April 2020 Newsletter

April 2020 SRI AUROBINDO SOCIETY VOL 34.04 Singapore NEWSLETTER Physical Being Physical Consciousness Entirely Turned Towards the Divine It thirsts for the Divine and wants nothing but Him. Tithonia rotundifolia Mexican sunflower Medium-sized compositae flower with bright reddish orange ray florets and a tufted yellow centre; borne singly on a long stem. A robust erect bushy annual herb. We are at a moment of transition in the history of the earth. It is merely a moment in eternal time, but this moment is long compared to human life. Matter is changing in order to prepare itself for the new manifestation, but the human body is not plastic enough and offers resistance; this is why the number of incomprehensible disorders and even diseases is increasing and becoming a problem for medical science. The remedy lies in union with the divine forces that are at work and a receptivity full of trust and peace which makes the task easier. (All India Magazine July 2013 - Cure of Illness, The Mother) * \"The Spirit shall look out through Matter's gaze And Matter shall reveal the Spirit's face.... The Spirit shall take up the human play, This earthly life become the life divine.\" (Savitri, Sri Aurobindo)

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. Guiding Light of the Month “WHAT a hymn of thanksgiving should I not be raising at each moment unto Thee! Everywhere and in everything around me Thou revealest Thyself and in me Thy Will and Consciousness express themselves always more and more clearly even to the point of my having almost entirely lost the gross illusion of “me” and “mine”.” November 26, 1912 Prayers and Meditations, The Mother From the Editor’s Desk The month of April is before us again and we look physical nature that also presents before us obstacles towards a progression to a higher forward to the a strong presence of The Mother in our consciousness. In the case of resistance to change, the physical/material entity opposes influencing midst as we observe this year, a momentous event that forces around it, including those that seek to transform the physical for the better. One example occurred a hundred years ago in 1920. It was then that, cited by Basu, S. (2000) in Integral Health, is the on April 24th, The Mother returned to India forever. She difficulty in curing psychosomatic diseases and the dependence of drugs for the easing of ailments and embraced India as her spiritual country and stayed in the total eradication of illness in the body. In the case of mechanical repetitiveness, habitual Pondicherry till she left her body. We remember in this disorder features on the obverse side of the coin. In issue the significance of The Mother’s coming to the case of passivity, weakness of will. We recognise this in our lack of motivation to do that Pondicherry and what it has meant for integral yoga and which is needed for one’s well-being, like the need for regular exercising and food control or even to all of us. The theme of this issue is also significant. come out of an illness. We take a look at the Physical Plane. The physical plane These are some characteristics of the physical or consciousness, according to Sri Aurobindo, “ is that consciousness. Like all other planes of consciousness, part which directly responds to physical things and the planes of physical consciousness are also physical Nature, sees the outer only as real, is represented both at the cosmic level and at the level of occupied with it..” There are some characteristics of the individual. The individualised physical the physical plane which which will help us to consciousness has a gross material part such as the understand this subject better. The physical is cells, tissues, nerves, organs etc., as well as a subtle characterised by “inertia” or what is called “tamas” individualised part called the body-consciousness in Indian Psychology. Inertia then expresses in which is the “conscious, luminous and responsive certain behaviour which we can recognise, such as awareness” (Basu, 2000). This awareness can cast a resistance to change, mechanical repetition, and light on the gross material substance and bring it to passivity. These properties have their value in light. This we have cognisance of when some part of existence in that they provide a stability to the being our body responds to pranayama, and hathayoga. and in maintaining its individuality. The tendency There is more to physical consciousness and Basu for mechanical repetitiveness brings about (2000) insists that knowing more and more of this consistent behavioural patterns. Sri Aurobindo aspect of consciousness can pave new paths in states that, “…it is by the process of repeated medicine and health sciences. We shall ponder over impressions that the consciousness was made to the education of the physical in our next issue. manifest in matter – and also by the habitual reaction of consciousness to these impressions, what the psychologists, I suppose, would call behaviour.” The physical plane of consciousness is the base upon which life and mind have manifested. What we call this body is a part of this physical consciousness. However, it is this inertia of the www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 2 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. Savitri At the head she stands of birth and toil and fate, In their slow round the cycles turn to her call; Alone her hands can change Time’s dragon base. Hers is the mystery the Night conceals; The spirit’s alchemist energy is hers; She is the golden bridge, the wonderful fire. The luminous heart of the Unknown is she, A power of silence in the depths of God; She is the Force, the inevitable Word, The magnet of our difficult ascent, The Sun from which we kindle all our suns, The Light that leans from the unrealised Vasts, The joy that beckons from the impossible, The Might of all that never yet came down. All Nature dumbly calls to her alone To heal with her feet the aching throb of life And break the seals on the dim soul of man And kindle her fire in the closed heart of things. All here shall be one day her sweetness’ home, All contraries prepare her harmony; Towards her our knowledge climbs, our passion gropes; In her miraculous rapture we shall dwell, Her clasp shall turn to ecstasy our pain. Our self shall be one self with all through her. Savitri, Sri Aurobindo www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 3 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. 