He greatly admired French culture and wished to make it possible for the students from Baroda to pursue their higher studies in France. But, unlike you, those boys did not seem keen about French. Of course, you have the great privilege of studying French with the Mother herself."

"You also taught French to Nolinida and Amritada, didn't you?"

"Who told you that?"

"Everybody knows about it. Not only that, the first books that they read were the works of Racine and Molière!"

Sri Aurobindo replied, "They were already so learned that I could hardly start by teaching them the conjugations of verbs. I believed that once they had learned to love the beauty and sweetness of French literature, they would master the grammatical rules of the language by themselves."

"Didn't you teach English poetry at the Baroda College?" asked Vikas.

"Not just poetry, but English literature in general."

"It appears that the students greatly enjoyed your lectures."

"Lectures?"

"Your classes, that is."

"Oh! Well, that was their affair. I was not so conscientious a professor as Manomohan. I never used to look at the notes and sometimes my explanations did not agree with them at all. I was professor of English and sometimes of French. What was surprising to me was that students used to take down everything verbatim and mug it up. There at Baroda the students besides taking my notes used to get notes of some professor from Bombay, especially if any of them was to be an examiner.

"Once I was giving a lecture on Southey's Life of Nelson. My lecture was not in agreement with the notes. So the students remarked that it was not at all like what was found in the notes. I replied: 'I have not read the notes - in any case they are all rubbish!' I could never go to the minute

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details. I read and left my mind to do what it could. That is why I could never become a scholar. Up to the age of fifteen I was known as a very promising scholar at St. Paul's. After fifteen I lost that reputation. The teachers used to say that I had become lazy and was deteriorating - because I was reading novels and poetry only; at examination time I used to prepare a little. But now and then when I wrote Latin and Greek verse my teachers used to lament that I was not utilising my remarkable gifts because of my laziness."

"But in Baroda, we are told, you read a lot. Was it then for teaching?" asked Chaitanya.

Sri Aurobindo answered, "In order to be able to-teach better? Oh no. Thank goodness I never had the desire to be a teacher for the rest of my life! To tell you the truth, being a professor was a kind of excuse or an apparent justification for continuing to find time to learn. Actually I founded the rest of my life on those years in Baroda. I not only spent my time there in teaching, I also acquired knowledge of politics as well as, in a small measure, of leading the life of a householder. It was also the period when I began to follow my spiritual discipline."

"Did you then realise what your mission in life was going to be in later years?" asked Rohit.

"Why, have I not told you of my vow to liberate India? But since I had no clear notion then as to the means or the ways of achieving this, I was at first preparing myself."

"In what way?"

"To begin with, I decided that I must know my country - her civilisation and culture, her religion, her literature and her history. Of all these I must have a close and intimate knowledge. To this end, I began to study Sanskrit."

"But is it necessary to know Sanskrit in order to liberate the motherland? Aren't there many leaders who love India yet do not know Sanskrit?"

"What do you call the motherland? A piece of earth? No, she is the fount of your life, she is your mother. It is her love and tenderness which give her children their energy and

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their dynamism. Sanskrit is the language in which have been expressed all our Scriptures. Our religion and culture are founded on the Vedas and the Upanishads, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, the streams of whose thought and philosophy are flowing through our veins. In spite of the various invasions and calamities that she has undergone down the centuries, India still stands today only because her life is founded on this Culture. Therefore in order to know and understand my country truly I had to study Sanskrit. For unless you know the truth of something, you can never love it completely. I made a very close study of western civilisation and culture, and found it akin to me. But I had till then never had the occasion to come close to what was genuinely mine - my language and my culture. So now I gave myself entirely to this pursuit. It is my knowledge of Sanskrit that has helped me write books like The Secret of the Veda and The Foundations of Indian Culture. I have already described to you my first spiritual experience which I had on disembarking at the Apollo Bunder in Bombay. Perhaps that was the first pointer I received that I ought to plunge myself into the study of our ancient Scriptures."

"But Sanskrit is a very difficult language. Its grammar and syntax are not at all easy to master. Did you find a teacher to help you?" asked Vikas.

"No, not really. Though the grammar is somewhat difficult, the beauty of its sound and rhythm is exceptional.

"While I pursued these studies, I continued writing poetry. Until then I had drawn my inspiration from western, often Greek, sources. But now the literature of my country - the Mahabharata, the dramas of Kalidasa and other Sanskrit masterpieces - opened up new creative possibilities for me. For example. Love and Death, Urvasie, Savitri are all drawn from episodes in the Mahabharata."

"Did you then spend all your time working, reading and writing? Did you never take part in the social life of Baroda?"

"Hardly ever, once I was out of the State Office. I am not

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the gregarious type. I was much happier with the handful of close friends that I had all through my years in Baroda. Dinen Roy, who helped me with my Bengali, sometimes asked me the same question. I told him that I did not enjoy social life. That is because my way of life and my aims were very different from those of the people around me. This reminds me of my brother Manomohan who used to wonder how I continued to have the same friends, though few in number, year in year out, with no quarrels or arguments. His friendships were always short-lived and had rather dramatic endings." (Laughter)

"But weren't you close to your students?" asked Rahul.

"I was on friendly terms with a few. I was temperamentally rather reserved, somewhat English if you like, but in spite of that I think they liked me. I was the president of their debating society. They always invited me to their functions and festivities. The company of young students and that of the ordinary householders are different. Ramakrishna said that he would always prefer to keep householders at arm's length because their minds were mainly focussed on worldly matters."

"Dinen Roy writes in his book that you were completely indifferent to matters such as food and clothes. But we are not like that. We love to wear fine clothes, and enjoy good food, while meeting friends and chatting with them makes life sweet for us."

Sri Aurobindo said, "Is that so? Well, there is no harm in wearing beautiful clothes so long as you have no attachment for them. We must never forget the aim that we have set before ourselves and that itself will shape the nature and character accordingly. For me it was a little different: my habits and preferences were not like those of most people."

"Money did not mean much to you either, did it? You earned quite a deal of money and yet, by the end of the month, your coffers were empty, so goes the story. But you were never extravagant or wasteful. So how do you explain this state of affairs?" asked Sachet.

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"I had to keep track of my expenses and accounts in later years, paradoxically, at a time when my life was taking an increasingly spiritual turn. But until then, I was never interested in money nor did I bother about the details of the expenses, provided my daily needs and requirements were satisfied."

"Yes," said Anand, "Nirodda read out to us an account of your life in Baroda, by Mr. Patkar, a student of yours, and later an advocate in Baroda. He says that you were remarkably simple in your mode of living. You never slept on a soft bed as we do, but on a string cot, with a mat on it. When the author asked you why you slept on such a coarse hard bed, you said with your characteristic laugh, 'My boy, don't you know that I am a Brahmachari? Our shastras enjoin that a Brahmachari should not use a soft bed, which may induce him to sleep.' He thought to himself that you must be a great man."

