List of proper names - personal, geographical, historical, fictional, mythological, etc. - used by Sri Aurobindo in his writings - published as the SABCL edition
Latest, Online Index available now!!!
THEME/S
Glossary and Index of Proper Names to Sri Aurobindo's Works
The works of Sri Aurobindo abound in proper names. Their number and variety make it difficult for his readers to obtain a full intellectual understanding of his writings. A person familiar with Puranic mythology may know little about the geography of ancient Greece. An admirer of Shakespeare may never have heard of Yajnavalkya. A student who had the time and the inclination to look up every unfamiliar name would need a full shelf of reference books, some of them difficult to obtain, and even then some terms would escape him.
The present volume is an attempt to meet the special needs of students of Sri Aurobindo's works. The compiler, a member of the research staff of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Archives and Research Library, has consulted more than one hundred volumes and spoken with innumerable people having personal knowledge of the subjects referred to.
We are certain that interested readers of the works of Sri Aurobindo will find this Glossary and Index an invaluable tool.
A work such as the present one could never have been brought to completion by the efforts of a single individual. During the many years that I have worked on this Glossary and Index, I have received help from numerous people. I would like to take this opportunity to thank them. I will be able to mention only those whose contribution was greatest.
While gathering information, I depended heavily on Shri Jayantilal Parekh, Shri Ravindraji, Shri K. D. Sethna (Amal Kiran), Shri Jagannath Vedalankar, Shri Kanupriya Chattopadhyay, Mr. Janez Svetina, and Mr. Peter Heehs. By supplying me with sources and information, they enabled me to carry on the work unimpeded. I am particularly grateful to Mr. Peter Heehs, without whose guidance and editorial suggestions this book would hardly have been possible.
I am thankful to the staff of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Press for bringing out the book in a very short time despite the complications involved in its printing. I am obliged, in particular, to Mr. David Hopkins and Shri Nagashankar, to whom the composition of the manuscript was entrusted. David, moreover, took a keen personal interest in the project, and not only attended to the technical details, but also made a large number of last-minute improvements in the manuscript.
Special thanks are due to my colleagues at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Archives and Research Library, most of whom collaborated with me at one stage or another. I am especially indebted to Shri Ganapati Pattegar and Shri Sunjoy Bhatt, who kindly undertook to do the proofreading. Besides accomplishing this formidable task, they also verified the information in many of the entries and made very helpful suggestions.
I am grateful to Shri Harikant Patel and Shri Manoj Das Gupta for sanctioning the publication of the manuscript.
As a first effort in a new direction, it is likely that this book will fall short of perfection in many respects. Readers are encouraged to send corrections and suggestions for future editions to Sri Aurobindo Ashram Archives and Research Library, Pondicherry 605002, India.
Gopal Das Gupta
NOTE: The Supplement with additions & corrections to this publication has been included at the very end.
Scope of the Work
In this "Glossary and Index" are listed proper names - personal, geographical, historical, fictional, mythological, etc. - used by Sri Aurobindo in his writings. The volumes referred to are the twenty-nine text volumes of the Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library and Volumes 1 to 11 <1977 to 1987) of the semiannual journal Sri Aurobindo: Archives and Research. (For the purpose of the Glossary the scope is extended to include the unpublished portion of Sri Aurobindo's "Record of Yoga", which will continue to be published in future issues of the journal.) To collect the names all of the texts in each of these volumes have been carefully perused. Names occurring in footnotes and introductory notes, whether written by the author or added by the editors, have also been included.
The most salient characteristic of proper names is, of course, their initial capital, but not all terms capitalized by Sri Aurobindo have been listed in this book. A selection had to be made on the lines indicated below.
Besides the names of persons, places and things, real or imaginary, the book lists words of following categories:
1. Names of races, nations, tribes, clans, dynasties, etc.
2. Names of ancient Indian varnas and modern castes and sub-castes.
3. Most generic terms denoting supernatural beings, e.g. Deva, Yaksha, Siddhadeva, Asura, Pani, Rakshasa, etc.
4. Names of important institutions, societies, associations, etc.
5. Names of political parties and events like wars, revolutions, etc.
6. Names of religions, sects, and sub-sects, and terms denoting their followers.
7. Names of traditional yogic disciplines - Hathayoga, Rajayoga, and Tantra.
8. Names of languages and dialects.
9. Titles of books, periodicals, newspapers, etc., and of poems and plays (among Sri Aurobindo's own poems and plays, only those titles to which there is some reference in the prose writings). All these titles have been printed in italics.
10. Most generic terms denoting scriptures and religio-philosophical works, such as Veda, Upanishad, Purana, Darshana, etc.
11. Names of yugas, ages, periods, etc.
12. Names of heavenly bodies and mythological worlds or lokas.
xi
13. Titles of rulers, e.g. Czar, Caesar, Mikado, etc.
14. Some miscellaneous terms such as the East, the West, Samurai, Demi- urge, etc.
Terms of the following types, although they are usually capitalized in Sri Aurobindo's works, have been omitted:
1. Certain common terms whose occurrence is so frequent that it would not serve any purpose to list them here, e.g., India, Yoga, etc.
2. Philosophical and technical terms which, although not truly names, are used as equivalents of names or epithets, e.g., Sacchidananda, Karmayoga, Muladhara, etc.
In the "Record of Yoga" Sri Aurobindo generally referred to people by their initials (often a single letter). Such references have been included under the full name, even if the full name was not supplied by the editors of the "Record". Names also are represented by a single letter in some of Sri Aurobindo's letters;
but in such cases the initial is an editorial substitution, and therefore not included in this "Glossary and Index".
General Arrangement
Entries are all in boldface type, and are listed alphabetically letter by letter (up to the comma if one occurs in inverted names having two or more elements). Accordingly "Sarathi" precedes "Sarat Maharaj", while "Baroda, Maharani of" precedes "Baroda College".
Alternatives, variants, and derivatives that have been used by Sri Aurobindo are also printed in bold. The alternatives are generally mentioned in the glossary-article, and the variants and derivatives after the text of the article. If a derivative needs to be explained, the explanation follows it in parentheses or is included in the body of the article. A few derivatives appear as independent entries, especially if they occur very frequently. Variants with a minor change in spelling - an additional letter or two - have not been shown separately but are indicated by the additional letter(s) put within brackets. Thus "Vasis(h)tha" stands for "Vasistha" and "Vasishtha"; "Barin(dra)" for "Barin" and "Barindra".
In personal names the surname (if present) comes first and is followed by a comma. In other names containing two or more words, the most important word occupies the first place and is followed by a comma.
Prefixes and suffixes that are not an integral part of the name have been omitted. The initial articles "A", "The", "Le", "Les", etc. have also usually been omitted or placed after a comma, and, if retained, are disregarded in alphabetization. But articles coming in the middle of an entry, as well as letters or words put within brackets, have been taken into consideration in alphabetization. Where necessary, plural endings have been dropped.
xii
Indian names comprising two words are at times written as. one word, e.g., "Ram Mohan" as "Rammohan". Such variations have been overlooked.
For names denoting two or more different persons, places, or things, separate entries have been made except where there is an overlap. Such entries have been distinguished from one another by superior figures, e.g., Bharat', Bharat(a)2, Bharat(a)3
Sri Aurobindo's spelling of a name sometimes differs from its usual spelling as given in reference books. In most of such cases the glossary-article commences with this usual spelling. If the form occurring in Sri Aurobindo's writings is an obvious misprint or misspelling, the fact has been mentioned. The Appendix provides some guidance for locating such names in the book.
The book does not, as a rule, give pronunciations. However, certain names from Indian mythology which are likely to be unfamiliar appear in the article in their transliterated form (transliterated according to the standard internationally accepted system). Transliterated forms have also been used to avoid confusion where two or more differently pronounced names are spelled in English similar- ly. These names are not transliterated each time they occur in the book but only where considered necessary.
Names occurring in Bengali writings have been listed either in their transliterated form or as they are ordinarily spelled in English.
Glossary-article
The glossary-articles are intended to facilitate a fuller understanding of Sri Aurobindo's writings and, in most cases, to provide some useful general information. They are based on information gathered from (1) reference books and other standard books, periodicals, etc., (2) institutions and individuals, and (3) the writings of Sri Aurobindo. His works have been drawn on particularly when information was not available from other sources. The sources of categories (1) and (3) have been indicated, mostly in abbreviated form, at the end of the article. If no source is mentioned, it is because the article in question is entirely based on records and documents in possession of the Ashram Archives and Research Library, or on information obtained from the sources of category (2).
Dates cited in the articles are of the Christian Era, except where it is otherwise mentioned. Bengali years and those of the Vikram Era have generally been converted to the Christian Era by applying the rule of adding 593 to the former and subtracting 57 from the latter. Since the year in these eras does not begin on the same day, an error of one year is possible in marginal cases.
Regarding the population figures and names of political entities, particularly when appearing in statements beginning with words like "now" or "presently", the reader must keep in mind that this information may no longer be correct. Changes may have taken place after its collection from the sources concerned.
xiii
It must also be stressed that views or opinions expressed or implied in an article are not to be taken as Sri Aurobindo's, except where this is clearly stated. Those interested in Sri Aurobindo's own ideas are advised to make use of the index references that follow the article.
Index References
The references given for each entry comprise all noted occurrences of the name and also (without distinction) of the alternatives, variants, and derivatives of the name that appear in boldface type within or after the article.
Boldfaced Arabic numerals denote the volume number of the Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library, and boldfaced Roman numerals the issues of the journal Sri Aurobindo: Archives and Research in the order of their publication, I standing for the issue of April 1977, II for the issue of December 1977, III for that of April 1978, and so on. (The reader should note that these Roman numerals do not refer to the volume numbers of the journal.) The Arabic or Roman numerals are followed by a colon, after which come the page numbers. These numbers refer not only to the text matter on the page but also to the footnotes and to notes, quotations, etc. sometimes placed above the text matter.
Each of the following terms has in effect almost a whole volume of the Centenary Library devoted to it. No index references to this term have therefore been given with respect to that volume; instead "passim" appears after the volume number.
Agni (and its equivalents) Vol. 11 Hymns to the Mystic Fire Bhagavadgita and Gita Vol. 13 Essays on the Gita The Mother Vol. 25 The Mother Sri Aurobindo Vol. 26 On Himself Upanishads Vol. 12 The Upanishads Veda Vol.10 The Secret of the Veda
Cross references appear often, identified by the particular term printed in small capitals, or else by "see" or "see also".
xiv
Volume 1.
Bande Mataram, EARLY POLITICAL WRITINGS—I (1893- 1908) : New Lamps for Old; Bhawani Mandir; The Doctrine of Passive Resistance; editorials and comments from the Bande Mataram; Speeches.
Volume 2
Karmayogin, EARLY POLITICAL WRITINGS—TI (1909- 1910): Uttarpara Speech; The Ideal of the Karmayogin; An Open Letter to My Countrymen; other essays, notes and comments from the Karmayogin; Speeches.
Volume 3
The Harmony of Virtue, EARLY CULTURAL WRITINGS : The Harmony of Virtue; Bankim Chandra Chatterjee; The Sources of Poetry and Other Essays; Valmiki and Vyasa; Kalidasa; The Brain of India; Essays from the Karmayogin; Art and Literature; Passing Thoughts; Conversations of the Dead.
Volume 4
Writings in Bengali: Hymn to Durga; Poems; Stories; The Veda; The Upanishad s; The Puranas; The Gita; Dharma; Nationalism; Editorials from Dharma; Stories of Jail Life; Letters.
Volume 5
Collected Poems, THE COMPLETE POETICAL WORKS : Short Poems; Sonnets; Longer Poems; On Quantitative Metre; Ilion; Poems in New Metres; Metrical Experiments.
Volume 6
Collected Plays AND SHORT STORIES, Part One : Perseus the Deliverer; Vasavadutta; Rodogune; Eric.
Volume 7
Collected Plays AND SHORT STORIES, Part Two : The Viziers of Bassora; Prince of Edur; The Maid in the Mill; The House of Brut; The Prince of Mathura; The Birth of Sin; Vikramonasie (The Hero and the Nymph). Short Stories : Idylls of the Occult : The Phantom Hour; The Door at Abelard; The Devil's Mastiff; The Golden Bird. Juvenilia.
Volume 8
Translations, FROM SANSKRIT AND OTHER LANGUAGES : From Sanskrit : passages from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, the Bhagavad Gita, Kalidasa; The Century of Life (The Nitishataka of Bhartrihari); etc. From Bengali : Songs of Bidyapati; Bonde Mataram (Hymn to the Mother); thirteen chapters from Anandamath (Bankim Chandra Chatterji's novel); etc. From Tamil : opening of the The Kural, etc. From Greek and Latin : opening of the Odyssey, etc.
Volume 9
The Future Poetry AND LETTERS ON POETRY, LITERATURE AND ART.
Volume 10
The Secret of the Veda : The Secret of the Veda; Selected Hymns; Hymns of the Atris; Other Hymns; Interpretation of the Veda; The Origins of Aryan Speech.
Volume 11
Hymns to the Mystic Fire : Foreword; The Doctrine of tire Mystics; Translations (Hymns to Agni from the Rig-veda translated in their esoteric sense); Supplement.
Volume 12
The Upanishads, TEXTS, TRANSLATIONS AND COMMENTARIES : Philosophy of the Upanishads; On Translating the Upanishads; The Upanishads; Early translations of some Vedantic texts; Supplement.
Volume 13
Essays on the Gita : First Series. Second Series, Part One : The Synthesis of Works, Love and Knowledge; Part Two : The Supreme Secret.
Volume 14
The Foundations of Indian Culture AND THE RENAISSANCE IN INDIA : Is India Civilised?; A Rationalistic Critic on Indian Culture; A Defence of Indian Culture (Religion and Spirituality, Indian Art, Indian Literature, Indian Polity); Indian Culture and External Influence; The Renaissance in India.
Volume 15
Social and Political Thought : The Human Cycle; The Ideal of Human Unity; War and Self-Determination.
Volume 16
The Supramental Manifestation AND OTHER WRITINGS : The Supramental Manifestation upon Earth; The Problem of Rebirth; Evolution; The Superman; Ideals and Progress; Heraclitus; Thoughts and Glimpses; Question of the Month from the Arya; The Yoga and Its Objects.
Volume 17
The Hour of God AND OTHER WRITINGS : The Hour of God; Evolution—Psychology—The Supermind; On Yoga; Thoughts and Aphorisms; Essays Divine and Human; Education and Art; Premises of Astrology; Reviews; Dayananda—Bankim—Tilak—Anda—Nammalwar; Historical Impressions; Notes from the Arya.
Volume 18
The Life Divine, BOOK ONE AND BOOK Two, PART ONE. Book One : Omnipresent Reality and the Universe; Book Two : The Knowledge and the Ignorance—The Spiritual Evolution; Part I : The Infinite Consciousness and the Ignorance.
Volume 19
The Life Divine, BOOK TWO, PART TWO: The Knowledge and the Spiritual Evolution.
Volume 20
The Synthesis of Yoga, PARTS ONE AND TWO: Introduction : The Conditions of the Synthesis; Part I : The Yoga of Divine Works; Part II : The Yoga of Integral Knowledge.
Volume 21
The Synthesis of Yoga, PARTS THREE AND FOUR. Part III : The Yoga of Divine Love; Part IV : The Yoga of Self-Perfection.
Volume 22
Letters on Yoga, PART ONE : The Supramental Evolution; Integral Yoga and Other Paths; Religion, Morality, Idealism and Yoga; Reason, Science and Yoga; Planes and Parts of the Being; The Divine and the Hostile Powers; The Purpose of Avatarhood; Rebirth; Fate and Freewill, Karma and Heredity, etc.
Volume 23
Letters on Yoga, PARTS TWO AND THREE. Part Two : The Object of lntegral Yoga; Synthetic Method and the Integral Yoga; Basic Requisites of the Path; The Foundation of Sadhana; Sadhana Through Work; Sadhana Through Meditation; Sadhana Through Love and Devotion; Human Relationships in Yoga; Sadhana in the Ashram and Outside; Part Three : Experiences and Realisations; Visions and Symbols; Experiences of the Inner and the Cosmic Consciousness.
Volume 24
Letters on Yoga, PART FOUR : The Triple Transformation—Psychic, Spiritual, Supramental; Transformation of the Mind; Transformation of the Vital; Transformation of the Physical; Transformation of the Subconscient and the Inconscient; Difficulties of the Path; Opposition of the Hostile Forces.
Volume 25
The Mother : WITH LETTERS ON THE MOTHER AND PRAYERS AND MEDITATIONS (translations from Prières et Meditations de la Mère).
Volume 26
On Himself, COMPILED FROM NOTES AND LETTERS : Part One: Sri Aurobindo on Himself : Life Before Pondicherry; Beginnings of Yoga; His Path and Other Paths; Sadhana for the Earth-Consciousness; The Master and the Guide; The Poet and the Critic; Reminiscences and Observations; Messages; Some Early Letters; Part Two: Sri Aurobindo on Himself and on the Mother : Leaders of Evolution; Identity of Their Consciousness; Difficulties of the Path-Finders; Helpers on the Way.
Volume 27
Supplement: Supplementary material arranged by volume.
Volume 28
Savitri—A LEGEND AND A SYMBOL, PART ONE: The Book of Beginnings; The Book of the Traveller of the Worlds; The Book of the Divine Mother.
Volume 29
Savitri—A LEGEND AND A SYMBOL, PARTS TWO AND THREE. Part Two : The Book of Birth and Quest; The Book of Love; The Book of Fate; The Book of Yoga; The Book of Death; Part Three : The Book of Eternal Night; The Book of the Double Twilight; The Book of Everlasting Day; Epilogue : The Return to Earth; Sri Aurobindo's Letters on Savitri.
Volume 30
Index and Glossary: Sri Aurobindo, a Life Sketch; Chronology; Contents of the Centenary Library; Bibliography; List of Essays, Speeches and Shorter Works; Title Index of Poems; Index; Glossary of Sanskrit Terms; etc.
xv
I
Vol. 1
No I
April 1977
II
Vol 1
No 2
December 1977
III
Vol 2
No 1
April 1978
IV
December 1978
v
Vol 3
April 1979
December 1979
IX
Vol 5
No1
April 1981
x
December 1981
XI
Vol 6
April 1982
XII
December 1982
XIII
Vol 7
April 1983
XIV
December 1983
XV
Vol 8
April1984
XVI
December 1984
XVII
Vol 9
April 1985
XVIII
December 1985
XIX
Vol 10
April 1986
XX
December 1986
XXI
Vol 11
April 1987
XXII
December 1987
VOWELS
CONSONANTS
1. Most examples in this column are taken from the Sanskrit-English dictionary of Sir M. Monier-Williams.
2. A nasal sound, sometimes pronounced like n (as in hamsa), sometimes representing a final m before a consonant (aham krtsnasya...).
3. An "h"-like aspiration at the end (anityah sarvasamskarah) or occasionally in the middle (duhkha) of a word.
4. The Hindustani letters ज़ ड़ and फ़ are transliterated as z, rh and f respectively.
xvii
(For details on the expanded form, refer to "Sources", pp. 361-66)
A See Aiyar, V.V.S. or Roy, Anilbaran
Aacrity in the Mahabharata, brother of BHISHMUC, and king of the ancient country named Surastra; he is described as equal to Parasurama in military skill and courage.(M.N.;A) Var: Acrity 3:190 8:40
Aaron in the Bible, the first high priest of the Israelites. He acted as the instrument of JEHOVAH in performing certain miracles, such as turning his rod into a serpent and causing it to bud, blossom, and bear almonds. He, with his brother Moses, led the Israelites out of Egypt. (Col. Enc.) 1:606
Abbasside Arabic family descended from Abbas, uncle of Mohammad. They held the caliphate from AD 749/750 to 1258. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 5:274-75 7:667, 712,
Abbot official title of the superior of a monastic community that follows the Benedictine Rule, and of certain other orders. (Enc. Br.) 9:485-86
Abdul Baha or Abd-ul-Baha (1844-1921), eldest son and successor of Baha Ullah, founder of the Bahai religion. To preach his father's religious ideas, Abdul Baha travelled to many countries of the world. He was well known to Mme Richard (the Mother). (Enc. Br.; M.C.W., vol. 2, p. 104) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27] Abdul Hamid, Sultan Abd-ul-Hamid II (1842-1918), Ottoman sultan from 1876 to 1909. In 1908 the Young Turks, who had penetrated the armed services, revolted and forced the sultan to accept a constitution. He was deposed in 1909 when he tried to plot a counter-revolution. (Col. Enc.) 2: 167, 248 27:122
Abdullah' a witness who gave evidence against the police in the Rawalpindi trial (1907), and was consequently meted out a scandalous treatment by the court and the police. (A) 1:445
Abdullah2 a character - the Emir - in Sri Aurobindo's Arabic romance Khalid of the Sea. (A) n 5:275-77
Abdullah' a character - a merchant of Bassora - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. (A) 7:561, 574-77, 659, 661-64
Abdullah Pacha a person who was evidently one of the sources of danger or difficulty to the Turkish administration about the beginning of 1912. (A) XXI: 94-95
Abdur Rahman, Amir Abd-ul-Rahman Khan (1844?-1901), emir of Afghanistan (1880- 1901). He had to go into
exile in 1869 after opposing his uncle Sher Ali, but was recognized by the British as emir in 1880. (Col. Enc.) 1:261
Abdurrahman, Dr. a Transvaal Indian whose letter was quoted by the weekly India (see India1) in 1906 to show how eager the Indians were to dissociate themselves from the Africans in their conflict with the colonists. (A) i: 132
Abelard in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard", the name of a house in the village of Streadhew. Abelard is also the name of the family living in that house. (A) 7: 1025, 1028, 1033-34, 1040-41, 1043
Abercrombie, Lascelles (1881-1938), English poet and critic who was associated with a group known as the GEORGIAN poets. (Enc. Br.) Der: Abercrombiean 26:306, 328-30, 343-44
Abhimanyu in the Mahabharata, son of Arjuna by his wife Subhadra. He was very handsome. He fell fighting heroically against fearful odds. (Dow.) 3:200, 207 4:75 8:59 IV: 115
Abhirs a people - a hill tribe - who live in the north of India and Pakistan along the Indus. Nepal's earlier rulers were Abhirs and KIRATHAS. (Dow.;Gaz.II) 5:85
Abinash See Bhattacharya, Abinash Chandra
Absalom (fl. c. 1020 BC-) , in the Bible, favourite son of David, king of Israel and Judah, who revolted against his father and drove him into flight. The English poet Dryden made allegorical use of this story in his political satire Absalom and Achitophel (1681). (Enc.Br.) 9:387
Abyssinia former empire of east central Africa. The name Abyssinia, although never official, was formerly widely applied to the country now called Ethiopia. (Col. Enc.) Der: Abyssinian 2:170 3:482 9:539 15:46, 328, 502, 505 23:926 26:382-83 XV: 74
Acamos Acamas, in the Greek epic Iliad, a Greek warrior, son of Theseus. When Diomedes went to Troy to ask for the return of Helen, Acamas accompanied him. (M.I.) D 5:491
Achab a character in Sri Aurobindo's "Fragment of a Drama", 7:1085-88
Achaea Latinized form of ACHAIA. Der:
Achaean a 6:1 II: 26
Page 1
Achaemenian of an ancient Iranian dynasty whose kings founded and ruled the Achae- menian Empire from 559 to 330 BC. (Enc. Br.) 9:410
Achaia ancient name of Greece. The Indo-European occupants of Greece prior to the Dorian invasion (c. 1000 Be) were known collectively as Achaians. (M.I.) Der:
Achaian 5:393, 395, 397, 404-05, 407-08, 415-16, 419, 421-22, 427, 430, 432, 459, 463, 468-69, 471-72, 476-77, 479, 481-83, 485-87, 497, 499
Achari SeeSnnnasa 27:426
Acharya, Dr. Prankrishna (1861-1936), a well-known medical practitioner of Calcutta. With the partition of Bengal in 1905, he appeared on the political scene. Afterwards he was specially interested and actively engaged in the promotion of indigenous crafts and the spread of education. (S.B.C.) 2:150
Acherontian waters The Acheron was, in Greek religion, considered to be a river of Hades. A river of Thesprotia in south Epirus, it flowed underground at several points and thus was reputed to lead to the underworld. (M.I.) 5:396
Achilleid (also called Achilleis), name given to the part of the Iliad comprising Books I, VIII, and XI to XXII, regarded by some critics as constituting a distinct poem on the single theme "the wrath of Achilles", and which is older than the rest of the Iliad. (N.C.C.H.) 3:143
Achilles in Greek legend, one of the foremost of the Greek warriors who fought in the Trojan War. He was the son of Peleus and Thetis. Thetis, hearing a prophecy that her son would die at Troy, attempted to make him invulnerable by bathing him in the river Styx, but the water did not touch the heel by which she held him. In the war he was killed by Paris, who wounded him in this one vulnerable spot. The quarrel of Achilles and Agamemnon over the siave-girl BRISEIS, with its tragic consequences, is the subject of Homer's Iliad. See also Scyros. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) a 1:511 3:189, 269, 304 5:397, 399, 401-04, 406, 408, 414, 418, 426-28, 430, 432, 435, 438, 440, 444, 450, 452-53, 456-60, 463-70, 473-80, 483, 485-91, 493, 513-14, 516-17, 519 9:317, 418 12:37 16:90, 92 17:105 22:414, 417 II: 26 VI: 134-35 X: 151
Achitophel (variant of Ahithophel), in the Bible, one of the most trusted advisers of David, king of Israel and Judah; he took a leading part in ABSALOM'S revolt. (Enc. Br.) a 9:387
Achyuta "the unfallen", an epithet of Vishnu or Krishna. O [Indexed with Krishna]
Acinto a proposed character - the Miller's son - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. a 7:821
Acirrous in Greek legend, a cohort of DIOMEDES and a resident of TROEZEN. (M.I.) 5:486-88 Acrisius in Greek legend, the Argive king whose daughter Danae gave birth to Perseus. (A) 6:1, 9
Acrity See Aacrity
Acropolis a citadel or an elevated fortified part of a Greek city, especially of Athens. The Acropolis of Athens was adorned with some of the world's greatest architectural and sculptural monuments, whose remains are still impressive. (Col. Enc.) 5:254
Acrur in the Mahabharata, a Yadava, uncle of Krishna, who brought Krishna and Bala- rama from Gokul to Mathura, as desired by Kansa. (Dow.) Var: Ocroor 4:71 8:41, 284 27:139-40
Adam in the Hebrew Bible, the name of the first man. The story of the original human couple, Adam and Eve, is told in two dif- ferent accounts of creation in the beginning of the book of Genesis. (Col. Enc.) 1:624 3:21 7:643, 868 12:46 14:203-04 17:121, 137 18:51 24:1649, 1762 26:259 29:798
Adams, John (1735-1826), first Vice- President and second President (1797-1801) of the U.S.A. He earlier had been an active revolutionary. (Enc. Br.) 1:567
Adamson, Sir Harvey (1852-1929). After serving in Burma in various capacities from 1875 he became Judicial Commissioner, Upper Burma (1900-03); Additional Member of Viceroy's Council (1903-05); Chief Judge, Burma (1905); Member of Viceroy's Council (1906-10); Home Member (c. 1907-08); Lt. Governor of Burma (1910-15). (Gilbert, ?. 45; Wolpert, pp. 246-47) a 1:620, 623-29, 818
Addison, Joseph (1672-1719), English essayist, poet, dramatist, and statesman. He also held a seat in Parliament from 1708 until his death. (Enc. Br.) 1:245 9:387
Adhwara Yajna "the sacrifice of the Path";the sacrifice as the path leading to the Divine; a sacrifice (especially the Soma sacrifice) (A; M.W.) 4:32 10:180, 321, 497 27:191 IV: 146 XV: 8
Page 2
Adhwaryu one who institutes an Adhvara (see Adhwara Yajna); any officiating priest. M.W.) 11:477 XVIII: 180
Aditi in the Vedic phase of Hindu mythology, the personification of the Infinite, and the mother of a group of celestial deities, the Adityas; she is the "infinite Mother of the gods" (11: 32) and "the infinite undivided consciousness of God". (Enc.Br.;A) 9:205, 211 10:43, 92-93, 112, 114, 118, 126, 181, 189, 191-92, 194, 196-201, 206-07, 209-11, 224, 235, 271, 289-90, 292, 325, 328-29, 341, 405, 413, 421-26, 428, 430, 437-38, 442, 446-47, 459-61, 463-64, 534 11: 32, 83, 118, 162, 168, 238, 294, 432 12:255 16:405 17:28-30 VI: 144-45 XIV: 110 XV: 38
Aditians the same as Adityas.
Adityas the sons of Aditi; a group of Vedic gods of uncertain number and identity. Originally six or seven, the number after- wards increased to twelve as representing the sun in the twelve months. They are solar gods born in the Truth, their home, and descended into the lower planes as the guardians and increasers of the Truth in man, leading him by the Truth to felicity and immortality. (Dow.;A-ll:467) Var: Adityah;
Aditians (in poetry) a 5:545 10:181, 439, 444, 446 11: 44, 143, 307, 467, 494 13: 349, 364 XIII: 62 XVI: 133, 144, 175 XVII: 25
Admetus in Greek legend, Thessalian king whom Apollo, banished from Olympus, served as a shepherd. He was the king of the Pherae and husband of ALCESTIS. In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, he is wounded by Penthesilea. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:515
Adonais a poem (1821) by P. B. Shelley, written on the occasion of the death of John Keats; it is cast in the form of a classical elegy. (Enc. Br.) 9:127
Adrianople former name of Edirne, a city in European Turkey at the junction of the Tunca and Maritsa rivers near the borders of Greece and Bulgaria. Because of its strategic position, it has had a turbulent history. During the First Balkan War in 1913 it was taken by the Bulgarians. Retaken by the Turks, it was captured by the Greeks in 1920 during the Turkish War of Independence and was finally restored to Turkey in 1922. (Enc. Br.) XX: 148 XXI: 66, 71, 92-94
Adriatic a northward thrusting arm of the Mediterranean Sea, between the Italian and Balkan peninsulas, a 15:505 (Advisory) Council of Notables or (Board of) Notables. Set up in 1907 as a sort of medium of communication between the government and the people, it was one of the three reforms introduced by Mr. Morley, the Secretary of State for India. It consisted of Rajahs and Maharajahs, and pro-British Moderate leaders. (A) 1:414-15, 449-51, 455, 570, 624, 705, 818, 824-25 2: 305
Advocate English bi-weekly journal published from Lucknow, U.P. It was founded by Rai Bahadur Gangaprasad Varma in 1888 and edited by R. N. Varma. (Cal. Lib.) Q 1:891-92 A. E. pen name of George William Russell (1867-1935), Irish poet and mystic, and a leading figure in the renascence of Irish literature that took place in the early twentieth century. He was an active participant in the Irish nationalist movement, both in its political and cultural aspects. (Enc. Br.;Col.Enc.)9:2-3, 157.165, 175, 187, 196, 203, 229, 252, 370-71, 444, 532, 534, 26:255, 270, 272-73, 329 Aeacid(s) in Greek legend, son(s) of Aeacus, who was the son of Zeus and Aegina. Peleus, Achilles' father, was one of the Aeacids. (M.I.) a 5:440, 465, 473, 479
Aegean an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Asia Minor. D5 : 145, 391, 405, 414, 434, 454, 468-69, 476, 481, 486 6:174, 418 9: 149 XXI: 66
Aegisthus in Greek legend, son of Thyestes. He survived the murder of his brothers, and killed his uncle Atreus. He then became the lover of Clytemnestra and helped her to kill her husband Agamemnon. In revenge for this deed Agamemnon's son, Orestes, killed him. (Col. Enc.) 8:409-10
Aeneas in classical legend, one of the leading Trojan princes, son of Anchises and Aphrodite, and father of Ascanius (who does not figure in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion). After the fall of Troy he escaped with his aged father on his back. He went to Italy where his descendants founded Rome. The deeds of the "pious" Aeneas are the substance of Virgil's Aeneid. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) 5:382, 385, 397-99, 402-03, 412, 417-19, 427, 440, 442-44, 446, 450, 457-61, 465, 468, 470, 488, 493, 503 9:374 22:451
Aeneid a Latin epic written . 29-19 BC by Virgil to glorify the origins of Rome. Although unfinished, the twelve books of this epic comprise one of the greatest long poems in any literature. The adventures of the "pious" Aeneas, whose descendants founded Rome, are its theme. (Enc. Br.; CoI.Enc.) 3:174 5:361 9:76 26:339
Page 3
Aeolia the land of the Aeolians, one of the principal ancient Greek peoples; in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, the term would seem to signify Greece in general and not to be restricted to the territory on the northwest coast of Asia Minor known historically as Aeolia or Aeolis, which was settled by the Aeolians mainly after the fall of Troy. (M.I.) 5:476
Aeolus name of two figures in Greek mythology. (1) Aeolus, a mythical king of Magnesia in Thessaly, was the son of Hellen (the eponymous ancestor of the Hellenes) and father of Sisyphus. Aeolus was the founder of the Aeolian branch of the Greek people. (2) In the works of Homer, Aeolus was the controller of the winds and ruler of the floating island of Aeolia. Although a human in Homer, Aeolus later became a minor god. (Enc. Br.) 5:181, 476 Aeschylus (525/524-456/455 Be), Athenian tragic poet, the first of the three great Greek writers of tragedy. He wrote perhaps ninety plays, of which seven survive in full. He is considered to be the real inventor of tragedy. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Aeschylean a 3:150, 177 9:68, 82, 152, 304-06, 311-12, 379, 521-22, 530 14:192 29:751, 814 X:114 XVII: 55
Aeson in Greek legend, father of Jason. He was driven out from his kingdom by his brother Pelian. One legend says that he died while Jason was seeking the Golden Fleece. Another says that, after Jason's return, Aesons's youth was restored by MEDEA. She cut his body into pieces which she threw into her cauldron, and out of it emerged Aeson rejuvenated. (Col. Enc.) 17:108 Aesthetic a philosophy of aesthetics by Benedetto Croce, published in 1922. (Enc. Br.) 9:485-86
Aetes in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Hellene, father of Echemus. (M.I.) 5:518
Aethiopes a dark-skinned race living, according to Homer, far away by the stream Oceanus. (O.C.C.L.) 8:409
Aethon name given by Sri Aurobindo to one of the speakers in his poem Songs to Myrtilla. It is a name of the sort that occurs in Greek bucolic poetry, 5:1, 3, 5
Aetna (or Etna), a volcano on the east coast of Sicily, Italy. It is the highest active volcano in Europe. See also Enceladus. (CoI.Enc.) 5:494
Aetolia region of ancient Greece, north of the Gulf of Corinth and the Gulf of Calydon, and
east of the Achelous river (which separates it from Acarnania). (Col. Enc.) n 5:488
Aetor in Sri Aurobindo' s //('on, a Troj an senator, brother of Antenor. (M.I.) D 5:412, 431, 461
Afghan 1. of Afghanistan. 2. a generic term \ used to denote the many hill tribes who inhabit not only Afghanistan but also the northwest frontiers of Pakistan. (D.I.H.) D 3:198 5:283 14:223
Afghanistan country of central Asia, lying on the northwestern frontier of Pakistan. D 1:261, 527 2:248-49 10:554 17:278 27:122
Afrasiab Afrasiyab (d. 1624/25), Iraqi governor of Basra. (Enc. Br.) 3:475
Africa second largest continent (with adjacent islands) in the world, lying across the equator mainly in the northern hemi- sphere. Var: Afric (poetic form) Der:
African 1:132, 259, 814-15 2:167, 169, 216-17 3:307 5:176, 419, 596 6:344, 431-32 14:367 15:44, 46, 79, 296, 300-01, 303, 328, 332-33, 346, 367, 378, 407-08, 411, 414, 454, 467, 502, 505, 584, 604, 619, 622, 626, 633, 638 16:200 17:298 20:9 22:490 23:675 24:1731 25:360 26:129 111:25-26 VI: 195 VIII: 134 IX: 33 XIV: 117 XVI: 142
Afridi a Pathan tribe inhabiting the hill country from the eastern spurs of Safed Koh to the borders of the Peshawar district (now in Pakistan). The Afridis often raided the trading caravans in the Khyber Pass and the villages roundabout. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries Great Britain dispatched numerous military expeditions to suppress them. (Enc.Br.) 1:777
Aftab a nationalist journal of North India. It was started at Delhi by Haider Raza (or Riza) in 1906 and was conducted on very extreme lines. It stopped publication in 1908. (P.T.I.) 1:262
A. G. initials of Aurobindo Ghose, Sri Aurobindo's original name after he dropped "Ackroyd" from the name given by his father. Some of Sri Aurobindo's letters written from Pondicherry before 1920 were signed with these initials, and during the same period his associates sometimes called him "A.G." Later Sri Aurobindo discarded these initials. (A) [Indexed with "Sri Aurobindo"]
Agadir the southernmost Atlantic port of Morocco; capital of Agadir province. (Enc. Br.) 15:367
Page 4
Aga Khan, the title of the religious head of the Borah Ismailian community of the Mahomedans in India, East Africa and Central Asia. Here the reference is to the Aga Khan III, formerly Sultan Sir Mohammad Shah (1877-1957); Member of the Viceroy's Council, 1902-04; founder of the Muslim University at Aligarh, 1910-20; leader of the Indian Delegation to the League of Nations, 1934-37; President of the League of Nations Assembly, 1937. He wrote his Memoirs in 1954. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.; Gilbert, p. 26) 1:207
Agamedes in Greek mythology, king of Orchomenus in Boeotia. He and his stepbrother were skilled constructors of underground shrines and treasure houses. (Enc. Br.) a IV: 148
Agamemnon in Greek legend, the eldest son of ATREUS and brother of Menelaus; king of Mycenae and Argos. He was the leader of the Greek armies in the Trojan War. His quarrel with Achilles is a main theme of the Iliad. On his return from Troy, he was murdered by his wife Clytemnestra and her paramour Aegisthus; his death was avenged by his children Electra and Orestes. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) 5: 397, 400, 402, 420, 434, 463, 472, 475, 479-80, 482-84, 486, 491, 509 27:150 II: 26 IV: 148
Agamemnon title of a tragedy by Aeschylus. (Enc. Br.) a 9:9
Agamemnonid an epithet of ORESTES' (son of Agamemnon). (A) a 8:409
Agarkar Gopal Ganesh Agarkar (1856-95), eminent social-reform leader of Maharashtra, India, who worked for some time with B. G. Tilak. He was a great intellectual and also an author. Appreciative of the good qualities of British rule, he advocated the constitutional approach as the only means to attain self- rule. (A;B.A.C.;D.N.B.) 17:350
Agastya a Vedic sage; reputed author of several hymns in the Rig-veda. Legendary tales about him are frequently found in later literature. (V.Index; Dow.) 4:30 10:241-44, 256-61, 270 17:277-78 XV: 53
Agastya Shastras works traditionally attributed to the Vedic Rishi Agastya. In the opinion of Sri Aurobindo they belong to a much later date, being written in classical Sanskrit of a fairly modern type. (A) 17:278
Agathon (c. 445-400 ac), an Athenian tragic poet whose first success at the festival of the Great Dionysia was made by Plato the occasion for his dialogue Symposium; the banquet which is the setting of the dialogue is placed in Agathon's house. (Enc. Br.) D 11:6-7 Agis Agis I, Agis II, Agis III, and Agis IV were Spartan kings in the 3rd and 4th centuries BC. (Enc. Br.) IV: 148
Aglauron in Sri Aurobindo's llion, a chief of the Dolopes, slain in the battle by Sambus. (M.I.) 5:516
Agnayi spouse of the Hindu god Agni, known as Sudarsana, daughter of the powerful king (Nila) of a country in the south called Mahismatipura. (Pur. Enc., p. 11 under Agni) XV: 29
Agni Fire or Flame; the god of Fire; psychologically, the divine Will, perfectly inspired by divine Wisdom, and indeed one with it, which is the active and effective power of the Truth-Consciousness. Agni is one of the chief deities of the Vedas and a great number of the hymns are addressed to him, more hymns in fact than to any other god. He is considered as the mediator between men and gods, carrying our offerings to them and returning with their force and light and joy. In the Rig-veda he is sometimes identified with Rudra, the forerunner of the later god Shiva. Agni is represented as having seven tongues, each with a distinct name. In the Puranas, where Agni plays a subordinate role, he is de- scribed variously. (A; I & G; Dow.; M.I.-Aug.'80) Var: Agnidevata; Agni Jatavedas (the knower of all births); Agni Pawak (the purifying fire; the psychic fire);
Agni Twashta (as the Framer or Fashioner of things); Agni Vaishwanara (as the universal in Man or universal Power; the heat that digests food), l-l (Note: The term Agni in the ordinary sense of "fire" has not been indexed even if it begins with a capital "A".) 4: 21, 23, 26-29, 31-33, 36, 39, 43, 373 5:237 9:200, 208, 36210:4-5, 19, 40, 48, 52-66, 73, 86, 89-92, 98, 101, 103, 106-08, 110-17.128, 130. 135-37, 139-42, 146, 152-61, 163, 179-81, 185, 191-92, 194-202, 205, 210-11, 216-17, 221, 231, 234-35, 238, 242-43, 256, 263-65, 267-71, 274, 282, 285.297-98, 300, 319, 321, 326, 333-35, 341-42, 348-49, 353-54, 358-60, 362-65, 367, 370-71, 373, 376.378-79, 381, 384, 386, 388, 390-95, 397, 399, 401, 403, 405, 407-12, 414, 416-17, 419-20, 425-26, 429, 432, 438, 440-41, 445, 447, 457-58, 520, 533-34, 539 11:9-10, 13, 16, 18, 22, 30, 32, 40, 43-49, 75, 77-78, 105, 130, 156, 162, 173, 238, 242, 264, 439-40, 442-43, 445-47, 453-60, 462-66, 470, 474-83, 485-92, 494-501 12: 68, 72, 120, 128-30, 132, 148, 150, 158, 160, 216-19, 240-41 , 250, 255, 322, 334, 472- 73 13:112, 272, 349, 374 14:263 16:255,
Page 5
337, 346, 350, 352-53, 429 17:113, 257, 339-40, 342 18:155, 198, 392 19:657, 964, 1015 20: 157 22:110, 215, 482 26:243 27:158, 187, 189-91, 193-96, 327 29:789 1:17 11:35-36 111:38, 44, 48-53, 56 IV: 125-54 V: 27, 31-37, 68-69, 81 VI: 147-52, 182 VII: 32-34, 39-40 VIII: 143-44, 153-54, 160, 173 IX: 9-11 X: 178 XII: 126, 130 XIV: 108-10, 114, 120, 125-26, 130, 132, 138 XV: 6-11, 13-15, 20, 27-29, 47, 49-51, 58 XVI: 138, 143, 157, 175-76 XVII: 14, 33, 44, 47 XVIII: 156, 167, 181 XX: 116 XXI: 20 Agni a poem by K. D. Sethna, composed on 14 March 1937; it is an example of imaged spiritual poetry, n 26:286 Agnimitra a character - king of Vidisha, son of Puspamitra who was Commander-in-chief and afterwards supplanter of the Maurya Dynasty in Vidisha - in Kalidasa's play Mdlavikdgnimitram, part of which was translated by Sri Aurobindo (see Malavica and the King). Historically, Agnimitra was the second king of the Sunga dynasty in India, and ascended the throne in 155 BC. Even during the lifetime of his father, Commander Puspamitra, Agnimitra was looking after and controlling the administration of the country. (A; H.V.K.) 3: 215, 231, 263, 273-74 8: 135, 144-54 X:116, 124-32, 134, 136-37, 139-40, 145, 155-56 Agnimitra See Malavica (and the King) AgniPavaka a VedicRishi. 11:431 AgniPurana one of the eighteen major Puranas; it derives its name from its having been communicated originally by Agni, the deity of fire, to Vasishtha. It is devoted to the glorification of Shiva, but its contents are of a very varied and cyclopaedical character, and are variously specified as "sixteen thousand, fifteen thousand, and fourteen thousand stanzas". (Dow.) 4:53 Agni Sauchika a VedicRishi. 11:405, 412 Agra administrative headquarters of Agra district and division in the United Provinces (now called Uttar Pradesh), India, on the Yamuna (or Jumna) River. It is best known as the site of the Taj Mahal. (Enc. Br.) 1:702 2:62, 226, 408 3:422 4:250 5:283, 285-88, 290, 292 7:749
Agrippa, Marcus Vipsanius (c. 63-12 Be), powerful deputy of Augustus, the first Roman emperor. Of low birth, he had become the companion of Octavian (later Augustus), the adoptive son of Julius Caesar, by the time Caesar was murdered in 44 BC. In the ensuing struggle for power, Agrippa was one of Augustus' key commanders. He suppressed rebellions, founded colonies, and administered various parts of the empire. He helped Augustus to defeat Antony at Actium in 31 BC. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Ahalya wife of Rishi Gautama; a very beautiful woman. She was seduced by Indra, who had to suffer for his adultery. (Dow.) 3:427 7:933
Ahana in SriAurobindo'spoemA/iana, the Dawn of God personified. (Auro-II) a 5:523, 535, 537, 539-45, 549, 552-53 XVII: 45 Ahana a poem by Sri Aurobindo, originally (at one stage) of 172 lines, first published in Ahana and Other Poems in 1915; it was a revised and enlarged version of the last 160 lines of The Descent of Ahana, the title of an earlier draft. This version of 172 lines was further revised and enlarged to 520 lines before being published in Collected Poems and Plays in 1942. Volume 5 of Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library includes two versions, the first draft (The Descent of Ahana) and the revised and enlarged Ahana of 520 lines. (I&G) a 5:551-53 9:400 22: 207 26:276 II: 27, 31-33
Ahana and Other Poems a collection of 25 poems of Sri Aurobindo published from Pondicherryinl915. (I&G) n 26:264 (referred to here simply as "Ahana") II: 27
Ahites in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, Helenus' henchman, slain in the battle by Echemus. VI: 135
Ahi Vritra same as VRITRA.
Ahmed See Asanuddin (Ahmed).
Ahmedabad largest city of Gujurat state, west central India, north of Bombay and located on the Sabarmati River; also the district containing this city. (Enc. Br.) D 1:247, 646 4:199 26:25, 49, 382 1:71 XIII: 51 XV: 64
Ahriman also called Angra Mainyu, "Destructive Spirit" of the AVESTA; one of the two great primeval powers of the universe in Zoroastrian mythology (the other is AHURA MAZDA). As the god of darkness and evil in the dualistic doctrine of Zoroastrianism he manifested nothingness,
Page 6
vacuum, destruction, darkness and doom. (Enc.Br.;Col.Enc.) 13:41, 163 16:133, 179 18:397 27:263 XV: 5
Ahuk in the Mahabharata, another name of Ugrasena of the Yadava line. He had a hundred sons. 8:30, 41, 43
Ahura Mazda in Zoroastrian religion, the supreme deity and creator of the world, "the Lord of Wisdom". He is one of the two great primeval powers of the universe, the other being AHRIMAN. Ahura Mazda manifested expansion, creativity, light and life. (Col. Enc.;Web.) Var: Ahuramazda; Ormuzd (Ormazd-Web.) a 6:374 7:1087 10: 153, 470 13: 41, 163 16: 133, 179 17: 299 18: 397 27: 263 XV: 5
Aiamos misreading of "Adamas", in Sri Aurobindo's llion, the name of a Trojan warrior, called a "son of the Northwind". (M.I.) 5:461
Airavata in Hindu mythology, "a fine elephant" produced at the churning of the ocean, and appropriated by the god Indra. (Dow.) Var:Iravath 8:196 13:349
Aitareya (Upanishad) an Upanishad of the Rig-veda. (Up. K.) 10:249 12:56-57, 134, 175, 355, 393 16:261 20:6 27:211, 308 IV: 167 V:97 VIII: 181 XIII: 57 XVII: 33 XVIII: 156
Aiyar a character, representing Subramaniya Aiyar, in "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy published in Bande Mataram' (Feb. 1908). Var:Aiyer 1:674-78, 681, 693
Aiyar, Krishnaswamy V. Krishnaswami Aiyar, Moderate leader of Madras, and a successful lawyer who was elevated to the Bench in 1909. (Auro-I;A) Var: Krishna . Swami Aiyar a 1:246, 593 2:251, 309
Aiyar, Subramaniya G. Subramania lyer (1855-1916), jurist, patriot, and social reformer. He founded The Hindu in 1878 in collaboration with a few close friends. Though a leader of the Moderates, he valued the work of the Extremists. In July 1908 he was arrested for advocating Swaraj and supporting the Swadeshi movement, but the case was withdrawn soon after. (D.N.B.) 1:112
Aiyar, T. Paramasiva author of The Riks. 0 10:27, 29
Aiyar, V.V.S. Varahaneri Venkatesa Subramanya lyer (1881-1925), a revolutionary closely associated
with Sri Aurobindo and Subramania Bharati at Pondicherry where he stayed for 10 years (1910-20). Even though engaged in revolutionary activities, he found time for literary work also. He was a successful writer in Tamil and a keen student of Kamban and Valluvar. The modern short story in Tamil was originated by him. (D.N.B.; Gaz.-II) 17:319 27:469 XXI: 6 (by "A" very probably "Aiyar, V.V.S. "is meant -Purani, p. 149)
Aiyer See Aiyar Aja in Kalidasa's epic Raghuvansa, a king who was chosen as husband by Indumati at hersvayamvara. 3:427 IV: 148 Ajamede a character - Prince of Mathura, a fugitive in the mountains - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Prince of Mathura. Compare the historical personality Ajamida. 07:891, 898
Ajamida an Indian king of the Lunar race. (M.N.) 3:195 IV: 148 Ajanta Ajanta Caves; Buddhist rock-cut cave temples and monasteries, near Ajanta village in Aurangabad district (Maharastra state, western India), celebrated for their wall paintings, frescoes which represent the highest development of the art of fresco- painting in India, and depict scenes from the life of the Buddha. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Ajantesque a 9:537 14:239-41, 244, 247, 250-52 17:302-03 26:243 29:789 Ajatashatr(o)u mentioned in the Upanishads, the name of a king of Kashi. He was very learned and, although a Kshatriya, he instructed the proud Brahmana Gargyabalaki as to the real nature of the Self. (He is not to be confused with the Ajatashatru of the Buddhist texts.) (Dow.; V. Index) 2:29 14:275, 280 16:412 VI: 175 VIII: 179, 181 XIV: 124, 133 Ajax1 in Greek legend, son of Oileus and leader of the forces from Locris in the Trojan War. He was called the Locrian Ajax or Ajax the Lesser. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:439, 442-43, 454, 459, 470, 477-78, 480, 486, 508
Ajax2 in Greek legend, son of Telamon, called therefore the Telamonian Ajax. Because of his enormous size and reckless valour he was also called Ajax the Greater. He was the leader of the warriors of Salamis, and is already slain by Penthesilea at the opening of Sri Aurobindo's epic llion.(Col.Enc.;M.I.) 5:404, 408, 413, 427, 466, 480
Ajebee a character - nephew of Almuene in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. 0 7:561, 574-76, 623-29, 642-44, 647-52, 655-56, 658-61, 664, 671, 710-11, 713, 717, 732-34
Ajit Singh, Sirdar ( ? - 1947), a nationalist orator, leader of the movement in Punjab against increase of land-revenue and irrigation rules, and a founder of the "Indian Patriots' Association". He was deported to Mandalay (Burma) in 1907, a week before Lala Lajpatrai, on the mere suspicion of
Page 7
tampering with the native troops. (D. N. B.; H.F.M.I.; N.S.I.) 1:279, 325, 338, 364-65, 400, 420, 482, 522, 607, 612
Ajmere The princely state of Ajmer, in northwestern India, comprised two detached areas surrounded by Rajasthan; it was identical with the former British province of Ajmer-Merwara. In 1956 Ajmer became a part of the state of Rajasthan in the Republic of India. The city of Ajmer, former capital of the princely state, is presently the administrative headquarters of Ajmer district in Rajasthan state. This famous city is the third largest city of Rajasthan. (Enc. Ind.; Enc. Br.) 7:739, 741-42, 797 111:86
Ajwa a picnic spot about 12 miles from Baroda, near a reservoir that supplies water to the city. (A) 1:69, 71-72, 75
Akashic records or akdsa-lipi ("Akashic" is an adjective from the Sanskrit dkdsa meaning all-pervading medium similar to ether), the enduring trace of all events that have ever occurred including even thought, idea and emotion, said to be preserved in the astral light. Numerous occult versions of history have been based on the "observation" of this record by seers who claim to have penetrated the astral plane. (Enc. Unex.) 21:863 XIII: 27, 33
Akbar (1542-1605), the third Moghul emperor (1556-1605) and real founder of the Moghul empire and dynasty in India. (D. I. H.; Enc.Br.) 1:315, 739, 780 3:1764:147, 156 14:224, 377, 379 15:436 17:193 27:67
Akenside, Mark (1721-70), English poet and physician, best known for his poem The Pleasures of Imagination. (Enc. Br.) a II:11-15
Aksha in the Ramayana, the eldest son of Ravana, slain in battle by Hanuman. (Dow.) a V:6, ll
Alabama a state in southeastern U.S.A., admitted to the Union in 1819 as the 22nd state. (Col. Enc.) 9:152
Alacananda one of the four head-streams of the river Ganga in the Himalayas. According to the Vaishnavas it is the terrestrial Ganga which Shiva received upon his head as it fell from heaven. The famous shrine of Badrinath is situated on the banks of this stream. (Dow.; R. Map) 29:422
Alaciel a character - the Witch - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Witch ofllni. 7:1057, 1060-65, 1067-68, 1074-81
Aladdin the main character of the story "Aladin and the Wonderful Lamp" in The Arabian Nights
Entertainment. o 1:3 26:13
Alaka in Hindu mythology, name of the ethereal city on the golden mountain "Sumeru"; capital of KUVERA and abode of the Gandharvas and Yakshas. (A; Dow.) Var: Ullaca 3:294 27:159 X: 143-44
Alakadhari A letter from him was found during the search of Sri Aurobindo's residence in 1908, and it was read out aloud by Mr. Cregan to amuse himself. (A) 4:259
Alanschar a character, a daydreamer, in a story of The Arabian Nights Entertainment. a 1:206
Alaric Alaric I (c. 370-410), chief of the Visigoths (a Germanic tribe) from AD 395 and leader of the army that sacked Rome in August 410. To many of his contemporaries the event symbolized the fall of the Western Roman Empire. Although Alaric won great fame as a conqueror, Roman historical sources offer only meagre and inconsistent judgments of his character; they do not, however, seem to regard him as a mere "rude barbarian". (Enc.Br.) VI: 186
Alastor or The Spirit of Solitude, a poem (1816) by P. B. Shelley; it is an immature work which met with little favour. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 9:127
Alban See Albany
Albanact a character - a son of Brutus, and Prince of Albany - in Sri Aurobindo's play The House of Brut. 7:883, 885
Albania a small country in southeastern Europe, on the Adriatic coast of the Balkan Peninsula, between Yugoslavia (north) and Greece (south). It was occupied by Italy and Germany from 1939 to 1944. (Enc. Br.; Web.) Der: Albanian D 15:295, 328 XXI: 71 XXII: 138
Albany and Alban are ancient poetic names of Gaelic origin for the northern part of Britain. (Ox. Comp.) D 7:883, 886-87
Albert Hall a public lecture hall in central Calcutta. It served as a forum of the NATIONALIST PARTY. 0 2:226 27:44
Alcaeus (c. 620-580 ec), Greek lyric poet and contemporary of Sappho, whose work was highly esteemed in the ancient world. Nothing of his work (a collection of poems in ten books, made in the 2nd century BC)
Page 8
Alsatian inhabitant of Alsatia or Alsace, a region in France which was re-ceded by Germany to France in 1919. (C.O.D.) a 15:291, 299, 310
Alt-Breisach Breisach is a town in Baden- Wiirttemberg Land (state), southwestern West Germany, on the right bank of the Rhine opposite Neuf-Brisach. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Alurca a character - King Vuthsa's friend and companion - in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. n 6:207, 217-18, 226-29, 231-32, 236-37, 243-44, 302, 321-22, 324, 329 Alwar(s) (Alvar, in the Tamil language, means a man who has intuitive knowledge of God), a group of South Indian mystics who (7th-10th cent.) wandered from temple to temple singing ecstatic hymns in adoration of the god Vishnu; their songs rank among the world's greatest devotional literature. The most famous of the Alvars was Nammalwar. (Enc.Br.) 14:256, 316, 321 17:371-74 18:485
Alzayni Mahomed bin Suleyman of Zayni, a character - Haroun's cousin, King of Bassora - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. 7:561, 606, 614, 621, 665-69, 710-15, 724-31, 733-34
Amadeus, Victor See Victor Amadeus
Amara Amarakosha, "the immortal vocabulary" (amara means "immortal" in Sanskrit), or "the vocabulary of Amara or Amara Singh", after the author's name; one of the most celebrated vocabularies of classical Sanskrit, written in verse. (Dow.) n 3:315, 318
Amaravati an ancient city in Guntur dis- trict of Andhra Pradesh state, India, which became a centre of Hindu culture under the Satyavahana dynasty, which ruled in the Deccan for about four centuries after the death of Asoka. Amaravati is famous for relief sculptures that survive from its great Buddhist shrine. A new and purely in- digenous school of art, architecture and sculpture developed in Amaravati; it may have preceded the Mathura and Gandhara schools but is, in any case, free from all trace of Greek influence. (D.I.H.) n 17:303
Amamath a mountain cave in northeast Kashmir where, according to Hindu myth- ology, Lord Shiva stayed for some time. Water trickling down from the roof of the cave forms a stalagmite of ice in the shape of a Shivalinga. This, it is said, increases and decreases in size with the phases of the moon. Amarnath is an important place of Hindu pilgrimage. (N.B.A., p. 1378) a VI: 164 Amarus in Sri Aurobindo's Won, father of Phoces. (A) VI: 135
Amaryllis name given to a shepherdess in bucolic poetry, first by Theocritus, later by Virgil and Ovid. Spenser, in his "Colin Clouts come home again" used the name to signify Alice, one of the daughters of Sir John Spencer ofAlthorpe. Milton used the name in Lycidas. (Ox. Comp.) a 29:759
Amazon in Greek legend, one of a tribe of women warriors who allowed no men in their country (in Asia Minor), and spent their time in hunting and warfare. (Col. Enc.) 5:514, 516 7:859, 909.991-92
Amazulu apparently, another form of "Zulu", a great Bantu nation of southeastern Africa. (Web.) 111:29
Ambariya a town in Mymensingh district of Bengal (now in Bangladesh), 1:319
Ambedkar, Dr. Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (1893-1956), leader of the Indian scheduled castes (or Harijans, the term coined by Mahatma Gandhi for low-caste Hindus); Law Minister of the Government of India (1947-51). (Enc.Br.) 22:140
Ambegavkar one of the persons who one day accompanied Sri Aurobindo to the Dal Lake during his Kashmir visit in 1903. (A) IV: 194
Amber a town in Rajputana; in the 12th century the capital of the state of the Kachwaha Rajputs (warrior rulers of the historic region of Rajputana). It continued to be a political centre for 600 years. Present- ly Amber is a town in Jaipur district of Rajasthan state in the Republic of India. (Enc. Br.) a l: 520
Ambika Babu See Majumdar, Ambikacharan
Ameena a character - wife of Alfazzal Ibn Sawy - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. D 7:561, 586-89, 595-97, 600-01, 603, 609-18, 621-22, 715, 719-20, 732-33
America the lands of the Western Hemisphere - North America, Central America and South America. In the English language "America" and "American" are frequently used to refer only to the United States and its people. (Col. Enc.) Der:
American; Americanism, AmericanisationI: 23, 30-31, 39, 48, 104-05, 127, 230, 259-60, 333, 379, 456, 467, 472, 501-03, 507, 526, 567, 574, 601, 615, 618, 814, 842 2: 33, 122-23, 128, 171, 216-18, 372, 385, 390, 397 3:345, 350, 447, 454 11
Page 9
University is located here. (Enc. Br.) a 26:411
Aligattas name of a person mentioned by Therops in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. (A) n 6:148
All Imam Sir Ali Imam (1869-1932) of Patna, Bihar (India), knighted in 1910. His political activities commenced around 1908. In the beginning he supported the scheme of separate electorates. But subsequently he became convinced that separate electorates were not only a negation of Indian nation- alism but also positively harmful to Muslims themselves. (D.N.B.) 2:246 Alipore town and headquarters of 24-Parganas district in Bengal (now West Bengal state). It is a southern suburb of Calcutta included within the city muni- cipality. (Enc. Br.) Var: Alipur 1:83, 124, 906 2: pre., 1-3, 65, 79, 113, 151, 172, 283, 287, 314, 353-54, 366, 375 3:85 4: pre., 175, 178, 251, 257, 264, 267-69, 271, 273-74, 283, 287-88, 300-01, 303, 313 26: 33, 42-43, 52-53, 59, 64, 66-67, 225, 227, 355, 436 27:349, 435, 489 VII: 1, 5, 11, 17, 23 XVII: 68, 69 XXI: 33
Alkhasib name of the contemporary Egyptian Vizier mentioned by Alzayni in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. 7:665
Allah standard Arabic word for God, used by Arabic-speaking Christians as well as by Muslims. In Islam, Allah is the unique Deity, creator, judge and rewarder, omni- potent and all-merciful. (Enc. Br.) 1:211 2:84 5:277 7:570, 574, 622, 674-82, 684-86, 693, 695-96, 699, 727, 730 15:425 22:502 27:263, 317 1:41 IX: 26
Allahabad a city, administrative head- quarters of Allahabad district and divi- sion in Uttar Pradesh (formerly known as United Provinces), northern India, at the confluence of the Ganga and Yamuna rivers. It is a place of Hindu pilgrimage and an educational centre. It has also been an important centre of political activity, esp. of the Congress, and was the venue of the Congress sessions of 1888, 1892 and 1910. (Enc.Br.;D.I.H.) 1:228, 232-33, 262, 370, 648, 702, 747, 809, 820, 824-26, 870, 877-78, 890, 897, 899-900 2:80, 237 4:178, 240 27:42 Alien affair attempted murder, towards the end of 1907, of B. C. Alien, I.C.S., who had just handed over charge of the office of District Magistrate of Dacca. He was shot on the platform of Goalundo station and severely wounded. His assailants got away and were never brought to justice. According to James Campbell Ker, the attempt was the work of Anusilan Samiti. (P.T.I.) D 1:829 All Was His title of a poem (in free verse) published in the American journal Poetry, and quoted from or reproduced in the second number of Shama 'a that was reviewed by
Sri Aurobindo inArya. (A) a 17:321
Almaimun variant of ALNUMAN .
Almora a city, administrative headquarters of Almora district in Uttar Pradesh (formerly known as United Provinces), northern India, on a ridge of the Himalayan foothills. It is a centre of the Ramakrishna Mission. (Enc. Br.) 26:42
Almuene (bin Khakan) also called simply Muene, a character - the second Vizier of Alfazzzal Ibn Sawy - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. 7:561, 564-72, 579-84, 599, 615, 624-25, 659-64, 667-69, 702, 706-18, 724-25, 727, 730-31, 733-35
Ainuman a fictional female name used by Sri Aurobindo in his poem Khaled of the Sea. Var: Almaimun 5:261, 263, 270, 272, 274
Aloyse Abelard a character - Stephen's daughter and wife of Dr. Armand Sieurcaye - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard". a7:1025, 1027-28, 1036, 1038, 1040, 1042-44
Alps great mountain system of south central Europe, extending about 750 miles from the Mediterranean Sea to Vienna. (Enc. Br.) Der: Alpine 7:843, 870 V:92
Alpt perhaps the abbreviation of the name of a person in Pondicherry. D XXII: 177
Alrasheed See Haroun (al Rasheed)
Alsace historic region and former province of eastern prance, along the Rhine border with Germany. It corresponds to the modern departments of Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin and the Territoire de Belfort. With Lorraine (see Alsace-Lorraine) it was often disputed between France and Germany. (Col. Enc.; Enc.Br.) 15:291, 293, 410, 505
Alsace-Lorraine Alsace and part of Lorraine called the "imperial land" (Reichsland), which was held in common by all German states from 1871 until 1919 when it was returned to France after World War I. Alsace-Lorraine became the chief rallying force for French nationalism and was a major incentive in the armaments race that led to the First World War. (Col. Enc.) a 15:375, 410 27:466
Page 10
Alsatian inhabitant of Alsatia or Alsace, a region in France which was re-ceded by Germany to France in 1919. (C.O.D.) n 15:291, 299, 310
Alt-Breisach Breisach is a town in Baden- Wurttemberg Land (state), southwestern West Germany, on the right bank of the Rhine opposite Neuf-Brisach. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Alurca a character - King Vuthsa's friend and companion in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. 6:207, 217-18, 226-29, 231-32, 236-37, 243-44, 302, 321-22, 324, 329 Alwar(s) (Alvar, in the Tamil language, means a man who has intuitive knowledge of God), a group of South Indian mystics who (7th-10th cent.) wandered from temple to temple singing ecstatic hymns in adoration of the god Vishnu; their songs rank among the world's greatest devotional literature. The most famous of the Alvars was Nammalwar. (Enc.Br.) 14:256, 316, 321 17:371-74 18:485
Alzayni Mahomed bin Suleyman of Zayni, a character - Haroun's cousin. King of Bassora - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. 7:561, 606, 614, 621, 665-69, 710-15, 724-31, 733-34 Amadeus, Victor See Victor Amadeus
Amara Amarakosha, "the immortal vocabulary" (amara means "immortal" in Sanskrit), or "the vocabulary of Amara or Amara Singh", after the author's name; one of the most celebrated vocabularies of classical Sanskrit, written in verse. (Dow.) 3:315, 318
Amaravati an ancient city in Guntur dis- trict of Andhra Pradesh state, India, which became a centre of Hindu culture under the Satyavahana dynasty, which ruled in the Deccan for about four centuries after the death of Asoka. Amaravati is famous for relief sculptures that survive from its great Buddhist shrine. A new and purely in- digenous school of art, architecture and sculpture developed in Amaravati; it may have preceded the Mathura and Gandhara schools but is, in any case, free from all trace of Greek influence. (D.I.H.) a 17:303
Amamath a mountain cave in northeast Kashmir where, according to Hindu myth- ology, Lord Shiva stayed for some time. Water trickling down from the roof of the cave forms a stalagmite of ice in the shape of a Shivalinga. This, it is said, increases and decreases in size with the phases of the
moon. Amarnath is an important place of Hindu pilgrimage. (N.B.A., p. 1378) VI: 164
Amarus in Sri Aurobindo's I lion, father of Phoces. (A) VI: 135
Amaryllis name given to a shepherdess in bucolic poetry, first by Theocritus, later by Virgil and Ovid. Spenser, in his "Colin Clouts come home again" used the name to signify Alice, one of the daughters of Sir John Spencer of Althorpe. Milton used the name in Lycidas. (Ox. Comp.) 29:759
Amazon in Greek legend, one of a tribe of women warriors who allowed no men in their country (in Asia Minor) and spent their time in hunting and warfare. (Col. Enc.) 5:514, 516 7:859, 909.991-92
Amazulu apparently, another form of "Zulu", a great Bantu nation of southeastern Africa. (Web.) a 111:29
Ambariya a town in Mymensingh district of Bengal (now in Bangladesh), a 1:319
Amber a town in Rajputana; in the 12th century the capital of the state of the Kachwaha Rajputs (warrior rulers of the historic region of Rajputana). It continued to be a political centre for 600 years. Present- ly Amber is a town in Jaipur district of Rajasthan state in the Republic of India. (Enc.Br.)1:520
Ameena a character - wife of Alfazzal Ibn Sawy - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. 7:561, 586-89, 595-97, 600-01, 603, 609-18, 621-22, 715, 719-20, 732-33
American; Americanism, Americanisation 1:23, 30-31, 39, 48, 104-05, 127, 230, 259-60, 333, 379, 456, 467, 472, 501-03, 507. 526, 567, 574, 601, 615, 618, 814, 842 2:33, 122-23, 128, 171, 216-18, 372, 385, 390, 397 3:345, 350, 447, 454
Page 11
4:96, 167, 195, 203-04, 208, 300 7:1039 9:147, 223, 462 10:147 12:496, 500, 502 14:8, 17, 23, 34, 191 15:44, 204, 269, 313, 316, 322, 324, 328, 331-33, 350, 373, 378, 380, 408, 410-11, 418, 444-45, 447, 473, 478, 493-94, 497, 503, 505, 507-09, 523, 537, 559, 566-67, 569, 576, 614, 617, 620, 623, 626, 640, 644, 653 16:310, 312 17:192, 321-22 19:763 22:205, 209, 423, 479, 23:556 24:1298, 1365, 1570 25:230 26:17, 31, 42, 178, 395-96, 398, 403, 406, 413, 416-17 27: 11, 18, 64, 347-48, 456, 469, 501 1:7 II: 75 III: 26 V: 4 VI: 191-92, 199 VIII: 125 IX: 43, 53 XIII: 28. .See also United States (of America).
American War of Independence also known as the American Revolution, the 18th- century struggle of thirteen American colonies to gain independence from Great Britain. The war (1775-83) culminated in victory for the colonies, resulting in the formation of the United States of America. (Enc. Am.; Enc. Br.) I: 567
Americas the two continents of North America (including Central America) and South America, 15:317, 445 Amir Ali, Justice Sayyid Amir Ali (1849-1928), the first Indian to be appointed a judge of the Privy Council in England. He was a Muslim leader who favoured British rule in India as an alternative to possible Hindu domination of an independent India. He was the founding head of the London branch of the All-India Muslim League (1908), and helped secure in 1909 the first communal electorates for his people. Amir Ali remained a conscientious loyalist throughout his life, and when the Muslim League became critical of the government, he resigned. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.; Wolpert, p. 276; Gordon, p. 66) 1:415 2:246 4:218
Amitabha Buddha the Buddha of "infinite light", and the primary object of faith of Japanese Mahayana Buddhists. In Buddhist legend, he turned away when his spirit was on the threshold of Nirvana and took the vow never to cross it while a single being remained in sorrow and ignorance. (Enc. Br.;A) 7:784, 793 18:40 20:257, 260 22:61, 248
Among the Great a book by Dilip Kumar Roy, .containing records of his conversations and correspondence with five eminent con- temporaries: Remain Rolland, Mahatma Gandhi, Betrand Russell,
Rabindranath Tagore and Sri Aurobindo. First published in 1945, the book has an appendix containing "a brief statement of the principal facts of Sri Aurobindo's public and merely outward life from an authoritative source". The undisclosed "authoritative source" was Sri Aurobindo himself. (A) XVII: 72 Amours de voyage one of dough's longer poems, based on a visit to Italy in 1849. It is written in elegiac couplets (hexameters) and was published posthumously. It contains a brilliant assortment of reflections and descriptions. (Enc. Br.; Ox. Comp.) 11:28
Amphitrite in Greek religion, one of the / NEREIDS, queen of the. sea, wife of Poseidon and mother of Triton. (Col. Enc.) a 5:506 6:99
Amraoti a city, administrative headquarters of Amraoti district in Maharashtra state (formerly in C.P.), west-central India, in the Berar region; it was the venue of the Congress session in 1897. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) 1:666, 687 2:330 27:42 1:1
Amreli an important part of the former native state of Baroda. Anciently known as Amaravalli, Amreli is now the administrative headquarters of Amreli district in south- western Gujarat state. (Enc. Br.) XV: 74-75 Amrita, K. (1895-1969), a disciple of Sri Aurobindo; after the formation of the Ashram, manager of the institution, and later a member of the Ashram Trust. His former name was Karlapakkam Arava- mudachari. Amrita came to Pondicherry in 1905 for further study. After the arrival of Sri Aurobindo, he gradually became intimate with the inmates of Sri Aurobindo's house. He had the first darshan of Sri Aurobindo in 1913 on August 15, Sri Aurobindo's birth- day. During his four years' stay (1915-19) at Madras for higher studies, the memory of Sri Aurobindo constantly remained with him as a beckoning light. Politics, patriotism, social welfare etc. had no attraction for him. In 1919 he came to Pondicherry to stay with Sri Aurobindo for good. (Auro-II; Remini.) 27:485 VII: 83 XII: 156
Amrita Bazar Patrika an English daily, a nationalist paper, published from Calcutta (also for some time from Allahabad). It was started in 1868 as a Bengali weekly by Shishir Kumar Ghose and his brothers in. their native village of Amrita Bazar in Jessore district. In 1869 the paper began publishing columns in English also. It was
Page 12
shifted to Calcutta in 1871 and continued to be bilingual till March 1878. After the passing of the Vernacular Press Act, it was converted overnight (21 March 1878) into an English weekly. It became a daily from February 1891, and shortly thereafter Motilal Ghose became one of the editors. The paper played an important role in the freedom struggle as a nationalist organ. (D.N.B.-II, pp. 51, 61) 1:189, 252, 281-82, 423-24, 429-30, 733 2:137, 230, 295-97, 314-15, 319, 329, 353, 356-57 4:226, 243 26:399 27:463, 492
Amritsar a city, administrative headquarters of Amritsar district in the Punjab, north- western India; famous as the holy city of the Sikhs. Amritsar was the venue of the Congress session in 1919. (Enc.Br.; D.I.H.) 26:430
Anabaptist (member of) a Christian sect that denied the validity of infant baptism and practised baptism of adults. It originated in Switzerland c. 1522. (Web.) 15:14
Anacreon (c. 582 - c. 485 Be), last great lyric poet of Asian Greece. Only fragments of his poetry have survived. Graceful and elegant, it celebrates the joy of wine and love. (Enc. Br.;Col.Enc.) 9:9, 322 29:814
Anadhrishty in the Mahabharata, son of Vrddhaksema, and one of the seven generals of theYadavas. (M.N.) 8:43
Anak in the Bible, ancestor of the Anakim or Anakims, a race of giants inhabiting Hebron and its vicinity at the time of the conquest of Canaan. (Col. Enc.)3:66 Anam probably, "Annam" = Indo-China. (Collins' Authors' and Printers' Dictionary, Oxford) 3:84
Ananda Babu See Roy, Ananda Chandra
Anandaghanaloka world of compact bliss; same as Anandaloka or Janaloka. (I & G) 17:30
Anandagiri a teacher and exponent of the monistic school ofVedanta philosophy. He was a pupil and annotator of Shankara- charya. (M.W.) 12:427 Anandaloka "the world of Delight", another name of JANALOKA. D 20:485 XV: 26, 34 XIX: 33
Ananda Math famous Bengali novel (1882) of Bankim Chandra Chatterji, in which the song BANDE MATARAM first appears. It is a ; patriotic tale of the revolt of Hindu monks against the Muslim forces of the East India Company. Soon after its publication the novel was translated into most of the Indian
languages and into English. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) 1:666 3:91 8:315, 318 17:345-46 27:353 Anandrao probably, Anandrao Jadhav, a relative of Khaserao Jadhav, and a friend of Sri Aurobindo at Baroda. Var: Anandarao (amis-spelling) 27:417, 423 I:72, 74
Ananias a member of the church at Jerusalem; he and his wife Sapphira were struck dead when attempting to misrepresent the amount of their gifts to the Apostle Peter. (Enc. Am.) V:65
Ananke in Greek mythology, personification of compelling necessity or ultimate fate to which even the gods must yield. (M.I.) 5:406, 495, 498, 504, 510-12 16:125 19:962 28:162 29:465 VI: 135 VII: 53
Ananta in Hindu mythology, a name of Sesa, the Great Snake with a thousand hoods on which the earth stands; the Energy of the cosmic manifestation of the Infinite in Space- Time. (A) 4:18 8:175 10:102 12: 48 13: 349 23:977 27:230
Anantavijay in the Mahabharata, name of Yudhishthira's conch-shell. (M.N.) 4:77 8:77
Anasuya a character - a friend of Shakuntala - in Kalidasa's famous play Abhijnana Sakuntalam. 3:231
Anathema Maranatha "anathema" is a traditional Christian decree of excommunication. It is the Greek for "accursed" "Maranatha" is an Aramaic word which means "The Lord is at hand" or "Come, Lord". The whole expression "Anathema Marathana" may be said to mean "Anathe- ma - may the Lord come". The phrase occurs in the New Testament (I Corinthians 16:22). (Col. Enc.; M.I.-October 1980, p. 613) 17:134
Anatole See France, Anatole
Anaximander (610 - c. 547 nc), an important Greek thinker, often called the founder of astronomy, the first thinker to develop a cosmology, or systematic philosophical view of the world. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 16:341, 350
Anaximenes Anaximenes of Miletus (fl. c. 545 BC), Greek philosopher of nature and one of the three thinkers of Miletus traditionally considered to be the first philosophers in the Western world. He taught that the single substance of the universe was air; all other natural elements were produced by rarefication or con- densation and were mere degrees of density of the basic substance. The earth was believed by him to be a flat disk floating on air. (Enc. Br.;Col. Enc.) a 16:352
Page 13
Anchises in Greek legend, a member of the younger branch of the Trojan royal family, and in Ilion, a Trojan senator. He had a liaison with Aphrodite on Mt. Ida; Aeneas was born of this union. Anchises, forbidden to speak of his relations with the goddess, boasted of it to his friends. As a result of the boast, he was, according to different accounts, either blinded or lamed. In Ilion, he is described as blind. After the Trojan War, he fled with Aeneas and eventually founded Rome. Tradition gives many accounts of his death. (M.I.; O.C1.D.) 5:398, 412, 418, 442-43, 445-46, 495 7:853 VI:134
Ancient Mariner The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, a famous English poem, the chief contribution of Coleridge to the joint volume Lyrical Ballads (1798) by him and Words- worth. (Col. Enc. under Coleridge) a 9:541
Ancient Wisdom The Ancient Wisdom (1897), a book on Theosophy by Annie Besant. (Col. Enc.) a XIII: 30 Andal (fl. 8th century AD), a famous Tamil poetess and Vaishnava devotee. She was the putative daughter ofPeriyalvar, whom she eventually surpassed in fame. Among her poems Tiruppdvai in particular is exceedingly touching in its simplicity and fervour and enjoys great popularity. (Gaz.-II) 8:404-06 17:371-72
Andamans a group of 204 islands and islets in the Bay of Bengal. A penal colony was established here in 1858, which was not abolished until 1945. The Andamans now form part of the union territory "Andaman and Nicobar Islands" of the Republic of India. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 1:415 2:360 3:469 26:36 27:51, 58 VII: 1, 11
Andersen, Hans Hans Christian Andersen (1805-75), Danish poet, novelist, and a unique master of the fairy tale. While many of his other works - plays, novels, poems, travel books etc. - are almost unknown outside Denmark, his fairy tales are famous throughout the world and are among the most frequently translated works in all literary history. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) Var.: Anderson (a misprint) a 3:274 X: 156
Andes a mountain system in South America, extending for about 5, 500 miles generally parallel to the Pacific coast, n 10:448
Andhra the land extending along the eastern coast of India from the mouth of the Goda- vari to that of the Krishna. The people of the area speak mostly Telugu. An ancient dynasty of the rulers of this country was known as the Andhra dynasty.
Presently this region forms the bulk of a separate state in the Republic of India known as Andhra Pradesh. (D.I.H.) 14:373 15:347 26:411 XVIII: 136, 138
Andhra Keshari a nationalist journal (vernacular weekly) published around 1907 from Rajahmundry in Madras Presidency (presently in Andhra Pradesh). n 1:262
Andhra University an institute of higher learning established in 1926, and located at Waltair in Andhra Pradesh. (Enc. Ind.) D 26:407, 411
Andrew See Fraser, Sir Andrew
Andrews, Rev. Charles Freer (1871-1940), popularly known in India as Dinabandhu (friend of the poor). Once professor at St. Stephen's College, Delhi, he was notable not only as an educationist but also as a social reformer. He was an associate ofTagore, and accompanied the poet to Japan, etc. An Englishman by birth, he was a devout Christian and a friend of India, who made this country his adopted home. (Enc. Ind.; H.F.M.I.; N.S.I.) 26:256
Andromeda a character - daughter of Cepheus and Cassiopea, King and Queen of Syria - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. In Greek legend, Cepheus and Cassiopea are described as King and Queen of Ethiopia, not Syria, and Andromeda is an Ethiopian princess. Cassiopea angered the sea-god Poseidon by saying that Andromeda (in another account, Cassiopea herself) was more beautiful than the Nereids. Poseidon sent a sea-monster to prey upon the country. This monster could be appeased only by the sacrifice of Andromeda. (A; Col. Enc.) 6:1, 3, 10-11, 13, 25, 29-41, 56-64, 70, 76-81, 88-96, 103, 107-10, 112-14, 119, 121, 124, 127, 130, 132, 137, 139-40, 142-43, 145-47, 149, 151-65, 169, 172-73, 175-76, 182-86, 188-89, 192-93, 196, 199
Andromeda a poem (1859) in hexameter by Charles Kingsley, dealing with the classical myth of Andromeda, considered by some to be the most readable of English hexameter poems. (A;Ox.Comp.) o 5:381
Angad in the Ramayana, the brave and courageous son of Bah (the monkey-king of Kiskindha). He went to Lanka as Rama's messenger and later fought for him against Ravana. (Dow.) 2:80
Page 14
Angah name of the inhabitants of Bengal proper. (M.W.) a XVIII: 136 Angelo See Michelangelo Angir a Rishi of the Upanishadic period. 12:269
Angira one of the six "mind(born) sons" of Brahma. He was father ofBrihaspati, the priest and spiritual guide of the gods. (M.N.) n 4:29 Angiras(a) the Rishi who represents the seer-will, in later times regarded as one of the original sages, progenitor of a clan of Rishis that went by his name and are referred to by Sri Aurobindo as the Angirasas or the Angirasa Rishis. These latter terms also mean the seven sages, the seven lustres of Agni, his sons; burning powers of the Light; divine or human types of the seer-will. One thing is clear that the word Angiras is used in the Veda not merely as a name of a certain family of Rishis, but ' with a distinct meaning inherent in the word; it must have meant flaming, glowing; used as an epithet, a name of Agni, etc. The word Angirasa, when used in the sense of "relating to Angiras" or as a patronymic from Angiras, is pronounced Angirasa. (I & G) Der: Angirasahood 10:58-59, 119-20, 122-23, 125, 132-35, 137-38, 140-47, 149-64, 166-70, 172, 174-84, 186-91, 194, 196, 198-201, 203-10, 212, 215, 219-22, 229, 232-38, 363, 391, 431 11:14, 34, 40, 59, 71, 169, 173-74, 188, 218, 222-23, 234, 251, 266, 278, 331, 342, 344-46, 349, 353, 364, 366, 369, 373, 411, 467, 482-83, 485, 488 12:269, 300, 389 14:263 27:190-91 IV: 129-30, 136-37 VII: 39-40 VIII: 143, 147, 153 IX: 9 X: 178 XIV: 110
Anglo-Celtic formed of a combination of Anglo-Saxon and Celtic elements, I: 53 2:49 9:57, 134, 138, 183 15:310, 348, 411, 521
Anglo-India(n) 1. (formerly, as at the time that Sri Aurobindo was writing) of British birth but living or having lived long in India. 2. (now more commonly) a person of both English and Indian ancestry. (C. 0. Web.) Der: Anglo-Indianism 1:9, 12-13, 16, 19-20, 49-53, 55-56, 91, 108, 111, 133-34, 138, 149, 151, 155, 159-60, 168, 172-74, 178-81, 184, 192, 194, 201-02, 212, 215-17, 241-42, 271, 279-80, 283, 288, 296, 302, 323-25, 330-33, 337, 342-44, 348, 352-53, 359-60, 367, 376, 381, 388, 390-91, 395, 400, 403, 420, 453, 455, 457, 462-63, 482, 487, 501, 504, 521, 527, 542, 547, 555, 557, 560, 564-65, 573, 578-79, 607, 625-26, 630-31, 635, 650, 709, 720, 761, 826-27, 906 2:33, 76, 78, 87, 97, 100, 113-14, 117, 119-22, 124, 139, 141, 184, 192, 194, 202, 233, 238, 242, 250, 255, 260, 274, 278, 283, 291-94, 306, 310, 326, 329, 331, 333-34, 342, 344, 369-70, 373, 376-77, 385-86, 389-90, 397 3:85 4:188-89, 215, 238, 244 15:645 17:244, 368 27: 3, 21-22, 44, 52, 60, 500 1:5 IV: 109
Anglo-Norman Anglicised Norman. (O.E.D.) a 15:306
Anglo-Sanskrit concerning or using both the English and Sanskrit languages. 17:290
Anglo-Saxon a Teutonic tribal group resident in England in post-Roman times. In later times the term came to be used to distinguish the residents of England from the Saxons still resident in Europe proper. The term is currently used to indicate the original strain of the English race or peoples, or even English or former English (e.g. American) peoples as opposed to others. Der:
Anglo-Saxonism 1:32, 34, 288, 462, 903 2:33-34, 379 3:122, 253, 421 9:47-51, 59, 62, 87, 211, 286, 414, 549 12:500 15:373, 498 17:181, 298 27:90 VIII: 189
Anglo-Scotch (colony) occupied by the English and the Scottish people, 15:306
Angra Mainyu See Ahriman
Angus a friend of ARJAVA (J. A. Chadwick). 23:556
Anice-Aljalice or only Anice, a character - a Persian slave-girl - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. 7:561, 579, 584-85, 587, 589-94, 603, 607-09, 611-14, 618-20, 624, 626, 630-34, 637-40, 642-43, 646, 651, 653-57, 659-60, 662-63 671-73, 675-86, 690, 694-702, 704-05, 721-22, 732-33, 735
AnUbaran Anil Baran Roy (1890-1974), a well-known Bengali political leader who after his release from jail in 1926 became an in- timate disciple of Sri Aurobindo. He stayed in the Ashram for 40 years, coming out in 1966 to do, as he said, Sri Aurobindo's political work. He was a prolific writer, having to his credit a large number of books in English, Bengali and Hindi. His English edition of the Gita, based on the inter- pretation of Sri Aurobindo, has been prescribed as a textbook for the Cambridge University Tripos course and its French translation has already passed through ten large editions in Paris. (D.N.B.) VI:140, 142
Aniruddha in the Mahabharata, son of Pradyumna and grandson of Krishna (see Usha2). Symbolically, Sri Aurobindo sees Aniruddha as the fourth Power of the Chaturvyuha, with desire as His
Page 15
manifestation, and bodily enjoyment and worldly reason as His attributes; He reigns in the Kaliyuga and as a Sudra. His character- istic is perfection in works; and His Shakti is Mahasaraswati. (Dow.; A; A & R, XXI: 107) 3:452-53 4: pre. XIX: 54 XXI: 50 XXII: 135
Anjana in Hindu mythology, wife of Vayu, the wind-god, and mother ofHanuman. (Dow.) 7:946 Anna in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a sister of Penthesilea, the Amazon. (M.I.) 5:460
Annadamangal a Bengali poem by Bharatchandra, his principal work. It is a trilogy belonging to the mid-18th century. (Gaz. II, p. 664) 14:320
Annapuma a form of the Hindu goddess Durga, worshipped for her power of giving food (anna); used generally as a name of the Divine Mother as the Giver of Food; the term is similar to the Roman "Anna Perenna". (Dow.; Gospel) 17:269 XVIII: 148
Anne, Queen (1665-1714), Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland (1702-07), later queen of Great Britain (1707-14). (Col. Enc.) 7:852 Ant. abbreviation of the name of an unknown person of Pondicherry. XXI: 55 Antaeuslike like Antaeus. In Greek mythology, Antaeus was a giant of Libya. He was the son of Poseidon and he derived fresh strength whenever he touched the earth (Gaea, his mother). Antaeus compelled all strangers who passed through the country to ' wrestle with him, and killed everyone with whom he wrestled until Hercules overcame him by lifting him in the air. (Enc. Br.) D 7:831
Antariksha the Mid-Region, between Heaven and Earth; the sphere of the Gandharvas, Apsaras, andYakshas. (A; Dow.) Var: Antariksa(m) a 9:532 10:114, 171, 228, 337 11:24 12:403 19:765 IX: 6 XIV: 110 XV: 33
Antichrist L'Antechrist, title of an historical work (1873) by Ernest Renan; it is the fourth volume of the Origin of Christianity and deals with the reign of Nero. (Enc. Br.; Ox. Comp.; Larousse Universe!) Var:
Antichrist (a misprint) d 3:263 X: 146
Antenor in Greek legend, an elderly and upright counsellor (in Ilion, a senator) in Troy during the siege,
who advised the return of Helen to the Greeks. He was also host to the Greeks who came to Troy requesting Helen's return. His friendliness toward them and his advice to return Helen were taken by the Trojans as traitorous. (M.I.) 5:412-13, 415-17, 419, 422-23, 425, 427-28, 431, 433, 437-39, 443-46, 456, 458-61, 476
Antenorid an epithet of the house of Antenor. (M.I.) 5:445-47 16:83 Antichrist in the Bible, the great antagonist of Christ, expected to spread universal evil before the end of the world but finally to be conquered at Christ's second coming. (Web.) a1:500 VII: 9, 22
Antichrist misprint for Antechrist Antigone in Greek legend, daughter of Oedipus. She followed her father in ban- ishment and disgrace. After her brothers, Eteocles and Polynices, were killed in the war of the Seven Against Thebes, Creon, regent of Thebes, forbade the burial of Polynices. Antigone, in spite of his com- mand, performed the funeral service for her brother. Creon buried her alive. The story is told by Sophocles, the Athenian poet, in Oedipus at Colonus and Antigone. (Col. Enc.) n 9:217
Antigonus Antigonus I Monophthalmus (382-301 BC), Macedonian general under Alexander the Great, who founded the Macedonian dynasty of the Antigonids. An exceptional strategist and combat leader, he was an astute ruler who cultivated the friendship of Athens and other Greek city-states. During the second coalition war (310-301 Be) against him, his son Demetrius Poliorcetes conquered Cyprus (306) and Antigonus himself assumed the title of king. (Enc.Br.) n 24:1562 26:209
Antioch ancient capital of Syria; presently a town in southeastern Turkey. The modern Antioch occupies only a fraction of the ancient city (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 0 6:333, 335, 339, 343, 346, 350, 352-54, 365, 394, 401, 406-08, 414, 416-18, 421, 426, 428-30, 433-36, 438, 441-42, 447, 452
Antiochus' Antiochus III (Antiochus the Great), king of Syria from 223 to 187 BC. (Col. Enc.) a 6: 338, 340, 343, 364
Antiochus2 a character - son of Cleopatra, queen of Syria, by her first husband Nicanor (dead) - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. D 6:333, 339, 341, 346-50, 352, 357, 359-62, 366, 370, 374, 377-78, 380-83, 385-91, 393, 395-409, 413-16, 418, 425-31, 433-36, 438-42, 444-45, 447-50, 453-62, 464-65, 469 Antonio a character - son of Count Beltran - in Sri Aurobindo's play
Page 16
The Maid in the Mill. n 7:821, 825-28, 837, 839-50, 853-54, 856-59, 862-63, 865-69, 877-78
Antony, Mark Marcus Antonius, known in English as Mark Antony (c.82 Bc-30 BC), outstanding Roman military and political leader and close associate of Julius Caesar. He is famed as the lover as well as the ally of Cleopatra, and is the hero of Shake-speare's play Antony and Cleopatra. (Enc. Br.) n 3:70 9:170, 316 26:251 29:796
Antony and Cleopatra a tragedy (1606/07) by Shakespeare, on the theme of a conflict between love and political ambition. (Enc. Br.) n 3:186
Antwerp capital of Antwerp province, Belgium, on the Schelde (Escaut) River, about eighty-eight km from the North Sea. It is one of the biggest seaports in the world; its growth was interrupted only by the two world wars and associated German occupa- tions. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27] Anu in the Veda, a devotee of Indra, for whom he made a chariot. He has been mentioned as an enemy of Sudasa. (B.P.C.) n VI: 148
Anukul See Mukheqee, Anukul
Anus(h)ilan Samiti an association or club (ostensibly) for lathi-play and physical exercise. Branches were organised in Calcutta, in Dacca (eventually the most active branch) and other places in eastern and western Bengal. Among its other activities were the giving of help to the public and the police (during certain public events) etc. The Samiti - its name, Anu- shilan or "Culture", taken from a book by Bankim Chandra - was brought into being by Satish Chandra Bose in 1902, with P. Mitra as its head. It grew by leaps and bounds. Evidence against the Anushilan Samiti of Calcutta was collected in May 1908, and in October 1909 it was banned. (A;R.O.H.;H.F.M.I.) o 1:809 2:241 VI:123
Anusuya a small town in the former princely state of Baroda (now in Gujarat state), on the banks of the Narmada, just downriver fromChandod. a 27:116
Anwar probably, Enver Pasa (1881-1922), Ottoman general and commander-in-chief, a hero of the 1908 Young Turk Revolution, and one of the triumvirate that virtually ruled the Ottoman Empire from 1913 to 1918. (Enc.Br.) a XXI: 65 A.P. See Purani
Apaya name of a river mentioned once only in the Rig-veda (3.23.4), where it is said to flow between the Drsadvati and the Sarasvati. Modern scholars identify it with different rivers, the Ganga (Apaga), or the small tributary of the Sarasvati which flows past Thaneswar, or the modern Indramati farther west. (V. Index, I) n 11:147
Apcar probably, an Indian Moderate leader around 1907. a 1:375
Apelles (fl. 4th cent. Be), early Hellenistic Greek painter whose work was held in such high esteem by ancient writers on art that he continues to be regarded as the greatest painter of antiquity, despite the fact that none of his work survives. (Enc. Br.) a 9:333
Aphrodite in Greek mythology, Olympian goddess of love, beauty, and fertility. She was the daughter of Zeus and Dione according to Homer. In another account, she arose from the foam of the sea that gathered around the severed genital organ of Uranus when his son Cronus mutilated him. She was, according to the usual legend, the wife of Hephaestus, but she loved Ares, to whom she bore Eros and Anteros. In the dispute -over the Apple of Discord, Aphrodite was judged fairest by Paris, and so, true to the promise she had made him, she helped him in carrying off Helen from Sparta. This brought on the Trojan War in which Aphrodite sided with the Trojans. In Roman times Aphrodite was identified with Venus. (Col. Enc.) a 5: 398, 420, 434, 442-43, 446, 450, 455, 489, 494-95, 499, 501-04, 507, 539, 544 10:352 14:202 17:257 11:5, 7 XV: 15, 20 XVI: 148, 179
Apis classical Greek form of Hape or Hapi, the sacred Egyptian bull worshipped at Memphis; protector of the sign "Jar" in the zodiac. (Enc.Br.; A) n 17:257
Apnavan ancient Indian sage, associated with the Bhrigus, who appears only once in the Rig-veda. (V. Index) a 11:479-83
Apollo in Greek and Roman mythology, Olympian god of light, music, poetry, prophecy, medicine, pastoral pursuits and archery. In later times Apollo was frequently identified with Helios, the Greek sun-god. (See Phoebus and Helios.) His chief oracle was at Delphi. Apollo, with Poseidon, built the walls of Troy for Laomedon, and despite Laomedon's treachery was on the side of the Trojans in the war. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) Der:
Page 17
Apollo Bunder Aranyakas
Apollonian D 5:394, 399-400, 404-05, 416, 424, 426, 428-29, 433, 436, 440, 447, 450-52, 454, 457, 468-69, 471, 474, 486, 489-90, 494-95, 498, 503-05, 507-08, 512 6:53 9:303, 317 10:4, 119, 153, 183 11:3, 468 13:129 14:49, 94 15:219 16:336 17:113, 257 11:26 V:60 VI: 134 XV: 19 XVI: 137, 179 XVII: 16, 45
Apollo Bunder harbour in Bombay, meant mostly for passenger traffic. a 1:828 22:121 26:50, 81, 98
Apollonius of Rhodes Apollonius Rhodius (born c. 295 Be), Greek poet and grammari- an of Alexandria and Rhodes, who was the author of the Argonautica, an epic in four books, a Homeric imitation on the story of the Argonaut heroes. (Enc. Br.) D 3:235
Appaswami an important figure in the election of 1914 for the Pondicherry repre- sentative to the French Chamber. (A) D 27:446 Appian Way the road built (312 BC) under Appius Claudius Caccus. This "queen of roads" was the chief highway from Rome to Greece and the East. (Col. Enc.) a 5:386 Apte, Vamana Shivaram (1858-92), celebrated lexicographer of the Sanskrit language. During his short life-span he wrote or compiled as many as six books, including dictionaries that are still in use. (B.A.C.) 0 3:202, 310, 313-15, 320 XXI: 74
Apulian of Apulia (also known as Puglia), a region of South Italy, occupying approximately the southern third of the Italian east coast opposite Albania. (Col. Enc.) 0 15:344
Aquitanian native of Aquitaine, former duchy and kingdom and historic region in southwestern France. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) n 1:526 Ar in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a chief of the Dolopes, slain in battle by Surabdas. (A) D 5:516
Arabia name applied to the peninsula in extreme southwestern Asia. It includes all the territory lying between the Red Sea on the west and the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman on the east. (Enc. Br.) Der:
Arab; Arabian (adj.); Arabic (adj.) a 1:261, 310, 391, 602, 843 2:35 3:5 5: 176, 184, 259, 261, 263-65, 268-69, 271-72, 276 6: 32 7: 573, 621, 667, 710, 723, 729 12: 499, 503 14: 67, 185, 191, 223, 377 15: 69, 268, 342-43, 347, 412, 425, 447, 506, 645-46 16: 89, 365 17: 130, 195 24: 1660 26: 483 27: 122 I: 25 IV:'161VIII: 177 XVI: 182
Arabia a poem by Walter de la Mare. (A) D 9:357
Arabian Nights The Arabian Nights Entertainment, a series of stories in the Arabic language strung together by the story of Sheherazade, who kept her husband, Sehariar, from killing her by telling these stories over 1, 001 nights until he relinquished his purpose. The best known of these stories are those of Ali Baba, Sindabad, and Aladdin. (See also Thousand and One Nights) (Col. Enc.) n 14:184 26:234
Arabic (language) also sometimes called Arabi or Arabian, chief representative of the Semitic-Hamitic family of languages. Countries in which it occupies official status include Algeria, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and the United Arab Republic. Arabic has a great history - as the evangelizing medium of Islam, as the vehicle of a rich imaginative literature, and as the repository of science and philosophy during Europe's "dark ages". Spoken by some 75 million people, it remains one of the great languages of the present day. (Pears) a 1:602 4:265 5: 259 11:506 17:181 26:234 1:25
Arabindo See Sri Aurobindo
Aracan perhaps Arakan, a small region of Burma, comprising four districts, near its border with Bangladesh. (N.B.A., p. 1385; S.Atlas) n 1:21
Arachne in Greek legend, a girl who challenged Athene to a trial of skill in weaving. The goddess changed her into a spider. (Col. Enc.) a 6:422
Aralia probably, a small town in East Bengal (now in Bangladesh), some 40 miles west of Mymensingh. (A) a 2:360 4:248
Aramaean Aramaeans were a confederacy of tribes that spoke a North Semitic language and, between the llth and 8th centuries BC, occupied Aram, a large region in northern Syria. In the same period some of these tribes seized large tracts of Mesopotamia. (Enc. Br.) 1-1 6:1
Aramaic of Aram, an ancient people and their country, roughly identifiable with Syria. (Col. Enc.) Var: Aramean a 5:176
Aranyaka(s) Sanskrit' 'books of the forest", a later development of the Brahmanas or expositions of the Vedas, which were composed, according to Western scholars, 700 BC. They contain secret explanations of the inner meaning of the sacrifice as con- trasted with its actual outward performance.
Page 18
The Aranyakas served as a link between the Brahmanas and the Upanishads, the latter often being inserted in the Aranyakas. (Enc.Br.) 12:8, 448 XVI: 156 XVII: 30, 32
Aranyani name of the goddess of the wilderness and desert, occurring in Sutras 1 to 6 of the Rig-veda, Mandal X. (M.W.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Ararat Mount Ararat, extinct volcanic massif in extreme eastern Turkey. It consists of two peaks. Great Ararat and Little Ararat. Ararat traditionally is associated with the mountain on which Noah's Ark came to rest at the end of the Flood. (Enc.Br.) 1:254
Aravinda See Sri Aurobindo
Arbroath royal burgh (chartered town), North Sea fishing port, and holiday resort in the district of Angus, Tayside region in Scotland. (Enc. Br.) n 1:575, 600
Arcadia a region of ancient Greece, in central Peloponnesus, without a seaboard and surrounded and dissected by mountains. The Arcadians, shepherds and hunters, relatively isolated from the rest of the world, lived a proverbially happy, simple, natural life. (Col. Enc.) Var: Arcady (poetic form) Der: Arcadian a 3:154 5:20, 488
Archangel John See Morley, John
Archer or Bow, a zodiacal constellation (Latin name: Sagittarius, called "Dhanu" in Hindu astronomy), lying partly in the Milky Way; the 9th sign of the zodiac. (Col. Enc.) a 17:257-58, 260 Archer, William (1856-1924), English author and drama critic, rationalistic and materialistic in his views. Politically motivated, he vehemently attacked the whole life and culture of India in his book India and the Future. (Enc. Br.; A) Der: Archerian 14:1, 6, 44-49, 54-59, 61, 65-66, 72, 77-78, 80, 88, 94, 176-77, 181-82, 184, 190-94, 196-200, 204-06, 215, 220-21, 223-24, 227, 229, 234-37
Archimedes (c. 287-212 BC), Greek mathematician, physicist, and inventor. To illustrate the principle of the lever he is said to have told King Hiero, "Give me place to stand (pou sto), and I will move the world." (Col. Enc.) 4:224 16:145
Arctic The Arctic regions comprise the northernmost area of the earth, centred about the North Pole and the Arctic Ocean. It extends more than one third of the way to the equator. The days and nights in this area are very long, extending to six months at the Pole. (Col. Enc.) 5:297-98, 486 10:24, 28, 123, 152, 166, 170, 178, 188-89 16:407 XIV: 120
A arctic Home (in the Vedas) title of a celebrated work (1903) of oriental research by BalGangadhar Tilak. a 10:28 17:349
Arcturus one of the five brightest stars of the northern celestial hemisphere in the night sky, and the brightest star in the constellation Bootes. (Web.; Col. Enc.) D 5:131 29:537
Ardhoday(a) Yog(a) in Hindu astronomy, a special concurrence of Sunday and a particular date (in the month of Pausa or Magha, falling in December, January, or February) with the constellation Altair (Sravana), that takes place in the daytime, not at night, and at long and irregular intervals. On the occasion of Ardhodaya Yoga, owing to its immense occult influence, equal to that of thousands of solar eclipses, the Hindus of Bengal throng in large numbers to Calcutta to have a dip in the Ganga. (N.B.A.) 1:808 2:241 VI: 124
Areopagus a low hill northwest of the Acropolis in ancient Athens, noted as the meeting place of the earliest aristocratic council of the city. The name was later extended to denote the council itself. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Ares in Greek mythology, Olympian god of war, the son of Zeus and Hera, and the lover of Aphrodite. He was the father of the Amazon queen Penthesilea and favoured the Trojans in the Trojan War. Ares. is identified with the Roman god Mars, but the Greeks had a less exalted conception of him than the Romans, tending to see him as a mere instigator of strife. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:394, 400, 405, 427-28, 430, 437, 440, 442, 450, 457-58, 464-65, 468-70, 487, 494, 498-99, 503, 505-06, 516-18 10:352 12:409 17:113, 257, 394 XV: 15, 20
Aretes in Sri Aurobindo's llion, a Trojan senator and warrior. (M.I.) D 5:384, 398-99, 412, 461
Arethuse poetic form of Arethusa; in Greek mythology, a nymph loved by the river-god Alpheus. She fled his attentions and was changed into a fountain. The god pursued and caught her; whence the story that the waters of the river Alpheus flow beneath the sea from Greece to reappear in the fountain<
Page 19
of Arethusa in the harbour of Syracuse. (CoI.Enc.) 5:21
Argive 1. of or belonging to the city of Argos or the territory of Argolis; because Mycenae in Argolis dominated the rest of Greece at the time of the Trojan War, the term was often used in Homer and by later classical writers as the equivalent of Grecian or Greek. 2. a native of Argos or of Argolis; a Greek. (O.E.D.; M.I.) 5: 393, 396, 398, 400-03, 406-08, 413-14, 416, 420, 425, 427, 431, 433-36, 439, 444, 446, 450, 453-54, 457-59, 461-64, 466-69, 471-72, 474-76, 486-87, 491, 499, 517, 553, 595 6:1, 177, 184, 195 9:400 10:34 11:32 VI: 134
Argolis region of ancient Greece in the northeastern Peloponnesus, which included the Argive plain and the cities of Argos and Mycenae. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) a 5:403, 459, 469, 481 6:25, 185 Argos city of ancient Greece, in northeastern Peloponnesus. A small town called Argos exists even today on the site of the ancient city, not far from Nauplia. Ancient Argos, located in the southern part of the Argive plain, three miles from the sea, stood at the foot of the Mycenaean and classical acropolis called Larissa. For centuries it was one of the most powerful Greek cities, struggling with Sparta and rivalling Athens and Corinth. Argos figures in early Greek legend as the home of various heroes and was the principal centre of worship of the goddess Hera. At the time of the Trojan War it was the kingdom of Diomedes, who acknowledged Agamemnon's leadership. In a wider sense it refers in Homeric poetry to the empire of Agamemnon and is practically a synonym for Greece. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) a 5: 383, 392, 398, 401, 405, 407, 409, 434, 439-40, 449, 454-55, 464, 467, 472, 479 6:71, . 193 26:339 II: 26 VI: 135 Argus in Greek mythology, hundred-eyed guardian of lo, the princess of Argos, after she was changed into a heifer. Argus, who was also known as Panoptes, was killed by Hermes. The people of ancient Argos traced their origin to him. (The term Argus has come to mean a very vigilant person, a watcher or guardian.) (Col. Enc.; O.E.D.) D 3:46 8:32, 410
Argus Pondicherry paper that replaced the Independent about 1913; both belonged to he same proprietor. (A) Q 27:431
Ariel a character - an airy spirit - in Shakespeare's play The Tempest. (Shakes.) 26:336-38
Arintheus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, name of a Greek warrior, a Lycian leader. (A) 5:461
Ariosto, Ludovico (1474-1533), Italian epic and lyric poet and playwright. He is considered as one of the greatest poets of Italy. (CoI.Enc.) 9:76
Aristides (fl. 5th cent. BC), Athenian statesman and general who died about 468 BC. Called Aristides the Just, he stands as the classical example of probity in public life. (Col. Enc.) 1:435
Aristophanes (born c. 448 BC, died after 388 BC), Athenian comic poet, greatest of the ancient writers of comedy. Eleven of some forty plays by Aristophanes survive virtually 9:425 17:87, 141, 297
Aristotle (384-322 BC) , Greek philosopher, one of the greatest thinkers of all time. He studied under Plato at Athens. He believed logic to be the necessary introduction to philosophy. (Col. Enc.) Der: Aristotelian a 1:470 3:417 7:602 15:463 17:237, 241-42, 245 26:383 27:164 IX: 43
Arithoa in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, mother of Zethus, a Phthian. (M.I.) 5:514 VI: 134
Arithon in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, one of Penthesilea's captains. (M.I.) 5:455, 519
Ariava name (meaning "straightforward", "candid" etc.) given by Sri Aurobindo to J. A. Chadwick (1899-1939), an Englishman who came to the Ashram towards the end of 1927. A professor of philosophy at Cambridge, teaching a special kind of philosophic mathematical logic, he became under the influence of Sri Aurobindo (in the Ashram) a fine poet. A collection of his lyric verses was published in 1939, the year of his death at the age of forty. (Mother-1) Der: Arjavan 9:356-58, 409-10, 412, 462
Arjoon(a) See Arjun(a)
Arjun(a) in the Mahabharata, the third of the Pandavas. A renowned archer, he was very close to Krishna who acted as his charioteer in the battle. It was Krishna who - with the words that form the substance of the Bhagavadgita - helped him out of the crisis he underwent before the commencement of the battle of Kurukshetra. The other names or epithets of Arjuna that occur in Sri Aurobindo's writings are:
Page 20
Bharata, Dhananjaya, Gudakesha, and Partha. (Dow.) Var: Arjoon(a); Urjoon(a) 1: 67, 98, 364, 778 2: 3, 426-27, 429 3: 31, 151, 168-69, 171-72, 175, 191, 207, 213, 346, 352-55 4: 57, 61, 63-65, 67-68, 71-73, 75-78, 80, 82, 84-90, 94-98, 100-05, 107, 288, 312 5: 315-17, 320, 325, 329-32 6: 257, 277, 319 7: 748 8:27, 29-32, 35, 45, 47-48, 50-51, 59, 77-83, 85-88, 90-91, 94-96 9: 478 13: 9, 12-13, 15-17, 19, 22-24, 28, 30-33, 36-37, 42, 50-57, 59-62, 70, 75-76. 81, 87-88, 95, 98-100, 107, 123, 129-30, 136-38, 148, 151-52, 173, 177, 186, 197, 200, 208, 230, 234, 236, 238, 246, 251, 277, 287, 289, 292-93, 295, 303-04, 320, 331-32, 341-45, 350, 352, 361-66, 371, 374, 379, 384-85, 395, 418, 425, 434-37, 439, 455, 460, 465, 468, 491, 522, 532, 536, 541-42 14: 193, 292, 418 15: 591-92 16: 252, 418-19, 423-24, 429 17: 83 20: 316 22: 93, 304, 405, 418 23: 665, 675 26:129, 136 27:321 11:63, 65, 77 IV: 115 VI: 155, 175 VII: 49, 51-54 XVII: 12
Arjuni (Arjuni), a name of Abhimanyu, the son of Arjuna. The word has a symbolic meaning "the White One", as does the word "Arjuna" occurring in the same context. (M.N.) 13:18 XVIII: 177
Armageddon according to the New Testament, the great battlefield where the kings of the Earth under demoniac leadership will wage war on the forces of God at the end of world history. (Enc. Br.) n 1:220, 816
Armand (Sieurcaye) a character - husband of Aloyse - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door atAbelard". 7:1027-46
Armenia a region and former kingdom of Asia Minor. Its boundaries varied widely in the course of history, but as a region it is generally understood to include present eastern Turkey and the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic. The Armenian people underwent one of the worst trials in their history between 1894 and 1915. A systematic plan for their extermination was put into action by Abdul Hamid II and was sporadically resumed, notably in 1915, when the Armenians were accused of aiding the Russian invaders. (Col. Enc.) Der: Armenian 1:332, 557 6:419, 421 Annin probably, Arminius, German name: Hermann (18 BC?-AD 19), German tribal leader who inflicted a major defeat on Rome by destroying three legions in the Teutoburg Forest late in the summer of AD 9. The conception of Arminius as a German national hero reached its climax in the late 19th century. It could claim support from
Tacitus' judgment of him as "unquestionably the liberator of Germany''. (Enc. Br.) a 111:23
Armorican of Armorica, Latin name for the northwestern extremity of Gaul, now called Brittany. In Celtic, Roman and Prankish times Armorica also included the western part of what later became Normandy. (Enc. Br.) 15:290 Armstrong, John (1709-79), a physician and poet, author of The Art of Preserving Health (1744), a surprisingly pleasant poem in spite of its unattractive title. (Ox. Comp.) a 11:12
Arnold, Sir Edwin (1832-1904), English poet, scholar and journalist, best known as the author of The Light of Asia (1879), a blank- verse epic dealing with the life of the Buddha. (Col. Enc.) a 1:50, 54 27:152
Arnold, Matthew (1822-88), English poet and critic who embraced in the scope of his criticism not only literature but also theology, history, art, science, and politics. (Col. Enc.) 1:26-27, 37 3:87, 109 9:33, 112, 133-34, 139, 141-42, 151, 305, 314-15, 317, 319, 377, 398, 456, 460, 522, 545 12:58 15:86 26:255, 257, 263-64, 267 29:739, 802, 809 1:9-10, 28 II: 27
Artavoruxes in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, one of Penthesilea's captains. (M.I.) a 5:455, 517
Artemis Greek goddess, daughter of Zeus and Latona and twin sister of Apollo. She was described in mythology as a virgin huntress and sometimes identified with the moon. In Ilion she receives a deeper inter- pretation: she is a power of the future and, with her lightning-tasselled sandals, seems to represent the swift and luminous faculty of Intuition. (M.I.) 5:437, 450, 494, 510, 524, 546 XV: 15, 20 XVII: 45
Arthur a j uvenile character - Duke of Britaine, son of Geoffrey, late Duke of Britaine, the elder brother of King John - in Shakespeare's tragedy King John. Historically, Arthur I (1187-1203?), Duke of Brittany, grandson of King Henry II of England. (Shakes.; Enc. Br.) 1:365 3:285 X: 172
Arthurian cycle Arthur was a legendary British king who appears in a cycle of medieval romances as the sovereign of a knightly fellowship of the Round Table. Scholars are not certain how or where these legends originated or whether Arthur was based on a historical character. (Enc. Br.) 9:61
Page 21
Aruna (1895- ), Bengali poetess of the Ashram. She joined the Ashram in 1944 and worked in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Press since its establishment in 1945. 8:392
Aruna Vaitahavya a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Vitahavya. a 11:421
Arundhati wife of the Rishi Vasishtha, and a model of conjugal excellence. (Dow.) 4:17 Arya "the man of high upbringing' and noble nature" (14:106). As suggested by the various senses of the root of the word, "whoever aspires, labours, battles, travels, ascends the hill of being is the Aryan" (10: 225). The four great objects of the Aryans' life are artha, kdma, dharma, and moksa. The indications in the Veda pointed out by certain Western scholars "of a racial division between Aryans and Dasyus and the identification of the latter with the indigenous Indians" are, according to Sri Aurobindo, of a very flimsy character. The distinction seems to indicate a cultural rather than a racial difference. The whole story of an Aryan invasion through the Punjab is only a myth of the philologists. They split up the Indian nationality into the northern Aryan race and the southern Dravidian, but "a sound observation shows a single physical type with minor variations pervading the whole of India from Cape Comorian to Afghanistan". "I regard", says Sri Aurobindo, "the so-called Aryans and Dravidians as one homogeneous race." (10: 545) The term "Aryan languages" was used in the nineteenth century as a synonym for "Indo- European" and also, more restrictively to refer to the Indo-Iranian languages. It is now used in linguistics only in the sense of the term "Indo-Aryan languages". (A; Enc. Br.) Der: Aryahood; Aryaism; Aryan;
Aryanised; Aryanism; Anaryan; Un-Aryan 0 1:50, 62, 66, 71, 74, 76, 736, 757, 767-69, 786, 792, 797, 813 2:9, 20, 108, 210-12, 354-55, 364 3:67, 142, 164, 174-75, 179, 189-90, 193-94, 213, 217, 240, 242, 304, 306, 311, 331-33, 336, 339, 344 4:2, 21-22, 24, 29, 44-46, 60, 67, 88-89, 92, 96-97, 100-01, 113, 116, 118, 125-31, 140, 143-44, 148, 159-60, 166, 186, 194, 197, 201, 223, 237, 251, 292, 301-06, 309, 312, 3335:215, 222-26, 238, 246, 297, 304, 311, 318, 3206:250, 271, 277, 311-12, 380 7:742, 781, 894, 896 8:3, 61, 80, 192, 383 10:3-4, 10, 23-25, 28-29, 35-36, 44, 46, 50, 75, 79, 83, 87, 94, 100, 104, 132, 139, 147, 150, 166, 178, 187, 203, 212, 215-21, 224-28, 230, 232, 236-38, 246, 252, 256, 263, 265, 270-71, 274, 276, 296, 299, 305, 307, 313, 318, 352, 356, 361, 363, 424, 428, 433, 439-40, 442, 454, 459, 462-63, 471, 483, 494, 545, 548, 551, 553-62, 564, 566-68, 570-73, 577-79, 581 11:2, 13, 24, 27-29, 50, 300, 374, 393, 408, 445, 456, 458,
467, 469, 471, 499, 503, 505 12: 2-3, 57, 400, 408-10, 423-24, 436, 447, 456, 475, 478, 486-87, 493 13:20, 52-57, 61, 80, 82, 87, 103, 371, 462, 493, 497 14:71, 106, 115, 150, 159, 258, 265, 297, 324-25, 344-46, 350, 371 15:18, 177, 337, 433 16:324, 406-07 17:211, 278, 291, 294, 297-98, 301, 333, 335, 339, 393-95 18:23-24, 42 27:100, 102, 152, 156, 158, 161, 163, 165-70, 175, 183, 203-04, 209, 280, 284, 359 1:20, 22, 26-28 11:24, 35, 51 111:8, 11, 52, 56, 58-59, 61 IV: 126, 131, 136, 148, 155-56 V: 33, 38, 41-44 VI: 153 VII: 5, 8, 17, 21 VIII: 174 IX: 5-6, 8 XIV: 120-22, 130 XV: 6, 14, 15, 17-19, 22 XVI: 134-36, 138, 148, 150, 155, 157, 162-63 XVII: 22, 37, 41-43, 45, 52 XVIII: 134, 136, 138, 140, 142, 148, 150, 177
Arya English monthly, a philosophical review, published from Pondicherry from August 1914 to January 1921 under the editorship of Sri Aurobindo Ghose and Paul and Mirra Richard. Most of Sri Aurobindo's important prose writings first appeared serially in this journal. The French edition had to be discontinued after its 7th issue in February 1915 due to the departure of the Richards for France. (Mother-1:124; I & G) 4:30 9:462, 511 10:349, 545, 547 11:18 16:221, 395 17:391, 393, 397-401, 404-05 20:428 22:48, 73, 158, 262-63, 302 23: 547, 684, 722, 922, 1069 26: 37, 100, 131, 151, 163-64, 224, 226, 278, 284, 367-69, 374, 381, 435-36, 459 27:347, 377, 456, 463, 468, 474-75, 477-78, 482, 484-85, 494, 498 IV: 192 V: 101 VII: 6-7, 18-19 XVII: 69-70
Aryabhatta Aryabhata I (476-c. 550), Indian astronomer and the earliest Hindu mathematician whose work and life-history are avail- able to modern scholars. He was one of the first known to use algebra. (Enc. Br.) 17:193
Aryabhumi;Aryaland See Aryavarta
Aryama(n) a Vedic deity, classed among the Adityas and the Vishwadevas, who appears but with little distinctness of personality, for the references to him are brief. He is one of the four powers of the Truth of Surya, and represents the immortal puissance of the clear-discerning aspiration and endeavour. (A-10: 290; 11: 31) 4:22 10:19-20, 271, 289-90, 326, 329, 342, 370, 425, 428, 437-39, 443-47, 458-59, 461-64, 479-80, 532, 53511:22, 31, 46, 82, 167, 172, 206, 325, 329, 445, 494 12:317, 326 13:349 16:297 17:85, 257 22:390 V:27 VII: 32 X: 179-80 XIII: 54, 61
Page 22
"Aryan Origins" working title for a proposed book of linguistic research by Sri Aurobindo (see A & R, V: 38 and VI: 153). Drafts of this book were publised (SABCL, vol. 10: 551-81 and vol. 27:163-85) under the general title "The Origins of Aryan Speech", another working title used by Sri Aurobindo. 0 XXII: 170 Arya Publishing House a firm started about 1920 in Calcutta by a group of people, including Barindra Kumar Ghose (Sri Aurobindo's brother) and Rameshwar De, to publish Sri Aurobindo's writings. Barin took the initiative, and his name appeared on the imprint page of the first few publications ("Published by Barindra Kumar Ghose"). Later, many other devotees, including Radha Kant Nag, Srish Goswami and Tarapado, looked after the firm's affairs at different times. Subsequent to the establishment of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Press in 1945, most of the books were published by the Ashram in Pondicherry, and Arya Publishing House was wound up around 1952. 26:66 Arya Samaj a social-reform body founded by Swami Dayananda Saraswati in 1875 to re-establish the Vedas as a living religious scripture. He rejected all later accretions to the Vedas as degenerate. The Arya Samaj greatly stemmed the tide of conversion of Hindus to other religions, and reclaimed converted people to the fold of Hinduism. It has done a great deal of social and educational work, especially in Punjab and U.P. (D.I.H.) Der: Arya Samajist a 1:169, 522, 719 2:250, 353-55, 363-64 4:246, 252 10:29 14:418 VII: 22 XVI: 135
Aryasthan See Aryavarta
Aryavarta a term used by the ancient Aryan-speaking people of India to distinguish the land they occupied in the Indo-Gangetic plain from the lands of the Deccan held by others. Other terms used by Sri Aurobindo for "the land of the Aryans" are: Aryabhumi; Aryaland; and Aryasthan. (Enc. Br.) Var: Aryavertha; Aryavurtha 1:70, 906 5:223, 325-26, 330 12:456, 494 1:4, 20, 22 IV: 109 Asa, Prince of the title of Uriu, one of the speakers in "Conversations of the Dead" by Sri Aurobindo. o 3:478-79
Asan name of a place, real or imaginary, mentioned in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Golden Bird". (A) 7:1052-53
Asanuddin Ahmed the District Magistrate of Khulna (Bengal), before whom came up the sedition case against Venibhusan Rai in 1907. (A) 1:485-86
Ascanus' In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Trojan senator. (M.I.) a 5:412 Ascanus2 in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion,a Hellene warrior, son of Phrinix, wounded in the battle by Valarus, whom he later helps to slay. (M.I.)
5:518-19 VI: 135
Ascent to Earth of the Daughter of Hades a poem by George Meredith which Sri Aurobindo greatly admired. (A) 26:264
Ashe Robert William D'Estcourt Ashe, who came to India in 1895. As sub-collector at Tuticorin (South India) in 1908, he took an active part in the official campaign against the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Co. On 17 July 1911 when he was the District Magistrate of Tinnevelly, he was shot in a railway carriage at Maniyachi junction by Vanchi Aiyar, a clerk in the Tranvancore Forest Department, who committed suicide a few minutes later. Mr. Ashe died soon after he was shot. It is said that the conspiracy to assassinate him was hatched in Pondicherry under the inspiration ofV.V.S. Aiyar and others, and that Ashe had been given a writ- ten warning in December 1910. (A; P.T.I; R.O.H.;Remin.;V.V.S.) 1:798 27:500
Ashoka the third and last major emperor (273-232 BC) of the Maurya dynasty of Magadha founded by Chandragupta Maurya. His dominion extended from the Hindukush in the northwest to Bengal in the east and from the foothills of the Himalayas to the river Pennar in the south. After his sanguinary conquest of Kalinga he became a changed man. He was converted to Buddhism, and he spread Buddhism far and wide, thus turning it into a world religion. (D.I.H.) Var: Asoca; Asoka Der: Asokan 1:632, 705, 739, 769 4:141, 227 7:742 14:94, 183, 187, 193, 237, 328, 330, 351, 354, 375, 403 15:436 27:67 XVII: 25
Ashram See Sri Aurobindo Ashram
Ashtaroth; Ashtorath See Astarte (Col. Enc.)
Ashubabu See Asubabu
Ashu(dada) someone closely associated with Sri Aurobindo at Srinagar during his stay in Kashmir with the Gaekwar in 1903. (A) D IV: 194
Ashwala the Hotri priest of Janaka, king of Videha, who appears as an authority in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. (V. Index) 12:295, 302
Page 23
Ashwalayana (fl. 400 BC?), in Vedic litanies, a teacher as well as a sage. He was a celebrated author of many works on ritual and a founder of a Sakha of the Rig-veda. (Enc. Br.;Dow.) 12:415-17
As(h)wamedha "Horse-Sacrifice", performed in India in ancient times by great kings to establish their supreme sovereignty. An especially fine stallion was selected and allowed to roam freely for a year under the protection of a royal guard who claimed for the king all land covered in its wanderings. If the horse entered a foreign country, its ruler either had to fight or to submit. If the horse was not captured during the year, it was victoriously brought back to the capital accompanied by the rulers of the lands it entered, and then sacrificed at a great public ceremony. The wandering horse was said to symbolize the Sun in its journey over the world, and consequently, the power of the king over the whole earth. On successfully carrying out a horse-sacrifice the king could assume the title of Chakravartin (universal monarch). The rite served not only to glorify the king but also to ensure the prosperity and fertility of the entire kingdom. Sym- bolically, the horse-sacrifice is the offering of the Life-power with all its impulses, desires, enjoyments to the divine existence. (Enc. Br.; A-11, p. 242 fn) Var: Asvamedha 12:371, 399-400 15:288 IX: 12
Ashwamedha (Bharata) a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Bharata. 10:416-17 11:241-42
As(h)wattha in Hindu mythology, the sacred fig-tree that symbolises the cosmic manifestation. (A) Var: Asvattha; Uswuttha n 4:43 5:237-38 12:262, 423 13:349, 425, 429 18:485 23:970 27:156
As(h)watthama in the Mahabharata, son of Dronacharya, and one of the generals of the Kauravas. He is said to be immortal and is supposed to have been living near the river Narbada for 36, 000 years. (Dow.; A) Var: Ashwatthaman a 3:194 4:76 8:77 24:1235
Ashwini Babu See Dutt(a), Aswini (Kumar)
As(h)wins "horsemen"; Riders on the (Steed of) Life, the twin deities of Vedic India. They are beneficent, associated with healing, and have a parallel in the Greek Dioscuri. Their special function is to perfect the nervous and vital being in man in the sense of active enjoyment, but they are also powers of Truth, of intelligent action, of right enjoyment.
(Enc.Br.;I&G) Var: Uswins 1:280 4:22-23, 37 5.: 538 10:75-82, 84-85, 120, 122, 124-25, 136-38, 153-54, 176, 238, 271, 314-23, 327-28, 363, 415, 438, 449, 517 11: 31-32, 167, 240, 466, 494 13:364 17:257 IV: 117-23 VI: 149 VII: 38 X: 184-85 XIII: 54, 61 XIV: 110 XV: 13, 30, 39, 41-42 XVI: 149, 159-60, 162-66, 169, 171, 173-74 XVII: 14, 44, 46, 47 XXI: 28
Asia largest of the continents of the world. Der: Asian; Asianised; Asiatic(s); Asiaticised; Asiaticism a 1:48, 93, 143, 259, 261, 271, 343, 391, 465, 467, 469, 481, 538, 576, 620, 705, 712, 749, 752-53, 757, 759-60, 768, 800, 814-16, 842-43, 880, 904 2:19, 28, 31, 34-35, 39, 84, 117-18, 167, 169, 192, 218, 231, 247-49, 256-57, 293, 296, 390, 404 3:189, 306, 345, 418, 481, 484 4:44, 144, 215, 219 5:13, 56, 405-06, 408, 413-14, 418, 427, 429, 432, 469, 474-77, 489, 492, 514, 569 6:20, 426-27, 431 7:665, 780, 1027, 1031 8:383 9:112, 283, 423, 522 10:23 12:37, 497, 499 13:79 14:1, 3-4, 6, 10, 25, 32, 51-52, 54, 57, 63, 80-82, 128, 147, 189, 224, 242, 263, 270, 324, 329, 345, 354, 376, 378-79, 393, 41215:17-18, 20, 22, 44, 46, 59, 79, 148, 162, 178, 210, 225, 229, 263-64, 287, 294, 296, 300-03, 314, 316-17, 324, 328, 331-33, 340, 343, 351, 367, 378, 384, 407-08, 411, 413-14, 419, 437, 445-47, 454, 469, 480, 483, 502, 505, 512-13, 537, 566-67, 604, 609, 619, 622, 626, 633, 635, 638, 640-42, 644-49 16: 306, 309-11, 313, 326, 365, 370, 407 17:114, 153, 180-81, 185, 191, 196, 248-49, 302, 349, 377, 387 19:763, 1051 22:77, 128-29, 205, 393 23:510, 555 26:39, 400-02, 405, 416, 482 27:122-24, 348, 419, 442, 448, 467 1:8, 24-25 11:84 111:22, 29 IV: 161-62 V: 79, 95 VI: 164, 196, 199 VIII: 169, 176 XIII: 47 XV: 5 XVI: 181-82
Asia Minor (also called Anatolia) the Asian portion of what is now Turkey. Asia Minor was the centre of the Hittite empire during the 2nd millenium BC. (Enc. Br.) n XVI: 138 XVII: 48
Asilon name of a place mentioned in one of the "Conversations of the Dead" by Sri Aurobindo. It is imagined to have been on earth many millions of years ago, and to have had temples and market-places where Turiu and Uriu had met. (A) 3:477-78
Asita (fl. c. 6th cent. BC), Indian sage, also called Kala Devala. (Enc. Br.) 13:344
Asius in Greek legend, a Troj an warrior, son of Dymas and brother of Hecuba, (in Sri Aurobindo's llion) slain by Ajax before the start of the epic. (M.I.) 5:426
Page 24
Aslaug a character - sister of Swegn - in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric. 6:473, 477-81, 483-512, 516, 518-37, 542, 546; 549-51, 553-54, 556, 558-59
Asoca; Asoka See Ashoka
Aspasia (fl. 5th cent. Be), Greek courtesan; mistress of Pericles. She was renowned for her learning, her wit, and her beauty. (Col. Enc.) 3:297 X: 161
Aspetus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Trojan seer and senator. (M.I.) 5:412
Aspromonte mountainous region in south Italy, 25 kilometres from Reggio. Here, in 1862, Garibaldi leading a volunteer corps against Rome, suffered defeat at the hands of the Italian army sent by King Emmanuel II under fear of international intervention. (Col. Enc.) X: 149
Asquith, Herbert Henry (1852-1928); Liberal M.P.(1886-1918, 1920-24); Prime Minister (1908-16), responsible, for the Parliament Act of 1911 which limited the power of the House of Lords, and leader of Britain during the first two years of World War I. He was created Ear! in 1925. (Enc. Br.; Gilbert, p. 50) Der: Asquithian 1: 849 2: 79, 228, 269-71, 298-300, 393-94 4:213-14 22:166 26:168
Asram See Sri Aurobindo Ashram Assad, Sardar the Bakhtyari leader who, with Sipahidar, effected the Persian Revolution in the beginning of the 20th century. (A) 2:118 Assam formerly a province in northeastern India with Shillong as its capital; presently a constituent state of the Indian Union with Dispur as its capital. During the period of the partition of Bengal, from 1905 to 1911, Assam together with 15 districts of East Bengal formed a new province called "East Bengal and Assam". (Enc. Br.; S. Atlas) Der; Assamese l: 76, 212, 797 26:46, 409-10 27:8, 26 1:70, 75-76 Assarac a proposed character - a brother of Brutus - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The House of Brut. 7:883
Assyria a kingdom of northern Mesopotamia that became the centre of one of the great empires of the ancient NEAR EAST. It emerged as an independent state in 14th century BC, and the final destruction of the state occurred in 612-609 BC. The Assyrians, famous for their cruelty and fighting prowess, were also monumental builders. (Enc. Br.) Der: Assyrian(s) 2:34 3:227 4:143 6:43, 46, 99, 102, 114, 118.142, 150, 182, 186 7:1086-87 10:23 14:190 15:298, 343.347 17:303 V:95 XIX:25
Astarte or Ashtaroth, or Ashtorath (the Hebrew form is Ashtoreth), 1. Semitic goddess of fertility,
beauty, and (sexual) love; also the goddess of the moon. She is usually identified with Aphrodite; her name has also been used as a title of Aphrodite. (Col. Enc.; M.I.; Web.) 2. A proposed character - the Angel of Beauty - mentioned (as Ashtorath) in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Birth of Sin. a 5:31, 178, 182-84, 501, 539 7:901 17:257
Astyoches in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Trojan senator. (M.I.) 5:412
Asubabii very probably Ashutosh Chowdhuri. See Chowdhuri, Ashutosh n 4:238
Asura a term which in the Veda, as in the Avesta, is used for the supreme Deity, but also for the gods, his manifestations; only in a few hymns is it used for the dark Titans. In later times the term stood for the strong or mighty Titan; a (hostile) being of the mentalised vital plane; the intellectualised but unregenerate Ego. The Asura is the sixth type from below of the ten forms of consciousness in the evolutionary scale of man. He is mind concentrated on the Buddhi. (I & G; A) Der: Asurahood; Asuri; Asuric;
Asurism 1:62, 659, 663 3:175, 177, 423 4:1-2, 23.83.91, 97-99, 101, 110, 124, 126, 140-41, 144, 160.168, 299, 304, 306.311, 313 5:77, 79 10:388, 416, 470, 531, 53511:241, 310, 467 12:407, 409, 465-66, 474, 491, 499, 501, 532 13:19, 39, 53, 146, 150, 165-66, 174, 207, 267, 312-13, 360, 436, 448, 454-59, 470, 472, 481; 550, 573 14:103, 204.222, 235, 287-88, 292, 388 15:26, 36, 596, 635 16:133, 276, 278 17:73, 237, 378 18:603 19:1022, 1068 20:108, 160, 199, 222.450 21:713.716, 720, 738 22:5, 172, 203-04, 381-82. 385-87, 390, 394-96, 398, 402, 404, 447, 481, 495 24:1094, 1290, 1303, 1316-17, 1334, 1648, 1737, 1741 25:11, 27-28, 39, 61-62, 75-76, 276, 344.389 26:39, 169, 206, 393-94, 396, 465, 494 27:158, 325, 364 11:76-79 V:89 VI: 127, 183-87, 189-90, 192 VII: 9, 25, 27 IX: 5, 40 XI: 40 XII: 194 XIV: 168 XV: 26 XVIII: 132, 138 XIX: 24, 72 XXI: 7, 72-73, 78
Asvamedha See As(h)wamedha
Asvamedha (Bharata) See Ashwamedha (Bharata)
Asvattha See As(h)wattha
Asvin See As(h)wins
Aswamedha See As(h)wamedha
Page 25
Aswapati literally "the Lord of the Horse"; in the tale of Satyavan and Savitri in the Mahabharata, Savitri's human father. Sym- bolically Aswapati is the Lord of Tapasya, the concentrated energy of spiritual endeavour. (A) Var: Aswapathy 26:265 27:511 28:341 29:369, 417, 421, 424, 427, 456, 731,
770, 773
Aswattha See As(h)wattha
Aswatthama See As(h)watthama
Aswin the seventh month (September- October) of the year in the Hindu calendar. 8:318 "
Aswini a character, representing Aswini Kumar Dutta, in Sri Aurobindo's play "The Slaying of Congress", published in Bande Mataram (February 1908) a i: 679, 695-96
Aswini Kumar See Dutt(a), Aswini (Kumar)
Aswins See As(h)wins
Atlanta in Calydon an early lyrical poem (1865) of Swinburne. It is a drama in the classical Greek form, with choruses (notably the hymn to Artemis) that revealed Swin- burne's unsurpassed mastery of melodious verse, and brought him celebrity. (Ox. Comp.) 9:74, 142, 396 26:265
Ate' in Greek mythology, a daughter of Zeus who cast her from Olympus. She was a personification of the rash temper which leads men to folly and misfortune. In tragic writers she was also an avenger of evil deeds; hence she was often confused with Nemesis and the Erinyes. (Col. Enc.) 5:397, 417-18, 425, 434, 471, 473-74, 482 XV: 15
Ate2 a proposed character mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. a 7:821
Athamas in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Trojan admiral and senator. (M.I.) 5:412 Athanasian Creed a Christian profession of faith, also known as the Quicunque vult (from the opening words in Latin). It is an exposition of orthodox teaching on the Trinity and the incarnation in about forty verses. Regarded as authoritative in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, and some Protestant churches, the creed begins and ends
with stern warnings that unswerving adherence to the Catholic faith is indispensable to salvation. (Enc. Br.) XIII: 30
Atharvan a Vedic Rishi of the journeying on the Path; the eldest son of Brahma and the seer of the Artharva-veda. His descendants are called Atharvanas and are often associated with Angirasas. (A; Dow.; I & G) Var: Atharva (Atharva) Der: Atharvans (descendants of Atharvan) 4:29 10:180, 232, 237 11:275, 278, 399, 418 12:32, 269, 300, 329, 416 IX:5
Atharva Veda the fourth Veda, of later origin than the others. About one-sixth of its hymns are found also in the Rig-veda. (Dow.) Var: Atharvan (Atharvana), named after its Rishi ATHARVAN. (Note: the ex- pression Atharvana, though not occurring till the Chhandogya Upanishad, is earlier than the term "Atharvaveda", which was first used in the Sutras.) (V. Index-1, p. 57) 10:441 11:17 12:270, 448 18:271 19:657
Athene or Pallas (Athene), in Greek mythology, Olympian goddess of reason and skill, patroness of the arts of peace and war, and guardian of cities, especially of Athens. Depicted as a woman of severe beauty in armour, she is a virgin warrior but fights, not like Ares for the sheer assertion of strength and love of battle, but to uphold the right and establish order. She sprang, unmothered, from the forehead of Zeus. Her statue, the PALLADIUM, stood in Troy and was a symbol of protection so long as it remained undisturbed, but Athene herself aided Odysseus on the side of the Greeks. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) Var: Athena 5:11, 394.401, 403, 405, 415, 417, 422, 436-37, 439, 446, 450, 472-74, 478-79, 494, 498-502, 506-08, 511-12, 515, 517, 544 6:1, 3, 5-10, 24.78-80, 85, 94, 96, 126, 130, 158, 162-63, 174, 198-200 8:410 10:4, 77, 153 11:3, 468 22:389 25:74 XV: 15, 20 XVI: 137, 148, 179 XVII: 45
XIX: 25 XX: 119
Athens capitial of Greece and of Attica. It lies near the Saronic Gulf of the Aegean Sea. Ancient Athens was the chief centre of classical Greek civilisation. (Enc. Br.; M.I.) Der: Athenian a 1:24, 31-32, 34, 520, 576 2:123, 168 3:10-11, 25-26, 68, 296 5:28, 254, 484 7:646 9:217, 227, 245 14:191, 367 15:85, 89-91, 177, 275, 287, 339, 430 16:322 17:103 26:238 27:280-81 29:785 X: 160 XIV: 116
Atlantic second largest ocean extending in an S-shape from the Arctic to the Antarctic regions between the Americas and Europe and Africa. (Col. Enc.) a 5:84, 420, 505 6: 8, 432 7: 712, 1070 9:149 1:19, 22 III: 28 Atlantis in Greek legend, a large island in the western sea. Plato in his dialogues tells of the high civilisation which flourished there until the island was destroyed by an earth- quake. He described Atlantis as an ideal
Page 26
state, and the name is considered synonymous with Utopia. According to certain esoteric traditions, the occult sciences achieved a high level of development in Atlantis. (Col. Enc.) 6:9 17:237 22:1-2
Atlas in Greek mythology, a Titan, son of lapetus and Clymene. After the downfall of the Titans he was condemned to stand at the western end of the earth, bearing the sky on his head and hands. Perseus is said to have changed him into Mt. Atlas because of his inhospitality. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:412, 481, 486 6:174 8:410
Atreid, The See Atrides a 5:475, 480, 482, 484 8:410
Atreus in Greek legend, king of Mycenae. He was son of Pelops and suffered from the curse laid on his father. Atreus brought an even greater curse (see Thyestean) upon himself and his sons, Agamemnon and Menelaus. The working out of this curse provides the plots of many of the Greek tragedies that have come down to us. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) D 5:420, 436, 454 470, 473, 491 16:83 II: 26
Atri a Vedic Rishi, author of many hymns, especially those composed in praise of Agni, Indra, the Ashwins, and the Vishwadevas. The Atris are a family of Vedic sages. Mandala V of the Rig-veda is attributed to this family. "Atri" means literally the "eater" or the "traveller". (10:363) (Dow.;V.Index)4:295:787:100810:55, 135, 139, 146, 152, 183, 185, 204, 276, 280, 349, 354, 363, 474, 479-80, 48811:34, 199, 205, 211, 217, 228, 234-35, 336, 414, 433 14:276 17: 397 11:39 111:31 IV: 117 V:20 XIV: 133
Atridae plural of Atrides, i. e., descendants of Atreus, or the whole house of Atreus, which suffered heavily under the curses laid upon it (see Atreus) 3:265 X: 147
Atrides the Atreid, descendant of ATREUS, particularly Agamemnon, but also Menelaus (the younger Atrides, 5:481), and possibly also the house of Atreus (5:479, 480?). 5:468, 472-73, 479-81, 483-84 8:410
Atris1 See Atri
Atris2 a class of demons;" powers of division and limitation", in particular, "Devourers". (10:43-44) a 10:44 XXII: 183
Atry a character-who became King of Mathura with the help of the Scythians in Sri Aurobindo's play The Prince of Mathura. 7:891, 893-97
Attic of Athens or of Attica; the Greek
dialect spoken by the Athenians. (C.O.D.) D 1:31, 178 '17:295-96
Attica a region of ancient Greece, a triangular area at the eastern end of central Greece, around Athens. (Col. Enc.) 5:422
Attila (died 453), King of the Huns (c. 433-53), known in western Europe as the "Scourge of God". The fear Attila inspired in the Roman provincials has been preserved in many accounts of his savagery. (Col. Enc.) 16:203 V:89
Attis a poem by the Roman lyric poet Catullus about a youth who emasculates himself in order to become a priest of Cybele, and then regrets his act. Mythologically, Attis was the consort of the Great Mother of the Gods (classical Cybele). (Enc. W.B.) 27:93
Atui a character a spoilt boy in Sarat Chandra's novel Nishkriti a 9:466
A.U. See Aitareya Upanishad
Auddalaki Aruni Indian sage, descendant of Uddalaka Aruni. (Aruni is the patronymic normally referring to Uddalaka, son of Aruna Aupavesi.) (V. Index) 12:239
Augustan Connected with the reign of Augustus Caesar, the Augustan Age, lasting from c. 43 BC to AD 18, was one of the most illustrious periods in Latin literary history. By analogy, "Augustan Age" is applied to a "classical" period in the literature of any nation, especially to the 18th century in England and, less frequently, to the 17th century in France. In a narrow sense the term "English Augustan Age" applies to the reign of Queen Anne (1702-14); in a broader sense it is sometimes given to the period of Pope (1688-1744). (Enc. Br.; H.L.) n 9:50, 87, 132 1:9, 14-16 11:13-14, 16
Augustine, St. (354-430), a great saint, bishop of Hippo, and one of the four Latin Fathers of the Christian Church. He was the dominant personality of the Western Church of his time, and is generally recognised as the greatest thinker of Christian antiquity. In Sri Aurobindo's view, he was a man of God and a great saint, but not a great psychologist or a great thinker. (Enc. Br.; A) 22:321, 323-24 23:553, 609
Augustus (Caesar) (63 BC-AD 14), the first Caesar (Roman Emperor), a grandson of the sister of Julius Caesar. Named at first Gaius Octavius, he became, on adoption by the Julian gens (44 BC) , Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (Octavian); Augustus was a title
Page 27
of honour granted by the senate in 27 BC. He was one of the great administrative geniuses of history. Perhaps his greatest achievement was the establishment of "Pax Romana" (Roman peace), a period of world peace, which may have made pos- sible the civilisation of the Roman Empire. (Col. Enc.) 3:454 9:546 15:296, 343, 436 22:451 25:78 VI: 186, 192
Aulis a place on the east coast of Boeotia having a landlocked harbour. Here the Greek fleet collected before sailing to Troy, and Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter Iphiegenia to the gods to break a calm and allow the ships to depart. (M.I.) a 5:472
Aundh Commission the commission appointed by the Government of India in 1907 to investigate the charge brought against the ruler of the princely state of Aundh (near Poona in the Bombay Presidency) of murdering his Dewan (chief minister), a 1:247
Aurangzeb(e) (1618-1707), the sixth Moghul Emperor (1659-1707) of India, the last of the Great Moghuls. He was a zealous Mahomedan and adopted a policy of intolerance and persecution of the Hindus in order to establish a realm of Islam. (D. I. H.; Col. Enc.) 1:322, 411, 780, 834 3:484 4:147 14:379
Auro(bindo) See Sri Aurobindo
Aurobindo (Ackroyd) Ghose See Ghose, Aurobindo Ackroyd
Aurus (of Ellae) in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a "henchman" ofPenthesilea, apparently one of her runners. (M.I.) 5:516
Aushinarie a character - wife of King Pururavas and daughter of the king of Kashi in Kalidasa's play Vikramorvasi, translated by Sri Aurobindo. D 3:273-74, 282, 288 7:909, 945-48, 961-66 X: 155-56, 169, 174-75
Austerlitz the Battle of Austerlitz, also called the Battle of the Three Emperors (December 2, 1805). It was the first en- gagement of the War of the Third Coalition and ended in one of Napoleon's most perfect victories. Defeat forced Austria to make peace with France (Treaty of Pressburg) and kept Prussia temporarily out of the anti-French alliance. (Enc. Br.) n XIII: 27, 44
Austin, Alfred (1835-1913), successor of Lord Alfred Tennyson as poet laureate (an appointment attributed to his flattery of Lord Salisbury), who could write simply in praise of the English and Italian countryside, and who could claim to represent popular feeling, but who lacked the gift of transferring it into true poetry. (Enc. Br.) V: 18
Australasian of Australasia, an indefinite term referring to insular areas in the Pacific Ocean. In a limited sense it applies to Australia and New Zealand and their dependencies. In its widest sense it includes the Malay Archipelago, the Philippines and some other islands. Some authorities have even placed Antarctica in the group. The word is falling out of use. (Enc. Br.) 15:410
Australia island continent of the southern hemisphere, between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. (Enc. Br.) Der:
Australian 1:143, 814-15 2:33-34 15:286, 311, 314, 410, 417, 517, 549 1:2
Austria land-locked federal republic in central Europe. Before World War I it was (with Hungary) an empire and one of the great powers of Europe. (Enc. Br.) Der:
Austrian 1:311, 335, 362, 411, 467, 501, 505, 507, 525, 579, 877 2:248 12:48615:285-86, 288-89, 293, 299, 313, 378, 411-12, 445, 447, 467, 496, 502, 504-05, 512-15, 519, 536 17: 386 26:31 27:347, 466 XX: 147 XXI: 4, 94
Austro-German of Austria and Germany. n 15:288 27:-466
Austro-Hungary the Hapsburg empire from the constitutional compromise of 1867 between Austria and Hungary until its fall in 1918. (Col. Enc.) D 15:410, 513, 550 27:466
Austro-Italian of Austria and Italy. a XXI: 71
Austro-Magyar of Austro-Hungary. See also Magyar(s). a15:286
Auto-de-fe Portuguese word meaning "act of faith", a public ceremony or festival during which the sentences upon those brought before the Spanish Inquisition (16th and 17th centuries) were read out and batches of the so-called "heretics", men and women, were burnt alive on huge pyres in the presence of the king and royal family and ambassadors and thousands of people. (Enc. Br.; G.W.H.) 12:485
Automedon in Greek legend, the son of Diores, and Achilles' charioteer, driver of the immortal horses Balius and Xanthus. (M.I.) a 5:463-64, 467, 513, 517
A vachuri a gloss or short commentary in Sanskrit (on Kumdrasambha vam). 3:308, 311-12, 315, 317
Avalon, Arthur pseudonym of JOHN WOODROFFE. 17:267-69, 271"
Page 28
Avanti name of a kingdom and its people in ancient India, corresponding roughly to modern western Malwa (in M.P.). In 600 BC the capital of this kingdom was Mahismati (probably modern Mandhata on the Narmada), but the capital was soon moved to Ujjayini (near modern Ujjain). At the time of the Buddha (563-483 Be), Avanti was one of the four powers of northern India. See also Ujjayini(e). (Enc. Br.; M.W.) Var:
Avanty; Avunthie Der: Avantian; Avunthian 3:193, 213 6:205, 207, 211, 215, 219, 221-22, 225, 229-30, 235-36, 238, 243-45, 247, 249, 252, 256, 300-01, 313, 315, 317, 319, 321-22, 324, 327-28 7:894 XVIII: 136
Avelion or Avalon: in Arthurian legend, a place in the "Isle of the Blessed" of the Celts, a mythical land where King Arthur was conveyed for the healing of his wounds after his final battle. (Ox. Comp.; Enc. Br.) a5:173
Avemus 1. a small circular lake in an extinct volcano west of Naples, Italy, and just west of ancient Cumae. By ancient Greek writers it was fabled to be the entrance to the in- fernal regions, and it was also thought that the Cimmerians of Homer dwelt on the banks of this lake. 2. in Roman mythology, Hades or hell. (Enc. Am.; Web.) VI: 199
Avesta or Zend-Avesta (Pahlavi: avesta = law, zend = commentary), the sacred book of Zoroastrianism containing its cosmogony, law, and liturgy, the teachings of the prophet Zoroaster. It consists of much-corrupted texts with many interpolations written in an old form of Iranian, possibly coeval with the inscriptions of Darius. The voluminous manuscripts of the original are said to have been destroyed when Alexander the Great conquered Persia. The present A vesta was assembled from the remnants and standard- ised under the Sasanian kings (3rd-7th cent. AD). It comprises five books. (Enc. Br.) 10: 470 17: 341 XVI: 166 (Zendavesta)
Avunthie; Avunthian See Avanti
Avvai a celebrated Tamil poetess. Scholars differ widely as to the time when she nourished. Like Andal, the other famous poetess in Tamil literature, she also came into promi- nence after the 6th century AD. (Gaz. II) D 14:321
Ayar, J. name of an unknown person [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Ayasya a Vedic sage, a descendant of
Arigiras, who appears to be mentioned only in two passages of the Rig-veda, and to whom several hymns of the Rig-veda are ascribed. (V. Index) 10:167-70, 173-74, 176, 183, 187-88, 194, 206 12:389-90 1:32 VIII: 148
Aylmer, Rose daughter of Lord Aylmer, on whom W. S. Landor wrote an elegy entitled Rose Aylmer. She was an early love of Landor's, but on her mother's second marriage she was sent out to her aunt at Calcutta, where she died at the age of twenty. (Ox. Comp.) 9:305
Ayodhya one of the seven ancient sacred cities of the Hindus; it was the capital of Ikshwaku, the founder of the Solar race, and afterwards ofDasaratha and Rama. According to traditional history it was the early capital of the kingdom of Kosala. The pres- ent town of Ayodhya, in Fyzabad district (Uttar Pradesh), on the Ghaghara, is considered by Hindus as the same as the mythical capital and is revered by them because of its association with Rama and his father Dasaratha. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) 6:264 8:3-4 IX: 40 XVI: 146
Ayoob in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora, a friend or companion of Nureddene. (A) 7:595, 627, 630, 643, 645
Ayus in Hindu mythology, the first-born son of Pururavas by Urvasi; a character in Kalidasa's play Vikramorvasi, translated by SriAurobindo. (Dow.) a 3:271, 280-81, 284-86 5:217 7: 909, 994, 996-1001, 1004-05, 1007-08 27:152 X: 153, 167, 171-73
Azeem a character - steward of Alfazzal Ibn Sawy - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora. 7:561, 632-37, 641-42
Azerbaijan formerly a region in northwestern Iran; subdivided in 1938 to form the Third and Fourth "ostans" (provinces), later Azerbaijan-e Khaveri and Azerbaijan-e Bakhtari (East and West Azerbaijan), with capitals at Tabriz and Rezalyeh respectively. The two provinces are bounded on the north by Aras River, and on the west by Turkey and Iraq. (Enc. Br.) 15:647
Aziz a character - a merchant of Bassora - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. n 7:561, 574, 577, 659, 662, 664
Azrael in the Koran, angel of death, who severs the soul from the body. The name and concept were borrowed from Judaism. (Col. Enc.) 5:276
Aztecs a Nahuati-speaking people who in the 15th and early 16th centuries ruled a large
Page 29
empire in what is now central and southern Mexico. (Enc.Br.) 15:323
B; B. See Bijoy or Bluysen
Baal' a god worshipped in many ancient Near Eastern communities, especially among the Canaanites who apparently considered him a fertility deity and the most important god in their pantheon. Baal was also worshipped by various communities as a local god. The Old Testament speaks frequently of the Baal of a given place or refers to Baalim in the plural, suggesting the evidence of local deities, or "lords" of various locales. (Enc. Br.) 1:124 2:156 7:1085-87 17:257 V:l
Baal2 a proposed character - the Angel of Worldly Wisdom - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Birth of Sin. 7:901
Babel The reference is to the mythological story of the construction of the Tower of Babel, which appears to be an attempt to explain the diversity of human languages. According to Genesis, the Babylonians wanted to make a name for themselves by building a mighty city and tower "with its top in the heavens". God disrupted the work by so confusing the language of the workers that they could no longer understand one another. The tower was never completed and the people were dispersed over the face of the earth. (Enc. Br.) 27: 84, 89 29:642
Babylon an ancient city on the EUPHRATES; one of the most famous cities of antiquity; capital of southern Mesopotamia (Babylonia) from the early 2nd millennium to the early 1st millennium BC, and of the Nee-Babylonian (Chaldean) Empire in the 7th and 6th centuries BC, when it was at the height of its splendour. The brilliant colour and luxury of Babylon became legendary from the days of Nebuchadnezzar (d. 562 BC). Its Hanging Gardens were one of the Seven Wonders of the World. The ruins of Babylon still exist near the town of al-Hillah, Iraq. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 4:252 5:419, 500, 505 6:20, 72, 82, 87, 198 Babylonia I. the region around the ancient city of BABYLON; 2. the name given to a number of kingdoms and empires of which Babylon was the capital. In 625 BC Nabopo-lassar established what is generally known as the Chaldean or New Babylonian Empire.Under his son", Nebuchadnezzar, the new empire reached its height. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Babylonian 6:3, 18, 60, 62, 79, 84-85, 87, 94, 100, 113, 184 Bacchae a Sth-century BC tragedy by the Greek poet Euripides, on the Pentheus story. (Enc.Br.) 9:521 Bacchus in Greek and Roman mythology, god of wine, identified with Dionysus. He was also a god of vegetation and fertility, and the protector of vines. (Col. Enc.) Der: Bacchic (adj.); Bacchant(e) (votary of Bacchus) 5:33 16:339 17:113 28:128, 272 29:625, 733, 754 11:5 XV: 20 XVI: 138
Bach, Johann Sebastian (1685-1750), the principal figure of the Baroque Age of European music; he was the most renowned member of a large family of north German musicians. (Enc. Br.) 9:381
Backergunge Bakarganj, 1. a district in Khulna division of Bengal, India (now in Bangladesh). The administrative head- quarters of the district is BARISAL and for this reason the district is sometimes referred to as Barisal (see 1: 357, 475; 2: 57, 91). 2. a town in the district. (A) Var: Backergunje; Bakergunj 1:77, 357, 609-10 2:57, 89-90, 421
Back to Methuselah drama by G. B. Shaw, consisting of five separate plays that expound his conception of creative evolution. The parable progresses from the Garden of Eden to AD 31. The drama was first performed in 1922. (Enc.Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov.l913-0ct. '27]
Bacon, Francis (1561-1626), English lawyer, courtier, statesman, philosopher, and master of the English tongue, who claimed all knowledge as his province and advocated new ways by which men might establish a legitimate command over nature. His Essays (1597) are his best-known writings. (Enc. Br.) a 1:704 9:30
Bacon, Roger (1220-92), Franciscan philosopher and educational reformer. He displayed prodigious energy and zeal in the pursuit of experimental science. (Enc. Br.) XVII: 11
Bactria ancient country lying between the Hindukush mountains and the Amu Darya (Oxus River) in what is now part of Afghanistan and of the Uzbek and Tadzhik Soviet Socialist Republics. It was especially important between c. 600 BC and c. AD 600, serving for much of that time as a meeting place not only for overland trade between East and West but also for the cross-currents of religious and artistic ideas. The capital was Bactra (probably modern Baikh, ancient Vahlika). (Enc. Br.) Der: Bactrian a 3:198 7:991 III: 22
Page 30
Badarayana Bakhtyari Badarayan(a) (fl. 4th cent. Be), Indian philosopher; author of the Vedanta Sutras or Brahma Sutras. (Enc. Br.) a VI: 136 VIII: 183 XIV: 120, 133
Bagbazar See Baghbazar
Bagdad Baghdad, foremost city of ancient Mesopotamia and the capital of modern Iraq and of Baghdad muhafazah (province). It is situated on both banks of the Tigris River at the point where the river is closest to the Euphrates. (Enc. Br.) 5:263-64, 271-72, 274-75 7: 561, 597, 634, 639, 655, 665, 671-72, 680, 687, 689, 691, 696-97, 702, 705-06, 711-12, 715, 721, 726, 730
Bagdi a caste of fishermen, palanquin- bearers, and field-labourers in central and western Bengal and Bihar. (Enc. Ind.) 4:268
Bagh region in Central India, near Gwalior. It has some fresco paintings of the Ajanta type and style in some of its cave-temples. (D.I.H.) a 14:240-41
Baghbazar a locality in north Calcutta, on the bank of the Ganga, where a Math of the Sri Ramakrishna Mission once stood. Var: Bagbazar D 2:295, 314 26:56-57, 60, 70 27:53
Bahadur Shah Bahadur Shah I, the seventh Moghul Emperor (1707-12), or Bahadur Shah II, the nineteenth and last Moghul Emperor (1837-58) of Delhi. (D.I.H.) D 111:10
Bahaism the religion founded by Mirza Husain Ali Bahaullah (1817-92), a Persian prophet. Its headship became hereditary after his death. Bahaism is looked upon as a heretical creed by orthodox Muslims. It flourishes in forty countries including India and Pakistan. (D.I.H.) 16:310
Bahuka in an episode of the Mahabharata, the name adopted by King Nala while in disguise as a trainer of horses and accomplished cook at the court of Rtuparna, the kingofAyodhya. (M.N.) 3:154
Baidyanath' .SeeChatterji, Baidyanath
Baidyanath2 a name of DEOGHAR, Bihar. It is a famous place of Hindu pilgrimage, being the site of a temple dedicated to the deity known as Baidyanath. (Enc. Ind.) 27:420
Baikuntha(nath) See Sen, Baikunthanath Baital Pachisi' Betal-Panchvimsati by Isvara Chandra Vidyasagar, the first prose work of Bengali literature, published in 1847. It is based on the Hindi Baital Pachisi, or the Sanskrit Vaitala-Panca-vimsaka by Shiva Das Bhatt. It recounts the 25 tales related to King Vikramaditya by a Baital (Sanskrit: vetala) haunting the dead body which the king was carrying from the burning ghat on a Sannyasi's bidding. It also contains the 25 questions put by the Baital and the answers given by the king. (D.I.H.;N.B.A.) 3:95
Baji (Prabhou) See Deshpande, Baji (Prabhou)
Baji Prabhou one of Sri Aurobindo's longer poems, conceived and written in Bengal during the time of his political activity (1906-10) and first published in Karmayogin (February 19 to March 5, 1910). It is based on the historical incident of the heroic self-sacrifice of Baji Prabhou Deshpande. (A;I&G) 26:12, 264
Bajirao Baji Rao I (died 1740), the second Peshwa or chief minister of the Maratha state of western India from 1720 to 1740, appointed to the office in succession to his father Balaji Vishwanath. He was a great statesman and an able general; he thought of establishing a Hindu empire in place of the Muslim Moghul empire. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) D 1:739 4:143, 147
Baka a Vedic Rishi, spoken of as son or brother of Dalbha. a 12:390
Baker, Sir Edward Sir Edward Norman Baker (1857-1913). Financial Secretary to the Government of India, 1902-05; Finance Member of the Council of India, 1905-08; Lt. Governor of Bengal, 1908-11. He was knighted in 1908. (Gilbert, p. 80) 2: 97-101, 112, 115, 137, 139, 141, 159, 189, 204, 306, 341-44, 357 4:180
Bakergunj See Backergunge
Bakhtyar someone in Pondicherry who appears to have been visiting the Ashram now and then, because Sri Aurobindo tried his yogic power on his body to heal his sores. (A) XXI: 14
Bakhtyari one of the great nomad tribes of Iran. Its chiefs are among the greatest tribal leaders in Iran and have long been influencial in Persian politics. In 1905-06 the Bakhtyari chiefs took a leading part in the Persian revolution that led to constitutional reform. (Enc. Br.) a 2:118
Page 31
Bakunin, Mikhail Aleksandrovich (1814-76), the chief propagator of 19th-century anarchism, a prominent Russian revolutionary agitator, antagonist of Kari Marx, and a vigorous and prolific political writer. (Enc. Br.) 2:14 11:84
Bala: Balabhid SeeVala
Balabhai, Dr. one of the persons who accompanied Sri Aurobindo on a visit to Dal Lake during his Kashmir tour of 1905. (A) IV: 194
Balaki name of a hermit who is also called Gargya, being a son of Garga. He acquired much knowledge and so he became arrogant. Because of this some called him Drpta-balaki. (Pur. Enc.) VIII: 179, 181 Balance or Libra (Latin name), the seventh sign of the zodiac, known as Tula in Hindu astrology. It is represented by a woman (sometimes identified with Astraea, the Roman goddess of justice) holding a balance scale, or by the balance alone. (Enc. Br.) n 17: 257-58, 260
Balaram(a) at times called simply Rama. He was the son of Vasudeva and Rohini, brought up by Nanda and Yasoda, who also brought up Krishna as their son. Balarama was of fair complexion (Krishna was very dark). He was armed with a plough and shared many adventures with Krishna, killing a number of Asuras or Rakshasas. His wife's name was Revati. In some Hindu scriptures Balarama is referred to as one of the ten Avataras (incarnations) of the god Vishnu. Symbolically (3: 452-53), Sri Aurobindo sees Balarama as the second Power of the Chaturvyuha, with force as His manifestation and strength and wrath as His attributes; the Treta Yuga is full of Bala- rama, the Kshatriya. He is identified with Rudra and his Shakti is Mahakali. (Dow.; A; A & R, XXII: 202) a 1:853 3:207, 452-53 4:50 7:769 8:30, 41-42, 45, 59 17:384 22:403-04 27:83 IV: 115 VI: 175 XIX: 54 XXII: 135
Balbharat a nationalist journal (English monthly) published from Madras; a contemporary of BandeMataram. (A) n 1:262
Balbus, Titus name used jocularly by Sri Aurobindo to denote any citizen of ancient Rome. a 22:451 Balfour, Arthur James (1848-1930), British statesman who maintained a position of power in the Conservative Party for 50 years. He was Prime Minister from 1902 to 1905 and Foreign Secretary from 1916 to 1919. (Enc.Br.) 2:195, 300, 393 4:189, 215 XIX: 25 Bali' in Hindu mythology, a Titan king, ostentatiously large-hearted. Vishnu manifested as the Dwarf Avatar to restrain him. The dwarf craved from Bali the boon of three steps of ground, and, having obtained it, he stepped over heaven and earth in two strides. Then, out of respect for Bali's kindness and his grandson Prahlada's virtues, he stopped short, and left to him Patala, the infernal regions. (Dow.) a3:238 5:84 10:336 13:161 27:98-99, 326
Bali2 See Vali.
Balkan Confederacy also known as Balkan League (1912-13): alliance of Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece, and Montenegro, which fought the First Balkan War against Turkey. Originally intended to limit increasing Austrian power in the Balkans, the League was formed at the instigation of Bulgaria and Serbia with the aid of Russian diplomacy. During 1912, however, the alliance became more anti-Turkish than anti-Austrian; hoping to expel the Turks from the Balkans, the allies declared war on the Ottoman Empire (October 1912). The League was victorious, but it disintegrated when its members quarrelled over the division of their territorial spoils. This dispute resulted in the Second Balkan War, against Bulgaria, in 1913. (Enc.Br.) n XXI:4, 32, 102
Balkan(s) The Balkan Peninsula is a large and very mountainous region in southeastern Europe. It comprises all of Albania, continental Greece, Bulgaria, European Turkey, most of Yugoslavia, and southeast Rumania. These six countries, successors to the Ottoman Empire, are called the Balkan States or the Balkans. (Col. Enc.) D 1:311 2:248 15:290.294, 328, 356, 367, 502, 505, 513.584, 625 27:466-67 XX: 147 XXI: 4, 32.102 XXII: 131, 174
Balkan War First Balkan War, which began with Montenegro's declaration of war against the Turks on 8 October 1912 and the en- try of its three allies into the war ten days later. The Balkan states were victorious, and a treaty was signed in London on 30 May 1913. See also Balkan Confederacy. (Enc.Br.) a XXI: 32
Baikh a town in north Afghanistan, on a dried-up tributary of the Amu Darya. A place of historic importance, it is generally agreed to be the ancient Bactra, capital of BACTRIA. As capital of Khorasan under the Abbasids and Samanids, it was a noted centre of learning. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 5:276
Page 32
Balkis a character - one of the two sister slave-girls of Ajebe - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. In Arab tradition Balkis was the name of the Queen of Sheba (seeSheban). n 7:561, 574-76, 578, 623, 626-32, 634, 647-52, 655-57, 717-18, 720, 733
Ballad of the White Horse one of the best-known poems of G. K. Chesterton. (Enc. Br.) 9:318 Bally also spelt Bali, an industrial city in Howrah district of Bengal (now West Bengal State), just west of the Hooghly river. (Enc. Br.) 1:185
Balsora very probably a misprint or misreading of Sri Aurobindo's manuscript for Bassora, which is a form (akin to the Bengali pronunciation) of the word Basra used by Sri Aurobindo in his dramatic romance The Viziers of Bassora. Basra is a city and port of Iraq, once famous as a centre of Arabic culture and commerce, 5:276
Baltic The Baltic Sea is an eastern arm of the Atlantic Ocean, separating the Scandinavian peninsula from the main body of the European landmass. It is the world's largest body of brackish water. (Enc. Br.) 15:514
Balti.s a character - a Syrian woman - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. 6:3, 115-17, 124-25, 138, 144, 148
Balzac Honore de Balzac (1799-1850), French novelist, universally recognized as a genius of the novel. He converted what had been styled "romance" into a convincing record of human experience. (Enc. Br.) 9:330, 544 14:200
Bampfylde, Sir See Fuller, Sir Bampfylde
Bana Banabhatta (fl. first half of 7th cent.), court-poet of the Buddhist emperor Harsha (reigned 606-47), famed principally for his chronicle Harshacharita which he wrote c. AD 620. This work is more in the nature of a poem with a historical background than genuine history. Bana's prose narrative Kddambari is a famous classic of Sanskrit literature. (D. I. H.; Gaz. II) 3:258 14:306
Bande Mataram or Hymn to the Mother, a patriotic song or hymn composed by Bankim Chandra Chatterji in 1875 and later on incorporated in his novel Anandamath. It is a hymn to the Mother Goddess, but it is really a song addressed to Bengal. In 1905 during the anti-Partition agitation it suddenly sprang into popularity, and was subsequently rec- ognized as the National Song of India. The phrase "Bande Mataram", meaning "I bow to the Mother", is also used as a patriotic slogan. Sri Aurobindo's translation of the song into English is entitled "Hymn to the Mother". (A) Var: Vande Mataram (the correct form in Sanskrit) 1-1 1:110-11, 238, 456, 481, 663, 666, 669, 701, 793, 894 2:1, 32, 136, 154-55, 360, 431 4:144, 192, 210, 228 8:309, 311-13, 341, 344 17:344, 347 26:15, 32, 241 27:66, 73, 353 29:788 1:1, 5-6 11:3 VI: 125 IX: 1, 2 X:186 XIV: 101
Bande Mataram a nationalist English daily newspaper of Calcutta. It was started in August 1906 under the editorship of Bepin Chandra Pal. Sri Aurobindo became joint editor, and by year-end assumed full control of policy. It ceased publication in October 1908. A weekly edition of the paper was also brought out from June 1907 to September 1908. (I&G) n 1:81, 83, 124, 129, 131, 187, 207, 219, 243, 256, 267, 320, 333, 337, 429, 465, 492, 495-96, 499-500, 505, 518-19, 523, 529, 542-45, 547, 549-54, 557, 574, 580, 600, 626, 652, 805, 907 2:52, 121, 353, 385 4:257, 265, 276, 323 8:61 17:288 26:15, 26-30, 32, 34, 40, 42-45, 56, 59-60, 69, 163, 374 27: pre., 2, 5, 9, 14, 19, 22, 24, 29, 34, 38, 43, 46, 48-50, 52, 56-58, 61-63, 141, 144, 349.461 1:1 IV: 110 V: 100 X:187 XVII: 68 XIX: 29
Bande Mataram1 an English monthly issued from Geneva (Switzerland) and edited by Madame Cama (at that time staying in Paris). The first number, self-described as "a monthly organ of Indian Independence", is dated 10th September 1909. In the beginning the paper appeared to decry the policy of the defunct Bande Mataram' and denounce its originator and former editor; but later on this policy was reversed. (A; P.T.I.) 2:385 X:186
Bandopadhyaya, Basant Kumar (c. 1883- ? ), a prominent member of the Chandernagore group of revolutionaries, who managed to pass on, in an interview with undertrial prisoners in Alipore Jail, the revolvers that were used for killing Noren Gossain, the approver. (P.T.I.; D.N.B.) 4:171 Bandopadhyaya, Jitendralal An "Extremist" collaborator of Sri Aurobindo, he was one of four persons representing the Nationalist Party on the committee formed at the Hooghly Provincial Conference in 1909 to bring about unity in the Congress. However, known chiefly as a professor, he does not seem to have taken an active part in Begal politics before the Hooghly Conference. (A; A &R, XIV: 213) 4:191
Page 33
Banerjea See Banerjee or Banerji
Banerjee, Kali Charan (1847-1907), Nationalist Indian Christian known as Reverend Kalicharan after his conversion in 1863. Famous as a scholar and a speaker, he became one of the founder members of the Congress and a distinguished Congress leader of Bengal. (Enc. Ind.; S.B.C.) 27:36
Banerjee, Pancncowri presumably Panchkadi Banerjee (1866-1923), a journalist, a newspaper-columnist, and a stylist in Bengali prose. He also knew Sanskrit, Hindi, Urdu, and Persian very well, and was a competent writer in English as well. Panchkadi was connected with many journals and news- papers—Bangafoari, Telegraph (English), Basumati, Sandhya, Hitabadi etc. - as editor or otherwise. (D.N.B.) D VI: 125
Banerji, Aswini Aswini Kumar Banerji (1866-1945). Practising as a barrister at the Calcutta High Court, he took active part in politics, particularly as the leader of mill hands. He is considered as the founder of the Labour movement in Bengal. Bold and strong-willed, Aswini Kumar was always opposed to the loyalists, but he did not believe in Ahimsa or Non-cooperation. (S.B.C.) Var: Aswinicoomar 1:142 2:284 XVII: 64
Banerji, Hemchandra (1838-1903), a well-known Bengali poet, more at home in English literature than in Sanskrit. He translated a couple of Shakespeare's dramas, imitated Dante, Dryden, Pope, and Shelley. His style went out of fashion, yet he is remembered for his epic poem Vritra Samhara (1875-77) and his shorter poems inspired by patriotism and zeal for social reform. He became famous overnight by composing Bharat Sangeet published in Bhudev Mukherji's Education Gazette in 1872. (D.N.B.) a 3:80, 101 26:51 VI:143
Banerji, Jatin Jotindra Nath Banerji, afterwards known as Niralamb Swami, (c. 1877-1930), a young Bengali who came to Baroda in 1898/99 for military training. Sri Aurobindo, with the help of Khaserao and Madhavrao Jadhav, got him admitted to the Baroda Army. After two years he resigned, and Sri Aurobindo sent him to Bengal as his lieutenant. But Jatin and BARINDRA could not pull together, and Jatin had to retire from the organisation. (A; P.T.I.; Purani; D.N.B.) 26:23 Banerji, Jitendranath a Bengali writer possessing a good descriptive gift, whose article entitled "Shantiniketane Rabin- dranath" appeared in the journal Suprabhat in 1909. (A) 3:431
Banerji, Satyendranath a Kaviraj (Bengali physician or vaidya) who one day accom- panied Sri Aurobindo on a visit to the Dal Lake during his stay in Kashmir in 1903. "Kobirunjun" is probably his title. (A) IV: 194
Banerji, Shyamakanta a genius of physical strength who also possessed an extraordinary calm, courage, and self-confidence, which further enhanced his physical prowess. Wild and ferocious animals used to crouch at his feet, awed by the current of his dynamic vitality. Later he turned to the life of an ascetic, adopted the name Soham Swami, and dwelt in the Himalayas near Nainital. He composed and published Soham Gita. (C.W.N.;A) 2:174
Banerji, S. K. Sanat K. Banerji (1911-78), an I.C.S. officer, Consul General at Pondi- cherry in 1950 and later an inmate of the Ashram. He was an accomplished scholar of Indian history and world history. He wrote many articles in the Ashram journals. D 26:417
Banerji, Surendranath (1848-1925), a great Moderate leader and editor of the Bengalee, who presided twice over the annual session of the Congress, in 1895 at Poona and in 1902 at Ahmedabad. Later a definite breach occurred between him and the Congress, for "independence" was much beyond his vision. A proponent of autonomy within the British Commonwealth, he was knighted in 1921. (A;D.I.H.;Enc.Br.) a 1:26-28, 111, 136, 146-48, 150, 156, 159-60, 164, 167-68, 171, 174, 181, 184-85, 192-93, 229, 231, 244-45, 250-51, 253-55, 258, 273-74, 276, 282, 312, 321, 329, 349-50, 397, 496, 498, 502, 571, 583-84, 598, 616, 634, 637, 641, 698, 706, 755, 831, 858, 877-78, 892, 896-97, 899 2:33, 44, 46, 54, 121, 158-61, 170, 194, 206, 215, 231, 240, 242, 281, 290-91, 293, 295, 297-98, 305, 309, 329, 332, 335, 365 4:176-77, 179, 184, 187, 189-91, 197, 200, 206, 209-10, 221, 223, 225, 228, 231-32, 238, 243, 287-88, 294 17:368 26:35, 47 27:8, 31-32, 36, 54, 56-57, 62 11:3 XV: 62-63 XXI: 79 (S.N.B.)
Banerji, Upen(dranath) (1879-1950), a revolutionary of Chandernagore (Bengal),
Page 34
and one of Sri Aurobindo's associates (sub-editor) on the Bande Mataram staff. A master of Bengali prose, he was also one of the real editors and writers of Yugantar. He helped BARINDRA in recruiting and training suitable boys for the secret society and was in charge of their religious, moral and political education. In the Alipore Bomb Case he was sentenced to transportation for life; but was released after World War I. (A; P.T.I.; A.B.T.; D.N.B.) Var: Bannerji;
Bannerjee a 2:400 4:294, 296 26:42 27:pre., 349 VII: 10, 23
Bangabasi a Bengali journal, probably of Calcutta, which championed the cause of the suspension of grain-export in 1907. G. C. Bose of the Bangabasi College appears to have been connected with it. (A) a 1:224, 416
Bangabasi (School and) College founded c. 1885 by G. C. Bose and Bhupal Chandra Bose, with the former as principal; it was located on Scotts Lane near Sealdah railway station, Calcutta. (A; A & R) 1:415 26: 66 I: 70
Bangadars(h)an Bengali monthly founded in 1872, and published from Calcutta under the editorship of Bankim Chandra Chatto- padhyay; a literary journal and review, it serialized some of Bankim's later novels. (Cal. Lib.;Enc.Br.) n 3:91 27:353-54
Banga Lakshmi (Cotton) Mill a national enterprise. Byomkesh Chakravarti, along with others of the Indian Association, floated a company in 1906 and established the mill to meet the demand for Swadeshi cloth. (A; D.N.B.-I, p. 248) 1:163 4:204
Baniachang a village or small town in Sylhet district of the former province of Assam. Now it is in Bangladesh. (S.B.C., p. 357) 4:291
Bankim (Chandra) See Chatterjr, Bankim Chandra
Bannerji (or Bannerjee), Upendranath See Banerji, Upendranath
Banquet The Banquet or The Symposium, the title of a dialogue by Plato in which Socrates, Aristophanes, Alcibiades, and others, at the house of the poet Agathon, discuss the nature of love. (Ox. Comp.) 9:546 Bapat Case This refers to the investigation of several serious charges against V. S. Bapat, the Assistant Settlement Commissioner in the Baroda Administration, by a commission which the authorities appointed in 1894 while the Maharaja was in Europe. (Karandikar, p. 115) a JV: 197
Bappa a character - son of the late Gehelote Prince of Edur, in refuge among the Bheels - in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. 7: 739, 751, 756-59, 762, 764-67, 770-75, 777-79, 786-87, 790-91, 793, 795-96, 798-806, 810, 814
Baptista, Joseph (1864-1930), a well-known barrister of Bombay and one of the leaders ofTilak's nationalist party. It was through him that, at the end of 1919, the Socialist Democratic Party of Bombay invited Sri Aurobindo to accept the editorship of a paper to be started at Bombay. Sri Aurobindo politely but firmly declined the invitation. (Purani, p. 167; Zach., p. 150) 26:429
Bara Bazar a large and mainly commercial locality of Calcutta, inhabited mostly by Marwaris. n 4:210
Barabbas (probably an Aramaic surname = son of the master), a robber and murderer held in jail at the time of Jesus' arrest. When Pilate, who annually released a prisoner at Passover, offered to release Jesus, the people demanded his death and the delivery instead, of Barabbas. (Col. Enc.) a 17:117
Baranagar a northern suburb of Calcutta. 26:63
Barbary also known as Barbary States, ormer designation for the coastal region of North Africa, now comprising Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya. The name originates from the Berbers, chief and oldest known inhabitants of the region, and was for centuries associated with the coastal pirates who preyed upon Mediterranean shipping. (Enc. Br.) 7: 563 V: 95
Barcelona capital of Barcelona province in northeastern Spain, a major Mediterranean port, and the second largest city of Spain. It was repeatedly bombed during the Spanish Civil War. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 4:212 5:120
Bard The Bard, a Pindaric ode by Thomas Gray, published in 1757, and based on a tradition current in Wales that Edward I, when he completed the conquest of that country, ordered that all the bards that fell into his hands be put to death. It is a lamentation by a Welsh bard, and a curse pronounced by him and the ghosts of his slaughtered companions on Edward's race, whose misfortunes are foretold. (Ox. Comp.) II: 14-15
Page 35
Bardoli a town and small sub-division of Surat district in Bombay Presidency (now in Gujarat state). Mahatma Gandhi at first confined his mass movement to this area when he was appointed (by the Congress at its Ahmedabad session of December 1921) the sole executive authority of the national movement. (A.H.I.; Maj.) 26:439
Barghoves See Bhargavas
Barhadratha son of BRiHADRATH(A)' 3:191
Barhaspathas a sacred clan of pre-historic antiquity; descendants of Rishi Brhaspati. a 27:158
Barhishad Pitris in Hindu religion, a class of ancestors to whom oblations are offered; the Fathers "seated on the sacrificial grass". (I & G) n 10:180
Ban SeeGhose, Barindra Kumar Band Babu someone, probably of Chandernagore, from whom Sri Aurobindo wanted Motilal to take a loan for him in 1912. (A) a 27:426
Barin(dra) See Ghose, Barindra Kumar
Barisal a town and administrative head- quarters of Bakarganj (see Backergunge) district in Khulna division of Bengal, India (now Bangladesh). The district itself is some- times called Barisal (see 1: 357, 4752:57, 91).(Enc.Br.) 1:111, 134.136, 142, 147, 161, 169, 181, 190, 213, 239, 261-62, 345, 357, 370, 373, 375, 385, 475, 482, 497, 635, 744, 747 2: 57- 58, 62, 88-91, 151, 343 4:229 26:27, 34, 46 27:13.36 11:1-3 XIX: 21
Barmecide the patronymic of a family of princes who ruled at Baghdad, just before Haroun-al-Rashid. It is said in Arabian Nights (in the story of the Barber's Sixth Brother) that one of these princes put a succession of imaginary dishes before a beggar pretending that they contained a sumptuous repast. The beggar, entering into the spirit of the jest, pretended to be intoxicated by the imaginary wine offered him, and fell upon his entertainer. Hence "Barmecide" is used of one who offers illusory benefits. (Ox. Comp.) 2:292 5:277
Barmeky son of Barmak; in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora the term refers to Jaafar, who is at one place (7: 729) called JAAFAR BIN BARMAK. 7:687
Barneville a member of the I.C.S. and subdivisional officer ofJamalpur (Bengal), who was transferred from there in 1907. (A) D 1:440-41 Barnum, Phineas Taylor (1810-91), celebrated American showman who employed innovative forms of presentation and publicity to popularise such amusements as the public museum, the musical concert, and the three-ring circus. (Enc. Br.) 26:377
Baroda formerly a princely state within British India ruled by the Gaekwar family; also its capital city. Baroda is now a part of Gujarat state in the Republic of India; the city, the official spelling of which has recently been changed to Vadodara, is the administrative headquarters of Vadodara district in Gujarat. (Enc. Br.) 2: 7 4:pre., 192, 296 9:561 26:9-15, 19, 23, 25, 27, 29-30, 42, 49-51, 58, 61, 64-66, 69, 81, 268. 353, 357, 373, 506 27:77, 112-17, 125, 197, 420, 423 1:7, 20, 24, 37, 68-72.74-76 11:85, 89 111:84, 86-87 IV: 194, 196, 198 V: 100 XIV: 164-65 XV: 64, 69-70 XVI: 194 XVII: 66-67, 70 XXI:11, 13
Baroda, Gaekwar (or Maharaja) of See Sayajirao
Baroda, Maharani of wife of Sayajirao III, Gaekwar of Baroda from 1875 to 1939. (D.N.B.) 27:413, 415 IV: 193
Baroda College the Gaekwar's college at Baroda, where Sri Aurobindo served in various capacities - lecturer in French, professor of English, vice-principal, and acting principal - from 1897 to 1906. The college is now incorporated in the Maharaja Sayajirao University; the old college build- ings house the university's Faculty of Arts. (A)I 3:130 26:10, 31 1:9 XVII: 66
Baroda College Miscellany magazine of the students of Baroda College, with which Sri Aurobindo was associated, 3:130
Barrackpore a town in 24-Parganas district of Presidency division, Bengal (now West Bengal state), just east of the Hooghly River, about 15 miles north of Calcutta. It includes North and South Barrackpore and the central cantonment area. (Enc. Br.) 1:899 2:365
Barrack Room Ballads a collection of poems (1892) by Rudyard Kipling. (Col. Enc.) 9:474, 482
Bartaman Rananiti "The Modern Science of War", a book in Bengali, published by Abinash Chandra Bhattacharya in 1907. It is a remarkable book dealing with the military knowledge of several European nations. (Maj-II;A.B.T.) 1:563
Bartholomew, St. (fl. 1st cent. AD), one of the Twelve Apostles, identified with Nathanael. Nathanael is a given name, Bartholomew a patronymic. Tradition makes North India his
Page 36
missionary field and Armenia the place where he was flayed to death. (CoI.Enc.) a 1:44
Bartika a Bengali quarterly magazine published from Calcutta by Sri Aurobindo Pathmandir. It was founded in 1957 and is still coming out. (Cal. Lib.) 26:62
Baruipur a sub-division of 24-Parganas district in Presidency division, Bengal (now West Bengal state). D 1:855, 858 3:84, 91
Basanta See Bhattacharjee, Basanta
Basanti Basanti Chakravarty, Sri Aurobindo's cousin, daughter of Krishna Kumar Mitra. She was the first person to receive a letter written by Sri Aurobindo in Bengali. (Purani, p. 47) 5:29
Bases of Yoga a book (1936) containing extracts from Sri Aurobindo's letters to disciples arranged under various headings. (I & G) 22:99 25:100 26:108, 371
Basil a character - nephew of Count Beltran - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. 7:821, 825, 837, 839-49, 851-55, 857, 862-65, 870-77
Basque the French form (also used in English) of the name of a people who live in both Spain and France in areas bordering the Bay of Biscay and encompassing the western foothills of the Pyrenees. The language of these people, which is unrelated to any other known language, is also called Basque. Quite a large number of Basques now live in emi- grant communities outside Europe, mostly in South America and the U.S.A. (Enc. Br.) 1:38 15:290, 310
Bassora Basra, a city and port of Iraq. In the 8th and 9th centuries AD it was a centre of Arabic literature, poetry, science, com- merce, and finance. (Enc. Br.) 7:561, 563, 565, 567, 575, 580, 586-87, 592, 597-98, 601, 606, 619, 622, 626-27, 630, 632, 643, 656, 664-67, 673, 678, 703-04, 706, 710-12, 719, 723-24, 726-27, 729, 731-32, 734
Basu See Bose
Basumati Bengali weekly journal started in 1896 by Upendranath Mukherji. Later, in 1914, he also founded the Dainik Basumati, a Bengali daily newspaper. (S.B.C., p. 62) a 1:805 . Basuto the tribe which inhabited a high plateau (Basutoland) in the large mountain region of the Drakensberg range in the east of South Africa. They were scattered by the raids of the Zulu and Matabele. To resist the advance of the Boers, the Basuto accepted (1838) the protection of Great Britain. (CoI.Enc.) 15:78 XIV: 117
Batis in Greek legend, an Iranian whom Achilles dragged at his chariot wheels. (A) 3:269 12:37 X: 151 Battala probably Batala, a town in Gurdas- pur district, Punjab, well known for its Christian educational institutions and small-scale industries. (Enc. Ind.) 3:426
Baudelaire, Charles Pierre (1821-67), French poet considered above all others of his time the poet of modern civilisation. His aesthetic theories were a source of the Symbolist movement and mark a turning point in the history of poetry. (Enc. Br.) 9:445-46, 510, 542 23:527 26:128, 277
Bauls an order of mendicants of Bengal, known for their unconventional behaviour and for the freedom and spontaneity of their mystical verse. They comprise both Hindus (primarily Vaishyas) and Muslims (generally Sufis). (Enc.Br.) 14:188, 321
Bavaria English conventional form of "Bayern", the largest (in area) of the states of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany); it is located in the southeastern part of the country. Munich is its capital. Formerly, Bavaria was a monarchy. (Enc. Br.) 3:264 X: 147
Baxter, Richard (1615-91), a Presbyterian preacher, son of a Shropshire freeholder. He was known for his Diary. His autobiography was first published in 1696. 9:309
Bayara name of a locality in the city of Dhaka (now in Bangladesh). (A) 4:247
Bayard Pierre Terrail, seigneur de Bayard (c. 1474-1524), French military hero, called "Ie chevalier sans peur et sans reproche" (the knight without fear or blame). (Col. Enc.) 1:220-21
Bay of Bengal northern arm of the Indian Ocean, south of West Bengal and Bangla- desh, with Burma on the east and the Indian peninsula on the west. a 10:97
Beachcroft, Sir Charles Porten (1871-1927), member of the Indian Civil Service. Beach- croft was a contemporary of Sri Aurobindo's at Cambridge, attending Clare College while Sri Aurobindo attended King's College. Both passed the "Open Competitive Examination for the Civil Service of India" held in 1890. Beachcroft joined the I.C.S. in 1892 and was posted in Bengal. He reached the grade of magistrate and district collector in 1904. Transferred to the judicial side, he became
Page 37
a district and sessions judge in 1905. It was in this capacity that he again met Sri Aurobindo, who was the chief accused in the Alipore Bomb Trial (1908-09). Beachcroft found several of the accused guilty, but acquitted Sri Aurobindo. Subsequently, he was appointed to the Calcutta High Court Bench as officiating judge in 1912, temporary additional judge in 1914, and finally a per- manent member in 1915. He retired in 1921, and was knighted the next year. (W. W. W.; A & R, XII: 228-29) 2:79, 288 4:285 26: 52 XVII: 73 Beaconsfield, Lord Benjamin Disraeli (1804-81), 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, British statesman and novelist, twice prime minister (1868; 1874-80), and one of the most extra- ordinary figures to reach the pinnacle of British politics. (Enc. Br.) a 3:393, 396
Beadon Square a square in central Calcutta (185, RameshDuttaSt.). (Guide) a 1:408, 539, 555, 855 2:25, 94, 114 VI: 125
Beant Singh, Sirdar a defence pleader in the Rawalpindi trial (1907), who was subjected to all kinds of intimidation. (A) 1:445 Beatrice Beatrice Portinari (1260-90) was a Florentine lady to whom Dante dedicated most of his poetry and almost all his life, from his first sight of her at the age of nine. She is believed to be the Beatrice of Dante's Divina commedia (The Divine Comedy) and Vita nuova (The New Life). (Col. Enc.; Enc.Br.) 26:303
Beatrice Joanna Beatrice-Joanna, a character - daughter to Vermandero - in the play The Changeling written by Thomas Middleton and William Rowley. 3:276 X: 157
Beattie, James (1735-1803), poet and essayist, whose once-popular poem The Minstrel was one of the earliest works of the Romantic movement. (Enc.Br.)
