Mental Silence   Mother, how to silence the mind? How to quieten the mind completely?   Ah! this is very easy. It is the first step in yoga. There are some means which are very effective. First of all, you must sit quietly, without moving, absolutely quiet, and try not to think about anything at all. Absolutely nothing, and try to concentrate there — in the heart. You catch hold of all the threads of thought, the sensations, and the impulses without letting a single one escape, and try to concentrate there (the heart) very deeply. If you do that for a few days, then you suddenly notice that the head does not think any more, and a kind of peace gets established. There is the

-009_To Correct One^s Defect To Correct One's Defects   Look carefully into yourself and see what is it that revolts, which part of the being does not collaborate. Concentrate properly in order to apply the force there, and we shall see. Firstly, one must be able to distinguish the part that is not in harmony, then to go there, deep, to find the cause. Then you will do this operation of pouring the Peace and the Force so that it changes. Once you decide that nothing in your being ought to contradict the aspiration of your deepest truth, you must try all possible means, even force, in order to get rid of that. So there will be nothing to worry about, for with the will to realise comes the power to overco

The Subtle Worlds   Eh, Eh! (in a teasing tone) I thought you had evaporated as you were not here a moment ago. Yet, I saw you when I passed by maybe ten minutes back.   Mother, I went downstairs for some work.   But I thought you had disappeared, melted... gone. I could not see you, but I felt that you were somewhere in the room — a part of your being which you had left behind was looking at me. That is why I was wondering whether you had been transformed so quickly, or whether you had melted away!   But, Mother, I did not feel that a part of my being had detached itself from me. I did not feel anything, or see anything.   Oh, my child, it happens oft

-027_^Be Like a Flower^ "Be Like a Flower"   Bonjour! Bonjour, Sweet Mother.   Take this. (Mother gives me a flower) Do you know what it is?   Yes, Mother: 'Aesthetic Beauty'.1   How tender and fresh it is...   Mother, are You giving it to me so that I may cultivate aesthetic beauty, or is it because it corresponds to a part of my being?   It is in answer to the aspiration from the very depths of your being that I give the flowers. It is a need or an aspiration, it depends on the individual. It may fill a void or else give an impetus for progress, or find the inner harmony in order to establish peace. Do you understand?   Be like a flower. One must try to b

SWEET MOTHER Luminous Notes       Conversations with the Mother recollected by Mona Sarkar         Sri Aurobindo Ashram Pondicherry     First published as Sweet Mother: Harmonies of Light (Parts I and II) Now combined, revised, and enlarged First edition 2009   (Typeset in New Century Schoolbook 11.5/14)   Rs 95 ISBN 978-81-7058-899-3   © Sri Aurobindo Ashram Trust 2009 Published by Sri Aurobindo Ashram Publication Department Pondicherry 605 002 Web http://www.sabda.in   Printed at Sri Aurobindo Ashram Press, Pondicherry PRINTED IN INDIA       T

Responsibility   (Sometimes when there was some additional work to be done, like carrying logs, harvesting, shifting a generator, night vigil etc., the Mother would ask me to organise it with the help of the boys of Group C1 and others. And She would give Her protection and blessings for the work. On one occasion something went wrong and I asked pardon from the Mother for not being able to do the work in the proper manner.)   Mother, forgive me. You had given me the responsibility, and even then this has happened. I...   What? Responsibility!   Yes, Mother.   Responsibility of whom, of what, when? Have I lost my senses that I have given you the responsibil

OM   Every month since 1967 I used to take to the Mother a calendar with paintings of flowers and She would write a prayer on it. This talk was held in the month of February, 1972. The Mother looks at the previous prayer, and asks me to read it.   Is it January? Yes, Mother — it is January.   Read what is written here. "In this year of Sri Aurobindo's centenary, let us strive to be worthy of Him..."   And then? "...by following His teaching faithfully in order to prepare the advent of the superman. Happy New Year."   What flower is this? (pointing to the painted flower) 'Superhumanity'.   Eh? A1: This is 'Superhumanity'? The

A Privilege   Mother, do You have any objection if we go to the 'Lotus pond', about thirty-five miles from here? If You do not want that, we shall go happily to the 'Lake'1 instead.   No, my child, I have no objection. I said that if they wish to go on foot, they could, but I will not give any transport because the vehicles are not in working condition and yesterday X spent more than two thousand rupees to repair them. And I do not want to spend more on this long excursion; besides, six vehicles are out of order.   If You give us Your permission, we shall manage. Some will go on cycle. We have Y's jeep and another of Z...   Z has given you his jeep, that's very kin

Message of the Flowers   The Mother has given names to about 900 flowers, revealing their true significance, explaining what they represent in the earth consciousness, their spiritual value and their deeper meaning corresponding to the inner life.   The Mother has said that flowers are very receptive, and She used them as a means to transmit to us the needed help, communicating with our psychic by giving us particular flowers with the spiritual qualities required.   We too offered Her flowers that expressed our aspiration. This exchange of flowers was a means of communication on the psychical plane and one of the ways in which She worked on our subtle being.

What She has Done for Us   All that I say, all that I do, projects itself up there. It is like a well-prepared niche with all that is needed for the realisation in the world of being, in the world of becoming. Here, one does not see the result.... But there, in the world that is preparing to manifest itself, it makes all the difference.   Whatever I do, the least gesture, whatever I say or utter, has a stupendous effect in the other world. The vibrations that emanate from me become realised realities up there. Outwardly, you do not see anything here, any result of what I say. But up there, there is a whole world of difference... if you have the opportunity to visit tha