Sri Aurobindo : corresp.
THEME/S
The subconscient is to be emptied in the course of the sadhana and not filled up with new things. But I see that I have been filling it every day! Does it not mean that I have been dealing with these things in such a way that they are getting stored there?
All that one does and thinks leaves its trace in the subconscient.
At a certain stage of the sadhana it is usual that the subconscient becomes the main source of trouble. It becomes freely active and releases all its stored up stuff for realising it. A sadhak sees all his past life before him as if on a cinema screen. And if he is not sufficiently vigilant he may take all that as real and vivid.
Yes. that happens.
The thoughts, desires etc. go down into the subconscient when rejected from the conscious parts. Then they gather force and stay there as if in their own home. It is very difficult to dismiss them from there. Is that correct?
It is not so with all — with some it happens like that, others pass away without getting a hold.
Is it true that the nearer the descent of the Supermind the greater will be the difficulties of those in whom it is to come down first?
It is true, unless they are so surrendered to the Mother, so psychic, plastic, free from ego that the difficulties are spared to them.
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An Ashramite says that at present the Mother and you have started to send us down into the lower nature (for the purpose of transformation). Is it true?
We are sending nobody nowhere. The sadhana itself has come down into the depth of the physical and subconscient to make them open to what has to come down from above. That is all.
Since the vital has consented to change can we not take up the subconscient now?
It makes it more possible but the subconscient has a resistance of its own which must be overcome.
Why is the subconscient so active during my sleep while it tends to be quiet during the day?
What else can it do, if it can't be active by day? The dream consciousness is its normal field.
Getting up from sleep early in the morning, tamas rushes up everywhere. It is so difficult to get back to my usual state of consciousness. You might say that this is a normal result of sleep. But have we not decided to break down all the old usual and 'natural' habits?
Certainly, but the usual and natural have a great habit of recurring — even when they are not wanted.
The subconscient inertia is rising more and more every hour. It has enveloped almost all my active or conscious parts.
Keep the knowledge secure — do not allow that to be clouded.
Forgive me if this subject is repeated once more. I notice
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that all my difficulties seem to be massed together in the subconscient. I sec no way out.
The subconscient difficulty is the difficulty now — because the whole struggle in the general sadhana is now there. It is in the subconscient, no longer in the vital or conscious physical that the resistance is all massed together.
The subconscient is throwing its dirt on many parts of the being. Is it because a detachment from the mind itself is necessary that the difficulty seems greater than that of vital and physical activities?
Certainly, without detachment from the mind that movement would be difficult to get rid of.
The outer parts of my being that were protesting and resisting all the time have now started to help me on the path. Even the body consciousness observed a silence during the whole morning.
The same must happen with the subconscient.
The subconscient is still very active and takes more space in my consciousness than ever before. I suppose that is due to the Mother's higher light which presses on it more and more for change. But it does not seem to accept the change so easily as other parts have done. Perhaps it is waiting for some more hammerstrokes.
The other parts or at least some of them were also very recalcitrant before. They yielded afterwards easily because of the long work done on them. It is now the subconscient that is going through the same process.
Still from 1 to 4 p.m. the subconscient does not respond to
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the Mother's pressure.
It is a difficulty of adaptation which will be overcome in time.
The subconscient's resistance has begun to affect the physical itself which it had not done up to now. It imposes its conditions on the body. Would you kindly make the matter clearer.
There is nothing to make clearer. It is simply that the force of the subconscient tamas has increased as the physical consciousness accepted it. That was what I had said already.
SLEEP
Is the time come for me to start becoming conscious of my nights? My normal sleep is filled with unconsciousness.
It does not matter much at present. Put your waking consciousness right.
The sleep-consciousness has to be changed quickly as it is a fundamental basis. Otherwise whatever is gained during the day after so much tapasya gets devoured during the night!
First you will have to get the capacity of getting it back as soon as you rise.
Most of my nights are spent in very ordinary dreams. That is why I don't prefer to sleep much. Nineteen waking hours are passed with a close intimacy with the Mother and five hours with a close contact with the dark obscurity of the earth.
By not sleeping enough you weaken the forces of the physical consciousness — and so the physical basis of the
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sadhana is less strong than it should be. It gets more open to the forces of inertia.
I don't have enough sleep nowadays. Even when I stay in bed longer it escapes me. I must have at least eight hours of sound sleep, mustn't I?
Yes, sleep is needed — when it does not come, you should keep yourself in a very still quietude till it does. In that way there will be at any rate rest.
Someone spoke to me that when the peace descends into the inner vital much sleep is no longer necessary.
That someone announces a most dangerous doctrine. To sleep enough (not too much) is essential.