Beau Brummel George Bryan Brummell (1778-1840), a wealthy Englishman who became known as a leader of fashion at the beginning of the 19th century. Called "Beau" Brummell, he was especially notable for the exquisite finery of his clothes. (Col. Enc.; Web.) 14:66
Beautiful White Devil See Vittoria Corombona. 3:306
Bedlam the first asylum for the insane in England. Bedlam was mentioned as a hos- pital in 1330. In 1547 it was handed over to the City of London as a hospital for the insane. It is now officially known as the Bethlehem Royal Hospital, but popularly still called Bedlam. The word Bedlam came to be used generically for all insane asylums and is used colloquially for an uproar. (Enc.Br.) 26:315 IV: 145
Beecham, Sir Thomas (1879-1961), inter- nationally acclaimed English conductor (of orchestra) who championed the music of Frederick Delius and used his personal fortune for the improvement of orchestral and operatic performances in England. (Enc.Br.) a 9:482
Beecham's Pills a patent medicament, popu- lar early in the 20th century, 26: 209
Beelzebub corrupted form of Beelzebul (the Lord of Flies), one of the various names assumed by Satan who became known as the "prince of devils" in post-biblical Judaism and Christianity. (Enc. Br., under "Devil") 1:584 3:48
Bees name given by the Greeks to a constellation near Gemini. (A) a XVII: 47
Beethoven Ludwig van (1770-1827), German musician and composer who ranks as one of the greatest figures in the history of Western music. He was the first major composer of program music and a prototype of the late 19th-century Romantic composers. (Enc. Br.) 9:381, 555, 561 12:42 15:35
Begbie, Harold (1871-1929), English jour- nalist and author. Most of his books are novels with a strong didactic tendency. (Enc. Am.) 14:46-47, 77
Behar; Beharee; Behari See Bihar Bejoy See Bijoy
Belfast capital of northern Ireland, on the river Lagan at its entrance to Belfast Lough (lake). (Enc.Br.) 9:462
Belgium a kingdom (constitutional monarchy) of northwestern Europe with Brussels as its capital. (Enc. Br.) Der:
Belgian 4:212 9:47, 96 15:301, 308, 328, 367, 417, 505 16:200 27:466, 469
Belial a character - the Angel of Reason - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Birth of Sin. In the Old Testament, Belial is a name used generally as an epithet for an evil or subver- sive person. Later it became synonymous with Satan. (Enc.Br.) 7:901, 904-05
Bell, Beatson Sir Nicholson Dodd Beatson Bell (1867-1936). He entered the I.C.S. in 1896, and served in Bengal and Assam; Chief Commissioner in Assam (1918-21) 1:360
Bellerophon in Greek legend, a hero, orig- inally named Hipponiis, who rode the immortal winged horse PEGASUS and
Page 38
accomplished warlike feats including the destruction of the Chimaera and the killing of the giant Bellerus. Bellerophon was an ancestor of Sarpedon and a native of Ephyre (identified with Corinth). After completing numerous labours given to him by lobates, the king of Lycia, he was married to the king's daughter. Thus "Bellerophon's city", in Ilion, refers to Lycia, where Sarpedon was buried. (Col.Enc.;A;M.I.) 5:426 10:88
Bellerus in Greek legend, a giant off Corn- wall coast in England, who was slain by the hero Bellerophon. a 10:88
Belloc, H. (Joseph-Pierre) Hilaire Belloc (1870-1953), French-born poet, historian, and essayist who was among the most ver- satile English writers of the first quarter of the 20th century. (Enc. Br.) n 26:338-40
Bellona in Roman religion, goddess of war. She was associated with Mars. In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, it is an epithet of Pen- thesilea. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:514
Belphegor This name of a star brought in by Sri Aurobindo with powerful effect has practically no place in popular astronomy and figured rarely in past literary usage. In Syrian theology, Belphegor was a deity who symbolised the Sun. The Israelites also paid homage to him sometimes. (A-poet) 1-1 5:131 29:537 Belshazzar (died c. 539 Be), coregentof Babylon at whose feast the handwriting he wall. The prophet Daniel, interpreting this, foretold the destruction of the city (539 BC) (Enc.Br.) 1:19
Belton English soldier who commanded the army of Mulai Hamid, the Sultan of Morocco; he resigned his post in protest against the Sultan's primitive method of treating political prisoners. (A) 1-1 2:216 Beltran Count Beltran, a character - a nobleman - in Sri Aurobindo' play The Maid in the Mill. 7:821, 825-27, 833-36, 843, 868, 874
Belur Math the headquarters of the Sri Ramakrishna Mission established by Swami Vivekananda in December 1898. It is on the bank of the river Hooghly near Calcutta. Belur is the name of the village in or near which the Math wasbuilt. (D.N.B.) 26:63
Belvedere a mansion in South Calcutta, formerly the viceregal residence. Presently it houses the Government of India National Library. (Belvedere is an Italian word meaning "beautiful view", an architectural structure built in an elevated position to command a fine view.) (Enc.Br.) 1:490 2:241 4:222
Benares spelling before 1937 of Banaras (Varanasi), a city on the Ganges in eastern U.P. between its two tributaries, the Varuna and the Asi. Its original name Varanasi, which derives from the names of these streams, has now been restored to the city. Banaras has long been recognised as a seat of Indian culture and religious life. It was the venue of the 1905 session of the Congress. See also Kashi(e). 1:134, 370, 673, 893 2:305 3:181 8:355 12:55 13:282 16: 86 26: 35, 411 (used for Benares Hindu University) 27: 33 I: 20, 22, 70
Benares (Hindu) College See Central Hindu College
Bengal region in the northeastern part of the Indian sub-continent, generally corresponding to the area inhabited by the speakers of the Bengali language and now divided between the Indian state of West Bengal and the People's Republic of Bangladesh. Bengal proper, Bihar, and Orissa formed a single province of British India between 1765 and 1905. By 1900 it had grown, as the British claimed, too large to handle under a single administration. Accordingly in 1905 it was divided by Lord Curzon despite strong Indian nationalist opposition. Fifteen districts of eastern Bengal were separated and united with Assam to form a new province called "East Bengal & Assam". The capital of this new province was Dacca; its people were mainly Muslims. In 1911 because of con- tinuing protests east and west Bengal were reunited. Assam again became a chief commissionership, and Bihar and Orissa were separated to form a new province. By "five Bengals" (8: 247) Sri Aurobindo means the five divisions of Gauda (earlier Bengal) made by Vallalasena, Gaudesh (the king of Gauda), who ruled from 1159 to 1179, and whose father Vijayasena had brought west and north Bengal under his control. The divisions were: Bagdi, Rarha, Varendra, Banga, and Mithila. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) 1:76-78, 86-87, 89, 94, 104, 111-12, 114, 120, 124, 133-37, 140.145-48, 150-51, 153, 156, 159-60, 169, 70, 177, 181, 82, 186, 188, 190, 192-93, 196, 201, 203, 214, 220, 222, 24, 226, 27, 229, 231-32, 238-40, 243, 248, 250-53, 255, 257-58, 261-63, 270, 279,
Page 39
286-87, 292-94, 303, 311, 316-19, 321-22, 324, 327, 330, 332-34, 338, 343, 345-47, 353, 357-59, 361-62, 366, 369-70, 372, 375, 385, 389-90, 397-99, 402-04, 406-10, 428-30, 432, 438, 453, 456, 459, 462, 472, 475, 477, 482, 484, 491-95, 497, 500, 502-03, 510-11, 522-23, 529-30, 547, 555-57, 563-64, 571, 578-79, 582-87, 591, 593. 599, 616-17, 620, 633, 635, 639, 646, 651-56, 658-59, 661, 663-65, 674, 684-85, 687, 689, 691. 698, 701-02, 715-16, 719, 725-26, 728-29, 734, 741-42, 744-45, 747-48, 752-54, 782-83, 793, 796, 804, 807-09. 815-16, 818, 825, 829, 848, 852-53, 855.857-58, 861, 865, 870, 877-78, 882, 888, 891-92, 907 2:23, 37, 39, 45, 51, 76-77, 86-87, 90-92, 95-98, 100, 103, 112-13, 115, 121, 127, 132-33, 138-39, 141, 144, 149, 155-56, 158, 174-79, 183, 186-87, 189.191, 196-97, 199-200, 204-06, 215, 224, 232, 240, 243-44, 246, 255, 264, 279-80, 290. 294-98. 305-07.309-11, 314-16, 319, 321-23, 329-30, 332, 334-36, 342-43, 345, 347, 350, 360, 367, 370, 375, 377-78, 385, 402, 404, 423-24 3:75, 78-81, 83, 92, 95, 97-102, 191, 193, 214, 327-28, 330, 430, 432, 459 4: pre., 1-3, 60, 139, 143, 147, 154, 158, 175.177-79, 181-86, 189, 191-93, 196-200, 202-04, 207-08, 220, 222-23, 225-26, 228-32, 235, 238.243, 247, 283, 292, 320, 328, 330, 333-34 5:202, 317 8:40, 77, 247, 311, 319, 331 10:35 12:486, 14:9, 198, 237, 264, 317-20, 331, 394, 419, 421-23 15:32, 495 17:212, 251, 277, 301, 334, 345, 347, 354, 358, 371 22:266 24:1523, 1696, 1770 25:369 26:2, 5-6, 11-17, 23-27, 29, 32, 35, 45-46, 48-49, 51, 66, 69, 168, 365, 409-10, 429, 435 27: pre., 6-10, 12-15, 17, 34, 36-37, 39, 41-42, 47, 53-55, 62-65, 67-68, 73, 119-20, 156, 351, 353, 355, 421, 423, 451, 455-57, 467-68, 473-75, 478, 483-87, 489, 491, 493, 497 1:6, 8, 22, 70, 74-76 11:3, 85 111:7, 18, 86 IV: 110 V:l, 17 VI: 125 VII: 1-2, 4, 7-9, 11, 13-14, 16, 19-23 VIII: 121, 125-26, 130- 33, 135 IX: 1, 2 XIV: 101, 103, 106 XVII: 25, 67, 69 XVIII: 190-91 XIX: 26 XXI: 32 XXII: 138, 161
Bengalee English daily newspaper founded in Calcutta in 1862 as a weekly. The founder- editor was Girish Chandra Ghose. During the eventful first decade of this century the principal editor was Surendranath Banerjee, who became also its proprietor and converted it from an insignificant weekly into a successful daily newspaper. The paper wielded a great deal of influence on public opinion up to the first quarter of the century. Dr. Krishna Dhan Ghose, Sri Aurobindo's father, used to mail copies of this paper to him when he was in England. (Cal. Lib; Purani)1:146-48, 150, 163, 166-67, 171, 17375, 177, 181, 187, 207, 229, 252, 274-76, 287, 312, 319-22, 343, 345, 362, 415, 503-04, 533, 593, 615-16, 621-22, 626, 634-37, 641, 648, 858, 878-79, 896-900 2:'pre., 42-43, 45, 47-48, 67, 70-71, 73, 76, 103-04, 160, 249, 265, 295-97, 314-16, 330, 399 4:183, 196-97, 199, 209-10, 216, 226, 231, 243 26:3 27:25, 27, 39
Bengali' eastern Indo-Aryan language spoken by more than 80 million persons in Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal. Two Bengali dialects are significant: Sadhu-bhasa, the literary language, and Calit-bhasa, the colloquial language. Bengali was the first of the Indian languages to de- velop Western secular literary forms, such as fiction, drama, and odes. (Enc. Br.) Var: Bengalee 1:76, 150, 156, 219, 243, 331, 551, 563, 708, 732 2:39, 208, 265, 317, 377, 384, 417, 421 3: 36, 75-76, 78-79, 92, 94-99, 102, 198-99, 270, 292, 303, 426, 430, 469 4: pre., 43, 196, 327 5:27 8:213, 305, 311 9:152, 301, 306-08, 395-97, 401, 405-06, 408, 431-34, 436, 459, 463, 467-68, 543, 545, 10:555, 559 12:55 14:71, 186, 318, 385, 389, 421, 423 17:277, 345, 369, 371 26:5, 10-12, 15, 25, 33-34, 42, 56, 61-62, 206, 233-34, 252-53, 283-84, 287, 290, 306, 325, 327 27:15, 17, 20, 27, 117, 352-54, 421.430, 437, 440, 443, 448, 461, 479, 481-83, 488, 493 1:18, 76 11:87 III: 86 IV: 136, 149, 152-53 VI: 125, 139-41, 143 VII: 1, 6, 11, 18 VIII: 141 X: 142, 152 XIV: 99 XVI: 193 XVII: 66.69 XVIII: 190-91
Bengali2 people of the former province of Bengal (now West Bengal state of India, and Bangladesh), speakers of the Bengali language. They are not a homogeneous ethnic group. The higher-caste Bengalis are akin to the inhabitants of the more western parts of the Ganga valley, while strong traces of Mongoloid and Veddoid elements are found among the lower castes. (Enc. Br.) Var: Bengalee(s) a 1:19, 77, 135, 149-51, 155, 167, 169-70, 189, 220-21, 227, 243, 279, 301, 319, 330, 332, 350, 408-09, 439, 454, 542, 556, 578-79, 634, 646, 654-55, 702, 733, 736, 828, 831, 852, 855-562:39-40.150, 156, 174, 208, 211, 241, 243, 305, 335, 358-62 3:73, 75, 78-79, 81, 84, 95-96, 98-102, 214, 270, 303, 327-28, 421, 426, 432 4:30, 140, 144, 176, 183-85, 196, 202, 204, 207-08, 210, 231, 247, 268, 271, 273-74, 292, 303, 323, 329, 333 8:318, 331, 341 9:401, 405.432, 438 14:71, 320, 422 17:368 22:413 26:14, 23, 46 27: 20, 62-65, 69, 351-52, 354, 452, 475, 488, 493 1:4-5 11:1-2 IV: 194-95 VI: 141 VII: 3, 8, 14, 20-21 VIII: 123, 125, 131-33 IX: 25 XIV: 165 XV: 62-63 XVIII: 190-91 XIX: 24
(Bengali) Ramayana also known as Krittibas'
Page 40
Ramayana, the story of the Sanskrit Ramayana freely retold in Bengali verse by KRITTIBAS. (A) a 3:426 14:319 (Bengal) National College The Bengal National College and School, Calcutta, was set up by the National Council of Education, Bengal, on 14 August 1906 with Sri Aurobindo as the principal. Sri Aurobindo, however, resigned on August 2, 1907. In 1910, the college merged with the Bengal Technical Institute founded by Sri Tarak Nath Palit; the united institution came to be known as the Bengal National College and Technical School. Some time later, after the arts side of the college met with failure, the technical side was developed into the Jadavpore College of Engineering and Technology, which gradually assumed the form of the present Jadavpur University. (D.I.H., under "National Council of Education") 1:262, 515, 656, 806 2:338 3:330 26:27, 43, 69, 357 XVII: 67
Benoy(bhusan) (1867-1947), the eldest brother of Sri Aurobindo, known as Beno in the family circle. He was a very matter-of- fact person, with a purely commercial mind, a person who looked at everything from a business point of view. (Purani) a 26:2 27: 420-21 II: 88 III: 86
Bent author of the Life of Garibaldi, a book to which Sri Aurobindo referred in a letter of 1907 to Aswini Kumar Banerji. (A) a XVII: 64
Bentham, Jeremy (1748-1831), English philosopher, economist, jurist, political theorist, and founder of Utilitarianism, whose attempts to solve social problems scientifically greatly influenced 19th-century thinking on social reform. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) Der: Benthamism 3:12, 25-26 III: 10
Bentinck, Lord William (Henry Cavendish) (1774-1839), Governor General of India from 1828 to 1835. He introduced important ad- ministrative reforms into Indian government and society. (Enc. Br.) a l: 176 111:12
Bepin (Chandra) See Pal, Bepin (Chandra)
Ber, J. M. a European with whom Sri Aurobindo was in contact in June 1913. In a meeting of 3 January of the same year, the Mother (before she came to Pondicherry) spoke of him as having given a talk to her group in Paris "about Mantras" at the end of December 1912. a XXII: 157 Berar(s) The term refers to the eastern districts of Maharashtra state, western India, specifically the Amraoti, Akola, Buldana, and Yeotmal districts of Nagpur division. These districts formed part, formerly, of the British administrative unit of Central Provinces and Berar. The term Berar no longer has administrative meaning, having been
superseded by the ancient name "Vidarbha", which now includes three more districts. (Enc. Br.) 1:352, 591, 666 Berber the indigenous Caucasian people of North Africa. They inhabit the land between the Sahara and the Mediterranean, from Egypt to the Atlantic coast. On the evidence of Egyptian tomb paintings their culture derives from earlier than 2400 BC. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 1:881
Berenice Egyptian cousin of Timocles in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. (He is not a character in the play.) 6:419
Bergson, Henri (1859-1941), French philosopher, exponent of process philosophy, and one of the most widely read early 20th- century thinkers. His works won him the 1927 Nobel Prize for literature. (Col. Enc.;
Enc.Br.) Der: Bergsonian 14:57, 420 15: 18 16:122 17:320, 388 22:213-14 24:1496 26:166 IX:17 XI:26 XIV:164
Berhampur a town and the headquarters of Murshidabad district in Bengal (now West Bengal state). (Enc. Br.) D 1:222-23, 226, 228, 236, 238-39, 250, 252-53, 256 3: 84, 91 27: 33, 36, 47
Berkeley, George (1685-1753), Irish philo- sopher and bishop. He was the proponent ofimmaterialism. (Enc. Br.) 14:56 16:265 26:223 XIV:127, 164
Berlin formerly capital of Prussia; capital of Germany from 1871 to 1945. Now, located in the territory of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), the city is divided politically (from 1961 physically by a wall) into East Berlin (the East German capital) and West Berlin, which comprises a Land (state) and a city of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany). (Enc. Br.) 1:349 2:371, 385 4:24 15:417 26:169 27: 466 V: 94
Benai, Francesco (1497/98-1535), Italian poet and translator, important for his Tuscan version of Boiardo's epic poem Orlando innamorato and for the distinctive style of his Italian burlesque, which was called after him "bernesco", and imitated by many poets. (Enc. Br.) n 3:101
Bertha Abelard a character - sister of Hugh and Walter - in Sri Aurobindo's story
Page 41
"The Door at Abelard". 7:1026, 1033-35, 1037, 1042
Besant, Annie (1847-1933), British social reformer, one-time Fabian Socialist, and a prominent Theosophist, who spent much of her life in India. She was the president of the Theosophical Society from 1907 until her death. In 1916 she founded the Indian Home Rule League, and in 1917 presided over the Congress session at Calcutta. She was also interested in national education, and was the founder of the Central Hindu College at Banaras. Dr. Besant was a great orator and organiser, a voluminous writer, and a lover offreedom. (Enc. Br.;D.I.H.) 1:718-19, 760 2:433 17:362 26:35, 48 27:503 XIII: 29-30, 33, 37
Bethlehem a town in ancient Judah, south- central Palestine, just south of Jerusalem. According to the Gospels it was the site of the nativity of Jesus Christ. (Enc. Br.) 1:802 13:12 XVIII: 128
Beulah the Land of Beulah: in Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, a country of peace and rest near the end of life's journey. (Web.) a 1:909 3:30-32 IV: 112 B. G. SeeGhose, Barindra Kumar
Bh See Bharati3
Bhabani Babu one of the persons (a Bengali) whom Sri Aurobindo met at Srinagar in Kashmir. He was employed in the Commissariat. (A) D IV:-195
Bhadracar in the Mahabharata, name of a king and people who fled southward, being oppressed by Jarasandha. (M, N.) 8:41
Bhaga' a Vedic deity of very indistinct personality and powers, classed among the Adityas and the Vishwadevas. His functions are more clearly outlined than those of Aryaman. He is one of the four powers of the Truth of Surya, and represents a happy spontaneity of the right enjoyment of all things dispelling the evil dream of sin and error and suffering. Bhaga is the Lord of Enjoyment. (A) a 4:22 10:20, 53, 86, 287, 289-93, 326, 329, 382, 399, 425, 438-39, 444-47, 458, 463-64 11:22, 31, 44, 82, 143, 172, 228, 269, 326, 445, 466, 494 16:297 17:85 X: 179-80 XIV: 110 XV: 5
Bhaga2 code name for someone who in 1913 asked C. R. Das for money for Sri Aurobindo. (A) 27:437
Bhagadutt in the Mahabharata, king of Pragjyotishapur (Kamarupa) and a friend
of Pandu. In the battle he sided with the Kaurava, and was killed by Arjuna. (M.N.) 8:40
Bhagalpur administrative headquarters of Bhagalpur district and division, Bihar state, just south of the Ganga River. (Enc. Br.) 1:167, 171 2: 402
Bhagavadgita commonly known simply as the Gita, a celebrated episode occurring in Book VI of the Mahabharata. It is in the form of a metrical dialogue, in which Krishna reveals to Arjuna the "Supreme Secret" and also shows him his universal form. The Gita is one of the great syntheses in Indian thought and is considered one of the three main authoritative scriptures; its authority is rec- ognised the world over. (Dow.;A) Var:
Bhagawad Gita 1:124 2:3, 7, 19-20, 30, 36, 50, 105, 400-01, 407, 425-26, 428-30, 3:91, 151, 166-68, 171-74, 219, 343, 346-47, 349, 352, 370, 471 4: pre., 43, 46, 55, 57, 60-61, 63, 66-68, 70-74, 80, 82, 85, 90, 92, 103, 107, 109-10, 122-24, 127, 129, 201-02, 252, 276, 293, 298-99, 303-04, 307-10, 312-13, 328 8:77 9:26-27, 33, 218, 320, 326, 370, 478, 504, 510, 541 10:20, 39, 269, 461 11:1 12: pre., 87, 92, 98-99, 136, 423, 427, 457, 461-62, 13:passim14:16, 91, 131, 137, 142, 166, 181, 185, 205, 288, 309, 417 15:140, 398 16:86, 263, 291-92, 294, 330, 364, 401, 414-16, 418, 420-21, 425-26, 429 17:28, 168, 181, 265-66, 271, 292-93, 349, 394, 40, 18:53, 64, 71, 136, 142, 159, 207, 228, 295, 322, 338, 365, 388, 412, 439, 492, 508, 524, 577, 596 19:633, 683, 742, 848, 879, 882, 884, 889, 987, 1019, 1050 20: 5, 22, 39, 49, 82, 87-88, 90, 93, 95-98, 100, 127, 134, 152, 166, 191, 197, 208, 210, 218, 226, 233, 258-62, 295, 302, 305, 307, 316-17, 333, 349, 358, 362, 387, 389, 398, 413, 415 21:521-23, 526, 541, 544, 597, 648, 650, 665, 679, 698, 713, 743 22:16, 39, 53, 61-62, 64, 69-73, 77, 80, 82, 88, 109, 113, 139, 149, 151, 266, 280, 291, 323, 392, 405, 407, 418, 443, 447, 488, 496 23:527-29, 541, 580, 611, 619, 654, 665, 669, 671-72, 674-75, 721, 748, 767-68, 789, 850, 852, 869, 1028 24:1271, 1334, 1347, 1355, 1415, 1441, 1470, 1473, 1475, 1618, 1621-22, 1627, 1630, 1634, 1644, 1740 25:65 26:33, 40, 52, 67-68, 113, 122, 125-30, 136, 138, 151, 277-78, 293, 356, 371, 398 27:311, 317, 320-21, 323, 328, 354, 360, 472, 479 29:737, 815 1:38, 42 11:63-65, 70-71, 74, 77, 79 111:68, 81 IV: 150 V: 1, 52, 62, 66, 68-69 VI: 155-56, 167 VII: 2, 12, 51-56 VIII: 132, 160 IX: 37-38 XII: 183, 196-97 XIII: 22 XIV: 146, 153, 159, 164, 168 XV: 43, 55, 58 XVI: 134, 155-56, 178 XVII: 23-24, 34 XVIIL 155-56 XIX: 82 XX: 117
Page 42
Bhagavat(a) (Purana) the most celebrated text of a class of Hindu sacred literature in Sanskrit known as the Puranas. It is dedi- cated to the glorification of Vishnu, and is made up of 18, 000 slokas in 12 skandhas or books. The most popular is the 10th book which narrates in detail the events of Krishna's life. This Purana exercises a more direct and powerful influence upon the Hindus than perhaps any other Purana. (Dow.) Var: Bhagawat(a) (Purana) 4:53 9:418 11:453 14:314-15 17:83, 319 20:257, 260 22:425 25:275 VI: 136 XVII: 10
Bhagawad Gita See Bhagavadgita
Bhagawan Das (1869-1958), an erudite scholar, eminent philosopher, and earnest and enthusiastic educationist ofVaranasi (Banaras). He contributed much to the mutual understanding between the East and the West. (D.I.H.) a 17:319
Bhagawat(a) (Purana) See Bhagavat(a) (Purana)
Bhagirath(a) in Hindu mythology, a descendant of Sagara (a king of Ayodhya), whose austerities induced Shiva to allow the sacred river Ganga to descend to the earth for the purpose of bathing the ashes of Sa- gara's sons who had been consumed by the wrath of the sage Kapila. (Dow.) Var:
Bhagiruth 3:190 8: 32, 46 16: 284, 430
Bhagirathie (Bhagirathi), in Hindu mythology, a name of the river Ganga, which was brought down to earth by BHAGIRATHA. In modern geography, it is the name of one of the headstreams of the Ganga, and also of its tributary in West Bengal state forming the western boundary of the Ganga delta. (Dow.; R. Map; S. Atlas) 8:32 27:159
Bhagiruth See Bhagirath(a)
Bhaja-Govindam a Mayavadic melodious poem in Sanskrit by Shankaracharya. a 22:55 Bhalchandra, Sir president of the Provincial Conference of the Congress held at Surat in 1907. (A) 1:246 Bhandarkar, Dr. Sir Rama Krishna Gopal (1837-1925), a celebrated Sanskrit scholar, teacher, researcher and author, and a social reformer besides. He was a pioneer in applying Western methods to the study of Sanskrit and Indian antiquities, and his works present a happy combination of the Orient and the Occident. He was
knighted in 1911. (D.N.B.) a 3:77, 81
Bhangi or Mehtar, a caste of sweepers and scavengers ir> all parts of India except the South. (Mahatma Gandhi renamed them Harijans, a name that later was extended to include all the scheduled castes.) (Enc. Ind.) 4:300, 303 22:486-87
Bhao, Krishnajirao one of the imaginary names (of the leaders of the secret society) supplied to GOSSAIN in the jail by a pre- tended approver in the Alipore Bomb Trial. (A) 4:296
Bhao, Sadashiva Rao a Maratha general (a first cousin of the Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao). Encouraged by his resounding victory over the Nizam in 1760, Bhao rashly attempted to destroy Ahmad Shah Abdali's power in the Punjab and to establish Maratha supremacy in North India. He failed, however, in diplomacy as well as in battle, and the entire Maratha army was routed (14-1-1761) at Panipat by Abdali's forces. Some say Bhao was killed in the battle. (D.I.H.; A) n 26:353
Bhao Girdi a term connected with Sadashiv Rao Bhao. Bhao Girdi is not actually his name or title, but simply a transcription of the Marathi phrase "Bhau gardi", which refers to the utter confusion and stampede ("gardi") that occurred in the battle of Panipat after Bhao had fallen from his horse, rushed into the melee and disappeared. The phrase may also mean "Bhao and Gardi", i.e., Sadashiv Rao Bhao and Ibrahim Khan Gardi who commanded a large train of artillery maintained by Bhao. (M.V.K., p. 605; D.I.H.) 26:353
Bharadwaja (Barhaspatya) a Rishi to whom many Vedic hymns are attributed, the reputed author of the sixth Mandala of the Rig-veda. He was the son of Brihaspati and father of Drona. The descendants of Bhara- dvaja are known as Bharadvajas. (Dow.;V. Index) Der: Bharadwajas a 10: 55, 143, 159 11: 247, 265, 271-72, 276-77, 282, 433
Bharat' (c. AD 100-200), an Indian sage who wrote about the dramatic arts in a treatise called the Natya-Sastra, still the basic work for dancers and actors in India. According to some authorities he belongs to the 8th century BC. (Enc. Br.; Enc. Ind.) Var: Bharuth' 0 5:199-200 7:909.943, 951 Bharat(a)2 a king of the Lunar race, son of Dushyanta and Shakuntala. It is after him that India was named Bharata(varsa). His descendants are called Bharatas; this term, however, is used especially for the Pandavas,
Page 43
whose ancestor KURU was ninth in descent from Bharata. In the Bhagavadgita, the term Bharata is frequently used for Arjuna. (Dow.) Var: Bharuth2 Der: Bharata(s) (Bharatas) 3:141, 152, 162-63, 190-91, 195-96, 200, 214 5:85 6:259, 277 8:46, 48, 78, 81, 87, 90 11:146 12:430 13:13, 58 14: 286 27: 79, 83 XVIII: 134, 138, 146, 148, 150
Bharat(a)3 in the Ramayana, Rama's half- brother, son of Dasharath and Kaikeyi, who governed the kingdom of Ayodhya in Rama's name during the latter's banishment. (Dow.) Var: Bharath 8:10-11, 22 14:290
Bharata (Bharata), name given to a supposed Sanskrit epic of 24, 000 slokas written by Krishna Dwaipayana, later enlarged into the Mahabharata. (A) 3:144, 199 14:186 27:81
Bharatchandra Bharatchandra Raya (1712-60), the first writer of power and elegance in Bengali, a court poet of Raja Krishnachandra ofNadia (Bengal), who bestowed on him the title of "Raya Gunakara". Besides a trilogy entitled ^nnadamangal, his principal work, he also composed Vidyasundar and Rasa-manjari. (N.B.A.;Gaz.II, p.664) n 3:95 14:320 XV: 62-63
Bharat Dharma (Maha)mandal a short-lived registered association of Hindus formed at Mathura in 1902. Its headquarters were moved to Banaras in 1905. The orthodox character of the association and its avowed object to maintain the Sanatan Dharma secured for it the support of ruling princes (the Maharaja of Darbhanga became its general president in 1912), religious pontiffs and also a section of the common Hindus, but provoked strong opposition and adverse comments from many educated Hindus who regarded the movement as reactionary. (S.F.F;, pp. 986-87) 1:705, 755-56
Bharath See Bharat(a)3
Bharathi, Suddhananda (1897- ), an ochre-robed yogi, a prolific writer and poet in Tamil (and also in other languages), whose austere looks and leonine movements make an unforgettable impression on the visitor. He practised yoga first under Raman Maharshi and then under Sri Aurobindo. He was an inmate of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram from c. 1929 to 1951/52. His wide popularity, however, rests on his poetic
genius. He has over three hundred books to his credit. His magnum opus is Bharathi Sakthi, an epic inspired by his contact with Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, in which he seeks to convey the Aurobindonian vision of a "super race" in terms of allegory and symbolism. This book won him in 1984 the first Rajarajan Award instituted by the Tamil University for the best creative work in Tamil. The poet has himself translated the entire epic into English and part of it into French. (D. N. B.; Auro-II; The Hindu, 23 & 25 March 1984) 27:503
Bharati' in the Veda, the same as Mahi; in the Puranas, the same as Saraswati. n 10: 89-9111:32, 83, 90, 118, 293, 426 XV: 39
Bharati2 name given by Sri Aurobindo to the supreme Goddess to denote her special aspect as the Shakti of India. (A&R, XVIII: 194) XVIII: 131, 146
Bharati3 Subramania Bharathi (1882-1921), a revolutionary and nationalist poet, consid- ered the greatest among modern Tamil poets for his creation of a new rhythm and poetic style. Even as a child he was a precocious poet: the title "Bharathi" was conferred upon him when he was only eleven. His irrepres- sible patriotic fervour impelled him to plunge into politics and he joined the camp of the Extremists. He became assistant editor of Swadesha Mitran and also edited Bala Bharatam (English monthly) and India (Tamil weekly). In 1908, warned of his im- pending arrest, he left British India and settled in the French enclave of Pondicherry. It was here that he produced his best work. In Pondicherry he also came into close con- tact with Sri Aurobindo and was greatly in- fluenced by him. He left Pondicherry after a stay of ten years. Arrested as soon as he returned to British India, he was released after a few days. Subramania Bharathi was not only a poet-patriot but also a social reformer, a lover of humanity, a friend of all creatures, and a devotee of Parashakti. In the "Record of Yoga" Sri Aurobindo has mentioned his name mostly in an abbreviated form-"Bh". (Gaz. II; Purani) 27:427, 447, 452 XX: 121 XXI: 6, 51, 67 XXII: 151, 174, 177
Bharati a Bengali monthly of Calcutta, a literary organ of the Tagore family. It was founded in 1878 under the editorship of Dvij endranath Tagore. (Cal. Lib.) 3:91 4:pre.
Bharat Mitra a Hindi newspaper which was published from Calcutta. Under its two
Page 44
editors, Bal Mukand Gupta and Ambika Prasad Bajpai, it became a leading journal. It was subjected to the rigours of the Press Act of 1910. (S.P.P., p. 1024) D 4:196-97 XIV: 99
Bharavi (Bharavi), a 7th-century classical poet of Sanskrit, author of the Kirdtarjuniya. By AD 734 Bharavi was considered, on the strength of this single poem, to be almost the peer of Kalidasa. (Enc. Br.; A; M.I., Mar. 1981, No. 3, p. 138) a 14:301-02, 320
Bharga Pragatha a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Pragatha. Pragatha is the name given in the Aitareya Aranyaka (ii.2.2) to the poets of the eighth Mandala of the Rig-veda, so called because they composed Pragatha strophes (stobhas), that is, verses consisting of a Brhati or Kakubh verse followed by a Satobrhati verse. (V. Index II) a II:352
Bhargava (the Vidarbhan) an Indian seer, a descendant of Bhrigu, who came to Rishi Pippalada from Vidarbha in search of knowledge, 12:295, 299
Bhargavas a line of Vedic Rishis, descendants of Bhrigu. Var: Barghoves (a misspelling) a 10:152 27:158
Bhartrihari (5707-651 ?), a celebrated Sanskrit poet, grammarian, and philosopher; author of 3 satakas or Centuries of Verses:
Srngdra-sataka, Niti-sataka and Vairdgya- sataka, and of the Vakyapadiya (Words in a Sentence) regarded as one of the most outstanding works on the philosophy of language. (Dow.;D.I.H.) 3:225 8:157, 159 14:256, 294, 304 26:254 1:24-30, 70
Bharuth' See Bharat' a 5:199, 200
Bharuth2 See Bharat(a)2 6:259, 277
Bhasa (b. 2nd or 3rd cent. AD), the earliest known Sanskrit dramatist, many of whose complete plays have been found. He is believed to have written 13 plays, the best of which, according to Indian critics, is Svapnavdsvadattd. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.;
Gaz.II) a 8:137 14:241, 305 X: 117 Bhaskara one of the most illustrious names in the field of ancient Indian astronomy. There were actually two Bhaskaras recog- nized for their significant contributions in this
field. The first Bhaskara was a great astronomer of the 6th century and a contem- porary of Brahmagupta. He was a leading exponent of the Aryabhatta I system of astronomy and wrote a commentary on this around AD 629. The second Bhaskara was one of the most impressive Indian astronomers and mathematicians. He was born in 1114, and was the author of six important works including Lildvati, Bijaganita, and Siddhanta-Siromani. He also published a number of works on mathematical astronomy dealing with planetary motions, the lunar and solar eclipses, conjunctions of the planets with stars, principles of spherical trigonometry and eclipse calculations. (77ie//(WM, June8, 1979) a 17:193-94
Bhaskarananda, Swami (1833-99), originally known as Moti Ram. He became a sannyasin at the age of 27 and assumed the name of Bhaskarananda. He lived for several years at Hardwar, absorbed in the study of the Gita and the Upanishads, and later moved to Varanasi. (Enc. Ind.) II:64
Bhatkhande, Vishnu Narayan (1875-1936), a celebrated scholar of Indian music and a great musician. He modernised the science of Hindustani music. The Madhava Music College of Gwalior and Marris College of Music in Lucknow owe their existence to him. (B.A.C.) 9:561
Bhatpara a town in 24-Parganas district of Bengal (now West Bengal state), just east of the Hooghly River. It is an ancient seat of Sanskrit learning and still has several tra- ditional Sanskrit schools or "tols". (Enc. Br.) a 3:110 IX: 29
Bhatt, Professor an imaginary surname of a supposed leader of the secret society sup- plied to GOSSAIN in the jail by a pretended approver in the Alipore Bomb Trial. (A) D 4:296
Bhatta, Nagoji Indian author known for his commentary on Chandi (see Chandi'). (A) 17:267
Bhattacharjee, Basanta Basanta Kumar Bhattacharjee (c. 1883- ? ). As printer and publisher of Yugantar, in September 1907 he was sentenced to two years' rigorous im- prisonment and a fine of Rs 1000. (P.T.I.) a 1:548, 565, 744, 771
Bhattacharya, Abinash Chandra (1882-1962), manager of Yugantar, and one of the chief associates of Barindra Kumar Ghose in the work of organising and educating the mem- bers of their secret society. He lived with Sri Aurobindo while the latter was in North Calcutta, looking after Sri Aurobindo's household. In May 1909 he was sentenced as a member of the Maniktolla Conspiracy to transportation for life, but was released in May 1915. He published Bartaman Rananiti (Modern Science of War), Mukti kon Pathe
Page 45
(Which Way to Liberation?), and other books. In his later life he was associated with many journals, including the Narayana of C. R. Das. (A; P.T.I., Remin, p. 22; S.B.C.)I:563 4:258, 263, 293
Bhattacharya, Basanta SeeBhattacharjee, Basanta
Bhatti full name: Bhattikdvya, also called Rdvana vadha, a Sanskrit poem of 22 cantos by Bhatti, written with the object of illus- trating the rules and principles of grammar and rhetoric. The poem depicts the life history of Rama from his birth up to the time of Ravana's death. Bhatti probably belonged to the latter half of the 6th and first quarter of the 7th century. Some scholars attribute Bhattikdvya to Bhartri- hari. (Gaz. II; D.I.H.) 3:76
Bhava in Indian astrology, a god or spiritual being presiding over the sign "Archer". (A) 17:257
Bhavabhuti (fl. c. AD 700), a celebrated Sanskrit dramatist and poet, author of three of the best extant Sanskrit dramas, Vira- Charita, Uttara Rama-Charita, and Malati Madhava. These plays, noted for their sus- pense and vivid characterisation, rival the outstanding plays of Kalidasa. Bhavabhuti was the court-poet of King Yasovarman of Kanauj who ruled in the first quarter of the 8th century. (Dow.; D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) 3:258, 260, 303, 315, 322 14:241, 256, 305
Bhavananda a character in Bankim's novel AnandaMath. 8:329-30, 333-43, 346
Bhawani Mandir title of a tract written by Sri Aurobindo and published in 1905. It was a call sent forth for help in the proposed erection of a temple (mandir) to be conse- crated to Bhawani, the Mother. There were clear political overtones in this scheme, as also in the envisaged creation of a body of political sannyasins dedicated to the service of the motherland. Although written by Sri Aurobindo, it was more his brother Barin's idea than his. (A;Purani) 1:59, 61 26:51
Bhedi literally "spy" or knower of secrets; apparently a name given to a person living in Sunder Chetty's house in Pondicherry (now No. 40, Rue Suffren), where Sri Aurobindo stayed from October 1910 to April 1911. (A; Mother India, Jan. 1976, pp. 12-13) XIX: 30
Bheel(s) or Bhils (Bhils), a primitive tribal people of India, referred to as Nishadas in Vedic literature. They inhabit portions of west-central India especially south Rajputana (Rajasthan state) and northern Maharashtra. The Bhils are known for their rugged indepen- dence. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Var: Bhils D 7:739, 745, 750-51, 757-59, 761, 763-64, 766-67, 771-74, 777, 786-87, 790, 792, 798-99, 804, 806, 813 IX: 1, 2
Bheem(a); Bheem(a)sen See Bhima(sena)
Bheeshmuc See Bhishmuc
Bhema; Bheme See Bhima(sena)
Bhide surname of a lawyer of Poona around 1909. He was the editor of Hindu Punch. (A) a 4:222
Bhils See Bheels
Bhima(sena) in the Mahabharata, the second of the five Pandavas, and, mythically, son of the god Vayu. He was of great size, strong physique and wrathful temper. His weapon was a club or mace. (Dow.) Var:
Bheem(a); Bheem(a)sen; Bhema; Bheme;
Bhimsen 1:63, 836 3:112, 148, 151, 162, 197, 207, 213, 304-05 4:75-76, 83, 93-94 8:29, 31-32, 35, 38, 45, 50-51, 58-59, 77 13:186 14:193 27:83 IV: 115 VII: 52 IX: 30
Bhimsen See Bhima(sena)
Bhis(h)ma originally named Devavrata, son of King Santanu by Ganga. The name Bhisma ("terrible") was given to him by the gods when, to gratify his father's desire to marry Satyavati and to protect the right of Satyavati's son and descendants to the throne of Hastinapur, he took the terrible vow not to marry. Bhishma brought up Pandu and Dhritarashtra, and acted for them as regent of Hastinapur. In the war of the Maha- bharata he took the side of the Kauravas and was the commander-in -chief of their army. (Dow.) 3:194-96, 213, 461 4:71, 76, 78, 82-84, 97, 102 8: 77-78, 80 13: 55, 370 14:292 17:38522:488 27:79 1:21 VII: 53
Bhishmuc in the Mahabharata, king of Vidarbha, and father of Rukmini, the chief consort of Krishna. (Dow.) Var:
Bheeshmuc 3:1908:40
Bhisma See Bhis(h)ma
Bhogavat(h)ie See Boithorinie .
Bhoja(s) The word is used in ancient Indian literature in three senses: first, as the royal designation applicable to the consecrated monarchs of the southern region; secondly, as a tribal name of a people living perhaps in Berar; and thirdly, as a proper name borne by several princes of Kanauj and Malwa. (D.I.H.) 3:162, 189 4:89 5:319 8:39-41
Bhoje Dutt secretary of the SUDDHI SAMAJ of Agra, and editor of the vernacular paper MusafirArya. (A) 2:226-28
Page 46
Bhola a sub-divisional town in Bakarganj district of Bengal, now in Bangladesh. 1:641
Bhonsle Indian dynasty founded by the family of the great Maratha king Shivaji. They were a leading power in the 18th- century Maratha confederacy. Sri Aurobindo uses the term as an epithet of Baji Prabhou. (Enc. Br.) 5:281-82
Bhopatkar, Bhaskar Balwant (1874-1949), a leading lawyer of Poona who in 1905 started Bhald, a Marathi weekly, to support staunch nationalism and equally staunch orthodoxy. In February 19Q6 he was sen- tenced to six months' imprisonment for sedition by the High Court of Bombay. (D.N.B.; P.T.I.) l:l40
Bhowanipur a large and important locality in South Calcutta. (N.B.A.) VI: 123
Bhrig(o)u (Varuni) a Vedic sage and one of the Prajapatis; "the most august and vener- able name in Vedic literature" (27:152); founder of the race of Bhargavas. Con- sidered a son of Varuna, he bears the patronymic Varuni. (A; Dow.; Enc. Ind.; V. Index) 4:29 5: 239, 250, 253 10: 152, 461 11:73, 184, 344, 482 12:337, 340 13:350 15:234 16:254, 261 19:743 27: 152, 156, 158 III: 49 VII: 59, 61, 65, 71 VIII: 180
Bhrigus in Hindu religion, a class of sym- bolic and semi-divine beings connected with Agni; producers or nourishers of fire. In then work they are associated with the Angirasas, Atharvans, Ribhus etc. (Dow.) 10:152, 180, 234, 237 11:91, 272, 479-83, 488 111:49
Bhrigu (Samhita) a celebrated voluminous work on astrology by Bhrigu, a great Hindu seer and astrologer. It is said to contain several thousand charts (horoscopes) de picting all possible relative positions of the nine planets in Hindu astrology, together with an account of the destiny of persons born or to be born at the time when the particular relative position shown in each chart occurred or will occur in future. It is interesting to note that quite a few astrol- ogers claim to possess the true and genuine Bhrgu Samhita. None, however, has yet been able to establish the authenticity of his manuscript beyond doubt. Probably, there were many seer-astrologers who adopted the name of Bhrigu and wrote Samhitas at different times, 26:365
Bhrigu (Varuni) See Bhrig (o) u (Varuni)
Bhu See Bhur
Bhujyu "the seeker of enjoyment"; son of King Tugra, "the Forceful-Hastening" (10:449). He is repeatedly mentioned in the Rig-veda as being saved from the deep by theAshwins. (A; V. Index) 10:153, 449
Bhupen; Bhupendra; Bhupendranath See Bose, Bhupen(dranath), or Dutt, Bhupen- (dranath) Bhur; Bhurloka or simply Bhu, the material world; the lowest of the seven worlds of the Puranas, and one of the three vyahrtis of the Veda. (The vyahrtis are the three mystical words said by Manu to have been milked from the Vedas by Prajapati - the word "Bhur", from the Rig-veda; the "Bhuva", from the Yajur-veda; and the word "Swar", from the Sama-veda. He uttered the word "Bhu", which became this earth; "Bhuvah", which became this firmament; and "Swar", which became the sky.) Symbolically Bhur is the physical consciousness. (Dow.; A) 4:40 10:42, 171, 271, 275 11:23 12:123, 321-22, 393, 403, 515, 519 17:62 VI: 182-83 VII: 68 XV: 25-26, 33, 46 XVI: 140, 145, 154-55 XIX: 50, 52 XXII: 131
Bhurishrava(s) son of Somadatta and an ally of the Kauravas. He was killed in the battle of the Mahabharata. (Dow.;M.N.) 3:121, 192 4:76, 95 VI: 156 VIII: 188
Bhutas in Hindu mythology, restless ghosts. Bhutas are apt to be malignant if they have died a violent death or have been denied funeral rites. They haunt trees, deserts, abandoned houses, the hearths and roofs of homes, crossroads, and boundaries, but never stay on the ground. (The other senses of the Sanskrit word bhuta given in Vol. 30 of the SABCL have not been indexed.) (Enc.Br.) 4:24 22:395 27:430
Bhuvah See Bhuvar
Bhuvanayshwar Bhubaneswar, once a ruined city in Puri district, Orissa, sacred to the wor- ship of Shiva, and containing the remains of several temples. In 1948 the capital of the state of Orissa was shifted from Cuttack to Bhubaneswar. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) 5:255 Bhuvar; Bhuvarloka world of various becom- ing; the second lowest of the seven worlds of the Puranas; one of the three vyahrtis of the Veda (see Bhur). Symbolically it represents the intermediate dynamic vital and nervous consciousness. (A; Dow.; V.G.) Var:
Bhuvah 10:42, 171, 271, 275 11:23, 501 12:123, 321-22, 393, 404, 515 17:62 II: 38 VI: 183 VII: 68 XV: 25-27, 33, 46 XVI: 140, 145, 154-55 XIX: 50, 52 XXII: 196
Page 47
Bibhishan See Vibhishan(a)
Bible the Christian sacred book. Actually a collection of books, the Holy Bible, as it is often called, is divided into two parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament. The former contains thirty-nine books (which are also the Jewish scriptures), according to the Protestants, with a supplement of fourteen books known as the Apocrypha ("hidden", of doubtful authority); other churches include part or all of the Apocrypha in the Old Testament. The New Testament contains twenty-seven books. The Old Testament was compiled in Hebrew from the 13th to the 1st century BC; the New Testament was written, probably in Greek, during the 1st century. No original manuscripts have survived. English versions of the Bible are numerous and variously named. The first complete English version dates from 1382. (R. Enc.; Enc. Br.) Der: Biblical 1:603 2:19, 156 4:303 5:365 9:438 13:86 14:48, 60 16:82 17:182, 341 20:52 22:206, 483 24:1237 25:390 26:265, 397, 483 27:313 1:56, 58 11:88 111:25 V:65 IX: 36
Bidyapati See Vidyapati
Bihar a constituent state of the Republic of India, situated in the northeastern part of the country. Formerly, united with Orissa, it formed one province "Bihar & Orissa". Earlier still, the region formed part of a much larger province of BENGAL. "Bihari" refers to an inhabitant or the language of Bihar. (Enc. Br.) Var: Behar Der: Bihari;
Behari; Biharee; Beharee 1:167-68, 226-27, 645 2:255, 346 26:409-10
Bijoli a Bengali weekly, published from Calcutta, dealing chiefly with political topics of the day. It appeared from 1920 to 1924 and was edited by Nalinikanta Sarkar and Barindra Kumar Ghose. (Cal.Lib.) 27:483
Bijoy Bijoy Kumar Nag (1892-1935), a revolutionary and disciple of Sri Aurobindo. Born at Rajshahi in 1892, Bijoy was arrested in 1908 in connection with the Alipore Bomb Case. He was acquitted at the Sessions Court. In 1910 Bijoy accompanied Sri Aurobindo to Pondicherry and stayed with him there as a member of his household. After August 1914, when he left Pondicherry for Calcutta, he was taken into custody at Villupuram under the Defence of India Act, and put in confinement at Calcutta till the end of the
war. Soon after his release he returned to Pondicherry. Bijoy was among those present on Siddhi Day, 24 November 1926. But a few years later he left the Ashram and died at Khulna in February 1935. In his "Record of Yoga" Sri Aurobindo has used the following abbreviations for his name: B, B., Bj. (A.B.T., pp.l4, 183-85;Purani, pp. 137, 157, 217) Var:Bejoy a 27:439, 461, 469-70, 484, 489 XIX: 29 XX: 121, 148 XXI: 2, 6, 24, 29, 34, 55, 59, 74, 78
Billingsgate oldest of London's markets, situated by the River Thames at the north end of London Bridge. Since the 16th century it has been principally a fish market. The word "Billingsgate" was popularly used to designate the coarse vituperation of scolding fishwives. It is now also used as a common noun meaning "abuse" or "violent invective". (Enc. Br.;C.O.D.) 1:524
Bilwamangal a well-known Vaishnava saint of South India, son of a devout Brahmin, Ramdas. He had received a devotional education from his father. But after the death of his parents Bilwamangal fell into bad society and got completely engrossed in the love of a prostitute, Chintamani, till one day a biting reproach from her for his blind infatuation, suddenly opened his eyes and his love turned towards God with the same in- tensity of emotion. Once again, however, the sight of a beautiful woman gave him a jolt, but soon after he came to himself. Holding his eyes responsible for the slip, he pierced them each with a thorn and became blind. In that state, it is said, Krishna himself used to come to him as a boy to provide him food, and one day led him to Vrindavan. (Bhakta Ch.) a 23:546, 553, 609
Bindusor in the Mahabharata, name of an ancient pool situated north of Mt. KAILASA. (M.N.) 8:31
Binod Babu See Gupta, Binode Kumar
Binyon, Laurence (1869-1943), English poet, dramatist, and art historian who was a pion- eer in the European study of Far Eastern painting. He is also noted for his verse translation of Dante's Divina Commedia. Laurence Binyon was a classmate and close friend of Sri Aurobindo's brother Manmohan. (Enc. Br.) 14:47, 227
Bipasha in the Mahabharata, a river of the Punjab, now called the Beas; it is one of the five rivers within the frontiers of which the Aryans originally dwelt. (A) D 5:246 27:156
Page 48
Birbhum name of a district in Burdwan division of Bengal (now West Bengal state). (Enc. Br.) 27:484
Bird of Fire, The a poem by Sri Aurobindo, written on 15-10-1933. It is in the nature of a metrical experiment. 5:578 9:360, 363, 412, 531 26:275, 304
Biren' a fictional correspondent of Sri Aurobindo. About 1910 Sri Aurobindo presented his ideas on Indian and European cultures and their contrasts in the form of letters, some of them addressed to this imaginary "Biren". (A & R, VI: 207) 3:461 VI: 195, 199
Biren2 one of the speakers - the extremist - in Sri Aurobindo's dialogue "At the Society's Chambers". (A) 3:471
Biren3 (for references occurring in Vol. 26) See Ghose, Biren
Biren4 Probably Biren Ghose. Possibly another Biren is intended: for example, Biren Roy, a cook who served in Sri Aurobindo's household around 1913-14 and who was a C.I.D. spy. (Purani, pp. 153-55;
L to SL, pp. 31-32) 27:435, 438, 440, 452-53 XXI: 84
Birendra See Sen, Birendra Chandra
Birkenhead Frederick Edwin Smith, 1st Earl ofBirkenhead (1872-1930), a very successful English lawyer and statesman, and a noted orator; Secretary of State for India (1924-28) in Baldwin's second ministry. (Enc. Br.) 26:389
Birley L. Birley, I.C.S., District Magistrate of 24 Parganas, Bengal, who in August 1908 committed Sri Aurobindo and others arrested in the Alipore Bomb Case to the Court of Sessions. (A.B.T.) a 4:285-86, 289, 293
Birrell, Augustine (1850-1933), English politician and man of letters. As Chief Secretary for Ireland (1907-16), he was responsible for failing to prevent the Easter Week Rising (1916) of Irish nationalists in Dublin. (Enc.Br.) 367
Birth of the War-God, The See Kumara- sambhavam
Bis(h)abriksha (Poison-Tree), a Bengali novel (1873) by Bankim Chandra, containing some striking and faithful pictures of Indian life and posing the problem of widow remar- riage. It first came out serially in the Banga- darshan from its first issue, and was put in book-form in 1873. (Enc. Br.; A; B.R.-I) 3:91, 94 17:345 27:353
Bismarck, Otto von (1815-98), German statesman, founder and first chancellor of the
German Empire, and a political genius of the highest rank. (Enc. Br.) 1:139, 309 15:'34, 503
Bitosta in the Mahabharata, a river of the Punjab, now called the Jhelum; it is one of the five rivers within the frontiers of which the Aryans originally dwelt. It flows through Kashmir and Punjab. (A; M.N.) 5:246 27:156
Bj. See Bijoy
Black Hundred "Black Hundreds" also called "League of the Russian People", organization of reactionary, anti-Semitic groups in Russia, formed during the 1905 revolution. Having the unofficial approval of the government, the Black Hundreds were primarily composed of landlords, rich peasants, bureaucrats, police officials, and clergymen, who supported orthodoxy, autoc- racy, and Russian nationalism. Particularly active from 1906 until 1911, they staged raids against various revolutionary groups and pogroms (organized massacre) against the Jews. (Enc.Br.) 1:371, 402, 435
Blair, Mr. apparently, a British official. (A) a1:269, 556
Blake, William (1757-1827), English poet, painter, engraver, and visionary, now recog- nised for the breadth of his invention in poetry and painting, and for his prophetic vision. (Enc.Br.) D 9:53-54, 91-92, 94, 116, 123-26, 131, 133, 192, 311, 354-55, 442, 447, 454, 472, 476-80, 482, 529 26:261-62 29:737, 799-800, 809 1:9 11:11
Blanc, Mont See Mont Blanc
Blavatsky, Madame Madame Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1831-91), Russian spiritualist, author, and cofounder (1875) of the Theosophical Society in New York, promoting Theosophy, an occult philosophical- religious system largely derived from Hindu writings, whose followers believe in a pan- theistic evolutionary process integrating deity, cosmos, and self. She came to India in 1879 and established a Theosophical temple at Adyar near Madras. (Enc. Br:; D.I.H.) 22:483 XIII: 29, 32
Bloomfield Murder Case a case tried in the Calcutta High Court in 1907. (A) a 1:503-04
Blotton, Mr. a character in Dickens' novel The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club. See also Pickmck, MT. D 3:144
Blumhardt a critic who expressed his appreciation of Bankim Chandra's great work Krishna Charitra. (A) 27:354
Page 49
Blunt, Wilfrid Wilfrid Scawen Blunt (1840-1922), English poet whose impulsive, generous nature found expression in anti- imperialism based on sympathy for small or oppressed nations. He championed Indian, Egyptian, and Irish home rule. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) I: 465
Bluysen Paul Bluysen (d. 1928), a French politician, the successful candidate for the seat for French India in the Chamber of Deputies in 1910 and 1914. Paul Richard came to Pondicherry to canvass for him in 1910; in 1914 Richard was unsuccessful in opposing him. (A; Mother-1) Der:
Bluysenites a 27:442, 444-50 B.N.S. See Sen, Baikunthanath
Boadicea title and subject of a poem in galliambics by Tennyson. Boadicea or Boudicca was an ancient British queen (died AD 60) who in the year 60 led a revolt against Roman rule. (Ox. Comp.; Enc. Br.) 27:93
Board of Notables See (Advisory) Council of Notables.
Boccaccio, Giovanni (1313-75), Italian poet and novelist, chiefly remembered as the author of the tales of the Decameron, one of the world's great books. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 3:101
Bodas probably Mahadev Raj aram Bodas, who took an active part in propagating the Swadeshi movement in Bombay. (S.F.F., p. 45) 4:178
Bodas Ghose Committee a committee formed by the Nationalist Party after the split of the Congress at the Surat session of 1907 to devise ways and means for re-establishing unity and to maintain the work and objectives of the Congress by preserving its national character. (Mahadev Rajaram ?) Bodas and (Sri Aurobindo) Ghose were the elected conveners of the committee. (A-4:178) n 1:840
Bodhisattwa in Buddhism, the historical Buddha Gautama prior to his Enlighten- ment; also other individuals who are destined to become Buddha in this or another life. Bodhisattwa is a conception of the Mahayana school of Buddhism. Buddhists or saints who have qualified themselves to attain Nirvana in this life but voluntarily forego that state in order to help their fellowmen to attain it, are called Bodhisattwas. They receive veneration, respect, and worship like that given to Gautama Buddha himself. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) 16:210
Boeotian of Boeotia, a district of ancient Greece, with a distinctive military; artistic, and political history. It lay north of Attica. The Athenians taunted the Boeotians with being dull and slow-witted. So the word Boeotian has come to mean "dull (person)". (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; C.O.D.) 1:178
Boer(s) a name applied to South Africans of Dutch or Huguenot descent, especially to early settlers of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State. Hostility between the Boers and the British resulted in the South African or Boer War (1899-1902), after which the Boer territories were annexed and the Union of South Africa formed. (Enc. Br.) 1:132, 189, 368, 459, 563, 575 2:120, 171, 302 3:193 15:502 1:73 111:23, 26
Bohemia the westernmost province of Czechoslovakia. Prague is capital of both Czechoslovakia and Bohemia. (Col. Enc.) Der: Bohemian 15:88, 625
Boiardo Matteo Maria, Conte Boiardo (14417-94), Italian poet. He wrote numerous works, both in Latin and Italian. (Enc. Br.) a 3:101
Boithorini(e); Bhogavat(h)ie " (the river) to be crossed", before the infernal regions can be entered; "the Ganges of the dead", in Patala; "the river dolorous", described as being filled with blood, ordure, and all sorts of filth, and as flowing with great impetu- osity. (Bhogavati is also the name of the subterranean region of the Nagas, in the Naga-loka portion of Patala.) (A; Dow.) a 5:256, 325 27:159
Bokhara or Bukhara, city and administrative centre of Bukhara oblast (region), central Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic, USSR. (Enc.Br.) 5:272
Bolingbroke Henry St. John, 1st Viscount Bolingbroke (1678-1751), prominent English politician in the reign of Queen Anne (1702- 14); later a major political propagandist in opposition to the Whig party. He was noted both as a brilliant conversationalist and as a notorious libertine. (Enc. Br.) 1:54
Bolpur a small town in Birbhum district of Burdwan division, Bengal (now West Bengal state), 3:431
Bolshevik(s) member(s) of a wing of the Russian Social-Democratic Workers' Party who, led by Lenin, seized control of the government in Russia (October 1917) and became the dominant political power. The group originated in 1903 when Lenin's followers won a temporary majority. They assumed the name of Bolsheviks (those of the majority) and dubbed their
Page 50
opponents "the Mensheviks" (those of the minority). After the October Revolution, in March 1918, they changed their name to the Russian Communist Party, and in 1952 they became the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. (Enc. Br.) Var: Bolshevic Der:
Bolshevism; Bolshevist 4:330 9:331 15:45, 302, 327, 470, 488, 506, 510, 560, 576, 611, 627, 642-43, 646-47 22:208-09 25:72 26:389 VII: 5, 16 XIX: 11
Bomba, King Ferdinand II (of the Bourbon dynasty) of Naples, whose treacherous and tyrannical reign extended from 1830 to 1859. He was called "Bomba" on account of his bombardment of Messina in 1848. (Ox. Comp.) 1:505
Bombay name of a former province and presidency in British India; name also of the great city which was the capital of the province and the presidency. Presently Bombay is the capital of Maharashtra state in the Republic of India. It is the biggest port on the west coast, the "Gateway of India", and the financial and commercial centre of India. (Enc. Br.) 1:17, 19, 14041, 186, 189, 19295, 201, 203, 231, 242, 247, 263-64, 284, 311, 360, 387, 414, 429, 479-80, 555, 569, 571, 586, 590, 592-93, 598, 609, 627, 639, 648, 652, 674, 677-78, 681, 685, 715, 754, 783, 797, 815, 818-19, 825, 838-41, 865, 870, 891, 897-98 2:71, 75-76, 78, 101-02, 135-36, 138, 159, 176, 205-06, 238, 246, 260, 295-97, 304-05, 307, 309-11, 315-16, 319, 329-30, 360, 370 3:73, 98, 129, 426 4:175, 179, 182-83, 191, 203-04, 222, 225, 228, 231-34, 240, 263, 268, 278, 290, 296 7:1027, 1031 22:121 23:675 25:221 26:2, 10, 13-14, 23, 45, 49-50, 58, 98, 129, 410, 429 27: 33, 40-43, 54, 67-68, 71, 115 1:29 111:86 VIII: 134 XIV: 102, 105 XV: 64
Bombay Chronicle English daily of Bombay founded in 1913 by Pherozshah Mehta as an organ of the Moderate party. It was edited by B. G. Horniman. The paper played an eminent role in the Indian struggle for freedom. (Cal. Lib.; S.F.F.) 26:390
Bombay University state-controlled institution of higher learning located in Bombay. It was founded in 1857. After the establishment of regional universities in the state in 1948-50, its jurisdiction, which formerly extended to institutions throughout the province, was confined to Greater Bombay. (Enc.Br.) n 1:480
Bonaparte family name of Napoleon I, emperor of France. See Napoleon (Bonaparte) D [Indexed with
Napoleon (Bonaparte)]
Bonerji, Umesh Chandra (1844-1906), much sought-after barrister in the Calcutta High Court, and a Moderate in politics, who pre- sided over the first session of the Congress held at Bombay in 1885. He was an ardent advocate of British connection, and Angli- cised in his habits, customs and ways of thought. (D.N.B. - "Bonnerjee, Woomesh Chandra") n 1:20
Bonnerji, R. C. a poet who contributed to the second number of the magazine Shama'a, which was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo. (A) a 17:321
Booth, "General" William Booth (1829-1912), English religious leader, founder and first "general" of the Salvation Army. (Enc.Br.) 1:8
Borderers a tragedy in verse by Wordsworth, composed in 1795-96. (Ox. Comp.) 9:74
Borgia, Alexander See Alexander Borgia
Borgia, Caesar Cesare Borgia (c. 1476-1507), Italian soldier and politician, who with his father. Pope Alexander VI, enhanced the political power of the papacy. His policies led his contemporary MACHIAVELLI to cite him as an example of the new "Prince". (Col. Enc.; Enc.Br.) 1:605 Boro Budoor vast pyramidal stupa, one of the world's greatest Buddhist monuments, built about AD 800 at Boro Budur in Java. It is of large dimensions, containing many images of the Buddha, and having galleries covered with sculpture illustrating scenes from the Buddha's life. (Enc. Br.; Archer) 9:381
Bose, Anandamohan (1847-1906), India's first wrangler, a leader of the Brahmo Samaj, an educationist, and social reformer. A lawyer by profession, he was associated with the Congress since its inauguration. He was a Moderate and a constitutionalist. (D.N.B.) 4:207
Bose, Bhupal Chandra (1861-1937), father- in-law of Sri Aurobindo, and co-founder, with his friend Girish Chandra Bose, of the Bangabasi School and College. He also served the institution as a teacher for two years. He entered Government service in 1888 and worked as an agricultural officer for 28 years in Bengal and Assam. (A & R, IV: 206) 1:70 Bose, Bhupen(dranath) (1859-1924), a Moderate leader of Bengal, who advocated boycott of British goods during the anti- Partition campaign, and presided over the Congress session held at Madras in 1914. As the nationalists moved towards extremism, Bhupendranath moved away, and came closer to the Government. In 1917 he be- came a member and undersecretary in the Council of the Secretary of State
Page 51
for India, and remained in this position till 1923 when he was appointed a member of the Executive Council of the Governor of Bengal. When he died in 1924, he was working as the Vice- Chancellor of Calcutta University. (D.N.B.; H.F.M.I.) Var: Basil, -98, 755 2:143, 206, 290, 293, 309, 329, 335 4:183, 191, 221, 223, 225, 238, 260 26:52 27:7-8, 38, 40-43 VI: 125 Bose, Debabrata (c. 1879-1918), a member of the 'Yugantar' revolutionary group, and one of the real editors or writers of the Yugantar. He was a master of Bengali prose. After his acquittal in the Alipore Bomb Case, he became a sannyasin, joined the Ramakrishna Mission and under the name of Swami Prajnananda contributed to the Mission's journals. (A; P.T.I.; Purani; L. to Sl.) Var: Devabrata Bose; Devavrata 26:16, 42, 57, 63 27: 444
Bose, Dr. Sir Jagadis Chandra Bose (1858-1937), Indian physicist and plant physi- ologist, noted especially for his research in plant life. He was a prominent nationalist. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) D l: 480 Bose, G. C. Girish Chandra Bose (1853-1939), friend of Sri Aurobindo's father-in-law Bhupal Chandra Bose. After his return from Europe where he had gained considerable experience in the new methods of education, he founded in 1886, in col- laboration with Bhupal Chandra Bose, the Bangabasi School which the following year was transformed into a college. (D.N.B.; Purani; A & R; S.B.C.) Var: Girish Bose;
Giris Babu 1:415-16 4:323 26:66 1:70
Bose, Jodunath Bankim Chandra's class- fellow at Calcutta University; they were the first Indians to obtain the degree of B.A. (Bachelor of Arts). (A) a 3:77
Bose, Jogendra eldest son of Raj narayan Bose; maternal uncle of Sri Aurobindo, addressed by him as Boromama. (A) a r:68
Bose, Kritanto Kumar a High Court vakil of Calcutta with nationalist sympathies who presided over a Swadeshi meeting held at Harrish Park, Bhowanipur, in Calcutta on 13 October 1909. (A & R, VI: 204; A) a 4:191 VI: 123
Bose, Nandalal (1882-1966), celebrated Indian artist of world fame, disciple of Abanindranath Tagore, and teacher of art at Santiniketan. He founded the School of New Calcutta Art. (Enc. Ind.) I:428
Bose, Premtosh ( ? -1912), one of the promoters of the Railway Union (an organization of railway workmen) at Jamalpur, Bengal (now in Bangladesh). Premtosh disposed of most of his ancestral property to help the revolutionary party and the Swadeshi movement. (A; S.B.C.) 1:151
Bose, Rajnarayan (1826-99), maternal grandfather of Sri Aurobindo; one of the leaders of the Brahmo Samaj, who devel- oped it on original lines. He yearned to build a united India so that she might be free and great again. He once formed a secret revolutionary society which Tagore had joined when young. He is known as Rishi Rajnarayan and the Grandfather of Indian Nationalism. Sri Aurobindo wrote a sonnet on him after his passing away on 18 September 1899. (D.N.B.; Purani; Remini.) Var:Basu, — 3:78 5:123 26:4, 6, 16 1:68 XIV: 163
Bose, Rashbehary (1885-1945), the only front-rank Indian revolutionary whom the police force of the British Empire, in India and abroad, was unable to put into prison or detain in a lock-up even for a single day. From 1911 he worked for revo- lution in India, serving as a living link between the revolutionaries of Delhi, Punjab and Bengal. His complicity in the assassi- nation attempt (23 December 1912) on Lord Hardinge, the Viceroy of India, was accepted by the police as certain, and he was declared an accused in the Delhi, Lahore, and Benares Conspiracy cases, but he avoided detection and arrest and, in 1915, escaped to Japan where later on he took a prominent part in organising the Azad Hind Fauj in collaboration with Subhas Chandra Bose. He fell ill in Japan and died on 21 January 1945. (S.B.C.; D.N.B.; R.O.H.; D.I.H.) a 27:470-71
Bose, Sailen(dra) Sailendranath Bose (c. 1888-1977), a young revolutionary who was sentenced to 3 months' rigorous
Page 52
imprisonment in the Yugantar case in 1907. In the Manicktola Conspiracy case in 1909 he was awarded transportation for life by the Sessions Court, but the sentence was reduced to 5 years' rigorous imprisonment after an appeal to a third judge (Harring- ton) at the High Court stage. (P.T.I.; A.B.T.) 4:258, 261-63 Bose, Satyendra Satyendranath Bose (1882-1908), Sri Aurobindo's maternal uncle (son of one of Rajnarayan Bose's younger brothers), and a native of Midnapore where he was head of the "National Volunteers". As an undertrial prisoner in the Alipore Bomb Case, he was admitted to the hospital of the Alipore Jail, where he, along with Kanailal Dutt, murdered the approver Noren GOSSAIN. In his trial for this offence, the Sessions Judge, disagreeing with the majority verdict of the jury, referred the case to the High Court and there Satyendra was convic- ted and sentenced to death. He was hanged on 21 November 1908. (D.N.B.;A&R, XI: 98, 102-03) n 4:275 Bose, Sudhira a younger sister of Debabrata Bose, and a classmate of Mrinalini Devi, with whom she lived in close intimacy till the day of Mrinalini's death in 1918. Sudhira Bose, following her brother, joined the Ramakrishna Mission, and worked as a teacher in the Sister Nivedita School, be- coming its head after Sister Christine left for America shortly before World War I. Sudhira was killed in a railway accident at Benares in December 1920. a 26:57
Bose, Tyabji See Tyabji (Bose)
Bossuet, Jacques-Benigne (1627-1704), French bishop and most eloquent and influential spokesman for the rights of the French church against papal authority. He is now chiefly remembered for his literary works, including funeral panegyrics for great personalities. (Enc. Br.) 26:241 29:787
Boston capital of Massachusetts, U.S.A. It is the cultural, commercial, and industrial centre of New England and a major seaport, located at the head of Massachusetts Bay. (Enc. Br.) n 1:127 V:4
Boswell, James (1740-95), Scottish biographer. His Life of Samuel Johnson, LL. D. (1791) is acclaimed as one of the world's greatest biographies. (Col. Enc.) 3:231
Botha, General Louis Botha (1862-1919), soldier and statesman who was the first prime minister of the Union of South Africa and a staunch advocate of a policy of recon- ciliation between Boers and Britons so as to form a united South African nation. (Enc. Br.) 1:74 Bothie (ofTober-na-Vuolich) later name of one of dough's major works originally called The Bothie of Toper-na-Fuosich (1848),
a poem written in hexameters. In spite of its occasional humorous touches the poem is essentially preoccupied with social prob- lems. (Col. Enc.) 5:346 11:27-29
Botticelli, Sandro (1445-1510), one of the greqsatest of the early Renaissance Florentine painters whose "Birth of Venus" and "Primavera" express to modern viewers the spirit of the Renaissance itself. (Enc. Br.) 9:537
Boulogne city and port on the coast of northern France, southwest of Calais at the mouth of the Liane River and 28 miles across the English Channel from Folkstone, England. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Bourbon(s) The House of Bourbon was one of the most important ruling houses of Europe. Its members were descended from Louis I, due de Bourbon from 1327 to 1342. The Bourbons ruled in France (1589-1792 and 1814-48), in Spain (1700-1931 with the exception of a few years), and in Naples and Sicily (roughly from 1734 to 1860). (Enc. Br.) D 1:335 3:225 15:357, 421 16:324
Boutros Pasha Butrus Ghali Pasha, a Copt who succeeded Mustafa Fahmi as premier of Egypt. He was assassinated (in 1910) by a Muslim extremist a few days after the project (supported by Butrus) for the extension of the Suez Canal Company's 99-year con- cession by 40 years was thrown out by the General Assembly. (Enc. Br., Macro, Vol. 6, p. 497) 2:406
Bow See Archer
Bow Bazar a locality in central Calcutta. D 2: 145
Br. probably, Birendranath Roy, a servant (cook) who came to Pondicherry with Nagen Nag in July 1913. He became a member of Sri Aurobindo's household. In fact, Biren was a secret agent of the Bengal govern- ment. (For further details see Purani's Life of Sri Aurobindo) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]'
Bradlaugh, Charles (1833-91), English social reformer and advocate of free thought, a secularist, and an M.P. His genuine pro- Indian attitude in the House of Commons
Page 53
earned him the sobriquet "Member for India". (Enc. Am.; Col. Enc.) 1:343
Bradlaugh Hall a hall located in Lahore in the Punjab (now in Pakistan), with a seating capacity of about 3000. It was the venue of a convention of the Moderates held in December 1909. (A) 2:329-30 4:237
Bradley, Francis Herbert (1846-1924), influential English philosopher of the absolute Idealist school, which based its doctrines on the thought of the German philosopher Hegel and considered mind as a more fundamental feature of the universe than matter. (Enc. Br.) 22:158, 160
Brahma (Brahma), in the late Vedic period, one of the major gods of Hinduism, the first member of the Hindu Triad, whose other two members, Vishnu and Shiva, enjoy much more popular worship. He is the Creator, "the Eternal's Personality of Existence" (17:47). (The name Brahma is not found in the Vedas or the Brahmanas, in which the active creator is known as Hiranya-garbha, Prajapati, Brahmanaspati etc.). Brahma is said to have been born from a golden egg, and, in turn, to have created the Earth and all things on it. Later myths describe him as having come forth from a lotus that issued from Vishnu's navel. He is therefore often depicted as seated on a lotus. (Note: Brahma, the nominative of the masculine noun Brahman, is not to be confused with Brahman, the neuter noun, which is the ultimate reality of the universe.) (Dow.; Enc.Br.) 2:148 3:358, 452 5:40, 80, 253, 302 7: 808, 1008 8: 32-33, 126, 399 10: 137, 306-07, 310, 312, 334-35 11: 3, 81, 445, 455 12: 39, 168, 269, 323, 367, 373, 381, 416, 448, 506-07 13: 85, 264, 283, 365-66, 374, 376-77, 413 14:137, 151, 340 15:5 16:319, 360 17:47-48, 59, 98 20:365 22:342, 390-91 23: 977 27: 152, 159 29:525 I: 41 VI:193 VII: 73 XII: 174 XVI: 134, 146 XVIII: 140
Brahmabandhab See Upadhyay(a), Brahmabandhab
Brahmaloka; Brahman-world theflrstof the eight lokas or regions of material existence recognised by the Sankhya and Vedanta schools of philosophy. According to Sri Aurobindo it is (1) the "world of the Brahman in which it [the soul] is one with the infinite existence and yet in a sense still a soul able to enjoy differentiation in the oneness" (12: 225) and (2) "the condition of being near to HIRANYAGARBHA in the causal body" (12: 467). (Dow.; A) 4:58, 310 12:225-26, 460, 466-68, 477 13:80 18:23, 257 20:485 22:110 24:1484-85 26:114 11:76, 78-80
Brahmana I. a variant of BRAHMIN 2. See Brahmana(s)
Brahmananda a yogi who was living at Ganganath temple on the banks of the Narmada, near Chandod, when Sri Aurobindo visited him for darshan and blessings in the beginning of 1905. Brahmananda passed away shortly thereafter. (Purani;A&R) 23:612 26:18-20, 50-51, 352-53
Brahmananda, Swami (1863-1922), the first president of the Sri Ramakrishna Mission, born Rakhal Chandra. After coming in contact with Sri Ramakrishna, he renounced the worldly life and became a sannyasi. (S.B.C.) 26:63-64
Brahmana(s) prose commentaries on the .Vedas, explaining the significance of the Vedas with regard to the ritual sacrifices and the symbolic import of the priests' actions. Their principal concern is with the sacrifice, and they are the oldest extant sources for the history of Indian ritual. According to Western scholars the Brahmanas belong to the period 900-700 BC. (Enc.Br.) Der:
Brahmanic 3: 116, 170, 296 4: 21 9: 18 10: 2-4, 11-13, 15, 19, 122, 155, 215, 333, 441 11: 1, 5, 469, 471, 475 12: 401, 410, 448 13:475 14:150, 261, 274 15:3 17:337 VI: 169 VIII: 143 X: 160 XV: 7, 20-21 XVI: 132, 138, 156, 167 XVII: 30-32, 35-36
Brahmanaspati a Rig-vedic deity who is the Lord of the divine Word (Brahman); the Creator (by the Word); the Vedic original of the later Puranic Brahma. He evokes the worlds. (M.W.-J&G) o 4:30 10:159, 172, 259, 306-07, 334-35, 337, 343, 438, 522 11:3, 28, 33 17:85 XIV: 108, 110 XVI: 173
Brahmaputra a major stream of central and south Asia, having a total length of 1800 miles. Flowing across Tibet, Arunachal Pradesh, and Assam it passes through Bangladesh to the Bay of Bengal, where it forms, with the Ganga and Meghna rivers, a vast delta. (Enc.Br.) Var: Brahmapootra a 9:145, 376 1:22 VII: 30
Brahma Samaj See Brahmo (Samaj) Brahmasutras or Vedanta Sutras, one of the main texts of Vedanta philosophy by Badarayana or Vyasa. It is an aphoristic work consisting of 555 sentences which are difficult to fathom without the help of a commentary. Many commentaries exist,
Page 54
among which Shankaracharya's, an important work of the Advaita school of Vedanta, is the most famous. (Dow.; Enc. Br.; I & G) 12:427 13:398 14:181 17:292 27:304
Brahmavarta ancient name of a place of Hindu pilgrimage in the region of Kurukshetra in North India. In mythology, it denoted the area lying between the rivers Saraswati and Drishadwati, both of which cannot be precisely identified. (M.N.; D.I.H.) 3:204-05
Brahmin a member (Dwija) of the first or highest class of the ancient Chaturvama of India which unlike its present degenerated form, the caste system, where a son of a Brahmin is always a Brahmin was based upon the idea that man falls by his nature into four types. The economic order of society was in the form and gradation of these types. Calm, self-control, askesis, purity, candour, learning etc. were the characteristic qualities of the Brahmin. The Brahmin class gave the community its priests, thinkers, men of letters, legislators, scholars, religious leaders and guides. The connotation of the term has been extended by Sri Aurobindo to cover such classes in other countries also. (A) Var: Brahmana Der: Brahmanic; Brahmanical; Brahmanya; Brahmanyam; Brahmatej(as); Brahminhood; Brahminic; Brahminical; Brahminicide; Brahminism 1:66, 125, 145-46, 148, 235, 301, 315, 537, 598, 632-33, 646, 759, 772, 817 2:11-13, 29, 84, 89, 180, 265, 358-59, 396, 426-27 3:30, 79, 111-12, 143, 171, 180, 338, 452 4:15, 22, 24, 38, 58, 70, 98-99, 140, 166, 193-94, 252, 268, 306-07, 319 5:78, 85, 283 6:293 7:926, 932, 939, 942, 948, 956-57, 999 8: 9, 19, 29, 34, 53-55, 57, 65, 67-68, 72, 82, 92, 254 10:5, 160, 352 11:451-52 12:238, 253, 323, 326, 441-42, 455 13:81, 189, 193, 320, 492, 494, 496-98, 505-06 14:17, 52, 111, ' 131, 146, 189, 280, 316, 324-26, 329, 331, 342, 347, 349-51, 355-56, 359 15:4-5, 7-8, 17, 117-18, 269-70, 353-55, 424, 430, 463-64 17:100, 121-22, 211, 393 21:714-15 22:154, 404, 433, 486-87 23:795 26:130 27:359, 362-63, 454, 460 1:27, 57 11:61, 63, 66 111:5, 8, 13, 16 IV: 171, 193 V:2 VI: 157-59 IX: 29-30 XIII: 35 XV: 73 XVI: 170 XVIII: 134, 136 XIX: 5, 7
Brahmo (Samaj) a nineteenth-century, quasi-Protestant, theistic movement within the fold of Hinduism, founded in Calcutta in 1828 by Raja Rammohan Roy. A member of the Samaj was known as a Brahmo. The movement soon spread throughout Bengal and also in other provinces. Brahmo Samaj did not accept the authority of the Vedas, discarded Hindu ritual and adopted some Christian practices in its worship. It
denounced polytheism, idol worship, and the caste system. But after some time there arose differences among the Brahmos and in the 1860s and 1870s the society broke up into two and then three bodies with slightly different names: (1) the "Adi Brahmo Samaj" of Debendranath Tagore, (2) the "Brahmo Samaj of India" led by Keshab Sen, and (3) the "Sadharan Brahmo Samaj", an offshoot of No. 2 formed by members who broke with Keshab Sen in 1878. The Brahmo movement had considerable success with its programmes of social reform but has never had a significant popular following. (Enc. Br.; Gordon) Var: Brahma Samaj 1:190, 314, 495, 654 3:99-100 4:250, 318, 320 14:418 27:46, 62.496
Braja name given to a region in the Yamuna valley in Uttar Pradesh which includes Mathura, Vrindavan and other smaller holy towns and villages associated by Vaishnava devotees with the lives of Krishna and Radha. (D.I.H.) n 8:248, 285, 301
Brajamohan College a national educational institution which was run by Aswini Kumar Dutt at Barisal in Bengal (now in Bangladesh); "a model for any educational institution in the world". (A) a 2:89
Brajendra Kishore Brajendra Kishore Roy Choudhury (18847-1957), one of the greatest zamindars of East Bengal, belonging to Gauripore in Mymensingh district. The Swadeshi movement flourished very much in his zamindari. Although obliged to remain in the background, he promoted the national. ist movement by helping some of its key figures. He also donated munificently to the cause of education. (D.N.B.) a 1:156
Brati-Samity an association of national volunteers at Faridpur in East Bengal. It was declared unlawful in January 1909 along with some other associations. (A; P.T.I.; R.O.H.) 1:376
Brazil a country in northern and eastern South America occupying nearly half the continent. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Breci an Italian regicide. The judge of his case, instead of ordering him to be hanged, gave him seven years' solitary imprisonment. Within a year Breci went mad. (A) 0 4:278
Page 55
Breton native of Brittany, a historic province of France, a 1:38, 526 15:291, 310
Breton (language) a member of the Brythonic group of Celtic languages, spoken in Brittany in northwestern France by about one million persons. It was introduced into France in the 5th and 6th centuries by Celtic refugees displaced from southern England by the influx of Anglo-Saxons. Two standardised forms of Breton were developed in the mid-20th century in attempts to encourage the literary development of the language; but the French government encourages the use of French rather than Breton, and the number of Breton-speakers is declining. (Enc. Br.) n 15:480, 496
Briareus also called Aegaeon, in Greek mythology, one of the three 100-armed and 50-headed monsters, the sons of the deities Uranus and Ge. (Enc. Br.) n 9:317
Bridges, Robert Robert (Seymour) Bridges (1844-1930), English poet laureate from 1913 until his death, noted for his technical mastery of prosody and for his sponsorship of the poetry of his friend Gerard Manley Hopkins. Bridges produced short lyrics, long poems, plays in verse, and critical studies of Milton and Keats. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Bridgean; Bridgesean 5:344, 358, 551-52 9:395, 399-400 26:306 11:29-31
Brigida a character cousin of Ismenia in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. 0 7:821, 825, 827, 829.837-41, 848-49, 851-54, 856-61, 863, 865, 870-79
Brihadaranyaka an Upanishad ascribed to the sage Yajnavalkya. It belongs to the Shukia (White) Yajurveda, to the Kanvi branch of its Vajasaneyi Brahmana. (Up. K.) Var: Brihadaranyakopanishad;
Brihad Aranyaka; Great Aranyaka 10:130 11:499 12:93, 134, 211, 393, 397-99 14:146 18:11, 188, 412, 452, 524, 553, 596 19:657:792, 824 27: 211., 300 IX: 10 XV: 20 XVIII: 156-57 XX: 117
Brihadrath(a)' an Indian king of the Mahabharata period, builder of the strong nation of the Magadhas. (A) Der: Barhadratha (of Brihadratha) 3:190-91 8:41, 52, 57
Brihadratha2 a Vedic Rishi. The name is mentioned twice in the Rig-veda, in both cases along with Navavastva. The name may thus be an epjthet of Navavastva. (Sri Aurobindo does not interpret the word Navavastva as the name of a person, but translates it literally as "new dwelling".) (V. Index) a 11:49 .
Brihaduktha (Vamadevya) a Vedic Rishi, a descendant of Vamadeva. 1-1 10:515-16 Brihajjabala name of a minor Upanishad. a XX: 116
Brihaspati 1. In the Rig-veda, the Master of the creative Word (the stress in the name falling upon the potency of the Word rather than upon the thought of the general soulpower which is behind it). In the Vedic text the names Brihaspati and Brahmanaspati alternate, and are equivalent to each other. 2. In later times Brihaspati is a Rishi; also regent of the planet Jupiter (the name is commonly used for the planet itself). 3. In the Puranas, spiritual guide of the gods and counsellor to Indra. (I & G; Dow.) Var:
Brihasapati (a misspelling); Brihuspathy;
Brihuspati 3:177 8:131, 196 10:56, 119, 135, 137-39, 148, 152, 154, 156, 159-61, 170-71, 174, 177, 189, 195, 206, 229, 235, 259, 303-13, 343, 426, 441 11:3, 22, 44, 143, 197, 445, 460 12:317, 326, 335, 389, 522 13: 349 17:259-62 22:390 27:156 IV: 129, 136, 143 VIII: 147 X: 179 XVI: 132 XIX: 54 See also Jupiter'.
Brinda in Hindu mythology, a traditional duti (female messenger) who re-united lovers. (A) I:187
Brindaban; Brindabon; Brindavan See Vrindavan
Briseis daughter of Briseus (spelt "Brises" in Ilion). She was captured in the Trojan War by Achilles, who made her his slaveconcubine. She was taken from Achilles by Agamemnon, and this set off the quarrel between them. The "wrath of Achilles" was aroused, and it is this wrath which forms the central "problem" of the Iliad. Briseis was eventually returned to Achilles. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 3:61 5:421, 463-64, 467, 488-90 .
Brises Briseus, a Trojan ofLyrnessus, father of BRISEIS. His town was sacked by Achilles, who killed him and carried off his daughter. (M.I.) a 5:436, 489
Bristol city and former county borough in the county of Avon (until 1974 it was in Gloucestershire), England. (Enc. Br.) 7:1044-45
Bristow Tragedy Bristowe Tragedy, a poem by Chatterton, one of those poems whose vigour and beauty established him as a
Page 56
precocious genius and later made him a hero to the Romantic and Pre-Raphaelite poets. (Col. Enc.)I: is
Britain conventional name applied to Great Britain of the period before the Germanic invasions in the 5th and 6th centuries. Great Britain is the largest of the British Isles; politically, since 1707, the name has been given to England, Wales, and Scotland. Var: Britannia Der: British; Britisher;
Briton (native of Great Britain or the British Empire) 1:5-6, 8, 13, 18, 20, 23, 26, 32, 55-56, 88, 91-95, 101-02, 106, 108, 110-11, 120, 126-27, 132, 136-38, 145-46, 154, 156, 159-60, 164, 168, 172, 176-80, 184, 186-87, 189-90, 192, 198-99.203, 207, 209, 212-18.232, 234, 236-37, 253, 260-62, 267, 269, 280, 284-87, 292, 294-95, 297-98, 300, 302, 304-05, 307-08, 310-12, 314-16, 319-20, 322-25, 332-34, 336-37, 339, 343, 346, 348, 350, 353-54, 362, 365, 367, 372-73, 388, 393-96, 409, 413, 415, 417-18, 421, 423, 426-27, 431-34, 440-43, 446-51, 453-54, 457, 460, 462-63, 478, 496, 500-01, 503, 506, 508-13, 521-23, 526, 539, 552, 556, 564-65, 568, 573-74, 577-78, 593, 598, 602, 606-07, 623-25, 627-29, 631, 633, 641, 657, 674, 679-80, 685-86, 706, 715, 722, 727, 729-30, 736, 738, 740, 744, 752-53, 755, 774-78, 790-91, 802-05, 816, 824, 827-28, 835, 853, 857, 876-77, 903-04 2:12, 18, 22-23, 26-28, 31-34, 49, 53-56, 59, 79, 94, 120-23, 128, 135, 154, 160-61, 170, 184, 204-05, 207, 223, 233, 235-37, 246, 249, 260-62, 267, 269, 284, 296, 298-302, 306, 320, 327, 332, 347, 353, 356, 373-74, 381-82, 387, 389-91, 393-94, 404 3:51, 203, 359, 454, 465-66, 472 4:135, 149, 166-67, 176-77, 182, 197, 203-06, 211-12, 215, 218, 220-22, 225-26, 229, 232-33, 237-38, 240, 243, 249, 257, 265, 267-68, 271, 276, 283-84, 286, 290-91, 293 5:177 6:543 8:331, 356 9:549 14:178, 346, 367, 378 15:151, 286, 291, 294, 299, 306, 308-14, 316, 318, 321, 380, 420, 444, 447, 479-80, 493, 498, 506, 512, 515, 519, 521, 616, 620, 645-47 17:180, 360, 362 26:3, 14, 17, 21, 24-27, 29, 31, 35-37, 39, 42, 44, 54, 57, 60-62, 70, 169, 324, 375-76, 393-95, 397, 399-400, 402, 404, 407-10, 421, 429-30, 432, 435 27:3-5, 8, 10-13, 15-18, 20-21, 23, 32-33, 44, 49, 51-52, 60, 63-65, 110-13, 121, 431, 443, 445-48, 464, 466-67, 470, 499, 501 1:70 11:3, 84 111:5, 7-8, 10-11, 13-15 IV: 196 V: 3-4, 100 VIII: 122, 125 XIII: 28-29 XIV: 103, 106 XV: 61, 71 XVII: 68 XXI: 71
Britannia the Latin name of Britain, and a poetic name for Britain personified. (Ox. Comp.) (Indexed with Britain)
British Isles Island group of western Europe comprising Great Britain, Ireland, and adjacent islands, a'3:264 15:310, 410, 475 X: 147
Brittany or Britanny, a historic province of northwestern France, now divided into five departments. A native of the region is known as a Breton; the same word is used for the region's language. (Enc. Br.) 3:186
Broceliande The Forest of Broceliande was, in Arthurian legend, the home of Merlin in Brittany, France. Only a little of this once vast forest now remains as the Forest of Paimpont. (Col. Enc.) D 5:174
Brodrick William St. John Fremantle Brodrick (1856-1942), 1st Earl of Middleton, British statesman who, after holding other offices, became Secretary of State for India in 1903, and supported Earl Kitchener against Baron (Lord) Curzon, leading to the latter's resignation in 1905. (Enc. Am.) 1:849 2:267
Bromius Bromios, a title of the Greek god Dionysus, meaning "the roaring (god)". 8:411 Bronson a barrister who abused Bengalis during the agitation against the Ilbert Bill (1909). Lalmohan Ghose retaliated vehemently in a speech at Dacca. As a result of that speech, Bronson found himself boycotted by Indian attorneys and was compelled to leave India. (A) 4:196
Brontes three English sisters, all writers Charlotte Bronte (1816-55), novelist; Emily Jane Bronte (1818-48), novelist and poet; and Anne Bronte (1820-49), novelist; (there was also a brother, Patrick Branwell Bronte, 1817-48, gifted with talents for writing, painting, and fine classical scholarship, but a failure in life) whose personal history as a family has stimulated the popular imagination because their lonely and tragic lives were imbued with the same emotional intensity as those of the heroes and heroines of their great novels. (Enc. Br.) 3:93
Bronze Age the third phase in the development of man's material culture, following the Paleolithic and Neolithic Ages; also, the first period in which metal was used. The date the age began varied with regions; in Greece, for instance, the Bronze Age began before 3000 BC, whereas in China it did not
Page 57
start until c. 1800 BC. The beginning of the period is sometimes called the Chalcolithic (Copper-Stone) Age. There was no true Bronze Age in the Western Hemisphere. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n XIV: 119
Brooke, Rupert (1887-1915), English poet, a well-born, gifted, remarkably handsome youth, whose early fame and tragic death in World War I have made him almost a legendary figure. His two slender volumes contain only a few poems. (Enc. Br.) 9:347
Broome (Wilson) See Wilson
Brotteaux a character an unabashed scoffer — in Anatole France's Les Dieux ont soif. (A) 9:557
Browning, Robert (1812-89), one of the great poets of the Victorian age, noted for his mastery of dramatic monologue and rich psychological portraiture. (Enc. Br.) 9:2, 26-27, 51, 69, 105-06, 133, 139-41, 163, 173, 226, 301, 474, 542 29:754
Browning, Mrs. Elizabeth Barret Browning (1806-61), wife of Robert Browning; a minor, though by no means negligible, English poet whose reputation rests chiefly upon her Sonnets from the Portuguese. (Enc.Br.) 27:94 Browning, Oscar (1883-1929), University lecturer in history at Cambridge, an extraordinary character known to many generations of Cambridge men as "The O.B." He belonged in spirit to the Elizabethan age. A clever conversationalist, he entertained largely and showed kindness to innumerable young men. He was associated as a founder, head, or otherwise, with a large number of educational and cultural organizations. He was also a writer, an author of several books, historical, biographical etc. He received the O.B.E. in 1923. 27:419 11:87
Bruce Robert the Bruce, or Robert I (1274-1329), king of Scotland (1306-29). He was the most famous member of the Bruce family. After his defeat at Methven, he took refuge in wild country until he could gather up his power. According to legend, the Bruce, at this time of discouragement, learned courage and hope from watching a spider persevere in spinning its web. (Col. Enc.) arench Republican Calendar. The coup d'etat of 18-19 Brumaire (November 9-10, 1799) established the Consulate under Napoleon. (Col. Enc.) 22:496
Brummagem colloquial form of Birmingham (England); name given to a counterfeit coin first made in Birmingham.
Hence the term is applied to anything not genuine. (Col. Enc.) a l: 18, 606 2:153
Brummel See Beau Brummel
Bruno, Giordano (1548-1600), Italian philosopher, astronomer, mathematician, and occultist whose theories anticipated modern science. He challenged all dogmatism. In 1591 he was accused of heresy by the Inquisition and, after imprisonment, was burnt to death. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 15:165 16:219 Brussels capital of Belgium and of Brabant province in the valley of the Senne River. The Germans occupied it during both World Wars. (Enc.Br.; P.P.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Brutus a character Prince of Britain mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The House of Brut. 7:883
Bryan, William Jennings (1860-1925), American Democrat and Populist leader, and a magnetic orator who ran unsuccessfully three times for the presidency of the United States, in 1896, 1900 and 1908. He was an opponent of trusts and imperialism. Bryan held the post of Secretary of State from 1913 to 1915. (Enc.Br.; Gilbert, p. 53) a 2:356 .
Buchanan Colonel Buchanan, the Inspector General of Prisons in Bengal around 1908. 4:274
Buckingham, the second duke of George Villiers (1628-87), English politician, a leading member of King Charles II's inner circle of ministers. He had exquisitely refined tastes, and wrote poetry, religious tracts, and plays. He was the chief author of a celebrated satire on heroic drama. The Rehearsal, directed in its later version against John Dryden. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 9:387
Bucoleon in Sri Aurobindo's llion, by "Bucoleon's son" is meant Anchises, although the latter's father is usually said to be Capys. Bucoleon was the eldest son of Laomeodon. (M.I.) 5:398
Budaricashram; Budaricayshwur the most famous place of Hindu pilgrimage in North India, more popularly known as Badrinath or Badrinarayana. It is situated on the snowy heights of the Himalayas in Uttar Pradesh state, on the banks of the Ganga (called
Page 58
Alakananda in that area). The shrine is dedicated to Vishnu, particularly to his dual form of Nara-Narayana. (D.I.H.;Dow.) 1:803 5:201-02
Buddha; Gautama Buddha also known as Tathagata (c. 563-c. 483 ec), the renowned founder of Buddhism. His personal name was Siddhartha. He was born in a princely Kshatriya family of the name of Gautama in Kapilvastu in the Nepalese Terai. He renounced his home and family at the age of twenty-nine. After realising the Truth under the famous Bo-tree in modern Bodh-Gaya, he became known as the "Buddha" ("the Enlightened"). (Enc. Br.) The term Buddha is also used for an image of Buddha in art and architecture. See also Dhyani Buddha and Gandharan Buddha. Der: Buddhahood (the soul awakened from its mundane individuality into an infinite super-consciousness, see 13:153) a 1:613, 699, 704, 758, 768, 799 2:255, 397, 405 3:113, 169, 198, 213, 302, 344, 375, 458 4:73, 101, 122, 154, 227, 252 12:15, 30, 60, 457, 484-86, 490, 510 13:9, 29-31, 140, 151, 153, 156-58, 161-62, 164, 185, 272, 372, 462 14:65-66, 74, 94, 129, 150, 183, 187-88, 193, 195, 198-200, 204, 206, 209, 213, 232, 240, 250, 252, 327, 358, 372 15: 338 16:136, 151, 219, 292, 324-25, 339, 349, 364 17:2, 49, 153, 165, 180, 183, 278-79, 282, 299, 383 18:29-30, 40, 94, 415, 464, 487, 568 19:1050 20:59-60, 253, 259 21:532, 561, 575 22: 59-63, 66-67, 69, 85, 92-93, 95, 97, 192, 248, 392, 402-05, 407-08, 410, 418, 423, 428-29, 456, 491 23:614, 619, 1037 24:1642, 1660, 1669, 1754 25:78, 275, 332, 370 26:75, 92, 118, 133-36, 240, 445-47, 463 27:44, 299, 314, 469 29:787 1:24, 27, 31, 41, 49, 58 11:59, 63 111:6, 75 IV: 166, 168 V: 61, 63, 77 -VI: 156, 164-66, 168, 170, 172-75 VII: 71 VIII: 171-72, 177-78, 181, 183, 186, 194 IX: 14, 31, 42-43 XIII: 24 XIV: 120, 126-27 XV: 43 XVI: 132, 180 XVII: 4, 24, 31, 36-37 XVIII: 152, 163 XIX: 54
Buddha, Amitabha See Amitabha Buddha
Buddh Gaya also spelled Bodh Gaya, a village in the Gaya district of Bihar state in India. It was here, under the sacred pipal or Bodhi (Bo) tree, that Gautama Buddha attained enlightenment and became the Buddha. (Enc. Br.) 4:227
Buddhism a pan-Asiatic religion and philosophy based on the 6th-century BC teaching of Gautama Buddha. Buddhism repudiates the authority of the Vedas; neither does it accept the existence of the
soul or God as assumed by Hindu philosophy. It does believe in the doctrine of rebirth and karma, which cease only with the extinction of desire. The religion is based on Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path. Buddhism has played an influential role in the spiritual, cultural, and social life of much of the Eastern world; during the present century it has attracted increasing interest and some adherents in the West. (Enc. Br.) Der: Buddhicised; Buddhist;
Buddhistic 1:481, 712, 768, 800-01, 844 2:19, 42, 84 3: 30, 113, 137, 142-43, 169, 172-74, 178, 198, 221-22, 225, 266, 296, 344, 379, 422 4:61, 73, 85, 92, 107, 115, 125, 143, 166, 227, 247, 252, 298 5:254 8: 327 10:13-14 12:12-13, 44, 116, 209, 233, 447, 458, 485, 493, 499, 522 13: 8, 78-79, 83, 97, 153, 161-62, 164, 224, 228, 325 14:14-17, 29, 58, 69, 71, 73-74, 81, 91, 125, 130, 132, 136, 150-51, 154, 168, 179-81, 193, 200, 205, 210, 240-41, 249, 251, 256, 270, 272, 294, 308, 315-16, 331, 351, 358-59, 363, 402, 404, 417 15:22, 153, 165, 302, 339 16: 80, 86, 90-92, 116-18, 125, 129-30, 135, 137, 151, 160, 163, 249, 309-10, 324, 339, 346-47, 349, 365, 394, 401, 405, 416 17:101, 131, 164, 168-69, 171-73, 181, 276, 281, 293, 303, 377 18:23, 27-28, 34, 49, 75, 77, 392, 416, 441, 467, 507, 512, 610 19:668, 746-47, 750-51, 884, 1051 20:142, 274, 342, 346, 360, 382, 411, 422, 438, 505 21:532, 554, 664, 857 22:25, 46, 55, 61-68, 128, 143, 158, 163, 235, 273, 402-04, 483 23:556, 608, 614, 619, 768, 805, 871 24:1193, 1635 26:106, 116, 138, 503 27:46, 242-43, 268, 284, 311, 322, 339, 341, 475 1:28, 31, 50 11:58, 67 IV: 166, 168 V: 54-55, 63, 71-72 VI: 161, 164, 168-73, 176-80 VII: 78 VIII: 169, 171-72, 186, 194 IX: 14-15, 31, 61 X: 148, 161 XI: 33 XII: 189 XIII: 13, 30 XTV:132 XVI: 180-81 XVII: 24-25, 27, 34 XVIII: 158, 160 XIX: 80
Buddhist-Confucian system possessing characteristics of both Buddhism and Confucianism, 27:284 Budha in Hindu astronomy, the planet MERCURY. In Hindu mythology, Budha is the son of Soma (the Moon) by TARA (wife of Brihaspati). Budha is also the name of the author of a hymn in the Rig-veda. (Dow.) 3:270 7:909, 1008 11:201 17:259-62 X: 152
Bug, the Bug River, tributary of the Vistula River, rising in the western Ukranian S.S.R. For about 125 miles of its course the Bug now forms the international frontier between Poland and the U. S.S.R. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Page 59
Bulgaria a socialist republic in southeast Europe, in the Balkan Peninsula. Its capital is Sophia. Before World War II Bulgaria was a monarchy. (Col. Enc.) Der: Bulgarian 1:332, 557 15:502 XXI: 71, 102 XXII: 133
Bulgar(s) a people known in East European history from the 6th century AD. They probably originated as a Turkish tribe of central Asia and arrived in the European steppe west of the Volga River with the Huns (c. AD 370). The eastern Bulgars were a people, probably speaking a Finnic language, who possessed a powerful state (8th-13th cent.) at the confluence of the Volga and the Kama in East European Russia. Another branch of the same people moved west into present Bulgaria, where they merged with the Slavs. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n 10:553 15:287, 295
Bull Taurus, a zodiacal constellation, represented pictorially as the fore part of a bull. Two notable star clusters, the Pleiades and the Hyades, are found in Taurus. It is the second sign of the zodiac, called Vrsa in Hindu astronomy. (Col. Enc.) a 17:257-58, 260
Bulletin of Physical Education or Bulletin a'education physique, a. quarterly bilingual (English and French) journal founded in 1949. In 1959 the name was altered to Bulletin of Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education or Bulletin du Centre International d'Education Sri Aurobindo. It is published by the Ashram. 16:pre., l, 4, 9 26:377, 504-06
Bundhumathie in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta, the captive princess of Sourashtra, serving Vasavadutta under the name of Munjoolica. (A) D 6:207, 314, 322
Bunyan, John (1628-88), celebrated English minister and preacher, author of The Pilgrim's Progress. (Enc. Br.) a 24:1634
Burdwan city (administrative headquarters), district, and division of Bengal (now West Bengal state). (Enc. Br.) a 1:437-38, 626-27
Burke, Edmund (1729-97), British statesman and political thinker prominent from 1765 to c. 1795 and important in the history of political theory. He was a member of the House of Commons from 1765 to 1794. Burke was a great rhetorician. His speeches delivered in connection with the impeachment of Warren Hastings "made for an awareness of the responsibilities of empire and the injustices in India unknown before in England". . (Enc.Br.;Col._Enc.) 1:54, 188, 448, 464, 519, 648 4:218'
26:241 29:787 111:10-11
Burma country lying to the east of India, having Rangoon as its capital. In 1886 it was united with India under British rule; but this union was terminated constitutionally in 1935. Presently it is a socialist republic. (D.I.H.) 1:312 2:1, 215, 307 14:43 26: 48 27:58.122
Burmese the official language of the Union of Burma, spoken as a native language by almost 20 million Burmese. Burmese belongs to the Tibeto-Burman group of the SinoTibetan language family. The earliest extant Burmese writing dates from the middle of the llth century and is written in an alphabet derived from that of the Pali language. (Enc. Br.) a 3:36
Bums, Robert (1759-96), poet whose ability to enter into the spirit of older folk song and to assume the ancient role of Scottish bard has made him the national poet of Scotland and one of the best loved poets of all time. (Enc.Br.) n 9:93 1:9 11:11
Burt a veteran member of the Labour party in England who represented the old-world element and was therefore asked (1909) to quit the Labour organization, which had become predominantly socialistic. (A) n 2:285
Burton, Sir Richard Francis (1821-90), English explorer, writer, and linguist. He published an unexpurgated translation of the Arabian Nights. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) n 26:234
Bushido "Code of Warriors", the military code of the Samurai (warrior) class of Japan that in the mid-19th century was made the basis of ethical training for the whole society, with the emperor replacing the feudal lord as the object of loyalty and sacrifice. As such it contributed to the rise of Japanese nationalism and to the strengthening of wartime civilian morale up to 1945. (Enc. Br.) D 1:379-80
Bushman member of a nomadic people living in the region of the Kalahari desert in southwestern Africa. (Web.) D 15:59
Buxar a town in Shahabad district, Bihar state, just south of the Ganga River. A place of great sanctity, it is believed to have been originally called Vedagarbha (Womb of the Veda). (Enc.Br.) a 2:2 4:300-01 vm: 121
Page 60
Byron, Lord George Gordon, 6th Baron Byron (1788-1824), English poet and satirist whose poetry and personality captured the imagination of Europe. His attitude of ironic despair and aspirations for political liberty made him the universal symbol of the Romantic poet. (Enc. Br.) Der: Byronic D 1:456 3:147, 231 5:8 9:2, 25-26, 44, 51, 74, 92, 94, 100, 112, 116-20, 123, 126-27, 129-31, 133, 192, 253, 309, 478, 522 26:262 27:81, 92 29:800 H:17 III: 11
Byshak, Gaurdas (1826-99), a Deputy Magistrate of Calcutta, associated in various capacities with a number of literary, cultural, and social organizations. He was an intimate friend of Madhusudan Dutt, and a man of critical ability and appreciative temper, a man not only of culture, but of original culture. (S.B.C.;A) n 3:78
Byzantine Empire the Eastern counterpart and successor to the Roman Empire of the West, also called the Eastern Empire and the East Roman Empire. It was named after Byzantium, which Emperor Constantine I rebuilt (AD 330) as Constantinople (present Istanbul) and made the capital of the entire Roman Empire. Afterwards the division into Eastern and Western empires became permanent. (Col. Enc.) 15:287
C
Caanou a corrupt form of the Hindi word Kanhu or Kanhaiya, a name of Krishna. D [Indexed with Krishna]
Cabbala esoteric system of interpretation of the Hebrew scriptures based on the assumption that every word, letter, number, and even accent in them has an occult meaning. The system, oral at first, claimed great antiquity, but was really the product of the Middle Ages, arising in the 7th century and lasting into the 18th. It was popular chiefly among Jews, but spread to Christians as well. (Col. Enc.) n 22:393
Cabool Kabul, city and capital of Afghanistan, on the Kabul River. (Col. Enc.) VarCaboul a 5:276, 283
Cacootstha (Kakutstha), in the Ramayana, a patronymic of Rama after his ancestor Kakutstha, a prince of the Solar race whose real name was Puranjaya. As related in the Vishnu Pwana, to help the gods in their war with the Asuras during the Treta Yuga, Puranjaya rode on a bull (the form assumed by Indra), sitting upon his hump (kakut). Thus he obtained the cognomen of "Kakut-stha". (Dow.) D 8:21-22
Cadiz capital and principal seaport of Cadiz province in southwestern Spain, on a long narrow peninsula extending into the Gulf of Cadiz. (Enc.Br.) a 7:876
Cadmeian Thebes THEBES was founded by Cadmus, a son of Agenor, king of Tyre. He was led to the site of the city by a cow while searching for his sister Europa. Here he built the Cadmeia, the citadel of the later town of Thebes. Cadmus killed a dragon, an off-spring of Ares, to get water. Athena advised him to sow the teeth of the dragon. There came up a harvest of armed men, whom Cadmus killed by tricking them into fighting one another. Five survived and became the ancestors of the nobility of Thebes. (M.I.) 5:479
Caesar' See (Julius) Caesar or Caesar(s)
Caesar2 a character Julius Caesar in Bernard Shaw's play Caesar and Cleopatra. 9:548
Caesar and Cleopatra a historical play (1899) by George Bernard Shaw; it was outstandingly successful. (Col. Enc.) 9:548
Caesar Borgia See Borgia, Caesar Caesar(s) Originally the word 'Caesar' was part of the name 'Julius Caesar'. Afterwards it became a title adopted by Roman emperors from Augustus to Hadrian. Hadrian kept the title Augustus for the emperor and allowed the heir apparent to be called Caesar. This became the custom subsequently. The imperial use of the name Caesar was perpetuated in the German Kaisar and the Russian Czar. (Col. Enc.) 1:769 2:122, 400 3:11, 110 15:296, 299 III: 7 IX: 28
Cafoor a companion of Nureddene in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. 07:572, 627, 643, 645-46
Cailleux, Joseph (-Marie-Auguste) (1863-1944), French statesman, fiscal expert, and pacifist. He was finance minister in the cabinets of 1899 and 1906, and became premier in 1911. In an attempt to defuse a political crisis with Germany, he negotiated a settlement that gave France a protectorate over the North African territory in exchange for generous concessions in Central Africa. This compromise brought a massive public attack upon his patriotism, and his government fell in 1912. In 1913 he again became
Page 61
finance minister, but in 1914 he resigned after his wife shot dead a newspaper editor, CALMETH. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Cain in the Old Testament, the eldest son of Adam and Eve, a tiller of the soil. He became enraged when the Lord accepted the offering of his brother Abel, a shepherd, in preference to his own. He murdered Abel, and was consequently banished by the Lord from the settled country. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 17:117
Cairene See Cairo
Cairgonn high granite mountain forming part of the Grampians in Scotland; it is named after one of its peaks (Cairn Gorm, 4084 ft.) (Pears; Enc. Br.) Var: Caimgonn 0 5:379 11:29
Cairo a city, capital of Egypt, on the Nile at the head of the delta. It is the largest city of Africa. (Enc. Br.) Der: Cairene (of Cairo) D 7:597 14:367
Cakya-muni Sakya-muni, a name of Gautama Buddha, who was "Sage" (muni) amongst the SAKYAS (A) a 24:1669
Calais city and seaport in Picardy, France, opposite Dover, on the Strait of Dover. (Col. Enc.) 7:1048 Calcutta capital of Bengal (now of West Bengal state), India, and a major port on the River Hooghly. It is the largest city of India, and has figured prominently in the history of the country since the advent of the British. For a long time it was the capital of British India. (Enc. Br.) 1:16-17, 76, 81, 155-56, 166-68, 172, 189, 192, 194, 196, 201-02, 222, 243, 248, 262, 266, 270, 279, 287, 311, 360, 378, 387, 405-06, 408, 428-29, 455, 478-79, 486, 529, 551, 556-57, 587, 590-91, 593, 634, 638, 643, 655-56, 673, 676, 686, 707, 734, 740, 747, 749, 754-55, 782, 795, 804, 838-41, 850-51, 855, 864, 893, 898 2:25, 37, 44, 70, 102, 112, 124, 134-37, 187-88, 204, 206-07, 224, 226-27, 232, 241, 295, 309-10, 315-16, 319, 321, 338-39, 341-43, 353, 358, 368, 370, 375, 413 3:75, 99, 129, 421, 426, 459, 469 4:178, 181-82, 189, 198-99, 210, 216, 218, 226, 228, 232, 238, 268, 291 8:61, 320, 329, 331, 333, 355 9:548 12:55 14:422 17:302, 358 24:1562 25:221, 345 26:1, 14-15, 27-29, 32, 34, 37, 42, 44-45, 49, 57, 59-60, 65, 209, 226, 390 27:7, 18-19, 23, 25-29, 37-40, 42-44, 64, 67, 73, 75, 351-52, 417, 420, 426, 431, 439-40, 451-52, 462, 493 1:2, 5, 7, 37, 70 11:2-3, 85 VIII: 121, 124, 134 X: 187 XIV: 99, 102-03, 105-06 XV: 61 XVI: 193-94 XVII: 66-67, 69
Calcutta University the premier university in India, although its jurisdiction is now much less than it was during British days. It was founded in 1857 during the administration of Lord Canning. (Col. Enc.) a 2:139, 339, 486 3:76, 93
Calderon Pedro Calderon de la Barca (1600-81), Spanish dramatist, the last important figure of the Golden Age (the latter part of the 16th and most of the 17th century). His plays were carefully contrived, subtle, and rhetorical. (Col. Enc.) 0 7:825 9:44, 67, 521 1:7
Caledonian (native) of ancient Scotland. The name Caledonia occurs in the works of Lucan (1st century AD) and is still used rhetorically, usually to mean all of Scotland, though originally it was used for a smaller area of north Britain. (Col. Enc.) 1:53
Caliban a character a savage and deformed slave in Shakespeare's comedy The Tempest. (Shakes.) 0 26:337
Calindie a name of the river YAMUNA derived from the place-name of its source, Kalinda. (M.N.) a [Indexed with Yamuna]
Callias name of a Syrian soldier, mentioned in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. (It is a Greek name.) a 6:102
Callicrates a character a captain in the Syrian army in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. a 6:333, 396, 405-06, 411, 442, 459, 468
Calligula a typographical error for Caligula (AD 12-41), Roman emperor (AD 37-41), in succession to Tiberius. He was son of Germanicus Caesar. Though born Gaius Caesar, he became known as Caligula, his childhood nickname. (Enc. Br.) a 3:70
Callimachus (c. 305-c. 240 BC), Hellenistic Greek poet and scholar; the most representative poet of the erudite and sophisticated Alexandrian school. His literary quarrel with his former pupil, Apollonius of Rhodes, is famous. (Enc. Br.) a 3:235
Calmeth Gaston Calmette, editor of the influential French newspaper Le Figaro. He led the press campaign against Caillaux, who seemed to be moving to the left after resigning the premiership in 1912. When Calmette threatened to publish love letters between Caillaux and his mistress, who had by then become Mme Caillaux, she fatally shot him. (Enc. Br., under Caillaux) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov.1913-Oct.'27]
Calvary the hill outside the walls of old Jerusalem where Jesus Christ was crucified. By some it is identified with the old House of Stoning, or the place where criminals were
Page 62
executed by stoning and crucifixion. It could be seen easily from the city, and the whole population could witness the execution. (Enc. Am.) n 29:445 Calvin John (1509-64), French theologian, ecclesiastical statesman, and one of the most important Protestant reformers of the 16th century. Calvinism, in Christianity, has three different meanings: (1) the theology of John Calvin; (2) the developments of some of Calvin's doctrines by his followers; (3) the historical developments in various countries of doctrines and practices derived from the works of Calvin and his followers that became the distinguishing characteristics of the Reformed and Presbyterian churches. (Enc. Br.) Der: Calvinistic (pertaining to Calvinism) n 3:379 15:14 16:324 17:137 20:365 22:417
Calypso in Greek mythology, the daughter of the Titan Atlas (or Oceanus or Nereus). She was a nymph of the mythical island of Ogygia, where she entertained Odysseus for seven years. She offered to make him immortal if he would remain, but he spurned the offer and continued his journey. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 8:409
Cama See Kama(deva)
Cambodians inhabitants of Cambodia, former name of a republic (now officially called the Democratic Republic of Kampuchea or, during 1970-75, the Khmer Republic) occupying the southwestern part of the Indo-Chinese peninsula. (Enc. Br.; Web. N.C.D.) a 23:556
Cambre a proposed character — a son of Brutus; prince of Cambria mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The House of Brut. D. 7:883
Cambria ancient name of Wales. (Col. Enc.) n 7:883
Cambridge Municipal borough, county seat of Cambridgeshire in England, on the Cam (or Granta) River. The term is also used for Cambridge University at Cambridge, one of the two ancient universities of England. Although legends place its founding earlier, the university probably had its beginnings in the 12th century. (Col. Enc.) 1:3 3:56, 129-30, 132 26:2, 4.10, 13, 24, 52, 351 27:417 11:28.87 V: 100 XVII: 66, 73
Campbell, Thomas (1777-1844), English poet, remembered chiefly for his sentimental and martial lyrics. (Enc. Br.) D 11:11
Campbell-Bannerman, Sir Henry (1836-1908), British statesman who became leader of the Liberal party in 1895, and was prime minister from 1905 to 1908. (Col. Enc.) 1:456, 849 27:26
Canaan name given by the Hebrews to Palestine before they occupied it. It is the country lying between the Jordan, the Dead Sea, and the Mediterranean. It was the Promised Land of the Israelites, and after their delivery from Egypt they subjugated it. (Col. Enc.) 15:299
Canaca a character the king of Cashmere's jester in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. The name is also mentioned (as Toraman's Brahmin, his court jester) in the Dramatis Personae of the incomplete play The Prince of Mathura. 7:739, 780-85, 791-94, 891
Canada independent federal parliamentary state within the British Commonwealth of Nations, occupying about two-fifths of the continent of North America. (Enc. Br.) Der: Canadian 1:560, 575, 605 2:34, 78 4:218 15:286, 311-12, 314, 410, 517 1:2 111:29
Canda See Chandra'
Candahar See Kandahar
Candaraya See Chand
Candida a play by George Bernard Shaw, written in 1894, the first of the characteristically Shavian plays with dialogue that sparkles with paradoxes. It is about a heroine who is forced to choose between her clerical husband and a young poet. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br) 9:552
Canea one of the oldest cities on the island of Crete. It is the capital of Crete (now a part of Greece) and a port on the Gulf of Canea. (Col. Enc.) :168
Cannae ancient village in Apulia of southern Italy. It was the scene of a battle in 216 BC which ended in a crushing defeat of the Romans at the hands of the Carthaginian general Hannibal. (Col. Enc.) n 2:311
Canterbury a cathedral city in England; a county borough until 1974, now a borough in the county of Kent. (Enc. Br.) 1:190
Canton capital of Kwangtung province of China; the main commercial and industrial city of southern China. It was captured by the Japanese in 1938 and held by them until the end of the Second World War. The word occurs in Sri Aurobindo's poem "The Cosmic Man", written on 25-9-1938. (Col. Enc.; Enc.Br.;A) a 5:120 Canute Canute the Great (c. 995-1035), king of England and Denmark and, after 1028, of Norway. He was a dominant figure in Europe
Page 63
of the llth century. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 1:668
Capet(s) surname of the Prankish and French kings "of the third race" (the first and second "races" being the Merovingians and the Carolingians). The Capetians15 kings of the royal house of France ruled continuously from 987 to 1328. Hugh Capet removed the Carolingians for ever and became king of France in 987. His nickname gave the royal house its appellation (Capetians). His direct descendants remained on the throne till the death (1328) of Charles IV, when the throne passed to the related house ofValois. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 15:356 16:324
Capitol in ancient Rome, that summit of the Capitoline hill on which stood the magnificent temple of Jupiter. In this temple were kept the Sibylline books, and here the consuls took the vows on entering upon office. It was to this temple also that victorious generals were carried in triumph to render thanks to Jupiter. (Ox. Comp.) 1:148 5:428
Caprera a small island off the northeast coast of Sardinia, Italy. Garibaldi established himself there in 1856 and died there in 1882. His house and tomb are national monuments. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a 3:267 X: 149
Captive Lady the only English poem written by Madhusudan Dutt (1824-73). the famous Bengali poet and dramatist. (A; Enc. Br.) D 3:90
Caracalla nickname of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (188-217), Roman emperor (211-17) and an able soldier, noted both for his brutality and for his liberal extension of the rights of citizenship. (Enc. Br.) D 3:10
Carbonari members of a secret society which flourished in Italy, Spain, and France early in the 19th century. The origins and even the political programme of the Carbonari are matters of conjecture. The society appears to have originated in the kingdom of Naples. Beyond advocacy of political freedom its aims were vague. After 1830 the Italian Carbonari were gradually absorbed by the Risorgimento movement; elsewhere they disappeared. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a 1:722 2:163, 165
Carcotaka in Hindu mythology, name of a huge serpent (Naga), one of the offspring of KashyapaandKadru. (M.N.) n 5:252
Caria ancient region of southwestern Asia Minor, south of, the Maeander River. In the Trojan War, the Carians were allies of Troy. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) Der: Carian(s) 0 5:393, 405-06, 418
Caribbee a Carib Indian, a native formerly inhabiting the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies. Extremely warlike and ferocious, these people practised cannibalism. (Enc. Br.) D 19:762 XIV: 116
Carios a proposed character a student mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. n 7:821
Carlyle, ' Thomas (1795-1881), British man of letters, essayist, and historian. The leading social critic of his day, he influenced also men of a younger generation, among them Matthew Arnold and Ruskin. His style is one of the most tortuous yet effective in English literature. His On Heroes, Hero-Worship, and the Heroic in History was published in 1841. (Col.Enc.;Enc.Br.; Ox. Comp.) Der: Carlylean 4 3:77, 114 9:112, 134, 179 13:131 26: 314-15 IX: 32
Carlyle2 probably, R. W. Carlyle, officiating Chief Secretary to the Government of Bengal, who issued the notorious circular named after him (see the next entry). D 1:151
Carlyle Circular a secret circular (No. 1679 P.D., dated Darjeeling, 10 October 1905) issued to the magistrates and collectors over the signature of R. W. Carlyle, the officiating Chief Secretary to the Government of Bengal, for the steps to be taken against the spread of the Swadeshi movement among the students. (A; H.F.M.I.-II; I.F.F.) n 1:377, 406
Camduff, Justice H.W.C. Carnduff, I.C.S., a judge of the Special Bench Appeal Court in the Alipore Bomb Case (1909). In the judgement there was a difference of opinion between him and the Chief Justice in respect of five appellants. (A.B.T.) a 2:287
Camot, Sadi Marie-Francois-Sadi Carnot (1837-94), an engineer turned statesman who served as fourth president (1887-94) of the Third Republic of France until he was assassinated by an Italian anarchist. (Enc. Br.) D XX: 120
Carolean (poets) belonging to or typical of the age of Charles I of England (1625-42). (H.L.) a 9:80, 82
Page 64
Carpenter, Edward (1844-1929), English author and poet. He was identified with social reform and the late 19th-century anti-industrial arts and crafts movement. (Enc. Br.) 9:2, 18, 147-48, 152-55, 157, 196, 203, 229, 252
Canauthor of The Philosophy of Benedetto Croce. (A) 1-1 9:485
Carranza, Venustiano (1859-1920), Mexican statesman, a leader in the civil war following the overthrow of the dictator Porfirio Diaz, and the first president (1914-20) of the new Mexican Republic. The son of a landowner, Carranza became active in local and state politics in 1877. In 1910, he joined the struggle of Francisco Madero against Diaz, and in 1913 led the forces against Victoriano Huerta who had assassinated Madero. After Huerta fled in 1914, Carranza's Constitutionalist army began to splinter. See also Villa. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Cartesian of or relating to Cartesianism, which in its broadest sense is a set of philosophical traditions and scientific attitudes derived from the rationalistic mind/matter dualism of Rene Descartes (1596-1650), who argued that the idea of mind and matter and that of God are innate. Besides its dualistic metaphysics, Cartesianism is also known for its mechanistic physics and its deterministic ethics. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Carthage one of the best known cities of antiquity, on the north coast of Africa, near what is now Tunis. It was traditionally founded by the Phoenicians of Tyre in 814 BC. (Enc. Br.) Der: Carthaginian;
Carthagenian (probably a misspelling of Carthaginian) 1:306, 506, 854 5:420, 505 9:372 14:349 15:298, 320, 338, 341 24:1633
Cartoveriya See Kartavirya, Haihaya Arjuna
Cashmere; Cashmeri(an) See Kashmir
Cassandra in Greek legend, a Trojan princess, daughter of Priam and Hecuba. She was loved by Apollo but deceived him. In retaliation the god turned to a curse the gift of prophecy he had bestowed on her, causing her prophecies never to be believed. When Troy fell, she was dragged from the image of Athene where she had taken refuge and violated by the Locrian Ajax, and after the Trojan War she was the slave
of Agamemnon, whose wife, Clytemnestra, killed her. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:450-52, 454, 460, 503
Cassiope(a) a character Queen of Syria in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. (It should be remembered that the Syria of this play is "a Syria of romance, not of history". Cassiopia, in Greek mythology, was the Ethiopian queen who offended seanymphs by boasting about her own or her daughter's beauty). (A) 6:1, 3, 43-48, 50-54, 79, 103, 108-13, 119, 123-24, 131-37, 140-43, 147, 150, 166-67, 171-72, 176, 182-84, 186-87, 191-92, 199, 201
Cassius a character one of the conspirators against Julius Caesar in Shakespeare's historical tragedy Julius Caesar. Historically, Gaius Cassius Longinus was a Roman soldier who took a leading part in the conspiracy to assassinate Caesar. He later committed suicide. (Shakes.; Col. Enc.) a 12:38
Castiglione, Baldassare (1478-1529), Italian humanist, chiefly known for his prose dialogue // Cortegiano (1528). The work had much influence on the literature of England, e.g., on Surrey, Wyatt, Sidney, and Spenser. (Ox. Comp.) Q 1:7
Castile a region, and former kingdom, in central and northern Spain, traditionally divided into Old Castile, in the north, and New Castile, in the south. (Col. Enc.) Der: Castilians n 7: 825 15: 356
Castor and Pollux in Greek and Roman religion, twin heroes called the Dioscuri. They were gigantic and gifted in battle. Castor, the elder of the two, was particularly noted for training horses; Pollux was outstanding as a boxer. When Castor was killed during a dispute between the twin brothers, and Pollux refused immortality, Zeus transformed the brothers into the constellation Gemini. See also Dioskouroi. (Col. Enc.) Var: Kastor; Polydeuces or Poludeukes. (Pollux is the Latin form of the Greek name Polydeuces.) 10:75, 77, 153, 318 17:257 XV: 41 XVI: 164-65 XVII: 44, 46
Catalonian (native) of Catalonia, a region of northeastern Spain, stretching from the Pyrenees at the French border southward along the Mediterranean. (Col. Enc.) 15:290
Catherine(s) Catherine I (16847-1727), wife of Peter the Great and empress and czarina of Russia (1725-27); Catherine II or Catherine the Great (1729-96), German-born empress and czarina of Russia (1762-96) (Col. Enc.) 15:356-57, 513
Page 65
Catholic (Christianity) a term (from the Greek word katholikos, "universal") used by ecclesiatical writers since the 2nd century to distinguish the Christian Church at large from local communities or from heretical and schismatic sects'Roman Catholicism is characterized by its uniform, highly developed doctrinal and organizational structure that traces its history to the Apostles of Jesus Christ in the first century AD. Along with Eastern Orthodoxy and Protestantism it is one of the three major branches of Christianity. In the modern world, however, not only the Roman Catholic Church but also the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Church, and a variety of national churches and minor sects claim to be catholic, though not necessarily the only true catholic church. Major Protestant churches also claim to be a part of the catholic (universal) Christian Church. (Enc. Br.) Der: Catholicism 3:487 4:147 9:42, 62, 77, 84, 114 12:54 14:152, 162 15: 10, 32, 299, 353, 357 16:309-10. 365 22:130 23:510 VIII: 172 XIII: 29-30 XVI: 180
Cato' Cato the Elder or Cato the Censor (234-149 BC), Roman statesman, orator, and moralist, whose full name was Marcus Porcius Cato. Sent on an official visit to Carthage in his old age, he returned stem with disapproval of Carthaginian ways. Every speech he made in the senate he ended with the words "Delenda est Carthago": "Carthage must be destroyed". (Col. Enc.) 24:1633
Cato2 Cato the Younger or Cato of Utica (95-46 Be), Roman statesman, whose full name was Marcus Porcius Cato Uticensis; he was great grandson of Cato the Elder (see Cato'). His high reputation for honesty and incorruptibility and stiff-necked refusal to compromise made him none too popular with his colleagues. He was from the very first a violent opponent of Julius Caesar. After Caesar crushed Scipio at Thapsus (46 BC), Cato committed suicide at Utica, bidding his people to make their peace with Caesar. (Col. Enc.) a ix: 14
Catriona In Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill, the daughter of Count Conrad. 7:876
Catullus, Gaius Valerius (c. 84-c. 54 sc), an intensely emotional Roman poet whose expressions of love and hatred are generally considered the finest lyric poetry of ancient Rome. (Enc.Br.) 3:55 5:587 8:411 9:407, 530 29: 809
Caturvyuha the fourfold manifestation of the Supreme; the four powers, given the names Srikrishna (also
called Mahavira), Balarama, Pradyumna and Aniruddha. These four personalities are associated together in Puranic legend, where Balarama is Krishna's elder brother, Pradyumna his son, and Aniruddha his grandson. Each of the four divine powers has a special relation to one of the four Varnas and one of the four Yugas; their Shaktis are the four principal aspects of the Divine Mother. (A &R, XIX: 91) 3:452 21:714
Caucasus mountain system in USSR, between Europe and Asia. (Col. Enc.) a 17:385
Caushiquie a character widow of the Vidurbhan minister, who became a religious mendicant in Kalidasa's play Mdlavikdgnimitram (see Malavica and the King). Var: Cowshiquie a 8:135, 149-53 X: 116, 130-34, 136-39
Cavasjee an Indian architect who worked (1905/06) as an assistant to Mr. MacCabe, the chief engineer of the Calcutta Corporation, in the extension of the New Market. (A) 1:194
Cavour Camillo Benso, conte di Cavour (1810-61), Italian statesman, premier of Sardinia (1852-59, 1860-61). The active force behind King Victor Emmanuel II, he was more than any other man responsible for the unification of Italy under the house of Savoy. (Col. Enc.) 1:139, 309, 335, 876 2:162, 164-65, 411 3:267, 480-82 16:304 X: 149
Cayshie in the Mahabharata, a giant, son of Kashyapa by Danu, who fought with and was defeated by Indra. He also fought with Vishnu for thirteen days. (Dow.; M.N.) 5:193 7:914, 922
Cecil, Algernon (Edgar Algernon) Robert Gascoyne-Cecil (1864-1958), 1st Viscount Cecil ofChelwood, British statesman, winner of the 1937 Nobel Peace Prize. He was one of the principal draftsmen of the League of Nations Covenant in 1919 and one of the most loyal workers for the League until its supersession by the United Nations in 1945. (Enc. Br.) 2:30-31
Cellini, Benvenuto (1500-71), a Florentine (Italian) goldsmith and sculptor, and author of one of the most vivid and interesting autobiographies ever written. (Ox. Comp.) 1:7
Page 66
Celt one who speaks a Celtic language (Gaelic, Welsh, or Breton), or who derives his ancestry from an area where a Celtic language is, or recently was spoken, that is, a person from Ireland, the Scottish Hebrides and Highlands, the Isle of Man, Wales, Cornwall, or Brittany. The ancient Celts were a people first identified early in the 2nd millennium BC in southwestern Germany and eastern France. They dominated western and central Europe through about half of the 1st millennium BC, and were important in the development of a specifically European civilization. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) Der:
Celtic; Celticised 1:23, 525-26, 559 2:108, 298, 379, 383 3:67-69, 291 9:42, 47-51, 54, 56, 63, 83, 86, 91, 110, 124-25, 136, 156-58, 187, 229, 237, 287, 534 10:24-25, 183.555, 571 11:506 14: 397-98 15:86, 268, 299, 305, 348, 494, 521 16:310 17:180, 196, 244, 295 20:428 II: 14 III: 29 IV: 161 X: 141 XIII: 23 XV: 5 XVI: 182
Celtic-Hellenic a combination of Celtic and Hellenic, 16:225 Celtic-Latin of, or influenced by, both Celtic and Latin, 15:305 Cenci a closet drama by Shelley, written in 1820. (Col. Enc.) 9:74, 529 Centaur(s) a fabulous tribe of wild, beastlike monsters, having the upper part of a human being and the lower part of a horse. They live in the woods or mountains of Elis, Arcadia, and Thessaly. They are represen. tative of wild life, animal desires, and barbarism. (M.I.) Der: Centauresses a 5: 498, 543 27:159 29:419, 447
Central America narrow strip of land between North America proper and the Isthmus of Panama, which separates the continent from South America. The term generally applies to five republics, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Salvador, and Belize (a self-governing British colony); Panama is often included. (Col. Enc.) D 15:378, 503 26:395
Central Hindu College former educational institution located in Benares (Varanasi) in Uttar Pradesh, India. Founded by Mrs. Annie Besant as a school, it gradually developed into a college and was ultimately merged into the Benares Hindu University in 1916. It was a fairly successful attempt at rescuing education in India from subservience to foreign and petty ends. (A.H.I.; Enc.Ind.;A) a 1:717, 719 17:210 Central Provinces abbreviated as C. P., name of an Indian province under British rule, occupying a central position in the country. After independence (1947), the region became the major portion of the province
of Madhy a Pradesh. 1:584, 590-91, 645 2:172, 329 4:238 26:410 27:40, 42-43, 54
Century of Life, The or The Century of Morals, Sri Aurobindo's translation (a free rendering) in English verse of Nitishataka (a Sanskrit poem by Bhartrihari), first published in 1924. "The Century of Morals", a more literal translation of the Sanskrit title, was Sri Aurobindo's first title for his translation. (A) 8:157, 159 1:24, 26, 28
Century of Passion title, translated into English by Sri Aurobindo, of a Sanskrit poem by Bhartrihari of about a hundred maxims, Srngdra-sataka. 1:28-29 Century of World-Disgust title, translated into English by Sri Aurobindo, of a Sanskrit poem by Bhartrihari, Vairagya-sataka. a 1:27
Cepheus a character king of Syria (a country of romance) in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. In Greek legend, Cepheus is described as king of Ethiopia. (A) 6:1, 3, 25, 27, 43-49, 51, 53-54, 59-64, 97, 100-04, 106-07, 111, 115, 118, 124, 132-37, 142-43, 147, 149, 165-67, 171-73, 175-76, 182-86, 189-92, 196-201 Cerberus in Greek mythology, a threeheaded dog with a mane and a tail of snakes. He guarded the entrance to Hades. The honey cake which the Greeks buried with the dead was to placate Cerberus. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 7:856, 858, 870, 878
Cervantes Miguel de Cervantes (Saavedra) (1547-1616), novelist, playwright, and poet, the creator of Don Quixote, and the most important figure in Spanish literature. (Enc. Br.) 1:7 Cestus in Greek and Roman mythology, a girdle belonging to Aphrodite, which gave whoever wore it the power to excite love. (Web.) 5:450
Ceylon an island country, now called Sri Lanka, located off the southeast coast of the Indian peninsula. It has had from antiquity close cultural ties with India and has been known in Indian literature by various names (e.g. SINGHAL-) in different ages. (D. I. H.) 14:187, 241 Ch. See Champaklal
Chabrias a character a villager or townsman in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, a 6:3, 115-16, 119, 121-22, 124
Page 67
Chacrodave (Chakradeva) in the Mahabharata, a great hero among the Vrishnis. 8:43 Chadwick, J. A. See Arjava
Chaitanya also known as Gauranga (1485/6-1533/4), Hindu mystic, a Vaishnava devotee, whose mode of worshipping Lord Krishna with ecstatic song and dance had a profound effect on Vaishnavism in Bengal. He neither organized a sect nor wrote any works on theology; but his simple life of intense religious emotion proved at once the source and impetus of a great religious movement. Chaitanya was considered an incarnation of Krishna even during his lifetime. His original name was Nimai Pandit; he was born at Nadia in GAUDA (presently Bengal). (Enc. Br.; Ch. Ch.) Var: Gouranga 1:147, 646, 699, 852-53 2:13 3:110, 375, 461 4:143, 153 8:383 9:425 13:12, 154 14:21, 66, 132, 187, 193, 315, 318, 320 16:430 22:79, 82, 85-87, 91-92, 94-95, 407-08, 417-21, 427 23:529.553, 768 24:1475 25:78 26:115, 118-20, 134-35 VII: 8.20 IX: 29 XVIII: 163
Chaitanya a three-act play in English written by Dilip Kumar Roy, who sent it to Sri Aurobindo for his comments at the beginning of 1950. (A) 9:426-27
Chaitanya Charitamrita the most important biography of Chaitanya, written (c. 1581) by Krishnadas Kaviraj, who was born in the district of Burdwan (Bengal) in 1517. (Dow.;Gaz.II) a 9:426
Chaitanyaloka the world of Consciousness (Tapas); another name forTapoloka. (I&G) 17:29
Chaitra the first month of the year in the Hindu calendar (but the last in the Bengali calendar). It falls in the spring season (March-April). 8:319
Chaka also spelled Shaka or Tshaka (c. 1787-1828), founder of southern Africa's Zulu Empire; he was the renowned chieftain who created a fighting force that devastated the entire region. (Enc. Br., under Shaka) 111:29
Chakkarai, V. a writer who contributed a prose poem to the second number of the magazine Shama'a, which Sri Aurobindo reviewed in Arya. (A) 17:319
Chakrabarti, Jadunath a Bengali writer who contributed an article to the monthly magazine Suprabhat (1st issue of the 3rd year of publication). (A) 3:432
Chakrabarti, Shyamsunder See Chakravarti, Shyam Sundar
Chakraborty, S. S. See Chakravarti, Shyam Sundar
Chakravarti, Byomkesh (1855-1929), respected barrister and industrialist, and also a prominent political worker from the days of the Swadeshi movement in the early years of the 20th century. He was a member of the Congress, his activities were generally confined to Bengal, and he was wedded to a policy of constitutional agitation. (D.N.B.) 4:286
Chakravarti, Gopala author of a commentary on Chandi, a short name of the title DeviMdhatmya. (A) 17:267
Chakravarti, Shyam Sundar (1869-1932), Indian nationalist writer and speaker, a member of the editorial staff of Bande Mataram. A master of the English language, he caught up something of Sri Aurobindo's style. Earlier, he had started Pratibesi, a Bengali weekly, and the People and Pratibesi, an English daily which ultimately merged with Sandhya. He was for some time also associated with the Karmayogin' and Amrita Bazar Patrika. In December 1908 he was arrested and deported to Burma. After his release, he joined the Bengalee in 1913 as sub-editor. He was arrested again in 1914 and 1922. (A; P.T.I.; D.N.B.) Var:
Chakrabarti (or -borty, or -varty), Shyamsunder (or S.S.); Shyam Babu; Sham Babu 1:81, 855 2:.22 4:257 26:28, 44, 59 27:451, 455, 461
Chakravarti, Suresh (Chandra) (c. 18851954), also called Moni, one of the earliest disciples of Sri Aurobindo. He arrived in Pondicherry four days before Sri Aurobindo (on 31 March 1910) to make arrangements for his stay here. He, along with Nolini, earned a reputation in Pondicherry as an excellent football player. Moni was also a good writer in Bengali. Except for brief visits to Bengal, he remained in Pondicherry until his death. Sri Aurobindo often refers to him as "M" in the Record of Yoga. (Purani;
P.T.I. ;Remini.) Var: Chakravarty, — a 26:57, 61-63 27:482-83 VII: 6-7, 10, 19, 23 XIX: 27, 29 XX: 148 XXI: 3. 19, 34, 58
Chakravarty See Chakravarti
Chaldea Chaldea proper is the southernmost portion of the valley of the Tigris and the Euphrates. Sometimes, as in the Bible, the term is extended to include Babylonia; Chaldea then comprises all South Mesopotamia. The name is derived from the people who invaded the region in the 11th century BC, and the restored kingdom of Babylonia is sometimes called the Chaldean Empire. (Col. Enc.) Der:
Page 68
Chaldean(s) D 2:34 6:3, 16-17, 28, 48, 87, 91, 93, 97-98, 103, 105-06, 108-09, 112-13, 118-19, 124, 131-32, 135-37, 139-40, 143, 149, 188 10:23, 25, 30 11:4 15:347 16:309, 406 17:195 20:428 XVI: 186 Chaleidice typographical error for Chaleidice, peninsula of northeast Greece, projecting into the Aegean Sea from southeast Macedonia, and ending in the three promontories of Pallone, Sithonia and Acte. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:419
Chalukyas name of two ancient Indian dynasties. The Western Chalukyas ruled as emperors in the Deccan from 543 to 757 and again from 975 to 1189. The Eastern Chalukyas ruled in Vengi (in eastern Andhra Pradesh) from c. 624 to c. 1070. (Enc. Br.) 15:264
Chamber of Deputies the lower of the two legislative chambers or second house of the national Parliament in France, Italy, and other countries. The first French Chamber of Deputies was established in 1814. (Enc. Am.) a 1:30
Chambers('s Dictionary) Chambers Twentieth Century Dictionary, edited by A. M. Macdonald and published by W & R Chambers Ltd., Edinburgh, Scotland. Q 26:318-19, 322, 324-26
Champaklal (1903), a disciple of Sri Aurobindo who long served as his personal attendant. Born in Patan (Gujarat), he came to Pondicherry first in 1921 and finally in 1923. He says, "I came here with the object of God-realisation. Here I found the stress on Transformation. Very soon, however, both receded and service took hold of my being entirely." Some time after the passing of the Mother he took a vow of silence which he has kept ever since. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Chamunda an epithet of KALI', an aspect or form of Parvati (Pur. Enc., p. 374). Parvati (or Gauri) plucked her matted hair and flung it to the ground and from there arose the fierce form ofCamunda, "very violent and wearing a necklace of human skulls". In that form she killed the two Asura brothers Canda and Munda. (Pur. Enc.) n IV: 174
Chanakya (fl. 300 BC) , celebrated Indian statesman and philosopher, also called Visnugupta, or Kautilya, the latter name believed to be the pen-name under which he wrote his classic treatise on polity Arthasastra, a compilation of almost everything that had been written in India up to his time on "artha"
(property, economics or material success). Chanakya was the chief minister of Chandragupta Maurya, and a great master of finesse and artifice. (Enc. Br. under Kautilya)2:337, 3983:164, 4:182 14:187, 191, 193, 372-73
Chand CandaRaya( ? -1601), one of the twelve famous zamindars of Bengal, who was eminently courageous and an adept at the art of naval battle on the inland waterways of Bengal. His capital was Sreepoor. He did not submit to Akbar and maintained his independence till the end of his life. (N.B.A.; S.B.C.) 4:129 1:21
Chandannagar See Chandernagore
Chandavarkar. Justice Sir Narayan Ganesh Chandavarkar (1855-1923), a successful pleader of Bombay, who was elected president of the Congress in 1900, but gave up nationalist politics when he was appointed a judge of the Bombay High Court in 1901. He retired from the High Court in 1912 when he accepted the prime ministership of Indore. In 1914 he left Indore and re-entered the political field as a leader of the Moderates. (D.N.B.) D 2:238, 356
Chandernagore also called Chandannagar, a town of Hooghly district in Burdwan division of West Bengal state, India, on the west bank of the Hooghly River, thirty kilometres upriver from Calcutta (which is on the east bank). Settled in 1673 by the French and expanded commercially, it was captured by the English in 1757 and again in 1794. It was finally restored to France in 1815. Following the 1949 plebiscite, Chandernagore merged with India and was incorporated into Hooghly district in 1950. Sri Aurobindo stayed in Chandernagore in February-March 1910. (Enc. Br.; I & G; A & R, XVII: 109) l-l 2:pre., 413 4:pre., 291 26:36-37, 54, 56-57, 60-63, 67, 70-71, 373, 437 27:349, 417, 435, 442-44, 447-49, 453, 470-71, 474, 482, 484, 489 VII: 4, 14-15 XVI: 193 XVII: 69 XIX: 24
Chandi See Durga and Kali2
Chandi' a Tantric scripture (Candipatha) forming an episode of the Markandeya Parana. It is a poem of 700 stanzas celebrating the goddess Durga's victories over the Asuras. The work is also called CandlMdhdtmya or Devi-Mdhdtmya. (A; Dow.) 17:267 25:73
Page 69
Chandi1 a famous Bengali poem, the full title of which is Kavikankan Chandi. Written by Mukundaram, it celebrates the greatness of the goddess Durga, and at the same time presents a very living picture of the life of the people. (A; A.H.I.) 14:320
Chandibhava the force of Kali2 manifest in the temperament; considered at an early stage of the "Record of Yoga" to be the third element of the Shakti Chatushtaya. (A &R, XXIII: 70) D [Indexed under Kali2]
Chandidas (fl. late 14th to early 15th cent.), a celebrated Vaishnava Bengali poet, an inspired singer of exquisite love-lyrics about Krishna and Radha. His love songs addressed to the washerwoman Rami were popular in the medieval period and were a source of inspiration to Vaishnava and Sahajiya religious movements that explored parallels between human and divine love. (Enc. Br.) 4:pre. 8:299, 301 14:256, 318
Chandi-Mahatmya See Chandi' a 17:271
Chandogya See Chhandogya (Upanishad)
Chandpur river port in Comilla district of Chittagong division, Bengal (now in Bangladesh), on the east bank of the Meghna River. (Enc. Br.) 1:262 2:281
Chandra' the moon, either as a "planet" in Hindu astronomy, or as a deity; "devatd of smrti or prajna". Very little is said about the moon in Vedic literature, except as identified with Soma, both alike being described as waxing and waning. See also Moon and Soma. (A; Dow.) Van Canda a 4:22, 24, 43, 220, 373 11:445 17: 259
Chandra2 name of a girl appearing in an automatic writing of Sri Aurobindo. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Chandra(bali) in Hindu religion, one of the gopis (female companions of Krishna) of Vrindavan. (Gospel) Var: Chundra a 4:222 8:283 17:133
Chandrabhaga in the Mahabharata, a river of the Punjab, now called the Chenab; it is one of the five
rivers within the frontiers of which the Aryans dwelt in the beginning. (M.N.;A) Var: Chundrobhaga 5:246 27:156
Chandragupta Chandragupta Maurya (reigned c. 321-c. 297 Be), the founder of the Maurya dynasty in India. He ascended the throne of MAGADHA with the help of Chanakya. In the course of eighteen short years he became the emperor of the whole of northern India as far as the Hindu Kush mountains. His power was challenged in 305 BC by the Greek general Seleucus, but the latter was defeated and forced to conclude a humiliating peace. Seleucus also gave his daughter in marriage to Chandragupta. Chandragupta ranks among the greatest and most successful kings known to history. He fasted to death in sorrow for his faminestricken people. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) 1:632, 739, 769 3:199 4:98, 141 7:894 14:187, 191, 328, 372, 376 15:338, 436 17:193
Chandraloka the Lunar World, in Hindu religion, the lower part of Swarloka where the gods dwell. Its summit is Kailasa, and its basis Swarga, with Pitriloka just above Swarga. According to the Sankhya and Vedanta schools of philosophy, which recognise eight lokas or regions of material existence, Chandraloka (or Somaloka) is the third loka; it is of the moon and planets. (A; Dow.) D 11:453 12:309 11:79
Chandrashekhar a Bengali novel (1875) by Bankim Chandra. (Enc. Br.) 3:91 27:353
Chandra Vansa See Lunar Dynasty
Chandrayan vow a one-month fast in which the quantity of food taken increases and decreases with the phases of the waxing and waning moon (Chandra), beginning with one morsel on the 1st day of the bright fortnight, two on the second day, and so on, till on full-moon day the number of morsels taken rises to fifteen, after which the number decreases by one every day, ending with no food at all on Amavasya (no-moon day). (Pur. Enc.) 12:442
Chandwadkar surname of a person, probably ofNasik, who lent the carriage in which Sri Aurobindo drove from Nasik Road station to Nasik city on 24 January 1908. (A) a 1:1 Chapman', George (1559?-1634), English dramatist and poet whose translation of Homer remained the standard English version until modern times. His poetic version of the Iliad was completed in 1611, and of the Odyssey in 1616. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 9:314-15, 318-19 26:254
Page 70
Chapman2 an English poet and litterateur of the early 20th century who wrote articles on Indo-English poetry, 26:252
Charaka, a celebrated Hindu physician who wrote Caraka-Samhitd, an authoritative text on pathology and medicine. According to some he nourished in the 2nd century AD; according to others he belongs to the preBuddhistic period. Some even say that he lived in Vedic times. (Dow.) 1-1 26:365
Chariot of Jagannath, The See Jagannather Rath
Charlemagne Charles the Great or Charles I (c. 742-814), Prankish king (768-814) who united by conquest nearly all Christian lands of western Europe and ruled as emperor from 800 to 814. His actual achievements and prestige were of such magnitude that later generations enlarged them to fantastic proportions. Surrounded by his legendary twelve peers, he became the central figure of a cycle of romance. (Enc. Br.;Col. Enc.) D 3:454 9:61 14: 66. 193 15: 297.436, 482 16:308-09
Charleroi a municipality in Hinaut province of south central Belgium on the north bank of the Sambra river, south of Brussels. Charleroi was the scene of the first great battle of World War I (22 August 1914), which resulted in a great German victory. (Enc. Br.) (From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Charles' probably, CHARLKS V. 7:862
Charles2 a character younger brother of Armand's grandfatherin Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard". 7:1027
Charles I Charles I of Great Britain (1600-49), king of Great Britain and Ireland (1625-49) whose authoritarian rule during a period of rising aspirations for greater political and religious liberties provoked a civil war that led to his execution by his subjects. (Enc. Br.) 4:212 X: 148
Charles II or Charles Stuart, Charles II of Great Britain (1630-85), king of Great Britain and Ireland (1660-85). He was restored to the throne eleven years after the execution of his father Charles I. (Enc. Br.) 3:264-65 7: 1048-49 II: 13 X: 147
Charles V (1500-58), Holy Roman Emperor (1519-56) and, as Charles I, king of Spain (1516-56). He was perhaps the last emperor to attempt to realise the medieval idea of a unified empire embracing the
entire Christian world. He fought constant wars with Francis I and Henry II of France. In 1556 he retired, assigning the imperial title to his brother Ferdinand and his hereditary possessions to his son Philip. He spent his remaining days aiding Philip procure funds for the war against France. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Charles Stewart Parnell title of a short poem by Sri Aurobindo written after the death of PARNELL in 1891. (A) a 4:pre. 5:15
Charles Stuart See Charles II
Channidas in Sri Aurobindo's epic poem Ilion, a Hellene killed by Penthesilea. (M.I.) 5:515 Charubabu See Ray, Charu Chander
Charudeshna in the Mahabharata, a son of Krishna by Rukmini. (M.N.) 8:43 Charvak(a) name of a quasi-philosophical Indian school of materialists as well as of its founder, who rejected the notion of an afterworld, the authority of the Vedas, and the immortality of the self, and advocated materialistic doctrines and a policy of total opportunism. Although this materialistic doctrine had disappeared by the end of the medieval period, its onetime importance is confirmed by the lengthy attempts to refute it found in both Buddhist and orthodox Hindu philosophical texts. (Enc. Br.; Dow.) Der: Charvakas (followers of Charvaka) 3:222 12:6, 461, 478, 484, 510 14:103 XIV: 126
Charybdis a daughter of Poseidon and Gaea thrown into the sea off Sicily by Zeus where by swallowing and spewing water she created a whirlpool. See also Scylla & Charybdis. (Web.N.C.D.) n XXI:23
Chatalja or Catalca. a city in Turkey west of Istanbul. It was the place where the Turks succeeded in stabilising a defence line during the Second Balkan War. (Web.N.C.D., p. 1422) Var: Chataldja; Tchataldja (Russian spelling) XX: 148 XXI: 2, 93, 102
Chateaubriand, Francois Rene, vicomte de (1768-1848), French diplomat and author. He was the true founder of romanticism in France, and his prose enriched the language. His memoirs have proved to be his most enduring work. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 9:96, 100
Chatterjee, Bejoy Bejoy Chandra Chatterji (1879-1943), a renowned Bengali barristerat-law. He was associated with Sri Aurobindo on the editorial staff of Bande Mataram,
Page 71
and was a master of the English language, with a style of his own. When, in October 1908, the financial position of Bande Mataram became untenable, Bejoy deliberately wrote an article which forced the Government to stop the journal's publication. (S.B.C.; L. to SL; I & G; I.F.F.) n 1:81 26:28, 30, 59 27:484
Chatterjee, Ramananda (1865-1943), an eminent Indian journalist who founded the celebrated English monthly The Modern Review in 1907. Editing it with great care, he made it a complete record of important events; its commentary was enlivened by deft touches from his keenly analytical pen. He also started and edited the Bengali monthly Prabasi, and published the Hindi monthly Vishal Bharat. (D.N.B.) Var: Chatterji, —2:25 3:426, 428
Chatterjee, Satish Chandra -(1873-1938), nationalist leader of Bengal who, along with Aswin Kumar Dutt, organized the Swadeshi movement in the district of Barisal. He was a member of the local branch of ANUSILAN SAMITI, and was principal of Brajmohan College intermittently for a long period until his death. In 1908 he was deported to Burma with seven other leaders of Bengal. (A; P.T.I.; D.N.B.) 1:385 2:91
Chatterji, Amar Amarendranath Chatterjee (1880-1957). a revolutionary ofUttarapara (Bengal). In 1906 he came into contact with Sri Aurobindo, who inducted him into the revolutionary organization. Amarendranath was one of those who helped him to move from Chandernagore to Calcutta in March 1910. From that time until 1947, Amarendranath played a prominent role in the freedom movement in Bengal. While travelling incognito all over India (with the assumed name of Swami Kevalananda), as the leader of a group of sannyasins, he came to Pondicherry in the summer of 1920 or 1921 and met Sri Aurobindo at the Guest House. (D.N.B.; A & R, XVII: 113; Purani, p. 176) n XVI: 194
Chatterji, Baidyanath assistant doctor of the Alipore Jail hospital, "a personification of charity and philanthropy". He was in a way all-in-all in the hospital administration. His only failing was his excessive sympathy, which was responsible for his dismissal from service after the murder of Noren GOSSAIN. (A) 4:273-75
Chatterji, Bankim Chandra (1838-94), "the Rishi of modern Bengal". Novelist, poet, journalist, critic, and essayist, Bankim exerted a great formative influence on modern Bengali. He was a voracious reader of English fiction and a voluminous writer, versatile and vigorous. His novels include Anandamath, which contains the national song "Bande Mataram". He was foundereditor of the Bengali
journal Bangadarshan. (D.I.H.; A) Var: Chattopadhyay(a), — D 1: 666 2: 431 3: 75, 77-78, 80-85, 87-102, 181, 293 4: pre., 57, 144, 293, 310 5: 25-26 8: 315 9: 280, 480, 544-45 13: 32 14: 415, 421, 423 17: 344-47 22: 418 26: 11 27: 351-55 X: 143 XVII: 25
Chatterji, Bejoy See Chatterjee, Bejoy
Chatterji, Bhuhan a barrister who argued for the accused in the Alipore Bomb Case before the district magistrate of 24-Parganas. (A) a 4:285.287
Chatterji, Pratui Chandra leader of Hindus in Punjab; he presided over the convocation of the Hindu Sabha in 1909. (A) 2:260, 276
Chatterji, Ramananda See Chatterjee, Ramananda
Chatterji, Sarat (Chandra) See Chattopadhyaya, Sarat Chandra
Cnatterton, Thomas (1752-70), chief poet of the 18th-century "Gothic" literary revival; England's youngest writer of mature verse and a precursor of the Romantic movement. (Enc. Br.) 9:92 1:9 11:11, 18
Chattopadhyay(a), Bankim (Chandra) See Chatterji, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Harindranath (1898), brother of Sarojini Naidu; a famous playwright, poet, actor, and statesman who used a foreign medium (English) as if it were his mother tongue. His first collection of poems The Feast of Youth (1918) showed great promise, but its numerous successors, for all their fluency and play of fancy, never quite redeemed that promise. Harindranath stayed in the Ashram for over two years from 1933 to 1935. (Enc.Ind.;A;S.F.F.) 9:454 17:304-07.311, 319, 323 26:256
Chattopadhyay, Mile See the next entry.
Chattopadhyay, Mrinalini (1883?-1968), younger sister of Sarojini Naidu; editor of Shama'a. From Germany she supported the Indian freedom movement in various ways, cooperating with her elder brother, the famous revolutionary Virendra Nath. In mid-1920 she visited the Ashram. (A; S.B.C, ; Mother-1) 17:313
Page 72
Chattopadhyaya, Sarat Chandra (1876-1938), one of the greatest novelists and short-story writers of India, whose popularity surpassed that of any other writer in Bengali; "a highly emotional writer with a great power of presenting the feelings and movements of the human vital" (9: 545). His works have been translated into several Indian and foreign languages. (Enc. Ind.; A; Gaz.-II) Var:
Chatterji, Sarat (Chandra) :463, 465, 467, 545 Chaucer, Geoffrey (c. 1342/43-1400), the outstanding English poet before Shakespeare, whose Canterbury Tales ranks him as one of the greatest poets of England. (Enc. Br.) 5:342, 347 9:27, 51-52, 59-62, 82, 168, 246, 339, 421, 477 11:18
Chaudhuri, Ashutosh See Chowdhuri, Ashutosh
Chaudhuri, Rai Jotindranath in the political field of Bengal, one of the most influential members of the middle section of opinion, neither Moderate nor Nationalist. (A) a 2:240, 314 4:209-10
Chaudhuri, Rambhuj Darta (1866-1923), a staunch Arya Samajist, a social worker, and a Congressite of Punjab. In the Congress he belonged to the militant group and had a marked leaning towards the revolutionaries. During the martial law days in 1919 he became the undisputed leader and uncrowned king of Lahore. He was arrested and sentenced to transportation for life. Later, however, he was released under the general amnesty. (D.N.B.-I, pp. 394-95) 4:179
Chedi(s) in Indian history, name of a people and of their country lying between the Yamuna and the Narmada; it was one of the sixteen great states (Mahajanapadas) mentioned in early Buddhist texts. In the Mahabharata, Chedi is the name of an ancient country; among the kings of this country was Shishupala. (D.I.H.; M.N.) a 3:189-91.214 4:93 8:40 VI: 155
Cheiro pen-name of Count Louis Hamon, an Englishman, and author of numerous books on palmistry and other methods of fortunetelling. Cheiro seems to have been a plausible charlatan who found a good thing and made a fortune from it. Yet, according to the accounts of his numerous clients, the accuracy of his predictions was astonishing, for example, the exact dates of the death of Queen Victoria, Edward VII and Lord Kitchener. Cheiro remains an enigma and a controversial figure still. (Enc. Unex.) n 22:467, 470
Chekitana in'the Mahabharata, a son of Dhrishtaketu, and an ally of the Pandavas. (Dow.) 4:75 8:77
Cheloo name of a rickshaw-puller of Pondicherry, also perhaps employed at one time as a worker in the Ashram. Q 9: 556
Chenier Andre(-Marie) de
Chenier (176294), French poet, generally considered to have been the greatest in 18th-century France. (Enc. Br.) a 9:96 Cheops orKhufu(fl.2900?Bc), kingof ancient Egypt for 23 years. He was the founder of the Fourth dynasty and is famous as the builder of the great Pyramid of Gizeh. (Col. Enc.) a 26:316
Chera(s) in Indian history, the people of Chera, a kingdom in the south of the Indian peninsula, which was absorbed by its rival the Chola kingdom. The Chera dynasty ruled the ancient kingdom of Keralaputra (now the state of Kerala) from its earliest recorded history (3rd cent. BC) to the 5th century AD. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) 8:402 15:264
Chersonese; Chersonesus a Greek word meaning "peninsula". In ancient geography the term is applied to several regions. Sri Aurobindo in his epic Ilion refers to the Tauric Chersonese, a peninsula in the northern Euxine or Black Sea, the modern Crimea. (M.I.) 5:416, 419
Cherubim and Seraphim hybrid celestial winged beings with human, animal, or birdlike characteristics that are depicted in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic literature. They act as throne bearers or throne guardians of the deity. In later theology Cherubim is an angel of the second order, and Seraphim of the first. They correspond, according to Sri Aurobindo, to the Gandharvas and Venas of Indian tradition. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Chesterton, Gilbert Keith (1874-1936), English critic and author of verse, essays, novels, and short stories. He early developed the weapon of paradox, which he used most significantly to probe the profound ambiguities of Christian theology. (Enc. Br.) a Shanker a respectable, well-to-do businessman of Pondicherry, at whose house Sri Aurobindo spent the first six months of his stay in Pondicherry (April to October 1910). This house, the only three storeyed
Page 73
house in the town at that time, is No. 39 on Calve Subraya Chettiar Street, formerly known as Comouthy Street. (A; A & R, XVII: 106, 122) XXI: 11
Chetwind Court Chetwynd Court, name of a courtyard forming part of King's College, Cambridge. (Note: "Chetwind" is a misprint or misreading of the manuscript.) 3:65
Chhandogya (Upanishad) an Upanishad of the Sama-veda. (Up. K.) Var: Chandogya 12:56-57, 134, 211, 385, 393 13:13, 425 14:146 18:71.501 19:683 27:300 VI: 155, 157-58 VIII: 180. 183 XVII: 35, 61 XVIII: 156
Chiang Kai Shek (1887-1975), Chinese generalissimo and statesman, ruler of China from 1928 to 1949, and subsequently head of the Chinese government in exile on Taiwan. (EBe. 15:356 Chicago a city in northeast Illinois, U.S.A., at the southwestern tip of Lake Michigan, second among U.S. cities in size and importance. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 14:8 17:181
Chidambaram See Pillai, Chidambaram
Childe Harold Childe Harold's Pilgrimage: A Romaunt (canto I& II, 1812; canto iii, 1816; canto IV, 1818), narrative poem by Lord Byron about the disillusioned Childe Harold, who undertakes a long European journey, reflecting on different places and their associations in history. (Enc. Br.) 9:118 Chile a country on the southwest coast of South America; it occupies a long narrow strip of land extending for about 2, 700 miles between the Andes (east) and the Pacific Ocean (west). (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Chilianwala a place in Punjab, where (in about 1848) the Sikhs put up a heroic fight against the Indo-British army in the Second Sikh War. (D.I.H.) 1:303
Chimera in Greek mythology, a firebreathing monster represented as having a lion's head, a goat's body, and a serpent's tail; an impossible or foolish fancy. (Web.) 5:l00 China a country in eastern Asia, now formally known as the "People's Republic of China"; the largest in area of all Asian countries and the world's most populous nation. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) Der: Chinese (in senses other than the language) 1:260, 389. 468, 481, 502. 527-28, 712, 720, 813-15 2: 34.120, 216, 230-31, 248, 278, 290, 293, 356, 390, 406, 433 4:157, 214 5:276 7:574, 637, 695 9:236-38, 245, 443, 496
10:23 12:502-03 13:86 14:10-11, 57, 77-78, 148, 191, 201, 237, 240, 258, 264, 334, 392, 402, 431 15:33', 46, 178, 295, 302, 324, 331, 342, 353-54, 356, 412, 419, 438, 445-46, 449, 467, 502, 512, 564, 567, 644 17:181, 185, 275, 302-03, 314 20:428 22:62, 64, 235, 490 23:556 25:228 27:52, 64, 122-24, 203, 280, 282, 284-85 1:8, 25 111:11 VIII: 172-73 IX: 32 XVIII: 138 XXI: 59
Chinese (language) the oldest living language, with a progressive history of 4000 years. As the national language of China's 710 million inhabitants, Chinese is spoken by over twice the number who speak English, the second most widely spoken language in the world. Unlike India China is not divided linguistically except in the southeastern maritime provinces. The traditional Chinese script is ideographic, i.e., each character represents the meaning of a word, not its pronunciation; there are about 4000 essential characters in Chinese. (Pears) 14:258, 264 16:406 17:291 XVII: 11
Chinese Revolution Chinese Revolution of 1911, the nationalist revolt in China that overthrew the Ch'ing dynasty in 1912 and created a republic. (Enc. Br.) 17:185
Chino-Japanese of, or influenced by, both China and Japan, 1:815 23:1078
Chinsurah a town of Bengal (now West Bengal state), India, situated on the River Hooghly, north of Calcutta, near the town of Hooghly. (S. Atlas) a l: 156, 159
Chitnavis, Sir Gangadharrao Madhavrao (1863-1929), a Moderate leader of Nagpur who played a prominent part in the public activities of the city, for which the Government conferred upon him a knighthood in 1911. (D.N.B.) 1:569.592, 634 27:43
Chitore the fortified capital of the Ranas (rulers) of MRWAR. the strength of which was renowned all over Rajputana. The fortifications, a source of glory and pride to Mewar, enabled the Ranas to hold back the Mahomedan invaders through many centuries. Gradually, however, the glory of the city vanished. In the 18th century Chitore became a haunt of tigers and other wild beasts, though in the late 19th century it partially recovered. Chitore is now a small town at the foot of the precipice at the top of which the old fort stands. (D.I.H.) 4:92 1:22
Chitpur a locality in central Calcutta. a 1:556
Page 74
Chitragupta in Hindu mythology, a scribe in the abode of the dead who records the virtues and vices of men; the recorder of Yama. (Dow.) a 22:364 Chitralekha in Hindu mythology, a nymph of heaven, skilled in painting and magic. She is a character a companion of Urvasie in Kalidasa's drama Vikramorvasie. (Dow.) Var: Chitraleqha a 3:231, 279, 281, 283 7:909, 914, 916-21, 923-25, 934-43, 957-61, 963-70, 973-74 X: 165, 167, 170 Chitramahas Vasishtha a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Vasistha. 11:429 Chitrangada in the Mahabharata, daughter of King Citra-vahana of Manipur, and one ofthewivesofArjuna. (Dow.) 5:315-17, 320, 325-27, 330-32 Chitrarath(a) in Hindu mythology, king of the Gandharvas, musicians of heaven. A character in Kalidasa's drama Vikramorvasie. (A) Var: Chitroruth 7:909, 921-23 13:349 27:152 Chitrasane See Dimbhuc Chitroruth See Chitraratha Chitta ChittaranjanDas.5eeDas, C. R. Chittagong administrative headquarters of Chittagong district and division, and a chief fhdfsm Ocean port of Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan). Under British rule, Chittagong was in the province of Bengal, except from 1905 to 1912 when it formed part of the short-lived province of "East Bengal and Assam". (Enc. Br.) 1:76, 167, 262, 804, 896 27: 29, 39-40 Chittaranjan (Das) See Das, C. R. ChokhaMela ( ? -1332 or 1338), also known as Mahar (name of a caste) poet, a saint and one of the earliest followers of Gyandev. He belonged to a low-caste Hindu family of Ssuithi'iwdna. Chokha constantly remembered the Divine while engaged in his activities. Once, when he was repairing the boundary wall of his village, the wall fell on him and he was crushed to death. (Enc.Ind.; BhaktaCh.) n 1:537 Chola(s) (people of ) Chola, an ancient Tamil kingdom (c. 600 BC-AD c. 1200) of South India. Its chief capitals were at Trichinopoly (modern Tiruchirapalli), Conjeeveram (Kanchipuram), Arcot and TarjMwp Thanjavur). (Col. Enc.) D 15:264 XVIII: 136
Chosroes Chosroes I (d. 579), also known as Khosru I, king of Persia (531-79), the greatest of the Sassanid or Sasanian monarchs, surnamed "the Just", and remembered as a great reformer. Chosroe or Khosru II (die, d 628), sometimes surnamed as "Parviz" (the Victorious), a late Sasanian king who ascended the throne in 590 and under whom the Sasanian empire achieved its greatest expansion. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 3:110 IX: 28
Choudhuri See Chowdhuri
Chouhan The Chouhans (or Chauhans) were a clan of Rajputs; a long line of Chauhan kings ruled for several centuries in Sambhar in Rajputana, with Ajmer as their capital. (D.I.H.) 7:739, 742-45, 788-89, 795-800, 803, 805
Chowdhuri, Ashutosh (1860-1924), judge of the Calcutta High Court from 1912 to 1920. He was connected with many institutions and organisations in Calcutta, and had a national outlook in the field of education, though not in politics. Ashutosh imbibed the best of English education and denounced irrational imitation of everything English. While at Cambridge, he founded the Indian Majlis, the first society of Indian students in England. He was knighted in 1917. (D.N.B.) Var: Chaudhuri, —; Chowdhury, —; A. Chaudhuri etc. 1:437-40, 453-54, 733 2:329, 335 4:209-10, 238 27:498 II: 3
Chowdhuri, Jogesh (Chandra) (1864-1951), founder of the Palli Samaj, and a political leader of Bengal who had "an instinct for the need of the moment". A barrister by profession, he was also "one of the earliest pioneers" in the field of industrial revival. It was he who "first started an industrial exhibition of Swadeshi articles as an annexe to the Indian National Congress in December 1901". (A;I.F.F.) Var: Choudhuri, — 1:733 4:238 27:7-8
Chowringee an aristocratic locality in central Calcutta. Almost all the leading hotels, cinemas and restaurants are located in Chowringee. (Guide) Var: Chowringhee 1: 179.184. 221, 453, 503, 543, 547, 550 2:274, 292.377
Christ, Jesus (c. 6 BC-AD 29), founder of Christianity, born at Bethlehem in Judaea, and brought up at Nazareth in Galilee. His teaching is summarised in the Sermon on the Mount, and its main theme is love, especially for the poor and downtrodden. The main source of his life history is the New Testament. The Christian era is computed according to a 6th-century reckoning to begin with Jesus' birth. Modern dating has, however, amended the probable year of his birth. The month and day are unknown; Christmas (December 25) was set as the feast several centuries later. The title "Christ" comes from a Greek word "Christos" (anointed), which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew title "Messiah". The
Page 75
name Jesus is Greek for the Hebrew "Joshua", a name meaning Saviour. (Pears; Col. Enc.) Der: Christhood; Antichrist 1: 146-47, 323, 481, 603-05, 704, 745, 802 2: 27 3: 3, 12, 24, 26, 64, 169.178, 213, 229.262, 375, 385, 437, 454 4:73, 251, 310.334 5:43, 485 7: 857 9: 318 10: 27, 547 12: 55, 484-85, 498-99, 511 13: 9, 12, 41, 139-40, 151, 153, 156, 158, 161, 164, 272, 372, 462 14: 48, 66, 73, 81, 84, 203-04, 328, 402 15: 609 16: 80.203, 275-76, 364, 411, 415, 430 17: 64, 82-83, 99-100, 146, 163, 297, 383 20:59-60, 259.314 21:561, 575 22: 140, 408, 417-19, 426, 428-30, 483 23: 563, 796, 955 24: 1660, 1731. 1741, 1754 25: 78, 90, 320, 332, 370 26: 137-38, 445, 447-48, 463 27: 366, 420 29: 777 I: 26, 31, 49, 52 11:63 111:25, 75 IV: 168 VI: 159 IX: 26, 42 XIII: 50 XVI: 134, 180 XVII: 2. 10, 30 XIX: 74 XX: 136 Christendom that portion of the world in which Christianity is the dominant religion. (Enc.Br.) 12:232, 498 15:69, 297, 345, 377 16:323
Christian a character in Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, 23:789 26:464
Christian(ity) the largest of the world religions. It was founded in Judaea (modern Israel) about 2000 years ago by Jesus of Nazareth. Basing its belief on Jesus as the resurrected Son of God or the Messiah (Christ), Christianity -after three centuries of persecution became the official religion of the Roman Empire and spread throughout the world. Among religions Christianity is unusual in its penchant for organization and is also notable for its missionary zeal. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Christianisation; Christianised 1:207, 311, 323, 412, 575-76, 579, 596, 605, 712, 714, 740, 757-58, 800-01. 844.905 2:19, 73, 84, 156, 168-69, 245, 356-57 3: 3-4, 7, 12, 30, 85, 123, 169, 178, 292, 305, 320, 350, 375, 385, 393, 488 4:15, 73, 85, 92, 107, 115, 125, 152, 194, 247, 252, 273, 305 5: 173 7: 567, 579, 835 9:42, 114, 238.536, 554, 557 10:14 11:472 12:12. 232, 452, 478, 485-86, 497-99, 504, 511, 518 13:10, 13, 28, 41, 86, 153-54, 161-62, 164, 181 14: 1, 3-4, 7, 15. 17, 20, 45, 47, 51, 54, 73-74, 76-80, 82-84, 90-91, 96-97, 99, 123, 140, 147, 152, 162, 193, 213, 240, 257, 281, 316, 328, 365. 397, 418, 427 15:14-15. 32, 69, 86, 147, 164-65, 302, 496, 521, 541, 544, 648 16:163, 249, 310.322, 364-66, 394 17:81, 104, 117, 168-69, 177, 241, 274, 278, 281, 328, 371, 377 18:416 19: 879, 884, 1052 20:142, 191, 314 21:685 22:6, 56, 64, 118-19, 128-31, 133, 158, 174, 184, 306, 394, 430, 470,
486 23: 555-56, 563, 795, 850 24:1631, 1635 25:320, 388 26:137-38. 259, 336, 464, 466 27:46, 204, 248, 267-70, 286, 351, 445, 447, 484 29:777, 798 1:31, 41, 50, 56, 67 11:5.58, 87-88 111:72 V:63 VII: 9, 22 VIII: 172, 174, 190, 195 X: 142 XI: 4 XIV: 145 XV: 5 XVI: 142, 180-81 XVII: 2, 10, 28, 34 XVIII: 160 Christine, Sister Christine Greenstidel (1866? ) of Detroit, U.S. A., a spirited disciple of Swami Vivekananda. Her love for India was next only to her devotion to her Guru. For some time she worked in the Sister Nivedita School, Calcutta. n 23:557 26:354
Christ in Hades a narrative poem in blank verse by Stephen Phillips which made a powerful impression on Sri Aurobindo when he read it in typescript some years before its publication. (A) 9:3 26:254, 267
Christmas "mass of Christ", from the Old English "Cristes maesse", which is celebrated by the Western Church on December 25. This festival of Christ's birth is devoted especially to family reunion and merrymaking. The actual day on which Christ was born is not known. December 25 as the day of Nativity was not generally observed until the 5th century AD, though, as the winter solstice, it had long been observed as a pagan festival. (Pears, p. L23; C.O.D.) 1:639 4:238 27:420
Christofir in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill, father of Euphrosyne. 7:874
Chryses in Homeric legend (Iliad), a priest of Apollo, on the island of Sminthus. His daughter Chryseis was taken captive by Achilles in the Trojan War and was awarded to Agamemnon as his share of the spoils. (N.C.C.H.) 11:26
Chuccar misreading of the text of the Mahabharata where the word is Vakra, the name of a king who ruled over the country called Karusa (see Karoosh). The king was also known as Dantavakra or Dantavaktra. (M.N.) 8:40
Chudamani name of an unknown person. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27] (Chunda) Mahasegn a character king of Avunthie in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. 6:205, 207, 211-14,
Page 76
222-23, 232, 244, 247, 249-54, 256-60, 276, 311-15 Chundra See Chandra(bali) Chundrobhaga See Chandrabhaga Churchill, Charles (1731 -64), English poet noted for his lampoons and polemical satires written in heroic couplets. (Enc. Br.) 11:11, 16-17, 19 Churchill, Winston Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (1874-1965), British statesman, soldier, author, and orator. He was Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1940 to 1945 and from 1951 to 1955. During his first tenure of this office he led his country from near defeat to victory in World War II. He had also been Under-secretary of State for the Colonies (1906-08) and Home Secretary (1910-11). Churchill was a stern imperialist and a die-hard Tory, and he had very little sympathy with the nationalist movement in India. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; Gilbert, p. 50) 1:143 2:298 4:212-13, 215 Chyavan an Indian sage, son of Rishi Bhrigu. The Mahabharata, interpreting his name as signifying "the fallen", accounts for it by a legend which represents his mother Puloma as having been carried off by the demon (raksasa) Puloman. She was pregnant, and in her fright the baby fell from her womb. The demon's heart was softened, and he let the mother depart with her infant. (Dow.) 5:253 7:995, 997, 1002 27:152, 157
Chytyac Caityaka, in the Mahabharata, a mountain peak in the region of Magadha. (M.N.) 8:52, 54 CVcem, Marcus Tullius (106-43 Be), Roman statesman, scholar, lawyer, writer, and staunch upholder of republican principles during the civil wars that destroyed the Roman Republic. Cicero is remembered chiefly as Rome's greatest orator. (Enc. Br.) 9:545 26:241 29:787 1:8 Cichaka Kicaka, in the Mahabharata, brother-in-law of King Virata, and the commander of his forces. Kicaka tried to outrage the modesty of Draupadi, who was staying in disguise along with the Pandavas in the service of Virata. For this misdeed he was slain by Bhima. (M.N.) 3:305 Cid Le Cid, a tragicomedy by the 17thcentury French dramatist Pierre Corneille. It is Corneille's most famous play, considered by many as the beginning of modern French drama. The probable date of its first performance is 1637. (Enc. Br.) 9:529
C.I.D. Criminal Investigation Department of the police in India, 2:289.366-68 4:264, 290-91
Cimmerian The Cimmerians were an ancient people originally living north of the Caucasus and the Sea of Azov. They were driven by the Scythians out of southern Russia, over the Caucasus, and into Anatolia
toward the end of the 8th century BC. In the early 7th century BC they swept across Asia Minor, and broke the power of Phrygia. The term Cimmerian used to modify "darkness" (17: 128) means "thick", "gloomy". (Enc.Br.;C.O.D.) 5:421 17:128
Cineas a friend of King Pyrrhus of Epirus, who counselled him to make peace with the Romans. (Latin D.) 4:238
Circe in Greek legend, a celebrated enchantress, daughter of Helios (the Sun). She changed the companions of Odysseus into swine, but he forced her to break the spell. (Col. Enc.) Der: Circean D 5:30 7: 1070 8: 100, 105, 116 27: 134 28:86 29:493, 625.675
Cireas a character a servant in the temple of Poseidon in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, 6: 3, 11-14, 16.18, 24, 82-85, 88-91, 93-95, 97, 180, 184, 186-90, 196, 198 Cirrhes in Sri Aurobindo's epic poem llion, a Greek warrior killed by Penthesilea while he was fleeing from battle. (M.I.) 5:515
Civil and Military Gazette or C. M. Gazette, the leading Anglo-Indian paper of Lahore (Punjab), which poured abuse and ridicule upon educated Indians, and received on this account, as a result of two petitions, a mild remonstrance from the Lt. Governor, Sir Denzillbbetson. (N.S.I.) 1:354, 373, 521, 610 27:52
Clara, Donna See Donna Clara (Santa Cruz)
Clarence, George Plantagenent (1449-78), Duke of Clarence, English nobleman who revolted against his brother King Edward IV (ruled 1461-70 and 1471-83). In 1471 the brothers were reconciled, and the next year Clarence was made Earl of Warwick and Salisbury. In 1476, however, he again began scheming against his brother. Edward learned of this plot, and in February 1478 he had Clarence executed. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Page 77
Clarke1 one of the local government officers who, in 1907, dealt with the Hindu-Muslim riots at Jamalpur and Dewangunj in Bengal. (A) D 1:331
Clarke2 a police officer of 24-Parganas, one of the party that came to arrest Sri Aurobindo on 2 May 1908; perhaps the same as Clarke1; or perhaps Reginald Clarke, the commissioner of police, Calcutta. (A; S.F.F., p.399) 4:258
Clarke, Sir George (1848-1933), Secretary of the Colonial Defence Committee, 1885-92; knighted, 1893; Secretary to the Committee of Imperial Defence, 1904; Governor of Bombay Presidency, 1907-13. In the opinion of H. W. Nevinson, he soon won the confidence and respect of Indians in all parties by his straightforward ways and his freedom from official routine. (Gilbert, p. 122; N.S.I., pp. 25, 57) 2:345 4:203-04, 233
Clarke, Sir Sydenham a British official in Bombay around 1908. (A) n l: 818
Claudio a character a young gentleman in Shakespeare's comedy Measure for Measure. (Shakes., p. 97)I-I 9:277 Claudius famous house of Roman gens, whose ancestor was Attus Clausus; it was renowned for its licence, cruelty, pride, and genius. (Latin D., under Clausus; Col. Enc.;A) 3:70
Cleather, Leighton a European lady who, in 1909, spoke to the Oriental Circle of the Lyceum Club in London about the message of India. (A) 2:29
Cleisthenes (c. 570-c. 508 BC), Athenian statesman regarded as the founder of Athenian democracy. By 506 BC he made himself the undisputed ruler of the city. He reorganised the social and political constitution on so stable a basis that civil war disappeared from Athenian life. (Enc. Br.; CoI.Enc.) 1:24
Cleon (d. 422 BC-), Athenian political leader, the first prominent representative of the commercial class in Athenian politics. The uneducated son of a tanner, he was nevertheless a gifted speaker. He became the leader of the Athenian democracy in 429 BC after the death of his political enemy Pericles. (Col. Enc.;
Enc. Br.) D 15:339
Cleone a character sister of Phayllus and companion of Cleopatra in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. a 6:333, 335-38, 341-45, 357, 362-68, 371, 373, 391, 396, 403, 406, 409, 411-12, 417, 419-23, 442. 444-47, 451-52, 459, 465-67 Cleopatra' (69-30 BC), Egyptian queen, famous as 9 "femme fatale" in history and drama. She influenced Roman history through her love affairs with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. A fictionalised Cleopatra is the heroine of Shakespeare's tragedy Antony and Cleopatra. She bore a name much used in the Ptolemaic family; there were many earlier Cleopatras. Cleopatra's Needle is the name given to obelisks from ancient Egypt now standing on the Embankment in London and in Central Park in New York. (Enc. Br.) a 3:43 4:286 9:31614:192
Cleopatra2 a character queen of Syria, wife of King Antiochus of Syria in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. 6:333, 335, 338-42, 344, 353-64, 391, 396-403, 417-20, 440, 443, 448-49, 460-61 Clive, Lord Robert (1725-74), British soldier and statesman, conqueror and first British administrator of Bengal, who laid the foundation for British rule in India. As an employee of the East India Company, in the Company's military service, Clive played a prominent role in the politics of Bengal, especially during the years 1757-67. With his fraudulent policies he attempted to enslave the Nawab and the people of Bengal. He also appropriated large sums of money and became in a way the landlord of his employers. He retired in 1767 to England, where in 1774 he committed suicide. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 1:492 2:30 4:141
Cloten a character son to the queen (of Britain) by a former husband in Shakespeare's tragedy Cymbeline. (Shakes.) 3:21
Cloud-Messenger title, translated into English, ofMeghadut (more correctly Meghaduta(m)), a Sanskrit drama by Kalidasa. The manuscript of Sri Aurobindo's translation of this poem, written in terza rima, has been lost. It seems to have been lost by the person with whom Sri Aurobindo kept it. (A) 3:76, 227, 229, 237, 245-47, 294, 317, 322-23 9:113 26:235-36 27:91-93, 98, 106 1:29 X:143
Clough, Arthur Hugh (1819-61), English poet whose work reflects the perplexity and religious doubt of mid-19th century England. He was a friend of Matthew Arnold and the subject of Arnold's commemorative elegy Thyrsis. (Enc. Br.) a 5:345-46, 376, 378, 380-82 9:398 11:27-29
Page 78
Clymene in Greek legend, wife of Merops, king of Ethiopia. She was beloved of Apollo (the Sun), and bore him Phaethon. (M.I.) 5:495
Clytemnestra in Greek legend, half sister of Helen. She married Agamemnon and became mother of three children. While Agamemnon was off fighting in the Trojan War, she betrayed him with Aegisthus. When the husband returned, the lovers plotted and brought about his murder. (Col. Enc.) Var: Clytaemnestra 3:276 X: 157
C. M. Gazette See Civil and Military Gazette
Cnossus an ancient city of Crete; it was located on the north coast near modern Candia. (Col. Enc.) 6:28
Coan robes See Cos
Cocanada; Coconada Kakinada, a seaport and the administrative headquarters of East Godawari district in the former presidency of Madras (now in Andhra Pradesh state). (Enc. Br.) 1:397, 433-34, 482, 484
Cocytus in Greek mythology, the river of wailing, a tributary of the Acheron (see Acherontian waters) in Hades. (Web.) 6:180
Codlin's the friend, not Snort (Snort is a typographical error for Short), Codlin and Short, in Dickens' Old Curiosity Shop, travel about the country with a Punch and Judy show. Thomas Codlin was a surly misanthrope; Short was a cheerful little man. Codlin, who suspects that little Nell and her grandfather have run away with their friends and is anxious to get the reward for their discovery, assures Nell that "Codlin's the friend, not Short". (Ox. Comp.) n 1:283
Cody, Dr. a medical officer of the British Service who, when a regular medical department was instituted in Baroda State in 1876/77, was appointed the Chief Medical Officer. (A) a 27:113
Coilas(a) See Kailasa
Colan a character in Chesterton's poem The Ballad of the White Horse. D 9: 318
Coleridge, Samuel Taylor (1772-1834), leading English Romantic poet, author of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and one of the most profound literary theorists of his day. (Enc. Br.) n 3:146-47, 248 9:94, 116, 123-24, 126, 131, 133, 192, 317, 349, 541 26:266-67 27:107 11:11, 16 Collected Poems Volume 5 of SABCL, published in 1972. It is a collection, intended to be complete, of the poems by Sri Aurobindo. 9:363, 400, 412, 434, 531 26:153, 239, 257,
265, 268, 274, 294, 303 11:31-32
Collected Poems (and Plays) a. collection of Sri Aurobindo's poems and plays (both original and translations), published in 1942 in two volumes. (I & G) a 22:387 24:1155 26:237, 252, 255, 257, 268 29:785-88, 796 II: 33
College Square a locality in central Calcutta, also known as Go l Dighi. 1:408, 496, 539, 749-50 2:pre., 112, 231, 366 4:186, 206-07, 210, 244 26:66 27:40, 73
Collin, Sir Edwin a British M.P. around 1909. (A) 4:176
Collins, William (1721-59), pre-Romantic English poet whose lyrical odes adhered to Neoclassical forms but were Romantic in theme and feeling. Though his literary career was brief and his output slender, he is considered one of the finest English lyric poets of the 18th century. (Enc. Br.) 9:92 1:9 II:ll-:
Colmar a town in northeastern France, capital of Haut-Rhin departement, bordering the German frontier and a few miles east of the foothills of the Vosges mountains. It was annexed twice by Germany: from 1871 to 1919 and again during World War II. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov.l913-0ct. '27]
Colombo capital of Sri Lanka (formerly called Ceylon), situated on the west coast of the island; it is one of the principal Indian Ocean ports. (Enc. Br.) 1:803
Colootola a locality in central Calcutta where the offices of the English newspaper Bengalee were situated, 1:182, 265, 415, 623, 896-901
Columbus, Christopher (1451-1506), Italian explorer in the service of Spain; first historically verifiable discoverer (1492) of the New World. His four voyages opened the way for European exploration, exploitation, and colonization and irreversibly changed the course of world history. (Enc. Br.; Web.) D 3: 13 22:423 IV: 161 XVI: 182
Comilla name of a district, and also of its headquarters, in Chittagong division, Bengal (now in Bangladesh). See also Tipperah. (Enc. Br.) 1:115, 163, 209, 212-19, 224, 244, 250-52, 261-62, 286, 345, 358, 369-71, 376, 403, 513, 522, 543, 734 27:18-19, 21, 25, 29, 39, 47 XXI: 87-88, 98
Commons, House of popularly elected legislative body of the bicameral British Parliament (the other House is known as the House of Lords). For all practical purposes, the House of Commons is synonymous with Parliament. It alone has the right to impose taxes and to vote
Page 79
money to, or withdraw it from, the various public departments and services. (Enc. Br.) 1:16.26, 32, 55, 349, 402-03, 420-21, 462-64, 575.631, 822 2:55, 60, 207, 223, 253, 268, 270, 281 4:212-14
Commonwealth, British British Commonwealth of Nations, worldwide political organization of independent nations with their dependencies, all of which recognize the British monarch as head of the Commonwealth. (Enc. Br.) 15:295, 312-13, 317, 447
Communist follower of Communism which, in contemporary usage, means the policies and doctrines of Communist parties such as the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Originally the term "communism" meant a system of society in which property is owned by the community and in which wealth is shared by citizens according to their need. Communist parties hold that modern industrial society will inevitably reach such a state of communism, but only after a long period of transition. (Enc. Br.) Der: Communistic a 15:17.20, 45, 189-90, 192-93, 197, 205, 381, 560, 564, 567-69 22:209 26:416
Comol (Cumary) a character daughter of Rana Curran and Menadevi in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. 7: 739.747-55, 760-63, 770-76, 788.790-92, 802-11, 814-15 Comorin, Cape Sanskrit, Kanya Kumari, rocky headland in Tamil Nadu state, India, forming the southernmost point of the subcontinent. (Enc. Br.) a 1:797, 803 10:554 XVII: 43
Company (British) East India Company, a British commercial and political organization in India from 1600 to 1873. It was incorporated by royal charter on December 31. 1600. Starting as a monopolistic trading body, the company became involved in politics and acted as an agent of British imperialism in India from the mid-18th century. (Erie. Br.) 1:53 8:331
Compiegne a town in Oise departement of northern France, northeast of Paris. It is an important tourist centre. (Col. Enc.) 27:466
Comte, Auguste (1798-1857), French philosopher, founder of sociology and Positivism a system of thought and knowledge put forward as being capable of providing a basis for political organization in a modern industrial society. (Enc. Br.) 4:44
Comudica a character Bakulavalika's friend in Kalidasa's play Mdlavikagnimifram, part of which was translated by Sri Aurobindo under the title Malavica and the King. 8:135, 139-41 X: 116, 118-21
Comus a poetic masque by Milton, published in 1637 but first performed in 1634 with music by Henry Lawes. Mythologically, Comus is a Greek god of mirth, represented as a winged youth bearing a torch and a drinking cup. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 26:246 29:792
Concise Oxford (Dictionary) See Oxford (Dictionary)
Confucius (551-479 Be), more correctly written Kong Fu-Tse, the most famous Chinese philosopher and political theorist, whose ideas have influenced the civilizations of all eastern Asia. Positive evidence concerning his life is scanty. His supposed doctrines are embodied in Confucianism, which has traditionally been the substance of learning, the source of values, and the social code of the Chinese, as well as a religion and a philosophy for more than two millennia. (Enc. Br.; G.W.H.) Der: Confucian; Confucianism 1:800 2:230 17:238 20:192 26:75, 483 27:279, 284 1:31 VIII: 169, 172 IX: 42 XVI: 180
Congo Belgian Congo, a former colony in equatorial Africa. It was later known as Democratic Republic of the Congo, and now it is called the Republic of Zaire. (Enc. Br.) n 15:328
Congress in most cases, the same as "Indian National Congress"
Congress, Lady a character the Indian National Congress personified in Sri Aurobindo's tragedy "The Slaying of Congress" published in Bande Mataram in February 1908. 1:673-80, 682-90.693.695-96 Connaught one of the five ancient kingdoms or provinces of Ireland, lying in the western and northwestern areas of the island and comprising the modern counties of Mayo, Sligo, Leitrim, Galway, and Roscommon. (Enc.Br.) 15:299
Conquest of Happiness, The a book (1930) by Bertrand Russell. (A) 9:555
Conrad, Joseph (1857-1924), a Polish-born English writer; he was a great novelist and short-story writer, and has been long admired for his rich English prose. (Enc. Br.) 9:456
Page 80
Conrad, Count a character - a young nobleman - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. 7: 821, 825,834-36,840, 876,880
Conservative Party in Great Britain, the political party associated with the maintenance of institutions, confidence in private enterprise, and a preference for a pragmatic, rather than ideological, approach to the problems of government. The party is the heir, and in some measure the continuation, of the old Tory Party. (Enc. Br.) Der: Conservatism I: 104-05,143,323,384,409,419.448,573 2: 56, 101, 195, 234, 267-72, 285, 299. 306-07, 379-80 4:205,212-14,221,233,248 27:4,54 XXII: 126
Constable, John (1776-1837). English painter who, with J.M.W. Turner, dominated English landscape painting in the 19th century. Constable is famous for his inspired land- scapes of Suffolk, Hampstead, Salisbury, and Brighton. Although he was praised in France, recognition in England was slow. and he was not made a fellow of the Royal Academy until 1829. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n 14:237
Constance a character - mother to Arthur - in Shakespeare's play King John. (Shakes.) 3:285 X:172 Constantine Constantine the Great (2887-337), Roman emperor who initiated the evolution of the empire into a Christian state and prepared the way for a distinctively Christian Western and Byzantine medieval culture. (Col. Enc.: Enc. Br.) 14:80, 193 15:164 17:163 27:484
Constantinople former capital of the Byzantine Empire and of the Ottoman Empire, since 1930 officially called Istanbul. Built on seven hills (in Asiatic Turkey on the Bosphorus), Constantinople had an almost inconceivable wealth of artistic and literary treasures before it was sacked in 1204 and in 1453. (Col. Enc.) 15:457 27:163.352 XXI:4,32.66.87 Conventionalisms) in the freedom movement of India, a term used generally for the MODF-RA THS. since, after the Surat debacle, they organized a national Convention in place of the broken Congress. (A) Var: Conventionist I: 864-66, 869, 871 -72, 904 2:305,307
Convention and Revolt in Poetry a book written in 1918 by Livingstone Lowes. (A) 9:443 Conversations Conversations with the Mother, a bopk by the Mother, printed in 1931 for private circulation. It contains a record of her answers (in English) to ques- tions put by Sadhaks after meditation
at Sunday meetings held during the period April to August 1929. The notes of these conversations were taken by one of the Sadhaks and corrected and approved for publication by the Mother. The conversa- tions were made available to the public in 1940 by being included in Words of the Mother. In 1956 the title was changed to Conversations. The book has since gone through several editions, n 23: 586 25:209, 259.369.383.390.396,398-401 26:353,450
Coochbehar Cooch Behar, former native state, now a district ofJalpaiguri division in northern West Bengal state. The chief town and headquarters of the district is also named Cooch Behar. (Col. Enc.) n 1:394,414
Cook, Dr. Frederick Albert Cook (1865-1940), U.S. physician and Arctic explorer who was the centre of much con- troversy about polar exploration. He was surgeop on the Peary Arctic expedition (1891-92). He also claimed to have reached the North Pole in 1908, but his claim was denounced by Peary and later rejected by scientists. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 2:217
Coomaraswamy, A. K. Dr. Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy (1877-1947), pioneer historian of Indian art and a foremost interpreter of Indian culture to the West. In 1917 he was appointed the fellow for research in Indian, Persian and Moslem art in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, a post that he held until his death. (Enc. Br.) 2:209-11,213 14:196 XIII: 47-48
Coomood (Cumary) a character - daughter of Rana Curran by a concubine - in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. 7:739, 747-48, 750-51, 755. 760-63, 766, 771, 773, 775-76, 786.788.805.807-11,814-16
Coonty SeeKunti(e)'
Coontybhoj Kuntibhoja, in the Mahabharata, king of a people called Kuntis, in Upper India: he was the adoptive father of Kunti, the daughter of Shoorasen and a wife of Pandu. (Dow.) 8:77 Cooper, Dr. and Mrs. Dr. Cooper was the Health Officer of Baroda State about 1902. (A) 1:73
Page 81
Coral Mill(s) a mill located at Tuticorin in South India, it was run with British capital. In 1908 there was a strike at the mill, which ended in an absolute victory for the labourers. (A) 1:727,752,754,778
Corecbus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Lycian leader. (M.I.) 5:461
Corillo a proposed character - prince of lini_mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's incomplete play The Witch ofllni. (A) 7:1057
Corineus a proposed character - a brother of Brutus - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's incomplete play The House of Brut. 7:883 Corinthian Theatre a small old theatre hall near Chowringee in central Calcutta. 1:760 Corneille, Pierre (1606-84), French dramatist, often called the father of French classical tragedy. He prepared the way for a drama that was the envy of Europe throughout the 17th century. (Enc. Br.) 9:67,87,521
Cornish a language belonging to the Brythonic group of the Celtic subfamily of Indo-European languages; it was formerly spoken in Cornwall in southwestern Britain. It became extinct in the 18th or early 19th century. (Enc. Br.) 15:390
Cornwall a maritime county in extreme southwest England. (Col. Enc.) 3:486
Corobhus Karabha, in the Mahabharata, a king subservient to Jarasandha, the king of Magadha. (M.N.) 8:40
Corrusus Karusa, in the Mahabharata, a king of Karusa, an ancient land of India. (Pur. Enc.; M.N.) 8:40
Corsican a native of Corsica (the fourth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, located southeast of France and north of Sardinia). Corsica formerly constituted a departement of France: but on 1 January 1976 two departements were established: Haute Corse and Corse du Sud. The term here (17: 382) stands for Napoleon Bonaparte, a native of Corsica. (Enc. Br.) n 17:382 Cortes Hernan Cortes or Hernando Cortez (1485-1547), Spanish conquistador; he captured Mexico for Spain, crushing an ancient civilisation. (Col. Enc.; Pears) 9:3 15:323
Corydon a character participating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete), which Sri Aurobindo wrote sometime around 1891. (A&R,II:91) D 11:5,8 Cos Latin form of the Greek "Kos", a Greek island in the Aegean
Sea, off the southwestern coast of Turkey; it is second largest of the Dodecanese Islands. Cos was once famous for the manufacture of light transparent garments. (Enc. Br.) Der:Coan a 6:59.421
Coshala See Koshala
Cossacks peasant-soldiers of several regions in Russia, who under the czars held certain privileges in return for rendering military service as Cossack cavalry. In the Ukraine, they set up a separate state which in 1654 became a vassal of Russia. (Col. Enc.) n 15:513
Cossimbazar a town in Murshidabad district of Bengal (now West Bengal state). D 8:320 Cotton, Henry Sir Henry John Stedman Cotton (1845-1915), a most liberal English- man who held various offices in the I.C.S. from 1867 to 1902, and became a leading champion of Indian nationalism. He took a prominent part in starting the Indian National Congress, and was the president of its 20th session held at Bombay. (D. I. H.; Purani) 1:172.190.201,373.420,565,574, 863 2:161,234,363 26:2.6 27:18,33,44 11:88
Cotton, James (or J.S.) James Sutherland Cotton (1847-1918), younger brother of Sir Henry Cotton, born in India at Coonoor. He was a scholar of Trinity College, an M.A., and later, fellow and lecturer at Queen's College, Oxford, He edited the revised edition of the Imperial Gazetteer of India, and was also editor of The Academy. 4:205,225 26:2.6 11:88-89 IV: 196
Coue. Emile (1857-1926), French pharmacist and psychotherapist. He is remembered for his formula for curing by optimistic autosug- gestion: "Day by day, in every way, 1 am getting better and better". (Col. Enc.) 24:1106.1571.1589.1686 25:162
Council of Education See (National) Council of Education
Council of Notables See (Advisory) Council of Notables
County See Kunti(e)'
Courland or Kurland, region and former duchy in western Latvia, on the Baltic seacoast. (Col. Enc.) 15:512
Court of Cassation Court of Appeal (especially of European countries other than England, e.g. France). (C.O.D.) a 27:471
Page 82
Courtship of Miles Standish a poem (1858) by Longfellow. The subject is an incident in the lives of Priscilla and John Alden. (Col. Enc.) 5:346
Cousins, James H. (1873-1956), Irish poet, theosophist, social worker, and educationist; author of New Ways in English Literature and many other books. He came to India in 1915; later he and his wife became Indian citizens. Cousins was very much interested in Indian culture and occultism, and was one of the founders of Kala Kshetra, an institution of art and culture at Adyar, Madras. He was a close associate of Mrs. Annie Besant, and was the literary sub-editor of her paper New India. (The Mail - special number) 9: 1-8. 66, 152. 157, 308, 462 14: 46,397-99, 409 17:319 26:276-77.371 V: 17
Cousins, Mme wife of James H. Cousins [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Coventry city and borough in Warwickshire from 1888 to 1974; after 1974, in the metropolitan county of West Midlands, England. The phrase "to send to Coventry", meaning "to ostracize socially", is of uncertain origin, and refers to the practice of social ostracism of individual workers by their fellows during industrial disputes. (Enc. Br.) 2: 144
Coverer See Vritra
Cowel, Professor Edward Byles Cowell (1826-1903), English Sanskrit scholar. He was educated at Oxford, and was for some years principal of the Sanskrit College, Calcutta. From 1867 he was professor at Cambridge University and was ranked as the foremost English Orientalist of his day. He published a large number of works both in Sanskrit and English. Prof. Cowell reviewed Bankim's first novel Durgeshnandini in the MacMillun's Magazine in 1872. (Enc. Am.; A) 27:352
Cowper, William (1731-1800), one of the most widely read English poets of his day. He wrote of the joys and sorrows of every- day life. In his sympathy with commonplace phenomena, his concern for the poor and downtrodden, and in his comparative simpli- city of language, he may be seen as one in revolt against much 18th-century verse and as a forerunner of Burns, Wordsworth, and Coleridge. (Enc. Br.) a 9:51,92,308 1:9,15 11:11-12
Cowsambie an ancient city in the lower part of the Doab in Uttar Pradesh, near the confluence of the Ganga and the Yamuna. (Dow.) 6:205,207,211,215,217,220,222, 226,228.245-46, 252, 257-58, 263-65,270,272, 275-77, 280,305,309-11, 315, 324,328
Cowshalya in the Ramayana, wife of Dasharatha, senior queen of Ayodhya, and mother of Rama. She belonged to Koshala, hence her name Kausalya. (Dow.) 3:285 8:8,11 X: 173
Cowshic Kausika, in the Mahabharata, a minister of Jarasandha, also known as Hansa or Hamsa; he was brother of Chitrasen or Dimbhuk. (M.N.) 8:58
Cowshiquie See Caushiquie C. P. See Central Provinces
Crab also called Cancer, a Latin word meaning "crab", the fourth sign of the zodiac. In Hindu astronomy, it is known as "Karka", a Sanskrit word meaning "crab". It is a northern constellation which contains the star cluster Praesepe (sometimes known as the "beehive" or the "manger"). The Tropic of Cancer takes its name from this constel- lation. (Col. Enc.)7:257-58,260
Crabbe, George (1754-1832), writer of verse tales memorable for their realistic details of everyday life. (Enc. Br.) a 11:11
Crawford Market a big building housing a vegetable and fruit market, near the Victoria Terminus station, in Bombay. D 1:194
Creagan Richard Creagan, Superintendent of Police in Calcutta who led a party of police to search Sri Aurobindo's residence and arrest him on 2 May 1908. (A.B.T., p. 60) n 4:258-59
Creon in Greek legend, brother of Jocasta. He became regent of Thebes after the banishment of OEDIPUS. See also Antigone. (Col. Enc.) 9:217
Crete a large island in the eastern Mediterranean, off the southeast coast of Greece. By the time of the Troj an War it was under Greek domination, though a brilliant civilisation of a distinctive character had flourished there earlier in the second millennium BC. Idomeneus was the leader of the Cretan contingent against Troy. (M.I.) Der: Cretan 2:167-69,248 5:405,418, 430.459.464,475. 477-78, 484,491 Creiisa in Greek and Roman legend, daughter of Priam and Hecuba. She was wife of Aeneas, and mother of Ascanius. She died while fleeing from Troy during the siege. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:398,442-43,461
Cripa See Kripa
Page 83
Cripps, Stafford Sir (Richard) Stafford Cripps (1889-1952), British statesman and lawyer, chiefly remembered in England for his rigid austerity programme as Chancellor of Exchequer (1947-50). He was known to be liberal in his views regarding the constitu- tional changes that were to be introduced in India and was deputed to present to Indian' leaders the offer of partial sovereignty made by the British in 1942. The "Cripps Offer" was publicly supported by Sri Aurobindo. (D.I.H.;Enc.Br.) 26:36,39-40,54,399 XVII: 65
Crishna (literally, black; of dark complexion); See Krishna
Critanta in Hindu mythology, a name of Yama, the god of death; "who ends all things and at last himself shall end". (A) D [Indexed with Yama]
Critavurm Krtavarma, in the Mahabharata, a Kuru warrior who accompanies Ashwatthama to make the murderous night attack upon the campofthePandavas. (Dow.) 8:43
Croce, Benedetto (1866-1952), historian, humanist, critic, and the foremost Italian philosopher of the first half of the 20th century. (Enc. Br.) 9:485-87
Crocodile Makara in Hindu astrology,. represented as Capricornus (the Goat) in Western astrology, an inconspicuous constellation of the Southern Hemisphere lying between Sagittarius and Aquarius. It is the 10th sign of the zodiac. The Tropic of Capricorn takes its name from this con- stellation. (Col. Enc.) 17:257-58,260
Cromer, Lord Evelyn Baring (1841-1917), 1st Earl of Cromer, British administrator and diplomat in Egypt. Until he resigned in 1907, the history of Egypt was also his, for he was virtual ruler, reforming finances, administration, and education. In India he worked as the Finance Member of the Viceroy's Executive Council for three years from 1880. (Col. Enc.) 2:407 Cromwell, Oliver (1599-1658), soldier and statesman who led parliamentary forces in the English Civil War, and was Lord Pro- tector of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 1653 to 1658. Opinions of Cromwell have always varied widely; his military skill and force of character are universally recognized. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 7:1047-49,1051 14:191 15:513 Cronion an epithet of Zeus (son of Cronos, a Titan). (M.I.) 5:431,460,472,486,498, 503,505,510-11
Cronos (Greek "Kronos"), in Greek myth- ology, the youngest of the twelve Titans, gigantic primeval children of Ouranos and Gaea (Heaven and Earth). He ruled the world after overthrowing his father, until
he in turn was vanquished by his own children, Zeus and the Olympian gods. The Romans identified him with Saturn, the god of agriculture. His reign was regarded as the Golden Age. (A&R,XV:87) Var: Cronus 6:85 8:410 XV: 44
Crounchanindhra in Hindu mythology, name of a pass situated somewhere in the Himalayas, said to have been opened by Parasurama with his arrows to make a passage from Kailasa southwards. The Vayu Purana attributes the opening of the pass to Kartikeya, who used his lance. (Dow.) 3:238 27:98
Cnrth in the Mahabharata, name of an ancient country which was conquered by Bhismaka (see Bhishmuc), the king of Vidarbha. (M.N.) 8:40
Cuba westernmost island of the West Indies. Havana is the capital. As a result of the treaty of 1898 ending the Spanish-American War, Cuba was established an independent republic under U.S. protection. After Fidel Castro's revolution in 1959, it became a socialist republic. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 15:478,508 26:395
Cubera See Kuvera
Cuckoo To the Cuckoo, a well-known lyrical poem by Wordsworth, 9:305
Cuddalore administrative headquarters of South Arcot district in the province of Madras (now in Tamil Nadu state). It is a seaport on the Bay of Bengal, twenty-two km south of Pondicherry. (Enc. Br.) Q27:427,445,448
Cumberland former county in the extreme North England, bordering on the Irish Sea and Solway Firth to the west and Scotland to the north. Since 1974 Cumberland has been part of Cumbria county. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 3:117,486
Cunca in the Mahabharata, one of the seven great heroes of the Vrishni family of the Yadavas. (M.N.) 8:43
Cunning Old Fury a character in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. 1:346
Cupid Roman god of Love, counterpart of Greek god Eros; a character in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. D 7:821,870
Page 84
Cuma See Kama
Cursetji a Parsi, private secretary of Nawab Salimullah of Dacca. He was involved in the Comilla incident of 1907. (A) 1:211,213
Curtius Marcus Curtius, a legendary hero of ancient Rome. According to the story, in 362 BC a deep chasm opened in the Roman Forum. The seers declared that the pit would never close until Rome's most valuable pos- session was thrown into it. Claiming that nothing was more precious than a brave citizen, Curtius leaped, fully armed and on horseback, into the chasm, which immediately closed. (Enc. Br.) 9:549
Curzon, Lord George Nathaniel, Marquis of Kedleston (1859-1925), British statesman, Viceroy of India (1899-1905). His administration was marked by many reforms. But some of his measures (like the Universities Act and the Partition of Bengal in 1905, as well as contemptuous references in his public speeches to Indian character and to the Congress) roused a great deal of popular resentment against him in India, and he resigned in 1905. (D.I.H.) Der: Curaonian;
CurzonismI:76,78,137,161,164,167,173, 296,307,317,327,337,359,395,419,478,485, 493,597-98,627, 702, 706,715, 727,857 2:144, 190,203, 217, 243,246, 371-72,405 3: 393-94 4:158, 230 17: 369 26:65 27:4,10,16, 63 1:4,6,70 111:12
Curzon-Wyllie, Sir William (1848-1909). Served in the Army, 1866-80; Resident in Nepal, 1893-98; Viceroy's Agent in Central India, 1898-1900; Agent in Rajputana, 1900-01; Political A.D.C. to the Secretary of State for India, 1901-09; knighted, 1902. He was shot dead by Madan Lal DHINGRA at a gathering at the Imperial Institute in London on July 1,1909. (Gilbert, p. 27; P.T.I.) a 2:97,234
Cushan The Kushans, originally a nomadic people, later settled in Bactria and in the first century BC began to make raids into India. Subsequently they established a vast empire in India and ruled from c. AD 48 to 220. (D.I.H.) Der: Cushanian 7:742
Cybele in Phrygian religion, the Great Mother of the Gods, an Oriental-Greek- Roman deity who usually appears with mural crown and veil, seated on a throne or in a chariot, and accompanied by two lions. (Enc. Br.) 6:12 XV: 20
Cyclades an island group consisting of 24 islands; it is a part of the Greek archipelago in the Aegean Sea and stretches southeast from Attica. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 5:32 6:185 Cyclopes in Greek mythology, one-eyed giants descended from Uranus and Gaea. Some of the Cyclopes
were shepherds, like Polyphemus, who captured Odysseus. Others worked in the smithy of Hephaestus, forging thunderbolts for Zeus, and often on the fortifications of ancient cities. In Homer, they are savage and pastoral and have no government or laws. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) Der: Cyclopean; Cyclops (singular) n 3:32 5:358,392,501,507-08 29:642
Cycnus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, brother of Zethus, a Hellene. He was killed in battle by Penthesilea. (M.I.) a 5:514-15 ("Cyenus" is a misreading) VI: 135
Cydone a character - mistress of lolaus - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer 6:3,26,66-74,126-30,158-61,166,176, 181-83
Cyenus , a misreading of CYCNUS.
