{"id":4284,"date":"2013-07-13T01:54:52","date_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:54:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/?p=4284"},"modified":"2013-07-13T01:54:52","modified_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:54:52","slug":"19-series-ten-vol-16-some-answers-from-the-mother-volume-16","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/02-works-of-the-mother\/01-cwmce\/16-some-answers-from-the-mother-volume-16\/19-series-ten-vol-16-some-answers-from-the-mother-volume-16","title":{"rendered":"-19_Series Ten.htm"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
\n
\n
\n\t<\/p>\n

 <\/span>SERIES TEN<\/font><\/span> <\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n


\n\t
\n\tSeries Ten <\/font> <\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tTo a young
\n\tcaptain in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Department of Physical Education. He
\n\tbegan writing to the Mother at the age of nineteen. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>On the
\n\tnight of Friday the 8th, I had a very peculiar dream. As I could not tell it
\n\tto You at the Playground, I am going to tell You now. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>It was
\n\ta very fine day very special. There was an important meeting at the
\n\tPlayground, so I was hurrying there. But near the Playground in front of
\n\tStandard Stores, the road was covered with innumerable snakes. I was taken
\n\taback and rather afraid. So I was about to go round by another way to the
\n\tPlayground. But just then something spoke to me within: \u201cWhat! Are you
\n\tafraid of snakes? Come, take courage and walk through them. They will not
\n\tharm you.\u201d I walked through them quite confidently. Not one of them
\n\tdisturbed me nor did I disturb them. When I reached the Playground, I
\n\tstarted talking to a friend. Suddenly he jumped back in fright and said: \u201cBe
\n\tcareful, there is a snake coiled around your arm, and another around your
\n\tother arm, and others around your legs and ankles.\u201d Though I had not felt
\n\ttheir presence till then, I was not in the least alarmed. I took them off
\n\tone by one and threw them away. One snake was dead because I had stepped on
\n\tit. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>This is
\n\tall I can remember clearly. I cannot remember exactly what happened at the
\n\tPlayground afterwards.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>Mother,
\n\twhat do You think of this dream? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t The dream is
\n\tindeed very interesting. Snakes usually signify bad thoughts or bad will
\n\tfrom people around you \u2013 or an adverse <\/span>
\n\t
\n\tattack that can manifest as an illness. <\/span>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 261<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\tBut, as you clearly experienced in your dream,
\n\tif you are not frightened and go on your way unperturbed, nothing bad will
\n\thappen to you. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tWith my
\n\tblessings.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t13 October 1954<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t Sweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>From
\n\ttime to time there is an upsurge of bad thoughts; the mind becomes like a
\n\tmire of passions and I wallow in it like a worm. After a while I wake up and
\n\tregret my thoughts. But this kind of struggle keeps on recurring. Please
\n\thelp me to get out of it. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tYou must
\n\tcontinue to fight against the bad thoughts until you gain a total victory.
\n\tMy help is always with you as well as my blessings.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t26 January 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>Here
\n\tour activities are so varied that it is difficult to stick to one thing till
\n\tthe end. Perhaps that is why we are not able to go beyond a mediocre
\n\taverage. Or is it because of our lack of solid concentration? <\/span><\/i>\n\t<\/p>\n


\n\t <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\tThe cause of
\n\tmediocre work is neither the variety nor the number of activities, but the
\n\tlack of power of concentration. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tOne must learn
\n\tto concentrate and do all that one does with full concentration.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t4 July 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Sweet
\n\tMother, <\/i><\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>It
\n\treally is a problem to know how to create interest <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 262<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n


\n\tin the
\n\tstudents, whether in games, athletics or gymnastics. Even our own enthusiasm
\n\tdwindles when we see their lack of interest in everything. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t The interest
\n\tof the students is proportionate to the true capacity of the teacher.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t12 July 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t(Regarding The
\n\tLost Footsteps by Silviu Craciunas) This book shows how Sri Aurobindo is
\n\tworking in every corner of the world. We who are here in the Ashram still
\n\thaven’t even had a glimpse of him. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t There are
\n\tpeople here who see him and are constantly in contact with him. They are
\n\tthose who love him sincerely and sufficiently to live according to his
\n\tideal.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t14 July 1961 <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t(Regarding the
\n\tMother’s message of March 1961 to the captains; in it she asks them to \u201cbe
\n\tthe elite\u201d) We are very far from what You ask of us, at least I am. It is a
\n\tmost arduous task and it will take time, a long time, but what can be done
\n\tat present! To change our consciousness and become an elite will take a lot
\n\tof time. At present, we are on the same level as our students, so the
\n\timmediate problem is not solved. How can we create an interest in them for
\n\teach thing and every day?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\t<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tThis is even
\n\tmore impossible than to change and become an elite. So the best thing to do
\n\tis to set to work immediately. The rest is simply an excuse that our
\n\tlaziness gives to itself.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t15 July 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t  <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 263<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t
\n\t Sweet Mother, <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t     I went to
\n\twork only for one hour, because I had too much work at home. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t This is not
\n\tgood; the collective work should not suffer because of personal work.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t19 July 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t Sweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>When I
\n\tcame to You this evening for \u201cProsperity\u201d,<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n\tI felt a sort of uneasiness as if I had done something wrong instead of
\n\tfeeling joy at seeing You. One ought to be eager to receive Your blessings,
\n\tbut why do I not have that feeling? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t There must
\n\tstill be some insincerity in your being, hidden in a dark corner, something
\n\tthat does not want to change and is afraid of the Light.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t1 August 1961<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t Sweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>Today I
\n\tdid not have that feeling of apprehension about coming to You, but I was in
\n\ta passive state. I want, on the contrary, to feel an intense joy, a moment
\n\tof ecstasy. How can I obtain it? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t Come with the
\n\taspiration to give yourself, to offer your whole being, without reserve, to
\n\tthe Divine Grace, and you will feel the felicity for which you aspire.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t6 August 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/font><\/span>\u00b9<\/font><\/span>On
\n\tthe first of each month, the sadhaks received \u201cProsperity\u201d their basic
\n\tmaterial requirements.<\/font><\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 264<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I want
\n\tan electric lamp in the corridor of my room. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tIt would be
\n\tmore proper to write (and above all, to think): \u201cWould it be possible to
\n\thave an electric lamp in the corridor?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tThe ego would
\n\tdo well to become a little more modest.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t13 August 1961<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I have
\n\tcertain things to confess to You, but I cannot bring myself to do it. What
\n\tshall I do? Confess or let past things be effaced by forgetting the past?
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t If you can
\n\treally allow them to be effaced and cease to exist, even in your memory, it
\n\tis better.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t3 September 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t Sweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>You
\n\ttold us: \u201cAll of you here are taking life very lightly, you are amusing
\n\tyourselves all the time, you are so self-centred.\u201d It is quite true that we
\n\tare taking life very lightly, and it has become so natural that we believe
\n\tit to be the right attitude. And we are self-centred. How can we get out of
\n\tthis trap? In any case, the dose You gave us this morning was really just
\n\tright. I feel very happy. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t The first
\n\tpoint is not to place oneself in thought, feeling or action at the centre
\n\tof the universe<\/i> so that it exists only in terms of oneself one is part
\n\tof the universe. One can unite with it, but the Supreme Lord alone is its
\n\tcentre because He surpasses<\/p>\n

\t<\/span>and contains it.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t19 September 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 265<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>In
\n\tAphorism 95, Sri Aurobindo says that it is only by renunciation or by
\n\tperfect satisfaction of desire that one can have the total experience of God<\/span>\u00b9
\n\t<\/span>But
\n\tisn’t the second method (perfect satisfaction of desire) very dangerous, for
\n\tis it possible to satisfy man’s desire? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Elsewhere he
\n\tsays explicitly that it is useless to try to satisfy desire, for desire is
\n\tinsatiable and can never be satisfied. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tWhat he writes
\n\tought not to be taken separately; it is always part of a whole which is a
\n\tsynthesis of all opposites.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t27 September 1961<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>We
\n\tspeak very often of the psychic and the soul, but I understand nothing about
\n\tthem. What are these two things and how can one experience them? <\/span><\/i>\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Sri Aurobindo
\n\thas written a lot on this subject (in his letters) and I too have explained
\n\teverything in the book Education. One has to read, study and, above all,
\n\tpractise.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t4 October 1961<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t Sweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I have
\n\tnoticed one thing: When I sit for a few minutes and make an effort to
\n\tconcentrate before going to sleep, the next day I wake up quite early and am
\n\tquite fresh. I concentrate on the tiny luminous tip of an incense-stick. But
\n\thow is it that I wake up early because of that? There is no relation between
\n\tthese two things! <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t   
\n <\/font> <\/span>
\n\t\u00b9<\/font><\/span>\u201cOnly
\n\tby perfect renunciation of desire or by perfect satisfaction of desire can
\n\tthe utter embrace of God be experienced, for in both ways the essential
\n\tprecondition is effected, desire perishes.\u201d Thoughts and Aphorisms, in Cent.
\n\tVol. 17, p. 89.<\/font><\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 266<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\tOn the
\n\tcontrary, there is a very concrete relation. When you concentrate before
\n\tsleeping, then in your sleep you remain in contact with the Divine force;
\n\tbut when you fall heavily to sleep without any preliminary concentration,
\n\tyou sink into the inconscient and the sleep is more tiring than restful, and
\n\tit is difficult to come out of this sluggishness.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t8 October 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t I would like
\n\tyou to look attentively into yourself and try to explain to me what exactly
\n\tit is that you enjoy in detective stories.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t16 October 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I read
\n\tthem as a relaxation. In detective stories especially Perry Mason there is
\n\talways a courtroom scene in which the lawyer Perry Mason seems certain to
\n\tlose his case; his client is accused of murder, all the evidence is against
\n\thim, but the master-stroke of the lawyer Perry Mason changes the situation.
\n\tThroughout the story there are mysteries, and the trial is like the mental
\n\tacrobatics of a master gymnast. But each time I finish one of his books, I
\n\tfeel that I have gained nothing, learned nothing new that it was a waste of
\n\ttime. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t It is not
\n\tabsolutely useless. You probably had a great deal of tamas in your mind, and
\n\tthe mental acrobatics of the author shakes up this tamas a little and
\n\tawakens the mind. But this cannot last for long and soon you must turn to
\n\thigher things.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t16 October 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t(After seeing
\n\tthe Mother on Lakshmi Puja Day) I await<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 267<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n


\n\tthe day when
\n\tthis joy and this felicity will be established in me for ever. Now, it is
\n\tonly a dream and a passing experience like today’s. But I hope to realise it
\n\tfor ever with Your Help. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Persist in
\n\tyour aspiration and the dream will be realised. <\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n


\n\t23 October 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I have
\n\tnoticed something which applies to all of us; it is that we take part in as
\n\tmany items as possible in the 2nd December programme.<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n\tWould it not be better to choose one or two items and give a very good
\n\tdemonstration in them, rather than to do several in a mediocre way? <\/span>
\n\t<\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tEach one acts
\n\taccording to his nature and if he (or she) courageously and sincerely
\n\tfollows the law of that nature, he or she acts according to truth. Thus, it
\n\tis impossible to judge and decide for others. One can know only for oneself,
\n\tand even then one has to be very sincere so as not to deceive oneself.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t4 November 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>In
\n\tAphorism 133, Sri Aurobindo says that \u201cthe gods were able to accept only the
\n\tpleasant burden of His love and kindlier rapture.\u201d <\/span>
\n\t\u00b2<\/span>
\n\tSo the gods are cowards! Where then is their greatness and their splendour?
\n\tWhy do we <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n\t\u00b9<\/font><\/span>The
\n\tannual demonstration of physical culture, held at the Ashram Sportsground.<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t\u00b2<\/font><\/span>\u201cThe
\n\tTitans are stronger than the gods because they have agreed with God to front
\n\tand bear the burden of His wrath and enmity; the gods were able to accept
\n\tonly the pleasant burden of His love and kindlier rapture.\u201d Thoughts and
\n\tAphorisms. in Cent. Vol. 17, p. 94.<\/font><\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 268<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n


\n\tworship
\n\tinferior entities? And the Titans must be the most lovable sons of the
\n\tDivine! <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t What Sri
\n\tAurobindo writes here is a paradox to awaken sleepy minds. But we must
\n\tunderstand all the irony in these sayings, and especially the intention
\n\tbehind his words. Moreover, cowards or not, I see no need for us to worship
\n\tthe gods, great or small. Our adoration ought to go only to the Supreme
\n\tLord, who is one in all things and all beings.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t6 November 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>For a
\n\tlong time I have noticed that I am rather shy. I always have an inferiority
\n\tcomplex. I think I am afraid that people will discover my ignorance. Why am
\n\tI like that? And how can I come out of it? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t Behind all
\n\tthat and this famous inferiority complex, there is the ego and its vanity
\n\twhich wants to cut a good figure and be appreciated by others. But if all
\n\tyour activity were an offering to the Divine, you would not care at all
\n\tabout the appreciation of others.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t14 November 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>You
\n\thave often told us that our activities should be an offering to the Divine.
\n\tWhat does this mean exactly, and how can it be done? For instance, when we
\n\tplay tennis or basketball, how can we do it as an offering? Mental
\n\tformations are not enough, of course! <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t It means that
\n what you do should not be done with a personal, egoistic aim, for success,
\n for glory, for gain, for material profit <\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013  269<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\tor out of
\n\tpride, but as a service and an offering, in order to become more conscious
\n\tof the divine will and to give yourself more entirely to it, until you have
\n\tmade enough progress to know and to feel that it is the Divine who acts in
\n\tyou, His force that impels you and His will that supports you not just a
\n\tmental knowledge, but the sincerity of a state of consciousness and the
\n\tpower of a living experience. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tFor that to be
\n\tpossible, all egoistic motives and all egoistic reactions must disappear.
\n\t<\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t20 November 1961 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I pray
\n\tto You, on behalf of everyone, that this evening’s demonstration may be a
\n\tsuccess. Everyone thinks it will be the opposite. It is true that our
\n\tperformance is not up to the mark. I hope and I pray to You that the
\n\tperformance this evening may be at its best. Sweet Mother, take our actions
\n\tand guide us. You told us You would be there — if only I had eyes to see
\n\tYou! <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t What I saw on
\n\tthe 26th was satisfactory (of course it can always be better) and I have
\n\theard a great many compliments about the 2nd December performance. You
\n\tshould not listen to people who only know how to criticise. Exaggerated
\n\tcriticism is not an aid to progress. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t2 December 1961<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I am
\n\tvery lazy and I lack the fervour and perseverance to continue on the chosen
\n\tpath. I am like a flame that is roused by the wind and rises upwards, but
\n\tfalls back dead or dying as soon as the wind drops. Vigilant, that is what I
\n\tshould be. But how? <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 270<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\tAll the
\n\tpsychological qualities can be cultivated as the muscles are by regular,
\n\tdaily exercise. Above all, turn towards the Divine Force in a sincere
\n\taspiration and implore It to deliver you from your limitations. If you are
\n\tsincere in your will to progress, you are sure to advance.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t21 January 1962 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I was
\n\tsurprised to see this new ritual, \u201cSri Aurobindo sharanam mama\u201d,<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n\tintroduced into the cemetery ceremonies. X stands in meditation in front of
\n\tthe body and pronounces the phrase, \u201cSri Aurobindo sharanam mama\u201d, and the
\n\tothers, standing round the body, must repeat it after him. This is done a
\n\thundred times. Personally, I don’t like this ceremony. I find it empty of
\n\tfeeling. I don’t like Sri Aurobindo’s name to be invoked without feeling and
\n\tturned into a ritual. It is much better to read one of Your prayers and then
\n\tinvoke the Divine Grace in silence, each in his own way, for the departed
\n\tperson, as was done before. That is my opinion. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tThe ceremony
\n\tin itself is only of secondary importance. It is merely a form and more a
\n\tmatter of custom than anything else. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tWhat is
\n\timportant is to infuse into whatever ceremony one adopts the sincere fervour
\n\tand ardent aspiration which give life to any ceremony, whatever it may be,
\n\tand yet do not depend {on it.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t6 February 1962 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>Sri
\n\tAurobindo says that five thousand years have passed since the great battle
\n\tof Kurukshetra was fought. <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span>   <\/span>
\n\t<\/font>
\n\t\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Sri
\n\tAurobindo is my refuge.<\/font><\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 271<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n


