SAIEN

As each stage of the evolution of consciousness develops, it brings a greater power of knowledge and action than the prior stage. Inevitably, there is an impact on those prior stages. Life effectuated changes in Matter. Mind effectuates changes in Life and Matter. Although the power is not absolute, and there is an interchange, a conservative resistance to transformational change, eventually the new power has its impacts. What is not so frequently described, however, is that with this new power come also new forces that make adaptation at the current level of manifestation harder. Thus, while the mind is able to change matter, and even control the vital forces of life to a great degree, it has a hard time seeing and changing things on the mental plane. The principle involved is that as long as one is immersed in a particular framework, he cannot see that framework. What he cannot see he cannot consciously change. It is thus necessary to find a way to step back from, to shift outside th...

Spending a few days in the spiritually charged environment of Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Delhi, is a preference in my travel plan whenever I go to Delhi. Nestled in large open green area gives it a serene environment for soul searching. Being member of Sri Aurobindo Society for past many years and seeker on the path of Integral Yoga, the Ashram has made a very positive impact in my self-development and growth. During a recent visit to Delhi in February, I happened to be there on the 70 th  anniversary of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram-Delhi branch. During a morning walk in the campus, I noticed a labyrinthine path created in one part of the green belt; it had an inspiring quote on the relevance of labyrinth in our life journey. Walking on this path led to an inner realization of the zig-zag serpentine nature of the path one encounters as we tread on our life journey. It was an innovative way conceived by the Ashram team to help us connect and reflect upon the close interconnection of Physical...

The sources describe a profound “solution” to the inherent contradictions experienced in human thought and action, particularly addressing the limitations of  exclusive beliefs  and  ineffective eclecticism . This solution is presented as a movement towards a  higher consciousness  that embraces and harmonises seemingly opposite truths. 1 The Problem: Exclusive Faiths vs. Eclectic Muddle The problem is framed as a constant contradiction between two errors. 2 Exclusivism of Influence:  This is characterised as an error of “shrinking” and “limitation,” similar to all “exclusive faiths” when practised on the mental level. 3  Such faiths insist that their truth is the sole truth, rejecting others as inferior or false. 4  Sri Aurobindo notes that “intellectual dogma and cult-egoism stand in the way” of embracing all “God-visions”. 5  This narrowness can reduce philosophy to sterile disputes and infect religion with dogmatism and intolerance. ...

From inner spaces I call you, sweet love, You descend a cascade of light from above, Asking for your touch everywhere, I lie quenched beyond all care, Till the untouched parts call out to you, From their light burnt brethren taking the cue. You smile and say, “Not yet, The wood in parts is still wet.” Unperturbed in contentment I wait, At the overhead lucent gate, Till bit by bit you make me pure gold. Then nothing in me will escape your fold. - Anahita Sanjana (India)

“ Tagore has been a wayfarer towards the same goal as ours in his own way...” ( Sri Aurobindo) Sri Aurobindo wrote these words whose significance is often overlooked by the masses. Both Tagore – The World Poet and Sri Aurobindo – The Mystic shared the same purpose in their lives. Rabindranath met Sri Aurobindo at Pondicherry and shared his homage through his poem “Namaskar”: অরবিন্দ ,  রবীন্দ্রের   লহ   নমস্কার !   (Rabindranath, O Aurobindo, bows to thee!) There were innumerable parallels in their lives.   The year 1905 deeply affected both of them – the aftermath of partition of Bengal. Streets were crowded in Kolkata, the masses joined together, marching and singing in protest opposing the aggressively bitter move of the British Government. Then comes the year 1914 – The First World War when nature was silently breaking the patterns evolving into the new. Tagore was immersed into the forces of nature and their workings at the material level on earth as expres...

The body is a wandering, mortal temple Whose walls grow in size and tremble with age, The two even pillars uphold its sacred frame,   Human form, a marvellous tabernacle. The rising hands, the gopuram in a holy cascade, The face, serene and still, the temple’s sacred façade; The eyes, twin lamps illumining its inner colonnade, The nose, the guiding ridge of the tower in its upward braid. The fingers, the fine relics that serve the temple’s art; The lungs, deep wells sustaining every sacred part; The stomach, the homa-kunda where life’s offerings flame; The heart, the sanctum sanctorum where the soul  rests in its eternal aim. Though each body bears a shrine, crafted with a sacred grace, Yet travel s  far in longing, seeking holiness in every place; From pillar to post wandering, yearning for a fleeting spark, Though the silent Divine within waits in stillness, glowing through the dark. And when the outer temple quivers, weakened and worn,   The inner deity rises, u...