Savitri Era Learning Forum: March 2008

March 31, 2008

The less the students are spoiled by exposure to classical physics, the easier it is for them to get into contemporary physics

Ulrich Mohrhoff on Feb 25th, 2007 at 12:53 am
Like you, I love introducing undergraduates (and even higher secondary students) to the wonders of contemporary physics, which I do at the Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education in Pondicherry, India. The less the students are spoiled by exposure to classical physics, the easier it is for them to get into contemporary physics.
The measurement units we ordinarily use are conventions. Theoretical physicists use natural units, in which such universal constants as c are dimensionless and equal to unity. So if conventions are left aside, the formula says E=m. In other words, E and m are absolutely the same thing, only (conventionally) measured in different units. E=mc2 therefore is no more than a rather unexciting conversion formula, much like the one we use to convert miles into kilometers or Fahrenheit into centigrades. This of course does not touch on the deep and fascinating question of what this thing E=m really is.

March 30, 2008

One can only be wholly disappointed that the opportunity has been missed by so called integral /theories/methods

Re: At the ends of Man: Sri Aurobindo and Michel Foucault
by Rich on Sat 29 Mar 2008 09:21 PM PDT Profile Permanent Link

Since my attempt is to trace certain affinities in genealogies which both Sri Aurobindo and Foucault share with the hope of excavating in the discontinuities between them, certain rhizomes of thought which connect across cultures (east and west), epistemes (modernism and post modernist) and the multiplicity of paths which spiral out of the chasm of man may toward superman

However, I do not want to close off the possibility of experiential practices that spring from different traditions other than IY, providing a way forward from out the ruins of rational certainty. Much can be gained from the meditative, contemplative, and alternative ways of knowing of the world given to us by other authentic traditions. However, with regard to future epochs or the overcoming of man, Sri Aurobindo's practice of Integral Yoga does is most specific in its attempts to transform human nature by its self-exceeding of the entire organism, mind, body, heart.

Of course one must also mention the necessary caveats in these various forms of meditative practices which stem from traditions which by in large have been institutionalized in theocracies power regimes and hence the scaffolding of their experiential practices by the metaphysical artifice of religion. Unfortunately, this has also been the fate of locating Integral Yoga in a specific institution or Utopian community e.g. an Ashram or an Auroville.

Regards the possibility of other so called integral /theories/methods providing a way out of the existential void at the end of modernism, specifically in the post-Ken Wilber/Spiral Dynamics era, one can only be wholly disappointed that the opportunity has been missed. Ironically contemporary integral theorist dismiss post modernism and boast their theories already include but transcend it, yet begin constructing their own with the same totalizing ideological structures which the post-structuralist have just succeeded in demolishing. e.g. The ALQDS model which is the transcendental signified of Integral Theory.

Great lines rise as if a single Himalayan peak from a range of low hills

Anonymous said... It may be interesting to read Sri Aurobindo’s remarks:

«If I had to select the line in European poetry which most suggests an almost direct descent from the Overmind consciousness there might come first Virgil’s line about “the touch of tears in mortal things”: Sunt lacrimae rerum et mentem mortalia tangunt.»

«The context of Virgil’s line Sunt lacrimae rerum et mentem mortalia tangunt has nothing to do with and cannot detract from its greatness and its overhead character. If we limit its meaning so as to unify it with what goes before, if we want Virgil to say in it only, “Oh yes, even in Carthage, so distant a place, these foreigners too can sympathise and weep over what has happened in Troy and get touched by human nisfortune,” then the line will lose all its value and we would only have to admire the strong turn and recherché suggestiveness of its expression. Virgil certainly did not mean it like that; he starts indeed by stressind the generality of the fame of Troy and the interest taken everywhere in her misfortunes but then he asses from the particularity of this idea and suddenly rises from it to a feeling of the universality of mortal sorroz and suffering and of the chord of human sympathy and participation which responds to it from all who share that mortality. He rises indeed much higher than that and goes much deeper: he has felt a brooding cosmic sense of these things, gone into the depth of the soul which answers to them and drawn from it the inspired and inevitable language and rhythm which came down to it from above to give this pathetic perception an immortla body. Lines like these seldom depend upon their context, they rise from it as if a single Himalayan peak from a range of low hills or even from a flat plain. They have to be looked at by themselves, valued for their own sake, felt in their own independent greatness.» 5/15/2007 6:20 PM

John Cowan said... Quite right, Anonymous. (Why don't you Anonymouses just make up names? On one of my postings -- an atypical one, to be sure -- I have some thirty of you commenting away. Posting under the name of John Jones or Norrin Radd would leave you no more or less anonymous than before.)

In any case, it's quite true that many "great lines" are now best interpreted out of the original context and in the context of repeated quotation. "More honored in the breach than in the observance" originally meant "more often honored" but is now usually employed to mean "more fitly honored"; similarly, the original "still small voice" of conscience merely reassures Elijah that he need not think of himself as a failure, for the Ba'al-worshippers that he has not yet murdered will be taken care of by others! 6/29/2007 6:04 PM

Priyadarshan said... Thank you for the very nice article. My sensitivity likes these lines from Sri Aurobindo's Savitri very much. I find they translate impeccably Virgilio's line: "But joy cannot endure until the end: There is a darkness in terrestrial things That will not suffer long too glad a note."-- Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, pp. 16-17 (That shows also how Latin is able of much more density than English.) 3/12/2008 1:16 PM

March 29, 2008

I feel we have entered the very heart of Thy sanctuary

Pondicherry, March 29, 1914

O Thou whom we must know, understand, realise, absolute Consciousness, eternal Law, Thou who guidest and illuminest us, who movest and inspirest us, grant that these weak souls may be strengthened and those who fear be reassured. To Thee I entrust them, even as I entrust to Thee our entire destiny.

Page - 123

March 30, 1914

In the presence of those who are integrally Thy servitors, those who have attained the perfect consciousness of Thy presence, I become aware that I am still far, very far from what I yearn to realise; and I know that the highest I can conceive, the noblest and purest is still dark and ignorant beside what I should conceive. But this perception, far from being depressing, stimulates and strengthens the aspiration, the energy, the will to triumph over all obstacles so as to be at last identified with Thy law and Thy work.
Gradually the horizon becomes distinct, the path grows clear, and we move towards a greater and greater certitude.
It matters little that there are thousands of beings plunged in the densest ignorance, He whom we saw yesterday is on earth; his presence is enough to prove that a day will come when darkness shall be transformed into light, and Thy reign shall be indeed established upon earth.
O Lord, Divine Builder of this marvel, my heart overflows with joy and gratitude when I think of it, and my hope has no bounds.
My adoration is beyond all words, my reverence is silent.

Page - 124

April 1, 1914

I feel we have entered the very heart of Thy sanctuary and grown aware of Thy very will. A great joy, a deep peace reign in me, and yet all my inner constructions have vanished like a vain dream and I find myself now, before Thy immensity, without a frame or system, like a being not yet individualised. All the past in its external form seems ridiculously arbitrary to me, and yet I know it was useful in its own time.
But now all is changed: a new stage has begun.

