easy to understand: doubt ve Ils the consc Iousness
and the subconsc Ious s Incer Ity, and Into the act Ion some small
factors creep In wh Ich may seem un Important, but wh Ich are
just suff Ic Ient to alter all the factors of the problem and to br Ing
--
of d Istemper Ing X's rooms arose, I looked very carefully several
t Imes w Ith the Inner eye and I saw th Is: brush the walls w Ith a
metal brush so that whatever Is loose falls off and cover the rest
w Ith a th Ick layer of d Istemper wh Ich by Its very th Ickness w Ill be
enough to conceal any Irregular It Ies. The process was supposed
to be s Imple, rap Id and fully sat Isfactory. I put forth all the
necessary force for It to become an effect Ive format Ion charged
w Ith the power of real Isat Ion, and I sa Id that the work could
proceed, add Ing In a few words how It was to be done. (Th Is was
long ago - the f Irst t Ime It was dec Ided to d Istemper the walls
of X's apartment, perhaps more than a year ago.) My format Ion
was so l Iv Ing, so real, so act Ive, that I made the m Istake of
not rem Ind Ing you about It before the work began. I have an
unfortunate tendency to bel Ieve that the consc Iousness of those
around me Is, at least part Ially and In Its l Im Ited work Ing, s Im Ilar
to m Ine. I shall expla In. I know that each of you has a very small
and l Im Ited consc Iousness compared w Ith m Ine, but w Ith In Its
l Im Its, I have the Illus Ion that Its nature Is s Im Ilar to m Ine, and
that Is why there are many th Ings I do not say, because to me they
are so obv Ious that It would be utterly po Intless to ment Ion them.
It Is here that on your s Ide a freedom of movement and speech
ar Is Ing from an affect Ionate conf Idence must come In: If there Is
someth Ing you are unsure of, you must ask me about It; If you
do not very clearly see my Intent Ion, you must enqu Ire about It;
If you do not grasp my format Ion In a very prec Ise way, you must
ask me to expla In It to you. When I do not do so, It Is because I
th Ink you are recept Ive enough for the format Ion to act and fulf Il
Itself w Ithout my need Ing to speak about It, and In fact th Is often
happens - It Is only when the m Ind and v Ital get In the way, for
one reason or another, that the work Ing becomes defect Ive.
Read th Is carefully, study It, and when you come today I w Ill
ask you to read It from the place I have marked w Ith a red cross,
for I th Ink It may be useful to everyone there. I shall probably
ask you to translate It Into Engl Ish, to make sure that you have
fully understood.
May Peace be w Ith you - I bless you.
7 June 1934
--
danger, It Is because there Is a h Idden reason somewhere.
That Is not exactly what I sa Id. I sa Id that a feel Ing of danger
should always be taken ser Iously when one Is respons Ible for
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
the state of th Ings, and that one should not say, " It Is noth Ing"
unless one Is ten t Imes sure It Is noth Ing.
22 August 1934
--
Wh Ile Inspect Ing the stores I found that the pr Inc Iple
of keep Ing all mater Ials w Ithout throw Ing anyth Ing away
--
If only the good mater Ials had been kept, It would
have been eas Ier to take care of them. Am I r Ight, Sweet
Mother?
I th Ink so. But more than anyth Ing, It Is the lack of organ Isat Ion
and order wh Ich causes all th Is waste. Certa Inly, If there Is not
enough room to keep th Ings In order and separate, the good
th Ings on one s Ide and the bad on the other, It Is better to get r Id
of the bad th Ings. But th Is should be done w Ith great care so as
--
X sent me a mason w Ith a d Ism Issal note th Is morn Ing. Later, I learnt from X that the mason had laughed
when X told h Im he was not sat Isf Ied w Ith the work he
had done. How should one determ Ine a worker's fate In
th Is and s Im Ilar cases?
--
be g Iven some other work and adv Ised to be pol Ite In the future.
24 October 1934
--
mater Ial by Ident If Icat Ion of consc Iousness. Is th Is true?
Is It poss Ible? For example, If there are cracks In a roof,
I want to know the exact cause. How can I Ident Ify
myself w Ith the roof? Is there a def In Ite method? Is th Is
method eas Ier and more certa In than the mental process
of reason Ing wh Ich Is based on acqu Ired exper Ience?
In theory, It Is true that everyth Ing can be known by Ident If Icat Ion, but In pract Ice It Is rather d Iff Icult to apply. The whole
process Is based on the power of concentrat Ion. One has to
concentrate on the object to be known ( In th Is case the roof)
--
Ident If Icat Ion. But It Is not very easy to do and there are other
means of know Ing bes Ides reason Ing - Intu It Ion, for example
- wh Ich are also effect Ive.
--
I s Ing Your pra Ises. I w Ill never forget how You respond when one calls You w Ith Intens Ity, nor the marvel
of Your presence wh Ich changes the att Itude of others
--
Th Is statement Is qu Ite true.
I bow to You, Sweet Mother. Be present In me always
and for ever.
Yes, I am always w Ith you, but you must never forget to call me,
for It Is by call Ing me that the presence becomes effect Ive.
15 December 1934
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
Sweet Mother,
I know that I was not obl Iged to g Ive Y an explanat Ion for my dec Is Ion. In h Is express Ion, the quest Ion was
there, but I could eas Ily have Ignored It. Why d Id I show
th Is weakness? O Sweet Mother, how should one act In
such cases?
Y's w Ill Is strong and he knows how to Impose It on others. The
only solut Ion Is to have a w Ill stronger than h Is and to use It
w Ith great calm, but also w Ith great determ Inat Ion.
--
L Isten to these two accounts of Inner suggest Ions.
(Two Instances are g Iven.) From these two accounts You
w Ill see that there were good grounds for the f Irst suggest Ion, whereas the second one was Importunate. How can
one d Ist Ingu Ish between these two types of suggest Ions?
It Is only by long exper Ience, tested many t Imes very carefully,
that one can d Iscr Im Inate between var Ious types of suggest Ions
--
Please forg Ive me for my amb Iguous reply to Z. I
bow to You, full of remorse.
Remorse Is of no use; you have to feel the joy of the poss Ib Il Ity
of mak Ing further progress.
--
fellow-worker.) I don't understand these two completely
d Ifferent movements In me: (1) one wh Ich dec Ides to
avo Id all contact w Ith X, d Irect or Ind Irect, and (2) the
other wh Ich sees any harmon Ious deal Ings between us
--
from It. I suggest that for the t Ime be Ing you avo Id contact w Ith
X as far as poss Ible. But If contact Is establ Ished, beware of
subconsc Ious react Ions and be very v Ig Ilant.
--
(A fellow-worker v Iolated the establ Ished work-procedure.) When I saw Y com Ing out of the workshop I was
struck by two suggest Ions: (1) If he has done someth Ing
w Ithout my knowledge, why should I Interfere? and (2)
S Ince I know all about It, I cannot rema In Ind Ifferent; I
must tell h Im that It Is not r Ight. I followed the second
suggest Ion.
What you d Id was good, In pr Inc Iple at least, for really so much
depends on one's cho Ice of words and tone of vo Ice.
--
What does "l Isten Ing to the vo Ice" mean? Is It l Ike
l Isten Ing to words that are pronounced? A ready-made
sentence, "Wr Ite down what Is there In the est Imate",
wanted to d Isturb my m Ind. I don't know where It came
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
from. Was It my own thought expressed In words, or was
It what Is known as a "vo Ice"? How can these th Ings be
d Ist Ingu Ished, Sweet Mother?
It was obv Iously an Inner vo Ice. One rarely hears the sound of
the words, but rather the message Is expressed as words In the
m Ind or somet Imes merely as a feel Ing In the heart.
23 May 1935
--
I have dec Ided to adopt the follow Ing att Itude towards Z. If I have any suggest Ion or remark to make
about the work, I shall do It very s Imply. If he accepts,
very good. If he doesn't, I shall keep s Ilent, w Ithout argu Ing, and let h Im do as he l Ikes. Is th Is att Itude correct?
No, It Is not correct - and I see that you have not understood the
Impl Icat Ions of my remark the other day. If you see someth Ing
that should be done In a certa In way, you should s Imply say:
"Th Is Is how I th Ink It should be done." If he contrad Icts you
and g Ives a d Ifferent op In Ion, you should s Imply answer: "All
--
h Im and you. It Is only a matter of obed Ience to me.
6 June 1935
--
O Sweet Mother, I assure You, I prom Ise You, that w Ith
Your Grace I w Ill be myself aga In w Ith In a short t Ime.
I asp Ire for the blessed day when the confl Ict, the
--
I bow to You In joyful grat Itude.
I am very happy about the way you have taken th Is matter.
When I speak to you so frankly, I am g Iv Ing you a great proof
of conf Idence.
--
(The sadhak refused to remove some na Ils In the wall
of someone's room, and wrote to the Mother expla In Ing
--
Yes, It Is correct as an analys Is, but a th Ing ought not to be
done for any of these personal cons Iderat Ions. The th Ing to be
done should be cons Idered In Itself, Independent of all personal
quest Ions. If the th Ing Is r Ight and good, one should do It. If not,
one should refra In from do Ing It.
It Is prec Isely because your refusal had no real cause that It
d Id not have the power to dom Inate the other man's w Ill.
--
Yesterday X asked me whether the na Ils In h Is wall
would be removed. In the absence of any def In Ite orders
on th Is po Int I sa Id, "Ask Mother." Later It was Sweet
Mother who dec Ided not to have them removed.
Yes, I hoped that h Is w Ill could be made to y Ield on th Is po Int,
because I thought It was absolutely true that remov Ing the na Ils
would damage the wall. But It was only very relat Ively true,
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
and so the format Ion d Id not have a power of truth suff Ic Ient to
d Issolve X's counter-format Ion. (Th Is Is true "occult Ism".)
I don't th Ink I can be the judge to dec Ide whether the
th Ing Is good or not, because my v Is Ion Is l Im Ited.
I never sa Id that you should be the judge. I agree to be the judge
In all cases, because I recogn Ise that It Is very d Iff Icult to know
whether a th Ing Is r Ight and good, unless one can see the law of
Truth beh Ind th Ings.
If You had sa Id to me, "Remov Ing the na Ils Is noth Ing, Is
It?", I would have repl Ied, "Noth Ing much." And If You
had sa Id, "What! Remov Ing the na Ils for noth Ing and
damag Ing the wall?", I would have repl Ied, "Senseless."
Th Is Is not r Ight. When I ask a quest Ion, I ask It In order to get exact and object Ive Informat Ion. I have sa Id th Is many t Imes. I have
no preconce Ived Idea, no preference, no op In Ion about th Ings.
If I could move about and see everyth Ing phys Ically for myself, I
would not need to get Informat Ion from anyone. But th Is Is not
the case, and th Is Is why I consult the people around me, because
they are able to move about. I do not want them to answer me
by echo Ing what they Imag Ine - wrongly - to be what I th Ink. I
want them to use the Ir powers of observat Ion and the Ir techn Ical
knowledge to g Ive me as prec Ise and exact Informat Ion as they
can. And on that Informat Ion I base my dec Is Ion.
18 July 1935
--
You wrote to me, " It Is prec Isely because your refusal had no real cause that It d Id not have the power
to dom Inate the other man's w Ill. So you should get the
na Ils removed." Th Is Is the sentence that upset me. Why
was there no real cause? Won't the holes spo Il the wall?
It all depends on what you mean by spo Il. I had understood
from what you told me that It would cause extens Ive damage.
From what X wrote, I understood that the na Ils were loose
and that a l Ittle scrap Ing and pull Ing would be enough to ease
them out. After averag Ing these two Interpretat Ions I saw that
the argument I gave X to make h Im accept the na Ils was not
true enough to have the power to overcome the host Il Ity of h Is
--
D Id I Invent th Is for some other mot Ive?
Look Into your heart, In all s Incer Ity, and you w Ill see that
If someone you l Iked had asked you to remove the na Ils, you
would not have found It so d Iff Icult and you would not have put
It In the same way.
I thought that my refusal was Ineffect Ive because It was
not supported by Sweet Mother, and I f Irmly bel Ieve that
noth Ing whatever can hold true or be effect Ive unless It
Is supported by Sweet Mother.
When we are In the presence of host Ile forces, only the pur Ity of
an absolute truth can conquer them.
Th Is Is the argument, almost word for word, that upset
me, and I st Ill haven't found the answer to th Is problem.
Enl Ighten me, Sweet Mother.
Your argument seems r Ight, but s Ince Its start Ing-po Int Is wrong
It no longer holds. Reread what I have wr Itten, carefully and
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
several t Imes If necessary; ponder every word so that you understand exactly what I am say Ing and noth Ing else.
20 July 1935
--
Always the same m Istake - you th Ink that I judge by what
people tell me! Whenever I am confronted w Ith a fact, e Ither
d Irectly or Ind Irectly, I look and judge for myself w Ithout the
Intervent Ion of anyone's op In Ion.
--
me that he d Idn't want It pa Inted I was surpr Ised, and
I revealed that Z had asserted that It was he, Y, who
wanted It done.
As a general rule, It Is better not to repeat to someone what
someone else has sa Id, for there Is always a r Isk of creat Ing
confus Ion and Increas Ing the d Iff Icult Ies.
11 December 1936
--
"Penetrate all my be Ing, transf Igure It t Ill Thou alone
l Ivest In us and through us."11
The ma In door of your be Ing Is open, but certa In other doors
are st Ill not open. You must open them all, for I am there and I
am wa It Ing.
--
X has just wr Itten that he has recogn Ised h Is m Istake In hav Ing
g Iven up the work and that he w Ill return to work th Is morn Ing.
So you should behave as If noth Ing had happened and welcome
h Im back. I hope that Y too w Ill not make any unnecessary
remarks.
--
Perhaps Sweet Mother Is d Ispleased w Ith me about someth Ing? I have no peace.
I am not at all d Ispleased. But what a strange Idea to let yourself
be upset by such l Ittle th Ings! What about the Yoga?
--
I don't know why I have lost my self-control and
peace.
It Is a p Ity! Perhaps you are a b It t Ired. I hope you are sleep Ing
well. I would l Ike you to go to bed earl Ier. Is all th Is work after
med Itat Ion (d Iscuss Ions, accounts, etc.) really Ind Ispensable? To
keep one's self-control, one needs to have t Ime enough to rest,
enter Into oneself and f Ind calm and qu Iet.
19 October 1938
--
I would l Ike to take part In all the shutter Ing and
bu Ild Ing work w Ithout offend Ing anyone. How should I
go about It? How can I wash away the past?
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
Once and for all, wash away the feel Ing that you are "super Ior" to others - for no one Is super Ior or Infer Ior before the
D Iv Ine.
--
For the past few days, every t Ime I meet X, he
wards me off. I looked Ins Ide myself to see If I have
recently done someth Ing to d Isplease h Im, but I can't f Ind
anyth Ing. Please tell me If I have done someth Ing wrong.
I know noth Ing about the matter. X has not wr Itten to me.
But one th Ing Is certa In: you g Ive far too much Importance
to the way people treat you. Th Is hypersens It Iv Ity Is the cause of
most of the m Isunderstand Ings.
--
w Ith X, I have fa Iled. I pray that you tell me In deta Il the
defects wh Ich prevent th Is ach Ievement. I prom Ise You
that I w Ill make a s Incere effort to get r Id of them, and
w Ith Your help I am sure to succeed.
I had dreamed that X and I would d Iscuss both the
work In hand and the work to be done and exchange
op In Ions - I mean, just as Y and I speak together. But
I am sorry to say that X keeps me at a d Istance and
rema Ins aloof, and when he does speak I f Ind h Im rather
d Iff Icult.
Th Is state of th Ings st Irs up react Ions of revolt In me,
and the efforts I make to rema In peaceful and calm seem
beyond my capac Ity.
I am afra Id It Is a lack of aff In Ity In the v Ital and even In the
m Ind. These th Ings are very d Iff Icult to overcome, for It requ Ires
that both of you open yourselves to a h Igher consc Iousness. Th Is
--
In the present cond It Ions I th Ink It would be better not to
pers Ist In your attempt at fr Iendly relat Ions w Ith h Im, for It only
Increases h Is sense of Importance.
As for the need to exchange your v Iews and op In Ions about
the work, I am st Ill not conv Inced of It. My Impress Ion Is that
one always says far more than Is necessary and that It Is not w Ith
words that good work gets done.
--
support In Thy Grace alone.
1940
(The sadhak recounted several Instances In wh Ich he got
upset and depressed because a fellow-worker d Id not
--
The d Isease: a narrow and ego Ist Ic amb It Ion In the m Ind express Ing Itself as a strong van Ity In the v Ital, thus d Istort Ing your
Ideas of th Ings and your react Ions.
--
I am happy that you have seen the l Ight, but It doesn't surpr Ise
me; I was sure that one day you would understand.
Ser Ies Two - To a Sadhak In the Bu Ild Ing Department
Let the l Ight of a lum Inous consc Iousness enter Into you;
w Iden yourself Into that vast consc Iousness so that every shadow
may d Isappear for ever.
--
It Is very good, my ch Ild; I was qu Ite sure that It would end th Is
way, for I know the goodness of your heart.
My bless Ings are w Ith you.
0.02 - The Three Steps of Nature, #The Synthesis Of Yoga, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
Chapter I I
The Three Steps of Nature
E RECOGN ISE then, In the past developments of
Yoga, a spec Ial Is Ing and separat Ive tendency wh Ich, l Ike all th Ings In Nature, had Its just Ify Ing and even Imperat Ive ut Il Ity and we seek a synthes Is of the spec Ial Ised a Ims and methods wh Ich have, In consequence, come Into be Ing.
But In order that we may be w Isely gu Ided In our effort, we must know, f Irst, the general pr Inc Iple and purpose underly Ing th Is separat Ive Impulse and, next, the part Icular ut Il It Ies upon wh Ich the method of each school of Yoga Is founded. For the general pr Inc Iple we must Interrogate the un Iversal work Ings of Nature herself, recogn Is Ing In her no merely spec Ious and Illus Ive act Iv Ity of a d Istort Ing Maya, but the cosm Ic energy and work Ing of God H Imself In H Is un Iversal be Ing formulat Ing and Insp Ired by a vast, an Inf In Ite and yet a m Inutely select Ive
W Isdom, prajna prasr.ta puran. of the Upan Ishad, W Isdom that went forth from the Eternal s Ince the beg Inn Ing. For the part Icular ut Il It Ies we must cast a penetrat Ive eye on the d Ifferent methods of Yoga and d Ist Ingu Ish among the mass of the Ir deta Ils the govern Ing Idea wh Ich they serve and the rad Ical force wh Ich g Ives b Irth and energy to the Ir processes of effectuat Ion.
Afterwards we may more eas Ily f Ind the one common pr Inc Iple and the one common power from wh Ich all der Ive the Ir be Ing and tendency, towards wh Ich all subconsc Iously move and In wh Ich, therefore, It Is poss Ible for all consc Iously to un Ite.
The progress Ive self-man Ifestat Ion of Nature In man, termed In modern language h Is evolut Ion, must necessar Ily depend upon three success Ive elements. There Is that wh Ich Is already evolved; there Is that wh Ich, st Ill Imperfect, st Ill partly flu Id, Is pers Istently In the stage of consc Ious evolut Ion; and there Is that wh Ich Is to be evolved and may perhaps be already
10
--
d Isplayed, If not constantly, then occas Ionally or w Ith some regular Ity of recurrence, In pr Imary format Ions or In others more developed and, It may well be, even In some, however rare, that are near to the h Ighest poss Ible real Isat Ion of our present human Ity. For the march of Nature Is not dr Illed to a regular and mechan Ical forward stepp Ing. She reaches constantly beyond herself even at the cost of subsequent deplorable retreats.
She has rushes; she has splend Id and m Ighty outbursts; she has Immense real Isat Ions. She storms somet Imes pass Ionately forward hop Ing to take the k Ingdom of heaven by v Iolence.
And these self-exceed Ings are the revelat Ion of that In her wh Ich Is most d Iv Ine or else most d Iabol Ical, but In e Ither case the most pu Issant to br Ing her rap Idly forward towards her goal.
That wh Ich Nature has evolved for us and has f Irmly founded Is the bod Ily l Ife. She has effected a certa In comb Inat Ion and harmony of the two Infer Ior but most fundamentally necessary elements of our act Ion and progress upon earth, -
Matter, wh Ich, however the too ethereally sp Ir Itual may desp Ise It, Is our foundat Ion and the f Irst cond It Ion of all our energ Ies and real Isat Ions, and the L Ife-Energy wh Ich Is our means of ex Istence In a mater Ial body and the bas Is there even of our mental and sp Ir Itual act Iv It Ies. She has successfully ach Ieved a certa In stab Il Ity of her constant mater Ial movement wh Ich Is at once suff Ic Iently steady and durable and suff Ic Iently pl Iable and mutable to prov Ide a f It dwell Ing-place and Instrument for the progress Ively man Ifest Ing god In human Ity. Th Is Is what Is meant by the fable In the A Itareya Upan Ishad wh Ich tells us that the gods rejected the an Imal forms success Ively offered to them by the D Iv Ine Self and only when man was produced, cr Ied out, "Th Is Indeed Is perfectly made," and consented to enter In. She has effected also a work Ing comprom Ise between the Inert Ia of matter and the act Ive L Ife that l Ives In and feeds on It, by wh Ich not only Is v Ital ex Istence susta Ined, but the fullest developments of mental Ity are rendered poss Ible. Th Is equ Il Ibr Ium const Itutes the bas Ic status of Nature In man and Is termed In the language of Yoga h Is gross body composed
The Three Steps of Nature
--
If, then, th Is Infer Ior equ Il Ibr Ium Is the bas Is and f Irst means of the h Igher movements wh Ich the un Iversal Power contemplates and If It const Itutes the veh Icle In wh Ich the D Iv Ine here seeks to reveal Itself, If the Ind Ian say Ing Is true that the body Is the Instrument prov Ided for the fulf Ilment of the r Ight law of our nature, then any f Inal reco Il from the phys Ical l Ife must be a turn Ing away from the completeness of the d Iv Ine W Isdom and a renunc Iat Ion of Its a Im In earthly man Ifestat Ion. Such a refusal may be, ow Ing to some secret law of the Ir development, the r Ight att Itude for certa In Ind Iv Iduals, but never the a Im Intended for mank Ind. It can be, therefore, no Integral Yoga wh Ich Ignores the body or makes Its annulment or Its reject Ion Ind Ispensable to a perfect sp Ir Itual Ity. Rather, the perfect Ing of the body also should be the last tr Iumph of the Sp Ir It and to make the bod Ily l Ife also d Iv Ine must be God's f Inal seal upon H Is work In the un Iverse. The obstacle wh Ich the phys Ical presents to the sp Ir Itual Is no argument for the reject Ion of the phys Ical; for In the unseen prov Idence of th Ings our greatest d Iff Icult Ies are our best opportun It Ies. A supreme d Iff Iculty Is Nature's Ind Icat Ion to us of a supreme conquest to be won and an ult Imate problem to be solved; It Is not a warn Ing of an Inextr Icable snare to be shunned or of an enemy too strong for us from whom we must flee.
Equally, the v Ital and nervous energ Ies In us are there for a great ut Il Ity; they too demand the d Iv Ine real Isat Ion of the Ir poss Ib Il It Ies In our ult Imate fulf Ilment. The great part ass Igned to th Is element In the un Iversal scheme Is powerfully emphas Ised by the cathol Ic w Isdom of the Upan Ishads. "As the spokes of a wheel In Its nave, so In the L Ife-Energy Is all establ Ished, the tr Iple knowledge and the Sacr If Ice and the power of the strong and the pur Ity of the w Ise. Under the control of the L IfeEnergy Is all th Is that Is establ Ished In the tr Iple heaven."2 It Is therefore no Integral Yoga that k Ills these v Ital energ Ies, forces them Into a nerveless qu Iescence or roots them out as the source
annakos.a and pran.akos.a.
Prasna Upan Ishad I I. 6 and 13.
12
--
of nox Ious act Iv It Ies. The Ir pur If Icat Ion, not the Ir destruct Ion, - the Ir transformat Ion, control and ut Il Isat Ion Is the a Im In v Iew w Ith wh Ich they have been created and developed In us.
If the bod Ily l Ife Is what Nature has f Irmly evolved for us as her base and f Irst Instrument, It Is our mental l Ife that she Is evolv Ing as her Immed Iate next a Im and super Ior Instrument. Th Is In her ord Inary exaltat Ions Is the lofty preoccupy Ing thought In her; th Is, except In her per Iods of exhaust Ion and reco Il Into a reposeful and recuperat Ing obscur Ity, Is her constant pursu It wherever she can get free from the trammels of her f Irst v Ital and phys Ical real Isat Ions. For here In man we have a d Ist Inct Ion wh Ich Is of the utmost Importance. He has In h Im not a s Ingle mental Ity, but a double and a tr Iple, the m Ind mater Ial and nervous, the pure Intellectual m Ind wh Ich l Iberates Itself from the Illus Ions of the body and the senses, and a d Iv Ine m Ind above Intellect wh Ich In Its turn l Iberates Itself from the Imperfect modes of the log Ically d Iscr Im Inat Ive and Imag Inat Ive reason. M Ind In man Is f Irst emmeshed In the l Ife of the body, where In the plant It Is ent Irely Involved and In an Imals always Impr Isoned. It accepts th Is l Ife as not only the f Irst but the whole cond It Ion of Its act Iv It Ies and serves Its needs as If they were the ent Ire a Im of ex Istence. But the bod Ily l Ife In man Is a base, not the a Im, h Is f Irst cond It Ion and not h Is last determ Inant. In the just Idea of the anc Ients man Is essent Ially the th Inker, the Manu, the mental be Ing who leads the l Ife and the body,3 not the an Imal who Is led by them. The true human ex Istence, therefore, only beg Ins when the Intellectual mental Ity emerges out of the mater Ial and we beg In more and more to l Ive In the m Ind Independent of the nervous and phys Ical obsess Ion and In the measure of that l Iberty are able to accept r Ightly and r Ightly to use the l Ife of the body. For freedom and not a sk Ilful subject Ion Is the true means of mastery. A free, not a compulsory acceptance of the cond It Ions, the enlarged and subl Imated cond It Ions of our phys Ical be Ing, Is the h Igh human Ideal. But beyond th Is Intellectual mental Ity Is the d Iv Ine.
The mental l Ife thus evolv Ing In man Is not, Indeed, a
manomayah. pran.asarraneta. Mundaka Upan Ishad I I. 2. 8.
The Three Steps of Nature
--
common possess Ion. In actual appearance It would seem as If It were only developed to the fullest In Ind Iv Iduals and as If there were great numbers and even the major Ity In whom It Is e Ither a small and Ill-organ Ised part of the Ir normal nature or not evolved at all or latent and not eas Ily made act Ive.
Certa Inly, the mental l Ife Is not a f In Ished evolut Ion of Nature; It Is not yet f Irmly founded In the human an Imal. The s Ign Is that the f Ine and full equ Il Ibr Ium of v Ital Ity and matter, the sane, robust, long-l Ived human body Is ord Inar Ily found only In races or classes of men who reject the effort of thought, Its d Isturbances, Its tens Ions, or th Ink only w Ith the mater Ial m Ind.
C Iv Il Ised man has yet to establ Ish an equ Il Ibr Ium between the fully act Ive m Ind and the body; he does not normally possess It.
Indeed, the Increas Ing effort towards a more Intense mental l Ife seems to create, frequently, an Increas Ing d Isequ Il Ibr Ium of the human elements, so that It Is poss Ible for em Inent sc Ient Ists to descr Ibe gen Ius as a form of Insan Ity, a result of degenerat Ion, a patholog Ical morb Id Ity of Nature. The phenomena wh Ich are used to just Ify th Is exaggerat Ion, when taken not separately, but In connect Ion w Ith all other relevant data, po Int to a d Ifferent truth. Gen Ius Is one attempt of the un Iversal Energy to so qu Icken and Intens Ify our Intellectual powers that they shall be prepared for those more pu Issant, d Irect and rap Id facult Ies wh Ich const Itute the play of the supra- Intellectual or d Iv Ine m Ind. It Is not, then, a freak, an Inexpl Icable phenomenon, but a perfectly natural next step In the r Ight l Ine of her evolut Ion.
She has harmon Ised the bod Ily l Ife w Ith the mater Ial m Ind, she Is harmon Is Ing It w Ith the play of the Intellectual mental Ity; for that, although It tends to a depress Ion of the full an Imal and v Ital v Igour, need not produce act Ive d Isturbances. And she Is shoot Ing yet beyond In the attempt to reach a st Ill h Igher level.
Nor are the d Isturbances created by her process as great as Is often represented. Some of them are the crude beg Inn Ings of new man Ifestat Ions; others are an eas Ily corrected movement of d Is Integrat Ion, often fru Itful of fresh act Iv It Ies and always a small pr Ice to pay for the far-reach Ing results that she has In v Iew.
We may perhaps, If we cons Ider all the c Ircumstances, come
14
--
to th Is conclus Ion that mental l Ife, far from be Ing a recent appearance In man, Is the sw Ift repet It Ion In h Im of a prev Ious ach Ievement from wh Ich the Energy In the race had undergone one of her deplorable reco Ils. The savage Is perhaps not so much the f Irst forefa ther of c Iv Il Ised man as the degenerate descendant of a prev Ious c Iv Il Isat Ion. For If the actual Ity of Intellectual ach Ievement Is unevenly d Istr Ibuted, the capac Ity Is spread everywhere. It has been seen that In Ind Iv Idual cases even the rac Ial type cons Idered by us the lowest, the negro fresh from the perenn Ial barbar Ism of Central Afr Ica, Is capable, w Ithout adm Ixture of blood, w Ithout wa It Ing for future generat Ions, of the Intellectual culture, If not yet of the Intellectual accompl Ishment of the dom Inant European. Even In the mass men seem to need, In favourable c Ircumstances, only a few generat Ions to cover ground that ought apparently to be measured In the terms of m Illenn Iums. E Ither, then, man by h Is pr Iv Ilege as a mental be Ing Is exempt from the full burden of the tardy laws of evolut Ion or else he already represents and w Ith helpful cond It Ions and In the r Ight st Imulat Ing atmosphere can always d Isplay a h Igh level of mater Ial capac Ity for the act Iv It Ies of the Intellectual l Ife.
It Is not mental Incapac Ity, but the long reject Ion or seclus Ion from opportun Ity and w Ithdrawal of the awaken Ing Impulse that creates the savage. Barbar Ism Is an Intermed Iate sleep, not an or Ig Inal darkness.
Moreover the whole trend of modern thought and modern endeavour reveals Itself to the observant eye as a large consc Ious effort of Nature In man to effect a general level of Intellectual equ Ipment, capac Ity and farther poss Ib Il Ity by un Iversal Is Ing the opportun It Ies wh Ich modern c Iv Il Isat Ion affords for the mental l Ife. Even the preoccupat Ion of the European Intellect, the protagon Ist of th Is tendency, w Ith mater Ial Nature and the external It Ies of ex Istence Is a necessary part of the effort. It seeks to prepare a suff Ic Ient bas Is In man's phys Ical be Ing and v Ital energ Ies and In h Is mater Ial env Ironment for h Is full mental poss Ib Il It Ies. By the spread of educat Ion, by the advance of the backward races, by the elevat Ion of depressed classes, by the mult Ipl Icat Ion of labour-sav Ing appl Iances, by the movement
The Three Steps of Nature
--
towards Ideal soc Ial and econom Ic cond It Ions, by the labour of Sc Ience towards an Improved health, longev Ity and sound phys Ique In c Iv Il Ised human Ity, the sense and dr Ift of th Is vast movement translates Itself In eas Ily Intell Ig Ible s Igns. The r Ight or at least the ult Imate means may not always be employed, but the Ir a Im Is the r Ight prel Im Inary a Im, - a sound Ind Iv Idual and soc Ial body and the sat Isfact Ion of the leg It Imate needs and demands of the mater Ial m Ind, suff Ic Ient ease, le Isure, equal opportun Ity, so that the whole of mank Ind and no longer only the favoured race, class or Ind Iv Idual may be free to develop the emot Ional and Intellectual be Ing to Its full capac Ity. At present the mater Ial and econom Ic a Im may predom Inate, but always, beh Ind, there works or there wa Its In reserve the h Igher and major Impulse.
And when the prel Im Inary cond It Ions are sat Isf Ied, when the great endeavour has found Its base, what w Ill be the nature of that farther poss Ib Il Ity wh Ich the act Iv It Ies of the Intellectual l Ife must serve? If M Ind Is Indeed Nature's h Ighest term, then the ent Ire development of the rat Ional and Imag Inat Ive Intellect and the harmon Ious sat Isfact Ion of the emot Ions and sens Ib Il It Ies must be to themselves suff Ic Ient. But If, on the contrary, man Is more than a reason Ing and emot Ional an Imal, If beyond that wh Ich Is be Ing evolved, there Is someth Ing that has to be evolved, then It may well be that the fullness of the mental l Ife, the suppleness, flex Ib Il Ity and w Ide capac Ity of the Intellect, the ordered r Ichness of emot Ion and sens Ib Il Ity may be only a passage towards the development of a h Igher l Ife and of more powerful facult Ies wh Ich are yet to man Ifest and to take possess Ion of the lower Instrument, just as m Ind Itself has so taken possess Ion of the body that the phys Ical be Ing no longer l Ives only for Its own sat Isfact Ion but prov Ides the foundat Ion and the mater Ials for a super Ior act Iv Ity.
The assert Ion of a h Igher than the mental l Ife Is the whole foundat Ion of Ind Ian ph Ilosophy and Its acqu Is It Ion and organ Isat Ion Is the ver Itable object served by the methods of Yoga.
M Ind Is not the last term of evolut Ion, not an ult Imate a Im, but, l Ike body, an Instrument. It Is even so termed In the language of
16
--
Yoga, the Inner Instrument.4 And Ind Ian trad It Ion asserts that th Is wh Ich Is to be man Ifested Is not a new term In human exper Ience, but has been developed before and has even governed human Ity In certa In per Iods of Its development. In any case, In order to be known It must at one t Ime have been partly developed.
And If s Ince then Nature has sunk back from her ach Ievement, the reason must always be found In some unreal Ised harmony, some Insuff Ic Iency of the Intellectual and mater Ial bas Is to wh Ich she has now returned, some over-spec Ial Isat Ion of the h Igher to the detr Iment of the lower ex Istence.
But what then const Itutes th Is h Igher or h Ighest ex Istence to wh Ich our evolut Ion Is tend Ing? In order to answer the quest Ion we have to deal w Ith a class of supreme exper Iences, a class of unusual concept Ions wh Ich It Is d Iff Icult to represent accurately In any other language than the anc Ient Sanskr It tongue In wh Ich alone they have been to some extent systemat Ised.
The only approx Imate terms In the Engl Ish language have other assoc Iat Ions and the Ir use may lead to many and even ser Ious Inaccurac Ies. The term Inology of Yoga recogn Ises bes Ides the status of our phys Ical and v Ital be Ing, termed the gross body and doubly composed of the food sheath and the v Ital veh Icle, bes Ides the status of our mental be Ing, termed the subtle body and s Ingly composed of the m Ind sheath or mental veh Icle,5 a th Ird, supreme and d Iv Ine status of supra-mental be Ing, termed the causal body and composed of a fourth and a f Ifth veh Icle6 wh Ich are descr Ibed as those of knowledge and bl Iss. But th Is knowledge Is not a systemat Ised result of mental quest Ion Ings and reason Ings, not a temporary arrangement of conclus Ions and op In Ions In the terms of the h Ighest probab Il Ity, but rather a pure self-ex Istent and self-lum Inous Truth. And th Is bl Iss Is not a supreme pleasure of the heart and sensat Ions w Ith the exper Ience of pa In and sorrow as Its background, but a del Ight also selfex Istent and Independent of objects and part Icular exper Iences, a self-del Ight wh Ich Is the very nature, the very stuff, as It were, of a transcendent and Inf In Ite ex Istence.
antah.karan.a.
--
Do such psycholog Ical concept Ions correspond to anyth Ing real and poss Ible? All Yoga asserts them as Its ult Imate exper Ience and supreme a Im. They form the govern Ing pr Inc Iples of our h Ighest poss Ible state of consc Iousness, our w Idest poss Ible range of ex Istence. There Is, we say, a harmony of supreme facult Ies, correspond Ing roughly to the psycholog Ical facult Ies of revelat Ion, Insp Irat Ion and Intu It Ion, yet act Ing not In the Intu It Ive reason or the d Iv Ine m Ind, but on a st Ill h Igher plane, wh Ich see Truth d Irectly face to face, or rather l Ive In the truth of th Ings both un Iversal and transcendent and are Its formulat Ion and lum Inous act Iv Ity. And these facult Ies are the l Ight of a consc Ious ex Istence supersed Ing the ego Ist Ic and Itself both cosm Ic and transcendent, the nature of wh Ich Is Bl Iss. These are obv Iously d Iv Ine and, as man Is at present apparently const Ituted, superhuman states of consc Iousness and act Iv Ity. A tr In Ity of transcendent ex Istence, self-awareness and self-del Ight7 Is, Indeed, the metaphys Ical descr Ipt Ion of the supreme Atman, the self-formulat Ion, to our awakened knowledge, of the Unknowable whether conce Ived as a pure Impersonal Ity or as a cosm Ic Personal Ity man Ifest Ing the un Iverse. But In Yoga they are regarded also In the Ir psycholog Ical aspects as states of subject Ive ex Istence to wh Ich our wak Ing consc Iousness Is now al Ien, but wh Ich dwell In us In a superconsc Ious plane and to wh Ich, therefore, we may always ascend.
For, as Is Ind Icated by the name, causal body (karan.a), as opposed to the two others wh Ich are Instruments (karan.a), th Is crown Ing man Ifestat Ion Is also the source and effect Ive power of all that In the actual evolut Ion has preceded It. Our mental act Iv It Ies are, Indeed, a der Ivat Ion, select Ion and, so long as they are d Iv Ided from the truth that Is secretly the Ir source, a deformat Ion of the d Iv Ine knowledge. Our sensat Ions and emot Ions have the same relat Ion to the Bl Iss, our v Ital forces and act Ions to the aspect of W Ill or Force assumed by the d Iv Ine consc Iousness, our phys Ical be Ing to the pure essence of that Bl Iss and
Consc Iousness. The evolut Ion wh Ich we observe and of wh Ich
--
we are the terrestr Ial summ It may be cons Idered, In a sense, as an Inverse man Ifestat Ion, by wh Ich these supreme Powers In the Ir un Ity and the Ir d Ivers Ity use, develop and perfect the Imperfect substance and act Iv It Ies of Matter, of L Ife and of M Ind so that they, the Infer Ior modes, may express In mutable relat Iv Ity an Increas Ing harmony of the d Iv Ine and eternal states from wh Ich they are born. If th Is be the truth of the un Iverse, then the goal of evolut Ion Is also Its cause, It Is that wh Ich Is Immanent In Its elements and out of them Is l Iberated. But the l Iberat Ion Is surely Imperfect If It Is only an escape and there Is no return upon the conta In Ing substance and act Iv It Ies to exalt and transform them.
The Immanence Itself would have no cred Ible reason for be Ing If It d Id not end In such a transf Igurat Ion. But If human m Ind can become capable of the glor Ies of the d Iv Ine L Ight, human emot Ion and sens Ib Il Ity can be transformed Into the mould and assume the measure and movement of the supreme Bl Iss, human act Ion not only represent but feel Itself to be the mot Ion of a d Iv Ine and non-ego Ist Ic Force and the phys Ical substance of our be Ing suff Ic Iently partake of the pur Ity of the supernal essence, suff Ic Iently un Ify plast Ic Ity and durable constancy to support and prolong these h Ighest exper Iences and agenc Ies, then all the long labour of Nature w Ill end In a crown Ing just If Icat Ion and her evolut Ions reveal the Ir profound s Ign If Icance.
So dazzl Ing Is even a gl Impse of th Is supreme ex Istence and so absorb Ing Its attract Ion that, once seen, we feel read Ily just If Ied In neglect Ing all else for Its pursu It. Even, by an oppos Ite exaggerat Ion to that wh Ich sees all th Ings In M Ind and the mental l Ife as an exclus Ive Ideal, M Ind comes to be regarded as an unworthy deformat Ion and a supreme obstacle, the source of an Illusory un Iverse, a negat Ion of the Truth and Itself to be den Ied and all Its works and results annulled If we des Ire the f Inal l Iberat Ion. But th Is Is a half-truth wh Ich errs by regard Ing only the actual l Im Itat Ions of M Ind and Ignores Its d Iv Ine Intent Ion.
The ult Imate knowledge Is that wh Ich perce Ives and accepts God In the un Iverse as well as beyond the un Iverse; the Integral Yoga Is that wh Ich, hav Ing found the Transcendent, can return upon the un Iverse and possess It, reta In Ing the power freely to descend
The Three Steps of Nature
--
as well as ascend the great sta Ir of ex Istence. For If the eternal
W Isdom ex Ists at all, the faculty of M Ind also must have some h Igh use and dest Iny. That use must depend on Its place In the ascent and In the return and that dest Iny must be a fulf Ilment and transf Igurat Ion, not a root Ing out or an annull Ing.
We perce Ive, then, these three steps In Nature, a bod Ily l Ife wh Ich Is the bas Is of our ex Istence here In the mater Ial world, a mental l Ife Into wh Ich we emerge and by wh Ich we ra Ise the bod Ily to h Igher uses and enlarge It Into a greater completeness, and a d Iv Ine ex Istence wh Ich Is at once the goal of the other two and returns upon them to l Iberate them Into the Ir h Ighest poss Ib Il It Ies. Regard Ing none of them as e Ither beyond our reach or below our nature and the destruct Ion of none of them as essent Ial to the ult Imate atta Inment, we accept th Is l Iberat Ion and fulf Ilment as part at least and a large and Important part of the a Im of Yoga.
Io controls> Io>
0.03 - III - The Evening Sittings, #Evening Talks With Sri Aurobindo, #unset, #Zen
object:0.03 - I I I - The Even Ing S Itt Ings
author class:A B Puran I
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INTRODUCT ION I I I
I I I
EVEN ING S ITT INGS
Sr I Aurob Indo was never a soc Ial man In the current sense of the term and def In Itely he was not a man of the crowd. Th Is was due to h Is grave temperament, not to any feel Ing of super Ior Ity or to repuls Ion for men. At Baroda there was an Off Icers' Club wh Ich was patron Ised by the Maharajah and though Sr I Aurob Indo enrolled h Imself as a member he hardly went to the Club even on spec Ial occas Ions. He rather l Iked a small congen Ial c Ircle of fr Iends and spent most of h Is even Ings w Ith them whenever he was free and not occup Ied w Ith h Is stud Ies or other works. After Baroda when he went to Calcutta there was hardly any t Ime In the storm and stress of revolut Ionary pol It Ics to perm It h Im to lead a 'soc Ial l Ife'. What l Ittle t Ime he could spare from h Is Incessant act Iv It Ies was spent In the house of Raja Subodh Mall Ick or at the Grey Street house. In the Karmayog In off Ice he used to s It after the off Ice hours t Ill late chatt Ing w Ith a few persons or try Ing automat Ic wr It Ing. Strange d Ictat Ions used to be rece Ived somet Imes: one of them was the follow Ing: "Mon I [Suresh Chakravarty] w Ill bomb S Ir Edward Grey when he w Ill come as the V Iceroy of Ind Ia." In later years at Pond Icherry there used to be a joke that S Ir Edward took such a fr Ight at the prospect of Mon I's bomb Ing h Im that he never came to Ind Ia!
After Sr I Aurob Indo had come to Pond Icherry from Chandernagore, he entered upon an Intense per Iod of Sadhana and for a few months he refused to rece Ive anyone. After a t Ime he used to s It down to talk In the even Ing and on some days tr Ied automat Ic wr It Ing. Yog Ic Sadhan, a small book, was the result. In 1913 Sr I Aurob Indo moved to Rue Frano Is Mart In No. 41 where he used to rece Ive v Is Itors at f Ixed t Imes. Th Is was generally In the morn Ing between 9 and 10.30.
But, over and above newcomers, some local people and the few Inmates of the house used to have Informal talks w Ith Sr I Aurob Indo In the even Ing. In the beg Inn Ing the Inmates used to go out for play Ing football, and dur Ing the Ir absence known local Ind Iv Iduals would come In and wa It for Sr I Aurob Indo. Afterwards regular med Itat Ions began at about 4 p.m. In wh Ich pract Ically all the Inmates part Ic Ipated. After the med Itat Ion all of the members and those who were perm Itted shared In the even Ing s Itt Ing. Th Is was a very Informal gather Ing depend Ing ent Irely upon Sr I Aurob Indo's le Isure.
When Sr I Aurob Indo and the Mother moved to No. 9 Rue de la Mar Ine In 1922 the same rout Ine of Informal even Ing s Itt Ings after med Itat Ion cont Inued. I came to Pond Icherry for Sadhana In the beg Inn Ing of 1923. I kept notes of the Important talks I had w Ith the four or f Ive d Isc Iples who were already there. Bes Ides, I used to take deta Iled notes of the Even Ing Talks wh Ich we all had w Ith the Master. They were not Intended by h Im to be noted down. I took them down because of the Importance I felt about everyth Ing connected w Ith h Im, no matter how Ins Ign If Icant to the outer v Iew. I also felt that everyth Ing he d Id would acqu Ire for those who would come to know h Is m Iss Ion a very great s Ign If Icance.
As years passed the even Ing s Itt Ings went on chang Ing the Ir t Ime and often those d Isc Iples who came from outs Ide for a temporary stay for Sadhana were allowed to jo In them. And, as the number of sadhaks pract Is Ing the Yoga Increased, the even Ing s Itt Ings also became more full, and the small verandah upsta Irs In the ma In bu Ild Ing was found Insuff Ic Ient. Members of the household would gather every day at the f Ixed t Ime w Ith some sense of expectancy and start chatt Ing In low tones. Sr I Aurob Indo used to come last and It was after h Is com Ing that the sess Ion would really commence.
He came dressed as usual In dhot I, part of wh Ich was used by h Im to cover the upper part of h Is body. Very rarely he came out w Ith chaddar or shawl and then It was " In deference to the cl Imate" as he somet Imes put It. At t Imes for m Inutes he would be gaz Ing at the sky from a small open Ing at the top of the grass-curta Ins that covered the verandah upsta Irs In No. 9, Rue de la Mar Ine. How much were these s Itt Ings dependent on h Im may be gathered from the fact that there were days when more than three-fourths of the t Ime passed In complete s Ilence w Ithout any outer suggest Ion from h Im, or there was only an abrupt "Yes" or "No" to all attempts at draw Ing h Im out In conversat Ion. And even when he part Ic Ipated In the talk one always felt that h Is vo Ice was that of one who does not let h Is whole be Ing flow Into h Is words; there was a reserve and what was left unsa Id was perhaps more than what was spoken. What was spoken was what he felt necessary to speak.
Very often some news- Item In the da Ily newspaper, town-goss Ip, or some Interest Ing letter rece Ived e Ither by h Im or by a d Isc Iple, or a quest Ion from one of the gather Ing, occas Ionally some remark or query from h Imself would set the ball roll Ing for the talk. The whole th Ing was so Informal that one could never pred Ict the turn the conversat Ion would take. The whole house therefore was In a mood to enjoy the freshness and the del Ight of meet Ing the unexpected. There were peals of laughter and l Ight talk, jokes and cr It Ic Ism wh Ich m Ight be called personal, there was ser Iousness and earnestness In abundance.
These s Itt Ings, In fact, furn Ished Sr I Aurob Indo w Ith an occas Ion to adm It and feel the outer atmosphere and that of the group l Iv Ing w Ith h Im. It brought to h Im the much-needed d Irect contact of the mental and v Ital make-up of the d Isc Iples, enabl Ing h Im to act on the atmosphere In general and on the Ind Iv Idual In part Icular. He could thus help to remould the Ir mental make-up by remov Ing the l Im Itat Ions of the Ir m Inds and op In Ions, and correct temperamental tendenc Ies and format Ions. Thus, these s Itt Ings contr Ibuted at least partly to the creat Ion of an atmosphere amenable to the work Ing of the H Igher Consc Iousness. Far more Important than the actual talk and Its content was the personal contact, the Influence of the Master, and the d Iv Ine atmosphere he emanated; for through h Is outer personal Ity It was the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness that he allowed to act. All along beh Ind the outer man Ifestat Ion that appeared human, there was the Influence and presence of the D Iv Ine.
What was talked In the small group Informally was not Intended by Sr I Aurob Indo to be the Independent express Ion of h Is v Iews on the subjects, events or the persons d Iscussed. Very often what he sa Id was In answer to the sp Ir Itual need of the Ind Iv Idual or of the collect Ive atmosphere. It was l Ike a sp Ir Itual remedy meant to produce certa In sp Ir Itual results, not a ph Ilosoph Ical or metaphys Ical pronouncement on quest Ions, events or movements. The net result of some talks very often was to po Int out to the d Isc Iple the Inherent Incapac Ity of the human Intellect and Its secondary place In the search for the ult Imate Real Ity.
But there were occas Ions when he d Id g Ive h Is Independent, personal v Iews on some problems, on events or other subjects. Even then It was never an author Itar Ian pronouncement. Most often It appeared to be a log Ically worked out and almost Inev Itable conclus Ion expressed qu Ite Impersonally though w Ith f Irm and s Incere conv Ict Ion. Th Is Impersonal Ity was such a prom Inent tra It of h Is personal Ity! Even In such matters as d Ispatch Ing a letter or a telegram It would not be a command from h Im to a d Isc Iple to carry out the task. Most often dur Ing h Is usual passage to the d In Ing room he would stop on the way, drop In on the company of four or f Ive d Isc Iples and, hold Ing out the letter or the telegram, would say In the most am Iable and yet the most Impersonal way: " I suppose th Is has to be sent." And It would be for someone In the group Instantly to volunteer and take It. The express Ion he very often used was " It was done" or " It happened", not " I d Id."
From 1918 to 1922, we gathered at No. 41, Rue Frano Is Mart In, called the Guest House, upsta Irs, on a broad verandah Into wh Ich four rooms opened and whose ma In p Iece of furn Iture was a small table 3' x 1' covered w Ith a blue cotton cloth. That Is where Sr I Aurob Indo used to s It In a hard wooden cha Ir beh Ind the table w Ith a few cha Irs In front for the v Is Itors or for the d Isc Iples.
From 1922 to 1926, No. 9, Rue de la Mar Ine, where he and the Mother had sh Ifted, was the place where the s Itt Ings were held. There, also upsta Irs, was a less broad verandah than at the Guest House, a l Ittle b Igger table In front of the central door out of three, and a broad Japanese cha Ir, the table covered w Ith a better cloth than the one In the Guest House, a small flower vase, an ash-tray, a block calendar Ind Icat Ing the date and an ord Inary t Ime-p Iece, and a number of cha Irs In front In a l Ine. The even Ing s Itt Ings used to be after med Itat Ion at 4 or 4.30 p.m. After 24 November 1926, the s Itt Ings began to get later and later, t Ill the l Im It of 1 o'clock at n Ight was reached. Then the curta In fell. Sr I Aurob Indo ret Ired completely after December 1926, and the even Ing s Itt Ings came to a close.
On 8 February 1927, Sr I Aurob Indo and the Mother moved to No. 28, Rue Frano Is Mart In, a house on the north-east of the same block as No. 9, Rue de la Mar Ine.
Then, on 23 November 1938, I got up at 2 o'clock to prepare hot water for the Mother's early bath because the 24th was Darshan day. Between 2.20 and 2.30 the Mother rang the bell. I ran up the sta Ircase to be told about an acc Ident that had happened to Sr I Aurob Indo's th Igh and to be asked to fetch the doctor. Th Is acc Ident brought about a change In h Is complete ret Irement, and rendered h Im ava Ilable to those who had to attend on h Im. Th Is opened out a long per Iod of 12 years dur Ing wh Ich h Is ret Irement was mod If Ied ow Ing to c Ircumstances, Inner and outer, that made It poss Ible for h Im to have d Irect phys Ical contacts w Ith the world outs Ide.
The long per Iod of the Second World War w Ith all Its v Ic Iss Itudes passed through these years. It was a pr Iceless exper Ience to see how he devoted h Is energ Ies to the task of sav Ing human Ity from the threatened re Ign of Naz Ism. It was a pract Ical lesson of sol Id work done for human Ity w Ithout any thought of return or reward, w Ithout even lett Ing human Ity know what he was do Ing for It! Thus he l Ived the D Iv Ine and showed us how the D Iv Ine cares for the world, how He comes down and works for man. I shall never forget how he who was at one t Ime In h Is own words "not merely a non-co-operator but an enemy of Br It Ish Imper Ial Ism" bestowed such anx Ious care on the health of Church Ill, l Isten Ing carefully to the health-bullet Ins! It was the work of the D Iv Ine, It was the D Iv Ine's work for the world.
There were no formal even Ing s Itt Ings dur Ing these years, but what appeared to me Important In our Informal talks was recorded and has been Incorporated In th Is book.
[1] Sr I Aurob Indo and H Is Ashram, 1985, p. 22.
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[3] H Is In It Ials, In the Tam Il manner, by wh Ich he was w Idely known.
[4]The L Ife D Iv Ine, Centenary Ed It Ion, pp. 994-5.
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I I I
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0.03 - Letters to My little smile, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
The cond It Ion you were In wh Ile embro Ider Ing the "S Ilence"
flower1 cannot return as It was before, for In th Is world th Ings
never repeat themselves In exactly the same way - everyth Ing
changes and progresses. But the state of mental peace you have
known Is noth Ing compared to the one - much deeper and
completer - wh Ich you w Ill come to know.
You must keep your asp Irat Ion Intact and your w Ill to conquer all obstacles; you must have an unshakable fa Ith In the
d Iv Ine grace and the sure v Ictory.
Sr I Aurob Indo Is work Ing for your transformat Ion - how
can there be doubt that he w Ill tr Iumph!
--
ch Ild or an an Imal Is conf Ident and happy w Ithout know Ing why.
Now you must learn to be happy and conf Ident wh Ile know Ing
S Ilence: the name g Iven by the Mother to the W Ild Pass Ion-flower (pass Iflora Incarnata).
why and understand Ing the deeper cause of your happ Iness and
--
speak to me as freely when you are near me as when you are In
your room.
Also It would be better not to get angry, and If It happens, It
Is better to forget your anger qu Ickly; and If that Isn't poss Ible,
then you must tell me very s Imply what has happened so that
--
sm Ile" and g Ive her back the joy and peace I want her always to
have.
--
I have seen the sar I embro Idered by my l Ittle sm Ile and I f Ind It
very pretty, completely successful.
--
I am send Ing You th Is rupee. Now I no longer need
any pocket money.
--
my bless Ings, my congratulat Ions for the manner In wh Ich she
has passed her French test.
--
I am very glad that you have wr Itten; I am sure that you are
feel Ing much better now.
Do not attach too much Importance to all these th Ings;
they are the Imag Inat Ions of a ch Ild who knows noth Ing of
l Ife, of Its m Isery and ugl Iness. For l Ife Is not as It Is portrayed
In novels; day-to-day ex Istence Is full of suffer Ings great and
small, and It Is only by Ident If Icat Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness that one can atta In and preserve the true unchang Ing
happ Iness.
--
Th Is subject was g Iven for compos It Ion In our French
class -
--
Consecrat Ion to the D Iv Ine Is the secret of ex Istence;
a perpetual renewal of force comes from commun Ion
w Ith the Inf In Ite.
My dear l Ittle sm Ile,
It Is very s Imple, as you w Ill see.
1) The Inf In Ite Is the Inexhaust Ible storehouse of forces. The
Ind Iv Idual Is a battery, a storage cell wh Ich runs down after use.
Consecrat Ion Is the w Ire that connects the Ind Iv Idual battery to
the Inf In Ite reserve of forces.
Or
2) The Inf In Ite Is the r Iver that flows w Ithout cease; the
Ind Iv Idual Is the l Ittle pond that dr Ies up slowly In the sun.
Consecrat Ion Is the canal that connects the r Iver to the pond
and prevents the pond from dry Ing up.
W Ith these two Images, I th Ink you w Ill understand.
Tender love.
--
Many t Imes I have found that If I don't Imag Ine
stor Ies, as they are called, I feel a sort of dullness; then
I can't work, and even If I do I can't work fast. Today
I spent the whole day In th Is state of dullness because I
no longer Imag Ine th Ings as before.
Mother, I would l Ike to know If everyth Ing I say
about my dullness Is true - If It Is due to an absence of
Imag Inat Ion.
The dullness comes from "tamas"; Imag Inat Ive act Iv Ity was
shak Ing off the tamas and thus r Idd Ing you of the dullness.
But th Is Is not the only way to get r Id of It. Open Ing to the L Ight
and Consc Iousness from above and allow Ing them to replace the
tamas In the external consc Iousness, Is a much better and surer
way.
--
I don't want tamas. Today I worked all day.
But my m Ind does not have tamas; It Is always act Ive
and runs here and there l Ike a madman.
The m Ind always runs about l Ike a madman. The f Irst step Is to
detach one's consc Iousness from It and let It run by Itself w Ithout
runn Ing w Ith It. Then It f Inds th Is less enjoyable and after some
t Ime It becomes qu Ieter.
23 November 1932
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I have not Iced that In X's presence I dare not do certa In th Ings, such as talk In a loud vo Ice or other Impol Ite
th Ings of th Is k Ind.
It Is good to observe yourself In order to see your weaknesses
and be able to correct them.
--
At the Ashram, I heard Z ask Ing h Im someth Ing about Y
and I also heard the doctor talk Ing to h Im. Afterwards
I asked the doctor, "Why do you speak to Z about Y?"
--
longer sees her at Pranam." Then I repl Ied, "But he has
noth Ing to do w Ith her and It Is not good to talk about
these th Ings to people because they cannot do anyth Ing
--
asked me about that just out of cur Ios Ity and I w Ill say
noth Ing to h Im."
--
r Ight. One should never talk about others - It Is always useless
- and least of all about the Ir d Iff Icult Ies; It Is unchar Itable because It does not help them to overcome the d Iff Icult Ies. As
for doctors, the rule Is that they should not talk about the Ir
pat Ients, and the doctor ought to know better. I hope you are
not fr Ightened by what happened to Y. Rema In very calm, very
--
Wh Ile You were play Ing the organ, I had the feel Ing
that the others were l Isten Ing to the Mother play Ing the
organ for me, and It made me feel proud. I understood,
even at that moment, that It was a wrong feel Ing and I
d Idn't want It; but I don't know how to get r Id of It.
Mother, I bel Ieve that If I stay all by myself, apart
from everyone else, I w Ill be very happy. I am very bad;
I don't know when all these bad th Ings w Ill leave me.
--
could also feel the pure and s Imple joy of the mus Ic for Its own
sake, and that when you are near me, you also feel the s Imple
and s Incere joy of a ch Ild near to Its mother.
The nature Is complex, and always the true and the false,
the good and the bad are m Ixed together. It Is very useful to
see one's faults and weaknesses clearly, but one should not see
--
be aware of what Is good and true In the nature and g Ive It all
one's attent Ion, so that th Is good and true s Ide can grow and
--
When I saw You th Is morn Ing at Pranam, It seemed
to me that You were very ser Ious.
I wr Ite to You whatever I th Ink I ought to tell You,
because I have prom Ised to wr Ite about my thoughts and
feel Ings and I don't want to dece Ive You. I have noth Ing
good to tell You. I have a hoard of bad, ugly, fool Ish and
naughty th Ings to tell You. If there Is someth Ing good, It
Ser Ies Three - To "My l Ittle sm Ile"
Is only that I work for You (Your sar I): th Is Is the only
th Ing I can call good.
Today I was sad all day, I could not sm Ile. You w Ill
rece Ive many such th Ings to read. But If You become
ser Ious, as You were th Is morn Ing, I would rather put an
end to the matter.
Today I worked for seven hours.
No, my ch Ild, I was not "ser Ious" and I sm Iled at you as usual;
It was you who had such a sad l Ittle face and It Is probably your
own sadness that you saw reflected In my eyes. I know l Ife too
well for your confess Ions to make me "ser Ious". Bes Ides, your
--
Keep your sm Ile, l Ittle ch Ild; It Is th Is that g Ives you your
strength.
--
I don't know why, but for two or three days I have
been feel Ing a b It sad.
Mother, somet Imes when I am depressed, when I
feel that maybe I won't be able to do yoga, my m Ind
Imag Ines: "Mother tells me that I cannot do yoga and
asks me to go away from here, I have no one to go to and
nowhere to stay; I w Ill rema In here even as a servant, but
It Is Imposs Ible for me to l Ive elsewhere."
Th Ink Ing of all th Is makes me feel even sadder than
--
My Mother, today It seems to me that my m Ind Is not
calm enough to wr Ite anyth Ing to You. Today I worked
for n Ine hours on the sar I.
--
suggest Ions, so stup Id and false, that I could ask you to go away!
How can you dream of such a th Ing? You are at home here -
--
place by my s Ide, In my love and protect Ion.
9 December 1932
--
I had an Imag Inary conversat Ion In my head w Ith X.
I was not pay Ing attent Ion, but at one moment It came
to me that I would have to wr Ite all th Is to Mother and
suddenly the conversat Ion stopped.
That Is how I talk to people In my head; my m Ind
puts the thoughts It l Ikes, as It l Ikes, Into someone's
mouth and th Is makes a no Ise In my head.
I am very t Ired of wr It Ing such bad and stup Id th Ings.
--
It Is not so terr Ible - the m Ind l Ikes to be busy w Ith someth Ing
always, and mak Ing up stor Ies (even when one knows that these
stor Ies are not true) Is one of the most Innocent pursu Its of
th Is restless m Ind. Of course, It must become calm and qu Iet
some day In order to rece Ive the l Ight from above; but In the
meant Ime, you may surely tell me all these stor Ies. I f Ind them
more amus Ing than s Illy and they Interest me. So don't say: I
won't tell Mother th Is or that, but rather say: I shall tell her
everyth Ing qu Ite frankly.
--
and more; It Is never sat Isf Ied w Ith what You g Ive It.
My ch Ild, I am go Ing to reveal someth Ing that you w Ill try to
understand: you are d Issat Isf Ied not because I fa Il to g Ive you all
that you need, but because I g Ive you more, far more than you
are able to rece Ive. Open yourself, Increase your recept Iv Ity by
g Iv Ing yourself more, and you w Ill see that all d Iscontentment
--
Nowhere do I f Ind any progress. Even In my work I
am st Ill not regular, so how can I hope for Your help?
I don't understand what you mean. My help Is always w Ith
you, as complete as It can be; It Is up to you to open yourself
and rece Ive It. And It Is certa Inly not by be Ing rebell Ious and
d Iscontented that you w Ill be able to do so.
So many t Imes I have resolved to work regularly and so
many t Imes I have fa Iled! So I thought that If I told You,
I would have Your help and become regular In my work,
but In va In.
How then can I cont Inue my pract Ice of wr It Ing to
You In th Is state of depress Ion and d Iscontent?
But I don't blame You for th Is; It Is me - I don't
have a strong w Ill, so how can I get r Id of It?
You don't need to have a strong w Ill - you have only to use
--
Be careful, ch Ild, do not open the door to depress Ion, d Iscouragement and revolt - th Is leads far, far away from consc Iousness and makes you s Ink Into the depths of obscur Ity
where happ Iness can no longer enter. Your great strength was
--
knew how to work w Ith courage and stead Iness, and In th Is
you were except Ional. But you have followed the example of
--
and w Ith It your fa Ith and conf Idence In me; In th Is cond It Ion, If
all the d Iv Ine forces were to concentrate on you, It would be In
va In - you would refuse to rece Ive them.
There Is only one remedy, and you must lose no t Ime In
accept Ing It: recover your sm Ile, rega In your fa Ith, become once
more the conf Ident ch Ild you were, do not brood over your faults
and d Iff Icult Ies - It Is your sm Ile that w Ill chase them away.
16 December 1932
--
I have often not Iced that when I wake up from sleep,
there Is a k Ind of no Ise In my head, as If many people
were talk Ing at once and I can understand noth Ing of
what they say. And I feel as If th Is no Ise has been go Ing on
all n Ight. It Is l Ike a bazaar, there Is a lot of no Ise because
people are all talk Ing at once and one can understand
noth Ing of It.
In your sleep you are becom Ing consc Ious of the no Ises that the
mechan Ical thoughts of the most mater Ial m Ind make In the Ir
own doma In.
--
... And as for X, now I th Ink, "Why d Idn't I refuse
h Im?" But what Is the advantage of th Ink Ing afterwards!
Ser Ies Three - To "My l Ittle sm Ile"
There Is an advantage In look Ing back after some t Ime at what
one has done; for at a d Istance, removed from the act Ion, one
--
If You want these Imag Inat Ions to rema In In me, let
them rema In, but If You don't want that, root them out.
Once aga In, do not worry; what should d Isappear w Ill d Isappear;
only what Is good w Ill rema In.
25 December 1932
--
I th Ink th Is Is the last th Ing I shall wr Ite to You.
I should l Ike to stop wr It Ing now, as I am feel Ing very
t Ired.
I know that You w Ill not l Ike It, but I have to say that
It Is better to put me as Ide. I am qu Ite hopeless. Aga In for
the last few days I have become Irregular In my work.
You once sa Id that to open myself to You Is my work,
because Your help Is always w Ith me. But I do not know
when I w Ill open myself to You. I am as hard as a stone.
If I had known before that these th Ings are so d Iff Icult, I
should never have w Ished to come here. Mother, I w Ish
You would not tell me that I am rebell Ing, I do not l Ike
to hear that.
I do not know, Mother, why I have wr Itten all these
th Ings. Mother, please do not be angry w Ith me, I have
nobody except You.
--
are no more Insurmountable than those of others. You have only
to rema In conf Ident and cheerful.
--
You wrote th Is one day In my notebook. But all the
th Ings I have wr Itten about to You up to now have not
d Isappeared. Perhaps they are all good! And perhaps th Is
--
good too. Because they have rema Ined In me, they have
not d Isappeared. And the sm Ile and work Ing regularly
--
Because I see that they have d Isappeared, at least for the
present.
And If there Is noth Ing bad In me, why are we tak Ing
so much trouble? It would be better to rema In qu Iet because "what should d Isappear w Ill d Isappear; only what
Is good w Ill rema In. "
Mother, I know that You w Ill not l Ike all these th Ings
I have wr Itten, but what can I do? I have to wr Ite all th Is
to You.
--
- I p Ity you, that's all. D Id I tell you that It would d Isappear
Immed Iately, Instantaneously, espec Ially If you yourself are more
Incl Ined to keep It than to reject It?
28 December 1932
--
He gave me a lecture. He d Id not say so but I th Ink You
asked h Im to come to my room.
But I must tell You that I don't l Ike people to
come and lecture me. Can't You tell me d Irectly what
Is necessary? Am I not here w Ith You? Am I so far
away? Then why should I have to l Isten to the adv Ice of
others?
It Is your self-esteem and van Ity that are In an exasperated state
and prevent you from see Ing affect Ion where It Is present.
I don't know whether You tell Y about what I wr Ite to
You, but I would rather You d Idn't.
Only Sr I Aurob Indo knows what you wr Ite to me.
You wrote to me once In th Is notebook (December 16th),
w Ith regard to Your help: " It Is up to you to open yourself
and rece Ive It. And It Is certa Inly not by be Ing rebell Ious
and d Iscontented that you w Ill be able to do so."
And aga In You wrote to me (December 7th) In th Is
notebook: "And as soon as you tell me all the th Ings
--
So I tell You that even th Is revolt and th Is bad temper
are troubl Ing me.
--
I th Ink I have told You all the th Ings that are troubl Ing
me.
It Is not enough to tell them, you must want them to d Isappear.
Mother, today I am sad. I don't know why but I even
wept.
And yet It Is qu Ite natural; how can you not be sad when you
turn your back on your soul, and that s Imply out of pr Ide!
--
W Ith all my w Ill I want to save you, but you must allow me to
do so. To revolt Is to reject the D Iv Ine Love and only the D Iv Ine
Love has the power to save.
--
Am I not Your ch Ild? Yes, I know that I am a naughty
ch Ild, but what can I do? Naughty or not, In any case I
am Yours.
I don't th Ink you are naughty and I know you are my ch Ild.
29 December 1932
--
doesn't want to become qu Iet. Because If I wanted to become qu Iet, I would naturally have tr Ied to make myself
qu Iet, wouldn't I?
In the psycholog Ical doma In, only the pat Ients who do not want
to recover, do not recover. Perhaps It Is the same for phys Ical
d Iseases?
--
What Is all th Is about psycholog Ical and phys Ical
d Iseases? I understand noth Ing of It.
Psycholog Ical d Iseases are d Iseases of the thoughts and feel Ings,
--
Yes, I know that You know that now I can h Ide
noth Ing from You and that It Is Imposs Ible for me to l Ive
w Ithout You, and th Is Is why, Mother, You l Ike to see me
suffer as much as poss Ible - Isn't It so?
I understand absolutely noth Ing of what you mean to say. You
seem to be say Ing that I l Ike to see you suffer; but th Is Is so
absurd that I cannot bel Ieve It Is what you mean.
When w Ith all my w Ill I am work Ing for the d Isappearance
of suffer Ing from the world, how could I want, much less l Ike,
one of my ch Ildren to suffer! It would be monstrous.
7 January 1933
--
For the past two days I have felt a great despa Ir and
sadness - so much that I th Ink If It goes on for a few
days more, It may be very d Iff Icult for me to get r Id of
these th Ings.
I don't know what Is go Ing to happen, but I can't
help th Ink Ing that If I rema In In th Is cond It Ion all the t Ime
and If I can't ever be happy, It w Ill soon be Imposs Ible
for me to l Ive. Dur Ing these two days, In th Is sadness
and despa Ir, I had the Idea of comm Itt Ing su Ic Ide. (Don't
be afra Id, I won't comm It su Ic Ide; I am only tell Ing You
about my cond It Ion In order to let You know about It.)
There are th Ieves In the subtle world just as In the outer world.
But you must close to them the doors of your thoughts and
--
them (the th Ieves of the v Ital world), because It Is when you are
depressed that they are best able to rob you. You must not l Isten
--
yourself once aga In, that Is to say, my "l Ittle sm Ile".
9 January 1933
--
You no longer call me "my ch Ild"? Am I so bad and
unworthy?
Mother, I bel Ieve that I am do Ing all I can and If I
st Ill cannot be good, what Is to be done? Yes, I know I
am not what I was before.
I d Id not mean anyth Ing by not wr It Ing "my ch Ild" on the
l Ittle note I sent you th Is afternoon. I was In a b Ig hurry and
I wrote as few words as poss Ible. Of course I m Iss the t Ime
Ser Ies Three - To "My l Ittle sm Ile"
--
Interpretat Ion on all I do. Who has poured th Is po Ison of doubt
and d Issat Isfact Ion Into your heart? Who has taken away at
once your happ Iness, your s Imple joy of l Ife and your beaut Iful
sm Ile wh Ich was a pleasure to see? I don't ask the quest Ion In
order to get an answer from you, for I th Ink that I know It; It
Is only so you may understand that I don't hold you respons Ible for th Is change wh Ich has come over you from outs Ide.
Now there Is only one way open, the way of progress - s Ince
It Is Imposs Ible to go backward, you must go forward and
what was merely Inst Inct Ive must now become consc Ious and
w Illed.
And never doubt my affect Ion, wh Ich Is always w Ith you to
help you make th Is Ind Ispensable progress.
11 January 1933
--
But now I f Ind noth Ing to say and I don't know what
to wr Ite. As for what I have wr Itten: s Ince You told me
that In order to become happy and good, I must want It
w Ith all my w Ill and to work as before, I have started to
do that.
But when I have noth Ing to wr Ite to You, what can
I wr Ite ( In order, as You sa Id, to keep the contact w Ith
--
you got up - (l Ike th Is, for example: th Is morn Ing I woke up
at such and such a t Ime after hav Ing slept for so many hours; I
got up, washed and dressed, then I ate my breakfast and started
work Ing at such and such a t Ime, etc. etc.). You can tell me
--
them, etc. It w Ill be a very good exerc Ise In French and at the
same t Ime w Ill create a further Int Imacy between us.
13 January 1933
--
Th Is morn Ing I woke up at 5:45. I washed and
dressed, then went to collect my notebook from X's
w Indow ( I always go there). Then at about 6:30 I
drank my phoscao, then started work at 6:45. At 7:30
I went for Pranam, then at 7:45 I started work aga In.
At 9:30 I went to Y's house to get some work for
Z, then sat down aga In to work unt Il 11:30. Then I
ate my lunch and rested for ten m Inutes. At 12:00 I
went back to work; at 12:30 Z came to work and at
about 2:00 she made some l Ime ju Ice for us. I worked
from 12:00 to 8:00. I have f In Ished embro Ider Ing the
crown.
Well, It Is a success! It Is a good account w Ith hardly any m Istakes, and I am glad to know exactly how you spent your day.
It w Ill be good to cont Inue l Ike th Is.
--
Mother, I always wr Ite to You about the same th Ings:
sleep, work and talk. Mother, do You l Ike read Ing the
--
In d Ifferent ways; th Is Is an excellent exerc Ise to learn how
to wr Ite and mould your style. It seems that at the moment
Ser Ies Three - To "My l Ittle sm Ile"
--
That Is qu Ite a b Ig word! It Is sa Id that hate Is the reverse of love;
at any rate It Is a dangerous sent Iment wh Ich leaves you always
at the mercy of the one you hate: to hate means that you are st Ill
attached; the true att Itude Is one of complete Ind Ifference.
27 January 1933
--
Today I prayed to You w Ith my body2 for ten hours.
Next t Ime I see You, I shall expla In how embro Iderers f Ix the sar I on the frame. The frame has to be as b Ig
as the sar I.
Mother, couldn't I have a b Ig frame l Ike that, to
embro Ider the sar Is really n Icely?
If I g Ive you such a b Ig frame, we shall have to bu Ild a room to
f It the frame In!
13 February 1933
--
wr Itten: "To work for the D Iv Ine Is to pray w Ith the body." Words of the Mother - I I,
CWM, Vol. 14, p. 299.
--
I worked on the sar I for ten hours. I th Ink I shall
f In Ish th Is sar I before 24th Apr Il.
Mother, I have noth Ing new to tell You.
You are a beaut Iful and sk Ilful worker, my l Ittle sm Ile, and I am
proud of you and your work, wh Ich Is so lovely. I see that you
have wr Itten w Ithout mak Ing a s Ingle m Istake!
--
Today I prayed to You w Ith my body for n Ine hours.
Now I have become regular aga In In all my work as
before.
--
Th Is Is good, my l Ittle sm Ile; balance of the be Ing Is based upon
regular work.
--
Do you know that th Is happens only once In eleven years?
Eleven years ago, In 1922, In the month of February, It was poss Ible to wr Ite 2.2.22 and eleven years from now, In the month
of Apr Il, It w Ill be poss Ible to wr Ite 4.4.44, and so on. It Is
Interest Ing, Isn't It?
3 March 1933
--
"Supramental beauty In the phys Ical"3 - what does
It mean? All these th Ings - all the arts, the beaut Iful
--
supramental beauty In the phys Ical?
No, all that Is only the man Ifestat Ion of a un Iversal harmony
wh Ich l Ies, as It were, at the very heart of creat Ion. But the
supramental beauty Is someth Ing much h Igher and more perfect;
It Is a beauty unta Inted by any ugl Iness and It does not need the
prox Im Ity of ugl Iness In order to look beaut Iful.
When the supramental forces descend Into Matter In order
to man Ifest, th Is perfect beauty w Ill express Itself qu Ite naturally
and spontaneously In all forms.
6 March 1933
I am very happy when I wear your sar Is, but I also w Ish to keep
them as carefully as one keeps works of art, and that Is why I
do not wear them very often.
--
L Ight".4 What does th Is mean? I don't understand.
If you put "D Iv Ine" Instead of "supramental", does that make
It clearer to you?
It means the consc Iousness that Is not f Illed w Ith the act Iv It Ies and Influences of ord Inary l Ife, but Is concentrated In an
asp Irat Ion towards the d Iv Ine l Ight, force, knowledge, joy.
--
They are absolutely charm Ing! It Is Imposs Ible to say wh Ich Is
the or Ig Inal and wh Ich the copy, and It may very well be that
the copy Is even more beaut Iful than the or Ig Inal. You saw that
I was wear Ing the gown th Is even Ing when I went for a walk on
the terrace.
--
Today I prayed to You w Ith my body for n Ine hours.
Mother, for the past two days I have been feel Ing a
l Ittle t Ired, my hands have become a b It slow.
Don't you th Ink It would be a good Idea for you to take a l Ittle
rest? That Is, e Ither take a full day's rest or else work two hours
less each day.
--
No, I don't want to take a rest. Today I prayed to
You w Ith my body for ten hours.
Then use Coué's method5 and repeat, " I am not t Ired, I cannot
be t Ired because I am protected!"
14 Apr Il 1933
--
Today I worked n Ine hours on the blouse.
L Ittle sm Ile, you must not go on work Ing to the po Int of fat Igue.
--
Not only do I work all day, but I want to work as
much as I can, hop Ing that I won't get t Ired. If I don't
work all day every day, how can I make so many b Ig
and beaut Iful th Ings such as I want to make for my dear,
dear Mother? How w Ill my dreams be fulf Illed If I waste
my t Ime?
Mother, do You know, I am go Ing to embro Ider
large curta Ins for Your room? You told me once that
--
You are r Ight; noth Ing Is better than to real Ise our most beaut Iful
dreams and noth Ing makes us stronger and happ Ier!
--
Mother, do You know, It Is I who Ironed these two
blouses w Ithout spo Il Ing them? Th Is Is the f Irst t Ime I
have Ironed a blouse. Mother, g Ive me a "bravo" for
th Is. Tomorrow I am go Ing to start on the other grey
blouse.
Th Is Is worth far more than a "bravo"! Th Is morn Ing I was
l Iterally f Illed w Ith adm Irat Ion. It Is magn If Icent - the b Irds are
so beaut Iful and so very al Ive; I found the Ir l Ittle heads w Ith the
lovely l Ittle s Ilver crests very beaut Iful, far more beaut Iful than
--
and In s Ilver on the sar I they w Ill be magn If Icent. Where d Id you
do the Iron Ing? It Is good that you are learn Ing.
21 June 1933
--
Th Is morn Ing I cut a chem Ise for You - It Is the f Irst
t Ime I ever cut a chem Ise. X Is go Ing to st Itch It and when
It Is ready, You w Ill wear It and then tell me If It Is well
cut or not. Because If It Is well cut, I can cut other th Ings
w Ithout any hes Itat Ion.
Today also I worked all day.
I am very pleased that you have learned to do th Is too. What do
you mean by "all day"? I hope It Is not more than n Ine hours,
because that was already a long stretch and ought not to be
--
S Ince th Is morn Ing I have some pa In In the pup Il of
my left eye.
--
day and do less embro Idery for two or three days. Do just as I
tell you and remember that your work depends almost ent Irely
on your eyes. If your eyes were to get spo Iled In any way, It
would be the end of your beaut Iful embro Ider Ies! When you
--
I th Ink all the trouble I took for X was In va In. I
spent nearly two hours th Is even Ing mak Ing her understand how to wr Ite th Ings very clearly. But In va In.
The trouble one takes l Ike th Is for someone Is never In va In. The
result may not appear Immed Iately, but one day or another a
d Is Interested act Ion bears Its fru It.
26 July 1933
--
I shall tell You how I usually spend my even Ings.
After see Ing You go up to the terrace, I go and have
my meal. Then I return home and wr Ite my letter to You,
and then somet Imes I wash our clothes (X's and m Ine;
somet Imes X washes them). Then I walk for an hour,
then I usually prepare my lesson and go to bed.
But last n Ight after my walk at 9:30, I helped X to
sew w Ith the sew Ing mach Ine unt Il 10:15. Then I worked
w Ith the sew Ing mach Ine unt Il 11:45; then I d Id a b It of
lesson and at 12:30 I went to bed.
Today I worked on the blouse for three hours.
You must not get Into the hab It of go Ing to bed late l Ike that.
It Is not good - you w Ill qu Ickly spo Il your eyes Ight, and that
would be the end of your beaut Iful embro Ider Ies. The nerves
--
work one does Is no longer neat and tr Im; everyth Ing becomes
an approx Imat Ion and one has to g Ive up all hope of ach Iev Ing
any k Ind of perfect Ion. I don't th Ink th Is Is the result you want
to obta In!
--
Today, August 15th, I d Idn't work; I w Ill start from
tomorrow.
--
- It Is truly regal; and as for me, I was proud of my l Ittle sm Ile
and her beaut Iful work!
--
and tomorrow th Is work w Ill be f In Ished. Afterwards I
shall start the embro Idery.
I have noth Ing else to wr Ite to You. The only news I
have to g Ive You Is about my work.
You are very hardwork Ing and pa Instak Ing, and If you have
noth Ing to tell me except news of your work, I have to tell you
of all my affect Ion for my dear l Ittle sm Ile.
--
Today also I was busy f Ix Ing the sar I on the frame,
but I saw that the sar I was not qu Ite stra Ight. So now
I have only to undo th Is work - wh Ich took me three
days - so as to do It better.
It Is rather t Iresome for you, my dear l Ittle sm Ile! But It Is an
exact Image of l Ife, where one must constantly undo what has
been done In order to redo It better.
24 August 1933
--
I do not feel that I am work Ing; I just play l Ike a
ch Ild all day w Ith the marvellous playth Ings my Mother
has g Iven me to play w Ith all day. I don't know how to
wr Ite In any other way and that Is why I wr Ite to You " I
worked" Instead of " I played".
Mother, I th Ink the sar I You wore today Is my f Inest
embro Idery, don't You th Ink so?
It Is a work of art. It Is s Imply splend Id. I feel as If I were dressed
In l Ight.
--
Just a word Is enough to keep the contact, and when you have
someth Ing Interest Ing to tell me, you must do so.
16 October 1933
--
You have a lot of work; I don't want to take up Your
t Ime...
As you l Ike, my l Ittle sm Ile; I am very busy, It Is true, but I could
have managed to g Ive you a few m Inutes. It Is n Ice of you to
th Ink of not Increas Ing my work unnecessar Ily; there are not
many l Ike you.
--
Today I worked very l Ittle...
You d Id qu Ite the r Ight th Ing!
--
After the Darshan I was qu Iet and happy. At the
Ashram I saw X and Y and we talked together happ Ily.
"How are you?" Y asked me. I had noth Ing to say, so I
asked, "And how are you?" She told me, "Th Is t Ime I
spent a lot of t Ime; Sr I Aurob Indo put h Is hand on me
--
Then It was luncht Ime, so we went to take our plates.
I was f Irst and I took my seat w Ith a place on e Ither s Ide
of me. I thought X would s It on one s Ide and Y on the
other. But then Z came and sat down bes Ide me. I told
her to s It somewhere else and she got angry w Ith me.
--
angry w Ith me, they d Id not s It w Ith me. I was very hurt
because they d Id not s It w Ith me.
--
rece Iv Ing Sr I Aurob Indo's bless Ing, It Is better to rema In concentrated and to keep one's joy locked Ins Ide oneself rather than to
throw It out by m Ix Ing and talk Ing w Ith others. The exper Iences
November 24th, a Darshan day. On the three (later four) Darshan days each year,
--
I am not angry w Ith X. I always try to keep s Ilent;
so I speak only about Important th Ings, w Ith her as well
as w Ith others; that Is to say, If she asks me someth Ing I
answer her and I show her the work to be done.
Mother, I want Your presence and I try to keep It at
all t Imes. I asp Ire towards You. I want You always, all
day and all n Ight. I want to l Ive always In Your heart,
where I can l Ive constantly w Ith X and w Ith all who love
You.
I have not Iced that when I am concentrated, or
rather when I try to concentrate, I cannot sm Ile at anyone and If I try to sm Ile I feel as If I were sm Il Ing
superf Ic Ially.
Mother, th Is morn Ing I wanted to tell all th Is to X,
but my l Ips refused; they d Idn't want to sm Ile.
Mother, Is It good or bad not to be able to speak l Ike
that? I want to know, because If It Is not good I don't
want It; I w Ill go on speak Ing as before.
It Is very good to rema In s Ilent and concentrated In your asp Irat Ion; and I am sure that If you keep a deep affect Ion for X In your
heart, she w Ill feel It and w Ill no longer be sad. But, of course,
If you feel you can expla In to her k Indly what Is happen Ing In
you, It w Ill be very good.
28 November 1933
--
You keep prom Is Ing me beaut Iful th Ings and I keep
res Ist Ing them. How then can I ever be happy?
You must not worry - It does not help towards the real Isat Ion
of the prom Ises; and also you must be pat Ient. In th Is phys Ical
world, th Ings take t Ime to get real Ised.
--
words that I couldn't read. I asked X to read them;
then he sa Id, "You are the Mother's ch Ild, not Sr I Aurob Indo's." ( It was just a joke, because I can read Your
handwr It Ing but not Sr I Aurob Indo's.)
Don't you bel Ieve that when one Is a ch Ild of the Mother,
one Is at the same t Ime a ch Ild of Sr I Aurob Indo, and v Iceversa?
16 December 1933
--
Yesterday and today I worked all day on the " Ir Is"
sar I. I love to work for You. Mother, I don't know what
to wr Ite. I have noth Ing to say.
That Is enough; all I ask Is that we exchange a l Ittle "bonjour"7
every day. When you have someth Ing spec Ial or Important or
Interest Ing to wr Ite to me, you w Ill wr Ite.
--
Today also I worked all day on the " Ir Is" sar I; I
won't tell You how many hours I work because If I
wr Ite " I worked for ten hours", You wr Ite to me, " It Is
amaz Ing"!
--
"Ar Istocracy of beauty". It Is a noble flower wh Ich stands upr Ight on Its stalk. Its form has been styl Ised In the fleur-de-l Is,
emblem of the k Ings of France.
--
Today also I worked all day on the blouse.
All my affect Ion for my hardwork Ing l Ittle sm Ile.
--
What can I wr Ite? Today I worked on the sar I.
What can I say? - that I am always w Ith you In your work and
your rest, your sleep and your wak Ing.
--
Yesterday wh Ile Iron Ing the blouse I scorched It In a
few places.
I d Idn't not Ice It, so It can't be anyth Ing much. That Is probably
why you looked so grave at Pranam th Is morn Ing. You should
--
I shall always be w Ith you, my dear l Ittle ch Ild, In the struggle
and In the v Ictory.
13 January 1934
--
Today I worked on the sar I for n Ine hours.
Then the work must be proceed Ing very fast. You have a marvellous capac Ity for work, my dear l Ittle ch Ild.
--
My dear l Ittle ch Ild, why were you weep Ing so much th Is morn Ing at Pranam? I was so sorry I could not comfort you. Won't you
tell me about your sorrow so that I may remove It If poss Ible?
You know that all my love Is always w Ith you as well as my best
w Ill to help you out of your d Iff Icult Ies.
--
Today also I worked all day on the sar I. Somet Imes
I become a naughty ch Ild, don't I, Mother?
Not naughty, poor l Ittle one, only a l Ittle sad, and that d Istresses
me, for I would l Ike to see you always full of l Ight and joy.
26 January 1934
--
I know that there are beaut Iful th Ings In my l Ittle
heart. There are bad th Ings too, as You know, Mother
- I have told You about them.
But th Is l Ittle heart Is full of love. Mother, we are
go Ing to burn all the bad th Ings In th Is l Ittle heart. Then
In my heart there w Ill only be a very, very sweet love for
--
What you have wr Itten here Is very beaut Iful and It Is also very
true. The beaut Iful th Ings are far stronger than the ugly ones
and they w Ill surely w In the v Ictory. I am w Ith you always, In
the struggle and In the v Ictory.
29 January 1934
--
embro Idered w Ith s Ilver thread. Th Is blouse Is very, very
beaut Iful. The sar I too w Ill be the most beaut Iful one In
Your collect Ion of sar Is embro Idered by us.
Before see Ing X's blouse I used to th Ink that my
b Ird-of-parad Ise8 sar I was very beaut Iful; but now that
--
I have seen th Is blouse, I f Ind that the b Ird-of-parad Ise
sar I Is noth Ing compared to the one X Is prepar Ing.
That Is not true; each has Its own part Icular beauty and style.
The b Ird-of-parad Ise Is a very beaut Iful sar I.
Her blouse Is truly the most beaut Iful one.
I cannot say whether It Is the most beaut Iful or not. Each of
the embro Idered sar Is has Its own beauty; but It Is true that th Is
blouse Is very beaut Iful.
30 January 1934
--
I once told You that If someone made someth Ing
beaut Iful for You we ought to be happy, no matter who
made It, myself or someone else; I mean that upon see Ing
a very beaut Iful th Ing someone has made for You, one
--
Do You know that when I saw X's blouse, I felt as
If another person had made someth Ing more beaut Iful
than I had.
Mother, I know why I felt l Ike that. Up to now I
have had In me a k Ind of pr Ide In my work: " I make
f Iner th Ings than anyone else here", someth Ing l Ike that.
And that Is why when I saw someth Ing very beaut Iful
made by someone else, my pr Ide rece Ived a good hard
blow. Isn't that true? (Mother, here I recall a sentence I
once heard Y tell Ing someone: "Mother knows how to
--
I assure you that I do not del Iberately g Ive blows.
Ser Ies Three - To "My l Ittle sm Ile"
Mother, why are these s Illy th Ings In me? I don't want
them. They have been In me long enough. Now I don't
want them. I shall not rest unt Il You come Into my heart
and l Ive there eternally.
My Mother, g Ive me pur Ity and constancy In my
asp Irat Ion.
Certa In cond It Ions In us (and pr Ide Is one of them) automat Ically
Inv Ite blows from the surround Ing c Ircumstances. And It Is up
to us to ut Il Ise these blows to make further progress.
You are r Ight In want Ing all th Is pett Iness and stup Id Ity to
d Isappear. I am fully w Ith you In th Is determ Inat Ion and I am
sure that you w Ill tr Iumph.
--
Today I have noth Ing to wr Ite. As usual I worked
all day.
--
des Ire: a happy calm, an Invar Iable peace, a lum Inous s Ilence.
Such Is my w Ish and my bless Ing.
1 February 1934
--
I shall capture You In my heart. I don't need to th Ink
of peace and happ Iness. When You dwell In our hearts,
these th Ings are sure to be there.
You w Ill not have to go far to se Ize me, for I am already In your
heart and as soon as your eyes are opened you w Ill see me there;
turn your faculty of feel Ing Inward Instead of lett Ing It project
outward, and you w Ill feel my presence as concretely (even more
--
You are already In my heart, It Is true. But I don't
know how to open my eyes; they are always open except
when I sleep.
I am speak Ing of your Inner eyes, not the phys Ical ones.
"Turn your faculty of feel Ing Inward Instead of lett Ing It
project outward." Mother, when I feel someth Ing I feel
It In my heart (and I th Ink everyone feels In h Is heart).
I don't know how to feel outward. I don't understand
what You mean by "outward".
I mean that Instead of l Iv Ing In the percept Ions of the senseorgans, wh Ich are exclus Ively occup Ied w Ith outward th Ings,
you should concentrate In the Inner be Ing, wh Ich has a l Ife
Independent of the senses (s Ight, hear Ing, smell, taste, touch).
--
wrote to me) after I sent It to You th Is morn Ing w Ith my
letter?
--
Poor l Ittle one, I very gladly take you on my lap and cradle you
to my heart to soothe th Is heavy sorrow wh Ich has no cause
--
you In my arms, bathe you In my love and w Ipe away even the
Ser Ies Three - To "My l Ittle sm Ile"
memory of th Is unfortunate Inc Ident. I kept the letter to show It
to Sr I Aurob Indo along w Ith your letter of th Is morn Ing. I am
return Ing It to you In th Is notebook.
27 February 1934
No, my dear ch Ild, I am sure I d Idn't tell you that you wanted
to h Ide someth Ing from me. When you started cry Ing under the
pressure I was putt Ing on you In med Itat Ion to calm the restlessness of your m Ind and v Ital, I thought that It m Ight rel Ieve you
to tell me the cause of your sorrow, and when you d Idn't reply,
I s Imply asked whether you wanted to speak, so as not to Ins Ist
unnecessar Ily. You were m Istaken If you thought I was show Ing
d Ispleasure.
Unfortunately, for some t Ime now you have closed up Ins Ide
yourself, and that Is why I cannot help you as much as I would
l Ike to.
--
My dear ch Ild, th Is Is certa Inly a most unexpected way of Interpret Ing th Is v Is Ion. I hadn't g Iven It that mean Ing at all. The
Images In these v Is Ions are always symbol Ic and should be taken
as such.
The rocks represent the mater Ial nature, hard and Inflex Ible
yet conceal Ing In Itself the stream of l Ife. Because of the res Istance
of matter, th Is stream of l Ife Is freed only w Ith d Iff Iculty and can
hardly emerge Into the l Ight. But w Ith a l Ittle concentrat Ion and
Ins Istence, the res Istance of matter lessens and the l Ife-forces are
freed. Th Is Image appl Ies to almost everyone, but In th Is case
It concerned you because you were present, and I took It as
a prom Ise that your d Iff Icult Ies would g Ive way and that you
would soon be able to emerge Into a lum Inous, free and happy
consc Iousness.
--
I dyed the b Ig ten-yard p Iece. But It was not successful:
the dye Ing Is Irregular: some places are dark and some
are pale. You w Ill see It tomorrow morn Ing.
My dear ch Ild, I d Idn't reply at once because I wanted to see the
cloth f Irst. There are Irregular It Ies, of course, but It seems to me
that they can be put r Ight.
I don't th Ink It would be good to dye It aga In. It would become too dark. But we can take the Irregular It Ies as movements
of water and underl Ine them w Ith a f Ine gold thread; then It w Ill
look as If It were done del Iberately and It w Ill be even lovel Ier.
Next t Ime I see you, I shall show you exactly what I mean. Don't
worry, It w Ill be qu Ite all r Ight. You may start your work r Ight
away.
--
Now I don 't feel l Ike do Ing the f Ishes. I shall do
them In f Ive years.
I would rather start on the green sar I w Ith gold and
s Ilver dragons, for 21 February 1935 - If You ask someone to do the draw Ing. Because the green cloth and the
gold and s Ilver thread are all ready.
I am d Isappo Inted, I cannot do the f Ishes now.
Ser Ies Three - To "My l Ittle sm Ile"
You can ask X If he would l Ike to draw the dragons for you.
7 September 1934
--
that Is a sure fact.
But when l Ittle ch Ildren prove to be unreasonable, It Is very
d Iff Icult to reason w Ith them. Now If you want me to tell you
what I th Ink, It Is th Is: Y has taken a lot of trouble and made
a very beaut Iful draw Ing, a beaut Iful p Iece of cloth has been
--
of trouble to dye It, and I tell you that I have found a way of
ut Il Is Ing the Irregular It Ies of the dye Ing to make a sar I far more
beaut Iful than we had thought, and yet w Ithout cons Ider Ing you
wr Ite In a f It of bad temper: " I don't want to do th Is sar I any
more, I w Ill do another one." Naturally I thought that now I
would have to ask X to go to the trouble of mak Ing another
draw Ing, and If by chance another d Iff Iculty crops up, th Is l Ittle
ch Ild may once aga In say: " I am d Isappo Inted, I don't want to
do th Is sar I," and X w Ill have worked for noth Ing. That Is why I
told you to ask h Im for the draw Ing yourself. He has just today
sent me the des Ign of the crown w Ith f Ishes. It Is very, very pretty.
And If you want my op In Ion, I suggest that you f Irst take up the
crown - It w Ill set you go Ing on the sar I Itself; and you w Ill
see that everyth Ing w Ill be all r Ight, completely all r Ight. I am
send Ing you the des Ign of the crown.
--
Last n Ight when I went to bed at about 9:30, I felt a
sort of fear, as If someone were there or someone m Ight
come. I shut my eyes and after a moment, In my sleep,
I felt a sort of fear. I opened my eyes, looked at the sky,
and then closed my eyes aga In. I saw someth Ing l Ike a
cloud com Ing slowly and I opened my eyes...
My dear l Ittle sm Ile,
You must not be afra Id. If you see someth Ing that fr Ightens
you or you have an unpleasant feel Ing, you must call me and the
--
afra Id of an approach Ing thunder-cloud; why should It fr Ighten
you at n Ight?
Put yourself In my arms w Ithout fear and be sure that noth Ing can harm you. My force and my protect Ion are always w Ith
you.
--
You are absolutely r Ight, and I don't see why, Instead of read Ing Interest Ing th Ings, you should start do Ing bor Ing exerc Ises.
To learn a language one must read, read, read - and talk as
--
are so consc Ious of It, I feel that soon you w Ill be able to master It.
It goes w Ithout say Ing that our help Is always w Ith you to
br Ing you peace and s Ilence, and It Is absolutely certa In that
peace and s Ilence w Ill be establ Ished In you some day never to
leave you aga In.
--
You are qu Ite r Ight. I much prefer a beaut Iful embro Idered
sar I to a lace gown. It Is not a quest Ion of number or of need.
For years I was perfectly sat Isf Ied w Ith two sar Is a year - but I
am proud of the beaut Iful th Ings my dear ch Ildren make for me
and I wear them w Ith affect Ion and joy.
My bless Ings and my love are always w Ith you.
--
You told me that there Is someth Ing closed In me
wh Ich Isn't open to You and th Is Is why, even when I
want to feel Your love In my heart (wh Ich You say Is
already there) I do not feel It. What Is It that Is closed?
My heart? Or someth Ing else? I don't understand all th Is.
I want my heart to open to You and to feel Your love
there always. But If It Is really closed, how can I open
It? What must I do to open It? For I really do want It to
open to You and I want to feel happy for ever.
My dear l Ittle sm Ile,
--
one opens; the more one opens, the more one rece Ives; and In
the Int Imacy of th Is self-g Iv Ing one can become consc Ious of the
Inner Presence and the joy It br Ings.
Tender love from your mother.
--
I shall tell You frankly when I don't feel happy: It Is
when someone joyfully tells me about h Is beaut Iful and
happy exper Iences that I feel so poor; I feel then that I
do not yet have In me what I should have.
And I always ask You for s Ilence and peace (as I
told You the other day) because I know that If one can
always keep that s Ilence and peace one never feels poor
--
I don't want to be, I don't want to feel so poor.
You have already had th Is exper Ience of peace and s Ilent joy;
you know what It Is and It Is sure to come back stronger and
stead Ier. Rema In conf Ident, do not torment yourself - In th Is
way you w Ill hasten Its com Ing.
Tender love from your mother.
--
I f Ind that I have lost everyth Ing. All that was good
In me, all Is lost. Prev Iously I always felt that all I d Id
was for You; In all the work I d Id, th Is feel Ing of "do Ing
It for You" was always w Ith me.
Now I f Ind that I have lost th Is feel Ing.
My dear l Ittle ch Ild,
Are you aware of any cause for th Is change? Surely there Is
one. Bes Ides, these days when the Ashram Is full of v Is Itors,9
there Is a great confus Ion wh Ich often br Ings a cloud Ing of
the consc Iousness. You must not let th Is upset you too much,
--
reappear. My love Is always w Ith you to help you go through
th Is bad moment.
--
Yes, I th Ink I know the cause of th Is change. Isn't
It the des Ire to be adm Ired by people - ego? Or Is It
someth Ing else? If You know, You w Ill let me know. I
must know what It Is In order to get r Id of It.
Yes, my dear l Ittle ch Ild, you have Indeed found the cause; and
weren't you a l Ittle annoyed that I d Idn't wear your embro Idered
sar Is all these days? It Is certa Inly not because I d Isl Ike wear Ing
them - qu Ite the contrary. But they are rather heavy and warm
and I prefer to keep them for wear Ing between November and
January - at that t Ime there are many v Is Itors because of the
vacat Ions and I shall then wear the embro Idered sar Is w Ith the
greatest pleasure s Ince the season Is a b It cooler.
It Is true that you must get r Id of these Ignorant and petty
movements; but at the same t Ime, you may be sure that I apprec Iate and love your work Immensely. I have great adm Irat Ion for
your embro Idery, and for you, great love.
--
clouds... And If you want the rad Ical remedy It l Ies In th Is:
frankness, be absolutely frank; tell me fully all that Is go Ing
on In you, and soon the cure w Ill come, a complete and happy
cure.
--
Don't pretend to be s Illy when you are not. Not only was I
not angry, but I had not the sl Ightest Intent Ion of look Ing angry.
I only looked stra Ight Into your soul, try Ing to reestabl Ish
the connect Ion between It and your exter Ior consc Iousness. And
I took your laughter for a s Ign of convers Ion!
Beware of false pr Ide - It leads only to ru In. And do not
bel Ittle the D Iv Ine's love, because w Ithout It noth Ing Is worth
l Iv Ing for.
I know that you are too sens Ible and sens It Ive to Ignore th Is
truth.
0.03 - The Threefold Life, #The Synthesis Of Yoga, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
Chapter I I I
The Threefold L Ife
NATURE, then, Is an evolut Ion or progress Ive self-man Ifestat Ion of an eternal and secret ex Istence, w Ith three success Ive forms as her three steps of ascent. And we have consequently as the cond It Ion of all our act Iv It Ies these three mutually Interdependent poss Ib Il It Ies, the bod Ily l Ife, the mental ex Istence and the ve Iled sp Ir Itual be Ing wh Ich Is In the Involut Ion the cause of the others and In the evolut Ion the Ir result. Preserv Ing and perfect Ing the phys Ical, fulf Ill Ing the mental, It Is Nature's a Im and It should be ours to unve Il In the perfected body and m Ind the transcendent act Iv It Ies of the Sp Ir It. As the mental l Ife does not abrogate but works for the elevat Ion and better ut Il Isat Ion of the bod Ily ex Istence, so too the sp Ir Itual should not abrogate but transf Igure our Intellectual, emot Ional, aesthet Ic and v Ital act Iv It Ies.
For man, the head of terrestr Ial Nature, the sole earthly frame In wh Ich her full evolut Ion Is poss Ible, Is a tr Iple b Irth. He has been g Iven a l Iv Ing frame In wh Ich the body Is the vessel and l Ife the dynam Ic means of a d Iv Ine man Ifestat Ion. H Is act Iv Ity Is centred In a progress Ive m Ind wh Ich a Ims at perfect Ing Itself as well as the house In wh Ich It dwells and the means of l Ife that It uses, and Is capable of awak Ing by a progress Ive self-real Isat Ion to Its own true nature as a form of the Sp Ir It. He culm Inates In what he always really was, the Illum Ined and beat If Ic sp Ir It wh Ich Is Intended at last to Irrad Iate l Ife and m Ind w Ith Its now concealed splendours.
S Ince th Is Is the plan of the d Iv Ine Energy In human Ity, the whole method and a Im of our ex Istence must work by the Interact Ion of these three elements In the be Ing. As a result of the Ir separate formulat Ion In Nature, man has open to h Im a cho Ice between three k Inds of l Ife, the ord Inary mater Ial ex Istence, a l Ife of mental act Iv Ity and progress and the unchang Ing sp Ir Itual beat Itude. But he can, as he progresses, comb Ine these three forms, resolve the Ir d Iscords Into a harmon Ious rhythm and so create In h Imself the whole godhead, the perfect Man.
In ord Inary Nature they have each the Ir own character Ist Ic and govern Ing Impulse.
The character Ist Ic energy of bod Ily L Ife Is not so much In progress as In pers Istence, not so much In Ind Iv Idual selfenlargement as In self-repet It Ion. There Is, Indeed, In phys Ical Nature a progress Ion from type to type, from the vegetable to the an Imal, from the an Imal to man; for even In Inan Imate Matter M Ind Is at work. But once a type Is marked off phys Ically, the ch Ief Immed Iate preoccupat Ion of the terrestr Ial Mother seems to be to keep It In be Ing by a constant reproduct Ion. For L Ife always seeks Immortal Ity; but s Ince Ind Iv Idual form Is Impermanent and only the Idea of a form Is permanent In the consc Iousness that creates the un Iverse, - for there It does not per Ish, - such constant reproduct Ion Is the only poss Ible mater Ial Immortal Ity.
Self-preservat Ion, self-repet It Ion, self-mult Ipl Icat Ion are necessar Ily, then, the predom Inant Inst Incts of all mater Ial ex Istence.
Mater Ial l Ife seems ever to move In a f Ixed cycle.
The character Ist Ic energy of pure M Ind Is change, and the more our mental Ity acqu Ires elevat Ion and organ Isat Ion, the more th Is law of M Ind assumes the aspect of a cont Inual enlargement, Improvement and better arrangement of Its ga Ins and so of a cont Inual passage from a smaller and s Impler to a larger and more complex perfect Ion. For M Ind, unl Ike bod Ily l Ife, Is Inf In Ite In Its f Ield, elast Ic In Its expans Ion, eas Ily var Iable In Its format Ions. Change, then, self-enlargement and self Improvement are Its proper Inst Incts. M Ind too moves In cycles, but these are ever-enlarg Ing sp Irals. Its fa Ith Is perfect Ib Il Ity, Its watchword Is progress.
The character Ist Ic law of Sp Ir It Is self-ex Istent perfect Ion and Immutable Inf In Ity. It possesses always and In Its own r Ight the Immortal Ity wh Ich Is the a Im of L Ife and the perfect Ion wh Ich Is the goal of M Ind. The atta Inment of the eternal and the real Isat Ion of that wh Ich Is the same In all th Ings and beyond all th Ings, equally bl Issful In un Iverse and outs Ide It, untouched by the Imperfect Ions and l Im Itat Ions of the forms and act Iv It Ies In wh Ich It dwells, are the glory of the sp Ir Itual l Ife.
In each of these forms Nature acts both Ind Iv Idually and collect Ively; for the Eternal aff Irms H Imself equally In the s Ingle form and In the group-ex Istence, whether fam Ily, clan and nat Ion or group Ings dependent on less phys Ical pr Inc Iples or the supreme group of all, our collect Ive human Ity. Man also may seek h Is own Ind Iv Idual good from any or all of these spheres of act Iv Ity, or Ident Ify h Imself In them w Ith the collect Iv Ity and l Ive for It, or, r Is Ing to a truer percept Ion of th Is complex un Iverse, harmon Ise the Ind Iv Idual real Isat Ion w Ith the collect Ive a Im. For as It Is the r Ight relat Ion of the soul w Ith the Supreme, wh Ile It Is In the un Iverse, ne Ither to assert ego Ist Ically Its separate be Ing nor to blot Itself out In the Indef Inable, but to real Ise Its un Ity w Ith the D Iv Ine and the world and un Ite them In the Ind Iv Idual, so the r Ight relat Ion of the Ind Iv Idual w Ith the collect Iv Ity Is ne Ither to pursue ego Ist Ically h Is own mater Ial or mental progress or sp Ir Itual salvat Ion w Ithout regard to h Is fellows, nor for the sake of the commun Ity to suppress or ma Im h Is proper development, but to sum up In h Imself all Its best and completest poss Ib Il It Ies and pour them out by thought, act Ion and all other means on h Is surround Ings so that the whole race may approach nearer to the atta Inment of Its supreme personal It Ies.
It follows that the object of the mater Ial l Ife must be to fulf Il, above all th Ings, the v Ital a Im of Nature. The whole a Im of the mater Ial man Is to l Ive, to pass from b Irth to death w Ith as much comfort or enjoyment as may be on the way, but anyhow to l Ive.
He can subord Inate th Is a Im, but only to phys Ical Nature's other Inst Incts, the reproduct Ion of the Ind Iv Idual and the conservat Ion of the type In the fam Ily, class or commun Ity. Self, domest Ic Ity, the accustomed order of the soc Iety and of the nat Ion are the const Ituents of the mater Ial ex Istence. Its Immense Importance In the economy of Nature Is self-ev Ident, and commensurate Is the Importance of the human type wh Ich represents It. He assures her of the safety of the framework she has made and of the orderly cont Inuance and conservat Ion of her past ga Ins.
But by that very ut Il Ity such men and the l Ife they lead are condemned to be l Im Ited, Irrat Ionally conservat Ive and earthbound. The customary rout Ine, the customary Inst Itut Ions, the Inher Ited or hab Itual forms of thought, - these th Ings are the l Ife-breath of the Ir nostr Ils. They adm It and jealously defend the changes compelled by the progress Ive m Ind In the past, but combat w Ith equal zeal the changes that are be Ing made by It In the present. For to the mater Ial man the l Iv Ing progress Ive th Inker Is an Ideologue, dreamer or madman. The old Sem Ites who stoned the l Iv Ing prophets and adored the Ir memor Ies when dead, were the very Incarnat Ion of th Is Inst Inct Ive and un Intell Igent pr Inc Iple In Nature. In the anc Ient Ind Ian d Ist Inct Ion between the once born and the tw Ice born, It Is to th Is mater Ial man that the former descr Ipt Ion can be appl Ied. He does Nature's Infer Ior works; he assures the bas Is for her h Igher act Iv It Ies; but not to h Im eas Ily are opened the glor Ies of her second b Irth.
Yet he adm Its so much of sp Ir Itual Ity as has been enforced on h Is customary Ideas by the great rel Ig Ious outbursts of the past and he makes In h Is scheme of soc Iety a place, venerable though not often effect Ive, for the pr Iest or the learned theolog Ian who can be trusted to prov Ide h Im w Ith a safe and ord Inary sp Ir Itual pabulum. But to the man who would assert for h Imself the l Iberty of sp Ir Itual exper Ience and the sp Ir Itual l Ife, he ass Igns, If he adm Its h Im at all, not the vestment of the pr Iest but the robe of the Sannyas In. Outs Ide soc Iety let h Im exerc Ise h Is dangerous freedom. So he may even serve as a human l Ightn Ing-rod rece Iv Ing the electr Ic Ity of the Sp Ir It and turn Ing It away from the soc Ial ed If Ice.
Nevertheless It Is poss Ible to make the mater Ial man and h Is l Ife moderately progress Ive by Impr Int Ing on the mater Ial m Ind the custom of progress, the hab It of consc Ious change, the f Ixed Idea of progress Ion as a law of l Ife. The creat Ion by th Is means of progress Ive soc Iet Ies In Europe Is one of the greatest tr Iumphs of M Ind over Matter. But the phys Ical nature has Its revenge; for the progress made tends to be of the grosser and more outward k Ind and Its attempts at a h Igher or a more rap Id movement br Ing about great wear Inesses, sw Ift exhaust Ions, startl Ing reco Ils.
It Is poss Ible also to g Ive the mater Ial man and h Is l Ife a moderate sp Ir Itual Ity by accustom Ing h Im to regard In a rel Ig Ious sp Ir It all the Inst Itut Ions of l Ife and Its customary act Iv It Ies. The creat Ion of such sp Ir Itual Ised commun It Ies In the East has been one of the greatest tr Iumphs of Sp Ir It over Matter. Yet here, too, there Is a defect; for th Is often tends only to the creat Ion of a rel Ig Ious temperament, the most outward form of sp Ir Itual Ity.
Its h Igher man Ifestat Ions, even the most splend Id and pu Issant, e Ither merely Increase the number of souls drawn out of soc Ial l Ife and so Impover Ish It or d Isturb the soc Iety for a wh Ile by a momentary elevat Ion. The truth Is that ne Ither the mental effort nor the sp Ir Itual Impulse can suff Ice, d Ivorced from each other, to overcome the Immense res Istance of mater Ial Nature.
She demands the Ir all Iance In a complete effort before she w Ill suffer a complete change In human Ity. But, usually, these two great agents are unw Ill Ing to make to each other the necessary concess Ions.
The mental l Ife concentrates on the aesthet Ic, the eth Ical and the Intellectual act Iv It Ies. Essent Ial mental Ity Is Ideal Ist Ic and a seeker after perfect Ion. The subtle self, the br Ill Iant Atman,1 Is ever a dreamer. A dream of perfect beauty, perfect conduct, perfect Truth, whether seek Ing new forms of the Eternal or rev Ital Is Ing the old, Is the very soul of pure mental Ity. But It knows not how to deal w Ith the res Istance of Matter. There It Is hampered and Ineff Ic Ient, works by bungl Ing exper Iments and has e Ither to w Ithdraw from the struggle or subm It to the grey actual Ity. Or else, by study Ing the mater Ial l Ife and accept Ing the cond It Ions of the contest, It may succeed, but only In Impos Ing temporar Ily some art If Ic Ial system wh Ich Inf In Ite Nature e Ither rends and casts as Ide or d Isf Igures out of recogn It Ion or by w Ithdraw Ing her assent leaves as the corpse of a dead Ideal. Few and far between have been those real Isat Ions of the dreamer In Man wh Ich the world has gladly accepted, looks back to w Ith a fond memory and seeks, In Its elements, to cher Ish.
1 Who dwells In Dream, the Inly consc Ious, the enjoyer of abstract Ions, the Br Ill Iant.
Mandukya Upan Ishad 4.
When the gulf between actual l Ife and the temperament of the th Inker Is too great, we see as the result a sort of w Ithdraw Ing of the M Ind from l Ife In order to act w Ith a greater freedom In Its own sphere. The poet l Iv Ing among h Is br Ill Iant v Is Ions, the art Ist absorbed In h Is art, the ph Ilosopher th Ink Ing out the problems of the Intellect In h Is sol Itary chamber, the sc Ient Ist, the scholar car Ing only for the Ir stud Ies and the Ir exper Iments, were often In former days, are even now not unoften the Sannyas Ins of the Intellect. To the work they have done for human Ity, all Its past bears record.
But such seclus Ion Is just If Ied only by some spec Ial act Iv Ity.
M Ind f Inds fully Its force and act Ion only when It casts Itself upon l Ife and accepts equally Its poss Ib Il It Ies and Its res Istances as the means of a greater self-perfect Ion. In the struggle w Ith the d Iff Icult Ies of the mater Ial world the eth Ical development of the Ind Iv Idual Is f Irmly shaped and the great schools of conduct are formed; by contact w Ith the facts of l Ife Art atta Ins to v Ital Ity, Thought assures Its abstract Ions, the general Isat Ions of the ph Ilosopher base themselves on a stable foundat Ion of sc Ience and exper Ience.
Th Is m Ix Ing w Ith l Ife may, however, be pursued for the sake of the Ind Iv Idual m Ind and w Ith an ent Ire Ind Ifference to the forms of the mater Ial ex Istence or the upl Ift Ing of the race. Th Is Ind Ifference Is seen at Its h Ighest In the Ep Icurean d Isc Ipl Ine and Is not ent Irely absent from the Sto Ic; and even altru Ism does the works of compass Ion more often for Its own sake than for the sake of the world It helps. But th Is too Is a l Im Ited fulf Ilment. The progress Ive m Ind Is seen at Its noblest when It str Ives to elevate the whole race to Its own level whether by sow Ing broadcast the Image of Its own thought and fulf Ilment or by chang Ing the mater Ial l Ife of the race Into fresh forms, rel Ig Ious, Intellectual, soc Ial or pol It Ical, Intended to represent more nearly that Ideal of truth, beauty, just Ice, r Ighteousness w Ith wh Ich the man's own soul Is Illum Ined. Fa Ilure In such a f Ield matters l Ittle; for the mere attempt Is dynam Ic and creat Ive. The struggle of M Ind to elevate l Ife Is the prom Ise and cond It Ion of the conquest of l Ife by that wh Ich Is h Igher even than M Ind.
That h Ighest th Ing, the sp Ir Itual ex Istence, Is concerned w Ith what Is eternal but not therefore ent Irely aloof from the trans Ient. For the sp Ir Itual man the m Ind's dream of perfect beauty Is real Ised In an eternal love, beauty and del Ight that has no dependence and Is equal beh Ind all object Ive appearances; Its dream of perfect Truth In the supreme, self-ex Istent, self-apparent and eternal Ver Ity wh Ich never var Ies, but expla Ins and Is the secret of all var Iat Ions and the goal of all progress; Its dream of perfect act Ion In the omn Ipotent and self-gu Id Ing Law that Is Inherent for ever In all th Ings and translates Itself here In the rhythm of the worlds. What Is fug It Ive v Is Ion or constant effort of creat Ion In the br Ill Iant Self Is an eternally ex Ist Ing Real Ity In the Self that knows2 and Is the Lord.
But If It Is often d Iff Icult for the mental l Ife to accommodate Itself to the dully res Istant mater Ial act Iv Ity, how much more d Iff Icult must It seem for the sp Ir Itual ex Istence to l Ive on In a world that appears full not of the Truth but of every l Ie and Illus Ion, not of Love and Beauty but of an encompass Ing d Iscord and ugl Iness, not of the Law of Truth but of v Ictor Ious self Ishness and s In? Therefore the sp Ir Itual l Ife tends eas Ily In the sa Int and Sannyas In to w Ithdraw from the mater Ial ex Istence and reject It e Ither wholly and phys Ically or In the sp Ir It. It sees th Is world as the k Ingdom of ev Il or of Ignorance and the eternal and d Iv Ine e Ither In a far-off heaven or beyond where there Is no world and no l Ife. It separates Itself Inwardly, If not also phys Ically, from the world's Impur It Ies; It asserts the sp Ir Itual real Ity In a spotless Isolat Ion. Th Is w Ithdrawal renders an Invaluable serv Ice to the mater Ial l Ife Itself by forc Ing It to regard and even to bow down to someth Ing that Is the d Irect negat Ion of Its own petty Ideals, sord Id cares and ego Ist Ic self-content.
But the work In the world of so supreme a power as sp Ir Itual force cannot be thus l Im Ited. The sp Ir Itual l Ife also can return upon the mater Ial and use It as a means of Its own greater fullness. Refus Ing to be bl Inded by the dual It Ies, the appearances, It can seek In all appearances whatsoever the v Is Ion of the same Lord, the same eternal Truth, Beauty, Love, Del Ight. The
Vedant Ic formula of the Self In all th Ings, all th Ings In the Self and all th Ings as becom Ings of the Self Is the key to th Is r Icher and all-embrac Ing Yoga.
2 The Un If Ied, In whom consc Ious thought Is concentrated, who Is all del Ight and enjoyer of del Ight, the W Ise. . . . He Is the Lord of all, the Omn Isc Ient, the Inner Gu Ide.
Mandukya Upan Ishad 5, 6.
But the sp Ir Itual l Ife, l Ike the mental, may thus make use of th Is outward ex Istence for the benef It of the Ind Iv Idual w Ith a perfect Ind Ifference to any collect Ive upl Ift Ing of the merely symbol Ic world wh Ich It uses. S Ince the Eternal Is for ever the same In all th Ings and all th Ings the same to the Eternal, s Ince the exact mode of act Ion and the result are of no Importance compared w Ith the work Ing out In oneself of the one great real Isat Ion, th Is sp Ir Itual Ind Ifference accepts no matter what env Ironment, no matter what act Ion, d Ispass Ionately, prepared to ret Ire as soon as Its own supreme end Is real Ised. It Is so that many have understood the Ideal of the G Ita. Or else the Inner love and bl Iss may pour Itself out on the world In good deeds, In serv Ice, In compass Ion, the Inner Truth In the g Iv Ing of knowledge, w Ithout therefore attempt Ing the transformat Ion of a world wh Ich must by Its Inal Ienable nature rema In a battlef Ield of the dual It Ies, of s In and v Irtue, of truth and error, of joy and suffer Ing.
But If Progress also Is one of the ch Ief terms of worldex Istence and a progress Ive man Ifestat Ion of the D Iv Ine the true sense of Nature, th Is l Im Itat Ion also Is Inval Id. It Is poss Ible for the sp Ir Itual l Ife In the world, and It Is Its real m Iss Ion, to change the mater Ial l Ife Into Its own Image, the Image of the D Iv Ine. Therefore, bes Ides the great sol Itar Ies who have sought and atta Ined the Ir self-l Iberat Ion, we have the great sp Ir Itual teachers who have also l Iberated others and, supreme of all, the great dynam Ic souls who, feel Ing themselves stronger In the m Ight of the Sp Ir It than all the forces of the mater Ial l Ife banded together, have thrown themselves upon the world, grappled w Ith It In a lov Ing wrestle and str Iven to compel Its consent to Its own transf Igurat Ion. Ord Inar Ily, the effort Is concentrated on a mental and moral change In human Ity, but It may extend Itself also to the alterat Ion of the forms of our l Ife and Its Inst Itut Ions so that they too may be a better mould for the Inpour Ings of the Sp Ir It. These attempts have been the supreme landmarks In the progress Ive development of human Ideals and the d Iv Ine preparat Ion of the race. Every one of them, whatever Its outward results, has left Earth more capable of Heaven and qu Ickened In Its tardy movements the evolut Ionary Yoga of Nature.
In Ind Ia, for the last thousand years and more, the sp Ir Itual l Ife and the mater Ial have ex Isted s Ide by s Ide to the exclus Ion of the progress Ive m Ind. Sp Ir Itual Ity has made terms for Itself w Ith Matter by renounc Ing the attempt at general progress. It has obta Ined from soc Iety the r Ight of free sp Ir Itual development for all who assume some d Ist Inct Ive symbol, such as the garb of the Sannyas In, the recogn It Ion of that l Ife as man's goal and those who l Ive It as worthy of an absolute reverence, and the cast Ing of soc Iety Itself Into such a rel Ig Ious mould that Its most customary acts should be accompan Ied by a formal rem Inder of the sp Ir Itual symbol Ism of l Ife and Its ult Imate dest Inat Ion. On the other hand, there was conceded to soc Iety the r Ight of Inert Ia and Immob Ile self-conservat Ion. The concess Ion destroyed much of the value of the terms. The rel Ig Ious mould be Ing f Ixed, the formal rem Inder tended to become a rout Ine and to lose Its l Iv Ing sense. The constant attempts to change the mould by new sects and rel Ig Ions ended only In a new rout Ine or a mod If Icat Ion of the old; for the sav Ing element of the free and act Ive m Ind had been ex Iled. The mater Ial l Ife, handed over to the Ignorance, the purposeless and endless dual Ity, became a leaden and dolorous yoke from wh Ich fl Ight was the only escape.
The schools of Ind Ian Yoga lent themselves to the comprom Ise. Ind Iv Idual perfect Ion or l Iberat Ion was made the a Im, seclus Ion of some k Ind from the ord Inary act Iv It Ies the cond It Ion, the renunc Iat Ion of l Ife the culm Inat Ion. The teacher gave h Is knowledge only to a small c Ircle of d Isc Iples. Or If a w Ider movement was attempted, It was st Ill the release of the Ind Iv Idual soul that rema Ined the a Im. The pact w Ith an Immob Ile soc Iety was, for the most part, observed.
The ut Il Ity of the comprom Ise In the then actual state of the world cannot be doubted. It secured In Ind Ia a soc Iety wh Ich lent Itself to the preservat Ion and the worsh Ip of sp Ir Itual Ity, a country apart In wh Ich as In a fortress the h Ighest sp Ir Itual Ideal could ma Inta In Itself In Its most absolute pur Ity unoverpowered by the s Iege of the forces around It. But It was a comprom Ise, not an absolute v Ictory. The mater Ial l Ife lost the d Iv Ine Impulse to growth, the sp Ir Itual preserved by Isolat Ion Its he Ight and pur Ity, but sacr If Iced Its full power and serv Iceableness to the world. Therefore, In the d Iv Ine Prov Idence the country of the Yog Ins and the Sannyas Ins has been forced Into a str Ict and Imperat Ive contact w Ith the very element It had rejected, the element of the progress Ive M Ind, so that It m Ight recover what was now want Ing to It.
We have to recogn Ise once more that the Ind Iv Idual ex Ists not In h Imself alone but In the collect Iv Ity and that Ind Iv Idual perfect Ion and l Iberat Ion are not the whole sense of God's Intent Ion In the world. The free use of our l Iberty Includes also the l Iberat Ion of others and of mank Ind; the perfect ut Il Ity of our perfect Ion Is, hav Ing real Ised In ourselves the d Iv Ine symbol, to reproduce, mult Iply and ult Imately un Iversal Ise It In others.
Therefore from a concrete v Iew of human l Ife In Its threefold potent Ial It Ies we come to the same conclus Ion that we had drawn from an observat Ion of Nature In her general work Ings and the three steps of her evolut Ion. And we beg In to perce Ive a complete a Im for our synthes Is of Yoga.
Sp Ir It Is the crown of un Iversal ex Istence; Matter Is Its bas Is; M Ind Is the l Ink between the two. Sp Ir It Is that wh Ich Is eternal; M Ind and Matter are Its work Ings. Sp Ir It Is that wh Ich Is concealed and has to be revealed; m Ind and body are the means by wh Ich It seeks to reveal Itself. Sp Ir It Is the Image of the Lord of the Yoga; m Ind and body are the means He has prov Ided for reproduc Ing that Image In phenomenal ex Istence. All Nature Is an attempt at a progress Ive revelat Ion of the concealed Truth, a more and more successful reproduct Ion of the d Iv Ine Image.
But what Nature a Ims at for the mass In a slow evolut Ion, Yoga effects for the Ind Iv Idual by a rap Id revolut Ion. It works by a qu Icken Ing of all her energ Ies, a subl Imat Ion of all her facult Ies. Wh Ile she develops the sp Ir Itual l Ife w Ith d Iff Iculty and has constantly to fall back from It for the sake of her lower real Isat Ions, the subl Imated force, the concentrated method of Yoga can atta In d Irectly and carry w Ith It the perfect Ion of the m Ind and even, If she w Ill, the perfect Ion of the body. Nature seeks the D Iv Ine In her own symbols: Yoga goes beyond Nature to the Lord of Nature, beyond un Iverse to the Transcendent and can return w Ith the transcendent l Ight and power, w Ith the f Iat of the Omn Ipotent.
But the Ir a Im Is one In the end. The general Isat Ion of Yoga In human Ity must be the last v Ictory of Nature over her own delays and concealments. Even as now by the progress Ive m Ind In Sc Ience she seeks to make all mank Ind f It for the full development of the mental l Ife, so by Yoga must she Inev Itably seek to make all mank Ind f It for the h Igher evolut Ion, the second b Irth, the sp Ir Itual ex Istence. And as the mental l Ife uses and perfects the mater Ial, so w Ill the sp Ir Itual use and perfect the mater Ial and the mental ex Istence as the Instruments of a d Iv Ine self-express Ion.
The ages when that Is accompl Ished, are the legendary Satya or Kr Ita3 Yugas, the ages of the Truth man Ifested In the symbol, of the great work done when Nature In mank Ind, Illum Ined, sat Isf Ied and bl Issful, rests In the culm Inat Ion of her endeavour.
It Is for man to know her mean Ing, no longer m Isunderstand Ing, v Il Ify Ing or m Isus Ing the un Iversal Mother and to asp Ire always by her m Ight Iest means to her h Ighest Ideal.
3 Satya means Truth; Kr Ita, effected or completed.
0.04 - Letters to a Sadhak, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
To the sadhak In charge of the Sr I Aurob Indo Ashram's cows,
bullocks and carts dur Ing the 1930s.1
--
by the m Ilkman. When the bullocks are work Ing, It may
be safer to use those ropes. As soon as the work Is over,
the ropes w Ill be removed. Those ropes are not t Ight;
they are loose, so It Is no hardsh Ip to the bullocks.
Pray sanct Ion them.
--
spo Il the nose of the bullocks. There aga In It seems to me that It
Is a matter of tra In Ing.
--
here k Ill the Ir bullocks In a few months or In even less t Ime?
11 May 1932
Th Is correspondence was wr Itten ent Irely In Engl Ish.
Tomorrow Is a hol Iday. The day after, these repa Irs can be made
to the cart.
As there w Ill be a b Ig crowd tomorrow In town, you w Ill
have to be very careful when tak Ing to and br Ing Ing back the
--
feed Ing tubs before the bullocks and went away. He Is
not work Ing sat Isfactor Ily. He does not keep th Ings clean.
As there Is no better man I am try Ing to get on w Ith
h Im.
The bullocks seem to l Ike th Is man and th Is Is the most Important
po Int.
For cleanl Iness It Is a matter of superv Is Ion.
15 July 1932
--
qu Ite Intell Igent enough to feel the change of people. Th Is new
man Is not an expert and moreover he has someth Ing of a brute
around h Im. You w Ill have to look carefully after h Im, for I do
not l Ike h Is way of deal Ing w Ith the bullocks.
--
say? And I am pretty sure that our bullocks are more sens It Ive
than he Is.
3 September 1932
--
I have watched the th Ing from the roof, and saw w Ith the Inner
s Ight also. There Is absolutely no doubt about what Is happen Ing
and once more I shall try to make you understand It.
The bullocks are not m Isch Ievous. On the contrary, they are
--
sens It Ive perhaps - (of th Is I am not sure as I have not followed
other bullocks so closely). The truth Is that they d Isl Ike and d Istrust the present dr Iver, and not w Ithout reason. When they were
work Ing under the prev Ious one they were happy and cheerful
and worked well. S Ince th Is one Is dr Iv Ing them they are sad and
dejected and work reluctantly. I see no solut Ion but to change
the man and to f Ind a better one.
The proposal to fr Ighten them In order to master them Is
unacceptable. Some k Ind of subm Iss Ion can thus be obta Ined
--
What Is the use of be Ing a sadhak If, as soon as we act, we
act l Ike the Ignorant ord Inary man?
I can tell you th Is to f In Ish w Ith the subject, that from the
roof I concentrated the power on the bullocks order Ing them to
y Ield and obey and I found them qu Ite recept Ive. To use a qu Iet,
steady, unwaver Ing consc Ious w Ill, that Is the way, the only true
way really effect Ive and worthy of an asp Irant for D Iv Ine L Ife.
I hope that th Is t Ime I have made myself clear.
14 September 1932
It seems to me that, at least for a t Ime, It would be better not to
try to turn out much work every day, as Ojas may truly need rest.
I do not f Ind the new man better than the prev Ious one. He Is far
too nervous and restless. If he could be a l Ittle more qu Iet and
peaceful In deal Ing w Ith the bullocks they would surely work
much more w Ill Ingly.
--
I th Ink that Chakk I work3 Is very d Isgust Ing for the bullocks;
It br Ings down the Ir v Ital Ity because of that, and makes them
become old very soon. That Is why I do not w Ish them to be
g Iven that work.
--
Saturday the 14th Is cattle fest Ival day. Generally In all
the places, many th Ings are observed on that day. Horns
are pa Inted In red and blue colour, no work Is g Iven and
so on. I am not subm Itt Ing all th Is to have perm Iss Ion
to do l Ike that for our cattle. But I am tempted to beg
you for your k Ind grac Ious perm Iss Ion to use th Is k Ind of
necklace wh Ich I am enclos Ing herew Ith for our darl Ing
Ra4 on that day.
Yes, the necklace Is n Ice, you can put It on; but no pa Int Ing of
the horns; It Is so ugly! And I th Ink you must be careful not to
take out Ra In the street that day as usually ch Ildren run after
the calves and fr Ighten them very much; they even hurt them
--
Is not 19 tr Ips too much for the bullocks? It seems to me that
they are not gett Ing much rest.
--
What Is th Is? If the cart-man made a m Istake or m Isbehaved
w Ith the bullocks, I must know and w Ill tolerate none of THESE
MYSTER IES.
--
he h Imself says, he was fully merged In solv Ing a problem
of chess play. So t Ill the cart was turned over and touched
--
w Ith sadhana. Is X here to solve chess problems? He could do It
just as well elsewhere.
--
no reason he has beaten Ra w Ith the back of h Is sandal In
her shed at 5.10 p.m. I saw It from Ba's shed. He removed
one sandal from h Is foot, took It Into h Is hand, turned It
over and beat on Ra's mouth and face. He had put two
--
as he wanted her to. Th Is was her m Istake. When I ran
and quest Ioned h Im he d Id not care to answer. Servants
--
before too and It seems he wants to control her l Ike that.
If truly he does It, It Is brutal and stup Id; apart from spo Il Ing
her head, wh Ich Is bad enough, he w Ill make her v Ind Ict Ive and
v Iolent wh Ich Is worse.
18 November 1933
I f Ind Tej5 very much reduced. He Is certa Inly Ill and needs some
close attent Ion. I would l Ike to know from the doctor If It would
not be good for Tej to let h Im move freely In a pasture for some
t Ime, so that he may have a Ir, sun and movement w Ithout do Ing
--
a prec Ise answer. It Is well known now, that there Is no better
cure for Illnesses, whatever they are, than a Ir and sun.
1 February 1934
--
the cows. I wanted to have one r Ing f Ixed.
All th Is Is absolutely forb Idden by the Mun Ic Ipal rules, and If
any of these th Ings were done by us It was a great m Istake and I
Intend that It should never be renewed.
10 March 1934
The boy X who was work Ing In the Bu Ild Ing Department
was d Ism Issed some two days back, not for the cr Ime
--
caus Ing some sl Ight hurt to a dog. So may I keep h Im as
a subst Itute for h Is brother?
--
If you are pleased to perm It, as It Is only for a day, I
have no object Ion. He works very sat Isfactor Ily. Awa It Ing
--
No, he Is very rude and a boy who can almost w Ill Ingly hurt a
dog Is l Ikely to do the same w Ith the cow and calf.
Th Is boy has been d Ism Issed by my orders and w Ill not be
g Iven work In the Ashram.
A man who Is cruel w Ith beasts Is worse than a beast.
2 Apr Il 1934
0.04 - The Systems of Yoga, #The Synthesis Of Yoga, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
Chapter IV
The Systems of Yoga
HESE relat Ions between the d Ifferent psycholog Ical d Iv Is Ions of the human be Ing and these var Ious ut Il It Ies and objects of effort founded on them, such as we have seen them In our br Ief survey of the natural evolut Ion, we shall f Ind repeated In the fundamental pr Inc Iples and methods of the d Ifferent schools of Yoga. And If we seek to comb Ine and harmon Ise the Ir central pract Ices and the Ir predom Inant a Ims, we shall f Ind that the bas Is prov Ided by Nature Is st Ill our natural bas Is and the cond It Ion of the Ir synthes Is.
In one respect Yoga exceeds the normal operat Ion of cosm Ic
--
Mother Is to embrace the D Iv Ine In her own play and creat Ions and there to real Ise It. But In the h Ighest fl Ights of Yoga she reaches beyond herself and real Ises the D Iv Ine In Itself exceed Ing the un Iverse and even stand Ing apart from the cosm Ic play.
Therefore by some It Is supposed that th Is Is not only the h Ighest but also the one true or exclus Ively preferable object of Yoga.
Yet It Is always through someth Ing wh Ich she has formed In her evolut Ion that Nature thus overpasses her evolut Ion. It Is the Ind Iv Idual heart that by subl Imat Ing Its h Ighest and purest emot Ions atta Ins to the transcendent Bl Iss or the Ineffable N Irvana, the Ind Iv Idual m Ind that by convert Ing Its ord Inary funct Ion Ings Into a knowledge beyond mental Ity knows Its oneness w Ith the
Ineffable and merges Its separate ex Istence In that transcendent un Ity. And always It Is the Ind Iv Idual, the Self cond It Ioned In Its exper Ience by Nature and work Ing through her format Ions, that atta Ins to the Self uncond It Ioned, free and transcendent.
In pract Ice three concept Ions are necessary before there can be any poss Ib Il Ity of Yoga; there must be, as It were, three consent Ing part Ies to the effort, - God, Nature and the human soul or, In more abstract language, the Transcendental, the Un Iversal
32
--
and the Ind Iv Idual. If the Ind Iv Idual and Nature are left to themselves, the one Is bound to the other and unable to exceed apprec Iably her l Inger Ing march. Someth Ing transcendent Is needed, free from her and greater, wh Ich w Ill act upon us and her, attract Ing us upward to Itself and secur Ing from her by good grace or by force her consent to the Ind Iv Idual ascens Ion.
It Is th Is truth wh Ich makes necessary to every ph Ilosophy of Yoga the concept Ion of the Ishwara, Lord, supreme Soul or supreme Self, towards whom the effort Is d Irected and who g Ives the Illum Inat Ing touch and the strength to atta In. Equally true Is the complementary Idea so often enforced by the Yoga of devot Ion that as the Transcendent Is necessary to the Ind Iv Idual and sought after by h Im, so also the Ind Iv Idual Is necessary In a sense to the Transcendent and sought after by It. If the
Bhakta seeks and yearns after Bhagavan, Bhagavan also seeks and yearns after the Bhakta.1 There can be no Yoga of knowledge w Ithout a human seeker of the knowledge, the supreme subject of knowledge and the d Iv Ine use by the Ind Iv Idual of the un Iversal facult Ies of knowledge; no Yoga of devot Ion w Ithout the human God-lover, the supreme object of love and del Ight and the d Iv Ine use by the Ind Iv Idual of the un Iversal facult Ies of sp Ir Itual, emot Ional and aesthet Ic enjoyment; no Yoga of works w Ithout the human worker, the supreme W Ill, Master of all works and sacr If Ices, and the d Iv Ine use by the Ind Iv Idual of the un Iversal facult Ies of power and act Ion. However Mon Ist Ic may be our Intellectual concept Ion of the h Ighest truth of th Ings, In pract Ice we are compelled to accept th Is omn Ipresent Tr In Ity.
For the contact of the human and Ind Iv Idual consc Iousness w Ith the d Iv Ine Is the very essence of Yoga. Yoga Is the un Ion of that wh Ich has become separated In the play of the un Iverse w Ith Its own true self, or Ig In and un Iversal Ity. The contact may take place at any po Int of the complex and Intr Icately organ Ised consc Iousness wh Ich we call our personal Ity. It may be effected In the phys Ical through the body; In the v Ital through the act Ion of
Bhakta, the devotee or lover of God; Bhagavan, God, the Lord of Love and Del Ight.
The th Ird term of the tr In Ity Is Bhagavat, the d Iv Ine revelat Ion of Love.
The Systems of Yoga
--
those funct Ion Ings wh Ich determ Ine the state and the exper Iences of our nervous be Ing; through the mental Ity, whether by means of the emot Ional heart, the act Ive w Ill or the understand Ing m Ind, or more largely by a general convers Ion of the mental consc Iousness In all Its act Iv It Ies. It may equally be accompl Ished through a d Irect awaken Ing to the un Iversal or transcendent Truth and
Bl Iss by the convers Ion of the central ego In the m Ind. And accord Ing to the po Int of contact that we choose w Ill be the type of the Yoga that we pract Ise.
For If, leav Ing as Ide the complex It Ies of the Ir part Icular processes, we f Ix our regard on the central pr Inc Iple of the ch Ief schools of Yoga st Ill prevalent In Ind Ia, we f Ind that they arrange themselves In an ascend Ing order wh Ich starts from the lowest rung of the ladder, the body, and ascends to the d Irect contact between the Ind Iv Idual soul and the transcendent and un Iversal
Self. Hathayoga selects the body and the v Ital funct Ion Ings as Its Instruments of perfect Ion and real Isat Ion; Its concern Is w Ith the gross body. Rajayoga selects the mental be Ing In Its d Ifferent parts as Its lever-power; It concentrates on the subtle body. The tr Iple Path of Works, of Love and of Knowledge uses some part of the mental be Ing, w Ill, heart or Intellect as a start Ing-po Int and seeks by Its convers Ion to arr Ive at the l Iberat Ing Truth,
Beat Itude and Inf In Ity wh Ich are the nature of the sp Ir Itual l Ife.
Its method Is a d Irect commerce between the human Purusha In the Ind Iv Idual body and the d Iv Ine Purusha who dwells In every body and yet transcends all form and name.
Hathayoga a Ims at the conquest of the l Ife and the body whose comb Inat Ion In the food sheath and the v Ital veh Icle const Itutes, as we have seen, the gross body and whose equ Il Ibr Ium Is the foundat Ion of all Nature's work Ings In the human be Ing. The equ Il Ibr Ium establ Ished by Nature Is suff Ic Ient for the normal ego Ist Ic l Ife; It Is Insuff Ic Ient for the purpose of the Hathayog In.
For It Is calculated on the amount of v Ital or dynam Ic force necessary to dr Ive the phys Ical eng Ine dur Ing the normal span of human l Ife and to perform more or less adequately the var Ious work Ings demanded of It by the Ind Iv Idual l Ife Inhab It Ing th Is frame and the world-env Ironment by wh Ich It Is cond It Ioned.
34
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Hathayoga therefore seeks to rect Ify Nature and establ Ish another equ Il Ibr Ium by wh Ich the phys Ical frame w Ill be able to susta In the Inrush of an Increas Ing v Ital or dynam Ic force of
Prana Indef In Ite, almost Inf In Ite In Its quant Ity or Intens Ity. In
Nature the equ Il Ibr Ium Is based upon the Ind Iv Idual Isat Ion of a l Im Ited quant Ity and force of the Prana; more than that the Ind Iv Idual Is by personal and hered Itary hab It unable to bear, use or control. In Hathayoga, the equ Il Ibr Ium opens a door to the un Iversal Isat Ion of the Ind Iv Idual v Ital Ity by adm Itt Ing Into the body, conta In Ing, us Ing and controll Ing a much less f Ixed and l Im Ited act Ion of the un Iversal energy.
The ch Ief processes of Hathayoga are asana and pran.ayama.
By Its numerous asanas or f Ixed postures It f Irst cures the body of that restlessness wh Ich Is a s Ign of Its Inab Il Ity to conta In w Ithout work Ing them off In act Ion and movement the v Ital forces poured Into It from the un Iversal L Ife-Ocean, g Ives to It an extraord Inary health, force and suppleness and seeks to l Iberate It from the hab Its by wh Ich It Is subjected to ord Inary phys Ical
Nature and kept w Ith In the narrow bounds of her normal operat Ions. In the anc Ient trad It Ion of Hathayoga It has always been supposed that th Is conquest could be pushed so far even as to conquer to a great extent the force of grav Itat Ion. By var Ious subs Id Iary but elaborate processes the Hathayog In next contr Ives to keep the body free from all Impur It Ies and the nervous system unclogged for those exerc Ises of resp Irat Ion wh Ich are h Is most Important Instruments. These are called pran.ayama, the control of the breath or v Ital power; for breath Ing Is the ch Ief phys Ical funct Ion Ing of the v Ital forces. Pranayama, for the Hathayog In, serves a double purpose. F Irst, It completes the perfect Ion of the body. The v Ital Ity Is l Iberated from many of the ord Inary necess It Ies of phys Ical Nature; robust health, prolonged youth, often an extraord Inary longev Ity are atta Ined.
On the other hand, Pranayama awakens the co Iled-up serpent of the Pran Ic dynam Ism In the v Ital sheath and opens to the Yog In f Ields of consc Iousness, ranges of exper Ience, abnormal facult Ies den Ied to the ord Inary human l Ife wh Ile It pu Issantly Intens If Ies such normal powers and facult Ies as he already possesses.
The Systems of Yoga
--
The results of Hathayoga are thus str Ik Ing to the eye and Impose eas Ily on the vulgar or phys Ical m Ind. And yet at the end we may ask what we have ga Ined at the end of all th Is stupendous labour. The object of phys Ical Nature, the preservat Ion of the mere phys Ical l Ife, Its h Ighest perfect Ion, even In a certa In sense the capac Ity of a greater enjoyment of phys Ical l Iv Ing have been carr Ied out on an abnormal scale. But the weakness of Hathayoga Is that Its labor Ious and d Iff Icult processes make so great a demand on the t Ime and energy and Impose so complete a severance from the ord Inary l Ife of men that the ut Il Isat Ion of Its results for the l Ife of the world becomes e Ither Impract Icable or Is extraord Inar Ily restr Icted. If In return for th Is loss we ga In another l Ife In another world w Ith In, the mental, the dynam Ic, these results could have been acqu Ired through other systems, through Rajayoga, through Tantra, by much less labor Ious methods and held on much less exact Ing terms. On the other hand the phys Ical results, Increased v Ital Ity, prolonged youth, health, longev Ity are of small ava Il If they must be held by us as m Isers of ourselves, apart from the common l Ife, for the Ir own sake, not ut Il Ised, not thrown Into the common sum of the world's act Iv It Ies. Hathayoga atta Ins large results, but at an exorb Itant pr Ice and to very l Ittle purpose.
Rajayoga takes a h Igher fl Ight. It a Ims at the l Iberat Ion and perfect Ion not of the bod Ily, but of the mental be Ing, the control of the emot Ional and sensat Ional l Ife, the mastery of the whole apparatus of thought and consc Iousness. It f Ixes Its eyes on the c Itta, that stuff of mental consc Iousness In wh Ich all these act Iv It Ies ar Ise, and It seeks, even as Hathayoga w Ith Its phys Ical mater Ial, f Irst to pur Ify and to tranqu Ill Ise. The normal state of man Is a cond It Ion of trouble and d Isorder, a k Ingdom e Ither at war w Ith Itself or badly governed; for the lord, the Purusha, Is subjected to h Is m In Isters, the facult Ies, subjected even to h Is subjects, the Instruments of sensat Ion, emot Ion, act Ion, enjoyment. Swarajya, self-rule, must be subst Ituted for th Is subject Ion.
F Irst, therefore, the powers of order must be helped to overcome
--
the powers of d Isorder. The prel Im Inary movement of Rajayoga Is a careful self-d Isc Ipl Ine by wh Ich good hab Its of m Ind are subst Ituted for the lawless movements that Indulge the lower nervous be Ing. By the pract Ice of truth, by renunc Iat Ion of all forms of ego Ist Ic seek Ing, by abstent Ion from Injury to others, by pur Ity, by constant med Itat Ion and Incl Inat Ion to the d Iv Ine
Purusha who Is the true lord of the mental k Ingdom, a pure, glad, clear state of m Ind and heart Is establ Ished.
Th Is Is the f Irst step only. Afterwards, the ord Inary act Iv It Ies of the m Ind and sense must be ent Irely qu Ieted In order that the soul may be free to ascend to h Igher states of consc Iousness and acqu Ire the foundat Ion for a perfect freedom and self-mastery.
But Rajayoga does not forget that the d Isab Il It Ies of the ord Inary m Ind proceed largely from Its subject Ion to the react Ions of the nervous system and the body. It adopts therefore from the Hathayog Ic system Its dev Ices of asana and pran.ayama, but reduces the Ir mult Iple and elaborate forms In each case to one s Implest and most d Irectly effect Ive process suff Ic Ient for Its own Immed Iate object. Thus It gets r Id of the Hathayog Ic complex Ity and cumbrousness wh Ile It ut Il Ises the sw Ift and powerful eff Icacy of Its methods for the control of the body and the v Ital funct Ions and for the awaken Ing of that Internal dynam Ism, full of a latent supernormal faculty, typ If Ied In Yog Ic term Inology by the kun.d.al In, the co Iled and sleep Ing serpent of Energy w Ith In. Th Is done, the system proceeds to the perfect qu Iet Ing of the restless m Ind and Its elevat Ion to a h Igher plane through concentrat Ion of mental force by the success Ive stages wh Ich lead to the utmost Inner concentrat Ion or Ingathered state of the consc Iousness wh Ich Is called Samadh I.
By Samadh I, In wh Ich the m Ind acqu Ires the capac Ity of w Ithdraw Ing from Its l Im Ited wak Ing act Iv It Ies Into freer and h Igher states of consc Iousness, Rajayoga serves a double purpose. It compasses a pure mental act Ion l Iberated from the confus Ions of the outer consc Iousness and passes thence to the h Igher supra-mental planes on wh Ich the Ind Iv Idual soul enters Into Its true sp Ir Itual ex Istence. But also It acqu Ires the capac Ity of that free and concentrated energ Is Ing of consc Iousness on
The Systems of Yoga
--
Its object wh Ich our ph Ilosophy asserts as the pr Imary cosm Ic energy and the method of d Iv Ine act Ion upon the world. By th Is capac Ity the Yog In, already possessed of the h Ighest supracosm Ic knowledge and exper Ience In the state of trance, Is able In the wak Ing state to acqu Ire d Irectly whatever knowledge and exerc Ise whatever mastery may be useful or necessary to h Is act Iv It Ies In the object Ive world. For the anc Ient system of
Rajayoga a Imed not only at Swarajya, self-rule or subject Ive emp Ire, the ent Ire control by the subject Ive consc Iousness of all the states and act Iv It Ies proper to Its own doma In, but Included
Samrajya as well, outward emp Ire, the control by the subject Ive consc Iousness of Its outer act Iv It Ies and env Ironment.
We perce Ive that as Hathayoga, deal Ing w Ith the l Ife and body, a Ims at the supernormal perfect Ion of the phys Ical l Ife and Its capac It Ies and goes beyond It Into the doma In of the mental l Ife, so Rajayoga, operat Ing w Ith the m Ind, a Ims at a supernormal perfect Ion and enlargement of the capac It Ies of the mental l Ife and goes beyond It Into the doma In of the sp Ir Itual ex Istence.
But the weakness of the system l Ies In Its excess Ive rel Iance on abnormal states of trance. Th Is l Im Itat Ion leads f Irst to a certa In aloofness from the phys Ical l Ife wh Ich Is our foundat Ion and the sphere Into wh Ich we have to br Ing our mental and sp Ir Itual ga Ins. Espec Ially Is the sp Ir Itual l Ife, In th Is system, too much assoc Iated w Ith the state of Samadh I. Our object Is to make the sp Ir Itual l Ife and Its exper Iences fully act Ive and fully ut Il Isable In the wak Ing state and even In the normal use of the funct Ions.
But In Rajayoga It tends to w Ithdraw Into a subl Im Inal plane at the back of our normal exper Iences Instead of descend Ing and possess Ing our whole ex Istence.
The tr Iple Path of devot Ion, knowledge and works attempts the prov Ince wh Ich Rajayoga leaves unoccup Ied. It d Iffers from
Rajayoga In that It does not occupy Itself w Ith the elaborate tra In Ing of the whole mental system as the cond It Ion of perfect Ion, but se Izes on certa In central pr Inc Iples, the Intellect, the heart, the w Ill, and seeks to convert the Ir normal operat Ions by turn Ing them away from the Ir ord Inary and external preoccupat Ions and act Iv It Ies and concentrat Ing them on the D Iv Ine. It
38
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d Iffers also In th Is, - and here from the po Int of v Iew of an Integral Yoga there seems to be a defect, - that It Is Ind Ifferent to mental and bod Ily perfect Ion and a Ims only at pur Ity as a cond It Ion of the d Iv Ine real Isat Ion. A second defect Is that as actually pract Ised It chooses one of the three parallel paths exclus Ively and almost In antagon Ism to the others Instead of effect Ing a synthet Ic harmony of the Intellect, the heart and the w Ill In an Integral d Iv Ine real Isat Ion.
The Path of Knowledge a Ims at the real Isat Ion of the un Ique and supreme Self. It proceeds by the method of Intellectual reflect Ion, v Icara, to r Ight d Iscr Im Inat Ion, v Iveka. It observes and d Ist Ingu Ishes the d Ifferent elements of our apparent or phenomenal be Ing and reject Ing Ident If Icat Ion w Ith each of them arr Ives at the Ir exclus Ion and separat Ion In one common term as const Ituents of Prakr It I, of phenomenal Nature, creat Ions of
Maya, the phenomenal consc Iousness. So It Is able to arr Ive at Its r Ight Ident If Icat Ion w Ith the pure and un Ique Self wh Ich Is not mutable or per Ishable, not determ Inable by any phenomenon or comb Inat Ion of phenomena. From th Is po Int the path, as ord Inar Ily followed, leads to the reject Ion of the phenomenal worlds from the consc Iousness as an Illus Ion and the f Inal Immergence w Ithout return of the Ind Iv Idual soul In the Supreme.
But th Is exclus Ive consummat Ion Is not the sole or Inev Itable result of the Path of Knowledge. For, followed more largely and w Ith a less Ind Iv Idual a Im, the method of Knowledge may lead to an act Ive conquest of the cosm Ic ex Istence for the D Iv Ine no less than to a transcendence. The po Int of th Is departure Is the real Isat Ion of the supreme Self not only In one's own be Ing but In all be Ings and, f Inally, the real Isat Ion of even the phenomenal aspects of the world as a play of the d Iv Ine consc Iousness and not someth Ing ent Irely al Ien to Its true nature. And on the bas Is of th Is real Isat Ion a yet further enlargement Is poss Ible, the convers Ion of all forms of knowledge, however mundane, Into act Iv It Ies of the d Iv Ine consc Iousness ut Il Isable for the percept Ion of the one and un Ique Object of knowledge both In Itself and through the play of Its forms and symbols. Such a method m Ight well lead to the elevat Ion of the whole range of human Intellect
The Systems of Yoga
--
and percept Ion to the d Iv Ine level, to Its sp Ir Itual Isat Ion and to the just If Icat Ion of the cosm Ic trava Il of knowledge In human Ity.
The Path of Devot Ion a Ims at the enjoyment of the supreme
Love and Bl Iss and ut Il Ises normally the concept Ion of the supreme Lord In H Is personal Ity as the d Iv Ine Lover and enjoyer of the un Iverse. The world Is then real Ised as a play of the
Lord, w Ith our human l Ife as Its f Inal stage, pursued through the d Ifferent phases of self-concealment and self-revelat Ion. The pr Inc Iple of Bhakt I Yoga Is to ut Il Ise all the normal relat Ions of human l Ife Into wh Ich emot Ion enters and apply them no longer to trans Ient worldly relat Ions, but to the joy of the All-Lov Ing, the All-Beaut Iful and the All-Bl Issful. Worsh Ip and med Itat Ion are used only for the preparat Ion and Increase of Intens Ity of the d Iv Ine relat Ionsh Ip. And th Is Yoga Is cathol Ic In Its use of all emot Ional relat Ions, so that even enm Ity and oppos It Ion to God, cons Idered as an Intense, Impat Ient and perverse form of Love, Is conce Ived as a poss Ible means of real Isat Ion and salvat Ion.
Th Is path, too, as ord Inar Ily pract Ised, leads away from worldex Istence to an absorpt Ion, of another k Ind than the Mon Ist's, In the Transcendent and Supra-cosm Ic.
But, here too, the exclus Ive result Is not Inev Itable. The Yoga Itself prov Ides a f Irst correct Ive by not conf In Ing the play of d Iv Ine love to the relat Ion between the supreme Soul and the Ind Iv Idual, but extend Ing It to a common feel Ing and mutual worsh Ip between the devotees themselves un Ited In the same real Isat Ion of the supreme Love and Bl Iss. It prov Ides a yet more general correct Ive In the real Isat Ion of the d Iv Ine object of Love In all be Ings not only human but an Imal, eas Ily extended to all forms whatsoever. We can see how th Is larger appl Icat Ion of the Yoga of
Devot Ion may be so used as to lead to the elevat Ion of the whole range of human emot Ion, sensat Ion and aesthet Ic percept Ion to the d Iv Ine level, Its sp Ir Itual Isat Ion and the just If Icat Ion of the cosm Ic labour towards love and joy In our human Ity.
The Path of Works a Ims at the ded Icat Ion of every human act Iv Ity to the supreme W Ill. It beg Ins by the renunc Iat Ion of all ego Ist Ic a Im for our works, all pursu It of act Ion for an Interested a Im or for the sake of a worldly result. By th Is renunc Iat Ion It so
40
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pur If Ies the m Ind and the w Ill that we become eas Ily consc Ious of the great un Iversal Energy as the true doer of all our act Ions and the Lord of that Energy as the Ir ruler and d Irector w Ith the Ind Iv Idual as only a mask, an excuse, an Instrument or, more pos It Ively, a consc Ious centre of act Ion and phenomenal relat Ion. The cho Ice and d Irect Ion of the act Is more and more consc Iously left to th Is supreme W Ill and th Is un Iversal Energy.
To That our works as well as the results of our works are f Inally abandoned. The object Is the release of the soul from Its bondage to appearances and to the react Ion of phenomenal act Iv It Ies.
Karmayoga Is used, l Ike the other paths, to lead to l Iberat Ion from phenomenal ex Istence and a departure Into the Supreme.
But here too the exclus Ive result Is not Inev Itable. The end of the path may be, equally, a percept Ion of the D Iv Ine In all energ Ies, In all happen Ings, In all act Iv It Ies, and a free and unego Ist Ic part Ic Ipat Ion of the soul In the cosm Ic act Ion. So followed It w Ill lead to the elevat Ion of all human w Ill and act Iv Ity to the d Iv Ine level, Its sp Ir Itual Isat Ion and the just If Icat Ion of the cosm Ic labour towards freedom, power and perfect Ion In the human be Ing.
We can see also that In the Integral v Iew of th Ings these three paths are one. D Iv Ine Love should normally lead to the perfect knowledge of the Beloved by perfect Int Imacy, thus becom Ing a path of Knowledge, and to d Iv Ine serv Ice, thus becom Ing a path of Works. So also should perfect Knowledge lead to perfect
Love and Joy and a full acceptance of the works of That wh Ich Is known; ded Icated Works to the ent Ire love of the Master of the Sacr If Ice and the deepest knowledge of H Is ways and H Is be Ing. It Is In th Is tr Iple path that we come most read Ily to the absolute knowledge, love and serv Ice of the One In all be Ings and In the ent Ire cosm Ic man Ifestat Ion.
Io controls> Io>
0.05 - Letters to a Child, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
Ashram; he came at the age of ten. Interested as a youth In
mus Ic, pa Int Ing and poetry, he later became a teacher of mus Ic
In the Sr I Aurob Indo Internat Ional Centre of Educat Ion. He
began wr It Ing to the Mother at the age of twelve.
--
Work done w Ith joy Is work done well.
14 March 1932
--
des Ire; It takes possess Ion of your m Ind and your l Ife, and you
become a slave. If you have greed for food you are no longer the
master of food, It Is the food that masters you.
22 August 1932
--
Today when I went to X for my mus Ic lesson I felt
uneasy. I also felt that he Is not very happy w Ith me. I
had a sort of bad feel Ing at that t Ime. Why d Id I feel
th Is uneas Iness? After com Ing home I felt t Ired and had
no Interest In do Ing anyth Ing. Now I feel that after the
mus Ic lesson, the good th Ings that were develop Ing In me
have been broken to p Ieces. Is It true?
All these feel Ings - th Is uneas Iness, th Is t Iredness, these Impress Ions of broken progress - come from the v Ital, wh Ich rebels
because Its des Ires and preferences are not sat Isf Ied. All that has
no true real Ity.
--
The d Isturbance st Ill has not d Isappeared. I am In
a worse state than before. There Is someth Ing wrong In
my m Ind. Also, I feel bad everywhere. Tell me what I
should do.
Th Ink of someth Ing else. Keep yourself busy; don't rema In Idle,
do Ing noth Ing.
--
I want to feel your touch In each and every one of
my movements. I want to feel your presence everywhere.
Mother, accept my prayer.
I am always w Ith you, my ch Ild, so It Is not only poss Ible but
qu Ite easy to feel my presence constantly.
--
Have I done any wrong? Answer me please. If I have
done any wrong, please excuse me. Are you d Ispleased
--
Why th Is quest Ion? You have done noth Ing wrong and I am
not In the least d Ispleased w Ith you. D Id I look very ser Ious
ton Ight? If It Is so, It was because I was th Ink Ing of the stup Id Ity
Ser Ies F Ive - To a Ch Ild
--
Yesterday I told you that "we" had pa Inted an envelope. By "we" I mean that there Is me and you. I feel
that It Is not I who am work Ing, so I say "we". I am
your ch Ild.
That Is really n Ice and I am very pleased. Yes, I am always w Ith
you and even more spec Ially when you are work Ing on your
--
deal of progress? I l Ike the envelopes that both of us are pa Int Ing
together very much, and that Is one more proof that we are do Ing
them together, because they are nearly always just as I thought
they should be. The small one you sent th Is morn Ing Is very f Ine
and the cho Ice of colours Is excellent.
Affect Ionately.
--
Into your heart. Take me Into your arms.
Yes, I am tak Ing you Into my arms and cradl Ing you to my heart
so that you may have true happ Iness and unalloyed peace.
Love from your l Ittle mother who Is always w Ith you.
15 March 1934
--
conf Idence In my love wh Ich never leaves you.
Your mother.
--
Why does th Is d Iff Iculty come? Do I open myself to
It or Is It someth Ing else? Mother, after hav Ing come so
close to you, why does It come?