100th Year of The Mother’s Final Return to Pondicherry on 24th April 1920 The Mother first visits Pondicherry in 1914; she returns to settle permanently on April 24,1920. She was forty-two. She was pursuing an intense Yoga and the Sadhana was going on in the mental and vital planes. The result was even a physical change in her appearance. \"...after a month's yoga I looked exactly eighteen. And someone who had seen me before, who had lived with me in Japan and came here, found it difficult to recognize me. He asked me, `But really, is it you?' I said, `Obviously!'\" Until the Mother's final arrival, a few of Sri Aurobindo's followers had lived with him as members of the household. With the coming of the Mother, there were some gradual changes and a collective life took shape. Physically things were organised and regular collective meditations were started. Shri Nolini Kanta Gupta, one of the oldest disciples said of the Mother: \"The Mother taught by her manner and speech, and showed us in actual practice, what was the meaning of disciple and master;... It was the Mother who opened our eyes.” (from http://sasp.collaboration.org/April24.html) This is a special edition on The Mother’s 100th year of final arrival in Pondicherry. Below, we present two significant entries in the Prayers and Meditation by The Mother. The concluding prayer of the first part of the book is dated 3rd September 1919 and written while she was in Japan, about six months before she arrived in India. What a beautiful outpouring of gratitude at self-discovery and the uncovering of her joyous heart, hid from her awhile as she traversed the travails of life towards her destiny. The prayer following that, dated 22nd June 1920, is the first prayer available to us after The Mother arrived in Pondicherry. In this prayer, again, The Mother offers her gratitude to the Divine, this time for some ordeal she was facing, realising that ordeals came as opportunities only to realise the Divine more and more; soul stirring conversations with the Almighty Compassionate One. What a gateway Mother opened before her in this divine communion! Prayer 1: Before Arrival, while in Japan Oiwake :́ September 3, 1919* SINCE the man refused the meal I had prepared with so much love and care, I invoked the God to take it. My God, Thou hast accepted my invitation, Thou hast come to sit at my table, and in exchange for my poor and humble offering Thou hast granted to me the last liberation. My heart, even this morning so heavy with anguish and care, my head surcharged with responsibility, are delivered of their burden. Now are they light and joyful as my inner being has been for a long time past. My body smiles to Thee with happiness as before my soul smiled to Thee. And surely hereafter Thou wilt withdraw no more from me this joy, O my God! for this time, I think, the lesson has been sufficient, I have mounted the Calvary of successive disillusionments high enough to attain to the Resurrection. Nothing remains of the past but a potent love which gives me the pure heart of a child and the lightness and freedom of thought of a god. (END OF THE FIRST PART. …. Of Prayers and Meditation) www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 4 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. Prayer 2: After arriving in Pondicherry Pondicherry June 22, 1920* AFTER granting me the joy which surpasses all expression, Thou hast sent me, O my beloved Lord, the struggle, the ordeal and on this too I have smiled as on one of Thy precious messengers. Before, I dreaded the conflict, for it hurt in me the love of harmony and peace. But now, O my God, I welcome it with gladness: it is one among the forms of Thy action, one of the best means for bringing back to light some elements of the work which might otherwise have been forgotten, and it carries with it a sense of amplitude, of complexity, of power. And even as I have seen Thee, resplendent, exciting the conflict, so also it is Thou whom I see unravelling the entanglement of events and jarring tendencies and winning in the end the victory over all that strives to veil Thy light and Thy power: for out of the struggle it is a more perfect realisation of Thyself that must arise. * The Mother guides, helps each according to his nature and need, and, where necessary, herself intervenes with her Power enabling the sadhak to withstand the rigours and demands of the Path. She has placed herself - with all the Love, Peace, Knowledge and Consciousness that she is - at the disposal of every aspiring soul that looks for help. Sri Aurobindo * The anniversary of my return to Pondicherry, which was the tangible sign of the sure Victory over the adverse forces. The Mother * The Significance of the Mother’s Final Arrival in Pondicherry By Sunayana Panda Until as late as 1938 there were only three Darshans in the Ashram – the February