FEBRUARY NEWSLETTER

NEWSLETTER SRI AUROBINDO SOCIETY February 2020 Singapore VOL 34.02 The Vital Vital Opening The vital is ready to receive the Divine influence. Saritaea magnifica Clusters of fragrant medium-sized rose purple trumpet-shaped salverform flowers with five rounded lobes, a flattened corolla tube and a white throat streaked with fine parallel lines. A scandent shrub with smooth leathery obovate leaves. What is needed is the path of vastness, widening, relaxation, ease, of blossoming in the vital – not so much a sensorial vital as…as a gentleness, a sweetness. The vital blossoming into beauty: a sweetness and beauty. I don’t want to speak of “sentiments” because…oh, that leads us right into a quagmire! No, but…a sweetness, a charm, a beauty – but not there (in the head): here. (The Mother) Yes, that is the nature of the vital. It can make the absolute and enthusiastic surrender as well as cause all the trouble possible. Without the vital there is no life or force of action or manifestation; it is a necessary instrument of the spirit for life. (Letters on Yoga – IV)











The Vital Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. February 2020. of many vital energies; last, the lower vital which is occupied with small desires and feelings, such as make the greater part of daily life, e.g. food desire, sexual desire, small likings, dislikings, vanity, quarrels, love of praise, anger at blame, little wishes of all kinds—and a numberless host of other things. Their respective seats are (1) the region from the throat to the heart, (2) the heart (it is a double centre, belonging in front to the emotional and vital and behind to the psychic), (3) from the heart to the navel, (4) below the navel. he point about the emotional and the higher vital is a rather difficult one. In one classification in which mind is taken as some thing more than the thinking, perceiving and willing intelligence, the emotional can be reckoned as part of the mind, the vital in the mental. In another classification it is rather the most mentalised part of the vital nature. In the first case, the term higher vital is confined to that larger movement of the conscious life-force which is concerned with creation, with power and force and conquest, with giving and self-giving and gathering from the world for farther action and expenditure of power, throwing itself out in the wider movements of life, responsive to the greater objects of Nature. In the second arrangement, the emotional being stands at the top of the vital nature and the two together make the higher vital. As against them stands the lower vital which is concerned with the pettier movements of action and desire and stretches down into the vital physical where it supports the life of the more external activities and all physical sensations, hungers, cravings, satisfactions. The term lower must not be considered in a pejorative sense; it refers only to the position in the hierarchy of the planes. For although this part of the nature in earthly beings tends to be very obscure and is full of perversions, —lust, greed of all kinds, vanity, small ambitions, petty anger, envy, jealousy are its ordinary guests,— still there is another side to it which makes it an indispensable mediator between the inner being and the outer life. It is not a fact that every psychic experience embodies itself in a purified and rightly directed vital current; it does that when it has to externalise itself in action. Psychic experience is in itself a quite independent thing and has its own characteristic forms. The psychic being stands behind all the others; its force is the true soul-power. But if it comes to the front, it can suffuse all the rest; mind, vital, the physical consciousness can take its stamp and be transformed by its influence. When the nature is properly developed, there is a psychic in the mental, a psychic in the vital, a psychic in the physical. It is when that is there and strong, that we can say of someone that he evidently has a soul. But there are some in whom this element is so lacking that we have to use faith in order to believe that they have a soul at all. The centre of the psychic being is behind the centre of the emotional being; it is the emotional that is nearest dynamically to the psychic and in most men it is through the emotional centre that the psychic can be most easily reached and through the psychicised emotion that it can be most easily expressed. Many therefore mistake the one for the other; but there is a world of difference between the two. The emotions normally are vital in their character and not part of the psychic nature. It must be remembered that while this classification is indispensable for psychological self-knowledge and discipline and practice, it can be used best when it is not made too rigid and cutting a formula. For things run very much into each other and a synthetical sense of these powers is as necessary as the analysis. Mind for instance is everywhere. The physical mind is technically placed below the vital and yet it is a prolongation of the mind proper and can act in its own sphere by direct touch with the higher mental intelligence. And there is too an obscure mind of the body, of the very cells, molecules, corpuscles. Haeckel, the German materialist, spoke somewhere of the will in the atom, and recent Science, dealing with the incalculable individual variation in the activity of the electrons, comes near to perceiving that this is not a figure but the shadow thrown by a secret reality. This body-mind is a very tangible truth; owing to its obscurity and mechanical clinging to past movements and facile oblivion and rejection of the new, we find in it one of the chief obstacles to permeation by the supermind force and the transformation of the functioning of the body. On the other hand, once effectively converted, it will www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 7 The Vital