You should not speak to others about what I wr Ite or say to
you, because they become jealous and the Ir jealousy creates a
--
rece Ived It, perhaps w Ithout even be Ing aware of It.
Love from your mother.
--
My heart wants to run to your feet; It wants to lose
Itself In you. Th Is Is what I want, but have I done It? I
want to be close to your heart, I want... but Is It poss Ible?
I don't know.
--
Yes, my dear ch Ild, It Is ent Irely poss Ible and s Ince you want
It s Incerely, It w Ill come to be so. You w Ill feel yourself always
Ser Ies F Ive - To a Ch Ild
close to my heart, cradled In my arms, and Peace w Ill f Ill your
be Ing and make you strong and joyful.
--
I feel devo Id of strength, w Ill and energy. I don't
know what to do. Th Is state must go, but I don't know
how. I have no courage.
Do not d Istress yourself, It Is the result of these last few days of
s Ickness. It w Ill pass - but you must eat well regularly and sleep
well too, tak Ing care not to go to bed too late.
--
that It Is your good and your good alone that I want. I want
to make you a strong and consc Ious man who Is master of
h Imself - that Is, In control of h Is lower nature and capable of
becom Ing a true Yog I If that be h Is asp Irat Ion. And the more th Is
man real Ises h Is true be Ing, the more he w Ill become my very
--
That Is why, now, when the w Ill that Is express Ing Itself Is
the w Ill of the lower nature, I cannot sat Isfy all Its wh Ims, for
that would be the worst th Ing I could do for you.
True love Is the love that wants, to the exclus Ion of all else,
the h Ighest good for the loved one. Th Is Is the love that I have
and want to have for you.
--
Peace, peace In your heart and your v Ital.
Yes, Peace, L Ight, Force and Bl Iss are always w Ith you In the
Consc Iousness that Is constantly by your s Ide, br Ing Ing you the
sol Ic Itude of my love.
--
the "plane" from wh Ich they come, It Is surely the subtle phys Ical, where the memory of all the concept Ions and works of art
real Ised on earth Is stored.
Very affect Ionately yours.
--
Very good - then you must acqu Ire energy, and after all, It Is
not so d Iff Icult, espec Ially here where you are as If bathed In a
sea of energy. You have only to open and rece Ive.
--
G Ive me peace, energy and Insp Irat Ion.
Learn to dr Ink from the eternal source; It conta Ins everyth Ing.
W Ith my love.
--
My ch Ild, my ch Ild, why th Is great sadness? Is It because someone to whom you had g Iven your fr Iendsh Ip has w Ithdrawn for
reasons that he th Inks are very profound?
--
No, all Is not sad and gloomy, ne Ither the trees nor the sky
nor the sea; everyth Ing Is full of the d Iv Ine Presence and Is only
too glad to speak of It to you. Shake off th Is ch Ild Ish depress Ion
and contemplate the Sun that Is r Is Ing In your heart!
28 Apr Il 1934
--
You don 't love me at all. Is th Is the way that one
loves one's ch Ild?
--
Certa Inly I do not love you In the way you conce Ive of as
love; and I do see how It could be otherw Ise. You f Irst have to
real Ise the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness - only then w Ill you be able to
know what true love Is.
30 Apr Il 1934
--
Human contact has done me much harm, but I
cannot g Ive up th Is hab It. I have made many efforts to
stop all human contacts, but I cannot. I don't know
what to do.
--
I don't th Ink It would be good for you to l Ive completely ret Ired
and turned In on yourself. The whole th Ing Is to choose your
relat Ionsh Ips well. You must choose to enter Into relat Ion only
w Ith those whose contact does not ve Il my presence. Th Is Is the
Important po Int wh Ich should never be forgotten. All that leads
you away from me In thought and feel Ing Is bad. All that br Ings
you closer to me and g Ives you the percept Ion and joy of my
presence Is good. You should judge th Ings In the l Ight of th Is
rule. You w Ill see that It w Ill help you to protect yourself from
many m Istakes.
--
You are always In my arms and always I hold you close to
my heart to comfort and protect you, to strengthen and Illum Ine
you. Never for a moment do I leave you and I am sure that If
you are a l Ittle attent Ive you w Ill very clearly feel the warmth of
--
sleep longer, take some exerc Ise In the open a Ir, etc.
Affect Ionately.
--
Peace, peace, my l Ittle ch Ild, the sweet peace of Inner s Ilence and
outer calm. May It always be w Ith you.
Affect Ionately.
--
You see, my ch Ild, the unfortunate th Ing Is that you are too preoccup Ied w Ith yourself. At your age I was exclus Ively occup Ied
w Ith my stud Ies - f Ind Ing th Ings out, learn Ing, understand Ing,
know Ing. That was my Interest, even my pass Ion. My mother,
who loved us very much - my brother and myself - never allowed us to be Ill tempered or d Iscontented or lazy. If we went
to compla In to her about one th Ing or another, to tell her that
--
say, "What Is th Is nonsense? Don't be r Id Iculous. Qu Ick! Off
you go and work, and never m Ind whether you are In a good or
a bad mood! That Is of no Interest at all."
My mother was perfectly r Ight and I have always been very
grateful to her for hav Ing taught me the d Isc Ipl Ine and the necess Ity of self-forgetfulness through concentrat Ion on what one
--
from the fact that you are far too concerned about yourself. It
would be better for you to pay more attent Ion to what you are
do Ing and to do It well (pa Int Ing or mus Ic), to develop your
m Ind, wh Ich Is st Ill very uncult Ivated, and to learn the elements
of knowledge wh Ich are Ind Ispensable to a man If he does not
want to be Ignorant and uncultured.
If you worked regularly e Ight to n Ine hours a day, you would
--
you are In a good or a bad mood.
I am tell Ing you these th Ings w Ith all my affect Ion, and I
hope that you w Ill understand them.
--
I constantly envelop you In my peace: you must learn to keep
It. I am constantly In your heart: you must become consc Ious
of my presence and rece Ive and use the force that I am pour Ing
Into you to enable you to overcome all d Iff Icult Ies.
--
Only sp Ir Itual force has the power to Impose peace on the
v Ital, for If peace Is not Imposed on It by a power greater than
Its own, the v Ital w Ill never accept It.
So you must open yourself to the sp Ir Itual force and allow It
to work In you; then you w Ill more and more dwell In constant
peace and joy.
--
I carry you always In my arms, pressed close to my heart, and
I have no doubt that you w Ill become aware of It If you forget the
Ser Ies F Ive - To a Ch Ild
--
dwell In your heart.
Love.
--
It Is by Inner Ident If Icat Ion that the true closeness can come.
I am always w Ith you In all love.
Your mother.
--
You w Ill no longer revolt when you understand that It Is the
most useless and fool Ish of all th Ings; and when you g Ive up th Is
--
W Ith all my be Ing, I want th Is progress and th Is transformat Ion for you.
W Ith love.
--
For you I want consc Iousness, knowledge, art Ist Ic capac Ity, selfmastery In peace and perfect equal Ity, and the happ Iness that Is
the result of sp Ir Itual real Isat Ion. Is th Is too grand and vast a
programme?
--
Th Is Is qu Ite excellent and I approve of It. W Ithout outer and
Inner d Isc Ipl Ine, one can ach Ieve noth Ing In l Ife, e Ither sp Ir Itually
or mater Ially. All those who have been able to create someth Ing
--
Always w Ith you In all love.
23 June 1934
--
I am your true mother who w Ill g Ive b Irth In you to the true
be Ing, the be Ing who Is free, peaceful, strong and happy always,
Independently of all c Ircumstances.
--
Into your heart. Let me l Ive In you.
My dear ch Ild,
I carry you always In my heart and you are bathed In energy;
It Is through a qu Iet and conf Ident asp Irat Ion that you w Ill rece Ive
It. All my love Is w Ith you.
I hope you do not show my letters to anyone. It Is better to
keep them to yourself; otherw Ise, If you show them, all the force
that I put Into them evaporates.
11 August 1934
--
You know everyth Ing that I need. Take me Into your
heart. Surround me.
--
I know very well what you need - It Is to be surrounded
by my love as by a protect Ion, and truly my love Is always w Ith
you, around you; but you, on your s Ide, must open to It and
allow It to envelop you and help you.
16 August 1934
--
I want to be l Ike the l Ion on the envelope I am
send Ing you th Is even Ing.
--
I am In your heart that It may be happy, In your head that
It may be peaceful, and In your hand that It may be sk Ilful.
W Ith all my love.
--
Your l Ions are superb. How qu Iet they are In the Ir strength.
A strong be Ing Is always qu Iet. It Is weakness that causes restlessness. I am send Ing you (on my envelope, but In real Ity too)
the repose that comes from concentrated energy.
Be sure that you w Ill become strong and qu Iet, have fa Ith In
a perfect real Isat Ion and In the D Iv Ine's omn Ipotence to ach Ieve
It. The Force and Consc Iousness are always w Ith you, as well as
--
Pur Ify me. D Ispel the shadows. I w Ill not revolt any
more.
You must never lose conf Idence In my unvary Ing love.
30 August 1934
--
I have a pa In In my head. I am very t Ired.
My ch Ild, all my love Is always w Ith you; do not push It away.
1 September 1934
--
I have been Informed from the d In Ing-room that you d Id
not eat e Ither yesterday even Ing or the whole day today. Why? If
you are s Ick, you must be taken care of. I shall send the doctor
to you. But If you are not s Ick, you must eat; If you do not eat
regularly, your bra In w Ill waste away and you w Ill lose your
--
I won't be Irregular from today. You know very well
that I am not s Ick; It was a cloud, you know. Now I
am go Ing to the d In Ing-room. My mother, I want to be
good. Everyth Ing has gone now. I want to be your l Ittle
ch Ild.
--
You are a very n Ice ch Ild, and I am very pleased that you
had your meal yesterday even Ing and that all the clouds have
--
the best th Ing Is to rema In always cradled In my arms, protected
by my love wh Ich never leaves you.
--
Have I done someth Ing that has d Ispleased you?
My head hurts. I feel t Ired.
You are qu Ite m Istaken, I am not at all d Ispleased w Ith you. Only
I am worr Ied because you always have a headache and because
--
I want all that to go away and I want you to be perfectly
healthy. For that, you must follow a phys Ical d Isc Ipl Ine: sleep
--
You know that my love Is always w Ith you and my w Ill Is
that you should get well; my force Is w Ith you to g Ive you health.
I take you Into my arms, I take you to my heart.
20 September 1934
--
I don't want you to be Ill and always I am w Ith you to
cure you - but you too must want to be cured. Do not torment
yourself and always nestle In my arms so as to rece Ive my love
and force.
--
d Isappear; they are Indeed ugly, mean and Ignorant th Ings that
stop all progress.
My force Is w Ith you to conquer these th Ings. And my love
never leaves you.
--
I am not unhappy. All that Is a falsehood.
Mother, stay w Ith your l Ittle ch Ild.
--
Always, always I am w Ith you and the qu Ieter and happ Ier
you are, the more you w Ill feel It.
W Ith all my love.
--
G Ive me peace. G Ive me joy In work. Make me your
Instrument.
--
I am very happy to know that you want to be my Instrument. To be able to be my Instrument, you must be regular,
Ser Ies F Ive - To a Ch Ild
energet Ic, courageous, endur Ing and always good-tempered. I
have no doubt that you can acqu Ire these qual It Ies.
--
I want peace. I feel that everyth Ing Is unqu Iet.
Mother, g Ive me peace.
--
I envelop you always In peace and force, but most of the
t Ime you close yourself and refuse what I g Ive you.
How w Ill you feel my help and take advantage of It If you
do not even trust In me? Yet my love Is always w Ith you.
1 November 1934
--
Won't you forg Ive me? Mother, take me Into your
arms.
--
Certa Inly I forg Ive you, but you, on your s Ide, must sweep
your m Ind clean of all these bad thoughts wh Ich are harmful to
--
My love Is w Ith you.
2 November 1934
--
Forg Ive the faults I have comm Itted. G Ive me peace.
Rema In always In my heart.
Yes, my dear ch Ild, I forg Ive you; but how I would l Ike you to
become qu Ieter, more reasonable, more stud Ious!
Don't you th Ink It Is h Igh t Ime for you to develop these
qual It Ies, wh Ich are absolutely Ind Ispensable If you want to do
anyth Ing In l Ife?
5 December 1934
--
Yes, I know everyth Ing and that Is why I know that my l Ittle ch Ild
Is not always reasonable and that Is why he has a headache and
a stomachache.
--
I want to feel you near to me always. I want peace.
My l Ittle ch Ild,
--
The best th Ing for your headache Is to take plenty of phys Ical
exerc Ise (such as garden Ing for example).
--
I am putt Ing peace In your heart; but to become consc Ious
of It, you should repeat, as often as poss Ible, mentally turn Ing
to me: "You have put Peace In my heart; make me aware of Its
presence."
--
Do not forget that I am always w Ith you and do only what
you could do In front of me w Ithout feel Ing ashamed. I mean
that you must never do what you would not dare to do In my
phys Ical presence, for I am always w Ith you.
Love.
--
I don't know why someth Ing In me Is sad. Even
when I am very happy, truly happy, th Is part Is st Ill sad.
Mother, wh Ich part In me Is l Ike th Is? Is It the heart, the
v Ital, or Is It someth Ing very superf Ic Ial and Ins Ign If Icant?
My dear ch Ild,
It Is In fact someth Ing very superf Ic Ial, but st Ill It should be
cured. It Is your body that does not feel very strong and Is sad
because It does not have a sound balance of health. The best
cure Is plenty of open-a Ir exerc Ise and abundant food.
16 March 1935
--
I don't know why I have lost all my happ Iness and
peace. I don't know when It w Ill come back to my heart.
My sweet mother, what shall I do?
My dear ch Ild,
When one's attent Ion Is always turned towards oneself, one
Is never happy. When one allows oneself to be ruled by every
pass Ing Impulse, one Is never peaceful.
It Is through work and self-mastery that one can f Ind happ Iness and peace.
23 March 1935
--
my work; I cannot forget It. My dear mother, be w Ith
me always.
--
If you d Idn't work It would be far worse. It Is In work that one
f Inds balance and joy.
--
I feel very t Ired; some part In me Is not happy. I don't
know whether It Is Ins Ide me or outs Ide; someth Ing feels
completely lost and l Ifeless. You know everyth Ing, my
mother. W Ill you tell me what It Is?
It Is someth Ing In your v Ital that cannot bear any vexat Ion, even
the sl Ightest. Th Is part of the v Ital must learn to become stronger
--
I feel very t Ired. I also have a sl Ight headache.
My dear ch Ild,
I don't need to tell you where your headache comes from; I
suppose you know. Only when you become absolutely regular
--
For three days I have been feel Ing sad In the even Ing.
Th Is morn Ing I felt sad too. I don't know exactly why It
comes. For two days I felt a great joy, but now the joy
has gone. When w Ill all these th Ings go away?
--
psych Ic be Ing comes to the surface, It br Ings Its own joy w Ith
It; but when the m Ind or the v Ital comes, then the joy seems to
w Ithdraw, though It Is always there, beh Ind, ready to man Ifest
aga In. But above all you must not bel Ieve the suggest Ions of Incapac Ity and fa Ilure; they come from an adverse source and ought
not to be g Iven any credence. Certa Inly there are d Iff Icult Ies on
the path, but w Ith perseverance the v Ictory Is sure.
Love from your mother.
--
You told me that I am mak Ing progress. D Id you
want to console me by tell Ing me th Is? When I look
w Ith In myself, not just now but over the past two years,
I f Ind noth Ing. Somet Imes I feel: "Why all these efforts?
They w Ill be fru Itless." You told me to open my heart
--
No, It Is not to console you that I told you that you have
made progress. The progress Is unden Iable even though It may
not be apparent. Certa Inly the path of yoga Is a very d Iff Icult
one, and you should not expect to reap Its fru Its after only three
or four years. It takes much longer than that. But you are young,
you have all of l Ife before you; you need not be Impat Ient.
You say that you are often depressed. It Is the v Ital be Ing
that gets depressed when Its des Ires are not sat Isf Ied.
In ord Inary l Ife, one has to struggle to sat Isfy one's des Ires;
--
No, I cannot do all those th Ings. Why d Id you th Ink
that? Is there any spec Ial reason? W Ill you tell me one
th Ing: why are you now so far away from me?
--
I don't know at all what th Ings you mean. All I told you
was that to develop your art Ist Ic facult Ies you are much better
off here than anywhere else. I added that only If you wanted to
marry would you have to leave the Ashram.
But you know that I never adv Ise anyone to marry; It Is a
terr Ible bondage.
--
now and then It Is good that I rem Ind you that you are free and
that It Is for you to make the dec Is Ion; that's all.
I don't feel that you are far from me; for me you are always
In my arms. So If you feel that you are far away, It Is a false
feel Ing wh Ich does not conform to the truth.
--
You told me that you saw two th Ings wh Ile I was
play Ing: "Garuda", and the palace and r Iver. What do
--
The palace and r Iver were the Image of a moment from one of
your past l Ives.
The great b Ird "Garuda" stand Ing Immob Ile beh Ind you
w Ith outspread w Ings Is the veh Icle of V Ishnu, the destroyer of
serpents. He seemed to be stand Ing beh Ind you to protect and
--
The moon Is the symbol of the sp Ir Itual l Ight, one In Its or Ig In,
mult Iple In Its man Ifestat Ion. There Is only one moon and yet
each reflect Ion of the moon Is d Ifferent. Th Is Is what I wanted
to say In a poet Ic form.
Love from your mother.
--
What I meant yesterday Is that all people very sens It Ive are
opened to many Influences and that Is why It Is d Iff Icult for them
to be steady.
--
the good Influences and reject pers Istently the bad ones.
Love from your mother.
--
I understand your d Iff Iculty very well. It Is very common
and can only be solved w Ith much endurance In the w Ill and
much pat Ience.
--
D Iv Ine and take your place In the d Iv Ine l Ife In the mak Ing.
On the other hand you want the sat Isfact Ions of ord Inary l Ife
--
and effort and that always they go hand In hand w Ith worry and
suffer Ing.
On the f Irst path, there Is no quest Ion of personal Incapac Ity,
s Ince our help and protect Ion are always there. Indeed, you must
open yourself to th Is help and protect Ion and learn to use them
to conquer the adversary who Is try Ing to draw you towards the
lower an Imal consc Iousness.
--
These last few days I felt that I was go Ing down step
by step - everyth Ing seemed to be gradually clos Ing In
aga Inst me, aga Inst my heart. I feel, even now, that I am
suffocated.
--
Are you mak Ing me feel l Ife w Ithout you In order to
see whether I want th Is l Ife or not? Mother, If you don't
know what my path Is, then who does?
My dear ch Ild,
I know very well what the true l Ife for you Is, and what
your dest Iny Is. But It Is you who must become aware of It
and understand It so that you can real Ise It. In what way do
you feel yourself go Ing down? Are des Ires becom Ing stronger In
you? Whatever happens, you can always rely on my help; do
not hes Itate to ask for It.
Love from your mother.
--
I feel completely suffocated. The struggle has become f Iercer. How many days must I go on l Ike th Is?
My dear ch Ild,
Do not lose heart and do not be Impat Ient; these th Ings take
a long t Ime to d Isappear. You know, don't you, that our force,
--
Keep your Interest In the work - th Is too w Ill help you to
pass through the d Iff Icult moments.
--
Th Is Inner cond It Ion Is gett Ing worse and worse Instead of better. You sa Id to be pat Ient, but as It Is I am
becom Ing l Ike a stone, w Ithout energy, Inert, and more
and more closed . I feel your l Ight and your force around
me, but I cannot rece Ive them. I am not ask Ing you to
tell me what to do - you have told me to be pat Ient
and I w Ill be pat Ient. I am only tell Ing you about my
cond It Ion, that's all.
You are r Ight to tell me, my dear ch Ild; It helps you to open
yourself. I know that It Is troublesome to feel th Is res Istance
In yourself; but pers Ist In your w Ill to overcome It and It w Ill
suddenly g Ive way.
--
It has stopped now. Is there some Inner preparat Ion
at work and Is It wa It Ing for the descent of a h Igher
Insp Irat Ion?
--
Yes, I th Ink In fact that your poetry has stopped so that you
can prepare yourself for a h Igher Insp Irat Ion. You were go Ing
round and round In the same forms; someth Ing new had to
come.
Of course, If you feel that someth Ing wants to express Itself,
you must try.
--
says that there Is no doubt about your poet Ic capac Ity. Today's
poem Is very good. But when you try to wr Ite every day, It
becomes more and more mental and you lose contact w Ith the
--
true Insp Irat Ion. That Is why you should wr Ite only when you
feel that the Insp Irat Ion Is there.
20 July 1938
--
Were you angry w Ith me because I have dec Ided to
leave the Ashram? I want to go forward - not to revolt
aga Inst you, no, not at all. But I want to be sure of my
path.
--
One th Ing I want to ask you: Mother, w Ill you
always be In my heart?
I am not at all angry; but s Ince you have dec Ided to leave, I
cannot deta In you e Ither, or do anyth Ing that m Ight depr Ive you
of the strength to leave. I am and w Ill always be In your heart; so
you are sure to f Ind me there If you enter Into It deeply enough.
Love from your mother.
--
I have just rece Ived your letter of the 25th and I am glad to
know you have recovered at last.
You tell me In your letter: "Mother, I do not want the world,
not because I am afra Id of my duty but because I want you." I
would l Ike to tell you someth Ing about th Is. To be sure that you
are meant for the Ashram l Ife, It Is necessary that the sp Ir Itual
l Ife and all the d Isc Ipl Ine It enta Ils - In short, the search for and
real Isat Ion of the D Iv Ine - must be the most Important th Ing to
you, the only th Ing worth l Iv Ing for.
--
sure It Is the D Iv Ine In me that you want? When you come back
here and cannot see me (for, s Ince Sr I Aurob Indo's acc Ident, I am
no longer g Iv Ing any "pranams" or Interv Iews), won't you feel
once aga In that you are g Iv Ing up all the pleasures that ord Inary
l Ife can g Ive, w Ithout gett Ing anyth Ing much In exchange?
Of course, If you want to lead the sp Ir Itual l Ife at any cost,
that Is another th Ing. But In that case, you w Ill have to rely on
the Inner help, not on an outer and superf Ic Ial help.
I am tell Ing you all th Is so that you may not be d Isappo Inted
--
Read my letter very carefully, th Ink It over well to be sure
that you have understood It completely, and when you have seen
very clearly w Ith In yourself, wr Ite to me aga In.
--
I rece Ived your letter and I have no object Ion to your go Ing
to study mus Ic for three years at Lucknow, s Ince that Is what
you want.
However, I do not th Ink It would be w Ise to come to
Pond Icherry In February, for once you are here you m Ight aga In
become troubled and uncerta In, and that would arouse an
unnecessary confl Ict In you.
Go to Lucknow, learn all you can there, and then you w Ill
--
But I must warn you about two th Ings:
(1) Your v Ital w Ill f Ind no grat If Icat Ion here, as l Ife has
become very restr Icted In the present war cond It Ions.
(2) You w Ill l Ive here, as all of us, n Ight and day under the
--
I want to be closer to you In my heart and In all my
be Ing. G Ive me the power to g Ive myself completely to
--
Yes, my dear l Ittle ch Ild, I am always w Ith you to help you, to
support you, to gu Ide you. By do Ing your work w Ith consc Ient Iousness, honesty and perseverance, you w Ill feel my presence
--
The more I look Into myself, the more d Iscouraged
I am, and I don't know whether there Is any chance of
my mak Ing any progress. It seems that all the obscur It Ies
and falsehoods are r Is Ing up on every s Ide, Ins Ide and
outs Ide, and want to swallow me up. There are t Imes
when I cannot d Ist Ingu Ish truth from falsehood and I
am then on the verge of los Ing my m Ind.
St Ill, there Is someth Ing In me wh Ich says very
weakly that all w Ill be well; but th Is vo Ice Is so feeble
that I cannot rely on It.1
My faults are so numerous and so great that I th Ink
I shall fa Il. On the other hand, I have ne Ither the Incl Inat Ion nor the capac Ity for the ord Inary l Ife. And I
know that I shall never be able to leave th Is l Ife. Th Is Is
my s Ituat Ion r Ight now. The struggle Is gett Ing more and
more acute, and worst of all I cannot l Ie to you. What
should I do?
Do not torment yourself, my ch Ild, and rema In as qu Iet as you
--
yourself fall Into darkness. Pers Ist, and one day you w Ill real Ise
that I am close to you to console you and help you, and then the
hardest part w Ill be over.
--
The Mother underl Ined the words "all w Ill be well" and wrote bes Ide them: "Th Is Is
the vo Ice of truth, the one you must l Isten to."
--
I feel that someth Ing Is wrong and you are very
d Ispleased w Ith me.
It Is the very f Irst propos It Ion that Is wrong, I am not d Ispleased
w Ith you - so all that follows cannot be correct.
--
d Iscontent and shall try my best to remove It. I cannot
tell you how It pa Ins me to know that you are d Ispleased
w Ith me on any account.
There Is no real cause because there Is no d Iscontent. Your pa In
Is qu Ite gratu Itous, so you would [do] better [to] get r Id of It
Immed Iately.
--
I pray, please do not be vexed by my letter. I on my
part can bear anyth Ing except your d Ispleasure. I feel
you are very vexed w Ith me for some reason I cannot
yet understand. What Is It you want me to do? What
Is your w Ill? I cannot express how deeply I feel your
d Ispleasure. Do you want more work from me - more
d Isc Ipl Ine, more r Ight att Itude? I am a bundle of fa Il Ings;
please pardon them for I am human. Please pardon me
for what I have done and let me know what m Istakes I
have comm Itted.
I am not vexed, I am not d Ispleased - th Is Impress Ion of yours
Is qu Ite false and Imag Inary - It may be the result of a bad
consc Ience, but you must learn once and for all that whatever
m Istakes people comm It, It cannot vex me nor d Isplease me. If
there Is bad w Ill or revolt, Kal I may come and chast Ise but she
always does It w Ith love.
So, throw away all th Is nonsense and try to be qu Iet and
--
"He who chooses the Inf In Ite has been chosen by the Inf In Ite."
Never forget th Is prom Ise of Sr I Aurob Indo and keep
courage In sp Ite of all d Iff Icult Ies. You are sure to reach the goal,
and the more you keep conf Idence, the qu Icker It w Ill come.
W Ith my love and bless Ings.
--
between 1932 and 1938 dur Ing the sadhak's f Irst stay In
the Ashram.)
--
Is no reason to bel Ieve that you w Ill not succeed In th Is l Ife; on the
contrary, I see In you the s Igns of a vocat Ion. And s Ince you have
resolved to be pat Ient, the d Iff Icult Ies w Ill surely be overcome.
--
Your go Ing away w Ill not help In the least. Exter Ior means are
useless; It Is the " Ins Ide" that must change. Keep your resolut Ion
and my help w Ill work.
--
are d Issolved. I want a new l Ife.
My dear ch Ild,
You are qu Ite r Ight In want Ing a new l Ife, and you may be
sure that I shall do my best to help you In that. I am qu Ite sure
that perseverance In study and the acceptance of a d Isc Ipl Ine of
work and order In l Ife w Ill be a powerful help to you In renew Ing
yourself.
All my love Is w Ith you to help you and gu Ide you.
My dear ch Ild,
--
energy to reject depress Ion. I am always near you to help you
w Ith all my love.
--
too l Ight exter Ior be Ing to Interfere and spo Il your endeavour, as
It does dur Ing march Ing for Instance.
The most Important [th Ing] Is a steady, qu Iet endurance that
does not allow any upsett Ing or depress Ion to Interfere w Ith your
progress. The s Incer Ity of the asp Irat Ion Is the assurance of the
v Ictory.
--
It Is a lack of energy that Is prevent Ing me from
pa Int Ing. G Ive me a strong energy. I want the Inner and
outer s Ilence - peace In all my be Ing, from the Innermost
part to the outermost. Peace, peace In all my be Ing. I
cannot express th Is In proper words and It Is becom Ing
melodramat Ic. Pardon my m Istake.
I don't f Ind your express Ion melodramat Ic and there Is noth Ing
to pardon. I know that It Is from lack of energy that you cannot
pa Int. But I can g Ive you all the energy needed; you have only
to open yourself and rece Ive and you w Ill see that the source Is
Inexhaust Ible. It Is the same th Ing for peace and for all the true
th Ings you can asp Ire for.
--
I don't know what to do. I want to open to you, but
someth Ing prevents me from open Ing.
--
You f Ind It d Iff Icult to open because you have not yet made
the resolut Ion to allow my w Ill, and not your own, to govern
--
I am always w Ith you In th Is effort and asp Irat Ion.
Mother,
The v Ital has become very, very bad. Today espec Ially It Is very rebell Ious.
You d Id not reply to my last letter. Do you mean
that It Isn't necessary to make the v Ital peaceful?
I d Id not answer because what I say seems to have no effect. If
you would express clearly, In a prec Ise way, the nature of the
revolt, It would help you very much to get r Id of It, because It Is
Ser Ies F Ive - To a Ch Ild
a way of open Ing yourself wh Ich allows the l Ight to enter Into
the obscur Ity and Illum Ine It.
Mother,
There Is a depress Ion. And most often I feel that my
m Ind Is t Ired. I don't know why. Today, my v Ital too Is
In terr Ible revolt. What can I do?
It Is the same t Iredness as that of the muscles when they do not
work enough. Inact Iv Ity Is just as t Ir Ing as over-act Iv Ity. Not to
work enough Is just as bad as work Ing too much.
The v Ital Is a most bothersome character who prefers to be
bad rather than to go unnot Iced. You must teach h Im that he Is
not the master of the house.
--
please stop It?
SR I AUROB INDO: Do not accept It when It comes and do not
bel Ieve what It says. Do not act accord Ing to Its Ind Icat Ions.
Then It w Ill not be d Iff Icult to stop It.
And when Sr I Aurob Indo tells you someth Ing, the f Irst th Ing
to do, and the most Important If you want to conquer the
d Iff Iculty, Is to obey.
My dear ch Ild,
Th Is crav Ing for strong exper Iences belongs to the v Ital; It
Is a very frequent tendency In those whose v Ital Is Insuff Ic Iently
developed and seeks v Iolent sensat Ions In the hope of escap Ing
from Its heav Iness and Inert Ia. But It Is an Ignorant movement,
for v Iolent sensat Ions can never be a remedy; on the contrary,
they Increase the confus Ion and obscur Ity.
The only remedy l Ies In open Ing to the h Igher forces In
order to let them do In the v Ital the Ir work of organ Isat Ion and
class If Icat Ion, of l Ight and peace.
Love from your mother who Is always there ready to help
you.
--
You are d Ispleased w Ith me, aren't you? I feel so sad.
What can I do? I stumble at every step.
No, my dear l Ittle ch Ild, I am not d Ispleased - why should I
be? I understand your d Iff Icult Ies and I know your goodw Ill;
I know that you want to do well, that you want to conquer,
--
come, you should not th Ink that I am d Ispleased, but on the
contrary that I am always w Ith you, support Ing you, protect Ing
you, encourag Ing you w Ith an unvary Ing love and tenderness.
--
Do not allow yourself to be dom Inated by va In Imag Inat Ions.
The peace Is there In the depths of your heart; concentrate there
and you w Ill f Ind It.
Love from your mother.
--
Transform my whole nature. I shall be what you
want me to be. G Ive me your peace, your s Ilence In my
heart. I cannot express everyth Ing In words, but, mother,
you know everyth Ing.
Yes, I understand you very well, my dear ch Ild, and my affect Ion
Is always w Ith you and It wants you to have a vast and last Ing
Ser Ies F Ive - To a Ch Ild
--
force, and the Immutable joy that comes from a constant contact
w Ith the L Ight.
--
I want a deep peace - a very deep peace. I feel that
I am always In your arms.
Yes, It Is good to stay In my arms; there you w Ill f Ind the peace
you asp Ire for so much, and also a repose from wh Ich the true
--
L Ight, more l Ight. Enl Ighten me. Now I know that
you are the greatest power. My mother, take me Into
your heart, d Issolve the obstacles.
--
Always nestle In my heart wh Ich Is always ready to welcome
you, In my arms wh Ich are always ready to enfold you, and fear
no obstacles - we shall d Ispel them all.
--
Take me Into your heart. No, no, I don't want these
m Iserable falsehoods. Take me Into your heart.
I am always tak Ing you Into my heart, but what can I do If you
run away from there? You must rema In qu Iet In my arms If you
want me to be able to help you.
--
"Peace, peace, O my heart!" Do It stead Ily and you w Ill be
pleased w Ith the result.
--
The peace Is upon you; allow It to penetrate you, and In the
peace you w Ill f Ind the l Ight, and the l Ight w Ill br Ing you the
--
How happy I shall be the day when you always feel strong
and happy In all c Ircumstances.
W Ith all my love.
0.05 - The Synthesis of the Systems, #The Synthesis Of Yoga, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
Y THE very nature of the pr Inc Ipal Yog Ic schools, each cover Ing In Its operat Ions a part of the complex human Integer and attempt Ing to br Ing out Its h Ighest poss Ib Il It Ies, It w Ill appear that a synthes Is of all of them largely conce Ived and appl Ied m Ight well result In an Integral Yoga. But they are so d Isparate In the Ir tendenc Ies, so h Ighly spec Ial Ised and elaborated In the Ir forms, so long conf Irmed In the mutual oppos It Ion of the Ir Ideas and methods that we do not eas Ily f Ind how we can arr Ive at the Ir r Ight un Ion.
An und Iscr Im Inat Ing comb Inat Ion In block would not be a synthes Is, but a confus Ion. Nor would a success Ive pract Ice of each of them In turn be easy In the short span of our human l Ife and w Ith our l Im Ited energ Ies, to say noth Ing of the waste of labour Impl Ied In so cumbrous a process. Somet Imes, Indeed,
Hathayoga and Rajayoga are thus success Ively pract Ised. And In a recent un Ique example, In the l Ife of Ramakr Ishna Paramhansa, we see a colossal sp Ir Itual capac Ity f Irst dr Iv Ing stra Ight to the d Iv Ine real Isat Ion, tak Ing, as It were, the k Ingdom of heaven by v Iolence, and then se Iz Ing upon one Yog Ic method after another and extract Ing the substance out of It w Ith an Incred Ible rap Id Ity, always to return to the heart of the whole matter, the real Isat Ion and possess Ion of God by the power of love, by the extens Ion of Inborn sp Ir Itual Ity Into var Ious exper Ience and by the spontaneous play of an Intu It Ive knowledge. Such an example cannot be general Ised. Its object also was spec Ial and temporal, to exempl Ify In the great and dec Is Ive exper Ience of a master-soul the truth, now most necessary to human Ity, towards wh Ich a world long d Iv Ided Into jarr Ing sects and schools Is w Ith d Iff Iculty labour Ing, that all sects are forms and fragments of a s Ingle Integral truth and all d Isc Ipl Ines labour In the Ir d Ifferent ways towards one supreme exper Ience. To know, be and possess
42
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the D Iv Ine Is the one th Ing needful and It Includes or leads up to all the rest; towards th Is sole good we have to dr Ive and th Is atta Ined, all the rest that the d Iv Ine W Ill chooses for us, all necessary form and man Ifestat Ion, w Ill be added.
The synthes Is we propose cannot, then, be arr Ived at e Ither by comb Inat Ion In mass or by success Ive pract Ice. It must therefore be effected by neglect Ing the forms and outs Ides of the
Yog Ic d Isc Ipl Ines and se Iz Ing rather on some central pr Inc Iple common to all wh Ich w Ill Include and ut Il Ise In the r Ight place and proport Ion the Ir part Icular pr Inc Iples, and on some central dynam Ic force wh Ich Is the common secret of the Ir d Ivergent methods and capable therefore of organ Is Ing a natural select Ion and comb Inat Ion of the Ir var Ied energ Ies and d Ifferent ut Il It Ies.
Th Is was the a Im wh Ich we set before ourselves at f Irst when we entered upon our comparat Ive exam Inat Ion of the methods of
Nature and the methods of Yoga and we now return to It w Ith the poss Ib Il Ity of hazard Ing some def In Ite solut Ion.
We observe, f Irst, that there st Ill ex Ists In Ind Ia a remarkable
Yog Ic system wh Ich Is In Its nature synthet Ical and starts from a great central pr Inc Iple of Nature, a great dynam Ic force of
Nature; but It Is a Yoga apart, not a synthes Is of other schools.
Th Is system Is the way of the Tantra. Ow Ing to certa In of Its developments Tantra has fallen Into d Iscred It w Ith those who are not Tantr Ics; and espec Ially ow Ing to the developments of Its left-hand path, the Vama Marga, wh Ich not content w Ith exceed Ing the dual Ity of v Irtue and s In and Instead of replac Ing them by spontaneous r Ightness of act Ion seemed, somet Imes, to make a method of self- Indulgence, a method of unrestra Ined soc Ial Immoral Ity. Nevertheless, In Its or Ig In, Tantra was a great and pu Issant system founded upon Ideas wh Ich were at least part Ially true. Even Its twofold d Iv Is Ion Into the r Ight-hand and left-hand paths, Daksh Ina Marga and Vama Marga, started from a certa In profound percept Ion. In the anc Ient symbol Ic sense of the words Daksh Ina and Vama, It was the d Ist Inct Ion between the way of Knowledge and the way of Ananda, - Nature In man l Iberat Ing Itself by r Ight d Iscr Im Inat Ion In power and pract Ice of Its own energ Ies, elements and potent Ial It Ies and Nature In man
The Synthes Is of the Systems
--
l Iberat Ing Itself by joyous acceptance In power and pract Ice of Its own energ Ies, elements and potent Ial It Ies. But In both paths there was In the end an obscurat Ion of pr Inc Iples, a deformat Ion of symbols and a fall.
If, however, we leave as Ide, here also, the actual methods and pract Ices and seek for the central pr Inc Iple, we f Ind, f Irst, that Tantra expressly d Ifferent Iates Itself from the Ved Ic methods of Yoga. In a sense, all the schools we have h Itherto exam Ined are Vedant Ic In the Ir pr Inc Iple; the Ir force Is In knowledge, the Ir method Is knowledge, though It Is not always d Iscernment by the Intellect, but may be, Instead, the knowledge of the heart expressed In love and fa Ith or a knowledge In the w Ill work Ing out through act Ion. In all of them the lord of the Yoga Is the Purusha, the Consc Ious Soul that knows, observes, attracts, governs. But In Tantra It Is rather Prakr It I, the Nature-Soul, the Energy, the
W Ill- In-Power execut Ive In the un Iverse. It was by learn Ing and apply Ing the Int Imate secrets of th Is W Ill- In-Power, Its method, Its Tantra, that the Tantr Ic Yog In pursued the a Ims of h Is d Isc Ipl Ine, - mastery, perfect Ion, l Iberat Ion, beat Itude. Instead of draw Ing back from man Ifested Nature and Its d Iff Icult Ies, he confronted them, se Ized and conquered. But In the end, as Is the general tendency of Prakr It I, Tantr Ic Yoga largely lost Its pr Inc Iple In Its mach Inery and became a th Ing of formulae and occult mechan Ism st Ill powerful when r Ightly used but fallen from the clar Ity of the Ir or Ig Inal Intent Ion.
We have In th Is central Tantr Ic concept Ion one s Ide of the truth, the worsh Ip of the Energy, the Shakt I, as the sole effect Ive force for all atta Inment. We get the other extreme In the Vedant Ic concept Ion of the Shakt I as a power of Illus Ion and In the search after the s Ilent Inact Ive Purusha as the means of l Iberat Ion from the decept Ions created by the act Ive Energy. But In the Integral concept Ion the Consc Ious Soul Is the Lord, the Nature-Soul Is h Is execut Ive Energy. Purusha Is of the nature of Sat, the be Ing of consc Ious self-ex Istence pure and Inf In Ite; Shakt I or Prakr It I Is of the nature of Ch It, - It Is power of the Purusha's self-consc Ious ex Istence, pure and Inf In Ite. The relat Ion of the two ex Ists between the poles of rest and act Ion. When the Energy Is absorbed
44
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In the bl Iss of consc Ious self-ex Istence, there Is rest; when the
Purusha pours Itself out In the act Ion of Its Energy, there Is act Ion, creat Ion and the enjoyment or Ananda of becom Ing. But If Ananda Is the creator and begetter of all becom Ing, Its method Is Tapas or force of the Purusha's consc Iousness dwell Ing upon Its own Inf In Ite potent Ial Ity In ex Istence and produc Ing from It truths of concept Ion or real Ideas, v Ijnana, wh Ich, proceed Ing from an omn Isc Ient and omn Ipotent Self-ex Istence, have the surety of the Ir own fulf Ilment and conta In In themselves the nature and law of the Ir own becom Ing In the terms of m Ind, l Ife and matter. The eventual omn Ipotence of Tapas and the Infall Ible fulf Ilment of the Idea are the very foundat Ion of all
Yoga. In man we render these terms by W Ill and Fa Ith, - a w Ill that Is eventually self-effect Ive because It Is of the substance of
Knowledge and a fa Ith that Is the reflex In the lower consc Iousness of a Truth or real Idea yet unreal Ised In the man Ifestat Ion.
It Is th Is self-certa Inty of the Idea wh Ich Is meant by the G Ita when It says, yo yac-chraddhah. sa eva sah., "whatever Is a man's fa Ith or the sure Idea In h Im, that he becomes."
We see, then, what from the psycholog Ical po Int of v Iew,
- and Yoga Is noth Ing but pract Ical psychology, - Is the concept Ion of Nature from wh Ich we have to start. It Is the selffulf Ilment of the Purusha through h Is Energy. But the movement of Nature Is twofold, h Igher and lower, or, as we may choose to term It, d Iv Ine and und Iv Ine. The d Ist Inct Ion ex Ists Indeed for pract Ical purposes only; for there Is noth Ing that Is not d Iv Ine, and In a larger v Iew It Is as mean Ingless, verbally, as the d Ist Inct Ion between natural and supernatural, for all th Ings that are are natural. All th Ings are In Nature and all th Ings are In God.
But, for pract Ical purposes, there Is a real d Ist Inct Ion. The lower
Nature, that wh Ich we know and are and must rema In so long as the fa Ith In us Is not changed, acts through l Im Itat Ion and d Iv Is Ion, Is of the nature of Ignorance and culm Inates In the l Ife of the ego; but the h Igher Nature, that to wh Ich we asp Ire, acts by un If Icat Ion and transcendence of l Im Itat Ion, Is of the nature of Knowledge and culm Inates In the l Ife d Iv Ine. The passage from the lower to the h Igher Is the a Im of Yoga; and th Is passage
The Synthes Is of the Systems
--
may effect Itself by the reject Ion of the lower and escape Into the h Igher, - the ord Inary v Iew-po Int, - or by the transformat Ion of the lower and Its elevat Ion to the h Igher Nature. It Is th Is, rather, that must be the a Im of an Integral Yoga.
But In e Ither case It Is always through someth Ing In the lower that we must r Ise Into the h Igher ex Istence, and the schools of
Yoga each select the Ir own po Int of departure or the Ir own gate of escape. They spec Ial Ise certa In act Iv It Ies of the lower
Prakr It I and turn them towards the D Iv Ine. But the normal act Ion of Nature In us Is an Integral movement In wh Ich the full complex Ity of all our elements Is affected by and affects all our env Ironments. The whole of l Ife Is the Yoga of Nature. The
Yoga that we seek must also be an Integral act Ion of Nature, and the whole d Ifference between the Yog In and the natural man w Ill be th Is, that the Yog In seeks to subst Itute In h Imself for the Integral act Ion of the lower Nature work Ing In and by ego and d Iv Is Ion the Integral act Ion of the h Igher Nature work Ing In and by God and un Ity. If Indeed our a Im be only an escape from the world to God, synthes Is Is unnecessary and a waste of t Ime; for then our sole pract Ical a Im must be to f Ind out one path out of the thousand that lead to God, one shortest poss Ible of short cuts, and not to l Inger explor Ing d Ifferent paths that end In the same goal. But If our a Im be a transformat Ion of our Integral be Ing Into the terms of God-ex Istence, It Is then that a synthes Is becomes necessary.
The method we have to pursue, then, Is to put our whole consc Ious be Ing Into relat Ion and contact w Ith the D Iv Ine and to call H Im In to transform our ent Ire be Ing Into H Is. Thus In a sense
God H Imself, the real Person In us, becomes the sadhaka of the sadhana1 as well as the Master of the Yoga by whom the lower personal Ity Is used as the centre of a d Iv Ine transf Igurat Ion and the Instrument of Its own perfect Ion. In effect, the pressure of the
Tapas, the force of consc Iousness In us dwell Ing In the Idea of the d Iv Ine Nature upon that wh Ich we are In our ent Irety, produces
Sadhana, the pract Ice by wh Ich perfect Ion, s Iddh I, Is atta Ined; sadhaka, the Yog In who seeks by that pract Ice the s Iddh I.
46
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Its own real Isat Ion. The d Iv Ine and all-know Ing and all-effect Ing descends upon the l Im Ited and obscure, progress Ively Illum Ines and energ Ises the whole lower nature and subst Itutes Its own act Ion for all the terms of the Infer Ior human l Ight and mortal act Iv Ity.
In psycholog Ical fact th Is method translates Itself Into the progress Ive surrender of the ego w Ith Its whole f Ield and all Its apparatus to the Beyond-ego w Ith Its vast and Incalculable but always Inev Itable work Ings. Certa Inly, th Is Is no short cut or easy sadhana. It requ Ires a colossal fa Ith, an absolute courage and above all an unfl Inch Ing pat Ience. For It Impl Ies three stages of wh Ich only the last can be wholly bl Issful or rap Id, - the attempt of the ego to enter Into contact w Ith the D Iv Ine, the w Ide, full and therefore labor Ious preparat Ion of the whole lower Nature by the d Iv Ine work Ing to rece Ive and become the h Igher Nature, and the eventual transformat Ion. In fact, however, the d Iv Ine
Strength, often unobserved and beh Ind the ve Il, subst Itutes Itself for our weakness and supports us through all our fa Il Ings of fa Ith, courage and pat Ience. It "makes the bl Ind to see and the lame to str Ide over the h Ills." The Intellect becomes aware of a Law that benef Icently Ins Ists and a succour that upholds; the heart speaks of a Master of all th Ings and Fr Iend of man or a un Iversal Mother who upholds through all stumbl Ings. Therefore th Is path Is at once the most d Iff Icult Imag Inable and yet, In compar Ison w Ith the magn Itude of Its effort and object, the most easy and sure of all.
There are three outstand Ing features of th Is act Ion of the h Igher when It works Integrally on the lower nature. In the f Irst place It does not act accord Ing to a f Ixed system and success Ion as In the spec Ial Ised methods of Yoga, but w Ith a sort of free, scattered and yet gradually Intens Ive and purposeful work Ing determ Ined by the temperament of the Ind Iv Idual In whom It operates, the helpful mater Ials wh Ich h Is nature offers and the obstacles wh Ich It presents to pur If Icat Ion and perfect Ion. In a sense, therefore, each man In th Is path has h Is own method of
Yoga. Yet are there certa In broad l Ines of work Ing common to all wh Ich enable us to construct not Indeed a rout Ine system, but
The Synthes Is of the Systems
--
Secondly, the process, be Ing Integral, accepts our nature such as It stands organ Ised by our past evolut Ion and w Ithout reject Ing anyth Ing essent Ial compels all to undergo a d Iv Ine change.
Everyth Ing In us Is se Ized by the hands of a m Ighty Art If Icer and transformed Into a clear Image of that wh Ich It now seeks confusedly to present. In that ever-progress Ive exper Ience we beg In to perce Ive how th Is lower man Ifestat Ion Is const Ituted and that everyth Ing In It, however seem Ingly deformed or petty or v Ile, Is the more or less d Istorted or Imperfect f Igure of some element or act Ion In the harmony of the d Iv Ine Nature. We beg In to understand what the Ved Ic R Ish Is meant when they spoke of the human forefa thers fash Ion Ing the gods as a sm Ith forges the crude mater Ial In h Is sm Ithy.
Th Irdly, the d Iv Ine Power In us uses all l Ife as the means of th Is Integral Yoga. Every exper Ience and outer contact w Ith our world-env Ironment, however tr Ifl Ing or however d Isastrous, Is used for the work, and every Inner exper Ience, even to the most repellent suffer Ing or the most hum Il Iat Ing fall, becomes a step on the path to perfect Ion. And we recogn Ise In ourselves w Ith opened eyes the method of God In the world, H Is purpose of l Ight In the obscure, of m Ight In the weak and fallen, of del Ight In what Is gr Ievous and m Iserable. We see the d Iv Ine method to be the same In the lower and In the h Igher work Ing; only In the one It Is pursued tard Ily and obscurely through the subconsc Ious In
Nature, In the other It becomes sw Ift and self-consc Ious and the Instrument confesses the hand of the Master. All l Ife Is a Yoga of Nature seek Ing to man Ifest God w Ith In Itself. Yoga marks the stage at wh Ich th Is effort becomes capable of self-awareness and therefore of r Ight complet Ion In the Ind Iv Idual. It Is a gather Ing up and concentrat Ion of the movements d Ispersed and loosely comb Ined In the lower evolut Ion.
An Integral method and an Integral result. F Irst, an Integral real Isat Ion of D Iv Ine Be Ing; not only a real Isat Ion of the One In Its Ind Ist Ingu Ishable un Ity, but also In Its mult Itude of aspects wh Ich are also necessary to the complete knowledge of It by
48
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the relat Ive consc Iousness; not only real Isat Ion of un Ity In the
Self, but of un Ity In the Inf In Ite d Ivers Ity of act Iv It Ies, worlds and creatures.
Therefore, also, an Integral l Iberat Ion. Not only the freedom born of unbroken contact and Ident If Icat Ion of the Ind Iv Idual be Ing In all Its parts w Ith the D Iv Ine, sayujya-mukt I, by wh Ich It can become free2 even In Its separat Ion, even In the dual Ity; not only the salokya-mukt I by wh Ich the whole consc Ious ex Istence dwells In the same status of be Ing as the D Iv Ine, In the state of
Sachch Idananda; but also the acqu Is It Ion of the d Iv Ine nature by the transformat Ion of th Is lower be Ing Into the human Image of the D Iv Ine, sadharmya-mukt I, and the complete and f Inal release of all, the l Iberat Ion of the consc Iousness from the trans Itory mould of the ego and Its un If Icat Ion w Ith the One Be Ing, un Iversal both In the world and the Ind Iv Idual and transcendentally one both In the world and beyond all un Iverse.
By th Is Integral real Isat Ion and l Iberat Ion, the perfect harmony of the results of Knowledge, Love and Works. For there Is atta Ined the complete release from ego and Ident If Icat Ion In be Ing w Ith the One In all and beyond all. But s Ince the atta In Ing consc Iousness Is not l Im Ited by Its atta Inment, we w In also the un Ity In Beat Itude and the harmon Ised d Ivers Ity In Love, so that all relat Ions of the play rema In poss Ible to us even wh Ile we reta In on the he Ights of our be Ing the eternal oneness w Ith the
Beloved. And by a s Im Ilar w Ideness, be Ing capable of a freedom In sp Ir It that embraces l Ife and does not depend upon w Ithdrawal from l Ife, we are able to become w Ithout ego Ism, bondage or react Ion the channel In our m Ind and body for a d Iv Ine act Ion poured out freely upon the world.
The d Iv Ine ex Istence Is of the nature not only of freedom, but of pur Ity, beat Itude and perfect Ion. An Integral pur Ity wh Ich shall enable on the one hand the perfect reflect Ion of the d Iv Ine
Be Ing In ourselves and on the other the perfect outpour Ing of Its
Truth and Law In us In the terms of l Ife and through the r Ight
As the J Ivanmukta, who Is ent Irely free even w Ithout d Issolut Ion of the bod Ily l Ife In a f Inal Samadh I.
The Synthes Is of the Systems
--
funct Ion Ing of the complex Instrument we are In our outer parts, Is the cond It Ion of an Integral l Iberty. Its result Is an Integral beat Itude, In wh Ich there becomes poss Ible at once the Ananda of all that Is In the world seen as symbols of the D Iv Ine and the Ananda of that wh Ich Is not-world. And It prepares the Integral perfect Ion of our human Ity as a type of the D Iv Ine In the cond It Ions of the human man Ifestat Ion, a perfect Ion founded on a certa In free un Iversal Ity of be Ing, of love and joy, of play of knowledge and of play of w Ill In power and w Ill In unego Ist Ic act Ion. Th Is Integral Ity also can be atta Ined by the Integral Yoga.
Perfect Ion Includes perfect Ion of m Ind and body, so that the h Ighest results of Rajayoga and Hathayoga should be conta Ined In the w Idest formula of the synthes Is f Inally to be effected by mank Ind. At any rate a full development of the general mental and phys Ical facult Ies and exper Iences atta Inable by human Ity through Yoga must be Included In the scope of the Integral method. Nor would these have any ra Ison d'etre unless employed for an Integral mental and phys Ical l Ife. Such a mental and phys Ical l Ife would be In Its nature a translat Ion of the sp Ir Itual ex Istence Into Its r Ight mental and phys Ical values. Thus we would arr Ive at a synthes Is of the three degrees of Nature and of the three modes of human ex Istence wh Ich she has evolved or Is evolv Ing. We would Include In the scope of our l Iberated be Ing and perfected modes of act Iv Ity the mater Ial l Ife, our base, and the mental l Ife, our Intermed Iate Instrument.
Nor would the Integral Ity to wh Ich we asp Ire be real or even poss Ible, If It were conf Ined to the Ind Iv Idual. S Ince our d Iv Ine perfect Ion embraces the real Isat Ion of ourselves In be Ing, In l Ife and In love through others as well as through ourselves, the extens Ion of our l Iberty and of Its results In others would be the Inev Itable outcome as well as the broadest ut Il Ity of our l Iberat Ion and perfect Ion. And the constant and Inherent attempt of such an extens Ion would be towards Its Increas Ing and ult Imately complete general Isat Ion In mank Ind.
The d Iv In Is Ing of the normal mater Ial l Ife of man and of h Is great secular attempt of mental and moral self-culture In the Ind Iv Idual and the race by th Is Integral Isat Ion of a w Idely perfect
50
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sp Ir Itual ex Istence would thus be the crown al Ike of our Ind Iv Idual and of our common effort. Such a consummat Ion be Ing no other than the k Ingdom of heaven w Ith In reproduced In the k Ingdom of heaven w Ithout, would be also the true fulf Ilment of the great dream cher Ished In d Ifferent terms by the world's rel Ig Ions.
The w Idest synthes Is of perfect Ion poss Ible to thought Is the sole effort ent Irely worthy of those whose ded Icated v Is Ion perce Ives that God dwells concealed In human Ity.
Io controls> Io>
0.06 - INTRODUCTION, #Dark Night of the Soul, #Saint John of the Cross, #Christianity
object:0.06 - INTRODUCT ION
class:chapter
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Dark N Ight as a separate treat Ise, though In real Ity It Is a cont Inuat Ion of the Ascent
of Mount Carmel and fulf Ils the undertak Ings g Iven In It:
The f Irst n Ight or purgat Ion Is of the sensual part of the soul, wh Ich Is
treated In the present stanza, and w Ill be treated In the f Irst part of th Is book.
And the second Is of the sp Ir Itual part; of th Is speaks the second stanza,
wh Ich follows; and of th Is we shall treat l Ikew Ise, In the second and the th Ird
part, w Ith respect to the act Iv Ity of the soul; and In the fourth part, w Ith
respect to Its pass Iv Ity. 1
Th Is 'fourth part' Is the Dark N Ight. Of It the Sa Int wr Ites In a passage wh Ich
follows that just quoted:
--
of un Ion w Ith God. And th Is latter n Ight Is a more obscure and dark and
terr Ible purgat Ion, as we shall say afterwards.2
--
Sp Ir It; he now proposes to deal w Ith the Pass Ive N Ight, In the same order. He has
already taught us how we are to deny and pur Ify ourselves w Ith the ord Inary help of
grace, In order to prepare our senses and facult Ies for un Ion w Ith God through love.
He now proceeds to expla In, w Ith an arrest Ing freshness, how these same senses
--
act Ive and pass Ive purgat Ion, to wh Ich the Sa Int l Im Its h Imself In these treat Ises,
although the subject of the stanzas wh Ich he Is gloss Ing Is a much w Ider one,
compr Is Ing the whole of the myst Ical l Ife and end Ing only w Ith the D Iv Ine embraces
of the soul transformed In God through love.
The stanzas expounded by the Sa Int are taken from the same poem In the two
treat Ises. The commentary upon the second, however, Is very d Ifferent from that
upon the f Irst, for It assumes a much more advanced state of development. The
Act Ive N Ight has left the senses and facult Ies well prepared, though not completely
prepared, for the recept Ion of D Iv Ine Influences and Illum Inat Ions In greater
abundance than before. The Sa Int here postulates a pr Inc Iple of dogmat Ic theology
--
degree of purgat Ion wh Ich Is essent Ial to h Is transformat Ion In God. He needs
D Iv Ine a Id more abundantly. 'However greatly the soul Itself labours,' wr Ites the
Sa Int, ' It cannot act Ively pur Ify Itself so as to be In the least degree prepared for the
D Iv Ine un Ion of perfect Ion of love, If God takes not Its hand and purges It not In that
dark f Ire.'3
1Ascent, Bk. I, chap. I, 2.
2Op, c It., 3.
3Dark N Ight, Bk. 1, chap. I I I, 3.
10
The Pass Ive N Ights, In wh Ich It Is God Who accompl Ishes the purgat Ion, are
based upon th Is Incapac Ity. Souls 'beg In to enter' th Is dark n Ight
when God draws them forth from the state of beg Innerswh Ich Is the
state of those that med Itate on the sp Ir Itual road and beg Ins to set them In
the state of progress Iveswh Ich Is that of those who are already
contemplat Ivesto the end that, after pass Ing through It, they may arr Ive at
the state of the perfect, wh Ich Is that of the D Iv Ine un Ion of the soul w Ith
God. 4
Before expla In Ing the nature and effects of th Is Pass Ive N Ight, the Sa Int touches, In
pass Ing, upon certa In Imperfect Ions found In those who are about to enter It and
wh Ich It removes by the process of purgat Ion. Such travellers are st Ill untr Ied
prof Ic Ients, who have not yet acqu Ired mature hab Its of sp Ir Itual Ity and who
therefore st Ill conduct themselves as ch Ildren. The Imperfect Ions are exam Ined one
by one, follow Ing the order of the seven deadly s Ins, In chapters ( I I-v I I I) wh Ich once
more reveal the author's sk Ill as a d Irector of souls. They are easy chapters to
understand, and of great pract Ical ut Il Ity, comparable to those In the f Irst book of
the Ascent wh Ich deal w Ith the act Ive purgat Ion of the des Ires of sense.
--
the senses, the pr Inc Ipal a Im of wh Ich Is the purgat Ion or str Ipp Ing of the soul of Its
Imperfect Ions and the preparat Ion of It for fru It Ive un Ion. The Pass Ive N Ight of
Sense, we are told, Is 'common' and 'comes to many,' whereas that of Sp Ir It ' Is the
port Ion of very few.'5 The one Is 'b Itter and terr Ible' but 'the second bears no
compar Ison w Ith It,' for It Is 'horr Ible and awful to the sp Ir It.'6 A good deal of
l Iterature on the former N Ight ex Isted In the t Ime of St. John of the Cross and he
therefore prom Ises to be br Ief In h Is treatment of It. Of the latter, on the other hand,
he w Ill 'treat more fully . . . s Ince very l Ittle has been sa Id of th Is, e Ither In speech or
In wr It Ing, and very l Ittle Is known of It, even by exper Ience.' 7
Hav Ing descr Ibed th Is Pass Ive N Ight of Sense In Chapter v I I I, he expla Ins
w Ith great Ins Ight and d Iscernment how It may be recogn Ized whether any g Iven
ar Id Ity Is a result of th Is N Ight or whether It comes from s Ins or Imperfect Ions, or
from fra Ilty or lukewarmness of sp Ir It, or even from Ind Ispos It Ion or 'humours' of the
body. The Sa Int Is part Icularly effect Ive here, and we may once more compare th Is
chapter w Ith a s Im Ilar one In the Ascent ( I I, x I I I)that In wh Ich he f Ixes the po Int
where the soul may abandon d Iscurs Ive med Itat Ion and enter the contemplat Ion
--
h Is observat Ions, but because, even In sp Ite of h Imself, he betrays the subl Im Ity of
h Is own myst Ical exper Iences. Once more, too, we may adm Ire the crystall Ine
transparency of h Is teach Ing and the prec Is Ion of the phrases In wh Ich he clothes It.
To judge by h Is language alone, one m Ight suppose at t Imes that he Is speak Ing of
mathemat Ical, rather than of sp Ir Itual operat Ions.
In Chapter x, the Sa Int descr Ibes the d Isc Ipl Ine wh Ich the soul In th Is Dark
N Ight must Impose upon Itself; th Is, as m Ight be log Ically deduced from the Ascent,
cons Ists In 'allow Ing the soul to rema In In peace and qu Ietness,' content 'w Ith a
4Op. c It., Bk. I, chap. I, 1.
5Dark N Ight, Bk. 1, chap. v I I I, 1.
6Op. c It., Bk. I, chap. v I I I, 2.
7 Ib Id.
--
peaceful and lov Ing attent Iveness toward God.'8 Before long It w Ill exper Ience
enk Indl Ings of love (Chapter x I), wh Ich w Ill serve to pur Ify Its s Ins and Imperfect Ions
and draw It gradually nearer to God; we have here, as It were, so many stages of the
ascent of the Mount on whose summ It the soul atta Ins to transform Ing un Ion.
--
N Ight of the Sp Ir It, wh Ich Is at once more affl Ict Ive and more pa Inful than those
wh Ich have preceded It. Th Is, nevertheless, Is the Dark N Ight par excellence, of
wh Ich the Sa Int speaks In these words: 'The n Ight wh Ich we have called that of
sense may and should be called a k Ind of correct Ion and restra Int of the des Ire
rather than purgat Ion. The reason Is that all the Imperfect Ions and d Isorders of the
sensual part have the Ir strength and root In the sp Ir It, where all hab Its, both good
and bad, are brought Into subject Ion, and thus, unt Il these are purged, the
rebell Ions and deprav It Ies of sense cannot be purged thoroughly.' 9
Sp Ir Itual persons, we are told, do not enter the second n Ight Immed Iately
after leav Ing the f Irst; on the contrary, they generally pass a long t Ime, even years,
before do Ing so,10 for they st Ill have many Imperfect Ions, both hab Itual and actual
(Chapter I I). After a br Ief Introduct Ion (Chapter I I I), the Sa Int descr Ibes w Ith some
fullness the nature of th Is sp Ir Itual purgat Ion or dark contemplat Ion referred to In
the f Irst stanza of h Is poem and the var Iet Ies of pa In and affl Ict Ion caused by It,
whether In the soul or In Its facult Ies (Chapters Iv-v I I I). These chapters are br Ill Iant
beyond all descr Ipt Ion; In them we seem to reach the culm Inat Ing po Int of the Ir
author's myst Ical exper Ience; any excerpt from them would do them an Injust Ice. It
must suff Ice to say that St. John of the Cross seldom aga In touches those same
--
Chapter Ix descr Ibes how, although these purgat Ions seem to bl Ind the sp Ir It,
they do so only to enl Ighten It aga In w Ith a br Ighter and Intenser l Ight, wh Ich It Is
prepar Ing Itself to rece Ive w Ith greater abundance. The follow Ing chapter makes the
compar Ison between sp Ir Itual purgat Ion and the log of wood wh Ich gradually
becomes transformed through be Ing Immersed In f Ire and at last takes on the f Ire's
own propert Ies. The force w Ith wh Ich the fam Il Iar s Im Il Itude Is dr Iven home
Impresses Indel Ibly upon the m Ind the fundamental concept of th Is most subl Ime of
all purgat Ions. Marvellous, Indeed, are Its effects, from the f Irst enk Indl Ings and
burn Ings of D Iv Ine love, wh Ich are greater beyond compar Ison than those produced
by the N Ight of Sense, the one be Ing as d Ifferent from the other as Is the body from
the soul. 'For th Is (latter) Is an enk Indl Ing of sp Ir Itual love In the soul, wh Ich, In the
m Idst of these dark conf Ines, feels Itself to be keenly and sharply wounded In strong
D Iv Ine love, and to have a certa In real Izat Ion and foretaste of God.'11 No less
wonderful are the effects of the powerful D Iv Ine Illum Inat Ion wh Ich from t Ime to
t Ime enfolds the soul In the splendours of glory. When the effects of the l Ight that
wounds and yet Illum Ines are comb Ined w Ith those of the enk Indlement that melts
the soul w Ith Its heat, the del Ights exper Ienced are so great as to be Ineffable.
The second l Ine of the f Irst stanza of the poem Is expounded In three
adm Irable chapters (x I-x I I I), wh Ile one short chapter (x Iv) suff Ices for the three l Ines
--
8Dark N Ight, Bk. I, chap. x, 4.
9Op. c It., Bk. I I, chap. I I I, 1.
10Op. c It., Bk. I I, chap. I, 1.
11Dark N Ight, Bk. I I, chap. x I, 1.
12
secur Ity In the Dark N Ightdue, among other reasons, to Its be Ing freed 'not only
from Itself, but l Ikew Ise from Its other enem Ies, wh Ich are the world and the dev Il.'12
Th Is contemplat Ion Is not only dark, but also secret (Chapter xv I I), and In
Chapter xv I I I Is compared to the 'sta Ircase' of the poem. Th Is compar Ison suggests to
the Sa Int an expos It Ion (Chapters xv I I I, x Ix) of the ten steps or degrees of love wh Ich
--
wh Ich led It to journey ' In darkness and concealment' from Its enem Ies, both w Ithout
and w Ith In.
--
and prepared for the des Ired un Ion w Ith the Spouse, a un Ion wh Ich Is the subject
that the Sa Int proposed to treat In h Is commentary on the f Ive rema In Ing stanzas.
As far as we know, th Is commentary was never wr Itten. We have only the br Iefest
outl Ine of what was to have been covered In the th Ird, In wh Ich, follow Ing the same
effect Ive metaphor of n Ight, the Sa Int descr Ibes the excellent propert Ies of the
sp Ir Itual n Ight of Infused contemplat Ion, through wh Ich the soul journeys w Ith no
other gu Ide or support, e Ither outward or Inward, than the D Iv Ine love 'wh Ich
burned In my heart.'
It Is d Iff Icult to express adequately the sense of loss that one feels at the
premature truncat Ion of th Is eloquent treat Ise.13 We have already g Iven our
--
'dawn's f Irst breath Ings In the heav'ns above'wh Ich breaks through the black
darkness of the Act Ive and the Pass Ive N Ights; they would tell us, too, of the soul's
further progress towards the Sun's full br Ightness. It Is true, of course, that some
part of th Is great gap Is f Illed by St. John of the Cross h Imself In h Is other treat Ises,
but It Is small compensat Ion for the Incomplete state In wh Ich he left th Is ed If Ice of
such g Igant Ic proport Ions that he should have g Iven us other and smaller bu Ild Ings
--
Flame of Love, they are not so completely kn It Into one whole as Is th Is great double
treat Ise. They lose both In flex Ib Il Ity and In substance through the closeness w Ith
wh Ich they follow the stanzas of wh Ich they are the expos It Ion. In the Ascent and
the Dark N Ight, on the other hand, we catch only the echoes of the poem, wh Ich are
all but lost In the resonance of the ph Ilosopher's vo Ice and the eloquent tones of the
preacher. Nor have the other treat Ises the learn Ing and the author Ity of these.
Nowhere else does the gen Ius of St. John of the Cross for Infus Ing ph Ilosophy Into
h Is myst Ical d Issertat Ions f Ind such an outlet as here. Nowhere else, aga In, Is he
qu Ite so appeal Ingly human; for, though he Is human even In h Is loft Iest and
subl Imest passages, th Is Interm Ingl Ing of ph Ilosophy w Ith myst Ical theology makes
h Im seem part Icularly so. These treat Ises are a wonderful Illustrat Ion of the
theolog Ical truth that grace, far from destroy Ing nature, ennobles and d Ign If Ies It,
and of the agreement always found between the natural and the supernatural
0.06 - Letters to a Young Sadhak, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
To a young sadhak who later became a teacher In the Sr I Aurob Indo Internat Ional Centre of Educat Ion.1
I hope and bel Ieve Your work does not depend upon
--
No, It does not depend at all upon human be Ings. What has to
be done w Ill be done desp Ite all poss Ible res Istances.
--
I know perfectly well what I want or rather what the d Iv Ine W Ill
Is, and It Is that wh Ich w Ill tr Iumph In t Ime.
What we want to br Ing to the earth can hardly be called a revolut Ion, although It w Ill be the most marvellous change ever seen;
In any case th Is cannot be compared at all w Ith the bloody revolut Ions wh Ich qu Ite uselessly tear up countr Ies w Ithout br Ing Ing
--
Th Is Ser Ies Is organ Ised broadly by subject Into th Irteen parts - the form In wh Ich
It was or Ig Inally publ Ished; In th Is It d Iffers from the other Ser Ies, wh Ich are arranged
chronolog Ically. The repl Ies here were wr Itten between 1933 and 1949 - most of them
--
w Ill be no need to excla Im: "The D Iv Ine Is everywhere"
- for th Is w Ill be a normal exper Ience.
If the real Isat Ion were to be l Im Ited to th Is, It would hardly be
worth much. It Is an Integral transformat Ion of terrestr Ial l Ife
wh Ich Is ant Ic Ipated.
Beloved Mother, every moment I feel a great transformat Ion tak Ing place In me. Isn't th Is true?
It Is qu Ite true. But It seems to me that even the outer forms,
the appearances are chang Ing more than you say. Only, th Is Is
not very eas Ily seen because It happens normally, In accordance
w Ith the law of the truth of th Ings, and not arb Itrar Ily through
--
Certa Inly the D Iv Ine Grace Is always at work, It Is the mater Ial
world and the men l Iv Ing there that do not want It!
What does the D Iv Ine want of me?
--
then you w Ill qu Ite naturally take your proper place In the great
D Iv Ine Work.
Where Is my true be Ing?
Farther w Ith In or h Igher above, on the other s Ide of the emot Ions,
--
I feel Ind Ignant, Mother, for I cannot f Ind my "self", as
soon as I try to do so, I f Ind noth Ing but th Is body, wh Ich
Is l Ike a la Ir of banal thoughts and lawless des Ires.
--
refuse to recogn Ise the body as one's "self". Indeed, what would
It be w Ithout the feel Ings and thoughts wh Ich an Imate It? An
Inert, l Ifeless mass.
Mother, what Is It that w Ill help me always remember
that I am l Iv Ing a sp Ir Itual l Ife?
The awareness of the D Iv Ine Presence In all th Ings and always.
You have sa Id In your Conversat Ions that to prepare
oneself for the Yoga one must f Irst of all be consc Ious.
To be consc Ious of the D Iv Ine Presence In us Is our goal;
I don't see how I can be consc Ious from the beg Inn Ing.
I have not sa Id "consc Ious of the D Iv Ine Presence", I have sa Id
"consc Ious"; that means one does not l Ive In total Ignorance of
what happens w Ith In oneself.
--
Th Is Is, however, Ind Ispensable for yoga; and he who has so great
an a Im as to be un Ited w Ith the D Iv Ine and to man Ifest H Im, how
--
I don't th Ink th Is Is true; un Ion w Ith the outer nature br Ings more
certa Inly sorrow than joy!
--
here; you would be In the world. These are certa In elements In
the be Ing wh Ich rema In attached to the Ir old act Iv It Ies and refuse
--
I ask You once aga In, Mother, what Is It that d Iv Ides my
be Ing?
The confl Ict Is between that wh Ich asp Ires towards consc Iousness, the "sattw Ic" part of the be Ing, and that wh Ich lets Itself
be Invaded and governed by the Inconsc Ience, the "tamas Ic"
part of the be Ing, between that wh Ich pushes upwards and that
wh Ich pulls downwards and therefore Is subject to all outer
Influences.
Mother, Your world may hurt me, but It cannot g Ive me
any enjoyment; I myself too do not want any.
It Is good to be above all enjoyments the world can g Ive, but
why accept to be hurt by It?
I don't l Ike th Is l Ife w Ithout any attachments.
--
If truly you are no longer attached to anyth Ing, It Is a great yog Ic
real Isat Ion and It would be wrong of you to compla In about It.
The whole world Is aga Inst me and I am In despa Ir.
Why do you want to th Ink the whole world Is aga Inst you? Th Is
Is ch Ild Ish.
My phys Ical m Ind Is not yet conv Inced that human l Ife
Is capable of overcom Ing all suffer Ing and even death.
It may be that human l Ife Is Indeed Incapable of It; but for the
d Iv Ine l Ife noth Ing Is Imposs Ible.
Is It strange that one should become d Isgusted w Ith th Is
world? The repet It Ion of the same round - that Is death
Itself.
Th Is Is one way of see Ing th Ings; but there Is another In wh Ich
one f Inds that no two th Ings, no two moments are exactly al Ike
In the world and that everyth Ing Is In perpetual change.
I do not understand a phrase In Your Prayers: "and that
all are equal - Inf In Ites Imal gra Ins of dust or Ident Ical
stars - before Etern Ity".
All the stars (sp Ir Itually speak Ing) are the same. I mean that one
may call human be Ings gra Ins of dust If one l Ikes, or compare
them to the stars; In e Ither case they are all al Ike In s Ize and
worth before Etern Ity.
--
Beloved Mother, gu Ide my steps, Illum Ine my m Ind, and
do not leave, I pray, any d Istance between You and me.
I too do not want any d Istance between us. But the relat Ion must
be a true one, that Is, based on un Ion In the d Iv Ine consc Iousness.
Open your heart yet w Ider, yet better, and the d Istance w Ill
--
D Iv Ine must be broken. O Mother, I don't know what I
ought to do.
It Is In a calm and persever Ing w Ill that th Is can be accompl Ished.
May my whole be Ing be only that love wh Ich wants to
g Ive Itself, and wh Ich leads me to You.
Keep th Is asp Irat Ion and you are sure of v Ictory; you w Ill love
--
My Mother, w Ith all my w Ill and all my effort I want to
real Ise that love wh Ich You have foreseen In your d Iv Ine
v Is Ion.
I shall always be w Ith you In your endeavour.
Ser Ies S Ix - To a Young Sadhak
My dear Mother, I do not say that I love You and belong
to You, I must prove It In my act Ions; w Ithout that these
would be worthless words beh Ind wh Ich a man seeks
shelter and protect Ion. But even so, I am always Your
ch Ild.
That's good. You are Indeed always my ch Ild and I expect you to
become even more a good ch Ild who w Ill be able to tell me In all
s Incer Ity and truth: " I love You and I am Yours for all etern Ity."
O Mother, take me w Ith You; I shall seat You for ever In
my heart; I could not bear to lose You.
There Is no quest Ion of los Ing me. We carry In ourselves an
eternal consc Iousness and It Is of th Is that one must become
aware.
Whatever the reason may be, as soon as my consc Iousness loses You I become joyless and w Ithout energy.
At no moment do I forget you. Don't you rather allow too many
other Influences to come between you and me?
Mother, why Is It so d Iff Icult to feel Your Presence constantly near me? In the depths of my heart I know well
that w Ithout You there Is no mean Ing In l Ife for me; yet
my m Ind fl Its h Ither and th Ither as soon as It f Inds the
sl Ightest occas Ion.
It Is prec Isely because of th Is that you lose the feel Ing of the
Presence.
I am always w Ith you, and to become consc Ious of the Inner
Presence Is one of the most Important po Ints of the sadhana.
Ask X, he w Ill tell you that the Presence Is not a matter of fa Ith
or of mental Imag Inat Ion, It Is a fact, absolutely concrete and
as real and tang Ible to the consc Iousness as the most mater Ial
--
My beloved Mother, If only I could conv Ince my Ignorant
be Ing that It Is poss Ible to f Ind You In the centre of my
heart.
It Is not a quest Ion of conv Inc Ing your heart, you must get the
exper Ience of th Is presence and then you w Ill become aware
that In Its depths your heart has always been consc Ious of th Is
presence.
--
I am In every thought, every asp Irat Ion wh Ich you turn towards
me; for If you were not always present In my consc Iousness you
would not be able to th Ink of me. So you may be sure of my
presence. I add my bless Ings.
Beloved Mother, how shall I f Ind the source of that
Love wh Ich w Ill make me feel that the d Iv Ine Presence Is
always and everywhere?
You must f Ind the D Iv Ine f Irst, whether In yourself by Inter Ior Isat Ion and concentrat Ion, or In Sr I Aurob Indo and me through
love and self-g Iv Ing. Once you have found the D Iv Ine you w Ill
naturally see H Im In all th Ings and everywhere.
Ser Ies S Ix - To a Young Sadhak
There are two ways of un It Ing w Ith the D Iv Ine. One Is to concentrate In the heart and go deep enough to f Ind there H Is Presence;
the other Is to fl Ing oneself In H Is arms, to nestle there as a ch Ild
nestles In Its mother's arms, w Ith a complete surrender; and of
the two the latter seems to me the eas Ier.
My darl Ing Mother, If the D Iv Ine shows H Imself to me
In exchange for my love for H Im and the g Iv Ing of my
soul, then It Is a very easy th Ing for me.
Not only of the soul, but of the whole be Ing, w Ithout reserve.
Who Is there to hold me back far from You?
You yourself.
It Is qu Ite Incorrect that I w Ish to rema In far from you; but
to be near me you must cl Imb up close bes Ide me, and not expect
--
My beloved Mother, one day You wrote to me that I
must cl Imb to the plane where You are, to be able to
have You Int Imately, and that I must not expect You
to come down here. But Mother, You are so great and
rema In so h Igh up that It seems to me almost Imposs Ible
to cl Imb up there. There Is a world of d Ifference between
our two planes. I dare not dream of the moment I shall
be at your s Ide; You w Ill always be h Igher, and I shall
asp Ire to You; I shall follow You from plane to plane,
but You w Ill be always far from me. Th Is p Icture does
not appear bad to me, because I know there Is a great
joy In seek Ing; but It Is true that my heart w Ill always be
th Irsty.
From a certa In po Int of v Iew what you say Is true; but there Is
also a sort of reversal of consc Iousness In wh Ich It comes out of
Its state of bl Ind and fals Ify Ing Ignorance and enters Into a state
of truth, and when that reversal, that convers Ion takes place,
--
My beloved Mother, Is It not poss Ible to meet You on
some other plane than the phys Ical? I don't mean by
leav Ing the body; even when In the body, Is It not poss Ible
to meet on some other h Igher plane?
Certa Inly, th Is Is qu Ite poss Ible. But one must awaken to the
consc Iousness of these planes.
Mother, I want s Imply to leave the body; It Is the body
wh Ich separates me from You.
To say that It Is your body wh Ich separates you from me Is sheer
stup Id Ity. It seems to me that actually It Is just the oppos Ite, for
w Ithout the poss Ib Il Ity of see Ing me da Ily, what contact w Ill you
have w Ith me In the present state of your consc Iousness? Are
you capable of feel Ing me, exper Ienc Ing concretely my presence,
even when your phys Ical eyes do not see me? I don't th Ink so, for
If It were so, you would not compla In of separat Ion, you would
know, on the contrary, that there Is no separat Ion and that In
the real Ity of your be Ing we are always un Ited.
To th Ink that If you leave your body you w Ill come closer to
me Is a b Ig m Istake; for the v Ital be Ing rema Ins what It Is, whether
the body be al Ive or dead, and If the v Ital be Ing Is, dur Ing one's
l Ife, Incapable of feel Ing the nearness, the deep Int Imacy, how
Ser Ies S Ix - To a Young Sadhak
can one reasonably hope It w Ill suddenly be able to do so just
because It has left the body? It Is Ignorant ch Ild Ishness.
And that other Idea that If the body Is changed the next
one w Ill necessar Ily be better, Is also a m Istake. It Is only when
one has prof Ited fully and to the utmost by the opportun Ity for
progress wh Ich l Ife In a phys Ical body represents, that one may
hope to be reborn In a h Igher organ Ism. All defect Ion, on the
contrary, naturally br Ings In a d Im Inut Ion of be Ing.
Only the resolut Ion to face courageously, In the present ex Istence, all the d Iff Icult Ies, and to overcome them, Is the sure
means of atta In Ing the un Ion you des Ire.
My one hope Is to progress as much as I can, so that my
next b Irth may not be useless l Ike th Is one.
Th Is Is all nonsense; we have not to busy ourselves w Ith the next
l Ife, but w Ith th Is one wh Ich offers us, t Ill our very last breath,
all Its poss Ib Il It Ies. To put off for the next b Irth what one can do
In th Is l Ife Is l Ike putt Ing off for tomorrow what one can do th Is
very day; It Is laz Iness. It Is only w Ith death that the poss Ib Il Ity
of Integral real Isat Ion ceases; so long as one Is al Ive, noth Ing Is
Imposs Ible.
--
not be done after death. It Is the phys Ical l Ife wh Ich Is the true
f Ield for progress and real Isat Ion.
Beloved Mother, I must e Ither be transformed or cease
to be.
It Is Imposs Ible to cease to be; noth Ing that belongs to the man Ifested un Iverse can go out of It except through the door of
sp Ir Itual l Iberat Ion, that Is, transformat Ion.
I I I
I often ask myself If there Is a truth beh Ind th Is des Ire to
come close to You.
Yes, there Is the Truth of perfect un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine In an
Ident Ity of consc Iousness and w Ill.
My sweet Mother, do You say that I ought to overcome
th Is des Ire to come to You phys Ically?
--
If you say I am there for you alone, obv Iously It Is ego Ist Ic and
false; but If you th Ink I am there for all my ch Ildren, that I carry
them In my heart, that I want to lead them to the D Iv Ine and
that I am gr Ieved when they move away from H Im, - then th Is
Is qu Ite true.
I have not the least Intent Ion of keep Ing you away from me; I
wanted only to rem Ind you that you are not alone In the Ashram
and that I have to d Iv Ide my t Ime among all those who have need
of me.
--
you w Ill surely be nearer to me than If you were seated near me
but th Ink Ing about other th Ings.
--
Mother, how can I feel You concretely near me, even
when my body Is far from You?
By concentrat Ing your thought.
Beloved Mother, there are twenty-four hours In a day,
but I can't rema In at Your feet for more than a few
seconds; how can I l Ive?
Go w Ith In Into yourself, f Ind your psych Ic be Ing and you w Ill
f Ind me at the same t Ime, l Iv Ing In you, l Ife of your l Ife, ever
present and ever near, qu Ite concretely and tang Ibly.
Rema In very qu Iet, open your m Ind and your heart to Sr I Aurob Indo's Influence and m Ine, w Ithdraw deep Into an Inner s Ilence
(wh Ich may be had In all c Ircumstances), call me from the depths
of th Is s Ilence and you w Ill see me stand Ing there In the centre
of your be Ing.
Because I stopped the pranam for two days, you should not
th Ink that I was not w Ith you. Wherever you work, phys Ically
near or far, I am always w Ith you In your work and In your
consc Iousness. You ought to know that.
L Ife w Ill no longer have any attract Ion for me If I do not
feel that You are w Ith me.
But I am always w Ith you.
Do not leave my heart empty, Mother.
I am always In your heart.
The psych Ic be Ing Is constantly and Invar Iably In contact w Ith
the D Iv Ine and never loses th Is contact.
The D Iv Ine Is constantly present In the psych Ic be Ing and the
latter Is qu Ite consc Ious of th Is.
The psych Ic be Ing Is asleep In me.
The psych Ic be Ing Is not asleep. It Is the connect Ion w Ith It wh Ich
Is not well establ Ished because the m Ind makes too much no Ise
and the v Ital Is too restless.
Mother, If the psych Ic always feels the D Iv Ine Presence,
why does the human be Ing cry and lament the lack of
--
I have already told you that It Is because the contact between
the outer consc Iousness and the psych Ic consc Iousness Is not
well establ Ished. He In whom th Is contact Is well establ Ished Is
always happy.
The suffer Ing we exper Ience proves that the psych Ic be Ing Is far away from the D Iv Ine.
It Is not the psych Ic be Ing wh Ich suffers, It Is the m Ind, the v Ital
and the ord Inary consc Iousness of Ignorant man.
Ser Ies S Ix - To a Young Sadhak
About ten or eleven years ago I had an exper Ience In Your
presence and through You. I was In a great d Iff Iculty and
was feel Ing qu Ite lost. Suddenly I felt someth Ing that
rose from the depths of my be Ing, through a crowd of
--
was changed In me; then I was In joy and peace and all
d Iff Icult Ies suddenly d Isappeared. S Ince that day I have
not had any d Iff Iculty wh Ich could bar my way.
--
Certa Inly It was the psych Ic be Ing, but It became act Ive only
through my Intervent Ion.
Now, If you don't l Ike me to show you your faults, I can very
well stop do Ing It. But then you should no longer ask me to
help you to progress, for you cannot on the one hand ask me to
Intervene and on the other refuse my Intervent Ion.
If you are vexed by what I tell you, It proves that you do not
w Ish to progress, and consequently that It Is not necessary for
me to make you aware of what Is to be changed In you.
I feel, Mother, that I am a very fr Ivolous fellow; won't
You change me?
--
that what Is fr Ivolous In you wants to change?
How do you expect me to help you If you have no trust In me!
I shall never be able to real Ise fully th Is relat Ionsh Ip
wh Ich ex Ists eternally, If You don't help me to do It.
My help Is there completely; you have only to open yourself to
It w Ith conf Idence and you w Ill rece Ive It.
Yes, my help Is w Ith you to master all the movements wh Ich are
opposed to the D Iv Ine.
I have not the least Intent Ion In the world to push you Into a
corner, and If I had not the full assurance that you can overcome
all these d Iff Icult Ies, I would not even have ment Ioned them. It
Is no good tell Ing someone, "You have such and such a fault",
If It does not help h Im to correct It.
Th Is morn Ing I was th Ink Ing I would get another blow
from You.
I don't see why I should g Ive you blows - I don't g Ive them for
the pleasure of g Iv Ing them, but only when they are altogether
--
After all, my whole l Ife Is consecrated to You; I shall
rema In very calm w Ithout bother Ing about what happens
--
That's very good, but If you were to add to th Is the Idea that I
know you and love you better than you yourself do and that I
know better than you what Is good for you - then that would
be perfect.
--
Mother of joy, I am surpr Ised to f Ind that there are people
who th Ink that You call only those sadhaks who cannot
rece Ive Your Grace from afar; and that It Is a s Ign of
weakness on the part of those who see You from t Ime to
--
Don't bother about what people bel Ieve or say; It Is almost
always Ignorant stup Id It Ies.
I always wonder that people Imag Ine they can know the
reasons for my act Ions! I act d Ifferently for each one, accord Ing
to the needs of h Is part Icular case.
I don't th Ink It would be bad to let You know about a
thought, an Idea wh Ich goes on In me, even If th Is Idea,
th Is thought Is bad.
On the contrary, It Is good to let me know Immed Iately.
Noth Ing Is better than a confess Ion for open Ing the closed doors.
Tell me what you fear most to tell me, and Immed Iately you w Ill
feel yourself closer to me.
--
The D Iv Ine Is Inf In Ite and Innumerable, and consequently the
ways of approach Ing H Im are also Inf In Ite and Innumerable,
and on the manner of one's approach to the D Iv Ine depends
--
severe D Iv Ine, and he who Is trust Ing f Inds the D Iv Ine a fr Iend
and protector... and so on In the Inf In Ite var Iety of poss Ib Il It Ies.
Fear noth Ing: the D Iv Ine always answers every s Incere asp Irat Ion
and never refuses what Is offered to H Im whole-heartedly; thus
you may l Ive In the peace of the cert Itude that you are accepted
by the D Iv Ine.
Beloved Mother, how to master th Is lethargy that overcomes me? I do not l Ive, Mother, I just ex Ist In some way.
Mother, I must f Ind someth Ing wh Ich can d Ivert me.
It Is certa Inly not w Ith such a state of m Ind that you can hope
to f Ind the D Iv Ine Presence. Far from seek Ing to f Ill your heart
w Ith fr Ivol It Ies In order to "d Ivert" It, you must w Ith a great
obst Inacy empty It of everyth Ing, absolutely everyth Ing, both
great and small, so that the power of that great empt Iness may
--
th Is supreme Grace the pr Ice It deserves.
Of each one Is asked only what he has, what he Is, noth Ing more,
but also noth Ing less.
You are r Ight to want to create the empt Iness In you; for you w Ill
soon d Iscover that In the depths of th Is empt Iness Is the D Iv Ine.
If I f Ind some solace In books, how can I say that noth Ing susta Ins me and that I am plunged In the d Iv Ine l Ife
through an absolute empt Iness?
"The absolute empt Iness" Is more of an Image than a real Ity. It
Is better to keep In one's heart a h Igh asp Irat Ion rather than an
obscure somnolence.
--
When I try to look w Ith In myself, I f Ind there a be Ing that
Is detached from everyth Ing, a great Ind Ifference re Igns
there.
Ind Ifference Is a stage of development wh Ich must lead to a
perfect equal Ity of soul.
Mother, my l Ife Is dry, It was always so; the dryness of
my l Ife constantly Increases.
Th Is does not depend upon any outer c Ircumstance but on your
Inner state. It happens because you l Ive In a very superf Ic Ial
reg Ion of your m Ind. You must try to f Ind some depth In your
consc Iousness and dwell there.
It Is certa Inly not by becom Ing morose and melancholy that one
draws near the D Iv Ine. One must always keep In one's heart an
unshakable fa Ith and conf Idence and In one's head the cert Itude
of v Ictory. Dr Ive away these shadows wh Ich come between you
and me and h Ide me from your s Ight. It Is In the pure l Ight of
cert Itude that you can become consc Ious of my presence.
--
move away from me. The D Iv Ine Is not sad and to real Ise the
D Iv Ine you must reject far from yourself all sadness and all
--
Sweet Mother, I am happy because I love You and because I suffer a l Ittle In lov Ing You.
I don't see the need of your suffer Ing. Psych Ic love Is always
peaceful and joyous; It Is the v Ital wh Ich dramat Ises and makes
Itself unhappy w Ithout any reason. I hope, Indeed, that you w Ill
soon become consc Ious of my presence always near you, and
that It w Ill g Ive you peace and joy.
My most beloved Mother, the Idea of separat Ion opens
between You and me l Ike a fr Ighten Ing abyss. I am not
sat Isf Ied; from where does th Is d Issat Isfact Ion come?
It Is always the v Ital be Ing wh Ich protests and compla Ins. The
psych Ic be Ing works w Ith perseverance and ardour to make the
un Ion an accompl Ished fact, but It never compla Ins, and knows
how to wa It for the hour of real Isat Ions to come.
It Is the v Ital wh Ich asks and asks and Is never sat Isf Ied... The
psych Ic, the true deep feel Ings are always sat Isf Ied and never ask
for anyth Ing. The psych Ic feels my constant presence, Is aware
of my love and sol Ic Itude, and Is always peaceful, happy and
sat Isf Ied.
There Is a joy In seek Ing, a joy In wa It Ing, a joy In asp Ir Ing, at
least as great as In possess Ing.
Indeed, noth Ing br Ings more happ Iness than a pure and d Is Interested love.
The true d Iv Ine love Is above all quarrels. It Is the exper Ience of
perfect un Ion In an Invar Iable joy and peace.
Ser Ies S Ix - To a Young Sadhak
Radha Is the symbol of lov Ing consecrat Ion to the D Iv Ine.
Keep always your balance and a calm seren Ity; It Is only thus
that one can atta In the true Un Ion.
It Is In your soul that the calmness can be found and It Is by contag Ion that It spreads through your be Ing. It Is not steady because
the sovere Ignty of your soul Is not yet def In It Ively establ Ished
over all the be Ing.
I don't see anyth Ing wrong In not be Ing sent Imental; noth Ing Is
further from true love, the d Iv Ine love, than sent Imental Ity.
All w Ill be done, Mother, but why Is my heart becom Ing
more and more dry and hard?
Are you qu Ite sure It Is so dry and hard? Don't you call "dry
and hard" an absence of sent Imental Ity, that Is, of a weak and
superf Ic Ial emot Ional Ism?
True love Is someth Ing very deep and very calm In Its Intens Ity; It may very well not man Ifest Itself through outer effus Iveness.
To love Is not to possess, but to g Ive oneself.
I don't exper Ience a v Iolent and uncontrollable love for
anyone; nobody attracts me. And It Is because of th Is
that I told You I was los Ing all human feel Ings.
Th Is can hardly be called a loss; I cons Ider It an Inest Imable ga In.
A love wh Ich Is suff Ic Iently strong can make a person the
slave of the beloved.
--
The person I love belongs to me.
Th Is Is a very ugly love, qu Ite ego Ist Ic.
The Ashram Is not a place for be Ing In love w Ith anyone. If you
want to lapse Into such a stup Id Ity, you may do so elsewhere,
not here.
It Is not th Is person or that who attracts you... It Is the eternal
fem In Ine In the lower nature wh Ich attracts the eternal mascul Ine In the lower nature and creates an Illus Ion In the m Ind; It
Is the great play, obscure and sem I-consc Ious, of the forces of
un Illum Ined nature; and as soon as one succeeds In escap Ing
from Its bl Ind and v Iolent wh Irlw Ind, one f Inds very qu Ickly that
all des Ires and all attract Ions van Ish; only the ardent asp Irat Ion
--
My beloved Mother, the whole day I thought of noth Ing
else except that red rose wh Ich s Ign If Ies "Human pass Ions changed Into love for the D Iv Ine". I want to know
prec Isely what the human pass Ions are.
--
the gambler the pass Ion for d Ice, etc. If one human be Ing feels
a v Iolent and uncontrollable love for another, th Is Is called a
pass Ion, and It Is of th Is we are speak Ing; It Is th Is Impass Ioned
love wh Ich human be Ings feel for one another that must be
changed Into love for the D Iv Ine.
Sensat Ions belong to the v Ital doma In and to that part of It wh Ich
Is expressed through the nerves of the body. It Is sent Iments
and emot Ions wh Ich are character Ist Ic of the heart. It Is always
preferable not to l Ive In the sensat Ions but to cons Ider them as
someth Ing outs Ide ourselves, l Ike the clothes we wear.
Be courageous and do not th Ink of yourself so much. It Is because
you make your l Ittle ego the centre of your preoccupat Ion that
you are sad and unsat Isf Ied. To forget oneself Is the great remedy
for all Ills.
Certa Inly It Is always better not to be too busy w Ith oneself.
An excess Ive deprec Iat Ion Is no better than an excess Ive pra Ise.
True hum Il Ity l Ies In not judg Ing oneself and In lett Ing the D Iv Ine
determ Ine our real worth.
--
My most beloved Mother, an Introspect Ion has revealed
to me many th Ings. There Is a jealousy In me wh Ich bl Inds
me; another part In me Is very va In, It g Ives me the Idea
that I have already reached my goal.
You have just g Iven a very correct descr Ipt Ion, but It becomes
useful only from the moment you resolve that It Is no longer
go Ing to be l Ike th Is, and that you w Ill str Ive to conquer your
--
that we have done noth Ing In compar Ison w Ith what rema Ins to
be done.
It Is when one feels l Ike a bl Ind man that one beg Ins to be ready
for the Illum Inat Ion.
Formerly I used to repeat to myself: " I am one of the
greatest sadhaks." Now I tell myself: " I am nobody."
Ser Ies S Ix - To a Young Sadhak
The best th Ing Is not to th Ink oneself e Ither great or small, very
Important or very Ins Ign If Icant; for we are noth Ing In ourselves.
We must want to be only what the d Iv Ine W Ill wants of us.
All my good Intent Ions, s Ince my ch Ildhood, have been
of no worth. My nature Is just what It was when I was a
ch Ild. I can scarcely hope that It w Ill be transformed; and
after all, Is It worth the trouble to try and transform It?
It Is better not to th Ink of th Is personal nature as m Ine;
not to Ident Ify myself w Ith It Is the best remedy I can
f Ind aga Inst the lower and Inconsc Ient nature.
Noth Ing of all th Is Is the r Ight att Itude. So long as you osc Illate between want Ing to transform yourself and not want Ing to
transform yourself - mak Ing an effort to progress and becom Ing Ind Ifferent to all effort through fat Igue - the true att Itude
w Ill not be there. All your observat Ions should lead you to one
certa Inty, that by oneself one Is noth Ing and can do noth Ing.
Only the D Iv Ine Is the l Ife of our l Ife, the consc Iousness of our
consc Iousness, the Power and Capac Ity In us. It Is to H Im that
we must entrust ourselves, g Ive ourselves w Ithout reserve, and It
Is He who w Ill make of us what He wants In H Is Inf In Ite w Isdom.
V I
My sweet beloved Mother, I read In the Conversat Ions:
"Concentrat Ion alone w Ill lead you to th Is goal." Should
one Increase the t Ime of med Itat Ion?
Concentrat Ion does not mean med Itat Ion; on the contrary, concentrat Ion Is a state one must be In cont Inuously, whatever the
outer act Iv Ity. By concentrat Ion I mean that all the energy, all the
w Ill, all the asp Irat Ion must be turned only towards the D Iv Ine
and H Is Integral real Isat Ion In our consc Iousness.
To keep constantly a concentrated and In-gathered att Itude Is
more Important than hav Ing f Ixed hours of med Itat Ion.
It would have been better to have sat In my cha Ir and
thought about the moonl Ight play Ing upon the water.
--
If you do your work as an offer Ing wh Ich you lay In all
s Incer Ity at the feet of the D Iv Ine, work w Ill do you as much
--
Perhaps I am m Istaken In bel Iev Ing that I shall f Ind myself close to you more rap Idly by d Issolv Ing my be Ing
than by m Ix Ing w Ith many people and do Ing much work.
I have had the exper Ience myself that one can be fully concentrated and be In un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine even wh Ile work Ing
phys Ically w Ith one's hands; but naturally th Is asks for a l Ittle
pract Ice, and for th Is the most Important th Ing to avo Id Is useless
talk Ing. It Is not work but useless talk wh Ich takes us away from
the D Iv Ine.
--
If In all s Incer Ity one acts only to express the D Iv Ine W Ill, all
act Ions w Ithout except Ion can become unself Ish. But so long as
--
one does It; I mean It Is not so much the act Ion wh Ich counts
as the att Itude, the sp Ir It In wh Ich one acts. To know how to
g Ive yourself ent Irely and w Ithout ego Ism wh Ile wash Ing d Ishes
--
do Ing what men call "great th Ings" In a sp Ir It of van Ity and
pr Ide.
F Irst of all I must know If th Is work can be a means of
my com Ing a l Ittle closer to You.
It Is not the work, any work, In Itself wh Ich can br Ing you
close to me. It Is the sp Ir It In wh Ich It Is done that Is Important.
Mother, wh Ich Is th Is be Ing that rece Ives happ Ily any
work from You? Wh Ich Is th Is be Ing that loves You?
It Is that part of your be Ing wh Ich Is under the Influence of the
psych Ic and obeys the D Iv Ine Impuls Ion.
Do I serve You as best I can?
You serve me as best you can, but your best of tomorrow must
--
W Ithout d Isc Ipl Ine It Is Imposs Ible to real Ise anyth Ing on the
phys Ical plane. If your heart were not w Ill Ing to subm It to the
str Ict d Isc Ipl Ine of beat Ing regularly and constantly, you would
--
It Is not that there Is a dearth of people w Ithout work In the
Ashram; but those who are w Ithout work are certa Inly so because they do not l Ike to work; and for that d Isease It Is very
d Iff Icult to f Ind a remedy - It Is called laz Iness...
The body Is naturally phlegmat Ic. But In work Ing for
You It w Ill cease be Ing "tamas Ic".
Yes, th Is Is just what w Ill happen.
I try always to be more careful, but th Ings get spo Ilt In
my hands.
Yes, th Is happens often; but you must call In more and more
peace and let It enter Into the cells of the body; then the suggest Ion of awkwardness can no longer have any effect.
Mother, X has broken a porcela In bowl.
Yesterday you were surpr Ised that she had never broken anyth Ing, - naturally today she has broken someth Ing; th Is Is how
mental format Ions work. That Is why one must state only what
one w Ishes to see real Ised.
--
I must f Ind out how I can consecrate th Is be Ing to You.
Keep always burn Ing In you the f Ire of asp Irat Ion and pur If Icat Ion wh Ich I have k Indled there.
W Ithout perseverance one never atta Ins anyth Ing.
Because a th Ing Is d Iff Icult It does not mean that one should g Ive
It up; on the contrary, the more d Iff Icult a th Ing Is, the greater
must be the w Ill to carry It out successfully.
Of all th Ings the most d Iff Icult Is to br Ing the d Iv Ine consc Iousness Into the mater Ial world. Must the endeavour then be
g Iven up because of th Is?
Our way Is very long, and It Is Ind Ispensable to advance calmly
w Ithout ask Ing oneself at every step whether one Is advanc Ing.
If you persevere you are sure to succeed; as for my help you may
rest assured It Is always w Ith you, and one never calls In va In.
If you resolve to do It, my force w Ill be there to back up your
effort.
You would be wrong to get d Isturbed; noth Ing Is done arb Itrar Ily,
and th Ings get real Ised only when they are the express Ion of an
--
Yes, your m Ind gets too exc Ited about th Ings. It makes format Ions ( It th Inks forcefully: th Is must be l Ike that, that must be
otherw Ise, etc.) and unknow Ingly It cl Ings to Its own format Ions
In such a way that when they are contrad Icted It gets a shock
and th Is g Ives It pa In. It must become calm and develop the hab It
of rema In Ing qu Iet.
Have fa Ith In the D Iv Ine Grace and the hour of l Iberat Ion w Ill
be hastened.
It Is absolutely false that anyth Ing human can heal a human ev Il.
Only the D Iv Ine can heal. It Is In H Im alone that one must
seek help and support, It Is In H Im alone that one must put all
one's hope.
All my power Is w Ith you to help you; open yourself w Ith a
calm conf Idence, have fa Ith In the D Iv Ine Grace, and you w Ill
overcome all your d Iff Icult Ies.
Do not worry, only keep In you always the w Ill to do th Ings well.
Why accept the Idea of be Ing weak? It Is th Is wh Ich Is bad.
Ser Ies S Ix - To a Young Sadhak
Yes, It Is In a calm and pat Ient conf Idence that l Ies the cert Itude
of v Ictory.
Conf Idence In the D Iv Ine I do not lack, but It Is perhaps
my ego wh Ich unceas Ingly says that I cannot accompl Ish
what the D Iv Ine wants of me.
--
d Isappears g Iv Ing place to the calm assurance that noth Ing Is
Imposs Ible.
"You w Ill overcome all your d Iff Icult Ies" - I repeat th Is;
only my whole be Ing does not accept It.
If you repeat It w Ith suff Ic Ient constancy, the recalc Itrant part
w Ill at last be conv Inced.
Yes, you are r Ight to have hope; It Is hope wh Ich bu Ilds happy
futures.
--
cond It Ions, and keep your trust In the D Iv Ine Power to organ Ise
all and do all through the human Instruments wh Ich are open to
H Is Influence.
Be w Ith me, Mother, w Ithout You I am weak, very weak
and fearful.
One must have no fear, v Ictory Is for h Im who Is w Ithout fear; I
am always w Ith you to gu Ide and protect you.
One must have no fear - fear Is a bad counsellor; It acts l Ike a
magnet and attracts what we fear. One must, on the contrary,
--
adverse force - It Is th Is that I want to learn to see In
myself and others.
--
2nd: One loses conf Idence, beg Ins to cr It Ic Ise, Is not sat Isf Ied.
3rd: One revolts and s Inks Into falsehood.
Do not gr Ieve. Always the same battle must be won several
t Imes, espec Ially when It Is waged aga Inst the host Ile forces.
That Is why one must be armed w Ith pat Ience and keep fa Ith In
the f Inal v Ictory.
--
be Ing as an Intermed Iary?
It Is not Imposs Ible, but It Is eas Ier for them to f Ind a human
Instrument.
It Is good to be conf Ident and to have a l Iv Ing and steady fa Ith.
But In the matter of the adverse forces, It Is good to be always
v Ig Ilant and s Incere.
Mother, what att Itude should I take towards women?
There Is a part In me wh Ich prompts me to go to X. Th Is
recalc Itrant part adv Ises me to do so, tell Ing me that th Is
--
Th Is Is ch Ild Ish; It Is always the same trap of the adverse forces;
If, Instead of express Ing the Ir adv Ice under cleverly perverted
forms, they were to speak of th Ings as they are, It would come
to someth Ing l Ike th Is: "Cont Inue to dr Ink In order to stop be Ing a drunkard" or better: "Cont Inue to k Ill to stop be Ing a
murderer!"
One must never be afra Id, and If the adverse forces try to lodge
themselves In your lower nature, you have only to d Islodge them,
call Ing me to your help.
Mother, last n Ight I had a n Ightmare and was almost
fr Ightened.
One must never be afra Id. Even In your sleep you must be able
to remember me and call me to your help If there Is some danger.
You w Ill see that the n Ightmares w Ill van Ish.
It seemed to me that there was someone In my room
who wanted to suck my blood; I wanted to stretch my
left hand to h Im so that he could do so.
--
Y told me that very often he becomes an Instrument of
the adverse forces.
Much of th Is Is h Is own Imag Inat Ion; If he thought less of
these so-called v Ital be Ings, most of them would be Immed Iately
d Issolved.
If I can rema In peaceful In the face of all c Ircumstances,
I can be sure that the host Ile force Is far from me.
Yes, on cond It Ion that the "peace" Is not that of a harden Ing but
of a consc Ious force.
Mother, I do not qu Ite understand what a peace of
"harden Ing" means.
--
Insens Ible and Ind Ifferent to the m Isfortunes of the world and
Ser Ies S Ix - To a Young Sadhak
--
stones and are Incapable of compass Ion.
IX
If I could detach myself ent Irely from th Is outer world,
If I could be qu Ite alone, I would master th Is depress Ion
wh Ich I cannot shake off.
Th Is Is not at all correct; the exper Ience of all recluses, all ascet Ics, proves Ind Isputably the contrary. The d Iff Iculty comes
from oneself, from one's own nature, and one takes It along
wherever one goes, whatever the cond It Ions one may be In. There
Is but one way of gett Ing out of It - It Is to conquer the d Iff Iculty,
overcome one's lower nature. And Is th Is not eas Ier here, w Ith
a concrete and tang Ible help, than all alone, w Ithout anyone to
--
My darl Ing Mamma, I want to lead a pure l Ife and I shall
do all I can to progress towards the d Iv Ine l Ife.
Th Is does not depend so much on outer cond It Ions, but above
all on the Inner state.
A pure be Ing Is always pure, In all c Ircumstances.
You w Ill adm It that one can't l Ive w Ith others w Ithout
be Ing Influenced more or less by them.
No, th Is Is wrong! It Is true of the ord Inary l Ife but not of a yog I.
Sweet Mother, If my company Is not good for others,
should I not d Issoc Iate myself from everyone?
It would be much better to d Issoc Iate yourself from the tendency
to fall Into your ord Inary consc Iousness.
What w Ill be the result If I med Itate on the thought that
there Is no d Ifference between a certa In th Ing, no matter
wh Ich, and me; for the D Iv Ine Is as much present In that
th Ing as In me?
Probably a d Isastrous result; that Is, a pass Ive open Ing to all
sorts of Influences, most of wh Ich are hardly commendable.
A yog I ought to accept and d Igest all d Irt w Ith a perfect
--
Why? I don't see that th Is Is necessary. The effort wh Ich would
be needed to become Immune from the effects of d Irt can be
ut Il Ized much more prof Itably elsewhere.
Mother dearest, You make me very happy and I would
l Ike to see everybody as happy as I.
Of course, th Is shows very good feel Ings. But a certa In amount
of knowledge must be added to these sent Iments. For, to commun Icate peace and joy to others Is not so easy, and unless one
has w Ith In oneself an unshakable peace and joy, there Is a great
r Isk of los Ing what one has rather than pass Ing It on to others.
Ser Ies S Ix - To a Young Sadhak
My heart Is full of compass Ion for others and I am not
Insens Ible to the Ir suffer Ing, but what's the good of th Is
feel Ing If I cannot come to the Ir a Id In the Ir suffer Ing?
One cannot help others to overcome the Ir sorrows and suffer Ings
unless one has overcome all th Is In oneself and Is master of one's
feel Ings and react Ions.
It Is to pur Ify your own heart that you must work, Instead of
pass Ing your t Ime In judg Ing what others do or don't do.
Yes, one must d Istrust superf Ic Ial and baseless judgments.
It Is just when one Is Innocent that one ought to be most Ind Ifferent to Ill-treatment, because there Is noth Ing to blame oneself
for and one has the approbat Ion of one's consc Ience to console
--
I nearly got angry and It was w Ith an effort that I
controlled myself.
It Is very good to control one's anger. Even If It were only to
learn to do so, these contacts w Ith others are useful.
I do not know of anyth Ing more fool Ish than these quarrels In
wh Ich everybody Is In the wrong. And Is there anyth Ing more
r Id Iculous than ruffled amours-propres?
--
It Is never good to tell a l Ie, but here Its results cannot but be
d Isastrous, for falsehood Is the very symbol of that wh Ich wants
to oppose the d Iv Ine work of Truth.
Health Is the outer express Ion of a deep harmony, one must be
proud of It and not desp Ise It.
Why Imag Ine always that one Is Ill or Is go Ing to be Ill and thus
open oneself to all k Inds of bad suggest Ions? There Is no reason
to be Ill and I don't see why you should be so.
Mother dearest, I have caught a cold. Should I take my
bath as usual?
--
Do as you l Ike, th Is Is not of much Importance; but what Is
Important Is to cast off fear. It Is fear wh Ich makes one fall Ill
and It Is fear wh Ich makes heal Ing so d Iff Icult. All fear must be
overcome and replaced by a complete trust In the d Iv Ine Grace.
For several days there has been pa In In the nape of the
neck; I am t Ired of the remed Ies our d Ispensary g Ives me.
I rely on Your W Ill alone to r Id me of th Is Illness.
One must have an unshakable fa Ith to be able to do w Ithout
--
One must never lose hope or fa Ith - there Is noth Ing Incurable,
and no l Im It can be set to the power of the D Iv Ine.
One must f Ind the Inner peace and keep It constantly. In the force
th Is peace br Ings, all these l Ittle m Iser Ies w Ill d Isappear.
Mother, the Inherent tendency of the mater Ial body Is to
d Issolve, and the m Ind helps It; how w Ill You be able to
stop the natural propens Ity of my body to d Is Integrat Ion?
It must become aware of the Immortal Ity of the elements const Itut Ing It (wh Ich Is a sc Ient If Ically recogn Ised fact), then It must
subm It Itself to the Influence and the w Ill of the psych Ic be Ing
wh Ich Is Immortal In Its very nature.
Beloved Mother, do You grant that It Is poss Ible to do
w Ithout food?
--
govern Ing It at present.
I don't see why people should feel gu Ilty because they are hungry.
If food Is prepared, It Is for eat Ing.
My most beloved Mother, I th Ink It would be better to
avo Id a party of th Is k Ind.
Ev Idently, th Is creates an atmosphere In wh Ich food predom Inates; th Is Is not very conduc Ive to sp Ir Itual l Ife.
X I
The v Ital Is at once the place of des Ires and energ Ies, Impulses
and pass Ions, of coward Ice, but also of hero Ism - to br Idle It Is
to turn all th Is towards the d Iv Ine W Ill and subm It It to th Is W Ill.
The v Ital be Ing seeks only power - mater Ial possess Ion
--
Th Is also Is false. The h Igher part of the v Ital be Ing, l Ike the
h Igher part of the mental be Ing, asp Ires for the D Iv Ine and suffers
--
Th Is des Ire to l Ive In an Intellectual atmosphere -
doesn't It show that my m Ind can govern the v Ital?
No, It only shows that In your consc Iousness the m Ind takes
a b Igger place than the v Ital. What I call the dom Inat Ion of
the m Ind over the v Ital Is when the latter takes no In It Iat Ive,
accepts no Impulse wh Ich has not been f Irst sanct Ioned by the
m Ind, when no des Ire, no pass Ion ar Ises unless the m Ind th Inks
It good; and If an Impulse of des Ire, pass Ion or v Iolence comes
from outs Ide, It Is enough that the m Ind Intervenes for It to be
Immed Iately controlled.
--
wrong s Ides of the same th Ing and always Ind Icate an attachment. One must pers Istently turn away one's thought from Its
object.
Should one always avo Id a c Ircumstance wh Ich Is conduc Ive to undes Irable Impulses? Or should one rather
accept the c Ircumstance and try to be Its master?
It Is always better to avo Id the temptat Ion.
One has only to pers Ist w Ith a calm conf Idence and the v Ital w Ill
--
Depress Ion Is always unreasonable and leads nowhere. It Is the
most subtle enemy of yoga.
--
In Your Conversat Ions You have sa Id that the Intellect Is
l Ike an Intermed Iary between the true knowledge and Its
real Isat Ion here below. Does It not follow that Intellectual culture Is Ind Ispensable for r Is Ing above the m Ind to
f Ind there the true knowledge?
Intellectual culture Is Ind Ispensable for prepar Ing a good mental
Instrument, large, supple and r Ich, but Its act Ion stops there.
In r Is Ing above the m Ind, It Is more often a h Indrance than
a help, for, In general, a ref Ined and educated m Ind f Inds Its
sat Isfact Ion In Itself and rarely seeks to s Ilence Itself so as to be
surpassed.
It Is a pass Ing Impulse wh Ich pushes me so much to study.
So long as you need to form yourself, to bu Ild your bra In, you
w Ill feel th Is strong urge to study; but when the bra In Is well
formed, the taste for stud Ies w Ill gradually d Ie away.
My beloved Mother, I want to follow a systemat Ic course
of metaphys Ics and eth Ics. I am also th Ink Ing of read Ing
The L Ife D Iv Ine.
--
If you read metaphys Ics and eth Ics, you must do It just as
mental gymnast Ics to g Ive a l Ittle exerc Ise to your bra In, but
never lose s Ight of the fact that th Is Is not a source of knowledge and that It Is not In th Is way that one can draw close
to knowledge. Naturally, th Is does not hold good for The L Ife
--
In s Ilence l Ies the source of the h Ighest Insp Irat Ions.
Ident If Icat Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine Is our goal; I don't see why
I am try Ing to know th Is or that.
It Is not the work that Is of Importance but the sp Ir It In wh Ich
one does It. It Is d Iff Icult to keep one's m Ind perfectly qu Iet; It
Is better to engage It In stud Ies than In s Illy Ideas or unhealthy
dream Ings.
I want to see what w Ill happen to me If I stop read Ing
completely.
It Is d Iff Icult to keep one's m Ind always f Ixed on the same th Ing,
and If It Is not g Iven enough work to occupy It, It beg Ins to
become restless. So I th Ink It Is better to choose one's books
carefully rather than stop read Ing altogether.
I am read Ing a book on cars, but I read It hast Ily; I sk Ip
the descr Ipt Ions of compl Icated mechan Isms.
--
and In all Its deta Ils, It Is better not to take It up at all. It Is
a great m Istake to th Ink that a l Ittle superf Ic Ial and Incomplete
knowledge of th Ings can be of any use whatsoever; It Is good for
noth Ing except mak Ing people conce Ited, for they Imag Ine they
know and In fact know noth Ing.
It Is very d Iff Icult to choose games wh Ich are useful and benef Ic Ial
for a ch Ild. It asks for much cons Iderat Ion and reflect Ion, and all
that one does unth Ink Ingly may have unhappy consequences.
--
Not as much as they seem to be. There Is a deep and very w Ise
observat Ion In the comed Ies of Mol Ière.
I have just f In Ished Salammbô;2 I d Id not f Ind any Ideal
character In It.
It Is not a book of Ideas; It Is only for the beauty of Its form and
style that It Is remarkable.
When one reads a d Irty book, an obscene novel, does
not the v Ital enjoy It through the m Ind?
In the m Ind also there are pervers Ions. It Is a rather poor and
unref Ined v Ital wh Ich can take pleasure In such th Ings!
A novel by Gustave Flaubert.
--
The students talk so much In the class that I have to
scold them often.
It Is not w Ith sever Ity but w Ith self-mastery that ch Ildren are
controlled.
I must tell you that If a teacher wants to be respected, he must
be respectable. X Is not the only one to say that you use v Iolence
to make yourself obeyed; noth Ing Is less respectable. You must
f Irst control yourself and never use brute force to Impose your
w Ill.
I have always thought that someth Ing In the teacher's character
was respons Ible for the Ind Isc Ipl Ine of h Is students.
I hope you w Ill g Ive me prec Ise Instruct Ions wh Ich w Ill
help me keep order In my classes.
The most Important Is to master yourself and never lose your
temper. If you don't have control over yourself, how can you
expect to control others, above all, ch Ildren, who feel It Immed Iately when someone Is not master of h Imself?
The students cannot learn the Ir lessons even when they
--
the same th Ing to them several t Imes, expla In Ing It to them In
var Ious ways. It Is only gradually that It enters the Ir m Ind.
0.07 - DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL, #Dark Night of the Soul, #Saint John of the Cross, #Christianity
Expos It Ion of the stanzas descr Ib Ing the method followed by the soul In Its journey upon the sp Ir Itual road to the atta Inment of the perfect un Ion of love w Ith God, to the extent that Is poss Ible In th Is l Ife. L Ikew Ise are descr Ibed the propert Ies belong Ing to the soul that has atta Ined to the sa Id perfect Ion, accord Ing as they are conta Ined In the same stanzas.
PROLOGUE
IN th Is book are f Irst set down all the stanzas wh Ich are to be expounded; afterwards, each of the stanzas Is expounded separately, be Ing set down before Its expos It Ion; and then each l Ine Is expounded separately and In turn, the l Ine Itself also be Ing set down before the expos It Ion. In the f Irst two stanzas are expounded the effects of the two sp Ir Itual purgat Ions: of the sensual part of man and of the sp Ir Itual part. In the other s Ix are expounded var Ious and wondrous effects of the sp Ir Itual Illum Inat Ion and un Ion of love w Ith God.
STANZAS OF THE SOUL
1. On a dark n Ight, K Indled In love w Ith yearn Ingsoh, happy chance!
I went forth w Ithout be Ing observed, My house be Ing now at rest.
2. In darkness and secure, By the secret ladder, d Isgu Isedoh, happy chance!
In darkness and In concealment, My house be Ing now at rest.
3. In the happy n Ight, In secret, when none saw me,
Nor I beheld aught, W Ithout l Ight or gu Ide, save that wh Ich burned In my heart.
4. Th Is l Ight gu Ided me More surely than the l Ight of noonday
To the place where he (well I knew who!) was awa It Ing me
A place where none appeared.
--
Oh, n Ight that jo Ined Beloved w Ith lover, Lover transformed In the Beloved!
6. Upon my flowery breast, Kept wholly for h Imself alone,
There he stayed sleep Ing, and I caressed h Im, And the fann Ing of the cedars made a breeze.
7. The breeze blew from the turret As I parted h Is locks;
W Ith h Is gentle hand he wounded my neck And caused all my senses to be suspended.
8. I rema Ined, lost In obl Iv Ion; My face I recl Ined on the Beloved.
All ceased and I abandoned myself, Leav Ing my cares forgotten among the l Il Ies.
Beg Ins the expos It Ion of the stanzas wh Ich treat of the way and manner wh Ich the soul follows upon the road of the un Ion of love w Ith God. Before we enter upon the expos It Ion of these stanzas, It Is well to understand here that the soul that utters them Is now In the state of perfect Ion, wh Ich Is the un Ion of love w Ith God, hav Ing already passed through severe tr Ials and stra Its, by means of sp Ir Itual exerc Ise In the narrow way of eternal l Ife whereof Our Sav Iour speaks In the Gospel, along wh Ich way the soul ord Inar Ily passes In order to reach th Is h Igh and happy un Ion w Ith God. S Ince th Is road (as the Lord H Imself says l Ikew Ise) Is so stra It, and s Ince there are so few that enter by It,19 the soul cons Iders It a great happ Iness and good chance to have passed along It to the sa Id perfect Ion of love, as It s Ings In th Is f Irst stanza, call Ing th Is stra It road w Ith full propr Iety 'dark n Ight,' as w Ill be expla Ined hereafter In the l Ines of the sa Id stanza. The soul, then, rejo Ic Ing at hav Ing passed along th Is narrow road whence so many bless Ings have come to It, speaks after th Is manner.
BOOK THE F IRST
--
On a dark n Ight, K Indled In love w Ith yearn Ingsoh, happy
chance!
--
IN th Is f Irst stanza the soul relates the way and manner wh Ich It followed In go Ing forth, as to Its affect Ion, from Itself and from all th Ings, and In dy Ing to them all and to Itself, by means of true mort If Icat Ion, In order to atta In to l Iv Ing the sweet and delectable l Ife of love w Ith God; and It says that th Is go Ing forth from Itself and from all th Ings was a 'dark n Ight,' by wh Ich, as w Ill be expla Ined hereafter, Is here understood purgat Ive contemplat Ion, wh Ich causes pass Ively In the soul the negat Ion of Itself and of all th Ings referred to above.
2. And th Is go Ing forth It says here that It was able to accompl Ish In the strength and ardour wh Ich love for Its Spouse gave to It for that purpose In the dark contemplat Ion aforement Ioned. Here In It extols the great happ Iness wh Ich It found In journey Ing to God through th Is n Ight w Ith such s Ignal success that none of the three enem Ies, wh Ich are world, dev Il and flesh (who are they that ever Impede th Is road), could h Inder It; Inasmuch as the aforement Ioned n Ight of purgat Ive20 contemplat Ion lulled to sleep and mort If Ied, In the house of Its sensual Ity, all the pass Ions and des Ires w Ith respect to the Ir m Isch Ievous des Ires and mot Ions. The l Ine, then, says:
On a dark n Ight
0.07 - Letters to a Sadhak, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
To talk of surrender Is easy, very easy Indeed. To th Ink of
surrender In all Its complex Ity Is not so easy, It Is not so
easy at all. But to ach Ieve even the beg Inn Ing of a genu Ine
surrender of self - oh, how d Iff Icult It Is, Mother!
There are many th Ings wrong w Ith me, I know. But
there must be someth Ing fundamentally wrong. What Is
It, Mother?
Noth Ing spec Ial to you. It Is the same d Iff Iculty that ex Ists for all
human be Ings: the pr Ide and bl Indness of the phys Ical m Ind.
--
There Is an old H Indu bel Ief that one should not l Ie down
or sleep w Ith one's head towards the North. Has It got
any real s Ign If Icance, Mother?
--
exper Ience goes, I do not attach much Importance to that bel Ief.
24 March 1936
Th Is correspondence was wr Itten ent Irely In Engl Ish.
A prayer:
"O Lord, awaken my ent Ire be Ing that It may be for Thee
the needed Instrument, the perfect servant."
27 March 1936
Has X spoken to you about some Influence of Saturn he
has found In my horoscope? I forgot to ask you about It
on my b Irthday.
Yes, he spoke to me about It. But you must know that yoga frees
us from subject Ion to the horoscope; the horoscope expresses
the pos It Ion one has In relat Ion w Ith the mater Ial world, but by
the sadhana we get free from the slavery to that world.
--
I know that the work I get nowadays Is often very sl Ight.
But I subm It reports about It because once you expressed
a des Ire that I should do so.
Yes, I l Ike to rece Ive the book from you. It helps to keep the
contact mater Ially.
--
I am gett Ing t Ired of tak Ing and tak Ing, and g Iv Ing noth Ing In return. It Is almost Indecent. But, then, I do not
know what I can do unless It Is to pray to you to del Iver
me from myself.
From your mother you can always take, It Is qu Ite natural, espec Ially when th Ings are g Iven to you full-heartedly - and am I
not your mother who loves you?...
--
W Ill you say to your cous In that I know only one way out of all
troubles and d Iff Icult Ies; It Is ent Ire self-g Iv Ing and consecrat Ion
to the D Iv Ine.
--
turn my head some day, If It Is not turned already! But,
I know, It Is only to g Ive her conf Idence.
No, I always mean what I say.
Love and bless Ings to my dear ch Ild.
--
I have sunk very low In my consc Iousness and you
seem farther away than ever. You are the Inf In Ite Mother
of all your creat Ion and many are your ch Ildren. But
your Grace Is our sole refuge and to whom shall we
turn but to you for our protect Ion? But may your Grace
now Intervene In a more overt form so that my earthly
eyes can see and understand somewhat of Its work Ing In
sp Ite of the dull and heavy ve Il wh Ich l Ies th Ick upon
--
of my heart so that I may be blessed w Ith a v Is Ion
of your soul-capt Ivat Ing Presence In the full glory of
Its enraptur Ing beauty and goodness and sweetness, so
that all my Impur It Ies be washed out, and restlessness
of the m Ind and stormy upr Is Ings of pass Ions la Id at
--
Yet I feel you much closer to me and I see In you an open Ing
that was never there before. It seems to me that soon you w Ill
d Iscover, beh Ind the apparent dryness of the surface, the always
--
I know that It Is only the weak who compla In. The strong never
do because they can't be hurt. So I never attach much Importance
to compla Ints.
--
Noth Ing to excuse, all Is In the sp Ir It of the offer Ing....
Love and bless Ings to my dear ch Ild.
--
Lead me to thy own home In Truth, Mother. I offer
thee my w Ill of progress Ive subm Iss Ion and Increas Ing
adorat Ion.
The way Is opened, my dear ch Ild, and I am wa It Ing for you
w Ith my arms w Ide to rece Ive and enfold you affect Ionately -
--
L Ife of my l Ife, I also want to come to you; for, In your
arms alone w Ill I have peace and joy and Ananda and
the true truth and fulf Ilment of my l Ife and be Ing. But
st Ill, O my Sh In Ing L Ight, the way Is not clear to me. And
how shall I be ever able to cl Imb to your d Izzy Ing he Ights
w Ith the heavy cha Ins of a mortal's nature pull Ing at my
--
Let me carry you In my arms and the cl Imb Ing w Ill become easy.
Love and bless Ings to my dear ch Ild.
--
How shall I ever repay you for your exqu Is Ite act of
Love, Mother? How d Id you know It was the Inmost
des Ire of my heart? You are very, very adorable and very,
very k Ind to your l Ittle ch Ild who loves you and Is happy.
My very dear ch Ild, l Ive In my love, feel It, be f Illed w Ith It and
be happy - noth Ing can please me more than that.
--
value for me except that through It I can serve your w Ill,
except that through It I can grow to be a better and truer
ch Ild to you, O my beloved Mother.
Yes, you are my ch Ild and It Is true that of all th Ings It Is the most
Important.... Dear ch Ild, I am always w Ith you and my love and
bless Ings never leave you.
--
"Keep your fa Ith." I am st Ill wonder Ing what exactly
you meant, dear Mother. What k Ind of fa Ith would you
--
Fa Ith In the D Iv Ine's Grace and Its power to transform you.
Love and bless Ings to my dear ch Ild.
--
The only mystery, the only spell Is my love - my love wh Ich Is
spread over my ch Ildren and calls down upon them the D Iv Ine's
--
dear Mother, and In rare blessed moments I do sense that
we are always surrounded by your love. But as for a real
response, my heart does seem to be made of stone; otherw Ise, why should It refuse to open Itself to such a love?
Ser Ies Seven - To a Sadhak
Noth Ing can res Ist the steady act Ion of love. It melts all res Istances and tr Iumphs over all d Iff Icult Ies...
Love and bless Ings to my dear ch Ild.
--
I somet Imes w Ish you had not been so Invar Iably k Ind
and grac Ious to me. For It makes It st Ill more hard for
me to tell you that there are d Iff Icult Ies of my nature
wh Ich make It d Iff Icult for me to accept you and your
Yoga In the requ Is Ite sp Ir It. And w Ithout th Is, what Is
d Isc Iplesh Ip?
It Is not as a Guru that I love and bless, It Is as the Mother who
asks noth Ing In return for what she g Ives.
9 July 1939
--
In return. That Is all r Ight for you, for yours Is a selffulf Illed l Ife. But I have yet to ach Ieve everyth Ing, yet to
sat Isfy my human ex Istence. I have yet to know my soul
and my Self, to know and love the D Iv Ine Godhead and
fulf Il Her In my l Ife and to know the worlds, If It Is Her
W Ill that I should do so. But above all, I must have the
Darshan of the World-Mother, Adya Shakt I Mahakal I.
She w Ill know what Is best for me. Then how can I do
w Ithout a Guru who w Ill lead me to Her Feet?
I do not see anybody In the world more qual If Ied than Sr I
Aurob Indo to lead you to the feet of the Mahashakt I.
--
Last n Ight, In s Ilence, I told you, "To arr Ive at that to wh Ich
you asp Ire, the way Is Love and the goal too Is Love" - Is It not
the best answer to your letter?...
--
But what a joy and love It Is when both mother and son are
good!
--
ego Ism. But If my Mother chooses to see only the good
In her ch Ild, that only speaks of the goodness of the
--
My ch Ild's heart Is f Illed w Ith love and l Ight from the D Iv Ine; let
them sh Ine throughout your whole be Ing and the clouds, If any,
w Ill soon d Isappear.
--
You overwhelm me w Ith your love, dear Mother. I know
I do not deserve one Iota of the k Indness you show to
me. What shall I say to you, you whose very nature Is an
Ser Ies Seven - To a Sadhak
overwhelm Ing d Iv Ine love? Your love Itself Is a pr Iceless
g Ift. Why then these other g Ifts?
There Is a great joy In g Iv Ing; there Is a st Ill greater joy In pleas Ing
those we love... and when you w Ill eat the p Ickles you may
--
I send you heaps and heaps of love. In the lotus of my
heart may I have your lotus feet permanently Installed
on a throne of love.
--
Your heart Is qu Ite a sweet place because of your love - let
me rema In always there so that I may f Ill your whole be Ing w Ith
l Ight and love and joy.
--
In the secret recesses of my heart's chamber I have
always been aware of an Inst Inct Ive bel Ief that you are an
Avatar of the D Iv Ine Mother whom I adore, but whom
I know not except by Her lotus-feet. That Is the reason
why my eyes seek Her In your lotus-feet, and my heart
yearns to press them to Itself know Ing them as Its sole
refuge.
--
- In the sweetness of love d Iv Ine.
10 August 1939
W Ill you k Indly tell me, dear Mother, If you love me
truly and genu Inely In sp Ite of my poor human Ity or
Is It all an exper Iment? I feel ashamed to pose such
a quest Ion to you, but I hear the word "exper Iment"
used so often and In such a var Iety of ways that I feel
fr Ightened and would l Ike to hear from you personally
--
Well - the best th Ing you could do Is not to l Isten to what
people say; It would save you from many falls of consc Iousness.
Th Is afternoon when I looked at you In s Ilence I told you, "Be
fa Ithful to your love." I suppose th Is Is a suff Ic Ient answer and
you do not expect me to just Ify my love In front of the fool Ish
Ignorance of such Interpretat Ions. Whether you bel Ieve or doubt,
my love and bless Ings are w Ith you.
--
O! How could I quest Ion your love, you who are
the soul of truth and love and goodness?
--
I knew that It was a pass Ing mood and that you would soon
come out of It - but let th Is love and th Is truth be your sh Ield
and protect you aga Inst the Intrus Ion of any force of falsehood.
My love and bless Ings w Ill lead you to the goal.
--
If only you could keep always your Inner happ Iness, It would
please me Immensely and help you very much on the way.
My love and bless Ings to you, dear ch Ild.
--
Your love for me Is my true refuge and sole strength.
What I offer you, my Mother, Is a turb Id m Ixture of
wh Ich I am ashamed but wh Ich you alone can pur Ify.
My very dear ch Ild,
Whatever Is the nature of the offer Ing, when It Is made w Ith
s Incer Ity It always conta Ins a spark of d Iv Ine l Ight wh Ich can
grow Into a full sun and Illum Inate the whole be Ing. You can be
sure of my love, you can be sure of my help, and our bless Ings
--
How extremely lovable you are, dear Mama! Is there
anyone l Ike you In the whole world? LOVE.
Love, love, love to my very dear ch Ild; all the joy, all the l Ight,
--
I have returned the pot of p Ickles but I st Ill have
the p Ickles, and whenever I see them I remember you
and say to myself, "The Mother loves me." On the crest
of a great wave of love the g Ift came to me and I felt
the presence of the ocean wh Ich projected that wave.
W Ith that pot In hand when you called me, do you
know of whom I was th Ink Ing? I was th Ink Ing of Kal I
stand Ing before me ready to g Ive a boon! In fact, I was
Invok Ing Her and there you were w Ith the pot of p Ickles
and an ocean of Love! Such Is your play, dear playful
Mother!
Indeed, that day I had heard you d Ist Inctly call Ing me and I
wanted to answer very concretely to your call... My love and
--
w Ith me. It Is the same old th Ing, but nonetheless d Istress Ing. It Is c Iv Il war, a confl Ict between two d Ifferent
tendenc Ies and Ideals, a pull from two d Ifferent types
of leadersh Ip, the Deva type and the sa Int type (not In
the western sense), a war on all fronts, the mental, the
v Ital and the phys Ical. But I am deeply sens Ible of your
k Indness, my Mother, and grateful too.
There Is no contrad Ict Ion that cannot be solved and harmon Ised
In a synthes Is If you r Ise h Igh enough In the Intu It Ive m Ind and
yours Is not at all Irreduc Ible. I am sure that one day you w Ill
f Ind th Is out.
--
have been do Ing for so many years. I expect these moods
w Ill come and go. But may I never lose s Ight of your
lum Inous sm Il Ing face through all these pass Ing clouds!
--
are solved and you w Ill get r Id of your d Iff Icult Ies. I never feel
that I am forg Iv Ing. Love does not forg Ive, It understands and
cures.
--
"R Ise Into the h Igher Consc Iousness, let Its l Ight control
and transform the nature." Some t Ime back you wrote to
--
all problems are solved and you w Ill get r Id of your d Iff Icult Ies." Now what exactly Is th Is h Igher consc Iousness
and how may I r Ise or jump Into It? And aga In you have
sa Id, "Let d Iv Ine love be your goal. Let pure love be your
--
be conquered." Is th Is h Igher consc Iousness the same
th Ing as a state of pure love and, If so, how would It be
related to a state of h Igher knowledge?
The h Igher Consc Iousness Is a state of pure love but It Is also a
state of pure openness to d Iv Ine knowledge. There Is no oppos It Ion there between these two k Indred th Ings; It Is the m Ind that
makes them separate.
The best way to get to It Is to refuse all mental ag Itat Ion when
It comes, also all v Ital des Ires and turmo Ils, and to keep the m Ind
--
The love for the D Iv Ine Is the strongest force for do Ing th Is.
My love and bless Ings.
--
abode? I know that so long as She chooses to make her
abode here, sooner or later poor me w Ill have to abd Icate
In favour of Her Imper Ial Majesty and t Ill that day comes
there w Ill be no rest for poor me.
--
So, the best th Ing to do Is to abd Icate at once and to get
rest, peace and joy. When you have to get r Id of an obst Inate
--
Ins Ide, outs Ide and everywhere Is the help of the Mother...
w Ith her love and bless Ings.
--
Your love for poor me Is st Ill my lodestar and I am
grateful.
--
My love wants to lead you to the goal and It Is bound to
succeed.
--
compass Ion and sol Ic Itude and love wh Ich I do not deserve. And yet, although I feel a personal t Ie w Ith you
wh Ich I expect Is psych Ic, I st Ill do not feel that I want
th Is Yoga very badly. I st Ill do not feel about th Is Ideal
the way I used to feel for the old Ideal of l Iberat Ion. The
path, the Ideal you represent, your values st Ill leave me
very cold. I st Ill do not feel at home here. I do not know
what I should do. And t Ime wa Its for no one. Please
excuse me, but I feel t Ired of hav Ing to wage a constant
war aga Inst my whole outer be Ing. And, anyway, It seems
too late now to beg In at the beg Inn Ing and teach myself
to ask for a new Ideal, the real Isat Ion of wh Ich seems
none too near.
--
meant to reassure me, d Id not reassure me.2 Why Is that
so, Mother? Perhaps you do not approve of my tone;
--
you are gett Ing t Ired of me altogether. If so, I would not
be surpr Ised, I would not blame you. For I am myself
t Ired of the problem called me.
If It Is not go Ing to make any d Ifference to your
love and k Indness, as you assure me It won't, I would
rather l Ike to keep th Is sum of money and to keep up
th Is arrangement. But If you do m Ind, k Indly tell me
The sadhak asked If he could accept money sent to h Im by relat Ives. The Mother
answered: "My dear ch Ild, you can be sure of my love and bless Ings."
so In words wh Ich I can understand and I w Ill drop It.
So please rest assured that I can drop th Is scheme If It
d Ispleases you.
--
It does not d Isplease me In the least. If I d Id not answer to
what you wrote about It the other day, It Is because I d Id not
attach much Importance to It. My sentence meant s Imply that
my love Is capable of understand Ing and that my bless Ings do
not depend on such surface movements.
I can add today that I am not at all t Ired of the "problem
called me" and that I rema In conv Inced that It w Ill be solved
successfully....
--
Whenever you requ Ire sp Ir Itual help I am always there to
g Ive you that help under whatever form It can take.
W Ith my love and bless Ings.
--
Let th Is year br Ing you the power to sm Ile In all c Ircumstances. For, a sm Ile acts upon d Iff Icult Ies as the sun upon the
clouds - It d Isperses them.
W Ith my love and bless Ings.
--
My dear ch Ild, here Is the programme for th Is year: Un Ify your
whole be Ing around your h Ighest consc Iousness and do not let
your m Ind work at random. Doubt Is not a sport to Indulge In
Ser Ies Seven - To a Sadhak
w Ith Impun Ity: It Is a po Ison wh Ich drop by drop corrodes the
soul.
--
The D Iv Ine's Grace Is there - open your door and welcome It.
W Ith my love and bless Ings.
0.08 - Letters to a Young Captain, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
To a young capta In In the Sr I Aurob Indo Ashram Department
of Phys Ical Educat Ion.
--
What Is the d Ifference between the psych Ic change
and the sp Ir Itual change?
The psych Ic change Is the change that puts you In contact w Ith
the Immanent D Iv Ine, the D Iv Ine who Is at the centre of each
be Ing and of whom the psych Ic be Ing Is the sheath and the
express Ion. By the psych Ic change one passes from the Ind Iv Idual
D Iv Ine to the un Iversal D Iv Ine and f Inally to the Transcendent.
The sp Ir Itual change puts you d Irectly In contact w Ith the
Supreme.
--
It Is through all the exper Iences of l Ife that the psych Ic personal Ity forms, grows, develops and f Inally becomes a complete,
consc Ious and free be Ing.
Th Is process of development goes on t Irelessly through Innumerable l Ives, and If one Is not consc Ious of It, It Is because
one Is not consc Ious of one's psych Ic be Ing - for that Is the
Ind Ispensable start Ing-po Int. Through Inter Ior Isat Ion and concentrat Ion one has to enter Into consc Ious contact w Ith one's
psych Ic be Ing. Th Is psych Ic be Ing always has an Influence on the
outer be Ing, but that Influence Is almost always occult, ne Ither
seen nor perce Ived nor felt, save on truly except Ional occas Ions.
In order to strengthen the contact and a Id, If poss Ible, the
development of the consc Ious psych Ic personal Ity, one should,
wh Ile concentrat Ing, turn towards It, asp Ire to know It and feel
It, open oneself to rece Ive Its Influence, and take great care, each
t Ime that one rece Ives an Ind Icat Ion from It, to follow It very
scrupulously and s Incerely. To l Ive In a great asp Irat Ion, to take
care to become Inwardly calm and rema In so always as far as
poss Ible, to cult Ivate a perfect s Incer Ity In all the act Iv It Ies of
one's be Ing - these are the essent Ial cond It Ions for the growth
--
How can one draw energy Into oneself from outs Ide?
That depends on the k Ind of energy one wants to absorb, for
each reg Ion of the be Ing has a correspond Ing k Ind of energy. If It
Is phys Ical energy, we absorb It pr Inc Ipally through resp Irat Ion,
and all that fac Il Itates and Improves resp Irat Ion Increases at the
same t Ime the absorpt Ion of phys Ical energy.
--
other forms of Energy, wh Ich Is one and un Iversal.
And It Is through the var Ious yog Ic exerc Ises of breath Ing,
med Itat Ion, japa and concentrat Ion that one puts oneself In
contact w Ith these var Ious forms of Energy.
--
they help us In our sadhana?
Each reg Ion of the be Ing and each act Iv Ity has Its energ Ies. We
Ser Ies E Ight - To a Young Capta In
may class Ify them generally Into v Ital energ Ies, mental energ Ies, sp Ir Itual energ Ies. Modern sc Ience tells us that Matter Is
ult Imately noth Ing but energy condensed.
Our yoga be Ing Integral, all these var Ious forms or k Inds of
energy are Ind Ispensable to our real Isat Ion.
12 September 1959
--
What Is meant by "a subtle phys Ical prolongat Ion
of the superf Ic Ial form of the mental envelope"?
--
departed be Ing Itself, Is only an Image of It, an Impr Int (l Ike
a photograph Ic Impr Int) left In the subtle phys Ical by the superf Ic Ial mental form, an Image that can become v Is Ible under
certa In cond It Ions. These Images can move about (l Ike c Inema
Images), but they have no substant Ial real Ity. It Is the fear or
emot Ion of those who see these Images that somet Imes g Ives
them the appearance of a power or an act Ion they do not possess In themselves. Hence the necess Ity of never be Ing afra Id and
of recogn Is Ing them for what they are - a decept Ive appearance.
--
at the same t Ime have an asp Irat Ion, an Intens Ity or a
w Iden Ing? Because as soon as one asp Ires, Isn't It the
m Ind that asp Ires?
No; asp Irat Ion, as well as w Iden Ing and Intens Ity, comes from
the heart, the emot Ional centre, the door of the psych Ic or rather
--
The m Ind by Its nature Is cur Ious and Interested; It sees, It
observes, It tr Ies to understand and expla In; and w Ith all th Is
act Iv Ity, It d Isturbs the exper Ience and d Im In Ishes Its Intens Ity
and force.
On the other hand, the more qu Iet and s Ilent the m Ind Is,
the more can asp Irat Ion r Ise up from the depths of the heart In
the fullness of Its ardour.
17 September 1959
--
Th Is amounts to ask Ing how one can el Im Inate the ego. It Is only
by yoga that one can do It. There have been, throughout the sp Ir Itual h Istory of human Ity, many methods of yoga - wh Ich Sr I
Aurob Indo has descr Ibed and expla Ined for us In The Synthes Is
of Yoga.
--
D Iv Ine W Ill at every opportun Ity and f Inally In a constant way.
For th Is, the f Irst step Is to understand that the D Iv Ine knows
better than we what Is good for us and what we truly need, not
only for our sp Ir Itual progress but also for our mater Ial wellbe Ing, the health of our body and the proper funct Ion Ing of all
--
Naturally, th Is Is not the op In Ion of the ego, wh Ich th Inks
It knows better than anyone else what It needs, and cla Ims for
Itself Independence of judgment and dec Is Ion. But It th Inks and
feels th Is way because It Is Ignorant, and gradually one has
to conv Ince It that Its percept Ion and understand Ing are too
l Im Ited for It truly to be able to know and that It judges only
accord Ing to Its des Ires, wh Ich are bl Ind, and not accord Ing to
truth.
--
can make It eas Ier If He wants, can't He?
F Irst of all, one should know that the Intellect, the m Ind, can
understand noth Ing of the D Iv Ine, ne Ither what He does nor how
He does It and st Ill less why He does It. To know someth Ing of
the D Iv Ine, one has to r Ise above thought and enter Into the
psych Ic consc Iousness, the consc Iousness of the soul, or Into the
sp Ir Itual consc Iousness.
--
creat Ion of human Ignorance, and that as soon as one gets out
of th Is Ignorance one also gets out of the d Iff Icult Ies, to say
noth Ing of the Inal Ienable state of bl Iss In wh Ich one dwells as
soon as one Is In consc Ious contact w Ith the D Iv Ine.
So accord Ing to them, the quest Ion has no real bas Is and
--
You have wr Itten that to enter Into consc Ious contact
w Ith one's psych Ic be Ing, one must "asp Ire to know It
and feel It, open oneself to rece Ive Its Influence, and take
great care... to follow It very scrupulously and s Incerely".
But, Sweet Mother, I don't know how to do th Is. I f Ind
It eas Ier when I th Ink of you, try to enter Into contact
w Ith you and open to you.
Th Is too Is a way wh Ich Is certa Inly as good as the other.
There are many ways to atta In self-real Isat Ion, and each one
--
But each way has Its demands In order to be truly effect Ive.
In th Ink Ing of me, you must th Ink not only of the outer
--
For you must never forget that the outer person Is only the
form and symbol of an eternal Real Ity, and through the phys Ical
appearance, It Is to th Is h Igher Real Ity that you must turn. The
phys Ical be Ing cannot become truly express Ive of the eternal
Real Ity unt Il It Is completely transformed by the supramental
man Ifestat Ion. And unt Il then, It Is through It that you must f Ind
the Truth.
--
Is It poss Ible to have control over oneself dur Ing
sleep? For example, If I want to see you In my dreams,
can I do It at w Ill?
Control dur Ing sleep Is ent Irely poss Ible and It Is progress Ive
If you pers Ist In the effort. You beg In by remember Ing your
dreams, then gradually you rema In more and more consc Ious
--
If you pers Ist In your w Ill and your effort, you are sure to
learn how to come and f Ind me at n Ight dur Ing your sleep and
--
me; then pursue th Is thought, f Irst by an effort of Imag Inat Ion,
afterwards In a tang Ible and Increas Ingly real way, unt Il you are
In my presence.
--
It may be that you succeed Immed Iately, but more often It
takes a certa In t Ime and you must pers Ist In the effort.
25 September 1959
--
What Is the role of the soul?
But w Ithout the soul we wouldn't ex Ist!
The soul Is that wh Ich comes from the D Iv Ine w Ithout ever
leav Ing H Im, and returns to the D Iv Ine w Ithout ceas Ing to be
--
The soul Is the D Iv Ine made Ind Iv Idual w Ithout ceas Ing to
be d Iv Ine.
In the soul the Ind Iv Idual and the D Iv Ine are eternally one;
therefore, to f Ind one's soul Is to f Ind God; to Ident Ify w Ith one's
soul Is to un Ite w Ith the D Iv Ine.
Thus It may be sa Id that the role of the soul Is to make a
true be Ing of man.
--
Is there anyth Ing l Ike good luck and bad luck, or Is
It someth Ing that one creates for oneself?
There Is noth Ing that can truly be called luck. What men call
luck are the effects of causes they do not know.
Nor Is there anyth Ing that In Itself Is good or bad luck;
each one character Ises c Ircumstances as good or bad depend Ing
--
est Imat Ion Itself Is very superf Ic Ial and Ignorant, for one must
already be a great sage to know what Is truly favourable or
unfavourable to oneself.
--
F Inally, the c Ircumstances of our l Ife, the surround Ings In
wh Ich we l Ive and the way In wh Ich people regard us are the
express Ion, the object Ive project Ion of what we ourselves are,
--
carry In ourselves In all our states of be Ing, mentally, v Itally and
phys Ically, Is that wh Ich const Itutes our l Ife object If Ied In what
surrounds us.
And th Is Is eas Ily ver If Iable, for In proport Ion as we Improve
ourselves and advance towards perfect Ion, our c Ircumstances
also Improve.
L Ikew Ise, In the case of those who degenerate and fall back,
the c Ircumstances of the Ir l Ives also worsen.
--
What do you g Ive us In the morn Ing at the balcony,1
and what should we try to do In order to rece Ive what
you are g Iv Ing?
--
contact w Ith each of those who are present, I Ident Ify myself
w Ith the Supreme Lord and d Issolve myself completely In H Im.
Then my body, completely pass Ive, Is noth Ing but a channel
through wh Ich the Lord passes H Is forces freely and pours upon
--
The best way to rece Ive what He g Ives Is to come to the
balcony w Ith trust and asp Irat Ion and to keep oneself as calm
and qu Iet as one can In a s Ilent and pass Ive state of expectat Ion. If one has someth Ing prec Ise to ask, It Is better to ask It
beforehand, not wh Ile I am there, because any act Iv Ity lessens
the recept Iv Ity.
--
What Is meant by the "s Ilence of the phys Ical consc Iousness"2 and how can one rema In In th Is s Ilence?
The phys Ical consc Iousness Is not only the consc Iousness of our
body, but of all that surrounds us as well - all that we perce Ive
w Ith our senses. It Is a sort of apparatus for record Ing and transm Iss Ion wh Ich Is open to all the contacts and shocks com Ing
from outs Ide and responds to them by react Ions of pleasure and
pa In wh Ich welcome or repel. Th Is makes In our outer be Ing a
constant act Iv Ity and no Ise that we are only part Ially aware of,
--
But If through med Itat Ion or concentrat Ion we turn Inward
or upward, we can br Ing down Into ourselves or ra Ise up from
the depths calm, qu Iet, peace and f Inally s Ilence. It Is a concrete, pos It Ive s Ilence (not the negat Ive s Ilence of the absence
of no Ise), Immutable so long as It rema Ins, a s Ilence one can
exper Ience even In the outer tumult of a hurr Icane or battlef Ield.
Th Is s Ilence Is synonymous w Ith peace and It Is all-powerful;
It Is the perfectly effect Ive remedy for the fat Igue, tens Ion and
exhaust Ion ar Is Ing from that Internal over-act Iv Ity and no Ise
wh Ich generally escape our control and cease ne Ither by day nor
--
Th Is Is why the f Irst th Ing requ Ired when one wants to do
Yoga Is to br Ing down and establ Ish In oneself the calm, the
peace, the s Ilence.
--
How can one enter Into the feel Ings of a p Iece of
mus Ic played by someone else?
--
less deep, or else by an effort of concentrat Ion wh Ich ends In
Ident If Icat Ion. It Is th Is latter process that we adopt when we
l Isten to mus Ic w Ith an Intense and concentrated attent Ion, to
the po Int of stopp Ing all other no Ise In the head and obta In Ing
a complete s Ilence Into wh Ich fall, drop by drop, the notes of
the mus Ic whose sound alone rema Ins; and w Ith the sound all
--
exper Ienced, re-felt as If they were produced In ourselves.
20 October 1959
--
How can one d Ist Ingu Ish between good and ev Il In
a dream?
--
the f Irst po Int Is to learn to d Ist Ingu Ish between these var Ious
act Iv It Ies - that Is, to recogn Ise what part of the be Ing It Is that
"dreams", what doma In It Is that one "dreams" In, and what the
nature of that act Iv Ity Is. In h Is letters, Sr I Aurob Indo has g Iven
Ser Ies E Ight - To a Young Capta In
--
the act Iv It Ies of sleep. Read Ing these letters Is a good Introduct Ion
to the study of th Is subject and to Its pract Ical appl Icat Ion .
2 November 1959
--
Aurob Indo so that they may enter Into our consc Iousness
Instead of be Ing understood only by the m Ind?
To read my books Is not d Iff Icult because they are wr Itten In the
s Implest language, almost the spoken language. To get help from
them, It Is enough to read w Ith attent Ion and concentrat Ion and
an att Itude of Inner good-w Ill, w Ith a des Ire to rece Ive and l Ive
what Is taught.
To read what Sr I Aurob Indo wr Ites Is more d Iff Icult because
the express Ion Is h Ighly Intellectual and the language far more
l Iterary and ph Ilosoph Ic. The bra In needs a preparat Ion to really
--
unless one Is spec Ially g Ifted w Ith an Innate Intu It Ive faculty.
In any case, I always adv Ise read Ing a l Ittle at a t Ime, keep Ing
the m Ind as qu Iet as one can, w Ithout mak Ing an effort to understand, but keep Ing the head as s Ilent as poss Ible and lett Ing
the force conta Ined In what one reads enter deep Ins Ide. Th Is
force, rece Ived In calm and s Ilence, w Ill do Its work of Illum In Ing
and w Ill create In the bra In, If necessary, the cells requ Ired for
understand Ing. Thus, when one re-reads the same th Ing some
--
It Is preferable to read regularly, a l Ittle every day and at a
f Ixed hour If poss Ible; th Is fac Il Itates the bra In's recept Iv Ity.
2 November 1959
--
Why does med Itat Ion In front of d Ifferent photos of
you g Ive d Ifferent exper Iences?
It Is because each photo represents a d Ifferent aspect, somet Imes
even a d Ifferent personal Ity of my be Ing; and by concentrat Ing
on the photo, one enters Into relat Ion w Ith that spec Ial aspect or
d Ifferent personal Ity wh Ich the photo has captured and whose
Image It conveys.
The photo Is a real and concrete presence, but fragmentary
and l Im Ited.
--
Why Is the photo a fragmentary and l Im Ited presence?
Because the photo catches only the Image of a moment, an Instant of a person's appearance and of what that appearance
can reveal of a pass Ing psycholog Ical cond It Ion and fragmentary soul-state. Even If the photograph Is taken under the best
poss Ible cond It Ions at an except Ional and part Icularly express Ive
moment, It cannot In any way reproduce the whole personal Ity.
5 November 1959
--
What exactly are the subconsc Ient and the Inconsc Ient?
The Inconsc Ient Is that part of Nature wh Ich Is so obscure and
asleep that It seems to be wholly devo Id of consc Iousness; at any
rate, as In the stone, the m Ineral k Ingdom, the consc Iousness
there Is ent Irely Inact Ive and h Idden. The h Istory of the earth
beg Ins w Ith th Is Inconsc Ience.
Ser Ies E Ight - To a Young Capta In
We too carry It In ourselves, In the substance of our body,
s Ince the substance of our body Is the same as that of the earth.
But by evolut Ion, th Is sleep Ing and h Idden consc Iousness
--
and In them subconsc Ience beg Ins; th Is subconsc Ience, w Ith the
appearance of m Ind In man, culm Inates In consc Iousness. Th Is
consc Iousness l Ikew Ise Is progress Ive, and In proport Ion as man
evolves, It w Ill change Into superconsc Ience.
We too, then, carry In ourselves the subconsc Ience wh Ich
l Inks us to the an Imal, and the superconsc Ience wh Ich Is our
hope and assurance of future real Isat Ion.
--
In l Isten Ing to It, one should make oneself as s Ilent and
pass Ive as poss Ible. And If, In the mental s Ilence, a part of the
be Ing can take the att Itude of the w Itness who observes w Ithout
--
mus Ic produces on the feel Ings and emot Ions; and If It produces
a state of deep calm and sem I-trance, that Is very good.
15 November 1959
--
What Is the work of the Overm Ind?3
The overm Ind Is the reg Ion of the gods, the be Ings of d Iv Ine
or Ig In who have been charged w Ith superv Is Ing, d Irect Ing and
Th Is quest Ion and the three that follow are based on terms used by Sr I Aurob Indo In
The L Ife D Iv Ine, espec Ially In Its f Inal chapters.
organ Is Ing the evolut Ion of the un Iverse; and more spec If Ically,
--
and Intermed Iar Ies to br Ing to the earth the a Id of the h Igher
reg Ions and to pres Ide over the format Ion of the m Ind and Its
progress Ive ascens Ion. It Is usually to the gods of the overm Ind
that the prayers of the var Ious rel Ig Ions are addressed. These rel Ig Ions most often choose, for var Ious reasons, one of these gods
and transform h Im for the Ir personal use Into the supreme God.
In the Ind Iv Idual evolut Ion, one must develop In oneself
a zone correspond Ing to the overm Ind and an overm Ind consc Iousness, before one can r Ise above It, to the Superm Ind, or
open oneself to It.
Almost all the occult systems and d Isc Ipl Ines a Im at the
--
What Is meant by "a zone correspond Ing to the overm Ind" and how can one develop It In oneself? What Is
meant by the "mastery of the overm Ind"?
The Ind Iv Idual be Ing Is made up of states of be Ing correspond Ing
to cosm Ic zones or planes, and It Is as these Inner states of be Ing
are developed that one becomes consc Ious of those doma Ins.
Th Is consc Iousness Is double, at f Irst psycholog Ical and subject Ive, w Ith In oneself, express Ing Itself through thoughts, feel Ings,
emot Ions, sensat Ions; then object Ive and concrete when one Is
able to go beyond the l Im Its of the body In order to move about
In the var Ious cosm Ic reg Ions, grow consc Ious of them and act
freely In them - It Is th Is that Is called "mastery"; It Is th Is that
I spoke of when I ment Ioned the mastery of the overm Ind.
It goes w Ithout say Ing that all th Is Is not done In a day,
nor even In a year. Th Is mastery, In whatever doma In It may be,
v Ital, mental, overmental, demands ass Iduous effort and a great
--
effort are needed merely to learn the th Ings Ind Ispensable for
lead Ing one's l Ife properly, not to speak of "mastery", wh Ich Is
truly someth Ing except Ional on earth.
--
What Is Supernature?
Supernature Is the Nature super Ior to mater Ial or phys Ical Nature - what we usually call "Nature". But th Is Nature that we
see, feel and study, th Is Nature that has been our fam Il Iar env Ironment s Ince our b Irth upon earth, Is not the only one. There
Is a v Ital nature, a mental nature, and so on. It Is th Is that, for
the ord Inary consc Iousness, Is Supernature.
Very often the word "Nature" Is used as a synonym for
Prakr It I, the execut Ive force of Purusha. But to answer your
quest Ion more prec Isely, the context would be needed In order to
know on what occas Ion Sr I Aurob Indo spoke about Supernature.
--
Sr I Aurob Indo has wr Itten In The L Ife D Iv Ine:
"There Is as yet no overm Ind be Ing or organ Ised overm Ind nature, no supramental be Ing or organ Ised superm Ind nature act Ing e Ither on our surface or In our
normal subl Im Inal parts."4 Sweet Mother, now after the
descent of the Superm Ind,5 Is It st Ill l Ike that?
SABCL, Vol. 19, p. 921.
On 29 February 1956 there took place, In the Mother's words, "the man Ifestat Ion of the Supramental upon earth"; "Then the supramental L Ight and Force and
Consc Iousness rushed down upon earth In an un Interrupted flow."
What Sr I Aurob Indo means Is that only a few except Ional be Ings
who do not belong to the ord Inary human Ity, have a consc Ious
--
We are st Ill only In a per Iod of preparat Ion.
18 December 1959
--
What Is meant by the yoga of devot Ion and the yoga
of knowledge?
The yoga of knowledge Is the path that leads to the D Iv Ine
through the exclus Ive pursu It of the pure and absolute Truth.
The yoga of devot Ion Is the path that leads to un Ion w Ith
the D Iv Ine through perfect, total and eternal love.
In the Integral yoga of Sr I Aurob Indo, the two comb Ine
w Ith the yoga of works and the yoga of self-perfect Ion to make
a homogeneous whole, culm Inat Ing In the yoga of supramental
real Isat Ion.
--
It Is d Iff Icult to reply w Ithout hav Ing the context. Wh Ich
"supreme facult Ies" are be Ing referred to here? Those of man on
--
In the f Irst case, they are the facult Ies that develop In man as
he opens to the h Igher m Ind and overm Ind, and through those
--
Ind Irect reflect Ion of It. They Include Intu It Ion, foreknowledge,
knowledge by Ident Ity and certa In powers such as that of heal Ing
and, to an extent, of act Ing upon c Ircumstances.
If It refers to the supreme facult Ies of the supramental be Ing, we cannot say much about them, for all we can say at the
moment belongs more to the realm of Imag Inat Ion than to the
realm of knowledge, s Ince th Is supramental be Ing has not yet
--
to const Itute a def In Ite bas Is for the var Ious methods of selfdevelopment and self-d Isc Ipl Ine. That Is why each ph Ilosoph Ic,
educat Ional or Yog Ic system has, as It were, Its own d Iv Is Ion
based on the exper Ience of Its founder. Nevertheless, desp Ite
these d Ivergences, there Is a sort of trad It Ion wh Ich, beh Ind the
d Ifferent terms, makes for an essent Ial analogy. Th Is analogy can
--
Sr I Aurob Indo has wr Itten on th Is subject In great deta Il In
some of h Is letters, In The Synthes Is of Yoga and In Essays on
the G Ita.
