Sri Aurobindo's Commentaries on Krishna, Buddha, Christ and Ramakrishna E-Book

Wilfried Huchzermeyer

• Herausgeber: Huchzermeyer, Wilfried
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2018

Seitenzahl: 160

Beschreibung

Sri Aurobindo has commented the lives and teachings of Krishna, Buddha, Christ and Ramakrishna in a large number of writings. In this present study his most important statements on the Avatars of the past are presented and discussed in detail along with utterances of the Mother which throw more light on the respective subjects. Thus we gain deep insight into Sri Aurobindo’s integral vision of the spiritual development of humanity and its future destiny.

Leseprobe

Verlag W. Huchzermeyer

Lessingstr. 64

76135 Karlsruhe

Germany

www.edition-sawitri.de

Acknowledgements:

Unless otherwise indicated all quotations and photographs of Mother and Sri Aurobindo are copyright of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Trust, Pondicherry, reproduced here with acknowledge-ments and thanks to the Trustees.

1st E-Book edition 2018

ISBN 978-3931172-43-5

© 2018 edition sawitri – Verlag W. Huchzermeyer, Karlsruhe

All rights reserved

Contents

Preface

Krishna in the Lives of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother

Sri Aurobindo’s Commentaries in His Letters

Krishna in the Essays on the Gita

Buddha and Buddhism

The Mother on Buddha and Buddhism

Christ and Christianity

The Mother on Christ and Christianity

Ramakrishna

Closing Words

Literature

Preface

There are numerous passages in Sri Aurobindo’s works in which he mentions in one breath Krishna, Buddha and Christ. Thus, in The Synthesis of Yoga for instance, he points out that our search for the Divine calls for an intermediary who is close to our own humanity and perceptible as a human influence and example. “This call is satisfied by the Divine manifest in a human appearance, the Incarnation, the Avatar – Krishna, Christ, Buddha.”[1] Furthermore, in a letter to a disciple he writes that the Avatar is someone who comes to open the way for humanity to a higher consciousness, and it must be a passable way, otherwise the whole concept “which is also that of Christ and Krishna and Buddha”, would be wrong or the whole life and action of the Avatar would be futile.[2] Apart from these three names, Ramakrishna too is called “Avatar” by Sri Aurobindo in a few passages and needs to be included in this study about the most powerful spiritual influences of the past.[3]

Sri Aurobindo’s commentaries on all of them indicate that he saw them as great personalities and messengers who came to earth with a special mission in order to support and speed up the evolution of humanity in one or another way. That is to say he looks at them from the viewpoint of his own evolutionary philosophy and his conviction that a life divine on earth is the highest destiny of humanity. Even though the Avatars may not have pursued this same goal, through their strong aura and radiance they have achieved some progress which is indispensable as a preliminary stage of his own objective of a supramental manifestation.

Thus, his interpretation of the life and work of the Avatars of the past is part of his integral worldview, in which manifold spiritual and cultural contributions of different periods and areas coalesce into a meaningful whole. On the basis of his evolutionary optimism, he delineates in his commentaries the Great Impulses which the divine messengers brought into the lives of humans. But again and again he also refers to developments in the respective later religions which he considers as unwholesome and which from his viewpoint were not intended by their “founders”, as we call them today. Moreover, in a few cases he also concedes that he does not agree with a particular approach or idea.

In his vision, it is part of the cosmic multiplicity if spiritual teachers come with their own particular mission in accordance with the need of the region and epoch. Once in a letter to a disciple he pleaded for leaving “each manifestation to its own inner world for those to follow who have an inner drawing to the one or the other.”[4] Thus, with his liberal mind he avoided getting drawn into any kind of sectarian narrowness. Closely following his commentaries, we realize that his ultimate purpose is to reveal the original, unifying Vedantic truth behind the Avatars’ messages.

This study presupposes a basic knowledge of Sri Aurobindo’s thought and terminology; we do not explain or discuss terms such as “supermind” or “transformation”. All the references are, if not otherwise stated, to the Complete Works of Sri Aurobindo (CWSA) and, in the Mother’s case, to the Collected Works of the Mother (CWM).[5] Our thanks are due to all those who made valuable suggestions for the book or helped with the editing and proof-reading.

