THE PSYCHIC

The psychic being is the soul developing in the evolution.

Sri Aurobindo

The true soul of man is ... in the true invisible heart hidden in some luminous cave of the nature: there under some infiltration of the divine Light is our soul, a silent inmost being of which few are even aware; for if all have a soul, few are conscious of their true soul or feel its direct impulse. There dwells the little spark of the Divine which supports this obscure mass of our nature and around it grows the psychic being, the formed soul or the real Man within us. It is as this psychic being in him grows and the movements of the heart reflect its divinations and impulsions that man becomes more and more aware of his soul, ceases to be a superior animal, and, awakening to glimpses of the godhead within him, admits more and more its intimations of a deeper life and consciousness and an impulse towards things divine. It is one of the decisive moments of the integral Yoga when this psychic being liberated, brought out from the veil to the front, can pour the full flood of its divinations, seeings and impulsions on the mind, life and body of man and begin to prepare the upbuilding of divinity in the earthly nature.    Sri Aurobindo

659 Psychic tranquillity

By its very nature the psychic is tranquil.

Vallaris solanacea. White

660 Psychic peace

It is spontaneous and does not make a fuss.

Hollarrhena pubescens. White

661 Psychic influence in the emotions

Indispensable for beginning sadhana.

Justicia oblongata. Rose pink

662 Thirst for perfection

Constant and manifold aspiration.

Justicia brandegeana. White or yellow

663 Organisation of the being around the psychic

The first stage of transformation.

Plumbago indica. Pinkish red

THE PSYCHIC

The first [step of self-realisation] is the discovery of the soul, not the outer soul of thought and emotion and desire, but the secret psychic entity, the divine element within us. When that becomes dominant over the nature, when we are consciously the soul and when mind, life and body take their true place as its instruments, we are aware of a guide within that knows the truth, the good, the true delight and beauty of existence, controls heart and intellect by its luminous law and leads our life and being towards spiritual completeness. Even within the obscure workings of the Ignorance we have then a witness who discerns, a living light that illumines, a will that refuses to be misled and separates the mind's truth from its error, the heart's intimate response from its vibrations to a wrong call and wrong demand upon it, the life's true ardour and plenitude of movement from vital passion and the turbid falsehoods of our vital nature and its dark self-seekings. This is the first step of self-realisation, to enthrone the soul, the divine psychic individual in the place of the ego.    Sri Aurobindo

665 Psychological perfection on the way to fulfilment

The state of those who take up the Yoga seriously.

Plumeria rubra. Deep rose to purplish red

666 Psychological perfection in Matter

The first step towards transformation.

Plumeria rubra forma tricolor. White with rosepink

664 Psychological perfection

There is not one psychological perfection but five, like the five petals of the flower: sincerity, faith, devotion, aspiration and surrender.

Plumeria rubra. White with yellow

667 Integral psychological perfection

One of the conditions indispensable for transformation.

Plumeria obtusa. White

 

668 Perfect psychological perfection

Psychological perfection in all the parts of the being.

Plumeria obtusa. White

THE PSYCHIC

 

In order to strengthen the contact with the conscious psychic personality and, if possible, to aid its development, one should, while concentrating, turn towards it, aspire to know it and feel it, open oneself to receive its influence, and take great care, each time that one receives an indication from it, to follow it very scrupulously and sincerely. To live in a great aspiration, to take care to become inwardly calm and remain so always as far as possible, to cultivate a perfect sincerity in all the activities of one's being — these are the essential conditions for the growth of the psychic being.

The Mother

669 Perfect radiating psychology

Can only be obtained by acquiring the divine vision.

Chonemorpha fragrans. Cream white

670 Supramentalised psychological perfection

A psychological perfection aspiring to be divinised.

Michelia champaca. Cream yellow to golden orange

671 Mind

Its true value depends on its surrender to the Divine.

Thevetia peruviana. Yellow

THE MIND

The "Mind" in the ordinary use of the word covers indiscriminately the whole consciousness, for man is a mental being and mentalises everything; but in the language of this yoga the words "mind" and "mental" are used to connote specially the part of the nature which has to do with cognition and intelligence, with ideas, with mental or thought perceptions, the reactions of thought to things, with the truly mental movements and formations, mental vision and will, etc., that are part of his intelligence.   Sri Aurobindo

The mind proper is divided into three parts — thinking Mind, dynamic Mind, externalising Mind — the former concerned with ideas and knowledge in their own right, the second with the putting out of mental forces for realisation of the idea, the third with the expression of them in life (not only by speech, but by any form it can give).    Sri Aurobindo

672 Purified mind

Mind ready to surrender to the Divine.

Thevetia peruviana 'Alba'. "White

REASON

The first thing that should be taught to every human being as soon as he is able to think, is that he must obey reason, which is a super-instinct of the species. Reason is the master of the nature of the human species. You must obey reason and absolutely refuse to be the slave of instincts. And here I am not talking to you about yoga, I am not talking about spiritual life, not at all; it has nothing to do with that. It is the basic wisdom of human life, purely human life: every human being who obeys anything other than reason is a kind of brute lower than the animal. That's all. And this should be taught everywhere; it is the basic education which should be given to children.