\n\tBut the benign
\n\tinfluence of Sri Krishna’s political genius ended only yesterday with Rani
\n\tLakshmibai.<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n\tAfter that, to protect India and the world anew, there had to be a Purna
\n\tAvatar.<\/span>\u00b2<\/span>
\n\tThis Avatar will awaken the Brahmatej [Power of the Spirit.], which is
\n\tdormant. Sri Aurobindo also says that it is only in the Kaliyuga<\/span>\u00b3<\/span>
\n\tthat the Divine manifests fully because man is in great danger in this age.
\n\tAnd here he is! He himself reveals the great secret: the Divine has fully
\n\tmanifested in India. But he has the modesty not to say that he himself is
\n\tthis manifestation! <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Those who
\n\taccomplish the work are not in the habit of boasting. They keep their energy
\n\tfor the task and leave the glory of the results to the Eternal Lord.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t6 March 1962<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I can
\n\ttell You this without vanity: I am much better than I was before; but all
\n\tthe same I am quite far, perhaps very far, from the Ideal You have given us.
\n\tThis does not discourage me, for I have full confidence in You. <\/span><\/i>\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Yes, you must
\n\tpersevere with courage and sincerity. You are sure to succeed one day.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t2 September 1962 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>We have
\n\thad a discussion among friends about the <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t   
\n <\/font> <\/span>
\n\t\u00b9 <\/font> <\/span>
\n\tThe Queen of Jhansi who died on
\n\tthe battlefield in 1858 while fighting British troops.<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t   
\n <\/font> <\/span>
\n\t\u00b2 <\/font> <\/span>
\n\tFull or perfect Divine
\n\tincarnation.<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t   
\n <\/font> <\/span>
\n\t\u00b3<\/font><\/span> The \u201cIron Age\u201d in which we
\n\tlive.<\/font> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 272<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n


\n\tproblem and
\n\tvarious possible methods of physical education. The fundamental problem is
\n\tthis: how can we establish a programme that will satisfy everyone and be as
\n\teffective as possible for all the members? Are the tournaments necessary?
\n\tShould there be no compulsion whatever? And if complete freedom is given,
\n\twill it be practical? And so on. It is a subject on which it is not easy to
\n\tfind a solution satisfactory enough for everyone, unless the Mother Herself
\n\tintervenes. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t It is
\n\timpossible. Each one has his own taste and his own temperament. Nothing can
\n\tbe done without discipline the whole of life is a discipline.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t20 September 1962<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>Is it
\n\tbad to go to the cinema in town? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t For those who
\n\twant to do yoga, it is very bad. Moreover, I have already said this a
\n\tconsiderable number of times, and if you do not know it, it is because you
\n\tfind it more convenient to forget it.<\/p>\n

\t<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\t
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t27 September 1962 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>There
\n\tare too many tight knots in the immense organisation of this Ashram. When
\n\twill the promised day come when there will be nothing but unmixed harmony,
\n\tjoy and peace? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t If each one
\n\twere more concerned with correcting his own faults than with criticising
\n\tthose of others, the work would go more quickly.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t29 September 1962<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 273<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\tA little
\n\tsincere and regular practice is worth more than a lot of short-lived
\n\tresolutions.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t2 October 1962 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I heard
\n\tthis morning that X was very severely beaten by Y. I don’t think it is fair
\n\tat all. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t One can speak
\n\tonly of what one has seen with one’s own eyes and even then What knowledge
\n\tdo you possess that gives you the right to judge? Only the Lord sees and
\n\tknows He alone is the Truth. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tYou ought to
\n\tstudy Sri Aurobindo’s aphorisms a little more carefully. It would cure you
\n\tof passing judgments.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t15 October 1962<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I had
\n\twritten a letter to the Mother asking why She had not given Her darshan to
\n\tZ. But now I am afraid that Mother may be angry at my audacity in writing
\n\tsuch a letter. Because it is none of my business! <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t I read your
\n\tletter and I was not at all angry. But Z was not at all ready for a darshan.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t19 October 1962 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t(Regarding a
\n\tthreat by China to occupy disputed borderland in northern Kashmir and
\n\tnortheastern India) Sometimes I have the impression that our leaders do not
\n\tseem to have the sort of backbone displayed by Kennedy with his decision
\n\tabout Cuba. <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 274<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\tThis kind of
\n\tcomment is quite out of place at the moment. One should never criticise
\n\tsomeone unless one has proved beyond dispute that in the same circumstances
\n\tone can do better than he. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tDo you feel
\n\tcapable of being an unequalled Prime Minister of India? I reply: \u201cCertainly
\n\tnot\u201d, and I advise you to keep silent and remain calm.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t24 October 1962<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t (Regarding a
\n\tprayer for Kali Puja Day) <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t It is all
\n\tright, my children, but it is not enough to pray; you must also make a
\n\tpersevering effort.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t26 October 1962 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>In a
\n\tdiscussion with a friend about our physical education programme and the
\n\tcountless other activities we have here, he asked me: \u201cCan you give me a
\n\tvalid example of even one person who takes part in so many activities and
\n\tmaintains a fairly high standard one single person in the whole world?\u201d
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tDo not forget
\n\tall of you who are here \u2013 that we want to realise something which does not
\n\tyet exist upon earth; so it is absurd to seek elsewhere for an example of
\n\twhat we want to do. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tHe also told
\n\tme this: \u201cMother says that there is full freedom and every facility for
\n\tthose who are gifted in a particular subject and want to pursue it to the
\n\tfull. But where is this freedom to become, for instance, a great musician?\u201d
\n\tSweet Mother, can you please say a few words on the subject of this freedom?
\n\t<\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 275<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\tThe freedom I
\n\tspeak of is the freedom to follow the will of the soul, not all the whims of
\n\tthe mind and vital. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tThe freedom I
\n\tspeak of is an austere truth which strives to surmount all the weaknesses
\n\tand desires of the lower, ignorant being. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tThe freedom I
\n\tspeak of is the freedom to consecrate oneself wholly and without reserve to
\n\tone’s highest, noblest, divinest aspiration. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tWho among you
\n\tsincerely follows this path? It is easy to judge, but more difficult to
\n\tunderstand, and far more difficult still to realise.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t18 November 1962 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t(Regarding the
\n\tcaptain’s estimate of someone) <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Remember that
\n\tall these individual virtues and faults are only the deceptive appearance of
\n\ta great play of universal forces which one does not understand.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t5 January 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t(Regarding a
\n\tfriend) <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Find your
\n\thappiness and your joy in the very fact of loving, and it will help you in
\n\tyour inner progress; because if you are sincere, you will one day realise
\n\tthat it is the Divine in her that you love and that the outer person is
\n\tmerely a pretext.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t27 January 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>What is
\n\tthe difference between meditating here in my room and going to meditate at
\n\tthe Playground with everyone else? <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span>Page \u2013 276<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\t<\/p>\n

\n\tIs it better
\n\tto meditate there or here in my room? <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Meditate
\n\twhere you meditate best that is to say, wherever you are most silent and
\n\tcalm.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t31 January 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t(Regarding a
\n\tbad dream{) <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tI call that
\n\tmental fermentation. As soon as your waking consciousness falls asleep or
\n\tleaves your body, the brain-cells you have not taken the trouble to quiet
\n\tdown begin to fidget restlessly and produce what is called a dream, but it
\n\tis nothing more than disorderly activity. It has no meaning and can serve
\n\tonly one purpose: to make you aware of what goes on in your head.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t19 March 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I have
\n\treceived a certain sum of money. I want to offer it to You, and if I need
\n\tanything I will ask You for it; in that way You can decide what is necessary
\n\tor best for me. But I am advised to keep as much as I want for my personal
\n\tneeds and to offer the rest to You. Otherwise people will say that I ask for
\n\tanything I want just because I have given You a little money. Mother, what
\n\tdo You want me to do? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Do as you
\n\tfeel \u2013 and you may be sure that whatever you do, people will always have
\n\tsomething to say. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tBesides, who
\n\tis perfectly disinterested? One should not pretend to be what one is not. It
\n\tis better to be frank than hypo-critical.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t12 April 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 277<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>
\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Sweet Mother, <\/i><\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t    <\/span>
\n\t Is
\n\tit right to pray to the Mother for little things and selfish gains? <\/span>
\n\t<\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tIt all depends
\n\ton one’s point of view. It is quite possible that one will obtain the thing
\n\tone has prayed for. But for spiritual progress, it is harmful.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t4 May 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>What is
\n\tthe true significance of marriage? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tIt has hardly
\n\tany true significance\\ is a social custom for the perpetuation of the
\n\tspecies.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t10 May 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>We see
\n\ttoo many films these days and I fail to see how they educate us! <\/span><\/i>\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tWhen one has
\n\tthe true attitude, everything can be an opportunity to learn. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tIn any case,
\n\tthis abundance should make you understand that the desire to see films,
\n\twhich is so imperious in some people, is just as pernicious as any other
\n\tdesire.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t11 May 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>Each
\n\ttime I have encountered an obstacle in my life, each time I have been
\n\tdeprived of some happiness some apparent happiness a consolation has come
\n\timmediately to dispel my psychological pain. For something <\/span>
\n\t
\n\ttells me:<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 278<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t
\n\t \u201cAll
\n\tthat happens is done for your own good and is done by the Divine Grace.\u201d Is
\n\tit good, is it healthy to think like this? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Not only is
\n\tit right, good and healthy to think like this, but it is an absolutely
\n\tindispensable attitude if one wants to advance on the spiritual path. As a
\n\tmatter of fact, it is the first step without which one cannot advance at
\n\tall. That is why I always say: \u201cWhatever you do, do the best you can, and
\n\tleave the result to the Lord; then your heart will be at peace.\u201d  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t13 May 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>Can the
\n\tlines of our hands reflect our past, present and future life? <\/span><\/i>\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Yes,
\n\tcertainly, for someone who knows how to see, and X is very gifted.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t15 May 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I have
\n\toften noticed that the work we do is done much better and more quickly than
\n\tif it were done by paid workers. I don’t know why! <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Because you
\n\tare more conscious, or rather less unconscious.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t23 May 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span> Girls
\n\tare always at a disadvantage: they cannot do what they want, as boys can.
\n\t<\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 279<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Why not?
\n\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tThere are
\n\thundreds of proofs to the contrary.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t31 May 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>What is
\n\tthe best relationship between two human beings? Mother and son? Brother,
\n\tfriend or lover, etc? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tAll the
\n\trelationships are good in principle and each one expresses a mode of the
\n\tEternal. But each can be perverted and become bad due to the selfish
\n\tfalsehood of human nature which prevents the vibrations of love from
\n\tmanifesting in their purity.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t 4 June 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tAbout the hero
\n\tof the film Reach for the Sky, I said that nothing could ever discourage
\n\thim. For even after having lost both legs in an accident, he vowed that he
\n\twould continue his career as a pilot. He is a man of fantastic vitality,
\n\tfull of energy <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\tThat is
\n\texactly the kind of determination one must have to practise the yoga of
\n\tintegral perfection.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t7 June 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>There
\n\tare moments when I feel it would be better to sit silently instead of
\n\treading or doing something else. But I am afraid of wasting time. What
\n\tshould I do? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tIt all depends
\n\ton the quality of the silence \u2013 if it is a luminous silence, full of force
\n\tand conscious concentration, it is good. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 280<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t
\n\tIf  <\/span>it is a
\n\ttamasic and unconscious silence, it is harmful.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t10 June 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>After a
\n\tlong time I had a beautiful dream in which I saw the Mother and received Her
\n\tBlessings. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t It is not a
\n\tdream, but the result of the preceding meditation and of your aspiration.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t12 June 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I have
\n\ttoo much \u201cgrey\u201d matter in my head, which prevents me from thinking clearly
\n\tand grasping new ideas quickly. How can I free myself from this? <\/span><\/i>\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tBy studying
\n\tmuch, by reflecting much, by doing intellectual exercises. For instance,
\n\tstate a general idea clearly, then state the opposite idea, then look for
\n\tthe synthesis of both that is, find a third idea which harmonises the other
\n\ttwo.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t25 June 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t(On reading
\n\tnovels) <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Why do you
\n\tread novels? It is a stupid occupation and a waste of time. It is certainly
\n\tone of the reasons why your brain is still in a muddle and lacks clarity.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t27 June 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>Man is
\n\tso weak that he is influenced even by the wind
\n\tthat blows about him, by a book he reads or a picture he sees. He is most
\n\tvulnerable. <\/span><\/i>\n\t<\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 281<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tThat happens
\n\twhen he has not taken care to organise his conscious being around the
\n\tpsychic centre, which is the Truth of his being. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t28 June 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>Most
\n\tpeople here quote the Mother to suit their own convenience. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tBefore
\n\tcriticising others, it is better to be sure that one is perfectly sincere
\n\toneself. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t30 June 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>A few
\n\tdays ago I noticed something very odd in the children of Group A2: the boys
\n\tdon’t want to work with the girls; they don’t even want to stand side by
\n\tside. They cannot work together. How did this idea of difference come to
\n\tthese little children who are barely eleven years old! It is strange. <\/span>
\n\t<\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tIt is
\n\tatavistic and comes from the subconscient. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t    <\/span>
\n\tThis instinct
\n\tis based both on masculine pride, the foolish idea of superiority, and on
\n\tthe still more foolish fear due to the idea that woman is a dangerous being
\n\twho entices you into sin. In children, all this is still subconscious, but
\n\tit influences their actions.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t3 July 1963 <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 282<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I
\n\tcaused a sensation with my new clothes! Blue shorts and a grey shirt. X was
\n\tshocked to see me dressed like that. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t How frivolous
\n\tand superficial people must be to attach importance to such things!! Even
\n\tso, if you wore those clothes in your capacity as a captain, you did wrong,
\n\tfor the captains have a uniform which they should wear when they are acting
\n\tas captains. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t4 July 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>There
\n\tare moments when one feels a kind of emptiness within; one is dejected and
\n\tlonely\\ is because one wants to be loved. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Or better, it
\n\tis because one is awaking to the need of knowing one’s soul and uniting with
\n\tthe Divine.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t5 July 1963 <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t Sweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>I sit
\n\tdown every day to meditate, but I am afraid that this ten minutes’
\n\tmeditation has become merely mechanical. I want a dynamic meditation, but
\n\thow to have it? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t Become
\n\tsincere.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\t6 July 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n\t <\/span><\/p>\n


