Sri Aurobindo

Letters of Sri Aurobindo

Volume 2. 1935

Fragment ID: 17632

1935

The first essay I sent you was written as an initial training for philosophical thought, for X’s class. His judgment was that there were many incorrect ideas, particularly about philosophy and silence. But you said that there was no error there. In that case should I take all I have written as correct?

There was no error. Ordinary human minds, Europeans especially, are accustomed to regard thought as indispensable and as the highest thing, so they are alarmed of silence. Y when he was here asked for Yoga. I told him how to make his mind silent and it became silent. He immediately got frightened and said, “I am becoming a fool, I can’t think”, so I took what I had given away from him. That is how the average mind regards silence.