Anand continued, "He also observed your total absence of love for money. You never seemed to care for it. You got a decent salary of Rs.500 a month. You received three months' salary at a time. You took the lump sum and put it in a tray in your room - never bothering to keep it in a safe, under lock and key. You never cared to keep an account. This struck Mr. Patkar, and one day he casually asked you why you kept your money like that. You simply laughed and said, 'It is a proof that we are living amidst honest and good people. "

Sita took up the thread, "He asked you again, 'You never keep any account which may testify to the honesty of the people around you?' Then with a serene face you gave a reply which he remembers even after fifty years, 'It is God who keeps an account for me. He gives me as much as I want and keeps the rest to Himself. At any rate He does not keep me in want; then why should I worry?' "

"And I had so many other things to attend to. Also, I grew progressively more involved with my country's problems. Add to them my own spiritual life. Each problem was

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complex, and most of them quite urgent. In fact, if I begin telling you about my political activities my stories will resemble the Arabian Nights! And I am not sure whether you children will begin to grasp or even enjoy the twists and turns of politics."

"But we love the Arabian Nights!" said Aditi. "All right, I'll tell you my stories at the right time." "You mustn't omit anything, we want to hear the whole of them. Actually, how was it that you joined politics? We have heard that civil servants could not take part in political activities."

"I know, but still I managed to, rather cleverly. You see, in the beginning I did not openly participate in politics. I began by writing articles. A friend of mine owned a news-paper Induprakash and he requested me to contribute articles to it and I did so, using a pen-name. In those days, our Congress Party was controlled mainly by the Moderates, that is to say, those who were wealthy, well-connected and generally well-respected. They were its leaders. They believed that in order to help our fellow countrymen, we must never displease or annoy our rulers. On the contrary, we should beg favours from them by sending them humble prayers and petitions, that is to say, follow a mendicant policy. I wrote several articles strongly criticising this attitude. They were published under the heading 'New Lamps for Old'. Our leaders, on reading them, were very disturbed. Who is this firebrand? Whose unripe mind has written these articles? They wondered. The great Ranade himself sent for my friend and sternly forbade him to publish any more such writings if he did not wish to be thrown in jail and the paper banned. When he found out that I was the author, a mere twenty-two year old youth, he said to me: 'Look here, young man, you write well but your language is exceedingly sharp and hot. Instead of being so critical of both us and the government, why do you not make a better use of your keen talents? Write constructively. For example, you could give suggestions for improving the lamentable

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conditions of our jails, or other similar themes of social reform.' What a piece of advice! But indeed I have often been given advice such as this by our Moderate leaders. Some of them used bitter or sarcastic language, others a sweeter turn of phrase - but the intentions were the same. Perhaps the Lord sent me later to prison partly to fulfil Mr. Ranade's good counsel, to acquire a direct knowledge of jails! This was how I was initiated into politics."

"Today, we will enter more fully into a discussion of politics, though I am not sure your innocent minds will really be able to comprehend its complexity and deviousness, particularly since the life in our Ashram is completely cut off from all political activity. Besides, I don't think you are much interested to hear about all that ancient history in detail, especially about the Independence Movement."

"No, no, that's not true. We may not understand everything but we would certainly like to hear it from you. Our teachers have already told us quite a bit about the country and the revolutionary activities that led to its independence. You were one of the leaders of the Revolution."

Sri Aurobindo said, "Oh! You have heard that, have you! But actually, it's not wholly true."

"How's that?"

"Well, I suppose I'll have to start from the beginning.

"When the Induprakash was forbidden to publish my articles and essays, I realised that the country was really led by the Moderates, by men who cared more for their own reputation and happiness than for the motherland. They would have liked to help the latter, but certainly not by jeopardising the former. And so they had no intention of clashing with or revolting against the authorities. They believed that if we Indians behaved like good children, obeying in all matters the kind, well-intentioned British government, then it would surely offer us our independence

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on a silver platter. Not only were they completely unwilling to sacrifice their own interests, they were also quite capable of hindering the work of any true and idealistic patriot if they found that he came in the way of their personal interests. And they all loved power, so they clung to it with all their might.

"Certain things about my future course of action now became clear to me. First of all, the power must be snatched away from these older people, that is to say, the younger revolutionaries must take over the Congress Party. We must proclaim our aim of complete independence, an aim that was believed to be a dream of fools in those days, since it hardly seemed likely of the great British government to give us our freedom ever to be strong enough to snatch it from them. Hence according to the older Congress members our best policy was to hope for their kindness and condescension to give us some limited powers. This was a clear instance of the slave mentality which characterised the thinking of many of those leaders.

"Secondly, a band of young men had to be trained in secret who could in due course rise up in armed rebellion against the government. Actually, several such groups, inspired by European ideas, were preparing themselves already for a similar armed revolt, particularly in Bengal and in Maharashtra."

"But what' could those small rebellions do against the mighty British Empire?" questioned Anand.

"You know, success was not the only issue. It was also sacrifice, for sacrifice alone can give back to a moribund race its self-respect and confidence. And nothing as great as freedom can be won cheaply. It demands its price of blood. Your arguments sound very similar to those of the older gentlemen of those days. Many others too thought like them, not only because they were afraid, but also because they lacked any real knowledge either of politics or of warfare. Perhaps your error stems from the fact that you are judging .the situation of the time by today's standards of

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political and military power. In those days no nation on earth had the military armaments or organisation one commonly finds today. The gun, not even the cannon, was the chief weapon, and aeroplanes did not yet exist. Just think how vast India is! And this land was ruled from thousands of miles away by a nation that was a tiny fraction of its size. A handful of British officers and a few thousand soldiers - mostly Indians - kept our country under its yoke. One may say that Indian soldiers and Indian officials kept the country subject to the foreigner, a situation that has no parallel in the history of the world. Have you heard of the attack on the Chittagong Armoury? If only a few ill-equipped youths could cut off the city of Chittagong from the rest of the country, what could not have been possible if the whole country had possessed an organised network of rebels, all trained in guerilla warfare? Our huge country is an ideal setting for this type of warfare which Shivaji and the Marathas had used with so much success, attacking and destroying the government's forces with silent, deadly stealth."

"But what about the repercussions? Wouldn't the government retaliate with renewed oppression?"

