Talks with Sri Aurobindo

22 MAY 1940

PURANI: Nehru is against Satyagraha at present in view of the condition of the Allies.

SRI AUROBINDO: Why don't the leaders come to an agreement?

NIRODBARAN: They are all still thinking and thinking.

SATYENDRA: Yes, they are doing constructive work.

NIRODBARAN: Charkha? Perhaps they are now waiting for Amery to make some move.

SRI AUROBINDO: He will be busy with the defence of England.

SATYENDRA: The German drive seems to be to encircle the Allies after they have reached the sea and then to attack the Maginot Line from the rear.

SRI AUROBINDO: Yes.

PURANI: The Allies' position here seems to be the same as in Norway and Denmark with a narrow strip of sea between. The English Channel is only twenty or thirty miles wide. The Allies would be able to bring big navies there in case of a German attack on England.

SATYENDRA: Why not? And how will the Germans take their troops across?

SRI AUROBINDO: Their position is not the same. In Norway they had no aerodromes. Here they have plenty of them.

NIRODBARAN: At present the thrust towards Paris seems have been suspended.

SRI AUROBINDO: They are driving towards the sea. After capturing the ports they will begin to attack England and continue their thrust to Paris from St. Quentin or other places.

NIRODBARAN: After capturing the ports their aim is to prevent the British from sending reinforcements to France.

SRI AUROBINDO: No, they can't do that. There will still be plenty of ports in the west and north-west.

NIRODBARAN: The French can't launch an attack against the Siegfried Line today.

SRI AUROBINDO: It is impossible now.

NIRODBARAN: Reynaud says that they have committed mistakes.

SRI AUROBINDO: A lot of them. They assume things. With Hitler one can't assume anything. He does what is unexpected. All these people go by scientific principles. Hore-Belisha is the only man who can do something new. Eden is good but not for this. He would be better as Foreign Secretary, and Irwin in the India Office where he could go on with his peace plan and appeasement. Pétain has something but he is too old.

SATYENDRA: Weygand?

SRI AUROBINDO: I don't know anything about him.

NIRODBARAN: Is there an occult influence behind the Allies as there is behind Hitler?

SRI AUROBINDO: No, they are all ordinary persons without any such influence pushing them.

NIRODBARAN: Ordinary persons against an Asura? A bad look-out!

SRI AUROBINDO: There is nobody among them who can receive the Divine Force to counteract the Asuras. The Mother has not found anyone.

EVENING

PURANI: Weygand seems to be hopeful of victory if they can resist for one month.

SRI AUROBINDO: Yes. Z says she has found that the French are going to war with reluctance and with a defeatist mentality. In that case, I don't see how they can beat Hitler.

NIRODBARAN: But why is it so?

SRI AUROBINDO: I don't know. Perhaps they want to lead a comfortable life. They have given good resistance in other parts—only in the centre the main army has given way. In the battle of the Meuse they forgot even to blow up the bridges during the retreat.

PURANI: Herbert says that Hitler will get what he wants.

SRI AUROBINDO: France also? If that is the mentality, they will be defeated. It is a stupid and tamasically sattwic quality. It appears the Germans intend to occupy Ireland and make it a base to attack England and cut off supplies to her from America and other places. That is behind their plan to get to the coast. Ireland has only an army of 30,000. These plans were discovered in the custody of some Germans. And then along with Italy they will attack through Switzerland and crush France.

NIRODBARAN: But how will they carry troops there?

SRI AUROBINDO: I can't say.

PURANI: Jwalanti was telling me Neville Henderson says that in Germany even before Hitler the atmosphere of life had so much pressure that one felt constantly suffocated.

SRI AUROBINDO: Yes, practically all of Germany was like that. Boys and young men were being trained to be devilish. When there was some complaint against harsh treatment meted out by the German army, people said, "Wait till the Nazis come to power. Then you will realise what harsh treatment is."