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Attempts to create an “Aurobindonian religion”:
Sri Aurobindo and The Mother have unambiguously stated that their ideals, teachings and the institutions that they have founded do not belong to any religion or religious body, in any name or form.
For instance, in Sri Aurobindo’s own words (The Teaching and the Ashram of Sri Aurobindo, 1934, p. 6): “The Ashram is not a religious association. Those who are here come from all religions and some are of no religion. There is no creed or set of dogmas, no governing religious body; there are only the teachings of Sri Aurobindo and certain psychological practices of concentration and meditation, etc., for the enlarging of the consciousness, receptivity to the Truth, mastery over the desires, the discovery of the divine self and consciousness concealed within each human being, a higher evolution of the nature.”
For whatever is it’s worth – especially in the realm of spirituality – there is even a judgment of the Supreme Court of India, S.P. Mittal Etc. Etc. vs. Union of India, 1982 (http://judis.nic.in/supremecourt/imgs.aspx), that has established that Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s ideals, teachings and the institutions that they have founded do not belong to any religion or religious institution.
There are numerous other instances where Sri Aurobindo and The Mother have unambiguously stated that their ideals, teachings and the institutions that they have founded have nothing to do with religion. There is even nothing in their teachings and works to suggest that they wanted their followers to create a new religion or establish religious institutions.
Nevertheless, Myths and Falsehoods that suggest that Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s ideals, teachings and the institutions that they have founded belong to some form of a new “Aurobindonian religion” continue to be spun, encouraged and propagated by some individuals or by groups that have similar interests. Persistent attempts to reduce Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s work – which they clearly enunciated belongs to the vast, non-religious realm of Spirituality – to a Religion, can be witnessed. This can be seen particularly in the dogmatic attitudes that are encouraged by those who wish to establish such a creed. For instance, the logic and culture of “hurt (religious) sentiments” and the polarization and exploitation of opinions based on such hurt feelings is gradually but systematically being cultivated in the Aurobindonian collective by those seeking to establish such a doctrine… and all that goes with it.
Just because some or even several followers of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother chose to follow their Masters by treading a path that is based on a religious sentiment, attitude or approach, does not mean that the Myth and Falsehood of such a new religion shall someday become a reality. For whilst the vastness of Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s ideals, teachings and their institutions can and do accommodate such religious attitudes and sentiments – without any intolerance whatsoever – so far they have however proved to be just too vast to get reduced to the limited confines of Religion in whichever name or form.
The reasons for which the creation of these Myths and Falsehoods is being attempted is left to the understanding of the reader. But it can be clearly affirmed that an “Aurobindonian religion” or a religion that is based on Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s teachings is a Myth which is nothing short of a Falsehood.
Auro Truths 
From The Mother’s Agenda:
March 6, 1965
(Mother looks at a letter not yet opened)
Mother: I wrote something to K. and he must have replied … very indignantly, no doubt!
Satprem: What did you tell him?
(Mother looks for a note)
Mother: “We have faith in Sri Aurobindo, he represents for us something that we formulate for ourselves with the words we find the most adequate to express our experience. For us those words are obviously the best to formulate our experience. But if in our enthusiasm we were convinced that they are the only ones suitable to express correctly what Sri Aurobindo is and the experience he gave us, we would become dogmatic and would be on the verge of founding a religion.”
Satprem: Oh, yes, indeed!
Mother: I had written to him (he had read something in White Roses) and he had answered me (he was indignant), “How can you say that Sri Aurobindo doesn’t express the WHOLE Lord, that Sri Aurobindo is only a part of the Lord!” I didn’t answer directly, I told him, “Take care not to become dogmatic….” And he has never understood anything.
Reblogged this on Skylight.
In the interest of truth, it needs to be mentioned that the Supreme Court judgment in the S.P. Mittal etc. vs. Union of India case referred to above includes the considered dissenting verdict of considerable length (and of no inconsiderable significance) by Justice O. Chinnappa Reddy. A discussion on the same, however, can throw much light on this contentious topic and dispel doubts and misunderstandings. [TNM55]
Dear TNM,
A discussion on the topic of Religion in the context of Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s Integral Yoga is welcome, if deemed necessary. However, we are of the opinion that it is better to establish and lay down the facts before engaging in unending debates.