"That was just what was required, the excessive cruelty which alone would shake a slavish nation out of its passivity and torpor. It could also help to bind the country together. The belief held by our educated elite about British magnanimity and kindness would be dispelled, and even the Indian armed forces would be roused to rebellion. Another thing that our leaders had insufficient knowledge of was the English character and its politics. The British government, though it was imperialist, was quite different from Germany or Japan. Its politics had always been quite sharp and subtle while its practical sense recognised the fact that there are times when mutual agreement and compromise are necessary. Once it realised that the colonies would no longer accept the yoke of oppression and injustice at any cost, it would try to find a solution for getting out of the impasse

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with a minimum loss of self-respect. The British don't usually kick you out of their house, they prefer to show you the door, though sometimes of course they may throw you out by the scruff of your neck. (Laughter) There have been Indians who felt elated at the news of Hitler's victories and some would have even welcomed Japan into our homeland, but they forgot the cruelty and inhumanity those nations are capable of. What Hitler did to Europe would have happened to India if he had ever taken over our country."

"But Japan is Asiatic, she is one of us. Many believe that if Japan had come to India, she would have helped us to win our freedom and to become a strong nation - after whichshe would have left."

"Oh! is that so? What an infantile notion! Do you not know the age-old dream of the Nippon Sun never setting over the whole of Asia? If Japan had once managed to get a foothold in India, no force on earth, neither the I.N.A. nor Gandhi's Non-cooperation Movement could have succeeded in throwing her out. In comparison the British are infinitely milder. You saw how, having offered us our freedom, they slipped out of our country more or less quietly. It is extremely rare in the history of the world for a nation to win its freedom without bloodshed. Their behaviour tallied exactly with the conclusions I had drawn when I had made an analysis of their character during my stay in England."

"But today ours is a partitioned freedom with its terrible aftermath of bloodshed...."

"Ah! But we ourselves are responsible for that mistake. Anyway, let's shelve these discussions for the present and come back to our story. So there I was in Baroda. The next step in my political plan was to get a young man named Jatin Banerjee to join the Maharaja's army so that he might receive a military training."

"But why in Baroda?"

"Because the Maharaja was a patriotic man and quite independent-minded. Also because the British government refused to accept Bengalis into the military on the excuse

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that the Bengali race was not a martial one. The truth of the matter was that it did not trust Bengalis. Later when Jatin had finished his training, I sent him back to Bengal as my representative. By then, very many centres of physical training had sprung up all over the state where boys learned wrestling and boxing and other combative sports. These centres and clubs taught them not only how to strengthen their bodies but also how to ride and shoot. I wished at the same time to inculcate in them a spirit of oneness as well as to awaken the spirit of revolt. The young men were very receptive to these new ideas and the clubs multiplied very fast indeed.

"In the meantime I too joined the revolutionaries of western India. I was sworn into the Party. When I went to Bengal I met P. Mitra and a number of other leaders to whom I spoke about this revolutionary society. Many of them decided to take the oath that would make them its members. Another of my aims was to unite the various centres and associations fighting for our freedom into one single body. In that I did not succeed. But even this failure helped our cause, one may say, for all these small separate groups were very dynamic and the revolutionary ideals spread far and wide. My brother Barin whom I had already initiated into the Movement now became one of its most active workers. These young rebels gave the country the fire and force which were so evident just after the partition of Bengal, and it was they who were the core around which grew the Extremist Party, a Party that rose up as a direct challenge to the Moderates."

"But how did you manage to do two things at once - your job and your revolutionary activities?" asked Rohit, rather puzzled.

Sri Aurobindo replied, "The revolutionary in me continued with these secret activities while the professor diligently taught his students - what was so difficult about that? .No one outside our organisation knew about us and our aims and then, when the work required me to go to

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Bengal, I would ask for special leave of absence and go there."

"We have heard that you even got married?"

"Why is that so incredible?" Sri Aurobindo laughed. "Many people find it hard to believe, because they are convinced that I was a Yogi from birth!"

"But isn't marriage a hindrance to one who has sworn to free his motherland?"

"Why should that be so? Most of the Swadeshi leaders were married and were heads sometimes of large families. For example, the father of your Tejenda was a great nationalist leader. Did his marriage come in the way of the sacrifice he made for his country?

"Since you have raised the topic of marriage, let me tell you a story. When I was to get married, the Brahmins asked me to shave my head, but I refused to do so. In fact I was unwilling to perform any rite whatever that they asked me to perform. You know, don't you, that orthodox Hindus were expected to do penance when they returned home after leaving the shores of India, particularly if they had visited Europe. When I refused everything the poor Pandits told me - 'Well, then, give us some money and we will perform all your penances for you!' (Laughter)

"One fine morning after my marriage, my brother Barin unexpectedly appeared on our doorstep. His dirty unshaved face and filthy clothes reminded me of an escaped convict. 'Straight into the bathroom,' I told him. 'Wash yourself and get into something clean before we sit down to talk.' He did this readily. After his matriculation, Barin had been staying in Patna with our brother Manomohan where he had set up a tea-shop. Since he was no good as a businessman, his venture had failed and here he was! It was at this time that he started getting interested in spiritualism and began reading a great deal about what happens to the soul after the body dies. His curiosity about this occult question grew and, seeking to experiment with these phenomena, he began to practise the planchette and automatic writing. I too would

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sometimes join him in these sessions. Some of the results were truly startling."

"Yesterday I mentioned the planchette and automatic writing, didn't I? In Baroda, we practised automatic writing a good deal. A few of us would sit around a table, silently. One person would be the medium. He would hold a pen and have a piece of paper before him. He would write a question and then everybody would wait for the answer, without speaking, seeking to still even the movements of the mind through concentration. In due course, a spirit would come and it was as if it held the medium's hand while it wrote just as your mothers did when they taught you to form your letters. The medium had to surrender himself completely, letting the spirit guide him. At some of those sessions, Barin would ask to be the medium. Once he decided to call our father's spirit. Father had always loved him very dearly. During all the years that we had been away in England, he was the only son, the youngest, who had been with Father, the recipient of all his paternal affection.

"So that day, we sat there wondering, waiting for his spirit to come to us. All of a sudden Barin's pen began to move on the paper, and the spirit introduced itself. But Barin remained sceptical; he demanded further proof before believing that it was indeed our father. So the spirit reminded my brother of a gold watch which Father had once given him, a fact that Barin had quite forgotten. This proof so excited him that he began to make more demands on the spirit. One of the most amusing messages he received was the information that if he looked carefully on the walls of the house of an engineer called Deodhar, he would find the drawing of a monkey. Deodhar happened to be present at the time and he denied the fact. The spirit then requested Deodhar to investigate the matter which he did later by asking his mother. She replied that indeed there was such a

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drawing but that it was now hidden by a coat of plaster and whitewash."

"Fantastic! How did your father's spirit know about that?" asked Anirban.

"I'll tell you. But first listen to even more fantastic stories. The spirit made two prophecies about the future, both of which later came true to the letter. The first one was about Lord Curzon. At that time it was he who had suggested partitioning Bengal, creating acute and widespread discontent; all over the state people were criticising and opposing the implementation of the idea. It was at that point that the spirit informed us that Curzon would soon leave India, although at the time there was absolutely no question of his resigning or being pushed out of his position. The spirit told us that it had seen Curzon trying to gaze at the other side of the blue sea, and that is why it was sure he would go. In fact, Curzon was indeed forced to leave unexpectedly, though somewhat later."

