Instalment-50
The Supreme Being is, as we have seen, extremely happy with Savitri and her single-minded pursuit of her mission on earth as an Avatar, in spite of opposition, first, from the God of Death, and then from the Supreme Being itself. The Supreme Being now reveals to her who she and Satyavan really are and why they have been sent on earth. They are supposed to prepare man for the advent of the surpamental consciousness on earth.
What is the Supramental consciousness?
It is a consciousness beyond the mind, which the mind cannot comprehend and which as yet has no home on earth, no centre in man. But it is the source and the fount of the creation and of all its activities. It constantly keeps calling man to rise to its level and find fulfilment to all his aspirations. Some shall be the high forerunners and the first-born of the new celestial race embodying the supramental consciousness. Then shall the radiance of the new consciousness light up the heart and soul of man and his vital and physical parts too will respond to its touch. (This was where we concluded the preceding instalment.)
Then we have a group of 28 lines (line 1156 to line 1273) which bring in a theme which Sri Aurobindo frequently returns to – the three statuses of the Divine – the transcendental, the universal or cosmic, and the immanent or the individual. The poet looks at the new truth of the Supramental consciousness as seen from these three different standpoints.
Then shall the earth be touched by the Supreme,
His bright unveiled Transcendence shall illumine
The mind and heart and force the life and act
To interpret his inexpressible mystery
In a heavenly alphabet of Divinity's signs. (Page:705)
“The veil on the face of the Transcendent will be lifted, and the Transcendent consciousness will illumine the mind and heart and the life and act and this will look like inexpressible mystery interpreted in a heavenly alphabet of Divinity’s signs.”
His living cosmic spirit shall enring,
Annulling the decree of death and pain,
Erasing the formulas of the Ignorance,
With the deep meaning of beauty and life's hid sense,
The being ready for immortality,
His regard crossing infinity's mystic waves
Bring back to Nature her early joy to live,
The metred heart-beats of a lost delight,
The cry of a forgotten ecstasy,
The dance of the first world-creating Bliss. (Page:706)
Now the Supreme Being refers to the manifestation of the new consciousness at the universal or cosmic level. “The cosmic or universal manifestation of the new consciousness will put an end to the decree of death and pain; the formulas of the Ignorance which govern the universal level will be wiped out . When this happens, the deep meaning of beauty and the hidden sense behind life will be revealed . The human being who lives in this consciousness will be ready for immortality. His gaze will cross infinity’s mystic waves and bring back to Nature the joy she had in living, the metred heart-beats of lost delight, the cry of a forgotten mystery, the dance of the bliss which first created this world.”
The Immanent shall be the witness God
Watching on his many-petalled lotus-throne
His actionless being and his silent might
Ruling earth-nature by eternity's law,
A thinker waking the Inconscient's world,
An immobile centre of many infinitudes
In his thousand-pillared temple by Time's sea.
Then shall the embodied being live as one
Who is a thought, a will of the Divine,
A mask or robe of his divinity,
An instrument and partner of his Force,
A point or line drawn in the infinite,
A manifest of the Imperishable. (Page: 706)
“The Immanent God or the Divine in the individual will have two poises, one that of the witness watching from his many-petalled lotus-throne, his static being and silent might ruling earth-nature by the laws of Eternal. The other is the poise of a thinker awakening the world of the Inconscient to many infinitudes in its multitudinous temple-creation on the shores of the sea of Time. Then as an embodied being, the new consciousness will live as one who is a thought, a will of the Divine, a mask or a robe of his divinity, an instrument and partner of his Force, a point or a line drawn in the infinite, a manifestation of the Imperishable."
After this the Supreme Being returns to prophesying.
The supermind shall be his nature's fount,
The Eternal's truth shall mould his thoughts and acts,
The Eternal's truth shall be his light and guide.
All then shall change, a magic order come
Overtopping this mechanical universe.
A mightier race shall inhabit the mortal's world.