\n\tSweet Mother,
\n\t<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n\t   
\n\t<\/span>This
\n\tcreation has a purpose \u2013 therefore is it possible that even the most
\n\t\u201cinsignificant\u201d individual has come <\/span>
\n
\n\tupon earth to fulfil a mission?<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\tPage \u2013 283 <\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n

\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\t<\/span><\/p>\n


\n That is not my conception what are beggars and people like
\nthat doing? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n Who said that?
\nAnd what \u201cmission\u201d are you referring to? The creation is a single whole
\nadvancing as a totality towards its single goal the Divine through a collective
\nevolution which is continuous and endless.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n7 July 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I have
\nheard that You have written somewhere that each person here in the Ashram
\nrepresents a particular human difficulty, and that this difficulty will be
\nmastered and transformed in him in his lifetime.<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n I have never made
\nthis statement. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThings are not so
\ncut and dried as the mind thinks and even desires in order to simplify the
\nproblem. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThere is an almost
\ninfinite variety of shades and combinations of character, and although there are
\ncategories of very similar types, no two cases are identical. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nOne is aware of
\none’s difficulties only insofar as one can change them and at the moment when
\none can make the change.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n 8 July 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Suddenly I
\nfeel very happy, my heart is filled with an inexpressible joy, but this
\nexperience does not last very long. I have often tried to observe and find out
\nthe cause of this fleeting joy, but in vain. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span>    <\/span>
\n<\/font>
\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>The
\nMother underlined the phrase \u201cin his lifetime\u201d.  <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 284<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\n <\/span><\/i>Because
\nyou are looking for the cause outside, around you, whereas it is within.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n 11 July 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>You have
\nexplained that this separation of girls and boys is atavistic, but it remains to
\nask You what we captains should do about it. Personally, I think it is better to
\nclose one’s eyes to it, but there are others who prefer to give advice or even
\nto scold. I think that by closing one’s eyes to it, one minimises the importance
\nof the problem and thus this idea of difference between girls and boys will be
\nless striking. What do You think? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nOne cannot make a
\ngeneral rule; everything depends on the case and the occasion. Both methods have
\ntheir good and bad points, their advantages and drawbacks. For the captains, the
\nmain thing is to have tact and sufficient inner perception to intervene when
\nnecessary or to close one’s eyes when it is preferable not to see. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n15 July 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n    <\/span>
\nWhat do You mean
\nby \u201can ignorant goodwill and an indolent energy\u201d? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    (1) Goodwill
\nmeans wanting to do good always. The only true \u201cgood\u201d is the will of the Supreme
\nLord. Do you know what the Lord’s will is, always, at every moment and in all
\ncircumstances? No, so you are ignorant of what \u201cgood\u201d is therefore: ignorant
\ngoodwill. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    (2) The very
\nnature of energy is to be inexhaustible, unfailing, tireless. Are you never
\ntired? Yes, very often therefore: indolent energy.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n17 July 1963<\/span><\/i>  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 285<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

 Would
\nit not be better to have a basic discipline here instead of so much freedom, a
\nfreedom we are not able to profit by? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nYou say this, but
\nyou are one of those who revolt (at least in thought) against the very little
\ndiscipline that is demanded when it is utterly indispensable, as in physical
\neducation, for example.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n21 July 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Why do I
\nhesitate to ask You for money? What prevents me from doing so? Am I still not
\nintimate enough with You, or is there another reason? I do not understand
\nmyself. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is probably a
\nkind of inner discretion; it is rather a good sign, because this kind of
\ndiscretion comes from the psychic consciousness which would rather give than
\nask.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n24 July 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I still
\nlack confidence in my work. I am too shy. I think that in order to progress one
\nshould be a little bolder. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is not bolder
\nyou should be, but persistent and persevering.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n27 July 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>X told us
\nthe favourite story of Dr. Y, the mathematics teacher: \u201cA sculptor was working
\non a block of <\/span>
\n
\nstone near a village. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nPage – 286<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nOne by one the villagers gathered round the sculptor, curious to see
\nwhy he was breaking the stone. After much labour the work was finished and a
\nmasterpiece came to light a dancing goddess instead of a block of stone stood
\nthere in front of the sculptor. All the villagers around him who had watched him
\nwork were astonished, and they marvelled at the sight of the beautiful figure
\nwhich had emerged from the stone. So they asked the sculptor: \u201cHow did you know
\nthat this figure was there in the stone?\u201d <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe question is
\nadmirable and if the sculptor had been witty, he would have replied: \u201cBecause I
\nsaw it inside.\u201d  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n11 August 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Your
\nremarks often amuse me. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nYou would do
\nbetter to make an effort to understand them, for behind the words there is
\nalways something profound to be understood.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n12 August 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>This
\nmorning I saw a man with protruding ribs, deeply depressed hips and twisted
\nlegs. It was a pitiful sight. One wonders why God has made all these
\ndeformations in Nature. The only answer which  answers nothing \u2013 is that it is
\n\u201cthe Divine’s play\u201d. It is incomprehensible. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThat is an easy
\nanswer which one gives when one will not or cannot take the trouble to
\nunderstand.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 287<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nBut if one rises
\nabove the individual mentality and enters into the consciousness of Unity, then
\none can understand. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n18 August 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>What does
\n\u201cYoga\u201d mean and how many among us are practising it? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhy do you ask me
\nthis question? All those who are here should at least know what yoga means \u2013 as
\nfor practising it, that is another matter!  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n19 August 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I feel
\nmiserable because I asked the Mother for incense. It would be much better to buy
\nit from the market, for She does not like her children to beg. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nTo ask from me is
\nnot begging and you may do so whenever you really need something. But at the
\nsame time, you must be prepared not to receive it and not to get upset if I fail
\nto give it. In this case, I said that you should be given some incense, but I am
\nnot sure if it has been done. It is X who keeps it and you should ask him for
\nit.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n22 August 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Our teacher
\nY gave us a talk in a grave and significant tone: \u201cBe prepared to go through
\nhard tests, we are on the eve of something very difficult and dangerous.\u201d But he
\ndid not explain. <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 288<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nIt is a pity he
\ndid not explain his thought, because I don’t know what he wanted to say probably
\nhe wanted to caution you against <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nAll of you young
\npeople here have had a very easy life, and instead of taking advantage of it to
\nconcentrate your efforts on spiritual progress, you have enjoyed yourselves as
\nmuch as you could without creating too much scandal, and your vigilance has been
\nlulled to sleep. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nY probably spoke
\nas he did in order to reawaken it.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n27 August 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\n(Regarding
\nsomeone’s observations on the captain’s character) <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nEverything people
\nsay is of little importance, because human judgments are always partial and
\ntherefore ignorant. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nTo know oneself,
\none must look at oneself with a higher and deeper consciousness which can
\ndiscern the true causes of reactions and feelings. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nA superficial
\nobservation cannot help. And so long as one is not in contact with one’s psychic
\nbeing, it would be better to strive always to do as well as possible and be as
\ngood as one can, instead of passing one’s time in useless analysis.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n12 September 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\n(Regarding X, who
\nrelated her misfortunes to the captain, blaming herself for all her troubles) To
\nconsole her, I told her that blaming oneself was perhaps not always saintly or
\nhealthy. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is X who is
\nspiritually right and you who are wrong with a superficial and ignorant
\nso-called \u201creason\u201d.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 289<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nWhen something
\ngoes wrong, one must always find the reason in oneself, not superficially but
\ndeep inside oneself, and not in order to uselessly bewail the fault, but to cure
\nit by calling to one’s aid the all-powerful force of the Divine. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nTo be sure of
\nmaking myself clearly understood, I will add that it is not due to any fault of
\nhers that he is inconstant and fickle is his nature to be like that and he acts
\naccording to his nature but if she suffers and is unhappy because of what he
\ndoes, then it is her own fault, for it means that her own feeling is tainted
\nwith egoism. It is this egoism that she must conquer, and as soon as she does
\nshe will no longer suffer. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n17 September 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I have
\nagain received an invitation for dinner. One cannot refuse if one is invited,
\ncan one? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nNo, unless there
\nare serious reasons for doing so. I am not speaking of the outward act whether
\none eats here or there comes to the same thing I am speaking of the inner
\nattitude, of the excessive importance one gives to food, and of greediness. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n21 September 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>If I look
\nat my whole life and its circumstances, I am very happy, but I am not satisfied.
\nOften I am plunged into an unbearable melancholy. What should I do?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nTrue happiness
\ndoes not depend on the external circumstances of life. One can obtain true
\nhappiness and keep it constantly only by discovering one’s psychic being and
\nuniting with it.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n22 September 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 290<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I often
\nremember a poem by Francis Thompson and its refrain: <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>\u201cFor though
\nI knew His love who follow\u00e8d <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Yet was I
\nsore adread <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Lest having
\nHim, I must have naught beside.\u201d <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n    That is our
\nmalady! <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nYes, that is what
\nSri Aurobindo has written many times; man clings to his misery, his pettiness,
\nhis weakness, his ignorance and his limits that is why he does not change.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n


\n24 September 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I am not
\nproperly prepared for the 1st December performance,<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\nand, what is more, I don’t feel at all enthusiastic. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nFrom the moment
\none has decided and accepted to do something, it must be done as well as one
\ncan. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nOne can find in
\neverything a chance to progress in consciousness and self-mastery. And this
\neffort for progress immediately makes the thing interesting, no matter what it
\nis.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n26 September 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>In Aphorism
\n172, Sri Aurobindo has said: \u201cLaw released into freedom is the liberator.\u201d<\/span>\u00b2<\/span>
\nWhat does that<\/span>\u00b2<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span>   <\/span>
\n<\/font><\/i>
\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>The
\nannual cultural programme.<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/font> <\/span>
\n\u00b2<\/font><\/span>\u201cLaw
\ncannot save the world, therefore Moses’ ordinances are dead for humanity and the
\nShastra of the Brahmins is corrupt and dying. Law released into freedom is the
\nliberator. Not the Pundit, but the Yogin, not monasticism, but the inner
\nrenunciation of desire and ignorance and egoism.\u201d (Cent. Vol. 17, p. 100 )  <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 291<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nmean? How can law
\nbe released into freedom? By law we understand something determined and fixed.
\nOr is it a flexibility that is required, as opposed to rigidity: law that will
\nbe free to mould itself according to circumstances?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nI regret to have
\nto tell you that you have understood absolutely nothing of what Sri Aurobindo
\nhas written for you have tried to understand with your superficial mind, while
\nwhat Sri Aurobindo has said comes from the highest intellectual light, far above
\nthe mind. All I can tell you, which perhaps will put you on the right track, is
\nthat behind law there is a spirit of order and organisation. But law itself is
\nsomething fixed and therefore contrary to the highest truth. If the same spirit
\nof order and organisation is put at the service of freedom, it can become a
\nmeans of attaining liberation, that is to say, union with the Truth.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n29 September 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Sri
\nAurobindo writes in one of his aphorisms: \u201cThose who are deficient in the free,
\nfull and intelligent observation of a self-imposed law, must be placed in
\nsubjection to the will of others.\u201d<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\nMother, I am one of those. Will You take me and discipline me? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nMy child, that is
\nexactly what I have been trying to do for quite a long time, especially since I
\nhave been receiving your notebook and correcting it. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nIt is with that
\ndisciplinary aim that I asked you to write one single sentence a day did not
\nhave to be long, but it ought to have been free from mistakes alas! <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nUp till now, I
\nhave hardly succeeded \u2013 your sentences are often long and unclear, others are
\nshort,  <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/font> <\/span>
\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Aphorism
\n164, Cent. Vol. 17, p. 99. <\/font> <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 292<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nbut all contain mistakes and often, very often, the
\nsame mistakes of gender, agreement and conjugation which I have corrected many
\ntimes. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nOne would think
\nthat even if you read your notebook when I return it to you, you do not study it
\nand try to use it as a means to make progress. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nTo discipline
\none’s life is not easy, even for those who are strong, severe with themselves,
\ncourageous and enduring. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nBut before trying
\nto discipline one’s whole life, one should at least try to discipline one
\nactivity, and persist until one succeeds. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n13 October 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I have
\nformed the bad habit of nearly always being late everywhere. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThere is no habit
\nthat cannot be changed.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n14 October 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>It seems
\nthat a list of books (English classics) was sent to You for Your approval, but
\nthat You wish only the works of the Mother and Sri Aurobindo to be read. You
\nhave even remarked that to read these old classics is to lower the level of
\none’s consciousness. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Mother, do
\nYou advise this only for those who are practising yoga or for everybody? <\/span>
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nFirst of all, what
\nhas been reported is not correct. Secondly, the advice is adapted to each case
\nand cannot be made a general rule. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n12 November 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 293<\/span><\/p>\n

\n


\n(Written by the
\nMother at the beginning of a notebook containing quotations from Sri Aurobindo’s
\nSavitri) <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nSome extracts from
\nSavitri, that marvellous prophetic poem which will be humanity’s guide towards
\nits future realisation.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n27 November 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I am very
\nirregular in my studies; I don’t know what to do. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nShake off your
\n\u201ctamas\u201d a little otherwise you will become a blockhead!  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n27 December 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>The ardour
\nof making an effort is waning. I feel contented. But time passes so quickly that
\none feels one has not made the most out of what is given to us. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nThat proves that
\nlife is too easy here and that for the most part you are all too tamasic to make
\nan effort unless goaded by the difficulties of ordinary life. Only a very ardent
\naspiration can remedy this deadly condition. But the aspiration is absent and
\nyour soul is asleep!  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n2 January 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n1964<\/span><\/p>\n