Wilfried Huchzermeyer

[1] The Synthesis of Yoga, 65

[2] Letters on Yoga I, 476

[3] It is to be noted that Sri Aurobindo uses the term “Avatar” much more sparsely than is generally the case today.

[4] Letters on Yoga II, 505

[5] See Literature

I

Krishna

Krishna is the Eternal’s Personality of Ananda; because of him all creation is possible, because of his play, because of his delight, because of his sweetness.

Essays Divine and Human, 208

… He manifests the union of wisdom (Jnana) and works and leads the earth-evolution through this towards union with the Divine by Ananda, Love and Bhakti.

Letters on Yoga I, 460

1

Krishna in the Lives of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother

There are three events in Sri Aurobindo’s life wherein Krishna very obviously plays an important role: his imprisonment as a freedom fighter in the Alipore Jail (1908), with Krishna revealing himself to him in a living vision as omnipresent deity and addressing him in an inner message; his departure from Calcutta in 1910, after having received an Adesh from Krishna; and finally, in 1926 the descent of Krishna, the Godhead of Overmind, into the physical being. All of these events have been recorded by Sri Aurobindo in written statements, so we will only give a brief summary in what follows.

In his Uttarpara Speech after release from prison Sri Aurobindo reported about his “Vasudeva[6] experience”: He frankly admits that after the imprisonment he was somewhat shaken in his faith, but then he adjusted to the new situation, turning within and waiting for the voice of God to speak to him and guide him. He realized that there must be a purpose behind all these events, namely to get him detached from his former activities because there was another, more important thing for him to do. Then he had the living perception that “He” spoke to him once more, placing the Gita in his hands. Thereafter, “I was not only to understand intellectually but to realise what Srikrishna demanded of Arjuna and what He demands of those who aspire to do His work…”[7]

Sri Aurobindo then describes his experience of the Divine in all humans and things; he does not feel any more imprisoned by high walls, for it was “Vasudeva who surrounded me.”[8] When walking under the branches of a tree in front of his cell, it was Krishna whom he saw standing there and offering him shade. In his deeper vision he even recognizes Vasudeva now in the thieves and swindlers in the prison, and likewise he feels His presence in the Magistrate and Prosecuting Counsel. It is Krishna who now advises him to leave everything to Him and to stop giving instructions to his Counsel. Then, finally, there is the acquittal at the end of this living encounter with Krishna.

Once more he enters the scene of public life, though acting more cautiously now behind the curtain; he publishes many articles in two journals. The threat of renewed imprisonment remains and in mid-February 1910 an informer gives a hint to his group that his arrest is imminent. Later on Sri Aurobindo reported about the further developments as follows: “While I was listening to animated comments from those around on the approaching event, I suddenly received a command from above, in a Voice well known to me, in three words: ‘Go to Chandernagore’.”[9] Obviously, that Voice could only have been Krishna’s.

After a while, he proceeds to travel from Chandernagore to Pondicherry via Calcutta – a decisive turning-point in his life, involving withdrawal from political and public cultural life and full concentration on the spiritual endeavour. When a disciple once asked him why he had gone to Pondicherry (a rather desolate place at that time), he answered: “I could not question. It was Sri Krishna’s Adesh. I had to obey. Later I found it was for the Ashram and for the Work.”[10] Thus, Krishna’s intervention had brought about a final and irreversible caesura in his life: he now enters the path of integral yoga, trying to prepare a new stage in the evolution of humanity through a “supramental” realization in the field of consciousness.

