Down Memory Lane

Sri Aurobindo's Action

In 1970 a change was to come in my work at the Ashram, a change by way of addition. Early June that year I was asked by Udar and Pradyot to get a new Society registered at Pondicherry as approved by Mother. She had given if an unusual name "Sri Aurobindo's Action".

The drafting of the Memorandum of Association and Rules and Regulations of the proposed Society was not time-consuming as I had experience in the past of such things especially in respect of Sri Aurobindo Memorial Fund Society and Sri Aurobindo Society. The completion of the formalities went fast and the Society stood registered on June 17.

The Executive Committee consisted of Pradyot, Udar and myself as Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer respectively. When I asked Udar why he proposed my name to Mother, he replied that he hadn't proposed any, the names came directly from her.

Soon after, one day Mother spoke to me about Sri Aurobindo's Action. I made a note of what she had said and it was read out to her in the evening by Andre'. She remarked, "This is what I said, but the spirit is not there." The English translation is as follows:

"The only and unique aim of Sri Aurobindo's Action is the country, India.

India has to guard her independence, India has to defend herself, India has to reorganise herself.

The only solution to the country's problems is what Sri Aurobindo has given in his writings. He has replied to all questions, including capitalism, communism, political oganisation. These are to be put together. And he wrote in English but many Indians do not know English; it is necessary to translate in the languages which they understand. His message has to be spread all over the country, his solutions are to be shown to all who wish to know.

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The danger is serious, and there is only one solution, that given by Sri Aurobindo. The Action is urgent. The work is to be accomplished during the two years before his centenary. A great force is there. One has to work without personal sentiments.

Sri Aurobindo Society and Sri Aurobindo's Action are two brothers. The Society will help Sri Aurobindo's Action with its centres which are already there. The Society will continue to be engaged with the philosophy and spiritual teaching of Sri Aurobindo."

Later, on 30.4.1971, when the above was being printed for circulation, Mother wrote the following additional lines:-

Les temps sont graves.

The situation is serious.

It is only a strong and enlightened Action

that can pull the country out of it.

Mother put her signature at the end, and then wrote "Blessings" and again signed.

On 20.10.70, Mother nominated a Working Committee of twelve: Pradyot, Udar, Shyam Sunder, Kireet, Nirod, Andre', Madhav, Madanlal Himatsingka, Chhote Narayan, Prapatti, Manoj Das and Charupada.

Sri Aurobindo's Action was the name adopted for its journal as well. The first issue came out in October 1970. Manoj Das was the editor in the early years. Kireet took up the preparation of the booklets and also went out with Udar for lectures apart from giving talks at the meetings at Pondicherry. Prapatti took up the Journal in Oriya, and gradually journals in Hindi, Gujarati and Bengali followed, all under the title Sri Aurobindo Karmadhara. All these journals are brought out by other organisations and are also independent in their contents.

In June 1971 Mother wrote a mantra which was printed and distributed at the Ashram with the introduction: "A mantra given by the Mother for all people in the country for the present crisis." The mantra itself is :-

Supreme Lord, Eternal Truth

Let us obey Thee alone and live according to Truth

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Naturally, this has been the mantra for Sri Aurobindo's Action.

Navajata was very unhappy with Sri Aurobindo's Action from the beginning and Mother had mentioned it to me in June 1970 itself. He and his club could never reconcile themselves with Sri Aurobindo's Action. Mother gave a message on 2.5.71:

Sri Aurobindo's Action

and

Sri Aurobindo Society

are equally working for the manifestation of the Truth in the immediate future; and to help both equally is to work for this realisation.

And my blessings are with all help and good will.

Sometime in 1972 it was being said in Mother's name that the crisis she had spoken of in 1970 was over and Sri Aurobindo's Action was to be discontinued in August.

On 2.5.72 Mother gave the following message:-

I never said to anybody nor wrote and never thought that Sri Aurobindo's Action will stop in August 1972.