\nBonne Ann\u00e9e<\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nI hope that this
\nnew year will see the reawakening of your soul and the awakening in your
\nconsciousness of a will to progress. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n3 January 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 294<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nI have kept your
\nnotebook in the hope of finding time to read and correct it. But the weeks go by
\nand I see that it is impossible. I am therefore returning it to you without
\nhaving read it, and I ask you not to send it again until it is possible for me
\nto start looking at it once more. Continue your translation of the Aphorisms; I
\nshall send you more at a time for correction. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nMy blessings are
\nalways with you. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n17 February 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>You blessed
\nme that I may be born to the true life, but what are the conditions needed to be
\nborn to that life and how can they be fulfilled? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe first
\ncondition is to decide not to live for oneself any more, but to live exclusively
\nfor the Divine. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nNaturally, this
\ndecision should be renewed every day and manifested in a constant and effective
\nwill. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n29 April 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cNot
\nto live for oneself\u201d is understandable and one can try to put it into practice;
\nbut what does \u201cto live exclusively for the Divine\u201d mean exactly? For me it is
\nonly an idea mechanically repeated by the mind; but, Mother, what can one do to
\nrealise it? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nTo live for the
\nDivine means to offer all that one does to the Divine without desiring a
\npersonal result from what one does. Certainly at the beginning, when the Divine
\nis only a word or at most an idea and not an experience, the whole thing remains
\npurely mental. But if one makes a sincere and repeated effort, one day the
\nexperience comes and one feels that the offering made is made to something real,
\ntangible, concrete and beneficent.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 295<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nThe more sincere and
\nassiduous one is, the sooner the experience comes and the longer it remains.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nFor each person
\nthe way differs in its details, but sincerity and perseverance are equally
\nindispensable for all. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n6 May 1964<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Would it be
\npossible to have an electric fan? X promised me one three years ago, but now he
\nadvises me to ask You. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nYou may have one
\nif there is one or if you can find one. But do you think it will help you to
\nfind the Divine? <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n7 May 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Regarding
\nthe fan, I don’t think it will help me to find the Divine, but is it an
\nobstacle? If You think it is better for me not to have it, all right, I accept
\nYour decision without complaint. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhat is an
\nobstacle to the spiritual life is to attach importance to material comfort and
\nto take one’s desires for needs in other words, self-deception. Now, if you have
\na fan and wish to use it, you may do so, knowing that it will not help you in
\nany way to make progress that it will only give your body the illusion of being
\nmore comfortable. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThese things ought
\nto have no importance in life.
\n                                                                                                                                                         <\/span><\/p>\n


\n13 May 1964<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>One is
\noften afraid of doing what is new; the body  refuses to act in a new way, <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 296<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nsuch as trying a new gymnastic figure or another kind of dive. Where
\ndoes this fear come from? How can one get rid of it? And again, how can one
\nencourage others to do so? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nThe body is afraid
\nof anything new because its very base is inertia, tamas; it is the vital which
\nbrings in a dominant note of rajas, activity. That is why, as a general rule,
\nthe intrusion of the vital in the form of ambition, emulation and vanity,
\ncompels the body to shake off the tamas and make the necessary effort to
\nprogress. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nNaturally, those
\nin whom the mind is dominant can lecture their body and provide it with all the
\nreasons needed to overcome its fear. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThe best way for
\neveryone is self-giving to the Divine and trust in His infinite Grace. <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n13 May 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet <\/span><\/i>\n<\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>
\nSelf-deception has a thousand faces and a thousand ways of disguising itself in
\nus. How can one discover it and get rid of it? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is a long, slow
\ntask which can only be accomplished by a perfect sincerity. One must be very
\nattentive, always on guard, watch all one’s emotional movements and vital
\nreactions, never close one’s eyes with indulgence to one’s own weaknesses, and
\ncatch oneself each time one makes a mistake, even a small one. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nIf one continues
\nwith persistence, this becomes very interesting and gets easier and easier.
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n20 May 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>What is the
\ndifference between pleasure, joy, happiness,
\necstasy and Ananda? Can we find one in the other? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 297<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nAnanda belongs to
\nthe Supreme Lord. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nEcstasy belongs to
\nthe perfected yogi. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nJoy belongs to the
\ndesireless man. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nPleasure is within
\nthe reach of all living beings, but with its inevitable accompaniment of
\nsuffering. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n27 May 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Your
\nanswers last week were very succinct. Isn’t a perfected yogi identified with the
\nSupreme Lord? Isn’t a desireless man a sincere sadhak? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nMy answers are
\ngiven in order to open your mind and to make you exceed, little by little, your
\npresent mental limits. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThe Supreme Lord
\ncan give his Ananda to whomever He wants and as He wants. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nA sadhak is one
\nwho has chosen a yogic discipline and practises it. There are desireless men who
\nare not pursuing any yoga. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nWiden your thought
\nis very necessary! <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n3 June 1964<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n(Regarding love)
\nHow can one direct this human love towards the ideal love, the true love? <\/span>
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThere is only one
\ntrue love is the Divine Love; all other loves are diminutions, limitations and
\ndeformations of that Love. Even the love of the bhakta for his God is a
\ndiminution and often is tainted by egoism. But as one tends quite naturally to
\nbecome like what one loves, the bhakta, if he is sincere, begins to become like
\nthe Divine whom he adores, and thus his love becomes purer and purer.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 298<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nTo
\nadore the Divine in the one whom one loves has often been suggested as a
\nsolution, but unless one’s heart and thought are very pure, it can lead to
\ndeplorable abasements. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nIt would seem that
\nin your situation, the best solution would be to use your mutual attachment to
\nunite your efforts in a common and combined aspiration to attain the Divine, and
\nin perfect sincerity to let each bring to the other, as far as possible, what
\nthe other needs to attain that goal. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n10 June 1964<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>How can one
\nknow the other’s need and help him? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nI was not speaking
\nof external things and mental faculties! True love is in the soul (all the rest
\nis vital attraction or mental and physical attachment, nothing else) and the
\nsoul (the psychic being) knows instinctively what the other needs to receive and
\nis always ready to give it to him. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n17 June 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Is it
\nbecause we have defects in ourselves that we cannot tolerate them in others?
\nWhat is the origin of the shock we feel? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nYes, in a general
\nway it is the defects you have in yourselves which seem to you most shocking in
\nothers. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nLater on, you come
\nto understand that others are a mirror reflecting the image of what you are.
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n24 June 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Just as
\nthere are tangible and concrete bodily exercises  <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 299<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nand disciplines
\nfor physical culture, is there not something tangible and concrete for the
\nprogress of the soul and the consciousness? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nSince the most
\nancient times, each system of yoga has developed its own discipline in all its
\ndetails. All that can be studied, learned and practised. But according to Sri
\nAurobindo’s teaching, each of these practices has its limitations and gives only
\na partial result. That is why he advised those who want to follow the integral
\nyoga to find their own discipline, based on the ancient knowledge but adapted to
\nthe needs and the condition of each individual. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n1 July 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I thought
\nthat illness came from some impurity or weakness in the being, but what does
\nthis epidemic in the Ashram mean? Even X was a victim. Where does this epidemic
\ncome from? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nAn epidemic is a
\ncollective illness and comes from a collective impurity. The Ashram as a whole
\nis evidently very far from what it should be to be equal to its task and give to
\nthe world the example of a total consecration to the Divine Work and the
\npreparation of the future. The forms of illness vary according to the condition
\nof each person and his link with the whole. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n8 July 1964<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I am trying
\nto concentrate in the heart and to enter deep within as You advised me to do,
\nbut in vain. The only result is that I get a headache, a kind of dizziness, but
\nas soon as I open my eyes everything becomes normal again. What
\nshould I do? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 300<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nThis means that
\nyou are not yet ready for a spiritual discipline and that you must wait until
\nlife has moulded you a little more and your psychic consciousness awakens from
\nthe slumber in which it lies. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n15 July 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Until I am
\nready for a spiritual discipline, what should I do, apart from aspiring that the
\nMother may pull me out of the slumber and awaken my psychic consciousness?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nTo develop your
\nintelligence, read the teachings of Sri Aurobindo regularly and very
\nattentively. To develop and master your vital, carefully observe your movements
\nand reactions with a will to overcome desires, and aspire to find your psychic
\nbeing and unite with it. Physically, continue with what you are doing, develop
\nand control your body methodically, make yourself useful by working at the
\nPlayground and your place of work, and try to do it as selflessly as possible.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nIf you are sincere
\nand scrupulously honest, my help is certainly with you and one day you will
\nbecome aware of it. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n22 July 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

When a
\nstranger asks us what the Sri Aurobindo Ashram is, how can we give him a reply
\nthat is both short and correct? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe Ashram is the
\ncradle of a new world, of the creation of tomorrow.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 301<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nAnd if other
\nquestions are put to you, the only reply to be made is: you must read the books
\nand study the teaching. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n29 July 1964<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Are there
\nreally any tragedies in life, since everything leads to the Divine? <\/span><\/i>\n<\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThey are tragedies
\nfor those who take them tragically the immense majority of human beings. <\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nOne must live in
\nthe consciousness of the Divine Unity to see the Grace behind everything. <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n5 August 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>People
\noften say that our food does not contain enough vitamins and protein. The
\ndoctors claim that this is why we have so much physical and bodily suffering.<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\nIs it really the cause? Does food have such an important place in life? <\/span>
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nFor those whose
\nconsciousness is centred in the body, who live for the body, its desires and
\nsatisfactions, those for whom the truth begins and ends with the body, it is
\nevident that food is of capital importance since they live to eat. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThe doctors are
\nalways anxious to throw the responsibility for their incompetence to cure on the
\nexternal conditions of life. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIf one wants to
\nsee the truth of the problem, it is this: only an enlightened body, balanced and
\nfree from all vital desire and mental preconception, is capable of knowing what
\nit needs in regard to quantity and kind of food and it is so exceptional to find
\nsuch a body that we need not speak of it. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Beside
\nthis sentence, the Mother wrote: \u201cSo much as that???\u201d  <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 302<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nApart from that,
\none must act for the best and not attach too much importance to it. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nLet those who have
\nconfidence in doctors do as they advise and see if it helps them to suffer less!                                                                                     
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n12 August 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>There are
\ntimes when I feel like abandoning all my activities the Playground, band,
\nstudies, etc. and devoting all my time to work. But my logic does not accept
\nthis. Where does this idea come from and why? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIn this case your
\nlogic is right. In the outer nature there is often a tamasic tendency to
\nsimplify the conditions of life in order to avoid the effort of organising more
\ncomplicated circumstances. But when one wants to progress in the integrality of
\nthe being, this simplification is hardly advisable. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n19 August 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>What is the
\nmost effective way of overcoming desires and attachments: to cut them off all at
\none stroke, even at the risk of breaking down, or to advance slowly and surely
\nby eliminating them carefully one by one? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nBoth these ways
\nare equally ineffective. The normal result of both these methods is that you
\ndeceive yourself, you delude yourself that you have overcome your desires,
\nwhereas at best you are merely sitting on them they remain repressed in the
\nsubconscient until they explode there and cause an upheaval in the whole being.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nIt is from
\nwithin<\/i> that you must become master of your lower nature by establishing your
\nconsciousness firmly in a domain <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 303<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nthat is free of
\nall desire and attachment because it is under the influence of the divine Light
\nand Force. It is a long and exacting labour which must be undertaken with an
\nunfailing sincerity and a tireless perseverance. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nIn any case, you
\nshould never pretend to be more perfect than you are, and still less should you
\nbe satisfied with false appearances. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n26 August 1964<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>When one is
\nvery sensitive, one easily suffers. Since this sensitivity is the sign of a
\nstrong ego, how can one eliminate the ego? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhy do you say
\nthat sensitivity is the sign of a strong ego? It does not seem to be evident at
\nall. Moreover, there are many different kinds of sensitivity: some stem from
\nweakness, others — the best — are the result of refinement. The ego generally
\ngoverns the development of the individual, but the most developed
\nindividualities are not necessarily those in whom the ego is strongest — on the
\ncontrary. As the individuality perfects itself, the power of the ego diminishes,
\nand indeed it is by perfecting himself that the individual arrives at that state
\nof divinisation which liberates him from the ego. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n2 September 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>How can one
\nknow whether we are progressing or not, individually and collectively? <\/span>
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is always
\npreferable not to try to assess the progress one is making because it does not
\nhelp one to make it \u2013 on the contrary. Aspiration for progress, if it is
\nsincere, is sure to have an effect.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 304<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nBut
\nwhatever the progress made, individually or collectively, the progress still
\nremaining to be made is so considerable that there is no reason to stop on the
\nway to assess the ground one has covered. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThe perception
\nthat some progress has been made should come spontaneously, by the sudden and
\nunexpected awareness of what one is in comparison with what one was some time
\nbefore. That is all but that in itself requires a fairly high degree of
\ndevelopment of the consciousness. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\n                                                                                                                           
\n<\/span>
\n                                                                9
\nSeptember 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I put my
\nquestion badly last time. I did not mean the progress one has made, that is to
\nsay, the results of the past, but the state one is in. I do not want to assess
\nthe ground I have covered, but to know whether I am advancing on the path
\ncontinually, without stoppage. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe advance is
\nrarely in a straight and continuous line because a human being is made up of
\nmany different parts, and generally one part or another progresses in its turn
\nwhile the other parts remain quiescent until their turn comes. It is only when
\nthe consciousness grows enough to have an overall view that one can see exactly
\nwhat is happening. But in order to be sure of advancing progressively and
\nregularly, one must always keep alive the flame of one’s aspiration. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\n                                                                                                                                                                                                                     
\n<\/span> 16 September 1964 <\/span>
\n<\/i><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>What is the
\nuse of Japa?<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\nIs it a good method to repeat words like \u201cSilence\u201d and \u201cPeace\u201d in order to
\nestablish silence and peace in oneself when one sits down to meditate? <\/span>
\n<\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Japa:
\ncontinuous repetition of a mantra. <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 305<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nA mere repetition
\nof words cannot have much effect. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThere are
\nclassical or traditional Japas which are intended to subdue the lower mind and
\nestablish a connection with higher forces or with deities. These Japas must be
\ngiven by the Guru, who at the same time infuses them with the power of
\nrealisation. They are useful only for those who want to do an intensive yoga and
\nspend five or six hours a day in yogic practices. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nJapa such as you
\ndescribe it cannot have much effect except to create a tamasic dullness, which
\nshould not be mistaken for mental silence. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n23 September 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I heard
\nthat an astrologer has predicted that in six months’ time Lal Bahadur Shastri
\nwill no longer be Prime Minister and that he will be replaced by Indira Gandhi,
\nbut only for a fortnight. Then a period of chaos in the Government will follow.
\nAfter that, a young man will appear on the scene who will be guided by a divine
\nforce coming from a woman of great spiritual power. What do You think about it?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPeople say many
\nthings especially astrologers! <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nWe have only to
\nwait; we shall surely see what happens. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n30 September 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Is a
\nmistake or a bad action pardonable if one is sure that what one is doing is
\nright and that one is sincere? How can one know that one is mistaken? <\/span>
\n<\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nThe very fact of
\nbeing mistaken proves that one is not sincere in some part of the being. For the
\npsychic being knows<\/i> and is not mistaken; <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 306<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nbut
\nmore often than not, we do not listen to what it says because it speaks without
\nviolence or insistence is a murmur in the depths of our heart which is easy to
\nignore. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nHowever, there are
\ncases where one acts wrongly out of ignorance, and this error is effaced as soon
\nas the ignorance is replaced by knowledge and the way of acting completely
\nchanged. What man in his ignorance calls \u201cpardon\u201d is the effacement, the
\ndissolution of errors committed. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n7 October 1964<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>There are
\nmoments when, in spite of myself, a little black cloud of jealousy comes and
\nupsets my activities during my working hours. I dispel it immediately by
\nreasoning, but all the same its effect remains and makes me a little sullen and
\nvery touchy. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\nHow can one get
\nrid of this? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nBy widening one’s
\nconsciousness and making it universal. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThere is another
\nway, but it is still more difficult. It is by realising the supreme Unity.
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n14 October 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>People
\noften ask us this question: \u201cWhat are you doing for society or even for the
\npeople of Pondicherry? You are preoccupied with your own community, your own
\nprogress. Nothing exists for you outside the Ashram. Isn’t this a kind of
\nisolation, a form of egoism?\u201d <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nTo this rather
\nsilly kind of question, Sri Aurobindo always used to reply: <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\n\u201cThe greatest
\negoist is the Supreme Lord because He never  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 307<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nupon earth to
\nfulfil a mission? That is not my conception what are beggars and people like
\nthat doing? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n Who said that?
\nAnd what \u201cmission\u201d are you referring to? The creation is a single whole
\nadvancing as a totality towards its single goal the Divine through a collective
\nevolution which is continuous and endless.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n7 July 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I have
\nheard that You have written somewhere that each person here in the Ashram
\nrepresents a particular human difficulty, and that this difficulty will be
\nmastered and transformed in him in his lifetime.<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n I have never made
\nthis statement. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThings are not so
\ncut and dried as the mind thinks and even desires in order to simplify the
\nproblem. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThere is an almost
\ninfinite variety of shades and combinations of character, and although there are
\ncategories of very similar types, no two cases are identical. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nOne is aware of
\none’s difficulties only insofar as one can change them and at the moment when
\none can make the change.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n 8 July 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Suddenly I
\nfeel very happy, my heart is filled with an inexpressible joy, but this
\nexperience does not last very long. I have often tried to observe and find out
\nthe cause of this fleeting joy, but in vain. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   <\/span>
\n
\n  <\/span>
\n<\/font>
\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>The
\nMother underlined the phrase \u201cin his lifetime\u201d<\/span><\/font>.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 308<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\n <\/span><\/i>Because
\nyou are looking for the cause outside, around you, whereas it is within.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n 11 July 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>You have
\nexplained that this separation of girls and boys is atavistic, but it remains to
\nask You what we captains should do about it. Personally, I think it is better to
\nclose one’s eyes to it, but there are others who prefer to give advice or even
\nto scold. I think that by closing one’s eyes to it, one minimises the importance
\nof the problem and thus this idea of difference between girls and boys will be
\nless striking. What do You think? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nOne cannot make a
\ngeneral rule; everything depends on the case and the occasion. Both methods have
\ntheir good and bad points, their advantages and drawbacks. For the captains, the
\nmain thing is to have tact and sufficient inner perception to intervene when
\nnecessary or to close one’s eyes when it is preferable not to see.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n15 July 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n    <\/span>
\nWhat do You mean
\nby \u201can ignorant goodwill and an indolent energy\u201d? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    (1) Goodwill
\nmeans wanting to do good always. The only true \u201cgood\u201d is the will of the Supreme
\nLord. Do you know what the Lord’s will is, always, at every moment and in all
\ncircumstances? No, so you are ignorant of what \u201cgood\u201d is therefore: ignorant
\ngoodwill. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    (2) The very
\nnature of energy is to be inexhaustible, unfailing, tireless. Are you never
\ntired? Yes, very often therefore: indolent energy.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n17 July 1963<\/span><\/i>  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 309<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