Darshan, the August Darshan and the November Darshan. The Mother’s birthday and Sri Aurobindo’s birthday were, of course, being celebrated right from the beginning and after November 1926 the third date was added as the siddhi marked a milestone in the life of the Ashram. This pattern continued for many years. But something happened in November 1938 that changed things. On the eve of the November Darshan Sri Aurobindo fell down in the middle of the night and broke his leg. The November Darshan was cancelled, of course, and as Sri Aurobindo had not recovered the February Darshan was cancelled also. By this time people were beginning to feel that waiting for the August Darshan to be able to see Sri Aurobindo again was going to be too long a wait. So they requested the Mother to find another date between the February and the August Darshan. The Mother chose 24th April and from 1939 this became the new Darshan day. This is how the April Darshan was started and the four Darshans then divided the year into four almost equal parts. www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 5 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. The Mother chose 24th April but there was another date which she could have chosen instead – 29th March – the date on which the Mother and Sri Aurobindo first met. However, she chose this one. Of course, this date is closer to the mid-point between the February and the August Darshan. But looking at the bigger picture we can see that this day has a greater significance. The Mother has said that her return to Pondicherry was a clear sign of victory over the hostile forces. It was after she came to live permanently in Pondicherry that the real work of the Mother and Sri Aurobindo started. This coming together of the two powers which were complementary brought about a new creation. April 24th marks the Mother’s return to Pondicherry. She had already lived in the town for a year when she had come in 1914. That first stay was very fruitful because the Arya journal was started and a bond had been made with the young men who were at that time living with Sri Aurobindo. That first year had also given the Mother a first hand knowledge of life in Pondicherry and probably given her an idea of the possibilities. Let us not forget that the town was then under French rule and it is very likely that the Mother did not feel totally cut off from her own country. The Mother and Paul Richard left Pondicherry for France in 1915 after celebrating her birthday in February. But that departure and return to France was very hard for the Mother and she actually fell ill. In spite of the physical separation she kept in touch with Sri Aurobindo through letters. It goes without saying that there was an inner contact that was constantly there. The opportunity to go to Japan came up and in 1916 the Mother and Paul Richard decided to go back to Asia even if it was not going to be India. The First World War was on and travelling by ship was a dangerous thing but they undertook this journey anyway. They made friends there with Japanese intellectuals as well as those who were seeking spiritual truths in their own way. We know that they were in touch with those who were supporting the Indian nationalists. And it was this aspect of their lives that created a lot of difficulties for them. The British kept a close watch on whatever they were doing. It could be because of this that eventually the Mother and Paul Richard decided to leave Japan and come back to Pondicherry. The Mother has said that when the ship approached the shores of Pondicherry, when they were two nautical miles away, she could feel the aura of Sri Aurobindo. She says it was a physical sensation as one would feel when going from one temperature to another. This return at that time may not have seemed as anything striking or so significant but in retrospect we can see that it was a new beginning and that in actual fact the Mother came to Pondicherry for good, never to go back again. This means that whatever she had brought with her was what she had. She did not go back to France to bring her belongings. When she came to Pondicherry for the first time the Mother was accompanied by Paul Richard but this time there was also Datta with them. They eventually rented a house on the beach road and resumed their activities which they had started with Sri Aurobindo. At some point Paul Richard decided that he did not want to continue to live in Pondicherry. But the Mother, then simply known as Mirra Richard, decided that she wanted to continue her life in the path that had been shown by Sri Aurobindo. It must have been a very difficult moment in her life to take this strong decision. Although Paul Richard left Pondicherry the Mother was not entirely alone. She was living in the rented house with Datta. When one looks at the Mother’s life, one sees how she did not hesitate to take certain decisions which radically changed her life. She was ready to face the consequences and to adapt herself to the change that this entailed. She continued to live in Bayoud House with Datta until November of that year. Everyone knows how the weather can get cyclonic in November in Pondicherry. One stormy night, it was reported to Sri Aurobindo that somewhere a roof had caved in due to heavy rains. He obviously knew that Bayoud House was not in a very good condition and there was every chance of windows breaking and the roof leaking. He must have considered it unsafe to leave two women alone in that old house by the sea on a cyclonic night, so he sent two of his young men to go and bring the ladies over to www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 6 