Page - 125 Location: Home > E-Library > Works Of The Mother > English > Prayers And Meditations Volume-01 > 1 February 1914

March 27, 2008

In this little book, Sri Aurobindo presents Divine Mother in a somewhat easier way

It is a classic! February 5, 2008 By D. Chakravarti (Omaha, NE USA) - See all my reviews

God as Divine Mother is a huge subject in Hinduism. And, it is poorly understood, especially in the western world. In this little book, Sri Aurobindo describes Divine Mother as One with four personalities: Maheshwari, Mahakali, Mahalakshmi and Mahasaraswati. Then He discusses how She plays Her many roles through them. This book contains a lot of Spiritual truths, many of which are not going to be understandable by mere rationalization.

If you think that religion is just faith, this book is not for you. A little background is also necessary to understand the context of this book. There are a number of ways sages have taught us about God as Divine Mother. Shakta Tantra describes Her as Dasa-Mahavidya. Mystic Shaktas have described Her according to the Vedas, Upanishads and Puranas. I have not seen this discussed in any one book, that means, you'll probably have to study a lot to even get the basic ideas.

Divine Mother as Shakti (avyaakrita paramaa prakriti), as Deities (Brahma-mayi, Ichhaa-mayi, Lilaa-mayi and Kaala-bhayahaarini Mother) or in the body as the Kundalini, are not at all easy to understand, even after a lot of study. In this little book, Sri Aurobindo presents Divine Mother in a somewhat easier way, even though the book itself is not that easy to read. You will have to read it again and again. The more you understand this book, the more you will love it, and appreciate the insights into the meaning of worship.

March 26, 2008

The Congress is asking us not to contribute to the War Fund. What shall we do?

WAR AND POLITICS: INDIA'S INDEPENDENCE Nirodbaran

World War II, in which India also was involved, began in 1939, a year after Sri Aurobindo's accident and ended in 1945 with the victory of the Allies. India's long struggle for liberty came to an end in 1947 when she became independent. This was one of the most exciting phases in our twelve years' stay with Sri Aurobindo. We had the unique opportunity of watching with him, from his room and, following step by step, the long course and rapid development of these two historic events: on the one hand, the great danger to Europe and the whole world; on the other, opportunity given to India to gain her freedom by her cooperation with the Allies. We shared with Sri Aurobindo his hopes and fears, his anticipations, prognostications and prophecies. He allowed us some glimpses into his action and gave a calm assurance of the victory of the divine cause. For the Mother had declared that it was her war. Hitler's star was in the ascendant for a time. His Panzer divisions racing through France making Paris' fate hang in the balance, his Luftwaffe over London, Rommel's overrunning of North Africa, the Allied invasion of Europe, the Battle of Stalingrad - all these and many other episodes kept us in breathless suspense.

But in the midst of all these dramatic upheavals, Sri Aurobindo never lost his calm equanimity though he knew very well indeed what was at stake. He said that Hitler was the greatest menace the world had to face and that he would stop at nothing to achieve his sinister object, even destroy the whole civilisation; for "An idiot hour destroys what centuries made", as we find in a verse in Savitri.

An account of what was said and done in Sri Aurobindo's room during this period will be revelatory in many respects. First of all, it will dispel the prevailing universal misconception that Sri Aurobindo was a world-shunning Yogi immersed in his own sadhana. It will show, on the contrary, how much he was concerned with the "good of humanity". Far from taking only a passive interest in the vast conflict, the modern Kurukshetra, where the fate of the entire world was being decided, he actively participated in it with his spiritual Force and directed that very fate to a victorious consummation. The account will also bring to light Sri Aurobindo's acute political insight and wide knowledge of military affairs. Although he had left public life in 1910 and lived thereafter in seclusion for nearly half a century, he always kept in touch with all world- movements through outer and inner means. Perhaps people will find it difficult to believe and many will flatly deny that such a spiritual force exists; and it will be hard for them to swallow that, if at all it exists, a man acquiring and possessing it can apply it to an individual or cosmic purpose. But fortunately we have Sri Aurobindo's own word for it and our personal experience in its support. In fact his integral Yoga aims at nothing less than bringing down the supramental consciousness and changing the present terrestrial consciousness by its dynamic power and light. We shall also witness Sri Aurobindo's vital interest in India's struggle for freedom, for which he had himself launched the first movement, awakening the country to her birthright and , aiding her later by his decisive spiritual force towards its achievement.

Though we in the Ashram are not supposed to take part in politics, we are not at all indifferent to world affairs. In fact, Sri Aurobindo has said that we are immensely interested in them. The journal Mother India which was a semi-political fortnightly, and came out two years after India's Independence, was edited by one of the sadhaks who was living in Bombay and the editorials were sent to Sri Aurobindo for approval before publication. Sri Aurobindo gave many long and regular interviews to a political leader of Bengal and gave him advice and directions regarding the contemporary situation. The Mother too has said that the Supermind cannot but include in its ultimate work for world-change the political administration, since all secular well-being rests in the hands of the governing power of the country. Besides, the War was not a simple political issue among the big nations. The Nazi aggression meant "the peril of black servitude and a revived barbarism threatening India and the world". It was a life-and-death question for the spiritual evolution of the new man, for the emergence of a new race which the Mother and Sri Aurobindo had come to initiate and establish on the earth. And the victory of Hitler's Germany would mean not only the end of civilisation, but also the death of that great possibility. It is in this sense I have called this War a modern Kurukshetra.

Let us then go back to the crucial year 1938 when dark war-clouds were gathering and rumblings were heard all over Europe. There was a strong possibility that fighting would break out in December, just a week or two after the night of November 23, when Sri Aurobindo had his accident. But, as he indicated in our talks, his Force pushed it back to a later date, for war at that time would have been a great hindrance to his work. It is possible to surmise that the irresistible forces which no human power could check turned their fury on one who had checked them. Long before Hitler's actual invasion of Poland, long before any other person, Sri Aurobindo had seen this dark Asuric Power rising in Germany and striding over Europe, making Hitler its demoniac instrument, a pseudo-colossus, a self-acclaimed Napoleon. Therefore he supported the Allies and warned India of the forthcoming peril, much to the chagrin and indignation of our blind country- men. Future events proved his forecast right to the letter.

We used to have discussions on the international political situation from the very start. Hitler's insane lust for power, England's political bankruptcy, America's suicidal policy of non-intervention, Russia's shrewd Machiavellian diplomacy: all were subjects of the verbal to-and-fro in Sri Aurobindo's room. Chamberlain's ill-famed peace mission, Colonel Beck's militant interview with Hitler, France's betrayal of Czechoslovakia evoked vigorous protests or praises from us. Sri Aurobindo observed how one nation after another was hypnotised by Hitler's asuric māyā and submitted to his diabolical charm, how the intellectuals did not raise any voice against the Hitlerian menace. On seeing a photograph of Chamberlain and Hitler taken during their meeting at Munich, Sri Aurobindo said that Chamberlain looked like a fly before a spider, on the point of being caught - and he actually was caught! Of course, the German dictator had already put Mussolini in his pocket. Only Colonel Beck seemed to have kept some manly individuality. Many other issues Sri Aurobindo discussed with us, as will be evident from the book Talks with Sri Aurobindo, as though we were all keen-sighted states-men and generals; and the talks were usually enlivened by Sri Aurobindo's genial humour. In these talks he imparted to us a clear vision of the issues at stake, but never imposed his views. When we dared to differ or failed to follow him, he patiently explained to us where we were wrong. His physical nearness made us realise, with an extraordinary lucidity, what terrible inhuman forces were trying to overcast the world with an abysmal darkness from which a supreme Divine Power alone could save it.

