CHAPTER XI The Seer-Poet I have quoted earlier a letter Sri Aurobindo wrote to me vindicating the attitude of a seer which might well look like self superiority to others. But appearances are not always a reliable guide to reality. For instance, many may call his answer to a gibe of mine over-assertive. (I had asked whether the Supramental could really be true? Did it not look very much like a juggler whose legerdemain left us eventually high and dry in 'the land of nowhere?): "There is no question of jugglery about it. What is not true is not supramental. As for calm and silence, there is no need of the supramental to get that. One gets it even on the lev

-02_Mother^s Prayer.htm THE MOTHER'S PRAYER TO THE MATERIAL ENVELOPE OF SRI AUROBINDO To THEE who hast been the material envelop of our Master, to THEE our infinite gratitude. Before THEE who hast done so much for us, who hast worked, struggled, suffered, hoped, endured so much, before THEE who hast willed all, attempted all, prepared, achieved all for us, before THEE we bow down and implore that we may never forget, even for a moment, all we owe to THEE. December 9,1950 THE MOTHER Tributes "For thou hast conquered, at the journey's end, "The Sun-elixir to quell the hordes of Night. "Who once have seen thy Face have known, 0 Friend: "'Tis no

(REMINISCENCES) HARIKRISHNA MANDIR - PUNE First Edition - 1952 (Sri Aurobindo Ashram) 2nd Edition - 1964 (Jaico) 3rd Edition - 1969 (Jaico) 4th Edition - 1984 (All India Books) 5th Edition - 2004 (Revised) (Harikrishna Mandir Trust, Pune) Siddhiday 24th November © Harikrishna Mandir Trust, Pune 2004 All rights reserved Published by Hari Krishna Mandir Trust Pune-411016 Typeset & printed at All India Press Kennedy Nagar Pondicherry, 605001 India

APPENDIX IV Glossary Sri Aurobindo had to employ, some English words in a somewhat new sense to explain certain experiences. These only need be included in this glossary as they occur frequently in his letters quoted in this book: Avatar: "An Avatar, roughly speaking, is one who is conscious of the Presence and power of the Divine born in him or descended into him and governing from within his will and life and action; he feels identified inwardly with this Divine Power and presence." A Vibhuti is supposed to embody some power of the Divine and is enabled by it to act with great force in the world, but that is all that is necessary to make him a

CHAPTER X Avowedly Personal In chapter VIII the closing stress was on Sri Aurobindo's vision of the Earth as the final venue of "heroic souls"* who are missioned to carry through a great experiment because this Earth has been chosen as "the forge where the Arch-manson shapes His works."* This experiment has a twofold movement: first, the aspiration of the animality in man after Divinity and secondly, the rain of His answering Grace in order to transform man's seemingly ineradicable animality which has been the despair of dreamers and idealists. That is why Sri Aurobindo speaks so emphatically (if a little nostalgically) of the Descent of the power of Love Divine into ou

Preface (First Edition) Somebody said that this was an auto-biography. I hasten to disclaim the characterisation at the very out-set. I have only reminisced about my Gurudev, Sri Aurobindo, as I hope will be obvious to any reader. An auto-biography has a purpose which goes beyond the purview of reminiscences. Besides, I have, in the main, confined my reactions to and reflections on the great personality who inspired them with but one end in view: to bring out his greatness as it dawned on me and grew with my own growth in the course of my day-to day spiritual struggles and aspiration. In other words, I have essayed to portray, by and large, my interactions with him in the

CHAPTER V The Trials When the Madras train deposited me at the desolate station of Pondicherry on that unforgettable morning in November, 1928, Sri Aurobindo's disciples in his Ashram numbered about 80. Now, in 1951, we are a little over 800. I do not remember what was the proportion of women among us in those days but there were hardly any children. So, our Ashram courtyard basked in a delectable silence which receded progressively as the inmates increased and imported more and more children who had to be accepted for their parents' sakes. Still "the noiseless tenor of our lives" was not marred appreciably till after 1940, or, maybe, even later. Before that we were a s

Introduction IT is in our four capacities that I am related to this book of Dilip Kumar Roy's which I have been asked — or rather privileged — to introduce. As editor of the fortnightly review, Mother India, I had the delight of publishing it for the first time in serial form. I am also a friend of the author: I have known him for the last twenty three years and have valued his friendship from not only the personal standpoint but also the literary and the spiritual. Next, our friendship has resulted in a special relation on my part to his book: I actually figure in some vivid pages of it that are a most generous appreciation of me. This leads me to the fourth capacity, a pointe

-22_Sri Aurobindo's Message.htm CHAPTER XIV Sri Aurobindo's Message Sri Aurobindo was not a man easy to fathom, nor were his breathtaking messages all easy to understand. I remember once he wrote to me years ago, in 1928: "Nobody except myself can write about my life because it has not been on the surface for man to see." Nevertheless, since then, a few notable biographers have written about his life as it has come within their purview and, within limits, they are good — that is, as far as they go. Only they do not — cannot — go far enough. I remember: in 1949, under a huge pandal in Calcutta, lecturer after lecturer spoke eloquently about his great gifts and achievements. Most of them spoke ab

APPENDIX I The Ashram: Some Disciples I have decided, not without hesitation, to write now about a few of the disciples I came to know in the Ashram who made on me an impression for a twofold reason: first because of their native aptitudes and secondly because of the characteristic manner in which each of them reacted to Gurudev's personality and guidance. I have undertaken to attempt this in order to correct a wrong stress I may have unwittingly given while paying my homage to one who has been the most unforgettable character that I ever came to know in my life. This I say apart from the deep debt I shall always owe him as much for having bee