Sri Aurobindo
Autobiographical Notes
and Other Writings of Historical Interest
Part Three. On Indian and World Events 1940–1950
2. Notes and Letters to the Editor of Mother India 1949–1950
On “New Year Thoughts”1
Some of the statements in your article do not seem to me quite convincing, as for instance, the suggestion that one cannot be highly ethical or exaltedly ethical without being religious or highly religious or even a mystic without knowing it. The article is tremendously manysided and some readers might find it difficult to fit all the sides together; but I put this remark forward as an observation and not as an objection. Manysidedness is a merit and cannot be regarded as objectionable. Finally I want my “face” in the last sentence to be left out of the picture. I feel its appearance as an unexpected intrusion there; it had better retire into privacy. As for Nehru, I suppose the fling at him cannot be regarded as offensive, but I would rather like it, for reasons of my own, if there came upon you a temporary amnesia about his existence.
1 January 1950
1 Sethna sent a copy of an editorial entitled “New Year Thoughts on Pacifism” to Sri Aurobindo at the end of December 1949. Sri Aurobindo wrote this reply on the first day of the new year. The article “New Year Thoughts on Pacifism”, by K. D. Sethna was published in Mother India on 7 January 1951. The printed version incorporated changes suggested by Sri Aurobindo in this letter. – Ed.