Cygne, Le a French sonnet by Mallarme. (A) 9:530-32
Cymbeline or Cunobelinus, legendary British king (c. 1st cent.AD) who resisted the Romans. A leading character in Shakes- peare's comedy Cymbeline. (Enc. Br.) 1:40
Cymothea a woman's name, mentioned in Sri Aurobindo's poem Songs to Myrtilla. Q 5:5
Cymric of Cymru, the name of Wales in the Welsh language. (Enc. Br.) 15:306,309
Cynthia or Cynthius, names given in Greek legend to Artemis (Diana) and Apollo, derived from Cynthus, a mountain in their native Delos. (O.C.C.L.) 5:20
Cynthia a poem by Keats. (A) D 3:291 X: 141
Cyprian of Cyprus, an island in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, south of Turkey. (Col. Enc.;C.O.D.) 6:365
Cypris in Greek mythology, an epithet of Aphrodite. Her sanctuaries in Cyprus (at Paphos and Amathus) were especially renowned, hence Homer called her "the Cyprian". (M.I.) 5:33,445-46,506,524, 546 Cyrene an ancient Greek colony on the coast of Libya, founded c. 632 BC (Enc. Br.) 8:411
Cythera a Greek island in the Mediterranean, off the southeast promontory of the Peloponnesus, on which there was a sanctuary of Aphrodite. According to one legend Aphrodite is said to have landed on it after her birth in the sea. (M.I.) 5:481, 499,501
Page 85
Cytherea in Greek mythology, an epithet of Aphrodite. 5eeCythera. (M.I.) 5:501 7:1074
Czar title adopted by the grand princes of Muscovy (Moscow) in the 16th century. In 1721 Peter I officially changed the title to "emperor"; the rulers of Russia, however, continued to be popularly called "czar" until 1917. (Enc. Br.) Var: Tsar Der: Czardom;
Czarism1:330,420,4522:135,206,254,399-400 15:357,444,457,512 17:326
Czarina wife of a czar; Russian empress. (C.O.D.) 2:254 Czech formerly "Bohemian": the language or a native of Bohemia, the westernmost province of Czecho-Slovakia. (Enc.Br.; Col. Enc.) 15:496,505
D
D. See David.
Dabhoi a town in the former princely state of Baroda (now in Gujarat state), about 20 miles southeast of the city of Baroda. (A; S. Atlas) a 27:116
Dacca chief city of eastern Bengal, situated just north of the Burhi Ganga River. In 1905' it was designated capital of the newly formed province of Eastern Bengal and Assam (1905-12). Later it became the capital of East Bengal province of Pakistan (1947), and of East Pakistan (1956). Since 1971 Dacca has been the capital of the separate country of Bangladesh; and now it is officially spelled "Dhaka". (Enc. Br.) 1:135,169,196, 209,212,262,272, 288, 357, 369, 373, 375, 384, 402-03,414,610,626-27,635 2:229-30 4:196, 229, 232, 247 27: 6-7,20-21,40 . VIII: 131
Dacre(s) in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Devil's Mastiff", name of a family. Three characters in the story bear the surname "Dacre": John, Margaret, and Matilda. 7:1048,1050-51
Dadabhai1 See Naoroji, Dadabhai
Dadabhai2 a character, representing Dadabhai Naoroji, in the tragedy "The Slaying of Congress" published in Bande Mataram in February 1908. 1:673-74
Dadaists followers of Dadaism, an inter- national nihilistic movement in the arts that existed primarily in
Zurich, Berlin, Cologne, Hannover, Paris, and New York, in the early 20th century. According to the most widely accepted accoupt, the name "Dada" was adopted at Zurich during one of the meet- ings held in 1916 by a group of artists and war resisters, including the poet Tristan Tzara. The word was considered appropriate for their anti-aesthetic creations and protest activities, which were engendered by disgust for bourgeois values and despair over World War I. Dadaism was a doctrine of utter formlessness; words, or even syllables, were used without regard to meaning, as in the speech of a small child. (Enc.Br.) 9:446 Dadhichi (later form of Dadhyanca or Dadhica), a Rishi of the Vedic times, son of Atharvan. According to a legend, which ap- pears in the Rig-veda, Indra taught Dadhi- cha certain sciences, but threatened to cut off his head if he taught them to anyone else. Dadhicha was, however, prevailed upon by the Aswins to communicate his knowl- edge to them. They replaced his head with that of a horse, and after it was cut off by Indra, they restored his own head. Another story related about Dadhicha is that he gladly accepted death in order that Indra might slay Vritra with the thunderbolt fabricated by TWASHTRI out of his bones. (Dow.; M.W.) Der: Dadhyang (an inflected form) o n:278 IX: 5
Dadhikra(van) in the Veda, the divine war- horse, a power of Agni; he is the White Horse who carries us through the battle to the goal of our voyaging. (A) 9:213 10:130,298,413,424 11:32,143,197-98,238 VI:127,131 XIV:110
Dadhyang See Dadhichi
Daedalus mythical Greek architect and sculptor who was said to have built the labyrinth for King Minos of Crete. Falling out of favour with Minos, he made wings for himself and his son Icarus in order to escape to Sicily. All went well with Daedalus;
Icarus, however, flew too near the sun. The wax joints of the wings melted and he fell into the sea and was drowned. Stories of the marvels constructed by Daedalus are many. (Enc.Br.; Col. Enc.) 6:55
Daffodils one of the best-known poems of Wordsworth, a 9:305
Dagon West Semitic god of crop fertility, worshipped extensively throughout the ancient Near East. His cult is attested as early as c. 2500 BC. He was the father of the god BAAL. (Enc.Br.) 6:8
Daily Express British newspaper, founded in 1900. (Enc.Br.) 2:119 Daily Mail British newspaper, founded in 1896 by Alfred Charles William Harmsworth. It was an instant success. Sri
Page 86
Aurobindo read it for its comic "Curly Wee" feature. (H.L.) 2:119
Daily News1 (of India). See (Indian) Daily News.
Daily News2 a paper of London which al- ways overflowed with praise for "British Liberalism" in India. H. W. NEVINSON visited India in 1907-08 as the special correspondent of this paper. (A; S.F.F.) 1:574
Daitya(s) in Hindu mythology, descendants from Dili by Kashyapa. They were a race of giants who warred against the gods and interfered with sacrifices. (Dow.) 1:663 4:29, 86 10:199, 493 11: 445, 456,467 12:532 23:1042 27:158 11:76 XVI: 144,152 XIX: 54
Daksha I. in the Veda, a god, master of the works of unerring discernment; 2. in the Puranas, one of the Prajapatis, the original progenitors, and father of Sati. Sati married Shiva, and killed herself in consequence of a quarrel between her husband and her father. (A; Dow.) 1:892-95 8:107, 118 10:66-68,421,521 11:494,496 12:416 XV: 45,47 —
Dakshina (Daksina), perhaps a female form of the Vedic Daksha; she is the goddess of divine discernment. (A) 10:68,153, 186-87,319,364 11:32,496,498
Dakshina Marga one of the two forms of worship - the "right-hand" form - in Tantra. The followers of this marga (path) are known as Daksinacaris. (Dow.) 16:336 20:37
Dakshineshwar a locality about seven miles from Calcutta, on the banks of the Ganga, where there are ghats and temples (one main temple of Kali and twelve small temples of Shiva). Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa lived here in the temple of Kali; it is here that he had his realisation. (Guide) Var: Dukkhineswar 1:655,799 2:412 4:259 26:59 1:23 IX: 25 Dal, Lake a picturesque lake in the Kashmir valley, in Srinagar. (Gaz.-L,p. 17) IV: 194
Dalbha a Vedic Rishi, spoken of as father or brother of Baka. a 12:390
Daley Honorary Captain F. J. Daley, the doctor in charge of the Alipore Jail hospital.He was of Irish stock and inherited many of the qualities of that liberal race. Dr. Daley had to pay for his humanitarianism. Found guilty of "grave neglect of duty and want of supervision over his subordinates", he
was removed from the charge of the Jail hospital and appointed to a less responsible post. (A; A & R, XI: 110) 4:274-75, 280,297,300
Damascus a city in southern Syria; capital of Syria, on the Barada River. It is thought to be the world's oldest existing city. Damas- cene steel (famous swords and other wares) is no more, but fine textiles, fruits and Damascene ware are still the pride of the ancient city. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) Der:
Damasc 3:475 5:276 6:99,156 7:597, 634 15:645 26:242 29:788 111:27
Damayanti wife of Nala and heroine of the tale of Nala and Damayanti, one of the episodes of the Mahabharata. She was the only daughter of the king of Vidarbha, and was very lovely and accomplished. (M.N.; Dow) 2:399 3:154,159-61 14:192
Dambhodbhove a king whose story is related in the Mahabharata as an antidote to pride. He had an overweening conceit of his own prowess and even challenged Nara and Narayana. (Dow.) 8:57
Damien, Father (1840-89), Belgian priest who devoted his life to missionary work among the Hawaiian lepers. (Enc. Br.) a 12:484
Damie, S. K. a pleader of Poona (presently in Maharashtra state, and spelled "Pune") around 1908. (A) 27:62
Damocles (fl. 4th cent. Be), a courtier of Dionysius the Elder of Syracuse, tyrant from 405 to 367 BC, known to history through the legend of the "Sword of Damocles". Accord- ing to the legend, when Damocles glorified in extravagant terms the riches and power of the tyrant, Dionysius, to demonstrate the dangers and the unhappiness of high estate, gave a banquet in his honour. Damocles enjoyed the splendour of the banquet to the full, until, looking up, he beheld a sword suspended above his head by a single hair. (Enc.Br.; Col. Enc.) a 2:93-94
Damoetes a character - villager or towns- . man - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, 6:3,115-17,119-25,135,138, 140, 142,144-46,148,155-56, 166-67,170,191,196
Danaans Argives (the men of Argos regarded as descendants of Danaus). (M.I.) 5:468 Danae in Greek legend, daughter of Acrisius, the Argive king; she bore to Zeus a son named Perseus (see 6:1). (Col.
Page 87
Enc.) a 6:1,3,9,15,25,161-62,173,192
Danaus in Greek legend, ancestor of the Danaans, men of Argos. (M.I.) 5:476
Danava(s) in Hindu mythology, descendants from Danu by the sage Kashyapa. They were giants who warred against the gods. One hundred sons were born to Danu, from whom arose ten families of Danavas. (Dow.; Pur. Enc. ) Der: Danavi (danavi, a female danava) 4:147 10:126,199, 224 11:29 13:454
Dance of Life, The a book (1923) by Havelock Ellis. (A) 9:329
Dane, Sir Louis Sir Louis William Dane (1856-1946), Lt. Governor of Punjab (1908-13). He joined the I.C.S. in 1876 in Punjab; appointed Chief Secretary, Punjab, in 1898; Resident in Kashmir in 1901; and Foreign Secretary in Government of India in 1903. He was sent to Kabul (Afghanistan) as the Head of the British Indian Mission (1904-05). Sir Dane was with Lord Hardinge in the Delhi Durbar (1911). In 1940 he was wounded when Sir Michael O'Dwyer was killed, 2:345
Daniel legendary Biblical hero, the central figure of the Book of Daniel in the Old Testament. Daniel is extolled for his upright character. He was an upright judge, and a person of infallible wisdom. (Enc. Br.) a 1:486
Danish official language of Denmark, used by about five million speakers. It belongs to the East Scandinavian branch of the North Germanic languages. Danish had some influence on the Swedish and Icelandic languages and was the official written and administrative language of Norway from the Reformation until the 19th century. (Enc. Br.) 27:89 .
D'Annunzio, Gabriele (1863-1938), Italian poet, novelist, dramatist, short-story writer, journalist, military hero, and political leader. (Enc. Br.) 9:96
Dante Dante (Alighieri) (1265-1321), the greatest poet of Italy and also a prose writer, literary theorist, moral philosopher, and political thinker, whose Christian epic Divina Commedia (The Divine Comedy) is one of the landmarks of world literature. (Enc. Br.) Der: Dantesque 3:101,147,217 9: 30,37,42,61, 76, 84-85,206, 305-06.311,314, 381,479-80,521,524 12:pre. 14:66,257 17:137,182 26:276,302-03 27:86,92 VI: 198 X:114 XVII: 66,73
Danton, Georges(- Jacques) (1759-94), French statesman, one of the leading figures of the French Revolution. He was one of the most complex and controversial statesmen of the period, and is regarded as both a defender of the oppressed and a political opportunist. (Enc. Br.) 1:273,405 3:459 17:378, 380-82
Danu in Hindu mythology, daughter of Daksha Prajapati and wife of the sage Kashyapa; she is the mother of the Danavas. She is considered by many, Sri Aurobindo among them (10:199, 383), as identical with Diti. (M.N.;A) 10:126,199,383,421
Danube great river of central and south- eastern Europe, second only to the Volga among European rivers. It rises in the Black Forest and passes through many countries before entering the Black Sea. (Col. Enc.) 15:347
Danzig (German form of Gdansk) capital of Gdansk province, north central Poland, situated at the mouth of the Vistula River on the Baltic Sea. (Enc. Br.) 27:466
Daphne in Greek mythology, a daughter of the river god Peneus in Thessaly. She attracted the love of Apollo, who pursued her in the beautiful vale of Tempe. When she prayed to Earth (or to her father) to rescue her, she was turned into a laurel-tree, which became the favourite tree of Apollo. This myth may refer to the Hellenes' capture of Tempe, where the goddess Daphne was worshipped by Maenads (or Bacchantes), who chewed the laurel and thus intoxicated themselves. (Pears; Enc. Br.) 6:352,417
Darbhanga a district in the state of Bihar, India; the administrative headquarters of the district is the town of Darbhanga. Under British rule Darbhanga was a semi- autonomous princely state. (Enc. Br.) 1:414 2:345
Dardanelles See Hellespont
Dardanid an epithet of the descendants of DARDANUS. In Ilion, it has been used mainly for Aeneas, sometimes also for Deiphobus. (M.I.) a 5:382,398,446,458
Dardanus in Greek legend, son of Zeus by Electra, the daughter of Atlas. He married the daughter of Teucer and became the ancestor of both the younger and older branches of the royal house of Troy. (M.I.) 5:410,412,418,428,440,465,511
Page 88
Darius (Hystaspes) Darius I or Darius the Great (550-486 Be), king of ancient Persia (522-486 BC), called also Dariavaush and Darius Hystaspes (after his father, Hystaspes or Vishtaspa). Darius consolidated Persian power in the East, including northwest India. He is noted for his administrative genius and for his building projects. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 3:199 16:90
Darjeeling a town in northern Bengal (now northern West Bengal state). It is a famous hill resort. Here, at the Loreto Convent School, Sri Aurobindo was educated between 1877 and 1879. (Col. Enc.; A) 1:410, 491 4:317 26:1
Dark Ages earlier part of the MIDDLE AGES, ending with the 12th century, during which science was dead, theology was the main preoccupation, and the language of the learned West was Latin. (Pears, p. L79) 1:270 3:433
Dark Well a collection of poems by Harindranath Chattopadhyay, written in the Ashram. 26:289 Darshana(s) the six traditional orthodox systems of Hindu philosophy: Sankhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Mimamsa and Vedanta. (Sometimes the heterodox schools of Buddhism, Jainism and the materialistic Charvakas are also listed among the Darshanas.) (Enc. Br.) 2:19 4:43,128 12:427,522 16:339 27:299 1:57 VIII: 170-71,180 XIV: 126 XVII: 27 XVIII: 152 XXI: 77
Daruk in the Mahabharata, Krishna's charioteer, and his attendant in his last days. He is also called SATYAKI. (Dow.) 8:29-30
Darwin Charles (Robert) Darwin (1809-82), English naturalist renowned for his documentation of evolution and for a theory of its operation. His influence on the scientific and religious tenor of his time was immense and provocative. (Enc. Br.) Der: Darwinian;
Darwinism 2:213 3:459 4:44 13:38 15:147 16:226 18: 55,199 26:387 27:385
Darwin, Erasmus (1731-1802), prominent physician, grandfather of the biologists Charles Darwin and Francis Gallon. A free thinker and radical, Darwin often set his opinions and scientific treatises to verse that, although awkward technically, shows a rugged power. (Enc. Br.) 11:11,16-17
Das See Das, C. R.
Das, C. R. (1870-1925), Indian politician, leader of the Swaraj party in Bengal province under British rule. He presided over the Congress session at Gaya in 1922. He was one of Sri Aurobindo's nationalist collaborators and an eminent lawyer of Calcutta, who devoted himself for months to the defence of Sri Aurobindo in the Alipore Bomb Case. He was also his friend and fellow poet. Toward the end of his short life he came to Pondicherry for spiritual as well as political advice. (A; Enc. Br.) Var: Chitta Das;
Chitta Ranjan (Das) 2:54:pre.,3148:35714:385 26:34,59,169,252-53, 389-90, 436,438-39 27:437,439-40, 451, 455,473
Das, Hem(chandra) Hem Chandra Das Kanungo (1871-1951), one of the pioneer leaders of the secret revolutionary organization , and a principal co-accused with Sri Aurobindo in the Alipore Bomb Case (1908- 09). He went to England and Paris to learn the manufacture of explosives and bombs. He was sentenced to transportation for life in the Andamans, but was released in 1921. Hemchandra had a most colourful personality. (D.N.B) 4:264,272,297,310 Das, Lolit Mohan (1868-1932), a Moderate leader who, as a disciple of Surendra Nath Banerji, took active part in the Swadeshi movement and the agitation against the partition of Bengal. In protest against the Risley Circular, he resigned his job in the City College. He was the president till his death of the Barisal Seva Samiti established by him in Calcutta in 1909 with the cooperation of a few young students. (S.B.C.) VI: 123
Das, Madhusudan (1848-1934), a leading lawyer of Cuttack (Orissa), and a prominent member of the Congress till 1911. Though Western-oriented, he was critical of English ways. He was a forceful speaker both in English and in Oriya. (D.N.B) 2:97
Das, Sundari Mohan (1857-1950), a physician and philanthropist who played a significant part in the political and social life of Bengal. (D.N.B.) 1:850
Dasabodha title of a book written in the 7th century by Ramdas, the famous guru of Shivaji (D.I.H.) 4:92
Dasarath(a) in the Ramayana, father of RAMA', and a king of the Solar race at Ayodhya. He was a descendant of Ikshwaku. (Dow.) Var: Dasharath;
Dussaruth(a) 1:768 3:428 8:3-5,10 V:7,ll
Page 89
Dasarhan Dasarha was a noble Kshatriya born in the line of Yadu. His descendants were called Dasarha. Sri Krishna is also therefore called Dasarha or Dasarhapati. These terms occur in the Mahabharata. (M.N.) 27:83
Dashagwa(s) a class "Ten-rayed" of Vedic Rishis (perhaps Rishis who sacrificed for ten months). They are mentioned along with the Navagwas in several Vedic hymns. They were descendants of Angiras. SeealsoNavagwas.(V.G.)10:149-50,166-70,172, 177,184,204,208,234
Dasharath See Dasarath(a)
Dasharnas Dasarna was the name of an ancient region of India, mentioned in the Mahabharata and located in what is now Madhya Pradesh state, southeast of the Vindhyas. The people of the region were also called Dasarnas. (M.N.) 3:215
Dasyu(s) The Dasyus of the Veda are robbers, destroyers, dividers, plunderers, powers of darkness. They are adversaries of the seekers of Light and the Truth. Whether human or superhuman, they keep their wealth of cows and horses and other treasure for themselves, and do not give them to the seers. There are two great divisions of the Dasyus: the Panis and the Vritras. (I & G; A) 4:141 10:24,36,71.134,136,140,163, 204-05,215-17,219-21,224, 226-28,230,235-38, 310, 363, 383,428,471, 485-86,493 11:8-10,14, 17,28-29,445,456,459,467,478 IV: 128 XV: 17 XXI: 10
Datta, Kumar Krishna a man of Calcutta known to Sri Aurobindo, one of the first people he met after his arrest. (A) a 4:263
Dattatreya a sage said to be son of Atri by Anasuya. Regarded as an incarnation of the Triad (Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva), he is sometimes represented as having three heads. Not much known in popular Hinduism, Dat- tatreya is looked upon as the founder of a method of yoga practised mostly in Maha- rashtra. According to Sri Aurobindo, the truth behind the Dattatreya cult is that Dattatreya represents the highest realisation — he always keeps his consciousness immersed in the Infinite and the freedom of the Infinite is brought down by him to the mental, vital, and even to the physical plane. A siddha of the Dattatreya-Marga, therefore, acts freely like the Infinite even in the Prakriti. There is an unbridled pleasure or enjoyment on the one hand; there is renun- ciation
of pleasure on the other. (Eve. T., pp. 301-02) XVIII: 163
Daudet, Alphonse-Marie Leon (1867-1942), French journalist and novelist, the most virulent and courageous polemicist of his generation in France, whose literary reputation rests largely upon his journalistic work and his vivid memoirs. (Enc. Br.) 23: 842
Daulatpur a town of East Bengal (now in Bangladesh), near Khulna. (S. Atlas) 2:250
David Joseph David, a resident of Pondi- cherry who later became Mayor of the city. He was one of Sri Aurobindo's earliest Pondicherry friends and long remained so. David was one of the few people whom Sri Aurobindo went out to see, visiting him twice at his house during the period 1913-20. In his Record of Yoga (XXI: 2), by "D." Sri Aurobindo very probably means David. (A; Purani) 27:455 XXI: 2
David Neel, Madame Alexandra David-Neel (1868-1969), a well-known French writer on Tibetan occultism and mysticism. She studied Sanskrit and Eastern philosophy as a young woman. From the age of twenty she dreamed of visiting India, and eventually did come. In 1911 she managed to meet the Dalai Lama at Delhi, and became the first person from the West to be initiated in the mysteries of Tibetan occultism. She published more than thirty volumes, many of which went through several editions and were translated into a number of languages. At the age of one hundred she was still working on three more books. Madame David-Neel visited Pondicherry and met Sri Aurobindo in November 1911. (The Sunday Standard, Madras: Magazine Section, 15 June 1969) 22:215
Da Vinci See Leonardo da Vinci
Dawn the divine Dawn; the goddess Dawn; the same as USHA'. 10:42, 68,118-31,133, 135,138-42,144-50,152-54,156,159-60,163-64, 166-67,172-73,177-79,186,188-89,194,197,199, 201, 203-06,208-09,215,219, 221-22,225,228, 231,233,236,238,250,261,268,272,276,278-79,281-86,290,293,311, 314, 316, 319, 321-22, 348, 353, 359-60, 364, 376-77,403,419, 422, 424-26, 429-33,438,441,447-48,463, 467, 524-28,530, 541 11:11,27, 31, 33, 56-57, 59, 67,74, 85-86, 89,113,119,123,162,164-65, 169-70.173,180, 195. 197, 212, 243, 254, 273, 328, 343, 490, 498 12: 401 16:337 19:726 23:968 28:4 29:18 IV: 122,136 V: 21-22, 33 VII: 38 VIII: 148 IX: 10 X: 183-85 XIV: 110,120 XV: 6,55 XVI: 137 XVII: 33,45,53
Page 90
Dayananda, Thakur (1881-1937), spiritual leader and founder of Arunachal Mission at Silchar (Assam). He had wonderful powers as a yogi. In family life his name was Guru-das. (L.toSl.;S.B.C.;A) 27:444, 496 VII: 9, 22 Dayanand Anglo-Vedic College of Lahore, founded in 1888 by some followers of Swami Dayanand with the object of propagating the ideas of the Arya Samaj without discarding English and Western education. Lala Hans Raj was the institution's principal. (P.T.I.; D.I.H.) 1:717,719
Dayanandas See Dayananda, Thakur
Dayananda (Saraswati), Swami (1824-83), Hindu ascetic, a profoundly learned Sanskrit scholar, a social reformer, and the founder (1875) of the Arya Samaj, a Hindu reform movement advocating a return to the temporal and spiritual authority of the Vedas. Sri Aurobindo considered him the first discoverer of the right clues in the matter of Vedic interpretation. Swami Dayananda was a great force in the promotion of Indian nationalism in the 19th century. (D.I.H.; A) 2:353-55,364 3:214 4:246-47 10:29-31 11:471,473 12:400 14:187 17:331-43 27:182 VII: 22 XV: 18 XVI: 135
Dead Sea salt lake between Israel and Jordan into which the Jordan River flows. It is the lowest body of water on earth's surface, 1,296 ft. below sea level. (Enc. Br.) 1:320
Deb, Kumar Kshitendra a renowned statesman of Bengal; a candidate for the Bengal Legislative Council in 1906. (A) 1:151 Deb, Prabhas(chandra) In January 1910, he published in Hitabadi a romantic story of a Dead Letter Office return. (A) 2:367-68
Deb, Suresh Chandra a worker in the Bande Mataram office, whose article "Sri Aurobindo as I Knew Him" appeared in Mother India, August 15,1950. (A) D 27:pre.
Debabrata See Bose, Debabrata
Debi Chaudhurani a Bengali novel (1884) by Bankim Chandra. It is a domestic novel. (Enc. Br.) Var: Devi Chaudhurani 3:91 17:345-46
Decameron a collection of one hundred witty, often licentious, tales by Boccaccio, written probably between 1348 and 1353. They reflect not only the eternal foolishness of man but also fascinating details of 14th-century Italian life. The setting of the tales is as follows: Florence being visited by the Plague in 1348,
seven women and three men leave the city for neighbouring villas. As part of their revels, they tell stories until the epidemic abates. This they do for ten days, hence the title "Decameron" or "Ten Days' Work". Each person tells one story each day, and so there are 100 tales in all. The work proved to be the fountainhead of Italian literary prose for succeeding centuries. (Enc. Br.; Ox. Comp.) 1:7
Deccan, the high triangular tableland comprising most of peninsular India south of the Narmada River, and including the coastal plains. (Enc. Br.) 1:141,147,157,182, 198, 380, 479, 533, 570, 591, 639,687 2:309, 370 3:193 5:281,284 17:303,352 111:7
Dectora a character in Yeats' play The Shadowy Waters. (A) 9:533
Dedar Buksh, Moulvi a person, probably a nationalist Muslim, who attended the Bengal Provincial Conference of the Indian National Congress held at Hooghly in September 1909 and moved resolution No. 4 (for continuation of the boycott of foreign goods). He was also one of the speakers at the Swadeshi Meeting held at Bhowanipur (Calcutta) the following month, in connection with the observance of Partition Day. (A) Var: Dedar Bux, Moulvi VI: 125 XIV: 100
Deepnarain Singh (1875-1935), an enlightened zamindar of Bihar who, though a barrister, never cared for his practice and threw himself heart and soul into public activities. He held various offices in the Congress. He was regarded as a paragon of aestheticism, elegance and refinement. (D.N.B.) 1:226-28,255 2:306
Deesa a town in the former princely state of Baroda, now in north Gujarat about thirty miles from its border with Rajasthan and about ninety-five miles north-west of Idar. (A; S.Atlas) 27:114 La Defense de I'Occident Defense de {'Occident, a book (1927) in French by Henri Massis. (A) 22:128
Defoe, Daniel (1660-1731), English novelist, pamphleteer, and journalist, who wrote Robinson Crusoe, one of the world's most famous books, and a number of other works of exceptional quality and range. (Enc. Br.) 4:284
Deidamia in Greek legend, daughter of Lycomedes, king of Scyros. She was mother of Neoptolemus by Achilles. (M.I.) 5:405 Deiphobus in Greek legend, a son of Priam and Hecuba and a great Trojan hero. In Sri Aurobindo's llion, he is shown
Page 91
as the leader of the Trojans both in counsel and war, as his father, the king, is old and inactive and his elder brother Hector is dead. (M.I.) 5: 33, 393, 396-98,400,402-03,413,415,427,440,454,457,459-60,465,468,470,493,499 VI:134
De la Mare, Walter (1873-1956), English poet and novelist with an unusual power to evoke the ghostly, evanescent moments of life. Both his prose and verse show a delight in imaginative excursions and the purely fantastic. Much of his poetry is written for or about children. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 9:356-58
Delarcy, General ("Delarcy" is a misreading for "Delarey") Jacobus Hercules De la Rey (1847-1914), South African military leader, given the rank of general on the outbreak of the Boer War. (Enc. Am.) o 1:74 Delhi capital of India, chosen as such by many rulers in the past. It is situated on the Jamuna River. New Delhi, built by the British about six miles from (old) Delhi, was inaugurated as the capital of British India in 1911. It continues to be the capital of the independent Republic of India. The city of (New) Delhi lies within the union territory of Delhi; it is the third largest city of the Indian Union. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) a 2:242 3:424 7:598 8:340 26:168 27:470 XXII: 132
Delian of Delos, a small island off Greece in the southern Aegean, regarded as the centre of the Cyclades Islands. In Greek mythology, Leto gave birth to Apollo and Artemis on Delos, which became the seat of an oracle of Apollo. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) 5:489
The Deliverance English translation of Sarat Chandra's Bengali novel Nishkriti, done by Dilip Kumar Roy in 1944. (A) 9: 463 Delphi a rugged spot on the slopes of Mt. Parnassus in central Greece, the site of the most important temple of Apollo, where the Pythia (see Pythian and Pythoness) delivered the cryptic messages of the god. Delphi was considered by the ancient Greeks as the cen- tre of the world, the exact site being marked in the temple by a stone, the omphalos (navel). (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) Der: Delphic n 5:394,405,420,433,490,503, 544 16:275 XV: 22
Delsa See Dilsa
Demeter in Greek mythology, goddess of corn, fruitfulness, and the harvest. She is daughter of Cronus and Rhea, and sister of Zeus. Zeus and Demeter had a daughter, Persephone (or Kore), who was picking flowers in the fields of Enna in Sicily when she was seized by the god of the underworld and
carried to Hades to be his bride. As a result of her mother's piteous efforts to get her back, Persephone is permitted to spend six months of the year (spring and summer) on earth but must return to Hades for the other six months (autumn and winter). (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:510 XVI: 138
Demiurge term used by Plato in his Timaeus for the "creator of the world". It was later adopted by the Gnostics (members of a dualistic religious movement in the early Christian era) with reference to the creator of the material universe, when they wished to distinguish him from the supreme God. In Homer the term includes manual workers, heralds, and physicians. (Enc. Br.) a 16:99 18:398 19:709 XIII: 28
Democracy a character - democracy personified - in Sri Aurobindo's play "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy published in Bands Mataram in February 1908. (A) D 1:673-80,684-86, 688, 690-97
Demogorgon a mysterious and terrible infernal deity. Etymologically it derives from demos (people) and gorgos (grim, terrible). (C.O.D.) a 1:415,558 2:286 15:627 17:233
Demos personification of the populace or democracy. (C.O.D.) a 1:207 2:254
Demosthenes (384-322 BC), Greek statesman, generally considered the greatest of Greek orators, who roused Athens to oppose Philip of Macedon and, later, his son Alexander the Great. (Enc. Br.) n 26:241 29:787
Denham G. C. Denham, a deputy superintendent of police (1908-11) in the Criminal Investigation Department of Bengal. He was a prominent figure in the Maniktolla conspiracy and other later political inquiries. (P.T.I.; A.B.T.) 2:367
Denmark Scandinavian kingdom of Europe, occupying the greater part of the Jutland Peninsula and a number of offshore islands between the North and Baltic seas. (Enc. Br.) 7:886 15:333
Denshawi incident Dinshaway Incident: a clash between villagers and a party of British officers on a pigeon-shooting trip at Dinsha-way, Egypt, in 1906. The severity of the judicial sentences served to unite the Egyptian peasants and middle class against the British occupation. (Enc. Br.) 1:261,504 2:407
Page 92
Denzil See Ibbetson, Sir Denzil
Deoghar a town in Santal Parganas district of Bihar, about 200 miles west of Calcutta. Sri Aurobindo always stayed here with the family of his maternal grandfather Raj Narain Bose. (Enc.Br.;A) Var: Deoghur 0 2:240,265-66 4:210,215,320,323 26:16, 44 1:70,73,76 111:84
Dercetes a character - a Syrian captain - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. 6:3, 16. 21-24, 101-02,104,113,166,169, 171-72,1-75-76,186, 195-97
Desai See Keshav (Ganesh) (Desai)
Descent a poem in sapphics by Sri Aurobindo. D 26:239,252,258 29:785,797
Desdemona a character - daughter to Brabantio, and wife to Othello - in Shakespeare's tragedy Othello, the Moor of Venice. (Shakes.) 12:37, 39,470 14: 192 27:207 1:40
The Deserted Village one of the best known poems of Oliver Goldsmith, published in 1770. (Enc. Br.) II: 17.19 Desher Katha "Story of the Nation", a Bengali book (1904) by Sakharam Ganesh Deuskar, a Maratha Brahmin resident in Calcutta, compiling all the details of India's economic servitude and the British com- mercial and industrial exploitation of India. (A; P.T.I.; B.P.P., p. 49) 26:15,25
Deshpande probably. Dr. Yasavanta Khusala Deshpande (1884- ? ), Indian research scholar and writer of international fame in history. (B.A.C.) 3:311-13.319 Deshpande, Baji (Prabhou) (c. 1618-1660), a lieutenant of Shivaji, famous for his heroic self-sacrifice while holding the pass of Rangana for two hours with a small company of men against 12,000 Moghuls, to cover Shivaji's retreat when Fazil Khan of Bijapur tried to encircle the Marathas in Panhalgarh fort. (Enc.Ind.;A) 5:279,281-85,287, 289-93 Deshpande, K. G. Keshavrao Ganesh Deshpande (1869-1939), a barrister and social worker of Baroda. After his return from England, where he had been at Cam- bridge with his friend Sri Aurobindo, he became for a time editor of the English section of Indu Prakash of Bombay. Deshpande was also a close friend of Tilak's, whom he is said to have defended in his trial for sedition in L897. (A: A & R; B.A.C.) Var: Deshpande, Keshavrao 1:3 4:296 26: 13. 19. 24 IV: 197-98 XIV: 166 Deshpande, Krishnajirao name of a person "of Baroda" to whom, according to the police, a telegram had been sent by "Ghose"
from the Manicktolla Garden. A copy of the telegram, said to have been recovered from Sri Aurobindo's residence during the search of 2 May 1908, was produced by the police before the magistrate in the Alipore Bomb Case. (No person of this name was, how- ever, traceable at Baroda.) (A) 4:296
Deshpande, Moro a character - a Maratha warrior and close associate of Baji Prabhou - in Sri Aurobindo's poem Baji Prabhou. D 5:291
Deshsevak a paper edited by Achyutrao Kohalatkar, in which reports were published of speeches delivered by Sri Aurobindo at Nagpur. (A) 2:172
Deuskar, Sakharam Ganesh (1869-1912), a Maratha writer whose family had lived long in Bengal. An able writer in Bengali, he was author of Desher Katha, and the first person to use the word "Swaraj" (in his life of Shivaji). He was among the early writers in the revolutionary journal Yuganfar. and the chief organiser of "political festivals" in Bengal, like the Shivaji festival held in June 1906. (A;I.F.F.;S.B.C.) 26:15,25
Deussen, Paul (1845-1919), Orientalist, and professor of philosophy at the University of Kiel, West Germany. Some of his chief works are: Das System des Vedanta (1883), Die Sutras des Vedanta (1887), On the Philosophy of the Vedanta in its Relation to Occidental Metaphysics (1893). (Enc. Ind.) 12:427
Deva 1. god, godhead, or the "divine man", as opposed to Asura. In the Mahabharata it is said that Kashyapa's sons by Aditi became Devas (Adityas) and his sons by Diti became Asuras (Daityas). 2. The seventh type from below of the ten forms of consciousness in the evolutionary scale of man. The Deva is mind concentrated in vijhdna, exceeding itself. The Asura-Deva or Devasura makes the vijhana serve the buddhi. (A; I & G;
Pur. Enc., p. 244) Der: Daivic; Devahood;
Devic 1: 62 3:177 4:1,23,29,126,135, 141,156,160, 299. 304-05 10: 30-31, 53,112-13, 170,194, 197-99, 207,306,333,335, 338,341-42, 345-48,372,455,466 11:21-22,442, 453,456, 459,473 12:95-96,158,162,465,474,491,499,
Page 93
532 13:82, 84-85, 105, 110, 138, 328.330, 359, 448, 454-56, 458 14:288, 292 16:133, 276, 278 19:1022 21:713, 741 22:385, 387, 495 11:38.76-77 111:55 IV: 138, 150 VI: 170, 176, 183-87, 190, 192 XV: 5
Devachan in theosophy, "the dwelling of the gods"; a state intermediate between two earth-lives, into which the Ego enters after the separation from Kamarupa (the subjective form created through mental and physical desires and thoughts in connection with matter by all sentient beings, a form which survives the death of their bodies), and after the disintegration of the lower principles on earth. (T.G.) XIIL33
Devadatta in the Mahabharata, name of Arjun's conch-shell. (M.N.) a 4:76 8:77
Devadatta; Harischandra names of two imaginary neighbours used by Sri Aurobindo in his commentary on the Ishavasyopanishad, in the form of a dialogue between the Guru and the Student. Devadatta is also the name of an imaginary actor. (A) D 12:452-53, 464, 490 1:47-51 11:75
Devagiri a major fortress and administrative centre in medieval India. Founded in the late 12th century, the city was capital of the king- dom of Yadava dynasty in the Deccan. It was situated in the upper valley of the Godavari River. Sultan Muhammad Tughlaq renamed it Daulatabad, and a village of this name still exists in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra state. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) n 3:215
Devajanma a collection of eighteen essays in Bengali by Nolini Kanta Gupta, first published in 1919. VII: 10. 23
Devaki in Hindu mythology, wife of Vasudeva, and mother of Krishna. She was daughter of Ugrasena's brother Devaka, and a cousin of Kansa. She gave birth to Krishna in jail. (M.N.;Dow.) a 3:199 13:13 14:280 20:48 IV:168 VI:137, 155
Devala in the Mahabharata, a celebrated divine seer, son of a VASL) named Pratyusa. (M.N.) a 13:344
Devanagari also called Nagari, Indian script used to write the Sanskrit, Prakrit, Hindi, and Marathi languages. (Enc. Br.) a 4: 252 14: 205 17: 393 27: 495 XVIII: 190
Devas aVedicRishi. n 11:405
Devasangha the name Sri Aurobindo in- tended to give to a commune of those who aspired to a divine life. Around 1920 Sri Aurobindo had an idea of establishing such a commune (sangha) with its branches spread all over the country. (A) a 4:329, 331
Devashravas (Bharata) a Vedic seer, a prince, descendant of Bharata. a : 146
Devasura See Deva and Asura.
Devavata (Bharata) a Vedic seer and prince, descendant of Bharata and father of Srinjaya. a : 146, 196
Devavrata See Bose, Debabrata
Devavrath in the Mahabharata, Bhisma's name in boyhood. He was the eighth son of Santanu, a king of the Lunar dynasty, and Gangadevi. Devavrata was the heir-apparent to the throne, but he gave up his right and took a solemn vow to remain a bachelor for life to satisfy the condition for marriage laid down by a fisherman with whose daughter, Satyavati, King Santanu had fallen in love. The gods thereupon declared that Devavrata would henceforth be known by the name "Bhisma" (terrible), on account of the rigour ofhisvow. (Pur. Enc.) 1:21
Devibhagavata title of a Hindu scripture devoted to the worship of Shakti. The Shaivas venerate this book as one of the eighteen Puranas. (Dow.; Pur. Enc.) 17:267
Devi Chaudhurani See Debi Chaudhurani
Devon a proposed character - son of Corineusmentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The House of Brut. a 7:883
Devonshire a maritime county in southwest England, a 3:69
Dewangunj a small town in eastern Bengal (now in Bangladesh) on the banks of the ' Brahmaputra, about 50 miles northwest of Mymensingh. (S.Atlas) a 1:331
Dewas formerly, the joint capital of Dewas Senior and Dewas Junior, princely states that merged with Madhya Pradesh state of the Republic of India in 1956. Dewas is now a town and district that comprises the two former states and much additional territory. (Enc. Br.) Q 26:351
Dey, Mukul Mukul Chandra Dey, now (1988) in his nineties, is a renowned artist. A student of Abanindranath Tagore at Shantiniketan between 1905 and 1911 and later a member of the staff, he maintained his guru's style with his own individual touches. In 1919 he came to Pondicherry, met Sri Aurobindo, and in three sittings on 20 and 21 April made portraits from three different angles. Afterwards he became principal of the Calcutta School of Art. Mukul Dey was a Fullbright Scholar in the
Page 94
U.S.A. in 1953-54, and has been a visiting professor at several universities abroad. (The Heritage, Aug. '88, pp. 27-28; Purani; S.F.F.) a 17:321
Dhammapada probably the best known book in the Pali Buddhist canon and the most- quoted in other Buddhist writings. It is an anthology of basic Buddhist teachings (primarily ethical teachings) in an easy aphoristic style. The Mother commented on this text in the weekly classes she gave to the Ashram School children from Aug. 1957 to Sept. 1958. (Enc.Br.) n 14:256 XVI: 132
Dhananjaya; Dhanunjoy "conqueror of riches", a title especially of Arjuna, but also of some others. Q [Indexed with Arjun(a)]
Dhanwantari in Hindu mythology, the physician of the gods. According to legend, the gods and the demons sought the elixir Amrta, and, to obtain it churned the waters of the milky ocean. As one of its results, Dhanvantari rose from the waters bearing a cup filled with the Amrta. The Ayurveda, a traditional Indian system of medicine developed from a text in the Atharva-veda, was, according to the legend, communicated to Dhanvantari by Brahma, and Dhanvantari was deified as the god of medicine. (Enc. Br.) Var: Dhunwuntari 3:278 X: 159
Dhar, Bishnu Narayan (1864-1916), one of the most prominent nationalist leaders of the northern region (modern U.P.) in the early years of the Indian National Congress, who presided over its Calcutta session of 1911. He was a lawyer by profession, and held very liberal views on religion and social reform. (D.N.B.) D 27:36
Dhar, Gurucharan a pleader of Srinagar, whom Sri Aurobindo met during his stay in Kashmir in 1903. (A) o IV: 195
Dharani Dharani Nath Gupta, one of the two Kaviraj brothers arrested at Harrison Road, Calcutta on 1 May 1908 and tried in the Alipore Bomb Case. See also Nagendra(nath). (A) D 4:302-03
Dharinie a character - queen of Vidisha - Kalidasa's play Mdlavikagnimitram. (See Malavica and the King.) n 3: 231, 263, 274, 289 8:135, 138, 149-54 X: 116, 118, 130, 132-40, 156, 175-76
Dharma' a Bengali weekly of Calcutta edited by Sri Aurobindo from August 1909 to February 1910. Sri Aurobindo wrote most of its articles and editorial comments himself. The last issue of the journal came out on March 28, 1910. (I & G) a 2:173, 317, 358, 413 4: pre., 173, 175, 178, 184, 187, 192, 195, 201, 205, 209, 212, 214, 217, 221, 223, 227, 231, 234, 237, 240, 243, 246-47, 249-50 26:34, 56, 60 27:117 XVI: 193 XVII: 69
Dharma1 a small Tamil paper in the form of a little booklet brought out from Pondicherry around 1911 by V.V.S. Aiyar. It was allowed free circulation in British India. (A; A & R, XVII: 107) a 27:501
Dharma o Jatiyata "Religion and National- ism", title of a Bengali book by Sri Aurobindo first published in 1920 by Prabartak Publish- ing House of Chandernagore. It contains most of the leading articles he wrote in his weekly j ournal Dharma. (A) D 4: pre.
Dharmatattwa a book of essays by Bankim Chandra, in which the idea of a perfect and many-sided Karmayoga is sketched. Some essays came out serially in the monthly magazine Navajeewan edited by Akshaya Chandra Sarkar. These essays slightly enlarged, together with a few others, were published by Bankim in book form in 1888 under the title Dharmatattwa - Prathama Bhaga-Anushilan. (A;B.R., II) 17:345-46
Dhartarashtras; Dhartarashtrians sons of Dhrtarastra, often referred to as the Kauravas as opposed to the Pandavas. D [Indexed with Kaurav(a)(s)j
Dharuna Angirasa a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Angiras. 11:227
Dhatri used here (17: 271) as an epithet of the Hindu goddess Durga or Chandi, denoting her power of producing life and preserving health. (Dow.) a 17:271
Dhaum more correctly, Dhaumya; in the Mahabharata, a Rishi, younger brother of Devala, and family priest of the Pandavas. (Dow.; M.N.) Var: Dhowma n 8:28, 37
Dheds a formerly untouchable caste among the Hindus of Gujarat. a XV: 68
Dhingra, Madanlal (c. 1883-1909), an Indian revolutionary, son of a rich and loyal land- lord of Amritsar (Punjab). As a student of engineering in London he regularly partici- pated in political discussions held at the INDIA HOUSE. On 1 July 1909, he shot dead Lt. Col. Sir William Curzon-Wyllie, political aide-de-camp to the Secretary of State for India at a gathering in London. For this act Madanlal was condemned to death and executed on 17 August 1909. (V.V.S., pp. 47-53) a 2:97.119 XV: 62-63
Page 95
Dhond a place in or near Srinagar in Kashmir. (A) a iv: 193
Dhoomraksha See Dhumraksha
Dhowma See Dhaum
Dhristadyoumna in the Mahabharata, commander-in-chief of the Pandava armies. He was son of the Paiicala king Drupada, and brother of Draupadi. (Dow.) a 4:75, 77, 83 8:78
Dhristaketou in the Mahabharata, king of the Kekayas and an ally of the Pandavas. (Dow.) a 4:75 8:77
Dhritarashtra in the Mahabharata, the eldest son of Vicitra-virya, and brother of Pandu. He married Gandhari, and by her had a hundred sons, the eldest of whom was Duryodhana. Since Dhritarashtra was born blind, and Pandu was afflicted with some disease, the two brothers in turn renounced the throne. The great war of the Mahabharata was fought over the succession between their sons, the Kauravas and the Pandavas. (Dow.) Var: Dhritarashtra Vaichitravirya D 3: 151, 169, 190-91. 194-95. 199. 208 4: 71, 75, 77, 80, 102 8:60, 77-79 13:13, 22, 186 22:425 27:83 IV: 116 VI: 155-56
Dhritarashtrians sons of Dhritarashtra. See Kaurav(a)(s)
Dhruv in Hindu mythology (Vishnu Purana), son of King Uttanapada by his wife Suniti. Being contemptuously treated by his step- mother Suruci, Dhruva left home while he was quite a child. At that tender age he went through a rigorous course of austerities, and at the end obtained the favour of Vishnu, who raised him to the skies as the pole-star. (Dow.) 5:84 XIII: 44
Dhulia administrative headquarters of Dhulia district in the province of Bombay (now Maharashtra state). (Enc. Br.) 1: 825, 838. 840-41. 850. 896-97
Dhumraksha in the Ramayana, name of a Rakshasa who was slain by Hanuman. (M.N.) Var: Dhoomraksha a 8:24 V:14-15
Dhunwuntari See Dhanwantari
Dhyani Buddha (a sculpture of) Buddha in the meditating posture; the term is used in Mahayana and Vajrayana (Tantric) Buddhism to denote a group of five Buddhas, usually identified as Vairocana. Aksobhya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha and Amoghasiddhi. The term is commonly used in describing groups of images composed of five meditating Buddhas - as on the terraces of the great monument at Borobudur (see Boro Budoor) in Java. (Enc. Br.) a 14:206
Diamond Harbour a town in 24-Parganas district of Bengal (now West Bengal state), on both sides ofHajipur creek, a tributary of the Hooghly River. (Enc. Br.) 4:182
Dian(a) in Roman religion, originally a woodland goddess, and special goddess of women and children. She was also the goddess of the moon, which accounts for her identification later with the Greek moon- goddess Artemis. (Enc. Br.) a 5:4, 544 9:543
Dickens, Charles (John Huffam) (1812-70), generally regarded as the greatest English novelist. Much of his work appeals to all intellectual and social strata and retains its popularity to the present. He is noted as one of the most varied and imaginative comic writers in English. (Enc. Br.) a 9:62, 330, 544 26:233
Dickinson, Lowes Prof. Goldsworthy Lowes Dickinson (1862-1932), British author. He was educated at King's College, Cambridge, and became a fellow there. He was interested in international relations, and generally maintained and propagated liberal opinions in international affairs. (Col. Enc.) a 9:554, 556 14:10 22:150
Les Dieux ont soif a French novel (1912) by Anatole France. The English translation. The Gods are Athirst, came out in 1913. (Enc. Br.) a 9:557
Dike in Greek mythology. Justice personified. (A&R, XV:87) D XV: 15
Dilip Kumar See Roy, Dilip Kumar
Dilsa a place, probably imaginary, in Rajasthan. Var: Delsa (a misspelling) a 7:741, 781
Dimbhuc also known as Chitrasena (Chitrasane, the spelling used by Sri Aurobindo), one of two great warrior- brothers (the other being Hansa or Hamsa) mentioned in the Mahabharata as friends and ministers of Jarasandha. (M.N.) Var:
Dimbic (a misspelling) a 8:40.42, 50.58
Dimitrius Demetrius I Poliorcetes (336-283 BC), king of Macedonia. He was the son of Alexander the Great's general Antigonus I Monophthalmus, in whose campaigns he commanded with distinction and whose empire, based in Asia, he attempted to rebuild. (Enc. Br.) a 24:1562 26:209
Dinajpur administrative headquarters of Dinajpur district formerly in Rajshahi division, Bengal, presently in Bangladesh. (Enc.Br.) D 1:262, 366, 610 2:137 4:196
Dinanath, Lala (c. 1878-? ), an Arya Samajist of advanced views, belonging to Gujaranwala, Punjab.
Page 96
He was editor of the nationalist journal Hindustan. In 1907, as the printer of India (See India3) he was sentenced to two years' imprisonment. (P.T.I.; N.S.I., p. 18) a 1:433
Dindayal Din Dayal Bose of 24-Parganas, a co-accused of Sri Aurobindo in the Alipore Bomb Case. He was acquitted by the Ses- sions Court. (A.B.T.) D 4:264
Dinendra See Roy, Dinendra Kumar Dingaan also spelled "Dingane" (d. 1840), Zulu chief from 1828 to 1840. After instigating the murder of his half-brother, the great Zulu chief Chaka, Dingaan ruled until deposed by his brother Mpande. (Enc. Br.) n m:29
Dinshah a character in the dialogue "Dinshah-Perizade". The name is Persian. 3:475-76 Diogenes (c. 412-323 ec), Greek philosopher, eccentric originator and archetype of the Cynics, a sect that stressed stoic self- sufficiency and the rejection of luxury. He taught that the virtuous life is the simple life and dramatically discarded all social conventions, taking up his abode in a tub. He is said to have thrown away his last utensil, a cup, when he saw a peasant drink from his hands. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 1: 142-43
Diomede a character - a slave-girl, servant and playmate of Andromeda - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. 0 6: 3, 11-14, 27-39, 42, 57-58, 64-65, 76-78, 80-81, 88-89, 93-95, 108-10, 113, 126-28, 130-31, 181, 185, 187
Diomedes in Greek legend, son of Tydeus and Deipyle; he brought eighty Argive ships to Troy and was one of the most respected Greek leaders in the Trojan War. (M.I.; Enc. Br.) a 5:442-43, 459, 470, 478, 487-88, 506
Dionaean in Greek mythology, an epithet of Aphrodite (daughter of Dione). (M.I.) a 5:501
Dione in Greek religion, the cult partner of Zeus of Dodona. She was probably the original consort of Zeus, but was supplanted by Hera. According to Homer she was the mother of Aphrodite. (Enc. Br.; M.I.) D 5:500
Dionysus in Greek mythology, the god of fertility and wine, also called Bacchus. He was intimately connected with the Mysteries, and was
patron of choral songs and the drama. Legends concerning him are profuse and contradictory. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Dionysiac; Dionysian n 11: 469 13:129 15:219 16:98, 336, 338-39 17:113 28:128.164, 344 29:625, 733, 754
Dioskouroi Greek form of the term Dioscuri. In Greek and Roman religions, the twin heroes, CASTOR AND POLLLIX, were together referred to as the Dioscuri. According to Homer they were sons of Leda and King Tyndareus of Sparta, but some said that they were, like Helen, children of Leda and Zeus. They were noted for their rescue of Helen from Aphidnae, for their part in the Caly- donian hunt and the expedition of the Argonauts, and for their final battle with another pair of inseparable twins, their cousins and rivals, Idas and Lynceus, sons of Aphareus. Zeus decreed that the twins should spend their days alternately in the underworld and among the gods. He also set their image among the stars as Gemini. Poseidon gave them power over wind and wave. In art each is represented as mounted on a magnificent white horse, carrying a spear, and wearing an egg-shaped helmet crowned with a star. Compare "As(h)wins". (Pears, H29; Web.) a 10:318
Dirce in Greek legend, queen of Thebes, and wife of Lycus. Amphion and Zethus punished her for her cruelty to their mother, Antilope, by tying her to the horns of a bull, as she had intended to do to Antilope. Dirce was turned into, or her bones were burnt and thrown into, the spring which bore her name. (O.C1.D.) a 5: 14. 608
Dirghatamas (Auchathya) a Vedic Rishi, son of Ucathya. It is said that he was born blind but obtained sight by worshipping Agni. (Dow.) a 10:53-54, 130, 335-36 11:5-6, 75 14:267 16: 349
Dis in Roman mythology, the god of the underworld, equivalent to the Greek Pluto or Hades (M.I.) a 5:495, 510-11
Dissenters the same as NON-CONFORMISTS. (Enc. Br.) 1:104-05
Diti in the Veda, mother of the Daityas, the powers of Darkness. She is the goddess of or a personification of divided Consciousness, and is associated with Aditi and seems to be her antithesis or complement. (A; Dow.) 0 10:126, 198-201, 224, 235, 383, 405, 421, 424, 459 11:168 XV: 38
Ditis in Sri Aurobindo's epic Ilion, a sister of Penthesilea, the queen of the Amazons. (M.I.) D 5:460
Page 97
Divina Commedia; Divine Comedy, the title of a long narrative poem (La Divina Commedia) written about 1310-14 by Dante, usually held to be one of the world's greatest works of literature. "La Commedia" was the original title, "Divina" was added by a later generation. Divided into three major sections - Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso - the narrative traces the imaginary journey of Dante from darkness and error to the revelation of the divine light culminating in the Beatific Vision of God. (Enc. Br.) Q 26:260 27:89, 92 29:798 1:7
Divodasa a pious liberal king mentioned in the Rig-veda, for whom, it is said, Indra demolished a hundred stone cities, meaning perhaps the mythological aerial cities of SAMBARA. (Dow.) XVIII: 177
Dixit surname of a Nationalist congressman of Nagpur, and a prominent member of the Reception Committee for the Congress Session of 1907. (A; Purani) 1:589
Djakovica a town in what is now Yugoslavia, near the Albanian border. 1-1 XXII: 138
Dnieper Dam dam at Zaporozhe, USSR, on the river Dnieper, one of the longest rivers in Europe. The dam, known as Dneproges Dam and constructed in 1932, is a great engineering feat. (Col. Enc.) a 9:381
Dniester a river rising in the Carpathians in southwestern European USSR. It flows generally southeast and empties through an estuary into the Black Sea southwest of Odessa. (Col. Enc.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27] The Doctrine of Passive Resistance a series of articles first published in the daily Bande Mataram under the general title of "New Thought" from August 11 to 23, 1907. It was brought out in book form in 1948. An addi- tional article, "The Morality of Boycott", written for Bande Mataram but not published in it, was also included in the book. (I&G) 1:83
Dodona in Greek religion, a very ancient oracle, in the mountains of Epirus. It was sacred to Zeus and Dione. Priests interpreted the words of the oracle from the sound of a holy spring and from the wind in a sacred oak tree. (Col. Enc.) 5:490, 544
Dodsley, Robert (1703-64), author, London bookseller, publisher, playwright, and editor who was influential in mid-lSth century literary England and is associated with the publication of works by Samuel Johnson, Alexander Pope, Thomas Grey, and Oliver Goldsmith. (Enc. Br.) a II: 18
Dogberry a character - a constable - in Shakespeare's comedy Much Ado about Nothing. (Shakes.) a
9:333
Dog Star See Sirius
Dolopes ancient people on the borders of Aetolia and Epirus, notorious for their cruelty. They were reduced to vassalage by the Thessalians. An army of the Dolopes, led by Phoenix, fought at Troy on the side of the Greeks. (M.I.) a 5:516
Dolores one of Swinburne's early lyrical poems, published in 1866 in the first series of his Poems and Ballads. (Ox. Comp.) D 9:395 26:265
Dom a widespread and versatile caste of scavengers, musicians, vagabonds, traders, and sometimes weavers, in North India and the Himalayas. Some scholars regard the caste as originating from an aboriginal tribe. The Doms are completely outside Brahminic control and have deities of their own. (Enc. Br.) a 4:268
Dongurh a place, apparently imaginary, in Rajasthan, India, near a forest. (A) Q 7:741-42, 744-45, 750, 752-54, 756, 760, 770, 773, 775, 777, 780, 782, 784-85, 787, 789-90, 805, 807, 811
Don Juan acknowledged masterpiece of Byron (pub. 1819-24), an epic-satire combining his art as a storyteller, his lyricism, his cynicism, and his detestation of convention. (Col. Enc.) 9:118
Donna Clara (Santa Cruz) in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill, name of the Spanish noblewoman with whom Ismenia lodged. (A) a 7:840, 854, 857, 870
Donne, John (1572-1631), leading poet of the 17th-century English "Metaphysical School" of poetry. He was a prominent churchman and preacher, being dean of St. Paul's. His poems and sermons, marked by passion, wit, and profundity of thought have received full publicity only in the present century. (Enc. Br.; Pears) a 9:309, 453, 478 26:262 29:800 Don Quixote hero of the novel Don Quixote (de la Mancha) by Cervantes Saavedra (1547-1616), Spanish novelist, dramatist and poet. Don Quixote, a country gentleman of fantastic imagination who has read too many chivalric romances, sets out on a series of extravagantly chivalrous adventures accompanied by the peasant Sancho Panza of hardheaded practicality as his squire. (Col. Enc.) a 9:549
Doonya a character - niece of Alfazzal Ibn Sawy - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. a 7:561, 586-93, 595-601, 603-12, 620, 624, 630-34, 670, 707, 715, 717-20, 732
Page 98
Dorian The Dorians were the last of the Indo-European invaders of Greece. They settled first in the Peloponnesus (a peninsula forming the southern part of the mainland of Greece), but rapidly extended to Crete and spread colonies to Italy, Sicily, and Asia Minor. Their full inrush came after the fall of Troy. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:17, 486, 491
Dorian Gray the title character in Oscar Wilde's novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. a 3:3
Doric a group of Greek dialects spoken in ancient times in northwestern Greece, throughout most of the Peloponnese, and in the south Aegean as far east as Asia Minor. In much of this area Doric replaced other Greek dialects after the Dorian invasions. Doric was also spoken in Sicily at Syracuse, a Dorian colony. (Enc. Br.) n 17:296
Doris a character - a forest damsel - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Witch offline". n 7: 1057, 1081
Doumergue, Gaston (1863-1937), French political figure whose term as the twelfth president of the Third Republic was marked by nearly constant political instability. (Enc. Br.) 27:444
Draconian Draco or Dracon (fl. c. 7th cent. Be) was an Athenian lawgiver. Draconian laws (introduced c. 621 BC) were most note- worthy for their harshness; they were said to be written in blood, not ink. Death was prescribed for almost all criminal offences. Hence the term "Draconian" has come to mean rigorous, harsh, cruel. (Enc.Br.; C.O.D.) 2:249
Draupadi(e) in the Mahabharata, daughter of Drupada, king of Panchala. A damsel of dark complexion but of great beauty, she was won by Arjun but eventually became the wife of all the five Pandavas. Yudhishthira, the eldest Pandava brother, after losing his kingdom, his brothers and himself in a game of dice with his cousins the Kauravas, offered as stakes Draupadi and lost her as well. She was brought to the court where the Kaurava prince Duhsasana tried to disgrace her by pulling at the end of her sari. Draupadi pwyed to Lord Krishna for help and the cloth miraculously
continued to extend so that she was never disrobed. (Dow.) Var: Draupady; Droupadie a 2:399 3:150, 161-62, 175, 191, 207, 213 4:75, 77 7:773 8:28, 30, 59, 77-78 14:192 27:80 IV: 115 XV: 8
Dravidian(s) Dravida is the older name for the modern Tamilnadu, i.e., part of South India from near Madras in the north to Cape Comorin in the south. The Dravidians are believed by some authorities to have in- habited the entirety of what is now India and afterwards were driven out of North India by the Aryans. The Dravidians retained their predominance in South India for long centuries and are still represented by the peoples who speak Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kanarese. But the story of an Aryan invasion is in fact a mere myth (see Arya). (D.I.H.) Der: Dravidic a 3:198, 214-15 4: 24 10: 1, 3, 24, 35-36, 44, 46, 99-100, 104, 120, 133-34, 139, 148, 166, 178, 187, 212, 215, 228, 233, 333, 353, 545, 553-54, 557-58 11: 2, 8, 471, 478, 503 12:54 14:218-19, 221, 223, 256 17:278, 298, 339 26:408, 410 27:165-66, 183, 280, 303 XIV: 120, 122, 139-40 XV: 17-18, 23 XVI: 136 XVII: 37, 41, 43, 45
Dreadnought a type of twentieth-century battleship, greatly superior in tonnage and power to all its predecessors. (C.O.D.) a 2:34
Drewett, Mr. and Mrs. The Rev. William H. Drewett, Congregational minister of the Stockport Road Church (now known as the Octagonal Church), Manchester, and his wife. They acted as guardians for Sri Aurobindo and his two elder brothers at Manchester from 1879 to 1884. Sri Aurobindo was tutored at home by the Drewetts. Mr. Drewett, an accomplished Latin scholar (he had been a Senior Classic at Oxford), grounded Aurobindo in that language very well, and also taught him English, history, etc. Mrs. Drewett taught him French, geography, and arithmetic. When Drewett emigrated to Australia he left the three Ghose brothers in the charge of his mother. (Purani, pp. 5, 7; A & R) n 26: 1-2 IV: 198 XIV: 163 Drina a river in Yugoslavia, originating with the confluence of the Tara and Piva rivers and following a 215-mile course, mainly northward, to enter the Sava. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27] Drishadwati in Hindu mythology, a river forming one of the boundaries of BRAHMA- VARTA, perhaps the Kagar
Page 99
before its junction with the Sarsuti (Saraswati). Drishadvati is mentioned in the Rig-veda. along with the Saraswati and the Apaya, as the scene of action of the Bharata princes. It is sometimes identified with the modern Chitang(orChitrung). (Dow.;M.N.; V. Index) ll: 147
Drona in the Mahabharata, Acharya or teacher of military art to both the Kaurava and the Pandava princes. In the great war Drona sided with the former, and, succeeded Bhishma as commander-in-chief. He was unfairly slain by Dhrstadyumna. Drona was sonofBharadwaja. (Dow.) a 3:194-95 4:78, 83-84. 97, 102, 288 8:78, 80 13:55, 370
Droupadie See Draupadi(e)
Druhyu in the Vedas, a devotee of Indra, Agni, and the Ashwins. The name occurs many times in the Rig-veda, in both the singular and the plural. (B.P.C.) a VI: 148
Druids priests and medical men of Celtic Britain and Gaul and probably of all ancient Celtic peoples everywhere. They constituted an upper priestly class in command of a highly ritualistic religion. The Druids were highly educated and passed their learning from one generation to another without writing it down. Knowledge about them is obtainable chiefly from ancient Greek and Roman accounts and from medieval Irish literature. Though Druidism was officially exterminated by the Romans toward the end of the 1st century AD, it was kept alive underground for a long time thereafter. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Am.) Der: Druidic a 15:290 XIII: 23
Drupad(a) in the Mahabharata, king of Panchala. In the great war he was an ally of the Pandavas, his sons-in-law. He was killed by Drona against whom he bore an old animosity. (Dow.) n 3:190.195.204-05, 207 4:75, 77 8:59, 77-78 IV: 115
Drus in Sri Aurobindo's llion, a Phthian warrior killed in battle by Valarus. (M.I.) n 5:518 VI: 135 Dryden, John (1631-1700), English poet, dramatist, translator, and critic. He dominated the literature of the later 17th century in English, a period sometimes known as "the age of Dryden". He is also often considered the father of English criticism. (Enc. Br.) a 3:106, 156 9:51, 53, 74, 78, 80, 86-87, 113, 132, 161, 212, 246, 271, 274, 376-77, 387, 425, 472, 478-79 1:9, 12-13
D. Swami S. Doraiswami Aiyar (1882-1976), a highly respected advocate and member of the Madras bar who became a disciple of Sri Aurobindo. He retired from practice in 1938 and settled in Pondicherry as a full-time disciple. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Dublin county, borough, seaport, and capital of the Irish Republic and of County Dublin. (Enc.Br.) 1:23 17:298
Dublin University also known as "Trinity College", oldest university in Ireland, founded in 1591 by Queen Elizabeth I and endowed by the city of Dublin. It was limited to Anglicans for many years, but in 1873 all religious requirements were eliminated. It is presently a co-educational institution. (Enc.Br.) a 11:19
Duce chief; leader; title (II Duce) assumed by Benito Mussolini, as Fascist head of Italy (1922-43), (Web.) IS: 197
Duchess of Malfi the chief character in a tragic play of the same name by John Webster, first perfomed c. 1613 and first published in 1623. As a result of the Duchess's marriage to a commoner, she is imprisoned by her brother and, after a long torture, put to death. (Enc. Br.) a 3:302
Dufferin, Countess of Lady Harriet Georgiana Dufferin. wife of Lord Dufferin (married in 1862). In India, as the vicereine, she established a national association for supplying modern gynaecological aid to the women of India. The association started the Countess of Dufferin Fund out of which the Lady Dufferin Hospital was later on established in Calcutta. (D.I.H.) D 27:114-16 Dufferin, Lord Frederick Temple Hamilton- Temple-Blackwood, 1st marquis of Dufferin and Ava (1826-1902), British diplomat who as the viceroy and governor general of India from 1884 to 1888 placated the British com- munity, which had been antagonized by Ripon's reforms. (Enc.Br.) a 1:395 27:3 III: 12
Dufresne a character participating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) written by Sri Aurobindo around 1891. (A & R) a 11:8
Duhsasana in the Mahabharata, one of the hundred sons of Dhritarashtra. The Pandavas having lost their wife Draupadi in gambling with Duryodhana, Duhsasana dragged her forward by the hair and tried to strip her. Reacting to this outrage, Bhima took a vow to kill him and he fulfilled the vow on the sixteenth day of the great war. (Dow.) a 3:194
Page 100
Dukhabhisar a Bengali poem by Rabindra- nath Tagore, published in an issue of the Suprabhat that was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo. (A) n 3:430
Dukkhineswar See Dakshineshwar
Duma in Russia, elected legislative body that, with the State Council, comprised the imperial Russian legislature from 1906 to 1917. (Enc. Br.) Der: Dumaist a 1:97, 175, 267 2:192, 374, 382 Dumas, Alexander Alexandre (Davy de la Pailleterie) Dumas, also called Dumas Pere, (1802-70), French novelist and dramatist. He wrote a number of historical novels including The Three Musketeers. He was one of the most prolific and most popular of nineteenth- century French authors. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n 9:560
Duncan a character - king of Scotland - in Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth, modelled on the historical Duncan I (d. 1040), king of Scotland (1034-1040), who was murdered by his general Macbeth. (Shakes., Enc. Br.) D 9:495
Dundac or Dandakaranya, in the Ramayana, a forest lying mainly between the Godavari and Narmada rivers. According to some pas- sages of the Ramayana it begins immediately south of the Yamuna. The forest is the scene of many of Rama and Sita's adventures. (Dow.) D 8:10, 20-21, 23
Dunkirk seaport in northern France, on the Strait of Dover between Calais and the Belgian frontier. In 1940 Dunkirk was the scene of an evacuation of more than 300, 000 Allied troops, cut off from land retreat by the German break-through to the French Channel ports. This evacuation was one of the most heroic and most memorable actions in naval history. The Germans entered only the ruins of Dunkirk. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 26:39
Duntvaecar Dantavakra, in the Maha- bharata, king of Karusa (see Karoosh), born of a demon. He was defeated in the battle by Sahadeva, the youngest of the Pandavas. (M.N.) n 8:40
Dupleix "S.S. Dupleix", name of the steam- ship by which Sri Aurobindo left Calcutta for Pondicherry on the morning of 1 April 1910 under the name of J.N. Mitter (Jotindra Nath Mitter). (A & R, XVII: 119) 0 26:37, 61 XVI: 194
Dupleix College an educational institution of Chandernagore. Charu Chander Ray was a professor in this college, and also its sub- director. (P.T.I., p. 400) a 4:291
Durandhar, M. V. (1871-1944), a celebrated Indian artist of world fame, also author and publisher of many books. (B.A.C.) D 3:428
Durant, Will William James Durant (1885-1981), American author and lecturer whose books. The Story of Philosophy (1926) and The Story of Civilization (in 10 volumes, 1935-67), established him as one of the best known writers of popular philosophy and history. (Enc. Br.; The Hindu-10.1 {.81) n 9:485
Durazzo Italian name of Durres, Serbo- Croatian Drac, primary seaport of Albania and capital of Durres district, lying on the Adriatic coast, just west of Tirane. It was held by the Turks from 1501 until their defeat in the First Balkan War (1912-13) (Enc. Br.) D XXI: 4
Durga also referred to as Chandi and Mahisha Mardini, in Hindu religion, the goddess who is the Energy of Shiva and the conquering and protecting aspect of the Universal Mother. She is the slayer of many demons including Mahisasura. Durga is usually depicted in painting and sculpture riding a lion, and having eight or ten arms, each holding the special weapon of one or another of the gods who gave them to her for her battles with demons. (A; Enc. Br.) 0 1:61, 65, 287 4:1-3.154, 163 5:544 8:310, 313.339 11:3 12:474, 503, 508 13:42 14:137, 204.235, 320 17:262, 269 20:365 21:575 22:389-90 23:951 25:74-75, 96 29: 509. 561 I: 41 IV: 174 XV1I1: 190
Durgesh Nandini a Bengali novel, Bankim Chandra's first notable Bengali work, written in 1862-64 and published in 1865. It features a Rajput hero and a Bengali heroine. It is of indifferent quality, but with it the Bengali novel was born. (Enc. Br.; B.R.-I) 3:91 27:352
Durvasa an Indian sage, son of Atri and Anasuya. Thought to be an incarnation of Shiva, he was noted for his hot temper, and many fell or suffered under his curse. (Dow.) D 26: 187-88
Duryodhan(a) in the Mahabharata. the eldest son of King Dhritarashtra. After the death of Pandu, who left behind five sons called the Pandavas, the succession to the throne of
Page 101
Hastinapur was disputed by Duryodhana. This culminated in the battle of Kurukshetra. Duryodhana was the leader of the Kauravas, and was very jealous and deceitful. His weapon was the mace or club, which was also the weapon of Bhima. Duryodhana took a special dislike to Bhima on account of his skill in the use of this weapon. In the battle, in order to fulfil his vow, Bhima unfairly dealt Duryodhana such a violent blow on his thigh that the bone was smashed and Duryodhana fell wounded. (Dow.) a 3:151, 176, 178, 191-95, 203-04, 208 4: 75-77, 82-84, 95-96 8: 60, 77 13: 160 14:292 26:398 27:80 111:6 IV: 116 VII: 51-53
Dus in Sri Aurobindo's llion, a Trojan warrior. (M.I.) a 5:460
Dushyanta a valiant Indian king of the Lunar race, descended from Puru. He was husband of Shakuntala, by whom he had a son, Bharata (see Bharata2). Dushyanta is the hero of Kalidasa's play Abhijndna Sdkuntalam. (Dow.) a 3:231 6:277 7:748 12:464 11:75
Dusk title of a poem by Harindranath Chattopadhyay, published in his collection The Feast of Youth that was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in A/ya. (A) a 17:306, 309
Dussaruth(a) See Dasarath(a)
Dutamby' name of a young person of Pondicherry. a XXII: 174 Dutch presently, (of) the people of Holland or the Netherlands; historically, of Germany including the Netherlands. (C.O.D.) n 3:193 9:62 15:312
Dutt See Dutt, Romesh (Chandra) Dutt, Aswini Kumar See Dutt(a), Aswini (Kumar) Dutt, Bhupen(dranath) (1880-1961), Indian journalist and writer, youngest brother of Swami Vivekananda, and one of the associ- ates of Barindra Kumar Ghose. During the search of the Yugantar office, he, in a spirit of bravado, declared himself the editor although this was quite untrue. He was at the time only an obscure hand in the office incapable of writing anything important. Bhupen was arrested and sentenced. He served his term and subsequently went to America. (D.N.B.; A; Auro-I) a 1:487, 490, 530, 548, 744, 857 26:41-42 Dutt, Charu Chandra (1877-1952), member of the I.C.S., appointed at first as magistrate and then as judge in Bombay. Sri Aurobindo met him in 1904 and Dutt joined the revolutionary party. He had already, while in England
during the period 1896-99, estab- lished contact with the Irish revolutionaries, and was a member of a group of Indians who had pledged themselves to work secretly for the liberation of their country. He continued his secret activities even after joining the Indian Civil Service. In 1906 he helped to reorganize Bande Mataram and form a joint-stock company for the paper. He was implicated in the Manicktolla Bomb Case, but no charges were brought against him. After retiring in 1925 he stayed for some time at Santiniketan, and in 1940 joined the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, where he used to give lessons to the children in his room. (Purani; A & R; M.I., June '79; S.B.C.; B.P.P., p. 47) D 26:56, 60 XVI: 193
Dutt, Hirendranath (1868-1942), a solicitor who worked in the political and economic fields for the cultural and educational regeneration of India. He supported the anti-partition agitation in 1905. (D.N.B.;
H.F.M.I.) a 2:230 4:260
Dutt, K. B. a barrister and later a Congress leader of Midnapore, Bengal, representing "the most lukewarm element" in the Moder- ate party. He was elected president by the Moderates for a conference to be held at Midnapore in December 1907, but he was not allowed to address the conference. The Nationalists convened a separate meeting on the following day which was presided over by Sri Aurobindo. (Purani; A; A.B.T., p. 92) a 1:634-36, 640-41, 643 2:305
Dutt, Kshitish Kshitish Chandra Dutt, a disciple of Sri Aurobindo. He was one of the twenty-four persons present on Siddhi Day (24 November 1926). (Purani, p. 217) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Dutt, Manmatha Nath editor of an English translation of the Mahabharata. (A) a 3:170
Dutt, (Michael) Madhusudan (1824-73), Bengali poet and dramatist, the first great poet of modern Bengali literature. A dynamic, erratic person, he was a genius of a high order. Meghanddavadha-kdvya is his magnum opus. (Enc. Br.; Gaz.-II) Var: Madhousudan a 3:76, 78-79, 90, 95-97, 101-02 4:pre. 5:27 9:307-08, 543-44 22:413 26:11 VI: 140-41, 143 XIII: 53
Dutt, Okhay Kumar (1821-86), Indian journalist, social reformer, and educationist. He was a pioneer of Bengali prose. (Enc. Ind.) a 3:78, 95-96
Page 102
Dutt, Romesh (Chandra) (1848-1909), a member of the I.C.S. from 1871 to 1897. He promoted social reform and, after retirement, took a prominent part in the Indian national movement. In 1899 he was elected president of the Congress session held at Lucknow. R. C. Dutt served Baroda State as revenue minister from 1904 to 1906, and became prime minister of that state in 1909. Engaged in manifold administrative and other activities, he also found time and energy for literary pursuits. He wrote in Bengali a series of historical and social novels and translated the Rig-veda into Bengali and the Ramayana and the Mahabharata into English verse. Sri Aurobindo considered all his work, with the exception of the historical novels, successful journalism rather than literature. Nevertheless, he considered Dutt a gigantic worker who did an immense amount of pioneer spadework. (Enc. Ind.; D.I.H.; Wolpert, p. 259; A) Var: Ramesh Chandra Dutt; Romesh Chandra Dutta; Dutt D 1: 190, 199, 388, 415, 627, 705-06, 755 4:43, 226 9:453 17:367-70 23:527 26: 128 27: 17, 33. 437, 440 XIII: 62 XIV: 127
Dutt, Toru (1856-77), an Indian poet, "an accomplished verse-builder with a delicate talent and some outbreaks of genius" (9: 453). Her translations of the Romantic poets won high critical acclaim. In her short life of only 21 years she also wrote novels in French, and learnt Greek. (Enc. Am.; A) a 3:79 9:453-54
Dutta name given by Sri Aurobindo and the Mother to Dorothy Hodgson (1884-1948), an Englishwoman who, after being the Mother's companion in France and Japan (1915-20), became their disciple in Pondicherry. She stayed in the Ashram till the end of her life. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Dutt(a), Aswini (Kumar) (1856-1923), the most revered Nationalist leader of Barisal, a district of Bengal (now in Bangladesh). He was universally respected for his high moral character. He started an association called the "Little Brothers of the Poor". He was proprietor ofBrajamohan Institute (College and School), and also, for some time, professor of English literature and of law. (D.N.B.;A;P.T.I.) Var: Aswin Dutta; AshwiniBabu a 1:329, 609 2:45-47, 57-58, 60, 62-63, 76-77, 88-89, 91, 96, 154, 281, 343 4: 229 27: 36 VIII: 124
Dutta, Romesh Chandra See Dutt, Romesh (Chandra)
Dvija See Brahmin Dvipantara The reference is to the Andamans, a group of islands in the Bay of Bengal where a prison colony was maintained for those sentenced to transportation for life. a 4:289
Dwaipayan See Vyas(a)
Dwapara (Yuga) in the Indian astronomical reckoning devised by the Hindus, the third of the four Yugas (ages), traditionally said to last for 864, 000 years. In this Yuga righteousness is diminished by half. Vishnu manifested in the Dwapara Yuga as Krishna, his eighth incarnation. (Dow.) n 3:453 4:67-68, 85, 95 11:448-49 , .451-52 15:118 16:412 27:363 11:35, 37-38 111:56 V:96 VI: 155-56 VIII: 191, 193 XIV: 119
Dwar(a)ka one of the seven sacred cities of India and the main place of Hindu pilgrimage in the west of the country. Dwaraka was Krishna's capital in Gujarat, founded after his flight from Mathura. It is said to have been submerged by the ocean seven days after his passing away. The present Dwarka is a town in Jamnagar district of western Gujarat. It was once part of the former princely state of Baroda. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) Var: Dwar(a)ca 1:596 5:84, 226 8:30, 38, 44, 406 23:676 26:130, 136, 188 27:116 1:22
Dwarbhanga Maharaja of DARBHANGA. Dwarbhanga is perhaps the original form of Darbhanga. n 4:223
Dwarkadas, Lala a respected leader of Punjab in the early 20th century. (A) D 4:179
Dwayawins a category of the "dualisers", "those powers who divide all the energies (in the universe) into acceptable and un- acceptable, friends and hostile, accept some and repel others". [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Dwita the god or Rishi of the second plane of the human ascent, that of the Life-Force. (A) D 10:403-04, 417 11:242
Dwita Mriktawahas a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. a 11:230
Dwypaian See Vyas(a)
Dyau(s); Dyauh; Dyuloka 1. Heaven; the highest of the three cosmic regions spoken of by the Rishis; 2. the plane of the pure mental consciousness, of which Swar, the luminous mind, is the summit; 3. name of a masculine deity in the Vedas, occasionally called "Dyau-pitri" (heavenly father), the
Page 103
earth being regarded as the mother. He is the father of Usha, the Dawn. (A; Dow.) 10:42, 55, 113-14, 171, 275, 316-17, 345 11:3, 24 11:76-77 XV: 25 XVII: 46
Dyaushpita in the Vedas, king of the heavens. (A) a 10:195, 448
Dyer, John (1699-1757), a Welshman chiefly remembered as the author of Grongar Hill (1726), a short descriptive and meditative poem in which the countryside is portrayed largely in terms of classical landscape. (Enc. Br.;0x. Comp.) 11:11-12, 16
Dyrrhachium the modern Durres or DURAZZO, in Albania. In 48 BC there was a temporary reversal in Julius Caesar's march against Pompey near Dyrrhachium, which dealt a severe blow to Caesar's prestige. (Enc. Br.) n V:63
Dyuloka See Dyau(s)
Dyumat(h)sena literally, "Lord of the Shining Hosts", in the tale of Satyavan and Savitri as narrated in the Mahabharata he is the father of Satyavan. Symbolically, he represents "the Divine Mind here fallen blind, losing its celestial kingdom of vision". (A) a 8:16 26:265 27:511 29:403, 424, 722
Dyumna Vishwacharshani a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. (Jn) a 11:235
E
East, the; the Orient the eastern part of the Eurasian landmass, especially Asia and the nearby islands; countries east of the Mediterranean and southern Europe. (The term "Orient" is sometimes used to denote the Far East.) (Web.; C.O.D.) Der:
Eastern; Easterners; Oriental; Orientalist a 1:41, 48, 68, 156, 261, 365, 388, 426, 460, 466, 468, 487, 527-28, 576, 619, 625-26, 713, 757, 768, 770, 800, 8142:29, 209, 217-18, 258, 381, 402, 411 3:10, 101, 113, 286, 425, 447-48 4:25, 154-55, 165-68, 187, 227 5:176-77, 400, 403, 414, 419, 455, 461, 466, 476, 480, 485, 518 6:28, 412, 432 7:598, 712, 742, 1024 9:97, 99.110, 118, 253, 285, 443, 455-56, 536 12: 54-55, 486, 503 13:28, 141, 495 14:15, 17-8, 23, 37, 50, 54, 66, 77, 8183, 191, 211, 229, 233, 367, 376, 392, 431 15:2, 11-12, 14, 19, 22, 30, 33, 123, 166, 250, 295-96, 302, 346, 356, 430, 446, 480, 566 16:126, 220, 241, 309-13, 322-27.330, 366, 407 17:169, 180, 182, 193, 195, 274-76, 279, 300, 313-16, 324, 367, 370-71, 400, 404 18:21 19:876, 879-80, 1051 20:18, 367,
428, 434 22:132, 159-60 23:555-56, 558-59, 767 24:1236 25:228 26:413-16 27:149, 285, 355, 419 111:1, 26 IV: 161-63 VIII: 173-74 IX: 31 X: 113, 174 XIII: 26-27, 40-41, 50 XV: 24 XVI: 138, 182, 184, 186 XVII: 10-11, 66 XVIII: 150, 157, 160
East Bengal and Assam name of a province of India between 1905 and 1911, created as a consequence of the partition of Bengal. Fifteen districts of eastern Bengal were separated and linked with Assam to form the new province. (Enc. Br.) a 27:8, 26
Easter the annual Christian festival in commemoration of the resurrection of Christ, the English name being derived from Eostre, goddess of Spring. It is a movable feast, the date of which cannot fall earlier than March 22 nor later than April 25. After many disputes among the early Christians, it was eventually ruled at the Council of Nicaea in AD 325 that Easter Day should be the first Sunday after the full moon on or following the vernal equinox (March 21). If this hap- pens to be a Sunday, Easter Day is the Sunday after. (Pears, p. L35) n 1:702
Eastern Lights title of a book (1935) by Mahendra Sircar. It is a brief account of some phases of life, thought and mysticism in India, a 26:383
East India Charter a royal charter issued on December 31, 1600 under the name of the Governor and Company of Merchants of London trading with the East Indies, incorporating the British East India Company as a commercial organization. (Enc. Br.) a 1:464
E.B.S.R. Eastern Bengal State Railway. (A &R, XI: 110) D 2:365.370
Ecbatana now officially named Hamadan, a city beautifully situated at the foot of Mt. Elvend (or Alvand) and northeast of Behistun, in west-central Iran. It has had many names; the Greeks called it Ecbatana. It was one of the Median capitals under Cyrus II the Great (d. 529 BC), and later the summer residence of Achaemeriid and Parthian kings. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) (3 6:380, 384, 400
Echemus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Hellene warrior, son of Aetes. (M.I.) D 5:518-19 VI:135
Eddington, Sir Arthur Stanley (1882-1944), British astronomer, physicist and mathematician. He was a pioneer in the fields of relativity, cosmology, and the internal constitution of the stars. He was also a writer on science and the philosophy of science. (Enc.Br.) 22:205-06 26:385-87
Page 104
Eden Garden of Eden, in Genesis, the Biblical earthly paradise inhabited by the first created man and woman, Adam and Eve, prior to their disobedience of the commandments of God. (Enc. Br.) a 1:466 3: 33 5:28, 198, 200, 203, 208, 253, 532, 536, 547, 549 7:748, 806, 868, 913, 917, 935, 1002 17:137, 144, 148 26:352 28:127, 234 29:604 VI: 195 XII: 185 XVIII: 128
Eden Garden a public garden in Calcutta, laid out in 1835 by Mrs. Eden, sister of Lord Auckland, the then Governor General of India. It was the principal gathering place for the people of Calcutta in the evening. (Guide) n 3:85
Edinburg historical capital and cultural centre of Scotland, and one of the more distinctive of North European cities. It lies close to the southern shore of the Firth of Forth. Until 1975 Edinburgh was an independent borough or county of a city. The University of Edinburgh (founded in 1583) is particularly noted for its schools of medicine and law. (Enc. Br.) n 2:195 4:82
Edison, Thomas Alva (1847-1931), American inventor and a genius of technology. He held over a thousand U.S. and foreign patents, including those on the incandescent electric lamp, phonograph, and motion-picture projector. (Enc. Br.) 12:42 24:1235
Edith name of the woman (probably imaginary) addressed in Sri Aurobindo's poem Night by the Sea 5:16, 18
Edur1 in Prince of Edur, the capital of Rana Curran; it is probably drawn after Idar, a town in Sabarkantha district, Gujarat, about fifty kilometres from its border with Rajasthan. (S.Atlas) d 7:739, 741, 743, 745, 747-48, 756, 758, 763-64, 766, 771-75, 777-78, 781-82, 787, 790-91, 800, 806, 809, 812, 815
Edur2 a character - Prince of Edur and Rana Curran of the Rathor clan - in Sri Aurobindo's drama Prince of Edur. 0 1:745, 756-57, 777, 780, 801, 813
Edward, Sir See Baker, Sir Edward
Edward II a historical play (c. 1592) by Marlowe. Edward II was king of England from 1307 to 1327. (Col. Enc.) a 3:186
Edward IV (1442-83), collateral descendant of Edward III and king of England from 1461 to 1470 and
from 1471 to 1483. He spent the period 1470-71 in exile. He was an able but dissolute Yorkist leader whose reign brought about a revival in the power of the monarchy, in English sea power, and in foreign trade. (Col. Enc.; Pears) D 4:99 15:357
Edward VII (1841-1910), King of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India from 1901 to 1910. He was an immensely popular sovereign, best remembered as an affable man of fashion, a leader in the British sporting world and a free-lance diplomat throughout Europe and elsewhere. He gave his name to the Edwardian period in dress and English literature. (Enc. Br.) a 1:159
Edwardian the Edwardian Age of English literature, the period 1901-14, so called after King EDWARD VII. It was predominantly an age of prose. In poetry it was an age of endings and beginnings, Victorianism lingering on and the reaction to it appearing in the work of men like Kipling, A.E., and Yeats. (H.L.) D 9:346-47.
Egypt 1. a modern country (called United Arab Republic of Egypt) occupying the northeast corner of Africa and the Sinai peninsula of southwest Asia (Sinai is presently held by Israeli forces); its capital is Cairo. 2. an ancient country situated in the same region. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Egyptian(s) 1: 135, 242, 261, 267, 297, 305, 391, 413, 598, 602, 605, 721-22, 863, 881 2:35, 217, 406-07 3:186, 227 4:143, 252 5:350 6:15, 46, 333, 339-40, 344, 348, 351, 359, 361, 366, 368, 375, 385-87, 391, 403-04, 409, 419, 424, 427, 430, 435-36, 438, 440, 443, 451-52, 469 7:665-66 9:170, 316 10:23, 30, 147, 439, 445 11:4, 468 12:521 14:25, 190, 228-29, 233, 367, 392, 402 15:46, 298, 313, 342, 346, 447, 498, 502, 505-06, 644 16:309, 339, 406 17:195, 303, 387 19: 876, 1051 20:428 22:1, 103, 393, 489 26: 316, 395, 433, 467 27:280 V: 95 XIII: 44, 50 XV: 17 XVI: 186 XVII: 48 XIX: 24
Egyptian (language) extinct language of the Nile valley. It belongs to the Hamito-Semitic language family. The history of the language dates from before 3000 BC to at least the 17th century AD. Egyptian was originally written in hieroglyphs. Coptic, the last form of the Egyptian language, was written in a Greek alphabet modified by the addition of seven characters from the demotic script. (Enc.Br.) D 26:234
Egypto-Chaldean of the Egyptian and Chaldean civilisations, a 10:25
Eight Upanishads a compilation of texts and translations by Sri Aurobindo of eight Upanishads: Isha, Kena, Katha, Mundaka, Mandukya, Prashna, Taittiriya, and Aitareya. They are preceded by an essay "On Translating the Upanishads". (I & G) D 22:210
Page 105
Einstein, Albert (1879-1955), American (born in Germany of Jewish paients, became an American citizen in 1940) theoretical physicist, best known for the formulation of the relativity theory. He was one of the most creative intellects in human history, and was awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize for physics for his photoelectric law and work on theoretical physics. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Einsteinian 6:2 14:199 16:82 22:202, 210 24:1248-49 26:386
Eire Irish (Gaelic) equivalent of Ireland. D [Indexed with Ireland]
Elburz major mountain range in northern Iran, south of the Caspian Sea. (Enc. Br.) a 7:579 Eldorado El Dorado, fictitious country or city abounding in gold. (C.O.D.) a 28:46
Elegy (An) Elegy (Written) in a Country Churchyard, a meditative poem in quatrains of ten-syllabled lines, by Thomas Gray. It was begun in 1742 and published in 1750/51. Gray was recognized only after the publica- tion of this poem. Its success was instantaneous and overwhelming. (Ox. Comp.; Enc. Br.) a II: 15-16
Elements of Politics title of a book (1891) by Henry Sidgwick. (Enc. Br.) a 1:427
Eleusinian (Mysteries) the principal secret religious rites of ancient Greece, held at ELEUSIS. The mysteries dealt with the leg- ends ofDemeter, Kore (Persephone), and Dionysus. They were supposed to give the initiated a happy life after death. The nature of the secret rites that took place at Eleusis remains unknown despite ingenious guesses from ancient times to the present. (Col. Enc.) D 1:10 9:197 10:4-5, 25 11:4, 468-69 14:143, 145, 147 15:176 16:336, 338, 364 28:221 29:777 VI: 169 XVI: 138
Eleusis ancient city of Attica in Greece, northwest of Athens, at the mouth of the Cephisus River. Through ancient times it was the seat of the Eleusinian Mysteries. There was in it a large temple to Demeter. Ruins of the city and temple near the modern village of Eleusis have been excavated. (Col. Enc.) a 10:439 XV: 20
Elgar, Sir Edward (William) (1857-1934), a composer whose works in the late 19th- century orchestral
idiom stimulated a renaissance of English music. He was the first English composer of international stature since Henry Purcell (1659-95). (Enc.Br.) a 22:203
Elibank, Master of "Master" is a title given to certain Scottish peers. The Master of Elibank referred to by Sri Aurobindo was Alexander William Charles Oliphant Murray (1870-1920). A Liberal M.P. from 1900 to 1912, he was Undersecretary of State for India from 1909 to 1910 (before Montague took over) and Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury from 1910 to 1912. (Wolpert, p. 282) a I : I 43
Elinoure and Juga a collection of poems by Chatterton (1764); they were supposedly written by a 15th-century monk of Bristol, Thomas Rowley, a fictitious character created by Chatterton. The name was taken from a civilian's monument brass at St. John's Church, Bristol. (Enc.Br.; A) D II: 18
Eliot, Thomas Steams (1888-1965), American-English poet, playwright, and critic. A leader of the modernist movement in poetry, he was awarded the 1948 Nobel Prize for literature. His works are widely translated. (Enc.Br.) a 5:374 9:480 29:780
Eliot, George pseudonym of Mary Ann Evans (1819-80), great Victorian novelist who developed the method of psychological analysis that is characteristic of modern fiction. (Enc.Br.) a 9:327
Elizabeth Elizabeth I of England (1533- 1603), queen of England (1558-1603). During the 45 years of her reign, England passed through one of the greatest periods of its national history - a period that produced Shakespeare, Edmund Spenser, Francis Bacon, Walter Raleigh and other notable figures, a period in which England became a first-rate European power and colonization was begun. The meaning of the term "Elizabethan Age" in English literature is sometimes extended to include the Jacobean Period (1603-25). (Col. Enc.; H.L.) Der:
Elizabethan a 3:96, 108, 233, 302-03, 305-06 4:99, 212, 219 6:1 9:25, 51-53, 57, 60, 62-63, 66-70, 72-76, 78-82, 86, 106, 111-13, 116, 168, 170-71, 226, 314, 395, 523, 529 14:302 15:357, 513 26:253-54, 264, 317, 322-23 27:81 29:758 I: 13-14 II: 12-13 Ella a character participating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) written by Sri Aurobindo about 1891. (A&R, II:91) a 11:9
Page 106
Ellis, Havelock (Henry) Havelock Ellis (1859-1939), English essayist, editor, and physician who studied human sexual behaviour. (Enc. Br.) 9:329
Elohim, The a proposed character mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Birth of Sin. It is the common Hebrew name of God. (C.O.D.) 7:901
El Roghi Moorish soldier who, along with his captured followers, received in 1909 a most barbarous treatment from his victorious rival, MulaiHamid. (A) 2:216
Elsass-Lothringen German equivalent of ALSACE-LORRAINE, 15:410
Elysium also called Elysian Plain or Elysian Fields, in Greek religion, the pre-Hellenic paradise, a happy otherworld for heroes favoured by the gods, and identified with the Isles of the Blessed. It was situated in the distant west, at the edge of the world. In later tradition and in Virgil, it is a part of the underworld (Hades) and a pleasant abode for the righteous dead. (Col. Enc.) Der: Elysian 3:1, 488 5:31, 449, 460 6:18, 469 28:234 29:493, 523
Emerson1, Ralph Waldo (1803-82), American lecturer, poet, and essayist. He was the leading exponent of New England Transcendentalism. (Enc. Br.) a 1:189 9:1, 179, 460 14:16, 46 17:181 V: 18 XVIII: 154
Emerson2 superintendent of Alipore Jail in which Sri Aurobindo was kept as an under- trial prisoner. He had all the virtues of a Christian gentleman, but lacked in energy and administrative efficiency. (A) 04:273, 276, 297
Emmett Robert Emmet (1778-1803), Irish patriot remembered as a romantic hero of Irish lost causes. In July 1803 he started a march on Dublin Castle. The rebellion turned into a brawl and Emmet fled. He was captured, tried and hanged. (Col. Enc.) 1:368, 413
Empedocles (c. 490-430 Be), Greek philosopher, statesman, poet, religious teacher, and physiologist. (Enc. Br.) 9:320 16:341, 350 XIV: 127
Empire an Anglo-Indian journal of Calcutta, a contemporary of Bande Mataram. (N.S.I.) n 1:187, 332, 343, 364, 407-08, 555-56, 650 3:454 4:220, 257
Empire Day May 24th, birthday of Queen Victoria, observed as a holiday, especially a school holiday, in the former British Empire. (C.O.D.) 1:328-29, 478
Enceladus in Greek mythology, a giant with a hundred arms, a son of Uranus and Ge, who fought against the gods. He was hurled down by Athene and imprisoned beneath Mt. Aetna in Sicily. When he stirs, the mountain shakes; when he breathes, there is an eruption. (M.I.; Web.) 5:494 29:507
Encyclopedia Britannica ("Brittanica", in the text, is a misspelling) the oldest and largest English language general encyclopedia. It has been continuously published since 1768 when its first edition began to appear in Edinburgh, Scotland. Since the 14th edition (1929) this encyclopedia has been published in the United States. The New Encyclopedia Britannica (15th edition) of 1977 is in 30 volumes. The passage quoted here (27: 353- 54) is from a pre-1907 edition. n 27:353
Endymion in Greek mythology, the son of Aethlius and king of Elis. He was loved by Selene, the goddess of the moon, by whom he had 50 daughters. John Keats in his poem Endymion elaborated on this legend. Here (3:69), however, the reference is not to the mythological king, nor to the poem, but to the writer of the poem, Keats. (Enc. Br.) 3:69
Endymion a long poem (1818) by John Keats on a Greek legend (see previous article). It begins with the famous line "A thing of beauty is a joy for ever". Much abusive criticism was heaped on this poem. (Enc. Br.) 3:254 9:130-31
An Enemy of the People drama of social criticism by Henrik Ibsen, first performed in 1883 and published in 1939. It is about a medical officer in conflict with city authorities over the issue of sewage con- tamination in a town prosperous from its famous baths. (Enc. Br.) n 15:485
Enghien Louis-Antoine-Henri de Bourbon-Conde, due d'Enghien (1772-1804), French prince who was suspected by Napoleon of participating in a conspiracy. Napoleon had the duke kidnapped and, within the space of a few hours, had him court-martialled and shot. This atrocity ended all hope of reconciliation between Napoleon and the royal House of Bourbon. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 17:384
Page 107
England largest and most populous unit of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Der: English(men);
Englishwomen; Englished; Anglicised; Anglicisation 1:1, 7-8, 12-14, 16, 18, 21-32, 34-39, 41-43, 48, 53-56, 58, 63, 91-93, 99-100, 104-06, 108, 118, 132-33, 138, 142-43, 145-46, 149, 158-59, 176, 186, 190, 198, 201-02, 208-09, 220-21, 226, 230, 242, 245, 260-61, 264, 267, 269, 278-79, 282, 286, 288, 294-95, 304-05, 313, 332-33, 341-43, 350-51, 355, 358, 365, 367-68, 380, 387-88, 390, 395, 403, 409, 413-14, 417-19, 421-22, 426-27, 435, 440, 443-44, 447-48, 450, 455, 459-60, 462-65, 467-68, 470-73, 480, 482, 487, 492, 496, 499-501, 503-06, 512, 525, 534, 544, 547-48, 551-54, 559, 564-68, 573-80, 587, 597-99, 604-05, 615, 621, 627, 637, 666, 702, 704-05, 707-09, 715, 719, 721-22, 760-61, 763, 778, 810, 813, 815-16, 827, 835, 842, 844-45, 849, 856, 866, 898, 907 2:pre., 4, 7, 14, 20, 22, 26, 28, 31-34, 49, 53, 65, 78-79, 97, 112, 119-23, 135, 140, 144, 152-53, 158, 160-61, 170-73, 185, 194-95, 204, 209, 212-13, 216, 223, 233-37, 253, 255, 259, 267-70, 283-86, 288, 296, 298-99, 301-03, 306-07, 314, 326, 332, 349, 351, 356, 358-61, 363.372, 376, 379, 390, 393-95, 403-07, 421-22, 434 3:13, 26, 72, 79-80, 84-85, 87, 93, 99, 111-12, 117, 132, 193, 203, 225, 237, 242, 253, 285, 304, 306, 320, 350, 398, 417, 419, 447-48, 459-60 4: pre., 57, 97, 99, 140-44, 147, 149, 154, 157-58, 167, 176-78, 180, 182, 189, 195-97, 199, 203-05, 212-15, 218-21, 224, 230, 233-36, 238, 240, 243-45, 248-49, 257-58, 261, 265-68, 273, 285-86, 289, 293, 301, 303 5: pre., 12, 596 7:1016, 1020-21, 1023, 1027, 1049 8: 331, 333-35, 337, 341 9: 2-3, 46-47, 49, 51, 54-56, 60, 62-63, 76, 81, 86, 96, 110, 132-36, 138, 141, 144, 147-48, 157-58, 183, 189, 192, 223, 287, 307, 395, 401, 405, 441, 444-45, 453-56, 460, 462, 464, 466-68, 478, 480-81, 549-50, 560 10: 558 12: 53-54, 500 14: 4, 8, 11, 16-17, 46-47, 50, 226, 257, 263, 320, 349, 378, 387, 398, 413, 418, 422 15: 61, 88, 264, 275, 282, 288-91, 295, 297-99, 301, 303, 306, 308-10, 312-16, 321-22, 327-28, 332, 341, 348-49, 354, 356-58, 368, 375, 379, 389, 412-13, 420-21, 428, 444, 447, 450, 493, 496-97, 500-02, 504-05, 507, 512, 514, 517, 521, 536, 617, 626, 640, 645 16:312, 323 17:181, 191-93, 210, 244, 251-52, 276, 295, 302, 314, 317-18, 322, 357-58, 360, 362, 367-70, 386-87 18:436 22:205, 208-09, 490 24:1298 25: 390, 408 26:1-5, 7, 10-13, 17-18, 31, 39, 44, 75, 137, 153, 178, 204, 228, 253-56, 271, 273-74, 314, 320-22, 324-26, 365, 384, 395-96, 506 27:3-4, 11-12, 15, 17, 23, 26, 51, 54, 60-61, 65, 75, 81, 91, 99-100, 102, 107, 121, 125, 152, 155-56, 282,
420, 447-48, 456, 466-67, 471, 483 1:3-5, 8, 10-11, 27, 30, 73-74, 76 11:3, 28, 84-85. 87-88 III: 5.9-10. 15, 19, 23-24, 26-28, 86 IV: 110 V: 17, 100 VI: 124. 140 VIII: 125- 26, 133-34 IX: 29-30 XIII: 28, 47 XIV: 104, 107, 163-64 XV: 62-63, 66, 72 XVII: 66, 70, 72 XXI: 82, 85
English (language) language belonging to the Germanic branch of the great Indo-European family of languages. English is the major language, through former colonisation, of countries in all five continents, and a world- wide cultural, scientific and commercial medium. (Pears) Der: Englishing 0 1: 13, 18, 81, 92, 198.245.297, 329, 353, 400, 410, 430, 448, 455, 460, 464, 485-86, 518-19, 521, 523, 546, 552, 554, 570, 598, 601, 604, 625, 641, 655, 785, 849, 866, 901 2: pre.. 88, 144, 150, 250, 358, 383, 399, 411, 417, 422 3:79, 82, 89-90, 92, 96, 98, 102, 108, 147, 184-85, 226, 236-48, 262, 292, 306, 309, 430 4: pre., 27, 30, 54, 81, 93, 135, 176, 193, 195-96, 284, 295. 302 5: pre., 258, 341-48, 354-56, 361-65, 369-70, 375, 380-82, 386- 87, 551-53, 558, 585-86, 588 8:61, 157 9:1-3, 6-7, 27, 44-46, 48-65, 70, 73, 75, 78-83, 88-89, 91-93, 96, 105, 110-11, 120, 124, 127, 129-30, 135, 138-39. 141, 144, 148, 156-57, 167-68, 170-71, 175-76, 179, 183, 187, 189, 196, 237, 246, 273, 280-81, 284, 286-87, 301, 303, 307-08, 320, 345, 355, 365, 371, 374, 393, 395-403, 405-06, 409.414, 417-23, 431-34, 437-38, 441-42, 444, 446, 451, 453-57, 459-64, 466-68, 479, 481, 522-24, 526, 545, 548, 560 10:51-52, 211, 351-52, 355-56, 387, 556, 558, 571 11:11, 19-20, 454, 461, 484 12: pre., 40, 54, 57-58, 200, 447, 477 13:90 14:8, 71, 91, 263, 298, 433 15:302, 305-06, 332, 390, 411, 494-95, 521 16:79, 336, 419, 431 17:195, 252, 265, 267-68, 277, 283, 290, 295-96, 304, 323, 351, 361, 367, 397 20:12, 292, 295, 364 21:746 22:223, 282, 288, 290, 292, 294, 305, 405, 451 23:721, 742, 920 24:1109, 1284, 1559 25:79, 259, 383, 389 26:1-3, 5, 7, 9.11-12, 15, 28, 34, 65, 226, 234-35, 252-53, 262, 266-67, 273, 283-84, 290, 298, 306, 312-13, 315-16, 319-25, 327-28, 342, 367, 409 27:60, 81, 89-90, 92-94.96-100, 102-07, 155, 209, 230, 351-52, 421, 456, 482 29:727, 753, 760, 769-70, 781, 800, 805-06 1:1-2, 9, 11-12, 27, 30, 60, 76 11:13, 15, 18-19, 27-31, 35, 73, 77, 87 111:5, 8-11, 84 IV: 197 V: 17-18 VI: 139, 143 VII: 4, 15 VIII: 126-27 IX: 58 X: 115, 142, 154, 172, 186 XIII:47 XIV:123, 137, 165 XV: 45, 76 XVI: 149, 151, 178 XVII: 50, 53, 64, 66, 69 XXI: 67
English Channel commonly called "The Channel", arm of the Atlantic Ocean separating the southern coast of England from the northern coast of France. (Enc. Br.) a 1:29
Page 108
Englishman Anglo-Indian English daily issued from Hare Street, Calcutta, founded and edited by J. H. Stocqueter. It started in 1821 under the title of The John Bull in the East, and from 1st October 1833 until it stopped publication in April 1934, it appeared as The Englishman. (Cal. Lib.) a 1:132, 150-51, 155-56, 160, 167-69, 174, 177-78, 184, 186, 202, 219-21, 242-44, 267, 271-72, 279-81, 283, 288, 303, 332, 337, 343-44, 372-73, 375, 403, 408, 410, 434, 457, 509, 521-22, 539, 564-65, 584, 593, 607, 610, 624, 719-20, 865 2:32, 77, 143-44, 218, 238, 249, 283.310, 357, 361, 367, 376, 382 4:176, 182, 199, 215, 238 27:10, 12-14
Enna a place in central Sicily. It was, in Greek mythology, the site of the rape of Persephone (Kore). See Demeter. (M.I.) a 5:510
Ennius, Ouintus (239-169 Be), Latin epic poet, dramatist and satirist, regarded by the Romans as the father of Latin poetry. Virgil, Lucretius and Ovid borrowed freely from Ennius. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a 9:61-62
Ennosigaios also spelled Ennosigaeus, in Greek mythology, an epithet of Poseidon, meaning "earth-shaker", as one who causes the earth to quake and tremble when he strikes it with his trident, thus creating chasms, valleys, springs and river-beds. (N.C.C.H.) n 6:16, 82
Enoch Arden a collection of poems (1864) by Tennyson. It was popular, but censured in some quarters. (Col. Enc.) a 9:63
Entretiens French translation of CONVERSATIONS by the Mother, first published in 1933 under the title Entretiens aveclaMere. a 24:1230 25:400-01
Envoi a short poem (1890-92) by Sri Aurobindo, the last in the collection Songs to Myrtilla (1895). The epigraph to the poem is the concluding stanza of Virgil's Catalepton V. (A-Poet.p. 136) n 26:7
Eoan relating to dawn or the east (Eos is the goddess of dawn in Greek mythology). In Ilion, it is an epithet of Penthesilea's forces. (M.I.) D 5:459, 466, 468, 474, 514-15, 517-19
Epeus in Sri Aurobindo's epic Ilion, one of the Greek chieftains. In Greek mythology there were two men with this name involved in the Trojan War on the Greek side. One was the man who, with the help of Athene, made the Wooden Horse. The other was the son and successor of Endymion, king of Elis. It is not clear if Sri Aurobindo had either in mind, but the latter would better fit the description he gives. (M.I.) D 5: 444, 469, 491
Ephesian epithet of Heraclitus, a native or inhabitant of Ephesus, an ancient city of Asia Minor. (Web.) n 16:336
Ephialtus in Sri Aurobindo's epic Ilion, a Greek warrior. (M.I.) n 5:491
Epictetus (c. 55-c. 135), Phrygian Stoic philosopher remember for the religious tone of his teachings, which commended him to numerous early Christian thinkers. He wrote nothing; his teachings were set down by his disciple Arrian. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 0 14:212 17:373 XIV:163
Epicurus (341-270 Be), Greek philosopher, author of an ethical philosophy of simple pleasure, friendship, and retirement. He founded schools of philosophy that survived directly from the 4th century BC until the 4th century AD. (Enc. Br.) Der: Epicurean(s);
Epicureanism a 3:32, 98 4:109, 298 5:58 12:484 14:57 16:362 18:398 19:879 20:20 V:63, 75 XIV: 145, 163
Epigoni in Greek legend, the sons of the Seven (Heroes) Against Thebes. Ten years after the fathers of the Seven died at Thebes, and long before the Trojan War, the Heroes avenged their fathers under the leadership of Adrastus, the only surviving hero of the Seven. They conquered Thebes and gave the kingdom to Thersander, who was one of the Epigoni. (Col. Enc.) o 3:80
Epipsychidion a poem (1821) by Shelley, part spiritual autobiography, part praise of ideal love. It is one of the three greatest things Shelley has left to us on the larger scale. A girl known at Pisa, Emila Viviani, helped to inspire this poem. (Col. Enc.; A) a 9: 127, 528
Epirote of EpiRus. (M.I.) u 5:469
Epirus ancient province of Greece, on the Ionian Sea, a region now in northwestern Greece and southern Albania. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) a 5:484, 486
Erasmus, Desiderius (c. 1466-1536), Dutch humanist and ordained priest of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the greatest patristic and classical scholar of the northern humanist Renaissance. Erasmus combined a vast learning with a keen, often malicious humour. His original works, written in Latin, are mainly satirical and critical. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D XIV: 127
Eratosthenes Eratosthenes of Cyrene (c. 276-c. 194 BC), Greek scholar known for
Page 109
his versatility. He wrote poetry, and prose works (most of them lost) on literature, the theatre, mathematics, astronomy, geography, and philosophy. He is credited with measur- ing correctly the circumference and tilt of the earth and the size and distance of the sun and the moon. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 3:338
Erebus in Greek religion, primeval Darkness, sprung from Chaos. The name is applied to that part of the underworld through which the souls of the dead pass to reach Hades. It was regarded as the abode oftheEpiNNYEs. (M.I.) n 1:693 3:31 5:404 6:47
Eremite a character in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. (Note: This common noun meaning "hermit" has by oversight been mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of the play as if it were a proper name, and bracketed with the captains of the Syrian army.) D 6:333, 414-16, 433
Eric a dramatic romance written by Sri Aurobindo in Pondicherry in 1912 or 1913. (I & G) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. -27]
Eric a character - the hero, king of Norway and son of Yarislaf- in Sri Aurobindo's Eric, a dramatic romance, a 6:473, 477-82, 485-96, 499-502, 504-12, 514-42, 544-49, 552-58
Erin poetic name of Ireland. (Col. Enc.) D 5:11 6:543 7:885
Erinna a character participating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) written by Sri Aurobindo at Cambridge sometime around 1891. (A&R, II:91) a 11:5-9
Erinny(e)s Erinyes, in Greek mythology, the goddesses of vengeance, usually represented as three winged maidens, with snakes in their hair. They pursued criminals, drove them mad, and tormented them in Hades. They were spirits of punishment, avenging wrongs done especially to kindred. In Roman litera- ture they were called Furies. (Enc. Br.;
Col. Enc.; M.I.) a 5:394.495 6:44 XV: 2
Ermenild SeeHermengild.
Eros in Greek religion, god of love. Usually, he was known as the son of Aphrodite and Ares. In archaic art he was represented as a beautiful winged youth armed with bow and arrows, but tended to be made younger and younger until, by the Hellenistic period, he was an infant. (Enc. Br.) 1-1 5:31 6:422 9: 543 II: 6-7
Erse also called Scots Gaelic or the Scottish Gaelic language; a member of the Goidelic group of Celtic languages, spoken by about 81, 000 persons living along the northwest coast of Scotland and in the Hebrides islands. Scottish Gaelic is a recent offshoot of the Irish language. (Enc. Br.) D 15:390
Eryx an ancient city in northwest Sicily. It had a famous temple to Aphrodite. The site is now occupied by the village of Erice. (Col. Enc.) a 5:501
Esarhaddon Esar-Haddon, king of ancient Assyria (680-669 Be), one of the most powerful of the Assyrian kings. (Enc. Br.;
Col. Enc.; A) a 3:110 7:1085-86 IX: 28
Esau in the Old Testament, the elder of the twin sons of Isaac. See also Jacob. (Enc. Br.) D 1:172, 394
Esperanto an artificial language designed like Volapuk as a medium for persons of all nations. It was developed in 1887 by Ludwik Zamenhof, a Polish oculist. Esperanto enthusiasts have published extensively. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a 15:484 26:321
Essay on Criticism a didactic poem by Pope, in heroic couplets, published anonymously in 1711. The work is remarkable as having been written when Pope was only twenty-one, and it is with this publication that Pope made his name. (Ox. Comp.; Enc. Br.) a 1:10
Essays on the Gita a book of essays on the Bhagawad Gita written by Sri Aurobindo. The essays were first published in Arya in two series. In book form the First Series came out in 1922 and the Second Series in 1928. A combined edition of both series was first brought out in 1950. (I & G) a 23:848, 1069 24:1415 26:40, 176, 370-71 XVII: 70
Essays on Yoga working title of what was later published as Essays on the Gita. a XXII: 164
Essence of Vedanta the title, translated into English, of the book Vedantasdra written in Sanskrit by SADANANDA. It is one of the best known epitomes of the Adwaita philosophy as taught by Shankaracharya'. It has 227 Sutras (aphorisms), of which Sri Aurobindo translated the first sixteen. (Ved. S.) n 12:440
L'Essence unique sub-title of the first part of the instalment of "Les Paroles eternelles" that appeared in the French edition of Arya in September 1914. An English translation by Sri Aurobindo, "The Soul Essence", came out in the English edition of the same month. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Page 110
Essene a religious sect or brotherhood that flourished in Palestine from about the second century BC to the end of the first century AD. The Essenes clustered in monastic communi- ties. Like the Pharisees, they meticulously observed the Law of Moses, the Sabbath, and ritual purity. They also professed belief in immortality and divine punishment for sin. But unlike the Pharisees, the Essenes denied the resurrection of the body and refused to immerse themselves in public life. (Enc. Br.) n XVI: 181
Estelle a feminine name used by Sri Aurobindo. Q 5:9
Estrild a character - concubine of Humber and a Pictish princess - in Sri Aurobindo's play The House of Brut. D 7:883, 886-87
Eternal Wisdom, The English translation by Sri Aurobindo of Les Paroles eternelles published serially in Arya. This journal stopped coming out after January 1921, leaving a considerable amount of work unpublished. Part of the translation was brought out in book form from Madras in 1922. Only Volume 1, comprising the Introduction, Book I, and the first section of Book II, was published. The remaining sections (ii-iv) of Book II, Book III contain- ing nine sections, and the Conclusion were declared as the contents of "forthcoming" volumes which, however, .never came out. (A) a 27:456
Ethiope in classical literature, poetic form of Ethiopian. (O.C.C.L.) o 27:128
Ethiopian (native) of Ethiopia (ancient Abyssinia), an empire of east central Africa. The name Abyssinia, although never official, was formerly widely applied to the country. (Col. Enc.) a 7:561, 606, 608
Etna name of a volcano on the east coast of Sicily. It is the highest active volcano in Europe. (Col. Enc.) a 29:507
Etruscan (native) of ancient Etruria, a country of west central Italy, now forming Tuscany and part of Umbria. (Col. Enc.) a 3:480
Eucken, Rudolf Christoph (1846-1926), German idealist philosopher, interpreter of Aristotle, and author of works in ethics and religion. His work attained wide popularity, and he was awarded the 1908 Nobel Prize for literature. (Enc. Br.) a 17:320
Eugene Eugene of Savoy (1663-1736), Austrian general, considered by many the greatest military strategist of his time. He was a major influence on such later rulers and generals as Frederick II the Great and Napoleon. (Enc. Br.) n 7:847
Euhemeros also spelled as Euhemerus, Euemeros, or Evemerus (fl. 300 BC), Greek mythographer who established the tradition of seeking an actual historical basis for mythical beings and events. (Enc. Br.) n 4:22
Eumachus in Greek mythology, a wealthy Troj an, brother of Creiisa. (M.I.) n 5:461
Eunice a character - daughter of Prince Nicanor and cousin to Antiochus and Timocles; companion of Cleopatra - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. D 6:333, 335-42, 356-57, 360-62, 371-73, 376-79, 389-90, 394-96, 401, 404, 406, 408-09, 413-14, 418, 428, 430-31, 435, 440, 442, 446, 448-49, 451-52, 455-58, 465, 468
Euphrates a river of southwest Asia. Rising in eastern Turkey, it flows to Iraq where it joins the Tigris to form the Shatt-al-Arab. (Enc. Br.) Der: Euphratic a 5:13, 263, 414 6:99, 354, 380
Euphrosyne' one of the three Greek goddesses called Graces (the other two being Aglaia and Thalia), daughter of Zeus and Eurynome. The Graces are personifications of beauty and charm, and often associated with the Muses, Dionysus, Eros, and Aphrodite. (Col. Enc.) n 5:31
Euphrosyne2 a character - the maid of the farm, Christofir's daughter - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. D 7:821, 874
Eurasian (person) of mixed European and Asian parentage; of Europe and Asia. (C.O.D.) a l:l02 2:367
Euripides (c. 484-406 BC) , the youngest of Athens' three greatest tragic poets (the other two being Aeschylus and Sophocles). He wrote perhaps 92 plays, of which only 19 are extant. His plays suggest that he found the universe unpredictable and on the whole dreadful. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 9:304, 521 14:192 15:339
Europe western peninsular extension of the Eurasian landmass, larger only than Australia among the continents. (Enc. Br.) Der: European; Europeanise(d);
Europeanising; Europeanism Q 1:21, 27, 36, 40, 48, 50, 63, 74, 103, 108, 121, 151-52, 154, 163, 178, 189, 240, 243, 257, 259-61, 271-72, 305, 343, 347, 349, 362-63, 371, 396, 408, 411, 414, 449, 453, 465, 467-68, 470-72, 487, 504, 511, 525-26, 536, 538, 552, 555, 557, 573-74, 576-77, 603, 620,
Page 111
625, 654-55, 662, 666, 710, 714, 718, 728, 730, 737, 757-60, 762, 768-71, 790, 807, 813-16, 826, 842-44, 860-62, 880, 882, 884, 902 2:11-12, 14, 17-18, 20, 26, 28-31, 34-40, 42, 49, 51, 63, 73, 77-78, 81, 83-85, 88, 95, 105-06, 118, 122, 147, 160, 164, 167-69, 172, 195, 205, 209-10, 212-13, 216-18, 236, 241, 247-48, 252-54, 256-57, 263, 265-66, 268, 271, 279-80, 288, 291-92, 305-06, 350-51, 359-61, 367, 374, 378, 385, 390-91, 394, 396-97, 399, 402-05, 408, 411 3:6, 77, 79, 83, 85, 94, 102, 111-14, 116-17, 120, 122-23, 126, 128, 142-43, 164, 171, 174, 177-78, 180-81, 189, 197-98, 224, 227, 232, 234, 243, 262-63, 292, 303-05, 307, 330, 334, 338-40, 345, 350, 352, 358-59, 363, 370, 375, 380, 388-89, 393-94, 404, 413-15, 417-19, 422, 424-25, 427-28, 431, 433, 437-39, 446-48, 454-56, 458-59, 481-82, 484 4:24, 44, 81, 92, 98, 109, 143, 148, 151-52, 154-55, 159, 162-63, 165-66, 212, 214-15, 251-52, 257, 273, 278, 282, 291-93, 298, 301, 304, 310, 332 5: 56, 145, 404-05, 428, 469, 484-86, 492 7:567, 665, 1027, 1031 9:2, 19, 36, 42, 44-47, 62, 83, 91, 110-11, 134, 144, 189, 237, 246, 252, 283, 286-88, 307, 322, 406, 423, 432, 445, 453-54, 496, 517, 522, 529, 536, 546, 554 10:2-4, 6, 16-24, 28, 31, 34, 37, 106, 193, 333, 352-53, 448, 494, 545-47, 552, 555-57 11:2, 7, 15, 471 12:8, 10, 23-24, 40, 53-54, 56, 58, 408, 478, 485-86, 494, 497-99, 502, 504, 508, 522, 536, 538 13:12, 28, 147, 160. 162, 495, 505, 544 14:1-11, 13-20, 23, 25, 31-35, 37-38, 46-47, 51. 54, 56-58, 60-61, 67, 69, 73, 76-83, 89-91, 95-97, 99. 103, 121-22, 128-30. 133-35, 145, 147-48, 152, 156-57, 174, 176-78, 180, 182, 184-85, 190-93, 200-03, 205, 207, 213-14, 216-17, 220, 222-23, 226-29, 231, 233-34, 237, 246-47, 251, 253, 256-58, 260, 270, 305, 310, 316, 322, 324. 329, 336-38, 340, 345, 349-50, 362, 364-66, 378-80, 387-89, 392-93, 397-402, 404-05, 408-09, 411, 413, 415, 417-18, 420, 422.424, 426, 430-31 15:2, 9-12, 14-16, 19-20, 22-23, 25-26, 32, 44-46, 48, 50, 59, 69, 79, 84, 86-87, 147-48, 163-64, 168, 178, 189, 192, 196, 210, 225, 263-64, 269-70, 281, 286, 289, 292, 296-99, 301-02, 312, 314, 316-17, 319-21, 323-25. 327-33, 337, 339-40, 343, 345, 347-49, 351-53, 355, 358, 364-68, 377-78, 380-84, 391, 407-08, 411-20, 422, 426, 430, 435, 445-47, 454, 456, 458, 469, 478, 480, 487-88, 491, 493-94, 496, 502-04, 508, 513-14, 519, 525, 528, 530, 537, 566-67, 584, 589-90, 604, 609, 614, 620, 626-27, 633-35. 638, 640-41, 644-49, 651, 653 16: 79. 90, 92, 225, 228-29, 241, 262, 275, 309-14, 322-23, 325-27, 335, 362, 365, 370, 427-28 17:82-83, 87, 114, 117, 119-20, 125, 153, 158, 168, 180-82, 184-85, 191, 193, 195-96, 203, 209-10, 212, 217, 219, 231-32, 238, 241, 244-45, 248, 257-58, 268-69, 274-77, 279-80, 283-84, 290, 294, 298-99, 302, 313-14, 317-18, 324, 337-38, 340, 342, 351, 371, 377-78, 380, 383, 385-86, 393, 404 18:9. 376 19:650, 763, 1051-52 20:10, 18, 130.260, 292, 345, 363, 365, 428, 434, 476 22: 5, 32, 61, 67-68, 77, 85, 128, 131, 153, 157, 160, 174, 184, 190,
205-06, 209, 214, 306, 321, 354, 393, 408, 421, 452, 468, 481, 489 23:510, 547, 553, 555-59, 563, 617, 676, 767, 861-62, 1031, 1048 24:1164, 1256, 1298, 1388, 1496, 1510-11, 1515, 1517, 1521, 1523, 1570, 1585, 1587, 1657, 1731, 1742 25:96, 230, 241, 365-66 26:1, 6-7, 39, 90, 130, 214, 262, 282, 354, 365-66, 388, 403, 406, 425, 431, 482 27:18, 45, 51-52, 93, 96, 99, 103, 110-11, 115, 122, 124, 150, 163, 165-66, 180-85, 202, 204, 209, 217, 269, 285, 299, 309, 312, 347-48, 355, 371, 434, 438, 440, 442-43, 453, 460, 467, 476, 479, 486, 490 29:800, 803 1:8, 21, 26, 29-31, 42, 48, 56-58, 67 11:7-, 84, 88 III: 1-2, 5, 7, 9, 13, 22, 25, 29, 53, 85 IV: 161-63, 167 V: 17, 79, 97 VI: 157, 177, 191, 193, 195-201 VII: 7, 15, 19-20 VIII: 133, 169, 171, 173-74, 176-78, 188-91, 193-95 IX: 17, 22, 27, 29-33 X: 141, 146, 186 XII: 152-53 XIII: 23, 25, 28-30, 32, 36-37', 47 XIV: 118, 120-28, 130-31, 145, 164, 168 XV: 3-4, 6-7, 9, 11-15, 18-19, 21-23.25, 30, 64-67, 70.76-77 XVI: 132-37, 144-45, 148, 153, 181-84, 190 XVII: 9-11, 19, 26, 28-29, 34, 36-42, 44-48, 66, 73 XVIII: 153-58, 160-61, 163, 168 XIX: 35.64, 68, 73, 78 XX: 148 XXI: 102 XXII: 127
Eurotas the modern Iris, a river in the southern Peloponnesus or Morea, the southernmost region of continental Greece. Sparta was on the banks of the Eurotas. (Col. Enc.;M.I.) a 5:411, 434, 440, 465
Eurus in Greek legend, the youngest son of Polydamas, who in Sri Aurobindo's llion (p.443)isasonofAntenor. (M.I.) a 5:443-45, 447, 456, 459-60
Eurydice in Greek mythology, a nymph, wife of ORPHEUS. (CoI.Enc.) a 27:153
Euxine the Greek name for the Black Sea. (O.C1.D.) D 5:383, 391
Evangeline a long narrative poem (1847) by Longfellow; it is a tale in hexameters about the British expulsion of the French Acadians from Nova Scotia. (Enc. Br.) D 5:346 11:27
Evans-Wentz, Dr. W. Y. of Jesus College, Oxford, a well-known author of several books, including The Tibetan Book of the Dead, Tibet's Great Yogi Milarepa, Tibetan Yoga and Secret Doctrines, and The Tibetan Book of the Great Liberation. n 22:67
Evaya Marut in the Veda, a name of Vishnu, one from whom the Maruts sprang;
the forcefully moving Thought-God. . (A;A&R, V:28) a 10:333 V:28
Page 112
Eve in the Hebrew Bible, the first woman, wife of Adam and the mother of Cain, Abel, and Seth. She was beguiled by the serpent into eating the forbidden fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. Eve then tempted Adam to eat, whereupon they were banished from the Garden of Eden. (Col. Enc.) a 12:46 14:203-04 17:137 18:51 26:259 29: 798
The Eve of St. Agnes a poem by John Keats, written in 1819 and published shortly before his death in 1821. It is based on a legend that maidens were allowed to have a sight of their future husbands on the eve of St. Agnes' feast day. (Ox. Comp.) a 9:130
Excalibur in Arthurian legend, name of the sword that the Lady of the Lake gave to King Arthur. (Col. Enc.) a 1:365
Expansion of England an historical work (1883) by Sir John Robert Seeley. (Col. Enc.) a 2:356 3:471
Extremist (Party) a term applied to the Indian Nationalists first by the London Times. It was taken up by the Moderates in India and came into active use after the partition of Bengal in 1905. This "nickname of party warfare" was rejected by the "Extremists" themselves, who preferred to call themselves Nationalists or the New Party. The label, however, stuck; and it is used by all historians of the period. (A.B.T., p. 90; A) Der: Extremism D 1:178, 191, 201, 207, 227, 232, 254, 264, 280, 296-98, 303, 319, 324, 336, 350, 362, 390, 409, 418, 460, 556, 562-63, 584, 590-91, 593, 597, 600, 607, 610, 615, 626-27, 670, 674, 809-10, 828, 838-41, 906-09 2:75 4:183, 203, 235, 244, 268 14:9 26:27, 29-30, 35, 42, 45, 48 27:59-61 IV: 109-12 Vin: 123 XVII: 67
Ezra the book of Ezra in the Old Testament. The books of Ezra and Nehemiah were originally circulated a? a single book (Ezra), but eventually each book assumed the name of its principal figure, and both together form a sequel to the books of the Chronicles. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
F
Fabian Society Socialist society founded in 1883-84 in London, having as its goal the establishment of a democratic Socialist state in Great Britain. The Fabians put their faith in evolutionary Socialism rather than
in revolution. (The name of the society is derived from the Roman general Fabius Cunctator, whose patient and elusive tactics in avoiding pitched battles secured his ultimate victory over stronger forces.) The Fabians at first attempted to permeate the Liberal and Conservative parties with Socialist ideas, but later they helped to organize the separate Labour Representative Committee, which became the Labour Party in 1906. The Fabian Society has since been affiliated with the Labour Party. (Enc. Br.) a 9:552 26:5
Fadnavis See Nana Fadnavis
Faerie Queene; Faery Queen an unfinished poem (1590-96) in six books by Edmund Spenser. It is his masterpiece and one of the greatest poems written in English. In it Spenser gave allegorical expression to his moral, political, and religious opinions. The so-called "Spenserian stanza" in which this poem is written is Spenser's chief contribu- tion to English verse form. (Col. Enc.) 0 9:62, 75, 113, 361
Fafner variant of Fafnir, in the (Norse) mythology of the Nibelungenlied, a son of the magician Hreidmar. In the form of a dragon he guarded the gold which was paid in atonement for the death of Otr. He was slain by Sigurd (see Sigurd'). (Enc. Am.) D 10:183
Fairbanks, Douglas (1883-1939), American motion-picture actor and producer whose real name was Douglas Eiton Ulman. He was one of the first and greatest of the swashbuckling screen heroes. (Enc. Br.) 0 26:378
Fairclough, A. R. (A is a misprint for H) Henry Rushton Fairclough (1862-1938), American philologist, assistant professor and professor of classical literature at Leiand Stanford University (1893-1902), visiting lecturer/professor in Greek and Latin at Harvard (1925-26) and at Amherst (1927-29), and professor at the American School of Classical Studies, Rome. He edited and translated numerous Greek and Latin texts. (Enc. Am.) a 9:374
Faizuddin Hossein, Maulavi a judge who tried cases of looting in Jamalpur (Bengal) in 1907. (A) a 1:440-41
Falstaff Sir John Falstaff, the leading character in Shakespeare's comedy The Merry Wives of Windsor, also presented as one of the irregular humorists in King Henry the Fourth. Falstaff, perhaps the greatest
Page 113
and most famous comic character in all English literature, is an original creation of Shakespeare. (Shakes.; Enc. Br.) D 4:284 17:96 26:67
Far East region of the world comprising the eastern edge of Asia and various adjacent areas. Most definitions include Eastern Siberia, China, the Mongolian People's Republic, North and South Korea, and Japan, and may also include Southeast Asia, the Philippines, Indonesia, the Malay penin- sula and archipelago, and the Indian sub- continent. (Enc. Br.) Der: Far Eastern D 1:260-61, 814-15 9:97, 253, 283 14:237 15:367, 569, 644 24:1565
Farced a character - son of Almuene - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora. 0 7:561, 566-67, 569-73, 579, 581-84, 589, 593, 624, 659, 661, 706-09, 715, 717-18
Faridpur name of a district and its head- quarters in the Dacca division of Bengal (now in Bangladesh). (Enc. Br.) a 1:77, 357, 477-78 2:200 4:229
Fascist follower of Fascism, a political attitude and mass movement that acquired considerable power in Europe between World Wars I and II. Fascist parties emphasized nationalism, and authority centred in a leader. The word Fascism was first used in 1919 by Mussolini in Italy. The movement reached its zenith in the Germany of Hitler. (Enc. Br.) n 15:17, 20, 45, 189, 193, 196, 327, 376, 380, 390, 424, 449-50, 466, 472, 478-80, 485 22:152 26:40, 346
Fate See Fate(s)
Patehpur-Sikri a deserted ancient city, a rocky locality 23 miles west of Agra where the famous Muslim saint Shaikh Salim Chisti resided. In honour of the saint and with the purpose of residing there himself. Emperor Akbar converted Sikri into a royal town. Numerous magnificent buildings were constructed within a few years. Fatehpur- Sikri was Akbar's capital for about 15 years from 1570. It eventually was abandoned because of the lack of water. (D.I.H.) a 3:422 14:224
Fate(s) also called Moirai, three Greek goddesses of destiny, daughters of Zeus and Themis, who controlled the lives of men. They were Clotho, who spun the thread of life, Lachesis, who measured its length, and Atropos, who cut it. (Col. Enc.) 0 [Note:
"Fate" is often personified, or its initial letter capitalized, in Sri Aurobindo's writings. It has been indexed only when it refers expressly to one of these Greek goddesses.] 5:420, 426, 437, 463-64, 468, 510 16:283 XV: 2
Faustus The Tr'agical History of Doctor Faustus (1593) by Marlowe, based on a German legend, the tale of a learned doctor who surrendered his soul to the devil in exchange for youth, knowledge, and magical power. (Col. Enc.; Web.) a 3:186
Fear title of a poem (in free verse) by Evelyn Scott, published in the American journal Poetry and reproduced or quoted in the second number of Shama'a that was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. (A) a 17:321
The Feast of Youth a collection of poems (1918) by Harindranath Chattopadhyay. It was his first published book and showed great promise. The collection takes its name from its first poem. (A; S.F.F., p. 977) a 17:304-05
Federation (Hall) Ground an assembly hall and ground at 294 Upper Circular Road, Calcutta; it is a meeting ground and a symbol of the union between East and West Bengal. (Guide) a 1:795, 813, 820 4:198, 207 VI:123
Felix, Antonius (fl. AD 60), Roman pro- curator of Judea, Samaria, Galilee, and Peraea from c. 52 to c. 60. The apostle Paul addressed him at Caesarea on righteousness and the judgement to come, and was held in custody for two years. (Col. Enc.) 0 1:597
Fenian(ism) The Fenian movement was an Irish nationalist secret society active chiefly in Ireland, the United States, and Britain, especially during the 1860s. Its object was to promote revolution and overthrow English government in Ireland. The name derives from "fiann", "feinne", the legendary band of Irish warriors led by Finn MacCumhaill. (Enc.Br.;C.O.D.) a 1:351 2:399
Fenwick one of those members of the Labour Party in England who represented the old-world element (individualistic leaven) and were required in 1909 to quit the Labour organisation which had become predomi- natingly socialistic. (A) a 2:285
Ferdinand' probably Ferdinand II the Catholic, of Aragon (1452-1516), who united the Spanish kingdoms into a nation and began Spain's entry into the modem period of imperialistic expansion. (Enc. Br.) D 15:357
Page 114
Ferdinand2 a character - son of the king of Naples - in Shakespeare's comedy The Tempest. (Shakes.) a 4:64 26:335, 337
Ferguson' Robert Fergusson (1750-74), Scottish lyric poet, one of the leading figures of the 18th-century revival of Scots vernacular writing and the chief forerunner of Robert Burns. He wrote in English as well as in Scots, but his English verse has little value. (Enc. Br.) a u: n
Ferguson2 James Fergusson (1808-86), historian and archaeologist, an authority and author of many books on ancient Indian architecture. He was given the designation "Inspector of Public Buildings and Monuments". (Enc. Ind.) 1-1 14:47
Ferguson, J. D. a modern English artist. A portrait done by him formed the frontispiece of the second number of Shama 'a. (A) D 17:314, 316
Ferguson College an old and famous college of Poona (now spelled Pune) in the former province of Bombay (now in Maharashtra state). It was started with the object of giving a remodelled and national education to the young so as to fit them for the service of the country. On its staff worked scholars and leaders like Paranjpe and Gokhale. (A.H.I.; N.S.I.) a 1:479, 717 17:291, 350
Feringhee an Indian term for European, especially Indian-born Portuguese, but applied loosely to white men of every nation. (C.O.D.) a 1:219, 221
Ferrer, Senor (Francisco) Francisco Ferrer Guardia (1859-1909), Spanish educator and politician. He was executed for taking part in the violent uprising in Barcelona in 1909. His death was viewed by liberals everywhere as a judicial murder. (Col. Enc.) n 2:252 4:212, 215
Perrers, Norman a contemporary of Sri Aurobindo at Cambridge, whose recitation of a very Homeric line from Clough gave Sri Aurobindo the clue to the discovery of the true quantitative hexameter in English, the real swing (or "lilt") of the meter. Ferrers later practised as a barrister at the Straits Settlement. In 1908 when the Alipore Bomb Case was going on, Ferrers passed through Calcutta on his way to Singapore. He went to the High Court and was anxious to help Sri Aurobindo, but did not know how to do so. (Purani) a 11:28
Festus, Porcius (fl. AD 60), Roman procurator (60-62) of Judaea. He was just in his administration of the province. Finding
Paul in prison, he gave him a fair hearing before King Agrippa and then sent him to Rome. (Col. Enc.) a 1:597
Fichte, Johann Gottlieb (1762-1814), German philosopher, the first of the great transcendental Idealists. His philosophy had considerable influence in his day, but later he was remembered more as a patriot and a liberal. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 15:34
Fielding the author of a book on Burma. a 14:43
Fielding, Henry (1707-54), English novelist and playwright, author of Tom Jones and other well-known works. He and Samuel Richardson are considered the founders of the English novel. (Enc. Br.) a 3:87, 92-93
Fife former county on the east coast of Scotland. It lies principally in the lowlands, rising north toward the eastern extension of the Ochil Hills and south to the Lomand Hills. (Enc.Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Fifine at the Fair a poem (1872) by Robert Browning. (Ox. Comp.) a 9:542
Fiji Melanesian island group in the South Pacific, comprising 250 islands of which 80 are inhabited. Fiji was the most important British colony in the Pacific. (Col. Enc.) n 15:78 XVII: 26
Filipinos natives and citizens of the Philippines, a group of some 7, 000 islands and rocks off Southeast Asia, in the Malay Archipelago. (Col. Enc.) 0 1:260 2:216 15:508
Finland country (now a republic) in northern Europe, northeast of the Baltic Sea. (Col. Enc.) Der: Finn(s) 0 15:299, 512-14, 517-19
Finnish member of the Finno-Ugric group of the Uralic language family, spoken in Finland by more than five million persons. Finnish has a written tradition dating from the 16th century. It achieved official status in Finland, replacing Swedish, in 1809. The publication in 1835 of the Kalevala, a national epic poem based on Finnish folk- lore, aroused Finnish national feeling and in the century that followed Finnish gradually became the predominant language in govern- ment and education. (Enc. Br.) 0 26:234
Firdausi (c. 935-c. 1020/26), principal Persian poet, author of the Shah-namah (Book of Kings), the Persian national epic. Basing his poem mainly on an earlier prose
Page 115
version, Firdausi gave to the Shah-namah its final and enduring form. (Enc. Br.) a 14:285 26:233-34
Fire See Agni
Fire title of a poem by Harindranath Chattopadhyay, published in his collection, The Feast of Youth that was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. (A) a 17:306-07
Fish known as Pisces in Latin, and Mina in Hindu astronomy, a zodiacal constellation lying directly south of Andromeda. It is described as two fishes with one end of a long rope tied to the tail of each. Although Pisces is the 12th (last) sign of the zodiac, the vernal equinox which marks the beginning of the astronomical year is now located in this constellation. (Col. Enc.) a 17:257-58, 260
Fish Avatar the first of the ten incarnations of Vishnu. D 22:402
Fitton, Mary (baptised 1578, died c. 1647), an Englishwoman, considered by some to be the still mysterious "dark lady" of Shakes- peare's sonnets, though her authenticated biography does not suggest acquaintance with Shakespeare. (Enc. Br.) a 3:230
Fitzgerald' Lord Edward Fitz-Gerald (1763-98), Irish rebel renowned for his gallantry and courage; a leading conspirator behind the uprising of 1798 against British rule in Ireland. (Enc. Br.) n 1:413
Fitzgerald2 Edward FitzGerald (1809-83), English poet, translator of Omar Khayyam. His Rubaiyat (1859), one of the most popular of English poems, is actually a re-creation rather than a translation of the Persian poem, a "splendid misrepresentation of Omar Khayyam" (26: 254). (Col. Enc.; A) a 26:254 27:90
Flame See Agni
Flame-Wind a poem in a new metre by Sri Aurobindo, written in 1942. (A) D 26:239, 252, 258 29:785, 797
Flaminia a character in Sri Aurobindo's incomplete play The Maid in the Mill. Var:
Flmainia (a misprint) a 7:880
Flanders historic region in the southwest of the Low Countries (the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg), now divided between the French departement of Nord, the Belgian provinces of East Flanders and West Flanders, and the Dutch province of Zeeland. (Enc. Br.) n 15:348
Flandin a candidate for election to the French Chamber in 1920. (A) a 27:484
Flaubert, Gustave (1821-80), French novelist regarded as the pioneer of the Realist school of French literature. The Mother admired him as a perfectionist of his art: "He does not produce in much abundance but the little he writes is flawlessly done." (Enc. Br.; M.I., Jan.'79, p. 15) o 9:545
Flecker, James Eiroy (1884-1915), English poet and playwright. He was outstanding in his use of vivid images and varied verse forms to evoke atmosphere and feeling. (Enc. Br.) a 26:339, 341-43
Fleet Street centre of journalism in London, named after the Fleet River, now a sewer under Farrington Street. (Col. Enc.) a 1:365
Flemings one of the two predominant cultural and linguistic groups of modern Belgium (the other being the WALLOONS). The Flemings speak dialects of Dutch known as Flemish, and live mainly in the north and west. (Enc. Br.) a 15:417
Flemish (language) of FLANDERS. Flemish is the name given by speakers of English to the Netherlandic language of Belgium. (C.O.D.;Enc.Br.) n 15:417
Fletcher, Justice one of the two judges of Calcutta High Court who passed judgement in the Bloomfield Murder Case in 1907. Later, in November 1910, Justice Fletcher along with Justice Holmwood, in his separate but concurring judgement, set aside the conviction and ordered the release of Manmohan Ghose, printer of the Karma- yogin, who had been sentenced to 6 months' rigorous imprisonment by the Chief Presi- dency Magistrate for the publication of the "seditious" article "To My Countrymen" contributed to the paper by Sri Aurobindo on December 25, 1909. (A; Auro-II) 0 1:503-04, 512 XIX:38fn.
Florence' See Nightingale, Florence
Florence2 city and capital of Tuscany in central Italy, at the southern foot of the Apennines. (Col. Enc.) a 3:480
Florimel a name used by Sri Aurobindo in his poem Songs to Myrtilla. D 5:5
Ford, Henry (1863-1947), American industrialist who revolutionized factory production with his assembly-line methods. (Enc. Br.) n 24:1248
Forgael a character in Yeats' play The Shadowy Waters, n 9:533
Formosa an island in the Pacific Ocean, separated from the mainland of South China by the Formosa Strait. Japan acquired it in 1895 by a treaty after the First
Page 116
Sino- Japanese War. At the end of the hostilities in the Second World War (1945), Formosa was returned to China. Now known as Taiwan, it is the seat of the exiled "Nationalist" Chinese government. (Col. Enc.) a 4:157 15:293
Fort William a fort named after King William III, built during the years 1696-1715 to give protection to the city of Calcutta. The original site was later vacated and a new site, on the east bank of the River Hooghly, was chosen; here Fort William still stands. (D.I.H.; Guide) o 1:243
Fowler, Sir Henry Hartley (1830-1911), 1st Viscount Wolverhampton and an M.P. from 1880 to 1908. He became Secretary of State for India in 1894, under Lord Rosebery, and continued in this office up to June 1895. He was made a peer in 1908. D 1:849
Fowler, F. G. Frank George Fowler, who died in 1918 as a result of war service. He was brother of H. W. Fowler. See also the next two entries. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n 26:319-20
Fowler, H. W. Henry Watson Fowler (1858-1933), English lexicographer and commentator on English usage and style. He and his brother collaborated on the abridg- ment of the Oxford English Dictionary (in one volume, 1911), and also on The King's English (1906). (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) n 26:319-20
Fowler(s) H. W. Fowler and F. G. Fowler. The word "Fowler" has also been used for the abridgment of the Oxford English Dictionary (The Concise Oxford Dictionary) done by the Fowler brothers, o 26:321-22, 324-27
France a country (and republic) of western Europe, washed by the English Channel in the north, the Atlantic Ocean with the Bay of Biscay in the west, and the Mediterranean in the south. (Col. Enc.) Der: French (in senses other than the language);
Frenchmen; Frenchwoman
D 1:23, 30-32, 34, 37-39, 41-42, 48, 56, 261, 273, 349, 411, 435, 467, 507, 526, 604, 618.620, 648, 737, 758, 842, 898 2: 33-34, 48, 147, 164, 254, 342, 367, 376, 410 3:79, 96, 181, 224-25, 350, 355, 447, 454, 457, 459 4:152, 157, 167, 206, 212, 291, 306 5:173, 485, 505, 596 7:825, 827, 886, 1018, 1027, 1031 9:18, 46-47, 59-60, 62-63, 81, 87, 91, 100, 132, 134, 151, 192, 305, 405, 409, 414, 476, 480-81, 545, 560 10:553 12:474, 499 13:160 14:17, 57, 191, 214, 349, 367,
417 15:1, 25, 61, 264, 275, 288-91, 295, 297, 301, 303, 305, 310, 312, 316, 320-21, 324, 326-27, 348- 49, 353, 356-57, 360, 375, 380-81, 389, 410, 412, 415-17, 421-22, 428, 433, 444, 447, 467, 478, 480, 496, 500, 504-05, 510, 512, 515-17, 525, 617, 620, 640-42, 645, 651 16:82, 104, 322, 324 17:112, 117, 233, 244, 295, 298, 317-18, 377, 379-81, 384-85, 397, 403 22:185, 490 24:1570, 1577 25: 230, 360, 377 26:1, 3, 7, 17, 36, 38, 40, 66-67, 71, 394-95, 417-18 27:11, 280, 285, 424, 426, 442-43, 448-50, 453, 456-57, 466-67, 469, 471-72, 484, 500-01 I: 8, 16 II: 15 III: 27-28 IV: 169 VI: 196 X:186 XI11:50 XV: 61 XVII: 10, 42, 69
France, Anatole pseudonym of Jacques Anatole Thibault (1844-1924), French writer, considered in his day the ideal Frenchman of letters, a refined artist; an ironic, sceptical, and urbane critic, and a highly civilized man. He was awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize for literature. (Enc. Br.) a 9:545, 551, 557-59
Francis Joseph Francis Joseph I (1830-1916), emperor of Austria from 1848, and king of Hungary from 1867. He enjoyed one of the longest reigns of any monarch in European history and became the symbol of Austrian unity. His policies antagonised the Russian empire, and in spite of his attempts to pre- serve the peace, he issued an intransigent ultimatum to Serbia (July 1914) that led to World War I. (Enc. Br.) (From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Francis (ofAssisi), St. (11827-1226), one of the greatest of Christian saints, founder of a religious order called the Franciscans. (Col. Enc.) D 3:454 12:12.31 14:48, 66 20:365 22:417 26:137 IX:42-43
Franco Francisco Franco (Bahamonde) (1892-1975), Spanish general and dictator. He was the leader of the Nationalist forces that overthrew the Spanish Democratic Republic in the Civil War (1936-39), and was after 1936 head of the government of Spain. (Enc.Br.) n 15:478
Franco-Belgian concerning both France and Belgium, a 15:417
Franco-German war usually called the Franco-Prussian War (19 July 1870-10 May 1871). It marked the end of French hege- mony in continental Europe and the foundation of the Prussian-dominated German empire. The forty-year period between the Franco-German War and the beginning of World War I was marked by an extremely unstable peace between the major powers of Europe. (Enc.Br.) a 15:467
Page 117
Francois I Francis I of France (1494-1547), a monarch who in his person and actions combined the romantic ideal of the medieval knight-king and the refined humanism and art of the Renaissance. As king of France (1515-47), he profoundly altered the eco- nomic and social fabric of the realm as it passed from the Middle Ages toward the modern era. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Frangistan land of the FERINGHEES ; Europe, especially Portugal, o 7:574, 695
Frank (member of) a West Germanic people that entered the Roman provinces in AD 253, occupied the Netherlands and most of Gaul, and established themselves along the Rhine. (Web.N.C.D.) a 1:526 5:506, 596 15:290 III: 29
Frankenstein the hero of the book Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus (1818), a horror tale by Mary Wollstonecroft Shelley. Frankenstein is a young Swiss stu- dent who creates a monster which ultimately destroys him. The name is often inaccurately used for the monster itself, or for any inven- tion or creation which gets out of control or destroys its originator. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 1:51, 359 2:245 3:63
Fraser (3:180) a misspelling of FRAZER.
Fraser, Sir Andrew Sir Andrew Henderson Leith Fraser (1848-1919), an Englishman in the Indian Civil Service from 1871. He was Lieutenant Governor of Bengal from November 1903 to November 1908. Early in 1903 Fraser suggested the transfer of Dacca and Mymensingh districts and Chittagong division from Bengal to Assam. This is thought to be "the real genesis of the partition of Bengal" which took place in 1905. (In fact, Fraser had proposed a partition even earlier, in February 1901, as Chief Commissioner of Central Provinces, in which he hinted at the severance of Orissa from Bengal and its tagging on to Central Provinces.) The fury of the people against him expressed itself in the form of two attempts on his life, on 6 December 1907, when a bomb was thrown at his train, and on 7 November 1908, when he was made the target of an attack. (I.F.F.; Purani; H.F.M.I.) a 1:258, 400, 408, 829 2:356 4:294 11:1
Frazer Robert Watson Frazer (1854-1921), orientalist, teacher and librarian in the Madras Civil Service from 1877 to 1921. He is author of A Literary History of India
(1898). (Enc.Ind.) a 3:180 ("Fraser" is a misspelling) 27:354
Free Hindustan a monthly journal published and managed by Tarak Nath Das. It was brought out from America, first appearing in April 1908. The first regular Indian propa- ganda sheet in the U.S.A., it won American, particularly Irish-American, sympathy and support. It was an imitation of the Indian Sociologist in general get-up and also in style, but was conducted with much less ability. The journal stopped publication in 1910. (P.T.I. ;S.F.F.) a 2:385
French for senses other than the language, see France
French (language) the official language of France's 48 million inhabitants, one of the two official languages of Belgium, and one of the three official languages of Switzerland. With French-speaking peoples in many parts of the world, in Canada (Quebec and Ontario) and in countries belonging to the French Community, it may have a total of 80 million speakers. (Pears) a l: 195 3:79, 181 5:342 7:1022 9:19, 44, 46, 49, 58, 60-61, 87, 100, 106, 140, 147-48, 152, 181, 183, 196, 402, 405, 408-09, 421, 433, 454, 461-62, 467, 475, 479-81, 529-31, 545, 551 10:72, 571 14:191, 257 15:491 16:336 17:296, 397 23:703 24:1284, 1577, 1629 25:115, 279, 309, 368, 389, 400, 403 26:9, 67, 312-13, 320-21, 325, 327-28, 342-43, 366-67, 376 27:89, 456 29:780-81 1:16 11:15, 87 111:84-85 X:186 XIV: 163 XVII: 66, 73
French Academy Academic Francaise, French literary academy established in 1634 and incorporated in 1635, and existing, except for an interruption during the era of the French Revolution, to the present day. Its membership is limited to forty and has included most of the great names of French literature. Among the numerous European literary academies, it has consistently retained the highest prestige over the longest period of time. (Enc. Br.) D 1:32
French Revolution a European political upheaval that began in France in 1789 and continued until 1815. Based on liberal, democratic, and nationalist principles, it is considered the first of modern revolutions. By a series of wars, French rule was ex- tended throughout most of Europe and with it spread its liberal ideas, including popular sovereignty and civil equality. (Enc. Br.) Der: French Revolutionists n l: 648, 758, 898 2:254, 410 3:350, 355, 454 4:151, 306
Page 118
9:91 12:474, 499 13:160 15:1, 324, 412, 416, 422, 428, 478, 510, 515-17, 525, 642 16:322, 324 17:112, 117, 233, 377-81, 385 27:285 VI: 196 VIII: 129
Freud, Sigmund (1856-1939), founder of psycho-analysis. His theories of mind had immense influence upon modern thought. (Enc. Br.; Pears) n 24:1606
Freya (sometimes spelled Freyja) in Norse mythology, the goddess of love and beauty, sister of Frey. (Web.) a 6:478, 502, 521, 535, 556 7: 887
Friar Baltasar a proposed character - a pedagogue - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. n 7: 821
Friend of India a journal started by the Serampore missionaries in 1818. It struck a Christian and reforming note. Later on it was incorporated with the Statesman of Calcutta, a paper opposed to the Nationalists. Sri Aurobindo often used the name "Friend of India" in ironic reference to the Statesman. (D.I.H.;A) a 1:172, 346-47, 354, 360-61, 435-36, 453, 543, 547, 550, 552, 561-63
Frisian of Friesland, the Frisian Islands, their people, or their language. The Frisian Islands are a chain of islands in the North Sea off the coast of the Netherlands and Germany. Although they form a single physical feature, it is customary to subdivide them into the West, East, and North Frisian Islands. (Web.; Enc. Br.) n m:26
Fiihrer German word for leader; it was under this title that Adolf Hitler ruled Nazi Germany. (Enc. Br.) a 15:193, 197, 356, 378, 506
Puller, Sir Bampfylde Sir Joseph Bampfylde Fuller (1854-1935), in I.C.S. from 1875;
Chief Commissioner of Assam (1902-05); in October 1905, appointed the first lieutenant governor of the newly created province of East Bengal and Assam. Against the anti- partition agitation, he let loose unbridled coercion in East Bengal, humiliating and insulting respected leaders, ruthlessly punishing teachers and students. He tried to rouse the Muslims against the movement. Loud demands were therefore made for his removal, and ultimately he resigned on 20 August 1906. He is the author of Studies of Indian Life and Sentiment (1910) and Empire of India (1913). (A; H.F.M.I.) Der: Fullerian; Fullerism D 1:88, 99, 131-33, 135-36, 148, 150, 155, 158,
164, 213, 218, 250, 269, 279, 322, 327, 373, 402, 482, 597-98, 600, 702 27:6-8, 22, 26 II: 1-3
Furies; Fury Roman name for the ERINNYES of Greek mythology. (M.I.) D 5:404-05, 417, 420, 430, 435-36, 453, 456-57, 466, 477 6:340, 461 8:201 16:338, 356-57 28:85, 96 29:480, 591
The Future Poetry title of a book by Sri Aurobindo, originally published as a series of articles in Arya between December 1917 and July 1920. The Future Poetry first came out in book-form in 1953. (I & G) a 9:303, 339, 354, 369, 542 26:276, 297, 332, 371
G
Gabriel' (Hebrew, "man of God"), an archangel prominent in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; depicted in the Bible and the Koran as God's messenger. In Christian art he is sometimes represented as a human figure with long hair and multicolored wings and often holding a sceptre or a lily. (Enc. Br.) a 1:435 7:639, 675, 697 X:113
Gabriel2 a proposed character - the Angel of Obeisance - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Birth of Sin. a 7:901
Gades the oldest extant urban settlement in Spain, on a promontory south of the Baetis (Guadalquivir) estuary near the Pillars of Hercules (Strait of Gibraltar). It was a one- time rival of Phoenicia, and its wealth was derived from trade. The Romans called it Gades; its modern name is Cadiz. (M.I.) n 5:420, 422, 481, 505 6:380
Gadgil, M(ahadev) Balwant one of the persons who received Sri Aurobindo at Nasik Road station on 24 January 1908. (A) n 1:1
Gaebele, Jean Henri Frederic (1860-1936), Mayor of Pondicherry (1899 and 1908-28) and the most important figure, almost a dictator, for more than 25 years up to c. 1929. He was president of the Chamber of Commerce, the Chamber of Agriculture, Ie Conseil General, and the head of many other organizations; also a senator or member of the Upper House of France. In the 1914 election to the French Chamber, he was an active and strong supporter of BLUYSEN. In 1918 Gaebele opposed the British Government's demand for the extradition of Sri Aurobindo. Gaebele had come from
Page 119
France to Pondicherry in 1884 and died here
in 1936. (A;Gaz.P.)
1-1 27: 442, 444-45, 447, 449-50
Gaebele, Madame Mme Yvonne Robert Gaebele (1888-1974?), wife of Robert Gaebele, Henri's son. She was an accomplished and cultured French lady belong- ing to an established family that had a large hand in the making of Pondicherry. She was strongly attracted to the Mother and Sri Aurobindo, and was a frequent visitor to the Ashram. She used to teach French to the inmates. The lady was given a new name "Suvrata" by the Mother. She is the author of several books including Histoire de Pondichery, published in 1960. At that time she was Librarian and Archivist of Pondicherry, president of the Commission for Historical Monuments, president of the History Society, laureate of the French Academy, and knight of the Legion of Honour. Mme Gaebele left for France in 1972 and died there probably in 1974. (B. G.; Histoire de Pondichery) a VII: 83 XII: 156
Gaekwar (of Baroda) See Sayaj irao Gaekwar. (Gaekwar was the name of an Indian ruling family and the title of its head whose capital was at Baroda in Gujarat state. The Gaekwars were a leading power in the 18th-century Maratha Confederacy.) (Enc. Br.) Der: Gaekwari (of or belonging to the Gaekwar, XV: 71) D [Indexed with Sayajirao Gaekwar]
Gaelic the Celtic languages spoken in Ireland and Highland Scotland. Generally the form spoken in Ireland is known as Irish, and that in Scotland as Scottish or Scottish Gaelic. Gaelic may also be used to include Manx. Erse is sometimes used as a synonym for Gaelic. (Col. Enc.) a 15:290, 299, 306, 343, 390, 494 26: 290
Galava a character - a disciple of Bharat, preceptor of the arts in heaven - in the play Vikramorvasie. 0 7:909, 951-52
Galen (129-c. 199), physician and writer born of Greek parents. He resided chiefly in Rome from c. 162. Galen founded experi- mental physiology and was one of the most distinguished physicians of antiquity. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a 17:127
Galert in Sri Aurobindo's poem The Vigil of Thaliard, a brother of Thaliard. (A) 0 5:180
Galilean a native or resident of Galilee in northern Palestine.
The name is commonly applied to Jesus (and his disciples). (Enc. Am.) a 1:5, 714
Galileo Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), great Italian astronomer, mathematician, and physicist, considered a founder of the experimental method. He was tried by the Inquisition and imprisoned for an indefinite period for his beliefs and writings that held the sun to be the central body and the earth a moving body revolving with the other planets around it. He recanted, however, and was allowed to live in seclusion near Florence. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n 12:6 14:67 15:165 16: 82, 101 17:193
Gallic of the Gauls, Gaulish. (C.O.D.) Der: Gallicised a 3:253 9:87 14:219 15: 290, 344. 417
Gallican of the ancient church of Gaul or France; (an adherent) of the school of French Roman Catholics following BOSSUET and claiming partial autonomy. The Galli- cans held that the French monarch had special rights in the Roman Catholic Church in France. (C.O.D.; Col. Enc.) a 15:353
Gallic, Junius Annaeus (c. 5 BC-AD 65), Roman official, a man of easy-going temperament, who dismissed the charges brought by the Jews against the apostle Paul. The term has come to mean any person, especially official, refusing to meddle outside his province. (Enc. Br.; C.O.D.) 0 26:152
Gallipoli a city in European Turkey, a port at the eastern end of the Dardenelles near the neck of the Gallipoli peninsula. (Enc. Br.) a XXII: 133
Gallo-Lombard "Gallo" is a combination- form meaning 'French'. The Lombards were an ancient Germanic people who were settled along the lower Elbe in the 1st century AD. In 568 they invaded northern Italy and established a kingdom there. (C.O.D.; Col. Enc.) a 1:525
Ganadasa a character - a minister of acting, drama and opera, retained by Queen Dharinie - in Mdlavikagnimitram, a play by Kalidasa, translated by Sri Aurobindo under the title Malavica and the King. Var:
Gano- dasa a 8:135, 138, 141-43, 147-54 X:116, 118, 121-23, 127-30, 132-39
Ganapati; Ganesh(a) in Hindu religion. Lord of the Ganas or troops of inferior deities, especially those attendant upon Shiva. He is a son of Shiva and Parvati and is considered
Page 120
the god of wisdom and a remover of obstacles; hence he is invariably invoked at the beginning of important undertakings. Ganesh is represented as a short fat figure having the head of an elephant and a protuberant belly, and riding on a rat. He is the legendary scribe who wrote down the Mahabharata from Vyasa's dictation. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) a 2:147 3:149 8:345 12:478 14:197 17:350 22: 392-93
Gandeva; Gandeve See Gandiv(a)
Gandhamadan in Hindu mythology, a mountain and forest in Ilavrta, the central region of the world which contains Mount Meru. Gandhamadan forms the division between Ilavrta and Bhadrasva, to the east of Meru. The forest of Gandhamadan is renowned for its fragrance. (Dow.) Var:
Gundhamadan a 7:974.988 29:419
Gandhara(s) Gandhara was an ancient country of the Indus Valley, embracing the modern Rawalpindi and Peshawar districts of Pakistan; its people were known as the Gandharas. The famous city ofTaxila was in Gandhara. After its conquest by Alexander the Great the region became a meeting place of Eastern and Western cultures and gave birth to a school of art and sculpture that bears its name. (D.I.H.) Der:
Gandharan d 3:191, 193 14:205-06, 232, 373 17:276. 303
Gandharan Buddha The Gandhara school of art drew upon the anthropomorphic tradi- tion of Roman religion and represented the Buddha with a youthful Apollo-like face, dressed in garments resembling those seen on Roman imperial statues. The Gandhara depiction of the seated Buddha was less successful. The stupa at Gandhara is dis- tinctive for its more elaborate ornamenta- tion. (Enc. Br.) n 14:206, 232
Gandhari in the Mahabharata, princess of Gandhara, wife of Dhritarashtra and mother of his hundred sons received as a boon from Vyasa. Her husband was blind, so she always wore a bandage over her eyes to be like him. (Dow.) n 3:192
Gandharva(s) in the Veda, Lord of the hosts of delight; in later mythology, the Gandharvas are musicians of heaven, "beautiful, brave and melodious beings, the artists, musicians, poets and shining warriors of heaven" (27:159).
Gandharvas, Yakshas and Kinnaras are a particular class of beings "whose unifying characteristic is material ease, prosperity and a beautiful, happy and undisturbed self-indulgence" (12: 409). (A) Var: Gundharva(s) a 3:146 5:212-13, 226, 253 6:230.265, 305 7:909, 922-23 8:343 10:340, 346 12: 263, 399.404, 407.409-10, 532 13:349 22:396 27: 152, 159 28:234 29:677 VI: 183. 186. 191-93 IX: 10
Gandharvi1 in Hindu mythology, a female musician that sings heavenward. (A) D 5:543
Gandharvi2 in the Veda, a personified power that holds the rays of the Sun of Truth. / D 11:392.415
Gandhi, (Mahatma) Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948), better known as Mahatma Gandhi from 1914-15, when he returned to India after a stay of 20 years in South Africa, where he and his creed of non-violent civil disobedience had achieved their first great success. In India, because of his dedicated service to the masses in the cause of their political emancipation, the promotion of Hindu-Muslim unity, his all-out effort for village uplift and removal of untouchability, he came to be known as the "Father of the Indian Nation". (D.I.H.) DerGandhian a 4:224 9:555 17:362 22:22, 140, 413, 486-87, 490 23:556 26:35, 40-41, 47, 380, 406, 438 27:463, 479, 485, 490, 499 29:757 V: 100-01 VII: 4, 16 XVII: 69
Gandiv(a) name of the bow of Arjuna, said to have been given to him by the god Agni along with two inexhaustible quivers. (Dow.) Var: Gandeva; Gandeve D 1:67 4:71, 73, 78, 86, 89 5:320 8:31.78 13:54 VII: 49. 52
Ganen Maharaj Ganen Tagore (18847-1941), a Bengali associated with the Ramakrishna Mission, which he first came in contact with in his boyhood. Later he worked in the Mission's publication department and in the office of Udbodhan. A few years before his death he resigned from the Mission. In 1909-10 Ganen Maharaj frequently visited the Karmayogin premises in Calcutta and acted as the link with Sister Nivedita. (S.B.C.; Remini.) Var: Gonen Maharaj D 26: 56, 70 XVI: 193
Ganesh(a) See Ganapati
Ganga the most sacred river of the Hindus, bearing several names including Bhagirathie and Jahnavie. It rises in the Himalayas and after flowing for over 1500 miles falls into the Bay of Bengal. The Puranas represent the Ganga as issuing from the toe of Vishnu, and as having been brought down from
Page 121
heaven by the austerites of King BHAGI- RATHA. Shiva, to save the earth from the shock of her fall, caught the river on his brow and checked its course with his matted locks. The river descended from Shiva's brow in several streams. Personified as a goddess, Ganga is the eldest daughter of Himvat (see Himalaya) and Mena. She became the wife of King Santanu and bore a son, Bhishma.
(D I H Dow.) Var Gonga: Gange I 1:466, 557, 829, 867, 2:187, 3:105, 121, 193, 267, 278, 427-28.460. 5:28, 55, 196, 199-202, 204, 209-10, 217, 223-24, 246, 248, 256, 405-06, 489. 6:211, 347 7:812, 917, 935, 941, 955, 974, 990, 1008. 8:32, 69, 71, 102, 105, 107-08, 111, 115, 119-20, 123, 165 9:145, 380 10:89, 97 13:282, 349 14:313 16:86, 284, 430 17:257 26:36, 56, 70, 266, 271 27:119, 159 I:20-23, 29 II:24-25, 69 VII:30 VIII:188 ix:1, 2 X:149, 159 XVI:146 XVII:12
Ganga Math See Ganganath
Ganganath name of a temple situated on a small hill on the bank of the Narmada, about three and a half miles from Chandod. Here Yogi Brahmananda stayed for many years until his death around 1906. (A; A & R) 26:18, 50 (misspelled as Ganga Math) Gangaprasad a Congress leader of U.P., belonging to the Moderate party, who attended the Convention held at Lahore in 1909. (A) n 4:238
Gangaprasad Panalal one of the persons who received Sri Aurobindo at Nasik Road station on 24 January 1908. (A) 1:1
Ganges the former name, in English, of the River Ganga. Official during British days, the use of this Anglicisation has not altogether died out. It is probably a corrupt version of the Hindi expression Gangaji - the honorific of Ganga - as heard, pronounced, and transliterated by the British. D [Indexed with Ganga]
Gangoly, 0. C. Ordhendra Cumar Gangoly (1881-1974). Though an attorney by pro- fession, his main interests were art and music from his very childhood. He became secretary of the Indian Society of Oriental Arts, and edited the Society's journal Rupam. In 1943 he was appointed "Vageshwari" professor in Calcutta University. Mr. Gangoly was honoured by several institutions like the Fine Arts Academy and the Asiatic Society. He is the author of several books on Indian art, music and sculpture, including South Indian Bronzes, which was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo. (S.B.C.) 14:232 17:274, 277-79, 300
Ganodasa See Ganadasa
Ganpatrao, Maharaja a member of the GAHKWAR family, ruler of Baroda from 1847 to 1856.
(D.I.H.) 27:114 Gardas a character - a villager or townsman - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. 6:3, 115, 117, 120-21, 144, 170 The Garden of Proserpine one of Swinburne's early lyrical poems, which ranks among his best works. (A) 26:265
Garden Reach a locality in Kidderpur, Calcutta. 1:243
Garett sub-divisional officer of Kaithal in the former province of Punjab who heard the Kaul Boycott case in 1909. (A) a 2:180-82
Gargi name of a woman sage, daughter of Vachaknu. Her dialogues with the sage Yajnavalkya are given in the sixth and eighth brahmanas of the third chapter of the Bri- hadaranyaka Vpanishad. (Up. K., pp. 479, 481) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Gargya "descendant of Garga", the patronymic of Balaki, who is mentioned in the second vamsa (list of teachers) in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. (V. Index-1) 12:295, 305
Garibaldi, Giuseppe (1807-82), Italian patriot and soldier, a leading figure in the Risorgimento, the period (1815-70) of Italian national unification. (Col. Enc.) 1:335, 379, 499, 876 3:266-67, 480-82 12:484 17:379 X: 148-49
Garlick a government official of Dinaj pur (Bengal) who justified the caning of witnesses and accused by the police as a necessary "method of examination". (A) D 2:137
Garooda See Garuda
Garos one of the western tribes of the Bodo group of peoples speaking Tibeto-Burman languages, in the northwest Indian state of Assam and in Bangladesh. (Enc. Br.) IX: 1, 2
Garth, Mr. probably, a son of Sir Richard Garth, and a member of the Anglo-Indian Defence Association. (A) 1:330-32
Garth, Sir Richard (1820-1903), Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court. (Enc. Ind.; A) Q 1:330
Garuda in Hindu mythology, the bird or eagle, half-man half-bird, on which Vishnu rides. There is a lasting enmity between Garuda and the Nagas (serpents). (Dow.)
Page 122
Var: Garoodaa 6:214 13:349 17:301 27:326
Gath ancient Philistine city of Palestine, on the borders of Judah. It was the home of the biblical giant Goliath, and a place of refuge for David in his outlaw years. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 1:6
Gathina Vishwamitra Rishi Vishwamitra, who, according to some authorities, was soi of Gathin.5eeVis(h)wamitra. all: 105, 147
Gathin Kaushika a Vedic Rishi, son of Kusika, and, according to some scholars, the father of Vishwamitra. (V. Index) D 11:141
Gauda a country or its people, referred to in early Sanskrit literature including some of the Puranas. The country seems to have coincided with the modern Murshidabad district of West Bengal. The name Gauda was also used, in a wider sense, for the western and northwestern parts of Bengal, as distinct from Vanga, which comprised eastern and central Bengal (modern Bangladesh). (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) 14:236 17:301
Gaudapada (fl. c. 7 cent.), a scholar who wrote commentaries on several Upanishads and on the Sdhkhyakdrikd. 0 12:427-28 17:291 IV: 162 XVI: 183
Gaul ancient designation for the land south and west of the Rhine, west of the Alps and north of the Pyrenees, i.e. what is presently France, Belgium, West Germany, and northern Italy. An inhabitant of this ancient region was also called a Gaul. (Col. Enc.; Enc.Br.) D 1:34, 38, 237 3:481 6:543 7:885 10:24 15:296, 318, 342-43, 346, 348, 390 17:180 III: 27
Gaupayanas or Laupayanas four Rishis, sons or descendants of Gopa, who were the authors of four remarkable hymns in the Rig-veda. (Dow.) a n:236
Gauranga Gauranga, "the brilliantly white-bodied one", an epithet or name of CHAITANYA. 0 [Indexed with Chaitanya]
Gauri 1. a name of the consort of Shiva. See Parvati. 2. a name of the goddess connected by Sri Aurobindo at one place (XX: 137) with Maheshwari. [Indexed with Parvati]
Gauripore a small town of Mymensingh district, Bengal (now in Bangladesh). Brajendra Kishore Roy Chowdhury, one of the wealthiest zamindars of East Bengal, belonged to this place. Var: Gauripur 1:156, 302 2:70 27:40
Gautama a descendant of Gotama. Many sages and Rishis, including Nodha, Vamadeva arid Haridrumata, bear this patronymic. Several Gautamas are mentioned in the list of teachers in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. In the Katha Upanishad the term has been used for Nachiketas' father Vaja- shravasa and for Nachiketas himself. In the Rig-veda, however, the descendants of Gotama are referred to as Gotamas. (M.W.) D 12:239, 257, 259 27:156, 158 VI: 157, 159 VIII: 180-81. 183 IX: 19
Gautama2 a character - the Brahmin buffoon, companion of King Agnimitra - in Sri Aurobindo's Malavica and the King, a translation of part ofKalidasa's play Malavikagnimitram. 3:287-88 8:135, 145, 149-50, 152-54 X: 116, 125-27, 129-31, 133-36, 138, 140, 174-75
Gautama Buddha See Buddha
Gavis(h)thira a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri; the name means literally "steadfast in the Light". (V. Index; A) 10:363 11:11, 201, 433
Gawain a hero of Arthurian legend and romance. A nephew and loyal supporter of King Arthur, Gawain appeared in the earliest Arthurian literature as a model of knightly perfection, against whom all other knights were measured. (Enc. Br.) 5:181
Gay, John (1685-1732), poet and dramatist, chiefly famous as the author of The Beggar's Opera, a skilful blend of literary, political, social, and musical satire. Highly regarded throughout the 18th century, in the 19th Gay was known principally as the author of a series of moral Fables. By the mid-20th century he was again valued as a poet of varied and considerable achievement. (Enc.Br.;Enc.W.B.) 1:11 11:13
Gaya1 Gaya, a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. a 11:219
Gaya2 Gaya, administrative headquarters of Gaya district in Bihar. Gaya is one of the seven sacred cities of the Hindus, who offer oblations to their forefathers at a particular spot in this city. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) D 2:255
Gayakawad Wada Tilak's premises in Poona (Maharashtra state). (A) D 27:62
Gayatri 1. name of a Vedic metre. 2. a most sacred verse (III.62.10) of the Rig-veda addressed to the Sun as Savitri, the generator. This verse has for thousands of years
Page 123
been repeated by pious Hindus in their daily meditation. (Dow.;A) 4:23 10:5, 319, 428 11:14, 42, 439, 468 13: 350 23: 747 26:513 (Sri Aurobindo's Gayatri) XV.-21.50
Gaza one of the chief ancient cities of the Philistines in southwestern Palestine near the Mediterranean. It is the largest city of the present Gaza Strip. (Col. Enc.) 6:8, 99, 128
Geddes, Professor Sir Patric Geddes (1854- 1932), Scottish biologist and sociologist, distinguished especially in town planning. He held professorships at Edinburgh, London, Aberdeen, St. Andrews, and Bombay. In 1932 he was knighted for his service to education. (Col. Enc.) 14:221
Geh(e)lote a clan of Rajputs of the solar race. It has two branches: Sisodia to which Pratap belonged, and Aheri. (H.S.S.) 7:739, 811
Gemini or the Twins, a constellation of the zodiac lying between Cancer and Taurus. The brightest stars in the constellation are Castor and Pollux. In astrology, Gemini is the third sign of the zodiac. (Enc. Br.) XVII: 46-47
Genesis the first book of the Old Testament. It narrates the primeval history of the world and the patriarchal history of the Israelite people. (Enc.Br.) 10:449 18:51
Geneva a canton (state of the Swiss Confederation) and the capital of this canton, at the southwest tip of the Lake of Geneva, Switzerland. Geneva was the former headquarters of the League of Nations. (Col. Enc.; Pears) 2:371, 385 X: 186
George, King George V; George Frederick Ernest Albert (1865-1936), King of Great Britain and Ireland (1910-36). After his coronation (1911) he visited India and held a durbar at Delhi. (Col. Enc.) 26:378
George, St. (fl. 4th cent.?), patron saint of England and one of the great saints of the Eastern Church. He was perhaps a soldier in the Byzantine imperial army who died for the faith in Asia Minor. In old plays and in art St. George is represented as the slayer of the dragon. (Col. Enc.) a i:903 14:203
George, the third George William Frederick (1738-1820), King of Great Britain and Ireland (1760-1820). His reign marked one of the most brilliant periods in British history, but he himself was a controversial and often unpopular figure. (Enc.Br.) 2:123
Georgia an ancient and medieval kingdom south of the Caucasus and bordering on the Black Sea. It now forms a constituent republic of the U.S.S.R., the Georgia Soviet Socialist Republic. (Web. N.C.D.) a 15:647
Georgian in poetry, work of an assortment of British poets writing in the first quarter of the 20th century, so called from Georgian Poetry, an anthology of contemporary verse. This was first published in 1912 (at the beginning of the reign of George V); five volumes in all appeared between 1912 and 1922. With a few exceptions, the Georgians were minor poets writing conventional lyric verse of late Romantic character. (Enc. Br.; H.L.) 9:346-47
Georgics didactic poem (composed 36-29 Be) of 2, 188 hexameter lines in four books by the Latin poet Virgil, in which he deals with all aspects of husbandry and touchingly reveals his own love of the land. (Enc.Br.) a 9:32
Gerald (Curran), Sir a character - father of Patrick Curran - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Devil's Mastiff", 7:1048-49
German (language) one of the two chief representatives of the Germanic group of languages (the other being English), spoken by over 75 million people in East and West Germany, by 7 million in Austria and by 4 million in Switzerland. In addition, there are German-speaking peoples in Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland, and other smaller areas of Europe, bringing the total to between 95 and 100 million. The standard dialect. High German, is distinct from the Low German or colloquial dialects spoken in the lowlands of northern Germany. (Pears) 3:102.181 9:192, 476 10:558, 560-61 11:506 14:71.262 15:299, 410 17:294, 296 26:1, 3, 327 27:89 1:7 XIV: 123, 130 XVII: 66, 73
Germanicus Germanicus Caesar (15 BC-AD 19), Roman general, nephew and adopted son of Emperor Tiberius (AD 14-37). He was a successful and immensely popular general. (Col. Enc.) 3:70.
Germany once the largest country of Central Europe, the German Commonwealth or Empire. After World War II, two separate states were created, West Germany (or the Federal Republic of Germany) and East Germany (or the German Democratic Republic). The adjective Germanic means "of the Germans" (chiefly historical), of the Teutonic race or any Teutonic people. (Col. Enc.;C.O.D.) Der: German (in senses other than the language);
Page 124
Germanic; Germanised; Germanism 1:48, 56, 349, 467. 526, 737, 757, 829. 842 2: 32, 34, 261, 306 3:79, 87, 142, 180-81, 375 4:156-57, 167, 212 5:26 7:1013-14, 1024 9:42, 44, 49, 91, 96, 112, 134, 192, 476 10:24, 551 12:486, 498, 500, 508 14:17, 71.177, 262, 270, 400.417 15: 1-2, 17-18, 20. 25, 33-36, 38. 41-46, 50, 196-97, 224, 264, 275, 285-91, 293-94, 297-301, 312, 316, 319-20, 322, 327-29, 331, 347-50, 356-57, 367, 373, 375-76, 378, 381, 383, 410-11. 416-17, 420, 422, 445, 455-57, 467, 469, 473, 478-79, 487-88. 497, 500-01, 503-04, 506, 512-15, 523, 528, 536, 549, 564, 578, 616-17, 624-25, 640, 642. 653 16:200, 214, 310, 312 17:83, 180, 192-93.244, 317-18, 386 22:159, 340 24:1659 26:31, 39, 393, 396, 399 27:11, 81, 181, 466, 469, 475 1:7, 31 III: 12, 27 IV: 161 VIII: 125, 129 XIV: 164 XV: 5 XVI: 137. 180-82 XVII: 42 XX: 118 XXI: 94 XXII: 126
Geronimo See Jeronimo
Gethsemane olive grove or garden near the foot of the Mt. of Olives, east of Jerusalem;
it was the scene of the agony and betrayal of Jesus Christ. (Col. Enc.) n 29:445 1:52
Ghadge, Tarabai a lady, perhaps in the service of Baroda State, who had been taking carriage allowance without keeping any carriage. The Maharaja came to know of this in 1903, and fined the officers concerned. (A) o iv: 193
Ghaneem in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora, a companion of Nureddene. (A) n 7:630, 643, 645
Ghatothkach in the Mahabharata, a son of Bhima by the Rakshasi Hidimba. In the great battle he was killed by Kama, who used the fatal lance he had obtained from Indra to kill Arjuna, but had to hurl at Ghatotkaca. (Dow.) n 1:364
Ghora an Indian sage, descendant of Angiras, mentioned as a teacher in the Kausitaki Brdhmana and in the Chandogya Upanishad, where he is the teacher of Krishna, son of Devaki. (V. Index) n 10:169 14:280 20:48 VI:156 XIV:133
Ghosal, Sarala popularly known as Sarala Devi (18737-1945), daughter of Janaki Nath Ghosal of Calcutta, an old leader of the Congress. About the year 1897 she took the lead in organising a physical training movement in Bengal similar to the one she had seen in Maharashtra. She set up a gym- nasium and appointed a famous gymnast of Goa to train the members in sword and
Ghose, A. K. Aswini Kumar Ghose (c. 1880- ? ) of Dacca, one of the leaders of the Indian labour movement, especially the Railway Union. Unaided by the power of" oratory, he nonetheless became the spokes- man of thousands of men by honest work and organising power. - (A; P.T.I.) D 1:142-43, 148, 151)
Ghose, Aravind A. (or Arvind, or Aravinda, or Arvindo, or Aurobindo) "Aravinda" is the transliteration of a Sanskrit word meaning "lotus". In Bengali "v" becomes "b" and the "a"s are flattened in the direction of "o". Hence the spelling "Aurobindo" was not adopted by Sri Aurobindo until he settled in Bengal in 1906. Before that he had tried out three or four different spellings. D [All indexed under Sri Aurohindo]
Ghose, Aurobindo Ackroyd name given to Sri Aurobindo by his father. (Annette Akroyd was the maiden name of an English- woman who was a friend of his father and was probably present at the ceremony of naming the child.) The first record of this name is in an English school document of 1884, and there the middle name is spelled "Ackroyd". Sri Aurobindo apparently never knew how the lady spelled her name; indeed he probably knew little or nothing about her throughout his life. He dropped this middle name before he left England and never used it again. Until 1906, however, he signed his name Aravind A. Ghose. (Purani, p.7) n 26:2
Ghose, Barindra Kumar (1880-1959), Sri Aurobindo's younger brother (intimately called BARI), born at Croydon, England. He passed the entrance examination from Deoghar School and First Year Arts from Dacca University. Around 1902 he went to stay with Sri Aurobindo at Baroda. Here he became filled with the urge to prepare the country for a revolutionary movement for freedom from British subjection. The scheme of BHAWANI MANDIR was mainly his idea, and, though it did not materialize, Barindra tried to establish something like it on a small
scale in Manicktolla Gardens near Calcutta. He secretly recruited boys for the work and trained them there. To mobilize public opinion and support, he earlier had started a Bengali daily, Yugantar. In 1908 the police came to know of his activities, and in May he and many others were arrested and tried in the case known as the Manicktolla Conspiracy Case or Alipore Bomb Case. Barindra, with other members of the group, made a full confession soon after his arrest. Barindra was awarded the death sentence by the Sessions Judge but the Appellate Court reduced the sentence to imprisonment for life. He was released from the Andamans in 1920. In the middle of the same year he visited Sri Aurobindo at Pondicherry, and came again in 1923 to stay in the Ashram. After about six years, however, Barindra left the Ashram. (Enc. Ind.; P.T.I.; A.B.T.; Purani) n 1:59 4: pre., 262.272, 293-94, 320 26: 14, 16, 18, 20, 24, 42, 51, 65.67, 69, 435-38 27:421, 488-89, 492-94 11:85 IV: 198 V:100 VII: 1, 11, 23 XVII: 68 Ghose, Biren Birendranath Ghose, a relation of Mrinalini's, who joined Barin's group at the Manicktolla Garden. He was among those who were later arrested. Biren was, however, acquitted at the Sessions Court. (Remini.; A& R, IX; 89-90; A.B.T.) a 26:57, 63
Page 125
Ghose, Hemendra Prasad (1876-1962), a nationalist who served his country's cause principally through his journalism. He was a close associate of Sri Aurobindo's, and was on the editorial staff of Bande Mataram. Later, he conducted and edited various journals. His association with Basumati lasted until his death. (D.N.B.; Auro-II; A) a 1:81 26:28, 59 27: pre.
