Sri Aurobindo

Letters of Sri Aurobindo

Volume 2. 1938

Letter ID: 2139

Sri Aurobindo — Nirodbaran Talukdar

July 2, 1938

I understand that the prestige of the Asram is in its spirituality, but at the same time when a member of the Asram behaves caddishly, doesn’t it naturally reflect on us a little, or does it reflect because we are accustomed to take a mundane view of life and its usual code of morals and behaviour? Is it not natural for us to feel proud when praises are bestowed on Doraiswamy or feel embarrassed when things are said against X?

Natural, but mundane.

If the praise and blame of ignorant people is to be our standard, then we may say good-bye to the spiritual consciousness. If the Mother and I had cared for praise or blame, we would have been crushed long ago. It is only recently that the Asram has got “prestige” – before it was the target for an almost universal criticism, not to speak of the filthiest attacks.

For instance we feel a little “embarrassed” when things are said against X (if they are true) especially mentioning that after staying so many years in a spiritual place, he should behave so.

“Behave so” means behave how? I suppose people complain of him because he mixes on one side in “high society” and on the other with cinema girls and singers. But that is from the point of view of social respectability. It is the spirit that matters. If X did it in the right spirit, it wouldn’t matter whom he mixed with. It is true that he puts on a Sanyasin’s dress which is absurd if he wants to go into that society – but that is an incongruity only.

I admit that it is a mundane view, and it doesn’t stop your bringing down the Supermind, but it affects us favourably or adversely. In what way should we then look at it?

Look at what? What you are looking at is the praise and blame of people, not at any “it”. One has to look at “it”, not from the point of view of whether it is praised or blamed by the public, but from its inherent relation to the spiritual life.

I know uprightness, honesty, etc. have nothing to do directly with spiritual achievement. But when a lax and loose sadhak develops the contrary qualities, won’t that be a change of character and a way to the change of nature by your Force?

Who said so?

Spirituality, in order not to defeat its own object, must develop these.

Develop what? A change of consciousness and nature, yes; but it is not a question of moralising the character, but of psychising it.

A liar can’t realise the Divine, can he?

A liar does not usually realise the Divine, because one is seeking for Truth and lying comes across Truth; it is not because lying lowers his prestige with the public. Sometimes a liar realises the Divine and stops lying.

Isn’t it because of his change of consciousness resulting in a change of values of life that Doraiswamy could discard all fame, post of honour, etc.?

I don’t think so. He never wanted to be a judge etc., he was never an office-hunter. His weakness was of a social character, desire to be generous, liked, scrupulous in the discharge of social duties, attachment to family, friends etc.

Just as you have developed poetry, music, etc., in X, I thought these gifts which Doraiswamy is endowed with, may have been due to your Spiritual Force, not knowing what his born or unborn gifts were.

No, Duraiswami was always a sattwic man, a very fine sattwic type. But for spirituality one must get beyond the sattwic.

Then by X’s bigness or big fishness, I didn’t mean “big fish” in that sense, nor your biggest success. I meant that he is such a complicated formula –

Not so complicated as others I have had to deal with.

– There are so many warring and contrary elements in him that it will be a job for you to change him, as it has been.

Mainly two – but quite at war with each other. The others in him lean to one side or the other.

With sadhaks like us, it is, perhaps, an easy walk-over for you! But him?

It is easy with nobody, not even with Anilbaran or Khirod or Shankararama or Duraiswami who are yet all sattwic people without any adverse vital element in them.

I read a story by the Mother where she says that the joy lies in taming a turbulent and wild horse.¹ Such is X’s case, and catching him and taming him will be your biggest success! I hope it’s clear?

It isn’t.

Anyhow you are working on him to change his nature, his mind, vital, etc., etc. Well, if that succeeds, it means he will come and live here.

Certainly; but that is a different thing from fishing or pulling in. It is a quite disinterested spiritual idea without any idea of a “big success” or “prestige”.

You said that if people like S.B. came here, they would be extremely troublesome.

Damnably so!

On the contrary I thought and argued that if such vitally strong people once turned to Yoga, they could put all their vital will on one point and all the other things would become minor problems for them.

X also is vitally strong.

For example, for S.B. country is the one thing that matters and nothing else.

Excuse me – country is not the only thing for S.B. – there is also S.B. and he looms very large. You have illusions about these political heroes – I have seen them close and have none.

But you say their bigness will come in the way. Then is our smallness a great privilege?

Bigness = vanity, ambition, self-assertion, a self-confident inability to surrender etc., etc.

Smallness at least gives you a chance.

Do the unbracketed parts in your replies mean that they are public?

No – only that they are not excessively private.

I have shown the document to Doraiswamy and he advises not to go to this Consul who will charge for every erasure, but to go to the Sub-Registrar’s office – 5 miles from here, in the British territory. Well? In either case I have no money to pay.

Where is it? and are you to go alone or with witnesses or with whom? Let us know a little more clearly. Find out the charges in either case and we can decide and arrange.

¹ Mother’s Cent. vol. 2, p. 169.

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