The Vital Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. February 2020. be one of the most precious instruments for the stabilisation of the supramental light and force in material Nature. (Letter on Yoga by Sri Aurobindo, from https://incarnateword.in/cwsa/28/the-vital-being-and-vital- consciousness) Vital Immobility After the anguish of the soul’s long strife At length were found calm and celestial rest And, lapped in a magic flood of sorrowless hours, Healed were his warrior nature’s wounded limbs In the encircling arms of Energie That brooked no stain and feared not their own bliss. (Sri Aurobindo, Savitri, Book II, Canto IX) The Mother defines vital immobility …And there is a very small superficial application of this which perhaps you will understand. Someone comes and insults you or says unpleasant things to you; and if you begin to vibrate in unison with this anger or this ill-will, you feel quite weak and powerless and usually you make a fool of yourself. But if you manage to keep within yourself, especially in your head, a complete immobility which refuses to receive these vibrations, then at the same time you feel a great strength, and the other person cannot disturb you. If you remain very quiet, even physically, and when violence is directed at you, you are able to remain very quiet, very silent, very still, well, that has a power not only over you but over the other person also. If you don’t have all these vibrations of inner response, if you can remain absolutely immobile within yourself, everywhere, this has an almost immediate effect upon the other person. (Collected Works of the Mother, vol. 8, p 67) Excerpt from Satprem’s Adventure of Consciousness …Behind this childish, restless, easily exhausted vital, we will find a quiet and powerful vital–what Sri Aurobindo calls the true vital–that contains the very essence of the Life Force devoid of its sentimental and painful by products. We enter a state of peaceful, spontaneous concentration, like the sea beneath the movement of the waves. This underlying stillness is not a dulling of the nerves, any more than mental silence is a numbing of the brain; it is a basis for action. It is a concentrated power capable of initiating any action, of withstanding any shock, even the most violent and prolonged, without losing its poise. Depending on the degree of our development, all kinds of new capacities can emerge from this vital immobility, but first of all we feel an inexhaustible energy; any fatigue is a sign that we have fallen back into the superficial turmoil. The capacity for work or even physical effort increases tenfold. Food and sleep are no longer the single and all-absorbing source of energy renewal. (The nature of sleep changes, as we will see, and food can be reduced to an hygienic minimum.) Other powers, often considered “miraculous,” may also manifest, but they are miracles with a method; we will not attempt to discuss them here, as it is better to experience them directly. Let us simply say that one who has become capable of controlling a certain vital vibration in himself is automatically capable of controlling the same vibration anywhere he meets it in the world. Further, in this stillness, another sign will appear permanently: the absence of suffering and a kind of inalterable joy. When an ordinary person receives a blow, whether physical or moral, his immediate reaction is to double up in pain; he contracts and begins to seethe inside, increasing the pain tenfold. On the contrary, the seeker who has established some immobility within himself will find that this immobility dissolves all shocks, because it is wide; because the seeker is no longer a small constricted person, but a consciousness overflowing the limits of its body. Like the silent mind, the quieted vital universalizes itself spontaneously: In yoga experience the www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 8 The Vital