"This is unbelievable! How could the spirit prophesy something that did not seem even remotely possible at the time?" asked Mandakini.

"But that is the very nature of prophecy. Often the present gives us no inkling of what is to come. I have told you, haven't I, that whatever happens here has already taken place in an invisible world, sometimes much earlier. It only takes time to materialise on our earth, that's all. Those who can contact this invisible world do not find it difficult to know about its events and activities. But that does not mean that everything they see there will be realised here in our physical world, or even that they should be able to predict when it will manifest itself, if it does do so. You must have heard that the Mother had known about India's freedom as far back as 1915. She had then seen a vision of innumerable people, gleefully running with their arms raised and chanting, 'We are free! We are free!' Yet it took India so many years to become politically independent. But your rational Science does not believe in occultism - that is because

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Science is still so undeveloped and immature.

"When somebody asked the spirit about Tilak and what sort of a man he was, it replied: 'When all that you have striven for will seem lost and ruined and your erstwhile friends have turned their backs on you or betrayed you, then this man alone will stand by you, holding his head high.' This prophecy too proved to be absolutely true. In the annals of our Revolutionary Movement Tilak's name indeed shines most brightly."

The youthful audience looked at one another in silent questioning puzzlement at all these strange revelations. Sri Aurobindo continued:

"Whether the spirit was my father's or someone else's, it certainly was an exceptional one. All spirits do not know so much, neither are their revelations so effective. The other spirit that we called was supposed to be that of Sri Ramakrishna, which commanded us, 'Build a temple.' Just that, nothing but those words. At that time we were in fact planning to build a temple to the Goddess Bhavani. So we immediately concluded that the plan met with his approval. But, in fact, he wanted us to raise a temple to the Mother within us, not just build a stone edifice. I realised this only much later through an experience which finally made me turn to Yoga."

"So there is some truth in these things?"

"Of course there is some truth, but a great deal of falsehood and error is mixed up with it - it is indeed quite a mixture. Oh, yes! I forgot to mention a detail. What Barin wrote was beautifully worded in excellent English, an English which should normally be beyond the reach of one who had studied only up to matriculation."

"But how are such things possible? Is it the souls of these great beings who help in automatic writing?"

"Souls? Certainly not, because souls do not linger so many years in the earth-atmosphere. Actually those early experiments with occultism roused my interest sufficiently for me to try them again later, both in Calcutta and

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Pondicherry. But my experiences never revealed any profound or fundamental truths, which is why I gave up dabbling in them. The human entity goes through many transitions after death, and it would be an unacceptable oversimplification to call it a 'soul'. We ordinarily believe that man has a body and a soul, and that after death the soul goes either to heaven, to hell or takes up another body. But very many events intervene before these things happen. Besides his physical body, man has several subtle bodies or sheaths about which most people are ignorant. And in the subtle worlds, there are innumerable separate entities, small and big, good and bad. In short, even when the soul has returned to its own world after the death of the physical body, the subtle sheaths may be taken hold of by subtle beings of the supra-physical planes, who may pass under the old names. It is rare for the being to return clothed in its own sheaths which it had cast off earlier. The phenomenon that occurs in automatic writing does not concern merely these subtle sheaths of human beings. In some cases its source or inspiration is directly from beings of various non-physical though usually not very elevated planes. Most often they are part of the play of the writer's subliminal consciousness. You surely know that our ordinary external consciousness is not the only one we possess, for behind it is a vast and deep world of consciousness - which is why it is called the subliminal. What our conscious minds do not know is often known to this inner consciousness, a knowledge which extends even to the future. If you can take hold of a pure strand of this hidden consciousness, then your writing may reveal the past, present or future. But remember, the strand must be pure - something that is not easy to get, which is why this sort of writing is often of little value. But it is also an error to pass it off as dramatic imagination. I myself experimented with automatic writing once, in the process of which I managed to write a whole book called Yogic Sadhan. Whenever I sat down to write the book, I would see the spirit-form of Rammohan Roy

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standing beside me. When I would finish for the day, it would disappear. I have called the author of the book 'Uttara Yogi' or 'Yogi from the North'. Do you know why?"

"No!"

"There is a mystery shrouding the name. There used to be, in South India, a great Yogi. When it was time for him to leave his body he told his disciples that an integral Yogi would come from the North. This Purna Yogi would be recognised by three characteristics. One of the wealthy disciples of that Yogi found those characteristics in me. And it was he who bore all the expenses of publishing Yogic Sadhan.״

"We've heard that you have experimented with automatic speaking too!"

"Who has told you that?"

"We learned from Nolinida's Reminiscences," answered Sachet.

"What does he say?"

"It took place somewhere in 1908 or 1909, in Shyampukur, at the Karmayogin office. He says that at about eight o'clock in the evening they would take their seats around you. The lights were put out and all was silent. They kept still for a while. Then slowly there came a voice from you. It was clearly not your own voice, there were many voices each of a different character and tone. The voice itself would say who it was. Some of them he remembers very well. Once it was Bankim who said many fine things about education. Another day it was Danton who announced himself in a terrible voice, 'I am Danton! Terror! Red Terror!' He went on discoursing on the need and utility of all that bloodshed of the French Revolution. Another who came introduced himself thus, 'I am Theramenes.' He gave them a lesson in political matters. So many others came like this, day after day, and taught them many things on various subjects."

Sri Aurobindo sat listening and gently smiling.

"That would be fun!" burst out Chaitanya. "Fun indeed

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to learn all the subjects without having to study all those dry books!" (Laughter)

"But the Mother says all this spirit stuff can be quite dangerous. She doesn't like us to play about with them," added Sachet.

"That's true. What has she said? Do you know?" asked Sri Aurobindo.

"She has recounted a very strange incident which took place when she was in France. It's the case of a man who, through practices of this kind, had put himself into contact with a vital entity. This man happened to be a gambler and he spent his time speculating on the Stock Exchange and playing roulette. This 'spirit' used to tell him, 'Bid on this number or this place', and he would win. Naturally he just worshipped this 'spirit' which made him colossally rich. He used to boast to all his friends about the method by which he had grown rich.

"Someone put him on his guard, told him, 'Be careful, this doesn't look very honest, you should not trust this spirit.' He fell out with that person. One day the spirit told him, 'Stake everything, everything you have on this....' He did and at a single stroke lost everything! And yet, he still had some money left from his Stock Exchange speculations. He said to himself, 'It is bad luck.' Again he received a very precise indication, 'Do this', as usual. And he did it - he was completely cleaned out! And to finish the job, the spirit told him, just for the fun of it, 'Now, you are going to commit suicide. Put a bullet through your head.' And he was so much under its influence, he did so.... That's the end of the story."