The reign of reason should come to an end only with the advent of the psychic law which manifests the Divine Will.    The Mother

CLEAR MIND

Ordinarily, the mind reflects the status of mortal nature and the activities of the Force which works under the conditions of the material universe. But if it becomes clear, passive, pure, by the renunciation of these activities and of the characteristic ideas and outlook of mental nature, then as in a clear mirror or like the sky in clear water which is without ripple and unruffled by winds, the divine is reflected.    Sri Aurobindo

673 Reason

An excellent instrument when it is at the service of the Divine.

Artabotrys hexapetalus. Yellow

674 Clear mind

The first step on the way to conversion.

Artabotrys hexapetalus. Greenish yellow

675 Attentive mind

The mind attains its full utility when it knows how to listen to the higher inspiration.

Cassia. Yellow

ASPIRATION FOR SILENCE IN THE MIND

The only way to establish a constant silence in one's mind ... is to open oneself to the higher regions and let this higher consciousness, force and light descend constantly into the lower mind and take possession of it. And then when this happens, the lower mind can remain constantly quiet and silent, because it is this that acts and fills the whole being. One can act, write and speak without the mind being active, with this force coming down from above, penetrating the mind and using it, and the mind itself becomes just a passive instrument.    The Mother

There is nothing mind can do that cannot be better done in the mind's immobility and thought-free stillness. When the mind is still, then Truth gets her chance to be heard in the purity of the silence.    Sri Aurobindo

676 Awakening in the mind

Let it turn to the Light and to the Light alone.

Turnera ulmifolia. Yellow

677 Awakening of the physical mind

It wants to know and opens itself wide in order to understand.

Turnera ulmifolia. Cream white

678 Aspiration for silence in the mind

Too noisy to be effective.

Eranthemum pulchellum. Sky blue

679 Aspiration for silence in the physical mind

Does what it can, but cannot do much.

Eranthemum pulchellum. Blue violet

PHYSICAL MIND

The physical mind is that part of the mind which is concerned with the physical things only — it depends on the sense-mind, sees only objects, external actions, draws its ideas from the data given by external things, infers from them only and knows no other Truth until it is enlightened from above.

Sri Aurobindo

[The physical mind] is the instrument of understanding and ordered action on physical things. Only instead of being obscure and ignorant and fumbling as now or else guided only by an external knowledge it has to become conscious of the Divine and to act in accordance with an inner light, will and knowledge putting itself into contact and an understanding unity with the physical world.

Sri Aurobindo

680 Physical mind

Becomes a good instrument of action when it is content to be that alone.

Tecoma Xsmithii. Yellow

681 Higher mind

Its superiority lies in its capacity to open to the Divine Light.

Tecoma stans. Bright yellow

HIGHER MIND

Higher mind is one of the planes of the spiritual mind, the first and lowest of them; it is above the normal mental level.

Sri Aurobindo

I mean by the Higher Mind a first plane of spiritual consciousness where one becomes constantly and closely aware of the Self, the One everywhere and knows and sees things habitually with that awareness; but it is still very much on the mind level although highly spiritual in its essential substance; and its instrumentation is through an elevated thought-power and comprehensive mental sight — not illumined by any of the intenser upper lights but as if in a large strong and clear daylight. It acts as an intermediate state between the Truth-Light above and the human mind, communicating the higher knowledge in a form that the Mind intensified, broadened, made spiritually supple, can receive without being blinded or dazzled by a Truth beyond it.    Sri Aurobindo

682 Voice of the higher mind

In quest of Truth.

Anemopaegma carrerense. Yellow and cream white

683 Conversion of the higher mind

Receives its inspiration from the Divine Consciousness.

Lycoris aurea. Bright golden yellow

684 Work of the enlightened mind

It is very powerful in leading the being to the Divine. Can be very useful for progress.

Crataeva adansonii. White turning cream

685 Perfect working of the mind

Can take place when the mind is determined exclusively to fulfil its role.

Trachymene coerulea. Blue or light lavender blue

687 Response of the mind to the Supramental Light

Represents an important step towards realisation.

Asclepias curassavica. Yellow, with golden crown

688 Response of the physical mind to the Supramental Light

The physical mind eager to understand and be transformed.

Asclepias curassavica. Orange red, with orange crown

686 Aspiration of the mind for the supramental guidance

The mind feels that its complexity is powerless and asks for a greater light to illumine it.

Justicia aurea. Yellow

SUPRAMENTALISED MIND

For mind ... is in its origin a principle of light, an instrument put forth from the Supermind and, though set to work within limits and even set to create limits, yet the limits are luminous borders for a special working, voluntary and purposive bounds, a service of the finite ever extending itself under the eye of infinity. It is this character of Mind that will reveal itself under the touch of Supermind and make human mentality an adjunct and a minor instrumentation of the supramental knowledge.    Sri Aurobindo

689 Supramentalised mind

Mind has become an instrument for transformation.

