Work – Cooking – Waste Too strong a fire burns the food, spoils the vessel and wastes the fuel. A slow fire means a little longer time for the cooking but also a nicer result in cooking. Hurried work is always bad work; time must be given if you want good results. The Mother ‘Champaklal Speaks’ P. 245

-006_Mother^s ways.htm Mother’s Ways Someone once gave to Mother small bits of fine paper. Mother used it. And the next time that person came, she showed and told him: see how I have used your paper. Naturally he was very happy and went on to share the happy news with others. Very soon people started sending all kinds of paper, blocks after blocks of paper began to pour in. One day someone brought old paper. And Mother was obliged to use that paper first because that would be spoilt earlier. So it was kept on Mother’s table. I saw it but what could I do? Still I said: Mother, people like to keep your writing and they preserve the papers on which you write to them. These papers are old. Why

Mastery of the Material Wanton waste, careless spoiling of physical things in an incredibly short time, loose disorder, misuse of service and materials due either to vital grasping or to tamasic inertia are baneful to prosperity and tend to drive away or discourage the Wealth-Power. These things have long been rampant in the society and, if that continues, an increase in our means might well mean a proportionate increase in the wastage and disorder and neutralise the material advantage. This must be remedied if there is to be any sound progress. Asceticism for its own sake is not the ideal of this yoga, but self-control in the vital and right order in the materi

Old Soap-Bits and World’s Economy Mother gave a new soap for Sri Aurobindo’s use and asked me if I had kept the little bits of old ones. She knew I must have preserved them. I said: Yes. Mother: Then bring them; they will be given to Pavitra and he will make a nice big cake out of them. I give all my bits to him and he prepares a big cake out of them. (It was war-time and there was difficulty in getting soaps from France.) Mother noticed from my expression that I was not enthusiastic. She went on to ask me: Are you using them? C: No, Mother. Mother: Then, why waste? If you were using them it would be all right; otherwise why not use them this way? Now ha

Prevent Waste When I first joined the Ashram there was a wonderful organization there to prevent waste. Bits of soap or candle, empty match boxes, even half burnt match-sticks, pieces of paper, old envelops, pieces of cloth, all the things we normally throw away were collected at the Ashram in a very organized manner. There was a special place or receptacle where each group of things had to be kept and they were then put to use in some form or other. Bits of soap were melted and made into soap for our use. The same with candles. Used envelopes were turned inside out and re-used. Scraps of paper went to the making of hand-made paper. Pieces of cloth were joined together and m

Wastage …The ways of Nature are slow, obscure and complicated. She takes a very long time to do a thing which could probably be done much more rapidly, easily and without wastage by means of the spirit. At present there is a terrible wastage in the world. But the thing is done. The Mother 5: 343

Choice Of Envelopes Mother was always particular in choosing the right envelope for her letters. The envelope had to be just the size for the paper – neither too big nor too tight. The recipient should find it convenient to take out the letter easily – these were the requirements. After the envelope was chosen, she would decide whether she would write the name of the person on the envelope or not. For some she would write on the envelope itself. For some others she would write the name in a small slip of paper and clip it to the envelope. For some she would write the name in pencil; for some it would be in a deeper shade, for some in a faint colour. She used to keep

Energy Wasted Mother, why is it that here, in work, some people venture to satisfy their fancies and thus much money is wasted? It is not money alone that is wasted! Energy, Consciousness is infinitely, a thousand times more wasted than money. Should there be no wastage…my word, I believe the Ashram couldn’t be here! There is not a second when there isn’t any wastage – sometimes it is worse than this, there is a habit – hardly conscious, I hope – of absorbing as much Energy, as much Consciousness as one can and using it for one’s personal satisfactions. That indeed is something which is happening every minute. If all the Energy, all the Consciousne

-017_The Mother^s principle.htm THE MOTHER'S PRINCIPLE OF ACTION AND WASTE I did not consider it necessary to say anything about the ques­tion of waste beyond assuring you that the undertaking of useless and unnecessary work only in order to keep the men employed was no part of the Mother's principle of action. The Mother did not know to what pipe you referred and had no time or inclina­tion to make enquiries about it. It is quite true that, so long at least as the Sadhaks are not Siddha Yogis, self-control is the law; they have to learn to refrain from indulgence of excess in any direction – the provision made for them being ample for a Sadhak and much more than is allowed

Do not Waste Energy Human beings do not know how to preserve energy. When something happens, an accident or an illness, they ask for help and a double or triple dose of energy is administered. They feel that they are receptive and they receive it. This energy is given for two reasons: to repair the disorder caused by the accident or illness, and to give a power for transformation in order to mend, to change what was the true cause of the illness or accident. Instead of utilising energy in that way, immediately, immediately they throw it out. They begin to move about, they begin to be active, they begin to work, they begin to speak, they begin… they feel themselves