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. their house. This is how the Mother and Datta moved to the house where Sri Aurobindo was living. Coincidently, it was 24th November exactly six years before this day became the Siddhi day. This new arrangement was a bit inconvenient at first to the men who had so far lived a carefree and rather indisciplined life. They did not have a fixed programme for their day nor did they engage themselves in any gainful work. Most importantly they did not look upon Sri Aurobindo as a spiritual master. Of course, they respected him but he was more of a friend and an elder brother. The arrival of two ladies, and that too ladies who were not Indian, made them feel a bit ill at ease. Let us not forget that these young men had been involved in a violent revolution and had been ready to make any sacrifice to liberate the country from the British rule. It was hard for them at first to accept the Mother and Datta as members of their large household. Once the Mother became a part of the family she took charge of the cleaning and cooking, and organised the life of the group. She brought about order and discipline and a new phase started in the lives of the little community that had formed around Sri Aurobindo. It was indeed the Mother’s coming that marked the beginning of a spiritual sangha. It was from then on that Sri Aurobindo was looked upon as the guru by his followers. The whole identity of the group of young men who surrounded and looked after him changed. From being political refugees they became spiritual seekers. Sri Aurobindo said to a group of disciples in 1926 that he came to Pondicherry following an inner command and did his own spiritual sadhana but the work of helping others was possible because of the Mother’s help. Sri Aurobindo wrote in 1935, “…the sadhana and the work were waiting for the Mother’s coming.” (footnote 1). After she joined the group she was one disciple among others in the household. It took another six years, on 24th November 1926, before the Mother could be officially established as Sri Aurobindo’s equal. The Siddhi day marked the official beginning of the Ashram as it would became under the Mother’s guidance. It was the coming together of two powers which complemented each other. It was the coming together of Purusha and Prakriti, of the thinker and the doer, but also of the East and the West. In this work that they undertook together the Mother brought her practical knowledge of the world and turned Sri Aurobindo’s thought into a living reality. It was her coming that made it possible for the spiritual community to continue to grow and evolve while Sri Aurobindo withdrew from all outward activities. Even though the disciples could not see him they knew that all was well and that they could be guided, even in the most material matters, by the Mother. She gave the community a sound financial base and created units which could generate money for the upkeep of the members. There is a general impression in the world that in order to find the spiritual we must give up or reduce to a minimum the material aspect of our lives. The Mother showed in her own way how to create a harmonious material base for the divine life to manifest itself on the earth. Having been brought up in the West and having lived a full and varied life, rich in experiences, she had the necessary knowledge and skills to create, organise and maintain the material life of the growing group of disciples. Sri Aurobindo’s philosophy is not easy to understand, even for the most educated, but it became a reality to which even the most uninitiated could connect with their minds and hearts because the Mother made it possible. She had the admirable skill of being able to speak of the highest thoughts in the most simple language. Even the children of the school could understand the work that she was trying to do. In fact, it was the children who brought the Mother into the classrooms and the playground. When the families started coming to the Ashram during the Second World War the Mother opened the school and a little later the physical education activities started. The Mother was in the middle of all that, giving dictations to the little children herself and also standing at the finishing line of the running track at the www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 7 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. Sportground. She truly came down into the middle of all the activities and was a part of the life of the children. The philosophy of The Life Divine would have remained within the pages of the book had she not come to turn it into a reality in the physical material world. This was the work for which she had come down on the earth but she spent many years in preparation before she came to Pondicherry. When the Mother finally arrived in Pondicherry on 24th April in 1920, the work started - in an unobtrusive manner at first then slowly growing to a more complex and complete fulfilment. footnote 1 – quoted by K. R. Srinivasa Iyengar in his biography of the Mother, p 201. About the writer: Sunayana Panda was a student of Sri Aurobindo Centre for Integral Education, Pondicherry. She is also part of the Editorial of Golden Chain. She has authored a few books. Sunayana is also an artist. The Physical Being Quotes from The Mother & Sri Aurobindo There comes a time . . . when one can feel in everything, in every object, every movement, every vibration, in everything around - not only people and conscious beings, but things, objects: not only trees and plants and living things, but simply any object one uses, the things around one — this delight, this delight of being, of being just as