For all the war-news we had to depend on the daily newspapers, since members of the Ashram were not supposed to have radios. Somebody in the town began to supply us with short bulletins; when the War had taken a full-fledged turn, the radio news was transmitted to Sri Aurobindo's room so he might follow the war- movements from hour to hour. Here we find a notable instance of the spiritual flexibility of his rules and principles. What had been laid down for a particular time and condition, would not be inviolable under altered circumstances. Sri Aurobindo, who was once a mortal opponent of British rule in India, came to support the Allies against the threat of world-domination by Hitler. "Not merely a non-cooperator but an enemy of British Imperialism", he now listened carefully to the health bulletins about Churchill when he had pneumonia, and, we believe, even helped him with his Force to recover. It is the rigid mind that cries for consistency under all circumstances. I still remember Sri Aurobindo breaking the news of Hitler's march and England's declaration of war. For a time the world hung in suspense wondering whether Hitler would flout Holland's neutrality and then penetrate into Belgium. We had very little doubt of his intention. It was evening; Sri Aurobindo was alone in his room. As soon as I entered, he looked at me and said, "Hitler has invaded Holland. Well, we shall see." That was all. Two or three such laconic but pregnant remarks regarding the War still ring in my ears. At another crucial period when Stalin held a threatening pistol at England and was almost joining hands with Hitler, we were dismayed and felt that there would be no chance for the Divine, were such a formidable alliance to take place. Sri Aurobindo at once retorted, "Is the Divine going to be cowed by. Stalin?" When, seeing Hitler sweeping like a meteor over Europe, a sadhak cried in despair to the Guru, "Where is the Divine? Where is your word of hope?" Sri Aurobindo replied calmly, "Hitler is not immortal." Then the famous battle of Dunkirk and the perilous retreat, the whole Allied army exposed to enemy attack from land and air and the bright summer sun shining above. All of a sudden a fog gathered from nowhere and gave unexpected protection to the retreating army. We said, "It seems the fog helped the evacuation." To 'which 'Sri Aurobindo remarked, "Yes, the fog is rather unusual at this time." We, of course, understood what he meant. It was after the fall of Dunkirk and the capitulation of France that Sri Aurobindo began to apply his Force more vigorously in favour of the Allies, and he had "the satisfaction of seeing the rush of German victory almost immediately arrested and the tide of war begin to turn in the opposite direction".

Thus, we see, Sri Aurobindo was not simply a passive witness, a mere verbal critic of the Allied war policy. When India was asked to participate in the war effort, and the Mother and Sri Aurobindo, much to the surprised indignation of our countrymen, contributed to the War Fund, he, for the first time, made clear to the nation what issues were involved in the War. I remember the Mother darting into Sri Aurobindo's room quite early in the morning with a sheet of paper in her hand. I guessed that something private was going to be discussed and discreetly withdrew. Then Purani came most unexpectedly. "Ah! here is something afoot," I said to myself. A couple of days later the secret was revealed in all the newspapers: Sri Aurobindo had made a donation to the War Fund! Of course, he explained why he had done so. He stated that the War was being waged "in defence of civilisation and its highest attained social, cultural and spiritual values and the whole future of humanity...." Giving the lead, he acted as an example for others to follow. But, all over the country, protests, calumnies and insinuations were his lot. Even his disciples were nonplussed in spite of his explanation why he had made that singular gesture. A disciple wrote to the Mother, "The Congress is asking us not to contribute to the War Fund. What shall we do?" The answer given was: "Sri Aurobindo has contributed for a divine cause. If you help, you will be helping yourselves." Some were wishing for the victory of the Nazis because of their hatred for the British. The Mother had to give a stern admonition. She wrote: "It has become necessary to state emphatically and clearly that all who by their thoughts and wishes are supporting and calling for the victory of the Nazis are by that very fact collaborating with the Asura against the Divine and helping to bring about the victory of the Asura." Page – 126 Location: Home > E-Library > Works Of Disciples > Nirodbaran > Twelve Years With Sri Aurobindo > War And Politics

March 25, 2008

Museums are ready-made schools waiting to be used

Lessons from the museum Sreelatha Menon Business Standard New Delhi March 25, 2008
A unique experiment of teaching that started in three museums in Bhopal will now be replicated in three other metros.

The four walls of a museum can be a substitute for a school. Pradeep Ghosh thought so, four years ago wracking his brain for a solution to bring light into the lives of thousands of children who have no access to schools in Bhopal. Ghosh, a former IT professional decided to leave the business world ten years ago to take the plunge in the development sector. It began as a job with Plan International. He then decided that he could work for human development himself. Thus was born the Organisation for Awareness of Integrated Social Security (OASIS), in Bhopal.

Bhopal’s museum school was born three years ago with the intention of removing the disparity in the quality of education in urban areas and teaching the school runaways. The model is already expanding. Next month, Delhi will have its first museum school and that would be followed by Chennai and Bangalore. Ghosh was dreaming of a model education method which had the best elements of the teaching system followed by Shanti Niketan in Bengal, Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry and the Japanese system of education. Ghosh decided to take them all and combined them with the information offered by museums in Bhopal.

Ghosh explains how his 120 students learnt their first lessons at the National Museum for Mankind, the only museum of its kind in the country. An entire hill has been shaped into actual habitats of various tribal communities of the country. There are three actual houses on tree tops depicting the houses of a tribe of the North East, and the children can learn about culture and habitat from this museum, he says. The 20 teachers mostly volunteers from various colleges and BeD students are trained by Ghosh and the museum staff and are exposed to training sessions on child psychology from time to time. The only people Ghosh has to pay are the literacy workers from the slums which send the children.

In the first few years, the accent is on literacy skills, followed by letting the children respond to the senses and learn what they see and hear. The museum helps in this. It is a textbook which children can respond to easily. Oasis picks up its 120 odd children from various slums in Bhopal after 1 pm and brings them to the three museums where they have permission to work. The children are split in groups, and while some may have material inside the museum, others sit in groups outside and learn. The buses go and drop back the children in their homes.

Ghosh says that the children are also being trained in wood and clay modelling and as they grow older, they are taught business management and entrepreneurial skills. The children are registered in the National Open School where they are free to take examinations whenever they are ready for it, says Ghosh. The children, many of them rag pickers, continue to ply their trades, some have started going to regular schools, but all of them are attending this unique museum school. Encouraged, Ghosh wants to extend the timing to 5 pm. Apart from the children, Ghosh’s museum school has admirers in museums themselves. The Museum School in Bhopal started in 2005 in collaboration with 3 Museums: The Regional Science Centre, National Museum of Mankind and the Regional Museum of Natural History.

OASIS has received encouragement and acceptance from 5 museums in Delhi: National Science Centre, National Museum of Natural History, National Crafts Museum, National Rail Museum and Shankar’s International Doll Museum. Ghosh calls museums ready-made schools waiting to be used. His idea has found ready takers in NGOs and social entrepreneurs in Delhi Chennai and Bangalore. In Delhi children living in Savda Ghevra slums relocation colony in Rohini will benefit from the museum school that opens there. About 20,000 families shifted from Jamuna Pushta to live there. “We expect 100 students in the first batch,” says Ghosh, an Ashoka social entrepreneur.