Let Sri Aurobindo's Action continue its useful work in the world, with my blessings.

Next day a meeting took place between some representatives of Sri Aurobindo Society and Sri Aurobindo's Action with the intention that "all the controversies between Sri Aurobindo Society and Sri Aurobindo's Action must cease." The memorandum of the details of joint working was approved by Mother, but it ended like a pious intention.

From June 1970 to early February 19711 was quite active in Sri Aurobindo's Action. Apart from my formal duties as the Treasurer, I was engaged in the literary side and office management as well. Then, after the assignment of the Auroville work to me by Mother, my active association with Sri Aurobindo's Action in fields other than those of the duties of a Treasurer and member of the Executive Committee ceased for several years.

After November 1973 several changes occurred in the organisations connected with Sri Aurobindo and Mother. The organisation Sri Aurobindo's Action was under renewed attack from

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those who were sore over it from Mother's time but were subdued by her physical presence. The organisation has survived all these and continues to function.

The activity of Sri Aurobindo's Action for some years has been its journals. In course of time Kireet left the Ashram, Manoj gave up the editing work of the journal, Pradyot left Sri Aurobindo's Action, Prapatti is dead, Udar is no more participating. The editing work of the English journal Sri Aurobindo's Action is being carried on by me since May 1973. Also the office management.

I wonder how it is so when I was the least enthusiastic about this work in the beginning. I had entered Sri Aurobindo's Action just as a nominee of Mother without any initiative from me for this work.

(2)

Udar and I knew each other since my early days as visitor to the Ashram, but we came closer after the formation of Sri Aurobindo's Action.

Mother once said that before coming to India she had heard of the reputation of story-tellers in this country and the first one she met was Udar.

Udar is the name given to Lawrence M. Pinto in April 1938 by Sri Aurobindo and while writing the name Sri Aurobindo wrote the following significances: Noble, generous, upright and sincere.

In his humorous moments Udar has asked me, "There are two categories of names given by Sri Aurobindo and Mother. One is of those where the person has got the quality which the name denotes, the other is of those where the person is the opposite of what the name denotes. In which category am I ?"

Mother has spoken of him as a very intelligent man. To me she has spoken of his psychic.

When Chinmayi's misbehaviour with Mother became unbearable for Udar, he offered to kill her. Mother replied, "Killing is no solution. The force behind her will then take possession of someone else."

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Now, on Asuras, there is another anecdote.

When a disciple requested Mother to finish off the asuras, she said, "But they also are my children playing around." And then, after a pause, she added with a light heart, "I can twist their tails any time."

Udar's is a colourful, multifaceted personality. He married a beautiful English woman after coming to the Ashram. Mother gave her the name Mona. She has been the Manager of Golconde from the beginning, appointed by Mother. She is known for her ability and detail management. Udar himself has been associated with a variety of works from time to time. Mention may be made of Harpagon Workshop, Ashram Press, Physical Education Dept, Handmade Paper Unit, New Horizon Sugar Mills and Honesty Engineers & Contractors.

On one occasion Udar and I were called together by Mother and she told us to work like two brothers. In cases of difference of opinion we have remembered that day and got along.

After the Mother's passing, at times, I have been getting harsh letters, notes and words, even words of rudeness and haughtiness, but till now I have not sensed any ill will from him.

Perhaps because he is Udar.

(3)

Sri Aurobindo's Action passed through a grave organisational crisis in 1978. The Chairman Pradyot, who was also a Trustee of the Ashram, was up in arms. He was campaigning that I had become anti-Ashram and was manipulating my exit from the Action institution, and also Madanlal's.

One day he asked Pranab to ban my entry to the Playground on the ground of my anti-Ashram activities. Earlier, he had mooted the idea that I should be stopped from entering the Ashram building where I used to go to offer pranam at the Samadhi. When the threat was conveyed to me I spontaneously answered that in case I was not allowed to go to his Samadhi, Sri Aurobindo would himself come to me. Now he had chosen to turn to Pranab.