More than fifteen years pass before the name of Krishna appears once more in Sri Aurobindo’s biography, on occasion of the “descent of Overmind” on 24 November 1926. Referring to this event, Sri Aurobindo stated in letters in 1935 that it was “the descent of Krishna into the physical”. And, furthermore, “The descent of Krishna would mean the descent of the Overmind Godhead preparing, though not itself actually, the descent of Supermind and Ananda. Krishna is the Anandamaya; he supports the evolution through the Overmind leading it towards Ananda.”[11]

There are also a few significant references to Krishna in his spiritual diary Record of Yoga. Thus he notes in an entry dated 18 April 1914: Srikrishnadarshana has now definitely established itself in the normal vision when the sight is full…” And on August 16 of the same year he notes: “The perception of Krishna everywhere and all as forms and names of his play is definitely and irrevocably established…” Two years later, on 5 March 1916 he writes: “The Krishna-consciousness is now perfectly normal and universal, though not as yet seated on the plane of the Vijnana[12] or Ananda, but only on the mental.”[13]

Some disciples of Sri Aurobindo were Krishna devotees, suffering an inner conflict regarding the question to whom they really owed their loyalty and surrender. However, Sri Aurobindo removed these doubts through numerous letters. Thus, on 18 June 1943 he informs a disciple:

I thought I had already told you that your turn towards Krishna was not an obstacle. In any case I affirm that positively in answer to your question. If we consider the large and indeed predominant part he played in my own Sadhana, it would be strange if the part he has in your Sadhana could be considered objectionable. Sectarianism is a matter of dogma, ritual etc., not of spiritual experience, the concentration on Krishna is a self-offering to the iṣṭ-deva. If you reach Krishna you reach the Divine; if you can give yourself to him, you give yourself to me.[14]

A disciple seems to have asked Sri Aurobindo whether he was greater than Krishna, whereupon he answered in February 1945 that he could not consider this kind of question as it would only be relevant if there would be “two sectarian religions in opposition, Aurobindoism and Vaishnavism”, which could evidently not be the case. Furthermore, Sri Aurobindo asks, what Krishna he would have to challenge – that of the Gita, the supreme transcendent as well as immanent Godhead, Purushottama or Vasudeva respectively, “or the Godhead who was incarnate at Brindavan and Dwarka and Kurukshetra and who was the guide of my Yoga and with whom I realised identity? All that is not to me something philosophical or mental but a matter of daily and hourly realisation and intimate to the stuff of my consciousness.”[15]

Very significant are also Sri Aurobindo’s statements on his own characteristic colour that can be perceived by humans gifted with that particular inner vision on the subtle-physical plane. In a letter he describes it as pale blue, which is the basic colour of his personality. Furthermore, in two letters he states that “whitish blue is Sri Aurobindo’s light or Krishna’s light.”[16]

Therefore, Sri Aurobindo’s close connection with Krishna is beyond doubt. In the following section we will add some quotations of the Mother which shed more light on this subject.

The Mother on Krishna and Sri Aurobindo

Already at the age of 12 the Mother had a series of spiritual experiences in course of which she met some teachers in the inner worlds. The relationship with one of them became very intensive and she called him “Krishna” and felt she would one day also meet him on the physical plane: it was Sri Aurobindo.[17]

At the age of about 21 she made the acquaintance of the Indian Jnanendranath Chakravarti who introduced her to the Bhagavad gita. He advised her to read the text, visualising Krishna as the Godhead immanent in everything, “and within a month the whole thing was done,”[18] even though she only had a very inadequate French translation of the Gita. In 1914 she was able to undertake her first journey to Pondicherry, and later reported about it: “As soon as I saw Sri Aurobindo I recognized in him the well-known being whom I used to call Krishna.”[19]

At a later stage, as the Mother of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, she had a series of personal encounters with Krishna in a visible form (on the subtle-physical plane). In this context it should be mentioned that due to her inner training and her clairvoyance she also had a large number of such experiences with other Indian Gods and Goddesses as for instance with Shiva, Durga and Ganesha. She reported about it in individual talks with some disciples. The following extracts were taken from the Mother’s Agenda.

There is a talk dated 2 August 1961 which is very significant in connection with the descent of Overmind on 24 November 1926.[20] The Mother first describes an experience which she had repeatedly when meditating with Ashram members in a hall in the Ashram: Many Gods and Goddesses used to assemble there, among them Shiva, Krishna, Lakshmi. “They all used to come regularly, every day, to attend these meditations. It was a lovely sight.” But the Gods, the Mother continues, had no sense of adoration, “they had none of those qualities that the psychic life gives: no deep love, no deep sympathy, no sense of union. They had only the sense of their own divinity. They had certain very particular movements, but not this adoration for the Supreme nor the feeling of being instruments: they felt they were representing the Supreme, and so each one was perfectly satisfied with his particular representation.”

