PART V TALKS AND INTERVIEWS WITH SRI AUROBINDO AND THE MOTHER During the 1920s Sri Aurobindo often gave interviews in the morning to disciples and others. In the evening he met regularly with a group of his disciples and had informal talks with them. A number of reports of those interviews and talks are included here. The reader should bear in mind that these talks and interviews were not tape recorded, but were noted down from memory. Therefore they do not represent Sri Aurobindo's exact words, but an account of them reproduced as faithfully as possible. At the end of this part, two oral comments by the

PART IV CORRESPONDENCE WITH EARLY DISCIPLES Inmates of the Ashram 1923 Top: Rajangam, Timpati, Khitish, Nolinida, Satyen, Kanai, Bejoy, Purani and Nagaratnam (a local devotee) Centre: Punamchand, Champaben, Mrs. Kodandaraman, Mr. Kodandaraman Bottom: Champaklal, Moni, Amrita, Manmohan. PUNAMCHAND [Punamchand had a small Ashram in Patan, Gujarat, where he and others practised Yoga under Sri Aurobindo 's guidance. Every year from 1919 onwards, he travelled to Pondicherry to visit Sri Aurobindo.1 In 1923, during his annual visit lie asked for permission to stay permanently in Pondicherry along with his wife Cha

PART IV LETTERS TO BARINDRA KUMAR GHOSE I have received your three letters, but up to now I have not managed to write an answer. It is a miracle that even now I sat down to write, because letter writing for me takes place once in a blue moon — especially writing in Bengali which I have not done for five or six years. The miracle would be complete if I could finish this letter and put it in the post. First about your Yoga. You wish to give me the charge of your Yoga and I am willing to take it, that is to say to give it to Him who is moving by his divine Shakthi both you and myself whether secretly or openly. But you must know the necess

PART IV A. B. PURANI 1 With regard to the attacks you get there A.G. says they are bound to come as long as your entire consciousness is not transformed. Even when the higher power works in you down to your physico-vital consciousness, the attacks will find a way through the physical consciousness. Even if the power is in full action down to the physical itself, the attacks you complain of in your letter, especially those that take the form of illness can get you through the medium of subconscious vibrations of the physical. You have to fight them out of you until your entire Adhara is completely transformed when no more attacks of any kind can trouble you. Thes

PART I LETTERS OF SRI AUROBINDO AND THE MOTHER LETTERS OF SRI AUROBINDO AND THE MOTHER ASPIRE SINCERELY My dear Champaklalji, Namaskar. 1. Kindly convey my humble salutation to the Mother and Sri Aurobindoji. Done. 2. I have not received any letter from Pondi. 1 am anxious to know as to the progress made by various sadhaks. I do not know whether you can communicate with me on this matter. If necessary ask permission of the Mother. Sadhaks are progressing all right. As you can see there is no obstacle to my communicating with you. 3. When are we to expect Sri Gurudev to appear in

PART IV CHANDRASHEKHAR Chandrashekhar, l. It is not easy to get into the Silence. That is only possible by throwing out the mental and vital activities. It is to let Silence into you i.e., to open yourself and let it descend. The way to do this and the way to call down the higher powers is the same. It is to remain quiet at the time of meditation, not fighting with the mind or making mental efforts to pull down the power of the Silence but keeping only a silent will and aspiration for them. If the mind is active one has to learn to look at it drawn back and not giving any sanction from within — until its habitual and mechanical activities begin to fall quie

The First Move From K. D. Sethna to Father John Martin 25.4.82 Your extremely friendly letter and the enclosed fine-feeling'd articles of Bede Griffiths have been lying in front of me for quite a time. Now at last I have sufficient leisure to give them the lengthy consideration they deserve. Let me at the very start tell you that I remember our meeting in the Ashram with great warmth and also that I have never wavered in my general admiration for Bede Griffiths ever since I came across a pamphlet of his on Hinduism and Christianity. Recently I went through his Return to the Centre, marking several passages of keen insight which go beyond the conventional and

A Follower of Christ and a Disciple of Sri Aurobindo A Follower of Christ and a Disciple of Sri Aurobindo CORRESPONDENCE between BEDE GRIFFITHS AND K. D. SETHNA (AMAL KIRAN) The Integral Life Foundation P.O. Box 239 Waterford CT. 06385 USA First published 1996 (Typeset in 10.5/13 Palatino) © Amal Kiran (K. D. Sethna) Published by The Integral Life Foundation, U.S.A. Printed at Sri Aurobindo Ashram Press, Pondicherry PRINTED IN INDIA

The Sequel Saccidananda Ashram, Shantivanam, Tannirpalli - 639 107 Kulittallai, Tiruchi Dt., Tamil Nadu February 11th 1983 Dear Mr. Sethna, I was interested to read your letter on the Aurobindonian Christian in Mother India. I do indeed owe a great deal to Sri Aurobindo and feel nearer to him than to any other Indian thinker. As regards the criticism which you make, I did not mean to suggest that the resurrection of Jesus corresponded with the transformation of the body as Sri Aurobindo and the Mother conceived it, but simply that the final transformation and transfiguration of the body which they were seeking did actually take place in the resurrec

Uttering the Unutterable Speaking of a "metaphysical" poet, Dr. Johnson laid down the law to goggling and gaping Boswell: "If Mr. X has experienced the Unutterable, Mr. X will be well advised not to try and utter it." The advice, I am afraid, is not the Doctor's wit or sanity at its best. It is a superficially brilliant play on words, taking little stock of the uses and potentialities of the art of words. Just consider the term "Unutterable". It is not mumbo-jumbo: it has a meaning. Strictly and frontally, it signifies a divine infinitude which is so marvellous and mysterious that it cannot at all be described in language. An additional background significance is cau