On Nature's luminous tops, on the Spirit's ground,
The superman shall reign as king of life,
Make earth almost the mate and peer of heaven,
And lead towards God and truth man's ignorant heart
And lift towards godhead his mortality. (Page :706)
“The supermind shall be his nature’s fount, the Eternal’s Truth shall mould man’s thoughts and acts, the Eternal’s truth shall be his light and guide. All shall then change and a magic order will come overtopping this mechanical universe. A mightier race shall inhabit the human world. On Nature’s luminous tops, on the Spirit’s ground, the superman shall reign as king of life; he will make earth almost the mate and peer of heaven, and lead towards God and truth man’s ignorant heart and lift his mortality towards godhead.”
[These are some of the lines often quoted to explain the aims of Sri Aurobindo’s Yoga. We have been told in lines 1252 and 1253 that the new consciousness will annul “the decree of death and pain” and erase “the formula of the Ignorance”. In Canto Two of Book I, this was also mentioned as the mission of Savitri on earth:
For this she had accepted mortal breath;
To wrestle with the Shadow she had come
And must confront the riddle of man’s birth
And life’s brief struggle in dumb Matter’s night.
Whether to bear with Ignorance and death
Or hew the ways of Immortality,
To win or lose the godlike game for man,
Was her soul’s issue thrown with Destiny’s dice.
But not to submit and suffer was she born;
To lead, to deliver was her glorious part.
Here was no fabric of terrestrial make
Fit for a day’s use by busy careless Powers. (Page: 17)
The Supreme Being confirms here in the lines we quoted above from page 706 that Savitri was sent down to earth precisely for this purpose and she was now on her way to fulfill this aim.
It has to be remembered that the conquest of death does not imply that one is very much attached to one’s body and even turns to Yoga to keep living in the same body for ever. This would be seeking spiritual life for the most, or grossest material benefit. One cannot be said to have even begun one’s spiritual life, as long as one has this attachment to the body. Then what is the justification of seeking immortality for the body? The aim of Integral Yoga taught by Sri Aurobindo and the Mother is first, to realize the Divine and second, to manifest him at all levels of our being. This second aim, if achieved, will ensure that we become integrally divine, and no part of us is left behind in the Ignorance. Since we seek identification with the Divine in all the parts of our being, we cannot deny this transformation or divinisation to our physical body; the body too has to be released from the clutches of the Ignorance. This can only happen when the new consciousness (the Supramental consciousness) inundates our body as well. Thus the conquest of death is an indication that the whole of our being has been possessed by the Divine, and the Inconscient has no hold on any part of our being.
All then shall change, a magic order come
Overtopping this mechanical universe.
A mightier race shall inhabit the mortal's world.
On Nature's luminous tops, on the Spirit's ground,
The superman shall reign as king of life,
Make earth almost the mate and peer of heaven,
And lead towards God and truth man's ignorant heart
And lift towards godhead his mortality. (Page: 706)
These are some of the lines already quoted above. When the new consciousness descends on earth, everything will change, because the mechanical laws that now govern life on earth will be replaced by the laws of the Higher or Divine Nature. Gradually the human race will be replaced by a mightier race, and earth will become a companion of heaven, and man’s ignorant heart will be led towards its Divine destiny. Making earth almost “the mate and peer of heaven” has always been an aim of his Yoga that has been dear to Sri Aurobindo for a long time. In one of his letters written to the Mother when she was in Japan (and this was before 1920) Sri Aurobindo said, “heavens we have possessed, but it is the earth we have yet to possess, and the aim of Yoga is to make, in the language of the Veda, heaven and earth equal and one.”]
A power released from circumscribing bounds,
Its height pushed up beyond death’s hungry reach,
Life’s tops shall flame with the Immortal’s thoughts,
Light shall invade the darkness of its base.