The Vital Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. February 2020. consciousness widens in every direction, around, below, above, in each direction stretching to infinity. When the consciousness of the yogi becomes liberated, it is not in the body but in this infinite height, depth and wideness that he lives always. […] Finally, when we have mastered vital immobility, we find that we can begin to help others with some effectiveness. For helping others has nothing to do with sentimentality or charity; it is a matter of power, of vision, of joy. In this tranquillity, we possess not only a contagious joy but a vision that dispels the shadows. We spontaneously perceive all vibrations; and distinguishing what they are enables us to manipulate them, quiet them, avert or even alter them. Tranquillity, says Mother, is a very positive state; there is a positive peace which is not the opposite of strife–an active and contagious and powerful peace, which subdues and calms, straightens and puts things in their place. We will give an example of this “contagious peace”, although it belongs to a somewhat later stage in Sri Aurobindo’s life. It was in Pondicherry, many years ago, in the season when tropical rains and sometimes cyclones sweep down suddenly and bring devastation. Doors and windows have to be barricaded with thick bamboo laths. That night, a cyclone erupted with torrents of rain, and Mother hurried to Sri Aurobindo’s room to help him shut his windows. He was seated at his table, writing (for years Sri Aurobindo spent twelve hours a day writing, from six in the evening till six in the morning, then eight hours walking up and down “for the yoga”). The windows were wide open, but not a drop of rain had come inside his room. The peace that reigned there, recalls Mother, was so solid, so compact, that the cyclone could not enter. (Satprem, Adventure of Consciousness, Chapter on True Vital) * December – January Sunday Activities at the Centre - A glimpse January 5th 2020 – Readings from All India Magazine, August 2018, Return of the light We read a few passages from “Some Reminiscences and Anecdotes” In these passages Sri Aurobindo talks about his thoughts and feelings on certain aspects of his life and this was before coming to Pondicherry. For example, in the Passage, The Power of Prayer, he says not all prayers are answered by God like some automatic machinery. No hard and fast rule can be laid on the Power of prayer. His reminiscences about charm of Kashmir, Yogic cure, Students at Baroda just captures our heart and soul. Reading about his simple living with utmost rejection of vital pleasures, complete detachment from love for money and such a noble heart with complete equanimity really sends its vibes to our nature also. It is really amazing that right from his childhood he had the “Kavacham” (protective shield) of Brahmic consciousness that no luxury or glamour of western world dared to touch him. Thanks to Mr Ramachandran for bringing this AIM magazine for our reading and illuminating our heart and mind with Sri Aurobindo’s light! January 12th – Synthesis of Yoga Mr Rakesh took up the reading of passages from “The Synthesis of Yoga” by Sri Aurobindo. www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 9 The Vital

The Vital Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. February 2020. The Conditions of the Synthesis: Part 1- The Four Aids It talks about the four instruments which aid in the Yoga-Siddhi, which are; The knowledge of the Truth - Sastra. The persistent and patient action to follow the Sastras - Utsaha. The Teacher or Guru to uplift the sadhak to Spiritual experience. Kala - Time, the vehicle which has its own speed to reach the destination of purpose for every divine movement. The Eternal Sastra is already hidden in every being. It is like a beautiful butterfly hidden in the unsightly larvae. It seemingly meditates on its release from hard shell to become a beautiful butterfly with wings to suck the nectar from the fragrant flowers; the mind which meditates on the divine finally experiences the nectar of the Infinite. It is also necessary to have the grace of Divine touch to hasten the highest spiritual attainment by tearing the hard shell of worldly attraction. Divine touch is the Word given by a living Guru or that comes from within. It is also said that even Lord Krishna had the Guru Rishi Ghora and Ramakrishna accepted several gurus in different paths of yoga, though they were self-illuminated souls! Lord Krishna in Bhagavad Gita says that when your intelligence has passed out of the dense forest of delusion, you shall become indifferent to all that has been heard and all that is to be heard. In Integral yoga, the sadhak has the freedom to accept new ways to attain the same truth, and certainly to go beyond what is said in the scriptures. January 19th – Synthesis of Yoga Mr Rakesh continued with the passages from “The Four Aids” Sri Aurobindo makes it clear that now mankind has reached a stage where the ancient Vedic fore-fathers’ Shastra are no longer applicable and mankind has been given a new liberty to follow his own path. Of course there should be a set of guiding lines to follow for the sadhaka. They are like sign posts to help orient the Sadhaka’s direction. Even Swami Vivekananda’s philosophical outlook insisted on mankind becoming unified by releasing himself from the clutches of a sect or religion. Each soul has the freedom to approach the divine in him following his own religion. Each man therefore, in effect, therefore has his own religions, or should have the freedom to have one. Each man is born with an impulse to find the Light and Bliss in him, but for the bud of aspiration to open up its petals and bloom, Sincerity and Surrender and Consecration through the inner guide are needed. I am here adding my thoughts to draw an analogy. Coming to food habits, my grandparents were very strict vegetarians in cooking only south Indian dishes without garlic and onions etc.. www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 10 The Vital