Sri Aurobindo listened without a word, smiling. Then he said:

"Nowdays one hears of a different brand of automatic writing which seems to have created modern literature. It is called Surrealism, and your Nirodda is supposed to be an expert on the subject. He can tell you a great deal about it." (Laughter)

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"Indeed he admits to having written several poems in this manner, poems which he himself did not understand at all. But he tells us that you explained them to him since they were inspired by you. Is that so?"

"Is that so hard to believe? Well, it happens to be absolutely true. But this has nothing to do with spirits. These poems have their origin in the hidden consciousness I have already spoken to you of. One also calls it dream- consciousness, though it does not closely resemble it."

"Oh! May I ask you something?" said Rinku. "Recently I saw a rather strange dream. It was about a friend of mine who had died. The face and form were his, but he looked much darker, and his clothes were very dirty. His hair looked clumsily combed, straight down towards his forehead and eyes. In spite of his condition, I felt terribly happy to see him, but he, surprisingly enough, hardly looked at me. I ran to put my arms round him but felt unnerved and uneasy. This gave me a sensation of discomfort, almost of feverishness, which remained with me the whole day."

"I understand. This was not your friend. Clearly, it was a being from the vital world, the kind of being we were talking about earlier. Very probably it had worn one of the subtle sheaths belonging to your friend - and certainly it intended to do you harm. These beings enjoy having fun at our expense, to make fools of us. It was your attachment to your friend that helped it to approach you.

"Gradually you will get to know more about these beings and the planes they come from. They can put on various appearances to disturb you. Among their most cunning and deadly games is to disguise themselves as the Mother or myself and present themselves before a sadhak."

"Yes, we have heard about how one of them tried to fool even Nolinida. It came to him wearing your shape, and asked him to bow before it. When Nolinida was about to do so, he noticed that the feet were turned backwards, a traditional sign of devils! Instantly the form disappeared."

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While he was speaking, Rahul fixed his gaze on Sri Aurobindo's feet and was surprised to find them looking so soft and delicate.

Sri Aurobindo laughed and said, "There are innumerable mysteries of this kind. Voices and visions, both good and bad, frequently come to one who is advancing on the path of Yoga - experiences which Science cannot explain. But our discussion of spirits has taken us quite far away from our original subject - automatic writing. Before I finish with this kind of writing, let me tell you about another thing which too is automatic or, rather, utterly spontaneous - an automatic living.

"This happens when life moves like a river, freely following its own intrinsic rhythm, not guided by thought and logic - and yet all that one does or says is always the right thing, simply and naturally. It may be described as never being out of step. This is the result of the psychic transformation, which in our Sadhana is the first of a series of transformations.

"So you see, after beginning with political revolutions, we moved past literary revolutions and now we have reached the spiritual revolution."

This last term seemed to puzzle the audience. Sri Aurobindo took up the point:

"The ordinary man stumbles along the path of his life, isn't that so? Intelligence, logic, thought, feeling and imagination help him on his way. Without them he cannot move forward an inch, and yet they are not at all infallible. This is the reason why his life is soon filled with grief and pain and hopelessness. Now, supposing I show you how to live a life like the one I have just described, isn't that being revolutionary? Only, this time it would be an inner revolution. One would need weapons but they would be used to fight the enemies within us. You follow?

"Similarly when I spoke of the literary revolution, I meant a quick change, whether by violent or non-violent means. When I, said that poetry was created by a conscious pen, that the mind behind it was totally silent and motionless - and

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that this was universally accepted as the essential mode of writing poetry, wouldn't you call this a literary revolution? Any one of you may one day find himself turned into a poet."

"Rohit is like that. You have only to ask him once and he will write a poem for you." (Laughter)

"Where was I before we digressed?"

"You were telling us about the innumerable physical training clubs that sprang up in Bengal. Their avowed intention was to improve the health and strength of the youth though they were really formed to awaken in the young a deep love for the motherland. It was for her liberation that they were training and preparing themselves."

"Oh yes! I think I told you that even before I joined the Swadeshi Movement, leaders like barrister P. Mitra and Sarala Ghoshal had started several such clubs in Calcutta - all with a secret political purpose. They had even envisaged armed rebellion, drawing their inspiration from the Japanese leader Okakura. After I realised that both their ways and their aims were similar to ours, I sent Jatin Banerjee to meet Mitra. Later when I went to Calcutta, Jatin introduced Mitra to me and the latter too took the revolutionary oath. I also met Hemchandra Das who worked for a secret society, that had been formed in Midnapur. Das was wealthy and it was on his extensive property that the young men perfected their rifle-shooting skills. The idea of establishing these secret societies was not new in Bengal. Even my maternal grandfather Rajnarayan Bose had founded a society of which Rabindranath Tagore too had been a member for some time. But though they had great dreams and aspirations, they lacked the strength to realise them. For that, young men were needed, young men strong in body and mind, who would fulfil these hopes and aspirations. Within a short time, this revolutionary mentality became so widespread and intense that even some Indian government officials grew sympathetic

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to it, and sometimes they openly expressed their views."

"But is it true that these young men took the oath by holding the Gita in one hand and a sword in the other? Are such things really necessary?"

"The sword symbolised military revolt, the Gita was the symbol of the Spirit. Rebellion can move on many lines and use various means. For instance, in the French or the Russian Revolutions there was no place for either Religion or Spirituality. But the moment I realised that my country was not merely a mass of earth and rivers and trees, that it had a consciousness, a life, a soul of its own, it became for me the living embodiment of the Divine Mother. She was not only to be loved but also to be worshipped with devotion. Her worshipper must surrender his all, sacrifice himself at the feet of this divinity. She demanded total, disinterested, selfless service, a service that did not ask for any fruit, not even for success - exactly the way it is described in the Gita; and so the Gita became the symbol of the spiritual attitude and aim that were expected of the young revolutionaries. Those who wished to work for the liberation of their country would take this vow of selflessness, sacrifice and total secrecy."

"Outwardly what kind of work did you do?"

"Our aim was to establish as many centres of training as possible, first in Calcutta, then later in the district towns and even in the villages. These centres were not only for physical culture and body-building, but were also meant to train young men to swim, to ride and to handle weapons. Ostensibly, that was all that was done there, but the real purpose was to select a few fit young men out of the many who attended those clubs and secretly build a group of dynamic young revolutionaries, adept in all the activities that a revolution demands. They would have to stockpile a lot of weapons, also have to learn to make bombs. To these ends, if necessary they might even have to go abroad, and some of them did so. Sister Nivedita helped these young

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men, and some went to Jagadish Bose who instructed them in the art of making bombs. An important activity of some of the leaders was to select and recruit new members for this rebel group. Thus in quite a short while the Revolutionary Movement grew strong and became widespread."