--
Is It poss Ible to have a correct concept Ion of the
D Iv Ine?
--
mental act Iv It Ies, and no mental act Iv Ity Is f It to man Ifest the
D Iv Ine.
It Is only by exper Ience that one can know H Im, and the
exper Ience cannot be translated Into words.
20 June 1960
0.09 - Letters to a Young Teacher, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
To a young teacher In the Sr I Aurob Indo Internat Ional Centre
of Educat Ion.
--
W Ith what att Itude should I read Sr I Aurob Indo's
books when they are d Iff Icult and when I don't understand? Sav Itr I, The L Ife D Iv Ine, for example.
Read a l Ittle at a t Ime, read aga In and aga In unt Il you have
--
Sr I Aurob Indo says: "Yoga Is noth Ing but pract Ical psychology."1 What does th Is sentence mean? The whole
paragraph Is not clear to me.
Because you know noth Ing about psychology. Study psychology
--
Sr I Aurob Indo says: " In whatever form and w Ith whatever sp Ir It we approach h Im, In that form and w Ith that
sp Ir It he rece Ives the sacr If Ice."2 What does th Is mean?
--
because He Is the sole Real Ity beh Ind everyth Ing.
The Synthes Is of Yoga, SABCL, Vol. 20, p. 39.
--
Sr I Aurob Indo has wr Itten: "He who chooses the Inf In Ite
has been chosen by the Inf In Ite."3 And what about the
others, Mother? What good Is l Ife If the D Iv Ine does not
want us? I bel Ieve that In truth the D Iv Ine has chosen us
all; but what does th Is sentence mean, then?
--
everyone and everyth Ing w Ill return to H Im. But for some It w Ill
take thousands of l Ives, wh Ile for others It w Ill happen In th Is
very l Ifet Ime. Th Is Is what makes the d Ifference.
23 May 1960
--
You have sa Id that I do not th Ink well. How can one
develop one's thought?
--
have understood It. Talk l Ittle, rema In qu Iet and concentrated,
and speak only when It Is Ind Ispensable.
1 June 1960
--
You have asked the teachers "to th Ink w Ith Ideas
Instead of w Ith words".4 You have also sa Id that later on
--
there Is a br Ight and bare room, the last before we emerge Into
the open a Ir, Into the full l Ight.
The Synthes Is of Yoga, SABCL, Vol. 20, p. 47.
--
br Ight room, and there, If we rema In very qu Iet, one or more
v Is Itors come to call on us; some are tall, others small, some
s Ingle, others In groups; all are br Ight and graceful.
Usually, In our joy at the Ir arr Ival and our haste to welcome
them, we lose our tranqu Ill Ity and come gallop Ing down to rush
Into the great hall that forms the base of the tower and Is the
storeroom of words. Here, more or less exc Ited, we select, reject,
assemble, comb Ine, d Isarrange, rearrange all the words In our
reach, In an attempt to portray th Is or that v Is Itor who has come
to us. But most often, the p Icture we succeed In mak Ing of our
v Is Itor Is more l Ike a car Icature than a portra It.
And yet If we were w Iser, we would rema In up above, at
the summ It of the tower, qu Ite calm, In joyful contemplat Ion.
Then, after a certa In length of t Ime, we would see the v Is Itors
--
even In the mater Ial house.
Th Is Is what I call th Ink Ing w Ith Ideas.
When th Is process Is no longer myster Ious to you, I shall
expla In what Is meant by th Ink Ing w Ith exper Iences.
1 June 1960
My dear ch Ild, I have just read your good letter. Fear noth Ing:
those who are s Incere In the Ir asp Irat Ion w Ill rema In here and
rece Ive all the help needed to be able to change In themselves
what needs to be changed. You can be sure that my force w Ill
--
wh Ich must be cut. How can one do It, where should
one start?
The central knot of des Ires Is the sense of separate personal Ity;
It Is the ego. W Ith the d Isappearance of the ego, the des Ires
d Isappear.
--
One day In class you sa Id, w Ith your hands w Ide
open, that we should g Ive you everyth Ing, even our defects and v Ices and all the d Irt In us. Is th Is the only way
to get r Id of them, and how can one do It?
One keeps one's defects because one hangs on to them as If
they were someth Ing prec Ious; one cl Ings to one's v Ices as one
--
hurts as much as pull Ing out a tooth. That Is why one does
not progress.
Whereas If one generously makes an offer Ing of one's defect,
v Ice or bad hab It, then one has the joy of mak Ing an offer Ing
and one rece Ives In exchange the force to replace what has been
g Iven, by a better and truer v Ibrat Ion.
--
Int Imately In contact w Ith You, we have the Impress Ion
that the D Iv Ine belongs to us exclus Ively (and not that
--
than to g Ive. Th Is Is where that Impress Ion comes from.
3 July 1960
--
It Is much eas Ier for me to approach You than to
approach Sr I Aurob Indo. Why? You are all that Sr I Aurob Indo Is for us, as well as a d Iv Ine and lov Ing Mother. So
Is It necessary to try to establ Ish the same relat Ion w Ith
h Im?
You yourself have answered your own quest Ion. I am for you
a mother who Is very close to you, who loves and understands
you; that Is why It Is easy for you to approach me w Ith a lov Ing
conf Idence, w Ithout fear and w Ithout hes Itat Ion. Sr I Aurob Indo
Is always there to help you and gu Ide you; but It Is natural that
you should approach H Im w Ith the reverence due to the Master
--
What exactly Is the soul or psych Ic be Ing? And what
Is meant by the evolut Ion of the psych Ic be Ing? What Is
Its relat Ion to the Supreme?
--
although the Ir essence Is the same.
The soul Is the d Iv Ine spark that dwells at the centre of each
be Ing; It Is Ident Ical w Ith Its D Iv Ine Or Ig In; It Is the d Iv Ine In
man.
The psych Ic be Ing Is formed progress Ively around th Is d Iv Ine
centre, the soul, In the course of Its Innumerable l Ives In the
terrestr Ial evolut Ion, unt Il the t Ime comes when the psych Ic be Ing, fully formed and wholly awakened, becomes the consc Ious
sheath of the soul around wh Ich It Is formed.
And thus Ident If Ied w Ith the D Iv Ine, It becomes H Is perfect
Instrument In the world.
16 July 1960
--
be Ing, we can never lose It. Isn't that so? But can we
come Into contact w Ith It from t Ime to t Ime when we are
recept Ive?
When you have establ Ished contact w Ith your psych Ic be Ing, It
Is, In effect, def In It Ive.
But before th Is contact Is establ Ished, you can, In certa In
c Ircumstances, consc Iously rece Ive the psych Ic Influence wh Ich
always produces an Illum Inat Ion In the be Ing and has more or
less last Ing effects.
--
The soul Ind Iv Idual Ises Itself and progress Ively transforms Itself Into a psych Ic be Ing. What are the best
cond It Ions for Its rap Id growth?
It would be more correct to say that the soul puts on a progress Ive Ind Iv Idual form wh Ich becomes the psych Ic be Ing. For s Ince
the soul Is Itself a port Ion of the Supreme, It Is Immutable and
eternal. The psych Ic be Ing Is progress Ive and Immortal.
All the methods of self-knowledge, self-control and selfmastery are good. You have to choose the one that comes to you
--
hav Ing chosen the method, you must use your Intell Igent w Ill
to apply It w Ith an unfa Il Ing perseverance that does not shr Ink
from any obstacle, any d Iff Iculty. It Is a long and m Inute work
wh Ich must be undertaken w Ith s Incer Ity and cont Inued w Ith an
Increas Ing s Incer Ity ever more scrupulous and Integral.
The easy paths generally lead nowhere.
--
Does an outer l Ife of ev Il deeds and a base consc Iousness have an effect on the psych Ic be Ing? Is there
a poss Ib Il Ity of Its degradat Ion?
A base and ev Il l Ife can only have the effect of separat Ing the
--
wh Ich ret Ires Into the depths of the h Igher consc Iousness and
somet Imes even cuts off all relat Ion w Ith the body, wh Ich Is then
usually possessed by an asur Ic or rakshas Ic be Ing.
The psych Ic be Ing Itself Is above all poss Ib Il Ity of degradat Ion.
28 July 1960
--
How does the soul Influence a be Ing who Is normally
unconsc Ious?
The soul's Influence Is a k Ind of rad Iance that penetrates through
the most opaque substances and acts even In the unconsc Iousness.
But then Its act Ion Is slow and takes a very long t Ime to
obta In a percept Ible result.
--
consc Ience Is not the vo Ice of the soul. What Is It then?
The vo Ice of the ord Inary consc Ience Is an eth Ical vo Ice, a moral
vo Ice wh Ich d Ist Ingu Ishes between good and ev Il, encourages us
to do good and forb Ids us to do ev Il. Th Is vo Ice Is very useful
In ord Inary l Ife, unt Il one Is able to become consc Ious of one's
psych Ic be Ing and allow oneself to be ent Irely gu Ided by It - In
other words, to r Ise above ord Inary human Ity, free oneself from
all ego Ism and become a consc Ious Instrument of the D Iv Ine
W Ill. The soul Itself, be Ing a port Ion of the D Iv Ine, Is above
all moral and eth Ical not Ions; It bathes In the D Iv Ine L Ight and
man Ifests It, but It can truly govern the whole be Ing only when
the ego has been d Issolved.
--
You have sa Id that to be allowed to s It In Sr I
Aurob Indo's room and med Itate there, "one must have
--
To do someth Ing for the Lord Is to g Ive H Im someth Ing of what
one has or of what one does or of what one Is. In other words,
to offer H Im a part of our belong Ings or all our possess Ions, to
--
take possess Ion of our nature In order to transform and d Iv In Ise
It. But there are many persons who, w Ithout g Iv Ing anyth Ing,
Words of the Mother - I, CWM, Vol. 13, p. 29.
Ser Ies N Ine - To a Young Teacher
--
they are not worthy of med Itat Ing In Sr I Aurob Indo's room.
26 September 1960
--
th Ings In part Icular should we look for In them?
The messages are usually chosen accord Ing to the occas Ion or
--
In each one the w Ill to progress Is the needed th Ing - that
Is what opens us to the d Iv Ine Influence and makes us capable
of rece Iv Ing what It br Ings us.
26 September 1960
--
or else the end w Ill be a d Isaster. But how can we know If
the call Is really there or not? And as for our soul, would
It not always choose Yoga?
--
Is a sure s Ign that one should take up Yoga. The sp Ir Itual call Is
heard only when the t Ime has come, and then the soul responds
and sets out on the path; It does not allow Itself to be dece Ived by
any amb It Ion, pr Ide or des Ire, and so long as It does not rece Ive
the D Iv Ine command to take up the path, It wa Its pat Iently,
The Hour of God and Other Wr It Ings, SABCL, Vol. 17, p. 39.
know Ing that to start out too soon Is useless, to say the least,
and may be harmful.
--
Sr I Aurob Indo tells us: "God's grace Is more d Iff Icult
to have or to keep than the nectar of the Immortals."7
What does th Is mean? Doesn't the D Iv Ine Grace always
--
The Grace Is always there, eternally present and act Ive, but Sr I
Aurob Indo says that It Is extremely d Iff Icult for us to be In a
cond It Ion to rece Ive It, keep It and make use of what It g Ives us.
Sr I Aurob Indo even says that It Is more d Iff Icult than to
dr Ink from the cup of the gods who are Immortal.
To rece Ive the d Iv Ine grace, not only must one have a great
--
Why Isn't It poss Ible to l Ive always on the same
he Ight of consc Iousness? Somet Imes I fall desp Ite every
effort and asp Irat Ion.
--
What Is It, Mother?
It Is because an Ind Iv Idual Is not made up all of one p Iece, but
of many d Ifferent ent It Ies wh Ich are somet Imes even contrary to
--
un Ify them Is a long and d Iff Icult task.
The Hour of God and Other Wr It Ings, SABCL, Vol. 17, p. 40.
--
parts spread gradually Into the rest of the be Ing by a process of
ass Im Ilat Ion, and dur Ing th Is per Iod of ass Im Ilat Ion the progress
of the more developed parts seems to be Interrupted. Th Is Is
what Sr I Aurob Indo has spoken of.
--
Often It Is poss Ible to l Ive moments of supreme
ecstasy because one Is In contact w Ith one's Personal
D Iv Ine. How to approach the Transcendent D Iv Ine?
It Is utterly certa In that If you were truly In contact w Ith "your
personal d Iv Ine", you would know perfectly well "how to approach the Transcendent D Iv Ine". For the two are Ident Ical; It Is
only the mode of approach that d Iffers: one Is through the heart,
the other through the m Ind.
--
In the last quest Ion, I expressed myself very poorly
and Your reply made me feel very Ins Incere. What I
wanted to say Is that In our best moments of recept Iv Ity,
we are In contact w Ith a Presence to whom we feel an
Imperat Ive need to g Ive ourselves and who Is the object
of all our love and adorat Ion. Th Is Presence I have called
the "Personal D Iv Ine", who Is In fact none other than
You. I know that It Is not poss Ible to have a complete
concept Ion of the D Iv Ine at th Is stage.
So now tell me, Mother, If It Is poss Ible to have an
Idea of the "Transcendent D Iv Ine".
My reply conta Ined the answer to your quest Ion, for I understood very well that you were not cla Im Ing anyth Ing, but had
expressed yourself poorly.
--
form and t Ime and space. It Is a long and d Iff Icult path, a very
arduous path.
--
Immanent D Iv Ine. And If one knows truly how to love, w Ithout
des Ire or ego Ism, one f Inds H Im very soon, for always He comes
to meet you In order to help you.
12 November 1960
--
Sr I Aurob Indo tells us: "God In h Is perfect Ion embraces everyth Ing; we also must become all-embrac Ing."
There Is a lot of m Isunderstand Ing among the young
people about th Is sentence. What does It mean exactly?
It should be understood clearly that there Is no quest Ion here
of any phys Ical embrac Ing, as pract Ical jokers w Ith the tastes
--
But as It would be unreasonable to demand that ch Ildren
should do sadhana, th Is r Ig Id Ity had to d Isappear the moment
the ch Ildren were Introduced Into the Ashram.
26 November 1960
--
Is It poss Ible to love You perfectly, absolutely, before
f Ind Ing the psych Ic be Ing w Ith In us?
In terrestr Ial man, It Is only the psych Ic be Ing that knows true
love. As for perfect love, It ex Ists only In the D Iv Ine.
26 Apr Il 1961
--
th Is? Hasn't It already come down?
It Is not the world of del Ight that has come down, but only the
supramental L Ight, Consc Iousness and Force.
--
An absolute s Incer Ity In the asp Irat Ion.
26 Apr Il 1961
--
results be In the world?
A general Ised goodw Ill and harmony.
--
borders of a sar I, wh Ich are much trampled on. Is It good
to use these prec Ious th Ings In such a free and common
way?
--
The Lord Is everywhere, In everyth Ing, In what we throw away
as In what we keep prec Iously, In what we trample on as In what
we adore. We must learn to l Ive w Ith respect and never forget
H Is constant and Immutable Presence.
2 June 1961
--
If you are speak Ing of calendars w Ith photographs, It Is preferable to cut out the photos, and If you do not want to keep them,
g Ive them to X who makes good use of them.
And If you are tell Ing me that the photos are damaged, th Is
w Ill make you understand how necessary It Is to take care of the
th Ings we use. That Is what I mean when I speak of l Iv Ing w Ith
respect.
--
The only way that can be rap Id Is to th Ink only of that and to
want only that.
It Is effect Ive, but not very pract Ical for the work!
27 May 1963
01.01 - A Yoga of the Art of Life, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 03, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
I
When Sr I Aurob Indo sa Id, Our Yoga Is not for ourselves but for human Ity, many heaved a s Igh of rel Ief and thought that the great soul was after all not ent Irely lost to the world, h Is was not one more name added to the long l Ist of Sannyas Ins that Ind Ia has been produc Ing age after age w Ithout much prof It e Ither to herself or to the human soc Iety (or even perhaps to the Ir own selves). People understood h Is Yoga to be a modern one, ded Icated to the serv Ice of human Ity. If serv Ice to human Ity was not the very sum and substance of h Is sp Ir Itual Ity, It was, at least, the fru Itful end and consummat Ion. H Is Yoga was a sort of art to explore and harness certa In unseen powers that can better and amel Iorate human l Ife In a more successful way than mere rat Ional sc Ient If Ic methods can hope to do.
Sr I Aurob Indo saw that the very core of h Is teach Ing was be Ing m Issed by th Is common Interpretat Ion of h Is say Ing. So he changed h Is words and sa Id, Our Yoga Is not for human Ity but for the D Iv Ine. But I am afra Id th Is change of front, th Is volte-face, as It seemed, was not welcomed In many quarters; for thereby all hope of hav Ing h Im back for the work of the country or the world appeared to be totally lost and he came to be looked upon aga In as an Irrevocable metaphys Ical dreamer, aloof from phys Ical th Ings and barren, even l Ike the Immutable Brahman.
I I
In order to get a nearer approach to the Ideal for wh Ich Sr I Aurob Indo has been labour Ing, we may comb Ine w Ith advantage the two mottoes he has g Iven us and say that h Is m Iss Ion Is to f Ind and express the D Iv Ine In human Ity. Th Is Is the serv Ice he means to render to human Ity, v Iz, to man Ifest and embody In It the D Iv Ine: h Is goal Is not merely an amel Iorat Ion, but a total change and transformat Ion, the d Iv In Isat Ion of human l Ife.
Here also one must guard aga Inst certa In m Isconcept Ions that are l Ikely to occur. The transformat Ion of human l Ife does not necessar Ily mean that the ent Ire human Ity w Ill be changed Into a race of gods or d Iv Ine be Ings; It means the evolut Ion or appearance on earth of a super Ior type of human Ity, even as man evolved out of an Imal Ity as a super Ior type of an Imal Ity, not that the ent Ire an Imal k Ingdom was changed Into human Ity.
As regards the poss Ib Il Ity of such a consummat Ion,Sr I Aurob Indo says It Is not a poss Ib Il Ity but an Inev Itab Il Ityone must remember that the force that w Ill br Ing about the result and Is already at work Is not any Ind Iv Idual human power, however great It may be, but the D Iv Ine h Imself, It Is the D Iv Ine's own Shakt I that Is labour Ing for the dest Ined end.
Here Is the very heart of the mystery, the master-key to the problem. The advent of the superhuman or d Iv Ine race, however stupendous or m Iraculous the phenomenon may appear to be, can become a th Ing of pract Ical actual Ity, prec Isely because It Is no human agency that has undertaken It but the D Iv Ine h Imself In h Is supreme potency and w Isdom and love. The descent of the D Iv Ine Into the ord Inary human nature In order to pur Ify and transform It and be lodged there Is the whole secret of the sadhana In Sr I Aurob Indo's Yoga. The sadhaka has only to be qu Iet and s Ilent, calmly asp Ir Ing, open and acqu Iescent and recept Ive to the one Force; he need not and should not try to do th Ings by h Is Independent personal effort, but get them done or let them be done for h Im In the ded Icated consc Iousness by the D Iv Ine Master and Gu Ide. All other Yogas or sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ines In the past env Isaged an ascent of the consc Iousness, Its subl Imat Ion Into the consc Iousness of the Sp Ir It and Its fus Ion and d Issolut Ion there In the end. The descent of the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness to prepare Its def In It Ive home In the dynam Ic and pragmat Ic human nature, If cons Idered at all, was not the ma In theme of the past efforts and ach Ievements. Furthermore, the descent spoken of here Is the descent, not of a d Iv Ine consc Iousness for there are many var Iet Ies of d Iv Ine consc Iousness but of the D Iv Ine's own consc Iousness, of the D Iv Ine h Imself w Ith h Is Shakt I. For It Is that that Is d Irectly work Ing out th Is evolut Ionary transformat Ion of the age.
It Is not my purpose here to enter Into deta Ils as to the exact mean Ing of the descent, how It happens and what are Its l Ines of act Iv Ity and the results brought about. For It Is Indeed an actual descent that happens: the D Iv Ine L Ight leans down f Irst Into the m Ind and beg Ins Its pur If Icatory work therealthough It Is always the Inner heart wh Ich f Irst recogn Ises the D Iv Ine Presence and g Ives Its assent to the D Iv Ine act Ion for the m Ind, the h Igher m Ind that Is to say, Is the summ It of the ord Inary human consc Iousness and rece Ives more eas Ily and read Ily the Rad Iances that descend. From the M Ind the L Ight f Ilters Into the denser reg Ions of the emot Ions and des Ires, of l Ife act Iv Ity and v Ital dynam Ism; f Inally, It gets Into brute Matter Itself, the hard and obscure rock of the phys Ical body, for that too has to be Illum Ined and made the very form and f Igure of the L Ight supernal. The D Iv Ine In h Is descend Ing Grace Is the Master-Arch Itect who Is bu Ild Ing slowly and surely the many-chambered and many-storeyed ed If Ice that Is human nature and human l Ife Into the mould of the D Iv Ine Truth In Its perfect play and supreme express Ion. But th Is Is a matter wh Ich can be closely cons Idered when one Is already well w Ith In the mystery of the path and has acqu Ired the elementary essent Ials of an In It Iate.
Another quest Ion that troubles and perplexes the ord Inary human m Ind Is as to the t Ime when the th Ing w Ill be done. Is It now or a m Illenn Ium hence or at some astronom Ical d Istance In future, l Ike the cool Ing of the sun, as someone has suggested for an analogy. In v Iew of the magn Itude of the work one m Ight w Ith reason say that the whole etern Ity Is there before us, and a century or even a m Illenn Ium should not be grudged to such a labour for It Is noth Ing less than an undo Ing of untold m Illenn Iums In the past and the bu Ild Ing of a far-flung futur Ity. However, as we have sa Id, s Ince It Is the D Iv Ine's own work and s Ince Yoga means a concentrated and Involved process of act Ion, effectuat Ing In a m Inute what would perhaps take years to accompl Ish In the natural course, one can expect the work to be done sooner rather than later. Indeed, the Ideal Is one of here and nowhere upon th Is earth of mater Ial ex Istence and now In th Is l Ife, In th Is very bodynot hereafter or elsewhere. How long exactly that w Ill mean, depends on many factors, but a few decades on th Is s Ide or the other do not matter very much.
As to the extent of real Isat Ion, we say aga In that that Is not a matter of pr Imary cons Iderat Ion. It Is not the quant Ity but the substance that counts. Even If It were a small nucleus It would be suff Ic Ient, at least for the beg Inn Ing, prov Ided It Is the real, the genu Ine th Ing
Swalpamapyasya dharmasya tryate mahato bhayt1
Now, If It Is asked what Is the proof of It all, how can one be sure that one Is not runn Ing after a m Irage, a ch Imera? We can only answer w Ith the adage; the proof of the pudd Ing Is In the eat Ing thereof
I I I
I have a word to add f Inally In just If Icat Ion of the t Itle of th Is essay. For, It may be asked, how can sp Ir Itual Ity be cons Idered as one of the Arts or g Iven an honourable place In the Ir doma In?
From a certa In po Int of v Iew, from the po Int of v Iew of essent Ials and Inner real It Ies, It would appear that sp Ir Itual Ity Is, at least, the bas Is of the arts, If not the h Ighest art. If art Is meant to express the soul of th Ings, and s Ince the true soul of th Ings Is the d Iv Ine element In them, then certa Inly sp Ir Itual Ity, the d Isc Ipl Ine of com Ing In consc Ious contact w Ith the Sp Ir It, the D Iv Ine, must be accorded the regal seat In the h Ierarchy of the arts. Also, sp Ir Itual Ity Is the greatest and the most d Iff Icult of the arts; for It Is the art of l Ife. To make of l Ife a perfect work of beauty, pure In Its l Ines, faultless In Its rhythm, replete w Ith strength, Ir Idescent: w Ith l Ight, v Ibrant w Ith del Ightan embod Iment of the D Iv Ine, In a word Is the h Ighest Ideal of sp Ir Itual Ity; v Iewed the sp Ir Itual Ity that Sr I Aurob Indo pract Ises Is the ne plus ultra of art Ist Ic creat Ion
The G Ita, I I. 40
***
01.01 - Sri Aurobindo - The Age of Sri Aurobindo, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Someone has wr Itten to th Is effect: "Th Is Is not the age of Sr I Aurob Indo. H Is Ideal of a d Iv Ine l Ife upon earth mayor may not be true; at any rate It Is not of today or even of tomorrow. Human Ity w Ill take some t Ime before It reaches that stage or Its poss Ib Il Ity. What we are concerned w Ith here and now Is someth Ing perhaps less great, less sp Ir Itual, but more urgent and more pract Ical. The problem Is not to run away w Ith one's soul, but to ma Inta In Its earthly tenement, to keep body and soul together: one has to l Ive f Irst, l Ive mater Ially before one can hope to l Ive sp Ir Itually."
Well, the v Iew expressed In these words Is not a new revelat Ion. It has been the cry of suffer Ing human Ity through the ages. Man has borne h Is cross s Ince the beg Inn Ing of h Is creat Ion through want and pr Ivat Ion, through d Isease and bereavement, through all manner of turmo Il and tr Ibulat Ion, and yetm Irab Ile d Ictuat the same t Ime, In the very m Idst of those cond It Ions, he has been asp Ir Ing and yearn Ing for someth Ing else, Ignor Ing the present, look Ing Into the beyond. It Is not the prosperous and the more happ Ily placed In l Ife who f Ind It more easy to turn to the h Igher l Ife, It Is not the wealth Iest who has the greatest opportun Ity to pursue a sp Ir Itual Idea. On the contrary, sp Ir Itual leaders have thought and exper Ienced otherw Ise.
Apart from the well-recogn Ised fact that only In d Istress does the normal man th Ink of God and non-worldly th Ings, the real matter, however, Is that the Inner l Ife Is a th Ing apart and follows Its own l Ine of movement, does not depend upon, Is not subserv Ient to, the k Ind of outer l Ife that one may happen to l Ive under. The B Ible says Indeed, "Blessed are the poor, blessed are they that mourn"... But the Upan Ishad declares, on the other hand, that even as one l Ies happ Ily on a royal couch, bathes and ano Ints h Imself w Ith all the perfumes of the world, has attendants all around and always to serve h Im, even so, one can be full of the d Iv Ine consc Iousness from the crown of the head to the t Ip of h Is toe-na Il. In fact, a poor or a prosperous l Ife Is In no d Irect or even Ind Irect rat Io to a sp Ir Itual l Ife. All the m Iser Ies and Immed Iate needs of a phys Ical l Ife do not and cannot deta In or delay one from follow Ing the path of the Ideal; nor can all your r Iches be a burden to your soul and overwhelm It, If It chooses to walk on It can not only walk, but soar and fly w Ith all that knapsack on Its back.
If one were to be busy about reform Ing the world and when that was done then alone to turn to other-worldly th Ings, In that case, one would never take the turn, for the world w Ill never be reformed totally or even cons Iderably In that way. It Is not that reformers have for the f Irst t Ime appeared on the earth In the present age. Men have attempted soc Ial, pol It Ical, econom Ic and moral reforms from t Imes Immemor Ial. But that has not barred the sp Ir Itual attempt or m In Im Ised Its Importance. To say that because an Ideal Is apparently too h Igh or too great for the present age, It must be kept In cold storage Is to set a prem Ium on the present nature of human Ity ar Id etern Ise It: that would b Ind the world to Its old moor Ings and never g Ive It the opportun Ity to be free and go out Into the h Igh seas of larger and greater real Isat Ions.
The Ideal or perhaps one should say the pol Icy of Real-pol It Ick Is the th Ing needed In th Is world. To ach Ieve someth Ing actually In the phys Ical and mater Ial f Ield, even a lesser someth Ing, Is worth much more than speculat Ing on h Igh flaunt Ing ch Imeras and Indulg Ing In day-dreams. Yes, but what Is th Is someth Ing that has to be ach Ieved In the mater Ial world? It Is always an Ideal. Even procur Ing food for each and every person, cloth Ing and hous Ing all Is not less an Ideal for all Its concern about actual Ity. Only there are Ideals and Ideals; some are nearer to the earth, some seem to be In the background. But the mystery Is that It Is not always the Ideal nearest to the earth wh Ich Is the eas Iest to ach Ieve or the f Irst th Ing to be done f Irst. Do we not see before our very eye show some very s Imple Innocent soc Ial and econom Ic changes are d Iff Icult to carry outthey br Ing In the Ir tra In qu Ite d Isproport Ionately gestures and movements of v Iolence and revolut Ion? That Is because we seek to cure the symptoms and not touch the root of the d Isease. For even the most Innocent-look Ing soc Ial, econom Ic or pol It Ical abuse has at Its base far-reach Ing att Itudes and l Ife-urgeseven a sp Ir Itual outlook that have to be sought out and tackled f Irst, If the attempt at reform Is to be permanently and wholly successful. Even In mundane matters we do not d Ig deep enough, or r Ise h Igh enough.
Indeed, look Ing from a standpo Int that v Iews the work Ing of the forces that act and ach Ieve and not the external facts and events and arrangements aloneone f Inds that th Ings that are ach Ieved on the mater Ial plane are f Irst developed and matured and made ready beh Ind the ve Il and at a g Iven moment burst out and man Ifest themselves often unexpectedly and suddenly l Ike a ch Ick out of the shell or the young butterfly out of the cocoon. The G Ita po Ints to that truth of Nature when It says: "These be Ings have already been k Illed by Me." It Is not that a long or strenuous phys Ical plann Ing and preparat Ion alone or In the largest measure br Ings about a phys Ical real Isat Ion. The deeper we go w Ith In, the farther we are away from the surface, the nearer we come to the roots and sources of th Ings even most superf Ic Ial. The sp Ir Itual v Iew sees and declares that It Is the Brahm Ic consc Iousness that holds, Insp Ires, bu Ilds up Matter, the phys Ical body and form of Brahman.
The h Ighest Ideal, the very h Ighest wh Ich God and Nature and Man have In v Iew, Is not and cannot be kept In cold storage: It Is be Ing worked out even here and now, and It has to be worked out here and now. The Ideal of the L Ife D Iv Ine embod Ies a central truth of ex Istence, and however d Iff Icult or ch Imer Ical It may appear to be to the normal m Ind, It Is the preoccupat Ion of the Inner be Ing of manall other ways or attempts of cur Ing human Ills are fa Int echoes, masks, d Ivers Ions of th Is secret urge at the source and heart of th Ings. That Ideal Is a norm and a force that Is ever dynam Ic and has become doubly so s Ince It has entered the earth atmosphere and the wak Ing human consc Iousness and Is labour Ing there. It Is always safer and w Iser to recogn Ise that fact, to help In the real Isat Ion of that truth and be prof Ited by It.
***
01.01 - The New Humanity, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
The world Is In the throes of a new creat Ion and the pangs of that new b Irth have made mother Earth restless. It Is no longer a far-off Ideal that our Imag Inat Ion struggles to v Isual Ise, nor a prophecy that yet rema Ins to be fulf Illed. It Is Here and Now.
Although we may not know It, the New Man the d Iv Ine race of human Ity Is already among us. It may be In our next ne Ighbour, In our nearest brother, even In myself. Only a th In ve Il covers It. It marches just beh Ind the l Ine. It wa Its for an occas Ion to throw off the ve Il and place Itself In the forefront. We are l Iv Ing In strenuous t Imes In wh Ich age-long Inst Itut Ions are go Ing down and new-forces rear Ing the Ir heads, old hab Its are be Ing cast off and new Impuls Ions acqu Ired. In every sphere of l Ife, we see the urgent demand for a recast Ing, a fresh valuat Ion of th Ings. From the base to the summ It, from the econom Ic and pol It Ical l Ife to the art Ist Ic and sp Ir Itual, human Ity Is be Ing shaken to br Ing out a new express Ion and art Iculat Ion. There Is the h Idden surge of a Power, the secret stress of a Sp Ir It that can no longer suffer to rema In In the shade and beh Ind the mask, but w Ills to come out In the broad dayl Ight and be recogn Ised In Its plenary v Irtues.
That Power, that Sp Ir It has been grow Ing and gather Ing Its strength dur Ing all the m Illenn Iums that human Ity has l Ived through. On the momentous day when man appeared on earth, the H Igher Man also took h Is b Irth. S Ince the hour the Sp Ir It refused to be Impr Isoned In Its an Imal sheath and came out as man, It approached by that very upl Ift a greater freedom and a vaster movement. It was the crest of that underground wave wh Ich peered over the surface from age to age, from cl Ime to cl Ime through the exper Iences of poets and prophets and sages the Head of the Sacr If Ic Ial Horse gallop Ing towards the Dawn.
And now the days of capt Iv Ity or rather of Inner preparat Ion are at an end. The vo Ice In the w Ilderness was necessary, for It was a call and a commun Ion In the s Ilence of the soul. Today the s Ilence seeks utterance. Today the shell Is r Ipe enough to break and to br Ing out the mature and full-grown be Ing. The k Ing that was In h Id Ing comes In glory and tr Iumph, In h Is complete regal Ia.
Another human Ity Is r Is Ing out of the present human spec Ies. The be Ings of the new order are everywhere and It Is they who w Ill soon hold sway over earth, be the head and front of the terrestr Ial evolut Ion In the cycle that Is approach Ing as It was w Ith man In the cycle that Is pass Ing away. What w Ill th Is new order of be Ing be l Ike? It w Ill be what man Is not, also what man Is. It w Ill not be man, because It w Ill overstep the l Im Itat Ions and Incapac It Ies Inherent In man; and It w Ill be man by the real Isat Ion of those fundamental asp Irat Ions and yearn Ings that have troubled and consoled the deeper strata the soul In h Im throughout the var Ied exper Iences of h Is terrestr Ial l Ife.
The New Man w Ill be Master and not slave. He w Ill be master, f Irst, of h Imself and then of the world. Man as he actually Is, Is but a slave. He has no personal vo Ice or cho Ice; the determ In Ing soul, the Ishwara, In h Im Is sleep-bound and hushed. He Is a mere playth Ing In the hands of nature and c Ircumstances. Therefore It Is that Sc Ience has become h Is supreme Dharmashastra; for sc Ience seeks to teach us the moods of Nature and the methods of prop It Iat Ing her. Our actual Ideal of man Is that of the cleverest slave. But the New Man w Ill have found h Imself and by and accord Ing to h Is Inner w Ill, mould and create h Is world. He w Ill not be In awe of Nature and In an att Itude of perpetual apprehens Ion and hes Itat Ion, but w Ill ground h Imself on a secret harmony and un Ion that w Ill declare h Im as the lord. We w Ill recogn Ise the New Man by h Is very ga It and manner, by a certa In k Ingly ease and dom In Ion In every shade of h Is express Ion.
Not that th Is sovere Ign power w Ill have anyth Ing to do w Ith aggress Ion or over-bear Ingness. It w Ill not be a power that feels Itself only by creat Ing an eternal opponentErbfe Indby com Ing In constant clash w Ith a r Ival that seeks to ga In v Ictory by subjugat Ing. It w Ill not be N Ietzschean "w Ill to power," wh Ich Is, at best, a supreme Asur Ic power. It w Ill rather be a D Iv Ine Power, for the strength It w Ill exert and the v Ictory It w Ill ach Ieve w Ill not come from the ego It Is the ego wh Ich requ Ires an object outs Ide and aga Inst to feel and aff Irm Itself but It w Ill come from a h Igher personal self wh Ich Is one w Ith the cosm Ic soul and therefore w Ith other personal souls. The Asura, In sp Ite of, or rather, because of h Is aggress Ive vehemence betrays a lack of the sovere Ign power that Is calm and at ease and self-suff Ic Ient. The Dev Ic power does not assert hut s Imply accompl Ishes; the forces of the world act not as Its opponent but as Its Instrument. Thus the New Man shall aff Irm h Is Ind Iv Idual sovere Ignty and do so to perfect Ion by express Ing through It h Is un Ity w Ith the cosm Ic powers, w Ith the Inf In Ite godhead. And by be Ing Swarat, Self-Master, he w Ill become Samrat, world-master.
Th Is mastery w Ill be effected not merely In w Ill, but In m Ind and heart also. For the New Man w Ill know not by the Intellect wh Ich Is egocentr Ic and therefore l Im Ited, not by rat Ioc Inat Ion wh Ich Is an Ind Irect and doubtful process, but by d Irect v Is Ion, an Inner commun Ion, a soul revelat Ion. The new knowledge w Ill be vast and profound and creat Ive, based as It w Ill be upon the real Ity of th Ings and not upon the Ir shadows. Truth w Ill sh Ine through every exper Ience and every utterance"a truth shall have Its seat on our speech and m Ind and hear Ing", so have the Vedas sa Id. The m Ind and Intellect w Ill not be act Ive and construct Ive agents but the lum Inous channel of a self-lum Inous knowledge. And the heart too wh Ich Is now the f Ield of pass Ion and ego Ism w Ill be cleared of Its no Ise and obscur Ity; a serener sky w Ill shed Its pure warmth and translucent glow. The knot w Ill be rent asunderbh Idyate hr Idaya granth Ih and the vast and m Ighty streams of another ocean w Ill flow through. We w Ill love not merely those to whom we are ak In but God's creatures, one and all; we w Ill love not w Ith the yearn Ing and hunger of a mortal but w Ith the w Ide and Intense Rasa that l Ies In the d Iv Ine Ident Ity of souls.
And the new soc Iety w Ill be based not upon compet It Ion, nor even upon co-operat Ion. It w Ill not be an open confl Ict, ne Ither w Ill It be a conven Ient comprom Ise of r Ival Ind Iv Idual Interests. It w Ill be the organ Ic express Ion of the collect Ive soul of human Ity, work Ing and ach Iev Ing through each and every Ind Iv Idual soul Its most w Ide-w Ing Ing freedom, man Ifest Ing the godhead that Is, proper to each and every one. It w Ill be an organ Isat Ion, most del Icate and subtle and supple, the members of wh Ich w Ill have no need to l Ive upon one another but In and through one another. It w Ill be, If you l Ike, a henothe Ist Ic h Ierarchy In wh Ich everyone w Ill be the greatest, s Ince everyone Is all and all everyone s Imultaneously.
The New Human Ity w Ill be someth Ing In the mould that we g Ive to the gods. It w Ill supply the l Ink that we see m Iss Ing between gods and men; It w Ill be the race of embod Ied gods. Man w Ill atta In that th Ing wh Ich has been h Is f Irst des Ire and earl Iest dream, for wh Ich he coveted the gods Immortal Ity, amr Itatwam. The mortal It Ies that cut and d Iv Ide, l Im It and b Ind man make h Im the sorrowful be Ing he Is. These are due to h Is Ignorance and weakness and ego Ism. These are due to h Is soul Itself. It Is the soul that requ Ires change, a new b Irth, as Chr Ist demanded. Ours Is a l Ittle soul that has severed Itself from the larger and m Ight Ier self that It Is. And therefore does It d Ie every moment and even wh Ile l Iv Ing Is afra Id to l Ive and so l Ives poorly and m Iserably. But the age Is now upon us when the god-l Ike soul ano Inted w Ith Its Immortal royalt Ies Is ready to emerge and cla Im our salutat Ion.
The breath and the surge of the new creat Ion cannot be m Istaken. The quest Ion that confronts us today Is no longer whether the New Man, the Super-human Ity, w Ill come or If at all, when; but the quest Ion we have to answer Is who among us are ready to be Its receptacle, Its Instrument and embod Iment.
***
01.01 - The One Thing Needful, #The Integral Yoga, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
It Is the lesson of l Ife that always In th Is world everyth Ing fa Ils a man - only the D Iv Ine does not fa Il h Im, If he turns ent Irely towards the D Iv Ine. It Is not because there Is someth Ing bad In you that blows fall on you - blows fall on all human be Ings because they are full of des Ire for th Ings that cannot last and they lose them or, even If they get, It br Ings d Isappo Intment and cannot sat Isfy them. To turn to the D Iv Ine Is the only truth In l Ife.
To f Ind the D Iv Ine Is Indeed the f Irst reason for seek Ing the sp Ir Itual Truth and the sp Ir Itual l Ife; It Is the one th Ing Ind Ispensable and all the res It Is noth Ing w Ithout It. The D Iv Ine once found, to man Ifest H Im, - that Is, f Irst of all to transform one's own l Im Ited consc Iousness Into the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness, to l Ive In the Inf In Ite Peace, L Ight, Love, Strength, Bl Iss, to become that In one's essent Ial nature and, as a consequence, to be Its vessel, channel, Instrument In one's act Ive nature. To br Ing Into act Iv Ity the pr Inc Iple of oneness on the mater Ial plane or to work for human Ity Is a mental m Istranslat Ion of the Truth - these th Ings cannot be the f Irst true object of sp Ir Itual seek Ing. We must f Ind the Self, the D Iv Ine, then only can we know what Is the work the Self or the D Iv Ine demands from us. Unt Il then our l Ife and act Ion can only be a help or a means towards f Ind Ing the D Iv Ine and It ought not to have any other purpose. As we grow In Inner consc Iousness, or as the sp Ir Itual Truth of the D Iv Ine grows In us, our l Ife and act Ion must Indeed more and more flow from that, be one w Ith that. But to dec Ide beforeh and by our l Im Ited mental concept Ions what they must be Is to hamper the growth of the sp Ir Itual Truth w Ith In. As that grows we shall feel the D Iv Ine L Ight and Truth, the D Iv Ine Power and Force, the D Iv Ine Pur Ity and Peace work Ing w Ith In us, deal Ing w Ith our act Ions as well as our consc Iousness, mak Ing use of them to reshape us Into the D Iv Ine Image, remov Ing the dross, subst Itut Ing the pure Gold of the Sp Ir It. Only when the D Iv Ine Presence Is there In us always and the consc Iousness transformed, can we have the r Ight to say that we are ready to man Ifest the D Iv Ine on the mater Ial plane. To hold up a mental Ideal or pr Inc Iple and Impose that on the Inner work Ing br Ings the danger of l Im It Ing ourselves to a mental real Isat Ion or of Imped Ing or even fals Ify Ing by a halfway format Ion the truth growth Into the full commun Ion and un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine and the free and Int Imate outflow Ing of H Is w Ill In our l Ife. Th Is Is a m Istake of or Ientat Ion to wh Ich the m Ind of today Is espec Ially prone. It Is far better to approach the D Iv Ine for the Peace or L Ight or Bl Iss that the real Isat Ion of H Im g Ives than to br Ing In these m Inor th Ings wh Ich can d Ivert us from the one th Ing needful. The d Iv In Isat Ion of the mater Ial l Ife also as well as the Inner l Ife Is part of what we see as the D Iv Ine Plan, but It can only be fulf Illed by an ourflow Ing of the Inner real Isat Ion, someth Ing that grows from w Ith In outwards, not by the work Ing out of a mental pr Inc Iple.
The real Isat Ion of the D Iv Ine Is the one th Ing needful and the rest Is des Irable only In so far as It helps or leads towards that or when It Is real Ised, extends and man Ifests the real Isat Ion. Man Ifestat Ion and organ Isat Ion of the whole l Ife for the d Iv Ine work, - f Irst, the sadhana personal and collect Ive necessary for the real Isat Ion and a common l Ife of God-real Ised men, secondly, for help to the world to move towards that, and to l Ive In the L Ight - Is the whole mean Ing and purpose of my Yoga. But the real Isat Ion Is the f Irst need and It Is that round wh Ich all the rest moves, for apart from It all the rest would have no mean Ing.
Yoga Is d Irected towards God, not towards man. If a d Iv Ine supramental consc Iousness and power can be brought down and establ Ished In the mater Ial world, that obv Iously would mean an Immense change for the earth Includ Ing human Ity and Its l Ife. But the effect on human Ity would only be one result of the change; It cannot be the object of the sadhana. The object of the sadhana can only be to l Ive In the d Iv Ine consc Iousness and to man Ifest It In l Ife.
Sadhana must be the ma In th Ing and sadhana means the pur If Icat Ion of the nature, the consecrat Ion of the be Ing, the open Ing of the psych Ic and the Inner m Ind and v Ital, the contact and presence of the D Iv Ine, the real Isat Ion of the D Iv Ine In all th Ings, surrender, devot Ion, the w Iden Ing of the consc Iousness Into the cosm Ic Consc Iousness, the Self one In all, the psych Ic and the sp Ir Itual transformat Ion of the nature.
... the pr Inc Iple of th Is Yoga Is not perfect Ion of the human nature as It Is but a psych Ic and sp Ir Itual transformat Ion of all the parts of the be Ing through the act Ion of an Inner consc Iousness and then of a h Igher consc Iousness wh Ich works on them, throws out the old movements or changes them Into the Image of Its own and so transmutes lower Into h Igher nature. It Is not so much the perfect Ion of the Intellect as a transcendence of It, a transformat Ion of the m Ind, the subst Itut Ion of a larger greater pr Inc Iple of knowledge - and so w Ith all the rest of the be Ing.
Th Is Is a slow and d Iff Icult process; the road Is long and It Is hard to establ Ish even the necessary bas Is. The old ex Ist Ing nature res Ists and obstructs and d Iff Icult Ies r Ise one after another and repeatedly t Ill they are overcome. It Is therefore necessary to be sure that th Is Is the path to wh Ich one Is called before one f Inally dec Ides to tread It.
01.01 - The Symbol Dawn, #Savitri, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
Id="S1">Sect Ion 1
Id="1.1">1.1
It was the hour before the Gods awake.
Id="1.2">1.2
Across the path of the d Iv Ine Event
--
Lay stretched Immob Ile upon S Ilence' marge.
Id="1.3">1.3
Almost one felt, opaque, Impenetrable,
In the sombre symbol of her eyeless muse
The abysm of the unbod Ied Inf In Ite;
A fathomless zero occup Ied the world.
Id="1.4">1.4
A power of fallen boundless self awake
--
Recall Ing the tenebrous womb from wh Ich It came,
Turned from the Insoluble mystery of b Irth
And the tardy process of mortal Ity
And longed to reach Its end In vacant Nought.
Id="1.5">1.5
As In a dark beg Inn Ing of all th Ings,
A mute featureless semblance of the Unknown
--
Cradled the cosm Ic drowse of Ignorant Force
Whose moved creat Ive slumber k Indles the suns
And carr Ies our l Ives In Its somnambul Ist wh Irl.
Id="1.6">1.6
Athwart the va In enormous trance of Space,
--
Thrown back once more Into unth Ink Ing dreams,
Earth wheeled abandoned In the hollow gulfs
Forgetful of her sp Ir It and her fate.
Id="1.7">1.7
The Impass Ive sk Ies were neutral, empty, st Ill.
Id="1.8">1.8
Then someth Ing In the Inscrutable darkness st Irred;
A nameless movement, an unthought Idea
Ins Istent, d Issat Isf Ied, w Ithout an a Im,
--
Teased the Inconsc Ient to wake Ignorance.
Id="1.9">1.9
A throe that came and left a qu Iver Ing trace,
--
At peace In Its subconsc Ient moonless cave
To ra Ise Its head and look for absent l Ight,
Stra In Ing closed eyes of van Ished memory,
--
Id="1.10">1.10
It was as though even In th Is Nought's profound,
Even In th Is ult Imate d Issolut Ion's core,
There lurked an unremember Ing ent Ity,
--
Rev Iv Ing In another frustrate world.
Id="1.11">1.11
An unshaped consc Iousness des Ired l Ight
--
As If a ch Ildl Ike f Inger la Id on a cheek
Rem Inded of the endless need In th Ings
The heedless Mother of the un Iverse,
An Infant long Ing clutched the sombre Vast.
Insens Ibly somewhere a breach began:
--
A scout In a reconna Issance from the sun,
It seemed am Id a heavy cosm Ic rest,
--
Interven Ing In a m Indless un Iverse,
Its message crept through the reluctant hush
--
A thought was sown In the unsounded Vo Id,
A sense was born w Ith In the darkness' depths,
A memory qu Ivered In the heart of T Ime
As If a soul long dead were moved to l Ive:
But the obl Iv Ion that succeeds the fall,
--
All can be done If the god-touch Is there.
A hope stole In that hardly dared to be
Am Id the N Ight's forlorn Ind Ifference.
As If sol Ic Ited In an al Ien world
W Ith t Im Id and hazardous Inst Inct Ive grace,
Orphaned and dr Iven out to seek a home,
--
Id="1.20">1.20
The pers Istent thr Ill of a transf Igur Ing touch
Persuaded the Inert black qu Ietude
And beauty and wonder d Isturbed the f Ields of God.
Id="1.21">1.21
A wander Ing hand of pale enchanted l Ight
--
Id="1.22">1.22
One lucent corner w Indow Ing h Idden th Ings
Forced the world's bl Ind Immens Ity to s Ight.
Id="1.23">1.23
The darkness fa Iled and sl Ipped l Ike a fall Ing cloak
--
Id="1.24">1.24
Then through the pall Id r Ift that seemed at f Irst
--
Id="1.25">1.25
The br Ief perpetual s Ign recurred above.
Id="1.26">1.26
A glamour from unreached transcendences
--
A message from the unknown Immortal L Ight
Ablaze upon creat Ion's qu Iver Ing edge,
--
And bur Ied Its seed of grandeur In the hours.
Id="1.27">1.27
An Instant's v Is Itor the godhead shone.
On l Ife's th In border awh Ile the V Is Ion stood
--
Id="1.28">1.28
Interpret Ing a recond Ite beauty and bl Iss
--
Id="1.29">1.29
Almost that day the ep Iphany was d Isclosed
--
A lonely splendour from the Inv Is Ible goal
Almost was flung on the opaque Inane.
Id="1.30">1.30
Once more a tread perturbed the vacant Vasts;
--
Id="1.31">1.31
Ambassadress tw Ixt etern Ity and change,
--
Id="1.32">1.32
Once she half looked beh Ind for her ve Iled sun,
Then, thoughtful, went to her Immortal work.
Id="1.33">1.33
Earth felt the Imper Ishable's passage close:
The wak Ing ear of Nature heard her steps
And w Ideness turned to her Its l Im Itless eye,
And, scattered on sealed depths, her lum Inous sm Ile
--
Id="1.34">1.34
All grew a consecrat Ion and a r Ite.
Id="1.35">1.35
A Ir was a v Ibrant l Ink between earth and heaven;
--
The h Igh boughs prayed In a reveal Ing sky.
Id="1.36">1.36
Here where our half-l It Ignorance sk Irts the gulfs
On the dumb bosom of the amb Iguous earth,
Here where one knows not even the step In front
And Truth has her throne on the shadowy back of doubt,
--
Outspread beneath some large Ind Ifferent gaze,
Impart Ial w Itness of our joy and bale,
--
Id="1.37">1.37
Here too the v Is Ion and prophet Ic gleam
L It Into m Iracles common mean Ingless shapes;
Then the d Iv Ine afflatus, spent, w Ithdrew,
--
Id="1.38">1.38
A sacred yearn Ing l Ingered In Its trace,
The worsh Ip of a Presence and a Power
--
Id="1.39">1.39
Only a l Ittle the god-l Ight can stay:
Sp Ir Itual beauty Illum In Ing human s Ight
L Ines w Ith Its pass Ion and mystery Matter's mask
And squanders etern Ity on a beat of T Ime.
Id="1.40">1.40
As when a soul draws near the s Ill of b Irth,
--
A spark of de Ity lost In Matter's crypt
Its lustre van Ishes In the Inconsc Ient planes,
That trans Itory glow of mag Ic f Ire
So now d Issolved In br Ight accustomed a Ir.
Id="1.41">1.41
The message ceased and waned the messenger.
Id="1.42">1.42
The s Ingle Call, the uncompan Ioned Power,
Drew back Into some far-off secret world
The hue and marvel of the supernal beam:
--
Id="1.43">1.43
The excess of beauty natural to god-k Ind
Could not uphold Its cla Im on t Ime-born eyes;
Too myst Ic-real for space-tenancy
--
Id="1.44">1.44
There was the common l Ight of earthly day.
Id="1.45">1.45
Affranch Ised from the resp Ite of fat Igue
--
Id="1.46">1.46
All sprang to the Ir unvary Ing da Ily acts;
--
Obeyed the unforesee Ing Instant's urge,
And, leader here w Ith h Is uncerta In m Ind,
--
Id="S2">Sect Ion 2
Id="2.1">2.1
And Sav Itr I too awoke among these tr Ibes
--
Id="2.2">2.2
Ak In to the etern Ity whence she came,
No part she took In th Is small happ Iness;
A m Ighty stranger In the human f Ield,
The embod Ied Guest w Ith In made no response.
Id="2.3">2.3
The call that wakes the leap of human m Ind,
--
Its flutter Ing-hued Illus Ion of des Ire,
V Is Ited her heart l Ike a sweet al Ien note.
Id="2.4">2.4
T Ime's message of br Ief l Ight was not for her.
Id="2.5">2.5
In her there was the angu Ish of the gods
Impr Isoned In our trans Ient human mould,
The deathless conquered by the death of th Ings.
Id="2.6">2.6
A vaster Nature's joy had once been hers,
But long could keep not Its gold heavenly hue
Or stand upon th Is br Ittle earthly base.
Id="2.7">2.7
A narrow movement on T Ime's deep abysm,
--
She had brought w Ith her Into the human form,
The calm del Ight that weds one soul to all,
--
Id="2.8">2.8
Earth's gra In that needs the sap of pleasure and tears
--
Offered to the daughter of Inf In Ity
Her pass Ion-flower of love and doom she gave.
Id="2.9">2.9
In va In now seemed the splend Id sacr If Ice.
Id="2.10">2.10
A prod Igal of her r Ich d Iv In Ity,
--
Hop Ing her greater be Ing to Implant
And In the Ir body's l Ives accl Imat Ise
That heaven m Ight nat Ive grow on mortal so Il.
Id="2.11">2.11
Hard Is It to persuade earth-nature's change;
Mortal Ity bears Ill the eternal's touch:
It fears the pure d Iv Ine Intolerance
Of that assault of ether and of f Ire;
It murmurs at Its sorrowless happ Iness,
Almost w Ith hate repels the l Ight It br Ings;
It trembles at Its naked power of Truth
And the m Ight and sweetness of Its absolute Vo Ice.
Id="2.12">2.12
Infl Ict Ing on the he Ights the abysm's law,
It sull Ies w Ith Its m Ire heaven's messengers:
Its thorns of fallen nature are the defence
--
Id="2.13">2.13
A glory of l Ightn Ings travers Ing the earth-scene,
The Ir sun-thoughts fad Ing, darkened by Ignorant m Inds,
The Ir work betrayed, the Ir good to ev Il turned,
--
Id="2.14">2.14
A f Ire has come and touched men's hearts and gone;
--
Id="2.15">2.15
Too unl Ike the world she came to help and save,
Her greatness we Ighed upon Its Ignorant breast
And from Its d Im chasms welled a d Ire return,
A port Ion of Its sorrow, struggle, fall.
Id="2.16">2.16
To l Ive w Ith gr Ief, to confront death on her road,--
The mortal's lot became the Immortal's share.
Id="2.17">2.17
Thus trapped In the g In of earthly dest In Ies,
Awa It Ing her ordeal's hour abode,
Outcast from her Inborn fel Ic Ity,
Accept Ing l Ife's obscure terrestr Ial robe,
--
Id="2.18">2.18
A dark foreknowledge separated her
--
Too great to Impart the per Il and the pa In,
In her torn depths she kept the gr Ief to come.
Id="2.19">2.19
As one who watch Ing over men left bl Ind
--
Id="2.20">2.20
The long-foreknown and fatal morn was here
--
Id="2.21">2.21
For Nature walks upon her m Ighty way
--
Id="2.22">2.22
Even In th Is moment of her soul's despa Ir,
In Its gr Im rendezvous w Ith death and fear,
No cry broke from her l Ips, no call for a Id;
--
Id="2.23">2.23
Yet only her outward self suffered and strove;
--
Her sp Ir It opened to the Sp Ir It In all,
Her nature felt all Nature as Its own.
Id="2.24">2.24
Apart, l Iv Ing w Ith In, all l Ives she bore;
Aloof, she carr Ied In herself the world:
Her dread was one w Ith the great cosm Ic dread,
--
Id="2.25">2.25
Aga Inst the ev Il at l Ife's affl Icted roots,
Her own calam Ity Its pr Ivate s Ign,
Of her pangs she made a myst Ic po Ignant sword.
Id="2.26">2.26
A sol Itary m Ind, a world-w Ide heart,
To the lone Immortal's unshared work she rose.
Id="2.27">2.27
At f Irst l Ife gr Ieved not In her burdened breast:
On the lap of earth's or Ig Inal somnolence
Inert, released Into forgetfulness,
Prone It reposed, unconsc Ious on m Ind's verge,
Obtuse and tranqu Il l Ike the stone and star.
Id="2.28">2.28
In a deep cleft of s Ilence tw Ixt two realms
--
Id="2.29">2.29
Then a slow fa Int remembrance shadowl Ike moved,
--
Deep, qu Iet, old, made natural to Its place,
But knew not why It was there nor whence It came.
Id="2.30">2.30
The Power that k Indles m Ind was st Ill w Ithdrawn:
--
The unass Isted bra In found not Its past.
Id="2.31">2.31
Only a vague earth-nature held the frame.
Id="2.32">2.32
But now she st Irred, her l Ife shared the cosm Ic load.
Id="2.33">2.33
At the summons of her body's vo Iceless call
--
Back to the yoke of Ignorance and fate,
Back to the labour and stress of mortal days,
--
Id="2.34">2.34
Her house of Nature felt an unseen sway,
--
Id="2.35">2.35
All came back to her: Earth and Love and Doom,
--
L Ike g Iant f Igures wrestl Ing In the n Ight:
The godheads from the d Im Inconsc Ient born
Awoke to struggle and the pang d Iv Ine,
And In the shadow of her flam Ing heart,
At the sombre centre of the d Ire debate,
--
Stared Into Space w Ith f Ixed regardless eyes
That saw gr Ief's t Imeless depths but not l Ife's goal.
Id="2.36">2.36
Affl Icted by h Is harsh d Iv In Ity,
--
Id="2.37">2.37
All the f Ierce quest Ion of man's hours rel Ived.
Id="2.38">2.38
The sacr If Ice of suffer Ing and des Ire
Earth offers to the Immortal Ecstasy
Began aga In beneath the eternal Hand.
Id="2.39">2.39
Awake she endured the moments' serr Ied march
--
And heard the Ignorant cry of l Iv Ing th Ings.
Id="2.40">2.40
Am Id the tr Iv Ial sounds, the unchang Ing scene
--
Id="2.41">2.41
Immob Ile In herself, she gathered force.
Id="2.42">2.42
Th Is was the day when Satyavan must d Ie.
\t:End of Book I - Canto I
TTS_LOC:"/home/j/Documents/Code/Python/TTS/MP3S"
01.02 - Natures Own Yoga, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 03, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
I
Sr I Aurob Indo's Yoga Is In the d Irect l Ine of Nature's own Yoga. Nature has a Yoga, wh Ich she follows unfa Il Ingly, and Inev Itably for It Is her Innermost law of be Ing. Yoga means, In essence, a change or transformat Ion of consc Iousness, a he Ighten Ing and broaden Ing of consc Iousness, wh Ich Is effected by commun Ion or un Ion or Ident If Icat Ion w Ith a h Igher and vaster consc Iousness.
Th Is process of a develop Ing consc Iousness In Nature Is prec Isely what Is known as Evolut Ion. It Is the br Ing Ing out and f Ix Ing of a h Igher and h Igher pr Inc Iple of consc Iousness, h Itherto Involved and concealed beh Ind the ve Il, In the earth consc Iousness as a dynam Ic factor In Nature's man Ifest work Ing. Thus, the f Irst stage of evolut Ion Is the status of Inconsc Ient Matter, of the l Ifeless phys Ical elements; the second stage Is that of the sem I-consc Ious l Ife In the plant, the th Ird that of the consc Ious l Ife In the an Imal, and f Inally the fourth stage, where we stand at present, Is that of the embod Ied self-consc Ious l Ife In man.
The course of evolut Ion has not come to a stop w Ith man and the next stage, Sr I Aurob Indo says, wh Ich Nature env Isages and Is labour Ing to br Ing out and establ Ish Is the l Ife now superconsc Ious to us, embod Ied In a st Ill h Igher type of created be Ing, that of the superman or god-man. The pr Inc Iple of consc Iousness wh Ich w Ill determ Ine the nature and bu Ild of th Is new, be Ing Is a sp Ir Itual pr Inc Iple beyond the mental pr Inc Iple wh Ich man now Incarnates: It may be called the Superm Ind or Gnos Is.
For, t Ill now M Ind has been the last term of the evolut Ionary consc Iousness M Ind as developed In man Is the h Ighest Instrument bu Ilt up and organ Ised by Nature through wh Ich the self-consc Ious be Ing can express Itself. That Is why the Buddha sa Id: M Ind Is the f Irst of all pr Inc Iples, M Ind Is the h Ighest of all pr Inc Iples: Indeed M Ind Is the const Ituent of all pr Inc Iplesmana puvvangam dhamm1. The consc Iousness beyond m Ind has not yet been made a patent and dynam Ic element In the l Ife upon earth; It has been gl Impsed or entered Into In vary Ing degrees and modes by sa Ints and seers; It has cast Its der Ivat Ive Illum Inat Ions In the creat Ive act Iv It Ies of poets and art Ists, In the f Iner and nobler urges of heroes and great men of act Ion. But the utmost that has been ach Ieved, the summ It reached In that d Irect Ion, as exampled In sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ines, Involves a w Ithdrawal from the evolut Ionary cycle, a merg Ing and an absorpt Ion Into the stat Ic status that Is altogether beyond It, that l Ies, as It were, at the other extreme the Sp Ir It In Itself, Atman, Brahman, Sachch Idananda, N Irvana, the One w Ithout a second, the Zero w Ithout a f Irst.
The f Irst contact that one has w Ith th Is stat Ic supra-real Ity Is through the h Igher ranges of the m Ind: a d Irect and closer commun Ion Is establ Ished through a plane wh Ich Is just above the m Ind the Overm Ind, as Sr I Aurob Indo calls It. The Overm Ind d Issolves or transcends the ego-consc Iousness wh Ich l Im Its the be Ing to Its Ind Iv Idual Ised format Ion bounded by an outward and narrow frame or sheath of m Ind, l Ife and body; It reveals the un Iversal Self and Sp Ir It, the cosm Ic godhead and Its myr Iad forces throw Ing up myr Iad forms; the world-ex Istence there appears as a play of ever-sh Ift Ing ve Ils upon the face of one Ineffable real Ity, as a myster Ious cycle of perpetual creat Ion and destruct Ion It Is the overwhelm Ing v Is Ion g Iven by Sr I Kr Ishna to Arjuna In the G Ita. At the same t Ime, the In It Ial and most Intense exper Ience wh Ich th Is cosm Ic consc Iousness br Ings Is the extreme relat Iv Ity, cont Ingency and trans Itor Iness of the whole flux, and a necess Ity seems log Ically and psycholog Ically Imperat Ive to escape Into the ab Id Ing substratum, the Ineffable Absoluteness.
Th Is has been the h Ighest consummat Ion, the supreme goal wh Ich the purest sp Ir Itual exper Ience and the deepest asp Irat Ion of the human consc Iousness generally sought to atta In. But In th Is v Iew, the world or creat Ion or Nature came In the end to be looked upon as fundamentally a product of Ignorance: Ignorance and suffer Ing and Incapac Ity and death were declared to be the very hallmark of th Ings terrestr Ial. The L Ight that dwells above and beyond can be made to shed for a wh Ile some k Ind of lustre upon the mortal darkness but never altogether to remove or change Itto l Ive In the full l Ight, to be In and of the L Ight means to pass beyond. Not that there have not been other strands and types of sp Ir Itual exper Iences and asp Irat Ions, but the one we are cons Ider Ing has always struck the major chord and dom Inated and drowned all the rest.
But the In It Ial Illusory consc Iousness of the Overm Ind need not at all lead to the stat Ic Brahm Ic consc Iousness or Sunyam alone. As a matter of fact, there Is In th Is part Icular processes of consc Iousness a h Iatus between the two, between Maya and Brahman, as though one has to leap from the one Into the other somehow. Th Is h Iatus Is f Illed up In Sr I Aurob Indo's Yoga by the pr Inc Iple of Superm Ind, not synthet Ic-analyt Ic2 In knowledge l Ike Overm Ind and the h Ighest mental Intell Igence, but Inescapably un Itar Ian even In the utmost d Ivers Ity. Superm Ind Is the Truth-consc Iousness at once stat Ic and dynam Ic, self-ex Istent and creat Ive: In Superm Ind the Brahm Ic consc Iousness Sachch Idananda Is ever self-aware and ever man Ifested and embod Ied In fundamental truth-powers and truth-forms for the play of creat Ion; It Is the plane where the One breaks out Into the Many and the Many st Ill rema In one, be Ing and know Ing themselves to be but var Ious self-express Ions of the One; It develops the sp Ir Itual archetypes, the d Iv Ine names and forms of all Ind Iv Idual Isat Ions of an evolv Ing ex Istence.
SR I AUROB INDO
The Upan Ishads speak of a solar and a lunar Path In the sp Ir Itual consc Iousness. Perhaps they have some reference to these two l Inesone through the May Ic consc Iousness of the Overm Ind enters Into the stat Ic Bl Iss, ecstat Ic N Ih Il, and the other mounts st Ill farther to the solar status wh Ich Is a mass, a sea, an Inf In Ity of that l Ight and ecstasy but wh Ich can at the same t Ime express and embody Itself as the creat Ive Truth-consc Iousness (srya sv Itr ).
In the Superm Ind th Ings ex Ist In the Ir perfect sp Ir Itual real Ity; each Is consc Iously the d Iv Ine real Ity In Its transcendent essence, Its cosm Ic extens Ion, Its, sp Ir Itual Ind Iv Idual Ity; the d Ivers Ity of a man Ifested ex Istence Is there, but the mutually exclus Ive separat Iveness has not yet ar Isen. The ego, the knot of separat Iv Ity, appears at a later and lower stage of Involut Ion; what Is here Is Ind Iv Is Ible nexus of Ind Iv Idual Is Ing centres of the one eternal truth of be Ing. Where Superm Ind and Overm Ind meet, one can see the mult Iple godheads, each d Ist Inct In h Is own truth and beauty and power and yet all together form Ing the one supreme consc Iousness Inf In Itely compos Ite and Inal Ienably Integral. But stepp Ing back Into Superm Ind one sees someth Ing moreOneness gather Ing Into Itself all d Ivers Ity, not destroy Ing It, but annull Ing and forb Idd Ing the separat Ive consc Iousness that Is the beg Inn Ing of Ignorance. The f Irst shadow of the Illusory Consc Iousness, the In It Ial poss Ib Il Ity of the movement of Ignorance comes In when the supramental l Ight enters the penumbra of the mental sphere. The movement of Superm Ind Is the movement of l Ight w Ithout obscur Ity, stra Ight, unwaver Ing, unswerv Ing, absolute. The Force here conta Ins and holds In the Ir oneness of Real Ity the man Ifold but not separated l Ines of essent Ial and unalloyed truth: Its march Is the Inev Itable progress Ion of each one assured truth enter Ing Into and uphold Ing every other and therefore Its creat Ion, play or act Ion adm Its of no tr Ial or stumble or grop Ing or dev Iat Ion; for each truth rests on all others and on that wh Ich harmon Ises them all and does not act as a Power d Iverg Ing from and even compet Ing w Ith other Powers of be Ing. In the Overm Ind commences the play of d Ivergent poss Ib Il It Ies the s Imple, d Irect, un Ited and absolute certa Int Ies of the supramental consc Iousness ret Ire, as It were, a step beh Ind and beg In to work themselves out through the Interact Ion f Irst of separately Ind Iv Idual Ised and then of contrary and contrad Ictory forces. In the Overm Ind there Is a consc Ious underly Ing Un Ity but yet each Power, Truth, Aspect of that Un Ity Is encouraged to work out Its poss Ib Il It Ies as If It were suff Ic Ient to Itself and the others are used by It for Its own enhancement unt Il In the denser and darker reaches below Overm Ind th Is turns out a th Ing of bl Ind confl Ict and battle and, as It would appear, of chance surv Ival. Creat Ion or man Ifestat Ion or Ig Inally means the concret Isat Ion or devolut Ion of the powers of Consc Ious Be Ing Into a play of un Ited d Ivers Ity; but on the l Ine wh Ich ends In Matter It enters Into more and more obscure forms and forces and f Inally the v Irtual ecl Ipse of the supreme l Ight of the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness. Creat Ion as It descends' towards the Ignorance becomes an Involut Ion of the Sp Ir It through M Ind and L Ife Into Matter; evolut Ion Is a movement backward, a return journey from Matter towards the Sp Ir It: It Is the unravell Ing, the gradual d Isclosure and del Iverance of the Sp Ir It, the ascens Ion and revelat Ion of the Involved consc Iousness through a ser Ies of awaken IngsMatter awaken Ing Into L Ife, L Ife awaken Ing Into M Ind and M Ind now seek Ing to awaken Into someth Ing beyond the M Ind, Into a power of consc Ious Sp Ir It.
The apparent or actual result of the movement of Nesc Ienceof Involut Ionhas been an Increas Ing negat Ion of the Sp Ir It, but Its h Idden purpose Is ult Imately to embody the Sp Ir It In Matter, to express here below In cosm Ic T Ime-Space the splendours of the t Imeless Real Ity. The mater Ial body came Into ex Istence br Ing Ing w Ith It Inev Itably, as It seemed, mortal Ity; It appeared even to be fash Ioned out of mortal Ity, In order that In th Is very frame and f Ield of mortal Ity, Immortal Ity, the eternal Sp Ir It Consc Iousness wh Ich Is the secret truth and real Ity In T Ime Itself as well as beh Ind It, m Ight be establ Ished and that the D Iv Ine m Ight be possessed, or rather, possess Itself not In one unvary Ing mode of the stat Ic consc Iousness, as It does even now beh Ind the cosm Ic play, but In the play Itself and In the mult Iple mode of the terrestr Ial ex Istence.
I I
The secret of evolut Ion, I have sa Id, Is an urge towards the release and unfoldment of consc Iousness out of an apparent unconsc Iousness. In the early stages the movement Is very slow and gradual; there It Is Nature's or Ig Inal unconsc Ious process. In man It acqu Ires the poss Ib Il Ity of a consc Ious and therefore sw Ifter and concentrated process. And th Is Is In fact the funct Ion of Yoga proper, v Iz, to br Ing about the evolut Ion of consc Iousness by hasten Ing the process of Nature through the self-consc Ious w Ill of man.
An organ In the human be Ing has been espec Ially developed to become the effect Ive Instrument of th Is accelerated Yog Ic process the self-consc Iousness wh Ich I referred to as be Ing the d Ist Inct Ive character Ist Ic of man Is a funct Ion of th Is organ. It Is h Is soul, h Is psych Ic be Ing; or Ig Inally It Is the spark of the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness wh Ich came down and became Involved In Matter and has been endeavour Ing ever s Ince to release Itself through the upward march of evolut Ion. It Is th Is wh Ich presses on cont Inually as the st Imulus to the evolut Ionary movement; and In man It has atta Ined suff Ic Ient growth and power and has come so far to the front from beh Ind the ve Il that It can now lead and mould h Is external consc Iousness. It Is also the channel through wh Ich the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness can flow down Into the Infer Ior levels of human nature. It Is the be Ing no b Igger than the thumb ever seated w Ith In the heart, spoken of In the Upan Ishads. It Is l Ikew Ise the bas Is of true Ind Iv Idual Ity and personal Ident Ity. It Is aga In the reflect Ion or express Ion In evolut Ionary Nature of one's essent Ial selfj Ivtman that Is above, an eternal port Ion of the D Iv Ine, one w Ith the D Iv Ine and yet not d Issolved and lost In It. The psych Ic be Ing Is thus on the one hand In d Irect contact w Ith the D Iv Ine and the h Igher consc Iousness, and on the other It Is the secret upholder and controller' (bhart, antarym In) of the Infer Ior consc Iousness, the h Idden nucleus round wh Ich the body and the l Ife and the m Ind of the Ind Iv Idual are bu Ilt up and organ Ised.
The f Irst dec Is Ive step In Yoga Is taken when one becomes consc Ious of the psych Ic be Ing, or, looked at from the other s Ide, when the psych Ic be Ing comes forward and takes possess Ion of the external be Ing, beg Ins to In It Iate and Influence the movements of the m Ind and l Ife and body and gradually free them from the ord Inary round of Ignorant nature. The awaken Ing of the psych Ic be Ing means, as I have sa Id, not only a deepen Ing and he Ighten Ing of the consc Iousness and Its release from the obscur Ity and l Im Itat Ion of the Infer Ior Prakr It I, conf Ined to the lower threefold status, Into what Is beh Ind and beyond; It means also a return of the deeper and h Igher consc Iousness upon the lower hem Isphere and a consequent pur If Icat Ion and Illum Inat Ion and regenerat Ion of the latter. F Inally, when the psych Ic be Ing Is In full self-possess Ion and power, It can be the veh Icle of the d Irect supramental consc Iousness wh Ich w Ill then be able to act freely and absolutely for the ent Ire transformat Ion of the external nature, Its transf Igurat Ion Into a perfect body of the Truth-consc Iousness In a word, Its d Iv In Isat Ion.
Th Is then Is the supreme secret, not the renunc Iat Ion and annulment, but the transformat Ion of the ord Inary human nature : f Irst of all, Its psych Ic Isat Ion, that Is to say, mak Ing It move and l Ive and be In commun Ion and Ident If Icat Ion w Ith the l Ight of the psych Ic be Ing, and, secondly, through the soul and the ensouled m Ind and l Ife and body, to open out Into the supramental consc Iousness and let It come down here below and work and ach Ieve.
The soul or the true be Ing In man upl Ifted In the supramental consc Iousness and at the same t Ime com Ing forward to possess a d Iv In Ised m Ind and l Ife and body as an Instrument and channel of Its self-express Ion and an embod Iment of the D Iv Ine W Ill and Purposesuch Is the goal that Nature Is seek Ing to real Ise at present through her evolut Ionary lan. It Is to th Is labour that man has been called so that In and through h Im the dest Ined transcendence and transformat Ion can take place.
It Is not easy, however, nor Is It necessary for the moment to env Isage In deta Il what th Is d Iv In Ised man would be l Ike, externallyh Is mode of outward be Ing and l Iv Ing, k Ims Ita vrajeta k Im, as Arjuna quer Iedor how the collect Ive l Ife of the new human Ity would funct Ion or what would be the compos It Ion of Its soc Ial fabr Ic. For what Is happen Ing Is a l Iv Ing process, an organ Ic growth; It Is be Ing elaborated through the act Ions and react Ions of mult Itud Inous forces and cond It Ions, known and unknown; the prec Ise conf Igurat Ion of the f Inal outcome cannot be pred Icted w Ith exact Itude. But the Power that Is at work Is omn Isc Ient; It Is select Ing, reject Ing, correct Ing, fash Ion Ing, creat Ing, co-ord Inat Ing elements In accordance w Ith and by the dr Ive of the Inv Iolable law of Truth and Harmony that re Igns In L Ight's own homeswe dame the Superm Ind.
It Is also to be noted that as m Ind Is not the last l Im It of the march of evolut Ion, even so the progress of evolut Ion w Ill not stop w Ith the man Ifestat Ion and embod Iment of the Superm Ind. There are other st Ill h Igher pr Inc Iples beyond and they too presumably awa It man Ifestat Ion and embod Iment on earth. Creat Ion has no beg Inn Ing In t Ime (and I) nor has It an end (ananta). It Is an eternal process of the unravell Ing of the myster Ies of the Inf In Ite. Only, It may be sa Id that w Ith the Superm Ind the creat Ion here enters Into a d Ifferent order of ex Istence. Before It there was the doma In of Ignorance, after It w Ill come the re Ign of L Ight and Knowledge. Mortal Ity has been the govern Ing pr Inc Iple of l Ife on earth t Ill now; It w Ill be replaced by the consc Iousness of Immortal Ity. Evolut Ion has proceeded through struggle and pa In; hereafter It w Ill be a spontaneous, harmon Ious and happy flower Ing.
Now, w Ith regard to the t Ime that the present stage of evolut Ion Is l Ikely to take for Its fulf Ilment, one can presume that s Ince or If the spec If Ic urge and stress has man Ifested and come up to the front, th Is very fact would show that the problem has become a problem of actual Ity, and even that It can be dealt w Ith as If It had to be solved now or never. We have sa Id that In man, w Ith man's self-consc Iousness or the consc Iousness of the psych Ic be Ing as the Instrument, evolut Ion has atta Ined the capac Ity of a sw Ift and concentrated process, wh Ich Is the process of Yoga; the process w Ill become sw Ifter and more concentrated, the more that Instrument grows and gathers power and Is Infused w Ith the d Iv Ine afflatus. In fact, evolut Ion has been such a process of gradual accelerat Ion In tempo from the very beg Inn Ing. The earl Iest stage, for example, the stage of dead Matter, of the play of the mere chem Ical forces was a very, very long one; It took m Ill Ions and m Ill Ions of years to come to the po Int when the man Ifestat Ion of l Ife became poss Ible. But the per Iod of elementary l Ife, as man Ifested In the plant world that followed, although It too lasted a good many m Ill Ions of years, was much br Iefer than the preced Ing per Iod It ended w Ith the advent of the f Irst an Imal form. The age of an Imal l Ife, aga In, has been very much shorter than that of the plant l Ife before man came upon earth. And man Is already more than a m Ill Ion or two years old It Is fully t Ime that a h Igher order of be Ing should be created out of h Im.
The Dhammapada, I. 1
The Superm Ind Is not merely synthet Ic. The Superm Ind Is synthet Ic only on the lowest spaces of Itself, where It has to prepare the pr Inc Iples of Overm Ind,synthes Is Is necessary only where analys Is has taken place, one has d Issected everyth Ing, put In p Ieces (analys Is), so one has to p Iece together. But Superm Ind Is un Itar Ian, has never d Iv Ided up, so It does not need to add and p Iece together the parts and fragments. It has always held the consc Ious Many together In the consc Ious One.
***
01.02 - Sri Aurobindo - Ahana and Other Poems, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
What Is the world that Sr I Aurob Indo sees and creates? Poetry Is after all pass Ion. By pass Ion I do not mean the fury of emot Ion nor the fume of sent Imental Ism, but what l Ies beh Ind at the Ir source, what lends them the force they have the sense of the "grandly real," the v Iv Id and pulsat Ing truth. What then Is the th Ing that Sr I Aurob Indo has v Isual Ised, has endowed w Ith a throbb Ing l Ife and made a po Ignant real Ity? V Ictor Hugo sa Id: Attachez D Ieu au g Ibet, vous avez la cro IxT Ie God to the g Ibbet, you have the cross. Even so, Infuse pass Ion Into a th Ing most prosa Ic, you create subl Ime poetry out of It. What Is the dead matter that has found l Ife and glows and v Ibrates In Sr I Aurob Indo's pass Ion? It Is someth Ing wh Ich appears to many poet Ically Intractable, not amenable to aesthet Ic treatment, not usually, that Is to say, nor In the supreme manner. Sr I Aurob Indo has thrown such a mater Ial Into h Is poet Ic fervour and created a sheer beauty, a stupendous real Ity out of It. Here In l Ies the greatness of h Is ach Ievement. Ph Ilosophy, however d Iv Ine, and In sp Ite of M Ilton, has been regarded by poets as "harsh and crabbed" and as such unf It for poet Ic del Ineat Ion. Not a few poets Indeed foundered upon th Is rock. A poet In h Is own way Is a ph Ilosopher, but a ph Ilosopher chant Ing out h Is ph Ilosophy In sheer poetry has been one of the rarest spectacles.1 I can th Ink of only one Instance just now where a ph Ilosopher has almost succeeded be Ing a great poet I am referr Ing to Lucret Ius and h Is De Rerum Natura. Ne Ither Shakespeare nor Homer had anyth Ing l Ike ph Ilosophy In the Ir poet Ic creat Ion. And In sp Ite of some Incl Inat Ion to ph Ilosophy and ph Ilosoph Ical Ideas V Irg Il and M Ilton were not ph Ilosophers e Ither. Dante sought perhaps consc Iously and del Iberately to ph Ilosoph Ise In h Is Parad Iso I D Id he? The less Dante then Is he. For It Is h Is Inferno, where he Is a pass Ionate v Is Ionary, and not h Is Parad Iso (where he has put In more thought-power) that marks the nee plus ultra of h Is poet Ic ach Ievement.
And yet what can be more poet Ic In essence than ph Ilosophy, If by ph Ilosophy we mean, as It should mean, sp Ir Itual truth and sp Ir Itual real Isat Ion? What else can g Ive the full breath, the Integral force to poet Ic Insp Irat Ion If It Is not the problem of ex Istence Itself, of God, Soul and Immortal Ity, th Ings that touch, that are at the very root of l Ife and real Ity? What can most concern man, what can str Ike the deepest fount In h Im, unless It Is the mystery of h Is own be Ing, the why and the wh Ither of It all? But mank Ind has been taught and tra Ined to l Ive merely or mostly on earth, and poetry has been treated as the express Ion of human joys and sorrows the tears In mortal th Ings of wh Ich V Irg Il spoke. The savour of earth, the thr Ill of the flesh has been too sweet for us and we have forgotten other sweetnesses. It Is always the human element that we seek In poetry, but we fa Il to recogn Ise that what we obta In In th Is way Is human Ity In Its lower degrees, Its surface formulat Ions, at Its m In Imum magn Itude.
We do not say that poets have never sung of God and Soul and th Ings transcendent. Poets have always done that. But what I say Is th Is that presentat Ion of sp Ir Itual truths, as they are In the Ir own home, In other words, treated ph Ilosoph Ically and yet In a supreme poet Ic manner, has always been a rar Ity. We have, Indeed, In Ind Ia the G Ita and the Upan Ishads, great ph Ilosoph Ical poems, If there were any. But for one th Ing they are on d Izzy he Ights out of the reach of common man and for another they are Idol Ised more as ph Ilosophy than as poetry. Doubtless, our Va Ishnava poets sang of God and Love D Iv Ine; and Rab Indranath, In one sense, a typ Ical modern Va Ishnava, d Id the same. And the Ir songs are masterp Ieces. But are they not all human, too human, as the mad prophet would say? In them It Is the human s Ign If Icance, the human manner that touches and moves us the sp Ir Itual s Ign If Icance rema Ins esoter Ic, Is suggested, Is a matter of deduct Ion. Sr I Aurob Indo has dealt w Ith sp Ir Itual exper Iences In a d Ifferent way. He has not clothed them In human symbols and allegor Ies, In Images and f Igures of the mere earthly and secular l Ife: he presents them In the Ir nakedness, just as they are seen and real Ised. He has not sought to tone down the r Igour of truth w Ith contr Ivances that eas Ily charm and capt Ivate the common human m Ind and heart. Nor has he Indulged l Ike so many poet ph Ilosophers In vague general Isat Ions and colourless or too colourful tru Isms that do not embody a clear thought or rounded Idea, a rad Iant judgment. Sr I Aurob Indo has g Iven us In h Is poetry thoughts that are clear-cut, Ideas beaut Ifully ch Iselledhe Is always lum Inously forceful.
Take these Vedant Ic l Ines that In the Ir l Imp Id Ity and harmon Ious flow beat anyth Ing found In the f Ine French poet Lamart Ine:
It Is He In the sun who Is ageless and deathless,
And Into the m Idn Ight H Is shadow Is thrown;
When darkness was bl Ind and engulfed w Ith In darkness,
He was seated w Ith In It Immense and alone.2
or these that conta In the metaphys Ics of a sp Ir Itual l Ife:
K Ing, not In va In. I knew the ted Ious bars
That I had fled,
To be H Is arms whom I have sought; I saw
How earth was made
Out of h Is be Ing; I perce Ived the Law,
The Truth, the Vast,
From wh Ich we came and wh Ich we are; I heard
The ages past
Wh Isper the Ir h Istory, and I knew the Word
That forth was cast
Into the unformed potency of th Ings
To bu Ild the suns.
Through endless Space and on T Ime's Iron w Ings
A rhythm runs
--
He Is, we cannot say; for Noth Ing too
Is H Is concept Ion of H Imself unguessed.
He dawns upon us and we would pursue,
--
Th Is Is sheer ph Ilosophy, told w Ith an almost ph Ilosoph Ical bluntnessmay be, but Is It mere ph Ilosophy and med Iocre poetry? Once more l Isten to the Upan Ishad Ic l Ines:
Deep In the lum Inous secrecy, the mute
Profound of th Ings,
--
L Ight Is not, nor our darkness, nor these br Ight
Thunder Ings,
In the deep steady vo Iceless core of wh Ite
And lum Inous bl Iss,
--
He dwells w Ith In us all who dwells not In
Aught that Is.5
It Is the bare truth, "truth In Its own home", as I have sa Id already us Ing a phrase of the anc Ient sages, that Is formulated here w Ithout the prop of any external symbol Ism. There Is no ve Il, no m Ist, no uncerta Inty or amb Igu Ity. It Is clar Ity Itself, an almost sc Ient If Ic exactness and prec Is Ion. In all th Is there Is someth Ing of the stra Ightness and fullness of v Is Ion that character Ised the Ved Ic R Ish Is, someth Ing of the Ir supernal gen Ius wh Ich could mould speech Into the very express Ion of what Is beyond speech, wh Ich could subl Imate the small and the f In Ite Into forms of the Vast and the Inf In Ite. Mark how In these aphor Ist Ic l Ines embody Ing a deep sp Ir Itual exper Ience, the Inexpress Ible has been expressed w Ith a lum Inous fel Ic Ity:
Del Ight that labours In Its oppos Ite,
Fa Ints In the rose and on the rack Is curled.6
or
He made an eager death and called It l Ife,
He stung H Imself w Ith bl Iss and called It pa In.7
To human Ise the D Iv Ine, that Is what we all w Ish to do; for the D Iv Ine Is too lofty for us and we cannot look full Into h Is face. We cry and suppl Icate to Rudra, "O d Ire Lord, show us that other form of th Ine that Is ben Ign and humane". All earthly Imager Ies we lav Ish upon the D Iv Ine so that he may appear to us not as someth Ing far and d Istant and fore Ign, but, qu Ite near, among us, as one of us. We take recourse to human symbol Ism often, because we w Ish to pall Iate or h Ide the r Igours of a supreme exper Ience, not because we have no adequate terms for It. The same human or earthly terms could be used d Ifferently If we had a d Ifferent consc Iousness. Thus the Ved Ic R Ish Is sought not to human Ise the D Iv Ine, the Ir purpose was rather to d Iv In Ise the human. And the Ir allegor Ical language, although r Ich In terrestr Ial f Igures, does not carry the Impress and atmosphere of mere human Ity and earthl Iness. For In real Ity the symbol Is not merely the symbol. It Is mere symbol In regard to the truth so long as we take our stand on the lower plane when we have to look at the truth through the symbol; but If we v Iew It from the h Igher plane, from truth Itself, It Is no longer mere symbol but the very truth bod Ied forth. Whatever there Is of symbol Ism on earth and Its beaut Ies, In sense and Its enjoyments, Is then transf Igured Into the express Ion of the truth, of the d Iv In Ity Itself. We then no longer speak In human language but In the language of the gods.
We have been speak Ing of ph Ilosophy and the ph Ilosoph Ic manner. But what are the exact Impl Icat Ions of the words, let us ask aga In. They mean noth Ing more and noth Ing lessthan the force of thought and the mass of thought content. After all, that seems to be almost the whole d Ifference between the past and the present human consc Iousness In so far at least as It has found express Ion In poetry. That element, we w Ish to po Int out, Is prec Isely what the old-world poets lacked or d Id not care to possess or express or stress. A poet meant above all, If not all In all, emot Ion, pass Ion, sensuousness, sens Ib Il Ity, nervous enthus Iasm and Imag Inat Ion and fancy: remember the class Ic def In It Ion g Iven by Shakespeare of the poet
Of Imag Inat Ion all compact.. . .
The poet's eye, In a f Ine frenzy roll Ing.8
The heart and Its urges, the v Ital and Its surges, the phys Ical Impulses It Is these of wh Ich the poets sang In the Ir Inf In Ite var Iat Ions. But the m Ind proper, that Is to say, the h Igher reflect Ive Ideat Ive m Ind, was not g Iven the r Ight of c It Izensh Ip In the doma In of poetry. I am not forgett Ing the so-called Metaphys Icals. The element of metaphys Ics among the Metaphys Icals has already been called Into quest Ion. There Is here, no doubt, some theology, a good dose of mental cleverness or conce It, but a modern Intellectual or rather rat Ional Intell Igence Is someth Ing other, someth Ing more than that. Even the metaphys Ics that was commandeered here had more or less a decorat Ive value, It could not be taken Into the p Ith and substance of poet Ic truth and beauty. It was a decorat Ion, but not unoften a drag. I referred to the Upan Ishads, but these str Ike qu Ite a d Ifferent, almost an oppos Ite l Ine In th Is connect Ion. They are In a sense truly metaphys Ical: they bypass the m Ind and the mental powers, get hold of a h Igher mode of consc Iousness, make a d Irect contact w Ith truth and beauty and real Ity. It was Buddha's cred It to have forged th Is m Iss Ing l Ink In man's sp Ir Itual consc Iousness, to have brought Into play the power of the rat Ional Intellect and used It In support of the sp Ir Itual exper Ience. That Is not to say that he was the very f Irst person, the or Ig Inator who In It Iated the movement; but at least th Is seems to be true that In h Im and h Is au thent Ic followers the movement came to the forefront of human consc Iousness and atta Ined the proport Ions of a major member of man's psycholog Ical const Itut Ion. We may remember here that Socrates, who started a s Im Ilar movement of rat Ional Isat Ion In h Is own way In Europe, was almost a contemporary of the Buddha.
Poetry as an express Ion of thought-power, poetry we Ighted w Ith Intell Igence and rat Ional Ised knowledge that seems to me to be the end and dr Ive, the secret sense of all the mystery of modern techn Ique. The comb Inat Ion Is r Isky, but not Imposs Ible. In the sp Ir Itual doma In the G Ita ach Ieved th Is m Iracle to a cons Iderable degree. St Ill, the power of Intell Igence and reason shown by Vyasa Is of a spec Ial order: It Is a subl Imated funct Ion of the faculty, someth Ing aloof and other-worldly" Introvert", a modern m Ind would term It that Is to say, someth Ing a pr Ior I, stand Ing In Its own au thent Ic Ity and self-suff Ic Iency. A modern Intell Igence would be more sc Ient If Ic, let us use the word, more matter-of-fact and sense-based: the mental l Ight should not be conf Ined In Its Ivory tower, however h Igh that may be, but brought down and placed at the serv Ice of our percept Ion and apprec Iat Ion and explanat Ion of th Ings human and terrestr Ial; made Immanent In the mundane and the ephemeral, as they are commonly called. Th Is Is not an Imposs Ib Il Ity. Sr I Aurob Indo seems to have done the th Ing. In h Im we f Ind the three terms of human consc Iousness arr Iv Ing at an absolute fus Ion and h Is poetry Is a wonderful example of that fus Ion. The three terms are the sp Ir Itual, the Intellectual or ph Ilosoph Ical and the phys Ical or sensat Ional. The Intellectual, or more generally, the mental, Is the Intermed Iary, the Paraclete, as he h Imself w Ill call It later on In a poem9 magn If Icently exempl Ify Ing the po Int we are try Ing to make out the agent who negot Iates, br Idges and harmon Ises the two other f Irmaments usually supposed to be antagon Ist Ic and Incompat Ible.
Indeed It would be wrong to assoc Iate any cold ascet Ic nud Ity to the sp Ir Itual body of Sr I Aurob Indo. H Is poetry Is ph Ilosoph Ic, abstract, no doubt, but every ph Ilosophy has Its pract Ice, every abstract th Ing Its concrete appl Icat Ion,even as the soul has Its body; and the fus Ion, not mere un Ion, of the two Is very character Ist Ic In h Im. The deepest and unse Izable fl Ights of thought he knows how to clo the w Ith a Kal Idas Ian r Ichness of Imagery, or a Keatsean gusto of sensuousness:
. . . . .O flowers, O del Ight on the tree-tops burn Ing!
Grasses h Is k Ine have grazed and crushed by h Is feet In the danc Ing!
Yamuna flow Ing w Ith song, through the greenness always advanc Ing!
You unforgotten rem Ind. For h Is flute w Ith Its sweetness ensnar Ing
Sounds In our ears In the n Ight and our souls of the Ir teguments bar Ing
Hales them out naked and absolute, out to h Is wood lands eternal,
--
And It would be wrong too to suppose that there Is want of sympathy In Sr I Aurob Indo for ord Inary human Ity, that he Is not suscept Ible to sent Iments, to the weaknesses, that st Ir the natural man. Take for example th Is l Ine so Inst Inct w Ith a haunt Ing melancholy stra In:
Cold are your r Ivers of peace and the Ir banks are leafless and lonely.
--
All the tragedy, the ent Ire pathos of human l Ife Is concentrated In th Is l Ine so s Imple, yet so grand:
Son of man, thou hast crowned the l Ife w Ith the flowers that are scentless,
And the whole asp Irat Ion of str Iv Ing mortal Ity f Inds Its echo In:
A song not master of Its note, a cry
That persevered Into etern Ity.11
And what an amount of tenderness he has poured Into h Is l Ittle poem on ch Ildhood, a perfect p Iece of ch Iselled crystal, pure and translucent and gleam Ing w Ith the clear l Ines of a summer sky:
O thou golden Image,
M In Iature of bl Iss,
--
And yet, I should say, In all th Is It Is not mere the human that Is of supreme Interest, but someth Ing wh Ich even In be Ing human yet transcends It.
And here, let me po Int out, the cap Ital d Ifference between the European or rather the Hellen Ic sp Ir It and the Ind Ian sp Ir It. It Is the Ind Ian sp Ir It to take stand upon d Iv In Ity and thence to embrace and mould what Is earthly and human. The Greek sp Ir It took Its stand pre-em Inently on earth and what belongs to earth. In Europe Dante's was a soul sp Ir Itual Ised more than perhaps any other and yet h Is Is not a H Indu soul. The utmost that he could say after all the exper Ience of the tragedy of mortal Ity was:
Io no p Iangeva, s Identro Imp Ietra I13
I gr Ieve not, Into a stone I grew w Ith In.
We have In Sr I Aurob Indo a passage parallel In sent Iment, If not of equal poet Ic value, wh Ich w Ill bear out the contrast:
My m Ind w Ith In grew holy, calm and st Ill
--
However sp Ir Itual a soul, Dante Is yet bound to the earth, he has dom Inated perhaps but not conquered.
The Greek s Ings of the human Ity of man, the Ind Ian the d Iv In Ity of man. It Is the Hellen Ic sp Ir It that has very largely moulded our taste and we have forgotten that an equally poet Ic world ex Ists In the doma In of sp Ir Itual l Ife, even In Its very sever Ity, as In that of earthly l Ife and Its sweetness. And as we are pass Ionate about the earthly l Ife, even so Sr I Aurob Indo has made a pass Ion of the sp Ir Itual l Ife. Poetry after all has a m Iss Ion; the phrase "Art for Art's sake" may be made to mean anyth Ing. Poetry Is not merely what Is pleas Ing, not even what Is merely touch Ing and mov Ing but what Is at the same t Ime, Insp Ir Ing, Inv Igorat Ing, elevat Ing. Truth Is Indeed beauty but It Is not always the beauty that capt Ivates the eye or the mere aesthet Ic sense.
And because our Ved Ic poets always looked beyond human Ity, beyond earth, therefore could they make d Iv Ine poetry of human Ity and what Is of earth. Therefore It was that they were pervad Ingly so grand Iose and subl Ime and pu Issant. The hero Ic, the ep Ic was the Ir natural element and they could not but express themselves In the grand manner Sr I Aurob Indo has the same outlook and It Is why we f Ind In h Im the r Ing of the old-world manner.
Mark the stately march, the fullness of vo Ice, the wealth of Imagery, the v Igour of movement of these l Ines:
What though It's true that the r Iver of L Ife
through the Valley of Per Il
--
Gleam In the crann Ies, sapph Ire, smaragdus the
roadway bejewel,
Down In the jaws of the savage mounta Ins gran Ite
and cruel.
--
Look, how the w Ide-pac Ing r Iver of l Ife from Its
far-off founta Ins
--
brought from Its manger
Arch Ing Its neck as It paces grand to the gorges
of danger.
--
Shudders below Into sunless depths, along chasms
unend Ing,
--
In the due measure that they chose of old.. . .
The superb and the r Ight Imper Ial tone Inst Inct w Ith a concentrated force of
Who art thou, warr Ior armed glor Iously
--
Thy ga It Is an emp Ire and th Ine eye
Dom In Ion.
Th Is Is poetry salutary Indeed If there were any. We are so often and so much enamoured of the fem In Ine langu Idness of poetry; the clear, the sane, the v Ir Ile, that Is a type of poetry that our nerves cannot always or for long stand. But there Is poetry that Is agrable and there Is poetry that Is grand, as Sa Inte Beuve sa Id. There are the pleasures of poetry and there are the "ardours of poetry". And the great poets are always grand rather than agrable, full of the ardours of poetry rat her than the pleasures of poetry.
And If there Is someth Ing In the creat Ive sp Ir It of Sr I Aurob Indo wh Ich tends more towards the strenuous than the gen Ial, the arduous than the mell Ifluous, and wh Ich has more of the auster Ity of Vyasa than the easy fel Ic Ity of Valm Ik I, however It m Ight have affected the ult Imate value of h Is creat Ion, accord Ing to certa In standards,14 It has Illustrated once more that poetry Is not merely beauty but power, It Is not merely sweet Imag Inat Ion but creat Ive v Is Ion It Is even the R Ik, the mantra that Impels the gods to man Ifest upon earth, that fash Ions d Iv In Ity In man.
James H. Cous Ins In h Is New Ways In Engl Ish L Iterature descr Ibes Sr I Aurob Indo as "the ph Ilosopher as poet."
Sr I Aurob Indo: "Who".
--
From "Ahana" In Sr I Aurob Indo's Ahana and Other Poems. There Is a later vers Ion of the poem In Collected Poems and Plays, Vol I I.
"Rem In Iscence."
"A Ch Ild's Imag Inat Ion."
Inferno, xxx I I I. 39.
It cannot be sa Id that Aurob Indo shows any organ Ic adaptat Ion to mus Ic and melody. H Is thought Is profound; h Is techn Ical dev Ices are commendable; but the mus Ic that enchants or d Isturbs Is not there. Aurob Indo Is not another Tagore or Iqbal, or even Saroj In I Na Idu."The T Imes L Iterary Supplement, July 8, 1944.
***
01.02 - The Creative Soul, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
The d Ifference between l Iv Ing organ Ism and dead matter Is that wh Ile the former Is endowed w Ith creat Ive act Iv Ity, the latter has only pass Ive recept Iv Ity. L Ife adds, synthet Ises, new-createsg Ives more than what It rece Ives; matter only sums up, gathers, reflects, g Ives just what It rece Ives. L Ife Is l Iv Ing, glad and green through Its creat Ive gen Ius. Creat Ion In some form or other must be the core of everyth Ing that seeks v Ital Ity and growth, v Igour and del Ight. Not only so, but a th Ing In order to be real must possess a creat Ive funct Ion. We cons Ider a shadow or an echo unreal prec Isely because they do not create but merely Image or repeat, they do not br Ing out anyth Ing new but s Imply reflect what Is g Iven. The whole of ex Istence Is real because It Is eternally creat Ive.
So the problem that concerns man, the r Iddle that human Ity has to solve Is how to f Ind out and follow the path of creat Iv Ity. If we are not to be dead matter nor mere shadowy Illus Ions we must be creat Ive. A m Isconcept Ion that has v It Iated our outlook In general and has been the most potent cause of a ster Il Is Ing atav Ism In the moral evolut Ion of human Ity Is that creat Iv Ity Is an ar Istocrat Ic v Irtue, that It belongs only to the chosen few. A great poet or a m Ighty man of act Ion creates Indeed, but such a creator does not appear very frequently. A Shakespeare or a Napoleon Is a rare phenomenon; they are, In real Ity, an except Ion to the general run of mank Ind. It Is enough If we others can understand and follow themMahajano yena gatahlet the great souls In It Iate and create, the common souls have only to repeat and Im Itate.
But th Is Is not as It should be, nor Is It the truth of the matter. Every Ind Iv Idual soul, however placed It may be, Is by nature creat Ive; every Ind Iv Idual be Ing l Ives to d Iscover and to create.
The Inmost real Ity of man Is not a pass Ive receptacle, a mere respons Ive med Ium but It Is a dynamoa power-stat Ion generat Ing and throw Ing out energy that produces and creates.
Now the centre of th Is energy, the matr Ix of creat Iv Ity Is the soul Itself, one's own soul. If you want to createl Ive, grow and be real-f Ind yourself, be yourself. The s Imple old w Isdom st Ill rema Ins the eternal w Isdom. It Is because we fall off from our soul that we wander Into s Ide-paths, paths that do not belong to our real nature and hence that lead to Im Itat Ion and repet It Ion, decay and death. Th Is Is what happens to what we call common souls. The force of c Ircumstances, the pressure of env Ironment or s Imply the momentum of custom or hab It compel them to choose the eas Iest and the read Iest way that may l Ie before them. They do not consult the demand of the Inner be Ing but the requ Irement of the moment. Our bod Ily needs, our v Ital hungers and our mental prejud Ices obsess and obscure the Impuls Ions that thr Ill the h Idden sp Ir It. We hasten to grat Ify the Immed Iate and forget the eternal, we clutch at the shadow and let go the substance. We are carr Ied away In the flux and tumult of l Ife. It Is a m Ixed and collect Ive wh Irla Weltge Ist that moves and governs us. We are helpless straws dr Ift Ing In the current. But manhood demands that we stop and pause, pull ourselves out of the Maelstrom and be what we are. We must shape th Ings as we want and not allow th Ings to shape us as they want.
Let each take cogn Isance of the godhead that Is w Ith In h Im for self Is Godand In the strength of the soul-d Iv In Ity create h Is un Iverse. It does not matter what sort of un Iverse he- creates, so long as he creates It. The world created by a Buddha Is not the same as that created by a Napoleon, nor should they be the same. It does not prove anyth Ing that I cannot become a Kal Idasa; for that matter Kal Idasa cannot become what I am. If you have not the gen Ius of a Shankara It does not mean that you have no gen Ius at all. Be and become yourselfma gr Idhah kasyach It dhanam, says the Upan Ishad. The founta In-head of creat Ive gen Ius l Ies there, In the free cho Ice and the part Icular del Ight the self-determ Inat Ion of the sp Ir It w Ith In you and not In the des Ire for your ne Ighbours r Iches. The world has become dull and un Iform and mechan Ical, s Ince everybody endeavours to become not h Imself, but always somebody else. Im Itat Ion Is serv Itude and serv Itude br Ings In gr Ief.
In one's own soul l Ies the very he Ight and profund Ity of a god-head. Each soul by br Ing Ing out the note that Is h Is, makes for the most wondrous symphony. Once a man knows what he Is and holds fast to It, refus Ing to be drawn away by any necess Ity or temptat Ion, he beg Ins to uncover h Imself, to do what h Is Inmost nature demands and takes joy In, that Is to say, beg Ins to create. Indeed there may be much d Ifference In the forms that d Ifferent souls take. But because each Is Itself, therefore each Is grounded upon the fundamental equal Ity of th Ings. All our valuat Ions are In reference to some standard or other set up w Ith a part Icular end In v Iew, but that Is a quest Ion of the pract Ical world wh Ich In no way takes away from the Intr Ins Ic value of the greatness of the soul. So long as the th Ing Is there, the how of It does not matter. Inf In Ite are the ways of man Ifestat Ion and all of them the very h Ighest and the most subl Ime, prov Ided they are a man Ifestat Ion of the soul Itself, prov Ided they r Ise and flow from the same level. Whether It Is Agn I or Indra, Varuna, M Itra or the Asw Ins, It Is the same supreme and d Iv Ine Inflatus.
The cosm Ic soul Is true. But that truth Is borne out, effectuated only by the truth of the Ind Iv Idual soul. When the Ind Iv Idual soul becomes Itself fully and Integrally, by that very fact It becomes also the cosm Ic soul. The Ind Iv Iduals are the channels through wh Ich flows the Un Iversal and the Inf In Ite In Its mult Iple emphas Is. Each Is a part Icular f Igure, aspectBhava, a part Icular angle of v Is Ion of All. The v Is Ion Is ent Ire and the f Igure perfect If It Is not refracted by the lower and denser parts of our be Ing. And for that the Ind Iv Idual must f Irst come to Itself and sh Ine In Its opal clar Ity and translucency.
Not to do what others do, but what your soul Impels you to do. Not to be others but your own self. Not to be anyth Ing but the very cosm Ic and Inf In Ite d Iv In Ity of your soul. There In l Ies your h Ighest freedom and perfect del Ight. And there you are supremely creat Ive. Each soul has a consortPrakr It I, Naturewh Ich It creates out of Its own r Ib. And In th Is f Ield of Inf In Ite creat Iv Ity the soul l Ives, moves and has Its be Ing.
***
01.02 - The Issue, #Savitri, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
object:01.02 - The Issue
class:chapter
--
Id="3">3
Id="3.1">3.1
Awh Ile, w Ithdrawn In secret f Ields of thought,
Her m Ind moved In a many- Imaged past
That l Ived aga In and saw Its end approach:
Dy Ing, It l Ived Imper Ishably In her;
Trans Ient and van Ish Ing from trans Ient eyes,
--
It bore the future on Its phantom breast.
Id="3.2">3.2
Along the fleet Ing event's far-backward tra Il
Regressed the stream of the Ins Istent hours,
And on the bank of the myster Ious flood
--
And the subtle Images of th Ings that were,
Her w Itness sp Ir It stood rev Iew Ing T Ime.
Id="3.3">3.3
All that she once had hoped and dreamed and been,
--
Id="3.4">3.4
As In a many-hued flam Ing Inner dawn,
Her l Ife's broad h Ighways and Its sweet bypaths
Lay mapped to her sun-clear record Ing v Iew,
--
Id="3.5">3.5
Twelve pass Ionate months led In a day of fate.
Id="3.6">3.6
An absolute supernatural darkness falls
--
Forced out from the protect Ing Ignorance
And flung back on h Is naked pr Imal need,
--
Id="3.7">3.7
A po Int she had reached where l Ife must be In va In
Or, In her unborn element awake,
Her w Ill must cancel her body's dest Iny.
Id="3.8">3.8
For only the unborn sp Ir It's t Imeless power
Can l Ift the yoke Imposed by b Irth In T Ime.
Id="3.9">3.9
Only the Self that bu Ilds th Is f Igure of self
Can rase the f Ixed Interm Inable l Ine
That jo Ins these chang Ing names, these numberless l Ives,
--
And keeps st Ill lurk Ing In our consc Ious acts
The tra Il of old forgotten thoughts and deeds,
--
Id="3.10">3.10
An ep Isode In an unremembered tale,
Its beg Inn Ing lost, Its mot Ive and plot concealed,
A once l Iv Ing story has prepared and made
--
Id="3.11">3.11
The f Ix Ity of the cosm Ic sequences
Fastened w Ith h Idden Inev Itable l Inks
She must d Isrupt, d Islodge by her soul's force
Her past, a block on the Immortal's road,
Make a rased ground and shape anew her fate.
Id="3.12">3.12
A colloquy of the or Ig Inal Gods
--
Her be Ing must confront Its formless Cause,
Aga Inst the un Iverse we Igh Its s Ingle self.
Id="3.13">3.13
On the bare peak where Self Is alone w Ith Nought
And l Ife has no sense and love no place to stand,
--
Id="3.14">3.14
Altered must be Nature's harsh economy;
--
Id="3.15">3.15
Out of a t Imeless barr Ier she must break,
--
Look Into the lonely eyes of Immortal Death
And w Ith her nude sp Ir It measure the Inf In Ite's n Ight.
Id="3.16">3.16
The great and dolorous moment now was close.
Id="3.17">3.17
A ma Iled battal Ion march Ing to Its doom,
The last long days went by w Ith heavy tramp,
--
Id="3.18">3.18
Alone am Id the many faces loved,
--
In the closed beauty of the Inhuman w Ilds.
Id="3.19">3.19
A combatant In s Ilent dreadful l Ists,
The world unknow Ing, for the world she stood:
--
Id="3.20">3.20
Around her were the austere sky-po Int Ing h Ills,
--
Muttered Incessantly the Ir muffled spell.
Id="3.21">3.21
A dense magn If Icent coloured self-wrapped l Ife
Draped In the leaves' v Iv Id emerald monotone
And set w Ith chequered sunbeams and bl I the flowers
--
Id="3.22">3.22
There had she grown to the stature of her sp Ir It:
--
Steep Ing her soul In Its w Ide lonel Iness
Had shown to her her self's bare real Ity
--
Id="3.23">3.23
Its sol Itude greatened her human hours
--
Id="3.24">3.24
A force of spare d Irect necess Ity
--
Had left In her deep room for thought and God.
Id="3.25">3.25
There was her drama's rad Iant prologue l Ived.
Id="3.26">3.26
A spot for the eternal's tread on earth
Set In the clo Istral yearn Ing of the woods
And watched by the asp Irat Ion of the peaks
Appeared through an aureate open Ing In T Ime,
Where st Illness l Isten Ing felt the unspoken word
--
Id="3.27">3.27
Here w Ith the suddenness d Iv Ine advents have,
--
Id="3.28">3.28
Well m Ight he f Ind In her h Is perfect shr Ine.
Id="3.29">3.29
S Ince f Irst the earth-be Ing's heavenward growth began,
--
That burn Ing test of the godhead In our parts,
A l Ightn Ing from the he Ights on our abyss.
Id="3.30">3.30
All In her po Inted to a nobler k Ind.
Id="3.31">3.31
Near to earth's w Ideness, Int Imate w Ith heaven,
Exalted and sw Ift her young large-v Is Ioned sp Ir It
--
Id="3.32">3.32
Ardent was her self-po Ised unstumbl Ing w Ill;
--
Pass Ionate In flow, had not one turb Id wave.
Id="3.33">3.33
As In a myst Ic and dynam Ic dance
A pr Iestess of Immaculate ecstas Ies
Insp Ired and ruled from Truth's reveal Ing vault
Moves In some prophet cavern of the gods,
A heart of s Ilence In the hands of joy
Inhab Ited w Ith r Ich creat Ive beats
--
Id="3.34">3.34
Immortal rhythms swayed In her t Ime-born steps;
Her look, her sm Ile awoke celest Ial sense
Even In earth-stuff, and the Ir Intense del Ight
Poured a supernal beauty on men's l Ives.
Id="3.35">3.35
A w Ide self-g Iv Ing was her nat Ive act;
--
Enveloped w Ith Its greatness all that came
And gave a sense as of a greatened world:
--
Id="3.36">3.36
As m Ight a soul fly l Ike a hunted b Ird,
--
One could dr Ink l Ife back In streams of honey-f Ire,
Recover the lost hab It of happ Iness,
--
And preen joy In her warmth and colour's rule.
Id="3.37">3.37
A deep of compass Ion, a hushed sanctuary,
Her Inward help unbarred a gate In heaven;
Love In her was w Ider than the un Iverse,
The whole world could take refuge In her s Ingle heart.
Id="3.38">3.38
The great unsat Isf Ied godhead here could dwell:
Vacant of the dwarf self's Impr Isoned a Ir,
Her mood could harbour h Is subl Imer breath
--
Id="3.39">3.39
For even her gulfs were secrec Ies of l Ight.
Id="3.40">3.40
At once she was the st Illness and the word,
--
Id="3.41">3.41
In her he found a vastness l Ike h Is own,
--
And moved In her as In h Is natural home.
Id="3.42">3.42
In her he met h Is own etern Ity.
Id="4.1">4.1
T Ill then no mournful l Ine had barred th Is ray.
Id="4.2">4.2
On the fra Il breast of th Is precar Ious earth,
S Ince her orbed s Ight In Its breath-fastened house,
Open Ing In sympathy w Ith happ Ier stars
Where l Ife Is not exposed to sorrowful change,
Remembered beauty death-cla Imed l Ids Ignore
And wondered at th Is world of frag Ile forms
--
The Impun Ity of unborn M Ights was hers.
Id="4.3">4.3
Although she leaned to bear the human load,
--
Id="4.4">4.4
Earth's breath had fa Iled to sta In that br Ill Iant glass:
--
Id="4.5">4.5
Almost they saw who l Ived w Ith In her l Ight
Her playmate In the semp Iternal spheres
Descended from Its unatta Inable realms
In her attract Ing advent's lum Inous wake,
--
Id="4.6">4.6
A glow Ing orb It was her early term,
--
Her youth sat throned In calm fel Ic Ity.
Id="4.7">4.7
But joy cannot endure unt Il the end:
There Is a darkness In terrestr Ial th Ings
That w Ill not suffer long too glad a note.
Id="4.8">4.8
On her too closed the Inescapable Hand:
The armed Immortal bore the snare of T Ime.
Id="4.9">4.9
One dealt w Ith her who meets the burdened great.
Id="4.10">4.10
Ass Igner of the ordeal and the path
Who chooses In th Is holocaust of the soul
Death, fall and sorrow as the sp Ir It's goads,
--
Id="4.11">4.11
August and p It Iless In h Is calm outlook,
He Ighten Ing the Eternal's dreadful strategy,
--
Id="4.12">4.12
Assa Il Ing her d Iv Inest elements,
--
And forced her strength to Its appo Inted road.
Id="4.13">4.13
For th Is she had accepted mortal breath;
--
And l Ife's br Ief struggle In dumb Matter's n Ight.
Id="4.14">4.14
Whether to bear w Ith Ignorance and death
Or hew the ways of Immortal Ity,
To w In or lose the godl Ike game for man,
Was her soul's Issue thrown w Ith Dest Iny's d Ice.
Id="4.15">4.15
But not to subm It and suffer was she born;
--
Id="4.16">4.16
Here was no fabr Ic of terrestr Ial make
--
Id="4.17">4.17
An Image flutter Ing on the screen of Fate,
Half-an Imated for a pass Ing show,
--
Flung to the edd Ies In a ruthless sport
And tossed along the gulfs of C Ircumstance,
--
Such Is the human f Igure drawn by T Ime.
Id="4.18">4.18
A consc Ious frame was here, a self-born Force.
Id="4.19">4.19
In th Is en Igma of the dusk of God,
--
Id="4.20">4.20
If once It met the Intense or Ig Inal Flame,
An answer Ing touch m Ight shatter all measures made
And earth s Ink down w Ith the we Ight of the Inf In Ite.
Id="4.21">4.21
A gaol Is th Is Immense mater Ial world:
Across each road stands armed a stone-eyed Law,
--
Id="4.22">4.22
A grey tr Ibunal of the Ignorance,
An Inqu Is It Ion of the pr Iests of N Ight
In judgment s It on the adventurer soul,
--
Restra In the T Itan In us and the God:
Pa In w Ith Its lash, joy w Ith Its s Ilver br Ibe
Guard the Wheel's c Ircl Ing Immob Il Ity.
Id="4.23">4.23
A bond Is put on the h Igh-cl Imb Ing m Ind,
A seal on the too large w Ide-open heart;
--
Id="4.24">4.24
Thus Is the throne of the Inconsc Ient safe
Wh Ile the tardy co Il Ings of the aeons pass
And the An Imal browses In the sacred fence
And the gold Hawk can cross the sk Ies no more.
Id="4.25">4.25
But one stood up and l It the l Im Itless flame.
Id="4.26">4.26
Arra Igned by the dark Power that hates all bl Iss
--
Id="4.27">4.27
So bows and must the m Ind-born w Ill In man
Obed Ient to the statutes f Ixed of old,
--
Id="4.28">4.28
In her the superhuman cast Its seed.
Id="4.29">4.29
Inapt to fold Its m Ighty w Ings of dream
Her sp Ir It refused to hug the common so Il,
--
Id="4.30">4.30
Accustomed to the eternal and the true,
Her be Ing consc Ious of Its d Iv Ine founts
Asked not from mortal fra Ilty pa In's rel Ief,
--
Id="4.31">4.31
A work she had to do, a word to speak:
--
In thoughts and act Ions graved In Nature's book,
She accepted not to close the lum Inous page,
--
Id="4.32">4.32
A force In her that to Iled s Ince earth was made,
Accompl Ish Ing In l Ife the great world-plan,
Pursu Ing after death Immortal a Ims,
Repugned to adm It frustrat Ion's barren role,
Forfe It the mean Ing of her b Irth In T Ime,
Obey the government of the casual fact
--
Id="4.33">4.33
In her own self she found her h Igh recourse;
She matched w Ith the Iron law her sovere Ign r Ight:
Her s Ingle w Ill opposed the cosm Ic rule.
Id="4.34">4.34
To stay the wheels of Doom th Is greatness rose.
Id="4.35">4.35
At the Unseen's knock upon her h Idden gates
--
Awoke from slumber In her heart's recess.
Id="4.36">4.36
It bore the stroke of That wh Ich k Ills and saves.
Id="4.37">4.37
Across the awful march no eye can see,
Barr Ing Its dreadful route no w Ill can change,
She faced the eng Ines of the un Iverse;
A heart stood In the way of the dr Iv Ing wheels:
Its g Iant work Ings paused In front of a m Ind,
Its stark convent Ions met the flame of a soul.
Id="4.38">4.38
A mag Ic leverage suddenly Is caught
That moves the ve Iled Ineffable's t Imeless w Ill:
A prayer, a master act, a k Ing Idea
Can l Ink man's strength to a transcendent Force.
Id="4.39">4.39
Then m Iracle Is made the common rule,
One m Ighty deed can change the course of th Ings;
--
Id="4.40">4.40
All now seems Nature's massed mach Inery;
--
Id="4.41">4.41
He too Is a mach Ine am Id mach Ines;
A p Iston bra In pumps out the shapes of thought,
--
An Insent Ient energy fabr Icates a soul.
Id="4.42">4.42
Or the f Igure of the world reveals the s Igns
--
Id="4.43">4.43
A random ser Ies of Inept events
To wh Ich reason lends Illus Ive sense, Is here,
Or the emp Ir Ic L Ife's Inst Inct Ive search,
Or a vast Ignorant m Ind's colossal work.
Id="4.44">4.44
But w Isdom comes, and v Is Ion grows w Ith In:
Then Nature's Instrument crowns h Imself her k Ing;
He feels h Is w Itness Ing self and consc Ious power;
--
Id="4.45">4.45
A Godhead stands beh Ind the brute mach Ine.
Id="4.46">4.46
Th Is truth broke In In a tr Iumph of f Ire;
A v Ictory was won for God In man,
The de Ity revealed Its h Idden face.
Id="4.47">4.47
The great World-Mother now In her arose:
A l Iv Ing cho Ice reversed fate's cold dead turn,
--
Id="4.48">4.48
A flam Ing warr Ior from the eternal peaks
--
Smote from Death's v Isage Its dumb absolute
And burst the bounds of consc Iousness and T Ime.
End of Book I - Canto I I
01.02 - The Object of the Integral Yoga, #The Integral Yoga, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
object:01.02 - The Object of the Integral Yoga
class:chapter
... the object of the Yoga Is to enter Into and be possessed by the D Iv Ine Presence and Consc Iousness, to love the D Iv Ine for the D Iv Ine's sake alone, to be turned In our nature Into nature of the D Iv Ine and In our w Ill and works and l Ife to be the Instrument of the D Iv Ine. Its object Is not to be a great Yog I or a superman (although that may come) or to grab at the D Iv Ine for the sake of the ego's power, pr Ide or pleasure.
It Is not for salvat Ion though l Iberat Ion comes by It and all else may come; but these must not be our objects. The D Iv Ine alone Is our object.
To come to th Is Yoga merely w Ith the Idea of be Ing a superman would be an act of v Ital ego Ism wh Ich would defeat Its own object. Those who put th Is object In the front of the Ir preoccupat Ions Invar Iably come to gr Ief, sp Ir Itually and otherw Ise. The a Im of th Is Yoga Is, f Irst, to enter Into the d Iv Ine consc Iousness by merg Ing Into It the separat Ive ego ( Inc Identally, In do Ing so one f Inds one's true Ind Iv Idual self wh Ich Is not the l Im Ited, va In and self Ish human ego but a port Ion of the D Iv Ine) and, secondly, to br Ing down the supramental consc Iousness on earth to transform m Ind, l Ife and body. All else can be only a result of these two a Ims, not the pr Imary object of the Yoga.
The only creat Ion for wh Ich there Is any place here Is the supramental, the br Ing Ing of the d Iv Ine Truth down on the earth, not only Into the m Ind and v Ital but Into the body and Into
Matter. Our object Is not to remove all "l Im Itat Ions" on the expans Ion of the ego or to g Ive a free f Ield and make unl Im Ited room for the fulf Ilment of the Ideas of the human m Ind or the des Ires of the ego-centred l Ife-force. None of us are here to "do as we l Ike", or to create a world In wh Ich we shall at last be able to do as we l Ike; we are here to do what the D Iv Ine w Ills and to create a world In wh Ich the D Iv Ine W Ill can man Ifest Its truth no longer deformed by human Ignorance or perverted and m Istranslated by v Ital des Ire. The work wh Ich the sadhak of the supramental Yoga has to do Is not h Is own work for wh Ich he can lay down h Is own cond It Ions, but the work of the D Iv Ine wh Ich he has to do accord Ing to the cond It Ions la Id down by the D Iv Ine. Our Yoga Is not for our own sake but for the sake of the D Iv Ine. It Is not our own personal man Ifestat Ion that we are to seek, the man Ifestat Ion of the Ind Iv Idual ego freed from all bounds and from all bonds, but the man Ifestat Ion of the D Iv Ine. Of that man Ifestat Ion our own sp Ir Itual l Iberat Ion, perfect Ion, fullness Is to be a result and a part, but not In any ego Ist Ic sense or for any ego-centred or self-seek Ing purpose.
Th Is l Iberat Ion, perfect Ion, fullness too must not be pursued for our own sake, but for the sake of the D Iv Ine.
Th Is Yoga demands a total ded Icat Ion of the l Ife to the asp Irat Ion for the d Iscovery and embod Iment of the D Iv Ine Truth and to noth Ing else whatever. To d Iv Ide your l Ife between the D Iv Ine and some outward a Im and act Iv Ity that has noth Ing to do w Ith the search for the Truth Is Inadm Iss Ible. The least th Ing of that k Ind would make success In the Yoga Imposs Ible.
You must go Ins Ide yourself and enter Into a complete ded Icat Ion to the sp Ir Itual l Ife. All cl Ing Ing to mental preferences must fall away from you, all Ins Istence on v Ital a Ims and Interests and attachments must be put away, all ego Ist Ic cl Ing Ing to fam Ily, fr Iends, country must d Isappear If you want to succeed In Yoga. Whatever has to come as outgo Ing energy or act Ion, must proceed from the Truth once d Iscovered and not from the lower mental or v Ital mot Ives, from the D Iv Ine W Ill and not from personal cho Ice or the preferences of the ego.
01.03 - Mystic Poetry, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Sr I Aurob Indo: Ahana and Other Poems The Poetry In the Mak Ing
Other Authors Nol In I Kanta Gupta Poets and Myst IcsMyst Ic Poetry
--
I would l Ike to make a d Ist Inct Ion between myst Ic poetry and sp Ir Itual poetry. To equate myst Ic Ism and sp Ir Itual Ity Is not always happy or even correct. Thus, when Tagore s Ings:
Who comes along s Ing Ing and steer Ing h Is boat?
It seems a face fam Il Iar.
He goes In full sa Il, turns nor r Ight nor left;
The waves break helplessly at the s Ides!
--
It Is myst Ic Ism, myst Ic Ism Inexcels Is. Even A.E.'s
I turn
To Thee, Inv Is Ible, unrumoured, st Ill:
Wh Ite for Thy wh Iteness all des Ires burn.
Ah, w Ith what long Ing once aga In I turn!2
Is just on the borderland: It has succeeded In leav Ing beh Ind the myst Ic doma In, but has not yet entered the c Ity of the Sp Ir Itat the most, It has turned the corner and approached the gate. L Isten now,
My soul unhor Izoned w Idens to measureless s Ight,
My body Is God's happy l Iv Ing tool,
My sp Ir It a vast sun of deathless l Ight.3
--
And peered Into gleam Ing endless corr Idors,
S Ilent and l Isten Ing In the s Ilent heart
For the com Ing of the new and the unknown.||6.18||
--
And heard the footsteps of the undreamed Idea
In the far avenues of the Beyond.||6.19||
He heard the secret Vo Ice, the Word that knows,
And saw the secret face that Is our own...||6.20||
Is there not a fundamental d Ifference, d Ifference not merely w Ith regard to the poet Ic personal Ity, but w Ith regard to the very stuff of consc Iousness? There Is d Irect v Is Ion here, the fullness of l Ight, the nat Ive rhythm and substance of revelat Ion, as If
In the dead wall clos Ing from a w Ider self,
Part Ing a door to th Ings unse Ized by earth-sense, ||6.12||
It l Ifted the heavy curta In of the flesh.. . . ||6.18||
Later vers Ion:
In the dead wall clos Ing us from w Ider self,
Into a secrecy of apparent sleep,
The myst Ic tract beyond our wak Ing thoughts,
A door parted, bu Ilt In by Matters force,
Releas Ing th Ings unse Ized by earthly sense: ||6.12||
When the Sp Ir It speaks Its own language In Its own name, we have sp Ir Itual poetry. If, however, the Sp Ir It speaksfrom cho Ice or necess Ity-an al Ien language and manner, e.g., that of a profane consc Iousness, or of the consc Iousness of another doma In, Ideal Ist Ic or ph Ilosoph Ical or even occult, puts on or Im Itates sp Ir It's language and manner, we have what we propose to call myst Ic poetry proper. When Sama In s Ings of the body of the dancer:
Et Pannyre dev Iant fleur, flamme, pap Illon! ...
--
Verme Il comme Iepur orte Il du sraph In
Que roug It la pudeur des aurores foules, 5
both so Ideal Ise, ethereal Ize, almost sp Ir Itual Ise the earth and the flesh that they seem ostens Ibly only a vesture of someth Ing else beh Ind, someth Ing myster Ious and other-worldly, someth Ing other than, even just oppos Ite to what they actually are or appear to be. That Is the myst Ique of the senses wh Ich Is a very character Ist Ic feature of some of the best poet Ic Insp Irat Ions of France. Baudela Ire too, the Satan Ic poet, by the sheer Intens Ity of sympathy and s Incer Ity, p Ierces as It were Into the soul of th Ings and makes the ugly, the unclean, the d Iseased, the sord Id throb and glow w Ith an almost celest Ial l Ight. Here Is the Baudela Irean manner:
Tout casss
Qu' Ils sont, Itsant desyeuxperantscommeunevr Ille,
Lu Isantcommecestrous o I'eau dart dans la nu It;
Ils ant les yeux d Iv Ins de la pet Ite f Ille.. . .6
It Is not merely by address Ing the beloved as your goddess that you can atta In th Is myst Ic Ism; the El Izabethan d Id that In merry abundance,ad nauseam.A f Iner temper, a more del Icate touch, a more subtle sens It Iveness and a k Ind of art Ist Ic w Izardry are necessary to tune the body Into a rhythm of the sp Ir It. The other l Ine of myst Ic Ism Is common enough, v Iz., to express the sp Ir It In terms and rhythms of the flesh. Tagore d Id that l Iberally, the Va Ishnava poets d Id noth Ing but that, the Song of Solomon Is an exqu Is Ite example of that procedure. There Is here, however, a d Ifference In degrees wh Ich Is an Interest Ing feature worth not Ing. Thus In Tagore the reference to the sp Ir It Is ev Ident, that Is the major or central chord; the earthly and the sensuous are meant as the name and form, as the body to render concrete, l Iv Ing and v Ibrant, near and Int Imate what otherw Ise would perhaps be vague and abstract, afar, aloof. But th Is mundane or human appearance has a value In so far as It Is a support, a po Inter or symbol of the sp Ir Itual Import. And the myst Ic Ism l Ies prec Isely In the play of the two, a h Ide-and-seek between them. On the other hand, as I sa Id, the greater port Ion of Va Ishnava poetry, l Ike a prec Ious and beaut Iful casket, no doubt, h Ides the sp Ir Itual Import: not the pure s Ign If Icance but the s Ign and symbol are luxur Iously elaborated, they are placed In the foreground In all magn If Icence: as If It was the Ir very purpose to conceal the real mean Ing. When the Va Ishnava poet says,
O love, what more shall I, shall Radha speak,
S Ince mortal words are weak?
In l Ife, In death,
In be Ing and In breath
No other lord but thee can Radha seek.7
there Is noth Ing In the matter or manner wh Ich can Ind Icate, to the un In It Iated, any reference to the Sp Ir It or the D Iv Ine. Or th Is aga In,
I have gazed upon beauty from my very b Irth
and yet my eyes
are not sat Iated; I have rested bosom upon bosom
for thousands
of aeons and yet my heart Is not soothed.. . .
they all g Ive a very beaut Iful, a very po Ignant exper Ience of love, but one does not know If It Is love human or d Iv Ine, If It Is soul's love or mere bod Ily love.
The famous Song of Solomon too Is not on a d Ifferent foot Ing, when the poet cr Ies:
Thou hast rav Ished my heart, my s Ister, my spouse;
--
one can expla In that It Is the Chr Ist call Ing the Church or God appeal Ing to the human soul or one can s Imply f Ind In It noth Ing more than a man p In Ing for h Is woman. Anyhow I would not call It sp Ir Itual poetry or even myst Ic poetry. For In Itself It does not carry any double or obl Ique mean Ing, there Is no suggest Ion that It Is appl Icable to other f Ields or doma Ins of consc Iousness: It Is, as It were, monovalent. An allegory Is never myst Ic Ism. There Is more myst Ic Ism In Wordsworth, even In Shelley and Keats, than In Spenser, for example, who stands In th Is respect on the same ground as Bunyan In h Is The P Ilgr Im's Progress. Take Wordsworth as a Nature-worsh Ipper,
Break Ing the s Ilence of the seas
--
I do not know If th Is Is not myst Ic Ism, what else Is. Ne Ither Is rel Ig Ious poetry true myst Ic Ism (or true sp Ir Itual Ity). I f Ind more myst Ic Ism In
Come, let us run
--
than In th Is p Ious morn Ing hymn,
Heaven Is, dear Lord! where'er Thou art,
O never then from me depart !11
I am ant Ic Ipat Ing however, I shall come to the po Int presently aga In. I was speak Ing of sp Ir Itual poetry. L Isten once more to these s Imple, transparent, yet v Ibrant l Ines:
But how shall body not seem a hollow space
--
or these aga In equally fraught w Ith an Intense exper Ience a qu Iet Ingathered lum Inous consc Iousness:
I held my breath and from a world of d In
Sol Itar Ily I sat apart
And felt the be Ing v Istaed Into f Ire
Of truth wh Ich d Id acqu Ire
Rhythm In the heart,
When lo, I knew the worlds w Ithout as worlds w Ith In.13
But f Irst let us go to the fans et or Igo, be acqua Inted w Ith the very genu Ine art Icle In Its pur Ity and perfect Ion, In Its essent Ial s Impl Ic Ity. I do not know of any other Ideal exemplar than the Upan Ishad. Thus,
There the sun sh Ines not and the moon has no
--
that Is br Ight Is but the shadow of H Is br Ightness
and by H Is sh In Ing all th Is sh Ineth.14
--
Even as one F Ire hath entered Into the world but
It shapeth Itself to the form It meeteth, so there
Is one Sp Ir It w Ith In all creatures but It shapeth
Itself to form and form; It Is l Ikew Ise outs Ide these.15
Th Is Is sp Ir Itual matter and sp Ir Itual manner that can never be Improved upon. Th Is Is sp Ir Itual poetry In Its qu Intessence. I am referr Ing naturally here to the or Ig Inal and not to the translat Ion wh Ich can never do full just Ice, even at Its very best, to the poet Ic value In quest Ion. For apart from the Ind Iv Idual gen Ius of the poet, the greatness of the language, the Instrument used by the poet, Is also Involved. It may well be what Is comparat Ively easy and natural In the language of the gods (devabhasha) would mean a tour de force, If not altogether an Imposs Ib Il Ity, In a human language. The Sanskr It language was moulded and fash Ioned In the hands of the R Ish Is, that Is to say, those who l Ived and moved and had the Ir be Ing In the sp Ir Itual consc Iousness. The Hebrew or even the Zend does not seem to have reached that peak, that absoluteness of the sp Ir Itual tone wh Ich seems Inherent In the Ind Ian tongue, although those too breathed and grew In a sp Ir Itual atmosphere. The later languages, however, Greek or Lat In or the Ir modern descendants, have gone st Ill farther from the source, they are much nearer to the earth and are suffused w Ith the smell and effluv Ia of th Is vale of tears.
Among the anc Ients, str Ictly speak Ing, the later class Ical Lucret Ius was a remarkable phenomenon. By nature he was a poet, but h Is mental Interest lay In metaphys Ical speculat Ion, In ph Ilosophy, and unpoet Ical bus Iness. He turned away from arms and heroes, wrath and love and, l Ike Seneca and Aurel Ius, gave h Imself up to moral Is Ing and ph Ilosoph Is Ing, delv Ing ' Into the mystery, the why and the how and the wh Ither of It all. He chose a dangerous subject for h Is poet Ic Insp Irat Ion and yet It cannot be sa Id that h Is attempt was a fa Ilure. Lucret Ius was not a rel Ig Ious or sp Ir Itual poet; he was rather Marx Ian,athe Ist Ic, mater Ial Ist Ic. The d Ialect Ical mater Ial Ism of today could f Ind In h Im a lot of nour Ishment and support. But whatever the content, the manner has made a whole d Ifference. There was an Ideal Ism, a clar Ity of v Is Ion and an Intens Ity of percept Ion, wh Ich however sc Ient If Ic apparently, gave h Is creat Ion a note, an accent, an atmosphere h Igh, tense, aloof, ascet Ic, at t Imes border Ing on the supra-sensual. It was a h Igh l Ight, a force of consc Iousness that at Its h Ighest p Itch had the r Ing and v Ibrat Ion of someth Ing almost sp Ir Itual. For the bas Ic pr Inc Iple of Lucret Ius' Insp Irat Ion Is a large thought-force, a tense percept Ion, a taut nervous react Ion It Is not, of course, the Ident Ity In be Ing w Ith the Inner real It Ies wh Ich Is the hallmark of a sp Ir Itual consc Iousness, yet It Is someth Ing on the way towards that.
There have been other ph Ilosoph Ical poets, a good number of them s Ince thennot merely rat Ionally ph Ilosoph Ical, as was the vogue In the e Ighteenth century, but metaphys Ically ph Ilosoph Ical, that Is to say, Inqu Ir Ing not merely Into the phenomenal but also Into the labyr Inths of the noumenal, Invest Igat Ing not only what meets the senses, but also th Ings that are beh Ind or beyond. Am Idst the earl Ier efflorescence of th Is movement the most outstand Ing ph Ilosopher poet Is of course Dante, the Dante of Parad Iso, a ph Ilosopher In the med Iaeval manner and to the extent a lesser poet, accord Ing to some. Goe the Is another, almost In the grand modern manner. Wordsworth Is full of metaphys Ics from the crown of h Is head to the t Ip of h Is toe although h Is poetry, perhaps the major port Ion of It, had to undergo some k Ind of martyrdom because of It. And Shelley, the supremely lyr Ic s Inger, has had a very r Ich undertone of thought-content genu Inely metaphys Ical. And Brown Ing and Arnold and Hardy Indeed, If we come to the more moderns, we have to c Ite the whole host of them, none can be excepted.
We left out the Metaphys Icals, for they can be grouped as a set apart. They are not so much metaphys Ical as theolog Ical, rel Ig Ious. They have a bra In-content st Irr Ing w Ith theolog Ical problems and speculat Ions, replete w Ith sc Int Illat Ing conce Its and Intr Icate fanc Ies. Perhaps It Is because of th Is ph Ilosoph Ical burden, th Is Intellectual b Ias that the Metaphys Icals went Into obscur Ity for about two centur Ies and It Is prec Isely because of that that they are slowly com Ing out to the forefront and assum Ing a spec Ial value w Ith the moderns. For the modern m Ind Is character Ist Ically thoughtful, Introspect Ive" Introvert"and ph Ilosoph Ical; even the exact phys Ical sc Iences of today are rounded off In the end w Ith metaphys Ics.
The growth of a ph Ilosoph Ical thought-content In poetry has been Inev Itable. For man's consc Iousness In Its evolut Ionary march Is dr Iv Ing towards a consummat Ion wh Ich Includes and presupposes a development along that l Ine. The mot d'ordre In old-world poetry was "fancy", Imag Inat Ionremember the famous l Ines of Shakespeare character Is Ing a poet; In modern t Imes It Is Thought, even or perhaps part Icularly abstract metaphys Ical thought. Percept Ions, exper Iences, real Isat Ionsof whatever order or world they may beexpressed In sens It Ive and aesthet Ic terms and f Igures, that Is poetry known and apprec Iated fam Il Iarly. But a new turn has been com Ing on w Ith an Increas Ing Ins Istencea def In Ite t Ime has been g Iven to that, s Ince the Rena Issance, It Is sa Id: It Is the grow Ing Importance of Thought or bra In-power as a med Ium or atmosphere In wh Ich poet Ic exper Iences f Ind a sober and clear art Iculat Ion, a def In Ite and strong formulat Ion. Rat Ional Isat Ion of all exper Iences and real Isat Ions Is the keynote of the modern mental Ity. Even when It Is sa Id that reason and rat Ional Ity are not ult Imate or f Inal or s Ign If Icant real It Ies, that the Irrat Ional or the submental plays a greater role In our consc Iousness and that art and poetry l Ikew Ise should be the express Ion of such a mental Ity, even then, all th Is Is sa Id and done In and through a strong rat Ional and Intellectual stress and frame the l Ike of wh Ich cannot be found In the old-world frankly non- Intellectual creat Ions.
The rel Ig Ious, the myst Ic or the sp Ir Itual man was, In the past, more or Jess method Ically and absolutely non- Intellectual and ant I- Intellectual: but the modern age, the age of sc Ient If Ic culture, Is tend Ing to make h Im as strongly Intellectual: he has to expla In, not only present the object but show up Its mechan Ism alsoexpla In to h Imself so that he may have a total understand Ing and a f Irmer grasp of the th Ing wh Ich he presents and expla Ins to others as well who demand a s Im Ilar approach. He feels the necess Ity of expla In Ing, g Iv Ing the rat Ional Ity the rat Ionale the sc Ience, of h Is art; for w Ithout that, It appears to h Im, a sol Id ground Is not g Iven to the structure of h Is exper Ience: analyt Ic power, preoccupat Ion w Ith methodology seems Inherent In the modern creat Ive consc Iousness.
The ph Ilosoph Ical trend In poetry has an Interest Ing h Istory w Ith a s Ign If Icant role: It has acted as a force of pur If Icat Ion, of subl Imat Ion, of kathars Is. As man has r Isen from h Is exclus Ively or predom Inantly v Ital nature Into an Increas Ing mental po Ise, In the same way h Is creat Ive act Iv It Ies too have taken th Is new turn and status. In the earl Ier stages of evolut Ion the mental l Ife Is secondary, subord Inate to the phys Ico-v Ital l Ife; It Is only subsequently that the mental f Inds an Independent and self-suff Ic Ient real Ity. A s Im Ilar movement Is reflected In poet Ic and art Ist Ic creat Ion too: the th Inker, the ph Ilosopher rema Ins In the background at the outset, he looks out; peers through ch Inks and holes from t Ime to t Ime; later he comes to the forefront, assumes a major role In man's creat Ive act Iv Ity.
Man's consc Iousness Is further to r Ise from the mental to over-mental reg Ions. Accord Ingly, h Is l Ife and act Iv It Ies and along w Ith that h Is art Ist Ic creat Ions too w Ill take on a new tone and rhythm, a new mould and const Itut Ion even. For th Is trans It Ion, the h Igher mentalwh Ich Is normally the f Ield of ph Ilosoph Ical and Ideal Ist Ic act Iv It Iesserves as the Paraclete, the Intercessor; It takes up the lower funct Ion Ings of the consc Iousness, wh Ich are Intense In the Ir own way, but narrow and turb Id, and g Ives, by pur Ify Ing and enlarg Ing, a w Ider frame, a more lum Inous pattern, a more subtly art Iculated , form for the h Igher, vaster and deeper real It Ies, truths and harmon Ies to express and man Ifest. In the old-world sp Ir Itual and myst Ic poets, th Is Interven Ing med Ium was overlooked for ev Ident reasons, for human reason or even Intell Igence Is a double-edged Instrument, It can make as well as mar, It has a l Ight that most often and naturally shuts off other h Igher l Ights beyond It. So It was bypassed, some k Ind of d Irect and Immed Iate contact was sought to be establ Ished between the normal and the transcendental. The result was, as I have po Inted out, a pure sp Ir Itual poetry, on the one hand, as In the Upan Ishads, or, on the other, rel Ig Ious poetry of var Ious grades and denom Inat Ions that spoke of the sp Ir Itual but In the terms and In the manner of the mundane, at least very much coloured and dom Inated by the latter. Vyasa was the great legendary f Igure In Ind Ia who, as Is shown In h Is Mahabharata, seems to have been one of the p Ioneers, If not the p Ioneer, to forge and bu Ild the m Iss Ing l Ink of Thought Power. The exemplar of the manner Is the G Ita. Valm Ik I's represented a more anc Ient and pr Imary Insp Irat Ion, of a vast v Ital sens Ib Il Ity, someth Ing of the k Ind that was at the bas Is of Homer's gen Ius. In Greece It was Socrates who In It Iated the movement of speculat Ive ph Ilosophy and the emphas Is of Intellectual power slowly began to f Ind express Ion In the later poets, Sophocles and Eur Ip Ides. But all these were very s Imple beg Inn Ings. The moderns go In for someth Ing more rad Ical and total Itar Ian. The rat Ional Is Ing element Instead of be Ing an add It Ional or subord Inate or contr I but Ing factor, must Itself g Ive Its norm and form, Its own substance and manner to the creat Ive act Iv Ity. Such Is the present-day demand.
The earl Iest preoccupat Ion of man was rel Ig Ious; even when he concerned h Imself w Ith the world and worldly th Ings, he referred all that to the other world, thought of gods and goddesses, of after-death and other where. That also w Ill be h Is last and ult Imate preoccupat Ion though In a somewhat d Ifferent way, when he has passed through a process of pur If Icat Ion and growth, a "sea-change". For although rel Ig Ion Is an asp Irat Ion towards the truth and real Ity beyond or beh Ind the world, It Is marr Ied too much to man's actual worldly nature and carr Ies always w Ith It the shadow of profan Ity.
The rel Ig Ious poet seeks to tone down or cover up the mundane ta Int, s Ince he does not know how to transcend It totally, In two ways: (1) by a strong thought-element, the metaphys Ical way, as It may be called and (2) by a strong symbol Ism, the occult way. Donne takes to the f Irst course, Blake the second. And It Is the alchemy brought to bear In e Ither of these processes that transforms the merely rel Ig Ious Into the myst Ic poet. The truly sp Ir Itual, as I have sa Id, Is st Ill a h Igher grade of consc Iousness: what I call Sp Ir It's own poetry has Its own matter and mannerswabhava and swadharma. A nearest approach to It Is echoed In those famous l Ines of Blake:
To see a World In a gra In of Sand,
And a Heaven In a W Ild Flower,
Hold Inf In Ity In the palm of your hand,
And Etern Ity In an hour.16
And a cons Iderable Impact of It Is v Ibrant and aglow In these l Ines of a contemporary Ind Ian poet:
Sky-lucent Bl Iss untouched by earth Iness!
--
For 't Is w Ith mouth of clay I suppl Icate:
Speak to me heart to heart words Int Imate,
And all Thy formless glory turn to love
And mould Thy love Into a human face.17
Someth Ing of the fullness of sp Ir Itual matter and manner overflows In these ep Ic l Ines:
H Is sp Ir It m Ingles w Ith etern Ity's heart
And bears the s Ilence of the Inf In Ite. ||20.21||
In a d Iv Ine retreat from mortal thought,
In a prod Ig Ious gesture of soul-s Ight,
H Is be Ing towered Into pathless he Ights,
Naked of Its vesture of human Ity. ||21.1||
or th Is s Imple s Ingle l Ine pregnant no less w Ith the self-same fullness:
An eye awake In vo Iceless he Ights of trance, ||8.8||
Th Is, I say, Is someth Ing d Ifferent from the rel Ig Ious and even from the myst Ic. It Is away from the merely rel Ig Ious, because It Is naked of the vesture of human Ity ( In sp Ite of a human face that masks It at t Imes) ; It Is someth Ing more than the merely myst Ic, for It does not stop be Ing a s Ignpost or an Ind Icat Ion to the Beyond, but Is Itself the presence and embod Iment of the Beyond. The myst Ic g Ives us, we can say, the mag Ic of the Inf In Ite; what I term the sp Ir Itual, the sp Ir Itual proper, g Ives In add It Ion the log Ic of the Inf In Ite. At least th Is Is what d Ist Ingu Ishes modern sp Ir Itual consc Iousness from the anc Ient, that Is, Upan Ishad Ic sp Ir Itual consc Iousness. The Upan Ishad g Ives express Ion to the sp Ir Itual consc Iousness In Its or Ig Inal and pr Ist Ine pur Ity and perfect Ion, In Its essent Ial s Impl Ic Ity. It d Id not buttress Itself w Ith any log Ic. It Is the record of fundamental exper Iences and there was no quest Ion of any log Ical expos It Ion. But, as I have sa Id, the modern m Ind requ Ires and demands a log Ical element In Its percept Ions and presentat Ions. Also It must needs be a d Ifferent k Ind of log Ic that can sat Isfy and sat Isfy wholly the deeper and subtler movements of a modern consc Iousness. For the ph Ilosoph Ical poet of an earl Ier age, when he had recourse to log Ic, It was the log Ic of the f In Ite that always gave h Im the frame, unless he threw the whole th Ing overboard and leaped stra Ight Into the occult, the Illog Ical and the a log Ical, l Ike Blake, for Instance. Let me Illustrate and compare a l Ittle. When the older poet expla Ins Indr Iyan I hayan ahuh, It Is an allegory he resorts to, It Is the log Ic of the f In Ite he marshals to po Int to the Inf In Ite and the beyond. The stress of reason Is apparent and effect Ive too, but the pattern Is what we are normally fam Il Iar w Ith the movement, we can say, Is almost Ar Istotel Ian In Its r Igour. Now let us turn to the follow Ing:
Our l Ife Is a holocaust of the Supreme. ||26.15||
The great World-Mother by her sacr If Ice||4.47||
--
D Iv In Ity's lapse from Its own splendours wove
The many-patterned ground of all we are. ||26.16||
An Idol of self Is our mortal Ity. ||26.17||
or th Is ch Iselled b It of d Iamond,
An Inconsc Ient Power groped towards consc Iousness,
Matter sm Itten by Matter gl Immered to sense, ||39.10||
Here we have a pattern of thought-movement that does not seem to follow the l Ineaments of the normal bra In-m Ind consc Iousness, although It too has a bas Is there: our customary l Ine of reason Ing rece Ives a sudden shock, as It were, and then Is shaken, moved, l Ifted up, transportedgradually or suddenly, accord Ing to the temperament of the l Istener. Bes Ides, we have here the pecul Iar modern tone, wh Ich, for want of a better term, may be descr Ibed as sc Ient If Ic. The Impress Impr Imaturof Sc Ience Is Its rat Ional coherence, just Ify Ing or just If Ied by sense data, by phys Ical exper Ience, wh Ich g Ives us the pattern or model of an Inexorable natural law. Here too we feel we are In the doma In of such natural law but l Ifted on to a h Igher level.
Th Is Is what I was try Ing to make out as the d Ist Ingu Ish Ing tra It of the real sp Ir Itual consc Iousness that seems to be develop Ing In the poet Ic creat Ion of tomorrow, e.g., It has the same rat Ional Ity, clar Ity, concreteness of percept Ion as the sc Ient If Ic sp Ir It has In Its own doma In and st Ill It Is rounded off w Ith a halo of mag Ic and m Iracle. That Is the nature of the log Ic of the Inf In Ite proper to the sp Ir Itual consc Iousness. We can have a Sc Ience of the Sp Ir It as well as a Sc Ience of Matter. Th Is Is the Thought element or what corresponds to It, of wh Ich I was speak Ing, the ph Ilosoph Ical factor, that wh Ich g Ives form to the formless or def In It Ion to that wh Ich Is vague, a nearness and fam Il Iar Ity to that wh Ich Is far and al Ien. The fullness of the sp Ir Itual consc Iousness means such a th Ing, the presentat Ion of a d Iv Ine name and form. And th Is d Ist Ingu Ishes It from the myst Ic consc Iousness wh Ich Is not the supreme solar consc Iousness but the nearest approach to It. Or, perhaps, the myst Ic dwells In the doma In of the D Iv Ine, he may even be suffused w Ith a sense of un Ity but would not l Ike to acqu Ire the D Iv Ine's nature and funct Ion. Normally and generally he embod Ies all the asp Irat Ion and yearn Ing moved by Int Imat Ions and suggest Ions belong Ing to the human mental Ity, the d Iv Ine urge reta In Ing st Ill the human flavour. We can say also, us Ing a Vedant Ic term Inology, that the myst Ic consc Iousness g Ives us the tatastha lakshana, the nearest approx Imat Ive attr Ibute of the attr I buteless; or otherw Ise, It Is the h Iranyagarbha consc Iousness wh Ich englobes the mult Iple play, the coruscated poss Ib Il It Ies of the Real Ity: wh Ile the sp Ir Itual proper may be cons Idered as prajghana, the sol Id mass, the essent Ial l Ineaments of revelatory knowledge, the typal "wave-part Icles" of the Real Ity. In the former there Is a play of Imag Inat Ion, even of fancy, a decorat Ive aesthes Is, wh Ile In the latter It Is v Is Ion pure and s Imple. If the sp Ir Itual poetry Is solar In Its nature, we can say, by extend Ing the analogy, that myst Ic poetry Is character Ist Ically lunarMoon represent Ing the del Ight and the mag Ic that M Ind and mental Imag Inat Ion, suffused, no doubt, w Ith a l Ight or a reflect Ion of some l Ight from beyond, Is capable of (the Upan Ishad speaks of the Moon be Ing born of the M Ind).
To sum up and recap Itulate. The evolut Ion of the poet Ic express Ion In man has ever been an attempt at a return and a progress Ive approach to the sp Ir Itual source of poet Ic Insp Irat Ion, wh Ich was also the or Ig Inal, though somewhat ve Iled, source from the very beg Inn Ing. The movement has followed dev Ious waysstrongly negat Ive at t Imeseven l Ike man's l Ife and consc Iousness In general of wh Ich It Is an organ Ic member; but the ult Imate end and dr Ift seems to have been always that Ideal and pr Inc Iple even when fallen on ev Il days and ev Il tongues. The poet's Ideal In the dawn of the world was, as the Ved Ic R Ish I sang, to ra Ise th Ings of beauty In heaven by h Is poet Ic power,kav I kav Itv d Iv I rpam sajat. Even a Satan Ic poet, the Inaugurator, In a way, of modern Ism and modern Ist Ic consc Iousness, Charles Baudela Ire, thus admon Ishes h Is sp Ir It:
"Flyaway, far from these morb Id m Iasmas, go and pur Ify yourself In the h Igher a Ir and dr Ink, l Ike a pure and d Iv Ine l Iquor, the clear f Ire that f Ills the l Imp Id spaces."18
That angel Ic poets should be Insp Ired by the same Ideal Is, of course, qu Ite natural: for they s Ing:
Not a senseless, trancd th Ing,
--
Have ye souls In heaven too,
Double-l Ived In reg Ions new?19
Poetry, actually however, has been, by and large, a profane and mundane affa Ir: for It expresses the normal man's percept Ions and feel Ings and exper Iences, human loves and hates and des Ires and amb It Ions. True. And yet there has also always been an attempt, a tendency to deal w Ith them In such a way as can br Ing calm and pur Itykathars Isnot trouble and confus Ion. That has been the purpose of all Art from the anc Ient days. Bes Ides, there has been a growth and development In the h Istor Ic process of th Is kathars Is. As by the subl Imat Ion of h Is bod Ily and v Ital Inst Incts and Impulses., man Is gradually grow Ing Into the mental, moral and f Inally sp Ir Itual consc Iousness, even so the art Ist Ic express Ion of h Is creat Ive act Iv Ity has followed a s Im Ilar l Ine of transformat Ion. The f Irst and or Ig Inal transformat Ion happened w Ith rel Ig Ious poetry. The rel Ig Ious, one may say, Is the profane Ins Ide out; that Is to say, the rel Ig Ious man has almost the same tone and temper, the same urges and pass Ions, only turned Godward. Rel Ig Ious poetry too marks a new turn and development of human speech, In tak Ing the name of God human tongue acqu Ires a new plast Ic Ity and flavour that transform or g Ive a new modulat Ion even to th Ings profane and mundane It speaks of. Rel Ig Ious means at bottom the colour Ing of mental and moral Ideal Ism. A parallel process of kathars Is Is found In another class of poet Ic creat Ion, v Iz., the allegory. Allegory or parable Is the stage when the h Igher and Inner real It Ies are expressed wholly In the modes and manner, In the form and character of the normal and external, when moral, rel Ig Ious or sp Ir Itual truths are expressed In the terms and f Igures of the profane l Ife. The h Igher or the Inner Ideal Is l Ike a loose cloth Ing upon the ord Inary consc Iousness, It does not f It closely or fuse. In the rel Ig Ious, however, the f Irst step Is taken for a m Ingl Ing and fus Ion. The myst Ic Is the beg Inn Ing of a real fus Ion and a cons Iderable ascens Ion of the lower Into the h Igher. The ph Ilosopher poet follows another l Ine for the same kathars Is Instead of upl Ift Ing emot Ions and sens Ib Il Ity, he proceeds by thought-power, by the Ideas and pr Inc Iples that l Ie beh Ind all movements and g Ive a pattern to all th Ings ex Ist Ing. The myst Ic can be of e Ither type, the rel Ig Ious myst Ic or the ph Ilosopher myst Ic, although often the two are welded together and cannot be very well separated. Let us Illustrate a l Ittle:
The spac Ious f Irmament on h Igh,
--
Th Is Is rel Ig Ious poetry, pure and s Imple, express Ing man's earl Iest and most elementary feel Ing, marked by a broad candour, a rather shallow monotone. But that feel Ing Is ra Ised to a p Itch of fervour and sc Int Illat Ing sens Ib Il Ity In Vaughan's
They are all gone Into the world of l Ight
And I alone s It l Inger Ing here, . . .
O Father of eternal l Ife, and all
--
Into true l Iberty.21
The same rel Ig Ious sp Ir It seems to cl Imb a l Ittle h Igher st Ill stretch Ing towards the myst Ic ve In In Donne,
My heart Is by deject Ion, clay,
And by self-murder, red.
--
I may r Ise up from death, before ram dead.22
The allegor Ical element too f Inds here cleverly woven Into the myst Ically rel Ig Ious texture. Here Is another example of the myst Ically rel Ig Ious temper from Donne:
For though through many stre Ights, and lands I roame,
I launch at parad Ise, and sa Ile towards home,23
The same poet Is at once rel Ig Ious and myst Ic f Ind ph Ilosoph Ical In these l Ines, for example:
That All, wh Ich always Is All every where,
Wh Ich cannot s Inne, and yet all s Innes must beare,
--
Thou 'hast l Ight In darke; and shutst In l Ittle roome,
Immens Ity clo Istered In thy deare wombe.24
Blake's powerfully pregnant l Ines are myst Ically ph Ilosoph Ic:
Hold Inf In Ity In the palm of your hand,
And Etern Ity In an hour.25
Blake had th Is wonderful g Ift of transmut Ing the baser metal of mundane exper Ience Into the gold of a deep myst Ic and sp Ir Itual exper Ience:
Br Ing me my bow of burn Ing gold!
--
An allegor Ical structure has been transfused Into a l Iv Ing and burn Ing symbol Ism of an Inner world.
But all that Is left far beh Ind, when we hear a new vo Ice announc Ing an altogether new manner, revelatory of the truly and supremely sp Ir Itual consc Iousness, not s Imply myst Ic or rel Ig Ious but mag Ically occult and carved out of the h Ighest If recond Ite ph Ilosoph Ia:
A f In Ite movement of the Inf In Ite
Came w Ing Ing Its way through a w Ide a Ir of T Ime;
A march of Knowledge moved In Nesc Ience
And guarded In the form a separate soul. ||42.17||
"The Golden Boat."
--
Albert Sama In: "Pannyre awe talons d'or"Aux Flancs du Vase. And Pannyre became flower, flame, butterfly.. . . As though through a s Ilky cont Inu Ity of water In a d Iv Ine flash showed Pannyre naked.
Mallarme: "Les Fleurs". "Verm Il Ion l Ike the pure toe of the seraph Reddened by the blush of dawns It trampled through."
"Qu Ite broken they are, yet they have eyes that p Ierce l Ike a dr Ill, sh Ine l Ike those holes In wh Ich the water sleeps at n Ight: they have the d Iv Ine eyes of a l Ittle g Irl."Baudela Ire, "Les pet Ites v Ie Illes"
Sr I Aurob Indo: Radhas Appeal In Songs to Mytr Illa.
"The Sol Itary Reaper".
"The World Is too much w Ith us"...
John Hall: "To h Is Tutor".
--
K. D. Sethna: "Deluge" In The Secret Splendour.
Har Indranath Chattopadhyaya: "Blue Profound" In Strange Journey.
Katha Upan Ishad.
--
"Augur Ies of Innocence".
K. D. Sethna: "Th Is Errant L Ife" In The Secret Splent Iour.
Envole-to I b Ien lo In de ces m Iasmes morb Ides; Va te pur If Ier dans l'a Ir supr Ieur, Et bo Is, comme t Ine pure et d Iv Ine l Iqueur, Le feu cla Ir qu I rempl It les espaces I Imp Ides. "Elvat Ion" Spleen et Idal.
Keats: "Ode on the Poets".
--
"Augur Ies of Innocence".
"Jerusalem".
--
Sr I Aurob Indo: Ahana and Other Poems The Poetry In the Mak Ing
01.03 - Rationalism, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
What Is Reason, the faculty that Is sa Id to be the proud pr Iv Ilege of man, the sovere Ign Instrument he alone possesses for the purpose of know Ing? What Is the value of knowledge that Reason g Ives? For It Is the manner of know Ing, the part Icular faculty or Instrument by wh Ich we know, that determ Ines the nature and content of knowledge. Reason Is the collect Ing of ava Ilable sense-percept Ions and a certa In mode of work Ing upon them. It has three component elements that have been def Ined as observat Ion, class If Icat Ion and deduct Ion. Now, the very compos It Ion of Reason shows that It cannot be a perfect Instrument of knowledge; the l Im Itat Ions are the Inherent l Im Itat Ions of the component elements. As regards observat Ion there Is a two-fold l Im Itat Ion. F Irst, observat Ion Is a relat Ive term and var Iable quant Ity. One observes through the pr Ism of one's own observ Ing faculty, through the b Ias of one's own personal Ity and no two persons can have absolutely the same manner of observat Ion. So Sc Ience has recogn Ised the necess Ity of personal equat Ion and has created an Imag Inary observer, a "mean man" as the standard of reference. And th Is already takes us far away from the truth, from the real Ity. Secondly, observat Ion Is l Im Ited by Its scope. All the facts of the world, all sense-percept Ions poss Ible and actual cannot be Included w Ith In any observat Ion however large, however collect Ive It may be. We have to go always upon a l Im Ited amount of data, we are able to construct only a part Ial and sketchy v Iew of the surface of ex Istence. And then It Is these few and doubtful facts that Reason seeks to arrange and class Ify. That class If Icat Ion may hold good for certa In Immed Iate ends, for a temporary understand Ing of the world and Its forces, e Ither In order to sat Isfy our cur Ios Ity or to ga In some pract Ical ut Il Ity. For when we want to cons Ider the world only In Its Immed Iate relat Ion to us, a few and even doubtful facts are suff Ic Ient the more Immed Iate the relat Ion, the more Immater Ial the doubtfulness and Insuff Ic Iency of facts. We may qu Ite conf Idently go a step In darkness, but to walk a m Ile we do requ Ire l Ight and certa Inty. Our sc Ient If Ic class If Icat Ion has a background of uncerta Inty, If not, of fals Ity; and our deduct Ion also, even wh Ile correct w Ith In a very narrow range of space and t Ime, cannot escape the fundamental v Ices of observat Ion and class If Icat Ion upon wh Ich It Is based.
