The Spirit of Auroville

The date was fixed on 17.2.84. I was to meet Mrs. Gandhi.

I flew to Delhi on 11.2.84. I stayed with Tara Jauhar at Sri Aurobindo Ashram Delhi Branch. She was very kind and helpful.

On 15th Mrs. Gandhi went to Moscow to attend the funeral of the President, Mr. Andropov.

On 16th evening her secretary, Mr. Dave sent the message by telephone that Mrs. Gandhi would see me the next day at 6.30 p.m. at her residence—1, Safdarjung Road.

The next day in the afternoon my very good friend Mohinidevi, wife of the late M.P. C.P.N. Singh came to the Ashram to take me the P.M.'s house.

I went to the Meditation Hall and prayed to the Mother and Sri Aurobindo to be with me.

We reached our destination at 6.15 or so. At the gate we were asked to get down. But Mohinidevi introduced herself to the guards. So we went straight to the porch where I alighted. My friend went back in the car and waited for me outside.

I was taken into a room where there were many chairs, I sat in one of them. I was absolutely blank but poised. Within a few moments two bearers came and greeted me in Hindi and asked me whether I would take tea, coffee or a cold drink. I said: "Nothing, thank you." After a few seconds another bearer came and asked me whether I wanted a heater, because in February Delhi is pretty cold. I said that I didn't need it and thanked him.

Then another bearer came and led me to an adjoining room which was small but very attractive. He told me in Hindi that Madam had already left the office and was on her way home. Then exactly at 6.35 Mrs. Gandhi entered the room. I rose from the sofa. She put her papers and files on a table and came to me. We greeted each other with smiles. The door was closed. We were alone.

I offered her a packet of books by Sri Aurobindo and the Mother and other souvenirs, and said: "This is for your grandchildren." She gave a broad smile. I handed another packet and told her that it was for her. She received it with thanks.

She asked me to take my seat. I did so. She removed her Kashmiri shawl and folded it neatly with care and put it on a table near her sofa where she sat. I smiled to myself, because her scrupulousness reminded me of our Divine Mother.

Mrs. Gandhi was on my right side, but we were sitting very close. First she looked at the entwined fingers of her hands and then at me. She asked me softly:

"Do you wish to tell me anything?"

I smiled and answered: "No, I have come with good will and I wish to convey the Mother's and Sri Aurobindo's Message of Truth, Love and Peace along with their blessings."

Then I opened a lovely velvet coffee-coloured bag used by the Mother and took out an elegant box in which there were enamel-photographs of the Mother and Sri Aurobindo mounted in silver frames. Also there was a silver locket with the Mother's and Sri Aurobindo's symbols. I showed them to her, then put them back in the bag and offered them to her. She was very happy and touched it to her forehead with reverence. Once again she thanked me and leaned back in a relaxed manner.

I asked her "Are you tired?"

She answered: "No, I am not tired but worried about the Punjab situation. They are making a lot of trouble and killing many people."

And she became grave.

I asked her: "What about the Assam situation? Is it bad also?"

She replied: "No, it is not so bad. The situation is improving."

Then the talk turned on other subjects. In the course of it she referred to Suharto and his regime. She also talked about some political matters.

I said that to look after the affairs of the whole of India was a very difficult task. I added that even running a small factory and controlling labourers was not easy.

She smiled and nodded. Then suddenly I told her that Mr. Milton Obote—the President of Uganda—had been our clerk once upon a time in Africa (Kenya) where my father and four brothers had owned a factory. She asked me: "What factory?"

I said: "Sugar factory." She was very much amused.

I said: "If Nolini-da had been in his body, he would have been very happy that I have at last met you. But he passed away on 7th February. He was noble and kind. His death is a great loss to the Ashram."

She nodded and said: "Yes."

After that I talked to her about the Falsehood in the world and about the New World of which the Mother had spoken to me. I also told her what the Mother had revealed of the higher worlds in connection with the paintings of Savitri. She listened to me attentively and I found her more and more relaxed.

I stole a glance at her printed silk sari and her necklace of beads and I marked also her movements. She did not look her age. She was extremely charming. The most important thing I observed and felt from the occult and spiritual point of view was the soothing and refined vibrations emanating from her and creating an unusual aura around her. The Mother's Presence was constantly there with an overwhelming peace.

I said: "The Mother has given a lot of treasures—her precious documents which need to be well preserved. For, they belong to the whole world." She fully agreed, and affirmed the need, as if she were referring to her own valued possessions.

I did not realise the time. Mrs. Gandhi was very much at ease.

Then I said to her that I must take my leave and thanked her for sparing so much time. I added that I had been praying for her and would do so always. She thanked me again and again.

I got up. She too followed suit and bade me goodbye at the door.

This was my first and last meeting with her.

Then the guards led me to the gate where my friend was waiting in her car. She exclaimed:

"Why, Huta, I thought you would come soon. I saw the P.M.'s car entering the house at 6.30. It is half an hour. What did you talk about with her —what did she say?"

I replied: "Oh! Mohini, I am so dazed. I do not know what to say. I am very happy, and I thank you for everything."

I had not been nervous with the P.M. because she had made me feel at home.

I am not a politician—I could not approach the P.M. from that level, but from my inner being I found her a noble and an aristocratic person. I also felt that in her heart of hearts she loved true spirituality.

After I came back, I wrote her a thankful letter and also sent Messages to her which had been distributed in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram on the occasion of the Mother's birthday and the eighth leap-year Anniversary of the Supra-mental Manifestation. The P.M. appreciated the gesture through her letter dated: 13.3.84.