Ghose, Jogendrachandra a member of the Legislative Assembly of India around 1908. (A) a 4:259
Ghose, Kali Prasunna (1843-1910), a distinguished prose-writer in Bengali, and editor of Bandhava. He was a scholar of history and psychology, and very learned in Sanskrit, English and Bengali. He had the titles of RaiBahadur, C.I.E., and Vidyasagar conferred on him. (N.B.A.;A) D 3: 98
Ghose, K. D. Dr. Krishna Dhan Ghose (1844-92), father of Sri Aurobindo, and a physician in the Bengal Civil Medical Service. After two years' sabbatical in England studying for his M.D., he returned
to India an atheist and in all respects completely Anglicised with a disgust for everything Indian. He was appointed Civil Medical Officer of Rangpur, where he proved himself an energetic physician and health officer. He also took a very prominent part in the civic life of the town, and the administrative officers held him in high esteem. He won the love and respect of the people as a skilful doctor and a selfless philanthropist, extremely generous to the poor. In 1883, vexed and alarmed at the immense popularity and indispensable assistance of Dr. Ghose, the new British magistrate had him sent away from Rangpur. He was transferred to Bankura, and within a year again to Khulna, where he spent the rest of his life. Depressed by his wife's in- sanity, disillusioned in the end with British culture, and deeply distressed by the news of the sinking of the ship on which his Aurobindo was supposed to be returning to India, Dr. Ghose died a profoundly unhappy man at the age of forty-eight. a 27:417 11:88 Ghose,
Lalmohan (1849-1909), a barrister practising at Calcutta High Court, a thorough constitutionalist, absolutely loyal to the British connection. He was the greatest Indian orator of his time, and was president of the Congress session at Madras in 1903. He translated Meghanddavudha- kdvya, a Bengali epic poem by Michael Madhusudan Dutt, into English. (D.I.H.'.A) Var:
Lalmohun D 1:463, 598 2:207-08, 224 3:100 4:195-96 27:42.120
Ghose, Manmohan' (1844-96), a barrister, a journalist, and one of the founders in 1861 of the Indian Mirror, a fortnightly paper which he edited till March 1862. He was an effective speaker, though his oratory did not reach the level of his brother Lalmohan's. In politics, he was a leader of the Moderates in Calcutta, and a supporter of Pherozshah Mehta. He was a close friend (but no relation) of Dr. K. D. Ghose. It was in Manmohan's house that K. D. Ghose's son Aurobindo was born in 1872. (D.N.B.) a 1:17-18.21-24.44 2:208
Ghose, Manmohan2 Sri Aurobindo's elder brother. See Manmohan (Ghose)
Ghose, Motilal (1847-1922), a Calcutta journalist who during his time was one of the most influential members of the middle section of opinion, neither Moderate nor Nationalist. Although educated at home and Ghose, N. N. Girija Shankar
without university qualifications, he became one of the most respected writers in the Bengali press. He was for many years an editor of Amrita Bazar Patrika. (D.N.B.;
A; P.T.I.) a 1:142, 282 2:240, 281, 295, 314 4:178, 209-10, 241 27:27 XIV: 103, 106
Page 126
Ghose, N. N. Nagendra Nath Ghose (1854-1909), principal of Metropolitan College (now Vidyasagar College), Calcutta, and editor of the weekly journal Indian Nation. He was permanent president of the Dawn Society, an academy of non-political cultural nationalism started in July 1902. (A;I.F.F.;S.B.C.) D 1:253-55, 264-66, 280-82, 405, 505-06, 518-20, 524-26
Ghose, Piyusha Kanti name used by Sri Aurobindo to denote an imaginary Bengali as opposed to John Smith, an imaginary Englishman. (A) D 22:406
Ghose, Rash Behari, Dr. (1845-1921), a leading vakil of the Calcutta High Court, and a Moderate in politics, who took a prominent part in the Swadeshi movement. He presided over the (broken-up) Surat session of the Congress in December 1907 and the Madras session in 1908. (D.I.H.; D.N.B.) Var:
Ghosh, —; Ras(h)behari D 1: 296-97, 414, 572, 583-85, 599, 650. 689, 819. 878, 892, 897, 899 2:279, 310 4:183.203, 223 26:47
Ghose, Sailendranath secretary of the Bande Mataram company, who was called by the prosecution to appear as a witness in the Bande Mataram sedition case (1907). (A) a 1:549
Ghose, Sarojini the only sister of Sri Aurobindo, the fourth child of K. D. Ghose, senior only to Barindra. To family and friends she was known as Saro. (A) a 2:pre. 4:317-18, 322 27:420 1:68, 71, 74, 76 III: 86 VII: 10, 23
Ghose, Shishir Shishir Kumar Ghose, a young man of jessore who was arrested at the Manicktolla Gard&n on 2 May 1908 and tried in the Alipore Bomb Case. His sentence of transportation for ten years awarded by the Sessions Court was reduced to rigorous imprisonment for five years' after an appeal to the High Court. (A.B.T.) n 4:290
Ghose, Shishir Kumar (1840-1911), a journalist prominent in the second half of the 19th century as editor of Amrita Bazar Patrika from 1868 to 1893. From 1893 he devoted himself wholly to the propagation of the Vaishnava cult, editing a new periodical, the HINDU SPIRITUAL MAGAZINE. (D.N.B.; N.S.I.) D l:l56
Ghosh, Ananga Mohan a leader (c. 1906) of Comilla, Bengal (now in Bangladesh). (A) l-l 27:25
Ghosh, Biren See Ghose, Biren
Ghosh, Rash Behari See Ghose, Rash Behari
Ghosha, Akshaya Kumara a man of Bombay who, claiming to be a friend of Sri Aurobindo's family, wanted Sri Aurobindo to join him in some enterprises. (A) D 111:86
The Ghost perhaps Sri Aurobindo means Blake's The Ghost of Abel, a short dramatic dialogue published in 1822. (Ox. Comp.) a II: 19
Giannina the name of a girl, perhaps borrowed from a poem of Browning's, o 27:132
Gibbon, Edward (, 1737-94), English historian, considered the greatest English historian of his century. His major work was The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (1776-88). His autobiography is one of the most subtle and interesting works of its kind in English. (Col. Enc.;
Enc.Br.) a 3:97
Gierson perhaps the director of some large banking concern in India around 1909. (A) a 4:206
Gifford, William (1756-1826), satirical poet, classical scholar, and early editor of the 17th-century English playwrights, remembered as the first editor (1809-24) of The Quarterly Review of London. (Enc. Br.) 0 11:11.17
Gilbert', Sir William Schwenk (1836-1911), playwright and humorist best known for his collaboration with Sir Arthur Sullivan in comic operas. Their works collectively became known as the "Savoy Operas". See also Sullivan. (Enc.Br.) a 1:415
Gilbert2 a name mentioned only once in Longfellow's narrative poem The Courtship of Miles Standish. (P.W.L., p. 286) D 5:377
Gir, the an area in Giyara near the Girnar Hills, situated near Junagarh on the Kathiawar Peninsula. It was perhaps formerly included in the princely state of Baroda. (Enc.Br.) a XV: 74, 76
Girgaum a busy locality in Bombay where Sri Aurobindo gave a speech on ''National Education" on 15 January 1908. (A) n 27:67
Girija Shankar See Roy Chaudhuri, Girija Shankar
Giris Babu See Bose, G. C.
Page 127
Girivraj an ancient royal city and capital of Magadha, identified with the present Rajagriha in Bihar. (Dow.) a 8:44, 51
Girl a zodiacal constellation observed from antiquity and pictured as a maiden holding an ear of corn; it is the sixth sign of the zodiac. It is known as Kanya in Hindu astronomy, and as Virgo in Latin as well as in English. Sri Aurobindo found the modem associations of the term inappropriate and preferred "the Girl", a literal translation of Virgo. (Col.Enc.;A) n 17:257-58, 260
Gimar a sacred mountain situated near Junagarh on the Kathiawar Peninsula. It has on it a large number of magnificent temples and historical inscriptions. (D. I. H.) n 17:331
Gispati Kavyatirtha ( ? -1926), a political leader of Howrah, and founder of the Calcutta Sanskrit Sahitya Parishad. In the Swadeshi movement he worked as an associate of Kali Prasanna "Kavyavisharada", and gained popularity by making political speeches. He was a friend of Sri Aurobindo, and accompanied him on some of his speaking tours in 1909. (S.B.C.;A) n 2:81 4:210
Gita See Bhagavadgita
Gitanjali a collection of songs in Bengali by Rabindranath Tagore, which was translated by the poet into English. For the English version (published in 1912) he was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1913. (D.I.H.) n 9:434, 453 26:235
Gita-rahasya (full name: Snmadbhagavad- gita Rahasya or Karmayoga-Sastra) a learned commentary on the Gita in Marathi by Bal Gangadhar Tilak, written in prison (1908-14) and published in 1915. It has been translated into many languages. (B.A.C.; Enc. Br.) 0 17:350
Gitar Bhumika title of a book (1920) con- taining Sri Aurobindo's articles on the Gita reproduced from the Bengali journal Dharma. It was published by the Prabartak SanghofChahdernagore. (A) l-l 3:199 4: pre.
Gizeh or Giza (El Giza or El Gizeh), a town in Egypt, on the Nile opposite Cairo. The Great Pyramid of Cheops (or Khufu) and the Great Sphinx are not far (about 5 miles) to the west of the town. (Col. Enc.) n 26:316
Gladstone, William Ewart (1809-98), British statesman, dominant personality of the Liberal party from 1868 till 1894, often considered the greatest British statesman of the 19th century. He was prime minister four times, 1868-74. 1880-85, 1886, and 1892-94. (Enc. Br.) n 1:8.448, 463, 602, 863 2:158 3:338, 393, 396-97 4:188 27:121 XXI: 101
Glasnevin suburb of Dublin, Ireland, in Dublin county. It contains Parnell's burial place, and is also the site of the famous botanical gardens founded by the Royal Dublin Society in 1790. (Enc. Am.) n 5:11, 14
Glaucus name (of several figures in Greek mythology) given by Sri Aurobindo to one of the speakers in his poem Songs to Myrtilla. (Enc. Br.) n 5:1-5
Gnossus or Cnossus, an ancient city of Crete, near the sea on the north coast and near the modern Candia. (Col. Enc.) 0 5:407, 486, 514
Goalundo name of a town and a ferry-ghat on the Ganga in Bengal (now in Bangla- desh). a 2:358, 361-62 4:247-48
Gobbo, Lancelot See Lancelot Gobbo
Gobinda, Guru See Govind(a) (Singh), Guru
Gocool; Gocul See Gokul
Godavarie one of the seven sacred rivers of the Hindus. It rises in the Western Gnats about 50 miles from the Arabian Sea, flows across the Deccan plateau and falls into the Bay of Bengal a few miles above Masulipatam(Machilipatnam). (D.I.H.) a 6:211
Godiva Lady Godiva (fl. c. 1040-80), Anglo-Saxon gentlewoman famous for her legendary ride while nude through Coventry, Warwickshire. She was wife of Leofric, Earl of Mercia and Lord of Coventry, with whom she founded and endowed a monastery at Coventry. The legend, begun in medieval chronicle and surviving in several forms, runs as follows: Godiva's husband, in exasperation over her relentless imploring that he reduce Coventry's heavy taxes, declared that he would do so if she rode naked through the crowded marketplace. She did so, her hair covering all of her body except her legs. All shutters were closed, and the one man who looked out earned the name of Peeping Tom. Tennyson and others made her the subject of poems. (Enc. Br.) a 1:179
A God's Labour a poem by Sri Aurobindo. The manuscripts bear two dates, 31-7-1935 and 1-1-1936. (A) n 26:153
God, the Invisible King a book by H. G. Wells, reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. (A) a 17:324
Page 128
Goebbels, (Paul) Joseph (1897-1945), German National Socialist propagandist. A club foot kept him from war service. In 1933 Hitler made him propaganda minister. As an orator he was second only to Hitler in his ability to hypnotise his audience. (Col. Enc.) n 26:388
Goering, Hermann Wilhelm (1893-1946), German National Socialist, a leader of the Nazi party and one of the prime architects of the Nazi police state, air force, rearmament, and wartime economy. In 1939 Hitler designated him as his successor and in 1940 made him the Marshal of the Empire. (Col. Enc.;
Enc.Br.) n 26:388
Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von (1749-1832), German poet, thinker, dramatist, novelist, and scientist. His versatile genius embraced most fields of human endeavour. (Col. Enc.) a 3:69, 87, 114, 147, 303, 454 5:26 9: 44, 49, 100, 103-04, 192, 212, 480, 521-23, 555 14:47 15:35, 244 17:385 22:181 26:67, 256 27:89 1:63 IX: 32, 45 X: 114 XVII: 66, 73 XIX: 80
Gokhale a character, representing Gopal Krishna Gokhale, in "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy published in Bande Mataram (February 1908). a 1:673-83, 685, 689-90, 693-94
Gokhale, Gopal Krishna (1866-1915), a very prominent Indian nationalist leader, the chief advocate of moderation, opposing vigorously all talk of boycotts and violence. Associated with the Congress from its inception, he was its Joint Secretary for several years, and pre- sided over its 1905 session at Benares. He founded the Servants of India Society in 1906. (D.I.H.; Gilbert, p. 35) n 1:152-54, 157, 186, 188-89, 193, 207-08, 245, 250, 253, 292, 301, 360, 373-75, 381, 387, 414, 584, 598-99, 627, 689, 754, 819, 866, 877, 896 2:75-80, 103, 113-15, 158-59, 199, 204, 208, 238-39, 246, 255, 277, 279, 283, 297, 305, 309-10, 313, 320, 325, 332, 334, 370 4:177, 179, 182-84, 191, 199, 202-03, 206, 211, 216, 222, 225-26, 230-31, 233-34, 238, 244 17:369 26:49 27:4, 30, 33, 36, 57, 67 VIII: 123-26 XIV: 103, 106
Gokul a pastoral town on the Yamuna near Mathura where Krishna passed his boyhood with the cowherds. (Dow.) Var: Gocool;
Gocul n 1:559, 595, 665 8:246, 256, 258, 284 22:426
Golab Singh (d. 1857), Maharaja of Kashmir. He played a leading part in the negotiations of the Treaty of Lahore (1846), by which Kashmir with its dependencies was ceded to the British. The latter in their turn handed Kashmir over to Golab Singh for one million sterling. Golab Singh, who was given the title of Maharaja, maintained very ami- able relations with the British Government till his death in 1857. The line founded by him ruled in Kashmir until its integration with India in 1948. (D.I.H.) a 1:394
Golconde name of an Ashram residential building in Pondicherry, a remarkable archi- tectural achievement in which the Mother worked out her own idea through Czech architects. It was designed by Antonin Raymond with detailing and execution by George Nakashima and Francois Sammer. All the objects in Golconde, the rooms, the fittings, the furniture, are individually artistic and form a harmonious whole. (A) a 25:230-31
"Golden Bengal" See Sonar Bangia
Goldighi See College Square
Goldsmith, Oliver (17307-74), British poet, essayist, dramatist and novelist, who pos- sessed extraordinary literary gifts. (Enc. Br.) a 1:456 9:551 1:9 11:11, 16-17, 19
Goliath in the Bible, a gigantic Philistine who challenged the Israelites. The young David, fortified by faith, accepted the challenge, and killed Goliath with a stone from a sling. (Col. Enc.) a 15:80, 616 XIII: 47
Goloka in Hindu religion, the Vaishnava heaven of eternal beauty and bliss. It is Krishna's heaven, a later addition to the original series of seven Lokas. (A; Dow.) D 12:466 17:172 18:23, 257 20:485 22:110, 245 26:114 II: 76, 79-80
Gonds group of aboriginal peoples of central India exceeding three million in number. They live in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Orissa. There is no cultural uniformity among the Gonds. (Enc.Br.) n IX: 1.2
Gonen Maharaj See Ganen Maharaj
Goorkha(s) See Gurkha(s)
Gopal1 "cow-keeper", a name of the youthful Krishna, who lived among the cowherds inVrindavan. (Dow.) D [Indexed with Krishna]
Gopal2 See Ray, Gopal Chandra
Gopalaca a character - a son of King Mahasegn of Avunthie - in Vasavadutta, a dramatic romance by Sri Aurobindo. D 6:207. 211-14, 220-25, 228-32, 234-42, 245-48, 255-56, 259-60, 262-64, 270, 298, 305-08, 313-16, 327-29
Page 129
Gopavana (Atreya) a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. n 11:363-64
Gordian knot; knot of Gordius a proverbial term for a problem solvable only by drastic action. In 333 BC Alexander the Great, on his march through Anatolia, reached Gordium, capital of Phrygia. There he was shown the chariot of the ancient founder of the city, King Gordius, with its yoke lashed to the pole by means of a knot with its end hidden. An oracle had revealed that the knot would be undone only by the future master of Asia. In the popular account, Alexander cut the knot through with his sword; but according to an earlier version, he found the ends by cutting into the knot or by drawing out the pole. (Enc.Br.) D 16:280 18:232 22:165 IX: 14
Gorgias GorgiasofLeontini(c.483-c.376 Be), Greek sophist and rhetorician, formulator of a nihilistic philosophy. His three propositions were: nothing exists; if anything does exist, it cannot be known; if it can be known, the knowledge of it cannot be communicated. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) o 3:66
Gorgon in Greek mythology, a monster figure. Homer spoke of a single Gorgon - a monster of the underworld. The later Greek poet Hesiod increased the number of Gorgons to three - Sthens (the Mighty, Euryale (the Far Springer), and Medusa (the Queen). The Attic tradition regarded the Gorgon as a monster produced by Ge, the goddess Earth, to aid her sons against the gods. (Enc.Br.) a 5:11 6:1, 16, 44, 68-69, 174, 441 28:212
Gorhe, Sakaram Dadaji Sakharam Gorhe (1833-1910), a political martyr of Nasik (Maharashtra state), a revolutionary belong- ing to the Abhinava Bharat organisation. He died in jail while undergoing rigorous imprisonment. (Enc. Ind.) n 1:1
Gorst, Sir Eldon Sir John Eldon Gorst (1835-1916), British lawyer and politician who held a seat in the House of Commons from 1866 to 1906 (excluding the years 1868-75). (Enc. Br.) a 2:407
Gosain See Goswami, Dhirananda. (Note: Gosain is a corrupt and more popular form of the term Goswami, a sub-caste among the Brahmins. Sri Aurobindo has at other places also spelled it "Gossain".) n 8:347-48
Gossain, Noren Narendranath Goswami, son of a rich zamindar and a member of the revolutionary party who turned an approver in the Alipore Bomb Case, but was shot dead inside the jail hospital on
August 31, 1908, by a revolutionary prisoner Kanailal Dutt in collaboration with Satyen Bose. (P.T.I.; A.B.T.;Purani) n 2:375, 377 3:431 4:272-74, 276, 292-97, 313 26:67
Gosse, Sir Edmund (1849-1928), translator, literary historian, and critic who introduced the work of Ibsen and other continental writers to English readers. (Enc. Br.) a l:l0
Goswami, Bijoy Vijoy Krishna Goswami (1841-99), a great spiritual leader and social reformer of Bengal. He was a yogi, and spiritual guru of Satish Mukherji and many other Bengali political workers and leaders. He was attracted to the Brahmo Samaj in his student life, and later became a preacher and preceptor. But after he took up yoga, he was reconverted to Hinduism. (L. to SL; A; S. B. C.) Var: Bejoy Goswami l-l 2:412 22:417 26:16, 43, 118, 125
Goswami, Dhirananda a character - leader of a band of sannyasis - in Bankim Chandra's novel Ananda Math. (A) n 8:347-48
Goswami, Narendranath See Gossain, Noren
Goswami, Srish (1891-1958), a Bengali dis- ciple of Sri Aurobindo from 1922. He was in charge of the Arya Publishing House, Calcutta, for some time in the 1930s. The last two years of his life he spent in the Ashram. a 26:66
Gotama (Rahugana) a Vedic Rishi who is mentioned several times in the Rig-veda, but never in such a way as to denote personal authorship of any hymn. It seems clear that he was closely connected with the Angirasas. That he bore the patronymic Rahugana (descendant of Rahugana) is rendered probable by one hymn of the Rig-veda, and is assumed in the Satapatha Brahmana, where he is mentioned as a Purohita (family priest), as a bearer of Vedic civilisation, and as a contemporary of Janaka and Yajna- valkya. (V. Index)
0 4:23 10:128, 257, 264-66, 271 11:11, 34, 177 IV: 125 IX: 3 X:179
Gotamas Sec Gautama' a 27:191 HI: 50 VIII: 147 X-.183 XVIII: 174
Goth member of a German tribe which invaded the Eastern and Western Roman Empires from the 3rd to the 5th centuries and founded kingdoms in Italy, France and Spain. Gothic architecture is a style of building practised in Europe in the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries, sometimes called "pointed style" for its conspicuous use of the pointed arch and vault.
Page 130
The Gothic language is an extinct East Germanic language. Gothic romance refers to a type of novel which flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries in England, and has again become popular. The mystery of each tale is heavily tinged with horror and with terror of the supernatural. (C.O.D.; Col. Enc.) Der:
Gothic a 1:237, 526, 863 9:42 14:214, 216 15:79, 289 16:83 17:294 II: 15
Gotham probably. Merry Tales of Gotham by A. B. (perhaps Andrew Borde, a physician, c. 1490-1549) of which a 1630 edition is extant, or The Merry Tales of Gotham by Stapleton. For some reason, which is not clearly established, a reputation for folly was from very early times attributed to the inhabitants of Gotham, a village in Nottinghamshire (England). The tradition once established, it seems probable that many new stories of folly were fathered on the village. These were collected in the Merry Tales of Gotham by A. B. (Ox. Comp.) D 11:19
Gothberg Goteborg or Gothenburg, city in southwestern Sweden; the second largest city of Sweden. (Col. Enc.) a 6:478, 480-81, 514, 559
Gough, Dr. probably, Archibald Edward Gough, author of The Philosophy of the Upanishads and Ancient Indian Metaphysics published in 1891 (2nd edition). Belonging to Lincoln College, Oxford, Dr. Gough was the principal of Calcutta Madrasa; and his book is based on a series of articles contributed by him to Calcutta Review (October 1876 to April 1880). D 14:46-47
Gould, Jay (1836-92), American capitalist. He rose from being a country-store clerk and surveyor's assistant to the control of half the railroad mileage in southwestern U.S., of New York City's elevated railroads, and of the Western Union Telegraph Company. (Col. Enc.) D 12:501
Gouranga misspelling of Gauranga. See Chaitanya.
Govinda "who makes us attain Light or World of Light", a name of Krishna. D [Indexed with Krishna]
Govindadas (1537-1612), famous Vaishnava poet of Bengal. Till the age of forty he was a worshipper of Shakti; later he became a Vaishnavite. His poems, called "padas", are collected in two books: Sangeet Madhava Padavali and Karnamrita. (N.B.A.) n 9:307-08
Govind(a) (Singh), Guru (1666-1708), the tenth and last Guru of the Sikhs, who succeeded his father Tegh Bahadur in 1675 and occupied the position till his murder in the Deccan by an Afghan in 1708. Guru Govinda retained the old theology but altered the whole genius of the Sikh brotherhood and turned the Sikhs from a passive religious group into a dynamic socio-political body and a military power. The brotherhood so constituted was called the"Khalsa". (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) Var:
Guru Gobinda a 1:308, 613 2:13 3:110 4:147, 169.171 14:132 15: 354 IX:29
Gracchus, Tiberius Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus (c. 163-133 Be), Roman statesman and social reformer. He stood for the tri- bunal of the people in 133 BC as an avowed reformer, and was elected. On his election he immediately proposed and succeeded in passing the Sempronian Law to redistribute the public lands which the rich had taken over. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 1:24
Graces in Greek mythology, three sister goddesses, daughters of Zeus and Eurynome:
Euphrosyne (Joyfulness), Aglaia (Bright- ness), and Thalia (Bloom). They were personifications of beauty and charm. (Col. Enc.) D 5:6, 32, 495, 524, 538, 543, 546 11:472
Graecised See Greece
Graeco- combining form of Greece, with the sense "relating to the Greek settlements or states established in certain regions abroad", or, "partly Greek and partly ...". (O.E.D.) D
Graeco-Apulian 15:344 Graeco-Bactria(n) 8:61 14:376 Graeco-Indian 17:276 Graeco-Italians 1:526 Graeco-Latin 10:77 14:397 Graeco-Roman of or influenced by both Greece and Rome. (O.E.D.) a 9:42, 546 13:28 14:2, 15, 19, 54, 375, 377 15:15, 69, 281, 296-97, 348, 564 16:310, 323 17:168-69, 274, 317-19 V: 95 VIII: 172 XIV: 127 XV: 18 ' Graeco-Syrian 6:454
Graiae in Greek mythology, daughters of Phorcys and Ceto, and sisters of the Gorgons. Three in number, they are an incarnation of age, being grey-haired from birth and having but one eye and one tooth between them. Perseus contrived to steal
Page 131
their eye and by this device made them tell him the way to the Gorgons, or, according to another account, threw the eye away and left them blind and unable to help their sisters (the Gorgons). (O.C1.D.) a 6:174
Grammarian's Funeral a poem by Browning. (A) a 9:474
Grampians mountain system cutting northeast-southwest across central Scotland and separating the Highlands from the Lowlands. (Col. Enc.) n 15:348
Granada city and capital of Granada province of southern Spain, in Andalusia. Picturesquely situated, it is a tourist centre, attractive because of its long history. (Col. Enc.) 0 7:597
Grand Monarque, The Louis XIV of France (1638-1715), who ruled France in one of its most brilliant periods and remains the symbol of absolute monarchy of the classical age. (Ox. Comp.; Enc. Br.) n 3:262
Grand Trunk Road road constructed by Sher Shah (1540-45), which extended for 1500 kos (about 3000 miles) from Sonargaon in east- ern Bengal to the Indus. The road still exists connecting Calcutta with Upper India up to Amritsar in Punjab. (D.I.H.) D 26:463
Gray, Thomas (1716-71), English poet who, although a prolific writer of prose, left only a handful of finely finished poems characterised by a melodic sweetness. It was after years of revision that he finished his famous An Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard, in 1750. (Col. Enc.) D 1:704 9:92, 171, 530 27:86 29:744 1:9-10 11:11-17
Gray, Dorian See Dorian Gray
Grayson, Victor probably a Labour leader of Britain around 1909. (A) a 4:215
Great Aranyaka See Brihadaranyaka
Great Bear "Ursa Major" called Saptarsi in Hindu astronomy; a constellation of seven stars conspicuous in the northern celestial hemisphere. (Col. Enc.) D 9:403 10:167
Great Britain See Britain
Great Illusion, The the best-known work of Sir Norman Angell, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize of 1933. It is an antiwar book, published in 1910 and revised in 1933. It was translated into many languages. (Enc. Br.) D 15:585
Great Pyramid, the the northernmost and the oldest of the three pyramids of Giza (or Gizeh) built by Khufu (Greek, Cheops), the second king of the 4th dynasty. It is also the largest of the three, the length of each side averaging 775.75 ft. and its original height being 481.4 ft.' (Enc. Br.) a 26:316
Great Russia the same as Russia in its political meaning, i.e. Russian Federal Socialist Republic, the largest of the fifteen constituent republics of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, having Moscow as its capital. (Enc. Am.) a 15:512
Great War See (World) War
Greco-Turkish peace apparently a diplomatic demarche of June-July 1914. The Treaty of London (1913) had ended the First Balkan War. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Greece a country occupying the southernmost part of the Balkan Peninsula and numerous islands in the Ionian and Aegean seas. (Col. Enc.) Der: Grecian;
Graecised; Greek (in senses other than the language) a 1:34, 120, 256, 305-06, 321, 467, 506, 520.715, 733, 737, 757, 768-69, 787, 843, 881, 903 2: 34, 39, 108-09.168-69, 248, 406 3:22, 30, 37-38, 79, 101, 105, 108-10, 137, 159, 189, 199, 221, 227. 296, 299, 302, 417, 424, 487 4:15, 22, 109-10, 143, 154, 166, 238, 252 5:26, 258, 392-93, 395, 397-403, 405-06, 408-09, 411, 413-16, 418, 420, 422, 425, 427-29, 432, 434, 438-39, 445-46, 448-50, 457-58, 463-64, 469-80, 482-83, 485, 487-89.493, 498. 501, 505-06, 516, 518, 534, 549, 596 6:1. 55, 192.197, 337, 354, 357, 364, 371, 374, 380, 414, 421.426, 431-33 7:578, 620, 894 9:18, 37, 44-46, 51, 56, 65, 67, 81, 149, 151, 153, 191, 193-94, 226, 237-38, 242-43, 245, 320, 322, 381-82, 410, 414, 423, 426, 523, 529 10:4-5, 15, 23-27, 43, 77, 87-88, 106, 153. 249, 439, 445, 448, 555, 566-67 11: 2-4, 11, 264, 463, 466, 468 12:409, 499, 503 13:37, 142, 198 14:14, 19, 25, 27, 50, 63, 67, 80, 82, 103, 121, 147-48, 166, 173-75, 185, 190, 201-03, 213, 216, 221-23, 228-30, 257, 293, 328, 349-50, 363, 366-67, 392, 406 15:15, 82, 86, 89-90, 116, 148, 176-78, 263, 268, 287, 290, 295, 298, 328, 337-40, 342-43, 348, 375, 417, 438, 445, 469, 478, 486, 498, 522, 600, 646 16:1, 79, 125, 197-98, 276, 282-83, 306, 309-10, 335, 339, 341-44, 347-50, 352-53, 362, 364, 366, 371 17:96, 195, 237, 240-41, 245, 248, 275, 281, 301-03, 317, 377, 394 19:731, 896 20:298, 428 22:12, 103, 160, 185, 416 23:556, 834 24:1562 26:209 27:96, 111, 148, 150-51, 153, 201-02, 204, 309, 352 1:8, 31 11:6, 14 V: 42-43, 75-77, 86 VI: 134, 199 VIII: 172-73 IX: 28, 42 X: 160, 162 XIII: 33 XIV: 127, 164, 168 XV: 5, 11, 15, 17, 20-21, 44, 51 XVI: 134, 137- 38, 141, 144, 172, 179-81 XVII: 48 XVIII: 161, 165 XX: 147 XXI: 11
Page 132
Greek (language) Guide
Greek (language) Indo-European language spoken primarily in Greece. Its history can be traced from the 14th century BC to the present. Several phases of the language are differentiated: Ancient Greek, Hellenistic Greek (also called the Koine), Byzantine Greek, and Modern Greek. (Enc. Br.) a 1:266 3: 79, 105, 108, 197-99, 241, 244 5: 342, 344, 362, 370-71, 380, 551, 585, 587 6:2 7:1015 8:407 9:6, 37, 61.65, 67, 142, 171, 395, 399, 407, 413, 420, 426, 523 10:26, 36, 59, 67, 70, 87, 153, 155, 185, 225, 252, 259, 318, 352, 358, 494, 500, 555, 557-62, 566-67 11:77, 447-48, 450, 456, 461, 463-64, 487, 506 12:401 14:59, 297, 304 15:90, 296 16:79, 125, 336 17:291, 294-97 18:395 26:1-3, 111, 254 27:102, 156, 163, 166, 169, 171-72, 334, 338, 475 I:12, 16, 24 II: 13, 15, 22, 27, 30, 36 III: 22, 52-54, 56, 60, 64 IV: 136, 148, 150, 152, 155 V: 42-43, 77 VI:139, 143, 153-54 XIV:130, 163, 166 XV: 23, 47 XVI: 137, 149, 163, 167, 172 XVII: 2, 19, 44-47, 55, 66, 72-73
Green probably, Matthew Green (1696-1737), author of The Spleen, a poem in praise of the simple contemplative life as a cure for boredom. (Ox. Comp.) Q 11:11
Grey the counsel for the prosecution in the Patiala Case (c. 1910), which was really aimed at destroying the Arya Samaj. (A) n 2:353-54, 370
Grey, Sir Edward Edward Grey (1862-1933), 1st Viscount Grey of Fallodon, British statesman. His eleven years as Foreign Secretary (1905-16), the longest uninterrupted tenure of that office in history, were marked by the start of World War I, about which he made a comment that became proverbial: "The lamps are going out all over Europe; we shall not see them lit again in our life." (Enc. Br.) n 2:298
Grey Street a street of North Calcutta. The "Navashakti" office was located at 48 Grey Street; Sri Aurobindo was living here when he was arrested in May 1908. The name of the street has been changed to "Sri Aurobindo Sarani". (A;A.B, T.) D 2:367-68 4:260
Grihya Sutras a class of Hindu scriptures by different authors, dealing with the rules for the conduct of domestic rites and the per- sonal sacraments, extending from birth to marriage. (Dow.) a 13:83 14:284
Grindlays (& Co.) agents of C. R. Das in Calcutta through whom he sent money to Sri Aurobindo. Maybe it is this firm which later took the form of the big English bank that still exists. (A) n 27:440, 455
Gritsamada (Bhargava) the reputed Rishi of many hymns in the second Mandala of the Rig-veda. He belonged to the line of Vedic Rishis called Bhargavas. (Dow.) Q 10:55, 170, 173-74 11:81, 92, 97
Guadalagasu a fictitious name for a town in Spain, coined by Sri Aurobindo in connection with a hypothetical example of his occult action during the Spanish Civil War. a 26:205
Guatemala the most populous and the third largest country of Central America. The capital is also named Guatemala. (Col. Enc.) o 15:617
Gudakesha an epithet of Arjuna, meaning "master (or conqueror) of sleep or leth- argy". a 4:78, 104 8:78, 80
Gudrun heroine of several Old Norse legends whose principal theme is revenge. She is the sister of Gunner and wife of SIGURD' (Siegfried) and after Sigurd's death, ofAtli. (Enc.Br.) a 7:887
Guendolen in Sri Aurobindo's poem The Vigil of Thaliard, sister of Thaliard. (A) a 5:l8l
Guendolen2 a proposed character - daughter of Corineus - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The House of Brut. o 7:883
Guendolen3 a character - sister of the witch Alasiel - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Witch ofllni. a 7:1057, 1074-75
Guha, Anath Bandhu (1847-1927), a busy lawyer and the leading man of Mymensingh, Bengal (now in Bangladesh). He was an ardent patriot and was for some years associated with the Congress. (A;D, N.B.) a 2:281 '
Guha, Manoranjan (1858-1919), a prominent anti-Partition agitator in 1905-06 at Barisal and afterwards in Calcutta and vicinity. He was a well-to-do man and gave financial support to the Manicktolla revolutionary group. He was one of the nine Bengalis deported in December 1908. (P.T.I.; D.N.B.) D 1:698 2:58, 77, 316 26:43
Guhaka in the Ramayana, king of the Nishadas or Bhils, a friend of RAMA' during his exile. (Dow.) Var: Guhyaka Q 3:428 22:416
Guide name of a steamer by which, accord- ing to a rumour of January 1910, some people were going to be deported from Calcutta. (A) a 4:241
Page 133
Gujarat a large area in western India. In the widest sense it includes the whole compact area where the Gujarati language is spoken, i.e. the states of Saurashtra and Cutch, the main territories of the former Baroda state, and many districts of the old Bombay province. In 1960 Gujarat was separated from Bombay and constituted into a separate state of the Republic of India. (Col. Enc.; D.I.H.) Var: Gujerat
Der: Gujerati(s) D 1:201, 594, 638-39, 644-47, 688, 691 2:330, 385 3:98, 215 4:99, 268 10:35 24:1503 26:47, 81, 244, 409-10, 435 27:41, 54 29:790 111:86 XIII: 51
Gujarati (language) Indo-Aryan language spoken by about 20 million persons in the Indian states of Gujarat and Maharashtra and surrounding areas; it is one of the 14 regional languages recognised in the Indian constitution. The language, which has a long literary tradition, is written in a modified Devanagari script. (Enc. Br.) Var:
Gujerati; Guzerati a 3:155 14:320 26:205 27:421 111:84 XV: 67
Gujaria now spelled Gojaria, a village in Vijapur taluka, about fifteen miles south- west of Vijapur town. Presently in the district of Ahmedabad, Vijapur was formerly included in the princely state of Baroda. Sri Aurobindo visited Gujaria and probably stayed there for some time in connection with his service in the Land Settlement Department of the state.
>D m:86
Gujerati an English journal published from Bombay by the Moderates. Var: Guzerati (a misspelling) a l: 387, 754-55
Gulab Bano case a case in which the police and the Government of Punjab seem to have acted unfairly. (A) a 2:354, 357
Gundhamadan See Gandhamadan
Gundhurva(s) See Gandharva(s)
Gunga See Ganga
Gungotri Gangotri, the source of the Bhagirathi River (a headstream of the Ganga) in northern Uttar Pradesh; the Himalayan mountain shrine of Gangotri is nearby, about 31°N and 79°E. (Enc. Br.;
R. Map) Var: Gungotry a 5: 196 I: 20, 23
Gunthar a character - an earl - in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric. n 6:473, 477, 480, 482, 539-43, 546-47
Gupta a dynasty of Indian kings who reigned in Magadha (presently in Bihar state) in northeastern India. They maintained an
empire over northern and parts of central and western India from the early 4th to the late 5th century AD. (Enc. Br.) l-l 1:739 14:187, 364, 373, 375 15:264, 341, 347 XVII: 25
Gupta, Binode Kumar (d. 1912), an inspector of police in the Bengal Criminal Investigation Department, posted at Calcutta around 1908. (A.B.T., p. 76, 102; A & R, XIX: 45-46) n 4:258-60 XIX: 45-46
Gupta, Iswara Chandra (1812-59), the first literary historian and critic of Bengali literature. He assembled young talents around him, thus paving the way for a new Bengali literature. He was also a poet; his satirical poems, which contain no malice towards any particular individual, are products of his humorous nature. He edited Samvada Prabhakar, and also brought out two other short-lived papers. (D.N.B.) Var: Ishwar Chandra Gupta 0 3:90 27:351
Gupta, Kedar Das a person known to Sri Aurobindo but forgotten long before 1913. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov.l913-0ct. '27]
Gupta, K. G. Krishna Gobinda Gupta, a member of the I.C.S. appointed after the examination of 1871. He served in Bengal as magistrate and collector, then became secretary to the Board of Revenue in May 1890, and Commissioner of Excise in 1893. He was a member of the Board of Revenue from 1905 to 1906. After his retirement in 1908 he was nominated to the India Council in Whitehall as one of the two Indians, representing the Hindus. (Wolpert, p. 272; S.F.F; N.S.I.) D 1:196 XXI: 79 (K.G.G.)?
Gupta, Mahendranath (1854-1932), an intimate disciple of Sri Ramakrishna; he is considered next only to Swami Vivekananda as responsible for promoting the gospel of the Master. He is the original recorder in Bengali of The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. (The original book, entitled Sri Sri Rama- krishna Kathamrita, is in five volumes.) Mahendranath is better known to the readers of The Gospel by his pen-name "M". (Enc. ind.; Gospel) a 22:407
Gupta, Nolini Kanta (1889-1984), one of the first and foremost disciples of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, familiarly known as Nolini-da in the Ashram. As a youth he joined the movement for India's liberation and in 1908 was implicated, along with Sri Aurobindo, in the Alipore Bomb Case. After their acquittal, he worked with Sri Aurobindo in Calcutta.
Page 134
In November 1910 he came to Pondicherry to stay with Sri Aurobindo, who had arrived there a few months earlier. From time to time he went out of Pondicherry; but in 1926, when the Ashram was founded, Nolini-da settled there permanently and served as its secretary for more than fifty years. He became a member of the Ashram Trust when it was formed in 1955. An eminent writer, poet and littera- teur, Nolini Kanta Gupta was the editor or editorial adviser of a number of English and Bengali journals. His collected works comprise eight volumes in English and as many in Bengali. (Bulletin of S.A.I. C. E., Feb. 1984; D.N.B.) Var: Nalini; Nolini; (In "Record of Yoga" referred to as N) n 26:56, 62 27:482-83, 493 1:18 VII: 4, 6-7, 10, 15, 18-19, 23 XV: 1 XIX: 26 XX: 148 XXI: 2, 19, 32, 34, 49 XXII: 157
Gurdas Ram a political leader of Punjab, allegedly involved in the Rawalpindi riot case around 1907. (A) a 1:432 Gurkha(s) a martial people with strong Mongolian features living on the slopes of the Himalayas; they are the ruling Hindu race in Nepal; Gurkha regiments previously formed a considerable part of the British Army. (D.I.H.; C.O.D.) Var: Goorkha(s) a 1:196, 213, 218-19, 287, 302, 361, 373, 384-85, 528, 603, 626, 702 2:57 11:2
Guzerati See Gujarati
Guzerati See Gujerati
Guzman a character - a courtier - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. n 7:821, 825, 829-30, 832, 836
Gwalior name of a former princely state, and its capital, in Central India. Presently Gwalior is the administrative headquarters of Gwalior district and division in Madhya Pradesh state of the Republic of India. (D.I.H.;Enc.Br.) D 26:20 IV: 198
Gyneth in Sri Aurobindo's poem The Vigil of Thaliard, a brother of Thaliard. (A) D 5:180 -
H
Habibullah Amir Habibullah Khan (1872-1919), king of Afghanistan (1901-19), who maintained satisfactory relations with British India, introduced needed reforms in Afghanistan and steered his country on a moderate political course. (Enc. Br.) n 1:261
Habiganj a sub-division in the district of Sylhet, Bengal (now in Bangladesh). (A) D 1:357
Hacon in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric, Eric's uncle (mother's brother). (A) o 6:539-40
Hades in Greek mythology, 1. the god, son of Cronus and Rhea, who won the lordship of the nether world when his brother Zeus won the sky, and Poseidon the sea. The ancients preferred to call him PLUTO. 2. the Underworld, his domain, came also eventually to be known as Hades. The Greeks expected to enter after death into this cheerless nether world. See also Tartarus. (Pears; M.I.) n 5:3, 252-53, 414, 417, 421, 424, 429, 445-46, 454-55, 468, 474-75, 477, 490, 510, 512-13, 515 6:86, 149, 174, 455 7:1061 8:31-32, 34, 38 9:220 16:338-39 17:257 24:1490 27:153, 156 11:26 VI: 134-35
Haeckel, Prof. Ernst (Heinrich) Haeckel (1834-1919), German zoologist and evolutionist, a strong proponent of Darwinism who offered new theories of the descent of man. (Enc. Br.) a 3:112, 369, 459, 465 12:30, 178 17:146 22:340 23:577 IX: 30 XIV: 127 XVII: 26 XIX: 54
Haelios See Helios
Hafiz Shams-ul-Din Hafiz (c. 1320-90), a great Persian mystical poet who composed some of the most sensitive and lyrical poetry ever produced in the Middle East. (Enc. W.B.) a 9:322 1:25
Hague, the capital of the Netherlands and of the province of South Holland, situated four miles from the North Sea; headquarters of the Hague Tribunal, the Permanent Court of Arbitration founded in 1899, and succeeded in 1922 by the Permanent Court of Inter- national Justice, which since 1945 has selected the nominees for election to the United Nations International Court of Justice. (Enc. Br.; Web.) o 1:487 15:364, 585 27:471
Haider Ali (1722-82), Muslim ruler of Mysore and military commander who played an important part in the wars in South India in the mid-18th century. (Enc. Br.) a 4:140
Haihayas a race or tribe of people of India to whom a Scythian origin has been ascribed. The word occurs in the Mahabharata and the Puranas at several places. There were five great divisions of this tribe, and the Vindhya mountains seem to have been their home. They made incursions into the Doab (land between the rivers Ganga and Yamuna in
Page 135
Uttar Pradesh), and took the city of Kashi. Arjuna-Kartavirya was king of the Haihayas. (Dow.) a 3:189-90, 214
Haihaya Arjuna Kartavirya See Kartavirya, Haihaya Arjuna
Haile Selassie (1892-1975), emperor of Ethiopia (1930-36 and 1941-74), "Lion of JUDAH". Originally named Tafari Makonnan, he took the new name Haile Selassie, meaning "Might of the Trinity", when he was crowned emperor in 1930. He won the admiration of the free world for resisting the Italian invasion of his country in 1935 and personally leading the defending troops in the field. In May 1936 when further resistance was hopeless, he fled to British protection. Haile Selassie was deposed in a military coup in 1974. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 5:596 26:378
Haimavati in Hindu mythology, the consort of the god Shiva, named after her father Himavat (Himalaya). [Indexed with Parvati]
Halai Lohana Mahajanwadi See Mahajan Wadi
Halamus in Sri Aurobindo's epic Ilion, a son of Antenor and one of the leading Trojan warriors. (M.I.) a 5:431-32, 445, 447, 450, 456-59.461, 488
Halappa, N.P.K. name of a South Indian. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct, '27]
Haldar, Haridas (1864-1935), a medical practitioner of Calcutta, of nationalist views and on intimate terms with Brahmabandhab Upadhyaya, Bipin Chandra Pal, and Sri Aurobindo. For some time he edited the Narayana of C. R. Das. He was an author and also a composer of patriotic songs. (S.B.C.) 26:59
Haldar Reza, Syed "Haldar" seems to be a misreading of "Haider", which is also spelled "Hyder". See Hyder Reza, Syed.
Haldi a small river of southwestern Bengal (now in West Bengal state), rising in the eastern Vindhyas and falling into the Bay of Bengal. (S. Atlas) 1:187
Hall, Edward (c. 1498-1547), English chronicler. Hall's Chronicle is a glorification of the Tudors. It is interesting chiefly for the light it sheds on social life early in the reign of Henry VIII and for the use Shakespeare made of it in his historical plays. (Col. Enc.) 4:284 27:80
Halliday F. L. Halliday, Police Com- missioner of Calcutta about 1907-08. (Auro-I) 1:556 2:135 4:261-63
Haludbari a town in Nadia district, Bengal. In October 1909 a dacoity was committed in the house of two Marwaris of this town. (P.T.I.) a 2:375
Hamadryad in Greek mythology, a nymph of the trees, living and dying with the tree she inhabits. (C.O.D.) D 7:1063 XVI: 144
Hamerton possibly a mistake for the name Hamer (Enid), author of a book on English metre, a 26:321
Hamilton, Lord George Francis (1845-1927), Secretary of State for India (1895-1903). He was a Conservative M.P. from 1868 to 1906, and became Undersecretary of State for India, under Disraeli, in 1874. (Gilbert, p. 235) 1:849 2:267
Hamite member of one of a group of North African races. (M.I.) 5:486
Hamlet central character - son of the former, murdered king of Denmark - in Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet. The name of the prince in the story, which originated in primitive Germanic times and was first recorded in Historia Danica, was Amieth. (Shakes.; Col. Enc.) 1:264, 266 3:12 4:285 9:374 12:38, 470, 476-77 17:96 24:1638 26:332-33 27:207 1:40
Hamlet full name: Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, a tragedy by Shakespeare. It belongs to the third group of his plays (1601 through 1609), by many considered his greatest play and one of the greatest works in world literature. The greatness of the play consists essentially in the brilliance and impenetrability of Hamlet's character. (Col. Enc.) 3:230 4:285 5:145 9:373 12:41, 477 18:299 26:181 XII: 122 XIII: 27
Hammond, Eleanor author of the poem Transition that appeared or was quoted from in the second number of Shama'a reviewed by Sri Aurobindo. (A) 17:321
Hampden, John (1594-1643), English parliamentary leader, famous for his opposition to King Charles I over ship- money (a tax historically imposed only in maritime countries), an episode in the controversies that ultimately led to the English Civil War (1642-51). (Enc. Br.) 1:108
Hamsa See Hansa1
Hamsa Swamp, Swami a spiritual guide, perhaps known in Baroda. Sri Aurobindo denied having had any contact with him. (A) 26: 19
Hansa' one of the two great warrior-brothers (the other being Dimbhuk) mentioned in the
Page 136
Mahabharata as friends and ministers of Jarasandha. He was also known as Kausika (COWSHIC). (Dow.;M.N.) Var: Hamsa a 8:40, 42, 50, 58
Hansa2 in the Mahabharata, a mighty king in the army of Jarasandha. He was killed in battle by Balarama. (A;M.N.) a 8:42
Hansraj, Lala (1864-1938), also known as Mahatma Hansraj, a prominent leader of Athe rya Samaj, and principal of the D.A.V. College at Lahore for 28 years. His hold on Punjab for more than half a century is well attested by the fact that every appeal for a cause which he made his own was always more than fully met, both in men and funds. (Maj.-I;D.N.B.) 1:325, 338, 359.432.509
Hanuman also known as Maruti (Maruti), son of Marut (the Wind-god) by Aiijana (wife of a monkey named Kesari). A celebrated divine monkey chief, Hanuman is a conspicuous figure in the Ramayana. He has great powers and abilities and is well known for his devotion and service to Rama. He is worshipped by the Hindus as a god, and temples dedicated to him are numerous. (Dow.;Enc.Br.) D 2:80 4:330 12:478 14:290 22:416 23:974 26:375 V: 15-16 VII: 5, 16
Hapsburg House of Hapsburg or Habsburg, also known as the House of Austria, one of the principal sovereign dynasties of Europe from the 15th to the 20th century. (Enc. Br.) 15:285
Hara a name of the Hindu god Shiva. n [Indexed with Shiv(a)']
Haradhan Haradhan Bakshi (1897-1962), a native of Chandernagore who served in World War I; his war experiences are recorded in the booklet The New Ways of Warfare. Attracted to Sri Aurobindo's yoga, he came to the Ashram in 1925. He died here in 1962. (Remini.) n 27:479, 493
Haradutta a character - a minister of acting, drama and opera entertained by the king - in Malavica and the King, Sri Aurobindo's incomplete translation of Kalidasa's play Mdlavikdgnimitram. Var: Horodutt(a) 8:135, 147-51, 153 X: 116, 127-30, 132, 134, 138-39
Hara-Gauri the biune body of Lord Shiva and his Spouse, Ishwara and Shakti, the right half male, the left half female. (A) Var: Haragauri 3:309 20:481
Harald a character - apparently an attendant - in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric. 6:473, 477-79, 522
Harbin a city in Sunkiang province of China, on the Sungari River. Its administration is independent of the province. It was unimportant until Russia was granted a concession in 1896 and built a modern section alongside the old Chinese town. Now Harbin is the major trade and communication centre of central Manchuria. (Col. Enc.) 27:123
Hardicnut a character - an earl - in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric. 6:473, 538-39, 542-45, 557
Hardie, Keir James Keir Hardie (1856-1915), Scottish labour leader, first to represent the workingmen in Parliament as an independent (1892), and first to lead the Labour party in the House of Commons (1906). In 1907 he visited East Bengal, where his private state- ments and conversations were misrepresented by correspondents to the English newspapers and agencies as seditious speeches. (Enc. Br.; N.S.I.) 1:143, 564-65, 573-75 2:286 4:206, 215.221
Hardinge, Lord Charles Hardinge (1858- 1944), 1st Baron of Penshurst, British diplomat and Viceroy and Governor General of India (1910-16). He improved British relations in India and was instrumental in securing India's support for Great Britain in World War I. During his ceremonial entry into the new capital of Delhi, on 23 December 1912, Lord Hardinge was grievously injured by a bomb thrown by revolutionaries. Sri Aurobindo, in his "Record of Yoga", made many solicitous references to the Viceroy's condition; he used his spiritual will (Aishwarya) to promote the healing of his wounds. (Enc. Br.; H.F.M.L; A & R, XXI: 123-24) a 27:465 XXI: 43, 46, 52, 55, 57, 59, 61, 63, 82, 85, 98
Hardy, Thomas (1840-1928), English novel- ist and poet. So violently were his novels, especially the last two, Tess of the D'Urbervilles (1891) and .We the Obscure (1895), denounced as books depicting indecency and immorality that Hardy wrote no more fiction, but devoted himself to poetry, which he had long preferred, becoming one of the foremost poets of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. (Col. Enc.) 0 9:2 26:233
Hare, Sir Lancelot (1851-1922), served in Bengal and Assam from 1873; member of the Viceroy's Council, 1905-06; officiating Lt. Governor of Bengal, 1906; Lt. Governor of East Bengal and Assam, 1906-11, where
Page 137
he continued, to a large extent, the stern measures adopted by his predecessor FULLER. (Gilbert, p. 51; H.F.M.L; S.F.F.) 1:135-36, 319, 321-22, 345, 362, 373, 482, 702 2:204 -
Hare Street a street in Calcutta, commencing now from 12, Strand Road (South). The offices of the Anglo-Indian paper Englishman were located on this street. (Guide; A) a 1:150, 155, 159-60, 186, 280-82, 331, 430, 521, 607 2:77, 151, 301, 345, 376 4:175, 215
Hari' "one who drives away (evils and suffering)" or "one who captivates (our mind)"; an epithet of Vishnu and of Krishna. [Indexed with Krishna, or Vishnu]
Hari2 a Hindu name sometimes used, like Rama and Shyama, to denote "the man on the street", 4:290
Haridas a sannyasin who was well known in Bengal probably for his ability to remain buried underground in Samadhi for quite a longtime. (A) 4:215
Haridrumata (the Gautama) Haridrumata, a Rishi, son of Haridrumata, a descendant of Gotama. He was the guru of Satyakama Jabala. (ChhandogyaUp.) VI: 157, 159
Harimohan the main character of a Bengali story "Swapna" (A Dream), written by Sri Aurobindo and published in Suprabhat in 1909-10. (A) 4:11-16
Harin(dranath) See Chattopadhyay, Harin(dranath)
Haripal a proposed character - a Rajput noble, general of the army of Edur; formerly in the service of the Gehelote Prince of Edur — mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. 7:739
Harischandra See "Devadatta;
Harischandra"
Haris(h)chandra twenty-eighth king of the Solar race, son ofTrishanku. Celebrated for his piety, justice and truthfulness, especially for his unswerving fidelity to the truth of the spoken word, he was put to a very severe test by the gods. Arranged through Vishwa- mitra, \t involved great suffering for him, his wife and his son. (Dow.) 4:306 16: 210 22:416 23:790 26: 351 III: 6
Harivansha the genealogy of Hari or Vishnu in a long poem of 16, 374 verses. A sort of appendix to the
Mahabharata but belonging to a much later period (c. 5th century), Harivamsa Purdna is in three parts: the first is introductory, giving particulars of the creation and dynasties; the second contains the life and activities of Krishna; and the third treats of, the future of the world and the corruptions of the Kaliyuga. (Dow.) a 13:13
Harkissen Lal (1864-1937), a barrister practising earlier at Dera Ismail Khan in Punjab, and at Lahore from 1913. Although politics was his chief interest outside his profession, Harkishen Lal played an important part in the world of business and finance. He floated, promoted or organized various companies, banks, and factories, establishing himself as a financial wizard. (D.N.B.) 2:215, 238 4:179, 231, 234-35, 237-38
Harkoos a character - an Ethiopian eunuch in Ibn Sawy's household - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora. a 7:561, 606, 609-10, 612-13, 616, 619, 635-36, 643-46
Harmsworth Trust; Hannsworth and Com- pany a firm belonging to or established by Alfred Charles William Harmsworth (1865-1922), Viscount Northcliffe, British journalist and publisher, who, with his brother, formed the world's largest news- paper empire - Daily Mail, Daily Mirror, Times, etc. (Enc. Br.) 1:553 2:121
Hamam Singh, Sir (1851- ? ), younger son of Maharaja Sir Randhir Singh of Kapurthala, and father of Sir Maharaj Singh. He became a Christian in 1875. In 1911 he was appointed member of the Punj ab Legislative Council. Var: Harram Singh (a misspelling) 1:171, 414
Harold, Earl a character in Chesterton's poem The Ballad of the White Horse. 9:318-19
Haroun (al Rasheed) a character - the Caliph in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. Historically, Haroun (c. 764-809) was the 5th and most famous Abbaside caliph (786-809) of Baghdad. He was a munificent patron of letters and of arts, and under him Baghdad was at its apogee. He became a great figure for the Arabs; many of the stories of The Arabian Nights involve him. (A; Col. Enc.) Var: Haroon (only at one place, on page 620) 7:561, 599, 620, 639, 665-66, 670-71, 687-705, 712, 714-15, 721-23, 726, 733-35
Harpies in Greek and Latin mythology, rapacious monsters with woman's head and body and bird's wings and claws. They were daughters of Electra, the sea nymph, and Thaumas. The Harpies served as ministers of divine vengeance. Sometimes they them- selves punished criminals such as Phineus whom they tortured for impiety; sometimes they caught criminals and handed them over to Erinyes
Page 138
(see Erinnyes)for punishment. (C.O.D.;N.C.C.H.) 3:487
Harram Singh See Harnam Singh, Sir
Harris a character in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard" 7:1028
Harris, F. Frank Harris (1856-1931), British- American journalist and man of letters best known for his autobiography. He knew many of the younger writers of the day, including Shaw and H. G. Wells, both of whom he later claimed to have discovered. His biography of Shaw came out in 1931. (Enc.Br.;
Col. Enc.) 9:548-49
Harris, Lord George Robert Canning (1851-1932), 4th Baron Harris, Under- secretary of State for India (June 1885- February 1886), and Governor of Bombay (1890-95). A great cricketer; he captained England's team and popularized cricket in India. D 2:307
Harrison, Frederic (1831-1923), English jurist, historian, and sociologist. He was the leader of English positivism and became the president of the English Positivist Committee. (Col. Enc.) D 2:171
Harrison Road an important road in central Calcutta. The name is now changed to Mahatma Gandhi Road. A house used by the members of Barin Ghose's revolutionary society was located on this road. o i: 345 3:469 4: 290, 302
Harsha Harshavardhana (c. 590-c. 647), ruler of a large North Indian empire, ex- tending from the hills of the north to the Narmada in the south and from Ganjam in the east to Valabhi in the west, with its capital at Kanauj. He was a generous emperor, and a Buddhist convert in a Hindu era. Himself a poet of no mean order who composed Nagananda, Ratnavali, and Priyadarsika, Harsha was also a patron of men of letters and learning like BANA and Mayura (a lyric poet). (Enc. Br.; DlI.H.) 3:262 14:306 1:26
Harvey, Gabriel (15457-1630), English poet and miscellaneous writer, university don, and friend of Edmund Spenser. (Enc. Br.) D 5:343, 347, 355, 361, 382
Harvey, Sir See Adamson, Sir Harvey
Haryata Pragatha (Haryata Pragatha), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Pragatha. 11:359
Hasheem the great-grandfather of Prophet Mohammad., 7:668
Hassan Imam Syed Hasan Imam (1871- 1933), nationalist Muslim of Patna (Bihar). In the beginning he was a staunch constiutionalist and was therefore opposed to the ideology of the Non-cooperation Movement. He presided over the Special Session of the Congress at Bombay in 1918. Towards the close of the 1920s there was a new turn in his life. He joined the Civil Disobedience Movement in 1930, adopted a simple, austere mode of living, and donned Khadi. (D.N.B.) 2:255
Hastinapur capital of Kauravas, for which the great battle of Mahabharata was waged. Its ruins are traceable near an old bed of the Ganga, about 57 miles northeast of Delhi (in the tehsil of Mawana of Meerut district in U.P.), and local tradition has preserved the name. (Dow.) Var: Hustina 3:192, 353 4:82-83 5:223, 319
Hastings, Warren (1732-1818), the first Governor-General of India (1774-85). Three years after his resignation and retirement to England, he was impeached on twenty charges. The trial continued for seven years, at the end of which he was acquitted of all the charges. (D.I.H.) 0 1:464 2:30 4: 141
Hastings Street in Calcutta, connecting Dalhousie Square and Strand Road. The name of the street has been changed to Kiran Shankar Roy Road. 27:40
Hatha(yoga) certain stages of the Astanga Yoga of Patanjali, notably the breathing exercises and sitting postures, which became, in the course of time, an end in themselves. It is a yoga of "violence" (a sense involved in the literal meaning of "hatha"), which stresses complicated bodily arrangements, among others, for therapeutic purposes. (Enc. Br.) Der: Hathayogic; Hathayogin (or Hatha-yogin) a 3:366, 402-06, 408-09 4:298 5:84 9:150 12:201 13:7, 112, 114 16: 7, 399, 413 18:259-60 20: 3, 28-32, 36, 44, 498, 506-14, 516, 520 21:546, 583-86, 668, 704 22:3, 78 23:952 24:1177, 1236, 1527 26:112, 139, 353 V: 82 XIV: 154 XIX: 60, 73, 77
Hathayoga Pradipika title of a book on Hathayoga by Svatmarama. 26:113
Havell E. B. Havell (1861-1934), a leading authority on Indian art. An Englishman, he came to India in 1884 to take charge of the Government School of Art in Madras, and worked as its superintendent up to 1892.
Page 139
From 1896 to 1906 he was principal of the Government School of Art in Calcutta, the premier art institution in the country. He left India in 1907. The artistic renaissance of India owes a great deal to him. He was one of the strongest critics of Ravi Varma's paintings. (A.H.I.; S.F.F.) 14:47, 196, 198, 201, 236 17:181, 276 XIII: 47
Havirdhana Angi aVedicRishi. a 11:392
Hayagriva (Hayagriva), in northern Buddhism, a fierce protective deity, usually shown with a horse's head in its hair; among Buddhists in India Hayagriva is identified as an assistant of Bodhisattwa Avalokitesvara, and as the god of fire. In Hindu mythology, Hayagriva is both the name of a demon and the form (human, with the head of a horse) taken by the god Vishnu to subdue the demon. (Enc. Br.) a 22:192 26:92
Hebe in Greek mythology, goddess of youth, daughter of Zeus and Hera. She was the cup-bearer of the Olympian gods and the personal attendant of Hera. (Col. Enc.) D 5: 158 7:1071
Hebrew Israelite, Jew; language of the ancient Hebrews; of Hebrew, of the Jews;
modern Hebrew (official language of Israel, and widely used by Jews all over the world). (C. 0. D.; Pears) Der: Hebraic (of Hebrew or the Hebrews); Hebraism (Hebrew system of thought or religion; the attitude towards life which subordinates all other ideals to those of conduct, obedience, and ethical purpose. It is opposed to the Hellenistic conception of life which subordinates everything to the intellect.) (C.O.D.; H.L.) 1:576 9:382, 549 10:449, 547 12:192, 539 13:53 14:59 15:15, 86 17:341 18: 51 21: 541 22:363
Hebrides group of more than 500 islands off western and northwestern Scotland. Less than a fifth are inhabited. (Col. Enc.) n 9:162, 276 29:815 111:28
Hecate in Greek mythology, mysterious moon-goddess, daughter of the Titan Coeus. Hecate was Persephone's attendant in the underworld, where she had the power to conjure up phantoms, dreams, and the spirits of the dead; in this aspect she was the god- dess of ghosts, presiding over witchcraft and sorcery. (Col. Enc.) o 7:1060
Hector in Homer's Iliad, leader of the Trojans in the Trojan War until his death. He was the eldest son of Priam and Hecuba, and the bravest of the Trojan warriors. When Sri Aurobindo's [lion opens, he has
already been slain by Achilles in revenge for the death of Patroplus. (Col. Enc.; M. I.) 5: 416, 426-27, 431-32, 439, 450, 453, 474, 476, 478, 514, 516 9:317, 418 16:90
Hecuba in Greek legend, queen of Troy, and chief wife of Priam, to whom she bore Hector and 18 others of his 50 sons as well as several daughters. (M.I.) a 5:403, 414, 450, 452
Hedoya perhaps "Hadis" is meant, the words of Mohammad which next to the KORAN have the sanctity of Law. a 5:277
Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich (1770- 1831), German philosopher, who also wrote books on ethics, aesthetics, history, and religion. His interests were wide, and all were incorporated into his unified philo- sophical system whose thought influenced the development of Existentialism, Marxism, Positivism, and Analytical philosophy. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) Der: Hegelian a 4:44 9:381, 547 15:34 22:159 26:223 IV: 157 XIV: 127, 164 XVII: 37 XVIII: 155
Heimir possibly, the name of a figure in Norse mythology, n 7:887
Heine, Heinrich (1797-1856), German poet and author. His lyrics and ballads are recognised as among the finest in world literature. His essays on German literary, political and philosophical thought contain remarkable and frequently prophetic insight. (Col. Enc.;Enc.W.B.) 9:49, 100, 192 17:87 11:8
Helen(a) in Greek legend, the most beautiful of all women. She was the daughter of Leda and Zeus, who came to Leda as a swan. Helen was therefore born from an egg. Leda's husband, Tyndareos (king of Sparta), was thus Helen's foster father. As there were many suitors for Helen's hand, Tyndareos had each of them take an oath swearing to come when needed to the aid of the man chosen as her husband. The man who came to be chosen was Menelaus. When Paris, aided by Aphrodite, whom he had awarded the Apple of Discord, abducted Helen to Troy and there made her his wife, those Greek princes waged a war to recover Helen and avenge Menelaus. This was the Trojan War, the subject of Homer's Iliad and of countless later legends. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) a 5: 350, 405-06, 414, 434-35, 439-40, 448-50, 452-53, 455, 465, 473, 475, 478, 480-81, 501, 595 7:578, 825, 876 10:26, 34, 153 14:192 11:20 XV: 41 XVII: 44
Page 140
Helenus in Greek legend, a son of Priam; a warrior and prophet. (M.I.) n 5:461, 513 VI: 135
Helen (Woodward) a character participating in "A Dialogue", written by Sri Aurobindo around 1891. (A & R, II: 91) a 11:5, 7-9
Helios in Greek religion, the sun-god; son of the Titans Hyperion and Theia. He is conceived as leaving his magnificent palace in the east every morning in a golden chariot drawn by four immortal horses and travers- ing the sky to another palace in the west. In later times, as in Ilion, Apollo was frequent- . ly identified with Helios. But generally Helios represented the sun in its material or diurnal aspects and Apollo represented it in its spiritual aspects. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) Var: Haelios a 5:467 8:409 10:41, 119 11: 468 12: 371 XIV: 125 XV: 19 XVI: 137
Hellas In the Greek language Greece is known as Hellas or Ellas. Originally the term was confined to Phthia, a district in southern Thessaly, to which it sometimes refers in Sri Aurobindo's//i'o/i. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) D 1:576 5:392-93, 402-03, 405, 407-08, 414, 419, 421, 427, 434, 467-68, 470, 475, 478, 480, 488, 514-19 6:68 14:367 15:91, 345 17:83 VI:134
Hellene(s) the name, originally, of a tribe which settled in the southeast of Thessaly; it later developed into the national name of the Greeks. The Hellenes traced their descent to Hellen, grandson of Prometheus. In Ilion, the word usually describes Achilles and his men, who came from Phthia. "Hellenism" is a Greek idiom or construction, imitation of the Greeks, Greek nationality and Greek culture. It is the culture, ideals, and pattern of life of ancient Greece in classical times. The term is also used to apply to the ideals of later thinkers who draw their inspiration from ancient Greece. Frequently it is contrasted with Hebraism; then Hellenism means pagan joy, freedom, and love of life as contrasted with the more serious and even gloomy ethic of the Old Testament. A Hellenist is one who used the Greek language although not a Greek. (Col. Enc.; C.O.D) Der: Hellenic; Hellenism;
Hellenise(d); Hellenising; Hellenist; Hellenistic D 1:506, 520, 576, 769 3:10, 199 5:28, 397, 402-03, 405, 407, 414, 428, 431, 434, 438, 440, 459, 463-68, 472, 474, 486-87, 491, 497, 500, 513-17, 519 6:1 9:63, 77, 99, 245, 410 10:25 12:216 14:204, 206, 214, 222, 228-29, 233, 366, 376, 392, 428 15:68-69, 86, 90-91, 115-16, 287, 345, 648 16:275, 310 17.: 276, 303 19:731.1051 27:148, 153 11:11, 15-16 VI: 134-35 VIII: 172 XVII: 38
Hellene-Asiatic culture Asiatic culture as influenced by the culture of the ancient Greeks, a i: 28
Hellespont narrow strait separating Europe from Asia at the final exit of the waters of the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara into the Aegean; it is now called the Darda- nelles. (M.I) D 5: 402. 417 XX: 134
Helots a class of serfs in ancient Sparta; serfs. (C.O.D) n 1:12
Helps, Sir Arthur (1813-75). English author who acquired popularity by his Friends in Council (four series, 1847-59), dialogues on ethical and aesthetic questions. He also wrote dramas, a novel and Brevia (short essays, 1871) (Ox. Comp.) n III: 14
Helvetian of Helvetia, short form of Con- foederatio Helvetia (the Latin name of Switzerland). (Col. Enc.) a 15:410
Hemchandra' or Hem Babu, son of Visvas, the Reception Officer at Srinagar about 1903, who one day accompanied Sri Aurobindo in a boat on the Dal Lake in Kashmir. (A) a IV: 194
Hemchandra2 See Banerji, Hemchandra
Hemendra Prasad See Ghose, Hemendra Prasad
Henry IV (1553-1610), first Bourbon king of France (1589-1610). He brought unity and prosperity to his country after the Wars of Religion. (Enc. Br.) D 15:357
Henry, King This may mean any of the following four characters in Shakespeare's plays: King Henry the Fourth, King Henry the Fifth, King Henry the Sixth, and King Henry the Eighth, n 12:38
Henry, Sir See Cotton, Henry
Henry the Eighth Henry VIII of England (1491-1547), one of the strongest and least respected of English monarchs (1509-47); he presided over the beginnings of the English Reformation. (Enc. Br.) D 4:99
Hephaestus in Greek religion, an Olympian god, son of Zeus and Hera. In earlier leg- ends he was the husband of Charis; later, he was called the husband of Aphrodite. Hephaestus was the god of fire, especially of the smithy fire - the maker of Zeus' thunder- bolts, Achilles' armour and Agamemnon's sceptre; the divine artificer and god of craftsmen. He is usually depicted as lame (craftsmen in ancient times were usually the handicapped who were unable to fight).
Page 141
(Col. Enc.; M.I.)Var: Hephaistos a 3:65 5:447, 450, 495, 499, 507-08 11:3 II: 7 XIV: 126 XV: 15
Hera in Greek religion, daughter of the Titans Cronus and Rhea and queen of the Olympian gods. She was wife and sister of Zeus to whom she bore Hephaestus and Ares. She is identified with the Roman Juno. According to tradition, Hera was hostile to Troy in the Trojan War because Paris did not judge her the most beautiful goddess. In Sri Aurobindo's llion, however, there is no allusion to this story and she appears as a sublime figure devoid of the passions of vanity and jealousy the Greek myths attribute to her. She works for the destruction of Troy because her will is one with that of Zeus. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) D 5: 394, 405, 417, 421, 436-37, 446, 450, 474, 494, 498-502, 505-06, 509
Heracles See Hercules
Heraclidae general name for the descendants of Heracles. The name is especially used in antiquity for Hyllus and his descendants, the leaders of the Dorian invasion of the Pelo- ponnesus. (Enc. Br.) n l: 220-21
Heraclitus (c. 535-c. 475 BC), Greek philosopher of Ephesus, of noble birth. According to him there is no permanent reality except the reality of change; permanence was an illusion of the senses. (Col. Enc.) a 13:37-38 16:335-39, 341-57, 359-71 18:285 20:482
Herbert, William (1580-1630), 3rd Earl of Pembroke, English patron of letters. (Col. Enc.) n 3:230
Hercules (Latin name of) the mightiest and most popular of Greek heroes; son of Zeus and Alemene. He was given twelve great labours after accomplishing which he would become immortal. One of the labours, re- ferred to in Sri Aurobindo's llion, was that of killing the Hydra. In llion reference is also made to a fight which Hercules had with the Centaurs who, maddened with wine, attacked him. Though his labours had won him immortality, Hercules died by burning himself on a pyre on Mt. Oeta to escape the torture caused by a garment smeared with the blood of a centaur he had slain with a poisoned arrow. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) Var: Heracles (Greek name) Der: Herculean n . 3: 84, 403 5:14, 498 6:129 7:844 10:
26 22:221 24:1359.1609 28:75 IV: 194 XVII: 44
Hermengild a character - a forest damsel - in Sri Aurobindo/s play The Witch of llni. Var: Ermenild a 7:1057, 1060, 1066, 1069
Hermes in Greek religion, an Olympian god, son of Zeus and Maia. He corresponds to the Roman Mercury and is remarkable for the variety of his functions. He was the god of commerce and trade, of cheats and thieves, of luck (and hence gamblers), of athletic contests, and of eloquence. He acted as messenger of gods, particularly Zeus, and as the conductor of souls to Hades. His at- tributes were: (1) a travelling-hat, in later times adorned with wings, (2) winged sandals, (3) herald's staff, whose white ribbons were later mistaken for serpents because he was herald of Hades. (Col. Enc.; Pears) a 3:270 6:91, 172 7:1008 8:410 10:119-20 11:468 X: 152 XVI: 179
Hemani a tragedy (English translation, 1830) by Victor Hugo, the stage production of which caused a riot between the classicists and the romanticists. (Col. Enc.) a 3:96
The Hero and the Nymph Sri Aurobindo's translation of Kalidasa's drama Vikra- morvasiyam. D [Indexed with Vikramorvasie]
Herod Herod the Great (c. 73-4 Be), who was ruling in Palestine at the time of Jesus' birth. At first governor of Galilee under the Romans, he obtained the title of King of Judaea in 37 BC. The Massacre of the Innocents reported in the New Testament is in keeping with his historical character: in his last years he became bloodthirsty. It was from him that the dynasty ruling in Palestine got its name, the Herods. (Pears; Col. Enc.) a 1:802
Heroides (Latin) = Heroines. The reference is to Epistulae Heroidum (Letters from Heroines), a series of clever, though in sum perhaps monotonous, dramatic soliloquies by Ovid. They are fictitious letters from ancient heroines to their absent husbands or lovers. (Enc. Br., Macro., Vol. 13, p. 798; A & R, XIII: 69) D XIII: 53
Herpe in Greek mythology, name of the divine sword of Athene, the goddess of Wisdom. (A) D 6:1, 68, 73, 130, 174
Herrenvolk a German word meaning "master. race"; a nation considered to be superior to others and so called to lead or rule them. In Nazi ideology it is applied to the German people. (Web.) a 26:396
Herreros Hereros or Ovahereros, members (about 60, 000 in number in 1974) of a tribe of Bantu Negroes living mainly in Namibia
Page 142
(Southwest Africa), which was formerly— from 1884 to 1920 - ruled by the Germans as one of their colonies called German South- west Africa. The Hereros are a linguistic group; their language belongs to the Bantu language family. (D.G.B.; D.K.A.; Enc. Br., Macro., Vol. 17, p. 302) a 15:44
Herschel (A mistake has obviously occurred here, for Herschel is a former name of the planet Uranus, given to it after its discoverer. This name was used in France occasionally until the middle of the 19th century.) Sri Aurobindo very probably means Neptune, discovered in 1846. (Enc. Br.) a 17:259
Hertha a character - Swegn's wife - in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric. a 6:473, 477, 479-81, 483-87, 489, 495-98, 503-04, 512-21, 526, 542, 546, 549-51, 553, 555
Hertha title of one of Swinburne's "Songs before Sunrise". In it he gives voice to his religious unorthodoxy, and sings of the emancipation of the soul under the influence of Hertha, the earth-goddess, the spirit of life. (Ox. Comp.) o 26:265
Herzegovina one (the more southern) of the two component regions of "Bosina and Herzegovina", now an autonomous republic of North Yugoslavia. (Col. Enc.) a 15:367
Hesiod (fl. c. 8th cent. Be), one of the earliest Greek poets, and the first to incorporate a set of instructions poetically. So little is known of Hesiod that some scholars have denied his existence. His most famous poem is didactic, containing advice for his brother and maxims for farmers to pursue. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 0 9:32 16:349
Hesper(us) the name by which the Greeks called Venus as the Evening Star. The Latin name was Vesper. Hesperus was represented as leading the other stars out into the sky. In Greek mythology, Hesperus was the father of the Hesperides (nymphs). In a garden on the enchanted island in the western sea, he guarded a tree which bore golden apples. The word "Hesperian" has come to mean "western". (Col. Enc.; C.O.D) Der: Hesperian a 5:179.399, 419
Hie Jacet title of a poem by Sri Aurobindo, written in 1890-92. "Hie jacet" is a Latin phrase meaning "here lies". (A; C.O.D.) 0 4:pre. 26:6
Higgins, John captain of the ship named S.S. Mauretania. (A) a 22:423
Hildebrand Saint Gregory VII (1020-85), an Italian (Ildeb, rando), pope from 1073 to 1085. He was one of the greatest of popes, setting an irreproachable example and en- forcing the law of the Church with unanswerable authority. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a 17:163
Hillus in Sri Aurobindo's epic poem Ilion, a Greek warrior. Possibly from northern Greece, he is described as "fair". He is killed by Surenas. (M.I) a 5:516
Himalaya(s) in some Indian languages also called Himacala, "mountain of snow", (Himadri and Tusaradri - Sanskrit equivalents used in poetry); a system of high mountain ranges north of India, portions of which remain covered with snow all through the year. Its sombreness, dignity, and magnitude led the Hindus to consider it the abode of gods. In their mythology it is personified as the king of mountains (see next entry). (D.I.H) Var: Himalay; Himaloy Der:
Himalayan 1:797, 815, 843 2:9, 174 3:105, 121, 271, 299, 315 5:52, 84, 192, 196, 221, 543 6:227, 265 7:741, 980, 986, 1008 8:52, 99, 101-02, 104-07, 110, 113, 115, 117, 122-23, 176, 210 9:373, 376 10:448 12:475 13:349 14:93, 185, 240, 270, 365 15:150 17:278 19:882 22:93 23:797 24:1388, 1734 26:136, 354, 407, 498 27:67, 143, 157 1:4, 20 V:79 VI: 127, 131 VIII: 188 IX:!, 2 X: 152, 163 XIII: 48 XIV: 117 XVI: 187 XVII: 43 XVIII: 138, 142
Himavan In Hindu mythology, the great mountain (the Himalayas) on the northern borders of India is personified and referred to as Himavana. He had a daughter named Uma (or Parvati) who was married to Lord Shiva. (Pur. Enc.) a XV: 20, 29
Hindi -the official language of India, as laid down in the 1950 Constitution. English also continued as an official language until 1965, and under the Official Language Act, 1963, may still be used in addition to Hindi. Hindi is an Indo-Aryan language of the Indo- European family, a modern descendant of Sanskrit. It is written in the Devanagari script. HINDUSTANI and URDU are its allied forms. There are close to 170 million speakers of Hindi/Urdu. (Pears, p. M44-45) a 1:226 4:147 9:341-42 14:186, 319 26:11-12, 290, 409-10 1:8 XIX: 30
(Hindi) Ramayana the story of the Ramayana retold in Hindi by TULSIDAS in his great epic Rdmacaritamdnasa. It is a mine of poetry, strong and beautiful thought and
Page 143
description and deep spiritual force and sweetness. It is so popular with all sections of the Hindus of northern India that it has been rightly called their Bible. (A; D.I.H.) n 14:319, 321
Hindu See Hindu(ism)
Hindu, The English daily newspaper originally published from Madras. It was founded as a weekly in 1878 by G. Subra- mania lyer and Veera Raghavachari and three other young men. Under the editorship of G. Subramania The Hindu soon became a leading paper. In 1883 it was turned into a tri-weekly and in 1888 into a daily. It con- tinues as a daily of outstanding merit, and is now also published from Coimbatore, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Madurai and Gurgaon. Sri Aurobindo used to read The Hindu regularly. (Enc. Ind.) a i: 192, 194, 434, 648, 819 26: 382 27: 417, 500 29: 735 X: 186 XV: 61
Hindu College See Presidency College
Hindu(ism) "Hinduism" comprises the beliefs, practices, and socio-religious institution of the peoples known as Hindus (principally the peoples of India and parts of Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Sikkim, but also communities in other parts of the world) that have evolved from Vedism. Hinduism constitutes a complex but largely continuous whole; and because it covers the whole of life, it has religious, social, economic, literary and artistic aspects. (Enc. Br.) Der: Hinduised a 1: 16, 48, 125, 140-41, 172, 209-13.216-18, 251-52, 285-87, 302, 312-15, 318-19, 321-22, 331-32, 336, 353-54, 358-59, 369-71, 373, 385, 402.430, 440, 481, 495. 512, 520, 526. 533, 536-38, 587, 608, 610, 631, 633, 644-45, 654, 705, 714, 729, 732-37, 755-56, 758-59, 769, 777, 799-801. 817, 842, 849, 879, 887 2: 1, 3-4, 7-10, 18-19, 23-24, 37-38, 40, 42-43, 51, 84, 88, 122, 181, 183, 226-28, 245-47, 251-52, 259-62, 264-65, 276, 278-79, 282, 293-94, 304, 309, 312, 331, 353-54, 377, 399, 404. 406, 423, 425-26 3:4, 30, 67, 77, 79, 81, 83, 85, 88-89, 93-94, 96, 99-101, 110-13, 120, 123-24. 163-64, 166, 171, 173-75, 177, 179-81, 188-90, 198-99.214-15, 223, 225, 237-38, 240, 246, 262, 265-66, 271. 291-96, 299, 302-07, 320, 323, 334-35, 343-44, 357-58, 362-63, 379-81, 387, 391-92, 422.433, 438, 461-63, 483-84 4: 15, 43, 53-54, 97, 128, 131, 147, 179-80, 183-85.193-94, 203, 206, 215, 217-18, 220, 222, 227-30, 242, 252, 260, 273, 301-02, 305-06, 317-19 5:258 8:327, 340 10:14, 30, 34, 42, 97, 102, 122, 269, 335, 562 11:456 12:12-13, 53, 56, 58, 98, 231.408, 447, 461, 503 13:43, 162 14:8, 11, 14, 17, 37, 46, 48, 73, 76-80, 88-92, 94, 106.122-25, 131, 136, 138.178, 181, 187-89, 205, 210, 223-24, 239, 241, 272, 308, 358-59, 379, 419, 427 15:9.151, 165.302.316, 424, 431-32
16:86, 98, 229.283, 324, 394, 401, 404-05 17:117, 169, 172, 181, 183, 212, 233, 238, 265, 267, 269-70, 276, 281, 306 20: 49, 58-59, 274 22:69, 139, 394, 402, 403-04, 486 23: 556-57, 563, 850 24:1656 25:228 26:22.40, 46, 126, 168, 352, 354.389, 402, 404, 411, 483 27:12, 20-22, 44, 46, 54, 98-99, 101, 106, 111, 124, 148-56, 158, 201, 204, 211, 213, 217, 220, 229-30, 235, 240, 242, 246-47, 249, 291, 294, 311, 354, 422, 446-48, 496 I: 8.25, 27, 31, 41-42, 48-50, 57-58, 76 II: 6, 58-59 III: 16, 19, 22, 68-69 IV: 157-60, 195 V:2, 63, 67, 69.71, 95.97 VI:155, 158, 163. 173, 179, 195. 200 VIII: 169, 187. 189-90, 194-95 IX: 26, 28-31. 33, 46 X: 141-45, 147-48, 153-54, 160-63 XIII: 24, 30, 35, 37-38 XIV: 116- 18, 125-26, 131, 141, 145, 149.152-53, 160, 163 XV: 3, 7, 12, 21, 25. 29, 32.40 XVI: 133-35, 139, 143. 180-81, 190 XVII: 23-25, 27-30, 34-35 XVIII: 160, 165 XIX: 21
Hindu Kush mountain system in central Asia, lying mainly in northeastern Afghani- stan and extending east to Pakistan and Kashmir. (Col. Enc.) a 17:180 XIV: 120
Hindu Marriages (Validity) Bill a bill introduced by Vithalbhai Patel in the Imperial Legislative Council on 5 September 1918. Its purpose was to provide legal sanction to marriages between Hindus of different castes. The bill was condemned by the orthodox and considered inadequate by reformers. (A & R, XVI: 196) a XVI: 190
Hindu Punch a journal edited by Bhide, a lawyer of Poona. It had to stop publication in 1909 as the result of a defamation suit filed against it by Gokhale. (A) 1-1 4:222, 230
(Hindu) Patriot English daily (weekly up to June 6, 1892) of Calcutta, founded in 1853 by Girish Chunder Ghosh who was also the editor. Later it was edited by Hurrish Chunder Mukherjee and also by Kristodas Pal. The paper was the exponent of the most pale and watery school of "patriotism". (Cal. Lib.; D.I.H. ; A) D 1:174, 180, 340-41, 394-96, 440 2:242
Hindu Sabha later known as Hindu Maha- sabha, an organized body of the Hindus, founded in 1906 to provide and protect everything that contributed to the strength and glory of the Hindu race. It sought to establish a democratic State in Hindustan
Page 144
based on the culture and traditions of the land. (Enc. Ind.) 0 2:259-60, 262, 276 4:179, 217
Hindu Spiritual Magazine a periodical started and edited by Shishir Kumar Ghose after his conversion to Vaishnavism (1893). In this periodical he chronicled the visitations among men of the spirit with whom he communed while living in religious seclusion at BAIDYANATH. (D.N.B.) o 4:252
Hindustan a nationalist journal of Punjab, edited by Lala Dinanath. (P.T.I.) D 1:433
Hindustani (language) term used for the lingua franca of India (Hindustan) before partition (1947). It was Gilchrist who in- vented the name Hindustani. Two literary languages arose from colloquial Hindustani (Khari Boli): Hindi, showing a strong Sanskrit influence, and Urdu, with a heavily Persianised vocabulary. Hindi is now the national language of India, and Urdu is the official language of Pakistan. (Enc. Br.) a 2:359 8:331 12:55 26:1, 5 11:87 XVII: 66
Hindustan Standard English daily of Calcutta founded in 1937 by Satyendranath Majumdar and edited by Dhirendranath Sen. (Cal. Lib.;S.F.F.) a 1:906 26:60, 377 XVI: 193
Hippias (Here there has been a misreading of the manuscript: the text actually reads "the author of the Hippias", not "the authority of the Hippias".) The Hippias Major and the Hippias Minor are two of Plato's shorter dialogues, both of which depict Hippias ofElis, the Sophist philosopher, who flourished in the 5th century BC. The reference here (3: 3) is probably to the Hippias Minor, in which Plato deals with the paradox "wrong-doing is involuntary". In the Hippias Major he discusses the question "What is the fine (or beautiful)?" (O.C1.D., p. 429; Enc. Br., Macro., Vol. 14, p. 534) 3:3
Hippocrates (c. 460 - c. 377 BC) , Greek physician of antiquity who is traditionally regarded as the father of medicine. (Enc. Br.) a 17:127
Hippocrene in Greek mythology, the fountain on Mount Helicon (a range of lofty mountains in Boeotia) sacred to the Muses, having been produced by the stroke of Pegasus's hoof. See also Pegasus. (C.O.D.; Pears) 3:105 5:28 10:87
Hippogriff also spelled Hippogryph, a mythical monster with the body and hindquarters of a horse and the head and wings of a griffin. (Web.) D 29:765
Hiranyagarbha' 1. "the Golden Embryo" in Hindu cosmology; the name given to the golden-hued Egg
which floated on the surface of the primeval waters. In time the egg divided into two parts, the golden top half of the shell becoming the heavens and the silver lower half the earth. 2. "God imaginative and therefore creative"; the "Spirit in the middle or Dream State"; Lord of Dream-Life who takes from the ocean of subconsciously intelligent spiritual being the conscious psychic forces which He materializes or encases in various forms of gross living matter. (Enc.Br.;A) a 2:148-49 9:72 11:22 12:11, 15, 24, 47, 50, 369, 416, 430, 448, 467, 471, 506-07 20:325 22:256 24:1222 27:213 29: 681 1:40 III: 66
Hiranyagarbha2 the name of a person from whom Sri Aurobindo wanted, in 1913, to get a book through Motilal Roy of Chander- nagore. (A) n 27:437
Hiranyakashipu in Hindu mythology, a grandiosely mighty demoniac king, who obtained from Shiva the sovereignty of the three worlds for a million years. He persecuted his son Prahlada for worshipping Vishnu, employing various means to kill him, but all in vain. Ultimately he was slain by Vishnu in the Narasingha or man-lion incar- nation. (Dow.) D 5:84 12:408 17:142 24:1334 27:326 V:89 VI: 190 VII: 70
Hiranyanabha (Hiranyanabha), name of a Kausalya or Kosala prince who approached Rishi Pippalada in quest of knowledge. n 12:311
Hiranyapoor in Hindu mythology, a beautiful flying city built by Brahma at the request of the titaness Puloma. It was occupied and protected by her descendants. (M.N.) D 7:914
Hiranyaretas literally, "having golden seed" (i.e. sperm); a name ofAgni or Fire, of the Sun etc. (M.W.) D XIV: 126
Hiranyastupa Angirasa a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Angiras. Several hymns of the Rig-veda are ascribed to him. 10:193, 227
Hirsch an American scholar and scientist who, in Japan, had interminable quarrels with COUSINS on debatable points of English grammar. (A) a 9:462
History of Ancient Indian Civilisation a book by Romesh Chandra Dutt. The correct title is History of Civilization in Ancient India. It was published in 1899 in three volumes. (D.N.B.) a XIV: 127
History of English Literature English translation, published in 1871, of Taine's Histoire de la
Page 145
litterature anglaise (4 volumes, 1863-64). (Enc.Br.) o 1:15
History of Indian Literature very probably, A Literary History of India by FRAZER. a 3:180
Hitabadi a Bengali journal (daily) of Calcutta, edited by Panch Koti Banerji, which gave powerful support to the national movement. (Purani; H.F.M.L; S.F.F.) n 2:367-68 4:247
Hitaishi a nationalist Bengali journal published from Barisal (now in Bangla- desh). In 1905 it exhorted the Bengalis to imitate the example of the Chinese (who had been carrying on a successful campaign against American goods) in the boycott of foreign goods. (H.F.M.L; S.F.F.; N.S.I.; A) a 1:744
Hitler, Adolf (1889-1945), German dictator, founder and leader of the National Socialist (Nazi) Party. Hitler's accomplishment in the end was almost exclusively destructive. (Enc.Br.; Col. Enc.) a 5:110 9:456 15: 81, 329, 422 22:152-53, 492 23: 628 24:1294 26: 38-39, 168-69, 326, 346, 378, 388, 395-98
Hitopadesha "good advice", a well-known Sanskrit collection of ethical tales and fables compiled by Narayana in the 12th century from the larger and older work called Pancha-tantra, which was supposed to have been narrated by a Brahmin named Vishnusharman to some princes. Hitopadesha appears to be an independent treatment of the Panca-tantra material. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) n 14:306
Hittites an ancient people of Asia Minor and Syria who flourished from 2000 to 1200 BC. (Col. Enc.) n 6:154
Hobbs Sir John Berry, known as Jack Hobbs (1882-1963), the world's greatest cricket batsman of his time. He retired in 1934, and in 1953 he became the first cricketer to be knighted. (Enc.Br.) a 26:378
Hobhouse, Charles Edward Henry (1862-1941). Liberal M.P. (1892-95 and 1900-18); Under-Secretary of State for India (1907-08); Financial Secretary to the Treasury (1908-11); Chancellor, Duchy of Lancaster (1911-14); Postmaster-General (1914-15). He succeeded his father as Fourth Baronet (1916). (Wolpert, p. 278; Gilbert, p. 93) n 2:347
Hofer, Andreas (1767-1810), Austrian patriot, Tirolese military leader, and popular hero who fought Napoleonic France and Bavaria for two years (1809-10) in an attempt to keep his homeland under Austrian rule. He was finally captured, brought to Mantua, and on Napoleon's orders executed on 10 February 1810. (Enc. Br.) a 17: 384 III: 24
Hohenzollern(s) a dynasty prominent in European history, chiefly as the German princely family which ruled Brandenburg (1415-1918), Prussia (1525-1918), and Germany (1871-1918). (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 15:288, 356 27:347
Holdich, Sir Thomas probably a historian or journalist; author of The Gates of India (1910). n 1:394
Holinshed, Raphael (died c. 1580), English chronicler. Many Elizabethan dramatists drew plots for plays from his book Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland. Shakespeare used this book for his historical plays, especially Macbeth, King Lear, and part of Cymbeline. (Col. Enc.) a 4:284 9:426 27:80
Holkar family name of the Maratha rulers of Indore. The state was founded by Malhar Rao Holkar (1728-64), and the Holkar family continued to rule until the state's end as a separate entity after Indian independence in 1947. (Enc.Br.;D.LH.) 3:195
Holland formerly a part of the Holy Roman Empire and, from 1579 to 1795, the chief member of the United Provinces of the NETHERLANDS. Currently the name is popularly applied to the entire Netherlands. (Col. Enc.) a 9:47, 49 15:308, 328 111:28 XIII: 50
The Hollow Men an early poem by the American-English poet Thomas Steams Eliot, published in 1925. (Col. Enc.) D 5:373-74
Holy Alliance Originally the term meant an early nineteenth-century European alliance ostensibly formed for conserving religion, justice and peace, but used for repressing popular tendencies towards constitutional government. It was formed at Paris by Alexander I of Russia, Francis I of Austria, and Frederick William III of Prussia on 26 September 1815. Subsequently it was joined by all the sovereigns of Europe, except the Pope and the King of England. It ended after the 1830 revolution in France. (Pears, P.L56) 0 1:180 2:80 15:456, 627, 634
Page 146
Holy Office officially. Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office. In 1908 when the Roman Inquisition became an ordinary organ of papal government concerned with maintaining good order and good customs as well as purity of faith among Catholics, the word Inquisition was dropped, and the congregation charged with maintaining purity of faith came to be known officially as the Holy Office. (In 1965 it was renamed the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.) (Enc. Br.) n 12:486
Homer principal figure of ancient Greek literature, and the first European poet. Legends about Homer were numerous in ancient times. He was said to be blind, and seven different cities claimed him. Modern scholars generally agree that there was a poet named Homer, who lived before 700 BC, probably in Asia Minor, that he wrote for an aristocratic society, and that the Iliad and the Odyssey are each the product of one poet's work. (Col. Enc.) Der: Homeric 1:178, 245, 345, 395, 398 2:408 3:106, 142-43, 163, 187, 189, 217, 232, 235, 293, 338 4:252 5:346, 381 7:1015 8:409 9:30, 61, 76-77, 85, 149-50, 159, 190, 206, 225, 230, 245, 303, 310, 313-15, 318, 334, 339, 366, 368, 381. 387, 434, 477, 521-23 10:24, 41, 120 12:37 14: 65-66, 192, 236, 284 16:102, 358 17:68-69, 182 26:234-35, 254 27:86-90, 248 29:739, 814 1:27 11:8, 28 X: 112, 143 XI: 15 XIV: 166 XV: 8, 17, 19-20 XVI: 137-38 XVII: 26
Home Rule (Movement) the movement to secure internal autonomy for Ireland within the British Empire. The Home Government Association, calling for an Irish parliament, was formed in 1870 by Isaac Butt, a Protestant lawyer who popularized "Home Rule" as the movement's slogan. In 1873 the Home Rule League replaced the association and Butt's moderate leadership gave way to that of the aggressive Charles Stewart Parnell. (The Home Rule Bill in the British Parliament became law on September 18, 1914, but was inoperative for the duration of World War I; it was an anachronism in the postwar world of independence movements and never came into force.) (Enc. Br.) n 1:367 2:374, 393-94 4:213 15:307, 309, 413, 506 XXI: 60
Home Ruler(s) or Home Rule Party, members of the "Indian Home Rule Society" founded in London in February 1905 by Shyamji Krishnavarma with the object of securing Home Rule for India by carrying
on propaganda in the U.K. by all practical means. (S.F.F.-Krishnavarma) a 1:168 2:363 17:360
Honduras a small republic of Central America, having Tegucigalpa as its capital. (Col. Enc.) a 15:617
Honest John See Morley, John
Hooghly name of a district and its head- quarters in Burdwan division. West Bengal state (formerly the province of Bengal). The town of Hooghly is about twenty miles north of Calcutta, situated on the banks of the river Hooghly (a branch of the Ganga flowing into the Bay of Bengal). (Enc. Br.; S. Atlas) Var: Hughly; Hugly a 2:177-78, 186-88, 192-93, 196, 199-200, 206, 240, 242, 276, 295, 297, 316, 321, 325, 390 3:84-85 4:175, 179, 182, 185, 187, 189-92, 197-98, 204, 226, 241, 244 26:32, 35 XIV: 100, 102, 105
Hooshka a character - captain of the Scythian bodyguard - in Sri Aurobindo's plays Prince of Edur and The Prince of Mathura. (The latter seems to be a first incomplete version of the former.) Hooshka is not mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Prince of Edur. 7:780, 782-83, 791-94, 812, 891
Hopkins, Gerard Manley (1844-89), English poet, one of the most individual of Victorian writers. His poetry was largely unappreciated during his lifetime. (Enc. Br.) Der: Hopkinsian 9:410 26:255, 343-44
Horace (65-08 BC), Latin poet; one of the greatest of lyric poets. After the death of Virgil, Horace was the chief literary figure in Rome. He represents par excellence the spirit of the Augustan Age of Rome. (Col. Enc.) Der: Horatian 5:342, 346, 387, 562 9:407, 479, 546 22:304, 359 26:238, 257
Horodutt(a) See Haradutta
Horu Thakur popular name ("Horu" is the Bengali pronunciation of "Haru"; "Thakur", literally meaning "Lord", is an honorific) of Harekrishna Deerghangi (1738-1813), a renowned Kavial (a class of versifiers or poets of Bengal who used to compose and recite poems impromptu). Haru Thakur learnt composing from a weaver, and later became a professional Kavial. He had great influence in some royal courts. In his old age he severed his connection with the group of Ka vials and became the court-poet of Maha- raja Navakrishna Dev of Shovabazar Raj. His Sakhi-Samvdd and Premer Kavitd are outstanding among his works, o 8:277, 279
Page 147
Hottentot Khoisan people of southern Africa who formerly occupied the region near the Cape and called themselves Khoikhoin. Their traditional culture largely disappeared. The term is figuratively used for a person of inferior intellect or culture. (Enc. Br.; C.O.D.) 16:110 27:11
Hound of Heaven the most famous poem of Francis Thompson, included in his collection Poems (1893). Generally recognised as one of the finest poetic productions of Thomp-son's time, it describes the pursuit of the human soul by God. (Col. Enc.) 26:255, 258 29:797
Hour; Houri one of the beautiful maidens who await devout Muslims in paradise. There are numerous references to the "hours" in the Koran, describing them as "purified wives" and "spotless virgins". Tradition elaborated on the sensual image of the "hour" and defined some of her functions. (Enc. Br.) Der: Houridom 7:675, 683
House of Raghu See Raghuvamsha
Housman, A. E. Alfred Edward Housman (1859-1936), celebrated English poet and classical scholar whose lyrics express a Romantic pessimism in a spare, simple style. (Enc. Br.) 9:355, 447, 449, 472, 478-80, 483 22:177 26:88, 344-45 29:737, 815
Howard probably, John Howard (1726-90), British philanthropist, and reformer in the fields of penology and public health. (Enc. Br.) n 27:121
Howrah a city and district in Bengal (now in West Bengal state), on the west bank of the Hooghly River, opposite Calcutta, with which it is connected by the Howrah Bridge. The city of Howrah is now included within Greater Calcutta. (Enc. Br.) D 2:81 4:189, 291
Hriday(a) nephew of SRI RAMAKRISHNA. Hridaya served as his attendant during the period of his spiritual discipline, but later tormented him. The torment became so unbearable that at one point Sri Ramakrishna was about to commit suicide by jumping into the Ganga. Hridaya was expelled from the temple garden at Dakshineswar on account of certain activities which displeased the temple authorities. (Gospel) a 22:266 23:665 26:495
Hrishikesh(a) "master of the senses", an epithet of Krishna. D [Indexed with Krishna.]
Hubris or Hybris, in classical Greek ethical and religious thought, overweening presumption suggesting
impious disregard of the limits governing men's actions in an orderly universe. It is the sin to which the
great and gifted are most susceptible, and in Greek tragedy it is usually the basic flaw of the tragic hero. (Enc. Br.) a XV: 15
Hugh Abelard a character - one of the two male children of Stephen's grandfather - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard". o 7:1026, 1033
Hug(h)ly See Hooghly
Hugly College the college at Hooghly which Bankim Chandra joined after his school education at Midnapur. (A) 3:75-76
Hugo, Victor Victor Marie Vicomte Hugo (1802-85), French poet, dramatist and novelist. He was a towering figure in 19th- century French literature, and had great power to shape public opinion in France. (Col. Enc.) Der: Hugoesque 3:96, 263 9:96, 100, 313, 329, 372, 422, 521-22, 559-60 14:236 26:238, 270, 340 VI:198 X: 145
Hull a city and borough (until 1974, a county borough) in the county of Humber-side (until 1974 in the former Yorkshire), England. The medieval town grew up on a flat land west of the River Hull. Now Hull is a major national seaport and the largest fishing port in the United Kingdom. (Enc. Br.) 1:22
The Human Enigma a sonnet by Sri Aurobindo written in September 1939. (A) 26:317
Humber a character-King of Norway-in Sri Aurobindo's play The House of Brut. D 7:883, 885-88
Hume, ' David (1711-76), English philosopher, historian, economist, and essayist who conceived of philosophy as the inductive, experimental science of human nature. (Enc. Br.) n 26:223 XIV: 127, 164
Hume, 2 Allan Octavian (1829-1912), a member of the Indian Civil Service from 1849 to 1882. Even after retirement he continued to be interested in Indian affairs. He is regarded as one of the founders of the Indian National Congress (1885), and remained its general secretary for the first twenty-two years of its existence. (D.I.H.) Var: Allan Hume; A.O. Hume a 1:53-56. 529 26:17 27:3, 18, 35-36
Hun(a) The Huns were nomads from Central Asia who invaded and ravaged Europe in the 4th and 5th centuries and began their in roads into India in the 5th century AD. Later on the vanquished Huns settled
Page 148
in India and were Indianised and Hinduised. Many Rajput tribes are believed to have been Huns in origin. (D.I.H.) a 3:198 13:39 14: 367, 375-76 15:79
Hungary a landlocked country, now a Socialist republic, of central Europe, with Budapest as its capital. (Enc. Br.) a 15:512, 632
Husayn a character - a cook, creditor of Nureddene - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora. a 7:635-36
Hussan in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora, a companion of Nureddene. a 7:643
Hustina See Hastinapur
Hutashan "devourer of the sacrifice", an epithet of Agni. Var: Hutaashon D 5:238 27:158
Huxley', Thomas Henry (1825-95), eminent British scientist and humanist whose fame was worldwide. He is renowned for his defence of Darwinism which, however, he accepted with some reservations. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 1:283 3:459, 465 12:402 17:146 22:202 23:577 XIV:127
Huxley2, Aldous Leonard (1894-1963), English author, grandson of Thomas Henry Huxley. A friend and disciple of D. H. Lawrence, he wrote novels, essays, biographies, and travel books. In 1948 Aldous Huxley expressed his full support to the recommendation for the award of the Nobel Prize to Sri Aurobindo. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.; M.I., Aug.'65, p. 10) 9:522, 539 22:126 26:85
Hybia Hybia Minor, in ancient geography, a city on the east coast of Sicily, about twelve miles north of Syracuse. The celebrated Hyblaean honey, mentioned frequently by ancient poets, may have been produced in the vicinity. Hybia Minor is often confused with Hybia on Mt. Aetna, which is called Hybia Major. (N.C.C.H.) 7:1060
Hyde Park largest of the Royal Parks in London. It is in West London, between Bayswater Road and Kensington Road. (Enc. Br.; Pears) l- 7:1017
Hyder Reza, Syed a Nationalist leader, associate of Sri Aurobindo, Tilak and others; leader also of a section of the Muslim community which was altogether against the separate representation of Muslims on the councils. (A) Var: Haldar Reza (a misspelling) 1:329 2:246
Hymns to the Goddess a translation of some hymns, mostly from the Tantra, by Arthur and Ellen Avalon, published in 1913 by Ganesh & Co. (Madras) Ltd. a 17:267
Hymns to the Mystic Fire Volume 11 of the Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library (1972). It contains translations of most of the hymns to Agni from the Rig-veda ("translated in their esoteric sense"), together with a "Foreword" and an essay entitled . "The Doctrine of the Mystics". Two earlier editions of the book, with less material, came out in 1946 and 1952. (I & G) D 10:349
Hymn to the Mother See Bande Mataram
Hymn to the Naiads one of the later works (1746) of Akenside. (Enc. Br.) a 11:14
Hypatia (c. 370-415), Alexandrian Neo- platonic philosopher and mathematician, a woman renowned for learning, eloquence and beauty. Her fame is largely owing to her barbarous murder by a band of monks said to have been encouraged by the archbishop St. Cyril of Alexandria. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) n 17:169
Hyperion in Greek religion, a Titan; son of Uranus and Gaea; husband of his sister Theia; and father of Helios (sun-god), Selene (moon-goddess), and Eos (dawn-goddess). "Hyperion" is also an epithet of the Sun himself. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:410 7:1075 XIV:125
Hyperion an epic poem by John Keats written in 1818, and revised in 1819 with the title altered to The Fall of Hyperion: A Dream. (Enc. Br.) 9:74, 130-31, 521-22 26:267
Hyrtamus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Phthian warrior killed by Penthesilea. (M.I.) D 5:5i5
lago a character-Othello's "Ancient", a villain - in Shakespeare's tragedy Othello, the Moor of Venice. (Shakes.) Der: lagoistic 12:37.481 26:327 1:40, 42 lago,
Saint probably, the form given by Sri Aurobindo to the name "Santiago", which is the Spanish equivalent of the English "Saint James", 7:854, 873, 877 lamblichus a character - a forester - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Witch of lini". D 7:1057, 1059-60, 1066, 1069-72
Page 149
Ibbetson, Sir Denzil Sir Denzil Charles Jelf Ibbetson (1847-1908), English official in the I.C.S. from 1870. During the period 1870-83 he served in Punjab in many positions. Later he filled the posts of Secretary to the Government of India, Department of Revenue and Agriculture (1896-98), Chief Commissioner of the Central Provinces (1898-1902), Member of the Governor-General's Council (1902-05), and Lt. Governor of Punjab (1905-08). (S.F.F.; Wolpert, p. 247; Gilbert, p. 24fn.) i: 303,344,354,373, 391,400 27:51-52
Iberia the Iberian Peninsula consisting of the countries of Spain and Portugal. The region is named after the ancient people called Iberians who are believed to have migrated from Africa in the Neolithic period. (C.O.D.;Col. Enc.)
Der: Iberian 0 1:526 15:296 111:27-28
Iblis in Islam, the personal name of the Devil, probably derived from the Greek "diabolos". Iblis is the counterpart of the Jewish and Christian Satan. (Enc. Br.) n 7:580 13:163 27:263
Ibn Batata probably, Ibn Battiitah (1304-1368/69), the greatest medieval Arab traveller, author of one of the most famous travel books in history, the Rihiah. No other medieval traveller is known to have jour- neyed so extensively. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.)
Der: Ibn Batatist n 7:678,683,685
(Ibn) Sawy a character - Alzayni's chief Vizier - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora. Var: Alfazzal (Ibn Sawy) 7:561,563-68,577-89,592,595,601-03,607, 613-22, 625,630,653, 656,661,665,667-69,671, 707,724-28,731-33,735 .
Ibrahim, Shaikh a character — super- intendent of the Caliph's garden - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora. 7: 561, 673-86,688-89,694, 696-99,704-05,733
Ibrahim Alhashhash bin Fuzfuz bin Bierbiloon alSandilani. See Alhashhash.
Ibsen Henrik (Johan) Ibsen (1828-1906), Norwegian poet and playwright, creator of modern realistic drama, and one of the greatest dramatists of all time. (Enc. Br.) 9:49,105 14:200,236 15:485
Icelandic Sagas Icelanders' sagas, also called family sagas, are the class of heroic prose narratives written about the great families who lived in Iceland from AD 930 to 1030. They are a unique contribution to Western literature and are far in advance of any medieval literature in their realism, their controlled,
objective style, their powers of character delineation, and their over- whelming tragic dignity. (Enc. Br.) D XVII: 26
Ichalgurh' name of a place, perhaps imaginary, in Rajasthan, India. a 7:739, 743,746,762,784,787-88, 790, 795,797-99,802-04
Ichalgurh2 Rao of Ichalgurh. See Pratap, Rao of Ichalgurh
I.C.S. See Indian Civil Service.
Ida classical name of a mountain in north- west Asia Minor, southeast of the site of ancient Troy. It was a seat of Zeus, who directed the Trojan War from there. (M.I.) a 5:391,394,398,400,408-09,412, 414,418-20,422, 439,448,450,463, 468,470, 474-75,492,499-500,509,511 9:419
Idalie another name of Renee, a character. See Renee (Beauregard)
Idandra the true name of Indra according to Aitareya Upanishad. (A) 12:360 XVII: 33
Idas a character in the poem Marpessa by Stephen Phillips. In Greek mythology, Idas was son of Aphareus, and the twin brother of Lynceus. He was in love with Marpessa, whom he carried off in a chariot given him by Poseidon. The twins were finally killed in a battle with their rivals, the Dioscuri. (Pears) 9:184
The Ideal of Human Unity a book by Sri Aurobindo, first published in 1919. It was a reprint of the series of essays with the same title published in Arya. It also included a preface and some other articles from Arya. (I&G) 17:402 27:347
The Ideal of the Karmayogin compilation of some articles by Sri Aurobindo from the weekly magazine Karmayogin, first published in 1918. The reference here (26: 372) is to the fourth (revised) edition of 1937. (A) 2:pre. 26:372
"L'ldee nouvelle" or the "New Idea", a society started by Mirra (the Mother) and Sri Aurobindo in 1914 for the practice of Vedantic Yoga. It was really a continuation of the Mother's earlier Parisian group, "The Idea". Sri Aurobindo, Mirra, and Richard were all actively interested in this new society. It had its headquarters in Pondicherry, and a branch at Karikal. (A; Mother-1) 17:403 27:454,457
Page 150
Idomeneus a legendary Cretan king. Though an old man, he led the Cretan contingent to the Trojan War. He was of Minos's race and one of Helen's suitors. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5: 475,477-78,486.491
Idylls of Earth and Heaven title of a work, possibly a collection of occult tales and so an alternative title for Idylls of the Occult. The story "The Phantom Hour" may have been written as part of this proposed collection. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Idylls of the King series of connected poems by Tennyson, published between 1842 and 1885 (the majority appearing in 1859), broadly surveying the legend of King Arthur. (Enc. Br.) 9:63,136,456
Idylls of the Occult See Idylls of Earth and Heaven
Ijjat Pasha name of a Turkish leader living about 1913. XXII: 126
Ikbal Sufas perhaps an Assyrian name, mentioned by Sri Aurobindo in a dramatic fragment, 7:1088
Ikshvaku son of the Manu Vaivasvata, who was son of Vivasvat, the Sun. Ikshvaku was the founder of the Solar race of kings and reigned in Ayodhya at the beginning of the Treta Yuga. The Ikshvakus were a people, probably inhabiting either the valley of the upper Ganga (the BHAGIRATHIE), or a region in the northwest. (Dow.) Var: Ikshwacou;
Ixvaacou; Ixvacou 3: 164, 173, 190,193 5:226,319 8:5,23.39.88 13:137 VI: 155
Ila in the Veda, goddess of revelation; one of the five powers of the Truth-Consciousness - "the strong primal Word of Truth who gives us its active vision" (11: 32). In the Puranas, Ila is the daughter of Manu (Human Mind). Manu Vaivasvata instituted a sacrifice to Mitra and Varuna for the purpose of obtaining a son; but the officiating priest mismanaged the performance and the result was the birth of a daughter, Ila. Through the favour of the two deities, however, her sex was changed and she became a man, Sudyumna. Under the male- diction of Shiva, Sudyumna was again turned in to a woman and, as Ila, married BUDHA, and gave birth to Pururavas, thus becoming the mother of the Lunar dynasty. After that, by the grace of Vishnu, she once again became Sudyumna and was the father of three sons. (A;Dow.;I&G) D 3:270 5:204,206,216,218,223,225-27 7:909 8:39 10:34,68,89-91, 203, 304,312,374,377 11:32, 83,89,118,212,494 X:152 XIV: 110 XV:29 XVII: 51,53
Ilbert Bill a bill sponsored in 1883 by Sir C. P. Ilbert, the Law Member of the Viceroy's Executive
Council. It sought to remove racial distinctions in India by enabling judges and magistrates who were Indian by birth to try Europeans, contrary to the provision of the Criminal Procedure Code of 1873 which had enacted that Europeans could be tried only by European judges and magistrates, except in Presidency towns where they could be tried by Indian magistrates and judges. The Anglo-Indian community carried on so great an agitation against the bill that the Government made some alterations in it, so that the - racial distinction that the Government wanted to remove not only continued but was extended to Presidency towns. The Ilbert Bill agitation aroused nationalist sentiment throughout the country. (D.I.H.; B.P.P., p. 40) n 4:196
Iliad Greek epic in 24 books, attributed to Homer. The poem tells the story of the wrath of Achilles and its disastrous con- sequences in the Trojan War. The opening lines of the Iliad were translated by Sri Aurobindo into English hexameters during his stay at Baroda. (Enc. Br.; A & R, 11:93)0 3:142-43,174,188,266,338 5:145 9:61,225,523 14:257 16:102 17:68-69 22:414 11:26 IV: 161 X: 148 XI: 15 XVI: 182
Ilian' in Hindu mythology, a descendant of ILA, specifically PURURAVAS, grandson of the Moon; hence the race is more commonly known as the Lunar race (see Lunar Dynas- ty). (Dow.;A) n 3:190,268 5:201-02, 211,217.222-23 7:913,916,994 8:39 27:152 X: 150, 167
Ilian2 of Ilium (or llion) (M.I.) o 5:382. 392, 398,400,402,404,407,414,432,441-42,444, 447,459,463,483 7:853 VI: 135
llion or Ilium, a name of Troy as the city of ILUS. (M.I.) a 3:186 5:391-92,394-97,- 399, 401, 404, 408, 410, 412-15, 419-20, 422, 424-25, 427-28, 430, 432-35, 439-40, 442,461,465, 468,470,479,483,485,487,497,514 29:803 IV: 114
llion a poem by Sri Aurobindo; it is an unfinished epic in quantitative hexameters on a Homeric theme. The poem was "commenced in jail in 1909". Sri Aurobindo devoted much time to it between 1910 (the year he came to Pondicherry) and 1915, when he abandoned it. He again took it up in 1942, when a portion was revised for publication in Collected Poems and Plays. It was not until 1957 that a full version of the
Page 151
poem, to the extent that it was completed by Sri Aurobindo, was published. (I&G) a 5:404 9:418 26:187 11:32-34 XXII: 164, 171
Iliones in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Trojan senator. (M.I.) a 5:412
Ilium See Ilion
The Illustrated Weekly of India English weekly magazine published from Bombay. It was started in January 1929 under the title The Times of India Illustrated Weekly, but in February of the same year the title was changed to the current form. (Cal. Lib.) n 26:344
Illyrian of the ancient country Illyria, a large, vaguely denned region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula north of Greece. It was occupied by tribes speaking an Indo-European language. (M.I.) n 5:419,435
lini name of an imaginary region containing woodlands. (A) n 7:1057,1059,1075
Ilus in Greek legend, a Trojan king, son of Dardanus (in another version, ofTros) and ancestor of Priam. He was one of the chief builders of Troy, which was named Ilion or Ilium after him. (M.I.) o 5:397-99,408, 410, 412, 416,418,420,422-23,425,427-28,434, 464,467
Imogen (Maynard) a character - Sturge's sister - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Phantom Hour", a 7:1017,1019,1024
Independent a sect of English Christians in the 16th and 17th centuries who wished to separate from the Church of England and form independent local churches composed only of Christian believers. They eventually became known as Congregationalists. (Enc.Br.) 1-1 15:14
Independent', The an English journal edited by Bepin Chandra Pal, perhaps the one launched by Motilal Nehru at Lucknow in 1919. (A;S.F.F.,p.l020) 17:364
Independent1 a Pondicherry paper whose sub-editor (c. 1913) was R. S. SHARMA. (A) 27: 431
Independent Labour Party British political party founded in 1893. See also Labour (Party), n 1:574 2:237
India1 official organ of the British Committee of the Indian National Congress in London, first published in 1890 with William Digby as editor. It was irregularly issued till 1892 when it became a monthly, and from 1898 to 1921 it came out as a weekly. (Enc. Ind.) 1:132,172,386 2:53
India2 a Tamil nationalist weekly started in Madras under the editorship of M. Srinivas Aiyengar. When He was jailed for sedition in 1908, three of those connected with the paper, the proprietor Thirumalachari, his cousin Srinivas Acharya, and the writer Subramania Bharati, decided to move their press to Pondicherry, where India was regis- tered in October 1908. The next month the proprietorship was transferred to Srinivas Acharya. The paper was discontinued in April 1910. (A;Auro-I) a 26:390 27:501
India3 Urdu weekly started by Lala Pindi Dass in 1907 at Gujranwala (in Punjab, now in Pakistan). A special feature of this weekly was a series of articles entitled "Shiva Sham- bhoo ka Chittha". (D.N.B.-III, p. 381) D 1:433
India House a mess-cum-lodge established in 1905 at 65 Cromwell Road, Highgate, London, by a Gujarati scholar-revolutionary- philanthropist Shyamji Krishnavarma, a barrister settled in London. India House became a centre of nationalist activities. As these activities increased, the lodgers began to be followed by British Intelligence agents. In 1907, when KRISHNAVARMA left for Paris, he handed over the management of India House to V. D. Savarkar. (V.V.S., pp. 13 and 15) a 2:121
Indian Association the association established in July 1876 by advanced members of the Calcutta middle class of Hindus with the idea of eventually bringing all India upon a common political platform. Surendra Nath Banerji was a very active member of this association. (G.M.I., p. 264) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Indian Civil Service or I.C.S. Composed of the higher administrative officials in British India, the I.C.S. owed its early organization to Warren Hastings, Governor-General of India from 1774 to 1785. Recruitment was by a highly competitive examination conducted for London applicants by the British Civil Service Commission and in India by the Federal Public Service Commission. After India became independent, a new service known as the Indian Administrative Service took the place of the I.C.S. (Enc.Br.) 1:132,524,578 4:pre. 17:368 26:3-4, 10,351 27:3 11:88-89 XVII: 66,73
(Indian) Daily News English daily of Calcutta, founded in 1864, and later purchased and edited by James Wilson. It was, according to Sri Aurobindo, an
Page 152
"Anglo-Indian Sir Oracle" (1:455). From 1925 it was incorporated with Forward founded by C. R. Das. (Cal. Lib.; A) 1:393,455-57 2:216,247,291-92,331,356, 376 4:199,238
Indian Field a journal edited by Kishori Chand Mitra during the early days of Bankim's literary career. NARENDRA NATH SEN was also on the staff for some time. (A;D.N.B.) 27:351
Indian Majlis an association of Indian students at Cambridge, of which Sri Aurobindo was a member and for some time the secretary. It was started during his stay at Cambridge. It played an important role in the social life of Indian students in England and very often moulded their political outlook. (Purani) '. n 26:4,10 (Indian) Mirror English daily of Calcutta; "a Government journal masking under the disguise of an Indian daily" (1:180). It was founded in 1861 as a fortnightly paper by Manmohan Ghose with financial assistance from Debendranath Tagore. In 1863 it was edited by Narendra Nath Sen, who became its sole proprietor in 1870. In 1876 the paper was converted into a daily by Keshab Chandra Sen. (Note: There was a British paper, the Daily Mirror, founded in 1903 by Alfred Harmsworth. It may be that "Mirror" on p. 155 of Vol. 1 refers to this Daily Mirror.) (Enc. Ind.) n 1:96,137,140-41, 150-51,155-56,159,174,179-81,185,192,194, 234,256,268,278,280,283,295,303,345,409-10, 430 2:242 27:58
(Indian) Nation English weekly edited by N. N. Ghose. It was opposed to the national movement in its most vital features. (A) 1:244-45,255-56, 264,268,282-83,407,410, 430,505-06.518,540 2:242
Indian National Congress or I.N.C., also called Congress Party, a broadly based political party that dominated the Indian movement for independence from Great Britain and formed India's government in the years after 1946. The Indian National Congress was founded in 1885 by A. 0. Hume, a retired English member of the I.C.S. The earlier objective of the Congress was to get a few more posts for the Indians in the services and thus a greater share in the administration of the country. (Enc. Br.;
Enc. Ind.) [Note: After 1969 the Congress split into a number of factions. Of them the most active and powerful today is the Congress (I), "I" standing for Indira Gandhi, who organized it. The word "Congress" is sometimes-also used loosely for the party's annual session.] Der: Congressmen a i: 3, 5-22,35,41-43, 46,55, 58, 85, 88, 91,118-19,121, 134,138,140-42,145,152,154-55,157-59,161, 166-69,171,173,176,181-83,185,191-97,200-04, 207,222-24,228,232,242, 246-47,317, 347, 360, 376, 387-88,428,437-38,496, 503, 523,569-72, 583-85, 587-91, 593-94, 597-98,610,617-19,623,
626,636-44,646-51, 746-48, 773-76,780-89, 819-20,822-26,830-33,838-41, 850-51, 858, 864-69, 878, 890-93, 895-99,906-07 2:75-76, 101-03,128-31,133,160-61,170,175-79,187, 190-91,197-98,201, 205-07, 215, 220-22,225,237, 259, 276,295-97, 303, 305-07, 314-16,320-24, 329-30,332,362,372,434 3:100 4:175, 178-79,183-87,190-91,193,199-203, 225-26,228, 231-32,237,239-40.278,283,323 17: 351,355, 358-59, 367-68 26:13,15,17,20,24-29,31, 35, 37, 39,42, 45-49,51-52,69, 402,410,413,429-30, 432-34 27:1-5,18, 33, 35-41,43, 59,63,67, 486, 499 1:2,5 III: 13 IV: 109-10 VIII: 121-27, 129,135 XIII: 51-52 XIV: 101-07 XVI: 194 XVII: 67-69 XXI: 52
Indian Ocean the ocean south of Asia between Africa and Australia. (Web.) 1:181 10:97
(Indian) Patriot an English daily of Madras, edited (c. 1909) by C. Karunakara Menon. 1:475-76,495-96,715-16 2:152 27:59-61
Indian Penal Code See Penal Code, Indian
Indian People English bi-weekly published by the Imperial Press, Allahabad, from 1907. (Cal. Lib.) D 1:648,809
Indian Review an English monthly founded in 1889 and published from Madras by G. A. Natesan & Co. It recorded important events of the national movement and became a paper of all-India fame. (Cal. Lib.; Enc. Ind.;S.F.F.) 2:398 3:179
(Indian) Social Reformer English weekly founded in 1890 and published from Poona (now spelled Pune). Primarily devoted to social reform, it continued to be published till April 1953. (Enc. Ind.) a 1:312,566, 648 2:68,408 4:250-51,268
Indian Sociologist English journal, a penny monthly started in January 1905 in London by Shyamji Krishnavarma as the organ of the Indian Home Rule Society. The paper later moved, with Krishnavarma, to Paris, and there changed its policy with the conversion of Krishnavarma to terrorism. It appeared regularly till July 1914. Its importation into
Page 153
India was prohibited but copies continued to enter the country. (P.T.I.; A) a 2:121, 385 27:427 X: 186 XIX: 29
Indian World English monthly journal, a review of Indian politics and economics, arts and industries, history and literature, published from Calcutta from 1905 and edited by Prithwis Chandra Roy. (Cal. Lib.) l: 101
India Office the building in Westminster, London, housing the offices of the Secretary of State for India and his staff. 1:343-44,388 2:80,203
Indies, The double both the East Indies and the West Indies, a m:28
Indira a name of the goddess Lakshmi, perhaps from her connection with the lotus (indivard). She issued from the petals of a blue lotus. (M.W.) D [Indexed with Lakshmi]
Indira a Bengali novel by Bankim Chandra Chatterji. It was originally a very small work of 45 pages, almost like the modern short story, published in book-form in 1873. But a year before his death, Bankim revised and enlarged it to 177 pages. This edition came out the same year (1893). (B.R.-I) a 3:91
Indo- combining form of "India", employed in modern compounds in which it qualifies another word, or denotes the combination of Indian with some other characteristic (chiefly ethnological). (O.E.D.) Indo-Alghan a 10:35 27:183 IV: 195 XIV: 120 XVII: 43
Indo-Aryan languages a sub-group of the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European language family, now spoken in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. (Enc. Br.) D 11:503 XIV: 121 Indo-British a 15:315 Indo-English poetry a 9:451,453,456 Indo-European The Indo-European races are speakers of Indo-European languages. Most of the languages of Europe and of a large part of southwestern Asia belong to the Indo-European family. The notable exceptions are Hungarian, Basque, Finnish, Lappish, Turkish and the Caucasian lan- guages. (Enc. Br.; Pears) n 10:554,558 Indo-French 17:403 Indo-Moslem D 14:223-24 Indo-Persian n 14:253 Indo-Saracenic 3:424 14:205,216 17:275
Indra the Hindu god of the firmament. In the Vedas he stands in the first rank of the gods. In the Rigveda the highest divine functions and attributes are ascribed to him. He is the ruler of our being, the Master of the world of Light and Immortality (Swar), the divine Mind, the devata of the under- standing and manas. In later mythology Indra has fallen into the second rank. He is inferior to the Triad, but he is the chief of all the other gods. He governs the weather and dispenses the rain. His weapon is the thunder- bolt. Indra's names are many, including Maghavan and Shakra. (Dow.; I & G) a 1:834 3:170-71,177,299 4:22-23,30, 36-38,40,68,103,165,181 5: 67,198,538 7: 913,918,922,933,942,951-52,1001-02,1004, 1006-07,1009 8: 15, 20,22,29-30,33-34, 38,40, 56,66,68,70,103,118,126,132, 176,196,399 9: 205, 360 10: 10,15,19, 40-41,48, 55-56,65, 68-70,72-73, 75,80-82, 84-86,88,90,94,96,99, 106-08,114, 119-21,133-36,138-46,148-50, 154-55,157,161-64,167,169-72,176-77,181, 183-87,200, 203-05,207-09,211-12,215,218-20, 222-24,227-31,234-38,241-52, 254-58,260-62, 270-71,274,294,298-300, 302, 305, 307, 312-13, 319,322,324-29, 333, 335,341-42,362-63, 367, 370, 376-77,416-17,422,426-28,434-35, 438,440, 446-48,450-51,491-94,496-518,520, 522-23,541, 566 11: 11,13, 22-23,28,30-31, 33,44-45,47, 81,88,98,117-18,131-33,145,149,167,170,204, 212-13,241-42,255,294,301, 307, 309,335-36, 339-42, 361-62, 364, 388, 392,412,445-46, 454, 466,488,494 12:107,130,149-50,158,215, 217-19,262,300-01, 317, 319-20, 322,326,334-35, 360,363 13: 16,18-19,272,349 14: 266,275 16: 284 17: 85,257,259,339 18: 252 19: 702 21: 708 22: 82,110-11, 390 27: 158,169-70 II: 39,41-43,46,48,50-56 III: 66 IV: 127-29, 137,142-43,147 V: 6,10,27,68 VI: 144-49 VII: 35, 38 VIII: 145-50,160 IX: 3-8 X: 163-64,179 XIII: 54-60 XIV: 108,110, 112-14,130 XV: 6,11,13-14,20,22,28-30, 39-42, 44-45, 48-52 XVI: 130,149,159,162,166, 168-71,173-76, 179 XVII: 14-22, 32-33,45, 50-51, 54-60 XVIII: 170,172-76,180-85 XXI: 17,29-30,45
Indradyumna a proposed character - Ajamede's friend and comrade - listed in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Prince of Mathura. a 7:891
Indrajit an epithet of Meghanada (or Meghnad), son of Ravana. In the Ramayana, when Ravana assaulted Indra's forces in Swarga, Meghanada accompanied him and fought most valiantly. He bound
Page 154
Indra and carried him off to Lanka. The gods headed by Brahma went there to negotiate the re- lease of Indra, and Brahma gave to Meghanada the name Indrajit, "conqueror of Indra". (Dow.) o 4:231 V:6,ll VI: 141
Indrani See Sachi
Indrany a character - Queen of Mathura - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Prince of Mathura. a 7:891,893-95,898
Indraprastha the capital of the Pandavas, whose war with the Kauravas is the central theme of the Mahabharata; it has been identified with the village of Indrapat in the vicinity of Delhi. (D.I.H.) Var: Indra- prustha a 5:223 8:38
Indrasen in the Mahabharata, name of the charioteer of the Pandavas. On Yudhish- thira's orders, he went to Dwarka to bring Krishna from there to Indraprastha on the occasion of the Imperial Sacrifice. (M.N.) 0 8:38
Indraswarup, Paramahamsa Maharaj a yogi who lectured at the Gaekwar's palace in Baroda. Sri Aurobindo heard his lecture, but did not go to see him or learn from him about dsanas or prandyama. (A) 26:19
Indu See Soma
Indumati in Hindu mythology, sister of Bhoja, king of Vidarbha, who chose Prince Aja for her husband at her svayamvara. She was killed when Narada's garland fell on her while she slept in an arbour. (Dow.) 3:427
Indu (Prakash) an English-Marathi weekly magazine published from Bombay. It was founded in 1862 by a band of young men under the editorship of R. D. Ranade, a professor at Elphinstone College. Later the editorship was entrusted to N. G. Chandavarkar and the English section was edited by K. G. Deshpande after 1893. Sri Aurobindo contributed two series of articles to this journal. The term "Indu Prakash" means literally "moonlight", hence Sri Aurobindo's taunting reference to it as Moonshine. (Enc.Ind.;A) o 1:3,9,14, 19, 25, 33, 39,45, 51,56, 263-64, 284,311,362, 381,626,648,818-19,838-41 3:73 4:278 26: 10,13, 23-24 XIV: 166
Indus great trans-Himalayan river rising in southwestern Tibet and flowing generally south-southwest through Kashmir and Pakistan, to the Arabian Sea. (Enc. Br.) 1:466 3:99 5:210,414,418,429,448, 468 6:32,256,347,363,380 8:61 10:97 14:373 16:284 111:11 VII: 30 XVI: 157
In Horis Aetemum title of a poem in a new metre, written by Sri Aurobindo on 19 April 1932. (A) D'5:581,588 9:415
Inquisition, The a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical court founded in the 13th century under Pope Innocent III which became a formidable weapon of the Church in dealing with charges of heresy. It was effectively set up in the various Catholic countries of the Continent, obtaining its fullest and most sweeping organization in Spain in the days of Ferdinand and Isabella, when Torquemada was made Grand In- quisitor and used its powers with terrible severity. (C.O.D.; Pears, p. L62) Der:
Inquisitors a 3:7 15:164,353,357
In the Moonlight a poem by Sri Aurobindo, written in the period 1895-1908, and first published in the collection Ahana and Other Poems (1915). (A;I&G) a 22:207 26:276
I.N.V. See Irish National Volunteers
lolaus a character - son of Cepheus and Cassiopea, King and Queen of Syria - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. D 6:3,16,18, 20-26, 29, 32, 36-43, 48-54, 56, 66-74, 82-85, 88-89,93, 95-97, 100,105,107,121, 124, 126-30, 132,148,153,155, 157-58,160-61, 166,171,175-84,187-89, 192-93, 196-97
lonians members of one of the three divisions of ancient Greeks. They inhabited the south of Greece before the Dorian invasion drove many of them across the Aegean to the central part of the west coast of Asia Minor, which became known as "lonia". It was here that the earliest Greek literature and philosophy principally developed. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) Der: Ionic 3:199 5:13,479,500 6:15 17:296 27:280
Iran a country of southwestern Asia, universally known in English as PERSIA before March 1935; formerly a kingdom, it has been an Islamic republic since 1979. Its capital is Tehran. (Col. Enc.; Web. N.C.D.) Der: Iranian 1: 261 2: 117 3: 475 6: 399 10: 153 12: 37 XV: 5
Iraq an Arab kingdom (now a republic) of the Middle East, with Baghdad as the capital. (Enc.Br.) 15:506 26:395
Iravath See Airavata
Iravatie' in the Mahabharata, a river of Punjab, now called the Ravi; it is one of the five rivers within the frontiers of which the Aryans originally dwelt. (A) Var: Iravathi D 5:246 27:156
Iravatie2 a character - second queen and "hitherto" favourite wife of Agnimitra - in Kalidasa's play Malavikagnimitram, part of
Page 155
which was translated by Sri Aurobindo under the title Malavica and the King. a 3:231, 273-74,289 8:135,142 X: 116, 122,155-56,176
Ireland an island, second largest of the British Isles; it was formerly entirely ruled by the British; presently four-fifths of the island comprises a republic made up of twenty-six counties. This Irish Free State was founded in 1921; by the constitution of 1937 the Gaelic name Eire was adopted. Northern Ireland (six counties) remains part of the United Kingdom. (Enc. Br.) Der: Irish (in senses other than the language); Irishman;
Irishmen n 1:23,38,53,97-98,104,175,189, 288,304,351,367-68, 390,413,501,559,637, 863 2: 56, 181-82, 271-72,367, 374, 379, 393-95, 399 3:3,13 4:213,274 5:11-12,14 7:886 9: 1.4-5, 38, 42, 107, 156-57,174,187,280,284, 287,462,548-51 12:499 14:398 15:32-33, 46, 268, 299. 306-10, 348-49, 412-13, 493-94,498, 506,512-15,517,519-21,625,646 17:244,298, 386-87 23:557 26: 1, 26,153,354,395,433 11:8,17,19 V: 17 XIII: 50 XVII: 67-68
Irish (language) the form of Gaelic spoken in Ireland. It has a literary history dating back to the 9th century AD. Scots Gaelic became separate from Irish Gaelic in the 13th century, though for literary purposes classical (Irish) Gaelic was employed in Scotland until the 18th century. (Pears) D 9:107,462,549 15:299 17:295
Irish National Volunteers "Irish Volunteers", a militant nationalist organization founded in November 1913. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Iron Age the final technological and cultural stage in the Stone-Bronze-Iron Age sequence. The date of the full Iron Age, in which this metal largely replaced bronze in implements and weapons, varied geographically, beginning in the Near East and southern Europe about 1200 BC, but not in China until about 600 BC. Aside from work in iron, the chief contribution of the Early Iron Age to the material equipment of man was glass; and nothing of comparable importance was added by the Late Iron Age until the Industrial Revolution. (Enc. Br.;
Col. Enc.) 5:61 XIV: 119,144,153
Isabel Abelard a character - a daughter of Stephen - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard". 7:1025,1027-28, 1033-35,1037-43
Isabella a poem by Keats, published shortly before his death in 1821. (Col. Enc.) a 9:130
Isaie French spelling of Isaiah, a Hebrew prophet of the eighth century BC, after whom the biblical Book of Isaiah is named. (Only some of the first 39 chapters are attributed to him.) He was a significant contributor to Jewish and Christian traditions. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Isha (Isa), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. a : 215
Isha (Isa), see Isha (Upanishad)1
Ishana (Isana), a name of Shiva or Rudra or one of his manifestations. He is the guardian of the northeast quarter. (Dow.) n 21:708
Ishany a character - a Rajpoot maiden in attendance on Comol Cumary - in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. a 7:739, 760-68,810-14
Isha (Upanishad)' or Vajasaneyi, or Ishavas(h)yopanishad. The names Isha and Ishavasya come from the word(s) with which the first verse of the Upanishad begins. Comprising the last (40th) chapter of the Samhita of the Shukia (White) Yajurveda, the Isha contains only eighteen verses, yet is considered foremost among the Upanishads. (Up.K.) a 3:346 4:47,49-50,90 10:5, 199,213,336,466 11:464,468 12:pre.,63, 71,79,90,95,134,155,162-63, 206,224,393, 447, 511-12. 517-18, 520, 524.527 13:424-25 14:275 16:417 17:115,402 18:33,136,150, 175,218,267,271,365,388 19:636 20:354, 389,398,467 22:103,210 23:722 25:385 27:151,199,201,291, 297,300-01, 303-04, 309, 311,313-14,322,434 1:31,37-38 11:58,80 111:69 IV-.165.168 V: 39,45,67, 71-72,76 VI: 164,167,176 VIII: 156,160,163 IX: 19 XIV: 116,125,135,138.147,153 XV: 3,20 XVI: 188-89 XVII: 16, 33,59,70 XVIII: 155 XX: 144
Isha Upanishad1 title of a book by Sri Aurobindo, containing the Sanskrit text, an English translation and an analysis of the Isha Upanishad. It was first published in 1921, having come out serially in Arya in 1914-15. (I&G) D [Indexed with the previous entry]
Ishmaelite a descendant of Ishmael, the outcast son of Abraham and Hagar (Abraham's concubine) according to the account in Genesis (Old Testament). The Ishmaelites were a group of nomadic tribes related to the Israelites most likely living east of the Gulf of Aqaba in northwestern regions of the Arabian Desert. They engaged in pastoral pursuits, caravan trading, and banditry. The Moslems consider the
Page 156
Arabs the descendants of Ishmael, thus distinguishing themselves from the descendants of Isaac and Israel. Hence the contemptuous use of the name Ishmael among Jews and Christians is unknown in Islam. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; Web.N.C.D.) a 3:46
Ishwara Krishna author of the philosophical treatise Sdnkhya-Kdrikas. (Dow.) D 13:63 17:291
Ishwari consort of the god Shiva. ("Ishwar" meaning "Lord" is a term often used for Shiva.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Isis' one of the most important goddesses of ancient Egypt, whose worship, originating under the New Empire (c. 1700-1100 Be), spread throughout Egypt until it was universal there and then extended into other lands of the Mediterranean world. In the early Christian times her cult was one of the most obstinate antagonistic forces met by the new teachings. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 15:165 17:169
Isis2 one of the four headstreams of the River Thames in England, itself known as Thames or Isis. It rises near Cirencester. (Col. Enc.) D 3:486
Isis Unveiled the principal two-volume work (1877) of Mme Blavatsky which soon became the text-book for Theosophists. It is a compilation of mysticism, stories and archaeology, which hints at a lost knowledge that had been familiar to the initiates of antiquity. (Enc. Br.; Enc. Unex.) a 1:187 XIII: 30
Islam or Mahomedanism, a world religion founded by the Arabian apostle or prophet, Mohammad, in the 7th century AD. It em- phasizes an uncompromising monotheism and a strict adherence to certain religious practices. Although there have been many sects and movements in Islam, all followers of Islam are bound by a common faith and a sense of belonging to a single community. (Enc. Br.) Der: Islamic; Islamism;
Islamites n 1:190,261,391.402.413,602, 620. 644-45, 712, 722, 757, 800-01, 844 2:19, 23-24,84,217.228.246,252.259.356 3:4 4:71. 107, 125. 247. 260 7: 567, 573. 598. 621, 655, 660 14: 15, 37, 76, 90. 131, 136, 367-68, 380, 419. 427 15:32,268.294,303.352,373,412 16:310, 394 17:117.169,181,371 26:484 27:286 I: 31 II: 58 III: 16 VIII: 195 XVI: 180
Isles of the Blest or Fortunate Isles, in classical and Celtic legend, islands in the Western Ocean. There the souls of favoured mortals were received by the gods and lived happily in paradise. The Canaries and the Madeira Islands
were sometimes identified with them. See also Elysium. (Col. Enc.) Var: Island of the Blest D 5:106,420,534
Ismenia (Ostrocadiz) a character sister of Count Conrad - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. a 7: 821, 825-26, 829, 836-40, 849, 851, 856-61, 863. 865-70, 874-75, 877-79
Ispahan or Isfahan (the name formerly appeared as Ispahan), city in central Iran, midway between Teheran and Shiraz. It was, in the past, several times capital of Persia (Iran). (Col. Enc.) a i: 634
Israel' the Jewish people, descendants of Jacob, who was also called Israel. The phrase "These be thy gods, 0 Israel!" is from the Bible (Exodus 32.4) (Enc. Br.) D 1:258 2: 156,239
Israel2 a kingdom (since 194S a republic) at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea. In the Old Testament, the term "Kingdom of Israel" is used to designate two political units: the united kingdom of Israel under kings Saul, David, and Solomon that lasted from c. 1020 to 922 BC; and the northern kingdom of Israel including the territories of the ten northern tribes, that was established in 922 BC. The southern kingdom, ruled by David's dynasty, is thereafter referred to as Judah. (Enc.Br.) a 15:263,342
Israelite in the broadest sense, a JEW, a descendant of the Jewish patriarch Jacob, whose name was later changed to Israel. (Note: A citizen of the modern state of Israel is designated by the term Israeli, which has no religious or ethnic connotations.) (Enc.Br.) n 2:239 5:14
Iswara Chandra See Gupta, Iswara Chandra
Italian (language) the official language of Italy's 50 million people, also spoken by about half a million in Switzerland. Adding emigrant speakers, who exceed 10 million, and speakers in former Italian colonies in Africa (Libya and Ethiopia), the total number of speakers of the language comes to as many as 65 million. Italian, the most direct descendant of Latin, is related to the other Romantic languages, such as French and Spanish. (Pears) n 3: 79 5: 342 9: 6, 60,140,311,396 10:571 14:192 15:410 26: 1,3,266 27: 89, 92 I: 7 XVII: 66. 73
Italy country (now a republic) of southern Europe. (Col. Enc.) Der: Italian (in senses other than the language); Italianised;
Page 157
Italianising a 1: 23,48,306, 311,335,362, 379,411,499,501,505-06, 519,525,567,605,722, 737, 768, 876-77, 881 2: 34,162-66,170,254, 410 3: 10, 69-70,100,137,225, 424,480-82 4: 154,212,278 5: 420 6: 543 9:18,42,44, 47,60-63,134 14: 174,192,204-05,213,247, 363, 367 15: 17, 85, 91,196,254,263-64,268, 287,289, 296, 327-28,342-45, 347-48,353,357, 375,381,390,410-11,419,445,450,466,479,485, 498,502,504-05, 512, 519,522,549,625 17: 248, 314, 386 22: 185 26: 17,339, 382 27: 67, 466 I: 7 VIII: 132 XV: 79 XX: 134,147 XXI:71,88
Ithaca in Greek legend, the centre of the island-kingdom of Odysseus, in the Ionian Sea west of the Gulf of Corinth. (M.I.) Der: Ithacan (in Ilion, the term usually refers to Odysseus) o 3: 3 5: 400,407,481, 491 8: 409
Ito, Prince (Hirobumi) (1841-1909), Japanese statesman, the outstanding figure in the modernization of Japan. He was assassinated by a Korean in 1909. (Col. Enc.) a 2:256-58 4:81,156-57 27:122-24
Itylus in Sri Aurobindo's epic Ilion, a Hellene warrior killed by Penthesilea. (M.I.) D 5:515
I.U. See Isha Upanishad.
Ivans Sri Aurobindo probably means the following two Russian rulers named Ivan:
Ivan III or Ivan the Great (1440-1505), Grand Duke of Moscow (1462-1505); and Ivan IV or Ivan the Terrible (1530-84), Grand Duke of Moscow, first to bear the title of czar. He took over the government in 1544 and was crowned czar in 1547. (Col. Enc.) a 15: 356
Ixva(a)cou See Ikshwaku
lyengar, K. R. Srinivasa (1908- ), professor of English (1947-66) and vice- chancellor (1966-68), Andhra University, who came under the influence of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother in 1942. He is the author of over twenty books, including biographies of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, each in two volumes. The book referred to here (26: 252) is the first edition (1945) of Sri Aurobindo, the two drafts of which (known as "Homage" at that time) were seen by Sri Aurobindo. D 26:252
lyer, N. P. Subramania Indian astrologer of Tanjore, author of Kalaprakasika. (A) D 17:283,289
J
J abbreviation of a personal name. a xix: 21
Jaafar (bin Bannak) a character - a Vizier of Haroun-al-Rashid, the Caliph of Bagdad - in(Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. Historically, he was assassinated in AD 803. 0 5:277 7:561,599,687-91,693, 704-05,721,723,729-31,733
Jabala (Jabala), mother of SATYAKAMA JABALA a VI: 157
Jabalpur second largest city of the Madhya Pradesh state in central India (formerly, of the province known as "Central Provinces"), and administrative headquarters of Jabalpur district and division. (Enc. Br.) 1:73
Jackson the District Magistrate of Nasik who was shot dead on 21 December 1909. He had committed Ganesh Savarkar (see Savarkar') fortrial. (H.F.M.I., p. 440) n 4:236
Jack the Ripper pseudonymous murderer of at least seven women, all prostitutes, in or near the Whitechapel district of London's East End, from 7 August to 10 November 1888. The case, which was never solved, has retained its hold on the British and American popular imagination. (Enc. Br.) n 26:378
Jacob later named Israel, in the Bible, the younger of the twin sons of Isaac and Rebekah, and the traditional ancestor of the people of Israel. Esau was the older son. In Genesis 27, Isaac asks Esau, whom he pre- ferred, to bring him meat and receive his blessings. Rebekah, who preferred Jacob, had Jacob bring savoury meat to Isaac so that he would be the one to receive his father's blessings. Isaac, who could not see, recognized Jacob by his voice, but when he felt Jacob's hands, he was deluded into thinking that Jacob was Esau, as he claimed to be. Thus Jacob, with his mother's help, received the blessings which the dying Isaac had intended for Esau. (Enc. Br.) 1:172,394
Jacobin(s) member(s) of the most famous political group of the French Revolution, who led the Revolutionary government from mid-1793 to mid-1794. The group was originally formed in 1789. (Enc. Br.) 15:326,416,422,510,515,642 17:169
A Jacobite's Epitaph a poem by Macaulay. (A) a 26:6
Page 158
Jacques or Jaques, a character - one of the lords attending on the banished Duke - in Shakespeare's comedy As You Like It. (Shakes.) 12:470 27: 207
Jadabharata (Jada Bharata). According to legend. King Bharata (see Bharat(a)2), was greatly attached to a fawn in his last moments. After his death, therefore, he had to take birth as a deer. On leaving the body of the deer, he was reborn in a Brahmin family, a realised soul from his very child- hood who intentionally simulated stupidity (jadata) all his life and was therefore known as Jadabharata. His account occurs mJdbala Upanishad and Bhavisya Purdna. (Bhakta Ch.;M.W.) Var: Jada Bharata 22:57, 96 26: 118 IV: 168
Jadhav, Anandrao See Anandrao
Jadhav(a), K. B. (or Khaserao) See Khaserao
Jadhav, Lieutenant Madhavrao Madhavrao Bhagwantrao Jadhav (c. 1873- ? ), Khaserao's younger brother, and Sri Aurobindo's most intimate friend at Baroda. He opened a fund for Sri Aurobindo's de- fence in the Manicktolla Conspiracy Case. In 1905, Madhavrao studied military science in Europe, and in 1907, under a recommendation from the Russian Legation, he was permitted to study the Swiss army and its organisation, but he left at the end of the manoeuvres through fear of being detected by the British officers who were present there. He was for a time Adjutant of the Gaekwad's bodyguard, and in 1913, a captain in the 2nd Regiment of the State Infantry. (A; P.T.I., p. 385) IV: 196,198
Jadhavas See Yadava(s)
Jagai (and) Madhai Jagannath and Madhava, two Brahmin brothers, Kotwals (police inspectors) of Nadia appointed by the ruler of GAUDA in the days of Gauranga (Chaitanya). They were vicious, diabolical men, subjecting the terror-stricken people to all sorts of atrocities, including rape, kidnap- ping and murder. But eventually they came under the spell of the kirtana (melodious chanting of the divine Name) of Gauranga and his followers. Feeling extremely remorseful, they surrendered themselves at the feet of Gauranga. By his grace these sinners were converted into saints and God-lovers. (Ch. Ch.) D 1: 853 9:426 23:553,609
Jagannath "Lord of the world", a particular form of Vishnu, or rather of Krishna, which is worshipped in Orissa and other parts of India. The main seat of worship is Puri, near Cuttack, where there is a big
temple dedicated to the deity. See also Juggernaut.
(Dow.) 4:59,113-15 23:550
Jagannather Rath "The Chariot of Jagannath", an article in Bengali, entitled in manuscript "Samajer Katha" (About Society). It was written by Sri Aurobindo in 1918 for publication in the journal Prabartak. In 1921, along with some other articles, it was pub- lished in book form under the title Jagannather Rath by the Prabartak Publishing House of Chandernagore. (A; SABCL, Vol. 4, "Note") 4: pre. VII: 15
Jagannathganj a town of Bengal (now in Bangladesh), about forty miles west of Mymensingh. (S. Atlas) 4: 248
Jagat S(h)eth a title meaning "the banker of the world" conferred on Fatehchand, a very rich banker in Bengal, by the Emperor of Delhi in 1723. The title was borne also by his successors. The English entered into a secret agreement with the second Jagat Seth who helped them with large funds before and after the Battle of Plassey. (Enc. Ind.) 1:635,865
Jahajpur probably modern Jajpur, a town in Cuttack district of the state of Orissa. (S. Atlas) 3: 85
Jahnavie a name or epithet of the River Ganga. The descent of the Ganga on the earth disturbed the sage Jahnu as he was performing a sacrifice, and in his anger he drank up the waters. But he relented and allowed the river to flow from his ear, hence the Jahnavi. (Dow) D [Indexed with Ganga]
Jaimini (fl. c. 200 BC; according to some, 600 BC), a celebrated Indian sage and philosopher, a disciple of Vyasa. He was the founder of the Purva-mimarhsa philosophy. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) D 13:80 VIII: 183 IX: 18
Jainism a religion founded in the 6th century , BC by Vardhamana Mahavira on the basis of principles taught by Parsvanath, an earlier sage. The followers of Jainism are known as Jains. They consider themselves Hindus, though differing in certain philosophical and theological principles. Jainism accepts the doctrine of Karma and Rebirth but rejects the authority of the Vedas, the caste system, and the practice of animal sacrifice. The main feature is the practice of Ahimsa (non-injury); the motto is "Ahimsa paramo dharmah". (D.I.H.) a 1:481,803 3:422 9:483 14:125,130,308,358 15:165 16:28, 365 17:276 22:69,108 VII: 4,16 VIII: 134
Page 159
Jaipur capital of the Indian state of Rajasthan, and headquarters of Jaipur district. Formerly it was a princely state with the city of Jaipur as its capital. Jaipur's famous arts and crafts include the making of jewelry, enamel, metalwork, and printed cloths, as well as stone, marble, and ivory carving. (Enc.Br.) n 111:27
Jai Singh (fl. 17th cent.; d. 1667), the chief of Amber (a town five miles north of Jaipur). He played a prominent part late in the reign of Shah Jahan and early in the reign of Aurangzeb. Employed by Aurang- zeb in the campaign in the Deccan, Jai Singh pressed Shiva ji so hard that the latter was obliged to conclude with him in 1665 the treaty of Purandhar. (D.I.H.) a 3:483-85
Jaiwant, Ramkrishna Raoji one of the persons who received Sri Aurobindo at Nasik Road station on 24th January 1908. a 1:1
Jalasuka a village of Sylhet district in the former province of Assam (now in Bangladesh). (A) a 4:193
Jalpaiguri the administrative headquarters of Jalpaiguri district and division in West Bengal state (formerly in the province of Bengal), just west of the Tista River. (Enc. Br.) a 1:133,262
Jamadagni (Bhargava) a Vedic Rishi, a descendant of Bhrigu, whose name is fre- quently mentioned in the Rig-veda, and in some passages, even as the author of the hymn. He was the son of Richika and Satyavati, and the father of Parasurama. (V. Index; Dow.) a 3:190 8:39 11:424
Jamalpur a town in Mymensingh district of Bengal (now in Bangladesh), about 30 miles west of the town of Mymensingh. (S. Atlas) 0 1:145, 148-49, 151, 285-87, 302, 321, 324, 331, 345-46, 353-54, 358, 371-72, 376,403,410,440
James See James, William
James VI (1566-1625), King of Scotland from 1567 when he was one year old. Later, when Queen Elizabeth died in 1603, he also became James I, King of England, but was never as well-liked there as in Scotland. (Enc.Br.) 3:264 7:1048 X: 147
James, King See previous entry.
James, the first King of England (1603-25). See James VI. 3: 265 X: 147
James, W(illiam) (1842-1910), American philosopher and psychologist. In 1890 he published his Principles of Psychology, in which the germs of his philosophy were already discernible. He was the leader of the philosophical movement of Pragmatism,
which had a galvanizing effect on American thought. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 9:560 14:57,420 16:96 '17:320 23:520 26:384 IX: 17
Jamidar Sabha See Lords, House of Jamouna;
Jamuna See Yamuna
Jana See Jana(loka)
Janak(a) also known as Videh; in the story of the Ramayana, the father of Sita, and king of the country called VIDEHA, remark- able for his great knowledge, sanctity, and non-attachment. He was a contemporary of Yajnavalkya, Swetaketu, and other sages. Yajnavalkya was his priest and adviser. (Dow; V. Index) Var: Janac; Junak a 2: 29,397 3: 213 8: 11,16,21, 86 12: 460-61 13: 108-09,127 14: 280 16: 412 17: 90-91 20: 259,317 22: 96 23: 676 26: 129-30 II: 59,69-70, 72 IV: 168 V: 63 VI: 166,175 VIII: 179 XIV: 127 XVII: 32
Janaki Nath a leader of Pun jab whom the Chief Court declared (c. 1907) guilty in the Rawalpindi Riot Case, without hearing the case. (A) a 1:432
Jana(loka) the lowest of the three supreme worlds of the Hindu cosmology in the Pura- nic formula; "world of creative delight of existence" (11: 23). It is called Janaloka in the dual sense of "birth" and "delight" carried by the word "jana". (Dow.; A) a 4: 29 10: 42, 171,197, 271 11: 23 12: 122, 515 17:62 20:485 XV: 33,46-47 XVI: 144-45 XIX: 32
Janamejaya in the Mahabharata, a great king, great-grandson of Arjun. His father, Parikshit, died from the bite of a serpent, and so Janamejaya performed a great sacrifice of serpents (Naga-Yajna). (Dow.) Var: Janamejoya; Janmejoya 3: 199 6: 227, 257 26: 397
Janardan(a) "the adored of mankind", "to whom people turn in prayer", an epithet of Krishna. D [Indexed with Krishna]
Janashruti (Janasruti), in Hindu mythology, a wealthy and generous Shudra who was directed by two swans to approach Raikwa, a realized B rahmin, for knowledge. (B. P. C.) 14: 146
Janina sometimes spelled Janinna or Yannina, and more often known as loannina; a city on Lake loannina in Epirus, north- western Greece. It dates from the medieval times. Its people are Albanian and Greek. Conquered by the Turks in 1438, it became the seat of a Pasha. In the First Balkan War, the Turkish garrison surrendered (early in 1913) to the Greeks after a long siege, and loannina passed to Greece. (Col. Enc.) n XXI: 71 XXII: 138
Page 160
Janmabhumi a weekly journal of South India, which published in 1920 a nonsensical unauthorised summary of Sri Aurobindo's opinions, representing him as an enthusiastic follower of Mahatma Gandhi. Sri Aurobindo had to contradict this publicly through the Standard Bearer (L. to Sl.; A) 27: 498-99
Janmejoya See Janamejaya
Janus in Roman religion, the god of "beginnings" whether temporal or spatial. As the god of spatial beginnings he presided over gates and doors, and as the god of temporal beginnings, over the first month of the year (which bears his name). He was usually represented with a double-faced head, bearded or unbearded, placed back to back. Occasionally he was even four-faced as the spirit of the four-way arch. Janus was also known as the god of war, war and peace being his two faces. The doors of his temple were opened in times of war, and closed in times of peace. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; C.W.N..VII: 431) 12: 49 15: 653 22: 490
Japan country occupying a crescent-shaped archipelago off the east coast of Asia. Japan proper has four main islands: Shikoku, Hokkaido, Honshu and Kyushu. (Enc. Br.) Der: Japanese (in senses other than the language) a 1:62-63.67-68,85-87,219,225, 230,236.257,259-61, 379, 468,481,487,527,549, 567-68. 620, 712, 813-15, 844 2: 34, 40, 110, 192-93, 231, 247-49, 256-58, 264, 390 4: 156-57, 187-88,195,208,214 7: 598,1020,1039, 1041-42 9: 236, 245, 381-82,443, 462, 561 13:47 14: 11,34,78,191,201,212,237,247, 254,402,412 15: 33,61,293.301,328,331-32, 352, 354, 356, 376,411,419,445-46, 502, 566, 626 16:323 17:181,185,193,245.275,279 22:343,443.490 23:556 24:1635 25:228 26: 39,68, 233, 479 27: 67-68, 117, 122-24,282, 284-85,466-67 1:25 111:1-2,4 IV: 161 VIII: 129, 173 IX: 32 XVI: 182
Japanese (language) the language spoken by Japan's 95 million people and by some people in Korea and Hawaii. Dating from at least the 5th century AD, it has been considerably influenced throughout its history by Chinese, both in speech and script. (Pears) 17: 181
Japhet Japheth, in the Old Testament, the youngest of Noah's three sons. (A "cultured son of Japhet" denotes an Indo-European, as distinguished from a Hamite or a Semite.) (Web.) n VI: 195
Jar large zodiacal constellation known as Aquarius in Latin, and as Kumbha in Hindu astronomy. It resembles the form of a man pouring a stream of water from a jar. It is the llth sign of the zodiac. (Col. Enc.) n 17: 257-58, 260
Jarad-drashta a Sanskrit version of the name ZOROASTER as given by Sri Aurobindo. a II: 38
Jarasandh(a) in the Mahabharata, king of Magadha. His father Brihadratha gave this name to him because he, having originally been born in two halves to his two queens and so thrown away, had been put together by the Rakshasi Jara. Jarasandha was an ardent worshipper of Shiva. He beseiged Mathura eighteen times and attacked Krishna who had killed Kansa, the husband of two of his daughters. Jarasandha was, however, defeated each time. He was later killed by Bhima. (Dow.) 3:191,193-94, 218 4: 93-94 8: 39-46, 48, 50, 52, 55, 57-58
Jaratkarna "old ear", name or epithet of the Vedic Rishi Sarpa Airavata (author of Rig-veda.X.76). (M.W.) 11:414
Jarat-karu name of a Rishi of Yayavar's family that occurs in the Mahabharata, and is supposed to be the origin of the name ZOROASTER. He married a sister of the great serpent Vasuki. (M.N.;Dow.) Var: Joruthcaru a 5: 252 II: 38
Jasoda in the Mahabharata, wife of the cowherd Nanda and foster-mother of Krishna. The incident referred to here (25: 89) is as follows. The Gopis once saw Krishna eating mud and informed Yasoda of it. Yasoda, in great anger, opened the child's mouth to look for the mud and saw there all the worlds and herself also. She closed her eyes in great alarm. (Dow.; Pur. Enc.) a 25: 89
Jaswant Rai (c. 1875- ? ) of Hissar (Punjab). In 1904 he started the newspaper Punjabee at Lahore, and was prosecuted for an article in 1906. He gave up journalism in 1910 and took to business in Karachi. (P.T.I.) 1:266
Jat The Jats are a sturdy peasant tribe or caste widely distributed in northern India and Pakistan, and varying in religion and occupation. They first emerged politically in the 17th century. (Enc. Br.) 1:279 27:51 IX: 1,2
Page 161
Jatakas, the "birth" stories of the Buddha in previous existences. They form a vast literature written in Pali, and afford an interesting account of the social and political condition of India in those times. (D.I.H.) 14:256,306 22:403
Jatayu in the Ramayana, name of a vulture, son of Garuda, who fought furiously against Ravana to prevent him from carrying away Sita, and was fatally wounded in the attempt. (Dow.) 3:427 22:416
Jaures probably Jean Leon Jaures (1859-1914), French Socialist leader and writer. He was assassinated. (Web.) 27: 472
Java (Java), in the Ramayana, father of the Rakshasa Viradha and husband of Satahrada. 8: 23
Java2 (Java), an Indonesian island in the Malaya Archipelago, east of Sumatra and west of Bali. It had contact with India from very ancient times. In historical times Hindu colonists went and settled there. Java abounds in Hindu and Buddhist monuments. India's requirements of sugar in the days of the British were met mostly by Java. (Enc. Br.) Der: Javan; Javanese 4: 195,203 7: 598 14: 205,223,236-37,241 17: 301-02
Jawaharlal Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru (1889- 1964), the first Prime Minister (1947-64) of independent India. From 1929, when he first became the president of the Indian National Congress, Jawaharlal was constantly in the forefront of the national struggle for free- dom. As Prime Minister he soon rose to the status of a world statesman. He was a great orator and a writer of distinction. His Autobiography (1936) aroused world-wide interest. Of his other works, two are very popular: The Discovery of India and Glimpses of World History. (D.I.H.) 9: 454
Jaxartes river (modern Syr Darya) of central Asia flowing westward into the Aral Sea. (M.I.) 1-1 5: 416 6: 380
Jaya in Hindu mythology, Jayavati, one of the friends of Parvati, the consort of Shiva. Jaya looked after Skanda, a son of Parvati, almost as his mother. (M.W.) a 3: 308
Jayadeva (fl. late 12th cent.), a celebrated Indian poet of Bengal, author of Gita- Govinda, a book of Sanskrit lyrics on the early life and love of Krishna as Govinda (the cowherd), and Radha. Jayadeva
graced the court of King Lakshmana Sena of Bengal (c. 1180-c. 1202). (Dow.; D.I.H.) P 3: 260 14: 256,299 17: 306
Jayadratha in the Mahabharata, a prince of the Lunar race, king of Sindhu. He was an ally of the Kauravas and was killed by Arjuna on the 14th day of the battle. (Dow.) 0 3: 191 4: 76 13: 370
Jayanta in Hindu mythology, son of Indra, born of Paulomie or Sachi. (Dow.) 7:1001
Jayasena a proposed character - keeper of the door in the royal seraglio - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Malavica and the King, an incomplete translation ofKalidasa's Mdlavikdgnimitram by Sri Aurobindo. 8: 135
Jayaswal, KashiPrasad (1871-1937), a pioneer in diverse fields of Indology. His main field of activity, however, was research in Indian history and culture. He is author of Hindu Polity, a study of ancient civic assemblies of India. He illumined many dark corners of Indian history. Jayaswal was a prime mover in starting the Patna Museum and the Bihar Research Society. (D.N.B.) 0 14:352
J.C.B. very probably the initials of Jagadis Chandra Bose (1858-1937), plant physiologist and physicist whose invention of highly sensitive instruments for the detection of the minute responses of living organisms to external stimuli enabled him to anticipate the parallelism between animal and plant tissues noted by later bio-physicists. His work and genius were recognized and he was knighted. Sir Jagadis Chandra founded and directed (1917-1937) the Bose Research Institute, Calcutta. He attended the marriage of Sri Aurobindo in 1901. (Enc. Br.; Purani, p. 50) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Jean Christophe a ten-volume novel (1904-12 in French; English translation, 1910-13) by Remain Rolland. In the form of the life story of a German-born musician, it is filled with appraisals of contemporary French and German civilization. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 9:557
Jeanne d'Arc See Joan of Arc
Jeans, Sir James Sir James (Hopwood) Jeans (1877-1946), English mathematician, physicist, and astronomer. He is known for his important work in the application of mathematics to problems of physics and astronomy, but perhaps best known as a writer of popular books about astronomy. (Col. Enc.) n 22: 205-06,210-12 26: 385-87
Page 162
Jean Valjean the hero (an ex-convict) of Victor Hugo's novel Les Miserables. (Ox. Comp.) D 9: 330
Jeffreys George Jeffreys (1648-89), 1st Baron Jeffreys ofWem; English Lord Chancellor. A notoriously cruel judge, he was responsible for the judicial murder of Algernon Sidney and for the brutal trials of Richard Baxter and many others. (Col. Enc.) i: 443
Jehangir (1569-1627), Moghul Emperor of India from 1605 to 1627. (Col. Enc.) 14: 320
Jehovah principal name of God in the Old Testament; it is a modern approximation of "Yahweh", the ancient Hebrew name of God. (C.O.D.;Col.Enc.;Web.) 2: 156 9: 309 15: 425 16: 181 17: 384
Jehovah-Moloch a personality possessing the characteristics of both JEHOVAH and MOLOCH, 16: 181
Jenghiz Jenghiz Khan (11677-1227), Mongol conqueror, originally named Temuchin. His wars were marked by ruthless carnage, but he was a brilliant ruler whose empire lasted until 1368. Tamerlane was descended from him. (Col. Enc.) Var: Jenghis 9: 410 16: 203 V: 89
Jenkins, Sir J. a person whose death was foreseen by Sri Aurobindo in a lipi (writing seen in subtle vision)Earlier he had received the news of his illness. (A) n XIX: 46
Jenkins, Sir Lawrence Sir Lawrence Hugh Jenkins (1858-1928). Chief Justice of the High Court, Bombay (1899-1908); Member of the Viceroy's Council (1908-09); Chief Justice of the High Court, Calcutta (1909- 15). In this last capacity, in a Special Bench with Justice Carnduff, he heard the appeal in the Alipore Bomb Case (1909) and gave judgment on 23 November 1909. There was a difference of opinion between the two judges in respect of five of the appellants. (Gilbert, p. 137; A.B.T.) 2:289
Jenkins School a school located perhaps in Cooch Behar, formerly a native state. (A) 1: 394
Jerico an ancient city of Palestine, in the Jordan valley five miles north of the Dead Sea. Destroyed and rebuilt several times in its history, it is famous as one of the earliest continuous settlements in the world. The archaeological site of Jerico dates back to c. 9000 BC. Excavations early in the present century have revealed walls believed to be those of the first Jerico. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a 1:7,9,, 325
Jerimadeth a name of a place, Jerahmeel, in southern Palestine. The name is also found in various other forms: Jerimoth, Yarmouth, Yeramedi. a 26: 340
Jeronimo a character - a student - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. Var: Geronimo D 7:821,876
Jerusalem a holy city of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and the disputed capital of the state of Israel. (Enc. Br.) 3: 455 15: 609 17: 82 26: 447
Jessore name of a district and its headquarters, in the Khulna division of Bengal (now in Bangladesh); the town of Jessore is on the Bhairab River. (Enc. Br.) 0 1:262,452 2:360 3:77,83 27:64 1:22
Jesuit member of the Society of Jesus, a religious order of Roman Catholic Church founded by Ignatius Loyola in 1533; (Col. Enc.;C.O.D.) Der: Jesuitic 3: 164 I: 59
Jesus See Christ, Jesus i
Jetri a Vedic Rishi, son of Madhuchchhan- das. (A) 10: 56
Jeunesse Sportive See J.S.A.S.A.
Jew (Hebrew "Yehudi") originally, of Judah, either a member of the tribe of Judah, or a native of the subsequent kingdom of Judah (in contrast to the rival kingdom of Israel to the north). The Jewish people as a whole, initially called Hebrews, were known as ISRAELITES from the time of their entrance into the Holy Land to the end of the Babylonian Exile (538 ac). Thereafter, the term Yehudi signified all adherents of Judaism. In the modern world a definition of "Jew" satisfactory to all is virtually impossible, for it involves ethnic and religious issues that are both complex and controversial. In daily life, for example, those who consider themselves Jews are generally accepted as such by Jews and non-Jews alike, even though such persons may not observe religious practices. From a purely religious standpoint. Gentile converts to Judaism are accepted as Jewish in the fullest sense of the word, but orthodox Judaism extends full rights only to those converted to orthodoxy. (Enc. Br.) Der: Jewish (= Judaic) n l: 412,740,802 3: 26 7: 727 14: 63 15: 86, 263, 268, 299,424, 646 21: 538 22: 306,470 26: 168,483 V: 75-77,79 XIII: 36 XIV: 145
Page 163
Jew of Malta Barabas, a rich Jew of Malta, the chief character of Marlowe's blank-verse play The Jew of Malta, produced about 1592 but not'published until 1633. (Ox. Comp.) 3:306
Jhalakati a small town in Barisal district of Bengal (now in Bangladesh); it was on a river route and had the biggest market in lower Bengal. (A) n 2:45,57-58,63,151
Jhelum westernmost of the five rivers of Punjab that drain into the Indus River in Pakistan. It rises from a deep spring at Vernag in the Indian sector of Jammu and Kashmir state. Meandering through the Vale of Kashmir, the Wular Lake, and the Pakistan sector of Jammu and Kashmir, the Jhelum flows southward into Pakistan to join the Chenab River near Trimmu. (Enc. Br.) n 10:136 26:352 IV: 194
Jihun a river, if not imaginary, then probably in Iran. (A) a 3:475
Jinahbhai name of a Hindu, one of whose descendants, converted to Islam, was Mohammed AliJiNNAH. (A) 26:46
Jinnah, Mohammed Ali (1876-1948), Indian Muslim politician who founded the state of Pakistan (1947) and became its first head. (Enc. Br.) 26:46
Jitendra Babu See Banerji, Jitendranath
Jivananda a character - a sannyasin - in the Bengali novel Ananda Math by Bankim Chandra. a 8:330.335,343,346
Jivanmukta a poem in a new metre by Sri Aurobindo, first published in his collection Six Poems (1934). It was composed on 13 April 1934. (A) 5:581 9:420,435 26: 252
Jnanadas (1530- ? ), a Vaishnava Bengali poet, author of the lyrical poems Mdthura and Muralt-siksd. (N.B.A.) 0 8:287,289
Joachim Joachim of Fiore (c. 1130/35- 1201/2), Italian mystic theologian, biblical commentator, philosopher of history, and founder of a monastic order. (Enc. Br.) D 22:160
Joad, Cyril Edwin Mitchinson (1891-1953), English philosopher, author, teacher, and radio personality; one of Britain's most colourful and controversial figures of the 1940s. (Enc. Br.) 22:186-87
Joan of Arc or Jeanne d'Arc (c. 1412-31), saint and greatest national heroine of France. She led the
resistance to the English and Burgundians in the second period of the Hundred Years' War. Condemned as a heretic by an English-dominated church court, she was burnt at the stake at Rouen. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 3:266-67 12:484 25:393 26:17 X: 113-14,148-49 XVI: 141 XVII: 10
Job, Book of an Old Testament book considered by many to be among the master- pieces of world literature. Found in the third section of the biblical canon known as the Writings, this anonymous book is named after the central character, who attempts to understand the sufferings that engulf him. The genuine poetic discourses consist of three cycles of speeches, in each of which Job disputes with three friends and converses with God. All these discourses probe the meaning of Job's sufferings - the reason for them and the manner in which Job should respond. (Enc. Br.) XV: 24
Jogen(dra) Babu Jogendra Nath Ghose, assistant jailer of the Alipore jail. After serving 30 years, he was due to retire in January 1909, but was ordered to retire prematurely as a consequence of the murder in jail of Noren Gossain. He was a capable officer who did his job efficiently and duti- fully, treating others with natural politeness. (A) a 4:273-74
Jogesh (Chandra) See Chowdhuri, Jogesh (Chandra)
Jogin someone who had come to Pondicherry from Bengal and stayed here for some time. He was probably the person, or one of the persons, in whose name Sri Aurobindo used to get his requirements from Chanderduring the first few years of his stay at Pondicherry. (A) 27:455
John' Saint John, disciple of Jesus. He is variously called St. John the Evangelist, St. John the Divine, and the Beloved Disciple. In the period of his exile on Patmos island, he is said to have written the Revelation. (Col, Enc.) a 5:61
John2 name (in short) of two characters in Sri Aurobindo's stories - John Lancaster in "The Door at Abelard" and John Dacre in "The Devil's Mastiff".
D [Indexed with John Lancaster or with John Dacre]
John, Sir a character in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Phantom Hour", a 7:1019
John Bull in literature and political caricature, a conventional personification of Eng- land or English character invented by the Scottish mathematician and physician John Arbuth not (1667-1735) as a character in an extended allegory that appeared in a series of five pamphlets in 1712 and later in the same year published collectively as The History of John Bull. (Enc. Br.) 1:160,422,866
Page 164
John (Dacre) a character - illegitimate son of Sir Gerald Curran by his sister-in-law Matilda Dacre - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Devil's Mastiff", 7:1049-51
John (Lancaster) a character - Richard Lancaster's brother - in Sri Aurobindo's short story "The Door at Abelard". 7:1027, 1041-42, 1044-45
Johnson, Samuel (1709-84), English poet, essayist, critic, journalist, lexicographer, and conversationalist, regarded as one of the outstanding figures of English 18th-century life and letters. (Enc. Br.) Der:
Johnsonian; Johnsonianly 3: 231 9-. 317 16:265 29:744-45, 753 1:9-10 11:11, 14-17
Johnson, Lionel Lionel Pigot Johnson (1867-1902), English poet and critic, noted for his fastidious and wistful lyrical poems. He was a reader for a big publishing house to whom Sri Aurobindo's poem Urvasie was sent. (Enc.Br.;A) 26:257
Jonaraja (c. 1389-1459), court poet of Kashmir. A scholar of Sanskrit literature, Jonaraja also studied history, astronomy, and medicine. He lived and wrote during the reign of Zainul-Abdin (1419-70), the famous Sultan of Kashmir, and at his in- stance composed Rdjatarangmi, an account of twenty-three kings of Kashmir in Sanskrit verse. (There is also another Rdjatarangini, an earlier work written by KALHANA.) This was Jonaraja's last writing, which came to an abrupt end with his sudden death at the age of seventy. (J.R.; Gaz.II, p. xliv, according to which the year of death is 1434) 14:306
Jones, Dr. Stanley well-known Christian missionary, author of The Christ of the Indian Road. 26:138
Jones, Sir William (1746-94), British orientalist and jurist who greatly encouraged oriental studies in the West. He translated (1789) Kalidasa's Shakuntala into English (^eeShakuntala2). (Enc. Br.) 27:163
Jonson, Ben (1572-1637), an Elizabethan poet and dramatist; he was the greatest English dramatist of his age after Shakes- peare, a fine lyric poet, and a vocal literary critic. (Enc. Br.) 9:68
Joruthcaru See Jarat-karu
Joseph' Saint Joseph (fl. 1st cent. AD), a carpenter of Nazareth (now in Israel); in the New Testament he is Christ's earthly father, the Virgin Mary's husband, and in Roman Catholicism patron of the universal church. (Enc.Br.) 13:12 Joseph2 the chauffeur of the Mother's car in the Ashram.
It was, however, usually Pavitra who drove the car when the Mother used it. 9:555
Josephine (1763-1814), consort of Napoleon Bonaparte and empress of France (1804-09). In 1796 she was married, by a civil ceremony, to Napoleon, who bore her notorious indiscretions but had the marriage annulled in 1809 because of her alleged sterility. (Col. Enc.) 17:384
Jotindra Babu See Chaudhuri, Rai Jotindranath
Journal (des Debats) an official journal probably published from Pondicherry. (A)
.D 27:444
Jouveau-Dubreuil famous French historian and archaeologist who made South India his field of research. He was a contemporary of Sri Aurobindo in Pondicherry. Prof. Dubreuil found old documents in which there were indications of the location of a Vedic school in ancient times which had stood exactly where the new building of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram now stands; and according to the legends the original founder of the school was the sage Agastya. (M.I., Feb. 1982, p. 110) 17:302
Jove See Jupiter2
Joyce', James Augustine (1882-1941), Irish novelist and commanding influence in 20th-century writing whose Ulysses is generally regarded as a masterpiece of world literature. (Enc.Br.) 26:153, 315
Joyce2 agent (c. 1910) of the Steamer Company to which the Kaligunge Mail steamer belonged. (A) 2:359
J.S.A.S.A. in full, Jeunesse Sportive de 1'Ashram de Sri Aurobindo (Youth Sports' Association of Sri Aurobindo Ashram). 16:1, 9
Judaea SeeJudea
Judaeo-Christian Jewish Christian (O.E.D.) 15:15
Judah, Lion of a title borne by Haile Selassie of Ethiopia (see Sahavas/or details). Judah was one of the twelve tribes of Israel that in Biblical times comprised the Jewish people. This powerful and important tribe produced the great kings David and Solomon. (Enc.Br.) a 5:596
Page 165
Judaic Jewish (C.O.D.)
D [Indexed with Jew]
Judaism the religious doctrines and rites of the Jews; the Jewish religious system or polity. The chief doctrine of Judaism is the belief in one God and in the mission of the Jews to teach the fatherhood of God, as revealed in the Hebrew scriptures. (Web.) 16: 364, 394 27: 286 1:31 XVI: 180
Judas (Iscariot) (died c. AD 30), one of the twelve Apostles, notorious for betraying Christ. Always the last on the list of the Apostles, he was their treasurer. He disclosed Christ's whereabouts by selling the information to the chief priests and elders for 30 pieces of silver. (Enc. Br.) D 9:486 27:420
Judea or Judaea, Greco-Roman name of South Palestine. In the time of Christ it was both part of the province of Syria and a kingdom ruled by the Herods. It was the southernmost of the Roman divisions of Palestine; the others were Galilee, Samaria, and, east of the Jordan, Peraea. (Col. Enc.) 0 3:5 13:12 14:63, 402 15:342 17:130 27:268 VIII: 173, 176
Juggernaut corrupt English spelling of JAGANNATH, the name of a form of Krishna. The image of the deity at Puri, with the images of his brother Balarama and sister Subhadra, is taken out annually in a huge chariot which is drawn by the devotees in a procession. Based on an occasional accident or two, false reports that devotees threw themselves under the wheels of the chariot apparently were circulated in the West, and consequently the term Juggernaut came to acquire a figurative sense so as to mean "an institution or notion to which persons blindly sacrifice themselves or others". (Dow.; C.O.D., 6thed.) 17:322
Julia name of a spirit contacted by W. T. STEAD in his seances. (A) a 3: 397, 400
Julian' Julian the Apostate (331/332-363), last Roman emperor (361-63) to attempt to replace Christianity by a revived polytheism of the Greco-Roman Pantheon. (Enc. Br.) 16:365
Julian2 a character participating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) which was written by Sri Aurobindo apparently at Cambridge in 1891. (A&R, II) D ll:5-9
Julian Emperors the first emperors of Rome (coming after Julius Caesar), 3:69
Julia's Bureau name of the agency established by W. T. STEAD for communicant spirits. (A) 3:393
Juliet the heroine pf Shakespears's first romantic tragedy Romeo and Juliet. For other details see Romeo. (Ox. Comp.) VII: 49
(Julius) Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (100- 44 BC), Roman statesman and general, probably the most celebrated personality of ancient Rome, and one of the greatest generals in the history of the West. He was extraordinarily versatile, excelling in war, politics, statesmanship, letters, oratory, and social grace. His conquests in Gaul and Britain and his defeat of Pompey in the Civil War (48 ac) paved the way for his adopted son Augustus to establish the empire. Ac- cording to tradition, Julius Caesar was assassinated at the foot of the statue of Pompey in the Roman Senate house. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Caesarian 1:35, 146, 412 3:27 4:156 5:484, 596 7:848, 857 9:394, 410 15:343 16:280, 284 17:83, 385 22:410, 414, 419, 496-97 24:1719 25:78 26:447 111:16 V:63 VI: 186 IX: 42, 45 X:113 XIII: 44
Julius Caesar Shakespeare's tragedy, a literary classic on Caesar, notable for its insight into the effects of subtle shifts of fortune in a struggle for political power. It was composed in the Lyrical Period (from 1595 through 1600), and first performed in 1599/1600. (Enc.Br.) 3:186 9:426
Jumna See Yamuna
Jumnabai (1853-98), foster-mother of SAYAJIRAO III, Gaekwar of Baroda. Five years after the death of her husband Maharaja Khanderao, Gaekwar of Baroda (1856-70), she adopted Gopalrao (later Sayajirao III) as her son and proved an ideal foster-mother and a popular queen. The state hospital was named after her. (Sayaji.) 27:115
Junak SeeJanak(a)
Juno in Roman religion, chief goddess and female counterpart ofJupn-ER2, closely resembling the Greek Hera with whom she was universally identified. When used as a common noun, the word means "woman of stately beauty". (Enc. Br.; C.O.D.) 7:833
Jupiter' the largest planet in the solar system, known as Brhaspati in Hindu astronomy; the fifth major planet from the sun. (Enc.Br.; Col. Enc.) 5:40 8:9, 175 10:306 17:257, 259
Page 166
Jupiter2 in Roman religion, supreme god, also called Jove. He is identified with the Olympian god Zeus. (Col. Enc.) D 1:148 3:274 27:202 X: 156 XV: 11
Jupiter3 in Shelley's lyrical drama Prometheus Unbound, the heavenly usurper who represents the tyranny of kings and evil institutions. (Ox. Comp.; R. Enc.) 1: 558
Juvenal Decimus Junius Juvenalis (b. AD 55-60?, d. in or after 127), most powerful of all Roman satiric poets. (Enc. Br.) 5:346 9:325, 387, 425
Jyaistha third month (generally May-June) of the year in the Hindu calendar. Var: Jyestha a 5:29 8:321
Jyotirmayee (c. 1902- ? ), a Bengali author from Chittagong, and a disciple of Sri Aurobindo who stayed in the Ashram for about ten years from c. 1932. During her stay here she brought out three Bengali books of novels and short stories. She also wrote some poems one of which was translated into English by Sri Aurobindo. a 8:391
Jyotishtoma name of a Soma ceremony (typical form of a whole class of ceremonies consisting originally of three, and later of four, five or seven subdivisions viz. Agnistoma, Ukthya, Atiratra, or in addition to these, Sodasin, Atyagnistoma, Vajapeyaand Aptoryama). (M. W.) a 12:441
K
K In some of the early letters from Pondicherry addressed to "M" (Motilal Roy of Chandernagore) Sri Aurobindo signed himself "K", instead of "Kali". (See Kali3) n 27: pre., 444, 454, 462, 468, 476, 478, 484
Kabandhi (Katyayana) a Rishi, son of Katya and a disciple of Pippalada. 12: 295
Kabir (1440-1518), a saint, and the fore- most mystic poet of Hindi. Hinduism was the background of his thought, but he was influenced greatly by Mohammedan Sufi saints and poets. Opposing vehemently the rituals and external formalities of both Islam and Hinduism, he preached a religion of love and devotion which would promote unity amongst all classes and creeds. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) 1:699 2:13 3:110 9:438 14: 129, 256, 319 IX:29
Kabyle Kabyles are tribesmen, predominantly agricultural, of North Africa, whose centre is the rugged Kabylia region of Algeria. They are Muslims of disputed origin, known.for their fierce resistance to the successive conquerors of the region. (Col. Enc.) a 2:169
Kadambari seventh-century Sanskrit "novel" by Banabhatta. It is a prose romance, involv- ing a narrative within a narrative related to a king by a parrot. Kadambari is remarkable for the freshness with which it deals with the emotion of love. Left unfinished by the author, it was completed by his son. It is a classic of Sanskrit literature. (Enc. Br., under "Bana") XX: 126 XXI: 75
Kadi a large division and town in the former princely state of Baroda; the town is located about thirty miles northwest of Ahmedabad, in the present state of Gujarat. (A; S. Atlas) 27:113, 116
Kaga Maru name of the Japanese boat in which the Mother and Paul Richard sailed from France to India in March 1914. (Mother-1) n 25:436
Kaikeyi(e) in the Ramayana, a junior queen of Ayodhya, the most beloved of King Dasaratha; mother of BHARAT'. Urged by the misleading counsels of Manthara, a female attendant, she procured from Dasaratha the exile of Rama to promote the accession of her own son to the throne. (Dow.) Var: Kaikayi(e); Kekayie n 3:243, 428 8: 7, 21 9:318 27:104
Kailas(a) one of the highest and most rugged mountains of the Himalayan range, located in the southwestern part of China. It is an important holy site both to the Hindus, who identify it with the paradise of Shiva and also regard it as the abode of Kubera, and to the Tibetan Buddhists, who identify it with Mount Sumeru, cosmic centre of the uni- verse. In Ramacharitamanasa (Hindi Rama- yana, Balakanda, couplet No. 179) it is mentioned that Ravana, after having conquered Lanka and established his kingdom there, playfully lifted Kailasa in his arms without any effort as if to try his strength or just to make a show of it. (Enc. Br.) Var: Coilas(a) 2:121 4:288 5:224-25 7: 912, 958 8: 31 11: 453 17: 142 29: 425 II: 80
Kaiser a German title, equivalent to emperor, derived from the Roman title "Caesar", and first associated with the Germans from AD 962, when their kings became Holy Roman emperors. In 1871, Wilhelm I of Prussia assumed the title of emperor (Kaiser) of Germany, a style distinct from the older German designation. - (Enc. Am.) 4:156 15:34, 444 17:326 26:388
Page 167
Kaitabh(a) in Hindu mythology, one of the two horrible demons (the other was Madhu) who sprang from the ear of Vishnu while he was asleep at the end of a kalpa (a day of Brahma = 4320 million years of mortals). They were about to kill Brahma, when they were themselves killed by Vishnu. (Dow.;
M.W.) 8:325-26, 343, 352-54 12:416
Kaithal a subdivision of the former province. of Punjab in India under British rule; now a town in Karnal district of Haryana state. (Enc. Br.) a 2:180
Kaivatya Upanishad an Upanishad of the Krishna (Black) Yajurveda. (Up.K.) a 12:415
Kakshivan a Vedic Rishi, son of Dirghatamas and Usij, particularly connected with the worship of the Aswins. He is the author of several hymns in the Rig-veda. See a/wUshij. (Dow.; V. Index -1) Var:
Kakshiwan 10:522 11:34 V: 36 (incorrectly printed as "Kaleshwari") XVIII: 177
Kal a famous Marathi weekly, almost a one-man paper, started by S. M. Paranjape in 1898. The paper was prosecuted for sedition and its publication was stopped in 1910 when a security of Rs 10.000/- was demanded. (D.N.B.-Ill, p. 312) a 27:62
Kalahasti name of a town in Chittoor district of the former province of Madras (now of Andhra Pradesh state), 55 miles northeast of the town of Chittoor. (Enc. Ind.) a 14:217
Kalaprakasika the standard book on the Election System in astrology by N. P. Subramania lyer. It is a treatise on the selection of the right time by astrological rule for undertaking any and every action of human life. It was printed and published in 1917 (as Astrological Series-1) at the Lawley Electric Printing Press, Tanjore. (A) 17:283
Kaleshwari Dairghatamasa a misreading of the manuscript for Kakshivan Dairgha- tamasa. See Kakshivan. V: 36
Kalevala Finnish national epic (1835), com- ' piled by Elias Lonnrot from old Finnish bal- lads, lyrical songs, and incantations dealing with the extraordinary deeds of three semi- divine brothers of gigantic stature. (Enc. Br.) Var:Kalewala 26:234 XVII: 26
Kalhana (fl. c. 1148), chronicler of Kashmir, author of the Rajatarangini, a chronicle in Sanskrit of the
kings of Kashmir, which he began in 1148 and completed in the following year. Kalhana lived up to his precept: "that virtuous poet (i.e. historian) alone is worthy of praise who, free from love or hatred, ever restricts his language to the exposition of fact". (Gaz.-II, p. xliv) 3:265 X: 147
Kali' See Kali(yuga)
Kali2 (Kali), also known as Chandi (CandT). In Vedic days this name was associated with Agni, who had seven flickering tongues of flame for devouring oblation, one of which was the black or terrific tongue. This sense of the word is now lost, but the name has come to be applied to the goddess Kali, the fierce and bloody consort of Shiva, also called Rudrani. Kali is a fierce, terrifying aspect of Devi. She is depicted as hideous, smeared with blood, with bared teeth and protruding tongue, wearing a garland of skulls and a girdle of severed hands. She is often shown dancing on the inert body of Shiva. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) Der: Kalihood;
Kalibhava (or, Chandibhava) a 1:61, 66. 873 3: 295, 352, 354-56, 419-20, 423 4: 2, 7, 64, 101, 144, 153, 163 5:78-80, 140 8:323, 344 11: 454-55 12: 271, 512-13 13: 42, 366, 372, 375 14:137, 222 16:411, 415 17:59, 63-64, 85, 106, 131, 137, 143, 146, 157, 262, 378, 381-82 18: 78, 82 20: 365 21: 561, 575, 741 22: 199, 390 25: 75-76, 87 26: 19, 50, 69, 427 27: 364, 441, 468, 472 28:255 29:509, 535, 780 1:22, 41 III: 16 IV: 174 V: 69 VII: 9 IX: 40 X: 145 XII: 174 XVI: 134 XVIII: 132, 136, 138, 140, 142, 144, 146, 148 XIX: 3, 14-15, 21, 25, 40, 47, 52, 57-58, 62-64, 68, 80 XX: 114, 130, 136 XXI: 21, 23 XXII: 127, 169, 172
Kali' In some letters from Pondicherry ad- dressed to "M" (Motilal Roy of Chandernagore), Sri Aurobindo signed himself "Kali". See also K. a 27: pre., 427, 430, 432, 435, 437, 439-41, 448, 473, 482
Kalidasa an outstanding Sanskrit poet and dramatist, probably the greatest Indian writer of any epoch. Many works are attributed to him; but only six are considered as certainly genuine, three dramas (Abhijnana Sakuntalam, Vikramorvasiyam and Malavikdgnimitram) and three epics (Raghuvamsam, Kumdra-sambhavam and Meghadutam). One more, Rtusamhdram, is considered by most, Sri Aurobindo included, as Kalidasa's. The date of Kalidasa is uncertain. A persistent legend makes him one of "the nine gems" (Navaratna) that adorned the court of King Vikramaditya at Ujjayini. It is, however, a certainty that the poet lived sometime between the reign of Agnimitra, the second Sunga king
Page 168
(c. 170 Be), hero of one of his dramas, and the Aihole Inscription of AD 634, which lauds Kalidasa. Sri Aurobindo thinks that he flourished in the first century BC, and his patron Vikramaditya was the one who is associated with the Vikrama Samvat or Era that dates from 58/57 BC. The consolidation of the Malavas under Vikramaditya took place in 56 BC, and it was subsequent to this date that Kalidasa came to Ujjayini. (A; Enc. Br.) Der: Kalidasian 3: 147, 152, 156, 158, 185, 213, 216-17, 221-27, 229, 231-32, 236-40, 244-63, 265-68, 271, 273-77, 279-80, 282-88, 290-95, 300, 303, 306, 309-10, 312, 314-17, 319-20, 322-23, 338 7: 907, 912 8: 97, 133, 137, 155 9:28, 30, 36, 76, 113, 432-33, 521 14:30, 185, 224, 241, 256, 285, 294, 296, 298-99, 301-03, 305, 320 17: 142, 180, 182, 306 22: 418 26: 235-36, 253, 268 27: 81, 84-85, 90-92, 98-100, 104-08, 147, 150 29: 727 I: 25-27, 29 III: 19 X: 111, 115, 117, 141-50, 153, 155-58, 165-66, 168-75, 177 XIX: 29
Kaligunge Kaliganj, a town in Khulna district of East Bengal (now in Bangladesh), on the banks of a branch of the Ganga, about 20 miles east of Khulna town. (S.Atlas) a 2:358, 360 4:248
Kalikrishna or Kali Krishna, the dual realisation of Krishna and Kali (See Krishnakali), with emphasis on Kali. (A &R, XX: 163) n XX: 125, 127, 130
Kalindi a name of the River YAMUNA from its source Kalinda (the Sun). (Dow.) D [Indexed with Yamuna]
Kalinga an ancient territorial subdivision of peninsular India, corresponding to northern Andhra Pradesh (above the Godavari), most of Orissa, and a portion of Madhya Pradesh. (Enc. Br.) n 14: 193 XVIII: 136
Kali the Mother a book by Sister Nivedita which Sri Aurobindo read and admired. It is a collection of essays on the Divine Mother, written in 1897. The first Indian edition of the book was brought out by the Advaita Ashram, Almorainl950. (A) a 26:58, 69
Kali(yuga) the last of the four Yugas (ages) in the reckoning devised by the Hindus, the age in which we are presently living. It commenced in 3102 BC and will endure for 432, 000 years. In the Kaliyuga the righteousness which was complete in the Satyayuga, remains to the extent of
one-fourth only; calamities, disease, fatigue, anger, distress, hunger and fear prevail. Sri Aurobindo did not give much importance to what tradition said on the "exact figures about the yugas", but he did accept that the present age is a Kaliyuga and that it is to be followed (as tradition also says) by a restoration of the Saty a. (Dow.; A) 2:12, 96 3: 179, 358, 453 4: 45, 67-68, 81, 95-96, 99, 107, 125, 304, 313 5:84-85 11:449, 452 14:342 15: 117-18 16: 412 17: 122, 153, 167, 255, 372 22: 403 27: 363, 429-30, 434, 452, 472 V: 96 VI: 137, 156, 184, 191-92, 196 VII: 9 VIII: 191-93 XIV: 119 XV: 28 XVII: 10, 31 XVIII: 148 XIX: 78, 80 XX.--116
Kaiki in Hindu mythology, the tenth and final Avatar of Vishnu who will complete the evolution "by bringing the Kingdom of the Divine upon earth" (22: 402). He is yet to appear. According to tradition he will be seated on a white horse with a naked sword in his hand. (A; Dow.) n 13:157 15:635 22:402-03 VI: 193 XIV: 116 XIX: 25
Kalyani a character - wife of Mohendra Singh - in the Bengali novel Ananda Math by Bankim Chandra. o 8:319-28, 343, 345-55
Kama, Mrs. Bhikhaiji Rustom Cama (1861-1936), a well-known, wealthy Parsi lady who became a revolutionary leader. About 1902 she left India for Europe and remained there in self-imposed exile for more than thirty years. She settled in Paris in the middle of 1909, and from there helped in Indian revolutionary propaganda by editing an English monthly Bande Mataram (See Bande Mataram2) and coming in contact with patriots like Shyamji Krishnavarma, Lala Hardayal, and Vir Savarkar. Madame Cama returned to India in 1936 and died soon after. (Enc. Ind.; P.T.I.; M.I., August 1988, p.523) a 2: 385
Kama(deva) in Hindu mythology, the god of love, represented as a handsome youth armed with a bow and arrows. His wife is Rati, the goddess of desire. Kamadeva inspired Shiva with amorous thoughts of Parvati when he was engaged in tapasya, and for this offence Shiva reduced him to ashes by fire from his third eye. Afterwards, how- ever, he relented and allowed Kama to be bom again as Pradyumna, son of Krishna andRukmini. (Dow.) The other names or epithets of Kamadeva used by Sri Aurobindo are: Kandarpa, Madan (or Modon), and Monmuth. Var: Cama l-i 5:80, 82, 241, 258 7:942 13:349 26: 268-69 27: 154, 158 II: 6 XIX: 54
Page 169
Kamadhuk more commonly known as Kamadhenu, the cow of plenty, fulfilling all desires. She was produced at the churning of the Ocean and belonged to the sage Vasishtha. (Dow.) 13:349
Kamakura a city in central Honshu, Japan, on Sagami Bay. It is known for its colossal bronze figure of Buddha (42 ft. high), cast in AD 1252, which is a Japanese national treasure. (Col. Enc.) a 14: 206
Kamala (Kamala), in Hindu mythology, a name of the goddess LAKSHMI, from her connection with the lotus (kamala). (Dow.) [Indexed with Lakshmi]
Kamala Kanta; Kamalakanter Daptar Bankim Chandra's (Bengali) novel Kamala Kanta has three parts - (1) Kamala Kanter Daptar, (2) Kamala Kanter Patra and (3) Kamala Kanter Jobanabandi (Kamala Kanta's Will). The first part, Kamala Kanter Daptar, came out in book form in 1875. The enlarged book, which included the other two parts and was named Kamala Kanta, was published in 1885 (?) (B.R.-II) D 3:91 17: 346
Kamaloka in theosophy, a semi-material plane, to us subjective and invisible, where the disembodied "personalities", the astral forms called Kamarupa (see Devachan) remain, until they fade out from it by complete exhaustion of the effects of the mental impulses that created these eidolons of human and animal passions and desires. It corresponds to the Hades of the ancient Greeks. (T.G.) n xill: 33
Kamban a famous Tamil poet who flourished probably in the 9th century AD. He is the author of the Kamban Ramayana, which is an adaptation in Tamil of Valmiki's Ramayana. Kamban gave it the name of Ramandtaka. It is by all standards a great work, and no mere translation. (D.I.H.;
Gaz.-II) D 14: 197, 256, 319-20 . Kamboliatola a locality in central Calcutta. n 1: 148, 159
Kamrej name of a village in the former princely state of Baroda a XV: 75
Kamsa See Kansa
Kanada (fl.c. 2nd cent. AD), Hindu sage and philosopher who founded the Vaisheshika school of philosophy. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) 17: 279 VIII: 183
Kanai(lal) Kanailal Dutta (1888-1908), one of the earliest martyrs for India's freedom. As an undertrial prisoner taking treatment in the Alipore Jail hospital, he, in collaboration with Satyendra Nath Bose, shot and killed the approver Noren Gossain. For this murder, which he confessed to during
the examination, he was sentenced to death and was executed on 10 November 1908. (D.N.B.) 0 4: 274-75
Kanchanjungha Kanchenjunga, world's third highest mountain peak (28, 208 ft.), on the border of Sikkim and Nepal, in the Himalayas. (Enc. Br.) Var: Kunchenjunga a 17: 90, 382 22: 150
Kanchi one of the seven sacred cities of the Hindus in India; the modern Conjeeveram or Kanchipuram, administrative headquarters of the Chingleput district in Tamil Nadu state. It is one of the most ancient cities of South India. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) 8:340
Kandahar capital of Kandahar province in southeastern Afghanistan. Located on main routes to Central Asia (via Kabul) and India, ^ it is the most important trading centre of South Afghanistan. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) Var: Candahar a 3: 193 5: 276
Kandarpa an epithet of Kamadeva, the Hindu god of love. See Kama(deva). D [Indexed with Kama(deva)]
Kane, Hari Balkrishna (c. 1890- ? ), a Maratha youth of Yeotmal (Maharashtra) who was arrested in the Manicktolla Con- spiracy Case. He was thought to have been sent by G. S. Khaparde from Amraoti to learn bomb-making at Calcutta. He was sentenced to seven years' transportation, but acquitted in an appeal to the High Court. (P.T.I.;A.B.T.) D 2:287
Kangra name of a town and district of Himachal Pradesh in northwestern India. In the 18th and 19th centuries Kangra became the centre of a notable school of Rajput miniature painting. (Enc. Br.) D 17: 302
Kansa in Hindu mythology, a tyrannical king of Mathura, son of Ugrasena and brother of Devaki, the mother of Krishna. He is looked upon as an Asura. It was foretold that the eighth son born of Devaki would kill him, and so he. endeavoured to destroy all her children. The eighth son, Krishna, was taken away by Vasudeva unseen by the guards. Kansa, on learning of this, became the great persecutor of Krishna, but was eventually killed by him. (Dow.) Var: Kamsa 1: 558, 595, 599-600, 802, 811, 818 8: 41-43, 50 17: 119
Page 170
Kant, Immanuel (1724-1804), German metaphysician, foremost thinker of the Enlightenment, and one of the greatest figures in philosophy. (Enc. Br.) n 4: 44 9: 547 14: 66 15: 34, 141 26: 223 27: 248 IV: 157 VIII: 166 XIV: 127, 164 XV: 36 XVII: 37 XVIII: 154
Kantalpara a village in the Hooghly district of Bengal (now of West Bengal state); birth- place of Bankim Chandra Chatterji. a 3:75
Kanthi a town in the Midnapore district of Bengal (now of West Bengal state), o 3:83
Kanunga probably Hem Chandra Das, also known (especially after 1920) as Hem Chandra Kanunga. See Das, Hemchandra. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Kanwa' a dynasty of Indian rulers. It suc- ceeded the Sunga dynasty in c. 73 BC in Magadha, and comprised four reigns cover- ing 45 years. (D.I.H.) a 14:351, 373
Kanwa2; Kanwa Ghaura Kanwa was an ancient Rishi repeatedly referred to in the Rig-veda and later texts. He is sometimes counted as one of the seven great Rishis. His sons and descendants, the Kanvas, are also mentioned, especially in the eighth mandala of the Rig-veda. The authorship of that mandala, as well as of part of the first, is attributed to this family. A descendant of Kanva is known both as Kanva and as Kanva, either alone or accompanied by a patronymic, e.g. Kanva Ghaura and Kanva Medhyatithi. The followers of Kanva are called Kanvas. There have been several sages bearing the name Kanva, including the one who brought up Shakuntala as his daughter. (Dow.;V. Index) n 3:283 10:152, 154, 169, 189 11: 34, 44-45, 47, 49, 433 X: 170 XV: 29, 48 XVII: 54, 59-60
Kanwa Medhyatithi See Medh(y)atithi Kanwa
Kanyakumari See Comorin, Cape
Kapala Kundala a Bengali novel (1866) by Bankim Chandra Chatterji, his second novel, having all the charms of a poem. It is a love story against a gruesome background of Tantric rites. (Enc. Br. ; B.R.-I) Var: Kapalkundala a 3:91, 94 17:345 27:353
Kapila (fl. 550 BC?) , a celebrated Indian sage, the founder of the Sankhya philosophy. He has been described as a descendant of Manu, and has been deified as a son of the creator-god Brahma. Kapila is said to have destroyed the sixty-thousand sons of King Sagar with a single glance. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) D 12:4, 372 16:353 22:73 111:80
VIII: 183 XIV: 120 XVI: 132
Karachi y. seaport and capital of Sind (formerly a province of India, now in Pakistan). It was the venue of the annual session of the Indian National Congress in 1913 and again in 1931. (D.I.H.) a 1:804 26:29 X: 187 XXI: 100 XXII: 129
Karakahini "Tales of Prison Life", a series of nine articles of Sri Aurobindo published in the Bengali monthly Suprabhat in 1909-10. The series remained incomplete, for Sri Aurobindo left Bengal in 1910. Karakahini came out in book-form in 1920 from Chandernagore. (SABCL, Vol. 4: pre.) D 3:431 4: pre.