Thevetia peruviana. Orange

690 Mind of Light acting in Matter

A powerful aid to progress.

Castanospermum australe. Golden yellow to reddish orange

MIND OF LIGHT

A new humanity means for us the appearance, the development of a type or race of mental beings whose principle of mentality would be no longer a mind in the Ignorance seeking for knowledge but even in its knowledge bound to the Ignorance, a seeker after Light but not its natural possessor, open to the Light but not an inhabitant of the Light, not yet a perfected instrument, truth-conscious and delivered out of the Ignorance. Instead, it would be possessed already of what could be called a mind of Light, a mind capable of living in the truth, capable of being truth-conscious and manifesting in its life a direct in place of an indirect knowledge.    Sri Aurobindo

691 Kind mind

The mind prepares itself for conversion.

Luffa acutangula. Light yellow

692 Mental simplicity

Does not like complications.

Thymophylla tenuiloba. Yellow

693 Mental goodwill

Likes to show off a little, but is very useful.

Mussaenda luteola. Lemon yellow

694 Mental honesty

Does not try to deceive others nor to deceive itself.

Tristellateia australasiae. Bright yellow

695 Honesty in the physical mind

Preliminary condition indispensable for transformation.

Galphimia glauca. Yellow

696 Mental sincerity

Essential condition for integral honesty.

Solidago. Yellow

697 Birth of true mental sincerity

With its birth the mind will understand that it is only an intermediary and not an end in itself.

Melampodium paludosum. Yellow

698 Mental purity

A mirror that does not distort.

Tabernaemontana divaricata. White

699 Integral mental purity

Silent, attentive, receptive, concentrated on the Divine — this is the path of purity.

Tabernaemontana divaricata 'Flore-pleno'. White

700 Perfect mental purity

A spotless mirror turned constantly towards the Divine.

Tabernaemontana divaricata 'Flore-pleno'. White

701 Mental chastity

Precious and magnificent in its purity.

Oncoba spinosa. White

702 Mentalised power

(No comment)

Abelmoschus esculentus. Bright lemon yellow

703 Formative faculty in the mind

It is a natural and very spontaneous gift.

Crotalaria juncea. Bright yellow

704 Correct perception

A perception that does not deform the Truth.

Cananga odorata. Greenish gold

705 Mental suggestions of organisation

Abundant and clustered, a little dull.

Aglaia odorata. Yellow

706 Mental spirit of imitation

What you cannot find for yourself, you imitate.

Dendropthoe falcata. Pale orange yellow

707 Mental voice

The mind must learn to express only what is dictated by the Divine.

Gmelina philippensis. Bright yellow

708 Curiosity

If we want to be exceptional, let it be through our qualities.

Holmskioldia sanguinea. Several colours

 

709 Mental curiosity

Should be strictly controlled so as not to be dangerous.

Holmskioldia sanguinea. Lemon yellow

 

710 Physical curiosity

Its value depends on its purpose.

Holmskioldia sanguinea. Red

711 Mental fantasy

Disorderly, it too often lacks coordination.

Delonix elata. Cream white

IMAGINATION

Imagination is a fundamental energy of consciousness, and this marvellous, indomitable energy works on without caring whether she is put to use or misuse or no use at all; she exists merely for the sake of delight in her own existence.    Sri Aurobindo

712 Imagination

Abundant and varied, may be charming, but must not be substituted for the Truth.

Cassia fistula. Canary yellow

713 Inventions

Are useful only when they are controlled by the Divine.

Cytisus scoparius. Yellow

714 Inventions

Are useful only when they are controlled by the Divine.

Cytisus scoparius 'Andreanus'. Yellow

IDEA

There is a power in the idea — a force of which the idea is a shape. Again, behind the idea and force and word there is what is called the spirit, — a consciousness which generates the force.

Sri Aurobindo

The idea is the realisation of a truth in Consciousness as the fact is its realisation in Power.

Sri Aurobindo

715 Idea

Essential for all organisers, on its quality depends the quality of the organisation.

Senna alata. Bright golden yellow

716 Fire in the mind

An ardour that sets ideas ablaze.

Caesalpinia pulcherrima. Golden yellow

717 Foresight

A perception that is under the divine influence.

Sanchezia speciosa. Golden yellow

718 Prevision

The power of projecting one's consciousness into the future.

Clerodendrum minahassae. White

719 Seeking for clarity

Likes to say clearly what it says.

Gazania. Several colours

720 Logic in thought

Likes coherent discourse.

Prosopis glandulosa. Greenish yellow

721 Heroic thought

To the conquest of the unknown, without fear of difficulty or incomprehension.

Ipomoea horsfalliae. Intense magenta

722 Thoughts turned towards the Divine

A certitude of beauty.

Viola Xwittrockiana. Many colours

 

723 Integrally pure thoughts

An effect of the Divine Grace.

Viola Xwittrockiana. Cream yellow

724 Sweetness of thought turned exclusively towards the Divine

Lovely, joyful, sweet and calm, sheltered from all conflicts.