From early morning till 9.30 a.m. my consciousness has a difficult time regaining its higher station. No amount of concentration has any effect on this habit. This happens even when my nights are filled with good dreams.
It is one of the fixed habits of the subconscient which do not yield easily to pressure. One day it will go.
Even during the night I get attacks. Consequently I do not get sleep. I suppose this shows sadhana going on.
Often the attack comes in the night because it is hoped then that the consciousness will be lowered and off guard.
Getting attacks at night is not sadhana — the proper sadhana at night is sleep.
I want light during my sleep state.
It is the most difficult of all because there the conscious will is in abeyance. Sometimes the waking will can act in
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the sleep consciousness; but to be always conscious in sleep needs a change in the subconscient itself — in its very stuff.
A certain intensity of Force must come into the waking consciousness which will be strong enough to persist in the sleep.
Only a few days back I requested for a change of my sleep consciousness. Now the Mothers grace has responded. Bad dreams have begun to be replaced by good ones. However, I am not satisfied with that only, I want my daytime sadhana to be extended to sleep also.
It is a good step forward at any rate.
DREAMS
In a dream I came across the flower plant named by the Mother 'Supramental Plasticity' (Marigold in orange colour). I plucked one flower and put it in my mouth. Strange to say, it tasted sweet. Actually this kind of flower is not tasty. Next morning when I went for Blessings, the Mother offered me the same flower in the same colour. Do you think this means something for me?
I suppose it simply meant that you were absorbing a force of plasticity.
During last night's dream I brought home some mud for the garden. After the work was over there was a little surplus which I put in a basket and left in a corner. Then I went in and lay down on my bed. Suddenly I saw a small thin serpent running out from my head. How do you explain it?
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Probably some small vital forces brought in by the uncleanness.
Which uncleanness do you mean here?
The uncleanness entered in the dream by the keeping of the basket with mud in it. It was symbolic of some tamas and want of cleanliness in the consciousness.
Shanti was flying a kite in my dream. It got stuck in a window of a big bungalow. Our elder brother, who was standing there, told Shanti: "Unless you fulfil my conditions I will not loosen your kite." Shanti was perplexed and did not know what to do. I, who was just behind him, showed some trick, so Shanti pulled the thread connecting the kite in such a way that the kite got freed by itself It then began to fly as easily as before. All that took place in a moment, before our elder brother could make out anything.
The elder brother is some part of the physical Nature and the kite is Shanti's aspiration that got stuck.
How to understand that dream about helping Shanti? In reality we do not even discuss each other's sadhana.
It may have only represented a will on the vital plane to help him.
In yesterday's dream-experience, I plucked five flowers, three in a bunch and two loose of 'The Supramental Light in the subconscient' (Copossandra). In the dream all other things, like the background, plants and the rest, were as if non-existent. The whole scene seemed to have been created for me only to pluck the flowers. But how could it be true of the supra-mental light descending into my subconscient?
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You were doing it on the supraphysical plane for a future effect.
Yesterday's dream: A monkey threw something at me thrice and I caught it well all the three times. But my attention was fixed on the eyes of the animal and therefore I did not know what it gave me. Maybe it was grace rather than any material thing it bestowed on me.
The monkey may have been of the Hanuman type — Hanuman is a symbol of Shakti and devotion.
My sleep consciousness seems to be much influenced by the lower forces. Last night, during sleep they took me to my native place Bhavnagar. I found myself among my relatives. But I told them, "I cannot stay here. Nothing here interests me. I must go back to Pondicherry." This proves that my inner being, though veiled during the present difficult period, is as firm in its enterprise as ever.
That is clear and it is very good.
I was travelling with a friend when we saw two boys as we were passing a tree full of mangoes. We collected some of the fallen mangoes. Seeing that, both the boys got angry and ran after us. My friend was overpowered by one boy while I ran away. But the other boy pursued me till the end of the dream, though several times I caught him and beat him. Later on I was dead-tired and did not remember what happened afterwards.
The boy obviously represents some lower force and it is some weakness in the being (indicated by running away) that allows him to trouble you.
The running away is the drawing back and allowing it
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to gain more and more ground — not facing and destroying it.
With the Mothers Grace, during today's dream I have been able to do what you had wanted. A witch in the form of a very beautiful maiden was going down a street. People, especially young boys and girls, were running and hiding themselves in their houses on hearing about her coming. Her influence was believed to be so evil that a mere glance from her could kill. To save myself I too was running around during the whole night-long dream. But she followed me madly. Then I resolved to fight, and simply kicked her down!
That is what should always be done. Running away is useless.
While washing the big flower-vase of the Reception Room, one part fell from my hands and it broke. This particular work I do every day. So may I take this dream as prophetic?