Karan, Debdas editor of Medini Bandhab, Midnapur. During his evidence in the Ali- pore Bomb Case, his mention of DRONA misled Norton, and the questions and answers that followed amused the people very much. (A.B.T., p. 81; A) n 4:287-88
Karatoya a river of northern Bengal (now in Bangladesh), flowing through the districts of Rangpur, Dinajpur, and Bogra, and joining the Brahmaputra a little above its confluence with the Ganga. According to legend, it arose from the water held in Shiva's hand during the ceremony of his marriage to Parvati; hence its name, which means "hand-water". The Karatoya is believed to have been a great river not only in ancient times, but also until the fairly recent past. Today, however, it has become a minor river. (S. Atlas; B..V. 1978, p. 42) a 27:119
Kareem a character - a fisherman of Bagdad — in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. a 7:561, 691-93, 696-97, 700, 704
Kari father of the saint NAMMALWAR. He was a petty prince who paid tribute to the PandyankingofMadura. (A) a 17:373
Karikal (or Karaikal), a town and port located about 100 miles south of Pondi- cherry; with the surrounding territory, formerly one of the enclaves comprising the territory of French India. Since the transfer of the territory to the Government of India in 1954, this enclave of 62.8 sq. miles within the Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu state has been one of the four constituents of the Union Territory of Pondicherry. o 17:403 27:445-47, 449-50
Kannadeva(s) literally, "god(s) of action". [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Karmayogi a Tamil cultural monthly published from Pondicherry and edited by Subramania Bharati
Page 171
for about two years. Later, Govindarajulu was registered as editor. It was allowed free circulation in British India, a 27:501
Karmayogin1 English weekly of Calcutta, "a Review of National Religion, Literature, Science, Philosophy, etc.", started by Sri Aurobindo on 19 June 1909. He wrote practically all of its articles and editorial comments, and published in it a number of his poems and translations. When he left for Chandernagore in February 1910, he en- trusted the journal to Sister Nivedita. It ceased publication onMarch 26, 1910. (I&G) 0 2:pre.. 11, 13-14, 16.20, 52.210. 331, 358.386.415, 417-19 3:341 4:201.243 26:34-36.56-57, 61-63, 70-71 27:461 1:56 XIV: 166 XV: 61 XVI: 193 XVII: 69
Karmayogin1 a Bengali paper organized by Amarendranath Chatterjee and published from Uttarpara, a suburban town near Calcutta. (A) a 2:417
Kama in the Mahabharata, son of Kunti by Surya (the Sun) born, before her marriage with Pandu, from her ear (karna in Sanskrit) with an outfit of armour and ear-rings which, as ordained by Surya, made him invincible. Afraid of censure and disgrace Kunti abandoned the child on the banks of the Yamuna. The charioteer of Dhritarashtra found him and brought him up as his own son. Kama grew into a skilful archer and consequently a keen rival of Arjuna. In the war he sided with Duryodhana, his friend and benefactor. A liberal alms-giver, Kama could not refuse the gift of his life-saving armour and ear-rings to Indra, who purpose- ly deceived him in the garb of a Brahmin seeking alms. Kama had meant to use the Sakti, an unerring missile that Indra had granted him, against his arch-enemy Arjuna, but was forced to use it instead to kill Ghatotkacha, a son of Bhima by the demon- ess Hidimba. (Dow.; Pur. Enc.) Var: Cuma a 1:363 3:169.194 4:71.76 8:77 13: 370 14: 292 26: 503 III: 6 VII: 53
Karoosh in the Mahabharata, name of an ancient country which, according to modern scholars, comprised Baghelkhand and part of Bundelkhand regions of central India. The king of the country was Dantavakra or Dantavaktra. (M.N.;H.S.S.) d 8:40
Kartavirya, Haihaya Arjuna in Hindu mythology, son of Krtavirya, king of the Haihayas. His own name was Arjuna, Kartavirya is his patronymic.
By worship- ping Dattatreya he obtained many boons including a thousand arms. According to the Vishnu Purana, he ruled for 85, 000 years with unbroken health, prosperity, strength and valour. In another place, however, a different character is given to him: he op- pressed both men and gods, so that the latter approached Vishnu for succour, and Vishnu came down to the earth as Para- shuram for the express purpose of killing him. (Dow.) Var: Cartoveriya 1-1 3:190 8:46, 57 16:412 VI: 156
Kartick name of a month in the Hindu Calendar, corresponding to part of October/ November. It is the last month according to the ancient reckoning in which the year began with the month of Margasirsa, and the eighth month of the year in the modem popular Vikram Era, which starts with the month of Chaitra. Var: Karttik a 8:318
Kartikeya in Hindu mythology, the War- God. A son of Shiva, he was born to kill the Asura Taraka. Kartikeya is represented as riding on a peacock, holding a bow in one hand and an arrow in the other. Of his many other names those used by Sri Aurobindo are Skanda and Kumar(a). (Dow.) D 3:270, 316 4:27 7:974, 988. 1009 8:345 10:334 13:349 22:342.392-93
Kashi(e)' an ancient region of India com- prising what is now Varanasi (see Benares) and probably some adjoining area in the district of Banaras, of which Varanasi is the administrative headquarters. The people of the region were known as Kashis. (Tradi- tionally regarded as one of the seven sacred cities of the Hindus, renowned for its tem- ple of Vishwanath dedicated to the god Shiva, Kashi is identified with Varanasi. Officially and factually, however, Kashi is the name only of a locality in Varanasi served by a railway station of the same name.) a 3:289 7:909.926, 928, 953 8:77-78, 340 I: 23 X: 175 XVIII: 150
Kashiraj King of Kashi, an ancient region of India (see the previous entry). In the battle of the Mahabharata he sided with the Pandavas, (M.N.) n 4:75, 77
Kashiram Kashiram Das (fl. 16th cent.), Indian poet, famous for his Bengali ren- dering of the Mahabharata, which vied with the Ramayana of Krittibas in influencing the cultural life of Bengal in the medieval period. (B.A.C.; Gaz.-II, p. 439) D 14:319
Page 172
Kashitri (Kasitr), "the Shining One";
assumed Sanskrit cognate of the Greek name KASTOR. (The word does not occur in Hindu scriptures as a proper name.) (A) Var: Kashtri (Kastr) a 10:318 XVI: 164
Kashmir formerly a princely state on the north-northwestern frontier of India. (Pres- ently one half of Kashmir, called "Azad Kashmir", is under the occupation of Paki- stan. The other half, along with Jammu, forms the state of Jammu and Kashmir, which has a special status within the Union of India.) Famed for its natural beauty and healthy climate, the state is also strategically important as guarding one of the approaches to India on the northwest. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) Var: Cashmere Der: Kashmiri; Cashmeri; Cashmerian n l: 393-96, 414 3: 265 7:739, 741-45, 748-49, 754, 761, 778-82. 7.84-85, 791-92, 891, 895 8:340 14: 190. 306 26: 9, 50, 352 IV: 193-95.197 X: 147
Kashtri See Kashitri
Kashyapa a Vedic Rishi who is mentioned only once in the Rig-veda, but is a common figure in the later Samhitas. He is one of the seven great Rishis. He played a large part in the work of Creation and as such is some- times called Prajapati, or chief among the Prajapatis, in the Puranas. According to Sri Aurobindo, the Puranic Prajapati Kashyapa is different from the Vedic Rishi Kashyapa, and cannot be identified with him. (Dow.; V. Index; Pur. Enc.; A) D 10:147 17:278
Kashyapa, King Kasyapa I of Ceylon who built a palace at Sigiriya in AD 477 as a safeguard against his enemies. (Enc.Br., under Sigiriya) a 14:241
Kashyapas (Kasyapas) descendants of the Vedic Rishi Kasyapa. n 27:158
Kastor Greek form of Castor. See "Castor and Pollux".
Kata Vaishwamitra (Kata Vaisvamitra), a Vedic Rishi, son of Vishwamitra n ll: 139
Kathasaritsagara "The Ocean of the Rivers of Tales", a collection of popular romantic stories in Sanskrit verse written by Somadeva Bhatta sometime between 1063 and 1081. It is an inferior version of a once-famous work in the Paisachi language. (D.I.H.; A) n 6:205 14: 186, 306
Katha (Upanishad) an Upanishad of the Krishna (Black) Yajur-veda. o 4: 69 12: pre., 57, 119, 226, 237 14:269 16:91, 405 18: 60, 80, 218, 295, 388, 524. 553. 607 19:690, 765, 824, 889 IX: 35, 55 XV: 33 XVI: 171
Kathiawar a peninsula lying in west central India between the Gulf of Cutch and the Gulf of Cambay. It now forms part of the state of Gujarat. (Enc.Br.) n 2:385 17:331 27:112
Kathis (members of) a caste in Gujarat. (Gaz.-I, p. 624) o 1:647
Katya a Rishi mentioned in the Prashna Upanishad. a 12:295
Kaul a small town in Kaithal subdivision of the former province of Punjab (now in Karnal district of Haryana state). (A; Enc. Br., under Kaithal) a 2:180.182
Kaurav(a)(s) descendant(s) of Kuru. It is a patronymic applied especially to the hundred sons of Dhritarashtra, more correctly called Dhartarashtras (Dhartarastrah) or Dharta- rashtrians or Dhritarashtrians, who formed one of the two rival families of the Mahabharata. (Dow.) a 3:191, 195, 204 4:65, 67, 77, 79-80, 82-84, 88 8:36, 78, 80 13:54, 161.177, 220 IV: 116 VII: 49, 51
Kaushitaki Kausitakibrdhmanopanisad, an Upanishad of the Rig-veda. (Up.K.) a XVIII: 156
Kaustubha in Hindu mythology, the jewel which emerged from the waters as a result of the churning of the Milky Ocean, and is worn by Vishnu (or Krishna) on his chest. (Dow.) Var: Kaustubh-stone a 3:278 8:343 X: 159 XIII: 36
Kaviputra name of a great classical writer, a dramatist, mentioned in the drama Malavi- kdgnlmitram by Kalidasa. n 8:137 X:117
Kayastha a caste among the Hindus in northern and eastern India. In Bengal the Kayastha is next to the Brahmin in the hierarchy of castes. Many hold that the Kayasthas in Bengal were originally Kshatriyas who came to be known as Kayasthas when they exchanged the sword for the pen and became practically a caste of writers or clerks. The work of the latter brought them into administration and government, and, in Bengal especially, they have risen to high eminence. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) D 1:633 2:13
Kayshic an ancient country, mentioned in the Mahabharata, that was conquered by BHISHMUC, the king of Vidarbha. (M.N.) D 8:40
Kazimali Khan, Maulvi a Muslim zamindar of Chittagong (now in Bangladesh) around 1906. '(A) a 27:40
K.B.J. See Khaserao
K.D. See Dutt, Kshitish
Page 173
Keats, John (1795-1821), English poet. Inspite of his tragically brief career, he is considered one of the greatest of the 19th- century English lyric poets. He is remembered for the vivid imagery, sensuous appeal, and rich classical themes of his verse. (Enc. Br.) D 3:101, 108.147.156, 254, 291 5:8 9:21, 27, 53-54, 74, 92-94, 100, 112, 116, 126, 129-31, 133, 171-73. 192.247.253, 303-04, 377, 395.421, 472, 479, 481-82, 521-22, 525, 529, 53826:233, 238, 241, 246, 264-67, 310, 340 27:81, 86 29:738, 753, 758, 785, 788, 791 1:13 II: 16 X: 141
Kedar Kedar Roy ( ? -1603), younger brother of Chand Roy (see Chand). He did not submit to the Moghuls. In 1603 he was defeated by the Moghul forces under Man Singh, and was killed by the latter. (N.B.A.;S.B.C.) a i:21
Keerat (the word in the text of the Mahabharata is "Kirata"), name of an ancient Indian territory. (M.N.) a 8:40
Kekayie See Kaikeyi(e)
Kelkar, N. C. Narasimha Chintaman Kelkar (1872-1947), a nationalist leader of Poona (now called Pune), Tilak's most prominent disciple and colleague. He was editor of the Maratha (see Mahratta} from 1897 to 1919 and of Kesari, a Marathi journal, from 1897 to 1899 and from 1901 to 1931. Kelkar dis- tinguished himself in Marathi literature. His collected works cover twelve volumes com- prising 12, 000 pages. (D.N.B.; B.A.C.) D 2:297-98, 310 4:233-34
Keltic faith the religious beliefs and practices of the Kelts or Celts, an Indo-European people numerically and geographically at the height of their power in Europe during the fourth century BC. Presided over by the Druids (the priestly order), Celtic religion presents beliefs and practices similar to those of ancient Indian culture, thus indicating an ancient common heritage. (Enc. Br., under "Celtic religion") [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Kemp F. E. Kemp, deputy superintendent of police, Barisal (now in Bangladesh), under whose command the police cudgelled and lathi-charged the procession of delegates to the Provincial Conference of the Congress on April 14. 1906. (I.F.F., p. 159; B.P.P., p. 64) D 1:238
Kena (Upanishad) also known as Talavakara, an Upanishad belonging to the Samaveda. (Up.K.) D 4:30 12: pre., 95.145, 155. 162-63, 224, 393.527, 535 13:425 17:402 18:12-13, 100, 388 27: 309 IV: 169 VIII: 156-57 XIV: 128 XV: 20 XVI: 188-89 XVII: 33
Kepler, Johannes (1571-1630), German astronomer who discovered that the earth and the other planets travel around the Sun in elliptical orbits. (Enc. Br.) a i: 281
Kersey's Dictionary New English Dictionary (1702) by John Kersey (the Younger), British lexicographer. (Enc. Br.) n n: 18
Kesari Marathi weekly, the foremost in western India among the Extremists' organs. It was started at Poona (now Pune) in 1880 by Tilak, Apte, Agarkar, and others, with Tilak as the editor. In 1890 Tilak, because of differences of opinion with Agarkar, ob- tained proprietorship of the paper. It was edited by N. C. Kelkar from 1897 to 1899 and again from 1901 to 1931. (B.A.C.; P.T.I.) a 1:197, 281, 292, 626, 746 17:350
Keshab Press Keshab Printing Works of Calcutta, owned by Keshab Chandra Sengupta. It was a nationalist press which occasionally printed forms or issues of Yugantar. The Pamphlet "Sonar Bangia" was also printed at this press. (A; A.B.T.) a 1:429-30
Keshav See Keshav (Ganesh) (Desai)
Keshav(a) "having much or fine hair" or / "killer of Kesi"; a name of Vishnu or Krishna, but more often used for the latter. (Dow.) D [Indexed with Krishna]
Keshav Chandra See Sen, Keshab Chandra
Keshav (Ganesh) (Desai) one of the participants in the dialogues "The Harmony of Virtue" and "Beauty in the Real" written by Sri Aurobindo at the age of 18-20. (A) a 3:1-19, 21-30, 32-63.65-66, 68
Kesteven, Lord John Henry Trollope (1851- 1915), 2nd Baron Kesteven. He was a wealthy country gentleman. D 2:307
Ketkar, Daji Saheb the person who introduced Sri Aurobindo to a meeting held at Nasik on 24th January 1908. (A) a 1:5
Ketkar, Vishvanath Gangadhar one of the persons who received Sri Aurobindo at Nasik Road station on 24th January 1908. (A) a 1:1
Ketu the descending node in Hindu astronomy, also considered a planet. See also Rahu. a 17:259-62
Ketu Agneya a Vedic Rishi, son of Mrtyu, a daughter of Brahma, a 11:433
K.G.G. SeeGupta.K.G.
Khagen name of a person probably belong- ing to Chandernagore and connected with the commune organized there by Motilal
Page 174
Roy in or before 1920. Sri Aurobindo, in one of his letters, replies to a point raised by Motilal in connection with Khagen's marriage. (A) a 27:496
Khakan mentioned as the father of Almuene in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. a 7:561, 565, 568, 580, 589, 615, 620, 731
Khalid a character - a slave - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. n 7:578-79, 581
Khalsa the military theocracy of the Sikhs. It is a democratic institution in which a new direction and form was given to Sikhism by Guru Govind Singh. It gradually came to indicate the whole military might of the Sikhs. (A;D.I.H.) D i: 308 4:171 14: 132, 187, 378, 380 15: 354
Khandav name of an ancient forest and country on the banks of the Yamuna which the Pandavas received as their inheritance when Dhritarashtra divided his kingdom. There the Pandavas built the city of INDRA- PRASTHA and made it their capital. The forest was consumed with fire by the god Agni assisted by Krishna and Arjuna. (Dow.) a 8:28
Khaparde, Ganesh Srikrishna (1854-1938), a famous lawyer, scholar, orator, and social worker of Amraoti (now in Maharashtra state). He was an eminent Nationalist leader, an associate ofTilak, and connected with revolutionary activities. (B.A.C.; P.T.I.) n 1:634.828 2:314 4:178 27:42
Khare probably, Daji Abaji Khare (1856-1916), a famous lawyer and public worker of Bombay, and a secretary of the Congress from 1909 to 1913. He was a Moderate leader but had the "Nationalist robustness to keep possession of his own conscience" (1:896). (B.A.C.; A) D 1: 896-97, 899
Khare, Baba Saheb See Khare, Waman Sakaram
Khare, Keshav Lakshman one of the persons who received Sri Aurobindo at Nasik Road station on 24 January 1908. (A) a 1:1
Khare, Waman Sakaram (... Sakharam...), also known as Baba Saheb Khare (1866-1928), a leading legal practitioner of Nasik (now in Maharashtra state), and because of his nationalist activities an acknowledged leader of Nasik district. He was earlier a follower of the Tilak school of politics, but later he joined the revolutionary movement. He was arrested in the Bande Mataram Case of 1906-07,
but was found "not guilty". In 1910 he was implicated in the Jacksoh Murder Case and was sentenced to 4 years' imprisonment. Sri Aurobindo stayed at his house when he visited Nasik in January 1908. (D.N.B.; A) a 1:1-3, 5
Kharwar the Kharia; hill people living in the states of Orissa and Bihar, numbering about 180, 000. They are primarily hunters and gatherers, although some practise a shifting agriculture. (Enc. Br.) a IX: 1, 2
Khaserao Rao Bahadur K. B. Jadhav(a) (1864-1924), a close friend of Sri Aurobindo at Baroda. He was at one time Sar Suba (Chief Collector) of Navsari in Baroda state. In 1902 he was serving as District Collector of Baroda. Sri Aurobindo spent much of his time at Baroda at his place. Bungalow No. 15 in Dandia Bazar. Khaserao came to see Sri Aurobindo at Pondicherry in 1916. (Purani) D 26: 58 (Khasirao, a misspelling) 1:68, 70, 72, 75-76 IV: 196-98
Khasirao See Khaserao
Khatoon a character - wife of Almuene, and sister of Ameena - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. a 7:561, 569-70, 707-09, 716-18
Khedive a title (Viceroy of Egypt) accorded to Ismail Pasha by the Turkish Government in 1867. His successors also enjoyed this title. It was replaced by the title "Sultan" in 1914 when Egypt became a British protectorate. (Enc. Br.) a 1:721
Khesias the Khasis, people of the Khasi and Jaintia Hills district of the state of Megha- laya in India. They have a distinctive culture. (Enc.Br.) a IX: 1, 2
Khilafat Agitation a movement started by Indian Muslims around 1920 with the pur- pose of exerting pressure on England against joining in the then impending destruction of Turkey and the Caliphate. It brought into prominence as leaders two brothers, Shaukat Ali and Muhammad Ali. They joined the Congress, which soon after (December 1920) started the non-cooperation movement under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi. Thus the Khilafat movement led to an unprecedented union between the Indian Muslims and the Hindus and greatly strengthened the cause of Indian nationalism. In Turkey, however, after the emergence of Kamal Ataturk, the Sultan was deposed (1923), the office of the Caliph was abolished (1924), and Turkey was declared a secular state by the Turks themselves. The Khilafat movement consequently soon collapsed. (D.I.H.) n 15:645
Page 175
Khorassan Khurasan or Khorasan, a region of northeastern Iran, bounded on the north byU.S.S.R., andon the east by Afghani- stan. (Enc.Br.) a 5:275, 277
Khotan an oasis town of southwestern Sinkiang province in China. It was an early centre for the spread of Buddhism from India into China. (Col. Enc.) u 14:241
Khuda Baksh a person whom Sri Aurobindo speaks of as having walked on fire unhurt and disproved all explanations suggested by scientists. (A) D 22:202
Khulna administrative headquarters of Khulna district and division in Bengal (now
in Bangladesh). Sri Aurobindo's father K. D. Ghose served at Khulna from 1884 till his death in 1892. (Enc.Br.) a 1:373.375, 477, 485-86 2:425 3:83-84, 90-91 27:439 XIX: 21
Kiamil Pasha probably, Mehmed Kamil Pasha (1832-1913), a liberal Turkish army officer who became Ottoman Grand Vizier (Prime Minister) four times. He was forced to resign in 1913 as a result of Enver Pasha's coup d'etat (see Anwar). (Enc. Br.) D XXI: 94
Kidnapped one of the best-known works of R. L. Stevenson, published in 1886; it is an adventure novel centred around a stolen inheritance, a kidnapping, a battle at sea, and several murders in 18th-century Scotland. (Enc.Br.) n 22:343
King Bomba See Bomba, King
Kingdom of God one of the finest poems by Francis Thompson. (A) a 26:255, 259-60 29:797, 799
King Henry VI a play by Shakespeare in three parts, belonging to the first group of his plays (c. 1589 through 1594). (Henry VI was king of England from 1422 to 1461 and 1470 to 1471). (Col. Enc.) a 3:185
King Lear See Lear
(King ) Lear a tragedy by Shakespeare, considered by many his most pessimistic work. It belongs to the third group of his plays (written from 1601 through 1609) and was first performed in 1605/6. (Enc. Br.; " Col. Enc.) D 3:97 9:72 26:181
King Log The reference is to the fable of Jupiter and the frogs. The expression means "a faineant ruler". (C.O.D.) D 13:142
King Philip a character - King Philip of Spain - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. (There were many kings named Philip in the history of Spain.) a 7:821, 825-30.832-33, 835-36
King's College constituent college of Cambridge University. Sri Aurobindo (then known as A. A. Ghose) was a student of this college for two years between 1890 and 1892, obtaining First Class Honours in Part I of the Classical Tripos. (A & R, II: 99) a 26:2-3 27:419 11:87 V: 100 XVII: 66
Kingsford D. H. Kingsford (1872-1937), who entered the I.C.S. in 1894, was the Chief Presidency Magistrate of Calcutta from August 1904 to March 1908, when he was transferred to Muzaffarpur (Bihar) as District Judge. Threats were made against his life because he had tried cases against nationalist newspapers, and had ordered the whipping of a boy named Sushil Chandra Sen for a fracas with the police. A terrorist bomb was directed against him, but the attempt miscarried, two ladies'bemgYiAed instead. (P.T.I.; Auro-I, p. 544; Gilbert, p. 147) n 1:629
Kingsley. Charles (1819-75), Anglican clergyman, teacher, and writer whose novels, widely read in the Victorian era of reform, influenced social developments in Britain. He was one of the first churchmen to support Darwin's theory. (Enc.Br.) a 5:381
Kinnar(a); Kinnari(e) mythical beings - Kinnara (male) and Kinnari (female) - traditionally considered to have the form of a man and the head of a horse; according to some scholars, Sri Aurobindo included, they are choristers and musicians dwelling in the paradise of Kuvera on Kailas. See also Gandharva(s) (Dow.) a 3:154, 242-44 6:265 8: 100-01. 105.111, 115-16, 123, 343 12: 409 27: 103-04, 159
Kipling, Rudyard (1865-1936), English poet, novelist, and short-story writer. He was England's first Nobel Prize winner in lite- rature (1907). (Enc.Br.) D 1:52 3:235 9:19, 474-75, 482 14:50 26:343-44
Kirath(a); Kirathie Kirata (fern.: Kirati) is a name given to forest and mountain people living in the east of India, and eastern Nepal. The name seems to have been applied to any hill folk., all doubtless aborigines. (Dow.; V. Index) n 5:246 6:303, 312-13
Kirtimukha 1. an architectural ornament in the form of a non-human face. 2, in Hindu mythology, name of a Shiva gana (attendant inferior deity) born out of the matted hair of Shiva, with three faces, three tails, three legs and seven hands. The Lord at first asked him to live on corpses, but later on, in appreciation
Page 176
of his valour, granted him the boon that if anyone saw the Lord without think- ing first about Kirtimukha, he would meet with his downfall. (Pur. Enc.; I & G) a 17:302
Kirtinasha name of a part of the River Padma (the Ganga in Bangladesh). Floods in this part of the Padma engulfed and destroyed 21 temples of Raja Rajaballabh, whose fame rested on them. It was from that time called Kirtinasha, the destroyer of "Kirti" or fame. (N.B.A.) a 1:22
Kishoregunj a town in Mymensingh district of Dacca division, Bengal (now in Bangla- desh). (Enc. Br.) a 1:262, 715, 884, 888 27:64
Kitchener, Lord (Horatio) Herbert Kitchener (1850-1916), 1st Earl Kitchener, British Field Marshal and statesman. He came to India as Commander-in-Chief of the British Forces in 1902. He had a serious controversy with the Viceroy, Lord Curzon, on an important matter of military administration and the dispute was referred for settlement to the Secretary of State for India, who decided in Kitchener's favour. After he left India in 1909 he was made Field Marshal. On the outbreak of World War I in August 1914 he was placed in charge of the War Office in England. He-was drowned when the ship in which he was travelling to Russia was sunk by a mine. (D.I.H.; Col. Enc.; Gilbert, p. 6) D 1:284 4:176
KK See Krishnakali
Kodal a character - a young Bheel, foster brother and lieutenant of Bappa - in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. a 7:739, 758-59, 764-67, 770-71, 796-99, 815
Kohalatkar, Achyutrao Achyut Balwant Kolhatkar (1879-1931), a versatile litterateur and a popular journalist who introduced a new style in Marathi writing. He was editor of the D'eshsevak of Nagpur after 1906. In 1908 he was convicted for the publication in his paper of reports of Aurobindo Ghose's speeches, and in jail a brutal treatment was meted out to him. (A; D.N.B.; B.A.C.) n 2:172
Kolahpur See Kolhapur
Kolar name of a pool somewhere in India, associated with swans, o 27:128
Kolhapur capital of the former princely state of Kolhapur, and also seat of the British Residency for the
Deccan states in India. In 1949 Kolhapur state became part of the province of Bombay. It is presently a
district of Maharashtra, and Kolhapur town the administrative headquarters of the district. (Enc. Br.) Var: Kolahpur n 1: 140, 246 17:350
Konarak a village in the district of Puri in Orissa state, famous for a thirteenth-century Hindu temple dedicated to the sun-god Surya. Built of red sandstone, never completed, and falling into ruins before being restored, it represents the culmination of the Orissa school of temple architecture. It is about 100 ft. high but would have been 200 ft. high in its completed form. The temple was designed to represent the Sun's chariot with twelve huge carved stone wheels and seven stone horses around its base. The exterior is covered with sculptured decora- tions, many of them depicting erotic scenes. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a XV:2
Konigsberg historic capital of East Prussia. In 1945 when it was transferred to U.S.S.R., its name was changed to Kaliningrad and it became capital of Kaliningrad oblast incor- porated into the Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic. (Col. Enc.) a 27:466
Konnagar one of the flourishing townships which grew up from medieval times along the western bank of the Ganga, eight miles from Calcutta, in the district ofHooghly. It was the ancestral home of Sri Aurobindo's family. (Lotika) n 4:262
Koraish also transliterated as Kuraish or Quraysh, the ruling tribe of Mecca at the time of the birth of the Prophet Mohammad. There were in it ten main clans including Hashim, the clan of the Prophet. Most of the Koreishites were bitterly opposed to the Prophet, especially at the beginning of his mission. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Var: Koreish a 1:905 5:275
Koran or Quran, the holy book of Islam regarded by Muslims as the true word of God that was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad and collected in book-form after his death. It is accepted as the earthly reproduction of an uncreated and heavenly original and is held in high esteem as the ultimate authority in all matters legal and religious. It is written in Arabic. (Enc. Br.) a 2:19 4:260 7:578, 599, 610 12:231 13:86 16:119 26:483 X: 113
Korea a former peninsular country of eastern Asia. Its land boundaries with China and the U.S.S.R. on the north were marked
Page 177
in the main by the Yalu and Tumen Rivers. After World War II the country was divided at the 38th parallel into North Korea and South Korea. These are now separate republics. (Enc. Br.) Der: Korea(s) a 1:487 2:256-57 4: 157 5: 110 15: 293, 502, 622, 626 26: 416-17 27: 117, 122-24
Koreish See Koraish
Koros in Greek mythology, satiety personified. (A & R, XV: 87) a XV: 15
Koshala name of an ancient Indian country on the Sarayu River, having Ayodhya for its capital. It probably expanded with the dominions of its rulers. The name is also variously applied to other regions. The people of the country were called Kosalas. This name does not occur in the earliest Vedic literature. (Dow.; V. Index) Var: Coshala Der: Koshalan; Koshalas; Coshalas n 3: 163-64, 189-90, 194, 214 4: 93 8: 3, 41 12:295, 302, 311 VI:155
Kountie See Kuntie2
Kripa in the Mahabharata, the adopted son of King Santanu. He was a very wise and experienced statesman, and a member of the privy council at Hastinapur. Like Bhishma, Drona and Vidura he desired justice and reconciliation with Yudhishthira. He was one of the three surviving Kuru warriors who made the murderous night attack upon the camp of the Pandavas. (Dow.; A.) Var: Cripa a 3: 194, 196 4: 76 8: 77 27: 79
Krishna "The Etemal's Personality of Ananda"; Avatar of the Overmind. In Hindu religion, Krishna was the 8th incarnation, and is looked upon as the full manifestation of Vishnu. He was born in the Yadava race as a son of Vasudeva and Devaki, but brought up by Nanda and Yasoda. The main object of this incarnation in the Dwapara Yuga was to kill the tyrant Kansa. Krishna also killed many other Asuras and demons. He is the speaker in the Bhagavadgita. His life and exploits are related in the Maha- bharata and the Bhagavata Pur ana. Symbolically (3: 452-53), Sri Aurobindo sees Sri Krishna as the main Power of the Chatur- vyuha, with Lordship as His manifestation, and Might and Wisdom as His gunas (attributes); the Satya Yuga is full of Sri Krishna, the Brahmin. Krishna is known by several names and epithets, some of which also apply to Vishnu. The names indexed here are: Achyuta; Gopal; Govinda;
Hari;
Hrishikesh(a); Janardan(a); Keshav(a);
Madhav(a); Madhus(h)udan; Murari; Sauri;
Shyam(a); Syamasundara; Varshneya;
Vasudeva.' (A; Dow.) Var: Crishna;
Srikrishna; Caanou Der: Krishnahood;
Krishnabhava a 1: 98, 128, 595-96, 598-600, 613, 659, 665, 739, 778, 802, 818, 852-53 2: 3-6, 9, 425-29 3: 31, 91, 113, 121, 144, 148, 151, 161, 166, 168-69, 171-75, 179, 182-83, 192-93, 195, 199-203, 205, 207, 209, 213, 295, 344, 346, 352-53, 355, 371, 452-53, 461 4: 7, 11-16, 29, 57-58, 61, 63-65, 67-68, 70-72, 76-80, 82, 85-86, 88, 90, 93-95, 97, 99-104, 107, 109, 121, 127, 129, 144, 153, 165, 222, 257, 279, 290, 302-03, 312, 331 5: 40, 78, 80. 84-85, 139-40, 165, 532, 536, 548-49, 590 7: 750, 761, 768, 772 8: 27-30, 32, 37-39, 45, 47, 49-51, 53-55, 57, 59-60, 77-80, 83.-85, 87-88, 91, 93, 95, 171, 219-25, 229-30, 242, 248. 261-62, 280, 283-84, 286, 296, 321, 325-26, 333-35, 352-54, 356, 398-401, 405-06 9: 341, 381, 437-38 10: 461 11: 444-45, 455 12: 59, 337, 456-57, 459-63, 478, 493-94, 503, 509 13: 6, 12-16, 18, 23-24. 33, 42, 53, 55, 60, 76-77, 92, 94, 98, 102-03, 107, 109, 126-27, 132, 135, 137-41, ^148, 151-54, 157-58, 160-62, 165-66, 169, 228, 256-58, 271-72, 277-78, 280, 291, 294, 301, 307, 309-10, 333, 343, 345, 350, 352, 355, 374-75, 378, 385-86, 418, 425-26, 441, 444, 468, 471, 477, 500, 514, 519, 530, 538, 562 14:264, 280, 315, 317-18 16:276, 377, 415-20, 422, 429 17: 47-48, 59, 82-83, 98, 106, 109, 114, 119, 122-23, 131-39, 141, 143, 146, 157, 174, 241, 319, 372 20:48, 59-60, 100, 259 21:555, 561, 575, 741 22: 52, 73, 80, 82-83, 87-88, 93, 95, 122, 140, 173, 245, 266, 298, 304, 315, 391-92, 402-08, 412-14, 417-18, 420-22, 424-26, 428, 430 23: 514, 521, 610, 665, 675-76, 724, 793-98, 949, 951, 960-61, 965, 980, 983 24: 1114, 1335, 1629 25: 53, 56, 73-75, 89, 275, 359 26: 77, 81, 99, 118, 120, 122, 129-30, 135-38, 143, 149, 187, 189, 191, 397, 427, 445, 463 27:83, 317, 354, 357, 359, 363, 433, 435, 460, 468 29: 525 I: 20, 22, 38, 41 II: 58-59, 64-65, 69, 72, 74 IV: 115, 168, 185, 191 V: 4-5, 9, 62-63, 69 VI: 137-38, 155-56, 166, 175 VII: 6, 17, 51 VIII: 137-38, 140-41, 188 IX: 31, 38 X: 145 XI: 14 XII: 174 XIV: 133 XVI: 134 XVII: 12, 23 XVIII: 134, 144 XIX: 3, 14, 15, 21, 80, 82 XX: 114, 127, 129, 136, 143 XXI: 39, 46, 63 XXII: 171-72, 191
Krishnacharit(ra) "The Life of Krishna" by Bankim Chandra, in which a picture of a perfect and many-sided Karmayoga is sketched. It has seven parts. The first part came out in book-form in 1886. The com- plete work containing all the seven parts was published in 1892. (A; B.R.-II) D 3:91, 182 17:345-46 27:354
Page 178
Krishna Dwypaiana (or Dvy...) Vyasa See Vyas(a) .
Krishnakali the dual realisation of Krishna and Kali, Ishwara and Shakti, constituting the "subjective half" ofKarmacatustaya. (A & R, XX: 164) Var: Krishna Kali; Krishna-Kali a XX: 114, 132, 133 XXII: 128, 135, 144, 169, 171-72
Krishnakanter Will or Krishna Kanta's Will, a Bengali novel (1878) by Bankim Chandra. He considered it his greatest novel. (Enc. Br.) 0 3: 91 17: 345 27: 353
Krishnakumar See Mitra, Krishna Kumar
Krishna Mill a cloth mill started in Bengal in the early 20th century by nationalist-minded people to encourage Swadeshi. It manufactured cloth made of British yarn, yarn of good quality not being available in India, or from America or Japan. (A) a 4:207-08
Krishna of the Island (or Isle) See Vyas(a)
Krishnaprem Ronald Nixon (c. 1895-1965), an Irishman who took sannyasa in 1928 from a saintly Bengali lady named Yashoda Mai, and set up an Ashram named Uttara Brinda- ban at Mirtola near Almora in the Himalayas. He was a brilliant student at Cambridge, and as professor taught English literature at the universities of Lucknow and Benares. He was an aviator during World War I. Krishna- prem wrote several books, perhaps the best known being his commentary on the Gita. (SKP) D 22:492 26:256
Krishnaswami V. Krishnaswamy lyer (1863-1911), a Moderate leader of Madras, closely associated with Gokhale. He took part in the Congress sessions regularly from 1889. He was on the Senate of the Madras University, and in 1907 became a member of the Legislative Assembly, representing the university. In 1910 he was appointed a judge, and the next year, a little before his death, a member of the .Governor's Executive Council. (D.N.B.) D 4:177.202
Krishnavarma, Shyamji (1857-1930). born in Kathiawar, India; a disciple of Madame Blavatsky as a young man; from 1878 to 1883 an undergraduate and then lecturer at Balliol College, Oxford, where he excelled in Latin, Greek, Sanskrit, Law and Political Economy;
advocate of Bombay High Court (1885);
Chief Minister and legal adviser in a number of Native States (1887-96). He returned to London and founded The Indian Sociologist (1905), which denounced Britain's "tyrannical rule" in India, and founded the Indian Home Rule Society (1905), whose object was to secure Home Rule for India by carrying on propaganda in the U.K., and financed a hostel for Indian students in London named India House. He fled to Paris to avoid arrest (1908) and continued to publish violent anti-British literature. (Gilbert, ?. 175) a 1:168 2:119-21, 363
Kritayuga "the age of accomplishment"; "the Age when the law of the Truth is accomplished".
D [Indexed with Satya (Yuga)]
Krittibas Krttivasa Ojha Mukhati (1346- ? ), one of the most distinguished classical Ben- gali writers who helped to make the Bengali language a literary instrument. His Rama- yana is a free rendering in Bengali verse of the story of Rama, based primarily on Valmiki's Ramayana but also drawing freely from other sources. (Gaz.-II; Enc. Ind.; A) 0 3:426 14:319
Kronos See Cronos
Kruger, Paul Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger (1825-1904), South African Transvaal farmer, soldier, and statesman, noted in South African history as the builder of the Afrikaner nation. He was elected president in 1883 and re-elected in 1888, 1893 and 1898. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 1:575
Krupp munitions manufactured by Krupp, a family who were the world's largest manu- facturers of munitions. They dominated the city of Essen from 1587 to 1968. (Enc. Br.) n VI: 201
Kshatriya the second highest class of the ancient Chaturvarnya of India. Heroism, high spirit, resolution, ability, not fleeing in the battle, giving, lordship (isvara-bhdva), etc. were the main characteristics of the Kshatriya. The Kshatriya class gave to the community its kings, warriors, governors, and administrators. The term has been used by Sri Aurobindo also for the class of society performing this function in other countries. In India, in modern times, the Kshatriya Varna is held to include a broad class of caste groups, differing widely in status and headed by the aristocratic Rajput lineages. (A;Enc.Br.) n 1:122, 125, 127-28, 219, 236-37, 244, 537, 623, 632.705, 737, 742 2: 11-13, 29, 400, 426-27. 429 3: 163. 173, 178, 196, 202-03, 218, 331, 452 4:58, 61.67, 70-71, 84-86, 89-90, 93-95, 97-100, 102-03, 218, 268, 306, 309, 319 5:83, 85 8:23, 39, 48, 54-58, 61, 70, 81 11:451-52 12:300, 455 13:20-21, 45, 47-48, 50, 59-60, 161, 173, 491-92, 497-98, 505 14: 111, 146, 189, 316, 347, 349-51, 353, 355
Page 179
15: 5, 7-8, 117, 270, 353, 463-64. 583, 627 17: 121-22, 211, 393 20: 316 21: 714, 717, 720 22:154, 416 23:675 26:130 27:79, 359-63, 451 1:27 11:61, 66 111:5, 7-8, 12-13, 18 V: 2, 4 VI: 158-59 XVIII: 134 XIX: 5-7
Kshetro Kshetro Mohan Singh, the first "declared" or legal proprietor of Bande Mataram according to the declaration dated 6 August 1906. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
K.U. Kena Upanishad
Kubera See Kuvera
KublaKhan poetic fragment (1816) by Coleridge, an inspired fantasy memorable for its haunting sensuous imagery and melodic lines. (Enc. Br.) D 9: 349
Kulasekhara Alwar (fl. c. 8th cent.), a king of Malabar who became a poet-saint. (Enc. Br.) a 8: 402
Kulind in the Mahabharata, name of a people living in a region of the same name in the northwest of India. (M. N.; Dow.) D 8: 41
Kumar See Deb, Kumar Kshitendra
Kumar(a) in Hindu mythology, name or epithet of Skanda, the god of war. See Kartikeya. n [Indexed with Kartikeya]
Kumar Atreya a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. (B.P.C.) D 11: 203
K.unwr(a)sambhava(m) one of the six recognized epic poems in Sanskrit literature, in seventeen cantos. The first seven are certainly by Kalidasa, the last ten; also ascribed to him, are thought by some scholars to be spurious. The poem's theme is the marriage of Lord Shiva and Uma and the birth of Kartikeya. Sri Aurobindo translated the first and part of the second canto of this poem under the title The Birth of the War-God. (Enc. Br.;Gaz.-II) a 3:226-27, 251, 260, 293, 308, 316, 318. 323 8: 97, 99, 104, 113, 125 9:76, 113 X: 143
Kumartuli Park Kumartuli is a locality in northwest Calcutta, and the park is situated at 22, Nandaram Sen Street. (Guide) a 2: 150
Kumbhakarna in the story of the Ramayana, 'brother of Ravana, who under the curse of Brahma (or, as otherwise represented, as a boon) slept for six months at a time and remained awake for only a single day. He was aroused from sleep with great difficulty, when Ravana was hard-pressed in the battle.
Kumbhakarna was slain by Rama. (Dow.) D V:6.11
Kumbhakonam a town in Thanjavur district of Madras province (now Tamil Nadu state), in the Cavery delta. It contains many Hindu temples, and every twelve years is the site of a great gathering of pilgrims. (Col. Enc.) a 26:16
Kunchenjunga See Kanchanjungha.
Kuntibhoja in the Mahabharata, king of the people called Kuntis. He was the adoptive father of Kunti (see the following entry). (Dow.) 1-1 4:75
Kunti(e)' (Kunti), in the Mahabharata, born Pritha as daughter of the Yadava prince Surasena, and renamed Kunti when adopted (and brought up) by Kuntibhoja, her father's childless cousin. In her maidenhood she gave birth through the ear to Kama. Subsequently she married Pandu and bore three sons: Yudhishthira, Bhima and Arjuna. After the end of the great war she retired with Dhritatashtra and Gandhari into the forest and there they all perished in a fire. (Dow.) Var: Coonty; County n 3:151-52, 172, 208 4:77-78 8:27-28, 48, 51, 60-61, 77-78, 80, 82-88, 95 12:456 13: 52, 60, 62, 104.127, 139, 261, 514 11:79 IV: 116
Kuntie2 (Kunti), in the Mahabharata, name of a region, its people, king and warriors. (M.N.) Var: Kountie n 8:41.43
Kuntivardhan Purujit See Pourujit
Kural a most venerated and popular Tamil book by the poet Tiruvalluvar. It was written in the early centuries of the Christian era, not later than the 10th century. The Kural propounds a Sankhya philosophy in 1, 330 poetical aphorisms on three subjects: wealth, pleasure and virtue. It contains the moral ideals and ethical doctrines of the Tamil people. It has been translated into many languages, Indian and foreign. (D.I.H.;
jGaz.-I & II) Var: Kurral a 8: 397 14: 321 17: 319
Kurokis perhaps a variant of "Cherokees", members of a tribe of Iroquoian Indians whose original home was in the southeastern United States; they now live in the South- west. The etymological meaning of the word "Cherokee" is probably "cave people". (Web.) n l: 219
Kuropatkin, Aleksey Nikolayevich Kuropatkin (1848-1921), Russian general. (Enc. Br.) a 1:211, 580
Kuru a prince of the Lunar race. He ruled over a region around modern Delhi. A people called Kurus dwelling around Kuru- kshetra were connected with him. Kuru was the ancestor both of Dhritarashtra and
Page 180
Pandu, but the patronymic "Kaurava" is generally applied to the sons of Dhrita- rashtra. (Dow.) D 3: 143, 162, 189-91. 193-96, 200, 203-05, 207-08, 214, 266 4: 83-86, 89, 93, 95-96, 100, 107 5:222 6:277 8:34, 59-60, 77-78, 90, 95 10: 15 13: 160 14: 325 27: 79 1^: 115-16 VI: 155-56 X: 148 XVIII: 136
Kuruhur a small town in Tinnevelly (officially, Tirunelveli), Tamil Nadu, South India; birthplace of Nammalwar. (A) n 17: 373
Kurukshetra "the field of the Kurus", a plain where the great battle between the Kauravas and the Pandavas was fought. The site of the battle has been located near Delhi, not very far from Panipat in Karnal district of Har- yana state. It was the scene of many battles in later days also. Kurukshetra is always regarded in the Brahmana texts as a particularly sacred country. Within its boundaries flowed the rivers Drsadvati (see Drishadwati) and Sarasvati, as well as the Apaya. Roughly speaking it corresponds to the modern Sirhind. (Dow.; D.I.H.; V. Index) a 1: 98, 737 3: 199, 346, 352-54 4: 62, 67, 71, 73, 75, 82, 90, 95-99, 165, 303 13: 9, 12-13, 15, 33, 36-37, 42-44, 50, 59, 124, 126, 172, 287, 361, 369, 371, 384, 430, 436, 481, 521, 537, 549 14: 193 15: 591-92 16: 252 17: 83, 141 22: 492 23: 676 26: 130, 136, 396, 398 VI: 156 VII: 49, 51 VIII: 192
Kuruvriddha an epithet of BHISHMA, mean- ing ancient among the Kurus. D 4: 76
Kushasthaly an ancient city of India, identical with or standing on the same spot as Dwarka in Gujarat. It was built by Raivata and was the capital of his kingdom. (Dow.) a 8: 43
Kushikas Vedic Rishis, descendants of Kusika. Vishwamitra was the most important of them. The Kushikas are repeatedly referred to in the third Mandala of the Rig-veda, and figure in the legend of Sunahsepa in the Aitereya Brahmana. (V. Index) a n: 149, 158
Kushtia formerly a subdivisional town of Nadia district in the province of Bengal. Now it is a district town in Khulna division of Bangladesh, a 4:260
Kusumanjali title in gold letters of a Bengali book carried by a girl seen in swapnasamadhi by Sri Aurobindo. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Kuthumi name of a Rishi. According to the Vishnu Purana and the Vayu Parana, he was
a disciple of Pausyamji, who belonged to Vyasa's Samavedic school. (B.P.C.) Var: Kuthrni (a misspelling) a 2: 413 5: 83
Kutsa the human soul; "the sattwic or purified and light-filled soul" (13: 18). It is said that Indra took him in his chariot to his palace, and when the chariot reached the end of the journey Kutsa had grown into an exact likeness of his divine companion Indra. (A) a 13: 16, 18 II: 40, 45 XVIII: 177
Kutsa (Angirasa) a Vedic Rishi, a descendant of Angiras; author of several hymns of the Rig-veda. (B.P.C.) a 10:154.237, 430 11: 34, 66 18: 1 V: 31 VI: 147 VIII: 149 XVII: 53
Kutthumi Koot Hoomi (or Kut Humi), one of the Theosophical Masters (see Mahatmas), semi-divine beings who watch over the world's spiritual progress. Koot Hoomi made himself particularly helpful to Mme Blavatsky and Col. Olcott in the early days of the Theosophical Society, and William Quan Judge seems to have thought that he was Koot Hoomi himself. (Enc. Unex., p. 131) a XIII: 28, 30
Kuvera (the form of Kubera in later Sanskrit) in Hindu mythology, the king of the Yakshas and the god of wealth. Ac- cording to most accounts he first lived in Lanka, but was expelled from there by his half-brother Ravana. He now resides in Alaka, a beautiful mansion near Shiva's abode on Mt. Kailasa. (Enc. Br.; M.W.) Var: Kubera; Kuver(e); Cubera D 7: 913 8: 130 17: 40 27: 159 II: 37
Kyd Thomas Kyd (or Kid), (1558-94), English dramatist. He was the best-known exponent of the English "tragedy of blood", and was among the writers who exercised considerable influence on Shakespeare in his formative years. (Col. Enc.) D 3:233
L
Labkan in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora, a tailor of Bassora and creditor of Nureddene. (A) a 7:634
Labour (Party) in Great Britain, reformist Socialist political party that has strong institutional and financial links with the trade unions. In 1900 the Trades Union Congress cooperated with the Independent Labour Party (founded in 1893) to establish the Labour Representation Committee, which took the name Labour Party in 1906. The party gained strength rapidly, and emerged from the 1918 general election as the
Page 181
second largest party in the House of Commons. Later, during certain periods, the party enjoyed a majority in the House. (Enc. Br.) Der: Labourites a 1:143-44, 435, 565, 574 2:237, 271, 285, 299.379, 393-94, 434 4:206, 221 15:536, 647 26:54
Lacedaemon Laconia, the southeastern division of the Peloponnesus in ancient Greece, of which Sparta was the capital. (M.I.) Der: Lacedaemonian a 5:405, 480
Lachhima in the songs of the Maithil poet Vidyapati, "lady of Mithila city", wife of Shiva Singha Rupnaraian, the king. (A) a 8:226-28, 236, 263
Lady ofShalott a poem by Tennyson. It first came out in his collection Poems published in 1832. (Col. Enc.) a 9:62
Lady of the Lake in Arthurian legend, Vivian, mistress of Merlin (a magician and seer, helper of King Arthur). She lived in a castle surrounded by a lake. (Web.) D 5:185
Laertes in Greek legend, king of Ithaca and father of Odysseus. (M.I.) a 5:481
Lahiri, Pumachandra a member of the C.I.D. of Bengal around 1908. n 4:261
Lahore a city on the west bank of the Ravi. It was the capital of the province of Punjab under British rule. Now it is the capital of the Punjab of Pakistan, and the largest city of Pakistan. Lahore was the venue of the annual session of the Indian National Congress in 1893, 1900, 1909, and 1929. (D.I.H.) D 1:272, 279, 348, 394, 521, 648 2:102, 128, 191, 197, 205-06, 215, 297, 304-05, 307, 309, 318-19, 329, 390 4:179, 186, 199-200, 202, 228, 231, 234, 237-38, 240 27:1, 51-52 XIV: 102-03, 105-06
Lais name of a celebrated Greek courtesan, a Sicilian, carried to Corinth at the time of the Athenian expedition to Sicily. (Ox. Comp.) Var: Lais a 3:297 X: 161
Lajpat a character, see Lal
Lajpat (Rai) Lala Lajpat Rai (1865-1928), a celebrated leader of Punjab, often called "Punjab-Kesari" or "Sher-e-Punjab" (the Lion of Punjab), outspoken in his advocacy of anti-British nationalism in the
Congress party. He was a lawyer by profession and an Arya Samajist in religion; he built up the Arya Samaj into an effective organization in the country. For taking part in the political agitation in Punjab, Lajpat Rai was deported to Mandalay (Burma) without trial in May 1907. In November, however, he was allowed to return when the Viceroy Lord Minto decided that there was insufficient evidence to hold him for subversion. In 1914 Lajpat Rai went to the U.S.A. and stayed there till the end of World War I. On his return to India, he joined the Swarajist party and later presided over the special session of the Congress held at Calcutta in 1920. Lajpat Rai died on 17 November 1928 from injuries sustained during the lathi charge by police on a procession led by him at Lahore on 20 October in protest against the arrival of the Simon Commission. (Enc. Br.; Enc. Ind.) n 1:169, 195, 281, 334-36, 342, 344-45, 347-48, 350, 354, 359, 361-62, 364-65, 369, 372-74, 377, 381, 391, 420, 435, 482, 503, 522, 572, 607, 610, 612, 635, 638-39, 648-50, 784, 817 2:178, 260, 281, 363-64 4:178-79, 247 26:48 27:49, 51-54, 57-58, 484 V: 100
LakeDal See Dal, Lake
Lakshichand a son of Guru NANAK. (A) D 1:289
Lakshmana in the Ramayana, son of King Dasaratha by Sumitra, twin brother of Shatrughna and half-brother of Rama. He was very much devoted to Rama. When Rama and his wife Sita went into exile for fourteen years, Lakshmana accompanied them to serve them. He stood by them in all perils and fought against Ravana's army of Rakshasas to recover Sita, whom Ravana had carried off. Meghanada, Ravana's valiant son, was killed by Lakshmana. (Dow.) VarLuxman a 8:6, 20-22 14:290
Lakshmi in Hindu mythology, the goddess of wealth and good fortune, consort of Vishnu. According to a legend she sprang from the froth of the Ocean when it was churned, in full beauty, with a lotus in her hand. Of the various names and epithets of Lakshmi, those indexed here are Indira and Kamala. (Dow.) Var: Luxmi(e); Laxmi a 1:61 4:140 5:199, 222-23 6:212, 261, 263, 308, 327, 329 7:913, 951 8:310, 313, 339, 343, 345, 385, 399, 401 10:352-53 11:3 14:137 17:262 23:977 27:451 29:509 XXI: 14
Lakshmibai (1835-58), the Rani (queen) of Jhansi, who played a prominent role in the Indian Mutiny against British rule. Leading her own troops, she cooperated with the rebel general Tantia Topi in capturing Gwalior (1857), and was killed fighting British forces at Marwar or Kotah the following year. (Enc. Ind.; Enc. Br.) D 4:99
Page 182
Lal or Lajpat, a character - representing Lala Lajpat Rai - in "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy by Sri Aurobindo published in Bande Mataram in February 1908. n 1:673, 679-80, 688
Lal Bazar Hajat police lock-up of Lal Bazar, a locality in central Calcutta. D 2:3 4:260-61, 269-70
Lalmohan; Lalmohun See Ghose, Lalmohan
Lamb, Charles (1775-1834), English essayist chiefly known for his Essays of Elia, and his letters, which have a blend of humour and tenderness. (Pears) 1-1 9:545
Lambert a person to whom Chatterton was apprenticed in 1767. (A) 1-1 11:18
Lamia a poem by Keats published in 1820, shortly before his death (1821). In classical mythology. Lamia was a female demon who devoured children. In Keats' poem. Lamia is
a witch who is destroyed by the sage Apollonius. (Enc. Br.) a 9:130
Lamprecht, Karl Gottfried (1856-1915), German historian who was one of the first scholars to develop a systematic theory of psychological factors in history. (Enc. Br.) D 15:2
Lanca See Lanka
Lancelot Gobbo LauncelotGobbo, a character - a clown, servant to Shylock - in Shakespeare's comedy The Merchant of Venice. (Shakes.) D 17:96
Landell & Clarke name of a firm dealing in jute, perhaps located in Pabna around 1909. (A) D 4:247
Landor, Walter Savage (1775-1864), English author and poet. His verse ranges from the epic to the epigrammatic, and includes some lyrics of great simplicity and intensity. (Col. Enc.) a 9:305, 527 11:11
Lanka in the Ramayana, the island kingdom of Ravana or its capital city. It is said to have been built of gold by Vishwakarma for the residence of Kubera, from whom it was taken by Ravana. Its site is the island for- merly called Ceylon, presently Sri Lanka. (Dow.) Var: Lanca n 1:811-12 2:80 5:78, 84 20:317 V: 5-12, 14, 16 IX: 40
Lansdowne, Lord Henry Charles Keith Petty Fitzmaurice (1845-1927), 5th Marquess of Lansdowne; Irish nobleman and British diplomat. Governor General of Canada (1883-88), Viceroy of India (1888-94).
After his return to England he served in various capacities, as Secretary for War, Foreign Secretary, etc. (Enc. Br.) a i:575
Laocoon in Greek legend, Trojan prince, brother of Anchises and priest of Apollo (or, in some accounts, of Poseidon). In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, he is a son of Priam and priest of Apollo. He prophesies that Troy shall triumph and spurs the Trojans on to their destruction. (M.I.) a l: 120 5: 416-17, 419, 423-24, 429-31, 433, 439, 512
Laodamia a poem written in 1815 by Wordsworth. (Col. Enc.) a 9:122
Laomedon in Greek legend, king of Troy, father of Priam. He employed Apollo and Poseidon to build the walls of Troy, but cheated them of their payment, as a result of which Poseidon sent a sea monster to ravage the land. Heracles killed the monster, but he too was refused the reward Laomedon had promised him, whereupon Heracles attacked Troy and slew Laomedon and all his sons except Priam. Laomedon's grave lay over the Scaean Gate of Troy, the northwestern gate which, when opened, signified war. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) Der: Laomedonian;
Laomedontian a 5:392, 397, 399, 402-03, 408, 410, 412, 417, 426, 447, 450, 461, 467
Lao Tse Lao-tze or Lao-tzu (fl. c. 6th cent. BC), Chinese philosopher, the reputed foun- der of Taoism. It is uncertain whether Lao- tze (which in Chinese means "old person" or "old philosopher") is a historical figure. He, like Confucius, was not-a founder of a religion in the ordinary sense of the word. Both simply laid down systems of morals and social behaviour; but after their deaths, numerous temples were built to their memory and their books became the Vedas of the Chinese. (Col.Enc.;G.W.H.) a 22:62, 65
Laporte an eloquent criminal lawyer of Pondicherry during a long career (c. 1910 to c. 1945). He was a candidate for election to the French Chamber in 1914. (A) D 27:442, 446
Lares in Roman religion, tutelary deities. They were originally gods of the cultivated fields, worshipped by each household at the crossroads. Later they were worshipped in the houses, and the household Lar was con- ceived of as the centre of the family and of the family'cult. The image of the Lar was usually a youthful figure. The public Lares belonged to the state religion. The state had its own Lares, the protecting patrons and guardians of the city. (Enc.Br.) a XVI: 141
Larissa Larissa Cremaste, an ancient town in PHTHIA near the coast opposite the northern
Page 183
tip of Euboea. It is supposed to have been the home of Achilles. (M.I.) Der: Larissan a 5:440, 465-66
Lark Ascending, The a poem by George Meredith, n 9:164
"Last Supper" famous painting (fresco) by Leonardo da Vinci, begun c. 1485 and completed by 1498. Located in Milan, it is among the most widely popular paintings of the Renaissance. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 9:485
Latavya a character - chamberlain of the King's seraglio - in Vikramorvasie, Sri Aurobindo's translation of Kalidasa's drama. l-l 3:375 7:909, 953-54, 992-96, 998-99, 1004 X:157
Latin When not used for the Latin language (see the next entry), the term means "a native or inhabitant of ancient Latium or ancient Rome". (Latium was an ancient country in central Italy, southeast of Rome.) As an adjective it means properly (1) "of ancient Latium or its people", or (2) "of ancient Rome or its people". The adjective is often used to refer to the peoples who speak languages derived from Latin or to the lan- guages themselves (the Romance languages). (Web.) Der: Latinised; Latinistic a 1:525 5:420, 435 9:42, 50-51, 54, 59, 87, 96, 138, 181, 239, 524 10: 553 14: 20, 220, 367 15: 44, 86, 147, 290, 296, 332-33, 344, 378, 410, 501, 521, 567 17:196, 298, 318 VIII: 173 X:113 XV: 11 XVII: 38
Latin (language) language of the city of Rome which spread with the power of Rome until it became the language of most of western Europe. Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese and also Roumanian and some minor tongues derive from it. Various forms of Latin are distinguished: Old Latin (before c. 75 BC, pre-classical); Classical Latin (that of great writers of late republican and early imperial Rome, c. 75 BC to AD 175); Late Latin (c. AD 175 to 600); Medieval Latin (c. 600 to 1500); Modern Latin (since AD 1500). (O.C.C.L.;C.O.D.) Der: Latinise(d);
Latinisation; Latinism; Latinist; Latinistic a 1:350, 519 3:36, 79 5:342, 345, 361-62, 380, 551, 585, 587 7:1013, 1015 8:407 9:46, 49, 54, 58, 61, 86-87, 134, 138, 171, 191, 395, 399, 407, 413, 420, 460-62 10: 36, 67, 77, 155, 352, 500-01, 518, 553, 555, 557-59, 561-62.564, 566-67, 571, 574 11: 448, 454, 486-87, 506 12: 401, 408-09, 423 14: 298 15: 296, 390, 411, 491, 494-96 17:127, 193, 295-97, 394 22:305, 451 26: 1-3, 262, 266, 312-14 27: 89, 166-67, 169, 171-72, 179, 334 29: 800 I:
8, 12, 16 II: 13, 15, 27, 30, 36, 38, 87 III: 52, 54, 56 IV: 150-51, 155 V: 42-44 VI: 139, 143, 153 VIII: 180 XIV: 163 XV: 23, 47 XVI: 149, 162-63, 165, 172, 176 XVII: 19, 22, 66, 72-73 XVIII: 169, 173, 185 XXI: 67
Latin-Celtic group Latin and Celtic languages, a 17: 295
Latona Latin name of Leto who, in Greek mythology, was daughter of the Titans Coeus and Phoebe. She was mother of Apollo and Artemis. See also Leto. (Col. Enc.) D 5:506, 544
Lavonya in Hindu mythology, name of a nymph of Heaven, a 5:190
Lawrence, D. H. David Herbert Lawrence (1885-1930), English short-story writer, poet, essayist, and one of the most important and controversial 20th-century novelists. He attempted in his fiction to express the deep natural and instinctive forces in men and women by writing symbolically or explicitly of primitive peoples and of primitive passions in more sophisticated individuals. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 9:297, 308.535-41 24:1515
Laxmi SeeLakshmi.
Lays Lays of Ancient R6me, a book of poems (1842) by Thomas Babington Macaulay which made him a popular poet. (Col. Enc.) a 3: 108 9: 474 26: 6
Leadbeater, Charles Webster (1847-1934), a Church of England clergyman who was won over to theosophy by Mme Blavatsky. Leadbeater became a leading figure in the Theosophical Society and the right-hand man of Mrs. Besant. (Enc. Unex., pp. 251-52; Enc. Am, Vol. 26, p. 524) n XIII: 29
League of Nations former international organization, predecessor of the United Nations Organization, having as its purpose the maintenance of peace, arbitration of international disputes and the promotion of international cooperation. It may be called ft product of World War I, being established at the initiative of the victorious Allied powers. (Col. Enc.) a 14: 365 15: 45, 49, 364, 408, 459, 470, 508, 518, 536-37, 556-57. 559, 569, 575, 579, 612, 614-17, 619-21, 623-26, 628-29, 631-34, 638, 648, 651 27: 347-48
Leakat Hussain, Moulvi Maulvi Liaqat Husain (c. 1852- ? ), a prominent political figure of Bengal in the early years of the present century. Hailing from Bihar, he made Calcutta the centre of his activities. He was foremost among the Muslim leaders who were antagonistic to the British policy of
Page 184
"Divide and Rule". He participated actively in the agitation against the partition of Ben- gal in 1905 and mobilised Muslim opinion in favour of the Swadeshi movement. In 1912 he was convicted of sedition at Barisal and sentenced to three years' imprisonment. In 1916 he founded and became president of "Bharat Hitaishi Sabha" with the object of helping the needy irrespective of nationality, religion, caste, or creed. (D.N.B.; D.I.H.; B.B.P-.p. 133) Var: Liakat (Hossain) a 1: 579, 607, 609 VIII: 131
Lear English legendary king, supposed descendant, through Locrine and Brut, of Aeneas of Troy. His story is best known as the subject of Shakespeare's tragedy King Lear. Towards the end of the play, Lear goes mad as a result of his mistreatment by his ungrateful daughters. (Col. Enc.) D 3: 272, 306 9: 317, 333 17: 96 24: 1638 I: 40 III: 19 X: 154
Lebanon a country of southwestern Asia, bounded on the north and east by Syria, on the south by Israel, and on the west by the Mediterranean. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n 6: 82
Lebian pere name of a person of Pondicherry; "pere" is the French equivalent of "senior", n XXII: 174
Lecky, William Edward Hartpole (1838- 1903), British historian of rationalism and European morals; a literary historian not far below Gibbon. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 12: 497-98
Leconte de Lisle Charles-Marie-Rene Leconte de Lisle (1818-94), French poet, leader of the Parnassians, and from 1865 to 1895 acknowledged as the foremost French poet apart from the aging Hugo. (Enc. Br.) a 9: 104
Leda goddess of peace, love, beauty and bliss, mentioned in one of Sri Aurobindo's "Conversations of the Dead". (A) a 3: 477-78
Lee Wamer Sir William Lee-Warner (1846-1914), a Cambridge graduate; in the I.C.S. (1869-95) served in various capacities, including acting Director of Public Instruction, Bombay (1885), Political Agent in Kolhapur (1886), Secretary of the Political, Judicial, and Educational Departments of Bombay (1887-93); Secretary in the Political and Secret Departments of the India Office (1895-1903); Member of the Council of India (1902-12). (Gilbert, p. 49; Wolpert, p. 248) a 1: 328
Legende des Siecles a collection (1859) of metaphysical epics by Victor Hugo, which he wrote in exile. (Enc. Br.) D 9:313 26:340
Leigh, Austen Augustus Austen Leigh, elected Provost at King's College, Cam- bridge, in 1889; he held this office till 1905. (A&R, II:97) D 26:1 11:87
Leitus in Greek legend, a leader of the Theban contingent against Troy. (M.I.) n 5:479, 491
Leie surname of a person who translated the Mahabharata or part of it. (A) a 3:201
Leie, Balkrishna a person who was spoken of by the Madras Times in an issue of 1911 as being present in Pondicherry to carry on anarchist activities as a lieutenant of Mr. Tilak. Sri Aurobindo wrote a contradiction of these statements which was published in The Hindu. (A) D 27:500
Leie, Vishnu Bhaskar a Maharashtrian yogi under whose guidance Sri Aurobindo achieved complete silence of the mind and immobility of the whole consciousness in three days' time, probably during the first week of January 1908. Barindra Kumar, Sri Aurobindo's younger brother, called Leie to Baroda for this purpose. Leie was by profession a clerk. He had practised a certain form of Bhakti-yoga, and had achieved some realisation. In February 1908 Leie came to Calcutta, where he again met Sri Aurobindo. At this time the guru-disciple relationship- if it may be so called - between Sri Aurobindo and Leie came to an end. Afterwards Leie went to Deoghar to give initiation and yogic training to Barin's associates in revolutionary work. When he came to know that they had accepted the cult of the bomb, he declined to initiate them saying that yoga and terrorism could not go together. He warned them of the dangers of the method, and foretold that India would attain freedom without blood- shed. (Purani;C.W.N., Vol.7, pp. 349-50) D 4:327 24:1258 26:19-20, 49-51, 58, 61, 64, 78, 83, 279, 353 IV: 198 VII: 1, 11 XIV: 165 XVI: 194
Lemaire, Jean (1856- ? ), a French politician, at first (1904) the Governor of Pondicherry and later (1906) a member (for Pondicherry) of the Lower Chamber of France before the office was held by Paul BLUYSEN. Der: Lemairiste D 27:442, 444-50
Page 185
Lemnian of Lemnos, an island in the north- east Aegean Sea just west of the ancient city of Troy, from where the archer PHILOCTETES was brought late in the Trojan War. (Col. Enc.;M.I.) a 5:486, 491
Lemuria hypothetical prehistoric continent in the Indian Ocean, supposedly now re- presented chiefly by Madagascar. Lemuria is said to have been the home of the lemur (a nocturnal animal similar to a monkey), and it was P. L. Sclator who first put the case for Lemuria in the middle of the 19th century. He maintained that a continent once existed which stretched from the Malaya Archipelago across the south coast of Asia to Madagascar. This might be thought of as the ancient home of the lemur, which now exists only on what were once the borders of this vanished land, i.e. Africa, southern India and Malaya. (Enc. Br.; Enc. Unex.) Der: Lemurian a 3:423 5:84 6:9
Lenin pseudonym of Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (1870-1924), founder of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks), inspirer and leader of the Bolshevik Revolution (1917), and the architect, builder, and first head of the Soviet state. As a thinker, he was a for- mulator of Marxism-Leninism, the official Communist ideology. (Pears; Enc. Br.) a 9:554 14:66 15:81 24:1294 26:388
Leogrys an ancient name of a region of Britain. (A) a 7:883
Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), an Italian famous for the range of his genius - he ex- celled as a painter, sculptor, architect and engineer. His notebooks reveal a spirit of scientific inquiry into the workings of the human body and physical and natural laws as well as a mechanical inventiveness that were centuries ahead of his time. (Enc. Br.) a 3:100 9:485-86, 546 14:66, 200 22:408
Leopardi, Giacomo (1798-1837), Italian poet, scholar, and philosopher whose works, including his superb lyric poetry, place him among the great writers of the 19th century. (Enc. Br.) a 29:805
Leosthenes a character - a captain of Syrian army - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. a 6:333, 396, 399, 405, 407, 410, 413, 426, 435, 442-43, 455, 461-62, 464, 466
Lesbia name used by the Roman lyric poet Catullus in his most memorable poems to address his beloved, probably Clodia. The name recalls SAPPHO of Lesbos. (Col. Enc., under Catullus) a g:411
Lesbian of Lesbos, an island in the Aegean Sea off western Turkey, but belonging to Greece. It is the largest island, after Crete and Euboea, in the Aegean. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) Q 6:378
Letherbridge, Sir Roper (1840-1919), English official in the Bengal Education Service from 1868 to 1876 (probably Principal of Krishna- gar College around 1870), Press Commis- sioner in the Government of India (1877-80), and an M. P. (1885.1886-91). He was author of several books, and also translated some books, n 1:503
Lethe in Greek mythology, a river in Hades, producing forgetfulness of the past. The dead drank from Lethe upon their arrival in the underworld, and souls who were being re- incarnated drank of its water upon their departure for the world of the living. (Col. Enc.) a 5:18, 21
Leto (Latin "Latona") the daughter of a Titan, and loved by Zeus. Hera, jealous of her, sent the serpent Python to persecute her during her pregnancy. Leto wandered about the earth until Zeus fastened the floating island of Delos to the bottom of the sea as a resting-place for her. Here she gave birth to Apollo and Artemis. (Ox. Comp.) n II: 26
Letters Letters of Sri Aurobindo (First, Second and Fourth Series) published by Sri Aurobindo Circle, Bombay, the First Series in 1947, the Second in 1949, and the Fourth in 1951. (The Third Series was "On Poetry and Literature", and was published in 1949.) (I&G) a 22:485
The Letters ofD. H. Lawrence a book (1932) edited by Aldous Huxley. (Col. Enc.) 0 9:539
Letters on Yoga a collection of extracts from letters written by Sri Aurobindo to his disciples, published as Volumes 22, 23 and 24 of the Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library (1972). (A) a 26:108, 387 27:413
Lever, Mr. a person who, in a case of defamation in England, got his damages from the Harmsworth Trust and not from the actual libeller. (A) a 1:553
Levite member of a religious caste, among the ancient Hebrews; descendant ofLevi, son of Jacob. In the Gospel according to Luke (10.32), a Levite passed by a traveller who had been wounded and robbed. Later a good Samaritan came and tended the traveller. (Col. Enc.; Bible; Concord.) a 1:347
Page 186
Liakat (Hossain) See Leakat Hussain, Moulvi
Libanius (fl. 4th cent.), one of the two leading figures in the history of ancient education (the other was Themistius). Libanius was a famous Greek rhetorician who conducted a celebrated school in his native Antioch. In his writings he gives scarcely a hint of the existence of such things as the Latin language or Christianity, both of which he would have considered barbarous. (Enc. Am.) D 16:365
Liberal (Party) in Great Britain, the political party that emerged in the mid-19th century as the successor to the historic Whig party. It is characterized by certain attitudes rather than a precise ideology, including trust in rationality, faith in the idea of progress, attachment to individualism, emphasis on human rights, and concern for under- privileged groups. The period 1906-15, during which the foundations of the welfare state were laid, was the last during which the Liberals held power alone. (Enc. Br.) Der: Liberalism; Liberaldom a i: 16, 143, 176-77, 201-02, 283, 323, 350, 367, 384, 409, 417, 419, 447-48, 503, 565, 573-74, 637, 708, 849 2: 23, 27, 30-31, 53-56, 101, 123, 234, 237, 253, 267, 269-72, 286, 298-99, 302, 306, 326, 332, 374, 379-80, 393-95, 422 4: 205-06, 212-14. 221. 233, 248 27:4, 17, 26, 33, 54 11:84
Liberator The Liberator, an international journal edited and published from Paris by Edward Holton James, an American propagandist. More than half of its inaugural issue (c. 1910) was devoted to India. It was given a warm welcome by Shyamji Krishnavarma, who applauded Mr. James' writings and activities in nearly every issue of his Indian Sociologist. (Shyamji, pp. 280 and 298) a XIX: 29
Libya in ancient times the Greek name for the continent of Africa. Presently Libya is the name of a socialist republic state (formerly an Italian possession) on the north shore of Africa on the Mediterranean Sea. (M.I.;O.C1.D.) n 5:420 8:411
Liege name of a province and its capital, in eastern Belgium, bordering West Germany on the east. Surrounded by twelve forts, the city of Liege was considered in 1914 to be the most formidable fortified position in Europe. Assault by Germany began on 5 August 1914; by the seventh (eighth?) the city was taken. Bombardment of the forts by special German siege guns began on 12 August. By the sixteenth, after the Belgian defence surrendered, all the twelve forts had been destroyed. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
The Life Divine 1. name of a commentary on the Isha Upanishad which Sri Aurobindo worked on between 1912 and 1914. 2. the philosophical magnum opus of Sri Aurobindo, which first appeared serially in Arya from August 1914 to January 1919. This work was in a way an outgrowth of the earlier commentary. In book-form The Life Divine first came out in 1939 (Book One) and 1940 (Book Two, in two parts). (A&R.VI: 205; I &G) n 17:401 22:44, 122. 126, 208, 485 24: 1626 26: 85, 99, 246, 385 27: 377 29: 753, 792 XVII: 70 XX: 133
The Life Heavens a poem in a new metre by Sri Aurobindo, composed on 15 November 1933. (A) a 5:579 22:387 26:275-76, 294
Life-Literature-Yoga a compilation (1952) of letters that were written by Sri Aurobindo during the 1930s and 1940s. They were reprinted from the journal Mother India. (I&G) n 29:785
Life of Garibaldi a book by Bent; Sri Aurobindo speaks of it as being crammed full of facts and very tedious reading. (A) D XVII: 64
The Life of Sri Aurobindo a book by A. B. Purani, first published in 1958. The fourth edition (fully revised and enlarged) was brought out in 1978. D II: 28
Light a journal of Punjab, a contemporary of Bande Mataram. (A) n 1:131, 194
Light Brigade The allusion is to an English cavalry brigade in the Crimean War, whose heroism was made famous by Tennyson in his poem The Charge of the Light Brigade (1855) written as part of his duties as laureate. (Col. Enc.) a 1: 160
Lights on Yoga a book containing extracts from Sri Aurobindo's letters to his disciples, first published in 1935. (I&G) a 22:99 26: 108, 369.371 IV: 192
Light to Superlight a book published in 1972 by the Prabartak Sangh of Chandernagore. It contains-26 letters from Sri Aurobindo, one of them to Anandarao and the rest to Motilal Roy, and, as an appendix, Sapta- Chatushtaya (incomplete). All these writings in a complete form and with editorial re- visions are included in Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library, Vol. 27. (I & G) D 27:349, 417
Page 187
Lila a proposed character - daughter of Hooshka - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of The Prince of Mathura, an incomplete play by Sri Aurobindo. D 7:891
Lilliputian The reference is to the diminutive natives of Lilliput in Gulliver's Travels. The word has since come to be used for any diminutive person or thing. (C.O.D.) n 1: 144
Limber Horses title of a poem published in The New Statesman and the Nation, perhaps in 1932. (A) D 9: 444
Limpopo a river in southeast Africa. It rises as the Crocodile River in the Witwatersrand, South Africa, and flows on a semicircular course for about 1000 miles to the Indian Ocean. It is known as the Limpopo after it is joined by the Marico River. (Enc. Br.) a in: 30
Lincoln, Abraham (1809-65), 16th President (1861-65) of the United States of America. He preserved the Union during the American Civil War and brought about the emancipation of the slaves. (Enc. Br.) D 14:66
The Line of Raghu See Raghuvamsha
Lion the 5th sign of the zodiac, known as Simha in Hindu astronomy, and a constellation (in Latin: Leo) lying between Cancer and Virgo. (A; Enc. Br.) 0 17:257-58, 260
Lionel a character participating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) which Sri Aurobindo wrote around 1891. (A & R, II) a II: 5
The Listener a magazine founded by the British Broadcasting Company in 1929 to reprint radio talks. (Enc. Br.) D 22:203
Listeners The Listeners, a poem (1912) by Walter de la Mare. (Ox. Comp.) a 9:356
Literary History of India title of a book (1898) by Robert Watson Frazer. See also History of Indian Literature. (Enc. Ind.) a 27:355
Lithuania former country in northeast Europe. Since 1940 it has been a constituent republic of the U.S.S.R. It lies on the Baltic Sea, bounded on the north by the Latvian S.S.R., on the east and south by the Belo- russian S.S.R., and on the southeast by the Russian S.F.S.R. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) n 15:51'2
Lithuanian perhaps the most archaic European language. A Lithuanian literary language has been in existence since the sixteenth century. Used solely for writings of a religious character, it differs in many
respects from modern Lithuanian, an East Baltic language most closely related to Latvian and spoken primarily in Lithuania (presently {he Lithuanian S.S.R.) by over two and a half million people. (Enc. Br.) D 15:496
Little Brothers of the Poor a small associa- tion, mainly of the young men of Barisal Brajmohan College, Bengal, started about the beginning of the 20th century by Aswini Kumar Dutt to serve and nurse the sick and undertake other philanthropic activities. This seed later grew into the Swadesh Bandhab Samiti. (A) n 2:88-89
Littleton one of the fictional characters in the dialogue "Littleton-Percival". The name may be a recollection of a certain Francis Littlewood, one of Sri Aurobindo's fellow- students in England, who shortly after pas- sing the I.C.S. final examination (at the same time as Sri Aurobindo: in 1892) perished when the ship that was taking him to India sank. a 3:486-88
Liverpool second largest seaport (after London) of England and the United King- dom, on the Mersey near its mouth. It is a great industrial city and one of the world's leading trade centres. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 1:18, 293-94, 388, 879 17: 181
Livy (59or64BC-AD 17), one of the three great Roman historians (the other two being Sallust and Tacitus). He wrote a history of Rome that established itself as a classic in his own lifetime and exercised a profound influence on the style and philosophy of historical writing down to the 18th century. (Enc. Br.) a i: 8
Lloyd George David Lloyd George (1863-1945), 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, British prime minister (1916-22), who dominated the British political scene in the latter part of World War I and in the postwar period and laid the foundations for the modern welfare state. Having a long parliamentary career (1890-1922), he re- signed from political life in 1922 during the English-Turkish crisis and thenceforth suffered criticism from both the Liberals and the Conservatives. (Enc. Br.) a 2:298 4:156, 212-13, 215, 218 15:609 25:106-07
Locke, John (1632-1704), political and educational philosopher who laid the epistemological foundations of modern science. As a philosopher, Locke has been considered a leader of the English sensational school, but this classification by no means does justice to his many-sidedness as a thinker, and the term "sensationalism" is inadequate to represent either his speculative inquiries or those less definable meditations which led him to search the field of ethics and spiritual laws in an endeavour to assign the relations and functions of these in the world of practical politics and that of instituted religion. (Enc. Br.; Enc. Am.) D XIV: 164
Page 188
Locrian See Locris
Locrine a proposed character - a son of Brutus and prince of Leogrys - listed in the Dramatis Personae of The House of Brut, an incomplete play by Sri Aurobindo. D 7:883
Locris in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, Eastern or Opuntian Locris, an ancient region of central Greece situated on the coast north of Boeotia opposite the island of Euboea. Ajax the Lesser was the leader of the Locrian forces against Troy. (M.I.) Der: Locrian a 5:404-05. 407. 436, 442, 459, 469-70, 477-78, 480-81, 484
Lodge, Sir Oliver Sir Oliver Joseph Lodge (1851-1940), English physicist, knighted in 1902. After 1910 he became prominent in psychic research, believing strongly in the possibility of communicating with the dead. He was involved in a serious endeavour to reconcile science and religion. (Enc. Br.) n 22:215
Loghman one of the local officials who dealt with the Hindu-Muslim riots at Jamalpur and Dewangunj in 1907. (A) a 1:331
Lokanatha an epithet of many gods, meaning "Lord of the Universe", used here perhaps as the name of a hill or of some shrine on it. (M.W.) D 6:301, 320
Lokarahasya a collection (1874) of eighteen articles by Bankim Chandra (mostly satire and wit) published in his monthly Bangadarshan. (B.R.-II) a 17:346
Lolita' in Hindu mythology, a nymph of heaven, a 5:190
Lolita2 name of one of the companions of Radha. a 8:280-81
Lolit Babu one of the persons (a Bengali) whom Sri Aurobindo met at Srinagar during his visit to Kashmir in 1903. (A) a IV: 195
Lomaharsana in the Mahabharata, father of SUTA and a member of the court of Yudhi- shthira. He was, according to tradition, the bard or panegyrist who first chanted the Puranas. (Pur. Enc.; Dow.) a 4:53
Lombardy region of northern Italy, ex- tending from the Swiss border to the Po and from the Ticino
to the Minico River. The region was once the centre of the kingdom of the Lombards, after whom it was named. It remained under Austrian rule from 1713 to 1796. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a 1:311, 505
London capital of the United Kingdom and the centre of the Commonwealth of Nations, on both sides of the Thames at the head of tidewater. It is the country's largest port and industrial complex as well as its principal financial, commercial, and industrial centre. (Enc. Br.) Der: Londoner a l: 32, 190, 343, 365, 387-88, 465, 499, 544 2: 22.29, 76-77, 97, 112, 121, 160. 170-71, 346, 375, 385.394 3: 69, 455 4: 82, 177, 201-02, 248 5: 110 7: 1013, 1016 14: 9, 64 15: 80, 88, 265 17: 181, 295, 321-22 26: 1-2, 4-6, 81, 352, 367, 387 27: 25-26, 30-31, 33, 60 II: 18, 87 V: 100 XIV: 162-63 XVII: 66
Londonderry a city and county borough in northern Ireland. (Enc. Br.) D XXII: 127
London Nocturne title of a poem by Henry Ruffy. published in the American journal Poetry, that was quoted from or reproduced in the second number of Shama'a. Sri Aurobindo commented upon this poem at some length in his review of Shama'a in Arya. (A) n 17:321
(London) Times The Times of London, newspaper started by John Walter in 1785 under the name Daily Universal Register, and formally designated The Times in 1788. In 1906 the control of the paper was secured by Alfred Harmsworth. In January 1981 it was purchased by the international publishing tycoon, Rupert Murdoch. (Enc. Br.; The Hindu ofc. 20 January 1981) D 1:152-53.174, 242, 365-66, 499-500 2:121 26: 246 27: 60-61
Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth (1807-82), the most popular of American poets in the 19th century. He was besides, a professor of modern languages, having command of some ten languages. He was a national figure and his work was read all over the world. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 5: 345-46, 376-78, 380-82 9:398, 478 II: 27
Longuemare, Father a character - a pious priest - in Anatole France's Les Dieux ont soif. (A) a 9: 557
Lopamudra name of a girl mentioned in the Veda. It is said that the sage Agastya formed her from the most graceful parts of different animals (the eyes of a deer etc.) and secretly introduced her into the palace of the king of Vidarbha, where she was believed to be the daughter of the king. Agastya had made this girl with the object of having a wife after his own heart. When she was marriageable, he demanded her hand, and the king was obliged to yield. (Dow.) n 17:278 XV: 53
Page 189
Lords, House of or Upper House (known in Bengali as Jamidar Sabha), the upper chamber of Great Britain's bicameral legislature. The powers of the modern House of Lords are extremely limited, but it is argued that it serves a valuable function by providing a national forum of debate free from the constraints of party discipline. The total number of persons qualified to sit in the House of Lords is upwards of 1, 000. (Enc. Br.) n 1:575, 862-63 2:253-54, 267-70, 272, 298-300, 393 4: 212-13 XXII: 133
Lords of the Flame according to theosophy, Adepts from Venus, transferred to our earth in order to assist in the specially busy time just before the "closing of the door", in the middle of the fourth root-race. They are said to have produced a wonderful effect upon our evolution, and that a few still remain to hold the highest offices of the Great White Brotherhood (see White Lodges) until the time when men of our own evolution shall have risen to such a height as to be capable of relieving these august visitors. (Theos., pp. 15 and 58) i-i XIII: 33
Lorenzo di Medici (1449-92), Italian merchant prince, called Lorenzoil Magnifico. He was the virtual ruler of Florence. One of the towering figures of the Italian Renaissance, he was an astute politician, a patron of the arts, literature and learning, and a reputable scholar and poet. (Col. Enc.) a 14: 192
Lorraine historic region of Europe, now part of northeastern France. Its position between France and Germany has made it share in the history of both countries. (Enc. Br.) a 15: 512
Loti, Pierre pen-name of Louis-Marie-Julien Viauc (1850-1923), French novelist, an officer in the French Navy. His novels, which were very popular, excel in accurate, exotic description, though imbued with a Romantic pessimism. (Col. Enc.) D 17: 403-04
Lotos-Eaters a poem by Tennyson that first came out in 1832. It has become an English classic. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 9:137, 173
Lotus and Dagger a secret society of Indian students in London of which Sri Aurobindo became a member along with his brothers shortly before his return to India, i.e. between October 1892 and January 1893. The society, however, was still-born. (Purani;Auro-I;A) a 26:4
Louis IX (1214-70), King of France (1226- 70), canonized as St. Louis. He was the most popular of the Capetian monarchs and one of the most celebrated figures of medieval history. In 1248 he led the Sixth Crusade to the Holy Land. In 1270 he embarked on another crusade to Tunisia, where he died. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Louis XII (1462-1515), King of France (1498-1515). He was noted for his disastrous Italian wars and his domestic popularity. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Louis XIII (1601 -43), King of France from 1610 to 1643. (Col. Enc.) n 16:324
Louis XIV (1638-1715), King of France from 1643 to 1715. His reign not only marked the apogee of the monarchial idea in politics, but also was a golden age for the arts. The glory and prestige of Louis XIV earned him the name of the Sun King. The king identified with his office to such an extent that it is difficult to find the individual. The phrase that characterised his reign was the royal "L'etat, c'est moi" ("I am the state"). (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.; Enc. Am.) a 1:246, 435 3:224, 454 15:357, 421 16:324 111:28
Louis XVI (1754-93), King of France, grandson of Louis XV whom he succeeded in 1774. His character was unsuited for the exercise of the strong government which France needed in that critical time. (Col. Enc.) a 1:336.420 16:324
Louis, Sir See Dane, Sir Louis
Louis Napoleon Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, or Napoleon III (1808-73), Emperor of France (1852-70). He gave his country two decades of prosperity under a stable, authoritarian government, and revived its prestige in Europe, but finally led it to defeat in the Franco-German War (1870-71). (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 3:480 4:215
Lourdes name of a person whose illness, in its progressive stages, was seen by Sri Aurobindo with his power of [rikaladrsti (direct knowledge of the past, present and future). (A) 1-1 XIX: 50
Love and Death one of Sri Aurobindo's longer poems written in June-July 1899 and first published in 1921. The powerful influence of Marpessa and Christ in Hades, which he read at the age of seventeen,
Page 190
was worked out in this poem. The central idea of the narrative is taken from the story of Ruru and Pramadvara told in the Mahabharata. (A;I&G) D 5:258 26:254, 256, 264-68, 270-71, 273-74, 276, 311
Lowes, Livingstone John Livingstone Lowes, an English critic whose most famous books are: Convention and Revolt in Poetry and TheRoadtoXanadu. a 9:442
Loxias an epithet of Apollo meaning "crooked" or "ambiguous". Apollo was the god who interpreted the will of Zeus to men, but his prophecies were often cryptic and misunderstood. (M.I.) a 5:454
Loyola, St. Ignatius (1491-1556) of Spain; one of the most influential figures in the Counter-Reformation of the 16th century, the founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). (Enc. Br.). o 22:417
Lucan Marcus Annaeus Lucanus (AD 39- 65), Latin poet, a Republican patriot who was forced to kill himself when his part in a plot against Emperor Nero was discovered. His poetry has a kind of vigorous beauty and grandeur which gave him a high place in the esteem of later writers. (Col. Enc.) D 9:387
Lucifer 1. in classical mythology, the planet Venus as the morning star, personified as a male figure bearing a torch. He had almost no legends, but in poetry he was often herald of the dawn. In Christian times Lucifer came to be regarded as the name of Satan before his fall. It was thus used by Milton in Paradise Lost. 2. a character - the Angel of Power - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Birth of Sin. (Enc.Br.;A) o 5:69-72, 587 7:901, 903-05
Lucifer Lucifer in Starlight, a sonnet by George Meredith. (A) a 26:264
Lucknow an important city of U.P., on the River Gomti. It is the capital of the state of Uttar Pradesh, formerly known as the United Provinces (ofAgra and Avadh). a 1:891
Lucrece The Rape ofLucrece (1594), one of the principal poems of Shakespeare, which he dedicated to his patron Henry Wriothes- ley. (Ox. Comp.) n 3:252
Lucretius' (c. 99 - c. 55 BC) , Latin poet and philosopher. His one great didactic work De Rerum Natura sets forth, in hexameter verse, arguments founded upon the philosophical ideas of Democritus and Epicurus. "Lucre- tius' work lives only, in spite of the majestic energy behind it, by its splendid digressions into pure poetry" (9:32). (Col. Enc.) Der: Lucretian D 9:32, 82, 212, 320, 479, 521 13:
198 26:262 29:800, 815
Lucretius2 the main figure of the dramatic monologue Luctretius (1868) by Alfred Tennyson. (Enc. Br.) D 14:386
Ludwig (often known in English as Lewis); either Ludwig I, King of Bavaria from 1825 to 1848, or Ludwig II, King of Bavaria from 1864 to 1886. Ludwig I is best known as an outstanding patron of the arts, who trans- formed Munich into the artistic centre of Germany. Ludwig II was talented, liberal and romantic, but of an eccentricity border- ing on madness; he died insane. He was a patron of WAGNER. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n 3:264 X:147
Luilla name of a girl in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Golden Bird", a 7:1052-54
Luke Walter a character in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Devil's Mastiff, a 7:1047-49, 1051
Lunar dynasty (CHANDRA VANSA) in pre-historic India, the lineage or race of Kshatriyas which claims descent from the Moon. It is divided into two great branches, the Yadavas and the Pauravas, descended respectively from Yadu and Puru. Krishna belonged to the line of Yadu, and Dushyanta with the Kuru and Pandu princes to the line of Puru. (Dow.) a 10:34 27:152
Lunar World See Chandraloka
Luther, Martin (1483-1546) of Germany, biblical scholar, linguist, and founder of the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In Germany, his socio-religious concepts laid a new basis for German society. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 14:191 XIV: 127
Luxman See Lakshmana
Luxmie See Lakshmi
Lyceum Club club named after Lyceum, the Athenian school established by Aristotle in 335 BC in a grove sacred to Apollo Lyceius. (Enc.Br.) D 2:29
Lycia an ancient district of southern Asia Minor, a mountainous coastal region bounded on the northwest by Caria. In the Trojan War the Lycians under the command of Sarpedon (who has already been slain in Ilion) were allies of Troy. (M.I.) Der: Lycian a 5:393.405-06, 418, 461, 514
Lycidas pastoral elegy by John Milton, written in November 1637 on the occasion of the death of Edward King, his college friend. The poem is considered one of the finest poems of its kind in English. (Ene. Br.) a 9:522 26:246, 258-60 29:792, 797-98
Lycomedes in Greek legend, a king of SCYROS to whose court Achilles was sent by his mother Thetis to hide among the women, in a vain attempt to prevent his being slain in the Trojan War, a fate ordained for
him by the gods. There he was found, however, by Odysseus and enlisted to join the Greeks against Troy.
Page 191
(M.I.) n 5:489
Lycurgus traditional name of the reformer of the Spartan constitution. According to a standard hypothesis he lived in the 7th century BC. He led a reform in the government and in the city's social system to establish a machine of war which would preclude trouble from the helots and other subjects. Lycurgus may be mythical. (Col. Enc.) Der: Lycurgan D 15:405, 425 27:279
Lyra a small northern constellation between Hercules and Cygnus. It contains a star of the first magnitude and two stars of the third magnitude. (Enc. Br.) a 12:475 27:262, 333
Lyrical Ballads a collection of poems by Wordsworth and Coleridge of which the first edition appeared in 1798, the second with new poems and a preface in 1800, and the third in 1802. (Ox. Comp.) a i: 9
Lysander (d. 395 BC-), military and political leader who won the final victory for Sparta in the Peloponnesian War and wielded great power throughout Greece at its close. Nothing is known of his early career. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct.'27]
M
M 1. In SABCL (Vol. 27, pp. 426-98), used for Motilal Roy. 2. In the Record of Yoga, mostly used for Moni, i.e., Suresh Chandra Chakravarti; only at one or two places used for Motilal Roy or the Mother.
M., Dr. Dr. Manila! Lallubhai Parekh (1885-1957) of Baroda. He was a regular visitor to the Ashram from August 1931, and was one of the doctors who attended on Sri Aurobindo after the accident to his leg in November 1938. Dr. Manilal also parti- cipated in the conversations which Sri Aurobindo had with his attendants. These conversations, as recorded by Dr. Nirod-baran, have since been published in Mother India (from August 1960) as "Talks with Sri Aurobindo". [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Maagadh relating to (or born or living in) the country known as MAGADHA, or that which is customary among the Magadhas. n 8: 42-43, 47 , '50, 52, 58
Macaulay', Thomas Babington (1800-59), English historian, parliamentarian (a Whig orator) and author. His Lays of Ancient Rome (1842) made him a popular poet, but he never attained major rank. Macaulay was Law Member of the Indian Supreme Council (1834-38). In his Minute on Education of 1835 he claimed that "a single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole native literature of India and Arabia", and that because "we have to educate a people who at present cannot be educated by means of their mother tongue", the English lan- guage and English literature should be the basis of education in India. (Col. Enc.; Gilbert, p. 132) o l: 50, 176 3:108 9:19, 474 26:6
Macaulay2 a certain superior of Bankim Chandra Chatterji in Government service. (A) n 3:85
Macbeth principal character - a general of King Duncan's army - in Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name. Encouraged by his wife, Macbeth murders Duncan and becomes king. He also has assassins eliminate other innocent people, but ultimately is slain by his enemies. Historically, Macbeth was King of Scotland from 1040 to 1057. (Shakes.) a 3:302, 306 9:303, 333 17:96 22:469 26:332 1:40
Macbeth a tragedy by Shakespeare, belonging to the third group of his plays (1601-09), first performed in 1605-06. It is one of the most poetic of Shakespeare's tragedies. See also the previous entry. (Enc. Br.) n 9:72, 169 12:41
MacCabe Chief Engineer of the Calcutta Corporation around 1906. (A) a 1:194
MacDonald, Ramsay James Ramsay MacDonald (1866-1937). British statesman, first Labour Party Prime Minister of England in 1924 and again from 1929 to 1931 and in the national coalition Government of 1931- 35. He joined the Labour Party in 1894 and became its leader in 1911. First elected to the Parliament in 1906, he came to India on a tour in 1909, at which time he met Sri Aurobindo. (Enc. Br.) D 2:285-86 4:206, 220-21, 225
Macdonnell, Sir Antony Antony Patrick Macdonnell (1844-1925), British Government administrator. He entered the I.C.S. in 1865, and was recalled to England in 1902 to
Page 192
become Under-Secretary of State for Ireland. He served in that capacity until his resigna- tion in 1908, in which year he was raised to the peerage. (Enc. Am.) Q 1:367
Macedon(ia) Macedon was an ancient country north of Thessaly and bordering on the northwestern Aegean, not originally a part of Greece. Modern Macedonia is the central part of the Balkan Peninsula lying astride the frontiers of southern Yugoslavia (Serbia until 1918), northern Greece and northwestern Bulgaria (both since 1913). (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.; M.I.) Der: Mace- donian a 2:168-69 3:10, 199, 265 5:419 6:349-50, 399, 418-19, 421.429, 431-32 10:555 14:328 15:287, 343, 367 16:90 27:485 11:7 111:22 VI: 164 X:148 XX: 147-48 XXI: 2
Machiavelli, Nicolo (1469-1527), Italian writer, statesman, Florentine patriot and original political theorist whose acute psychological observations brought him a reputation of amoral cynicism. He is the author of // principe (see "Prince, the") in which unscrupulous statecraft is advocated. The word "Machiavel" has come to mean unscrupulous schemer, one who practises duplicity in statecraft. (Enc. Br.; C.O.D.) Der: Machiavel; Machiavellian; Machia- vellianism a 1:158, 288, 579, 631, 722, 742, 834 2:162-65, 167, 243, 333 3: 480 14: 170, 328, 374 27: 52 I: 7 III: 7
Mackamess a Liberal who in 1909 intro- duced a bill in the British Parliament to amend the Regulation of 1818 and safeguard the liberties of the subjects in India. He also carried on an energetic campaign in the Parliament for the release of the deportees. (A) n 1:420 2:53-56.79, 161, 170, 234
Mackenzie, Alexander (1842-1902), Lt. Governor of Bengal (Dec. 1895-April 1898). He joined the I.C.S. in 1862. He took the initiative in implementing the constitu- tion of the Calcutta Corporation, a 2: 203
Macmillan's Magazine a representative British literary magazine published from 1859 to 1907. (H.L., p.262) n 27:352
Macpherson, James (1736-96), Scottish poet whose initiation of the Ossianic controversy has obscured his genuine contribution to Gaelic studies. See also Ossian controversy. (Enc.Br.) a n: ll, l8
McTaggart John McTaggart Ellis (1866- 1925), British Hegelian philosopher. (Enc. Br.) D 23: 770-75
Madame Bovary the chief character in a French novel (1857) of the same name, written by Gustave Flaubert (1821-80). The novel is a realistic picture of small-town bourgeois life. (Ox. Comp.) n 3:307
Madan See Kama(deva)
Madan Mohan See Malaviya, Madan Mohan
Madanpalli This is apparently a misreading of the manuscript where some letters of the word are illegible. (Madanpalli is a town in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh, not in the former French territory.) The word may be "Mudrapallian". a hamlet in Thattanchavadi village, adjacent to the town of Pondicherry on the road to Madras. (S.L.R.) a 27: 449
Madgodkar a Marathi merchant from whom Sri Aurobindo expected money at Pondi- cherry in 1913(?). (L.toSl.) a 27: 432
Madhai See Jagai (and) Madhai
Madhava' a name of Krishna or Vishnu. (Dow.) l-l [Indexed with Krishna]
Madhava2 See Madhva II: 67
Madhavasen(a) in Kalidasa's drama Mdlavikagnimitram, Agnimitra's cousin (father's brother's son). (A) Var: Madhavsena n 8:144 X: 116, 124
Madhavdas a saint living at Malsar on the banks of the Narmada. Sri Aurobindo denied having had any contact with him during his stayatBaroda. (A) a 26:19
Madhavrao Madhavrao Jadhav, brother of Khaserao Jadhav and an intimate friend of Sri Aurobindo's. (A) n I: 70, 72
Madhavsena See Madhavasen(a)
Madhavya a character - the Vidusaka - in Kalidasa's drama Abhijndna Sakuntalam. (M.W.) D X: 175
Madh(o)u in Hindu mythology, one of the two horrible Daitya brothers slain by Vishnu. 5eeKaitabh(a). (Dow.) D 3:201 8:43, 325-26.343, 352-54, 405 12: 416
Madhuchchhandas (Vaishwamitra) a Vedic Rishi, the reputed author of the first ten hymns of the Rig-veda. According to the Aitareya Brahmana he was the fifty-first son of Visvamitra. (V. Index) Var: Madhuchchhanda(s) Vaisvamitra or Vaiswamitri a 10:56, 65-66, 75, 80, 90, 94-96, 113, 119-20, -128, 134, 137-38, 249-50, 253, 457, 492. 495-96, 501 11: 39, 439, 459 II: 35, 37 XIV: 133 XV: 3-4, 7, 11, 14, 30-31, 39-44, 48 XVI: 146-47, 156, 158-59, 161, 165, 169-70, 176, 178 XVII: 14-15, 18-19, 32, 50, 56-60
Madhura-Kavi a Vaishnava bhakta and poet of South India, a disciple of Nammalwar. He is counted among the twelve Alwars, although
Page 193
he himself did not sing of the Divine but composed only ten stanzas about his guru. a 17:373-74
Madhus(h)udan "slayer of the Daitya Madhu"; an epithet of Vishnu and also of Krishna who is looked upon as a full mani- festation of Vishnu. (Dow.) D [Indexed with Krishna]
Madhusudan (Dutt) See Dutt, (Michael) Madhusudan
Madhva (c. 1199 - c. 1278), Hindu philo- sopher and religious teacher, exponent of Dwaita (Dualism). He was a worshipper of Vishnu. (Enc. Br.) Var: Madhwa; Madhava (II: 67-a misspelling) a l: 714 3: 214 4: 43 14: 21, 132, 308 16: 342 22: 93 26: 135 27: 304 U: 67 IV: 168 VIII: 185 XIV: 139
Madhyamika an important school in the Mahayana Buddhist tradition. It takes its name "intermediate" from the fact that it sought a middle position between the realism of Sarvastivada (All Exists) and the idealism of the Yogacara (Mind Only) schools. The most renowned Madhyamika thinker was Nagarjuna (2nd cent. AD), who developed the doctrine that all is void (Sunya-vada). (Enc. Br.) a 27: 341 IV: 166
Madra name of an ancient country and its people in northwestern India, mentioned in the Mahabaharata. The territory extended from the River Beas to the Chenab or perhaps as far as the Jhelum. Savitri's father Asvapati was king of this country. (Dow.; M.N.) Der: Madran a 3:191, 193 29:402, 417, 466, 719
Madras a city created by the English in India. The Presidency of Madras, of which the city of Madras was the capital, extended over the whole of the eastern coast of India from the Orissa frontier to Cape Comorin. In independent India, as a result of the reorganization of the states on a linguistic basis in 1956, the "state" of Madras was confined to the Tamil-speaking area and renamed Tamil Nadu, with the city of Madras continuing as its capital. Madras played an important part in the history of the Congress, and was the venue of its annual session as many as seven times. (D.I.H.) Der: Madras! a 1:112, 193, 195, 223, 227, 262, 338, 359, 363, 434, 475, 482, 498, 572, 591, 593, 617, 675-76, 678, 681, 687, 715, 725-26, 742, 745, 761, 778, 793, 796-97, 802, 805, 815, 817 2: 76, 80, 102, 121, 128, 152, 176, 178, 244, 246, 295, 309, 329-30 3: 98, 328 4: 140, 179, 186, 190-91, 199, 203, 225, 238, 268, 283, 296 17: 291 22: 166 24: 1388 26: 40, 60, 168, 365, 393, 410, 429, 506 27:35, 40-42, 54, 59, 120, 426, 431-32, 439, 449, 469, 477, 500-01 X: 186 XV: 61 XIX: 25
(Madras) Mail English daily newspaper (founded in 1868) published from Madras. The Madras Times was later incorporated in it. (Cal.Lib.) a 1:865 26:377 (Madras) Standard English daily of Madras;
in 1917 it was purchased by Annie Besant who changed its name to New India. (V.V.S., p. 148) a 1: 192, 194, 363, 778
Madras Times Anglo-Indian (English) daily of Madras, founded in 1860. It was edited (c. 1911) by W. F. Grahame. (Cal. Lib.) a 27: 500-01
Madravatie in the Mahabharata, daughter of the king of Madra, second wife of Pandu, and mother of Nakula and Sahadeva. She was also known as Madrie (Madri). (Dow.; M.N.) a 3:207-08 8:59-60 IV: 115-16
Madrid capital of Spain and of Madrid province. It is the highest in altitude among European capitals, and is situated almost at the centre of the Iberian Peninsula. (Enc. Br.) a 7:862
Madrie See Madravatie
Madura a very ancient city of South India. It was the capital of the Pandya kingdom in the 1st century AD. Now called Madurai it still enjoys a reputation for cotton fabrics, and is also famous for its magnificent temples. (D.I.H.) a 14:213 17:373
Maecenas, Gaius Cilnius (c. 70 BC - 8 BC) , diplomat, counsellor to the Roman emperor Augustus, and patron of letters whose capacity for loyal friendship gave him considerable influence in early Imperial Rome. He was a patron and friend of Horace and Virgil. (Enc. Br.) D 5:562
Maeonides a name sometimes applied to Homer, either because Maeonia was an ancient name for Lydia where Homer was supposed to have been born, or because he was said to be the son of one Maeon. (O.C.C.L.) a 26:245 29:791, 807
Maeterlinck, Maurice (Polydore-Marie- Bernard) (1862-1949), Belgian Symbolist poet and playwright whose rhythmic prose dramas are the outstanding works of the Symbolist theatre. The most famous Belgian writer of his day, he wrote in French and won the 1911 Nobel Prize in literature. (Enc.Br.) a 9:7, 107
Page 194
Magadh(a) an ancient kingdom of India comprising originally the Patna and Gaya districts of modern Bihar. It was the nucleus of several larger kingdoms or empires be- tween 6th century BC and 8th century AD. The people of the country were known as Magadhas. (Enc. Br.) Var: Maghadha (a misspelling) Der: Magadhan;
Magadhine (see also Maagadh) D 3:189-91, 194.214 4: 93 6: 205 7: 894-95. 898 8: 43-45, 51-52, 54, 57, 340 14: 327 XVIII: 136
Magha (fl. 8th cent.), Sanskrit poet, son of Dattaka, and author of the magnificent poem called, from its subject, Sisupala-vadha or, from its author, Magha-kavya. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) n 14:301-02.320 1:25 XX: 131, 133
Maghadha See Magadh(a)
Maghavahan Meghavahan, in the Mahabharata, name of a king ardently devoted to Jarasandha. (M.N.) a 8:40
Maghavan a name of Indra. (Dow.; M.N.) D [Indexed with Indra]
Magi (pi. of Magus) 1. the priestly class in ancient Media and Persia, supposedly having occult powers. 2. (26: 447) in the Bible, the wise men from the East (in later tradition, three in number) who came bearing gifts to the infant Jesus. (Web.) Der: Magian (one of the Magi; an adherent of the Magi) D 6: 337 11: 4 26: 447 XVII: 11
Magna Charta or Magna Carta, the most important instrument of English consti- tutional history guaranteeing personal and political liberty. It was issued by King John at Runnymede in 1215 under threat of civil war, and reissued with alterations in 1216, 1217 and 1225. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) n 1: 460 2: 332 15: 621 17: 357 III: 11
Magura a subdivision of Jessore district, Bengal (now in Bangladesh). (A.B.T.) a 1: 262, 715. See also Malgura.
Magyar(s) (of) the people of Hungary. The terms "Magyar" and "Hungarian" are iden- tical, but in non-Hungarian languages the word "Magyar" is frequently used to distin- guish the Hungarian-speaking population of Hungary from the German, Slavic, and Rumanian minorities, which were consider- able until the end of the First World War. (Col. Enc.) a 15:285, 411-12
Mahabaleshwar hill resort in Satara district of Maharashtra state, northwest of Satara town, at an altitude of 4, 718 ft. in the Sahya- dri Hills of the Western Ghats. (Enc. Br.) n IV: 197
Mahabalipuram a town in Chingleput (now spelled Chengalpattu) district of Tamil Nadu state. It is famous for its many surviving 7th and 8th-century Pallava temples and monu- ments. (Enc. Br.) n 17: 300
Mahabhagawat, Pt. Lingeca editor of the Anglo-Sanskrit quarterly Sanskrit Research, conducted by the Sanskrit Academy of India, Bangalore. (A) a 17:290
Mahabharata the great epic poem of the Hindus, probably the longest in the world, valued both for its high literary merit and its religious inspiration. Containing 18 parvas or books, it has been subjected to much modification and numerous comparatively modern additions. The original epic was possibly something over 24, 000 and under 26, 400 slokas; but in its present final form it runs to 100.OOOs to kas. Tradition attributes the original to Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa, the traditional compiler of the Vedas. The date of the poem is very uncertain. Its lead- ing subject is the great war between the Kauravas and the Pandavas. (Dow.; A) a 1: 128, 398, 745, 767-68 3:141-53.155, 157, 159-62.165.169-72, 174-75, 179-83, 185, 188-89, 191-92, 194, 196-97. 199-200.217-20, 222.226, 232, 303-05, 312, 331 4: 67, 70-71, 80, 82, 92, 97-98, 141, 166, 252, 288 5: 258, 333 6: 205 8: 25, 61 9: 245, 312, 523 10: 15 12: 457 13: 9, 12-14, 16-17, 166.455.543 14: 1, 102, 186, 193, 230, 256.268.281, 284-87. 289, 291, 296, 303, 305, 317, 319-20, 349, 364, 372 15: 203 17: 267, 385 20: 87 22: 12, 82, 88, 382, 414;425-26, 447 23: 676 25: 62, 275, 383 26: 122, 130. 187, 265, 267, 366 27: 77, 79-81, 83, 141, 143, 150.152-54, 354.511 29:815 1:25, 28 II: 64 III: 8 IV: 161 V: 4 XVI: 182 XVII: 44 XIX: 80
Mahabharata1 translation of the epic in English verse by Romesh Dutt. (A) D 17: 370
Mahabharata' English translation of the epic edited by Manmatha Nath Dutt o 3: 170
Mahachamasya a seer who discovered the fourth Vyahriti, Mahar, the world of Truth. (A) a 10:171 12:321 XV: 33-36 XVI: 145, 154
Mahadev(a) "the Great God", a name of Shiva, l-l [Indexed with Shiva]
Mahaffy, Robert Pentland (d. 1943), a contemporary of Sri Aurobindo at Cam- bridge, who joined the university in the same year (1890) as Sri Aurobindo. He was a student of history and passed the Historical Tripos in the first class. In his later life, after working as a journalist for some years, he served at the Bar. During World War I he was an officer in the Army. a 27: 419
Page 195
Mahajan Wadi a locality in Kalbadevi area, Bombay, where Sri Aurobindo gave his lecture on National Education on January 19, 1908. Halai Lohana Mahajanwadi is probably its full name. a l: 652 27: 68
Mahakali one of the four great Aspects or leading Personalities of the Mother. Mahakali "embodies her power of splendid strength and irresistible passion, her warrior mood, her overwhelming will, her impetuous swiftness and world-shaking force." (25: 25) Her love too is as intense as her wrath, and she has a deep and passionate kindness. (Mahakali and Kali are not the same. Kali is a lesser form. Mahakali in the higher planes appears usually with a golden colour.) (A) a 4:163 9: 493 21:752 22: 382.390 23: 951, 963, 976, 1179, 1335 25: 26, 28-31, 33, 62, 71, 73-77, 87, 93, 270-71 26: 77 XIX: 8 XX: 130, 137-38, 141, 143 XXI: 7, 35, 50-51, 53, 72-73, 88 XXII: 133, 135, 160, 185, 192, 196
Mahalakshmi one of the four Powers or outstanding Personalities of the Mother. Mahalakshmi is the most attractive Aspect of the Divine Shakti. She is "vivid and sweet and wonderful with her deep secret of beauty and harmony and fine rhythm, her intricate and subtle opulence, her compelling attraction and captivating grace" (25: 25). (A) Var: Mahalaxmi a 4: 163 8: 387 9: 493 21:752 22:382, 390 25:26, 30-31, 33, 62, 71, 73, 75.77-78, 367 XIX: 8 XX: 137
Mahamandal, The See Bharat Dharma (Maha)mandal
Mahanirvana Tantra title of a Tantricwork. A translation and commentary on this work was brought out by Arthur Avalon in 1913 under the title The Great Liberation (Maha- nirvana Tantra). (Preface ofAvalon's book) a 17: 269
Mahar See Mahar(loka)
Maharas(h)tra a mountainous region of west-central India. The people of this region, the Marathas, were the dominant power in the Deccan for over a century before being subdued by the British. Now Maharashtra is a state in the Republic of India, with Bombay as the capital. (D.I.H.) Der: Maharashtrian a 1:141, 147, 197, 223, 292, 632, 654, 674, 700.725, 758 2: 37, 62, 147, 199, 244, 246, 261-62, 314, 330, 333, 347, 385 3: 484 4: 96, 140, 143, 147, 178.191, 222 10: 35 14: 187, 317, 380 17: 291, 332, 350-54, 358 26: 4, 14, 25, 28, 45, 47-48, 61, 64, 409-10 27: 40-41, 67, 69 I: 1-2, 4-5, 8 K: 1, 2 XIV: 102, 105 XIX: 29
Maharatta a major people of India, famed in history as yeoman warriors and champions of Hinduism.
Their homeland is the present state of Maharashtra, the Marathi-speaking region of west-central India. (Enc. Br.) Var: Mahratta; Marhatta; Maratha; Marathi (XVI: 194) 0 1: 141, 147, 172, 198, 301, 308, 348, 363, 475, 537, 633, 738, 815 2: 183, 195, 287, 295, 297-98. 310 3: 67, 98, 215, 328, 483-84 4: 96, 140, 268 5: 282, 284, 286-88, 291-92 7: 1027, 1031-32 14: 318, 368, 370, 377-78, 380 15: 354 17: 332, 350, 352-53, 356 26:4, 14-15, 25, 47.68, 351-53 27:501 1:4, 73, 76 XVI: 194 XVII: 67
Mahar(loka) world of Truth discovered, according to the Taittiriya Upanishad, by Rishi Mahachamasya as the fourth Vyahriti; world of Vastness; world of large conscious- ness; the world of the superconscient Truth of things. (Dow.;A) Var: Mahas a 4:29 10:42-43, 61, 93-94, 171, 174, 271, 337, 515, 519 11: 23, 453, 496 12: 124, 321-22, 330, 343, 515 17:62, 64 20:465 22:243 XV: 25-26, 32, 34, 43, 46 XVI: 144-45, 154, 161, 184 XVII: 53, 56, 58 XVIII: 180-81
Maharshi, Ramana See Ramana Maharshi
Mahas See Mahar(loka)
Mahasaraswati one of the four Powers or outstanding Personalities of the Mother. "Mahasaraswati is the Mother's Power of Work and her spirit of perfection and order. The youngest of the Four, she is the most skilful in executive faculty and the nearest to physical Nature." (25: 33) All the work of the other Powers leans on her for perfec- tion. (A) a 4:163 21:752 22:382.390 23: 1159, 1181 25: 26. 33.62, 71, 73, 77-78 XIX: 8 XX: 130, 137 XXI: 35.50-51, 53, 73, 88 XXII: 132, 160, 185, 193, 196
Mahasegn See (Chunda) Mahasegn
Mahashiva a greater manifestation than that ordinarily worshipped as Shiva. (A) a 22: 391
Mahatma SeeGandhi.Mahatma
Mahatmas in Theosophy, the Masters; adepts of the highest order; exalted beings who having attained to the mastery over their lower principles are thus living un- impeded by the "man of flesh", and are in possession of knowledge and power commensurate with the stage they have reached in their spiritual evolution. They live chiefly in Tibet. They are perfected men whose task it is to watch over humanity and guide it on the path of evolution. The two most concerned with the Theosophical Society are called Morya (see Maurya2) and Koot Hoomi (see Kutthumi), (T.G.; Enc. Unex., p. 250) D XIII: 28, 30-34
Page 196
Mahavidyas goddesses of the Tantra system. They are ten in number: Kali, Tara, Sodasi, Bhuvanesvari, Bhairavi, Chinnamasta, Dhumavati, Bagalamukhi, Matangi and Kamalatmika. According to some Tantriks it is these goddesses who manifested as the ten Avataras. (H.S.S.) a 17: 269
Mahavira' (c. 599 BC - 527 Be), last of the 24 Tirthankaras (prophets) who founded Jainism. Mahavira is an honorific title; the real name of the historical figure was Vardhamana. (Enc. Br.) a 14:187
Mahavira2 literally "the great hero", a name of Sri Krishna as one of the caturvyuha; he contains all the others and puts them forth from his being. His manifestation is lordship, his attributes might and wisdom; he is the brdhmana served by the ksatriya, who has the divine knowledge and uses his might under the guidance of the Knowledge. He reigns in the Satya Yuga. He is identified with Shiva, and his Shakti is Maheshwari. (A &R, XIX: 93) a XIX: 54
Mahavishnu This term occurs in Ramot- taratapani Upanishad, where it has been used in the sense of Param Brahman. But Sri Aurobindo has used it in its primal sense, according to which Mahavishnu is the great Agni in whom is centred the Bhu. He is the Virat Purusha (Cosmic Spirit), who as Agni pours Himself out into the forms of sun and star. He is also Prajapati and Matariswan. (A &R, VI: 209) a VI: 182, 184
Mahayana "Greater Vehicle", one of the two major Buddhist traditions; it is the form most adhered to in China, Korea, Japan and Tibet. It emerged in c. 1st century AD from the ancient Buddhist schools (represented in the modern world by the Theravadins of Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Laos and Cambo- dia) as a more liberal and innovative inter- pretation of the Buddha's teachings. The Mahayanists deprecatingly termed the more orthodox schools as Hinayana (Lesser Vehi- cle). They attribute to the Buddha a supra- mundane quality and interpret the historical Buddha as an earthly manifestation of a transcendent celestial Buddha. The ideal goal of the follower of the Mahayana is to become not an arhat (perfected saint), but a BODHISATTVA. (Enc. Br.) Der: Mahayanist 12:233 13:79, 228, 527 14:150 22:61, 64, 68
Mahdi (Arabic: the "rightly guided one"), in Islamic eschatology, a messianic deliverer who will fill the
earth with justice and equity, restore true religion, and usher in a short golden age lasting seven, eight, or a nine years before the end of the world. The Koran does not mention him. Men have arisen from time to time in Persia and Egypt claiming to be the Mahdi. The only one of these who gained historic importance was Mohammad Ahmed. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Var: Mehdi n 1:284 15:609 17:100
Mane formerly, one of the settlements comprising the overseas territory of French India. Since the transfer of the territory to the Government of India in 1954, it has been one of the four constituents of the centrally administered state of Pondicherry. It is an enclave in the Cannanore district of Kerala, 3.5 sq. miles in area. Within this territory there is also a town named Mahe. (Enc. Br.) a 17:403
Mahendra name of one of the seven mountain ranges of South India: the hills which run fron Gondwana to Orissa and the Northern Circars. (Dow.) a 8:210
Maheshwara' the aspect of the fourfold manifestation of the Supreme whose characteristics are sovereignty and wisdom. His Shakti is Maheshwari. (A & R; XXII:
204-05) a XXII: 135
Maheshwara2 a name of SHIVA. D [Indexed with Shiva]
Mahes(h)wari one of the four Powers or outstanding Personalities of the Mother. Maheshwari is the Mother's Personality of "calm wideness and comprehending wisdom and tranquil benignity and inexhaustible compassion and sovereign and surpassing majesty and all-ruling greatness" (25: 25). The "Truth of things is her one concern, knowledge her centre of power and to build our soul and our nature into the divine Truth her mission and her labour" (25: 28). (A) D 21:752 22:382, 389 25:26, 30, 33, 62, 71, 73-75, 78, 87, 90 XIX: 8 XX: 130, 137 XXI: 33, 35, 51, 88- XXII: 185, 193, 196
Mahi1 (Mahi), in the Veda, the goddess of the Vast Truth (Mahas); she represents the vast Word that brings us all things out of the divine source. She is the same as Bharati, but different from the Bharati of the Puranas (weSaraswati^e)). (A, 11: 32) n 10:89-91. 37711:32.212, 494 XV: 5, 25, 29, 32 XVII: 51-54
Page 197
Mahi2 (Mahi), name of a river in western India. It rises in the western Vindhya Range, just south of Sardarpur in Dhar district, and flowing through Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Gujarat, enters the sea by a wide estuary beyond the old Cambay port after a 360-mile course. (Enc. Br.) a i:69
Mahisha Mardini an epithet of the goddess Durga as the slayer of the Asura called Mahisasura. a [Indexed with Durga]
Mahmud ofGhazni (971-1030), Sultan of Ghazni from 986 to 1030. Ghazni originally comprised modern Afghanistan and the northeastern part of modern Iran. Mahmud made frequent raids (generally computed to be seventeen in number) into India. He made his kingdom the centre of an empire including at its zenith modern Pakistan and most of Iran. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) a 1:646
Mahmud Shevket Pasha a Turkish leader who rose to power after Sultan ABDUL HAMID. a 2:248
Mahomed in full Abu al-Qasim Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim (c. 570-632), founder of the religion of Islam and of the Arab Empire. He was an initiator of religious, social and cultural developments of monumental significance in the history of mankind. (Enc. Br.) Var: Mahomet; Mohammad D 1:757, 905 2:24, 405 3:11, 375 4:71 5:177 7:837 13:9 15:425 16:284, 365, 430 17:99-100 22:408 26:483 IV: 168 X:113
Mahomed (Alzayni) See Alzayni
Mahomedan follower of Islam; Moslem, Muslim, Mussalman, Mussulman, Musulman Var: Mohammadan; Mohammedan;
Mohamedan; Muhanunadan D 1:16, 49, 136-37, 145, 169, 209-14, 216-18, 251-52, 261, 285-86, 302, 310-12, 315, 318, 323, 329-32, 336, 346, 353, 358, 360, 369-70, 372, 377, 385, 391, 402-03, 445, 481-82, 495, 520, 526, 587, 602, 608, 610, 625, 627, 631, 635, 645, 733, 752, 755, 769, 815, 817, 879, 887 2: 22-24, 35, 89, 169, 181, 183, 217, 226-27, 245-46, 251-52, 259-62, 279-80, 285, 291-92, 294, 298, 303, 305-06, 309, 312, 354, 361, 423-24 3:4, 123, 164, 296 4: 15, 96, 140-41, 143, 147, 166, 179-80, 183-85, 194, 217-18, 220, 230, 240, 260 5:284 7:567, 724 8:340-41 10:17 14: 123, 131, 187, 190, 216, 223-24, 319, 329, 354, 370, 376-79, 403, 419 15:294, 316, 411, 438, 446, 626, 644 16:283 17:86, 181, 306 23:510.795, 850 25:54 26:27, 46, 389, 402, 404, 408, 483 27:12, 20-22, 40, 44, 46, 53-54, 111, 116, 124, 286, 445-47 1:4, 7, 41, 73, 76 111:6, 16, 72 IV: 195 VIII: 173, 190 IX: 32 X: 160
Mahomedanism See Islam
Mahomed Hakim Khan a student of the Government School of Art, Calcutta, towards the beginning of the 20th century. (A) a 3:421
Mahomed Reza Khan a character in the Bengali novel Ananda Math by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee. Historically, he was the Deputy Nawab, and later on also appointed the Deputy Dewan of Bengal by the East India Company, and thus placed in control of the revenue administration also. He did not concern himself about the sufferings of the poeple in the famine of 1769-70. (A; D.I.H.) a 8:319
Mahomet See Mahomed "
Mahopanishad an Upanishad belonging to the Samaveda. (Up.K.) D 18:511 19:726
Mahratta See Maharatta
Mahratta English weekly journal of Poona, founded in 1881 under the guidance and inspiration of prominent national leaders of Maharashtra such as Tilak and Apte. It was edited by N. C. Kelkar. Tilak. who contributed articles to the journal, obtained its proprietorship in 1890. (B.A.C.; P.T.I.) Var: Maratha a 1:746 1:1
Mahuva a taluka (administrative unit) in southwest Gujarat, formerly included in the princely state of Baroda. Mahuva is also a port on the Gulf of Kutch. (G.R.A.) a xv: 77
Mai(a) See Mayasura
Mainak in Hindu mythology, a mountain stated in the Mahabharata to be situated north of Kailasa. Personified, he is the son of Himavat (Himalay) and Mena. When Indra clipped the wings of the mountains, Mainak is said to have been the only one which escaped, having taken refuge in the sea. According to some scholars this mountain stands in central India; according to others, near the extremity of the peninsula. (Dow.;
A) Var: Mainaac; Mainac a 5: 224 7:953 8:31, 103, 106, 118, 176
Maithili "belonging to MITHILA"; a name of Sita Q [Indexed with Sita]
Maitrayani Upanishad an Upanishad of the Samaveda. (Up.K.) a 18:501, 596
Maitreya, Akshaya Kumar (1861-1930), a famous lawyer of Rajshahi (Bengal), better known as an author of books on Indian history, especially in Bengali. He came into the limelight with the publication of his books Siraj-ud-daulah (1898) and Mir Kasim (1906). He followed the scientific method of writing history, based on documents, and regularly contributed his articles to various journals. (S.B.C.) n 17:301
Majumdar, Ambikacharan (1850-1922), a prominent leader of the Moderate party in Bengal, also known as "the Grand Old Man of East Bengal". A lawyer by profession, he was an orator and one of the strongest advocates of constitutional development of India. He came into prominence in the days of the
Page 198
partition of Bengal in 1904-05. He presided over the Congress session of 1916 held at Lucknow. (A; D.N.B.) Var: Mazumdar, AmbicaCharan a l: 641 2:293 4:191, 238
Majumdar, Ram(achandra) an associate of Sri Aurobindo, a young man on the staff of Karmayogin and Dharma. He informed Sri Aurobindo of his impending arrest in Feb- ruary 1910, and accompanied or led him to the Ganga Ghat where Sri Aurobindo left for Chandernagore. He belonged to Cal- cutta, and was more familiarly known as Rambabu. (A.Remini.) Var: Mazumdar Ramchandra; Ram(a)chandra a 26: 57, 61-67, 70 27: 439
Majumdar, Sardar a resident of Baroda, in whose house Sri Aurobindo had the experi- ence of Nirvana, probably in January 1908 (not in January 1909 as mentioned in Vol. 26; at that time Sri Aurobindo was in jail). (A; A & R) Var: Mazumdar D 26: 353 IV: 198
Makers of Italy title of a book by Marriot; Sri Aurobindo remarked about it that it was "not a biography nor anything like comprehensive". (A) n XVII: 64
Malabar region on the west coast of India from Goa to the southern tip of the penin- sula at Cape Comorin; also the name of a smaller area, formerly under British rule, nowpartofKerala. (Col. Enc.) n 26:66
Malabari, B. M. Behramji M. Malabari (1853-1912), a Parsi social reformer, famous for his service in the cause of Indian women, children, education and journalism. He was editor of the Bombay Spectator, and later of East and West (1901-12). (A.H.I.; D.N.B.; Gilbert, p. 203) a l: 626-27
Mal(a)va (the modern Malwa), a historic province comprising a large portion of western Madhya Pradesh state and parts of southeastern Rajasthan state. Strictly, the name is confined to the hilly tableland bounded on the south by the Vindhya Range, but it has been extended to include the Narmada Valley. The people of the region were called Malavas. (D.I.H.;Enc. Br.) a 3:213-16, 229, 262, 322 14:325 1:26
Malavica a character - a princess of the Vidurbhan house - in Sri Aurobindo's Malavica and the King. a 3: 280, 283 8:135, 138-42.145 X:116, 118-22, 126 ,
Malavica (and the King) Malavikdgnimitram, a Sanskrit play of Kalidasa in five acts, some- times referred to by Sri Aurobindo in short as Malavica or as Agnimitra. The drama is a harem intrigue, comical and playful, but not less accomplished for lacking any high purpose. Only the first act of the drama was translated by Sri Aurobindo under the title In the Gardens of Vidisha or Malavica and the King. (An incomplete rough draft of this translation was published in S.A.B.C.L. Volume 8. The full translation came out in A & R.December 1981.) (A; Enc. Br.; A & R, X: 188) a 3:261, 276, 287-89, 323 8: 133, 137 X: 115, 117, 158, 170-71, 174-75
Malaviya a character - representing Madan Mohan Malaviya - in "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy published in Bands Mataram (February 1908). D 1:674-76
Malaviya, Madan Mohan (1861-1946), a leading Indian nationalist leader, prominent educationist and social reformer. He was an orthodox Hindu but he believed in "recon- version " and "removal ofuntouchability". He was thrice president of the Hindu Mahasabha. He also presided over two annual sessions of the Congress, in 1909 at Lahore and in 1918 at Delhi. His greatest achievement was the founding in 1915 of the Hindu University at Benares by raising the necessary funds from the princes and the people of India. (D.I.H.) a 1:231-32, 246 2:305, 307, 309, 318, 320, 330 4:177, 199, 231-32, 238, 240 27:43 VIII: 124
Malavya, Madanmohan See Malaviya, Madan Mohan. ("Malavya" is a misprint.)
Malay(an) native or inhabitant of Southeast Asia and adjacent islands including the east coast of Sumatra, the coast of Borneo, and smaller islands between these areas. (Enc. Br.) n 1:58 5:276
Maldeh orMaldaorMaldah, atownand district in Jalpaiguri division of Bengal (now West Bengal state). (Enc. Br.) D 3:84
Malgura probably a misspelling of MAGURA. n 27:64
Malias the Malias, a tribal people in the time of Buddha (6th - 5th centuries BC) who settled in the northern parts of modern Bihar. The Malias had a republican form of government with an assembly. (Enc. Br.) D IX: 1, 2
Page 199
Mallanne, Stephane (1842-98), French poet, a master of the evocative use of the French language. He was one of the dominant figures in 19th-century European literature and a major influence on the Symbolist movement. (Enc.Br.) D 9:58, 96, 107, 385, 433.442, 445, 475-76.479.529-32
Mallik, Subodh (Chandra) See Mulli(c)k, Subodh (Chandra)
Mallinath (fl. c. 14th or 15th cent AD), a Sanskrit poet and author of commentaries of great repute on several of the great classical poems, e.g. the Raghuvansha, Meghaduta, Shishupala-vadha etc. (Dow.; M.W.) a 3:308-09, 313-17.319-20
Malory, Sir Thomas (fl. c. 1470), English writer whose identity remains uncertain but whose name is famous as the author of Morfe d'Arthur, the first prose account in English of the rise and fall of King Arthur and the fellowship of the Round Table. Malory's original book was called The Book of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table. It was the printer Caxton who erroneously gave it the title of Morte d'Arthur. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n 9:136
Malplaquet a village of Nord departement in northern France. Here in 1709. in the War of the Spanish Succession, Marlborough and Eugine of Savoy won a costly victory over the French under Marshal Villars. (Col. Enc.) a 7:847
Malsar a place on the banks of the Narmada where a saint named Madhavdas lived. (A) D 26:19
Malsure, Tanaji Shivaji's boyhood friend, who had a duel with Udaya Bhan of Kondana Fort in which both were killed. Subsequently, Tanaji's brother Suryaji took over the command of the fort and defeated the Rajputs. Kondana was renamed Simhagadh. (Shiva.) D 5:283, 293
Malta an island in the Mediterranean, south of Sicily. Formerly a British colony, it is now an independent democratic state comprising the islands of Malta. Gozo, and Comino, and a few adjacent islets. (Col. Enc.) D 3:306
Malva(s) See Mal(a)va
Malvolio a character - steward to Olivia - in Shakespeare's comedy Twelfth Night. He is considered one of Shakespeare's best comic characters. (Shakes.) o 9:333
Mamata wife of the Rishi Uchathya and the mother of Dirghatamas. a 11:177, 264
Manavaca See Manavaka
Manava Dharmashastra (manava- dharmasdstra); Laws ofManu; name of the famous code of laws attributed to Manu, more popularly known as Manusmrti. It is "the science of the law of conduct of the mental or human being". (I & G) 0 3: 123 14:283 15:425 VIII: 190
Manavaka a character - King Pururavas' jester and companion, a Brahmin - in Kalidasa's drama Vikramorvasie (translated by Sri Aurobindo). Var: tVIanavaca a 3:269.274, 284.287-88 7:909, 926-33, 936-49, 954-57, 959-65, 967-68.990-96, 999, 1002-03 X: 151, 156. 171.174
Manchester a city and county borough and the nucleus of the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester, England. It has long been the leading textile centre of England and the world's foremost cotton manufac- turer. Manchester is often characterized as the typical city of the Industrial Revolution;
it reached its peak in the 19th century with the development of the cotton industry. Sri Aurobindo was in Manchester from 1879 to 1884 in the charge of the Drewetts, who tutored him at home. (Enc. Br.; I & G, p. 6) a 1:388.704 26:1 27:65.73, 94 II: 87 IV: 198 XIV: 163 XVII: 66. 73
The Manchester Guardian English daily of Manchester (England), published by John Russell Scott, now called The Guardian. (Cal. Lib.) a 22: 203
Manchester Grammar School school in Manchester, England where Sri Aurobindo's two elder brothers studied. (A) n 26: 1
Manchuria historic region of northeastern China. It is separated from the USSR largely by the Amur, Argun, and Ussuri rivers and from Korea by the Yalu and Tumen rivers. (Col. Enc.) a 1: 260 IS: 584
Mandalay a city on the Irrawaddy River, , former capital (now chief town) of Upper Burma, and headquarters of Mandalay district and.division. Tilak was interned in Mandalay Jail for six years, from 1908 to 1914. At that time Burma was a part of British India. (Enc. Br.) D 1: 607 2: 62, 314 17: 265 27: 58
Mandar(a) in Hindu mythology, the mountain used by the gods and asuras as a churning stick to churn the Milky Ocean. Some identify it with a mountain in Bhagalpur (Bihar) so named and held sacred. (Dow.) D 3:277 8: 175 X: 158
Mandavya an ancient Hindu seer (Brahmarshi), mentioned in the Maha- bharata. For killing a moth he was condemned by Yama to be impaled upon a stake (suit).
Page 200
When he was put there, he resumed his meditation as though nothing had happened. (M.N.) a 5: 86 II: 24
Mandhata an ancient Hindu king, son of Yuvanas(h)va, of the race oflkshwaku, and author of a hymn in the Rig-veda. According to Sisloka in the Mahabharata, Mandhata conquered the whole earth in a single day. (Dow.; M.N.) n 3:190 8:46 11:342
Mandukya Upanishad an Upanishad belonging to the Arthurva-veda. (Up. K.) a 12:pre., 289 13:315, 425 14:277 16:262 18: 17, 132, 295, 553 19: 746 20: 19, 21, 305 22:256 IV: 166
Manek; Manik Manik, a name used by an "introducer of the writing" (script) of c. 1907, which was used as evidence in the Alipore Bomb Trial (1908-09). In the court this script was referred to as "The Scribblings", since it was barely legible. In c. 1920 an "introducer" wrote that "Manek" (with an "e") was the name of the "old introducer of the writing". [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Manekwada a locality in the city of Baroda, capital of the former Indian native state of Baroda. (A) a 27: 114
Mangal See Mars
Mangoe Lane a lane in central Calcutta, near Dalhousie Square, n 1: 330
Manicheanism or Manichaeism, a dualistic religion founded by Mani, a Persian who had a vision in his early youth and came forward as a prophet inspired by divine revelation (AD 242). The religion flourished from the 3rd to the 5th century AD. (Col. Enc.) Der: Manichean (of Manicheanism) D 3:383 13:336 16:179 18:95, 499 27: 263 29: 482
Manicktala a locality in eastern Calcutta, formerly considered a suburb of the city. Var: Maniktola; Manicktola n 1:59 2:99, 400 4: 215, 263, 288. 291 26: 51 X: 186
Manik See Manek
Maniktola See Manicktala
Manindranath Manindra Nath Naiek, a follower and disciple of Motilal Roy. He played a major role in the revolutionary work at Chandernagore, taking charge of the bomb-making.
The historic bomb thrown at Lord Hard^nge at Delhi on 23 December 1912 by Basanta Biswas under the direction of Rash Behari Bose was made by Naiek. Later, Naiek met Sri Aurobindo on 26 De- cember 1925 as a representative from Chandernagore in the French Indian Legislature at Pondicherry. (L. to Sl.; Purani) Var: Mani Naik n 27:484, 499
Manipur an ancient city of India, on the sea-coast of Kalinga, where Babhruvahana, the son ofArjuna, dwelt. One scholar identifies it with the modern Manipur, a territory east of Bengal, but this is very questionable. (Dow.) Var: Monipur(a) Der: Manipurian n 5:315, 318-19, 325, 328
Manipushpaca in the Mahabharata, name of the conch-shell of Sahadeva, the youngest of thePandavas. D 4:77 8:77
Manmohan (Ghose) (1869-1924), Sri Aurobindo's elder brother, second son of K. D. Ghose. He was romantic and poetic, and enamoured of England and English life. In England he was a classmate of Laurence Binyon and a friend of Oscar Wilde. He was also very intimate with Stephen Phillips, and was himself a promising poet, having written verse which was included in an Oxford anthology entitled Primavera. On his return to India in 1894 he served as professor of English at Patna and later at Dhaka. For some time he was also professor of English literature at Presidency College in Calcutta University. In the family circle Manmohan was known as Mano or Mejdada (in Bengali, second brother, addressed or referred to as such by brothers or sisters junior to him). (Purani; N.S.I., p. 221; S.B.C.) a 4:pre. 9:345, 397 26:2, 7 27:145, 421 1:68, 70, 74 VI: 140
Manoranjan See Guha, Manoranjan
Manou See Manu(s)
Man Singh the most famous king of the Tanwar dynasty of the Rajputs of Gwalior. He ruled from 1486 to 1517. He developed a great centre of the fine arts and built a magnificent palace at Gwalior. (D.I.H.) D 17:303
Manthara in the Ramayana, an ugly hunch- backed maid-servant of Queen Kaikeyi who stirred up her mistress's jealousy against Rama and induced her to persuade King Dasaratha to exile him. (Dow.) o 3:237, 428 9:318 27:98
Page 201
Mantuan an epithet of Virgil, who was born near Mantua, a city and capital of Mantua province in Lombardy, North Italy. (Col. Enc.) a 26:339
Manubhai private secretary to the Maharaja of Baroda in 1902. Later he became Dewan of the state. (A&R) a 1:74
Manuel one of the two solicitors for the accused in the Alipore Bomb Trial. (A.B.T.) a 4:263
Manu(s); Manu Vaivaswata In Hindu mythology, Manu is the first Prajapati, the progenitor of mankind. On earth Manu incarnates fourteen times in each Kalpa and each of these fourteen incarnations is called a Manu. The period for which a Manu rules and holds sway on earth is called a Manwantara, which is composed of a varying number of Chaturyugas (there are not less than 4, 320, 000 years in one Chaturyuga). The first of the Manus was Swayambhuva, to whom the law-book Manusmriti (or Manu Samhita) is ascribed. The Manu of the present age is the seventh, and is named Vaivasvata, son of Vivasvata, the Sun. The legend of the fish and the deluge is connected with this Manu. "Manu, the first Prajapati, ... is different from the four Manus who are more than Prajapatis, they being the four Type-Souls from whom all human Purushas are born; they... in themselves are beyond this manifest universe." (VI: 184) The Gita also speaks of four eternal Manus along with the seven great Rishis. They are "fathers of man, - for the active nature of the Godhead is fourfold and humanity ex- presses this nature in its fourfold character., . from them are all these living creatures in the world;... these Manus are in themselves perpetual mental becomings of the supreme Soul and born out of his spiritual transcendence into cosmic Nature." (13: 333) (Dow.; A & R; A) Var: Manou D 2:404 3:120-21, 124, 173, 270, 309 5:297, 299-307, 311 8:3, 88 10:147 11:344, 346 12:463 13:137, 157, 333 14:166, 263, 283, 332 15:405, 425, 436 20:192 27:195, 279, 360 IV: 145 VI: 155, 182-84, 186, 188-90, 192-93 VIII: 144, 187-88, 190 IX: 5 X: 152 XVIII: 177
The Mail Who Dreamed of Faeryland a poem by Yeats. (A) D 9:535
Manx cat breed of tailless domestic cat of unknown origin but presumed by tradition to have come from the Isle of Man (an island in the Irish Sea, and part of Great Britain).
The Manx is noted as an affectionate, loyal, and courageous cat. (Enc. Br.) a 3:52 '
Maori Polynesian natives of New Zealand, ninety percent of whom live on North Island, largely in the Hot-Springs district. The earliest Polynesian migrants, known as Moa Hunters because of their use of this now extinct Moa bird, probably reached New Zealand about AD 800 or earlier. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a
XIV: 117
Mara (Mara), in Buddhism, the Destroyer, the Evil One who tempts men to indulge their passions and is the great enemy of the Buddha and Buddhist bhikkhus. In Hindu- ism, Mara is an epithet of Kamadeva, the god of love, who is also a tempter. (M.W.; Dow.) a 4:86 18:31 22:428
Maran See Nammalwar
Maratha See Maharatta
Maratha See Mahratta
Maratha Confederacy an alliance formed in the 18th century after Moghul pressure forced the collapse of Shivaji's kingdom of Maharashtra. It originated during the administration of the second Peshwa, Baji Rao I (1720-40), and was held in strict control also during the administration of Balaji Baji Rao (1740-61). The confederacy expressed a general Maratha nationalist sentiment but was bitterly divided by the jealousies of its chiefs. In 1802 Baji Rao II sought protection from the British, and the latter's intervention destroyed the confederacy by 1818. (D.I.H.;Enc.Br.) a 1:198
Marathi Indo-Aryan language of western and central India, spoken in a region that extends from north of Bombay down the west coast past Goa and eastward across the Deccan; in 1966 it became the official language of the state of Maharashtra. It is written in Devanagari script. (Enc. Br.) a 1:262 10:572 14:186, 318-19 17:265, 349, 361 26:290 27:426 1:1, 5-6 IV: 148
Marble Arch one of the distinctive features of the Hyde Park of West London; it is a meeting-place where soapbox orators hold forth. (Col. Enc.) a 7:1017
Marc a character participating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) written by Sri Aurobindo around 1891. (A&R) a II: 8
Marcion a character - a forester - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Witch ofllni. 0 1:1057, 1060, 1065-67, 1069, 1072, 1081
Marconi, Guglieimo (1874-1937), Italian physicist and electrical engineer whodeveloped the use of radio waves as a practical means of communication. In 1895 he sent long-wave signals over a distance of a mile, and in 1901 received in Newfoundland the first transatlantic signals sent out by his station in Cornwall, thus making the dis- covery that radio waves can bend around the spherically shaped earth.
Page 202
Marconi received, jointly with K. R. Braun, the 1909 Nobel Prize for physics. (Pears; Col. Enc.) D 24:1249
Mardouc in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora, a tailor of Bassora, creditor of Nureddene. (A) n 7:634
Margaret Dacre a character — wife of Sir Gerald Curran - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Devil's Mastiff', a 7:1048
Margasirsha (Margasirsa), in the Vikram Era the 9th month of the Hindu calendar beginning with Chaitra. In ancient times it was perhaps considered the first or most important and sacred month of the year. D 13:349
Marhatta See Maharatta
Marichi in Hindu mythology, the chief of the Maruts; name of one of the Prajapatis. He was the father of Kashyapa, and one of the seven great Rishis. (Dow.) a 13:349
Mario, Don name of a nobleman mentioned in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. n 7:836, 862, 870
Mariolatry worship of the Virgin Mary, regarded as carried to an idolatrous extreme. (Web.) o 16:365
Markanda See Morcundeya
Markandeya Purana a Purana of some 9, 000 verses, narrated in the first place by Rishi Markandeya (see Morcundeya), and in the second, by certain fabulous birds profoundly versed in the Vedas. It has a character differ- ent from all the other Puranas. The popular Candipdtha (see Chandi1) is an episode of this Purana. (Dow.) n 4:53 25:73
Market Street a street of Calcutta, near Hogg Market (East). (Guide) Q 1:220-21
Marlboro' John Churchill (1650-1722), 1st Duke of Marlborough, English general and statesman, one of the great military commanders of history. (Col. Enc.) D 7:847
Marlowe, Christopher (1564-93), English dramatist and poet. Among the Elizabethan dramatists, he was second only to Shakespeare. (Col. Enc.) n 3:96, 186, 233 4:286 5: 351 9:62, 65-66, 69-70, 313-14, 318, 457 29:758, 803
Maroutta See Marutta
Marpessa in Greek mythology, daughter of Euenus, son of Ares. Idas, who was an Argonaut, won Marpessa as his bride, but she was carried off by Apollo. Zeus inter- vened and offered her a choice between the two. She chose Idas. Marpessa is the main figure in a poem written by Stephen Phillips. (M.I.) a 5:495 9:184-85
Marpessa a blank-verse narrative poem by Stephen Phillips, which Sri Aurobindo read before it was published, at the age of seven- teen. Its impression on him lasted till it was worked out in Love and Death. (A) 0 26:254, 266-67
Marrakesh also spelled Marrakech, chief city of southern Morocco and capital of Marra- kech province. It lies in the centre of the fertile Haouz Plain, south of Oued Tensift. Misnamed Morocco by the Europeans, it gave its name to the kingdom of which it was for long the capital. (Enc. Br.) a XXI: 100
Marriot author of a book entitled Makers of Italy, to which Sri Aurobindo referred in a letter of 1907 to Aswini Kumar Banerji. (A) D XVII: 64
Marriot, Charles a writer who contributed an article on the work of an English artist, J. D. Ferguson, to the second number of the magazine Shama'a, which was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. (A) a 17:314
Mars the fourth major planet from the sun, revolving in an orbit outside that of the earth. It is glaring red in colour. In Hindu astronomy it is called Mangal. (Enc. Br.) D 3:43 5:177 7:992, 1024 17:91, 259-62 25:373 VI: 182 XIII: 33
Marsyas in Greek mythology, a celebrated player on the pipe, of Celaena in Phrygia, who had the impudence to challenge Apollo to a musical contest. It was agreed that the victor should treat the loser as he wished. The victory was with difficulty adjudged by the Muses in favour of Apollo. He there- upon tied Marsyas to a tree and flayed him alive. (Ox. Comp.) a 26:302
Martanda in the Veda, the eighth son of Aditi whom she casts away from her; the black or dark, the lost, the hidden Sun. (A) a 10:426
Martineau Governor of Pondicherry (July 1910-June 1911); a supporter of Bluysen in the election to the French Chamber in 1914, and himself a candidate in 1920. He was a historian. (H. P., p. 276; A) D 27:445-47, 484
Page 203
Martund a famous and valiant Rajput prince belonging to the GEHLOTE clan. (A) a 7:797-98, S 11
Martyaloka an epithet of Bhurloka; the world of mortals, a 4:33, 306 11:77-78
Maruti See Hanuman
Marut(s) in Hindu religion, the storm-gods, who hold a very prominent place in the Vedas and are represented as friends and allies of Indra. The Maruts are the Life- Powers and Thought-Powers. Their number is said in one place to be thrice sixty, and in another place only twenty-seven. (Dow.; A;
V.G.) n 4: 23-24 10:19, 56. 137. 140. 157-59, 162-63, 205, 219, 238, 241-43, 254-62, 265, 274, - 298, 325, 329, 333-34, 342, 356, 377, 415, 438, 447, 454, 469-70, 520, 532, 534 11:32, 44, 167, 240, 466.470.494 12:130 13:349, 364 16:284 17:85.305, 339 26:243 27:128.196 29:789 III: 31-32, 34. 37-39, 41-42, 44-45 VIII: 143. 150-52 IX: 4-5 X: 179 XIII: 54-55 XIV: 108 XVI: 133, 144, 175 XVII: 54 XVIII: 178
Marutta in the Mahabharata, a descendant of Manu Vaivaswata. He was a Cakravarti Raja (universal monarch) and performed a far-famed sacrifice on an unprecedented scale. (Dow.) Var: Maroutta a 3:190 8:46
Marwaris people originally belonging to Marwar, a popular name of the former native state of jodhpur in Rajputana. The Marwari community is mostly engaged in business. (D.I.H.) a 1; 803 4: 210 VIII: 134
Marx, Karl (1818-83), German revolutionist, sociologist, and economist, from whom the movement known as Marxism derives its name and many of its ideas. His works were the intellectual basis of late 19th-century European socialism. Marxism is a social and political doctrine based on a philosophy of history and an elaborate economic theory that purports to demonstrate the inevitability of Communism. (Enc. Br.) Der: Marxian;
Marxism; Marxist a 9:558 15:193, 466, 479, 569 22:208
Mary or Virgin Mary or the Virgin, the Mother of Jesus, worshipped in the Christian Church since the apostolic age, and a favourite subject in art, music and literature. (Enc. Br.) a 5:544 7:835 12:55 13:12
Mary, Queen Victoria Mary of Teck (1867-1953), consort of King George V of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. She was crowned with him in 1911. She shared the duties of the throne with her husband, taking an active interest in the social and educational problems of their people, and working
tirelessly in the two world wars to organize relief. (Enc. Am.) a 26:378
Mary Abelard a character - Walter's wife - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard". a 7:1026
Mary Queen of Scots Mary Stuart (1542-87), controversial Scottish queen, who was put to death by her cousin Queen Elizabeth I of England, who considered Mary a threat to her throne. Mary's tragic history has made her one of the most popular heroines of romance. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 9:77
Masefield, John (1878-1967), 15th poet laureate of England (appointed in 1930); also a playwright and a novelist. (Enc. Br.) a 9:2
Mashonaland a region of northeastern Zimbabwe in south-central Africa. (Enc. Br.) a V:95
Maskelyne, John Nevil (1839-1917), English magician whose inventions, patronage of new performers, and encouragement of coopera- tion among performers greatly influenced the development of magic in the late 19th tury. Trained as a watchmaker, he became famous in 1865 when he exposed the Daven- port Brothers as fraudulent spiritualists. (Enc. Br.) D 3:398-400
Masonic (brotherhood) the Masonic Fraternity, an oath-bound fraternal order of men, originally deriving from the medieval fraternity of operative stonemasons. General- ly conceded primacy among fraternal orders, it is disseminated over the civilized world. It has no central authority, being divided into more than 100 grand jurisdictions, each autonomous. In India a Lodge was formed in 1730 in Bengal. (Enc. Am.) -o 1:396 XIII: 26
Massis, Henri (1886-1970), editor-in-chief of Revue universelle (founded in April 1920) and author of La defense de {'Occident. (A) a 22:128
Masson name, apparently, of a warder in the Alipore Jail around 1908-09, when Sri Aurobindo was kept there as an undertrial prisoner. (A) a XIX: 22
Mataris(h)wan a Vedic epithet of the Hindu god Vayu, who representing the divine principle in the Life-energy or Prana, extends himself in Matter and vivifies its forms. He is described in the Rig-veda as bringing down or producing Agni (fire) for theBhrigus. (A; Dow.) Var: Matarisvan 0 4:38 10:53, 213, 341, 362, 440 11:130, 506 12:64, 67, 83-84, 99, 116, 130, 218.301, 470-73 17: 339 27:201, 205, 209, 236, 239-41, 255, 260-61, 328, 334-35, 338 V: 69 VI: 175, 182 VII: 60 XXII: 184
Page 204
Mathura an ancient city on the right bank of the Yamuna in U.P.; the birthplace of Sri Krishna, and one of the seven sacred cities of the Hindus. It was known during British rule as "Muttra", but even before independence Indians corrected the spelling to "Mathura". (Dow.) Var: Mothura a 1:595, 599-600, 811 5:226 7:889, 891, 893, 896 8:42, 284-85, 406 16:429 22:87 23:676 26:120, 130 27:139-40
Matilda Dacre a character - sister-in-law of Sir Gerald Curran - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Devil's Mastiff", n 7:1049
Matsya(s) Matsya was the name of an ancient country of India. There was more than one country of this name, and one of them seems to have been situated in North India. The people of this country moved south for fear of Jarasandha. According to the Mahabharata, King Virata's capital was called Matsya, his people were called Mat- syas, and he himself was styled Matsya. One scholar locates Matsya in the neigh- bourhood of Jaipur. (M.N.;Dow.) D 3:191, 195-96, 203, 207 8:41, 59 27:79 IV: 115
Matterhorn a famous mountain peak in the Alps, 14, 780ft. high, on the Swiss-Italian border. (Col. Enc.) a 7:870 16:266 V:92
Maudgalya a character - a chamberlain - in Malavica and the King, a translation by Sri Aurobindo of the first act of Kalidasa's drama Malavikdgnimitram. 0 8:147-49 X: 116, 127-28, 130
Mauretania. S.S. name of a ship. (Note: Mauretania was an ancient district of north- west Africa in Roman times.) (A; Col. Enc.) n 22:423
Mauritius an island country in the Indian Ocean, about 500 miles east of Madagascar. Under British rule India used to import sugar from Mauritius. (Enc. Br.) 1-1 4:203
Maurois, Andre, pen-name of Emile Herzog (1885-1967), an outstanding biographer, also a novelist and an essayist. He was a prominent personality in French literature for fifty years. The publication of his Ariel (1923;
English translation 1924), a life of Shelley, established his fame as a biographer. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) o 9:481
Maurya' a dynasty of emperors, founded by Chandragupta in c. 322 BC at Pataliputra (Patna) in Magadha. The last king of this dynasty was Brihadratha, who was killed in c. 185 BC. (D.I.H.) n 8:135, 144 14:351, 364, 373.375-76 15:264, 341, 347 17:299 X: 124 XVII: 25
Maurya2 or Morya, a Himalayan Adept, one of the two "Masters" or MAHATMAS with whom the Theosophists are chiefly concerned. The principal means of communica- tion of the Mahatmas with their devotees is the "precipitated" letter: communications which flutter out of the air or are found in the pocket of the person for whom they are intended. The Masters also appear visibly to those who are sufficiently susceptible. (One night Morya appeared to the Russian novelist Vsevolod Soloviev.) (Enc. Unex., p. 140) D XIII: 28
Mauser Mauser pistol or rifle, breech-loading fire-arms named after the German inventor Paul von Mauser (1838-1914). (Enc. Br.) a VI: 201
Max Miiller See Miiller, Max
Mayas a race of American Indians who formerly lived in southeastern Mexico and central America and are still found in Yuca- tan, British Honduras, and northern Guate- mala. The Mayas had a highly developed civilization when discovered by Europeans early in the 16th century. (Web.) n 10:147
Mayasura (Mayasura), in the Mahabharata, a great Titan, architect and artificer of the Asuras, as Visvakarma was the architect of the gods. He built a palace for the Pandavas. (Dow.) Var:Mai;Maia a 8:30, 32-33 17:299
Mayo Richard Southwell Bourke (1822-72), 6th Earl of Mayo, Irish political figure and civil servant. Viceroy of India (1869-72). During the short period of his administration as Viceroy, Lord Mayo greatly improved the finances of the country, and had the first general census in India taken in 1870. In 1872 when on a visit to Port Blair in the Andamans, he was assassinated by a Pathan convict. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) o m: 12
Mayo, Miss ' an American journalist who visited India in the 1930s, it is said, on the invitation of the British Government. She is the author of Mother India, a book which gives a very ugly and dirty picture of India and Indians. She was, therefore, nicknamed "Drainage Inspector" by the Indian people. D 26:329.
Page 205
Mayo Hall a building in the city of Allahabad in U.P., named probably after Viceroy MAYO. a 1:232
Mayoor a character - Atry's general and minister - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Prince of Mathura. a 7:891, 895-98
Mazarul Haq Mazharul Haque (1866-1930), a leader of the Muslims who was loyal to the British connection. He presided over the Bombay session (1915) of the Muslim League. (A; H.F.M.L; D.N.B.) a 2:224
Mazinderan name of a beautiful city, perhaps belonging to fiction or some other world. In northern Iran there is an ostan (province) named Mazandaran or Mazanderan, bordering the Caspian Sea. (A;Enc.Br.) a 3:475-76 5:263 7:684
Mazrue Haq a Muslim name used by Sri Aurobindo to denote the sort of person picked out by the police as a witness to give prepared evidence in their support, n 2:54
Mazumdar See Majumdar, Sardar
Mazumdar, Ambica Charan See Majumdar, Ambikacharan
Mazumdar, Ramchandra See Majumdar, Ram(achandra)
Mazzini Giuseppe (1805-72), Italian patriot and revolutionary, political thinker and writer, and an outstanding figure of the Risorgimento, the period (1815-70) of national unification in the history of Italy. His relations with CAVOUR were strained. Both strove for Italian unification, but their ideas were divergent, Cavour relying for help on a foreign power (France), Mazzini believing in revolution and war based on direct popular action. (Col. Enc.) a 1: 335, 362, 379, 499, 722, 758, 766, 876, 881 2: 162-66, 411 3: 266-67, 480-82 12: 484 15: 92, 328 16: 304 17: 379 26: 17 II: 84 X: 148-49 XVII: 64
Mecca birthplace of Mohammad, the founder of Islam, and the most sacred city of the Muslim world. It is also the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia and is located 45 miles inland from the Red Sea port of Jidda. (Enc. Br.) a 7:608, 643
Mede See Mede(s)
Medea in Greek mythology, princess of Colchis, famous for her knowledge of sorcery. She is the chief figure in plays by Euripides, Seneca, Corneille and others. (Col. Enc.) a i: 201
Medea a play (431 BC) by the Greek tragic poet Euripides. It is one of the greatest Gree? tragedies. (Col. Enc.) D 9:521
Mede(s) native(s) of Media, the ancient name of tl^e northwestern part of Iran that generally corresponded to the modern regions of Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, and parts of Kermanshah. (Enc. Br.) Q 5: 414 6: 198
Medes a character - an usher in the palace - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. 0 6: 3, 41-44, 47. 182. 185
Medh(y)atithi Kanwa Medhatithi Kanva and Medhyatithi Kanva appear to be the names of the same person, a descendant of Kanva and a famous Vedic Rishi to whom the authorship of various hymns is attribu- ted. According to an Upanishadic legend, Indra, being pleased with Kanva's austeri- ties, came to him in the form of a ram and carried him to heaven. (V. Index; Dow.) Var: Kanwa Medhyatithi n 4: 37-38 10: 54, 197 11: 40. 47-49 " 1: 32 XV: 4, 29, 48 XVI: 166-67, 173, 177 XVII: 59-60
Mediterranean the world's largest inland sea, surrounded by Europe, Asia and Africa; (as an adjective), of or pertaining to (the land round about) the Mediterranean Sea. (Col. Enc.;Enc.Br.;C.O.D.) 0 5:276, 486 6:1, 432 7:1022 10:23-24. 75 12: 485, 499 14: 328, 367 15: 91, 318, 338, 340, 460 16: 310, 364, 407 17: 298 27: 203, 280 IV: 161 XIV: 168 XV: 18 XVI: 181-82
Medo-Persia Medo is a combining form of MEDE used parasynthetically with terms denoting other peoples and countries. (O.E.D.) D 15: 342
Medusa in Greek mythology, most famous of the three Gorgon monsters. She was once a beautiful woman, but she offended Athena, who changed her hair into snakes and made her face so hideous that all who looked at her were turned to stone. She was slain by Perseus. (Col. Enc.) a 6:1, 174
Megas a character - a villager or townsman - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, a 6:3, 115-20, 122-24, 138-41, 144, 149, 170
Megasthenes (c. 350-c. 290 BC) , the Greek ambassador who was sent by Seleucus Nikator to the court of the Indian king Chandragupta Maurya about 302 BC. Though inaccurate, he gave the most complete ac- count of India then known to the Greek world. (D.I.H.;Enc.Br.) a 14:51 15: 338
Meges in Greek legend, nephew of Odysseus and commander of the Epean contingent (from Elis) against Troy. (M.I.) a 5:491
Meghaduta(m) well-known Sanskrit lyric poem by Kalidasa in which a banished Yaksha implores a cloud to convey tidings of him to his beloved. (D. I. H.) Var: Meghadut D [Indexed with Cloud-Messenger]
Page 206
Meghanada; Meghnad See Indrajit
Meghnad-Badh Meghanddavadha-kavya, a Bengali epic poem (1861) in 9 cantos, on a theme from the Ramayana, by Michael Madhusudan Dutt. It is his magnum opus, a masterpiece, and bears evidence of the poet's first-hand acquaintance with Homer, Virgil, Dante, Milton, Valmiki, Kalidasa and others. (Gaz.-II) a 2: 208 3: 97
Mehdi See Mahdi
Meherpur Meherpore, a village on the left bank of the Karpadaka River, 24 miles to the south of the district town of Jessore in Bengal (now in Bangladesh). Meherpore was the ancestral home of the Basu or Bose family in which Saurin and Mrinalini Devi were born. (A & R, IV: 206) a 27:451
Mehsana an important town and prant (an administrative unit) in the former native state of Baroda. The town is situated about 40 miles north of Ahmedabad, and is now the administrative headquarters of Mehsana district in the state of Gujarat. (S. Atlas; Enc. Br.) n 27: 116 XV: 78
Mehta a character - representing Sir Pherozshah Mehta- in "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy published in Bande Mataram (February 1908). n l: 673, 675-87, 690, 693-95
Mehta, Sir Pherozshah (1845-1915), called "The Lion" of Bombay; Indian political leader, the foremost Moderate leader of Bombay. He presided over the Calcutta session of the Indian National Congress in 1890. In 1913 he founded The Bombay Chronicle. (Enc. Br.; A) D 1: 11, 15-17, 20-22, 24, 27, 36, 42-44, 107, 141, 192-93, 195, 202, 231, 246-48, 301, 360, 587, 590-91, 593, 598, 607, 609, 616-17, 626, 634, 638, 644-45. 647, 819, 825, 838-39, 841, 870, 892, 896, 899 2:199, 205-06, 215-16, 220, 238, 245-46. 251, 279, 296-97, 304-05, 307, 309, 313, 316.318.320, 325 4: 177, 179, 183, 186-87, 191, 199-200. 202-03, 216, 226-28, 231-32, 236-38, 241 27: 33, 36, 40-41, 43 XIV: 102-03, 105-06 XXI: 79 (P.M.) Mehtaite; Mehtaist a follower or supporter of Sir Pherozshah Mehta, or of his views and policies, n 1:218, 754-55
Mehtar See Bhangi
Mehta-Wacha (organization) led or is Sir Pherozshah Mehta and D. E. Wa(t)cha.' Q 27:33, 41
Mejdada See Manmohan (Ghose)
Mekhanfluenced by the renowned Moderate leaderla a character in Sri Aurobindo's play The Prince of Mathura, not listed in the "Persons of Drama", a 7:897-98
Melanchthon, Philipp (1497-1560), humanist, reformer, theologian and educator; author of the Confession of Augsburg of the Lutheran Church. Though he helped to lead the evangelical cause after Luther's death (1546), his ironic actions were viewed by many as betrayals, and his reputation was tarnished by several controversies. (Enc. Br.) D XIV: 127
Melander a character - a sylvan poet - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Witch ofllni. 0 7: 1057, 1060-70, 1072-73, 1075-78
Meleager (fl. 1st centec), epigrammatist from Gadara, in modern Jordan, who com- piled the first large anthology of epigrams. This was the first of the collections that made up what is known as the Greek Anthology. It contained poems by himself and some fifty other writers. (Enc. Br.) a 8:411
Melitus a character - King Antiochus' chamberlain - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. a 6:333, 349-50, 352, 357-58, 401, 442-43, 459-60.465-66, 468
Memnon in Greek mythology, son of Tithonus (a brother of Priam) and Eos (the Dawn), and king of Ethiopia. He went to Troy to aid his uncle and was slain by Achilles. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) a 5:405-06, 426, 450, 474, 478, 514, 516 VI:134
Memory title of a poem by Harindranath Chattopadhyay, published in his collection The Feast of Youth that was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. (A) n 17:311
Memphis in ancient times, the capital of Lower Egypt, and centre of the Old Kingdom (c. 2686-2160 BC). It was south of the Nile Delta, near the site of modern Cairo. (Enc.Br.) o 6:404 14:367
Mena in the Puranas, wife of Himavat (or Himaloy) and mother of Uma and Ganga, and of a son named MAINAK. (Dow.) a 3:310-13, 315 8:103, 106, 118
Menaca See Menaka
Menadevi a character - wife of Curran; a Chouhan princess, sister of the king of Ajmere - in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. 0 7:739, 743-46, 752-53
Menaka in Hindu mythology, a nymph of heaven, sent to seduce the sage Vishwamitra from his tapasya. Succeeding in this mission she became the mother of Shakuntala. In Kalidasa's drama Vikramorvasie., translated by Sri Aurobindo, Menaka appears as a companion of Urvasie. (Dow.;A) Var: Menaca D 3:282 5:190, 195, 199, 211, 253 7: 909, 912-13, 915-16, 920, 951 27:152 X: 169
Page 207
Menander (342-292 Be), Athenian dramatist whom ancient critics considered the supreme poet of Greek New Comedy, the last flower- ing of Athenian stage comedy. During his life, his success was limited; although he wrote more than 100 plays, he won only eight competitions at Athenian dramatic festivals. (Enc. Br.) n 9:193 14:51
Menelaus in Greek legend, younger brother of Agamemnon and husband of Helen. He was king of Sparta, succeeding Tyndareos, Helen's foster-father, to the throne. He led the Spartan contingent against Troy. (M. I.) n 5:439, 444, 449, 455, 473, 475, 480-81, 486, 491
Menelik Menelik II (1844-1913), emperor of Ethiopia (formerly widely but unofficially known as Abyssinia). One of Ethiopia's greatest rulers, he expanded the empire almost to its present borders and carried out a wide-ranging programme of modernization. (Enc.Br.) a 15:502
Menes (fl. c. 3100 Be), first historic ruler of the first dynasty of unified Egypt who, according to Egyptian tradition, joined Upper and Lower Egypt in a single centralized monarchy. Tradition attributes to him also the founding of the capital, Memphis. (Enc. Br.) D 27:279
Mentana a village in central Italy, thirteen miles northeast of Rome. Here in 1867 Garibaldi was defeated by French and papal troops. (Col. Enc.) Var: Mentena (a mis- print) a 3:267 X: 149
Mentho a character - Egyptian nurse of Antiochus and Timocles - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. D 6:333, 348, 377-79, 391, 402, 413, 455
Mera in the play Prince of Edur by Sri Aurobindo, name of the servant-girl of Comol Cumary. (A) a 7:760
Mercury the planet closest to the Sun, known as BUDHA in Hindu astronomy. (Enc.Br.) a 17:259-60
Meredith, George (1828-1909), English poet and novelist whose prose works are distinguished by their psychological penetration of character, brilliance of dialogue, wit, and intellectual depth. Because of the brilliant unconventionality and the difficulty of his writing, he did not receive wide recognition until the publication of Diana of the Cross- ways (1&S5). (Enc.Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Meredithian n 3:18, 35, 53, 72, 93 9: 2-3, 157-58, 164, 173, 186, 188, 196, 224, 229, 544 26: 233, 255, 263-64, 273, 314-15
Meriones' in the Trojan War, a Greek chieftain, a renowned archer, who came from Crete as an aide to Idomeneus. In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, he has already been slain by Penthesilea. (M.I.) 1-1 5:404, 427, 466, 477, 486
Meriones2 name of a Syrian soldier men- tioned in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, n 6:102
Meroth a proposed character - the Angel of Youth - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Birth of Sin. a 7:901
Meru; Uttara Meru the Peak of Gold, a fabulous mountain, also known as Sumeru, in the navel or centre of the earth. On Meru is situated Swarga, the heaven of Indra, containing the cities of the gods and the habitations of celestial spirits. It is the Olympus of the Hindus. Meru is also the centre of the seven continents; and around it the planets revolve. (Dow.;I&G) a 4:159 7:914, 919, 934 8:99, 103, 106, 113, 118 11:449 13: 349
Mesopotamia an ancient country of Asia, the region about the lower Tigris and the lower Euphrates, included in modern Iraq. (Col. Enc.) Der: Mesopotamian n 14: 402 15: 467, 645 16: 406-07 17: 180 XV: 5
Mesrour a character - Caliph Haroun's friend and companion - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. n 7:561, 599, 687-89
Messages title of a poem by Harindranath Chattopadhyay, published in his collection The Feast of Youth that was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya (A) D 17:306, 308
Messages from the Future English version of a book of speeches by Paul Richard, published by Ganesh & Co., Madras, in 1922. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Messalina. Valeria (c. 22-48), third wife of the Roman emperor Claudius I, notorious for her licentious behaviour and for instigating murderous court intrigues. Her reputation for greed and lust was supposedly unknown to her husband. Ultimately, however, the correspondence secretary, Narcissus, managed to have her put to death by convincing Claudius that she and her ' lover, Gaius Silius, had secretly married and were plotting to seize power. (Enc. Br.) D 12:502
Page 208
Messene an ancient city of Greece, capital of Messenia, the southwest region of the Peloponnesus. At the time of the Trojan War, West Messenia was ruled by Nestor, the rest possibly by Menelaus. (M.I.) D 5:469
Messiah in Judaism, a man who would be sent by God to restore Israel and reign righteously. Jesus Christ considered him- self and is considered by Christians to be the promised Messiah to whom the whole Old Testament pointed. The name Christ is Greek for Messiah. The common idea of Jesus' time was that the Messiah should reign in glory as an earthly king. The expectation of the second coming of Jesus is similar to the Jewish belief in the Messianic advent. (Col. Enc.) D 1:48, 51, 802 3:442 15:609 16: 307 22:405
Metropolitan College an educational institution of Calcutta; N. N. Ghose was its principal. Presently it is known as Vidyasagar College. (A;S.B.C.) n 1:254, 265, 505, 518-19, 524
Mettemich Clemens Wenzel Nepomuk Lothar (1773-1859), Furst von Mettemich, Austrian statesman, a champion of conser- vative principles. The period 1815 to 1848 has been called the Age of Mettemich, for during this time he was not only master of Austria but also the chief arbiter of Europe. He was the principal statesman of the so- called HOLY ALLIANCE. The Mettemich system depended upon political and religious censorship, espionage, and the suppression of revolutionary and nationalist movements. (Col. Enc.) a 15:330, 456
Mewar See Udaipur
Mexican War The term Mexican War usually denotes the war between the U.S. and Mexico from April 1846 to September 1847. But here (in the Record of Yoga) the re- ference is to events that took place much later. After the overthrow of the dictator Porfirio Diaz in 1910 Mexico came under the grip of a civil war. Francisco Madero, who had led the uprising against Diaz, was assassinated by Huerta. Huerta established a reactionary regime and revolution broke out in 1913 under the leadership of Carranza, Francisco Villa, and Emiliano Zapata. Huerta was also involved in diplomatic troubles with President Wilson of the U.S. After a long struggle to retain power and after the landing of U.S. troops at Veracruz, Huerta resigned (1914) and fled. Thereafter Carranza's Constitutionalist army began to splinter. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Mexico a country (now a republic) in North America between the United States on the north and Central America on the south. Its capital is Mexico City. (Col. Enc.) Der: Mexican a 15:328, 503, 508
Michael a proposed character - the Angel of War - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Birth of Sin. (Michael is an archangel prominent in Jewish, Christian, and Moslem traditions. In Christian tradition he is the angel with the sword, the conqueror of Satan.) (A; Col. Enc.) a 7:901
Michael Angelo See Michelangelo
Michael (Madhusudan) See Dutt, (Michael) Madhusudan
Michelangelo Michelangelo Di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (1475-1564), Italian painter, sculptor, architect, and poet. He was one of the greatest and most versatile artists of the Renaissance and exerted an extraordinary influence on the development of Western art. (Enc. Br.) Var: Angelo;
Michael Angelo n 3:100 9:381, 485, 487 12:42 14: 66, 229, 247
Middle Ages (c. AD 400-1500), usually considered to be the period between the decline and fall of the Western Roman Empire and the fall of Constantinople to the "Turks. The period covers (i) an earlier part ending with the 12th century, sometimes called the Dark Ages, and (ii) a later age of Arabian influence. The period came to an end with the ushering in of the Renaissance. (Pears, p. L79) n 1: 519, 790 3: 433 4: 218 9:63, 381, 546 13:28 14:82, 431 15:168, 173 16:258 17:169 20:434 II: 88 IX: 27 XIII: 30
Middlesex a former county of southeastern England, now absorbed in Greater London. (Web.N.C.D.) D 1:619
Midnapur -also called Medinipur, a town and district in Burdwan division of Bengal (now West Bengal state). (Enc.Br.) Di:610, 634-35, 640, 643.649, 691, 789 2:27, 33, 60, 250 3:75-76 4:189, 264, 287, 291, 323 26:32, 45
Mihir Sudhakar name of a journal published about 1907. (A) n 1:410, 435
Mikado a former title of the emperor of Japan, used chiefly in the English language. (CoI.Enc.) a 1:67,87,230,568,814 2: 119 IS: 352, 356,446 16: 323
Page 209
Milan a leading financial, industrial, and commercial city of Italy and capital of the north Italian region of Lombardy (Lom- bardia). (Enc. Br.) o i: 501
Milford an English critic about whom Dilip Kumar Roy wrote to Sri Aurobindo in connection with Sri Aurobindo's quantitative hexameters, a S: 551-52 9: 398-400 11:29-34
Mill, John Stuart (1806-73), English philosopher, political economist, and exponent of Utilitarianism (inherited from Jeremy Bentham), whose works contain the major strands of 19th-century philosophy, logic, and economic thought. (Enc. Br.) D 1: 427, 704 III: 10
Miltiades probably Miltiades the Younger (c. 554-489 BC), general who led the Athenian forces to victory over the Persians in the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC. (Enc. Br.) a III: 24
Milton, John (1608-74), one of the greatest poets of the English language. His nineteen English and five Italian sonnets are accepted as among the greatest ever written, but it is his epic Paradise Lost which has made him immortal. (Enc.Br.;Col.Enc.) Der: Miltonic; Miltonically; Miltonism a 1: 704 3: 95, 101, 107, 187, 224.235 4: 284 5: 343 9: 18, 27, 53, 60, 78, 80, 82-86, 91-92, 130-31, 146, 161, 163, 246, 272, 296-97, 304-06, 308, 310, 313, 315, 325, 343, 345, 347-48, 369, 371, 387, 395-96, 420-21, 424, 455, 475.478, 482, 485, 521, 524, 527 14: 285. 298 15: 606 26: 227, 245-46, 250-51, 259-60.262, 264, 266-67, 277, 310-11, 314 27:81, 304, 419 29:751, 757-59, 767, 791, 795-96, 798, 800, 803, 805, 807, 809 1:11 11:11-15 111:11 X-.114
Mime Antique a kind of simple farcical drama among the Greeks and Romans, characterized by mimicry and the ludicrous representation of familiar types of character. (O.E.D.) a 8: 138
Mimnermus (fl. c. 630 Be), Greek elegiac poet of Colophon. Only fragments of his poetry survive. His love poems are marked by tenderness and melancholy sentiment. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 9: 9 1:24
Minerva in Roman religion, the goddess of handicrafts, the professions, the arts, and later, of war; commonly identified with the Greek Athena. (Enc. Br.) a 1:253 10:352 11:3
Minos in Greek legend, a king of Crete, son of Zeus and Europa. He was known for his just rule. Idomeneus, according to Homer, was his grandson. (M.I.) a 5:418, 475, 479
Minto, Lord Gilbert (John) Elliot (Murray Kynynumond) (1845-1914), 4th Earl of Minto, British statesman. Viceroy and Governor-General of India from 1905 to 1910. Though Minto and John Morley, the Secretary of State for India, were often in conflict, they joined in sponsoring the Indian Councils Act of 1909, popularly known as the Morley-Minto Reforms, which was criti- cized by Indian nationalists for its creation of separate electorates for Hindus and Muslims, fostering division among the Indian population in order to facilitate British rule. (Enc.Br.;D.I.H.) a 1:96, 133, 187, 196, 252-53, 283, 319, 327, 333-34, 337, 344-45, 362, 423, 455, 611, 624, 705, 870 2: 282, 310, 331-32, 370, 374, 381-82 4: 187, 200, 207, 214, 218, 225, 230, 235, 240, 242-43 27: 52
Mirabai (14507-1547?), a Rajput queen of Mewar who became one of the greatest saints of India. Composed in Hindi, her lyrical songs of devotion to the god Krishna are still widely popular in India. (Enc. Br.) n 9:322 14:256.318
Mirabeau Honore Gabriel Victor Riqueti (1749-91), Comte de Mirabeau, French revolutionist and statesman, one of the greatest figures in the National Assembly, the body that governed France during the early phases of the French Revolution. "Mirabeau initiated, Danton inspired, Robespierre slew. Napoleon fulfilled." (17: 378) Mirabeau, however, "was the pure Egoist" (17: 379); he loved justice and liberty, but for the sake of Mirabeau. (Web.; Col. Enc.; A) a 3: 355 16: 324 17: 378-79, 381-82
Miranda a character - daughter of Prospero - in Shakespeare's comedy The Tempest. (Shakes.) D 26:335, 337
Miriam name in Hebrew of the Virgin Mary. (Col. Enc. under Mary) n 7:599
Mir Jafar the Nawab of Bengal from 1757 to 1760 and again from 1763 to 1765. He was the most outstanding of the many Indian Mohammedans who were responsible for the downfall of the Mohammedan rule in Bengal. (D.I.H.) Var: Mirzafar 1: 635, 865 8: 331
Mirra first name of Mirra Richard, born Mirra Alfassa (see The Mother). In the twenties Sri Aurobindo altered the spelling to "Mira". [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Mirror See (Indian) Mirror
Mirzafar See Mir Jafar
Page 210
Les Miserables an exceedingly vivid and powerful French novel (1862) by Victor Hugo. The story centres around the convict Jean Valjean, a victim of society who has been imprisoned for 19 years for stealing a loaf of bread. (Enc. Br.) D 9:559 Misracayshie in Hindu mythology, a nymph of heaven, a 5: 190
Mithila name of an ancient region of India, corresponding to the modern Tirhut in northern Bihar, between the Gandak and Kosi rivers. The region has also been called Videha after King VIDEHA, who ruled over it. The name Mithila was sometimes also applied to the capital of the country. (M.N.; Dow.) Der: Mithil; Mithilan D 8: 14, 16, 18, 236, 241, 263-64, 340 II: 24
Mithra in Iranian mythology, omniscient warrior deity, born of a rock and armed at birth with a knife and a torch. Mithra became known as the creator of life and he was also called the giver of rain and the god of sunlight. (He is considered by some the counterpart of the Hindu Vedic god Mitra.) The cult of Mithra was more general than Christianity in the Roman Empire in the 2nd century AD. It was a mystery-faith, and little is known in detail about it. (Enc. Br.) a 7: 1086-88 15: 165 '
Mitra in Hindu religion, one of the Adityas or sons of Aditi. In the Vedas he is generally associated with Varuna. He is the all- embracing harmony of the Truth, the Friend of all beings, and therefore, the Lord of Love. As the spirit of the day he is some- times given solar characteristics; in this form his Iranian counterpart is MITHRA. (Dow.; A) D 4:22, 37, 39 10:19, 53, 64-66, 69-73, 86, 159, 181-82, 197, 238, 257, 263, 270-71, 279, 282, 286, 289-90, 326, 329, 335, 342, 358, 370, 388, 399, 415, 425, 427-28, 432, 437-40, 442-47, 456-73, 475-81, 483-88, 521, 529-30, 533, 535-36 11: 10, 22, 31, 44-46, 61, 82, 116-17, 119, 121, 135, 143, 165, 167, 172, 178, 193, 206-07, 228, 240, 252, 266, 269, 309, 323, 325, 329, 335, 362, 391, 396, 405, 413, 445, 466, 494 12: 317, 326 16: 297, 337 17: 85, 257 22: 390 25: 77 IV: 138-40 V: 27, 68 VI: 148-49 VII: 32 X: 179-80 XIII: 54, 61 XIV: 108, 114, 130 XV: 13, 15, 44-45, 47-48, 52 XVI: 176 XVII: 14
Mitra, Bhababhusan an occasional member of the Manicktolla Garden revolutionary group.
[From -Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Mitra, Dinabandhu (1830-73), one of the greatest humorists of the Bengali language, a dramatist and novelist who was Bankim Chandra Chatterji's friend at Jessore. He wrote plays in a period when Bengali stage and stagecraft were not well developed. He excelled in farce and comedy, but his plays were not without high purpose, many being correctives to contemporary social evils. (D.N.B.;A) a 3:80, 83, 90
Mitra, Dwarakanath (1833-74), a distinguished judge of the Calcutta High Court from 1867 to 1874, an important figure of the 19th century in Bengal. A contemporary of Bankim Chandra, he was a man "of extraordinary talent", but "of the second tier" (3: 80). He had a deep regard for the English system of government and thought it desirable that British rule should continue. (D.N.B.;A) a 3:76, 80, 90
Mitra, Kishori Chand (1822-73), Bengali writer, advocate of Western education, and politically a Moderate. He had a colourful and varied career, beginning as a clerk and ending as the editor of Indian Field. He wrote on a wide variety of subjects. (D.N.B.) D 27: 351
Mitra, Krishna Kumar (1852-1937), Sri Aurobindo's Mesho (uncle: mother's sister's husband). He was the editor of Sanjibani, and a prominent leader in the anti-partition agitation. He played a conspicuous role in developing the volunteer movement and was closely connected with the Anusilan Samiti of Calcutta. Krishna Kumar was one of the nine leaders deported from Bengal in December 1908. (D.N.B.; A; P.T.I.) Var: Mitter, — a 1:193, 329, 408 2:45, 58, 60, 62, 154, 191, 281. 408 3: 430-31 4: 242, 250 26: 66, 355, 390 I: 70 XV: 62-63
Mitra, Kumudini daughter of Krishna Kumar Mitra; after her marriage with Probodh Chandra Basu Mullik, known as Kumudini Basu. She was the editor of Suprabhat (1907-14) and of Bangalakshmi (1925-27) and author of a number of Bengali books, including the booklet Sikher Balidan (The Sacrifice of the Sikh), which was inten- ded to teach the lesson of martyrdom to youngBengal. (S.B.C.; P.T.I.) a 3:430 XV: 62-63
Mitra, P. Pramathanath Mitra (1853-1910), a well-known barrister who practised at the Calcutta High Court and made his mark in the field of criminal law.
Page 211
He was one of the prominent leaders of the new nationalist movement in Bengal. When Sri Aurobindo tried to unite the scattered activities of the various revolutionary groups in Bengal under a single organization, it was P. Mitra whom he envisaged as the leader of the organization. Pramathanath was a disciple of Yogi Bejoy Goswami, and was also greatly influenced by Swami Vivekananda. (D.N.B.; Purani) Var: P. Mitter a 26: 14, 16, 23, 69
Mitra, Rajendra Lal (1822-91), Bengali writer, a versatile genius and a profound scholar. He possessed an inexhaustible fund of energy and enthusiasm which he devoted to the service of his motherland in the academic as well as the socio-cultural life of his time. He has 128 volumes to his credit. (D.N.B.;Enc.Ind.) n 3:78
Mitra, Sukumar See Sukumar
Mitter, Justice Saroda Charan (1848-1917), a brilliant scholar, a leading lawyer and social worker, and an eminent judge of the Calcutta High Court. He promoted in many ways the cause of nationalism in India. (D.N.B.) D 1:503-04, 512-14
Mitter, Krishna Kumar See Mitra, Krishna Kumar
Mitter, P. See Mitra, P.
Mnemosyne Greek personification of memory. She was a Titaness, daughter of Uranus and Gaea. The nine Muses were her daughters by Zeus. (Col. Enc.) Q 9:242
Moderate (Party) a political party of India composed of the founders of the Congress and their adherents which controlled the organization from its foundation in 1885 until 1916. The name Moderate was applied to them by their rivals, whom they called EXTREMISTS. Their political objective was "the attainment of a system of government similar to that enjoyed by the self-governing members of the British Empire by constitutional means". They put forward Colonial Self-Government as their aim. (D. I. H.) Der: Moderation; Moderatism a 1: 87, 100, 107, 111, 121, 168, 188, 191-93, 201-03, 205, 224, 226-28, 231-32, 238, 246, 250, 253, 258, 262-63, 296-98, 301-03, 312, 320-22, 340, 344-45, 347, 350, 352, 354, 362-63, 368, 370-71, 387-88, 390, 418, 421, 434, 460, 472-73, 478, 504, 556, 562-63, 566, 569-72, 583-87, 589, 592-93, 597, 607, 609-10, 612, 615-19, 622, 626-27, 634-35, 637, 640-41, 643, 649-50, 657, 668, 702, 746-47, 754, 773, 780-83, 793, 803, 809-10, 816, 819-21, 824-26, 838-40, 849, 864-66, 870, 876-78, 891-92, 899-900, 906 2: 54, 76, 78, 102-03, 129-30, 132-33,
143-44, 158, 160, 177-78, 190-92, 196-201, 204-07, 220, 237, 242, 251, 275-76, 278, 282, 290, 293-98, 303, 305, 309-16, 319-25, 329-35, 342, 345, 355, 369, 381-82, 388, 390, 392 4: 176, 179, 182-83, 187-92, 197, 199-200, 202-03, 206, 209, 216, 220-22, 228, 231-32, 235-36, 238, 240-41, 244 26: 25, 28-30, 33, 35, 42, 45, 47-49, 52 27:59, 61, 66 1:5 II: 84 IV: 109 VIII: 121-23, 129 XIV: 102-07 XVII: 67
Modem Love a cycle of poems (1862) by George Meredith. It was greatly admired by Sri Aurobindo and may have helped in forming the turn of his earlier poetic expression; its impact is traceable even in Savitri. (Col. Enc.; A) a 9: 3 26:255, 263-64
The Modem Review English monthly magazine founded by Ramananda Chatterjee in 1907 at Allahabad. In 1908 it was shifted to Calcutta. Old volumes of this magazine are still prized as valuable works of reference and source material for research on the Indian struggle for freedom. (Enc. Ind.) D 1:479-80 2:209, 397 3:421, 426 111:80 XIII: 47
Modon "Madan" as pronounced by Bengalis. See Kama(deva). D [Indexed with Kama(deva)]
Moghul the Arabic and Persian form of the word Mongol. It is conventionally used to describe the Muslim dynasty that ruled the larger part of India from the early 16th to the mid-18th century. The dynasty was founded by Babar, a descendant of the Mongol conqueror Jenghiz Khan. (Enc. Br.) Var: Mogul; Mughal a 1:305, 308, 315-16, 550, 598, 780, 834, 880-81 2: 39, 246 3: 484 4: 96, 140, 252 5: 279, 281-82, 284-85, 289, 291-93 8: 333 14: 70, 187, 223, 239, 253, 329, 364, 370, 377-79 15: 264, 341, 347, 446 1:21, 25 111:6, 12 IX: 1, 2
Mogra a town in Howrah district of Bengal. a 1:262
Mogra Hat a town, perhaps the same as Mogra; or a locality in the town of Mogra (hat = a-temporary market similar to the farmers' markets in the West). a 1:251-52
Mogul See Moghul
Mohamedan See Mahomedan
Mohammad See Mahomed
Mohammadan; Mohammedan See Mahomedan
Page 212
Mohendra (Singha) a character - a wealthy man in the village of Padachinha - in the novel Ananda Math by Bankim Chandra Chatterji. n 8: 319-22, 328-34, 336-56
Mohite an officer in the state of Baroda about 1903, who was fined Rs 105 by the Maharaja for making a false declaration. (A) a IV: 193
Moirai See Fate(s)
Moitra, Herambachandra (1857-1938), a well-known educationist, principal of City College, Calcutta for about 30 years. Calcutta University awarded him the Griffith Memorial Prize for his research on Emerson. He edited The Indian Messenger, the organ of the Brahmo Samaj, and toured Europe and America as a lecturer for the Samaj. (S.B.C.) n 1: 189
Moliere pseudonym of Jean Baptiste Poquelin (1622-73), French dramatist, actor, and master of comedy. He was eventually acclaimed as one of the greatest of French writers. (Col. Enc.; Web.) D 9: 67, 410 17: 87, 284 24:1586 IX:14
Moloch' in the Bible, the Canaanitish god of fire, to whom children were offered in sacrifice. (Col. Enc.) a 1: 854 3: 75 6: 8 14: 63 15: 653 16: 181 17:257
Moloch2 a proposed character - the Angel of Wrath - in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Birth of Sin. a 7:901
Moloy "Malaya" as pronounced by Bengalis. It is the name given in early Indian literature to a mountain range on the southwest coast of the peninsula, the southern part of the Western Ghats. It abounds in sandal trees. (M.W.) a 8: 193
Mommsen, Theodor (1817-1903), German historian and writer. His greatest work is his History of Rome (1854-56), which became one of the classics of historical writing. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1902. (Col. Enc.) a 3:70
Momus or Momos, the god of fault-finding among the ancients, who criticized whatever the gods did; "fault-finding" personified. He was a literary figure, hardly mythological (though he occurs in Hesiod as the son of Nyx, i.e. Night) and quite divorced from cult. (0.'C1.D.;N.C.C.H.; Ox. Comp.) D 11:7
Monarch of the Glen popular name of a prominent species of deer in Scotland. This name was given by the British artist Landseer to a picture of this deer painted by him. D 1:624
Monastir also known as Bitola; southernmost city of Macedonia, Yugoslavia, a few miles from the Greek frontier. It is a-Greek-founded settlement. It came into the hands of the Turks in 1382. In the Balkan Wars (1912-13) it was taken by the Serbs. (Enc. Br. under Bitola) n XX: 147
Monghyr administrative headquarters of Monghyr district in the state of Bihar on the River Ganga. (Enc.Br.) a 2:227
Mongolia vast Asiatic plateau region lying roughly between China and Siberia. Mon- golia is divided politically and geographically (by the Gobi Desert) into Inner Mongolia (an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China) to the south and Outer Mongolia (now the Mongolian People's Republic) to the north. The Asiatic people now inhabiting Mongolia are called Mongols. The term Mongolian is anthropologically applied to the yellow-skinned straight-haired type of mankind. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; C.O.D.) Der: Mongol; Mongolian; Mongolianism; Mongolo- (combining form) D 1:260-61, 391, 813-17 2:108, 169 15:295, 355, 373.411-12 16:406-07 17:180 27:280, 284 III: 25 VIII: 173-74 XVI: 186 XVII: 43
Mongoloid a group of human populations (local races and microraces) located in Asia outside of the Near East and the subcontinent of India. Mongoloid peoples are also found in many of the islands off the Asian mainland and in the Arctic regions of North America and Eurasia. (Enc. Br.) a 17:278
Moni See Chakravarti, Suresh (Chandra)
Monipur(a) Manipur, as pronounced by Bengalis. See Manipur
Monmuth (Manmatha), "churner of the mind", an epithet of Kamadeva. D [Indexed with Kama(deva)]
Monroe Doctrine a cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy enunciated in 1823 by Presi- dent James Monroe in a public statement proclaiming three basic dicta: no further European colonization in the New World, abstention of the U.S. from European political affairs, and non-intervention of Europe in the governments of the Western Hemisphere. The American Civil War hampered the application of the doctrine for some time, but afterwards the United States firmly insisted on it. The Doctrine is not international law, but a national policy of the U.S.A. (Enc. Br.; Pears) n 15: 332, 567
Page 213
Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms reforms of the Indian Constitution proposed in 1918 jointly by Edwin Montagu, the Secretary of State for India, and Lord Chelmsford, the Viceroy of India. They provided for an elected major- ity in all legislatures but kept the control over revenue and police in British hands. These reforms were introduced in the form of the Government of India Act of 1919. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br) n 2: 433 (Montague is a misspelling) 26: 35-36 27: 498
Mont Blanc Alpine massif on the Franco- Italian border, southeast of Geneva. (Col. Enc.) a 17: 382
Monte Rosa rounded, snow-covered massif of the Pennine Alps, lying on the frontier between Switzerland and Italy. (Enc. Br.) D 7:870
Monty, D. the main actor in the Bayara (Dacca) Disturbances Case of 1909. He was notorious for his misdeeds. (A) a 4: 247
Moon 1. The satellite of the earth, making one revolution round it in (about) a month; it receives light from the sun and the reflection of this light (as seen from the earth) illumines it partly or wholly. 2. In Hindu mythology, son of Atri, husband of Rohini, and father of Budha. 3. Seen in a vision, i. e. as a symbol, the Moon indicates spirituality - usually spirituality in the mind, or simply the spiritual consciousness. Sometimes it also indicates spiritual Ananda. See also Chandra and Soma. (C.O.D.; Dow.; A) D [Note: Only capitalized "Moon" has been indexed below.] 3: 257, 268-70 7: 909, 981, 1008 8:175, 391 9:275 11:2 12:275, 296-97, 309, 321, 323, 357, 367, 491 17:85, 259-62 23: 957-58 25: 116 27: 128 29:420 II: 79 III: 21 X: 151-52 XIII: 33 XIV: 120 XV: 6, 20 XVIII: 181
Moondaca See Mundaka Upanishad
Moonje, Dr. See Mun]e, Dr.