Nerium oleander. Pink fringed pale pink

725 Contemplation of the Divine

Occupied exclusively with its joyful contemplation.

Nerium oleander. Light pink

726 Quiet mind

The best way to learn.

Nerium oleander. White

727 Quietness established in the mind

The essential condition for its transformation.

Nerium oleander. White

728 Perfect quietness in the mind

Essential condition for true progress.

Nerium oleander. White, double

729 Turning of wrong movements into right movements

A supreme goodwill always ready to be transformed.

Nerium oleander. Reddish pink

QUIET MIND

The first step is a quiet mind — silence is a further step, but quietude must be there; and by a quiet mind I mean a mental consciousness within which sees thoughts arrive to it and move about but does not itself feel that it is thinking or identifying itself with the thoughts or call them its own. Thoughts, mental movements may pass through it as wayfarers appear and pass from elsewhere through a silent country — the quiet mind observes them or does not care to observe them, but, in either case, does not become active or lose its quietude.    Sri Aurobindo

730 Surrender of all falsehood

Let us offer our falsehoods to the Divine so that He may change them into joyous truths.

Nerium oleander. Bright rose pink, double

THE VITAL

The vital has to be carefully distinguished from mind, even though it has a mind element transfused into it; the vital is the Life-nature made up of desires, sensations, feelings, passions, energies of action, will of desire, reactions of the desire-soul in man and of all that play of possessive and other related instincts, anger, fear, greed, lust, etc., that belong to this field of the nature.    Sri Aurobindo

The vital proper is the life-force acting in its own nature, impulses, emotions, feelings, desires, ambitions, etc., having at their highest centre what we may call the outer heart of emotion, while there is an inner heart where are the higher or psychic feelings and sensibilities, the emotions or intuitive yearnings and impulses of the soul. The vital part of us is, of course, necessary to our completeness, but it is a true instrument only when its feelings and tendencies have been purified by the psychic touch and taken up and governed by the spiritual light and power.

Sri Aurobindo

It is when there is death of desire and this calm equal wideness in the consciousness everywhere, that the true vital being within us comes out from the veil and reveals its own calm, intense and potent presence. For such is the true nature of the vital being, pranamaya purusha; it is a projection of the Divine Purusha into life, — tranquil, strong, luminous, many-energied, obedient to the Divine Will, egoless, yet or rather therefore capable of all action, achievement, highest or largest enterprise.    Sri Aurobindo

731 The vital's possibility of perfection

The day the vital is converted it will have much to give.

Gladiolus callianthus. White

VITAL OPENING

What is needed is the path of vastness, widening, relaxation, ease, of blossoming in the vital — not so much a sensorial vital as ... as a gentleness, a sweetness. The vital blossoming into beauty: a sweetness and beauty. I don't want to speak of "sentiments" because . . . oh, that leads us right into a quagmire! No, but... a sweetness, a charm, a beauty — but not there (in the head): here.

The Mother

VITAL CONSECRATION

If you want a true mastery and transformation of the vital movements, it can be done only on condition you allow your psychic being, the soul in you, to awake fully, to establish its rule and opening all to the permanent touch of the Divine Shakti, impose its own way of pure devotion, whole-hearted aspiration and complete uncompromising urge to all that is divine in the mind and heart and vital nature. There is no other way and it is no use hankering after a more comfortable path.    Sri Aurobindo

732 Vital opening

The vital is ready to receive the divine influence.

Saritaea magnifica. Rose purple

733 Vital consecration

Delightfully modest and fragrant, it smiles at life without wanting to draw attention to itself.

Heliotropium arborescens. Pale to deep purple

734 Attempt at vital goodwill

An attempt is a small thing but it can be a promise for the future.

Jacaranda. Lavender blue

735 Consent of the vital

Friendly, smiling, always ready for action, with a great goodwill.

Browallia. Light blue

736 Enthusiastic vital consent

Here all the resources of its enthusiasm are placed at the service of its consent.

Browallia. Pale lilac

737 Correct movement in the vital

At once the cause and the result of conversion.

Saintpaulia ionantha. Purple

738 Correct movement

All movements are under the right inspiration.

Saintpaulia ionantha. Several colours

739 Vital honesty

Not to allow our sensations and desires to falsify our judgment and determine our actions.

Kaempferia rotunda. White

ENTHUSIASTIC VITAL CONSENT

Energy, strength, enthusiasm, artistic taste, boldness, forcefulness are there [in the vital] too, if we know how to use them in the true way. A vital converted and consecrated to the Divine Will becomes a bold and forceful instrument that can overcome all obstacles. But it first has to be disciplined, and it consents to this only when the Divine is its master.    The Mother

The true vital being ... is wide, vast, calm, strong, without limitations, firm and immovable, capable of all power, all knowledge, all Ananda. It is moreover without ego, for it knows itself to be a projection and instrument of the Divine: it is the divine Warrior, pure and perfect; in it is an instrumental Force for all divine realisations.

Sri Aurobindo

740 Vital patience

Indispensable for all progress.