One sees many things like that which are not necessarily prophetic (rarely they are), but only suggestions, formations etc. on the vital plane.
The Mother came into a large room, where her children were assembled for the Pranam. On this day she decided to do something different from what she was doing daily; she first asked some of us to retire from the room. Afterwards she and I met at some other place. "My son," she said, "there was some special reason for my asking you to go out of that room." O Lord, what a love I felt for her then; such a love I have never experienced in the waking state. It was like a separated child meeting his mother after many years. There was a sweetness even in her hand which I was holding
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and pressing to my heart, Then she said, "My child, I want to tell you a most secret thing. So come with me to a solitary room." While going to another place I left behind something which I had been holding in my hand. We both entered a small secluded room. She had something of metal in her hands which she arranged in such a way that it expressed: "My son, I am going to bring down into you the Divine Truth within the shortest possible time." There were two more metallic pieces on which also there was some clear writing, but as it was in a foreign language I could not read it. This whole dream was so precise, clear and living that it still stands out vividly before my eyes. What do you say about this dream?
There is always some truth behind such dream experiences.
The Mother was seen seated on a royal throne and the Pranam ceremony was proceeding. All of a sudden an unknown man entered. Immediately he began to complain to her that she was partial and that he could not bear it. When asked to leave the Pranam Hall he did not obey. So she ordered the watchman and some sadhaks to force him out. But before they could do it he escaped. They pursued him, overpowered him and returned victorious.
Evidently he stands for the Force that is always suggesting to the sadhaks that Mother is human and full of defects.
Two little girls were on a journey. When nearing their mother's house they were attacked by people who began throwing stones at them. However they reached their destination quite safely.
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I sent you the above dream yesterday but you did not comment on it. So I presume you want me to interpret it myself. Well, I shall attempt it. The two little girls represent my psychic being and my self or spirit. Marching from the world of strife and struggle, darkness and falsehood, they were going back to their Mother-Soul. People's stone-throwing may indicate the resistance of the earth-nature. But nothing can touch those who are guarded by the Mother's Grace on the way. When the girls were near to their goal something from above fell on one of them. That something could be taken as a crown upon the one representing the self. For my psychic being is as yet behind the progress of my self. Well?
It may very well be the true interpretation.
While waking from sleep, it was found that between the waking and dream states there have been more thoughts than actions and happenings.
Your sentence is very vague. If you mean that there were more thoughts than happenings that is quite natural in a state in which the mind has already begun to work but is not yet turned on outward things.
In the dream S and I went to a shop. Just outside the shop a carriage stood with three horses. Inside the shop also we noticed two similar carriages. But those were not real, only painted on some big pots.
In real life, we never come across a carriage with three horses. It is either one or two or more but always in pairs.
My mind interprets the dream thus: The one carriage outside the shop may mean one of the three higher planes already in manifestation and in full dynamism. The other two carriages which are not real, only pictured, indicate the last
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two highest planes yet to project themselves, that is to say, to descend.
Now the carriage (with three horses) may be taken as the psychic being which controls and guides the three lower powers (horses) of my nature, mind, vital and physical.
What do you say?
It may be, but why a shop? And which three higher planes?
It is rather myself who wanted to ask you the above questions!
You spoke of the three higher planes. I simply wanted to know what planes you meant.
As there were three carriages my mind interpreted them as three planes.
But you say that one of the carriages is the psychic. That is not one of the higher planes. The higher planes are the higher mind, illumined, intuitive, overmind, supermind. The psychic, mind, vital, physical belong to the ordinary manifestation.
I am afraid my interpretation of the carriage with three horses as the psychic and the triple lower being was not true.
It may be true. But all the details are not clear.
Here I send you three dreams. I had them one after another last night.
The first one: The morning Pranam ceremony was going on. A visitor had already been to the Mother and received her Blessings. At the end of the function he demanded a second Pranam. As even the Ashramites are not permitted
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twice, he was refused. Neglecting the Mother's command he approached her to satisfy his desire. So she got up from her seat and gave him a slap. This slap made such a profound change burst within him that he immediately realised his mistake. Consequently as a self-punishment he slapped himself!
The second: The Mother talked with me about the flowers of Tenderness of the Divine (Aloe Vera) which I had offered to her. She admired them and inquired if I had some more. I replied, "I have offered all I had."
The last one: At the end of the second dream the Mother, with some of us, went upstairs. Leaving us in her room she went to another room and brought some big and some small packets. A small packet was presented to each of the three persons, while two big ones were given to me.
What type of dreams are these?
These are small dream-experiences on the vital planes; it is often difficult to find out the precise symbolic significance of the details.
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