Moon of Two Hemispheres a poem written by Sri Aurobindo in anew metre. (A) a 5: 588 9: 418
Moonshine humorously literal translation of the name of the journal Indu Prakash. "Moonshine" is used in English to mean "nonsense". D [Indexed with Indu Prakash]
Moor in English usage, a term often synonymous with Moroccans and sometimes descriptive of the former Muslims of Spain, of mixed Arab, Spanish, and Berber origins, who subsequently settled as refugees in North Africa between the llth and 17th centuries. Modern Mauritanians are also sometimes referred to as Moors. (Enc. Br.) Der: Moorish a 1:526 2:169, 216 5: 276 7: 597 15: 289 V: 95 XXI: 100
Moore Arthur Moore, sometime editor of the Statesman of Calcutta. He was a con- temporary of Sri Aurobindo. 0 26: 256 XIII: 50
Mopsus name used by Sri Aurobindo for an imaginary person, a 5: 20-21
Morcundeya (Markandeya), an Indian sage, remarkable for his austerities and long life, and author of Markandeya Purana. He was sonofMrkanda. (Dow.) Var: Markanda a 5:117 8: 398
Morley, John (1838-1923), English historian, biographer as well as politician; Liberal M.P. (1883-1908); Secretary of State for India (1905-10); created Viscount in 1908. During his career in the House of Commons, Morley came to be called Honest John. Sri Aurobindo refers to him in this way, and also as Archangel John, but he does so ironically. "John Morley was a man of strong opinions tenaciously held and ferociously expressed.
He saw himself, and not the Viceroy, as the real ruler of India" (Gilbert). (Enc. Br.; Wolpert, p. 21; Gilbert, p. 24) Der: Morleyan; Morleyism a 1: 96, 99, 109, 133, 137, 170, 172-74, 176, 178, 187, 196, 201-02, 205, 218, 250, 253, 272, 280, 283-84, 317, 327, 333-34, 339, 342-46, 350, 362, 368, 373-75, 386-87, 391, 402-03, 409, 414-15. 417, 419-21, 431, 435-36, 447-53, 455, 458-64, 470, 472-73, 492, 570, 575-77, 600-06, 610-11, 614, 616, 624, 629, 651, 705-06, 777, 790, 818, 824-25, 828-29, 849, 862-63, 870 2: 26, 30, 33, 58-59, 75-76, 78-79, 100, 121-22, 135, 160, 170, 192, 202-04, 220, 249, 267, 278, 282, 294, 304-05, 310-11, 313, 320, 325, 327, 330-33, 335, 344, 357, 369-70, 381, 421-22 4: 179, 181-84, 190, 206-07, 213-14, 218, 221-23, 225, 229-30, 232, 234-36, 240-43 27: 26, 30, 49, 52, 54, 61
Mormons name applied by outsiders to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a religious body founded in 1830 by Joseph Smith in New York, on the basis of supposed Divine revelations in the Book of Mormon. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a 22:417
Morning Leader a British journal published during 1907. (A) a l: 350
Morocco a kingdom in northwest Africa, formerly (1911-56) divided into French Morocco, Spanish Morocco, Southern Morocco (Spanish protectorate), and the Inter- national Zone (of Tangier). (Web. N.C.D.) D 2:35, 169-70, 216-17 5:176 15:367, 502
Page 214
Morpheus in Greek and particularly Roman mythology, the god of dreams. He is a son of Sleep and a creature of the Night. Morpheus brought dreams of human forms; his two brothers, Ikelos and Phobetor, brought dreams of beasts and inanimate objects respectively. (Col. Enc.;M.I.) o & 399 7: 1081
Morris, William (1834-96), English designer, craftsman, poet, and early Socialist, whose designs for the decorative arts revolutionized Victorian taste and whose diverse activities were all inspired by a high moral seriousness. He is discussed by Sri Aurobindo only as a poet. (Enc. Br.) n 9: 133, 139, 142 27: 90
Morse Morse Code, the system of dots and dashes in electric telegraphy devised by Samuel F. B. Morse (1791-1872), the inventor of the electric telegraph and one of the most respected American painters of his day. (Enc. Br.) o 28: 162
Morte d'Arthur a poem by Tennyson, , published in his collection Poems (1842). Tennyson made use of the title of Malory's work. See Malory. (Col. Enc.) o 9:62, 137, 456
Moms a character - a villager or townsman - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, a 6:3, 115, 117, 119-23, 135, 138, 144, 191
Mosaic of Moses. See Moses
Moscow capitaloftheU.S.S.R., onthe Moskva River near its junction with the Moscow Canal. It is the largest city of the Soviet Union, also its leading political, industrial, and cultural centre. (Col. Enc.;
Enc.Br.) a 15:510, 643
Moses (fl. c. 14th-13th cent. Be), lawgiver of Israel, the prophet who led his people out of bondage in Egypt to the edge of Canaan. God promulgated the Law through Moses, not only the Ten Commandments and the criminal code, but the whole liturgical law as well. The Law he promulgated is called the Mosaic law. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Mosaic n l: 605 13:462 15:86, 425 16: 163 17: 99-100 V: 75-76 XIII: 36
Moslem See Mahomedan
Moslem League All-India Muslim League, an organization for protecting, upholding and promoting the
political interests of Indian Muslims, founded in 1906 at the instance of Nawab Salim-ul-lah of Dacca and encouraged by the Government of Lord Minto. The British Indian Government considered it a very useful counterpoise to the Congress.
The latter welcomed its birth as a sign of renovated, political life in the Mahomedan community; but the League consistently sided with the British against the Congress. A divided and weak India was the gift of the Muslim League to the Indians. (D. I. H.) n 2: 259
Mosul capital of Ninawa province in northwestern Iraq, on the Tigris River. It is Iraq's third largest city and a great industrial centre. (Enc. Br.) a 15: 646
The Mother (1878-1973), Sri Aurobindo's spiritual collaborator, born Mirra Alfassa. In Pondicherry, about 1926, she was given the name "the Mother" by Sri Aurobindo, since he considered her an embodiment of "the divine Consciousness- Force" known in India as the Mother of the universe. Sri Aurobindo once wrote to a disciple, "The Mother and myself stand for the same Power in two forms". She gave a living and practical form to his Yoga, and ultimately it was she who on 29 February 1956 brought down the Supermind into the earth atmosphere. Thereafter she worked tirelessly for the supramental change of physical nature, epitomised by the transformation of her own body. She left her body on 17 November 1973 in the midst of this work. The Sri Aurobindo Ashram at Pondicherry is the Mother's creation. Her writings and collected talks have been published by the Ashram as "Collected Works of the Mother - Centenary Edition" in 17 volumes. Her birthday (21 February) and the day (24 April) when she returned to Pondicherry in 1920 are celebrated in the Ashram as two of the four "Darshan" days. Sri Aurobindo used the word "Mother" in various other senses also, but these senses have not been included in the index that follows. "Mother" in the phrase "Divine Mother", or without the "Divine" but conveying this sense, has also been excluded, although often this term reflects indirectly the sense of the embodied Mother. 0 4: 339-42, 345-46, 351-54, 357-61, 363, 365-70, 374-75, 379-81, 385, 389, 393 9: 462, 505, 508, 512 17: 153, 215 22: 98, 166, 310.355, 368, 445, 455, 457, 476, 482-83, 488-89 23: 503, 535, 537-38, 540, 549, 555, 557, 564, 569, 581-83, 586, 595, 604-05, 623-24, 631, 635-36, 639-41, 653, 660, 663, 670, 674, 676-77, 680-81, 688, 690-91, 693-95, 698-700, 702-03, 706, 710, 714, 716, 723, 730, 735, 739, 746-48, 754-55, 760, 762, 779, 782, 784, 810, 812-16, 818, 822-23, 825, 828, 849, 853-54, 856, 858-60, 862, 865-68, 870, 883, 887, 891, 901, 904, 907, 910-12, 918, 921, 924-25, 934, 941, 945, 952, 956-57, 960-62, 969, 978, 981, 984, 987, 997, 999, 1001, 1003, 1011-12, 1014-15, 1028, 1037-38, 1055,1058-60.1063, 1065 24: 1091,
Page 215
1093-94, 1096-98, 1105, 1107, 1115-18, 1121-22, 1124-25, 1130-32, 1139, 1144, 1150, 1152-53, 1162, 1168, 1177-79, 1181-82, 1184, 1189, 1194, 1204, 1207, 1209-10, 1213-14, 1230, 1237-38, 1263, 1265, 1272, 1275, 1282, 1289, 1306-08, 1314-17, 1322-23, 1331, 1333-34, 1340, 1342-45, 1349.1359-63, 1366, 1374, 1378, 1381, 1383, 1385, 1391, 1393, 1399, 1401, 1405-06, 1409-10, 1412, 1414, 1417-19, 1424-25, 1429, 1435-37, 1444, 1447-48, 1452, 1455-58, 1460-61, 1464, 1466, 1482, 1484, 1486.1491, 1496, 1498-1504, 1509, 513, 1532, 1552, 1559, 1568-69, 1571-72, 1575, 1577, 1581, 1599, 1601, 1615, 1635, 1643-45, 1648-49, 1651-52, 1669-70, 1674-76, 1685, 1692, 1698, 1700, 1703-04, 1708, 1713, 1715-16, 1719, 1721, 1739, 1741, 1748-51, 1753-54, 1760, 1765 25: passim 26: pre., 68, 148, 154, 165, 168, 177, 194, 205, 208, 211, 268, 279, 353, 359-60, 377, 394, 423, 445-50, 455-60, 463-70, 472-74.476, 479-90, 492-505, 507-12 27: 442, 495 29: 728 IV: 192 VII: 83 XII: 156 XV: 59-60
The Mother a small book by Sri Aurobindo, first published in 1928. Parts of this book were written originally as letters to disciples. The book was reproduced in volume 25 of the Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library. (I & G) D 22: 17, 381 23: 589 25: 73 26: 369, 371
Mother India "Monthly Review of Culture" published under the editorship of K. D. Sethna. It was started by K. D. Poddar (Navajata) as a fortnightly paper in Bombay in February 1949. From February 1951 it has come out as a monthly magazine published by the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry. n 26: 376 27: pre.
The Mother to Her Son original title of a poem by Sri Aurobindo, first published in Bande Mataram in 1907. It is based on a passage in the Udyoga-parva of the Maha- bharata, containing the conversation of Vidula with her son. The poem appeared in Collected Poems and Plays (1942) and in SABCL vol. 8 under the title Vidula. (A) a 8:61
Mothura "Mathura" as pronounced by Bengalis. See Mathura
Moti a character - representing Motilal Ghose - in "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy published in Bande Mataram (February 1908). D 1: 679, 684, 688-89, 695-97
Motilal1; Moti Babu See Roy, Motilal
Motilal2 See Ghose, Motilal
Mott's Lane in Calcutta, probably in the Entail/area near Sealdah. D 1:280
Mountstuart, Mrs. an authority, real or imaginary, quoted by KESHAV GANESH to make his argument appear plausible and more cogent, a 3: 3
Mridika Vasishtha (Mrlika Vasistha), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Vasistha. D 11: 432
Mrigalanch(h)an a name or epithet of the Moon, the spotted Moon. It means "bearing stains or spots that look like a deer (mrga)". (A) a 3:290 7:965 X: 177
Mrinalinee a Bengali novel (1869) by Bankim Chandra Chatterji in which the dramatic element predominates. It is set in the time of the first Muslim invasion of Bengal. (Enc. Br.) Var: Mrinalini D 3: 91 27: 353
Mrinalini (Devi) (1887-1918), wife of Sri Aurobindo, married on 30 April 1901. She was the eldest daughter of Bhupal Chandra Bose. According to her father, she "evinced 'no exceptional abilities or tendencies in her childhood, indeed at no stage of her life". Though educated at Brahmo School and surrounded by Brahmo friends, Mrinalini Devi took no special interest in the Brahmo movement. The whole religious bent of the later years of her life was towards Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa and Swami Vivekananda. She was born on 6 March 1887 and died of influenza in Calcutta on 17 December 1918. (Purani;A&R, IV: 206-09) a 4: pre., 317, 322-23 26:66 27: 417, 422 I: 68-69, 75 II: 85
Mrityunjaya (According to MALLINATH) an epithet of the god Shiva, meaning "death- conquering". a 3: 309
Muazzim a character - a broker - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. D 7: 561, 574-81, 584-85, 603-04, 659-62, 664
Mudaliar surname of a person in whose house in Pondicherry VENKATARAMAN was staying in 1929. (A) a VII: 83 XII: 156
Mudgala a Vedic Rishi. There were several sages bearing this name. (One is recorded in the Mahabharata as having lived a life of poverty, piety, self-restraint, and hospitality.) (Dow.) D 12: 324
Mudholkar, Rao Bahadur Raghunath Narasingh (1857-1921), "the leading Moderate politician of the Berars ... and one of the chief opponents of the new Nationalism" (1: 352). He presided over the Bankipur session of the Congress in 1912. (D.N.B.; A) n 1: 171, 352-55 27: 43
Page 216
Mudrarakshasa "Seal ofRakshasa", a Sanskrit play by Vishakhadatta, whose precise date is unknown but who has been assigned to the later Gupta period (320- 510). (D.I.H.) D 9: 113 1:29
Muene See Almuene (bin Khakan)
Mugdhabodh a standard Sanskrit grammar written by Vopadeva towards the end of the 13th century. (Dow.) a 3:76
Mughal See Moghul
Muhammadan See Mahomedan
Mukherjee, Anukul a prosecution witness in the Bande Mataram Sedition Case (1907), who broke down during cross examination by the defence. (A) n 1:545, 549
Mukherji, Justice a member of the ADVISORY COUNCIL OF NOTABLES. (A) D 1: 414
Mukherji, Sambhunath See Mukherji, S(h)ambhunath
Mukherji, Satish (Chandra) (1865-1948), one of the Bengali pioneers of the new educa- tion. He founded the "Bhagavat Chatuspati" (an organisation which aimed at giving a spiritual turn to education) in 1895, Dawn magazine (the organ of the Chatuspati) in 1897, and the Dawn Society in 1902. He was also one of the founders of the National Council of Education in 1906. It was to him that Sri Aurobindo left the organisation of the Bengal National College in 1907, before plunging fully into politics. (A; Auro-I) l-l 1: 805 26: 43
Mukherji, S(h)ambhunath probably, Shambhu Chandra Mukherji (1839-94), who was assistant editor of the Hindu Patriot in 1859-60 and again from 1866 to 1872. In the period 1861-63 he conducted the Samachar Hindustani. In 1882 he started Reis and Rayyet, an English weekly. (D.N.B.) D 1:281, 518
Mukherji, U. N. Upendra Nath Mukherji (1868-1919), founder of Basumati Sahitya Mandir in Calcutta to make cheap editions of the works of famous Bengali writers available to the general public. He was a journalist, and the publisher of a number of books on religion, including Hindu Samajer Itihas (History of Hindu Society), and works of Kalidasa, Rammohan Roy etc. (S.B.C., p. 62) a 2:251
Mukhopadhyaya, Girindranath a chemist educated in the U.S.A. who promised (during the days of the Swadeshi Movement
around 1909) to return to India and help to run a sugar factory at Tarpur as soon as the necessary capital was raised. (A) 1-1 4:195
Mukhopadhyaya, Ramasadaya a Deputy Superintendent in the Bengal C.I.D. He was one of the principal figures in the Alipore Bomb Case during and after the arrest of Sri Aurobindo, who found everything about Ramasadaya very artificial and his behaviour play-acting. (A) D 4: 260-61
Mukunda "the Deliverer", a name or epithet of Vishnu or Krishna. a 8: 325, 352
Mukundaram Mukundaram Chakravarti, "Kavikankan" (c. 1547- .? ), a prominent Bengali poet of the late 15th and 16th centuries, known for his Kavikankan Chandi (Chandiman^al), which enjoys to this day as much popularity in Bengal as the famous Hindi Ramayana, Ramacharitamanas of Tulsidas, in North India. For this poem he was honoured with the title of "Kavi- kankan". (A.H.I.; Gaz.-II; S.B.C.) D 14: 320
Mukundilal someone known to Sarojini, Sri Aurobindo's sister, and also perhaps to Sri Aurobindo and Barindra. (A) o VII: 10, 23
Mulai Hamid Sultan of Morocco who treated (in 1909) his vanquished rival El Roghi and his captured followers most cruelly and barbarously. (A) a 2:216
Mulhausen German spelling of Mulhouse, an industrial town of northeastern France located on the plain of Alsace between the Vosges and the Jura Mountains. It passed to Germany after the Franco-Prussian War (1871). On 8 August 1914 the French occupied it without resistance. On the ninth the Germans gave battle, and they succeeded in driving out the French and in reoccupying the city on the tenth. Later, in 1918, Mulhausen was returned to France. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Miiller, Max Friedrich Maximilian Miiller (1823-1900), English philologist and orientalist, born and educated in Germany. His works stimulated widespread interest in the study of linguistics, mythology, and religion. His own interests lay more in mythology and comparative religion than in scientific linguistics. In 1877 he brought out an edition of the Rig-veda with commentaries, which became very famous. His principal achievement was the editing of Sacred Books of the East, a series of 51 volumes. (Enc. Br.;
Web.) D 3:112, 116-17, 262 4:43 10:551, 553 12: 8, 53-54, 57, 478 17: 339 IX: 30 XIV: 122, 124-25, 138, 164 XV: 12' XVI: 136 XVII: 27, 41, 45, 54 XVIII: 154 XXI: 17
Page 217
Mullica in Hindu mythology, a nymph of heaven, a 5: 190
Mullick, Nirod a cousin of Raja Subodh Chandra Mullick; one of the two principal financial supporters of Bande Mataram as a party paper of the Nationalist leaders in Calcutta. (A;B.P.P., p.25) n 1: 81 26: 59
Mulli(c)k, Subodh (Chandra) (1879-1920), one of Sri Aurobindo's staunches! friends and closest colleagues in political as well as revolutionary work, and a principal financial supporter of his Bande Mataram. He earned the title of "Raja" from his grateful country- men for his handsome donations to the cause of education. He also subscribed to the funds of other nationalist activities. Subodh Mallik was one of the nine leaders deported from Bengal in 1908. (D.N.B.; A; P.T.I.; Auro-I; S.B.C.) Var: Mallik; S. Mullick a 1:81, 156, 256, 772 2:70, 229 26:27, 59 27: 461 XVII: 64
Mullick, S. K. probably Dr. Sarat Kumar Mullick (1870-1924), a respected medical practitioner who cherished the good of his country. He was the first person to make efforts for the organization of a Bengali company in the Bengal Regiment and the Bengal Territorial Force. (S.B.C.) a 26: 10
Mullik, Manmatha Chandra (1853-1922), a barrister of Calcutta, related to Raja Subodh Chandra Mullik. In 1899 he married an English lady and took up residence in England. He contested twice as a Liberal candidate in the British Parliamentary elections. He was known in British academic circles as an erudite scholar: he knew San- skrit, Bengali, English, French, and Latin thoroughly. Having travelled far and wide in Europe, America, China, and Japan, Manmatha Chandra wrote a number of books based on his travel experiences. (S.B.C.;B.P.P., pp. 15and26) a i: 190
Mullik, Subodh See Mulli(c)k, Subodh (Chandra)
Multan name of a city, district, and division of western Punjab (now in Pakistan). (Enc. Br.) a 1: 279
Mundaka Upanishad an Upanishad belonging to the Atharva-veda. (Up. K.) Var: Moondaca a 9: 354 12: 40, 119, 128, 226, 269, 416 18: 11, 506, 534, 566, 596 19:633, 765, 848 20:8 27:211, 344 1:53 XV: 58 '
Mundaquinie (Mandakini), an arm of the River Ganga which flows through Kedaranath (Garhwal district, U.P.); "the Ganges of the gods, in heaven" (27: 159). A river near Chitrakuta in Bundelkhand
(U.P.), mentioned in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, also bears this name. (Dow.; A) n 8: 143 27: 159 X: 122
Munje, Dr. Dr. Balkrishna Shivram Munje (1872-1948), a medical practitioner and Congress leader ofNagpur who was one of Khaparde's most prominent lieutenants in the early days of Nationalist agitation. In 1920 he came to Pondicherry, and stayed as Sri Aurobindo's guest; he had long talks with Sri Aurobindo on current Indian politics. (D.N.B.;Purani; P.T.I.) Var: Moonje a 1: 569, 592 4: 178 26: 429, 432 27: 42
Munjoolica in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasa- vadutta, the name given to Bundhumathie, the captive princess of Sourashtra, as a servant of Vasavadutta. n 6:207, 261-62, 267, 269-72, 286, 289, 291-93, 295-304, 306-07, 309-10, 317-19, 322-24
Munro Bengal Presidency Commissioner during the time that Bankim Chandra Chatter ji was a deputy magistrate, around 1860. (A) a 3:85
Munshiram, Lala later known as Swami Shraddhanand (1856-1926), an Arya Samaj leader belonging to Punjab. He was a great patriot, a social refomer, an educationist and a martyr (assassinated by a Muslim fanatic). He was the founder of Gurukul Kangri (near Hardwar in U.P.), which later acquired the status of a university. (Enc. Ind.) n 2:364
Minister a province of Ireland, the largest of the four provinces, which occupies the southwest third of the island. (Col. Enc.) n 17:298
Murad a character - a Turk captain of police in Bassora - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. a 7:561, 563-68, 621, 646, 653, 666-70, 707, 710-11, 713-15, 717-19, 724-25, 729-31, 733-34
Murari "foe of the demon Mura", an appelation of Krishna. (Dow.) D [Indexed with Krishna]
Murghab a town in Tadzhik Soviet Socialist Republic, U.S.S.R., on the Murghab River. The river rises in northwestern Afghanistan and ends in the Kara Kum Desert after a course of 530 miles. (Enc. Br.) o 17:299
Page 218
Murlidhar, Lala ( ? -1920), well-known poet and politician ofAmbala, Punjab. By profession he was an advocate. The British Government conferred on him the title of Rai Bahadur. (A) n 1: 188 4: 179
Murree a town and hill station (7, 517 ft.) now in Rawalpindi division of Punjab province in Pakistan. It was the summer residence of the Punjab Government during British rule. (Enc. Br.) n IV: 193-94
Murry, Middleton John Middleton Murry (1889-1957), English author, journalist, and critic, whose romantic and biographical approach to literature ran counter to the leading critical tendencies of his day. (Enc. Br.) n 24: 1515
Murshidabad historic town (and district) of Bengal (now West Bengal state), a 8:320. 329
Muruland in the Mahabharata, an ancient country ruled by Bhagadatta. (M.N.) a 8: 40
MusafirArya a "vernacular" paper published around 1909 from Agra under the editorship ofBhojeDutt. (A) n 2:226
Muscat a city and national capital of the Sultanate of Oman, in the southeast of the Arabian peninsula. The city long gave its name to the country, which was called "Muscat and Oman" until 1970. (Enc.Br.) D 5:276 Muscovite a native or inhabitant of Muscovy; Russian. The term is archaic. (C.O.D.; Web.) n 3:481
Muse, the See Saraswati(e)
Muses, the Greek divinities presiding over the arts and sciences. They were daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, and were born at Pieria near Mt. Olympus. Their worship spread from Thracia and Pieria into Boetia, where they dwelt on Mt. Helicon, with its sacred fountains of Aganippe and Hippo- crene. Mt. Parnassus and its Castilian Spring were also sacred to them. Libations of water or milk and honey were offered to them. Originally three in number, they were afterwards spoken of as nine. (Pears, p. H34) a 3:138 9:26, 81, 242, 482 10: 87 XVI: 148
Muslim; Mussalman See Mahomedan
Musset (Louis-Charles-)Alfred de Musset (1810-57), one of the most distinguished poets and playwrights of the French Roman- tic movement. (Enc.Br.) a 9:422
Mussolini, Benito (Amilcare Andrea) (1883-1945), Italian prime minister (1922-43),
the first of Europe's Fascist dictators. He ruled Italy for more than twenty years and led his nation to defeat in World War II. He was executed. (Enc. Br.; Web.) Der: Mussolinic 1-1 14: 66 15: 81 22: 153 24: 1294 26: 365, 378
Mussulman See Mahomedan
Mustafa Kamil (Pasha) (1874-1908), Egyptian lawyer and journalist, a great nationalist leader who will be remembered in history as the chief among the creators of modern Egypt. (Enc. Br.) a l: 721-22
Musulman See Mahomedan
Muthe, Hari Raoji one of the persons who received Sri Aurobindo at the Nasik Road station on 24 January 1908. (A) a I: l
Mutiny, the Indian Mutiny or Sepoy Mutiny (1857-59), so called by British historians. Indians prefer to call it the First War of Independence. It was a widespread but unsuccessful rebellion against British rule in India begun by sepoys (Indian troops in the service of the British East India Company), which resulted in the transfer of the government of India from the British East India Company to the British Crown. It became a source of inspiration to later Indian nationalists. (Enc. Ind.; Enc. Br.) D 1: 324 26: 51
Muzaffarpur administrative headquarters of Muzaffarpur district in the state of Bihar in northeastern India, just south of the Burhi Gandak River. Here, on 30 April 1908, two young revolutionaries missed their target, an unpopular magistrate, and unwittingly killed two innocent European ladies. (Enc. Br.) D 4: 257-58
Mycenae ancient city of Greece, in Argolis, six miles from Argos and nine from the sea. It was one of the chief centres of the Aegean world in the later second millennium BC. At the time of the Trojan War, Agamemnon, the Greek overlord, was its king. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) a 5:411, 422, 454, 479, 509
My Master as I Saw Him Sri Aurobindo's misrecollection of The Master as I Saw Him, a book on the life of Swami Vivekananda by Sister Nivedita (Miss Margaret Noble). D 27: 437
Myinensing(h) administrative headquarters of Mymensingh district in Dacca division, Bengal (now in Bangladesh). (Enc. Br.) a l: 115, 156-57, 167, 212-13, 215-18, 244, 262, 319, 336, 357, 360, 369-71, 377, 402-03. 888 2: 281, 358 4: 229, 248 27: 40 XVIII: 190
Page 219
Mymoona a character - one of the two sister slave-girls of Ajebe - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of'Bassora. n 7: 561, 574, 624, 626-29, 647-49.651-52, 655-58, 717, 720, 733
Myrmidon(s) ancient Greek tribe of Thessaly which colonized the island of Aegina. In mythology, it was a race turned into men from ants by Zeus to repopulate Aegina, the kingdom of his son Aeacus, after an epi- demic of plague. Homer immortalised the Myrmidons as warriors of Achilles (grandson of Aeacus) in the Trojan War. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) n 5:457-58.467, 475, 486, 514, 516
Myrtil a character - a forest damsel - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Witch of ilni. a 7: 1057.1060, 1066, 1069-72
Myrtilla a female name coined from "myrtle", a shrub with shiny evergreen leaves and white scented flowers sacred to Venus (the goddess of love). (C.O.D.) n 5: 5
Mysian of Mysia, an ancient region in northwestern Asia Minor, between Lydia and the Troad, its coast facing Lesbos. Mysia was not a political unit. (Col. Enc.) D 5: 418
Mysore a former princely state in South India, under British rule a protected "native state". In 1947 it acceded to the Indian Union, becoming the major part of the state of Mysore. The name of this Kannada- speaking state was later changed to Karna- taka. Mysore city was the administrative capital of Mysore from 1799 to 1831 and remains the second largest city (after Bangalore) of Karnataka. (Enc. Br.) D 1: 396 3: 193
Mysteries See Eleusinian (Mysteries)
Mystic Mother a sonnet by K. D. Sethna, composed in 1934. a 26:299
My Unlaunched Boat title of a poem by Harindranath Chattopadhyay, published in his collection The Feast of Youth that was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. a 17: 311
N
N. 1. In the Record of Yoga, used almost invariably for Nolini. See Gupta, Nolini Kanta. 2. See Nishikanto
Nabashakti See Nava Shakti
Nabassar See Nebassar Nabha once a small native state of India, one of the Cis-Sutlej Sikh states which came under British protection by the Treaty of Amritsar in 1809, Nabha subsequently became'a constituent state of PEPSU (Patiala and East Punjab States' Union). Now the territory forms part of Punjab. It is situated fourteen miles northwest of Patiala. (Enc.Ind.;D.I.H.) a i: 414
Nabhaka (Kanwa) (Nabhaka Kanva), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Kanva. (According to Ludwig's translation of the Rig-veda, he was an Angirasa, not a Kanva.) (V. Index) a 11:337, 340
Nachiketas son of Vajasravasa Gautama. His dialogue with Yama in the Katha Vpanishad is very well known and of profound philosophical import. (Dow.) Var: Nachicatus a 12:237, 239-44, 246-47, 250, 253, 265 14:278 16: 91-92, 405 XIV: 132
Nacool See Nokula
Nadir (Shah) (1688-1747), Shah of Iran (1736-47), sometimes considered the last of the great Asiatic conquerors. He was known for the severity of his rule. He invaded India in 1739 and advanced up to Delhi, where he ordered a general massacre of the citizens and gave over the city to plunder by his troops. (Col.Enc.;D.I.H.) a 3:421-24
Nadiya Nadia or modern Nabadwip. a town and district in Jalpaiguri division of Bengal (now of West Bengal state). Being the birthplace of Chaitanya, it is an important pilgrimage centre. It is noted for its tradi- tional Sanskrit schools, or tols. (Enc.Br.) Var: Nuddia a 2:284 3:110 12:55 13:12 17:193 IX: 29
Nag, Hardayal (1853-1942), a lawyer, and around 1909 the leading public figure in Chandpur, Bengal (now in Bangladesh). Ultimately he became a Congressman and firmly believed in Gandhian ideals and methods. Nag was held in high esteem for his integrity, ascetic temperament, and patriotism. (D.N.B.) n 2:281
Nagananda a well-known Sanskrit drama written in the 7th century AD by Sri Harshadeva (Harshavardhana), the ruler of a North Indian empire. It depicts the self-sacrifice of jimutavahana, the hero of the drama, to save the life of a Naga named Sankhacuda. (D.I.H.) a 1:49
Nagas a group of tribes inhabiting the Naga Hills, which separate the Indian state of Assam from Burma. They include fifteen or more distinct tribes. In response to nationalist political sentiment among the Naga tribes, the government of India created the state of Nagaland in 1961. (Enc. Br.) a IX: 1, 2
Nagen Nagendra Kumar Guha Roy (1889 -1973), a nationalist worker of Noakhali who was jailed
Page 220
several times for taking active part in the various movements launched by the Congress. He was a Mukhtar (attorney) by profession. (Purani; L. to SL; S.B.C.) a 27:426
Nagendra(nath) Nagendra Nath Gupta, one of the two innocent Kaviraj brothers of Harrison Road, Calcutta, to whose house a conspirator friend (Ullaskar) had removed a packet of bombs without telling them what was in it. During the trial, to save his friends, Ullaskar made a confession, but the police did not release the brothers. (S.A.M.A., No. 27, p. 161) o 4:302-03
Nag Mahashaya Durga Charan Nag (1846-99), a prominent householder disciple of Sri Ramakrishna. He was an embodiment of humility and self-sacrifice, n 24:1388
Nagpore a city and capital of the former Indian province of C.P. (Central Provinces). Presently it is the administrative head- quarters of Nagpur district and division in the state of Maharashtra. Nagpur is near the geographical centre of India. It was the venue of the Congress session in 1891 and 1920. "Nagpore" has been personified by Sri Aurobindo and used as a character in his tragedy "The Slaying of Congress" published in Bande Mataram. (D.I.H.; A) Var: Nagpur (the present spelling) o l: 566, 569-72, 583-86, 588, 590-93, 617-18, 634, 638, 678-79, 681-84, 687 2: 172, 177, 330, 356, 360 4:178-79, 183 26:47, 429, 432, 434 27:42
Nahusha an ancient Indian king of the Lunar dynasty, son of Ayus and father of Yayati. By sacrifices, austere self-restraint, and valour he acquired sovereignty of the three worlds. He then became very proud, and had himself carried through the air in his palanquin by the Saptarshis (the seven great Rishis). He spurred them on saying "sarpa, sarpa" (move on; be quick). The sage Agas- tya, one of the Rishis carrying him, got en- raged and cursed him: "Fall, and be thou a sarpa (snake)". Immediately Nahusha fell down to the earth and became a snake. At his supplication, however, Agastya put a limit to the curse. After some thousands of years he was redeemed from the curse by Yudhishthira .(Dow.;B.P.C.) a XIII: 44
Naiad(s) in Greek mythology, daughter(s) of Zeus. Water nymphs, they presided over
freshwater streams, lakes, wells and fountains. (Cpl. Enc.; C.O.D.) D 5: 6, 448, 495, 512, 524, 543, 546 XVI: 141, 144
Naidu, Sarojini (1879-1949), "the Nightingale of India", a most talented lady, a political activist, feminist, poet, writer, and orator. She was the first Indian woman to be president of the Congress (1925) and to be
appointed governor of a state (U.P., 1947- 49). (Enc.Ind.) o 9:280, 453-54 17:304, 307
Naik, Mani See Manindranath
Naimisha Naimisaranya, a forest (Sanskrit "aranya") near the Gomti River where the Mahabharata was recited by the sage Sauti to the assembled Rishis including Saunaka. The site (the forest is no longer there, in Sitapur district, Uttar Pradesh, is a place of Hindu pilgrimage . It is popularly known as Nimasara. (Dow.;M.N.) a VI: 136
Naimishiyas ancient Rishis and ascetics who lived in Naimisharanya (see Naimisha). a 12:390
Naini Tal administrative headquarters of Nainital district in Uttar Pradesh state. This town built around a beautiful lake is a popular resort, 6, 346 ft. above sea level. (Enc.Br.) n 2:174 IV: 197
Nair' surname of a person from Malabar who, for a few days, read and explained to Sri Aurobindo articles in a Tamil newspaper a short time before he left Bengal. (A) n 26:66
Nair2 in an automatic writing of Sri Aurobindo, the surname of the communicating spirit, a friend who died while Sri Aurobindo was at Baroda. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Nais In Greek mythology, a river goddess. (A) a 17:257 XVI: 163
Naka an Indian sage, son of Mudgala. (A) D 12:324
Nakail apparently a village in Bengal (now in Bangladesh), about one mile from ARALIA. It was the site of a jute factory around 1909. (A) n 2:360
Nakalia perhaps an adjective formed from the place-name NAKAIL, meaning "of Nakail". a 4: 247
Nala king of Nishadha and husband of Damayanti. The story of their romance, which forms an episode in the Mahabharata, is well known. Nala was brave and hand- some, virtuous and learned in the Vedas, skilled in arms and in the management of horses, but he was addicted to the vice of gambling for which he suffered greatly. (Dow.) Var: Nul a 3:154 5:333, 335, 338 27: 154
Nala, the the "Nalopakhyana" (see the next entry), a [Indexed with "Naladamayanti"]
Naladamayanti The reference is to an episode in the Mahabharata called "Nalo- pakhyana". The text
Page 221
of this episode has been often printed, and there are translations in various languages. (Dow.) Var: the Nala a 3: 153, 155, 157, 161 26: 366
Nalanda a celebrated Buddhist monastic centre of 6th-5th century BC, often spoken of as a university. It was located north of modern Rajgir (ancient Rajagriha) in the Patna district of Bihar. (Enc. Br.) a 17: 193-94 '
Nalini See Gupta, Nolini Kanta
Nalodaya a Sanskrit poem describing the restoration to power of King NALA after he had lost everything. It is ascribed to a Kalidasa, but the composition is very artificial, and the ascription to the great Kalidasa may well be doubted. (Dow.) D 3:251
Namasudra a caste of cultivators and boatmen in Bengal, formerly known as Chandalas. Risley in his book Tribes and Castes regards it as representing an aboriginal tribe possibly related to theMaler of the Rajmahal hills. (Enc. Ind.) a 1:645, 729 2: 13, 89 27: 21
The Name and Nature of Poetry a little book (1933) by A. E. Housman, containing the subject matter of his Leslie Stephen Lecture given at Cambridge University. (Col. Enc.) 0 26: 344
Nammalwar (fl. c. 9th cent.), a famous Vaishnava saint and Tamil poet of South India. A Vellala saint, he is regarded by Vaishnava tradition as the greatest exponent of the Bhakti theme. His name was Maran, but he was renowned as Nammalwar, mean- ing "Our Saint". Although he died in his thirty-fifth year, he is regarded as the great- est of the ALWARS. Some scholars place him between the 7th and 8th centuries. (Gaz.-II; A) a 8: 398, 400 17: 373-74
Namuchi in the Rig-veda, a demon associated with Vritra. He is the personification of man's weaknesses and is slain by Indra with the foam of water. The legend of Namuchi is amplified by the Vedic commentator and also in the Satapatha Brahmana and the Mahabharata. (Dow.) a 10:44, 238 11:29 11:42
Namur a fortified city and capital of Namur province, southcentral Belgium, at the junction of the Sambre and Meuse rivers, some 50 km southwest of Siege. Its strategic position at the head of routes into France has made it the scene of many battles and sieges. Assaulted by the Germans on 21-24 August 1914, Namur surrendered on 25 August. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Nana Fadnavis (1742-1800), a Maratha Brahmin statesman who became the chief minister of the minor Peshwa in 1774. He practically ran the affairs of the Marathas and managed to hold together the MARATHA CONFEDERACY till his death in 1800. (D.I.H.) a 4: 140 14: 378
Nanak (1469-1539), the founder of the Sikh religion. His sayings and songs make up the Sacred Book of the Sikhs, known as the Grantha Sahib. (D.I.H.) a 1:289, 699 2:13 3:110, 214, 432 4:143, 171 14:135, 187, 256, 319, 379 IX: 29 XVIII: 163
Nanak Charit a biography of Nanak in Bengali by Krishna KumarMitra. (A) D 3: 431
Nanavati, Dr. R. H. a Medical Officer in the service of the former princely state of Baroda around 1900. (A) 0 27:114
Nancy city and capital of Meurthe-et-Moselle departement of eastern France, in what was formerly the province of Lorraine. (Enc. Br.) n 7: 1027
Nanda in the Bhagavata Parana, the cowherd of Gokul by whom Krishna was brought up. He was the husband of Yasoda. (Dow.) a 8:301
Nandagopalu ( ? -c. 1924), a well-known and influential politician ofPondicherry; a member of Conseil General (1911-21). He was the father of Selva Raju. Nandagopalu was an active figure in the election to the French Chamber in 1914. Probably he was the same as Nand Gopal Chetty who "seems to have agreed to participate in a plan of the British government agents to carry Sri Aurobindo out of the limits of French India with the help of goondas, so that Sri- Aurobindo might be arrested by the British authorities" (for details see Purani, p. 148). (Gaz.P., p.241;Purani) a 27:445.449
Page 222
Nandan in Hindu mythology, the grove of Indra, lying to the north of MERU. (Dow.) D 4: 17 T-. 990
Nandanpahad name of a mountain mentioned in the Puranas. (M.W.) a I: 71
Nandas The Nandas form a dynasty that ruled Magadha in northern India between c. 343 and 321 BC. The last king of this dynasty was overthrown by Chandragupta Maurya in c. 321 BC. As with all pre-Maurya dynasties, what is known about the Nandas is a mixture of fact and legend. The indigenous traditions suggest that the dynasty was founded by Mahapadma (according to some in c. 362 BC). The Nandas were of low origin, but they became very powerful and rich. (Enc. Br.;D.I.H.) n 2:12
Nandi a Moderate leader of Punjab. He was one of the three main organizers of the Congress session held at Lahore in 1909. (A) D 4: 179
Nandi, Ashok Ashok Chandra Nandi ( ? -1909), a young man, convicted in the Alipore Bomb Case. He contracted tuber- culosis due to exposure and neglect while suffering from fever during the undertrial period. He was, however, allowed to die in his own home. Born in a family of yogis, he was himself in his life and character a yogi andabhakta. (A; A.B.T.) , a 2:172 4: 175, 284, 313-14
Naoroji, Dadabhai (1825-1917), a prominent and rich businessman of Bombay, known as "the Grand Old Man" for active participa- tion in public affairs. He was elected presi- dent of the Congress thrice, in 1886, 1893 and 1906. Liberal in his outlook, Dadabhai was a nationalist and critic of the British economic policy in India. (Enc. Br. D.I.H.) Var: Nowroji n 1:158, 166-71, 193, 197-99, 201-02, 204, 227, 513, 627, 673-74 4:199 26:15, 29 27:38 1:2, 5
Naples a city in Campania region of South Italy, about 120 miles southeast of Rome. It is a great seaport, an intellectual centre, and the financial capital of southern Italy. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n 1:505, 579 3:480
Napoleon (Bonaparte) Napoleon I (1769- 1821), general and emperor of France (1804- 15), one of the most celebrated personages in the history of the West, who temporarily extended French domination over a large part of Europe. "Napoleon was a Rakshasa of the pure type, colossal in his force and attainment.... His nature was his right; its need his justification." (17: 383-84) (Enc.Br.;A) Var: Napoleon Buonaparte Der: Napoleonic a 1: 48 2: 31-32, 147 3: 176, 193, 265-67. 269, 274, 355, 454, 458 5: 43,
110 9:410 10:27 12:42, 474 15:290, 297, 320, 327, 422, 436, 456, 651 16: 280, 284. 306 17: 82, 87, 377-79, 381-87 22: 413-14, 419, 454, 469, 495-97 24: 1585, 1588, 1637, 1719 25: 78 26: 181, 346,365 27: 51, 123 III: 23 V: 89 VI: 193 IX: 42, 44 X: 148-49, 151, 156 XIII: 44 XVII: 44
Nar(a)1 the original eternal man associated with the conception of Narayana; the Highest Male (8: 59); the complete man. See also Nara-Narayana. (A) n 3:207 8:32, 59 13:11, 16 17:257 18:15 20:314, 351 VII: 54 XVII: 2
Nara2 in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric, a place where Swegn's house stood, n 6:555
Narac Narakasura, a terrible demon-king mentioned in the Mahabharata, Vishnu Purana, and Harivansa Purana. No Asura before him had ever been so horrible in his actions as Narakasura. (Dow.) Q 8:40
Narad(a) a well-known Rishi and Vaishnava Bhakta who moves about in the various worlds playing on a lute and having a special role in bringing about events according to the Divine Will. In a letter written in the 1930s, Sri Aurobindo says that he "stands for the expression of the Divine Love and Knowledge. "(22: 392) D 7: 922, 1004-07, 1009 9: 375 13: 344. 349 16: 429 17: 91, 142 22: 96, 392 23: 789-90 25: 373 29: 415, 423, 425-26, 429, 442, 456, 469
Naraian; Narain See Narayan(a)
Naraingunge also spelt Narayanganj, a large town in Dacca district of Bengal (now in Bangladesh). It is the chief river port for Dhaka. (Enc. Br.) n 2: 360 4: 248
Naraka the condition of misery in the subtle body; Hell; according to Hindu belief, a place of torture to which the souls of the wicked are sent. Authorities vary greatly as to the number and names of such places. Manu enumerates twenty-one. (I&G; Dow.) a 4:13, 15-16, 80, 230, 274-75, 278, 289, 301-02 12: 467 II: 78, 89, 96, 125
Nara-Narayana This double figure "expresses the relation of God in man to man.in God" (13: 11). Nara and Narayana are associated together and considered either as gods or sages. In epic poetry they are two of the four sons (the other two are Hari and Krishna) of the Prajapati called Dharma. They became great ascetics and performed austerities to please Brahma for a thousand years at Badarikashram (see Budaricashram). Indra deputed celestial maidens to break their concentration. They asked the sages to
accept them as their wives. Narayana became angry and was going to curse them, but Nara intervened and pacified him. Then Narayana said, "In the 28th Dwapara Yuga I will in- carnate on earth as Krishna
in the Yadu dynasty and marry all of you." Accordingly Narayana was born as Sri Krishna in Yadu dynasty and Nara was born as Arjun to be his companion. (A; Pur. Enc.; M.W.) n 13:11, 16 20:314,351
Page 223
Narasingha Man-lion, the fourth Avatar of Vishnu. This form was assumed to deliver the world from the tyranny of the demon- king Hiranyakashipu and save Prahlada from his persecution. Vishnu emerged from a pillar half-man and half-lion and tore the demon-king to pieces with his claws. (Dow.) D 2: 286 22: 402 XXII: 169
Narayan apparently Narayan Kundu, a pleader in the French Court of Chandernagore, through whom Sri Aurobindo communicated with Motilal Roy. D 27:432, 440
Narayan(a) 1. a name of Vishnu, who, as the God in man, lives constantly associated in a dual unity with Nara, the human being. 2. one of the the two Rishi brothers who performed austerities at Badarikashram. Urvasie was produced by the sage Narayana by thumping on his thigh. (A; M.N.) See also Nara-Narayana. Var: Naraian; Narain 0 2: 4-6, 24, 84, 428 3: 207, 278, 299.357 4: 118, 153, 160, 257, 268-69, 280, 301, 308 7: 909.912, 918, 922, 968 8: 32, 59, 345, 400-01 10:335 13: 11, 16, 126-27, 137, 143, 345, 361, 379-80 14: 340, 405 16: 412, 416-17 17: 270 18:15 20:314, 351, 394 23:977 24:1387 27:317, 343 IV: 171 VI: 127 VII: 54 VIII: 140 X: 163-65 XVII: 2 XX: 117
Narayan(a) a Bengali literary monthly, chiefly devoted to Vaishnavism and national liberation. It was started and edited by C. R. Das, and published from Calcutta. For some time it seems to have been edited by Barindra Kumar Ghose. Barindra and Upendra were put in charge of Narayan when they came back to Calcutta after their release in 1920. (Cal.Lib.;L.toSl.) n 4: pre. 14: 385 27: 488, 492-94 VII: 6, 18
Narayan Jyotishi Narayan Chandra Jyotir- bhusan Bhattacharya, a Calcutta astrologer who predicted, without any reference to a horoscope, some events in Sri Aurobindo's life, including his three political trials and acquittals. He published a big book on astrology, Horabijan Rahasyam, a compilation of all the systems prevalent in his time. (A; Purani; A & R) D 24: 1562 26: 209
Narbada See Narmada
Narendra Nath See Sen, Narendra Nath
Narmada a river of central India, regarded as sacred by the Hindus. It rises in the Mai- kala Range of
Mandal district in the state of Madhya Pradesh, and enters the Gulf of Cambay through an estuary. (Enc. Br.) Var: Narbada; Nurmada a 6:211 24:1235 26:18-19, 50, 352-53 1:69 11:61
Nasata father of the Vedic gods Nasatyas or Asvins. n 10: 517 XVI: 163
Nasik a city in the northeastern part of the former province of Bombay (now in the state of Maharashtra), not far from Poona. It is a holy city of the Hindus, being the scene of certain events in the life of Rama and Sita. It is also the site of Buddhist and Jain cave temples dating back to 1st century AD. (D.I.H.;Enc. Br.) a 2:333, 345, 375-76, 388 4:236 1:1, 2, 5 X: 187
Nasik Wrata a Marathi paper published from Nasik around 1908; "Wrata" is apparently a misspelling, probably of "Varta" or "Vritta". D I: 2
Nassau Frederick Henry (1584-1647), prince of Orange, and count of Nassau, general, politician, and stadtholder (chief executor of Holland). He led military cam- paigns against Spanish outposts throughout the Low Countries. (Enc. Br.) a 111:28
Nasurullah Khan, Nawabzada Nawab of SACHIN. a l: 196
Natal formerly a province in the Union of South Africa, on the Indian Ocean. Now it is a constituent of the Republic of South Africa. (Col. Enc.; Pears) a 1:132 2:33, 303 4: 224
Nataraja(n) "Lord of Dance", the god Shiva in his form as the cosmic dancer, represented in metal or stone in many Shaiva temples of South India. (Enc. Br.) 0 14: 222, 232, 235 17: 282 26: 193
Natekar, Purushottam an imaginary name of a supposed leader of the secret society supplied to GOSSAIN in the jail by a pre- tended approver in the Alipore Bomb Trial. (A) a 4: 296
Nation See (Indian) Nation
National College (or School) See (Bengal) National College
Page 224
(National) Council of Education a body founded in Calcutta at a public meeting on 11 March 1906. Its object was "to impart Education - Literary as well as Scientific and Technical - on National fines and exclusively under National control, not in opposition to, but standing apart from the existing system of Primary, Secondary and University Education". The Council established the Ben- gal National College and various "national schools" within and even outside Bengal. The schools established outside Calcutta had later to be abolished, but the Council had the satisfaction of seeing its main child, the Bengal National College, develop into the present Jadavpur University. Some feeble attempts were made to name the university after Sri Aurobindo, but the Indian Government decided to name it Jadavpur University. (D.I.H.; M.I., Mar. '62, p. 68)) a 1:223, 482, 719, 760-61, 805, 847 2: 70, 229-30, 337-39 3: 431 4: 181 17: 213 VIII: 131
National(ist) (Party) a political party of India of the early 20th century which was composed of the younger section of the Congressmen; it was led by B. G. Tilak, Sri Aurobindo, Bepin Chandra Pal, and Lala Lajpat Rai. Unlike the veteran Congressmen known as the Moderates, the Nationalists wanted to have a government which should be "autonomous and absolutely free of British control". They preached self-help and the necessity of rousing the masses. They held that the Indians were as capable of freedom as any subject nation could be and their defects were the result of servitude and could only be removed by the struggle for freedom. They were nicknamed "Extremists" by their opponents. (D.I.H.; A) Var:
Rashtriya Mandal(l) - (Hindi translation of the name) Der: Nationalism; Nationalistic a 1: 81, 151, 238, 262-64, 266, 273, 275-76, 280, 296, 298-302, 324, 333-34, 336-40, 344, 352, 355, 359, 363-64, 366, 368, 370-71, 387, 389-90, 428, 430, 434-35, 440, 448, 456, 462-63, 465, 473, 476, 491-92, 498, 523, 529, 531, 533-35. 543, 548-49, 557, 566, 569-72, 580, 583-93, 595, 597-600, 607-12, 616-19, 623, 628, 633-34, 638-41, 643-53, 656-57, 659, 661-64, 668-70, 698, 702-03, 721, 725-26, 740-43, 746-47, 749-50, 752, 754-55, 770, 772, 781-83, 788, 792, 795, 797, 803, 805, 810, 817, 819, 825-26, 838, 840, 855, 858, 860, 862, 864-71, 873, 891-92, 895-96, 899-902, 904-09 2: 22-23, 42-43, 48, 51-52, 76-78, 92, 101-03, 110, 123-25, 127, 129-33, 137, 143-44, 158-60, 166-67, 171, 177-79, 183-84, 187, 190-93, 196-201, 203, 205-07, 209-10, 219-24, 226, 233, 236-37, 239-40, 242, 259-60, 262, 277, 281-83, 287-88, 294-98, 308, 310, 313-16, 319-26, 328, 332, 334, 336, 338, 340, 342-43, 346-47, 355, 365, 370-73, 381-82, 384, 386-92, 411-12 4:176-79, 182-83, 186-92, 197, 200, 204-05, 216, 220, 230-33, 236, 241, 245 26: 22-23, 25-27, 29-30, 32-35, 37, 40-
42, 46-48, 53-54, 59, 399, 436 27: 35, 55, 57, 66, 68, 464, 50111:1, 84 111:15, 17-18 IV: 109-12
VI: 124 VIII: 121-24, 126-27, 129, 132 X: 186 XIV: 102-07 XVII: 67-69
"Natural and Supernatural Man" name of a literary work by Sri Aurobindo; possibly another name for the collection of essays known as "Essays Divine and Human", published in SABCL, Vol. 17, pp. 161-85. D XXII: 170
Natus, the Natu Brothers, two prominent Poona Brahmins arrested in 1897 and de- ported under suspicion of being behind the murders of Rand and Ayerst in Poona. (A; P.T.I.) a 1: 363 27: 54
Navagwas a class of Nine-rayed Vedic Rishis, descendants of Angiras, who sacrificed for nine months. They are often associated with the Dashagwas whose session of sacrifice lasted for ten. The Navagwas them- selves might well have become Dashagwas by extending the period of sacrifice. The two are not different classes of Angirasa Rishis, but rather seem to be two different powers of Angirashood. (V.G.) D 10: 150, 156-57, 167-70, 172, 176-77, 183-84, 204, 206, 227, 234
Navakishan a person who, according to Sri Aurobindo, somehow caused the old mantra of "Bande Mataram" to pass out of use. It was later revealed to Bankim Chandra, who revivified it. (A) n l: 666
Nava Shakti a Bengali daily newspaper of Calcutta, started in May 1907 with a certain Manmohan Ghose as printer and publisher. It was conducted and owned by Manoranjan Guhathakurta. In 1908 Sri Aurobindo decided to take charge of this paper, but was arrested before he could begin this new venture. (A; A.B.T.; Remini.) Var: Nabasakti a 1: 430, 652, 707-08, 907 4:260 26:33 IV: 110
Nawab, the See Salimullah, Nawab
Nayak a Bengali daily newspaper of Calcutta, edited by Panchkori Banerji. It was one of the two dailies (the other being Sandhya, edited by Brahmabandhab Upadhyaya) which gained great popularity. (S.F.F.) a 27: 427
Nazarene term used for early Christians, and particularly for Jesus Christ. It alludes to Nazareth, the home of Jesus. (Col. Enc.) 7: 727
Page 225
Nazareth historic city of Lower Galilee, northern Israel. It is closely associated with the childhood of Jesus and is a centre of Christian pilgrimage. (Enc. Br.) 13:12, 153
Nazi a political party (full name in English: National Socialist German Workers' Party) founded in 1919. Under the leadership of Adolf Hitler it dominated Germany from 1933 to 1945, governing the country by totalitarian methods. Although originally conceived as an organization that would run on nationalist and Socialist doctrines, in later years it became anti-democratic, anti-liberal, and belligerent. The Nazis led Germany into the horrors of World War II and to its ultimate total defeat by the Allied nations. (Enc. Br.) Der: Nazily; Nazism 5:114 15: 17, 36, 193, 196, 327, 480, 513 26: 38-39, 346, 393
Nazir-ud-Din, Jamadar a character— in-charge of sepoys - in Bankim Chandra's novel AnandaMath. (A) a 8:355
Neaera the name given to various nymphs in classical poetry. It appears in Milton's Lycidas. (Enc. Am.) 29: 759
Neapolitan of Naples. (C.O.D.) a 1: 362
Near East a term usually referring to the lands around the eastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea, including northeastern Africa, southwestern Asia, and, occasionally, the Balkan Peninsula. Since World War II, the name has been largely supplanted by "Middle East", though the two are frequently used interchangeably. (Enc. Br.) 15: 367 17: 195
Nebassar a character-captain of the Chaldean Guard - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. Var: Nabassar 6:3, 108, 113, 131, 135, 140-43.147, 186
Neelakantaiyar, K. A. name of a South Indian. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. -27]
Nefdi In the Cosmic Tradition (Tradition Cosmique), to which the Mother belonged in France, "the great Redeemed One" (Ie grande Redempte). [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Negro member of any of several groups of peoples, characterized physically by a black or dark brown skin, woolly hair, broad flat nose, prominent eyes with yellowish cornea, thick lips, and prognathous jaw. Most Africans south of the Sahara are Negroes. (Col. Enc.) 1:58.559 27:11 IX: 43
Nelabha apparently the name of a nymph of heaven in Hindu mythology, 5:190
Neleus in Greek legend, a son of Poseidon and the father of Nestor. (A) 5:491
Nelson' Horatio Nelson (1758-1805), 1st Viscount Nelson, British naval commander in the wars with Revolutionary and Napoleonic France who won crucial victories in the battle of the Nile and Trafalgar, and is still regarded as Britain's most appealing national hero. (Enc. Br.-, Pears) 1:704
Nelson2 name of an official, perhaps of the C.I.D., around 1920. (A) 27:494
Nema a Vedic Rishi with the patronymic Bhargava. (M.W.) XIII:60
Nemesis Greek personification of law and order as avenging itself on the violator. Possibly at first an abstraction, it became personified as a fatal goddess or a spirit of vengeance. (Col. Enc.) 1:784 5:15 6:493
Neo-Platonism 3rd-century mixture of Platonic ideas with Oriental mysticism. See also Plotinus. (C.O.D.) Der: Neo-Platonist n 14:51, 147.270 16:309, 366.370 22:159
Neoptolemus in Greek mythology, son of Achilles and Deidamia. In Homer's Iliad, he is sent for by the Greeks after Achilles' death, as his presence is necessary, according to an oracle, for the taking of Troy.
In Sri Aurobindo's //ion, however, he comes before his father has been slain, but for the same purpose. "Neoptolemus" in Greek means "new in war" (young warrior). (M.I.; Col. Enc.) 5:486-87
Nepal independent kingdom in the Himalayan region, along the northern frontier of India from the Sutlej in the west to Sikkim in the east. (D.I.H.) 14:237 26:409 IX: 1.2
Ne Plus Ultra a poem by K. D. Sethna, composed in 1931. 26:271, 298
Neptune in Roman religion, ancient god of fresh water. Neptune was probably an indigenous god of fertility, but in later times he was identified with the Greek Poseidon, god of the sea. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 10:86, 106
Nereid(s) in Greek mythology, the daughters (numbering 50 or 100) of the sea-god Nereus, and of Doris. They were nymphs who presided over the sea, protecting sailors in distress. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 3:37 5:505, 524, 546 XVI: 141, 144
Page 226
Nereus in Greek mythology, god of the sea. He was the son of Pontus and Gaea, the husband of Doris, and the father of 50 (or 100) sea nymphs called the Nereids. He was conceived of as a kindly old man. (Col. Enc.) 5:506 17:257
Nero Nero Claudius Caesar (AD 37-68), originally named Lucius Domitius Aheno- barbus; fifth Roman emperor (54-68), remembered for his unstable character and his cruelty. He had ambitions to be a poet and artist and was an enthusiastic admirer of Greek culture. Nero was, according to Sri Aurobindo, an artistic temperament cursed with the doom of kingship. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; A) 1:287, 845 2:73 3:10, 70, 264-65 7:858 17:384 27:51 X: 147-48
Nestor in Greek legend, son of Neleus; an aged statesman and counsellor who retained some strength and mental vigour long after his youth had passed. Nestor was the lord of West Messenia, his home being PYLOS. He was respected and full of advice, but his counsel was generally ineffective and un- successful, and his tactics archaic. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) 5:484, 486, 491
Netherlands, the also called HOLLAND, a kingdom in northwestern Europe, bounded by the North Sea in the north and west, by Belgium in the south, and by Germany in the east. Much of the country lies below sea-level and is protected by dikes. Amster- dam is the constitutional capital. The Hague is the royal residence and the seat of govern- ment. (Col. Enc.) 1:411 15:264
Netra Netrakona, a town of Bengal (now in Bangladesh), about 25 miles east of Mymensingh. (S.Atlas) 2:375
Neva a river in Leningrad oblast (administrative region) of northwestern Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic. It is the outlet for Lake Ladoga from which it issues via a delta into the Gulf of Finland. It is only fory-six miles long, but derives considerable importance from iis navigability by large ships and from the presence of Leningrad city at its mouth. (Enc. Br.) a 4:25
Nevinson Henry W. Nevinson (1856-1941), active journalist (1897-1930); special correspondent of the Daily News of London. He landed in Bombay on 25 October 1907 and visited Bengal (1907-08) as correspondent for the Manchester Guardian and other papers. He was one of the most sympathetic visitors from England to India at the time of the National Movement in Bengal. His impressions are contained in his book The New Spirit in India. Nevinson interviewed Sri Aurobindo in Bengal, and was present at the Surat Congress. (Maj.-II; N.S.I.; M.I., Aug.'80; Gilbert, p. 155) 2:286 26:354
New England region in northeast U. S., including Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massach-issetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. Named by Capt. John Smith, who explored its shores in 1614 for some London merchants, colonial New England was settled by religious refugees seeking a more abundant life. The Puritan ethic, which discouraged idleness and luxury and glorified saving, served admirably the need of fledgling communities where the work to be done was so prodigious and the hands so few. (Enc. Br.) 5:380
New English School a national school started at Poona in the first decade of the 20th cen- tury, as a part of the Swadeshi movement. (A) 1:479
Newgate historic London prison dating from the 12th century AD. It was not used after 1877, and in 1902 was torn down. (Col. Enc.) 1: 580
New Idea See LTdee Nouvelle
New India' English weekly of Calcutta, a nationalist paper started by Bepin Chandra Pal in 1904. It was published from the Classic Press in Corporation Street, now known as Ranee Rashmoni Road. (A.B.T.;
A&R) 1:184, 262, 907 2:23 IV: 110
New India2 English daily newspaper of Madras started as Madras Standard on 1 August 1914, and renamed New India in July 1915 after Dr. Annie Besant assumed its full control as proprietor, publisher, printer and editor. (S.F.F.) 2:434 27:503
"New Lamps for Old" a series of nine articles on Congress politics written by Sri Aurobindo and published in the Indu Prakash in 1893-94. The articles severely criticised the policy of the Congress. The first two articles created a furore in political cir- cles and M. G. Ranade, who was connected with the Indu Prakash, sent a warning to the editor that he might be prosecuted for sedition. (Purani) 26: 13, 24
Newman, Cardinal John Henry Newman (1801-90), English theologian and writer. (Web.) 1-1 1:374
Newman, Mr. special correspondent of the Englishman around 1905-07. (A) 1:373, 375-76
Newmania humorous coinage of Sri Aurobindo referring to the alarmist reports of MR. NEWMAN as though they were the ravings of some form of insanity. 1:372-73, 482, 565
Page 227
New-Risen Moon's Eclipse a poem by Arjava (J. A. Chadwick), published in his collection Poems. (A) 9: 409
The New Statesman and (the) Nation English weekly (incorporating the Athenaeum, a week-end Review), issued from London. (Cal. Lib.) a 9: 444 26: 387
Newton, Sir Isaac (1642-1727), English physicist and mathematician, recognized as one of history's greatest scientists, whose work profoundly influenced 18th-century thought. He is probably best known for his formulation of the Law of Gravitation and of the Laws of Motion. (Col. Enc.) Der: Newtonean o 1:281, 841 9:303, 379 12: 6, 30 14: 198-99 16: 82 17: 193 23: 520, 628 26: 134, 331-32 27: 163 IX: 42 XIV: 121, 145, 158 XV: 5
New Ways in English Literature a collection of essays by James Cousins, mostly on con- temporary poetry, published by Ganesh & Co., Madras, in 1917. n 9: 1 V: 17
New York the largest city in the U.S.A. Situated at the mouth of the Hudson River in N.Y. State, it is the chief commercial centre of the U.S.A. and the Western Hemisphere. (Col. Enc.; Pears) a 1:32, 814 3: 455 5: 120 14: 64 22: 190 26:413 27: 469
Niagara Niagara Falls in the Niagara River, one of the most famous spectacles in North America and an important source of hydro- electric power. (Col. Enc.) a 22: 427
Nibaran someone who, in 1907, "hardly escaped from the gallows by a strange mercy of Fate". (A) o 1:560
Nibelungenlied modern accepted title of a Middle High German epic written c. 1200 by an unknown Austrian. In German myth and literature, Nibelungen is an evil family possessing a magic hoard of gold, which is accursed. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) n 9:49 26: 234 I:7
Nicanor' in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune, the deceased first husband of Cleopatra, Queen of Syria. (A) a 6:340, 349, 359, 381, 434, 442
Nicanor2 a character - a prince of the house of Syria and father of Eunice - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. 6: 333, 394-95. 397, 401-02, 404-06, 411, 418, 421, 426, 432, 441, 458-69
Nice Mediterranean tourist centre, capital of Alpes-Maritimes departement of south- eastern France. It was ceded to France by theTreatyofTurinin 1860. (Enc. Br.) 2: 164
Nicholas, Czar Nicholas II of Russia (1868-1918), last emperor and czar of Russia (1894-1917), generally judged as an inept and autocratic ruler. He was executed by the Bolsheviks in 1918, after they had seized power. (Enc. Br.) D 1: 420 2: 254
Nicias (d. 413 Be), Athenian statesman, a man of great wealth. After Pericles' death he came forward as the opponent of Cleon. (Col. Enc.) 15: 339
Nidah a Vedic term, meaning "Restrainers" or "Censurers". They are considered stronger than Vritras. (SABCL, Vol. 10, p. 245 fn.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Nidhu Babu popular name of Ramnidhi Gupta (1741-1839), a famous writer of musical verse. A composer of light melodies, he is known for introducing Hindustani "Tappa" in Bengal. A collection of his songs Gitaratna came out in 1832; two larger collections were published after his death. (Gospel, p. 1039;S.B.C.) a 8:265.267
Nietzche, Friedrich (1844-1900), German classical scholar, philosopher, and critic of culture, who had a powerful influence on continental philosophy and literature. (Enc. Br.) Der: Nietzchean D 9:32 13:38.52. 129 14:46, 57, 420 15:18, 24.34-35, 49, 218. 224-25, 244. 331 16: 275-76, 344, 346-47, 349. 357, 362, 369 17: 95, 318 19: 722, 1067 26: 145 IX: 17 XVII: 37
Nightingale, Florence (1820-1910), English hospital administrator, born at Florence in Italy. She was the founder of trained nursing as a profession for women. Her genius for administration was diplayed in 1854 in the Crimean War. Miss Nightingale was the first woman to receive (1907) the British Order of Merit. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) n 12:484
Night Thoughts The Complaint: or. Night Thoughts on Life, Death and Immortality (1742-45), a long, didactic poem by Edward Young. His grief, his thoughts of death, and his search for religious consolation are incorporated in the poem, a blank-verse dramatic monologue of nearly 10, 000 lines, divided into nine parts or "Nights". (Enc. Br.) Var: Night's Thoughts a n: 12, 16
Page 228
Nilakantha name of a celebrated Sanskrit writer of commentaries on the Mahabharata, the Devibhagavata and many other Sanskrit works, l-l 17:267
Nilarudra Upanishad an Upanishad belonging to the Atharvaveda. (Up. K.) 12:421
Nile the longest river of Africa and of the world, having a course of 4132 miles. It rises in highlands south of the Equator and flows northward to enter the Mediterranean Sea in a broad delta north of Cairo. (Enc. Br.) D 6:13, 361, 404, 432 7:843
Nimai Pandit the original name of CHAFTANYA before he became a Sannyasin. 1-1 1:853 22:420
Nineteenth Century a monthly review founded in 1877 by Sir J. T. Knowles, who was the first editor. When the nineteenth century ended, the review added to its old title "And After". (Ox. Comp.) 1:395
Nipounica a character - Queen Aushinarie's handmaid - in the drama Vikramorvasie; also a character-handmaid and companion of Queen Iravatie - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Malavica and the King. Var: Nipunika 3:283 7:909, 926-28, 944-49, 953, 961, 963-64, 966 8:135 X: 170
Nirapada Nirapada Roy, an accused in the Manicktola Conspiracy Case. He was sentenced to transportation for 10 years by the Sessions Court, but the sentence was reduced to 5 years' rigorous imprisonment as a result of an appeal. (P.T.I.; S.B.C.; A.B.T.) 4:264
Ninnol (Cumary) a character - daughter of Haripal, friend of Comol Cumary - in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. 7:739, 748-51, 753, 755, 760-64, 768-69, 810, 813-16
Nirodbaran (1903- ), an inmate of the Ashram who was one of Sri Aurobindo's personal attendants between 1938 and 1950. During this period he also took Sri Aurobindo's dictation for considerable portions of Savitri. Nirodbaran joined the Ashram in 1933 after returning from England as a doctor of medicine. He teaches English and Bengali at the Sri Aurobindo Inter- national Centre of Education. Nirodbaran is also a poet; three collections of his poems have been published. His other books, including Talks with Sri Aurobindo, Correspondence with Sri Aurobindo and Twelve Years with Sri Aurobindo, contain a lively record of his close and intimate contact with the Master and at the same time
reveal some aspects of his own personality. a 8:389
Nirukta one of the Vedangas. The term means "etymology", "glossary". It is devoted to the explanation of difficult Vedic words. The only work of this kind now known to us is that of Yaska. But such works were no doubt numerous, and the names of 17 writers of Nirukta are mentioned as having preceded Yaska. (Dow.) 4:21.24 10:17, 29 11: 7, 445, 449, 479 12: 408 17: 342 27: 433- 111:56 XIV: 133 XVI: 135 XXI: 35, 47, 59, 65, 68. 77
Nirvana a sonnet by Sri Aurobindo, first published in the Calcutta Review in October 1934. The manuscript is not dated, but it was written sometime in the same year. (Sonnets) D 9:363, 531 29:735
Nisa name used by Sri Aurobindo for an imaginary girl. n 5:20
Nisac^ra See Rakshas(a)
Nishad(h)a name of an ancient country of India (and its people). The country is men- tioned in the Mahabharata; its ruler was Virasena, father of Nala. (M.N.) Der: Nishadhan 3 3: 161 5: 335, 337
Nishikanto (1909-73), a Bengali poet and painter. Rabindranath Tagore at Shantniketan and Sri Aurobindo at the Pondicherry Ashram (which Nishikanto joined in 1934) took a keen interest in the develop- ment of his talent. He wrote chiefly in the traditional style. Nishikanto has to his credit ten books of Bengali verse and one of English, a 8:388 9: 435? ("N" probably stands for Nishikanto)
Nishkriti a Bengali novel by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyaya. The character ofGirish depicted in it is most appealing. (N.B.A.) n 9: 463
Nitishataka a book of Sanskrit verses (epigrams) on morality by Bhartrihari. Sri Aurobindo freely rendered it into English verse, entitling his translation "The Century of Morals", a literal translation of the origi-nal title. Later he changed the title to "The Century of Life". (A) n 8: 157 I: 24
Nivedita, fille del''Inde Nivedita, la fille de I'lnde, a book in French by Lizelle Raymond, a French lady interested in Indian spirituality. It was published from Paris in 1945. (A) 26: 67
Page 229
Nivedita, Sister name given to Miss Margaret Noble (1867-1911) by Swami Vivekananda. An Irishwoman, she was the closest European disciple of the Swami. She devoted herself to social service and was an ardent supporter of India's struggle for in- dependence. Sri Aurobindo first met her at Baroda iii 1902, and for many years there- after she was his friend and comrade in the political field. When Sri Aurobindo left for Chandernagore, it was to her that he entrus- ted the editing of his journal Karmayogin. (D.I.H.;Purani) a 14:43 23:557 26:16, 36, 56-58, 60-62, 67-71, 354 27: 437, 443 XIII: 47-48 XVI: 193 XIX: 25
Nixon, Ronald See Krishnaprem
Noailles, Comtesse de Anna Elisabeth de Brancovan (1876-1933), Comtesse de Noailles, French poet, of a noble Rumanian family. She wrote also a number of short stories, a novel, and an autobiography. (CoI.Enc.) a 9:327
Noakhali administrative headquarters of Noakhali district in Chittagong division of Bengal (now in Bangladesh). (Enc. Br.) a 1:262, 357 27:426
Nobin See Sen, Nobin
Nobokissen MaharajaNabakrishnaDeb (1733-97), Diwan of Robert Clive, who made a fortune after the Battle of Plassey and founded the Sobhabazar Deb House in Calcutta. He was a lover of learning, and, while quite young, taught Persian to Warren Hastings. Clive, attracted by his knowledge of Persian, took him in the service of the East India Company. The emperor of Delhi, on dive's recommendation, conferred on him a number of honours and titles, includ- ing that of Maharaja Bahadur. (N.B.A.) D 1:280 :
Nodha (Gautama) a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Gotama and Kakshivan. a 10:173-74 11: 50 III: 48 VIII: 145-46, 149-50
Nokula (Nakula), in the Mahabharata, the fourth Pandava, the twin son of Madri, the second wife of Pandu. He was taught the art of training and managing horses by Drona. (Dow.) D 4:77 8:35, 77
Nolini See Gupta, Nolini Kanta
Nolinie in Hindu mythology, a nymph of heaven.'(M.W.) n 5:190
Nonconformist English Protestant who does not conform to the doctrines or practices of the established Church of England. Non- conformists are also called "dissenters" (a word first used of the five "Dissenting
Brethren at the Westminster Assembly of Divines in 1643-47). (Enc. Br.) a 1: f08 (non-Conformists) II: 88
Nordic a traditional racial type by physical appearance, denoting the characteristics of tall, fair, long-headed persons, such as Scandinavians and Scots. (The term is of more limited application than Teutonic.) (Enc.Br.;C.O.D.) a 15:43 22:417
Norman of Normandy. After conquering Normandy in the 10th century, the Norse- men accepted Christianity and the customs and language of France and became known as Normans. (CoI.Enc.) a 1:53 3:88 17:244
Norse Old Norse (also called Old Icelandic), classical North Germanic language of Iceland from c. 1150 to 1350 in which are written the Norse sagas, skaldic poems, and Eddas. The language was almost identical to that of Norway during the same period. (Some scholars use the term Old Norse to refer to all the dialects or languages of the Old Scandinavian period.) (Enc. Br.) a 10:24 11:14-15
Norsemen name given on the European continent to the Scandinavian Vikings who raided the coasts of Europe in the 9th and 10th centuries. Afterwards they gradually established settlements, became Christianized and adopted French law and the French language. They continued in history under the name of the Normans. (Col. Enc.) 0 7:885-86
North America third largest of the con- tinents. It lies in the Western Hemisphere and is connected to South America by the Isthmus of Panama. It thus includes the whole of what is sometimes referred to as Central America, and the northernmost part of the culturally defined entity known as Latin America. (Enc. Br.) D 10:87
Northbrook Hall a public hall in Dhaka, named after Thomas George Baring Northbrook, Viceroy and Governor-General of India from 1872 to 1876. (A;Enc.Br.) 0 4:196
North Pole the northern end of the earth's axis. It lies in the Arctic Ocean about 450 miles north of Greenland. (Enc. Br.) D 2:217 5:297-98, 307 23:797 27:420
North Sea northern arm of the Atlantic Ocean, extending between the British Isles (west) and the European continent (south and east), a 15:467
Norton, Eardley, barrister-at-law of Madras engaged by the Bengal Government as the counsel for prosecution in the Alipore Bomb Case (1908-09) in all the three courts - the Magistrate's, the Sessions
Page 230
Judge's, and the High Court. (A.B.T.) 2:76, 353-54, 368 4:260, 281, 283-85, 287-90, 296
Norway kingdom of northern Europe, occupying the western part of the Scan- dinavian Peninsula. (Enc. Br.) Der: Nor- wegian (in senses other than the language) 6:477, 480-90, 494-95, 505, 512, 514-18, 520-21, 524, 528, 530-32, 535, 539, 542-43, 546-47, 549, 552-53, 555-57 7:883, 885 13:53 15:' 308, 333, 412 24:1490 11:14 XVI: 144
Norwegian (language) North Germanic language of the West Scandinavian branch, existing in two distinct and rival norms (Dano-Norwegian and New Norwegian) in Norway since 1917. Both of these mutually intelligible languages are used in government and education, and plans have been made to bring them closer together gradually into a common Norwegian language. The last documents in pure Norwegian (without Danish influence) date from the period 1450-1500. (Enc.Br.) 27:89
Nostradamus (1503-66), French astrologer and physician, a Jew whose real name was Michel de Nostredame. He was the most widely read seer of the Renaissance. He wrote a book of prophecy in some obscure language and prophesied about the execution of Charles I and the end of the British Empire after its existence of about 330 years (reckoned from James I). (Enc. Br.; Eve. T., p.535) 15:616
Notables See (Advisory) Council of Notables
Noureddin probably the same as NUREDDENE. 5:277
Nowroji, Dadabhai See Naoroji, Dadabhai Nowsari Navsari, a town about 20 miles south of Surat, in the former princely state of Baroda (now in the state of Gujarat). (A; S.Atlas) 27:113 Nrimedha a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Angiras. He is mentioned as a protege of Agni. (V. Index) a 11:414 Nrsimhottaratapaniya an Upanishad belonging to Atharva-veda. (Up. K.) Var: Nrsimhataliya a 4:47, 50 Nubian inhabitant of Nubia, an ancient region of northeastern Africa. It was called Kush (Cush) under the Pharaohs of ancient Egypt and Ethiopia by the ancient Greeks. (Enc.Br.) 7:580
Nuddia See Nadiya
Nul SeeNala
Nundy, Alfred a Bengali Christian, a journalist and politician around 1906. 1:195
Nureddene a character - son of Alfazzal Ibn Sawy - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora. 7:561, 564, 567, 571, 586-87, 591-92, 595-612, 614, 616-21, 624-25, 632-41, 643-46, 651, 653-58, 660-64, 667, 671-85, 694-95, 697, 699-703, 707, 710-12, 714, 716, 718-19, 724-25, 728-29, 731-34
Nuremberg a city in northern Bavaria. After Hitler came to power in 1933 Nuremberg was made a national shrine by the National Socialists, who held their annual party congresses there. The city was heavily bombed in the Second World War and was largely destroyed. It was the venue of the war- crimes trial held after the war. (Col. Enc.) 26:169
Nurmada See Narmada
Nuzhath in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers ofBassora, name of a person (probably a servant) mentioned by Doonya. 7: 609
Nyaya one of the six Indian orthodox Darshanas (schools of Hindu philosophy), the science of logic. It was founded by the sage Gotama (frequently called Gautama). (Dow.) 1:852 4:46 12:427 14:167 VIII: 183 XVII: 27
O
Oates, Titus (1649-1705), English conspirator, renegade Anglican priest who fabricated the "Popish Plot" of 1678. Oates' allegations that Roman Catholics were plotting to seize power caused a reign of terror in London and strengthened the anti-Catholic Whig Party. But as the frenzy subsided, inconsistencies were discovered in his story. In 1685 he was convicted of perjury, severely flogged, and imprisoned. (Enc.Br.;Col.Enc.) 3:459
O. B. See Browning, Oscar
Occident(al)(ism) See West, the Ochterlony, Sir David(1758-1825), a dis- tinguished British general in the service of the East India Company, who proved his extraordinary ability in the Gurkha War (1814-15, and in the Pindari War (1817-18). The Ochterlony monument, now called Shaheed Minar, in the Calcutta Maidan, was built to his memory. It is a tall obelisk about a hundred feet in height. (D.I.H.) 4:286 0' Connell, Daniel (1775-1847), first of the great 19th-century Irish leaders in the British House of
Page 231
Commons. He forced the British government to accept the Emancipation Act of 1829, by which Roman Catholics were permitted to sit in Parliament and to hold public office. He is known as the Liberator. (Enc. Br.) l: 368
Ocroor See Acrur
Octavia called Octavia Minor (69*11 Be), sister of Octavian (later emperor Augustus) and wife of Mark Antony. She was married to Antony in 40 BC, when he was ruling the Roman state with Octavian and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus. At first this marriage helped to reduce tensions between Antony and Octavian. and, when the two rulers quarrelled in 37 BC, Octavia brought about peace between them, which resulted in the Treaty of Tarentum. But the following year Antony left Italy to command troops in Parthia and, while in the East, resumed his liaison with the Egyptian queen Cleopatra. In 32 BC Antony obtained a divorce from Octavia. Octavia was a faithful wife and mother who raised Antony's children from Cleo- patra with her own children. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Ode Odes of William ColITns, published in 1747. (Ox. Comp.) : 14
Ode (the great) Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood, a poem by Wordsworth, written in 1805-06 and published in his collection Poem's in Two Volumes (1807). (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 9:120, 122.522
Ode on Spring one of the earliest and best poems of Gray, written c. 1742. (Enc. Br.) I: 9
Ode on (the Pleasure Arising from) Vicissi- tude one of Gray's last poems. (A) 1: 9
Ode on the Popular Superstitions of the Highlands a long ode written by Collins in 1749 and published posthumously. It contains some magnificent verse. (Ox. Comp.) II: 16
Ode to Duty a poem by Wordsworth, included in his Poems in Two Volumes (1807). (Col. Enc.) 9:274
Ode to Evening one of the best-known odes of Collins, published in 1747. (Ox. Comp.) II: 14, 16
Ode to Liberty one of the Collins' "Odes" published in 1747. (Enc. Br.) 11:15
Odin The chief Germanic god Woden was called Odin by the Norsemen. He was patron of poetry, but especially he was the god of battle. He was the host of dead heroes, but less interested in war than his strong-armed son. Thor. See also Wotan. (Col. Enc.) 6: 477, 484, 488, 496, 499, 502, -511, 521, 524, 527, 529, 534, 536, 546, 555-56, 559 15: 46 17: 257
O'Donnell, C. J. British M.P. who was sorely aggrieved at the open partisanship of British officials towards the Muslims during the Swadeshi movement in India around 1907. He put the question straight in the House of Commons: "May I ask since when has it become a part of the policy of the British people to sub-divide our possessions to the religious tenets of their inhabitants ?" (A; S.F.F., p.58) D 1:462-63 27:23, 26 .
Odysseus in Greek mythology, king of Ithaca and son and successor ofLaertes. He was the leader of the Ithacan contingent in the Trojan War, and famed for his cunning strategy and his wise counsel. The Latin form of"the name is ULYSSES. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:400, 414.430.439, 464.473, 479-81, 483-84, 486-87, 493, 507 8: 409-10 9: 206, 225 10: 119 22: 414
Odyssey Greek epic in 24 books, traditionally attributed to Homer. The poem is the story of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, who after ten years of wandering returns home from the Trojan War. The atmosphere of adventure and beneficent fate in the Odyssey contrasts with the heavier tone and tragic grandeur of the Iliad, the other epic attributed to Homer. (Enc.Br.) 5:145 8:409 9:9, 61.77, 225, 523 10:119 26:260 29:798 IV: 161 XVI: 182
Oedipus in Greek legend, son of King Laius of Thebes and his queen Jocasta. It was foretold that the boy would murder his father. He was therefore exposed on a mountain, but was found by a shepherd and brought to the king of Corinth. When Oedipus grew up, he learned from an oracle that he would kill his father and marry his mother. So, thinking that the king and queen of Corinth were his real parents, he fled Corinth. At a cross-road he met Laius, quarrelled with him. killed him and then proceeded to Thebes. There he gained the widowed queen's hand by answering the riddle of the Sphinx. The prophecy was thus
fulfilled. After many years Oedipus learned the truth from the seer Tiresias and the shepherd, and in an
Page 232
agony of horror and revulsion he blinded himself. Jocasta committed suicide. Creon, Jocasta's brother, became king. Oedipus wandered for many years and finally died. (Col. Enc.) 3:302 27:150
Oedipus Oedipus Rex (5th cent. BC), the greatest tragedy of Sophocles. This play is one of the most powerful and haunting of Greek tragedies. (Enc. Br.) a 9:9
Oenone a poem by Tennyson, first published in his collection Poems (1832). In Greek mythology, Oenone is a fountain nymph of Mt. Ida. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 9:137
Oeta, Mount a triangular mountain knot in central Greece, an outlier of the Pindus Mountains. (Enc. Br.) a XVII: 44
Offa a character - a Norwegian leader - in the drama The House of Brut by Sri Aurobindo. 7:883, 885, 888 0' Grady British M.P. (around 1907-08) who asked questions in the House of Commons on the situation in East Bengal. (A) 1:343
Oileus in Greek legend, an epithet of Locrian Ajax, who was the son of Oileus, a legendary Locrian king. (M.I.) 5:478
Okakura, Kakuzo (1862-1913), art critic with great influence upon modern Japanese art. He was also intimately concerned with the ideal of Asian reawakening and solidarity. He came to India and stayed at BRLUR MATH. Okakura did not know much of English. His manuscript dealing with Pan-Asiatic cultural connections was rewritten by Sister Nivedita and named The Ideals of the East (1903). It bore the stamp of Swami Vivekananda's ideology on Asia. Okakura inspired P. Mitter and Saria Ghoshal to start revolutionary centres in Bengal. (Enc. Br.; S.V.P.P., pp. 116-17; Purani) 14:227
Okhay Kumar See Dutt, Okhay Kumar
Olaf Thorleikson a character - once ruler of Norway, father of Swegn and Aslaug - in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric. 6:481, 484, 486, 504, 512. 515, 518. 527, 530-31, 533, 539, 541, 543, 547, 549, 552, 554-58
Oliver Twist the main character in the novel Oliver Twist (pub. 1837-38) by Charles Dic- kens. He is a child of unknown parentage born in a workhouse and brought up under the cruel conditions to which pauper children were formerly exposed. The tyrant at whose hands he especially suffers is Bumble, the parish beadle. (Ox. Comp.) n 1: 421
Olympus a mountain at the east end of the range forming the northern boundary of Thessaly'and Greece proper. It was regarded as the home of the Greek gods, and hence the word is often used to mean heaven. (M.I.) Der: Olympian l: 143 3: 11, 149 5:377, 381, 394-95, 406, 413, 428.440, 448, 465, 468, 478, 492 6: 9, 22, 24, 30, 34, 39, 53, 55, 63, 91, 121, 179, 184, 198, 200, 357, 381, 392 7: 860 8: 181, 409 9: 129, 149-50, 303, 313, 317, 419 12: 474 13: 129 14: 215, 231 15: 219, 244, 456 16: 276, 292 27: 154, 202 29: 739 II: 26, 28, 77 XIV: 168
Olynthian of Olynthus, an ancient city on the mainland of the peninsula of Chalcidice in Greece. (Col. Enc.) 5: 14
Omar in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora, a companion of Nureddene. (A) 7:643.645
Omar (Khayyam) (1048?-1122), celebrated Persian poet, mathematician, and astrologer. He was called Khayyam (tent-maker) probably because of his father's occupation. His fame as a scientist has been eclipsed by the popularity of his Rubaiyat, epigrammatic verse quatrains which have been published in literally hundreds of editions. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 26: 254 27'. 90 I: 25
Onan native of On (in Greek, Heliopolis), an ancient city of northern Egypt, in the Nile delta, a few miles below Cairo. It was noted as the centre of sun worship. (Col. Enc.) 7: 1088
O'Neill, Turlough Sir Turlough Luineach O'Neill (1530-95), Earl of Clanconnell. He pledged loyalty to Queen Elizabeth but without any apparent intention of supporting the government or abandoning the practices of his predecessor in his leagues with the Scots and defiance of authority. (Enc. Am.) l-l 1: 23
On Himself volume 26 of the Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library, n 27:509
On the Late Massacre in Piedmont a famous sonnet by Milton. (A) a 9: 325
Onward an English journal of 1934. (A) 26: 387
Ooty short and popular name of Ootaca- mund (recently corrected to Udhagaman- dalam), administrative headquarters of Nilgiri district in Tamil Nadu state. South India. It is situated in the Nilgiri Hills at about 7, 500 ft. above sea level. Founded by the British in 1821, it was used as the official government summer headquarters for the Madras Presidency until 1947. (Enc. Br.) n IV: 197
Page 233
Ophelia In Shakespeare's Hamlet, the young and innocent daughter of Polonius. Obedient to her father, she spurns Hamlet's advances. After POLONIUS' death, she loses her mind. (R. Enc.) D 1:179.207 3:272 X: 154
Orcades Latin name of Orkney Islands. See Orkney. (C.O.D.) n 7:886
Orcus in Roman mythology, another name for Dis, the god of the underworld. In Ilion, the reference is to Hades. (M.I.) n 5:476
Oread(s) in Greek mythology, nymph(s) of mountains and hills who lived in caves and on mountain tops. They were close to Artemis, the huntress, with whom they played and danced. (Col. Enc.) n 5:495, 543 7:786 27: 103-05
Orestes' in Greek legend, prince of Myce- nae. He was the only son of Clytemnes- tra and Agamemnon. When Orestes was a child, his father was murdered by Clytem- nestra and her lover Aegisthus, and the boy was sent away to a distant land. When, how- ever, Orestes grew up, he returned and avenged the murder by killing his mother and her lover, 8:409-10
Orestes2 in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Trojan warrior known for his swiftness. (M.I.) 5:458
Oridamas in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, name of a Syrian soldier. (A) 6:102
The Orient Orient Illustrated Weekly of Calcutta, started probably in 1936. (Purani) 27:417
TheOrient(al) See East, the
The Origins of Aryan Speech title of a book Sri Aurobindo proposed to write. He was able to draft only two or three chapters. One chapter, entitled "Introductory", is published in Vol. 10 of SABCL. Another draft (which seems to be an earlier version) is published in Vol. 27. A few pages written by Sri Aurobindo in continuation of this draft, but in another notebook, were discovered after- wards and published in Sri Aurobindo:
Archives and Research, Vol. 2, No. 1 (April 1978). (A &R, III: 90) 10:548, 551 27:161, 163 111:58
Orion a conspicuous constellation easily recognisable from the equator. It is represented pictorially as the
figure of a warrior with a belt and a sword hanging from it. In Greek mythology, Orion was a gigantic Boeotian hunter who, after his death, became a constellation. (Col. Enc.) n 5:112 12:475 27:262
Orion Originally written as an essay and submitted to the Ninth Oriental Congress held in London in 1892, the Orion brought international reputation to its author, Bal Gangadhar Tilak. After making additions and alterations suggested to him by further thought and discussion, Tilak brought it out in book-form in 1893 under the title The Orion or Researches into the Antiquity of the Vedas. It is a monument to his erudition, which acquired worldwide recognition in oriental research. (Karandikar, pp. 117-18) 0 17:349
Orissa a state of northern India. During most of the period of British rule, between 1765 and 1911, Orissa formed part of the province of Bengal. In 1911, it was separated from Bengal and joined with the province of Bihar, which itself was separated from Bengal at the same time. In 1936 Orissa became a separate province, and in 1950, with the addition of former princely states, it became the present state of Orissa. The land corresponding roughly with modern Orissa but at times much larger in area, passed under the names of Utkala, Kalinga, and Odra Desa in ancient and medieval times. The last name gradually transformed into Uddisa, Udisa, which in English became Orissa. (Enc. Br., Macro., Vol. 13) Der: Orissan; Oriyas (inhabitants of Orissa) 1: 645 3: 85 5: 254 14: 375 26: 409-10 VI: 141
Oriya northeastern Indo-Aryan language spoken by about twenty million persons, mainly in the state of Orissa. It is one of the regional languages recognized by the Indian constitution. It is closely related to Maithili, Assamese, and Bengali. Oriya's literary style borrows heavily from Sanskrit. (Enc. Br.) VI: 140-41
Orkney formerly an insular county of northeastern Scotland, consisting of Orkney Islands or Orkneys, a group of more than 70 islands and islets (only about 20 of which are inhabited). Since the administrative reorganisation of 1975, they form one of three Islands areas. (Col. Enc, ; Enc. Br.) 7:886
Ormuz or Hormuz, an island off South Iran, in the Strait of Hormuz between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. The town of Hormuz, originally built on the mainland, was moved to the island at the time of the invasion of Jenghiz Khan. When it was on the mainland it had an abundance of palm, indigo, grain, and spices, and by c. 1200 had monopolized trade with India and China. The New Hormuz, on the island, also gradually superseded Qeys as the most important Persian Gulf emporium, and again became a market for India and dominated other Gulf islands. (Col. Enc.; Enc.Br.) a 14:63
Page 234
Ormuzd See Ahura Mazda
O'Roark a character participating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) which Sri Aurobindo wrote sometime around 1891. (A & R, II) a II: 8
Orontes river formed in the valley of El Bika in Lebabon. It flows through Syria and Turkey into the Mediterranean. (Col. Enc.) a 6:352
Orphean of ORPHEUS 0 5:405
Orpheus in Greek mythology, celebrated Thracian bard. The music of his lyre charmed the wild beasts, the trees, and the rocks. He married the nymph Eurydice. She met her death by a snake-bite while fleeing the advances ofAristaeus; and Orpheus, disconsolate, went to Hades in search of her. The gods of the underworld, charmed by his music, restored his wife to him, but forbade him to look at her until he reached the earth. He disobeyed, and Eurydice vanished. When Orpheus returned to Thrace, his grief led him to scorn all women. Orpheus is con- sidered the founder of Orphism. He is some- times referred to as "inventor of music". (Col. Enc.) a 3:95 10:439 27:153 XV: 20 XVI: 138
Orphic of Orpheus, or of Orphism, the doctrines or mysteries associated with his name. Orphic mysteries were secret religious rites in worship of Dionysus. (Col. Enc.) n 7:1061 9:197 10:4-5, 25 11:4 16:339 29:777 XV: 20
Orringham in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard", a village two miles from STREADHEW. (A) a 7:1025, 1027, 1041
Oms in Sri Aurobindo's epic Ilion, a Trojan senator and warrior. (M.I.) n 5:412, 461
Osboume, Lloyd (1868-1947), American author. He wrote novels and stories, and collaborated with Stevenson in the writing of The Wrong Box, The Wrecker, and Ebb Tide. (Col. Enc.) n 3:184
Oscan(s) Italic tribe that first settled Pompeii and Herculaneum in Campania (a region of South Italy) (Enc.Br.) n 1:525 15:344
Ossa a mountain of northeastern Thessaly in Greece. The giants named the Aloidae tried to pile Pe'lion on Ossa in order to reach heaven(?). (Col. Enc.) a 9:150
Ossian controversy MACPHERSON produced two epics, Fingal (1762) and Tremor (1763), purporting to be translations from the Gaelic of an Irish warrior-poet called Ossian (Scottish Gaelic name for Oisin). They were much admired (by Goethe among others) for their romantic spirit and rhythm, but their authen- ticity was challenged notably by Dr. Johnson. The epics infuriated Irish scholars because they mixed Fenian and Ulster legends indiscriminately and because Macpherson claimed the Irish heroes were Caledonians and a glory to Scotland's rather than Ireland's past. (Ox. Comp.;Enc. Br.) a 11:18
Ostende French form of Ostend, a city of West Flanders province in northern Belgium. It is a port and resort on the North Sea. (Col. Enc.) a 7:1048
Othello principal character - the Moor, in the service of Venice - in Shakespeare's tragedy Othello, The Moor of Venice. Othello's friend lago falsely accuses Othello's bride Desdemona of infidelity, and tricks Othello into believing him. Othello murders Desdemona, but when he learns that lago's accusation was false, he commits suicide. (Shakes.) Der: Othellolike a 3: 302 12: 37, 39, 470, 481 26: 327 27: 207 I: 40
Ottoman Ottomans were the successors of Osman I (1259-1326), the ruler of a Turkmen principality in northwestern Anatolia, who is regarded as the founder of the Ottoman Turkish state. Both the name of the dynasty and the empire are derived from the Arabic form ('Uthman) of his name. The Ottoman Empire disintegrated after World War I; its possessions formed separate states, and its centre was reorganized as the republic of Turkey. (Col. Enc.) o 2: 167, 169 15: 287, 417
Oudh (Avadha), the modern name of the ancient kingdom of Koshala, watered by the Sarju, a tributary of the Ganga. It is a region to the northwest of Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh (formerly the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh). (D.I.H.) a 27:42
Ouranos the Greek heaven, the sky. In Greek religion, the sky-god was known as Uranus. See Uranus'. (A) a 10: 27, 106 XV: 44 XVII: 45
Page 235
Ouspensky, Peter Demianovitch (1878-1947), Russian philosopher, the most influential disciple of Gurdjieff and expounder of his theories. He broke away from Gurdjieff in 1924, and continued his work independent- ly. (Enc. Br.;Enc. Unex.) a 22:159, 459
Ovid Publius Ovidius Naso (43 BC - AD 17), Roman poet whose work has had immense influence both for its imaginative interpretation of the classical world and as an example of supreme technical accomplishment. (Enc. Br.) Der: Ovidian a 5: 342 7: 845, 860 26: 243 29: 789
Oxford (Dictionary) The Oxford English Dictionary, consisting of 12 volumes plus a supplement. Published in 1933, the dictionary is a corrected and updated revision of A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles, which was published in 10 volumes from 1884 to 1928. The Concise Oxford (Dictionary) was adapted by H. W. Fowler and F. G. Fowler. (Enc. Br.) n 26:313, 319-26
Oxford Street a street in London. The Bayswater Road, running along the Hyde Park on the north, is continued as Oxford Street beyond its crossing with Park Lane. (Pears) n 7: 1017
Oxford (University) one of the two ancient universities of England, located in Oxford. Like Cambridge it had its beginnings in the early 12th century. In the early 1970s the enrolment in its various constituent colleges was about 11, 000. (Col. Enc.) n 3:130, 132, 184 12:53 XIV:163
Oxus the modern Amu Darya, a river in central and eastern Asia, flowing from the Pamir Plateau to the Aral Sea. The poet referred to in the phrase "the Oxus of the poet" (VIII: 186) is Matthew Arnold who uses the river as an image in his poem Sohrab and Rustam. (M.I.) n 5:412, 418, 461 6: 380 VIII: 186
Oyomei (1472-1529), name in Japanese of the Chinese scholar-official whose idealistic interpretation of Nee-Confucianism influenced philosophical thinking in East Asia for centuries. (Enc. Br.) 1-1 1: 67
P
P in Record of Yoga, used mostly for Parthasarathi.
Pabna administrative headquarters of Pabna district in Rajshahi division of Bengal, now in Bangladesh. Pabna is an industrial centre. (Enc. Br.) n 1:357, 369-70, 437,
452-53, 478, 698, 702, 726, 733-34, 747-48, 754-55, 809, 825, 840, 850, 896 2: 176, 186-89, 191, 196-97:200, 315-16, 321 4:175, 247 XIV: 101
Padachinha in Bankim Chandra's novel Ananda Math, name of a village of Bengal. (A) D 8: 318-19, 333, 347
Padma main channel of the Ganga below its bifurcation into Bhagirathi and Padma Rivers in Rajshahi division, Bangladesh. After receiving the Brahmaputra River near Rajbari, the Padma continues southeastward to join the Meghna River through a channel two miles wide. The combined streams continue south to the Bay of Bengal as the Meghna. The Padma is navigable for its entire 190- mile course by river'streamers. (Enc. Br.) D XIX: 21
Padmanabha (1878-1970), South Indian statesman, social reformer, and gallant fighter for the masses. (Enc. Ind.) 0 1:745, 752
Padma Purana one of the eighteen major Puranas, generally ranked second on the list. The tone of the whole Purana is strongly Vaishnava. It contains an account of the period when the world was a golden lotus "padma", and of all the occurrences of that time. It has about 55, 000 stanzas. (Dow.) 0 3:312
Pahlavas name of a people, the Parthians or Persians. (M.W.) a XVIII: 138
Paisachi one of the Prakrit languages, known through grammarians' statements. (Enc. Br.) n 14:186
Pakistan The Muslim state created by the British Government in August 1947 to appease the Muslims agitating under the leadership of M. A. Jinnah, splitting India on the basis of the two-nation theory. Pakistan, an Islamic theocratic state, originally comprised North West Frontier Province, Baluchistan, Sind, West Punjab, and separated from these by more than a thousand miles of Indian territory - East Bengal (later called East Pakistan). In 1971 East Pakistan revolted and became independent with Indian armed assistance, and renamed itself Bangladesh. (D.I.H.) n 26:172, 409
Pal a character - representing Bipin Chandra Pal - in "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy published in Bande Mataram (February 1908). n 1:673-74.679-80
Pal, Banamali a pleader in the French Court of Chandernagore, through whom Sri Aurobindo communicated with Motilal Roy. Var: Banomali Pal a 27:426, 444
Page 236
Pal, Bepin (Chandra) (1858-1932), a national leader, considered by Sri Aurobindo at one time to be "the best and most original political thinker in the country, an excellent writer and magnificent orator" (26: 29). He was one of the prominent leaders of the new nationalist movement in Bengal, belonging to the militant extremist section of the Congress and working in cooperation with Tilak, Lajpat Rai, and Sri Aurobindo. He took a leading part in organising the movement against the partition of Bengal in 1905, and popularized the concepts of "Swadeshi" and "Swaraj". For refusing to give evidence in the prosecution of Bande Mataram, he was sentenced to six months' imprisonment (11 September 1907). Bepin Pal was also a journalist, and editor of The Independent. (A;Enc. Br.;Purani; N.S.I.) a 1:81, 150, 163, 167, 169, 177-78, 195, 210, 217, 303, 324, 329, 333-34, 336, 338, 352, 408, 492, 500, 505, 529-31, 542, 556, 580, 587, 609, 616, 628, 634, 656, 660, 715, 724-26, 740, 742, 744, 749-51, 770, 772.787, 795-96, 813, 816, 819-21, 823, 828, 837, 847, 855 2: 2, 22, 77, 120-21, 224, 233, 235-36, 239, 314, 371 4:63, 178, 204-05, 261, 300-01 17:364 26:16, 27-29, 40, 42-43, 46, 56, 59 27: pre., 39, 54, 437, 461 II: 3 VIII: 125
Pal, Kristo Das (1838-84), Bengali journalist, editor of the Hindu Patriot. In politics he was a loyalist but he championed the cause of the progressive realisation of self- government. He was made a Rai Bahadur in 1887 and a C.I.E. the following year. (D.N.B.) 3:80, 99-100
Pal, (Rai Bahadur) Srinath a Moderate leader who addressed the Bengal Provincial Conference of the Congress held at Ber- hampur in March 1907. (A) Var: Rai Srinath Pal Bahadur 1:236, 244, 255
Paladin any of the Twelve Peers of Charlemagne's court, of whom Count Palatine was the chief; knight-errant. (C.O.D.) 5:183
Palancotta now spelled Palayamkottai, a town near Tirunelveli (modern name of Tinnevelly) in Tamil Nadu state (formerly in Madras province). (S.Atlas) n 1:793
Palestine name of a territory on the eastern Mediterranean coast, occupied in biblical times by the kingdoms of Israel and Judah and, in the 20th century, the scene of conflicting claims between Jewish and Arab national movements. Also called the Holy Land, it is sacred in varying degrees to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Palestine's frontiers have fluctuated widely throughout history. In the Bible, Palestine is called CANAAN before the invasion of Joshua. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 1:605 14:402 15:646
Pali sacred language of the Theravada Buddhist canon, a Middle Indo-Aryan language of North Indian origin. Pali seems closely related to the Old Indo-Aryan Vedic and Sanskrit but is apparently not directly descended from either of these. (Enc. Br.) a 14:186, 256, 294, 315
Palit, T. Sir Taraknath Palit (1831-1914), a highly successful barrister of Calcutta who made munificent donations for the spread of the knowledge of science and for national education. He took the initiative in founding a Technical Institute in Calcutta. After some time, however, he was disappointed by its performance and withdrew his patronage. In the political field, Palit was a leader of the Moderate group. (D.N.B.; B.P.P., p. 59) 1:156 2:337
Pallachus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, an aged Trojan senator. (M.I.) 5:412
Palladian of PALLADIUM. 5:512
Palladium in Greek and Roman religion, an ancient sacred image of Pallas Athene which was the guardian of a city. The Palladium of Troy is especially famous. It was sent down from heaven by Zeus to Dardanus or to his descendant, Ilus (the founder of Troy). In Greek legend Diomedes and Odysseus stole or carried it off, thus making possible the sack of Troy. In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, however, the statue is shattered by dark gods, Themis, Dis, and Ananke in order to fulfil the will of Zeus. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:399
Pallas (Athene) in Greek mythology, Pallas is a name or title of Athene, of uncertain meaning and origin. Pallas Athene is also a character in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. (Col. Enc.) [Indexed with Athene]
Pallava(s) Indian dynasty of kings who ruled from the early 4th century to the late 9th century over the region covered by the modern districts of North and South Arcot, Madras, Tiruchchirappalli and Thanjavur, and at times even beyond. The earliest Pallava kings were great builders. They founded the town of Mahabalipuram, cut wonderful buildings out of living rock and built temples with remarkable relief sculptures. In about 880 the Pallava dominion passed under the rule of Chola kings. (D.I.H.;Enc.Br.) 13:39 14:235, 237 15:264 17:278, 300
Page 237
Palleas a character - a forester - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Witch ofllni. 0 7:1057, 1072
Palli Samaj or Palli Samiti. a village society or association. Regarded as "the seed of Swaraj", such societies were organised in 1905 as part of the Swadeshi or Swaraj movement. (A) a 1:733, 884
Pamela or Virtue Rewarded, Richardson's first novel (1740), epistolary in form. Pamela was recommended even from pulpits and was dramatised several times. (Enc. Br.) a 9:480
Pan in Greek religion, pastoral god of fertility. He was worshipped principally in Arcadia. All his myths deal with amorous affairs. In a famous myth he pursued the nymph Syrinx, but before she was overtaken her sister nymphs changed her into a reed. Thus Pan plays the reed, or syrinx, in memory of her. (Col. Enc.) 5:20, 33
Pancanada See Punjab
Panchadasi a well-known book in Sanskrit verse on Vedanta by the sage Vidyaranya. (M.W.) D 26:113
Panchajanya (Pancaj any a), name of Sri Krishna's conch, formed from the shell of the sea-demon Pancaj ana. The demon, who lived in a conch-shell, seized the son of Sandipani, under whom Sri Krishna had learnt the use of arms. Krishna rescued the boy, killed the demon, and afterwards used the conch-shell as a horn. (Dow.) a 4:76, 82 8:77
Panchala name of an ancient country which has sometimes been identified with the Pun- jab, and with a little territory in the more immediate neighbourhood of Hastinapur. Its people were known as Pancalas. (Dow.; M.N.) Der: Panchals; Panchalas 3:143, 162, 189-91, 193, 195-96, 203, 205, 207 4: 83, 93, 95 8:41, 59 27:79 IV: 115 VI: 156 VII: 52
Panchali Sapatham the title (literally meaning "Draupadi's Vow") of a Tamil poem by Subramania Bharati. It is written in epic style and in a simple form intelligible to the common man. The narrative, taken from the Mahabharata, is divided into two parts: the first comprising two cantos of 204 verses; the second, three cantos of 104 verses. The first part was published from Pondicherry in 1912, and it is evidently to this publication that Sri Aurobindo refers in the "Record of Yoga"., n XXI: 51
Panchatantra a collection of Indian animal fables which, translated into several languages, has had extensive circulation throughout the world. The original Sanskrit text, now lost, may have been written at any time between 100 BC and AD 500. It was a mixture of prose and stanzas of verse. The introduction attributes the stories to Visnu- sarman, who used the form of animal fables to instruct the three sons of a king. The Hitopadesa ("Good Advice"), composed by Narayana in the 12th century, appears to be an independent treatment of the Pancha- tantra material. (Enc. Br.) n 3:314, 318 4: 252 14:256, 306
Pandava(s) in the Mahabharata, the five sons of Pandu - Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva, who were victorious in the great epic war with their cousins, the Kauravas. (Enc. Br.) Var: Pandav(s) 3:143, 161, 169, 178, 191-92, 195, 197, 200-01, 203-04, 208, 354 4:67-68, 75, 82-85, 93-94, 97 8:27-28, 30-31, 50-51, 53, 57, 60, 77-78 13:151, 161, 166, 350 26:396-97 27:80, 83 IV: 116 VII: 51
Pandemian of Pandemos, "goddess of all the people", an epithet of Aphrodite originally alluding to her role in marriage and family life, later used to distinguish her aspect of sensual lust from the higher love represented by Aphrodite Urania (see Uranian). (M.I.) 5:500
Pandharpur religious and administrative town in Sholapur district of Maharashtra state, on the Bhima River, west of Sholapur town. (Enc. Br.) D 1:1
Pand(o)u in the Mahabharata, brother of King Dhritarashtra of Hastinapur and father ofthePandavas. (Dow.) 3:151-52, 169, 190, 208 4:76-77 8:51, 59-60, 77, 90, 93 IV: 115
Pandurang Antoba one of the persons of Nasik who welcomed Sri Aurobindo with pansupdriat his house on 24 January 1908. (A) D 1:1
Pandya(s) Pandya, Chola, and Chera were three kingdoms in the south of the Indian peninsula for some centuries before and after the Christian era. Pandya was a Tamil dynasty of the extreme south. Whether independent or tributary, seventeen rajahs are known to have ruled the country from 1100 to 1567. The capital of Pandya was Madurai. Pandya seems to have fallen under the ascendancy of Chola kings in the 7th or 8th century/The people of the country were known as Pandyas. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) Der: Pandyan a 8: 40 15: 264 17: 372-73
Page 238
Pani See Pani(s)
Panini (fl. 6th or 5th cent. BC), celebrated Sanskrit grammarian, author of the work called Pdniniyam or Astddhydyi, the oldest known grammar of Sanskrit and perhaps the oldest extant grammar in the world. In olden times he was placed among the Rishis. He is said to have received a large portion of his work by direct inspiration from the god Shiva. (Dow.; Enc. Br.) 3: 199 10: 191
Panipat a town in Kamal district of Punjab (now in Haryana state), 56 miles north of Delhi. It has been the scene of three successive battles (in 1526, 1556 and 1761), each of which profoundly influenced the course of Indian history. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 1:633 26:353
Pani(s) in the Veda, the lords of the lower sense mentality. They steal from us the rays of the illumined consciousness, the brilliant herds of the sun and pen them up in the caverns of the subconscient in the dense hill of matter. They are set in opposition to the Aryan gods and Aryan seers and workers. (V.G.;Dow.) 10:26, 44, 99-100, 104, 119-20, 122, 134-37, 139-41, 147-48, 150-51, 155, 160-61, 164, 166, 169, 172-74, 176, 182-83, 185, 187, 190, 194, 199, 203-04, 207, 209-10, 212, 215-34, 236-37, 250, 297, 346, 431, 433-34, 450, 493 11:9-10, 13, 17, 27, 29, 467 22:361, 364 27: 191 VII: 39 IX: 7 XV: 27, 49 XVI: 144, 152 XVII: 44-45, 56, 58
Panjab See Punjab
Pannyre aux talons d'or a famous poem by the French poet Albert Samain. (A) 26: 341
Pansies a poem by D. H. Lawrence. 9: 539
Pantheos (in Greek, pan = all; theos = God); the Godhead as cosmic spirit. (A) 16: 156 18: 352, 441 19: 770
Panti's Math formerly an open field ("matha" in Bengali) in Cornwallis Street, Calcutta, opposite the Brahmo Samaj and near the Academy Club. The club and the field were a meeting-place of leading writers, politicians, lawyers and others. Later, the hostel for students of the Metropolitan or Vidyasagar College was erected on Panti's Math. (B.P.P., p. 48) n l: 850 4: 206
Paphia in Greek mythology, an epithet ofAphrodite, who had a sanctuary at PAPHOS. (M.I.) 5: 499
Paphian marriage marriage like that of Paphia (i.e. Aphrodite). Aphrodite was the wife of Hephaestus, but she loved Ares to whom she bore Eros and Anteros. She also gave her favours to Anchises. (Col. Enc.) a 7: 1078
Paphlagon Paphlagonia, an ancient mountainous territory of northern Asia Minor, between Bithynia and Pontus on the Black Sea coast. It was not a political unit. In the Trojan War the Paphlagonians were allies of Troy. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:418
Paphos There were two ancient cities of this name in southwestern Cyprus, on the sea coast: Old Paphos which was probably founded by the Phoenicians and was the centre of the worship of Astarte or Aphro- dite (ruins of her temple have been found); and New Paphos, now Baffo, which lay ten miles to the northwest (it was the capital of the island in Roman times). The reference in llion is to Old Paphos. (Col. Enc.) 5: 499, 501
Paracelsus Philippus Aureolus Paracelsus (real name: Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim) (1493-1541), Swiss physician, alchemist, and chemist. He established the role of chemistry in medicine, and was the author of numerous medical and occult works. (Enc. Br.) 3: 464 27: 181 XVII: 11 XVIII: 154
Paradise Lost Milton's masterpiece and the last great literary epic, published in 1667. Its theme is the Fall of man. A blank-verse poem in twelve books, it closely follows the conventions of the classical epic. It is notable for its characterization of the fallen archangel Lucifer, who dominates the work. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 3:226, 293 4:284 9: 83-85, 347 26: 245, 258-60, 277 29: 791, 797-98 X: 143
Paradise Regained blank-verse poem in four books, by Milton, published in 1671. It is a sequel to his epic Paradise Lost, and deals with the temptation of Christ in the desert by Satan. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 9:85, 474 26: 277
Parameshthi "who stands in the highest place", an epithet of Brahma; this title can be applied to any superior god. (A) 0 12: 415-16
Paranjape, Prof. S. M. Shivaram Mahadeo Paranjape (1864-1929), scholar, author, orator, journalist, and above all, eminent political thinker and propagandist, both under Tilak and Gandhi. He started and conducted two weeklies, Kal (Marathi) and Swarajya.
Page 239
He was Professor of Sanskrit at Maharashtra College, Poona, in 1896-97. (D.N.B.-III: 311) 27: 62
Parasara1 (fl. 13th or 14th cent. BC), Hindu sage, father of Vyasa and author of a Smriti known as Parasara Dharma-samhitd. He also wrote eight other books on various branches of knowledge. (Apte; B.P.C.) 2:404 3: 120 14: 166 VIII: 187
Parasara2 in Record of Yoga, used as variant of Parashara (Shaktya). See next entry.
Parashara (Shaktya) a Vedic Rishi, son of the Rishi Sakti; author of Suktas 65 to 73, Mandala 1, and verses 31 to 44ofSukta 97, Mandala 9 of Rig-veda. Var: Parasara (in "Record of Yoga") 10:191-93, 195, 198, 210-11 11: 13, 51 XXI: 23
Paras(h)urama (Rama of the Axe), the "first Rama" and the sixth incarnation of Vishnu;
"the violent man" and destroyer of Kshatriyas. He was the son of the Brahmin sage Jamadagni, and is said to have cleared the earth of Kshatriyas twenty-one times and given it to the Brahmins. His story is told in the Mahabharata and the Puranas. He also appears in the Ramayana, but chiefly as an opponent ofRamachandra, whose true identity (the "second Rama" and the seventh incarnation of Vishnu) he did not at first know. (Dow.) Var: Purshurama; Rama n 3: 190 8: 39-40 13: 157, 161 27: 152 VI: 156
Pariah a generic term applied by Westerners to the low-caste groups of Hindu India. The term once referred to the Paraiyan (literally and perhaps originally drummers, beating on skin drums and therefore unclean), a Tamil caste group of labourers and village servants of low status, but the meaning was extended to embrace many groups with widely varying degrees of status outside the so-called clean caste groups. (Enc. Br.; C.O.D.) n 1:66, 537 8: 92 13: 321
Parichaya famous Bengali monthly journal of a high literary standard, edited by Pra- matha Chowdhuri. It was started about 1920. Rabindranath Tagore, Sudhindranath Datta and many other distinguished writers were connected with this journal and contributed to it. 0 9: 441
Parikshit in the Mahabharata, son of Abhimanyu and Uttara. He was grandson of Arjuna and father of Janamejaya. When Yudhishthira retired, Parikshit succeeded him as king of Hastinapur.
He died of snak'e-bite as a result of a curse. (Dow.) 4:99 6:205, 227, 257, 277 22:425 26:397
Parinaca a character - an attendant in Vuthsa Udayan's palace - in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. 6:207, 219-20
Paris' also known as Alexander, in Greek legend, a Trojan prince, son of Priam and Hecuba, reputed to be the handsomest of mortal men. Hera, Athene, and Aphrodite chose him as judge in their dispute over the Apple of Discord, inscribed "for the fairest". Athene offered him victory in war, Hera royal power, and Aphrodite promised Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world. Paris chose Aphrodite, and then, on her advice, he travelled to Sparta, met Helen, and carried her off. This caused the Trojan War in which Paris killed Achilles and was him- self mortally wounded by Philoctetes. (Col. Enc.) a 5: 400, 402, 416-17, 420, 423, 427, 432-36, 448-50, 452-53, 455, 458-60, 467, 478, 480, 483, 488-89, 493, 501, 504.513, 595 7: 825, 876 9: 482 10: 26 VI: 134-35 XVII: 44
Paris2 capital and dominant city of France, situated on the banks of the River Seine. (Enc.Br.) Der: Parisian a 1:30, 32, 37, 349 2: 342, 371, 385 3: 454-55, 458-60 5: 120 14: 9, 64 15: 88, 265, 611 17: 403 19:762 25:360, 372 26:419 27:115, 466, 471 V:94 VI:199
Parjanya I. a Vedic deity, giver of the rain of heaven, or rain personified. Three hymns in the Rig-veda are addressed to this deity. He is the protector of the sign Jar (Aquarius) of the Zodiac. 2. one of the Adityas. (Dow.; A) a 10:4 11:32 17: 257 V: 24
Parmanand better known as Bhai Parmanand (1874-1947), the Arya Samaj teacher who was dismissed by the D.A.V. College (Lahore) authorities in 1910 when the case against him for possessing in- criminating documents was finally decided and he was bound over for three years. In 1915, in the Lahore Conspiracy Case, he was condemned to death, but the Viceroy was approached and he reduced the sentence to transportation for life. Later Bhai Parma- nand became a prominent worker of the Hindu Mahasabha of Punjab, and was elected itspresidentinl933. (D.N.B.; P.T.I. ;R.O.H.) a 2:363 4:247
Parnassus a mountain in southwestern Phocis (Greece), anciently sacred to Apollo, Dionysus, and the Muses. Its modern name is Liakura or Liakoura. (Col. Enc.) D 5: 28 9: 484
Page 240
Parnassians a group of 19th-century French poets headed by Leconte de Lisle, who in reaction against the emotional and verbal imprecision of the Romantics, stressed' restraint, objectivity, technical perfection, and precise description. The Parnassians derived their name from the anthology to which they contributed, Le Parnasse Contemporain (1866). (Enc. Br.) 9: 96
Pamell, Charles Stewart (1846-91), Irish nationalist leader who excelled in uniting different elements of Irish patriots. He encouraged boycott as a means of bringing pressure on landlords and land agents. Parnell was arrested and put in prison; from there he issued a no-rent manifesto, the popularity of which caused him to be referred to as the "uncrowned king of Ireland". After his death in 1891 Sri Aurobindo wrote a poem on him. (Col. Enc.) Der: Pamellism; Pamellite 1: 97, 367-68, 501, 637 2:394 4: pre. 5:15 26:17
Les Paroles etemelles "Collections of the central sayings of great sages of all times by Paul Richard" (27: 456). He compiled them with the collaboration of his younger brother at Paris in 1912-13. Their publication was started at Pondicherry in a series in the French edition ofArya. But with the closing down of this edition after its seventh issue in February 1915, the publication of the series also abruptly came to an end. Only the Introduction and part of Book I were printed. An English translation of the "Paroles", however, kept coming out regularly in the English edition ofArya up to its last issue of January 1921, under the title THE ETERNAL WISDOM. This too remained incomplete. (E.W.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov.l913-0ct. '27]
Parr, Dr. an unknown person, apparently qualified in some utilitarian art or subject like cooking, dressing, engineering, schoolmastery, etc. (A) 1-1 14: 66
Parsi(s) a religious community of India, practising Zoroastrianism. They are descen- dants of Zoroastrians who fled Persia and took shelter in India in the 7th century to avoid persecution by Muslims (Arabs). The community is closely united and is one of the most educated groups of India. (Enc. Br.) Var: Parsees a 1:189, 210-11, 218, 755 2: 245, 385 3: 123 27: 40 VIII: 190 XVI: 166
Parsvanath Hill Parsvanatha Hill (4, 479 ft.), in Bihar state, named after the 23rd Tirthankar, or saint, of
the Jain religion, who died on this hill.
It is perhaps the most ancient of Jain sacred shrines. (Enc. Ind.) a VIII: 134
Partha in the Mahabharata, "son of Prtha or Kunti", a title applicable to the three elder Pandavas but especially used for Arjun. (Dow.) a [Indexed with Arjun(a)]
Parthasarathi S. Parthasarathi Aiyangar (1880-1929), younger brother of Mandayam S. Srinivasachariyar (see Srinivasa), and an associate of Sri Aurobindo in Pondicherry. It is said that he met Sri Aurobindo in Calcutta in 1909 or 1910 and suggested to him to come to Pondicherry. Parthasarathi was an advocate of Madras; he received his earlier education in Pondicherry. An ardent con- tributor, like his two elder brothers, to the revolutionary struggle for the liberation of his motherland, Parthasarathi was a great admirer of the ancient Indian spiritual culture. In his "Record of Yoga" Sri Aurobindo referred to him as "P", and in one of his letters to "M" (27: 433) as "P.S.", also possibly as "Psalmodist" in another letter (27:439). (B. Gita) a 27:426, 433, 454 (Sarathi) XX: 147 XXI: 56 XXII: 157
Parthenon a temple dedicated to the goddess Athene, on the Acropolis at Athens. It is the culminating masterpiece of Greek architecture, built between 447 and 432 BC under the rule of Pericles. (Col. Enc.) 5:484 9:192, 381 14: 213
Parthia an ancient country of western Asia, southeast of the Caspian Sea, corresponding roughly to the modern region of Khorasan in Iran. In 250 BC the Parthians freed them- selves from the rule of the Seleucidae and founded the Parthian empire. At its height, in the 1st century BC, this empire extended from the Euphrates across Afghanistan to the Indus and from the Oxus to the Indian Ocean. (Col. Enc.) Der: Parthian 6: 64, 333, 338, 340-41, 343. 347, 353-54, 356, 362-63, 365, 368, 372-73, 376-78, 380-82, 386-89, 392, 396, 399-401, 407-08, 430, 432, 436-37, 440-41, 443, 445, 448, 451, 456, 469 8:61 14: 367, 376
Paruchchhepa Daivodasi a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Divodasa, to whom a series of hymns in the Rig-veda is attributed. (V. Index) Var: Puruchchhepa Daivodasi a 10: 148 11: 71
Parushni (Parusni), in the Veda, name of a river that has a multitude of currents; according to Yaska it is the river later called the Ravi (Iravati). (A; V. Index) D 10:542 11:365
Page 241
Parvati in Hindu religion, daughter of Himavan (Himalaya) and consort of the god Shiva. The couple had two sons, the elephant- headed Ganesa and the six-headed Skanda. Parvati is the benevolent aspect of the goddess Sakti. The other names of Parvati that occur in Sri Aurobindo's writings are: Gauri, Haimavati, and Uma. (Dow.) a 3:226-27, 231, 271, 308-09, 311, 313, 315, 319 8: 44, 107, 119, 386 12: 150 17: 271-72 20: 481 22: 389, 391 25:74 26:307 IV: 174 XX: 137
Pascal, Blaise (1623-62), French mathema- tician, physicist, religious philosopher, and writer. He was the founder of the modem theory of probabilities. His ideas on religion influenced Rousseau, Bergson and the Existentialists. (Enc. Br.) n 15:126
Pasha, Boutros See Boutros Pasha
Pasha, Mahmud Shevket See Mahmud Shevket Pasha
Pasha, Mustafa Kamil See Mustafa Kamil (Pasha)
Pashavi See under Pashu
Pashu the lowest of the ten forms of consciousness in the evolutionary scale of man. In this stage mind is concentrated entirely on the Annam or matter. (A) Der: Pashavi D VI: 183-84, 186, 189-93 XIV: 149
Pas(h)upati "Lord of Wild Life" (3:245); the lord of the animal (in man); a name of the Hindu god Shiva. (A) a 3:245 10: 336 17:378 27:105
Pasithea a character - a Syrian woman - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. D 6: 3, 115-16, 124-25, 139-40
Passage to India the last long poem of Whitman which appeared in the 1871 edition of Leaves of Grass. Part of the poem was first published in 1868 in the Atlantic Monthly. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a 9:181
The Passions, an Ode for Music one of the odes of Collins, published in his collection Odes in 1747. (Ox. Comp.) a n: 14
Pastorals the Pastorals of Pope, poems which, according to the author, were written when he was
sixteen and published in 1709. They show his precocious metrical skill. (Ox. Comp.) D I: 12
Pasupati See Pas(h)upati
Patala in Hindu mythology, name applied to the infernal regions, especially to the nethermost of the seven infernal regions, in which Vasuki rules over the chief Nagas or snake-gods; "the grey under-world and kingdom of serpents" (27:159); "the subconscient below the earth" (23:970). (Dow.; A) 0 3:176 4:219, 365 5:249, 258, 325 10: 336 12:466-68 22: 361-62 23:970 26: 271 27: 159, 326 I: 21 II: 78-80 XIX: 53 XX: 129 XXI: 14
Patanjali (fl. 2nd cent. BC or 5th cent. AD), traditional author (or one of the authors) Of two great Hindu classics: the Yogasutras, a categorization of Yogic thought arranged in four volumes; and the Mahabhasya, which is both a defence of the grammarian Panini against his chief critic and detractor Katya- yana and a refutation of some of Panini's aphorisms. The Yogasutras seems to span several centuries, the first three volumes apparently written in the 2nd century BC and the last volume in the 5th century AD. Authorities therefore tend to credit more than one author writing under the name Patanjali, although there is a wide variance in opinion. The possibility that many men used the name is given strength by the fact that it was used by the authors of a number of other works on such diverse subjects as medicine, prosody, music, and alchemy. The name itself is obviously a pseudonym. (Enc. Br.) a 3: 406-09, 450 11: 455 13: 5, 63 19: 879 20: 50, 473 21: 826 22: 104, 143 23: 735 24: 1236 26: 113 27: 371 VIII: 171, 183 XVII: 10, 12 XVIII: 163
Patel Vithalbhai Jhaverbhai Patel (1873- 1933), a pleader of Bombay and a nationalist leader. He was elected to the Bombay Assembly in 1912 and to the Imperial Assembly (Council) in 1917. He joined Mahatma Gandhi's Non-Cooperation Movement in 1920 and was arrested several times. He died in exile in Switzerland. (Enc. Ind.) a XVI: 190
Pater, Walter Horatio (1839-94), English critic and essayist, known for his painstakingly fastidious style. His highly personal criticisms of painting and of literature were halfway between scholarship and original artistic creation. (Enc. Br.) a 9:545
Pathan name applied to the Pashtu-speaking tribes of southeastern Afghanistan and north- western Pakistan. The term has some- times been loosely used to denote all the Muslim sultans of Delhi from Qutbuddin to Ibrahim Lodi. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) 4:140 5:284-85,288-89 14:-187,329,370, 378 15:341 IX: 1,2
Page 242
Patiala a protected princely state till its merger with the Indian Federal Republic in 1948. It first formed part of PEPSU (Patiala and East Punjab States' Union), but in 1956 it was merged in the state of Punjab. It is about 125 miles to the northwest of Delhi. In the days of British domination the Patiala chief Maharaja Bhupendra Singh (1891-1938) greatly developed the state. (D.I.H.) 2:249-50, 353-56
Patmore, Coventry Coventry (Kersey Dighton) Patmore (1823-96), English poet and essayist whose allusive poetry reflects a deep knowledge and understanding of 17th- century metaphysical poetry, unusual in one of his day. (Enc. Br.) 26:258 29:797
Patmos smallest (22 sq. miles) and most northerly of the original twelve Greek islands in the Aegean Sea off the coast of southwest Asia Minor. Both the Gospel and the Revelation to John are said to have been written by John on this island. (Enc. Br.; Web.) 5:61
Patrawali a collection of letters of Sri Aurobindo written in Bengali (to female disciples who did not know English). It is in two parts; the first was published in 1951 and the second in 1959. (A) a 4: pre.
Patrick (Curran) a character - second son of Sir Gerald Curran - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Devil's Mastiff", 7:1047-50
Patrika See Amrita Bazar Patrika
Patriot See (Hindu) Patriot or (Indian) Patriot
Pattan Patan (Patan), a town about seventy miles north-northwest ofAhmedabad, in the state of Gujarat. Formerly Patan was part of the princely state of Baroda. (S. Atlas; A) 27:113
Pattison, Mark (1813-84), English scholar, memorable more for his devotion to an intellectual ideal rather than for positive literary achievements. He was rector of Lincoln College, Oxford. (Enc. Br.) D 9:522
Pattison Ely a character participating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) written by Sri Aurobindo around 1891. (A & R - II) D 11:8
Patwardhan, Anna Saheb (1847-1917), the "Maharshi of Poona", famous as the guru of Lokamanya Tilak. He presided over the meeting held on Tilak's premises on 13 January 1908 which was addressed by Sri Aurobindo. (D.N.B.; A) 27:62
Paul, St. (d. AD 67?), the apostle to the Gentiles. St. Paul's figure dominates the apostolic age, and his epistles have left a tremendous impress on Christianity. By way of Macedonia he went to Corinth to help the Christians there, then back to Ephesus, and thence to Jerusalem. (Col. Enc.) 5:366 12:15 17:169 24:1237 27:485 XV: 24
Paulomie in Hindu mythology, daughter of the Asura Puloman; consort of ndra, and mother of Jayanta. She is also known as Saci. (Dow.) 7:1001
Paundra1 in the Mahabharata, the name of the conch-shell of Bhima. (M.N.) 4:76
Paundra2 name of a people and of a country said to include part of south Bihar and Bengal. (M.W.) a XVIII: 138
Pausanias (d. probably between 470 and 465 BC), Spartan commander during the Greco- Persian Wars who was accused of treason- able dealings with the enemy. A member of the Agiad royal family, Pausanias was the son of King Cleombrotus I and nephew of King Leomidas. It is conceivable that the Spartans made Pausanias a scapegoat for their failure to retain the leadership of Greece; nevertheless, some of his activities seem to justify suspicion. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Pavaka a name and epithet of Agni, the purifying Fire. (A) [Indexed with Agni]
Pax Britannica peace dictated to a subjugated people by the British. (Web.) 0 1: 336, 354, 372-73, 377, 431, 539, 563, 598, 790 111:7-8
Payoshni in the Mahabharata, a sacred river that rises in the Vindhyas and flows south- ward. (M.N.) a 3:154
Payu Bharadwaja (Payu Bharadwaja) a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Bharadwaja. n 11:415
Pe in "Record of Yoga", used for POINCARE.
Peak of Gold See Meru
Peary, Commander Robert Edwin Peary (1856-1920), American naval officer and a distinguished explorer. He was the first man to reach the North Pole (6 April 1909). See a/w Cook, Dr. (Col. Enc.) D 2:217
Pecksniff a hypocritical personage in Dickens' novel Martin Chuzzlewit. The term is now used for any unctuous hypocrite prating of benevolence etc. (Enc. Am.; C.O.D.) Der: Pecksniffian 1:547, 550
Pedro a common Spanish masculine name, the equivalent of Peter in English, used by Sri Aurobindo in his play The Maid in the Mill. a 7:857
Peele, George (1556-96), English dramatist and clergyman, predecessor of Shakespeare, who
Page 243
experimented in many forms of theatrical art: pastoral, history, melodrama, trage- dy, folkplay, and pageant. (Enc. Br.) 9:69, 82
Pegasus in Greek legend, immortal winged horse, offspring of Poseidon and Medusa, who became the faithful companion of Bellerophon. The spring Hippocrene, sacred to the Muses, was made by a print of his hoof; it gave the gift of song to all who drank of it. (Col. Enc.) 3: 65, 105 9: 19 10: 87-88 XIII: 39 XVII: 4
Pehlava Pehlavas were a people of Parthian origin who came to India in the 1st century Be and established some kingdoms in north- west India in cooperation with the Sakas. They are to be distinguished from the Pallavas of the Deccan. The Pehlavas are also mentioned in the Mahabharata. According to Manu they were among the northern nations and were once Kshatriyas but had become outcastes. (D.I.H.; Dow.) a 3:198
Peitho Greek goddess who was essentially a personification of the act of persuading (Peitho is a Greek word meaning "Persuasion"). In literature she is often mentioned only figuratively, though as early as Hesiod she is curiously described as the daughter of Oceanus. In both art and poetry Peitho was introduced as an attendant of Aphrodite, goddess of love. (Enc. Br.) a 11:7
Pekin a former variant of Peking, a conventional Western spelling of the Chinese Pei-ching, the capital of China, which is now known as Bei-jing, a Pin-yin romanization of Pei-ching. (Enc. Br.; Web.) Q 7:598
Pelasgian of the Pelasgians, early inhabitants of the Aegean area, of vague identity, dispersed and assimilated by the Achaians. (M.I.) a 5:485
Pelava a character - a disciple of Bharat, the Preceptor of the Arts in Heaven - in the play Vikramorvasie, Sri Aurobindo's translation of the drama of Kalidasa. Var: Pellava a 7:909, 951-52
Peleid in Greek legend, a title of Achilles (son of Peleus). The term is derived from the Greek Peleides. The Latin form is PELIDES. (M.I.; Web.) n 5:458, 464, 467
Peleus in Greek legend, son of Aeacus and king of the MYRMIDONS. For his virtue, he was given
THETIS, the sea-nymph, as wife, and she bore him Achilles. (M.I.; Web.) 5:405, 414, 420, 464-65.467, 473-74, 476, 479, 483, 516 12:37 11:26 VI: 134
Pelides in Greek legend, an epithet of Achilles (son of Peleus). See also Peleid. (M.I.) Der:Pelidean 5:421, 452, 458, 463, 468, 477, 487-88, 490, 513, 517-18 11:26 VI:135
Pelion a mountain of eastern Thessaly (Greece), near the Aegean coast. According to ancient legend, the centaurs lived on this mountain, and the giants Aloidae once piled Pelion on Ossa to reach heaven. (Col. Enc.) n 5:498 9:150
Pellava See Pelava
Pellico, Silvio (1789-1854), Italian patriot and dramatist. His Le mie prigioni (1832; English translation. My Prisons, 1853), memoirs of his sufferings as a political prisoner, inspired widespread sympathy for the-Italian nationalist movement, the Risorgimento. (Enc. Br.) 1:335.362
Pelops in Greek mythology, son of Tantalus. In childhood he was killed and cooked by his father, who served his flesh to the gods to see if they could tell it was not that of a beast. Demeter inadvertently ate part of his shoulder. The gods brought Pelops back to life, replacing his lost part bv ivory, and punished his father with everlasting torture. Later, Pelops, to win the hand of Hippo- damia, had to outdistance her father Oeno- maus, king of Elis, in a chariot race. He bribed the king's charioteer to wreck the chariot in the race and thus won the bride. But he refused to give the charioteer his promised reward and threw him into the sea. The dying man cursed Pelops and this curse continued to work its effects on Pelops' family. Succeeding to the throne of Oeno- maus as king of Elis, Pelops subjugated the rest of the Peloponnesus (the peninsula constituting southern Greece), to which he gave its name. meaning "Pelops' island". (M.I.) D 5:422, 436, 479 7:1016
Penal Code, Indian a code of law, introduced in 1860, that established a uniform system of penal laws all over British India. It was the fruit of the labours of the Law Commission appointed during the Governor-Generalship of Lord William Bentinck (1828-35), of which Lord Macaulay was the most important member. (D.I.H.) a 1:215, 270, 393, 423, 529, 531
Page 244
Penates more properly Di Penates, household gods of the Romans and other Latin peoples. They are associated with other deities of the house, such as Vesta and the LARES. The Penates were worshipped privately as protectors of the individual household and also publicly as protectors of the Roman state. (Enc. Br.) XVI: 141
Peneus a river in Thessaly in northern Greece. (M.I.) 5:414, 464
Pentateuch the first five books of the Old Testament (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy) - traditionally ascribed to Moses, the recipient of the original revelation on Mt. Sinai. (Enc. Br.) l-l 10:547
Pentaur an ancient Egyptian poet who wrote on the conquests of RAMESES. 26:234
Pentecostal of Pentecost, a major festival in the Christian Church, celebrated on the Sunday that falls on the 50th day after Easter. The Christian Pentecost commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit on the disciples, which occurred on the Jewish Pentecost (a Jewish harvest festival), after the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. (Enc. Br.) 3:444
Penthesilea in Greek mythology, queen of the Amazons and daughter of Ares. She came to the aid of the Trojans in the last year of the war after Hector was killed and gave them new hope, slaughtering the Greeks, who fought without Achilles. Her beauty was such that it is told that when Achilles, finally killing her in battle, removed her helmet and looked on her face, he fell wildly in love with her and was filled with remorse. (M.I.) 5:400-01, 404, 406-08, 412, 427, 430, 439. 443-44, 455-60, 465-68, 470, 474-75, 477, 493, 514-17 VI:134
Percival a contemporary of LITTLETON. (A) 3:486-88
Percy, Thomas (1729-1811), antiquary scholar and bishop whose collection of ballads etc. (see Reliques) awakened widespread interest in English and Scottish traditional songs, formerly ignored in literary circles. (Enc. Br.) II:, l8
Pere Goriot hero of the French novel Le Pere Goriot, a masterpiece of Balzac. (Ox. Comp.) n 3:307
The Perennial Philosophy a book by Aldous
Huxley, first published in 1944. It is a compilation/nostly of writings of mystics and religious figures. (A) 0 22:126 26:85
Pergama a name of Troy, meaning "citadel". (M.I.) Der: Pergaman 5:358, 392-93, 396, 401, 405, 419, 457, 460
Peri in Persian mythology, supernatural female being, comparable to fairies and elves. (Col. Enc.) a 5:261, 263
Pericarpus in Sri Aurobindo's drama Perseus the Deliverer, name of a Syrian soldier. (A) D 6: 102
Pericles (c. 495-429 sc), Athenian statesman who brought ancient Athenian democracy to its height and nearly established Athens as the leading power in Greece. He was a great patron of arts and encouraged music and drama. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Periclean 3:10 9:410 14:27, 192 15:89
Perigune in Greek legend, a daughter of Sinis (see Sinnis. a misspelling), the "Pine- bender". (N.C.C.H.) D 5:34
Perissus a character - a citizen and a butcher - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, 6:3, 101, 110-14.135, 139, 143, 145-47, 152-56, 167-69, 171-72, 177-78, 180-81, 190-91, 198
Perizade a Persian term, meaning literally "born of a fairy", used for a character in the dialogue "Dinshaw-Perizade" and for some- one in "Fragment of a Drama". 3:475-76 7:1086
Permanent Settlement a system of land tenure and revenue collection introduced in Bengal (then including Bihar and Orissa) by Lord Cornwallis in 1793. According to it the zamindar was recognised as the proprietor of the land on condition that he paid to the Government 90% of the estimated annual revenue that he received from the ryots who held lands at his pleasure. Diametrically opposite views were expressed as to its benefits to the Government, the zamindar, and the people. (The system was abolished in West Bengal some time after indepen- dence.) (D.I.H.) 1:90, 240
Persepolis ancient city, ceremonial capital of the Persian empire under Darius and his successors. The administrative capitals were elsewhere - notably at Susa and Babylon. (Col. Enc.) 6:350, 353-54, 394, 399-401
Perseus in Greek legend, son of Zeus and Danae; slayer of the Gorgon Medusa and rescuer of Andromeda from a sea monster. He is the hero of Sri Aurobindo's drama
Page 245
Perseus the Deliverer. (A) 6:1, 3, 9-10, 15-21, 23-26, 66-74, 82-89, 95-96, 126-27, 129-30, 161-65, 172-73, 175, 177-81, 183-85, 188, 190-91, 193-201 XIV: 168
Perseus the Deliverer a play by Sri Aurobindo, written between 1906 and 1907. It first appeared serially in the weekly Bande Mataram, and was reproduced with the author's revisions and some additional passages in Collected Poems and Plays (1942). Two scenes of the 1906-07 version were rediscovered and included in the text when the drama appeared separately in book form in 1955. (I&G) a 26:44, 254, 256 XIV: 168
Persia the name used for centuries, mostly in the West, for the kingdom of Iran in south- western Asia. (Enc. Br.) Der: Persian (in senses other than the language) n 1:242, 261, 310, 391, 481, 506, 520, 527, 576, 619-20, 769, 815 2: 35, 117-18, 192-93, 248-49, 274, 278, 390, 406 3: 10, 198-99 4: 187-88, 214 5: 176, 272, 277 6: 362, 380 7: 561, 579, 590, 592, 603-05, 607, 621, 704 8:61 9:237, 410 11:4 14:148, 190-91, 223, 241, 253, 329, 366, 373 15: 33, 178, 324, 343, 412, 444, 447, 467, 501-02, 506, 646 16: 407 17: 185, 278, 299, 302, 306-07 22: 417" 26: 233 27: 122 I: 31 II: 38 III: 24 XV: 5 XVI: 134, 180 XVII: 11, 43
Persia, the evidently, the name of a ship that was stranded sometime before 16 July 1912. (A) D XX: 130
Persian (language) member of the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian language family. It is the official language of Iran (Persia) and is also widely spoken in Afghanistan. Written in Arabic characters, modern Persian also has many Arabic loan-words and an exten- sive literature. (Enc.Br.) a ll: 506 17: 307 26: 234 I: 25 XV: 17
Persian Eclogues by Collins, published in 1742 (2nd edition: Oriental Eclogues, 1757). He composed them at the age of seventeen under the influence of Pope's Pastorals. (Enc. Br.) n II: 13
Persian Gulf an arm (length 420 miles) of the Arabian Sea, between Arabia and Iran. (Web.) a i: 804
Peru a country, now a republic, of western South America, astride the Andes Mountains. Lima is its capital. (Col. Enc.) Der: Peruvian a 1:306, 389 14:10, 77 15: 323 III: 11
Peshawar capital of the North-West Frontier Province of British India, (now in Pakistan). It occupies an important strategic position. (Enc. Br.) 1:140
Peshwas' hereditary sovereigns (earlier, chief ministers) of the Maratha state in India. The first Peshwa, also called "Mukhya Pradhan", was the chief minister of Shivaji. In the reign of Shahu, with the appointment, in 1720, of Baji Rao I, the office practically became hereditary. In 1749, on the death of childless Raja Shahu, the Peshwaship became the supreme office in the Maratha state, and the history of the Marathas merged in the history of the Peshwas. They became very powerful and aimed at establishing a Maratha empire in place of the Moghul. After the Third Maratha War (1817-19), in which the Peshwa was decisively defeated, the Peshwaship was abolished. (C.O.D.;D.I.H.) D 14:364, 380
Pestalozzi, Johann Heinrich (1746-1827), Swiss educational reformer who was among the first to stress the need for better popular education. His theories laid the foundation of modern elementary education. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) n 14:66
Peter, St. (died c. 64), "prince of the Apostles", recognized in the early Christian Church as the leader of the disciples of Jesus Christ and by the Roman Catholic Church as the first of its unbroken succession of popes. His original name was Simeon, but Jesus gave him the nickname Cephas, i.e. "Rock". Hence Peter, from the Greek "petros" (Latin "petrus"). (Col. Enc.; Enc.Br.) n i: 699 4:334 26:259 29:798 VII: 9, 22
Peters Probably the following rulers (empe- rors and czars) of Russia are meant: Peter I or Peter the Great (1672-1725), emperor (1721-25) and czar (1682-1725); Peter II (1715-30), emperor and czar (1727-30); Peter III (1728-62), emperor and czar (1762). (Col. Enc.) a 15:356, 513
Peter the Great See under Peters a 15:357
Petlad a town in the former princely state of Baroda (now in the state of Gujarat), about 50 miles south of Ahmedabad. (A; S. Atlas) n 27:116
Petman apparently, one of the counsels for the prosecution in the Patiala Case (c. 1910) (A) n 2: 370
Petrarch Francesco Petrarca (1304-74), Italian poet, scholar and humanist whose poems, addressed to Laura, an idealized beloved, inspired the Renaissance flowering of lyric poetry in Italy, France, Spain, and England. (Enc. Br.) a 9:61 I: 7
Petrograd former name of Leningrad (Russia), from 1914 to 1924. (Web.) a 4: 24
Page 246
Petrus probably the name of a woman of Pondicherry. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct.'27]
Petucchur in the Mahabharata, name of a country and its people and king who migrated south out of fear of JARASANDHA. (M.N.) D 8: 41
Pfleiderer, Otto (1839-1908), German Protestant theologian and religious historian. (Enc. Br.) a 16: 336
Phaethon in Greek mythology, son of Helios (Sun-god), who drove his father's chariot one day in spite of the warning of Helios. The horses bolted from the course. To save the earth from being burnt up, Zeus hurled a thunderbolt at Phaethon, who fell into the River Eridanus (later identified variously by the ancients, often with the Po in Italy). His sisters wept for him till they were turned into poplars; their tears, oozing from the trees, are hardened into amber. (O.C.C.L.) a 5:7
Pharaohs generic name or title of ancient Egyptian kings. It is a Greek form derived from a Hebrew version of the Egyptian word meaning "great house", signifying the royal palace, but used, in the New Kingdom and after, as a title of respect to the Egyptian king himself. In the 22nd dynasty the title was added to the king's personal name. (Enc. Br.) D l: 413 XIII: 44
Pharatus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, one of Penthesilea's captains. (M.I.) a 5:455, 516-17
(Pharisaical) of the PHARISEES a 1:257, 305, 903 2:4 IV:170
(Pharisees) members of ancient Jewish sect distinguished by strict observance of traditional and written law and pretensions to sanctity. Pharisees were one of the two great Jewish religious parties that arose within the synagogue. The opponents were the SADDUCEES. (C.O.D.;Col.Enc.) 0 1: 277, 863 2: 218 3: 177 14: 79 16: 211 17: 133, 138, 163
Phamabazus (fl. late 5th and early 4th century Be), Persian soldier and statesman, hereditary satrap of Dascylium under Darius II and Artaxerxes II. He was governor of the Persian province of the Hellespont and an outstanding military and naval commander in Persia's wars against Athens and Sparta. (Enc.Br.)
[From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Pharphar title of a poem written by ARJAVA on a river of this name. It is very probably an imaginary river. (Col. Enc.; A) n 9: 357-58
Pharsalia an ancient Greek district of Thessaly surrounding the city of Pharsalus. (Web.) a v:63
Pharsalus an ancient city in Thessaly (Greece). It was the scene of a battle (48 Be) of the Roman Civil War in which Caesar defeated Pompey. (Web.) a 5:516
Phayllus a character - Chancellor of Syria - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. 0 6: 333, 343-45, 365-70, 372-75, 377, 385, 388-90, 394, 397-98, 400, 404, 406, 408-12, 421-27, 436, 438-41, 444-47, 450-56, 459-60, 463-64, 466-68
Pheidias See Phidias
Phelps, Myron Myron H. Phelps, a member of the New York Bar. He was a sincere well-wisher of the Indian nation. In June 1907 he addressed a letter to the Indians, pointing to the necessity of more orgnaised propaganda for the Indian cause in America. He drew their attention to "some remarkable parallelisms" between the American freedom movement and the Swadeshi movement then going on in India, relating how the American people, indignant at the British policy of systematic exploitation, expressed their grievances by the refusal to buy English goods. (I.F.F.) a 1:615
Pherozshah, Sir See Mehta, Sir Pherozshah
Phidias (c. 500 - c. 432 Be), Greek sculptor, considered the greatest artist of ancient Greece. (Col. Enc.) Var: Pheidias a 5:254 9:61, 333, 381 14:228, 231 15: 91 17: 303 XIV: 116
Philip a character paricipating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) which Sri Aurobindo seems to have written at Cambridge in 1891. (A&R-II, p.91) n 11:8
Philip (of Macedon) Philip II (382-336 Be), king of Macedon (359-336 Be). He unified his nation and made it supreme in Greece, laying the foundations for the great expan- sion accomplished by his son Alexander the Great. (Enc. Br.) a 14:328 15:343 16:90
Phillip II (1527-98), king of Spain (1556-98), and also of the Netherlands, Franche Comte, Sicily, Sardinia, Naples, and Milan, as well as the Spanish possessions in America. He was the most powerful monarch in Christen- dom, determined to strengthen royal power in Spain. His ambitious foreign policy led him to aim at the subjugation of England, to intervene actively in the struggles of France, and to war
Page 247
with the powerful Ottoman Empire. (R. Enc.) n 3: 193 15: 357
Philip IV apparently, Philip IV "the Fair" (1268-1314), king of France (1285-1314). He was one of the greatest kings of France's Capetian dynasty; he established his author- ity in ecclesiastical matters over the papacy and instituted important reforms in govern- ment. In 1303 he deposed Pope Boniface VIII and transferred the papacy to Avigpon. (P.P.; Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Philippines group of about 7100 islands and islets off Southeast Asia, in the Malay Archipelago, now constituting the Republic of the Philippines (proclaimed in 1946). (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a l: 260 15:328, 333, 508 26: 395
Philip Polo name (real or made up) of a resident ofMymensingh around 1910. The Englishmen who assaulted an innocent Pundit at Goalundo came to Mymensingh the next day and stayed at Polo's bungalow for a day. (A) a 4: 248
Philistia ancient region of southwestern Palestine, comprising a fertile plain ex- tending to the Mediterranean and including a portion of South Canaan. (Col. Enc.) Der: Philistian a 5: 14 6: 8
Philistine member of a warlike people of Aegean origin who settled on the southern coast of Palestine in the 12th century BC shortly before the arrival of the Israelites. The use of the term Philistine for a person deficient in liberal culture and whose chief interests are material, prosaic, and common- place arose in the mid-19th century. It was popularised by English authors. The term is now often used of those who oppose innova- tions in the arts. (Enc. Br.) Der: Philistinism l: 13, 277 3: 99 15: 79-80, 82, 85, 88, 151 III: 7, 14 XIII: 47
Phillips, Stephen (1864-1915), English poet and actor who was briefly successful as a playwright. (Enc. Br.) a 9:2, 157, 163, 174, 184, 461 26:254, 264-67, 273, 312
Philo or Philo Judaeus (c. 20 BC - c. AD 50), Alexandrian Jewish philosopher. His doc- trines had an extraordinary influence on both Jewish and Christian religious writings. (Col. Enc.) a 16:368
Philoctetes' in Greek mythology, king of the Malians of Mt. Oeta. He was a friend of Hercules and inherited his bow and poisoned arrows. On the way to the Trojan War, he was bitten by a snake, and his
companions left hnn on the desolate island of Lemnos. When the oracle declared that Troy would not be taken without the weapons of Her- cules, Philoctetes was brought by Diomedes and Odysseus to Troy, where he was healed of his wound by Machson, son of the physi- cian Asclepius. Philoctetes killed Paris in the war. (Col. Enc.) a 5:491
Philoctetes2 a character - companion of Antiochus - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodo- gune. 0 6:333, 346-49, 394-95, 397, 404, 408-10, 413, 426-27, 435-37, 442-43, 449, 455, 461-62, 464, 469
The Philosophy of Benedetto Croce a book by Carr, published in 1917. (A) a 9:485
Phineus' in Greek legend, the blind and aged king whom the Argonauts (a band of fifty heroes sent to fetch the Golden Fleece in the ship "Argo") met at the entrance to the Euxine. Phineus told them the course to Colchis and how to pass through the Cya- nean rocks - two cliffs that moved on their bases and crushed whoever sought to pass through them. (Enc. Br.) n 26:245 29:791, 807
Phineus2 a character - King of Tyre - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, a 6:3, 13, 22, 24, 29, 36-37, 44, 48-56, 62-64, 100-04, 107-08, 111, 113-14, 134, 150, 152-54, 181, 190-97
Phliaps in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune, a Syrian leader. 1-1 6:412
Phoces in Sri Aurobindo's llion, a Phthian warrior, Amarus' son. He is the first man to be slain in llion (by Helanus). (M.I.) a 5:518 VI: 135
Phocian (inhabitant) of Phocis, a country of central Greece comprising the middle Cephissus valley and the valley of Crisa, which are linked loosely by passes over the southern spurs ofMt. Parnassus. (O.C1.D.) a 5:488, 508
Phoebus in Greek mythology, epithet of Apollo in his aspect of sun-god and dispenser of light. He took on many aspects of the older sun-god Helios. (M.I.) a 5:428, 437, 442-43, 446, 489 6:91 17:257 26:345
Phoenicia ancient name given to a region corresponding to modern Lebanon with adjoining parts of modern Syria and Israel. The Phoenicians were merchants and manufacturers, and very skilful in shipbuilding and navigation. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; M.I.) Der: Phoenician a 2:34 5:419 6:12-13, 191, 195 14:392 16:406 17:195
Page 248
Phraates in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune, father of Rodogune and king of Parthia. Historically, the Phraates were kings of Parthia of the dynasty of Arsaces. (Col. Enc.) a 6:333, 380, 394, 399, 430, 432, 436, 447
Phrinix in Sri Aurobindo's epic Ilion, father of Ascanus, a Phthian warrior. (M.I.) 0 VI: 135
Phrygia ancient region which included varying portions of the central plateau and western flank of Asia Minor. In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, the Phrygians are identified with the Trojans, as sometimes in Greek literature, and seem to be regarded as descendants of PHRYX. (M.I.) Der: Phrygian a 5:392-93, 403, 407-08, 418, 456, 464, 468, 480, 485, 553 9:400 11:32 XV: 20
Phryne nickname of the famous Athenian courtesan Muesarete (fl. 4th cent. Be). She was charged with impiety and defended by Hyperides, a distinguished Attic orator who was one of her lovers. He secured her ac- quittal by appealing to the sentiments of the jury, throwing open her dress and show- ing the beauty of her bosom. (Enc. Br.; Col.Enc.;O.C.C.L.) D 3:297 X: 161
Phryx in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, the primeval founder of Troy. (M.I.) a 5:402, 410, 412, 417, 434
Phthia a district and town of Thessaly, Greece. It was the realm of Achilles. The term "Phthian" has therefore frequently been used, in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, as an epithet of Achilles. (M.I.) Der: Phthian(s) 5: 397, 401-02, 406-07, 438, 456, 459, 464, 466, 468, 470-71, 474, 483, 486-87, 491, 514, 516 VI: 134
Pickwick, Mr. the main character of Dickens' novel The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club (1836-37). The allusion here (3: 144) is to the scene where Mr. Pickwick accuses Mr. Blotton of acting in a "vile and calumnious manner", whereupon Mr. Blotton retorts by calling Mr. Pickwick a humbug. It finally is made to appear that both use the offensive words only in a Pick- wickian sense and that each has, in fact, the highest regard for the other. (The expression "in a Pickwickian sense" refers to words or epithets usually of a derogatory or insulting kind, which, in the circumstances in which they are employed, are not to be taken as having quite the same force or implication as they normally would have.) (R. Enc.) Der: Pickwickian o 3: 144
Pictish of Picts, a Scottish people who forged their own kingdom before uniting in AD 843 with the rest of Scotland. (Enc. Br.) a 7: 883, 886
Piedmont a region of northwestern Italy. It was a major battlefield in the Italian Wars (16th century), the wars of Louis XIV, and the French Revolutionary Wars. The dukes of Savoy, who in 1720 became kings of Sardinia, acquired all of present Piedmont by 1748. From 1798 to 1814 Piedmont was annexed to France. After its restoration to the kingdom of Sardinia it was the nucleus of Italian unification during the Risorgimento. (Col. Enc.) o l: 506, 766, 876 9: 325
Pierre, Gaston, an active and strong supporter of Lemaire in the 1914 election to the French Chamber. He came to Pondicherry as a judge, but later resigned, started a practice and soon became an eminent lawyer. (A) D 27: 442, 445, 448-50
Pilate See (Pontius) Pilate
Pilgrim's Progress, The a book by John Bunyan, a symbolic vision of the good man's pilgrimage through life, at one time second only to the Bible in popularity in England. It is in two parts: Part I was published in 1678 and Part II in 1684. (Enc. Br.) 23:789 24: 1634 26:464
Pillai, Chidambaram V. 0. Chidambaram Pillai (1872-1936), a nationalist pleader of Tuticorin, South India, who courageously and successfully fought for the cause of the labourers in the Coral Mills and floated the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company. The latter step particularly went very much against British interests in India and they implicated him in a false case. In 1908 he was sentenced to transportation for life, but the sentence was reduced by the High Court to six years' imprisonment. (P.T.I.; Auro-I; Tamil Reader-111) 1:727, 745, 752, 793, 797, 803, 805 2: 76, 137 4: 242
Pillay, Vishambhar imaginary name of a supposed leader of the secret society sup- plied to GOSSAIN in the jail by a pretended approver in the Alipore Bomb Trial. (A) 4: 296
Pinaka in Hindu mythology, the bow of the god Shiva. Pinaka was formerly the three- forked spike (trident) of Shiva. Once it fell down from his hands and took the shape of a bow. From then onwards it was used as a bow. (Pur. Enc.) 3:308
Page 249
Pindi See Rawalpindi
Pindi Das (1886-1969), better known as Lala Pindi Dass, a journalist, who started an Urdu weekly The India from Gujranwala in Punjab (now in Pakistan) in 1907. A special feature of the journal was the publication, under the pen name of Shiv Shambhoo, of a series of articles called "Shiv Shambhoo ka Chittha" which exposed the misdeeds of British officials. He was a revolutionary in the beginning, but later on joined the Congress and professed the principle of non- violence. (D.N.B.) a 1: 433
Pindus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Phthian warrior, brother of Zethus. (M.I.) D 5: 514-15
Pineus a river in the Peloponnesus (southernmost region of continental Greece), emptying into the Ionian Sea. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) a 5: 411
Pioneer English daily newspaper (tri-weekly from 1865 to 1869), founded in 1865 by George Alien. The paper was originally published from Allahabad. Later on it was shifted to Lucknow. For all intents and purposes, the Pioneer was an official organ of the British government. (Cal. Lib.; N.S.I.;S.F.F, p.l031) n 1:132, 155-56, 174, 189, 196, 242, 267, 479, 527, 630, 632
Pippa the main character, an imaginative creation, in Pippa Passes, a brief but delightful poetic drama by Robert Browning. Pippa is a little Italian girl of Asolo who on New Year's Day passes singing through the streets and by her songs changes the life of other persons. (Enc. Am.) D 27: 132
Pippalada name of a Rishi mentioned in the Prashna Upanishad. D 12: 295-96, 299, 302, 305, 309, 311-12 VIII: 184
Pisachas; Pisachi See Pis(h)achas
Pisgah the mountain ridge from which Moses viewed the Promised Land. It is in Jordan, just east of the northern Dead Sea and of the southern Jordan valley. (C.O.D.; Col. Enc.) D 3: 66
Pis(h)achas (anti-divine) beings of the lower vital plane. In the mythology of India, the Pishacha is a fiend or evil spirit, said to drink blood and to rend human flesh. In the evolutionary scale of man, the Pishacha is the third type from below of the ten forms of consciousness. The Pishacha mind is concentrated on the senses and the knowledge part of the citta. (A & R, XII: 216; Enc. Br.; A) Der: Pis(h)achi (the feminine form) 0 4:12, 22, 24, 91, 121,
165-66, 247 12: 532 13: 455 17:73 18: 603 20: 222 22: 382, 394-96 24: 1094, 1648 25: 27, 62 'VI: 183-84, 187, 189-90 XII: 194 XIX: 24
Pisistratus (c. 605-527 BC) , Greek statesman, tyrant of Athens. He had an official text of Homer written down, probably the first. (Col. Enc.) n 3:142
Pitriloka in Hindu religion, the second of the eight lokas or regions of material existence recognised by the Sankhya and Vedanta schools of philosophy; the loka of the Pitris, Rishis, and Prajapatis; the world of divinised ancestors. The Pitris are the fathers, the Manes. (Dow.) D 4:80 11:453'
Pizarro, Francisco (c. 1475-1541), Spanish conquistador, conqueror of the Inca Empire of Peru. (Enc.Br.) a 15:323
Planck, Max (Kari Ernst Ludwig) (1858- 1947), German theoretical physicist who originated the quantum theory. He was awarded the 1918 Nobel Prize for physics. (Enc.Br.) a 22:471, 473
Plantagenet a surname commonly applied to members of the royal house of England between 1154 and 1485, the members of which descended from the union between Geoffrey, Count of Anjou (d. 1151), and the Empress Matilda, daughter of the English king Henry I. (Enc.Br.) n 15:356 18:436
Plassey historic village in Nadia district of West Bengal. It was the scene of the decisive victory of the army of the East India Com- pany led by Robert Clive over the army of Nawab Sirajuddaulah of Bengal on 23 June 1757. The battle was a mere skirmish and lasted only a few hours, but its results were far-reaching, since it marked the beginning of British domination of India. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) a 1:492 8: 341 27: 124'
Plataea ancient city in southern Boetia (Greece), below the modern village of Plataiai. It was the site of a Greek victory during the Greco-Persian Wars. (Enc.Br.) D 1: 116
Plato (c. 428-348/347 Be), the second of the great trio of ancient Greeks - Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle who laid the philosophical foundations of Western culture and developed a wide-ranging system of philosophy that was strongly ethical while remaining basically rationalistic. Plato was a pupil and friend of Socrates. In Athens he founded a school in the grove of Academus, the Academy, where he taught mathematics and philosophy until his death. Plato's greatest work is contained in his dialogues.
Page 250
"Irish Plato" (3: 3) is a reference to Oscar Wilde. (Enc.Br.;Col.Enc.) Der: Platonic; Platonist 3: pre., 3, 11, 72, 431 7: 855 8: 411 9: 167. 241, 331, 381, 545-47 10: 4, 25 11: 7, 17 12: 47, 499 14: 56-57, 99, 147, 270 15:90 16:102, 110, 339, 341, 354, 356, 362, 366, 370 17:245, 388 18:299 19: 763 22: 423, 454 26: 383 II: 6 III: 14 V: 93 XIII: 45 XIV: 127, 163 XVII: 7
Plaza Mayor name of a square in Madrid, Spain. (Enc. Br.) a 7: 873
Pleasures of Imagination the poem of Akenside by which he is best known. It is an eclectic philosophical essay written in blank verse derived from Milton's and modelled on the Roman poets Virgil and Horace. It first appeared in three books in 1744; a fourth was added later. (Enc. Br.) a 11:15
Pliny Pliny the Younger (61/62 -C.I 13), Roman author and administrator who left a collection of private letters of great literary charm, intimately illustrating public and private life in the heyday of the Roman Empire. The first nine of the ten books of Pliny's correspondence belong to the years 97-109, and were published during his lifetime. Unlike Cicero's letters, they were written, or rewritten, with a view to pub- lication. (Enc. Br.;O.Cl.D.) I: 8
Plotinus (c. 205-270), philosopher and religious genius, a native of Egypt, who transformed a revival of Platonism in the Roman Empire into what modern scholars call Neoplatonism, a school of thought which exercised great inflluence on Islamic and European thought until the late 17th cen- tury. (Enc.Br.) 9:381, 546 17:388 23: 555
Plutarch (c. 46- after 119), Greek essayist and biographer whose works strongly influ- enced the evolution of the essay, the biog- raphy, and historical writing in Europe from the 16th to the 19th century. The English translation of his great work The Parallel Lives supplied the factual bases for Shakes- peare's Coriolanus, Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, and Timon of Athens. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 4:.284 27:80
Pluto in Greek mythology, god of the underworld, also called Hades. Pluto means literally "wealth"; the ancients commonly used this term as a euphemism for Hades, who was possessor of all the rich metals and gems of the earth. He is known to the Romans as Orcus or Dis. (Pears) 5:33
Plutus in Greek religion, god of abundance or wealth, a personification of 'ploutos' (Greek word for 'riches'). (Enc. Br.) a 6: 188-89
P.M. In Record of Yoga, used for Sir Pherozshah Mehta. See Mehta, Sir Pherozshah
Pocock Edward Pocock(e) (1604-91), English Orientalist. (Col. Enc.) 3: 198
Poems' a collection of six poems of Sri Aurobindo, published in 1941. Three of these poems first appeared in the Calcutta Review of October 1934; all the six were included in Collected Poems and Plays (1942). 26:254
Poems' a collection of poems by Arj ava, published in 1939. 9:356, 409
Poems - Past and Present a collection of eight poems of Sri Aurobindo, published by the Ashram in 1946. Five of these had been written in the late 1930s. (I & G) n 26:153
Poerio, Carlo (1803-67), the younger of the two Italian brothers distinguished for their services to Liberalism in the Italian Risorgi- mento. Poerio was active in the revolution of 1848. In 1851 he was sentenced with his fellow Liberals to twenty-four years in irons. The case became notorious throughout Europe, but Poerio was not released until 1859. (Enc. Br.) Var: Poeris (a misprint) 0 1: 335, 362
Poeseidon See Poseidon, the correct spelling of the name.
Poetry American literary magazine (monthly), founded in 1912; it was published from Chicago and edited by Harriet Monroe. (Cal.Lib.;H.L., p.261) 17: 321
A Poet's Stammer poem (composed in 1937) by K. D. Sethna, editor of the Ashram monthly journal Mother India. It was iden- tified by Sri Aurobindo as an example of poetry of the intuitive mind. 9:351
Poincare, Raymond (1860-1934), French statesman who was the 9th president of France (1913-20), and four times its premier. In "Record of Yoga", Sri Aurobindo some- times abbreviated his name to Pe. (Enc. W.B.) 27: 450 XX: 124 XXI: 89-90
Poison-Tree See Bis(h)abriksha
Polak probably, Graham Polak who, along with his wife, lived as part of Gandhiji's household for many years in South Africa, perhaps from 1904 to 1914. (Enc. Ind.) 2: 301-02 4: 224
Page 251
Poland a country (presently a socialist republic) in east central Europe. Warsaw is its capital. (Col. Enc.) Der: Poles; Polish I: 526 15: 291, 293, 298-99, 357, 375, 413, 419, 505, 512-13, 518, 625 17:386 XUI: 45
Pole See North Pole
Polites in Greek legend, son of Priam and Hecuba. He was a swift runner, and so was used as a scout. (M.I.) 5: 460
Pollux See Castor and Pollux
Polonius a character in Shakespeare's Hamlet, an old courtier given to offering unwelcome advice. (Ox. Comp.) 26:67
Poludeukes strict transliteration of the Greek form of the Latin name Pollux. a 10: 318
Polydamas in Greek legend, a son of Panthous, noted for his sage advice. In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, he seems to be a son of Antenor (see Eurus) already slain before the opening of the poem. (M.I.) n 5:439, 443-46, 456, 459
Polydaon a character - priest of Poseidon, the sea-god - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. D 6:3, 11-12, 22-24, 29, 36-37, 43-56, 64, 84, 97-114, 119, 122-24, 127, 135, 137, 139-41, 143-44, 146-51, 155-56, 166-73, 176-78, 180 XIV: 168
Polydeuces Latinised transliteration of the Greek form of the Latin name Pollux. See Castor and Pollux.
Polyxena in Greek legend, Trojan princess, daughter of Priam and Hecuba. After the fall of Troy Achilles' ghost claimed her as his prize and she was sacrificed on his tomb. Hence the story, adopted in Ilion, that the two were in love in life. (M.I.) Q 5:402, 404, 414, 421, 455, 467, 489-90
Pompey Pompey the Great, anglicized form of the Latin Gracus Pompeius Magnus (106-48 BC), one of the greatest statesmen and generals of the late Roman Republic. He was an associate and later opponent of Julius Caesar, who defeated him at PHARSALUS. Pursued by Caesar, Pompey moved on to Cilicia and Cyprus and thence to Egypt, where he was murdered. (Enc. Br.) D XIII: 44
Pondicherry a former French territory (from 1816 to 1954), the largest of the settlements constituting French India, having the town of Pondicherry as its capital. In 1954 the French settlements were merged
with the Republic of India as a centrally governed Union territory named Pondicherry, with four constituents: Pondicherry (an enclave within South Arcot district of Tamil Nadu state,113.1 sq. miles), Karaikal (an enclave within Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu, 62.8 sq. miles) , 'Mahe (an enclave within Cannanore district ofKerala, 3.5 sq. miles), and Yanam (an enclave within East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, 7.8 sq. miles). The town of Pondicherry lies 105 miles to the south of Madras. Its main attraction is the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. (The Hindu, 18-10-78) 2:413 4: pre., 325, 327 9:330 17:403 22: 40 23: 1051 24: 1657, 1659, 1662 25: 98 26: 12, 18-19, 26-27, 36-37, 57-58, 60-61, 63, 65-66, 68, 71, 153, 169, 244, 252, 364-65, 374, 417, 421, 423, 429-30, 432, 435-36, 438, 479-80 27: pre., 161, 197, 349, 416-17, 422, 425, 427, 431, 438-39, 443-47, 449-50, 469, 471, 474, 485, 494-95, 498, 500-01 29: 790 I: 18, 32 II: 24 V: 101 VII: 1, 11, 23 X: 186-87 XV: 61 XVI: 193-94 XVII: 65-66, 69-70 XIX: 56 XXI: 11 XXII: 138
Pontic of Pontus, an ancient region on the Black Sea coast in northeastern Asia Minor. "Pontic waters" therefore means Pontus Euxinus or Black Sea. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) D 5:439
(Pontius)-Pilate (d. after AD 36), Roman procurator of Judaea (c. 26-36/37) who condemned Jesus Christ to be crucified. Various legends stressing Pilate's efforts to release Jesus, whom he considered innocent but whom he condemned in order to escape accusation of disloyalty to the Emperor, made him almost a hero in some Christian traditions. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 0 1: 597 17: 163-65
Poona an important city of the former Bombay Presidency, some 100 miles south- east of the city of Bombay. Now known as "Pune", it is the administrative headquarters of Pune district and division in the state of Maharashtra. Called the "Queen of the Deccan", Pune is the cultural capital of Maharashtra. (Enc. Br.) 0 1: 363, 475, 479-80, 600, 635, 658, 684, 818-19, 825-26, 897 2: 75-76, 79, 113, 138, 153, 297 4: 179, 203, 211, 222, 225, 250-51, 268 26: 49, 58 27: 62, 64, 66 I: 1 VIII: 121 XV: 64
Pope, Alexander (1688-1744), outstanding poet of the English AUGUSTAN period. (Enc.Br.) D 3:71, 106, 156 9:26-27, 51, 53, 78, 80, 86-87, 91, 113, 132, 161, 246, 272, 377, 387, 421, 425, 472, 478-79 26: 254 29: 754, 758, 800 I: 9-13, 15 II: 11-17, 19
Porte, the "Sublime Porte", name used by Europeans to designate the government of Ottoman Turkey. It is a translation of the Turkish "Babiali" (High Gate), meaning the entrance to the grand vizier's palace in Istanbul. (Enc. Br.) XXII: 132
Portugal a country occupying the western section of the Iberian Peninsula at the , extreme west of the European continent. (Enc. Br.) Der: Portuguese D 15:328, 445, 505
Page 252
Poseidon in Greek mythology, the sea-god, protector of all waters. He bore the trident, and when he shook it he caused storms and , earthquakes. A brother of Zeus, he was a son of the Titans Cronus and Rhea. With Apollo, he built the walls of Troy for Lao- medon, whose failure to pay for the work turned Poseidon against the Trojans. The Romans identified Poseidon with Neptune. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) Var: Poeseidon (a misprint) n 5:394, 401, 422, 427, 429, 433-34, 439, 444, 469, 471, 494, 504-06, 510 6: 1, 3, 5-12, 14, 16, 21-23, 27-28, 34-35, 40, 42-46, 49-52, 60-61, 70, 73, 82-83, 85, 87, 90, 95, 97-104, 107, 111-15, 117-19, 121-24, 127, 135, 138-39, 141, 143-47, 149-52, 154-55, 161-62, 166, 169-71, 173-74, 178-79, 187, 192-93, 200 7: 1075 8: 409 17:257 XIV:168
Posen German form of Poznan, city and capital of the province of Posen in west central Poland. (Enc. Br.) 15: 299 27: 466
Pound, Ezra Ezra (Loomis) Pound (1885-1972), American poet and critic of outstanding importance in the history of 20th-century English letters. (Enc. Br.) D 29: 780
Poundra (Pundra), name of an ancient country that was conquered by Pandu. According to modem scholars Pundra included the region covered by the modem district of Malda (West Bengal state), part of Purnea (Bihar state) east of the Kosi River, part ofDinajpur, and Rajshahi (both in Bangladesh). (M.N.) Der: Poundrian n 5: 246 8: 40
Poundrian Vasudeva (Paundraka Vasudeva), king of the country called Pundra (see Poundra). He was ruler also ofBanga and many other countries, and an ally of Jara- sandha. He was a pretender who, on the strength of being a Vasudeva (descendant of one named Vasudeva), set himself up in opposition to Krishna and assumed his style and insignia. He was supported by the king of Kashi, but he was defeated and killed by Krishna. (M.N.;Dow.) 3:191 8:40
Le Pourquoi des Mondes title of a series of articles by Paul Richard, published in the French adition ofArya from August 1914 to July 1915. An English translation by Sri Aurobindo, "The Wherefore of the Worlds", came out at the same time in the English edition.
(Arya) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Pourujit in the Mahabharata, a Kshatriya king, son of Kuntibhoj and brother of Kunti. He was killed by Dronacharya in the great battle. (M.N.) Var: Kuntivardhan Purujit 4:75 8:40, 77
Powell a character participating in "A Dialogue" written by Sri Aurobindo around 1891.(A&R-II) 11:6-9
PR In "Record of Yoga", used for Paul Richard.
Prabartak Bengali monthly journal founded by Motilal Roy at Chandernagore in 1915, having as its object to put Sri Aurobindo's ideals before Bengal. After 1920, when Motilal separated from Sri Aurobindo, it became the mouthpiece of the then alienated Prabartak Sangh of which Motilal Roy was the leader. Afterwards the journal was pub- lished from Calcutta and edited by Arun Chandra Datta and Radharaman Chaudhuri. (Purani; L. to Sl.; Cal. Lib.) 4:pre. 27:477, 483, 492-93 VII: 4, 6-7, 10, 14, 18-19, 23
Prabartak Sangh(a) a spiritual commune founded in Chandernagore by Motilal Roy sometime after 1914 under the inspiration of Sri Aurobindo. At one time all Bengali books and many English books connected with Sri Aurobindo as well as the two journals, Prabartak and The Standard Bearer, were published by the Sangha. Around 1921, however, some spiritual differences grew up between Motilal and Sri Aurobindo, and after the former's departure from Pondicherry in August 1921, the inner spiritual connection between the Chander- nagore Centre and Sri Aurobindo was gradually cut off. "Commune, Culture and Commerce" became the motto of the Sangha. (Purani) a 27:349, 417, 487, 489 VII: 14
Prabasi Bengali (illustrated) monthly of Calcutta, edited by Ramananda Chatter ji. Started in 1901, it was distinguished for its editorials and views and a wealth of infor- mation culled from various sources. (Cal. Lib.;S.F.F.) 3:421, 426 26:61-62 27:483
Prabhas Babu See Deb, Prabhas(chandra)
Page 253
Prabhas-Patan a religious and historic place on the southwestern coast of Gujarat, also called Somnath Patan. The Mahabharata describes Prabhas as one of the most important places of pilgrimage. 0 1:44
Prabhou See Deshpande, Baji (Prabhou)
Prabuddha Bharat or A wakened India, an English monthly journal started by Swami Vivekananda in 1896 at Calcutta. It is a journal of the Ramakrishna Order, and continues to be published from Calcutta. Its editorial office, however, is now at Mayavati, another centre of the Mission (known as Advaita Ashram) in the Pithoragarh district of Uttar Pradesh, about forty-five miles from Almora. 26:106
Pradhan, Ramchandra Ganesh one of the persons who received Sri Aurobindo at Nasik Road station on 24 January 1908. (A) 1:1, 6
Pradyot ruler of Magadha, and founder of a dynasty in East India about a century after the war of the Mahabharata. o 6:205
Pradyumna in Hindu mythology, a son of Krishna by Rukmini, said to be a reincar- nation of Kamadeva, the god of love, who was reduced to ashes by the fiery glance of ~ Shiva. Symbolically, Sri Aurobindo (3:452-53) sees Pradyumna as the third Power of the Chaturvyuha, with love as His manifestation, and sweetness and delight as His attributes; the Dwapara Yuga is full of Pradyumna, the Vaishya. He is identified with Vishnu, and his Shakti is Mahalakshmi. (Dow.;A;A&R, XIX:93) D 3:200, 207, 452-53 8:43, 59 IV: 115 XIX: 54 XXII: 135
Prahlada in Hindu mythology, son of the Daitya king Hiranyakashipu. While yet a boy he became an ardent devotee of Vishnu. This enraged his father, who tried to get him killed in various ways. Prahlada, however, escaped unhurt every time. Ultimately Vishnu in his incarnation as Narasimha (Man-Lion) killed Hiranyakashipu. (Dow.) D 12:408 13:349 27:326 111:6
Prajapati(s) one of the creator-figures of ancient India. In the Veda the term Prajapati is applied to Indra, Savitri, Soma, Hiranya- garbha, and other deities. In the post-Vedic age he came to be identified with Brahma, who gradually surpassed him in importance. Used in the plural, the term refers to the "mind-born" children of Brahma. Their number (generally considered ten) and names vary. (Dow.; A) 1:892-94
10:68 11:22 12:107, 126, 335, 363, 367, 416 13:374 17:278 27:360 VI: 182-84 VII: 66 XV: 11
Prakrit one of the various middle Indo- Aryan languages that represented a departure from the fixed form of Sanskrit. They began as vernacular dialects which were often distinguished by regional names, and
eventually developed distinct literary styles. The modem languages of India developed from the Prakrit languages, of which Apabhramsa was the latest stage. (Enc. Br.) Der: Prakritic 3:198 10:51 11:505 14:47, 186
Pramadvura in the Mahabharata, wife of Ruru, and mother of the Rishi Sunaka. (M.N.) 5:258
Pramathanatha an epithet of Shiva, meaning "master of the Pramathas". His Pramathas or attendants are numerous; they are imps and demons of various kinds. (Dow.) 17:378
Pramathas the fourth type from below of the ten forms of consciousness in the evolutionary scale of man. The Pramatha mind is concentrated on the heart and the emotional and aesthetic part of the citta. In Hindu mythology, Pramathas are a class of beings (demons) attending on Shiva. (A;
I&G) 0 22:395 VI: 183-85, 188-89 XIX: 24
Pramatheshwari spouse of Shiva who is Pramatheshwar (Lord of the Pramathas). [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Pramati in the Mahabharata, son of the sage Chyavan. Pramati fathered a son named Ruaru or Ruru by an Apsara. (M.N.) 27:152 .
Prapthie (Prapti), in the Mahabharata, daughter of Jarasandha, and younger sister of Sahadeva. She and her sister Asti (see Ustie) were wives of Kansa. (Dow.) 8:41
Pmshna Upanishad "Upanishad of the Questions", an Upanishad of the Atharva Veda. (Up.K.) 12: pre., 56, 295 14: 275-76, 278 18: 412, 501, 511 20: 7 V: 36 XV: 58 XVIII: 156
Praskanwa Kanwa (Praskanva Kanva), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Kanva. a 10: 124 XVI: 160-62, 164
Pratap, Rao of Ichalgurh a character - a Chouhan noble - in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. Var: Ichalgurh a 7:739, 783-86, 789-90, 794-804, 812
Pratapaditya (1564-1612?), a valiant landlord of Jessore in Bengal (now in Bangladesh). He refused to pay tribute to Akbar and defeated a Moghul army. Ultimately, however, he was overpowered, made captive and sent to Delhi, dying on the way. According to some accounts he had a very large area - covering Jessore, Khulna, and 24-Parganas - under his rule. (D.I.H.; S.B.C.) a 3:214 4:99, 129 1:22
Page 254
Pratap Singh better known as Rana Pratap Singh (15457-97), ruler of the Rajput confederacy of Mewar (now in northwest India and Pakistan) from 1572 to 1597. He was a unique figure in the history of India, a great hero and a true patriot who stood against immense odds to uphold the indepen- dence of his country. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) D 1:623 4:99, 129 12:484
Pratibasi a journal published from Calcutta around 1907. (A) a l: 478
Pratisthana an ancient Indian city, the capital of the early kings of the Lunar dynasty. It was perhaps situated on the eastern side of the confluence of the Ganga and the Yamuna, opposite to the site of modem Allahabad. (Dow.) 5:217-18 7: 909, 926, 990
Praxilla a character - head of the palace household in the women's apartments - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer. 0 6: 3, 27-38, 41-42, 57-58, 61, 64-65, 127, 131-32, 135, 137-38, 141, 143, 182, 185-86, 192
Praxiteles sculptor of Athens (fl. 370-330 Be), greatest of the Attic sculptors of the 4th century BC, and one of the most original of Greek artists. (Enc. Br.) 14: 228 II: 6 XIV: 116
Prayag(a) a place of Hindu pilgimage in Uttar Pradesh at the confluence of the rivers Ganga and Yamuna (it is said that an under- ground stream, the Saraswati, also joins them). The city that has grown up nearby is now known as Allahabad. (Dow.) Var: Proyaga (as pronounced by the Bengalis) • 8:246, 355 27: 159 XVI: 146
Prayaswats (Prayasvantah), names of Vedic Rishis, descendants of Atri. (B.P.C.; V. Index) a n: 232
Prayer of Columbus one of the most notable poems of Walt Whitman. (Enc. W.B.) 9: 152
Prayers and Meditations English translation of the Mother's Prieres et Meditations, written mostly in France. Some of these prayers were translated by Sri Aurobindo, and this translation was first published in 1941. An enlarged edition, including additional prayers that were translated by others, first came out in 1948. n 25: 48, 219, 369, 383, 403 26: 508
Prayoga Bhargava a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Bhrigu. II: 370
Premanand famous medieval Gujarati poet of the latter half of the 17th century. He wrote on an epic
scale, drawing upon Puranic and indigenous themes. His mastery of verse is highlighted by a luxurious colourful diction and a unique creative touch, a 3: 155 14: 320
Presidency College established under the name of Hindu College at Calcutta in 1817, mainly through the efforts of Raja Ram- mohan Roy and David Hare. It afterwards developed into Presidency College. (A.H.I.) n 3:76, 80 27:351
Pretas in the mythology of India, the spirit of a dead person for whom funeral rites have not yet been performed. If denied the final obsequies, apreta may become a bhuta, or wandering ghost. (Enc. Br.) a 27:430
Prezonysl name of a place in Europe. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Priam in Greek legend, the last Trojan king, who resigned during the Trojan War. He was a son of Laomedon. His wife was Hecuba, and he had many children including Hector and Paris. In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, he is pictured as an old man of imposing presence who has retired from active rule. (M.I.; Col. Enc.; Web.) 0 5:392, 399-400, 402-04, 408, 411-13, 424, 429-30, 433, 435, 439-40, 442, 445-50, 453-56, 460-61, 464-65, 467, 479, 483, 514 II: 26 IV: 114 VI: 135
Priamid an epithet of Priam's sons. (M.I.) 5: 401, 408, 433, 454, 458-59, 513 VI: 134
Price, Dr. Richard Price (1723-91), English theologian and political philosopher. He ardently supported the French.Revolution and was subsequently criticized by Edmund Burke in his Reflections on the Revolution in France. (Col. Enc.) 1: 648
Prieres et Meditations selected "Prayers" of the Mother, originally written in French and first published in 1932. 25:367, 383, 403
Primrose, Dr. a character, the hero of Goldsmith's Vicar of Wakefield (1766). (Ox. Comp.; Col. Enc.) II: 19
Prince, the "The Prince", title translated into English of a book in Italian Ilprincipe (1532), Machiavelli's best-known work. It has made his name a symbol of political immortality. His exact intentions in writing
Ilprincipe remain a mystery and a matter of controversy. (Col. Enc.) Q 1:579
Prince of Darkness an epithet of Satan. (C.O.D.) 1:601
Page 255
Princep, Justice chairman of the Official Emoluments Commission at Baruipur (Bengal). He was replaced by Bankim Chandra. (A) 3: 84
Prince Paradox See Treneth
Princess, the The Princess (1847), a long narrative poem by Tennyson, reissued in 1850 with the interspersed songs which are its chief beauty. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 9: 63, 456
Prior, Matthew (1664-1721), one of the neatest of English epigrammatists who, in occasional pieces and familiar verse, had no rival. (Ox. Comp.) 11:13
Prishni in the Vedas and Puranas, the earth, mother of the Maruts. In the Vedas the name is also used for a cow. (Dow.) 10: 157
Pritha a name of Kunti. See Kunti(e)'
Prithivi in the Rig-veda, the "earth" as the "broad" or "wide" one; later she is personified as a deity both alone and with Div or "Heaven". She is the goddess Earth, the mother of all beings. In the Vishnu Purana she is represented as receiving her name from PRITHU, who granted her life, and so was as a father to her. (V. Index; Dow.) Var: prthivi 3:30, 32 10:114, 171, 275 12:84 19:780 V: 25, 68 XV: 44
Prithu or Prithi or Prithi-vainya. In Hindu mythology there are many Prithus. The ref- erence here (8: 99) is to Prithi-vainya, the son of Vena. He was said to be the first king, and from him the earth received her name Prithivi. His subjects suffered from famine because the earth withheld edible plants. Prithu became angry. The earth assumed the form of a cow and promised to restore all the needed fruits if a calf were given to her through which she might be able to secrete milk. Prithu thereupon made Swayambhuva Manu the calf and milked the earth. Thence proceeded all kinds of corn and vegetables. (Dow.) n 8:99
Prithuraj a character - companion of Bappa; a young Rajpoot refugee - in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince ofEdur. 7:739, 756-59, 765, 767-68, 797, 801, 811-14
Prithvish Babu Prithvish Chandra Roy (1870-1928), a Congress leader of Bengal, belonging to the Moderate party, and closely associated with Gokhale, Watcha, and Surendranath Banerji. He was the editor of the Indian World and author of a number of books in English. (S.B.C.) 4:238
Priyamvada a character - a friend and companion of Shakuntala - in Kalidasa's famous play Abhijndna Sdkuntalam. 3: 231
Priyumvada a character in the long narrative poem Love and Death by Sri Aurobindo. The name is a substitute for Pramadvara of the story of Ruru and Pramadvara told in the Mahabharata, on which the theme of the poem is based, 5:231, 233, 235, 238-39, 258 27:153-54
Prizrend Prizren, a city in southern Serbia (now in Yugoslavia), northwest of Skoplje. Its population consists chiefly of Albanians. Prizren was taken by the Serbians in 1912 and assigned to them by the Treaty of Bucharest (1913). (Col. Enc.) XXI: 71
The Problem of Rebirth a book by Sri Aurobindo published in 1952 containing essays from Arya, reprinted with minor revisions and a letter by the author in reply to a question about this series of articles. (I&G) 22:302
Procrustean of or relating to Procrustes, a robber in Greek legend. He had an iron bed (or according to some accounts, two beds) on which he compelled his victims to lie, stretching or cutting off their legs to make them fit the bed's length. The "bed of Procrustes" has become proverbial for inflexibility, and the word "Procrustean" has come to mean "tending to produce uniformity by violent methods". (Enc. Br.;
C.O.D.) D 10: 86 15: 608 17: 338 V: 87
Progress of Poesy a Pindaric ode by Gray, written in 1754 and published in 1759. (Ox. Comp.)I: 14-15
Prometheus in Greek religion, Titan or demigod who made man from clay, stole fire from Olympus and taught men the use of it and also various arts. Zeus punished him by chaining him to a rock in Caucasus where a vulture daily devoured his liver. He suffered this torment until Hercules set him free. (Col. Enc.) 1:744-45 15:97 29:506
Prometheus Unbound a closet drama composed in 1820 by Shelley. Known for its rich variety, it is the poet's supreme effort and one of the masterpieces of poetry. (Col. Enc.; A) 1:558 3:294 9:127-28 X: 144
The Prophecy of Famine a poem by Charles Churchill, published in 1763. (Ox. Comp.) II: 19
Page 256
Propontis in ancient times, name of the Sea of Marmora, from its position relative to the Black Sea. (Propontis is a Greek word meaning "fore-sea".) (Enc. Br.) o 5: 444
Prospero a character - the deposed duke of Milan - in Shakespeare's comedy The Tempest. By magic he raises a tempest off the island he inhabits with his daughter Miranda, and then acts as host to the shipwrecked malefactors. (Web.) D 4:64 26:335, 337-38
Protestantism one of the three major branches of Christianity, originating in 16th-century Reformation, characterized by its doctrines of justification by grace through faith, the priesthood of all believers, and the authority of the Scriptures. (Enc. Br.) Var: Protestant Christianity; Protestant Reformation a 4: 147 12: 55-56 14: 79 15: 10 16: 365 XIV: 127
Proteus in Greek mythology, the prophetic old man of the sea and shepherd of the sea's flocks (e.g. seals). He knew all things - past, present, and future - but disliked telling what he knew. Those who wished to consult him had first to surprise and bind him during his noonday slumber. Even when caught he would try to escape by assuming all sorts of shapes, for he had the power of assuming whatever shape he pleased. (Enc. Br.) II: 6
Prothero, George Walter (1848-1922), member of the faculty of King's College, Cambridge: Fellow, 1872-96; Tutor, 1876-94;
Senior Proctor, 1888-89. He was professor of history at Edinburgh University, 1894-99;
editor of Quarterly Review, 1899-1922;
Director of the historical section of the Foreign Office, 1918-19. (Prothero was never Provost as asserted by Sri Aurobindo. Leigh was elected in 1889 and followed by M. R. James in 1905.) (A&R-IL97) 26:1 II: 87 ("C.W." is a misprint for "G.W.")
