Emergence of Savitri Era in the national scene is providential

[Creation therefore is not a making of something where nothing existed, but a selection and new formation out of existing material; not a sudden increase, but a continual rearrangement and substitution; not an arbitrary manufacture, but an orderly development…

When man has mastered the physical world and its forces, when the earth is his and the fullness thereof, he must turn his efforts towards mastering the world within himself. Instead of allowing the soul to use the body for its own ends, he must learn to master both soul and body and use them consciously for the purposes of the spirit, that Eternal Will and Wisdom which at present operates in secrecy, veiled with darkness within darkness and seeming even to be blind and hidden from itself. In the end he will be master of spirit, soul and body, a Jivanmukta using them at will for cosmic purposes or transcending them to feel his identity with the Self who is pure and absolute existence, consciousness and bliss. CWSA, Isha Upanishad, The Karmayogin, pp. 226-32 Spiritual Evolution in Brahman—by Sri Aurobindo by RY Deshpande on Sun 05 Feb 2012 03:30 AM IST Permanent Link]

[In search of a true leader: India needs a leader of stature and credibility, one who commands respect and is acceptable to all. As we march past yet another Republic Day, it is time we figured out what is wanting in most of our leaders claiming to fit the bill. Here are a few tips from the writings of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother.

The first and foremost requirement of a true leader is that he must be able to put aside what he wants, and wishes to know what God wants… He must have faith in the wisdom of divinity.

An important precondition is not to have one’s own personal interest as a goal. The first qualities needed are boldness, courage and perseverance. A true leader must be conscious that he knows nothing compared to what he ought to know, that he can do nothing compared to what he ought to do, that he is nothing compared to what he ought to be. PRAMOD PATHAK, The Pioneer Sunday Edition Agenda SPIRITUALITY Hiddensouls SATURDAY, 04 FEBRUARY 2012]

[A free and natural growth is the condition of genuine development. There are souls which naturally revolt from their surroundings and seems to belong to another age and clime. Let them be free to follow their bent; but the majority languish, become empty, become artificial, if artificially moulded into an alien form. It is God’s arrangement that they should belong to a particular nation, age, society, that they should be children of the past, possessors of the present, creators of the future.

The past is our foundation, the present our material, the future our aim and summit. Each must have its due and natural place in a national system of education. Excerpts from Aurobindo’s writings, The Pioneer Sunday Edition Agenda SPIRITUALITY Educating the mind and soul SRI AUROBINDO SATURDAY, 04 FEBRUARY 2012]

[The power of one - Indian Express Shekhar Gupta: Sat Jul 31 2010

It was something that Justice Verma said, while explaining the challenge of institution-building that should get us all thinking. An institution can rise to its true strength, and truly play the role the founding fathers mandated for it, only if it is led by a person “who has no past, and no expectation (of any reward) from anybody in the future”.

Someone who has no past and no greed for anything in the future? Simple enough, you might think. But it isn’t as simple as that. It is tough enough to find many people with nothing to hide in their pasts, so they are not prone to blackmail, or pressured by IOUs conceded. People who can judge a case, run an election, prosecute a criminal politician, investigate a corrupt bureaucrat effectively and fairly.

But where do you find someone who, in addition to this, would be willing to retire quietly into obscurity? Our system is much too brutal and clever to let such rare people rise anywhere close to the top. That is why it is only providentially, rather than by choice, that one such is put in charge of an institution. And then the institution changes, and rises to its true power.]

Emergence of Savitri Era in the national scene is not only providential but also a Hobson's choice. The Five Dreams are but to unfold in concrete details, and hence, the present chaos can never be an indication of their negation. The trick, however, is to hearken to earnest voices instead of chasing celebrities. [TNM55]