Ageratum houstonianum. Deep lavender

741 Vital contentment

(No comment)

Bauhinia variegata. White with reddish purple

742 Stability in the vital

One of the important results of conversion.

Bauhinia purpurea. Light pink to reddish violet

743 Stability in the higher vital

(No comment)

Bauhinia purpurea. Light mauve

744 Peace in the vital

The result of the abolition of desires.

Murraya paniculata. White

745 Silence in the vital

A powerful help for inner peace.

Achimenes grandiflora. Light violet to red violet

PEACE IN THE VITAL

The one thing that is most needed for this Sadhana is peace, calm, especially in the vital — a peace which depends not on circumstances or surroundings but on the inner contact with a higher consciousness which is the consciousness of the Divine, of the Mother.    Sri Aurobindo

If you get peace, then to clean the vital becomes easy. If you simply clean and clean and do nothing else, you go very slowly — for the vital gets dirty again and has to be cleaned a hundred times. The peace is something that is clean in itself, so to get it is a positive way of securing your object. To look for dirt only and clean is the negative way.    Sri Aurobindo

746 Aspiration for vital purity

Delicate, modest, insistent.

Duranta erecta. Lavender

747 Vital purity

It begins with the abolition of desires.

Duranta erecta 'Alba'. White

748 Radiating vital purity

Is possible only through perfect consecration of the vital.

Strophantus gratus. Pale pink

749 Candid simplicity in the vital

One of the most difficult qualities for the vital to acquire.

Oxalis. Lavender pink to rose purple

750 Strength in the vital

Likes to show its beauty and power.

Solenostemon scutellarioides. Multicoloured

751 Quiet strength in the vital

Does not like to attract attention.

Tradescantia zebrina. Magenta pink

752 Illumined strength in the vital

(No comment)

Amaranthus caudatus. Off-white

753 Spiritual aspiration in the vital

(No comment)

Celosia argentea. Red

754 Spiritual awakening of the vital

It soars towards the heights in the hope of reaching them.

Solenostemon scutellarioides. Pale lavender

755 Spiritual ascension of the vital

It is more fanciful and less regular.

Stachytarpheta jamaicensis. Lavender blue

756 First turning of the vital to the Divine Light

The vital prepares itself to be transformed.

Rudbeckia hirta 'Gloriosa Daisy'. Yellow

757 Seeking the Light in the lower vital

Does more work, makes less fuss.

Iochroma cyaneum. Deep purple

THE VITAL

There are four parts of the vital being — first, the mental vital which gives a mental expression by thought, speech or otherwise to the emotions, desires, passions, sensations and other movements of the vital being; the emotional vital which is the seat of various feelings, such as love, joy, sorrow, hatred, and the rest; the central vital which is the seat of the stronger vital longings and reactions, e.g. ambition, pride, fear, love of fame, attractions and repulsions, desires and passions of various kinds and the field of many vital energies; last, the lower vital which is occupied with small desires and feelings, such as make the greater part of daily life, e.g. food desire, sexual desire, small likings, dislikings, vanity, quarrels, love of praise, anger at blame, little wishes of all kinds — and a numberless host of other things. Their respective seats are: (1) the regions from the throat to the heart, (2) the heart (it is a double centre, belonging in front to the emotional and vital and behind to the psychic), (3) from the heart to the navel, (4) below the navel.

Sri Aurobindo

LOWER VITAL

The lower vital aspires by offering all its small movements in the fire of purification, by calling for the light and power to descend into it and rid it of its little greeds, jealousies, resistances and revolts over small matters, angers, vanities, sexualities etc. to be replaced by the right movements governed by selflessness, purity, obedience to the urge of the Divine Force in all things.    Sri Aurobindo

MATERIAL VITAL

By material vital we mean the vital so involved in Matter as to be bound by its movements and gross physical character; the action is to support and energise the body and keep in it the capacity of life, growth, movement, etc., also of sensitiveness to outside impacts.    Sri Aurobindo

758 Success in the most material vital

Has value only when it is offered to the Divine.

Gossypium arboreum. Dark red

759 Attachment of the material vital to the Divine

An attachment that insists on feeling the power of contact.

Eranthemum hypocrateriforme. Reddish violet

760 Vital aspiration for union with the Divine

It rises straight up in an intense and concentrated movement.

Polygonum. Light pink

761 Opening of the vital to the Divine Love

Little by little it is no longer the ego that governs, but the Divine.

Euphorbia pulcherrima. Green with red

 

762 Opening of the vital to the Divine Love

Little by little it is no longer the ego that governs, but the Divine.

Euphorbia cyathophora. Yellow

OPENING OF THE VITAL TO THE DIVINE LOVE

It is a mistake to believe that if the vital loves, it must be a love that demands and imposes the satisfaction of its desire; it is a mistake to think that it must be either that or else the vital, in order to escape from its "attachment", must draw away altogether from the object of its love. The vital can be as absolute in its unquestioning self-giving as any other part of the nature; nothing can be more generous than its movement when it forgets self for the Beloved.    Sri Aurobindo

763 The vital governed by the Presence

The vital force made peaceful and disciplined by the Divine Presence.