Prothoenor in Greek legend, a Theban prince and a leader of the Boeotians in the Trojan War. (M.I.) 5:479-80, 491
Prothous in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Greek warrior. (M.I.) n 5:491
Provencal a Romance language spoken by more than 12 million persons in southern France. All Provencal speakers use French as their official and cultural language, but Provencal dialects are used for
everyday purposes and show no sign of extinction. The earliest written material in Provencal is said to date from the 10th century. Literature in Provencal is plentiful, for it was a standard and literary language in France and northern Spain from the 12th to the 14th century. (Enc. Br.) 0 15:310, 480, 496
Provence a former province of France, on the Mediterranean coast between the Alps and the Rhone. A centre of the civilisation of southern France, Provence has kept the tradition of its distinctive language and literature. (Enc. Br.) Der: Provencal (in senses other than the language) Q 1:38, 526 7:1027 15:291, 526
Proyaga See Prayag(a)
Prussia name applied from 1701 to the kingdom ruled by the German Hohenzollern dynasty, including former Prussia (the land of the Prussians on the southeastern coast of the Baltic Sea) and Brandenburg, with Berlin as its capital. Prussia expanded far beyond these boundaries in the 18th and 19th cen- turies. After the fall of the Hohenzollerns in 1918, the name Prussia was applied to the "Land" (state) in the German "Reich" which included most of their former kingdom. This was abolished by the Allies in 1947 as part of their political reorganization of Germany after its defeat in World War II. (Enc. Br.) Der: Prussian; Prussianism; Prussianise (assimilate to the Prussian system of sacrificing the individual to the state) a 1:526 2:406 15:288, 299, 417, 420, 497 17:244
Pryas in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Thessalian, killed by Pharatus. (M.I.) D 5:516
P.S.;Psalmodist See Parthasarathi
Psychology an abridged edition (1905), read by Sri Aurobindo, of Principles of Psychology (1890), a two-volume work by the American psychologist William James that became a basic text. (Enc. Br.) 9:560 26:384
Ptolemaic of Ptolemy, a celebrated Alexandrine astronomer, geographer, and mathematician of the 2nd century, who held Earth to be stationary. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 16:97
Ptolemy one of the Ptolemies, fourteen rulers of Egypt from the death of Alexander the Great to Cleopatra, i.e. from 323 to 30 BC. (C.O.D.;Enc.Br.) 6:361, 402, 427, 447, 469
Pulinda, the name of a barbarous tribe; a member or the king of this tribe. (M. W.) a XXII: 135
Page 257
Puloma in Hindu mythology, name of the titaness who was the wife of Bhrigu. She gave birth to CHYAVAN, who even from the womb inherited his father's greatness and ascetic energy. (M.N.;A) 5:239, 253 27:152, 158
Puloman in Hindu mythology, name of an Asura who was father of Sachi, the wife of Indra. (Dow.) 27:158
Punjab Pancanada, a province of India which under British rule extended from N.W.F.P. (North West Frontier Province) to Delhi. Lahore was its capital. With the creation of Pakistan in August 1947, Punjab was partitioned approximately along a line that divides the main concentrations of the Moslem and Hindu populations. The Hindu section now constitutes two states of the Indian Republic: Haryana and Punjab, both having their capital at Chandigarh. (Col. Enc.;D.I.H.) VarPanjab Der: Punjabee;
Punjabi n 1:169, 182, 188, 194, 198, 262, 266, 269, 279-80, 301, 303, 317, 324-25, 333-34, 338, 346, 354, 357, 359, 363-64, 366, 385, 393, 407-08, 432, 435, 448, 459, 482, 503, 508, 510-11, 590, 635, 654, 674, 725, 728, 778, 783, 793, 870, 891 2:37, 205, 244, 249-50, 260, 265, 276-77, 296, 307, 329-30, 345, 354-56, 360, 363-64, 370, 385 3:97, 214 4:24, 147, 159, 178-79, 186, 191, 228, 231, 235, 237-38, 240, 246, 268 10:4, 88, 96, 100, 105, 107, 112, 193, 212, 233 14:376, 418 17:278 26: 30, 351, 409, 433 27:49, 51-52, 58, 67, 471 111:7 IV: 195 X:187 XV: 17, 30 XVI: 134-36, 146 XVIII: 144
Punjabee a nationalist joumal of Punjab, started in 1904 at Lahore by Lala Jaswant Rai. K. K. Athavale was the editor. Both these persons were convicted for sedition in 1907. In February 1910 the paper was taken over by a syndicate which changed its policy. (P.T.I.;D.N.B.)1:108, 244, 266, 269, 271-72, 279, 325, 334, 490, 617, 648, 777 2: 353, 356-57, 363 4:243
Punjab University the Punjab University of united India. It was located at Lahore, and went to Pakistan at the time of the partition of India in 1947. Lala Harkissenlal was a graduate of this university. (D.N.B.) D 4:235
Purana(s) in Hindu sacred literature, popular, encyclopaedic collections of myth, legend, and genealogy, varying greatly as to date and origin. Statements about Puranas are found even in the Brahmanas. The Mahabharata has used the term Purana to mean stories about devas and siddhas. The Upanishads say that the Puranas are itihasas and as such constitute the fifth Veda. The Smriti sa'ys that the Puranas are commen- taries on the Vedas. Traditionally a Purana treats five subjects: primary creation of the universe, secondary creation after periodical annihilation, genealogy of gods and saints, grand epochs, and history of the royal dynasties. However, in many of the Puranas that are now current, one or more of these five subjects are wanting. There are eighteen principal surviving Puranas, generally grouped loosely according to whether they exalt Vishnu, Shiva, or Brahma. There are also eighteen "lesser" or Upapuranas, treating similar material. (Enc. Br.; Pur. Enc.) Der: Pauranic; Puranic; Puranistic; Purano;Puranist 2:19, 227 3:91, 120, 142, 144, 146, 222, 226, 243-44, 295, 311, 359 4: 36, 46, 53-54, 125, 127, 129, 293, 310 10: 3-6, 14, 19, 33-34, 37, 42-43, 68, 89, 93, 97, 102, 167, 170-71, 179, 197, 306-07, 334-35, 341, 352, 448, 461 11: 3, 23, 33 12: 48, 232, 410, 416, 448, 532 13:6-7, 13, 64, 73, 78, 86 14:81, 97, 134, 152-54, 157, 233, 263, 281, 286, 294, 296, 307-08; 311-13, 315, 317, 320, 407, 419 15: 425, 541 16: 351, 404 17: 62, 117, 267, 278, 293, 336 19: 837 22: 97, 388, 403-05, 425-26, 443 24: 1334 25: 373, 384 27: 104, 149, 299, 313, 430 I: 8, 25, 57 III: 78 V: 96-97 VIII: 183, 187 IX: 35 X: 145 XI: 56 XIV: 116-18, 131 XV: 6, 21, 23-24, 26, 29, 32-33, 46 XVI: 133-35, 140, 144-46, 148, 153, 155-56, 158-59, 163, 170-71 XVII: 10, 17, 25, 27, 59 XVIII: 152, 162
Purani, Ambalal Balkrishna (1894-1965), a disciple of Sri Aurobindo who came under his influence in boyhood. He, along with his brother C. B. Purani, was a pioneer of physical education in Gujarat. He worked also to organise a wide-spread revolution for the liberation of the country on the lines indicated by Sri Aurobindo. To seek his consent and guidance Purani visited Pondicherry in 1918. Sri Aurobindo gave him an assurance that India would be free even without a revolution, and advised him to concentrate on Yoga, for which he had a call. Soon after his second visit to Pondicherry in 1921, Purani became an inmate of the Ashram. He was a prolific writer, and full of a remarkable verve and vigour. II: 28
Puritan member of a religious reform movement in the Church of England during the late 16th and 17th centuries that sought to "purify" the Church from remnants of Roman Catholic "popery" that its adherents
Page 258
claimed had been retained in the Church of England after the religious settlement made under Queen Elizabeth I in the 16th century. Noted for a spirit of moral and religious earnestness. Puritans attempted through church reform to make their own earnest life-style the pattern for the nation and thus influenced the religious, social, economic, political, literary, artistic, and intellectual institutions of the English-speaking world. (Enc. Br.) Der: Puritanic; Puritanism a 1: 305 3: 81 5: 380 7: 705, 1048 9: 84, 549-50 15: 14, 88, 165 17: 241 24:1294 26: 260 29: 798
Purochana in the Mahabharata, the emissary of Duryodhana who attempted to kill the Pandavas by lodging them in a house he had made of lac and setting it on fire. The Pandavas escaped out of the burning house through an underground tunnel. (Dow.) D 3: 197
Purohit, Moreshwar Govind perhaps the manager of the National School, PANDHAR- PUR, around January 1908. (A) n I: 1
Purohit Swami an Indian scholar who collaborated with W. B. Yeats in translating the Upanishads into English, a 26:289
Purshurama See Paras(h)urama
Puru (Piiru), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. (B.P.C.) D 11: 228 VI: 148 VIII: 150
Puruchchhepa Daivodasi See Paruchchhepa Daivodasi
Purudansas "the Manifold in activity", a term used in the Veda as an epithet of the Ashwins. (A) Var: Purudansha D 10: 318 XV: 41 XVI: 164
Purujit See Pourujit
Purukutsa son of the king Mandhata and his wife Bindumati. He was an ancestor of Trishanku. A Purukutsa is praised in the Rig-veda; it is not known whether he is the same. He, with his wife Narmadadevi, went to the forest of Kurukshetra and practising austerities there attained Moksha (libera- tion). (Pur. Enc.) a VIII: 150
Purulia town and district in Burdwan divi- sion of Bengal (now West Bengal state). (Enc. Br.) n I: 68
Purumilha (Angirasa) (Purumilha Angirasa), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Angiras. D 11: 357, 359
Pururavas name of a hero in a hymn (X: 95) of the Rig-veda containing a dialogue between him and
Urvasi. In the later literature he is acclaimed as the king of the world (reigning at PRATISTHANA), son of Budha and Ila and grandson of the Moon. Pururavas is the hero of Kalidasa's drama Vikramorvasie and Sri Aurobindo's poem Urvasie. (V. Index; A; Dow.) Var: Pururavus a 3:231, 240, 263, 265, 267-68, 270-74, 279-84, 286, 288-89, 296, 300-01 5: 119, 189-95, 197, 199, 201, 204-06, 208-13, 215-16, 218, 220, 222-28 6: 277 7: 901, 913-25, 928-35, 937-44, 946-49, 952-57, 959-63, 965-74, 976, 981, 983-84. 986-89, 991-1009 26: 503 27: 100, 152, 156 IU: 19 X: 145-47, 149-56, 160, 166-71, 173-76
Punish (Purusa), in Hindu mythology, the sonofPrithivi. (A) 3:30, 32, 4i
Purusha-Sukta (Purusa-Sukta), a hymn of the Rig-veda in which the four varnas are first mentioned. It is considered to be one of the latest in date. (Dow.) Var: Purushasukta a 13: 495 15: 5
Purushishta name of a Rishi mentioned in Taittiriya Upanishad. a 12: 324
Purushottam Purushottam Narshibhai Patel (1896- ? ) of Baroda. He came to the Ashram in 1925 and stayed here for four- teen or fifteen years. He was in charge of "Prosperity" (the department that looks after the storage and distribution of Ashramites' material needs) and the Ashram gardens. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Purvamimansa (Purvamimamsa), one of the six Darshanas, or systems of orthodox Indian philosophy; founded by Jaimini. Commonly known as the Mimamsa, it emphasizes the value of the performance of Vedic rites. (Dow.) D 4:46 12:461 13:80 VIII: 183
Pushan (Pusan), a deity not of a distinctly defined character who is mentioned fre- quently in the Vedas. The word means "the increaser", "the nourisher". In the Nirukta and in works of later date Pushan is iden- tified with Surya, the Sun. (Dow.) D 10:137-39, 229-30, 274, 280, 425, 427, 433-36, 438, 464 11:14, 44, 82, 172 12:125 X: 179 XIV: 110
Pushya or Tishya, a high constellation, one of the twenty-seven Nakshatras of Hindu astronomy. It includes the somewhat faint group in the body of the CRAB (or Cancer). None of the group is at all prominent. (V. Index; H.S.S.) D 8:9
Pushyamitra Pushyamitra Sunga, founder of the Sunga dynasty (c. 185 BC) after the deposition of the Maurya dynasty. He was the commander-in-chief of Brihadratha, the last of the Maurya kings, whom he killed and ascended the throne. To celebrate his victory over the invaders of his empire, he per- formed an ASHWAMEDHA sacrifice and thus declared the revival of orthodox Hinduism which had suffered an eclipse under Asoka. (D.I.H.) n 4:98 8:135 XVII: 25
Page 259
Puspamitra the same as PUSHYAMITRA a 8:135
Putana in Hindu mythology, a female demon (Rakshasi), daughter of Bali. She was deputed by Kansa to kill the infant Krishna by suckling him, but was herself sucked to death by Krishna. (Dow.) a 1:600, 818
Pylians people of Pylos. (M.I.) 0 5:484
Pylos name of three places in the Pelo- ponnesus. In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, the reference is to the city in the southwest, in Messenia. It lay at the north end of Navarino Bay of the Ionian Sea, and was ruled by Nestor. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) n 5:459
Pyrrhic victory a costly military success, like that of Pyrrhus (319-272 Be), the king of Hellenistic Epirus. The heavy losses suffered by him in his victory at Asculum in 279 BC caused him to declare, "one more such victory and I am lost". (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; Web.) a 1:386
Pyrrhus an alternative name for NEO- PTOLEMUS, the son of Achilles. (M.I.) D 5:487-88, 506
Pythagoras (c. 582 - c. 507 BC), Greek philosopher, mathematician, and founder of the Pythagorean brotherhood that, although religious in nature, formulated principles that influenced the philosophical thought of Plato and Aristotle and contributed to the development of mathematics and Western rational- ism. The Pythogoreans' interest in numbers extended to practical mathematics, and they are credited with inspiring the first part of Euclidean geometry and the theorem that bears their name. (Enc. Br.) Der: Pythagorean(s) a 9: 547 10: 4 11:7 14: 51, 99, 147, 270 16: 79, 83, 309, 339, 362, 364 19: 750, 879 22: 185, 445 23: 955 II: 7 III: 14 XVI: 181
Pythian I. of Pythia, the medium and oracular prophetess of Apollo at Delphi. Seated on a tripod in an underground chamber in the temple, she would enter into a frenzied trance believed to indicate possession or inspiration by Apollo. Her utterances in this ecstatic state were interpreted by priests and conveyed as versified messages, often ambiguous, to those who came to consult the oracle'. 2. of Delphi. (M.I.) D 1: 742 5: 26, 420 7: 1071 Pythoness Pythia. The name comes from Python, a dragon who guarded Delphiand was killed by Apollo when he established his oracle there. (M.I.) a 5:433, 503 Xffl: 37 XIV: 146
Q
Quebec a province in eastern Canada whose people are predominantly French-speaking. The city of Quebec is the capital of the province. (Col. Enc.) a 1: 704
Queen Mab one of the earlier poems of Shelley, published in 1813, in which he set forth more completely and violently than before or later his belief in man's degrada- tion by priestcraft, monarchy, and com- merce, and in his final redemption. (Col. Enc.) a 3: 294 9: 127 X: 144
Queen's Proclamation a proclamation issued in the name of Queen Victoria in 1858 an- nouncing the transfer of the administration of India from the East India Company to the Crown of England. It made her popular with the Indians, who believed that some of the liberal principles enunciated in it owed their incorporation in the document to the personal liberal views of the Queen. (D.I.H., p. 899) o 1:460
R
R In the Record of Yoga, R is used for (1) Rangaswamy, (2) Ramaswamy, or (3) Richard, depending on the context:
(1) K. V. Rangaswamy lyengar, the zamindar of Kodailam, who bore the cost of the book Yogic Sadhan, seems to have promised financial help again when he met Sri Aurobindo at Raghavan House in Rue St. Louis (where Sri Aurobindo stayed from April 1911 to April 1913). It is very likely, therefore, that the money received by Sri Aurobindo in November 1912 and January 1913 came from Rangaswamy. (Purani, pp. 144-45, 148) a XX: 147 XXI: 65 (2) V. Ramaswamy lyengar, later known as "Va-Ra" in the Tamil literary world, came from Tanjore to stay with Sri Aurobindo for some time; he returned to Tanjore in 1913.
Page 260
He used to meet Sri Aurobindo daily in the evening. (Purani, pp. 145, 148, 153) D XXI: 2, 9, 19, 32, 34 XXII: 157
(3) "Richard" was abbreviated to "R" in the Records of 1914. See "Richard, Paul". R2 in the Record of Yoga, stands for "M. and Mme Richard".
Rabelais, Francois (c. 1483-1553), French writer who for his contemporaries was an eminent physician and humanist and for posterity is the author of a comic and satirical masterpiece, Gargantua and Pantagruel. (Enc. Br.) Der: Rabelaisian D 17: 87 XIII: 27
Rabindar(nath) SeeTagore, Rabindranath
Race ofRaghou See Raghuvamsha.
Rachel' The reference is to a story narrated in the Bible. King Herod, in whose reign Jesus was born, had many children killed hoping to kill Jesus among them. The Bible says that this was the fulfilment of an old prophecy: "Rachel weeping for her children, / And would not be comforted, / Because they are not." (Mathew 2.18 - King James Version) a 1:150
Rachel2 a character - a maid-servant in Renee's house - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Phantom Hour", a 7:1018, 1021-23
Racine, Jean Baptiste (1639-99), French dramatic poet, a master of tragedy in the so-called classical period. (Enc. Br.; Web.) n 3:276 9:67, 87, 378-79, 481, 521-22, 529 VI: 198 X: 158
Radha in Hindu religion, the chief of the Gopis or milkmaids, the favourite of Krishna while he lived among the cowherds in Vrindavana. She is a symbolic figure, a personification of absolute love for the Divine, total and integral in all parts of the being, representing the nature-soul in man seeking the Divine Soul (Krishna) through love. (Dow, ;A) n 1:61, 853 4:14, 29. 222 5: 40 8: 223, 227, 237, 244, 250, 259, 262, 296, 301-03 12: 509 14: 264, 317 16: 429 21: 741 22: 92, 126, 173 23: 796, 951, 961, 980 25: 73-74 29: 525 VIII: 138, 141 XVIII: 148
Radhakrishnan, S. Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888-1975), a scholar and statesman who started his career as a professor of philosophy and soon won an international reputation as a scholar and a philosopher interpreting the Hindu view of life to the West. With his appointment as Indian ambassador to
the U.S.S.R. in 1949 he began his public career, and soon rose to the highest rank: in 1962 he became the second President of the Republic of India. (Enc.Br.;D.I.H.) a 17:320 22:186-87
Ragh(o)u a king of the Solar race of India. He was son of Dilip and grandfather of RAMA'. Scholars disagree as to the gene- alogy of Raghu, but all admit him to be an ancestor of Rama. The descendants of Raghu are known as Raghus. (Dow.) a 3: 158 8: 10, 19-21, 155
Raghunandan' a name of RAMA' , meaning a descendant of Raghu. a 4:15
Raghunandan2 (fl. c. 16th cent.), a famous writer on Dharmashastra, popularly known as Smarta Bhattacharya. He was a contem- porary of Chaitanya. His works influenced the social life and religious rituals of the orthodox community of Bengal. (D. I. H.) a 2:259, 404 3:110, 123 14:21 VIII: 190
Raghuvamsha an epic poem in Sanskrit by Kalidasa, containing nineteen cantos and based on the history of kings of the IKSH- VAKU family in general. Sri Aurobindo rendered the first ten verses of the epic into English. He translated the title of the poem variously, as The Line of Raghu, House of Raghu, and Race ofRaghou. (Gaz.- II) Var: Raghu(vansa) n 3: 76, 159, 222, 227, 246, 251, 256, 258, 323 8:155 9:113 14: 301 27: 106 I: 25
Ragnar a character in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric. D 6:473, 538-39, 541, 545
Rahu Rahu and Ketu are, in Hindu astron- omy, the ascending and descending nodes, also considered as planets. Mythologically, Rahu is a Daitya who is supposed to seize the sun and moon and swallow them, thus obscuring their rays and causing eclipses. It is said that to become immortal he dis- guised himself as a god and drank part of the Amrita produced by the churning of the Ocean. The Sun and Moon detected him and informed Vishnu who cut off his head. But as he had secured immortality, his body was placed in the stellar sphere, the upper parts represented by a dragon's head being Rahu the ascending node, and the lower parts represented by a dragon's tail being Ketu the descending node. (Dow.) a 8:175, 206 17: 259-62
Rai (Rayi), a popular name of Radha in Bihar, especially among Maithili-speaking people, a 8: 242, 244
Rai, Dhanpatsingh a person connected (c. 1909) with the Tarpur Sugar Factory. His widowed wife tried to run the factory with the help of a manager until the latter's death. (A) n 4: 195
Page 261
Rai, Venibhushan a person involved and convicted in the Khulna sedition case in 1907. (A) n 1:486-87
Raigurh a famous fortress in Maharashtra, built by Shivaji, where he was ceremoniously crowned as an independent king in 1674. (D.I.H.) D 5:281-83, 288, 291-92
Raikwa name of a realised Brahmin sage, mentioned in the Chhandogya Upanishad, who was approached by Janasruti for spiritual knowledge. The latter found him sitting under a cart, hence "Raikwa of the cart". (B.P.C.) a 14:280
Rai Srinath Pal Bahadur See Pal, (Rai Bahadur) Srinath
Raja(h)mundry a town of South India, on the Godavari near its delta, formerly in Madras Presidency, but now in the East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh state. (Enc. Br.) a 1:324, 456, 482
Rajanee a Bengali novel (1877) by Bankim Chandra Chatter ji. (Enc. Br.) a 27:353
Rajaram a man closely associated with Sri Aurobindo at Srinagar during his visit to Kashmir in 1903. (A) a iv: 193
Raja Rukmangad's Ekadashi title of a painting by Ravi Varma, which Sri Aurobindo considered one of his few successes. (Rukmangada was a son of Salya, the king of Madra, mentioned in the Maha- bharata. Ekadasi is the name of a fast observed on the eleventh day after a new-moon or full-moon day.) (A; Pur. Enc.) a 3:427
Rajashahi See Rajshahi
Rajasthan a name often applied in the past to RAJPUTANA. The region is now officially called Rajasthan and is a state in the Republic of India. (Enc. Br.) D 1:632 2: 262 5: 283, 286 7: 745, 753, 757, 772, 781
Raj(a)suya a "royal sacrifice" performed in ancient India at the coronation of a king. It was religious in its nature but political in its operation, since it implied that the institutor of the sacrifice was a supreme lord requiring his tributary princes to be present as sub- ordinates at the rite. (Dow.) a 1: 146 3: 191-92, 194, 204 4: 94 14: 371-72 15: 288 27:80
Rajayoga an easy mode of meditation (fit for kings to practise), as distinguished from the more rigorous
one called Hathayoga. It does not start with Asana and Pranayama, but insists first on a moral purification
of the mentality. The processes of Rajayoga are mental and emotional. Rajayoga may be defined as the use of mental askesis for the opening up of the divine life on all its planes. (Apte; A; I & G) Der: Rajayogi;
Rajayogic; Rajayogin a 2: 29 3: 348, 405-08 4:24, 57, 60, 298 5:84 13:7, 63-64, 112, 114, 227, 230 16:7, 399.413-14 17:211 20: 3, 28, 30-32, 36, 44, 50, 305, 324, 498, 506, 513-14, 516-20 21: 546, 583-86, 668 22: 55, 78, 109 23:574, 952 24:1527, 1738 26:112-13, 139, 353 XIII: 21-22 XIV: 154 XV: 40 XVIII: 163
Rajayoga Raja-Yoga or Conquering the Internal Nature, a book by Swami Viveka- nanda. Originally written in English, it is one of his most well-known books. The first part comprises several lectures to classes delivered by the author in New York; the second part is a rather free translation of the aphorisms (Sutras) of Patanjali, with a commentary. D 4:293 23:731
Rajmachikar, Sirdar a person of Poona, who helped the Swadeshi movement by starting, with his brother, a factory in which the parts of umbrellas were either made or fitted together. (A) a 2: 138
Raj Mohan's Wife Bankim Chandra's only novel in English, his first prominent public literary effort. It came out serially in Indian Field and was published in book-form only after his death, in 1935. (A; B. R. -1) Var: Rammohan's Wife ("Rammohan" is a mistake) a 3: 90 27: 351
Rajpoot member of a Hindu warrior caste claiming descent from Kshatriyas and set- tled mainly in central and northern India, especially in the former RAJPUTANA. The Rajputs played the most important part in the history of India from the middle of the 7th century to the end of the 12th century. They were divided into 36 clans. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) Var: Rajput Der: Rajpootny (feminine of "Rajpoot") a 1: 646-47, 767, 815 2:29 3:67, 214, 331, 483-84 4:92, 140, 143 5:284-89 7:739, 742-44, 747, 750-51, 757-58, 761-62, 764-67, 770, 777-78, 780-81, 783-84, 787, 790, 793-99, 801 14: 70, 187, 239-42, 250, 318.320, 368, 376-77 15: 354 26: 4, 14 111:11, 24 IX: 1, 2
Rajputana a former group of princely states chiefly comprising what is now the state of Rajasthan. It consisted of twenty-three states, one chief dom, one estate, and the British district of Ajmer-Merwara. (Enc. Br.) 2:249, 261 4:92 7:751, 791 14:349, 355, 378 26: 409
Rajshahi name of a town (administrative headquarters), district, and division in the former province of Bengal, now in Bangla- desh. (Enc.Br.) Var: Rajashahi 1:77, 282 Rajsingh. the Rana of Mewar who gave protection to Ajit Singh, the infant son of Jaswant Singh of Marwar, and to the latter's widowed wife. He also protested against Aurangzeb's imposition of "jizya" (a head or poll tax that Islamic rulers demanded from their non-Muslim subjects).
Page 262
By waging war against Aurangzeb from 1679 to 1681, Raj- singh obliged him to make peace with the Rajputs and drop the demand for "jizya" in lieu of certain territories. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) a 4: 99
Rajsinha a historic novel by Bankim Chan- dra which has no rival in Bengali literature. It is a story of Rajput heroism and Muslim oppression. It was first published in 1881. Later, Bankim completely recast the novel, and in the fourth edition (1893) enlarged it to almost four times its original length. (A; Enc.Br.;B.R.-I) 27:353
Rajsuya 5'eeRaj(a)suya
Raju, J. B. a writer whose critical review of Radhakrishnan's work on the philosophy of Rabindranath Tagore appeared in the second number of Shama'a. This issue was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya (A) n 17: 320-21
Rakhal Laha a Hindu name used by Sri Aurobindo to denote the sort of person engaged by the police as a witness to give prepared evidence in their support. Q 2: 54
Rakhi-Day in Hindu religion, the day of rakhi bandhan; it is full-moon day of the month ofSravana (July-Aug.), on which a rakhi or raksd (a thread, usually with some decoration) is tied around the wrist of a loved one to ward off danger or misfortune. (I & G) a 1: 186-87, 482 VI: 125
Rakshas(a) a (hostile) being of the middle vital plane; the violent kinetic ego. In the common acceptation of the term, the Rakshasas are beings who harass devout men and vex and afflict mankind in all sorts of ways. They even devour human beings. Generally they move about by night and are therefore called Nisacara. In the evolutionary scale of man, they are the fifth type from below of the ten forms of consciousness; the Rakshasa is mind concentrated on the thinking manas proper and taking up all the others into the manas itself. (I & G; Dow.; A) Der: Rakshasi; Rakshasic 62, 122 2:80 3:176 4:12, 29,
34, 86,91, 114, 319, 341, 351 5: 77-79 8: 21-24 9: 206 10: 44, 257, 369, 493 11: 29, 48, 174, 205, 289-90, 305, 313, 346, 417-20, 434, 462, 467, 478 12: 409, 532 13: 165, 174, 312-13, 349, 359, 375-76, 454-55, 470, 573 14: 103, 216, 223, 289, 292 15: 27, 596 16: 285 17: 73, 378-79, 382-84 18: 489, 603 19: 783, 1068 20: 222, 450 21: 713, 716 22: 381-82, 394-96, 415-16, 419 23: 578 24:1094, 1169, 1334, 1648, 1737-38 25: 27, 39, 61-62, 156 26:470 27:195, 430 29:777 II: 77 IV: 142-43, 146 - V: 9-12, 14 VI: 183-86, 188, 190,192 VII: 9 VIII: 137 XII: 194 XV: 26 XVI: 144-152 XIX: 24, 26, 54 XXI: 7
Rakshit one of the two witnesses to the search of Sri Aurobindo's residence in Calcutta on 2 May 1908. Later he told Sri Aurobindo that the police had collared him for the purpose without giving him any idea of what was going on. (A) 4: 259
Raktabij a demon who fought with the goddess Candi; from the drops of his blood arose innumerable duplicates of himself (rakta = blood; bija = seed). (Dow.) 1: 335 2: 157
Ram (in Latin) Aries, known as Mesa in Hindu astronomy, a zodiacal constellation named in honour of the ram of the Golden Fleece. It is the first sign of the zodiac. (Col. Enc.) a 17:257-58, 260
Ram(a)' The term is used as a short form for three names: Parashurama, Ramachandra, and Balarama, especially for the second of these. Ramachandra, for whom Ram(a) stands in the index references given below, was the seventh incarnation of Vishnu. He was the eldest son of King Dasharatha of Ayodhya. The main purpose of this incar- nation in the Treta Yuga was to kill the Rakshasa-king Ravana of Lanka. The story is told briefly in the Vana Parva of the Mahabharata and in full in the Ramayana, where Rama is the hero. (Dow.; A) n 1: 613, 768, 778 3: 31, 94, 175-77, 190, 218-19, 305, 428 4: 153, 330 5: 319 8: 5-9, 11-13, 15-17, 20-21, 23 9: 437-38 12: 464-65, 478, 483 13: 157, 161-62 14: 48, 192-94, 290, 292, 318 17:107, 119, 142 18:587 20:317 22: 407, 412-20, 422-23 23: 798 24: 1335 25: 78, 275 27: 154 I: 20, 41 II: 59, 75 V: 6-7, 10-11, 69 VI: 78, 137, 156 VII: 5, 16 IX: 40
Page 263
Ram(a)2 the same as BALARAMA 3:207 8:41-42, 45, 59 27:83 IV: 115 Rama3; Rama of the Axe the same as PARAS(H)URAMA 8: 39 13: 157
Rama4 name commonly used in conjunction with Shyama to denote any two persons associated with each other, V: 80
Ram(a)chandra See Majumdar, Ram(achandra)
Ram(a)das Ramdas Samartha (1608-81), a saint poet of Maharashtra who com- posed religio-ethical and political poems in Marathi. He was the Guru of SHIVAJI and exercised a great deal of influence in the shaping of his career and character and giving a religious basis to the kingdom that he founded. He was the author of Dasabodha and several other books, and established about 700 monasteries. (D.I.H.; Bhakta Ch.) For Swami Ramdas, see Ramdas 1:127 2:13, 261, 411 3:110, 484 4:92, 143 5:293 14:187, 256, 317-18, 321, 380 I: 4 III: 14 V: 4 IX: 29 Ramaiah name of a South Indian man or boy who was also referred to in the Record of Yoga as Chokra (boy). [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Ramaian See Ramayan(a)
Rama Jamadagnya (Rama Jamadagnya), Parashurama. son of Rishi Jamadagni. See also Paras(h)urama. a 11:424
Ramakrishna Bhagawan Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa (1836-86), a very great spiritual teacher of modern India, looked upon by many as an incarnation of God. Born in a poor priestly family of Bengal, with prac- tically no formal education, he became early in life the priest of the Kali temple at Dakshineshwar near Calcutta. He was the Guru of Vivekananda (Narendranath Dutta), Keshab Chandra Sen, and many other Ben- gali seekers. Sri Ramakrishna is perhaps the best known example in modern times of a man who demonstrated by personal example the essential unity of all religions. Although Sri Aurobindo never met Sri Ramakrishna during the latter's lifetime (Ramakrishna left his body on Sri Aurobindo's 14th birthday, 15 August 1886), Sri Aurobindo received three important communications from him afterwards (see A & R, XXI: 11-12). "It was Ramakrishna who personally came and turned me to this [Integral] yoga", wrote Sri Aurobindo in 1912. (D.I.H.;Enc.Br.) Var: Sri Ramakrishna; S.R (abbreviation used at times in the Record of Yoga) I:'65-66. 714. 799-801 2:405, 432 3:327, 338.344.375.462-63 4: 153.239.310-12 13: 29-30 14: 66, 187, 419 16: 24, 430 17: 68, 98, 146 20: 36, 48 22: 59, 71, 85. 87-88, 93-96, 150, 266, 407-08. 417-18. 422-23. 442, 456 23: 507. 572, 587, 591.619-22, 665, 788-90, 880, 927 24: 1251, 1286, 1361, 1388, 1561-62, 1637 25: 52-53 26: 58, 60, 106, 115, 118-19, 121, 125, 127, 134, 136, 181, 207, 258.465, 495 27:65, 366, 435 29: 797 II: 63-64 IV: 198 IX: 25 XIII: 29 XIV: 131, 163-64 XVII: 10, 58 XVIII: 152. 163 XIX: 57 XX: 141 XXI: 11
Ramakrishna Mission a religious society that carries out extensive educational and philanthropic work in India and is also the foremost exponent in Western countries of a modern version of Advaita (monist) Vedanta - a traditional school of Indian philosophy. The society was founded in Calcutta by Swami Vivekananda in 1897 with a twofold purpose: to spread the teaching of Sri Ramakrishna and to improve the social condition of the Indian people. The head- quarters of this large organization is at Belur Math near Calcutta. (Enc.Br.) 2:88 26:42, 59, 63 27:435.475
Ramalingam (1823-74), a poet-saint of South India who developed an eclectic mystical philosophy and wrote Tamil prose of epic grandeur. (Gaz. - II) 22: 94
Ramamurti a well-known physical culturist of India, called "the modern Bhimsen", whose feats of physical prowess and endurance made him a celebrity in the beginning of the twentieth century. Sri Aurobindo gave a lecture on Ramamurti at Poona on 12 January 1908. (Auro-I) l: 836 IX: 42 Raman, Sir C. V. Dr. Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman (1888-1970), an eminent Indian physicist of international repute, recipient of the 1930 Nobel Prize for physics and many other awards and prizes including the Lenin Prize for peace in 1958. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) 22:470-71, 495
Ramana Maharshi (1879-1950), a great yogi and philosopher, called "the sage of Aruna- chalam". His position on monism and Maya parallels that of Shankara. His Ashram is at Tiruvannamalai (South India), where he left his body in April 1950. His former name was Venkataramana Aiyar. (Enc. Br.) 22:484
Ramananda See Chatterjee, Ramananda
Page 264
Ramanuja (c. 1017 - c. 1137), a celebrated theologian and philosopher and the most revered teacher of the Vaishnava Hindus of South India. He was the leading opponent of the Absolute Monism (Advaita) taught by Shankaracharya. He preached Visistadvaita or Qualified Monism. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) 1:714 3:110, 214 4:43, 143 12:33 13:431 14:21, 132, 187, 308 16:342 17:265, 372 22: 82, 93 26: 135 II: 67 IV: 163, 168 VIII: 185 IX: 29 XIV: 139 XVI: 184 XVIII: 152, 154
Ramasadaya(babu) See Mukhopadhyaya, Ramasadaya
Ramaswami name of a cook once employed in the Ashram. 9: 555
Ramatirtha Swami Ramtirtha (1873-1906), religious leader known for the highly personal and poetic manner in which he taught what he styled "Practical Vedanta", using common experiences to illustrate the divine nature of man. (Enc. Br.) 22:117
Ramayan(a)' the oldest of the Sanskrit epic poems, written by the sage Valmiki. It celebrates the life and exploits of RAMA'. It is divided into seven kdndas or sections, and contains about 50, 000 lines. There are at places variations in the text of different versions. The epic is supposed to have been composed about five centuries before Christ; the last section, Uttara-kanda, is probably of a later date than the rest of the work. (Dow.) For the Ramayana in modern Indian languages, see "Kamban", "(Hindi) Rama- yana", and "(Bengali) Ramayana". Var: Ramaian Der: Ramayanistic 1: 768 3: 142, 149, 153, 158, 163, 175, 183-85, 217-19, 221-22, 226, 232, 331, 426 4: 252 8: 1 9:77, 245, 318, 523 13:454 14: 1, 48, 102, 186, 230, 256, 268, 281, 284-86, 289-91, 296, 303, 305, 317, 319, 321, 364, 372 17: 68-69 22: 414, 417, 419 25: 383 26: 246 27: 79, 154 29: 792, 815 I: 25 III: 8 IV: 161 XI: 15 XVI: 182
Ramayana1 selections from the Ramayana in English verse, translated by Romesh Dutt. (A) 17: 370
Rambha a character - a nymph of Heaven and companion of Urvasie - in Kalidasa's drama Vikramorvasie. 3: 282 5: 190 7: 909, 912, 919-21, 1007 X: 169
Ramachandra (Mazumdar) See Majumdar, Ram(achandra)
Ramdas Swami Ramdas (1884-1963), a Vaishnava Bhakta of South India, a devotee of Rama'. He established an ashram in Kerala known as Anandashram. For Ramdas Samartha.^ee Ram(a)das. 23: 798 26: 132
Rameses or Ramses or Ramesses, name of several kings of ancient Egypt of the XIX and XX dynasties; the most notable of them was Rameses II, who ruled for 67 years (1292-1225 BC). (Col. Enc.) 26:234
Rameshwaram an island in Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu. It is said that here RAMA' worshipped Shiva before beginning his assault on Lanka. Rameshwaram is con- sidered by many Hindus, both Vaishnava and Shaiva, as the most holy place in India after Varanasi (see Benares). The temple at Rameshwaram is famous also for its corridors. (Enc. Br.) 14: 213
Ramgopalpur a small town in the former province of Bengal (now in Bangladesh), about 85 miles from the district town of Mymensingh. I: 302
Rammohan's Wife See Raj Mohan's Wife.
Ramnagar a town in Birbhum district of Bengal (now in West Bengal state). (A) 27: 484
Ramprasad Rama Prasad Sen (1718/23-75), celebrated Bengali poet-saint, a devotee of the Mother Kali. He also rendered the romantic story of Vidya and Sundar in colourful verse. (Bhakta Ch.; Gaz.-II) 14:129, 256, 319, 321 22:85-86 26:119 RanaCurran a character-Prince of Edur, of the Rathore clan - in the play Prince of Edur by Sri Aurobindo. 7: 739, 741-45, 752-53
Ranade, Mahadev Govind (1842-1901), a noted Indian historian, economist, public man, reformer and scholar. He was a judge of the Bombay High Court, and in the fore- front of many public movements in the Bombay Presidency. It was he who sent a warning to the editor of Indu Prakash against publishing Sri Aurobindo's articles entitled "New Lamps for Old". (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.; A) 1:3, 652 3:81 4:211, 278 17: 332, 368-69 26: 13 XIV: 166-67 Ranade, R. D. Ramchandra Dattatreya Ranade (1886-1957), ofFerguson College, Poona, a great scholar and philosopher. Afterwards he was Emeritus Professor of Philosophy and Vice-Chancellor of Allahabad University. He possessed "in a superlative degree the rare gift of easy and yet adequate exposition" (16:335). (Enc.Ind.;A) 16:335-38, 341, 344, 346, 354 17:291, 294-98
Page 265
Rand W. C. Rand, I.C.S., Collector of Poona, who was shot by a Brahmin while he was returning from the Government House on the night of 22 June 1897. He died ten days later. While the spirit that prompted the assassination was nationalist and revolutionary, the proximate cause was the unpopularity of the plague measures which were being enforced in Poona at that time. He was very unpopular with the Maratha Brahmins, having already acquired a bad reputation for heartlessness as Assistant Collector in Satara district. (P.T.I.; R.O.H.) I:IIi5
Rangana name of a mountain pass. 5: 279
Rangaswamy probably, K. V. Rangaswamy lyengar, a zamindar ofKodailam (South India) who was a representative of the land- lords in the Legislative Assembly at Delhi up to 1906. When his guru Nagai Japata was near his end he advised Rangaswamy to take the "Uttar Yogi" (Yogi from the North) as his spiritual guide. A little after Sri Aurobindo's arrival in Pondicherry, Ranga- swamy identified him as this "Uttar Yogi", and came three times to Pondicherry to see him. See also" R". (Purani) 27:451
Rangoon capital of Burma, on the Rangoon River near its entrance into the Gulf of Martaban. (Col. Enc.)1:804 27:51
Rangpur name of a district and its head- quarters in Rajshahi division of the former province of Bengal (now in Bangladesh). (Enc. Br.) Var: Rangpore; Rungpur I:262, 357, 610, 744 2:70, 229 27:65 II: 2 VIII: 131
Ranjit Singh (1780-1839), Maharaja of Punjab, and the founder of the Sikh king- dom in Punjab in the teeth of opposition from the Afghans, the English, and many of his co-religionists. The kingdom extended from Peshawar to the Sutlej and from Kashmir to Sind. By defeating the traditional con- querors of India, the Pathans and Afghans, he came to be known as the Lion of Punjab. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) Var: Runjit Singh I: 303 4:140, 147 14:378 27: 67
Rape of the Lock a mock-epic poem by Alexander Pope. A two-canto version appeared in 1712, and the revised version in five cantos in 1714. It is a delicate and ingenious satire based on an incident in contemporary high society. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 9:387, 425 1:11
Raphael1 Raffaello Santi (1483-1520), world-famous painter and architect, one of the masters of the Italian High Renaissance style. He was the youngest of the three great artists of the High Renaissance, the others being Leonardo and Michelangelo. (Enc. Br.; Pears) 3:100, 424 14:66
Raphael2 a proposed character - the Angel of Sweetness - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Birth of Sin. 7:901
Ras(h)behari; Rash Behari See Ghose, Rash Behari
Rashtra Mat a Marathi daily paper of Bombay, edited (c. 1904) by Haribhai Modak. The paper gained great popularity as the organ of the Extremist Party led by Tilak, and fell a victim to the Press Act of 1910. (Purani; S.F.F.; A) 2:215 4:240.
Rasul Maulvi Abdur Rasul (1872-1917), a Muslim leader of Bengal who whole- heartedly supported the Congress. He was one of those leaders under whose guidance the agitation against the Partition of Bengal spread like wild-fire all over Bengal and even far outside it. (A; A.H.I. ;D.N.B.) I:169 4:178, 209
Rathi (Rati), in Hindu mythology, daughter of Daksha and wife of Kamadeva, the god of love. She is the Venus of the Hindus, the goddess of sexual love. (Dow.) Var: Ruthie 5:241 26:269 27:158
Rathitara (Rathitara), a teacher of ancient India, descendant of Nabhaga and son of Prsadasva. (B.P.C.) 12:324
Rathore one of the prominent clans of the Rajputs, 5:286-87 7:739
Rau, Hayavadana a writer whose article on the subject of Aliens in Ancient India appeared in the Indian Review (December 1906). Sri Aurobindo commented on this article in his "Passing Thoughts" in the Karmayogin. (A) 2: 398
Ravana in the Ramayana, grandson of Rishi Pulastya, and king of the Rakshasas in Lanka whence he expelled his half-brother Kuvera. Ravana is described as having ten heads and twenty arms, and a form like a thick cloud or a mountain. With his evil and cruel deeds he inspired terror even in the gods, so Vishnu incarnated as Rama to destroy him. Ravana kidnapped Sita, the consort of Rama, and by this unrighteous conduct brought ruin upon himself and his whole family. (Dow.) 1:778, 811-12 2: 121 3: 31, 94, 176, 178, 219, 427 5: 77-79, 84 9: 317 12: 464-65 13: 161 14: 192, 194 17: 107, 142, 383 18:587 20: 317 22: 415-16 24: 1334 27: 139 II: 75 V: 5-7.9-12, 89 VI: 141, 190 VII: 70
Page 266
Ravivarma, Raja (1848-1906), a popular Indian artist related to the royal family of Travancore, who won gold medals and diplomas at International Art Exhibitions. He helped foreigners get an idea of the religious and mythological lore of the land. But his paintings, though hailed at that time as the glory of a new dawn, are, according to Sri Aurobindo, an "incompetent imitation of the worst European styles" (17: 276), "universally condemned by critics of eminence Asiatic and European" (XIII: 47). Ravi Varma, says Sri Aurobindo, "represents in Art that dark period when, in subjection to foreign teaching and ideals, we did everything badly because we did everything slavishly" (3: 427). He was "a man without genius" and "had neither the power to develop original conceptions, nor the skill to reproduce finely that which he tried to learn from Europe" (3:427). (Bh.S.K.;D.N.B.;A) Var: Ravi Varma 3: 427-29 4: 154 14: 227, 421 17: 276 XIII: 47-48
Rawalpindi or Pindi, name of a city, district, and division in the province of Punjab (now in Pakistan). It was the capital of Pakistan from 1959 to 1969. (Enc. Br.) 1:324, 354, 359, 385, 390, 408, 423-24, 431-32, 442, 444, 482, 485, 508-09, 522, 560, 907 IV: 110
Ray, Ananda Chandra See Roy, Ananda Chandra
Ray, Beni Bhusan president of a meeting at Khulna (25 June 1909) where Sri Aurobindo gave a speech on the Gita. (A) 2: 425
Ray, Charu Chander (c. 1867- ? ), a professor and sub-director of Dupleix College, Chandernagore. In the searches at Manicktolla Garden and other places in Bengal in 1908, documents were found connecting Charuchandra to the conspiracy. He was arrested, extradited from French India, and made to stand trial in the Alipore Bomb Case. But before judgment could be passed on him, his friends in the French government provided him with an alibi and also applied pressure through diplomatic channels with the result that the case against him was withdrawn. The professor went back to his teaching at Chandernagore in January 1909, promising his friends that he would henceforth keep out of trouble. Perhaps that was one of the reasons why, a little more than a year later, when Sri Aurobindo escaped to Chandernagore and sought shelter with him, he refused to provide it. (P.T.I., p. 400 under Roy; A & R, XVII: 110) 4:291 27:471 Ray, Chunilal one of the Bengalis whom Sri Aurobindo met at Srinagar (Kashmir). He worked at the Foreign Office. (A) IV: 195
Ray, Gopal Chandra also referred to simply as Gopal, an officer of the C.I.D. in Bengal, who was keeeping a close watch on Sri Aurobindo's residence (6, College Square, Calcutta) and his mail in 1909-10. (A) 2:366
Ray, Dr. P. C. Sir Prafulla Chandra Ray (1861-1944), the first Palit Professor of Chemistry (1916-36) in Calcutta University. He inspired a generation of scholars and built up a modern chemical industry. In 1892 he founded the Bengal Chemical and Phar- maceutical Works. Simple, ascetic, and unassuming in personal life, he was rightly hailed by his countrymen as "Acharya". (D.N.B.) 1:480 3:432-33
Ray, Rammohan See Roy, (Raja) Rammohan
Ray, Upendra Kishore most probably Upendra Kishore Rai Chaudhary (1863- 1915), author of Pauranic, scientific, and other interesting story-books for children. In a way he was a pioneer in the production of children's literature in Bengali. His contribu- tion to music and art was also great. He illustrated his own books and some others with his drawings and paintings. He is well known for his research in the various techniques of picture printing. Upendra Kishore was the grandfather of Satyajit Ray, the most distinguished Indian producer- director of films. (S.B.C.) 3:428
Raymond Antonin Raymond, the designer of GOLCONDE, a Czech architect who had worked in Japan and U.S.A., and had collaborated with the famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Raymond who was a friend of Pavitra (P. B. Saint Hilaire), came to the Ashram with his family in 1937 to work on the project. (Mother's Agenda, Vol. I, p. 409) 25:230
Rbhuksan See Ribhu
Reay, Lord Doral James Mackay (1839- 1921), llth Baron Reay, Governor of Bombay (1885-90). Originally Dutch, he became a naturalised British citizen in 1877. He was a Liberal statesman, and was made a peer in 1881. (A;Maj.-I) 2:131 27:4
Page 267
Rebecca a character - daughter of the Jew, Isaac of York- in Scott's novel Ivanhoe. She falls in love with Ivanhoe and nurses him. Ivanhoe saves her life by appearing as her champion after she has been convicted of sorcery and condemned to be burned at the stake. (Enc. Am.) 3:93
Rebha a character - Governor of Ujjayini, the capital of Avunthie - in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. 6:207, 313, 317-19, 325-27
Reddy, Sir Cattamanchi Ramalinga a great educationist, distinguished scholar, poet and critic in Telugu. He held top-level educa- tional responsibilities in Mysore, Madras and Andhra universities, and in Baroda. A National Prize instituted in his name was presented to Sri Aurobindo at the Con- vocation of the Andhra University held on 11 December 1948. (Enc. Ind.; A) 26:407
Red Indian a member of the native race of North America. (C.O.D.) 1:282 10:144 12:502 15:78 27:273, 287
Redmond, John (Edward) (1856-1918), an Irish Nationalist Party leader who devoted his life to negotiating Home Rule for Ireland. (Enc. Br.) 1:367-68
Rees John D. Rees (1854-1922), Private Secretary to successive Governors of Madras (1878-88); Additional Member of the Viceroy's Council (1895-1900); in England, Liberal M.P. (1906-10) and Conservative M.P. (1912-22). Rees was a confirmed opponent of Sri Aurobindo. In his remarks in the House of Commons on 5 August 1909 he asserted that although deporting without trial was autocratic, the Government should deport Sri Aurobindo as he commanded great sway over the student population. In 1910 he twice spoke in the House in favour of the sedition proceedings that had been instituted against Sri Aurobindo. (A & R, XV: 82, 116) 1:373 XV: 62-63 Reformation, The the religious revolution that took place in the Western Christian Church in the 16th century. Its greatest leaders were Martin Luther and John Calvin. Having far-reaching political, economic, and social effects, the Reformation became the basis of Protestantism, one of the three major branches of Christianity. (Enc. Br.) 15:15, 92, 168, 354 16:322
Reformer See (Indian) Social Reformer
Reich* The German Empire of 1871-1918 was often called the Second Reich (empire) to indicate its descent from the medieval empire; on the same reasoning Adolf Hitler referred to Nazi Germany as the Third Reich.'(Enc. Br.) 15:420
Reich2 manager (c. 1909) of the jute factory at Nakail in Bengal. (A) 4:247-48
(Reign of) Terror, The or "The Terror", that period of the first French Revolution from March (according to other views, June or September) 1793 to July 1794, when the ruling faction ruthlessly executed persons of both sexes and all ages and conditions whom they regarded as dangerous. It was terminated by the fall of Robespierre. (Ox. Comp.; Enc. Br.) 1:44, 604 15:326, 510 17:381
Reims or Rheims, cityofMarnedeparte- ment in northeastern France, in Champagne, east-northeast of Paris. (Enc. Br.) 27:466
Reliques Reliques of Ancient English Poetry, a collection of ballads, sonnets, historical songs, and metrical romances published in 1765 by Thomas Percy. In each of the later editions, new matter was added. This work did much to promote the revival of interest in the older English poetry. (Ox. Comp.) 11:18
Renaissance the revival of art and letters, under the influence of classical models, which began in Italy in the 14th century and covered a period of roughly two hundred years in European history. The Renaissance spread from Italy to France, Spain, Ger- many, and northern Europe. The term as used today refers not only to art in its widest sense but to a total change in man's outlook on life which extended into philosophical, scientific, economic, and technical fields. (O.E.D.; Enc. Br.; Pears, p. J44) Var: Renascence 3:79, 225 5:342 9:60, 63, 95, 100, 537, 546 14:15, 80, 192, 201, 204, 395, 397-98 15:15, 69, 85, 91, 163, 168, 589 16:322 17:195, 318
Renan, Ernest (1823-92), French historian and critic, a scholar of religion, and a great philologist. He was one of the greatest European scholars and thinkers of his day. His best-known work was the Life of Jesus (1863). (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 3:263 10:551-52 17:298 27:180-81 X: 146 XVII: 42
Renascence See Renaissance
Renee (Beauregard) a character - a Frenchwoman of the South - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Phantom Hour". She is also called Idalie and Renee Idalie Marviranne. 1-1 7:1017-18, 1020-21, 1023-24
Page 268
Renoneants Indian residents of the French settlements in India who became full French citizens after "renouncing their personal status under the Indian Law". (Remini., p. 72) 27:445
Republic The Republic, the most celebrated of Plato's dialogues, where justice is discussed by Socrates and others, especially in the context of an ideal state. (Enc. Br.) 3:pre. 15:90 17:245 18:299 XIV:163
Retaliation an unfinished poem by Gold- smith, published in 1774, consisting of a string of humorous and critical epitaphs on David Garrick, Reynolds, Burke, and other friends, in reply to their similar efforts directed against himself. (Ox. Comp.) : 19
The Return of Moro Giafferi title of a piece of prose fiction mentioned in the Record of Yoga. It was either never written or has been lost. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Reuter Reuters Ltd., news agency, founded by Paul Julius Reuter in England in 1851, later owned and operated as a trust by news- papers in Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. (Enc. Br.) 1:205, 447, 565, 574-75 2:233, 286 4:233, 238
Revaty in Hindu mythology, the beautiful daughter of King Raiwata and wife of Balarama. (Dow.) n 7:769
Review The reference is to the English monthly journal Arya, which was a philo- sophical review, 27:455-57, 460-63, 468-70
Review of Reviews a representative British literary magazine founded by W. T. Stead, and published from 1890 to 1936. (H.L.) 2:356
The Revolt of Islam a poem, an immature work, by P. B. Shelley. Its overweighted Spenserian stanzas never attained popularity. The poem was, however, a great favourite with Sri Aurobindo even when he was quite young. It was originally published in December 1817 under the title Laon and Cythna in the form of a history of an ideal revolution in which the mistakes of the French Revolution were avoided. Later withdrawn, it was re-released as The Revolt of Islam in 1818. (A; Col. Enc.; Purani) 9:127
Rg abbreviation of the name of a person, perhaps, RANGASWAMY. 1-1 XXII: 177
Rhadamanthus in Greek legend, a king of Crete, son of Zeus and Europa. He was rewarded for the exemplary justice he showed during his life by being made, after his death, one of the three judges of the dead in the lower worlds. (Web.) 5:418
Rhesus in Greek legend, a Thracian ally of Priam in the Trojan War. When Sri Aurobindo's Ilion opens, he has already been slain. (M.I.) 5:426, 474
Rhine a river, a major waterway of the European continent. It rises in the Alps and, flowing north and west for 820 miles, empties into the North Sea. (Enc. Br.) 15:467 27:347
Rhodes an island off southwest Asia Minor, in the Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese which belong to Greece. Its chief city, on the northeastern coast, is also named Rhodes (Col. Enc.) Der: Rhodian 3:235 6:12
Riach the editor of the Statesman, who was removed in or before 1906. (A) 1:185
Ribhu (rbhu), or rbhuksan, the eldest of the RIBHUS; "the skilful Knower or the Shaper in knowledge". (A) 10:326 11:83 Ribhus in the Rig-veda, human powers who by the work of sacrifice and their brilliant ascension to the high dwelling-place of the Sun have attained to immortality and, be- coming divinities, help mankind to repeat their achievement. They are the three sons of Sudhanvan, a descendant of Angiras, named Ribhu or Ribhukshan, Vibhu or Vibhva, and Vaja. The Ribhus are the artisans of Immortality, the divine craftsmen who shape by the mind Indra's horses, the Ashwins' chariot, the weapons of the Gods - all the means of the journey and the battle. (A, 11: 32; Dow; I & G) 4: 22 10: 20, 56, 62, 86, 179, 197, 316, 318, 324, 326-30, 438 11: 32, 34, 466 XXII: 197
Richard' a character - Duke of Gloucester, afterwards King Richard III - in Shakes- peare's play Richard III. (Shakes.) 3:186
Richard2 a name mentioned only once in Longfellow's narrative poem The Courtship of Miles Standish. (P.W.L., p. 286) 5:377
Richard3 See Richard (Lancaster)
Richard II a character (the hero) in Shakespeare's tragedy King Richard the Second. Historically, Richard II (1367-1400) was king of England from 1377 to 1399. (Shakes.; Col. Enc.) 3:269 X:151
Page 269
Richard II The Tragedie of Richard the Second, historical play by Shakespeare (first performed 1595/96) on the life and death of the king, but also giving prominence to his adversary Bolingbroke, later King Henry IV. (Enc. Br.) 3:263 X: 146
Richard III chronicle play by Shakespeare (first performed 1592/93), the background of which is the conflict between the rival houses of York and Lancaster known as the Wars of the Roses. The play is dominated by the royal hunchback, Richard, brother of the Yorkist king Edward IV. (Enc. Br.) 3:185
Richard, Madame wife of Paul Richard. See (The) Mother.
Richard, Paul (1874-1967), husband of Mirra Alfassa (later known as the Mother) whom she married in 1910. He had been a fellow seeker, well read in the philosophical and religious literature of the West and the East. In April 1910 he came to Pondicherry to help Paul Bluysen in his attempt to be elected to the French Chamber. Here he met Sri Aurobindo. In March 1914 Richard, accompanied by Mme. Richard, came again, himself seeking election to the Chamber. They remained in Pondicherry until February 1915. During this period Richard was director and one of the editors ofArya. After spending the years of World War I in France and Japan, the Richards returned to Pondicherry in April 1920. In December of the same year Richard left, and spent the rest of his life in various parts of India, France, and America, where he died. He is the author of more than a dozen books. Sri Aurobindo, in his Record of Yoga of 1914, refers to him mostly as "R". (A; Mother-1; Agenda-11) 17:397 27:442-43, 445-50, 452-53, 456, 469, 495 XIX: 43
Richard Abelard a character - Walter's son and Stephen's father - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard". Richard Lancaster was also called Richard Abelard after his marriage with Isabel Q 7:1026
Richard Feverel The Ordeal of Richard Feverel, a novel (1859) by George Meredith. It was at first banned as prurient by libraries. (Enc. Br.) 9:544
Richard (Lancaster) a character - husband of Isabel - in Sri Aurobindo's short story "The Door at Abelard". He was made to adopt the family name (Abelard) of his wife. Var: Richard Abelard; Richard Lancaster Abelard 7:1025-29, 1031-46
Richards, the Paul Richard and his wife Mirra Alfassa, later known as the Mother. a'27:495
Richardson, Samuel (1689-1761), early English novelist who explored the dramatic possibilities of the novel by his use of the letter form (the epistolary technique). (Enc. Br.) 9:44, 62, 480 26:256-57
Richelieu Armand-Jean du Plessis, cardinal et Due de Richelieu (1585-1642), chief minister to King Louis XIII of France. He is among the prime exemplars in European history of the use of power for both ecclesi- astical and secular ends. He was the ac- knowledged architect of France's hegemony in the 17th century and the secularization of politics during the Thirty Years' War. (Enc. Br.) X:113
Richmond a character - Henry, Earl of Richmond, afterwards King Henry VII - in Shakespeare's play Richard III. (Shakes.) 3:186
Riddle of the Universe title of the English translation (first published in 1929) done by Joseph McCabe, of a German book (1899) written by Prof. Ernst Haeckel. 12:30
The Riddle of this World extracts from Sri Aurobindo's letters, first published in book form in 1933. (I & G) 22:32, 99, 175 23:1052 26:108, 134, 371
Rig-veda the first of the four Vedas. Two others, the Yajur and Sama, are merely different arrangements of its hymns for special purposes. The hymns of the Rig-veda are addressed to the deities, at times, to the same deity under different names. To each hymn is prefixed the name of the Rishi to whom it was revealed. The "Samhita" or text of the Rig-veda contains 1017 hymns (or 1028 if the "Balakhilam", VIII - 49 to 59, is included) divided into 10 mandalas or books. In the Record of Yoga, Sri Aurobindo has, at some places, used the abbreviation R.V. or RV. (Dow.) Var: Rig; the Rik(s) Der: Rig Vedic 4: pre., 23, 26, 30, 43-46 9:218 10: 1, 5, 8, 29, 34, 38, 44, 54-56, 63, 74, 77, 113, 122, 126, 128, 138.142, 154, 160, 168, 171, 175, 178, 190-91, 210, 212-13, 215, 223, 233, 237, 281, 287, 294, 298, 303, 314, 3i6, 324, 331, 333, 335. 339, 348-49, 354, 420-21, 546, 554-55 11: 1, 3, 6, 8-9, 14-15, 18-19, 34, 94, 439, 460, 462, 466, 471-72, 476, 478, 480 12: 3, 98, 129, 202. 217-18, 270, 276, 286, 296, 300, 309-10, 321. 329, 368, 385-86, 408, 448, 477-78, 530 13: 192-93, 314, 454 14: 261-62, 275, 277 15: 3, 545 16:263.343, 349 17:278.291, 369, 397 18:1, 13, 15, 59, 99, 112, 117, 142, 188,
Page 270
198, 217, 235, 240, 252, 262, 271, 285, 365. 482-83, 489, 501, 511, 550, 553, 581, 596 19: 657, 702, 726, 765, 779, 792, 824, 848, 889, 919, 964, 1015 20: 384 21:556 22:9, 69, 103, 235 24:1624 26:126 27: 335, 440 29: 805, 815 I: 18, 32 II: 35 111:51 IV: 145-46, 148 V:35, 68 VI: 150, 169 VII: 39, 42 VIII: 153 IX: 1, 2, 9, 11 X: 178 XIV: 122, 127, 130-31, 159 XV: 4-5, 7, 43-44, 48, 55 XVI: 132-33, 139, 143, 146, 151, 154, 163, 172-73 XVII: 14, 16-17, 24, 28, 31-34, 59, 63 XVIII: 169 XIX: 50 XX: 133-35, 139 XXI: 63
The Riks a "brilliant and astonishing" work on the Veda by T. Paramasiva Aiyar. (A) 10: 27
Riksha name of a patron mentioned in one verse of the Rig-veda (8.68.15). His son has been mentioned elsewhere as Arksa. (V. Index) 11:363, 365
Rimbaud, (Jean-Nicolas-) Arthur (1854-91), French poet and adventurer whose small poetic output, written between his 15th and 20th years, ranks among the highest in French poetry. Its influence on the Symbolist movement is incalculable. (Enc. Br.) 9:445-46
Ripon, Lord Lord George Frederick Samuel Robinson (1827-1909), 1st Marquess and 2nd Earl of Ripon, English statesman who in more than fifty years of public service occu- pied important cabinet posts and served as Viceroy and Governor General of India from 1880 to 1884. (Enc.Br.) Der: Riponism 1:317, 511, 600 2:371 4:190 27:4
Rip Van Winkle the main character in the story of that name by Washington Irving, published in the Sketch Book (1819-20). The story is based on a legend once current in the Catskill mountains about a man who slept for twenty years. (Col. Enc.) l:l31
Rishabha in the Mahabharata, a Rakshasa in the form of a bull, who was slain by Brihadratha. (M.N.) 8:52
Rishabha Vaishwamitra a Vedic sage mentioned in the Aitareya Brahmana as a sonofVisvamitra. (V. Index) 11:133
The Rishi one of the longer poems of Sri Aurobindo, in which King Manu of old seeks knowledge from the Rishi of the North Pole, and an Upanishadic conversation follows between Manu and the Rishi. The Rishi, says Sri Aurobindo, "is poetry as well as spiritual philosophy. "(26:277) (Auro-I) 26:256, 276-77 Risley, Sir Herbert Sir Herbert Hope Risley (1851-1911), an official of the Government of India.'He joined the I.C.S. in 1873. As Census Commissioner, he compiled the census reports of 1901. As Home Secretary (1902-09), he suggested in December 1903 the partition of Bengal, and later, explained its political advantage thus: "Bengal united is a power. Bengal divided will pull several different ways. This is perfectly true and is one of the great merits of the scheme." In 1909 he was appointed Home Minister. He is the author of the well-known books The People of India and Tribes and Castes of Bengal, but gained greater notoriety for his education circular. See next entry. (R.O.H.; Auro-I; H.F.M.I.) 1:78, 327, 400 2:398-400 10:24 XVII: 43
Risley Circular a circular issued in 1907 by Sir Herbert Risley of the Government of India to the local governments in the hope of striking at the very root of the Swadeshi movement. Ostensibly, the object was to protect higher education in India from any connection with politics. (A) 1:357, 359-60, 377-78, 380-81, 399, 405-07, 416, 495, 902 2:229 4:181
Roberts a character - perhaps the maid- servant of the house - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard". 7:1034-35, 1038
Robespierre Maximilien-Francois-Marie- Isidore de Robespierre (1758-94), Jacobin leader and one of the leading figures of the French Revolution. After he had been tried and guillotined, there grew up legends concerning him and his ideas. Generally he came to be considered an ambitious demagogue and dictator, though others praised him as an idealistic champion of social revolution. (Enc, Br.; Col. Enc.) 1:604 17:378, 380-82
Robinson, John a common English name used by Sri Aurobindo to denote any person. 16:90, 92
Rockefeller, John D(avison) (1839-1937), U.S. industrialist and philanthropist, founder of the Standard Oil Company, which domi- nated the oil industry and was the first great U.S. business trust. As to his philanthropy, his and his son's benefactions totalled more than $3, 000, 000, 000. His philanthropic enterprises are carried on by the Rockefeller Foundation. (Enc. Br.; Pears) Var: Rockfeller (a misspelling) 12:501 15:609 XVII: 26
Rodin, Auguste (1840-1917), French sculptor who was by the early 20th century revered as the world's greatest sculptor, a new Michel- angelo. The Mother met him in Paris. (Ene. Br.) 9:548 14:66, 229
Page 271
Rodogune a character - Parthian princess, daughter of King Phraates of Parthia, captive attendant of Cleopatra - in Sri Aurobindo's play of the same name, Rodogune. 6:333, 336-38, 342, 353-56, 359-62, 368, 371-87, 389, 392, 396.400, 406, 408-11, 413-14, 418-20, 423-25, 428, 430-31, 435, 438-40, 442-45, 447-49, 451-52, 456-58.463-65
Rodogune a play by Sri Aurobindo. A version written in Baroda around 1905-06 was seized by the police in 1908 and never returned to Sri Aurobindo. Later, in Pondicherry, he began the play again. Obviously, therefore, Sri Aurobindo refers to this later version in the entries of his "Record of Yoga" dated July 20th and November 14th, 1912. It was first published in 1958 in Sri Aurobindo Mandir Annual, and also in book-form. (SABCL, Vol. 6, p. 561) XX: 134, 144 Rohinie' in Hindu astronomy, one of the twenty-seven Naksatras; the fourth of the lunar asterisms. Mythologically, daughter of Daksa and the favourite wife of the Moon (Mrigalanchhan). (Dow.) 3:290 7:954, 961, 965 X:177
Rohin(n)ie2 in the Mahabharata, one of the wives of Vasudeva and mother of Bala- rama. (M.N.) 1-1 3:207 8:43, 59 IV: 115
Le Roi s'amuse a play (1832) by Victor Hugo. (Col. Enc.) 3:263 X: 145
Rolland, Remain (1866-1944), French novelist, playwright, essayist, biographer, musicologist and one of the great mystics of contemporary French literature. His novel Jean-Christophe established his reputation in the literary world. He was the recipient of the 1915 Nobel Prize for literature. (Col. Enc.) 9:557 23:616 26:165, 468
Rolleston, Baron Chief Justice of Ireland who heard the Baker's Case and gave his judgment. (A) 2:181
Remains, Dr. Jules pseudonym ofLouis- Henri-Jean Farigoule (1885-1972), French novelist, dramatist, and poet. He was a founder of the literary movement known as Unanimisme, and author of two internation- ally known works, Knock (a comedy) and the novel cycle Les hommes de bonne volonte. Jules Remains was in the Mother's opinion almost a rival to Anatole France as regards perfection of French prose. (Enc. Br.; M.I., Jan.'79) 22:201
Roman Catholic Church the Christian church headed by the Pope (Bishop of Rome). It is characterized by its uniform, highly developed doctrinal and organizational structure that traces its history to the Apostles of Jesus Christ in the 1st century AD. (Web.; Enc. Br.) 9:77 12:54-55 26:339-40
Romanic descended from, inheriting civilization etc. of the Romans; Romance-speaking (Romance is a group of Italic languages of the Indo-European family, also called Romanic). (C.O.D.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov.l913-0c(. '27]
Romanoff Romanov, the ruling dynasty of Russia from 1613 until the February Revolution of 1917. The last Romanov was Nicholas II. (Enc. Br.) 2:254 15:356 Rome a historic city, capital of Italy and see of the Pope, whose residence, Vatican City, is a sovereign state within the city of Rome. Rome is also the capital of Latium (a region of central Italy), and of Rome province. It is one of the richest cities in the world in history and art and one of its great cultural, religious, and intellectual centres. (Col. Enc.) Der: Roman I: 24, 34-36, 55, 148, 215, 236, 287, 379, 412, 455, 505-07, 576, 659, 715, 737, 757, 769, 774-76, 787, 791, 829, 843, 862, 903 2:34, 36, 123, 164, 261, 311, 369, 399 3: 9-11, 70, 110, 225, 227, 295, 320, 359, 447, 480-82 4: 98-99, 143, 148, 238 5: 398, 497, 499-500, 505-06 6:427, 431, 543 7:665, 735, 1014, 1077 9: 32-33, 42, 44, 61-62, 65, 77, 81, 87, 132, 227, 267, 316, 320, 394, 414, 524, 546 10: 24, 555 11: 2-3 12: 54-55, 484, 497-98, 503 13:198 14:25, 45, 63, 80, 82, 103, 121, 148, 176, 187, 328-29, 350, 366-67, 375-77, 402 15: 15, 82, 89-92, 148, 164, 178, 192, 264-65, 268, 281, 284, 287, 289-90, 295-99, 303.318, 320-21, 323, 337-41, 343-44, 346-50, 353-54, 388, 419, 430, 438, 444, 460, 473, 484-85, 496, 501, 523, 535, 537-38, 553, 564 16:219, 309, 322-23 17:163, 195, 278, 294, 296, 303, 317, 377, 387 19: 1051 22: 185, 410, 416, 451, 454, 490 23: 767, 834 26: 156, 204, 238, 262, 361, 446-47 27: 202-04, 248, 280 29: 785, 800 I: 3, 8, 72 II: 7, 15, 28 IV: 159 VI: 155, 198-99 VIII: 173, 176 IX: 28, 33 X: 145 XV: 5, 41 XVI: 134, 141, 164-65, 172, 181
Romeo the hero of Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet. The play deals with youthful lovers whose families are implacable enemies. The lovers are married secretly in the cell of Friar Laurence. Romeo is
Page 272
banished. In desperation Juliet, who is about to be married against her will, takes a sleeping potion given her by the friar to bring on a semblance of death. Romeo, hearing of her death before the friar's explanation reaches him, returns and drinks poison at Juliet's tomb. When she wakes up a few moments later to find him dead, she stabs herself. (R. Enc.) 3:21 VII: 49
Romesh (Chandra) See Dutt, Romesh (Chandra)
Roncedas a character - a courtier - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. 7:821, 825, 836
Roodhra name of an unknown (or imaginary) place in India, among the hills. (A) : 897-98
Rookminnie See Rukminie
Roomunwath (Rumanvat), a character - Captain of Cowsambie's armies - in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. 6:207, 215-16, 220, 225-26, 236, 243-44, 247, 321-24, 327
Roosevelt, Franklin D(elano) (1882-1945), 32nd President (1933-45) of the United States of America, the only president who was re-elected three times. He died in office. He was an Allied leader during World War II, and through his foreign and domestic policies he expanded the role of the federal government. (Enc. Br.) 15: 419 25: 106
Rooseveltian of Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919), 26th President (1901-09) of the U.S.A., and writer, explorer, and soldier, who expanded the powers of the presidency and of the federal government on the side of the public interest in conflicts between big business and organised labour. (Enc. Br.) 15: 503 XIII: 47
Rosalind a character (the heroine) - daughter of the banished Duke - in Shakespeare's comedy As You Like It. (Shakes.) 12: 470 27: 207 I: 40
Rosamund Rosamond Clifford (c. 1140- c. 1176), a mistress of Henry II of England, who was known as "Fair Rosamond". A considerable body of legendary material concerning Rosamond was written by the mediaeval chroniclers but it cannot be verified. The best-known stories tell how Queen Eleanor murdered Rosamond by poison, stabbing, or beheading. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 3:88
TheRosciad a poem (1761) by Charles Churchill. (Ox. Comp.) : 19 Rosebery Archibald Philip Primrose (1847-1929), 5th Earl of Rosebery, English statesman, prime minister from 3 March 1894 to 21 June 1895. Faced with a divided cabi- net and a hostile House of Lords, his minis- try achieved nothing of consequence. He retired from politics in 1905 and thereafter ceased to play any major role in public life. (Enc.Br.) I: 438
Rose of God a poem in a new metre by Sri Aurobindo, composed on 31 December 1934. (A) l-l 5: 588 26: 229 29: 728 Rosicmcian (member) of a secret worldwide brotherhood claiming to possess esoteric wisdom handed down from ancient times. Their name derives from the order's symbol, a combination of a rose and a cross. The teachings of Rosicrucianism combine elements of occultism with a variety of religious beliefs and practices. (Enc. Br.) XIII: 26, 32-33
Rossetti, Dante Gabriel (1828-82), English poet and painter. He displayed rare mastery as a poet and founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, an artistic movement devoted to "truth to nature" and to romanticizing the Middle Ages. (Enc. Br.) 9: 133, 139, 142
Roth Rudolf von Roth (1821-95), German Orientalist and one of the two eminent San- skritists who, with the assistance of many distinguished scholars, compiled the great seven-volumed Sanskrit-German Thesaurus. (Col.Enc.;M.W., p.v) 17:339 XVII: 27', 41, 46 XVIII: 154
Roubey name of an unknown person. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Rouen a city in northern France, and ancient capital of Normandy, situated on the Seine near its mouth at the English Channel. In 1430, St. Joan of Arc was imprisoned at Rouen in a tower that still stands and now bears her name. Tried and condemned for heresy, she was burnt at the stake by the English in the city on the Place du Vieux- Marchein May 1431. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) D 3: 267 III: 24 X: 149 Roum I.Rome 2. the kingdom or region (later known as Asia Minor), with Constan- tinople as its capital. 7:616, 620, 707, 721, 725 R(o)umania Romania or Rumania, a kingdom, and after World War II a socialist republic, of southeastern Europe, in the Balkan Peninsula. Rumania remained neutral in the first of the Balkan Wars but entered the second war, against Bulgaria, in 1913, and gained South Dobruja. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Rumanian 15:295.375 XXI: 71,87,100 '
Page 273
Roumano-Bulgarian tension the international conflict which began when Roumania, as a price for having remained neutral in the First Balkan War (1912), demanded from the Bulgarians a part of the Dobruja. Bulgaria was reluctant to accept Russian arbitration. The tension continued and ultimately led to Roumania attacking Bulgaria and occupying the Dobruja. (Enc. Br., Macro. Vol. 2, p. 630) XXII: 132
Roupnaraian, King See Shiva Singh (Rupnaraian)
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques (1712-78), French philosopher and political theorist whose treatises and novels inspired the leaders of the French Revolution and the Romantic generation. His influence was equally strong in the fields of politics, literature, and edu- cation. Men as diverse as Kant, Goethe, Robespierre, Pestalozzi, and Leo Tolstoy were his disciples. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 1: 862 3: 29 9: 96.100 15: 1 16: 324 III: 10
Roy, Ananda Chandra (1844-1935), once leader of the Dacca Bar, played an impor- tant role in the events of 1905-06. He vehemently condemned the Partition of Bengal. His contribution to the Swadeshi movement was great and universally acknowledged. (D.N.B.; S.B.C.) Var: Ananda Chandra Ray; Ananda Babu 1: 135-36, 161 27: 6-9
Roy, Anilbaran (1890-1974), a professor of philosophy for seven years in Bengal, who subsequently felt a call for national work and actively participated in the Non-cooperation Movement of 1921. As a trusted lieutenant of C. R. Das, he soon became a leading figure in the political arena of Bengal. He was arrested and convicted in 1924. Mean- while he became profoundly impressed by the teachings of Sri Aurobindo and after his release in June 1926 he joined the Ashram. Having practised Sri Aurobindo's Yoga for 40 years, he left the Ashram in 1966 to do, as he said, Sri Aurobindo's political work. Anilbaran was a prolific writer and has written books in three languages, English, Bengali and Hindi. (D.N.B.) 8: 387 9: 435 (name abbreviated to "A")
Roy, Dilip Kumar (1897-1980), a well-known musician and vocalist who specialised in Dhrupad, Khayal, and devotional music;
also an author and a poet. He was son of Dwijendralal Roy, the famous Bengali dramatist, and a contemporary of Subhas Chandra Bose in college. Attracted by Sri Aurobindo, he came to the Ashram and was here from 1928 to 1952. During this period he was occasionally subject to fits of doubt, restiveness and even rebellion. A few years after leaving the Ashram, he settled at Pune and there built and maintained Hare Krishna Mandir. (Enc. Ind.; Mother-1; Auro-II) 8: 384-86 II: 33
Roy, Dinendra Kumar a Bengali litterateur who stayed with Sri Aurobindo at Baroda in 1898-99 in order to familiarise him with the Bengali language. Sri Aurobindo was not a pupil of Dinendra Kumar; he had learnt Bengali already by himself and only called in Dinendra to help him in his studies. (Purani;A) I-I 26: 11
Roy, Dwijendralal (1863-1913), celebrated Bengali playwright who wrote a variety of plays-musical, historical, devotional, comic, and romantic etc. Being a government ser- vant, he could not take an active part in the national movement, but he indirectly helped the national cause by writing patriotic songs and plays. Dwijendralal's greatest contribution lies in three fields: satire, music and poetry, and drama. (D.N.B.) 8: 383
Roy, .Motilal (1882-1959), noted Bengali journalist, novelist, and author; he edited Prabartak for twenty-seven years. His field of activity was Chandernagore, his native town. He organised the Prabartak Sangh under the inspiration of Sri Aurobindo. Around 1921, however, he gradually drifted away from his former guru (see Prabartak Sangh). From Pondicherry Sri Aurobindo addressed him in his letters as "Dear M". (Enc. Br.; Purani; D.N.B.) Var: Moti Babu 26:60, 63, 71, 437 27: pre., 417. 426, 428, 431, 433, 436-37, 439-42, 445, 449, 455, 461-63, 468, 470, 473, 478, 482, 484-85, 495, 498 VII: 3-6, 10, 14-15, 17, 19, 23 XVI: 193 XXI: 32 XXII: 157
Roy, P. C. perhaps Pratap Chandra Rai (or Roi) (1841-95), a man who with great effort over twelve years brought out an English translation of the Mahabharata in eleven volumes. The translation was done by his learned friend Kishori Mohan Ganguly. Pratap Chandra devoted all his time, energy, and resources to its publication which was completed only after his death. (Mother-1; T.A.T.; S.B.C.) 3:201 .
Page 274
Roy, Pratap Chandra one of the three Bengali leaders who had addressed the Poona public long before 13 January 1908 when Sri Aurobindo gave his speech there. Roy had preached the doctrines of the BrahmoSamaj. (A) 27:62
Roy, (Raja) Rammohan (1772-1833), well-known social and religious reformer of Bengal, advocate of Western education, and founder of the Brahmo Samaj. Pre-eminently a nationalist, his love of freedom and liberty knew no limitations of race, religion or region. He was a prolific writer who wielded a facile pen in Persian, English and Bengali. (D.I.H.) Var: Ray, — 1:172, 175, 314 3: 78, 95 4: 307 17: 334
Roy, Rajatanath one of the four members representing the Nationalists on the committee formed at the Hooghly Provincial Conference in 1909 to bring about unity in the Congress. (A) 4:191
Roy, Sasankajiban a person who attended the Bengal Provincial Conference of the Indian National Congress, held at Hooghly in September 1909, and seconded the resolu- tion (No. IV) regarding the boycott of foreign goods. (A) XIV: 100
Roy Chaudhuri, Girija Shankar (1885-1965), a Bengali literary critic. He assisted C. R. Das in editing his journal Narayana. Among the collections of his articles that have been published, those on Sri Aurobindo, Swami Vivekananda, and Sister Nivedita are note- worthy. (A;S.B.C.) 26:56, 58, 60
Royd Street the police station of Royd Street in Calcutta. Royd Street now commences at 42, Mirza Galib Street. (Guide) 2:317 4:260
Ruani See Ruru
Rubaiyat The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, a collection of quatrains by the 11th-century Persian poet Omar Khayyam exalting sensual pleasure as the sole aim of living, translated into English by the Victorian poet Edward FitzGerald and first published in 1859. (Enc.Br.) 27:90 1:25
Rudrani the Shakti (female energy) of RUDRA. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Rudra(s) in the Veda, Rudra is the Divine as the master of our evolution by violence and battle, smiting and destroying the sons of Darkness and the evil they create in man. Rudra is the Vedic archetype of the later Puranic Shiva. The Rudras are a group of gods, in the Veda, sometimes identified with the MARUTS. Later, they are eleven (or thiry-thr, ee) minor deities led by Rudra (Shiva). (A;I&G;Dow.)
Der: Rudrahood; Rudrashakti 3: 3g4, 452 4: 30 5: 73-74, 77, 523, 531, 534, 545-46, 548 6:212 8:56, 130, 199, 366, 399 10:5, 207, 210, 256, 298, 333-37, 342, 438, 485-86 11: 3, 22, 33, 82, 143, 172, 207, 300, 307, 376, 432, 466, 494 12:39, 301, 369, 371, 421, 423-24 13: 38, 264, 349, 364, 366, 368, 372, 376, 413 14: 137, 222 15: 580, 596 16: 279 17: 85, 137, 262, 378, 384 21: 677, 699, 708-09 26: 196 27: 363 III: 34, 48, 66 IV: 174 V: 5, 9 VI: 183, 193 VII: 34 VIII: 150 XIII: 62 XIV: 111-12 XVI: 133-34, 144, 175 XVII: 35 XVIII: 144 XIX: 54 XXI: 30 XXII: 171
Ruffy, Henry author of the poem London Nocturne, published in the second number of the magazine Shama'a which was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. (A) 17: 321
Ruins of Rome a didactic poem by John Dyer, combining description and meditation, published in 1740. (Enc. Br.; Ox. Comp.) II: 12
Rukminie in the Mahabharata, daughter of Bhishmaka, king of Vidarbha. She fell in love with Krishna, but her brother opposed the marriage and she was betrothed to Shishupala. On the wedding day Krishna carried her away in his chariot. She became Krishna's wife and gave birth to Pradyumna. (Dow.) Var: Rookminnie 7: 750 8: 30
Rumania See R(o)umania
Rumbha See Rambha
Rungpore See Rangpur
Runjit Singh See Ranjit Singh
Runnymede meadow in the county of Surrey, England, on the south bank of the Thames, twenty miles west of London, where King John granted the MAGNA CHARTA in 1215. (Enc.Br.) I: 22 III: 11
Rupam illustrated English quarterly journal of Oriental art, chiefly Indian, edited by . C. Ganguly and published from Calcutta by the Indian Society of Oriental Arts. (Cal. Lib.) 17: 300, 303, 313
Ruru grandson of Maharshi Chyavan and son of Pramati, born of an Apsara named Ghrtaci. The story of Ruru and his wife Pramadvara is told in the Mahabharata. The name Pramadvara was changed to Priyumvada by Sri Aurobindo in his poem Love and Death. (M.N.;A) Var: Ruaru 5: 231-32, 235-38,
Page 275
240-41, 244, 246-53, 255-56, 258 12: 483 26: 264, 266-67, 269, 271-72, 312 27: 152-54, 156
Ruskin, John (1819-1900), English author, critic and artist who championed the Gothic Revival movement in architecture and the decorative arts and was the chief influence upon public taste in art in Victorian England. (Enc. Br.) 9: 134, 179 14: 228
Russell, Bertrand Bertrand Arthur William Russell (1872-1970), English logician and philosopher, one of the outstanding figures of 20th-century British philosophy, especially important for his work in mathematical logic. His lectures and writings had a wide popular appeal throughout the world. (Enc. Br.;
Col. Enc.) Der: Russellian; Russellite 9:551, 553-56 22:53, 163, 174, 413 23:577, 938 24: 1363 26: 165, 385-87, 468 XIII: 9
Russia name commonly applied to the whole vast area now forming the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. In its political meaning, the term Russia applies only to the Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic, the chief member of the Union, where Russian is the language of the majority. (Col. Enc.) See also Soviet Union. Der: Russian (in senses other than the language); Russianism; Out-Russias (verb) 1: 48, 58, 88, 92, 97-99, 259, 261, 269-71, 305, 330, 337-38, 350, 355, 360, 385-86, 402, 435, 448, 485, 507, 519, 525, 527, 542, 573, 580, 607-08, 791, 793, 814, 842 2: 33, 54, 78, 100, 118, 135, 139, 171, 192, 206, 236, 254, 256, 306, 333, 370, 374, 376, 378, 382 3: 193 4: 157, 168 9: 44, 105, 134 10: 565 12: 486, 500 14: 8, 11, 34, 78 15: 17, 26, 81, 192-93, 197, 205, 264, 289, 294-95, 299, 302, 316, 320, 322, 324, 327, 356-57, 375, 381, 413, 422, 445, 447, 449-50, 456-57, 470, 485, 487-88, 496, 500, 503-06, 509-10, 512-19, 529, 536-37, 559-60, 564, 566-67, 569, 585, 626-27, 641-42, 644, 646-47 17: 185, 317-20, 324, 386 22: 159, 205, 208-09 26: 233, 384, 388 27: 52, 122-23, 347, 466-67 XIII: 28, 45 XV: 5 XXI: 93-94
Russian (language) the major language of the U. S. S. R., and the mother tongue of over 80% of the inhabitants of the R.S.F.S.R. It is the official language throughout the Soviet Union. Speakers of Russian proper number at least 160 million. It is written in Cyrillic script. (Pears) 9: 105 15: 512 26: 233-34 29: 769
Russian Revolution' of 1905, the uprising that, apparently, transformed the Russian government from an autocracy into a constitutional monarchy. (Enc. Br.) Der: Russian Revolutionary (Committee) 2:254, 333
Russian Revolution2 of 1917, the series of events that began with the overthrow of the imperial regime and ended with the establishment of Bolshevik (Communist) rule in Russia. (Enc.Br.) 15:447, 449, 503, 506, 514, 537, 642 26: 388
Russo-Japanese (war) between Russia and Japan l: 563 15: 585 17: 185
Ruth in the 8th book of the Old Testament, a Moabite widow. Her fidelity to her Jewish mother-in-law (Naomi) is told in a little story. The idyll is one of the most popular of scriptural stories. (Col. Enc.) 26:340
Ruth title of a poem by Wordsworth. (A) 9:122
Ruthenian The Ruthenian language is an East Slavic language spoken in the Ukranian S.S.R. and in some communities in other parts of the Soviet Union, Poland, and Czechoslovakia by more than 41 million people. It is written in a form of the Cyrillic alphabet, and was indistinguishable from Russian and Belorussian until the 12th or 13th century. Ruthenia is a historic name for an east central European region that for centuries belonged to the Hungarian crown before being incorporated as a province into Czechoslovakia (1920) and then being attached to the Soviet Union (1945). (Enc. Br.) 15:496, 512
Rutherford an Englishman and a friend of India. At the Surat session of the Congress in 1907 he tried hard to bring about a recon- ciliation between the Nationalists and the Moderates. (A & R, VII, p. 106) 1:863
Ruthie See Rathi
Ruttan a character - brother of Rao of Ichalgurh - in Sri Aurobindo's play Prince of Edur. 7:739, 783-85, 790-91, 793-96, 799-801
RV.;R.V. SeeRig-veda
Ryevat Raivata or Raivataka, in the Maha- bharata, name of a mountain in Gujarat, near the modern Junagarh. It branches off from the western portion of the Vindhyas, and is now called Girnara. (Dow.; M.N.) 8:43
S
S; S. in the Record of Yoga S or S. usually stands for Saurin. In two or three places it stands for Srinivasachari.
S.A See "Srinivasa; Achari".
Page 276
Saar a region of western Europe, part of Germany on the French border. As a political unit it came into existence when the Treaty of Versailles (1919) made it an autonomous territory, administered by France under League of Nations' super- vision, pending a plebiscite to be held in 1935. As a result of the plebiscite, Saar was restored to Germany. After World War II, the Allied powers agreed upon its economic attachment to France. Saar was reunited politically with the German Federal Republic on 1 January 1957 as a "Land". (Col. Enc.; Pears) 15:625
Sabines ancient Italic tribe located in the mountainous country east of the Tiber River. They were known for their religious practices and beliefs. The story recounted by Plutarch that Romulus, the founder of Rome, invited the Sabines to a feast and then kidnapped their daughters is legendary. (Enc. Br.) 2:399
Sachi (Saci), in Hindu mythology, wife of Indra (hence also called Indrani), and daughter of the Asura Puloman, whence her patronymic Paulomi. (Dow.) a 8:32 13:19 27: 158 XV: 29
Sachin atowninthestateofGujarat (formerly in the Bombay Presidency), between Surat and Navsari. (S.Atlas) a 1:196
Sachindra See Sen, Sachindra
Sacred Books of the East a series (in fifty-one volumes published from 1879 to 1904) of translations of important Oriental non- Christian religious writings, edited by Max Miiller. (Enc. Br.) 12:53-54
The Sacrifice of the Sikh title, translated into English, of the Bengali booklet Sikher Balidan written by Kumudini Mitra {See Mitra, Kumudini). It was intended to teach the lesson of martyrdom to young Bengal. (A) XV: 62-63
Sada Sada Oudiyar, a Tamil Christian and a supervisor of the jail at Pondicherry around 1914. Sri Aurobindo, in one of his rare visits outside his house after 1913, attended Oudiyar's marriage. (Purani; C.W.N., p.414) 27:449
Sadananda Sadananda Yogindra Saraswati (fl. c. middle of 15th cent.), the author of Veddntasdra. He belonged to the "Saraswati" order, one of the ten orders of Sannyasins of Shankara's school, which has the reputation of producing some of the most eminent Vedantic scholars. (Ved. S.) 12:440
Sadashiv Rao Bhao See Bhao, Sadashiv Rao
Sadducee a priestly sect of Jews of the time of Jesus, which flourished for about two centuries before the destruction of the Second Temple of Jerusalem in A 70. It was drawn largely from the upper classes, especially of the city. The Sadducees accep- ted only the five books of the Law (the first books of the Old Testament) and rejected all they thought was not taught therein, e.g. immortality and the resurrection. They also denied the existence of demons and angels. The Sadducees and the PHARISEES were in constant conflict. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.)' 17:163
Sadghanaloka World of dense existence. (I&G) 17:30
Sadhyadeva the third highest of the ten forms of consciousness in the evolutionary scale of man; the Supreme Rakshasa, who raises mind to the Ananda. (A; A & R, VI: 209) VI:184
Sadi Muslih-ud-Din Sadi (c. 1213-1292), one of the greatest figures in classical Persian literature, and to many, the most typical and lovable writer in the world of Iranian cul- ture. His principal works are the collections known as Gulistan or "Rose-garden" and Bustdn or "Tree-garden". (Enc. Br.; Ox. Comp.) 1:25
Sagar Gangasagara, the mouth of the River Ganga; a holy bathing-place for the Hindus, sacred to Vishnu. (Dow.) 1:23
Sagar Sangit Bengali poems by C. R. Das, translated by Sri Aurobindo under the title "Songs of the Sea". (A) 8:357 26:252
Sahadave (Sahadeva), in the Mahabharata, son ofjarasandha. He had two younger sisters, Asti and Prapti {see Ustie and Prapthie), who were married to Kansa. (M.N.) 8:41
Sahadev (Sahadeva), in the Mahabharata. the youngest of the five Pandavas, twin son of Madrie, the second wife of Pandu. He was learned in the science of astronomy and also well acquainted with the management of cattle. (Dow.) 4:77 8:35, 77
Sahadeva an ancient king of the Vedic times, son of Srnjaya. 11:196-97
Sahajanya a character - a nymph of heaven, companion of Urvasie - in Kalidasa's play Vikramorvasie. 3:282 7:909, 913-14, 916, 920, 973-75 X: 169
Page 277
Sahana (1897- ), a Bengali poetess, and a singer of Rabindra-sangeet. She joined the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in November 1928, and has been for a long time in-charge of the Tailoring Department (Ladies' Garments Section). Sahana was in regular corres- pondence with Sri Aurobindo from 1932 to November 1938. Her letters were addressed to the Mother, but they were answered by Sri Aurobindo. (B.G.) 8:390
Sahara a desert in North Africa, the largest tropical desert on the earth. It is defined by many geographers as extending from the Atlantic to the Nile and from the Medi- terranean to the Sudan. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Saharan l: 7 3:487 15: 150 25: 170
Sahavas erroneous reading, probably for "Sabavas": the people of Sheba (see Sheban) usually called the Sabaeans (Saba being the Latin form of Sheba). Modem scholars think that Sheba was in southern Arabia; but according to an Ethiopian tradition it was in Ethiopia. The emperors of Ethiopia whose line ended with Haile Selassie claimed to be descended from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. The story goes that the son of Solomon by the Queen of Sheba was anointed by Solomon and given the title "Lion of Judah". This title was borne by Haile Selassie and his predecessors on the throne of Ethiopia. 5:596
St. George See George, St.
St. Helena a British island in the Atlantic Ocean, 1150 miles from the west coast of Africa. It is best known as the place of exile of Napoleon, who was sent there in 1815 and died in 1821. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 3:267 5: 145 X: 149
St. Hilaire Phillippe Barbier Saint-Hilaire (1894-1969), the first French disciple of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother. He was given the name "Pavitra". Bom in France, he was an engineer and chemist. He came to the Ashram in December 1925 after having travelled in his spiritual quest to the lama- series of Mongolia, and stayed here till his death on 16 May 1969. (Agenda of 17.5.69) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
St. James Gazette in the Record of Yoga, one of the names constantly occurring in the "Lipi" since the beginning of the abundant record period. (A) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
St. Jean a disciple of Jesus. He has beenaccepted since ancient times as the author of five canonical books - the fourth Gospel, three epistles, and the Revelation. (Enc. Br.) Var: St. John [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
St. John See St. Jean
St. John's St. John's College, one of the residences or colleges of Cambridge University, at Cambridge, England. It was founded in 1511. (Col. Enc.) 3: 132
St. Joseph's College in the Record of Yoga, one of-the names constantly occurring in the "Lipi" since the beginning of the abundant record period. (A) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
St. Paul's (School) a day-school in London; one of the major public (privately endowed) schools in England, founded in 1509 and originally located in the churchyard of St. Paul's Cathedral. It was removed to Hammersmith Road in 1884. Sri Aurobindo joined this school in September 1884, passed Matriculation in 1889, and from there went to King's College, Cambridge in 1890 with a senior classical scholarship. (Enc. Br.; Purani;I&G) 26:1-2, 328 11:87 V: 100 XIV: 163 XVII: 66
St. Peter's St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, the largest church of the Christian world. Its construction occupied no less than 181 years (1445-1626). The dome of the church, 404 ft. high from the pavement, spans an internal diameter of 137 ft. Below this lofty dome is the high altar, canopied by Bernini's magni- ficent bronze baldachin 95 ft. high. The crypt beneath the altar contains the tomb of St. Peter. The interior of St. Peter's is a series of unending marvels, of which probably the most beautiful, certainly the most famous, is the "Pieta", a marble group by Michel- angelo. (Col. Enc.; Fox) 9: 381
St. Petersburg modern Leningrad in Russia (U.S.S.R.). It is Russia's second largest city and was formerly the capital. Founded by Peter I (Peter the Great), it was originally called St. Petersburg and was known as Petrograd between 1914 and 1924. (Col. Enc.) 2:254
Saintsbury, George Edward Bateman (1845-1933), the most influential English historian and critic of the early 20th century, whose lively style and wide knowledge made his work popular and authoritative. (Enc. Br.) 9: 522
Page 278
St. Stephen's-Hyslop's College in the Record of Yoga, one of the names that occurred frequently in the "Lipis" but it was recorded only on 12 March 1914. (A) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Saka See Saka(s)
Sakaria Swami or Sakharia Baba, a Sadhu who spent part of his life in a town called Chharodi, on the way to GANGANATH. He was highly revered by people all round and looked upon as a Siddha Yogi and a Jivan- mukta Purusha. He was very fond of Barindra Kumar Ghose, who was at one time his disciple. Barindra took him to Surat during the Congress session of 1907. Sakharia Baba had been a fighter in the Mutiny on the rebel side in the army of the RaniofJhansi. (A) a 26: 18 (name not mentioned), 51
Saka(s) name given in India to the Scythian tribes. Originally nomadic people of central Asia, they were forced to migrate south in the second century BC. They invaded India in several waves and by the close of the first century BC had established themselves in western India. (They seem to have been encountered and repulsed by King Vikrama- ditya ofUjjayini.) They were first con- demned, being classed as Yavanas (or Indo- Greeks), but later on they became Indianised and Hinduised. (D.I.H.) Var: Shakas 1: 705 3: 198 4:252 13: 39
Sakta 5ceS(h)akta
Sakya(s) a tribal people who lived in the Nepalese Terai in the 6th century BC. They claimed to belong to the Solar race and the Ikshwaku family. Their chief, Suddhodana of Kapilavastu, was the father of Gautama Buddha. (D.I.H.) 3: 198 4:252 13:29
Salamanca city and capital of Salamanca province of western Spain, in Leon, on the Tormez River. It is one of Spain's greatest historic and artistic cities. (Col. Enc.) l-l 7:825
Salamis an island in the Saronic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, part of Attica, Greece; also a port town of this island, west of the city of Piraeus. Homer represents Salamis as the home of Ajax and Teucer, sons of Tela- mon. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 5:407 III: 24
Salar a character - confidant of Alzayni - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. 7:561, 665-66
Salimullah, Nawab the Nawab (of Dacca), son of Nawab Khwajah Sir Ahsanullah
Khan. He was an anti-nationalist, an arch- enemy of the Swadeshi movement, who pas- sionately strove to foment the anti-Hindu elements in the country and to shape them into a permanent political organization. On the basis of a "manifesto" drawn up by him, the "All-India Muslim League" was founded on 30 December 1906. It opposed the boycott of British goods and supported the par- tition of Bengal. Nawab Salimullah led the agitation of East Bengali Muslims in favour of partition. (I.F.F.; A.H.I.) Der: Salimullahi(sm) 1:196, 209-13, 218, 251, 312, 346, 369-71, 373, 375, 383-84, 391, 403, 414, 435, 482.626-27, 635- 27:54
Salonika a city in Macedonia in northeast- ern Greece. It is the second largest city of Greece, a major port, and an important in- dustrial and commercial centre. Its modern nameisThessaloniki. (Col. Enc.) D 15:467
Sama; Saman(s) See Sama(veda)
Samain, Albert (1858-1900), French poet. He is often classed as a symbolist, though he was influenced by the Parnassians and other schools. (Col. Enc.) 26: 341-42
Samarcand Samarkand, city and capital of Samarkand oblast, Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic, U.S.S.R. Until 1920 Samarkand formed part of the emirate of Bokhara. It is one of the oldest existing cities of the world and the oldest of central Asia. Under Tamerlane, who made it the capital of his empire in the 14th century, Samarkand reached its greatest splendour as a fabulous city of palaces and gardens. It had pros- pering silk and iron industries. Modern Samarkand is still a major cotton and silk centre. (Col. Enc.) 5: 272
Samamath one of the two witnesses at the search of Sri Aurobindo's residence in Calcutta on 2 May 1908. He discharged his part of the job with considerable gusto like a true loyalist. (A) 4: 259
Sama(veda) the third Veda. Its Samhita contains 1875 verses, only 78 of which have not been traced to the Rig-veda. Those from the Rig-veda frequently have readings that differ from those of the text of the Rig. The mantras of the Sama-veda are called Samans (sdmans). They are the mantras of the divine Ananda, "the word of calm and harmonious attainment for the bringing of the divine desire of the spirit" (13: 314). (Dow.; I & G) 12: 270, 276. 300, 310, 321, 323, 329, . 343, 385-86, 390, 448 13: 314. 350 14: 275, 277 IX: 1, 2, 11 XIII: 55, 57 XVII: 24, 62-63
Page 279
Samba a son of Krishna by Jambavati (the Linga Purana names Rukmini as his mother). He was a great hero and parti- cipated in the battle of Kurukshetra. (A; Dow.) 3:200, 207 8:43, 59 IV: 115
Sambara in the Veda, name of a demon who fought against King Divodasa. He was defeated and his many (airborne?) castles were destroyed by Indra. (Dow.) Var: Shambara :44, 182 XVIII: 177
Sambas in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, one of Penthesilea's captains. (M.I.) Var: Sambus 5:455, 516-17
Sammer Francis Sammer, a young Czech who worked in the Ashram as resident architect of GOLCONDE, assistant to Antonin Raymond. He was in the Ashram for three or four years, leaving around 1940 to join the War. 25:230
Sammite Samnite (the correct spelling), ancient Roman name for the warlike tribes inhabiting the mountains of south-central Italy. (Enc. Br.) 3:480
Samson Israelite hero portrayed in an epic narrative in the Old Testament Book of Judges. Hebrew tradition sometimes has designated him the last of the great "judges". He owed his superhuman strength to his unshorn hair. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 7:573
Samson Agonistes a tragedy (1671) in blank verse by Milton, modelled on classic Greek tragedy but with biblical subject matter. It is the greatest of such dramas in English. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 9:85
Samudragupta Indian emperor from c. 330 to c. 380; the epitome of the "ideal king" of the "golden age" of Indian history, the period of the imperial Guptas (AD 320-510). In many ways he personified the Indian conception of the hero. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) 4:99
Samurai member(s) of the Japanese military caste, the knights of feudal Japan. They were the dominant group in Japan for long periods. After 1868 the Samurai disappeared but as statesmen, soldiers, and businessmen, the former Samurai took the lead in building modern Japan. (Col. Enc.) 1:219, 257, 537, 906 2:110 13:47 111:1-2, 4, 15, 17-18 IV: 109
Samvanana Angirasa (Samvanana Angirasa), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Angiras. 11:435
Sanaaman misspelling of Sunaaman (Su- naman or Sunama), in the Mahabharata,
a son of Ugrasena and brother of Kansa. He was commander-in-chief of the latter's army, and was killed by Krishna and Balarama. (M.N.) 8:41
Sanatan Dharma the Eternal Religion; the Law Sempiternal; the religion of the Aryans, called by outsiders "HINDUISM"; the Indian religious and spiritual tradition. (A; I & G) Var: Sanatana Dharma 1:66.837 2:3-4, 8, 10, 17, 19 3: 124 4: 44, 62, 124-26, 139, 143 12: 447 14: 122 16: 404 26: 52 27: 300, 433-34 1:57 II: 58, 84 VIII: 190 XIII: 38
Sanatsujatiya name of the discourse of Sanatsujata to Dhritarashtra, forming part (Chapters 42-46) of the Udyogaparva of the Mahabharata. Sanatsujata (or Sanatkumar) was one of the mind-born sons of Brahma. (M.N.) 16:426
Sanatkumar in Hindu mythology, the most prominent of the four Kumaras or mind-born sons of Brahma. (Dow.) 22:342
Sand, George pseudonym of Amandine- Aurore-Lucie Dupin, Baronne Dudevant (1804-76), French Romantic novelist. She also wrote a number of plays. Much of her work was autobiographic. She was famous for her numerous love affairs. (Col. Enc.) 9:327
Sandhya a Bengali nationalist evening newspaper of Calcutta, started on 16 Decem- ber 1904 by Brahmabandhab UPADHYAYA, who also edited it. The paper was prosecuted for sedition in August 1907. After the death of Brahmabandhab in the same year. Pandit Makhoda Charan Samadhyaya became.the editor and general director. The paper ceased publication in January 1909, when the Classic Press, its printer, was declared and forfeited. (D.N.B., IV: 373; P.T.I.) 1: 262, 333, 407, 544, 579, 792, 907 2: 38 26: 15 IV: 110
Sandow, Eugene (1867-1925), German "strong man" and advocate of physical culture. In England and America he gained much notice as an exponent of physical culture for the average man. In 1911 he was appointed by royal warrant as professor of physical culture to King George V. (Col. Enc.) 24: 1332 IX: 42
San Francisco a city, coextensive with San Francisco county, in western California, U. S. A., on a hilly peninsula between the Pacific and San Francisco Bay. (Col. Enc.) 1: 814 15: 570 17: 181 26: 412
Page 280
Sanga, Rana Rana Sangram Singh (popularly known as Rana Sanga), ruler of Mewar from 1509 to 1529 and the hero of the Rajput national resurgence. He aspired for political supremacy in the country and proved a formidable adversary to Babur. (D.I.H.;A.H.I.) 4:99 14:378
Sangbad Prabhakar SamvadaPrabhakara, a well-known Bengali paper of Calcutta started by Iswara Chandra Gupta in 1831 as a weekly. It closed down the following year, but in 1836 Iswara Chandra revived it as a tri- weekly. In 1839 it became the first Indian daily paper, and Iswara Chandra continued to be the editor till his death (1859). (D.N.B.) 3:90
Sangh See Prabartak Sangh(a)
Sangram Singh See Sanga, Rana
Sanjay' in the Mahabharata, prince of a country called Sauvira; son ofVidula. Defeated by the king of Sindhu, he fled the battlefield. His mother rebuked him for this and exhorted him to go back and fight. San- jay obeyed and vanquished the enemy. (M.N.;A) Var: Sunjoy 8:61, 63, 65, 67-69, 71, 73
Sanjay(a)2 in the Mahabharata, the chario- teer and minister of Dhritarashtra. He went as ambassador to the Pandavas before the great war broke out. Sanjaya is represented as reciting the Bhagavad-gita to Dhrita- rashtra. (Dow.) Var: Sunjoy 3:145, 169-70 4:75, 78, 80-83, 100, 104 8:77 12:457 27:83 11:64
Sanjibani a Bengali journal of Calcutta, edited by Krishna Kumar Mitra. It was the organ of the Sadharan Brahmo Samaj. The office of the paper was at Krishna Kumar's house (6, College Square), where Sri Aurobindo stayed for some time. (A; Purani) Var: Sanjivani 1: 157 4: 190, 276 26:355 27:40-41, 43 XIV: 99 XV: 62-63 XVI: 194
Sankar See Shankaracharya
Sankaritola a locality in central Calcutta. N. N. Ghose's English weekly, the Indian Nation, was perhaps issued from here. (A) Var: Sankharitola; Shankaritola n i: 264, 280, 454, 518, 524, 526
Sankhya one of the six schools of orthodox Hindu philosophy, founded by the sage Kapila. It takes its name from its numeral or discriminative tendency of setting forth the principles of our being. It is "the abstract and analytical realisation of the truth". The followers of the school are called Sankhyas. (Dow.; I
& G) Der: Sankhyas 2: 425-26 3: 174, 222, 372, 387 4: 46, 127 8: 82, 85, 91 11: 21 12: 4, 7, 101, 175, 196, 379, 427, 449, 452, 459, 471.498 13: 5-6, 48, 62-64, 66-80, 82-85, 87, 89, 91-92, 97, 99, 102, 104-05, 142, 169, 203, 205, 209, 212, 217, 219, 240-41, 245, 254-55, 260, 341, 396, 399, 404, 423, 480, 514, 538 14: 16, 81, 150 16: 227, 232, 235, 341, 350, 352 17: 52, 183, 291 18: 7, 14, 81, 83, 165, 253, 279, 311, 348-49, 445, 564, 619 19: 643-44 20: 91, 358, 360, 365, 367, 374, 410-11, 480 21: 609, 656, 725 22: 73, 215, 301, 334, 473 24: 1168 26: 383 27: 211, 229-30, 242, 252, 267, 272, 300, 308, 328 I: 50 VIII: 162, 172, 182-83, 185-86 XI: 20 XII: 134 XIII: 24 XIV: 132, 152 XVII: 27
Sankhya Karikafs) a work (in Sanskrit verse) on the Sankhya philosophy, written by Ishwara Krishna. (Dow.) 13: 63 17: 291
Sannyastapad in the Mahabharata, name of a country whose king and princes, oppressed by fear ofJarasandha, had left the North and migrated south. (M.N.) 8:41
Sanskrit the sacred language of the Hindus, the language of their prayers, worship and sacrificial rites. It was a great unifying force in ancient India and was the court language of many kingdoms. Sanskrit is based on a very scientific grammar and is written in Devanagari script. The language of the Vedas is an old form of Sanskrit. (D.I.H.) Var; Sanscrit Der: Sanscritist; Sanskritic; Sanskritise; Sanskitising; Sanskritists 1: 513 3: 76, 79, 96-97, 142, 144-45, 162, 179-81, 198, 218, 224, 226, 236, 238-46, 248-49, 254, 258, 275, 281, 292, 303, 312, 318, 320-21, 466 4: pie., 166, 251 5: 362, 551, 585 7: 907 8: 67, 159, 212 9: 6, 13, 29, 67, 112-13, 307, 399, 401, 460 10: 2, 14-15, 26, 29, 35-36, 45-47, 50-51, 58-59, 66-67, 87, 95, 155, 248, 250, 269, 273, 352, 358, 457, 494-95, 500, 551, 553-54, 556-60, 562-67, 570-72, 574-75, 577-79, 581 11: 11, 19, 448-50, 454, 456-57, 459, 465, 487, 505-06 12: 53, 57-58, 181, 347, 401, 407-09, 478 14: 47, 69, 88, 102, 186, 255-56, 286, 294-95, 297, 299-300, 302, 304, 309, 315-16, 319, 377, 389, 407, 429 15: 156, 491 16: 5, 79, 237, 407 17: 193, 195, 240, 267, 277-78, 288, 290-91, 294-99, 306, 345, 349, 368, 374 18: 105, 108, 334 19: 948 20: 12, 240, 261, 295 22: 266-67, 301, 395 26:11-12, 253-54, 261, 266, 268, 293, 325, 327, 366 27: 90, 93, 96, 99-102, 104-08, 155, 163-64, 166, 168-70, 172-73, 177-78, 338, 440, 448, 483-84 29: 799 I: 8, 24, 26, 29-31, 43, 70 II: 30, 35, 38, 77 III: 22, 52, 54, 56-59, 62 IV: 136, 148, 151-52, 155-56, 184 V: 42-44, 50 VI: 139-43, 153 IX: 25, 58 X: 142, 157, 167 XIII: 33 XIV: 122, 128, 142 XV: 8, 17, 23, 44-45, 47, 49 XVI: 136-37, 139, 151, 156, 162, 164-65, 172, 176, 180 XVII: 24-25, 30, 55, 66 XVIII: 153, 173, 190 XX: 126, 128, 131 XXI: 21, 67, 74
Page 281
Sanskrit Research Anglo-Sanskrit quarterly journal, a contemporary of Arya, started by the Sanskrit Academy of India, Bangalore, under the editorship of Pandit Lingeca Mahabhagawat. It was devoted to research work in all fields of Indian antiquity. (A) 17: 290, 299
Santa Catarina Spanish form of St. Catherine, used as an exclamation. 7:856
Santal tribal people of eastern India, concentrated largely in the states of Bihar, West Bengal, and Orissa. The Santals have twelve clans. (Enc. Br.) D m: 16
Santayana, George (1863-1952), American philosopher, poet, and humanist who made important contributions to aesthetics, speculative philosophy, and literary criticism. (Enc. Br.) 9: 543
Sapphira wife of Ananias, a member of the church at Jerusalem. Both were struck dead when attempting to misrepresent the amount of their gifts to the Apostle Peter. (Enc. Am. under Ananias) V: 65
Sappho (fl. c. 610 - c. 580 BC), greatest of the early Greek lyric poets. Plato called her "the tenth Muse". (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 9: 327, 407
Sapti Vajambhara a Vedic Rishi. a n: 412
Saracen a general name among later Greeks and Romans for nomads of the Syro-Arabian deserts; Arabs or Moslems of the time of the Crusades. By extension, the term was some- times used in the Middle Ages for the Muslim enemies of Christianity in general, whether they were Arabs, Moors, or Seljuk Turks. (C.O.D.;Col.Enc.) Der: Saracenic 3: 422 4: 218
Sarada(mani) Devi or Saradeshwari Devi (1853-1920), wife (spiritual consort) of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa. She was an ideal of Indian womanhood, characterized by purity and love, modesty and motherliness. In her, it is said, one could see the possibility of living a most exalted spiritual life in the midst of trying circumstances. She used to initiate women in her spiritual path; Sri Aurobindo's wife, Mrinalini Devi, was one of them. (A) 26:56-57, 60-62 XVI: 193
Sarajevo capital and cultural centre of the republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina in central Yugoslavia. The city is located in Bosnia. (Enc. Br.) 15: 367
Sarama in the Veda, the Hound of Heaven who pursues and recovers the cows stolen by the Panis.
She represents the faculty of intuition. (I&G) a 4:24 5:543 10:26, 34, 68, 94, 119, 135, 140, 149, 153, 162, 166, 168, 176, 187, 190, 193-95, 203-08, 210-15, 224, 229-30, 235, 250, 319, 353, 356 11: 32, 494 VIII: 147 XV: 41 XVII: 44
Sarameya two dogs, messengers of Yama, mentioned in the tenth Mandala of the Rig- veda, without reference to Sarama being their mother. (A) 10:213-14
Saraswati' name of a river which was one boundary of Brahmavarta, the home of the early Aryans, and was to them a sacred river. It is now regarded as a mysterious underground stream which joins the con- fluence of the Ganga and the Yamuna at Prayaga near Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh. (Dow.) Var: Saruswathi(e) 4:23 5:238 6:213 9:145 10:5, 89, 103 11:147 14:313, 422 17: 257 XIV:130
SaraswatP(e) I. in the Puranas, wife of Brahma; the same as Bharati; the Muse; the goddess of speech, poetry, learning, arts and crafts. 2. in the Veda, goddess of inspira- tion. The Veda also employs for her the image of a river. She represents the stream of inspiration that descends from the Truth- Consciousness. (A; Enc. Br.) Var: Saruswathi 3:105, 207 4:23, 140, 233 5:21, 26, 28, 243 7:951 8:59, 310, 339.343 9: 9, 79, 212, 295 10: 5, 34, 68, 75, 85-92, 94-97, 103, 137-38, 193, 195, 203, 231, 235, 352-53, 377, 519 11: 3, 10, 15, 32, 83, 89, 118, 212, 293, 306, 336, 426, 466, 470, 494 12:507 14: 422 17: 305 23: 977 27: 158-59 28: 345 29: 380, 733, 754 11:26 IV: 128 XIV: 130-31, 159 XV: 5, 28-32, 34, 38-39, 42-43 XVI: 145-53, 155-60, 171 XVII: 14, 53
Sarat Babu sub-agent (c. 1910) of the Steamer Company to which the Kaligunge mail steamer belonged. (A) 2:359
Sarat (Chandra) See Chattopadhyaya, Sarat Chandra
Sarathi See Parthasarathi
Sarat Maharaj (1865-1927), born Sarat Chandra Chakravarti, and known also as Swami Saradananda after he took Sannyasa and joined the Baranagar Math under the leadership of Swami Vivekananda in 1887. He conducted the work of the Vedanta Society in New York for nearly two years, and then, in 1898, took up the secretaryship of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission in India. He was especially devoted to Sri Sarada Devi, the Holy Mother of the Mission. He was author of the famous Bengali book Sri Ramakrishna Lila Prasanga. 27: 464
Page 282
Sarcar, Kishorilal a man referred to by Sri Aurobindo (in 1909) as having tried to prove by cogent statistics that the Mahomedans as well as the Hindus were a dying race. (A) 2: 251
Sardesai, Govind Sakharam, a famous Marathi historian of Baroda who was an officer in the Gaekwar's service and an acquaintance of Sri Aurobindo's. They both accompanied the Gaekwar on his Kashmir visit in 1903. (A; Purani; A & R, IV: 201) IV: 193-94
Sardinia an island west of Italy in the Medi- terranean, second only to Sicily in size. The settlement of 1720 awarded Sardinia to the Duke of Savoy, Victor Amadeus II, who assumed the title "King of Sardinia". Sardinia and Piedmont later formed the nucleus of the new kingdom of Italy (1861). (Col. Enc.;N.L.W.D.) 1:505
Saro See Ghose, Sarojini
Saroda Charan See Mitter, Justice Saroda Charan
Sarojini 1. for this name occurring in Volumes 9 and 17, see "Naidu, Sarojini". 2. for its occurrences in other volumes, see "Ghose, Sarojini".
Sarpedon in Greek legend, a mighty warrior, commander of the Lycian contingent of Priam's allies. He was the son of Zeus and Laodamia, daughter of Bellerophon. Slain by Patroclus (in I lion, by Achilles), his body was returned to Lycia for burial. (Col. Enc.;M.I.) 5:426, 431-32, 450, 473-74, 478
Saruswathi See Saraswati' or Saraswati^e)
Saruswathie See Saraswati1
Sasa a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. (B.P.C.) 11: 233
Satan In Judaism, and in later Christianity, the devil was known as Satan. In the Old Testament Satan is viewed as the prosecutor of Yahweh's (God's) court, but he is not regarded as an adversary of God. In post- biblical Judaisim and Christianity, however, Satan became known as the "prince of devils" and assumed various names. In Islamic theology, Iblis, the devil, is also known as Saitana (Satan). (Enc. Br. under Devil) Der: Satanic 1: 254, 265, 584, 602, 687, 741, 863 2: 167 3: 95, 443 4: 86, 284 7: 626-27, 694, 704 9: 84-85 13: 163 17: 134 18: 603
Satara name of a district and its headquarters in the state of Maharashtra (formerly in Bombay Presidency). (Enc. Br.) 4: 296
Sathaneka in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasava- dutta. King Vuthsa Udayan's father. 6: 227, 257
Sati in Hindu mythology, Parvati reborn as a daughter of Daksha, the great Prajapati. She was wedded to Shiva (Mahadeva) by the Rishis against the wishes of Daksha. Sati killed herself as a conseqence of the quarrel between her husband and her father. (Dow.) 1:892-93, 895
Saturn a major planet, known as Shani in Hindu astronomy, sixth in order of distance from the sun; it is the farthest of the seven anciently known planets. In astrology, its influence is generally considered evil. (Dow.; Col. Enc.) 3: 43 5: 300 17: 259-62
Satumia(n) of the Golden Age in the distant past, when human life was innocently happy and spontaneously harmonious; Roman tradition placed it in the reign of Saturn, the god of agriculture, loosely identified with the Greek Cronus, father of Zeus. (M.I.) 5: 500 15: 608 XIV:116
Satvatas Inthe Mahabharata, Satvatawas a great man born in the line of Yadu. His descendants also were called Satvatas. (M.N.) Var: Satwatas n 27: 83 VI: 137
Satya SATYALOK.A or SATYAYUGA
Satyadeva the highest of the ten forms of consciousness in the evolutionary scale of man; the Supreme Deva who raises the mind to Sat. (A;A&R, VI: 209) VI: 184
Satyakama See Shaibya Satyakama
Satyakama Jabala (Satyakama Jabala), a sage of the Upanishadic period, "son of a servant-girl who knew not who was his father". "Jabala" was his matronymic, his mother's name being Jabala. Satyakama attained to the divine knowledge by fol- lowing the teachings of four gods who came to him in non-human forms while he was tending the cows of the Rishi Haridru- mata Gautama, his guru. The guru had sent him to the forest with the strange directive that when the 400 lean cows became 1000, the pupil might return. The story is told in the Chandogya Vpanishad (4th chapter). (A; Balak; Mother-11) Var: Satyakama Jabali 0 14:146 VI: 155, 157-59
Satyaki(e) in the Mahabharata, one of the seven great heroes among the Vrishnis of the Yadava race; the charioteer of Krishna. His personal names were Yuyudhana and Daruka (see Daruk). Satyaki was his patronymic, his father's name being Satyaka. (Dow.;M.N.) Var: Satyaqy 4:68, 75, 77 8:30, 43, 77-78
Satyaloka Satya Loka; or Satya (abbreviated form), the highest of the seven lokas, or the highest of the three supreme worlds of Puranic cosmology; world of the highest truth of being. (Dow.; A) 4:29 10:42, 171, 197 11: 23 12: 122, 515 17:29, 62 22:252 23:747 XV: 26, 33, 46 XVI: 144-45, 155
Page 283
Satyananda a character in Bankim's Bengali novel Ananda Math, partly translated by Sri Aurobindo. (A) 8:343, 345-46, 354-56
Satyaqy See Satyaki(e)
Satyavaha a Rishi mentioned in the Mun- daka Upanishad, a descendant of Bhara- dwaja. 12:269
Satyavan son of King Dyumatsena; the tale of Satyavan and Savitri is told in the Maha- bharata as a story of conjugal love conquer- ing death. Symbolically Satyavan is the soul carrying the divine truth of being with itself but descended into the grip of death and ignorance. See also Savitri(e). (A) 9: 309 26; 265 27: 511 28: 10 29: 392, 396, 400, 403, 406, 409.411-12, 424, 426, 429, 431-32, 435-36, 458-59, 466, 468, 471-72, 475, 533, 552, 554, 561-63, 565, 571, 576, 578-80, 584-87, 589-90, 593, 605, 610-11, 614, 633, 636-38, 640, 647, 655, 664, 666, 668, 687, 692, 702, 712, 715, 717, 720, 722-24, 772 XX: 157
Satyavatie a character - a hermitess - in Kalidasa's drama Vikramorvasie, translated by Sri Aurobindo. D 3:281, 283.287 7: 909. 996-1002 X: 167, 170, 174
Satyayuga or Satya Yuga or Satya (abbreviated form): in Hindu cosmology, the first of the four Yugas, covering a period of 1, 728, 000 years. It is the Age of Truth, the age in which righteousness is eternal, when duties do not languish nor people decline. It is also known as Kritayuga ("Krita" means "effected or completed"). (A; Dow.) 1: 902 2: 12 3: 358, 453 4: 68, 107, 115, 152, 313-14 11: 443, 449, 451-53. 505 14: 341 15:9, 117-18, 608 16:411-12.430 20:25, 195 22:403 26:370 27:363.434, 475 11:37 V:96 VI: 155-56 VIII: 191-93 XIV: 116, 119, 142, 153
Satyr one of a class of Greek woodland deities in human form with horse's ears and tail (or, as represented by the Romans, with goat's ears, tail, legs, and budding horns), bestial in its desires and
behaviour, lustful and fond of revelry. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5: 448, 495, 543 8:411 XVI: 144
Saubala in the Mahabharata, a name of Sakuni after his father Subala. Saubala was a skilful gambler (dice-player), a cheat who in the game with Yudhisthira induced him to stake and lose his all. (Dow. under Sakuni) 3:206-07 8:59
Saul (fl. 11 th cent. sc), first king of Israel (c. 1021-1000 BC). In the first book of Samuel (Old Testament, Jewish scripture), after Saul was anointed by Samuel, he met a company of prophets and prophesied among them, whereupon the people said: "Is Saul also among the prophets?" The phrase later became proverbial. It is said of one who unexpectedly bears tribute to a party or doctrine that he has hitherto vigorously assailed. (1 Samuel X.12 and XIX.24;
Brewer) 2:22
Saul of Tarsus (afterwards St. Paul), a Ist-century Jew who, after being a bitter enemy of the Christian Church, became its leading missionary and possibly its greatest theologian. Although he never met Jesus, he regarded him as a threat to Pharisaic Judaism and persecuted his followers. Con- verted through a vision on the road to Damascus, he accepted his call to be the Apostle to the Gentiles. (Ox. Comp.; Enc. Br.) 23: 609
Saumilla name of a Sanskrit poet and playwright mentioned in Kalidasa's drama Malavikdgnimitram, translated by Sri Aurobindo under the title Malavica and the King. 8: 137 X: 117
Saurin Saurin Bose, Mrinalini's cousin. He came to Pondicherry in September 1911 and stayed with Sri Aurobindo. He was given charge of the Arya office. He also looked after the "Aryan Stores" opened in the Pondicherry bazaar in 1916. In 1919 he went to Bengal, where he married. He never returned to Pondicherry. In his Record of Yoga Sri Aurobindo has at some places abbreviated his name to S or S. or Sn. (Purani) VII: 6, 10, 18, 23 XIX: 24, 27, 29 XX: 121, 148 XXI: 2-3, 19, 29, 32, 34, 78, 82 XXII: 126, 135, 157
Page 284
Savant an officer in the service of Baroda state about 1903 who was degraded by the Maharaja from the
rank of Naib Khangi Karbhari to that of Chitnis. (A) IV: 193
Savarkar1, Ganesh Damodar (1879-1945), eldest of the Savarkar brothers and popularly styled Baba Savarkar. He worked for the Spread of the R.S.S. (Rashtriya Swayam- sevak Sangh), and for Sanskritized Hindi in Devanagari script as the national language. He was one of the prominent revolutionaries ofNasik (Maharashtra) from 1905. He was prosecuted for sedition as the author of two books of songs, and was sentenced to trans- portation for life in 1909. In reprisal for this severe sentence, Mr. Jackson, the District Magistrate of Nasik, was shot dead on 21 December 1909. (D.N.B.; P.T.I.) 2: 333 4: 236
Savarkar2 Vinayak Damodar Savarkar (1883-1966) of Nasik, popularly known as Vir Savarkar. While studying law in England he was arrested in 1910 under the Fugitive Offenders Act. When the ship bringing him from England reached Marseilles, he at- tempted to escape. The gendarme guarding the exit of the dock, instead of taking him before a magistrate, handed him over to his British escort on the ship. Savarkar's friends in Paris petitioned against the alleged violation of French sovereignty, and the question was taken to a Hague Tribunal, where his case was lost. In India, he was tried by a Special Tribunal, charged with the abetment of the Nasik murder (see Savarkar') and sentenced to transportation for life. After his release in 1937 he joined the Hindu Mahasabha. Vir Savarkar was a voluminous writer. (D.I.H.; P.T.I.) a 27: 471
Save, the Sava River, the longest river entirely in Yugoslavia. Its basin covers almost half the country. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Savitri (Savitr), the Creator; a name used in the Veda in conjunction with Surya (and sometimes also with other gods) but also independently. It is sometimes identified with, at other times distinguished from Surya "the Sun", being conceived of and personi- fied as the divine influence and vivifying power of the sun, while Surya is the more concrete conception. According to Sayana, the sun before rising is called Savitri, and after rising till its setting Surya. (A; M.W.) n 10: 118, 127, 181, 188, 272-80, 283, 287, 289-93, 425, 428, 430, 433, 436-38, 446-47, 463-64, 529-30 11:48, 82, 143, 466 12:130 20:465 27: 191 V: 22-23 VI: 182 XIV: 111 XVIII: 148
Savitri an epic (subtitled "A Legend and a Symbol") by Sri Aurobindo, his poetic magnum opus in about 24, 000 lines of blank verse. Although the legend on which it is based is taken from the Mahabharata, the poem is charged with Vedic symbolism. A Western critic hailed it as "perhaps the most powerful artistic work in the world for ex- panding man's mind towards the Absolute". Savitri, begun probably in 1915, took shape over the next four decades. He was working on it in 1950, when he left his body. Parts of the poem were issued in journals and in fascicles between 1946(?) and 1950. The first book edition was published in two volumes in 1950-51, and in a single volume in 1954. (A;I&G;S.F.F.) 9:375, 404 22: 122-23 26: 99, 187, 229-30, 238-40, 243, 245-50. 252, 255, 258-63.265, 297, 308, 310, 317-18, 508 29: 561. 725, 727-28, 730-31, 733, 735-38, 740, 745-46, 750, 754-56, 759, 785-86, 789, 791-95, 797, 799-801 XX: 150, 153
Savitri, The the tale or episode of Satyavan and Savitri related in the Mahabharata in the book entitled "Pativratamahatmyaparva". 3: 153-55, 161
Savitri(e) in the Mahabharata, the heroine of the tale of Satyavan and Savitri; also the heroine of Sri Aurobindo's epic Savitri. She was the daughter of King Ashwapati, and lover of Satyavan, whom she married al- though she was warned by Narada that he had only one year to live. On the fatal day, when Yama carried off Satyavan's spirit, she followed him with unswerving devotion. Ultimately Yama was constrained to restore her husband to life. Symbolically, Savitri is the Divine Word, daughter of the Sun, god- dess of the supreme Truth who comes down and is born to save mankind. (Dow.; A) D 2: 399 5: 258 8: 16 9: 309, 375 12: 483 17: 257 26: 265 27: 154, 509, 511 28: 6, 12 29: 368, 372, 377, 391, 400, 402-03, 406, 408, 410. 417-18, 424, 426.429.431, 435, 465, 467, 474.476-77, 488. 499.501-03. 507, 509, 513-14, 520, 532, 538, 551, 564-65, 575, 577-78. 580, 584-85. 588-89, 591, 593-94, 612, 621, 634-38, 647, 650-51, 656, 663-64, 668, 685, 687, 692, 702-03, 711, 715, 717-19, 723-24, 728-29, 741, 758, 760-63 III: 6
Savli a town in the former princely state of Baroda, about thirty km north of the city of Baroda. Now it is in Vadodara district of Gujarat state. (G.R.A.) a XV: 70
Savoy Alpine region in southeastern France, along the Swiss and Italian borders. Savoy, along with Nice, became part of France permanently in 1860 as the price for the French Emperor Napoleon Ill's consent
Page 285
to the formation of a state covering north central Italy under the rule of the House of Savoy. The area is now divided into the departements of Savoie and Haute-Savoie. (Col.Enc.;Enc.Br.) 2:164
Savyasachin (Savyasacin), an epithet of Arjun, meaning "ambidextrous bowman". (I&G) 3:353 13:370 VII: 52
Sawy See (Ibn) Sawy
Saxon Old English language of the Saxons, a Germanic people who dwelt in a region near the mouth of the Elbe, and of whom one portion distinguished as Anglo-Saxons conquered and occupied certain parts of South Britain in the 5th and 6th centuries. (Enc. Br.) a 27: 89 II: 27
Saxon(s) a Germanic people who lived in the area of modern Schleswig and along the Baltic coast. See also the previous entry. (Enc.Br.) l: 237 3:13, 67-68, 447, 481 5: 506 14: 193 15: 288, 299, 306, 309 17: 244 III: 27
Sayajirao Gaekwar Sayaji Rao III (1863-1939), Maharaja ofBaroda from 1875 to 1939 (often referred to as The Gaekwar of Baroda). He proved to be one of the most enlightened of rulers amongst the Indian princes. Wholly secular in his views, an admirer of the parliamentary form of gov- ernment, a believer in industrialization, an advocate of all-round reforms and imbued with love for his country and his people, he played a decisive part in the general awaken- ing of the people of India. (D.N.B.) a 1:395, 414 2:250 26:6-7, 9-10, 19, 58, 69, 352, 362 27:77, 115-16 1:72, 74-75 11:88-89 III: 84-85 IV: 193-97 XVII: 66
Sayana (fl. 14th cent.), renowned commen- tator on the Vedas. He was brother of Madhavacharya, prime minister ofVijaya- nagara. Both of them were great scholars. More than 100 works, not only scholarly commentaries on the Samhitas and Brah- manas of the Vedas but original treatises on grammar and law, are attributed to them. (Dow.;M.W.) D 3:112, 116-17 4:21, 23, 32 10: 2-3, 6, 14, 17-23, 29-30, 37, 57-58, 65-66, 76, 80, 82-83, 96, 105, 119, 122, 128, 142, 156-57, 159, 163, 168, 170, 172, 180, 219, 225, 230, 246-48, 254, 289, 491, 493-97, 499, 501, 531, 547 11: 2, 11-12, 15-16, 164, 414, 459-64, 470-71, 473, 476, 479-80, 482-84, 486-88 17: 336-38, 340 27: 166, 184, 187, 193-96 IV: 125-47 VUI: 143-44 IX: 5-9, 30 X: 182 XHI: 61 XIV: 124 XV: 4-6, 23, 25 XVI: 133, 147-51, 156, 160, 162-63, 166, 170, 172, 176-77 XVII: 14, 16, 18-19, 21-22, 25, 27, 29-31, 41, 45-47
XVIII: 153-54, 169, 171-72, 176, 184
Sayyed Mohammed, Nawab (?-1919), a nationalist and one of the wealthiest Muslims of South India, descended on his mother's side from the famous Tipu Sultan of Mysore. He presided over the 1913 session of the Congress held at Karachi. (D.N.B.) D 1: 169 4: 186
Scamander ancient name of Kucuk Menderes, a small river of northwestern Turkey, rising from Mt. Ida and emptying into the Mediterranean. Troy was situated on its banks. (Col. Enc.) n 5:401, 403, 411, 414, 458, 462, 471:512
Scandinavia 1. region of northern Europe embracing Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. Iceland and the Faeroe Islands are often in- cluded on ethnic grounds, and Finland sometimes on geographical and historical grounds. 2. peninsula of northern Europe, occupied by Sweden and Norway. (N.L.W.D.) Der: Scandinavian (in senses other than the languages) 0 1:525 2:379 9:47, 96 15:412 16:310 I: 7 XV: 5, 17
Scandinavian languages the North Germanic group of languages; modern languages included in this group are Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Icelandic, and Faeroese. The first two are usually said to belong to the East Scandinavian group, and remaining three to the West Scandinavian group. The earliest written records of these languages date from c. AD 200 to 800. (Enc. Br.) a 27: 89 XVI: 137
Schiller, (Johann Christoph) Friednch von (1759-1805), German poet, dramatist, historian, and philosopher. He was one of the founders of modern German literature, second in his time only to the overpowering Goethe. (Col. Enc.) a 9: 100 27: 89
Schlegel, Friedrich von (1772-1829), German philosopher, critic, and writer, most promi- nent of the founders of the Romantic school. He studied Sanskrit and Indian civilization in Paris. (Col. Enc.) n 14:46
Schleswig-Holstein a constituent "land" (state) of West Germany. Kiel is its capital. (Enc.Br.) a 15:293, 622
Schopenhauer, Arthur (1788-1860), German philosopher, the exponent of a metaphysical doctrine of the will that prepared the way for Existential philosophy and Freudian psychology. (Enc. Br.) D 4: 44 9: 449 12:42, 57 14:16, 46 16:153 17:181, 318 23: 628 XIV: 144, 164 XVIII: 154
Page 286
Schweitzer, Dr. Albert Schweitzer (1875- 1965), Alsatian philosopher, theologian, physician, and organist acclaimed for his interpretation of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach. He was a missionary doctor in equatorial Africa, and the recipient of the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts on behalf of "The Brotherhood of Nations". He received the degree of doctorate in philosophy (1899), in theology (1900), and in medicine (1913). (Enc. Br.) n 19:754
Science of Religions Sri Aurobindo is referring to a book by Swami Vivekananda whose actual title is The Science and Philo- sophy of Religion. The book contains a series of seven lectures delivered in New York in 1896. a 4:293
Scindia Maratha ruling family of Gwalior, which for a time in the 18th century was a dominant power in North India. The dynasty was founded by Ranoji Sindhia, who in 1726 was put in charge of the Malwa district by the Peshwa. The dynasty ruled from 1726 to 1827, and it survived as a princely house until 1947. (Enc. Br.; Enc. Ind.) Var: Sindhia a 3: 195 7: 1027
Scindia, Madhoji Mahadaji Sindhia (1727-94), an illegitimate son and successor of Ranoji Sindhia, the founder of the Sindhia family of Gwalior. He became the most prominent chief among the Maratha leaders, and regained so much power and prestige in North India that in 1771 he re-established Emperor Shah Alam II on the throne in Delhi and practically became the emperor's protector. (D.I.H.) D 4: 140 14: 378
Scorpion or Scorpius (Latin name), the 8th sign of the zodiac, known as Vrscika in Hindu astronomy. It is a conspicuous constellation, somewhat resembling the shape of a scorpion, lying between Libra and Sagittarius. (A; Enc. Br.) 0 17: 257-58, 260
Scot; Scotch; Scotchman See under Scotland
Scotia Latin name for Scotland used in the Middle Ages and today occasionally used in rhetoric. (Col. Enc.) n 7:886
Scotland most northerly of the four countries of the United Kingdom. The natives of Scotland - the Gaelic tribe that migrated from Ireland about the 6th century - are called Scots. Scotch, as an adjective, means
"of Scotland or its inhabitants" in the dia- lects(s) of English spoken in the Lowlands of Scotland. (The Scots themselves usually prefer the form Scottish, which is also used by the English esp. in dignified style or context.) Scotch, as a noun, is used for the Scotch dialect of English and, more popularly, for Scotch whisky. Sri Aurobindo used it once (1: 626) in this latter sense. "The Scotch", of course, means the Scotch people or nation. (Enc. Br.; C.O.D.) Der: Scotch; Scotchify; Scotchman; Scot(s) D 1:38, 208, 367, 623, 625-26, 628, 827 2:379 3: 68, 92 4:248, 285-86 15: 268, 291, 306, 308-10, 348-49, 475, 479 26:327 11:11
Scott, Sir Walter (1771-1832), British novelist and poet; the inventor of the historical novel and one of the most popular novelists of all time. (Enc. Br.) o 3:92-93, 108 9:44, 51, 317.319, 358, 544 27:352
Scott, Evelyn a poet whose poem entitled "Fear" appeared in the second number of the journal Shama'a, reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. (A) a 17:321
Scott's Lane a lane in central Calcutta near Sealdah where Sri Aurobindo lived from February to April 1908 (at No. 23). D 4:290-91.322
Scutari Italian name of Shkoder, also called Shkodra, a city in northern Albania, on a plain at the southeastern end of Lake Scutari. Montenegrin troops occupied Scutari in the First Balkan War but, after the cessation of the hostilities, the Great European powers, at the conference in London, assigned it to the newly independent Albania. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D XXI: 71
Scylla & Charybdis in Greek mythology, Scylla was the daughter of Phorcys and Hecate. Her rival Amphritrite by magic herbs turned her into a monster which seized and devoured mariners who sailed near its cave in the straits of Messina. The whirlpool of CHARYBDIS was situated opposite the cave so that it was hard to steer clear of one without being caught by the other. (O.C.C.L.) a XXI: 23
Scyros an island, off central Greece, in the Aegean Sea, east of Euboea. It was at the court of Lycomedes, king of Scyros, that Achilles was hid, disguised as a girl, by his mother Thetis, who knew that he would die fighting at Troy. He was found there by Odysseus, who gained his support for the Greeks against Troy. Neoptolemus, Achilles's son, was born in Scyros to the king's daughter Deidamia. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) n 5:486-87, 489
Page 287
Scythia ancient region corresponding roughly to the modern Ukraine. The Scythians were a people of uncertain provenance but of Indo- European speech. Their armies consisted of mounted archers well-versed in elusive "desert tactics". In Indian historical termi- nology Scythian is used as a generic term denoting foreign tribes like the Shakas and the Kushans who invaded India from the 2nd century BC till the 2nd century AD. (Web.; Col. Enc.; D.I.H.) Der: Scythian; Scythianised; Scytho- (combining form) d 1:843 3:10, 24, 198 4:252 5:405, 419 6:543 7: 741, 744-51, 753, 760-61, 763, 780-88, 791, 793-94, 797, 801-03, 812, 814, 891, 893-94, 896-98 8:61 14:375-76 17:299 23:556 XV: 5 XVII: 43
Sea-Drift a collection of poems by Walt Whitman, a 9:151
Sea-horse 1. creature harnessed to sea-god's chariot, having horse's head and fish's tail. 2. small tropical fish having a body shaped like the head and arched neck of a horse, ending with a prehensile tail. (C.O.D.; N.L.W.D.) a 3:37
Sealdah a locality in East Calcutta where the Eastern Bengal Railway terminates. The word "District" following Sealdah in the text refers to the "district" of the railway. a 2:360
Seal of Rakshasa See Mudrarakshasa
Seasons' a name used by Sri Aurobindo for Kalidasa's lyric Rtu-samhdra (The Garland of the Seasons), one of his early works. This is perhaps the first poem in any literature written with the express object of describing Nature. (A) D 3:227, 250-52, 256, 259-60, 322 X:lll
Seasons2 The Seasons, James Thomson's masterpiece, a long blank-verse poem published in four parts, called The Seasons:
Winter in 1726, Summer in 1727. Spring in 1728, and the whole poem including Autumn in 1730. (Ox. Comp.) a 3:252 11:16
Seat of Solomon See Takhti-Suleman
Sebes in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Thessalian warrior killed by Penthesilea. (M.I.) n 5:516
The Secret of the Veda Volume 10 of the Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library (1971). It is a republication of a series of articles brought out in Arya under the same title between August 1914 and January 1921. In 1956 the articles came out in book-form with certain additions and alterations under the title On the Veda.
In 1971 the original title was restored, and further additions were made. (I&G) a XIV: 114 XXI: 4
The Seeker a long poem by Sri Aurobindo which has been lost. (A) a 1:70
Seeley, Sir John Robert (1834-95), English historian, professor of modern history at Cambridge from 1869 until his death. His work The Expansion of England came out in 1883. He was a proponent of the British imperialist ideal. (Col. Enc.) a 2:356 3:471
Seely', John Edward Bernard (1868-1947), 1st Baron of Mottistone, British statesman and general, and airM.P. from 1900 to 1924. (Col. Enc.) n 1: 582
Seely2, an English scholar who, with Bankim Chandra Chatterji, introduced a modern standard of perfection for the Avatar. (A) 0 22: 418
Le Seigneur des Nations "The Lord of the Nations", a book written by Paul Richard in Japan in 1917. A Japanese translation of the manuscript was published soon after. The original work in French was brought out in print in 1922. Ganesh & Co., Madras, pub- lished an English version, with "Translation revised by S. E. Stokes", in 1923. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Seine second largest river in France. With its tributaries it drains the entire Paris basin. It rises in the Langres Plateau and falls into the English Channel. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 3:460 4:25
Seleucid(ae) (one of) the dynasty, founded by Seleucus, that governed Syria (c. 312-64 BC). (C.O.D.) a 6:349, 394
Seleucus Seleucus I Nicator (b. between 358 and 354 BC, d. 281 BC), king of ancient Syria, founder of the Seleucid dynasty. He was an able general of Alexander the Great. In the new partition of the empire in 312 BC, he received Babylonia, and later he managed to extend his power to the Oxus and the Indus. He gained a large part of Asia Minor and all of Syria. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) a 6: 398.406, 428, 432. 461-62, 469
Self Help Self-Help, with Illustrations of Character and Conduct, by Samuel Smiles, published in 1864. It was the outcome of a series of lectures on self-improvement given to young men in Leeds. It enjoyed great popularity and was widely translated; one of the book's admirers was the young Louis Pasteur. (Enc. Br.; Ox. Comp.) a 111:8
Page 288
Semites originally a people supposed to be descended from Shem, the oldest son of Noah. They are now chiefly represented by the Jews and Arabs of southwestern Asia but in ancient times also by the Babylonians, Assyrians, Aramaeans, Canaanites, and Phoenicians. These peoples are grouped under the term "Semite" because their languages were found to be related, deriving presumably from a common "Semitic" tongue. The modern descendants of this ancient language, widely spoken in northern Africa and the Near East, include Arabic, Hebrew, and Amharic (the official language of Ethiopia, spoken by some five million people). These Semitic languages comprise one of the five branches of the Hamito- Semitic language family. (Enc. Br.; Pears) Der: Semitic a 2: 108 6: 1 10: 553 14: 297 15: 268 16: 309 17:137, 143, 180 18: 603 20:18 22:174 26:483 27:165, 280, 286 VIII: 174 XV: 12 XVI: 136, 186 XIX: 24
Sen, A. C. a man of Delhi; he wanted the National Fund to be utilized for a Swadeshi Museum. (A) D 2: 242
Sen, Baikunthanath (1843-1921), a lawyer of Berhampur, a prominent figure in the district ofMurshidabad, and a respected Congress leader of Bengal. He was a journalist, an administrator, and a selfless patriot. (D.N.B.; A) Var: Baikuntha Babu a 1:.238-39 2:222, 305-06 3:459 4:187, 191, 229 27: 33, 36, 41 XXI: 79 (B.N.S.)
Sen, Birendrachandra or Birendra (1894-1970), a revolutionary ofSylhet district who was jailed several times. In the Alipore Bomb Case he was sentenced to transpor- tation for life by the Sessions Court, but on appeal the sentence was reduced to seven years. After his release he came to the Sri Aurobindo Ashram and spent the rest of his life here. (S.B.C.; A.B.T.) D 4:290-91
Sen, Girindranath captain of the Swadeshi volunteers. Around 1907 he received at the hands of British justice a sentence of monstrous severity for a trifling offence, even being refused bail, although it was admitted- ly doubtful whether he ever committed the offence. (A) a 1:433
Sen, Hemchandra (born c. 1883), elder brother of Birendrachandra Sen of Sylhet. He was a co-accused with Sri Aurobindo in the Alipore Bomb Trial, but was acquitted by the Sessions Court. (P.T.I.; A.B.T.) 4:291
Sen, Kamini (1864-1933), daughter of Chandi Charan Sen. After her marriage with Kedar Nath Rai she
was known as Kamini Rai.She was the greatest woman poet of Bengal, very proficient at writing short poems. Two longer poems by her, Mahasvetd and Pundarika, are also well known. (N.B.A.) a 3: 101
Sen, Keshab Chandra (1838-84), a religious and social reformer of Bengal. Owing to his - piety, intelligence, indefatigable energy, and superb oratorial powers, he was appointed secretary of the "Brahmo Samaj" soon after he joined it in 1857. But differences arose between him and the president, Debendra- nath Tagore, and in 1865 Keshab Chandra was removed from all offices of the Samaj. The following year he founded the "Brahmo Samaj of India". Some time later, however, his more radical young followers disowned his leadership. He had in the meantime come in contact with Sri Ramakrishna Parama- hansa, and the last few years of his life he devoted to the propagation of Bhakti. (D.I.H.) Var: Keshav Chandra; Keshav Sen a 1: 147 3: 80, 99-100 22: 88 24: 1561 26: 121 27: 62
Sen, Keshav See Sen, Keshab Chandra Sen, Narendra Nath (1843-1911), a journalist of Bengal. After serving for some time on the staff of the Indian Field, he became in 1863 the editor of the Indian Mirror, and from 1870 its sole proprietor. He was a fear- less champion of the public interest and a devoted worker in the cause of national development. He could not, however, support the terrorist ideology, and strongly believed in the method of constitutional agitation. (Enc. Ind.; D.N.B.) a l: 137, 141, 156, 186, 234, 280-81, 409, 706 27:44
Sen, Nobin (1847-1909), a well-known Bengali writer and poet, regarded as one of the best epic poets of his time. He wrote several narrative poems, but his outstanding creation is his autobiography Amara Jibana in five volumes. (D.N.B.) Var: Nabin Sen; Nobin 3:80, 101 VI: 141
Sen, Prabodh Prabodh Chandra Sen (1897-1986), a scholar and teacher, gold- medallist M.A. of Calcutta University; he was professor of Bengali literature at Vishwa Bharati University from 1942 to 1962 and principal of Rabindra Bhavan from 1962 to 1965. He is the author of a dozen books in- cluding Chanda-Jijnasd on Bengali metre. IV: 140-42
Sen, Sachindra Sachindra Kumar Sen of Dacca. He was in Alipore Jail as an accused in the Manicktolla Conspiracy Case, but was acquitted by the Sessions Court. Sachindra was a good singer. (A.B.T.;A) 1-1 4:297, 310
Page 289
Sen, Saroda Charan a teacher in Jessore Zilla School; he was arrested on 29 August 1907 as manager of Sandhya. (P.T.I.; A.B.T., p. 96) n 1:579
Sen, Upen Upendranath Sen of Barisal. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Sena an Indian dynasty that ruled in Bengal in the llth and 12th centuries. The Sena kings made Bengal a united and powerful kingdom, promoted Sanskrit learning and were the patrons of poets like Jayadeva. Sena rule in Bengal also brought about a marked revival of orthodox Hinduism. (Enc.Br.;D.I.H.) 14:331 1:22
Sen Gupta, Naresh Chandra (1882-1964), professor of law at Dacca University and later at Calcutta University; author of about 60 books, which include not only books on law but also literary writings - essays, stories, dramas, novels, etc. In his earlier life he was a well-known Congress worker and took part in the agitation against the Partition of Ben- gal. Later he was president of the Workers' and Peasants' Party (1925-26), the Labour Party of India (1934), and other organi- zations and committees. (S.B.C.) 1:161, 165
Sennacherib (d. 681 Be), king of Assyria (704-681 BC) , son of Sargon II. He rebuilt the Assyrian capital, Nineveh, and is probably the best known of the Assyrian kings because of the stories about him in the Bible. (Enc. Br.) a XIII: 44
Seraj gunge Sirajganj, a town in Pabna district of Rajshahi division, Bengal (now in Bangladesh). (Enc. Br.) a 1:212, 216, 218, 327
Seraphim See "Cherubim and Seraphim".
Serbia formerly a kingdom, now a constitu- ent (autonomous) republic of Yugoslavia. Its capital, Belgrade, is also the capital of Yugoslavia. Serbia is the largest of the Yugoslav republics. (Until 1914 it was generally spelled Servia.) (Col. Enc.; C.O.D.) Der: Serb; Serbian; Servian D 15:287, 295, 301, 375, 467, 502, 505 27: 469 XX: 147
Sergi an Italian ethnologist to whom Sri Aurobindo refers when writing about the Aryan race. (A) Var: Serji 17:298 XV: 18 XVII: 37
Seriphos' an island in the Aegean Sea, to which, according to a Greek legend, Danae and her son Perseus drifted in a boat that had been set afloat on the sea without sail or oar. (A) 6: 1, 26, 174, 199
Serji See Sergi
Sermon on the Mount a biblical collection of ethical sayings of Jesus of Nazareth. It occurs in Matthew, chapters 5-7, as a discourse addressed to his disciples and a large crowd of people to guide them in a life based on a new law of love, even towards enemies, as opposed to the old law of retribution. (Enc. Br.) 5: 366 -
Servia(n) See Serbia
Seshanaga in Hindu mythology, king of the serpent race or Nagas, and of the infernal region called Patala. Seshanaga upholds the world on his thousand hoods and is the couch on which Vishnu sleeps during the intervals between creations. (Dow.) 27: 159
Shacoontala; Shac(o)untala See Shakuntala
The Shadowy Waters a play (1900) by W. B. Yeats. (Ox. Comp.) a 9: 533
Shahjahan (1592-1666), the fifth Moghul emperor of India (1628-58); he is most renowned as the builder of the Taj Mahal. (Enc.Br.;D.I.H.) D 1:315
Shahnameh "Book of Kings", a celebrated work (1010) by the Persian epic poet Fir- dausi, in which the Persian national epic found its final and enduring form. Written for Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni, it is a poem of nearly 60, 000 verses, a history of the kings of Persia from mythological times to the mid-7th century (nearly a thousand years). (Enc. Br.) n 26: 233
Shaibya' descendant of the Rishi Sibi. n 12:295
Shaibya2 in the Mahabharata, name of one of the two horses drawing the chariot of Sri Krishna. (M.N.) a 8:29
Shaibya3 in the Mahabharata, king of the country called Shibi. He was father-in-law of Yudhishthira, and in the great battle sided with the Pandavas. (M.N.) D 4: 75
Shaibya Satyakama a Rishi named Satyakama who was a descendant of Sibi. D 12:295, 309 14:276
Shaila the main female character in Sarat Chandra's novel Nishkriti. o 9:467
Page 290
Shaiva follower of the cult of the god Shiva, one of the three principal forms of modern Hinduism (followers of the other two are called Vaishnavas and Shaktas). The Shaivas worship Shiva as the paramount deity and maintain that the other two deities of the Trinity, Brahma and Vishnu, are subordinate to Shiva or merely his aspects. There are several schools of modern Shaiva thought, ranging from pluralistic realism to absolute monism, but they all agree in recognizing three principles: pati or God; pasu or the individual soul; mdpdsa or the bonds that confine the soul to earthly existence. The goal is set for the soul to get rid of the bonds and gain saivatva (the nature of Shiva). (Enc. Ind.; Enc. Br.) Der: Shaivism; Shaivite a 3:226-27 4:46 9:245 14:81, 256, 316, 319 15: 165 17: 277, 279-82 22: 129-30, 443 23: 977 27: 299-300 XVII: 27 XVIII: 152
Shaivya In the text of the Gita, the name is Saibya (see Shaibya3). D 8: 77
Shakas See Saka(s)
Shakespeare, William (1564-1616), English poet and dramatist, widely regarded as the greatest writer of all time. His plays, written in the late 16th and early 17th centuries for a small repertory theatre, are today performed more often and in more countries than ever before. Ben Jonson's prophecy that he "was not of an age, but for all time" has been mar- vellously fulfilled. The majority of scholars accept 38 plays, 154 sonnets, and 2 heroic narrative poems as the work of Shakes- peare. (Enc. Br.) Der: Shakespearian D 1:156, 266, 601, 704, 906 2:222 3:69, 87, 93, 101, 106, 108, 156, 185-87, 217, 222, 230-31, 233-35, 248, 251-53, 263, 276, 282, 284-85, 417, 454 4: 190, 284 5: 43, 365-67, 586-87 7: 855 9: 6, 28, 30, 37, 44, 62, 64-68, 70-73, 78-80, 82, 92, 105-06, 111, 113, 141, 159, 161, 163, 168-75, 180, 191-92, 206, 226, 230, 246, 277-78, 281, 297, 302-05, 310-11, 313-14, 316, 333-34, 344, 358, 366, 368, 373, 378-79, 381, 387, 396, 407, 420-21, 425, 455, 472, 476-80, 485, 487, 495, 521-24.526, 540, 548, 551, 560 12: 30, 36-39, 41-42, 45, 470, 476-77, 481 14: 66, 192, 200, 219-20, 257, 304 17: 96.384 18: 299 22:395, 423, 445, 469, 496-97 23:520 24:1637 26:67, 134, 181, 238, 250-51, 262, 266, 310-11, 314, 320, 322-23, 325, 330-40, 346 27: 51, 80-81, 86, 89, 107, 207, 248, 261, 419 29: 744-45, 751, 757-58, 785, 795-96, 800, 802-03, 805, 807-08, 815 1:10-11, 27, 40, 42 II: 13, 15 IV: 109 VI: 198 VII: 49 IX: 42, 45 X: 114, 146, 158, 169, 172 XVII: 55
Shakra a name of Indra. (Dow.) D [Indexed with Indra]
S(h)akta ' worshipper of the Hindu supreme goddess, Shakti ("power", "energy"), also referred to as Devi. Shaktism is one of the three major forms of modern Hinduism. In popular worship Shakti is known by many names. In her beneficent aspect she is known variously as Uma, Parvati, and Ambika. In her fierce, destructive aspect she is repre- sented as Kali and the demon-destroying Durga. Shaktism is especially popular in Bengal and Assam, and is inseparably related to Tantric Hinduism. (Enc. Br.) Der: Shaktism a 9: 245 13: 346 14: 137 15: 4 17: 269 22:39, 130 27: 459 IX: 26 XV: 29 XVII: 27 XVIII: 152
Shakuntala' in Hindu mythology, daughter of Vishwamitra by the nymph Menaka. She was abandoned in a forest and found by the Rishi Kanwa, who brought her up in his hermitage as his own daughter. The love, marriage, separation, and re-union of Sha- kuntala and Dushyanta are the subject of Kalidasa's drama Abhljnana Sakuntalam. (Dow.) Var: Shacoontala; Shacountala; Shacuntala a 2:399 3:231.280-81, 306 7: 748 14: 192 27: 150, 152 X: 166-67 XIII: 53
Shakuntala2 William Jones' English translation (1789) of the story of Kalidasa's Shakuntala (Abhljnana Sakuntalam) - one of the earliest Indie works translated into a Western language. Modern and Western interest in Kalidasa began with this transla- tion. (Enc. Br., Macro, Vol. 10, p. 376) a 27:163
Shakuntala Abhljnana Sakuntalam, "The Recognition of Shakuntala", the most fam- ous of Kalidasa's dramas, usually judged the best Indian literary effort of any period. See also Shakuntala'. (Enc. Br., Macro., Vol. 10) Var: Shacountala, Shacuntala a 3: 94, 227, 240, 246, 251, 261-62, 287-88, 303, 323 9: 432 14: 47, 305 27: 101, 106 I: 29 X: 171, 175
Shalwa (Salva), in the Mahabharata, name of a country in western India; also the name of its king or its people. (Dow.) Der: Shalwaian a 8: 41 29: 403, 424, 428, 466
Shama'a English quarterly magazine of art, literature, and philosophy edited by Mrina- lini Chattopadhyaya and published from Madras. The second number of the magazine was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. (A) a 17: 313, 323
Sham Babu See Chakravarti, Shyam Sundar
Page 291
Shambara See Sambara
Shams-ul-Alam an Inspector and later Deputy Superintendent of the Bengal police (C.I.D.). As the police officer assisting Barrister Norton, he played a leading part in the Alipore Bomb Case and in the investiga- tion of two dacoities. In January 1910 he was shot dead in broad daylight within the pre- cincts of the Calcutta High Court by Biren- dranath Datta Gupta. (A; P.T.I.; A.B.T.; C.W.N.-VII, p. 397) Var: Shamsul Alam 2:375, 377 4:260, 294, 296 26:62, 70
Shandilya (Sandilya), the patronymic of several teachers who were descendants of Sandila. The most important of them is the sage cited several times as an authority in the Satapatha Brdhmana. (V. Index) a 12:442
Shandilya Upanishad an Upanishad of the Atharva Veda. (Up. K.) 20:358
Shani See Saturn
Shankar(a)' See Shankaracharya
Shankara2 a name of Shiva in his beneficent aspect or as chief of the Rudras. (Dow.) D [Indexed with Shiv(a)]
Shankaracharya (fl. 8th cent.), Indian philosopher and theologian, most famous exponent of the Advaita Vedanta school of philosophy called Mayavada (Illusionism). He is the source of many of the main cur- ents of modern Indian thought. A native of Kerala, his travels extended as far as Kashmir. He established several maths (monasteries). His writings include numerous commentaries on Hindu scriptures. Shankara died in the Himalayas at the early age of thirty-two. (Enc. Br.; Dow.) Var: Sankar; Shankar(a) Der: Shankarites a i: 339, 537, 704, 714 3:110-12, 116, 173, 214, 222, 227, 338, 344, 369, 461 4: 43-44, 47-50, 90, 128-29, 143, 245, 328 5:153 8:212, 383 9:381 10:547 12: 33, 53, 63-64, 134, 264, 281, 284, 397-98, 407, 427-29, 433-34, 436-39, 457-61, 465-66, 470, 473-74, 510-11 13:78, 85, 301 14:21, 69, 71, 132, 136, 181, 191, 308-09, 359 16: 292, 428 17: 49, 68, 115, 165-66, 180, 182-83, 265, 267, 292-93, 383 18: 7, 415, 454, 461, 464 19: 763 20: 259 22: 39, 41-43, 50, 54-56, 62, 65-66, 82, 85, 92-93, 210, 381, 402-04, 407, 456 23: 529, 682 24:1388 25:61 26:81, 104, 106, 135-36, 163 27: 236, 240-41, 248, 256, 299, 301, 303-04, 310, 314, 318, 321-22, 456, 475 II: 63, 67, 71, 76-78 III: 80 IV: 163 VI: 156-57, 164-66, 173-77 VII: 3, 13 VIII: 168, 171-72, 178, 181, 185-86, 194 IX: 17-19, 29-30, 61 X: 159, 164 XIII: 9, 24 XIV: 120, 124, 127, 132-33, 138-39, 144 XV: 4, 43 XVI: 132, 184 XVII: 4, 24, 31, 33, 37, 41 XVIII: 152, 154-56
Shankaritola See Sankaritola
Shanks, Edward an English poet of the early 20th century, 26: 345
Shantanu in the Mahabharata, a king of the Lunar dynasty. He was the father of Bhishma, and in a sense grandfather of Dhritarashtra and Pandu. He was remark- able for his devotion and charity, modesty, constancy, and resolution. (Dow.) 3:190
Shantiniketan the seat of Visva Bharati University, founded by Rabindranath Tagore in 1922. It was started as a children's school in 1901. At present it is a Central Govern- ment university. The town of Shantiniketan is in Birbhum district of West Bengal state, northwest of Bolpur. (Enc. Ind.) 3:431
Shantipur Santipur, a town in Nadia district of Bengal (now West Bengal state), about fifty miles north of Calcutta. (S. Atlas) l: 151
Sharabha name of a Rishi of the Vedic period mentioned in the Rig-veda (VIII.100.6). XIII: 60
Shanna probably the same as the following entry, 27:455
Shanna, R. S. a man who had been sent by Shyam Sundar Chakravarti to Motilal Roy in order to be introduced to Sri Aurobindo. He professed to be a nationalist and a devotee of Sri Aurobindo. Motilal accordingly sent him to Pondicherry, but Sri Aurobindo received a warning against him from within and refused to see him. He was undoubtedly a police-spy. (L.toSl.;A) a 27:431
Sharmishtha Michael Madhusudan's first play, written in Bengali blank verse in 1858. It is a comedy based on an episode of the Mahabharata. (Enc. Br.; N. B. A.) 03:%
Shamgava a misprint for Sharngarava (Sarrigarava), a disciple of the sage Kanva in Kalidasa's play Abhijndna Sdkuntalam. a 3:231
Shatahrida in the Ramayana, name of the mother of the Raskshasa Viradha. (A) a 8:23
Shatakratu an epithet of Indra, meaning "the god of a hundred rites". (Dow.) D 10: 508 VII: 37
Shatrughna' in the Ramayana, a son of King Dasharath by Sumitra; the twin-brother of Lakshmana and half-brother of Rama. (Dow.) a 8: 11
Page 292
Shatrughna2 the code name of an associate of Sri Aurobindo who left Pondicherry on 11 June 1913. o XXII: 147
Shatudru (Satadru or Satadru), in the Mahabharata, a river of Punjab, now called the Sutlej; one of the five rivers within the frontiers of which the Aryans originally dwelt. It rises in the Himalayas and empties into the Indus. (M.N.; A) Var: Shotodrou n 5: 246 27: 156
Shaudram See S(h)udra
Shaukat probably, Mahmud Sevket Pasa (1858-1913), Ottoman soldier and statesman who, in 1909, suppressed a religious uprising, forced the subsequent deposition of Sultan Abdul Hamid II, and became grand vizier in January 1913. He was assassinated six months later. (Enc. Br.) n XXI: 65
Shaunaka a Rishi of the Bhrigu family; son of Sunaka. He was the head (Kulapati) of the ashram at Naimisaranya (see Naimisha). (M.N.) a 12: 269 VI: 136
Shauri an epithet of Krishna, a descendant of Surasena, or simply Sura. It is also used forVasudeva, father of Krishna. (M.N.; M.W.) Der: Shourian; Showrian n 8:57, 325, 352 27:83
Shavian of, or in the manner of, George Bernard Shaw, the dramatist. Der: Shavianism D 9:548.553
Shaw, Bernard George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), British writer, the most significant British playwright since the 17th century. His plays are permeated by his passion for social reform, though their prefaces are perhaps the best expression of his philosophy. Shaw was the recipient of the 1925 Nobel Prize for literature. (Enc. Br.) D 9:427, 547-53 22:413 26:325
Shayesta Khan Proconsul in Eastern Bengal & Assam, the "new province" formed in 1905. He followed a furiously repressive policy. It was met by determined resistance from the people, and Shayesta Khan was deposed in 1906. (A) a i: 132-33
Shazarath-al-Durr a songstress, mentioned in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. a 7:599
Sheban of Sheba, an ancient kingdom mentioned in the Bible and elsewhere, supposed to be in southern Arabia. The Semitic colonization of Ethiopia was from Sheba, hence the Ethiopian tradition that Sheba was in Ethiopia (see Sahavas). The Queen of Sheba (called Balkis in Arab tradition) is said in the Old Testament (1 Kings 10) to have visited Solomon. 7: 578.
Sheffield county borough and city in West Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is one of the leading industrial
centres of England, having been the chief seat of cutlery manufacture since the 14th century. (Col. Enc.) a 1: 704
Shela (Saila), in Hindu mythology, a nymph of heaven, a 5: 190
Shelley, Mrs. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797-1851), daughter of William Godwin and second wife of P. B. Shelley. As a writer, she is best known as the author of Frankenstein; or the Modern Prometheus (1818), perhaps the most widely known novel of terror. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 9:527
Shelley, Percy Bysshe (1792-1822), one of the greatest and, in his lifetime, most controversial of English romantic thinkers and poets. His reputation is based more firmly on the fresh imagery and subtle melody of his many short poems than on his longer works. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 3:69, 80, 101.108, 147, 291.294 5:8, 61 9: 2, 27, 53-54.74, 91-94, 100, 112.116, 125-26, 128-29, 131.133, 161-62, 171, 192, 246, 253. 273-75, 278, 304, 308, 320, 324, 331, 343, 359, 365, 378, 395-96, 421, 436-37, 472, 481, 521-22, 524, 526-29 22: 454 26: 233, 236, 256. 266-67, 320-23 27: 81, 86. 92, 156 29: 805-06 I: 9 11:12, 16 111:11 X: 141, 143-44
Shelley, Sir Timothy father of the poet P. B. Shelley. (Col. Enc.) D 3: 69
Shelsford probably Shelford, a town about two miles south of Cambridge, n 3: 65
Shepherd's Week a series of mock classical poems in pastoral setting, by John Gay, published in 1714. (Enc. Br.) a I: 11
Sheridan, Richard Brinsley (Butler) (1751-1816), British playwright, impresario, orator, and politician noted for his comedies of manners, especially The School for Scandal (1777). (Enc. Br.) 0 9:551
Sherlock Holmes a fictional character, the famous private detective who figures in a number of works by A. Conan Doyle. He was familiarized to the public by his eccen- tricities and mannerisms, his non-chalance alternating with energy, his dressing gown and hypodermic syringe, as well as his amazing mental powers. (Ox. Comp.) 1: 376 9: 561
Sheva Ekiing family deity of the royal families of Mewar and Udaipur. The temple of Ekiing built by Bappa Rawal is famous. 7:758, 762, 795, 810
Shiah one of the two major branches of Islam distinguished from the majority Sunni. In early Islamic
Page 293
history it had been a political faction that supported the power of Ali, son-in-law of Muhammad and fourth caliph, over the Muslim community. It gradually developed into a religious movement. (Enc. Br.) 7: 704
Shik(h)andi in the Mahabharata, son of King Drupada. He was born as a girl and named Sikhandini, but his sex was later on changed by the Yaksha Sthunakarna. (M.N.) 4:77, 228 8: 78 22: 447
Shillong a city, formerly capital of Assam province. Presently it is the capital of the state ofMeghalaya. (Enc. Br.) 1: 135-36, 217.322, 338, 345, 373, 403, 491 2: 23, 361 II: 85-86
Shini in the Mahabharata, a Yadava hero in the line of Devamidha (father of Surasena and grandfather of Vasudeva). (M.N.) Der: Shinis (descendants of Shini) 3: 207 8: 59 IV: 115
Shintoism ancient native religion of Japan, still practised in a form modified by the in- fluence of Buddhism and Confucianism. In its present form it is not so much a religion as a set of traditional rituals and customs involving pilgrimages to famous shrines and celebrating popular festivals. (Col. Enc.) 1:67 .
Shishupal(a) in the Mahabharata, son of Damaghosa, King of Chedi, by Srutadeva, sister of Vasudeva. He was a cousin of Krishna, but became his implacable foe when Krishna carried off Rukmini, his intended wife. He was slain by Krishna at the Raja- suya sacrifice of Yudhishthira in punish- ment for his long shower of abuses at him (Krishna). (Dow.) 3:161, 190, 192, 194, 214 4: 93 8: 39 14: 372 24: 1334
Shiv(a)' "the auspicious one"; a name of the third deity of the Hindu Trinity; he is "the Eternal's Personality of Force" represented mostly as "the pure and white, the ascetic, the still, contemplative Yogin". The name Shiva is not found in the Vedas; however, the name Rudra occurs both in the singular and the plural. This Rudra of the Vedas developed in the course of time into Shiva, considered in the Puranic tradition mainly as the destroying or dissolving Power. He has a third eye in the middle of the forehead, a fiery glance from which once reduced
Kamadeva to ashes. In his creative aspect he is represented as a Linga (phallus), symbolis- ing the'male procreative energy in nature. It is under the form of the Linga that Shiva is mostly worshipped. His abode is on Mt. Kailash, Parvati is his spouse and the Trisula (the trident) his weapon. Of the numerous names of Shiva, those used by Sri Aurobindo and indexed here are: Hara; Mahadev(a); Maheshwara; Rudra; Shankara (A; Dow.) Var: Siva Der: Shivahood 1: 537, 892-95 2:148 3:105, 222, 226-27, 231, 243, 245, 278, 294, 309-12, 315, 384, 419-20, 428, 452 4: 1, 7, 34, 114, 165, 181, 288, 330 5: 73-74, 77, 83, 130, 140, 165, 302, 523, 546, 573, 579 6: 236, 243, 248, 283, 308 7: 986 8: 32, 44, 46, 56, 107, 118, 127, 131, 165, 206 10:333-34 11:3 12: 370-71, 375, 448, 478, 506-07 13: 38, 85, 272, 349 14: 137, 151, 153, 200, 204, 222, 232, 235, 312, 320 16:252, 278, 319, 360, 416-17 17:47-48, 59, 98, 142, 272, 279, 282, 378 18: 78, 82 20:365 21:561, 575, 708, 741 22:122, 173, 342, 390-91 23: 521, 796-97, 807, 973, 977, 1029 24: 1112, 1141 25: 76, 89, 94 26: 99, 193-94, 196, 307, 309, 356. 498 27: 103, 105, 169-70, 206, 317, 363 28: 247 29: 525 I: 20, 29, 41 111:66 IV: 149, 174, 191 V: 5, 7, 9, 12, 69 VI: 164, 193 VII: 5, 16 X: 144 XI: 14 XII: 174 XVI: 134 XVIII: 144, 146, 150 XIX: 54
Shiva2 See Subramaniya, S(h)iva
Shiva a poem in a new metre by Sri Aurobindo, composed by him on 6 November 1933 and first published in Six Poems. (A) 5:578 9:434 26:275
Shivadry probably the Siwalik Hills, the southernmost belt of the Himalayan foothills. The range proper, to which the name Siwalik was formerly restricted, is the 200 miles of foothills from Hardwar to the Beas River. (Enc. Br.) 1: 20
Shivaji (1627/30-1680), a Maratha ruler, social reformer, military leader, and ad- vocate of religious toleration. He was the founder of the independent Maratha king- dom of the Deccan against the might of Aurangzeb and the opposition of the Sultans of Bijapur and others. In 1674 he had him- self crowned at Raigarh as the independent king of Maharashtra. (Enc.Br.;D.I.H.) Var: Sivaji a 1: 127, 140,
Page 294
147, 308, 380, 475, 613, 623, 739, 854 2:147, 221, 261, 411 3: 483-85 4: 96, 99, 129, 143, 147, 156 5: 279, 283, 285, 288-89, 293 12:484 14:191, 378, 380 17:350 26:25 27:51, 66-67, 353 1:4 III: 14 V: 4 IX: 1, 2
Shivaloka the heaven of the worshippers of Shiva. The abode of Shiva is said to be on Mt. Kailash. 22:110 26:114
Shiva Parana one of the eighteen major Puranas, devoted to the praise of Shiva and consisting of twelve samhitas. Var: Siva Purana 3:311-12 4:53
Shiva Singha (Rupnaraian) a name occurring in the Bengali poems of Bidyapati. He is described as the king of Mithila, and a friend of the poet. (A) Var: Roupnaraian 8: 227-28, 236, 259, 263
Shivi (Sibi), in the Mahabharata, son of Ushinara, king of the country also called Ushinara, near Gandhara. Shibi was re- nowned for his charity and his protection of the weak. To test him, the god Agni assumed the form of a pigeon and Indra that of a hawk. The pigeon, pursued by the hawk, took refuge with King Shibi. The hawk would accept in lieu of the pigeon only an equal weight of the king's own flesh. Shibi cut piece after piece from his right thigh, but the pigeon remained heavier until the king offered his whole body to outweigh the pigeon. The gods thereupon revealed their true forms and blessed him. (Dow.; M.N.) 16: 210 22: 416 23: 790 III: 6
Shogun title of the military dictators who from the 12th century to the 19th century were the actual rulers of Japan. The title itself dates back to AD 794 and originally meant commander of the imperial armies. The overthrow of the Shogun in 1867 marked the beginning of modern Japan. (CoI.Enc.) 1:230, 568 15:352
Shoorasen in the Mahabharata, name of a people and the region they inhabited. The modern name of the region is Braja (Man- data), the country around Mathura in U.P. The people migrated south out of fear of Jarasandha. (M.N.; Dow.) 8:41
Shoorpa Surpanakha, the sister of Ravana, in the Ramayana. It is related that she was attracted by the beauty of Rama. When she made advances to him, Rama referred her to Laksmana, who in like manner sent her back to Rama. Enraged at this, Surpanakha fell upon Sita, whereupon, at Rama's beckoning, Lakshmana cut off the Rakshasi's nose and ears. (Dow.) 5:27
Shotodrou .See Shatudru
Shourian: Showrian See Shauri
Shrichand (1494-1543), son of Guru Nanak, and founder of the Udasi sect of Sikhism. 1:289
Shrutarvan(a) in the Veda, a generous king, sonofRjksha. (A) 11:363, 365
S(h)ruti '' learni ng by hearing", a word that came to mean "revealed scripture", the most revered body of literature in Hinduism. Works of Shruti are considered divine re- velation, heard and transmitted by sages, as contrasted to Smriti, or that which is remembered. The revealed texts encom- pass the four Vedas, the Brahmanas, the Aranyakas, and the Upanishads. (Enc. Br.) 4:47.49, 53 10:8.19, 546 11:1, 16 12: 59, 264, 398, 429, 447, 452, 455, 460-61, 463-66, 468-70, 472-74, 477, 479, 484, 487, 489, 506-07 13: 81-82 14: 270 17: 166 27: 303-05, 322, 369 I: 42-43 II: 69, 78 VIII: 166-67.171, 180-81 IX: 17-18 XIV: 131, 133-36, 138, 160, 162 XV: 10 XVI: 133
S(h)udra I. the lowest in rank of the Chaturvarnya of ancient India (see Brahmin). The more undeveloped human type, unintel- lectual, without force, incapable of creation or intelligent production, the man fit only for unskilled labour and menial sevice was classed as a Shudra. In later times this sec- tion of society began to be regarded as "un- touchable" and neglected, despised, and even maltreated by the higher castes. With the ushering in of the modern era of social reform, organizations like the Arya Samaj worked assiduously for the uplift of the Shudras. Gandhi gave the new name "Harijans", literally meaning "people of Hari (God)". Under the British Government of India they were designated "scheduled castes and tribes" and were given special attention and concessions, which they still enjoy. 2. When Sri Aurobindo uses the term "sudra" in the Record of Yoga, he does not refer to a certain social order (much less caste), but rather to "the Divine as service of obedience and work", "God descending entirely into the lower world and its nature". This is one of the four "types of active human personality and nature", all of which are present in varying degrees in every man. The aspect of the fourfold divine power (Chaturvyuha) that corresponds to the Shudra is Aniruddha. Der: Shaudram, i.e. Shudrahood; Shudrashakti 1:125, 235, 301, 315, 537, 632 2:12-13, 84, 426 3:453 4:58, 98, 201, 268 5:85 11:451-52 13:321, 492-94, 498, 504-06 14: 111, 143, 146, 316, 348-51, 353, 355 15: 5, 7-8, 117-18, 340, 354, 464, 628 17:121, 211 21:714, 718-19 27:359-60, 363 11:61, 66 III:5 V:2 XVIII: 134 XIX: 5, 7
Page 295
Shuka(deva) in the Mahabharata, son and disciple of Vyasa who taught him the Veda and the Mahabharata. Shukadeva narrated the Bhagavata to Parikshit. (M.N.) Var: Suka 3: 145 26: 351 VI: 136
Shukra 1. in Hindu astronomy, the planet Venus (see Venus'). 2. in Hindu mythol- ogy, abbreviated name of Sukracarya, son of Bhrigu, and spiritual and political adviser of the Titans. (Dow.) Var: Sukra 17:259-62
Shunahshepa (Ajigarti) Sunahsepa is the name of a Rishi with the patronymic Ajigarti. According to a legend in the Aitareya Brahmana, King Harish-chandra had promised to Varuna the sacrifice of his son Rohit. Rohit purchased Shunah-shepa to take his place as the sacrificial victim. Shunahshepa was in fact bound to the stake, but was released in time through the efforts of Vishwamitra. In the Rig-veda, the only mention of Sunah-sepa is a statement of his deliverance from peril of death by divine help; the Yajur-veda simply says that he was seized by Varuna but saved himself from Varuna's bonds. (V. Index; M.N.) Var: Sunahshepa (a misprint or misspelling) 10:154, 368, 452, 454 11: 34, 205 20: 461 VII: 32, 35 XV: 49 XVI: 162-63
Shuncou in the Mahabharata, a Kshatriya of the Yadava clan. He was a great hero. (M.N.) 8:43
Shushna in the Rig-veda, a demon associated with Vritra. He is a personification of impure and ineffective force. (Dow.; A) Var: Sushna 10: 208, 238 11: 29, 341 II: 46 VIII: 149
Shwetashwatara a Rishi to whom the Upa- nishad of this name is attributed. 12: 32, 33, 381
Shwetashwatara (Upanishad) an Upanishad of the Krsna (Black) Yajur-veda. (Up. K.) 12:29, 195, 423 VI: 170 VII: 42
Shyam(a)' (Syama), a name of Krishna meaning "of dark complexion". D [Indexed with Krishna]
Shyama2 (Syama), "of dark complexion" (feminine), a name or form of the goddess Durga, used by Sri Aurobindo for Kali. (Apte) 25:75
Shyama (Syama), a name commonly used in conjunction with Rama to denote any two persons, V: 80
Shyamasundara a name of Krishna, "beautiful dark one". (I & G) D (Indexed with Krishna]
Shyambazar a locality in north Calcutta. It is one of the oldest sections of Calcutta. 4: 291
Shyam (Sundar) See Chakravarti, Shyam Sundar ShyavasKwa (Atreya) a Vedic Rishi of the house of
Atri. Var: Shyavasva; Shyawashwa n 10:273, 276, 280, 290, 292, 530 11:335-36 111:32 V: 23
Siam the present kingdom of Thailand in Southeast Asia. Bangkok is its capital. Before 1939 and between 1945 and 1949 the kingdom was officially known as Siam in English-speaking countries. (Col. Enc.) 1: 261 2: 248 15:502 27: 122
Siberia a vast area of the Asiatic U.S.S.R. Although it has no official standing as a territorial division, it is generally understood to comprise the Asiatic part of the Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic, occupy- ing the northern third of Asia. (Col. Enc.) 1: 580 15: 512 27: 123
Sibyl a poem by A.E. in which "his power of expression, always penetrating, simple and direct, is at its best". (A) 9:532
Sicily a former kingdom, presently an autonomous region of Italy, separated from the mainland by the Strait of Messina. This triangular island is the largest and most populous in the Mediterranean. (Col. Enc.) 1:505 5:28, 33, 481, 510 9:193
Siddha(deva) the second of the three highest types of the ten forms of consciousness in the evolutionary scale of man; the supreme Asura, who raises mind to the Tapas. (A; A &R, VI: 209) VI: 184, 187, 190
Siddhar, Shair a transcription error for Stair Siddhar, "a mysterious individual" who saw Sri Aurobindo early in 1914 and whom Sri Aurobindo took to be a Frenchman. In April Siddhar left Pondicherry for Bengal, where he associated with Shyam Sundar Chakra- varti, Liaquat Husain and other nationalists. In October he was deported from India as an undesirable alien. In November he was again deported from Port Said as being a Pales- tinian Jew. (A) 27:453
Siddharthti See Buddha
Sidgwick, Henry (1838-1900), English philosopher and author remembered for his forthright ethical theory based on Utilitari- anism. He was also a founder of the Society for Psychical Research. (Enc. Br.) 1: 427
Sidhpur a small town, of some historical and religious importance, about seventy miles north of Ahmedabad in the former princely state of Baroda (now in the state of Gujarat). (A; S. Atlas) 27: 113, 116
Page 296
Sidi Hossain a Muslim name used by Sri Aurobindo to denote any person of that community, 16: 92
Sidney, Sir Philip (1554-86), English courtier and poet. The ideal gentleman of his age, a master of social graces, an idealistic politician, a military leader, learned in the arts and sciences, he was, after Edmund Spenser, the best writer of English prose and verse of his generation. Sidney was one of the lum- inaries of the court of Queen Elizabeth I. (Enc.Br.) 5:343-44, 355, 358 17:82
Sidon an ancient city on the coast of Phoe- nicia, on the site of present-day Saida in Lebanon. (Col. Enc.; Web.) 5: 500 6: 13
The Siege ofMathura title of a prose fiction mentioned in the Record of Yoga in a "lipi" of 1912-13. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Sieurcaye, Mrs. See Aloyse Abelard
Sieyes, Emmanuel-Joseph (1748-1836), churchman and constitutional theorist whose concept of popular sovereignty guided the French bourgeoisie in their struggle against the monarchy and nobility during the open- ing months of the French Revolution. Al- though Sieyes enjoyed fame as a theorist, his vanity and lack of oratorical skill reduced his political effectiveness. (Enc. Br.) XVII: 4
Sigfrid a proposed character - a Norwegian leader - mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's incomplete play The House of Brut. 7:883
Sigiriya a site in Central Province, Sri Lanka; the ruins of an ancient stronghold known as the Lion Mountain that was built on a high, steep-sided rock plateau. On the mesa's several acres of ground Kasyapa I built a palace in AD 477 as a safeguard against his enemies. (Enc. Br.) 14: 240-41
Sigurd* the Icelandic form of the name Siegfried, a great hero of Germanic myth- ology who killed Fafnir (see Fafner). He is the ideal hero, brave and true. (Col. Enc.) 10: 183
Sigurd2 a character in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric. a 6: 481, 539, 541, 557
Sikhism a non-sectarian monotheistic religion founded by Guru Nanak in the late 15th century. The followers of this religion, most of whom are from the Punjab in north- west India, are called Sikhs. The ninth and last guru of the Sikhs, Guru Govind Singh,
transformed the peaceful Sikh community into a militant body determined to resist Mohammedan aggression and atrocities. The Sikhs accept the Adi Granth as their one canonical scripture and their "living" Guru. (D.I.H.) 1:198, 303.308, 394, 481, 815 2: 245 3: 331 4: 140, 171, 247 14: 125, 129, 132, 187, 319, 368, 378, 380 15: 18, 354 27:435 IX: 1, 2 XV: 62-63
Simla (now spelled Shimla) a hill-station in the lower Himalayas, administrative headquarters of the district of Simla, and capital of the state of Himachal Pradesh. From 1865 to 1939 it served as India's summer capital. (Enc. Br.) 1: 400, 409-10, 491, 607, 627, 631 2: 23, 124, 255, 290
Simois a small river in northwestern Turkey, near ancient Troy; it is a tributary of the Scamander. (M.I.) 5:391-92, 463
Simon de Montfort (c. 1208-65), Anglo- Norman statesman. Earl of Leicester; he led opposition to Henry III, and later instigated the Barons' War (1263-67) and established the Great Parliament of 1265, in which the modem system of representation had its origin. (P.P.) l: 46
Simonides Simmonides of Ceos (c. 556- 468? Be), Greek lyric poet and epigramma- tist. Only fragments of his work survive, but they contain some of the finest specimens of ancient Greek poetry. (Col. Enc.) 3:235 1:24
Simultala a small town in central Bihar. 1: 397
Sinai Mount Sinai is a mountain on the triangular Sinai Peninsula, which is the easternmost part of Egypt. It is traditionally considered to be the mountain on which Moses received the Ten Commandments. However, some authorities deny this and suggest instead that the nearby Jebel Serbal was intended. (Col. Enc.) 5: 8 15: 425
Sind(h) the valley of the Indus below its confluence with the Jhelum. It witnessed the birth and collapse of a pre-historic civilization in about 3000 BC of which many relics have been discovered at Harappa, Mohenjo-daro, and other sites. Under British rule Sind was administered as a part of the Bombay Presidency until April 1936, when it was made into a separate province having Karachi as its capital. After the par- tition of India in 1947 Sind became a part of Pakistan. (D.I.H.) a 1:645 3:215 26: 409 XVIII: 136
Sindhia See Scindia
Page 297
Sindhu' in the Mahabharata, a country along the River Indus (which is also known as the Sindhu in Sanskrit). Its inhabitants also were called Sindhus. Jayadratha was a king of this country. (Dow.;M.N.) 3:191 8:61, 63, 67, 69, 71
Sindhu2 ancient name of the River Indus, mentioned in the Rig-veda, Panini's Asfd- dhyayi, Patanj all's Mahdbhasya, etc. (Enc. Ind.) 4:98 10:99 IX: 1, 2
Sindhu Sauvira in the Mahabharata, a country or region of northwestern India. (M.N.) 3: 193
Singhal a name of Ceylon (now known as Sri Lanka). Ceylon is an English word derived from the Sanskrit Simhaladvipa, meaning "Island of the Singhalese". The island was so named by VIJAYA' , perhaps because it abounded in lions ("simha" in Sanskrit). (Enc. Br.;M.W.;D.I.H.) 5:263
Sinhachalam Simhachalam, a small town in the state of Andhra Pradesh, about six miles from Waltair. (T.T.) 14:217
Sinnet A. P. Sinnett, editor of an influential daily newspaper The Pioneer, who was con- verted to theosophy on witnessing one ofths most famous of Mme Blavatsky's miracles, which took place during a picnic. Sinnett has recorded several such phenomena in his books Esoteric Buddhism and The Occult World, which introduced theosophy to Europe. After the death of Mme Blavatsky, Sinnett became one of the leaders of theo- sophical thought. (Enc. Unex., p. 250; Enc. Am., 26: 524) D XIII: 29
Sinn Fein a 20th-century patriotic movement and party in Ireland, aiming at national revival in language etc. as well as political independence, and professing a Socialist, anti-Capitalist ideology. Arthur Griffith was the father of the movement. The symbolic meaning of Sinn Fein is "Irish Ireland". (Col. Enc.; C.O.D.; Enc. Br.) l: 368, 501 26: 17-18, 26 XVII: 67-68
Sinnis misspelling of Sinis, a legendary robber who haunted the Isthmus of Corinth and killed his victims by tying them to the top of two pine trees which he bent down and then allowed to fly up. He was destroyed by Theseus. 5: 35
Sipahidar a man who, in conjunction with Sardar Assad, brought about the Persian Revolution in the beginning of the 20th century. (A) 2: 118
Sircar, Mahendra Mahendranath Sircar
(1882-1954), well-known professor of philosophy at Presidency College and later at Calcutta University; author of Eastern Lights. His other works include studies of Vedantic thought and Hindu mysticism. (S.B.C.) 26: 383
Sirgavkar, Raoji an officer in the service of Baroda state around 1903; he was fined Rs. 105/- by the Maharaja for negligence of duty. (A) 1: 193
Sirioth name used by Sri Aurobindo for the Angel of Love. (A) 5:69-71 7:901
Sirish probably Srishchandra Ghosh, a young man of Chandernagore closely con- nected with Barindra Kumar Ghose. It was Srish who masterminded the smuggling into Alipore Jail of the revolvers that killed the approver Narendranath Goswami in August 1908. In February-March 1910, Srish assisted Sri Aurobindo during his stay in Chandernagore, and on 31 March helped him get to Calcutta en route to Pondicherry. He seems to have visited Sri Aurobindo in Pondicherry in 1920. (A;A&R, XVII: 110, 116) 27:485, 488, 493-94
Sinus or Dog Star, the brightest star in the heavens, somewhat larger than the Sun and having a considerably higher surface tem- perature. It is a white star in the constella- tion Canis Major (the Great Dog). Its dis- tance from the solar system is about 8.6 light-years. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 12: 475 XVII: 44
Sir Patrick Spense the subject of a famous Scottish ballad written in the 16th century by an unknown poet. Spens (as the name is most commonly spelled) was a Scottish nobleman put in charge of a ship by the king. 9: 316
Sisyphus in Greek legend, son of Aeolus and king of Corinth. Because of his disrespect for Zeus, he was condemned to push a huge stone up a steep hill in Tartarus and begin again when it rolled down - an unend- ing task. (Pears, p. H37; Col. Enc.; C.O.D.) Var: Sysiphus (perhaps a misspelling) 13:312 21:650
Sita the heroine of the Ramayana. She was the daughter of Janaka, king of Videha (or Mithila), and wife of RAMA', who won her by lifting up and breaking the great bow of Shiva. She accompanied her husband in his exile. Ravana carried her off and kept her in his palace in Lanka till she was traced and rescued by Rama. Sita is the ideal of a Hindu wife, and is worshipped alongside Rama as an Avatar. Her other common names are Janaki, Vaidehi, and Maithili. (Dow.) 2: 399 3: 175, 178, 428 5: 27 8: 9-10, 13, 15-16, 18-22 12: 483 14: 48, 192-93, 197, 290, 292 17: 257 22: 415-16, 418 27: 154 III: 6 IX: 40
Page 298
Sitaram Sitaram Roy (1757/58-?), a zamindar of East Bengal who raised an army and, challenging the authority of the Muslim Nawab of Bengal, declared himself king. The Nawab tried and failed several times to subjugate him. Some time later, however, Sitaram took to a life of luxury, which led to the dissolution of his "kingdom". This gave the Nawab an occasion to invade his village and take him prisoner. During the period of his rule Sitaram had built a number of temples and tanks. Bankim Chandra has immortalised Sitaram by choosing him as the hero of a novel and naming it after him. (S.B.C., p.555) 1:22
Sitaram title of a Bengali novel (1886) by Bankim Chandra named after its hero. It is a marital tangle and a struggle of Hindus against Muslim tyranny. (Enc. Br.) Q 3: 91
Siva See Shiv(a)
Siva, Subramaniya See Subramaniya, S(h)iva
Sivaji See Shivaji
Siva Purana See Shiva Purana
Six Oxford Thinkers title of a book by Algernon Cecil. (A) 2:30
Six Poems Six Poems of Sri Aurobindo, a collection published in 1934, with notes by the author and parallel translations in Ben- gali by different disciples of Sri Aurobindo. (I & G) 5: 585 9: 434 26: 274
Skanda See Kartikeya
Skylark' To a Skylark, a poem by Wordsworth, 29: 809
Skylark1 To the Skylark, one of Shelley's finest lyrics, written at the end of 1819. (Ox. Comp.) 9: 378, 395, 526-29 26: 236
Slav one of a race spread over most of eastern and southeastern Europe, and also across northern Asia as far as the Pacific Ocean. The Slavs constitute a large ethnic and linguistic group whose languages belong to the Slavic or Slavonic branch of the Indo- European family. They include the Russians, Bulgarians, Illyrians, Poles, Silesians, Pomeranians, Bohemians, etc. (C.O.D.; Col. Enc.) Der: Slavic; Slavism; Slavonic; Slavonicised l: 526, 881 2: 169, 383 10: 553 14: 375 15: 286, 294-95, 373, 410-11,
502, 512-14 16: 275, 310 17: 196 IV: 161 XVI: 182
"The Slaying of Congress" a tragedy in three acts written by Sri Aurobindo and first pub- lished in the daily and weekly Bande Mataram in February 1908. (A) l: 671
Slaying of Shisupala the title (translated into English) of the Sanskrit epic poem Sisupala- vadha by the poet Magha. The poem is in twenty cantos, and is named after its subject. (Dow.) 1:25'
Slough of Despond state of hopeless floundering in sin. The phrase is taken from Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, a religious allegory recounting how in a dream Christian journeyed from the City of Destruction through the Slough of Despond, the Valley of Humiliation, the Valley of the Shadow of Death, etc. to the Celestial City. (C.O.D.) 23: 789 24: 1634 26: 465
Smart, Christopher (1722-71), English religious poet, chiefly famous for A Song to David (1763); he is noted for flashes of childlike penetration and vivid imagination. In some respects his work anticipates that of William Blake and John Clare. (Enc. Br.) n: 11
Smerdas a character - a merchant of Babylonia, wrecked on the coast of Syria - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, 6: 3, 16-20, 85-94, 105-08, 110, 112, 180, 186, 188-89
Smiles, Samuel (1812-1904), Scottish author best known for his didactic work Self-Help. He was a zealous advocate of material prog- ress based on individual enterprise and free trade. (Enc. Br.) III: 8, 14
Smith, Adam (1723-90), Scottish social philosopher and political economist re- nowned for his major work An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776). (Enc. Br.) 1: 704
Smith, John name used by Sri Aurobindo to denote any person, particularly one belong- ing to an English-speaking country. (A) 19: 816 22: 406, 451
Smith, Joseph (1805-44), American religious leader and prophet whose revealed writings, along with the Bible, comprise the theologi- cal foundation of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints, popularly known as the Mormon Church. (Enc. Br.) 22: 417
Smith, Lockhart one of the speakers at the annual meeting of the European and Anglo- Indian Defence Association held at Calcutta in April 1908. (A) 1:827-28
Page 299
Smith, Vincent Vincent A. Smith, an Englishman, a retired member of the I.C.S., and a historian of India. He was a solid and well-equipped scholar and historian but less convincing as an art-critic. He found little to praise in the Vedantic art of India. (S.F.F.; A) 2: 396
Smithfield an area in the north of the city of London famous for its meat market. The market existed in 1183 and the site was also used for jousting, executions and the ancient Bartholomew Fair. (Enc. Br.) 12: 485 17: 170
Smriti(s) the class of Hindu sacred literature based on human memory, as distinct from Vedic literature, which is considered to be Shruti, or revealed. Smriti literature elaborates, interprets, and codifies Vedic thought, but being derivative is considered less authoritative than Shruti. It included the Kalpa Sutras, the Puranas, the two great epics, etc. In time, however, the term Smriti came to refer particularly to the texts re- lating to law and social conduct, such as the celebrated Manu-smriti and Yajnavalkya- smriti. (Enc. Br.) Var: Smrti Der: Smritikaras (writers of Smritis) 2: 120 3: 120 4: 53 12: 430, 452-53, 461 16: 420 III: 55 VIII: 166, 182, 187 XVI: 133
Sn. See Saurin
S.N.B. In the Record of Yoga, it refers to Surendra Nath Banerji
Snort misspelling of Short. See "Codlin's the friend, not Snort" 1: 283
Sobhari (Kanva) (Sobhari Kanva), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Kanva. 11:323, 328, 374, 376
Social Reformer See (Indian) Social Reformer
Socinian a sect of Christianity following the doctrines of the 16th-century Italian theologians Laelius and Faustus Socinus, whose opinions resemble those of modern Unitarians, denying the divinity of Jesus, the Trinity, the natural immortality of man, etc. and explaining sin and salvation rationalis- tically. Socinian groups survived in Europe until the 19th century, primarily in Transyl- vania, the Netherlands, and Germany. (C.O.D.;Web.;Enc.Br.) 15:14
Socrates (c. 470-399 BC) , Greek philosopher of Athens, the first of the great trio of ancient Greeks-Socrates, Plato and Aristotle — who laid the philosophical foundation of Western culture. He wrote nothing himself. His life and teachings have
been recorded in certain dialogues of his disciple Plato and in the Memorabilia of X'enophon. Great as is the importance of Socrates' contribution to philosophy, he will always be remembered chiefly as one of those spiritual leaders to whom philosophy was a way of life, as exemplified by his maxim "Know thyself. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Socratic 3: 25-26, 72, 438 9: 561 15: 165, 339 16: 203, 339, 362 18: 225 22: 473-74, 478 26: 237 27:281 IX: 42-43 X: 113 XVI: 141 XVII: 10
Sofia city and capital of Bulgaria, in west- central Bulgaria, on a high plain at the foot oftheBalkans. (CoI.Enc.) XXI: 4
Sofronia a character - the student Geronimo's sister - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Maid in the Mill. 7: 876
Sogdiana part of the ancient Persian empire in Central Asia between the Oxus and Jax- artes rivers, corresponding to the later emir- ate of Bukhara and region of Samarkand. (Col. Enc.) 6: 380
Soham Gita a philosophical poem in Bengali written and published by Shyamakanta Banerji (Soham Swami). (A) 2: 174
Soham Swami name taken by Shyamakanta Banerji (see Banerji, Shyamakanta) after renouncing worldly life. (A) 2: 174
Sohrab and Rustam a vivid narrative poem (1853) by Matthew Arnold, based on an episode taken from FIRDAUSI'S Shah-nameh. (Col. Enc.; Ox. Comp.) 9:456
Solar dynasty or Solar line or Solar race, the lineage of Kshatriyas which sprang from Ikshwaku, the grandson of the Sun. It had two branches. The elder branch, which reigned at Ayodhya and to which RAMA' belonged, descended from Ikshwaku through his eldest son, Vikukshu. The younger branch, reigning at Mithila, descended from another of Ikshwaku's sons named Nimi. Some Rajput princes like the Ranas of Mewar and the Pratihara kings of Kanauj traced their descent from one or the other. (Dow.;D.I.H.) 12:295, 305 13:137-38
Solar world the sun-world (or Siiryaloka of Hindu mythology), a region or space supposed to exist round the sun, constituting a heaven of which the sun is regent. (M.W.) D 12:310 11:79
Soldan the Sultan of Egypt. (Web.) 7:598
Page 300
Solomon (fl. mid-lOth cent. Be), king of the ancient Hebrews (c. 972 - c. 932 Be), son and successor of David, traditionally regarded as the greatest king of Israel. Solomon's wisdom is proverbial. (Enc, Br.;
CoI.Enc.) 5:366, 586
Soma in the Veda, Lord of Delight and Immortality, also known as Indu and Vena, He was the god who represented and animated the Soma-juice (or Soma-wine), an Indian Dionysus or Bacchus. In later times, the name was appropriated to the moon. In Puranic mythology, Soma, as the Moon, is commonly said to be the son of the Rishi Atri by his wife Anasuya. (See also Chandra and Moon) (A;Dow.) n [Note: the word Soma where it means merely the Soma-plant or the Soma-wine has not been indexed] 4: 40 9: 235 10: 5, 56, 69, 80, 98-99, 106, 136, 138-39, 141-43, 146, 185, 221-23, 229, 231, 235, 249, 284, 339, 342-43, 345-47, 377, 426, 438, 522, 539-41 11: 22, 31, 98, 446, 455, 466, 469 13:374 14:277 17:278 21:708 22: 110-11 I: 32, 34 IV: 131, 143 X: 180-82 XIII: 56 XIV: 114 XV: 56 XVIII: 181-82 XXI:17, 45
Somadutta in the Mahabharata, a hero in the line of Kuru; son of Vahlika and grand- son of Pratipa. (M.N.) 4:76 8:77
Somahuti Bhargava a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Bhrigu. 11:90
Somaka in the Veda, son of Sahadeva; in the Mahabharata, he is mentioned as grand- father of Drupada and king of Panchala (Pancala), who transmitted his name to his descendants.(M.N.; Dow.) Var: Someque 8:43 11: 197
Somaliland name historically applied to the area now comprising Somalia and Afars and Issas, the coastal region of the most easterly section of Africa. (Enc. Br.) 1-1 15:502
Somaranes in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, one of Penthesilea's captains. (M.I.) 5:455, 517
Somdeva Somadeva Bhatta (fl. llth cent.), the writer or compiler of the collection of stories called Kathdsaritsagara. He lived in Kashmir. (Dow.; D.I.H.) D 6:205
Someque See Somaka
Somers, Lord John Somers (1651-1716), 1st Baron Sommers, English jurist and statesman who presided over the framing of the Declaration of Rights (1688). In 1697, he was knighted, became Lord Chancellor and was created Baron. He fell from power when the Tones won control of the government in 1710. (CoI.Enc.) 2:404
Somitinjoy in the Mahabharata, one of the seven great heroes of the Yadavas of Dwaraka. (M.N.) 8:43
Sonar Bangia "Golden Bengal", a very effective pamphlet denouncing the Govern- ment and exhorting the people of Bengal to stand united, distributed through the Bar Associations of the districts in 1906. It was written by Basudeb Bhattacharji, the sub-editor of Sandhya, and printed at Keshab Press. (H.F.M.L; A.B.T.) 1: 159, 186, 430
Sonar Tan "The Golden Boat", a p'oem (1893) by Rabindranath Tagore. (Enc. Br.) 3: 431
Songhad -name of a taluka in the former princely state of Baroda. Now, spelled Songadh, it is a town west of Bhavnagar in the Bhavnagar district of Gujarat state. (Atlas) a XV: 72 (Songadh Vyara), 76
Songs of the Sea C. R. Das's Bengali poems, Sagar Sangit, translated by Sri Aurobindo around 1912, and first published in 1923. (I&G) 8:357 26:240, 252-53 29:787
Songs to Myrtilla1 a poem (1890-92) by Sri Aurobindo. 26: 263-64
Songs to Myrtilla1 the first collection of Sri Aurobindo's poems, published in 1895 "for private circulation" at Baroda. The authorized (trade) edition of the book was published by Arya Publishing House, Calcutta in 1923. Both editions contain twenty-one poems, all except five written between 1890 and 1892 while Sri Aurobindo was a student at Cambridge. The collection is named after its first poem. (I & G) 4: pre. 26: 5, 12
Sonnets of Shakespeare, published in 1609. The collection contains 154 sonnets which refer cryptically to various persons - par- ticularly a handsome young man, a dark woman, and a rival poet - whose identity, if they were real, remains the object of specu- lation. (Enc. Br.) 3:230-31
Sophist(s) a class of Greek professional lecturers, writers, and teachers in the 5th and 4th centuries BC, most of whom travelled about the Greek-speaking world giving instruction to young men in return for fees. They prepared their pupils for success in public life through training in the art of speaking, in the appreciation and use of reasoned arguments in public debate, and in a wide range of humanistic studies. (Enc. Br.) 3: 30 15: 177 16: 335, 339
Sophocles (c. 497-406 BC) , one of the three great tragic playwrights of classical Greece. He wrote some 123 dramas, only seven of which have survived. Of the relation of his art to that of his great
Page 301
contemporaries, Sophocles said that Aeschylus composed correctly without knowing it, Euripides portrayed men as they were, and he himself painted men as they ought to be. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Sophoclean 3: 147, 276 9:152, 379, 521, 530 14:66 15:91, 339 29:765, 814 X: 114, 157
Sorley, Prof. William Ritchie Sorley (1855- 1935), professor of logic and philosophy, moral sciences, or allied subjects at various institutions. In 1900 he succeeded his teacher Henry Sidgwick in the Knightsbridge Pro- fessorship at Cambridge, a post he held with distinction for thirty-three years. He had the gifts of clear analysis and lucid expression, but the most characteristic feature of his work was that he always thought and wrote as one for whom "moral and spiritual values are not only an essential part of experience but its ultimate meaning", 22:175, 178-79, 181, 183, 185 26:84 1:61, 64-65
Soro See Ghose, Sarojini
Soroyou (Sarayu), in the Ramayana, a river flowing through the kingdom of Koshala and having on its banks Ayodhya, the capital of the kingdom. The modern town of Ayodhya in Fyzabad district of U.P. is on the River Ghaghara, which is locally called the Sarayu. The Sarayu is a tributary of the Ganga. (D. I. H., under Ayodhya and Oudh) 8:3
Soul in Art, The a writing of Sri Aurobindo that has been lost; it was commenced on 3 February 1912. XXII: 130
Soul of India title of a book (1911) by Bipin Chandra Pal. (D.N.B.) 27: 437
Sourashtra Saurashtra, formerly, a native state of India, absorbed after 1960 into the state of Gujarat in the Republic of India. (Enc. Br.) 6: 207, 263, 270, 295, 322
South Africa southernmost country on the African continent, formerly a dominion of the British Commonwealth of Nations. It withdrew from the Commonwealth in 1961. It is now an independent republic comprising four provinces: Cape Province, Natal, Transvaal, and Orange Free State. (Enc. Br.; Pears) Der: South African 1:259 2:33-34, 301-03 15:311-14, 417, 549 26:54 27:463-64 XVII: 69
South America the southern continent of the Western Hemisphere; it is the fourth largest continent.
