Sri Aurobindo
Autobiographical Notes
and Other Writings of Historical Interest
Part Two. Letters of Historical Interest
2.Early Letters on Yoga and the Spiritual Life
1911–1928
To Barindra Kumar Ghose and Others, 1922–1928
To Barindra Kumar Ghose [9]
14th February
1923.
“Arya” office
Pondicherry
My dear Barin,
I have received the Benares money and am sending an
acknowledgement with this letter, which you can transmit to Das. Rajani’s 50 has
not yet reached me.
I had already written to you about Akhil and on the 10th
Manmohan telegraphed and wrote to Chittagong instructing him not to go to
Bhowanipore but to collect the money and as soon as he had done this and
sufficiently recovered from fever, to write and he would receive a call from
here. It appears from your telegram today that he started before receiving
Manmohan’s telegram. I can give no other instructions than those I have already
given. Akhil must collect the money sufficient for his journey here and back
either to Krishnagore or Chittagong and he must not come without the sum in his
hand. I have arranged things here so as to have just sufficient to meet one
year’s expenses under each head, just that and no more. Until I am assured of
the next year’s expenses and more, I cannot meet unexpected charges or enlarge
my expenditure. Therefore it will not do for him to come and then have to wait
here indefinitely for the means of his return journey. An arrangement agreed
upon ought to be observed, otherwise there is unnecessary inconvenience and
confusion.
I infer from your letter and telegram taken together
that Mohini is starting for Krishnagore in order to take back Krishnashashi. Of
course in that case there is no need to wait further as was suggested in Moni’s
letter. I have received no news about Krishnashashi for the last three days.
This kind of disregard of instructions is not at all right. It puts me in
considerable 
difficulty in trying to help
Krishnashashi. Please ask Mohini to let me know often from Chittagong about
Krishnashashi and his condition. Boroda Babu’s letter is very interesting but
does not solve the difficulty I had as it gives me no fresh information of any
importance. It had already been seen that the immediate cause of the collapse
was partly sexual; for that was included in what I meant by the uprush from the
vital being. Nor does it make much difference that the physico-vital force
possessing him took the form or assumed the Pranic body of some dead
friend. The situation remains as before. If the disorder is only psychic it will
disappear in time. If there is some brain defect that has come up, the issue is
more doubtful. The suggestion about the medicine may possibly be useful
hereafter. Mohini had better be informed about it.
As to Rajani’s difficulties you might ask him to write
to me himself stating them and the precise cause of his doubts. As far as I know
about his Sadhana he was progressing in a steady and sound fashion, but
for long I have no farther news of it. There is no reason why he should not
succeed in the yoga if he keeps the right attitude and faith and
perseverance. He will necessarily have difficulties with his vital nature and
his physical mind which have a strong earth element, but that is the case also
with several others. His development, if he perseveres, is likely to be rather
through knowledge and will than any great richness of psychic experience; but he
must not take the absence or paucity of the latter for an inability to develop
the yoga.
The paragraph in one of your letters about the debts is
very confused and I can make nothing precise out of it. What I want is to know
first what were the heads and the exact sums actually met by the loan of two
thousand, especially as this will give me some idea of what has fallen upon us
on account of the press; secondly, the heads and exact sums still outstanding
apart from this loan of two thousand. What, for instance, is the amount still
due to the Kabirajas and what the amount of the small loans. It is very
necessary for me, whether in determining what to write to Amar with regard to
money matters or in trying to help you, to have an exact and clear idea of the
whole transaction. Where 
there is only a
confused, vague or general idea, the force I put out loses itself very largely
in the void. Especially I shall have in future to try and act more and more from
the Supramental and less and less from the mind. Now the first condition of the
Supramental is exactness, clearness and order both in the total and the details
and their relations. Therefore it is a great advantage if there are these
elements in the data upon which I have to work and a great disadvantage if they
are absent.
I shall await your report about Mohini. I gather from
his letter that he wanted to remain some time with you for sadhana. My own idea
is that already written by Manmohan to Chittagong, that it is better for most to
practise first in its elements at least the synthetic Yoga of jnana, bhakti and
karma and establish a basis of mental peace and samata before taking up the Yoga
of complete and direct self-surrender. There will always be exceptions, but this
is for most the safest course.
Aurobindo