one is, simply being. And one sees that all this vibrates like that. One touches a thing and feels this delight… For this delight is everywhere. This delight is something very subtle. You move in the midst of things and it is as though they were all singing to you their delight. There comes a time when this becomes very familiar in the life around you…In plants, in flowers, it is so wonderful! They speak all their joy, they express it. And as I said, in familiar objects, the things around you that you use, there is a state of consciousness in which each one is happy to be, just as it is. So at that moment one knows that one has touched the true delight. And it is not conditioned. I mean it does not depend on...it depends on nothing. It does not depend on outer circumstances, it does not depend on a more or less favourable state, it does not depend on anything: it is a communion with the raison d'etre of the universe. And when this comes it fills all the cells of the body. It is not even a thing that is thought out — one does not reason, one does not analyse, it is not that: it is a state in which one lives. And when the body shares in it, it is so fresh — so fresh, so spontaneous, so ... it no longer looks back upon itself, there is no longer any sense of self-observation, of self-analysis or of analysing things. All this is like a canticle of joyous vibrations, but very, very quiet, without violence, without passion, nothing of all that. It is very subtle and very intense at the same time, and when it comes, it seems that the whole universe is a marvellous harmony. The Mother, www.blossomlikeaflower.com * When I speak of the physical consciousness, I mean the physical mind and the physical vital as well as the body consciousness proper. Sri Aurobindo, www.blossomlikeaflower.com * In my view the body as well as the mind and life has to be spiritualised or, one may say, divinised so as to be a fit instrument and receptacle for the realisation of the Divine. It has its part in the Divine Lila, even, according to the Vaishnava Sadhana, in the joy and beauty of Divine Love. That does not mean www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 8 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. that the body has to be valued for its own separate sake or that the creation of a divine body in a future evolution of the whole being has to be contemplated as an end and not a means - that would be a serious error which would not be admissible. In any case, my speculations about an extreme form of divinisation are something in a far distance and are no part of the preoccupations of the spiritual life in the near future. Sri Aurobindo, www.blossomlikeaflower.com * Have you never watched a forest with all its countless trees and plants simply struggling to catch the light - twisting and trying in a hundred possible ways just to be in the sun? That is precisely the feeling of aspiration in the physical - the urge, the movement, the push towards the light. Plants have more of it in their physical being than men. Their whole life is a worship of light. Light is of course the material symbol of the Divine, and the sun represents, under material conditions, the Supreme Consciousness. The plants have felt it quite distinctly in their own simple, blind way. Their aspiration is intense, if you know how to become aware of it. The Mother, www.blossomlikeaflower.com The Physical [The material plane] is a final result. There is an increasing materiality and a decreasing materiality, and the physical plane is at the centre: it is like a screen on which all the intervening vibrations are projected and held, as upon a screen--it is an image, an image of all that is happening. We notice it because it is a thing done, something concrete. It is as though you viewed the whole universe as a movement of force and this movement of force were projected till it met a screen and on the screen it made an image, and this image on the screen is the physical world. And it is a mere image. The physical world which everyone takes as the only reality is simply an image. It is the image of all that happens in what we call the invisible. It becomes visible to us because there is a screen which intervenes and stops the vibrations and that produces an image. If there were no such screen the vibrations would move on and nothing would be seen. And yet all the movements would exist. But for us they would be invisible, if there were no screen to stop the vibrations. For the ordinary consciousness it is the image alone that is true, and what happens behind it is more or less problematical, but in the true consciousness, all that happens behind or before is the true thing and what one sees externally is only an image, that is to say, a projection on a screen, of something which exists altogether independently. So, our body represents a small fragment in this set of images that is projected and it is a fragment which expresses exactly all the vibrations of the inner state corresponding to this little point that is the body. The Mother, Collected Works of the Mother, Vol.5, pp.272-73 By its very nature it [the body] is a docile and faithful servant. Unfortunately, it rarely has the capacity of discernment it ought to have with regard to its masters, the mind and the vital. It obeys them blindly, at the cost of its own well-being. The mind with its dogmas, its rigid and arbitrary principles, the vital with its passions, its excesses and dissipations soon destroy the natural balance of the body and create in it fatigue, exhaustion and disease. It must be freed from this tyranny and this can be done only through a constant union with the psychic centre of the