 Would
\nit not be better to have a basic discipline here instead of so much freedom, a
\nfreedom we are not able to profit by? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nYou say this, but
\nyou are one of those who revolt (at least in thought) against the very little
\ndiscipline that is demanded when it is utterly indispensable, as in physical
\neducation, for example.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n21 July 1963<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Why do I
\nhesitate to ask You for money? What prevents me from doing so? Am I still not
\nintimate enough with You, or is there another reason? I do not understand
\nmyself. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is probably a
\nkind of inner discretion; it is rather a good sign, because this kind of
\ndiscretion comes from the psychic consciousness which would rather give than
\nask.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n24 July 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I still
\nlack confidence in my work. I am too shy. I think that in order to progress one
\nshould be a little bolder. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is not bolder
\nyou should be, but persistent and persevering.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n27 July 1963 <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>X told us
\nthe favourite story of Dr. Y, the mathematics teacher: \u201cA sculptor was working
\non a block of  <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nPage – 310<\/span><\/p>\n

\n


\nstone near a
\nvillage. One by one the villagers gathered round the sculptor, curious to see
\nwhy he was breaking the stone. After much labour the work was finished and a
\nmasterpiece came to light a dancing goddess instead of a block of stone stood
\nthere in front of the sculptor. All the villagers around him who had watched him
\nwork were astonished, and they marvelled at the sight of the beautiful figure
\nwhich had emerged from the stone. So they asked the sculptor: \u201cHow did you know
\nthat this figure was there in the stone?\u201d <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe question is
\nadmirable and if the sculptor had been witty, he would have replied: \u201cBecause I
\nsaw it inside.\u201d  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n11 August 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Your
\nremarks often amuse me. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nYou would do
\nbetter to make an effort to understand them, for behind the words there is
\nalways something profound to be understood.  <\/span><\/p>\n


\n12 August 1963 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>This
\nmorning I saw a man with protruding ribs, deeply depressed hips and twisted
\nlegs. It was a pitiful sight. One wonders why God has made all these
\ndeformations in Nature. The only answer which  answers nothing \u2013 is that it is
\n\u201cthe Divine’s play\u201d. It is incomprehensible. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThat is an easy
\nanswer which one gives when one will not or cannot take the trouble to
\nunderstand.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 311<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\n     <\/span>\u201cIf
\nthere is not a complete surrender, then it is not possible to adopt the baby cat
\nattitude, becomes mere tamasic passivity calling itself surrender. If a complete
\nsurrender is not possible in the beginning, it follows that personal effort is
\nnecessary.\u201d<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n16 December 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Often after
\na long meditation (an effort to meditate), I feel very tired and want to rest.
\nWhy is this and how can I feel differently? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nSo long as you are
\nmaking an effort, it is not meditation and there is not much use in prolonging
\nthis state. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nTo obtain mental
\nsilence, one must learn to relax, to let oneself float on the waves of the
\nuniversal force as a plank floats on water, motionless but relaxed. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nEffort is never
\nsilent. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n23 December 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>How can one
\nmake use of every moment of this unique privilege of living here in the Ashram?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nNever forget where
\nyou are. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nNever forget where
\nyou are living and the true aim of life. Remember this at every moment and in
\nall circumstances. In this way you will make the best use of your existence.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nHappy New Year for
\n1965. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n30 December 1964 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>What is the
\neternal truth behind this sympathy or attraction of man
\nfor woman and of woman for man?  <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Letters
\non Yoga, Cent. Vol. 23, pp. 593-94. <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 312<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nThe relationship
\nbetween Purusha and Prakriti.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nYou have only to
\nread what Sri Aurobindo has written on this subject. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n5 January 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet <\/span><\/i>\n<\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>You have
\nsaid in Your New Year message for this year: \u201cSalute to the advent of Truth.\u201d Is
\nit therefore very near? What must we do during 1965 to prepare ourselves to
\nrecognise it and receive it? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe best thing to
\ndo is to distinguish in oneself the origin of all one’s movements those that
\ncome from the light of truth and those that come from the old inertia and
\nfalsehood in order to accept the first and to refuse or reject the others.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nWith practice one
\nlearns to distinguish more and more clearly, but one can establish as a general
\nrule that all that tends towards disharmony, disorder and inertia comes from the
\nfalsehood and all that favours union, harmony, order and consciousness comes
\nfrom the Truth. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThis is only a
\nhint, nothing more, about how to take the first steps on the path. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n13 January 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Does Your
\nmessage for this year announce an Age of Truth \u2013 what is called the Satya Yuga
\nin the ancient Scriptures (the Mahabharata)? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nAn age of truth is
\nsure to come before the earth is transformed. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n21 January 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 313<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>What does
\nthis extraordinary Asuric attack on the Ashram mean?<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\nAre we responsible for it because of our faults and because we disobey the
\nSupreme Truth in our daily lives? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nVery certainly
\nsuch a thing has been made possible because the atmosphere of the Ashram is not
\npure enough to be invulnerable to falsehood. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n17 February 1965<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Somebody
\nasked me this question: \u201cIs it not a great loss for human society if persons
\nendowed with an exceptional capacity to serve mankind, such as a gifted doctor
\nor barrister, come to stay here in the Ashram for their own salvation? They
\ncould perhaps serve the Divine better by serving men and the world!\u201d <\/span><\/i>\n<\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nNobody comes here
\nfor his own salvation because Sri Aurobindo does not believe in salvation; for
\nus salvation is a meaningless word. We are here to prepare the transformation of
\nthe earth and men so that the new creation may take place, and if we make
\nindividual efforts to progress, it is because this progress is indispensable for
\nthe accomplishment of the work. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nI am surprised
\nthat after having lived in the Ashram for so long, you can still think in this
\nway and be open to this Sunday-school drivel. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nI am sending you a
\nquotation from Sri Aurobindo which will perhaps help to enlighten your thought.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u201cIt is equally
\nignorant and one thousand miles away from <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n <\/span>   <\/span>
\n<\/font>
\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span> On the evening of February 11,
\nmany Ashram buildings were stoned, burned or looted, ostensibly as part of an
\nanti-Hindi agitation.  <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 314<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nmy teaching to
\nfind it in your relations with human beings or in the nobility of the human
\ncharacter or an idea that we are here to establish mental and moral and social
\nTruth and justice on human and egoistic lines. I have never promised to do
\nanything of the kind. Human nature is made up of imperfections, even its
\nrighteousness and virtue are pretensions, imperfections and prancings of
\nself-approbatory egoism. What is aimed at by us is a spiritual truth as the
\nbasis of life, the first words of which are surrender and union with the Divine
\nand the transcendence of ego. So long as that basis is not established, a sadhak
\nis only an ignorant and imperfect human being struggling with the evils of the
\nlower nature. What is created by spiritual progress is an inner closeness and
\nintimacy in the inner being, the sense of the Mother’s love and presence etc.\u201d
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n24 February 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>What is the
\nbest way of expressing one’s gratitude towards man and towards the Divine?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhy do you put man
\nand the Divine together? <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nIt is true that
\nman is essentially divine, but at present, apart from a few very rare
\nexceptions, man is quite unconscious of the Divine <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nI have already
\nwritten to you that our gratitude should go to the Divine and that as for men
\nwhat is required is an attitude of goodwill, understanding and mutual help.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nTo feel deeply,
\nintensely and constantly a total gratitude towards the Divine is the best way to
\nbe happy and peaceful. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nAnd the only true
\nway of expressing one’s gratitude to the Divine is to identify with Him. <\/span>\n<\/p>\n


\n3 March 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013  315<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet M<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>When can
\none say with certitude that one has started Sri Aurobindo’s yoga? What is the
\nsure sign of it? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is impossible
\nto say, because for each person it is different. It depends on the part of one’s
\nbeing that awakens first and responds to Sri Aurobindo’s influence. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nAnd no one can
\ntell about another person. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n10 March 1965<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I aspire to
\nlive the yoga of Sri Aurobindo, the life divine. But I feel that I am in a
\nvirgin forest in which I have lost my sense of direction. Where exactly am I?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>I would
\nlike to have an indication, a way to get out, onto the right path, the path
\nleading to the Divine. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nGenerally, the
\nstarting-point must be an experience, however small, which serves as a compass
\non the way, an experience one refers to in order to be sure of not going astray,
\nuntil one is ready for another more important and conclusive experience. <\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThe real landmarks
\non the way are the spontaneous experiences, not those that come from a mental
\nformation and are always u<\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThe experience
\nmust come first and the explanation afterwards. That is why Sri Aurobindo has
\nsaid: Never distrust your experience; but you may distrust your explanation,
\nwhich is a mental activity.<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nIt is very
\nimportant to take note of one’s experiences and remember them. To construct a
\nsystem of development is secondary and sometimes harmful. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n17 March 1965 <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\n
\n\u00b9<\/span><\/font>\u201cExperience
\nin thy soul the truth of the Scripture; afterwards, if thou wilt, reason and
\nstate thy experience intellectually and even then distrust thy statement; but
\ndistrust never thy experience.\u201d (Aphorism 96, Cent. Vol. 17, p. 89) <\/font><\/span>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 316<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>How can one
\ndistinguish a dream from an experience? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIn a general way,
\na dream leaves a confused and fleeting impression, whereas an experience awakens
\na deep and lasting feeling. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nBut the shades of
\ndifference are subtle and many, and it is by a very attentive and sincere
\nobservation (that is to say, free from bias and preference) that one gradually
\nlearns to discern the one from the other. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n24 March 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Just as
\nthere is a methodical progression of exercises for mental and physical
\neducation, isn’t there a similar method to progress towards Sri Aurobindo’s
\nyoga? It should vary with each individual. Could you make a step-by-step
\nprogramme for me to follow daily? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe mechanical
\nregularity of a fixed programme is indispensable for physical, mental and vital
\ndevelopment; but this mechanical rigidity has little or no effect on spiritual
\ndevelopment where the spontaneity of an absolute sincerity is indispensable.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nSri Aurobindo has
\nwritten very clearly on this subject. And what he has written on it has appeared
\nin The Synthesis of Yoga. <\/i><\/span><\/p>\n


\n    <\/span><\/i>
\nHowever, as an
\ninitial help to set you on the path, I can tell you: (1) that on getting up,
\nbefore starting the day, it is good to make an offering of this day to the
\nDivine, an offering of all that one thinks, all that one is, all that one will
\ndo; (2) and at night, before going to sleep, it is good to review the day,
\ntaking note of all the times one has forgotten or neglected to make an offering
\nof one’s self or one’s action, and to aspire or pray that these lapses do not
\nrecur.<\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage- 317<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n

\n    <\/span>
\nThis is a minimum,
\na very small beginning and it should increase with the sincerity of your
\nconsecration. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n31 March 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>How can one
\nincrease single-mindedness and will-power? They are so necessary for doing
\nanything. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThrough regular,
\npersevering, obstinate, unflagging exercise I mean exercise of concentration and
\nwill. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nMother, I have
\nstarted reading French books X has given me a list. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is good for you
\nto read a lot of French; it will teach you how to write. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n7 April 1965<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>You have
\nwritten: \u201cOf all renunciations, the most difficult is to renounce one’s good
\nhabits.\u201d<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\nWhat exactly do you mean by this? Does it suggest that good habits are not
\nnecessary in the yoga? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nGood habits are
\nindispensable so long as one acts out of habit. But to attain the supreme goal
\nof yoga, one must abandon all ties, whatever they may be. And good habits are
\nalso a tie which must one day be abandoned when one wants to obey and is able to
\nobey nothing but the one supreme impulse, the Will of the Supreme. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n14 April 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n  <\/span>
\n
\n  \u00b9<\/span><\/font>Conversations,
\n1979 ed., p. 185.  <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 318<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

You
\nhave written: \u201cSo long as you have to renounce anything, you are not on this
\npath.\u201d<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\nBut doesn’t all renunciation begin when one is on the path? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhat I call \u201cbeing
\non the path\u201d is being in a state of consciousness in which only union with the
\nDivine has any value this union is the only thing worth living, the sole object
\nof aspiration. Everything else has lost all value and is not worth seeking, so
\nthere is no longer any question of renouncing it because it is no longer an
\nobject of desire. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nAs long as union
\nwith the Divine is not the thing for which one lives, one is not yet on the
\npath. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n21 April 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Why is
\nIndia, which has such a rich past and the promise of such a brilliant future, in
\nsuch a miserable condition at present? When will she emerge from this pitiful
\ncondition and reaffirm her greatness? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhen she renounces
\nfalsehood and lives in the Truth. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n28 April 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n   
\n<\/span>Why did Sri
\nAurobindo advise India’s leaders to accept the Cripps Proposal in 1942, when He
\nknew fully well that they would not?<\/span>\u00b2<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Questions
\nand Answers, Collected Works Vol. 3, p. 128. <\/font> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b2<\/font><\/span>Sri
\nAurobindo sent a special messenger to Delhi advising Indian leaders to accept,
\nas a first step towards independence, Sir Stafford Cripps’ proposal of Dominion
\nstatus for India. Sri Aurobindo held that this proposal conferred essential
\nindependence on India by putting her on a par with the various Dominions already
\nassociated with the United Kingdom. Had his advice been heeded, the partition of
\nIndia might have been avoided. <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 319<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

