Sri Aurobindo

Letters on Himself and the Ashram

The Complete Works of Sri Aurobindo. Volume 35

Sadhana in the Ashram

Realisations by Sadhaks [5]

What the deuce is “Brahman consciousness”? The same as cosmic consciousness? Does one come to that after your psychic and spiritual transformation?

Is it something like seeing Brahman in everybody and everywhere or what? It is not spiritual realisation, I suppose, I mean realisation of Self? You see I am a nincompoop in this business. Please perorate a little.

Eternal Jehovah! you don’t even know what Brahman is! You will next be asking me what Yoga is or what life is or what body is or what mind is or what sadhana is! No, sir, I am not proposing to teach an infant class the A-B-C of the elementary conceptions which are the basis of Yoga. There is X too who doesn’t know what consciousness is, even!

Brahman, sir, is the name given by Indian philosophy since the beginning of time to the one Reality eternal and infinite which is the Self, the Divine, the All, the more than All, which would remain even if you and everybody and everything else in existence or imagining itself to be in existence vanished into blazes — even if this whole universe disappeared, Brahman would be safely there and nothing whatever lost. In fact, sir, you are Brahman and you are only pretending to be Y; when Z is translating X’s poetry into Bengali, it is really Brahman translating Brahman’s Brahman into Brahman. When X asks me what consciousness is, it is really Brahman asking Brahman what Brahman is! There, sir, I hope you are satisfied now.

To be less drastic and refrain from making your head reel till it goes off your shoulders, I may say that a realisation of the Self is the beginning of Brahman realisation; — the Brahman consciousness — the Self in all and all in the Self etc. It is the basis of the spiritual realisation and therefore of the spiritual transformation; but one has to see it in all sorts of aspects and applications first and that I refuse to go into. If you want to know you have to read the Arya.

Is living in that consciousness an ideal condition for receiving the supramental descent?

It is a necessary condition.

I ask because I heard that no one here was prepared for this supramental descent.

Of course not, this realisation of the Self as all and the Divine as all is only the first step.

Is that the height of realisation achieved here so far among sadhaks? What is the next step?

The next step is to get into contact with the higher planes above spiritual mind — for as soon as one gets into the spiritual Mind or Higher Mind, this realisation is possible.

Now the big question is: Is the realisation of the Self a state of perpetual peace, joy and bliss?

If it is thoroughly established, it is one of internal peace, freedom, wideness, in the inner being.

Is it a state surpassing all struggles, dualities and depressions?

All these things you mention become incidents in the external being, on the surface — but the inner being remains untouched by them.

Are all troubles of the lower nature conquered finally — especially sex?

No, sir. But the inner being is not touched.

Or is it that sex-desire rises up in the Yogis, but leaves them untouched, unscathed? No attraction for them? It must be so, otherwise how can they be called siddhas? No danger of a fall from the spiritual state?

It may be covered up in a way — so long as it is not established in all parts of the being. The old Yogis did not consider that necessary, because they wanted to walk off, not to change the being.

Why do you call it a beginning only? What more do you want to do except perhaps physical transformation?

I want to effect the transformation of the whole nature (not only of the physical) — that’s why.

And lastly can you whisper to me the names of those lucky fellows, those “half a dozen people” [p. 667], so that I can have a practical knowledge of what that blessed thing — “the Brahman consciousness” — is like?

No, Sir.

How can you have a practical knowledge of it by knowing who has it? You might just as well expect to have a practical knowledge of high mathematics by knowing that Einstein is a great mathematician. Queer ideas you have!

Are they A? B? C? D? E? F? — but he can’t be for he is a Brahma himself, so keeps himself secluded like Him, no?

???????

18 July 1937