Sri Aurobindo

Letters on Himself and the Ashram

The Complete Works of Sri Aurobindo. Volume 35

Rules in the Life of the Ashram

No Propaganda or Proselytism [10]

I am sure you have read the eulogies showered upon Duraiswami on his retirement and enjoyed them immensely, at the same time feeling proud of him and saying, “Ha, ha, here is the fruit of my Force!” It is indeed a great pleasure to see the prestige of the Asram elevated by at least one man, though I suppose you don’t give a damn about prestige.

Queer idea all you fellows seem to have of the “prestige” of the Asram. The prestige of an institution claiming to be a centre of spirituality lies in its spirituality, not in newspaper columns or famous people. Is it because of this mundane view of life and of the Asram held by the sadhaks that this Asram is not yet the centre of spirituality it set out to be?

I want to see how far Duraiswami’s character has been changed and moulded by the Force.

Lord, man, it’s not for changing or moulding character that this Asram exists. It is for moulding spirituality and transforming the consciousness. You may say it doesn’t seem to be successful enough on that line, but that is its object.

I suspect, however, that you are closing in your Supramental net and bringing in all the outside fish!

Good Lord, no! I should be very much embarrassed if all the outside fish insisted on coming inside.

What about X? When do you propose to catch him?... It would be a great enrichment of your Fishery. We are all watching with interest and eagerness that big operation of yours. But I don’t think you will succeed till your Supramental comes to the field in full-fledged colours, what?

What big operation? There is no operation; I am not trying to hale in X as a big fish. I am not trying to catch him or bring him in. If he comes into the true spiritual life it will be a big thing for him, no doubt, but to the work it means only a ripple more or less in the atmosphere. Kindly consider how many people big in their own eyes have come and gone (Y, Z, A to speak of no others) and has the work stopped by their departure or the Asram ceased to grow? Do you really think that the success or failure of the work we have undertaken depends on the presence or absence of X? or on my hauling him in or letting him go? It is of importance only for the soul of X — nothing else.

Your image of the Fishery is quite out of place; I fish for no one; people are not hauled or called here, they come of themselves by the psychic instinct. Especially, I don’t fish for big and famous and successful men. Such fellows may be mentally or vitally big, but they are usually quite contented with that kind of bigness and do not want spiritual things, or, if they do, their bigness stands in their way rather than helps them. The fishing for them is X’s idea — he wanted to catch hold of Subhas Bose, Sarat Chatterji, now Lila Desai etc. etc., but they would have been exceedingly troublesome sadhaks, if they ever really dreamed of anything of the kind. All these are ordinary ignorant ideas; the Spirit cares not a damn for fame, success or bigness in those who come to it. People have a strange idea that Mother and myself are eager to get people as disciples and if anyone goes away, especially a “big” balloon with all its gas in it, it is a great blow,— a terrible defeat,— a dreadful catastrophe and cataclysm for us. Many even think that their being here is a great favour done to us for which we are not sufficiently grateful. All that is rubbish.

30 June 1938