The
\nDivine often advises or tries to guide man, knowing very well that His help will
\nbe refused. Why then does He do it? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe Divine always
\ninforms, but it is rare indeed for men to listen to Him. Either they do not hear
\nHim or do not believe Him. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nMen always
\ncomplain of not being helped, but the truth is that they refuse the help which
\nis always with them. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n5 May 1965<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

You say
\nthat to hope to partake of the new realisation, \u201cyou must feel that this world
\nis ugly, stupid, brutal and full of intolerable suffering\u201d<\/span>\u00b9<\/span><\/i>
\nBut what would be the state of one who feels that everything here is the play
\nof a benevolent God? Would he not also participate in this new realisation? <\/i>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is in the
\ndepths of the consciousness, beyond the mind, that one can in all sincerity have
\nthe experience that all is the Divine and that only the Divine exists. But the
\nmanifestation is progressive, and in order to have the strength to advance by
\nrejecting what ought to disappear, one must strongly feel one’s unworthiness and
\nincapacity to express the divine perfection. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe two states of
\nconsciousness should be simultaneous and complementary, not successive and
\ncontradictory, and this too is possible only when the seat of consciousness is
\nbeyond the mind and its limitations. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n12 May 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\nWhen department
\nheads or superiors make mistakes <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>.Questions
\nand Answers, Collected Works Vol. 3, p. 128. <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 320<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\n or commit an
\ninjustice towards their subordinates, what should be the attitude of those
\naffected by these errors? Should one keep silent and say, \u201cIt is none of my
\nbusiness\u201d, or should one try to point out the mistake to them? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nNeither the one
\nnor the other. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nFirst and always,
\nwe must ask ourselves what our instrument of judgment is. One must ask, \u201cWhat is
\nmy judgment based on? Do I have perfect knowledge? What in me is judging? Do I
\nhave the divine consciousness? Am I completely disinterested in this matter? Am
\nI free of all desire and all ego?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\nAnd since the
\nanswer to all these questions will be the same, namely, \u201cno\u201d, the honest and
\nsincere conclusion must be: \u201cI cannot judge, I do not have the elements needed
\nfor a true judgment; therefore I will not judge, I will keep quiet.\u201d <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n19 May 1965<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Being
\nfar from the Truth-Consciousness, must one always remain silent, even though as
\nan individual one is obliged to make decisions and give opinions? <\/span><\/i>\n<\/p>\n

\nWhat constitutes
\nan individuality? <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nAn individuality
\nis a conscious being organised around a divine centre. All the divine centres
\nare essentially One in their origin, but they act as separate beings in the
\nmanifestation. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe individual
\nmust make decisions in order to live, but it is not indispensable that he should
\nhave opinions, and still less that he should air them. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is ignorance
\nthat has opinions. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nKnowledge knows.
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n26 May 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 321<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The
\ndescent of the Supermind, which You announced on the 29th of February 1956, is
\nstill only \u201csomething one hears about\u201d for most people here. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

When
\nshall we feel and see this supreme and radical change of the whole nature which
\nYou have predicted? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe descent of the
\nforerunners of the supramental forces is a fact (not a prediction). The
\nincapacity of the vast majority of human beings to become conscious of it is a
\nfact which can in no way affect the fact of the advent of these forces and
\npowers in the physical world. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe \u201csupreme and
\nradical\u201d change of the whole nature can only come about after a long and slow
\npreparation, and men will perceive it only when their consciousness has become
\nenlightened. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n2 June 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The
\nresolutions I make lose their intensity and ardour after a time. How can I keep
\nthis enthusiasm and increase it more and more? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nBy wanting to.
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n9 June 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nYou have
\nwritten: \u201cThe same force which, when absorbed in the Ignorance, assumes the form
\nof vital desires is the same which, in its pure form, constitutes the dynamis
\ntowards transformation.\u201d<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Is this
\ndynamis that of aspiration? If so, could one say that aspiration is a purified
\ndesire? <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Questions
\nand Answers, Collected Works Vol. 3, p. 133.  <\/font> <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 322<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nOne can say
\nwhatever one likes, provided one knows what one is talking about. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe words are of
\nlittle importance; it is the experience and the sincerity of the experience that
\ncount. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n23 June 1965<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

You
\nspeak (in Conversations) of the plunge we must take in order to have the true
\nspiritual experience. Is it possible to achieve it by aspiration alone, or is
\nthere a method or discipline to be followed? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nEverything is
\npossible. All paths lead to the goal provided they are followed with persistence
\nand sincerity. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is best for
\neach person to find his own path, but for this the aspiration must be ardent,
\nthe will unshakable, the patience unfailing. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n30 June 1965  <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Are
\nillnesses and accidents the result of something bad one has thought or done, of
\na fall in one’s consciousness? If the cause is a mistake one has made, how can
\none find out what it is? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt has nothing to
\ndo with punishment; it is the natural and normal consequence of an error,
\nshortcoming or fault which necessarily has consequences. Actually, everything in
\nthe world is a question of equilibrium or disequilibrium, of harmony or
\ndisorder. Vibrations of harmony attract and encourage harmonious events;
\nvibrations of disequilibrium create, as it were, a disequilibrium in
\ncircumstances (illnesses, accidents, etc.). This may be collective or
\nindividual, but the principle is the same \u2013 and so is the remedy: <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 323<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nto
\ncultivate in oneself order and harmony, peace and equilibrium by surrendering
\nunreservedly to the Divine Will. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n7 July 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Sri
\nAurobindo says: \u201cIf the transformation of the body is complete, that means no
\nsubjection to death. One creates a new body for oneself when one wants to
\nchange\u2026. \u201c<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Mother,
\nwhat does he mean by \u201cOne creates a new body for oneself when one wants to
\nchange\u201d? Does this change take place in the present body or does one have to
\nleave it? If one has to leave the body, there seems to be death. So\u2026? <\/span>
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhat he means is
\nthat when one will have the power to withdraw the physical body from the
\ninfluence of death, the power of transformation will be such that one will also
\nbe able to change the form of that body at will. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n14 July 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

What do
\nYou mean by \u201cto change the form of that body at will\u201d? For example, will a
\nhundred-year old man be able to renew his body and become a young man of
\ntwenty-five? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThose who have a
\nsupramentalised body will not be subject to the law of aging; consequently the
\nquestion of age will not arise for them. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n21 July 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Once, in
\none of Your Wednesday classes, You said that in order not to feel pain one must,
\nso to speak, cut the nerve that conveys this sensation to the brain. How can
\nthis be done? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nI did not say \u201ccut
\nthe nerve\u201d that would be a surgical operation! I said, cut the conscious
\nconnection with the brain. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is an occult
\noperation, certainly more difficult than the other for those who don’t know how
\nto do it, but less dangerous. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n28 July 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Letters
\non Yoga, Cent. Vol. 22, p. 11. <\/font> <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 324<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Does
\nevery person who comes to earth have a definite goal he must achieve in this
\nlife, and does he achieve it unconsciously in spite of himself?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nYes. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n11 August 1965<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

People
\nwho come to the Ashram for the first time are often delighted with their visit
\nand full of praise for the efficient administration of this organisation. But
\nwhen they get to know the Ashram and the sadhaks better, their admiration begins
\nto wane and they find that Ashram people are far more egoistic than people from
\noutside, more arrogant, lacking any sympathy, incapable of cooperation, etc.
\nWhat do You say to all this, Mother? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nSometimes it is
\nlike that, as a matter of fact, and sometimes it is the opposite: at first a
\ntotal incomprehension, but later, little by  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 325<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nlittle, one comes
\nto understand and appreciate. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nBoth are equally
\ntrue and equally incomplete. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIn the world as it
\nis now, everything is mixed and each one sees and feels that which corresponds
\nto his own nature. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nTo tell the truth,
\nit doesn’t matter at all. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n25 August 1965<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I really
\nfeel that there is a great lack of harmony and cooperation here among us and
\namong the various departments. This results in a great waste of money and
\nenergy. Where does this disharmony come from and when will it be set right?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Or is
\nthis feeling I have only a reflection of my own nature! <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nHere is the best
\nanswer to your questions, written by Sri Aurobindo: <\/span><\/p>\n

\nEach one carries
\nin himself the seeds of this disharmony, and his most urgent work is to purify
\nhimself of it by a constant aspiration. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n1 September 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Sri
\nAurobindo writes in His Essays on the Gita: \u201cThe law of Vishnu cannot prevail
\ntill the debt to Rudra is paid.\u201d What does this mean? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Mother,
\nis the present situation in India <\/span>
\n\u00b9<\/span>  
\nlike the debt that must be paid to Rudra? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nHere is the whole
\nquotation which I had prepared in advance for those who want to know the reason
\nfor the present situation. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>On
\nSeptember 1, Pakistan invaded India’s border at Jammu-Kashmir.  <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 326<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\nI am sending it to
\nyou so that your question becomes unnecessary. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u201cNo real peace can
\nbe till the heart of man deserves peace; the law of Vishnu cannot prevail till
\nthe debt to Rudra is paid. To turn aside then and preach to a still unevolved
\nmankind the law of love and oneness? Teachers of the law of love and oneness
\nthere must be, for by that way must come the ultimate salvation. But not till
\nthe Time-Spirit in man is ready, can the inner and ultimate prevail over the
\nouter and immediate reality. Christ and Buddha have come and gone but it is
\nRudra who still holds the world in the hollow of his hand. And meanwhile the
\nfierce forward labour of mankind tormented and oppressed by the powers that are
\nprofiteers of egoistic force and their servants cries for the sword of the Hero
\nof the struggle and the word of its prophet.\u201d<\/span>\u00b9<\/span> 
\n\u2013 Sri Aurobindo <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n8 September 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

In spite
\nof Your message of September 16 to the Prime Minister and the Army Chief of
\nStaff, was not our Government’s acceptance of the cease-fire the best that could
\nbe done under the circumstances?<\/span>\u00b2<\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThey could not do
\notherwise. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n29 September 1965<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I often
\nfeel, and very concretely too, that You are constantly protecting me from all
\nthe misfortunes of life.  <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Essays
\non the Gita, Cent. Vol. 13, p. 372.<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b2<\/font><\/span>The
\nIndo-Pakistan conflict ended in a cease-fire on September 22. The Mother’s
\nmessage, sent six days prior to the cease-fire, was: \u201cIt is for the sake and the
\ntriumph of Truth that India is fighting and must fight until India and Pakistan
\nhave become One because that is the truth of their being.\u201d <\/font> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span>Page
\n\u2013 327 <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nBut I very often ask myself:
\n\u201cWhy does Mother protect me and keep me in such happiness, I who so little
\ndeserve it?\u201d <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nBecause it is not
\na question of merit but of Grace. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n6 October 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

One sees
\nthat the world as a whole is presently in a sort of disequilibrium and chaos.
\nDoes this mean that it is preparing for the manifestation of a new force, for
\nthe descent of the Truth, or is it the result of the action of hostile forces in
\nrevolt against this descent? And what place does India occupy in all this?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is both at the
\nsame time a chaotic means of preparation. India ought to be the spiritual guide
\nwho explains what is happening and helps to hasten the movement. But
\nunfortunately, in her blind ambition to imitate the West, she has become
\nmaterialistic and neglectful of her soul. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n13 October 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

We know
\nthat we should not do certain things and we do not really want to do them, but
\nstill we do them. Why does this happen? How can we avoid it? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThat’s how it is
\nwhen one is lacking in will and in force of consciousness. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nBoth of these can
\nbe acquired if one is sincere in one’s aspiration. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n20 October 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 328 <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

About
\nindividual transformation and social transformation You say: \u201cSince the
\nenvironment reacts upon the individual and, on the other hand, the value of the
\nenvironment depends upon the value of the individual, the two works should
\nproceed side by side. But this can be done only through division of labour, and
\nthat necessitates the formation of a group, hierarchicised, if possible.\u201d<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Mother,
\nI do not understand what You mean by the formation of a hierarchicised group.
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nA hierarchicised
\ngroup means a group in which the activities<\/span><\/p>\n

\n and functions are organised
\naccording to individual ability,<\/span><\/p>\n

\n with a leader at the centre. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nA military
\norganisation, for example,<\/span><\/p>\n

\n is a hierarchy. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nHere is a diagram
\nof the<\/span><\/p>\n

\n ancient  traditional hierarchies <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   27
\nOctober 1965<\/span><\/p>\n

\n   1 \u2013 4
\n\u2013 8 \u2013 16 <\/span><\/p>\n

\nand so on. <\/span>\n<\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nIs
\nthere a hierarchicised group here in the Ashram? Mother, I want to know more
\nabout it, but I don’t know how to formulate it.
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nEvery group, if it
\nis a real one that is, one made up according to the ability of the individuals
\nwho compose it must necessarily be hierarchical.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Words
\nof Long Ago, Collected Works Vol. 2, p. 48. <\/font> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n  <\/span>Page \u2013 329<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\nBut there are
\nconsiderable obstacles to the realisation of this hierarchy: <\/span><\/p>\n

\n(1) First, when
\nthe group is incomplete that is, when it does not have all the members necessary
\nto constitute the hierarchy and certain functions or intermediaries are missing.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n(2) The
\nindiscipline of certain members refusing wholly or in part to occupy the place
\nassigned to them. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhen order and
\nharmony are established, the hierarchy is organised quite naturally and
\nspontaneously. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n3 November 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Why does
\none feel afraid? Where does fear come from? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nFear is an
\ninvention of the hostile forces who have created it as the best means of
\ndominating living beings, animals and men. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThose who are pure
\nthat is to say, exclusively under the Divine influence have no fear. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n10 November 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

You
\nwrite in Your Conversations: \u201cEach time that something of the Divine Truth and
\nthe<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\nDivine Force comes
\ndown to manifest upon earth, some change is effected in the earth’s atmosphere.\u201d<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

(1) Is
\nthis change always violent and destructive, such as a revolution or a war?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nNot necessarily.
\nWhat expresses itself as a war or a revolution is the resistance in the human
\nconsciousness to the New Force. When the resistance is less, everything takes
\nplace harmoniously.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>Questions
\nand Answers, Collected Works Vol. 3, p. 79.  <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 330 <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n

\n(2) And is the
\nconverse always valid: if there is a war or a revolution, is it the sign of a
\ndescent of the Truth? <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nNot necessarily.
\nHuman folly takes advantage of the slightest cause to manifest itself. <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n17 November 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

