Sri Aurobindo

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Sri Aurobindo

Sri Aurobindo (Aurobindo Ghose) (b. August 14, 1872, Kolkata, d. December 5, 1950, Pondicherry) was an Indian nationalist, Hindu philosopher, yogi, and poet. Sri Aurobindo began his career in the Indian nationalist movement to gain freedom from British rule. Shortly thereafter, Aurobindo left politics to pursue a spiritual life. He developed a teaching known as Integral Yoga, which combines the Hindu yogic paths of knowledge, devotion, and karma. He also developed a theory of evolution and involution, a process by which human beings can evolve into a superior state of being. His ashram in Pondicherry, the International Center of Education, still exists today.

Biography

Aurobindo Ghose was born in Kolkata in 1872. His father, Dr. K. D. Ghose had studied in Britain, and was determined to give his children a European education. Aurobindo attended a convent school in Darjeeling before being sent to England to study at age eight. He demonstrated an aptitude for languages, excelling in English, Latin and Greek. He later attended Cambridge University, studying classics, poetry and language. During university, Aurobindo joined a secret society called ‘Lotus and Dagger’, dedicated to obtaining Indian freedom from British rule. Although the society was short-lived, this experience led Aurobindo to believe that Indian freedom from Britain was imminent, and that he should return to India to be part of the nationalist movement.

Upon returning to India in 1893, Aurobindo worked as a professor of English and French at Baroda State College. He began to write articles for a daily newspaper which encouraged Indians to work toward freedom, stating that the true enemy was not the British, but the weak resolve of the Indian people. During this period, Aurobindo took an interest in aspects of Indian culture which eluded him during his childhood in Britain. He studied yoga, and mastered several Indian languages. In 1906, he accepted presidency of the new National College, which reflected his own political values. Soon, he was identified as a national leader in the Indian freedom movement. Sri Aurobindo’s interest in yoga steadily increased, and he began to study with renowned guru Yogi Vishnu Bhaskar Lele. After a short time, he experienced a change of consciousness, which he described as an overwhelming feeling of silence, peace, and freedom. Shortly after this spiritual experience, a revolutionary threw a homemade bomb at the British magistrate’s carriage, killing two women. On May 4, 1908, Aurobindo was arrested for involvement in this incident. Though eventually acquitted, he remained in prison for one year during the investigation of the crime. Aurobindo later stated that his imprisonment initially led him to question God, but eventually, he heard a voice which told him that his experiences in prison would help him with his future work in a different area. During his year in prison, Aurobindo had another great spiritual experience, in which he could see the divinity in all those around him, including thieves and murderers. Aurobindo began to conceptualize divinity as more than an incomprehensible ultimate reality, but a force that represents the goodness in all beings.

After his year in prison, Aurobindo joined the revolutionaries once more. He began two weekly newspapers, Dharma and Karmayogin. In 1910, a staff member at Karmayogin reported that the police were on their way to arrest him for his involvement in revolutionary activities. Sri Aurobindo fled to Chandernagore, and eventually settled in Pondicherry. Upon arrival in Pondicherry, Aurobindo decided to leave politics and focus on spirituality. Retrospectively, he stated that this decision was not driven by a sense of hopelessness concerning the freedom movement, but instead felt that others could successfully lead the movement without his help.