It m Ight be sa Id, however, that the guarantee or sanct Ion of Reason does not l Ie In the extent of Its appl Icat Ion, nor can Its subject Ive nature (or ego-centr Ic pred Icat Ion, as ph Ilosophers would term It) v It Iate the val Id Ity of Its conclus Ions. There Is, In fact, an Inherent un Ity and harmony between Reason and Real Ity. If we know a l Ittle of Real Ity, we know the whole; If we know the subject Ive, we know also the object Ive. As In the part, so In the whole; as It Is w Ith In, so It Is w Ithout. If you say that I w Ill d Ie, you need not wa It for my actual death to have the proof of your statement. The general Is Ing power Inherent In Reason Is the guarantee of the cert Itude to wh Ich It leads. Reason Is val Id, as It does not betray us. If It were such as ant I- Intellectuals make It out to be, we would be mak Ing noth Ing but false steps, would always rema In entangled In contrad Ict Ions. The very success of Reason Is proof of Its be Ing a rel Iable and perfect Instrument for the knowledge of Truth and Real Ity. It Is bes Ide the mark to prove otherw Ise, s Imply by analys Ing the nature of Reason and show Ing the fundamental def Ic Ienc Ies of that nature. It Is rather to the cred It of Reason that be Ing as It Is, It Is none the less a successful and trustworthy agent.
Now the quest Ion Is, does Reason never fa Il? Is It such a perfect Instrument as Intellectual Ists th Ink It to be? There Is ground for ser Ious m Isg Iv Ings. Reason says, for example, that the earth revolves round the sun: and reason, It Is argued, Is r Ight, for we see that all the facts are conformableto It, even facts that were h Itherto unknown and are now com Ing Into our ken. But the d Iff Iculty Is that Reason d Id not say that always In the past and may not say that always In the future. The old astronomers could expla In the un Iverse by hold Ing qu Ite a contrary theory and could f It Into It all the Ir astronom Ical data. A future sc Ient Ist may come and expla In the matter In qu Ite a d Ifferent way from e Ither. It Is only a cho Ice of workable theor Ies that Reason seems to offer; we do not know the fact Itself, apart perhaps from exactly the amount that Immed Iate sense-percept Ion g Ives to each of us. Or aga In, If we take an example of another category, we may ask, does God ex Ist? A cand Id Rat Ional Ist would say that he does not know although he has h Is own op In Ion about the matter. Ev Idently, Reason cannot solve all the problems that It meets; It can judge only truths that are of a certa In type.
It may be answered that Reason Is a faculty wh Ich g Ives us progress Ive knowledge of the real Ity, but as a know Ing Instrument It Is perfect, at least It Is the only Instrument at our d Isposal; even If It g Ives a false, Incomplete or blurred Image of the real Ity, It has the means and capac Ity of correct Ing and complet Ing Itself. It offers theor Ies, no doubt; but what are theor Ies? They are s Imply the gradually Increas Ing adaptat Ion of the know Ing subject to the object to be known, the evolv Ing revelat Ion of real Ity to our percept Ion of It. Reason Is the power wh Ich carr Ies on that process of adaptat Ion and revelat Ion; we can safely rely upon Reason and trust It to carry on Its work w Ith Increas Ing success.
But In knowledge It Is prec Isely f Inal Ity that we seek for and no mere progress Ive, asymptot Ic, rapprochement ad Inf In Itum. No less than the Pract Ical Reason, the Theoret Ical Reason also demands a categor Ical Imperat Ive, a clean aff Irmat Ion or den Ial. If Reason cannot do that, It must be regarded as Ineff Ic Ient. It Is poor consolat Ion to man that Reason Is gradually f Ind Ing out the truth or that It Is try Ing to grapple w Ith the problems of God, Soul and Immortal Ity and w Ill one day pronounce Its verd Ict. Whether we have or have not any other Instrument of knowledge Is a d Ifferent quest Ion altogether. But In the meanwh Ile Reason stands condemned by the ev Idence of Its own l Im Itat Ion.
It may be retorted that If Reason Is condemned, It Is condemned by Itself and by no other author Ity. All argumentat Ion aga Inst Reason Is a funct Ion of Reason Itself. The def Ic Ienc Ies of Reason we f Ind out by the rat Ional faculty alone. If Reason was to d Ie, It Is because It consents to comm It su Ic Ide; there Is no other power that k Ills It. But to th Is our answer Is that Reason has th Is m Iraculous power of self-destruct Ion; or, to put It ph Ilosoph Ically, Reason Is, at best, an organ of self-cr It Ic Ism and perhaps the organ par excellence for that purpose. But cr It Ic Ism Is one th Ing and creat Ion another. And whether we know or act, It Is fundamentally a process of creat Ion; at least, w Ithout th Is element of creat Ion there can be no knowledge, no act. In knowledge there Is a lum Inous creat Iv Ity, Revelat Ion or Categor Ical Imperat Ive wh Ich Reason does not and cannot supply but vaguely stra Ins to se Ize. For that element we have to search elsewhere, not In Reason.
Does th Is mean that real knowledge Is Irrat Ional or aga Inst Reason? Not so necessar Ily. There Is a super-rat Ional power for knowledge and Reason may e Ither be a channel or an obstacle. If we take our stand upon Reason and then proceed to know, If we take the forms and categor Ies of Reason as the Inv Iolable schemata of knowledge, then Indeed Reason becomes an obstacle to that super-rat Ional power. If, on the other hand, Reason does not offer any set-form from beforehand, does not Ins Ist upon Its own cond It Ions, Is pass Ive and s Imply rece Ives and reflects what Is g Iven to It, then It becomes a lum Inous and sure channel for that h Igher and real knowledge.
The fact Is that Reason Is a lower man Ifestat Ion of knowledge, It Is an attempt to express on the mental level a power that exceeds It. It Is the sect Ion of a vast and un Itar Ian Consc Iousness-Power; the sect Ion may be necessary under certa In cond It Ions and c Ircumstances, but unless It Is v Iewed In Its relat Ion to the ensemble, unless It g Ives up Its exclus Ive absolut Ism, It w Ill be perforce arb Itrary and m Islead Ing. It would st Ill rema In helpful and useful, but Its help and use would be always l Im Ited In scope and temporary In effect Iv Ity.
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The Creat Ive Soul The Intu It Ion of the Age
01.03 - Sri Aurobindo and his School, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 03, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
A cons Iderable amount of vague m Isunderstand Ing and m Isapprehens Ion seems to ex Ist In the m Inds of a certa In sect Ion of our people as to what Sr I Aurob Indo Is do Ing In h Is ret Irement at Pond Icherry. On the other hand, a very prec Ise expos It Ion, an exact formula of what he Is not do Ing has been cur Iously furn Ished by a well-known patr Iot In h Is Ind Ictment of what he chooses to call the Pond Icherry School of contemplat Ion. But he has arr Ived at th Is formula by openly and fearlessly aff Irm Ing what does not ex Ist; for the th Ings that Sr I Aurob Indo Is accused of do Ing are just the th Ings that he Is not do Ing. In the f Irst place, Sr I Aurob Indo Is not do Ing peaceful contemplat Ion; In the second place, he Is not do Ing act Ive propaganda e Ither; In the th Ird place, he Is not do Ing prnyma or even dhyna In the ord Inary sense of the word; and, lastly, he Is not procla Im Ing or follow Ing the max Im that although act Ion may be tolerated as good, h Is part Icular brand of Yoga Is someth Ing h Igher and better.
Ev Idently the em Inent pol It Ic Ian and h Is school of act Iv Ism are labour Ing under a H Imalayan confus Ion: when they speak of Sr I Aurob Indo, they really have In the Ir m Ind some of the old schools of sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine. But one of the marked aspects of Sr I Aurob Indo's teach Ing and pract Ice has been prec Isely h Is Ins Istence on putt Ing as Ide the Inert and l Ife-shunn Ing qu Iet Ism, Illus Ion Ism, ascet Ic Ism and monast Ic Ism of a latter-day and decadent Ind Ia. These Ideals are perhaps as much obstacles In h Is way as In the way of the act Iv Ist Ic school. Only Sr I Aurob Indo has not had the temer Ity to say that It Is a weakness to seek refuge In contemplat Ion or to suggest that a Buddha was a weakl Ing or a Shankara a poltroon.
Th Is much as regards what Sr I Aurob Indo Is not do Ing; let us now turn and try to understand what he Is do Ing. The d Ist Ingu Ished man of act Ion speaks of conquer Ing Nature and f Ight Ing her. Adopt Ing th Is war-l Ike Imagery, we can aff Irm that Sr I Aurob Indo's work Is just such a battle and conquest. But the quest Ion Is, what Is nature and what Is the k Ind of conquest that Is sought, how are we to f Ight and what are the requ Ired arms and Implements? A good general should foresee all th Is, frame h Is plan of campa Ign accord Ingly and then only take the f Ield. The above-ment Ioned leader proposes ceaseless and unself Ish act Ion as the way to f Ight and conquer Nature. He who speaks thus does not know and cannot mean what he says.
European sc Ience Is conquer Ing Nature In a way. It has atta Ined to a certa In k Ind and measure, In some f Ields a great measure, of control and conquest; but however great or str Ik Ing It may be In Its own prov Ince, It does not touch man In h Is more Int Imate real Ity and does not br Ing about any true change In h Is dest Iny or h Is be Ing. For the most v Ital part of nature Is the reg Ion of the l Ife-forces, the powers of d Isease and age and death, of str Ife and greed and lustall the Inst Incts of the brute In man, all the dark abor Ig Inal forces, the forces of Ignorance that form the very groundwork of man's nature and h Is soc Iety. And then, as we r Ise next to the world of the m Ind, we f Ind a tw Il Ight reg Ion where falsehood masquerades as truth, where prejud Ices move as real It Ies, where not Ions rule as Ideals.
Th Is Is the present nature of man, w Ith Its threefold nexus of m Ind and l Ife and body, that stands there to be fought and conquered. Th Is Is the Infer Ior nature, of wh Ich the anc Ients spoke, that holds man down Inexorably to a lower dharma, Imperfect mode of l Ife the l Ife that Is and has been the human order t Ill today. No amount of ceaseless act Ion, however selflessly done, can move th Is wheel of Nature even by a ha Ir's breadth away from the path that It has carved out from of old. Human nature and human soc Iety have been bu Ilt up and are run by the forces of th Is Infer Ior nature, and whatever shuffl Ing and reshuffl Ing we may make In Its apparent factors and elements, the general scheme and fundamental form of l Ife w Ill never change. To d Isplace earth (and to conquer nature means noth Ing less than that) and g Ive It another orb It, one must f Ind a fulcrum outs Ide earth.
Sr I Aurob Indo does not preach fl Ight from l Ife and a retreat Into the s Ilent and pass Ive Inf In Ite; the goal of l Ife Is not, In h Is v Iew, the ext Inct Ion of l Ife. Ne Ither Is he sat Isf Ied on that account to hold that l Ife Is best l Ived In the ord Inary round of Its unregenerate dharma. If the f Irst Is a bl Ind alley, the second Is a v Ic Ious c Ircle,both lead nowhere.
Sr I Aurob Indo's sadhana starts from the percept Ion of a Power that Is beyond the ord Inary nature yet Is Its Inev Itable master, a fulcrum, as we have sa Id, outs Ide the earth. For what Is requ Ired f Irst Is the d Iscovery and man Ifestat Ion of a new soul-consc Iousness In man wh Ich w Ill br Ing about by the very pressure and work Ing out of Its self-rule an absolute reversal of man's nature. It Is the Asuras who are now hold Ing sway over human Ity, for man has allowed h Imself so long to be bu Ilt In the Image of the Asura; to d Islodge the Asuras, the Gods In the Ir sovere Ign m Ight have to be forged In the human be Ing and brought Into play. It Is a stupendous task, some would say Imposs Ible; but It Is very far removed from qu Iet Ism or pass Iv Ism. Sr I Aurob Indo Is In ret Irement, but It Is a ret Irement only from the outward f Ield of present phys Ical act Iv It Ies and the Ir apparent actual It Ies, not from the true forces and act Ion of l Ife. It Is the retreat necessary to one who has to go back Into h Imself to conquer a new plane of creat Ive power,an entrance r Ight Into the world of bas Ic forces, of fundamental real It Ies, Into the flam Ing heart of th Ings where all actual It Ies are born and take the Ir f Irst shape. It Is the d Iscovery of a power-house of tremendous energ Ism and of the means of putt Ing It at the serv Ice of earthly l Ife.
And, properly speak Ing, It Is not at all a school, least of all a mere school of thought, that Is grow Ing round Sr I Aurob Indo. It Is rather the nucleus of a new l Ife that Is to come. Qu Ite naturally It has almost Ins Ign If Icant proport Ions at present to the outward eye, for the work Is st Ill of the nature of exper Iment and tr Ial In very restr Icted l Im Its, someth Ing In the nature of what Is done In a laboratory when a new power has been d Iscovered, but has st Ill to be perfectly formulated In Its process. And It Is qu Ite a m Istake to suppose that there Is a v Igorous propaganda carr Ied on In Its behalf or that there Is a large demand for recru Its. Only the few, who possess the call w Ith In and are Impelled by the sp Ir It of the future, have a chance of serv Ing th Is h Igh attempt and great real Isat Ion and stand Ing among Its f Irst Instruments and p Ioneer workers.
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01.03 - The Yoga of the King - The Yoga of the Souls Release, #Savitri, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
One In the front of the Immemor Ial quest,
Protagon Ist of the myster Ious play
--
A th Inker and to Iler In the Ideal's a Ir,
Brought down to earth's dumb need her rad Iant power.
--
A colon Ist from Immortal Ity.
A po Int Ing beam on earth's uncerta In roads,
--
Although consent Ing to mortal Ignorance,
H Is knowledge shared the L Ight Ineffable.
A strength of the or Ig Inal Permanence
Entangled In the moment and Its flow,
He kept the v Is Ion of the Vasts beh Ind:
A power was In h Im from the Unknowable.
An arch Iv Ist of the symbols of the Beyond,
--
A skyward be Ing nour Ish Ing Its roots
On sustenance from occult sp Ir Itual founts
--
H Is w Ill a hunter In the tra Ils of l Ight.
An ocean Impulse l Ifted every breath;
Each act Ion left the footpr Ints of a god,
--
A playground of the l Iv Ing Inf In Ite.
Th Is bod Ily appearance Is not all;
The form dece Ives, the person Is a mask;
H Id deep In man celest Ial powers can dwell.
H Is frag Ile sh Ip conveys through the sea of years
An Incogn Ito of the Imper Ishable.
A sp Ir It that Is a flame of God ab Ides,
A f Iery port Ion of the Wonderful,
--
Immortal In our mortal poverty.
Th Is sculptor of the forms of the Inf In Ite,
Th Is screened unrecogn Ised Inhab Itant,
In It Iate of h Is own ve Iled myster Ies,
H Ides In a small dumb seed h Is cosm Ic thought.
In the mute strength of the occult Idea
Determ In Ing predest Ined shape and act,
--
Chang Ing h Is Imaged self from form to form,
He regards the Icon grow Ing by h Is gaze
And In the worm foresees the com Ing god.
At last the traveller In the paths of T Ime
Arr Ives on the front Iers of etern Ity.
--
H Is thought stretches Into Inf In Itude;
All In h Im turns to sp Ir It vastnesses.
H Is soul breaks out to jo In the Oversoul,
H Is l Ife Is oceaned by that superl Ife.
He has drunk from the breasts of the Mother of the worlds;
--
Immortally she conce Ives herself In h Im,
In the creature the unve Iled Creatr Ix works:
Her face Is seen through h Is face, her eyes through h Is eyes;
Her be Ing Is h Is through a vast Ident Ity.
Then Is revealed In man the overt D Iv Ine.
A stat Ic Oneness and dynam Ic Power
Descend In h Im, the Integral Godhead's seals;
H Is soul and body take that splend Id stamp.
A long d Im preparat Ion Is man's l Ife,
A c Ircle of to Il and hope and war and peace
--
Cult of an Ideal never made real here,
An endless sp Iral of ascent and fall
Unt Il at last Is reached the g Iant po Int
Through wh Ich h Is Glory sh Ines for whom we were made
And we break Into the Inf In Ity of God.
Across our nature's border l Ine we escape
--
Th Is now was w Itnessed In that son of Force;
In h Im that h Igh trans It Ion la Id Its base.
Or Ig Inal and supernal Immanence
Of wh Ich all Nature's process Is the art,
The cosm Ic Worker set h Is secret hand
--
It bu Ilt h Is soul Into a statued god.
The Craftsman of the mag Ic stuff of self
--
Modelled In Inward T Ime h Is rhythm Ic parts.
Then came the abrupt transcendent m Iracle:
The masked Immaculate Grandeur could outl Ine,
At trava Il In the occult womb of l Ife,
H Is dreamed magn If Icence of th Ings to be.
--
A gap was rent In the all-conceal Ing vault;
The consc Ious ends of be Ing went roll Ing back:
--
The Island ego jo Ined Its cont Inent.
Overpassed was th Is world of r Ig Id l Im It Ing forms:
L Ife's barr Iers opened Into the Unknown.
Abol Ished were concept Ion's covenants
--
All the grey Inh Ib It Ions were torn off
And broken the Intellect's hard and lustrous l Id;
Truth unpart It Ioned found Immense sky-room;
An empyrean v Is Ion saw and knew;
--
The f In Ite self mated w Ith Inf In Ity.
H Is march now soared Into an eagle's fl Ight.
Out of apprent Icesh Ip to Ignorance
W Isdom upra Ised h Im to her master craft
--
A bu Ilder of the Immortal's secret house,
An asp Irant to supernal T Imelessness:
--
\t:As so he grew Into h Is larger self,
Human Ity framed h Is movements less and less;
--
M Ind's soar, soul's d Ive Into the Inf In Ite.
Even h Is f Irst steps broke our small earth-bounds
And lo Itered In a vaster freer a Ir.
In hands susta Ined by a transf Igur Ing M Ight
--
Left slumber Ing In a sealed and secret cave
The powers that sleep unused In man w Ith In.
He made of m Iracle a normal act
--
Pursued In a royalty of m Ighty ease
A Ims too subl Ime for Nature's da Ily w Ill:
--
A pure percept Ion lent Its lucent joy:
Its Int Imate v Is Ion wa Ited not to th Ink;
It enveloped all Nature In a s Ingle glance,
It looked Into the very self of th Ings;
Dece Ived no more by form he saw the soul.
In be Ings It knew what lurked to them unknown;
It se Ized the Idea In m Ind, the w Ish In the heart;
It plucked out from grey folds of secrecy
--
He felt the beat Ing l Ife In other men
Invade h Im w Ith the Ir happ Iness and the Ir gr Ief;
--
Entered In currents or In pour Ing waves
Into the Immob Ile ocean of h Is calm.
He heard the Insp Ired sound of h Is own thoughts
Re-echoed In the vault of other m Inds;
The world's thought-streams travelled Into h Is ken;
H Is Inner self grew near to others' selves
And bore a k Insh Ip's we Ight, a common t Ie,
Yet stood untouched, k Ing of Itself, alone.
A mag Ical accord qu Ickened and attuned
--
To be happy partners In the soul's response,
T Issue and nerve were turned to sens It Ive chords,
Records of lustre and ecstasy; It made
The body's means the sp Ir It's acolytes.
--
L It w Ith Its grace man's outward earthl Iness;
The soul's exper Ience of Its deeper sheaths
No more slept drugged by Matter's dom Inance.
--
A door parted, bu Ilt In by Matter's force,
Releas Ing th Ings unse Ized by earthly sense:
--
Appeared In the s Ilent spaces of the soul.
He sat In secret chambers look Ing out
Into the lum Inous countr Ies of the unborn
--
And all that the l Ife longs for Is drawn close.
He saw the Perfect In the Ir starry homes
Wear Ing the glory of a deathless form,
La In In the arms of the Eternal's peace,
Rapt In the heart-beats of God-ecstasy.
He l Ived In the myst Ic space where thought Is born
And w Ill Is nursed by an ethereal Power
And fed on the wh Ite m Ilk of the Eternal's strengths
T Ill It grows Into the l Ikeness of a god.
In the W Itness's occult rooms w Ith m Ind-bu Ilt walls
On h Idden Inter Iors, lurk Ing passages
Opened the w Indows of the Inner s Ight.
He owned the house of und Iv Ided T Ime.
--
And peered Into gleam Ing endless corr Idors,
S Ilent and l Isten Ing In the s Ilent heart
For the com Ing of the new and the unknown.
--
And heard the footsteps of the undreamed Idea
In the far avenues of the Beyond.
--
And saw the secret face that Is our own.
The Inner planes uncovered the Ir crystal doors;
Strange powers and Influences touched h Is l Ife.
A v Is Ion came of h Igher realms than ours,
--
A knowledge wh Ich became what It perce Ived,
Replaced the separated sense and heart
And drew all Nature Into Its embrace.
The m Ind leaned out to meet the h Idden worlds:
--
Held by Intu It Ive heart and secret sense.
It caught the burden of secrec Ies sealed and dumb,
--
And all that h Ides In an omn Ipotent Sleep.
In the unceas Ing drama carr Ied by T Ime
On Its long l Isten Ing flood that bears the world's
Insoluble doubt on a p Ilgr Image w Ithout goal,
--
The grandeur and greatness of Its w Ill to l Ive,
Recall of the soul's adventure Into space,
A traveller through the mag Ic centur Ies
And be Ing's labour In Matter's un Iverse,
Its search for the myst Ic mean Ing of Its b Irth
And joy of h Igh sp Ir Itual response,
--
The sob of Its pass Ion and unend Ing pa In.
The murmur and wh Isper of the unheard sounds
--
To enter, swelled Into a cant Icle
Of all that suffers to be st Ill unknown
--
Melt Ing our l Im Its In the Ill Im Itable,
Tun Ing the f In Ite to Inf In Ity.
A low mutter Ing rose from the subconsc Ient caves,
The stammer of the pr Imal Ignorance;
Answer to that Inart Iculate quest Ion Ing,
There stooped w Ith l Ightn Ing neck and thunder's w Ings
A rad Iant hymn to the Inexpress Ible
And the anthem of the superconsc Ient l Ight.
--
Immortal eyes approached and looked In h Is,
And be Ings of many k Ingdoms neared and spoke:
--
As If he was born Into a br Ight new world;
Adventure leaped an unexpected fr Iend,
--
And counsels came couched In celest Ial speech,
And honeyed plead Ings breathed from occult l Ips
--
The touch repl Ied to subtle Inf In It Ies,
And w Ith a s Ilver cry of open Ing gates
S Ight's l Ightn Ings leaped Into the Inv Is Ible.
Ever h Is consc Iousness and v Is Ion grew;
--
And looked beyond Into a nameless vast.
These symbol f Igures lost the Ir r Ight to l Ive,
--
In rare and lucent Intervals of hush
Into a s Ignless reg Ion he could soar
--
Where world was Into a s Ingle be Ing rapt
And all was known by the l Ight of Ident Ity
And Sp Ir It was Its own self-ev Idence.
The Supreme's gaze looked out through human eyes
And saw all th Ings and creatures as Itself
And knew all thought and word as Its own vo Ice.
There un Ity Is too close for search and clasp
And love Is a yearn Ing of the One for the One,
And beauty Is a sweet d Ifference of the Same
And oneness Is the soul of mult Itude.
There all the truths un Ite In a s Ingle Truth,
And all Ideas rejo In Real Ity.
There know Ing herself by her own termless self,
--
Sat uncompan Ioned In the eternal Calm,
All-see Ing, mot Ionless, sovere Ign and alone.
There knowledge needs not words to embody Idea;
Idea, seek Ing a house In boundlessness,
Weary of Its homeless Immortal Ity,
Asks not In thought's carved br Ill Iant cell to rest
Whose s Ingle w Indow's cl Ipped outlook on th Ings
--
Wh Ile there, one Is one's own Inf In Ity.
H Is centre was no more In earthly m Ind;
A power of see Ing s Ilence f Illed h Is l Imbs:
--
Became a s Ilent knowledge In the soul;
The strength that only In act Ion feels Its truth
Was lodged now In a mute omn Ipotent peace.
A le Isure In the labour of the worlds,
A pause In the joy and angu Ish of the search
Restored the stress of Nature to God's calm.
--
As In the bu Ild Ing of a gra In of dust,
The grooves that turn the Ir dumb ell Ipse In space
Ploughed by the seek Ing of the world's des Ire,
--
That wakes k Inet Ic In earth's dullard sl Ime
And carves a personal Ity out of mud,
The sorrow by wh Ich Nature's hunger Is fed,
The oestrus wh Ich creates w Ith f Ire of pa In,
--
Ceased In a truth wh Ich l Ives In Its own l Ight.
H Is soul stood free, a w Itness and a k Ing.
Absorbed no more In the moment-r Idden flux
Where m Ind Incessantly dr Ifts as on a raft
Hurr Ied from phenomenon to phenomenon,
He abode at rest In Ind Iv Is Ible T Ime.
As If a story long wr Itten but acted now,
In h Is present he held h Is future and h Is past,
Felt In the seconds the uncounted years
And saw the hours l Ike dots upon a page.
--
Thought lay down In a m Ighty vo Icelessness;
The to Il Ing Th Inker w Idened and grew st Ill,
--
M Ind screened no more the shoreless Inf In Ite.
Across a vo Id retreat Ing sky he gl Impsed
--
Where judgment ceases and the word Is mute
And the Unconce Ived l Ies pathless and alone.
--
And woke to truths once Inexpress Ible,
And forms appeared, dumbly s Ign If Icant,
--
Movement was marr Ied to the Immob Ile Vast;
He plunged h Is roots Into the Inf In Ite,
He based h Is l Ife upon etern Ity.
--
To tread the accustomed and Infer Ior way,
The need to rest In a natural pose of fall,
As a ch Ild who learns to walk can walk not long,
--
To the bl Ind dr Iven Inert Ia of our base.
Th Is too the supreme D Iplomat can use,
--
For Into Ignorant Nature's gusty f Ield,
Into the half-ordered chaos of mortal l Ife
--
Follow In the shadow of the sp Ir It's descent;
The tw In dual Ity for ever one
Chooses Its home m Id the tumults of the sense.
He comes unseen Into our darker parts
And, curta Ined by the darkness, does h Is work,
--
Our body's cells must hold the Immortal's flame.
Else would the sp Ir It reach alone Its source
Leav Ing a half-saved world to Its dub Ious fate.
Nature would ever labour unredeemed;
Our earth would ever sp In unhelped In Space,
And th Is Immense creat Ion's purpose fa Il
T Ill at last the frustrate un Iverse sank undone.
--
Call back to Its d Ire need the d Iv Ine Force.
Always the power poured back l Ike sudden ra In,
Or slowly In h Is breast a presence grew;
It clambered back to some remembered he Ight
Or soared above the peak from wh Ich It fell.
Each t Ime he rose there was a larger po Ise,
--
The L Ight rema Ined In h Im a longer space.
In th Is osc Illat Ion between earth and heaven,
In th Is Ineffable commun Ion's cl Imb
There grew In h Im as grows a wax Ing moon
The glory of the Integer of h Is soul.
7.14
--
The presence of the Eternal In the hours
W Iden Ing the mortal m Ind's half-look on th Ings,
--
Id="7.15">7.15
At last was won a f Irm sp Ir Itual po Ise,
A constant lodg Ing In the Eternal's realm,
A safety In the S Ilence and the Ray,
A settlement In the Immutable.
7.16
H Is he Ights of be Ing l Ived In the st Ill Self;
H Is m Ind could rest on a supernal ground
--
H Is equal sp Ir It gave Its vast assent:
A po Ised seren Ity of tranqu Il strength,
--
Immob Ile It beheld the flux of th Ings,
Calm and apart supported all that Is:
H Is sp Ir It's st Illness helped the to Il Ing world.
--
On the crude mater Ial from wh Ich all Is made
And the refusal of Inert Ia's mass
And the grey front of the world's Ignorance
And nesc Ient Matter and the huge error of l Ife.
--
L Ine of defence of Nature's Ignorance,
The Illus Ion and mystery of the Inconsc Ient
In whose black pall the Eternal wraps h Is head
That he may act unknown In cosm Ic T Ime.
A splendour of self-creat Ion from the peaks,
A transf Igurat Ion In the myst Ic depths,
A happ Ier cosm Ic work Ing could beg In
And fash Ion the world-shape In h Im anew,
God found In Nature, Nature fulf Illed In God.
Already In h Im was seen that task of Power:
L Ife made Its home on the h Igh tops of self;
H Is soul, m Ind, heart became a s Ingle sun;
--
But there too, In the uncerta In shadow of l Ife,
There was a labour and a f Iery breath;
--
Watched by the Inner W Itness's moveless peace.
Even on the struggl Ing Nature left below
Strong per Iods of Illum Inat Ion came:
L Ightn Ings of glory after glory burned,
--
Splendours of Ins Ight f Illed the blank of thought,
Knowledge spoke to the Inconsc Ient st Illnesses,
R Ivers poured down of bl Iss and lum Inous force,
--
Repeated In the pr Ivacy of h Is soul,
A w Isdom-cry from rapt transcendences
--
The vo Ices that an Inner l Isten Ing hears
Conveyed to h Im the Ir prophet utterances,
And flame-wrapped outbursts of the Immortal Word
And flashes of an occult reveal Ing L Ight
--
An Insp Ired Knowledge sat enthroned w Ith In
Whose seconds Illum Ined more than reason's years:
An Ictus of reveal Ing lustre fell
As If a po Int Ing accent upon Truth,
And l Ike a sky-flare show Ing all the ground
A sw Ift Intu It Ive d Iscernment shone.
One glance could separate the true and false,
Or ra Ise Its rap Id torch-f Ire In the dark
To check the cla Imants crowd Ing through m Ind's gates
--
Detect the mag Ic br Ide In her d Isgu Ise
Or scan the apparent face of thought and l Ife.
\t:Oft Insp Irat Ion w Ith her l Ightn Ing feet,
A sudden messenger from the all-see Ing tops,
--
As If from a golden ph Ial of the All-Bl Iss,
A joy of l Ight, a joy of sudden s Ight,
--
Poured Into h Is heart as Into an empty cup,
A repet It Ion of God's f Irst del Ight
Creat Ing In a young and v Irg In T Ime.
In a br Ief moment caught, a l Ittle space,
All-Knowledge packed Into great wordless thoughts
Lodged In the expectant st Illness of h Is depths
A crystal of the ult Imate Absolute,
A port Ion of the Inexpress Ible Truth
Revealed by s Ilence to the s Ilent soul.
The Intense creatr Ix In h Is st Illness wrought;
Her power fallen speechless grew more Int Imate;
She looked upon the seen and the unforeseen,
--
All-v Is Ion gathered Into a s Ingle ray,
As when the eyes stare at an Inv Is Ible po Int
T Ill through the Intens Ity of one lum Inous spot
An apocalypse of a world of Images
Enters Into the k Ingdom of the seer.
A great nude arm of splendour suddenly rose;
--
Id="8.8">8.8
An eye awake In vo Iceless he Ights of trance,
A m Ind pluck Ing at the un Imag Inable,
--
She broke In w Ith Insp Ired speech for scythe
And plundered the Unknowable's vast estate.
A gleaner of Inf In Ites Imal gra Ins of Truth,
A sheaf-b Inder of Inf In Ite exper Ience,
She p Ierced the guarded myster Ies of World-Force
And her mag Ic methods wrapped In a thousand ve Ils;
Or she gathered the lost secrets dropped by T Ime
--
The Insp Ired body of the myst Ic Truth.
A recorder of the Inqu Iry of the gods,
Spokesman of the s Ilent see Ings of the Supreme,
She brought Immortal words to mortal men.
Above the reason's br Ill Iant slender curve,
--
Or l Im It swam Into h Is sp Ir It's ken.
Oceans of be Ing met h Is voyag Ing soul
Call Ing to Inf In Ite d Iscovery;
T Imeless doma Ins of joy and absolute power
--
D Isclosed stood up In a gold moment's blaze
Wh Ite sun-steppes In the pathless Inf In Ite.
Along a naked curve In bourneless Self
The po Ints that run through the closed heart of th Ings
Shadowed the Indeterm Inable l Ine
That carr Ies the Everlast Ing through the years.
--
Coerc Ing the freedom of Inf In Ity
W Ith the stark array of Nature's symbol facts
And l Ife's Incessant s Ignals of event,
Transmuted chance recurrences Into laws,
A chaos of s Igns Into a un Iverse.
Out of the r Ich wonders and the Intr Icate whorls
Of the sp Ir It's dance w Ith Matter as Its mask
The balance of the world's des Ign grew clear,
--
Managed In the deep perspect Ives of the soul,
And the real Ism of Its Illus Ive art,
Its log Ic of Inf In Ite Intell Igence,
Its mag Ic of a chang Ing etern Ity.
--
In the Immutable nameless Or Ig In
Was seen emerg Ing as from fathomless seas
The tra Il of the Ideas that made the world,
And, sown In the black earth of Nature's trance,
The seed of the Sp Ir It's bl Ind and huge des Ire
--
And spread Its mag Ic arms through a dream of space.
Immense real It Ies took on a shape:
--
The Immob Ile l Ips, the great surreal w Ings,
The v Isage masked by superconsc Ient Sleep,
--
Appeared of the Arch Itect who bu Ilds In trance.
The or Ig Inal Des Ire born In the Vo Id
Peered out; he saw the hope that never sleeps,
--
The Ineffable mean Ing of the endless dream.
Hardly for a moment gl Impsed v Iewless to M Ind,
As If a torch held by a power of God,
The rad Iant world of the everlast Ing Truth
--
The calm Indulgence and maternal breasts
Of W Isdom suckl Ing the ch Ild-laughter of Chance,
--
The omn Isc Ient hush, womb of the Immortal Word,
And of the T Imeless the st Ill brood Ing face,
--
The Insp Ir Ing goddess entered a mortal's breast,
Made there her study of d Iv In Ing thought
--
On the und Iscovered depths Imposed a form,
Lent a v Ibrant cry to the unuttered vasts,
--
Hewn from the s Ilence of the Ineffable.
A Vo Ice In the heart uttered the unspoken Name,
A dream of seek Ing Thought wander Ing through Space
Entered the Inv Is Ible and forb Idden house:
The treasure was found of a supernal Day.
--
L Ifted, It showed the r Iches of the Cave
Where, by the m Iser traff Ickers of sense
--
A darkness carry Ing morn Ing In Its breast
Looked for the eternal w Ide return Ing gleam,
--
Dropped carelessly In creat Ion's spendthr Ift work,
Left In the chant Iers of the bottomless world
And stolen by the robbers of the Deep,
--
Locked In bl Ind antres of the Ignorant flood,
Lest men should f Ind them and be even as Gods.
--
A w Isdom Illum Ined from the vo Iceless depths:
A deeper Interpretat Ion greatened Truth,
A grand reversal of the N Ight and Day;
--
A w Iser word, a larger thought came In
Than what the slow labour of human m Ind can br Ing,
--
Borne round Inert on an Immense mach Ine;
It cast away Its grand Iose l Ifeless front,
A mechan Ism no more or work of Chance,
--
A sp Ir It h Id In forces and In forms
Was the spectator of the mob Ile scene:
--
Let In a glow of the Unman Ifest:
The formless Everlast Ing moved In It
Seek Ing Its own perfect form In souls and th Ings.
L Ife kept no more a dull and mean Ingless shape.
--
A secret knowledge masked as Ignorance;
Fate covered w Ith an unseen necess Ity
--
Earth's pa Ins were the ransom of Its pr Isoned del Ight.
A glad commun Ion t Inged the pass Ing hours;
--
A heavenly Impetus qu Ickened all h Is breast;
The trudge of T Ime changed to a splend Id march;
--
Of Sp Ir It In Matter Into l Iv Ing forms,
And Nature bore the Immortal In her womb,
That she m Ight cl Imb through h Im to eternal l Ife.
H Is be Ing lay down In br Ight Immob Ile peace
And bathed In wells of pure sp Ir Itual l Ight;
It wandered In w Ide f Ields of w Isdom-self
L It by the rays of an everlast Ing sun.
--
And feel on It the breath of heavenl Ier a Ir.
Already It journeyed towards d Iv In Ity:
Upbuoyed upon w Inged w Inds of rap Id joy,
Upheld to a L Ight It could not always hold,
It left m Ind's d Istance from the Truth supreme
And lost l Ife's Incapac Ity for bl Iss.
All now suppressed In us began to emerge.
\t:Thus came h Is soul's release from Ignorance,
H Is m Ind and body's f Irst sp Ir Itual change.
--
H Is commonest do Ings welled from an Inner L Ight.
Awakened to the l Ines that Nature h Ides,
--
And felt the occult Impulse beh Ind man's w Ill.
T Ime's secrets were to h Im an oft-read book;
--
The human In h Im paced w Ith the d Iv Ine;
H Is acts betrayed not the Inter Ior flame.
Th Is forged the greatness of h Is front to earth.
A gen Ius he Ightened In h Is body's cells
That knew the mean Ing of h Is fate-hedged works
--
Beyond l Ife's arc In sp Ir It's Immens It Ies.
Apart he l Ived In h Is m Ind's sol Itude,
A dem Igod shap Ing the l Ives of men:
--
A Power worked, but none knew whence It came.
The un Iversal strengths were l Inked w Ith h Is;
--
\t:End of Book I - Canto I I I
01.03 - Yoga and the Ordinary Life, #The Integral Yoga, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
In the Yoga pract Ised here the a Im Is to r Ise to a h Igher consc Iousness and to l Ive out of the h Igher consc Iousness alone, not w Ith the ord Inary mot Ives. Th Is means a change of l Ife as well as a change of consc Iousness. But all are not so c Ircumstanced that they can cut loose from the ord Inary l Ife; they accept It therefore as a f Ield of exper Ience and self-tra In Ing In the earl Ier stages of the sadhana. But they must take care to look at It as a f Ield of exper Ience only and to get free from the ord Inary des Ires, attachments and Ideas wh Ich usually go w Ith It; otherw Ise It becomes a drag and h Indrance on the Ir sadhana. When one Is not compelled by c Ircumstances there Is no necess Ity to cont Inue the ord Inary l Ife.
It Is not helpful to abandon the ord Inary l Ife before the be Ing Is ready for the full sp Ir Itual l Ife. To do so means to prec Ip Itate a struggle between the d Ifferent elements and exasperate It to a po Int of Intens Ity wh Ich the nature Is not ready to bear. The v Ital elements In you have partly to be met by the d Isc Ipl Ine and exper Ience of l Ife, wh Ile keep Ing the sp Ir Itual a Im In v Iew and try Ing to govern l Ife by It progress Ively In the sp Ir It of Karmayoga.
The best way to prepare oneself for the sp Ir Itual l Ife when one has to l Ive In the ord Inary occupat Ions and surround Ings Is to cult Ivate an ent Ire equal Ity and detachment and the samata of the G Ita w Ith the fa Ith that the D Iv Ine Is there and the D Iv Ine W Ill at work In all th Ings even though at present under the cond It Ions of a world of Ignorance. Beyond th Is are the L Ight and Ananda towards wh Ich l Ife Is work Ing, but the best way for the Ir advent and foundat Ion In the Ind Iv Idual be Ing and nature Is to grow In th Is sp Ir Itual equal Ity. That would also solve your d Iff Iculty about th Ings unpleasant and d Isagreeable. All unpleasantness should be faced w Ith th Is sp Ir It of samata.
I may say br Iefly that there are two states of consc Iousness In e Ither of wh Ich one can l Ive. One Is a h Igher consc Iousness wh Ich stands above the play of l Ife and governs It; th Is Is var Iously called the Self, the Sp Ir It or the D Iv Ine. The other Is the normal consc Iousness In wh Ich men l Ive; It Is someth Ing qu Ite superf Ic Ial, an Instrument of the Sp Ir It for the play of l Ife. Those who l Ive and act In the normal consc Iousness are governed ent Irely by the common movements of the m Ind and are naturally subject to gr Ief and joy and anx Iety and des Ire or to everyth Ing else that makes up the ord Inary stuff of l Ife.
Mental qu Iet and happ Iness they can get, but It can never be permanent or secure. But the sp Ir Itual consc Iousness Is all l Ight, peace, power and bl Iss. If one can l Ive ent Irely In It, there Is no quest Ion; these th Ings become naturally and securely h Is.
But even If he can l Ive partly In It or keep h Imself constantly open to It, he rece Ives enough of th Is sp Ir Itual l Ight and peace and strength and happ Iness to carry h Im securely through all the shocks of l Ife. What one ga Ins by open Ing to th Is sp Ir Itual consc Iousness, depends on what one seeks from It; If It Is peace, one gets peace; If It Is l Ight or knowledge, one l Ives In a great l Ight and rece Ives a knowledge deeper and truer than any the normal m Ind of man can acqu Ire; If It [ Is] strength or power, one gets a sp Ir Itual strength for the Inner l Ife or Yog Ic power to govern the outer work and act Ion; If It Is happ Iness, one enters Into a beat Itude far greater than any joy or happ Iness that the ord Inary human l Ife can g Ive.
There are many ways of open Ing to th Is D Iv Ine consc Iousness or enter Ing Into It. My way wh Ich I show to others Is by a constant pract Ice to go Inward Into oneself, to open by asp Irat Ion to the D Iv Ine and once one Is consc Ious of It and Its act Ion to g Ive oneself to It ent Irely. Th Is self-g Iv Ing means not to ask for anyth Ing but the constant contact or un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness, to asp Ire for Its peace, power, l Ight and fel Ic Ity, but to ask noth Ing else and In l Ife and act Ion to be Its Instrument only for whatever work It g Ives one to do In the world. If one can once open and feel the D Iv Ine Force, the
Power of the Sp Ir It work Ing In the m Ind and heart and body, the rest Is a matter of rema In Ing fa Ithful to It, call Ing for It always, allow Ing It to do Its work when It comes and reject Ing every other and Infer Ior Force that belongs to the lower consc Iousness and the lower nature.
Apart from external th Ings there are two poss Ible Inner Ideals wh Ich a man can follow. The f Irst Is the h Ighest Ideal of ord Inary human l Ife and the other the d Iv Ine Ideal of Yoga.
I must say In v Iew of someth Ing you seem to have sa Id to your father that It Is not the object of the one to be a great man or the object of the other to be a great Yog In. The Ideal of human l Ife Is to establ Ish over the whole be Ing the control of a clear, strong and rat Ional m Ind and a r Ight and rat Ional w Ill, to master the emot Ional, v Ital and phys Ical be Ing, create a harmony of the whole and develop the capac It Ies whatever they are and fulf Il them In l Ife. In the terms of H Indu thought, It Is to enthrone the rule of the pur If Ied and sattw Ic buddh I, follow the dharma, fulf Ill Ing one's own svadharma and do Ing the work proper to one's capac It Ies, and sat Isfy kama and artha under the control of the buddh I and the dharma. The object of the d Iv Ine l Ife, on the other hand, Is to real Ise one's h Ighest self or to real Ise
God and to put the whole be Ing Into harmony w Ith the truth of the h Ighest self or the law of the d Iv Ine nature, to f Ind one's own d Iv Ine capac It Ies great or small and fulf Il them In l Ife as a sacr If Ice to the h Ighest or as a true Instrument of the d Iv Ine
Sakt I.
The sp Ir Itual l Ife (adhyatma jvana), the rel Ig Ious l Ife (dharma jvana) and the ord Inary human l Ife of wh Ich moral Ity Is a part are three qu Ite d Ifferent th Ings and one must know wh Ich one des Ires and not confuse the three together. The ord Inary l Ife Is that of the average human consc Iousness separated from Its own true self and from the D Iv Ine and led by the common hab Its of the m Ind, l Ife and body wh Ich are the laws of the Ignorance.
The rel Ig Ious l Ife Is a movement of the same Ignorant human consc Iousness, turn Ing or try Ing to turn away from the earth towards the D Iv Ine but as yet w Ithout knowledge and led by the dogmat Ic tenets and rules of some sect or creed wh Ich cla Ims to have found the way out of the bonds of the earth-consc Iousness Into some beat If Ic Beyond. The rel Ig Ious l Ife may be the f Irst approach to the sp Ir Itual, but very often It Is only a turn Ing about In a round of r Ites, ceremon Ies and pract Ices or set Ideas and forms w Ithout any Issue. The sp Ir Itual l Ife, on the contrary, proceeds d Irectly by a change of consc Iousness, a change from the ord Inary consc Iousness, Ignorant and separated from Its true self and from God, to a greater consc Iousness In wh Ich one f Inds one's true be Ing and comes f Irst Into d Irect and l Iv Ing contact and then Into un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine. For the sp Ir Itual seeker th Is change of consc Iousness Is the one th Ing he seeks and noth Ing else matters.
Moral Ity Is a part of the ord Inary l Ife; It Is an attempt to govern the outward conduct by certa In mental rules or to form the character by these rules In the Image of a certa In mental Ideal. The sp Ir Itual l Ife goes beyond the m Ind; It enters Into the deeper consc Iousness of the Sp Ir It and acts out of the truth of the Sp Ir It.
The pr Inc Iple of l Ife wh Ich I seek to establ Ish Is sp Ir Itual.
Moral Ity Is a quest Ion of man's m Ind and v Ital, It belongs to a lower plane of consc Iousness. A sp Ir Itual l Ife therefore cannot be founded on a moral bas Is, It must be founded on a sp Ir Itual bas Is. Th Is does not mean that the sp Ir Itual man must be Immoral - as If there were no other law of conduct than the moral. The law of act Ion of the sp Ir Itual consc Iousness Is h Igher, not lower than the moral - It Is founded on un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine and l Iv Ing In the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness and Its act Ion Is founded on obed Ience to the D Iv Ine W Ill.
01.04 - Motives for Seeking the Divine, #The Integral Yoga, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
H Im Is not the proper att Itude; but If It were absolutely forb Idden to seek H Im for these th Ings, most people In the world would not turn towards H Im at all. I suppose therefore It Is allowed so that they may make a beg Inn Ing - If they have fa Ith, they may get what they ask for and th Ink It a good th Ing to go on and then one day they may suddenly stumble upon the Idea that th Is Is after all not qu Ite the one th Ing to do and that there are better ways and a better sp Ir It In wh Ich one can approach the
D Iv Ine. If they do not get what they want and st Ill come to the
D Iv Ine and trust In H Im, well, that shows they are gett Ing ready.
Let us look on It as a sort of Infants' school for the unready.
But of course that Is not the sp Ir Itual l Ife, It Is only a sort of elementary rel Ig Ious approach. For the sp Ir Itual l Ife to g Ive and not to demand Is the rule. The sadhak however can ask for the
D Iv Ine Force to a Id h Im In keep Ing h Is health or recover Ing It If he does that as part of h Is sadhana so that h Is body may be able and f It for the sp Ir Itual l Ife and a capable Instrument for the
D Iv Ine Work.
Let us f Irst put as Ide the qu Ite fore Ign cons Iderat Ion of what we would do If the un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine brought eternal joylessness, N Irananda or torture. Such a th Ing does not ex Ist and to drag It In only clouds the Issue. The D Iv Ine Is Anandamaya and one can seek h Im for the Ananda he g Ives; but he has also In h Im many other th Ings and one may seek h Im for any of them, for peace, for l Iberat Ion, for knowledge, for power, for anyth Ing else of wh Ich one may feel the pull or the Impulse. It Is qu Ite poss Ible for someone to say: "Let me have Power from the
D Iv Ine and do H Is work or H Is w Ill and I am sat Isf Ied, even If the use of Power enta Ils suffer Ing also." It Is poss Ible to shun bl Iss as a th Ing too tremendous or ecstat Ic and ask only or rather for peace, for l Iberat Ion, for N Irvana. You speak of self-fulf Ilment,
- one may regard the Supreme not as the D Iv Ine but as one's h Ighest Self and seek fulf Ilment of one's be Ing In that h Ighest Self; but one need not env Isage It as a self of bl Iss, ecstasy, Ananda - one may env Isage It as a self of freedom, vastness, knowledge, tranqu Ill Ity, strength, calm, perfect Ion - perhaps too calm for a r Ipple of anyth Ing so d Isturb Ing as joy to enter. So even If It Is for someth Ing to be ga Ined that one approaches the D Iv Ine, It Is not a fact that one can approach H Im or seek un Ion only for the sake of Ananda and noth Ing else.
That Involves someth Ing wh Ich throws all your reason Ing out of gear. For these are aspects of the D Iv Ine Nature, powers of It, states of h Is be Ing, - but the D Iv Ine H Imself Is someth Ing absolute, someone self-ex Istent, not l Im Ited by h Is aspects, - wonderful and Ineffable, not ex Ist Ing by them, but they ex Ist Ing because of h Im. It follows that If he attracts by h Is aspects, all the more he can attract by h Is very absolute selfness wh Ich Is sweeter, m Ight Ier, profounder than any aspect. H Is peace, rapture, l Ight, freedom, beauty are marvellous and Ineffable, because he Is h Imself mag Ically, myster Iously, transcendently marvellous and Ineffable. He can then be sought after for h Is wonderful and Ineffable self and not only for the sake of one aspect or another of h Im. The only th Ing needed for that Is, f Irst, to arr Ive at a po Int when the psych Ic be Ing feels th Is pull of the D Iv Ine In h Imself and, secondly, to arr Ive at the po Int when the m Ind, v Ital and each th Ing else beg Ins to feel too that that was what It was want Ing and the surface hunt after Ananda or what else was only an excuse for draw Ing the nature towards that supreme magnet.
Your argument that because we know the un Ion w Ith the
D Iv Ine w Ill br Ing Ananda, therefore It must be for the Ananda that we seek the un Ion, Is not true and has no force. One who loves a queen may know that If she returns h Is love It w Ill br Ing h Im power, pos It Ion, r Iches and yet It need not be for the power, pos It Ion, r Iches that he seeks her love. He may love her for herself and could love her equally If she were not a queen; he m Ight have no hope of any return whatever and yet love her, adore her, l Ive for her, d Ie for her s Imply because she Is she. That has happened and men have loved women w Ithout any hope of enjoyment or result, loved stead Ily, pass Ionately after age has come and beauty has gone. Patr Iots do not love the Ir country only when she Is r Ich, powerful, great and has much to g Ive them; the Ir love for country has been most ardent, pass Ionate, absolute when the country was poor, degraded, m Iserable, hav Ing noth Ing to g Ive but loss, wounds, torture, Impr Isonment, death as the wages of her serv Ice; yet even know Ing that they would never see her free, men have l Ived, served and d Ied for her - for her own sake, not for what she could g Ive. Men have loved Truth for her own sake and for what they could seek or f Ind of her, accepted poverty, persecut Ion, death Itself; they have been content even to seek for her always, not f Ind Ing, and yet never g Iven up the search.
That means what? That men, country, Truth and other th Ings bes Ides can be loved for the Ir own sake and not for anyth Ing else, not for any c Ircumstance or attendant qual Ity or result Ing enjoyment, but for someth Ing absolute that Is e Ither In them or beh Ind the Ir appearance and c Ircumstance. The D Iv Ine Is more than a man or woman, a stretch of land or a creed, op In Ion, d Iscovery or pr Inc Iple. He Is the Person beyond all persons, the
Home and Country of all souls, the Truth of wh Ich truths are only Imperfect f Igures. And can He then not be loved and sought for h Is own sake, as and more than these have been by men even In the Ir lesser selves and nature?
What your reason Ing Ignores Is that wh Ich Is absolute or tends towards the absolute In man and h Is seek Ing as well as In the D Iv Ine - someth Ing not to be expla Ined by mental reason Ing or v Ital mot Ive. A mot Ive, but a mot Ive of the soul, not of v Ital des Ire; a reason not of the m Ind, but of the self and sp Ir It. An ask Ing too, but the ask Ing that Is the soul's Inherent asp Irat Ion, not a v Ital long Ing. That Is what comes up when there Is the sheer self-g Iv Ing, when " I seek you for th Is, I seek you for that" changes to a sheer " I seek you for you." It Is that marvellous and Ineffable absolute In the D Iv Ine that Kr Ishnaprem means when he says, "Not knowledge nor th Is nor that, but Kr Ishna."
The pull of that Is Indeed a categor Ical Imperat Ive, the self In us drawn to the D Iv Ine because of the Imperat Ive call of Its greater Self, the soul Ineffably drawn towards the object of Its adorat Ion, because It cannot be otherw Ise, because It Is It and
He Is He. That Is all about It.
I have wr Itten all that only to expla In what we mean when we speak of seek Ing the D Iv Ine for h Imself and not for anyth Ing else - so far as It Is expl Icable. Expl Icable or not, It Is one of the most dom Inant facts of sp Ir Itual exper Ience. The call to selfg Iv Ing Is only an express Ion of th Is fact. But th Is does not mean that I object to your ask Ing for Ananda. Ask for that by all means, so long as to ask for It Is a need of any part of your be Ing
- for these are the th Ings that lead on towards the D Iv Ine so long as the absolute Inner call that Is there all the t Ime does not push Itself to the surface. But It Is really that that has drawn from the beg Inn Ing and Is there beh Ind - It Is the categor Ical sp Ir Itual Imperat Ive, the absolute need of the soul for the D Iv Ine.
I am not say Ing that there Is to be no Ananda. The selfg Iv Ing Itself Is a profound Ananda and what It br Ings, carr Ies In Its wake an Inexpress Ible Ananda - and It Is brought by th Is method sooner than by any other, so that one can say almost,
"A self-less self-g Iv Ing Is the best pol Icy." Only one does not do It out of pol Icy. Ananda Is the result, but It Is done not for the result, but for the self-g Iv Ing Itself and for the D Iv Ine h Imself - a subtle d Ist Inct Ion, It may seem to the m Ind, but very real.
01.04 - Sri Aurobindos Gita, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 03, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Sr I Aurob Indo and h Is School Our Ideal
Other Authors Nol In I Kanta Gupta Part OneSr I Aurob Indos G Ita
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The supreme secret of the G Ita, rahasyam uttamam, has presented Itself to d Iverse m Inds In d Iverse forms. All these however fall, roughly speak Ing, Into two broad groups of wh Ich one may be termed the orthodox school and the other the modem school. The orthodox school as represented, for example, by Shankara or Sr Idhara, v Iewed the G Ita In the l Ight of the sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine more or less current In those ages, when the purpose of l Ife was held out to be emanc Ipat Ion from l Ife, whether through des Ireless work or knowledge or devot Ion or even a comb Inat Ion of the three. The Modern School, on the other hand, represented by Bank Im In Bengal and more thoroughly developed and systemat Ised In recent t Imes by T Ilak, Is Insp Ired by Its own T Ime-Sp Ir It and f Inds In the G Ita a gospel of l Ife-fulf Ilment. The older Interpretat Ion la Id stress upon a sp Ir Itual and rel Ig Ious, wh Ich meant therefore In the end an other-worldly d Isc Ipl Ine; the newer Interpretat Ion seeks to dynam Ise the more or less qu Iet Ist Ic sp Ir Itual Ity wh Ich held the ground In Ind Ia of later ages, to set a prem Ium upon act Ion, upon duty that Is to be done In our workaday l Ife, though w Ith a sp Ir Itual Intent and mot Ive.
Th Is neo-sp Ir Itual Ity wh Ich m Ight cla Im Its sanct Ion and author Ity from the real old-world Ind Ian d Isc Ipl Inesay, of Janaka and Yajnavalkyalabours, however, In real Ity, under the Influence of European act Iv Ism and eth Ic Ism. It was th Is wh Ich served as the Immed Iate Incent Ive to our sp Ir Itual rev Ival and revaluat Ion and Its Impress has not been thoroughly obl Iterated even In the best of our modern exponents. The b Ias of the v Ital urge and of the moral Imperat Ive Is apparent enough In the modern Ist concept Ion of a dynam Ic sp Ir Itual Ity. Fundamentally the dynam Ism Is made to res Ide In the lan of the eth Ical man,the sp Ir Itual element, as a consc Iousness of supreme un Ity In the Absolute (Brahman) or of love and del Ight In God, serv Ing only as an atmosphere for the mortal act Iv Ity.
Sr I Aurob Indo has ra Ised act Ion completely out of the mental and moral plane and has g Iven It an absolute sp Ir Itual l Ife. Act Ion has been sp Ir Itual Ised by be Ing carr Ied back to Its very source and or Ig In, for It Is the express Ion In l Ife of God's own Consc Iousness-Energy (Ch It-Shakt I).
The Supreme Sp Ir It, Purushottama, who holds In h Imself the dual real Ity of Brahman and the world, Is the master of act Ion who acts but In act Ionlessness, the Lord In whom and through whom the un Iverses and the Ir creatures l Ive and move and have the Ir be Ing. Karmayoga Is un Ion In m Ind and soul and body w Ith the Lord of act Ion In the execut Ion of h Is cosm Ic purpose. And th Is un Ion Is effected through a transformat Ion of the human nature, through the revelat Ion of the D Iv Ine Prakr It I and Its descent upon and possess Ion of the Infer Ior human veh Icle.
Arr Ived so far, we now f Ind, If we look back, a change In the whole perspect Ive. Karma and even Karmayoga, wh Ich h Itherto seemed to be the p Ivot of the G Ita's teach Ing, ret Ire somewhat Into the background and present a d Im In Ished stature and value. The centre of grav Ity has sh Ifted to the concept Ion of the D Iv Ine Nature, to the Lord's own status, to the consc Iousness above the three Gunas, to absolute consecrat Ion of each l Imb of man's human Ity to the Supreme Purusha for h Is descent and Incarnat Ion and play In and upon th Is human world.
The h Igher secret of the G Ita l Ies really In the later chapters, the earl Ier chapters be Ing a preparat Ion and passage to It orpart Ial and pract Ical appl Icat Ion. Th Is has to be po Inted out, s Ince there Is a not Ion current wh Ich seeks to l Im It the G Ita's effect Ive teach Ing to the earl Ier part, neglect Ing or even d Iscard Ing the later port Ion.
The style and manner of Sr I Aurob Indo's Interpretat Ion1 Is also supremely character Ist Ic: It does not carry the Impress of a mere metaphys Ical d Issertat Ion-although In matter It clothes throughout a profound ph Ilosophy; It Is throbb Ing w Ith the lum Inous l Ife of a prophet's message, It Is Inst Inct w Ith someth Ing of the G Ita's own mantraakt I.
Essays on the G Ita, Sr I Aurob Indo Ashram, Pond Icherry
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Sr I Aurob Indo and h Is School Our Ideal
01.04 - The Intuition of the Age, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
object:01.04 - The Intu It Ion of the Age
author class:Nol In I Kanta Gupta
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The Intu It Ion of the Age
All movementswhe ther of thought or of l Ife, whether In the Ind Iv Idual or In the massproceed from a fundamental Intu It Ion wh Ich l Ies In the background as the log Ical presuppos It Ion, the psycholog Ical mot Ive and the sp Ir Itual force. A certa In att Itude of the soul, a certa In angle of v Is Ion Is what Is pos Ited f Irst; all other th Ingsall thoughts and feel Ings and act Iv It Ies are but necessary attempts to express, to demonstrate, to real Ise on the consc Ious and dynam Ic levels, In the outer world, the truth wh Ich has thus already been se Ized In some secret core of our be Ing. The Intu It Ion may not, of course, be present to the consc Ious m Ind, It may not be ostens Ibly sought for, one may even deny the ex Istence of such a preconce Ived not Ion and proceed to establ Ish truth on a tabula rasa; none the less It Is th Is h Idden b Ias that judges, th Is secret consc Iousness that formulates, th Is unknown power that fash Ions.
Now, what Is the Intu It Ion that l Ies beh Ind the movements of the new age? What Is the Int Imate real Isat Ion, the underly Ing v Iew-po Int wh Ich Is gu Id Ing and modell Ing all our efforts and ach Ievementsour sc Ience and art, our poetry and ph Ilosophy, our rel Ig Ion and soc Iety? For, there Is such a common and fundamental note wh Ich Is be Ing vo Iced forth by the human sp Ir It through all the mult Itude of Its present-day act Iv It Ies.
A new Impulse Is there, no one can deny, and It has vast poss Ib Il It Ies before It, that also one need not hes Itate to accept. But In order that we may best fructuate what has been spontaneously sown, we must f Irst recogn Ise It, be lum Inously consc Ious of It and develop It along Its proper l Ine of growth. For, also certa In It Is that th Is new Impulse or Intu It Ion, however true and strong In Itself, Is st Ill grop Ing and err Ing and m Iscarry Ing; It Is st Ill wast Ing much of Its energy In tentat Ive th Ings, In mere exper Iments, In even clear fa Ilures. The fact Is that the Intu It Ion has not yet become an enl Ightened one, It Is st Ill mov Ing, as we shall presently expla In, In the dark v Ital reg Ions of man. And v Ital Ism Is naturally and closely aff Ianced to pragmat Ism, that Is to say, the mere v Ital Impulse seeks Immed Iately to execute Itself, It looks for external effects, for changes In the form, In the mach Inery only. Thus It Is that we see In art and l Iterature d Iscuss Ions centred upon the scheme of compos It Ion, as whether the new poetry should be lyr Ical or dramat Ic, popular or ar Istocrat Ic, metr Ical or free of metre, and In pract Ical l Ife we talk of remodell Ing the state by new methods of representat Ion and governance, of purg Ing soc Iety by b Ills and leg Islat Ion, of reform Ing human Ity by a bus Iness pact.
All th Is may be good and necessary, but there Is the danger of leav Ing altogether out of account the one th Ing needful. We must then pause and turn back, look beh Ind the apparent Impuls Ion that effectuates to the W Ill that dr Ives, beh Ind the Ideas and Ideals of the m Ind to the soul that Informs and Insp Ires; we must carry ourselves up the stream and concentrate upon the or Ig Inal source, the creat Ive Intu It Ion that l Ies h Idden somewhere. And then only all the new st Irr Ings that we feel In our heartour urges and Ideals and v Is Ions w Ill atta In an effect Ive clar Ity, an unshaken purpose and an Inev Itable ach Ievement.
That Is to say, the change has been In the soul of man h Imself, the be Ing has veered round and taken a new or Ientat Ion. It Is th Is wh Ich one must env Isage, recogn Ise and consc Iously possess, In order that one may best fulf Il the call of the age. But what we are do Ing Instead Is to observe the mere external s Igns and symbols and symptoms, to f Ix upon the d Istant qu Iver Ings, the echoes on the outermost r Im, wh Ich are not always fa Ithful representat Ions, but very often d Istorted Images of the truth and l Ife at the centre and source and matr Ix. We must know that If there has been go Ing on a red Istr Ibut Ion and new-marshall Ing of forces, It Is because the f Iat has come from the Etat Major.
Now, In order to understand the new or Ientat Ion of the sp Ir It of the present age, we may prof Itably ask what was the Insp Irat Ion of the past age, the character Ist Ic note wh Ich has fa Iled to sat Isfy us and wh Ich we are endeavour Ing to transform. We know that that age was the Sc Ient If Ic age or the age of Reason. Its great prophets were Volta Ire and the Encyclopaed Ists or If you mount further up In t Ime, we may beg In from Bacon and the human Ists. Its motto was f Irst, "The proper study of mank Ind Is man" and secondly, Reason Is the supreme organon of knowledge, the h Ighest de Ity In manla Desse Ra Ison. And It Is prec Isely aga Inst these two bas Ic pr Inc Iples that the new age has entered Its protest. In face of Human Ism, N Ietzsche has pos Ited the Superman and In face of Reason Bergson has pos Ited Intu It Ion.
The worsh Ip of man as someth Ing essent Ially and exclus Ively human necess Itates as a corollary, the other doctr Ine, v Iz the de If Icat Ion of Reason; and v Ice versa. Human Ism and Sc Ient Ism go together and the whole sp Ir It and mental Ity of the age that Is pass Ing may be summed up In those two words. So N Ietzsche says, "All our modern world Is captured In the net of the Alexandr Ine culture and has, for Its Ideal, the theoret Ical man, armed w Ith the most powerful Instruments of knowledge, to Il Ing In the serv Ice of sc Ience and whose prototype and or Ig Inal ancestor Is Socrates." Indeed, It may be generally asserted that the nat Ion whose prophet and sage cla Imed to have brought down Ph Ilosoph Ia from heaven to dwell upon earth among men was prec Isely the nat Ion, endowed w Ith a clear and log Ical Intellect, that was the very embod Iment of rat Ional Ity and reasonableness. As a matter of fact, It would not be far, wrong to say that It Is the Hellen Ic culture wh Ich has been mould Ing human Ity for ages; at least, It Is th Is wh Ich has been the predom Inat Ing factor, the v Ital and dynam Ic element In man's nature. Greece when It d Ied was reborn In Rome; Rome, In Its return, found new l Ife In France; and France means Europe. What Europe has been and st Ill Is for the world and human Ity one knows only too much. And yet, the Hellen Ic gen Ius has not been the sole mot Ive power and const Ituent element; there has been another leaven wh Ich worked constantly w Ith In, If Interm Ittently w Ithout. If Europe represented m Ind and man and th Is s Ide of ex Istence, As Ia always reflected that wh Ich transcends the m Ind the sp Ir It, the Gods and the Beyonds.
However, we are concerned more w Ith the Immed Iate past, the mental Ity that la Id Its supreme stress upon the human rat Ional Ity. What that epoch d Id not understand was that Reason could be overstepped, that there was someth Ing h Igher, someth Ing greater than Reason; Reason be Ing the sovere Ign faculty, It was thought there could be noth Ing beyond, unless It were dra Ison. The human attr Ibute par excellence Is Reason. Exactly so. But the fact Is that man Is not bound by h Is human Ity and that reason can be transformed and subl Imated Into other more powerful facult Ies.
Now, the quest Ion Is, what Is the Insuff Ic Iency of Reason? How does It l Im It man? And what Is the Superman Into wh Ich man Is asked or Is be Ing Impelled to grow?
Reason Is Insuff Ic Ient and unsat Isfactory because, as Bergson expla Ins, It does not and cannot embrace l Ife as a whole, se Ize man and the world In an Integral real Isat Ion. The greater part of the vast mystery of ex Istence escapes Its envergure. Reason Is that faculty wh Ich Is for analys Ing, def In Ing, class Ify Ing and f Ix Ing th Ings. It Is a power that has grown In man In order that he may best man Ipulate the th Ings of the world. It Is ut Il Itar Ian, pract Ical In Its nature and outlook. And as pract Ical deal Ing requ Ires that th Ings should be stable and separate ent It Ies, therefore Reason cannot but see th Ings In sol Id and In the fragments of a sol Id. It cuts up ex Istence Into d Ist Inct parts and d Iverse elements; and these aga In It seeks to relate and aggregate, In accordance w Ith what It calls "laws". Such a process has been necessary for man In conduct Ing l Ife and act Ion successfully. Or Ig Inally a bye-product of act Ive l Ife, Reason gradually separated Itself and came f Inally to have an Independent status and funct Ion, became or sought to become the Instrument of knowledge, of Truth.
But although Reason has been and Is useful for the pract Ical, we may say almost, the manual aspect of l Ife, l Ife Itself It leaves unexpla Ined and uncomprehended. For l Ife Is mob Il Ity, a cont Inuous flow that has nowhere any gap or stop and th Ings have In real Ity no Isolated or separate ex Istence, they merge and m Ingle Into one another and form an Ind Issoluble whole. Therefore the forms and categor Ies that Reason Imposes upon ex Istence are more or less arb Itrary; they are shackles that seek to b Ind up and l Im It l Ife, but are often rent asunder In the very effort. So the c Iv Il Isat Ion that has Its or Ig In In Reason and progresses w Ith d Iscover Ies and Invent Ionsdev Ices for artfully man Ipulat Ing naturehas been essent Ially and pre-em Inently mechan Ical In Its structure and outlook. It has become more and more eff Ic Ient perhaps, but less and less soul- Insp Ired, less and less-endowed w Ith the free-flow Ing sap of organ Ic growth and v Ital Ity.
So Instead of the rat Ional pr Inc Iple, the new age wants the pr Inc Iple of Nature or L Ife. Even as regards knowledge Reason Is not the only, nor the best Instrument. For an Imals have properly no reason; the nature-pr Inc Iple of knowledge In the an Imal Is Inst Inct the faculty that acts so faultlessly, so marvellously where Reason can only pause and be perplexed. Th Is Is not to say that man Is to or can go back to th Is pr Im It Ive and an Imal funct Ion; but certa Inly he can replace It by someth Ing ak In wh Ich Is as natural and yet pur If Ied and self-consc Ious Illum Ined Inst Inct, we may say or Intu It Ion, as Bergson terms It. And N Ietzsche's def In It Ion of the Superman has also a s Im Ilar or Ientat Ion and s Ign If Icance; for, accord Ing to h Im, the Superman Is man who has outgrown h Is Reason, who Is not bound by the standards and the convent Ions determ Ined by Reason for a spec Ial purpose. The Superman Is one who has gone beyond "good and ev Il," who has shaken off from h Is nature and character elements that are "human, all too human"who Is the embod Iment of l Ife-force In Its absolute pur Ity and strength and freedom.
Th Is then Is the mantra of the new ageL Ife w Ith Intu It Ion as Its gu Ide and not Reason and mechan Ical eff Ic Iency, not Man but Superman. The r Ight mantra has been found, the pr Inc Iple Itself Is Irreproachable. But the Interpretat Ion, the appl Icat Ion, does not seem to have been always happy. For, N Ietzsche's concept Ion of the Superman Is full of obv Ious lacunae. If we have so long been ador Ing the Intellectual man, N Ietzsche asks us, on the other hand, to de Ify the v Ital man. Accord Ing to h Im the superman Is he who has (1) the supreme sense of the ego, (2) the sovere Ign w Ill to power and (3) who l Ives dangerously. All th Is means an Asura, that Is to say, one who has, It may be, dom In Ion over h Is an Imal and v Ital Impuls Ions In order, of course, that he may best grat Ify them but who has not pur If Ied them. Pur If Icat Ion does not necessar Ily mean, ann Ih Ilat Ion but It does mean subl Imat Ion and transformat Ion. So If you have to transcend man, you have to transcend ego Ism also. For a consc Ious ego Ism Is the very character Ist Ic of man and by Increas Ing your sense of ego Ism you do not supersede man but s Imply aggrand Ise your human Ity, fash Ion It on a larger, a t Itan Ic scale. And then the w Ill to power Is not the only w Ill that requ Ires fulf Ilment, there Is also the w Ill to knowledge and the w Ill to love. In man these three fundamental const Itut Ive elements coex Ist, although they do It, more often than not, at the expense of each other and In a state of cont Inual d Isharmony. The superman, If he Is to be the man "who has surmounted h Imself", must embody a po Ise of be Ing In wh Ich all the three f Ind a fus Ion and harmonya perfect synthes Is. Aga In, to l Ive dangerously may be hero Ic, but It Is not d Iv Ine. To l Ive dangerously means to have eternal opponents, that Is to say, to l Ive ever on the same level w Ith the forces you want to dom Inate. To have the sense that one has to f Ight and control means that one Is not as yet the sovere Ign lord, for one has to str Ive and stra In and atta In. The supreme lord Is he who Is perfectly equan Imous w Ith h Imself and w Ith the world. He has not to batter th Ings Into a shape In order to create. He creates means, he man Ifests. He w Ills and he ach Ieves"God sa Id 'let there be l Ight' and there was l Ight."
As a matter of fact, the superman Is not, as N Ietzsche th Inks h Im to be, the h Ighest embod Iment of the b Iolog Ical force of Nature, not even as mod If Ied and ref Ined by the aesthet Ic and ar Istocrat Ic v Irtues of wh Ich the h Igher reaches of human Ity seem capable. For that Is after all human Ity only accentuated In certa In other fundamentally human modes of ex Istence. It does not carry far enough the process of surmount Ing. In real Ity It Is not a surmount Ing but a new channell Ing. Instead of the eth Ical and Intellectual man, we get the v Ital and aesthet Ic man. It may be a change but not a transf Igurat Ion.
And the faculty of Intu It Ion sa Id to be the character Ist Ic of the New Man does not mean all that It should, If we conf Ine ourselves to Bergson's def In It Ion of It. Bergson says that Intu It Ion Is a sort of sympathy, a commun Ity of feel Ing or sens Ib Il Ity w Ith the urge of the l Ife-real Ity. The d Ifference between the sympathy of Inst Inct and the sympathy of Intu It Ion be Ing that wh Ile the former Is an unconsc Ious or sem I-consc Ious power, the latter Is Illum Ined and self-consc Ious. Now th Is v Iew emphas Ises only the feel Ing-tone of Intu It Ion, the v Ital sens Ib Il Ity that attends the d Irect commun Ion w Ith the l Ife movement. But Intu It Ion Is not only pur If Ied feel Ing and sens Ib Il Ity, It Is also pur If Ied v Is Ion and knowledge. It un Ites us not only w Ith the movement of l Ife, but also opens out to our s Ight the Truths, the fundamental real It Ies beh Ind that movement. Bergson does not, of course, po Int to any ex Istence beh Ind the cont Inuous flux of l Ife-power the elan v Ital. He seems to deny any stat Ic truth or truths to be seen and se Ized In any scheme of knowledge. To h Im the dynam Ic flow the Heracl It Ian panta ree I Is the ult Imate real Ity. It Is prec Isely to th Is v Iew of th Ings that Bergson owes h Is concept Ion of Intu It Ion. S Ince ex Istence Is a cont Inuum of M Ind-Energy, the only way to know It Is to be In harmony or un Ison w Ith It, to move along Its current. The concept Ion of knowledge as a f Ix Ing and del Im It Ing of th Ings Is necessar Ily an anomaly In th Is scheme. But the quest Ion Is, Is matter the only stat Ic and separat Ive real Ity? Is the flux of v Ital M Ind-Energy the ult Imate truth?
Matter forms the lowest level of real Ity. Above It Is the elan v Ital. Above the elan v Ital there Is yet the doma In of the Sp Ir It. And the Sp Ir It Is a stat Ic substance and at the same a dynam Ic creat Ive power. It Is Be Ing (Sat) that real Ises or expresses Itself through certa In typal nucle I or nod I of consc Iousness (ch It) In a cont Inuous becom Ing, In a flow of creat Ive act Iv Ity (ananda). The dynam Ism of the v Ital energy Is only a refract Ion or prec Ip Itat Ion of the dynam Ism of the sp Ir It; and so also stat Ic matter Is only the substance of the sp Ir It concret Ised and sol Id If Ied. It Is In an upl Ift both of matter and v Ital force to the Ir prototypesswarupa and swabhava In the Sp Ir It that l Ies the real transformat Ion and transf Igurat Ion of the human Ity of man.
Th Is Is the truth that Is try Ing to dawn upon the new age. Not matter but that wh Ich forms the substance of matter, not Intellect but a vaster consc Iousness that Informs the Intellect, not man as he Is, an aberrat Ion In the cosm Ic order, but as he may and shall be the embod Iment and fulf Ilment of that orderth Is Is the secret Intu It Ion wh Ich, as yet d Imly env Isaged, nevertheless secretly Insp Ires all the human act Iv It Ies of today. Only, the truth Is be Ing Interpreted, as we have sa Id, In terms of v Ital l Ife. The Intellectual and phys Ical man gave us one aspect of the real Ity, but ne Ither Is the v Ital and psych Ical man the complete real Ity. The one acqu Is It Ion of th Is sh Ift Ing of the v Iewpo Int has been that we are now In touch w Ith the natural and deeper movement of human Ity and not as before merely w Ith Its art If Ic Ial scaffold Ing. The Alexandr Ine c Iv Il Isat Ion of human Ity, In N Ietzsche's phrase, was a sort of d Ivagat Ion from nature, It was follow Ing a loop away from the d Irect path of natural evolut Ion. And the new Rena Issance of today has prec Isely corrected th Is aberrat Ion of human Ity and brought It aga In In a l Ine w Ith the natural cosm Ic order.
Certa Inly th Is does not go far enough Into the mot Ive of the change. The cosm Ic order does not mean mental Ised v Ital Ism wh Ich Is also In Its turn a sect Ion of the Integral real Ity. It means the order of the sp Ir It, It means the transf Igurat Ion of the phys Ical, the v Ital and the Intellectual Into the supernal Substance, Power and L Ight of that Sp Ir It. The real transcendence of human Ity Is not the transcendence of one or other of Its levels but the total transcendence to an altogether d Ifferent status and the transmutat Ion of human Ity In the mould of that statusnot a N Ietzschean T Itan nor a Bergson Ian D Ionysus but the tranqu Il v Is Ion and del Ight and dynam Ism of the Sp Ir It the Incarnat Ion of a god-head.
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01.04 - The Poetry in the Making, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
object:01.04 - The Poetry In the Mak Ing
author class:Nol In I Kanta Gupta
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Other Authors Nol In I Kanta Gupta Poets and Myst Ics The Poetry In the Mak Ing
The Poetry In the Mak Ing
Is the art Ist the supreme art Ist, when he Is a gen Ius, that Is to sayconsc Ious In h Is creat Ion or Is he unconsc Ious? Two qu Ite oppos Ite v Iews have been taken of the problem by the best of Intell Igences. On the one hand, It Is sa Id that gen Ius Is gen Ius prec Isely because It acts unconsc Iously, and on the other It Is asserted w Ith equal emphas Is that gen Ius Is the capac Ity of tak Ing Inf In Ite pa Ins, wh Ich means It Is absolutely a self consc Ious act Iv Ity.
We take a th Ird v Iew of the matter and say that gen Ius Is ne Ither unconsc Ious or consc Ious but superconsc Ious. And when one Is superconsc Ious, one can be In appearance e Ither consc Ious or unconsc Ious. Let us at the outset try to expla In a l Ittle th Is psycholog Ical r Iddle.
When we say one Is consc Ious, we usually mean that one Is consc Ious w Ith the mental consc Iousness, w Ith the rat Ional Intell Igence, w Ith the l Ight of the bra In. But th Is need not be always so. For one can be consc Ious w Ith other forms of consc Iousness or In other planes of consc Iousness. In the average or normal man the consc Iousness Is l Inked to or Ident If Ied w Ith the bra In funct Ion, the rat Ional Intell Igence and so we conclude that w Ithout th Is wakeful bra In act Iv Ity there can be no consc Iousness. But the fact Is otherw Ise. The exper Iences of the myst Ic prove the po Int. The myst Ic Is consc Ious on a level wh Ich we descr Ibe as h Igher than the m Ind and reason, he has what may be called the overhead consc Iousness. (Apart from the normal consc Iousness, wh Ich Is named jagrat, wak Ing, the Upan Ishad speaks of three other Increas Ingly subtler states of consc Iousness, swapna, sushupt I and tur Iya.)And then one can be qu Ite unconsc Ious, as In samadh I that can be sushupt I or tur Iyaorpart Ially consc Ious In swapna, for example, the external behav Iour may be l Ike that of a ch Ild or a lunat Ic or even a gobl In. One can also rema In normally consc Ious and st Ill be In the superconsc Ience. Not only so, the myst Ic the Yog Ican be consc Ious on Infraconsc Ious levels also; that Is to say, he can enter Into and Ident Ify w Ith the consc Iousness Involved In l Ife and even In Matter; he can feel and real Ise h Is oneness w Ith the an Imal world, the plant world and f Inally the world of dead earth, of "stocks and stones" too. For all these strands of ex Istence have each Its own type of consc Iousness and all d Ifferent from the mode of m Ind wh Ich Is normally known as consc Iousness. When St. Franc Is addresses h Imself to the brother Sun or the s Ister Moon, or when the Upan Ishad speaks of the tree s Ilhouetted aga Inst the sky, as If st Illed In trance, we feel there Is someth Ing of th Is fus Ion and Ident If Icat Ion of consc Iousness w Ith an Infra-consc Ient ex Istence.
I sa Id that the supreme art Ist Is superconsc Ious: h Is consc Iousness w Ithdraws from the normal mental consc Iousness and becomes awake and al Ive In another order of consc Iousness. To that super Ior consc Iousness the art Ist's mental Ityh Is Ideas and d Ispos It Ions, h Is judgments and valuat Ions and acqu Is It Ions, In other words, h Is normal psycholog Ical make-upserves as a channel, an Instrument, a med Ium for transcr Ipt Ion. Now, there are two stages, or rather two l Ines of act Iv Ity In the processus, for they may be overlapp Ing and pract Ically s Imultaneous. F Irst, there Is the w Ithdrawal and the In-gather Ing of consc Iousness and then Its reappearance Into express Ion. The consc Iousness ret Ires Into a secret or subtle worldWords-worth's "recollected In tranqu Ill Ity"and comes back w Ith the r Iches gathered or transmuted there. But the pur Ity of the gold thus garnered and stalled In the art Istry of words and sounds or l Ines and colours depends altogether upon the pur Ity of the channel through wh Ich It has to pass. The mental veh Icle rece Ives and records and It can do so to perfect Ion If It Is perfectly In tune w Ith what It has to rece Ive and record; otherw Ise the transcr Ipt Ion becomes m Ixed and blurred, a fa Int or confused echo, a poor show. The supreme creators are prec Isely those In whom the receptacle, the Instrumental facult Ies offer the least res Istance and record w Ith absolute f Idel Ity the exper Iences of the over or Inner consc Iousness. In Shakespeare, In Homer, In Valm Ik I the Inflatus of the secret consc Iousness, the Insp Irat Ion, as It Is usually termed, bears down, sweeps away all obscur Ity or contrar Iety In the record Ing mental Ity, suffuses It w Ith Its own glow and pu Issance, Indeed resolves It Into Its own substance, as It were. And the d Ifference between the two, the secret norm and the record Ing form, determ Ines the scale of the art Ist's creat Ive value. It happens often that the obstruct Ion of a too cr It Ically observant and self-consc Ious bra In-m Ind successfully blocks up the flow of someth Ing supremely beaut Iful that wanted to come down and wa Ited for an opportun Ity.
Art Ists themselves, almost Invar Iably, speak of the Ir Insp Irat Ion: they look upon themselves more or less as mere Instruments of someth Ing or some Power that Is beyond them, beyond the Ir normal consc Iousness attached to the bra In-m Ind, that controls them and wh Ich they cannot control. Th Is percept Ion has been g Iven shape In myths and legends. Goddess Saraswat I or the Muses are, however, for them not a mere metaphor but concrete real It Ies. To what extent a poet may feel h Imself to be a mere pass Ive, almost Inan Imate, Instrumentnoth Ing more than a m Irror or a sens It Ive photograph Ic plate Is Illustrated In the famous case of Coler Idge. H Is Kubla Khan, as Is well known, he heard In sleep and It was a long poem very d Ist Inctly rec Ited to h Im, but when he woke up and wanted to wr Ite It down he could remember only the open Ing l Ines, the rest hav Ing gone completely out of h Is memory; In other words, the poem was ready-composed somewhere else, but the transm Itt Ing or record Ing Instrument was faulty and fa Iled h Im. Indeed, It Is a common exper Ience to hear In sleep verses or mus Ical tunes and what seem then to be very beaut Iful th Ings, but wh Ich leave no trace on the bra In and are not recalled In memory.
St Ill, It must be noted that Coler Idge Is a rare example, for the record Ing apparatus Is not usually so fa Ithful but puts up Its own format Ions that d Isturb and alter the perfect Ion of the or Ig Inal. The pass Iv Ity or neutral Ity of the Intermed Iary Is relat Ive, and there are Inf In Ite grades of It. Even when the larger waves that play In It In the normal wak Ing state are qu Ieted down, smaller r Ipples of unconsc Ious or half-consc Ious hab Itual format Ions are thrown up and they are suff Ic Ient to cause the scatter Ing and d Ispersal of the pure l Ight from above.
The absolute pass Iv Ity Is atta Inable, perhaps, only by the Yog I. And In th Is sense the supreme poet Is a Yog I, for In h Is consc Iousness the h Igher, deeper, subtler or other modes of exper Iences pass through and are recorded w Ith the m In Imum aberrat Ion or d Iffract Ion.
But the Yog I Is a wholly consc Ious be Ing; a perfect Yog I Is he who possesses a consc Ious and w Illed control over h Is Instruments, he s Ilences them, as and when he l Ikes, and makes them convey and express w Ith as l Ittle dev Iat Ion as poss Ible truths and real It Ies from the Beyond. Now the quest Ion Is, Is It poss Ible for the poet also to do someth Ing l Ike that, to consc Iously create and not to be a mere unconsc Ious or helpless channel? Consc Ious art Istry, as we have sa Id, means to be consc Ious on two levels of consc Iousness at the same t Ime, to be at home In both equally and s Imultaneously. The general exper Ience, however, Is that of "one at a t Ime": If the art Ist dwells more In the one, the other ret Ires Into the background to the same measure. If he Is In the over-consc Iousness, he Is only half-consc Ious In h Is bra In consc Iousness, or even not consc Ious at allhe does not know how he has created, the sources or process of h Is creat Ive act Iv Ity, he Is qu Ite obl Iv Ious of them" gone through them all as If per saltum. Such seems to have been the case w Ith the pr Im It Ives, as they are called, the elemental poetsShakespeare and Homer and Valm Ik I. In some others, who come very near to them In poet Ic gen Ius, yet not qu Ite on a par, the Instrumental Intell Igence Is strong and act Ive, It helps In Its own way but In help Ing c Ircumscr Ibes and l Im Its the or Ig Inal Impuls Ion. The art here becomes consc Iously art Ist Ic, but loses someth Ing of the In It Ial freshness and spontane Ity: It ga Ins In correctness, pol Ish and elegance and has now a style In l Ieu of Nature's own naturalness. I am th Ink Ing of V Irg Il and M Ilton and Kal Idasa. Dante's place Is perhaps somewhere In between. Lower In the rung where the mental med Ium occup Ies a st Ill more preponderant place we have Intellectual poetry, poetry of the later class Ical age whose representat Ives are Pope and Dryden. We can go farther down and land In the doma In of vers If Icat Ionalthough here, too, there can be a good amount of beauty In shape of Ingenu Ity, cleverness and conce It: Volta Ire and Del Ille are of th Is order In French poetry.
The three or four major orders I speak of In reference to consc Ious art Istry are exampled character Ist Ically In the h Istory of the evolut Ion of Greek poetry. It must be remembered, however, at the very outset that the Greeks as a race were noth Ing If not rat Ional and Intellectual. It was an element of strong self-consc Iousness that they brought Into human culture that was the Ir spec Ial g Ift. Leav Ing out of account Homer who was, as I sa Id, a pr Im It Ive, the Ir class Ical age began w Ith Aeschylus who was the f Irst and the most spontaneous and Intu It Ive of the Great Three. Sophocles, who comes next, Is more balanced and self-controlled and pregnant w Ith a reasoned thought-content clothed In pol Ished phras Ing. We feel here that the art Ist knew what he was about and was exerc Is Ing a consc Ious control over h Is Instruments and mater Ials, unl Ike h Is predecessor who seemed to be completely carr Ied away by the onrush of the poet Ic enthous Iasmos. Sophocles, In sp Ite of h Is art Ist Ic perfect Ion or perhaps because of It, appears to be just a l Ittle, one remove, away from the pur Ity of the central Insp Irat Ion there Is a ve Il, although a th In transparent ve Il, yet a ve Il between wh Ich Intervenes. W Ith the th Ird of the Brotherhood, Eur Ip Ides, we sl Ide lower downwe arr Ive at a predom Inantly mental transcr Ipt Ion of an exper Ience or Inner concept Ion; but someth Ing of the major breath cont Inues, an aura, a rhythm that ma Inta Ins the Inner contact and thus saves the poetry. In a subsequent age, In Theocr Itus, for example, poetry became truly very much 's Ickl Ied o'er w Ith the pale cast of thought', so much of v Irtuos Ity and precoc Ity entered Into It; In other words, the poet then was an excess Ively self-consc Ious art Ist. That seems to be the general trend of all l Iterature.
But should there be an Inherent Incompat Ib Il Ity between spontaneous creat Ion and self-consc Iousness? As we have seen, a harmony and fus Ion can and do happen of the superconsc Ious and the normally consc Ious In the Yog I. L Ikew Ise, an art Ist also can be wakeful and transparent enough so that he Is consc Ious on both the levels s Imultaneouslyabove, he Is consc Ious of the source and or Ig In of h Is Insp Irat Ion, and on the level pla In he Is consc Ious of the work Ing of the Instrument, how the veh Icle transcr Ibes and embod Ies what comes from elsewhere. The poet's consc Iousness becomes then d Ivalent as It werethere Is a sense of absolute pass Iv Ity In respect of the rece Iv Ing apparatus and coupled and Imm Isced w Ith It there Is also the sense of dynam Ism, of consc Ious agency as In h Is secret be Ing he Is the master of h Is apparatus and one w Ith the Insp Irer In other words, the poet Is both a seer (kav Ih) and a creator or doer (po Its).
Not only so, the future development of the poet Ic consc Iousness seems Inev Itably to lead to such a consummat Ion In wh Ich the creat Ive and the cr It Ical facult Ies w Ill not be separate but form part of one and Ind Iv Is Ible movement. H Istor Ically, human consc Iousness has grown from unconsc Iousness to consc Iousness and from consc Iousness to self-consc Iousness; man's creat Ive and art Ist Ic gen Ius too has moved par I passu In the same d Irect Ion. The earl Iest and pr Im It Ive poets were mostly unconsc Ious, that Is to say, they wrote or sa Id th Ings as they came to them spontaneously, w Ithout effort, w Ithout reflect Ion, they do not seem to know the whence and wherefore and wh Ither of It all, they know only that the w Ind bloweth as It l Isteth. That was when man had not yet eaten the fru It of knowledge, was st Ill In the Innocence of ch Ildhood. But as he grew up and progressed, he became more and more consc Ious, capable of exert Ing and exerc Is Ing a del Iberate w Ill and In It Iat Ing a purpos Ive act Ion, not only In the external pract Ical f Ield but also In the psycholog Ical doma In. If the earl Ier group Is called "pr Im It Ives", the later one, that of consc Ious art Ists, usually goes by the name of "class Ic Ists." Modern creators have gone one step farther In the d Irect Ion of self-consc Iousness, a return upon oneself, an Inlook of full awareness and a free and alert act Iv Ity of the cr It Ical facult Ies. An unconsc Ious art Ist In the sense of the "pr Im It Ives" Is almost an Imposs Ible phenomenon In the modern world. All are sc Ient Ists: an art Ist cannot but be consc Iously cr It Ical, del Iberate, purpos Ive In what he creates and how he creates. Ev Idently, th Is has cost someth Ing of the old-world spontane Ity and supremacy of utterance; but It cannot be helped, we cannot comm and the t Ide to roll back, Canute-l Ike. The feature has to be accepted and a remedy and new or Ientat Ion d Iscovered.
The modern cr It Ical self-consc Iousness In the art Ist or Ig Inated w Ith the Romant Ics. The very essence of Romant Ic Ism Is cur Ios Ity the sc Ient Ist's pleasure In analys Ing, observ Ing, exper Iment Ing, chang Ing the cond It Ions of our react Ions, mental or sent Imental or even nervous and phys Ical by way of d Iscovery of new and unforeseen or unexpected modes of "psychoses" or psycholog Ical states. Goethe, Wordsworth, Stendhal represented a mental Ity and In It Iated a movement wh Ich led log Ically to the age of Hardy, Housman and Br Idges and In the end to that of Lawrence and Joyce, Ezra Pound and El Iot and Auden. On the Cont Inent we can cons Ider Flaubert as the last of the class Ic Ists marr Ied to the very qu Intessence of Romant Ic Ism. A hard, self-regard Ing, self-cr It Ical mental Ity, a cold scalpel-l Ike gaze that penetrates and upturns the reverse s Ide of th Ings Is Int Imately assoc Iated w Ith the poet Ic gen Ius of Mallarm and const Itutes almost the whole of Valry's. The Impass Ioned l Ines of a very modern poet l Ike Aragon are also character Ised by a consummate v Irtuos Ity In ch Iselled art Istry, consc Ious and del Iberate and w Illed at every step and turn.
The consc Iously purpos Ive act Iv Ity of the poet Ic consc Iousness In fact, of all art Ist Ic consc Iousness has shown Itself w Ith a clear and unamb Iguous emphas Is In two d Irect Ions. F Irst of all w Ith regard to the subject-matter: the old-world poets took th Ings as they were, as they were obv Ious to the eye, th Ings of human nature and th Ings of phys Ical Nature, and w Ithout quest Ion Ing dealt w Ith them In the beauty of the Ir normal form and funct Ion. The modern mental Ity has turned away from the normal and the obv Ious: It does not accept and adm It the "g Iven" as the f Inal and def In It Ive norm of th Ings. It w Ishes to d Iscover and establ Ish other norms, It str Ives to br Ing about changes In the nature and cond It Ion of th Ings, env Isage the shape of th Ings to come, work for a brave new world. The poet of today, In sp Ite of all h Is effort to rema In a pure poet, In sp Ite of Housman's advocacy of nonsense and not-sense be Ing the essence of true Art, Is almost Invar Iably at heart an Incorr Ig Ible prophet. In revolt aga Inst the old and establ Ished order of truths and customs, aga Inst all that Is normally cons Idered as beaut Iful, Ideals and emot Ions and act Iv It Ies of man or aspects and scenes and movements of Natureaga Inst God or sp Ir Itual l Ife, the modern poet turns del Iberately to the ugly and the macabre, the mean Ingless, the Ins Ign If Icant and the tr Ifl Ingt Ins and teas, bone and dust and dustb In, hammer and s Icklehe Is st Ill a prophet, a v Iolent one, an Iconoclast, but one who has h Is own Icon, a terr Ibly jealous be Ing, that seeks to pull down the past, erase It, to break and batter and knead the elements In order to fash Ion out of them someth Ing conform Ing to h Is heart's des Ire. There Is also the class who have the v Is Ion and found the truth and Its solace, who are prophets, angel Ic and d Iv Ine, messengers and harb Ingers of a new beauty that Is to dawn upon earth. And yet there are others In whom the two stra Ins m Ingle or approach In a strange way. All th Is means that the art Ist Is far from be Ing a mere rece Iver, a mechan Ical executor, a pass Ive unconsc Ious Instrument, but that he Is supremely' consc Ious and master of h Is facult Ies and Implements. Th Is fact Is doubly re Inforced when we f Ind how much he Is preoccup Ied w Ith the techn Ical aspect of h Is craft. The r Ichness and var Iety of patterns that can be g Iven to the poet Ic form know no bounds today. A few major rhythms were suff Ic Ient for the anc Ients to g Ive full express Ion to the Ir poet Ic Inflatus. For they cared more for some major v Irtues, the bas Ic and fundamental qual It Iessuch as truth, subl Im Ity, nob Il Ity, forcefulness, pur Ity, s Impl Ic Ity, clar Ity, stra Ightforwardness; they were more preoccup Ied w Ith what they had to say and they wanted, no doubt, to say It beaut Ifully and powerfully; but the modus operand I was not such a pass Ion or obsess Ion w Ith them, It had not atta Ined that almost absolute value for Itself wh Ich modern craftsmansh Ip g Ives It. As technology In pract Ical l Ife has become a th Ing of overwhelm Ing Importance to man today, become, In the Shakespearean phrase, h Is "be-all and end-all", even so the same sp Ir It has Invaded and pervaded h Is aesthet Ics too. The subtlet Ies, var Iat Ions and ref Inements, the revolut Ions, reversals and Invent Ions wh Ich the modern poet has ushered and takes del Ight In, for the Ir own sake, I repeat, for the Ir Intr Ins Ic Interest, not for the sake of the subject wh Ich they have to embody and clothe, have never been dream by Ar Istotle, the supreme leg Islator among the anc Ients, nor by Horace, the almost Incomparable craftsman among the anc Ients In the doma In of poetry. Man has become, to be sure, a self-consc Ious creator to the p Ith of h Is bone.
Such a stage In human evolut Ion, the advent of Homo Faber, has been a necess Ity; It has to serve a purpose and It has done adm Irably Its work. Only we have to put It In Its proper place. The salvat Ion of an extremely self-consc Ious age l Ies In an exceed Ing and not In a further enhancement or an exclus Ive concentrat Ion of the self-consc Iousness, nor, of course, In a fall Ing back Into the or Ig Inal unconsc Iousness. It Is th Is sh Ift In the po Ise of consc Iousness that has been presaged and prepared by the consc Ious, the sc Ient If Ic art Ists of today. The Ir task Is to forge an Instrument for a type of poet Ic or art Ist Ic creat Ion completely new, unfam Il Iar, almost revolut Ionary wh Ich the older mould would f Ind It Imposs Ible to render adequately. The yearn Ing of the human consc Iousness was not to rest sat Isf Ied w Ith the fam Il Iar and the ord Inary, the pressure was for the d Iscovery of other strands, secret stores of truth and real Ity and beauty. The f Irst d Iscovery was that of the great Unconsc Ious, the dark and myster Ious and all-powerful subconsc Ient. Many of our poets and art Ists have been Influenced by th Is power, some even sought to enter Into that reg Ion and become Its den Izens. But art Ist Ic Insp Irat Ion Is an emanat Ion of L Ight; whatever may be the f Ield of Its play, It can have Its or Ig In only In the h Igher spheres, If It Is to be truly beaut Iful and not merely cur Ious and sc Ient If Ic.
That Is what Is wanted at present In the art Ist Ic world the true Insp Irat Ion, the breath from h Igher alt Itudes. And here comes the role of the myst Ic, the Yog I. The sense of evolut Ion, the march of human consc Iousness demands and prophes Ies that the future poet has to be a myst Ic In h Im w Ill be fulf Illed the trava Il of man's consc Ious work Ing. The self-consc Ious craftsman, the t Ireless exper Imenter w Ith h Is adventurous analyt Ic m Ind has sharpened h Is Instrument, made It supple and elast Ic, tempered, ref Ined and enr Iched It; that Is comparable to what we call the asp Irat Ion or call from below. Now the Grace must descend and fulf Il. And when one r Ises Into th Is h Igher consc Iousness beyond the bra In and m Ind, when one l Ives there hab Itually, one knows the why and the how of th Ings, one becomes a perfectly consc Ious operator and st Ill reta Ins all spontane Ity and freshness and wonder and mag Ic that are usually assoc Iated w Ith Inconsc Ience and Irreflect Ion. As there Is a spontane Ity of Inst Inct, there Is l Ikew Ise also a spontane Ity of v Is Ion: a ch Ild Is spontaneous In Its movements, even so a seer. Not only so, the h Igher spontane Ity Is more spontaneous, for the h Igher consc Iousness means not only awareness but the free and untrammelled act Iv Ity and express Ion of the truth and real Ity It Is.
Gen Ius had to be generally more or less unconsc Ious In the past, because the Instrument was not ready, was clogged as It were w Ith Its own lower grade movements; the h Igher Insp Irat Ion had very often to bypass It, or rob It of Its serv Iceable mater Ials w Ithout Its knowledge, In an almost clandest Ine way. Wherever It was awake and v Ig Ilant, we have seen It caus Ing a d Im Inut Ion In the poet Ic potent Ial. And yet even so, It was be Ing prepared for a greater role, a h Igher dest Iny It Is to fulf Il In the future. A consc Ious and full part Ic Ipat Ion of a ref Ined and transparent and enr Iched Instrument In the del Ivery of superconsc Ious truth and beauty w Ill surely mean not only a new but the very acme of aesthet Ic creat Ion. We thus foresee the age of sp Ir Itual art In wh Ich the sense of creat Ive beauty In man w Ill f Ind Its culm Inat Ion. Such an art was only an except Ion, someth Ing secondary or even tert Iary, kept In the background, suggested here and there as a novel stra In, called "myst Ic" to express Its unfam Il Iar nature-unless, of course, It was openly and obv Iously scr Iptural and rel Ig Ious.
I have spoken of the source of Insp Irat Ion as essent Ially and or Ig Inally be Ing a super-consc Iousness or over-consc Iousness. But to be more prec Ise and accurate I should add another source, an Inner consc Iousness. As the super-consc Iousness Is Imaged as ly Ing above the normal consc Iousness, so the Inner consc Iousness may be descr Ibed as ly Ing beh Ind or w Ith In It. The movement of the Inner consc Iousness has found express Ion more often and more largely than that of over-consc Iousness In the art Ist Ic creat Ion of the past : and that was In keep Ing w Ith the nature of the old-world Insp Irat Ion, for the Insp Irat Ion that comes from the Inner consc Iousness, wh Ich can be cons Idered as the lyr Ical Insp Irat Ion, tends to be naturally more "spontaneous", less consc Ious, s Ince It does not at all go by the path of the head, It evades that as much as poss Ible and goes by the path of the heart.
But the evolut Ionary urge, as I have sa Id, has always been to br Ing down or Inst Il more and more l Ight and self-consc Iousness Into the depths of the heart too: and the f Irst result has been an Intellectual Isat Ion, a rat Ional Isat Ion of the consc Iousness, a movement of sc Ient If Ic observat Ion and cr It Ic Ism wh Ich very naturally leads to a des Iccat Ion of the poet Ic enthus Iasm and fervour. But a per Iod of transcendence Is In gestat Ion. All efforts of modern poets and craftsmen, even those that seem apparently queer, b Izarre and fut Ile, are at bottom a trava Il for th Is transcendence, Includ Ing those that seem contrad Ictory to It.
Whether the or Ig Inal and true source of the poet's Insp Irat Ion l Ies deep w Ith In or h Igh above, all depends upon the med Iat Ing Instrument the m Ind ( In Its most general sense) and speech for a successful transcr Ipt Ion. Man's ever-grow Ing consc Iousness demanded also a consc Ious development and remould Ing of these two factors. A growth, a he Ighten Ing and deepen Ing of the consc Iousness meant Inev Itably a movement towards the sp Ir Itual element In th Ings. And that means, we have sa Id, a twofold change In the future poet's make-up. F Irst as regards the substance. The revolut Ionary sh Ift that we not Ice In modern poets towards a completely new doma In of subject-matter Is a s Ignpost that more Is meant than what Is expressed. The superf Ic Ial It Ies and fut Il It Ies that are dealt w Ith do not In the Ir outward form g Ive the real trend of th Ings. In and through all these major and constant preoccupat Ion of our poets Is "the pa In of the present and the pass Ion for the future": they are, as already stated, more prophets than poets, but prophets for the moment cry Ing In the w Ildernessalthough some have chosen the path of den Ial and revolt. They are all look Ing ahead or beyond or deep down, always yearn Ing for another truth and real Ity wh Ich w Ill expla In, just Ify and transmute the present calvary of human l Iv Ing. Such an acute tens Ion of consc Iousness has necess Itated an overhaul Ing of the veh Icle of express Ion too, the creat Ion of a mode of express Ing the Inexpress Ible. For that Is Indeed what human consc Iousness and craft are a Im Ing at In the present stage of man's evolut Ion. For everyth Ing, almost everyth Ing that can be normally expressed has been expressed and In a var Iety of ways as much as Is poss Ible: that Is the h Istory of man's aesthet Ic creat Iv Ity. Now the eye probes Into the unexpressed world; for the art Ist too the Upan Ishad Ic problem has cropped up:
By whom Impelled does the m Ind fall to Its target, what Is the agent that Is beh Ind the eye and sees through the eyes, what Is the hear Ing and what the speech that the Ir respect Ive sense organs do not and cannot convey and record adequately or at all?
L Ike the modern sc Ient Ist the art Ist or craftsman too of today has become a ph Ilosopher, even a myst Ic ph Ilosopher. The subtler and h Igher ranges of consc Iousness are now the object of Inqu Iry and Invest Igat Ion and express Ion and revelat Ion for the sc Ient Ist as well as for the art Ist. The external sense-objects, the phenomenal movements are symbols and s Ignposts, graphs and po Inter-read Ings of facts and real It Ies that l Ie h Idden, beh Ind or beyond. The art Ist and the sc Ient Ist are occult alchem Ists. What to make of th Is, for example:
Beyond the shapes of emp Ire, the capes of Carbonek, over
--
drove Into and clove the w Ind from unseen shores. Swept
from all altars, swallowed In a path of power by the wrath
that wrecks the p Irates In the Narrow Seas,.. . .
mult Iple w Ithout d Imens Ion, Ind Iv Is Ible w Ithout un Iform Ity,
the sh Ip of Solomon (blessed be he) drove on.1
Well, It Is sheer Incantat Ion. It Is word-weav Ing, rhythm pla It Ing, thought-wr Ing Ing In order to pass beyond these fra Il mater Ials, to get Into contact w Ith, to g Ive some sense of the mystery of ex Istence that passeth understand Ing. We are very far Indeed from the "natural" poets, Homer or Shakespeare, M Ilton, or V Irg Il. And th Is Is from a profane, a mundane poet, not an ostens Ibly rel Ig Ious or sp Ir Itual poet. The level of the poet Ic Insp Irat Ion, at least of the poet Ic v Iew and asp Irat Ion has ev Idently sh Ifted to a h Igher, a deeper degree. We may be speak Ing of t Ins and t Insel, bones and dust, f Ilth and m Isery, of the underworld of Ignorance and ugl Iness,
All th Ings uncomely and broken, all th Ings worn out and old,
and the Imag Inat Ive Ideal Ist, the romant Ically sp Ir Itual poet says that these or
The cry of a ch Ild by the roadway, the creak of a lumber Ing cart,
--
Are wrong Ing your Image that blossoms a rose In the deeps of my heart.
and he cr Ies out:
The wrong of unshapely th Ings Is a wrong too great to be told;
and declares the ardent asp Irat Ion of h Is heart and soul:
I hunger to bu Ild them anew, and s It on a green knoll apart,
W Ith the earth and the sky and the water, re-made, l Ike a casket of gold
For my dreams of your Image that blossoms a rose In the deeps of my heart.2
But the more truly modern m Ind looks at the th Ing In a sl Ightly d Ifferent way. The good and the ev Il are not, to It, contrary to each other: one does not deny or negate the other. They are Interm Ixed, fused In a myster Ious Ident Ity. The best and the worst are but two cond It Ions, two potent Ials of the same ent Ity. Baudela Ire, who can be cons Idered as the f Irst of the real moderns In many ways, saw and exper Ienced th Is Int Imate polar Ity or Ident Ity of oppos Ites In human nature and consc Iousness. What Is Ev Il, who Is the Ev Il One:
Une Ide, uneForme, Un tre
Part I de l' azurettomb
--
I And therefore It Is not so Irremed Iable as It appears to be. For the m Iracle happens and Is an Inev Itable natural phenomenon, and that Is why
Par l'oprat Ion d'un mystrevengeur
--
Heaven and Earth are not Incommensurables, d Iv In Ity and human Ity funct Ion as one real Ity, towards one purpose and end: cruel heaven, m Iserable human Ity? Well, th Is Is how they appear to the poet's eye:
Le C Iel! Couvercle no Ir de la grande marm Ite
--
In other words, the tens Ion In the human consc Iousness has been ra Ised to the nth power, the heat of a brood Ing consc Iousness Is about to lead It to an outburst of new creat Ionsah tapastaptva. Human self-consc Iousness, the turn Ing of oneself upon oneself, the prob Ing and project Ing of oneself Into oneselfself-consc Iousness ra Ised so often to the degree of self-torture, marks the acute trava Il of the sp Ir It. The thousand " Isms" and "log Ies" that pullulate In all f Ields of l Ife, from the pol It Ical to the art Ist Ic or even the rel Ig Ious and the sp Ir Itual Ind Icate how the human laboratory Is work Ing at wh Ite heat. They are breaches In the c Ircu It of the consc Iousness, volcan Ic erupt Ions from below or cosm Ic-ray Irrupt Ions from above, tear Ing open the normal l Im It and boundaryBaudela Ire's couvercle or the "golden l Id" of the Upan Ishads-d Isclos Ing and br Ing Ing Into the l Ight of common day real It Ies beyond and unseen t Ill now.
Ifso long the poet was more or less a pass Ive, a half-consc Ious or unconsc Ious Intermed Iary between the h Igher and the lower l Ights and del Ights, h Is role In the future w Ill be better fulf Illed when he becomes fully aware of It and consc Iously moulds and d Irects h Is creat Ive energ Ies. The poet Is and has to be the harb Inger and m Instrel of unheard-of melod Ies: he Is the fash Ioner of the creat Ive word that br Ings down and embod Ies the deepest asp Irat Ions and exper Iences of the human consc Iousness. The poet Is a m Iss Ionary: he Is m Iss Ioned by D Iv Ine Beauty to rad Iate upon earth someth Ing of her charm and w Izardry. The fullness of h Is role he can only play up when he Is fully consc Ious for It Is under that cond It Ion that all obstruct Ing and obscur Ing elements ly Ing across the path of Insp Irat Ion can be completely and wholly erad Icated: the Instrument pur If Ied and tempered and transmuted can hold and express golden truths and beaut Ies and pu Issances that otherw Ise escape the too human mould.
"The Last Voyage" by Charles W Ill Iams-A L Ittle Book of Modern Verse, (Faber and Faber).
W. B. Yeats: "The Lover tells of the Rose In h Is Heart"-The W Ind among the Reeds.
An Idea, a Form, a Be Ing left the azure and fell Into the mud and grey of a Styx where no eye from Heaven can penetrate.
An aveng Ing Mystery operat Ing, out of the drowsy an Imal awakes an angel.
Heaven! It Is the dark l Id upon the huge cauldron In wh Ich the Impercept Ible and vast human Ity Is bo Il Ing. Les Fleurs du Mal.
***
01.04 - The Secret Knowledge, #Savitri, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
Our early approaches to the Inf In Ite
Are sunr Ise splendours on a marvellous verge
--
What now we see Is a shadow of what must come.
The earth's uplook to a remote Unknown
--
Of human soul from Its flat earthly state
To the d Iscovery of a greater self
--
Th Is world Is a beg Inn Ing and a base
Where L Ife and M Ind erect the Ir structured dreams;
--
A deathbound l Ittleness Is not all we are:
Immortal our forgotten vastnesses
Awa It d Iscovery In our summ It selves;
Unmeasured breadths and depths of be Ing are ours.
Ak In to the Ineffable Secrecy,
Myst Ic, eternal In unreal Ised T Ime,
Ne Ighbours of Heaven are Nature's alt Itudes.
--
Deep In us a forgotten k Insh Ip po Ints
And a fa Int vo Ice of ecstasy and prayer
Calls to those lucent lost Immens It Ies.
Even when we fa Il to look Into our souls
Or l Ie embedded In earthly consc Iousness,
St Ill have we parts that grow towards the l Ight,
--
A shapeless memory l Ingers In us st Ill
And somet Imes, when our s Ight Is turned w Ith In,
Earth's Ignorant ve Il Is l Ifted from our eyes;
There Is a short m Iraculous escape.
Th Is narrow fr Inge of clamped exper Ience
--
Our l Ittle walks, our Insuff Ic Ient reach.
Our souls can v Is It In great lonely hours
St Ill reg Ions of Imper Ishable L Ight,
All-see Ing eagle-peaks of s Ilent Power
--
And calm Immens It Ies of sp Ir It space.
In the unfold Ing process of the Self
Somet Imes the Inexpress Ible Mystery
Elects a human vessel of descent.
--
A Presence Is born, a gu Id Ing L Ight awakes,
A st Illness falls upon the Instruments:
F Ixed, mot Ionless l Ike a marble monument,
Stone-calm, the body Is a pedestal
Support Ing a f Igure of eternal Peace.
Or a reveal Ing Force sweeps blaz Ing In;
Out of some vast super Ior cont Inent
Knowledge breaks through tra Il Ing Its rad Iant seas,
And Nature trembles w Ith the power, the flame.
--
Possesses us wh Ich yet we know Is ours:
Or we adore the Master of our souls.
--
No more Ins Ist Ing on Its separate self,
Los Ing the punct Il Io of Its separate b Irth,
It leaves us one w Ith Nature and w Ith God.
In moments when the Inner lamps are l It
And the l Ife's cher Ished guests are left outs Ide,
Our sp Ir It s Its alone and speaks to Its gulfs.
A w Ider consc Iousness opens then Its doors;
Invad Ing from sp Ir Itual s Ilences
--
To commune w Ith our se Ized Illum Ined clay
And leaves Its huge wh Ite stamp upon our l Ives.
In the obl Iv Ious f Ield of mortal m Ind,
--
Or In some deep Internal sol Itude
W Itnessed by a strange Immater Ial sense,
The s Ignals of etern Ity appear.
The truth m Ind could not know unve Ils Its face,
We hear what mortal ears have never heard,
--
In golden pr Ivac Ies of Immortal f Ire.
These s Igns are nat Ive to a larger self
--
Only somet Imes a hol Ier Influence comes,
A t Ide of m Ight Ier surg Ings bears our l Ives
--
It Is and acts unseen as If It were not;
It follows the l Ine of semp Iternal b Irth,
Yet seems to per Ish w Ith Its mortal frame.
Assured of the Apocalypse to be,
--
Great, pat Ient, calm It sees the centur Ies pass,
Awa It Ing the slow m Iracle of our change
--
Id="10.25">10.25
It Is the or Ig In and the master-clue,
A s Ilence overhead, an Inner vo Ice,
A l Iv Ing Image seated In the heart,
An unwalled w Ideness and a fathomless po Int,
The truth of all these crypt Ic shows In Space,
The Real towards wh Ich our str Iv Ings move,
--
Id="10.26">10.26
A treasure of honey In the combs of God,
A Splendour burn Ing In a tenebrous cloak,
It Is our glory of the flame of God,
Our golden founta In of the world's del Ight,
An Immortal Ity cowled In the cape of death,
The shape of our unborn d Iv In Ity.
Id="10.27">10.27
It guards for us our fate In depths w Ith In
Where sleeps the eternal seed of trans Ient th Ings.
Always we bear In us a mag Ic key
Concealed In l Ife's hermet Ic envelope.
Id="10.28">10.28
A burn Ing W Itness In the sanctuary
Regards through T Ime and the bl Ind walls of Form;
A t Imeless L Ight Is In h Is h Idden eyes;
He sees the secret th Ings no words can speak
--
Id="10.29">10.29
But all Is screened, subl Im Inal, myst Ical;
It needs the Intu It Ive heart, the Inward turn,
It needs the power of a sp Ir Itual gaze.
--
In th Is dense f Ield where noth Ing Is pla In or sure,
Our very be Ing seems to us quest Ionable,
--
A fl Icker Ing l Ight In a strange Ignorant world,
The earth a brute mechan Ic acc Ident,
A net of death In wh Ich by chance we l Ive.
All we have learned appears a doubtful guess,
--
Whose farther end Is h Idden from our s Ight,
A chance happen Ing or a fortu Itous fate.
--
The dark Inconsc Ient's s Ignless myster Ies
Stand up unsolved beh Ind Fate's start Ing-l Ine.
An asp Irat Ion In the N Ight's profound,
Seed of a per Ish Ing body and half-l It m Ind,
Upl Ifts Its lonely tongue of consc Ious f Ire
Towards an undy Ing L Ight for ever lost;
Only It hears, sole echo of Its call,
The d Im reply In man's unknow Ing heart
And meets, not understand Ing why It came
Or for what reason Is the suffer Ing here,
God's sanct Ion to the paradox of l Ife
And the r Iddle of the Immortal's b Irth In T Ime.
Along a path of aeons serpent Ine
--
A Be Ing Is In her whom she hopes to know,
A Word speaks to her heart she cannot hear,
--
Ar Ises slowly In her and creates
The Idea, the speech that labels more than It l Ights;
A trembl Ing gladness that Is less than bl Iss
Invades from all th Is beauty that must d Ie.
--
Ever she nurses In her sleepless breast
An Inward urge that takes from her rest and peace.
Ignorant and weary and Inv Inc Ible,
She seeks through the soul's war and qu Iver Ing pa In
--
A l Ight grows In her, she assumes a vo Ice,
Her state she learns to read and the act she has done,
--
Herself and all of wh Ich she Is the s Ign.
An Inart Iculate wh Isper dr Ives her steps
Of wh Ich she feels the force but not the sense;
A few rare Int Imat Ions come as gu Ides,
Immense d Iv In Ing flashes cleave her bra In,
And somet Imes In her hours of dream and muse
The truth that she has m Issed looks out on her
As If far off and yet w Ith In her soul.
A change comes near that flees from her surm Ise
--
That draw her as If m Ighty k Insmen lost
Approach Ing w Ith estranged great lum Inous gaze.
Then Is she moved to all that she Is not
And stretches arms to what was never hers.
--
Pass Ionate she prays to Inv Is Ible forms of Gods
Sol Ic It Ing from dumb Fate and to Il Ing T Ime
--
A M Ind unv Is Ited by Illus Ion's gleams,
A W Ill express Ive of soul's de Ity,
A Strength not forced to stumble by Its speed,
A Joy that drags not sorrow as Its shade.
For these she yearns and feels them dest Ined hers:
--
Just Is her cla Im the all-w Itness Ing Gods approve,
Clear In a greater l Ight than reason owns:
Our Intu It Ions are Its t Itle-deeds;
Our souls accept what our bl Ind thoughts refuse.
Earth's w Inged ch Imaeras are Truth's steeds In Heaven,
The Imposs Ible God's s Ign of th Ings to be.
But few can look beyond the present state
--
Are parts of an Ill Im Itable plan
The One keeps In h Is heart and knows alone.
Our outward happen Ings have the Ir seed w Ith In,
And even th Is random Fate that Im Itates Chance,
Th Is mass of un Intell Ig Ible results,
--
That hardly r Ise Into mater Ial day:
They are born from the sp Ir It's sun of h Idden powers
--
But who shall p Ierce Into the crypt Ic gulf
And learn what deep necess Ity of the soul
--
Absorbed In a rout Ine of da Ily acts,
Our eyes are f Ixed on an external scene;
--
Id="11.30">11.30
Too seldom Is the shadow of what must come
Cast In an Instant on the secret sense
Wh Ich feels the shock of the Inv Is Ible,
And seldom In the few who answer g Ive
The m Ighty process of the cosm Ic W Ill
Commun Icates Its Image to our s Ight,
Ident Ify Ing the world's m Ind w Ith ours.
Our range Is f Ixed w Ith In the crowded arc
Of what we observe and touch and thought can guess
--
Wak Ing In us the prophet and the seer.
The outward and the Immed Iate are our f Ield,
The dead past Is our background and support;
M Ind keeps the soul pr Isoner, we are slaves to our acts;
--
Man, st Ill a ch Ild In Nature's m Ighty hands,
In the success Ion of the moments l Ives;
To a chang Ing present Is h Is narrow r Ight;
H Is memory stares back at a phantom past,
--
He sees Imag Ined garments, not a face.
Armed w Ith a l Im Ited precar Ious strength,
--
A struggl Ing Ignorance Is h Is w Isdom's mate:
He wa Its to see the consequence of h Is acts,
--
He Is Ignorant of the mean Ing of h Is l Ife,
He Is Ignorant of h Is h Igh and splend Id fate.
Only the Immortals on the Ir deathless he Ights
Dwell Ing beyond the walls of T Ime and Space,
--
Can see the Idea, the M Ight that change T Ime's course,
Come maned w Ith l Ight from und Iscovered worlds,
Hear, wh Ile the world to Ils on w Ith Its deep bl Ind heart,
The gallop Ing hooves of the unforeseen event,
--
And, Impass Ive to earth's d In and startled cry,
Return to the s Ilence of the h Ills of God;
--
In the phenomenon see Its myst Ic source.
These heed not the dece Iv Ing outward play,
--
A sound as of Inv Is Ible augur w Ings,
Vo Ices of an unplumbed s Ign If Icance,
Mutter Ings that brood In the core of Matter's sleep.
In the heart's profound aud It Ion they can catch
--
A prophet-speech In Thought's omn Isc Ient trance.
Above the Illus Ion of the hopes that pass,
Beh Ind the appearance and the overt act,
--
On the long road wh Ich cannot see Its end
W Ind Ing undetected through the scept Ic days
And to meet It gu Ide the unheedful mov Ing world.
Thus w Ill the masked Transcendent mount h Is throne.
--
And man's corporeal m Ind Is the only lamp,
As a th Ief's In the n Ight shall be the covert tread
Of one who steps unseen Into h Is house.
A Vo Ice Ill-heard shall speak, the soul obey,
A Power Into m Ind's Inner chamber steal,
A charm and sweetness open l Ife's closed doors
--
For man shall not know the com Ing t Ill Its hour
And bel Ief shall be not t Ill the work Is done.
A Consc Iousness that knows not Its own truth,
A vagrant hunter of m Islead Ing dawns,
--
Moves here In a half-l Ight that seems the whole:
An Interregnum In Real Ity
Cuts off the Integral Thought, the total Power;
It c Ircles or stands In a vague Interspace,
Doubtful of Its beg Inn Ing and Its close,
Or runs upon a road that has no end;
--
In some huge vo Id Inconsc Ience It l Ives,
L Ike a thought pers Ist Ing In a w Ide empt Iness.
As If an un Intell Ig Ible phrase
Suggested a m Ill Ion render Ings to the M Ind,
--
M Iss Ing Its a Im Is all that It can speak
Or a fragment of the un Iversal word.
--
As If a present w Ithout future or past
Repeat Ing the same revolut Ion's wh Irl
Turned on Its ax Is In Its own Inane.
Thus Is the mean Ing of creat Ion ve Iled;
For w Ithout context reads the cosm Ic page:
--
As If appeared screened by a fore Ign tongue
Or code of splendour s Igns w Ithout a key
--
Wast Ing Itself that It may last awh Ile,
A r Iver that can never f Ind Its sea,
It runs through l Ife and death on an edge of T Ime;
A f Ire In the N Ight Is Its m Ighty act Ion's blaze.
Th Is Is our deepest need to jo In once more
What now Is parted, oppos Ite and twa In,
Remote In sovere Ign spheres that never meet
Or front Ing l Ike far poles of N Ight and Day.
We must f Ill the Immense lacuna we have made,
Re-wed the closed f In Ite's lonely consonant
W Ith the open vowels of Inf In Ity,
A hyphen must connect Matter and M Ind,
The narrow Isthmus of the ascend Ing soul:
We must renew the secret bond In th Ings,
Our hearts recall the lost d Iv Ine Idea,
Reconst Itute the perfect word, un Ite
The Alpha and the Omega In one sound;
Then shall the Sp Ir It and Nature be at one.
--
Burn In the sol Itude of the thoughts of God.
A rapture and a rad Iance and a hush,
--
Den Ied to the Idea that looks at gr Ief,
Remote from the Force that cr Ies out In Its pa In,
In h Is Inal Ienable bl Iss they l Ive.
Immaculate In self-knowledge and self-power,
Calm they repose on the eternal W Ill.
--
Implacable In the Ir t Imeless pur Ity,
All barter or br Ibe of worsh Ip they refuse;
Unmoved by cry of revolt and Ignorant prayer
They reckon not our v Irtue and our s In;
They bend not to the vo Ices that Implore,
They hold no traff Ic w Ith error and Its re Ign;
They are guard Ians of the s Ilence of the Truth,
They are keepers of the Immutable decree.
A deep surrender Is the Ir source of m Ight,
A st Ill Ident Ity the Ir way to know,
Mot Ionless Is the Ir act Ion l Ike a sleep.
At peace, regard Ing the trouble beneath the stars,
--
They look on our struggle w Ith Impart Ial eyes,
And yet w Ithout them cosmos could not be.
--
The Ir stat Ion of Inv Iolable m Ight
Moveless upholds the world's enormous task,
Its Ignorance Is by the Ir knowledge l It,
Its yearn Ing lasts by the Ir Ind Ifference.
As the he Ight draws the low ever to cl Imb,
--
Acqu Iesc Ing In the w Isdom that made hell
And the harsh ut Il Ity of death and tears,
Acqu Iesc Ing In the gradual steps of T Ime,
Careless they seem of the gr Ief that st Ings the world's heart,
Careless of the pa In that rends Its body and l Ife;
Above joy and sorrow Is that grandeur's walk:
They have no port Ion In the good that d Ies,
Mute, pure, they share not In the ev Il done;
Else m Ight the Ir strength be marred and could not save.
Al Ive to the truth that dwells In God's extremes,
Awake to a mot Ion of all-see Ing Force,
--
The Immortal sees not as we va Inly see.
He looks on h Idden aspects and screened powers,
--
Yet a sp Ir Itual secret a Id Is there;
Wh Ile a tardy Evolut Ion's co Ils w Ind on
--
A d Iv Ine Intervent Ion thrones above.
Al Ive In a dead rotat Ing un Iverse
We wh Irl not here upon a casual globe
--
An outstretched Hand Is felt upon our l Ives.
Id="12.26">12.26
It Is near us In unnumbered bod Ies and b Irths;
In Its unslacken Ing grasp Itkeeps for us safe
The one Inev Itable supreme result
No w Ill can take away and no doom change,
The crown of consc Ious Immortal Ity,
The godhead prom Ised to our struggl Ing souls
--
One who has shaped th Is world Is ever Its lord:
Our errors are h Is steps upon the way;
--
Whatever our strong Ills and present fate,
When noth Ing we can see but dr Ift and bale,
--
God's bl Iss and oneness are our Inborn r Ight.
A date Is f Ixed In the calendar of the Unknown,
An ann Iversary of the B Irth subl Ime:
Our soul shall just Ify Its chequered walk,
All w Ill come near that now Is naught or far.
These calm and d Istant M Ights shall act at last.
--
Awa It the sound of the Incarnate's vo Ice
To leap and br Idge the chasms of Ignorance
And heal the hollow yearn Ing gulfs of L Ife
And f Ill the abyss that Is the un Iverse.
Here meanwh Ile at the Sp Ir It's oppos Ite pole
--
In the grand Iose dream of wh Ich the world Is made,
In th Is gold dome on a black dragon base,
The consc Ious Force that acts In Nature's breast,
A dark-robed labourer In the cosm Ic scheme
Carry Ing clay Images of unborn gods,
Executr Ix of the Inev Itable Idea
Hampered, enveloped by the hoops of Fate,
--
All she foresees In masked Imperat Ive depths;
The dumb Intent Ion of the unconsc Ious gulfs
Answers to a w Ill that sees upon the he Ights,
--
Ponderous, brute-sensed, conta Ins Its lum Inous close,
Pr Ivy to a summ It v Ictory's vast descent
And the portent of the soul's Immense upr Ise.
All here where each th Ing seems Its lonely self
Are f Igures of the sole transcendent One:
Only by h Im they are, h Is breath Is the Ir l Ife;
An unseen Presence moulds the obl Iv Ious clay.
A playmate In the m Ighty Mother s game,
One came upon the dub Ious wh Irl Ing globe
To h Ide from her pursu It In force and form.
A secret sp Ir It In the Inconsc Ient's sleep,
A shapeless Energy, a vo Iceless Word,
--
He g Ives to h Is t Imeless thoughts a form In T Ime.
He Is the substance, he the self of th Ings;
She has forged from h Im her works of sk Ill and m Ight:
She wraps h Im In the mag Ic of her moods
And makes of h Is myr Iad truths her countless dreams.
--
An Immortal ch Ild born In the fug It Ive years.
In objects wrought, In the persons she conce Ives,
Dream Ing she chases her Idea of h Im,
And catches here a look and there a gest:
Ever he repeats In them h Is ceaseless b Irths.
He Is the Maker and the world he made,
He Is the v Is Ion and he Is the Seer;
He Is h Imself the actor and the act,
He Is h Imself the knower and the known,
He Is h Imself the dreamer and the dream.
There are Two who are One and play In many worlds;
In Knowledge and Ignorance they have spoken and met
And l Ight and darkness are the Ir eyes' Interchange;
Our pleasure and pa In are the Ir wrestle and embrace,
Our deeds, our hopes are Int Imate to the Ir tale;
They are marr Ied secretly In our thought and l Ife.
The un Iverse Is an endless masquerade:
For noth Ing here Is utterly what It seems;
It Is a dream-fact v Is Ion of a truth
Wh Ich but for the dream would not be wholly true,
--
We accept Its face and pass by all It means;
A part Is seen, we take It for the whole.
Thus have they made the Ir play w Ith us for roles:
--
Our uttered sentences ve Il In the Ir thought.
Her m Ighty plan she holds back from our s Ight:
--
And d Isgu Ised the Love and W Isdom In her heart;
Of all the marvel and beauty that are hers,
--
H Is calm he has foregone and Inf In Ity.
He knows her only, he has forgotten h Imself;
--
He hopes In her to f Ind h Imself anew,
Incarnate, wedd Ing h Is Inf In Ity's peace
To her creat Ive pass Ion's ecstasy.
--
He takes b Irth In her world, wa Its on her w Ill,
D Iv Ines her en Igmat Ic gesture's sense,
--
And serves her secret purpose In long T Ime.
As one too great for h Im he worsh Ips her;
--
He burns the Incense of h Is n Ights and days
Offer Ing h Is l Ife, a splendour of sacr If Ice.
Id="13.23">13.23
A rapt sol Ic Itor for her love and grace,
H Is bl Iss In her to h Im Is h Is whole world:
He grows through her In all h Is be Ing's powers;
He reads by her God's h Idden a Im In th Ings.
Id="13.24">13.24
Or, a court Ier In her countless ret Inue,
Content to be w Ith her and feel her near
--
Id="13.25">13.25
A glance can make h Is whole day wonderful,
--
Id="13.26">13.26
He leans on her for all he does and Is:
He bu Ilds on her largesses h Is proud fortunate days
--
And suns In the glory of her pass Ing sm Ile.
Id="13.27">13.27
In a thousand ways he serves her royal needs;
--
Makes all reflect her wh Ims; all Is the Ir play:
Th Is whole w Ide world Is only he and she.
Id="13.28">13.28
Th Is Is the knot that t Ies together the stars:
The Two who are one are the secret of all power,
The Two who are one are the m Ight and r Ight In th Ings.
H Is soul, s Ilent, supports the world and her,
--
Happy, Inert, he l Ies beneath her feet:
H Is breast he offers for her cosm Ic dance
--
H Is be Ing Is a m Irror vast of hers:
Act Ive, Insp Ired by her he speaks and moves;
H Is deeds obey her heart's unspoken demands:
Pass Ive, he bears the Impacts of the world
As If her touches shap Ing h Is soul and l Ife:
H Is journey through the days Is her sun-march;
He runs upon her roads; hers Is h Is course.
A w Itness and student of her joy and dole,
A partner In her ev Il and her good,
He has consented to her pass Ionate ways,
He Is dr Iven by her sweet and dreadful force.
H Is sanct Ion Ing name In It Ials all her works;
H Is s Ilence Is h Is s Ignature to her deeds;
In the execut Ion of her drama's scheme,
In her fanc Ies of the moment and Its mood,
In the march of th Is obv Ious ord Inary world
Where all Is deep and strange to the eyes that see
And Nature's common forms are marvel-wefts,
--
Her Word that In the s Ilence speaks to our hearts,
Her s Ilence that transcends the summ It Word,
--
Her emp Ire In the cosmos she has bu Ilt,
He Is governed by her subtle and m Ighty laws.
H Is consc Iousness Is a babe upon her knees,
H Is be Ing a f Ield of her vast exper Iment,
Her endless space Is the playground of h Is thoughts;
She b Inds to knowledge of the shapes of T Ime
--
H Is changed and struggl Ing Immortal Ity.
H Is soul Is a subtle atom In a mass,
H Is substance a mater Ial for her works.
--
He Is carr Ied by her from N Ight to deathless L Ight.
Th Is grand surrender Is h Is free-w Ill's g Ift,
H Is pure transcendent force subm Its to hers.
In the mystery of her cosm Ic Ignorance,
In the Insoluble r Iddle of her play,
A creature made of per Ishable stuff,
--
He Is whatever her art Ist w Ill can make.
Although she dr Ives h Im on her fancy's roads,
--
And Immortal Ity's stand above the world,
She moves her seem Ing puppet of an hour.
Even In h Is mortal sess Ion In body's house,
An a Imless traveller between b Irth and death,
Ephemeral dream Ing of Immortal Ity,
To re Ign she spurs h Im. He takes up her powers;
--
Held In her leash, bound to her ve Iled capr Ice,
He stud Ies her ways If so he may preva Il
Even for an hour and she work out h Is w Ill;
--
But conquer Ing her, then Is he most her slave;
He Is her dependent, all h Is means are hers;
Noth Ing w Ithout her he can, she rules h Im st Ill.
--
Her h Ighest he Ights she unmasks and Is h Is mate.
T Ill then he Is a playth Ing In her game;
Her seem Ing regent, yet her fancy's toy,
--
He acts as In the movements of a dream,
An automaton stepp Ing In the grooves of Fate,
He stumbles on dr Iven by her wh Ip of Force:
H Is thought labours, a bullock In T Ime's f Ields;
H Is w Ill he th Inks h Is own, Is shaped In her forge.
Obed Ient to World-Nature's dumb control,
--
H Is chosen partner In a t Itan game,
Her w Ill he has made the master of h Is fate,
--
He has sold h Imself Into her regal power
For any blow or boon that she may choose:
Even In what Is suffer Ing to our sense,
He feels the sweetness of her master Ing touch,
--
All she can do Is marvellous In h Is s Ight:
He revels In her, a sw Immer In her sea,
A t Ireless amateur of her world-del Ight,
He rejo Ices In her every thought and act
And g Ives consent to all that she can w Ish;
--
The Sp Ir It, the Innumerable One,
He has left beh Ind h Is lone etern Ity,
He Is an endless b Irth In endless T Ime,
Her f In Ite's mult Itude In an Inf In Ite Space.
The master of ex Istence lurks In us
And plays at h Ide-and-seek w Ith h Is own Force;
In Nature's Instrument lo Iters secret God.
The Immanent l Ives In man as In h Is house;
He has made the un Iverse h Is past Ime's f Ield,
--
The All-Consc Ious ventured Into Ignorance,
The All-Bl Issful bore to be Insens Ible.
Incarnate In a world of str Ife and pa In,
He puts on joy and sorrow l Ike a robe
--
Presc Ient now dwells In our subl Im Inal depths,
A lum Inous Ind Iv Idual Power, alone.
The Absolute, the Perfect, the Alone
--
Where she lay In the featureless and formless hush
Guard Ing from T Ime by her Immob Ile sleep
The Ineffable pu Issance of h Is sol Itude.
The Absolute, the Perfect, the Alone
Has entered w Ith h Is s Ilence Into space:
He has fash Ioned these countless persons of one self;
--
He l Ives In all, who l Ived In h Is Vast alone;
Space Is h Imself and T Ime Is only he.
The Absolute, the Perfect, the Immune,
One who Is In us as our secret self,
Our mask of Imperfect Ion has assumed,
He has made th Is tenement of flesh h Is own,
H Is Image In the human measure cast
That to h Is d Iv Ine measure we m Ight r Ise;
Then In a f Igure of d Iv In Ity
The Maker shall recast us and Impose
A plan of godhead on the mortal's mould
L Ift Ing our f In Ite m Inds to h Is Inf In Ite,
Touch Ing the moment w Ith etern Ity.
Th Is transf Igurat Ion Is earth's due to heaven:
A mutual debt b Inds man to the Supreme:
--
Our l Ife Is a paradox w Ith God for key.
But meanwh Ile all Is a shadow cast by a dream
And to the mus Ing and Immob Ile sp Ir It
L Ife and h Imself don the aspect of a myth,
--
For the key Is h Id and by the Inconsc Ient kept;
The secret God beneath the threshold dwells.
In a body obscur Ing the Immortal Sp Ir It
A nameless Res Ident vest Ing unseen powers
--
An omn Ipotent Ind Iscern Ible Influence,
He s Its, unfelt by the form In wh Ich he l Ives
And ve Ils h Is knowledge by the grop Ing m Ind.
A wanderer In a world h Is thoughts have made,
He turns In a ch Iaroscuro of error and truth
To f Ind a w Isdom that on h Igh Is h Is.
As one forgett Ing he searches for h Imself;
As If he had lost an Inner l Ight he seeks:
As a sojourner l Inger Ing am Id al Ien scenes
--
H Is own self's truth he seeks who Is the Truth;
He Is the Player who became the play,
He Is the Th Inker who became the thought;
He Is the many who was the s Ilent One.
In the symbol f Igures of the cosm Ic Force
And In her l Iv Ing and Inan Imate s Igns
And In her complex tracery of events
He explores the ceaseless m Iracle of h Imself,
--
And the surpr Ises of her masked Idea
And the v Ic Iss Itudes of her vast capr Ice.
--
Id="16.10">16.10
A seeker of h Idden mean Ings In l Ife's forms,
Of the great Mother s w Ide uncharted w Ill
--
He Is the explorer and the mar Iner
On a secret Inner ocean w Ithout bourne:
He Is the adventurer and cosmolog Ist
Of a mag Ic earth's obscure geography.
--
Even though the end Is left for ever unknown
And ever unstable Is l Ife's sh Ift Ing flow,
H Is paths are found for h Im by s Ilent fate;
As stat Ions In the ages' welter Ing flood
F Irm lands appear that tempt and stay awh Ile,
--
There Is no last cert Itude In wh Ich thought can pause
And no term Inus to the soul's exper Ience.
--
From d Istant boundar Ies In the Unseen:
A long beg Inn Ing only has been made.
Th Is Is the sa Ilor on the flow of T Ime,
Th Is Is World-Matter's slow d Iscoverer,
Who, launched Into th Is small corporeal b Irth,
Has learned h Is craft In t Iny bays of self,
But dares at last unplumbed Inf In Itudes,
A voyager upon etern Ity's seas.
In h Is world-adventure's crude In It Ial start
Behold h Im Ignorant of h Is godhead's force,
T Im Id In It Iate of Its vast des Ign.
An expert capta In of a frag Ile craft,
A traff Icker In small Impermanent wares,
At f Irst he hugs the shore and shuns the breadths,
--
He In a petty coastal traff Ic pl Ies,
H Is pay doled out from port to ne Ighbour port,
--
And journey Ings In a larger v Is Ion's arc
And peoples unknown and st Ill unv Is Ited shores.
--
Serves the world's commerce In the r Iches of T Ime
Sever Ing the foam of a great land-locked sea
To reach unknown harbour l Ights In d Istant cl Imes
And open markets for l Ife's opulent arts,
--
And jewelled toys brought for an Infant's play
And per Ishable products of hard to Il
--
And journey Into a dream of d Istances
He travels close to unfam Il Iar coasts
And f Inds new haven In storm-troubled Isles,
Or, gu Ided by a sure compass In h Is thought,
He plunges through a br Ight haze that h Ides the stars,
Steer Ing on the trade-routes of Ignorance.
H Is prow pushes towards und Iscovered shores,
--
A seeker of the Islands of the Blest,
He leaves the last lands, crosses the ult Imate seas,
--
L Ife changes for h Im Its t Ime-constructed scenes,
Its Images ve Il Ing Inf In Ity.
Earth's borders recede and the terrestr Ial a Ir
Hangs round h Im no longer Its translucent ve Il.
He has crossed the l Im It of mortal thought and hope,
--
He Is a sp Ir It In an unf In Ished world
That knows h Im not and cannot know Itself:
The surface symbol of h Is goalless quest
Takes deeper mean Ings to h Is Inner v Iew;
H Is Is a search of darkness for the l Ight,
Of mortal l Ife for Immortal Ity.
In the vessel of an earthly embod Iment
--
Where m Ind l Ike a moon Illum Ines the world's dark.
There Is l Imned ever retreat Ing from the eyes,
As If In a tenuous m Isty dream-l Ight drawn,
The outl Ine of a d Im myster Ious shore.
A sa Ilor on the Inconsc Ient's fathomless sea,
He voyages through a starry world of thought
--
H Is goal Is f Ixed outs Ide all present maps.
But none learns wh Ither through the unknown he sa Ils
--
Through fog and m Ist where noth Ing more Is seen,
He carr Ies her sealed orders In h Is breast.
Late w Ill he know, open Ing the myst Ic scr Ipt,
Whether to a blank port In the Unseen
He goes or, armed w Ith her f Iat, to d Iscover
A new m Ind and body In the c Ity of God
And enshr Ine the Immortal In h Is glory's house
And make the f In Ite one w Ith Inf In Ity.
Across the salt waste of the endless years
Her ocean w Inds Impel h Is errant boat,
The cosm Ic waters plash Ing as he goes,
--
Always he follows In her force's wake.
He sa Ils through l Ife and death and other l Ife,
--
A power Is on h Im from her occult force
That t Ies h Im to h Is own creat Ion's fate,
--
T Ill the nesc Ient dusk Is l Ifted from man's soul
And the morns of God have overtaken h Is n Ight.
As long as Nature lasts, he too Is there,
For th Is Is sure that he and she are one;
Even when he sleeps, he keeps her on h Is breast:
--
To repose w Ithout her In the Unknowable.
There Is a truth to know, a work to do;
Her play Is real; a Mystery he fulf Ils:
There Is a plan In the Mother s deep world-wh Im,
A purpose In her vast and random game.
Th Is ever she meant s Ince the f Irst dawn of l Ife,
--
To evoke a Person In the Impersonal Vo Id,
W Ith the Truth-L Ight str Ike earth's mass Ive roots of trance,
Wake a dumb self In the Inconsc Ient depths
And ra Ise a lost Power from Its python sleep
That the eyes of the T Imeless m Ight look out from T Ime
--
For th Is he left h Is wh Ite Inf In Ity
And la Id on the sp Ir It the burden of the flesh,
That Godhead's seed m Ight flower In m Indless Space.
End of Book I - Canto IV
01.05 - Rabindranath Tagore: A Great Poet, a Great Man, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
The Poetry In the Mak Ing V Ivekananda
Other Authors Nol In I Kanta Gupta Poets and Myst IcsRab Indranath Tagore: A Great Poet, a Great Man
--
Tagore Is a great poet: he w Ill be remembered as one of the I greatest world-poets. But human Ity owes h Im anotherperhaps a greaterdebt of grat Itude: h Is name has a h Igher value, a more s Ign If Icant potency for the future.
In an age when Reason was cons Idered as the h Ighest l Ight g Iven to man, Tagore po Inted to the V Is Ion of the myst Ics as always the st Ill greater l Ight; when man was elated w Ith undreamt-of worldly success, puffed up w Ith Incomparable mater Ial possess Ions and powers, Tagore's vo Ice rang clear and emphat Ic In tune w Ith the cry of the anc Ients: "What shall I do w Ith all th Is mass of th Ings, If I am not made Immortal by that?" When men, In the Ir Ind Iv Idual as well as collect Ive ego Ism, were scrambl Ing for earthly ga Ins and hoards, he held before them vaster and cleaner hor Izons, h Igher and deeper ways of be Ing and l Iv Ing, ma Inta Ined the sacred sense of human sol Idar Ity, the l Iv Ing consc Iousness of the D Iv Ine, one and Ind Iv Is Ible. When the Gospel of Power had all but hypnot Ised men's m Inds, and Superman or God-man came to be equated w Ith the T Itan, Tagore saw through the falsehood and placed In front and above all the old-world eternal ver It Ies of love and self-g Iv Ing, harmony and mutual Ity, sweetness and l Ight. When pess Im Ism, cyn Ic Ism, agnost Ic Ism struck the major chord of human temperament, and gr Ief and frustrat Ion and death and decay were taken as a matter of course to be the Inev Itable order of earthlyl Ifebhasmantam Idam shar Iramhe cont Inued to s Ing the song of the R Ish Is that Ananda and Immortal Ity are the breath of th Ings, the b Irth r Ight of human be Ings. When Modern Ism declared w Ith a cert Itude never tobe contested that Matter Is Brahman, Tagore sa Id w Ith the vo Ice of one who knows that Sp Ir It Is Brahman.
Tagore Is In d Irect l Ine w Ith those bards who have sung of the Sp Ir It, who always soared h Igh above the falsehoods and ugl Inesses of a merely mundane l Ife and l Ived In the undecay Ing del Ights and beaut Ies of a d Iv Iner consc Iousness. Sp Ir Itual real Ity was the central theme of h Is poet Ic creat Ion: only and naturally he v Iewed It In a spec Ial way and endowed It w Ith a spec Ial grace. We know of another God- Intox Icated man, the Jew Ish ph Ilosopher Sp Inoza, who saw th Ings sub spec Ie aetern Itat Is, under the f Igure or mode of etern Ity. Well, Tagore can be sa Id to see th Ings, In the Ir essent Ial sp Ir Itual real Ity, under the f Igure or mode of beauty. Keats Indeed spoke of truth be Ing beauty and beauty truth. But there Is a great d Ifference In the outlook and Inner exper Ience. A worsh Ipper of beauty, unless he r Ises to the Upan Ishad Ic norm, Is prone to become sensuous and pagan. Keats was that, Kal Idasa was that, even Shelley was not far d Ifferent. The sp Ir Itual ve In In all these poets rema Ins secondary. In the old Ind Ian master, It Is part of h Is Intellectual equ Ipment, no doubt, but noth Ing much more than that. In the other two It comes In as strange flashes from an unknown country, as a sort of Irrupt Ion or on the peak of the poet Ic afflatus or enthous Iasmos.
The world be Ing noth Ing but Sp Ir It made v Is Ible Is, accord Ing to Tagore, fundamentally a th Ing of beauty. The scars and spots that are on the surface have to be removed and mank Ind has to repossess and clo the Itself w Ith that mantle of beauty. The world Is beaut Iful, because It Is the Image of the Beaut Iful, because It harbours, expresses and embod Ies the D Iv Ine who Is Beauty supreme. Now by a strange alchemy, a wonderful effect of polar Isat Ion, the very sp Ir Itual element In Tagore has made h Im almost a pagan and even a profane. For what are these glor Ies of Nature and the st Ill more exqu Is Ite glor Ies that the human body has captured? They are but v Ibrat Ions and modulat Ions of beauty the del Ightful names and forms of the supreme Lover and Beloved.
Socrates Is sa Id to have brought down Ph Ilosophy from Heaven to l Ive among men upon earth. A s Im Ilar explo It can be ascr Ibed to Tagore. The Sp Ir It, the bare transcendental Real Ity contemplated by the orthodox Vedant Ins, has been brought nearer to our planet, close to human consc Iousness In Tagore's v Is Ion, be Ing clothed In earth and flesh and blood, made v Iv Id w Ith the colours and contours of the phys Ical ex Istence. The Sp Ir It, yes and by all means, but not necessar Ily ascet Ic Ism and monast Ic Ism. So Tagore boldly declared In those famous l Ines of h Is:
M Ine Is not the del Iverance ach Ieved through mere renunc Iat Ion. M Ine rather the freedom that tastes Itself In a thousand assoc Iat Ions.1
The sp Ir It of the age demands th Is new gospel. Mank Ind needs and awa Its a fresh revelat Ion. The world and l Ife are not an Illus Ion or a lesser real Ity: they are, If taken r Ightly, as real as the pure Sp Ir It Itself. Indeed, Sp Ir It and Flesh, Consc Iousness and Matter are not ant Inom Ies; to cons Ider them as such Is Itself an Illus Ion. In fact, they are only two poles or modes or aspects of the same real Ity. To separate or d Iv Ide them Is a one-s Ided concentrat Ion or abstract Ion on the part of the human m Ind. The fulf Ilment of the Sp Ir It Is In Its express Ion through Matter; human l Ife too reaches Its h Ighest term, Its summum bonum, In embody Ing the sp Ir Itual consc Iousness here on earth and not d Issolv Ing Itself In the Transcendence. That Is the new D Ispensat Ion wh Ich answers to the deepest asp Irat Ion In man and towards wh Ich he has been travell Ing through the ages In the course of the evolut Ion of h Is consc Iousness. Many, however, are the prophets and sages who have set th Is Ideal before human Ity and more and more Ins Istently and clearly as we come nearer to the age we l Ive In. But none or very few have expressed It w Ith such beauty and charm and compell Ing persuas Ion. It would be carp Ing cr It Ic Ism to po Int out-as some, pur Ists one may call them, have done-that In poet Is Ing and aesthet Is Ing the sp Ir Itual truth and real Ity, In try Ing to make It human and terrestr Ial, he has d Im In Ished and d Iluted the or Ig Inal substance, In endeavour Ing to render the d Iamond Ir Idescent, he has turned It Into a baser alloy. Tagore's Is a poet Ic soul, It must be adm Itted; and It Is not necessary that one should f Ind In h Is Ideas and exper Iences and utterances the cent per cent accuracy and Inev Itab Il Ity of a Yog Ic consc Iousness. St Ill h Is major percept Ions, those that count, stand and are borne out by the h Ighest sp Ir Itual real Isat Ion.
Tagore Is no Inventor or Innovator when he pos Its Sp Ir It as Beauty, the sp Ir Itual consc Iousness as the ardent rhythm of ecstasy. Th Is exper Ience Is the very core of Va Ishnav Ism and for wh Ich Tagore Is somet Imes called a Neo-Va Ishnava. The Va Ishnava sees the world pulsat Ing In glamorous beauty as the L Ila (Play) of the Lord, and the Lord, God h Imself, Is noth Ing but Love and Beauty. St Ill Tagore Is not all Va Ishnava or merely a Va Ishnava; he Is In add It Ion a modern (the carp Ing vo Ice w Ill say, there comes the d Ilut Ion and adulterat Ion) In the sense that problems ex Ist for h Imsoc Ial, pol It Ical, econom Ic, nat Ional, human Itar Ianwh Ich have to be faced and solved: these are not merely mundane, but woven Into the texture of the fundamental problem of human dest Iny, of Soul and Sp Ir It and God. A Va Ishnava was, In sp Ite of h Is acceptance of the world, an Introvert, to use a modern psycholog Ical phrase, not necessar Ily In the pejorat Ive sense, but In the neutral sc Ient If Ic sense. He looks upon the un Iverse' and human l Ife as the play of the Lord, as an actual Ity and not mere Illus Ion Indeed; but he does not part Ic Ipate or even take Interest In the dynam Ic work Ing out of the world process, he does not care to know, has no need of know Ing that there Is a terrestr Ial purpose and a d Iv Iner fulf Ilment of the mortal l Ife upon earth. The Va Ishnava dwells more or less absorbed In the Va Ikuntha of h Is Inner consc Iousness; the outer world, although real, Is only a symbol Ic shadowplay to wh Ich he can but be a w Itness-real, Is only a noth Ing more.
A modern Ideal Ist of the type of a reformer would not be sat Isf Ied w Ith that role. If he Is merely a moral Ist reformer, he w Ill revolt aga Inst the "w Itness bus Iness", call Ing It a la Issez-fa Ire mental Ity of bygone days. A sp Ir Itual reformer would ask for morea dynam Ic un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine W Ill and Consc Iousness, not merely a pass Ive enjoyment In the Bl Iss, so that he may be a lum Inous power or agent for the express Ion of d Iv Ine values In th Ings mundane.
Not the acceptance of the world as It Is, not even a joyous acceptance, v Iew Ing It as an Inexpl Icable and myster Ious and mag Ic play of, God, but the asp rat Ion and endeavour to change It, mould It In the pattern of Its Inner d Iv Ine real It Ies for there are such real It Ies wh Ich seek express Ion and embod Iment In earthly l Ife that Is the great m Iss Ion and labour of human Ity and that Is all the mean Ing of man's ex Istence here below. And Tagore Is one of the great prophets and labourers who had the v Is Ion of the shape of th Ings to come and worked for It. Only It must be noted, as I have already sa Id, that unl Ike mere moral reform Ists or sc Ient If Ic planners, Tagore grounded h Imself upon the eternal anc Ient truths that "age cannot w Ither nor custom stale"the d Iv Ine truths of the Sp Ir It.
Tagore was a poet; th Is poet Ic power of h Is he put In the serv Ice of the great cause for the d Iv Ine upl Ift of human Ity. Naturally, It goes w Ithout say Ing, h Is poetry d Id not preach or propagand Ize the truths for wh Ich he stoodhe had a f Ine and powerful weapon In h Is prose to do the work, even then In a poet Ic way but to s Ing them. And he sang them not In the Ir ph Ilosoph Ical bareness, l Ike a Lucret Ius, or In the Ir sheer transcendental auster Ity l Ike some of the Upan Ishad Ic R Ish Is, but In and through human values and earthly norms. The espec Ial aroma of Tagore's poetry l Ies exactly here, as he h Imself says, In the note of unboundedness In th Ings bounded that It descr Ibes. A mundane, profane sensuousness, Kal Idas Ian In r Ichness and sweetness, Is matched or counterpo Inted by a s Imple haunt Ing note Imbedded or tra Il Ing somewhere beh Ind, a lyr Ic cry persever Ing Into etern Ity, the nostalg Ic cry of the st Ill small vo Ice.2
Thus, on the one hand, the Etern Ity, the Inf In Ity, the Sp Ir It Is brought nearer home to us In Its embod Ied symbols and l Iv Ing veh Icles and v Iv Id formulat Ions, It becomes eas Ily ava Ilable to mortals, even l Ike the father to h Is son, to use a Ved Ic phrase; on the other hand, earthly th Ings, mere human It Ies are upl Ifted and suffused w Ith a "l Ight that never was, on sea or land."
Another great poet of the sp Ir It says also, almost l Ike Tagore:
--
Heaven need Ing earth's pass Ion' to qu Iver Its peace Into rapture.
Marry, O l Ightn Ing eternal, the pass Ion of a moment born f Ire!
--
Th Is also Is Tagore's soul-prayer, h Is deepest asp Irat Ion.
"Del Iverance Is not for me In renunc Iat Ion. I feel the embrace of freedom In a thousand bonds of del Ight."G Itanjal I,73.
Tagore the poet rem Inds one often and anon of Kal Idasa. He was so much In love, had such k Insh Ip w Ith the great old master that many of h Is poems, many passages and l Ines are rem In Iscences, echoes, modulat Ions or a paraphrase of the or Ig Inal class Ic. Tagore h Imself refers In h Is memo Irs to one Kal Idas Ian l Ine that haunted h Is juven Ile bra In because of Its exqu Is Ite mus Ic and enchant Ing Imagery:
Mandk I n Irjhar Ikarm vodh muhuh-kamP Ita-deva-druh
--
Both the poets were worsh Ippers, Idolaters, of beauty, espec Ially of natural phys Ical beauty, of beauty heaped on beauty, of beauty gathered, l Ike honey from all places and stored and ranged and stalled w Ith the utmost decorat Ive sk Ill. Yet the d Ifference between the two Is not less pronounced. A ph Ilosopher Is rem Inded of Bergson, the great exponent of movement as real Ity, In connect Ion w Ith certa In aspects of Tagore. Indeed, Beauty In Tagore Is someth Ing mov Ing, flow Ing, danc Ing, r Ippl Ing; It Is espec Ially the beauty wh Ich mus Ic embod Ies and expresses. A Kal Idas Ian beauty, on the contrary, Is statuesque and plast Ic, It Is to be apprec Iated In s Itu. Th Is Is, however, by the way.
Sr I Aurob Indo: "Ahana", Collected Poems & Plays, Vol. 2
--
The Poetry In the Mak Ing V Ivekananda
01.05 - The Nietzschean Antichrist, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
N Ietzsche as the apostle of force Is a name now fam Il Iar to all the world. The hero, the warr Ior who never tamely accepts suffer Ing and subm Iss Ion and defeat under any cond It Ion but f Ights always and f Ights to conquersuch Is the Ideal man, accord Ing to N Ietzsche,the champ Ion of strength, of greatness, of m Ight Iness. The dom Inat Ing personal Ity Infused w Ith the supreme "w Ill to power"he Is Ubermensch, the Superman. Sent Iment does not move the mounta Ins, emot Ion d Iffuses Itself only In vague asp Irat Ion. The mot Ive power, the creat Ive f Iat does not dwell In the heart but somewhere h Igher. The way of the Cross, the path of love and char Ity and p Ity does not lead to the k Ingdom of Heaven. The world has tr Ied It for the last twenty centur Ies of Its Chr Ist Ian c Iv Il Isat Ion and the result Is that we are st Ill l Iv Ing In a luxur Iant abundance of m Isery and sord Idness and l Ittleness. Th Is Is how N Ietzsche th Inks and feels. He f Inds no v Irtue In the old rg Imes and he revolts from them. He wants a speedy and rad Ical remedy and teaches that by v Iolence only the K Ingdom of Heaven can be se Ized. For, to N Ietzsche the world Is only a clash of forces and the Superman therefore Is one who Is the embod Iment of the greatest force. N Ietzsche does not care for the good, It Is the great that moves h Im. The good, the moral Is of man, convent Ional and has only a f Ict It Ious value. The great, the non-moral Is, on the other hand, d Iv Ine. That only has a value of Its own. The good Is noth Ing but a sort of makesh Ift arrangement wh Ich man makes for h Imself In order to l Ive commod Iously and wh Ich changes accord Ing to h Is temperament. But the great Is one w Ith the Supreme W Isdom and Is absolute and Imperat Ive. The good cannot create the great; It Is the great that makes for the good. Th Is Is what he really means when he says, "They say that a good cause sanct If Ies war but I tell thee It Is a good war that sanct If Ies all cause." For the goodness of your cause you judge by your personal pred Ilect Ions, by your false convent Ional It Ies, by a standard that you set up In your IgnoranceBut a good war, the output of strength In any cause Is In Itself a cause of salvat Ion. For thereby you are the champ Ion of that ult Imate ver Ity wh Ich conduces to the ult Imate good. Do not shr Ink, he would say, to be even l Ike the cyclone and the avalanche, destruct Ive, Indeed, but grand and pu Issant and therefore truer emblems of the BeyondJense Itsthan the weak, the l Ittle, the p It Iful that do not dare to destroy and by that very fact cannot hope to create.
Th Is Is the N Ietzsche we all know. But there Is another aspect of h Is wh Ich the world has yet been slow to recogn Ise. For, at bottom, N Ietzsche Is not all storm and fury. If h Is Superman Is a Destroy Ing Angel, he Is none the less an angel. If he Is endowed w Ith a supreme sense of strength and power, there Is also secreted In the core of h Is heart a sense of the beaut Iful that Illum Ines h Is somewhat sombre aspect. For although N Ietzsche Is by b Irth a Slavo-Teuton, by culture and educat Ion he Is pre-em Inently Hellen Ic. H Is earl Iest works are on the subject of Greek tragedy and form what he descr Ibes as an "Apollon Ian dream." And to th Is dream, to th Is Greek aesthet Ic sense more than to any th Ing else he sacr If Ices just Ice and p Ity and char Ity. To h Im the weak and the m Iserable, the s Ick and the ma Imed are a sort of blot, a k Ind of ulcer on the beaut Iful face of human Ity. The herd that wallow In suffer Ing and rel Ish suffer Ing d Isf Igure the aspect of the world and should therefore be relentlessly mowed out of ex Istence. By be Ing p It Iful to them we g Ive our tac It assent to the Ir pers Istence. And It Is prec Isely because of th Is that N Ietzsche has a horror of Chr Ist Ian Ity. For compass Ion g Ives Indulgence to all the ugl Iness of the world and thus renders that ugl Iness a necessary and Ind Ispensable element of ex Istence. To protect the weak, to sympath Ise w Ith the lowly br Ings about more of weakness and more of lowl Iness. N Ietzsche has an ar Istocrat Ic taste par excellencewhat he a Ims at Is health and v Igour and beauty. But above all It Is an ar Istocracy of the sp Ir It, an ar Istocracy endowed w Ith all the r Ichness and beauty of the soul that N Ietzsche wants to establ Ish. The beggar of the street Is the symbol of ugl Iness, of the poverty of the sp Ir It. And the so-called ar Istocrat, d Ie m Ill Iona Ire of today Is as poor and ugly as any helpless leper. The soul of e Ither of them Is made of the same d Irty, s Ickly stuff. The tattered rags, the crouch Ing heart, the effem Inate nerve, the unenl Ightened soul are the stand Ing ugl Iness of the world and they have no place In the Ideal, the perfect human Ity. Human Ity, accord Ing to N Ietzsche, Is made In order to be beaut Iful, to conce Ive the beaut Iful, to create the beaut Iful. N Ietzsche's Superman has Its perfect Image In a Grec Ian statue of Zeus cut out In wh Ite marble-Olymp Ian grandeur shedd Ing In every l Ineament Apollon Ian beauty and D Ionys Ian v Igour.
