Tribute to Sri Aurobindo

Sri Aurobindo

“Love is the keynote, Joy is the music, Power is the strain, Knowledge is the performer, the infinite All is the composer and audience. We know only the preliminary discords which are as fierce as the harmony shall be great; but we shall arrive surely at the fugue of the divine Beatitudes.”

- Sri Aurobindo (1)

Sri Aurobindo’s contribution to spirituality in the twentieth century is hard to fathom and quantify. His life’s mission was to bring down a new spiritual consciousness or “Supermind”. Sri Aurobindo was also one of the most prolific writers of spiritual philosophy and spiritual poetry.

Sri Aurobindo’s poem Savitri is an epic of unprecedented scale and spiritual depth. Based on the ancient Indian tale of Savitri and her husband Satyavan it tells the story of their conjugal love story and Savitri’s battle with the forces of death. Sri Aurobindo weaves into this story a most powerful and striking explanation of spiritual forces and spiritual evolution. Sri Aurobindo continually refined Savitri over a period of 26 years. His revisions were a reflection of his own spiritual journey and spiritual experiences. Imbued in each line is poetry of the highest mantic quality.

It is not just poetry but an expression of the highest spiritual consciousness. To read Savitri is to immerse oneself in the tale of the epic struggle of humanity to overcome the fear of death. The Mother said of Savitri that:

“Savitri alone is sufficient to make you climb to the highest peaks. If truly one knows how to meditate on Savitri, one will receive all the help one needs.”

The Mother on Savitri

The magnitude and scope of Savitri is so profound that to read it in its entirety requires the utmost dedication. Often it is enough to select a couple of passages and lines, which do not just express an idea of spirituality but also have a transforming effect. Savitri is a sadhana of its own.

For many years Sri Aurobindo lived in seclusion. He appeared only 4 times a year to give darshan to his disciples. However from his self imposed seclusion he answered many letters to his disciples covering a range of spiritual and philosophical questions. With good humour Sri Aurobindo patiently set clear guidelines, encouragement and inspiration to his disciples. Identifying with their weaknesses he explained a clear path of patient surrender to the higher power and will of the Divine Mother.

The writings of Sri Aurobindo are an immortal testament to his spiritual vision and unique spiritual realisation. They are a concrete testament to his spiritual mission. What is more difficult to appreciate is the inner workings of a spiritual master. Sri Aurobindo was a fully realised spiritual Master, through the Grace of the Supreme he went far beyond the realm of nirvana. His was a divinely ordained task for the transformation of the earth consciousness. Sri Aurobindo was an Avatar who embodied the consciousness of previous Avatars such as Krishna and Rama, and at the same time transcended their previous realisation.

A most significant part of Sri Aurobindo’s work was the spiritual force he exerted during the Second World War. It is an interesting paradox that in Sri Aurobindo’s early life he was a committed Indian revolutionary, who spent a year in a British jail, for his alleged involvement in a bomb plot. The spiritual experiences he had in jail convinced him to dedicate himself to his spiritual mission. On the outbreak of World War II he surprised (and angered many Indians) by declaring his full support for the Allied cause. In Nazi Germany he saw the operation of the Asuras or hostile forces. He said if Nazi Germany were to win it would set back human civilisation centuries of progress. Although the allies were not perfect by any means, there opposition to Nazism made them an instrument of the divine forces. From his private seclusion he sought to full his full spiritual force behind the allied cause.

“We feel that not only is this a battle waged in just self-defence and in defence of the nations threatened with the world-domination of Germany and the Nazi system of life, but that it is a defence of civilisation and its highest attained social, cultural and spiritual values and the whole future of humanity.”

In a letter to the governor of Madras; Sri Aurobindo 19-9-1940

Sri Aurobindo lived to see the allies win and then India to attain her independence on his birthdate of August 18th 1947. In he left the body so he would be able to more powerfully work for his life’s mission.

View: Biography of Sri Aurobindo by Richard Pettinger

• Sri Aurobindo Society
• Poems of Sri Aurobindo at Poetseers