"Didn't the British authorities guess what was happening?"

"No! Not at all! On the contrary, they were quite pleased that the young Indians were so preoccupied with physical culture, instead of politics. Only much later, when the bombs began to explode, did their eyes open!"

"The government was convinced that you were the leader of this secret society. Barinda too has written something to this effect."

"So I have heard, but it wasn't quite true. In fact, I was only the nominal leader, but it was Barin, Mitra and the two Jatins who were actively in the forefront, and the decisions were usually taken by them. Only if they found themselves in difficult or dangerous situations did they consult me, otherwise I was only informed of the results of their actions, Of course, at that time I was living in Baroda and visited Calcutta only now and then, and so it was hardly possible for them to consult me regularly. Anyway I did not believe it was necessary. Once someone had been elected leader, he was expected to bear the sole responsibility for his decisions and his actions. But, unhappily, in a little while there began to appear signs of disharmony and discord among these leaders. This is a typically Bengali characteristic. The Bengali lacks patience and perseverance and is often incapable of working harmoniously with others. The first cracks in our team showed in the form of quarrels and disputes between the group led by Barin and the one which Jatin Banerjee led. Jatin was accused of being tyrannical and domineering, a very strict military disciplinarian, something that many of the young men refused to stand for. It was rather ironical that earlier I had especially sent Barin to Calcutta in order to assist Jatin in his work. When the

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quarrel reached a climax - what looked like a point of no return -1 found that I would have to go to Calcutta myself in order to set matters right. After listening to both the parties, we decided to set up a committee of five members, among whom were Jatin, P. Mitra and Nivedita. This solution seemed to work for a while, but soon after my return to Baroda it broke down as I had feared it might. I did not intervene in their disputes any more. I never liked quarrels of any kind."

"So you knew Sister Nivedita in those days?" asked Mandakini.

"Knew her? Of course I did. Didn't I tell you that she had visited Baroda earlier and we had met? Now to come back to the story of our Swadeshi Movement. I visited Midnapur with Jatin and Barin to found there a revolutionary centre. Hemchandra Das joined it as a member, taking the vow. His father was very wealthy. He was one of those who later went abroad to learn how to make bombs.

"The main duty of these leaders was to strengthen the Movement by gathering young men as well as weapons, and to spread it into the villages, into the very heart of the countryside. Later, when I met Jatin Mukherjee, he too joined in the work of spreading the Movement in many directions. He was indeed a true leader. I think I have already spoken to you about him. His noble spirit and his lofty thoughts matched his tall strong physique. The vanity of name or fame or pride cast no shadow on him; in him there was no ambition or lust for power, nor the slightest trace of fear. He loved his motherland with all his being. It was he who in every situation would turn to me for counsel, who would obey my instructions unquestioningly. Nivedita on the one hand, Jatin on the other - these were the two real leaders of our secret society. But I seldom used to meet Nivedita, it was Jatin to whom I was close. Barin had the necessary ardour and enthusiasm, he could inspire the youth with his words, but unfortunately the pride of leadership was prominent in his nature. When he began editing the paper

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Yugantar in which he openly advocated revolution, it sent shock-waves through the nation. My articles too were published in that paper."

"Please tell us something about Sister Nivedita."

"Why? Don't you know anything about her?"

"Yes, we do, but not much, especially her contribution to the Independence Movement. We only know that she worked with you and wrote for your paper and that when you left Bengal you transferred your political responsibilities to her. But we would like to know how, being a westerner herself, she learned to love India so deeply, and how you met her in the first place."

"Oh! that's a long story, though you yourselves have answered a part of your question. Since both she and I loved India deeply, we had this love in common and that is how we met."

"But how could she love India as much? And if she was Swami Vivekananda's follower, how is it that she left the path of religion and spirituality to join revolutionary politics?"

"Is that what is bothering you? Don't you know how deeply Vivekananda loved his motherland and what agony it was for him to see her bound and enslaved? Though he was an ascetic, a Sannyasi, he was constantly preoccupied with ways and means of liberating her. It is even said that he considered using armed rebellion. His travels in the West had served to sharpen the pain and that is why he charged his disciple to do the work he had not openly taken up. She, a true and fit disciple, gladly and enthusiastically accepted this work for the nation, since such was the will of her Master. This was the root cause of her participation in the Freedom Movement. Haven't I told you that very many sadhaks, spiritually realised men, joined our Party, that many of them were actively working for the liberation of the country? The armed rebellion by Sannyasis described by Bankim in his Anandamath was not wholly imaginary."

"How exactly did you meet Nivedita?" asked Pooja.

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"She already knew me as a revolutionary; 'a worshipper of Shakti', was the term she used. That is, perhaps, why she came to Baroda to meet me. Also, to draw the Maharaja into the Revolutionary Movement. That she was part of the Movement I knew, and therefore somewhat guessed the reason for her visit to Baroda. Anyway, a friend and I went to the station to receive her. As we drove back through the city, her comments about some of the buildings lining the streets made my friend think that she was slightly touched in the head. Of course he was mistaken, for there was nothing wrong with her understanding, only it expressed itself rather , extravagantly. He did not like her preference for superlatives and his knowledge of architecture was also of the slightest. Nivedita, on the contrary, was very aesthetically perceptive and she had a deep knowledge of Art."

"What was it she said?" enquired Sudeep.

"Well, on seeing a dharamshala, a pilgrims' rest-house, she exclaimed: 'How lovely!' But when she saw the College building she cried out: 'Oh! how dreadful!' (Laughter) This made my friend believe that she was definitely not quite balanced. Then she turned to me and asked me outright - 'Mr. Ghose, are you a worshipper of Shakti?' - that is to say, a revolutionary. After prolonged discussions she finally asked me to go and work in Bengal. I told her that I did not think the time had come for that. I was preparing myself inwardly and would jump into the fray when the right moment arrived. So, before leaving, she told me - 'We shall be waiting for you. And I want you to know that I am on your side.' That is how we began our acquaintance. She met the Maharaja and openly asked him to join revolutionary politics. She was always extremely frank and outspoken and wherever she went she advocated revolution in the most clear and unmistakable language. If you looked at her eyes, you could see the person within - a burning flame! When she spoke of revolution, her entire soul came to the forefront."

"Didn't she fear the government?"

"Fear? She didn't even know what the word meant! Also,

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the government treated her with quite a bit of consideration since she had many powerful and influential friends in government circles, both in England and in India. She was Irish by birth and it was natural for her not to be on the side of the English. The Irish had been fighting against British rule for a great many years already and Nivedita had been one of them. That is why she could share our pain and be so Sympathetic to our cause."

"What actually was her role in the Movement?"