March 23, 2008

Often agonizing, often ecstatic, and generally both simultaneously

Re: “I was facing a huge golden door…”—to keep the contact with Matter RY Deshpande Sat 22 Mar 2008 02:29 AM PDT

Apropos of the Mother’s work of physical transformation, Georges van Vrekhem writes:

“… the transformation process in the Mother’s body, which was representative of the Earth, went on. The connection, the bridge, the link between the supramental world and our material world was being established in her. Her body was no longer a personal body belonging to somebody known and seen as being the Mother; this, she said, was only an appearance kept up to maintain the contact with the people around her and with all who belonged to the Work. It was still there pour toucher de Matière, to keep the contact with Matter. For Matter itself had to be transformed in order to render it suitable to serve as part of the ādhāra [support] of the supramental body, all this, and more, was going on in that apparently very aged body, now ninety and more years old. A summary description of her body’s transformation looks very abstract, but the actual process in the Mother was very concrete, experiential, often agonizing, often ecstatic, and generally both simultaneously.” (The Mother, pp. 508-09)

March 21, 2008

Sri Aurobindo and His Contemporary Thinkers, edited by Indrani Sanyal and Krishna Roy

Sri Aurobindo and His Contemporary Thinkers, edited by Indrani Sanyal and Krishna Roy. New Delhi, D.K. Printworld, 2007, x, 350 p., $35. ISBN 81-246-0428-2.
Contents: Preface. Introduction.

1. Sri Aurobindo's Philosophy of Nationalism, Internationalism and Contemporary Crisis - Kireet Joshi.
2. The distinctiveness of Sri Aurobindo's view on Indian Renaissance - D.P. Chattopadhyaya.
3. The Bengal Renaissance: different interpretations - Rakhal Chandra Nath.
4. Sri Aurobindo on the possibility renaissance in India - Dilip Kumar Roy.
5. Sri Aurobindo and Ireland: a critical study - Dilip Kumar Chatterjee.
6. National Education Movement and Satis Chandra - Rama Prasad De.
7. Bengal's National Council of Education and Sri Aurobindo - Amal Kumar De.
8. History as applied metaphysics - Indrani Sanyal.
9. Some renaissance aspects of Vivekananda's Thoughts - Tirthanath Bandyopadhyay.
10. The Western Imperialistic Challenge: Aurobindo, Tilak and Gokhale - Aparna Banerjee.
11. Significance of Tagore's Poetry in the Indian renaissance: Sri Aurobindonian perspective - Supriyo Bhattacharya.
12. The Revolutionary Movement: Tagore and Aurobindo - Manjula Bose.
13. Philosophy of Krishna Chandra Bhattacharyya - Tara Chatterjee.
14. Acharya Brojendranath Seal : his aesthetic ideas - Sudhir Kumar Nandi.
15. Outlook towards women: influence of Indian renaissance - Madhumita Chattopadhyay.
16. Raja Rammohan Roy: Forerunner of Women's Liberation Movement - Krishna Roy.
17. Violence or non-violence: interpretations by Sri Aurobindo and Mahatma Gandhi - Sushmita Bhowmik.
18. Sri Aurobindo, Mahatma Gandhi and India's Freedom Struggle : from Swadeshi to Non-cooperation - Sujata Mukherjee.

The contributors. Index.
"The period spanning the latter half of the eighteenth century and the nineteenth century in India was marked by a reawakened national spirit to reinterpret Indian traditional values in modern light. This book, comprising deliberations presented at a national seminar, discusses some of the illustrious persons of that period who by their ideas and actions enriched the socio-cultural and spiritual life of the period.

Researchers study the Period of Sri Aurobindo, his contributions as well as those of his contemporaries including Raja Rammohan Roy, Mahatma Gandhi, Tagore, Gokhale and Satish Chandra. The aim is to situate Sri Aurobindo's thoughts in its socio-cultural background and study the contributions of his contemporaries to bring out the distinctiveness of Sri Aurobindo. The essays deal with Sri Aurobindo's Philosophy of Nationalism, his view of Indian Renaissance and Ireland's National and Cultural Renaissance and his attitude towards national education. They take up interpretations of violence and non violence by Sri Aurobindo and Mahatma Gandhi, Vivekananda's outlook about morality, Caste System and Dharma, and response of Aurobindo, Tilak and Gokhale to Western Imperialism. An interesting effort is make to compare the thoughts of Sri Aurobindo and Tagore towards the Revolutionary Movement and reveal Aurobindo's perception of Tagore's poetry. The book will be useful to historians, political and social thinkers, besides the general readers." (jacket)

Return to History and Politics Catalogue Home This book is available from:Vedams eBooks (P) Ltd. Vardhaman Charve Plaza IV, Building # 9, K.P Block, Pitampura,New Delhi 110 034, India Fax: 91-11-27310613 e-mail: vedams@vedamsbooks.com

March 19, 2008

Rekindle the Fire within the Vedic tradition with Sri Aurobindo’s Vision

Home › Vedic Studies Administrator: vladimir About Us:

The mission of this group is to start a comprehensive study of the Vedas in the light of Sri Aurobindo. To rediscover a profound symbolism of the Vedic Knowledge in terms of Integral Psychology and Philosophy of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother and to make it available for all those who want to learn about these subjects in depth and in detail. India is pregnant with the Vedic Knowledge but its light is lost.

Our mission would be to ignite the Light and to rekindle the Fire within the Vedic tradition with Sri Aurobindo’s Vision, and thus to create a true interest in deeper studies of these matters on scientific/ Yogic ground. It is indispensable for India to recover her innermost Knowledge which she preserved over millennia, for only thus the world can truly change.

March 18, 2008

AuroMa-sons: A. B. Purani

A.B. Purani From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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A. B. Purani Born 1894 Died 1965 Nationality Indian Writing period 20th century Influences[show] Sri Aurobindo
Ambalal Balkrishna Purani (1894-1965) was a prominent disciple and biographer of Sri Aurobindo.

The Life of Sri Aurobindo. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1958.
Evening Talks with Sri Aurobindo. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1959.
Lectures on Savitri: lectures delivered in the United States. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1967.

Ambalal Balkrishna Purani was born in Surat, Gujarat, in 1894. Inspired as a young man by Sri Aurobindo, then a leader of the Indian National Movement, Purani helped to launch a youth movement which gained widespread popularity in gujarat. At the age of twenty-four he visited Sri Aurobindo in Pondicherry and finally settled there five years later in 1923. From 1938 to 1950 he served as one of Sri Aurobindo‘s personal attendants. Towards the end of his life Purani toured India, Africa, Europe and the United States, trying to spread the message of his Master. In 1965, at the age of seventy-one, he passed away in Pondicherry. 86 pp.

