Sri Krishna and Sri Aurobindo (2)

Further when a disciple wrote to Sri Aurobindo, “I find no harm if I repeat the name of Sri Krishna whose very being has taken the form of our Lord Sri Aurobindo and his Parashakti the Mother.” Sri Aurobindo replied, “There is no harm in that; it is not incompatible or inconsistent with this yoga.” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 35)  

In another very telling letter dated 25.02.1945, Sri Aurobindo writes: “You can’t expect me to argue about my own spiritual greatness in comparision with Krishna’s. The question itself would be relevant only if there were two sectarian religions in opposition, Aurobindoism and Vaishnavism, each insisting on its own God’s greatness. That is not the case. And then what Krishna must I challenge, — the Krishna of the Purushottama, the Cosmic Deity, master of the Universe, Vasudeva who is all, the immanent in the heart of all creatures, or the Godhead who was incarnate at Brindavan and Dwarka and Kurukshetra and who was the guide of my yoga and with whom I realized 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…” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 35)  

When a disciple wrote to Sri Aurobindo, “If a man has transformed his nature, he couldn’t have done it all by himself, as you have done.” He replied “I also did not do it all by myself, if you mean by myself the Aurobindo that was. He did it by the help of Krishna and the Divine Shakti. I had help from human sources also.” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 35)  

On being asked by disciple during the course of Evening Talks, “We have heard that you received guidance from Sri Krishna in your sadhana: was it from Sri Krishna of the Brindavan or of Kurushetra?” Sri Aurobindo answered, “I should think it was of Kurukshetra Krishna.” (Evening Talks)  

In talking about the blue light of Sri Krishna, Sri Aurobindo again gives glimpses of his identification with Sri Krishna. In a letter of March 1934, he says, “There are many blues and it is difficult to say which these are. Usually deeper blue is higher mind, a paler blue illumined mind – whitish blue Sri Krishna’s light (also called Sri Aurobindo’s light). (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 35)  

And in another letter of 06.02.1935, he writes, “It depends on the shade of the blue. Ordinary pale blue is usually the light of the illumined Mind or something of the Intuition. Whitish blue is Sri Aurobindo’s light or Krishna’s light.” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 35)  

A few examples from Sri Aurobindo’s Record of Yoga, will also show the intimacy and identity between Sri Krishna and him. Sri Aurobindo writes in entry dated 18.04.1914: “Sri Krishna darshana has now definitely established itself as the normal vision when the sight is full, but the saguna Brahman with or without the Nara tends to persist or recur.” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 10-11)  

On 16.08.1914 he writes: “The perception of Krishna everywhere and all as forms and names of his play is definitely and irrevocably established…….” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 10-11)  

Between January 1 and February 27 1915, he writes: “Everything being now seen as the play of the Lilamaya Krishna, revolt is no longer possible. It is also seen that all forces, all experiences act and occur, succeed and fail in pursuance of his self-fulfilment in the world.” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 10-11)  

Again on 25 June 1915 he writes: “Krishna darshana is moving steadily towards its full and fixed intensity.” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 10-11)  

And on 5 March 1916, he writes: “The Krishna-consciousness is now perfectly normal and universal, though not as yet seated on the place of the Vijnana or Ananda, but only on the mental.” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 10-11)  

In conversations with Satprem as recorded in the Agenda, the Mother has also shed very interesting light on Sri Krishna and Sri Aurobindo. In conversation dated 18 June 1965, talking about Sri Krishna, She says: “……Sometimes I walked with him for hours in conversation. At night when I was very tired from my work, he would come and sit on the edge of my bed, I would put my head on his shoulder and fall asleep. And it lasted for years and years and years, you know—not just once by chance.” (The Mother’s Agenda 5)  

And most telling are the Mother’s experiences in her early days in France, when she would meet many personalities and teachers in the occult and she developed an affinity for one particular personality, with whom she knew she would be working on the earth, and whom she was led by her inner being to call Krishna. The first time the Mother met Sri Aurobindo, she immediately recognized him as the one she used to call Krishna.  

Here are the Mother’s own words: “Between 11 and 13, a series of psychic and spiritual experiences revealed to me not only the existence of God but man’s possibility of uniting with Him, of realising Him integrally in consciousness and action, of manifesting Him upon earth in a life divine. This, along with a practical discipline for its fulfillment, was given to me during my body’s sleep by several teachers, some of whom I met afterwards on the physical plane.  

“Later on, as the interior and exterior development proceeded, the spiritual and psychic relation with one of these beings became more and more clear and frequent; and although I knew little of the Indian philosophies and religions at that time I was led to call him Krishna, and henceforth I was aware that it was with him (whom I knew I should meet on earth one day) that the divine work was to be done.  

“In the year 1910 my husband came alone to Pondicherry where, under very interesting and peculiar circumstances, he made the acquaintance of Sri Aurobindo. Since then we both strongly wished to return to India—the country which I had always cherished as my true mother-country. And in 1914 this joy was granted to us.  

“As soon as I saw Sri Aurobindo I recognized in him the well known being whom I used to call Krishna.... And this is enough to explain why I am fully convinced that my place and my work are near him, in India.” (Words Of The Mother, Collected Works of the Mother, Vol 13)  

In the final part of the talk, we analyze the meaning of 24th November 1926, known and celebrated in the Ashram as Sidhi day (day of victory) and one of the Darshan days. What is it that happened on this day? What light does it throw on the identity between Sri Krishna and Sri Aurobindo?  