But then she adds, in an incomplete sentence, “Except for Krishna...,” whereupon she proceeds to discuss the descent of the Overmind into Matter, mentioning that she asked the Gods to incarnate in a body. We may add as a commentary that this would have given them the psychic being, as Sri Aurobindo called it, in other words a living soul in the world of Becoming, connected with those qualities which the Gods normally lack. However, many of them absolutely refused to accept the proposal, among them Shiva, who said: “No, I will come only when you have finished your work. I will not come into the world as it is now, but I am ready to help.” On the other hand, Krishna’s reaction was quite different: “…With my own eyes I saw Krishna, who had always been in rapport with Sri Aurobindo, consent to come down into this body. It was on November 24th… Krishna consented to descend into Sri Aurobindo’s body – to be fixed there.”

When the Mother was asked in what sense this realization had marked a turning point in Sri Aurobindo’s Sadhana, she answered: “No, the phenomenon was important for the creation; he himself was rather indifferent to it. But I did tell him about it.” A little later she added that after the descent of Overmind and after Sri Aurobindo’s decision to withdraw for the further work, her English disciple Datta had an inspiration, declaring to the other members of the Ashram “that Krishna had incarnated and that Sri Aurobindo was now going to do an intensive sadhana for the descent of the Supermind; that it meant Krishna’s adherence to the Supra-mental Descent upon earth…”

Furthermore, she pointed out: “It was only… a participation from Krishna. It made no difference for Sri Aurobindo personally: it was a formation from the past that accepted to participate in the present creation, nothing more. It was a descent of the Supreme, from… some time back, now consenting to participate in the new manifestation.”

In another talk, dated 3 March 1960, the Mother reported that a flood of magnificent inner experiences was coming, and in the morning of 29 February, it was “one of those experiences that mark one’s life”:

It happened upstairs in my room. I was doing my japa,[21] walking up and down with my eyes wide open, when suddenly Krishna came – a gold Krishna, all golden, in a golden light that filled the whole room. I was walking, but I could not even see the windows or the rug any longer, for this golden light was everywhere with Krishna at its center. And it must have lasted at least fifteen minutes. He was dressed in those same clothes in which he is normally portrayed when he dances. He was all light, all dancing: “You see, I will be there this evening during the Darshan.”[22] And suddenly, the chair I use for darshan came into the room! Krishna climbed up onto it, and his eyes twinkled mischievously, as if to say, “I will be there, you see, and there’ll be no room for you.”[23]

There was another remarkable episode which the Mother related in a talk dated 18 June 1965. She refers to an experience in the past, when Sri Aurobindo was still there and she used to walk up and down alone on the verandah of the house in which she was staying, while Sri Aurobindo always remained in his room, where he was working. Nonetheless, she was not really “alone”:

Krishna was always there – Krishna, the God Krishna as he is known, but taller, more beautiful, and not with that ridiculous blue, you know, that slate blue! Not like that. And always, we always walked up and down together – we would walk together. He was just a little behind…; I was a little in front, as if my head was on his shoulder… and we would walk, we would communicate. That lasted more than a year, you know, every day. Then it ended. Afterwards I saw him from time to time… Sometimes at night when I was very tired, he would come and I would sleep on his shoulder. But I knew very well that it was a way Sri Aurobindo had of showing himself. Then when I came here [to Mother’s present room], Sri Aurobindo had left,[24] and I began walking up and down while reciting my mantra. Sri Aurobindo came, and he was at exactly the same place as Krishna was…. He was there, and we would walk together day after day, day after day.

In view of such experiences of the Mother it is not surprising that Sri Aurobindo in a letter to a disciple once called Krishna his “double”.[25] But based on his manifold utterances there is the impression that his Krishna experience was more cosmic-universal, whereas the Mother met him in a very personal and individual way. This is especially true of the vision described above, that of the Golden Krishna in her room where we seem to encounter the Bāla-Krishna of the Puranas, the always cheerful, prankish child.

But why has he been presented as a child, from a deeper perspective? The Mother once gave the following explanation in a talk with some students: