Sri Aurobindo

Bande Mataram

Early Political Writings. 1890 — May 1908

A Fragment¹

Man² is of a less terrestrial mould than some would have him to be. He has an element of the divine which the politician³ ignores. The practical politician looks to the position at the moment and imagines that he has taken everything into consideration. He has, indeed, studied the surface and the immediate surroundings, but he has missed what lies beyond material vision. He has left out of account the divine, the incalculable in man, that element which upsets the calculations of the schemer and disconcerts the wisdom of the diplomat.

Later edition of this work: The Complete Works of Sri Aurobindo.- Set in 37 volumes.- Volumes 6-7.- Bande Mataram: Political Writings and Speeches. 1890–1908 .- Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 2002.- 1182 p.

¹ This text has always been published as part of “The Morality of Boycott”, but it seems to be the incomplete opening of a separate piece.

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² 2002 ed. CWSA, vol.6-7: Mankind

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³ 2002 ed. CWSA, vol.6-7: the practical politician

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