Tradescantia pallida 'Purple Heart'. Mauve pink

764 Liberation in the vital

Another result of conversion.

Berrya cordifolia. Greenish brown

PURITY OF THE EMOTIONS

The insistence on purification [of the emotions] does not mean that I condemn true feeling and emotion any more than the insistence on a purified mind or will means that I condemn thought and will. On the contrary, the deeper the emotion, the more intense the Bhakti, the greater is the force for realisation and transformation. It is oftenest through intensity of emotion that the psychic being awakens and there is an opening of the inner doors to the Divine.

Sri Aurobindo

THE EMOTIONS AWAKE TO THE FIRST CONTACT WITH THE DIVINE

Emotion is an excellent and indispensable thing in human nature, in spite of all its shortcomings and dangers. . . . [But] our aim is to go beyond emotion to the height and depth and intensity of the Divine Love and there feel through the inner psychic heart an inexhaustible oneness with the Divine which the spasmodic leapings of the vital emotions cannot reach or experience.

Sri Aurobindo

771 Collective emotions open to the Divine

Crowds responding to the impulsion coming from the Divine. An event that marks the great stages of terrestrial life.

Mansoa alliacea. Light purple

772 Emotional abundance

Good feelings that give themselves unstintingly.

Lagenaria siceraria. White

773 The emotions awake to the first contact with the Divine

The Light begins to work in the emotional consciousness.

Acanthus montanus. Light purple to purple

THE EMOTIONS AWAKE TO THE FIRST CONTACT WITH THE DIVINE

Emotion is a good element in yoga; but emotional desire becomes easily a cause of perturbation and an obstacle. Turn your emotions towards the Divine, aspire for their purification; they will then become a help on the way and no longer a cause of suffering.

Not to kill emotion, but to turn it towards the Divine is the right way of the yoga.

But it must become pure, founded upon spiritual peace and joy, capable of being transmuted into Ananda. Equality and calm in the mind and vital parts, an intense psychic emotion in the heart can perfectly go together. Awake by your aspiration the psychic fire in the heart that burns steadily towards the Divine — that is the one way to liberate and fulfil the emotional nature.    Sri Aurobindo

774 Refinement of sensations

Manifold, complex, perceiving the variety of details.

Cassia roxburghii. Pink

775 Purified senses

Can only be obtained by a total surrender to the Truth.

Clitoria ternatea. White

776 Organisation of action in life

Clustered, compact, its action is irresistible.

Combretum fructicosa. Red orange

777 True action in the material vital

Gracious and simple in its spontaneity.

Combretum coccineum. Bright crimson

778 Vital will manifested in life

It is often the cause of the greatest disorders.

Episcia reptans. Intense orange red

779 Will manifested in life

Concentrated and precise.

Episcia cupreata. Bright coral pink

780 Aspiration for the conquest of enemies in the vital

A concentrated and unobtrusive will acting quietly but effectively.

Verbena tenuisecta. Light pink

781 Will to conquer vital enemies

Indispensable for mastery over desires.

Verbena tenuisecta. Rose purple

782 Conquest over vital enemies

The appearance is modest, but the power is lasting.

Verbena tenuisecta. White

783 Power to reject adverse suggestions

The power that comes from conscious union with the Divine.

Codiaeum variegatum. Cream white

784 Perpetual vitality

A vitality that is not affected by external influences.

Conifers. Green

785 Steadfast vitality

The vitality that is based on integral consecration.

Areca catechu. White

786 Vital plenitude

Can only be obtained through conversion.

Pergularia odoratissima. Greenish yellow

787 Formative faculty in the vital

Spontaneous but not always happy, it needs to be disciplined.

Crotalaria. Light purple

788 Vital impulses

Look like nothing at all, but assert themselves and are stubborn.

Graptophyllum pictum. Dull reddish purple

789 Vital fantasy

Ephemeral and unimportant.

Talinum paniculatum. Purple red

790 Vital sensitivity

Is excessive if it is not controlled.

Mimosa pudica. Pale lavender pink

791 Pride

A great obstacle to progress.

Dahlia. Several colours

792 Mental pride

(No comment)

Dahlia. Yellow

793 Vital pride

(No comment)

Dahlia. Mauve

794 Vanity

One of the most frequent forms of falsehood.

Dahlia. All colours

795 Passion

It is a force, but it is dangerous and can only be useful if it is perfectly surrendered to the Divine.

Spathodea campanulata. Reddish orange

796 Greed for money

The surest way to diminish one's consciousness and narrow one's nature.

Ochna kirkii. Red

797 A whipping

A little brutal but sometimes useful.

Capsicum annuum. Off-white or purple

798 Conquest of the armies

Brutal and material, brings no joy.

Stapelia. Purple brown

GREED FOR MONEY

Money is the visible sign of a universal force, and this force in its manifestation on earth works on the vital and physical planes and is indispensable to the fullness of the outer life. In its origin and its true action it belongs to the Divine.