During his stay in Pondicherry, Aurobindo had a third great spiritual experience. He had a vision of the Divine as being both static and dynamic, as a supreme, formless reality and as a being which can take many forms. He reported feeling a sense of ascending from a dark existence into an existence which was pervaded with supreme light. In 1914, Paul and Mira Richard, a French couple, came to Pondicherry and studied with Aurobindo. Together, they worked to develop a philosophy which combined knowledge from various religious traditions, and which provided an intellectual approach to intuitive experiences. After returning to France during World War 1, Mira (later referred to as Mother by her disciples) returned to India in 1920. With Mira’s help, Aurobindo established an ashram. Eventually, Mira began to oversee the activities of the ashram, and Aurobindo withdrew into seclusion to focus on his own spiritual endeavors. He spent the last twenty-four years of his life trying to prepare himself to experience the kingdom of heaven on earth. During this period, Aurobindo wrote many books and poems, including his most famous work, The Life Divine, as well as Savitri, an epic poem, and commentary on the Bhagavad Gita. In 1926, he had another great spiritual experience which led him to the conclusion that experiencing enlightenment is preceded by separating oneself from the ego, and by replacing the idea of ‘self’ with a universal perspective. Thus, the idea of a ‘self’ should expand to encompass all other beings. Aurobindo believed that this process occurs by the evolution of the ordinary mind into what he called a ‘Supermind’. On August 15, 1947, India attained freedom from British rule, and Aurobindo gave a rare public message. He expressed happiness, and hoped that the future would bring unity to India and that India would share its spiritual gifts with the world. On December 5, 1950, Sri Aurobindo passed away. However, his funeral was delayed for four days because according to disciples, his body appeared to be concentrated with light, and showed no sign of decomposition. On December 9, the light departed, and a funeral took place.

Teachings

Sri Aurobindo’s teachings share some concepts with the early Hindu philosophical schools, but differ markedly in other aspects. Unlike many early schools of Hindu philosophy, Aurobindo believed that accepting the existence of Spirit and Matter is imperative to spiritual development. In past philosophies, Matter had been denied as an illusion of the senses, or Spirit had been denied as an illusion of the imagination, forcing believers to choose between the two. Aurobindo believed that both Spirit and Matter are real parts of the ultimate reality, or Brahman, and denying the existence of either is counter-productive. He taught that Brahman exists both above the universe and within it. Therefore, denying the existence of Matter is essentially denying an aspect of Brahman.

Aurobindo developed a theory of evolution and involution, outlining a path of spiritual progress. Unlike Darwin’s evolutionary model, Aurobindo did not focus on the physical evolution of beings from micro-organisms to humans. Instead, he focused on a spiritual evolution, from existence pervaded with a material nature to existence pervaded with a spiritual nature. Thus, humanity can evolve beyond its current state to become a perfect expression of Brahman. According to Aurobindo’s philosophy, spirituality encourages the ascent of Matter into Spirit. However, this evolution is not possible without the descent of Spirit into Matter, or involution. Aurobindo taught that this process of evolution and involution continues until Matter merges with Spirit.

Aurobindo outlined eight states through which beings evolve: Matter, Life, Psyche, Mind, Supermind, Bliss, Conscious Force, and Existence. Matter, Life, Psyche, and Mind constitute the lower realms of existence, in which the regular mind exists. Supermind, Bliss, Conscious Force, and Existence constitute the higher realm of existence, in which the mind is overtaken with the Supermind. When the Supermind presides, the individual gains divine power, and obtains the ability to expand their definition of a ‘self’ to encompass others. A complete evolution through the eight stages does not necessarily involve a severance from the body, but a complete transformation of the mind.

Aurobindo believed that a veil of ignorance exists which prevents the Mind from evolving into the Supermind. Only the Divine can remove the veil, but yogic practice can help facilitate this process. Aurobindo believed that it is possible that the Divine may come to remove the veil of ignorance, but if a person is not prepared, they may miss their chance to evolve from the Mind to the Supermind. To avoid this, the practice of Integral yoga can help to prepare humankind for ascent into Supermind. Integral yoga combines earlier Hindu yogic paths of bhakti (workship), jnana (knowledge), and karma. Practicing Integral yoga provides a greater sense of readiness for ascent into the higher realm of existence.

Impact

Sri Aurobindo has had a significant impact on Hindu philosophy. The incorporation of evolution into Hindu philosophy provided Hinduism with an infusion of modernity. Many Western philosophers and writers such as Michael Murphy and Ken Wilbur claim Sri Aurobindo as an important influence.

References
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Ghose, Aurobindo (1987). The life divine. (5th ed.). Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram. ISBN: 8170580048.
Maitra, S. K. (1986). An introduction to the philosophy of Sri Aurobindo. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram.
Ghose, Aurobindo (1954). Savitri. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram.
Ghose, Aurobindo (1956). Poems from Bengali. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram.