Chapter 5August 14, 1971

“The task of giving a concrete shape to Sri Aurobindo’s vision has been entrusted to the Mother. The creation of a new world, a new humanity, a new society, expressing and embodying the new consciousness, is the work undertaken by her. In the nature of things, it is a collective ideal calling for a collective effort to realize it in terms of an integral human perfection.

The Ashram, founded and built up by the Mother, has been the first step towards the fulfilment of this goal. The project of Auroville is the next step, “more exterior,” seeking to widen the base of this endeavor to establish harmony between soul and body, spirit and nature, heaven and earth in the collective life of humanity.”

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(original manuscript)

(First version) The task of giving a concrete form to Sri Aurobindo’s vision has been given to the Mother.

(Second version) The task of completing Sri Aurobindo’s vision has been given to the Mother. The creation of a new world, a new humanity, a new society expressing and embodying the new consciousness is the work she has undertaken. By the very nature of things, it is an ideal because the state of Nature that makes it necessary must be surpassed.

We aspire for the time when Sri Aurobindo will no longer have to die.

(It is the eve of August 15. Mother sees Satprem having been unable to finish seeing her usual

entourage.)

Is there something you’d like to say?

No, nothing at all!

I am all right – even quite all right. I am quite all right. The body is beginning to... I could say to have the true attitude. I mean it increasingly feels in a concrete manner and, I could say, ACUTE manner that there is only ONE way to impression, it’s.... I don’t know, almost an acute sensation, that one can exist only in the Divine and be constantly concentrated upon the Divine. And that such is the transition to go towards something that is still... I wouldn’t say a dream, but a wonder. THAT....

It likes less and less to speak.

Yes!

All words seem childish to it.

(silence)

It has no need to know anything: it has a need of being entirely molded, set in motion and used in every way [by the Divine], and it has but one dream – to forget that it exists – to become spontaneously the expression... (Mother has a blissful smile) of something... of something it calls the Divine, which is the only true thing.

(silence)

And what is Sri Aurobindo doing?... Do you see him?

I don’t “see” him – I feel his presence.

Recently I read some of his letters about me.... How? It’s really a miracle that I survived [his passing].... My whole... [being collapsed]. He was such a marvelous protection and support!

The inner being wasn’t affected because that remained the way it was – the closeness, the intimacy remained the same – but the physical being.... It’s a miracle it survived.

Several days ago I saw Sri Aurobindo and he was busy with money – he was receiving money, he was even receiving things in gold.77

(Mother laughs)

That surprised me.

Why?

I don’t know, I didn’t imagine him having that kind of activity.

That wasn’t necessary because I was there.78 But I know he was interested, in the sense that he thought 77Perhaps coincidentally, two days later, on August 16, the dollar was “devalued” and the Bretton-Woods accords were broken.

78Mother means that while Sri Aurobindo was alive, it was not necessary for him to be concerned with money because