Sri Aurobindo
Letters of Sri Aurobindo
Volume 2. 1937
Letter ID: 2014
Sri Aurobindo — Nirodbaran Talukdar
August 2, 1937
The notion of “equality” seems to be a bugbear to people who have personal ties, though the giving up of them will be more than compensated by getting the Divine within, for, after all, what are these human ties of ego or sex?
The Yoga cannot be done if equality is not established. Personal relations must be founded on the relation with the Divine in himself and the Divine in all and they must not be “ties” to pull one down and keep bound to the lower nature but part of the higher unity.
What is your idea of special relationship? Won’t predict?
There is nothing to predict. I have been saying the same thing all along (what I say above) and if there is to be any fulfilment of this work, it can be on no other basis. As for founding it on this [...]1, it can’t be done.
...There are situations when one is faced with either telling a lie or the truth, and one can’t decide which. Sri Krishna says in the Mahabharata that lies are permitted at times, and that they are as good as truths, e.g. a truthful Muni, by showing the robbers the hiding place of travellers and causing their death, went to Hell. What’s your opinion?
Naturally – nobody is called upon to expose others to death by telling a truth like that. But the lie was not the best way from the spiritual point of view.
You say physical sex action must be avoided by all means. Why so strict on it while tolerating vital-physical lapses?
Because the physical action breaks a law without which the Asram cannot stand and the work cannot be done. It is not a personal matter, but a blow aimed at the very soul of the Mother’s work.
Outside sadhaks indulge and get a child, e.g. Y and others. Mother disapproves and the man who does it has no longer the same grace as before, but he is not in the Asram and his lapse hurts only himself and his wife.
The last portion of your remark2 is rather cryptic. “This force” means the Supramental Force?
What the devil! I was speaking of the sex force.
Is it descending, then?
The sex force? By God it is, descending and ascending too.
What did you mean by giving them “a reaction”? Physical reaction?
I meant that they got so alarmed at the closeness to a precipitous fall that they stopped indulging the vital physical.
Have I any chance, Guru, of coming out of this vital struggle?
Of course.
If you are with me, I shall be all right. But don’t be with me as with X. You couldn’t keep him here; forces took him away! Doubt!
I repeat that he took himself away. No Force can take a man away, who really wants not to go and really wants the spiritual life. X wanted the “Divine Response” only, not spiritual life – his doubts all rose from that.
Why do you lay so much stress on our writing everything to you? Can’t we pray to you and ask for help? Isn’t it as good as writing?
Not writing means trying to conceal. That is a suggestion of the vital.
1 One word illegible.
2 See last paragraph of 1.8.37.