Sri Aurobindo

Money is not meant to make money, money is meant to make the earth ready for the advent of the new creation.    The Mother

Money belongs to the one who spends it; that is an absolute law. You may pile up money, but it doesn't belong to you until you spend it. Then you have the merit, the glory, the joy, the pleasure of spending it! . . . Money is not meant to generate money; money should generate an increase in production, an improvement in the conditions of life and a progress in human consciousness. That is its true use. What I call an improvement in consciousness, a progress in consciousness, is everything that education in all its forms can provide . . . from the education of the body, the most material progress, to spiritual education and progress through yoga — the whole spectrum, everything that leads humanity towards its future realisation. Money should be used to increase that and to increase the material base for the earth's progress.

The Mother

THE PHYSICAL

When I speak of the physical consciousness, I mean the physical mind and the physical vital as well as the body consciousness proper.    Sri Aurobindo

In my view the body as well as the mind and life has to be spiritualised or, one may say, divinised so as to be a fit instrument and receptacle for the realisation of the Divine. It has its part in the Divine Lila, even, according to the Vaishnava Sadhana, in the joy and beauty of Divine Love. That does not mean that the body has to be valued for its own separate sake or that the creation of a divine body in a future evolution of the whole being has to be contemplated as an end and not a means — that would be a serious error which would not be admissible. In any case, my speculations about an extreme form of divinisation are something in a far distance and are no part of the preoccupations of the spiritual life in the near future.

Sri Aurobindo

803 Love in the physical for the Divine

Modest in its appearance, but tenacious and charming; does not make a fuss, but is very faithful.

Ipomoea quamoclit. Intense red

804 Humility before the Divine in the physical nature

First attitude needed for transformation.

Tarenna asiatica. Cream

805 Peace in the physical

To want what God wants is the best condition for it.

Calophyllum inophyllum. White

806 Integrally equal basis in the physical

What you have, I have; what you can do, I can do; what you express, I express — we are all alike.

Clerodendrum philippinum. White

807 Light in the blood

When the blood becomes receptive to the higher consciousness.

Foeniculum vulgare. Greenish yellow

808 Light in the blood

When the blood becomes receptive to the higher consciousness.

Anethum graveolens. Yellow

809 Purity in the blood

Can only be obtained by the absence of desires.

Pimpinella major. White

810 Peace in the nerves

Indispensable for good health.

Guettarda speciosa. White

811 Peace in the cells

The indispensable condition for the body's progress.

Ixora thwaitesii. White

812 Radiating peace in the cells

A happy contagion.

Pavetta indica. White

PEACE IN THE CELLS

Certainly, peace, purity and silence can be felt in all material things — for the Divine Self is there in all.    Sri Aurobindo

Peace can be brought down into the physical — to its very cells. It is the active transformation of the physical that cannot be completely done without the supramental descent.    Sri Aurobindo

In Sri Aurobindo's yoga, the transformation of the body is indispensable so far as it can be done. Because the aim of this yoga is not an escape from the physical consciousness but a divinisation of that consciousness.

The Mother

LIGHT IN THE CELLS

There comes a moment when the body itself finds that there is nothing in the world which is so worth living for as this transformation, that there is nothing which can have as great an interest as this passionate interest of transformation. It is as though all the cells of the body were athirst for this Light which wants to manifest; they cry out for it, they find an intense joy in it and they are sure of the Victory.    The Mother

The cells of the body thirst for the Divine Consciousness and when they are brought into contact with It their aspiration becomes very intense.    The Mother

At the centre of every cell lies the Divine Consciousness. By aspiration and repeated self-giving, the cells must be made transparent.    The Mother

813 Light in the cells

The first step towards purity in the cells.

Lantana. Yellow

814 Purity in the cells

Can only be obtained through the conquest of desires. The true condition for good health.

Lantana. White

815 Emotional beauty in the cells

Seeking and radiating all the emotions of beauty.

Lantana. Mauve

816 Supramental influence in the cells

Unexpected variety in colours and qualities.

Lantana. Many colours

817 Peace in the sex centre

Indispensable for beginning the Yoga.

Morinda citrifolia. White

818 Sex centre aspiring to be purified

The awakening of the consciousness to a higher life.

Anthurium andreanum. Pink

819 Purified sex centre

Is transformed into a force for progress.

Anthurium andreanum. White

820 Mastery of sex

Instead of being dominated by sexual impulses, one must put them under the control of the highest will.

Anthurium andreanum. Red

821 Transformed sex centre

No longer has desires and offers itself to the Divine.

Caladium. Greenish white

822 Supramental influence in the sex centre

It is the assurance of the coming conquest of desires.

Cosmos. Several colours

823 Tranquillity of the sex centre when it is under the influence of the Supramental Light

The supramental influence liberates man from all that binds him to the animal.

Cosmos bipinnatus. White

824 Supramental Light in the sex centre

(No comment)

Cosmos sulphureus. Yellow

825 Hygienic organisation

Cleanliness, order, utility.

Moringa oleifera. Cream white

826 Conquest over the greed for food

A promise of good health.