being. The body has a wonderful capacity of adaptation and endurance. It is able to do so many more things than one usually imagines. If, instead of the ignorant and despotic masters that now govern it, it is ruled by the central truth of the being, you will be amazed at what it is capable of doing. Calm and quiet, strong and poised, at every minute it will be able to put forth the effort that is demanded of it, for it will have learnt to find rest in action and to recuperate, through contact with the universal forces, the energies it expends consciously and usefully. In this sound and balanced life a new harmony will manifest in the body, reflecting the harmony of the higher regions, which will give it perfect proportions and ideal beauty of form. And this harmony will www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 9 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. be progressive, for the truth of the being is never static; it is a perpetual unfolding of a growing perfection that is more and more total and comprehensive. As soon as the body has learnt to follow this movement of progressive harmony, it will be possible for it to escape, through a continuous process of transformation, from the necessity of disintegration and destruction. Thus the irrevocable law of death will no longer have any reason to exist. The Mother, Collected Works of the Mother, Vol.12, pp.7-8 Tea, Flowers, And Flu I Once in the course of her stay in Japan, Mirra had an illness, extremely painful at first, though it didn’t fail to provide some rich compensations as well. It was in January 1919 in Tokyo when the terrible influenza epidemic was raging all over Japan. After the attack, the patient usually died on the third day; if luckily he didn’t, at the end of seven days he was completely cured, though exhausted and enfeebled. People succumbed to the epidemic in large numbers that they couldn’t be individually cremated. There was panic everywhere, and people were gripped by a fear of vast proportions, no wonder – because the epidemic was claiming many lives. In Tokyo alone, everyday ‘there were hundreds and hundreds of cases’. They said the microbes were responsible, the microbes were wildly careering in the atmosphere! And people took desperate measures to escape the dreaded contagion. Yet, if the trouble was with the atmosphere itself, how was one to escape it? How was one to avoid movement altogether? As for Mirra, she simply covered herself with her force, giving no thought to the raging epidemic. But she had a companion at the time who was constantly afraid and curious. Then, one day, Mirra had to go to the other end of the city in a tram, and for all her habitual calm and self-possession, she became curious, and this provided an opening: I was in the tram and seeing these people with masks on their noses, and then there was in the atmosphere this constant fear, and so there came a suggestion to me; I began to ask myself: “Truly, what is this illness?..” I came to the house [of a friend], I passed an hour there and I returned. And I returned with a terrible fever. I had caught it. But of course she declined to take any medicine, and so there was the grapple within, an intestine struggle between ‘the genius and the mortal instruments’: I remained in my bed…At the end of the second day, as I was lying all alone, I saw clearly a being, with a part of the head cut off, in a military uniform…approaching me and suddenly flinging himself upon my chest, with that half a head to suck my force…He was drawing all my life out….Then I called on my occult power, I gave a big fight and I succeeded in turning him back…And I woke up. The three clear gains of this pretty agonising experience were, firstly, she saw the microbes were produced by the disintegration of vital beings, and with their ravenous appetites, they were themselves forces of further disintegration; secondly, having decisively thrown back the vicious being with its “half a head”, Mirra quickly regained her normal health, and thirdly, having by occult means tackled the evil and vanquished it, Mirra as good as put an end to the epidemic itself. She learnt presently that there were no new cases, and those that were ill were cured in due course. There were even articles in the papers about the mystery of the sudden decline and the end of the epidemic. It was all clearly much more than a bizarre coincidence. II www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 10 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. In her talks at Pondicherry, she was to return again and again to the theme of the casual nexus between fear and illness. She considered that “some disharmony in the being, from a lack of receptivity to the divine forces” was the primary reason for the onset of an illness. The disharmony thus precipitated fear and such fear opened the gates inviting the invasion: If there is one mental disorder which can bring about all illnesses, it is fear. Again on 19 June 1957: From the ordinary point of view, in most cases, it is usually fear – fear, which may be mental fear, vital fear, but which is almost always physical fear, a fear in the cells – it is fear which opens the door to all contagion. How is physical fear – the trepidation of the very cells of the body – to be overcome? “A vertible yoga is necessary…the control of a conscious will is necessary.” “Some months earlier, on 13 February, the question had come up in a wider perspective, the whole evil complex of illnesses and pain and suffering. Yoga of course was the cure-all, the infallible panacca. But what was the innermost secret of this yoga? How was it to be done? What might one hope for by doing it? The Mother gave a categorical answer: The secret is to emerge from the ego, get out of its prison, unite ourselves with the Divine, merge into Him, not to allow anything to separate us from Him. Then, once one has discovered this secret and realises it in one’s being, pain loses its justification and suffering disappears. It is an all-powerful remedy, not only in the deeper parts of the being, in the soul, in the spiritual consciousness, but also in life and in the body. There is no illness, no disorder which can resist the discovery of this secret and the putting of it into practice, not only in the higher parts of the being but in the cells of the body…. ….When the physical disorder comes, one must not be afraid; one must not run away from it, must face it with courage, calmness, confidence, with the certitude that illness is a falsehood and that if one turns entirely, in full confidence, with a complete quietude to the divine Grace, It will settle in these cells as It is established in the depths of the being, and the cells themselves will share in the eternal Truth and Delight. (On The Mother – The Chronicle of a Manifestation, by K. R. Srinivasa Iyengar) February – March Sunday Activities at the Centre - A glimpse February 23rd, 2020 – Read a few passages from Savitri by Sri Aurobindo Sriram took the lead by selecting the passages from Book Three: The Book of the Divine Mother Canto Two: Adoration of the Divine Mother. We were really inspired by Sriram’s adoration for Savitri, and especially this chapter. Though it is in context of Ashwapati’s yoga, just meditating on these passages brings in a stillness in us. The essence of the passages is as follows: As one steps, in the course of one’s spiritual quest, across the threshold of the soul, one is greeted with an over-powering stillness, a silence beyond all relations. In that stillness the world is cut off from oneself. The sense gets lost in its deeps; all the experience that the mind has had before appears to be unreal; all that the senses would construct can only prolong this image of unreality. www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 11 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. The boundless silence of the self extends everywhere. What remains is the Unthinkable, the Nameless beyond time and space. The urgency of life is abolished. There is no more thought, no more joy, no more grief. The lynchpin of life in the world, the ego, is no more. One feels one has seen the last of the struggle of life and death, strife and fate. One has arrived. March 1st, 2020 - Read a few passages from AIM magazine March 1996 A Climb Towards a Divinised Manhood and the Divine Life. Since the previous day was 29/2/2020, Jared and Sri Ram selected this AIM to contemplate on the Descent of Golden Day Significance. 29 February 1956 The Mother herself noted down that very evening: ‘This evening the Divine Presence, concrete and material, was there present amongst you. I had a form of living gold, bigger than the universe, and I was facing a huge and massive golden door which separated the world from the Divine. As I looked at the door, I knew and willed, in a single movement of consciousness, that “the time has come,” and lifting with both hand a mighty golden hammer I struck one blow, one single blow on the door and the door was shattered to pieces. Then the supramental Light and Force and Consciousness rushed down upon earth in an uninterrupted flow.' The Mother Next we contemplated on “Conditions for Supramental Realisation in Oneself” Mother’s answer to a Sadhak’s question “What is this Supramental stand point like? What is this capacity or this aptitude to express the supramental world or to be in relation with it? Dawn of Supramental experience wipes out all the ordinary notions of morality. Perfect equality is an absolute condition for transmittance of Supramental vibrations. Any interference of ego blocks the light. Mother talks about her experience of the boat in the subtle physical. For the Spiritual will to act we must have the plasticity to widen ourselves, to put a stop for the mental will, action and reaction. From the inconscient matter, we became individualised egos, that is crystallisation, but the time has come for us to de-crystalise and expand our spirit widely and not arrest that spirit soul in our ego shell. Mother also speaks of Equality in the Physical. The Equality in cells means there is no clash of joy and pain-always and for everything every minute, every reaction,” You Lord, to You Lord. “As though the cells were chanting. Body lives always in insecurity; the sense of security comes through union with the Supreme. The body has to be transformed and has to live naturally in the divine rhythm. March 8th, 2020 - The Synthesis of Yoga by Sri Aurobindo Mr Rakesh took up the Chapter 2 of the Yoga of Divine Works - Self-Consecration. Yoga is the awakening of the mentalised will of the man into a higher spiritual consciousness. There are several pathways to reach that illumination. It may come as a result of inward necessity or from outward circumstances which could be a sudden shock. In whatever the way it is attained, it should not be only a intellectual seeking but should be desired by one’s heart and by the will to stick to it. www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 12 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. When one sets his foot in the path of yoga, the yogin dwells his consciousness on the Divine. His being flows in adoration towards the Divine, even in submission and self–consecration. Meditation, concentration of will are integral parts of his effort. Once the inner being sets its