APPENDIX I That Pondicherry ─ Again!¹ I went out from Pondicherry in 1947 when India was on the eve of securing her partitioned freedom. On my return journey in the month of July 1947, I became conscious of the fact that it was my return to a place where I had passed nearly twenty-five years at a stretch. The memory of my first visit in 1918 awoke in me all the old impressions vividly. I saw then that even at that early period Sri Aurobindo was for me the embodiment of the Supreme Consciousness. I mentally began to search for the exact time-moment when I had come to know him. Travelling far into the past I found it was in 1914 when I read a notice in the Bombay Chronicle a

CHAPTER - VI IN ALIPORE JAIL AND AFTER On 2 May 1908, Sri Aurobindo's residence, 48, Grey Street, Calcutta, was searched by the police. He himself was arrested. It has been stated by some magazines that earth from Ramakrishna's hut which was brought by Sri Aurobindo, was with him when he was arrested. Here is what Sri Aurobindo says about it: "The earth was brought to me by a young man connected with the Ramakrishna Mission and I kept it; it was there in my room when the police came to arrest me."¹ Many members of the secret society were simultaneously arrested: Barin, Ulaskar Dutt, Indra Bhushan, Upendra Nath Banerjee, were all arrested at Murari Pu

CHAPTER V BEGINNING OF YOGA When Sri Aurobindo was at Surat he met Sakhare Baba, a Maharashtrian yogi, who was intensely interested in the question of Indian independence. Sri Aurobindo found his own sadhana becoming very irregular and disorganised on account of the political work. So he told Barin to arrange a meeting with someone who would help him in his sadhana. One of the disciples of Vishnu Bhaskar Lele was at Baroda. Barin had come to know about him and learnt that Lele was at that time in Gwalior. A wire was sent to Lele asking him to come to Baroda. So, when Sri Aurobindo went to Baroda after the breakup of the Congress, Lele had already arrived there. Lele told

CHAPTER VII CHANDERNAGORE From May 1909 to February 1910 Sri Aurobindo stayed at the house of his uncle Krishna Kumar Mitra at 6, College Square, Calcutta. He used to go to the office of the Karmayogin and the Dharma at 4, Shyam Pukur Lane every day at four o'clock in the afternoon. It was winter and Sri Aurobindo came wrapped in his shawl. There was not much work to do in the office; often four or five people would sit together and try automatic writing. One has, in that experiment, to sit with a blank mind, pen in hand, and allow a free action to some force that may intend to write through one. When Sri Aurobindo went to Pondicherry he spent some time there as well exp

PART TWO CHAPTER IX PONDICHERRY: 1910-1926 Moni, as we have said, arrived in Pondicherry on 31 March. He met Srinivasachari and informed him that Sri Aurobindo was expected to arrive on 4 April. But Srinivasachari and others did not trust him. They thought it most improbable that Sri Aurobindo, should select to come to a place as far south as Pondi­cherry, instead of to another place nearer to Bengal. Moni pressed upon them the need of a house, but they were not keen on it. At last, on the day of arrival, Moni asked them to arrange for a house in advance. They said they would manage to put Sri Aurobindo up – when he came. All along they suspected that Mon

Life of Sri Aurobindo PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION (1958) "No one can write about my life because it has not been on the surface for man to see," wrote Sri Aurobindo. On another occasion, when requested to give his consent to a disciple for helping a writer of his biography, he wrote in his inimitable way, "I do not want to be murdered by my own disciples in cold print." How could one probe into such an inner life — infinitely rich not only in its human content of intellectual, emotional and volitional movements, but filled with many varied spiritual experiences which transcend the human consciousness? The move ment of ascent of consciousness from Mind to Supermind,

CHAPTER VIII DEPARTURE FOR PONDICHERRY Disciple: "Why did you choose Pondicheny as the place for your sadhana?" Sri Aurobindo: "It was by an Adesh [higher command]. I was asked to come here."¹ Of those persons who took part in arranging Sri Aurobindo's journey from Chandernagore to Pondicherry, three are still alive² They have published an account of the incident under the signature of Nagendra Kumar Guha Roy. It has been approved by Sukumar Mitra. The facts are as follows: Sri Aurobindo asked Motilal Roy to make arrangements for his departure. Motilal wrote a letter to Amar Chatterji at Uttarpara, in which he informed him of Sri Aurobindo's inte

PART  FOUR CHAPTER XI SRI AUROBINDO ON HIMSELF This section contains portions selected from On Himself and other books of Sri Aurobindo. The political portion is reproduced in full in order to give the reader his ideal, purpose and method and also the appraisal of the work from his own point of view. The other, non-political portions are, really speaking, more important because the reader will find the affirmation of his identity with Krishna, the reason why he carried on an enormous correspondence for nearly eight years with his disciples, how he helped them and how he acted on the world situation. There are some other important things the discriminati

BIBLIOGRAPHY Most of Sri Aurobindo's writings first appeared in the periodicals listed in Part I. His writings later were brought out in the books described in Part II finally collected in thirty volumes of Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library, the contents of which are given in Part III. I PERIODICALS WITH WHICH SRI AUROBINDO WAS ASSOCIATED ARRANGED CHRONOLOGICALLY Indu Prakash English-Marathi Weekly Bombay Sri Aurobindo contributed two series of articles to this newspaper, which was edited by his Cambridge friend K. G. Deshpande. New Lamps for Old appeared in nine instalments from August 7, 1893 to March 5, 1894.

CHRONOLOGY 1872 August 15 Birth in Calcutta. 1872-1879 At first in Rangpur, East Bengal; later sent to the Loreto Convent School, Darjeeling. 1878 February 21 Birth of the Mother in Paris. 1879 Taken to England. 1879-1884 In Manchester (84, Shakespeare Street) in the charge of the Drewett family. Tutored at home by the Drewetts. 1884 September Admitted to St. Paul's School, London. Takes lodgings at 49, St. Stephen's Avenue, Shepherd's Bush, London. 1886 August Vacation in Keswick. 1887 August Vacation in Hastings. After returning from