Chapter 14Coming to the Ashram

People who feel miserable here and find that they have not the comfort they require ought not to stay. We are not in a position to do more than we do, and after all our aim is not to give to people a comfortable life, but to prepare them for a Divine Life which is quite a different affair.

* The reason for people to come and settle here is surely not to find comfort and luxury — this can be found anywhere if one is lucky enough. But what one can get here, that is not got in any other place: it is the Divine Love, Grace and Care. It is when this is forgotten or disregarded that people begin to feel miserable here. Indeed whenever somebody feels unhappy and discontented, it can be taken as a sure sign that he is turning his back on what the Divine is always giving and that he has gone astray in pursuit of worldly satisfaction.

13 January 1947

* In spite of what the ignorant men believe, it is the inner vibra-tions that are responsible for the exterior events.

Most of the people who live in the Ashram forget too easily that they are not here to live a quiet and pleasant life, but to do sadhana. And for doing sadhana a certain control upon one’s inner movements is indispensable.

1 October 1959

* It is only those who have come for sadhana and really do sad-hana who can be happy and satisfied here. The others have constant trouble because their desires are not satisfied.

2 October 1959

* If you want to be happy here, you must come with the will to do the yoga of self-perfection; for if you do not come for that, you will be shocked at every moment by things that are contrary to your habits and to the principles of ordinary life, and it will not be possible for you to stay here, because these things are necessary for the work and organisation here and cannot be changed.

30 September 1960

* We are not here to make our life easy and comfortable; we are here to find the Divine, to become the Divine, to manifest the Divine.

What happens to us is the Divine’s business, it is not our concern.

The Divine knows better than we do what is good for the progress of the world and of ourselves.

19 August 1967

* Here sensibleness is indispensable and the integral yoga is based on balance, calm and peace and not on an unhealthy need to suffer.

12 May 1969

* Sri Aurobindo said that the physical was to be taken into the yoga and not rejected or neglected. And almost all here thought they were doing yoga in the physical and fell a prey to physical “needs” and desires.

To speak frankly, I like better that mistake than [that of] the so-called ascetics who are full of contempt, bad will and scornful feeling for others.

No time to say all that could be said on the subject.

You say that you feel you have returned to your old life and that you have fallen from that state of spiritual consciousness in which you remained for some time. And you ask whether it comes from the fact that Sri Aurobindo and myself have withdrawn our protection and our help because you had been unable to fulfil your promise.

It is a mistake to think that anything at all has been withdrawn by us. Our help and our protection are with you as always, but it would be more correct to say that both your inability to feel our help and your inability to keep your promise are the simultaneous effects of the same cause.

Remember what I wrote to you when you went to Cal-cutta to fetch your family: do not let any influence come in between you and the Divine. You did not pay sufficient attention to this warning: you have allowed an influence to interfere strongly between you and your spiritual life; your devotion and your faith have been seriously shaken by this. As a consequence, you became afraid and you did not find the same joy in your offering to the Divine Cause; and also, quite naturally, you fell back into your ordinary consciousness and your old life.

You are quite right, nevertheless, not to let yourself be dis-couraged. Whatever the fall, it is always possible not only to get up again but also to rise higher and to reach the goal. Only a strong aspiration and a constant will are needed.

You have to take a firm resolution to let nothing interfere with your ascent towards the Divine Realisation. And then the success is certain.

Be assured of our unfailing help and protection.

3 February 1931

*

Mother, my physical mother wants to come here. If she wants to come here for my sake it will not be good either for me or for her. If she has a longing for the Divine it is different.

Mother, is her longing a true one? What do You

think about this?

I really believe that if you were not here, she would never dream of coming here. It is mainly you that she wants to see, and as you very rightly say, this is not good for you or for her. So it will be better if she does not come.

My blessings are always with you.

* She can try to do yoga, but her motive must be pure, for if she decides to do yoga in order to join you here, nothing good can come out of it.

25 June 1932

*

I am puzzled. My heart is pulled towards you and I want to come back. But certain things are keeping me here and I feel that they will keep drawing me even if I return at present. What should I do? But please know that whether I come just now or not I cannot ever break away from you. I pray to you not to abandon me.

My dear child, blessings of the day.... Just received your letter of 21st; it came to me directly (without the written words) three days ago, probably when you were writing it, and my silent answer was categorical: remain there until the necessity of being here will become so imperative that all else will completely lose all value for you. My answer now is exactly the same. I want only to assure you that we are not abandon-ing you and that you will always have our help and protection.

24 April 1939

* I am quite ready to shower my grace upon X, but I do not consider it advisable for him that he should come here. I don’t believe a half-a-minute “darshan” can change these habits. We have had bitter experience about them already, that they resist even a psychic opening. He must first have the sincere will to change.

Our love and blessings.

16 January 1940

* Just received and read your letter. Here is my answer.

Your nature is such that you will always wish to be where you are not. Your attraction for the Ashram life comes from the fact that you are far away from it. As soon as you would be back here you would feel restless again and the urge to run away. As Ramakrishna said, it is better to be far away from the Guru and constantly think of him rather than to remain near the Guru and think only of the world’s enjoyments.

When you will have risen above this condition and found in yourself your psychic being and its sincere and constant urge for the Divine, then it will be time to come back and to settle here for good.

10 June 1949

* We do not think the time has come for you for a permanent stay in the Ashram. It is best for you to come from time to time for darshan and prepare yourself. When the preparation is sufficient then you can come for a permanent stay.

You can be sure of our help and our love and blessings will be with you.

24 February 1941

* Sri Aurobindo asks me to tell you that it is better for you not to come to the Ashram immediately. The Yoga is difficult and to take an unprepared plunge into it might make it still more difficult. You should read first and understand the “Life Divine” and make sure that your resolution is on a firm basis and your mind and vital being ready to enter into a new inner life.

Our help will be with you and our blessings.

24 February 1941

* It is true that I have pardoned X, for the Divine Grace pardons everything, but it is true also that the coming of X’s wife and child here is absolutely out of the question, for many reasons of which one is sufficient — it is that nothing is more contagious than a bad example and I cannot allow the recurrence of such unhappy events.

6 June 1954

* One mistake you have made and it is the cause of all the trouble. Before going you ought to have spoken to me frankly and told me that you would be compelled to marry this young girl in order to bring her here. I might have advised you to try to avoid such an unpleasant necessity, but in any case the news of your marriage would not have come as a shock and created such a scandal.

Now, the best is to wait until X is cured of his illness and bring him with you; it will be for the Ashramites at least some proof of your sincerity.

We have prepared a lodging for Y with the little boy, and you will live separately.

You must learn by this experience that a courageous and straightforward frankness is always the best way of facing diffi-culties.

5 February 1955

* Where is your faith in the Divine? Having faith in the Divine you ought to rejoice that X has received the inner call and decided to lead the divine life; you ought to be made happy by this sign of the Divine’s Grace and feel grateful for it.

Quietly face the social difficulties with equality and cheerfulness; then you will know that my love and blessings are with you.

20 February 1955

* My dear children,

I have received your letter and appreciate your resolution. But in view of the difficulties you were experiencing here when you were living at the Ashram, I find it more advisable for you to wait some time and see whether you can rely upon the resolution you have made to join the Ashram. It would be better for you now to leave India if you cannot remain. If after some time you find that you still maintain the same resolution, write to me again and manage to come not with a tourist visa but a student or teacher visa.

If the truth is there it will never die out however adverse the circumstances.

Let the blessings of the Grace be always with you.

3 June 1957

* I am sorry, but for the moment we are not in a position to increase the number of inmates. It is already difficult to manage