foot in the path of irrevocable consecration, it is ready to ride out the pits and falls. It is essential that there should be an entire self-giving. March 15th, 2020 - The Synthesis of Yoga by Sri Aurobindo Mr Rakesh continued with the passages from above. The passages reiterate that there should be radical change in our whole being –soul, heart, will, life, body should work in unison to adore and consecrate to the workings of the Divine Truth within us and pervaded everywhere. When this fixation happens life becomes the helper. Intent, vigilant, integrally conscious, we can take every detail of its forms and every incident of its movements as food for the sacrificial fire within us. It was an interesting session with members sharing their ideas from Bhagavat Gita, where Lord Krishna emphasises that we should not let the Divine Self in us be abducted by the cooing of our emotions or barking of the intellect or the whispering of the flesh and run around like a homeless vagabond! March 22nd, 2020 – Meditations on Savitri This is the title given by the Mother to a series of 474 oil paintings created by her with a young Gujarati Sadhika, to whom she had given the name ‘Huta’. These illustrate selected passages from the whole of Sri Aurobindo’s revelatory epic poem Savitri. Four volumes were taken by us and read the selected painting with Savitri lines. This painting with lines from Savitri is the sample of the light on what we meditated upon! PROGRAMME FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL 2020 -Jayalakshmi Vital Education DATE TIME DETAILS 5 Apr 2020 6 PM AIM Magazine Reading and Sunday Discussion www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 13

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. 12 Apr 2020 6 PM Thematic Study Circle by Rakesh: Sunday 6 PM The Synthesis of Yoga 9 AM 19 Apr 2020 Thematic Study Circle by Rakesh: Sunday 7 PM The Synthesis of Yoga 4 PM 24 Apr 2020 6 PM Anniversary of The Mother's Final Friday Arrival in Pondicherry 26 Apr 2020 Anniversary of The Mother's Final Sunday Arrival in Pondicherry Youth Programme Savitri Circle by Mr. Ramadoss April 2020 MORNING WALK Please note that for the month of April the walk and brunch would not be taking place due to the stricter government measures which do not allow gatherings with more than 10 people. Let us do our part and be socially responsible during this uncertain and tough time. The Mother is always with us. The following month’s walks will continue unless there are any further notices/regulations. Thank you for your kind understanding. Stay safe and healthy!  The Mother’s Grace. PREVIEW OF FORTHCOMING SUNDAY MORNING WALKS WALK NO DATE PLACE HOST 417 03/5/20 East Coast Park Mr Ashok Patel & Mrs Bhakti Patel 418 07/6/20 Bedok Reservoir Mr. Anand Patel & Mrs Vrunda Patel 419 05/7/20 TBA Mr Sanjay Mehta & Family 420 02/8/20 TBA Mr Arjun Madan & Family Along the Way… March Walk Review (walk no 415) www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 14 Vital Education

Physical Body Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. April 2020. The walk on 1st March was at Pasir Ris Park, in one of Singapore’s eastern most corner. Given the talk of Corona Virus in Singapore the whole of February, it was no surprise that the walk started with just nine of us to begin with. Maybe I should say 13, because Kiruthika and her family started a little bit ahead with their activities. We admire the spirit of Popatbhai uncle and aunty to join the walk early in the morning. Understandably, they decided to take it a little easy, while the rest of us decided to crisscross the park along its coast. With Jayanthi not there to set the pace of the walk, it was left to Jayaram and me to do that. It gave us an opportunity to catch up and I got to know somethings about Jayaram’s rich experience in the advertising industry, his experience growing up in Mumbai etc. (Sorry, I don’t practice silent walking meditation when I am with people. ������) Pranav, who had come home for the weekend, joined the walk. He walked with Vrunda and Jayalakshmi aunty. Swati, I guess had to do what mothers have to do, go along with Deepika. At the end of the walk Jayaram, Pranav and I decided to walk to Anand Venkat and Sheetal’s house which was not far from the park. I checked the fitness tracker app and it showed that I had well exceed the recommended 10000 steps and walked well over 7 Km by the time we reached the house. A healthy way to start the month. Of course, all the effort did not even burn 500 calories, which we neutralised probably with welcome drink and prasad if not with starters in the lovely brunch spread laid out by Sheetal. Sorry, I couldn’t help getting ahead of the right chronological order. (If you had the brunch you will understand.) The house was very nicely set up for the prayers. More people joined the prayers and the brunch. A cake was cut for all the March babies. Blessings were invoked for them and others who had anniversaries or other special occasions. It was good to see Sundari back from India, joining the prayers. After the prayers, it was time for the brunch. From Salad to Sweets, Sheetal and Anand had laid out a big spread. It was time to load back the calories. Calorie deficit dieting? Who knows what that is? Thank you Sheetal and Anand for organising everything. Thanks Vrunda for conducting the walk. - SN Venkat Printed and Published by The Sri Aurobindo Society of Singapore 2A Starlight Road 01-07, Singapore 217755. Ramadoss: 97354063 or [email protected]; Anand Patel: [email protected]; Email: [email protected] Visit our website at: www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 15 Vital Education