Dombeya Xcayeuxii. Pink or white

827 Health

Not to be preoccupied with it, but to leave it to the Divine.

Thespesia populnea. Bright yellow

828 Material power to heal

Demands a great sincerity in one's goodwill.

Calandrinia grandiflora. Bright pink

829 Spiritual power of healing

Opening and receptivity to the divine influence.

Petrea volubilis. Violet

CONQUEST OVER THE GREED FOR FOOD

Greed for food has to be overcome, but it has not to be given too much thought. The proper attitude to food is a certain equality. Food is for the maintenance of the body and one should take enough for that — what the body needs; if one gives less the body feels the need and hankers; if you give more, then that is indulging the vital. As for particular foods the palate likes, the attitude of the mind and vital should be, "If I get, I take; if I don't get, I shall not mind." One should not think too much of food either to indulge or unduly to repress — that is the best.    Sri Aurobindo

HEALTH

Always be kind, stop engaging in bitter criticism, no longer see evil in anything, obstinately force yourself to see nothing but the benevolent presence of the Divine Grace, and you will see not only within you but also around you an atmosphere of quiet joy, peaceful trust spreading more and more. And not only will you feel quiet and happy, but most of your bodily ailments will disappear.    The Mother

Health is the outer expression of a deep harmony; one must be proud of it and not despise it.

The Mother

830 Repose

Opens out in calm relaxation. The true

repose is that of perfect surrender to

the Divine.

Clerodendrum ugandense. Pale blue

REPOSE

It is in action, in effort, in the march forward that repose must be found, the true repose of complete trust in the divine Grace, of the absence of desires, of victory over egoism.

True repose comes from the widening, the universalisation of the consciousness. Become as vast as the world and you will always be at rest. In the thick of action, in the very midst of the battle, the effort, you will know the repose of infinity and eternity.

The Mother

You must know how to rest.

There are many ways of doing it. Here is one: first of all, put your body at ease, comfortably stretched out on a bed or in an easy-chair. Then try to relax your nerves, all together or one by one, till you have obtained complete relaxation. This done, and while your body lies limp like a rag on the bed, make your brain silent and immobile, till it is no longer conscious of itself. Then, slowly, imperceptibly, pass from this state into sleep. When you wake up the next morning, you will be full of energy.

The Mother

The rest must be an ascent into the Light, into perfect Peace, total Silence, a rest which rises up out of the darkness. Then it is true rest, a rest which is an ascent.

The Mother

DREAMS

If one learns how to interpret, one can get from dreams much knowledge of the secrets of our nature and of other-nature.    Sri Aurobindo

Yes, certainly, dream experiences can have a great value in them and convey truths that are not so easy to get in the waking state.    Sri Aurobindo

When you practise yoga, the consciousness opens and you become aware — especially in sleep — of things, scenes, beings, happenings of other (not physical) worlds and yourself in sleep go there and act there. Very often these things have an importance for the sadhana. So you need not regret seeing all this when you sleep or meditate.    Sri Aurobindo

831 Dreams

One can learn much by observing one's dreams.

Aloe vera. Light orange

THE SUBCONSCIENT

As there is a superconscient (something above our present consciousness) above the head from which the higher consciousness comes down into the body, so there is also a subconscient (something below our consciousness) below the feet. Matter is under the control of this power, because it is that out of which it has been created — that is why matter seems to us to be quite unconscious. The material body is very much under the influence of this power for the same reason; it is why we are not conscious of what is going on in the body, for the most part. The outer consciousness goes down into this subconscient when we are asleep, and so it becomes unaware of what is going on in us when we are asleep except for a few dreams. Many of these dreams rise up from the subconscient and are made up of old memories, impressions etc. put together in an incoherent way. For the subconscient receives impressions of all we do or experience in our lives and keeps these impressions in it, sending up often fragments of them in sleep. It is a very important part of the being, but we can do nothing much with it by the conscious will. It is the higher Force working in us that in its natural course will open the subconscient to itself and bring down into it its control and light.

Sri Aurobindo

The subconscient is to be penetrated by the light and made a sort of bed-rock of truth, a store of right impressions, right physical responses to the Truth. Strictly speaking, it will not be subconscient at all, but a sort of bank of true values held ready for use.

Sri Aurobindo

839 Divine Will acting in the Inconscient

Is all-powerful even when we are not aware of it.

Clerodendrum. White

840 First appearance of purity in the Inconscient

The sign that the Inconscient is on the way to becoming conscious.

Plumbago zeylanica. White

841 First response of the Inconscient to the Divine Force

The first step towards transformation.

Kigelia africana. Dull maroon

THE INCONSCIENT

The base of the material consciousness here is not only the Ignorance, but the Inconscience — that is, the consciousness is involved in form of Matter and energy of Matter.    Sri Aurobindo

The Inconscience is an inverse reproduction of the supreme superconsciousness: 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.    Sri Aurobindo

All evolution is the progressive self-revelation of the One to himself in the terms of the Many out of the Inconscience through the Ignorance towards self-conscient perfection.    Sri Aurobindo