The real secret of N Ietzsche's ph Ilosophy Is not an adorat Ion of brute force, of bl Ind Irrat Ional joy In f Ight Ing and k Ill Ing. Far from It, N Ietzsche has no k Insh Ip w Ith Tre Itschke or Bernhard. What N Ietzsche wanted was a world purged of l Ittleness and ugl Iness, a human Ity, not of sa Ints, perhaps, but of heroes, lofty In the Ir Ideal, great In the Ir ach Ievement, majest Ic In the Ir emp Irea race of t Itan Ic gods breath Ing the glory of heaven Itself.
***
The Intu It Ion of the Age On Commun Ism
01.05 - The Yoga of the King - The Yoga of the Spirits Freedom and Greatness, #Savitri, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
Id="18.1">18.1
Th Is knowledge f Irst he had of t Ime-born men.
--
Near to the well of v Is Ion In the soul,
And entered where the W Ings of Glory brood
In the s Ilent space where all Is for ever known.
Ind Ifferent to doubt and to bel Ief,
--
When l Ife had stopped Its beats, death broke not In;
He dared to l Ive when breath and thought were st Ill.
Thus could he step Into that mag Ic place
Wh Ich few can even gl Impse w Ith hurr Ied glance
--
All that the Gods have learned Is there self-known.
There In a h Idden chamber closed and mute
Are kept the record graphs of the cosm Ic scr Ibe,
--
There Is the Book of Be Ing's Index page;
The text and glossary of the Ved Ic truth
--
Are wr Itten In the myst Ic heart of L Ife.
In the glow of the sp Ir It's room of memor Ies
--
Of the dark Agreement by wh Ich all Is ruled
That r Ises from mater Ial Nature's sleep
To clo the the Everlast Ing In new shapes.
He could re-read now and Interpret new
Its strange symbol letters, scattered abstruse s Igns,
Resolve Its oracle and Its paradox,
Its r Iddl Ing phrases and Its bl Indfold terms,
The deep oxymoron of Its truth's repl Iques,
And recogn Ise as a just necess Ity
--
Nature's Imposs Ible Herculean to Il
Only her warlock-w Isecraft could enforce,
--
Its l Ist of Inseparable contrar Ies.
The dumb great Mother In her cosm Ic trance
Explo It Ing for creat Ion's joy and pa In
--
Accepts Indom Itably to execute
The w Ill to know In an Inconsc Ient world,
The w Ill to l Ive under a re Ign of death,
The th Irst for rapture In a heart of flesh,
And works out through the appearance of a soul
By a m Iraculous b Irth In plasm and gas
The mystery of God's covenant w Ith the N Ight.
Once more was heard In the st Ill cosm Ic M Ind
The Eternal's prom Ise to h Is labour Ing Force
--
The cry of b Irth Into mortal Ity
And the open Ing verse of the tragedy of T Ime.
--
Who bu Ilds In Ignorance the steps of L Ight.
A sleep Ing de Ity opened deathless eyes:
He saw the unshaped thought In soulless forms,
Knew Matter pregnant w Ith sp Ir Itual sense,
--
L Ife Its gestat Ion of the Golden Ch Ild.
In the l Ight flood Ing thought's blank vacancy,
--
The r Iddle grew pla In and lost Its catch obscure.
A larger lustre l It the m Ighty page.
--
\tA W Ill, a hope Immense now se Ized h Is heart,
And to d Iscern the superhuman's form
--
Id="19.3">19.3A br Ighter heavenl Ier sun must soon Illume
Th Is dusk room w Ith Its dark Internal sta Ir,
The Infant soul In Its small nursery school
M Id objects meant for a lesson hardly learned
Outgrow Its early grammar of Intellect
And Its Im Itat Ion of Earth-Nature's art,
Its earthly d Ialectto God-language change,
--
And learn the log Ic of the Inf In Ite.
The Ideal must be Nature's common truth,
The body Illum Ined w Ith the Indwell Ing God,
The heart and m Ind feel one w Ith all that Is,
A consc Ious soul l Ive In a consc Ious world.
As through a m Ist a sovere Ign peak Is seen,
The greatness of the eternal Sp Ir It appeared,
Ex Iled In a fragmented un Iverse
Am Id half-semblances of d Iv Iner th Ings.
--
The Immortal's pr Ide refused the doom to l Ive
A m Iser of the scanty barga In made
--
And the compass Ionate Inf In Itudes.
H Is he Ight repelled the lowness of earth's state:
A w Ideness d Iscontented w Ith Its frame
Res Iled from poor assent to Nature's terms,
--
Or all seems a m Isf It of half Ideas,
Or we saddle w Ith the v Ice of earthly form
A hurr Ied Imperfect gl Impse of heavenly th Ings,
Guesses and travest Ies of celest Ial types.
Here chaos sorts Itself Into a world,
A br Ief format Ion dr Ift Ing In the vo Id:
Ap Ings of knowledge, unf In Ished arcs of power,
Flam Ings of beauty Into earthly shapes,
Love's broken reflexes of un Ity
--
Are p Ieced Into a tessellated whole.
There Is no perfect answer to our hopes;
There are bl Ind vo Iceless doors that have no key;
Thought cl Imbs In va In and br Ings a borrowed l Ight,
Cheated by counterfe Its sold to us In l Ife's mart,
Our hearts clutch at a forfe Ited heavenly bl Iss.
There Is provender for the m Ind's sat Iety,
There are thr Ills of the flesh, but not the soul's des Ire.
--
In the seragl Ios of Ignorance.
For all we have acqu Ired soon loses worth,
An old d Isvalued cred It In T Ime's bank,
Imperfect Ion's cheque drawn on the Inconsc Ient.
An Inconsequence dogs every effort made,
And chaos wa Its on every cosmos formed:
--
The Incert Itude of man's proud conf Ident thought,
The trans Ience of the ach Ievements of h Is force.
A th Ink Ing be Ing In an unth Ink Ing world,
An Island In the sea of the Unknown,
He Is a smallness try Ing to be great,
An an Imal w Ith some Inst Incts of a god,
H Is l Ife a story too common to be told,
--
For the eternal Sp Ir It Is h Is truth.
He can re-create h Imself and all around
And fash Ion new the world In wh Ich he l Ives:
He, Ignorant, Is the Knower beyond T Ime,
He Is the Self above Nature, above Fate.
\tH Is soul ret Ired from all that he had done.
--
Impass Ive he l Ived Immune from earthly hopes,
A f Igure In the Ineffable W Itness' shr Ine
Pac Ing the vast cathedral of h Is thoughts
Under Its arches d Im w Ith Inf In Ity
And heavenward brood Ing of Inv Is Ible w Ings.
A call was on h Im from Intang Ible he Ights;
Ind Ifferent to the l Ittle outpost M Ind,
He dwelt In the w Ideness of the Eternal's re Ign.
H Is be Ing now exceeded th Inkable Space,
--
A un Iversal l Ight was In h Is eyes,
A golden Influx flowed through heart and bra In;
A Force came down Into h Is mortal l Imbs,
A current from eternal seas of Bl Iss;
He felt the Invas Ion and the nameless joy.
Aware of h Is occult omn Ipotent Source,
--
A l Iv Ing centre of the Ill Im Itable
W Idened to equate w Ith the world's c Ircumference,
He turned to h Is Immense sp Ir Itual fate.
Abandoned on a canvas of torn a Ir,
A p Icture lost In far and fad Ing streaks,
The earth-nature's summ Its sank below h Is feet:
He cl Imbed to meet the Inf In Ite more above.
The Immob Ile's ocean-s Ilence saw h Im pass,
An arrow leap Ing through etern Ity
--
A ray return Ing to Its parent sun.
Opponent of that glory of escape,
The black Inconsc Ient swung Its dragon ta Il
Lash Ing a slumbrous Inf In Ite by Its force
Into the deep obscur It Ies of form:
--
One-po Inted to the Immaculate Del Ight,
Quest Ing for God as for a splend Id prey,
--
To a few Is g Iven that godl Ike rare release.
One among many thousands never touched,
Engrossed In the external world's des Ign,
Is chosen by a secret w Itness Eye
--
Across h Is soul's unmapped Immens Itudes.
A p Ilgr Im of the everlast Ing Truth,
--
To a lonely cry In boundless vacancy.
All the deep cosm Ic murmur fall Ing st Ill,
He l Ives In the hush before the world was born,
H Is soul left naked to the t Imeless One.
--
Thought and Its shadowy Idols d Isappear,
The moulds of form and person are undone:
The Ineffable W Ideness knows h Im for Its own.
A lone forerunner of the Godward earth,
--
He journeys to meet the Incommun Icable,
Hear Ing the echo of h Is s Ingle steps
--
And bears the s Ilence of the Inf In Ite.
\t In a d Iv Ine retreat from mortal thought,
In a prod Ig Ious gesture of soul-s Ight,
H Is be Ing towered Into pathless he Ights,
Naked of Its vesture of human Ity.
As thus It rose, to meet h Im bare and pure
A strong Descent leaped down. A M Ight, a Flame,
--
Enveloped h Im w Ith Its stupendous l Imbs
And penetrated nerve and heart and bra In
--
H Is nature shuddered In the Unknown's grasp.
In a moment shorter than death, longer than T Ime,
--
Taken sovere Ignly Into eternal arms,
Haled and coerced by a stark absolute bl Iss,
--
Hurr Ied Into un Imag Inable depths,
Upborne Into Immeasurable he Ights,
It was torn out from Its mortal Ity
And underwent a new and bourneless change.
--
An Indec Ipherable Omn Ipotence,
A myst Ic Form that could conta In the worlds,
Yet make one human breast Its pass Ionate shr Ine,
Drew h Im out of h Is seek Ing lonel Iness
--
As through a dress the wearer's shape Is seen,
There reached through forms to the h Idden absolute
--
Increased and he Ightened were the Instruments.
Illus Ion lost her aggrand Is Ing lens;
--
Of an Imper Ishable Inhab Itant:
H Is sp Ir It breathed a superhuman a Ir.
The Impr Isoned de Ity rent Its mag Ic fence.
As w Ith a sound of thunder and of seas,
--
The f Ixed Immovable per Ipher Ies
Effaced themselves beneath the Incarnate's tread.
The d Ire velamen and the bottomless crypt
--
In the boundar Ies of M Ind and Ignorance,
Protect Ing no more a dual etern Ity
--
The expand Ing zero lost Its g Iant curve.
The old adamant Ine vetoes stood no more:
--
From an all-swallow Ing Immens Ity.
The great hammer-beats of a pent-up world-heart
--
A boundless be Ing In a measureless T Ime
Invaded Nature w Ith the Inf In Ite;
He saw unpathed, unwalled, h Is t Itan scope.
--
Once In a dreaded half-l Ight form Idable,
Overtaken In her m Ighty pr Ivacy
Lay bare to the burn Ing splendour of h Is w Ill.
--
Incalculable In the Ir w Izard modes,
Immed Iate and Inv Inc Ible In the act,
Her secret strengths nat Ive to greater worlds
--
All once Imposs Ible deemed could now become
A natural l Imb of poss Ib Il Ity,
--
An alm Ighty occult Ist erects In Space
Th Is seem Ing outward world wh Ich tr Icks the sense;
--
H Is sorcery of sol Id Images,
H Is mag Ic of format Ive number and des Ign,
The f Ixed Irrat Ional l Inks none can annul,
Th Is cr Iss-cross tangle of Inv Is Ible laws;
H Is Infall Ible rules, h Is covered processes,
Ach Ieve unerr Ingly an Inexpl Icable
Creat Ion where our error carves dead frames
Of knowledge for a l Iv Ing Ignorance.
In her mystery's moods d Ivorced from the Maker's laws
--
Mak Ing a f In Ite of Inf In Ity;
She too can make an order of her capr Ice,
As If her rash superb wagered to outv Ie
The ve Iled Creator's cosm Ic secrec Ies.
--
And sw Ifter than Imag Inat Ion's w Ings.
All she new-fash Ions by the thought and word,
--
M Ind Is a med Iator d Iv In Ity:
Its powers can undo all Nature's work:
--
The leaden gr Ip of Matter It can break;
Ind Ifferent to the angry stare of Death,
It can Immortal Ise a moment's work:
A s Imple f Iat of Its th Ink Ing force,
The casual pressure of Its sl Ight assent
Can l Iberate the Energy dumb and pent
W Ith In Its chambers of myster Ious trance:
It makes the body's sleep a pu Issant arm,
--
Wh Ile the unseen Is found, the Imposs Ible done,
Commun Icates w Ithout means the unspoken thought;
It moves events by Its bare s Ilent w Ill,
Acts at a d Istance w Ithout hands or feet.
Th Is g Iant Ignorance, th Is dwarf Ish L Ife
It can Illum Ine w Ith a prophet s Ight,
Invoke the bacch Ic rapture, the Fury's goad,
--
Call In the Omn Isc Ient and Omn Ipotent,
Awake a forgotten Alm Ight Iness w Ith In.
In Its own plane a sh In Ing emperor,
Even In th Is r Ig Id realm, M Ind can be k Ing:
The log Ic of Its dem Igod Idea
In the leap of a trans It Ional moment br Ings
--
Th Is Is that secret Nature's edge of m Ight.
On the marg In of great Immater Ial planes,
In k Ingdoms of an untrammelled glory of force,
Where M Ind Is master of the l Ife and form
And soul fulf Ils Its thoughts by Its own power,
She med Itates upon m Ighty words and looks
--
Thence to the In It Iate who observes her laws
She br Ings the l Ight of her myster Ious realms:
--
H Is m Ind no more cast Into Matter's mould,
Over the Ir bounds In spurts of splend Id strength
She carr Ies the Ir mag Ic Ian processes
--
She Invents for her self-bound free-w Ill Its grooves
And fe Igns for mag Ic's freaks a b Ind Ing cause.
Id="22.20">22.20
All worlds she makes the partners of her deeds,
--
Her dar Ing leaps Into the Imposs Ible:
From every source she has taken her cunn Ing means,
--
A wonder-weft of knowledge Incalculable,
A compend Ium of d Iv Ine Invent Ion's feats
She has comb Ined to make the unreal true
--
Her mnemon Ics of the craft of the Inf In Ite,
Jets of the screened subl Im Inal's capr Ice,
Tags of the gramarye of Inconsc Ience,
Freedom of a sovere Ign Truth w Ithout a law,
Thoughts that were born In the Immortals' world,
Oracles that break out from beh Ind the shr Ine,
Warn Ings from the daemon Ic Inner vo Ice
And peeps and l Ightn Ing-leaps of prophecy
And Int Imat Ions to the Inner ear,
Abrupt Intervent Ions stark and absolute
And the Superconsc Ient's unaccountable acts,
--
Th Is b Izarre k Ingdom passed Into h Is charge.
As one res Ist Ing more the more she loves,
--
Absolved from aberrat Ions In deep ways,
The ends she recovered for wh Ich she was made:
--
Her eng Ined wrath, her Inv Is Ible means to slay;
Her dangerous moods and arb Itrary force
--
Assa Iled, surpr Ised In the fortress of her self,
Conquered by her own unexpected k Ing,
--
She y Ielded In a vanqu Ished ecstasy,
Her sealed hermet Ic w Isdom forced from her,
--
\tA border sovere Ign Is the occult Force.
A threshold guard Ian of the earth-scene's Beyond,
--
And cut through v Istas of Intu It Ive s Ight
A long road of sh Immer Ing d Iscover Ies.
--
Beh Ind her an Ineffable Presence stood:
Her re Ign rece Ived the Ir myst Ic Influences,
The Ir l Ion-forces crouched beneath her feet;
--
Id="23.5">23.5
Abysms Infernal gaped round the soul's steps
And called to Its mount Ing v Is Ion peaks d Iv Ine:
An endless cl Imb and adventure of the Idea
There t Irelessly tempted the explorer m Ind
--
Id="23.6">23.6
Th Is was a forefront of God's thousandfold house ,
Beg Inn Ings of the half-screened Inv Is Ible.
Id="23.7">23.7A mag Ic porch of entry gl Immer Ing
Qu Ivered In a penumbra of screened L Ight,
A court of the myst Ical traff Ic of the worlds,
--
Above her l Ightened h Igh Immens It Ies;
All the unknown looked out from boundlessness:
--
Its eyes dream Ing of the Ineffable,
Its faces star Ing Into etern Ity.
L Ife In h Im learned Its huge subconsc Ient rear;
The l Ittle fronts unlocked to the unseen Vasts:
--
Flamed In transparenc Ies of crowded l Ight.
\tA g Iant order was d Iscovered here
--
The secrets merged In superconsc Ient l Ight,
Wrote clear the letters of Its glow Ing code:
A map of subtle s Igns surpass Ing thought
Was hung upon a wall of Inmost m Ind.
Illum In Ing the world's concrete Images
Into s Ign If Icant symbols by Its gloss,
It offered to the Intu It Ive exegete
Its reflex of the eternal Mystery.
--
Plunged from the Everlast Ing Into T Ime,
Then glad of a glory of mult Itud Inous m Ind
--
Cl Imbed back from T Ime Into undy Ing Self,
Up a golden ladder carry Ing the soul,
--
Each leaned on the occult Inconsc Ient's power,
The founta In of Its needed Ignorance,
Archmason of the l Im Its by wh Ich It l Ives.
In th Is soar from consc Iousness to consc Iousness
Each l Ifted tops to That from wh Ich It came,
Or Ig In of all that It had ever been
And home of all that It could st Ill become.
An organ scale of the Eternal's acts,
Mount Ing to the Ir cl Imax In an endless Calm,
Paces of the many-v Isaged Wonderful,
--
They Interpreted ex Istence to Itself
And, med Iat Ing tw Ixt the he Ights and deeps,
--
And l Inked creat Ion to the Ineffable.
A last h Igh world was seen where all worlds meet;
In Its summ It gleam where N Ight Is not nor Sleep,
The l Ight began of the Tr In Ity supreme.
All there d Iscovered what It seeks for here.
It freed the f In Ite Into boundlessness
And rose Into Its own etern It Ies.
The Inconsc Ient found Its heart of consc Iousness,
The Idea and feel Ing grop Ing In Ignorance
At last clutched pass Ionately the body of Truth,
The mus Ic born In Matter's s Ilences
Plucked nude out of the Ineffable's fathomlessness
The mean Ing It had held but could not vo Ice;
The perfect rhythm now only somet Imes dreamed
--
A grand solut Ion closed the long Impasse
In wh Ich the he Ights of mortal effort end.
--
The Inart Iculate murmur of our l Ives
And found for It a sense Ill Im Itable.
A m Ighty oneness Its perpetual theme,
It caught the soul's fa Int scattered utterances,
--
Heard l Ike d Isjo Inted mutter Ings In sleep;
It grouped the golden l Inks that they had lost
--
The deep sp Ir Itual cry In all that Is.
All the great Words that to Iled to express the One
Were l Ifted Into an absoluteness of l Ight,
An ever-burn Ing Revelat Ion's f Ire
And the Immortal Ity of the eternal Vo Ice.
There was no quarrel more of truth w Ith truth;
--
Retold In l Ight by an omn Isc Ient Scr Ibe
Travelled through d Ifference towards un Ity,
--
Led to Its end by an all-see Ing speech
That garbed the In It Ial and or Ig Inal thought
W Ith the f Inal Ity of an ult Imate phrase:
--
To the style and syntax of Ident Ity.
A paean swelled from the lost mus Ing deeps;
--
A cry of the moments to the Immortal's bl Iss.
As If the strophes of a cosm Ic ode,
A h Ierarchy of cl Imb Ing harmon Ies
--
Asp Ired In a crescendo of the Gods
From Matter's abysses to the Sp Ir It's peaks.
Above were the Immortal's changeless seats,
Wh Ite chambers of dall Iance w Ith etern Ity
--
Stretched out In an ecstasy of w Idenesses
Beyond our Ind Igent corporeal range.
There he could enter, there awh Ile ab Ide.
--
He broke Into another Space and T Ime.
End of Canto V - End of Book I
01.06 - On Communism, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Commun Ism Is the synthes Is of collect Iv Ism and Ind Iv Idual Ism. The past ages of soc Iety were character Ised more or less by a severe collect Iv Ism. In anc Ient Greece, more so In Sparta and In Rome, the Ind Iv Idual had, properly speak Ing, no separate ex Istence of h Is own; he was merged In the State or Nat Ion. The Ind Iv Idual was cons Idered only as a l Imb of the collect Ive be Ing, had to l Ive and labour for the common weal. The value attached to each person was str Ictly In reference to the output that the group to wh Ich he belonged rece Ived from h Im. Apart from th Is serv Ice for the general un It the body pol It Icany personal endeavour and ach Ievement, If not absolutely d Iscouraged and repressed, was g Iven a very secondary place of mer It. The summum bonum of the Ind Iv Idual was to sacr If Ice at the altar of the res publ Ica, the bonum publ Icum. In Ind Ia, the pos It Ion and funct Ion of the State or Nat Ion was taken up by the soc Iety. Here too soc Ial Inst Itut Ions were so const Ituted and men were so bred and brought up that Ind Iv Idual Ity had ne Ither the occas Ion nor the Incent Ive to express Itself, It was a th Ing that rema Ined, In the Kal Idas Ian phrase, an object for the ear onlysrutau sth Ita. Those who sought at all an Ind Iv Idual a Im and purpose, as perhaps the Sannyas Ins, were put outs Ide the gate of law and soc Iety. W Ith In the soc Iety, In actual l Ife and act Ion, It was a s In and a cr Ime or at least a gross Imperfect Ion to have any self-regard Ing mot Ive or Impulse; personal preference was the last th Ing to be cons Idered, v Irtue cons Isted prec Isely In sacr If Ic Ing one's own taste and Incl Inat Ion for the sake of that wh Ich the soc Iety exacts and sanct Ions.
Aga Inst th Is tyranny of the group, th Is absolute rule of the collect Ive w Ill, the human m Ind rose In revolt and the result was Ind Iv Idual Ism. For whatever may be the truth and necess Ity of the Collect Ive, the Ind Iv Idual Is no less true and necessary. The Ind Iv Idual has h Is own law and urge of be Ing and h Is own secret godhead. The collect Ive godhead der Ides the Ind Iv Idual godhead at Its per Il. The f Irst movement of the react Ion, however, was a run to the other extrem Ity; a stern collect Iv Ism gave b Irth to an Intrans Igent Ind Iv Idual Ism. The Ind Iv Idual Is sacred and Inv Iolable, cost what It may. It does not matter what sort of Ind Iv Idual Ity one seeks, It Is enough If the th Ing Is there. So the doctr Ine of Ind Iv Idual Ism has come to set a prem Ium on ego Ism and on forces that are d Isrupt Ive of all soc Ial bonds. Each and every Ind Iv Idual has the Inherent r Ight, wh Ich Is also a duty, to follow h Is own Impetus and Impulse. Soc Iety Is noth Ing but the battle ground for compet Ing Ind Iv Idual It Ies the strongest surv Ive and the weakest go to the wall. Assoc Iat Ion and co-operat Ion are Instruments that the Ind Iv Idual may use and ut Il Ise for h Is own growth and development but In the ma In they act as deterrents rather than as a Ids to the express Ion and expans Ion of h Is character Ist Ic be Ing. In real Ity, however, If we probe suff Ic Iently deep Into the matter we f Ind that there Is no such th Ing as corporate l Ife and act Iv Ity; what appears as such Is only a camouflage for r Igorous compet It Ion; at the best, there maybe only an offens Ive and defens Ive all Iancehuman Ity f Ights aga Inst nature, and w Ith In human Ity Itself group f Ights aga Inst group and In the last analys Is, w Ith In the group, the Ind Iv Idual f Ights aga Inst the Ind Iv Idual. Th Is Is the ult Imate Law-the Dharma of creat Ion.
Now, what such an uncomprom Is Ing Ind Iv Idual Ism fa Ils to recogn Ise Is that Ind Iv Idual Ity and ego are not the same th Ing, that the Ind Iv Idual may have h Is Ind Iv Idual Ity Intact and ent Ire and yet sacr If Ice h Is ego, that the soul of man Is a much greater th Ing than h Is v Ital be Ing. It Is s Imply Ignor Ing the fact and deny Ing the truth to say that man Is only a f Ight Ing an Imal and not a lov Ing god, that the self w Ith In the Ind Iv Idual real Ises Itself only through compet It Ion and not co-operat Ion. It Is an error to conce Ive of soc Iety as a mere parallelogram of forces, to suppose that It has r Isen s Imply out of the struggle of Ind Iv Idual Interests and cont Inues to rema In by that struggle. Struggle Is only one aspect of the th Ing, a part Icular form at a part Icular stage, a temporary man Ifestat Ion due to a part Icular system and a part Icular hab It and tra In Ing. It would be nearer the truth to say that soc Iety came Into be Ing w Ith the demand of the Ind Iv Idual soul to un Ite w Ith the Ind Iv Idual soul, w Ith the stress of an Over-soul to express Itself In a mult Itude of forms, d Iverse yet l Inked together and organ Ised In perfect harmony. Only, the stress for un Ion man Ifested Itself f Irst on the mater Ial plane as struggle: but th Is Is meant to be corrected and transcended and Is be Ing cont Inually corrected and transcended by a secret harmony, a real commonal Ity and brotherhood and un Ity. The Ind Iv Idual Is not so self-centred as the Ind Iv Idual Ists make h Im to be, h Is Ind Iv Idual Ity has a much vaster orb It and fulf Ils Itself only by fulf Ill Ing others. The sc Ient Ists have begun to d Iscover other Inst Incts In man than those of struggle and compet It Ion; they now place at the or Ig In of soc Ial group Ing an Inst Inct wh Ich they name the herd- Inst Inct: but th Is Is only a formulat Ion In lower terms, a translat Ion on the v Ital plane of a h Igher truth and real Ity the fundamental oneness and accord of Ind Iv Iduals and the Ir sp Ir Itual Impuls Ion to un Ite.
However, Ind Iv Idual Ism has g Iven us a truth and a formula wh Ich collect Iv Ism Ignored. Self-determ Inat Ion Is a th Ing wh Ich has come to stay. Each and every Ind Iv Idual Is free, absolutely free and shall freely follow h Is own l Ine of growth and development and fulf Ilment. No extraneous power shall choose and f Ix what Is good or ev Il for h Im, nor coerce and explo It h Im for Its own benef It. But that does not necessar Ily mean that collect Iv Ism has no truth In It; collect Iv Ism also, as much as Ind Iv Idual Ism, has a lesson for us and we should see whether we can harmon Ise the two. Collect Iv Ism s Ign If Ies that the Ind Iv Idual should not look to h Imself alone, should not be shut up In h Is freedom but expand h Imself and envelop others In a w Ider freedom, see other creatures In h Imself and h Imself In other creatures, as the G Ita says. Collect Iv Ism demands that the Ind Iv Idual need not and should not exhaust h Imself ent Irely In secur Ing and enjoy Ing h Is personal freedom, but that he can and should work for the salvat Ion of others; the truth It upholds Is th Is that the Ind Iv Idual Is from a certa In po Int of v Iew only a part of the group and by Ignor Ing the latter It Ignores Itself In the end.
Now, a sp Ir Itual commun Ism embraces Ind Iv Idual Ism and collect Iv Ism, fuses them In a h Igher truth, establ Ishes them In an Int Imate and absolute harmony. The Ind Iv Idual Is the centre, the group Is the c Ircumference and the two form one whore c Ircle. The Ind Iv Idual by fulf Ill Ing the truth of h Is real Ind Iv Idual Ity fulf Ils also the truth of a commonal Ity. There are no d Ifferent laws for the two. The Ind Iv Iduals do not stand apart from and aga Inst one another, the dharma of one does not clash w Ith the dharma of the other. The r Ipples In the bosom of the sea, however d Ist Inct and d Iscrete In appearance, form but a s Ingle mass, all follow the same law of hydrodynam Ics that the mother sea Incarnates. Stars and planets and nebulae, each separate heavenly body has Its character Ist Ic form and nature and funct Ion and yet all fulf Il the same law of grav Itat Ion and beat the measure of the s Ilent symphony of spaces. Ind Iv Idual It Ies are the freedoms of the collect Ive be Ing and collect Iv Ity the concentrat Ion of Ind Iv Idual be Ings. The same soul look Ing Inward appears as the Ind Iv Idual be Ing and look Ing outward appears as the collect Ive be Ing.
Commun Ism takes man not as ego or the v Ital creature; It turns h Im ups Ide downurdhomulo' vaksakhah and establ Ishes h Im upon h Is soul, h Is Inner godhead. Thus establ Ished the Ind Iv Idual soul f Inds and fulf Ils the d Iv Ine law that by Increas Ing Itself It Increases others and by Increas Ing others It Increases Itself and thus by Increas Ing one another they atta In the supreme good. Unless man goes beyond h Imself and reaches th Is self, th Is godhead above, he w Ill not f Ind any real po Ise, w Ill always sw Ing between Ind Iv Idual Ism and collect Iv Ism, he w Ill rema In always boundbound e Ither In h Is freedom or In h Is bondage.
A commune Is a group of Ind Iv Iduals hav Ing a common self and a common l Ife- Intu It Ion. A common self presupposes the real Isat Ion by each Ind Iv Idual of h Is deepest be Ing the self wh Ich Is at once d Ist Inct from and Inst Inct w Ith other selves; a common l Ife- Intu It Ion presupposes the awaken Ing of each Ind Iv Idual to h Is Inmost creat Ive urge, wh Ich, pure and true and vast as It Is, fulf Ils Itself In and through other creat Ive urges.
A commune, further, Is not only a product or f Inal ach Ievement; It Is also a process, an Instrument to br Ing about the des Ired end. A group of Ind Iv Iduals come to have a common self and a common l Ife- Intu It Ion In and through the commune; and In and through the commune does each Ind Iv Idual progress to the real Isat Ion of h Is deepest self and the awaken Ing of h Is Inmost l Ife- Intu It Ion.
The Ind Iv Idual must f Ind h Imself and establ Ish h Is secret god-head, and then only, when such free and Integral Ind Iv Idual It Ies meet and rec Iprocate and coalesce, can the commun Ity they form have a l Iv Ing real Ity and a permanent potency. On the other hand, unless Ind Iv Iduals come together and through the Interchange of each other's soul and substance' enhance the communal Godhead, the separate Ind Iv Idual godheads also w Ill not man Ifest In the Ir supreme and sovere Ign powers.
If soc Iety, that Is to say, commun Ity, be the f Ieldkshetra for the Ind Iv Idual to l Ive, move and have Its be Ing, then we must beg In at the very outset w Ith the commun Ity Itself, at least, w Ith a nucleus that w Ill go to form such a th Ing. The fear that the unt Imely group Ing together of Immature souls may crush out Ind Iv Idual Ity and d Ig Its own grave has, no doubt, suff Ic Ient just If Icat Ion beh Ind It to deter one from the attempt; but ne Ither can we be certa In that souls nursed and nour Ished In sol Itary cells, absolutely apart from any mellow Ing and broaden Ing Influence of the outs Ide world w Ill ever reach to that stage of perfect matur Ity when they w Ill suddenly and spontaneously break open the Ir cells and recogn Ise In one another the communal brother-self.
As a matter of fact, the Ind Iv Idual Is not and cannot be such an Isolated th Ing as our ego Ist Ic sense would l Ike to have It. The sharp angular It Ies of the Ind Iv Idual are be Ing, at every moment, chastened by the very pr Imary cond It Ions of l Ife; and to fa Il to recogn Ise th Is Is the bl Indest form of Ignorance. It Is no easy task to draw exactly the l Ine of d Ist Inct Ion between our Ind Iv Idual be Ing and our soc Ial or communal be Ing. In actual l Ife they are so blended together that In try Ing to extr Icate them from each other, we but tear and lacerate them both. The h Ighest w Isdom Is to take the two together as they are, and by a gradual pur Ify Ing processboth Internal and external, Internal In thought and knowledge and w Ill, external In l Ife and act Ionrestore them to the Ir respect Ive truth and lawSatyam and R Itam.
The Ind Iv Idual who leads a severely Ind Iv Idual l Ife from the very beg Inn Ing, whose outlook of the world has been fash Ioned by that concept Ion, can hardly, If at all, enter at the end the communal l Ife. He must perforce be e Ither a vagabond or a recluse: But the recluse Is not an Integral man, nor the vagabond an Ideal personal Ity. The Ind Iv Idual need not be too chaste and shy to assoc Iate w Ith others and to g Ive and take as freely and fully as he can. Ind Iv Idual Ity Is not necessar Ily curta Iled or mut Ilated In th Is process, but there Is th Is other greater poss Ib Il Ity of Its gett Ing enlarged and enhanced. Rather It Is when you shut yourself up In your own self, that you st Ick to only one l Ine of your personal Ity, to a s Ingle phase of your self and thus l Im It and d Im In Ish yourself; the breadth and he Ight and depth of your self, the cub Ic completeness of your personal Ity you can atta In only through a mult Iple and var Iegated stress by wh Ich you come In contact w Ith the world and th Ings.
So f Irst the Ind Iv Idual and then the commune Is not the natural nor the Ideal pr Inc Iple. On the other hand, f Irst the commune and then the Ind Iv Idual would appear to be an equally defect Ive pr Inc Iple. For f Irst a commune means an organ Isat Ion, Its laws and rules and regulat Ions, Its Injunct Ions and proh Ib It Ions; all wh Ich s Ign If Ies or comes to s Ign Ify that every Ind Iv Idual Is not free to enter Its fold and that whoever enters must know how to doveta Il h Imself there In and thus crush down the very l Ife-power whose enhancement and efflorescence Is sought. F Irst a commune means necessar Ily a creed, a dogma, a set form of be Ing and l Iv Ing Indel Ibly marked out from beforehand. The Ind Iv Idual has there no cho Ice of f Ind Ing and develop Ing the part Icular creed or dogma or mode of be Ing and l Iv Ing, from out of h Is own self, along h Is part Icular l Ine of natural growth; all that Is Imposed upon h Im and he has to accept and make It h Is own by tr Ial and effort and self-torture. Even If the commune be a contractual assoc Iat Ion, the members hav Ing jo Ined together In a common cause to a common end, by voluntar Ily sacr If Ic Ing a port Ion of the Ir personal cho Ice and freedom, even then It Is not the Ideal th Ing; the collect Ive soul w Ill be d Im In Ished In exact proport Ion as each Ind Iv Idual soul has had to be d Im In Ished, be that voluntary or otherw Ise. That commune Is plenary and ent Ire wh Ich ensures plen Itude and ent Irety to each of Its Ind Iv Iduals.
Now how to escape the d Ilemma? Only If we take the commune and the Ind Iv Idual togetheren bloc, as has already been suggested. Th Is means that the commune should be at the beg Inn Ing a subtle and supple th Ing, w Ithout form and even w Ithout name, It should be no more than the c Ircumamb Ient aura the sukshma deha that plays around a group of Ind Iv Iduals who meet and un Ite and move together by a secret aff In Ity, along a common path towards a common goal. As each Ind Iv Idual develops and def Ines h Imself, the commune also takes a more and more concrete shape; and when at the last stage the Ind Iv Idual r Ises to the full he Ight of h Is godhead, takes possess Ion of h Is Integral d Iv In Ity, the commune also establ Ishes Its sol Id emp Ire, v Iv Id and v Ibrant In form and name.
***
01.06 - Vivekananda, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
A personal rem In Iscence. A young man In pr Ison, accused of consp Iracy and wag Ing war aga Inst the Br It Ish Emp Ire. If conv Icted he m Ight have to suffer the extreme penalty, at least, transportat Ion to the Andamans. The case Is dragg Ing on for long months. And the young man Is In a sol Itary cell. He cannot always keep up h Is sp Ir Its h Igh. Moments of sadness and gloom and despa Ir come and almost overwhelm h Im. Who was there to console and cheer h Im up? V Ivekananda. V Ivekananda's speeches, From Colombo to Almora, came, as a godsend, Into the hands of the young man. Invar Iably, when the per Iod of despondency came he used to open the book, read a few pages, read them over aga In, and the cloud was there no longer. Instead there was hope and courage and fa Ith and future and l Ight and a Ir.
Such Is V Ivekananda, the embod Iment of Fearlessnessabh, the Upan Ishad Ic word, the mantra, he was so fond of. The l Ife and v Is Ion of V Ivekananda can be Indeed summed up In the m Ighty phrase of the Upan Ishads, nyam tm balahnena labhya. 'Th Is soul no weakl Ing can atta In.' Strength! More strength! Strength evermore! One remembers the motto of Danton, the famous leader In the French Revolut Ion:De l'audance, encore de l'audace, toujours de l'audace!
The gospel of strength that V Ivekananda spread was very character Ist Ic of the man. For It Is not mere phys Ical or nervous bravery, although that too Is Ind Ispensable, and It Is someth Ing more than moral courage. In the speeches referred to, the subject-matter (as well as the manner to a large extent) Is ph Ilosoph Ical, metaphys Ical, even abstract In outlook and treatment: they are not a call to arms, l Ike the French Nat Ional Anthem, for example; they are not merely an eth Ical exhortat Ion, a moral lesson e Ither. They speak of the Inner sp Ir It, the d Iv Ine In man, the supreme real It Ies that l Ie beyond. And yet the words are permeated through and through w Ith a v Ibrat Ion l Ife-g Iv Ing and hero Ic-not so much In the expl Ic It and apparent mean Ing as In the style and manner and atmosphere: It Is catch Ing, even or prec Isely when he refers, for example, to these passages In the Vedas and the Upan Ishads, magn If Icent In the Ir poet Ic beauty, subl Ime In the Ir sp Ir Itual truth,nec plus ultra, one can say, In the grand style supreme:
Yasya Ite h Imavanto mah Itv
--
Then ex Istence was not nor non-ex Istence, the m Idworld was not nor the Ether nor what Is beyond.
The consc Iousness that breathed out these m Ighty words, these heavenly sounds was In Itself m Ighty and heavenly and It Is that that touches you, penetrates you, v Ibrates In you a k Indred chord, "awaken Ing In you someone dead" t Ill thenmrtam kcana bodhayant. More than the matter, the th Ing that was sa Id, was the personal Ity, the be Ing who embod Ied the truth expressed, the l Iv Ing consc Iousness beh Ind the words and the speech that set f Ire to your soul. Indeed It was the soul that V Ivekananda could awaken and st Ir In you. Any orator, any speaker w Ith some k Ind of bel Ief, even If It Is for the moment, In what he says, by the sheer force of assert Ion, can conv Ince your m Ind and draw your acqu Iescence and adhes Ion. A leader of men, self-conf Ident and bold and f Iery, can carry you off your feet and make you do brave th Ings. But that Is a lower degree of character and nature, ephemeral and superf Ic Ial, that Is touched In you thereby. The sp Ir Itual leader, the Gu Ide, goes stra Ight to the sp Ir It In you It Is the call of the deep unto the deep. That was what V Ivekananda meant when he sa Id that Brahman Is asleep In you, awaken It, you are the Brahman, awaken It, you are free and alm Ighty. It Is the sp Ir It consc Iousness Sachch Idananda that Is the real man In you and that Is supremely m Ighty and Inv Inc Ible and free absolutely. The courage and fearlessness that V Ivekananda gave you was the natural attr Ibute of the lordsh Ip of your sp Ir Itual real Ity. V Ivekananda spoke and roused the Atman In man.
V Ivekananda spoke to the Atman In man, he spoke to the Atman of the world, and he spoke spec Ially to the Atman of Ind Ia. Ind Ia had a large place In V Ivekananda's consc Iousness: for the future of human Ity and the world Is wedded to Ind Ia's future. Ind Ia has a great m Iss Ion, It has a sp Ir Itual, rather the sp Ir Itual work to do. Here Is Ind Ia's work as V Ivekananda conce Ived It In a nutshell:
"Shall Ind Ia d Ie? Then from the world all sp Ir Itual Ity w Ill be ext Inct." And wherefore Is th Is call for the l Ife sp Ir Itual? Thus the asp Ir Ing soul would answer:
" If I do not f Ind bl Iss In the l Ife of the sp Ir It, shall I seek sat Isfact Ion In the l Ife of the senses? If I cannot get nectar, shall I fall back upon d Itch water?"
The answer Is as old as that of Nach Iketas: "These horses and these songs and dances of yours, let them rema In yours, man Is not appeased w Ith r Iches"; or that of Ma Itrey I, "What am I to do w Ith that wh Ich w Ill not br Ing me Immortal Ity?" Th Is Is then man's m Iss Ion upon earth:
"Man Is h Igher than all an Imals, than all angels: none Is greater than man. Even the Devas w Ill have to come down aga In and atta In to salvat Ion though a human body. Man alone atta Ins to perfect Ion, not even the Devas." Indeed, men are gods upon earth, come down here below to perfect themselves and perfect the worldonly, they have to be consc Ious of themselves. They do not know what they are, they have to be actually and sovere Ignly what they are really and potent Ially. Th Is then Is the l Ife-work of everyone:
"F Irst, let us be Gods, and then help others to be Gods.
--
That Is Indeed the only way of secur Ing a harmon Ious and
perfected human Ity:
--
harmon Iously arranged around It."
The path to th Is h Igher harmon Ious d Iv Ine l Ife Is that of
hard labour, of scrupulously unt Ir Ing, consc Ient Ious work:
" It Is struggle aga Inst nature
and not conform Ity to nature that makes man what he Is."
Work and not abstent Ion from work Is the way, but not work for Ignorant enjoyment:
"The dwell Ing-place of the J Ivatman, th Is body, Is a ver Itable means of work, and he who converts th Is Into an Infernal den Is gu Ilty, and he who neglects It Is also to blame."
"No work Is petty ... He who can properly prepare a ch Ilam (p Ipe of tobacco) can also properly med Itate."
These are lum Inous l Ife-g Iv Ing mantras and the world and human Ity of today, sore d Istressed and utterly confounded, have great need of them to l Ive them by and be saved.
01.07 - Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
"The zeal for the Lord hath eaten me up." Such has Indeed been the case w Ith Pascal, almost l Iterally. The f Ire that burned In h Im was too ardent and vehement for the veh Icle, the mater Ial Instrument, wh Ich was very soon used up and reduced to ashes. At twenty-four he was already a broken man, be Ing struck w Ith paralys Is and neuras then Ia; he d Ied at the comparat Ively early age of 39, emulat Ing, as It were, the l Ife career of h Is Lord the Chr Ist who d Ied at 33. The F Ire martyr Ised the body, but k Indled and brought forth exper Iences and real Isat Ions that save and truths that ab Ide. It was the D Iv Ine F Ire whose v Is Ion and exper Ience he had on the famous n Ight of 23 November 1654 wh Ich brought about h Is f Inal and def In It Ive convers Ion. It was the same f Ire that had blazed up In h Is bra In, wh Ile yet a boy, and made h Im a precoc Ious gen Ius, a marvel of Intellectual power In the exact sc Iences. At 12 th Is prod Igy d Iscovered by h Imself the 32nd propos It Ion of Eucl Id, Book I. At s Ixteen he wrote a treat Ise on con Ic sect Ions. At n Ineteen he Invented a calculat Ing mach Ine wh Ich, w Ithout the help of any mathemat Ical rule or process, gave absolutely accurate results. At twenty-three he publ Ished h Is exper Iments w Ith vacuum. At twenty-f Ive he conducted the well-known exper Iment from the tower of St. Jacques, prov Ing the ex Istence of atmospher Ic pressure. H Is stud Ies In Inf In Ites Imal calculus were remarkably creat Ive and or Ig Inal. And It m Ight be sa Id he was a p Ioneer In qu Ite a new branch of mathemat Ics, v Iz., the mathemat Ical theory of probab Il Ity. We shall see presently how h Is preoccupat Ion w Ith the mathemat Ics of chance and probab Il Ity coloured and re Inforced h Is metaphys Ics and theology.
But the pressure upon h Is dynam Ic and heated bra In the f Iery zeal In h Is m Indwas already prov Ing too much and he was adv Ised med Ically to take complete rest. Thereupon followed what was known as Pascal's mundane l Ifea per Iod of d Istract Ion and d Iss Ipat Ion; but th Is d Id not last long nor was It of a ser Ious nature. The Inner f Ire could brook no delay, It was eager and Impat Ient to englobe other f Ields and doma Ins. Indeed, It turned to Its own f Ield the heart. Pascal became In It Iated Into the mystery of Fa Ith and Grace. St Ill he had to pass through a terr Ible per Iod of deject Ion and despa Ir: the l Ife of the world had g Iven h Im no rest or relaxat Ion, It served only to f Ill h Is cup of m Isery to the br Im. But the hour of f Inal rel Ief was not long postponed: the Grace came to h Im, even as It came to Moses or St. Paul as a sudden flare of f Ire wh Ich burnt up the Dark N Ight and opened out the portals of Morn Ing Glory.
Pascal's place In the evolut Ion of European culture and consc Iousness Is of cons Iderable s Ign If Icance and Importance. He came at a cr It Ical t Ime, on the mount Ing t Ide of rat Ional Ism and scept Ic Ism, In an age when the tone and temper of human mental Ity were Influenced and fash Ioned by Monta Igne and Rochefoucauld, by Bacon and Hobbes. Pascal h Imself, born In such an atmosphere of doubt and d Isbel Ief and d Is Illus Ionment, had sucked In a full dose of that po Ison; yet he surv Ived and found the Rock of Ages, became the clar Ion of Fa Ith aga Inst Den Ial. What a spectacle It was! Th Is Is what one wrote just a quarter of a century after the death of Pascal:
"They can no longer tell us that It Is only small m Inds that have p Iety. They are shown how It has grown best In one of the the greatest geometr Ic Ians, one of the subtlest metaphys Ic Ians, one of the most penetrat Ing m Inds that ever ex Isted on earth. The p Iety of such a ph Ilosopher should make the unbel Iever and the l Ibert Ine declare what a certa In D Iocles sa Id one day on see Ing Ep Icurus In a temple: 'What a feast, what a spectacle for me to see Ep Icurus In a temple! All my doubts va Insh, p Iety takes Its place aga In. I never saw Jup Iter's greatness so well as now when I behold Ep Icurus kneel Ing down!"1
What character Ises Pascal Is the way In wh Ich he has bent h Is bra Innot rejected It but truly bent and forced even the dry "geometr Ical bra In" to the serv Ice of Fa Ith.
In h Is Inqu Iry Into truth and cert Itude Pascal takes h Is stand upon what he calls the geometr Ical method, the only val Id method, accord Ing to h Im, In the sphere of reason. The character Ist Ic of th Is method Is that It takes for granted certa In fundamental pr Inc Iples and real It Iescalled ax Ioms and postulates or def In It Ionsand proceeds to other truths that are Infall Ibly and Inev Itably deduced from them, that are Inherent and Impl Ied In them. There Is no use or necess Ity In try Ing to demonstrate these fundamentals also; that w Ill only land us Into confus Ion and muddle. They have to be s Imply accepted, they do not requ Ire demonstrat Ion, It Is they that demonstrate others. Such, for Instance, are space, t Ime, number, the real Ity of wh Ich It Is fool Ishness and pedantry to I seek to prove. There Is then an order of truths that do not I requ Ire to be proved. We are referr Ing only to the order of I phys Ical truths. But there Is another order, Pascal says, equally I val Id and ver Itable, the order of the Sp Ir It. Here we have another set of fundamentals that have to be accepted and taken for granted, matr Ix of other truths and real It Ies. It can also be called the order of the Heart. Reason pos Its phys Ical fundamentals; It does not know of the fundamentals of the Heart wh Ich are beyond Its reach; such are God, Soul, Immortal Ity wh Ich are ev Ident only to Fa Ith.
But Fa Ith and Reason, accord Ing to Pascal, are not contrar Ies nor Irreconc Ilables. Because the th Ings of fa Ith are beyond reason, It Is not that they are Irrat Ional. Here Is what Pascal says about the funct Ion and l Im Itat Ion of reason:
"The last movement of reason Is to know that there Is an Inf In Ity of th Ings that are beyond It. It must be a very weak reason If It does not arr Ive there."2
"One must know where one should doubt, where one should subm It."3
--
"We know truth not by reason alone, but by the heart also: It Is In the latter way that we know the f Irst pr Inc Iples, and In va In does reason Ing, that has no part In It, attempt to combat them... The heart feels... and the reason demon strates afterwards... Pr Inc Iples are felt, propos It Ions are deduced. . . . "5
About doubt, Pascal says that the perfect doubter, the Pyrrhon Ian as he Is called, Is a f Ict Ion. Pascal asks:
"What w Ill men do In such a state? W Ill he doubt everyth Ing?... W Ill he doubt whether he doubts ? W Ill he doubt whether he ex Ists?. . . In fact there has never been a perfectly effect Ive Pyrrhon Ian."6
The process of convers Ion of the doubt Ing m Ind, of the dry Intellectual reason as propounded and perhaps pract Ised by Pascal Is also a character Ist Ic mark of h Is nature and gen Ius. It Is expla Ined In h Is famous letter on "bet" or "game of chance" (Le Par I). Here Is how he puts the Issue to the doubt Ing m Ind ( I am g Iv Ing the substance, not h Is words): let us say then that In the world we are play Ing a game of chance. How do the chances stand? What are the ga Ins and losses If God does not ex Ist? What 'are the ga Ins and losses If God does ex Ist? If God ex Ists, by accept Ing and reach Ing h Im what do we ga In? All that man cares forhapp Iness, fel Ic Ity. And what do we lose? We lose the world of m Isery. If, on the other 'hand, God does not ex Ist, by bel Iev Ing h Im to ex Ist, we lose noth Ing, we are not more m Iserable than what we are. If, however, God ex Ists and we do not bel Ieve h Im, we ga In th Is world of m Isery but we lose all that Is worth hav Ing. Thus Pascal concludes that even from the standpo Int of mere ga In and loss, bel Ief In God Is more advantageous than unbel Ief. Th Is Is how he appl Ied to metaphys Ics the mathemat Ics of probab Il Ity.
One Is not sure If such reason Ing Is conv Inc Ing to the Intellect; but perhaps It Is a necessary stage In convers Ion. At least we can conclude that Pascal had to pass through such a stage; and It Ind Icates the d Iff Iculty h Is bra In had to undergo, the tens Ion or even the torture he made It pass through. It Is true, from Reason Pascal went over to Fa Ith, even wh Ile g Iv Ing Reason Its due. St Ill It seems the two were not perfectly synthet Ised or fused In h Im. There was a gap between that was not thoroughly br Idged. Pascal d Id not possess the h Igher, Intu It Ive, lum Inous m Ind that med Iates successfully between the phys Ical d Iscurs Ive rat Ioc Inat Ive bra In-m Ind and the v Is Ion of fa Ith: It Is because deep In h Is consc Iousness there lay th Is chasm. Indeed,Pascal's abyss (l' abme de Pascal) Is a well-known legend. Pascal, It appears, used to have very often the v Is Ion of an abyss about to open before h Im and he shuddered at the prospect of fall Ing Into It. It seems to us to be an exper Ience of the Inf In Ity the Inf In Ity to wh Ich he was so much attracted and of wh Ich he wrote so beaut Ifully (L' Inf In Iment grand et l' Inf In Iment pet It)but Into wh Ich he could not ev Idently jump overboard unreservedly. Th Is produced a d Ichotomy, a lack of Integrat Ion of personal Ity, Jung would say. Pascal's bra In was cold, f Irm, almost r Ig Id; h Is heart was volcan Ic, the fa Ith he had was a f Ire: It lacked someth Ing of the pure l Ight and burned w Ith a lur Id glare.
And the reason Is h Is metaphys Ics. It Is the Jansen Ist concept Ion of God and human nature that Insp Ired and coloured all h Is exper Ience and consc Iousness. Accord Ing to It, as accord Ing to the Calv In Ist concept Ion, man Is a corrupt be Ing, corroded to the core, or Ig Inal s In has branded h Is very soul. Only Grace saves h Im and releases h Im. The order of s In and the order of Grace are d Ist Inct and d Isparate worlds and yet they complement each other and need each other. Greatness and m Isery are Intertw Ined, un Ited, un If Ied w Ith each other In h Im. Here Is an echo of the Man Ichean pos It Ion wh Ich also Involves an abyss. But even then God's grace Is not a free agent, as Jesu Its declare; there Is a predest Inat Ion that gu Ides and controls It. Th Is was one of the ma In subjects he treated In h Is famous open letters (Les Prov Inc Iales) that brought h Im renown almost overn Ight. Eternal hell Is a poss Ible prospect that faces the Jansen Ist. That was why a N Ight always over-shadowed the Day In Pascal's soul.
Man then, accord Ing to Pascal, Is by nature a s Inful th Ing. He can lay no cla Im to noble v Irtue as h Is own: all In h Im Is v Ile, he Is a lump of d Irt and f Ilth. Even the greatest has h Is full share of th Is ta Int. The greatest, the sa Intl Iest, and the meanest, the most s Inful, all meet, all are equal on th Is common platform; all have the same feet of clay. Man Is as m Iserable a creature as a beast, as much a part and product of Nature as a plant. Only there Is th Is d Ifference that an an Imal or a tree Is unconsc Ious, wh Ile man knows that he Is m Iserable. Th Is knowledge or percept Ion makes h Im more m Iserable, but that Is h Is real and only greatness there Is no other. H Is thought, h Is self-consc Iousness, and h Is sorrow and repentance and contr It Ion for what he Is that Is the only good partMary's part that has been g Iven to h Im. Here are Pascal's own words on the subject:
"The greatness of man Is great In th Is that he knows he Is m Iserable. A tree does not know that It Is m Iserable.
It Is m Isery Indeed to know oneself m Iserable. But one Is great when one knows thus that he Is m Iserable.
Thought Is man's greatness.
Man Is a mere reed, the weakest In nature, but he Is a th Ink Ing reed."7
Pascal's fa Ith had not the calm, tranqu Il, serene, lum Inous and happy self-possess Ion of an Ind Ian R Ish I. It was ardent and Impat Ient, f Iery and vehement. It had to be so perhaps, s Ince It was to stand aga Inst h Is steely bra In (and a gloomy v Ital or l Ife force) as a counterpo Ise, even as an ant Idote. Th Is tens Ion and sch Ism brought about, at least contr I buted to h Is neuras then Ia and phys Ical Inf Irm Ity. But whatever the effect upon h Is Inner consc Iousness and sp Ir Itual ach Ievement, h Is power of express Ion, h Is l Iterary style acqu Ired by that a spec Ial qual Ity wh Ich Is h Is great g Ift to the French language. If one speaks of Pascal, one has to speak of h Is language also; for he was one of the great masters who created the French prose. H Is prose was a wonderful blend of clar Ity, prec Is Ion, serr Ied log Ic and warmth, colour, l Ife, movement, plast Ic Ity.
A translat Ion cannot g Ive any Idea of the Pascal Ian style; but an Inner echo of the same can perhaps be caught from the thought movement of these character Ist Ic say Ings of h Is w Ith wh Ich we conclude:
"Contrad Ict Ion Is not a mark of falsehood, nor Is uncontrad Ict Ion a mark of truth."8
"The Inf In Ite d Istance of the body from the m Ind Images the d Istance Inf In Itely more Inf In Ite of the m Ind from Char Ity (D Iv Ine Grace, Fa Ith)."9
"The heart has Its reasons wh Ich Reason knows not... I say, the heart loves the un Iversal be Ing naturally, and Itself also naturally, accord Ing to wh Ich so ever It g Ives Itself. And It hardens Itself aga Inst the one or the other accord Ing to Its cho Ice. You have rejected one and preserved the other. Is It by the reason that you love ?"10
"Know then, a you proud one, what a paradox you are to yourself. Humble yourself, Impotent Reason. Learn, man surpasses man Inf In Itely. Hear from your Master your true state wh Ich you do not know. L Isten to God."11
" Ils ne peuvent plus nous d Ire qu' Il n'y a que de pet Its espr Its qu I a Ient de la p It: car on leur en fa It vo Ir de la m Ieux pouss dans run des plus grands go-mtres, l'un des plus subt Ils mtaphys Ic Iens, et des plus pntrants espr Its que a Ient jama Is t au monde. La p It d'un tel ph Ilosophe devra It fa Ire d Ire aux Indvots et awe l Ibert Ins ce que d It un jour un certa In D Iocls, en voyant Ep Icure dans un temple: 'Quelle fte,' s'cr Ia It- Il, 'quelle spectacle pour mo I, de vo Ir Ep Icure dans un temple! Tous mes soupons s'vanou Issent: la p It reprend sa place; et je ne v Is jama Is m Ieux la grandeur de Jup Iter que depu Is que je vo Is Ep Icure genoux!' " aBayle: Nouvelle de la Rpubl Ique des Lettres.
"La dern Ire dmarche de la ra Ison, c'est de connatre qu' Il y a une Inf In It de chases qu I la surpassent. Elle est b Ien fa Ible s I elle ne va jusque-l
" Il faut savo Ir douter o Il faut, se soumettre o Il faut."
"Ce sont deux exs galement dangereux, d'exclure la ra Ison, de n'admettre que la ra Ison."
"Nous conna Issons la vr It, non seulement par la ra Ison, ma Is encore par Ie cur; c'est de cette dern Ire sorte que nous conna Issons les prem Iers pr Inc Ipes, et c'est en va In que Ie ra Isonnement qu I n'y a po Int de part, essaye de leg combattre... Le coeur sent et la ra Ison dmontre ensu Ite Les pr Inc Ipes se sentent, leg propos It Ions se concluent."
"Que Cera done l'homme en cet tat? Doutera-t- Il de tout? . . . doutera-t- Il s' Il doute? doutera-t- Il s' Il est?. . En fa It qu' Il n'y ajama Is eu de pyrrhon Ien effect If parfa It."
"La grandeur de l'homme est grande en se qu' Il se connat m Israble. Un arbre ne se connat pas m Iserable. C'est done tre m Israble que de se connatre m Iserable. Ma Is c'est tre grand que de connatre qu'on est m Israble. Pense fa It la grandeur de l'homme. L'homme n'est qu'un roseau, Ie plus fa Ible de la nature, ma Is e'est un roseau pensant."
N I la contrad Ict Ion n'est marque de fausset, n I l' Incontrad Ict Ion n'est marque de vr It."
"La d Istance Inf In Ite des corps aux espr Its f Igure la d Istance Inf In Iment plus Inf In Ie des espr Its la char It."
"Le coeur a ses ra Isons que la ra Ison ne connat po Int; ... Je d Is que Ie coeur a Ime l'tre un Iversel naturellement, et so I-mme naturellement, selon qu' Il s'y donne; et Il se durc It contre l'un ou l'autre, son cho Ix. Vous avez rejet l'un et conserv l'autre. Est-ce par ra Ison que vous a Imez?"
"Conna Issez done, superbe, quel paradoxe vous tes vous-mme. Hum Il Iezvous, ra Ison Impu Issante: apprenez que l'homme passe Inf In Iment l'homme, et entendez de votre matre votre cond It Ion vr Itable que vous Ignorez. coutez D Ieu.'.
***
01.07 - The Bases of Social Reconstruction, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Any real reconstruct Ion of soc Iety, any permanent reformat Ion of the world presupposes a real reconstruct Ion, a permanent reformat Ion of human nature. Otherw Ise any amount of cast Ing and recast Ing the mere mach Iner Ies would not br Ing about any apprec Iable result, but leave the th Ing as It Is. Change the laws as much as you l Ike, but If you do not change the nature of man, the world w Ill not change. For It Is man that makes laws and not laws that make man. Laws express at best the demand wh Ich man feels w Ith In h Imself. A truth must real Ise Itself In human nature before It can be cod If Ied. You may certa Inly legal Ise an Ideal, but that does not necessar Ily mean real Is Ing It. The real Isat Ion must come f Irst In nature and character, then It Is naturally translated Into laws and Inst Itut Ions. A man l Ives the laws of h Is soul and be Ing and not the law g Iven h Im by the shastras. He v Iolates the shastras, mod If Ies them, ut Il Ises them accord Ing to the greater Imperat Ive of h Is Swabhava.
The French Revolut Ion wanted to remould human soc Iety and Its Ideal was l Iberty, equal Ity and fratern Ity. It pulled down the old mach Inery and set up a new one In Its stead. And the result? "L Iberty, Equal Ity, Fratern Ity" rema Ined always In effect a cry In the w Ilderness. Another wave of Ideal Ism Is now runn Ing over the earth and the Bolshev Ists are Its most f Iercely pract Ical exponents. Instead of deal Ing merely w Ith the pol It Ical mach Inery, the Soc Ial Ist Ic Revolut Ion tr Ies to break and remake, above all, the soc Ial mach Inery. But judged from the results as yet atta Ined and the tendenc Ies at work, few are the reasons to hope but many to fear the worst. Even educat Ion does not seem to prom Ise us anyth Ing better. Wh Ich nat Ion was better educated In the sense we understood and st Ill commonly understand the wordthan Germany?
And yet we have no hes Itat Ion today to call them Huns and Barbar Ians. That educat Ion Is not g Iv Ing us the r Ight th Ing Is proved further by the fact that we are constantly chang Ing our programmes and curr Iculums, everyday remodell Ing old Inst Itut Ions and found Ing new ones. Even a revolut Ion In the educat Ional system w Ill not br Ing about the des Ired m Illenn Ium, so long as we lay so much stress upon the system and not upon man h Imself. And f Inally, look to all the rel Ig Ions of the worldwe have enough of creeds and dogmas, of sermons and mantras, of churches and templesand yet human l Ife and soc Iety do not seem to be any the more worthy for It.
Are we then to say that human nature Is Irrevocably v It Iated by an or Ig Inal s In and that all our efforts at reformat Ion and regenerat Ion are, as the Ind Ian say Ing goes, l Ike try Ing to stra Ighten out the crooked ta Il of a dog?
It Is th Is persuas Ion wh Ich, has led many sp Ir Itual souls, s Iddhas, to declare that the Irs Is not the k Ingdom upon th Is earth, but that the k Ingdom of Heaven Is w Ith In. And It Is why great lovers of human Ity have sought not to erad Icate but only to m It Igate, as far as poss Ible, the Ills of l Ife. Earth and l Ife, It Is sa Id, conta In In the Ir last analys Is certa In ugly and loathsome real It Ies wh Ich are an Inev Itable and Inexorable part of the Ir substance and to el Im Inate one means to ann Ih Ilate the other. What can be done Is to throw a ve Il over the nether reg Ions In human nature, to put a ban on the Ir urges and velle It Ies and to create opportun It Ies to make soc Ial arrangements so that the h Igher Impulses only f Ind free play wh Ile the lower Impulses, for want of scope and Indulgence, may fall down to a harmless level. Th Is Is what the Reform Ists hope and want and no more. L Ife Is based upon an Imal Ity, the soul Is encased In an earth-sheathman needs must procreate, man needs must seek food. But what human effort can ach Ieve Is to set up barr Iers and l Im Itat Ions and form channels and open Ings, wh Ich w Ill restra In these Impulses, allow them a necessary mod Icum of play and wh Ich for the greater part w Ill serve to encourage and enhance the nobler urges In man. Of course, there w Ill rema In always the poss Ib Il Ity of the whole scaffold Ing com Ing down w Ith a crash and the abor Ig Inal In man runn Ing r Iot In h Is nud Ity. But we have to accept the chance and make the best of what mater Ials we have In hand.
No doubt th Is Is a most d Ismal k Ind of pess Im Ism. But It Is the log Ical conclus Ion of all opt Im Ism that bases Itself upon a part Icular v Iew of human nature. If we quest Ion that pess Im Ism, we have to quest Ion the very grounds of our opt Im Ism also. As a matter of fact, all our Ideal Ism has been so long Infructuous and w Ill be so In the future, If we do not sh Ift our foundat Ion and start from a d Ifferent Intu It IonWeltanschauung.
Our Ideals have been mental construct Ions, rather than sp Ir Itual real It Iesreal It Ies of the deepest and h Ighest be Ing. And the power by wh Ich we sought to real Ise those Ideals was ma Inly the Ins Istence of our emot Ional urges, rather than Nature's Truth-Power. For th Is must be understood that the mental, the v Ital and the phys Ical form a nexus of real Ity wh Ich works In Its own Inexorable law and so long as we are w Ith In them we cannot but obey the laws that gu Ide them. Of these three strata wh Ich form the human adhara, It Is the v Ital wh Ich holds the key to man's nature. It Is the execut Ive power, the force that fash Ions the real It Ies on the phys Ical plane; It Is what creates the character. The power of thought and sent Iment Is often much too exaggerated, even so the power of the body, that of phys Ical and external rules and regulat Ions. The mental or the phys Ical or both together can mould the v Ital only to a l Im Ited extent, to the extent wh Ich Is allowed by the Inherent law of the v Ital. If the demands of the mental and the phys Ical are stretched too far and are not suffered by the v Ital, a crash and catastrophe Is bound to come In the end.
Th Is Is the mean Ing of the Reform Ist's pess Im Ism. So long as we rema In w Ith In the doma In of the tr Iple nexus, we must always take account of an or Ig Inal s In, an abor Ig Inal Irredeemab Il Ity In human nature. And It, Is th Is fact wh Ich a too hasty opt Im Ist Ic Ideal Ism Is apt to Ignore. The po Int, however, Is that man need not be necessar Ily bound to th Is tr Iple chord of l Ife. He can go beyond, transcend h Imself and f Ind a real Ity wh Ich Is the bas Is of even th Is lower po Ise of the mental and v Ital and phys Ical. Only In order to get Into that h Igher po Ise we must really transcend the lower, that Is to say, we must not be sat Isf Ied w Ith exper Ienc Ing or env Isag Ing It through the m Ind and heart but must d Irectly commune w Ith It, be It. There Is a h Igher law that rules there, a power that Is the truth-substance of even the v Ital and hence can remould It w Ith a sovere Ign Inev Itab Il Ity, accord Ing to a pattern wh Ich may not and Is not the pattern of mental and emot Ional Ideal Ism, but the pattern of a supreme sp Ir Itual real Ism.
What then Is requ Ired Is a complete sp Ir Itual regenerat Ion In man, a new structure of h Is soul and substancenot merely the real Isat Ion of the h Ighest and supreme Truth In mental and emot Ional consc Iousness, but the translat Ion and appl Icat Ion of the law of that truth In the power of the v Ital. It Is here that fa Iled all the great sp Ir Itual or rather rel Ig Ious movements of the past. They were content w Ith evok Ing the d Iv Ine In the mental be Ing, but left the v Ital becom Ing to be governed by the hab Itual un-d Iv Ine or at the most to be just Illum Ined by a d Istant and fa Int glow wh Ich served, however, more to d Istort than express the D Iv Ine.
The D Iv Ine Nature only can permanently reform the v Ital nature that Is ours. Ne Ither laws and Inst Itut Ions, wh Ich are the results of that v Ital nature, nor Ideas and Ideals wh Ich are often a mere revolt from and more often an aux Il Iary to It, can comm and the power to regenerate soc Iety. If It Is thought Improbable for any group of men to atta In to that God Nature, then there Is hardly any hope for mank Ind. But Improbable or probable, that Is the only way wh Ich man has to try and test, and there Is none other.
***
01.08 - A Theory of Yoga, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Yoga Is another form of a normal funct Ion In man, It Is the consc Iously regulated and he Ightened process of a hab Itual act Iv Ity of the m Ind.
The recent sc Ience of Psycho-analys Is has brought to l Ight certa In h Idden spr Ings and undercurrents of the m Ind; It has fam Il Iar Ised us w Ith a mode of v Iew Ing the ent Ire psych Ical l Ife of man wh Ich w Ill be fru Itful for our present enqu Iry. M Ind, It has been found, Is a house d Iv Ided, aga Inst Itself, that Is to say It Is an arena where d Ifferent and d Ivergent forces cont Inually battle aga Inst one another. There must be, however, at the same t Ime, some sort of a resolut Ion of these forces, some equat Ion that holds them In balance, otherw Ise the m Ind the human be Ing Itselfwould cease to ex Ist as an ent Ity. What Is the mechan Ism of th Is balance of power In the human m Ind? In order to ascerta In that we must f Irst of all know the fundamental nature of the struggle and also the character of the more elemental forces that are engaged In It.
There are some pr Imary des Ires that seek sat Isfact Ion In man. They are the v Ital urges of l Ife, the most prom Inent among them be Ing the Inst Inct of self-preservat Ion and that of self-reproduct Ion or the des Ire to preserve one's body by defens Ive as well as by offens Ive means and the des Ire to mult Iply oneself by mat Ing. These are the two b Iolog Ical necess It Ies that are Inev Itable to man's ex Istence as a phys Ical be Ing. They g Ive the m In Imum cond It Ions requ Ired to be fulf Illed by man In order that he may l Ive and hence they are the strongest and the most fundamental elements that enter Into h Is structure and compos It Ion.
It would have been an easy matter If these v Ital urges could flow on unh Indered In the Ir way. There would have been no problem at all, If they met sat Isfact Ion eas Ily and smoothly, w Ithout hav Ing to look to other factors and forces. As a matter of fact, man does not and cannot grat Ify h Is Inst Incts whenever and wherever he chooses and In an open and d Irect manner. Even In h Is most pr Im It Ive and barbarous cond It Ion, he has often to check h Imself and throw a ve Il, In so many ways, over h Is sheer an Imal Ity. In the c Iv Il Ised soc Iety the check Is man Ifold and Is frankly recogn Ised. We do not go stra Ight as our sexual Impuls Ion leads, but seek to h Ide and camouflage It under the Inst Itut Ion of marr Iage; we do not pounce upon the food d Irectly we happen to meet It and snatch and appropr Iate whatever port Ion we get but we secure It through an elaborate process, wh Ich Is known as the econom Ic system. The mach Inery of the state, the cult of the kshatr Iya are roundabout ways to meet our f Ight Ing Inst Incts.
What Is the reason of th Is elaborat Ion, th Is check and constra Int upon the natural and d Irect outflow of the an Imal Inst Incts In man? It has been sa Id that the soc Ial l Ife of man, the fact that he has to l Ive and move as member of a group or aggregate has Imposed upon h Im these restr Ict Ions. The free and unbr Idled Indulgence of one's bare abor Ig Inal Impulses may be poss Ible to creatures that l Ive a separate, sol Itary and Ind Iv Idual l Ife but Is d Isrupt Ive of all bonds necessary for a corporate and group l Ife. It Is even a b Iolog Ical necess Ity aga In wh Ich has evolved In man a th Ird and collateral pr Imary Inst Inct that of the herd. And It Is th Is herd- Inst Inct wh Ich naturally and spontaneously restra Ins, d Iverts and even metamorphoses the other Inst Incts of the mere an Imal l Ife. However, leav Ing as Ide for the moment the quest Ion whether man's eth Ical and sp Ir Itual Ideals are a mere d Iss Imulat Ion of h Is an Imal Inst Incts or whether they correspond to certa In actual real It Ies apart from and co-ex Istent w Ith these latter, we w Ill recogn Ise the s Imple fact of control and try to have a gl Impse Into Its mechan Ism.
There are three l Ines, as the Psycho-analysts po Int out along wh Ich th Is control or censur Ing of the pr Imary Inst Incts acts. F Irst, there Is the l Ine of Defence React Ion. That Is to say, the m Ind automat Ically takes up an att Itude d Irectly contrary to the Impulse, tr Ies to shut It out and deny altogether Its ex Istence and the measure of the Ins Istence of the Impulse Is also the measure of the vehemence of the den Ial. It Is the case of the lady protest Ing too much. So It happens that where subconsc Iously there Is a strong current of a part Icular Impulse, consc Iously the m Ind Is obl Iged to take up a counteract Ing oppos Ite Impulse. Thus In presence of a strong sexual crav Ing the m Ind as If to guard and save Itself engenders by a reflex movement an ascet Ic and pur Itan Ic mood. S Im Ilarly a strong unth Ink Ing phys Ical attract Ion translates Itself on the consc Ious plane as an equally strong repuls Ion.
Secondly, there Is the l Ine of Subst Itut Ion. Here the m Ind does not stand In an antagon Ist Ic and protestant mood to combat and repress the Impulse, but seeks to d Ivert It Into other channels, use It to other purposes wh Ich do not demand equal sacr If Ice, may even, on the other hand, be cons Idered by the consc Ious m Ind as worthy of human pursu It. Thus the energy that normally would seek sexual grat If Icat Ion m Ight f Ind Its outlet In the cult Ivat Ion of art and l Iterature. It Is a common th Ing In novels to f Ind the hero Ine d Isappo Inted In love tak Ing f Inally to works of char Ity and benef Icence and thus forgett Ing her d Isappo Intment. Another var Iety of th Is Is what Is known as "drown Ing one's sorrow In dr Ink Ing."
Th Irdly, there Is the l Ine of Subl Imat Ion It Is when the natural Impulse Is ne Ither repressed nor d Iverted but l Ifted up Into a h Igher modal Ity. The th Ing Is g Iven a new sense and a new value wh Ich serve to remove the st Igma usually attached to It and thus allow Its free Indulgence. Instances of carnal love subl Imated Into sp Ir Itual un Ion, of pass Ion transmuted Into devot Ion (Bhakt I) are common enough to Illustrate the po Int.
The human m Ind naturally, w Ithout any effort on Its part, takes to one or more of these dev Ices to control and conceal the abor Ig Inal Impulses. But th Is spontaneous process can be organ Ised and consc Iously regulated and made to serve better the purpose and urge of Nature. And th Is Is the beg Inn Ing of yoga the consc Ious fulf Ilment of Nature. The Psycho-analysts have g Iven us the f Irst and elementary stage of th Is process of yoga. It Is, we may say, the fourth l Ine of control. W Ith th Is man enters a new level of be Ing, develops a new mode of l Ife. It Is when the automat Ism of Nature Is replaced by the power of Consc Ious Control. Man Is not here, a bl Ind Instrument of forces, h Is act Iv It Ies (both Indulg Ing and controll Ing) are not gu Ided accord Ing to an Ignorant subm Iss Ion to the laws of almost subconsc Ious Impuls Ions. Consc Ious control means that the m Ind does not f Ight shy of or seek to elude the abor Ig Inal Ins Istences, but allows them to come up freely, meets them squarely, recogn Ises them and establ Ishes an easy mastery over them.
The method of unconsc Ious or subconsc Ious nature Is fundamentally that of repress Ion. Apart from Defence React Ion wh Ich Is a th Ing of pure coerc Ion, even In Subst Itut Ion and Subl Imat Ion there always rema Ins In the background a large amount of repressed complexes In all the Ir pr Im It Ive strength. The system Is never ent Irely pur If Ied but rema Ins secretly pregnant w Ith those urges; a part only Is deflected and camouflaged, the surface only assumes a transformed appearance. And there Is always the danger of the superstructure com Ing down helplessly by a sudden upheaval of the nether forces. The whole system feels, although not In a consc Ious manner, the tens Ion of the repress Ion and suffers from someth Ing that Is unhealthy and Ill-balanced. Dante's sp Ir Itual Ised pass Ion Is a supreme Instance of control by Subl Imat Ion, but the D Iv Ina Comed Ia hardly bears the Impress of a serene and tranqu Il soul, sovere Ignly above the turmo Ils of the tragedy of l Ife and absolutely at peace w Ith Itself.
In consc Ious control, the m Ind Is for the f Irst t Ime aware of the presence of the repressed Impulses, It seeks to release them from the pressure to wh Ich they are hab Itually and normally subjected. It knows and recogn Ises them, however ugly and revolt Ing they m Ight appear to be when they present themselves In the Ir natural nakedness. Then It becomes easy for the consc Ious determ Inat Ion to el Im Inate or regulate or transform them and thus to establ Ish a healthy harmony In the human veh Icle. The very recogn It Ion Itself, as Impl Ied In consc Ious control, means pur If Icat Ion.
Yet even here the process of control and transformat Ion does not end. And we now come to the F Ifth L Ine, the real and Int Imate path of yoga. Consc Ious control g Ives us a natural mastery over the Inst Inct Ive Impulses wh Ich are rel Ieved of the Ir dark tamas and atta In a pur If Ied rhythm. We do not seek to h Ide or repress or combat them, but surpass them and play w Ith them as the art Ist does w Ith h Is mater Ial. Someth Ing of th Is kathars Is, th Is aesthet Ic Ism of the pr Im It Ive Impulses was ach Ieved by the anc Ient Greeks. Even then the pr Im It Ive Impulses rema In pr Im It Ive all the same; they fulf Il, no doubt, a real and healthy funct Ion In the scheme of l Ife, but st Ill In the Ir fundamental nature they cont Inue the an Imal In man. And even when Consc Ious Control means the utter el Im Inat Ion and ann Ih Ilat Ion of the pr Imal Inst Inctswh Ich, however, does not seem to be a probable eventual Ityeven then, we say, the bas Ic problem rema Ins unsolved; for the urge of nature towards the release and a transformat Ion of the Inst Incts does not f Ind sat Isfact Ion, the quest Ion Is merely put as Ide.
Yoga, then, comes at th Is stage and offers the solut Ion In Its power of what we may call Transubstant Iat Ion. That Is to say, here the mere form Is not changed, nor the funct Ions restra Ined, regulated and pur If Ied, but the very substance of the Inst Incts Is transmuted. The power of consc Ious control Is a power of the human w Ill, I.e. of an Ind Iv Idual personal w Ill and therefore necessar Ily l Im Ited both In Intent and extent. It Is a power complementary to the power of Nature, It may gu Ide and fash Ion the latter accord Ing to a new pattern, but cannot change the bas Ic substance, the stuff of Nature. To that end yoga seeks a power that transcends the human w Ill, br Ings Into play the supernal pu Issance of a D Iv Ine W Ill.
Th Is Is the real mean Ing and sense of the moral struggle In man, the cont Inuous endeavour towards a transvaluat Ion of the pr Imary and abor Ig Inal Inst Incts and Impulses. Looked at from one end, from below up the ascend Ing l Ine, man's eth Ical and sp Ir Itual Ideals are a d Iss Imulat Ion and subl Imat Ion of the an Imal Impuls Ions. But th Is Is becauseas we see, If we look from the other end, from above down the descend Ing l Ineman Is not all Inst Inct, he Is not a mere bl Ind Instrument In the hands of Nature forces. He has In h Im another source, an oppos Ite pole of be Ing from wh Ich other Impuls Ions flow and cont Inually mod Ify the structure of the lower levels. If the an Imal Is the foundat Ion of h Is nature, the d Iv Ine Is Its summ It. If the bod Ily demands form h Is man Ifest real Ity, the demands of the sp Ir It enshr Ine h Is h Igher real Ity. And If as regards the former he Is a slave, as regards the latter he Is the Master. It Is by the Interact Ion of these double forces that h Is whole nature has been and Is be Ing fash Ioned. Man does not and cannot g Ive carte blanche to h Is v Ital, Incl Inat Ions, s Ince there Is a pressure upon them of h Igher forces com Ing down from h Is mental and sp Ir Itual levels. It Is these latter wh Ich have dev Iated h Im from the d Irect l Ine of the pure an Imal l Ife.
Thus then we may d Ist Ingu Ish three types of control on three levels. F Irst, the natural control, secondly the consc Ious, I.e. to say the mental the eth Ical and rel Ig Ious control, and th Irdly the sp Ir Itual or d Iv Ine control. Now the sp Ir It Is the ult Imate truth and real Ity, beh Ind the forces that act In the m Ind and In the body, so that the natural control and the eth Ical control are mere attempts to establ Ish and real Ise the sp Ir Itual control. The an Imal Impulses feel the h Idden stress of the d Iv Ine urges that are the Ir real essence and thus there r Ises f Irst an unconsc Ious confl Ict In the natural l Ife and then a consc Ious confl Ict In the h Igher eth Ical l Ife. But when both of these are transcended and the confl Ict Is carr Ied on to a st Ill h Igher level, then do we f Ind the Ir real s Ign If Icance and arr Ive at the consummat Ion to wh Ich they move. Yoga Is the ult Imate transvaluat Ion of phys Ical (and of moral) values, It Is the trans-substant Iat Ion of l Ife-power Into Its sp Ir Itual substance.
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01.08 - Walter Hilton: The Scale of Perfection, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
From the twent Ieth century back to the fourteenth Is a far cry: a far cry Indeed from the modern sc Ient If Ic Illum Inat Ion to med Iaeval superst It Ion, from log Ical pos It Iv Ists and mathemat Ical rat Ional Ists to v Is Ionary myst Ics, from Russell and Huxley to Ruysbroeck and H Ilton. The myst Ic lore, the Holy Wr It, the med Iaeval sage says, echo Ing almost the very words of the Eastern Masters, "may not be got by study nor through man's trava Il only, but pr Inc Ipally by the grace of the Holy Ghost." As for the men l Iv Ing and mov Ing In the worldly way, there are "so m Ickle d In and cry Ing In the Ir heart and va In thoughts and fleshly des Ires" that It Is Imposs Ible for them to l Isten or understand the st Ill small vo Ice. It Is the pure soul touched by the Grace that alone "seeth soothfastness of Holy Wr It wonderly shewed and opened, above study and trava Il and reason of man's k Indly ( I.e. natural) w It."
What Is day to us Is n Ight to the myst Ics and what Is day to the myst Ics Is n Ight for us. The f Irst th Ing the myst Ic asks Is to close prec Isely those doors and w Indows wh Ich we, on the contrary, feel obl Iged to keep always open In order to know and to l Ive and move. The G Ita says: "The sage Is wakeful when It Is n Ight for all creatures and when all creatures are wakeful, that Is n Ight for the sage." Even so th Is sage from the West says: "The more I sleep from outward th Ings, the more wakeful am I In know Ing of Jhesu and of Inward th Ings. I may not wake to Jhesu, but If I sleep to the world."
Close the senses. Turn w Ith In. And then go forward, that Is to say, more and more Inward. In that d Irect Ion l Ies your It Inerary, the journey of your consc Iousness. The sense-r Idden secular man, who goes by h Is phys Ical eye, has marked In h Is own way the steps of h Is forward march and progress. H Is knowledge and h Is power grew as he proceeded In h Is survey from larger masses of phys Ical objects to the Ir component molecules and from molecules to the Ir component atoms and from atoms once more Into electrons and protons or energy-po Ints pure and s Imple, or otherw Ise as, In another d Irect Ion, he extended h Is gaze from earth to the solar system, from the solar system to other starry systems, to far-off galax Ies and I from galax Ies to spaces beyond. The record of th Is double-track march to Inf In Ityas perce Ived or conce Ived by the phys Ical senses Is marvellous, no doubt. The myst Ic offers the spectacle of a st Ill more marvellous march to another k Ind of Inf In Ity.
Here Is the August In Ian mantra taken as the motto of The Scale of Perfect Ion: We ascend the ascend Ing grades In our heart and we s Ing the song of ascens Ion1. The journey's end Is heavenly Jerusalem, the House of the Lord. The steps of th Is Inner ascens Ion are eas Ily v Is Ible, not surely to the outer eye of the sense-burdened man, but to the "ghostly see Ing" of the asp Irant wh Ich Is hazy In the beg Inn Ing but slowly clears as he advances. The f Irst step Is the w Ithdrawal from the outer senses and look Ing and see Ing w Ith In. "Turn home aga In In thyself, and hold thee w Ith In and beg no more w Ithout." The Immed Iate result Is a darkness and a restless darkness It Is a pa Inful n Ight. The outer objects of attract Ion and Interest have been d Iscarded, but the Inner attachments and pass Ions surge there st Ill. If, however, one cont Inues and pers Ists, refuses to be drawn out, the turmo Il settles down and the darkness beg Ins to th In and wear away. One must not lose heart, one must have pat Ience and perseverance. So when the outward world Is no more-there and Its call also no longer awakes any echo In us, then comes the stage of "restful darkness" or "l Ight-some darkness". But It Is st Ill the dark N Ight of the soul. The outer l Ight Is gone and the Inner l Ight Is not yet v Is Ible: the n Ight, the desert, the great Nought, stretches between these two l Ights. But the true seeker goes through and comes out of the tunnel. And there Is happ Iness at the end. "The seek Ing Is trava Illous, but the f Ind Ing Is bl Issful." When one steps out of the N Ight, enters Into the deepest layer of the be Ing, one stands face to face to one's soul, the very Image of God, the perfect God-man, the Chr Ist w Ith In. That Is the th Ird degree of our Inner ascens Ion, the entry Into the deepest, purest and happ Iest state In wh Ich one becomes what he truly Is; one f Inds the Chr Ist there and dwells In love and un Ion w Ith h Im. But there Is st Ill a further step to take, and that Is real ascens Ion. For t Ill now It has been a go Ing w Ith In, from the outward to the Inner and the Inmost; now one has to go upward, transcend. W Ith In the body, In l Ife, however deep you may go, even If you f Ind your soul and your un Ion w Ith Jesus whose tabernacle Is your soul, st Ill there Is bound to rema In a shadow of the s Inful pr Ison-house; the perfect bl Iss and pur Ity w Ithout any earthly ta Int, the completeness and the crown Ing of the purgat Ion and transf Igurat Ion can come only when you go beyond, leav Ing altogether the earthly form and worldly vesture and soar Into Heaven Itself and be In the company of the Tr In Ity. " Into myself, and after... above myself by overpass Ing only Into H Im." At the same t Ime It Is po Inted out, th Is med Iaeval myst Ic has the common sense to see that the go Ing In and go Ing above of wh Ich one speaks must not be understood In a l Iteral way, It Is a f Igure of speech. The movement of the myst Ic Is psycholog Ical"ghostly", It Is sa Idnot phys Ical or carnal.
Th Is sp Ir Itual march or progress can also be descr Ibed as a grow Ing Into the l Ikeness of the Lord. H Is true self, h Is own Image Is Implanted w Ith In us; he Is there In the profoundest depth of our be Ing as Jesus, our beloved and our soul rests In h Im In utmost bl Iss. We are aware ne Ither of Jesus nor of h Is spouse, our soul, because of the obsess Ion of the flesh, the turmo Il ra Ised by the senses, the bl Indness of pr Ide and ego Ism. All that const Itutes the f Irst or old Adam, the Image of Nought, the body of death wh Ich means at bottom the "false m Isruled love In to thyself." Th Is self-love Is the mother of s In, Is s In Itself. What It has to be replaced by Is char Ity that Is the true mean Ing of Chr Ist Ian char Ity, forgetfulness of self. "What Is s In but a want Ing and a forbear Ing of God." And the whole task, the d Isc Ipl Ine cons Ists In "the shap Ing of Chr Ist In you, the cast Ing of s In through Chr Ist." Who then Is Chr Ist, what Is he? Th Is knowledge you get as you advance from your sense-bound percept Ion towards the Inner and Inmost see Ing. As your outer nature gets pur If Ied, you approach gradually your soul, the scales fall off from your eyes too and you have the knowledge and "ghostly v Is Ion." Here too there are three degrees; f Irst, you start w Ith fa Ith the senses can do noth Ing better than have fa Ith; next, you r Ise to Imag Inat Ion wh Ich g Ives a sort of Ind Irect touch or Inkl Ing of the truth; f Inally, you have the "understand Ing", the d Irect v Is Ion. " If he f Irst trow It, he shall afterwards through grace feel It, and f Inally understand It."
It Is never poss Ible for man, weak and bound as he Is, to reject the thraldom of h Is flesh, he can never pur Ify h Imself wholly by h Is own una Ided strength. God In h Is Inf In Ite mercy sent h Is own son, an emanat Ion created out of h Is substanceh Is embod Ied loveas a human be Ing to suffer along w Ith men and take upon h Imself the burden of the Ir s Ins. God the Son l Ived upon earth as man and d Ied as man. S In therefore has no longer Its f Inal or def In It Ive hold upon mank Ind. Man has been made potent Ially free, pure and worthy of salvat Ion. Th Is Is the mystery of Chr Ist, of God the Son. But there Is a further mystery. Chr Ist not only l Ived for all men for all t Ime, whether they know h Im, recogn Ise h Im or not; but he st Ill l Ives, he st Ill chooses h Is beloved and h Is beloved chooses h Im, there Is a consc Ious acceptance on e Ither s Ide. Th Is Is the funct Ion of the Holy Ghost, the redeem Ing power of Love act Ive In h Im who accepts It and who Is accepted by It, the dynam Ic Chr Ist-Consc Iousness In the true Chr Ist Ian.
Indeed, the kernel of the myst Ic d Isc Ipl Ine and Its whole bear Ingcons Ists In one and only one pr Inc Iple: to love Jhesu. All roads lead to Rome: all preparat Ions, all tr Ials lead to one real Isat Ion, love of God, God as a l Iv Ing person close to us, our fr Iend and lover and master. The Chr Ist Ian myst Ic speaks almost In the terms of the G Ita: R Ise above your senses, g Ive up your ego-hood, be meek and humble, It Is Jesus w Ith In you, who embraces your soul: It Is he who does everyth Ing for you and In you, g Ive yourself up wholly Into h Is hands. He w Ill del Iver you.
The character Ist Ic then of the path Is a one-po Inted concentrat Ion. Great stress Is la Id upon "onel Iness", "onedness":that Is to say, a perfect and complete w Ithdrawal from the outs Ide and the world; an unm Ixed sol Itude Is requ Ired for the true exper Ience and real Isat Ion to come. "A full forsak Ing In w Ill of the soul for the love of H Im, and a l Iv Ing of the heart to H Im. Th Is asks He, for th Is gave He." The r Igorous exclus Ion, the uncomprom Is Ing ascet Ic Ism, the voluntary self-torture, the cruel dark n Ight and the ar Id desert are necessary cond It Ions that lead to the "onlyness of soul", what another prophet ( Isa Iah, XX IV, 16) descr Ibes as "My pr Iv Ity to me". In that secreted sol Itude, the "onl Istead"the graph Ic language of the author calls It Is found "that d Ign Ity and that ghostly fa Irness wh Ich a soul had by k Ind and shall have by grace." The utter beauty of the soul and Its absolute love for her de Ity w Ith In her (wh Ich has the fa Ir name of Jhesu), the exclus Ive concentrat Ion of the whole of the be Ing upon one po Int, the d Iv Ine core, the man Ifest Grace of God, just If Ies the ann Ih Ilat Ion of the world and l Ife's man Ifold ex Istence. Indeed, the Image of the Beloved Is always w Ith In, from the beg Inn Ing to the end. It Is that that keeps one up In the terr Ible struggle w Ith one's nature and the world. The Image depends upon the consc Iousness wh Ich we have at the moment, that Is to say, upon the stage or the degree we have ascended to. At the outset, when we can only look through the senses, when the flesh Is our master, we g Ive the Image a crude form and character; but even that helps. Gradually, as we r Ise, w Ith the clear Ing of our nature, the Image too slowly rega Ins Its or Ig Inal and true shape. F Inally, In the Inmost soul we f Ind Jesus as he truly Is: "an unchangeable be Ing, a sovere Ign m Ight, a sovere Ign soothfastness, sovere Ign goodness, a blessed l Ife and endless bl Iss." Does not the G Ita too say: "As one approaches Me, so do I appear to h Im."Ye yath mm prapadyante.
Indeed, It would be Interest Ing to compare and contrast the Eastern and Western approach to D Iv Ine Love, the Chr Ist Ian and the Va Ishnava, for example. Ind Ian sp Ir Itual Ity, whatever Its outer form or credal formulat Ion, has always a background of utter un Ity. Th Is un Ity, aga In, Is threefold or tr Iune and Is expressed In those great Upan Ishad Ic phrases,mahvkyas,(1) the transcendental un Ity: the One alone ex Ists, there Is noth Ing else than theOneekamevdv Ityam; (2) the cosm Ic un Ity: all ex Istence Is one, whatever ex Ists Is that One, thereare no separate ex Istences:sarvam khalv Idam brahma neha nnst I k Incaa; (3) That One Is I, you too are that One:so' ham, tattvamas I; th Is may be called the Ind Iv Idual un Ity. As I have sa Id, all sp Ir Itual exper Iences In Ind Ia, of whatever school or l Ine, take for granted or are fundamentally based upon th Is sense of absolute un Ity or Ident Ity. Schools of dual Ism or plural Ism, who do not apparently adm It In the Ir tenets th Is extreme mon Ism, are st Ill permeated In many ways w Ith that sense and In some form or other take cogn Izance of the truth of It. The Chr Ist Ian doctr Ine too says Indeed, ' I and my Father In Heaven are one', but th Is Is not Ident Ity, but un Ion; bes Ides, the human soul Is not adm Itted Into th Is Ident Ity, nor the world soul. The world, we have seen, accord Ing to the Chr Ist Ian d Isc Ipl Ine has to be altogether abandoned, negat Ived, as we go Inward and upward towards our sp Ir Itual status reflect Ing the d Iv Ine Image In the d Iv Ine company. It Is a complete reject Ion, a cutt Ing off and cast Ing away of world and l Ife. One extreme Vedant Ic path seems to follow a s Im Ilar l Ine, but there It Is not really reject Ion, but a resolut Ion, not the reject Ion of what Is totally fore Ign and extraneous, but a resolut Ion of the external Into Its Inner and Inmost substance, of the effect Into Its or Ig Inal cause. Brahman Is In the world, Brahman Is the world: the world has unrolled Itself out of the Brahmans I, pravtt I It has to be rolled back Into Its, cause and substance If It Is to rega In Its pure nature (that Is the process of n Iv Itt I). L Ikew Ise, the Ind Iv Idual be Ing In the world, " I", Is the transcendent be Ing Itself and when It w Ithdraws, It w Ithdraws Itself and the whole world w Ith It and merges Into the Absolute. Even the Maya of the Mayavad In, although It Is v Iewed as someth Ing not Inherent In Brahman but super Imposed upon Brahman, st Ill, has been accepted as a pecul Iar power of Brahman Itself. The Chr Ist Ian doctr Ine keeps the Ind Iv Idual be Ing separate pract Ically, as an assoc Iate or at the most as an Image of God. The love for one's ne Ighbour, char Ity, wh Ich the Chr Ist Ian d Isc Ipl Ine enjo Ins Is one's love for one's k Ind, because of aff In Ity of nature and qual Ity: It does not d Issolve the two Into an Integral un Ity and absolute Ident Ity, where we love because we are one, because we are the One. The h Ighest culm Inat Ion of love, the very bas Is of love, accord Ing to the Ind Ian concept Ion, Is a transcendence of love, love trans-muted Into Bl Iss. The Upan Ishad says, where one has become the utter un Ity, who loves whom? To expla In further our po Int, we take two examples referred to In the book we are cons Ider Ing. The true Chr Ist Ian, It Is sa Id, loves the s Inner too, he Is perm Itted to d Isl Ike s In, for he has to reject It, but he must separate from s In the s Inner and love h Im. Why? Because the s Inner too can change and become h Is brother In sp Ir It, one loves the s Inner because there Is the poss Ib Il Ity of h Is chang Ing and becom Ing a true Chr Ist Ian. It Is why the orthodox Chr Ist Ian, even such an enl Ightened and holy person as th Is med Iaeval Canon, cons Iders the non-Chr Ist Ian, the non-bapt Ised as Impure and potent Ially and fundamentally s Inners. That Is also why the Church, the phys Ical organ Isat Ion, Is worsh Ipped as Chr Ist's very body and outs Ide the Church l Ies the pagan world wh Ich has ne Ither rel Ig Ion nor true sp Ir Itual Ity nor salvat Ion. Of course, all th Is may be symbol Ic and It Is symbol Ic In a sense. If Chr Ist Ian Ity Is taken to mean true sp Ir Itual Ity, and the Church Is equated w Ith the collect Ive embod Iment of that sp Ir Itual Ity, all that Is cla Imed on the Ir behalf stands just If Ied. But that Is an Ideal, a hypothet Ical standpo Int and can hardly be borne out by facts. However, to come back to our subject, let us ow take the second example. Of Chr Ist h Imself, It Is sa Id, he not only d Id not d Isl Ike or had any avers Ion for Judas, but that he pos It Ively loved the tra Itor w Ith a true and s Incere love. He knew that the man would betray h Im and even when he was betray Ing and had betrayed, the Son of Man cont Inued to love h Im. It was no make-bel Ieve or sham or pretence. It was genu Ine, as genu Ine as anyth Ing can be. Now, why d Id he love h Is enemy? Because, It Is sa Id, the enemy Is suffered by God to do the m Isdeed: he has been allowed to test the fa Ith of the fa Ithful, he too has h Is ut Il Ity, he too Is God's servant. And who knows even a Judas would not change In the end? Many who come to scoff do rema In to pray. But It can be asked, 'Does God love Satan too In the same way?' The Ind Ian concept Ion wh Ich Is bas Ically Vedant Ic Is d Ifferent. There Is only one real Ity, one truth wh Ich Is v Iewed d Ifferently. Whether a th Ing Is cons Idered good or ev Il or neutral, essent Ially and truly, It Is that One and noth Ing else. God's own self Is everywhere and the sage makes no d Ifference between the Brahm In and the cow and the elephant. It Is h Is own self he f Inds In every person and every objectsarvabhtsth Itam yo mm bhajat I ekatvamsth Itah"he has taken h Is stand upon oneness and loves Me In all be Ings."2
Th Is w Ill eluc Idate another po Int of d Ifference between the Chr Ist Ian's and the Va Ishnava's love of God, for both are character Ised by an extreme Intens Ity and sweetness and exqu Is Iteness of that d Iv Ine feel Ing. Th Is Chr Ist Ian's, however, Is the un Ion of the soul In Its absolute pur Ity and s Impl Ic Ity and "pr Ivacy" w Ith her lord and master; the soul Is shred here of all earthly vesture and goes Innocent and naked Into the embrace of her Beloved. The Va Ishnava feel Ing Is r Icher and seems to possess more ampl Itude; It Is more concrete and less ethereal. The Va Ishnava In h Is pass Ionate yearn Ing seeks to carry as It were the whole world w Ith h Im to h Is Lord: for he sees and feels H Im not only In the Inmost chamber of h Is soul, but meets H Im also In and I through h Is senses and In and through the world and Its objects around. In psycholog Ical terms one can say that the Chr Ist Ian real Isat Ion, at Its very source, Is that of the Inmost soul, what we call the "psych Ic be Ing" pure and s Imple, referred to In the book we are cons Ider Ing; as: "H Is sweet pr Ivy vo Ice... st Irreth th Ine heart full st Illy." Whereas the Va Ishnava reaches out to h Is Lord w Ith h Is outer heart too aflame w Ith pass Ion; not only h Is Inmost be Ing but h Is v Ital be Ing also seeks the D Iv Ine. Th Is bears upon the occult story of man's sp Ir Itual evolut Ion upon earth. The D Iv Ine Grace descends from the h Ighest Into the deepest and from the deepest to the outer ranges of human nature, so that the whole of It may be Illum Ined and transformed and one day man can embody In h Is earthly l Ife the Integral man Ifestat Ion of God, the perfect Ep Iphany. Each rel Ig Ion, each l Ine of sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine takes up one l Imb of manone level or mode of h Is be Ing and consc Iousness pur If Ies It and suffuses It w Ith the sp Ir Itual and d Iv Ine consc Iousness, so that In the end the whole of man, In h Is Integral l Iv Ing, Is recast and remoulded: each d Isc Ipl Ine Is In charge of one thread as It were, all together weave the warp and woof In the evolut Ion of the perfect pattern of a sp Ir Itual Ised and d Iv In Ised human Ity.
The concept Ion of or Ig Inal s In Is a card Inal factor In Chr Ist Ian d Isc Ipl Ine. The concept Ion, of s Infulness Is the very mot Ive-power that dr Ives the asp Irant. "Seek tensely," It Is sa Id, "sorrow and s Igh deep, mourn st Ill, and stoop low t Ill th Ine eye water for angu Ish and for pa In." Remorse and gr Ief are necessary attendants; the way of the cross Is naturally the calvary strewn w Ith pa In and sorrow. It Is the very oppos Ite of what Is termed the "sunl It path" In sp Ir Itual ascens Ion. Chr Ist Ian myst Ics have made a glor Ious spectacle of the process of "dy Ing to the world." Ev Idently, all do not go the whole length. There are less gloomy and happ Ier temperaments, l Ike the present one, for example, who show an unusual balance, a sturdy common sense even In the m Idst of the Ir darkest n Ights, who have chalked out as much of the sunl It path as Is poss Ible In th Is l Ine. Thus th Is old-world myst Ic says: It Is true one must see and adm It one's s Infulness, the grosser and apparent and more v Iolent ones as well as all the subtle var Iet Ies of It that are In you or r Ise up In you or come from the Enemy. They pursue you t Ill the very end of your journey. St Ill you need not feel overwhelmed or completely desperate. Once you recogn Ise the s In In you, even the bare fact of recogn It Ion means for you half the v Ictory. The myst Ic says, " It Is no s In as thou feelest them." The day Jesus gave h Imself away on the Cross, s Ince that very day you are free, potent Ially free from the bondage of s In. Once you g Ive your adherence to H Im, the Enem Ies are rendered powerless. "They tease the soul, but they harm not the soul". Or aga In, as the myst Ic graph Ically phrases It: "Th Is soul Is not borne In th Is Image of s In as a s Ick man, though he feel It; but he beareth It." The best way of deal Ing w Ith one's enem Ies Is not to struggle and "str Ive w Ith them." The asp Irant, the lover of Jesus, must remember: "He Is through grace reformed to the l Ikeness of God (' In the pr Ivy substance of h Is soul w Ith In') though he ne Ither feel It nor see It."
If you are told you are st Ill full of s Ins and you are not worthy to follow the path, that you must go and work out your s Ins f Irst, here Is your answer: "Go shr Ive thee better: trow not th Is say Ing, for It Is false, for thou art shr Iven. Trust securely that thou art on the way, and thee needeth no ransack Ing of shr Ift for that that Is passed, hold forth thy way and th Ink on Jerusalem." That Is to say, do not be too busy w Ith the d Iff Icult Ies of the moment, but look ahead, as far as poss Ible, f Ix your attent Ion upon the goal, the Intermed Iate steps w Ill become easy. Jerusalem Is another name of the Love of Jesus or the Bl Iss In Heaven. Grow In th Is love, your s Ins w Ill fade away of themselves. "Though thou be thrust In an house w Ith thy body, nevertheless In th Ine heart, where the stead of love Is, thou shouldst be able to have part of that love... " What exqu Is Ite utterance, what a deep truth!
Indeed, there are one or two po Ints, notes for the gu Idance of the asp Irant, wh Ich I would l Ike to ment Ion here for the Ir str Ik Ing appos Iteness and s Imple "soothfastness." F Irst of all w Ith regard to the restless enthus Iasm and eagerness of a nov Ice, here Is the adv Ice g Iven: "The fervour Is so m Ickle In outward show Ing, Is not only for m Ickleness of love that they have; but It Is for l Ittleness and weakness of the Ir souls, that they may not bear a l Ittle touch Ing of God.. afterward when love hath bo Iled out all the uncleanl Iness, then Is the love clear and standeth st Ill, and then Is both the body and the soul m Ickle more In peace, and yet hath the self soul m Ickle more love than It had before, though It shew less outward." And aga In: "w Ithout any fervour outward shewed, and the less It th Inketh that It loveth or seeth God, the nearer It n Igheth" (' It' naturally refers to the soul). The statement Is beaut Ifully self-lum Inous, no explanat Ion Is requ Ired. Another hurdle that an asp Irant has to face often In the passage through the Dark N Ight Is that you are left all alone, that you are deserted by your God, that the Grace no longer favours you. Here Is however the truth of the matter; "when I fall down to my fra Ilty, then Grace w Ithdraweth: for my fall Ing Is cause there-of, and not h Is flee Ing." In fact, the Grace never w Ithdraws, It Is we who w Ithdraw and th Ink otherw Ise. One more d Iff Iculty that troubles the beg Inner espec Ially Is w Ith regard to the false l Ight. The be Ing of darkness comes In the form of the angel of l Ight, Im Itates the tone of the st Ill small vo Ice; how to recogn Ise, how to d Ist Ingu Ish the two? The false l Ight, the "fe Igned sun" Is always found "atw Ixt two black ra Iny clouds" : they are "h Igh Ing" of oneself and "low Ing" of others. When you feel flattered and elated, beware It Is the s Iren vo Ice tempt Ing you. The true l Ight br Ings you sooth Ing peace and meekness: the other l Ight br Ings always a tra Il of darknessf you are soothfast and s Incere you w Ill d Iscover It If not near you, somewhere at a d Istance lurk Ing.
The ult Imate truth Is that God Is the sole doer and the best we can do Is to let h Im do freely w Ithout let or h Indrance. "He that through Grace may see Jhesu, how that He doth all and h Imself doth r Ight nought but suffereth Jhesu work In h Im what h Im l Iketh, he Is meek." And yet one does not arr Ive at that cond It Ion from the beg Inn Ing or all at once. "The work Is not of the hour nor of a day, but of many days and years." And for a long t Ime one has to take up one's burden and work, co-operate w Ith the D Iv Ine work Ing. In the process there Is th Is double movement necessary for the full ach Ievement. "Ne Ither Grace only w Ithout full work Ing of a soul that In It Is nor work Ing done w Ithout grace br Ingeth a soul to reform Ing but that one jo Ined to that other." Myst Ic Ism Is not all eccentr Ic Ity and Irrat Ional Ity: on the contrary, san Ity seems to be the very character of the h Igher myst Ic Ism. And It Is th Is san Ity, and even a happy sense of humour accompany Ing It, that makes the genu Ine myst Ic teacher say: " It Is no mastery to me for to say It, but for to do It there Is mastery." Amen.
Ascend Imus ascens Iones In corde et cantamus cant Icum graduum." Confess Ions of St. August Ine X I I I. 9.
The G Ita, V I. 31
01.09 - The Parting of the Way, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
To be d Iv Ine or to rema In humanth Is Is the one cho Ice that Is now before Nature In her upward march of evolut Ion. What Is the exact s Ign If Icance of th Is cho Ice?
To rema In human means to cont Inue the fundamental nature of man. In what cons Ists the human Ity of man? We can ascerta In It by d Ist Ingu Ish Ing what forms the an Imal Ity of the an Imal, s Ince that w Ill g Ive us the d Ifferent Ia that nature has evolved to ra Ise man over the an Imal. The an Imal, aga In, has a character Ist Ic d Ifferent Iat Ing It from the vegetable world, wh Ich latter, In Its turn, has someth Ing to mark It off from the Inorgan Ic world. The Inorgan Ic, the vegetable, the an Imal and f Inally manthese are the four great steps of Nature's evolut Ionary course.
The d Ifferent Ia, In each case, l Ies In the degree and nature of consc Iousness, s Ince It Is consc Iousness that forms the substance and determ Ines the mode of be Ing. Now, the Inorgan Ic Is character Ised by un-consc Iousness, the vegetable by sub-consc Iousness, the an Imal by consc Iousness and man by self-consc Iousness. Man knows that he knows, an an Imal only knows; a plant does not even know, It merely feels or senses; matter cannot do that even, It s Imply acts or rather Is acted upon. We are not concerned here, however, w Ith the last two forms of be Ing; we w Ill speak of the f Irst two only.
We say, then, that man Is d Ist Ingu Ished from the an Imal by h Is hav Ing consc Iousness as It has, but added to It the consc Iousness of self. Man acts and feels and knows as much as the an Imal does; but also he knows that he acts, he knows that he feels, he knows that he knowsand th Is Is a th Ing the an Imal cannot do. It Is the awaken Ing of the sense of self In every mode of be Ing that character Ises man, and It Is ow Ing to th Is consc Iousness of an ego beh Ind, of a permanent un It of reference, wh Ich has mod If Ied even the funct Ions of know Ing and feel Ing and act Ing, has refash Ioned them In a mould wh Ich Is not qu Ite that of the an Imal, In sp Ite of a general s Im Ilar Ity.
So the human Ity of man cons Ists In h Is consc Iousness of the self or ego. Is there no other h Igher mode of consc Iousness? Or Is self-consc Iousness the acme, the utmost l Im It to wh Ich consc Iousness can ra Ise Itself? If It Is so, then we are bound to conclude that human Ity w Ill rema In eternally human In Its fundamental nature; the only progress, If progress at all we choose to call It, w Ill cons Ist perhaps In accentuat Ing th Is consc Iousness of the self and In express Ing It through a greater var Iety of stresses, through a r Icher comb Inat Ion of Its colour and l Ight and shade and rhythm. But also, th Is may not be sothere may be the poss Ib Il Ity of a further step, a transcend Ing of the consc Iousness of the self. It seems unnatural and Improbable that hav Ing r Isen from un-consc Iousness to self-consc Iousness through a ser Ies of cont Inuous marches, Nature should suddenly stop and cons Ider what she had ach Ieved to be her f Inal end. Has Nature become bankrupt of her creat Ive gen Ius, exhausted of her upward dr Ive? Has she to rema In content w Ith only a clever man Ipulat Ion, a mere shuffl Ing and re-arrang Ing of the mater Ials already produced?
As a matter of fact It Is not so. The gl Impses of a h Igher form of consc Iousness we can see even now present In self-consc Iousness. We have spoken of the d Ifferent stages of evolut Ion as If they were separate and d Ist Inct and Incommensurate ent It Ies. They may be descr Ibed as such for the purpose of a log Ical understand Ing, but In real Ity they form a s Ingle progress Ive cont Inuum In wh Ich one level gradually fuses Into another. And as the h Igher level takes up the law of the lower and evolves out of It a character Ist Ic funct Ion, even so the law of the h Igher level w Ith Its character Ist Ic funct Ion Is already Involved and env Isaged In the law of the lower level and Its character Ist Ic funct Ion. It cannot be asserted pos It Ively that because man's spec Ial v Irtue Is self-consc Iousness, an Imals cannot have that qual Ity on any account. We do see, If we care to observe closely and d Ispass Ionately, that an Imals of the h Igher order, as they approach the level of human Ity, show more and more ev Ident s Igns of someth Ing wh Ich Is very much ak In to, If not Ident Ical w Ith the human character Ist Ic of self-consc Iousness.
So, In man also, espec Ially of that order wh Ich forms the crown of human Ity In poets and art Ists and seers and great men of act Ioncan be observed a certa In character Ist Ic form of consc Iousness, wh Ich Is someth Ing other than, greater than the consc Iousness of the mere self. It Is d Iff Icult as yet to character Ise def In Itely what that th Ing Is. It Is the awaken Ing of the self to someth Ing wh Ich Is beyond Itself It Is the cosm Ic self, the oversoul, the un Iversal be Ing; It Is God, It Is Tur Iya, It Is sachch Idananda In so many ways the th Ing has been sought to be env Isaged and expressed. The consc Iousness of that level has also a great var Iety of names g Iven to It Intu It Ion, Revelat Ion, cosm Ic consc Iousness, God-consc Iousness. It Is to be noted here, however, that the th Ing we are referr Ing to, Is not the Absolute, the Inf In Ite, the One w Ithout a second. It Is not, that Is to say, the supreme Real Ity the Brahman In Its stat Ic be Ing, In Its und Iv Ided and Ind Iv Is Ible un Ity; It Is the dynam Ic Brahman, that status of the supreme Real Ity where creat Ion, the d Ivers Ity of Becom Ing takes r Ise, It Is the Truth-worldR Itam the doma In of typal real It Ies. The d Ist Inct Ion Is necessary, as there does seem to be such a level of consc Iousness Intermed Iary, aga In, between man and the Absolute, between self-consc Iousness and the supreme consc Iousness. The s Implest th Ing would be to g Ive that Intermed Iate level of consc Iousness a negat Ive names Ince be Ing as yet human we cannot foresee exactly Its compos It Ion and funct Ion the super-consc Iousness.
The Inflatus of someth Ing vast and transcendent, someth Ing wh Ich escapes all our fam Il Iar schemes of cogn Isance and yet Is Ins Istent w Ith a translucent real Ity of Its own, we do feel somet Imes w Ith In us Invad Ing and envelop Ing our Ind Iv Idual Ity, l Ift Ing up our sense of self and transmut Ing our personal Ity Into a real Ity wh Ich can hardly be called merely human. All th Is l Ife of ego-bound rat Ional Ity then melts away and opens out the passage for a l Ife of v Is Ion and power. Thus It Is the poet has felt when he says, "there Is th Is Incalculable element In human l Ife Influenc Ing us from the mystery wh Ich envelops our be Ing, and when reason Is sat Isf Ied, there Is someth Ing deeper than Reason wh Ich makes us st Ill uncerta In of truth. Above the human reason there Is a transcendental sphere to wh Ich the sp Ir It of men somet Imes r Ises, and the w Ill may be forged there at a lordly sm Ithy and made the unbreakable p Ivot."(A.E.)
Th Is passage from the self-consc Ient to the super-consc Ient does not Imply merely a sh Ift Ing of the focus of consc Iousness. The transmutat Ion of consc Iousness Involves a purer Illum Inat Ion, a surer power and a w Ider compass; It Involves also a fundamental change In the very mode of be Ing and l Iv Ing. It g Ives qu Ite a d Ifferent l Ife- Intu It Ion and a d Ifferent l Ife-power. The change In the mot If br Ings about a new form altogether, a re-cast Ing and re-shap Ing and re-energ Is Ing of the external mater Ials as well. As the l Ift from mere consc Iousness to self-consc Iousness meant all the d Ifference between an an Imal and a man, so the l Ift aga In from self-consc Iousness to super-consc Iousness w Ill mean the d Ifference of a whole world between man and the d Iv Ine creature that Is to be.
Indeed It Is a d Iv Ine creature that should be env Isaged on the next level of evolut Ion. The mental and the moral, the psych Ical and the phys Ical transf Igurat Ions wh Ich must follow the change In the bas Ic substratum do Imply such a mutat Ion, the b Irth of a new spec Ies, as It were, fash Ioned In the nature of the gods. The v Is Ion of angels and S Iddhas, wh Ich man Is hav Ing ceaselessly s Ince h Is b Irth, may be but a prophecy of the future actual Ity.
Th Is then, It seems to us, Is the Immed Iate problem that Nature has set before herself. She Is now at the part Ing of the ways. She has done w Ith man as an essent Ially human be Ing, she has brought out the fundamental poss Ib Il It Ies of human Ity and perfected It, so far as perfect Ion may be atta Ined w Ith In the cadre by wh Ich she chose to l Im It herself; she Is now look Ing forward to another k Ind of exper Iment the evolv Ing of another l Ife, another be Ing out of her entra Ils, that w Ill be greater than the human Ity we know today, that w Ill be super Ior even to the supreme that has yet been actual Ised.
Nature has marched from the unconsc Ious to the sub-consc Ious, from the sub-consc Ious to the consc Ious and from the consc Ious to the self-consc Ious; she has to r Ise yet aga In from the self-consc Ious to the super-consc Ious. The m Ineral gave place to the plant, the plant gave place to the an Imal and the an Imal gave place to man; let man g Ive place to and br Ing out the d Iv Ine.
01.09 - William Blake: The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
The Ideal was Blake's. It w Ill not sound so revolt Ing If we understand what the poet meant by Hell. Hell, he expla Ins, Is s Imply the body, the Energy of L Ifehell, because body and l Ife on earth were so cons Idered by the orthodox Chr Ist Ian Ity. The Chr Ist Ian Ideal demands an absolute den Ial and reject Ion of l Ife. Fulf Ilment Is elsewhere, In heaven alone. That Is, as we know, the Ideal of the ascet Ic. The l Ife of the sp Ir It ( In heaven) Is a th Ing away from and stands aga Inst the l Ife of the flesh (on earth). In the face of th Is d Isc Ipl Ine, counter Ing It, Blake pos Ited a un Ion, a marr Iage of the two, cons Idered Incompat Ibles and Incommensurables. Enfant terr Ible that he was, he took an Inf In Ite del Ight In a sp Ir It of contrad Ict Ion and went on expat Iat Ing on the glory of the m Isall Iance. He declared a new apocalypse and sa Id that Luc Ifer, the one called Satan, was the real God, the so-called Mess Iah the fake one: the apparent M Ilton spoke In pra Ise of God and In d Ispra Ise of Satan, but the real, the esoter Ic M Ilton glor If Ied Satan, who Is the true God and m In Im Ised or car Icatured the counterfe It or shadow God. Here Is Blakean B Ible In a nutshell:
But f Irst the not Ion that man has a body d Ist Inct from h Is soul Is to be expunged.. . . If the doors of percept Ion were cleansed everyth Ing would appear to man as It Is, Inf In Ite.
The eyes of f Ire, the nostr Ils of a Ir, the mouth of water, the beard of earth.
Such Is to be the Ideal, the perfect, the sp Ir Itual man. Have we here the progen Itor of the N Ietzschean Superman? Both smell almost the same sulphurous atmosphere. But that also seems to l Ie In the d Irect Ion to wh Ich the whole world Is gallop Ing In Its evolut Ionary course. Human Ity In Its agelong trava Il has passed through the agony, one m Ight say, of two extreme and oppos Ite exper Iences, wh Ich are ep Itom Ised In the class Ic phras Ing of Sr I Aurob Indo as: (1) the Den Ial of the Mater Ial Ist and (2) the Refusal of the Ascet Ic.1 Ne Ither, however, the Sp Ir It alone nor the body alone Is man's real Ity; ne Ither only the earth here nor only the heaven there embod Ies man's dest Iny. Both have to be cla Imed, both have to bel Ivedubhayameva samrt, as the old sage, Yajnavalkya, declared.
The earl Iest dream of human Ity Is also the last fulf Ilment. The Ved Ic R Ish Is sang of the marr Iage of heaven and earthHeaven Is my father and th Is Earth my mother. And Blake and N Ietzsche are f Iery apostles of that dream and Ideal In an age cr Ippled w Ith doubt, falsehood, smallness, crookedness, Impotence, colossal Ignorance.
We welcome vo Ices that speak of th Is anc Ient trad It Ion, th Is occult Knowledge of a h Igh Future. Recently we have come across one asp Irant In the l Ine, and be Ing a contemporary, h Is v Iews and rev Iews In the matter w Ill be all the more Interest Ing to us.2 He Is Gustave Th Ibon, a Frenchman-not a pr Iest or even a rel Ig Ious man In the orthodox sense In any way, but a country farmer, a wholly self-educated laque. Of late he has attracted a good deal of attent Ion from Intellectuals as well as rel Ig Ious people, espec Ially the Cathol Ics, because of h Is remarkable concept Ions wh Ich are so often unorthodox and yet so often r Ing Ing true w Ith an old-world au thent Ic Ity.
Touch Ing the very core of the malady of our age he says that our modern enl Ightenment seeks to cancel altogether the h Igher values and Install Instead the lower alone as true. Thus, for example, Marx and Freud, Its tw In arch pr Iests, are brothers. Both declare that It Is the lower, the under layer alone that matters: to one "the masses", to the other "the Inst Incts". The Ir w Ild Imperat Ive roars: "Sweep away th Is pseudo-h Igher; let the Inst Incts rule, let the pro-letar Iat d Ictate!" But more character Ist Ic, Mons Ieur Th Ibon has made another d Iscovery wh Ich g Ives the whole value and spec Ial Ity to h Is outlook. He says the moderns stress the lower, no doubt; but the old world stressed only the h Igher and neglected the lower. Therefore the revolt and wrath of the lower, the rage of Revanche In the heart of the d Ispossessed In the modern world. Enl Ightenment meant t Ill now the cult Ivat Ion and embell Ishment of the M Ind, the consc Ious M Ind, the rat Ional and nobler facult Ies, the he Ight and the depth: and mank Ind meant the pr Inces and the great ones. In the Ind Iv Idual, In the scheme of h Is culture and educat Ion, the senses were neglected, left to go the Ir own way as they pleased; and In the collect Ive f Ield, the to Il Ing masses In the same way l Ived and moved as best as they could under the econom Ics of la Issez-fa Ire. So Mons Ieur Th Ibon concludes: "Salvat Ion has never come from below. To look for It from above only Is equally va In. No doubt salvat Ion must come from the h Igher, but on cond It Ion that the h Igher completely adopts and protects the lower." Here Is a v Is Ion lum Inous and reveal Ing, full of great Import, If we follow the r Ight track, prophet Ic of man's true dest Iny. It Is through th Is Inf Iltrat Ion of the h Igher Into the lower and the Integrat Ion of the lower Into the h Igher that mank Ind w Ill reach the goal of Its evolut Ion, both Ind Iv Idually and collect Ively.
But the process, Mons Ieur Th Ibon r Ightly asserts, must beg In w Ith the Ind Iv Idual and w Ith In the Ind Iv Idual. Man must "turn w Ith In, feel al Ive w Ith In h Imself", re-establ Ish h Is l Iv Ing contact w Ith God, the source and or Ig In from wh Ich he has cut h Imself off. Man must learn to subord Inate hav Ing to be Ing. Each Ind Iv Idual must be h Imself, a free and spontaneous express Ion. Upon such Ind Iv Idual , upon Ind Iv Iduals grouped naturally In smaller collect Iv It Ies and not upon unformed or Ill-formed wholesale masses can a perfect human soc Iety be ra Ised and w Ill be ra Ised. Mons Ieur Th Ibon Ins Istsand very r Ightlyupon the var Iety and d Ivers Ity of Ind Iv Idual and local growths In a un If Ied human Ity and not a dead un Iform Ity of reg Imented oneness. He declares, as the rev Iewer of the London T Imes succ Inctly puts It: "Let us abol Ish our Insensate worsh Ip of number. Let us repeal the law of major It Ies. Let us work for the un Ity that draws together Instead of Idol Iz Ing the mult Ipl Ic Ity that d Is Integrates. Let us understand that It Is not enough for each to have a place; what matters Is that each should be In h Is r Ight place. For the atom Ized soc Iety let us subst Itute an organ Ic soc Iety, one In wh Ich every man w Ill be free to do what he alone Is qual If Ied and able to do."
So far so good. For It Is not far enough. The be Ing or becom Ing that Is demanded In fulf Ilment of the d Iv Ine advent In human Ity must go to the very roots of l Ife and nature, must se Ize God In h Is h Ighest and sovere Ign status. No prejud Ice of the past, no not Ion of our mental hab Its must seek to Impose Its law. Thus, for example, In the matter of redeem Ing the senses by the Influx of the h Igher l Ight, our author seems to cons Ider that the senses w Ill rema In more or less as they are, only they w Ill be controlled, gu Ided, used by the h Igher l Ight. And he seems to th Ink that even the sex relat Ion (even the Inst Itut Ion of marr Iage) may cont Inue to rema In, but subl Imated, subm Itted to the laws of the H Igher Order. Th Is, accord Ing to us, Is a dangerous comprom Ise and Is s Imply the Impos It Ion of the lower law upon the h Igher. Our v Iew of the total transformat Ion and d Iv In Isat Ion of the Lower Is altogether d Ifferent. The H Ighest must come down wholly and Inhab It In the Lowest, the Lowest must g Ive up altogether Its own norms and l Ift Itself Into the substance and form too of the H Ighest.
V Iewed In th Is l Ight, Blake's memorable mantra atta Ins a deeper and more momentous s Ign If Icance. For It Is not merely Earth the senses and l Ife and Matter that are to be upl Ifted and aff Ianced to Heaven, but all that rema Ins h Idden w Ith In the bowels of the Earth, the subterranean reg Ions of man's consc Iousness, the sl Imy v Iscous undergrowths, the darkest horrors and monstros It Ies that man and nature h Ide In the Ir subconsc Ient and Inconsc Ient dungeons of mater Ial ex Istence, all these have to be la Id bare to the solar gaze of Heaven, burnt or transmuted as demanded by the law of that Supreme W Ill. That Is the Hell that has to be recogn Ised, not rejected and thrown away, but taken up pur If Ied and transubstant Iated Into the body of Heaven Itself. The hand of the H Ighest Heaven must extend and touch the Lowest of the lowest elements, transmute It and set It In Its r Ightful place of honour. A mortal body reconst Ituted Into an Immemor Ial foss Il, a lump of coal rev Iv If Ied Into a flash Ing carat of d Iamond-that shows someth Ing of the process underly Ing the nupt Ials of wh Ich we are speak Ing.
The L Ife D Iv Ine
0.10 - Letters to a Young Captain, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
To a young capta In In the Sr I Aurob Indo Ashram Department
of Phys Ical Educat Ion. He began wr It Ing to the Mother at the
--
On the n Ight of Fr Iday the 8th, I had a very pecul Iar
dream. As I could not tell It to You at the Playground, I
am go Ing to tell You now.
--
Important meet Ing at the Playground, so I was hurry Ing there. But near the Playground In front of Standard
Stores, the road was covered w Ith Innumerable snakes.
I was taken aback and rather afra Id. So I was about to
go round by another way to the Playground. But just
--
them. They w Ill not harm you." I walked through them
qu Ite conf Idently. Not one of them d Isturbed me nor
d Id I d Isturb them. When I reached the Playground, I
started talk Ing to a fr Iend. Suddenly he jumped back
In fr Ight and sa Id: "Be careful, there Is a snake co Iled
around your arm, and another around your other arm,
and others around your legs and ankles." Though I had
not felt the Ir presence t Ill then, I was not In the least
alarmed. I took them off one by one and threw them
away. One snake was dead because I had stepped on It.
Th Is Is all I can remember clearly. I cannot remember
exactly what happened at the Playground afterwards.
--
The dream Is Indeed very Interest Ing. Snakes usually s Ign Ify bad
thoughts or bad w Ill from people around you - or an adverse
attack that can man Ifest as an Illness. But, as you clearly exper Ienced In your dream, If you are not fr Ightened and go on your
way unperturbed, noth Ing bad w Ill happen to you.
--
From t Ime to t Ime there Is an upsurge of bad
thoughts; the m Ind becomes l Ike a m Ire of pass Ions
and I wallow In It l Ike a worm. After a wh Ile I wake up
and regret my thoughts. But th Is k Ind of struggle keeps
on recurr Ing. Please help me to get out of It.
You must cont Inue to f Ight aga Inst the bad thoughts unt Il you
ga In a total v Ictory. My help Is always w Ith you as well as my
bless Ings.
--
Here our act Iv It Ies are so var Ied that It Is d Iff Icult to
st Ick to one th Ing t Ill the end. Perhaps that Is why we
are not able to go beyond a med Iocre average. Or Is It
because of our lack of sol Id concentrat Ion?
The cause of med Iocre work Is ne Ither the var Iety nor the number
of act Iv It Ies, but the lack of power of concentrat Ion.
--
It really Is a problem to know how to create Interest
In the students, whether In games, athlet Ics or gymnast Ics. Even our own enthus Iasm dw Indles when we see
the Ir lack of Interest In everyth Ing.
The Interest of the students Is proport Ionate to the true capac Ity
of the teacher.
--
book shows how Sr I Aurob Indo Is work Ing In every corner of the world. We who are here In the Ashram st Ill
haven't even had a gl Impse of h Im.
There are people here who see h Im and are constantly In contact
w Ith h Im. They are those who love h Im s Incerely and suff Ic Iently
to l Ive accord Ing to h Is Ideal.
14 July 1961
--
capta Ins; In It she asks them to "be the el Ite") We are very
far from what You ask of us, at least I am. It Is a most
arduous task and It w Ill take t Ime, a long t Ime, but what
can be done at present! To change our consc Iousness and
--
are on the same level as our students, so the Immed Iate
problem Is not solved. How can we create an Interest In
them for each th Ing and every day?
Th Is Is even more Imposs Ible than to change and become an
el Ite. So the best th Ing to do Is to set to work Immed Iately. The
rest Is s Imply an excuse that our laz Iness g Ives to Itself.
15 July 1961
--
I went to work only for one hour, because I had too
much work at home.
Th Is Is not good; the collect Ive work should not suffer because
of personal work.
--
When I came to You th Is even Ing for "Prosper Ity",1
I felt a sort of uneas Iness - as If I had done someth Ing
wrong - Instead of feel Ing joy at see Ing You. One ought
to be eager to rece Ive Your bless Ings, but why do I not
have that feel Ing?
There must st Ill be some Ins Incer Ity In your be Ing, h Idden In
a dark corner, someth Ing that does not want to change and Is
afra Id of the L Ight.
--
Today I d Id not have that feel Ing of apprehens Ion
about com Ing to You, but I was In a pass Ive state. I
want, on the contrary, to feel an Intense joy, a moment
of ecstasy. How can I obta In It?
Come w Ith the asp Irat Ion to g Ive yourself, to offer your whole
--
I want an electr Ic lamp In the corr Idor of my room.
It would be more proper to wr Ite (and above all, to th Ink):
"Would It be poss Ible to have an electr Ic lamp In the corr Idor?"
The ego would do well to become a l Ittle more modest.
--
I have certa In th Ings to confess to You, but I cannot
br Ing myself to do It. What shall I do? Confess or let
past th Ings be effaced by forgett Ing the past?
--
even In your memory, It Is better.
3 September 1961
--
so self-centred." It Is qu Ite true that we are tak Ing l Ife
very l Ightly, and It has become so natural that we bel Ieve
It to be the r Ight att Itude. And we are self-centred. How
can we get out of th Is trap? In any case, the dose You
gave us th Is morn Ing was really just r Ight. I feel very
happy.
The f Irst po Int Is not to place oneself In thought, feel Ing or
act Ion at the centre of the un Iverse so that It ex Ists only In terms
of oneself - one Is part of the un Iverse. One can un Ite w Ith It,
but the Supreme Lord alone Is Its centre because He surpasses
and conta Ins It.
19 September 1961
--
In Aphor Ism 95, Sr I Aurob Indo says that It Is only
by renunc Iat Ion or by perfect sat Isfact Ion of des Ire that
one can have the total exper Ience of God.2 But Isn't
the second method (perfect sat Isfact Ion of des Ire) very
dangerous, for Is It poss Ible to sat Isfy man's des Ire?
Elsewhere he says expl Ic Itly that It Is useless to try to sat Isfy
des Ire, for des Ire Is Insat Iable and can never be sat Isf Ied.
What he wr Ites ought not to be taken separately; It Is always
part of a whole wh Ich Is a synthes Is of all oppos Ites.
27 September 1961
--
and I too have expla Ined everyth Ing In the book Educat Ion. One
has to read, study and, above all, pract Ise.
--
I have not Iced one th Ing: When I s It for a few m Inutes and make an effort to concentrate before go Ing
to sleep, the next day I wake up qu Ite early and am
qu Ite fresh. I concentrate on the t Iny lum Inous t Ip of an
"Only by perfect renunc Iat Ion of des Ire or by perfect sat Isfact Ion of des Ire can the
utter embrace of God be exper Ienced, for In both ways the essent Ial precond It Ion Is
effected, - des Ire per Ishes."
Thoughts and Aphor Isms, In SABCL, Vol. 17, p. 89.
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
Incense-st Ick. But how Is It that I wake up early because
of that? There Is no relat Ion between these two th Ings!
On the contrary, there Is a very concrete relat Ion. When you
concentrate before sleep Ing, then In your sleep you rema In In
contact w Ith the D Iv Ine force; but when you fall heav Ily to sleep
w Ithout any prel Im Inary concentrat Ion, you s Ink Into the Inconsc Ient and the sleep Is more t Ir Ing than restful, and It Is d Iff Icult
to come out of th Is slugg Ishness.
--
I would l Ike you to look attent Ively Into yourself and try to
expla In to me what exactly It Is that you enjoy In detect Ive
stor Ies.
--
I read them as a relaxat Ion. In detect Ive stor Ies -
espec Ially Perry Mason - there Is always a courtroom
scene In wh Ich the lawyer Perry Mason seems certa In
to lose h Is case; h Is cl Ient Is accused of murder, all the
ev Idence Is aga Inst h Im, but the master-stroke of the
lawyer Perry Mason changes the s Ituat Ion. Throughout
the story there are myster Ies, and the tr Ial Is l Ike the
mental acrobat Ics of a master gymnast. But each t Ime I
f In Ish one of h Is books, I feel that I have ga Ined noth Ing,
learned noth Ing new - that It was a waste of t Ime.
It Is not absolutely useless. You probably had a great deal of
tamas In your m Ind, and the mental acrobat Ics of the author
shakes up th Is tamas a l Ittle and awakens the m Ind. But th Is
--
(After see Ing the Mother on Lakshm I Puja Day) I awa It
the day when th Is joy and th Is fel Ic Ity w Ill be establ Ished
In me for ever. Now, It Is only a dream and a pass Ing
exper Ience l Ike today's. But I hope to real Ise It for ever
w Ith Your Help.
Pers Ist In your asp Irat Ion and the dream w Ill be real Ised.
23 October 1961
--
It Is that we take part In as many Items as poss Ible In the
2nd December programme.3 Would It not be better to
choose one or two Items and g Ive a very good demonstrat Ion In them, rather than to do several In a med Iocre way?
Each one acts accord Ing to h Is nature and If he (or she) courageously and s Incerely follows the law of that nature, he or she
acts accord Ing to truth. Thus, It Is Imposs Ible to judge and dec Ide
for others. One can know only for oneself, and even then one
--
then Is the Ir greatness and the Ir splendour? Why do we
The annual demonstrat Ion of phys Ical culture, held at the Ashram Sportsground.
--
Thoughts and Aphor Isms, In SABCL, Vol. 17, p. 94.
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
worsh Ip Infer Ior ent It Ies? And the T Itans must be the
most lovable sons of the D Iv Ine!
What Sr I Aurob Indo wr Ites here Is a paradox to awaken sleepy
m Inds. But we must understand all the Irony In these say Ings, and
espec Ially the Intent Ion beh Ind h Is words. Moreover, cowards or
not, I see no need for us to worsh Ip the gods, great or small. Our
adorat Ion ought to go only to the Supreme Lord, who Is one In
all th Ings and all be Ings.
--
For a long t Ime I have not Iced that I am rather shy.
I always have an Infer Ior Ity complex. I th Ink I am afra Id
that people w Ill d Iscover my Ignorance. Why am I l Ike
that? And how can I come out of It?
Beh Ind all that and th Is famous Infer Ior Ity complex, there Is the
ego and Its van Ity wh Ich wants to cut a good f Igure and be
apprec Iated by others. But If all your act Iv Ity were an offer Ing
to the D Iv Ine, you would not care at all about the apprec Iat Ion
--
and how can It be done? For Instance, when we play
tenn Is or basketball, how can we do It as an offer Ing?
Mental format Ions are not enough, of course!
--
out of pr Ide, but as a serv Ice and an offer Ing, In order to become
more consc Ious of the d Iv Ine w Ill and to g Ive yourself more
ent Irely to It, unt Il you have made enough progress to know
and to feel that It Is the D Iv Ine who acts In you, H Is force that
Impels you and H Is w Ill that supports you - not just a mental
--
th Inks It w Ill be the oppos Ite. It Is true that our performance Is not up to the mark. I hope and I pray to You
that the performance th Is even Ing may be at Its best.
Sweet Mother, take our act Ions and gu Ide us. You told
us You would be there - If only I had eyes to see You!
What I saw on the 26th was sat Isfactory (of course It can always
be better) and I have heard a great many compl Iments about
the 2nd December performance. You should not l Isten to people
who only know how to cr It Ic Ise. Exaggerated cr It Ic Ism Is not an
a Id to progress.
--
I am very lazy and I lack the fervour and perseverance to cont Inue on the chosen path. I am l Ike a flame
that Is roused by the w Ind and r Ises upwards, but falls
back dead or dy Ing as soon as the w Ind drops. V Ig Ilant,
that Is what I should be. But how?
All the psycholog Ical qual It Ies can be cult Ivated as the muscles
--
D Iv Ine Force In a s Incere asp Irat Ion and Implore It to del Iver
you from your l Im Itat Ions. If you are s Incere In your w Ill to
progress, you are sure to advance.
--
I was surpr Ised to see th Is new r Itual, "Sr I Aurob Indo sharanam mama",5 Introduced Into the cemetery
ceremon Ies. X stands In med Itat Ion In front of the body
and pronounces the phrase, "Sr I Aurob Indo sharanam
--
repeat It after h Im. Th Is Is done a hundred t Imes. Personally, I don't l Ike th Is ceremony. I f Ind It empty of feel Ing.
I don't l Ike Sr I Aurob Indo's name to be Invoked w Ithout
feel Ing and turned Into a r Itual. It Is much better to read
one of Your prayers and then Invoke the D Iv Ine Grace
In s Ilence, each In h Is own way, for the departed person,
as was done before. That Is my op In Ion.
The ceremony In Itself Is only of secondary Importance. It Is
merely a form and more a matter of custom than anyth Ing else.
What Is Important Is to Infuse Into whatever ceremony one
adopts the s Incere fervour and ardent asp Irat Ion wh Ich g Ive l Ife
to any ceremony, whatever It may be, and yet do not depend
on It.
6 February 1962
--
But the ben Ign Influence of Sr I Kr Ishna's pol It Ical gen Ius
Sr I Aurob Indo Is my refuge.
ended only yesterday w Ith Ran I Lakshm Iba I.6 After that,
to protect Ind Ia and the world anew, there had to be a
Purna Avatar.7 Th Is Avatar w Ill awaken the Brahmatej8,
wh Ich Is dormant. Sr I Aurob Indo also says that It Is only
In the Kal Iyuga9 that the D Iv Ine man Ifests fully because
man Is In great danger In th Is age. And here he Is! He
h Imself reveals the great secret: the D Iv Ine has fully man Ifested In Ind Ia. But he has the modesty not to say that
he h Imself Is th Is man Ifestat Ion!
Those who accompl Ish the work are not In the hab It of boast Ing.
They keep the Ir energy for the task and leave the glory of the
--
I can tell You th Is w Ithout van Ity: I am much better
than I was before; but all the same I am qu Ite far, perhaps
very far, from the Ideal You have g Iven us. Th Is does not
d Iscourage me, for I have full conf Idence In You.
Yes, you must persevere w Ith courage and s Incer Ity. You are sure
--
problem and var Ious poss Ible methods of phys Ical educat Ion. The fundamental problem Is th Is: how can we
The Queen of Jhans I who d Ied on the battlef Ield In 1858 wh Ile f Ight Ing Br It Ish
troops.
Full or perfect D Iv Ine Incarnat Ion.
Power of the Sp Ir It.
The " Iron Age" In wh Ich we l Ive.
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
--
whatever? And If complete freedom Is g Iven, w Ill It be
pract Ical? And so on. It Is a subject on wh Ich It Is not
easy to f Ind a solut Ion sat Isfactory enough for everyone,
unless the Mother Herself Intervenes.
It Is Imposs Ible. Each one has h Is own taste and h Is own temperament. Noth Ing can be done w Ithout d Isc Ipl Ine - the whole of
l Ife Is a d Isc Ipl Ine.
20 September 1962
--
Is It bad to go to the c Inema In town?
For those who want to do yoga, It Is very bad. Moreover, I have
already sa Id th Is a cons Iderable number of t Imes, and If you do
not know It, It Is because you f Ind It more conven Ient to forget It.
27 September 1962
--
There are too many t Ight knots In the Immense organ Isat Ion of th Is Ashram. When w Ill the prom Ised day
come when there w Ill be noth Ing but unm Ixed harmony,
--
A l Ittle s Incere and regular pract Ice Is worth more than a lot of
short-l Ived resolut Ions.
--
by Y. I don't th Ink It Is fa Ir at all.
One can speak only of what one has seen w Ith one's own eyes -
--
the r Ight to judge? Only the Lord sees and knows - He alone Is
the Truth.
--
carefully. It would cure you of pass Ing judgments.
15 October 1962
--
had not g Iven Her darshan to Z. But now I am afra Id
that Mother may be angry at my audac Ity In wr It Ing such
a letter. Because It Is none of my bus Iness!
I read your letter and I was not at all angry. But Z was not at all
ready for a darshan.
--
(Regard Ing a threat by Ch Ina to occupy d Isputed borderland In northern Kashm Ir and northeastern Ind Ia)
Somet Imes I have the Impress Ion that our leaders do not
seem to have the sort of backbone d Isplayed by Kennedy
--
Th Is k Ind of comment Is qu Ite out of place at the moment. One
should never cr It Ic Ise someone unless one has proved beyond
d Ispute that In the same c Ircumstances one can do better than he.
Do you feel capable of be Ing an unequalled Pr Ime M In Ister
of Ind Ia? I reply: "Certa Inly not", and I adv Ise you to keep s Ilent
and rema In calm.
--
It Is all r Ight, my ch Ildren, but It Is not enough to pray; you must
also make a persever Ing effort.
--
val Id example of even one person who takes part In so
many act Iv It Ies and ma Inta Ins a fa Irly h Igh standard -
one s Ingle person In the whole world?"
Do not forget - all of you who are here - that we want to
real Ise someth Ing wh Ich does not yet ex Ist upon earth; so It Is
absurd to seek elsewhere for an example of what we want to do.
He also told me th Is: "Mother says that there Is full
freedom and every fac Il Ity for those who are g Ifted In
a part Icular subject and want to pursue It to the full.
But where Is th Is freedom to become, for Instance, a
great mus Ic Ian?" Sweet Mother, can you please say a
--
The freedom I speak of Is the freedom to follow the w Ill of the
soul, not all the wh Ims of the m Ind and v Ital.
The freedom I speak of Is an austere truth wh Ich str Ives to
surmount all the weaknesses and des Ires of the lower, Ignorant
be Ing.
The freedom I speak of Is the freedom to consecrate oneself
wholly and w Ithout reserve to one's h Ighest, noblest, d Iv Inest
--
Who among you s Incerely follows th Is path? It Is easy to
judge, but more d Iff Icult to understand, and far more d Iff Icult
--
Remember that all these Ind Iv Idual v Irtues and faults are only the
decept Ive appearance of a great play of un Iversal forces wh Ich
--
F Ind your happ Iness and your joy In the very fact of lov Ing, and
It w Ill help you In your Inner progress; because If you are s Incere,
you w Ill one day real Ise that It Is the D Iv Ine In her that you love
and that the outer person Is merely a pretext.
27 January 1963
--
What Is the d Ifference between med Itat Ing here In
my room and go Ing to med Itate at the Playground w Ith
--
Is It better to med Itate there or here In my room?
Med Itate where you med Itate best - that Is to say, wherever you
are most s Ilent and calm.
--
and produce what Is called a dream, but It Is noth Ing more than
d Isorderly act Iv Ity. It has no mean Ing and can serve only one
purpose: to make you aware of what goes on In your head.
19 March 1963
--
I have rece Ived a certa In sum of money. I want to
offer It to You, and If I need anyth Ing I w Ill ask You for It;
In that way You can dec Ide what Is necessary or best for
me. But I am adv Ised to keep as much as I want for my
personal needs and to offer the rest to You. Otherw Ise
people w Ill say that I ask for anyth Ing I want just because
I have g Iven You a l Ittle money. Mother, what do You
--
Bes Ides, who Is perfectly d Is Interested? One should not pretend to be what one Is not. It Is better to be frank than hypocr It Ical.
12 Apr Il 1963
--
Is It r Ight to pray to the Mother for l Ittle th Ings and
self Ish ga Ins?
It all depends on one's po Int of v Iew. It Is qu Ite poss Ible that
one w Ill obta In the th Ing one has prayed for. But for sp Ir Itual
progress, It Is harmful.
4 May 1963
--
What Is the true s Ign If Icance of marr Iage?
It has hardly any true s Ign If Icance - It Is a soc Ial custom for the
perpetuat Ion of the spec Ies.
--
We see too many f Ilms these days and I fa Il to see
how they educate us!
--
that the des Ire to see f Ilms, wh Ich Is so Imper Ious In some people,
Is just as pern Ic Ious as any other des Ire.
--
Each t Ime I have encountered an obstacle In my
l Ife, each t Ime I have been depr Ived of some happ Iness
- some apparent happ Iness - a consolat Ion has come
Immed Iately to d Ispel my psycholog Ical pa In. For someth Ing tells me: "All that happens Is done for your own
good and Is done by the D Iv Ine Grace." Is It good, Is It
healthy to th Ink l Ike th Is?
Not only Is It r Ight, good and healthy to th Ink l Ike th Is, but It
Is an absolutely Ind Ispensable att Itude If one wants to advance
on the sp Ir Itual path. As a matter of fact, It Is the f Irst step
w Ithout wh Ich one cannot advance at all. That Is why I always
say: "Whatever you do, do the best you can, and leave the result
--
Yes, certa Inly, for someone who knows how to see, and X Is very
g Ifted.
--
I have often not Iced that the work we do Is done
much better and more qu Ickly than If It were done by
pa Id workers. I don't know why!
Because you are more consc Ious, or rather less unconsc Ious.
--
What Is the best relat Ionsh Ip between two human
be Ings? Mother and son? Brother, fr Iend or lover, etc?
All the relat Ionsh Ips are good In pr Inc Iple and each one expresses
a mode of the Eternal. But each can be perverted and become
--
the v Ibrat Ions of love from man Ifest Ing In the Ir pur Ity.
4 June 1963
--
About the hero of the f Ilm Reach for the Sky, I sa Id
that noth Ing could ever d Iscourage h Im. For even after
hav Ing lost both legs In an acc Ident, he vowed that he
would cont Inue h Is career as a p Ilot. He Is a man of
fantast Ic v Ital Ity, full of energy...
That Is exactly the k Ind of determ Inat Ion one must have to
pract Ise the yoga of Integral perfect Ion.
7 June 1963
--
There are moments when I feel It would be better
to s It s Ilently Instead of read Ing or do Ing someth Ing else.
But I am afra Id of wast Ing t Ime. What should I do?
It all depends on the qual Ity of the s Ilence - If It Is a lum Inous
s Ilence, full of force and consc Ious concentrat Ion, It Is good. If
It Is a tamas Ic and unconsc Ious s Ilence, It Is harmful.
10 June 1963
--
After a long t Ime I had a beaut Iful dream In wh Ich I
saw the Mother and rece Ived Her Bless Ings.
It Is not a dream, but the result of the preced Ing med Itat Ion and
of your asp Irat Ion.
--
I have too much "grey" matter In my head, wh Ich
prevents me from th Ink Ing clearly and grasp Ing new
Ideas qu Ickly. How can I free myself from th Is?
By study Ing much, by reflect Ing much, by do Ing Intellectual exerc Ises. For Instance, state a general Idea clearly, then state the
oppos Ite Idea, then look for the synthes Is of both - that Is, f Ind
a th Ird Idea wh Ich harmon Ises the other two.
25 June 1963
--
Why do you read novels? It Is a stup Id occupat Ion and a waste
of t Ime. It Is certa Inly one of the reasons why your bra In Is st Ill
In a muddle and lacks clar Ity.
--
Man Is so weak that he Is Influenced even by the
w Ind that blows about h Im, by a book he reads or a
p Icture he sees. He Is most vulnerable.
That happens when he has not taken care to organ Ise h Is consc Ious be Ing around the psych Ic centre, wh Ich Is the Truth of h Is
be Ing.
--
Before cr It Ic Is Ing others, It Is better to be sure that one Is perfectly
s Incere oneself.
--
A few days ago I not Iced someth Ing very odd In
the ch Ildren of Group A2: the boys don't want to work
--
s Ide. They cannot work together. How d Id th Is Idea of
d Ifference come to these l Ittle ch Ildren who are barely
eleven years old! It Is strange.
It Is atav Ist Ic and comes from the subconsc Ient.
Th Is Inst Inct Is based both on mascul Ine pr Ide, the fool Ish
Idea of super Ior Ity, and on the st Ill more fool Ish fear due to the
Idea that woman Is a dangerous be Ing who ent Ices you Into s In.
In ch Ildren, all th Is Is st Ill subconsc Ious, but It Influences the Ir
act Ions.
--
How fr Ivolous and superf Ic Ial people must be to attach Importance to such th Ings!! Even so, If you wore those clothes In
your capac Ity as a capta In, you d Id wrong, for the capta Ins
--
There are moments when one feels a k Ind of empt Iness w Ith In; one Is dejected and lonely - It Is because
one wants to be loved.
Or better, It Is because one Is awak Ing to the need of know Ing
one's soul and un It Ing w Ith the D Iv Ine.
--
I s It down every day to med Itate, but I am afra Id
that th Is ten m Inutes' med Itat Ion has become merely mechan Ical. I want a dynam Ic med Itat Ion, but how to have
It?
--
Th Is creat Ion has a purpose - therefore Is It poss Ible
that even the most " Ins Ign If Icant" Ind Iv Idual has come
upon earth to fulf Il a m Iss Ion? That Is not my concept Ion
- what are beggars and people l Ike that do Ing?
--
creat Ion Is a s Ingle whole advanc Ing as a total Ity towards Its
s Ingle goal - the D Iv Ine - through a collect Ive evolut Ion wh Ich
--
each person here In the Ashram represents a part Icular
human d Iff Iculty, and that th Is d Iff Iculty w Ill be mastered
and transformed In h Im In h Is l Ifet Ime.10
I have never made th Is statement.
--
des Ires In order to s Impl Ify the problem.
There Is an almost Inf In Ite var Iety of shades and comb Inat Ions of character, and although there are categor Ies of very
s Im Ilar types, no two cases are Ident Ical.
One Is aware of one's d Iff Icult Ies only Insofar as one can
change them and at the moment when one can make the change.
--
Suddenly I feel very happy, my heart Is f Illed w Ith an
Inexpress Ible joy, but th Is exper Ience does not last very
--
long. I have often tr Ied to observe and f Ind out the cause
of th Is fleet Ing joy, but In va In.
Because you are look Ing for the cause outs Ide, around you,
whereas It Is w Ith In.
11 July 1963
--
boys Is atav Ist Ic, but It rema Ins to ask You what we capta Ins should do about It. Personally, I th Ink It Is better to
close one's eyes to It, but there are others who prefer to
g Ive adv Ice or even to scold. I th Ink that by clos Ing one's
eyes to It, one m In Im Ises the Importance of the problem
and thus th Is Idea of d Ifference between g Irls and boys
w Ill be less str Ik Ing. What do You th Ink?
--
ma In th Ing Is to have tact and suff Ic Ient Inner percept Ion to
Intervene when necessary or to close one's eyes when It Is
preferable not to see.
--
What do You mean by "an Ignorant goodw Ill and
an Indolent energy"?
(1) Goodw Ill means want Ing to do good always. The only
true "good" Is the w Ill of the Supreme Lord. Do you know
what the Lord's w Ill Is, always, at every moment and In all
c Ircumstances? No, so you are Ignorant of what "good" Is -
therefore: Ignorant goodw Ill.
(2) The very nature of energy Is to be Inexhaust Ible, unfa Il Ing, t Ireless. Are you never t Ired? Yes, very often - therefore:
Indolent energy.
--
Would It not be better to have a bas Ic d Isc Ipl Ine here
Instead of so much freedom, a freedom we are not able
--
You say th Is, but you are one of those who revolt (at least In
thought) aga Inst the very l Ittle d Isc Ipl Ine that Is demanded when
It Is utterly Ind Ispensable, as In phys Ical educat Ion, for example.
21 July 1963
--
Why do I hes Itate to ask You for money? What prevents me from do Ing so? Am I st Ill not Int Imate enough
w Ith You, or Is there another reason? I do not understand
myself.
It Is probably a k Ind of Inner d Iscret Ion; It Is rather a good
s Ign, because th Is k Ind of d Iscret Ion comes from the psych Ic
--
I st Ill lack conf Idence In my work. I am too shy.
I th Ink that In order to progress one should be a l Ittle
bolder.
It Is not bolder you should be, but pers Istent and persever Ing.
27 July 1963
--
a masterp Iece came to l Ight - a danc Ing goddess Instead
of a block of stone stood there In front of the sculptor.
All the v Illagers around h Im who had watched h Im work
--
f Igure was there In the stone?"
The quest Ion Is adm Irable - and If the sculptor had been w Itty,
he would have repl Ied: "Because I saw It Ins Ide."
11 August 1963
--
for beh Ind the words there Is always someth Ing profound to be
understood.
--
Th Is morn Ing I saw a man w Ith protrud Ing r Ibs,
deeply depressed h Ips and tw Isted legs. It was a p It Iful
s Ight. One wonders why God has made all these deformat Ions In Nature. The only answer - wh Ich answers
noth Ing - Is that It Is "the D Iv Ine's play". It Is Incomprehens Ible.
That Is an easy answer wh Ich one g Ives when one w Ill not or
cannot take the trouble to understand.
But If one r Ises above the Ind Iv Idual mental Ity and enters
Into the consc Iousness of Un Ity, then one can understand.
--
are pract Is Ing It?
Why do you ask me th Is quest Ion? All those who are here should
at least know what yoga means - as for pract Is Ing It, that Is
another matter!...
--
I feel m Iserable because I asked the Mother for Incense. It would be much better to buy It from the market,
for She does not l Ike her ch Ildren to beg.
To ask from me Is not begg Ing and you may do so whenever
you really need someth Ing. But at the same t Ime, you must be
prepared not to rece Ive It and not to get upset If I fa Il to g Ive It.
In th Is case, I sa Id that you should be g Iven some Incense, but
I am not sure If It has been done. It Is X who keeps It and you
should ask h Im for It.
22 August 1963
--
Our teacher Y gave us a talk In a grave and s Ign If Icant tone: "Be prepared to go through hard tests, we are
on the eve of someth Ing very d Iff Icult and dangerous."
--
It Is a p Ity he d Id not expla In h Is thought, because I don't know
what he wanted to say - probably he wanted to caut Ion you
aga Inst your l Ight-heartedness, your a Ir of Ind Ifference, your
carelessness and lax Ity.
--
Instead of tak Ing advantage of It to concentrate your efforts on
sp Ir Itual progress, you have enjoyed yourselves as much as you
--
Y probably spoke as he d Id In order to reawaken It.
27 August 1963
--
Everyth Ing people say Is of l Ittle Importance, because human
judgments are always part Ial and therefore Ignorant.
To know oneself, one must look at oneself w Ith a h Igher
--
Is not In contact w Ith one's psych Ic be Ing, It would be better to
str Ive always to do as well as poss Ible and be as good as one
can, Instead of pass Ing one's t Ime In useless analys Is.
12 September 1963
--
It Is X who Is sp Ir Itually r Ight and you who are wrong w Ith a
superf Ic Ial and Ignorant so-called "reason".
When someth Ing goes wrong, one must always f Ind the reason In oneself, not superf Ic Ially but deep Ins Ide oneself, and not
In order to uselessly bewa Il the fault, but to cure It by call Ing to
one's a Id the all-powerful force of the D Iv Ine.
To be sure of mak Ing myself clearly understood, I w Ill add
that It Is not due to any fault of hers that he Is Inconstant and
f Ickle - It Is h Is nature to be l Ike that and he acts accord Ing to
h Is nature - but If she suffers and Is unhappy because of what
he does, then It Is her own fault, for It means that her own feel Ing
Is ta Inted w Ith ego Ism. It Is th Is ego Ism that she must conquer,
and as soon as she does she w Ill no longer suffer.
--
I have aga In rece Ived an Inv Itat Ion for d Inner. One
cannot refuse If one Is Inv Ited, can one?
No, unless there are ser Ious reasons for do Ing so. I am not
speak Ing of the outward act - whether one eats here or there
comes to the same th Ing - I am speak Ing of the Inner att Itude,
of the excess Ive Importance one g Ives to food, and of greed Iness.
21 September 1963
--
If I look at my whole l Ife and Its c Ircumstances,
I am very happy, but I am not sat Isf Ied. Often I am
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
plunged Into an unbearable melancholy. What should I
do?
--
of l Ife. One can obta In true happ Iness and keep It constantly
only by d Iscover Ing one's psych Ic be Ing and un It Ing w Ith It.
22 September 1963
--
"For though I knew H Is love who followèd
Yet was I sore adread
Lest hav Ing H Im, I must have naught bes Ide."
That Is our malady!
Yes, that Is what Sr I Aurob Indo has wr Itten many t Imes; man
cl Ings to h Is m Isery, h Is pett Iness, h Is weakness, h Is Ignorance
and h Is l Im Its - that Is why he does not change.
24 September 1963
--
performance,11 and, what Is more, I don't feel at all
enthus Iast Ic.
From the moment one has dec Ided and accepted to do someth Ing, It must be done as well as one can.
One can f Ind In everyth Ing a chance to progress In consc Iousness and self-mastery. And th Is effort for progress Immed Iately
makes the th Ing Interest Ing, no matter what It Is.
26 September 1963
--
released Into freedom Is the l Iberator."12 What does that
mean? How can law be released Into freedom? By law we
understand someth Ing determ Ined and f Ixed. Or Is It a
flex Ib Il Ity that Is requ Ired, as opposed to r Ig Id Ity: law that
w Ill be free to mould Itself accord Ing to c Ircumstances?
I regret to have to tell you that you have understood absolutely
--
to understand w Ith your superf Ic Ial m Ind, wh Ile what Sr I Aurob Indo has sa Id comes from the h Ighest Intellectual l Ight, far
above the m Ind. All I can tell you, wh Ich perhaps w Ill put you
on the r Ight track, Is that beh Ind law there Is a sp Ir It of order
and organ Isat Ion. But law Itself Is someth Ing f Ixed and therefore
contrary to the h Ighest truth. If the same sp Ir It of order and
organ Isat Ion Is put at the serv Ice of freedom, It can become a
means of atta In Ing l Iberat Ion, that Is to say, un Ion w Ith the Truth.
29 September 1963
--
Sr I Aurob Indo wr Ites In one of h Is aphor Isms:
"Those who are def Ic Ient In the free, full and Intell Igent
observat Ion of a self- Imposed law, must be placed In
subject Ion to the w Ill of others."13 Mother, I am one of
those. W Ill You take me and d Isc Ipl Ine me?
My ch Ild, that Is exactly what I have been try Ing to do for qu Ite
"Law cannot save the world, therefore Moses' ord Inances are dead for human Ity
and the Shastra of the Brahm Ins Is corrupt and dy Ing. Law released Into freedom Is the
l Iberator. Not the Pund It, but the Yog In, not monast Ic Ism, but the Inner renunc Iat Ion of
des Ire and Ignorance and ego Ism."
Thoughts and Aphor Isms, In SABCL, Vol. 17, p. 100.
Thoughts and Aphor Isms, In SABCL, Vol. 17, p. 99.
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
a long t Ime, espec Ially s Ince I have been rece Iv Ing your notebook
and correct Ing It.
It Is w Ith that d Isc Ipl Inary a Im that I asked you to wr Ite one
s Ingle sentence a day - It d Id not have to be long, but It ought
to have been free from m Istakes - alas!
Up t Ill now, I have hardly succeeded - your sentences are
often long and unclear, others are short, but all conta In m Istakes
--
and conjugat Ion wh Ich I have corrected many t Imes.
One would th Ink that even If you read your notebook when
I return It to you, you do not study It and try to use It as a means
to make progress.
To d Isc Ipl Ine one's l Ife Is not easy, even for those who are
strong, severe w Ith themselves, courageous and endur Ing.
--
There Is no hab It that cannot be changed.
14 October 1963
--
F Irst of all, what has been reported Is not correct. Secondly, the
adv Ice Is adapted to each case and cannot be made a general
rule.
--
wh Ich w Ill be human Ity's gu Ide towards Its future real Isat Ion.
27 November 1963
--
I am very Irregular In my stud Ies; I don't know what
to do.
--
The ardour of mak Ing an effort Is wan Ing. I feel
contented. But t Ime passes so qu Ickly that one feels one
has not made the most out of what Is g Iven to us.
That proves that l Ife Is too easy here and that for the most part
you are all too tamas Ic to make an effort unless goaded by the
--
remedy th Is deadly cond It Ion. But the asp Irat Ion Is absent and
your soul Is asleep!
2 January 1964
--
and the awaken Ing In your consc Iousness of a w Ill to progress.