A disciple asked Sri Aurobindo in a letter dated 15th September 1935, “What exactly is the significance of the 24th November? Overmental, supramental realisation or what? You say it was something like the descent of Krishna in the material. Some say the descent was in you but you are not matter, are you? Not very clear?” Sri Aurobindo replied: “Why not? Why can’t I be matter? Or represent it at least? At least you will admit that I have got some matter in me and you will hardly deny that the matter in me is connected or even continuous (in spite of the quantum theory) with matter in general? Well, if Krishna or the Overmind or something equivalent descended into my matter with an inevitable extension into connected general matter, what is the lack of clarity in the statement of a descent into the material?” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 35)  

Another disciple asked in a letter of 2nd November 1935, “Some say November 24th is a day of victory. By that some mean that the Supermind (supramental consciousness) descended into the physical consciousness of Sri Aurobindo. Others say it was the coming down of Krishna into the physical Consciousness. If it was the descent of Krishna, does that mean the descent of the supramental light?” Sri Aurobindo replied: “Krishna is not the supramental light. The descent of Krishna would mean the descent of the overmind Godhead preparing, though not itself actually bringing, the descent of supermind and Ananda. Krishna is the Anandmaya, he supports the evolution through the overmind leading it towards his Ananda.” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 35)  

Another disciple wrote: “I knew that Krishna is not the supermind. But because some say it was the descent of the supramental light and some say it was the descent of Krishna, I asked you to make it clear to me. What I wanted to know was whether the 24th November was the descent of the supramental light or of Krishna’s light? Why are we observing the 24th as a special day?” Sri Aurobindo replied: “It was the descent of Krishna into the physical.” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 35)  

Then again a disciple of Sri Aurobindo wrote an article on the significance of the realisation of 24th November 1926, in which he quoted the following passage from the Life Divine. “In order that the involved principles of overmind and supermind should emerge from their veiled secrecy, the being and powers of the superconscience must descend into us and uplift us and formulate themselves in our being and powers, this descent is a sine qua non of the transition and transformation.” The disciple concluded: This is referred to in the Vedas as the birth of the gods in men, devnam janimami; Sri Aurobindo regards it as indispensable for supramental realisation on earth. It was this that occurred on the 24th November 1926, and it is only then that Sri Aurobindo started his Ashram, being sure that with the co-operation of the gods the supermind can descend upon earth. Sri Aurobindo replied: “What happened on the 24th November prepared the possibility of this descent and on that day, he retired into seclusion and entered into deep and powerful meditation” (Collected Works of Sri Aurobindo, Vol 35) 

In a conversation dated 2nd August 1961 with Satprem, the Mother explains the inner and outer significance of 24th November 1926.  

“…….In 1926, I had begun a sort of overmental creation, that is, I had brought the overmind down into matter, here on earth (miracles and all kinds of things were beginning to happen.) I asked all these gods to incarnate, to identify themselves with a body (some of them absolutely refused.) Well, with my very own eyes I saw Krishna, who had always been in rapport with Sri Aurobindo, consent to come down into his body. It was on November 24th, and it was the beginning of ‘Mother’.  

Disciple: Yes, in fact I wanted to ask you what this realization of 1926 was.  

Mother: It was this: Krishna consented to descend into Sri Aurobindo’s body — to be fixed there; there is a great difference, you understand, between incarnating, being fixed in a body, and simply acting as an influence that comes and goes and moves about. The gods are always moving about, and it’s plain that we ourselves, in our inner beings, come and go and act in a hundred or thousand places at once. There is a difference between just coming occasionally and accepting to be permanently tied to a body — between a permanent influence and a permanent presence.  

Disciple: But in what sense did this realisation mark a turning point in Sri Aurobindo’s sadhana?  

Mother: No, the phenomenon was important FOR THE CREATION; he himself was rather indifferent to it………After a while, I too began having meditations with people. I had begun a sort of overmental creation, to make each god descend into a being — there was an extraordinary upward curve! Well, I was in contact with these beings and I told Krishna (because I was always seeing him around Sri Aurobindo.) ‘This is all very fine, but what I want now is a creation on earth — you must incarnate.’ He said ‘Yes.’ Then I saw him — I saw him with my own eyes (inner eyes, of course), join himself to Sri Aurobindo.  

That was in 1926.  

And at another time, while commenting on aphorism no 427 — I did not know for some time whether I loved Krishna best or Kali; when I loved Kali, it was loving myself, but when I loved Krishna, I loved another; and still it was myself with whom I was in love. Therefore I came to love Krishna better even than Kali . Mother said: What exactly does he mean? I don’t understand…..He writes as if he felt identified with Kali more than with Krishna. Yet (and he told me so) there was something of Krishna in him… I never heard Sri Aurobindo tell me about those things (Kali and Krishna). I know there was something of Krishna — he told me so and I saw it: it was what I saw, and he confirmed it, he told me. There was even a day when he felt Krishna IN him… (The Mother’s Agenda 11)  

From the above we can conclude that on 24th November 1926, Sri Krishna incarnated into Sri Aurobindo’s body and as stated by Georges Van Vrekhem in his book ‘The Mother’, for 24 years, till 5th December 1950, Sri Krishna was in a body on the earth and practically no one knew on the whole earth. The identification was complete.  

[ This article has been edited for Satyameva. We were unable to find a link to the original – Ed. ]