Ambalal Balakrishna (A.B.) Purani (Surat, Gujarat 26 May 1894 - Ashram, Pondicherry 11 December 1965)
Link to Sri Aurobindo: Bhawani Mandir The reference... comes from A.B. Purani's "The Life of Sri Aurobindo" 24 November 1926 - the Day of Siddhi (20 Kb) personal witness of A.B. Purani who was there.
A.B. Purani: Introduction to the "Evening Talks with Sri Aurobindo" (39 Kb)
6 September 1926: Controlling the Money-Power (11 Kb)

Just before going to India for the first time in 1962, I had the great good fortune to meet and hear Sri A. B. Purani, the administrator of the renowned Aurobindo Ashram of Pondicherry, India. From his lips I heard the most brilliant expositions of Vedic philosophy; nothing in my subsequent experience has equaled them... Seeing God in All Things: An Instructive Story March 17th, 2008 • By Swami Nirmalananda Giri The Atma Jyoti Blog

March 17, 2008

The University of Human Unity is an innovative alternative genre of university

Allied Organisations
The University of Human Unity is connected with a wide variety of organizations for exploration and discovery of a new consciousness through integral studies in all areas of human knowledge:
California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) - California, US http://www.ciis.edu/
Centre for International Research in Human Unity (CIRHU) - Auroville, India http://www.auroville.org/education/edu_centres/cirhu.htm
Centre for Scientific Research (CSR) - Auroville, India http://auroville.org/research/csr/csr_training.htm Esalen Institute - California, US http://www.esalen.org/index.html
Indian Psychology Institute (IPI) - Pudicherry, India http://ipi.org.in/
International Zone Group (IZ) - Auroville, India http://www.auroville.org/thecity/int_zone_intro.htm
Laboratory for Evolution (LOE) - Auroville, India http://auroville.org/education/edu_centres/loe.htm
Living Routes - Massachusetts, US http://www.livingroutes.org
Savitri Bhavan - Auroville, India http://auroville.org/education/edu_centres/savitribhavan_activities.htm
Sri Aurobindo Centre for Advanced Research (SACAR) - Pudicherry, India http://www.theuniversityoftomorrow.org/
Sri Aurobindo International Institute of Education and Research (SAIIER) - Auroville, India http://www.auroville.org/education/saiier/saiier.htm
Unity Pavilion - Auroville, India http://www.auroville.org/thecity/int_zone_unity.htm
Verite Integral Learning Centre (ILC) - Auroville, India http://www.auroville.org/education/edu_centres/ilc.htm Winter Integral Studies Program (WISP) - Auroville, India http://www.auroville.info/WISP/index.htm
WorldShift University, Club of Budapest
The University of Human Unity welcomes all units and individuals in Auroville who are actively engaged in research and higher learning, as well as kindred individuals and organisations around the world to join with us in this process of discovery.

A rich store of practical techniques to raise our individual and collective level of consciousness

Three Introductory Courses in Indian Psychology- One year in Pondicherry: 8-day intensive + 8 monthly weekends- One semester in Pondicherry: 8-day intensive + regular evening & weekend classes- One year in Delhi: 8-day intensive in Pondicherry + 8 monthly weekends in DelhiAcademic year 2008 - 2009 Information For further information, contact: Matthijs Cornelissen. Home aim of IPI what is IP? IPI projects IPI components IPI newsletter Themes Authors IP research Integral yoga By the way Events Inspirations What is new? Related sites
INDIAN PSYCHOLOGY INSTITUTE Three Introductory Courses in Indian Psychology
2008 - 2009
PLEASE SEE THE NEW DATES & FEES
One year Pondicherry: 8-day intensive + 6 Sundays
Eight-day intensive in Pondicherry: June 15 - June22, 2008
Six Sundays in Pondicherry: August 3, September 7, November 2, and December 7 in 2008, and February 8 and March 8 in 2009
One semester in Pondicherry: 8-day intensive + regular evening & 4 weekend classes
Eight-day intensive in Pondicherry: June 15 - June 22, 2008
Regular evening classes in Pondicherry (exact period flexible)
Four Sundays in Pondicherry: August 3, September 7, November 2, and December 7, 2008
One year: 8-day intensive in Pondicherry + 6 monthly weekends in Delhi
Eight-day intensive in Pondicherry: May 25 - June 1, 2008
Six weekends in Delhi: August 10/11, September 13/14, November 8/9, and December 13/14 in 2008, and February 14/15 and March 14/15 in 2009

Background
More and more people are becoming aware of the treasures which the Indian tradition can contribute to our psychological understanding of human nature. Indian literature, philosophy and yoga are based on a very deep insight in life and how it unfolds on this planet, and Indian approaches to psychology can add a greater depth and meaning to psychological theory as well as practice. The life-affirming spirituality that is the very basis of the Indian civilization is not only essential for our own individual happiness, but also for the harmonious evolution of the global civilization. In theoretical fields as well as in applications like counselling, psychotherapy and education, Indian approaches to psychology are not only more in harmony with the Indian culture but also with human nature in general, so that they can play a crucial role in the future of the whole of humanity. In each of these courses we will try to develop a genuinely integral approach to psychology, for which we will base ourselves largely on Sri Aurobindo’s synthesis of the Indian tradition, though other sources will be brought in when needed.

Content and structure of the courses
The basic concepts and processes that are part of Indian psychology will be explained in lectures and discussion groups that are based on an intense, direct interaction with the participants. To the extent possible we will have, besides the larger groups, also small-group and individual sessions.
An attempt will be made to help the participants experience the core concepts and processes that come up in the lectures, and to explore, both collectively and individually, how they can be used for one’s personal growth as well as in one’s professional work.
During the course the participants are required to take up one or more research projects in any area of Indian psychology of their choice. These largely self-directed projects will involve besides literature study, detached self-observation and other yoga-based research methodologies.
Maintaining a diary will be part of the course structure.

The One-year course in Pondicherry
The one-year course in Pondicherry starts with an eight-day intensive in Pondicherry, June 15-22, 2008.
Spread over the following academic year, there will be six one-day workshops in Pondicherry. These workshops will be held on the Sunday following the first Saturday of August, September, November, and December 2008, plus March and April 2009. During the preceding Saturdays, starting from Saturday August 2, there will be an opportunity to discuss individually or in small groups the projects which the participants will do at home during the intervening months.
This course will focus on the needs of post-graduate students, lecturers and professionals in Psychology and related subjects, who want to get a basic understanding of Indian approaches to Psychology.
As Pondicherry is well-connected, applicants from all over South-India can apply.
The total fee for this course is Rs. 3500/- , which is Rs. 2000/- for the eight-day intensive (incl. board and lodging) plus 6 x Rs. 250/- for the six Sundays (incl. lunch and tea/coffee). If required, accommodation during the six weekends can be arranged in one the Sri Aurobindo Ashram guesthouses, starting at Rs. 50/- per night.

The One-semester course in Pondicherry
The One-semester course in Pondicherry includes the eight-day intensive and the first four of the six Sunday workshops mentioned above under the One-year Pondicherry course.
In between there will be regular evening classes on themes like “Vedic Literature”, “Integral Yoga Psychology”, “The Gita”, etc. Students can also opt for special classes on subjects like counselling, education, Sanskrit etc. according to their interest and availability of resource people.
This course is meant primarily for psychology students and teachers who want to achieve in a short period as deep an understanding of the psychological aspects of Sri Aurobindo’s work and the Indian tradition in general as they can manage. We think especially of students who are planning to take up a PhD project in which they want to include aspects from the Indian tradition, PhD students who are already involved in such a study, and University and College level teachers who want to spend a sabbatical on deepening their understanding of the Indian tradition.
Residents of Pondicherry and Auroville who work during the day but want to make a serious effort to deepen their understanding of the psychological aspects of the Indian tradition and Sri Aurobindo’s work can also apply. We cannot take responsibility for accommodation in Pondicherry during the semester course, but we will do our best to help.
As we envisage for this course a wide variety among the participants in terms of previous knowledge, interest and commitment, self-directed study will occupy an important place.
The fee for the eight-day intensive is the same as in the One-year course (Rs. 2000/-). Other elements of this course will be free, except, perhaps, for some of the self-chosen special classes.

The One-year course in Delhi
The Delhi course starts with an eight-day intensive workshop in Pondicherry, May 25 to June 1, 2008.
During the following academic year there will be six two-day workshops in Delhi. These weekend workshops will be held during the second weekend of August, September, November, and December 2008, plus March and April 2009.
This course will focus on the needs of post-graduate students, lecturers and professionals working in the field of Psychology, who want to get a basic understanding of Indian approaches to Psychology.
As Delhi is well connected, residents of other cities in North-India can also apply.
The total fee for this course is set at Rs. 5600/-, which is Rs. 2000/- for the eight-day intensive (incl. board and lodging) plus 6 x Rs. 600/- for each of the 6 weekends (incl. lunch and tea/coffee). If required, accommodation during the 6 weekends can be arranged separately in the Delhi Branch of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram.

Scholarships
Scholarships may be provided for deserving candidates.

Course facilitators
The facilitators are Matthijs Cornelissen, Neeltje Huppes, and Alok Pandey. Amongst other available resource persons we are happy to have Vladimir Iatsenko, Vijaybharti, Suneet Varma, and Partho.

Registration
To register, the following needs to be submitted:
The completed registration form.
A 300-600 word biographical note, focusing on the work you have already done in the fields of psychology, Indian philosophy and yoga.
A 300-600 word note on why you are interested in this course, what you expect from it, and how you plan to use what you will learn after completing this course.
As the total number of places available is limited, you are advised to submit your application as early as possible, but not later than March 15, 2008.
You will be informed about selection before April 5, 2008.
If you have been selected, the course fee needs to be paid before April 30.
Further information
For any further information, you may please write to matthijs@ipi.org.in.
Registration Form
Please submit this form (plus the two appendixes mentioned above) as early as possible, but not later than March 15, 2008 to: matthijs@ipi.org.in
Course for which participation is sought: Name: Gender: Year of birth: Educational qualifications: Present position & place of work: Preferred Postal Address: Email address(es): Telephone / Mobile:
Please note that this information is provisional and subject to change.
The latest information will always be available at: http://ipi.org.in/events/ip-courses-2008.html
Please check this site before submitting your application and registration fees.
home themes authors research integral yoga by the way events inspirations links
The Aim of IPI
The aim of the Indian Psychology Institute is to explore and develop what the Indian traditions can contribute to modern psychology in terms of theoretical models, specific insights, reliable methods, practical applications, and avenues for future research. In the Indian subcontinent spirituality has been a core element of mainstream culture from the earliest days of recorded history right into the present. This spiritual focus has not only given rise to folk-traditions that are full of wisdom, but it has also produced an outstanding intellectual tradition that can provide what the West has missed: the effective integration of science and spirituality. The various systems of yoga in India have developed rigorous and effective methods of enquiry in the domains of consciousness studies and psychology that may help us to find answers to our deepest questions regarding values, truth, love, meaning and beauty. They can offer modern science not only a wealth of philosophical and psychological theories, but also a rich store of practical techniques to raise our individual and collective level of consciousness. The Indian Psychology Institute wants to help with the development of new approaches to psychology based on Indian philosophy, yoga and a life-affirming spirituality. It holds that such approaches to psychology will not only be more in harmony with the Indian ethos, but that they can make a crucial contribution to the evolving global civilization. Please see the list of the type of projects we are engaged in.
What is Indian Psychology Please see NEW DATES & FEES FOR THE Three Introductory Courses inIndian Psychology contact us by email

March 13, 2008

AuroMa-sons: Sisir Kumar Ghose

Shelley and Sri Aurobindo // ACLALS Bulletin, Lennoxville, Quebec, Canada. Article in: vol. 4 no. 5, 1977.- PAGES: 76-79.- LANGUAGE: English.
Sri Aurobindo, poet and social thinker.- 1st ed.- Dharwar: Karnatak University, 1973.- vii, 31 p.; 22 cm.- SERIES: Extension lectures publications series; 21
Sri Aurobindo's Gita: A Short Survey. In Honour of Ramesh Mohan // Sharma, T. R. (ed.). Influence of Bhagavadgita on Literature Written in English. Meerut: Shalabh, 1988. xxxiv, 277 pp.- PAGES: 174-180.- LANGUAGE: English.- PUB TYPE: book article
The Basic Poetry of Sri Aurobindo // Sharma, K. K. (ed.). Indo-English Literature: A Collection of Critical Essays. Ghaziabad: Vimal Prakashan, 1977. viii, 273 pp.- PAGES: 47-59.- LANGUAGE: English.- PUB TYPE: book article
The Future Poetry of Sri Aurobindo // Yearbook of Comparative and General Literature, Bloomington, IN. Article in: vol. 11, 1962.- PAGES: 149-153.- STANDARD NO: 0084-3695.- LANGUAGE: English
The poetry of Sri Aurobindo; a short survey.- Calcutta: Chatuskone, 1969.- 124 p. port. 23 cm.- NOTES: Includes quotations from Aurobindo Ghose's works. Bibliographical footnotes.
The Poetry of Sri Aurobindo. // Cultural Forum, New Delhi. Article in: vol. 14 no. 3-4, 1972.- PAGES: 72-78.- LANGUAGE: English
Two essays.- Santiniketan, 1949.- 22 p. 23 cm.

Sisir Kumar Ghose

Mystics as a Force for Change
A monograph on Rabindranath Tagore on the occasion of his 125th birth anniversary
Tagore Sri Aurobinndo and Iqbal ; Iqbal Institute {U.K}
Triple Thinker; Sisir Kumar Ghosh annamalai university, 1966
Mystics And Society; IIAS, 1973
Sri Aurobindo-A Poet; IIAS, 1974
On being a person; Navonmesa: M.M. Gopinath Kaviraj Smriti Granth, 1987
"13 Consciousness and Culture." The Evolution of Consciousness. Ed. Kishore Gandhi, Paragon House, New York, 1986
***
The Life of Sri Chinmoy → Everyday Experiences → I Love Shopping, Part 1 → A Mentor
Yesterday I went to an old bookstore and bought "Mystics as a Force for Change" by Sisir Kumar Ghose. He is a Bengali who lives in Shanti Niketan. He happens to be a very close friend of mine, plus one of my great mentors. He is extremely fond of me, and I am extremely fond of him.

I know him so well. He has been going to the ashram for the last thirty years. We used to walk along the shores of the Bay of Bengal together in the evening. Eighteen years ago he came to America to give lectures at Mississippi University. Some nice pictures of us together were taken while he was here. He brought me a beautiful small statue of Lord Buddha and other gifts. I remember them—especially a peculiar ballpoint from Shanti Niketan.