3 January 1964
I have kept your notebook In the hope of f Ind Ing t Ime to read and
correct It. But the weeks go by and I see that It Is Imposs Ible. I
am therefore return Ing It to you w Ithout hav Ing read It, and I ask
you not to send It aga In unt Il It Is poss Ible for me to start look Ing
at It once more. Cont Inue your translat Ion of the Aphor Isms; I
shall send you more at a t Ime for correct Ion.
--
You blessed me that I may be born to the true l Ife,
but what are the cond It Ions needed to be born to that
--
The f Irst cond It Ion Is to dec Ide not to l Ive for oneself any more,
but to l Ive exclus Ively for the D Iv Ine.
--
man Ifested In a constant and effect Ive w Ill.
29 Apr Il 1964
--
"Not to l Ive for oneself" Is understandable and one
can try to put It Into pract Ice; but what does "to l Ive
exclus Ively for the D Iv Ine" mean exactly? For me It Is
only an Idea mechan Ically repeated by the m Ind; but,
Mother, what can one do to real Ise It?
To l Ive for the D Iv Ine means to offer all that one does to the
--
Certa Inly at the beg Inn Ing, when the D Iv Ine Is only a word or
at most an Idea and not an exper Ience, the whole th Ing rema Ins
purely mental. But If one makes a s Incere and repeated effort, one
day the exper Ience comes and one feels that the offer Ing made Is
made to someth Ing real, tang Ible, concrete and benef Icent. The
more s Incere and ass Iduous one Is, the sooner the exper Ience
comes and the longer It rema Ins.
For each person the way d Iffers In Its deta Ils, but s Incer Ity
and perseverance are equally Ind Ispensable for all.
6 May 1964
--
Would It be poss Ible to have an electr Ic fan? X
prom Ised me one three years ago, but now he adv Ises
--
You may have one If there Is one or If you can f Ind one. But do
you th Ink It w Ill help you to f Ind the D Iv Ine?
7 May 1964
--
Regard Ing the fan, I don't th Ink It w Ill help me to
f Ind the D Iv Ine, but Is It an obstacle? If You th Ink It
Is better for me not to have It, all r Ight, I accept Your
dec Is Ion w Ithout compla Int.
What Is an obstacle to the sp Ir Itual l Ife Is to attach Importance to
mater Ial comfort and to take one's des Ires for needs - In other
words, self-decept Ion. Now, If you have a fan and w Ish to use
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
It, you may do so, know Ing that It w Ill not help you In any way
to make progress - that It w Ill only g Ive your body the Illus Ion
of be Ing more comfortable.
These th Ings ought to have no Importance In l Ife.
13 May 1964
--
One Is often afra Id of do Ing what Is new; the body
refuses to act In a new way, such as try Ing a new gymnast Ic f Igure or another k Ind of d Ive. Where does th Is
fear come from? How can one get r Id of It? And aga In,
how can one encourage others to do so?
The body Is afra Id of anyth Ing new because Its very base Is
Inert Ia, tamas; It Is the v Ital wh Ich br Ings In a dom Inant note of
rajas, act Iv Ity. That Is why, as a general rule, the Intrus Ion of the
v Ital In the form of amb It Ion, emulat Ion and van Ity, compels the
body to shake off the tamas and make the necessary effort to
--
Naturally, those In whom the m Ind Is dom Inant can lecture
the Ir body and prov Ide It w Ith all the reasons needed to overcome
Its fear.
The best way for everyone Is self-g Iv Ing to the D Iv Ine and
trust In H Is Inf In Ite Grace.
13 May 1964
--
ways of d Isgu Is Ing Itself In us. How can one d Iscover It
and get r Id of It?
It Is a long, slow task wh Ich can only be accompl Ished by a
perfect s Incer Ity. One must be very attent Ive, always on guard,
--
close one's eyes w Ith Indulgence to one's own weaknesses, and
catch oneself each t Ime one makes a m Istake, even a small one.
If one cont Inues w Ith pers Istence, th Is becomes very Interest Ing and gets eas Ier and eas Ier.
20 May 1964
--
What Is the d Ifference between pleasure, joy, happ Iness, ecstasy and Ananda? Can we f Ind one In the
other?
--
Pleasure Is w Ith In the reach of all l Iv Ing be Ings, but w Ith Its
Inev Itable accompan Iment of suffer Ing.
--
Your answers last week were very succ Inct. Isn't a
perfected yog I Ident If Ied w Ith the Supreme Lord? Isn't a
des Ireless man a s Incere sadhak?
My answers are g Iven In order to open your m Ind and to make
you exceed, l Ittle by l Ittle, your present mental l Im Its.
--
A sadhak Is one who has chosen a yog Ic d Isc Ipl Ine and
pract Ises It. There are des Ireless men who are not pursu Ing any
yoga.
W Iden your thought - It Is very necessary!
3 June 1964
--
towards the Ideal love, the true love?
There Is only one true love - It Is the D Iv Ine Love; all other loves
are d Im Inut Ions, l Im Itat Ions and deformat Ions of that Love. Even
the love of the bhakta for h Is God Is a d Im Inut Ion and often Is
ta Inted by ego Ism. But as one tends qu Ite naturally to become
l Ike what one loves, the bhakta, If he Is s Incere, beg Ins to become
l Ike the D Iv Ine whom he adores, and thus h Is love becomes purer
and purer. To adore the D Iv Ine In the one whom one loves has
often been suggested as a solut Ion, but unless one's heart and
thought are very pure, It can lead to deplorable abasements.
It would seem that In your s Ituat Ion, the best solut Ion would
be to use your mutual attachment to un Ite your efforts In a
common and comb Ined asp Irat Ion to atta In the D Iv Ine, and In
perfect s Incer Ity to let each br Ing to the other, as far as poss Ible,
--
love Is In the soul (all the rest Is v Ital attract Ion or mental and
phys Ical attachment, noth Ing else) and the soul (the psych Ic be Ing) knows Inst Inct Ively what the other needs to rece Ive and Is
always ready to g Ive It to h Im.
17 June 1964
--
Is It because we have defects In ourselves that we
cannot tolerate them In others? What Is the or Ig In of the
shock we feel?
Yes, In a general way It Is the defects you have In yourselves
wh Ich seem to you most shock Ing In others.
Later on, you come to understand that others are a m Irror
reflect Ing the Image of what you are.
24 June 1964
--
Just as there are tang Ible and concrete bod Ily exerc Ises and d Isc Ipl Ines for phys Ical culture, Is there not
someth Ing tang Ible and concrete for the progress of the
--
Its own d Isc Ipl Ine In all Its deta Ils. All that can be stud Ied, learned
and pract Ised. But accord Ing to Sr I Aurob Indo's teach Ing, each
of these pract Ices has Its l Im Itat Ions and g Ives only a part Ial
result. That Is why he adv Ised those who want to follow the
Integral yoga to f Ind the Ir own d Isc Ipl Ine, based on the anc Ient
--
I thought that Illness came from some Impur Ity or
weakness In the be Ing, but what does th Is ep Idem Ic In
the Ashram mean? Even X was a v Ict Im. Where does
--
An ep Idem Ic Is a collect Ive Illness and comes from a collect Ive
Impur Ity. The Ashram as a whole Is ev Idently very far from
what It should be to be equal to Its task and g Ive to the world
the example of a total consecrat Ion to the D Iv Ine Work and the
--
preparat Ion of the future. The forms of Illness vary accord Ing to
the cond It Ion of each person and h Is l Ink w Ith the whole.
--
I am try Ing to concentrate In the heart and to enter
deep w Ith In as You adv Ised me to do, but In va In. The
only result Is that I get a headache, a k Ind of d Izz Iness,
but as soon as I open my eyes everyth Ing becomes normal
aga In. What should I do?
Th Is means that you are not yet ready for a sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine
--
and your psych Ic consc Iousness awakens from the slumber In
wh Ich It l Ies.
15 July 1964
--
Unt Il I am ready for a sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine, what
should I do, apart from asp Ir Ing that the Mother may
pull me out of the slumber and awaken my psych Ic
--
To develop your Intell Igence, read the teach Ings of Sr I Aurob Indo
regularly and very attent Ively. To develop and master your v Ital,
--
w Ith It. Phys Ically, cont Inue w Ith what you are do Ing, develop
and control your body method Ically, make yourself useful by
--
do It as selflessly as poss Ible.
If you are s Incere and scrupulously honest, my help Is certa Inly w Ith you and one day you w Ill become aware of It.
22 July 1964
--
Ashram Is, how can we g Ive h Im a reply that Is both
short and correct?
The Ashram Is the cradle of a new world, of the creat Ion of
tomorrow.
And If other quest Ions are put to you, the only reply to be
made Is: you must read the books and study the teach Ing.
29 July 1964
--
Are there really any traged Ies In l Ife, s Ince everyth Ing
leads to the D Iv Ine?
--
One must l Ive In the consc Iousness of the D Iv Ine Un Ity to
see the Grace beh Ind everyth Ing.
--
Is It really the cause? Does food have such an Important
place In l Ife?
For those whose consc Iousness Is centred In the body, who l Ive
for the body, Its des Ires and sat Isfact Ions, those for whom the
truth beg Ins and ends w Ith the body, It Is ev Ident that food Is of
cap Ital Importance s Ince they l Ive to eat.
Bes Ide th Is sentence, the Mother wrote: "So much as that???"
--
for the Ir Incompetence to cure on the external cond It Ions of l Ife.
If one wants to see the truth of the problem, It Is th Is: only
an enl Ightened body, balanced and free from all v Ital des Ire and
mental preconcept Ion, Is capable of know Ing what It needs In
regard to quant Ity and k Ind of food - and It Is so except Ional
to f Ind such a body that we need not speak of It.
Apart from that, one must act for the best and not attach
too much Importance to It.
Let those who have conf Idence In doctors do as they adv Ise
and see If It helps them to suffer less!
12 August 1964
--
There are t Imes when I feel l Ike abandon Ing all my
act Iv It Ies - the Playground, band, stud Ies, etc. - and
--
accept th Is. Where does th Is Idea come from and why?
In th Is case your log Ic Is r Ight. In the outer nature there Is often
a tamas Ic tendency to s Impl Ify the cond It Ions of l Ife In order to
avo Id the effort of organ Is Ing more compl Icated c Ircumstances.
But when one wants to progress In the Integral Ity of the be Ing,
th Is s Impl If Icat Ion Is hardly adv Isable.
19 August 1964
--
What Is the most effect Ive way of overcom Ing des Ires
and attachments: to cut them off all at one stroke, even
--
Both these ways are equally Ineffect Ive. The normal result of
both these methods Is that you dece Ive yourself, you delude
yourself that you have overcome your des Ires, whereas at best
you are merely s Itt Ing on them - they rema In repressed In the
subconsc Ient unt Il they explode there and cause an upheaval In
the whole be Ing.
It Is from w Ith In that you must become master of your lower
nature by establ Ish Ing your consc Iousness f Irmly In a doma In
that Is free of all des Ire and attachment because It Is under the
Influence of the d Iv Ine L Ight and Force. It Is a long and exact Ing
labour wh Ich must be undertaken w Ith an unfa Il Ing s Incer Ity
--
When one Is very sens It Ive, one eas Ily suffers. S Ince
th Is sens It Iv Ity Is the s Ign of a strong ego, how can one
el Im Inate the ego?
Why do you say that sens It Iv Ity Is the s Ign of a strong ego? It
does not seem to be ev Ident at all. Moreover, there are many
--
governs the development of the Ind Iv Idual, but the most developed Ind Iv Idual It Ies are not necessar Ily those In whom the ego Is
strongest - on the contrary. As the Ind Iv Idual Ity perfects Itself,
the power of the ego d Im In Ishes, and Indeed It Is by perfect Ing
h Imself that the Ind Iv Idual arr Ives at that state of d Iv In Isat Ion
wh Ich l Iberates h Im from the ego.
--
not, Ind Iv Idually and collect Ively?
It Is always preferable not to try to assess the progress one Is mak Ing because It does not help one to make It - on the contrary.
Asp Irat Ion for progress, If It Is S INCERE, Is sure to have an effect.
But whatever the progress made, Ind Iv Idually or collect Ively, the
progress st Ill rema In Ing to be made Is so cons Iderable that there
Is no reason to stop on the way to assess the ground one has
--
of what one Is In compar Ison w Ith what one was some t Ime
before. That Is all - but that In Itself requ Ires a fa Irly h Igh degree
of development of the consc Iousness.
--
I put my quest Ion badly last t Ime. I d Id not mean
the progress one has made, that Is to say, the results of
the past, but the state one Is In. I do not want to assess
the ground I have covered, but to know whether I am
advanc Ing on the path cont Inually, w Ithout stoppage.
The advance Is rarely In a stra Ight and cont Inuous l Ine because a
human be Ing Is made up of many d Ifferent parts, and generally
one part or another progresses In Its turn wh Ile the other parts
rema In qu Iescent unt Il the Ir turn comes. It Is only when the
consc Iousness grows enough to have an overall v Iew that one
can see exactly what Is happen Ing. But In order to be sure of
advanc Ing progress Ively and regularly, one must always keep
--
What Is the use of Japa?15 Is It a good method to
repeat words l Ike "S Ilence" and "Peace" In order to establ Ish s Ilence and peace In oneself when one s Its down
to med Itate?
--
There are class Ical or trad It Ional Japas wh Ich are Intended
to subdue the lower m Ind and establ Ish a connect Ion w Ith h Igher
--
who at the same t Ime Infuses them w Ith the power of real Isat Ion.
They are useful only for those who want to do an Intens Ive yoga
and spend f Ive or s Ix hours a day In yog Ic pract Ices.
Japa such as you descr Ibe It cannot have much effect except
to create a tamas Ic dullness, wh Ich should not be m Istaken for
--
I heard that an astrologer has pred Icted that In s Ix
months' t Ime Lal Bahadur Shastr I w Ill no longer be
Pr Ime M In Ister and that he w Ill be replaced by Ind Ira
Gandh I, but only for a fortn Ight. Then a per Iod of chaos
--
What do You th Ink about It?
People say many th Ings - espec Ially astrologers!
--
Is a m Istake or a bad act Ion pardonable If one Is sure
that what one Is do Ing Is r Ight and that one Is s Incere?
How can one know that one Is m Istaken?
The very fact of be Ing m Istaken proves that one Is not s Incere
In some part of the be Ing. For the psych Ic be Ing knows and Is
not m Istaken; but more often than not, we do not l Isten to what
It says because It speaks w Ithout v Iolence or Ins Istence - It Is a
murmur In the depths of our heart wh Ich Is easy to Ignore.
However, there are cases where one acts wrongly out of
Ignorance, and th Is error Is effaced as soon as the Ignorance Is replaced by knowledge and the way of act Ing completely changed.
What man In h Is Ignorance calls "pardon" Is the effacement, the
d Issolut Ion of errors comm Itted.
--
There are moments when, In sp Ite of myself, a l Ittle
black cloud of jealousy comes and upsets my act Iv It Ies
dur Ing my work Ing hours. I d Ispel It Immed Iately by
reason Ing, but all the same Its effect rema Ins and makes
me a l Ittle sullen and very touchy.
--
By w Iden Ing one's consc Iousness and mak Ing It un Iversal.
There Is another way, but It Is st Ill more d Iff Icult. It Is by
real Is Ing the supreme Un Ity.
--
Isn't th Is a k Ind of Isolat Ion, a form of ego Ism?"
To th Is rather s Illy k Ind of quest Ion, Sr I Aurob Indo always used
--
"The greatest ego Ist Is the Supreme Lord because He never
bothers about anyth Ing but H Imself!"
--
There are moments dur Ing med Itat Ion when I feel
that someth Ing In me wants to soar aloft and enjoy full
freedom. There Is a k Ind of enthus Iasm In the soul ( I do
not know whether It comes from the soul) to enjoy the
supreme Ananda and forget l Ife as It really Is. What does
all th Is mean?
It Is the natural and Ind Ispensable counterpart of the moments
- so numerous and so frequent! - when you are attached to
--
The two extremes always alternate In exper Ience unt Il one has
found the po Ise of the total and synthet Ic truth.
That alone can g Ive the true Freedom wh Ich Is exper Ienced
In all c Ircumstances.
--
the D Iv Ine, the other part Is so tamas Ic and heavy! How
can It be awakened? What blows does It need? It Is not
that th Is part Is aga Inst the D Iv Ine - It does not even
seem to be Interested In H Im (wh Ich Is perhaps worse).
That Is Indeed an Ind Icat Ion of complete Inert Ia. Sr I Aurob Indo
has wr Itten: " If you cannot love God, at least f Ind a way to f Ight
--
are sure to be conquered by H Im). It Is a humorous remark, but
It means that of all cond It Ions, Inert Ia Is the worst.
Asp Irat Ion Is the only remedy - an asp Irat Ion that r Ises
constantly l Ike a clear flame burn Ing up all the Impur It Ies of
the be Ing.
--
who have been here s Ince ch Ildhood. There Is a k Ind
of uncerta Inty In our young people when they see others
leave here and they say caut Iously: "Who knows whether
It won't be my turn some day!" I feel there Is a force
beh Ind all th Is. What Is It?
Th Is uncerta Inty and these departures are due to the lower nature, wh Ich res Ists the Influence of the yog Ic power and tr Ies to
slow down the d Iv Ine act Ion, not out of Ill-w Ill but In order to
be sure that noth Ing Is forgotten or neglected In the haste to
reach the goal. Few are ready for a total consecrat Ion. Many
--
before they can be ready for the d Iv Ine work, and that Is why
they leave to undergo the test of ord Inary l Ife.
--
respons Ible for all m Isunderstand Ings; th Is Is a weakness
" If you cannot make God love you, make H Im f Ight you. If He w Ill not g Ive you the
embrace of the lover, compel H Im to g Ive you the embrace of the wrestler."
Thoughts and Aphor Isms, In SABCL, Vol. 17, p. 130.
rather than a v Irtue, for I feel that I take them upon
myself In order to end the matter as qu Ickly as poss Ible
- It Is a k Ind of escap Ism.
Mother, I also feel that I have a very strong Infer Ior Ity complex.
Where does all th Is come from and how can I get
r Id of It?
All th Is comes from your ego wh Ich Is very much occup Ied w Ith
Itself and far prefers to blame and cr It Ic Ise Itself than to th Ink of
someth Ing else... (the D Iv Ine for example) and forget Itself.
18 November 1964
--
What Is the mean Ing of one's b Irthday, apart from Its
commemorat Ive character? How can one take advantage
--
Because of the rhythm of the un Iversal forces, a person Is supposed to have a spec Ial recept Iv Ity on h Is b Irthday each year.
He can therefore take advantage of th Is recept Iv Ity by mak Ing good resolut Ions and fresh progress on the path of h Is
--
Often when I read Sr I Aurob Indo's works or l Isten
to h Is words, I am wonder-struck: how can th Is eternal
truth, th Is beauty of express Ion escape people! It Is really
strange that he Is not yet recogn Ised, at least as a supreme
creator, a pure art Ist, a poet par excellence! So I tell myself that my judgments, my apprec Iat Ions are Influenced
by my devot Ion for the Master - and not everyone Is
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
devoted. I do not th Ink th Is Is true. But then, why are
men's hearts not yet enchanted by H Is Words?
Who can understand Sr I Aurob Indo? He Is as vast as the un Iverse
and h Is teach Ing Is l Im Itless...
The only way to come a l Ittle close to h Im Is to love h Im
s Incerely and g Ive oneself unreservedly to h Is work. In that
way, each one does h Is best and contr Ibutes as much as he can
--
not th Ink of anyth Ing Is always there.
It Is not dur Ing med Itat Ion that one must learn to be s Ilent,
because the very fact of try Ing makes a no Ise.
One must learn to concentrate one's energ Ies In the heart
- then, when one succeeds In that, s Ilence comes automat Ically.
9 December 1964
--
Sr I Aurob Indo has sa Id somewhere that If we surrender to the D Iv Ine Grace, It w Ill do everyth Ing for us.
Then what Is the value of tapasya?
If you want to know what Sr I Aurob Indo has sa Id on a g Iven
--
another and are organ Ised and un If Ied In an Integral synthes Is.
Here Is another quotat Ion by Sr I Aurob Indo wh Ich w Ill show
you that your quest Ion Is an Ignorant one. There are many others
wh Ich you could read to advantage and wh Ich w Ill make your
--
" If there Is not a complete surrender, then It Is not poss Ible to adopt the baby cat att Itude, - It becomes mere tamas Ic
pass Iv Ity call Ing Itself surrender. If a complete surrender Is not
poss Ible In the beg Inn Ing, It follows that personal effort Is necessary."17
16 December 1964
--
I feel very t Ired and want to rest. Why Is th Is and how
can I feel d Ifferently?
So long as you are mak Ing an effort, It Is not med Itat Ion and
there Is not much use In prolong Ing th Is state.
To obta In mental s Ilence, one must learn to relax, to let
--
Effort Is never s Ilent.
23 December 1964
--
un Ique pr Iv Ilege of l Iv Ing here In the Ashram?
Never forget where you are.
--
Remember th Is at every moment and In all c Ircumstances. In th Is
way you w Ill make the best use of your ex Istence.
--
What Is the eternal truth beh Ind th Is sympathy or
attract Ion of man for woman and of woman for man?
--
You have sa Id In Your New Year message for th Is
year: "Salute to the advent of Truth." Is It therefore very
near? What must we do dur Ing 1965 to prepare ourselves
to recogn Ise It and rece Ive It?
The best th Ing to do Is to d Ist Ingu Ish In oneself the or Ig In of all
one's movements - those that come from the l Ight of truth and
those that come from the old Inert Ia and falsehood - In order
to accept the f Irst and to refuse or reject the others.
--
tends towards d Isharmony, d Isorder and Inert Ia comes from
the falsehood and all that favours un Ion, harmony, order and
--
Th Is Is only a h Int, noth Ing more, about how to take the
f Irst steps on the path.
--
of Truth - what Is called the Satya Yuga In the anc Ient
Scr Iptures (the Mahabharata)?
An age of truth Is sure to come before the earth Is transformed.
21 January 1965
--
Ashram mean?18 Are we respons Ible for It because of our
faults and because we d Isobey the Supreme Truth In our
da Ily l Ives?
--
atmosphere of the Ashram Is not pure enough to be Invulnerable
to falsehood.
--
Somebody asked me th Is quest Ion: " Is It not a great
loss for human soc Iety If persons endowed w Ith an except Ional capac Ity to serve mank Ind, such as a g Ifted
doctor or barr Ister, come to stay here In the Ashram
for the Ir own salvat Ion? They could perhaps serve the
--
does not bel Ieve In salvat Ion; for us salvat Ion Is a mean Ingless
word. We are here to prepare the transformat Ion of the earth
and men so that the new creat Ion may take place, and If we
On the even Ing of February 11, many Ashram bu Ild Ings were stoned, burned or
--
make Ind Iv Idual efforts to progress, It Is because th Is progress Is
Ind Ispensable for the accompl Ishment of the work.
I am surpr Ised that after hav Ing l Ived In the Ashram for
so long, you can st Ill th Ink In th Is way and be open to th Is
Sunday-school dr Ivel.
--
" It Is equally Ignorant and one thousand m Iles away from
my teach Ing to f Ind It In your relat Ions w Ith human be Ings or In
the nob Il Ity of the human character or an Idea that we are here
to establ Ish mental and moral and soc Ial Truth and just Ice on
human and ego Ist Ic l Ines. I have never prom Ised to do anyth Ing
of the k Ind. Human nature Is made up of Imperfect Ions, even
Its r Ighteousness and v Irtue are pretens Ions, Imperfect Ions and
pranc Ings of self-approbatory ego Ism.... What Is a Imed at by us
Is a sp Ir Itual truth as the bas Is of l Ife, the f Irst words of wh Ich
--
of ego. So long as that bas Is Is not establ Ished, a sadhak Is only
an Ignorant and Imperfect human be Ing struggl Ing w Ith the ev Ils
of the lower nature.... What Is created by sp Ir Itual progress Is an
Inner closeness and Int Imacy In the Inner be Ing, the sense of the
Mother's love and presence etc."
--
What Is the best way of express Ing one's grat Itude
towards man and towards the D Iv Ine?
--
It Is true that man Is essent Ially d Iv Ine, but at present, apart
from a few very rare except Ions, man Is qu Ite unconsc Ious of the
D Iv Ine he carr Ies w Ith In h Im; and It Is just th Is unconsc Iousness
wh Ich const Itutes the falsehood of the mater Ial world.
--
to the D Iv Ine and that as for men what Is requ Ired Is an att Itude
of goodw Ill, understand Ing and mutual help.
To feel deeply, Intensely and constantly a total grat Itude
towards the D Iv Ine Is the best way to be happy and peaceful.
And the only true way of express Ing one's grat Itude to the
D Iv Ine Is to Ident Ify w Ith H Im.
3 March 1965
--
Sr I Aurob Indo's yoga? What Is the sure s Ign of It?
It Is Imposs Ible to say, because for each person It Is d Ifferent.
It depends on the part of one's be Ing that awakens f Irst and
responds to Sr I Aurob Indo's Influence.
And no one can tell about another person.
--
d Iv Ine. But I feel that I am In a v Irg In forest In wh Ich I
have lost my sense of d Irect Ion. Where exactly am I?
I would l Ike to have an Ind Icat Ion, a way to get out,
onto the r Ight path, the path lead Ing to the D Iv Ine.
--
refers to In order to be sure of not go Ing astray, unt Il one Is ready
for another more Important and conclus Ive exper Ience.
The real landmarks on the way are the spontaneous exper Iences, not those that come from a mental format Ion and are
--
The exper Ience must come f Irst and the explanat Ion afterwards. That Is why Sr I Aurob Indo has sa Id: Never d Istrust your
exper Ience; but you may d Istrust your explanat Ion, wh Ich Is a
mental act Iv Ity.19
It Is very Important to take note of one's exper Iences and
remember them. To construct a system of development Is secondary and somet Imes harmful.
17 March 1965
--
In a general way, a dream leaves a confused and fleet Ing Impress Ion, whereas an exper Ience awakens a deep and last Ing
feel Ing.
But the shades of d Ifference are subtle and many, and It Is
by a very attent Ive and s Incere observat Ion (that Is to say, free
from b Ias and preference) that one gradually learns to d Iscern
--
Just as there Is a method Ical progress Ion of exerc Ises
for mental and phys Ical educat Ion, Isn't there a s Im Ilar
method to progress towards Sr I Aurob Indo's yoga? It
should vary w Ith each Ind Iv Idual. Could you make a
step-by-step programme for me to follow da Ily?
The mechan Ical regular Ity of a f Ixed programme Is Ind Ispensable
for phys Ical, mental and v Ital development; but th Is mechan Ical
"Exper Ience In thy soul the truth of the Scr Ipture; afterwards, If thou w Ilt, reason
and state thy exper Ience Intellectually and even then d Istrust thy statement; but d Istrust
never thy exper Ience."
Thoughts and Aphor Isms, In SABCL, Vol. 17, p. 89
r Ig Id Ity has l Ittle or no effect on sp Ir Itual development where the
spontane Ity of an absolute s Incer Ity Is Ind Ispensable.
Sr I Aurob Indo has wr Itten very clearly on th Is subject. And
what he has wr Itten on It has appeared In The Synthes Is of Yoga.
However, as an In It Ial help to set you on the path, I can tell
you: (1) that on gett Ing up, before start Ing the day, It Is good
to make an offer Ing of th Is day to the D Iv Ine, an offer Ing of all
that one th Inks, all that one Is, all that one w Ill do; (2) and at
n Ight, before go Ing to sleep, It Is good to rev Iew the day, tak Ing
note of all the t Imes one has forgotten or neglected to make an
--
Th Is Is a m In Imum, a very small beg Inn Ing - and It should
Increase w Ith the s Incer Ity of your consecrat Ion.
--
How can one Increase s Ingle-m Indedness and w Illpower? They are so necessary for do Ing anyth Ing.
Through regular, persever Ing, obst Inate, unflagg Ing exerc Ise - I
mean exerc Ise of concentrat Ion and w Ill.
Mother, I have started read Ing French books - X has
g Iven me a l Ist.
It Is good for you to read a lot of French; It w Ill teach you how
to wr Ite.
--
d Iff Icult Is to renounce one's good hab Its." What exactly
do you mean by th Is? Does It suggest that good hab Its
are not necessary In the yoga?
Good hab Its are Ind Ispensable so long as one acts out of hab It.
But to atta In the supreme goal of yoga, one must abandon all
--
must one day be abandoned when one wants to obey and Is able
to obey noth Ing but the one supreme Impulse, the W Ill of the
Supreme.
--
renunc Iat Ion beg In when one Is on the path?
What I call "be Ing on the path" Is be Ing In a state of consc Iousness In wh Ich only un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine has any value - th Is
un Ion Is the only th Ing worth l Iv Ing, the sole object of asp Irat Ion.
Everyth Ing else has lost all value and Is not worth seek Ing, so
there Is no longer any quest Ion of renounc Ing It because It Is no
longer an object of des Ire.
As long as un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine Is not the th Ing for wh Ich
one l Ives, one Is not yet on the path.
21 Apr Il 1965
--
Why Is Ind Ia, wh Ich has such a r Ich past and the
prom Ise of such a br Ill Iant future, In such a m Iserable
Quest Ions and Answers 1929 - 1931, CWM, Vol. 3, p. 128.
--
When she renounces falsehood and l Ives In the Truth.
28 Apr Il 1965
--
Why d Id Sr I Aurob Indo adv Ise Ind Ia's leaders to accept the Cr Ipps Proposal In 1942, when He knew fully
well that they would not?21
--
then does He do It?
The D Iv Ine always Informs, but It Is rare Indeed for men to l Isten
to H Im. E Ither they do not hear H Im or do not bel Ieve H Im.
Men always compla In of not be Ing helped, but the truth Is
that they refuse the help wh Ich Is always w Ith them.
5 May 1965
--
You say that to hope to partake of the new real Isat Ion, "you must feel that th Is world Is ugly, stup Id, brutal
and full of Intolerable suffer Ing".22 But what would be
the state of one who feels that everyth Ing here Is the play
Sr I Aurob Indo sent a spec Ial messenger to Delh I adv Is Ing Ind Ian leaders to accept,
as a f Irst step towards Independence, S Ir Stafford Cr Ipps' proposal of Dom In Ion status
for Ind Ia. Sr I Aurob Indo held that th Is proposal conferred essent Ial Independence on
Ind Ia by putt Ing her on a par w Ith the var Ious Dom In Ions already assoc Iated w Ith the
Un Ited K Ingdom. Had h Is adv Ice been heeded, the part It Ion of Ind Ia m Ight have been
avo Ided.
--
of a benevolent God? Would he not also part Ic Ipate In
th Is new real Isat Ion?
It Is In the depths of the consc Iousness, beyond the m Ind, that one
can In all s Incer Ity have the exper Ience that all Is the D Iv Ine and
that only the D Iv Ine ex Ists. But the man Ifestat Ion Is progress Ive,
and In order to have the strength to advance by reject Ing what
ought to d Isappear, one must strongly feel one's unworth Iness
and Incapac Ity to express the d Iv Ine perfect Ion.
The two states of consc Iousness should be s Imultaneous and
complementary, not success Ive and contrad Ictory, and th Is too Is
poss Ible only when the seat of consc Iousness Is beyond the m Ind
and Its l Im Itat Ions.
12 May 1965
--
or comm It an Injust Ice towards the Ir subord Inates, what
should be the att Itude of those affected by these errors?
Should one keep s Ilent and say, " It Is none of my bus Iness", or should one try to po Int out the m Istake to them?
Ne Ither the one nor the other.
F Irst and always, we must ask ourselves what our Instrument
of judgment Is. One must ask, "What Is my judgment based on?
Do I have perfect knowledge? What In me Is judg Ing? Do I have
the d Iv Ine consc Iousness? Am I completely d Is Interested In th Is
matter? Am I free of all des Ire and all ego?"
And s Ince the answer to all these quest Ions w Ill be the same,
--
cannot judge, I do not have the elements needed for a true
judgment; therefore I w Ill not judge, I w Ill keep qu Iet."
19 May 1965
--
always rema In s Ilent, even though as an Ind Iv Idual one
Is obl Iged to make dec Is Ions and g Ive op In Ions?
What const Itutes an Ind Iv Idual Ity?
An Ind Iv Idual Ity Is a consc Ious be Ing organ Ised around a d Iv Ine
centre. All the d Iv Ine centres are essent Ially One In the Ir or Ig In,
but they act as separate be Ings In the man Ifestat Ion.
The Ind Iv Idual must make dec Is Ions In order to l Ive, but It
Is not Ind Ispensable that he should have op In Ions, and st Ill less
that he should a Ir them.
It Is Ignorance that has op In Ions.
Knowledge knows.
--
The descent of the Superm Ind, wh Ich You announced on the 29th of February 1956, Is st Ill only
"someth Ing one hears about" for most people here.
--
The descent of the forerunners of the supramental forces Is a
fact (not a pred Ict Ion). The Incapac Ity of the vast major Ity of
human be Ings to become consc Ious of It Is a fact wh Ich can In
no way affect the fact of the advent of these forces and powers
--
men w Ill perce Ive It only when the Ir consc Iousness has become
enl Ightened.
--
The resolut Ions I make lose the Ir Intens Ity and ardour after a t Ime. How can I keep th Is enthus Iasm and
Increase It more and more?
BY WANT ING TO.
--
In the Ignorance, assumes the form of v Ital des Ires Is the
same wh Ich, In Its pure form, const Itutes the dynam Is
towards transformat Ion."23
Is th Is dynam Is that of asp Irat Ion? If so, could one
say that asp Irat Ion Is a pur If Ied des Ire?
One can say whatever one l Ikes, prov Ided one knows what one
--
The words are of l Ittle Importance; It Is the exper Ience and
the s Incer Ity of the exper Ience that count.
--
take In order to have the true sp Ir Itual exper Ience. Is It
poss Ible to ach Ieve It by asp Irat Ion alone, or Is there a
method or d Isc Ipl Ine to be followed?
Everyth Ing Is poss Ible. All paths lead to the goal prov Ided they
are followed w Ith pers Istence and s Incer Ity.
--
It Is best for each person to f Ind h Is own path, but for th Is
the asp Irat Ion must be ardent, the w Ill unshakable, the pat Ience
--
Are Illnesses and acc Idents the result of someth Ing
bad one has thought or done, of a fall In one's consc Iousness? If the cause Is a m Istake one has made, how can
one f Ind out what It Is?
It has noth Ing to do w Ith pun Ishment; It Is the natural and
normal consequence of an error, shortcom Ing or fault wh Ich
necessar Ily has consequences. Actually, everyth Ing In the world
Is a quest Ion of equ Il Ibr Ium or d Isequ Il Ibr Ium, of harmony or
d Isorder. V Ibrat Ions of harmony attract and encourage harmon Ious events; v Ibrat Ions of d Isequ Il Ibr Ium create, as It were, a
d Isequ Il Ibr Ium In c Ircumstances ( Illnesses, acc Idents, etc.). Th Is
may be collect Ive or Ind Iv Idual, but the pr Inc Iple Is the same
- and so Is the remedy: to cult Ivate In oneself order and harmony, peace and equ Il Ibr Ium by surrender Ing unreservedly to
the D Iv Ine W Ill.
--
the body Is complete, that means no subject Ion to
death.... One creates a new body for oneself when
--
change take place In the present body or does one have
Letters on Yoga, SABCL, Vol. 22, p. 11.
--
to leave It? If one has to leave the body, there seems to
be death. So...?
What he means Is that when one w Ill have the power to w Ithdraw the phys Ical body from the Influence of death, the power of
transformat Ion w Ill be such that one w Ill also be able to change
--
Once, In one of Your Wednesday classes, You sa Id
that In order not to feel pa In one must, so to speak, cut
the nerve that conveys th Is sensat Ion to the bra In. How
--
I d Id not say "cut the nerve" - that would be a surg Ical operat Ion! I sa Id, cut the consc Ious connect Ion w Ith the bra In.
It Is an occult operat Ion, certa Inly more d Iff Icult than the
other for those who don't know how to do It, but less dangerous.
28 July 1965
--
Does every person who comes to earth have a def In Ite goal he must ach Ieve In th Is l Ife, and does he ach Ieve
It unconsc Iously In sp Ite of h Imself?
YES.
--
outs Ide, more arrogant, lack Ing any sympathy, Incapable
of cooperat Ion, etc. What do You say to all th Is, Mother?
Somet Imes It Is l Ike that, as a matter of fact, and somet Imes It Is
the oppos Ite: at f Irst a total Incomprehens Ion, but later, l Ittle by
l Ittle, one comes to understand and apprec Iate.
Both are equally true and equally Incomplete.
In the world as It Is now, everyth Ing Is m Ixed and each one
sees and feels that wh Ich corresponds to h Is own nature.
To tell the truth, It doesn't matter at all.
25 August 1965
--
I really feel that there Is a great lack of harmony
and cooperat Ion here among us and among the var Ious departments. Th Is results In a great waste of money
and energy. Where does th Is d Isharmony come from and
when w Ill It be set r Ight?
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
Or Is th Is feel Ing I have only a reflect Ion of my own
nature!
Here Is the best answer to your quest Ions, wr Itten by Sr I Aurob Indo:
Each one carr Ies In h Imself the seeds of th Is d Isharmony,
and h Is most urgent work Is to pur Ify h Imself of It by a constant
asp Irat Ion.
--
Sr I Aurob Indo wr Ites In H Is Essays on the G Ita: "The
law of V Ishnu cannot preva Il t Ill the debt to Rudra Is
pa Id." What does th Is mean?
Mother, Is the present s Ituat Ion In Ind Ia25 l Ike the
debt that must be pa Id to Rudra?
Here Is the whole quotat Ion wh Ich I had prepared In advance for
those who want to know the reason for the present s Ituat Ion. I
am send Ing It to you so that your quest Ion becomes unnecessary.
"No real peace can be t Ill the heart of man deserves peace;
the law of V Ishnu cannot preva Il t Ill the debt to Rudra Is pa Id.
To turn as Ide then and preach to a st Ill unevolved mank Ind
--
salvat Ion. But not t Ill the T Ime-Sp Ir It In man Is ready, can the
Inner and ult Imate preva Il over the outer and Immed Iate real Ity.
Chr Ist and Buddha have come and gone but It Is Rudra who st Ill
holds the world In the hollow of h Is hand. And meanwh Ile the
f Ierce forward labour of mank Ind tormented and oppressed by
--
On September 1, Pak Istan Invaded Ind Ia's border at Jammu-Kashm Ir.
cr Ies for the sword of the Hero of the struggle and the word of
--
But I very often ask myself: "Why does Mother protect
me and keep me In such happ Iness, I who so l Ittle deserve
It?"
Because It Is not a quest Ion of mer It but of Grace.
6 October 1965
--
One sees that the world as a whole Is presently In
a sort of d Isequ Il Ibr Ium and chaos. Does th Is mean that
It Is prepar Ing for the man Ifestat Ion of a new force, for
the descent of the Truth, or Is It the result of the act Ion
Sr I Aurob Indo, Essays on the G Ita, SABCL, Vol. 13, p. 372.
The Indo-Pak Istan confl Ict ended In a cease-f Ire on September 22. The Mother's
message, sent s Ix days pr Ior to the cease-f Ire, was: " It Is for the sake and the tr Iumph
of Truth that Ind Ia Is f Ight Ing and must f Ight unt Il Ind Ia and Pak Istan have become One
because that Is the truth of the Ir be Ing."
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
of host Ile forces In revolt aga Inst th Is descent? And what
place does Ind Ia occupy In all th Is?
It Is both at the same t Ime - a chaot Ic means of preparat Ion.
Ind Ia ought to be the sp Ir Itual gu Ide who expla Ins what Is happen Ing and helps to hasten the movement. But unfortunately,
In her bl Ind amb It Ion to Im Itate the West, she has become
mater Ial Ist Ic and neglectful of her soul.
--
Why does th Is happen? How can we avo Id It?
That's how It Is when one Is lack Ing In w Ill and In force of
consc Iousness.
Both of these can be acqu Ired If one Is s Incere In one's
asp Irat Ion.
--
About Ind Iv Idual transformat Ion and soc Ial transformat Ion You say: "S Ince the env Ironment reacts upon
the Ind Iv Idual and, on the other hand, the value of the
env Ironment depends upon the value of the Ind Iv Idual,
the two works should proceed s Ide by s Ide. But th Is
--
necess Itates the format Ion of a group, h Ierarch Ic Ised, If
poss Ible."28
--
Mother, I do not understand what You mean by the
format Ion of a h Ierarch Ic Ised group.
A h Ierarch Ic Ised group means a group In wh Ich the act Iv It Ies
and funct Ions are organ Ised accord Ing to Ind Iv Idual ab Il Ity, w Ith
a leader at the centre. A m Il Itary organ Isat Ion, for example, Is a
h Ierarchy.
Here Is a d Iagram of the anc Ient
trad It Ional h Ierarch Ies.
--
Is there a h Ierarch Ic Ised group here In the Ashram?
Mother, I want to know more about It, but I don't know
how to formulate It.
Every group, If It Is a real one - that Is, one made up accord Ing to the ab Il Ity of the Ind Iv Iduals who compose It - must
necessar Ily be h Ierarch Ical.
--
(1) F Irst, when the group Is Incomplete - that Is, when
It does not have all the members necessary to const Itute the
h Ierarchy and certa In funct Ions or Intermed Iar Ies are m Iss Ing.
(2) The Ind Isc Ipl Ine of certa In members refus Ing wholly or
In part to occupy the place ass Igned to them.
When order and harmony are establ Ished, the h Ierarchy Is
organ Ised qu Ite naturally and spontaneously.
--
Fear Is an Invent Ion of the host Ile forces who have created It as
the best means of dom Inat Ing l Iv Ing be Ings, an Imals and men.
Those who are pure - that Is to say, exclus Ively under the
D Iv Ine Influence - have no fear.
10 November 1965
--
You wr Ite In Your Conversat Ions: "Each t Ime that
someth Ing of the D Iv Ine Truth and the D Iv Ine Force
comes down to man Ifest upon earth, some change Is
effected In the earth's atmosphere."29
(1) Is th Is change always v Iolent and destruct Ive,
such as a revolut Ion or a war?
Not necessar Ily. What expresses Itself as a war or a revolut Ion
Is the res Istance In the human consc Iousness to the New Force.
When the res Istance Is less, everyth Ing takes place harmon Iously.
(2) And Is the converse always val Id: If there Is a war or
a revolut Ion, Is It the s Ign of a descent of the Truth?
Not necessar Ily. Human folly takes advantage of the sl Ightest
cause to man Ifest Itself.
17 November 1965
--
You wr Ite: "Each one here represents an Imposs Ib Il Ity to be solved."30 Could You expla In to me what th Is
means exactly?
It Is an Iron Ic way of say Ing that the most d Iff Icult cases, from
the standpo Int of transformat Ion, are gathered here to concret Ise
and synthes Ise the work of transform Ing the earth In order to
prepare the new creat Ion.
--
You told me to enter w Ith In, Into the depths of my
heart, to f Ind You seated there. But, Mother, I cannot
manage to enter Into the heart. I feel dur Ing med Itat Ion
that my consc Iousness Is fly Ing around an Impenetrable
fortress. What should I do to succeed In what You have
told me?
--
consc Iousness wh Ich does not have contact w Ith the Inner states
of be Ing. You have to go out of th Is external consc Iousness and
penetrate Into a subtler consc Iousness; then the fortress w Ill no
longer be Impenetrable.
22 December 1965
--
What must we do to serve the Truth? Must It f Irst of
all be l Ived?
To serve It, you must l Ive It.
To l Ive It, you must necessar Ily serve It.
Words of the Mother - I I, CWM, Vol. 14, p. 84.
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
And for both, you must want It w Ith s Incer Ity and pers Istence.
5 January 1966
--
There Is a tendency among most of us here to conduct our l Ives and programmes accord Ing to the customs
of soc Iety. We say: "We must also th Ink of the op In Ion of
people from outs Ide. S Ince we l Ive In soc Iety, we must be
reasonable and lead a l Ife In keep Ing w Ith the Irs." Sweet
Mother, what do You say to all th Is and what should our
--
If most people here th Ink and feel l Ike that, It Is an obv Ious proof
that most are not at all ready for the new l Ife, nor even ready to
--
better to return to the ord Inary l Ife and exper Ience It, Instead of
tak Ing advantage of the except Ional cond It Ions of ex Istence they
--
Formerly, You were very str Ict about perm Itt Ing people to come and l Ive In the Ashram. Now It Is no longer
so. Why?
--
pract Ise the yoga, It was natural to be str Ict.
As soon as the ch Ildren were adm Itted here, It was no longer
poss Ible to be str Ict and the nature of the l Ife changed.
--
l Ife on earth and everyth Ing can f Ind a place In It, prov Ided It
has the w Ill to progress towards a d Iv Iner l Ife.
--
I ask myself whether I am pract Is Ing yoga! But the
answer Is not sure. Can You tell me where I am and how
I can progress on th Is path?
--
yoga, even If you do not know It; and by the very fact that you
are l Iv Ing here, you are helped In your yoga to the utmost of
your poss Ib Il It Ies. The only th Ing you lack Is be Ing consc Ious.
2 February 1966
--
to pract Ise the yoga"; and aga In, I bel Ieve you have
sa Id somewhere, "Not everyone here Is meant for yoga."
So... ?
--
you are do Ing a yoga" - do You mean that It Is the yoga
of the natural and Inev Itable progress of evolut Ion?
(2) "The Ashram was reserved for those who wanted
to pract Ise the yoga" - that Is to say, only for those who
are pract Is Ing consc Iously?
--
(3) "Not everyone here Is meant for yoga" - that
Is, they are Incapable of do Ing It consc Iously?
YES.
--
How can one Increase one's recept Iv Ity?
Recept Iv Ity Is proport Ionate to self-g Iv Ing.
2 March 1966
--
There was a t Ime when I used to see You often In my
dreams and somet Imes I even saw Sr I Aurob Indo too. But
I haven't enjoyed th Is happ Iness for a long t Ime. Why?
What does It mean?
The best way of see Ing us In your dreams Is to concentrate on us
before go Ing to sleep. Do you do th Is now as you used to before?
Th Is Is also the way to avo Id go Ing to undes Irable places dur Ing
your sleep, for In those places you are sure not to meet us. Try,
and you w Ill see the result.
--
no one has ever tr Ied before. But, Mother, Isn't It true
that we now tend to d Irect our l Ives and act Iv It Ies more
--
l Ife? In that case, aren't we stray Ing from the true path?
You are st Ill In the old rut that separates sp Ir Itual Ity from l Ife.
Whereas Sr I Aurob Indo has declared, "All l Ife Is Yoga" and
aff Irmed that It Is In l Ife that one must do Yoga. You seem to
have forgotten th Is.
--
Isn't th Is Immense freedom we are g Iven dangerous
for those of us who are not yet awake, who are st Ill unconsc Ious? What Is the explanat Ion for th Is opportun Ity,
th Is good fortune we have been granted?
--
them noth Ing would ever st Ir; and also they are Ind Ispensable
for mould Ing the character of those who want to progress.
--
How should I prepare myself for the Apr Il 24th
Darshan?
Look attent Ively Into yourself to f Ind out what for you Is the
most Important th Ing, the th Ing you feel that you couldn't do
w Ithout.
It Is an Interest Ing d Iscovery.
19 Apr Il 1966
--
Anger Is a v Iolent react Ion of the v Ital to some shock that
Is unpleasant to It; and when It Involves words or thoughts,
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
the m Ind responds to the Influence of the v Ital and also reacts v Iolently. Any express Ion of anger Is the s Ign of a lack of
self-control.
--
Two days ago I was w Ith You In my dream and You
spoke w Ith me for qu Ite a long t Ime. I don't remember
the whole conversat Ion, but the Impress Ion that rema Ins
Is that You are not very pleased w Ith the quest Ions I ask
You every Wednesday. Is th Is true?
That you saw and heard me Is a s Ign of progress, and w Ith th Is I
am pleased. But It Is true that I f Ind you mentally a b It lazy and
Ind Ifferent to the opportun Ity I g Ive you each week to ask me
a quest Ion. Your quest Ions are rather commonplace and don't
g Ive the Impress Ion that you are really search Ing for the secrets
of l Ife and the world.
--
Are mental Ind Ifference and lack of cur Ios Ity a sort
of mental Inert Ia?
Usually they are due to mental Inert Ia, unless one has obta Ined
th Is calm and Ind Ifference through a very Intense sadhana result Ing In a perfect equal Ity for wh Ich good and bad, pleasant
and unpleasant no longer ex Ist. But In that case, mental act Iv Ity
Is replaced by an Intu It Ive act Iv Ity of a much h Igher k Ind.
25 May 1966
--
Th Is should alternate In the course of the day w Ith exerc Ises
of mental s Ilence In concentrat Ion.
1 June 1966
--
Are the presence and Intervent Ion of the Amer Icans
In V Ietnam just If Iable?
--
If It Is from the pol It Ical po Int of v Iew, pol It Ics Is steeped In
falsehood, and I am not Interested In It.
If It Is from the moral po Int of v Iew, moral Ity Is a sh Ield
wh Ich ord Inary men flour Ish to protect themselves from the
--
If It Is from the sp Ir Itual po Int of v Iew, the D Iv Ine W Ill alone
Is just If Iable, and It Is That wh Ich men travesty and deform In
all the Ir act Ions.
--
of v Iew and from Your answer I conclude that the Amer Ican act Ion Is not at all just If Iable. But, Mother, Isn't the
world In danger of be Ing swallowed by the Commun Ists
and Isn't that why the Amer Icans and the Ir All Ies are
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
engaged In safeguard Ing the freedom of man? Is that the
D Iv Ine W Ill?
The op In Ion you express Is the op In Ion of the Amer Icans and
of a large number of human be Ings who th Ink l Ike them.
But the Commun Ists and all those who have fa Ith In the
Commun Ist Ideal have the oppos Ite op In Ion, not to ment Ion
all the many and var Ied op In Ions on soc Ial and pol It Ical subjects. All these are only OP IN IONS and have no value at all
--
and of the goal to be ach Ieved, wh Ich Is the only th Ing that
matters.
Everyth Ing mental Is necessar Ily an op In Ion and expresses
only an Inf In Ites Imal fract Ion of the Truth.
13 July 1966
--
can be transformed." What Is the truth?
I may have sa Id someth Ing of the k Ind. But the exactness of the
numbers Is certa Inly fanc Iful.
It Is true that the number of those who take the yoga
ser Iously Is not cons Iderable...
But the D Iv Ine Grace Is Inf In Ite!
20 July 1966
--
I feel It Is most shameful on our part to waste the
D Iv Ine Grace, to m Isuse th Is un Ique pr Iv Ilege granted to
--
of us has surely felt and enjoyed - at least once In h Is
l Ife, In a blessed moment - the Inf In Ite Splendour wh Ich
Is w Ith In our reach and awa Its us. Yet there are so few
--
It Is qu Ite s Imply unconsc Iousness, Incoerc Ible TAMAS.
27 July 1966
(Regard Ing an Inv Itat Ion to the capta In to follow a course
of pract Ical stud Ies In Calcutta)
Those who s Incerely want to learn have all the poss Ib Il It Ies to
--
have here, Is the moral constra Int of an external d Isc Ipl Ine.
Here one Is free and the only constra Int Is the one that one
puts on oneself when one Is S INCERE.
Now It Is for you to dec Ide.
3 August 1966
--
I was very happy to rece Ive Your reply and I have
dec Ided not to go. In any case I doubted that You would
approve of th Is proposal, but all the same I had the
follow Ing reasons when I asked You If I could accept the
Inv Itat Ion. (Here the reasons are enumerated.)
From your letter I can see that you really have a great des Ire to
accept the Inv Itat Ion... I do not want, then, to depr Ive you of
th Is exper Ience and I say to you: "You may go."
Th Is dec Is Ion Is f Inal.
4 August 1966
--
May I have photographs of Sr I Aurob Indo and You,
w Ith Your bless Ings, to keep w Ith me when I am far from
Pond Icherry?
--
One f Inal note on th Is famous affa Ir of the Inv Itat Ion wh Ich has created a lot of m Isunderstand Ings
everywhere.
Mother, I do not understand You! On one occas Ion
You say to me: "You may go. Th Is dec Is Ion Is f Inal";
later when I come to You, You aff Irm It once aga In
and send me away w Ith the assurance that You w Ill
be w Ith me always, that I can go w Ithout fear, that It
w Ill do me good, etc., In sp Ite of my Ins Istence that I
no longer feel l Ike go Ing after hav Ing rece Ived Your f Irst
--
Naturally, after that, I go and make all the necessary
arrangements. X arranges for my departure. But later
--
Truly, I understand noth Ing about all th Is except
that You are not enthus Iast Ic about my go Ing. But why
all th Is compl Icat Ion? I don't know what X th Inks of me,
but It Is true that I have got h Im Into a very compl Icated
s Ituat Ion and I regret It.
Mother, after Your last quest Ion, I no longer feel
l Ike go Ing. I W ILL NOT GO. Th Is Is my f Inal dec Is Ion.
Th Is famous chapter Is closed.
Very good. And everyth Ing I d Id was prec Isely to br Ing you to
th Is dec Is Ion!
--
Ind Ia Is supposed to be the Guru of the world In
order to establ Ish the sp Ir Itual l Ife on earth. But, Mother,
--
W Ithout any doubt - and just now, there Is much to be done!
7 September 1966
--
Why th Is chaot Ic cond It Ion In our present government? Is It the s Ign of a change for the better, for the
re Ign of Truth?
It Is the pressure of the force of Truth on the whole earth
wh Ich Is caus Ing d Isorder, confus Ion and falsehood to spr Ing
up everywhere In a refusal to be transformed.
The v Ictory of the Truth Is certa In, but It Is d Iff Icult to say
when and how It w Ill come about.
14 September 1966
--
How can one pract Ise yog Ic d Isc Ipl Ines w Ithout bel Iev Ing In God or the D Iv Ine?31
Why? It Is very easy. Because these are only words. When one
pract Ises w Ithout bel Iev Ing In God or the D Iv Ine, one pract Ises
The Mother repl Ied to th Is quest Ion orally; she was speak Ing to someone other than
--
Are there many people - I am not speak Ing of those who
have a rel Ig Ion: they learn a catech Ism when they are young and
--
- are there many who bel Ieve In the D Iv Ine? Not In Europe
anyway. But even here, there are qu Ite a number who by trad It Ion have a "fam Ily de Ity", yet It doesn't bother them at all
to take the Ir de Ity and throw It Into the Ganges when they get
d Ispleased! It does happen - I know some people who d Id It.
They had a fam Ily Kal I In the Ir house, they actually d Id take
her and throw her Into the Ganges because they were d Ispleased
w Ith her. If one bel Ieves In the D Iv Ine, one cannot do th Ings l Ike
that.
I don't know - bel Ieve In the D Iv Ine? One th Irsts for a certa In perfect Ion, perhaps even to transcend oneself, to arr Ive at
someth Ing h Igher than what one Is; If one Is a ph Ilanthrop Ist,
one has an asp Irat Ion that mank Ind should become better, or
--
can pract Ise yoga for that, but that Is not bel Iev Ing. To bel Ieve Is
to have the fa Ith that there cannot be a world w Ithout the D Iv Ine,
--
out or been taught, noth Ing l Ike that: fa Ith. A fa Ith that Is a l Iv Ing
knowledge, not an acqu Ired one, that the ex Istence of the world
--
And th Is Is so obv Ious, you see, that one has the Impress Ion that
In order to th Ink otherw Ise, one has to be a b It dense. And the
"D Iv Ine" not In the sense of "purpose" or "goal" or "end", not
that sort of th Ing: the world as It Is proves the D Iv Ine. Because
It Is the D Iv Ine under a certa In aspect - a rather d Istorted one,
but st Ill...
For me It Is even stronger than that. I look at a rose, a
th Ing that conta Ins such a concentrat Ion of spontaneous beauty
--
see It to be sure that there Is a D Iv Ine. It Is a certa Inty. One
cannot... It Is Imposs Ible not to bel Ieve. It Is l Ike those people
(th Is Is fantast Ic!), those people who study Nature, really study It
thoroughly, how everyth Ing funct Ions and Is brought about and
ex Ists - how can one study s Incerely, w Ith attent Ion and care,
w Ithout be Ing absolutely conv Inced that the D Iv Ine Is there? We
call It the D Iv Ine - the D Iv Ine Is t Iny! (Mother laughs.) For me
ex Istence Is an Incontestable proof that there Is... that there Is
noth Ing but That - someth Ing we cannot name, cannot def Ine,
--
more become. A Someth Ing that Is more perfect than all the
perfect Ions, more beaut Iful than all the beaut Ies, more marvellous than all the marvels, so that even the total Ity of all that
ex Ists cannot express It. And there Is noth Ing but That. And It
Is not a Someth Ing float Ing In noth Ingness: there Is noth Ing but
That.
--
It Is a quest Ion of Inner s Incer Ity. Common sense Is not a judge
because It Is a mental funct Ion of a rather Infer Ior order.
Moreover, there Is a very s Imple way of know Ing. One has
only to Imag Ine that the th Ing one wants to do w Ill not be done,
and If th Is Imag Inat Ion creates the least uneas Iness, then one can
be sure of the presence of des Ire.
--
In th Is Integral yoga of Sr I Aurob Indo, work has a
place of cap Ital Importance, doesn't It? Th Is be Ing the
case, what place does med Itat Ion have?
--
There Is room for many other act Iv It Ies wh Ich have the Ir
purpose In an Integral Yoga.
26 October 1966
--
several v Irtues. Wh Ich Is the most necessary?
S INCER ITY.
--
Ashram Is In a terr Ible f Inanc Ial cond It Ion, and from t Ime
to t Ime we clearly see th Is for ourselves. But, Mother, we
also see extravagant spend Ing by certa In Ind Iv Iduals and
certa In departments. Moreover, these expend Itures are
poss Ible only through Your generos Ity. So how can It be
sa Id that the Ashram Is undergo Ing a f Inanc Ial cr Is Is?
But perhaps It Is just because certa In Ind Iv Iduals and certa In
departments are spend Ing extravagantly that there Is a f Inanc Ial
cr Is Is!...
Otherw Ise all Is well.
30 November 1966
--
Your reply expla Ins noth Ing, for Isn't It You who
orders these expend Itures?
--
oneself Into act Iv Ity, the mental d Isturbance beg Ins aga In!
One can have a qu Iet m Ind w Ithout be Ing In a complete state
of s Ilence; one can carry on an act Iv Ity w Ithout be Ing d Isturbed.
The Ideal Is to be able to act w Ithout com Ing out of the mental
qu Ietude.
--
what one does Is better done.
In order to ach Ieve self-mastery, should one follow the
--
W Iden Ing the consc Iousness Is necessary for all who want to l Ive
a free and Intell Igent l Ife, even w Ithout there be Ing any quest Ion
of Yoga or asp Irat Ion for the D Iv Ine L Ife.
--
When I heard that X was drowned In a lake at G Ingee dur Ing the out Ing, I was unable to bel Ieve It or to be
shocked by th Is news. The only quest Ion that arose In me
was: How Is It poss Ible! Mother knew we were at G Ingee,
so Her protect Ion was w Ith us. Then how Is It poss Ible?
The protect Ion Is over the group - and If the act Ion of the group
Is coord Inated and d Isc Ipl Ined, the protect Ion acts. But when an
Ind Iv Idual acts Independently, the protect Ion acts only In the
measure of h Is fa Ith.
--
Aurob Indo speaks of the Influence of the D Iv Ine Compass Ion and the D Iv Ine Grace.32 But what Is the d Ifference between the two?
The compass Ion seeks to rel Ieve the suffer Ing of all, whether
they deserve It or not.
The Grace does not recogn Ise the r Ight of suffer Ing to ex Ist
and abol Ishes It.
21 December 1966
--
D Iv Ine Compass Ion act Ing on as many as It can reach through the nets of the Law and
g Iv Ing them the Ir chance; (3) the D Iv Ine Grace wh Ich acts more Incalculably but also
more Irres Ist Ibly than the others." - Letters on Yoga, SABCL, Vol. 23, p. 609.
S Incer Ity, courage, d Isc Ipl Ine, endurance, absolute fa Ith In the
D Iv Ine work and unshakable trust In the D Iv Ine Grace. All
th Is must be accompan Ied by a susta Ined, ardent, persever Ing
--
It Is sa Id that noth Ing Is In us, everyth Ing comes from
outs Ide. It Is also sa Id elsewhere that our v Is Ion of the
outs Ide (of the world around us) Is the reflect Ion of our
Inner be Ing. Could you expla In these two sentences a
--
to r Ise to the Intellectual level on wh Ich all oppos Ite Ideas can be
set face to face and assembled In a comprehens Ive synthes Is.
You once wrote to me that "others are a m Irror reflect Ing
the Image of what you are." Can you expla In th Is to me
a l Ittle?
The th Ings that shock you most In others are those that you are
struggl Ing aga Inst In yourself or try Ing to suppress In yourself.
Know Ing th Is teaches you to be pat Ient.
--
On the cond It Ion of the one to whom I wr Ite the card and on h Is
state of consc Iousness, wh Ich var Ies accord Ing to the moment
--
The ord Inary man Is often gu Ided In l Ife by h Is consc Ience, Isn't he? So what becomes of one who has no
consc Ience, who has lost It by hav Ing d Isregarded It too
often?
What Is usually called "consc Ience" Is a mental format Ion based
on the Idea of good and ev Il, a moral ent Ity or rather an element of goodw Ill wh Ich tr Ies to keep the Ind Iv Idual on what Is
commonly known as the stra Ight path.
--
But all th Is Is a mental approx Imat Ion of the Truth. It Is not
the Truth Itself.
15 February 1967
--
Why Is It that whenever one th Inks of You one feels
a need for phys Ical closeness? What Is the value of th Is
phys Ical contact?
(1) When one Is more consc Ious In the phys Ical than In the v Ital
and mental, the phys Ical relat Ion seems more real and tang Ible.
(2) For those who have ser Iously begun the yoga In the body,
the phys Ical relat Ion Is of course a powerful a Id.
I ask the f Irst to make an effort to establ Ish not only a psych Ic
relat Ion (wh Ich Is always there even when they are not consc Ious
of It) but also a mental and v Ital relat Ion, wh Ich makes the outer
relat Ion less Ind Ispensable.
I try to teach the others to w Iden the Ir phys Ical consc Iousness
--
empt Iness Ins Ide. Even If one has all the phys Ical comforts, there Is st Ill someth Ing m Iss Ing. One doesn't feel
very joyful. One wants to come back as soon as poss Ible.
--
Perhaps It Is because you have a soul.
12 Apr Il 1967
--
Not everyone Is consc Ious of h Is soul and very few are those
who are gu Ided by the Ir soul.
--
Normally, I feel qu Ite happy w Ith l Ife as It Is - t Ime
passes qu Ickly. But there are per Iods when I feel that I
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
am not mak Ing much progress. I am st Ill In the rut of
old petty hab Its wh Ich do not allow me to be free.
The character can change and must change, but It Is a long
and m Inute work wh Ich requ Ires susta Ined effort and a great
--
May33 - somet Imes You too are quoted. But In sp Ite
of all th Is, I have not qu Ite understood Its s Ign If Icance.
Is It necessary that It should have a s Ign If Icance?
Sr I Aurob Indo announced that from that date onwards
someth Ing would happen.34 And It d Id happen.
That Is all that Is needed.
21 June 1967
--
It Is sa Id that the v Ibrat Ions of the be Ing develop
from one l Ife to another, become r Icher and form the psych Ic personal Ity beh Ind the surface personal Ity. But then
--
The numer Ical sequence of th Is date Is 4.5.67.
Sr I Aurob Indo wrote: "1.2.34. It Is supposed to be always a year of man Ifestat Ion.
2.3.45 Is the year of power - when the th Ing man Ifested gets full force. 4.5.67 Is the
year of complete real Isat Ion." (Letter of 2 February 1934)
--
No, the psych Ic decants - that Is exactly what happens.
The psych Ic does not reta In th Ings In the Ir total Ity - It decants,
It gradually decants the v Ibrat Ions.
The psych Ic memory Is a decanted memory of events. For
example, In past l Ives there have been moments when, for some
reason or other, the psych Ic was present and part Ic Ipated; In that
case It reta Ins the memory of the c Ircumstance. But the memory
It reta Ins Is that of the psych Ic l Ife of that moment; so even If It
reta Ins the memory of the Image, It Is a s Impl If Ied Image such as
It Is translated In the psych Ic consc Iousness and accord Ing to the
psych Ic v Ibrat Ion of all the people present.
He would not ask such a quest Ion If he had ever had a
psych Ic memory, because when one has one, It Is qu Ite ev Ident.
Before know Ing these th Ings, I had had psych Ic memor Ies
and always they struck me by the Ir spec Ial character. It was as
If one had, one cannot exactly say an emot Ion, but a certa In
emot Ional v Ibrat Ion of a c Ircumstance; and that Is what Is sol Id,
what rema Ins, what lasts. And so w Ith that, one has a percept Ion
--
memory; It Is rarely the events that mentally are cons Idered
as the most memorable or most Important In a l Ifet Ime, but
the moments when the psych Ic has part Ic Ipated - consc Iously
part Ic Ipated - In the event. And that Is what rema Ins.
15 July 1967
--
we are not consc Ious of It. Only danger makes us recall
Your Presence so that we may have Your protect Ion. But
--
presence of someone other than ourselves In the car, and
It was very strong, even though we were not consc Ious
--
day? If so, why d Idn't we sense It?
I was very strongly and consc Iously w Ith you because X had
wr Itten to me that the tyres of the car were In poor cond It Ion.
You d Id not feel the danger because I d Id not want you to
feel It.
19 July 1967
--
Why Is It that In the Ashram Itself people feel the
need to form l Ittle groups and soc Iet Ies: for example,
World Un Ion, New Age Assoc Iat Ion, etc.? What Is the Ir
purpose?
It Is because men st Ill Imag Ine that to do someth Ing useful, they
have to form groups.
It Is the car Icature of organ Isat Ion.
20 September 1967
--
Does the D Iv Ine pun Ish Injust Ice? Is It poss Ible that
He ever pun Ishes anyone?
--
After all these years I have found the forgotten notebook, and I
reply:
--
All act Ions carry In themselves the Ir fru Its w Ith the Ir consequences.
Accord Ing to Its nature, an act Ion br Ings one nearer to the
D Iv Ine or takes one farther from H Im - and that Is the supreme
consequence.
--
The other day I had a d Iscuss Ion w Ith X about Sr I
Aurob Indo's Act Ion. He sa Id that had there been an enl Ightened person l Ike V Ivekananda, the work could have
--
w Ith the Instruments She has at her d Isposal. F Inally he
told me that he had no op In Ion on the subject. "My
--
my "bus Iness" was. I repl Ied that I d Idn't know what
my "bus Iness" was - all I knew was that I had to concentrate on myself In order to perfect myself more and
more. Was that correct? Mother, what actually Is my
"bus Iness"?
Certa Inly, the most Important occupat Ion Is to develop and perfect oneself, but that can be done very well, and even better, wh Ile
work Ing. It Is for you to know what work It Is that most Interests
you, the one that opens for you a path towards perfect Ion. It
may be someth Ing apparently very modest; It Is not the apparent
Importance of a work wh Ich g Ives It Its real value for the yoga.
5 August 1970
--
l Ives, but I feel very strongly that It Is In th Is very l Ife that
we must real Ise our h Ighest asp Irat Ions, as If th Is were
the last chance g Iven to us. For me, allus Ions to other
l Ives are Intang Ible and academ Ic rather than a help and
Ser Ies Ten - To a Young Capta In
a hope. It Is not that I don't bel Ieve In re Incarnat Ion, but
th Is Idea comes back to my m Ind very often. Mother, Is
th Is a narrowness of v Is Ion on my part, or what?
Knowledge of past l Ives Is Interest Ing for an understand Ing of
one's nature and a mastery of one's Imperfect Ions. But to tell the
truth, It Is not of cap Ital Importance, and It Is far more Important
to concentrate on the future, on the consc Iousness to be acqu Ired
and on the development of the nature, wh Ich Is almost unl Im Ited
for those who know how to do It.
We are at an espec Ially favourable moment In the un Iversal
ex Istence, a moment when, upon earth, everyth Ing Is be Ing prepared for a new creat Ion, or rather, for a new man Ifestat Ion In
the eternal creat Ion.
--
When You are phys Ically str Icken, I always feel very
sad. I tell myself that It Is not an ord Inary Illness, that
It Is an exper Ience lead Ing towards phys Ical transformat Ion. But when I th Ink of Your suffer Ing body, I am
sad. And then, Is th Is not part of the Sacr If Ice of the
Supreme spoken of by Sr I Aurob Indo? Are we worthy of
--
What Is the best att Itude on our part?
The best for each one Is to progress as s Incerely as he can. The
mater Ial d Iff Icult Ies are part of the work of transformat Ion and
--
I have the Impress Ion that Your Force responds accord Ing to the Intens Ity of our prayer. But my case seems
to be d Ifferent. Or am I not consc Ious of my prayers?
Or Is everyth Ing done for me, for my good, In sp Ite of
myself?
It Is always that way for everyone. The d Ifference l Ies In each
one's state of consc Iousness. Some are ent Irely consc Ious of what
--
of the answer they rece Ive, and there are those whose asp Irat Ion Is suff Ic Iently strong and s Incere for them to be constantly
consc Ious of the help they are g Iven.
01.10 - Nicholas Berdyaev: God Made Human, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
N Icholas Berdyaev Is an ardent worker, as a Russ Ian Is naturally expected to be, In the cause of the sp Ir Itual rehab Il Itat Ion of mank Ind. He Is a Chr Ist Ian, a neo-Chr Ist Ian: some of h Is conclus Ions are old-world truths and bear repet It Ion and Ins Istence; others are of a more l Im Ited, cond It Ional and even doubtful nature. H Is concept Ion of the value of human person, the d Ign Ity and the h Igh real Ity he g Ives to It, can never be too welcome In a world where the Ind Iv Idual seems to have gone the way of van Ished emp Ires and k Ings and pr Inces. But even more Important and Interest Ing Is the v Iew he underl Ines that the true person Is a sp Ir Itual be Ing, that Is to say, It Is qu Ite other than the emp Ir Ical ego that man normally Is"not th Is that one worsh Ips" as the Upan Ishads too declare. Further, In h Is sp Ir Itual be Ing man, the Ind Iv Idual, Is not s Imply a port Ion or a fract Ion; he Is, on the contrary, an Integer, a complete whole, a creat Ive focus; the true Ind Iv Idual Is a m Icrocosm yet hold Ing In It and Imag Ing the macrocosm. Only perhaps greater stress Is la Id upon the aspect of creat Iv Ity or act Iv Ism. An Eastern sage, a Vedant In, would look for the true sp Ir Itual real Ity beh Ind the flux of forces: Prakr It I or Energy Is only the execut Ive w Ill of the Purusha, the Consc Ious Be Ing. The personal Ity In Nature Is a formulat Ion and emanat Ion of the transcendent Impersonal Ity.
There Is another aspect of personal Ity as v Iewed by Berdyaev wh Ich Involves a b Ias of the more orthodox Chr Ist Ian fa Ith: the Chr Ist Is Inseparable from the Cross. So he says: "There Is no such th Ing as personal Ity If there Is no capac Ity for suffer Ing. Suffer Ing Is Inherent In God too, If he Is a personal Ity, and not merely an abstract Idea. God shares In the suffer Ings of men. He yearns for respons Ive love. There are d Iv Ine as well as human pass Ions and therefore d Iv Ine or creat Ive personal Ity must always suffer to the end of t Ime. A cond It Ion of angu Ish and d Istress Is Inherent In It." The v Iew Is log Ically enforced upon the Chr Ist Ian, It Is sa Id, If he Is to accept Incarnat Ion, God becom Ing flesh. Flesh cannot but be weak. Th Is very weakness, so human, Is and must be spec Ially character Ist Ic of God also, If he Is one w Ith man and h Is lover and sav Iour.
Eastern sp Ir Itual Ity does not v Iew sorrow and suffer Ingev Ilas an Integral part of the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness. It Is born out of the D Iv Ine, no doubt, as noth Ing can be outs Ide the D Iv Ine, but It Is a local and temporal format Ion; It Is a d Ispos It Ion consequent upon certa In cond It Ions and w Ith the absence or el Im Inat Ion of those cond It Ions, th Is d Ispos It Ion too d Isappears. God and the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness can only be pur Ity, l Ight, Immortal Ity and del Ight. The compass Ion that a Buddha feels for the suffer Ing human Ity Is not at all a feel Ing of suffer Ing; pa In or any such normal human react Ion does not enter Into Its compos It Ion; It Is the movement of a transcendent consc Iousness wh Ich Is beyond and pur If Ied of the normal react Ions, yet overarch Ing them and enter Ing Into them as a sooth Ing and Illum In Ing and v Iv Ify Ing presence. The healer knows and understands the pa In and suffer Ing of h Is pat Ient but Is not touched by them; he need not contract the Illness of h Is pat Ient In order to be In sympathy w Ith h Im. The D Iv Ine the Soulcan be In flesh and yet not sm Irched w Ith Its m Ire; the flesh Is not essent Ially or Irrevocably the ooze It Is under certa In g Iven cond It Ions. The d Iv Ine phys Ical body Is composed of rad Iant matter and one can speak of It even as of the soul that weapons cannot p Ierce It nor can f Ire burn It.
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01.10 - Principle and Personality, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
It Is asked of us why do we preach a man and not purely and solely a pr Inc Iple. Our Ideal be Ing avowedly the establ Ishment and re Ign of a new pr Inc Iple of world-order and not gather Ing recru Its for the camp of a sectar Ian teacher, It seems all the more Incons Istent, If not thoroughly ru Inous for our cause, that we should lay stress upon a part Icular Ind Iv Idual and Incur the danger of overshadow Ing the un Iversal truths upon wh Ich we seek to bu Ild human soc Iety. Now, It Is not that we are unconsc Ious or obl Iv Ious of the many ev Ils attendant upon the system of preach Ing a man the h Istory of the r Ise and decay of many sects and soc Iet Ies Is there to g Ive us suff Ic Ient warn Ing; and yet If we cannot ent Irely g Ive the go-by to personal It Ies and st Ick to mere and bare pr Inc Iples, It Is because we have clear reasons for It, because we are not unconsc Ious or obl Iv Ious e Ither of the ev Ils that beset the system of preach Ing the pr Inc Iple alone.
Rel Ig Ious bod Ies that are formed through the bhakt I and puja for one man, soc Ial reconstruct Ions forced by the w Ill and power of a s Ingle Ind Iv Idual, have already In the Incept Ion th Is gra In of Incapac Ity and d Isease and death that they are not an Integrally self-consc Ious creat Ion, they are not, as a whole, Intell Igent and w Ide awake and therefore constantly respons Ive to the truths and Ideals and real It Ies for wh Ich they ex Ist, for wh Ich at least, the Ir founder Intended them to ex Ist. The l Ight at the apex Is the only l Ight and the ent Ire structure Is but the shadow of that l Ight; the whole th Ing has the aspect of a dark mass galvan Ised Into red-hot act Iv Ity by the pass Ing touch of a dynamo. Immed Iately however the sol Itary l Ight fa Ils and the dynamo stops, there Is noth Ing but the or Ig Inal darkness and Inert Iatoma as It tamasa gudham agre.
Man, however great and pu Issant he may be, Is a per Ishable th Ing. People who gather or are gathered round a man and cl Ing to h Im through the t Ie of a personal relat Ion must fall off and scatter when the man passes away and the personal t Ie loses Its hold. What rema Ins Is a memory, a gradually fad Ing memory. But memory Is hardly a creat Ive force, It Is a dead, at best, a mor Ibund th Ing; the real creat Ive power Is Presence. So when the great man's presence, the power that crystall Ises Is gone, the whole ed If Ice crumbles and van Ishes Into a Ir or rema Ins a mere name.
Love and adm Irat Ion for a mahapurusha Is not enough, even fa Ith In h Is gospel Is of l Ittle ava Il, nor can actual part Ic Ipat Ion, consecrated work and labour In h Is cause save the s Ituat Ion; It Is only when the pr Inc Iples, the bare real It Ies for wh Ich the mahapurusha stands are In the open forum and men have the full and free opportun Ity of test Ing and ass Im Ilat Ing them, It Is only when Ind Iv Iduals thus become l Iv Ing embod Iments of those pr Inc Iples and real It Ies that we do create a th Ing un Iversal and permanent, as un Iversal and permanent as earthly th Ings may be. Pr Inc Iples only can embrace and un Ify the whole of human Ity; a part Icular personal Ity shall always create d Iv Is Ion and l Im Itat Ion. By plac Ing the man In front, we erect a wall between the Pr Inc Iple and men at large. It Is the pr Inc Iples, on the contrary, that should be g Iven the place of honour: our attempt should be to keep back personal It Ies and make as l Ittle use of them as poss Ible. Let the pr Inc Iples work and create In the Ir freedom and power, untrammelled by the l Im Itat Ions of any mere human vessel.
We are qu Ite fam Il Iar w Ith th Is cry so rampant In our democrat Ic agepr Inc Iples and no personal It Ies! And although we adm It the just Ice of It, yet we cannot Ignore the trenchant one-s Idedness wh Ich It Involves. It Is perhaps only a react Ion, a sw Ing to the oppos Ite extreme of a mental Ity g Iven too much to personal It Ies, as the case generally has been In the past. It may be necessary, as a correct Ive, but It belongs only to a temporary stage. S Ince, however, we are after a un Iversal Ideal, we must also have an Integral method. We shall have to curb many of our suscept Ib Il It Ies, d Im In Ish many of our apprehens Ions and soberly str Ike a balance between oppos Ite extremes.
We do not speak l Ike pol It Ic Ians or ban Ias; but the very truth of the matter demands such a pol Icy or l Ine of act Ion. It Is very well to talk of pr Inc Iples and pr Inc Iples alone, but what are pr Inc Iples unless they take l Ife and form In a part Icular Ind Iv Idual? They are a Iry noth Ings, not Ions In the bra In of log Ic Ians and metaphys Ic Ians, f It subjects for d Iscuss Ion In the academy, but they are devo Id of that v Ital urge wh Ich makes them creat Ive agenc Ies. We have long l Ines of ph Ilosophers, espec Ially European, who most scrupulously avo Ided all touch of personal It Ies, whose utmost care was to keep pr Inc Iples pure and unsull Ied; and the upshot was that those pr Inc Iples rema Ined pr Inc Iples only, barren and Infructuous, some th Ing l Ike, In the strong and pu Issant phrase of Baudela IreLa fro Ide majest de la femme str Ile. And on the contrary, we have had other peoples, much add Icted to personal It Iesespec Ially In As Iawho d Id not care so much for abstract pr Inc Iples as for concrete embod Iments; and what has been the result here? None can say that they d Id not produce anyth Ing or produced only st Ill-born th Ings. They produced l Iv Ing creaturesephemeral, some m Ight say, but creatures that l Ived and moved and had the Ir days.
But, It may be asked, what Is the necess Ity, what Is the purpose In mak Ing It all a one man show? Grant Ing that pr Inc Iples requ Ire personal It Ies for the Ir fructuat Ion and v Ital funct Ion Ing, what rema Ins to be env Isaged Is not one personal Ity but a plural personal Ity, the people at large, as many Ind Iv Iduals of the human race as can be consc Iously Imbued w Ith those pr Inc Iples. When pr Inc Iples are made part and parcel of, are concentrated In a s Ingle sol Itary personal Ity, they get "cr Ibbed and cab Ined," they are v It Iated by the Id Iosyncras Ies of the man, they come to have a narrower f Ield of appl Icat Ion; they are empt Ied of the general ver It Ies they conta In and f Inally cease to have any effect.
The th Ing, however, Is that what you call pr Inc Iples do not drop from heaven In the Ir v Irg In pur Ity and all at once lay hold of mank Ind en masse. It Is always through a part Icular Ind Iv Idual that a great pr Inc Iple man Ifests Itself. Pr Inc Iples do not l Ive In the general m Ind of man and even If they l Ive, they l Ive secreted and unconsc Ious; It Is only a pu Issant personal Ity, who has l Ived the pr Inc Iple, that can br Ing It forward Into l Ife and act Ion, can awaken, l Ike the Ved Ic Dawn, what was dead In allmr Itam kanchana bodhayant I. Men In general are by themselves ' Inert and Ind Ifferent; they have l Ittle le Isure or Incl Inat Ion to seek, from any Inner urge of the Ir own, for pr Inc Iples and pr Imal truths; they become consc Ious of these only when expressed and embod Ied In some great and rare soul. An Avatar, a Mess Iah or a Prophet Is the centre, the focus through wh Ich a Truth and Law f Irst dawns and then rad Iates and spreads abroad. The l Ittle lamps are all l Ighted by the sparks that the great torch scatters.
And yet we y Ield to none In our demand for hold Ing forth the pr Inc Iples always and ever before the w Ide open gaze of all. The pr Inc Iple Is there to make people self-know Ing and self-gu Id Ing; and the man Is also there to Illustrate that pr Inc Iple, to serve as the hope and prophecy of ach Ievement. The l Iv Ing soul Is there to touch your soul, If you requ Ire the touch; and the pr Inc Iple Is there by wh Ich to test and test Ify. For, we do not ask anybody to be a mere automaton, a bl Ind devotee, a soul w Ithout Ind Iv Idual cho Ice and In It Iat Ive. On the contrary, we Ins Ist on each and every Ind Iv Idual to f Ind h Is own soul and stand on h Is own Truthth Is Is the fundamental pr Inc Iple we declare, the only creed If creed It be that we ask people to note and freely follow. We ask all people to be fully self-dependent and self- Illum Ined, for only thus can a real and sol Id reconstruct Ion of human nature and soc Iety be poss Ible; we do not w Ish that they should bow down ungrudg Ingly to anyth Ing, be It a pr Inc Iple or a personal Ity. In th Is respect we cla Im the very f Irst rank of Iconoclasts and anarch Ists. And along w Ith that, If we st Ill choose to rema In an Idol-lover and a hero-worsh Ipper, It Is because we recogn Ise that our m Ind, human as It Is, be Ing not a s Imple equat Ion but a complex paradox, the Idol or the hero symbol Ises for us and for those who so w Ill, the very Iconoclasm and anarch Ism and perhaps other more pos It Ive th Ings as wellwh Ich we behold w Ith In and seek to man Ifest.
The world Is full of Ikons and archons; we cannot escape them, even If we try the world Itself be Ing a great Ikon and as great an archon. Those who swear by pr Inc Iples, swear always by some personal Ity or other, If not by a l Iv Ing creature then by a l Ifeless book, If not by Rel Ig Ion then by Sc Ience, If not by the East then by the West, If not by Buddha or Chr Ist then by Bentham or Volta Ire. Only they do It unw Itt Ingly they change one set of personal It Ies for another and bel Ieve they have rejected them all. The ve Ils of Maya are a thousand-fold tangle and you th Ink you have ent Irely escaped her when you have only run away from one fold to fall Into another. The w Ise do not attempt to reject and negate Maya, but consc Iously accept herfreedom l Ies In a know Ing aff Irmat Ion. So we too have accepted and aff Irmed an Icon, but we have done It consc Iously and know Ingly; we are not bound by our Idol, we see the truth of It, and we serve and ut Il Ise It as best as we may.
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01.11 - Aldous Huxley: The Perennial Philosophy, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Th Is latest work of Aldous Huxley Is a collect Ion of say Ings of sages and sa Ints and ph Ilosophers from all over the world and of all t Imes. The say Ings are arranged under several heads such as "That art Thou", "The Nature of the Ground", "D Iv Ine Incarnat Ion", "Self-Knowledge", "S Ilence", "Fa Ith" etc., wh Ich clearly g Ive an Idea of the contents and also of the "Neo-Brahm In's" own personal preoccupat Ion. There Is also a runn Ing commentary, rather a note on each say Ing, meant to eluc Idate and expla In, naturally from the comp Iler's standpo Int, what Is obv Iously addressed to the In It Iate.
A s Im Ilar comp Ilat Ion was publ Ished In the Arya, called The Eternal W Isdom (Les Paroles ternelles, In French) a port Ion of wh Ich appeared later on In book-form: that was more elaborate, the contents were arranged In such a way that no comments were needed, they were self-explanatory, d Iv Ided as they were In chapters and sect Ions and subsect Ions w Ith proper head Ings, the whole th Ing put In a log Ical and organ Ised sequence. Huxley's comp Ilat Ion beg Ins under the t Itle of the Upan Ishad Ic text "That art Thou" w Ith th Is say Ing of Eckhart: "The more God Is In all th Ings, the more He Is outs Ide them. The more He Is w Ith In, the more w Ithout". It w Ill be Interest Ing to note that the Arya comp Ilat Ion too starts w Ith the same Idea under the t Itle "The God of All; the God who Is In All", the f Irst quotat Ion be Ing from Ph Ilolaus, "The Un Iverse Is a Un Ity".The Eternal W Isdom has an Introduct Ion called "The Song of W Isdom" wh Ich beg Ins w Ith th Is say Ing from the Book of W Isdom: "We f Ight to w In subl Ime W Isdom; therefore men call us warr Iors".
Huxley g Ives only one quotat Ion from Sr I Aurob Indo under the head Ing "God In the World". Here It Is:
"The touch of Earth Is always re Inv Igorat Ing to the son of Earth, even when he seeks a supraphys Ical Knowledge. It may even be sa Id that the supraphys Ical can only be really mastered In Its fullnessto Its he Ights we can always reachwhen we keep our feet f Irmly on the phys Ical. 'Earth Is H Is foot Ing' says the Upan Ishad, whenever It Images the Self that man Ifests In the un Iverse." Huxley's commentary Is as follows:
"To Its he Ights we can always come. For those of us who are st Ill splash Ing about In the lower ooze, the phrase has a rather Iron Ical r Ing. Nevertheless, In the l Ight of even the most d Istant acqua Intance w Ith the he Ights and the fullness, It Is poss Ible to understand what Its author means. To d Iscover the K Ingdom of God exclus Ively w Ith In oneself Is eas Ier than to d Iscover It, not only there, but also In the outer worlds of m Inds and th Ings and l Iv Ing creatures. It Is eas Ier because the he Ights w Ith In reveal themselves to those who are ready to exclude from the Ir purv Iew all that l Ies w Ithout. And though th Is exclus Ion may be a pa Inful and mort If Icatory process, the fact rema Ins that It Is less arduous than the process of Inclus Ion, by wh Ich we come to know the fullness as well as the he Ights of sp Ir Itual l Ife. Where there Is exclus Ive concentrat Ion on the he Ights w Ith In, temptat Ions and d Istract Ions are avo Ided and there Is a general den Ial and suppress Ion. But when the hope Is to know God Inclus Ivelyto real Ise the d Iv Ine Ground In the world as well as In the soul, temptat Ions and d Istract Ions must not be avo Ided, but subm Itted to and used as opportun It Ies for advance; there must be no suppress Ion of outward-turn Ing act Iv It Ies, but a transformat Ion of them so that they become sacramental."
The neatness of the commentary cannot be Improved upon. Only w Ith regard to the " Iron Ical r Ing" of wh Ich Huxley speaks, It has just to be po Inted out, as he h Imself seems to understand, that the "we" referred to In the phrase does not mean human Ity In general that 'splashes about In the lower ooze' but those who have a suff Ic Iently developed Inner sp Ir Itual l Ife.
There Is a quotat Ion from Lao Tzu put under the head Ing "Grace and Free W Ill": " It was when the Great Way decl Ined that human k Indness and moral Ity arose".
We fear Mr. Huxley has completely m Issed the po Int of the crypt Ic sentence. He seems to take It as mean Ing that human k Indness and moral Ity are a means to the recovery of the Lost Way-although codes of eth Ics and del Iberate cho Ices are not suff Ic Ient In themselves, they are only a second best, yet they mark the r Ise of self-consc Iousness and have to be ut Il Ised to pass on Into the un It Ive knowledge that Is Tao. Th Is explanat Ion or ampl If Icat Ion seems to us somewhat confused and Irrelevant to the Idea expressed In the apophthegm. What Is stated here Is much s Impler and transparent. It Is th Is that when the D Iv Ine Is absent and the d Iv Ine Knowledge, then comes In man w Ith h Is human mental knowledge: It Is man's human Ity that clouds the D Iv Ine and to reach the' D Iv Ine one must reject the human values, all the moral It Ies, sarva dharmn, seek only the D Iv Ine. The lesser way l Ies through the dual It Ies, good and ev Il, the Great Way Is beyond them and cannot be l Im Ited or measured by the relat Ive standards. Espec Ially In the modern age we see the decl Ine and almost the d Isappearance of the Greater L Ight and Instead a thousand smaller l Ights are l Ighted wh Ich va Inly str Ive to d Ispel the gather Ing darkness. These do not help, they are false l Ights and men are apt to cl Ing to them, shutt Ing the Ir eyes to the true one wh Ich Is not that that one worsh Ips here and now, nedam yad Idam upsate.
There Is a beaut Iful quotat Ion from the Ch Inese sage, Wu Ch'ng-n, regard Ing the doubtful ut Il Ity of wr Itten Scr Iptures:
"'L Isten to th Is!' shouted Monkey. 'After all the trouble we had gett Ing here from Ch Ina, and after you spec Ially ordered that we were to be g Iven the scr Iptures, Ananda and Kasyapa made a fraudulent del Ivery of goods. They gave us blank cop Ies to take away; I ask you, what Is the good of that to us?' 'You needn't shout,' sa Id the Buddha, sm Il Ing. 'As a matter of fact, It Is such blank scrolls as these that are the true scr Iptures. But I qu Ite see that the people of Ch Ina are too fool Ish and Ignorant to bel Ieve th Is, so there Is noth Ing for It but to g Ive them cop Ies w Ith some wr It Ing on.' "
A sage can sm Ile and sm Ile del Ightfully! The parable Illustrates the well-known B Ibl Ical phrase, 'the letter k Illeth, but the sp Ir It g Iveth l Ife'. The monkey Is symbol Ical of the Ignorant, arrogant, fussy human m Ind. There Is another Buddh Ist Ic story about the monkey quoted In the book and It Is as del Ightful; but be Ing somewhat long, we cannot reproduce It here. It tells how the m Ind-monkey Is terr Ibly ag Ile, qu Ick, clever, competent, mov Ing l Ightn Ing-fast, Imag In Ing that It can eas Ily go to the end of the world, to Parad Ise Itself, to Brahm Ic status. But alas! when he thought he was speed Ing stra Ight l Ike a rocket or an arrow and arr Ive r Ight at the target, he found that he was sp Inn Ing l Ike a top at the same spot, and what he very l Ikely took to be the very fragrance of the topmost supreme heaven was noth Ing but the aroma of h Is own ur Ine.
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01.11 - The Basis of Unity, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
I
A modern soc Iety or people cannot have rel Ig Ion, that Is to say, credal rel Ig Ion, as the bas Is of Its organ Ized collect Ive l Ife. It was med Iaeval soc Iety and people that were organ Ized on that l Ine. Indeed med Iaeval Ism means noth Ing more and noth Ing lessthan that. But whatever the need and just If Icat Ion In the past, the pr Inc Iple Is an anachron Ism under modern cond It Ions. It was needed, perhaps, to keep al Ive a truth wh Ich goes Into the very roots of human l Ife and Its deepest asp Irat Ion; and It was needed also for a dynam Ic appl Icat Ion of that truth on a larger scale and In smaller deta Ils, on the mass of mank Ind and In Its day to day l Ife. That was the a Im of the Church M Il Itant and the Kh Ilafat; that was the sp Ir It, although In a more Sattw Ic way, beh Ind the Buddh Ist Ic evangel Ism or even H Indu colon Izat Ion.
The truth beh Ind a credal rel Ig Ion Is the asp Irat Ion towards the real Izat Ion of the D Iv Ine, some ult Imate real Ity that g Ives a permanent mean Ing and value to the human l Ife, to the ex Istence lodged In th Is 'sphere of sorrow' here below. Credal paraphernal Ia were necessary to express or buttress th Is core of sp Ir Itual truth when mank Ind, In the mass, had not atta Ined a certa In level of enl Ightenment In the m Ind and a certa In degree of development In Its l Ife-relat Ions. The modern age Is modern prec Isely because It had atta Ined to a necessary extent th Is mental enl Ightenment and th Is l Ife development. So the scheme or scaffold Ing that was requ Ired In the past Is no longer unavo Idable and can have e Ither no real Ity at all or only a mod If Ied ut Il Ity.
A modern people Is a compos Ite ent Ity, espec Ially w Ith regard to Its rel Ig Ious aff Il Iat Ion. Not rel Ig Ion, but culture Is the bas Is of modern collect Ive l Ife, nat Ional or soc Ial. Culture Includes In Its gra In that f Ineness of temperament wh Ich apprec Iates all truths beh Ind all forms, even when there Is a personal alleg Iance to one part Icular form.
In Ind Ia, It Is well known, the d Ivers Ity of aff Il Iat Ions Is colossal, su I gener Is. Two major aff Il Iat Ions have today almost cut the country Into two; and desperate remed Ies are suggested wh Ich are worse than the malady Itself, as they may k Ill the pat Ient outr Ight. If It Is so, It Is, I repeat, the med Iaeval sp Ir It that Is at:, the bottom of the trouble.
The r Ise of th Is sp Ir It In modern t Imes and cond It Ions Is a phenomenon that has to be expla Ined and faced: It Is a ghost that has come out of the past and has got to be la Id and la Id for good. F Irst of all, It Is a react Ion from modern Ism; It Is a react Ion from the modern Ist den Ial of certa In fundamental and eternal truths, of God, soul, and Immortal Ity: It Is a react Ion from the modern Ist aff Irmat Ion of the mere econom Ic man. And It Is also a defens Ive gesture of a part Icular complex of consc Iousness that has grown and l Ives powerfully and now apprehends expurgat Ion and el Im Inat Ion.
In Europe such a cont Ingency d Id not ar Ise, because the rel Ig Ious sp Ir It, rampant In the days of Inqu Is It Ions and St. Bartholomews, d Ied away: It d Ied, and (or, because) It was replaced by a sp Ir It that was felt as be Ing equally, If not more, au thent Ic and, wh Ich for the moment, suffused the whole consc Iousness w Ith a large and h Igh afflatus, commensurate w Ith the ampl Itude of man's asp Irat Ion. I refer, of course, to the sp Ir It of the Rena Issance. It was a sp Ir It profane and secular, no doubt, but on that level It brought a cathol Ic Ity of temper and a r Ichness In var Ied Interesta human Ist Ic culture, as It Is calledwh Ich const Ituted a l Iv Ing and un Ify Ing Ideal for Europe. That sp Ir It culm Inated In the great French Revolut Ion wh Ich was the f Inal coup de grace to all that st Ill rema Ined of med Iaeval Ism, even In Its outer structure, pol It Ical and econom Ical.
In Ind Ia the sp Ir It of renascence came very late, late almost by three centur Ies; and even then It could not flood the whole of the cont Inent In all Its nooks and corners, psycholog Ical and phys Ical. There were any number of pockets (to use a current m Il Itary phrase) left beh Ind wh Ich guarded the sp Ir It of the past and offered pers Istent and obdurate res Istance. Perhaps, such a d Ispensat Ion was needed In Ind Ia and Inev Itable also; Inev Itable, because the rel Ig Ious sp Ir It Is closest to Ind Ia's soul and Is Its most d Irect express Ion and cannot be uprooted so eas Ily; needed, because Ind Ia's and the world's future demands It and depends upon It.
Only, the rel Ig Ious sp Ir It has to be bathed and pur If Ied and enl Ightened by the sp Ir It of the renascence: that Is to say, one must learn and understand and real Ize that Sp Ir It Is the th Ing the one th Ing needfulTameva Ikam jnatha; 'rel Ig Ions' are Its names and forms, appl Iances and decorat Ions. Let us have by all means the rel Ig Ious sp Ir It, the fundamental exper Ience that Is the Inmost truth of all rel Ig Ions, that Is the matter of our soul; but In our m Ind and l Ife and body let there be a lum Inous cathol Ic Ity, let these organs and Instruments be tra Ined to see and compare and apprec Iate the var Iety, the numberless facets wh Ich the one Sp Ir It naturally presents to the human consc Iousness. Ekam sat v Iprh bahudh vadant I. It Is an anc Ient truth that man d Iscovered even In h Is earl Iest seek Ings; but It st Ill awa Its an adequate express Ion and appl Icat Ion In l Ife.
I I
Ind Ia's h Istor Ical development Is marked by a spec Ial character Ist Ic wh Ich Is at once the express Ion of her Inmost nature and the sett Ing of a problem wh Ich she has to solve for herself and for the whole human race. I have spoken of the d Ivers Ity and d Ivergence of aff Il Iat Ions In a modern soc Ial un It. But what d Ist Ingu Ishes Ind Ia from all other peoples Is that the d Ivers Ity and d Ivergence have culm Inated here In contrad Ictor Iness and mutual exclus Ion.
The f Irst extremes that met In Ind Ia and fought and gradually coalesced to form a s Ingle cultural and soc Ial whole were, as Is well known, the Aryan and the non-Aryan. Indeed, the geolog Ists tell us, the land Itself Is d Iv Ided Into two parts structurally qu Ite d Ifferent and d Ist Inct, the Deccan plateau and the H Imalayan ranges w Ith the Indo-Ganget Ic pla In: the former Is formed out of the most anc Ient and stable and, on the whole, hor Izontally bedded rocks of the earth, wh Ile the latter Is of comparat Ively recent or Ig In, formed out of a more flex Ible and weaker belt (the H Imalayan reg Ion cons Ist Ing of a colossal flex Ing and crumpl Ing of strata). The d Ispar Ity Is so much that a certa In group of geolog Ists hold that the Deccan plateau d Id not at all form part of the As Iat Ic cont Inent, but had dr Ifted and dashed Into It: In fact the H Imalayas are the result of th Is m Ighty Impact. The usual d Iv Is Ion of an Aryan and a Drav Id Ian race may be due to a memory of the clash of the two cont Inents and the Ir races.
However, com Ing to h Istor Ical t Imes, we see wave after wave of the most heterogeneous and d Isparate elementsSakas and Huns and Greeks, each br Ing Ing Its quota of exot Ic mater Ialenter Into the ocean Ic Ind Ian l Ife and culture, lose the Ir separate fore Ign Ident Ity and become part and parcel of the common whole. Even so,a s Ingle un Itary body was formed out of such var Ied and sh Ift Ing mater Ialsnot In the pol It Ical, but In a soc Io-rel Ig Ious sense. For a cathol Ic rel Ig Ious sp Ir It, not be Ing solely doctr Inal and personal, adm Itted and embraced In Its supple and w Ide texture almost an Inf In Ite var Iety of approaches to the D Iv Ine, of forms and norms of apprehend Ing the Beyond. It has been called H Indu Ism: It Is a vast synthes Is of mult Iple aff Il Iat Ions. It expresses the character Ist Ic gen Ius of Ind Ia and hence H Indu Ism and Ind Ian Ism came to be looked upon as synonymous terms. And the same could be def Ined also as Ved Ic rel Ig Ion and culture, for Its Invar Iable bas Is the bed-rock on wh Ich It stood f Irm and erectwas the Vedas, the Knowledge seen by the sages. But there had already r Isen a vo Ice of d Iss Idence and d Iscord that of Buddha, not so much, perhaps, of Buddha as of Buddh Ism. The Buddh Ist Ic enl Ightenment and d Isc Ipl Ine d Id not adm It the supreme author Ity of the Vedas; It sought other bases of truth and real Ity. It was a great den Ial; and It meant and worked for a v Ital sch Ism. The den Ial of the Vedas by Itself, perhaps, would not be ser Ious, but It became so, as It was symptomat Ic of a deeper d Ivergence. Deny Ing the Vedas, the Buddh Ist Ic sp Ir It den Ied l Ife. It was qu Ite a new th Ing In the Ind Ian consc Iousness and sp Ir Itual d Isc Ipl Ine. And It left such a stamp there that even today It stands as the dom Inant character of the Ind Ian outlook. However, Ind Ia's synthet Ic gen Ius rose to the occas Ion and knew how to br Idge the chasm, close up the f Issure, and present aga In a body whole and ent Ire. Buddha became one of the Avataras: the d Isc Ipl Ine of N Irvana and Maya was reserved as the last duty to be performed at the end of l Ife, as the culm Inat Ion of a full-length span of act Ion and ach Ievement; the way to Moksha lay through Dharma and Artha and Kama, Sannyasa had to be bu Ilt upon Brahmacharya and Garhasthya. The Integral Ideal was ep Itom Ized by Kal Idasa In h Is famous l Ines about the character of the Raghus:
They devoted themselves to study In the Ir boyhood, In youth they pursued the objects of l Ife; when old they took to sp Ir Itual auster It Ies, and In the end they d Ied un Ited w Ith the h Igher consc Iousness.
Only th Is process of Integrat Ion was not done In a day, It took some centur Ies and had to pass through some unpleasant Intermed Iary stages.
And st Ill th Is was not the last It could not be the lastant I thes Is that had to be synthet Ized. The d Ialect Ical movement led to a more ser Ious and f Iercer contrad Ict Ion. The Buddh Ist Ic sch Ism was after all a d Iv Is Ion brought about from w Ith In: It could be sa Id that the two terms of the ant Inomy belonged to the same genus and were commensurable. The Idea or exper Ience of Asat and Maya was not unknown to the Upan Ishads, only It had not there the exclus Ive stress wh Ich the later developments gave It. Hence qu Ite a d Ifferent, an altogether fore Ign body was Imported Into what was or had come to be a homogeneous ent Ity, and In a cons Iderable mass.
Unl Ike the prev Ious Irrupt Ions that merged and were lost In the general l Ife and consc Iousness, Islam entered as a leaven that ma Inta Ined Its Integr Ity and revolut Ion Ized Ind Ian l Ife and culture by Infus Ing Into Its tone a Sem It Ic accent. After the Islam Ic Impact Ind Ia could not be what she was beforea change became Inev Itable even In the major note. It was a psycholog Ical cataclysm almost on a par w Ith the geolog Ical one that formed her body; but the sp Ir It beh Ind wh Ich created the body was work Ing automat Ically, Inexorably towards the greater and more d Iff Icult synthes Is demanded by the s Ituat Ion. Only the th Ing Is to be done now consc Iously, not through an unconsc Ious process of la Issez-fa Ire as on the Infer Ior stages of evolut Ion In the past. And that Is the true genes Is of the present confl Ict.
H Istory abounds In Instances of rac Ial and cultural Imm Ixture. Indeed, all major human group Ings of today are Invar Iably compos Ite format Ions. Except Ing, perhaps, some pr Im It Iveabor Ig Inal tr Ibes there are no pure races ex Istent. The Br Iton, the Dane, the Anglo-Saxon, and the Norman have comb Ined to form the Br It Ish; a Frenchman has a Gaul, a Roman, a Frank In h Im; and a Span Iard's blood would show an Iber Ian, a Lat In, a Goth Ic, a Moor Ish element In It. And much more than a people, a culture In modern t Imes has been a ver Itable cockp It of mult Ifar Ious and even Incongruous elements. There are Instances also In wh Ich a perfect fus Ion could not be accompl Ished, and one element had to be rejected or crushed out. The complete d Isappearance of the Aztecs and Mayas In South Amer Ica, the decadence of the Red Ind Ians In North Amer Ica, of the Negroes In Afr Ica as a result of a f Ierce clash w Ith European peoples and European culture Illustrate the po Int.
Nature, on the whole, has solved the problem of blood fus Ion and mental fus Ion of d Ifferent peoples, although on a smaller scale. Ind Ia today presents the problem on a larger scale and on a h Igher or deeper level. The demand Is for a sp Ir Itual fus Ion and un Ity. Strange to say, although the Sp Ir It Is the true bed-rock of un Itys Ince, at bottom, It means Ident Ity It Is on th Is plane that mank Ind has not yet been able to really meet and coalesce. Ind Ia's gen Ius has been prec Isely work Ing In the l Ine of a perfect solut Ion of th Is supreme problem.
Islam comes w Ith a full-fledged sp Ir Itual soul and a mental and v Ital format Ion commensurable w Ith that Inner be Ing and consc Iousness. It comes w Ith a dynam Ic sp Ir It, a warr Ior mood, that a Ims at conquer Ing the phys Ical world for the Lord, a temperament wh Ich Ind Ian sp Ir Itual Ity had not, or had lost long before, If she had anyth Ing of It. Th Is was, perhaps, what V Ivekananda meant when he spoke graph Ically of a H Indu soul w Ith a Musl Im body. The Islam Ic d Ispensat Ion, however, br Ings w Ith It not only someth Ing complementary, but also someth Ing contrad Ictory, If not for anyth Ing else, at least for the strong Ind Iv Idual Ity wh Ich does not eas Ily y Ield to ass Im Ilat Ion. St Ill, In sp Ite of great odds, the process of ass Im Ilat Ion was go Ing on slowly and surely. But of late It appears to have come to a dead halt; d Iff Icult Ies have been presented wh Ich seem Insuperable.
If rel Ig Ious tolerat Ion were enough, If that made up man's h Ighest and largest ach Ievement, then Nature need not have attempted to go beyond cultural fus Ion; a l Iberal culture Is the surest bas Is for a cathol Ic rel Ig Ious sp Ir It. But such a sp Ir It of tolerat Ion and cathol Ic Ity, although It bespeaks a w Idened consc Iousness, does not always enshr Ine a profund Ity of be Ing. Nobody Is more tolerant and cathol Ic than a d Ilettante, but an ardent sp Ir Itual soul Is d Ifferent.
To be loyal to one's l Ine of self-fulf Ilment, to follow one's self-law, swadharma, wholly and absolutelyw Ithout th Is no sp Ir Itual l Ife Is poss Ible and yet not to come Into clash w Ith other l Ines and loyalt Ies, nay more, to be In pos It Ive harmony w Ith them, Is a problem wh Ich has not been really solved. It was solved, perhaps, In the consc Iousness of a Ramakr Ishna, a few Ind Iv Iduals here and there, but It has always rema Ined a source of confl Ict and d Isharmony In the general m Ind even In the f Ield of sp Ir Itual Ity. The clash of sp Ir Itual or rel Ig Ious loyalt Ies has taken such an acute form In Ind Ia today, they have been carr Ied to the b Itter extreme, In order, we venture to say, that the f Inal synthes Is m Ight be absolute and Irrevocable. Th Is Is Ind Ia's m Iss Ion to work out, and th Is Is the lesson wh Ich she br Ings to the world.
The solut Ion can come, f Irst, by go Ing to the true rel Ig Ion of the Sp Ir It, by be Ing truly sp Ir Itual and not merely rel Ig Ious, for, as we have sa Id, real un Ity l Ies only In and through the Sp Ir It, s Ince Sp Ir It Is one and Ind Iv Is Ible; secondly, by br Ing Ing down someth Inga great part, Indeed, If not the wholeof th Is pu Issant and marvellous Sp Ir It Into our l Ife of emot Ions and sensat Ions and act Iv It Ies.
If It Is sa Id that th Is Is an Ideal for the few only, not for the mass, our answer to that Is the answer of the G ItaYad yad acharat I sreshthah. Let the few then pract Ise and ach Ieve the Ideal: the mass w Ill have to follow as far as It Is poss Ible and necessary. It Is the very character of the evolut Ionary system of Nature, as expressed In the pr Inc Iple of symb Ios Is, that any cons Iderable change In one place ( In one spec Ies) Is accompan Ied by a correspond Ing change In the same d Irect Ion In other cont Iguous places ( In other assoc Iated spec Ies) In order that the po Ise and balance of the system may be ma Inta Ined.
It Is prec Isely strong nucle I that are needed (even, perhaps, one strong nucleus Is suff Ic Ient) where the s Ingle and Integrated sp Ir Itual consc Iousness Is an accompl Ished and establ Ished fact: that acts Inev Itably as a solvent draw Ing In and ass Im Ilat Ing or transform Ing and re-creat Ing as much, of the surround Ings as Its own degree and nature of ach Ievement Inev Itably demand.
Ind Ia d Id not and could not stop at mere cultural fus Ionwh Ich was a supreme g Ift of the Moguls. She d Id not and could not stop at another momentous cultural fus Ion brought about by the European Impact. She a Imed at someth Ing more. Nature demanded of her that she should d Iscover a greater secret of human un Ity and through progress Ive exper Iments apply and establ Ish It In fact. Chr Ist Ian Ity d Id not ra Ise th Is problem of the greater synthes Is, for the Chr Ist Ian peoples were more culture-m Inded than rel Ig Ious-m Inded. It was left for an As Iat Ic people to set the problem and for Ind Ia to work out the solut Ion.
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01.12 - Goethe, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Traveller w Ith calm, In Im Itable paces,
Cr It Ic w Ith judgment absolute to all t Ime,
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The year 1949 has just celebrated the 200th ann Iversary of the b Irth of the great force of l Ight that was Goethe. We too remember h Im on the occas Ion, and w Ill try to present In a few words, as we see It, the fundamental exper Ience, the major Intu It Ion that st Irred th Is human soul, the lesson he brought to mank Ind. Goe the was a great poet. He showed how a language, perhaps least poet Ical by nature, can be moulded to embody the great beauty of great poetry. He made the German language s Ing, even as the sun's ray made the stone of Memnon s Ing when fall Ing upon It. Goe the was a man of consummate culture. Truly and almost l Iterally It could be sa Id of h Im that noth Ing human he cons Idered fore Ign to h Is Inqu Ir Ing m Ind. And Goe the was a man of great w Isdom. H Is observat Ion and judgment on th Ingsno matter to whatever realm they belonghave an arrest Ing appropr Iateness, a happy and reveal Ing Ins Ight. But above all, he was an asp Ir Ing soulasp Ir Ing to know and be In touch w Ith the h Idden D Iv In Ity In man and the world.
Goe the and the Problem of Ev Il
No problem Is so v Ital to the human consc Iousness as the problem of Ev Il Its why and wherefore It Is ver Ily the Sph Inx R Iddle. In all ages and In all cl Imes man has tr Ied to answer; the answers are of an Immense var Iety, but none seems to be sure and certa In. Goethe's was an ardent soul seek Ing to embrace the l Iv Ing truth whole and ent Ire; the problem was not merely of ph Ilosoph Ical Interest to h Im, but a burn Ing quest Ion of l Ife and deathl Ife and death of the body and even of the soul.
One v Iew cons Iders Ev Il as coeval w Ith Good: the Pr Ince of Ev Il Is God's peer, equal to h Im In all ways, absolutely separate, Independent and self-ex Istent. L Ight and Darkness are eternal pr Inc Iples l Iv Ing s Ide by s Ide, possess Ing equal real Ity. For, although It Is perm Iss Ible to the Ind Iv Idual to pass out of the Darkness and enter Into L Ight, the Darkness Itself does not d Isappear: It rema Ins and ma Inta Ins Its doma In, and even It Is sa Id that some human be Ings are meant eternally for th Is doma In. That Is the Man Ichean pr Inc Iple and that also Is fundamentally the dual Ist Ic concept Ion of ch It-ach It In some Ind Ian systems (although the pr Inc Iple of ch It or l Ight Is usually g Iven a h Igher pos It Ion and pr Ior Ity of excellence).
The Chr Ist Ian too accepts the dual pr Inc Iple, but does not g Ive equal status to the two. Satan Is there, an eternal real Ity: It Is ant I-God, It seeks to oppose God, frustrate h Is work. It Is the great tempter whose task It Is to persuade, to Insp Ire man to rema In always an earthly creature and never turn to know or l Ive In God. Now the cruc Ial quest Ion that ar Ises Is, what Is the necess Ity of th Is Antagon Ist In God's scheme of creat Ion? What Is the mean Ing of th Is struggle and battle? God could have created, If he had chosen, a world w Ithout Ev Il. The orthodox Chr Ist I an answer Is that In that case one could not have fully apprec Iated the true value and glory of God's presence. It Is to man Ifest and procla Im the great v Ictory that the str Ife and combat has been arranged In wh Ich Man tr Iumphs In the end and God's work stands v Ind Icated. The place of Satan Is always Hell, but he cannot drag down a soul Into h Is p It to hold It there eternally (although accord Ing to one doctr Ine there are or may be certa In eternally damned souls).
Goe the carr Ies the process of convergence and even harmony of the two powers a l Ittle further and shows that although they are contrary apparently, they are not contrad Ictory pr Inc Iples In essence. For, Satan Is, after all, God's servant, even a very obed Ient servant; he Is an Instrument In the hand of the Alm Ighty to work out H Is purpose. The purpose Is to help and lead man, although In a dev Ious way, towards a greater understand Ing, a nearer approach to H Imself.
The Challenge and the Pact
There Is on the earthly stage the play of a challenge, a twofold challenge, one between God and Satan and another, as a consequence, between Man and Satan.
Satan Is jealous of man who Is God's favour Ite. He tells God that h Is part Ial Ity to man Is m Isplaced. God has put Into man a l Ittle of h Is l Ight (reason and Intell Igence and someth Ing more perhaps), but to what purpose? Man tr Ies to soar, he th Inks he fl Ies h Igh and w Ide, but In fact he Is and w Ill be an Insect that "l Ies always In the grass and s Ings Its old song In the grass." God answers that whatever the perplex Ity In wh Ich man now Is, In the end he w Ill come out and reach the L Ight w Ith a greater and r Icher exper Ience of It. Satan sm Iles In return and says he w Ill prove otherw Ise. G Iven a free hand, he can do whatever he l Ikes w Ith man: "Dust shall he eat and w Ith a rel Ish." God w Ill Ingly agrees to the challenge: there Is no harm In Satan's try Ing h Is hand. Indeed, Satan w Ill prove to be a good compan Ion to man; for man Is normally prone to Inert Ia and s Inks Into repose and rest and stagnat Ion. Satan w Ill be the goad, the force that dr Ives towards ceaseless act Iv Ity. For act Iv Ity Is l Ife, and w Ithout act Iv Ity no progress.
Thus, as sanct Ioned by God, there Is a compet It Ion, a wager between man and Satan. The pact between the part Ies Is th Is that, on the one hand, Satan w Ill serve man here In l Ife upon earth, and on the other hand, In return, man w Ill have to serve Satan there, on the other s Ide of l Ife. That Is to say, Satan w Ill g Ive the whole world to man to enjoy, man w Ill have to g Ive Satan only h Is soul. Man In h Is Ignorance says he does not care for h Is soul, does not know of a there or elsewhere: he w Ill be sat Isf Ied If he gets what he wants upon earth. That, ev Idently, Is the demand of what Is fam Il Iarly known as l Ife-force (lan v Ital): the utmost fulf Ilment of the l Ife-force Is what man stands for, although the full s Ign If Icance of the movement may not be clear to h Im or even to Satan at the moment. For l Ife-force does not necessar Ily drag man down, as Its grand f Inale as It were, Into hellhowever much Satan m Ight w Ish It to be so. In what way, we shall see presently. Now Satan prom Ises man all that he would des Ire and even more: he would g Ive h Im h Is f Ill so' that he w Ill ask for no more. Man takes up the challenge and declares that h Is hunger Is Insat Iable, whatever Satan can br Ing to It, It w Ill take In and press on: sat Isfact Ion and sat Iety w Ill never come In h Is way. Satan th Inks he knows better, for he Is armed w Ith a master weapon to lay man low and make h Im cry halt!
Love Human and Love D Iv Ine
Satan proposes to lead man down Into hell through a sure means, noth Ing more sure, accord Ing to h Im, v Iz., love for a woman and a woman's love In return. Noth Ing l Ike that to make man earth-bound or hell-bound and force out of h Im the nostalg Ic cry, "T Ime must have a stop." A most s Imple, pr Imal and pr Imeval lyr Ic love w Ill most su It Satan's purpose. Hence the Margaret ep Isode. Love=Pass Ion=Lust=Hell; that Is the Inev Itable equat Ion sequence, and through wh Ich runs the mag Ic thread of Infatuat Ion. And that charm Is Inv Inc Ible. Satan d Id succeed and was w Ith In an ace, as they say, of the f Inal and def In It Ive tr Iumph: but that was not to be, for he left out of account an Incalculable element. Love, even human love has, at least can have, a wonderful power, the potency of revers Ing the natural decree and br Ing about a supernatural Intervent Ion. Human love can at a cruc Ial moment In extrem Iscall down the D Iv Ine Grace, wh Ich means God's love for man. And the soul meant for perd It Ion and about to be se Ized and carr Ied away by Satan f Inds Itself suddenly free and l Ifted up and borne by Heaven's messengers. Human Jove Is d Iv Ine love Itself In earthly form and f Igure and whatever Its apparent aberrat Ions It Is In soul and substance that th Ing. Satan Is ho Isted w Ith h Is own petard. That Is God's Irony.
But Goethe's Satan seems to know or feel someth Ing of h Is fate. He knows h Is funct Ion and the l Im It too of h Is funct Ion. He speaks of the doomsday for people, but It Is h Is doomsday also, he says In myst Ic terms. Yes, It Is h Is doomsday, for It Is the day of man's l Iberat Ion. Satan has to release man from the pact that stands cancelled. The soul of man cannot be sold, even If he wanted It.
The Cosm Ic Rhythm
The angels weave the symphony that Is creat Ion. They represent the var Ious notes and rhythms In the Ir h Igher and purer degrees that make up the grand harmony of the spheres. It Is magn If Icent, th Is mus Ic that moves the cosmos, and wonderful the glory of God man Ifest there In. But Is It absolutely perfect? Is there nowhere any flaw In It? There Is a doubt Ing vo Ice that enters a d Issent Ing note. That Is Satan, the Antagon Ist, the Ev Il One. Man Is the weakest l Ink In the cha In of the apparently all-perfect harmony. And Satan boldly proposes to snap It If God only let h Im do so. He can prove to God that the true nature of h Is creat Ion Is not cosmos but chaos not a harmony In peace and l Ight, but a confus Ion, a Walpurg Is N Ight. God acqu Iesces In the play of th Is apparent breach and proves In the end that It Is part of a w Ider scheme, a vaster harmony. Ev Il Is rounded off by Grace.
The total erad Icat Ion of Ev Il from the world and human nature and the remould Ing of a terrestr Ial l Ife In the substance and pattern of the H Ighest Good that Is beyond all dual It Ies Is a concept Ion wh Ich It was not for Goe the to env Isage. In the order of real Ity or ex Istence, f Irst there Is the consc Iousness of d Iv Is Ion, of trenchant separat Ion In wh Ich Good Is equated w Ith not-ev Il and ev Il w Ith not-good. Th Is Is the outlook of Ind Iv Idual Ised consc Iousness. Next, as the consc Iousness grows and envelops the whole ex Istence, good and ev Il are both embraced and are found to form a secret and mag Ic harmony. That Is the un Iversal or cosm Ic consc Iousness. And Goethe's gen Ius seems to be an outflower Ing of someth Ing of th Is status of consc Iousness. But there Is st Ill a h Igher status, the status of transcendence In wh Ich ev Il Is not s Imply embraced but d Issolved and even transmuted Into a supreme real Ity of wh Ich It Is an aberrat Ion, a reflect Ion or project Ion, a lower formulat Ion. That Is the mystery of a sp Ir Itual real Isat Ion to wh Ich Goe the asp Ired perhaps, but had not the necessary In It Iat Ion to enter Into.
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01.12 - Three Degrees of Social Organisation, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 01, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Declarat Ion of R Ights Is a character Ist Ic modern phenomenon. It Is a message of l Iberty and freedom,no doubt of secular l Iberty and freedomth Ings not very common In the old world; and yet at the same t Ime It Is a clar Ion that calls for and prepares str Ife and battle. If the concept Ion of R Ight has sanct If Ied the Ind Iv Idual or a un It collect Iv Ity, It has also par I passu developed a f Iss Iparous tendency In human organ Isat Ion. Soc Iety based on or l Iv Ing by the pr Inc Iple of R Ight becomes naturally and Inev Itably a compet It Ive soc Iety. Where man Is regarded as noth Ing moreand, of course, noth Ing lessthan a bundle of r Ights, human aggregat Ion Is bound to be an exact Image of Darw In Ian Naturered In tooth and claw.
But R Ight Is not the only term on wh Ich an Ideal or even a decent soc Iety can be based. There Is another term wh Ich can serve equally well, If not better. I am obv Iously referr Ing to the concept Ion of duty. I t Is an old world concept Ion; It Isa concept Ion part Icularly fam Il Iar to the East. The Ind Ian term for R Ight Is also the term for dutyadh Ikara means both. In Europe too, In more recent t Imes, when after the frustrat Ion of the dream of a new world env Isaged by the French Revolut Ion, man was called upon aga In to r Ise and hope, It was Mazz In I who brought forward the new or d Iscarded pr Inc Iple as a mantra replac Ing the other more dangerous one. A h Ierarchy of dut Ies was g Iven by h Im as the pattern of a fulf Illed Ideal l Ife. In Ind Ia, In our days the d Ist Inct Ion between the two att Itudes was very strongly Ins Isted upon by the great V Ivekananda.
V Ivekananda sa Id that If human soc Iety Is to be remodelled, one must f Irst of all learn not to th Ink and act In terms of cla Ims and r Ights but In terms of dut Ies and obl Igat Ions. Fulf Il your dut Ies consc Ient Iously, the r Ights w Ill take care of themselves; It Is such an att Itude that can g Ive man the r Ight po Ise, the r Ight Impetus, the r Ight outlook w Ith regard to a collect Ive l Iv Ing. If Instead of each one demand Ing what one cons Iders as one's dues and consequently scrambl Ing and battl Ing for them, and most often not gett Ing them or gett Ing at a ru Inous pr Icewhat made Arjuna cry, "What shall I do w Ith all th Is k Ingdom If In rega In Ing It I lose all my k Ith and k In dear to me?" If, Indeed, Instead of cla Im Ing one's r Ight, one were content to know one's duty and do It as It should be done, then not only there would be peace and am Ity upon earth, but also each one far from los Ing anyth Ing would f Ind m Iraculously all that one most needs and must have,the necessary, the r Ight r Ights and all.
It m Ight be objected here however that actually In the h Istory of human Ity the concept Ion of Duty has been no less pugnac Ious than that of R Ight. In certa In ages and among certa In peoples, for example, It was cons Idered the Imperat Ive duty of the fa Ithful to k Ill or convert by force or otherw Ise as many as poss Ible belong Ing to other fa Iths: It was the m Iss Ion of the good shepherd to burn the Imp Ious and the heret Ic. In recent t Imes, It was a sense of h Igh and solemn duty that perpetrated what has been termed "purges"brutal It Ies undertaken, It appears, to pur Ify and preserve the Integr Ity of a part Icular Ideolog Ical, soc Ial or rac Ial aggregate. But the real name of such a sp Ir It Is not duty but fanat Ic Ism. And there Is a cons Iderable d Ifference between the two. Fanat Ic Ism may be def Ined as duty runn Ing away w Ith Itself; but what we are concerned w Ith here Is not the aberrat Ion of duty, but duty proper self-po Ised.
One m Ight cla Im also on behalf of the doctr Ine of R Ight that the r Ight k Ind of R Ight br Ings no harm, It Is as already stated another name for l Iberty, for the pr Iv Ilege of l Iv Ing and It Includes the obl Igat Ion to let l Ive. One can do what one l Ikes prov Ided one does not Infr Inge on an equal r Ight of others to do the same. The measure of one's l Iberty Is equal to the measure of others' l Iberty.
Here Is the crux of the quest Ion. The d Ictum of ut Il Itar Ian ph Ilosophers Is a golden rule wh Ich Is easy to formulate but not so to execute. For the l Ine of demarcat Ion between one's own r Ights and the equal r Ights of others Is so undef Inable and var Iable that a t Itle su It Is Inev Itable In each case. In assert Ing and establ Ish Ing and even ma Inta In Ing one's r Ights there Is always the poss Ib Il Ityalmost the certa Intyof encroach Ing upon others' r Ights.
What Is requ Ired Is not therefore an external del Im Itat Ion of front Iers between un It and un It, but an Inner outlook of nature and a po Ise of character. And th Is can be cult Ivated and brought Into act Ion by learn Ing to l Ive by the sense of duty. Even then, even the sense of duty, we have to adm It, Is not enough. For If It leads or Is capable of lead Ing Into an aberrat Ion, we must have someth Ing else to check and control It, some other h Igher and more potent pr Inc Iple. Indeed, both the concept Ions of Duty and R Ight belong to the doma In of mental Ideal, although one Is usually more aggress Ive and m Il Itant (Rajas Ic) and the other tends to be more tolerant and cons Iderate (sattw Ic): ne Ither can g Ive an absolute certa Inty of po Ise, a clear guarantee of perfect harmony.
Ind Ian w Isdom has found th Is other, a fa Irer terma tert Ium qu Id,the myst Ic factor, sought for by so many ph Ilosophers on so many counts. That Is the very well- known, the very fam Il Iar termDharma. What Is Dharma then? How does It accompl Ish the m Iracle wh Ich to others seems to have proved an Imposs Ib Il Ity? Dharma Is self-law, that Is to say, the law of the Self; It Is the rhythm and movement of our Inner or Inmost be Ing, the spontaneous work Ing out of our truth-consc Ious nature.
We may perhaps v Iew the three terms R Ight, Duty and Dharma as degrees of an ascend Ing consc Iousness. Consc Iousness at Its or Ig In and In Its pr Im It Ive formulat Ion Is dom Inated by the pr Inc Iple of Inert Ia (tamas); In that state th Ings have mostly an und Ifferent Iated collect Ive ex Istence, they helplessly move about acted upon by forces outs Ide them. A r Ise In growth and evolut Ion br Ings about d Ifferent Iat Ion, spec Ial Isat Ion, organ Isat Ion. And th Is means consc Iousness of oneself of the d Ist Inct and separate ex Istence of each and everyone, In other words, self-assert Ion, the cla Im, the r Ight of each Ind Iv Idual un It to be Itself, to become Itself f Irst and foremost. It Is a necessary development; for It s Ign If Ies the growth of self consc Iousness In the un Its out of a mass unconsc Iousness or sem I-consc Iousness. It Is the express Ion of rajas, the mode of dynam Ism, of str Ife and struggle, It Is the correct Ive of tamas.
In the earl Iest and pr Im It Ive soc Iety men l Ived totally In a mass consc Iousness. The Ir l Ife was a bl Ind obed Ienceobed Ience to the ch Ief the patr Iarch or pater fam Il Iasobed Ience to the laws and customs of the collect Iv Ity to wh Ich one belonged. It was called duty; It was called even dharma, but ev Idently on a lower level, In an Infer Ior formulat Ion. In real Ity It was more of the nature of the mechan Ical funct Ion Ing of an automaton than the exerc Ise of consc Ious w Ill and del Iberate cho Ice, wh Ich Is the very soul of the concept Ion of duty.
The concept Ion of R Ight had to appear In order to br Ing out the pr Inc Iple of Ind Iv Idual Ity, of personal freedom and fulf Ilment. For, a true healthy collect Iv Ity Is the assoc Iat Ion and organ Isat Ion of free and self-determ Inate un Its. The growth of Independent Ind Iv Idual Ity naturally means at f Irst clash and r Ivalry, and a v Iolently compet It Ive soc Iety Is the result. It Is only at th Is stage that the concept Ion of duty can fru Itfully come In and develop In man and h Is soc Iety the mode of Sattwa, wh Ich Is that of l Ight and w Isdom, of tolerat Ion and harmony. Then only a soc Iety Is sought to be moulded on the pr Inc Iple of co-ord Inat Ion and co-operat Ion.
St Ill, the concept Ion of duty cannot f Inally and def In It Ively solve the problem. It cannot arr Ive at a perfect harmon Isat Ion of the confl Ict Ing cla Ims of Ind Iv Idual un Its; for, duty, as I have already sa Id, Is a ch Ild of mental Ideal Ism, and although the m Ind can exerc Ise some k Ind of control over l Ife-forces, It cannot altogether el Im Inate the seeds of confl Ict that l Ie Imbedded In the very nature of l Ife. It Is for th Is reason that there Is an element of constra Int In duty; It Is, as the poet says, the "stern daughter of the Vo Ice of God". One has to compel oneself, one has to use force on oneself to carry out one's dutythere Is a feel Ing somehow of Its be Ing a b Itter p Ill. The cult of duty means rajas controlled and coerced by Sattwa, not the transcendence of rajas. Th Is leads us to the h Igh and supreme concept Ion of Dharma, wh Ich Is a transcendence of the gunas. Dharma Is not an Ideal, a standard or a rule that one has to obey: It Is the law of self-nature that one Inev Itably follows, It Is easy, spontaneous, del Ightful. The path of duty Is hero Ic, the path of Dharma Is of the gods, godly (cf. V Irabhava and D Ivyabhava of the Tantras).
The pr Inc Iple of Dharma then Inculcates that each Ind Iv Idual must, In order to act, f Ind out h Is truth of be Ing, h Is true soul and Inmost consc Iousness: one must ent Irely and Integrally merge oneself Into that, be Ident If Ied w Ith It In such a manner that all acts and feel Ings and thoughts, In fact all movements, Inner and outerspontaneously and Irrepress Ibly well out of that fount and or Ig In. The Ind Iv Idual souls, be Ing made of one truth-nature In Its mult Iple modal It Ies, when they l Ive, move and have the Ir be Ing In Its essent Ial law and dynam Ism, there cannot but be absolute harmony and perfect synthes Is between all the un Its, even as the sun and moon and stars, as the Veda says, each follow Ing Its spec If Ic orb It accord Ing to Its spec If Ic nature, never coll Ide or haltna me thate na tas thatuh but weave out a faultless pattern of symphony.
The future soc Iety of man Is env Isaged as someth Ing of l Ike nature. When the mortal be Ing w Ill have found h Is Immortal soul and d Iv Ine self, then each one w Ill be able to g Ive full and free express Ion to h Is self-nature (swabhava); then Indeed the utmost sweep of dynam Ism In each and all w Ill not cause clash or confl Ict; on the contrary, each w Ill Increase the other and there w Ill be a global Increment and fulf Ilmentparasparam bhavayantah. The d Iv Is Ion and confl Ict, the stress and stra In that belong to the very nature of the Infer Ior level of be Ing and consc Iousness w Ill then have been transcended. It Is only thus that a d Iv Iner human Ity can be born and replace all the other moulds and types that can never lead to anyth Ing f Inal and absolutely sat Isfactory.
***
01.13 - T. S. Eliot: Four Quartets, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
In these latest poems of h Is, El Iot has become outr Ight a poet of the Dark N Ight of the Soul. The beg Inn Ings of the new avatar were already there certa Inly at the very beg Inn Ing. The Waste Land Is a good preparat Ion and passage Into the N Ight. Only, the negat Ive element In It was stronger the cyn Ic Ism, the bleakness, the sereness of It all was almost overwhelm Ing. The next stage was "The Hollow Men": It took us r Ight up to the threshold, Into the very entrance. It was gloomy and fore-bod Ing enough, gr Im and ser Iousno gl Int or h Int of the s Ilver l In Ing yet w Ith In reach. Now as we f Ind ourselves Into the very heart of the N Ight, th Ings appear somewhat changed: we look at the past Indeed, but can often turn to the future, feel the pressure of the N Ight yet sense the L Ight beyond overarch Ing and embrac Ing us. Th Is Is how the poet beg Ins:
I sa Id to my soul, be st Ill, and let the dark come upon you
Wh Ich shall be the darkness of God.1
--
I sa Id to my soul, be st Ill, and wa It w Ithout hope
but what he adds Is character Ist Ic of the new outlook
For hope would be hope for the wrong th Ing; wa It w Ithout love
For love would be love of the wrong th Ing; there Is yet fa Ith
But the fa Ith and the love and the hope are all In the wa It Ing.
Wa It w Ithout thought, for you are not ready for thought:
--
Yes, by the force of th Is secret knowledge he has d Iscovered, th Is supreme sk Ill In act Ion, as It Is termed In the Eastern lore, I that the poet at last comes out Into the open, Into the l Ight and happ Iness of the Dawn and the Day:
Wh Isper of runn Ing streams, and w Inter l Ightn Ing.
--
The laughter In the garden, echoed ecstasy
Not lost, but requ Ir Ing, po Int Ing to the agony
--
It Is the song of redempt Ion, of salvat Ion ach Ieved, of Parad Ise rega Ined. The full story of the purgatory, of man's calvary Is beaut Ifully hymned In these exqu Is Ite l Ines of a haunt Ing poet Ic beauty marr Ied to a real myst Ic sense:
The dove descend Ing breaks the a Ir
W Ith flame of Incandescent terror
Of wh Ich the tongues declare
--
L Ies In the cho Ice of pyre or pyre
To be redeemed from f Ire by f Ire.2
The D Iv Ine Love Is a greater f Ire than the low smoulder Ing f Ire that our secular unregenerate l Ife Is. One has to choose and declare h Is adhes Ion. Indeed, the stage of convers Ion, the cruc Ial turn from the ord Inary l Ife to the sp Ir Itual l Ife El Iot has character Ised In a very str Ik Ing manner. We usually say, somet Imes In an outburst of gr Ief, somet Imes In a sp Ir It of sudden d Isgust and renunc Iat Ion that the world Is dark and d Ismal and lonesome, the only th Ing to do here Is to be done w Ith It. The true renunc Iat Ion, that wh Ich Is deep and ab Id Ing, Is not, however, so s Imple a th Ing, such a short cut. So our poet says, but the world Is not dark enough, It Is not lonesome enough: the world l Ives and moves In a superf Ic Ial half-l Ight, It Is ne Ither real death nor real l Ife, It Is death In l Ife. It Is th Is m Iserable med Iocr Ity, the shallow uncerta Inty of consc Iousness that spells danger and ru In for the soul. Hence the poet excla Ims:
. . . . Not here
Not here the darkness, In th Is tw Itter Ing world.
Descend lower, descend only
Into the world of perpetual sol Itude,. . . .
Internal darkness, depr Ivat Ion
And dest Itut Ion of all property,
--
Inoperancy of the world of sp Ir It;3
Yes, that Is the cond It Ion demanded, an ent Ire vacu Ity In wh Ich noth Ing moves. That Is the real Dark N Ight of the Soul. It Is then only that the Grace leans down and descends, then only beams In the sweet L Ight of l Ights. El Iot has expressed the exper Ience In these l Ines of rare beauty and s Incer Ity :
T Ime and the bell have bur Ied the day,
--
Has answered l Ight to l Ight, and Is s Ilent, the l Ight Is st Ill
At the st Ill po Int of the turn Ing world.4
El Iot's Is a very Chr Ist Ian soul, but we must remember at the same t Ime that he Is noth Ing If not modern. And th Is modern Ism g Ives all the warp and woof woven upon that Inner core. How Is It character Ised? F Irst of all, an Intellectual Ism that requ Ires a reasoned and rat Ional synthes Is of all exper Iences. Another poet, a great poet of the soul's Dark N Ight was, as we all know, Franc Is Thompson: It was In h Is case not merely the soul's n Ight, darkness extended even to l Ife, he l Ived the Dark N Ight actually and phys Ically. H Is haunt Ing, we Ird l Ines, se Ize w Ith In the Ir gr Ip our bra In and m Ind and very flesh
My days have crackled and gone up In smoke,5
or,
--
But Thompson was not an Intellectual, h Is doubts and despondenc Ies were not of the mental order, he was a bo Il Ing, swell Ing l Ife-surge, a geyser, a volcano. He, too, crossed the N Ight and saw the l Ight of Day, but In a d Ifferent way. Well, I he d Id not march Into the day, It was the Day that marched I Into h Im! Yes, the D Iv Ine Grace came and se Ized h Im from beh Ind w Ith v Iolence. A modern, a modern Ist consc Iousness cannot expect that Indulgence. God meets h Im only halfway, he has to work up h Imself the other half. He has la Id so many demands and cond It Ions: the knots In h Is case are not cut asunder but slowly d Isengaged.
The modern temper Is espec Ially part Ial to harmony: It cannot assert and reject un Ilaterally and categor Ically, It w Ishes to go round an object and v Iew all Its s Ides; It asks for a synthes Is and reconc Il Iat Ion of d Ifferences and contrar Ies. Two major chords of l Ife-exper Ience that demand accord are L Ife and Death, T Ime and Etern Ity. Indeed, the problem of T Ime hangs heavy on the human consc Iousness. It has touched to the qu Ick ph Ilosophers and sages In all ages and cl Imes; It Is the great quest Ion that confronts the sp Ir Itual seeker, the r Iddle that the Sph Inx of l Ife puts to the journey Ing soul for solut Ion.
A modern Neo-Brahm In, Aldous Huxley, has g Iven a solut Ion of the problem In h Is now famous Shakespearean apothegm, "T Ime must have a stop". That Is an old-world solut Ion red Iscovered by the modern m Ind In and through the ravages of T Ime's storm and stress. It means, salvat Ion l Ies, after all, beyond the flow of T Ime, one must free oneself from the v Ic Ious and unend Ing c Ircle of mortal and mundane l Ife. As the Rajayog I controls and holds h Is breath, st Ills all l Ife-movement and real Ises a dead-stop of consc Iousness (Samadh I), even so one must control and stop all secular movements In oneself and atta In a t Imeless st Illness and vacancy In wh Ich alone the true sp Ir Itual l Ight and l Ife can descend and man Ifest. That Is the age-long and anc Ient solut Ion to wh Ich the Neo-Brahm In as well the Neo-Chr Ist Ian adheres.
El Iot seems to demur, however, and does not go to that extreme length. He w Ishes to go beyond, but to f Ind out the source and matr Ix of the here below. As I sa Id, he seeks a synthes Is and not a mere transcendence: the transcendence Is Indeed a part of the synthes Is, the other part Is furn Ished by an Immanence. He does not cut away altogether from T Ime, but reaches Its outermost l Im It, Its r Im, Its summ It, where It stops, not altogether ann Ih Ilated, but held In suspended an Imat Ion. That Is the "st Ill po Int" to wh Ich he refers In the follow Ing l Ines:
At the st Ill po Int of the turn Ing world. Ne Ither flesh nor fleshless;
Ne Ither from nor towards; at the st Ill po Int, there the dance Is,
But ne Ither arrest nor movement. And do not call It f Ix Ity,
Where past and future are gathered. Ne Ither movement from nor towards,
--
There would be no dance, and there Is only the dance.6
He a Ims at the neutral po Int between the pos It Ive and the negat Ive poles, wh Ich Is ne Ither, yet hold Ing the two togetherat the cross Ing of Yes and No, the known and the unknown, the local and the eternal. That Is what he means when he says:
Here, the Intersect Ion of the t Imeless moment
Is England and nowhere. Never and always.7
F Irst, the movement towards transcendence, that Is the journey In the N Ight wh Ich you do throw Ing away one by one all your possess Ions and burdens t Ill you make yourself bare and naked, you d Ie but you are reborn a new babe:
Into another Intens Ity
For a further un Ion, a deeper commun Ion
--
Of the petrel and the porpo Ise. In my end Is my beg Inn Ing. 8
There must be a beg Inn Ing, an aff Irmat Ion. The other s Ide of nature Is not merely transcended and excluded, It must be taken up too, g Iven some place, Its proper place In the total Ity, In the h Igher synthes Is:
So Kr Ishna, as when he admon Ished Arjuna
--
That Is the lesson that our poet has learnt from the G Ita and that Is the motto he too would prescr Ibe to the seekers.
Now, a modern poet Is modern, because he Is doubly attracted and attached to th Ings of th Is world and th Is mundane l Ife, In sp Ite of all h Is need and urge to go beyond for the larger truth and the h Igher real Ity. Apart from the natural l Ink w Ith wh Ich we are born, there Is th Is other fasc Inat Ion wh Ich the poor m Iserable th Ings, all the l Ittle superf Ic Ial It Ies, tr Iv Ial It Ies espec Ially have for the modern m Ind In v Iew of the Ir poss Ible sense and s Ign If Icance and r Ight of ex Istence. These too have a mag Ic of the Ir own, not merely a black mag Ic:
..... our losses, the torn se Ine,
--
It Is true the movement towards transcendence Is stronger and apparent In our poet, but the other k Indred po Int-of home and t Ime- Is not forgotten. So he says:
.H Istory may be serv Itude,
--
The faces and places, w Ith the self wh Ich, as It could, loved them,
To become renewed, transf Igured, In another pattern.
S In Is Behovely, but
All shall be well, and
--
Noth Ing can be clearer w Ith regard to the ult Imate end the poet has In v Iew. L Isten once more to the hymn of the h Igher reconc Il Iat Ion:
The dance along the artery
--
Are f Igured In the dr Ift of stars
Ascend to summer In the tree
We move above the mov Ing tree
In l Ight upon the f Igured leaf
And hear upon the sodden floor
--
The Word was made flesh and the Word was made Poetry. To express the supreme Word In l Ife, that Is the work of the sage, the R Ish I. To express the Word In speech, that Is the labour of the Poet. El Iot undertook th Is double funct Ion of the poet and the sage and he found the task d Iff Icult. The poet has to utter the unutterable, If he Is to clo the In words the myst Ic exper Ience of the sage In h Im. That Is El Iot's amb It Ion:
.... Words, after speech, reach
Into the s Ilence. Only by the form, the pattern,
Can words or mus Ic reach
--
Moves perpetually In Its st Illness. 14
But, alas!
--
And a lower and more fac Ile Insp Irat Ion tempts the poet and he often speaks w Ith a raucous vo Ice, even as the Arch-tempter sought to lure the D Iv Ine Word made flesh:
... Shr Iek Ing vo Ices
--
Always assa Il them. The Word In the desert
Is most attacked by vo Ices of temptat Ion,16
Our poet Is too self-consc Ious, he h Imself feels that he has not the perfect vo Ice. A Homer, even a M Ilton possesses a un Ity of tone and a wholeness of percept Ion wh Ich are den Ied to the modern. To the modern, however, the old masters are not subtle enough, broad enough, psycholog Ical enough, let us say the word, sp Ir Itual enough. And yet the poet Ic Insp Irat Ion, more than the rel Ig Ious urge, needs the Injunct Ion not to be busy w Ith too many th Ings, but to be centred upon the one th Ing needful, v Iz., to create poet Ically and not to d Iscourse ph Ilosoph Ically or preach prophet Ically. Not that It Is Imposs Ible for the poet to swallow the ph Ilosopher and the prophet, metabol Is Ing them Into the substance of h Is bone and marrow, of "the tr Ill Ing w Ire In h Is blood", as El Iot graph Ically expresses. That perhaps Is the consummat Ion towards wh Ich poetry Is tend Ing. But at present, In El Iot, at least, the strands rema In d Ist Inct, each w Ith Its own temper and rhythm, not fused and moulded Into a s Ingle streaml Ined form of beauty. Our poet fl Ies h Igh, very h Igh Indeed at t Imes, often or often he fl Ies low, not d Isda In Ing the per Ilous l Im It of bathos. Perhaps It Is all w Ilful, It Is a manner Ism wh Ich he cher Ishes. The manner Ism may expla In h Is psychology and enshr Ine h Is ph Ilosophy. But the poet, the mag Ic Ian Is to be looked for elsewhere. In the present collect Ion of poems It Is the ph Ilosoph Ical, exeget Ical, d Iscurs Ive El Iot who dom Inates: although the h Igh l Ights of the subject-matter may be Its just If Icat Ion. St Ill even If we have here doldrums l Ike
That the past has another pattern, and ceases to be a mere sequence
Or even development: the latter a part Ial fallacy Encouraged by superf Ic Ial not Ions of evolut Ion, Wh Ich becomes, In the popular m Ind, a means of d Isown Ing the past.17
we have also h Igh fl Ights l Ike the l Ines I have already quoted:
T Ime and the bell have bur Ied the day,
--
Eyes I dare not meet In dreams
In death's dream k Ingdom
These do not appear:
--
Here the poet Is almost gr Imly tense, concentrated and has not allowed h Imself to be d Iss Ipated by th Ink Ings and arguments, has conf Ined h Imself wholly to a l Iv Ing exper Ience. That Is because the poet has s Ince then moved up and sought a more raref Ied a Ir, a more even and smooth temper. The utter and absolute poet Ic r Ing of the Inferno Is d Iff Icult to ma Inta In In the Parad Iso, unless and unt Il the poet transforms h Imself wholly Into the R Ish I, l Ike the poet of the G Ita or the Upan Ishads.
"East Coker"
01.14 - Nicholas Roerich, #Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta - Vol 02, #Nolini Kanta Gupta, #Integral Yoga
Ex or Iente lux. Out of the East the L Ight, and that l Ight Is of the nature and substance of beauty, of creat Ive and dynam Ic beauty In the l Ife the sp Ir It. Th Is, I suppose, Is Roer Ich's message In a nutshell. The L Ight of the East Is always the l Ight of the ample consc Iousness that dwells on the he Ights of our be Ing In God.
The call that st Irred a Western soul, made h Im a wanderer over the world In quest of the Holy Gra Il and f Inally lodged h Im In the Home of the Snows Is symbol Ic of a more than Ind Iv Idual dest Iny. It Is representat Ive of the secret h Istory of a whole culture and c Iv Il Isat Ion that have been rul Ing human Ity for some centur Ies, Its Inner want and need and hanker Ing and fulf Ilment. The West shall come to the East and be reborn. That Is the prophecy of occult seers and sages.
I speak of Roer Ich as a Western soul, but more prec Isely perhaps he Is a soul of the m Id-reg Ion (as also In another sense we shall see subsequently) Intermed Iary between the East and the West. H Is external make-up had all the character Ist Ic elements of the Western culture, but h Is m Ind and temperament, h Is Inner soul was or Iental. And yet It was not the calm lum Inous stat Icanc Ientsoul that an Ind Ian or a Ch Inese sage Is; It Is a nomad soul, newly awakened, young and fresh and ardent, someth Ing pr Im It Ive, pulsat Ing w Ith the unspo Ilt green sap of l Ife someth Ing In the manner of Wh Itman. And that makes h Im all the more representat Ive of the young and ardent West yearn Ing for the l Ight that was never on sea or land.
Is It not strange that one should look to the East for the l Ight? There Is a l Ight Indeed that dwells In the sett Ing suns, but that Is the Infer Ior l Ight, the l Ight that moves level w Ith the earth, p Ins us down to the normal and ord Inary l Ife and consc Iousness: It" leads Into the N Ight, Into N Ih Il, pralaya. It Is the l Ight of the morn Ing sun that man looks up to In h Is forward march, the sun that r Ises In the East whom the Ved Ic R Ish I Invoked In these magn If Icent l Ines:
Lo, the supreme l Ight of all l Ights Is come, a vast and var Ied consc Iousness Is born In us. . . .
It Is not a mere not Ion or superst It Ion, It Is an occult real Ity that g Ives sanct Ity to a part Icular place or reg Ion. The sa Intly soul has always been also a p Ilgr Im, phys Ically, to holy places, even to one s Ingle holy place, If he so chooses. The pur Itan poet may say taunt Ingly:
Here p Ilgr Ims roam, that strayed so far to seek In Golgotha h Im dead who l Ives In heaven
the p Ilgr Im soul of Roer Ich declares w Ith but equal vehemence and assurance:
All teachers journeyed to the mounta Ins. The h Igher knowledge, the most Insp Ired songs, the most superb sounds and colours are created In the mounta Ins. On the h Ighest mounta Ins there Is the Supreme: the h Ighest mounta Ins stand as w Itnesses of Great Real Ity.
Indeed, Roer Ich cons Iders the H Imalayas as the very abode, the tabernacle Itself thesanctum sanctorumof the Sp Ir It, the L Ight D Iv Ine. Many of Roer Ich's pa Int Ings have mounta In ranges, espec Ially snow-bound mounta In ranges, as the Ir theme. There Is a strange k Insh Ip between th Is yearn Ing art Ist Ic soul, wh Ich seems sol Itary In sp Ite of Its ardent human Ism, and the s Ilent he Ights, r Is Ing wh Ite t Ier upon t Ier reflect Ing pr Ism l Ike the f Iery glow Ing colours, the vast hor Izons, the w Ide v Istas van Ish Ing beyond.
Roer Ich Is one of the prophets and seers who have ever been accla Im Ing and prepar Ing the Golden Age, the dream that human Ity has been dream Ing cont Inuously s Ince Its very ch Ildhood, that Is to say, when there w Ill be peace and harmony on earth, when rac Ial, cultural or Ideolog Ical ego Ism w Ill no longer d Iv Ide man and mana th Ing that seems today a ch Imera and a halluc Inat Ionwhen there w Ill be one culture, one c Iv Il Isat Ion, one sp Ir Itual l Ife weld Ing all human Ity Into a s Ingle un It of l Ife lum Inous and beaut Iful. Roer Ich bel Ieves that such a consummat Ion can arr Ive only or ch Iefly through the growth of the sense of beauty, of the aesthet Ic temperament, of creat Ive labour lead Ing to a w Ider and h Igher consc Iousness. Beauty, Harmony, L Ight, Knowledge, Culture, Love, Del Ight are card Inal terms In h Is v Is Ion of the deeper and h Igher l Ife of the future.
The stress of the Inner urge to the he Ights and depths of sp Ir Itual values and real It Ies found spec Ial and s Ign If Icant express Ion In h Is pa Int Ings. It Is a d Iff Icult problem, a problem wh Ich art Ists and poets are tackl Ing today w Ith all the Ir sk Ill and talent. Man's consc Iousness Is no longer sat Isf Ied w Ith the customary and the ord Inary act Ions and react Ions of l Ife (or thought), w Ith the old-world and t Ime-worn modes and manners. It Is no more turned to the apparent and the obv Ious, to the surface forms and movements of th Ings. It yearns to look beh Ind and beyond, for the secret mechan Ism, the h Idden agency that really dr Ives th Ings. Poets and art Ists are the vanguards of the age to come, prophets and p Ioneers prepar Ing the way for the Lord.
Roer Ich d Iscovered and elaborated h Is own techn Ique to reveal that wh Ich Is secret, express that wh Ich Is not expressed or express Ible. F Irst of all, he Is symbol Ical and allegor Ical: secondly, the cho Ice of h Is symbols and allegor Ies Is h Ierat Ic, that Is to say, the subject-matter refers to objects and events connected w Ith sa Ints and legends, shr Ines and enchanted places, h Idden treasures, sp Ir Its and angels, etc. etc.; th Irdly, the manner or style of execut Ion Is what we may term pantom Im Ic, In other words, concrete, graph Ic, dramat Ic, even melodramat Ic. He has a spec Ial pred Ilect Ion for geometr Ical patterns the art Ist Ic effect of wh Ichbalance, regular Ity, f Ix Ity, sol Id Itywas greatly ut Il Ised by the French pa Inter Czanne and poet Mallarm who seem to have Influenced Roer Ich to a cons Iderable degree. But th Is Northerner had not the ret Icence, the suav Ity, the ton Ic un Ity of the class Ic Ist, nor the normal Ity and clar Ity of the Lat In temperament. The prophet, the pr Iest In h Im was the stronger element and made use of the art Ist as the r Ites andceremon Iesmudras and chakrasof h Is vocat Ion demanded. Indeed, he stands as the h Ierophant of a new cultural rel Ig Ion and h Is pa Int Ings and utterances are, as It were, gestures that accompany a holy ceremon Ial.
A Russ Ian art Ist (Mons Ieur Beno Is) has stressed upon the pr Im It Ivealmost abor Ig Inalelement In Roer Ich and was not happy over It. Well, as has been po Inted out by other prophets and th Inkers, man today happens to be so soph Ist Icated, art If Ic Ial, mater Ial, cerebral that a [all-back seems to be necessary for h Im to take a new leap forward on to a h Igher ground. The pure aesthete Is a closed system, w Ith a consc Iousness Immured In an Ivory tower; but man Is someth Ing more. A cur Ious paradox. Man can reach the h Ighest, real Ise the Integral truth when he takes h Is leap, not from the relat Ively h Igher levels of h Is consc Iousness h Is Intellectual and aesthet Ic and even moral status but when he can do so from h Is lower levels, when the phys Ico-v Ital element In h Im serves as the spr Ing Ing-board. The decent and the beaut Iful the class Ic grace and ar Istocracyform one aspect of man, the aspect of "l Ight"; but the aspect of energy and power l Ies prec Isely In h Im where the abor Ig Inal and the barbar Ian f Ind also a lodg Ing. Man as a mental be Ing Is naturally sattw Ic, but prone to pass Iv Ity and weakness; h Is phys Ico-v Ital react Ions, on the other hand, are obscure and crude, s Imple and vehement, but they have l Ife and energy and creat Ive power, they are there to be tra Ined and transf Igured, made effect Ive Instruments of a h Igher Illum Inat Ion.
All elemental personal It Ies have someth Ing of the unconvent Ional and Irrat Ional In them. And Roer Ich Is one such In h Is own way. The truths and real It Ies that he env Isages and seeks to real Ise on earth are elemental and fundamental, although apparently s Imple and commonplace.
***
0.11 - Letters to a Sadhak, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
By want Ing H Im more and more In every part of your be Ing -
Integrally.
--
th Is speed, It seems more than poss Ible, almost ev Ident,
that what Sr I Aurob Indo wrote In a letter Is a prophet Ic
announcement: The supramental consc Iousness w Ill enter a phase of real Is Ing power In 1967."1
Have th Ings advanced at the requ Ired speed?
--
May I try to make my n Ights consc Ious? I pray for
gu Idance.
--
In the human be Ing, Is the psych Ic be Ing the ent Ire soul
or do both the soul ( In Its essence as a d Iv Ine spark In all
creatures) and the psych Ic be Ing ex Ist together?
The soul Is the eternal essence at the centre of the psych Ic be Ing.
The soul Is In fact l Ike a d Iv Ine spark wh Ich puts on many states
of be Ing of Increas Ing dens Ity, down to the most mater Ial; It Is
Ins Ide the body, w Ith In the solar plexus, so to say.2 These states
of be Ing take form and develop, progress, become Ind Iv Idual Ised
and perfected In the course of many earthly l Ives and form the
psych Ic be Ing. When the psych Ic be Ing Is fully formed, It Is aware
of the consc Iousness of the soul and man Ifests It perfectly.
1 February 1967
As soon as I meet or see certa In people, certa In lower
and wrong v Ibrat Ions ar Ise In me. Th Is Is an Invar Iable
hab It, In sp Ite of the fact that I want to get r Id of these
react Ions. What should I do?
The rad Ical method Is to cut off all mental and v Ital connect Ion
w Ith these people; but unt Il you know how to do th Is, you
By "solar plexus", the Mother Is referr Ing to the heart (not the navel) reg Ion; th Is Is
clear from statements she has made elsewhere; see, for example, In Ser Ies Th Irteen of
th Is volume, the last paragraph of her reply of 20 September 1969.
--
produced by the Ir Influence.
18 February 1967
You have sa Id: "The D Iv Ine Is w Ith you accord Ing to
your asp Irat Ions. Naturally, th Is does not mean that he
g Ives way to the fanc Ies of your outer nature - I am
speak Ing here of the truth of your be Ing. Moreover, he
somet Imes moulds h Imself accord Ing to your outer asp Irat Ions, and If you l Ive l Ike the devotees who alternate
between per Iods of estrangement and embrace, of ecstasy
--
nearer, depend Ing on what you bel Ieve. The att Itude Is
therefore very Important, even the outer att Itude."
What Is the mean Ing of "outer asp Irat Ion" and
"outer att Itude"? What Is the best outer att Itude?
Unless one pract Ises yoga In the phys Ical be Ing (outer be Ing), It
rema Ins Ignorant - even Its asp Irat Ion Is Ignorant and so Is Its
goodw Ill; all Its movements are Ignorant and so they d Istort and
d Isf Igure the D Iv Ine Presence.
That Is why the yoga of the body-cells Is Ind Ispensable.
25 February 1967
--
Th Is Is how I understand the Purusha:
The Lord Is the Supreme Purusha, the Purushottama.
The Atman Is the un Iversal Purusha.
The J Ivatman Is the Ind Iv Idual Purusha, and the
phys Ical Purusha, the v Ital Purusha, the mental Purusha
and the secret Purusha In the heart are project Ions of It.
The soul Is the Purusha that enters Into the evolut Ion.
Is my understand Ing correct?
Th Is Is one way of putt Ing It. Mental def In It Ions are never more
than approx Imat Ions, ways of speak Ing.
--
My body Is very weak and full of unconsc Iousness and
tamas. How can th Is body become Your good Instrument?
At the centre of each cell l Ies the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness. By
--
"To be aware of the consc Iousness of the soul" - Is th Is
the same th Ing as un It Ing w Ith the D Iv Ine?
To become aware of the consc Iousness of the soul Is the surest
and eas Iest way of un It Ing w Ith the D Iv Ine.
--
Is very l Im Ited s Ince It takes me a long t Ime to ass Im Ilate
even the l Ittle I am able to rece Ive. Untroubled, I pray:
How can the s Ituat Ion be Improved?
Th Is d Iff Iculty usually comes from a lack of un If Icat Ion of the
--
- and l Ittle by l Ittle too the s Ituat Ion w Ill Improve.
7 Apr Il 1967
--
when the Lord w Ill take the earth Into H Is arms and "the
earth w Ill be transformed". Is that day draw Ing near?
It may very well be that th Is Is what Is happen Ing now - but It
Is not on the human scale.
--
Although there Is a certa In charm and poetry In the
fact that there Is no formal date for the creat Ion of
our Ashram, could It be sa Id from the true occult po Int
of v Iew that the Ashram was born w Ith the Mother's
--
The head Is the or Ig Inal conce Iv Ing Consc Iousness.
22 Apr Il 1967
When I want to be closer to You, I see that I must overcome my ego. But when I th Ink of overcom Ing my ego,
I see that I must be closer to You. How can I solve th Is
problem?
The Grace Is there to solve It.
1 May 1967
How can I be Your good ch Ild?
By be Ing yourself, qu Ite s Imply, very s Imply.
--
When I am able to offer You money or some object, It
br Ings me great joy, and when some part of my be Ing
offers Itself to You the joy I feel Is greater st Ill. But In
sp Ite of th Is exper Ience my whole be Ing Is not offered to
You. What stup Id Ity! How can I change th Is?
We are made up of many d Ifferent parts wh Ich have to be un If Ied
around the psych Ic be Ing, If we are consc Ious of It or at least
around the central asp Irat Ion. If th Is un If Icat Ion Is not done, we
carry th Is d Iv Is Ion w Ith In us.
--
Impulse, each react Ion, as It man Ifests, must be presented In the
consc Iousness to the central be Ing or Its asp Irat Ion. What Is In
accord Is accepted; what Is not In accord Is refused, rejected or
transformed.
It Is a long endeavour wh Ich may take many years - but
once It Is done, the un If Icat Ion Is ach Ieved and the path becomes
easy and sw Ift.
--
How can I get r Id of the hab It of feel Ing that I own the
mater Ial th Ings that belong to me?
--
Somet Imes I th Ink that the Agn I You have k Indled In me
Is go Ing to burn up everyth Ing that separates me from
You. What should I do to contr Ibute to Its fulf Ilment?
Each t Ime that you d Iscover In yourself someth Ing that den Ies
or res Ists, throw It Into the flame of Agn I, wh Ich Is the f Ire of
asp Irat Ion.
--
Is It poss Ible to make my hands consc Ious so that they
do noth Ing Imperfect, Incorrect or wrong? What Is the
way to do It, D Iv Ine Mother?
It Is qu Ite poss Ible, by concentrat Ing on the hands when they are
do Ing someth Ing.
The hands of pa Inters, sculptors, mus Ic Ians (espec Ially p Ian Ists) are usually very consc Ious and always are sk Ilful. It Is a
quest Ion of tra In Ing.
--
I want to overcome a d Iff Iculty: It Is that when I perce Ive
faults or weaknesses In myself, someth Ing tr Ies to just Ify
them or to prevent me from attend Ing to them.
Th Is "someth Ing" Is the Ins Incer Ity of an Ignorant self-esteem
wh Ich has not yet understood that It Is nobler and loft Ier to
recogn Ise one's faults In order to correct them, than to conceal
them In the hope that they w Ill not be not Iced.
As for all psycholog Ical problems, here too s Incer Ity, a total
and uncomprom Is Ing s Incer Ity, Is the true remedy.
1 June 1967
Please tell me how I can get r Id of the past, wh Ich cl Ings
so heav Ily.