"First, to tour the country and spread the message of revolt among the educated classes. Second, to initiate the great and the small, even the Rajas and Maharajas into the Cause. Her western background and her education made her most suitable for this work. She would mix freely with the young revolutionaries, help them in their need by providing them with money or shelter or even weapons. She sent some young men abroad so that they might learn how to make bombs! She helped in so many ways! Her contribution to the success of the Swadeshi Movement is invaluable."

"Did she then completely give up yogic practice?"

"What do you understand by the term 'yogic practice'? If she considered the liberation of India to be the aim of her existence, then that was her Yoga. Is Yoga then merely sitting down at regular intervals to chant and pray and meditate, leaving the rest of life a blank? That notion belongs to older ways of thought that believe spirituality must be other- worldly, evading life. But from the day Nivedita's Guru instructed her to work for the cause of India's freedom, that cause became her Yoga and her Sadhana. She obeyed her Master with all her heart and soul."

"What did she feel about the violent methods adopted by many revolutionaries - the robberies and assassinations of white people? Did she approve of them?" asked Jones.

"Could a person like her ever approve of such methods? But she was obliged to admit that they were sometimes necessary. Truly speaking, our aims were always far above these narrow limited means. I have already explained to you

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that we wanted the entire nation to rise up in armed revolt. When that failed and the great leaders were flung into jails, Nivedita was said to be heart-broken."

"But why did the government not imprison her too?"

"Haven't I told you that she had very influential friends? Naturally the government didn't dare touch her. All the same, there seems to have been some talk of her arrest and those same friends sent her to England for a while. When I came out of prison and resumed publication of the Karmayogin, she began contributing articles to that paper. Some time later, she heard that I might be rearrested and immediately advised me to write 'An Open Letter to My Countrymen'. When Ramchandra Majumdar brought the information of my imminent arrest, I received the command, the adesh, to go to Chandernagore. The same night I left Calcutta, leaving Nivedita in charge of the Karmayogin. That, in short, was my relationship with her. But I have described to you only one side of her nature. She had a profound knowledge and refined perception of India's art and literature, religion and philosophy. She also realised the need to educate our women. She knew and had exchanges with all the great minds of the age - Rabindranath, Jagadish Bose, Abanindranath, Tilak, all of them. It was largely due to her that Jagadish Bose received international scientific acclaim. It was she who helped Abanindranath awaken his artistic consciousness. In any case, it is clear that every Indian will be indebted to her forever. You should all read her books - The Web of Indian Life, The Cradle-Tales of Hinduism, Kali the Mother and The Master as I Saw Him."

"Did she have any spiritual realisations?" asked Amal.

"She must have had, but we never discussed them. We were busy with politics and revolution. But looking at her eyes one could say that she could easily enter into the states of meditation and trance."

"Why was she obliged to leave the Ramakrishna Mission?" ,

"Because of her work in the Swadeshi Movement. The Ramakrishna Mission was after all a cloister, a home for

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ascetics. Religion was its chief preoccupation and it believed also in social service in the outer life. To live within its precincts and take part in politics was against its rules, as it is in our Ashram too. We here may be interested in politics but we are forbidden to take part in it. Why? Because we would be deviating from the main purpose of our life here. Secondly, participating in politics would result in government intervention, even its wrath perhaps, and endanger the very existence of the community. In the same way, Nivedita, ardent disciple of Vivekananda though she was, was obliged to leave the Mission that had been established by him. Such was her obedience to his injunctions."

"It is strange that in spite of being a woman, she took such an active part in the Revolution," remarked Smita.

"Why should it seem strange? The world has known several such women. Jeanne d'Arc was one such example, indeed a shining one. Haven't you read about her? And the history of the French Revolution? And in the history of our own country, there have been innumerable fearless, warlike women, like the Rani of Jhansi. Again, so many women took part in the Irish Revolution, fought and suffered and even underwent torture. Just the other day, during the upheavals in Bengal, what did the women there not undergo? So you see, there is nothing to be surprised at in women being brave and warlike. In fact, it would be strange if it were not so.

"In the first place Vivekananda had brought Nivedita to India so that she might teach the women of his land to awaken and to arise. It is difficult for you to imagine today the backwardness of the Indian women of that time. Nivedita not only brought awareness to them, she energetically shook the whole sleeping India awake, explaining to her that she could never make any advance or progress unless she became free. What we should wish for is that instead of just one Sister Nivedita a Nivedita be born in every Indian household."

*

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"Last time I spoke to you about the Swadeshi Revolution, but it was not much," said Sri Aurobindo. "Of course, it is almost impossible to discuss it at length, since this sort of activity is always carried on in secret and so no one group or even individual quite knows what the others are doing. Only the leaders and their close helpers are in touch with all the members. In fact the success of a revolution depends on secrecy, that is to say, on one's ability to keep decisions secret. Therefore those who take part in it are selected for their capacity to keep silent in all circumstances and not to divulge any information 'even in the cannon's mouth'. Nothing should shake them, neither temptation nor torture. However, I have also told you that as the Party grew larger and stronger, so did factionalism and rivalry increase among the leaders. I prepared a band of workers and returned to Baroda, but immediately the group broke up. I realised then that what we needed, first and foremost, were true and sincere human beings, without whom nothing great could ever be achieved. But even when the group split up, the work continued unhindered since the leaders, finding themselves free, were fired with greater zeal. On all sides were established new branches and groups of the Revolutionary Movement, the youth of the nation was shaken wide awake. Barin was unequalled in his ability to recruit men. He had the art of speech, discourse and argumentation that could set aflame his listeners, instilling in them great self- confidence. His words could turn meek lambs into lions overnight, though of course, now and then, there were a few who turned out to be sheep in lion's clothing!" (Laughter)

"Wasn't it you who gave him his initiation?"

"Yes, it was I. That was the time when the British government decided upon the perverse plan of partitioning Bengal. I then told the leaders of the Movement that this was our golden opportunity. The wicked partition must be resolutely resisted. The more the people would grow dissatisfied with the government, the greater the advantage for the revolutionaries. And that is just what happened. The

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youth of the land continued to be inducted secretly into the Movement, the revolutionary spirit was inculcated into them, culminating in their training in armed combat. On the other hand, the journal Yugantar openly published articles that aroused in the masses the demand for total freedom by whatever means possible, even by violence if necessary. Freedom would never be ours if we relied on the British to give it to us. You see, our plan of armed revolution could only be successful if it was carried on the wave of the people's patriotism and their devotion to the motherland. No political movement can ever be effective unless it has the support and sympathy of the people in general, particularly if it is a subject people. Therefore the partitioning of Bengal at that exact juncture helped us enormously.

