Sri Aurobindo

Letters on Poetry and Art

SABCL - Volume 27

Part 1. Poetry and its Creation
Section 2. The Poetry of the Spirit
Poet, Yogi, Rishi, Prophet, Genius

The Poet, the Yogi and the Rishi [3]

A Rishi is one who sees or discovers an inner truth and puts it into self-effective language — the mantra. Either new truth or old truth made new by expression and intuitive realisation.

He [Ramana Maharshi] has experienced certain eternal truths by process of Yoga — I don’t think it is by Rishilike intuition or illumination, nor has he the mantra.

10 February 1936