Then in the process of evolving Time
All shall be drawn into a single plan,
A divine harmony shall be earth’s law,
Beauty and joy remould her way to live:
Even the body shall remember God,
Nature shall draw back from mortality
And Spirit’s fires shall guide the earth’s blind force;
Knowledge shall bring into the aspirant Thought
A high proximity to Truth and God. (Page 707)
“Life will then be a power released from the various restricting bonds of Ignorance and its heights will be pushed up to a level which is beyond the hungry reach of death. The tops of Life will be ablaze with the Immortal’s thoughts, and Light shall invade the darkness at the base of Life. Then as evolution proceeds, all shall be drawn into a single plan. All the laws of earth will be illumined by a divine harmony, and beauty and joy will remould Life. Even the body will not be left behind from this consummation. It will remember that it too is a manifestation of the divine. The luminous fires of the Spirit shall guide the blind force of the earth. Knowledge shall lead all aspiring thought to a nearness to Truth and God.”
The supermind shall claim the world for Light
And thrill with love of God the enamoured heart
And place Light’s crown on Nature’s lifted head
And found Light’s reign on her unshaking base.
A greater truth than earth’s shall roof-in earth
And shed its sunlight on the roads of mind;
A power infallible shall lead the thought,
A seeing Puissance govern life and act,
In earthly hearts kindle the Immortal’s fire. (Page:707)
“The supermind shall establish its claim on earth and illumine everything here with its light; then the captivated heart of Nature will thrill with the love of God; it shall put Light’s crown on Nature’s raised head and establish the reign of Light on her unshaking base. A greater truth than the one the earth has found so far shall cover the earth and the roads to the mind will be lit up by this Light. An infallible power shall lead the thought; a conscious Power shall govern life and action and the Immortal’s power shall be kindled in human hearts.”
A soul shall wake in the Inconscient’s house;
The mind shall be God-vision’s tabernacle,
The body intuition’s instrument,
And life a channel for God’s visible power.
All earth shall be the Spirit’s manifest home,
Hidden no more by the body and the life,
Hidden no more by the mind’s ignorance;
An unerring Hand shall shape event and act.
The Spirit’s eyes shall look through Nature’s eyes,
The Spirit’s force shall occupy Nature’s force.
“A soul shall awake in the very home of the Inconscient, and the mind shall be the living abode of God-vision, and even the body shall be an instrument of intuition and life itself a channel for the manifest power of God. The whole of earth shall be the unmistakable home of the Spirit, which will be no longer hidden by the body and the life, nor by the mind’s ignorance. Every event and act shall be shaped by an unerring guiding hand. The Spirit’s eyes shall look through Nature’s eyes and the Spirit’s force shall flow through the forces of Nature.”
[One of the reasons for the tardiness of the progress of evolution on earth is the total darkness of the Inconscient. No matter how hard the other parts of man’s being try, the darkness of the Inconscient pulls man back to his Inconscient base, as it were. But with the advent of the Supramental consciousness, this will gradually change because this new consciousness will cleanse the Inconscient and make it more responsive to the evolutionary urge. In fact, this is the only consciousness which has the power to reach into the abyss of the Inconscient and cleanse it. The mental consciousness can neither reach to this depth nor does it possess the capacity to cleanse the Augean stables there. The purification of the Inconscient base will help man’s body, life-energies and the mind to respond more positively to the onward push of the evolutionary urge. When this change takes place, in the unending war that is going on in man’s heart between the forces of Good and the forces of Evil, the former will be strengthened and they will ultimately triumph.]
This world shall be God’s visible garden-house,
The earth shall be a field and camp of God,
Man shall forget consent to mortality
And his embodied frail impermanence.
This universe shall unseal its occult sense,
Creation’s process change its antique front,
An ignorant evolution’s hierarchy
Release the Wisdom chained below its base. (Pages: 707-708)
“This world shall be God’s visible garden-house, the earth shall be a field and camp of God; man shall no more give his consent to mortality, and will cease to look upon himself as a frail transient being. The universe shall then reveal its hidden meaning, creation’s process shall change its age-old appearance and finally out of the hierarchy of evolution in ignorance, the wisdom chained below its base will be released.”