For most of the articles in the book that I bought, I had served as his messenger boy. During that time I was unofficial sub-editor of Mother India, and I used to take his articles to the editor. Also, I made arrangements for him to have an interview with Mother India.

I was so delighted and excited to see the book. It was $2.95. So I bought it and started reading it. I truly admire Sisir Kumar Ghose. He was such a nice, kind mentor. I am really grateful to him. My immediate offering of gratitude to this supremely noble soul can only be felt and never be described. Many, many things one day I will tell about him.

But after I had bought his book the funniest thing happened. That same afternoon I received a letter from Vidagdha saying that Sisir Kumar Ghose of Shanti Niketan had been one of the examiners of her doctoral thesis on my poetry. Melbourne University had submitted her thesis to various places, but the professors didn't want to examine it because they didn't know anything about the subject. Finally, Sisir Ghose accepted. He is head of the English section of the university at Shanti Niketan. According to him, Vidagdha should have also said something about my Bengali poems. [Source: "A Mentor" in Sri Chinmoy, I Love Shopping, Part 1. First published by Agni Press in 1985. Copied from the web pages of www.SriChinmoyLibrary.com/sri-chinmoy-love-shopping/part1.]

AuroMa-sons: Sisir Kumar Mitra, Professor of History

Sisir Kumar Mitra came from Shantiniketan, and has never looked back. Historian and educationist and Yogi, Sisir Mitra has been among the friendliest and most helpful of the Ashram community [p.560]...I am indebted to Sisir Kumar Mitra of Sri Aurobindo Ashram for much of the information contained in this section. [p.25] -- Sri Aurobindo : a biography and a history by K.R. Srinivasa Iyengar ...

SISIR KUMAR MITRA. Professor of History of Civilization and Joint Director of Education, Sri Aurobindo International University Centre, Pondicherry. Formerly Lecturer in Cultural History at Rabindranath Tagore Visva-Bharati ( World University), Shantiniketan. Author of: [5:52 PM]

Sri Aurobindo - a Homage: Sri Aurobindo and his Ashram; Visva-Bharati, Shantiniketan, 1940; [3d rev. and enl. ed.] - Sri Aurobindo Library, Madras, 1950. - 66 p. port.
The Future of India; Sri Aurobindo Library, Madras, 1941
India's Cultural Empire and Her Future; Sri Aurobindo Library, Madras, 1947
Sri Aurobindo and Indian freedom; Sri Aurobindo Library, Madras, 1948. - 80 p.
The Vision Of India; Culture publishers, Calcutta, 1947; Bombay, New York: Jaico Publishing House, 1949. - xv, 336 p.; 17 cm. Bombay: Jaico Publishing House, 1972.- 336 p. 17 cm.
The Dawn Eternal: The Secret of India's Evolution; Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry, 1954
The Liberator - Sri Aurobindo, India and the World; Jaico Pub. House, New Delhi, 1954.- x, 220 p.: port.; 17 cm.- NOTES: Bibliography: p. [215]-217. [2d ed.].- Bombay: Jaico Pub. House, 1970.- ix, 307 p. 18 cm.- NOTES: "Special centenary edition." Bibliography: p. [293]-296.
Sri Aurobindo and the New World; Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry, 1957, [5], 77 p.
THE EARLY RULERS OF KHAJURAHO; 1958, Calcutta, pp xiii + 251, The Early Rulers of Khajuraho. (The Candellas of Bundelkhand); 1977
Cultural Fellowship of Bengal;
Resurgent India; Allied Publishers, Bombay, 1963
History as the Future; Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry, 1968
India's evolution, its meaning - Bombay: Jaico Pub. House, 1968.- x, 157 p. 19 cm.- NOTES: Cover title: Evolution of India, its meaning.
India and Her Future, 1971
India: vision and fulfilment; D. B. Taraporevala Sons, Bombay, 1972.- vi, 290 p. illus. 22 cm.
Sri Aurobindo: the quest for the Divine Consciousness; Indian Book Co., New Delhi, 1972.- 215 p.
Sri Aurobindo: towards victory of the light supreme.- New Delhi: Orient Paperbacks, 1976.- 208 p.
Sisir Kumar Mitra, (ed), East Indian Bronzes, Calcutta University, Calcutta, 1979

Sisir Kumar Mitra

The integral vision in history; Sri Aurobindo Mandir 1945
Sri Aurobindo and Indian freedom; Sri Aurobindo Mandir, 1947; Amrita Bazar Patrika, August 15, 1947; Swatantra, Madras, August 15, 1947
Sri Aurobindo and Indian polity; Sri Aurobindo Circle, 1949
Sri Aurobindo and the future of India; Bhavan's Journal, December 15, 1957
Review of "Sri Aurobindo's Political Thought: Mukhopadhyay"; The Advent, April 1959
The Mother, India and the world; Pioneer of the Supramental Age, Sri Aurobindo Ashram - Delhi Branch, 1958
Sri Aurobindo's relics from Pondicherry to Bengal; Mother India, March, 1959
Indian Renaissance: early phases; Sri Aurobindo Circle, 1963
Mystic in unique role: how Aurobindo gave new impetus to freedom movement; Indian Express, August 11, 1968

The Vision Of India (Paperback-2000) by Sisir Kumar Mitra About the Book Among the world's classics of great literature of great literature, Sir Edwin Arnold's The Light of Asia' And 'The Indian Song of Songs' (Gita Govinda) have enjoyed a unique degree of popularity of the two works. The Light of Asia' in particular has run into nearly a hundred different editions and with every new edition the demand for more has increased rather than slackened through the last century. Because of the unfailing inspiration, delight and enlightenment that 'The Light of Asia' And 'The Indian Song of Songs' constantly provide to the reading public, the publishers have deemed if-fit to include in the present one-volume edition, for the first time, both the books as an aid to readers unaquainted with the Sanskrit language.

By way of an explanatory introduction to the philosophy of Bhuddism as expounded by its founder, we have included in the opening pages of this volume a learned essay by Mr. K.D. Sethna, an ardent disciple of Sri Aurobindo and a poet and writer of great merit. Mr. Sethna, essay is a complementary adjunct to the study of Arnold's The Light of Asia' in as much as the one is a philosophic approach to Buddhism and its immortal teacher while the other is a predominantly poetic approach. It must, however be noted to the lasting credit of Sir Edwin Arnold that, despite many criticisms to the contrary, his exposition of the tenets and teachings of Buddha as found in 'The Light of Asia' is one of the truest and best ever found in the English Language.

***

[?] Sisir Mitra, A public Facility, Its management and the Workers: A Case Study of the Calcutta Tramways, Its Growth and Decay, 1939-1975, New Delhi, 1980; banglapedia.org

March 12, 2008

There is no doubt that the writings of Sri Aurobindo have a profound effect on all of us

From the Mind of Aurobindo "Long Time" 3 Comments -

Tusar N Mohapatra said...
So nice. It will perhaps be easier for you if you read the 'Letters on Yoga' by opening random pages. March 11, 2008 12:31 AM

Rishi said...
I ll surely do that. I have a copy lying with me. Every time I make a vow to complete Sri Aurobindo's book before buying the next one, but my visit to ashram compels me to buy the next one. I had started with Ishopanishad. March 11, 2008 11:36 AM

jugnu said...
There is no doubt that the writings of Sri Aurobindo have a profound effect on all of us, who are on the path of seeking, irrespective of the disciplines we are following. I have just now finished Sri Aurobindo's The Spiritual Mind, and with turning of each leaf of the book i was engrossed more and more for all that the book stated was so true to my own experience. In fact, all that i was reading was giving credence to what i had experienced and yet i could easily differentiate the passages, i could not understand completely for i knew that i had not yet experienced those stages of actualisation.

