The Infinite Adventure

A poem by Sri Aurobindo

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 sonnet  11 September 1939  Published posthumously  Different versions

The Infinite Adventure

On the waters of a nameless Infinite
    My skiff is launched; I have left the human shore.
    All fades behind me and I see before
The unknown abyss and one pale pointing light.
An unseen Hand controls my rudder. Night
    Walls up the sea in a black corridor,—
    An inconscient Hunger's lion plaint and roar
Or the ocean sleep of a dead Eremite.

I feel the greatness of the Power I seek
    Surround me; below me are its giant deeps.
        Beyond, the invisible height no soul has trod.
I shall be merged in the Lonely and Unique
    And wake into a sudden blaze of God,
        The marvel and rapture of the Apocalypse.

 sonnet  11 September 1939  Published posthumously  Different versions

The Infinite Adventure

On the waters of a nameless Infinite
    My skiff is launched; I have left the human shore.
    All fades behind me and I see before
The unknown abyss and one pale pointing light.
An unseen Hand controls my rudder. Night
    Walls up the sea in a black corridor,—
    An inconscient Hunger's lion plaint and roar
Or the ocean sleep of a dead Eremite.

I feel the greatness of the Power I seek
    Surround me; below me are its giant deeps,
        Beyond, the invisible height no soul has trod.
I shall be merged in the Lonely and Unique
    And wake into a sudden blaze of God,
        The marvel and rapture of the Apocalypse.



Part VII : Pondicherry (Circa 1927-1947) > Sonnets from Manuscripts (Circa 1934-1947)   



How to read the color-coded changes below? 1. SABCL version : lines with any changes & specific changes 2. CWSA version : lines with any changes & specific changes

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  1. Sri-Aurobindo/books/collected-poems/the-infinite-adventure.txt +1 -1
Sri-Aurobindo/books/collected-poems/the-infinite-adventure.txt CHANGED
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ Walls up the sea in a black corridor,—
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  An inconscient Hunger's lion plaint and roar
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9
  Or the ocean sleep of a dead Eremite.
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  I feel the greatness of the Power I seek
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- Surround me; below me are its giant deeps.
11
+ Surround me; below me are its giant deeps,
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  Beyond, the invisible height no soul has trod.
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  I shall be merged in the Lonely and Unique
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  And wake into a sudden blaze of God,

NOTES FROM EDITOR

11 September 1939. Three handwritten manuscripts.



Manuscript





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 sonnet  Published posthumously  Different versions  SABCL & CWSA  Only CWSA