The Vital Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. February 2020. Later my parents became relaxed adding onions, on days when no festival or ancestor ceremonies were there. We became more liberal with cooking North Indian dishes, but strictly vegetarian. My Children are still more liberated cooking Italian and Mediterranean dishes but strictly vegetarian. Now to my utter surprise my granddaughter from America who visited us in the holidays has become a strict vegan influencing even my son. For a girl who loved to indulge in cakes and muffins and milk a few years ago, now she sees only the torture of the animals behind and no more the delight in eating them. So I can see the compassion and sympathy extending even to animals, breaking the long tradition of using milk as the sacred offering but going to the extent of influencing others to lessen the demand for them. So in my own time I am seeing the way how generations have paved their own path of religion or principles to follow and confidently too, not guilty about not visiting temples regularly or chanting stotras, though having full respect for them. January 26 - Meditations on Savitri We began with Book 1, Canto 3: The Yoga of the King: The Yoga of the Soul’s Release. We meditated on the words as The Mother recited selected lines from Savitri in 13 passages, with the accompanying symbolic pictures. The opening lines offered brilliant images of the strides that Aswapathy made in his yoga and brought down the Light that is Savitri, compelled by “A world’s desire”. The moments with the video was enchanting moments and each of us drew from the images according to our hearts’ reach, with gratitude. - Jayalakshmi and Jayanthy February Special The Mother’s 142nd Birth Anniversary, Auroville’s 52nd Birthday and, the Golden Day Sri Aurobindo: “There is one divine Force which acts in the universe and in the individual and is also beyond the individual and the universe. The Mother stands for all three, but she is working here in the body to bring down something not yet expressed in this material world so as to transform life here—it is so that you should regard her as the Divine Shakti working here for that purpose. She is that in the body, but in her whole consciousness she is also identified with all the other aspects of the Divine Force. (CWSA, Vol. 32, p. 70) What this “something not yet expressed in this material world” could be but the supramental force? Her mission to bring down the supramental was accomplished in the leap year 29th February 1956. Referring to that event, she wrote: “Lord, Thou hast willed, and I execute: A new light breaks upon the earth, A new world is born. The things that were promised are fulfilled.” (CWTM, Vol. 15, p.95) www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 11 The Vital

The Vital Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. February 2020. A question may be asked – “where is the new world, the new light”? The following words of Sri Aurobindo written by way of answer to a disciple’s quest for inner progress are interesting and relevant here. Sri Aurobindo: “You will say it is a mere candle that is lit—nothing at all? But in these matters, when the darkness of human mind and life and body has to be dissipated, a candle is always a beginning—a lamp can follow and afterwards a sun—but the beginning must be allowed to have a sequel… (CWSA, Vol.29, p.115) We can apply above words of Sri Aurobindo to Auroville as well. 50 years ago, Auroville too was “a mere candle” but, thanks to dedicated pioneering efforts of numerous individuals, today she has become a “lamp”. If we remain true to the spirit of Auroville, there is every possibility that in next 50 years Auroville will become “a sun” that helps tremendously to dissipate the “darkness of human mind and life and body”. (From News & Notes, 17 February 2018, A weekly bulletin for residents of Auroville, Number 737) The Golden Day Words of The Mother 29 February 1956 \"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 hands 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.\" PROGRAMME FOR THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY 2020 DETAILS DATE TIME 2 Feb 2020 8 AM Monthly Morning Walk ** Sunday 6 PM AIM Magazine Reading and Discussion 9AM – 12NN Centre Cleaning* 12 9 Feb 2020 Sunday www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg The Vital

The Vital Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. February 2020. Thematic Study Circle by Rakesh: The Synthesis of Yoga 9 Feb 2020 Sunday Thematic Study Circle by Rakesh: The Synthesis of Yoga 6 PM The Mother’s 142nd Birth Anniversary 16 Feb 2020 6 PM Sunday The Mother’s 142nd Birth Anniversary 21 Feb 2020 9 AM Friday 7 PM 23 Feb 2020 4 PM Youth Programme Sunday 6 PM Savitri Circle by Mr. Ramadoss * Cleaning till 12nn, followed by Community Lunch. Please confirm attendance with Shailaja ** Please see below for details. February 2020 MORNING WALK – NO. 414 Date: Sunday, 2nd February 2020 Time: 8:00 A.M. sharp for warm up exercise. Walk Venue: East Coast Park Meeting Point: Road safety community park, car park B2 www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 13 The Vital