You
\nwrite: \u201cEach one here represents an impossibility to be solved.\u201d<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\nCould You explain to me what this means exactly? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is an ironic
\nway of saying that the most difficult cases, from the standpoint of
\ntransformation, are gathered here to concretise and synthesise the work of
\ntransforming the earth in order to prepare the new creation. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n1 December 1965 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

You told
\nme to enter within, into the depths of my heart, to find You seated there. But,
\nMother, I cannot manage to enter into the heart. I feel during meditation that
\nmy consciousness is flying around an impenetrable fortress. What should I do to
\nsucceed in what You have told me? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nThis happens
\nbecause you are trying to enter with a superficial consciousness which does not
\nhave contact with the inner states of being. You have to go out of this external
\nconsciousness and penetrate into a subtler consciousness; then the fortress will
\nno longer be impenetrable. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n22 December 1965<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/font><\/span>  \u00b9<\/font><\/span>Words
\nof the Mother, Collected Works Vol. 14, p. 87.  <\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 331<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
\n\t<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

What must
\nwe do to serve the Truth? Must it first of all be lived? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nTo serve It, you
\nmust live it. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nTo live it, you
\nmust necessarily serve it. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nAnd for both, you
\nmust want it with sincerity and persistence. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n5 January 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

There is
\na tendency among most of us here to conduct our lives and programmes according
\nto the customs of society. We say: \u201cWe must also think of the opinion of people
\nfrom outside. Since we live in society, we must be reasonable and lead a life in
\nkeeping with theirs.\u201d Sweet Mother, what do You say to all this and what should
\nour attitude be towards the customs and laws of society? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIf most people
\nhere think and feel like that, it is an obvious proof that most are not at all
\nready for the new life, nor even ready to prepare for the new life. And to tell
\nthe truth, they would do far better to return to the ordinary life and
\nexperience it, instead of taking advantage of the exceptional conditions of
\nexistence they have here, without being worthy of enjoying them. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n12 January 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Formerly,
\nYou were very strict about permitting people to come and live in the Ashram. Now
\nit is no longer so. Why? <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 332<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n

\nSo long as the
\nAshram was reserved for those who wanted to practise the yoga, it was natural to
\nbe strict. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nAs soon as the
\nchildren were admitted here, it was no longer possible to be strict and the
\nnature of the life changed. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nNow the Ashram has
\nbecome a symbolic representation of life on earth and everything can find a
\nplace in it, provided it has the will to progress towards a diviner life. <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n19 January 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I ask
\nmyself whether I am practising yoga! But the answer is not sure. Can You tell me
\nwhere I am and how I can progress on this path? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nBy the very fact
\nthat you are living on earth, you are doing a yoga, even if you do not know it;
\nand by the very fact that you are living here, you are helped in your yoga to
\nthe utmost of your possibilities. The only thing you lack is being conscious.
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n2 February 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

You say
\nthat \u201cby the very fact that you are living on earth, you are doing a yoga\u201d and
\nYou also told me that \u201cthe Ashram was reserved for those who wanted to practise
\nthe yoga\u201d; and again, I believe you have said somewhere, \u201cNot everyone here is
\nmeant for yoga.\u201d So? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPoor boy! Now you
\nare perplexed <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWell, all three
\nare true, but on different planes, and to understand something of the problem
\none has to reach the domain where the three complement one another and unite.
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n9 February 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 333<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

When You
\nsay: <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

(1) \u201cBy
\nthe very fact that you are living on earth, you are doing a yoga\u201d do You mean
\nthat it is the yoga of the natural and inevitable progress of evolution? <\/span>
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

(2) \u201cThe
\nAshram was reserved for those who wanted to practise the yoga\u201d that is to say,
\nonly for those who are practising consciously? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

(3) \u201cNot
\neveryone here is meant for yoga\u201d \u2013 that is, they are incapable of doing it
\nconsciously? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nYes. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n16 February 1966<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

How can
\none increase one’s receptivity? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nReceptivity is
\nproportionate to self-giving. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n2 March 1966 <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

There was
\na time when I used to see You often in my dreams and sometimes I even saw Sri
\nAurobindo too. But I haven’t enjoyed this happiness for a long time. Why? What
\ndoes it mean? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe best way of
\nseeing us in your dreams is to concentrate on us before going to sleep. Do you
\ndo this now as you used to before? This is also the way to avoid going to
\nundesirable places during your sleep, for in those places you are sure not to
\nmeet us. Try, and you will see the result. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n23 March 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 334 <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

We are
\nsupposed to be attempting something that no one has ever tried before. But,
\nMother, isn’t it true that we now tend to direct our lives and activities more
\nand more towards the principles and ways of ordinary life? In that case, aren’t
\nwe straying from the true path? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nYou are still in
\nthe old rut that separates spirituality from life. Whereas Sri Aurobindo has
\ndeclared, \u201cAll life is Yoga\u201d and affirmed that it is in life that one must do
\nYoga. You seem to have forgotten this. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n30 March 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Isn’t
\nthis immense freedom we are given dangerous for those of us who are not yet
\nawake, who are still unconscious? What is the explanation for this opportunity,
\nthis good fortune we have been granted? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nDanger and risk
\nare part of every forward movement. Without them nothing would ever stir; and
\nalso they are indispensable for moulding the character of those who want to
\nprogress. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n13 April 1966<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

How
\nshould I prepare myself for the April 24th Darshan? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nLook attentively
\ninto yourself to find out what for you is the most important thing, the thing
\nyou feel that you couldn’t do without. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is an
\ninteresting discovery. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n19 April 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013  335<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Why does
\nanger exist? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nI suppose you are
\nasking where anger comes from. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nAnger is a violent
\nreaction of the vital to some shock that is unpleasant to it; and when it
\ninvolves words or thoughts, the mind responds to the influence of the vital and
\nalso reacts violently. Any expression of anger is the sign of a lack of
\nself-control. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n11 May 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Two days
\nago I was with You in my dream and You spoke with me for quite a long time. I
\ndon’t remember the whole conversation, but the impression that remains is that
\nYou are not very pleased with the questions I ask You every Wednesday. Is this
\ntrue? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nThat you saw and
\nheard me is a sign of progress, and with this I am pleased. But it is true that
\nI find you mentally a bit lazy and indifferent to the opportunity I give you
\neach week to ask me a question. Your questions are rather commonplace and don’t
\ngive the impression that you are really searching for the secrets of life and
\nthe world. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n18 May 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Are
\nmental indifference and lack of curiosity a sort of mental inertia? <\/span><\/i>\n<\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nUsually they are
\ndue to mental inertia, unless one has obtained this calm and indifference
\nthrough a very intense sadhana resulting in a perfect equality for which good
\nand bad, pleasant and unpleasant no longer exist.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 336<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n

\nBut in that case, mental activity is replaced by an intuitive
\nactivity of a much higher kind. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n25 May 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

How can
\none get out of this mental laziness and inertia? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nBy wanting to do
\nso, with persistence and obstinacy. By doing every day a mental exercise of
\nreading, organisation and development. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThis should
\nalternate in the course of the day with exercises of mental silence in
\nconcentration. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n1 June 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Are the
\npresence and intervention of the Americans in Vietnam justifiable? <\/span><\/i>\n<\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nFrom what point of
\nview are you asking this question? <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIf it is from the
\npolitical point of view, politics is steeped in falsehood, and I am not
\ninterested in it. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIf it is from the
\nmoral point of view, morality is a shield which ordinary men flourish to protect
\nthemselves from the Truth. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIf it is from the
\nspiritual point of view, the Divine Will alone is justifiable, and it is That
\nwhich men travesty and deform in all their actions. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n6 July 1966
\n<\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I had
\nasked my last question from the spiritual point of view and from Your answer I
\nconclude that the American action is not at all justifiable. But, Mother, <\/span>
\n<\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 337<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nisn’t the world in
\ndanger of being swallowed by the Communists and isn’t that why the Americans and
\ntheir Allies are engaged in safeguarding the freedom of man? Is that the Divine
\nWill? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe opinion you
\nexpress is the opinion of the Americans and of a large number of human beings
\nwho think like them. But the Communists and all those who have faith in the
\nCommunist ideal have the opposite opinion, not to mention all the many and
\nvaried opinions on social and political subjects. All these are only opinions
\nand have no value at all from the Divine point of view the Divine who does not
\nhave an opinion but a total vision of everything as a whole and of the goal to
\nbe achieved, which is the only thing that  matters. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nEverything mental
\nis necessarily an opinion and expresses only an infinitesimal fraction of the
\nTruth. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n13 July 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Some say
\nthat You have stated: \u201cAmong the 1500 people who are here, there are only 250 or
\nso who understand Sri Aurobindo’s yoga, only forty-five who practise it, five
\nwho are capable of realisation and only one who can be transformed.\u201d What is the
\ntruth? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nI may have said
\nsomething of the kind. But the exactness of the numbers is certainly fanciful.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is true that
\nthe number of those who take the yoga seriously is not considerable <\/span><\/p>\n

\nBut the Divine
\nGrace is infinite! <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n20 July 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I feel it
\nis most shameful on our part to waste the<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 338<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\n Divine Grace, to
\nmisuse this unique privilege granted to us here. But, Mother, why do we do this?
\nFor, each one of us has surely felt and enjoyed — at least once in his life, in
\na blessed moment — the infinite Splendour which is within our reach and awaits
\nus. Yet there are so few of us who take the yoga seriously. Why? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is quite simply
\nunconsciousness, incoercible tamas. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n27 July 1966<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n(Regarding an
\ninvitation to the captain to follow a course of practical studies in Calcutta)
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThose who
\nsincerely want to learn have all the possibilities to do so here. The only thing
\nthat one has outside, but does not have here, is the moral constraint of an
\nexternal discipline. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nHere one is free
\nand the only constraint is the one that one puts on oneself when one is sincere.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\nNow it is for you
\nto decide. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n3 August 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I was
\nvery happy to receive Your reply and I have decided not to go. In any case I
\ndoubted that You would approve of this proposal, but all the same I had the
\nfollowing reasons when I asked You if I could accept the invitation. (Here the
\nreasons are enumerated.) <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nFrom your letter I
\ncan see that you really have a great desire to accept the invitation I do not
\nwant, then, to deprive you of this experience and I say to you: \u201cYou may go.\u201d
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\nThis decision is
\nfinal. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n4 August 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 339 <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

May I
\nhave photographs of Sri Aurobindo and You, with Your blessings, to keep with me
\nwhen I am far from Pondicherry? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nDo you really want
\nto go? <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n22 August 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\nOne final note on
\nthis famous affair of the invitation which has created a lot of
\nmisunderstandings everywhere. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Mother, I
\ndo not understand You! On one occasion You say to me: \u201cYou may go. This decision
\nis final\u201d; later when I come to You, You affirm it once again and send me away
\nwith the assurance that You will be with me always, that I can go without fear,
\nthat it will do me good, etc., in spite of my insistence that I no longer feel
\nlike going after having received Your first letter.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\nNaturally, after that, I go and make all the necessary arrangements. X arranges
\nfor my departure. But later on, You reply to X that You have given me permission
\nbecause You learned from me that he approves of my going there. Strange! <\/span>
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

Truly, I
\nunderstand nothing about all this except that You are not enthusiastic about my
\ngoing. But why all this complication? I don’t know what X thinks of me, but it
\nis true that I have got him into a very complicated situation and I regret it.
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Mother,
\nafter Your last question, I no longer feel like going. I will not go. This is my
\nfinal decision. This famous chapter is closed. <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 340<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n

\nVery good. And
\neverything I did was precisely to bring you to this decision! <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n23 August 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

India is
\nsupposed to be the Guru of the world in order to establish the spiritual life on
\nearth. But, Mother, in order to occupy this high position she must be worthy
\npolitically, morally and physically, mustn’t she? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWithout any doubt
\nand just now, there is much to be done! <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n7 September 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Why this
\nchaotic condition in our present government? Is it the sign of a change for the
\nbetter, for the reign of Truth? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is the pressure
\nof the force of Truth on the whole earth which is causing disorder, confusion
\nand falsehood to spring up everywhere in a refusal to be transformed. <\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\nThe victory of the
\nTruth is certain, but it is difficult to say when and how it will come about.
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n14 September 1966<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

How can
\none practice yogic disciplines without believing in God or the Divine?<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhy? It is very
\neasy. Because these are only words.<\/span><\/p>\n

 \n<\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>\u00b9<\/font><\/span>The
\nMother replied to this question orally; she was speaking to someone other than
\nthe captain. <\/font> <\/span>  <\/font><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 341<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n

\n When one  practises without
\nbelieving in God or the Divine, one practises in order to attain some
\nperfection, to make progress, for all sorts of reasons. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>Are there many
\npeople – I am not speaking of those who have a religion: they learn a catechism
\nwhen they are young and that doesn’t mean much; but out of people taken as they
\nare — are there many who believe in the Divine? Not in Europe anyway. But even
\nhere, there are quite a number who by tradition have a \u201cfamily deity\u201d, yet it
\ndoesn’t bother them at all to take their deity and throw it into the Ganges when
\nthey get displeased! It does happen — I know some people who did it. They had a
\nfamily Kali in their house, they actually did take her and throw her into the
\nGanges because they were displeased with her. If one believes in the Divine, one
\ncannot do things like that. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>I don’t know \u2013
\nbelieve in the Divine? One thirsts for a certain perfection, perhaps even to
\ntranscend oneself, to arrive at something higher than what one is; if one is a
\nphilanthropist, one has an aspiration that mankind should become better, or less
\nunhappy, less miserable; all sorts of things like that. One can practise yoga
\nfor that, but that is not believing. To believe is to have the faith that there
\ncannot be a world without the Divine, that the very existence of the world
\nproves the existence of the Divine. And not just a \u201cbelief\u201d, not something one
\nhas thought out or been taught, nothing like that: faith. A faith that is a
\nliving knowledge, not an acquired one, that the existence of the world is enough
\nto prove the Divine. Without the Divine, no world. And this is so obvious, you
\nsee, that one has the impression that in order to think otherwise, one has to be
\na bit dense. And the \u201cDivine\u201d not in the sense of \u201cpurpose\u201d or \u201cgoal\u201d or \u201cend\u201d,
\nnot that sort of thing: the world as it is proves the Divine. Because it is the
\nDivine under a certain aspect \u2026 a rather distorted one, but still\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>For me it is even
\nstronger than that. I look at a rose, a thing that contains such a concentration
\nof spontaneous beauty \u2013 not man-made: spontaneous, a blossoming; one has only to
\nsee it to  <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 342<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\nbe sure that there
\nis a Divine. It is a certainty. One cannot \u2026 it is impossible not to believe. It
\nis like those people (this is fantastic!), those people who study Nature, really
\nstudy it thoroughly, how everything functions and is brought about and exists
\nhow can one study sincerely, with attention and care, without being absolutely
\nconvinced that the Divine is there? We call it the Divine — the Divine is tiny!
\n(Mother laughs.) For me existence is an incontestable proof that there is that
\nthere is nothing but That — something we cannot name, cannot define, cannot
\ndescribe, but something we can feel and can more and more become. A Something
\nthat is more perfect than all the perfections, more beautiful than all the
\nbeauties, more marvellous than all the marvels, so that even the totality of all
\nthat exists cannot express it. And there is nothing but That. And it is not a
\nSomething floating in nothingness: there is nothing but That.<\/span> <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n8 October 1966<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nHow can
\nwe know that our acts, our thoughts and our aspirations are not tainted by vital
\ndesire, though they may seem right to our common sense?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is a question
\nof inner sincerity. Common sense is not a judge because it is a mental function
\nof a rather inferior order. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>Moreover, there is
\na very simple way of knowing. One has only to imagine that the thing one wants
\nto do will not be done, and if this imagination creates the least uneasiness,
\nthen one can be sure of the presence of desire. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n12 October 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\n Sweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n    <\/span><\/i><\/font>
\n In this integral
\nyoga of Sri Aurobindo, work has a place of capital importance, doesn’t it? This
\nbeing the case, what place does meditation <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/font>have?<\/span><\/i>           <\/span><\/i><\/font><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i>Page \u2013 343<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n