With regards to the Supreme Court Judgment, one can keep arguing about matters of Religion and Spirituality forever as these are merely a play of words. But for those who choose to play with words and the Law that is defined by these words, the Supreme Court Judgment establishes that enough has been said and argued on this subject and this matter can now be laid to rest, unless this Judgment is now sought to be reviewed or challenged.
Moreover, in the interest of Truth let us not get distracted by the never-ending arguments of legal experts or the polemics of self-appointed custodians of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother. Let us instead pay heed to the words and actions of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother who have:
– Clearly stated that the ideals, teachings and the institutions they founded were not part of any religion whatsoever. They also acted according to these principles.
– Have clarified that it is not their purpose to propagate any religion, new or old.
– Unequivocally discouraged their followers from being religious.
These are the undisputed facts and the only ones that matter.
But in case there is any information that is to the contrary, you or others are invited to present it here, as the purpose of this website is to present information that is factual and truthful.
However, we would like to add that we are of the opinion that if some of Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s followers wish to establish a new religion in the name, ideals or teachings of their Masters, they are of course free and welcome to attempt it. It is entirely up to them to try and reconcile their preferred personal beliefs and intentions while going against the directions and guidance of their Masters. If this is the path that these followers choose, so be it.
But there is absolutely no reason or justification for the rest of the followers to get misled by a few individuals who wish to further their personal views and preferences by creating the Myths of a non-existent religious movement.
Editors, Auro Truths.
Thanks for the well-rounded reply. More so, for clarifying that there is room for alternative perceptions and practices as against the implied monolithism of the original post. A more tolerant posture towards this plurality, however, will go a long way in encouraging “interesting, constructive and convincing” innovations. [TNM55]
Truth and Facts have the inherent property of being monolithic. It is the perceptions of these that have various shades. Each perception has its purpose as well as its place and it is therefore only natural that one should be tolerant to each of these perceptions. However, when one of these singular perceptions tries to mask or take over the Truth and Facts that it originates from and seeks to impose an exclusive right over it, that perception inevitably looses its plurality; such a perception then becomes neither interesting, nor convincing or constructive.
“I may say that it is far from my purpose to propagate any religion new or old for humanity in the future. A way to be opened that is still blocked, not a religion to be founded, is my conception of the matter.”
Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Himself and the Ashram, p. 696 (also SABCL 22: 139).
[In time, a whole set of beliefs and rituals began to be built up around Sri Aurobindo and more so, around The Mother. The death of each of them caused dismay and disappointment among large sections of the faithful. Many had grown to believe that some miraculous transformation of the physical bodies of their Gurus and through them of the disciples themselves was in the offing. Naturally these devotees were disheartened when this did not happen in the manner they had come to expect.
Besides, a whole theology began to be developed, especially because of the extensive records of what Sri Aurobindo and The Mother had said…This theology not only asserts the Avatarhood or Divine Incarnation of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother, but builds around them a special cult of worship and devotion…
Like the early Christians whose lives were lived in hope and anticipation of the Second Coming and the Day of Judgement, the disciples of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother also believed that the promised fulfillment of all their hopes and aspirations was imminent. A series of pronouncements by both Sri Aurobindo and The Mother…certainly contributed to the sense of constant awe and expectation in the ashram community…
It needs to be acknowledged that though both Sri Aurobindo and The Mother repeatedly warned against the creation of a cult around them, they themselves encouraged it in several ways. Sri Aurobindo himself deified The Mother and vice versa.
From The Introduction, The Penguin Sri Aurobindo Reader, 1999 Edited by Makarand Paranjape, a critical insider.]
http://selforum.blogspot.in/2006/08/sri-aurobindo-and-his-followers.html
Dear TNM,
Thank you for your comment. However, we would like to take this opportunity to inform you that we do not wish to encourage re-blogging on this site as we prefer that this site should instead have original content.