Upto that point of time my contact with Pranab was limited to mutual greetings on the way to Mother, and Pradyot had a

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powerful lobby of the Ashram and Society at his back. Pranab, known for his fearlessness and capacity to stand for truth, was not willing to oblige him without knowing from me what I had to say.

I had finished my dinner at Auroville and we, some friends, were having a reading of Savitri, when a phone call came from Pondicherry that Pranab wanted to talk to me urgently. As I was not able to go to Pondicherry at that hour, he himself took the trouble of coming to Auroville. He immediately came to the point, telling me what Pradyot was alleging and what he was asked to do. He also said that he had told Pradyot that he knew Mother's opinion about me and that he would not accept what he was alleging without asking me about it. I gave him my explanation and he asked me if I was willing for a joint meeting next morning. I was happy to agree.

In the next day meeting besides the three of us, Counouma, Udar and Madanlal also were there. Pranab kept on pursuing the matter and the issues were concluded. Pradyot could not bear the shock and resigned from Sri Aurobindo's Action. He was one of the two well-known Ashramites about whom Nolini had said, "They only know politics."

Pradyot was much elder to us and Pranab is always respectful to elders, a trait of our Indian culture, but when some plain speaking was needed, Pranab told him frankly, "You are too sensitive." And it worked. Similarly, on one occasion he told Udar, "You are not consistent", and it worked. I saw these as instances of truth, frankness and firmness combined.

Pranab Kumar Bhattacharya is his full name. He is also lovingly known as Dada (elder brother). Mother, in some of her diary notes, refers to him as "the man".

I felt attracted towards him in the very early days when I saw him as a youth by the side of Mother when she went to play tennis. That was during my first stay at the Ashram. In the afternoon Mother would come down the staircase near Pavitra's room and those desirous of having her darshan at that time would gather outside the door on the ground floor. First Pranab would come and open the door to go in and wait for Mother. He would have his glass of milk and put the wrist-band on Mother's arm. She would come out and bless the people present there

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with her gracious look. She would take a turn to the right on the verandah, followed by Pranab, to take her seat in the car. Pavitra would open the door of the car for her and Pranab would take his seat in the front near Pavitra. By the time she would enter the car the people gathered there would surge on the verandah towards the car and the time taken by Pavitra to take the driver's seat and start the car would be utilised by the people there to have another darshan of hers. Mother would again graciously look at them.

For the Hindi bi-monthly "MA" when Chandradeep requested him for a photo taken by him, he readily agreed and gave a nice flower picture. When asked about the amount to be paid for it, he just said that if five or ten rupees were given, he will have the pleasure of offering it to Mother. He was happy to see the print of the picture.

From February 1971 when Mother gave me the Auroville work, I have been often warned by many of Pranab's opposition to Auroville. In fact, I never encountered it in the course of my work.

One point which has been commonly made out against him is his refusal to allow the people of Auroville inside the Ashram Playground. From time to time I was under pressure to represent to Mother the plea of the people of Auroville against this decision of his, but I did not feel like doing so, and this displeased several of them. Of course, I was aware of Mother's approval of this decision, and one day, of her own, Mother had told me that the Playground was already too small for the Ashramites and the growing number of visitors to the Ashram. On another occasion, Mother has also said to someone that in the beginning when the people of Auroville were allowed inside the Playground some were found drunk, and it was difficult to say Yes to some and No to others.

It should be mentioned that after the passing of Mother, Pranab was allowing those people from Auroville inside the Playground who had passes signed by Madhav Pandit and myself. This system worked satisfactorily upto the time when the people of Auroville stood persuaded that the Ashram was a place to be shunned by them.

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He has a loving concern for my health and welfare, like an elder brother.

The more I hear against him, the closer I feel to him. Mother is with him.

If many are against him, does it matter?

Mother once saw all leaving her except Pranab who stood on her side.

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