The Spirit shall be the master of his world
Lurking no more in form's obscurity
And Nature shall reverse her action's rule,
The outward world disclose the Truth it veils;
All things shall manifest the covert God,
All shall reveal the Spirit's light and might
And move to its destiny of felicity. (Page: 708)
“The Spirit which is now lurking in the obscurity of form will come out and be the master of this world; Nature shall reverse the process of its action, and the external forms shall readily reveal the truth they have veiled. All things shall openly manifest the God so far hidden within them. All shall reveal the light and might of the Spirit embodied in them and move towards the destined goal of felicity.”
Even should a hostile force cling to its reign
And claim its right's perpetual sovereignty
And man refuse his high spiritual fate,
Yet shall the secret Truth in things prevail.
The hour must come of the Transcendent's will: (Page 708)
“Even if an adverse force were to try to cling to its reign and claim its right to permanent sovereignty over this earth and even if man were to refuse his high spiritual destiny, still, the secret Truth in things will prevail finally. For the hour must come when the will of the Transcendent Supreme has to establish itself on earth.”
[You will recall that earlier in this very canto, when the Supreme Being was testing Savitri’s resolve, he had wondered whether Savitri’s attempt to take the whole of mankind to a higher level of consciousness would ever succeed. He had pointed out to her that only ‘A few can climb to an unperishing sun’ because ‘The heroes and demigods are few/to whom the immortal voices speak’ and that very few hear the heaven’s call; besides, most people, even when they answer to the touch of greater things, in an uplifting hour of stress, slide back to the mud from which they climbed, in the mud of which they are made. They all feel safe when they return to their base. Most people seek the average human pitch and are extremely wary of rising to any higher plane of consciousness. (Lines 644 to 669, Canto One, Book Eleven). This is also the reason why the glorious work done by many saints and God-men on earth does not seem to leave any permanent mark on humanity. Savitri of course doesn’t pay much heed to this objection – obviously a trap set for her. Here the Supreme Being himself answers this question. And the answer is that no matter how average human beings are and how much in love they are with ignorance, when its hour strikes, the Transcendent’s will shall impose itself on earth and the new consciousness will be established in mankind, whether man likes it or not.]
All turns and winds towards his predestined ends
In Nature's fixed inevitable course
Decreed since the beginning of the worlds
In the deep essence of created things:
Even there shall come as a high crown of all
The end of Death, the death of Ignorance. (Page: 708)
“Nature’s course has been fixed, sanctioned and decreed from the very beginning of the worlds in the core of created things; its turns and winds are so designed as to take this world to its predestined ends; and it shall one day reach the high crown of all – the end of Death and the death of Ignorance.”
But first high Truth must set her feet on earth
And man aspire to the Eternal's light
And all his members feel the Spirit's touch
And all his life obey an inner Force.
This too shall be; for a new life shall come,
A body of the Superconscient's truth,
A native field of Supernature's mights:
It shall make earth's nescient ground Truth's colony,
Make even the Ignorance a transparent robe
Through which shall shine the brilliant limbs of Truth
And Truth shall be a sun on Nature's head
And Truth shall be the guide of Nature's steps
And Truth shall gaze out of her nether deeps.
When superman is born as Nature's king. (Page:708)
“But before this consummation can come about, the high Truth must first descend on earth and man must aspire for the light of the Eternal, and all the parts of his being must feel and respond to the touch of the Spirit and all his vital movements must obey the inner Force of the Spirit. And this too shall come to happen, for a new life shall come. It shall be a native field for the play of the powers of Supernature. It shall make earth’s nescient base a colony of Truth and make even Ignorance a transparent robe through which the radiant limbs of truth shall shine. The sun of Truth shall shine at the head of Nature, and Truth shall guide the steps of Nature.”
