Sunday, January 26, 2014

Added focus on action over what Sri Aurobindo wrote - 3

The Mother passed away before the TV arrived in India and hence it was a sort of primitive age. The Internet today has transformed the Indian society to a huge degree. The type of professions has multiplied so also infotainment avenues. Pressure on youth for early success has robbed many options from life. So Yoga, as The Mother & Sri Aurobindo formulated it, is no more an easy proposition. Reading the detailed explanations of Parts of the Being spreading over several volumes is a remote exercise today. In short, Integral Yoga is far away from the priorities and preferences of the youth.

In contrast, some other religious camps are flourishing by imaginatively marketing recreational events and well-being modules. Being affiliated to influential sociopolitical organizations also raises profile as well as popularity. The Mother & Sri Aurobindo, however, have been averse to such techniques from the very beginning. The level of ethics they insist makes one unsuitable for team-spirit and group-dynamics. Thus to reconcile Yoga with ordinary demands of life or casual religious approach is an uphill task. Rise in prosperity is adding more hurdles to practicing simplicity.

The truth is that all these difficulties were not unknown to The Mother & Sri Aurobindo but without dealing with them theoretically no assured results for practice of Yoga can be offered. The safe heaven they created in the form of the Ashram is also in doldrums. So it can safely be concluded that their teachings are impractical both in theory as well as in practice. But fortunately, this conclusion has other implications. No other solution can be said to have any credible prospect and in comparison The Mother & Sri Aurobindo stand heads and shoulders above them in many respects. [TNM55]

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