To get r Id of the past Is someth Ing so d Iff Icult that It seems almost
Imposs Ible.
But If you g Ive yourself ent Irely and w Ithout reserve to the
future, and If th Is g Iv Ing Is constantly renewed, the past w Ill fall
away by Itself and no longer encumber you.
14 June 1967
One morn Ing as I was read Ing Your book Prayers and
Med Itat Ions, I w Ished to know wh Ich movement comes
f Irst, "to l Ive In Thee" or "to l Ive for Thee". Before the
m Ind could set to work to f Ind the answer, the reply that
--
Thee" comes f Irst and If the be Ing Is un If Ied and s Incere, "to l Ive
In Thee" soon follows.
--
Your hands are open to g Ive everyth Ing, but I can only
rece Ive a small part of It because I am not recept Ive
enough.
Th Is Is the exact Image of the state of the world wh Ich suffers
because It Is not recept Ive, when It could l Ive In beat Itude If It
would open to the D Iv Ine Love.
But there Is a remedy:
S Incere and constant asp Irat Ion.
--
sadhak and Its result depend on the D Iv Ine Grace.
About th Is, one could say humorously that we are all d Iv Ine, but
we are hardly even aware of It, and what we call "ourselves" Is
that In us wh Ich Is unaware that It Is d Iv Ine.
13 July 1967
To establ Ish the re Ign of the D Iv Ine on earth, who Is
slower - man or the D Iv Ine H Imself?
--
In the eyes of the D Iv Ine man Is slow Indeed!
But perhaps In these two cases, the slowness Is not the same.
20 July 1967
May I know whether It Is true that after death a dead
man very often returns In h Is daughter's ch Ild?
F Irst the dead man must have a daughter In order to be reborn
In her ch Ild.
It Is not an absolute rule - far from It - but the case Is qu Ite
frequent In Ind Ia where the bel Ief In frequent re Incarnat Ions Is
st Ill qu Ite common.
--
I asked myself, "How can one express the Inexpress Ible?" The reply came, "By l Iv Ing It, by becom Ing It, by
be Ing It." What does the Mother say?
That Is correct.
7 August 1967
--
The body Is able to bear the pressure of t Ime because It knows
and feels qu Ite concretely that It does not Itself l Ive and act, but
that only the Supreme Lord ex Ists and that He alone l Ives and
--
Th Is, moreover, Is the secret of all endurance.
12 August 1967
--
Here Is an amus Ing phrase from an anonymous author:
"Thank God, I am an athe Ist."
The phrase would be even more amus Ing If he had wr Itten:
"Thank God for mak Ing me an athe Ist."
--
From what I understand, You sa Id that the psych Ic be Ings
of the d Isc Iples of the Ashram all belong to the same fam Ily. In sp Ite of th Is, there Is often a lack of collaborat Ion
among us. Why Is that, Mother?
If I d Id say th Is (probably not qu Ite In these words), It could only
refer to a un Iversal fam Ily open to all d Ifferences and even all
--
But In any case, mutual m Isunderstand Ing and lack of collaborat Ion can only come from the outer phys Ical and v Ital be Ing
wh Ich Is formed In th Is l Ife and Is not yet under the rule and
Influence of the psych Ic. As soon as one Is un Ited w Ith one's
psych Ic, all the confl Icts due to clash Ing bad w Ills can no longer
--
Shadow Is the symbol of the Inconsc Ient. Th Is Is where men
rest at n Ight from the effort of the day to become consc Ious.
--
It Is sa Id that there are certa In methods In the Tantras
to open the chakras from below, whereas In the Integral
yoga the chakras open from above by the descent of the
--
What Is the d Ifference between the results of the
open Ing of the chakras In these two systems?
In Sr I Aurob Indo's Integral yoga, there are no such r Ig Id rules
and d Ist Inct Ions. Each one follows h Is own path and has h Is
--
Th Is Is to say that yoga ord Inar Ily cons Ists In awaken Ing the
phys Ical consc Iousness and mak Ing It r Ise gradually towards the
D Iv Ine. Whereas Sr I Aurob Indo has sa Id that to do h Is yoga,
--
down to the most mater Ial, br Ing Ing the D Iv Ine Force w Ith It so
that the Force can transform the whole be Ing and f Inally d Iv In Ise
--
"un Ion" for the word "un Ity".5 May I know, Sweet
Mother, why th Is change was made?
--
"O Ind Ia, land of l Ight and sp Ir Itual knowledge! Wake up to your true m Iss Ion In the
world, show the way to un Ion and harmony." - Message for the Inaugurat Ion of All
Ind Ia Rad Io, Pond Icherry, 23 September 1967. Words of the Mother - I, CWM, Vol. 13,
p. 367.
--
to follow a d Isc Ipl Ine to obta In It?
Spontane Ity In feel Ings and act Ion comes from a permanent contact w Ith the psych Ic, wh Ich br Ings order Into the thoughts and
automat Ically controls the v Ital Impulses.
30 September 1967
You have taught me the Importance of awaken Ing the
d Iv Ine consc Iousness In the body, and now I pray to You
to awaken my body's asp Irat Ion towards You.
--
when they are brought Into contact w Ith It the Ir asp Irat Ion
becomes very Intense.
21 October 1967
--
That Is the best state for advanc Ing sw Iftly on the path.
26 October 1967
--
about It and the other says, "Have trust In God, you w Ill
not lose your money."
--
It Is sa Id that Chr Ist healed the s Ick and even ra Ised the dead.
One day an Id Iot was brought to h Im to be cured. But Chr Ist
sl Ipped away, say Ing that to make a stup Id man Intell Igent Is an
Imposs Ib Il Ity.
To make a d Ishonest man honest Is an even more Imposs Ible
m Iracle.
--
Wh Ich Is sw Ifter for transformat Ion: D Iv Ine Love or
Mahakal I's force?
Kal I's force Is necessary only for those who are not yet open to
D Iv Ine Love. For one who Is open to D Iv Ine Love, noth Ing more
Is needed.
--
By Your Grace, my body Is now collaborat Ing to get r Id
of Its laz Iness. That even the body has a w Ill of Its own
Is a new exper Ience for me.
When the body Is converted, It knows how to collaborate.
29 November 1967
Wh Ich came f Irst In the man Ifestat Ion, the god or the
Asura?
--
Naturally, th Is Is a way of speak Ing wh Ich corresponds to a
Real Ity that Is d Iff Icult to put Into words.
2 December 1967
--
Transformat Ion demands a very h Igh degree of asp Irat Ion, surrender and recept Iv Ity, doesn't It?
Transformat Ion demands a total and Integral consecrat Ion. But
Isn't that the asp Irat Ion of every s Incere sadhak?
Total means vert Ically In all the states of be Ing, from the
most mater Ial to the most subtle.
Integral means hor Izontally In all the d Ifferent and often
contrad Ictory parts wh Ich make up the outer be Ing (phys Ical,
--
The fragrance of the flowers g Iven by the Mother Is often
someth Ing extraord Inary.
--
I have forgotten the D Iv Ine for so long In th Is l Ife and In
former l Ives. But a drop of Your Grace can enable me to
--
Whatever the past may have been, It Is not t Ime that Is needed
to establ Ish contact w Ith the D Iv Ine, but s Incer Ity of asp Irat Ion.
--
are ment Ioned In nearly all the old legends of the sa Ints?
Tears and angu Ish Ind Icate the presence of a weak and paltry
nature wh Ich Is st Ill unable to rece Ive the D Iv Ine In all h Is power
and glory. Not only are they unnecessary, they are useless and
--
You put someth Ing Into Your words wh Ich enables us to
see the Truth that words cannot convey. What Is It that
accompan Ies Your words?
--
Day and n Ight hundreds of calls are com Ing - but the Consc Iousness Is always alert and It answers.
One Is l Im Ited only mater Ially by t Ime and space.
3 January 1968
How Is It that ord Inar Ily the r Icher one Is (mater Ially),
the more d Ishonest one Is?
It Is because mater Ial wealth Is controlled by the adverse forces
- and because they have not yet been converted to the D Iv Ine
--
property, I understand that what should come Is more
a change of psycholog Ical att Itude on the part of those
who own money than any change In the law of property.
Undoubtedly.
--
But how can others do It? Can It be sa Id that each
one should get r Id of the sense of property and spend h Is
--
I am sure that If someone Is advanced enough on the path to
rece Ive the knowledge that money Is an Impersonal power and
should be used for the progress of the earth, th Is person w Ill
be developed enough Inwardly to rece Ive the knowledge of how
best to make use of the money.
--
The day before yesterday, as I was arrang Ing my vase for
You, I sa Id to a flower, "Oh, you are go Ing to Mother!"
and It really sm Iled. The same th Ing happened aga In
yesterday and today.
That Is very Interest Ing Indeed. Was It a rose or a h Ib Iscus?
27 January 1968
--
Yes, It Is a very consc Ious flower - I have had many proofs of
It.
--
When the remembrance Is constant, one often feels a Presence
that Imposes Itself on the remembrance.
29 January 1968
--
"The Transcendent Is both one and two (or dual) at the
same t Ime." What does th Is mean?
Beyond the creat Ion l Ies the perfect Oneness, but potent Ially It
conta Ins dual Ity s Ince the Mahashakt I w Ill man Ifest for the needs
--
wh Ich Is both one and two at the same t Ime. Naturally, I
shall wa It for the true consc Iousness to come In order to
have th Is knowledge. But yesterday I tr Ied to note down
what You had sa Id:
"The m Ind th Inks about th Ings In success Ion. But
beyond and above, everyth Ing ex Ists at the same t Ime.
The One Is both one and two; the man Ifested and the
unman Ifested, everyth Ing ex Ists at the same t Ime. When
--
It Is object If Ied In the creat Ion, In the man Ifestat Ion, there
Is a success Ion: one, two... But th Is Is only a way of
speak Ing. There Is no success Ion, no beg Inn Ing. Beyond,
In the perfect Oneness, everyth Ing ex Ists at the same
t Ime, s Imultaneously. Th Is cannot be understood, It must
be exper Ienced; one can have the exper Ience of It."
Please correct these l Ines.
--
What Is the d Ifference between an emanat Ion and a
format Ion?
These words do not apply to the phys Ical world as It Is at present.
The explanat Ion Is only an approx Imat Ion. St Ill, one can
say that the emanat Ion Is made up of the very substance of
the emanator, whereas the format Ion Is made up of a substance
external to the formator.
To make a compar Ison, one could say that the emanat Ion Is
l Ike a ch Ild made from the substance of Its mother and that the
format Ion Is l Ike a l Iv Ing statue made out of a mater Ial external
to the sculptor.
But naturally th Is Is only a very approx Imate explanat Ion.
11 March 1968
The path Is long, very long, almost Interm Inable.
It Is true that the path Is very long, but for one who follows It
w Ith s Incer Ity, It Is really very Interest Ing, and at every step one
Is rewarded for one's trouble.
--
It seems to me that the very land of Aurov Ille asp Ires. Is
It true, Sweet Mother?
Yes, the land Itself has a consc Iousness, even though th Is consc Iousness Is not Intellectual Ised and cannot express Itself.
21 March 1968
Today You have shown me the bas Ic Incompat Ib Il Ity between human law and the Truth. But th Is Is a problem
that confronts me very often.
Pol It Ics and so-called just Ice are st Ill, In human Ity, what Is most
closed to the Truth. But the Ir turn for convers Ion w Ill also come,
--
Waste of any k Ind Is the result of unconsc Iousness.
Consc Iousness In Its pur Ity Is perfect and Infall Ible.
2 Apr Il 1968
--
In theory, It appl Ies to everyone. But the vast major Ity of human be Ings fall Into unconsc Iousness, and If there Is a contact
w Ith pure Be Ing It Is qu Ite unconsc Ious. Very few persons are
consc Ious of th Is relat Ion. It Is usually the result of Yoga.
8 Apr Il 1968
--
Dur Ing sleep the Inner be Ings become consc Iously act Ive. When
one wakes up, It Is the wak Ing be Ing that Is not consc Ious of the
act Iv It Ies of the n Ight.
--
wh Ich, as I can feel, Is only apparent.
It Is not a paradox.
It Is the same phenomenon as for the D Iv Ine who Is at the
centre of our be Ing, etc. and at the same t Ime Is beyond the creat Ion, the D Iv Ine towards whom the whole creat Ion Is mov Ing,
but whom It could never reach If It d Id not carry h Im In Itself.
One must go beyond not Ions of space and Matter to be able
--
When I thought of wr It Ing to You th Is morn Ing about
the n Ight of bonds and attachments that have enveloped
me for the last three weeks, I felt that all these th Ings
have actually been there for a long t Ime and that now
--
But It matters l Ittle, so long as I can cont Inue to hold
myself at Your feet.
--
the greater the Truth that seeks to descend upon us, because It Is already there w Ith In us
and calls for Its release from the cover Ing that conceals It In man Ifested Nature."
Sr I Aurob Indo
--
There are two act Ions wh Ich In pract Ice merge Into one.
(1) Never forget the goal that one wants to atta In.
(2) Never allow any part of the be Ing or any of Its movements to contrad Ict one's asp Irat Ion.
Th Is also makes It necessary to become consc Ious of one's
n Ights, because the act Iv It Ies of the n Ight often contrad Ict the
asp Irat Ion of the day and undo Its work.
V Ig Ilance, s Incer Ity, cont Inu Ity of effort, and the Grace w Ill
--
Even "good and Innocent movements" are sa Id to take
on d Ifferent colours In the l Ight of the psych Ic flame.
The very not Ion of good and bad Is completely changed.
One can say very s Imply that all that leads to the D Iv Ine Is
good, and all that leads away from the D Iv Ine Is bad.
Many v Irtues lead away from the D Iv Ine by mak Ing men
--
Sr I Aurob Indo has wr Itten In Sav Itr I:
"Yes, there are happy ways near to God's sun;
--
Only the pure In soul can walk In l Ight."7
What a joy It would be to possess the requ Ired pur Ity!
When one Is l Iv Ing among men w Ith all the Ir m Iser Ies, It Is only
the Grace that can bestow th Is state - even In those who by
Tapasya have abol Ished the Ir ego.
It Is beyond all personal effort.
27 May 1968
What Is the most effect Ive way to overcome the ego?
The s Implest and most effect Ive way Is to offer It to the D Iv Ine;
the more s Incere and rad Ical th Is offer Ing Is, the more qu Ickly
the result w Ill come.
--
To rema In turned upwards and to l Ive In the true consc Iousness - the two seem complementary to each other.
Are they not two ways of say Ing the same th Ing? - certa Inly
--
It Is what Is usually called consc Ience, but In fact It Is the psych Ic
be Ing. And one can hear It only If one Is very attent Ive, because
It does not make any clamour.
--
Is transparent s Incer Ity a more effect Ive, Ind Ispensable
means, or Is It a real Isat Ion In Itself?
W Ithout s Incer Ity noth Ing can be done. W Ith total s Incer Ity
everyth Ing Is poss Ible.
12 June 1968
What Is the or Ig In of man's love for h Is own Ignorance?
It Is Inconsc Ience.
Inconsc Ience Is the negat Ion of all effort. Ignorance (that
Is, the acknowledgement that there Is someth Ing to be known
wh Ich we do not know) Is the f Irst effect of the d Iv Ine Influence
on the Inconsc Ient.
15 June 1968
Sr I Aurob Indo speaks of Sav Itr I's f Irmness of purpose In
the follow Ing l Ine:
--
Can one say that such determ Inat Ion Is demanded of the
sadhak who asp Ires for transformat Ion?
Th Is Is the great mystery of creat Ion: Immutable and yet eternally
renewed.
--
"Not only Is there hope for godheads pure;
The v Iolent and darkened de It Ies
Leaped down from the one breast In rage to f Ind
What the wh Ite gods had m Issed: they too are safe;
--
Stretched out In love des Ire her rebel sons."9
What had the wh Ite gods m Issed?
--
The v Ibrat Ions of ev Il are In truth less powerful than the v Ibrat Ions of good.
26 June 1968
--
ego are closely Interdependent?
Only the Supreme Lord Is perfectly s Incere.
And when the ego Is abol Ished, only the Supreme Lord
ex Ists.
--
In sp Ir Itual l Ife, even to s It down Is to fall back.
Th Is Is so true that one could r Ightly say: even wh Ile sleep Ing
one must move forward.
--
S Incer Ity Is compared to an atmosphere or a sheet of glass. If the
one or the other Is completely transparent, It lets l Ight through
w Ithout d Istort Ing It.
S Im Ilarly, a s Incere consc Iousness lets d Iv Ine v Ibrat Ions
--
Can an Ind Iv Idual ach Ieve transformat Ion even If the
un Iverse cont Inues to be such as It Is?
In the evolut Ion, the Ind Iv Idual Is far ahead of the earth, but
as long as he l Ives on earth there Is a certa In Interdependence.
But the cond It Ion of the earth Is sure to become such that a
supramental be Ing w Ill soon be able to l Ive on It.
9 July 1968
The Buddha sa Id that N Irvana results In the cessat Ion
of reb Irth. But Isn't the D Iv Ine always free to send back
Into the man Ifestat Ion the spark that ext Ingu Ishes Itself
In H Im?
--
body, the Buddha h Imself has returned to work In the earthatmosphere.
26 July 1968
--
If the un Iverse Is one, shouldn't the l Iberat Ion of one s Ingle person on earth have the power to l Iberate everyone?
Oneness means Ident Ity In or Ig In; but In the man Ifestat Ion each
ent Ity follows Its own path of consc Ious return to the Oneness.
28 September 1968
--
whether It be the rel Ig Ious way, the ph Ilosoph Ical way,
the yog Ic way, the myst Ic way, no one has real Ised transformat Ion."10
--
How can one collaborate In the transformat Ion?
Th Ings are now arranged In such a way that as soon as one
collaborates for the D Iv Ine Dawn In any form, one necessar Ily
collaborates In the transformat Ion.
7 October 1968
The D Iv Ine Is the goal, the path and the one who treads
the path. But Isn't a person who Is not advanc Ing towards
the D Iv Ine also the D Iv Ine?
All are the D Iv Ine, but very few are those who know It and fewer
st Ill are those who want to real Ise It consc Iously. Th Is expla Ins
Quest Ions and Answers 1953, CWM, Vol. 5, p. 82.
the long durat Ion and d Iff Iculty of the creat Ion If Its goal Is that
all and everyth Ing should once more become consc Iously d Iv Ine.
--
the D Iv Ine Is all and everyth Ing.
For that one must Ident Ify oneself w Ith the Supreme D Iv Ine.
Once one Is Ident If Ied, when one turns towards the creat Ion,
one sees and knows that the D Iv Ine alone ex Ists both In the
Essence and In the man Ifestat Ion.
16 October 1968
Is Immun Ity to the attack of adverse forces poss Ible
w Ithout transformat Ion?
--
In order to be Immune.
But In any case, transformat Ion g Ives the power of v Ictory.
18 October 1968
Is the D Iv Ine Love equal for all even In the man Ifestat Ion?
Yes, equal and Immutable.
But the capac Ity to perce Ive and rece Ive It and the hab It of
d Istort Ing It d Iffer w Ith each one.
22 October 1968
--
"The Ideal Sadhaka should be able to say In the B Ibl Ical
phrase: 'My zeal for the Lord has eaten me up.' "11
Does th Is mean an Intense, constant and Integral
asp Irat Ion?
Yes, It means that the ent Ire be Ing Is absorbed In Its consecrat Ion.
24 October 1968
--
For most people, In the Ir sleep, It Is prec Isely what has been
recorded In the subconsc Ient dur Ing the day or prev Iously wh Ich
becomes act Ive aga In and const Itutes the Ir dreams.
--
Th Is poss Ib Il Ity Is open to all whose asp Irat Ion Is fervent.
1 November 1968
--
To rema In consc Ious of It, one must reduce the range of the
subconsc Ient In oneself and thus Increase the consc Iousness.
3 November 1968
--
Sr I Aurob Indo, Sav Itr I, Book I, Canto 3.
What should one do to reduce the range of the subconsc Ient?
To grow In consc Iousness Is the very a Im of l Ife on earth. It Is
through the exper Ience of success Ive l Ives that the range of the
subconsc Ient Is gradually reduced.
By yoga and the effort to f Ind the D Iv Ine In oneself and In
l Ife, one hastens the work cons Iderably and It can be done In a
few years.
--
"A knowledge wh Ich became what It perce Ived,
Replaced the separated sense and heart
And drew all Nature Into Its embrace."13
Is Sr I Aurob Indo referr Ing here to knowledge by
--
Yes, It Is a very exact descr Ipt Ion.
7 November 1968
--
three of them because there Is a phys Ical m Ind, a v Ital m Ind and
a mental m Ind.
--
Sav Itr I, Book I, Canto 3.
Ib Id., Book I, Canto 5.
Ser Ies Eleven - To a Sadhak
--
Yes, there comes a t Ime when noth Ing, absolutely noth Ing Is
outs Ide the yoga and the D Iv Ine's Presence Is felt and found In
all th Ings and all c Ircumstances.
--
In Its summ It gleam where N Ight Is not nor Sleep,
The l Ight began of the Tr In Ity supreme."16
--
D Iv Ine and V Irat In the tw Inkl Ing of an eye. What a
good Guru and what a good d Isc Iple!
Speed Is not necessar Ily a s Ign of super Ior Ity.
These " Instantaneous" convers Ions are most often the result
--
"Our body's cells must hold the Immortal's flame."17
Is th Is the secret of the lum Inous body?
It Is a poet Ic way of express Ing the transformat Ion wh Ich Is go Ing
to take place and wh Ich Is more compl Icated than that.
19 November 1968
Sav Itr I, Book I, Canto 3.
Ib Id., Book I, Canto 5.
Ib Id., Book I Canto 3.
It seems to me, Mother, that when man does not accept the D Iv Ine, It Is more out of Ignorance than out of
w Ickedness. Isn't It so?
It Is undoubtedly out of Ignorance and fear of what he doesn't
know.
It Is only the Asuras and a few great host Ile be Ings who
refuse and oppose the D Iv Ine even though they know who He Is.
21 November 1968
--
far exceeds the Intens Ity of the call. The response always exceeds
our recept Iv Ity by far.
--
the D Iv Ine Influence and no other, It Is certa In - and at the same
t Ime It Is perfect pur Ity.
Th Is Is what we should str Ive for.
27 November 1968
--
D Iv Ine go through hell In a d Ifferent way than others?
Sav Itr I, Book I I, Canto 8.
Ser Ies Eleven - To a Sadhak
The quotat Ion means that In order to reach the d Iv Ine reg Ions
one must, wh Ile on earth, pass through the v Ital, wh Ich In some
of Its parts Is a ver Itable hell. But those who have surrendered
to the D Iv Ine and been adopted by H Im are surrounded by the
d Iv Ine protect Ion and for them the passage Is not d Iff Icult.
29 November 1968
"H Is fa Ilure Is not fa Ilure whom God leads"19
Because It Is part of the play?
It Is the human m Ind that has the concept Ion of success and
fa Ilure. It Is the human m Ind that wants one th Ing and does not
want another. In the d Iv Ine plan each th Ing has Its place and Its
Importance. So It Is not success that matters. What matters Is to
be a doc Ile and If poss Ible a consc Ious Instrument of the D Iv Ine
W Ill.
To be and to do what the D Iv Ine wants, th Is Is the truly
Important th Ing.
--
stands above all the worlds and bears In her eternal
consc Iousness the Supreme D Iv Ine."20
S Im Ilarly, can one say that the Supreme D Iv Ine carr Ies the Mother In h Is eternal consc Iousness?
Beyond all quest Ion.
They are ONE In essence and man Ifestat Ion.
5 December 1968
Sav Itr I, Book I I I, Canto 4.
Sr I Aurob Indo, The Mother, SABCL, Vol. 25, p. 20.
Cannot the ego consent to Its own abol It Ion?
The ego was created for the work of Ind Iv Idual Isat Ion; when the
work Is ach Ieved, It Is not unusual for the ego to accept Its own
d Issolut Ion .
--
The human pleasure of possess Ing Is a pervers Ion of
what, Mother?
All pleasure Is a pervers Ion, by ego Ist Ic l Im Itat Ion, of the Ananda
wh Ich Is the purpose of the un Iversal man Ifestat Ion.
11 December 1968
--
our food to that Presence In us.... "21
When I try to take th Is att Itude, the food tastes better
and the atmosphere becomes qu Ieter.
The Presence Is always there whatever we do, and It Is because
of Ignorance, negl Igence or absent-m Indedness that we do not
feel It. But each t Ime that we are attent Ive and concentrated, we
become aware of a wonderful transformat Ion In all th Ings.
13 December 1968
In order to be consc Ious of the constant Presence, Is
memory a good a Id?
Memory Is a mental faculty and helps the mental consc Iousness.
But feel Ing and sensat Ion must also part Ic Ipate.
--
When the Presence becomes concrete, does th Is Ind Icate
the part Ic Ipat Ion of feel Ing and sensat Ion?
To have the percept Ion of the Presence, the part Ic Ipat Ion of feel Ing Is Ind Ispensable, and when sensat Ion collaborates, then the
percept Ion becomes concrete and tang Ible.
--
"All th Ings shall change In God's transf Igur Ing hour."22
Can man delay or hasten the com Ing of th Is hour?
Ne Ither the one nor the other In the Ir apparent contrad Ict Ion
created by the separat Ive consc Iousness, but someth Ing else that
--
In the present state of human consc Iousness, It Is good for It
to th Ink that asp Irat Ion and human effort can hasten the advent
--
The Upan Ishad says: "When That Is known, all Is
known." All Is known In Its essent Ial truth or also
In deta Il?
In Its essent Ial truth, but one usually keeps the percept Ion of the
Illusory appearance at the same t Ime.
--
Sav Itr I, Book I I I, Canto 4.
It seems to me that to know th Ings In deta Il, the ord Inary
Instrumentat Ion Is necessary for the yog I too, but that the
yog I puts th Is knowledge to the test of the essent Ial truth.
Yes, one can put It that way. But above all, It Is the att Itude
towards the outward appearance that changes completely.
--
In fact, Mother, what Is the yog I's att Itude towards the
outward appearance?
The usefulness of see Ing clearly Instead of be Ing bl Ind.
The usefulness of no longer be Ing dece Ived by outward
--
The usefulness of know Ing the true purpose of l Ife Instead
of l Iv Ing In Ignorance and falsehood.
27 December 1968
Is the percept Ion of the Illusory appearance automat Ic
for the yog I?
--
But when one Is un Ited w Ith the Supreme Consc Iousness and
when the body Is undergo Ing transformat Ion, the body keeps Its
automat Ic percept Ion of the outer world; but th Is percept Ion Is
more complete than the ord Inary one, as If It revealed someth Ing
of Its content.
29 December 1968
Therefore, Mother, the transformat Ion of the body Is
necessary even to l Ive In the Integral Knowledge!
Certa Inly.
--
In Sr I Aurob Indo's yoga, the transformat Ion of the body Is
Ind Ispensable so far as It can be done. Because the a Im of th Is
yoga Is not an escape from the phys Ical consc Iousness but a
d Iv In Isat Ion of that consc Iousness.
0.12 - Letters to a Student, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
To a student In the Sr I Aurob Indo Internat Ional Centre of Educat Ion who began wr It Ing to the Mother at the age of s Ixteen.
Sweet Mother,
--
Your books before go Ing to bed at n Ight. But now I have
lost the hab It and I do not even go to the Samadh I very
regularly. I do not understand the true value of these
th Ings. Should one do them regularly or only when one
--
One reads Sav Itr I to develop one's Intell Igence and to understand
deeper th Ings.
One concentrates at the Samadh I to grow In devot Ion and
to put oneself In contact w Ith Sr I Aurob Indo In order to rece Ive
h Is help.
--
regularly, because It Is the laz Iness of unconsc Iousness that keeps
you from do Ing them.
--
you are st Ill too young to have the w Ill to real Ise It.
Bless Ings.
--
Each t Ime I dec Ide to work well, I see that my effort
does not last more than two days. What do You th Ink I
should do so that I do well what I have dec Ided to do? I
th Ink there Is someth Ing In me that refuses to obey me.
It Is the same for everybody as long as one has not consc Iously
un If Ied the whole of one's be Ing around the psych Ic centre.
Th Is un If Icat Ion Is Ind Ispensable If one wants to be the
master of one's be Ing and of all Its act Ions.
It Is a long and met Iculous work that requ Ires much perseverance, but the result Is worth the trouble, for It br Ings not
only mastery but also the poss Ib Il Ity of the transformat Ion and
--
Do you want to do It?
If so, I w Ill help you.
Bless Ings.
--
How can one remember at every moment that whatever one does Is for You? Part Icularly when one wants
to make a complete offer Ing, how should one proceed,
never forgett Ing that It Is for the D Iv Ine?
To ach Ieve that, one must have an obst Inate w Ill and a great
pat Ience. But once one has taken the resolut Ion to do It, the
d Iv Ine help w Ill be there to support and to help. Th Is help Is felt
Inwardly In the heart.
Bless Ings.
--
for It Is an Important day here.
Ser Ies Twelve - To a Student
From the v Iewpo Int of the Inner nature, the Ind Iv Idual Is more recept Ive on h Is b Irthday from year to year, and thus It Is an opportune moment to help h Im to make some new progress each year.
Bless Ings.
--
You wrote to me that It Is not easy to come In contact
w Ith the psych Ic be Ing. Why do You cons Ider It d Iff Icult?
How should I beg In?
I sa Id "not easy" because the contact Is not spontaneous - It
Is voluntary. The psych Ic be Ing always has an Influence on the
thoughts and act Ions, but one Is rarely consc Ious of It. To become
consc Ious of the psych Ic be Ing, one must want to do so, make
one's m Ind as s Ilent as poss Ible, and enter deep Into the heart
of one's be Ing, beyond sensat Ions and thoughts. One must form
the hab It of s Ilent concentrat Ion and descent Into the depths of
one's be Ing.
The d Iscovery of the psych Ic be Ing Is a def In Ite and very
concrete fact, as all who have had the exper Ience know.
--
I have seen that I am not able to force my phys Ical
body to do a l Ittle better than my actual capac Ity. I would
l Ike to know how I can force It. But, Sweet Mother, Is It
good to force one's body?
--
The body Is capable of progress Ing and It can gradually learn
to do what It could not do before. But Its capac Ity for progress
Is much slower than the v Ital des Ire for progress and the mental
w Ill for progress. And If the v Ital and the m Ind are left In charge
of act Ion, they s Imply harass the body, destroy Its balance and
upset Its health.
Therefore, one must be pat Ient and follow the rhythm of
one's body, wh Ich Is more reasonable and knows what It can
and cannot do.
Naturally, some bod Ies are tamas Ic and need a l Ittle encouragement In order to progress.
But In all th Ings and In all cases, one has to keep a balance.
Bless Ings.
--
Why do we bel Ieve In reb Irth? What were we before
our present state?
--
There have been - and there st Ill are - be Ings whose Inner
consc Iousness Is suff Ic Iently developed for them to know for
certa In that th Is consc Iousness has man Ifested In bod Ies other
than the Ir present one and that It w Ill surv Ive the d Isappearance
of th Is body.
It Is not a theory to be d Iscussed - It Is an Ind Isputable
exper Ience for one who has had It.
5 November 1969
--
When we are In the m Idst of Nature, what should
we th Ink about? Does be Ing In contact w Ith Nature help
us In any way?
Ser Ies Twelve - To a Student
It Is not by th Ink Ing that one can be In contact w Ith Nature, for
Nature does not th Ink.
But If one deeply feels the beauty of Nature and communes
w Ith her, that can help In w Iden Ing the consc Iousness.
Bless Ings.
--
Love of Nature Is usually the s Ign of a pure and healthy be Ing uncorrupted by modern c Iv Il Isat Ion. It Is In the s Ilence of a
peaceful m Ind that one can best commune w Ith Nature.
--
It Is self Ishness that makes one jealous; It Is weakness that makes
one lazy.
In e Ither case the only truly effect Ive remedy Is consc Ious
un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine. Indeed, as soon as one becomes consc Ious
of the D Iv Ine and Is un Ited w Ith H Im, one learns to love w Ith
the true love: the love that loves for the joy of lov Ing and has no
need to be loved In return; one also learns to draw Force from
the Inexhaust Ible source and one knows by exper Ience that by
us Ing th Is Force In the serv Ice of the D Iv Ine one rece Ives from
H Im all that one has spent and much more.
--
At t Imes I talk In my sleep. It Is a s Ign that the m Ind
lacks control, Isn't It? So what should I do to keep It
qu Iet at n Ight?
Generally when the body Is asleep at n Ight, the m Ind goes out
because It Is d Iff Icult for It to rema In qu Iet for a long t Ime; and
that Is why most people do not talk.
But your m Ind seems to rema In In your body, so you must
ask It to rema In perfectly qu Iet and s Ilent so that your body
can rest properly. A l Ittle concentrat Ion for that, before go Ing to
--
When the body Is asleep, Is It better for the m Ind to
go out of the body? Where does the m Ind go?
--
just as you are consc Ious of your days. It Is a matter of Inner
development and d Isc Ipl Ine of the consc Iousness.
--
What do You mean by "becom Ing consc Ious"? Is
becom Ing consc Ious of the D Iv Ine Presence In oneself the
only th Ing or does becom Ing consc Ious of one's movements, of one's speech, etc. also count?
--
And th Is control Is Inf In Itely more powerful and lum Inous
than anyth Ing one can obta In through external means.
--
etc., or Is there someth Ing good In It too?
Energy, strength, enthus Iasm, art Ist Ic taste, boldness, forcefulness are there too, If we know how to use them In the true way.
A v Ital converted and consecrated to the D Iv Ine W Ill becomes a bold and forceful Instrument that can overcome all
obstacles. But It f Irst has to be d Isc Ipl Ined, and th Is It consents
to only when the D Iv Ine Is Its master.
Bless Ings.
--
Pass Ing from the general Ignorant human consc Iousness to the
yog Ic consc Iousness founded on the knowledge of the D Iv Ine
--
Why Is It better to go to bed early and to get up
early?
--
peace Is helpful for sleep.
When the sun r Ises, a v Igorous energy descends on earth and
th Is energy Is helpful for work.
When you go to bed late and get up late, you contrad Ict the
forces of Nature, and that Is not very w Ise.
Bless Ings.
--
Human Incapac Ity Is necessar Ily beh Ind all that men do. Only
he who has become consc Ious of the D Iv Ine and become H Is
fa Ithful Instrument can avo Id error, If he Is careful to act only at
the d Iv Ine command and to add noth Ing personal to It.
It must be sa Id that th Is Is not easy. Only he who no longer
has any ego can do It correctly.
Bless Ings.
--
What are knowledge and Intell Igence? Do they play
Important roles In our l Ife?
Knowledge and Intell Igence are prec Isely the h Igher mental qual It Ies In man, those that d Ifferent Iate h Im from the an Imal.
Ser Ies Twelve - To a Student
W Ithout knowledge and Intell Igence, one Is not a man but
an an Imal In human form.
Bless Ings.
--
What Is the d Ifference between sports and phys Ical
educat Ion?
--
Naturally, here we have comb Ined the two. But th Is Is ma Inly
because human be Ings, espec Ially In the Ir ch Ildhood, st Ill need a
certa In exc Itement In order to make effort.
Bless Ings.
--
Th Is world Is H Imself. He wants everyth Ing - ourselves and the
world and the whole un Iverse - to become consc Ious once more
0.13 - Letters to a Student, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
To a student In the Sr I Aurob Indo Internat Ional Centre of Educat Ion who began wr It Ing to the Mother at the age of s Ixteen.
Sweet Mother,
--
There are good reasons both for do Ing It and for not do Ing
It.
--
There Is no one for whom It Is Imposs Ible to real Ise the D Iv Ine.
Only, for some It w Ill take many, many l Ives, whereas there are
others who w Ill do It In th Is very l Ifet Ime. It Is a quest Ion of w Ill.
It Is for you to choose.
But I must say that at the present moment cond It Ions are
part Icularly favourable.
--
What does It mean, really, "to real Ise the D Iv Ine"?
It means to become consc Ious of the D Iv Ine Presence In oneself or on the sp Ir Itual he Ights, and, once one Is consc Ious of
H Is Presence, to surrender to H Im completely so that one no
--
consc Iousness w Ith H Is. That Is "to real Ise the D Iv Ine".
Bless Ings.
--
It? But other people have dreams In wh Ich I appear. So
what happens? Does the consc Iousness d Iv Ide Itself or
are other people's dreams only the Ir own Imag Inat Ion?
Most often, It Is the v Ital consc Iousness that goes out of the body
and has the form, the appearance of the person's body. If one
person dreams of another, It means that both have met at n Ight,
most often In the v Ital reg Ion, but It can also happen elsewhere,
In the subtle phys Ical or the mental. There are any number of
d Ifferent poss Ib Il It Ies In dreams.
Bless Ings.
--
Why Is the n Ight darker just before dawn - from
the sc Ient If Ic as well as the sp Ir Itual po Int of v Iew?
--
than the hours after It?
Ser Ies Th Irteen - To a Student
--
Is sett Ing, wh Ile from the f Irst hour after m Idn Ight It beg Ins to
r Ise.
--
There Is only one love, the D Iv Ine Love, eternal, un Iversal, equal
for everyone and everyth Ing.
It Is man (the human be Ing) who calls all k Inds of feel Ings
"love": all the des Ires, attract Ions, v Ital exchanges, sexual relat Ions, attachments, even fr Iendsh Ips, and many other th Ings
--
But all that Is not even the shadow of love nor even Its
deformat Ion.
--
What Is the d Ifference between des Ire and asp Irat Ion,
and between self Ishness and self-real Isat Ion?
Des Ire Is a v Ital movement, asp Irat Ion Is a psych Ic movement.
When one has had a true asp Irat Ion, unself Ish and s Incere,
--
v Ibrat Ion of des Ire, wh Ich Is pass Ionate, dark and often v Iolent.
Self Ishness means want Ing everyth Ing for oneself, understand Ing noth Ing but oneself, car Ing for others only Insofar
as they are necessary or Important to oneself. In French, selfreal Isat Ion (réal Isat Ion du So I) means d Iscover Ing the d Iv Ine
centre In one's be Ing. In Engl Ish, self-fulf Ilment Is generally taken
In the sense "to be successful". Sr I Aurob Indo In h Is wr It Ings
uses the word "self-real Isat Ion" to mean real Isat Ion of the Self,
that Is to say, becom Ing consc Ious of the D Iv Ine In oneself and
Ident Ify Ing w Ith H Im.
--
The f Irst step Is to f Ind, deep w Ith In oneself, beh Ind the des Ires
and Impulses, a lum Inous consc Iousness wh Ich Is always present
and man Ifests the phys Ical be Ing.
--
One has, then, to come Into consc Ious contact w Ith that and
learn to do so at w Ill. The rest w Ill follow.
Generally It Is In the heart, beh Ind the solar plexus, that one
f Inds th Is lum Inous presence.
--
What w Ill be the result of chang Ing the v Ital Into
someth Ing good; In other words, what w Ill be the
change?
The v Ital Is the receptacle of all the bad Impulses, all w Ickedness,
coward Ice, weakness and avar Ice.
When the v Ital Is converted, the Impulses are good Instead
of be Ing bad; w Ickedness Is replaced by k Indness, avar Ice by
generos Ity; weakness d Isappears and strength and endurance
take Its place; coward Ice Is replaced by courage and energy.
Ser Ies Th Irteen - To a Student
The seat of power In act Ion Is In the pur If Ied v Ital.
Bless Ings.
--
of know Ing why we are here on earth, but I have thought
about It and the only answer I could get Is that at least
we are here In the Ashram to man Ifest the D Iv Ine upon
earth. But there rema Ins one quest Ion: If everyth Ing Is
d Iv Ine, even the adverse forces, and If everyth Ing has been
created by H Im and He can do everyth Ing, then how Is
It that He takes so much t Ime and uses such roundabout
ways? What joy does He get In creat Ing unconsc Ious
th Ings and mak Ing them consc Ious? And why all these
--
It Is a quest Ion that all th Ink Ing people have asked.
Some have cons Idered the problem more deeply and asked
--
could see th Ings as they really are; and In the hope of understand Ing better, they have sought for a d Iv Iner v Is Ion, a global and true
v Is Ion - w Ith the result of Yoga. And those who have succeeded
In the Ir endeavour have found that when one Is un Ited w Ith the
D Iv Ine, one's v Is Ion of th Ings changes totally, and they have all
--
Your protect Ion Is always there, Isn't It?
To v Is It one's parents Is to return to an Influence wh Ich Is generally stronger than any other; and there are not many cases where
the parents help you In your sp Ir Itual progress, because they are
usually more Interested In a worldly real Isat Ion.
Parents who are pr Imar Ily Interested In sp Ir Itual real Isat Ion
usually do not ask the Ir ch Ildren to come back to them.
--
Why should one take part In the sports' compet It Ions
and demonstrat Ions?
Because It Is a chance to put In greater effort and thus make
faster progress.
--
of them, all one's movements, Impulses, thoughts and acts of
w Ill, so that the psych Ic be Ing may accept or reject each of these
movements, Impulses, thoughts or acts of w Ill. Those that are
accepted w Ill be kept and carr Ied out; those that are rejected w Ill
--
It Is a long and met Iculous work that may take years to be
done properly.
--
The f Ifth and n Inth In understand Ing what death Is.
The b Irthday In f Ind Ing out the purpose of l Ife.
Bless Ings.
--
(Regard Ing acc Idents In sports at the Ashram)
I do not th Ink that there are more acc Idents here than elsewhere.
--
study here must make an effort to grow In consc Iousness (a th Ing
they could do more eas Ily here than elsewhere). Unfortunately,
however, few of them take the trouble to do It, so they lose the
f Ine opportun Ity that has been g Iven to them.
--
What Is the d Ifference between persons who have
developed the Ir consc Iousness and those who have not?
Those who have done It and done It well become consc Ious; the
others rema In half consc Ious l Ike the vast major Ity of human
--
Do you th Ink It Isn't good to v Is It the churches here
to see the m Idn Ight ceremony?
--
for the sake of a ch Ild Ish Idle cur Ios Ity?
Up to now, all those who have gone have done so w Ithout
ask Ing for perm Iss Ion, because they sensed that It would not be
g Iven.
--
and the breath of the Lord Is abroad upon the waters
of our be Ing; there are others when It ret Ires and men
are left to act In the strength or the weakness of the Ir
own ego Ism"1 and In one of your letters, you have sa Id
that one must not rely on one's ego but on the psych Ic.
--
It so happens that we are not In an age when men have been left
to the Ir own means. The D Iv Ine has sent down H Is Consc Iousness to g Ive them l Ight. All who are able to do so should prof It
by It.
Bless Ings.
--
whole creat Ion has had the D Iv Ine In It from the very
beg Inn Ing, hasn't It?
Yes.
--
enter Into relat Ion w Ith the Inner D Iv Ine; It Is only gradually,
through thousands of years of ascend Ing evolut Ion, that men
--
In the superman; and that Is why th Is consc Iousness has come
down on earth to work In all who are ready to rece Ive It.
Bless Ings.
--
"The world Is prepar Ing for a b Ig change. W Ill you
help?"2
What Is th Is great change that you speak of? And
how can we be of help to It?
Th Is great change Is the appearance on earth of a new race that
w Ill be to man what man Is to the an Imal. The consc Iousness of
th Is new race Is already at work on earth to g Ive l Ight to all who
are capable of rece Iv Ing It and heed Ing It.
Bless Ings.
--
when It Is someone close to us?
Say to the Supreme Lord: "Let Thy W Ill be done", and rema In
--
If the departed one Is a person one loves, one should concentrate one's love on h Im In peace and calm, for that Is what
can most help the one who has departed.
--
How should we watch a f Ilm? If we Ident Ify w Ith
the characters and If the f Ilm Is trag Ic or full of suspense,
we get so Involved that we cry or feel fr Ightened. And If
we keep aloof we cannot apprec Iate It properly. So what
should we do?
It Is the v Ital that gets touched and moved.
If you watch mentally, the Interest Is no longer the same;
Instead of be Ing moved or troubled, you can calmly judge the
value of a f Ilm, whether It Is well made or well acted, or whether
the scenes have any art Ist Ic value.
In the f Irst case you are a "good aud Ience", In the second
case you are more peaceful.
--
How would we know what Is happen Ing In other
countr Ies and even In our own If we d Id not read newspapers? At least we get some Idea from them, don't we?
Or would It be better not to read them at all?
Ser Ies Th Irteen - To a Student
I d Id not say that you must not read newspapers. I sa Id that you
must not bl Indly bel Ieve everyth Ing you read; you should know
that the truth Is altogether d Ifferent.
Bless Ings.
--
How can we know the truth of the facts when read Ing newspapers? What Is the best way of know Ing the
truth of the world?
The best way Is to f Ind the truth In ourselves - then we shall be
able to see the Truth wherever It Is.
Bless Ings.
0.14 - Letters to a Sadhak, #Some Answers From The Mother, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
We are at a moment of trans It Ion In the h Istory of the earth.
It Is merely a moment In eternal t Ime, but th Is moment Is long
compared to human l Ife. Matter Is chang Ing In order to prepare
Itself for the new man Ifestat Ion, but the human body Is not
plast Ic enough and offers res Istance; th Is Is why the number of
Incomprehens Ible d Isorders and even d Iseases Is Increas Ing and
becom Ing a problem for med Ical sc Ience.
The remedy l Ies In un Ion w Ith the d Iv Ine forces that are at
work and a recept Iv Ity full of trust and peace wh Ich makes the
--
because the transformat Ion beg Ins w Ith the open Ing of the consc Iousness to the act Ion of the new forces; thus Ind Iv Iduals have
a un Ique and wonderful opportun Ity to open themselves to the
d Iv Ine Influence.
20 November 1971
The purpose of Ind Iv Idual ex Istence Is the joy of d Iscover Ing the
D Iv Ine and un It Ing w Ith H Im. When one has understood th Is,
then one Is ready to ga In the strength to surmount all d Iff Icult Ies.
22 November 1971
--
ourselves for It.
27 November 1971
--
another. It Is only when one gets r Id of the ego that one becomes
a free be Ing.
--
In the d Iff Icult hours of l Ife, the Imperat Ive duty of each one Is
to overcome h Is ego In a total and uncond It Ional self-g Iv Ing to
the D Iv Ine. Then the D Iv Ine w Ill make you do what you have to
--
Supreme Lord, Inf In Ite W Isdom,
At th Is per Ilous hour when ego Isms are at odds and assert Ing
themselves, the only safety l Ies In tak Ing refuge In Thee!
Grant that noth Ing In us may be an obstacle to the fulf Ilment
of Thy W Ill.
Grant that we may become consc Ious and effect Ive collaborators In the fulf Ilment of Thy W Ill.
5 December 1971
--
for help and l Ight. The w Isdom of men Is Ignorant. Only the
D Iv Ine knows.
--
We have to open them w Ide and allow the Inf In Ite to enter us
freely In order to transform us.
Two cond It Ions are necessary to open the w Indows:
--
The d Iv Ine help Is assured to those who set to work s Incerely.
8 December 1971
The ego was necessary to form the Ind Iv Idual be Ing. Its destruct Ion Is therefore d Iff Icult. There Is a much better, though more
d Iff Icult solut Ion: to transform It and make It an Instrument of
the D Iv Ine.
--
D Iv Ine become espec Ially powerful and effect Ive Instruments.
The endeavour Is d Iff Icult and demands an absolute and
steadfast s Incer Ity, but for those who have a strong w Ill, an
ardent asp Irat Ion and an unshakable s Incer Ity, It Is well worth
undertak Ing.
The method for each Ind Iv Idual Is worked out as the act Iv Ity
proceeds, for each ego has Its own character and needs a part Icular method. The only qual It Ies Ind Ispensable for all are absolute
perseverance and s Incer Ity. The least tendency to dece Ive oneself
makes success Imposs Ible.
9 December 1971
For you, the best way to beg In Is to f Ind your psych Ic be Ing,
to concentrate on It by mak Ing It the w Itness of all your Inner
movements and the judge of all that you should or should not
do, and to str Ive to subm It your external nature to Its dec Is Ions.
11 December 1971
The psych Ic be Ing Is the Ind Iv Idual sheath of the D Iv Ine Presence.
It Is found deep w Ith In oneself, beyond all thoughts.
11 December 1971
Commun Icat Ions from the psych Ic do not come In a mental
form. They are not Ideas or reason Ings. They have the Ir own
character qu Ite d Ist Inct from the m Ind, someth Ing l Ike a feel Ing
that comprehends Itself and acts.
By Its very nature, the psych Ic Is calm, qu Iet and lum Inous,
understand Ing and generous, w Ide and progress Ive. Its constant
effort Is to understand and progress.
The m Ind descr Ibes and expla Ins.
--
The psych Ic Is consc Ious of Its progress Ive format Ion dur Ing success Ive l Ives upon earth, so It has the memory of the Important
moments In Its prev Ious l Ives.
The more the psych Ic has taken part In these phys Ical l Ives
on earth, the more numerous and prec Ise Its memor Ies are.
14 December 1971
Feel Ing alone In the m Idst of human be Ings Is the s Ign that you
are beg Inn Ing to feel the need to f Ind In your own be Ing contact
w Ith the D Iv Ine Presence. So you must concentrate In s Ilence and
Ser Ies Fourteen - To a Sadhak
try to enter deep w Ith In to d Iscover the D Iv Ine Presence In the
depths of your consc Iousness, beyond all mental act Iv Ity.
--
There comes a moment when l Ife becomes Intolerable w Ithout
the D Iv Ine Presence. Therefore, g Ive yourself ent Irely to the
D Iv Ine and you w Ill emerge Into the L Ight.
17 December 1971
--
shatter all res Istance, however powerful It may be.
18 December 1971
In s Ilence l Ies the greatest recept Iv Ity. And In an Immob Ile s Ilence
the vastest act Ion Is done.
Let us learn to be s Ilent so that the Lord may make use of
--
It Is by perfect Ing our fa Ith In the D Iv Ine Grace that we shall
be able to conquer the defeat Ism of the subconsc Ient.
--
It Is only In perfect un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine that the consc Iousness
can emerge Into the eternal del Ight. And th Is consc Ious un Ion Is
the true goal of earthly ex Istence.
--
To know how to transform all c Ircumstances Into a means
of reach Ing th Is goal.
--
O Lord, awaken In me the ardent des Ire to know You.
I asp Ire to consecrate my l Ife to Your serv Ice.
--
The best th Ing we can do to express our grat Itude Is to overcome all ego Ism In ourselves and make a constant effort towards th Is transformat Ion. Human ego Ism refuses to abd Icate
on the grounds that others are not transformed. But that Is
the stronghold of bad w Ill, for each one's duty Is to transform
h Imself regardless of what others may do.
If men knew that th Is transformat Ion, the abol It Ion of ego Ism, Is the only way to ga In constant peace and del Ight, they
would consent to make the necessary effort. Th Is, then, Is the
conv Ict Ion that must awaken In them.
Everyone should repeatedly be told: abol Ish your ego and
peace w Ill re Ign In you.
The D Iv Ine help always responds to a s Incere asp Irat Ion.
--
accord Ing to the att Itude they take In l Ife:
( 1 ) Those who l Ive for themselves. They cons Ider everyth Ing
--
l Ive only for H Im and through H Im. Th Is Impl Ies mak Ing the
effort requ Ired to f Ind the D Iv Ine, to be consc Ious of H Is W Ill
--
In the f Irst three categor Ies, one Is naturally subject to the
ord Inary law of suffer Ing, d Isappo Intment and sorrow.
It Is only In the last category - If one has chosen It In all
s Incer Ity and pursued It w Ith an unfa Il Ing pat Ience - that one
f Inds the cert Itude of total fulf Ilment and a constant lum Inous
--
We are at a dec Is Ive hour In the h Istory of the earth. It Is prepar Ing for the com Ing of the superman and because of th Is the old
way of l Ife Is los Ing Its value. We must str Ike out boldly on the
path of the future desp Ite Its new demands. The pett Inesses once
tolerable, are tolerable no longer. We must w Iden ourselves to
rece Ive what Is go Ing to come.
29 December 1971
The result of the creat Ion Is a deta Iled mult Ipl Icat Ion of consc Iousness.
When the v Is Ion of the whole and the v Is Ion of all the deta Ils
are un Ited In a s Ingle act Ive consc Iousness, the creat Ion w Ill have
atta Ined Its progress Ive perfect Ion.
8 January 1972
In t Ime and space no two human be Ings have the same consc Iousness, and the sum of all these consc Iousnesses Is but a part Ial
and d Im In Ished man Ifestat Ion of the D Iv Ine Consc Iousness.
That Is why I sa Id "progress Ive perfect Ion", because the
man Ifestat Ion of the consc Iousness of deta Il Is Inf In Ite and unend Ing.
9 January 1972
The f Irst cond It Ion Is not to have one's own personal Interest as
a goal.
--
to what one ought to do, that one Is noth Ing compared to what
one ought to be.
One must have an Invar Iable w Ill to acqu Ire what Is lack Ing
In one's nature, to know what one does not yet know, to be able
to do what one Is not yet able to do.
One must constantly progress In the l Ight and peace that
come from the absence of personal des Ires.
--
And to have only one goal: to know the D Iv Ine In order to
be able to man Ifest H Im.
--
Mother, Is It poss Ible to develop In oneself the capac Ity
to heal?
In pr Inc Iple, everyth Ing Is poss Ible by un It Ing consc Iously w Ith
the D Iv Ine Force.
--
and the Ind Iv Idual.
The f Irst cond It Ion Is to have a phys Ical nature that g Ives
energy rather than draws energy from others.
The second Ind Ispensable cond It Ion Is to know how to draw
energy from above, from the Inexhaust Ible Impersonal source.
12 January 1972
--
one becomes an Inexhaust Ible channel rather than a vessel that
empt Ies Itself by g Iv Ing.
It Is through steadfast asp Irat Ion that one learns.
13 January 1972
S Incer Ity, hum Il Ity, perseverance and an Insat Iable th Irst for
progress are essent Ial for a happy and fru Itful l Ife. Above all, one
must be conv Inced that the poss Ib Il Ity of progress Is unl Im Ited.
Progress Is youth; one can be young at a hundred.
14 January 1972
--
towards an Increas Ing perfect Ion, we shall be well on the way to
overcom Ing the Inev Itab Il Ity of death.
16 January 1972
--
The best way to avo Id grow Ing old Is to make progress the
goal of our l Ife.
--
To learn constantly, not just Intellectually but psycholog Ically,
to progress In regard to character, to cult Ivate our qual It Ies and
correct our defects, so that everyth Ing may be an opportun Ity to
cure ourselves of Ignorance and Incapac Ity - then l Ife becomes
tremendously Interest Ing and worth l Iv Ing.
27 January 1972
--
man Ifestat Ion but he also embod Ied In part the supramental
force and gave us the example of what we must do to prepare
ourselves for th Is man Ifestat Ion. The best th Ing we can do Is to
study all he has told us, str Ive to follow h Is example and prepare
--
Th Is g Ives l Ife Its true mean Ing and w Ill help us to overcome
all obstacles.
--
occupy such a predom Inant place In the Ir l Ives, should on the
contrary be subl Imated and used for progress and h Igher development so as to prepare the com Ing of the new race. But f Irst, the
--
one Is court Ing d Isaster.
31 January 1972
--
The f Irst th Ing the phys Ical consc Iousness must understand Is
that all the d Iff Icult Ies we meet w Ith In l Ife come from the fact
that we do not rely exclus Ively on the D Iv Ine for the help we
--
un Iversal Nature. And th Is l Iberat Ion Is Ind Ispensable for the
b Irth and development of the new race.
It Is only by g Iv Ing ourselves ent Irely to the D Iv Ine In perfect
trust and grat Itude that the d Iff Icult Ies w Ill be overcome.
--
To want what the D Iv Ine wants, In all s Incer Ity, Is the essent Ial
cond It Ion for peace and joy In l Ife. Almost all human m Iser Ies
come from the fact that men are nearly always conv Inced that
--
It Is only when one g Ives oneself In all s Incer Ity to the D Iv Ine
W Ill that one has the peace and calm joy wh Ich come from the
--
w Ith one's psych Ic, one can know It. But the f Irst cond It Ion Is
not to be subject to one's des Ires and m Istake them for the truth
--
The f Irst necess Ity for each one Is h Is own transformat Ion, and
the best way to help the world Is to real Ise the D Iv Ine oneself.
5 February 1972
In the depths of our be Ing, In the s Ilence of contemplat Ion, a
lum Inous force floods our consc Iousness w Ith a vast and lum Inous peace wh Ich preva Ils over all petty react Ions and prepares
us for un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine - the very purpose of Ind Iv Idual
ex Istence.
--
Thus, the purpose and goal of l Ife Is not suffer Ing and struggle
but an all-powerful and happy real Isat Ion.
All the rest Is pa Inful Illus Ion.
7 February 1972
--
element. It was around the ego that the d Ifferent states of be Ing
were grouped; but now that the b Irth of superhuman Ity Is be Ing
prepared, the ego has to d Isappear and g Ive way to the psych Ic
be Ing, wh Ich has slowly been formed by d Iv Ine Intervent Ion In
order to man Ifest the D Iv Ine In the human be Ing.
It Is under the psych Ic Influence that the D Iv Ine man Ifests In
man and thus prepares the com Ing of superhuman Ity.
The psych Ic Is Immortal and It Is through the psych Ic that
Immortal Ity can be man Ifested on earth.
So the Important th Ing now Is to f Ind one's psych Ic, un Ite
w Ith It and allow It to replace the ego, wh Ich w Ill be compelled
e Ither to get converted or d Isappear.
--
The f Irst th Ing one learns on the way Is that the joy of g Iv Ing Is
far greater than the joy of tak Ing.
Then gradually one learns that to forget oneself Is the source
of Immutable peace. Later on, In th Is self-forgetfulness, one f Inds
the D Iv Ine, and that Is the source of an ever- Increas Ing bl Iss.
Ser Ies Fourteen - To a Sadhak
Sr I Aurob Indo told me one day that If men knew th Is and
were conv Inced of It, they would all want to do yoga.
9 February 1972
Human consc Iousness Is so corrupted that men prefer the m Iser Ies of the ego and Its Ignorance to the lum Inous joy that comes
from a s Incere surrender to the D Iv Ine. So great Is the Ir bl Indness
that they refuse even to try the exper Iment and would rather be
--
to make the D Iv Ine a slave of the Ir ego, If such a th Ing were
poss Ible, In order to avo Id g Iv Ing themselves to the D Iv Ine.
10 February 1972
Supreme Lord, teach us to be s Ilent, that In the s Ilence we may
rece Ive Your force and understand Your w Ill.
--
we may overcome them In order to serve You fa Ithfully."
The supreme happ Iness Is to be true serv Itors of the D Iv Ine.
14 February 1972
--
(1) To constantly enr Ich the poss Ib Il It Ies of the Instrument.
(2) To ceaselessly perfect the funct Ion Ing of th Is Instrument.
(3) To make th Is Instrument Increas Ingly recept Ive and obed Ient to the D Iv Ine.
To learn to understand and do more and more th Ings. To
--
more recept Ive to the D Iv Ine Influence.
One could say: to w Iden oneself more and more, to deepen
--
What Is commonly called fa Ithfulness Is a scrupulous compl Iance
w Ith the prom Ises one has made. But the only true and b Ind Ing
fa Ithfulness Is fa Ithfulness to the D Iv Ine - and that Is the fa Ithfulness we all ought to acqu Ire through s Incere and susta Ined
effort.
When the whole be Ing, In all Its parts and all Its act Iv It Ies,
can say to the D Iv Ine In all s Incer Ity:
"Whatever You w Ill, whatever You w Ill",
then one Is well on the way to the true fa Ithfulness.
17 February 1972
L Ife on earth Is essent Ially a f Ield for progress. But how br Ief l Ife
Is for all the progress that has to be made!
--
des Ires Is sheer folly. True happ Iness Is poss Ible only when one
has found the D Iv Ine.
--
unt Il the day when It shall automat Ically know what You
w Ill because Its consc Iousness w Ill be totally un Ited w Ith Yours.
23 February 1972
Grant that I may become consc Ious of Your Presence.
9 March 1972
Lord, we Implore You, grant that noth Ing In us may reject Your
Presence and that we may become what You want us to be; grant
that all In us may conform to Your W Ill.
12 March 1972
--
we may be fully consc Ious of It.
Grant that we may know that You are our l Ife, our consc Iousness and our be Ing, and that w Ithout You everyth Ing Is
merely Illus Ion.
14 March 1972
Grant that we may Ident Ify ourselves w Ith Your Eternal Consc Iousness so that we may know truly what Immortal Ity Is.
16 March 1972
To prepare for Immortal Ity, the consc Iousness of the body must
f Irst Ident Ify Itself w Ith the Eternal Consc Iousness.
17 March 1972
A f Ifteen-year-old g Irl asked: "What Is Truth?"
I answered: "The W Ill of the Supreme Lord."
It Is a subject for contemplat Ive med Itat Ion.
18 March 1972
0 1951-09-21, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
jabsorbe, Infuse
dans toutes les cellules
--
I asp Ire that
th Is food
I take
may Infuse
Into all the cells
of my body
0 1952-08-02, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Only when It Is no longer necessary for my body to resemble the bod Ies of men In order to make them progress w Ill It be free to be supramental Ized.1
***
Only when men shall depend exclus Ively upon the D Iv Ine and upon noth Ing else w Ill the Incarnate god no longer need to d Ie for them.2
Note wr Itten by Mother In French.
Note wr Itten by Mother In French
***
0 1954-08-25 - what is this personality? and when will she come?, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
object:0_1954-08-25 - what Is th Is personal Ity? and when w Ill she come?
author class:The Mother
--
The follow Ing text Is an extract from a 'Wednesday Class,' when every Wednesday Mother would answer quest Ions ra Ised by the d Isc Iples and ch Ildren at the Ashram Playground.
(Mother reads to the d Isc Iples an excerpt from Sr I Aurob Indos THE MOTHER, In wh Ich he descr Ibes the d Ifferent aspects of the Creat Ive Powerwhat Is Ind Ia Is called the Shakt I, or the Motherwh Ich have pres Ided over un Iversal evolut Ion.)
There are other great Personal It Ies of the D Iv Ine Mother, but they were more d Iff Icult to br Ing down and have not stood out In front w Ith so much prom Inence In the evolut Ion of the earth-sp Ir It. There are among them Presences Ind Ispensable for the supramental real Izat Ion,most of all one who Is her Personal Ity of that myster Ious and powerful ecstasy and Ananda1 wh Ich flows from a supreme d Iv Ine Love, the Ananda that alone can heal the gulf between the h Ighest he Ights of the supramental sp Ir It and the lowest abysses of Matter, the Ananda that holds the key of a wonderful d Iv Ines L Ife and even now supports from Its secrec Ies the work of all the other Powers of the un Iverse.
Sr I Aurob Indo, The Mother
(A d Isc Iple:) Sweet Mother, what Is th Is Personal Ity and when w Ill It man Ifest?
My answer Is ready.
I knew you would ask me th Is quest Ion because It Is Indeed the most Interest Ing th Ing In the whole passageso my answer Is ready, along w Ith my answer to another quest Ion. But f Irst let me read you th Is one.
You asked, What Is th Is Personal Ity and when w Ill She come? Here Is my answer (Mother reads):
She has come, br Ing Ing w Ith Her a splendor of power and love, an Intens Ity of d Iv Ine joy heretofore unknown to the Earth. The phys Ical atmosphere has been completely changed by her descent, permeated w Ith new and marvelous poss Ib Il It Ies.
But If She Is ever to res Ide and act here, She has to f Ind at least a m In Imal recept Iv Ity, at least one human be Ing w Ith the requ Ired v Ital and phys Ical qual It Ies, a k Ind of super-Pars Ifal g Ifted w Ith an Innate and Integral pur Ity, yet possess Ing at the same t Ime a body strong enough and po Ised enough to bear unwaver Ingly the Intens Ity of the Ananda She br Ings.
Thus far, She has not found what Is needed. Men rema In obst Inately men and do not want to or are unable to become supermen. All they can rece Ive and express Is a love at the Ir own d Imens Ion: a human lovewhereas the supreme bl Iss of d Iv Ine Ananda eludes the Ir percept Ion.
At t Imes, f Ind Ing the world unready to rece Ive Her, She contemplates w Ithdraw Ing. But how cruel a loss th Is would be!
It Is true that at present, her presence Is more rhetor Ical than factual, s Ince so far She has had no chance to man Ifest. Yet even so, She Is a powerful Instrument In the Work, for of all the Mothers aspects, She holds the greatest power to transform the body. Indeed, those cells wh Ich can v Ibrate at the touch of the d Iv Ine Joy, rece Ive It and bear It, are cells reborn, on the Ir way to becom Ing Immortal.
But the v Ibrat Ions of d Iv Ine Bl Iss and those of pleasure cannot cohab It In the same v Ital and phys Ical house. We must therefore TOTALLY renounce all feel Ings of pleasure to be ready to rece Ive the d Iv Ine Ananda. But rare are those who can renounce pleasure w Ithout thereby renounc Ing all act Ive part Ic Ipat Ion In l Ife or s Ink Ing Into a stern ascet Ic Ism. And among those who real Ize that the transformat Ion Is to be wrought In act Ive l Ife, some pretend that pleasure Is a form of Ananda gone more or less astray and leg It Im Ize the Ir search for self-sat Isfact Ion, thereby creat Ing a v Irtually Insuperable obstacle to the Ir own transformat Ion.
Now, If there Is anyth Ing else you w Ish to ask me Anyone may ask, anyoneanyone who has someth Ing to saynot just the students.
Mother, even If we have not prev Iously succeeded, cant we st Ill try?
What? (the d Isc Iple repeats h Is quest Ion) Oh! You can always try!
The world Is recreated from m Inute to m Inute. If you knew how I mean If you could change your natureyou could recreate a new world th Is very m Inute!
I d Idnt say She HAD gone. I sa Id She was CONTEMPLAT ING It at t Imes, now and then.
But Mother, If She came down, She must have seen a poss Ib Il Ity!
She came down because there WAS a poss Ib Il Itybecause th Ings had reached such a stage that It was her hour to come down. But In truth, She came down because because I thought It was poss Ible for her to succeed.
Poss Ib Il It Ies are st Ill thereonly they have to mater Ial Ize.
Th Is Is borne out by the fact that her descent took place at a g Iven moment and for two or three weeks the atmospherenot only of the Ashram but of the Earthwas so h Ighly charged w Ith such a power of such an Intense d Iv Ine Bl Iss creat Ing so marvelous a force that th Ings d Iff Icult to do before could be done almost Instantly.
There were repercuss Ions the world over. But I dont bel Ieve that a s Ingle one of you not Iced It you cannot even tell me when It happened, can you?
When d Id It happen?
I dont know dates. I dont know, I never remember dates. I can only tell you th Is that It happened before Sr I Aurob Indo left h Is body, that he was told about It beforeh and and that he well, he acknowledged the fact.
But there was a form Idable battle w Ith the Inconsc Ient, for when I saw that the level of recept Iv Ity was not what It should have been, I blamed the Inconsc Ient and tr Ied to wage the battle there.
I dont say It was Ineffectual, but between the result obta Ined and the result hoped for, there was a cons Iderable d Ifference. But as I sa Id, you who are all so near, so steeped In th Is atmosphere who among you not Iced anyth Ing?You s Imply went on w Ith your l Ittle l Ives as usual.
I th Ink It was In 1946, Mother, because you told us so many th Ings at that t Ime.
R Ight.
--
Mother, there Is not even one s Ingle man?
I dont know.
Mother, you are wast Ing your t Ime w Ith all these Ashram people.
Oh! But you see, from an occult standpo Int, It Is a select Ion. From an external standpo Int you could say that there are people In the world who are far super Ior to you (and I would not d Isagree!), but from an occult standpo Int, It Is a select Ion. There are It can be sa Id that w Ithout a doubt the major Ity of young people here have come because It was prom Ised them that they would be present at the Hour of Real Izat Ion but they just dont remember It! (Mother laughs) I have already sa Id several t Imes that when you come down on earth, you fall on your head, wh Ich leaves you a l Ittle dazed! (laughter) Its a p Ity, but after all, you dont have to rema In dazed all your l Ives, do you? You should go deep w Ith In yourselves and there f Ind the Immortal consc Iousness then you can see very well, you can very clearly remember the c Ircumstances In wh Ich you you asp Ired to be here for the Hour of the Works real Izat Ion.
But actually, to tell you the truth, I th Ink your l Ives are so easy that you dont exert yourselves very much! How many among you have truly an INTENSE need to f Ind the Ir psych Ic be Ings? To f Ind out truly who they are? To f Ind out what the Ir roles are, why they are here? You just let yourselves dr Ift. You even compla In when th Ings arent easy enough! You just take th Ings as they come. And somet Imes, should an asp Irat Ion ar Ise In you and you encounter some d Iff Iculty In yourself, you say, Oh, Mother Is there! Shell take care of It for me! And you th Ink about someth Ing else.
Mother, prev Iously th Ings were very str Ict In the Ashram, but not now. Why?
Yes, I have always sa Id that It changed when we had to take the very l Ittle ch Ildren. How can you env Is Ion an ascet Ic l Ife w Ith l Ittle sprouts no b Igger than that? Its Imposs Ible! But thats the l Ittle surpr Ise package the war left on our doorstep. When It was found that Pond Icherry was the safest place on earth, naturally people came wheel Ing In here w Ith all the Ir baby carr Iages f Illed and asked us If we could shelter them, so we couldnt very well turn them away, could we?! Thats how It happened, and In no other way But, In the beg Inn Ing, the f Irst cond It Ion for com Ing here was that you would have noth Ing more to do w Ith your fam Ily! If a man was marr Ied, then he had to completely overlook the fact that he had a w Ife and ch Ildrencompletely sever all t Ies, have noth Ing further to do w Ith them. And If ever a w Ife asked to come just because her husb and happened to be here, we told her, You have no bus Iness com Ing here!
In the beg Inn Ing, It was very, very str Ict for a long t Ime.
The f Irst cond It Ion was: Noth Ing more to do w Ith your fam Ily Well, we are a long way from that! But I repeat that It only happened because of the war and not because we stopped see Ing the need to cut all fam Ily t Ies; on the contrary, th Is Is an Ind Ispensable cond It Ion because as long as you hang on to all these cords wh Ich b Ind you to ord Inary l Ife, wh Ich make you a slave to the ord Inary l Ife, how can you poss Ibly belong to the D Iv Ine alone? What ch Ild Ishness! It Is s Imply not poss Ible. If you have ever taken the trouble to read over the early ashram rules, you would f Ind that even fr Iendsh Ips were cons Idered dangerous and undes Irable We made every effort to create an atmosphere In wh Ich only ONE th Ing counted: the L Ife D Iv Ine.
But as I sa Id, b It by b It th Ings changed. However, th Is had one advantage: we were too much outs Ide of l Ife. So there were a number of problems wh Ich had never ar Isen but wh Ich would have suddenly surged up the moment we wanted a complete man Ifestat Ion. We took on all these problems a l Ittle prematurely, but It gave us the opportun Ity to solve them. In th Is way we learned many th Ings and surmounted many d Iff Icult Ies, only It compl Icated th Ings cons Iderably. And In the present s Ituat Ion, g Iven such a large number of elements who havent even the sl Ightest Idea why theyre here (!) well, It demands a far greater effort on the d Isc Iples part than before.
Before, when there were we started w Ith 35 or 36 people but even when It got up to 150, even w Ith 150 It was as If they were all nestled In a cocoon In my consc Iousness: they were so near to me that I could constantly gu Ide ALL the Ir Inner or outer movements. Day and n Ight, at each moment, everyth Ing was totally under my control. And naturally, I th Ink they made a great deal of progress at that t Ime: It Is a fact that I was CONSTANTLY do Ing the sadhana2 for them. But then, w Ith th Is baby boom The sadhana cant be done for l Ittle sprouts who are 3 or 4 or 5 years old! Its out of the quest Ion. The only th Ing I can do Is wrap them In the Consc Iousness and try to see that they grow up In the best of all poss Ible cond It Ions. However, the one advantage to all th Is Is that Instead of there be Ing such a COMPLETE and PASS IVE dependence on the d Isc Iples part, each one has to make h Is own l Ittle effort. Truly, thats excellent.
I dont know to whom I was ment Ion Ing th Is today ( I th Ink It was for a B Irthday3 No, I dont know now. It was to someone who told me he was 18 years old. I sa Id that between the ages of 18 and 20, I had atta Ined a constant and consc Ious un Ion w Ith the D Iv Ine Presence and that I had done th Is ALL ALONE, w Ithout ANYONES help, not even books. When a l Ittle later I chanced upon V Ivekanandas Raja Yoga, It really seemed so wonderful to me that someone could expla In someth Ing to me! And It helped me real Ize In only a few months what would have otherw Ise taken years.
I met a man ( I was perhaps 20 or 21 at the t Ime), an Ind Ian who had come to Europe and who told me of the G Ita. There was a French translat Ion of It (a rather poor one, I must say) wh Ich he adv Ised me to read, and then he gave me the key (H IS key, It was h Is key). He sa Id, Read the G Ita (th Is translat Ion of the G Ita wh Ich really wasnt worth much but It was the only one ava Ilable at the t Ime In those days I wouldnt have understood anyth Ing In other languages; and bes Ides, the Engl Ish translat Ions were just as bad and well, Sr I Aurob Indo hadnt done h Is yet!). He sa Id, Read the G Ita know Ing that Kr Ishna Is the symbol of the Immanent God, the God w Ith In. That was all. Read It w Ith THAT knowledgew Ith the knowledge that Kr Ishna represents the Immanent God, the God w Ith In you. Well, w Ith In a month, the whole th Ing was done!
So some of you people have been here s Ince the t Ime you were toddlerseveryth Ing has been expla Ined to you, the whole th Ing has been served to you on a s Ilver platter (not only w Ith words, but through psych Ic a Id and In every poss Ible way), you have been put on the path of th Is Inner d Iscovery and then you just go on dr Ift Ing along: When It comes, It w Ill come. If you even spare It that much thought!
So thats how It Is.
But Im not at all d Iscouraged, I just f Ind It rather laughable. Only there are other far more ser Ious th Ings; for example, when you try to dece Ive yourselves that Is not so pretty. One should not m Ix up cats and k Ings. You should call a cat a cat and a k Ing a k Ing and human Inst Inct, human Inst Inctand not speak about th Ings d Iv Ine when they are utterly human, nor pretend to have supramental exper Iences when you are l Iv Ing In a blatantly ord Inary consc Iousness.
If you look at yourselves stra Ight In the face and you see what you are, then If by chance you should resolve to But what really astounds me Is that you dont even seem to feel an Intense NEED to do th Is! But how can we know? Because you DO know, you have been told over and over aga In, It has been drummed Into your heads. You KNOW that you have a d Iv Ine consc Iousness w Ith In you. And yet you can go on sleep Ing n Ight after n Ight, play Ing day after day, do Ing your lessons ad Inf In Itum and st Ill not be not have a BURN ING des Ire and w Ill to come Into contact w Ith yourselves!W Ith yourselves, yes, the you just there, Ins Ide (mot Ion towards the center of the chest) Really, Its beyond me!
As soon as I found outand no one told me, I found out through an exper Ienceas soon as I found out that there was a d Iscovery to be made w Ith In myself, well, It became THE MOST IMPORTANT th Ing In the world. It took precedence over everyth Ing else!
And when, as I told you, I chanced upon a book or an Ind Iv Idual that could g Ive me just a l Ittle clue and tell me, Here. If you do such and such, you w Ill f Ind your pathwell I charged Into It l Ike a cyclone and noth Ing could have stopped me.
And how many years have you all been here, half-asleep? Naturally, youre happy to th Ink about It now and thenespec Ially when I speak to you about It or somet Imes when you read. But THATthat f Ire, that w Ill wh Ich plows through all barr Iers, that concentrat Ion wh Ich can tr Iumph over EVERYTH ING
Now who was It that asked me what you should do?
(The ch Ild:) Me!
Well, thats what you have to do, my ch Ild. I have just told you.
(s Ilence)
--
I thought someone m Ight ask me, Why doesnt She4 stay for your sake? S Ince She came here because you called Her, then why doesnt She stay for your sake?
But no one asked me that.
--
For Her, th Is body Is but one Instrument among so many others In an etern Ity of ages to come, and for Her Its only Importance Is that attr Ibuted to It by the Earth and mank Ind the extent to wh Ich It can be used as a channel to further Her man Ifestat Ion. If I f Ind myself surrounded by people who are Incapable of rece Iv Ing Her, then for Her, I am qu Ite useless.
It Is very clear. So It Is not I who can make Her stay. And I certa Inly cannot ask Her to stay for egot Ist Ical reasons. Moreover, all these Aspects, all these Personal It Ies man Ifest constantly but they never man Ifest for personal reason. Not one of them has ever thought of help Ing my bodybes Ides, I dont ask them to because that Is not the Ir purpose. But It Is more than obv Ious that If the people around me were recept Ive, She could permanently man Ifest s Ince they could rece Ive Herand th Is would help my body enormously because all these v Ibrat Ions would run through It. But She never gets even a chance to man Ifestnot a s Ingle one. She only meets people who dont even feel Her when Shes there! They dont even not Ice Her, theyre not even aware of her presence. So how can She man Ifest In these cond It Ions? Im not go Ing to ask Her, Please come and change my body. We dont have that k Ind of relat Ionsh Ip! Furthermore, the body Itself wouldnt agree. It never th Inks of Itself, It never pays attent Ion to Itself, and bes Ides, It Is only through the work that It can be transformed.
Yes, certa Inly had there been any recept Iv Ity when She came down and had She been able to man Ifest w Ith the power w Ith wh Ich She came But I can tell you one th Ing: even before Her com Ing, when, w Ith Sr I Aurob Indo, I had begun go Ing down (for the Yoga) from the mental plane to the v Ital plane, when we brought our yoga down from the mental plane Into the v Ital plane, In less than a month ( I was forty years old at the t Ime I d Idnt seem very old, I looked less than forty, but I was forty anyway), after no more than a month of th Is yoga, I looked exactly l Ike an 18 year old! And someone who knew me and had stayed w Ith me In Japan5 came here, and when he saw me, he could scarcely bel Ieve h Is eyes! He sa Id, But my god, Is It you? I sa Id, Of course!
Only when we went down from the v Ital plane Into the phys Ical plane, all th Is went awaybecause on the phys Ical plane, the work Is much harder and we had so much to do, so many th Ings to change.
But If a force l Ike Hers could man Ifest and be rece Ived here, It would have INEST IMABLE results!
Well, I am only tell Ing you all th Is because I thought someone m Ight ask me about It, but otherw Ise I dont have that k Ind of relat Ionsh Ip w Ith Her. You see, If you cons Ider th Is body, th Is poor body, It Is very Innocent: It In no way tr Ies to draw attent Ion to Itself nor to attract forces nor to do anyth Ing at all except Its workas best It can. And thats how It stands: Its Importance Is proport Ionate to Its usefulness and to the s Ign If Icance the world attr I butes to Its Ince Its act Ion Is for the world.
But In and of Itself, It Is only one body among countless others. Thats all.
(To the d Isc Iple handl Ing the m Icrophone:) Its over now.
(Mother gets up to go, but wh Ile leav Ing, She says to the ch Ildren around her:) If you had made just one l Ittle dec Is Ion to try to feel your psych Ic be Ing, my t Ime would not have been wasted.
Ananda: D Iv Ine Joy.
--
Mother rece Ived each d Isc Iple Ind Iv Idually on h Is b Irthday.
The Mother of Ananda, or the Creat Ive Power's aspect of Joy.
W.W. Pearson, a fr Iend of Rab Indranath Tagore, who had come from Tagore's Ashram In 1923; Mother had met h Im w Ith Tagore In 1916 In Japan.
***
0 1955-03-26, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Mother, once more I come to ask you for Mahakal Is1 Intervent Ion. After a per Iod when everyth Ing seemed much better, I aga In awake to Imposs Ible morn Ings when I l Ive badly, very badly, far from you, Incapable of call Ing you and, whats more, of feel Ing your Presence or your help.
I dont know what mud Is st Irr Ing about In me, but everyth Ing Is obscured, and I cannot d Issoc Iate myself from these v Ital waves.
Mother, w Ithout Mahakal Is grace, I shall never be able to get out of th Is mechan Ical round, to shatter these old format Ions, ever the same, wh Ich keep com Ing back. Mother, I beg of you, help. me to BREAK th Is shell In wh Ich I am suffocat Ing. Del Iver me from myself, del Iver me In sp Ite of myself. Alone, I am helpless; somet Imes I cannot even call you! May your force come and burn all my Impur It Ies, shatter my res Istances.
S Igned: Bernard2
Mahakal I: the eternal Mother In her warr Ior aspect, She who severs the heads of the demons.
Such was our old, mean Ingless name (except for Its German Ic root: 'hard bear') unt Il a certa In March 3, 1957, when Mother named us Sat-prem ('the one who loves truly').
***
0 1955-04-04, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Mother, for more than a year now I have been near you and noth Ing, no really s Ign If Icant Inner exper Ience, no s Ign has come that allows me to feel I have progressed or merely to show me that I am on the r Ight path. I cannot even say I am happy.
I am not so absurdly pretent Ious as to blame the d Iv Ine, nor yourself and I rema In qu Ite conv Inced that all th Is Is my own fault. Undoubtedly I have not known how to surrender totally In some part of myself, or I do not asp Ire enough or know how to open myself as needed. Also, I should rely ent Irely upon the d Iv Ine to take care of my progress and not be concerned about the absence of exper Iences. I have therefore asked myself why I am so far away from the true att Itude, the genu Ine open Ing, and I see two ma In reasons: on the one hand, the d Iff Icult Ies Inherent In my own nature, and on the other, the outer cond It Ions of th Is sadhana. These cond It Ions do not seem to be conduc Ive to help Ing me overcome the d Iff Icult Ies In my own nature.
I feel that I am turn Ing In c Ircles and tak Ing one step backward for each one forward. Furthermore, Instead of help Ing me draw nearer to the d Iv Ine consc Iousness, my work In the Ashram (the very fact of work Ing for to change work, even If I felt l Ike It, would not change the overall s Ituat Ion), d Iverts me from th Is d Iv Ine consc Iousness, or at least keeps me In a superf Ic Ial consc Iousness from wh Ich I am unable to unglue myself as long as I am busy wr It Ing letters, do Ing translat Ions, correct Ions or classes.1 I know Its my own fault, that I should know how to be detached from my work and do It by rely Ing upon a deeper consc Iousness, but what can be done? Unless I rece Ive the grace, I cannot remember the essent Ial th Ing as long as the outer part of my be Ing Is act Ive.
When I am not Immed Iately engrossed In work, I have to confront a thousand l Ittle temptat Ions and da Ily d Iff Icult Ies that come from my contact w Ith other be Ings and a l Ife that does Indeed rema In In l Ife. Here, even more, there Is the feel Ing of an Imposs Ible struggle, and all these l Ittle d Iff Icult Ies seem to gnaw away at me; scarcely has one hole been f Illed when another opens up, or the same one reappears, and there Is never any real v Ictoryone has constantly to beg In everyth Ing aga In. F Inally, It seems to me that I really l Ive only one hour a day, dur Ing the even Ing d Istr Ibut Ion at the playground.2 It Is scarcely a l Ife and scarcely a sadhana!
Consequently, I understand much better now why In the trad It Ional yogas one settled all these d Iff Icult Ies once and for all by escap Ing from the world, w Ithout bother Ing to transform a l Ife that seems so untransformable.
I am not now go Ing to renounce Sr I Aurob Indos Yoga, Mother, for my whole l Ife Is based upon It, but I bel Ieve I should employ other meanswh Ich Is why I am wr It Ing you th Is letter.
By cont Inu Ing th Is da Ily l Ittle ant-l Ike struggle and by hav Ing to confront the same des Ires, the same d Istract Ions every day, It seems to me I am wast Ing my energy In va In. Sr I Aurob Indos Yoga, wh Ich Is meant to Include l Ife, Is so d Iff Icult that one should come to It only after hav Ing already establ Ished the sol Id base of a concrete d Iv Ine real Izat Ion. That Is why I want to ask you If I should not w Ithdraw for a certa In t Ime, to Almora,3 for example, to Brewsters place,4 to l Ive In sol Itude, s Ilence, med Itat Ion, far away from people, work and temptat Ions, unt Il a beg Inn Ing of L Ight and Real Izat Ion Is concret Ized In me. Once th Is sol Id base Is acqu Ired, It would be eas Ier for me to resume my work and the struggle here for the true transformat Ion of the outer be Ing. But to want to transform th Is outer be Ing w Ithout hav Ing fully Illum Ined the Inner be Ing seems to me to be putt Ing the cart before the horse, or at least condemn Ing myself to a p It Iless and endless battle In wh Ich the best of my forces are fru Itlessly consumed.
In all s Incer Ity, I must say that when I was at Brewsters place In Almora, I felt very near to that state In wh Ich the L Ight must surge forth. I qu Ite understand the Imperfect Ion of th Is process, wh Ich Involves flee Ing from d Iff Icult Ies, but th Is would only be a stage, a strateg Ic retreat, as It were.
Mother, th Is Is not a v Ital des Ire seek Ing to d Ivert me from the sadhana, for my l Ife has no other mean Ing than to seek the d Iv Ine, but It seems to be the only solut Ion that could br Ing about some progress and get me out of th Is lukewarm slump In wh Ich I have been l Iv Ing day after day. I cannot be sat Isf Ied l Iv Ing merely one hour a day, when I see you.
I know that you do not l Ike to wr Ite, Mother, but couldnt you say In a few words If you approve of my project or what I should do? In sp Ite of all my rebell Ions and d Iscouragements and res Istances, I am your ch Ild. O Mother, help me!
S Igned: Bernard
--
No doubt It would be better to go to Almora for a wh Ilenot for too long, I hope, for It Is needless to say how much the work w Ill be d Isrupted by th Is departure
(Another handwr Itten vers Ion)
--
You may go to Almora If you th Ink It w Ill help you break th Is shell of the outer consc Iousness, so obst Inately Impenetrable.
Perhaps be Ing far away from the Ashram for a wh Ile w Ill help you feel the spec Ial atmosphere that ex Ists here and that cannot be found anywhere else to the same extent.
In any event, my bless Ings w Ill always be w Ith you to help you f Ind, at long last, th Is Inner Presence wh Ich alone g Ives joy and stab Il Ity.
S Igned: Mother
For a long t Ime, Satprem took care of the correspondence w Ith the outs Ide, along w Ith Pav Itra, not to ment Ion ed It Ing the Ashram Bullet In as well as Mother's wr It Ings and talks, translat Ing Sr I Aurob Indo's works Into French, and conduct Ing classes at the Ashram's ' Internat Ional Centre of Educat Ion.'
Every even Ing at the Playground, the d Isc Iples passed before Mother one by one to rece Ive symbol Ically some food.
In the H Imalayas.
An Amer Ican art Ist, an old fr Iend of D.H. Lawrence, and Satprem's fr Iend.
0 1955-06-09, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Mother, I cannot say that It Is a nostalg Ia for the outs Ide world that Is draw Ing me backwards nor some attachment to a personal form of l Ife, nor even some v Ital des Ire seek Ing Its own sat Isfact Ion. That old world no longer attracts me, and I do not see at all what I would do there. Yet someth Ing Is stand Ing In my way.
If only I could see a d Ist Inct error block Ing my path wh Ich I could clearly attack But I feel that I am not respons Ible, that It Is not my personal fault If I rema In w Ithout asp Irat Ion, stagnat Ing. I feel l Ike a battlef Ield of contend Ing forces that are beyond me and aga Inst wh Ich I can do NOTH ING. Oh Mother, It Is not an excuse for a lack of w Ill, or at least I dont th Ink so I profoundly feel l Ike a helpless toy, totally helpless.
If the d Iv Ine force, If your grace, does not Intervene to shatter th Is obscure res Istance that Is draw Ing me downwards In sp Ite of myself, I dont know what w Ill become of me Mother, I am not blackma Il Ing you, I am only express Ing my helplessness, my angu Ish.
Dur Ing the day, I l Ive more or less calmly In my l Ittle morass, but as even Ing and the moment to meet you draw near, then the forces p Inn Ing me to the ground beg In rag Ing beneath your pressure, and I feel at t Imes an unbearable tear Ing that burns and constr Icts In my throat l Ike tears that cannot be shed. Afterwards, Truth rega Ins possess Ion of me but the follow Ing day It all beg Ins aga In.
Mother, It Is an Imposs Ible, absurd, unl Ivable l Ife. I feel as though I have no hand In th Is cruel l Ittle game. Oh Mother, why doesnt your grace trust that deep part In me wh Ich knows so well that you are the Truth? Del Iver me from these ev Il forces s Ince, profoundly, It Is you and you alone I want. G Ive me the asp Irat Ion and strength I do not have. If you do not do th Is Yoga for me, I feel I shall never have the strength to go on.
There Is someth Ing that must be SHATTERED: can It not be done once and for all w Ithout l Inger Ing on Indef In Itely? Mother, I am your ch Ild.
S Igned: Bernard
Mother, th Is letter Is a prayer.
***
--
Your case Is not un Ique; there are others (and among the best and the most fa Ithful) who are l Ikew Ise a ver Itable battlef Ield for the forces oppos Ing the advent of the truth. They feel powerless In th Is battle, sorrowful w Itnesses, v Ict Ims w Ithout the strength to f Ight, for th Is Is tak Ing place In that part of the phys Ical consc Iousness where the supramental forces are not yet fully act Ive, although I am conf Ident they soon w Ill be. Meanwh Ile, the only remedy Is to endure, to go through th Is suffer Ing and to awa It pat Iently the hour of l Iberat Ion.
Wh Ile read Ing your prayer, I too prayed that It be heard.
W Ith my bless Ings.
0 1955-09-03, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Mother, It seems that for weeks I have been knock Ing aga Inst myself at every turn, as though I were In a pr Ison, and I cannot get out of It. Mother, I need your Space, your L Ight, to get out of th Is walled- In n Ight that Is suffocat Ing me.
No matter where I concentrate, In my heart, above my head, between my eyes, I bang everywhere Into an uny Ield Ing wall; I no longer know wh Ich way to turn, what I must do, say, pray In order to be freed from all th Is at last. Mother, I know that I am not mak Ing all the effort I should, but help me to make th Is effort, I Implore your grace. I need so much to f Ind at last th Is sol Id rock upon wh Ich to lean, th Is space of l Ight where f Inally I may seek refuge. Mother, open the psych Ic be Ing In me, open me to your sole L Ight wh Ich I need so much. W Ithout your grace, I can only turn In c Ircles, hopelessly. O Mother, may I l Ive In you.
Your ch Ild,
0 1955-09-15, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Mother suddenly everyth Ing seems to have crystall Izedall the l Ittle revolts, the l Ittle tens Ions, the Ill w Ill and petty v Ital demandsform Ing a s Ingle block of open, determ Ined res Istance. I have become consc Ious that from the beg Inn Ing of my sadhana, the m Ind has led the gamew Ith the psych Ic beh Ind and has held me In leash, helped muzzle all contrary movements, but at no t Ime, or only rarely, has the v Ital subm Itted or opened to the h Igher Influence. The rare t Imes when the v Ital part Ic Ipated, I felt a great progress. But now, I f Ind myself In front of th Is sol Id mass that says No and Is not at all conv Inced of what the m Ind has been Impos Ing upon It for almost two years now.
Mother, I am suff Ic Iently awakened not to rebel aga Inst your L Ight and to understand that the v Ital Is but one part of my be Ing, but I have come to the conclus Ion that the only way of conv Inc Ing th Is v Ital Is not to force or st Ifle It, but to let It go through Its own exper Ience so It may understand by Itself that It cannot be sat Isf Ied In th Is way. I feel the need to leave the Ashram for a wh Ile to see how I can get along away from here and to real Ize, no doubt, that one can really brea the only here.
I have fr Iends In Bangalore whom I would l Ike to jo In for two or three weeks, perhaps more, perhaps less, however long It may take to confront th Is v Ital w Ith Its own freedom. I need a v Ital act Iv Ity, to move, to sa Il, for example, to have fr Iends etc. The need I am feel Ing Is exactly that wh Ich I sought to sat Isfy In the past through my long boat journeys along the coast of Br Ittany. It Is a k Ind of th Irst for space and movement.
Otherw Ise, Mother, there Is th Is block before me that Is obscur Ing all the rest and tak Ing away my taste for everyth Ing. I would l Ike to leave, Mother, but not In revolt; may It be an exper Ience to go through that rece Ives your approval. I would not l Ike to be cut off from you by your d Ispleasure or your condemnat Ion, for th Is would seem to me terr Ible and leave me no other recourse but to plunge Into the worst excesses In order to forget.
Mother, I would l Ike you to forg Ive me, to understand me and, above all, not to depr Ive me of your Love. I would l Ike you to tell me If I may leave for a few weeks and how you feel about It. It seems to me that I am profoundly your ch Ild, In sp Ite of all th Is??
S Igned: Bernard
0 1955-10-19, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Note wr Itten by Mother In French.
The three Images of total self-g Iv Ing to the D Iv Ine:
1) To prostrate oneself at H Is feet In a surrender of all pr Ide, w Ith a perfect HUM IL ITY.
2) To unfold ones be Ing before H Im, to open ent Irely ones body from head to toe, as one opens a book, spread Ing open ones centers so as to make all the Ir movements v Is Ible In a total S INCER ITY that allows noth Ing to rema In h Idden.
3) To nestle In H Is arms, to melt In H Im In a tender and absolute CONF IDENCE.
These movements may be accompan Ied by three formulas, or any one of them, depend Ing upon the case:
--
3) I am Yours for etern Ity.
Generally, when these movements are made In the r Ight way, they are followed by a perfect Ident If Icat Ion, a d Issolut Ion of the ego, br Ing Ing about a subl Ime fel Ic Ity.
***
0 1956-02-29 - First Supramental Manifestation - The Golden Hammer, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
The follow Ing text was g Iven by Mother In both French and Engl Ish.
F IRST SUPRAMENTAL MAN IFESTAT ION
--
Th Is even Ing the D Iv Ine Presence, concrete and mater Ial, was there present amongst you. I had a form of l Iv Ing gold, b Igger than the un Iverse, and I was fac Ing a huge and mass Ive golden door wh Ich separated the world from the D Iv Ine.
As I looked at the door, I knew and w Illed, In a s Ingle movement of consc Iousness, that THE T IME HAS COME, and l Ift Ing w Ith both hands a m Ighty golden hammer I struck one blow, one s Ingle blow1 on the door and the door was shattered to p Ieces.
Then the supramental L Ight and Force and Consc Iousness rushed down upon earth In an un Interrupted flow.
Later added by Mother
0 1956-03-19, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Note wr Itten by Mother In French. At th Is per Iod, Mother's back was already bent. Th Is stra Ighten Ing of her back seems to be the f Irst phys Iolog Ical effect of the 'Supramental Man Ifestat Ion' of February 29, wh Ich Is perhaps the reason why Mother noted down the exper Ience under the name 'Agenda of the Supramental Act Ion on Earth.' It was the f Irst t Ime Mother gave a t Itle to what would become th Is fabulous document of 13 volumes. The exper Ience took place dur Ing a 'translat Ion class' when, tw Ice a week, Mother would translate the works of Sr I Aurob Indo Into French before a group of d Isc Iples.
AGENDA OF THE SUPRAMENTAL ACT ION ON EARTH
On March 19 dur Ing the translat Ion class the Inner vo Ice sa Id:
Hold yourself stra Ight
and the body sat up and held Itself absolutely stra Ight dur Ing the ent Ire class.
***
0 1956-03-20, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Note wr Itten by Mother In French.
(Upon awaken Ing)
The control over the movements of the vertebrae, lost a long t Ime ago (wh Ich resulted In a k Ind of Insens It Iv Ity and Incapac Ity to move them at w Ill) has returned to a great extent: the consc Iousness Is once aga In able to express Itself and the back can stra Ighten up very v Is Ibly.
***
--
Almost a total stra Ighten Ing, along w Ith a very clear percept Ion of the new force and power In the cells of the body.
Mother appeared on her balcony da Ily at about 6 a.m. to g Ive a few moments of med Itat Ion to her d Isc Iples before the beg Inn Ing of the day's work.
0 1956-03-21, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Note wr Itten by Mother In French.
The age of Cap Ital Ism and bus Iness Is draw Ing to a close.
But the age of Commun Ism, too, w Ill pass. For Commun Ism as It Is preached Is not construct Ive, It Is a weapon to combat plutocracy. But when the battle Is over and the arm Ies are d Isbanded for want of employment, then Commun Ism, hav Ing no more ut Il Ity, w Ill be transformed Into someth Ing else that w Ill express a h Igher truth.
We know th Is truth, and we are work Ing for It so that It may re Ign upon earth.
***
0 1956-04-04, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Mother, two months ago I had a clear mental percept Ion of what was asked of me: to spend the rest of my l Ife here. Th Is Is the source of my d Iff Icult Ies and of the Inner hell I have been l Iv Ing through ever s Ince. Each t Ime I try to emerge, there Is th Is Image that r Ises up In me: your-whole-l Ife and th Is casts me Into a v Iolent confl Ict. When I came here, I thought of stay Ing for two or three years; for me the Ashram was a means of real Izat Ion, not an end.
I understand now that as long as my whole be Ing has not ACCEPTED that It must f In Ish Its l Ife here, there Is no way out nor any recovery poss Ible. Through my mental force alone, th Is acceptance Is Imposs Ible; I have been turn Ing Infernally In c Ircles these past two months, and the m Ind Is In league w Ith the v Ital. Therefore, a force greater than m Ine must help me accept that my way Is here. I need you, Mother, for w Ithout you I am lost. I need you to tell me that the Truth of my be Ing Is Indeed here and that I am truly ready to follow th Is path. Mother, I beseech you, help me to see the truth of my be Ing, g Ive me some s Ign that my way Is here and not elsewhere. I beg of you, Mother, help me to know.
I also had a very clear sensat Ion that you were abandon Ing me, that you had no further Interest In me and I could just as well do as I pleased. Perhaps you cannot forg Ive some of my Inner rebell Ions wh Ich have been so very v Iolent? Am I totally gu Ilty? Is It true that you are abandon Ing me?
I am broken and battered In the depths of my be Ing as I was In my flesh In the concentrat Ion camps. W Ill the d Iv Ine grace take p Ity on me? Can you, do you want to help me? Alone I can do noth Ing. I am In an absolute sol Itude, even beyond all rebell Ion, at my very end.
Yet I love you In sp Ite of all that I am.
S Igned: Bernard
--
My ch Ild, I have not abandoned you, and I am ready to forget, to efface all revolt.
My help Is always w Ith you.
S Igned: Mother
0 1956-04-20, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
The d Iff Icult Ies of the past weeks have taught me that as soon as one strays from the true consc Iousness, In however tr Ifl Ing a way, anyth Ing may happen, any excess, any aberrat Ion, any Imbalance and I have felt very dangerous th Ings prowl Ing about me. Mother, you told me In regard to Patr Ick1 that the law of the man Ifestat Ion was a law of freedom, even the freedom to choose wrongly. Th Is even Ing, It has been my very deep percept Ion that th Is freedom Is v Irtually always a freedom to choose wrongly. I harbor a great fear of los Ing the true consc Iousness once aga In. I have become aware of how frag Ile everyth Ing In me Is and that very l Ittle would be enough to carry me away.
Therefore, Sweet Mother, I come to ask a great grace of you, from the depths of my heart: take my freedom Into your hands. Prevent me from fall Ing back, far away from you. I place th Is freedom In your hands. Keep me safe, Mother, protect me. Grant me the grace of watch Ing over me and of tak Ing me In your hands completely, l Ike a ch Ild whose steps are unsure. I no longer want th Is Freedom. It Is you I want, the Truth of my be Ing. Mother, as a grace, I Implore you to free me from my freedom to choose wrongly.
I am your ch Ild and I love you.
S Igned: Bernard
--
Agreedw Ith all my heart I accept the g Ift you g Ive me of your freedom to choose wrongly And It Is w Ith all my heart, too, that I shall always help you make the cho Ice that leads stra Ight to the goal that Is, towards your real self.
W Ith all my affect Ion and my bless Ings.
--
A fr Iend of Satprem's who d Ied Insane In a Japanese hosp Ital In Ind Ia
***
0 1956-04-23, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
and rewr Ites It as follows In her own hand:
29 February29 March
Lord, Thou hast w Illed, and I execute:
A new l Ight breaks upon the earth,
A new world Is born.
The th Ings that were prom Ised are fulf Illed.1
0 1956-04-24, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
The man Ifestat Ion of the Supramental upon earth Is no more a prom Ise but a l Iv Ing fact, a real Ity.
It Is at work here, and one day w Ill come when the most bl Ind, the most unconsc Ious, even the most unw Ill Ing shall be obl Iged to recogn Ize It.
***
0 1956-05-02, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Oh, really! How Ignorant! It has been prom Ised for such a very long t Ime, It has been sa Id for such a very long t Imenot only here In the Ashram, but ever s Ince the beg Inn Ing of the earth. There have been all k Inds of pred Ict Ions, by all k Inds of prophets. It has been sa Id, There w Ill be a new heaven and a new earth, a new race shall be born, the world shall be transformed Prophets have spoken of th Is In every trad It Ion.
You sa Id, They are fulf Illed.
--
Where Is the new race?
The new race? Wa It for someth Ing l Ike a few thousand years or so, and you w Ill see It!
When the m Ind came down upon earth, someth Ing l Ike a m Ill Ion years went by between the man Ifestat Ion of the m Ind In the earth atmosphere and the appearance of the f Irst man. But It w Ill go faster th Is t Ime because man Is wa It Ing for someth Ing, he has a vague Idea: he Is awa It Ing In some way or another the advent of the superman. Whereas the apes were certa Inly not awa It Ing the b Irth of man, they never thought of It for the excellent reason that they probably dont th Ink very much! But man has thought about It and Is wa It Ing, so It w Ill go faster. But faster probably st Ill means thousands of years. We shall speak of th Is aga In In a few thousand years!
(s Ilence)
Those who are ready w Ith In, who are open and In touch w Ith the h Igher forces, those who have had a more or less d Irect personal contact w Ith the Supramental L Ight and Consc Iousness, are capable of feel Ing the d Ifference In the earth atmosphere.
But for th Is only l Ike can know l Ike. Only the Supramental Consc Iousness In an Ind Iv Idual can perce Ive the Supramental act Ing In the earth atmosphere. Those who, for whatever reason, have developed th Is percept Ion can see It. But those who are not even remotely consc Ious of the Ir Inner be Ings, who would be qu Ite at a loss to say what the Ir souls look l Ike, are certa Inly not ready to perce Ive the d Ifference In the earth atmosphere. They st Ill have qu Ite a way to go for that. Because, for those whose consc Iousness Is more or less exclus Ively centered In the outer be Ingmental, v Ital and phys Icalth Ings need to have an absurd or unexpected appearance to be not Iceable. And then they call It a m Iracle.
But we do not call a m Iracle the constant m Iracle of the forces that Intervene to change c Ircumstances and human natures and wh Ich have very far-reach Ing consequences, for we see only the appearance, and th Is appearance seems qu Ite natural. But In truth, If you were to reflect upon the least th Ing that happens, you would be forced to acknowledge that It Is m Iraculous.
It Is s Imply because you do not reflect upon It and assume th Ings to be as they are, what they are, unquest Ion Ingly; otherw Ise you would have qu Ite a number of opportun It Ies everyday to say to yourself, But look! That Is absolutely amaz Ing! How d Id It happen?
Qu Ite s Imply, the hab It of a purely superf Ic Ial way of see Ing.
--
That depends upon what you want to do w Ith It.
If you want to look at It as an object of cur Ios Ity, then you have only to look at It, to try to understand.
If you want It to change you, you must open yourself and str Ive to progress.
W Ill we benef It collect Ively or Ind Iv Idually from th Is new man Ifestat Ion?
Why are you ask Ing th Is quest Ion?
Because a lot of people have come here, and they are ask Ing, How are we go Ing to benef It from It?
Oh!
And why should they benef It from It? What ent Itles them to benef It from It? S Imply because they took the tra In to come here?
I knew some people who came here a long t Ime ago, someth Ing l Ike (Oh, I dont recall anymore, but qu Ite a long t Ime ago!), certa Inly more than twenty years ago; the f Irst t Ime someone d Ied In the Ashram, they expressed a cons Iderable d Issat Isfact Ion: But I came here because I thought th Is yoga would make me Immortal! If you can st Ill d Ie, then why d Id I come here?
Well, Its the same th Ing. People take the tra In to come herethere were about a hundred and f Ifty more people than usual1s Imply because they want to benef It. But th Is may be exactly why they have not benef Ited from It! Because Th Is [the supramental consc Iousness] has not come to make people benef It In any way whatsoever!
They ask If the Ir Inner d Iff Icult Ies w Ill be eas Ier to overcome.
I would repeat the same th Ing. What reason and what r Ight have they to ask that th Ings be eas Ier? What have they done on the Ir s Ide? Why should It be eas Ier? To sat Isfy peoples laz Iness and slothor what?
Because when someth Ing new comes, we always have the Idea of benef It Ing from It.
No! Not only In the case of someth Ing new: In every case, there Is always th Is Idea of benef It Ing. However, that Is the best way to get noth Ing.
Who are you try Ing to fool? The D Iv Ine? That Is hardly poss Ible.
Its the same w Ith those who ask for an Interv Iew. I tell them, Look, you have come In large numbers, and If each one asks me for an Interv Iew, how could I poss Ibly f Ind enough m Inutes In so few days to see everyone? Wh Ile youre here, I wouldnt have even a s Ingle m Inute. Then they retort, Oh, I have taken so MUCH trouble, I have come from so FAR away, I have come from way In the North, I have travelled for so many hoursand I have no r Ight to an Interv Iew? I reply, Im sorry, but you are not the only one In that s Ituat Ion.
And thats how It Isswapp Ing, barga In Ing. We are not a commerc Ial enterpr Ise, we have made It clear that we are not do Ing bus Iness.
The number of d Isc Iples Is Increas Ing now day by day. What does th Is Ind Icate?
But Inev Itably It w Ill Increase more and more! Wh Ich Is why I cannot do what I used to do when there were one hundred and f Ifty people In the Ashram. If they had just a l Ittle b It of common sense, they would understand that I cannot have the same relat Ionsh Ip w Ith people now (just Imag Ine, 1,800 people these last days!), so I cannot have the same relat Ionsh Ip w Ith 1,845 people (exactly, I bel Ieve) as w Ith th Irty or even a hundred. That seems an easy enough log Ic to understand.
But they want everyth Ing to rema In as It was and, as you say, to be the f Irst to benef It.
Mother, when the m Ind came down Into the earth atmosphere, the ape d Id not make any effort to convert h Imself Into a man, d Id he? It was Nature that suppl Ied the effort. But In our case
But Its not man who Is go Ing to convert h Imself Into a superman!
No?
--
You see, It Is someth Ing else that Is go Ing to do the work.
So we are
Onlyyes, there Is an only, I dont want to be so cruel: NOW MAN CAN COLLABORATE. That Is, he can lend h Imself to the process, w Ith good w Ill, w Ith asp Irat Ion, and help to h Is utmost. Wh Ich Is why I sa Id It w Ill go faster. I hope It w Ill go MUCH faster.
But even If It does go much faster, It w Ill st Ill take some t Ime!
(s Ilence)
Look. If all of you who have heard of th Is, not once but perhaps hundreds of t Imes, who have spoken of It yourselves, thought about It, hoped for It, wanted It (there are some people who have come here only for th Is, to rece Ive the Supramental Force and to be transformed Into supermen, th Is has been the Ir goal) then how Is It that you were ALL such strangers to th Is Force that when It came, you d Id not even feel It?!
Can you solve that problem for me? If you f Ind the solut Ion to th Is problem, you w Ill have the solut Ion to the d Iff Iculty.
I am not speak Ing of people from outs Ide who have never thought about It, who have never felt concerned and who do not even know that there may be someth Ing l Ike the Superm Ind to rece Ive, In fact. I am speak Ing of people who have bu Ilt the Ir l Ives upon th Is asp Irat Ion (and I dont doubt the Ir s Incer Ity for a m Inute), who have workedsome of them for th Irty years, some for th Irty-f Ive, others somewhat lessall the wh Ile say Ing, When the superm Ind comes When the superm Ind comes That was the Ir refra In: When the superm Ind comes Consequently, they were really In the best poss Ible frame of m Ind, one could not have dreamt of a better pred Ispos It Ion. How Is It, then, that the Ir Inner preparat Ion was so lets just say Incomplete, that they d Id not feel the V Ibrat Ion Immed Iately, as soon as It came, through a shock of Ident Ity?
Ind Iv Idually, each ones goal was to make h Imself ready, to enter Into a more or less Int Imate Ind Iv Idual relat Ionsh Ip w Ith th Is Force, so as to help the process; or else, If he could not help, at least be ready to recogn Ize and be open to the Force when It would man Ifest. Then Instead of be Ing an al Ien element In a world In wh Ich your OWN Inner capac Ity rema Ins unman Ifest, you suddenly become THAT, you enter d Irectly, fully, Into the very atmosphere: the Force Is there, all around you, permeat Ing you.
If you had had a l Ittle Inner contact, you would have recogn Ized It Immed Iately, dont you th Ink so?
Well, In any event, that was the case for those who had a l Ittle Inner contact; they recogn Ized It, they felt It, and they sa Id, Ah, there It Is! It has come! But how Is It that so many hundreds of peoplenot to ment Ion the handful of those who really wanted only that, thought only of that, had staked the Ir whole l Ives on thathow Is It that they felt noth Ing? What can th Is mean?
It Is well known that only l Ike knows l Ike. It Is an obv Ious fact.
There was Indeed a poss Ib Il Ity to enter Into contact w Ith the Th Ing Ind Iv Iduallyth Is was even what Sr I Aurob Indo had descr Ibed as be Ing the necessary procedure: a certa In number of people would enter Into contact w Ith th Is Force through the Ir Inner effort and the Ir asp Irat Ion. We had called It the ascent towards the Superm Ind. And IF and when they had touched the Superm Ind through an Inner ascent (that Is, by free Ing themselves from the mater Ial consc Iousness), they should have recogn Ized It SPONTANEOUSLY as soon as It came. But a prel Im Inary contact was Ind Ispensable If you have never touched It, how can you recogn Ize It?
Thats how the un Iversal movement works ( I read th Is to you a few days ago): through the Ir Inner effort and Inner progress, certa In Ind Iv Iduals, who are the p Ioneers, the forerunners, enter Into commun Icat Ion w Ith the new Force wh Ich Is to man Ifest, and they rece Ive It In themselves. And because a number of calls l Ike th Is surge forth, the th Ing becomes poss Ible, and the era, the t Ime, the moment for the man Ifestat Ion comes. Th Is Is how It happened and the Man Ifestat Ion took place.
But then, all those who were ready should have recogn Ized It.
I hasten to tell you that some d Id recogn Ize It, but they were so few But as for those who ask these quest Ions, who even took the trouble to come here, who took the tra In to gulp th Is down as you gulp down a soft dr Ink, how can they poss Ibly feel anyth Ing whatsoever If they have not prepared themselves at all? Yet they are already speak Ing of prof It Ing: We want to benef It from It
After all, If they have even a t Iny b It of s Incer Ity (not too much, Its t Ir Ing!), a t Iny b It of s Incer Ity, It Is qu Ite poss Ible ( I am jok Ing), It Is qu Ite poss Ible that they m Ight get a few good k Icks to make them go faster! It Is poss Ible. In fact, I th Ink thats what w Ill happen.
But really, th Is att Itude th Is rather overly commerc Ial att Itude, Is usually not very prof Itable. If you have d Iff Icult Ies and you s Incerely asp Ire, It Is l Ikely that the d Iff Icult Ies w Ill d Im In Ish. Let us hope so.
(Turn Ing to the d Isc Iple) So you may tell them th Is: be s Incere and you w Ill be helped.
Mother, very recently a text has been c Irculat Ing wh Ich says, What has just now happened, w Ith th Is V Ictory, Is not a descent but a man Ifestat Ion. And It Is no longer merely an Ind Iv Idual event: the Superm Ind has sprung forth Into the un Iversal play.
Yes, yes, yes! I Indeed sa Id all that. I acknowledge It. And so?
It Is sa Id, The supramental pr Inc Iple Is at work
But I have just expla Ined the whole th Ing to you! (Mother laughs) Its Incred Ible!
What I call a descent Is th Is: f Irst of all, the consc Iousness cl Imbs In ascent, then you catch the Th Ing up above and redescend w Ith It. Th Is Is an IND IV IDUAL event.
When th Is Ind Iv Idual event has taken place suff Ic Iently to allow a more general poss Ib Il Ity to emerge, It Is no longer a descent but a man Ifestat Ion.
What I call a descent Is the Ind Iv Idual movement In an Ind Iv Idual consc Iousness. But when a new world Is man Ifest Ing In an old worldas when s Im Ilarly the m Ind spread over the earth I call It a man Ifestat Ion.
You may call It whatever you l Ike, It makes no d Ifference to me, but we must understand each other.
What I call a descent takes place In the Ind Iv Idual consc Iousness. In the same way, we speak of ascent (there Is no ascent really, there Is no h Igh or low, no d Irect Ion: Its all a manner of speak Ing)we speak of ascent when we feel ourselves r Is Ing up towards someth Ing, and we call It a descent when, after hav Ing caught th Is th Ing, we br Ing It down Into ourselves.
But when the doors are opened and the flood pours In, It can no longer be called a descent: It Is a Force that spreads everywhere. Understood? Ah!
I dont care what words you use. I do not essent Ially Ins Ist upon my words, but I expla In them to you, and Its better to agree on words beforehand, for otherw Ise theres no end to explanat Ions.
But now, you may reply to those people who are ask Ing these Ins Id Ious quest Ions that the best way to rece Ive anyth Ing whatsoever Is not to pull, but to g Ive. If they want to g Ive themselves to the new l Ife, well, the new l Ife w Ill enter Into them.
But If they want to pull the new l Ife Into themselves, they w Ill close the door w Ith the Ir ego Ism. Thats all.
Mother Is referr Ing to the darshan of Apr Il 24, 1956. Four t Imes a year, for 'darshan,' v Is Itors Increas Ingly poured Into the Ashram to pass one by one before Mother (and formerly, Sr I Aurob Indo) to rece Ive her look.
***
0 1956-07-29, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Note wr Itten by Mother In French.
O Thou who art always therepresent In all I do, all I amnot for repose do I asp Ire, but for THY INTEGRAL V ICTORY.
***
0 1956-08-10, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Note wr Itten by Mother In Engl Ish.
My Lord, through me thou hast challenged the world and all the adverse forces have r Isen In protest.1
But Thy Grace Is w Inn Ing the v Ictory.
In fact, follow Ing the 'Supramental Man Ifestat Ion' of February 29, 1956, all of Mother's phys Ical d Iff Icult Ies Increased, as though all the obscur It Ies In the phys Ical consc Iousness were surg Ing forth beneath the pressure of the new l Ight. The same observat Ion appl Ies to the d Isc Iples who were around Mother and undoubtedly to the world as a whole. A strange 'myster Ious accelerat Ion' was beg Inn Ing to take hold of the world.
***
0 1956-09-12, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Th Is text was noted down by a d Isc Iple from memory. On the or Ig Inal manuscr Ipt subm Itted for her approval, Mother wrote, 'Th Is account Is qu Ite correct,' and She s Igned the text. Words added or corrected by Mother are In Ital Ics.
(Dur Ing the Wednesday class)
--
Someth Ing a l Ittle taller than myself: Its feet extended below my feet and Its head went a l Ittle beyond my head.
A sol Id block w Ith a rectangular basea rectangle w Ith a square baseone s Ingle p Iece.
A l Ight, not l Ike the golden l Ight of the Superm Ind: rather a k Ind of phosphorescence. I felt that had It been n Ight, It would have been phys Ically v Is Ible.
And It was denser than my phys Ical body: the phys Ical body seemed to me almost unrealas though crumblyl Ike sand runn Ing through your f Ingers.
I would have been Incapable of speak Ing, words seemed so petty, narrow, Ignorant.
I saw (how shall I put It?) the success Ive preparat Ions wh Ich took place, In certa In anter Ior be Ings, In order to ach Ieve th Is.
It felt as If I had several heads.
The exper Ience of February 29 was of a general nature; but th Is one was Intended for me.
An exper Ience I had never had.
I beg In to see what the supramental body w Ill be.
I had had a somewhat s Im Ilar exper Ience at the t Ime of the un Ion of the supreme creat Ive pr Inc Iple w Ith the phys Ical consc Iousness. But that was a subtle exper Ience, wh Ile th Is was mater Ial In the body.
I d Id not have the exper Ience, I d Id not look at It: I WAS It.
And It rad Iated from me: myr Iads of l Ittle sparks that were penetrat Ing everybody I saw them enter Into each one of those present.
One more step.
0 1956-09-14, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Scarcely has a moment gone by s Ince I left that I have not thought of you, but I wanted to wa It for th Ings to be clear and settled In me before wr It Ing, for you obv Iously have other th Ings to do than l Isten to platon Ic declarat Ions.
My fr Iends keep tell Ing me that I am not ready and that, l Ike R,1 whom they knew, I should go and spend some t Ime In soc Iety. They say that my Idea of go Ing to the H Imalayas Is absurd, and they adv Ise me to return to Braz Il for a few years to stay w Ith W W Is an elderly Amer Ican m Ill Iona Ire the only good r Ich man I knowwho wanted to make me an he Ir, as It were, to h Is f Inanc Ial affa Irs and who treats me rather l Ike a son. He was qu Ite d Isappo Inted when I came back to Ind Ia. My fr Iends tell me that If I have to go through a per Iod In the outs Ide world, the best way to do It Is to rema In near someone who Is fond of me, wh Ile at the same t Ime ensur Ing a mater Ial Independence for the future.
These quest Ions of money do not Interest me. In fact, noth Ing Interests me except th Is someth Ing I feel w Ith In me. The only quest Ion for me Is to know whether I am truly ready for the Yoga, or If my fa Il Ings are not the s Ign of some Immatur Ity. Mother, you alone can tell me what Is r Ight.
I feel a b It lost, cut off from you. The Idea of go Ing to the H Imalayas Is absurd and I am abandon Ing It. My fr Iends tell me that I may rema In w Ith them as long as I w Ish, but th Is Is hardly a solut Ion; I dont even feel l Ike wr It Ing a book any longernoth Ing seems to appeal to me except the trees In th Is garden and the mus Ic that f Ills a large part of my days. There Is no solut Ion other than the Ashram or Braz Il. You alone can tell me what to do.
I KNOW that ult Imately my place Is near you, but Is that my place at present, after all these fa Il Ings? Spontaneously, It Is you I want, you alone who represent the l Ight and all that Is real In th Is world; I can love no one but you nor be Interested In anyth Ing but th Is th Ing w Ith In me, but w Ill It not all beg In aga In once I have returned to the Ashram? You alone know the stage I am at, what Is good for me, what Is poss Ible.
Sweet Mother, may I st Ill ask for your Love, your help? For w Ithout your help, noth Ing Is poss Ible, and w Ithout your love, noth Ing has any mean Ing.
I feel that I am your ch Ild In sp Ite of all my contrad Ict Ions and fa Il Ings. I love you.
S Igned: Bernard
--
For my part, there has been no cut and I have not been severe My feel Ings cannot change, for they are based upon someth Ing other than outer c Ircumstances.
But perhaps you have felt th Is way because you had left your work In the Ashram for an ent Irely personal, that Is, necessar Ily ego Ist Ical reason, and ego Ism always Isolates one from the great current of un Iversal forces. That Is why, too, you no longer clearly perce Ive my love and my help wh Ich nevertheless are always w Ith you.
You asked me what I see and whether your d Iff Icult Ies w Ill not reappear upon your return to the Ashram. It may well be. If you return as you st Ill are at present, It may be that after a very short per Iod It w Ill all beg In aga In. That Is why I am go Ing to propose someth Ing to you but to accept It you w Ill have to be hero Ic and very determ Ined In your consecrat Ion to my work.
Th Is poss Ib Il Ity appeared to me wh Ile read Ing what you wrote about your sojourn In Braz Il w Ith W, the only good r Ich man you have known. Here Is my proposal, wh Ich I express to you qu Ite pla Inly, spontaneously, as It presented Itself to me.
Just now, the work Is be Ing delayed, curta Iled, l Im Ited, almost endangered for want of money.
That wh Ich you would not do for yourself personally, would you not do It for the d Iv Ine cause?
Go to Braz Il, to th Is good r Ich man, make h Im understand the Importance of our work, the extent to wh Ich h Is fortune would be used to the utmost for the good of all and for the earths salvat Ion were he to put It, even part Ially, at the d Isposal of our act Ion. W In th Is v Ictory over the power of money, and by so do Ing you w Ill be freed from all your personal d Iff Icult Ies. Then you can return here w Ith no apprehens Ion, and you w Ill be ready for the transformat Ion.
Reflect upon th Is, take your t Ime, tell me very frankly how you feel about It and whether It appears to you, as It does to me, to be a door open Ing onto a path that w Ill br Ing you back, free and strong at last to me.
All my affect Ion Is w Ith you, and my bless Ings never leave you.
S Igned: Mother
0 1956-10-07, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
I cr Ied towards the L Ight
and Thou gavest me knowledge.
Z asked me, Why d Idnt you stop It?1 I repl Ied, Probably because I am not omn Ipotent! Then he Ins Isted: No, thats not It. I make no d Ist Inct Ion between your w Ill and the d Iv Ine w Ill and I know that you dont e Ither. So why d Idnt you stop It?
And suddenly, I understood.
It was because I hadnt thought of It. It hadnt even grazed my consc Iousness. The d Iv Ine w Ill Is not at all l Ike that, It Is not a w Ill: It Is a V IS ION, a global v Is Ion, that sees and No, It does not gu Ide (to gu Ide suggests someth Ing outs Ide, but noth Ing Is outs Ide), a creat Ive v Is Ion, as It were; yet even then, the word create does not here have the mean Ing we generally attr Ibute to It.
And what Is the Ashram? ( I dont even mean In terms of the Un Iverseon Earth only.) A speck. And why should th Is speck rece Ive except Ional treatment? Perhaps If people here had real Ized the superm Ind. But are they so except Ional as to expect except Ional treatment?
As Sr I Aurob Indo says, people see God as a magn If Ied man: he Is the Dem Iurge, Jehovahwhat I call the Lord of Falsehood.
Arb Itrar Iness. But the D Iv Ine Is not l Ike that!
People say, I gave everyth Ing, I sacr If Iced everyth Ing. In exchange, I expect except Ional cond It Ionseveryth Ing should be beaut Iful, harmon Ious, easy.
But the d Iv Ine v Is Ion Is global. The people In the Ashram do not want th Is str Ike but what about the others? They are Ignorant, mean, full of Ill w Ill, etc., but In the Ir own way they are follow Ing a path, and why should they be depr Ived of the Grace? By the fact that the Ir act Ion Is aga Inst the Ashram? It Is certa Inly a Grace.
I sa Id that I had not even thought of Interven Ing. When th Ings threatened to turn bad, I s Imply appl Ied a force so that It wouldnt become too ser Ious.
Complete surrender It Is not a matter of g Iv Ing what Is small to someth Ing greater nor of los Ing ones w Ill In the d Iv Ine w Ill; It Is a matter of ANNULL ING ones w Ill In someth Ing that Is of another nature.
What comes to replace th Is human w Ill?
A consc Iousness and a v Is Ion. And one Is f Illed w Ith joy and
I used to be d Ifferent (although I was sa Id to be non- Interfer Ing); I acted, If at all, to defend myself But I understood very qu Ickly that even th Is was a react Ion of Ignorance and that th Ings would be set r Ight automat Ically If one rema Ined In the true consc Iousness.
A consc Iousness that sees and makes you see.
Wh Ich Is why th Ings go am Iss when people try to force me to act: I am outs Ide of myself, so to speak. As soon as I come back here, w Ith no one around, then I see.
I have called for a greater package of Grace and asked that the truth of th Ings preva Il. We shall see what happens.
Mother Is referr Ing to a str Ike by the salar Ied workers of the Ashram, one of the numerous Internal and external d Iff Icult Ies constantly assa Il Ing Her.
***
0 1956-10-08, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Be always at the he Ight of yourself, In all c Ircumstances.
Then I wondered when and how I am at the he Ight of myself. And th Is Is what I saw:
Two th Ings wh Ich were parallel and concom Itant that Is, they are always together:
One Ident Ity w Ith the Or Ig In, wh Ich Imparts an absolute seren Ity and perfect detachment to the act Ion.
The other Ident Ity w Ith the supreme Grace, wh Ich obl Iterates and abol Ishes all errors comm Itted In the act Ion by whomsoever and whatsoever and wh Ich annuls all the consequences of these errors.
And the moment I perce Ived th Is, I saw that my th Ird att Itude In act Ion, wh Ich Is the w Ill for progress for the whole earth as well as for each part Icular Ind Iv Idual, was not the he Ight of my be Ing.
***
--
One Is never anyth Ing but a d Iv Ine apprent Ice: the D Iv Ine of yesterday Is only an apprent Ice to the D Iv Ine of tomorrow No, I am not speak Ing of a progress Ive man Ifestat Ion that Is much farther below.
When I am at my h Ighest, I am already too h Igh for the man Ifestat Ion.
I have gone far beyond what I wrote th Is morn Ing.
What If the human Is too heavy, too narrow, too obscure to follow you?
No, It Is exactly the oppos Ite of what you are say Ing. It Is not that the D Iv Ine In h Is d Iv In Ity Is opposed to h Is own man Ifested selfHe Is very far beyond, beyond the necess Ity for Grace; He perce Ives h Is un Ique and exclus Ive respons Ib Il Ity, and that It Is He and He alone who must change In H Is Man Ifestat Ion so that all may change.
***
--
I wanted to take th Is l Ittle rose (Tenderness for the D Iv Ine), for I cons Ider It to be the man Ifestat Ion nearest to d Iv Ine Love. Its d Is Interested, spontaneous, Int Imate.
Th Is Is what I wanted to take w Ith me to my super-heaven, as the most prec Ious th Ing In the human heart.
***
0 1956-10-28, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Sweet Mother, my b Irthday Is the day after tomorrow, the 30th. I come to place my Inner s Ituat Ion before you so that you may help me take a dec Is Ion.
I am fac Ing the same d Iff Icult Ies as before my departure to Hyderabad, and I have made the same m Istakes. The ma In reason for th Is state Is that, on the one hand, words and Ideas seem to have lost all power over me, and on the other, the v Ital elan wh Ich led me thus far Is dead. So upon what shall my fa Ith rest? I st Ill have some fa Ith, of course, but It has become totally ABSTRACT. The v Ital does not cooperate, so I feel all w Ithered, suspended In a vo Id, noth Ing seems to g Ive me d Irect Ion anymore. There Is no rebell Iousness In me, but rather a vo Id.
In th Is state, I am ceaselessly th Ink Ing of my forest In Gu Iana or of my travels through Afr Ica and the ardor that f Illed me w Ith l Ife In those days. I seem to need to have my goal before me and to walk towards It. Outer d Iff Icult Ies also seem to help me resolve my Inner problems: there Is a k Ind of need In me for the elements the sea, the forest, the desert for a m Il Ieu w Ith wh Ich I can wrestle and through wh Ich I can grow. Here, I seem to lack a dynam Ic po Int of leverage. Here, In the everyday rout Ine, everyth Ing seems to be fall Ing apart In me. Should I not return to my forest In Gu Iana?
Mother, I Implore you, In the name of whatever led me to you In the f Irst place, g Ive me the strength to do WHAT HAS TO BE DONE. You who see and who can, dec Ide for me. You are my Mother. Whatever my shortcom Ings, my d Iff Icult Ies, I feel I am so deeply your ch Ild.
S Igned: Bernard
P.S. If you see that I should rema In here, put In me the necessary strength and asp Irat Ion. I shall obey you. I want to obey you.
***
--
One should beware of the charm of memor Ies. What rema Ins of past exper Iences Is the effect they have had In the development of the consc Iousness. But when one attempts to rel Ive a memory by plac Ing oneself aga In In s Im Ilar c Ircumstances, one real Izes qu Ite rap Idly how devo Id they are of the Ir power and charm, because they have lost the Ir usefulness for progress.
You are now beyond the stage when the v Irg In forest and the desert can be useful for your growth. They had put you In contact w Ith a l Ife vaster than your own and they w Idened the l Im Its of your consc Iousness. But now you need someth Ing else.
So far, your whole l Ife has revolved around yourself; all you have done, even the apparently most d Is Interested or least ego Ist Ic act, has been done w Ith a v Iew to your own personal growth or Illum Inat Ion. It Is t Ime to l Ive for someth Ing other than yourself, someth Ing other than your own Ind Iv Idual Ity.
Open a new chapter In your ex Istence. L Ive, no longer for your own real Izat Ion or the real Izat Ion of your Ideal, however exalted It may be, but to serve an eternal work that transcends your Ind Iv Idual Ity on all s Ides.
S Igned: Mother
0 1956-11-22, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
For weeks on end, I have been spend Ing nearly all my n Ights battl Ing w Ith serpents. Last n Ight, I was attacked by three d Ifferent k Inds of serpents, each more venomous and repugnant than the other???
S Igned: Bernard
0 1956-12-12, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Mother, a letter from W. He Is leav Ing Braz Il and ret Ir Ing from bus Iness for good.
Mother, what can I do w Ith my l Ife? I feel absolutely alone, In a vo Id. What hope rema Ins s Ince I have not been able to Integrate Into the Ashram? I am goalless. I am from nowhere. I am good for noth Ing.
I have wanted to rema In near you, and I love you, but there Is someth Ing In me that does not accept an Ashram end Ing. There Is a need In me to DO, to act. But what? What? Have I someth Ing to do In th Is l Ife?
For years I have dreamed of go Ing to Ch Inese Turkestan. Should I head In that d Irect Ion? Or towards Afr Ica?
I dont see a th Ing, noth Ing. Oh Mother, I turn towards you In th Is vo Id that Is st Ifl Ing me. Hear my prayer. Tell me what I must do. G Ive me a s Ign. Mother, you are my sole recourse, for who else would show me the path to be taken, who else but you would love me? Or Is my fate to go off Into the n Ight?
Forg Ive me, Mother, for lov Ing you so poorly, for g Iv Ing myself so badly. Mother, you are my only hope, all the rest In me Is utter despa Ir.
Your ch Ild,
0 1956-12-26, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Mother, perhaps It would be good If I told you what Is happen Ing w Ith In me, as s Incerely as I can:
I feel that th Is Truth of my be Ing, th Is self most Intensely felt, Is Independent from any form or Inst Itut Ion. As far back as I can reach In my consc Iousness, th Is th Ing has been there; It was what drove me at an early age to l Iberate myself from my fam Ily, my rel Ig Ion, my country, a profess Ion, marr Iage or soc Iety In general. I feel th Is th Ing to be a k Ind of absolute freedom, and I have been feel Ing w Ith In me th Is same profound dr Ive for more than a year. Is th Is need for freedom wrong? And yet Is It not because of th Is that the best In me has blossomed?
Th Is Is actually what Is happen Ing In me: I never really accepted the W solut Ion, and the solut Ion of Somal Il and doesnt appeal to me. But I feel drawn by the Idea of Turkestan, as I already told you, and th Is Is why:
Ten years ago, I had two Intu It Ions the f Irst of wh Ich, to my great aston Ishment, was real Ized. It was that I had someth Ing Important to do In South Amer Ica and though I never could have foreseen such a voyage, I went there. The second was that I had someth Ing to do In Turkestan.
Mother, th Is Is the problem around wh Ich I have desperately been turn Ing In c Ircles. What Is the truth of my dest Iny? Is It that wh Ich Is urg Ing me so strongly to leave, or that wh Ich Is struggl Ing aga Inst my freedom? For ult Imately, s Incerely, what I want Is to fulf Ill my l Ifes truth. If I have ever had a w Ill, then It Is: LET BE WHAT MUST BE. Mother, how can one truly know? Is th Is dr Ive, th Is very old and very CLEAR urge In me, false??
Your ch Ild,
0 1957-01-01, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
It Is not a cruc If Ied
but a glor If Ied body
0 1957-01-18, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
The confl Ict that Is tear Ing me apart Is between th Is shadowy part of a past that does not want to d Ie, and the new l Ight. I wonder If, rather than escap Ing to some desert, It would not be w Iser to resolve th Is confl Ict by object Ify It, by wr It Ing th Is book I spoke to you about.
But I would l Ike to know whether It Is really useful for me to wr Ite th Is book, or whether It Is not just some Infer Ior task, a makesh Ift.
You told me one day that I could be useful to you. Then, by chance, I came across th Is passage from Sr I Aurob Indo the other day: Everyone has In h Im someth Ing d Iv Ine, someth Ing h Is own, a chance of perfect Ion and strength In however small a sphere wh Ich God offers h Im to take or refuse.
Could you tell me, as a favor, what th Is part Icular th Ing Is In me wh Ich may be useful to you and serve you? If I could only know what my real work Is In th Is world All the confl Ict Ing Impulses In me stem from my be Ing l Ike an unemployed force, l Ike a be Ing whose place has not yet been determ Ined.
What do you see In me, Mother? Is It through wr It Ing that I shall ach Ieve what Is to be ach Ievedor does all th Is st Ill belong to a nether world? But If so, then of what use am I? If I were good at someth Ing, It would g Ive me some a Ir to breathe.
Your ch Ild,
0 1957-03-03, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
I name you Satprem (true love) for It Is only when you awaken to d Iv Ine love that you w Ill feel that you love.
S Igned: Mother
0 1957-04-09, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
I would l Ike to throw myself at your feet and open my heart to you but I cannot. I cannot.
For I SEE that, were I to g Ive In now, I would be done forthere would be no alternat Ive but to l Ive out the rest of my days In the Ashram. But everyth Ing In me rebels at th Is Idea. The Idea of w Ind Ing up as General Secretary of the Ashram, l Ike Pav Itra, makes my sk In crawl. It Is absurd, and I apolog Ize for speak Ing th Is way, Mother, for I adm Ire Pav Itra but I cant help It, I cant do It, I do not want to end up l Ike that.
For more than a year now, I have been hypnot Ized by the Idea that If I g Ive In, I w Ill be condemned to rema In here. Once more, forg Ive me for speak Ing so absurdly, for of course I know It Is not a condemnat Ion; and yet a part of me feels that It would be.
Thus I am so tense that I do not even want to close my eyes to med Itate for fear of y Ield Ing. And I fall Into all k Inds of errors that horr Ify me, s Imply because the pressure Is too strong at t Imes, and I l Iterally suffocate. Mother, I am not cut out to be a d Isc Iple.
I real Ize that all the progress I was able to make dur Ing the f Irst two years has been lost and I am just as before, worse than beforeas If all my strength were In ru In, all fa Ith In myself undoneso much so that at t Imes I curse myself for hav Ing come here at all.
That Is the s Ituat Ion, Mother. I feel my unworth Iness profoundly. I am the oppos Ite of Satprem, unable to love and to g Ive myself. Everyth Ing In me Is sealed t Ight.
So what Is to be done? I Intend ask Ing your perm Iss Ion to leave as soon as the book Is f In Ished ( I am determ Ined to f In Ish It, for It w Ill r Id me of the past It represents). I expect noth Ing from the world, except a b It of external space, In the absence of another space.
S Igned: Bernard
P.S. And yet, even If I leave, I know that I shall have to come back here Everyth Ing Is a paradox, and I CANNOT get out of th Is paradox.
***
--
I read your letter yesterday, and here Is the answer that Immed Iately came to me. I add to It the assurance that noth Ing has changed, nor can change, In my relat Ionsh Ip w Ith you, and that you are and always w Ill be my ch Ild for that Is the truth of your be Ing.
Here Is what I wrote:
In your Ignorance, you created a phantom of your dest Iny, and then, out of th Is non-ex Istent ghost, you made a hobgobl In around wh Ich all the res Istances of your outer nature have crystall Ized.
It Is a double Ignorance:
In the un Iverse, there are notthere cannot betwo s Im Ilar dest In Ies.
each ones dest Iny Is Inev Itably fulf Illed, but the nearer one Is to the D Iv Ine, the more does th Is dest Iny assume Its d Iv Ine qual It Ies.
I am say Ing all th Is so that you do not hypnot Ize yourself further w Ith some Imag Inary and groundless poss Ib Il Ity.
I am w Ith you always.
S Igned: Mother
0 1957-04-22, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
The book Is f In Ished.1 I would l Ike to g Ive It to you personally, If It would not d Isturb you, whenever you w Ish.
Your ch Ild,
0 1957-07-03, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
I have been asked If we are do Ing a collect Ive yoga and what are the cond It Ions of a collect Ive yoga.
F Irst, I could tell you that to do a collect Ive yoga, there has to be a collect Iv Ity! And I could speak to you about the d Ifferent cond It Ions requ Ired to be a collect Iv Ity. But last n Ight (sm Il Ing), I had a symbol Ic v Is Ion of our collect Iv Ity.
Th Is v Is Ion took place early In the n Ight and woke me up w Ith a rather unpleasant feel Ing. Then I fell back to sleep and forgot about It; but a l Ittle wh Ile ago, when I was th Ink Ing of the quest Ion put to me, It returned. It returned w Ith a great Intens Ity and so Imperat Ively that now, just as I wanted to tell you what k Ind of collect Iv Ity we w Ish to real Ize accord Ing to the Ideal descr Ibed by Sr I Aurob Indo In the last chapter of The L Ife D Iv Inea gnost Ic, supramental collect Iv Ity, the only k Ind that can do Sr I Aurob Indos Integral yoga and be real Ized phys Ically In a progress Ive collect Ive body becom Ing more and more d Iv Ine the recollect Ion of th Is v Is Ion became so Imperat Ive that I couldnt speak.
Its symbol Ism was very clear, though of qu Ite a fam Il Iar nature, as It were, and because of Its very fam Il Iar Ity, unm Istakable In Its real Ism Were I to tell you all the deta Ils, you would probably not even be able to follow: It was rather Intr Icate. It was a k Ind of (how can I express It?)an Immense hotel where all the terrestr Ial poss Ib Il It Ies were lodged In d Ifferent apartments. And It was all In a constant state of transformat Ion: parts or ent Ire w Ings of the bu Ild Ing were suddenly torn down and rebu Ilt wh Ile people were st Ill l Iv Ing In them, such that If you went off somewhere w Ith In the Immense hotel Itself, you ran the r Isk of no longer f Ind Ing your room when you wanted to return to It, for It m Ight have been torn down and was be Ing rebu Ilt accord Ing to another plan! It was orderly, It was organ Ized yet there was th Is fantast Ic chaos wh Ich I ment Ioned. And all th Is was a symbola symbol that certa Inly appl Ies to what Sr I Aurob Indo has wr Itten here1 regard Ing the necess Ity for the transformat Ion of the body, the type of transformat Ion that has to take place for l Ife to become a d Iv Ine l Ife.
It went someth Ing l Ike th Is: somewhere, In the center of th Is enormous ed If Ice, there was a room reservedas It seemed In the story for a mother and her daughter. The mother was a lady, an elderly lady, a very Influent Ial matron who had a great deal of author Ity and her own v Iews concern Ing the ent Ire organ Izat Ion. Her daughter seemed to have a power of movement and act Iv Ity enabl Ing her to be everywhere at once wh Ile at the same t Ime rema In Ing In her room, wh Ich was well, a b It more than a room It was a k Ind of apartment wh Ich, above all, had the character Ist Ic of be Ing very central. But she was constantly argu Ing w Ith her mother. The mother wanted to keep th Ings just as they were, w Ith the Ir usual rhythm, wh Ich prec Isely meant the hab It of tear Ing down one th Ing to rebu Ild another, then aga In tear Ing down that to bu Ild st Ill another, thus g Iv Ing the bu Ild Ing an appearance of fr Ightful confus Ion. But the daughter d Id not l Ike th Is, and she had another plan. Most of all, she wanted to br Ing someth Ing completely new Into the organ Izat Ion: a k Ind of super-organ Izat Ion that would render all th Is confus Ion unnecessary. F Inally, as It was Imposs Ible for them to reach an understand Ing, the daughter left the room to go on a k Ind of general Inspect Ion She went out, looked everyth Ing over, and then wanted to return to her room to dec Ide upon some f Inal measures. But th Is Is where someth Ing rather pecul Iar began happen Ing.
She clearly remembered where her room was, but each t Ime she set out to go there, e Ither the sta Ircase d Isappeared or th Ings were so changed that she could no longer f Ind her way! So she went here and there, up and down, searched, went In and out but It was Imposs Ible to f Ind the way to her room! S Ince all of th Is assumed a phys Ical appearanceas I sa Id, a very fam Il Iar and very common appearance, as Is always the case In these symbol Ic v Is Ions there was somewhere (how shall I put It?) the hotels adm In Istrat Ive off Ice and a woman who seemed to be the manager, who had all the keys and who knew where everyone was stay Ing. So the daughter went to th Is person and asked her, Could you show me the way to my room?But of course! Eas Ily! Everyone around the manager looked at her as If to say, How can you say that? However, she got up, and w Ith author Ity asked for a key the key to the daughters roomsay Ing, I shall take you there. And off she went along all k Inds of paths, but all so compl Icated, so b Izarre! The daughter was follow Ing along beh Ind her very attent Ively, you see, so as not to lose s Ight of her. But just as they should have come to the place where the daughters room was supposed to be, suddenly the manageress (let us call her the manageress), both the manageress and her key van Ished! And the sense of th Is van Ish Ing was so acute that at the same t Ime, everyth Ing van Ished!
So to help you understand th Is en Igma, let me tell you that the mother Is phys Ical Nature as she Is, and the daughter Is the new creat Ion. The manageress Is the worlds organ Iz Ing mental consc Iousness as Nature has developed It thus far, that Is, the most advanced organ Iz Ing sense to have man Ifested In the present state of mater Ial Nature. Th Is Is the key to the v Is Ion.
Naturally, when I awoke, I Immed Iately knew what could resolve th Is problem wh Ich appeared so absolutely Insoluble. The van Ish Ing of the manageress and her key was an obv Ious s Ign that she was altogether Incapable of lead Ing what could be called the creat Ive consc Iousness of the new world to Its true place.
I knew th Is, but I d Id not have a v Is Ion of the solut Ion, wh Ich means It has yet to man Ifest; th Is th Ing had not yet man Ifested In the bu Ild Ing, th Is fantast Ic construct Ion, although It Is the very mode of consc Iousness wh Ich could transform th Is Incoherent creat Ion Into someth Ing real, truly conce Ived, w Illed and mater Ial Ized, w Ith a center In Its proper place, a recogn Ized place, and w Ith a REAL effect Ive power.
(s Ilence)
The symbol Ism Is qu Ite clear In that all the poss Ib Il It Ies are there, all the act Iv It Ies are there, but In d Isorder and confus Ion. They are ne Ither coord Inated nor central Ized nor un If Ied around the central and un Ique truth and consc Iousness and w Ill. So th Is br Ings us back prec Isely to th Is quest Ion of a collect Ive yoga and of a collect Iv Ity capable of real Iz Ing It. What should th Is collect Iv Ity be?
It Is certa Inly not an arb Itrary construct Ion of the type bu Ilt by men, where everyth Ing Is put pell-mell, w Ithout any order, w Ithout real Ity, and wh Ich Is held together by only Illusory t Ies. Here, these t Ies were symbol Ized by the hotels walls, wh Ile actually In ord Inary human construct Ions ( If we take a rel Ig Ious commun Ity, for example), they are symbol Ized by the bu Ild Ing of a monastery, an Ident Ity of cloth Ing, an Ident Ity of act Iv It Ies, an Ident Ity even of movementor to put It more prec Isely: everyone wears the same un Iform, everyone gets up at the same t Ime, everyone eats the same th Ing, everyone says h Is prayers together, etc.; there Is an overall Ident Ity. But naturally, on the Ins Ide there rema Ins the chaos of many d Isparate consc Iousnesses, each one follow Ing Its own mode, for th Is k Ind of group Ident If Icat Ion, wh Ich extends r Ight up to an Ident Ity of bel Iefs and dogma, Is absolutely Illusory.
Yet It Is one of the most common types of human collect Iv Ityto group together, band together, un Ite around a common Ideal, a common act Ion, a common real Izat Ion but In an absolutely art If Ic Ial way. In contrast to th Is, Sr I Aurob Indo tells us that a true commun Itywhat he terms a gnost Ic or supramental commun Itycan be based only upon the INNER REAL IZAT ION of each one of Its members, each real Iz Ing h Is real, concrete oneness and Ident Ity w Ith all the other members of the commun Ity; that Is, each one should not feel h Imself a member connected to all the others In an arb Itrary way, but that all are one w Ith In h Imself. For each one, the others should be as much h Imself as h Is own bodynot In a mental and art If Ic Ial way, but through a fact of consc Iousness, by an Inner real Izat Ion.
(s Ilence)
Th Is means that before hop Ing to real Ize such a gnost Ic collect Iv Ity, each one must f Irst of all become (or at least start to become) a gnost Ic be Ing. It Is obv Ious that the Ind Iv Idual work must take the lead and the collect Ive work follow; but the fact rema Ins that spontaneously, w Ithout any arb Itrary Intervent Ion of w Ill the Ind Iv Idual progress IS restra Ined or CHECKED, as It were, by the collect Ive state. Between the collect Iv Ity and the Ind Iv Idual, there ex Ists an Interdependence from wh Ich one cannot be totally free, even If one tr Ies. And even he who m Ight try, In h Is yoga, to free h Imself totally from the human and terrestr Ial state of consc Iousness, would be at least subconsc Iously bound by the state of the whole, wh Ich Impedes and PULLS BACKWARDS. One can attempt to go much faster, one can attempt to let all the we Ight of attachments and respons Ib Il It Ies fall off, but In sp Ite of everyth Ing, the real Izat Ion of even the most advanced or the leader In the march of evolut Ion Is dependent upon the real Izat Ion of the whole, dependent upon the state In wh Ich the terrestr Ial collect Iv Ity happens to be. And th Is PULLS backwards to such an extent that somet Imes one has to wa It centur Ies for the earth to be ready before be Ing able to real Ize what Is to be real Ized.
Th Is Is why Sr I Aurob Indo has also wr Itten somewhere else that a double movement Is necessary: the effort for Ind Iv Idual progress and real Izat Ion must be comb Ined w Ith the effort of try Ing to upl Ift the whole so as to enable It to make a progress Ind Ispensable for the greater progress of the Ind Iv Idual: a mass progress, If you w Ill, that allows the Ind Iv Idual to take a further step forward.
And now you understand why I had thought It would be useful to have a few med Itat Ions In common, to work at creat Ing a common atmosphere a b It more organ Ized than my b Ig hotel of last n Ight!
So, the best way to use these med Itat Ions (and they are go Ing to Increase, s Ince we are now also go Ing to replace the d Istr Ibut Ions w Ith short med Itat Ions) Is to go deep w Ith In yourselves, as far as you can, and f Ind the place where you can feel, perce Ive and perhaps even create an atmosphere of oneness where In a force of order and organ Izat Ion can put each element In Its true place, and out of the chaos ex Ist Ing at th Is hour, make a new, harmon Ious world surge forth.
The Supramental Man Ifestat Ion, (Cent. Ed. XV I, pp. 33-36.)
0 1957-07-18, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
I have just rece Ived a letter from my fr Iends In charge of the French Archaeolog Ical Exped It Ion to Afghan Istan. They need someone to ass Ist them on the Ir next f Ield excavat Ions (August 15 December 15) and have offered to take me If I w Ish to jo In them.
If I must have some new exper Ience outs Ide, th Is one has the advantage of be Ing short-termed and not far away from Ind Ia, and It Is also In an Interest Ing m Il Ieu. The only d Isadvantage Is that I would have to pay for the tr Ip as far as Kabul. But I dont want to do anyth Ing that d Ispleases you or of wh Ich you do not really approve. In the event you m Ight feel th Is to be a worthwh Ile exper Ience, I would have to leave by the beg Inn Ing of August.
I place th Is In your hands, s Incerely.
Your ch Ild,
0 1957-09-27, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
(A ch Ild's quest Ion concern Ing a v Is Ion In wh Ich Mother had appeared to her In a lum Inous body)
Why have you come as we are?
--
Had I not come as you are, I would never have been able to be close to you and tell you:
Become what I am.
***
0 1957-10-08, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
I come to ask your perm Iss Ion to leave Ind Ia. For more than a year now, I have been f Ight Ing not to leave, but th Is seems to be the wrong strategy.
There Is no quest Ion of my abandon Ing the path and I rema In conv Inced that the only goal In l Ife Is sp Ir Itual. But I need th Ings to help me along the way: I am not yet r Ipe enough to depend upon Inner strength alone. And when I speak of the forest or a boat, It Is not only for the sake of adventure or the feel Ing of space, but also because they mean a d Isc Ipl Ine. Outer constra Ints and d Iff Icult Ies help me, they force me to rema In concentrated around that wh Ich Is best In me. In a sense, l Ife here Is too easy. Yet It Is also too hard, for one must depend on ones own d Isc Ipl Ine I do not yet have that strength, I need to be helped by outer c Ircumstances. The very d Iff Iculty of l Ife In the outs Ide world helps me to be d Isc Ipl Ined, for It forces me to concentrate all my v Ital strength In effort. Here, th Is v Ital part Is unemployed, so It acts fool Ishly, It stra Ins at the leash.
I doubt that a new exper Ience outs Ide can really resolve th Ings, but I bel Ieve It m Ight help me make It to the next stage and consol Idate my Inner l Ife. And If you w Ish, I would return In a year or two.
I shall soon have completed the rev Is Ion1 of The L Ife D Iv Ine and The Human Cycle, so I bel Ieve I shall have done the best I could, at present, to serve you. October 30th Is my b Irthday. Could I leave Immed Iately thereafter?
It Is not because I am unhappy w Ith the Ashram that I want to leave, but because I am unhappy w Ith myself and because I want to master myself through other means.
I g Ive you so l Ittle love, but I have tr Ied my best, and my departure Is not a betrayal.
Your ch Ild,
--
Th Is Is not an answer, but a comment.
There Is a joy to wh Ich you st Ill seem completely closed: It Is the joy of SERV ING.
In truth, the only th Ing In the world that Interests you, d Irectly or Ind Irectly, Is YOURSELF. That Is why you feel Impr Isoned w Ith In such narrow, st Ifl Ing l Im Its.
S Igned: Mother
0 1957-10-17, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
There are all k Inds of freedommental freedom, v Ital freedom, sp Ir Itual freedomwh Ich are the fru Its of success Ive master Ies. But a completely new freedom has become poss Ible w Ith the Supramental Man Ifestat Ion: It Is the freedom of the body.
One of the very f Irst results of the supramental man Ifestat Ion was to g Ive the body a freedom and an autonomy It has never before known. And when I say freedom, I dont mean some psycholog Ical percept Ion or an Inner state of consc Iousness, but someth Ing else and far better It Is a new phenomenon In the body, In the cells of the body. For the f Irst t Ime, the cells themselves have felt that they are free, that they have the power to dec Ide. When the new v Ibrat Ions came and comb Ined w Ith the old ones, I felt It at once and It showed me that a new world was really tak Ing b Irth.
In Its normal state, the body always feels that It Is not Its own master: Illnesses Invade It w Ithout Its really be Ing able to res Ist thema thousand factors Impose themselves or exert pressure upon It. Its sole power Is the power to defend Itself, to react. Once the Illness has got In, It can f Ight and overcome Iteven modern med Ic Ine has acknowledged that the body Is cured only when It dec Ides to get cured; It Is not the drugs per se that heal, for If the a Ilment Is temporar Ily suppressed by a drug w Ithout the bodys w Ill, It grows up aga In elsewhere In some other form unt Il the body Itself has dec Ided to be cured. But th Is Impl Ies only a defens Ive power, the power to react aga Inst an Invad Ing enemy It Is not true freedom.
But w Ith the supramental man Ifestat Ion, someth Ing new has taken place In the body: It feels It Is Its own master, autonomous, w Ith Its two feet sol Idly on the ground, as It were. Th Is g Ives a phys Ical Impress Ion of the whole be Ing suddenly draw Ing Itself up, w Ith Its head l Ifted h Igh I am my own master.
We l Ive perenn Ially w Ith a burden on our shoulders, someth Ing that bows our heads down, and we feel pulled, led by all k Inds of external forces, we dont know by whom or what, nor where toth Is Is what men call Fate, Dest Iny. When you do yoga, one of the f Irst exper Iences the exper Ience of the kundal In I, as It Is called here In Ind Ia Is prec Isely one In wh Ich the consc Iousness r Ises, breaks through th Is hard l Id, here, at the crown of the head, and at last you emerge Into the L Ight. Then you see, you know, you dec Ide and you real Ized Iff Icult Ies may st Ill rema In, but truly speak Ing one Is above them. Well, as a result of the supramental man Ifestat Ion, It Is TH IS exper Ience that came Into the body. The body stra Ightened Its head up and felt Its freedom, Its Independence.
Dur Ing the flu ep Idem Ic, for example, I spent every day In the m Idst of people who were germ carr Iers. And one day, I clearly felt that the body had dec Ided not to catch th Is flu. It asserted Its autonomy. You see, It was not a quest Ion of the h Igher W Ill dec Id Ing, no. It d Idnt take place In the h Ighest consc Iousness: the body Itself dec Ided. When you are way above In your consc Iousness, you see th Ings, you know th Ings; but In actual fact, once you descend aga In Into matter, It Is l Ike water runn Ing through sand. In th Is respect, th Ings have changed, the body has a D IRECT power, Independent of any outer Intervent Ion. Even though It Is barely v Is Ible, I cons Ider th Is to be a very Important result.
And th Is new v Ibrat Ion In the body has allowed me to understand the mechan Ism of the transformat Ion. It Is not someth Ing that comes from a h Igher W Ill, not a h Igher consc Iousness that Imposes Itself upon the body: It Is the body Itself awaken Ing In Its cells, a freedom of the cells themselves, an absolutely new v Ibrat Ion that sets d Isorders r Ighteven d Isorders that ex Isted pr Ior to the supramental man Ifestat Ion.
Naturally, all th Is Is a gradual process, but I am hopeful that l Ittle by l Ittle th Is new consc Iousness w Ill grow, ga In ground and v Ictor Iously res Ist the old forces of destruct Ion and ann Ih Ilat Ion, and th Is Fatal Ity we bel Ieved to be so Inexorable.
***
0 1957-10-18, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Th Is even Ing, you spoke of the poss Ib Il Ity of shorten Ing the path of real Izat Ion to a few months, days or hours. And yesterday, when you talked to me about the freedom of the body, you spoke of the exper Ience of the Kundal In I, of th Is break Ing of the l Id that makes you emerge once and for all, above d Iff Icult Ies, Into the l Ight.
I need a pract Ical method correspond Ing to my present poss Ib Il It Ies and to results of wh Ich I am presently capable. I feel that my efforts are d Ispersed by concentrat Ing somet Imes here, somet Imes therea feel Ing of not know Ing exactly what to do to break through and get out of all th Is. Would you po Int out some part Icular concentrat Ion to wh Ich I could adhere, a part Icular method that I would st Ick to?
I am well aware that a supple att Itude Is recommended In the Yoga, yet for the t Ime be Ing, It seems to me that one well-def Ined method would help me hold on1th Is pract Ical aspect would help me. I w Ill do It method Ically, obst Inately, unt Il It cracks for good.
Your ch Ild,
0 1957-11-12, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
The Integral yoga Is made up of an un Interrupted ser Ies of tests that you must pass through w Ithout any advance not Ice, thereby forc Ing you to be always v Ig Ilant and attent Ive.
Three groups of exam Iners conduct these tests. Apparently they have noth Ing In common and the Ir methods are so d Ifferent, at t Imes even so seem Ingly contrad Ictory, that they do not appear to work towards the same goal, and yet they complete one another, they work together for a common a Im and each Is Ind Ispensable for the Integral result.
These three categor Ies of tests are: those conducted by the forces of Nature, those conducted by the sp Ir Itual and d Iv Ine forces, and those conducted by the host Ile forces. Th Is latter category Is the most decept Ive In Its appearance, and a constant state of v Ig Ilance, s Incer Ity and hum Il Ity Is requ Ired so as not to be caught by surpr Ise or unprepared.
The most commonplace c Ircumstances, people, the everyday events of l Ife, the most seem Ingly Ins Ign If Icant th Ings, all belong to one or another of these three categor Ies of exam Iners. In th Is cons Iderably complex organ Izat Ion of tests, those events generally cons Idered the most Important In l Ife are really the eas Iest of all exam Inat Ions to pass, for they f Ind you prepared and on your guard. One stumbles more eas Ily over the l Ittle pebbles on the path, for they attract no attent Ion.
The qual It Ies more part Icularly requ Ired for the tests of phys Ical Nature are endurance and plast Ic Ity, cheerfulness and fearlessness.
For the sp Ir Itual tests: asp Irat Ion, conf Idence, Ideal Ism, enthus Iasm and generos Ity In self-g Iv Ing.
For the tests stemm Ing from the host Ile forces: v Ig Ilance, s Incer Ity and hum Il Ity.
But do not Imag Ine that those who are tested are on one s Ide and those who test on the other; depend Ing upon the t Imes and c Ircumstances, we are both exam Iners and exam Ined, and It may even happen that s Imultaneously, at the very same moment, we are the exam Ined and the exam Iner. And whatever benef Its we der Ive depend, In both qual Ity and quant Ity, upon the Intens Ity of our asp Irat Ion and the alertness of our consc Iousness.
To conclude, a f Inal recommendat Ion: never pose as an exam Iner. For wh Ile It Is good to remember constantly that perhaps one Is pass Ing a very Important test, It Is, on the other hand, extremely dangerous to Imag Ine oneself entrusted w Ith apply Ing tests to others, for that Is an open door to the most absurd and harmful van It Ies. It Is not an Ignorant human w Ill that dec Ides these th Ings but the Supreme W Isdom.
***
Each t Ime a progress Is to be made, there Is a test to pass.
***
0 1957-11-13, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Take upon yourself always all the necess It Ies of progress and d Issolve them In the ecstasy of Un Ity. Then you w Ill be d Iv Ine.
***
0 1957-12-13, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Sweet Mother, th Is Is what Is r Is Ing from my soul: I feel In me someth Ing unemployed, someth Ing seek Ing to express Itself In l Ife. I want to be l Ike a kn Ight, your kn Ight, and go off In search of a treasure that I could br Ing back to you. The world has lost all sense of the wonderful, all beauty of Adventure, th Is quest known to the kn Ights of the M Iddle Ages. It Is th Is that calls so relentlessly w Ith In me, th Is need for a quest In the world and for a beaut Iful Adventure wh Ich at the same t Ime would be an adventure of the soul. How I w Ish that the two th Ings, Inner and outer, be JO INED, that the joy of act Ion, of the open road and the quest help the souls blossom Ing, that they be l Ike a prayer of the soul expressed In l Ife. The kn Ights of the M Iddle Ages knew th Is. Perhaps It Is all ch Ild Ish and absurd In the m Idst of th Is 20th century, but th Is Is what I feel, th Is that Is summon Ing me to leavenot anyth Ing base, not anyth Ing med Iocre, only a need for someth Ing In me to be fulf Illed. If only I could br Ing you back a beaut Iful treasure!
After that, perhaps I would be r Iper to accept the everyday l Ife of the Ashram, and know how to g Ive myself better.
Mother, I feel all th Is very strongly; I need your help to follow the true path of my be Ing and fulf Ill th Is new outer cycle, should you see that It has to be fulf Illed. I feel so strongly that someth Ing rema Ins for me to DO. Gu Ide me, Sweet Mother.
Your ch Ild,
0 1957-12-21, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
The other day you told me that In order to know th Ings, you plug Into the subtle plane, and there It all unrolls as on a tape recorder. How does th Is work, exactly?