The Vital Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. February 2020. Contact No: Mrs Vrunda Patel (HP: 9820 6389) Hosts: Mrs. Nisha Maheswary & Family 12, Amber Gardens, # 12-07, King’s Mansion, Block B, Singapore 439959 RSVP: 64408443 (Res), 90229005, 90339505(HP), [email protected] Note: All are encouraged to attend the Walk. Those, however, who are not able to join the Walk, the hosts would be very happy that they directly come and join in the brunch by 10:15 AM. Prayers and meditation will commence sharp at 10.30 A.M. All are requested to be punctual. PREVIEW OF FORTHCOMING SUNDAY MORNING WALKS WALK NO DATE PLACE HOST Pasir Ris Mr Anand K Venkat & Family 415 01/03/20 West Coast Park Mr S. Ramanathan & Family 416 05/04/20 East Coast Park Mr Ashok Patel & Mrs Bhakti Patel 417 03/5/20 Bedok Reservoir Mr. Anand Patel & Mrs Vrunda Patel 418 07/6/20 Along the Way… January Walk Review (walk no 413) This month’s morning walk was held in Windsor Park. Located at Venus drive, the park was opened very recently in 2017 and boasted state of the art nature trails and walks. This was many people’s as well as my first time visiting the park. Since Windsor Park was quite new, coupled with the fact that many people wanted to stick to their New Year’s resolution, the park was very crowded, and it was quite hard to find good parking. It was very heartwarming to see people of all walks of life spend their time with one another on that Sunday morning. Thanks to the Mother’s grace the weather was pleasant and cool, despite the previous days and weeks of rain. Soon after 8 am, the walking group left the main entrance, and began the Society’s 413th walk. It had been quite some time since I had attended one of the walks and was pleased to see a nice turnout for the walk. However, since the Holidays were still going on for me, I encouraged my parents to attend the walk, hoping that we could make these walks part of our New Year’s resolutions. www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 14 The Vital

The Vital Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. February 2020. During the walk, we had gone through the “Drongo” and “Squirrel” trail. While walking, we were pleasantly greeted by a huge number of monkeys that were engaged in fighting one another. It was quite an amusing sight to see! Throughout the walk we enjoyed delightful weather, and everyone seemed to be enjoying. The serene and picturesque surroundings made the first walk of the decade all that more special. I would like to thank Swati Aunty and Kiran Uncle for hosting a wonderful mediation and tasty and sumptuous brunch. Personally, I thoroughly enjoyed the walk. It gave me an opportunity to spend time with my family and talk to everyone. I can’t wait for next month’s walk! Wishing everyone a prosperous decade ahead. -Aakash Mehta The 2000 and 20th year started with a bang for the Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. On the 3rd of January 2020, the society members gathered at Windsor Nature Park for the monthly walk. The walk started with a few warm-up exercises and as many photos as we could fit in. Then the actual walking began. All of us decided to take the treetop walk as we felt that it would be the most enjoyable option. We walked through the trail talking between ourselves. The road went up and down the hills and was slightly uneven but it was nevertheless enjoyed by all. Soon we came across a troupe of monkeys in the trees and on the road. We watched them for a while until they noticed us and ran towards us. We decided to run away then, for fear of being attacked by the monkeys. After a while, we decided to turn back as it was getting late. No one was willing to miss the good food and meditation the hosts had to offer. We started back and soon reached the carpark from where we began, towards the location of the brunch. The after walk brunch was hosted by Kiran Uncle and Swathi Aunty at their home. We mingled with the other guests for a while before sitting down for meditation. After the birthdays were read, a song from the nutcracker was played for closing meditation, as a surprise. We then proceeded to the function hall to partake of the delicious Thai feast laid out before us. After eating our fill, we thanked our hosts and left with happy hearts and full stomachs. -Anjali Curic www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 15 The Vital

The Vital Sri Aurobindo Society, Singapore. February 2020. Printed and Published by The Sri Aurobindo Society of Singapore 2A Starlight Road 01-07, Singapore 217755. Saurab: 86559940 or [email protected]; Sanjay: 98750767 or [email protected]; Email: [email protected] Visit our website at: www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg www.sriaurobindosociety.org.sg 16 The Vital