Unlike you i don't really have people around me to discuss, talk and share and guide and with a prayer to Mother to guide me to what I should be reading today, I start on whatever i stumble upon on the net on their sites. Although Vedas was what i had stumbled upon, on my first exposure to Sri Aurobindo and Mother, but some how i have not been able to create interest in myself to study them. So do let me know, what Ishopanishad is all about, how to relate to it.....Happy journey March 11, 2008 9:10 PM

March 11, 2008

Devi vac is associated with Uma of the Kena Upanishad (the puranic conception of Uma is entirely different)

Search for the Vedic Mother (Version 2) azygos azygos.sulekha.com Beta
Sep 19 2007 Views 180 Comments (1) Tags: Veda mother goddess Hindu
SEARCH FOR THE VEDIC MOTHER: DEVI OR VAC RV X.10.125

Renou sees the vedic understanding of vac to be a precursor of the later view of Atman Brahman as the ontological fundamental. Indeed, she is the presence that inspires the rishis and that makes a person Brahman (Not Brahmin the caste, but akin to the upanishadic saying; the knower of Brahman becomes Brahman) [RV 10.125]

Kinsley also believes her role vis=a=vis Prajapati is also suggestive of the theory of sabda-brahman(Absolute as sound) and the sphota theory of creation.

A.C Das maintains the goddess vac was the origin of the later vedic uma or the puranic durga, and in general studies of the rise of Saktism as a concept. (This hymn also has a ritual application in the Durgapuja as well in the recitation of the chandi or Sapsati.)

Instead of giving a complete translation; I would stress on the essence of this hymn.
I (devi vac) go about with all the gods; I am the supporter of Indra, Agni, Mitra, Soma, verily all the gods……I am the queen, who strings treasures together, the wise, foremost of those worthy of worship; through me a man eats food; he who sees; who breathes; who hears what is spoken…I pervade heaven and earth; I slay the foe of sacred speech; I blow forth the wind grasping all world ; beyond heaven; beyond this earth in my greatness such I have become.

If this is not a feminine conception of the absolute; I don’t know what it is!

Ramprasad, the mystic Bengali bhakta of Kali in the 19th century; composed some of the most profound visions of the mystic motherhood; which subliminally influences all. In one of his poems [translated by Lex Hixon] we again find a reaffirming of the same values that are associated with the devi sukta.

Sometimes you appear as the peaceful helpmate, seated besides Shiva in quiet harmony
Sometimes you manifest as the radiant cosmos, and in countless living beings
Sometimes you play as the incomparable Radha, courageous lover of Krishna
Other times you manifest as mother Kundalini
The evolutionary potency
But this mad poet refuses to pay, to any theology, to any philosophy
I can only weep, Ma,Ma,Ma
This is your sweetest name, transcending all descriptions

Since, devi vac has been associated with Uma, of the Kena Upanishad [the puranic conception of Uma is entirely different]; I may mention that she as Uma Haimavati revealed to Indra, the nature of Brahman, the supreme spirit, when gods like Agni and Vayu were absolutely baffled in their attempt to fathom their nature. Swami Vivekananda, however, considered Uma Haimavati, not be a feminine deity, but a female rishi, who was the first to discover the unity of consciousness.

Sri Aurobindo informs us “Uma is the supreme Nature from whom the whole cosmic action takes its birth; she is the pure summit and highest power of the One who here shines out in many forms. From this supreme Nature which is also the supreme
Consciousness the gods must learn their own truth; they must proceed by reflecting it in themselves instead of limiting themselves to their own lower movement. For she has the knowledge and consciousness of the One, while the lower nature of mind, life and body can only envisage the many. Although therefore Indra, Vayu and Agni are the greatest of the gods, the first coming to know the existence of the Brahman…..” is Uma.

AuroMa-sons: Albless et al

1931;Adhar Chandra Das;Sri Aurobindo on the methods of knowledge;Calcutta Review 39, 1931
1934;Adhar Chandra Das;Sri Aurobindo and the future of mankind;The University of Calcutta, 1934.- xvii, 130 p.
1941;Sisir Kumar Maitra;The philosophy of Sri Aurobindo ;Prabuddha Bharata March, 1941
1941;Sisir Kumar Maitra;The supermind and the psychic being;Prabuddha Bharata May, 1941
1941;Sisir Kumar Maitra;The descent or involution;Prabuddha Bharata June, 1941
1941;Sisir Kumar Maitra;An Introduction to the Philosophy of Sri Aurobindo;Culture Publications, Calcutta 1941
1942;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo and Bergson ;Sri Aurobindo Mandir 1942 )
1942;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo's conception of intuition;Prabuddha Bharata no.47, 1942.
1944;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo and the Problem of Evil;Sri Aurobindo Mandir 1944
1945;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo and Nicolai Hartmann;Sri Aurobindo Mandir 1945
1945;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Nature and Function of Thought in Sri Aurobindo's Philosophy.
;The Advent Nov 1945
1946;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo and Hegel;Sri Aurobindo Mandir 1946
1946;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Is Sri Aurobindo a Mystic?;The Advent August 1946
1946;Adhar Chandra Das;Bergson and Sri Aurobindo on grades of intuition;Calcutta Review 100, 1946
1947;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo and Plotinus;Sri Aurobindo Mandir 1947
1948;S.R. Albless;Rebirth in Sri Aurobindo’s vision;Sri Aurobindo Circle 1948, 1949
1948;Adhar Chandra Das;Sri Aurobindo’s theory of intuition;Calcutta Review 107, 1948
1950;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo and Plato;Sri Aurobindo Mandir 1950
1951;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo's Vision of the Future;Sri Aurobindo Mandir 1951
1951;Adhar Chandra Das;Sri Aurobindo’s theory of sixth sense;Hibbert Jr. 49, 1951
1952;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo and Goethe;Sri Aurobindo Mandir 1952
1953;S.R. Albless;God and man;Mother India Dec, 1953
1954;S.R. Albless;Sri Aurobindo’s problem and its solution;Mother India Feb, 1954
1955;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo and Whitehead;Sri Aurobindo Mandir 1955
1956;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Meeting of East and West in Sri Aurobindo's Philosophy
;Sri Aurobindo Ashram Pondicherry, 1956
1958;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Outlines of an Emergent Theory of Values;Contemporary Indian Philosophy, Ed. By S. Radhakrishnan and J.H.Muirhead, GA&UL - 1936/1958
1960;Sisir Kumar Maitra;Sri Aurobindo and Spengler: integral and the pluralistic philosophies of history;H. Chaudhuri and F. Spiegelberg (eds.), The Integral Philosophy of Sri Aurobindo. George Allen & Unwin, London 1960