Regarding Makarand Paranjape’s opinion that “though both Sri Aurobindo and The Mother repeatedly warned against the creation of a cult around them, they themselves encouraged it in several ways. Sri Aurobindo himself deified The Mother and vice versa…” it must be said that just because Makarannd Paranjape thinks that They encouraged a cult, it doesn’t mean that it was so. Those who opine upon and judge Sri Aurobindo and The Mother superficially are likely to derive conclusions that differ from those clearly spelled out by Sri Aurobindo and The Mother Themselves. We therefore do not need a Makarand Paranjape to tell us whether Sri Aurobindo and The Mother contradicted themselves or not.
For instance, The Mother in her own words said (Words of the Mother-I, 2004 ed., p. 110): “Here we do not have religion. We replace religion by the spiritual life, which is truer, deeper and higher at the same time, that is to say, closer to the Divine. For the Divine is in everything, but we are not conscious of it. This is the immense progress that man must make.” But we can understand that for those who cannot distinguish the difference between Spirituality and Religion, Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s words and actions might be confusing. But if such people are really interested in understanding Sri Aurobindo and The Mother, isn’t it their responsibility to make the effort to raise their level of understanding and come closer to what They clearly stated, rather than to drag Them down to one’s own level of understanding?
Editors, Auro Truths.
[better to establish and lay down the facts before engaging in unending debates… But in case there is any information that is to the contrary, you or others are invited to present it here]
Being the host, it’s your privilege to be dismissive or patronizing, but we are dealing with opinions only – be it legal or journalistic, yours or mine – in the absence of self-evident facts. You perhaps prefer “Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s words and actions” as frozen, whereas Paranjape captures the mutation theresince, thus encapsulating the contemporary reality. It is pragmatic therefore, instead of living in a fool’s paradise with symptoms of selective amnesia, we start from square one and seek transformation courtesy the magnet. [TNM55]
Dear TNM,
You say:
“we are dealing with opinions only… in the absence of self-evident facts…”
The following statement of The Mother (Words of the Mother-I, 2004 ed., p. 110):
“Here we do not have religion. We replace religion by the spiritual life, which is truer, deeper and higher at the same time, that is to say, closer to the Divine.”
is not a mere opinion. This is a self-evident fact to ascertain that Their spiritual path is not a religion.
But if you prefer to follow some mutated interpretations because you believe it reflects a “contemporary reality”, you may please start from the first square of that journey of your transformation. But some others may chose a radically different path from yours. But it is intriguing to observe that a path of Spirituality free of any Religion appears to threaten and disturb the magnetic force of your Religion.
Editors, Auro Truths
Those who want to follow the path of SA & TM with the use of religion are free to do so. Who is stopping them? The disturbing thing is that why do they have to impose their religious approach to all those who can do without religion? Why do they have to make up stories about SA & TM and say that they have created a new religion, when this is false? SA & TM have clearly said that their path is free of religion. That is a fact. Why do people try to put their words in the mouths of SA & TM? This is wrong.
When you say that they “are free to do so” it includes the freedom to “make up stories” as well as “to put their words in the mouths of” others. In fact, these are the basic ingredients of all religious mythologies that are recited as revealed texts. As regards imposition, likewise, conversion attempts are as old as the oceans. So, apparently no incongruity here. [TNM55]
TNM55, Thank you for accepting and confirming that those who say that SA & TM have founded a new religion, are in reality just making up stories and religious mythologies. No incongruities there.
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Dear TNM,
Whether Westerners take chauvinistic positions or whether Easterners take devotionalist approaches doesn’t change anything with regards to the Myths of an Aurobindonian Religion.
Attempts to create childish fault-lines between the East and the West or between Spirituality and Religion when following the principles of Integral Yoga are sure to fail and are most laughable.
Spirituality is universal and transcends the so-called boundaries of the East and the West and of one religious form or another that some people may wish to create. On the other hand Religion is parochial and therefore needs well-demarcated boundaries to exist. Those who may feel insecure in universal spaces are therefore free to mark out their territory and live within it’s confines.
But nothing can stop Westerners like the Mother or Easterners like Sri Aurobindo as well those who wish to practice their Integral Yoga from transcending these artificial boundaries that some wish to create and maintain for their own limited ends.
Sincerely,
Auro Truths.
Of all the things, did our Master’s Teachings really went through a court of law to get a certificate that they do not belong to any religion or religious institute? It looks like yes they did indeed, hen you are referring to a court judgement, and posting a link to it. This is really shocking for me…. 🙂