"The opposition to it lit a flame that soon spread to the rest of India. Bengal in an instant seemed to have found her true self. Thousands of voices echoed Bankim's mantra of 'Bande Mataram' from the pages of his book Anandamath. In street after street, in meetings and processions, the Mother's worshippers cried out 'Bande Mataram'. The furious government tightened its laws; in East Bengal, with its Muslim majority, the cry of 'Bande Mataram' was forbidden, and taking part in revolutionary meetings or movements proclaimed illegal. This was the time of the famous Barisal Session of the Congress which was attended by all the great national leaders. Since it was held during my holidays, I too went there. Though the law forbidding the cry of 'Bande Mataram' had already been promulgated in the town, the young men had no intention of obeying it, and so the police came charging into the meeting, breaking it up with their sticks and staves. There was a boy, I remember, a youngster not much older than you, named Chitta, who would not stop chanting 'Bande Mataram' even though blows rained down on him. It was inhuman. Some of us leaders were there in the very front, facing the police onslaught. The Barisal Session will remain unforgettable in the history of the Revolutionary Movement of India. It is

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hard today for you, to imagine how repressive the government was, and how determined we were to fight against it. The British had even coined a phrase - 'the insolent Barisal look'!

"And how successful we were! What had taken long years of effort to achieve was now hastened by those very repressive measures of the British government. All the revolutionaries, the Radicals as well as the Moderates, now realised what to expect of this government, which some of them had held in such high esteem. The Swadeshi Movement brought about many changes in our country and its society, particularly in the field of education. Centres of national education were established in Bengal and I was made the principal of the first college of this kind - the National College. I had been waiting for just such an opportunity for a long time. Immediately I resigned from the service of the Maharaja of Baroda and moved to Calcutta to take charge of this College. By now my responsibilities had grown really heavy, for I continued the revolutionary activities along with my work in education as well as in politics. Gradually, of course, it was politics that began to occupy more and more of my time and attention while the revolutionary work was passed on to Barin and some other leaders. My first contribution to the political change was to write articles in the Bande Mataram paper. Bepin Pal, who had just founded the journal, was very happy that I accepted his request to collaborate. In the meantime, the government accused the paper Yugantar of publishing seditious articles, but it could not discover the name of the editor against whom to file its charges. Vivekananda's brother appeared before the court on behalf of the paper. At my instigation he announced that since this court was subject to a foreign government, he would not obey its laws nor accept its judgment in any form or degree whatsoever. Of course, he was punished for this, but the influence and prestige of the paper was considerably enhanced.

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This was the first instance where punishment was meted out for having slighted the Law and treated the court with contempt. The revolutionaries had now found another mode of fighting the British which they later used with much success. They began to spread the message of Nationalism, along with that of Revolution and Freedom, of which the first condition was to abjure the use of all foreign goods. This idea had not struck anyone till then except one or two persons for whom it was more of a whim than anything else. But now there appeared a book called Desher Katha written by Sakharam Ganesh Deuskar who, though he was a Marathi, wrote Bengali very well. It was he who, for the first time, used the word 'Swaraj'. He explained too, with the help of many well-substantiated proofs, how the British had exploited Bengal, had taken so much of its wealth by shattering its trade and commerce. Thus, he concluded, they had grown powerful, by maiming us.

"This book had a profound impact on the feelings of the people and gave a strong impetus to the Swadeshi Movement. I had always believed that commercial and industrial growth was essential for a successful revolution because without economic independence we would never be able to free ourselves from our reliance on the British.

"As long as I was living in Baroda, it was impossible for me to take part openly in politics. At that time I had not yet completely made up my mind to give up my job. Also, it was my nature always to work discreetly, from behind the veil."

"And it still is!" dared a little voice.

"Quite so!" laughed Sri Aurobindo. "I always worked secretly, even led the Movement without letting my name be known. But it was the British rulers who spoiled the game for me. It was they who dragged my name into the open. I'll tell you about it later.

"You see, I would often ask the Maharaja for extended leave and go to Bengal. There, my time would be mostly

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spent in revolutionary activities. During one such stay, I attended the Barisal meeting after which I toured East Bengal with Bepin Pal. I had my own reasons for wanting to draw closer to the Liberals in the Congress Party. In those days, the Congress Party was very large. Many well-known Indians were its leaders, but most of them were Moderates. It was my intention to draw the Congress Party away from the influence of these Moderates, making it an organ of the Swadeshi thought, and to use this vast and complex organisation as the means to bring about political revolution among the masses.

"I have already spoken to you about the paper Bande Mataram which Bepin Pal had started with very little money. He asked me to collaborate with him and I agreed immediately. This was the opportunity I had been looking for, as it could be the means to spread the ideas of revolution and nationalism. I was, of course, still working at Baroda. But when, a little while later, I was offered the principalship of the newly-established Bengal National College, I resigned from the Baroda service and came straightaway to Calcutta. This too was an unexpected gift made to me by my friend Raja Subodh Mullick. He helped to found the college with a gift of one lakh rupees which he made on one condition - that I should be its first Principal. He was an active member of our Swadeshi Party and I always put up with him whenever I went to Calcutta. All of you know Charu Dutt, don't you? Well, he was a close relative of Subodh Mullick."

"Yes, of course, we know him. We call him Dadu. He knows lots of fascinating stories about you," said Archan.

Sri Aurobindo smiled and said, "Yes, but don't swallow them all!" Then he continued:

"This new job made it possible for me to be in constant touch with all the political developments. I also brought together all the liberal-minded youths in the Congress to found a new party, which then joined with its counterpart in Maharashtra. At my suggestion Tilak was elected the

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national leader and we prepared ourselves for a trial of strength against the Moderates. At that time, the Moderates' wing of the Party was enormously influential, consisting of widely-respected, clever and calculating gentlemen. Beside them we were small fry, but you will see how all those big fish soon seemed to slither away. If I told you of all the political plots and intrigues that were woven to achieve this result, you would think you were listening to a highly colourful work of fiction!

"The second responsibility given to me was the work connected with the Bande Mataram paper - to turn it into the mouthpiece of the Party as well as to make it economically viable. When the Party sent Bepin Pal on a tour through the district towns, I had to bear the entire burden of bringing out the Bande Mataram. I used the paper to reiterate what I had proclaimed at the very outset - that Puma Swaraj, complete independence, was our aim. You could say that this was formulated for the first time in such clear terms. Until then the idea had seemed unthinkable to most people. In fact, the Moderates laughed at us and called us mad. But almost overnight, as though by magic, the country adopted this ideal. As for all the other changes that the Bande Mataram brought about, well, I will tell you of them by and by."

*

Sri Aurobindo began: "I have briefly recounted to you how the Bande Mataram paper grew to become the mouth- piece of the Nationalist Party and brought about very many changes. I shan't go into the details since I think you are still too young to understand the complexities of politics. All I can say is that the programme of work which Gandhi later undertook, that of lighting the flame of freedom in the masses, had already been initiated by us. We had prepared the people psychologically for freedom, and shaken the foundation of British imperialism in the country. In schools

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