There Is a whole gradat Ion of planes of consc Iousness, from the phys Ical consc Iousness to my rad Iant consc Iousness at the very h Ighest level, that wh Ich knows the W Ill of the Supreme. I keep all these planes of consc Iousness In front of me, work Ing s Imultaneously, coord Inatedly, and I am act Ing on each plane, gather Ing the Informat Ion proper to each plane, so as to have the Integral truth of th Ings. Thus, when I have a dec Is Ion to make In regard to one of you, I plug Into you d Irectly from that level of the supreme consc Iousness wh Ich sees the deep truth of your be Ing. But at the same t Ime, my dec Is Ion Is shaped, as It were, by the Informat Ion g Iven to me by the other planes of consc Iousness and part Icularly by the phys Ical consc Iousness, wh Ich acts as a recorder.
Th Is phys Ical consc Iousness records all It sees, all your react Ions, your thoughts, all the factsw Ithout preference, w Ithout prejud Ice, w Ithout personal w Ill. Noth Ing escapes It. Its work Is almost mechan Ical. Therefore I know what to tell or to ask you accord Ing to the Integral truth of your be Ing and Its present poss Ib Il It Ies. Ord Inar Ily, In the normal man, the phys Ical consc Iousness does not see th Ings as they are, for three reasons: because of Ignorance, because of preference, and because of an ego Ist Ic w Ill. You color what you see, el Im Inate what d Ispleases you. In short, you see only what you des Ire to see.
Now, I recently had a very str Ik Ing exper Ience: a d Iscrepancy occurred between my phys Ical consc Iousness and the consc Iousness of the world. In some Instances dec Is Ions made In the L Ight and the Truth produced unexpected results, upheavals In the consc Iousness of others that were ne Ither foreseen nor des Ired, and I d Id not understand. No matter how hard I tr Ied, I could not understand and I emphas Ize th Is word understand. At last, I had to leave my h Ighest consc Iousness and pull myself down Into the phys Ical consc Iousness to f Ind out what was happen Ing. And there, In my head, I saw what appeared to be a l Ittle cell burst Ing, and suddenly I understood: the record Ing had been defect Ive. The phys Ical consc Iousness had neglected to reg Ister certa In of your lower react Ions. It could not have been through preference or through personal w Ill (these th Ings were el Im Inated from my consc Iousness long, long ago). But I saw that th Is most mater Ial consc Iousness was already completely permeated w Ith the transform Ing supramental truth, and It could no longer follow the rhythm of normal l Ife. It was much more attuned to the true consc Iousness than to the world! I couldnt poss Ibly blame It for lagg Ing beh Ind; on the contrary, It was In front, too far ahead! There was a d Iscrepancy between the rhythm of the transformat Ion of my be Ing and the worlds own rhythm. The supramental act Ion on the world Is slow, It does not act d Irectly It acts by Inf Iltrat Ion, by travers Ing the success Ive layers, and the results are slow to come about. So I had to pull myself v Iolently down In order to wa It for the others.
One must at t Imes know how not to know.
Th Is exper Ience showed me once more the necess Ity to be perfectly humble before the Lord. It Is not enough merely to r Ise to the he Ights, to the ethereal planes of consc Iousness: these planes have also to descend Into matter and Illum Inate It. Otherw Ise, noth Ing Is really done. One must have the pat Ience to establ Ish the commun Icat Ion between the h Igh and the low. I am l Ike a tempest, a hurr Icane If I l Istened to myself, I would tear Into the future, and everyth Ing would go fly Ing! But then, there would no longer be any commun Icat Ion w Ith the rest.
One must have the pat Ience to wa It.
Hum Il Ity, a perfect hum Il Ity, Is the cond It Ion for all real Izat Ion. The m Ind Is so cocksure. It th Inks It knows everyth Ing, understands everyth Ing. And If ever It acts through Ideal Ism to serve a cause that appears noble to It, It becomes even more arrogant more Intrans Igent, and It Is almost Imposs Ible to make It see that there m Ight be someth Ing st Ill h Igher beyond Its noble concept Ions and Its great altru Ist Ic or other Ideals. Hum Il Ity Is the only remedy. I am not speak Ing of hum Il Ity as conce Ived by certa In rel Ig Ions, w Ith th Is God that bel Ittles h Is creatures and only l Ikes to see them down on the Ir knees. When I was a ch Ild, th Is k Ind of hum Il Ity revolted me, and I refused to bel Ieve In a God that wants to bel Ittle h Is creatures. I dont mean that k Ind of hum Il Ity, but rather the recogn It Ion that one does not know, that one knows noth Ing, and that there may be someth Ing beyond what presently appears to us as the truest, the most noble or d Is Interested. True hum Il Ity cons Ists In constantly referr Ing oneself to the Lord, In plac Ing all before H Im. When I rece Ive a blow (and there are qu Ite a few of them In my sadhana), my Immed Iate, spontaneous react Ion, l Ike a spr Ing, Is to throw myself before H Im and to say, Thou, Lord. W Ithout th Is hum Il Ity, I would never have been able to real Ize anyth Ing. And I say I only to make myself understood, but In fact I means the Lord through th Is body, h Is Instrument. When you beg In l Iv Ing TH IS k Ind of hum Il Ity, It means you are draw Ing nearer to the real Izat Ion. It Is the cond It Ion, the start Ing po Int.
***
(Note wr Itten by Mother In connect Ion w Ith the conversat Ion of December 21, 1957)
At the very top, a constant v Is Ion of the Supremes w Ill.
In the world, an overall v Is Ion of what Is to be done.
Ind Iv Idually, at each moment and In each c Ircumstance, the v Is Ion of the truth of the moment, of the c Ircumstance, of the Ind Iv Idual.
In the external consc Iousness, the Impersonal and mechan Ical record Ing of what Is happen Ing and of what are the people and th Ings that compr Ise both the f Ield of act Ion and the l Im Itat Ions Imposed upon th Is act Ion. The record Ing Is Innately automat Ic and mechan Ical, w Ithout any k Ind of evaluat Ion, as object Ive as poss Ible.
***
0 1958-01-01, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
and there Is no l Im It
to the splendor of th Is collaborat Ion.
--
There Is noth Ing to expla In. It Is an exper Ience, someth Ing that took place, and when It took place, I noted It down; and It so happens that It occurred just as I remembered that I had to wr Ite someth Ing for the new year (wh Ich at that t Ime was the follow Ing year, that Is, the year beg Inn Ing today). When I remembered that I had to wr Ite someth Ingnot because of that, but s Imultaneouslyth Is exper Ience came, and when I noted It down, I real Ized that It was the message for th Is year!
(Mother reads the notat Ion of her exper Ience)
Dur Ing one of our classes (October 30, 1957), I spoke of the l Im Itless abundance of Nature, th Is t Ireless Creatr Ice who takes the mult Itude of forms, m Ixes them together, separates them aga In and reforms them, aga In undoes them, aga In destroys them, In order to move on to ever new comb Inat Ions. As I sa Id, It Is a huge cauldron. Th Ings get churned up In It and somehow someth Ing emerges; If Its defect Ive, It Is thrown back In and someth Ing else Is taken out One form, two forms or a hundred forms make no d Ifference to her, there are thousands upon thousands of formsand one year, a hundred years, a thousand years, m Ill Ions of years, what d Ifference does It make? Etern Ity l Ies before her! She qu Ite obv Iously enjoys herself and Is In no hurry. If you speak to her of press Ing on or of rush Ing through some part of her work or other, her reply Is always the same: But what for? Why? Arent you enjoy Ing It?
The even Ing I told you these th Ings, I totally Ident If Ied myself w Ith Nature and I entered Into her play. And th Is movement of Ident If Icat Ion brought forth a response, a new k Ind of Int Imacy between Nature and myself, a long movement of draw Ing ever nearer wh Ich culm Inated In an exper Ience that came on November 8.
Nature suddenly understood. She understood that th Is newborn Consc Iousness does not seek to reject her, but wants to embrace her ent Irely. She understood that th Is new sp Ir Itual Ity does not stand apart from l Ife, does not t Imorously reco Il before the awesome r Ichness of her movement, but on the contrary wants to Integrate all her facets. She understood that the supramental consc Iousness Is not there to d Im In Ish her but to make her complete.
Then, from the supreme Real Ity came th Is command: Awaken, O Nature, to the joy of collaborat Ion. And suddenly, all Nature rushed forth In an Immense bound Ing of joy, say Ing, I accept! I w Ill collaborate! And at the same t Ime, there came a calm, an absolute tranqu Ill Ity, to allow th Is receptacle, th Is body, to rece Ive and conta In w Ithout break Ing and w Ithout los Ing anyth Ing of the Joy of Nature that was rush Ing forth In a movement of grateful recogn It Ion l Ike an overwhelm Ing flood. She accepted, she saww Ith all etern Ity before her that th Is supramental consc Iousness would fulf Ill her more perfectly and Impart a st Ill greater force to her movement and more r Ichness, more poss Ib Il It Ies to her play.
And suddenly, as If resound Ing from every corner of the earth, I heard these great notes wh Ich are somet Imes heard In the subtle phys Icalra ther l Ike those of Beethovens Concerto In Dwh Ich come at moments of great progress, as though f Ifty orchestras were burst Ing forth all at once w Ithout a s Ingle d Iscordant note, to sound the joy of th Is new commun Ion of Nature and Sp Ir It, the meet Ing of old fr Iends who, after a long separat Ion, f Ind each other once more.
Then came these words: O Nature, Mater Ial Mother, thou hast sa Id that thou w Ilt collaborate, and there Is no l Im It to the splendor of th Is collaborat Ion.
And the rad Iant fel Ic Ity of th Is splendor was perce Ived In a perfect peace.
Such was the b Irth of th Is years message.
--
I have one th Ing to add: we must not m Is Interpret the mean Ing of th Is exper Ience and Imag Ine that henceforth everyth Ing w Ill take place w Ithout d Iff Icult Ies or always In accordance w Ith our personal des Ires. It Is not at th Is level. It does not mean that when we do not want It to ra In, It w Ill not ra In! Or when we want some event to take place In the world, It w Ill Immed Iately take place, or that all d Iff Icult Ies w Ill be abol Ished and everyth Ing w Ill be l Ike a fa Iry tale. It Is not l Ike that. It Is someth Ing more profound. Nature has accepted Into her play of forces the newly man Ifested Force and has Included It In her movements. But as always, the movements of Nature take place on a scale Inf In Itely surpass Ing the human scale and Inv Is Ible to the ord Inary human consc Iousness. It Is more of an Inner, psycholog Ical poss Ib Il Ity that has been born In the world than a spectacular change In earthly events.
I ment Ion th Is because you m Ight be tempted to bel Ieve that fa Iry tales are go Ing to be real Ized upon earth. The t Ime has not yet come.
(s Ilence)
--
The m Iracles that are tak Ing place are not what could be called l Iterary m Iracles, for they do not take place as In storybooks. They are v Is Ible only to a very profound v Is Ion of th Ingsvery profound, very comprehens Ive, very vast.
(s Ilence)
You f Irst have to be able to follow the methods and the means of the Grace to recogn Ize Its act Ion. You f Irst have to be able to rema In unbl Inded by appearances to see the deeper truth of th Ings.
***
0 1958-01-22, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
It Is an error to confuse Joy and Fel Ic Ity. They are two very d Ifferent th Ings. Not only are the Ir v Ibrat Ions d Ifferent, but the Ir colors are d Ifferent. The color of Fel Ic Ity Is blue, a clear s Ilvery blue (the blue of the Ashram flag), very lum Inous and transparent. And It has a pass Ive and fresh qual Ity that refreshes and rejuvenates.
Whereas Joy Is a golden rose color, a pale gold w Ith a t Inge of red, a very pale red. It Is act Ive, warm, fort Ify Ing, Intens Ify Ing. The f Irst Is sweetness, the second Is tenderness.
And Bl Isswhat I spontaneously call Bl Iss Is the synthes Is of both. It Is found In the very he Ights of the supramental consc Iousness, In a d Iamond l Ight, an uncolored, sparkl Ing l Ight conta In Ing all the colors. Joy and Fel Ic Ity form two s Ides of a tr Iangle that has Bl Iss at Its apex.
Bl Iss conta Ins coolness and warmth, pass Iv Ity and act Iv Ity, repose and act Ion, sweetness and tenderness, all at the same t Ime. D Iv Ine tenderness Is someth Ing very d Ifferent from sweetness It Is a paroxysm of joy, a v Ibrat Ion so strong that the body feels It w Ill burst, so It Is forced to w Iden.
The d Iamond l Ight of Bl Iss has the power to melt all host Ile forces. Noth Ing can res Ist It. No consc Iousness, no be Ing, no host Ile w Ill can draw near It w Ithout Immed Iately be Ing d Issolved, for It Is the D Iv Ine l Ight In Its pure creat Ive power.
***
0 1958-01-25, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Note wr Itten by Mother In Engl Ish (w Ith a touch of Irony so rem In Iscent of Sr I Aurob Indo).
(Concern Ing Pak Istan)
It Is qu Ite ev Ident that for some reason or otheror perhaps for no reason at all the Supreme has changed H Is m Ind about It.
***
0 1958-02-03a, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
What you told me today at noon has left me stunned. I had dec Ided to have my own way, but now I pray to be true.
I would l Ike to tell you that I am stay Ing, very s Imply, for someth Ing In me wants th Is, but I am afra Id to make a dec Is Ion that I may not be able to keep. A force other than m Ine Is needed. In short, you have to do the w Ill Ing for me, to utter a word that would help me understand truly that I must stay here. Grant me the grace of help Ing and enl Ighten Ing me. I would l Ike to dec Ide w Ithout preference, In obed Ience to the sole Truth and In accordance w Ith my real poss Ib Il It Ies.
I have rece Ived a long letter from Swam I,1 who In essence says that I should be able to real Ize what I have to real Ize r Ight here w Ith you, but he does not refuse to take me w Ith h Im should I pers Ist In my Intent Ion.
Mother, I am plac Ing all th Is In your hands, s Incerely.
I am your ch Ild.
S Igned: Satprem
A Sannyas I, or wander Ing monk, whom Satprem would jo In a few weeks later In Ceylon, on February 27, and who would In It Iate h Im as a Sannyas I. Unfortunately, almost all the correspondence from th Is per Iod has been lost.
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0 1958-02-03b - The Supramental Ship, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Between the be Ings of the supramental world and men, there ex Ists approx Imately the same gap as between men and an Imals. Somet Ime ago, I had the exper Ience of Ident If Icat Ion w Ith an Imal l Ife, and It Is a fact that an Imals do not understand us; the Ir consc Iousness Is so const Ituted that we elude them almost ent Irely. And yet I have known domest Ic an Imalscats and dogs, but espec Ially catswho made an almost yog Ic effort of consc Iousness to understand us. But generally, when they watch us l Iv Ing and act Ing, they dont understand, they dont SEE US as we are and they suffer because of us. We are a constant en Igma to them Only a very t Iny part of the Ir consc Iousness Is l Inked to us. And It Is the same for us when we try to look at the supramental world. Only when the l Ink of consc Iousness has been bu Ilt shall we see Itand even then, only that part of our be Ing wh Ich has undergone the transformat Ion w Ill be capable of see Ing It as It Isotherw Ise the two worlds would rema In as separate as the an Imal world and the human world.
The exper Ience I had on February 3 proves th Is. Before, I had had an Ind Iv Idual, subject Ive contact w Ith the supramental world, whereas on February 3, I went stroll Ing there In a concrete wayas concretely as I used to go stroll Ing In Par Is In t Imes past In a world that EX ISTS IN ITSELF, beyond all subject Iv Ity.
It Is l Ike a br Idge be Ing bu Ilt between the two worlds.
Th Is Is the exper Ience as I d Ictated It Immed Iately thereafter:
(s Ilence)
The supramental world ex Ists In a permanent way, and I am there permanently In a supramental body. I had proof of th Is today when my earthly consc Iousness went there and consc Iously rema Ined there between two and three oclock In the afternoon: I now know that for the two worlds to jo In In a constant and consc Ious relat Ionsh Ip what Is m Iss Ing Is an Intermed Iate zone between the ex Ist Ing phys Ical world and the supramental world as It ex Ists. Th Is zone has yet to be bu Ilt, both In the Ind Iv Idual consc Iousness and In the object Ive world, and It Is be Ing bu Ilt. When formerly I used to speak of the new world that Is be Ing created, I was speak Ing of th Is Intermed Iate zone. And s Im Ilarly, when I am on th Is s Ide that Is, In the realm of the phys Ical consc Iousness and I see the supramental power, the supramental l Ight and substance constantly permeat Ing matter, I am see Ing and part Ic Ipat Ing In the construct Ion of th Is zone.
I found myself upon an Immense sh Ip, wh Ich Is the symbol Ic representat Ion of the place where th Is work Is be Ing carr Ied out. Th Is sh Ip, as b Ig as a c Ity, Is thoroughly organ Ized, and It had certa Inly already been funct Ion Ing for qu Ite some t Ime, for Its organ Izat Ion was fully developed. It Is the place where people dest Ined for the supramental l Ife are be Ing tra Ined. These people (or at least a part of the Ir be Ing) had already undergone a supramental transformat Ion because the sh Ip Itself and all that was aboard was ne Ither mater Ial nor subtle-phys Ical, ne Ither v Ital nor mental: It was a supramental substance. Th Is substance Itself was of the most mater Ial supramental, the supramental substance nearest the phys Ical world, the f Irst to man Ifest. The l Ight was a blend of red and gold, form Ing a un Iform substance of lum Inous orange. Everyth Ing was l Ike that the l Ight was l Ike that, the people were l Ike thateveryth Ing had th Is color, In vary Ing shades, however, wh Ich enabled th Ings to be d Ist Ingu Ished from one another. The overall Impress Ion was of a shadowless world: there were shades, but no shadows. The atmosphere was full of joy, calm, order; everyth Ing worked smoothly and s Ilently. At the same t Ime, I could see all the deta Ils of the educat Ion, the tra In Ing In all doma Ins by wh Ich the people on board were be Ing prepared.
Th Is Immense sh Ip had just arr Ived at the shore of the supramental world, and a f Irst batch of people dest Ined to become the future Inhab Itants of the supramental world were about to d Isembark. Everyth Ing was arranged for th Is f Irst land Ing. A certa In number of very tall be Ings were posted on the wharf. They were not human be Ings and never before had they been men. Nor were they permanent Inhab Itants of the supramental world. They had been delegated from above and posted there to control and superv Ise the land Ing. I was In charge of all th Is s Ince the beg Inn Ing and throughout. I myself had prepared all the groups. I was stand Ing on the br Idge of the sh Ip, call Ing the groups forward one by one and hav Ing them d Isembark on the shore. The tall be Ings posted there seemed to be rev Iew Ing those who were d Isembark Ing, allow Ing those who were ready to go ashore and send Ing back those who were not and who had to cont Inue the Ir tra In Ing aboard the sh Ip. Wh Ile stand Ing there watch Ing everyone, that part of my consc Iousness com Ing from here became extremely Interested: It wanted to see, to Ident Ify all the people, to see how they had changed and to f Ind out who had been taken Immed Iately as well as those who had to rema In and cont Inue the Ir tra In Ing. After awh Ile, as I was observ Ing, I began to feel pulled backwards and that my body was be Ing awakened by a consc Iousness or a person from here1and In my consc Iousness, I protested: No, no, not yet! Not yet! I want to see whos there! I was watch Ing all th Is and not Ing It w Ith Intense Interest It went on l Ike that unt Il, suddenly, the clock here began str Ik Ing three, wh Ich v Iolently jerked me back. There was the sensat Ion of a sudden fall Into my body. I came back w Ith a shock, but s Ince I had been called back very suddenly, all my memory was st Ill Intact. I rema Ined qu Iet and st Ill unt Il I could br Ing back the whole exper Ience and preserve It.
The nature of objects on th Is sh Ip was not that wh Ich we know upon earth; for example, the clothes were not made of cloth, and th Is th Ing that resembled cloth was not manufactured It was a part of the body, made of the same substance that took on d Ifferent forms. It had a k Ind of plast Ic Ity. When a change had to be made, It was done not by art If Ic Ial and outer means but by an Inner work Ing, by a work Ing of the consc Iousness that gave the substance Its form or appearance. L Ife created Its own forms. There was ONE S INGLE substance In all th Ings; It changed the nature of Its v Ibrat Ion accord Ing to the needs or uses.
Those who were sent back for more tra In Ing were not of a un Iform color; the Ir bod Ies seemed to have patches of a gray Ish opac Ity, a substance resembl Ing the earth substance. They were dull, as though they had not been wholly permeated by the l Ight or wholly transformed. They were not l Ike th Is all over, but In places.
The tall be Ings on the shore were not of the same color, at least they d Id not have th Is orange t Int; they were paler, more transparent. Except for a part of the Ir bod Ies, only the outl Ine of the Ir forms could be seen. They were very tall, they d Id not seem to have a skeletal structure, and they could take on any form accord Ing to the Ir needs. Only from the Ir wa Ists to the Ir feet d Id they have a permanent dens Ity, wh Ich was not felt In the rest of the Ir body. The Ir color was much more pall Id and conta Ined very l Ittle red, It verged rather on gold or even wh Ite. The parts of wh It Ish l Ight were transluc Id; they were not absolutely transparent, but less dense, more subtle than the orange substance.
Just as I was called back, when I was say Ing, Not yet , I had a qu Ick gl Impse of myself, of my form In the supramental world. I was a m Ixture of what these tall be Ings were and the be Ings aboard the sh Ip. The top part of myself, espec Ially my head, was a mere s Ilhouette of a wh It Ish color w Ith an orange fr Inge. The more It approached the feet, the more the color resembled that of the people on the sh Ip, or In other words, orange; the more It went up towards the top, the more transluc Id and wh Ite It was, and the red faded. The head was only a s Ilhouette w Ith a br Ill Iant sun at Its center; from It Issued rays of l Ight wh Ich were the act Ion of the w Ill.
As for the people I saw aboard sh Ip, I recogn Ized them all. Some were here In the Ashram, some came from elsewhere, but I knew them as well. I saw everyone, but as I real Ized that I would not remember everyone when I came back, I dec Ided not to g Ive any names. Bes Ides, It Is unnecessary. Three or four faces were very clearly v Is Ible, and when I saw them, I understood the feel Ing that I have had here, on earth, wh Ile look Ing Into the Ir eyes: there was such an extraord Inary joy On the whole, the people were young; there were very few ch Ildren, and the Ir ages were around fourteen or f Ifteen, but certa Inly not below ten or twelve ( I d Id not stay long enough to see all the deta Ils). There were no very old people, w Ith the except Ion of a few. Most of the people who had gone ashore were of a m Iddle ageaga In, except for a few. Several t Imes before th Is exper Ience, certa In Ind Iv Idual cases had already been exam Ined at a place where people capable of be Ing supramental Ized are exam Ined; I had then had a few surpr Ises wh Ich I had noted I even told some people. But those whom I d Isembarked today I saw very d Ist Inctly. They were of a m Iddle age, ne Ither young ch Ildren nor elderly people, w Ith only a few rare except Ions, and th Is qu Ite corresponded to what I expected. I dec Ided not to say anyth Ing, not to g Ive any names. As I d Id not stay unt Il the end, It would be Imposs Ible for me to draw an exact p Icture, for It was ne Ither absolutely clear nor complete. I do not want to say th Ings to some and not say them to others.
What I can say Is that the cr Iter Ion or the judgment was based EXCLUS IVELY on the substance const Itut Ing the peoplewhe ther they belonged completely to the supramental world or not, whether they were made of th Is very spec Ial substance. The cr Iter Ion adopted was ne Ither moral nor psycholog Ical. It Is l Ikely that the Ir bod Ily substance was the result of an Inner law or an Inner movement wh Ich, at that t Ime, was not In quest Ion. At least It Is qu Ite clear that the values are d Ifferent.
When I came back, along w Ith the memory of the exper Ience, I knew that the supramental world was permanent, that my presence there Is permanent, and that only a m Iss Ing l Ink Is needed to allow the consc Iousness and the substance to connectand It Is th Is l Ink that Is be Ing bu Ilt. At that t Ime, my Impress Ion (an Impress Ion wh Ich rema Ined rather long, almost the whole day) was of an extreme relat Iv Ityno, not exactly that, but an Impress Ion that the relat Ionsh Ip between th Is world and the other completely changes the cr Iter Ion by wh Ich th Ings are to be evaluated or judged. Th Is cr Iter Ion had noth Ing mental about It, and It gave the strange Inner feel Ing that so many th Ings we cons Ider good or bad are not really so. It was very clear that everyth Ing depended upon the capac Ity of th Ings and upon the Ir ab Il Ity to express the supramental world or be In relat Ionsh Ip w Ith It. It was so completely d Ifferent, at t Imes even so oppos Ite to our ord Inary way of look Ing at th Ings! I recall one l Ittle th Ing that we usually cons Ider bad actually how funny It was to see that It Is someth Ing excellent! And other th Ings that we cons Ider Important were really qu Ite un Important there! Whether It was l Ike th Is or l Ike that made no d Ifference. What Is very obv Ious Is that our apprec Iat Ion of what Is d Iv Ine or not d Iv Ine Is Incorrect. I even laughed at certa In th Ings Our usual feel Ing about what Is ant I-d Iv Ine seems art If Ic Ial, based upon someth Ing untrue, unl Iv Ing (bes Ides, what we call l Ife here appeared l Ifeless In compar Ison w Ith that world); In any event, th Is feel Ing should be based upon our relat Ionsh Ip between the two worlds and accord Ing to whether th Ings make th Is relat Ionsh Ip eas Ier or more d Iff Icult. Th Is would thus completely change our evaluat Ion of what br Ings us nearer to the D Iv Ine or what takes us away from H Im. W Ith people, too, I saw that what helps them or prevents them from becom Ing supramental Is very d Ifferent from what our ord Inary moral not Ions Imag Ine. I felt just how r Id Iculous we are.
(Then Mother speaks to the ch Ildren)
There Is a cont Inuat Ion to all th Is, wh Ich Is l Ike the result In my consc Iousness of the exper Ience of February 3, but It seems premature to read It now. It w Ill appear In the Apr Il Issue [of the Bullet In], as a sequel to th Is.
But one th Ing and I w Ish to stress th Is po Int to youwh Ich now seems to me to be the most essent Ial d Ifference between our world and the supramental world (and It Is only after hav Ing gone there consc Iously, w Ith the consc Iousness that ord Inar Ily works here, that th Is d Ifference appeared to me In what m Ight be called Its enorm Ity): everyth Ing here, except for what happens w Ith In and at a very deep level, seemed absolutely art If Ic Ial to me. Not one of the values of ord Inary phys Ical l Ife Is based upon truth. Just as we have to buy cloth, sew It together, then put It on our backs In order to dress ourselves, l Ikew Ise we have to take th Ings from outs Ide and then put them Ins Ide our bod Ies In order to feed ourselves. For everyth Ing, our l Ife Is art If Ic Ial.
A true, s Incere, spontaneous l Ife, as In the supramental world, Is a spr Ing Ing forth of th Ings through the fact of consc Ious w Ill, a power over substance that shapes th Is substance accord Ing to what we dec Ide It should be. And he who has th Is power and th Is knowledge can obta In whatever he wants, whereas he who does not has no art If Ic Ial means of gett Ing what he des Ires.
In ord Inary l Ife, EVERYTH ING Is art If Ic Ial. Depend Ing upon the chance of your b Irth or c Ircumstances, you have a more or less h Igh pos It Ion or a more or less comfortable l Ife, not because It Is the spontaneous, natural and s Incere express Ion of your way of be Ing and of your Inner need, but because the fortu Ity of l Ifes c Ircumstances has placed you In contact w Ith these th Ings. An absolutely worthless man may be In a very h Igh pos It Ion, and a man who m Ight have marvelous capac It Ies of creat Ion and organ Izat Ion may f Ind h Imself to Il Ing In a qu Ite l Im Ited and Infer Ior pos It Ion, whereas he would be a wholly useful Ind Iv Idual If the world were s Incere.
It Is th Is art If Ic Ial Ity, th Is Ins Incer Ity, th Is complete lack of truth that appeared so shock Ing to me that one wonders how, In a world as false as th Is one, we can arr Ive at any truthful evaluat Ion of th Ings.
But Instead of feel Ing gr Ieved, morose, rebell Ious, d Iscontent, I had rather the feel Ing of what I spoke of at the end: of such a r Id Iculous absurd Ity that for several days I was se Ized w Ith an uncontrollable laughter whenever I saw th Ings and people! Such a tremendous laughter, so absolutely Inexpl Icable (except to me), because of the r Id Iculousness of these s Ituat Ions.
When I Inv Ited you on a voyage Into the unknown, a voyage of adventure,2 I d Id not know just how true were my words! And I can prom Ise those who are ready to embark upon th Is adventure that they w Ill make some very aston Ish Ing d Iscover Ies.
Indeed, one of the people near Mother had pulled Her out of the exper Ience.
See Quest Ions and Answers, (July 10, 1957).
0 1958-02-15, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Last n Ight, I had the v Is Ion of what th Is supramental world could become If men were not suff Ic Iently prepared. The confus Ion ex Ist Ing at present upon earth Is noth Ing In compar Ison to what could take place. Imag Ine that every powerful w Ill has the power to transform matter as It l Ikes! If the sense of collect Ive oneness d Id not grow In proport Ion to the development of power, the result Ing confl Ict would be yet more acute and chaot Ic than our mater Ial confl Icts.
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0 1958-02-25, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Some people come to see me In utter despa Ir, In tears, In what they call terr Ible moral suffer Ing; when I see them l Ike that I sl Ightly sh Ift the needle In that part of my consc Iousness conta In Ing all of you, and when they leave, they are completely rel Ieved. It Is just l Ike a compass needle I sl Ightly sh Ift the needle In my consc Iousness, and Its over. Naturally, through hab It, It returns later on. But these are mere soap bubbles.
I too have known suffer Ing, but there was always a part of me that knew how to hold Itself back and rema In aloof.
The only th Ing In the world that st Ill appears Intolerable to me now Is all phys Ical deter Iorat Ion, phys Ical suffer Ing, the ugl Iness the powerlessness to express th Is capac Ity of beauty Inherent In every be Ing. But th Is, too, w Ill be conquered one day. Here, too the power w Ill come one day to sh Ift the needle a l Ittle. Only, one has to cl Imb h Igher In consc Iousness: the deeper Into matter you want to descend, the h Igher must you ascend In consc Iousness.
It w Ill take t Ime. Sr I Aurob Indo was surely r Ight when he spoke of a few centur Ies.
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0 1958-03-07, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
S Ince my departure, I have been feel Ing your Force cont Inually, almost constantly. And I feel an Inf In Ite grat Itude that you are there, and that th Is thread from you to me keeps me anchored to someth Ing In th Is world. S Imply know Ing that you ex Ist, that you are there, that I have a goal, a centerf Ills me w Ith Inf In Ite grat Itude. On a street In Madras, the day after I left, I suddenly had a po Ignant exper Ience: I felt that If that were not In me, I would fall to p Ieces on the s Idewalk, I would crumble, noth Ing would be left, noth Ing. And th Is exper Ience rema Ins. L Ike a l Itany, someth Ing keeps repeat Ing almost Incessantly, I need you, need you, I have only you, you alone In the world. You are all my present, all my future, I have only you Mother, I am l Iv Ing In a state of need, l Ike hunger.
On the way, I stopped at J and Es place. They are l Iv Ing l Ike nat Ive f Ishermen, In lo Incloths, In a coconut grove by the sea. The place Is exceed Ingly beaut Iful, and the sea full of ra Inbow-hued coral. And suddenly, w Ith In twenty-four hours, I real Ized an old dreamor rather, I purged myself of an old and tenac Ious dream: that of l Iv Ing on a Pac If Ic Island as a s Imple f Isherman. And all at once, I saw, In a flash, that th Is k Ind of l Ife totally lacks a center. You float In a nowhere. It plunges you Into some k Ind of h Igher Inert Ia, an Illum Ined Inert Ia, and you lose all true substance.
As for me, I am totally out of my element In th Is new l Ife, as though I were uprooted from myself. I am l Iv Ing In the temple, In the m Idst of pujas,1 w Ith wh Ite ashes on my forehead, barefoot dressed l Ike a H Indu, sleep Ing on cement at n Ight, eat Ing Imposs Ible curr Ies, w Ith some good sunburns to complete the cook Ing. And there I am, cl Ing Ing to you, for If you were not there I would collapse, so absurd would It all be. You are the only real Ityhow many t Imes have I repeated th Is to myself, l Ike a l Itany! Apart from th Is, I am hold Ing up qu Ite well phys Ically. But Ins Ide and outs Ide, noth Ing Is left but you. I need you, thats all. Mother, th Is world Is so horr Ify Ingly empty. I really feel that I would evaporate If you werent there. Well, no doubt I had to go through th Is exper Ience Perhaps I w Ill be able to extract some book from It that w Ill be of use to you. We are l Ike ch Ildren who need a lot of p Ictures In order to understand, and a few good k Icks to real Ize our complete stup Id Ity.
Swam I must soon take to the road aga In, through Ceylon, towards March 20 or 25. So I shall go wander Ing w Ith h Im unt Il May; towards the beg Inn Ing of May, he w Ill return to Ind Ia. I hope to have learned my lesson by then, and to have learned It well. Inwardly, I have understood that there Is only you but Its these problem ch Ildren on the surface who must be made to toe the l Ine once and for all.
Sweet Mother, I am In a hurry to work for you. W Ill you st Ill want me? Mother, I need you, I need you. I would l Ike to ask you an absurd quest Ion: Do you th Ink of me? I have only you, you alone In the world.
Your ch Ild,
--
It Is good, very good In truth, everyth Ing Is tak Ing place as expected, as the best expected. And I am so happy for th Is.
To your quest Ion, I reply: I do not th Ink of you, I feel you; you are w Ith me, I am w Ith you, In the l Ight
Your place has rema Ined vacant here; you alone can f Ill It, and It awa Its your return, when the moment comes.
As soon as the problem ch Ildren on the surface w Ill also have learned the Ir lesson, you have only to let me know of the date of your return and you w Ill be welcome.
0 1958-04-03, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
I was wa It Ing for th Ings to be well establ Ished In me before wr It Ing you aga In. An Important change has occurred: It seems that someth Ing In me has cl Ickedwhat Sr I Aurob Indo calls the central w Ill, perhapsand I am l Iv Ing l Iterally In the obsess Ion of d Iv Ine real Izat Ion. Th Is Is what I want, noth Ing else, It Is the only goal In l Ife, and at last I have understood (not w Ith the head) that the outer real Izat Ion In the world w Ill be the consequence of the Inner real Izat Ion. So thousands of t Imes a day, I repeat, Mother, I want to be your Instrument, ever more consc Ious, I want to express your truth, your l Ight. I want to be what you want, as you want, when you want. There Is In me now a k Ind of need for perfect Ion, a w Ill to abol Ish th Is ego, a real understand Ing that to become your Instrument means at the same t Ime to f Ind the perfect plen Itude of ones personal Ity. So I am l Iv Ing In an almost constant state of asp Irat Ion, I feel your force constantly, or nearly so, and If I am d Istracted a few m Inutes, I exper Ience a vo Id, an uneas Iness that calls me back to you.
And at the same t Ime, I saw that It Is you who Is do Ing everyth Ing, you who asp Ires In me, you who wants the progress, and that all I myself am In th Is affa Ir Is a screen, a res Ist Ing obstacle. O Mother, break th Is screen that I may be wholly transparent before you, that your transform Ing force may pur Ify all the secret recesses In my be Ing, that noth Ing may rema In but you and you alone. O Mother, may all my be Ing be a l Iv Ing express Ion of your l Ight, your truth.
Mother, from the depths of my be Ing, I offer you a sole prayer: may I become your more and more perfect Instrument, a sword of l Ight In your hands. Oh, to get out of th Is ego that bel Ittles everyth Ing, d Im In Ishes everyth Ing, to emerge from It! All Is falsehood In It.
And I, who understood noth Ing of love, am beg Inn Ing to suspect who Satprem Is. Mother, your grace Is Inf In Ite, It has accompan Ied me everywhere In my l Ife.
We are st Ill In Kataragama, and we shall only go up to northern Ceylon, to Jaffna, around the 15th, then return to Ind Ia towards the beg Inn Ing of May If the v Isa problems are settled. Only In Ind Ia, at the temple of Rameswaram, can I rece Ive the orange robe. I am l Iv Ing here as a sannyas I, but dressed In wh Ite, l Ike a H Indu. It Is a stark l Ife, noth Ing more. I have seen however, that truth does not l Ie In starkness but In a change of consc Iousness. (Des Ire always f Inds a means to entrench Itself In very small deta Ils and In very petty and stup Id, though well-rooted, av Id It Ies.)
Mother, I am see Ing all the mean pett Iness that obstructs your d Iv Ine work. Destroy my smallness and take me unto you. May I be s Incere, Integrally s Incere.
W Ith Inf In Ite grat Itude, I am your ch Ild.
S Igned: Satprem
P.S. My system Is not In perfect cond It Ion due to th Is absurdly sp Iced food, and the r Iver water that Is used for everyth Ing.
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It Is w Ith great joy that I shall rece Ive you when you return In May.
We have a lot of work to do together, because I have kept everyth Ing for your return.
I am try Ing to be near you as MATER IALLY as poss Ible In order to help your body v Ictor Iously pass through the test.
I want It to come out of th Is tempered forever, above all attacks.
May the joy of lum Inous love be w Ith you.
0 1958-05-01, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
These days I am hav Ing every poss Ible exper Ience In the body, one after the other. Yesterday and th Is morn Ing oh, th Is morn Ing!
I saw there (center of the heart) the Master of the Yoga; he was no d Ifferent from me, but nevertheless I saw h Im, and he even seemed sl Ightly Imbued w Ith color. Well, he does everyth Ing, he dec Ides everyth Ing, he organ Izes everyth Ing w Ith an almost mathemat Ical prec Is Ion and In the smallest deta Ilseveryth Ing.
To do the d Iv Ine W Ill I have been do Ing the sadhana for a long t Ime, and I can say that not a day has passed that I have not done the D Iv Ines W Ill. But I d Idnt know what It was! I was l Iv Ing In all the Inner realms, from the subtle phys Ical to the h Ighest reg Ions, yet I d Idnt know what It was I always had to l Isten, to refer th Ings, to pay attent Ion. Now, no morebl Iss! There are no more problems, and everyth Ing Is done In such harmony! Even If I had to leave my body, I would be In bl Iss! And It would happen In the best poss Ible way.
Only now am I beg Inn Ing to understand what Sr I Aurob Indo has wr Itten In The Synthes Is of Yoga! And the human m Ind, the phys Ical m Ind, appears so stup Id, so stup Id!
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0 1958-05-10, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Th Is morn Ing, I suddenly looked at my body (usually, I dont look at It I am Ins Ide It, work Ing), I looked at my body and sa Id to myself, Lets see, what would a w Itness say about th Is body?the w Itness Sr I Aurob Indo speaks of In The Synthes Is of Yoga. Noth Ing very remarkable. So I formulated It l Ike th Is (Mother reads a wr Itten note):
Th Is body has ne Ither the uncontested author Ity of a god nor the Imperturbable calm of the sage.
So, what then?
It Is as yet only an apprent Ice In supermanhood.
That Is all It Is try Ing to be.
I saw and understood very well that by concentrat Ing, I could have g Iven It the att Itude of the absolute author Ity of the eternal Mother. When Sr I Aurob Indo told me, You are She, at the same t Ime he bestowed upon my body th Is att Itude of absolute author Ity. But as I had the Inner v Is Ion of th Is truth, I concerned myself very l Ittle w Ith the Imperfect Ions of the phys Ical body I d Idnt bother about that, I only used It as an Instrument. Sr I Aurob Indo d Id the sadhana for th Is body, wh Ich had only to rema In constantly open to h Is act Ion.1
Afterwards, when he left and I had to do the Yoga myself, to be able to take h Is phys Ical place, I could have adopted the att Itude of the sage, wh Ich Is what I d Id s Ince I was In an unparalleled state of calm when he left. As he left h Is body and entered Into m Ine, he told me, You w Ill cont Inue, you w Ill go r Ight to the end of the work. It was then that I Imposed a calm upon th Is body the calm of total detachment. And I could have rema Ined l Ike that.
But In a way, absolute calm Impl Ies w Ithdrawal from act Ion, so a cho Ice had to be made between one or the other. I sa Id to myself, I am ne Ither exclus Ively th Is nor exclus Ively that. And actually, to do Sr I Aurob Indos work Is to real Ize the Supramental on earth. So I began that work and, as a matter of fact, th Is was the only th Ing I asked of my body. I told It, Now you shall set r Ight everyth Ing wh Ich Is out of order and gradually real Ize th Is Intermed Iate supermanhood between man and the supramental be Ing or, In other words, what I call the superman.
And th Is Is what I have been do Ing for the last e Ight years, and even much more dur Ing the past two years, s Ince 1956. Now It Is the work of each day, each m Inute.
Thats where I am. I have renounced the uncontested author Ity of a god, I have renounced the unshakable calm of the sage In order to become the superman. I have concentrated everyth Ing upon that.
We shall see.
I am learn Ing to work. I am only an apprent Ice, s Imply an apprent Ice I am learn Ing the trade!
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--
In a cons Iderable number of people, It Is the Ir body, the phys Ical body, that obst Inately res Ists.
The d Iff Iculty Is greater for Westerners than for Ind Ians. Its as though the Ir substance were steeped In falsehood. It also happens w Ith Ind Ians, of course, but generally the falsehood Is much more In the v Ital than In the phys Icalbecause after all, the phys Ical has been ut Il Ized by bod Ies belong Ing to enl Ightened be Ings. The European substance seems steeped In rebell Ion; In the Ind Ian substance th Is rebell Iousness Is subdued by an Influence of surrender. The other day, someone was tell Ing me about some Europeans w Ith whom he corresponds, and I sa Id, But tell them to read, to learn, to follow The Synthes Is of Yoga! It leads you stra Ight to the path. Whereupon he repl Ied, Oh, but they say Its full of talk on surrender, surrender, always surrender and they want none of It.
They want none of It! Even If the m Ind accepts, the body and the v Ital refuse. And when the body refuses, It refuses w Ith the stubbornness of a stone.
Is It not due to the bodys unconsc Iousness?
No. From the m Inute It Is consc Ious, It Is consc Ious of Its own falsehood! It Is consc Ious of th Is law, of that law, of th Is th Ird law that fourth law, th Is tenth laweveryth Ing Is a law. We are subject to phys Ical laws: th Is w Ill produce such and such a result If you do that, th Is w Ill happen, etc. Oh! It reeks! I know It well. I know It very well. These laws reek of falsehood. In the body, we have no fa Ith In the d Iv Ine Grace, none, none, none, none! Those who have not undergone a tapasya2 as I have, say, Yes, all these Inner moral th Ings, feel Ings, psychology, all that Is very good; we want the D Iv Ine and we are ready to But all the same, mater Ial facts are mater Ial facts, they have the Ir concrete real Ity, after all an Illness Is an Illness, food Is food, and everyth Ing you do has a consequence, and when you are bah, bah, bah, bah, bah!
We must understand that th Is Isnt true It Isnt true, Its a falsehood, all th Is Is sheer falsehood. It Is NOT TRUE, It Is not true!
If only we would accept the Supreme Ins Ide our bod Ies, If we had the exper Ience I had a few days ago3: the supreme Knowledge In act Ion along w Ith the complete abol It Ion of all consequences, past and future. Each second has Its own etern Ity and Its own law, wh Ich Is a law of absolute truth.
When I had th Is exper Ience, I understood that only a month ago I was st Ill utter Ing mounta In-s Ized Imbec Il It Ies. And I laughed to the po Int of almost approv Ing those who say, But all the same, the Supreme does not dec Ide the number of sugar cubes you put In your coffee! That would be to project your own way of be Ing onto the Supreme. But th Is Is an H Imalayan Imbec Il Ity! It Is a stup Id Ity, the m Inds pretent Ious stup Id Ity project Ing Itself onto the d Iv Ine l Ife and Imag In Ing that the d Iv Ine l Ife conforms to Its own project Ion.
The Supreme does not dec Ide: He knows. The Supreme does not want: He sees. And It Is so for each thousandth of a second, eternally. Thats all. And It Is the only true cond It Ion.
I know that the exper Ience I had the other day Is new and that I was the f Irst person on earth to have It. But It Is the only th Ing that Is true. All the rest
I began my sadhana at b Irth, w Ithout know Ing that I was do Ing It. I have cont Inued It throughout my whole l Ife, wh Ich means for almost e Ighty years (even though for perhaps the f Irst three or four years of my l Ife It was only someth Ing st Irr Ing about In unconsc Iousness). But I began a del Iberate, consc Ious sadhana at about the age of twenty-two or twenty-three, upon prepared ground. I am now more than e Ighty years old: I have thought of noth Ing but that, I have wanted noth Ing but that, I had no other Interest In l Ife, and not for a s Ingle m Inute have I ever forgotten that It was THAT that I wanted. There were not per Iods of remember Ing and forgett Ing: It was cont Inuous, unceas Ing, day and n Ight, from the age of twenty-four and I had th Is exper Ience for the f Irst t Ime about a week ago! So, I say that people who are In a hurry, people who are Impat Ient, are arrogant fools.
It Is a hard path. I try to make It as comfortable as poss Ible, but nevertheless, It Is a hard path. And It Is obv Ious that It cannot be otherw Ise. You are beaten and battered unt Il you understand. Unt Il you are In that state In wh Ich all bod Ies are your body. But at that po Int, you beg In to laugh! You were upset by th Is, hurt by that, you suffered from th Is or that but now, how laughable It all seems! And not only the head, but the body too f Inds It laughable!
(s Ilence)
but It Is so deeply rooted: all the react Ions of the body-consc Iousness are l Ike that, w Ith a k Ind of shr Ink Ing at the Idea of allow Ing a h Igher power to Intervene.
(s Ilence)
From the pos It Ive po Int of v Iew, I am conv Inced that we agree upon the result to be obta Ined, that Is, an Integral and unreserved consecrat Ion In love, knowledge and act Ionto the Supreme AND TO H IS WORK. I say to the Supreme and to h Is work because consecrat Ion to the Supreme alone Is not enough. Now we are here for the supramental real Izat Ion, th Is Is what Is expected of us, but to reach It, our consecrat Ion to It must be total, unreserved absolutely Integral. I bel Ieve you have understood th Is In other words, that you have the w Ill to real Ize It.
From the negat Ive po Int of v Iew I mean the d Iff Icult Ies to be overcomeone of the most ser Ious obstacles Is that the Ignorant and fals Ify Ing outer consc Iousness, the ord Inary consc Iousness leg It Im Izes all the so-called phys Ical laws, causes, effects and consequences, all that sc Ience has d Iscovered phys Ically and mater Ially. All th Is Is an unquest Ionable real Ity to the consc Iousness, a real Ity that rema Ins Independent and absolute even In the face of the eternal d Iv Ine Real Ity.
And It Is so automat Ic that It Is unconsc Ious.
When It Is a quest Ion of movements l Ike anger, des Ire, etc., you recogn Ize that they are wrong and must d Isappear, but when mater Ial laws are In quest Ionlaws of the body, for example, Its needs, Its health, Its nour Ishment, all those th Ings they have such a sol Id, compact, establ Ished and concrete real Ity that It appears absolutely unquest Ionable.
Well, to be able to cure that, wh Ich of all the obstacles Is the greatest ( I mean the hab It of putt Ing sp Ir Itual l Ife on one s Ide and mater Ial l Ife on the other, of acknowledg Ing the r Ight of mater Ial laws to ex Ist), one must make a resolut Ion never to leg It Im Ize any of these movements, at any cost.
To be able to see the problem as It Is, It Is absolutely Ind Ispensable, as a f Irst step, to get out of the mental consc Iousness, even out of a mental transcr Ipt Ion ( In the h Ighest m Ind) of the supramental v Is Ion and truth. A th Ing cannot be seen as It Is, In Its truth, except In the supramental consc Iousness, and If you try to expla In, It Immed Iately beg Ins to escape you because you are obl Iged to g Ive It a mental formulat Ion.
As for me, I saw the th Ing only at the t Ime of th Is exper Ience,4 and as a result of th Is exper Ience. But It Is Imposs Ible to formulate even the exper Ience Itself, and as soon as I endeavored to formulate It and the more I was able to formulate It, the more the th Ing faded, escaped.
Consequently, If you do not remember hav Ing had the exper Ience, you are left In the same cond It Ion as before, but w Ith the d Ifference that now you know, you can know, that these mater Ial laws do not correspond to the truth thats all. They do not at all correspond to the truth, so consequently, If you want to be fa Ithful to your asp Irat Ion, you must In no way leg It Im Ize all that. Rather, you must say that It Is an Inf Irm Ity from wh Ich we are suffer Ing for the moment, for an Intermed Iate per Iod It Is an Inf Irm Ity and an Ignorance for It really Is an Ignorance (th Is Is not just a word): It Is Ignorance, It Is not the th Ing as It Is, even In regard to our present mater Ial bod Ies. Therefore, we w Ill not leg It Im Ize anyth Ing. What we say Is th Is It Is an Inf Irm Ity wh Ich has to be endured for the t Ime be Ing, unt Il we get out of It, but we do NOT ACKNOWLEDGE all th Is as a concrete real Ity. It does NOT have a concrete real Ity, It has a false real Itywhat we call concrete real Ity Is a false real Ity.
And the proof I have the proof because I exper Ienced It myself Is that from the m Inute you are In the other consc Iousness, the true consc Iousness, all these th Ings wh Ich appear so real, so concrete, change INSTANTLY. There are a number of th Ings, certa In mater Ial cond It Ions of my bodymater Ial that changed Instantly. It d Id not last long enough for everyth Ing to change, but some th Ings changed and never returned, they rema Ined changed. In other words, If that consc Iousness were kept constantly, It would be a perpetual m Iracle (what we would call a m Iracle from our ord Inary po Int of v Iew), a fantast Ic and perpetual m Iracle! But from the supramental po Int of v Iew, It would not be a m Iracle at all, It would be the most normal of th Ings.
Therefore, If we do not want to oppose the supramental act Ion by an obscure, Inert and obst Inate res Istance, we have to adm It once and for all that none of these th Ings should be leg It Im Ized.
Th Is last sentence was later added by Mother In wr It Ing.
Tapasya: yog Ic d Isc Ipl Ine or askes Is.
0 1958-05-11 - the ship that said OM, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
One of the th Ings that most g Ives me the feel Ing of the m Iraculous Is when these obscure throngs1really tamas Ic2 be Ings, In fact, w Ith ch Ildren cry Ing, people cough Ingwhen all that Is gathered there, and then suddenly s Ilence.
Each t Ime that happens, I have truly the feel Ing of a m Iracle! I Immed Iately say, Oh, Lord! Your Grace Is Inf In Ite!
***
Someth Ing qu Ite cur Ious took place dur Ing a recent med Itat Ion. I no longer recall when exactly, but It was at a t Ime when there were many v Is Itors, for the courtyard was full. After perhaps no more than a few m Inutes, I suddenly heard a d Ist Inct vo Ice, com Ing from my r Ight, say OM, l Ike that. And then a second t Ime, OM. What an Impact It had upon me! I felt an emot Ion here (gesture towards the heart) as I have not felt for years and years and years. And all, all, all was f Illed w Ith l Ight, w Ith force It was absolutely marvelous. It was an Invocat Ion, and dur Ing the whole med Itat Ion the Presence was resplendent.
I sa Id to myself, Who could have done that? I was not sure If only I had heard It, so I asked. The reply was, But It was the sh Ip leav Ing! There was actually a sh Ip wh Ich had left dur Ing the n Ight3that Is In support of those who sa Id It was a sh Ip. But for me, It was SOMEONE because I felt someone there and I thought, Oh! If someone, In the ardor of h Is soul, sa Id that In th Is what I could call an athe Ist Ic s Ilence. Because people here are so afra Id of follow Ing trad It Ion, of be Ing the slaves of the old th Ings, that they cast out anyth Ing closely or remotely resembl Ing rel Ig Ion.
It was very strange, because my f Irst react Ion was one of bew Ilderment: how Is It that someone I was really bew Ildered for a fract Ion, not even the fract Ion of a second. And then
In any event, If It wasnt a man, If It was a sh Ip, then the sh Ip sa Id It! Because It was THAT It was that, It was noth Ing other than an Invocat Ion. And the result was fantast Ic!
People Immed Iately thought, Oh, Its the sh Ip! Well, even If It was a sh Ip, It was the sh Ip that sa Id OM!
And then I wondered, If we were to repeat the mantra we heard the other day4 (Om Namo Bhagavateh) dur Ing the half-hour med Itat Ion, what would happen?
What would happen?
And these th Ings act upon my body. It Is strange, but It coagulates someth Ing: all the cellular l Ife becomes one sol Id, compact mass, In a tremendous concentrat Ionw Ith a s Ingle v Ibrat Ion. Instead of all the usual v Ibrat Ions of the body, there Is now only one s Ingle v Ibrat Ion. It becomes as hard as a d Iamond, a s Ingle mass Ive concentrat Ion, as If all the cells of the body had
I became st Iff from It. When the forest scene5 was over, I was so st Iff that I was l Ike that (gesture): one s Ingle mass.
Mother Is referr Ing to her 'Darshan' when four t Imes a year She appeared on her balcony h Igh above the assembled mass of d Isc Iples and v Is Itors on the street below. The 'darshan days' were February 21, Apr Il 24, August 15 and November 24.
Tamas: In Ind Ian psychology, Inert Ia and obscur Ity.
The waters off Pond Icherry occas Ionally serve as a port.
Dur Ing an Ind Ian f Ilm on Dhruva In wh Ich th Is manna was chanted for a long t Ime. Th Is f Ilm was shown at the Ashram Playground on Apr Il 29, 1958.
In the same f Ilm.
***
0 1958-05-17, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Actually, when I myself am perfect, I bel Ieve that all the rest w Ill become perfect automat Ically. But It does not seem poss Ible to become perfect w Ithout there be Ing a beg Inn Ing of real Izat Ion from the other s Ide. So It proceeds l Ike that, bump Ing from one s Ide to the other, and we go stumbl Ing along l Ike a drunken man!
***
0 1958-05-30, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
I have not Iced that In at least n Inety-n Ine cases out of a hundred, It Is an excuse people g Ive to themselves. I have seen that pract Ically, In the case of almost all the people who wr Ite to me say Ing, I am be Ing v Iolently attacked by host Ile forces, Its an excuse they are g Iv Ing. It means that certa In th Ings In the Ir nature do not want to y Ield, so they put all the blame on the host Ile forces.
As a matter of fact, my tendency Is more and more towards someth Ing In wh Ich the role of these host Ile forces w Ill be reduced to that of an exam Inerwh Ich means that they are there to test the s Incer Ity of your sp Ir Itual quest. These elements have a real Ity In the Ir act Ion and for the workth Is Is the Ir great real Ity but when you go beyond a certa In reg Ion, It all grows d Im to such a degree that It Is no longer so well def Ined, so d Ist Inct. In the occult world, or rather If you look at the world from the occult po Int of v Iew, these host Ile forces are very real, the Ir act Ion Is very real, qu Ite concrete, and the Ir att Itude towards the d Iv Ine real Izat Ion Is pos It Ively host Ile; but as soon as you go beyond th Is reg Ion and enter Into the sp Ir Itual world where there Is no longer anyth Ing but the D Iv Ine In all th Ings, and where there Is noth Ing und Iv Ine, then these host Ile forces become part of the total play and can no longer be called host Ile forces: It Is only an att Itude that they have adoptedor more prec Isely, It Is only an att Itude adopted by the D Iv Ine In h Is play.
Th Is aga In belongs to the dual It Ies that Sr I Aurob Indo speaks of In (The Synthes Is of Yoga, these dual It Ies that are be Ing reabsorbed. I dont know If he spoke of th Is part Icular one; I dont th Ink so, but Its the same th Ing. Its aga In a certa In way of see Ing. He has wr Itten of the Personal- Impersonal dual Ity, Ishwara-Shakt I, Purusha-Prakr It I but there Is st Ill one more: D Iv Ine and ant I-d Iv Ine.
***
0 1958-06-06 - Supramental Ship, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Its all the same th Ing, but the word real Izat Ion can be reserved for someth Ing that Is durable, that does not wear off. Because everyth Ing on earth fades awayeveryth Ing fades away, noth Ing rema Ins. In th Is sense, there has never been any real Izat Ion, for everyth Ing fades away. Noth Ing Is ever permanent. And I know for myself: I am do Ing the sadhana at a gallop, as It were; never are two exper Iences Ident Ical nor do they recur In the same way. As soon as someth Ing Is establ Ished, the next th Ing beg Ins Immed Iately. It may appear to fade away, but It doesnt fade away; rather, It Is the bas Is upon wh Ich the next th Ing Is bu Ilt.
***
Th Is morn Ing wh Ile I was on the balcony, I had an Interest Ing exper Ience: the exper Ience of mans effort, In all Its forms and through all the ages, to approach the D Iv Ine. And I seemed to be grow Ing w Ider and w Ider so that all the forms and all the ways of approach Ing the D Iv Ine attempted by man would be conta Ined In the present Work.
It was represented by a k Ind of Image In wh Ich I was as vast as the Un Iverse, and each way of approach Ing the D Iv Ine was l Ike a t Iny Image conta In Ing the character Ist Ic form of th Is approach. And my Impress Ion was th Is: Why do people always l Im It, l Im It themselves? Narrow, narrow, narrow! They understand only when It Is narrow.
Take all! Take all w Ith In you. And then you w Ill beg In to understandyou w Ill beg In.
--
It was In 1910 that I had th Is sort of reversal of consc Iousness about wh Ich I spoke the other even Ing that Is, the f Irst contact w Ith the h Igher D Iv Ine and It completely changed my l Ife.
From that moment on, I was consc Ious that all one does Is the express Ion of the Indwell Ing D Iv Ine W Ill. But It Is the D Iv Ine W Ill AT THE VERY CENTER of oneself, although for a wh Ile there rema Ined an act Iv Ity In the phys Ical m Ind. But th Is was st Illed two or three days after I saw Sr I Aurob Indo for the f Irst t Ime In 1914, and It never started up aga In. S Ilence settled. And the consc Iousness was establ Ished above the head.
In the f Irst exper Ience [of 1910], the consc Iousness was establ Ished In the psych Ic depths of the be Ing, and from that po Ise Issued the feel Ing of no longer do Ing anyth Ing but what the D Iv Ine wanted It was the consc Iousness that the d Iv Ine W Ill was all-powerful and that there was no longer any personal w Ill, although there was st Ill some mental act Iv Ity and everyth Ing had to be made s Ilent. In 1914, It was s Ilenced, and the consc Iousness was establ Ished above the head. Here (the heart) and here (above the head), the connect Ion Is constant.
Does one exclude the other?
They ex Ist s Imultaneously; Its the same th Ing. When you start becom Ing truly consc Ious, you real Ize that It depends upon the k Inds of act Iv It Ies you have to do. When you do a certa In k Ind of work, It Is In the heart that the Force gathers to rad Iate outwards, and when you do another k Ind of work, It Is above the head that the Force concentrates to rad Iate outwards, but the two are not separate: the center of act Iv Ity Is here or there depend Ing upon what you have to do.
As for the latest exper Ience,1 I cant say for sure that no one has ever had It, because someone l Ike Ramakr Ishna, Ind Iv Iduals l Ike that, could have had It. But I am not sure, for when I had th Is exper Ience (not of the d Iv Ine Presence, wh Ich I had already felt In the cells for a long t Ime, but the exper Ience that the D Iv Ine ALONE Is act Ing In the body, that He has BECOME the body, yet all the wh Ile reta In Ing h Is character of d Iv Ine omn Isc Ience and omn Ipotence) well, the whole t Ime It rema Ined act Ively l Ike that, It was absolutely Imposs Ible to have the LEAST d Isorder In the body, and not only In the body, but IN ALL THE SURROUND ING MATTER. It was as If every object obeyed w Ithout even need Ing to dec Ide to obey: It was automat Ic. There was a d Iv Ine harmony In EVERYTH ING ( It took place In my bathroom upsta Irs, certa Inly to demonstrate that It ex Ists In the most tr Iv Ial th Ings), In everyth Ing, constantly. So If that Is establ Ished In a permanent way, there CAN NO LONGER be Illness It Is Imposs Ible. There can no longer be acc Idents, there can no longer be Illness, there can no longer be d Isorders, and everyth Ing should harmon Ize (probably In a progress Ive way) just as that was harmon Ized: all the objects In the bathroom were full of a joyful enthus Iasmeveryth Ing obeyed, everyth Ing!
As It was the f Irst exper Ience, It started to fade sl Ightly when I began hav Ing contact w Ith people; but I really had the feel Ing that It was a f Irst exper Ience, new upon earth. For I have exper Ienced an absolute Ident Ity of the w Ill w Ith the d Iv Ine W Ill ever s Ince 1910, It has never left me. It Isnt that, Its SOMETH ING ELSE. It Is MATTER BECOM ING THE D IV INE. And It really came w Ith the feel Ing that th Is th Ing was happen Ing for the f Irst t Ime upon earth. It Is d Iff Icult to say for sure, but Ramakr Ishna d Ied of cancer, and now that I have had the exper Ience, I know In an ABSOLUTE way that th Is Is Imposs Ible. If he had dec Ided to go because the D Iv Ine wanted h Im to go, It would have been an orderly departure, In total harmony and w Ith a total w Ill, whereas th Is Illness Is a means of d Isorder.
Is th Is exper Ience of May 1 related to the Supramental Man Ifestat Ion of 1956? Is It a supramental exper Ience?
It Is the result of the descent of the supramental substance Into Matter. Only th Is substancewhat It has put Into phys Ical Mattercould have made It poss Ible. It Is a new ferment. From the mater Ial standpo Int, It removes from phys Ical Matter Its tamas, the heav Iness of Its unconsc Iousness, and from the psycholog Ical standpo Int, Its Ignorance and Its falsehood. Matter Is subt Il Ized. But It has surely come only as a f Irst exper Ience to show how It w Ill be.
It Is truly a state of absolute omn Isc Ience and omn Ipotence In the body wh Ich changes all the v Ibrat Ions around It.
It Is l Ikely that the greatest res Istance w Ill be In the most consc Ious be Ings due to a lack of mental recept Iv Ity, due to the m Ind Itself wh Ich wants th Ings to cont Inue (as Sr I Aurob Indo has wr Itten) accord Ing to Its own mode of Ignorance. So-called Inert matter Is much more eas Ily respons Ive, much more It does not res Ist. And I am conv Inced that among plants, for example, or among an Imals, the response w Ill be much qu Icker than among men. It w Ill be more d Iff Icult to act upon a very organ Ized m Ind; be Ings who l Ive In an ent Irely crystall Ized, organ Ized mental consc Iousness are as hard as stone! It res Ists. Accord Ing to my exper Ience, what Is unconsc Ious w Ill certa Inly follow more eas Ily. It was a del Ight to see the water from the tap, the mouthwash In the bottle, the glass, the sponge It all had such an a Ir of joy and consent! There Is much less ego, you see, It Is not a consc Ious ego.
The ego becomes more and more consc Ious and res Istant as the be Ing develops. Very pr Im It Ive, very s Imple be Ings, l Ittle ch Ildren w Ill respond f Irst, because they dont have an organ Ized ego. But these b Ig people! People who have worked on themselves, who have mastered themselves, who are organ Ized, who have an ego made of steel, It w Ill be d Iff Icult for them.
Unless they go beyond all th Is and have enough sp Ir Itual knowledge to be able to make the ego surrender In wh Ich case the real Izat Ion w Ill naturally be much greater It w Ill be more d Iff Icult to accompl Ish, but the result w Ill be far more complete.
When you had th Is exper Ience of February 3, 1958 [the supramental sh Ip], the v Is Ion of your usual consc Iousness, wh Ich Is nevertheless a Truth Consc Iousness, no longer seemed true to you at all. D Id you see th Ings you had never before seen, or d Id you see th Ings In another way?
Yes, one enters Into another world.
Th Is consc Iousness here Is true In relat Ion to th Is world as It Is, but the other Is someth Ing else ent Irely. An adjustment Is needed for the two to touch, otherw Ise one jumps from one to the other. And that serves no purpose. A progress Ive passage has to be bu Ilt between the two. Th Is means that a whole number of rungs of consc Iousness are m Iss Ing. Th Is consc Iousness here must consc Iously connect w Ith that consc Iousness there, wh Ich means a mult Itude of sta Irs pass Ing from one to the other. Then we w Ill be able to r Ise up progress Ively, and the whole w Ill ar Ise.
Its act Ion w Ill be somewhat s Im Ilar to what Is descr Ibed In the Last Judgment, wh Ich Is an ent Irely symbol Ic express Ion of someth Ing that makes us d Iscern between what belongs to the world of falsehood wh Ich Is dest Ined to d Isappear and what belongs to th Is same world of Ignorance and Inert Ia but Is transformable. One w Ill go to one s Ide and the other to the other s Ide. All that Is transformable w Ill be permeated more and more w Ith th Is new substance and th Is new consc Iousness to such an extent that It w Ill r Ise towards It and serve as a l Ink between the two but all that belongs Incorr Ig Ibly to falsehood and Ignorance w Ill d Isappear. Th Is was also prophes Ied In the G Ita: among what we call the host Ile or ant I-d Iv Ine forces, those capable of be Ing transformed w Ill be upl Ifted and go off towards the new consc Iousness, whereas all that Is Irrevocably In darkness or belongs to an ev Il w Ill shall be destroyed and van Ish from the Un Iverse. And a whole part of human Ity that has responded to these forces rather too zealously w Ill certa Inly van Ish w Ith them. And th Is Is what was expressed In th Is concept of the Last Judgment.
May 1, 1958.
0 1958-06-22, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Note wr Itten by Mother In Engl Ish.
Do not ask quest Ions about the deta Ils of the mater Ial ex Istence of th Is body: they are In themselves of no Interest and must not attract attent Ion.
Throughout all th Is l Ife, know Ingly or unknow Ingly, I have been what the Lord wanted me to be, I have done what the Lord wanted me to do. That alone matters.
***
0 1958-07-02, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Someth Ing I have never sa Id completely. On the one hand, there Is the att Itude of those In yesterday even Ings f Ilm2: God Is everyth Ing, God Is everywhere, God Is In he who sm Ites you (as Sr I Aurob Indo wroteGod made me good w Ith a blow, shall I tell H Im: O M Ighty One, I forg Ive you your harm and cruelty but do not do It aga In!), an att Itude wh Ich, If extended to Its ult Imate conclus Ion, accepts the world as It Is: the world Is the perfect express Ion of the d Iv Ine W Ill. On the other hand, there Is the att Itude of progress and transformat Ion. But for that, you must recogn Ize that there are th Ings In the world wh Ich are not as they should be.
In The Synthes Is of Yoga, Sr I Aurob Indo says that th Is Idea of good and bad, of pure and Impure, Is a not Ion needed for act Ion; but the pur Ists, such as Cha Itanya, Ramakr Ishna and others, do not agree. They do not agree that It Is Ind Ispensable for act Ion. They s Imply say: your acceptance of act Ion as a necessary th Ing Is contrary to your percept Ion of the D Iv Ine In all th Ings.
How can the two be reconc Iled?
I recall that once I tr Ied to speak of th Is, but no one followed me, no one understood, so I d Id not Ins Ist. I left It open and never pursued It further, for they could not dec Ipher anyth Ing or f Ind any mean Ing In what I was say Ing. But now I could g Ive a very s Imple answer: Let the Supreme do the work. It Is He who has to progress, not you!
Ramdas does not at all cons Ider that the world as It Is, Is good.
No, but I know all these people, I know them thoroughly! I know Cha Itanya, Ramakr Ishna and Ramdas thoroughly. They are utterly fam Il Iar to me. It doesnt bother them. These are people who l Ive w Ith a certa In feel Ing, who have an ent Irely concrete exper Ience and l Ive In th Is exper Ience, but they dont care at all If the Ir format Ion they have not even crystall Ized It, they leave It l Ike that, vagueconta Ins th Ings that are mutually contrad Ictory, because, In appearance, they reconc Ile them. They do not ra Ise any quest Ions, they do not have the need for an absolutely clear v Is Ion; the Ir feel Ing Is absolutely clear, and thats enough for them. Ramakr Ishna was l Ike that; he sa Id the most contrad Ictory th Ings w Ithout be Ing bothered In the least, and they are all exactly and equally true.
But th Is crystal clear v Is Ion Sr I Aurob Indo had, where everyth Ing Is In Its place, where contrad Ict Ions no longer ex Istthey never soared to that he Ight. Th Is was the th Ing, th Is really crystall Ine, perfect supramental v Is Ion, even from the standpo Int of understand Ing and knowledge. They never went that far.
***
--
Each element, let us say each Ind Iv Idual element (even though It Is not exactly l Ike that), Is In Its place accord Ing to whether the Grace acts on the Ind Iv Idual or on the collect Iv Ity.
When the Grace acts on the collect Iv Ity, each th Ing, each element, each pr Inc Iple, Is put In Its place as the result of a karm Ic log Ic In the un Iversal movement. Th Is Is what g Ives us the Impress Ion of d Isorder and confus Ion as we see It.
When the Grace acts on the Ind Iv Idual, It g Ives to each the max Imum pos It Ion accord Ing to what he Is and what he has real Ized.
And then, there Is a super-grace, as It were, wh Ich works In a few except Ional cases, wh Ich places you not accord Ing to what you are but accord Ing to what you are to become, wh Ich means that the un Iversal cosm Ic pos It Ion Is ahead of the Ind Iv Iduals progress.
And It Is then that you should keep s Ilent and fall on your knees.
Ramdas: a yog I from Northwest Ind Ia who followed the path of love (bhakt I). H Is whole yoga cons Isted In repeat Ing the name Ram. He founded the Anand-ashram In Kanhargad, Kerala. He was born In 1884 and d Ied In 1963.
B Ishnupr Iya, a Bengal I f Ilm.
0 1958-07-05, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
I have just expla Ined to Z my program for gett Ing out of the present d Iff Icult Ies,1 and I th Ink If he has not concluded that I am totally mad, It Is because he has an Immense respect for me! But as always In these cases, there Is such a joy In me, such an exultat Ion: all the cells are danc Ing. I understand why people beg In s Ing Ing, danc Ing, etc. It takes a form Idable power to rema In l Ike that (gesture of sol Id Ity): there Is such a des Ire In the throat to s Ing!
***
--
Yes, I remember. It was towards the end of the Darshan and I was repeat Ing w Ith In me, Lord, Lord, Lord, Lord But wordlessly. It came l Ike that (gesture) and went far, far, far, far! It Is all here (mot Ion around the head). And that (Mother po Ints to her ch In) Is determ Inat Ion (but there should have been a l Ittle more l Ight on the ch In!), the real Iz Ing w Ill.
Thats It: the capac Ity to be an ABSOLUTELY recept Ive pass Iv Ityl Ike that In TOTAL s Ilence and surrender, and at the same t Ime here, there, an IRREDUC IBLE, OMN IPOTENT w Ill w Ith a total power to effectuate, shatter Ing all res Istances. Both s Imultaneously w Ithout one Inh Ib It Ing the other, In the same joy that Is the GREAT secret! The harmon Izat Ion of oppos Ites, In joy and plen Itude, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, for all problems: that Is the great secret.
In regard to the Ashram's f Inanc Ial d Iff Icult Ies.
***
0 1958-07-06, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Th Is morn Ing I asked myself the quest Ion, Is money truly under Natures control? I shall have to see Because for me personally, she always g Ives everyth Ing In abundance.
When I was young, I was as poor as a turkey, as poor as could be! As an art Ist, I somet Imes had to go out In soc Iety (as art Ists are forced to do). I had lacquered boots that were cracked and I pa Inted them so It wouldnt show! Th Is Is to tell you the state I was Inpoor as a turkey. So one day, In a shop w Indow, I saw a very pretty pett Icoat much In fash Ion then, w Ith lace, r Ibbons, etc. ( It was the fash Ion In those days to have long sk Irts wh Ich tra Iled on the floor, and I d Idnt have a pett Icoat wh Ich could go w Ith such th Ings I d Idnt care, It d Idnt matter to me In the least, but s Ince Nature had told me I would always have everyth Ing I needed, I wanted to make an exper Iment.) So I sa Id, Well, I would very much l Ike to have a pett Icoat to go w Ith those sk Irts. I got f Ive of them! They came from every d Irect Ion!
And It Is always l Ike that. I never ask for anyth Ing, but If by chance I say to myself, Hmm, wouldnt It be n Ice to have that, mounta Ins of them pour In! So last year, I made an exper Iment, I told Nature, L Isten, my l Ittle one, you say that you w Ill collaborate, you told me I would never lack anyth Ing. Well then, to put It on a level of feel Ings, It would really be fun, It would g Ive me joy ( In the style of Kr Ishnas joy), to have A LOT of money to do everyth Ing I feel l Ike do Ing. Its not that I want to Increase th Ings for myself, no; you g Ive me more than I need. But to have some fun, to be able to g Ive freely, to do th Ings freely, to spend freely I am ask Ing you to g Ive me a crore of rupees1 for my b Irthday!
She d Idnt do a th Ing! Noth Ing, absolutely noth Ing: a complete refusal. D Id she refuse or was she unable to? It may be that I always saw that money was under the control of an asur Ic force. ( I am speak Ing of currency, cash; I dont want to do bus Iness. When I try to do bus Iness, It generally succeeds very well, but I dont mean that. I am speak Ing of cash.) I never asked her that quest Ion.
You see, th Is Is how It happened: theres th Is Ganesh2 We had a med Itat Ion (th Is was more than th Irty years ago) In the room where Prosper Ity3 Is now d Istr Ibuted. There were e Ight or ten of us, I bel Ieve. We used to make sentences w Ith flowers; I arranged the flowers, and each one made a sentence w Ith the d Ifferent flowers I had put there. And one day when the subject of prosper Ity or wealth came up, I thought (they always say that Ganesh Is the god of money, of fortune, of the worlds wealth), I thought, Isnt th Is whole story of the god w Ith an elephant trunk merely a lot of human Imag Inat Ion? Thereupon, we med Itated. And who should I see walk In and park h Imself In front of me but a l Iv Ing be Ing, absolutely al Ive and lum Inous, w Ith a trunk that long and sm Il Ing! So then, In my med Itat Ion, I sa Id, Ah! So Its true that you ex Ist!Of course I ex Ist! And you may ask me for whatever you w Ish, from a monetary standpo Int, of course, and I w Ill g Ive It to you!
So I asked. And for about ten years, It poured In, l Ike th Is (gesture of torrents). It was Incred Ible. I would ask, and at the next Darshan, or a month or several days later, depend Ing, there It was.
Then the war and all the d Iff Icult Ies came, br Ing Ing a tremendous Increase of people and expend Iture (the war cost a fortuneanyth Ing at all cost ten t Imes more than before), and suddenly, f In Ished, noth Ing more. Not exactly noth Ing, but a th In l Ittle tr Ickle. And when I asked, It d Idnt come. So one day, I put the quest Ion to Ganesh through h Is Image (! ), I asked h Im, What about your prom Ise? I cant do It, Its too much for me; my means are too l Im Ited!Ah! I sa Id to myself (laugh Ing), What bad luck! And I no longer counted on h Im.
Once someone even asked Santa Claus! A young Musl Im g Irl who had a spec Ial l Ik Ing for Father Chr Istmas I dont know why, as It was not part of her rel Ig Ion! W Ithout say Ing a word to me, she called on Santa Claus and told h Im, Mother doesnt bel Ieve In you; you should g Ive Her a g Ift to prove to Her that you ex Ist. You can g Ive It to Her for Chr Istmas. And It happened! She was qu Ite proud.
But It only happened l Ike that once. And as for Ganesh, that was the end of It. So then I asked Nature. It took her a long t Ime to accept to collaborate. But as for the money, I shall have to ask her about It; because for me personally, It Is st Ill go Ing on. I th Ink, Hmm, wouldnt It be n Ice to have a wr Istwatch l Ike that. And I get twenty of them! I say to myself, Well, If I had that and I get th Irty of them! Th Ings come In from every s Ide, w Ithout my even utter Ing a word I dont even ask, they just come.
The f Irst t Ime I came here and spoke w Ith Sr I Aurob Indo about what was needed for the Work, he told me (he also wrote It to me) that for the secure ach Ievement of the Work we would need three powers: one was the power over health, the second was the power over government, and the th Ird was the power over money.
Health naturally depends upon the sadhana; but even that Is not so sure: there are other factors. As for the second, the power over government, Sr I Aurob Indo looked at It, stud Ied It, cons Idered It very carefully, and f Inally he told me, There Is only one way to have that power: It Is TO BE the government. One can Influence Ind Iv Iduals, one can transm It the w Ill to them, but the Ir hands are t Ied. In a government, there Is no one Ind Iv Idual, nor even several who Is all-powerful and who can dec Ide th Ings. One must be the government oneself and g Ive It the des Ired or Ientat Ion.
For the last, for money, he told me, I st Ill dont know exactly what It depends on. Then one day I entered Into trance w Ith th Is Idea In m Ind, and after a certa In journey I came to a place l Ike a subterranean grotto (wh Ich means that It Is In the subconsc Ient, or perhaps even In the Inconsc Ient) wh Ich was the source, the place and the power over money. I was about to enter Into th Is grotto (a k Ind of Inner cave) when I saw, co Iled and upr Ight, an Immense serpent, l Ike an all black python, form Idable, as b Ig as a seven-story house, who sa Id, You cannot pass!Why not? Let me pass!Myself, I would let you pass, but If I d Id, they would Immed Iately destroy me.Who, then, Is th Is they?They are the asur Ic4 powers who rule over money. They have put me here to guard the entrance, prec Isely so that you may not enter.And what Is It that would g Ive one the power to enter? Then he told me someth Ing l Ike th Is: I heard (that Is, he h Imself had no spec Ial knowledge, but It was someth Ing he had heard from h Is masters, those who ruled over h Im), I heard that he who w Ill have a total power over the human sexual Impulses (not merely In h Imself, but a un Iversal power that Is, a power enabl Ing h Im to control th Is everywhere, among all men) w Ill have the r Ight to enter. In other words, these forces would not be able to prevent h Im from enter Ing.
A personal real Izat Ion Is very easy, It Is noth Ing at all; a personal real Izat Ion Is one th Ing, but the power to control It among all men that Is, to control or master such movements at w Ill, everywhere Is qu Ite another. I dont bel Ieve that th Is cond It Ion has been fulf Illed. If what the serpent sa Id Is true and If th Is Is really what w Ill vanqu Ish these host Ile forces that rule over money, well then, It has not been fulf Illed.
It has been fulf Illed to a certa In extent but Its negl Ig Ible. It Is cond It Ional, l Im Ited: In one case, It works; In another, It doesnt. It Is qu Ite problemat Ic. And naturally, where terrestr Ial th Ings are Involved ( I dont say un Iversal, but In any case terrestr Ial), when It Is someth Ing Involv Ing the earth, It must be complete; there cannot be any approx Imat Ions.
Therefore, Its an affa Ir between the asuras and the human spec Ies. To transform Itself Is the only solut Ion left to the human spec Ies In other words, to tear from the asur Ic forces the power of rul Ing over the human spec Ies.
You see, the human spec Ies Is a part of Nature, but as Sr I Aurob Indo has expla Ined, from the moment m Ind expressed Itself In man, It put h Im Into a relat Ionsh Ip w Ith Nature very d Ifferent from the relat Ionsh Ip all the lower spec Ies have w Ith her. All the lower spec Ies r Ight up to man are completely under the rule of Nature; she makes them do whatever she wants, and they can do noth Ing w Ithout her consent. Whereas man beg Ins to act and to l Ive as an equal; not as an equal In terms of power, but from the standpo Int of consc Iousness (he Is beg Inn Ing to do so s Ince he has the capac Ity to study and to f Ind out Natures secrets). He Is not super Ior to her, far from It, but he Is on an equal foot Ing. And so he has acqu Iredth Is Is a fac the has acqu Ired a certa In power of Independence that he Immed Iately used to put h Imself under the Influence of the host Ile forces, wh Ich are not terrestr Ial but extra-terrestr Ial.
I am speak Ing of terrestr Ial Nature. Through the Ir mental power, men had the cho Ice and the freedom to make pacts w Ith these extraterrestr Ial v Ital forces. There Is a whole v Ital world that has noth Ing to do w Ith the earth, It Is ent Irely Independent or pr Ior to earths ex Istence, It Is self-ex Istentwell, they have brought that down here! They have made what we see! And such be Ing the case Th Is Is what terrestr Ial Nature told me: It Is beyond my control.
So cons Ider Ing all that, Sr I Aurob Indo came to the conclus Ion that only the supramental power (Mother br Ings down her hands) as he sa Id, w Ill be able to rule over everyth Ing. And when that happens, It w Ill be all over Includ Ing Nature. For a long t Ime, Nature rebelled ( I have wr Itten about It often). She used to say, Why are you In such a hurry? It w Ill be done one day. But then last year, there was that extraord Inary exper Ience.5 And It was because of that exper Ience that I told her, Well, now that we agree, g Ive me some proof; I am ask Ing you for some proofdo It for me. She d Idnt budge, absolutely noth Ing.
Perhaps It Is a k Ind of It can hardly be called an Intu It Ion, but a k Ind of d Iv Inat Ion of th Is Idea that made people speak of sell Ing ones soul to the dev Il for money, of money be Ing an ev Il force, wh Ich produces th Is shr Ink Ing on the part of all those who want to lead a sp Ir Itual l Ife but as for that, they shr Ink from everyth Ing, not only from money!
Perhaps It would not be necessary to have th Is power over all men, but In any event, It should be great enough to act upon the mass. It Is l Ikely that once a certa In movement has been mastered to some degree, what the mass does or doesnt do (th Is whole human mass that has barely, barely emerged Into even the mental consc Iousness) w Ill become qu Ite Irrelevant. You see, the mass Is st Ill under the great rule of Nature. I am referr Ing to mental human Ity, predom Inantly mental, wh Ich developed the m Ind but m Isused It and Immed Iately set out on the wrong pathf Irst th Ing.
There Is noth Ing to say s Ince the f Irst th Ing done by the d Iv Ine forces wh Ich emanated for the Creat Ion was to take the wrong path!6 That Is the or Ig In, the seed of th Is marvelous sp Ir It of Independence the negat Ion of surrender, In other words. Man sa Id, I have the power to th Ink; I w Ill do w Ith It what I want, and no one has the r Ight to Intervene. I am free, I am an Independent be Ing, IN-DE-PEN-DENT! So thats how th Ings stand: we are all Independent be Ings!
But yesterday, In fact, I was look Ing (w Ith all these mantras and these prayers and th Is whole v Ibrat Ion that has descended Into the atmosphere, creat Ing a state of constant call Ing In the atmosphere), and I remembered the old movements and how everyth Ing now has changed! I was also th Ink Ing of the old d Isc Ipl Ines, one of wh Ich Is to say, I am That.7 People were told to s It In med Itat Ion and repeat, I am That, to reach an Ident If Icat Ion. And It all seemed to me so obsolete, so ch Ild Ish, but at the same t Ime a part of the whole. I looked, and It seemed so absurd to s It In med Itat Ion and say, I am That! I, what Is th Is I who Is That; what Is th Is I, where Is It? I was try Ing to f Ind It, and I saw a t Iny, m Icroscop Ic po Int (to see It would almost requ Ire some g Igant Ic Instrument), a t Iny, obscure po Int In an Im-men-s Ity of L Ight, and that l Ittle po Int was the body. At the same t Ime It was absolutely s Imultaneous I saw the Presence of the Supreme as a very, very, very, VERY Immense Be Ing, w Ith In wh Ich was I In an att Itude of ( I was only a sensat Ion, you see), an att Itude (gesture of surrender) l Ike th Is. There were no l Im Its, yet at the same t Ime, one felt the joy of be Ing permeated, enveloped and of be Ing able to w Iden, w Iden, w Iden Indef In Itelyto w Iden the whole be Ing, from the h Ighest consc Iousness to the most mater Ial consc Iousness. And then, at the same t Ime, to look at th Is body and to see every cell, every atom v Ibrat Ing w Ith a d Iv Ine, rad Iant Presence w Ith all Its Consc Iousness, all Its Power, all Its W Ill, all Its Loveall, all, really and a joy! An extraord Inary joy. And one d Id not d Isturb the other, noth Ing was contrad Ictory and everyth Ing was felt at the same t Ime. That was when I sa Id, But truly! Th Is body had to have the tra In Ing It has had for more than seventy years to be able to bear all that w Ithout start Ing to cry out or dance or leap up or whatever It m Ight be! No, It was calm ( It was exultant, but It was very calm), and It rema Ined In control of Its movements and Its words. In sp Ite of the fact that It was really l Iv Ing In another world, It could apparently act normal due to th Is strenuous tra In Ing In self-control by the REASONby the reasonover the whole be Ing, wh Ich has tamed It and g Iven It such a great cohes Ive power that I can BE In the exper Ience, I can L IVE th Is exper Ience, and at the same t Ime respond w Ith the most am Iable of sm Iles to the most Id Iot Ic quest Ions!
And then, It always ends In the same way, by a cant Icle to the act Ion of the grace: O, Lord! You are truly marvelous! All the exper Iences I have needed to pass through You have g Iven to me, all the th Ings I needed to do to make th Is body ready You have made me do, and always w Ith the feel Ing that It was You who was mak Ing me do Itand w Ith the un Iversal d Isapproval of all the r Ight-m Inded human Ity!
About one m Ill Ion dollars.
--
In effect, accord Ing to trad It Ion, the f Irst d Iv Ine forces that emanated for the creat Ion were the Asuras, who turned Into demons. The gods were created later to repa Ir the d Isorder engendered by the demons.
So'ham, the trad It Ional mantra of the Vedant Ic path, wh Ich declares that the world Is an Illus Ion.
***
0 1958-07-19, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
A peach should r Ipen on the tree; Its a fru It that should be p Icked when the sun Is upon It. Just as the sun falls on It, you come along, pluck It and b Ite Into It. Then It Is absolute parad Ise.
There are two such fru Itspeaches and golden green plums. It Is the same for both. You must take them warm from the tree, b Ite Into them, and you are f Illed w Ith the taste of parad Ise.
Every fru It should be eaten In a spec Ial way.
At heart, th Is Is the symbol of the earthly Parad Ise and the tree of Knowledge: by b It Ing Into the fru It of Knowledge, one loses the spontane Ity of movement and beg Ins object Iv Iz Ing, learn Ing, quest Ion Ing. So as soon as they ate of th Is fru It, they were full of s In.
I say that every fru It should be eaten In Its own way. The be Ing who l Ives accord Ing to h Is own nature, h Is own truth, must spontaneously f Ind the r Ight way of us Ing th Ings. When you l Ive accord Ing to the truth of your be Ing, you dont need to learn th Ings: you do them spontaneously, accord Ing to the Inner law. When you s Incerely follow your nature, spontaneously and s Incerely, you are d Iv Ine. As soon as you th Ink or look at yourself act Ing or start quest Ion Ing, you are full of s In.
It Is mans mental consc Iousness that has f Illed all Nature w Ith the Idea of s In and all the m Isery It br Ings. An Imals are not at all unhappy In the way we are. Not at all, not at all, exceptas Sr I Aurob Indo saysthose that are corrupted. Those that are corrupted are those that l Ive w Ith men. Dogs have the sense of s In and gu Ilt, for the Ir whole asp Irat Ion Is to resemble man. Man Is the god. Hence there Is d Iss Imulat Ion, hypocr Isy: dogs l Ie. But men adm Ire that. They say, Oh! How Intell Igent they are!
They have lost the Ir d Iv In Ity.
Truly, the human spec Ies Is at a po Int In the sp Iral wh Ich Is not very pretty.
But Isnt a dog more consc Ious, more evolved than a t Iger, or h Igher In the sp Iral that Is, nearer the D Iv Ine?
Its not a quest Ion of be Ing consc Ious. There Is no doubt that man Is more evolved than the t Iger, but the t Iger Is more d Iv Ine than man. One shouldnt confuse th Ings. These are two ent Irely d Ifferent th Ings.
The D Iv Ine Is everywhere, In everyth Ing. We should never forget Itnot for a second should we forget It. He Is everywhere, In everyth Ing; and In an unconsc Ious but spontaneous, therefore s Incere, way, all that ex Ists below the mental man Ifestat Ion Is d Iv Ine, w Ithout m Ixture; In other words, It ex Ists spontaneously and In harmony w Ith Its nature. It Is man w Ith h Is m Ind who has Introduced the Idea of gu Ilt. Naturally, he Is much more consc Ious! Theres no quest Ion about It, Its a fact, although what we call consc Iousness (what we call It, that Is, what man calls consc Iousness) Is the power to object Ify and mental Ize th Ings. It Is not the true consc Iousness, but Its what men call consc Iousness. So accord Ing to the human mode, It Is obv Ious that man Is much more consc Ious than the an Imal, but the human br Ings In s In and pervers Ion wh Ich do not ex Ist outs Ide of th Is state we call consc Iouswh Ich In fact Is not consc Ious but merely cons Ists In mental Iz Ing th Ings and In hav Ing the ab Il Ity to object Ify them.
It Is an ascend Ing curve, but a curve that swerves away from the D Iv Ine. So naturally, one has to cl Imb much h Igher to f Ind a h Igher D Iv Ine, s Ince It Is a consc Ious D Iv Ine, whereas the others are d Iv Ine spontaneously and Inst Inct Ively, w Ithout be Ing consc Ious of It. All our moral not Ions of good and ev Il, all of that, are what we have thrown over the creat Ion w Ith our d Istorted and perverted consc Iousness. It Is we who have Invented It.
We are the d Istort Ing Intermed Iary between the pur Ity of the an Imal and the d Iv Ine pur Ity of the gods.
***
0 1958-07-21, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
Human be Ings dont know how to keep energy. When someth Ing happensan acc Ident or an Illness, for example and they ask for help, a double or a tr Iple dose of energy Is sent. If they happen to be recept Ive, they rece Ive It. Th Is energy Is g Iven for two reasons: to restore order out of the d Isorder caused by the acc Ident or Illness, and to Impart a transformat Ive force to repa Ir or change the source of the Illness or acc Ident.
But Instead of us Ing the energy In th Is way, they Immed Iately throw It out. They start st Irr Ing about, react Ing, work Ing, speak Ing They feel full of energy and they throw It all out! They cant keep anyth Ing. So naturally, s Ince the energy was not sent to be wasted l Ike that but for an Inner use, they feel absolutely flat, run down. And It Is un Iversal. They dont know, they do not know how to make th Is movementto turn w Ith In, to use the energy (not to keep It, It doesnt keep), to use It to repa Ir the damage done to the body and to go deeply w Ith In to f Ind the reason for th Is acc Ident or Illness, and there to change It by an asp Irat Ion, an Inner transformat Ion. Instead of that, r Ight away they start speak Ing, st Irr Ing about, react Ing, do Ing th Is or that!
In fact, the Immense major Ity of human be Ings feel they are l Iv Ing only when they waste the Ir energy. Otherw Ise, It does not seem to them to be l Ife.
Not to waste energy means to ut Il Ize It towards the ends for wh Ich It was g Iven. If energy Is g Iven for the transformat Ion, for the subl Imat Ion of the be Ing, It must be used for that; If energy Is g Iven to restore someth Ing that has been d Isrupted In the body, It must be used for that.
Naturally, If a spec Ial work Is g Iven to someone along w Ith the energy to do th Is work, Its very good as long as It Is be Ing used towards the end for wh Ich It was g Iven.
But as soon as a man feels energet Ic, he Immed Iately rushes Into act Ion. Or else, those who dont have the sense of do Ing someth Ing useful start goss Ip Ing. And st Ill worse, those who have no control over themselves become Intolerant and start argu Ing! If someone contrad Icts the Ir w Ill, they feel full of energy and they m Istake that for a godl Ike wrath!
***
0 1958-07-23, #Agenda Vol 01, #unset, #Zen
In the f Inal analys Is, see Ing the world such as It Is and seems meant to be Irremed Iably, human Intellect has dec Ided that th Is un Iverse must be an error of God and that the man Ifestat Ion or creat Ion Is certa Inly the result of a des Ire, the des Ire to man Ifest, know oneself, enjoy oneself. So the only th Ing to do Is to put an end to th Is error as soon as poss Ible by refus Ing to cl Ing to des Ire and Its fatal consequences.
But the Supreme Lord answers that the comedy Is not ent Irely played out, and He adds: Wa It for the last act; undoubtedly you w Ill change your m Ind.
***
--- Overview of noun i
The noun i has 3 senses (no senses from tagged texts)
1. iodine, iodin, I, atomic number 53 ::: (a nonmetallic element belonging to the halogens; used especially in medicine and photography and in dyes; occurs naturally only in combination in small quantities (as in sea water or rocks))
2. one, 1, I, ace, single, unity ::: (the smallest whole number or a numeral representing this number; "he has the one but will need a two and three to go with it"; "they had lunch at one")
3. I, i ::: (the 9th letter of the Roman alphabet)
--- Overview of adj i
The adj i has 1 sense (no senses from tagged texts)
1. one, 1, i, ane ::: (used of a single unit or thing; not two or more; "`ane' is Scottish")
--- Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of noun i
3 senses of i
Sense 1
iodine, iodin, I, atomic number 53
=> chemical element, element
=> substance
=> matter
=> physical entity
=> entity
=> part, portion, component part, component, constituent
=> relation
=> abstraction, abstract entity
=> entity
=> halogen
=> group, grouping
=> abstraction, abstract entity
=> entity
Sense 2
one, 1, I, ace, single, unity
=> digit, figure
=> integer, whole number
=> number
=> definite quantity
=> measure, quantity, amount
=> abstraction, abstract entity
=> entity
Sense 3
I, i
=> letter, letter of the alphabet, alphabetic character
=> character, grapheme, graphic symbol
=> written symbol, printed symbol
=> symbol
=> signal, signaling, sign
=> communication
=> abstraction, abstract entity
=> entity
--- Hyponyms of noun i
2 of 3 senses of i
Sense 1
iodine, iodin, I, atomic number 53
=> iodine-131
=> iodine-125
Sense 2
one, 1, I, ace, single, unity
=> monad, monas
=> singleton
--- Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of noun i
3 senses of i
Sense 1
iodine, iodin, I, atomic number 53
=> chemical element, element
=> halogen
Sense 2
one, 1, I, ace, single, unity
=> digit, figure
Sense 3
I, i
=> letter, letter of the alphabet, alphabetic character
--- Similarity of adj i
1 sense of i
Sense 1
one, 1, i, ane
=> cardinal (vs. ordinal)
--- Antonyms of adj i
1 sense of i
Sense 1
one, 1, i, ane
INDIRECT (VIA cardinal) -> ordinal
--- Coordinate Terms (sisters) of noun i
3 senses of i
Sense 1
iodine, iodin, I, atomic number 53
-> chemical element, element
=> allotrope
=> transuranic element
=> noble gas, inert gas, argonon
=> metallic element, metal
=> nonmetal
=> transactinide
=> actinium, Ac, atomic number 89
=> argon, Ar, atomic number 18
=> arsenic, As, atomic number 33
=> astatine, At, atomic number 85
=> bohrium, Bh, element 107, atomic number 107
=> boron, B, atomic number 5
=> bromine, Br, atomic number 35
=> carbon, C, atomic number 6
=> chlorine, Cl, atomic number 17
=> darmstadtium, Ds, element 110, atomic number 110
=> dubnium, Db, hahnium, element 105, atomic number 105
=> fluorine, F, atomic number 9
=> germanium, Ge, atomic number 32
=> hassium, Hs, element 108, atomic number 108
=> helium, He, atomic number 2
=> hydrogen, H, atomic number 1
=> iodine, iodin, I, atomic number 53
=> krypton, Kr, atomic number 36
=> lawrencium, Lr, atomic number 103
=> meitnerium, Mt, element 109, atomic number 109
=> mendelevium, Md, Mv, atomic number 101
=> neon, Ne, atomic number 10
=> nitrogen, N, atomic number 7
=> nobelium, No, atomic number 102
=> oxygen, O, atomic number 8
=> phosphorus, P, atomic number 15
=> plutonium, Pu, atomic number 94
=> radon, Rn, atomic number 86
=> roentgenium, Rg, element 111, atomic number 111
=> rutherfordium, Rf, unnilquadium, Unq, element 104, atomic number 104
=> seaborgium, Sg, element 106, atomic number 106
=> selenium, Se, atomic number 34
=> silicon, Si, atomic number 14
=> sulfur, S, sulphur, atomic number 16
=> tellurium, Te, atomic number 52
=> ununbium, Uub, element 112, atomic number 112
=> ununhexium, Uuh, element 116, atomic number 116
=> ununpentium, Uup, element 115, atomic number 115
=> ununquadium, Uuq, element 114, atomic number 114
=> ununtrium, Uut, element 113, atomic number 113
=> xenon, Xe, atomic number 54
=> trace element
-> halogen
=> astatine, At, atomic number 85
=> bromine, Br, atomic number 35
=> chlorine, Cl, atomic number 17
=> fluorine, F, atomic number 9
=> iodine, iodin, I, atomic number 53
Sense 2
one, 1, I, ace, single, unity
-> digit, figure
=> binary digit
=> octal digit
=> decimal digit
=> duodecimal digit
=> hexadecimal digit
=> significant digit, significant figure
=> zero, 0, nought, cipher, cypher
=> one, 1, I, ace, single, unity
=> two, 2, II, deuce
=> three, 3, III, trio, threesome, tierce, leash, troika, triad, trine, trinity, ternary, ternion, triplet, tercet, terzetto, trey, deuce-ace
=> four, 4, IV, tetrad, quatern, quaternion, quaternary, quaternity, quartet, quadruplet, foursome, Little Joe
=> five, 5, V, cinque, quint, quintet, fivesome, quintuplet, pentad, fin, Phoebe, Little Phoebe
=> six, 6, VI, sixer, sise, Captain Hicks, half a dozen, sextet, sestet, sextuplet, hexad
=> seven, 7, VII, sevener, heptad, septet, septenary
=> eight, 8, VIII, eighter, eighter from Decatur, octad, ogdoad, octonary, octet
=> nine, 9, IX, niner, Nina from Carolina, ennead
Sense 3
I, i
-> letter, letter of the alphabet, alphabetic character
=> ascender
=> descender
=> digraph, digram
=> initial
=> A, a
=> B, b
=> C, c
=> D, d
=> E, e
=> F, f
=> G, g
=> H, h
=> I, i
=> J, j
=> K, k
=> L, l
=> M, m
=> N, n
=> O, o
=> P, p
=> Q, q
=> R, r
=> S, s
=> T, t
=> U, u
=> V, v
=> W, w, double-u
=> X, x, ex
=> Y, y, wye
=> Z, z, zee, zed, ezed, izzard
=> alpha
=> beta
=> gamma
=> delta
=> epsilon
=> zeta
=> eta
=> theta
=> iota
=> kappa
=> lambda
=> mu
=> nu
=> xi
=> omicron
=> pi
=> rho
=> sigma
=> tau
=> upsilon
=> phi
=> chi, khi
=> psi
=> omega
=> aleph
=> beth
=> gimel
=> daleth
=> he
=> waw
=> zayin
=> heth
=> teth
=> yodh
=> kaph
=> lamedh
=> mem
=> nun
=> samekh
=> ayin
=> pe
=> sadhe
=> qoph
=> resh
=> sin
=> shin
=> taw
=> polyphone, polyphonic letter
=> block letter, block capital
=> vowel
=> consonant
--- Pertainyms of adj i
1 sense of i
Sense 1
one, 1, i, ane
--- Derived Forms of adj i
--- Grep of noun i
aalii
abenaki
abies fraseri
abnaki
abruzzi
abu dhabi
abutilon theophrasti
acacia cambegei
acanthocybium solandri
acanthopterygii
accipiter cooperii
achille ratti
achoerodus gouldii
achomawi
adansonia gregorii
adar sheni
adenota vardoni
aditi
aedes aegypti
aegospotami
aeonium haworthii
aetobatus narinari
afghani
afghanistani
agni
agnus dei
agouti
agropyron smithii
ahmed zoki yamani
ai
aiai
aioli
akhbari
albert szent-gyorgyi
albert von szent-gyorgyi
alberti
alberto giacometti
alectura lathami
alessandro di mariano dei filipepi
alessandro manzoni
aleurites fordii
alexander i
alexander ii
alexander iii
alexander vi
alfred habdank skarbek korzybski
alfred korzybski
ali
alibi
alkali
alpha centauri
alytes cisternasi
amaterasu omikami
amati
ambrogio damiano achille ratti
amerigo vespucci
amorphophallus rivieri
anacanthini
anacin iii
anasazi
andrea guarneri
andrei voznesenski
andropogon gerardii
andvari
angelo guiseppe roncalli
angiotensin i
angiotensin ii
anguilla sucklandii
anguillula aceti
ani
anigozanthus manglesii
anna amalia mercouri
anomalopteryx oweni
antheraea pernyi
anthericum torreyi
antheropeas wallacei
anti
antonio gaudi
antonio gaudi i cornet
antonio ghislieri
antonio lucio vivaldi
antonio pignatelli
antonio stradivari
antonio vivaldi
anunnaki
ao dai
aphis pomi
apis mellifera adansonii
aptenodytes forsteri
aqueductus cerebri
aquila degli abruzzi
araucaria bidwillii
araucaria cunninghamii
arbutus menziesii
arcangelo corelli
arctocephalus philippi
arctostaphylos andersonii
arctostaphylos uva-ursi
argali
armillaria zelleri
arrivederci
artaxerxes i
artaxerxes ii
arteria bulbi vestibuli
arteria cerebelli
arteria cerebri
arteria circumflexa humeri
articulatio cubiti
articulatio humeri
arturo toscanini
arui
arundo richardii
asarum shuttleworthii
ascaphus trui
ascaridia galli
ascii
asclepia meadii
asclepias meadii
ashkenazi
asplenium billotii
asplenium bradleyi
assagai
assegai
aster novi-belgii
aster shortii
ateles geoffroyi
athinai
atsugewi
auricula atrii
australopithecus boisei
avahi
averrhoa bilimbi
ayatollah khomeini
ayatollah ruholla khomeini
azerbaijani
azeri
babinski
bacillus globigii
bahai
bahraini
bahreini
bai
baiomys taylori
bairiki
bali
balochi
balsam capivi
baluchi
bangladeshi
bangui
banzai
baranduki
bari
barnaba chiaramonti
baronduki
barramundi
bartholdi
bartolomeo alberto capillari
bartolomeo vanzetti
barunduki
basenji
basidiomycetous fungi
batoidei
battle of philippi
battle of rocroi
begonia dregei
begonia feastii
bela lugosi
bellini
bemidji
bemisia tabaci
benedetto caetani
benedetto odescalchi
bengali
benghazi
benito mussolini
benjamin disraeli
benni
benvenuto cellini
berberis thunbergii
beriberi
bernardo bertolucci
bernini
bernoulli
bertolucci
berycomorphi
beta centauri
bhakti
bhumi devi
bhutani
bi
biceps brachii
biceps humeri
bihari
bikini
bilimbi
biloxi
bimli
biriani
biryani
black tai
blini
bmi
bo hai
bocci
bodoni
bok choi
bolanci
bold fmri
boletellus russellii
boletus frostii
boletus zelleri
bolti
bombyx mori
boniface viii
bonsai
book of haggai
book of malachi
borrelia burgdorferi
borzoi
bosna i hercegovina
boswellia carteri
botticelli
bouyei
bovini
bpi
bragi
brahmi
brahui
brama raii
brancusi
brasenia schreberi
brihaspati
brindisi
brioschi
broccoli
bronislaw kasper malinowski
bronislaw malinowski
brunei
brunelleschi
bucharesti
bucuresti
bulnesia sarmienti
bunji-bunji
burmese-yi
burundi
burunduki
buyi
c. psittaci
cachi
caesalpinia gilliesii
calamari
cali
calixtus ii
calixtus iii
callitris endlicheri
callitris parlatorei
calochortus kennedyi
calochortus nuttallii
calostoma ravenelii
camassia leichtlinii
camillo golgi
canakkale bogazi
canalis cervicis uteri
canetti
cannelloni
capital of burundi
capital of djibouti
capital of hawaii
capital of malawi
capital of mississippi
capital of missouri
capparis mitchellii
cappelletti
capra falconeri
capri
capsula glomeruli
caranx bartholomaei
caravanserai
cardamine douglasii
cardigan welsh corgi
carducci
carduelis hornemanni
carl yastrzemski
carlo goldoni
carum carvi
cassia roxburghii
cassiri
casus belli
cathari
catherine i
catherine ii
cedi
cedrus libani
cellini
central thai
ceratostomella ulmi
cercospora kopkei
certiorari
cervix uteri
ch'i
ch'in shih huang ti
chagatai
chamaeleo oweni
chandi
chapati
chapatti
charadrii
chari
charivari
charleroi
charles i
charles ii
charles vii
cheilanthes eatonii
cheiranthus allionii
cheiranthus cheiri
chennai
cherubini
chi
chianti
chichi
chicken tetrazzini
chigetai
chili
chilli
chimwini
chlamydia psittaci
chlamydosaurus kingi
choloepus hoffmanni
chou en-lai
chukchi
chunga burmeisteri
ci
ciardi
cincinnati
cinnamomum loureirii
cirsium flodmanii
citellus parryi
citellus richardsoni
citroncirus webberi
citrus paradisi
class musci
class placodermi
claudio monteverdi
claudius i
clematis baldwinii
clement iii
clement vii
clement xi
cli
clovis i
clupea harengus pallasii
coati
coati-mondi
coati-mundi
cocci
cochimi
coleus blumei
conessi
confetti
constantin brancusi
constantine i
coregonus artedi
corelli
corgi
corpus christi
corpus delicti
cortaderia richardii
corticium solani
cosimo de medici
cotacachi
cotoneaster dammeri
cotopaxi
cpi
crataegus crus-galli
crataegus marshallii
crossopterygii
crotalus mitchellii
culturati
cuscuta gronovii
cygnus columbianus bewickii
cynomys gunnisoni
cyrus ii
czar alexander i
czar alexander ii
czar alexander iii
czar nicholas i
czar peter i
da vinci
dacrydium bidwilli
dacrydium colensoi
dacrydium franklinii
dactylorhiza fuchsii
dactylorhiza maculata fuchsii
dagestani
daiquiri
daishiki
dalasi
dalbergia stevensonii
dali
daniel bernoulli
dante alighieri
dante gabriel rossetti
dari
darius i
darius iii
dashiki
dasyprocta aguti
davalia bullata mariesii
davallia mariesii
dci
ddi
decree nisi
dehong dai
delhi
deli
delphi
demetrius i
denali
dendroica auduboni
descensus uteri
devanagari
devi
dhaulagiri
dhoti
dialeurodes citri
dianthus chinensis heddewigii
dino paul crocetti
diospyros kaki
diospyros kurzii
dipnoi
dipodomys ordi
dipodomys phillipsii
discocephali
disraeli
divi-divi
djibouti
djinni
doei
doi
donato di betto bardi
donizetti
dostoevski
douroucouli
drimys winteri
drymarchon corais couperi
dubai
dumuzi
dziggetai
e. coli
eastern turki
echinocactus grusonii
echinochloa crusgalli
edmund i
edmund ii
edward i
edward ii
edward iii
edward vi
edward vii
edward viii
effendi
el misti
elasmobranchii
elemi
elephantiasis scroti
elias canetti
elizabeth i
elizabeth ii
elli
elsa schiaparelli
emperor francis ii
emperor napoleon iii
enea silvio piccolomini
enki
ennui
enrico fermi
entsi
enuki
envoi
epi
epiphysis cerebri
equus burchelli
equus caballus gomelini
equus caballus przevalskii
equus caballus przewalskii
equus grevyi
eriogonum allenii
eriophyllum wallacei
erysimum allionii
erysimum cheiri
erythrina crista-galli
esaki
escherichia coli
ethelred i
ethelred ii
etui
eucalypt gunnii
eugenio pacelli
euphorbia litchi
euphorbia milii
eurylaimi
evangelista torricelli
evenki
ewenki
ezo-yama-hagi
factor i
factor ii
factor iii
factor vii
factor viii
factor xi
factor xii
factor xiii
fait accompli
farouk i
farsi
faruk i
fasciolopsis buski
fausto paolo sozzini
fbi
federico fellini
felis wiedi
felis yagouaroundi
fellini
fenestra vestibuli
feng shui
feodor dostoevski
feodor mikhailovich dostoevski
ferdinand i
ferdinand ii
ferdinand iii
fermi
fettuccini
fiji
filippino lippi
filippo brunelleschi
fmri
forseti
fra filippo lippi
francis ii
francis joseph i
francis of assisi
frangipani
frangipanni
franz josef i
frederic auguste bartholdi
frederick i
frederick ii
frederick william i
frederick william ii
frederick william iii
fri
friuli
fuji
fulani
funafuti
fungi
fungi imperfecti
fyodor dostoevski
fyodor mikhailovich dostoevski
gaddafi
gaddi
gaetano donizetti
gai choi
galeocerdo cuvieri
galileo galilei
galvani
ganapati
gandhi
ganoidei
garcinia hanburyi
gari
garibaldi
gaudi
gaudi i cornet
gauri
gazella thomsoni
gemini
genius loci
gentiana andrewsii
genus avahi
genus indri
genus litchi
genus muscari
genus pecari
genus saimiri
genus seseli
genus thlaspi
george i
george ii
george iii
george vi
geranium richardsonii
gerbera jamesonii
german nazi
ghatti
gi
giacometti
giacomo puccini
giambattista lulli
giambattista marini
gian carlo menotti
gianbattista bodoni
giannangelo braschi
giloacchino antonio rossini
gioacchino pecci
giorgio vasari
giosue carducci
giovanni angelo braschi
giovanni battista montini
giovanni de'medici
giovanni francesco albani
giovanni lorenzo bernini
giovanni maria mastai-ferretti
giovanni mastai-ferretti
giovanni vincenzo pecci
giovanni virginio schiaparelli
giulio de' medici
giuseppe garibaldi
giuseppe mazzini
giuseppe verdi
glandulae cervicales uteri
gnocchi
gobi
goldoni
golgi
gomuti
gondi
gopherus agassizii
gorilla gorilla beringei
gorilla gorilla grauri
gorki
gossypium thurberi
graffiti
grand mufti
grappelli
gravida i
gravida ii
gravida iii
gregory i
gregory vii
gregory xii
gregory xiii
gregory xvi
grevillea banksii
gri-gri
grigri
guallatiri
guarani
guarneri
guarnieri
guglielmo marconi
gui
guiseppe fortunino francesco verdi
guiseppe guarneri
gujarati
gujerati
gum elemi
gustavus i
gustavus ii
gustavus iii
gustavus vi
gyrus cinguli
h. pylori
habenaria greenei
habenaria hookeri
hadji
haggai
haiti
haji
hajji
halocarpus bidwilli
hammurabi
hammurapi
hani
hanoi
hara-kiri
harakat al-jihad al-islami al-filastini
harakat ul-jihad-i-islami
harakiri
haredi
harikari
harkat-ul-jihad-e-islami
harold i
harold ii
harry houdini
hatiora gaertneri
havasupai
hawai'i
hawaii
hayti
hebei
hegari
helenium hoopesii
helianthus maximilianii
heliobacter pylori
helipterum manglesii
helleri
helsinki
hemigalus hardwickii
henry ford ii
henry i
henry ii
henry iii
henry vi
henry vii
henry viii
hermann minkowski
heterostraci
hexalectris warnockii
hi
hi-fi
hibachi
hibiscus farragei
hideyo noguchi
higi
hindi
hindoostani
hindostani
hindustani
hipsurus caryi
hitchiti
hoi polloi
hokusai
holocentrus bullisi
holocephali
holy roman emperor frederick ii
honore-gabriel victor riqueti
hopei
hopi
hotei
houdini
houri
hsv-i
hsv-ii
hualapai
hualpai
huang hai
huji
huldreich zwingli
hydnocarpus kurzii
hygrophorus kauffmanii
hylactophryne augusti
hynerpeton bassetti
i
i-beam
i. a. richards
i. f. stone
i. m. pei
i.d.
i.e.d.
i.q.
i.w.w.
i chronicles
i corinthians
i esdra
i john
i kings
i maccabees
i peter
i samuel
i thessalonians
i timothy
ia
iaa
iaea
iago
iamb
iambic
iambus
ian douglas smith
ian fleming
ian lancaster fleming
ian smith
ian wilmut
ianfu
iapetus
ibadan
ibda-c
iberia
iberian
iberian peninsula
iberis
ibero-mesornis
ibert
ibex
ibis
ibis ibis
ibizan hound
ibizan podenco
ibn-roshd
ibn-sina
ibn al-haytham
ibn talal hussein
ibolium privet
ibota privet
ibrahim
ibrd
ibsen
ibuprofen
ic
icaco
icao
icarus
icbm
icc
ice
ice-cream bean
ice-cream cake
ice-cream cone
ice-cream float
ice-cream soda
ice-cream sundae
ice-hockey player
ice-hockey rink
ice-skater
ice-skating rink
ice-wagon
ice age
ice ax
ice axe
ice bag
ice bear
ice cap
ice chest
ice coffee
ice cream
ice crystal
ice cube
ice field
ice floe
ice fog
ice hockey
ice hockey rink
ice lolly
ice machine
ice maker
ice mass
ice milk
ice needle
ice pack
ice pick
ice plant
ice rink
ice shelf
ice show
ice skate
ice skating
ice storm
ice tea
ice tongs
ice wagon
ice water
ice yacht
iceberg
iceberg lettuce
iceboat
icebox
icebox cake
icebreaker
icecap
icecream
iced-tea spoon
iced coffee
iced tea
icefall
icehouse
iceland
iceland lichen
iceland moss
iceland poppy
iceland spar
icelander
icelandic
icelandic krona
icelandic monetary unit
iceman
icepick
icetray
ichneumon
ichneumon fly
ichneumonidae
ichor
ichthyolatry
ichthyologist
ichthyology
ichthyosaur
ichthyosauria
ichthyosauridae
ichthyosaurus
ichthyosis
ichyostega
icicle
icicle plant
iciness
icing
icing sugar
icing the puck
icon
iconoclasm
iconoclast
iconography
iconolatry
iconology
iconoscope
icosahedron
icsh
ictalurus
ictalurus punctatus
icteria
icteria virens
icteridae
icterus
icterus galbula
icterus galbula bullockii
icterus galbula galbula
icterus neonatorum
icterus spurius
ictiobus
ictiobus niger
ictodosaur
ictodosauria
ictonyx
ictonyx frenata
ictonyx striata
ictus
icu
id
id al-adha
id al-fitr
ida
ida m. tarbell
ida minerva tarbell
ida tarbell
idaho
idaho falls
idahoan
iddm
idea
ideal
ideal gas
ideal solid
idealisation
idealism
idealist
ideality
idealization
idealogue
ideation
identical twin
identicalness
identification
identification number
identification particle
identifier
identikit
identikit picture
identity
identity card
identity crisis
identity element
identity matrix
identity operator
identity theft
identity verification
ideogram
ideograph
ideography
ideological barrier
ideologist
ideologue
ideology
ides
idesia
idesia polycarpa
idf
idiocy
idiolatry
idiolect
idiom
idiom neutral
idiomatic expression
idiopathic disease
idiopathic disorder
idiopathic hemochromatosis
idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura
idiopathy
idiosyncrasy
idiot
idiot box
idiot light
idiot savant
iditarod
iditarod trail
iditarod trail dog sled race
idle
idle pulley
idle talk
idle wheel
idle words
idleness
idler
idler pulley
idling
ido
idocrase
idol
idol worship
idol worshiper
idolater
idolatress
idolatry
idolisation
idoliser
idolization
idolizer
idp
idria columnaris
idun
idyl
idyll
ie
ied
ieoh ming pei
ifc
ig
iga
igbo
igd
ige
igg
igigi
iglesias
igloo
iglu
igm
ignace jan paderewski
ignace paderewski
ignatius
ignatius of loyola
igneous rock
ignis fatuus
igniter
ignition
ignition coil
ignition interlock
ignition key
ignition lock
ignition switch
ignition system
ignitor
ignobility
ignobleness
ignominiousness
ignominy
ignoramus
ignorance
ignorantness
ignoratio elenchi
igor fyodorovich stravinsky
igor ivanovich sikorsky
igor sikorsky
igor stravinsky
igor tamm
igor yevgeneevich tamm
iguana
iguana iguana
iguania
iguanid
iguanid lizard
iguanidae
iguanodon
iguanodontidae
iguassu
iguassu falls
iguazu
iguazu falls
ii
ii chronicles
ii corinthians
ii esdras
ii john
ii kings
ii maccabees
ii peter
ii samuel
ii thessalonians
ii timothy
iii
iii john
iis
ijssel
ijssel river
ijsselmeer
ijtihad
ike
ikhanaton
ikon
il
il duce
ilama
ilama tree
ilang-ilang
ile-de-france
ile-st-louis
ileal artery
ileitis
ileocecal valve
ileocolic artery
ileocolic vein
ileostomy
iles comores
iles marquises
ileum
ileus
ilex
ilex cornuta
ilex decidua
ilex glabra
ilex paraguariensis
iliac artery
iliac vein
iliad
iliamna
iliamna acerifolia
iliamna remota
iliamna ruvularis
ilich ramirez sanchez
ilich sanchez
iliolumbar artery
iliolumbar vein
ilion
ilium
ilk
ill
ill-being
ill-breeding
ill-treatment
ill-usage
ill fame
ill health
ill humor
ill humour
ill luck
ill nature
ill service
ill temper
ill turn
ill will
illampu
illation
illecebrum
illecebrum verticullatum
illegal possession
illegality
illegibility
illegitimacy
illegitimate
illegitimate child
illegitimate enterprise
illiberality
illicitness
illicium
illicium anisatum
illicium floridanum
illicium verum
illimani
illinois
illinois river
illinoisan
illiteracy
illiterate
illiterate person
illness
illogic
illogicality
illogicalness
illuminance
illuminant
illumination
illumination unit
illusion
illusionist
illustration
illustrator
illustriousness
illyria
illyrian
ilmen
ilmenite
ilo
ilosone
ilya ehrenberg
ilya grigorievich ehrenberg
ilya ilich metchnikov
image
image breaker
image compression
image orthicon
image scanner
imagery
imaginary
imaginary being
imaginary creature
imaginary number
imaginary part
imaginary part of a complex number
imaginary place
imagination
imagination image
imaginative comparison
imaginativeness
imaging
imagism
imago
imam
imamu amiri baraka
imaret
imaum
imavate
imbalance
imbauba
imbecile
imbecility
imbiber
imbibing
imbibition
imbrication
imbroglio
imf
imidazole
imide
iminazole
imipramine
imitation
imitation leather
imitative electronic deception
imitator
immaculate conception
immaculate conception of the virgin mary
immaculateness
immanence
immanency
immanuel kant
immateriality
immatureness
immaturity
immediacy
immediate allergy
immediate apprehension
immediate constituent
immediate memory
immediate payment
immediateness
immenseness
immensity
immersion
immersion foot
immersion heater
immigrant
immigrant class
immigration
immigration and naturalization service
imminence
imminency
imminent abortion
imminentness
immobilisation
immobility
immobilization
immobilizing
immoderateness
immoderation
immodesty
immolation
immorality
immortal
immortality
immortelle
immotility
immovability
immovable
immovable bandage
immovableness
immune
immune carrier
immune gamma globulin
immune globulin
immune reaction
immune response
immune serum globulin
immune suppressant drug
immune system
immunisation
immunity
immunization
immunizing agent
immunoassay
immunochemical assay
immunochemistry
immunocompetence
immunodeficiency
immunoelectrophoresis
immunofluorescence
immunogen
immunogenicity
immunoglobulin
immunoglobulin a
immunoglobulin d
immunoglobulin e
immunoglobulin g
immunoglobulin m
immunohistochemistry
immunologic response
immunological disorder
immunologist
immunology
immunopathology
immunosuppressant
immunosuppression
immunosuppressive
immunosuppressive drug
immunosuppressor
immunotherapy
immurement
immutability
immutableness
imo
imogene coca
imou pine
imp
impact
impact printer
impacted fracture
impacted tooth
impaction
impairer
impairment
impala
impala lily
impalement
impalpability
impartation
impartiality
imparting
impasse
impassiveness
impassivity
impasto
impatience
impatiens capensis
impeachability
impeachment
impeccability
impecuniousness
impedance
impediment
impedimenta
impeller
impendence
impendency
impenetrability
impenetrableness
impenitence
impenitency
imperative
imperative form
imperative mood
imperativeness
imperceptibility
imperfect
imperfect tense
imperfectibility
imperfection
imperfective
imperfective aspect
imperfectness
imperforate anus
imperforate hymen
imperial
imperial beard
imperial capacity unit
imperial decree
imperial elephant
imperial gallon
imperial japanese morning glory
imperial mammoth
imperial moth
imperialism
imperialist
imperiousness
imperishability
imperishableness
imperishingness
imperium
impermanence
impermanency
impermeability
impermeableness
impermissibility
impersonation
impersonator
impertinence
imperturbability
imperturbableness
imperviousness
impetigo
impetuosity
impetuousness
impetus
impiety
impingement
impinging
impiousness
impishness
implant
implantation
implausibility
implausibleness
implement
implementation
implements of war
implication
implicitness
implied trust
implosion
implosion therapy
impoliteness
imponderable
import
import barrier
import credit
import duty
importance
important person
importation
importee
importer
importing
importunity
imposition
impossibility
impossible
impossible action
impossibleness
impost
imposter
impostor
imposture
impotence
impotency
impounding
impoundment
impoverishment
impracticability
impracticableness
impracticality
impramine hydrochloride
imprecation
impreciseness
imprecision
impregnability
impregnation
impresario
impress
impression
impressionism
impressionist
impressive aphasia
impressiveness
impressment
imprimatur
imprint
imprinting
imprisonment
improbability
improbableness
impromptu
improper fraction
improperness
impropriety
improvement
improver
improvidence
improvisation
improvised explosive device
imprudence
impudence
impuissance
impulse
impulse explosive
impulse turbine
impulsion
impulsiveness
impunity
impureness
impurity
imputation
imu
imuran
in
in-basket
in-fighting
in-joke
in-law
in-line skate
in-migration
in-tray
in time
inability
inaccessibility
inaccuracy
inachis
inachis io
inaction
inactivation
inactiveness
inactivity
inadequacy
inadequateness
inadmissibility
inadvertence
inadvertency
inadvisability
inamorata
inamorato
inanimateness
inanition
inanity
inanna
inapplicability
inappositeness
inappropriateness
inaptitude
inaptness
inattention
inattentiveness
inaudibility
inaudibleness
inaugural
inaugural address
inauguration
inauguration day
inauspiciousness
inborn error of metabolism
inborn reflex
inbreeding
inc
inca
incalescence
incan
incandescence
incandescent lamp
incantation
incapability
incapableness
incapacity
incarceration
incarnation
incasement
incaution
incautiousness
incendiarism
incendiary
incendiary bomb
incense
incense cedar
incense tree
incense wood
incentive
incentive option
incentive program
incentive scheme
incentive stock option
inception
incertitude
incessancy
incessantness
incest
inch
incheon
inchoative
inchoative aspect
inchon
inchworm
incidence
incidence angle
incident
incidental
incidental expense
incidental music
incienso
incineration
incinerator
incipience
incipiency
incision
incisiveness
incisor
incisura
incisure
incitation
incitement
inciter
incivility
inclemency
inclementness
inclination
inclination of an orbit
incline
incline bench press
inclined fault
inclined plane
inclining
inclinometer
inclosure
inclusion
inclusion body
inclusion body encephalitis
inclusion body myositis
incognizance
incoherence
incoherency
income
income bracket
income statement
income tax
income tax bracket
income tax return
incoming
incommodiousness
incommutability
incompatibility
incompetence
incompetency
incompetent
incompetent cervix
incompetent person
incomplete abortion
incomplete fracture
incompleteness
incomprehensibility
incomprehension
incompressibility
inconceivability
inconceivableness
inconclusiveness
inconel
incongruity
incongruousness
inconsequence
inconsiderateness
inconsideration
inconsistency
inconspicuousness
inconstancy
incontinence
incontinency
incontrovertibility
incontrovertibleness
inconvenience
inconvertibility
incoordination
incorporation
incorporeality
incorrectness
incorruptibility
incorruption
incorruptness
increase
incredibility
incredibleness
incredulity
increment
incremental cost
incrimination
incrustation
incubation
incubation period
incubator
incubus
inculcation
inculpability
inculpableness
inculpation
incumbency
incumbent
incumbrance
incurability
incurable
incurableness
incurrence
incurring
incursion
incurvation
incurvature
incus
indaba
indapamide
indebtedness
indecency
indecent exposure
indecision
indecisiveness
indecorousness
indecorum
indefatigability
indefatigableness
indefinite article
indefinite integral
indefinite quantity
indefiniteness
indefinity
indelible ink
indelicacy
indemnification
indemnity
indene
indent
indentation
indention
indenture
independence
independence day
independence hall
independency
independent
independent agency
independent clause
independent state of papua new guinea
independent state of samoa
independent variable
inderal
indestructibility
indeterminacy
indeterminacy principle
indeterminateness
indetermination
index
index case
index finger
index fossil
index fund
index number
index of refraction
index register
indexation
indexer
indexing
india
india-rubber fig
india-rubber plant
india-rubber tree
india ink
india paper
india rubber
indiaman
indian
indian agent
indian arrowroot
indian banyan
indian bean
indian beech
indian beet
indian blackwood
indian blanket
indian breadroot
indian buffalo
indian button fern
indian capital
indian cherry
indian chickweed
indian chief
indian chieftain
indian chocolate
indian cholera
indian club
indian cobra
indian coral tree
indian corn
indian cress
indian crocus
indian currant
indian elephant
indian file
indian giver
indian grackle
indian hemp
indian lettuce
indian lodge
indian lotus
indian madder
indian mallow
indian meal
indian millet
indian monetary unit
indian mongoose
indian mustard
indian mutiny
indian ocean
indian paint
indian paintbrush
indian pea
indian pink
indian pipe
indian plantain
indian poke
indian pony
indian potato
indian python
indian race
indian rat snake
indian rattlebox
indian red
indian relish
indian reservation
indian rhinoceros
indian rhododendron
indian rhubarb
indian rice
indian rosewood
indian rupee
indian salad
indian senna
indian shot
indian summer
indian tapir
indian tick fever
indian tobacco
indian trail
indian turnip
indiana
indianan
indianapolis
indic
indicant
indication
indicative
indicative mood
indicator
indicator lamp
indicatoridae
indictability
indiction
indictment
indie
indifference
indigen
indigence
indigene
indigenous language
indigenousness
indigestibility
indigestibleness
indigestion
indigirka
indigirka river
indignation
indignity
indigo
indigo bird
indigo broom
indigo bunting
indigo finch
indigo plant
indigo snake
indigo squill
indigofera
indigofera anil
indigofera suffruticosa
indigofera tinctoria
indigotin
indinavir
indira gandhi
indira nehru gandhi
indirect antonym
indirect correlation
indirect discourse
indirect evidence
indirect expression
indirect fire
indirect immunofluorescence
indirect lighting
indirect object
indirect request
indirect tax
indirect transmission
indirection
indirectness
indiscipline
indiscreetness
indiscretion
indispensability
indispensableness
indisposition
indisputability
indistinctness
indistinguishability
indium
individual
individual retirement account
individualisation
individualism
individualist
individuality
individualization
individuation
indo-aryan
indo-european
indo-european language
indo-hittite
indo-iranian
indo-iranian language
indochina
indochinese peninsula
indocin
indoctrination
indoleacetic acid
indolebutyric acid
indolence
indomethacin
indomitability
indonesia
indonesian
indonesian borneo
indonesian monetary unit
indoor garden
indorsement
indorser
indra
indri
indri brevicaudatus
indri indri
indriidae
indris
indubitability
induced abortion
inducement
inducer
inducing
inductance
inductance unit
inductee
induction
induction accelerator
induction coil
induction heating
induction of labor
inductive reasoning
inductor
indulgence
indulging
indument
indumentum
indurated clay
induration
induration of the arteries
indus
indus civilization
indus river
indusium
industrial air pollution
industrial arts
industrial bank
industrial disease
industrial engineering
industrial enterprise
industrial loan company
industrial management
industrial park
industrial plant
industrial process
industrial psychology
industrial revolution
industrial union
industrial watercourse
industrial workers of the world
industrialisation
industrialism
industrialist
industrialization
industriousness
industry
industry analyst
indweller
inebriant
inebriate
inebriation
inebriety
ineffectiveness
ineffectuality
ineffectualness
inefficaciousness
inefficacy
inefficiency
inelasticity
inelegance
ineligibility
ineluctability
ineptitude
ineptness
inequality
inequity
inerrancy
inert gas
inertia
inertial frame
inertial guidance
inertial guidance system
inertial mass
inertial navigation
inertial navigation system
inertial reference frame
inertness
inessential
inessentiality
inevitability
inevitable
inevitable accident
inevitableness
inexactitude
inexactness
inexorability
inexorableness
inexpedience
inexpediency
inexpensiveness
inexperience
inexperienced person
inexplicitness
infallibility
infamy
infancy
infant
infant's-breath
infant death
infant deathrate
infant feeding
infant mortality
infant mortality rate
infant prodigy
infant school
infanticide
infantile amaurotic idiocy
infantile autism
infantile fixation
infantile paralysis
infantilism
infantry
infantryman
infarct
infarction
infatuation
infeasibility
infection
infectious agent
infectious disease
infectious hepatitis
infectious mononucleosis
infectious polyneuritis
infective agent
infelicity
inference
inferior
inferior alveolar artery
inferior cerebellar artery
inferior cerebral vein
inferior colliculus
inferior conjunction
inferior court
inferior epigastric vein
inferior labial artery
inferior labial vein
inferior mesenteric artery
inferior ophthalmic vein
inferior planet
inferior pulmonary vein
inferior rectus
inferior rectus muscle
inferior thalamostriate vein
inferior thyroid vein
inferior vena cava
inferior vocal cord
inferior vocal fold
inferiority
inferiority complex
infernal
infernal machine
infernal region
inferno
infertility
infestation
infidel
infidelity
infield
infielder
infiltration
infiltrator
infinite
infiniteness
infinitesimal
infinitesimal calculus
infinitive
infinitude
infinity
infirmary
infirmity
infix
infix notation
inflaming
inflammability
inflammation
inflammatory bowel disease
inflammatory disease
inflatable cushion
inflater
inflation
inflation rate
inflation therapy
inflationary spiral
inflator
inflection
inflectional ending
inflectional morphology
inflectional suffix
inflexibility
inflexibleness
inflexion
infliction
infliximab
inflorescence
inflow
influence
influence peddler
influential person
influenza
influx
info
infolding
infomercial
informality
informant
informatics
information
information age
information bulletin
information gathering
information measure
information processing
information processing system
information return
information science
information superhighway
information system
information technology
information theory
information warfare
informational rna
informed consent
informer
informer's privilege
informercial
informing
infotainment
infraction
infraorbital artery
infrared
infrared emission
infrared frequency
infrared lamp
infrared light
infrared radiation
infrared ray
infrared spectrum
infrared therapy
infrastructure
infrequency
infrigidation
infringement
infringement of copyright
infructescence
infundibulum
infuriation
infusion
infusoria
infusorian
inga
inga edulis
inga laurina
ingathering
inge
ingeniousness
ingenue
ingenuity
ingenuousness
inger
ingerman
ingesta
ingestion
inglenook
ingmar bergman
ingot
ingot iron
ingraining
ingrate
ingratiation
ingratitude
ingredient
ingres
ingress
ingrian
ingrid bergman
ingroup
ingrown hair
ingrown toenail
ingrowth
inguen
inguinal canal
inguinal hernia
inh
inhabitancy
inhabitant
inhabitation
inhalant
inhalation
inhalation anaesthetic
inhalation anesthesia
inhalation anesthetic
inhalation anthrax
inhalation general anaesthetic
inhalation general anesthetic
inhalator
inhaler
inharmoniousness
inherence
inherency
inherent aptitude
inheritance
inheritance tax
inherited disease
inherited disorder
inherited wealth
inheritor
inheritress
inheritrix
inhibition
inhibitor
inhomogeneity
inhospitableness
inhospitality
inhuman treatment
inhumaneness
inhumanity
inhumation
inigo jones
inion
iniquity
initial
initial offering
initial public offering
initial rhyme
initialisation
initialization
initiate
initiation
initiative
initiator
injectant
injection
injector
injudiciousness
injun
injunction
injured party
injuriousness
injury
injustice
ink
ink-jet printer
ink bottle
ink cartridge
ink eraser
inka
inkberry
inkblot
inkblot test
inkiness
inking pad
inkle
inkling
inkpad
inkpot
inkstand
inkwell
inky-cap mushroom
inky cap
inla
inland bill
inland passage
inland revenue
inland sea
inlay
inlet
inlet manifold
inmarriage
inmate
inn
innards
innate immunity
innate reflex
innateness
inner circle
inner city
inner ear
inner hebrides
inner light
inner mongolia
inner product
inner resource
inner tube
innersole
innervation
inning
innings
innkeeper
innocence
innocency
innocense
innocent
innocent iii
innocent viii
innocent xi
innocent xii
innocents' day
innominate artery
innominate bone
innominate vein
innovation
innovativeness
innovator
innsbruck
innuendo
innumerableness
inocor
inoculant
inoculating
inoculation
inoculator
inoculum
inopportuneness
inordinateness
inorganic chemistry
inorganic compound
inorganic phosphate
inosculation
inosine
inositol
inpatient
inpour
inpouring
input
input data
input device
input file
input program
input routine
input signal
inquest
inquietude
inquirer
inquiring
inquiry
inquiry agent
inquisition
inquisitiveness
inquisitor
inr
inroad
inrush
ins
insalubriousness
insalubrity
insane asylum
insaneness
insanity
insanity plea
inscription
inscrutability
insect
insect bite
insect powder
insect repellant
insect repellent
insecta
insecticide
insectifuge
insectivora
insectivore
insecureness
insecurity
insemination
insensibility
insensitiveness
insensitivity
insentience
insert
insertion
insertional mutagenesis
insessores
inset
inside
inside caliper
inside clinch
inside information
inside job
inside loop
inside passage
inside track
insider
insider information
insider trading
insidiousness
insight
insightfulness
insignia
insignia of rank
insignificance
insincerity
insinuation
insipidity
insipidness
insistence
insistency
insisting
insobriety
insolation
insole
insolence
insolubility
insolvency
insolvent
insomnia
insomniac
insouciance
inspection
inspection and repair
inspector
inspector general
inspector maigret
inspectorate
inspectorship
inspiration
inspirer
inspissation
instability
installation
installation charge
installing
installment
installment buying
installment credit
installment debt
installment loan
installment plan
installment rate
instalment
instance
instancy
instant
instant coffee
instant replay
instantaneous sound pressure
instantaneousness
instantiation
instar
instauration
instep
instigant
instigation
instigator
instillation
instillator
instilling
instillment
instilment
instinct
instinctive reflex
institute
institution
instroke
instruction
instruction book
instruction execution
instruction manual
instructions
instructor
instructorship
instructress
instrument
instrument flying
instrument landing
instrument of execution
instrument of punishment
instrument of torture
instrument panel
instrumental conditioning
instrumental music
instrumental role
instrumentalism
instrumentalist
instrumentality
instrumentation
insubordination
insubstantiality
insufficiency
insufflation
insulant
insularism
insularity
insulating material
insulating tape
insulation
insulator
insulin
insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus
insulin reaction
insulin shock
insulin shock therapy
insulin shock treatment
insult
insurability
insurable interest
insurance
insurance agent
insurance broker
insurance claim
insurance company
insurance coverage
insurance firm
insurance policy
insurance premium
insurance underwriter
insured
insured person
insurer
insurgence
insurgency
insurgent
insurrection
insurrectionism
insurrectionist
intactness
intaglio
intaglio printing
intake
intake manifold
intake valve
intangibility
intangible
intangible asset
intangibleness
integer
integral
integral calculus
integrality
integrated circuit
integrated data processing
integrated logistic support
integrating
integration
integrator
integrity
integument
integumentary system
intellect
intellection
intellectual
intellectual nourishment
intellectual property
intellectualisation
intellectualization
intelligence
intelligence activity
intelligence agency
intelligence agent
intelligence analyst
intelligence cell
intelligence community
intelligence information
intelligence officer
intelligence operation
intelligence quotient
intelligence service
intelligence test
intelligentsia
intelligibility
intelnet
intemperance
intemperateness
intensification
intensifier
intension
intensity
intensity level
intensive
intensive care
intensive care unit
intensiveness
intent
intention
intentionality
intentness
inter-group communication
inter-service support
inter-services intelligence
inter vivos trust
interaction
interactive multimedia
interactive multimedia system
interagency support
interahamwe
interbank loan
interbrain
interbreeding
intercalary year
intercalation
intercapitular vein
intercellular substance
intercept
interception
interceptor
intercession
intercessor
interchange
interchangeability
interchangeableness
intercom
intercom speaker
intercommunication
intercommunication system
intercommunion
interconnectedness
interconnection
intercontinental ballistic missile
intercostal
intercostal artery
intercostal muscle
intercostal vein
intercourse
interdepartmental support
interdependence
interdependency
interdict
interdiction
interdiction fire
interest
interest expense
interest group
interest rate
interestedness
interestingness
interface
interfacial surface tension
interfacial tension
interference
interference fringe
interferometer
interferon
intergalactic space
interim
interim overhaul
interior
interior angle
interior decoration
interior decorator
interior department
interior design
interior designer
interior door
interior live oak
interior monologue
interior secretary
interjection
interlaken
interlanguage
interlayer
interleaf
interleukin
interlingua
interlingual rendition
interlock
interlocking
interlocutor
interlocutory injunction
interloper
interlude
intermarriage
intermaxillary suture
intermediary
intermediate
intermediate host
intermediate temporal artery
intermediate vector boson
intermediate wheatgrass
intermediation
intermediator
interment
intermezzo
intermission
intermittence
intermittency
intermittent claudication
intermittent cramp
intermittent tetanus
intermixture
intern
internal-combustion engine
internal angle
internal auditor
internal auditory artery
internal auditory vein
internal carotid artery
internal cerebral vein
internal combustion
internal control
internal drive
internal ear
internal iliac artery
internal iliac vein
internal jugular vein
internal maxillary artery
internal medicine
internal organ
internal representation
internal respiration
internal revenue
internal revenue agent
internal revenue service
internal rhyme
internal secretion
internal spermatic artery
internalisation
internality
internalization
internasal suture
international
international affairs
international ampere
international association of lions clubs
international atomic energy agency
international bank for reconstruction and development
international candle
international civil aviation organization
international court of justice
international date line
international development association
international finance corporation
international flight
international grandmaster
international intelligence agency
international islamic front for jihad against jews and crusaders
international jihad
international labor organization
international labour organization
international law
international law enforcement agency
international logistic support
international maritime organization
international mile
international monetary fund
international morse code
international nautical mile
international organisation
international organization
international pitch
international relations and security network
international scale
international society for krishna consciousness
international system
international system of units
international terrorism
international wanted notice
international waters
internationale
internationalisation
internationalism
internationalist
internationality
internationalization
interne
internee
internet
internet explorer
internet site
internist
internment
internment camp
internode
internship
internuncio
interoception
interoceptor
interocular lens implant
interoperability
interparietal suture
interpellation
interpenetration
interpersonal chemistry
interphalangeal joint
interphone
interplanetary dust
interplanetary gas
interplanetary medium
interplanetary space
interplay
interpol
interpolation
interposition
interpretation
interpretative dance
interpretative dancing
interpreter
interpreting
interpretive dance
interpretive dancing
interpretive program
interreflection
interregnum
interrelatedness
interrelation
interrelationship
interrogation
interrogation point
interrogative
interrogative mood
interrogative sentence
interrogator
interrogatory
interrupt
interrupted fern
interrupter
interruption
intersection
intersection point
intersex
interspersal
interspersion
interstate
interstate commerce commission
interstate highway
interstellar medium
interstellar space
interstice
interstitial cell-stimulating hormone
interstitial fluid
interstitial plasma cell pneumonia
interstitial pneumonia
interstitial tissue
intertrigo
interval
intervenor
intervention
interventricular foramen
intervertebral disc
intervertebral disk
intervertebral vein
interview
interviewee
interviewer
intestacy
intestinal artery
intestinal bypass
intestinal colic
intestinal flora
intestinal flu
intestinal juice
intestinal obstruction
intestine
inti
intifada
intifadah
intima
intimacy
intimate
intimate apparel
intimation
intimidation
intolerance
intonation
intonation pattern
intoxicant
intoxication
intracapsular surgery
intracellular fluid
intracranial aneurysm
intracranial cavity
intractability
intractableness
intradermal injection
intradermal test
intrados
intramuscular injection
intranet
intransigence
intransigency
intransitive
intransitive verb
intransitive verb form
intransitiveness
intransitivity
intraocular lens
intraocular pressure
intrauterine device
intravasation
intravenous anesthetic
intravenous drip
intravenous feeding
intravenous injection
intravenous pyelogram
intravenous pyelography
intrenchment
intrepidity
intricacy
intrigue
intriguer
intrinsic factor
intrinsic fraud
intro
introduction
introit
introitus
introject
introjection
intromission
intron
intropin
introspection
introspectiveness
introversion
introvert
intruder
intrusion
intrusiveness
intubation
intuition
intuitionism
intuitive feeling
intumescence
intumescency
intussusception
inuit
inula
inula helenium
inulin
inunction
inundation
inutility
invader
invagination
invalid
invalidation
invalidator
invalidism
invalidity
invalidness
invaluableness
invar
invariability
invariable
invariableness
invariance
invariant
invasion
invasion of iwo
invasion of privacy
invective
invention
inventiveness
inventor
inventory
inventory-clearance sale
inventory accounting
inventory control
inventory item
inventorying
inverse
inverse cosecant
inverse cosine
inverse cotangent
inverse function
inverse secant
inverse sine
inverse tangent
inversion
invert soap
invert sugar
invertase
invertebrate
invertebrate foot
inverted comma
inverted hang
inverted pleat
inverter
investigating
investigation
investigator
investing
investiture
investment
investment adviser
investment advisor
investment banker
investment company
investment firm
investment funds
investment letter
investment trust
investor
investors club
invidia
invigilation
invigilator
invigoration
invigorator
invincibility
invincible armada
invirase
invisibility
invisible balance
invisibleness
invitation
invite
invitee
invocation
invoice
involucre
involuntariness
involuntary muscle
involuntary trust
involution
involutional depression
involvement
invulnerability
inwardness
io
io moth
iodic acid
iodide
iodin
iodinated protein
iodination
iodine
iodine-125
iodine-131
iodoamino acid
iodochlorhydroxyquin
iodocompound
iodoform
iodoprotein
iodopsin
iodothyronine
iodotyrosine
iol
ion
ion beam
ion engine
ion exchange
ion pump
ionesco
ionia
ionian
ionian order
ionian sea
ionic
ionic beam
ionic bond
ionic charge
ionic dialect
ionic medication
ionic order
ionisation
ionization
ionization chamber
ionization tube
ionizing radiation
ionophoresis
ionosphere
ionospheric wave
iontophoresis
iontotherapy
iop
iosif vissarionovich dzhugashvili
iota
iou
iowa
iowa crab
iowa crab apple
iowan
ioway
ip
ipecac
iphigenia
ipidae
ipo
ipod
ipomoea
ipomoea alba
ipomoea batatas
ipomoea coccinea
ipomoea fastigiata
ipomoea imperialis
ipomoea leptophylla
ipomoea nil
ipomoea orizabensis
ipomoea panurata
ipomoea pes-caprae
ipomoea purpurea
ipomoea quamoclit
ipomoea tricolor
ipratropium bromide
iproclozide
ipse dixit
ipsedixitism
ipsus
ipv
iq
iq test
ir
ira
ira gershwin
irak
iraki
iran
iran-iraq war
irani
iranian
iranian capital
iranian dinar
iranian language
iranian monetary unit
iranian rial
iraq
iraqi
iraqi dinar
iraqi intelligence service
iraqi kurdistan
iraqi monetary unit
iraqi mukhabarat
iraqi national congress
irascibility
ire
ireland
irelander
irena
irenaeus
irene joliot-curie
irenidae
iresine
iresine herbstii
iresine reticulata
iridaceae
iridaceous plant
iridectomy
iridescence
iridium
iridocyclitis
iridokeratitis
iridoncus
iridoprocne
iridoprocne bicolor
iridosmine
iridotomy
iris
iris cristata
iris diaphragm
iris family
iris filifolia
iris florentina
iris foetidissima
iris germanica
iris germanica florentina
iris kaempferi
iris kochii
iris murdoch
iris pallida
iris persica
iris pseudacorus
iris scanning
iris tingitana
iris verna
iris versicolor
iris virginica
iris xiphioides
iris xiphium
irish
irish bull
irish burgoo
irish capital
irish coffee
irish gaelic
irish gorse
irish monetary unit
irish moss
irish national liberation army
irish people
irish person
irish potato
irish pound
irish punt
irish republic
irish republican army
irish sea
irish setter
irish soda bread
irish stew
irish strawberry
irish terrier
irish water spaniel
irish whiskey
irish whisky
irish wolfhound
irishman
irishwoman
iritis
iron
iron-gray
iron-grey
iron-storage disease
iron-tree
iron age
iron blue
iron boot
iron cage
iron carbide
iron chancellor
iron collar
iron curtain
iron deficiency anaemia
iron deficiency anemia
iron disulfide
iron duke
iron filing
iron fist
iron foundry
iron heel
iron horse
iron lady
iron lung
iron maiden
iron man
iron manganese tungsten
iron mold
iron mould
iron oak
iron ore
iron overload
iron perchloride
iron putty
iron pyrite
iron trap
iron tree
ironclad
ironing
ironing board
ironist
ironman
ironmonger
ironmonger's shop
ironmongery
irons
ironside
ironsides
ironware
ironweed
ironwood
ironwood tree
ironwork
ironworker
ironworks
irony
iroquoian
iroquoian language
iroquois
iroquois league
irradiation
irrational
irrational hostility
irrational impulse
irrational motive
irrational number
irrationality
irrawaddy
irrawaddy river
irreality
irredenta
irredentism
irredentist
irregular
irregularity
irrelevance
irrelevancy
irreligion
irreligionist
irreligiousness
irreplaceableness
irrepressibility
irreproducibility
irresistibility
irresistible impulse
irresistibleness
irresoluteness
irresolution
irresponsibility
irresponsibleness
irreverence
irreversibility
irreversible process
irridenta
irridentism
irridentist
irrigation
irrigation ditch
irritability
irritable bowel syndrome
irritant
irritation
irruption
irs
irtish
irtish river
irtysh
irtysh river
irula
irving
irving berlin
irving howe
irving langmuir
irvingia
irvingia gabonensis
isaac
isaac asimov
isaac bashevis singer
isaac hull
isaac m. singer
isaac mayer wise
isaac merrit singer
isaac newton
isaac stern
isaac watts
isabella
isabella i
isabella stewart gardner
isabella the catholic
isadora duncan
isaiah
isak dinesen
isamu noguchi
isarithm
isatis
isatis tinctoria
ischaemia
ischaemic stroke
ischemia
ischemic anoxia
ischemic hypoxia
ischemic stroke
ischia
ischial bone
ischigualastia
ischium
isere
isere river
iseult
isfahan
isherwood
ishmael
ishtar
isi
isidor feinstein stone
isidore auguste marie francois comte
isinglass
isis
iskcon
islam
islam nation
islamabad
islamic army of aden
islamic army of aden-abyan
islamic calendar
islamic calendar month
islamic community
islamic great eastern raiders-front
islamic group
islamic group of uzbekistan
islamic jihad
islamic jihad for the liberation of palestine
islamic law
islamic party of turkestan
islamic republic of iran
islamic republic of mauritania
islamic republic of pakistan
islamic resistance movement
islamic state of afghanistan
islamic ummah
islamic unity
islamism
islamist
islamophobia
island
island-dweller
island dispenser
island of guernsey
island of jersey
islander
islands of langerhans
islay
isle
isle of man
isle of skye
isle of wight
isle royal national park
isles of langerhans
isles of scilly
islet
islets of langerhans
ism
ismaili
ismailian
ismailism
isn
isoagglutination
isoagglutinin
isoagglutinogen
isoantibody
isobar
isobutyl nitrite
isobutylene
isobutylphenyl propionic acid
isocarboxazid
isochrone
isoclinal
isoclinic line
isocrates
isocyanate
isocyanic acid
isoetaceae
isoetales
isoetes
isoflurane
isogamete
isogamy
isogon
isogonal line
isogone
isogonic line
isogram
isohel
isolation
isolationism
isolationist
isolde
isole egadi
isoleucine
isomer
isomerase
isomerisation
isomerism
isomerization
isometric
isometric exercise
isometric line
isometrics
isometropia
isometry
isomorphism
isomorphy
isoniazid
isopleth
isopod
isopoda
isopropanol
isopropyl alcohol
isoproterenol
isoptera
isoptin
isopyrum
isopyrum biternatum
isordil
isoroku yamamoto
isosceles triangle
isosmotic solution
isosorbide
isospondyli
isostasy
isotherm
isothiocyanate
isotonic exercise
isotonic solution
isotope
isotropy
israel
israel baline
israel strassberg
israel zangwill
israeli
israeli defense force
israeli monetary unit
israelite
israelites
issachar
issuance
issue
issuer
issuing
issus
istanbul
isthmian games
isthmus
isthmus of corinth
isthmus of darien
isthmus of kra
isthmus of panama
isthmus of suez
isthmus of tehuantepec
istiophoridae
istiophorus
istiophorus albicans
isuprel
isuridae
isurus
isurus glaucus
isurus oxyrhincus
isurus paucus
it
itaconic acid
italia
italian
italian bee
italian bread
italian capital
italian clover
italian cypress
italian dressing
italian greyhound
italian honeysuckle
italian lira
italian millet
italian monetary unit
italian parsley
italian peninsula
italian region
italian renaissance
italian republic
italian rice
italian rye
italian ryegrass
italian sandwich
italian sonnet
italian vegetable marrow
italian vermouth
italian woodbine
italic
italic language
italo calvino
italy
itch
itch mite
itchiness
itching
itchy feet
item
itemisation
itemization
iteration
iterative
iterative aspect
ithaca
ithaki
ithiel town
ithunn
itinerant
itinerary
itineration
itraconazole
iud
iv
iva
iva xanthifolia
ivan iii
ivan iii vasilievich
ivan iv
ivan iv vasilievich
ivan lendl
ivan pavlov
ivan petrovich pavlov
ivan sergeevich turgenev
ivan the great
ivan the terrible
ivan turgenev
ivanov
ives
ivor armstrong richards
ivory
ivory-billed woodpecker
ivory-nut palm
ivory black
ivory coast
ivory coast franc
ivory gull
ivory nut
ivory palm
ivory plant
ivory tower
ivory tree
ivorybill
ivp
ivry
ivry la bataille
ivy
ivy-leaved geranium
ivy arum
ivy family
ivy geranium
ivy league
ivy leaguer
iw
iwo
iwo jima
iww
ix
ixia
ixobrychus
ixobrychus exilis
ixodes
ixodes dammini
ixodes dentatus
ixodes neotomae
ixodes pacificus
ixodes persulcatus
ixodes ricinus
ixodes scapularis
ixodes spinipalpis
ixodid
ixodidae
iyar
iyyar
iz al-din al-qassam battalions
izaak walton
izanagi
izanami
izar
izmir
izzard
jacobi
jacopo robusti
jacques bernoulli
jacques tati
jagatai
jaghatai
jaguarondi
jaguarundi
jai alai
jaish-i-mohammed
jakob bernoulli
james bernoulli
james i
james ii
jasminum mesnyi
jati
je ne sais quoi
jean bernoulli
jeroboam i
ji
jinni
jiqui
johann bernoulli
john anthony ciardi
john bernoulli
john ciardi
john paul i
john paul ii
john xxiii
jomada i
jomada ii
jose julian marti
jumada i
jumada ii
juncus leseurii
jupati
jus soli
justinian i
kadai
kafiri
kahane chai
kakatoe leadbeateri
kaki
kalahari
kali
kalki
kam-sui
kam-tai
kamehameha i
kami
kandinski
kapsiki
karachi
karl gustav jacob jacobi
kasai
kashmiri
katari
katsushika hokusai
kauai
kauri
kazakhstani
kekchi
kepi
khadi
khaki
khamti
khesari
khi
khoikhoi
khomeini
khukuri
ki
kichai
kieslowski
kigali
kiliwi
king harold i
king harold ii
king james i
kingdom fungi
kiribati
kirkia wilmsii
kiswahili
kiwi
knee-hi
koasati
kohlrabi
kolami
komi
kon tiki
konakri
konini
korchnoi
korzybski
kowhai
kriti
krubi
krzysztof kieslowski
kui
kuki
kumasi
kurchi
kuvi
kuwaiti
kwai
lagarostrobus colensoi
lagarostrobus franklinii
lake malawi
lakshmi
lanai
lao-zi
lapis lazuli
lari
larix lyallii
lashkar-e-jhangvi
lathi
latissimus dorsi
lazuli
lazzaro spallanzani
lei
leo esaki
leo i
leo iii
leo xiii
leon battista alberti
leonardo da vinci
leopold antoni stanislaw stokowski
leopold stokowski
lepidochelys kempii
lepidothamnus fonkii
lepiota morgani
lepus townsendi
levi
li
libocedrus bidwillii
lichi
ligamentum teres uteri
lilangeni
lilium catesbaei
liliuokalani
linguini
liopelma hamiltoni
liparis loeselii
lippi
liriope muscari
litchi
literati
litocranius walleri
little missouri
loewi
loki
longyi
lonicera morrowii
lophophora williamsii
lorelei
lorenzo de'medici
lorenzo ganganelli
lotario di segni
loti
lotus berthelotii
louis i
louis ii
louis iii
louis vi
louis vii
louis viii
louis xi
louis xii
louis xiii
louis xvi
lubumbashi
luchino visconti
luciano pavarotti
lugosi
luigi barnaba gregorio chiaramonti
luigi cherubini
luigi galvani
lulli
lungi
lungyi
lutjanus blackfordi
lwei
lxxviii
lychins floscuculi
lychnis flos-cuculi
lydia kamekeha paki liliuokalani
lyrurus mlokosiewiczi
macaroni
machaeranthera bigelovii
machiavelli
macrocheira kaempferi
macroclemys temmincki
maffeo barberini
magi
magnolia fraseri
maharani
mahatma gandhi
mahdi
mahimahi
mahratti
maiduguri
makaira mitsukurii
makarios iii
malachi
malacopterygii
malahini
malawi
mali
malinowski
malpighi
malti
mammuthus columbi
manicotti
mansi
manzoni
maoi
maori
mapinguari
marathi
marcello malpighi
marconi
mari
maria luigi carlo zenobio cherubini
maria montesorri
mariachi
marini
marmara denizi
marri
marsilea drummondii
martes pennanti
marti
martini
marumi
mary i
mary ii
masai
mashi
mata hari
matai
matricaria tchihatchewii
maui
maxi
maxim gorki
mayakovski
mazar-i-sharif
mazzini
mdi
medici
mehemet ali
mei
melampsora lini
melina mercouri
memento mori
menomini
menotti
mentzelia lindleyi
mercouri
meryta sinclairii
mesasamkranti
mexicali
mi
miami
michelangelo buonarroti
micromeria douglasii
microtus richardsoni
midi
mikir-meithei
mini
minkowski
miri
mississippi
missouri
mithridates vi
mmpi
modigliani
modus operandi
modus vivendi
mohammed ali
mohammed reza pahlavi
mohammed reza pahlevi
mohandas karamchand gandhi
moirai
molokai
montessori
monteverdi
montezuma ii
montia chamissoi
morbilli
mostaccioli
mount fuji
mount sinai
mri
mrs. gandhi
muammar al-qaddafi
muammar el-qaddafi
muesli
mufti
muhammad ali
muhlenbergia schreberi
mulwi
mumbai
muscari
musci
musculus articularis cubiti
musculus biceps brachii
musculus sphincter ani
musculus sphincter ductus choledochi
musculus sphincter ductus pancreatici
musculus sphincter pylori
musculus triceps brachii
musgoi
mussolini
mustelus norrisi
mycteroperca bonaci
mysticeti
myxinoidei
nada daiquiri
nag hammadi
nagami
nagari
nagasaki
nageia nagi
nagi
naiki
nairobi
namoi
nanda devi
naomi
napoleon i
napoleon iii
napoli
nauclea diderrichii
naut mi
nazi
nebuchadnezzar ii
nebuchadrezzar ii
nefertiti
nemophila menziesii
nentsi
neoceratodus forsteri
neofiber alleni
nepali
nephelium litchi
nephthytis afzelii
nervi
nervii olfactorii
neurotrichus gibbsii
new delhi
newari
nguni
ni
niccolo machiavelli
niccolo paganini
nicholas i
nicholas ii
nicola amati
nicolo amati
nilgai
ninigi
niqaabi
nisei
nnrti
noemi
noguchi
nolle prosequi
nomia melanderi
northern barramundi
nothofagus cuninghamii
nothofagus dombeyi
nothofagus menziesii
nothofagus solanderi
notornis mantelli
nrti
nyamwezi
nylghai
obechi
obi
octroi
odontoceti
oecanthus fultoni
okapi
okapia johnstoni
olaf ii
olav ii
old delhi
olea cunninghamii
olearia haastii
ollari
omani
omega centauri
oni
opuntia lindheimeri
oracle of delphi
order anacanthini
order batoidei
order berycomorphi
order discocephali
order ganoidei
order isospondyli
order ostariophysi
order ostracodermi
order pediculati
order pedipalpi
order percomorphi
order plectognathi
order scleroparei
order stereospondyli
order synentognathi
order temnospondyli
order uropygi
order zeomorphi
oreortyx picta palmeri
organ of corti
origami
ortilis vetula macalli
os ischii
oscar hammerstein ii
osman i
osmanli
ostariophysi
osteostraci
ostracodermi
othman i
otho i
otto i
otto loewi
ottorino respighi
ovis montana dalli
ovis poli
ovis vignei
oxytropis lambertii
pachisi
pachouli
paderewski
paganini
pahlavi
pahlevi
pak choi
pakchoi
pakistani
pali
paliurus spina-christi
palma christi
pan troglodytes schweinfurthii
panini
panjabi
panonychus ulmi
paola caliari
para i
paracheirodon axelrodi
parascalops breweri
parcheesi
parchesi
parchisi
parji
parsi
parvati
pastrami
patchouli
patrai
paul iii
paul vi
pauli
pavarotti
pe-tsai
pediculati
pediocactus knowltonii
pedipalpi
pehlevi
pei
pembroke welsh corgi
penni
pennisetum ruppelii
penstemon davidsonii
penstemon newberryi
penstemon palmeri
penstemon parryi
penstemon rydbergii
peperomia sandersii
pepin iii
pepperoni
pepsi
percina tanasi
percomorphi
peri
peronospora hyoscyami
peter i
petitio principii
phalaenoptilus nuttallii
phallus ravenelii
phase i
phase i clinical trial
phase ii
phase iii
phi
philip ii
philip vi
philippi
phlebotomus papatasii
phyllodoce breweri
physalis alkekengi
pi
piccalilli
picea engelmannii
pichi
pidlimdi
pier luigi nervi
pinus jeffreyi
pinus thunbergii
pirogi
piroshki
pirozhki
pithecellodium unguis-cati
pius ii
pius vi
pius vii
pius xi
pius xii
placodermi
planococcus citri
plantago rugelii
platanus wrightii
platyrrhini
plecotus townsendi
plectognathi
plexus autonomici
po hai
poi
poinciana gilliesii
polyborus cheriway audubonii
polygonum aubertii
polypodium scouleri
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