\nWork does not go
\non twenty-four hours a day. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>There is room for
\nmany other activities which have their purpose in an integral Yoga. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n26 October 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nIn the
\nstory You wrote, \u201cThe Virtues\u201d, You describe several virtues. Which is the most
\nnecessary?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nSincerity. <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n2 November 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nFor
\nseveral years now, we have been hearing that the Ashram is in a terrible
\nfinancial condition, and from time to time we clearly see this for ourselves.
\nBut, Mother, we also see extravagant spending by certain individuals and certain
\ndepartments. Moreover, these expenditures are possible only through Your
\ngenerosity. So how can it be said that the Ashram is undergoing a financial
\ncrisis?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nBut perhaps it is
\njust because certain individuals and certain departments are spending
\nextravagantly that there is a financial crisis! <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>Otherwise all is
\nwell. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n30 November 1966<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nYour
\nreply explains nothing, for isn’t it You who orders these expenditures?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nNot always.  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 344 <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nAt least You give
\nYour consent. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nSometimes. <\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nWhen one sits for
\nmeditation, one can sometimes succeed in establishing mental silence. But how
\ncan one fix this as a constant experience? Because the moment one throws oneself
\ninto activity, the mental disturbance begins again! <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nOne can have a
\nquiet mind without being in a complete state of silence; one can carry on an
\nactivity without being disturbed. The ideal is to be able to act without coming
\nout of the mental quietude. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>One can do
\neverything while keeping the mind quiet, and what one does is better done.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nIn order to
\nachieve self-mastery, should one follow the method of \u201cwidening the
\nconsciousness\u201d? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWidening the
\nconsciousness is necessary for all who want to live a free and intelligent life,
\neven without there being any question of Yoga or aspiration for the Divine Life.
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n7 December 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nWhen I
\nheard that X was drowned in a lake at Gingee during the outing, I was unable to
\nbelieve it or to be shocked by this news. The only question that arose in me
\nwas: How is it possible! Mother knew we were at Gingee, so Her protection was
\nwith us. Then how is it possible?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe protection is
\nover the group \u2013 and if the action of the group <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 345<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n

\nis coordinated and
\ndisciplined, the protection acts. But when an individual acts independently, the
\nprotection acts only in the measure of his faith. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n14 December 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother, <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n    In the Darshan message of
\nNovember 24th, Sri Aurobindo speaks of the influence of the Divine Compassion
\nand the Divine Grace.<\/span>\u00b9<\/span>
\nBut what is the difference between the two? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe compassion seeks to relieve the
\nsuffering of all, whether they deserve it or not. <\/font> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>The Grace does not
\nrecognise the right of suffering to exist and abolishes it. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n21 December 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nWhat are
\nthe qualities needed for one to be called \u201ca true child of the Ashram\u201d?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nSincerity,
\ncourage, discipline, endurance, absolute faith in the Divine work and unshakable
\ntrust in the Divine Grace. All this must be accompanied by a sustained, ardent,
\npersevering aspiration and a boundless patience. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>Happy New
\nYear <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n28 December 1966 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\u00b9<\/font><\/span>\u201cThere
\nare these three powers: (1) The Cosmic Law, of Karma or what else; (2) the
\nDivine Compassion acting on as many as it can reach through the nets of the Law
\nand giving them their chance; (3) the Divine Grace which acts more incalculably
\nbut also more irresistibly than the others.\u201d (Letters on Yoga, Cent. Vol. 23, p.
\n609)<\/font> <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 346 <\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nIt is
\nsaid that nothing is in us, everything comes from outside. It is also said
\nelsewhere that our vision of the outside (of the world around us) is the
\nreflection of our inner being. Could you explain these two sentences a little?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIn order to
\nunderstand these apparent contradictions, one has to rise to the intellectual
\nlevel on which all opposite ideas can be set face to face and assembled in a
\ncomprehensive synthesis. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nYou once wrote to
\nme that \u201cothers are a mirror reflecting the image of what you are.\u201d Can you
\nexplain this to me a little? <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe things that
\nshock you most in others are those that you are struggling against in yourself
\nor trying to suppress in yourself. Knowing this teaches you to be patient.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n


\n1 February 1967<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nOn the
\ncards that You send to people on their birthdays, often You simply write: \u201cBonne
\nf\u00eate to X, with my blessings.\u201d But sometimes You write various other things,
\nsuch as: \u201cMay he be born to the true life\u201d or \u201dFor a year of great progress\u201d,
\netc. On what do all these variations depend?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nOn the condition
\nof the one to whom I write the card and on his state of consciousness, which
\nvaries according to the moment and the year. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n8 February 1967<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n Page \u2013 347<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nThe
\nordinary man is often guided in life by his conscience, isn’t he? So what
\nbecomes of one who has no conscience, who has lost it by having disregarded it
\ntoo often?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhat is usually
\ncalled \u201cconscience\u201d is a mental formation based on the idea of good and evil, a
\nmoral entity or rather an element of goodwill which tries to keep the individual
\non what is commonly known as the straight path. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThis element acts
\nas a defence against the hostile forces which can quite easily take possession
\nof one who has disregarded the advice of his conscience. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/font>But all this is a
\nmental approximation of the Truth. It is not the Truth itself. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n15 February 1967 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nWhy is it
\nthat whenever one thinks of You one feels a need for physical closeness? What is
\nthe value of this physical contact?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n    (1) When one is
\nmore conscious in the physical than in the vital and mental, the physical
\nrelation seems more real and tangible. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>(2) For those who
\nhave seriously begun the yoga in the body, the physical relation is of course a
\npowerful aid. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>I ask the first to
\nmake an effort to establish not only a psychic relation (which is always there
\neven when they are not conscious of it) but also a mental and vital relation,
\nwhich makes the outer relation less indispensable. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>I try to teach the
\nothers to widen their physical consciousness so as to be able to benefit from my
\nphysical presence even at a distance. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n22 March 1967 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n Page \u2013 348<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nWhen one
\ngoes away from here, one feels a sort of emptiness inside. Even if one has all
\nthe physical comforts, there is still something missing. One doesn’t feel very
\njoyful. One wants to come back as soon as possible. Can You explain to me the
\nreason for this feeling? Why doesn’t one even feel free?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPerhaps it is
\nbecause you have a soul. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n12 April 1967 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n           
\n Sweet Mother,
\n<\/i>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>                What do You mean
\nby Your last answer? Doesn’t everyone have a soul?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nNot everyone is
\nconscious of his soul and very few are those who are guided by their soul.
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n19 April 1967 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>Normally, I feel
\nquite happy with life as it is — time passes quickly. But there are periods
\nwhen I feel that I am not making much progress. I am still in the rut of old
\npetty habits which do not allow me to be free.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe character can
\nchange and must change, but it is a long and minute work which requires
\nsustained effort and a great sincerity. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n26 April 1967 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\n          
\n Sweet Mother,
\n<\/i>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\n               
\n<\/span><\/font>People are saying
\nmany things about the 4th of
\n<\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 349<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nMay \u2013 <\/span>
\n\u00b9<\/span>
\nsometimes You too are quoted. But in spite of all this, I have not quite
\nunderstood its significance. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIs it necessary
\nthat it should have a significance? <\/span><\/p>\n

\nSri Aurobindo
\nannounced that from that date onwards something would happen.<\/span>\u00b2<\/span>
\nAnd it did happen. <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThat is all that
\nis needed. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n21 June 1967 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nIt is
\nsaid that the vibrations of the being develop from one life to another, become
\nricher and form the psychic personality behind the surface personality. But then
\nhow does the psychic, weighed down by these vibrations and memories, remain
\nfree?<\/span>\u00b3<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nBut why does he
\nsay \u201cweighed down\u201d? <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>No, the psychic
\ndecants \u2013 that is exactly what happens. The psychic does not retain things in
\ntheir totality \u2013 decants, it gradually decants the vibrations. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>The psychic memory
\nis a decanted memory of events. For example, in past lives there have been
\nmoments when, for some reason or other, the psychic was present and
\nparticipated; in that case it retains the memory of the circumstance. But the
\nmemory it retains is that of the psychic life of that moment; so even if it
\nretains the memory of the image, it is a simplified image such as it is
\ntranslated in the psychic consciousness and according to the psychic vibration
\nof all the people present. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>He
\nwould not ask such a question if he had ever had a psychic memory, because
\nwhen one has one, it is quite evident. <\/span><\/p>\n

 \n<\/p>\n

\n
\n   <\/font> <\/font>
\n<\/span>\u00b9<\/font><\/span>The
\nnumerical sequence of this date is 4.5.67.<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/font> <\/span>
\n\u00b2<\/font><\/span>Sri
\nAurobindo wrote: \u201c1.2.34. It is supposed to be always a year of manifestation.
\n2.3.45 is the year of power \u2013 when the thing manifested gets full force. 4.5.67
\nis the year of complete realisation.\u201d (Letter of 2 February 1934) <\/font> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/font> <\/span>
\n\u00b3<\/font><\/span>The
\nMother replied to this question orally; she was speaking to someone other than
\nthe captain. <\/font> <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 350<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>Before knowing
\nthese things, I had had psychic memories and always they struck me by their
\nspecial character. It was as if one had, one cannot exactly say an emotion, but
\na certain emotional vibration of a circumstance; and that is what is solid, what
\nremains, what lasts. And so with that, one has a perception \u2013 a little vague, a
\nlittle blurred \u2013 of the people who were there, of the circumstances, of the
\nevents, and that makes a psychic memory; it is rarely the events that mentally
\nare considered as the most memorable or most important in a lifetime, but the
\nmoments when the psychic has participated \u2013 consciously participated \u2013 in the
\nevent. And that is what remains. <\/span><\/p>\n


\n15 July 1967 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nYou are
\nwith us always and at every moment, only we are not conscious of it. Only danger
\nmakes us recall Your Presence so that we may have Your protection. But the other
\nday while we were on a long journey, we felt the presence of someone other than
\nourselves in the car, and it was very strong, even though we were not conscious
\nof any danger. Was there a possibility of danger on that day? If so, why didn’t
\nwe sense it?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nI was very
\nstrongly and consciously with you because X had written to me that the tyres of
\nthe car were in poor condition. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>You did not feel
\nthe danger because I did not want you to feel it. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n19 July 1967 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Why is it
\nthat in the Ashram itself people feel the need to form little groups and
\nsocieties: for example, World <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013  351<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\nUnion, New Age
\nAssociation, etc.? What is their purpose? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nIt is because men
\nstill imagine that to do something useful, they have to form groups. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>It is the
\ncaricature of organisation. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n20 September 1967 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nDoes the
\nDivine punish injustice? Is it possible that He ever punishes anyone?
\n<\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n16 October 1967 <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n16 October 1967 —
\n25 July 1970<\/span><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nAfter all these
\nyears I have found the forgotten notebook, and I reply: <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>The Divine does
\nnot see things as men do and has no need to punish or reward. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>All actions carry
\nin themselves their fruits with their consequences. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>According to its
\nnature, an action brings one nearer to the Divine or takes one farther from Him
\n— and that is the supreme consequence. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n25 July 1970<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nThe other
\nday I had a discussion with X about Sri Aurobindo’s Action. He said that had
\nthere been an enlightened person like Vivekananda, the work could have been done
\nbetter, but that Mother has to do Her work with the instruments She has at her
\ndisposal. Finally he told me that he had no opinion on the subject.  <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 352<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n


\n\u201dMy business,\u201d he
\nsaid, \u201cis to write.\u201d And he asked me what my \u201cbusiness\u201d was. I replied that I
\ndidn’t know what my \u201cbusiness\u201d was \u2013 all I knew was that I had to concentrate on
\nmyself in order to perfect myself more and more. Was that correct? Mother, what
\nactually is my \u201cbusiness\u201d? <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nCertainly, the
\nmost important occupation is to develop and perfect oneself, but that can be
\ndone very well, and even better, while working. It is for you to know what work
\nit is that most interests you, the one that opens for you a path towards
\nperfection. It may be something apparently very modest; it is not the apparent
\nimportance of a work which gives it its real value for the yoga. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n5 August 1970 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nI have
\nread and heard much about past and future lives, but I feel very strongly that
\nit is in this very life that we must realise our highest aspirations, as if this
\nwere the last chance given to us. For me, allusions to other lives are
\nintangible and academic rather than a help and a hope. It is not that I don’t
\nbelieve in reincarnation, but this idea comes back to my mind very often.
\nMother, is this a narrowness of vision on my part, or what?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nKnowledge of past
\nlives is interesting for an understanding of one’s nature and a mastery of one’s
\nimperfections. But to tell the truth, it is not of capital importance, and it is
\nfar more important to concentrate on the future, on the consciousness to be
\nacquired and on the development of the nature, which is almost unlimited for
\nthose who know how to do it. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/font>We are at an
\nespecially favourable moment in the universal existence, a moment when, upon
\nearth, everything is being  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 353<\/span><\/p>\n

\n\t<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n

\nprepared for a new
\ncreation, or rather, for a new manifestation in the eternal creation. <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n7 November 1970 <\/span><\/i>
\n <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nWhen You
\nare physically stricken, I always feel very sad. I tell myself that it is not an
\nordinary illness, that it is an experience leading towards physical
\ntransformation. But when I think of Your suffering body, I am sad. And then, is
\nthis not part of the Sacrifice of the Supreme spoken of by Sri Aurobindo? Are we
\nworthy of this Sacrifice?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nSweet
\nMother, at times like this, how should we be? What is the best attitude on our
\npart?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nThe best for each
\none is to progress as sincerely as he can. The material difficulties are part of
\nthe work of transformation and they should be accepted calmly. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n14 November 1970<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n


\nSweet Mother,
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\n   
\n<\/span><\/i><\/font>
\nI have
\nthe impression that Your Force responds according to the intensity of our
\nprayer. But my case seems to be different. Or am I not conscious of my prayers?
\nOr is everything done for me, for my good, in spite of myself?
\n<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\nIt is always that
\nway for everyone. The difference lies in each one’s state of consciousness. Some
\nare entirely conscious of what is done for them. Those who make an effort become
\nconscious of the answer they receive, and there are those whose aspiration is
\nsufficiently strong and sincere for them to be constantly conscious of the help
\nthey are given. <\/span>
\n <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n


\n28 November 1970<\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 354<\/span><\/p>\n

\t<\/span>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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