(Enc. Br.) 15:378, 503 26:395
Southern Cross or Crux, a constellation of five bright stars forming a somewhat irregular cross. It is now visible only from south of about 30° N latitude (i.e. the latitude of North Africa and Florida). Thousands of years ago it was visible from much of what is now Europe. (Enc. Br.) 12:475
Southey, Robert (1774-1843), English poet and writer of miscellaneous prose chiefly remembered for his association with Coleridge and Wordsworth, leaders of the early Romantic movement, though his poetry is not specifically Romantic and has little in common with that of these poets. (Enc. Br.) 11: 11
South Indian Bronzes a book by 0. C. Gangoly, published by the Indian Society of Oriental Arts, Calcutta. Sri Aurobindo reviewed it in Arya. The bronzes dealt with in the book are images of Hindu divinities that rank among the finest achievements of Indian art. The images were produced in large numbers from the 8th to the 16th century. (Enc. Br.) 17:274, 277
South Kensington Liberal Club the Liberal Club, situated at 128 Cromwell Road, South Kensington, London. Benoybhusan and Sri Aurobindo moved to a room in this club after Mrs. Drewett, the mother of their former guardian, abandoned them. (A) 26:2, 6 11:88
South Pole southern end of the earth's axis. It lies in Antarctica, about three hundred miles south of the Ross Ice Shelf. (Enc. Br.) 23:797
South Sea historical name of the Pacific. (C.O.D.) v:93
Soviet Union (full name: Union of Soviet Socialist Republics), federal state of north- ern Eurasia, comprising fifteen constituent socialist republics. In area it is the world's largest state, by population the third largest. See also Russia. (Enc. Br.) 15:294, 317
Spain a country at the southwestern end of the European continent. It occupies eighty- five percent of the Iberian Peninsula, which it shares with Portugal. (Enc. Br.) Der: Spaniards; Spanish (in senses other than the language) 1: 48, 411, 467, 526 2: 34, 169-70, 253 3:193 4:212 7:821, 827, 832-33 9: 44, 47, 60 14: 78, 257, 367 15: 46, 264, 289,
Page 302
291, 296, 346, 348-49, 353, 356-57, 381, 390, 421, 445, 478, 505, 508, 512 16: 310 17: 295, 298, 386 22:185 23:926 26:1, 206 1:7 111:27
Spanish (language) the official language of Spain, Mexico, and most of the Central and South American states. It is widespread as a former colonial medium and is an important language of trade. It has a total of at least 115 miUion speakers. (Pears) 10: 571 15: 443 26:1 I:7
Sparkes, H.W.S. one of the speakers at the annual meeting of the European and Anglo-Indian Defence Association held at Calcutta in April 1908. a 1:828-29
Sparta ancient city of the Greeks, capital of ancient Laconia and chief city of the Peloponnesus, on the right bank of the Eurotas. (M.I.) 1:116, 220, 306, 520 5: 405, 420, 422, 434, 449, 464, 470, 473, 480, 491, 509, 514 7: 825 9: 382 15: 89-90, 192, 275, 287, 337-38, 343 17: 103 27: 280-81
Spectator a periodical (daily) published in London by the essayists Sir Richard Steele and Joseph Addison from March 1711 to December 1712, and subsequently revived by Addison in 1714 (for eighty numbers). It adopted a fictional method of presentation through a "Spectator Club" whose imaginary members were the mouthpieces of the authors' own ideas about society. (Enc. Br.) I: 13
Speght Thomas Speght, an English scholar, editor of editions of Chaucer's works published in 1598 and 1602. Q II: 18
Spencer, Herbert (1820-1903), English philosopher, rated as one of the leading philosophers of the 19th century. He insisted on a synthesis of knowledge from close scien- tific observation of biological and social phenomena. (Enc. Br.) 2: 42, 120 3: 338
Spender, Stephen Stephen (Harold) Spender (1909- ), English poet and critic who made his reputation in the 1930s with poems ex- pressing the politically conscience-stricken leftist "new writing" of that period. In the following decades he became increasingly more autobiographical, and was better known for his perceptive criticism and influential reviews than as a poet. (Enc. Br.) 5:374
Spenser, Edmund (1552/53-99), English poet whose long allegorical poem. The Faerie Queene, was thought of in his day as glorify- ing England and the English language. He is known as the poet's poet because such men
as James Thomson, Shelley, Keats, Byron, and T. S. Eliot acknowledged him as their master. He is the inventor of a special stanza-form which he used in The Faerie Queene and which has come to be called the Spenserian stanza. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Spenserian 3: 108, 147 5: 343-45 9: 27, 65, 75-77, 80, 82, 92, 111, 113, 361, 402, 421, 521-22 26:323 27:81 11:12, 27
Sphinx I. in Greek mythology, a winged monster of Thebes with a woman's head and lion's body who proposed a riddle to the Thebans she met and killed all who could not guess it. When Oedipus solved it she threw herself from the rock on which she sat and died. The riddle was: What walks on four feet in the morning, on two at noon, and on three in the evening? (Answer: a man) 2. in Egyptian antiquities, a figure with a lion's body and a man's or animal's head. The most widely famed of all sphinxes is the Great Sphinx of Gizeh in Egypt. (Col.Enc.;C.O.D.) 1:420-21 5:11, 43, 101 9: 548 16: 326 19: 686 23:983 28:191, 300, 336 29: 449 XX: 153
Spinoza, Benedict de (1632-77), Dutch philosopher, an independent Rationalist philosopher and religious thinker who formulated one of the most consummate metaphysical systems in Western philo- sophy. (Enc. Br.) 4: 44 9:381, 547 14: 56, 66 16: 169 24: 1360 25:150
Squire, J. C. Sir John (Callings) Squire (1884-1958), English journalist, playwright, a leading poet of the Georgian school of pastoral poetry, and an influential critic and editor. (Enc. Br.) 9: 376
Sreepoor a famous village in the district of Dacca, formerly in Bengal, now in Bangladesh. It was the "capital" of Chand Roy and Kedar Roy. See Chand and Kedar. (N.B.A.) 1:21
Srevian or Srevina name given to a frag- mentary tale of pre-historic times written by Sri Aurobindo. The title is unclear in the manuscript, and may be either Srevian or Srevina. D XIII: 49
Sri Aurobinder Patra "Letters of Sri Aurobindo", the title since 1945 (Beng. era 1357) of a collection of Sri Aurobindo's let- ers in Bengali. The first edition, containing only the letters to Sri Aurobindo's wife, was published under the title Aurobinder Patra by the Sadhana Press of Chander- nagore sometime before 1920. 4: pre.
Sri Aurobindo (1872-1950), a modern Rishi and accomplished Yogin who charted hitherto unexplored regions of the higher consciousness and foresaw as the next step of evolution the emergence of "Supermind", a principle of the higher consciousness which alone can bring about a total transformation
Page 303
and divinization of life on earth. He dedi- cated his life to accelerating the march of evolution by means of his "Integral Yoga" - integral both in its aim and in its method. Sri Aurobindo was, besides, a revolutionary patriot, a scholar, a poet, and a philosopher — a versatile genius who, in the words of Remain Rolland, achieved "the completest synthesis that has been realized to this day of the genius of Asia and the genius of Europe."
According to the Mother, Sri Aurobindo is "an Avatar of the future". His birthday (15 August) and the day (24 November) when in 1926 he attained the "Siddhi" which made possible the manifestation of Supermind are observed as two of the four "Darshan" days at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry. See also K., Kali3, and Zero. Var: Arabindo (Ghose); Aravind A. Ghose; Aravinda; Arvind(o) Ghose; Aurobindo Ackroyd Ghose; Aurobindo (Ghose); A. G.; Auro Der: Aurobindonian; Aurobindoism 1: pre., 1, 3, 59, 81, 515, 519, 524, 545, 547-49, 554, 634, 652, 666, 715-16, 805-06, 850, 855 2: pre., 25, 45-47, 68, 77, 134, 143, 150-51, 172-73, 192, 197, 199, 314, 316, 328, 346, 353, 366-67, 413, 433 3: pre., 73, 199, 431 4: pre., 178, 182-83, 186-87, 191, 197, 206, 209-10, 215, 241, 243-44, 250, 257, 260-61, 284-85, 288, 329, 375 5: pre., 551 8:392-93 9:140, 363, 377, 400, 434, 463, 531, 557 10: 349 12: pre., 511 16:221, 409 17:262, 364 22:22, 48, 64, 69, 126-27, 149, 203, 210, 280, 292, 381, 387 23: 503, 506, 722, 726, 960-61, 979, 984, 1052, 1067 24:1148-49, 1155, 1182, 1603, 1645, 1690 25: 79, 83, 110, 345, 383-84, 396, 403, 471 26: passim 27: pre., 62, 66, 68, 73, 75, 77, 106, 117, 125, 137, 141, 145, 161, 187, 193-97, 349, 377, 417, 421, 425, 461, 468, 470, 485, 495, 498-99, 509 29: 725, 733, 737, 747, 749-50, 752, 754, 756, 760, 765-66, 768, 770-71, 782, 784-85 1:1-2, 5-6, 9, 18, 20, 24, 68, 70-72, 75 II: 27-28, 33-34, 85-89 III: 41, 65, 68, 80, 84, 86-87 IV: 160, 184, 192, 196-98 V: 37, 76, 98-100 VI: 123, 125 VII: 1, 3, 10-11, 14, 23 VIII: 152 X: 114-15, 144-45, 153 XI: 2, 26, 50, 55, 64-65, 69 XII: 112, 132, 182, 188-89, 191, 195 XIII: 2-3, 13, 17, 20, 38, 57, 60, 62 XIV: 99-100, 102, 105, 120, 123, 127, 138, 161, 163-68 XV: 1, 10, 61-64 XVI: 161, 190-91, 193-94 XVII: 57, 64-72 XVIII: 190 XIX: 25, 30, 56 XX: 150, 153, .157 XXI: 11
Sri Aurobindo: Archives and Research an English semi-annual journal started by the Ashram in 1977 to publish Sri Aurobindo's original writings (discovered or acquired after the publication of the Centenary Library), and the results of research. It comes out in April and December. IV: 196
Sri Aurobindo Ashram The community that grew up around Sri Aurobindo after his arrival in Pondicherry in 1910 did not take the shape of an "ashram" until 1926. In November of that-year he retired into seclusion, and the "whole material and spiritual charge" of Sri Aurobindo's disciples devolved on the Mother. Contact with the Master was thereafter possible only through correspondence. He, however, allowed himself to be seen at "Darshan" three times a year. A fourth Darshan (24 April) was started in 1939. When the Ashram began, there were two dozen sadhaks practising yoga under Sri Aurobindo. .The number increased rapidly. After the Second World War whole families, including children, were accepted. The Ashram provided them every- thing they needed for decent and healthy living. The Mother kept full control over the Ashram's multifarious activities - spiritual, organizational, industrial, educational, cultural, recreational, etc. This gives in brief an idea of the Ashram as it was during Sri Aurobindo's time. After 1950 its expansion continued, but its general character remained the same. Presently (in 1988) it has about 1100 members living and working in 270 houses spread thoughout the town. There is also a significant number of non-member devotees who live in Pondicherry and take part in the Ashram's life. Everyone practises Sri Aurobindo's yoga in his own way, seeking guidance from within and from the writings of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother. A board of Trustees, formed in 1955 with the Mother as President, assumed full responsibility for the administration of the Ashram after her passing in 1973. a 4:339, 342 22:18, 76, 97, 162, 396 23: 532, 549, 557, 707, 847-50, 852, 854, 856-57, 863, 865-68, 872, 918, 1061 24: 1314, 1362, 1419, 1558, 1611, 1724, 1745 25: 56, 86, 98, 215, 219-21, 227-31, 233-35, 238-39, 241-43, 245, 247-48, 253-55, 259, 269, 276, 280, 284, 286, 295, 299, 301, 310, 317-18, 359-62, 370, 375 26: 37, 60, 63, 68, 111, 132-33, 137, 140, 166, 169, 176-77, 179, 188, 196, 374, 377, 380-81, 459, 464, 467, 472-73, 479-82, 485-86, 491,
Page 304
500-06, 508, 510 27: 416 IV: 192 V: 99 XV: 60 XVI: 191-92 XVII: 70 XVIII: 189
5ri Aurobindo Prakasham a book in Tamil by Suddhananda Bharathi, published by the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in 1947. (A) 27: 503
"Sri Aurobindo Prasange" a Bengali book, Aravinda Prasanga, by Dinendra Kumar Roy, containing an account of the author's life with Sri Aurobindo in Baroda. It was published by the Prabartak Sangh of Chandernagore in 1923. (Note: There is a mix-up as regards the reference in Vol. 26, p. 373. The young man from Chandernagore mentioned by Sri Aurobindo was apparently Arun Chandra Dutt, author of Sri Aravinda Mandire, and not of Aravinda Prasanga.) (A; Purani) 26: 373
Sn Aurobindo - The Poet a collection of essays by K. D. Sethna, published in 1970. An article of the author under the same title came out in 1929 in the cultural monthly Orient of Bombay. This article, with an added passage, is the first in the collection. 26: 266, 271
Sriharsha a celebrated king of Kashmir who lived probably in the first half of the 7th century AD. He was a patron of poets and a poet himself. (M.W.) 3: 265 X: 147
Sri K; Srikrishna; Sri Krishna See Krishna
Srikrishna-Narayan the penultimate grade of Sri Krishna darshan; part of a whole grada- tion of aspects "in the Saguna Brahman":
Nara, Nara-Narayan, Narayan, (Sri)krishna- Narayan and finally Krishna. XXII: 133
Srinagar city and capital of the former Indian native state of Kashmir. Situated on either side of the Jhelum River, it is one of the most beautiful and famous summer resorts of the East. Srinagar is presently the summer capital ofJammu & Kashmir state. (Col.Enc.;Enc.Br.) 1: 393, 396 IV: 193-95
Srinivasa; Achari Sri Aurobindo uses the two elements of the name to refer to one man, Srinivasachari (full name: Mandayam Srinivasachariyar), a nationalist who brought out India, Vijaya, Karmayoga, and Bala Bharati with the help of his elder brother Tirumalachariyar and other nationalists like Subramania Bharati. Srinivasachari had settled in Pondicherry before Sri Aurobindo's arrival in 1910. Because he was
known to the revolutionary group in Bengal, his help was taken to receive Sri Aurobindo and make arrangements for his stay in Pondicherry. In his Record of Yoga, Sri Aurobindo refers to him as S. or S.A. (Auro-II; Purani) Var: Sri(nivasachari) a 27: 426 XIX: 29 XX: 121 XXI: 6, 9
Srinjaya in the Veda, name of a people and their king, son of Devavata and father of KingSahadevaofPanchala. 11:196
Sri Ramakrishna See Ramakrishna
Srirangam a town near Tiruchirapalli (formerly known as Trichinopoly) in Tamil Nadu state, on an island in the Kaveri River. It is renowned for its association with the great Vaishnava philosopher and teacher Ramanuja and for its main Sriranganatha temple. It is one of the most famous pil- grimage centres in South India. (Enc. Br.; Col.Enc.;D.I.H.) 14:213 17:372
Sri Ranganatha name of the deity (Vishnu) installed in the temple at SRIRANGAM. (A) 17:372
Srivatsa a particular mark or curl of hair on the breast of Vishnu or Krishna (and of other divine beings). It is said to be white and is represented in pictures by a symbol resembling a cruciform flower. (M.W.) XIII: 36
Sruti See S(h)ruti
Stalin real name: Joseph Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili (1879-1953). Russian statesman and leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, who for a quarter of a century dictatorially ruled the Soviet Union and transformed it into a major world power. He adopted the name Stalin ("made of steel") after joining the revolutionary movement. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 0 24: 1294 26: 416-17
Standard See (Madras) Standard
Standard Bearer English monthly journal started by the Prabartak Sangha at Chander- nagore in 1920 under the inspiration of Sri Aurobindo. It published several articles, poems etc. by Sri Aurobindo. (I & G) 2:431 3:341 16:329 27:482, 485, 497-98
Standard Dictionary perhaps Funk and Wagnall's Standard Dictionary of the English Language published in the U.S.A. 26: 313
Statesman English daily newspaper of Calcutta, an Anglo-Indian and a liberal imperialist organ, originally started by Robert Knight in 1875 under the title The Statesman. In 1877 it was merged with Friend of India under the title The Friend of India & The Statesman.
Page 305
During the period 1884 to 1922 it came out as The Statesman & Friend of India. Since 1923 the title has ap- peared as "The Statesman - (incorporating and directly descended from the Friend of India, founded in 1818)". The editor of the paper in 1907-08 was S. K. Ratcliffe. The paper naturally did not support the national- ist movement, but after 1947 its editorial policy has been a reasonably balanced one in matters of national importance. (Cal. Lib.; N.S.I., p. 30) (See also Friend of India) 1: 142, 160, 169-70, 172, 174, 180, 184, 194, 347-50, 352-55, 368, 373-75, 407, 409-10, 420-22, 429-30, 435, 453-54, 503-04, 547, 551-54, 563 2: 76, 209, 284, 291-92, 329-30, 332, 367, 376-78 4: 199, 210, 238 26: 30, 44
Stead, W. T. William Thomas Stead (1849-1912), English journalist, considered "one of the founders of sensational jour- nalism". He started the Review of Reviews and many similar publications in the United States and Australia. In his later years he became deeply interested in psychical research. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 2: 356-57 3: 393-400
Stephen a name mentioned only once in Longfellow's narrative poem The Courtship of Miles Standish. (P.W.L., p. 286) 5: 377
Stephen Abelard a character - the last master of "ABHLARD", and the last male member of the family - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard". a 7:1025-26, 1029, 1033-35, 1038, 1040-41, 1043-45
Stephenson, George (1781-1848), English engineer, principal inventor of the railroad locomotive. He also discovered the principle on which Davy's safety lamp was based. (Enc. Br.; Pears) 15:251
Stevenson, Robert Louis (1850-94), British essayist, literary critic, poet, and author of travel books, best known for his romantic adventure stories. (Enc. Br.) 3: 184 22: 343
Sthenelus in Greek legend, a friend of DIOMEDES. He went with him as a leader of the Argive contingent to fight in the Trojan War. (M.I.) 5:470, 480
Sthurayupa a Vedic Rishi. 1: 334
Stoic(s) philosopher(s) of the school founded at Athens c. 308 BC by Zeno making virtue the highest good, concentrating attention on ethics, and inculcating control of the passions and indifference to pleasure
and pain.(C.O.D.) Der: Stoical; Stoicism 4:109-10.298 5:58 13:181, 186-89, 197-98' 14:57, 99, 147 15:91 16:354, 362, 366, 368-70 19:879 20:20 29:452 V: 63, 75 XIV: 145, 163
The Stolen Child a poem by Yeats. (A) 9: 535
Stone Age the name for that stage in man's development when all of his tools, implements, and weapons were made of stone, bone, antler, ivory, and wood. It does not have chronological significance since all peoples in all parts of the world did not pass through it at the same time. Sir John Lub- bock in his book Pre-historic Times (1865), described the three divisions of prehistory as the Iron, Bronze, and Stone ages. The Stone Age was much longer than the other two combined, so he further divided it into two main periods, the Paleolithic or "Old Stone" age and the Neolithic or "New Stone" age. Lubbock's classification has found wide acceptance. (Enc. Am.) 15: 173
Stone oflshtar title of a poem by Sri Aurobindo which has been lost. Its completion was noted in a script in the Record of Yoga (1912-13). [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
The Story of Philosophy a book by William James Durant, published in 1926, giving the lives and opinions of the world's greatest philosophers from Plato to John Dewey. It was an immediate best seller. The book has been translated into many languages. (Col. Enc.) 9: 485
Story of Truth title of a book published by Collins. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Strasburg (German, Strassburg; English, Strasbourg) a city and capital of Bas-Rhin departement, eastern France, four kilometres west of the Rhine on the Franco-German frontier. In the Franco-German War (1870-71) the Germans captured Strasbourg after a fifty- day siege and annexed it. The city reverted to France after World War I. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Streadhew a village mentioned in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard". (A) 7: 1025
Strymon ancient Greek name for the modern Struma, a river rising in Bulgaria and emptying into the north Aegean; it formerly divided Macedonia and Thrace. (Col.Enc.;M.N.) 5:405, 419
Page 306
Stuart(s) originally "Stewart", the surname of a Scottish family, the senior branch of which inherited the Scottish crown in 1371 and the English crown in 1603. The English sovereigns James I, Charles I and II, James II, Mary, and Anne were of this family. (Enc.Br.;C.O.D.) 3:225, 264 15:357, 428 16: 323 X: 147
Sturge (Maynard) a character in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Phantom Hour". 7: 1013, 1015-24
Stuttgart a city astride the Neckar River, capital of Baden-Wiirttemburg state in southwestern West Germany. Until 1945 it was the capital of all Wiirttemburg. (Enc. Br.;Col. Enc.) 1: 521
Subala in the Mahabharata, a king of Gandhara. He had a son named Sakuni (or Saubala), and a daughter named Gandhari, who married Dhritarashtra. (M. N.) IV: 115
Subbarao, Y. Indian author who wrote an interesting article on the question of the originality of Shankara's philosophy in the second number (October 1915) of Sanskrit Research. (A) 17:292
Subhadra in the Mahabharata, wife of Arjuna and mother of Abhimanyu. She was daughter ofVasudeva and sister of Krishna. (Dow.) D 4:68, 75, 77 8:77-78
Subodh Chandra, Raja See Mulli(c)k, Subodh (Chandra)
Subramaniya, S(h)iva (1884-1925), a great nationalist and patriot belonging to the Tilak school of politics. He was a worthy and fear- less leader of the people, especially the lab- our class. He was prosecuted in connection with the riots in Tinnevelly and Tuticorin in February-March 1908, and convicted. The sentence finally awarded by the High Court was six years' imprisonment. (D.N.B.; A; P.T.I.) 1: 727, 745, 752, 793
Sucutta (Sukuta), in the Mahabharata, name of a region or country, and of the people in- habiting it. (M.N.) 8:41
Sudaman a character in a fragmentary play by Sri Aurobindo. 27: 139-40
Sudarshan (Chakra) name of the Chakra (Discus) of Sri Krishna, a weapon given to him by the god Agni (or, according to some scholars, by Parashurama). (Dow.; A) 8: 343, 398 23: 983
Sudas a king whose name frequently occurs in the Rig-veda. The rival Rishis Vasishtha and Vishwamitra were members of his court. He was famous for his sacrifices. (Dow.)4: 24, 26, 29 VIII: 150
Suddhi Samaj a religious body having for its object the readmission of converts from Hinduism into the fold of the religion and also perhaps, the admission of converts to Hinduism from other religions. (A) 2: 226
Sudhanwan in the Vedas, the ancestor of the Ribhus when they are considered as powers of Light who have descended into Matter. (The name occurs in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, where Sudhanwan is mentioned as a descendant of Angiras.) (A; V. Index) 10: 326
Sudharam Thana name perhaps of a sub-division of the district of Noakhali in East Bengal (now in Bangladesh). (A) 1: 357
Sudharma in Hindu mythology, name of Indra's council hall, "the unrivalled gem of princely courts". (A; Dow.) n 8:33
Sudhir someone known to Sri Aurobindo (and also perhaps to Motilal Roy of Chan- dernagore) from whom Sri Aurobindo received a letter at Pondicherry in 1913. 27: 439
Sudhiranjan full and correct name:
Samvad-Sadhuranjan, a short-lived Bengali paper of Calcutta, published by Iswara Chandra Gupta in 1847. (D.N.B.) 3:90
Suditi a VedicRishi, descendant of Angiras. 11: 357
Sudra See S(h)udra
Suffragette(s) member(s) of the Women's Suffrage Movement in England, who in the early part of this century agitated to obtain the parliamentary vote. The movement ended in 1918 when women of thirty were given the franchise. (Pears, p. Llll) 2: 173 XXI: 100
Sufi(sm) Islamic mysticism is called Sufism in Western languages. It consists of a variety of mystical paths that are designed to ascertain the nature of man and of God and to facilitate the experience of divine love and wisdom in the world. The movement of Sufism, which emerged in the late 10th and early llth century, being more philosophical was more tolerant than orthodox Islam. The followers of Sufism were called Sufis, and they included the greatest of the Persian poets. (Enc.Br.;Col.Enc.;D.I.H.) 2:13-7:678, 683 9:114 14:17, 264, 270 17: 306-07 19: 721 22: 158 23: 510 24: 1660 I: 31 XVI: 180
Page 307
Sughosha in the Mahabharata, name of the conch-shell ofNakula, one of the Pandavas. (M.N.) 4: 77 8: 77
Sugriva in the Ramayana, a monkey-king, dethroned by his brother Ball, but reinstalled as king at Kiskindha by RAMA' after he slew Ball. Later, Sugriva, with his army of mon- keys, fought as an ally of Rama in his war against Ravana. (Dow.) Var: Sugrive 2: 80 22: 416
Sugrive (Sugriva), in the Mahabharata, name of one of the two horses of Krishna's chariot. (M.N.) 8:29
Suhrawardy, Doctor a Muslim leader of Calcutta who expressed his dissatisfaction with the Morley-Minto Reforms of 1909. (A) 4: 218
Suka See Shuka(deva)
Sukesha the Bharadwaja (Sukesa Bhara- dvaja), a Rishi mentioned in the Prashna Upanishad as a descendant of Bharadvaja. 12:295, 311
Sukra See Shukra
Sukra-Niti an ancient work in Sanskrit on niti (political and administrative organiza- tion) by the sage Sukracharya (see Shukra). 14: 70
Sukumar Sukumar Mitra, son of Krishna Kumar Mitra, who took a leading part in arranging Sri Aurobindo's departure for Pondicherry in 1910. (Purani) n 27:455 XVI: 194
Sukumari a character - daughter of Mohendra Singh and Kalyani - in Bankim Chandra's novel Ananda Math. (A) 8: 320, 350
Sullan of (or enacted by) Lucius Cornelius Sulla (Felix) (138-78 BC), Roman general and dictator who carried out notable constitu- tional reforms in an attempt to strengthen the Roman Republic during the last century of its existence. (Enc. Br.) 16:323
Sullivan, Sir Arthur (Seymour) (1842-1900), Irish composer who, with William Schwenk Gilbert, established the distinctive English form of the operetta. Gilbert's satire and verbal ingenuity were matched so well by Sullivan's unfailing melodiousness, re- sourceful musicianship, and sense of parody, that the works of this unique partnership won lasting international acclaim. (Enc. Br.; Pears) 1:415
Sumalus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, one of Penthesilea's captains. (M.I.) 5: 455, 516-17
Sumbha an Asura, brother of Nisumbha. As related in the Markandeya Purana, the two were votaries of Shiva, and performed severe austerities for thousands of years, at the end of which Shiva blessed them. In their exal- tation they warred against the gods. The gods appealed to Durga, who slew the two Asuras. (Dow.) 17: 143
Sumitra Vadhryashwa (Sumitra Vadhryasva), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Vadhryasva. (V. Index) II: 407-08
Summons one of the speakers at the annual meeting of the European and Anglo-Indian Defence Association held at Calcutta in April 1908. (A) 1:829
Sun 1. the star that the earth revolves around and receives warmth and light from. 2. the Sun-god or Surya of Hindu religion. In the Vedas the name Surya is generally distinguished from Savitri, and denotes the most concrete of the solar gods, whose connection with the physical sun is always present to the poet's mind. He is regarded as one of the original Vedic triad, his place being in the sky, while that of Agni is on the earth, and that of Indra is in the atmosphere. In later mythology the Sun is identified with Savitri as one of the twelve Adityas or em- blems of the Sun in the twelve months of the year, and his seven-horse chariot is said to be driven by Aruna or the Dawn. 3. the god of revelatory knowledge; the Lord of illumination. (C.O.D.;M.W.;V.G.) Der: Solar; Solarisation (all myths start from the sun - 27: 163) D [Note: Only the capi- talized word "Sun" and the word "Surya" are indexed below.] 3: 11, 18, 151, 268-70 4: 7, 14, 22-24, 31, 43-45, 223, 239, 306, 333, 360, 373-74 5: 9, 103, 106, 117, 138, 233, 298 6: 15 7: 756, 913, 928, 969, 973, 981, 1048 8: 131, 155, 175, 199, 386, 389, 391-93, 402 9:209 10:4-5, 19-20, 23, 25, 53, 56, 68, 78, 80, 88, 90-91, 99, 104, 106, 108, 118-20, 122, 124, 127, 132-33, 138-47, 149-52, 154, 156, 158-60, 162, 166-67, 170, 172, 177, 181, 184-86, 188, 197, 204-05, 207, 209, 213, 215, 217, 219-20, 225, 228, 230, 232-36, 238, 250, 255, 271-72, 274-78, 283, 289-91, 293, 298, 300, 315-17, 319-20, 322, 328, 348, 353, 361, 364, 374, 402, 405, 416, 421-36, 438-40, 448, 450, 455, 460, 465-66, 469-71, 524, 526, 529-31, 533, 535-36, 539, 554 11: 2-3, 9, 11, 14-15, 17, 22, 27-28, 31-34, 52-53, 57, 61, 64, 86, 98, 120, 136, 162, 165, 172, 181, 184, 190, 193-94, 226, 243, 254-55, 261, 292, 295, 302, 313, 337, 341, 350, 371-72, 376, 389-91, 393, 442, 445-47, 455, 457, 466-68, 478, 483, 485, 490, 492, 494, 497-98 12: 45-46, 64, 67, 72-73, 118, 120-28, 130, 133, 140, 160, 238, 260, 262, 273, 275-76, 296-97, 300, 303, 318, 321-23, 334-35, 343, 356-57, 367, 371, 374, 379, 462, 467, 470, 475-76, 491 13: 137-38, 192, 292 14: 144, 266, 275-77, 279 15:4 16:337-38 17:27, 48, 76, 85, 113, 257, 259-62, 278 18: 271, 277, 392, 483 19: 666, 726, 919 20: 462, 465, 467 21: 544, 640 22: 22, 102-03 23: 785, 948, 954-55, 957-58, 967, 1077 25:116 26:215, 265 27:151, 163, 191, 207, 262, 326-27, 333, 484, 511 28: 23, 191, 236, 256, 278, 299, 301-02, 311, 314 29: 355, 360, 401, 407, 450, 452, 525, 536, 602, 610, 622, 626-27, 681 I: 17-18 II: 39-40, 45, 53, 57, 79 III: 35-37 IV: 117, 136, 154 V: 12, 21, 23, 32, 60, 69, 72 VI: 182 VII: 39 VIII: 147-48, 160, 167-68 X: 151-52, 179, 184 XIII: 59, 62 XIV: 110-11, 120, 125-26, 130, 132, 138 XV: 5-6, 19-20, 55 XVI: 137-38, 143 XVII: 15-16, 33, 44-47, 58-59, 61, 63 XVIII: 156, 167, 170, 172, 177, 181 XIX: 21, 68 XX: 153, 155 XXI: 17
Page 308
Sun, the a character in Sri Aurobindo's (incomplete) drama The Birth of Sin. This character does not appear in the revised version, published in SABCL, Vol. 5 - Collected Poems. (A) 7:901, 903-04
Sunahshepa See Shunahshepa (Ajigarti)
The Sunday Times English weekly of Madras, founded in 1928. The founder, or one of the founders, was M. S. Kamath, who later became the paper's editor. From 1941, however, and till at least 1948, the paper was edited by P. A. Prabhu, and printed and published at the "Sunday Times" Press. (A) 26: 60
Sunderban vast tract of forest and swamp forming the lower part of the Ganga Delta, extending about a hundred miles along the Bay of Bengal in Bangladesh and West Bengal. The tract runs inland for sixty to . eighty miles. (Enc. Br.) a 3:83-84
Sundown title of a poem by ARJAVA. 9: 413
Sunga(s) a dynasty of Indian rulers, founded in c. 185 BC by PUSHYAMITRA. It ruled for 112 years. (Enc. Br.) 14:351, 373
Sungram a character - companion of Bappa; a young Rajpoot refugee - in Sri Aurobindo's play the Prince of Edur. 7: 739, 756-59, 764-69, 777, 797-99, 801, 804
Sunjar a character - a chamberlain of the palace of Bassora - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora. 7: 561, 563-65, 568, 666-69, 671, 733-34
Sunjoy (1) For this name occurring in Volume 8 (except on p. 77) see Sanjaya'. (2) For the name occurring elsewhere see Sanjay(a)2.
Sun-world; Suryaloka 1. a region or space supposed to exist around the sun, consti- tuting a heaven of which the sun is regent. 2. the world of the Sun (symbol of vijhdna). (M.W.; A & R, XIX: 95) XVI: 130 XIX: 32
Sun Yat Sen Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925), leader of the Chinese Kuomintang (Nationalist Party), known as the father of modern China. Influential in overthrowing the Manchu dynasty (1911), he served as the first provisional president of the Republic of China for four months in 1911-12. (Enc. Br.) 15: 356
Supaures in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, father of Valarus (a captain of Penthesilea). (M.I.) 5:518
Suprabhat a Bengali illustrated literary monthly periodical and review of Calcutta, started in July 1907. From 1909 to 1914 it was edited by Kumudini Mitra, daughter of Sri Aurobindo's uncle K. K. Mitra. (Cal. Lib.; P.T.I.) 3:430 4: pre.
Surabdas in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, one of Penthesilea's captains. (M.I.) 5:455, 516-17
Suradasa (1483-1563 or 1478-1583), saint- poet, generally considered the foremost among the devotees of Krishna. He was the most notable of the eight disciples of Vallabha- charya and his son who are grouped under the name "Astachapa". He composed, according to tradition, about a hundred thousand padas (verses in Hindi that can be set to classical music), of which only about four or five thousand are found in the various manuscripts and editions of the collection known as Surasagara. (Enc. Br.; Sur.) Var: Surdas 3: 214 14: 319
Surasegn (Surasena), in the Mahabharata, father of Vasudeva and Kunti, and grand- father of Krishna. (M.N.-l) 27: 139
Surat administrative headquarters of Surat district in the state of Gujarat (formerly in Bombay Presidency). It is a port on the Gulf of Cambay. The broken-up Congress session of 1907 was held at Surat. Surat personified appears as a character in "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy published in Bande Mataram in February 1908. (Enc.Br.;A) 1: 246, 248, 592-93, 609, 638-39, 644, 646-47, 649, 651, 680-81, 683-84, 687-88, 690, 693-94, 746-48, 754, 782, 789, 822-25, 831, 850, 870, 877-78, 890, 902 2: 76, 127, 129, 131, 176, 178, 194-95, 220-21, 306, 320, 325 4: 182-83, 189, 191, 199, 203, 226, 228, 233, 268, 323 17:352, 355 26: 20, 32, 35, 46-47, 49, 51, 58 27: 63, 67 I: 1 VIII: 121-23, 126, 129 XIV: 103, 106 XVI: 194 XVII: 68
Page 309
Surath Raja in the Markandeya Purana, an ancient king of the Lunar race. He popularised the worship of the goddess Durga. (P.A.) Var: Suratha 1:854 VI: 184
Surat Moderate a character in "The Slaying of Congress'', a tragedy published in Bande Mataram in February 1908. 1: 686-87, 692, 694
Surdas See Suradasa
Surenas in Sri Aurobindo's llion, one of Penthesilea's captains. (M.I.) 5: 455, 516-17
Suren(dra) a character, representing Surendranath Banerji, in "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy published in Bande Mataram in February 1908. l: 673, 680, 688-95
Surendra(nath) Babu See Banerji, Surendranath
Suresh (Chakravarty) See Chakravarti, Suresh (Chandra)
Surma Valley a rich agricultural zone in East Bengal (presently in Bangladesh). The Sur- ma River, also called the Barak in north- eastern India and eastern Bangladesh, rises in the Manipur Hills of northern Manipur state (India) and meets the Ganga below Dhaka in Bangladesh. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 2: 200 4: 196
Surmishtha in the Mahabharata, daughter of the Asura named Vrsaparva, and second wife of King Yayati; mother of Puru. (Dow.) 27: 158
Surya' See Sun
Surya2 (Surya), in Hindu mythology, daughter of the Sun-god, bride of the Ashwins. (I&G) 10:78, 80, 316 15:4-5 XVII: 46-47
Suryaji brother of Tanaji Malsure. See also "Malsure, Tanaji" 5:282, 293
Suryaloka See Sun-world
Susa ancient city of the Middle East, capital of Susiana (Elam). The site is southwest of Dizful in Iran. (Col. Enc.) 6:380, 427
Sushil Kumar probably Sushil Kumar Sengupta (1892-1915), a revolutionary youth who was involved in
the Alipore Bomb Case. He was sentenced but acquitted on appeal. On his release he resumed his revolutionary activities, and was killed in 1915 in an encounter with the police. (Enc. Ind.)
Apparently the same as Sushil (Chandra) Sen, who, according to The Alipore Bomb Trial (A.B.T.), in 1907 was sentenced by the magistrate Kingsford to 15 stripes for assault- ing S. L. Huey in a fracas with the police. The latter half of the name (which is general- ly of secondary importance in Hindu names) may have been reported or entered incor- rectly as "Chandra" instead of "Kumar". As to the surnames "Sen" and "Sengupta", the former is quite often used for the latter. l: 542
Sushna See Shushna
Susthal m the Mahabharata, name of an ancient region and its people. (M. N.) 8:41
Suta (Suta), also called Loma-harsana after his father, was a celebrated pupil of Vyasa, his fifth disciple and a great favourite. Vyasa taught him the whole of the Mahabharata and the Puranas, of which works he is traditionally regarded as the author. (M.W.;B.P.C.) VI: 136-37
Suvar; svah; Svar See Swar
Svarga(loka) See Swarga(loka)
Swadesh a journal published around 1907; it was a moderate contemporary of Bande Mataram, considered by the Englishman to be "conducted with moderation and ability". (A) l: 267-68
Swadesh Bandhab Samiti a nationalist youngmen's association of Barisal (Bengal) which grew out of the "Little Brothers of the Poor" founded by Aswini Kumar Dutt. The Samiti was declared unlawful in January 1909. (A; P.T.I.) 2:88-91, 96
Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company a shipping concern established at Tuticorin mainly through the efforts of V. 0. Chi dam- baram Pillai for the transport of Swadeshi goods in order to end the monopoly of British steamer services. Soon after, an official campaign was started to crush the company. (A) 1:778, 793, 798, 803-05 2: 137
Swah See Swar
Swahili the chief representative of the Bantu language family, with large Arabic admixtures: the word Swahili itself is derived from an Arabic word meaning "of the coast". Swahili is the lingua franca of much of East Africa, i.e. of Tanzania, Kenya, Zaire, and Uganda. It may have as many as ten million speakers. (Col. Enc.; Pears; Enc. Br.) 26:325
Page 310
Swamibag apparently, an open ground in the city of Dacca where large gatherings were held. (A) 27:40
Swar; Swarloka the luminous world of the Divine Mind, the special realm of Indra; the world of Light; the third (from below) of the seven worlds of the Puranas; one' of the three vydhrtis (see Bhur) of the Vedas. (A; Dow.) Var: Suvar; svah; Svar; Swah 4: 36, 178 10: 42, 68, 84, 104, 127, 133, 138-46, 148-49, 159-62, 166, 169-72, 174, 176-77, 181, 183, 191, 194-95, 197, 201, 204-05, 208-09, 213, 215-17, 219-23, 225, 234, 243, 271, 274-75, 281, 285, 317, 319, 369-70, 393, 395, 401, 404, 416, 422, 433, 443, 460, 472-73, 539-40 11: 14, 17, 23-24, 241, 453, 467, 478 12: 123, 226, 321-22, 393, 404, 515 17: 62 22: 102 II: 38 IV: 134, 142, 150 VII: 68-69 XIII: 57-58 XIV: 110 XV: 25-27, 33, 46 XVI: 140, 142, 145, 154-55, 171 XVII: 20 XIX: 52
Swaraj a fortnightly English journal started in England in February 1909 by B. C. Pal and G. S. Khaparde to organize propaganda from outside India. The first few issues were "harmless and uninteresting", and it was sent out to India. But the conviction in India, a few months later, of the distributing agent G. B. Modak for an article in the issue of 16th June, proved fatal to the magazine. (P.T.I.) 1:267 2:22 -
Swarajya a natioanlist Urdu journal of Allahabad (U.P.). The editor Shanti Narayan was warned in April 1908, and subsequently tried in July and sentenced to three and a half years' imprisonment. Three successive editors were also awarded various sentences, and the paper came to an end in 1910. (A; P.T.I.) D 1:845
Swarga(loka) Paradise; the heavenly world; the heaven of Indra; the abode of inferior Hindu gods and of beatified mortals, supposed to be situated on Mount Meru; psychologically, the condition of bliss in the subtle body. (Dow.; A) Var: Svarga(loka); Swargabhumi; Swerga 4:7-8, 15-16, 22-24, 36, 72, 100, 103, 116, 153, 157, 165, 177, 181, 205, 214, 219, 228, 242, 264-65, 275, 301, 306 5: 198- 201 11: 453 12: 226, 459, 466-68 17: 172 22: 93 26: 136 I: 17 II: 77-78, 80 V: 6-7 VI: 183 XVI: 171 XVII: 58 XX: 131
Swarloka See Swar
Swama Kumari Devi (1855-1932), sister of Rabindranath Tagore; "flower of feminine culture in Bengal" and a social reformer. She was the first woman to write Bengali novels, some of which have been translated intoEnglish. She edited Bharati for quite a long time, and also wrote books for children. (Enc.
Ind.';N.B.A.;S.B.C.) 3:101
Sweden a kingdom in northern Europe, occupying the eastern part of the Scandi- navian Peninsula. Der: Swede 6: 480-81, 488, 504, 542-43 15: 308, 333, 412, 513-14
Swedenborg, Emanuel (1688-1772), scientist, mystic philosopher, and theologian. In the later part of his career, after publishing works on natural philosophy, and human anatomy and physiology, Swedenborg devoted his energies to biblical and mystical writings. Soon after his death Swedenborgian societies appeared; these eventually became the Church of the New Jerusalem. (Enc. Br.) XVI: 141
Swedish national language of Sweden and, with Finnish, one of the two official languages of Finland. Swedish belongs to the East Scandinavian group of North Germanic languages. About eight million people speak the language, of whom seven and a half million live in Sweden. (Enc. Br.) 27: 89
Swegn (Olafson) a character - earl and, later, king of Trondhjem (Norway) - in Sri Aurobindo's drama Eric. n 6:473, 480-81, 483, 485-87, 495-98, 511-12, 515, 517-22, 524, 528-30, 532, 535-58
Swerga See Swarga(loka)
Swetaketu a Rishi, son of Aruni Uddalaka of the Gautama line. Swetaketu realised the Self by learning the true and full import of the Sanskrit declaration "tattvamasi" ("Thou art That") from his father. (M.N.; Balak) 18: 67 19: 683 27: 304 VIII: 180 IX: 19
Swetas(h)watara (Upanishad) an Upanishad which is attached to the Krsna (Black) Yajur-veda. (Up. K.) D 12: 29, (32-33), 195, 367, 381, 423 13:84, 425 18:14, 42, 51, 80, 218, 322, 439, 482, 501 19: 683, 742, 792, 824
Swift, Jonathan (1667-1745), born in Dublin; English poet, wit, critic, churchman, political pamphleteer. His Gulliver's Travels (1726) is the greatest satire in the English language. (Enc. Br.) I: 11
Swinburne, Algernon Charles (1837-1909), English poet and critic, outstanding for prosodic innovations, and noteworthy as the symbol of mid-Victorian poetic revolt. Sri Aurobindo was influenced only by his early lyrical poems. (Enc.Br.;A) Der: Swinbumian a 3: 71 5: 345 9: 74, 132-33, 138, 142, 161, 163, 223, 301, 308, 392-93, 395-96, 410, 413, 420, 510, 522 17:374 26:255, 264-65, 277 27: 93
Page 311
Swinhoe a high Government official posted in Calcutta in September 1909. (A) 2: 226-27
Switra [Svitra], in the Veda, the White Mother; name of a woman whose son is mentioned in the Rig-veda as Svaitreya. 13:18
Switzerland landlocked mountainous (Alpine) country of central Europe. It comprises a confederation of twenty-two cantons (three of which are half-cantons). The federal capital is Bern. (Enc. Br.) 1: 506, 526 2: 261 3: 193, 459 15: 410, 417, 419, 480, 498 V: 92
Syamasundara a name of Sri Krishna. D [Indexed with Krishna]
Sybil (erroneous spelling for "sibyl"), in Greek legend and literature, one of the women who in ancient times acted at various places (Cumaean, Erythraean, etc.) as the mouthpiece of some god, and to whom many collections of oracles and prophecies were attributed. A famous collection of sibylline prophecies, the nine Sibylline books, was according to tradition offered for sale to Tarquinius Superbus, the last of the seven kings of Rome, by the Cumaean sibyl. He refused to pay her price, so she burned six of the books before finally selling him the remaining three at the price she had origi- nally asked for nine. The books were there- after kept in the temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline Hill, to be consulted only in emergencies. (C.O.D.;Enc. Br.) 1:418
Sydenham, Lord George Sydenham Clarke (1848-1933), Baron Sydenham of Combe, Governor of Bombay (1907-13). D XXII: 131
Sylhet originally Srihatta, administrative headquarters of Sylhet district in Chittagong division, Bangladesh (but formerly in the Indian province of Assam). Sylhet is the most important town in the Surma Valley. (Enc. Br.) 1: 177, 357 4: 192, 194, 196, 290-91 26:46
Symposium one of Plato's dialogues, in which banquet guests present their ideas on the nature of love. (Enc. Br.) 3: pre. 18:299 XIV:163
Synge, J. M. John Millington Synge (1871-1909), leading figure in the Irish literary renaissance, a poetic dramatist of great power who portrayed the primitive life of the Aran Islands and the western Irish
seaboard with sophisticated craftsmanship. (Enc. Br.) 9: 5
The Synthesis of Yoga a book by Sri Aurobindo that first appeared serially in Arya in seventy-two chapters (together with five introductory chapters). The first eleven chapters, revised and enlarged by Sri Aurobindo, came out (as twelve chapters) in book-form in 1948 as The Synthesis of Yoga (Part I: The Yoga of Divine Works). In 1955, under the imprint of the Sri Aurobindo International University Centre Collection, the complete Synthesis of Yoga was pub- lished as On Yoga I: The Synthesis of Yoga. The SABCL edition is a reproduction, in two volumes (20 and 21), of the (1955) Univer- sity Edition. (I & G) 17: 402 22: 149, 262 23: 575, 726 25: 67, 72, 208 26: 134, 151, 368-70 IV: 192 XVII: 70
Syrax a character - a villager or townsman - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, 6: 3, 115-16
Syria an ancient country (now the Syrian Arab Republic, which seceded from the United Arab Republic in 1961) on the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea at the south- western fringe of the Asian continent, having Damascus as the capital. The Syria of Sri Aurobindo's plays Perseus the Deliverer and Rodogune (in Vol. 6) is a Syria of romance, not of history. (Enc. Br.; Pears; A) Der: Syrian 5:184, 272 6:1, 3, 8, 10, 13, 15, 17, 20-26, 32, 35, 38-39, 44-45, 47, 49-50, 56, 59, 62, 64, 66-67, 70, 79, 95, 97, 99, 100-03, 108-09, 111-15, 119, 126, 129, 132, 134-39, 142-44, 148, 150, 152-56, 158, 164-66, 172-76, 183, 186, 190, 193, 195-96, 198-99, 333, 341, 344, 347, 349-53, 356-57, 359, 362-63, 365, 367-68, 373, 379--81, 385, 387, 389-90, 397-404, 407-09, 412-13, 416, 419-22, 424, 426-27, 430, 432, 438, 441-43, 447, 452, 455, 460, 469 12: 486 15: 506 XVII: 2
Sysiphus See Sisyphus
T
Tacitus, Cornelius (c. 56 - c. 120), Roman orator and public official, probably the greatest historian and one of the greatest prose stylists who wrote in the Latin language. (Enc. Br.) 9:312, 545 1:8
Tagore, Abanindranath (1871-1951), a renowned artist and litterateur who re- established the old Indian system of art and painting in the esteem of the world. He inspired a number of other Indian artists
Page 312
including Nandalal Bose. He was the foun- der of the Indian Society of Oriental Art. Earlier, he had been a colleague ofHavell in the Government School of Art in Calcutta. (D.I.H.;S.F.F.) 2:39, 211 3:428 4:154 14: 227
Tagore, Devendranath (1817-1905), a renowned savant and religious leader of Calcutta, active in the Brahmo Samaj, whom his countrymen lovingly referred to as the Maharshi (the Great Sage). Next to religion, expansion of education was the principal object of his activities. He was the father of Rabindranath Tagore. (D.I.H.) a 3:78
Tagore, Rabindranath (1861-1941), one of the greatest Indian poets of modern times. He was very prolific, writing approximately fifty dramas, one hundred books of verse, forty volumes of fiction, and several books of essays and philosophy. He wrote in Bengali but translated much of his work into English. The English translation of his Gitanjali won him the Nobel Prize for literature in 1913. Rabindranath was most influential in introducing the best of Indian culture to the West and vice versa. He was knighted in 1915. His greatest centribution to human culture was the foundation of the Vishwa Bharati at Shantiniketan in 1901. (D.I.H.; Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 1-1 1: 698, 733, 770 3:80, 101, 270, 430-31 4:pre., 269 9:2, 7, 31, 56, 147-49, 152, 157, 159, 196, 203, 213, 218, 229, 252, 280, 284, 307-08, 322, 354, 397, 401, 434, 453, 461, 478, 495-96, 545 14: 17, 206, 264, 415, 421, 423 15:81 17:302, 319-21 22:152, 495 26: 4, 162, 165, 190, 223, 235, 262, 275-76, 346 29: 800 V: 17 VI: 141-42
Tagore, Rajah Jyotindra Mohan (1831-1908), a cultured zamindar of Bengal, a "scholarly patron of letters", a social reformer, philan- thropist and statesman. Enjoying the trust and patronage of the British ruling class to a considerable degree, he distinguished himself as the foremost member of the Pathuriaghat branch of the Tagore family. (D.N.B.) Var:—Mohun— 3:79, 97
Tagores the famous Tagore family of India, whose members include Devendranath, Rabindranath and Abanindranath. 17: 304
Tai Maharaj Case Tai Maharaj was the widow of Sirdar Baba Maharaj of Poona, who, before his death, appointed Tilak and Khaparde, with others, trustees of his estate.. The trustees quarrelled with the
widow, and out of this arose the famous Tai Maharaj adoption case. Tilak was convicted of perjury in connection with it by a special Magistrate, but the High Court of Bombay acquitted him. (P.T.I.; p. 25) 4:263
Tailanga Swami (1608-1888), a famous bhakta-yogi, worshipper of Shiva and Kali, who is noted for his enormous build and longevity (280 years), but more so for his remarkable yogic powers and the miracles he performed out of compassion, pity, or some compelling necessity. Born Shivaram, he was given the name Ganapati Saraswati when he took sannyasa at the age of seventy-eight. He ultimately came to be .known as Tailanga Swami for he belonged to Telangadesh (now renamed Andhra Pradesh). After long years of hard tapasya and pilgrimage to various shrines including those in Nepal and Tibet, Tailanga Swami spent the last 150 years of his life in Kashi (Varanasi) on the banks of the River Ganga. (B. S.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Taine, Hippolyte (-Adolphe) (1828-93), French thinker, critic, and historian, one of the most esteemed exponents of 19th- century French Positivism, who attempted to apply the scientific method to the study of the humanities. (Enc. Br.) n 9:112 1:15
Taittiriya (Upanishad) an Upanishad belonging to the Krsna (Black) Yajur-veda. (Up. K.) 10:171, 249.457 12:88, 134, 317, 345, 347 14:275 16:133, 261 17:402 18: 6, 25.27, 91, 159, 173, 207, 218, 231, 252, 271, 322, 566, 568, 596 19: 792, 803 20: 384 21: 559 22: 80, 109, 114, 265, 299 26: 114 27:221, 308 V:72, 97 VII: 59 VIII: 180 XV: 33 XVI: 145, 154 XVII: 53 XVIII: 156, 184 XX: 117
Taj Mahal the most renowned monument of Moghul rule in India, a mausoleum built by Emperor Shah Jahan for his beloved queen Mumtaz Mahal, on the bank of the Yamuna in Agra. It is regarded as one of the wonders of the world for its beauty and magnificence. (D.I.H.) 9:381 14:205, 224 17:302 1:25
Takhti-Suleman Takht-e-Suleman, Persian name - translated into English as Seat of Solomon - of a hill-top (or ridge) in Kashmir, overlooking the city of Srinagar. Here there is a small temple of Shankara- charya dedicated to Shiva. Sri Aurobindo had the realisation of the vacant Infinite while walking on this ridge during his visit to Kashmir in 1903. (A) 5:153 26:50
Page 313
Takshashila (the original Sanskrit of Taxila), Taxila University, the school that flourished at Taxila, capital of the Gandhara region of ancient India, situated about twenty miles northwest of the modern Rawalpindi in Pakistan. At this renowned seat of learning more than sixty distinct arts and sciences were taught by master teachers, assisted by the abler pupils, from at least the 7th century BC till about mid-3rd century AD. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) 17: 193
Talavakara a name of Kena Upanishad, which occurs as part of the ninth chapter of the Talavakara Brahmana of the Samaveda. (Up. K.) 12: 393 XVI: 189
Talthybius in Greek legend, the herald of Agamemnon. In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, he serves as Achilles' herald. (M.N.) 5: 392, 396, 399-402, 406, 414, 442, 463-65, 467, 470-71
Talwar (in full, Madan Talvar, meaning "Madan's Sword") title of an international journal named after Madan Lal Dhingra who had been executed in England for the killing of Sir Curzon Wyllie. The first number was headed "Berlin, November 29th, 1909." Afterwards it was ascertained that the journal was printed at Rotterdam. The Talvar openly advocated the use of physical force to end British rule in India. (P.T.I.; Shamji, p. 280) 2:385
Tamburlaine Tamburlaine the Great, two- part romantic tragedy (first performed in 1587, published in 1590) by Christopher Marlowe, based on the career of the Mongol conqueror Timur-i-lang (Tamerlane). (Enc. Br.) 3: 96
Tamerlane (1336-1405), also called Timur-i-lang, a Turkic conqueror of Islamic faith, chiefly remembered for the barbarity of his conquests and the cultural achieve- ments of his dynasty. He invaded India in 1398, advanced up to Delhi and gave the city up to rapine and pillage by his soldiers for several days. He returned home with a very rich booty, leaving anarchy, famine and pestilence behind him. (Enc. Br.) 7: 846 9: 410 27: 51
Tamil language of the Dravidian family; it is one of the four principal languages spoken in South India, the other three being Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada. Tamil is the official language of the modern state of Tamil Nadu, and has a rich and ancient literature. It is spoken by over 30 million people of Tamil Nadu and eastern Sri Lanka. (Pears) Der: Tamilic 8:395 10:35-36, 46, 225, 495, 554, 557-62,
572 11: 463, 506 14: 129, 186, 316-17, 319 17: 371-74 26:66, 290, 373, 390 27:164, 166, 501, 503 II: 38 III: 56 IV: 148, 151, 156 V: 44, 50 VI: 153 XIV: 122 XVII: 52 XXI: 51, 67
Tamluk a town of Midnapore district in Bengal (now in West Bengal state). 4:291
Tangail a town in Dhaka division of Bengal (now in Bangladesh), about fifty miles northwest of the city of Dhaka. (S. Atlas) 1:357
Tangier port and chief city of the province of Tangier in northern Morocco, on a bay of the Strait of Gibraltar, seventeen miles from the southern tip of Spain. (Enc. Br.) 7: 597
Tanjore a town of the former province of Madras; now officially called Thanjavur. It is the administrative headquarters of Thanjavur district in Tamil Nadu, in the Kaveri Delta. (Enc. Br.) 17: 283
Tantalus in Greek legend, a king, son of Zeus and father of Pelops and Niobe. He was admitted to the table and council of the gods, but for his insolent behaviour he was condemned to TARTARUS. One legend says that he divulged divine secrets, another that he served his son's body to the gods. He was punished in HADES by being set thirsty and hungry, in a pool of water which always receded when he tried to drink from it, and under fruit trees whose branches the wind tossed aside when he tried to pick the fruit. (Col.Enc.;O.C.C.L.) 5:436
Tantra 1. a yogic system which is in its nature synthetical and starts from a great central principle of Nature, a great dynamic force of Nature: in the Vedantic methods of yoga (i.e. the trimarga) the lord of the yoga is the purusa, the Conscious-Soul, but in Tantra it is rather prakrti, the Nature-Soul, the Energy, the Will-in-Power executive in the universe; it was by learning and applying the secrets of this Will-in-Power, its method, its tantra, that the Tantrika yogin pursued the aims of his discipline - mastery, perfec- tion, liberation, beatitude; the method of the Tantrika discipline is to raise Nature in man into manifest power of the spirit. 2. the title of a class of Indian religious works, generally of a later date than the Puranas, and repre- senting a later development of religion. Prominence is given in these works to the female energy of the deity, although the worship of the female energy had its origin in an earlier period. A majority of these numerous works are devoted to one of the manifold forms of Devi, the Shakti of Shiva. The worshippers, known as Shaktas, are divided into two classes, Dakshinacharis (right-handed) and
Page 314
Vamacharis (left-handed). Tantra worship prevails chiefly in Bengal and the eastern states of India. (I & G; Dow.) (Note: During the first three or four years of his stay in Pondicherry, Sri Aurobindo, in writing to the revolutionaries about their activities, often used "Tantra", "Tantrik" etc. as code words - 27: 417-77 among the references that follow.) Var: Tuntra Der: Tantric; Tantricism; Tantrik (one who practises Tantra); Tantrism 2:19 3:226, 327 4:46, 129 8:145, 212 9:168, 270 10:3, 6, 89, 501 11:449, 456 12:171, 416 13:7-8, 78, 86, 100, 509 14: 1, 43, 81, 134, 152-53, 155, 157, 163, 263, 281, 286, 294, 296, 308, 311-14, 407, 419 15: 4 16: 32, 34, 120, 269, 336 17: 28, 237, 267-70, 273 18: 84, 259 19: 837, 876 20: 30, 37-38, 382, 428, 516 21: 547, 585-87, 668 22: 3, 5, 26, 39, 72-75, 83, 85, 97-100, 109, 116, 128, 196, 250, 374, 483-84 23: 507, 992 24: 1147-48, 1150, 1180, 1257, 1515, 1539 25: 65-66, 73, 140 26: 106, 108-09, 113, 119, 133 27: 299, 308, 313, (417, 429-30, 433, 435, 438-39, 441-43, 453-54, 457-60, 462-63, 468-69, 472-73, 476-77) 11:68 V: 69 VII: 9, 22 X: 125 XI: 56 XIV: 118, 155 XV: 21, 24 XVI: 134-35 XVII: 9-10, 27, 51 XVIII: 152 XIX: 57, 69-70, 76, 78, 80 XXI: 29
Tantrasara a treatise on Tantra written by Maheshvaracharya Abhinav Gupta (fl. 10th cent.), an all-round scholar of Tantra, philosophy, grammar, and even dance. (H.V.K.) 17:273
Tanyth the terrible Mother like Kali2 of the Hindus; the goddess of war. (A) 3: 477-79
Tao (Chinese: "road" or "way"), a fundamental concept in ancient and still flourishing Chinese philosophies that signifies "the correct way" or "Heaven's way". Tao is the One, the Beginning and the End, - he contains all things and to him all things return. Tao is both Being and Non-Being. (Enc. Br.; M.I..Jan., '79) 9:238 13: 528 17: 24 22: 62, 64, 119, 235 XI: 16-17
Taoist follower of Taoism, one of the major religio-philosophical traditions that have shaped Chinese life for more than 2, 000 years. Characterized by a positive, active attitude toward the occult and the meta-physical (ultimately real), Taoism in- cludes the ideas and attitudes peculiar to Lao-tzu, the 6th-century BC founder of the religion, as well as of his later commentators Chuangtzu and Lieh-tzu, all of whom influ- enced the ritual worship of the Tao (the Way). (Enc.Br.) 13: 527-28 22: 118-19 26: 483
Tapas; Tapoloka world of infinite Will or conscious force; the second of the three supreme worlds of the Hindu cosmology in the Puranic formula. (A; Dow.) a 4:29 10:42, 171, 197 11:23 12:122, 515 17:29, 62 22: 252 XV: 26. 33, 46 XVI: 144-45, 155
Tapoloka See Tapas
Tapti a river of central India. It rises in the Garwilghar Hills of the central Deccan Plateau and falls into the Gulf of Cambay (an inlet of the Arabian Sea). (Enc. Br.) 1: 686
Tara in Hindu mythology, wife of Brihas- pati. According to the Puranas, Soma, the Moon, carried her off; this led to a war between the gods and the Asuras. Soma was aided by Usanas, Rudra, and all the Daityas and Danavas, while Indra and the gods sided with Brihaspati. Brahma intervened and restored Tara to her husband. She was delivered of a son, and declared Soma to be his father. The child was named Budha. (Dow.) 17:259, 269 XIII: 53
Tarak in Hindu mythology, an Asura (or Titan) whose austerities gave him the strength to challenge the gods, and for whose destruction Skanda, the god of war, was miraculously born. (Dow.) a 8:126, 131
Tardival Mayor of Chandernagore around 1908. (A) 4:291
Tarpur a small town in Orissa state, west of Bhubaneswar and near about Narsinghpur andTigiria. (S.Atlas) 1: 502 4:195
Tarquin name of two of the seven kings who, according to tradition, ruled Rome before the founding of the Republic (c. 509 BC). Although some authorities believe that the Tarquins were legendary (standing for a dynasty of ancient Etruscan kings of Rome), most scholars accept two of them as his- torical figures: Tarquinius Priscus and Lucius Tarquinius Superbus. Sri Aurobindo in his early political writings refers to the latter, "Tarquin the Proud". His reign is traditionally dated from 534 to 510. Under his despotic rule all democratic legislation was repealed and many senators were put to death.
Page 315
A popular uprising led to his expulsion from Rome. (Enc. Br.) 1:325, 418 2:122
Tarsus in ancient geography, the capital of Cilicia, Asia Minor, situated on the Cydnus River. It was the birthplace of the apostle Paul. The modern name of the town is Tersoos and it lies in the Turkish province of Adana. (N.C.C.H.; Enc. Am.) 23:609
(Tartars) or Tatars, collective name applied to the peoples (Turks, Cossacks, etc.) that overran parts of Asia and Europe under Mongol leadership in the 13th century. The original Tartars probably came from east central Asia or central Siberia. (Col. Enc.) 3:475 5:272 15:512
Tartarus in Greek legend, deep and sunless abyss below Hades where the Titans were confined; or the place of punishment in Hades. Sometimes it is synonymous with Hades. In Homer's lliad the word Tartarus had been reserved for the very lowest region of the Underworld. (Col. Enc.; M. I.; Pears) Der: Tartarean 3: 487 5: 258, 445 6: 99 9: 221
Tashi Lama or Panchen Lama, a Tibetan Buddhist prelate of highest rank, second only to the Dalai Lama. The Tibetans address him as Panchen Rin-po-che (Precious Great Pundit). His official residence is Tashi Lhunpo monastery near Shigatse, from which comes the title Tashi Lama, used by Western writers. (Enc. Am.) 1-1 1: 156
Tasso, Torquato (1544-95), Italian epic poet, author of Jerusalem Delivered (1581). He was the greatest poet of the late Renais- sance, having gained this reputation im- mediately on the publication of his great work. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 3: 101 9: 42 X: 113
Tata, J. N. Jamsetji Nasarwanji Tata (1839-1904), Indian industrialist and philanthropist who founded ironworks and steelworks, cotton mills, and hydroelectric power plants crucial to India's industrial development. His plants became the largest single industrial aggregate in India. (Enc. Br.) 1: 555 4: 208
Tatter a tri-weekly English periodical composed of short essays, published and chiefly written by Sir Richard Steele with contributions by Joseph Addison. Two hundred and seventy-one issues appeared in all from 1709 to 1711. Deviating from its avowed intention, it began to investigate manners and society, establishing principles of ideal behaviour and its standard of good taste. (Web.; Enc. Br.) 1:13
Tauron in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, one of Penthesilea's captains. (A) 5: 455, 517
Taurus or the Bull, constellation of the zodiac lying between Aries and Gemini. In astrology, Taurus is the second sign of the zodiac. (Enc.Br.) XVII: 46-47
Taygetus the highest mountain range in the Peloponnesus, southern Greece. (Col. Enc.) 5:500
Tchataldja See Chataldja
Te Deum an old Christian hymn beginning "Te Deum laudamus" (We praise thee, 0 God), sung at morning service, or on special occasions as thanksgiving. "To sing Te Deum" means "to exult". (Web.; C.O.D.) 22: 119 28: 228
Teheran or Tehran, the capital of Iran, and of Tehran ostan (province), on the southern slopes of the Elburz Mountains, sixty-two miles from the Caspian Sea. (Enc. Br.) 2:117
Telang, Kashinath (1850-93), a man of universal talent and large abilities who did not attain to the full status of his genius. Even before he was forty, he was appointed judge of Bombay High Court - the highest appointment conferred upon an Indian in those days. At the time of his death, he filled another post of great honour, that of the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Bombay. He had been a member of the Education Commission of 1882. (A; D.N.B.;S.F.F.) 3:82, 89 1:29
Telugu a language of the Dravidian family, one of the four principal languages of South India, and the official language of the state of Andhra Pradesh; it is spoken by some thirty-five million people. (Pears.) 10:559
Tempe ValeofTempe, narrow valley between the southern Olympus and northern Ossa Massifs of northeast Thessaly, Greece. It was sacred to Apollo and its beauty was celebrated by many ancient poets including Virgil. (Enc.Br.; Col. Enc.) 5:20
Temps Le Temps, daily evening newspaper founded in 1861 by A. Nefftzer at Paris. Later on the paper was shifted to Lyons. It played an essential role in the political life of the Third Republic of France. It was liberal in viewpoint. Le Temps stopped publication on 30 November 1942 when during World War II Lyons was occupied by the Germans. (Larousse) 27:450
Tenedos a small island off northwestern Asia Minor, in the Aegean Sea. The modern name is Bozca or
Page 316
Bozcaada. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5: 393
Teneriffe also spelled Tenerife; an island in the Atlantic Ocean opposite the northwest coast of Africa. It is the largest of the Canary Islands, and forms part of the Santa Cruz de Tenerife province. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Tennyson, Lord Alfred (1809-92), English poet, generally regarded as the chief repre- sentative of the Victorian Age in poetry. His technique is flawless, sometimes boldly ex- perimental, his descriptive powers unique. He was appointed poet laureate in 1850. Strangely ignored early in the 20th century, Tennyson was later again recognised as a great poet. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Tennysonian 1: 422, 456 3: 19-20, 49, 51, 101, 147, 235 5:343, 345, 347 9:.2, 62, 74, 133, 135-39, 142, 173, 185, 304, 377, 456, 478, 542 14:386 17:166, 236 26:238, 255, 263, 320, 322 27: 81.86, 93 29: 754, 785 VI: 198
Ten Thousand The reference is to the famous story of the retreat of the Ten Thousand, a Greek mercenary band collected by Clearchus after the battle of Cunaxa. The Ten Thousand marched some 1, 300 miles from Sardis to Cunaxa and more than 900 from there to Trapezus. This retreat through the most rugged country, in the coldest weather, by a band of men who had practically no supplies and were much harassed by the Persians, is a striking testimony to the Greek morale. (Col. Enc.) V: 63
Teresa, Saint St. Teresa (or Theresa) of Jesus, usually known as St. Teresa ofAvila, (1515-82), a Spanish nun originally named Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada, who became one of the greatest mystics and religious organizers of the Roman Catholic Church. She was the author of several highly influ- ential spiritual classics, and the originator of the Carmelite Reform that restored and emphasized the austerity and contemplative character of primitive Carmelite life. (Enc. Br.;Enc. W.B.) 3:464 26:137
Terpander (fl. c. 647 Be), Greek poet and musician of Lesbos (an island in the Aegean Sea), the earliest definite figure to appear in the history of Greek music. He was proverbi- ally famous as a singer to the accompani- ment of the "Kithara", a seven-stringed instrument resembling a lyre, which he was said to have invented. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) -3: 95
Terror, The See (Reign of) Terror, The
Tertullian Ouintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus (c. 160-220), important early Christian (Carthaginian) theologian, polemicist, moralist, and initiator of Latin theological words and phrases that were significant in the West for the next 1, 000 years. He emerged as a leader of the African Church, primarily as a teacher. He founded his own sect which lasted until the 5th century in Africa. Tertullian wrote in a noteworthy manner on eschatological themes, discussing the resurrection of the dead and depicting the other world, a depiction influenced by Judeo-Christian apocalyptic images. His vision of the Millennium forms part of his eschatological discussion. (Enc. Br.; Pears) 12:486
Teucer' in Greek legend, eponymous king of the Trojans, who are also called the Teucri. Teucer was the son of Scamander of Crete by the nymph Idaea, and father'in-law of Dardanus. (Col. Enc.; Pears) Der: Teucrian 5:415, 418, 420, 422, 427, 438, 454, 457, 461
Teucer2 in Greek legend, son of Telamon by Hesione, daughter of the Trojan king Laomedon(hence his name meaning "the Trojan"), and therefore half-brother to Ajax the Greater, to whom he was a faithful comrade. (M.I.) 5:480
Teuton member of the Germanic peoples (including, in its widest sense, Scandinavians and Anglo-Saxons as well as the German races). "Teutonic", as a noun, means-the languages of the Teutons collectively; they include High and Low German and Scandinavian. See also Nordic. (C.O.D.) Der: Teutonic; Teutonised 1: 23 2: 32, 410 3: 67, 144, 180, 188, 305, 481 9: 42, 47. 49-50, 86, 96, 239, 396 10: 24 12: 397 13: 53 14: 7, 20, 375, 377, 397 15: 34, 41, 43, 45, 69, 86, 92, 147, 282, 290, 293, 296-97, 305, 320, 378, 410-11, 417, 502-03, 521 16: 225, 356 17: 196 27: 466 VI: 191 XIV: 145 XVI: 181
Texas a state of south-central U.S.A. It was annexed from the Mexicans and admitted to the Union in 1845. It is the second largest state after Alaska, and its capital is Austin. (Enc.Br.) 15:508
Thackeray, William Makepeace (1811-63), English Victorian novelist whose work, during his lifetime and for long afterward, was considered equal or superior to that of his fellow-novelist Charles Dickens. (Enc. Br.) 3:93
Thaliard name of an imaginary person used by Sri Aurobindo in a poem. 5:173, 175, 177-80, 182
Page 317
Thames the principal river of England. It rises in the Cots wolds and winds 210 miles eastward through London to the North Sea. (Enc. Br.) 4: 25
Thamyris in Greek mythology, a Thracian poet who loved the beautiful youth Hyacin- thus. Thamyris' attentions, however, were rivalled by those of the god Apollo, who jealously reported to the Muses the boast by Thamyris that he could surpass them in song. Upon hearing the claim, the Muses immedi- ately blinded Thamyris and robbed him of his voice and his talent. (Enc. Br.) 26:245 29:791, 807
Thea a Greek word meaning "goddess", used by Sri Aurobindo for the name of a river, 5: 34
Thebes major city and power of ancient Greece, in eastern Boeotia northwest of Athens. It was the seat of the legendary king Oedipus and the locale of many of the ancient Greek tragedies. See also Cadmeian Thebes. (Col. Enc.) Der: Theban 1:178 5:14, 422, 469, 479-80, 484, 486, 508, 608 6:350, 361, 366, 380, 462
Themis in Greek mythology, a Titaness who came to personify law and justice. The name probably meant "the fixed or firm one". (M.I.) 0 5:495, 510-11 16:125, 162 XV: 15
Themistoclean relating to Themistocles (c. 524 - c. 460 BC), Athenian politician and naval strategist, creator of Athenian sea-power, and the chief savi our of Greece from subjection to the Persian Empire in 480 BC. (Enc. Br.) 26: 326
Theocritus (c. 310-250 BC), Alexandrian Greek poet, the creator of pastoral poetry. (Enc. Br.) 1-1 5: 346 9: 379
Theon Max Theon, a European occultist long resident in the town ofTlemcen in Algeria, to whom Mirra Alfassa (the Mother) went On two occasions, probably in 1905 and 1906, to receive instruction and guidance. She had been reading a journal called La Revue Cosmique, published by his disciples in Paris.
Theon may have come to Paris in 1904 and met her there. He was perhaps a Polish or Russian Jew, "who had to leave his country for that reason". His wife Alma, an Irish- woman, was also an adept in occultism.
(Agenda I, p. 219; Mother-1) 24: 1238 25: 372
Theosophical Society a society founded in New York (U.S.A.) by Madame Blavatsky and Col. H. S. Olcott in 1875. (William Quan Judge was also associated.) Later on (in 1886) its headquarters were moved to Adyar, a suburb of Madras, in India. The Society became a great force in Indian life and politics after its great protagonist Mrs. Annie Besant came and settled in India in 1893. Ultimately it had little success as a religious sect in India, but "it has done valuable service in appealing to the imagi- nations of men both in India and Europe" (XIII: 32). The objects of the Society are to form a nucleus of a universal brotherhood of humanity; to give encouragement to the study of comparative religions, philosophies, and sciences; and to carry on investigation of the laws of nature and of man's latent powers. (D.I.H.; A; Col. Enc.) XIII: 25, 29, 32
Theramenes' name taken by someone who broke in from time to time in the automatic writing done by Sri Aurobindo in Calcutta in 1909-10. Historically, Theramenes was a controversial Athenian politician and general who died in 404/403 BC. (A; Enc. Br.) 26:65
Theramenes2 a character - a captain of the Syrian army - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. 6: 333, 340, 410, 428-29, 455
Theras a character - a captain of the Syrian army - in Sri Aurobindo play Rodogune. 6: 333, 408-09, 412, 421-22, 452, 455-56, 459
Theresa name of a "guide" that, according to Ram(a)chandra, appeared in the auto- matic writing done by Sri Aurobindo in Calcutta (1909-10). This was denied by Sri Aurobindo. (A) 26:65
Thermopylae a narrow pass in Greece, nine miles south-southeast of Lamia, between the cliffs of Mt. Oeta and the impassable morass on the shore of the Malic Gulf. During the second Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC by a vast army under Xerxes I, the Spartan king Leonidas, with 300 Spartans and some 000 others (according to another account 00 Thespians), died fighting to defend the •ass. This battle became celebrated in history and literature as an example of heroic resistance against great odds. Sri Aurobindo alludes to it to describe the hopeless plight of Moderatism at the Lahore Convention. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) D 2:330
Page 318
Therops a character - a popular leader of Syria - in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, 6:3, 101, 103, 108-09, 114, 117-18, 120-24, 134-39, 143-45, 147-50, 166-67, 169-73, 175-76, 186-87
Thessalian ofThessaly, the largest ancient division of Greece, north of Boeotia, south of Macedonia and bordering on the Aegean Sea. Ancient Thessaly was almost walled in by mountains, including Pindus and Oeta. (Col.Enc.;M.I.) 5:475, 516
Thetis in Greek legend, a Nereid, mother of Achilles. She was loved by Zeus and Poseidon, but because of a prophecy that her son would be greater than his father, the gods gave her in marriage to a mortal, PELEUS. (Col. Enc.) 5: 474, 489 9: 315 VI: 134
Thiordis in Sri Aurobindo's drama Eric, a dancing-girl of Gothberg who was loved by Olaf, then earl of Trondhjem. She was the mother of Hertha. (A) 6:515, 526, 532
This Errant Life a poem by K. D. Sethna, composed in 1930. a 26:271
Thoas a character - a captain of the Syrian army - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. 6:333, 349-51, 357-58, 394, 396-97, 399-400, 402-03, 405, 410, 413, 426, 429-30, 435-36, 442, 452, 455, 461-62, 464-65, 468
Thompson, Francis (1859-1907), English poet of the Aesthetic movement of the 1890s, and author of the famous poem The Hound of Heaven. A Catholic with a deep religious sense, he expressed his mysticism in brilliant imagery and sonorous language which more than compensated for his lack of originality in thought. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 9:2, 482, 538 26:255, 258-61 29: 797, 799
Thomson, James (1700-48), British poet whose best verse foreshadowed some of the attitudes of the Romantic movement. He wrote a few plays also. His most important work is the poem Seasons (see Seasons2). (Enc. Br.) Der: Thomsonian 3: 252-53 9: 92 I: 12 II: 11-12, 14-16
Thor in Germanic religion, Norse god of thunder, hence of might and war. He was the eldest and strongest of the sons of Odin. His chariot wheels made the thunder. Armed with his magical hammer which returned when thrown, with his belt of strength, and with his iron gloves he was an implacable foe to the harmful race of giants but benevolent toward mankind. Thor's cult was the chief religious interest of the Norse. (Col. Enc.) 5: 112 6: 477, 484, 511, 521, 535, 555 7: 885-87 10; 183 17; 257
Thorbum, John M. -a writer who contributed an article on "Art and History" to the sec- ond number of Shama'a, reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in A rya. (A) 17:316
Thorn German name of the Polish Torun, a city in northwest Poland, on the Vistula River. (Col. Enc.) 27: 466
Thomhill the Officiating Chief Presidency Magistrate at whose court Sri Aurobindo made his statement in connection with the search of his residence. (A;A&R, X: 195) 4: 263-64
Thoughts and Aphorisms a book published in 1958 from unrevised manuscripts of Sri Aurobindo. A revised edition of the book came out in 1977; this included seven more aphorisms. These writings belong to the early part of Sri Aurobindo's stay in Pondicherry; some of them were published in Arya in 1915 and 1916. (Publishers' Note in 1977 edition) a I: 59
Thought the Paraclete a poem in a new metre by Sri Aurobindo, written on 31 December 1934. (A) 5:587 24:1155 26:252, 258, 274-75 29: 797
Thousand and One Nights The Thousand and One Nights, title of the original transla- tion of The Arabian Nights Entertainment by Antoine Galland, a French Oriental scholar. It is this book which made the fascinating stories known in Europe. (See also Arabian Nights) (Pears) 1:7
Thrace ancient country east of Macedonia, bordering on the Aegean and the Black Sea and extending north to the Danube. In the Trojan War, the Thracians, under their prince RHESUS were allies of Troy. (Enc. Br.;M.I.) Der: Thracian 5:393, 405, 416, 435 15: 287, 367 XV: 20
Thrasyllus in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune, name of a person who seems to be a supporter of Timocles. 6:411-12
Thrasymachus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a young Trojan warrior bidden by Deiphobus to waken Aeneas when Talthybius arrives. He is the son of Aretes. (M.I.) 5: 384, 397-99, 461
Thretaon in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Phthian warrior killed in battle by Valarus. (M.I.) 5: 518-19 VI: 135
Page 319
Thucydides a historian of Athens who flourished in the second half of the 5th century BC, and is considered the greatest of Greek historians. He wrote the History of the Peloponnesian War, the 5th-century BC struggle between Athens and Sparta. (Enc. Br.) 3: 97
Thule a Greek and Roman name for the most northerly land in the world, which Pytheas heard of and perhaps reached c. 300 BC; probably Norway or Iceland. See also Ultima Thule. (Enc. Br.; M.I.) 5:429
Thyestean relating to Thyestes who was, in Greek legend, son of Pelops and brother of Atreus. He seduced his own daughter un- knowingly and had by her a son, Aegisthus. When Atreus, in revenge for Thyestes' seduction of Atreus' wife, served all the sons of Thyestes except Aegisthus to him at a feast, the horrified father pronounced the curse which brought misfortune to the house of Atreus. (Col. Enc.) 5:436
Tiberius Tiberius Claudius Nero Caesar Augustus (42 BC- AD 37), second Roman emperor (AD 14-37), who greatly strength- ened the institution of the principate, but was vilified as a vicious tyrant by Roman historians. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 3:70, 459
Tibet a country in central Asia, formerly independent, now under China. It is largely a plateau, and is at a loftier elevation than any other region in the world, its lowest plains being 12, 000 ft. above sea-level. It is called "the roof of the world". (Col. Enc.; Pears) Der: Tibetan 1: 156, 260, 396 2: 413 14: 240, 349, 431 15: 355, 502, 567 22: 215, 483 26: 416
Tibetan Yoga and Secret Doctrines a book by Dr. W. Y. Evans-Wentz, first published in 1935 by Oxford University Press. 22: 67
Tiglath-pileser Tiglath-pileser I or III. Tiglath-pileser I, one of the greatest of the early kings of Assyria (reigned c. 1115 to c. 1077 BC), defeated the Babylonians, expelled the Mushki invaders from Assyrian Armenia, and campaigned as far west as the coast of the Mediterranean. Tiglath-pileser III (reigned 744 to 727 BC) inaugurated the last and greatest phase of Assyrian expansion. (Enc. Br.) XIII: 44
Tigris a river of southwestern Asia, rising in the Taurus Mountains in East Turkey and flowing mostly in Iraq to its confluence with the Euphrates to form the Shatt-al-Arab. (Col.Enc.;Web.N.C.D.) 5:414 6:354, 380
Tilak a character - representing Bal Ganga- dhar Tilak - in "The Slaying of Congress", a tragedy by Sri Aurobindo, published in Bande Mataram (February 1908). 1:' 673-74. 676, 679-85, 687-91, 693-97
Tilak, (Lokamanya) Bal Gangadhar (1856- 1920), Indian scholar, mathematician, philosopher, and militant nationalist who helped to lay the foundation of India's independence. His implacable hostility to British domination led to long periods of imprisonment in British jails. He edited two journals named Maratha (English) and Kesari (Marathi). His monumental works, Gita-Rahasya, Orion, and The Arctic Home in the Vedas, have won worldwide recogni- tion. "Lokamanya", meaning "respected by the people", is an epithet that he earned from the people. Sri Aurobindo and Tilak met in 1902 or earlier and were closely associated as leaders of the Indian national movement until 1908, during which year both were arrested. Tilak was released in 1914 and until his death on 1 August 1920 again played a prominent role in India's freedom struggle. (Enc. Br.;D.I.H.) Der: Tilakite 1: 140-41, 147, 157-58, 163, 166-71, 193, 195-96, 245-46, 281, 292, 329, 334, 336, 348, 352, 475, 533, 571-72, 583-88, 590-91, 618-19, 634-35, 638, 746, 755, 787, 819, 823, 826, 828, 850 2: 62, 75-76, 147, 194, 281, 297-98, 314, 347, 392 4: 178, 183, 189, 199, 263 10: 24, 28 16: 407 17: 265-66, 291, 348-57, 359, 361-62, 364-66 26: 22, 25, 27-28, 31, 41, 45, 47-49, 65, 390, 429, 433, 438 27: 33, 36-40, 42-43, 62, 66, 490, 500 V: 100 VIII: 124, 127 X: 186 XVII: 67
Tilottama in Hindu mythology, a nymph of heaven. 5:190, 195, 201, 203-05 X: 163
Tilottama Tilottamasambhab (1860), a narrative poem in Bengali blank verse by Michael Madhusudan, on the story of Sunda and Upasunda. (Enc. Br.) 3:96-97
Timbuctoo Timbuktu or Timbouctou, a city in the West African state of Mali on the Niger, historically important as a post on the trans-Saharan caravan route and as a centre of Islamic culture between c. 1400 and 1600. The word is used jocularly for an extremely remote or uninteresting place. (Enc. Br.) 1: 415
The Times a poem by Charles Churchill, published in 1764. (Ox. Comp.) II: 19
Times See London Times, or Times of India, or Madras Times, or Times Literary Supple- ment according to the context.
Page 320
Times Literary Supplement English weekly, supplement to The Times (London), initiated in 1902. (Enc.Br.) 26:246, 252, 254, 256 29:792
Times of India English daily newspaper published from Bombay (now also from Delhi and Ahmedabad). It was founded in 1838 and was originally named the Bombay Times; in 1861 the name was changed to The Times of India. It was perhaps the only Anglo-Indian paper to deal with the Indian questions from the Indian point of view. It still continues the same tradition. (Enc. Br.; Cal.Lib.) 1:373, 459, 481-82, 492, 555, 865 2:75, 371 4:199 27:71, 73, 75
Timocles a character - twin brother of Antiochus and son of Cleopatra — in Sri Aurobindo's drama Rodogune. 6: 333, 339, 341, 347, 350-52, 357-58, 360-63, 366-71, 373-77, 380, 385-90, 392, 394, 396-98, 400, 402-03, 405-06, 408-12, 418-25, 432, 436, 438-47, 449, 455, 460-61, 463-69
Timon of Athens a play (first performed 1607/08) by Shakespeare dealing with a wealthy Athenian nobleman famed for his lavish generosity. Shakespeare does not seem to be the sole author of this play. (Enc. Br.) 9: 474
Tinkari Sheela a character - a wealthy man - in the Bengali story "Swapna" (Dream) written by Sri Aurobindo. 4:11-12, 15-16
Tinnevelly See Tiru-nel-veli
Tintoretto real name: Jacopo Robusti (1518-94), Italian painter; one of the greatest Mannerist painters of the Venetian school and one of the most important artists of the late Renaissance. He was famed for the speed with which he painted his canvases. He executed with the aid of assistants the great "Paradise", reputed to be the largest oil canvas in the world (30 ft. x 74 ft.), which includes over 500 figures. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 14: 203, 247
Tipperah former name of Comilla district of Bengal (now in Bangladesh). (Enc. Br.) 1: 212, 263, 357, 369 27: 47
Tiraschi a VedicRishi, descendant of Arigiras. (M.W.) XIII: 55
Tiresias in Greek mythology, a celebrated blind prophet of Thebes. According to one legend he was blinded when he saw Athene bathing; feeling sorry for him she granted him prophetic powers. Another story has it that Hera blinded him, and Zeus gave him prophetic powers in compensation. Tiresias is mentioned throughout Greek literature and
is said to have foretold most great events of Greek mythology. (Col. Enc.) 5:608 26:245 29:791, 807
Tiru-nel-veli Tirunelveli, formerly spelled Tinnevelly, administrative headquarters of the district of the same name in Tamil Nadu state (formerly in the province of Madras). (Enc.Br.) 1:761, 778, 793, 805 17:373
Tirupati a disciple of Sri Aurobindo from Vijayanagaram (Andhra Pradesh) and an inmate of the Ashram for some time. Tirupati had certain experiences, but he reacted to them in the wrong way, and, despite help from Sri Aurobindo, eventually went mad. He was sent away from the Ashram in 1926. (Eve. T., pp. 316-17) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27}
Tiruvalluvar famous Tamil poet of South India, author of Tirukkural (see Kural). Everywhere in this work the author's mas- tery of the art of versification is manifest. Nothing definite is known about the personal life of the poet. He perhaps lived in the 3rd century AD, though some scholars put him a little later. (Gaz.-II) 8:397 14:256, 317, 321 17:319
Tiru-vaymoli "The Sacred Utterance", a work of the Tamil poet Nammalwar, containing more than a thousand verses. (A) 17:374
Tiryn's misspelling for Tiryns'. Tiryns was an ancient city in northeastern Peloponnesus, near Argos. It was the home of Diomedes, who led the Tirynthian contingent against Troy. The modern spelling of the name is Tirins. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5: 487
Tirynthian in Greek legend, an epithet of Diomedes, who came from Tiryns. (M.I.) 5:478
Tishya Tisya occurs twice in the Rig-veda, apparently as the name of a star (see Pushya) though Sayana takes it to mean the sun. It is doubtless identical with the Avestan Tistrya. Later the term became the name of a lunar mansion. (V. Index) a III: 36
Titaghur Mills The Titaghur Paper Mills, one of the oldest paper mills of India, loca- ted near Calcutta and still famous for its paper. (Note: Titagarh is a town in 24- Parganas district of Jalpaiguri division in the state of West Bengal). (Enc. Br.) 27:462
Titan(ess) in Greek mythology, one of a family of gigantic beings, the twelve pri- mordial children of Uranus (Heaven) and Gaea (Earth); also certain of the offspring of these Titans. The names of the twelve Titans, the ancestors of the Olympian gods, were Oceanus, Coeus, Crius, Hyperion, lapetos, Theia, Rhea,
Page 321
Gaea (Earth); also certain of the offspring of these Titans. The names of the twelve Titans, the ancestors of the Olympian gods, were Oceanus, Coeus, Crius, Hyperion, lapetos, Theia, Rhea, Themis, Mnemosyne, Phoebe, Tethys, and Cronos. Cronos, the youngest of them, ruled the world after overthrowing and castrating Uranus. He swallowed each of his own children at birth, but Zeus escaped. Cronos was made to vomit up the others (including Hera, Demeter, Poseidon, and Hades) and, after a protracted struggle, he and the other Titans were vanquished, all of them but Atlas imprisoned in Tartarus, and the reign of Zeus was established. More broadly, the word Titan may be applied to any being of a colossal force or grandiose and lawless self-assertion, or even to whatever is huge or mighty. (M.I.) Der: Titanic; Titanic- ally; Titanism 1: 144 2: 32 3: 78, 95, 97, 122, 149, 176, 228, 238, 268, 277, 297, 422 5: 61, 84, 95, 100, 106, 111-12, 146, 149, 196, 201, 211, 217, 241, 253, 291, 335, 394, 396, 401-02, 404, 406-07, 410, 414, 418, 420, 429, 444, 481, 485, 498, 532-33, 539-40, 543-45, 564 6: 126, 180, 212, 216, 232 7: 913-15, 918, 920, 922, 924, 941, 1006 8: 27-28, 30-33, 50, 52, 57, 101, 126, 130-31, 175 9: 51, 78, 112, 119, 149, 192, 559 10: 182, 336, 421, 426, 442, 470 11: 28, 445 12: 107, 387, 399-400, 408, 410, 430, 435, 439, 474, 499 13: 53-54, 161, 163, 165-66, 332, 343, 349, 366, 370, 454-55, 457 14: 103, 288, 301, 398 15: 36, 73, 224, 235, 244, 374, 456, 596 16: 266, 276-78, 284, 311 17: 12, 73, 94, 106, 142-43, 169, 259, 383 18: 324, 603 19:776, 783, 1022, 1068 20: 100, 108, 161-64, 214, 450 21: 540, 716 22: 178 27: 98, 152, 154, 157-58, 309, 325-26 28: 18, 25, 132, 163, 215, 224, 230, 336, 341, 343, 380 29: 450-52, 480, 505, 507, 510, 590, 631, 642, 651 1:22 11:46-47, 57, 77 V: 9-11 VI: 200-01 VII: 70 VIII: 189 IX: 10 X: 148; 150-51, 154, 158, 167 XI: 64, 67.74 XII: 194 XIV: 127, 131 XV: 20, 44 XVI: 144 XVII: 2, 3, 58-59 XIX: 54
Titanic a famous ocean liner, (when launched) the largest ever built; it sank on its maiden voyage after colliding with an iceberg on the night of 14-15 April 1912, with a loss of 1, 517 lives, a XX: 118
Titian full name: Tiziano Vecellio (1488/90-1576), Italian painter of the Venetian school, whose mastery of handling colour and the technique of oil painting made him one of the greatest artists of the Renaissance. (Enc. Br.) 14: 247
Togos natives of Togoland, former German protectorate in Western Africa, now divided between the Republics of Togo and Ghana. (Enc. Br.) 1: 219
Tokyo capital of Japan, located on the northeast coast of Honshu, on Tokyo Bay. Tokyo-to is the name of the metropolis, which includes the national capital of Tokyo and numerous industrial and residential suburbs. (Pears; Enc. Br.) Var: Tokio (now an unusual spelling) 5:120 14:9
Tolstoy Leo (Lev) Nikolayevich Tolstoi (1828-1910), Russian novelist and philosopher, one of the world's greatest writers. Moral and social elements play a great role in his later works, for which he is much respected. Perhaps his best and certainly his most famous work is his long novel War and Peace. (Col. Enc.; A; Pears) Var: Tolstoi Der: Tolstoian; Tolstoyism l: 860 2: 14, 42 4: 73, 92, 215 9: 105, 329, 477. 555 13: 31 14: 47 15: 488 VII: 4, 16 XIV: 118
Le Tombeau d'Edgar Poe a sonnet by Mallarme. (A) 9:531-32
Tommy Atkins a familiar name for the typical private soldier in the British Army, arising out of the casual use of this name in the specimen form given in the official Army regulations from 1815 onwards, showing how such forms should be filled up with the name of the soldier concerned, etc. (Ox. Comp.) 26: 343
Tongres a town in Belgium some twenty kilometres northwest of Liege. Any German retreat that took place here in August 1914 (if the "recoil" was not invented by the Allied press) was a minor diversion in the general German advance. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov.l913-0ct. '27] Tooly Street probably "Kumartuli Street" in northwest Calcutta. 2:205
Tophet a place in the valley of Hinnom near Jerusalem used for idolatrous worship and later for depositing refuse, to incinerate which fires were kept burning. Tophet became a name for Hell. (C. 0. D.; Col. Enc.) 2: 254
Toraman a character - Prince of Cashmere - in Sri Aurobindo's incomplete plays Prince of Edur and The Prince of Mathura. Historically, Toraman was the leader of the Hun tribe that came to south Rajasthan from west Asia. (A) 7:739, 742, 749, 752-53, 755, 761, 780-82, 784-86, 791-93, 801, 803, 812, 891, 896-98
Page 322
Torquemada, Tomasde (1420-98), first Grand Inquisitor in Spain, whose name has become synonymous with the Inquisition's horror, religious bigotry, and cruel fanaticism. (Enc. Br.) 1: 443 3: 464 17: 141
Tory Tory and Whig are names used to denote two opposing political parties in England. This was particularly true during the 18th century. Originally they were terms of abuse introduced in 1679 during the heated controversy over the bill to exclude James, Duke of York (afterwards James II), from the succession. The term Tory was applied to those who supported the hereditary right of James despite his Roman Catholic faith. The term Whig connoted nonconformity and rebellion and was applied to those who claimed the power of excluding the heir from the throne. After the Revolution of 1688 Toryism became identified with Anglicanism and the squirearchy and Whiggism with the aristocratic landowning families and the financial interests of the wealthy middle classes. The connotation of the two terms has changed continually as they were applied to individuals or parties by sentiment and tradition. Although the label Tory has continued to be used to designate the Conservative Party, Whig has ceased to have much political meaning. (Enc. Br., under "Whig & Tory") 1:201, 435, 565, 573, 863
Totalitarian a poem by ARJAVA, published in his collection Poems (1939) (A) 9:356, 358
Tota Puri the Naga sannyasi who initiated Sri Ramakrishna into sannyasa. The latter used to refer to him as "Nangta", the "naked one". Tota Puri was a great Vedantist and a man of profound knowledge. He became Jivanmukta, "liberated in life", as a result of austere spiritual practices over forty years. He was ignorant of the path of devotion, but he was moved to tears when once Sri Ramakrishna sang to him a devotional song. Tota Puri stayed at Dakshineshwar for eleven months, and there used to be frequent conversations between him and Sri Ramakrishna. He was born, it is said, at some place in or near Punjab. (S.R.G.M.; Gospel) a 23:788
Tower of Babel See under Babel D 15:491
Tower of Silence also known as Dokhma, one of the places for the disposal of the dead among the Parsis. It is a round structure with a well in the middle, and on the sides three rows meant for adults and children. The bodies are laid bare and are soon consumed by vultures. According to Zoroastrian principles neither fire nor earth should be defiled. The practice seems to go back to the old Iranian custom of exposing the dead on mountain tops. (Gaz.-I) 1: 189
Townsend, Meredith a British statesman, perhaps an M.P., who was closely watching Indian affairs and expressing his views on them around 1907. (A) 1: 582
Toy Cart title, translated into English, of a beautiful Sanskrit drama Mrcchakatika in ten acts composed in the 1st and 2nd cent. AD by King Shudraka, and supposed to be the oldest extant Sanskrit drama. (Dow.) 3: 297 9: 113 X: 161
Trades Union(s) Bill the bill that was passed without Conservative opposition, and became the Trade-Union Act of 1871, the British Law giving unions an assured legal status. (Record; Enc. Br.) XXII: 126, 133
Trafalgar the Battle of Trafalgar, a naval engagement of the Napoleonic Wars (1800-15), which established British naval supremacy for more than a hundred years. It was fought on 21 October 1805 west of Cape Trafalgar, Spain. (Enc. Br.) 1: 815 III: 23 (Traivrishna) Tryaruna (Traivrsna Tryaruna), a Vedic Rishi, author of hymns. His name is Tryaruna; Traivrishna is his patronymic from Trivrsan. (Note: "Trasadasyu", which term at some places appears as if associated with one or both these names, is the name of another Rishi whose patronymic is Paurukutsa see B. P. C. and the list of Rishis on p. 1018 of the Rigveda Samhitd of Vaidika Samsodhana Mandala, Poona.) Var: Tryaruna Traivrishna 10: 416 11: 241
Trance a poem by Sri Aurobindo, written on 15 October 1933. (A) a 5:578 9:363, 412 26:303-04
Trance of Waiting a poem composed by Sri Aurobindo in hexameters and pentameters with leonine rhyme. 26: 239 29: 786
Transformation a sonnet by Sri Aurobindo. It was written sometime in the early 1930s; its first draft was entitled "Liberation". The poem first appeared in the Calcutta Review of October 1934. (Sonnets; I & G) 0 9:531 29:735
Transition title of a poem (in free verse) by Eleanor Hammond, published in the American journal Poetry and reproduced or quoted from in the second number
Page 323
of Shama'a that was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. (A) 17:321
Translations title of Vol. 8 of Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library, containing translotions by Sri Aurobindo from Sanskrit and other languages, Indian and foreign. 26: 240
Transvaal northernmost province of South Africa. After the defeat of the Boers, the Transvaal was made a British crown colony (1902). It became self-governing in 1907 and joined the Union of South Africa in 1910. Now it is one of the four provinces constituting the Republic of South Africa. (Col. Enc.; Pears) l: 132, 560, 575, 651, 753, 815, 829 2: 301-03, 326, 330, 334-35 4: 223-25, 242, 246
Trasadasyu See (Traivrishna) Tryaruna.
Trasadasyu (Paurukutsa) a royal sage and author of hymns, mentioned in the Rig-veda as king of the Purus. He was the son of Paurukutsa by his wife Paurukutsa, born to her at a time of great distress. (V. Index) 4:26, 29 10:417 11:241-42, 433
Travancore former princely state in extreme southwest India, on the Arabian Sea. The region now forms part of Kerala state in the Republic of India. (Enc. Br.) 1:817
The Traveller one of the best known poems of Oliver Goldsmith, published in 1764. (Enc. Br.) : 17, 19
Trebizond or Trabzon, capital of the province of Trabzon in Turkish Armenia, northeastern Turkey. It is a port on the Black Sea. (Col. Enc.) 7:597
Treitschke, Heinrich von (1834-96), German historian and political writer whose advocacy of power politics was influential at home and contributed to distrust of Germany abroad. (Enc.Br.) 15:35 Treneth (or Prince Paradox), one of the participants in the dialogues "The Harmony of Virtue" and "Beauty in the Real", written by Sri Aurobindo at Cambridge. D . 3: 46-50, 52-53, 55-61, 63, 65-68
Treta in the ancient Indian astronomical reckoning, the second of the four Yugas (Ages), a period of 1, 296, 000 years. In the Treta, sacrifice commenced and righteousness decreased by one-fourth; men adhered to truth, and were devoted to a righteousness dependent on ceremonies. Vishnu
manifested in this Yuga as Rama, his seventh incarnation. (Dow.) 3:453 4:68 11:449, 451-52 12:271 15:118 16:412 27:363 11:37 V: 96 VI: 156 VIII: 191, 193 XTV:119
Trevesham Hall in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Devil's Mastiff', home of Lady Alicia Nevil. (A) 7: 1051
Trevor one of the participants in Sri Aurobindo's dialogue "The Harmony of Virtue". 3: 24-29
Tribune English daily founded in 1881 at Lahore. Under the editorship of Nagendranath Gupta (1911) and Kalinath Roy (1917), the paper regained its old importance. In 1947 it stopped publication, but reappeared at Simla after a lapse of forty days. The following year it was shifted to Ambala, and in 1969 to Chandigarh, where it still continues to be published. (Enc. Ind.; S.F.F., p. 1020) 1:254, 648, 819 2:103 27: 57
Trichinopoly a city and district in the former province of Madras; the name is now spelled Tiruchchirappalli; it is the administrative headquarters of the district of the same name in the state of Tamil Nadu. (Enc. Br.) 26: 400, 406
Trieste capital (since 1963) of the autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, and of Trieste province, in northeastern Italy, at the head of the Adriatic Sea. Trieste was once the prosperous main port of the Austro- Hungarian empire, but, in spite of its ties with Austria, it preserved its Italian language and culture. (Enc.Br.) 15:514, 519
Trigartas mathe Mahabharata, name of the people of a country called Trigarta, whose king was also called by the same name. Arjuna defeated the Trigartas during his conquest of the "North"; his brother Nakul also once did the same. Consequently the Trigartas bore ill will against Arjuna and his brothers and fought against them at Kurukshetra. (M.N.) 3: 191
Trimurti the supreme triad in Hindu mythology, consisting of the gods Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, the representatives of the creative, preservative and destructive principles of the universe. The triad was foreshadowed in the Vedic association of the three gods, Agni, Surya and Vayu. The representation of the Trimurti is one body with three heads, in the middle Brahma, on the right Vishnu, and on the left Shiva. (Dow.) D 22: 82
Page 324
Trinity College at Dublin (Ireland), also known as the University of Dublin; founded in 1591 on the site of a 12th-century monastery. (Col. Enc., pp. 567-68) 1: 23
Triple Alliance name given to four European treaties; the most important was a secret agreement between Germany, Austria- Hungary, and Italy formed in 1882 and renewed periodically until World War I. (Enc. Br.) XX: 148 XXI: 2, 66, 88
Tripoli city in northwestern Libya, the chief seaport (on the Mediterranean) and capital of the country. Tripoli was occupied by Rome, the Vandals, Arabs, and Turkey (1551-1911); in 1911 it passed to Italy and was made the capital of Libya. (Enc. Br.) 15:328, 367, 502
Tripos Honours Examination of Cambridge University, originally for honours in mathematics. (C.O.D.;Web.) 3:1, 486 XVI:66, 73
Tripour also known as Tripurasura, in Hindu mythology, a name of the Asura Bana, so called because he received as a gift three cities (Tripura) from Shiva, Brahma and Vishnu. He was slain by Shiva. (Dow.) Var: Tripura 3: 242-43, 245 27: 103, 105
Trishanku the name of a sage mentioned as a teacher in the Taittiriya Upanishad; in a later legend, it is the name given perhaps by Vasishtha to Satyavrata, a king of the Solar race, for being guilty of three great sins. Rishi Vishwamitra, gratified by the assistance which Satyavrata had rendered to his family, tried to send him alive to heaven (by performing a sacrifice for that purpose) as desired by the king in spite of the resistance and opposition of the gods and of Vasishtha. The king was eventually fixed in the sky as a constellation. (V. Index; Dow.) Var: Trishuncou 5: 53 12: 324
Trishiras Twashtra Trisiras Tvastra, a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Tvastr. 11:390
Trishuncou See Trishanku
Trita (Aptya) a minor deity mentioned occasionally in the Rig-veda, and generally in some relation to Indra. From his origin in water (apah) he was called Aptya. Trita is the god or Rishi of the third plane, full of luminous mental kingdoms unknown to the physical mind. Yaska in one passage of the Nirukta explains the name as that of a Rishi or seer. (Dow.; A; V. Index) 10:361, 387, 403-04 11: 32, 220, 379, 391, 403-04, 427 Tritons Triton, in Greek mythology, was son of Poseidon. He was a sea creature like a
merman, the upper half of his body being human, the lower halffishlike. Later Greek literature speaks of many Tritons, sometimes described as riding over the sea on horses. They characteristically blew trumpets of conch-shells. (Col. Enc.) D 5:506, 524, 546
Tritsuraj an epithet of SUOAS. He was the king of a people known as TRITSUS (Dow.) 4: 24
Tritsus "Those who seek to pass beyond", a people frequently mentioned in the Veda. Sayana says they were "priests who were Vasishtha's disciples". Vasishtha himself is said to have belonged to this class of priests. The Tritsus were helpers of SUDAS in the great battle against ten kings. The defeat of the ten kings is celebrated in one hymn of the Rig-veda, and is evidently alluded to in two others. (A; Dow; V. Index) D IV: 127
The Triumph of Dante a poem by K. D. Sethna written in 1936. 0 26: 301 Triumph of Life The Triumph of Life, a poem by P. B. Shelley, written in 1822 and published in 1824; the poet was working on it at the time of his accidental death. It is, in Sri Aurobindo's opinion, a metrical failure. (Enc.Br.;A) 27:93
Triveni "the triple braid of waters"; the waters of the Ganga and Yamuna joined by the waters of the mysterious underground stream of the Saraswati at their confluence in Prayag near Allahabad, XVI: 146
Troad, the sameasTROAS. 5:395, 402, 426-27, 446.449-50, 458, 461, 480, 484, 486, 492-93, 503, 506-07, 516, 518 VI: 134
Troas or the Troad, the territory surrounding ancient Troy (which was its capital) on the northwest coast of Asia Minor; scene of the events of the lliad and an ancient centre of Aegean civilization. The territory consisted of a number of allied independent cities, which were harried by the Greeks for the first nine years of the Trojan War before they attacked the capital city itself. (Col. Enc.; M.I.) 5:391, 400, 413, 435, 443, 463-64, 472, 475, 477, 516, 595
Troezen a town in ARGOLIS near the eastern tip of the Peloponnesus. (M.I.) 5:487
Troilus in Greek legend, a son of Hecuba and Priam (Apollo, according to one story, was his real father). He has already been slain when Sri Aurobindo's poem llion opens. Legend says that he dared to meet Achilles in single combat, and having fallen wounded was dragged to his death by his own horses. The tale of his tragic love for
Page 325
Cressida was a post-classical development popular in medieval Europe. (M.I.) 5:416, 426-27, 450, 453, 457, 478
Trojan See Troy
Trondhjem or Trondheim, historic port city, ancient capital of Norway; presently capital of Sor-Trondelag county in central Norway. It is known by several variant spellings including Trondhjem. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 6:480, 485, 487, 514-15, 519, 526, 530, 540, 555-56
Tros in Greek legend, an early Trojan prince, son ofErichthanius, grandson of Dardanus. The district of the Troad and the Trojans were named after him. He is remembered in llion as a great conqueror. (M.I.) l-l 5:412, 417-18, 426-27, 467, 498
Troy ancient city in northwest Asia Minor, which was situated a few miles south of the entrance to the Hellespont (Dardanelles) on a mound commanding the triangular plateau between the rivers Scamander and Simois. In the second millennium BC it was the strongest power on the coast of Asia Minor and its location gave it control over trade between the Aegean and the Black Sea; the Trojan War (c. 1200 BC) may have actually been fought by the Greeks mainly to destroy this control. Excavations have discovered on the site of Troy a series of towns one above the other dating back to the third millennium BC. The city of Priam, named after Tros and also known as Ilium or llion, was built on the ruins of ancient cities and was surrounded by a massive wall erected, according to Greek legend, by Poseidon and Apollo for Laomedon. The Trojans, according to the Greeks, traced their descent through Dardanus to Zeus and considered their city to be inviolable because of the presence of the PALLADIUM. See also llion, Troya, and Ilian2. (M.I.) Der: Trojan (native of Troja, the name of Troy in Latin) 3: 188-89 5: 33, 383-85, 392-93, 395-400, 402-07, 410-16, 418-32, 434-35, 437-41, 443-71, 474-81, 483-86, 491, 493, 497, 504-06, 508, 511-16, 518, 595 9: 206, 230, 315, 372, 482 16: 83 17: 83 I: 72 VI: 134-35 XVII: 44
Troya same as Troy; perhaps from the Greek word "Troia" for Troy. 5: 392, 397, 399, 401-02, 404, 408, 411-12, 414, 417, 419, 421-22, 424-28, 431-32, 439-40, 442, 447, 449, 452, 456-59, 461-64, 466, 468, 470-71, 474, 481, 483-84, 487-88, 499, 504, 509, 511-12, 516, 519 8: 409 VI: 135
Truman Harry S. Truman (1884-1972), 33rd President of the United States of America (1945-53). He led his nation into international confrontation with Communism and defended the New Deal reform
tradition. (Enc. Br.) 26: 416-17
Tryaruna Traivrishna See (Traivrishna) Tryaruna
Tryaruna Trasadasyu See (Traivrishna) Tryaruna
Tryas in Sri Aurobindo's llion, a Trojan senator and erstwhile warrior, descended from Teucer. (M.I.) 5: 412, 461
Tsar See Czar
Tudors Welsh royal family that ruled England from 1485 to 1603, represented by the five English sovereigns Henry VII, Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I. (Enc. Br.) 15: 356-57 18: 436
Tughlak, Mahomad Sultan of Delhi from 1325 to 1351. He was the son and successor of Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlak, the founder of the Tughla-k dynasty. (D.I.H., p. 649) n m: 10
Tugra in the Veda, name of a king, a protege of the Asvins; "the Forceful-Hastening". Tugra sent his son Bhujyu with a large army to conquer his enemies in Dwipantara. Their boats which could go in sea and air capsized in a storm. The Aswini Devas (the Asvins) saved them and sent them back to their country. (V. Index; A; Pur. Enc.) 10: 449
Tukaram (1607-49), a famous poet and saint of Maharashtra. He is often considered the greatest writer in the Marathi language. He was a senior contemporary of Shivaji, on whom his poems and teachings had a great deal of influence. His devotional songs are addressed to Vithala (of Pandharpur), considered an incarnation of Vishnu. (BhaktaCh.; D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) 3:110 4:143 14:129, 187, 256, 318-19, 321 1:4 IX: 29
Tulsi(das) (1532/43-1623), most celebrated Hindi poet whose principal work, the Rdmacaritamdnasa (the story of the Sanskrit epic the Ramayana retold in Hindi) is the greatest achievement of medieval Hindi literature and has exercised an abiding influence on the Hindu culture of northern India. Tulsidas was a saint and a bhakta; all his poetry, which includes eleven works besides the Rdmacaritamanasa, is devotional, most of it centering around RAMA'. He has been called the Shakespeare of Hindi literature. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) 3:214, 427 14:256, 319-21
Page 326
Tunstall a character (historical) in Scott's poem Marmion. 9: 319
Tuntra See Tantra
Turanian The Turanians were a people assumed by some scholars to have been the predecessors of the Aryans (Indo-Europeans) in Europe and Asia. They spoke the Turanian languages, the Ural-Altaic family of languages. (Enc. Br.) Var: Turanean 10: 553 XVI: 136
Turcoman (also spelled "Turkoman" and "Turkman"), name of a people belonging to the southwestern branch of the Turkic linguistic group. The majority live in the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic and in neighbouring parts of Soviet Central Asia. (Enc. Br., under Turkman) 15: 79
Turcophil a lover of Turkey and the Turks. 1: 721
Turiu a character, probably imaginary, participating in one of the "Conversations of the Dead" written by Sri Aurobindo. Turiu seems to be a worshipper of Leda, mentioned as goddess of peace, love, beauty, and bliss. (A) 3:477-79
Turk a native or inhabitant of Turkey, especially a member of the Moslem people of Turkey or, formerly, of the Ottoman Empire. In its wider meaning the term is applied to the Turkic-speaking peoples of Turkey, the U.S.S.R., Chinese Turkistan, and East Iran. The term is also used in a derogatory sense for a ferocious, wild or unmanageable person. (Web.; Col. Enc.; C.O.D.) Der: Turkish a 2:167, 169, 248, 278 4: 252 5: 276, 596 7: 565-68, 621, 624, 666, 715, 718-19, 732 15: 287, 290, 412, 417, 646 24: 1235 27: 122 XX: 148
Turkey country (now a republic) of southeastern Europe and Asia Minor. Turkey in Europe is separated from Turkey in Asia (Anatolia) by the Bosporus, the Sea of Marmara, and the Dardanelles, which link the Black Sea to the Mediterranean. Though Anatolia is one of the oldest inhabited regions of the world, the history of Turkey as a national state begins only with the collapse of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Turkish 1: 305, 311, 580 2: 35, 117, 167-69, 192-93, 247-49, 390, 406 4:187-88, 214 14:11, 378, 431 15: 287, 302, 321, 324, 332, 417, 446, 502, 504-05, 513, 646 17: 185 26: 433 XX: 134, 147 XXI: 2, 4, 11, 32, 43, 59, 63-64, 70-71, 90, 92, 93 (Asiatic), 94-95, 100 XXII: 133
Turkistan name formerly employed to designate the region of Central Asia lying between Siberia on the north, Tibet, India, Afghanistan, and Iran on the south, the Gobi desert on the east, and the Caspian Sea on the west. The term was intended to indicate the areas inhabited by Turkic peoples, but the region contained peoples who were not Turkic, and excluded some who were. (Enc. Br.) 15: 512 27: 122
Turner, Joseph Mallord William (1775- 1851), English Romantic painter, perhaps the greatest 19th-century landscapist, who in his original use of light and colour, was unmatched in breadth of stylistic treatment and subject matter. He left over 19, 000 water colours, drawings, and oils to the English nation. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 14:237
Turvas(h)a a Vedic Rishi whose name occurs frequently in the Rig-veda, usually in connection with Yadu (see Yadu'). (V. Index) Var: Turvasu 11: 49 II: 45 VI: 148
Turviti name mentioned several times in the Rig-veda. In three passages reference is made to Indra aiding him over a flood. A scholar has conjectured that he was king of the Turvasas and Yadus, but there is no sufficient evidence for this view, though presumably Turviti was of the Turvasa line. (V. Index) a n: 49 VIII: 146
Tusaradri See Himalaya(s)
Tuscany a region in central Italy extending along the Tyrrhenian Sea. It includes several islands, of which Elba is the largest. Florence is the capital of Tuscany. (Col. Enc.) Der: Tuscan l: 505, 525 8: 254
Tuticorin a city in Tinnevelly (present Tirunelveli) district of Madras (present Tamil Nadu state). It is a port on the Bay of Bengal. (Enc. Br.) 1:726, 728, 745, 752-54, 762, 793, 797-98, 803-04
Tuxuc (Taksaka), in Hindu mythology, name of a serpent, son of Kadru, and chief of snakes. King Parikshit died from the bite of this serpent. (Dow.; M.N.) 5:252
Twashtri in the Rig-veda, name of a deity who is the ideal artist, "the Fashioner of things". He corresponds in many respects to Hephaestus of Greek mythology and Vulcan of Roman mythology. In the Puranas he is identified with Vishwakarma, the artisan of the gods, and sometimes with Prajapati, one
Page 327
of the Adityas. (Dow.) 10: 15, 238, 325, 327, 329, 377, 425, 438-39 11: 28, 82, 392 VIII: 145 IX: 4 Tweed Tweed River, in southern Scotland, 97 miles long and forming for 17 miles the border with England, where the last two miles of its course lie. (Enc. Br.) 1: 827 Twelfth Night a romantic comedy by Shakespeare, written in the period 1595-1600 and first performed in 1601/02. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 3:248-49 27:107 24 Parganas name of a district of Bengal (now of West Bengal state), occupying the southwestern corner of the Ganga Delta and extending along the east bank of the Hooghly River. (Enc. Br.) 1: 855 4: 189, 258
Twins (or Gemini, a Latin word meaning "twins'"), the third sign of the zodiac, known as Mithuna in Hindu astronomy. It is a constellation on the side of the Milky Way opposite Orion. It is pictured as the figures of the twin heroes. Castor and Pollux, with the two brightest stars in the constellation representing the heads of the figures. (Col. Enc.) 17: 257-58, 260
"The Two Moons" apparently a working title of Sri Aurobindo's poem Moon of Two Hemispheres, 9:363 .
Tyabji (Bose) Badruddin Tyabji (1844-1906), a nationalist Muslim, who was the first Indian barrister of Bombay and, in 1895, became a judge of the Bombay High Court. (Note: "Tyabji Bose" is probably a jocular miscombination as Bose is a Hindu Bengali surname). (Enc. Ind.) l: 190
Tydeus in Greek legend, father of Diomedes and son of Oeneus, king of Calydon in Aetolia. Tydeus married a princess of Argos (sister of the wife of Polynices, son of Oedipus) and was one of the leaders in the expedition of the "Seven against Thebes". (M.I.) 5:439, 478, 491, 506
Tydides in Greek legend, an epithet of Diomedes (son of Tydeus). (M.N.) 5:442, 479-80, 486-87
Tyndarid;Tyndaris in Greek legend, epithets of Helen (daughter of Tyndareus). Tyndareus, husband of Leda and king of Lacedaemon, was Helen's foster father. (M.I.) 5:405, 434, 440, 480 Tyre the modern Sur, a town in southern Lebanon on the Mediterranean. It was one of the greatest commercial cities of the ancient world and an important centre of Phoenician civilization. (Col. Enc.; M.I.)
DerTyrian 5:505 6:3, 8, 23-24, 44-45, 49-51, 53-54, 56-57, 59, 62, 64, 100, 104, 113-14, 134. 152-54, 170, 184, 190-98
Tymaus a character - a merchant of Babylonia, wrecked on the coast of Syria in Sri Aurobindo's play Perseus the Deliverer, a 6: 3, 16-20, 85-88, 91-94, 180, 186, 188
Tyrol or Tirol, now a Bundesland (federal state) in western Austria, consisting of North Tirol (Nordtirol) and East Tirol (Osttirol). After World War I, Italy obtained the southern Tirol, with its sizable German- speaking majority, and retained it after World War II, despite objections by Austria. (Enc. Br.) 15: 625 Tyrolese inhabitants of Tyrol or Tirol. Independent-minded Tyrolese rose in 1525, when Protestantism was strong there, and again in 1809, when French and Bavarian rule proved irksome. (Enc. Br., X, p. 2) in: 24 Tyrrhenian Greek name for the Latin "Etruscan", meaning (native) of Etruria, an ancient country of west central Italy, now forming Tuscany and part of Umbria. The Tyrrhenoi possessed an excellent knowledge of ironworking and brought the older art of bronze-working in Etruria to a new level of achievement. (C.O.D.; Col. Enc.) 6: 412 9:117
U
Ubhayabharati in the Shankara-Vijaya, wife of Mandana Misra, a famous scholar. Chosen to adjudicate a debate (sdstrdrtha) between her husband and Shankara, she ruled in favour of the latter, but later herself baulked Shankara by questioning him on Kamasastra (the knowledge of sex-love). Shankara, after acquiring the requisite knowledge, subsequently defeated her. Ubhayabharati was considered to be an emanation of Saraswati, the goddess of learning, who is also called Bharati. 12: 510
Ucalegon a Troj an senator who, in Ilion, is thought to be a traitor along with Antenor because he counsels peace. (M.I.) 5: 412, 428, 430
Ucchaisravas (Uccaih-sravas), in Hindu mythology, the archetypal horse; a white horse which arose from the waters, as a result of the churning of the milky ocean
Page 328
and was given to Indra as his share. It feeds on ambrosia. (Dow.) Var:
Ucchaisravus 3: 378 13: 349 X: 159
Udaian See Vuthsa (Udayan)
Udaipur; Mewar Udaipur or, more correctly, Mewar was a princely state of India under British protection. The city of Udaipur was founded in 1560 and was made the capital of the state in 1568 by Rana Udai Singh (1529-72). The state came under British protection by a treaty concluded in 1818. (D.I.H.) 1:520, 767 15:354 26:14 III: 24
Udayan See Vuthsa (Udayan)
Udayavatie in Hindu mythology, a nymph of heaven, "a lovely child of musical spirits". (A;M.W.) 7:974
Udbodhan a Bengali monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Mission published from Calcutta, in which Girija Shankara Roy Chaudhuri wrote a series of articles on Sri Aurobindo, making in them, especially in the June 1944 issue, quite a number of in accurate statements. (A) 26:56, 58 XVI: 193
Uddhava in the Mahabharata, friend and counsellor of Krishna. According to some authorities he was Krishna's cousin, being the son of Devabhaga, the brother of Vasudeva. His place among the Bhaktas (devotees) of that period is considered very high. (Dow.; A) 4:68, 71
Ugrashravas one of the ancient Indian writers who enlarged the original epic Mahabharata of Krishna Dwypaiana. (A) 3: 141
Ugro-Finnish (races) perhaps, peoples speaking languages of the Finno-Ugric subfamily of the Uralic group of languages, spoken in northeastern Europe, western Siberia, and Hungary. (Web.) 10: 553 Ujjayini(e) an ancient city of India, also known as Avanti or Avantika; it was the capital of the kingdom of Avanti known later on as Malwa. It is considered as one of the seven holy cities of the Hindus, renowned for its former beauty and wealth. By the 4th century BC, in the time ofChandragupta Maurya, it became a centre of early Buddhism and ofJainism. Ujjayini figures prominently in the works of Kalidasa. The site of the ancient city is near modern Ujjain in Indore division of Madhya Pradesh state. See also Avanti. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.; M.W.) Var: Ujjayin 3:213, 215-16, 222, 229, 262, 294 6:214, 247-48, 281, 301, 305, 313, 315, 318, 326 X: 144
U.K. See United Kingdom
Ukraine a southwest Russian steppe region, now known as the Ukranian Soviet Socialist Republic, a constituent republic in southwest European U.S.S.R. It is sometimes called "Little Russia". Kiev is its capital. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 15:512-13
Ullaca See Alaka
Ullas(kar) Ullaskar Datta (1885-1965), a member of the Yugantar group, the band of revolutionaries led by Barindra, In the Alipore Bomb Case he was sentenced to death, but on appeal the sentence was reduced to transportation for life in the Andamans. He was, however, granted amnesty after serving ten years. After his release he never actively participated in any kind of political work. Ullaskar was normally fun-loving and light-hearted. Ullas had a sweet singing voice and was a good ventriloquist and a caricaturist. (D.N.B.; A & R, XII: 232) 4:310
Uloupie in the Mahabharata, daughter of Kauravya, king of the Nagas (snakes), with whom Arjuna contracted a kind of marriage. She was nurse to her step-son, Babruvahana, and had great influence over him. (Dow.) 5: 325
Ulster northernmost of the historic four provinces of Ireland. Ulster consisted of nine counties. The refusal (1921) of six of them to join the rest of Ireland in accepting Home Rule led to the establishment of the state of Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The three remaining counties of Monaghan, Cavan, and Donegal form the province of Ulster in the Republic of Ireland. (Enc. Br.) 15:298 XXI: 56, 60
Ultima Thule far-away (ultimo == farthest) unknown region. Here (VI: 164) the reference is to the farthest place (in Asia) to which Napoleon marched. See also Thule. (C.O.D.) VI: 164
Ulysses Latin form of the Greek name ODYSSEUS, l-l 3: 3 22: 417 Ulysses a poem by Tennyson, published in his collection Poems (1842). (Col. Enc.) 9: 137, 456
Uma (Haimavati) 1. Supreme Nature from whom the whole cosmic action takes its birth. The earliest known mention of the name is in the Kena Upanishad, where she appears as mediatrix between Brahman and the other gods, and seems to be identified with VACH. 2. In Hindu mythology, Uma is a name of the consort of Shiva (see Parvati), (A; Dow.) 3:271, 309, 316 4:34 8:386 12:150, 219 X: 152 XV: 20, 29 XVII: 33
Page 329
Umba a character ~ Vasavadutta's handmaiden in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. 6:207, 261, 267, 273, 278, 305, 307, 309-11, 315, 327-28
Umballa Ambala, administrative headquarters of Ambala district in the former province of Punjab (now in the state of Haryana). (Enc. Br.) 1:188
Umbrian of ancient (or modern) Umbria, a region of central Italy, crossed by the Apennines and the upper valley of the Tiber. .(Col. Enc.) 1: 525 15:344
Undhak in the Mahabharata, son of Yudhajit of the Yadava race. He was brother of Vrsni. (M.N.) 8:43
Ungarica a character - Queen of Avunthie - in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. 6: 207, 225, 249-52, 254, 256, 260, 279-83, 305, 307-08, 311-12, 315-16
Unionist dissensions In British and Irish history, those favouring the maintenance of the union of Great Britain and Ireland established by the Act of Union of 1800 were known as Unionists. The term "Unionist" was first used in the 1880s when the Liberal Party split over the issue of Home Rule for Ireland. The Liberal Unionists, who opposed Home Rule, formed a coalition with the Conservative Party and were gradually absorbed into it. In the first two decades of the 20th century "Unionist" often meant the whole Conservative-Liberal Unionist coalition. In Northern Ireland the term has continued to be used in this way. (Enc. Br.) XXI: 60
Union Jute Mills perhaps of Calcutta, in which there was a strike in 1907. (A) 1: 564
United Kingdom or U.K., constitutional monarchy occupying most of the British Isles in the Atlantic Ocean off Northwest Europe, comprising England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. [Note: From 1801 to 1921 the term included all of Ireland.] (Enc. Br.; Web.N.C.D.) 1:85, 118, 367 2:379, 393 12:486 15: 515
United Nations Assembly the General Assembly of the U.N.O., which occupies a central position in its structure, and meets once a year. It can discuss any question concerning peace and security brought before it. It makes recommendations, but any question upon which action is necessary must be referred
to the Security Council. (Pears) 15: 560
United Nations Organization or U.N.O., international organization established in 1945 (Charter signed on 26 June), immediately after the Second World War, to replace the League of Nations. The original members totalled 51. The present number of states is about three times this number. The principal organs of the United Nations are: General Assembly, Security Council, Trusteeship Council, Economic and Social Council, International Court of Justice, and Secretariat. A few of its specialized agencies are the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the World Bank and the World Health Organization (WHO). (Col. Enc.; Pears) 15:364, 556-59, 561, 567, 569 26:418
United Provinces or U.P., the former name (before 1947) of the present state of Uttar Pradesh. The original full name was United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. 1:195, 227, 231, 359, 891 2: 305, 309, 329-30 4: 191, 238 26: 410 27: 40, 43
United States (of America) federal republic in North America, comprising fifty states plus various outlying territories and related political units. The capital is Washington, D.C. See also America. (Enc. Br.) 2:397 15:288, 293-94, 333, 378, 417-19, 486, 493, 507, 549, 566, 620
U.N.O. See United Nations Organization
U.P. See United Provinces
Upadhyay(a), Brahmabandhab (1861-1907), assumed name of Bhawani Charan Bandhyp padhyaya. He was a leader of the Swadeshi movement, and editor of the Bengali daily newspaper Sandhya started in 1904. In 1907 he also started a weekly journal Swaraj to supplement Sandhya with writings on cultural, literary, and historical subjects conducive to the growth of national consciousness and patriotism. Proceedings were taken against Sandhya in August 1907 and Upadhyaya was arrested on September 3rd. He died while his case was pending. (A; D.N.B.; P.T.I.) Var: Brahmobandhab I: 565, 609, 628, 634, 853, 857, 861 4: 164 26: 15
Upanis(h)ads treatises dealing with the philosophical ideas and thoughts of the Vedic period. They do not deal with rituals or sacrifice, but they form part of the Shruti, or "revealed Word". They represent the final stage in the tradition of the Vedas, so the teaching based on them is known
Page 330
Upen See Banerji, Upen(dranath)
Upendra In the Vedas, the supreme Lord Vishnu is Upendra, a younger Indra. "He is not inferior, he only subordinates himself, pretending to serve, while really by service he commands" (11:447), (A) Der: Upendratva II: 446-47 17: 257 22: 82 VI: 183
Upendra(nath) See Banerji, Upen(dranath)
Upper House See Lords, House of Ur an ancient southern Mesopotamian (Sumerian) city, the ruins of which are in southern Iraq, southeast of Babylon. (Enc.Br.) 26:340
Uranian in Greek religion, a title of Aphrodite, particularly of the Oriental manifestation of Aphrodite as goddess of the heavens, patroness of pure and heavenly love. See also Venus Ourania. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) 5:500
Uranus' in Greek religion, the sky-god, first ruler of the universe; he was son of Gaea, the earth-goddess, and father of the Titans, the Cyclopes (one-eyed giants), and the Hecatoncheires (hundred-handed friendly giants). (Col.Enc.;O.C.C.L.) Q 10:86, 448
Uranus2 In astronomy, the seventh planet in order of distance from the sun and the third largest of the planets of our solar system. It was discovered by the English astronomer Sir (Frederick) William Herschel (1738-1822) on 13 March 1781. As a consequence, the planet was for some time called Herschel (particularly in France). Herschel himself proposed "GeorgiumSidus" (in English, Georgian planet) as its name, after his sovereign patron King George III of England. This name "Georgian" appeared intermittently in England for more than 50 years. But even in the year of the planet's discovery a German astronomer suggested Uranus, who in Roman mythology was the father of Saturn, who was in turn the father of Jupiter; and this name was eventually universally accepted. (Enc. Br., Macro, 18:1037) 17:259
Page 331
Urdu one of the regional languages of India and the official language of Pakistan. Historically, Urdu is a language that evolved as the result of a necessity for carrying on exchange of ideas between the conquering Mohammedans who spoke Turki and Persian and the conquered Indians who spoke mostly Hindi. "Urdu" is a Turki word meaning "camp", and Urdu was indeed originally a camp language and contains words taken from Persian, Turki, and Hindi. Its script is Persian which is written from right to left, but its grammar and structure are Hindi in the main. Urdu is spoken in northern India mainly by the Mohammedans, but many Hindus are adept in it. It gradually developed a literature and has produced many famous poets, (D.I.H.) 9:437-38 14: 316 26: 290 III: 86
Ure a Liberal minister of Britain whose meetings were systematically interrupted and broken up by organised Conservative rowdyism towards the end of the year 1909. (A) 2:306-07 4:233
Uriu a character (probably imaginary) called the prince of the Asa, who participates in one of the "Conversations of the Dead" written by Sri Aurobindo. Uriu seems to be a worshipper of Tanyth, a mighty goddess of war. (A) 3:477-79
Urjoon(a) See Arjun(a)
Unnila a character - Princess of Mathura, daughter of Atry and Indrany - in Sri Aurobindo's play The Prince of Mathura. 7:891, 895-97
Urvasie in Hindu mythology, the most beautiful of the celestial nymphs, born from the thigh of Narayana; heroine of the drama Vikramorvasie. (Dow.;A) Der: Urvasiean 3:231, 240, 268, 270-74, 276-81, 283, 285-86, 288-90, 299-301, 306 5: 192, 195, 198-201, 204, 207-08, 210-12, 217, 219, 221, 226, 228 7: 909, 912-14, 916-25, 927, 933-45, 949, 951-52, 957-63, 965-71, 973-74, 976, 979-84, 986-90, 994, 997-1003, 1005-06, 1008 26: 503 27: 100, 152 X: 150, 152-56, 158, 163, 165, 167-68, 170, 173, 175-77
Urvasie' title of two poems by Sri Aurobindo, one short (a fragment) and the other longer and complete. The longer version was first published for private circulation in or about 1896; the shorter one, written during the 1930s, was not published during Sri Aurobindo's lifetime. 5: 119, 189 26: 254, 256-57, 264, 268, 298, 314 Urvasie' short name used by Sri Aurobindo for Kalidasa's drama Vikramorvasie. 3: 261,
276, 282, 287, 290, 295, 323 X: 145, 158, 169, 174, 177
Uravisie a poem (1895) by Rabindranath Tagore. (A) 3:270
Usha1 in the Veda, the daughter of Heaven and sister of the Adityas; the divine Dawn, the bringer of illumination; also called Ahana and Dyotana. See also Dawn. (A; Dow.) 4: 28 5: 189, 543-44 10: 4, 19, 42, 56, 68, 120-21, 126-29, 136, 155, 159, 163-64, 167, 186, 206, 235-36, 238, 271, 283, 299, 432, 436, 524-28 (Dawn) 11: 468, 494 18: 1 I: 17 IV: 132 V: 20-21 VII: 38 XVI: 143 XVII: 45
Usha2 in the Puranas, a Daitya princess, daughter of Banasura. She fell in love with ANIRUDDHA whom she saw in a dream. Her companion, Chitralekha, by her magic power, brought Aniruddha to Usha, and the two lived together secretly. Banasura, hearing of Aniruddha's presence in the palace, took him prisoner. Krishna, Pradyumna, and Balaram went to his rescue, overpowered Banasura and brought Aniruddha, with his wife Usha, back to Dwarka. (Dow.;M.N.) 4: pre.
Usha3 a friend or relative of Sri Aurobindo to whom he gave some money when he was in the service of the state of Baroda. She was in close touch with his wife Mrinalini. (A) 4:318, 320
Usha-Haran Kabya a long narrative poem in Bengali composed by Sri Aurobindo at Baroda around 1894. It is based on the Puranic story of Usha and Aniruddha (see Usha2) and inspired perhaps by Michael Madhusudan. Only a few lines of the poem were found till 1972, and they were published on pages 7 and 8 of Writings in Bengali, Vol. 4 of the Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library. Some years later, a sufficiently long manuscript of the epic was discovered in old papers. It is incomplete and has blank pages left in between at some places. However, it was published in parts in the Bengali monthly Srinvantu, and an English translation was brought out in book form under the title The Abduction of the Princess Usha (1980) by Sri Aurobindo Pathmandir of Calcutta. (A) Q 4: pre.
Ushana See Ushanas (Kavya)
Ushanas another name of Shukracharya, the greatest among the seer-poets of ancient India. (M.N.) 13: 151-52, 350, 425
Page 332
Ushanas (Kavya) (Usanas Kavya), son of Kavi; a Vedic Rishi "of the heavenward desire that is born from the seer-knowledge" (10: 232). He is often mentioned in the Rig- veda, especially as associated with Kutsa and Indra. According to Vayu Purana, Ushanas Kavya is the same as Shukracharya (see Shukra). (A; V. Index; B.P.C.) Var: Ushana 10: 154, 232, 237, 461 11: 332, 368 II: 40, 45 XVIII: 177
Ushij in the Rig-veda, the mother of Kakshivat (see Kakshivan). According to a story told in the Puranas, she was a servant of the queen of Kalinga. The king desired his queen to submit to the embraces of the sage . Dirghatamas in order that he might father a son. The queen substituted her bondmaid Usij. The sage, cognisant of the deception, sanctified Usij, and fathered by her a son, Kaksivan. (Dow.) 10:522
Ushinars in the Aitareya Brahmana, the people UsTnaras are mentioned as dwelling in the "Middle Country". In the Mahabharata, Usinara is mentioned as a king of Kashi. (V. Index; M.N.) 3: 289 X: 175
Ustie (Asti), in the Mahabharata, daughter of Jarasandha and wife of Kansa. Prapthie, her sister, was also wife of Kansa. (M.N.) 8: 41
Uswins See As(h)wins
Uswattha See As(h)wattha
Utica (now called Utique) traditionally the oldest Phoenician settlement on the coast of North Africa, northwest of Carthage, located near the mouth of the Medjerda River in modern Tunisia. Cato the Younger, also known as Cato of Utica, committed suicide at Utica (see Cato2). (Enc. Br.) IX: 14
Utkila Katya (Utkila Katya), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Kata. 11: 136
Utopia a name, taken from a Greek word meaning "nowhere", used by Sir Thomas More (1478-1535) in 1516 as the title of a book dealing with a mythical island in the South Pacific on which was situated an ideal society. Since then it denotes any ideal or fanciful society (or ideally perfect place or state of things). (Pears; C.O.D.) Der: Utopian; Utopist; Utopianism 1: 493, 703-04, 860, 867 9: 549 12: 487 14: 26 15: 432, 435, 439, 444 27: 284
Uttamaujas in the Mahabharata, a PANCHALA warrior of great strength; he was a relation of the Pandavas. (M. N.; Dow.) 4: 75 8: 77
Uttara mhe. Mahabharata, a king whoperished because he scorned and insulted a mightier one than he. (M.N.) 8: 57
Uttara Meru See Meru
Uttara Mimansa one of the six Darshanas, or systems of orthodox Hindu philosophy. It is attributed to Badarayanacharya (a name of Veda Vyasa), and is more commonly known as the Vedanta although this latter term strictly speaking includes both Uttaramimamsa and Purva-mimariisa (which is commonly known as the Mimamsa). (Dow.) 4: 46 13: 80 VIII: 183
Uttarpara a suburban town near Calcutta, where Sri Aurobindo delivered his famous speech on 30 May 1909, three and a half weeks after his acquittal and release in the Alipore Bomb Case. (I&G) 1: 837, 847, 858 2:1-2, 68, 417 4: 250, 301 26: 34, 37, 64, .68, 81 XVI: 194
Uttar Yogi a pseudonym of Sri Aurobindo, meaning "the yogi from the North", given as editor of the book Yogic Sadhan in all its four editions. Sri Aurobindo said that the name was "given to me because of a prediction made long ago by a famous Tamil yogi, that thirty years later (agreeing with the time of my arrival in Pondicherry) a yogi from the North would come as a fugitive to the South and practise there an integral yoga (Pooma Yoga).... He gave three utterances as the mark by which this yogi could be recognised and all these were found in the letters to my wife". (A & R, XIX: 56) XIX: 56
V
Vaal Vaal River, northern headwater of the Orange River in South Africa. It rises at Sterkfontein Beacon near Breyten, south eastern Transvaal, and flows 750 miles to its confluence with the Orange near Douglas. (Enc.Br.) 1: 30
Vach Vac in the Rig-veda appears to be the personification of speech; "the Goddess Speech eldest born of the world"; "the mother of the Vedas"; the expressive power of Aditi. In the Mahabharata and later mythology, Vac was identified with Saraswati. (A; Dow.) Var: Vak (a declined form) 2: 148 9:270 10:112 13:261 27:158 VII: 42 XVI: 173
Vacoola(valica) a character a handmaid of Queen Dharinie in Kalidasa's drama Mdlavikagnimitram, partially translated by
Page 333
Pg. 334 is missing!
community with its producers, agriculturists, craftsmen, artisans, merchants and traders. (Nowadays, with some exceptions, only the merchant class, and that too not everywhere, is ranked as Vaishya or Vaniya). Sri Aurobindo has used the term Vaishya also for the trading community of other countries. (A) Var: Vyshya Der: Vaishyam; Vaishyashakti 1: 237, 537, 632 2:11-12 3:452 4:58, 268 5:85 8:54 11:451-52 13, 321, 492-93, 498, 505 14:111, 189, 324, 349-51, 353, 355 15:5, 7-8, 117, 151, 269, 463-64, 583, 627 17: 121, 211 21:714 23: 675 26: 129 27: 359-60, 362, 452 II: 61, 66 111:5, 8, 14 XV: 73 XVIII: 136 XIX: 5-7
Vaivaswata Manu See Manu(s)
Vaja(s) the youngest of the three RIBHUS, the Plenitude. (A) 10:326-27, 330
Vajasaneyi a name of the Isha Upanishad, because it occurs in the Vajasaneyi Samhita of the Shukia (White) Yajur-veda. (Dow.) 12: 393
Vajashravasa Vajasravasa, descendant of Vajasravas; patronymic of Nachiketas. (V. Index) 12:237
Vak See Vach
Vala in the Veda, the chief of the Panis (lords of the lower sense mentality), the enemy who keeps for himself the Light; the personification of the sub-conscient. (V.G.; I & G) Var: Bala Der: Balabhid (one who has pierced Bala) 4: 22 10: 44, 88, 120, 122, 134, 137-38, 140-41, 148-49, 159, 161, 170, 172, 174, 177, 182-83, 187, 219-21, 223, 232-33, 250, 304, 309-10, 511, 534 11:17.29 VIII: 147 XV: 49, 56 XVI: 131 XVII: 45, 58-59 XIX: 54
Valahan slayer of VALA ; an epithet of Indra. (A) 10:88
Valarus in Sri Aurobindo's //("on, one of Penthesilea's captains; a son of Supaures. He was sent by Penthesilea to slay Achilles and his men who were coming to the rescue of the routed Hellenes. Valarus was killed by Echemus and Ascanus. (M.I.) 5: 455, 516, 518-19
Valentine a proposed character a courtier mentioned in the Dramatis Personae of Sri Aurobindo's play The Witch ofllni. 7: 1057
Valery, Paul Ambroise (1871-1945), French poet, essayist and critic, whose work is notable for the range and subtlety of its views and sensibility of its language. (Enc. Br.) 9: .445, 475
Valhika SeeVahlika
Vali Vali (also written Bali), in the Ramayana, the monkey-king of Kiskindha. In a duel with his younger brother Sugriva, he was killed by Rama who had become a friend and ally of Sugriva. (M.W.; Dow.) Var: Bali 17:119 22:41-3, 415-16 XXII: 169
Valkyries in Norse mythology, maidens who served the god Odin and were sent by him to the battlefields to choose the slain who were worthy of a place in Valhalla, the Scandinavian equivalent of ELYSIUM. These foreboders of war rode to the battlefields on horses, wearing helmets and shields. (Enc. Br.; M.I.) n 5:457
Vallabhacharya (1479-1531), Hindu saint and philosopher who founded the devotional sect known as the Pusti-Marga (Way of Divine Grace). He was a devotee of Krishna. (Enc. Br.) 1: 646 14: 132
Vallabh Swami "the Indian EPICURUS"; probably Swami Vallabhacharya is meant. His followers in Bombay and Gujarat and their leaders are called the Epicureans of India. (A; M.W.) 3:32
Valmiki(e) celebrated Indian sage who is believed to have been the first poet (Adi-kavi), and the author of the great epic the Ramayana, which he in the Vedic sense of the word is said to have "seen". He himself is represented as taking part in some of the scenes he describes. He received the banished Sita into his hermitage at Chitrakuta, and educated her twin sons Lava and Kusha. The work of Valmiki has been an agent of almost incalculable power in the moulding of the cultural mind of India. The figures created by him have become objects of enduring cult and worship, as in the cases of Rama and Sita, or living human images of ethical ideals, as in the cases of Bharata, Lakshmana, and Hanuman. (D.I.H.; Dow; A) Var: Valmeki(e) Der: Valmikian 3: 106, 137, 148-50, 153-54, 156, 158-60, 163-66, 174-76, 185, 187, 201, 213, 217-21, 223, 227, 229, 237, 243, 253, 276, 285, 295, 297, 322 4: 14 5:331 9: 30, 36, 76-77, 150, 206, 310, 334, 381, 521-23 14: 197, 236, 290, 320 17: 69, 103, 182, 383 22: 413-15, 417-19 26: 226, 234 27: 81, 98-99, 104, 154, 248 29: 739 I: 27 III: 14, 19 X: 145, 158, 173 XI: 15 Valois the royal house of France which ruled from 1328 to 1589. The Valois kings continued the work of unifying France and centralizing royal power begun under their predecessors, the Capetians (see Capet(s)). (Enc. Br.) 16: 324
Page 335
Vamadeva (Gautama) a Vedic Rishi, son or descendant of Gotama. He is the author of all but three of the hymns of the 4th Man dalaoftheRig-veda. a 9:207 10:55, 97-103, 106-08, 112, 127, 143, 161, 185, 190-91, 195-97, 296-99, 306, 313, 317, 320, 323, 342, 446 11:5-6, 161, 465, 477, 488 12: 362 14: 267 18: 1 VI: 144 XIV: 133
Varna Marga one of the two forms of worship in Tantra, the "left-hand" path. It is addressed to the fierce forms of the Shakti. Its spiritual discipline involves ritualized sensory experiences. The followers of this Marga (Path) are known as Vamacaris. (Dow.;Enc.Br.) n 16:336 20:37
Vamana the Dwarf, in Hindu mythology, one of the ten incarnations of Vishnu, born as a son of Kashyapa and Aditi. The titan King Bali had by his austerities acquired dominion of all the three worlds. To remedy this, Vishnu came to him in the form of a dwarf and begged of him as much land as he could step over in three paces. Bali complied. In two strides the dwarf covered heaven and earth, and with the third step, on Bali's head, pushed him down to Patala, the infernal regions. (Dow.) 4:114 13:157, 161
Vanara the second type from below of the ten forms of consciousness in the evolutionary scale of man. The Vanara is not the animal Ape, but man with the Ape nature. In this stage the mind of man is concentrated ontheprana. (A) VI: 183-84, 189, 193
Vandal (member) of a Germanic race that ravaged Gaul, Spain, North Africa, and Rome, destroying many books and works of art in the 5th century AD. Its name has remained a synonym for wilful desecration or destruction. (C.O.D.; Enc. Br.) a 15:79 17: 277 V: 95
Vande Mataram See Bande Mataram
The Vanity of Human Wishes a didactic poem by Samuel Johnson, his longest and best poem, published in 1749. (Ox. Comp.; Enc. Br.) II: 16
Vanga (Vangah), name of the people of Vanga, one of the five divisions of Gauda (Bengal) made by Vallalasena, who ruled from 1159 to 1179 (see Bengal). XVIII: 136
Vaniya See Vaishya
Varaha the Boar; in Hindu mythology, the third of the ten incarnations of Vishnu. To recover the earth which had been dragged down to the bottom of the ocean by a demon named Hiranyaksa, Vishnu assumed the form of a boar and, after a contest lasting a thousand years, slew the demon and brought the earth up, lifting it on his tusks. (Dow.) D XIV: 119
Varahamihira (505-87), Indian philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician; author of Panca Siddhantika, "Five Treatises", a compendium of all astronomy known at that time. His knowledge of Western astronomy was thorough. In his book he displays a knowledge of Greek, Egyptian, and Roman astronomy. Tradition places him as one of the nine "gems" at the court of Vikramaditya. His Vrhat Samhita is a well-known technical treatise on astrology. (Enc. Br.; Apte;M.W.) 17:193
Varendra name of a place in Rajshahi district of the former province of Bengal (now in Bangladesh). See also Bengal ("five Bengals") 17: 301
Varma, Ravi See Ravivarma, Raja
Varouna See Varuna
Varshneya (Varsneya), an epithet of Krishna (descendant of Vrsni see Vrishny). 0 [Indexed with Krishna]
Vartabaha a journal of Rangpur (now in Bangladesh), a 1: 744 Varuna1 one of the oldest of the Vedic deities. Lord ofWideness, who represents the ethereal purity and oceanic wideness of the infinite Truth. He is often associated with Mitra, he being the ruler of night and Mitra of the day. In later times Varuna was chief among the lower celestial deities called Adityas. Later still, in the Puranas, he became the sovereign of the waters, a god of the seas and rivers, which character he still retains. (Dow.; V. G.) Var: Varouna Der: Varunian 3: 278 4: 22, 36-39 5: 301, 545 8: 31, 129 10: 19, 27, 53, 64-66, 69-73, 86, 106, 154, 159, 181-82, 197, 238, 257, 271, 282, 286, 289-90, 326, 329, 335, 342, 370, 377, 404, 415, 425, 427-28, 432, 437-40, 442-73, 475, 477, 479-81, 483-88, 521, 531-36 11: 10, 22, 31, 46, 61, 81, 116-17, 119, 135, 143, 161-62, 165, 167, 172, 178, 193, 206, 213, 240, 252, 266, 309, 323, 325, 329, 335, 362, 391-92, 396, 405-06, 412, 445, 466, 470, 494 12: 317, 326, 337-40, 472-73 13: 349, 374 15: 234, 596 16: 254, 297, 337 17:85, 257, 342 18:6 19:743, 889 22:390 27: 158 IV: 139-40 V: 5, 9, 26, 68 VI: 148-49 VII: 32 X: 159, 179-80 XIII: 54, 61 XIV: 108, 110, 114, 130 XV: 13-15, 21, 28, 44-52 XVI: 137, 143, 166, 176 XVII: 14, 45
Page 336
Varuna2 name of a Rishi mentioned in the Rig-veda (10.124.1, 5-9); father of Bhrigu. a VII: 59, 71 VIII: 180
Varunani Gauri and Varunani were the principal consorts of the god Varuna. (Pur. Enc.) D XV: 29 Varuni(e) (Varuni), in Hindu mythology, daughter of Varuna and the goddess of wine. She is said to have emerged from the waters as a result of the churning of the Milky Ocean. (Dow.;M.N.) 3:278 5:199 7: 951 X: 159
Vasantasena heroine of the drama Mrcchakat.ika, "TOY CART", written by King Sudraka. (Dow.) Var: Vasuntsena 3:297 X: 161
Vasavadutta a character daughter of Chunda Mahasegn and Ungarica in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta, a dramatic romance based on a fable taken from Somadeva's Kathdsaritsagara. (A) Var: Vasavadatta 6:207, 214-15, 219, 250, 252-55, 259-70, 273-81, 283-99, 301-03, 305, 307-09, 311, 313, 315, 317-18, 320, 322, 324, 328-29 7: 748
Vasis(h)tha (Maitravaruni) a celebrated Vedic sage, one of the seven great Rishis. He is also classed among the Prajapatis who sprang from Brahma. But a hymn in the Rig-veda and the commentaries thereon assign him a different origin, or rather a second birth; they represent him to have sprung from Mitra and Varuna (hence his patronymic "Maitravaruni"). Vasishthais said to have been the family priest of Ikshwaku and his descendants down to the sixty-first generation. There was a special rivalry and enmity between him and the sage VISHWAMITRA. (Dow.) Var: Vasishta Der: Vasishthas (Vasisthas, descendants of Vasistha) 4:17-18, 24, 26, 29 10:13, 54-55, 105-06, 108, 112, 121, 128-30, 144, 180, 187, 189.206, 217, 451-52, 464 11: 287, 303, 305-06, 309, 430, 433 13: 39 17: 95 22: 333 XIV: 108-09, 133
Vasouluxmy See Vasuluxmie
Vasu See Vasu(s)
Vasudeva1 (Vasudeva), in the Mahabharata, son of Siirasena in the Yadava branch of the Lunar race. He was the father of Krishna; and Kunti, the mother of the Pandavas, was Vasudeva's sister. (Dow.) n VI: 137
Vasudeva2 (Vasudeva), a name of Krishna (son of Vasudeva); the omnipresent Being, the eternal Being. (A) l-i (Indexed with Krishna]
Vasudeva, Poundrian See Poundrian Vasudeva Vasuki(e) m the Hindu mythology, king of the Nagas or serpents who live in Patala. He was used by the gods and Asuras as a rope wound round the mountain Mandara at the churning of the Ocean. (Dow.) Var: Vasuquie 3: 277 5: 252 13: 349 27: 159 X: 158-59
Vasukrit Vasukra (Vasukrt Vasukra), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Vasukra. 11: 396
Vasuluxmie a character sister Of Queen Dharinie in Kalidasa's drama Malavikagnimitram partially translated by Sri Aurobindo under the title Malavica and the King. Var: Vasouluxmy a 3: 287 8: 141 X: 120, 171
Vasuntha(ca) a character King Vuthsa's friend and companion in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. 6: 207, 217, 226-33, 236-39, 242-43, 299-302, 321
Vasuntsena See Vasantasena
Vasuquie See Vasuki(e)
Vasu(s) a class of Vedic deities, eight in number, chiefly known as attendants of Indra. They were originally personifications, like other Vedic deities, of natural phenomena. According to the Vishnu Purana, the Vasus are Apa (water), Dhruva (pole-star), Soma (moon), Dhava or Dhara (earth), Anila (wind), Anala (fire), Pratusa (dawn), and Prabhasa (light); but their names are variously given. (Dow.;M.W.) 10:107, 181-82, 188-89 11: 143, 300, 494 12: 258 13:349 111:48, 50 XIII: 62 XIV: 110 XVI: 133, 144 XVII: 35
Vasushruta a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. (B.P.C.) D 11:206 Vasuyus name of several Vedic Rishis, descendants of Atri. a ll: 237
Vatal Vatel (fl. 17th cent.), a French cook, famous in the time of Louis XIV. (Col. Enc.) 14: 66
Vatsa Agneya (Vatsa Agneya), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Agni. 11:434
Vatsa (Kanwa) (Vatsa Kanva), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Kanva. 11:321-22
Vatsapri Bhalandana (Vatsapri Bhalandana), a Vedic Rishi, son of Bhalandana. 11: 400
Vauban Sebastien Ie Prestre de Vauban (1633-1707), French military engineer who revolutionized the art of siegecraft and defensive fortification in the context of firearms. (Enc. Br.) 14:66
Page 337
Vavri a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. 11:231
Vayu (Vayu), the wind-god, in the Vedic system the master of Life, inspirer of that Breath or Dynamic energy called Prana, which is represented in man by the vital and nervous activities. He is often associated with Indra riding in the same chariot with him. There are not many Vedic hymns addressed to him. In later mythology, Vayu is the reputed father of Hanuman and Bhima. (Dow.;V.G.) Var: Vaiou 4: 37-38, 43 10: 48, 65, 68-70, 72-73, 80, 86, 162, 165, 213, 256, 294-95, 297-302, 335-36, 406, 438, 534 11: 22, 32, 44-45, 300, 445, 494 12: 64, 67, 130, 149-50, 158, 160, 217-19, 262, 317, 322, 326, 471 13:374 14:180 16:350 17:342 18: 324 22: 390 27: 158, 334-35 V: 68 VII: 39 IX: 11 XIII: 61 XV: 6, 13, 20, 44, 52 XVII: 14, 33, 45
Veda The Vedas are the oldest holy books of India, perhaps the oldest of such works in the world. They are the foundation of the Hindu religion. The hymns they contain, written in an old form of Sanskrit, are said to have been "revealed" to the Rishis, and subsequently were transmitted orally from generation to generation. They continued to be so handed down even after they had been collected and arranged by Krishna Dwaipayana (Veda Vyasa). It is not known when they were committed to writing. The Vedas are four in number: Rig, Yajur, Sdma, and Atharva. In reality the Rig-veda is the Veda; many of its hymns occur with a different arrangement in the other three Vedas. According to some scholars, each Veda is divided into four parts: Samhita, Brahmana, Aranyaka, and Upanisad. But generally the term "Veda" is reserved for the Samhita, the metrical hymns. (Dow.) Der: Vedavada; Vedavadin; Vedic; Vedicism; Vedism; Vedist. 1:513-14, 799 2:7, 19, 353-54 3:4, 91, 105, 116-17, 142, 146, 162, 199, 461 4: pre., 17, 21-30, 36, 43-46, 53-54, 113, 128, 251-52, 373 5: 78, 191, 201, 209, 217, 222, 368, 579 8: 9, 56, 82, 89, 128, 383, 399, 405 9: 8, 18-19, 29, 42, 106, 114, 166, 190, 195, 199-201, 204-05, 208, 220-22, 235-36, 245, 269-70, 279, 322, 339-40, 360, 510 10: passim 11: 1-21, 23-26, 29-30, 34-35, 76, 163, 172, 238, 243, 439, 441, 443, 445-49, 452, 454-56, 459-60, 462, 465-88, 492, 496-99 12: 24, 38, 53, 59, 63-65, 67-68, 71, 82, 85-86, 88, 96, 121, 124, 130, 133-35, 151, 159, 165, 168, 170-71, 177, 199, 202-03, 209, 217, 225-26, 231-32, 247, 271, 273, 275, 286, 319, 321, 324-25, 334-36, 343, 369, 373, 381, 387, 393, 397-98, 400, 408, 410, 441-42, 447, 455, 458-59, 478, 520-22, 532 13: 2, 7, 9, 18, 78, 80-86, 92, '95, 102-06, 108-10, 112, 129, 145, 163, 261, 314, 316-17, 333, 350, 380, 398, 429, 432-33, 462, 474-75, 495, 497 14: 17, 20, 68, 80, 99, 110, 115, 125, 129, 131, 134, 136-37, 141:48, 150-54, 157, 159, 163, 166, 170, 180, 185, 188, 233, 256, 258-63, 265-69, 271-72, 274-76, 280, 282-87, 291, 311-13, 316, 324, 326, 347-48, 358, 364, 367, 371, 407, 418-19 15: 3-5, 159, 240, 253, 339, 545 16: 23, 127, 167, 228-29, 255, 260, 263, 271, 283-84, 297, 324-25, 328, 335, 337, 339, 343, 349, 352, 360, 364-65, 369-70, 404, 412, 419-20 17: 50, 62, 99, 122-23, 172, 272, 278, 292-93, 297, 305, 334-43, 350, 369, 393-94, 397, 402 18: 13-14, 34, 48, 69, 109, 115, 124-25, 136, 153, 155, 172, 252, 257- 264, 267, 277, 280, 323, 396, 483, 485, 490, 603 19: 687-88, 915, 934 20: 38, 42, 47, 49-50, 55, 87, 123, 125, 256, 310, 372, 382, 400, 429, 446, 454, 461-62, 465, 467, 483 21: 558, 570, 572, 706, 747, 805 22: 1-3, 64, 73, 79, 82, 92, 96, 102-03, 110-11, 158, 178, 215, 243, 265, 364, 393, 395, 443 23: 749, 908, 910, 954, 967, 971, 973, 985 24: 1236, 1735 25: 77, 384, 390 26: 12, 19, 68, 112, 134, 231, 243, 265, 277, 415, 425, 483 27: 93, 143, 152, 161, 163, 166, 170-71, 179-84, 187, 192, 211, 233, 252, 256, 270, 272, 281, 299-300, 302-03, 305, 313, 325, 334-35, 338, 355, 369, 399, 408, 424, 433-34, 437, 440, 456, 511 28:74 29:739, 745, 789, 806 1:5, 8, 28, 31, 57 11:37, 67-68 111:55-56 IV: 125-31, 133-34, 140-41, 143, 146-47, 149, 151, 153, 178 V: 19, 36, 39, 42, 51, 55, 58, 60.67-68, 71, 75-76, 89, 94 VI: 127, 131, 137, 155-56, 169, 173, 175-77 VII: 39, 42, 59, 63, 66, 68, 71, 74, 76 VIII: 155, 164-71, 176, 178, 180-83, 186, 194 IX: 5-7, 9, 21, 24, 26 XI: 35 XII: 126, 151 XIII: 9, 38 XIV: 116-33, 135, 137, 141-43, 146-50, 153, 156-57, 159-60, 164 XV: 3-29, 31-33, 35-36, 38, 40-41, 43-52, 55 XVI: 132-79, 186 XVII: 12, 14-38, 40-48, 50, 52-56, 58-60, 70 XVIII: 150, 152-54, 156-59, 161-68 XIX: 80 XX: 117 XXI: 5, 7, 11, 17, 21, 30, 39
Vedangas branches of study regarded as auxiliary to the Vedas. These Sad-angas or six subjects necessary to be studied for the reading, understanding, and proper sacrificial employment of the Vedas are: (1) Siksa (phonetics, or pronunciation); (2) Chandas (metre); (3) Vyakarana (grammar); (4) Nirukta (etymology or glossary); (5) Jyotisa (astronomy); (6) Kalpa (ceremonial, or rules for applying the Vedas to the performance of sacrifice). (Enc. Br.; Dow.) D 11:7
Vedanta "end or culmination of the Veda": the ultimate and highest knowledge and fulfilment towards which the practices and strivings of the Vedic Rishis mounted, extricated from the voluminous mass of the
Page 338
Vedic poems and presented according to the inner realisation of great Rishis like Yajnavalkya and Janaka in a more modern style and language. Vedanta is one of the six Darshanas (or systems of orthodox Hindu philosophy), a school of philosophy based on the Upanishads. Purva-mimdmsd and Uttara-mimdfhsd are both included in the general term Vedanta, but only the latter is commonly known as Vedanta, and is mainly based on the Brahma-sutras by the 2nd- century writer Badarayana. There are many systems of the Vedanta philosophy, depending upon different interpretations of the Upanishads. (I&G;Dow.;A&R, XVII: 32) Der: Vedantic; Vedantin; Vedantised;Vedantism;Vedanticity : 67, 70, 122, 143, 514, 534, 602, 626, 714, 758, 902-03 2: 7, 13, 19-20, 29-30, 39, 42, 106, 148, 174, 212, 259, 396, 425-26 3: 116-17, 148, 162, 170-71, 174, 214, 222, 343-44, 364, 386-87, 422, 458 4: 24, 38, 46, 127-28, 144, 171, 298-300, 312, 328 5: 49, 581 7: 911 9: 105, 201, 308, 334, 436, 541 10: 1, 6, 11, 13, 25, 33, 37, 42, 56, 60, 98, 139, 192, 198, 259, 274, 283, 338, 341, 546, 563 11: 16, 18, 21, 469-70, 499 12: pre., 2, 5, 7, 11, 14, 16, 18, 23, 25-27, 30-34, 36, 39-40, 44, 71, 96, 102, 118-20, 134, 136, 168, 175, 194, 209, 224-25, 231, 285, 382, 393, 397-98, 400, 407-08, 416, 425, 427, 440-41, 447, 452, 456, 461, 478, 489, 494, 498, 510, 517, 520, 523-24, 526, 528-30, 532, 534, 536-38 13: 5-8, 10-11, 55, 62-65, 69-72, 74-76, 78-80, 82-86, 97, 100, 104-05, 108, 112-13, 117, 138, 142-43, 147, 164, 189, 197-98, 203, 205, 224, 240-41, 254-55, 285, 326, 341, 383, 396, 399, 429-30, 432, 538 14: 11, 14-17, 37, 81, 98, 134-35, 146-47, 150-51, 154, 181, 199-200, 205, 233, 271-72, 276, 315, 319, 348, 380, 417-19 15: 4, 599 16: 90-93, 127, 263, 310, 335, 339, 341, 347-51, 368, 370 17: 44, 104, 117, 122-23, 153, 165-66, 172, 181, 183, 265, 269, 283, 291-92, 306-07, 401-02 18: 3, 14, 22, 24, 34, 43, 57-58, 60, 65-70, 73, 76, 78, 91-92, 95, 109, 114, 128, 148, 184, 259, 427, 490, 492. 504-06, 570 19: 635, 643, 668, 753-54, 780, 997 20: 21, 38, 125, 142, 257, 292, 327, 353, 365, 372, 399, 409, 429, 507 21: 586, 720 22: 5, 11, 32, 39, 41, 43, 46, 56-60, 62-64, 67-68, 72-73, 79-80, 90, 97, 113, 117-20, 150, 190, 210-11, 216, 266 23: 507, 510, 556-57, 657, 726, 769, 773, 1008, 1048, 1067, 1071 24: 1193, 1604, 1630 25: 53, 65 26:16, 79, 81, 104, 112, 114, 124, 132-33, 138, 257, 261, 354, 383, 460 27: 64, 182-84, 205, 218, 242, 247, 252-53, 264-65, 268-70, 292, 294-95, 299-302, 304, 309-10, 313-14, 318, 322, 324, 328, 333, 337-40, 399, 424, 430, 434, 439, 442-43, 450, 453-54, 456-60, 469, 472-73, 476-77 29: 753, 799 I: 5, 38, 45, 49-50 III: 14, 65-66, 69-72, 76-77 IV: 159, 161-63, 169-70, 172, 178 V: 46-48, 50, 53, 55-56, 59-61, 67-68, 72, 75-77, 79-80, 82-83, 88, 97 VI: 156-59, 164, 168-70, 175, 177, 180 VII: 2, 13, 41, 43-44, 47, 58-60, 62-63, 65, 70, 72-76, 78 VIII: 133, 156, 158-59, 163-64, 166, 168, 182, 184-85 IX: 13, 20, 24-26 XI: 7, 17, 36 XII: 140, 145, 148, 150-51, 176 XIII: 24, 27, 36 XIV: 118, 120, 123-26, 128-31, 133, 137, 139, 141-46, 150, 152, 154-55, 159, 164 XV: 3, 6-16, 18-19, 23-26, 33-34, 37-38, 46-47 XVI: 132, 134-35, 139-40, 142, 144, 153, 155, 172, 180-84, 188 XVII: 9-10, 17, 23-24, 27-29, 32-35, 37-38, 40, 54, 59 XVIII: 154-58, 161, 165, 167, 186-88 XIX: 57, 69 XXI: 39 Vedanta Sutra(s) See Brahma-sutras.
Vedaranya A slip has obviously occurred here (27: 322). It was VIDYARANYA who excluded the Ishopanishad from his list of authoritative Upanishads. Sri Aurobindo himself said this in an article (in Bengali) on the Isha Upanishad (see 4:47). There was no one named Vedaranya among the known followers of Shankaracharya. 1-1 27: 322
Veda Vyasa See Vyas(a)
Veena a character perhaps a handmaiden in the royal chamber in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. 6: 251
Vega Lope Felix de Vega Carpio (1562-1635), an outstanding dramatist of the Spanish Golden Age. (Enc. Br.) 7:825
Velasquez or Velazquez (full name: Diego Rodriguez de Silva y Velazquez) (1599- 1660), most famous painter of the Spanish school. (Col. Enc.) D 7:840, 854, 862
Veljee Veiji Meghji (1883- ? ), a disciple Of Sri Aurobindo, who lived in the Ashram from 1932 to 1940. He came from Cutch. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Vena In the Veda, Vena is Soma; the master of mental delight of existence, creator of the sense-mind. See also Soma. (A) n 10: 99
Vena(s) name of a clan of divine beings (who along with the Gandharvas presumably correspond to the Hebraic Cherubim). [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Venice capital of Venezia province and of Veneto region in northeastern Italy, built on 118 alluvial islets within a lagoon in the Gulf of Venice (northern end of the Adriatic Sea) as well as on the mainland about the lagoon's perimeter. Between the islets run 160 canals, mostly very narrow, crossed by hundreds of bridges. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Venetian 14: 203, 349 15: 338 22: 454
Venkata Hill Venkatagiri, a hill (giri) in Tamil Nadu. (S.Atlas) 8:404
Page 339
Venkataraman K. S. Venkataraman (b. 1890; d. early 1970s), a disciple of Sri Aurobindo, who first came to the Ashram in 1917 and joined it as an inmate in 1928. (B.G.) VII: 83 XII: 156
Venumani son of a well-to-do Indian Christian staying in the house behind Sri Aurobindo's house (Guest House). [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]
Venus' in astronomy, the planet whose orbit lies between those of Mercury and Earth, second in order from the Sun. Other than the sun and the moon, it is ordinarily the brightest object in the sky. It is known as SHUKRA in Hindu astronomy. (Col. Enc.) 3: 43 17: 259
Venus2 in ancient Roman religion, a goddess of vegetation. Later, in 3rd century BC, she became identified with the Greek Aphrodite, the goddess of love, beauty and fertility. (Enc. Br.) 2: 73 5: 32 7: 830, 876, 1065 10: 352
Venus Anadyomene Venus, one with Anadyomene. The Roman goddess Venus was identified with the Greek Aphrodite (see Venus2) who was known as Anadyomene in her aspect of rising from the sea. Varunie of Hindu mythology also sprang from the sea (Milky Ocean), hence Sri Aurobindo calls her Venus Anadyomene. (The story of Aphrodite rising from the sea is as follows: the Titan Cronus, in response to the appeal of Gaea, castrated Uranus with a scimitar as he approached Gaea. From the drops of blood that fell upon her were born the Erinnyes, the Giants, and the ash-tree nymphs called the Meliai. The severed genitals floated on the sea, producing a white foam from which sprang the goddess of love, Aphrodite.) (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 3: 278 X: 159
Venus and Adonis an earlier work (1593) of Shakespeare; it is one of the two narrative poems ascribed to him, and was dedicated by him to his patron. Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton. (Col. Enc.) 3:252
Venus Ourania (Ourania is the Greek form of Uranian), the goddess of pure and heavenly love. Uranian was a title of Aphrodite who, according to Hesiod, sprang from the seed of Uranus, the sky-god. Since the Roman goddess Venus became identified with Aphrodite (see Venus2), the title of the latter, Ourania or Uranian, has been appended to the name of Venus as well. There is some linguistic and other relation between Uranus (from whom "Uranian" comes) and the Indian god Varuna. Varunie was the daughter of Varuna; Sri Aurobindo, therefore, calls her Venus Ourania. (Ox. Comp.; Pears; Dow.) 3:278 Veriaine, Paul (1844-96), among the most gifted of the French lyric poets of the later 19th century. He gained notice with his Parnassian poetry, and became a well-known figure in the Bohemian literary circles of Paris. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 9:96, 107, 422, 445, 475, 510 26: 277
Vernon a character participating in "A Dialogue", written by Sri Aurobindo in 1891 or thereabouts. (A & R, II: 91) a II: 7
Verona episcopal see and capital of Verona province, Veneto, northern Italy, west of Venice. It is, in northern Italy, one of the richest cities in Roman ruins, of which the most notable is the Arena, now used for opera. (Enc. Br.) 1-1 III: 24
Verosegn See Virasena
Vers I'Avenir a play (in French) written by the Mother of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry. 26: 508
Vibhishan(a) in the Ramayana, a younger brother of Ravana. He was upright and opposed to the depredations of his fellow Rakshasas. When he sagely advised Ravana to return Sita to Rama, Ravana grew furious and kicked him from his seat. Vibhisana then allied himself with Rama, who received and embraced him as a friend. After the defeat and death of Ravana, Vibhishana was installed by Rama on the throne of Lanka. The term Vibhishana has come to be used as a nickname for one who, secretly or openly, sympathises with, helps, or becomes an ally of an adversary or enemy. (Dow.) Var: Bibhishan 2: 60, 75, 80, 238 22: 416
Vibhu or Vibhwa "the Pervading", "the Self-diffusing"; in the Veda, one of the three RIBHUS, the second in the order of their birth. (A) 10: 326-27, 330
Vichitravirya in the Mahabharata, the younger son of King Santanu by Satyavati. He succeeded to the throne when his elder brother Citrangada was killed in battle. As he died prematurely of consumption, his sons Dhritarashtra and Pandu were brought up by Bhishma, his half-brother. (M.N.; Dow.) 3: 190, 199 13: 13
Page 340
Victor Amadeus Victor Amadeus II (1666-1732), Duke of Savoy who through his diplomacy became (1720) the first king of Sardinia-Piedmont and thus established the foundation for the future Italian national state. (Enc. Br.) 1: 506
Victor Emmanuel probably, Victor Emmanuel II (1820-78), Italian king of Sardinia-Piedmont and first king of united Italy (1861-78). (Col. Enc.) a 17:385
Victoria (1819-1901), Queen of England (1837-1901) and Empress of India (1876- 1901). Her reign was the longest in English history. It restored dignity and popularity to the British crown and may have saved the monarchy from abolition. The term "Victorian" in English literature is used (1) to designate broadly the literature written during the reign of Queen Victoria, or bearing its characteristic qualities and attitudes, and (2) more narrowly, to suggest a certain complacency or hypocrisy or squeamishness more or less justly assumed to be traceable to or similar to prevailing Vic- torian attitudes. (Pears; Enc. Br.; H.L.) Der: Victorian 9: 20, 53, 63, 132-33, 135-36, 138-39, 141-42, 144, 156, 172-73, 246, 346-47, 456, 550 22:189-90 26:255, 263 27:115
Victoria Cross the highest British military decoration, given for deeds of exceptional valour, founded by Queen Victoria in 1856. (Web.;C.O.D.) VI: 201
Victoria Memorial Hall a stately building in the midst of spacious grounds in Calcutta. It was conceived and carried out by Lord Curzon, who was desirous of founding a grand monument to British rule in India. It is built of white Jodhpur marble. In this hall are kept collections of pictures, statues, historical documents and other objects of interest especially of the Victorian Era. (D.I.H.;Gaz.-II;Guide) 1:396, 420 Vicuma' a character - a son of King Mahasegn of Avunthie - in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. 6:207, 234-35, 246-48, 281-83, 304-07, 309-10, 313-15, 317-20, 323-26, 329
Vicuma2 in the Mahabharata, a son of Dhritarashtra. He was a great hero. (M.N.) Var: Vikama 3: 194 4: 76 8: 77
Vidarbha an ancient name of Birar or Berar in Maharashtra, also probably including the adjoining district of Beder. The old name of the region has revived in popular usage. See afaoBerar(s). (Dow.) Var: Vidurbha Der: Vidarbhan; Vidurbhan 8: 135, 144-45 12:295, 299 X: 116, 125
Videha I. originally, an epithet (meaning "bodiless") or a name of King Nimi, who had shed the body-ego. Later all the kings in the dynasty, including Janaka, were known as Videha. 2. name of the country ruled by King Videha; sometimes it was also called MITHILA. The people of the country were referred to as Videhas. (M.N.) 3:189 8: 16 VI: 155
Vidisha a historic town and district in Bhopal division of Madhya Pradesh. The town, headquarters of the district, lies just east of the Betwa River in the northeast corner of the fertile Malwa Plateau. Vidisha is of great antiquity, mentioned in the Maha- bharata and the Ramayana. In modern times, until a few years ago, the place was known as Bhilsa (or Bhelsa), which is probably a corruption of Vidisha. (Enc. Br.) 0 3:215, 289 8:135 X: 116, 176
Vidula m the Mahabharata, queen of Sauvira, who reproached her son Sanjaya for deserting the battlefield, defeated by the king of Sindhu. Thus indirectly encouraged by his mother, Sanjaya returned to the battle, fought bravely, and was victorious. This episode comprises four chapters in the Udyoga-parva of the Mahabharata. (M.N.; Nari). 1: 399 8: 61, 63, 65
Vidula one of the longer poems of Sri Aurobindo, conceived and written in Bengal during a period of intense, political activity, and first published in Bande Mataram in 1907 under the title The Mother to her Son. It is based on the episode of Vidula and Sanjaya in the Mahabharata. It is not a close trans- lation, but rather a free poetic paraphrase. .(A) 8: 61 26: 12, 44
Vidura in the Mahabharata, a son of Vyasa by a Sudra slave-girl. He was known for his wisdom and gave good advice to both the Kauravas and the Pandavas. In the war he sided with the latter. (Dow.) 3:192, 194 4: 71 22: 406 23: 676 26:130
Vidurbha; Vidurbhan See Vidarbha
Vidyadhar(a) in Hindu mythology, a class of inferior deities (Gandharvas, Kinnaras, Yak- shas, etc.) inhabiting the regions between the earth and the sky and generally of bene- volent disposition. They are attendants upon Indra, but they have their own chiefs and kings. (Dow.; Pur. Enc.) 6:265 VI: 183 Vidyapati (1360-1475?), an Indian poet, born in MITHILA, famous for his Padavali, a collection of poems written in Maithili, a
Page 341
dialect of northern India with affinities both to Hindi and Bengali. "He was a consum- mate artist of word and line" (14: 318). (Enc.Ind.;A) Var: Bidyapati Q 4: pre. 8: 219, 226, 236, 242, 256-57, 259, 263 14: 256, 318 '
Vidyaranya (fl. 14th cent.), the name by which Madhavacharya was known as a san- nyasin. Later he became the Shankaracharya of Shringeri Math. He was brother of the commentator Sayana, and was himself a brilliant commentator on all the four Vedas. He wrote books on various subjects, the most famous of which is Panchadasi on Vedanta. Vidyaranya was the chief coun- sellor to the Vijayanagar rulers and was principally reponsible for propagating the glory of the Vijayanagar dynasty and par- ticularly its administrative traditions. He had a rare combination of statesmanship, erudition, spiritual knowledge and sagacity. See also Vedaranya. (Bh. S.K.; The Hindu, July 11, 1980) 3:123 4:47 14:21 VIII: 190
Vidyasagar, Isvar Chandra (1820-91), learned Sanskrit scholar, eminent educa- tionist, social reformer, and sage of Bengal. He laboured like a Titan to create a new Bengali language and a new Bengali society. He is considered the father of Bengali prose. (Enc. Br.) 1: 328 3: 78, 95-97 24: 1394
Vienna capital of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country on the Danube. (Enc. Br.) a XXI: 100
Vijaya' Vijaya is supposed to have gone from India and conquered Ceylon about the time that Gautama Buddha lived (6th century BC). In the Ajanta caves there is perhaps a representation of Vijaya crossing to Ceylon, with horses and elephants being carried across in ships. Vijaya gave the name of Sinhala to the island. (G.W.H., p. 103) 14: 241
Vijaya2 (Vijaya), in Kalidasa's poem Kumdrasambhavam, a friend of PARVATI. (A) 3:308 Vijayanagar(a) the kingdom of the last great Hindu dynasty of South India; also the name of its capital, which was founded in c. 1336 and was originally called Vidyanagara. The kingdom practically became extinct with the destruction of the city by Muslim forces in 1565. The site of tlie city on the Times New Roman- bhadra River is now partly occupied by the village of Hampi in Bellary district of Karnataka. (D.I.H-; Dow.; Enc. Br.) 3:215 14:377-78 26:411
Vijnanabhikshu 16th-century Hindu philosopher of the Sankhya school, perhaps the last acharya of the school, who lived in Kashi. He wrote commentaries on Sankhya, Yoga, and Vedanta. (Bh. Dar.) 12: 427 17: 291
VijnanaQoka) the Truth-plane, the supra- mental world; the same as Mahar(loka). (I&G) Var: Vijnanam 10:93, 293 12: 85-86, 124, 126, 140-41 17: 30, 64 20: 399, 465-67 XV: 25, 46 XVI: 154-55
Vikama See Vicurna2 Viking(s) Northern sea-robbers of the 9th to the llth century. The raids of these Scandinavian warriors on the coasts of Europe and the British Isles gave to that period the name "the Viking Age". Vikings are also known as NORSEMEN, and in eastern Europe as Varangirans. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 3:486 6:477 7:885-86 XV: 17
Vikramaditya a title, meaning "the Sun of Prowess", assumed by various ancient Indian kings. Tradition associates it with a king of Ujjayini, in whose court lived nine learned scholars (navaratna) including Kalidasa. This king, who was considered to be the repository of prowess and all virtues, was victorious over the Sakas. The Vikrama Era dating from 58-57 BC is attributed to this King Vikramaditya. There is, however, no histori- cal evidence of any such powerful king in the second half of the first century BC. Of the several historical sovereigns bearing the title of Vikramaditya, Chandragupta II, the third Gupta emperor (AD 380-415), is considered to have the best claims for being regarded as the original King Vikramaditya. (D.I.H.) Var: yikram(a) 3:11, 95, 213, 215, 229, 262 4:99 1:26
Vikram and the Nymph See Vikramorvasie
Vikramorvasie (also called by Sri Aurobindo Vikram and the Nymph, and in some places referred to simply as Urvasie), a Sanskrit play named Vikramorvasiyam written by Kalidasa; it is the second of his three extant dramas. A story of the love of Urvasie, the nymph, and Pururavas, the Vikram or hero, on which the play is based, was first told in the Satapatha Brahmana. Sri Aurobindo translated the play under the title The Hero andthe Nymph. (A;Enc.Br.) n 3:261, 276, 282, 287, 290, 295.323 7: 907, 911-12 9:433 26:235-36, 253 27:85 111:19 X: 141. 145, 154, 169, 174, 177
Vilata more correctly, Vilayata, an Arabic word meaning a "foreign country" or "other country".
Page 342
Originally used to signify Turkey or Iran, the term now connotes any country of Europe, especially the U. K. (U. H. S.) Var: Vileta Der: Vilati (of Vilayata) 4: pre., 154, 156, 176, 178-79, 184-85, 189, 192-94, 196, 204-06, 208-09, 212-14, 218, 221, 225, 233, 242, 266, 268, 273, 278, 330 XV: 62
Villa, Francisco ('Pancho'), (1878-1923), revolutionary and guerilla leader of Mexico. In 1909 he joined Francisco Madero's uprising against the dictator of Mexico, Porfirio Diaz. In 1913, combining his force with that of Venustiano CARRANZA, Villa revolted against the dictatorship of Huerta, and won several victories. But rivalry be- tween Villa and Carranza soon led to a break between the two and Villa was forced to flee Mexico City. He was assassinated. -(Enc. Br.; Web. N.C.D.; P.P.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]Villars Claude-Louis-Hector, due de Villars (1653-1734), marshal of France, the last of the great generals of Louis XIV, his most successful commander in the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-14). Villars was defeated by Marlborough and Eugene of Savoy at Malplaquet (1709), but he suc- cessfully defended the French frontier during the succeeding years. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 7: 847
Villenour a small town in former French India (now in the Union Territory of Pondicherry), about 7 km west of Pondicherry. a 27: 447, 449
Villipattan a small town (Srivilliputtur is probably the modern name) in the district of Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu. (Bhakta Ch.) n 17: 372
Vimada (Aindra or Prajapatya) (Vimada Aindra or Prajapatya), a Vedic Rishi, des- cendant of Indra or Prajapati. n ll: 396, 398 Vincent one of the highest police officials, perhaps Commissioner, of Bombay in 1909. (A)a 2:238 Vincent, Sir Howard Sir (Charles Edward) Howard Vincent (1849-1908), English public official; he was elected to Parliament as a Conservative in 1885 and retained the seat until his death. (Enc. Am.) 1-1 1: 435
Vindhya a broken mountain chain separating the plains of northern India from the southern plateau of the Deccan. Der:
Vindhyan 1:701 5:27, 335 6:229, 234, 305, 315 17:278 IX: 1, 2
Viola a character - sister of Sebastian - in Shakespeare'? romantic comedy Twelfth Night. (Shakes.) 12: 470 27: 207 I: 40
Viradha in the Ramayana, a horrible man- eating Rakshasa who encountered Rama, Lakshmana and Sita in the Dandaka forest during their exile. (Dow.) 8: 21-23 Virangana Kavya a set of twenty-one epistolary poems in Bengali, on the model of Ovid's Heriodes by Michael Madhusudan Dutt; it was published in 1862. (Enc. Br.) XIII: 53 Virasena in Kalidasa's drama Malavi- kdgnimitram (translated into English by Sri Aurobindo), brother of Dharinie, the queen ofVidisha. (A) Var: Verosegn 8: 143, 145 X: 122, 125
Virat(a) in the Mahabharata, king of a country known as Matsya. It was at his court that the Pandava princes and Draupadi lived in disguise. Virata fought on their side in the war and was killed by Drona. (Dow.) a 3: 161, 195, 200-01, 207 4: 75 8; 59, 77-78 IV: 115
Virat (Purusha) the universal or cosmic Soul; "God practical"; Lord of Waking-Life, who governs, preserves and maintains the sensible creation which Hiranyagarbha (see Hiranya- garbha', 2) has shaped. (A; A & R, I: 40) Var: Virat; Virat; Virat Vaisvanara 1: 533, 537 2: 148-49 3: 452, 483 9: 72, 478 11:447 12:11, 90, 103, 448, 471, 506, 508 13:315, 341 14:336 20:325, 355 22: 256 24: 1222 25: 68 29: 680-81 I: 40 III: 66 IX: 10 XV: 10 XXI: 28
Virgil sometimes spelled Vergil, full name: Publius Vergilius Maro (70-19 Be), the greatest Roman poet, best known for his epic the Aeneid. (Enc. Br.) Der: Virgilian 3: 55 5: 342, 346, 386 9: 32, 62, 76, 82-83, 85, 296-97, 303, 313, 315, 317-18, 372, 374-76, 387, 407, 434, 479, 521, 523-24, 546 14: 285, 298 17: 297 22: 451 26:227-28, 235, 262, 297-98, 338-40 29: 765, 774, 800, 803-04, 809, 815 XIII: 53
Virgin' (Latin, Virgo) the sixth sign of the zodiac. In Hindu astronomy it is known as Kanya, referred to by Sri Aurobindo as "GIRL", the literal translation of the word Virgo. (A) D 17:257
Virgin2; Virgin Mary See Mary
Viriathus (d. c. 139 Be), leader of a Lusitanian rebel movement in the Roman province of Farther Spain who inflicted a series of severe defeats on Roman forces
Page 343
from c. 147 to c. 139 BC. The rebellion collapsed soon after Viriathus' assassi- nation. (Enc. Br.) m: 23
Virochana in Hindu mythology, name of a Daitya, son of Prahlada and father of Bali. (Dow.) n 3:171, 177
Virupa (Angirasa) (Virupa Angirasa), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Angu-as. 11: 342, 365-66
Visaldeo a character - a Brahmin, Rana Curran's minister, formerly in the service of the Gehlote Prince of Edur - in Sri Aurobindo's drama Prince of Edur. 7: 739, 741-46, 750, 752-54
Vishn(o)u 1. in the Veda, the All-pervading Godhead, the Eternal Personality of Con- sciousness, the wide-moving One, that which has gone abroad triply extending himself as Seer, Thinker, and Former in the super- conscient Bliss. 2. i. the Mahabharata and the Puranas, the second member of the Triad, the embodiment ofsattva-guna, the preserving and restoring power. This power has manifested in the world as the various incarnations of Vishnu, generally accepted as being ten in number. Vishnu's heaven is Vaikuntha, his consort Lakshmi and his vehicle Garuda. He is portrayed as reclining on the serpent-king Sesa and floating on the waters between periods of cosmic manifes- tation. The holy river Ganga is said to spring from his foot. Of his several names and epithets, Hari, the most well-known, is indexed here. (A;V.G.; Dow.) 2:148, 429 3: 238-39, 299, 452 4: 22, 30, 314 5: 40, 60, 85, 199, 301 6: 212, 248 7: 951 8: 33, 127, 175, 191, 199, 206, 343-44, 346, 398, 400-01 10: 5, 102, 114, 144, 331-38, 342, 371, 422, 438, 447, 449, 461 11: 3, 22, 33, 81, 167, 172, 207, 379, 446-47, 449, 451-55, 466 12: 39, 48, 199, 251, 317, 326, 416, 448, 462, 478, 506, 508 13: 6, 85, 152, 157, 161, 264, 272, 349, 372, 412 14: 137, 151, 153, 312, 318 15: 118, 240, 592 16: 278, 319, 343, 360, 363 17: 47-48, 59, 98, 107, 119, 262, 272, 372, 374 18: 15, 42, 198, 486 20: 365 21: 561, 575, 708 22: 82, 245, 390-91, 404 23:789-90, 977-78 24:1335 25:56 27: 98-99, 159, 230, 325-26, 363 29: 416 I: 20, 38, 41 II: 37, 59 III: 54, 66 IV: 149-50, 191 V: 6, 10, 39, 41 VI: 137, 145, 155-56, 182-83 VIII: 146 X: 163, 179 XII: 174 XIII: 60 XIV: 110; 119 XV: 27 XVI: 134 XIX: 54
Vishnoupurana See Vishnu Purana
Vishnuchitta a famous Vaishnava saint, yogin and poet of South India. The foremost among the Alwars, he is generally known as
Perialwar ("Great Alwar"). (A; Bhakta Ch.) 17:372
Vishnu Purana one of the eighteen major Puranas, generally standing third in the list. One of the oldest Puranas, it is specially consecrated to the glorification of Vishnu and his incarnation Krishna. According to Wilson: "Of the whole series of Puranas the Vishnu most closely corresponds to the definition of a Panch-lakshana Purana, or one which treats of five specified topics (Primary Creation, Secondary Creation, Genealogies of Gods and Patriarchs, Reigns of the Manus, History)". (Dow.) Var: Vishn(o)upurana 3: 296, 357 4: 53 11:451 14:71, 314-15 16:404 18:122 22: 404 27: 311 II: 37 X: 160 XIV: 119 XV: 32
Vishvamitra See Vis(h)wamitra
Vishwadevas the All-gods, or all the gods; the universal collectivity of the divine powers. In the Vedas they form a class of nine, all being deities of an inferior order. In later times they form a class of deities particularly interested in funeral offerings. They are generally said to be ten in number, but the lists vary, both as to the number and the names. (I&G;Dow.) Var: Viswadevas; Visve Devah; Visvadevas 4: 45-46 10: 75, 81-82, 84, 289, 438-39, 444, 446 12:271, 479 111:31 XV: 12, 30, 39, 42, 49 XVI: 149, 159, 174-78
Vishwamanas Vaiyashwa a Vedic Rishi, sonofVyasva. 11:330
Vis(h)wamitra a celebrated Indian sage who was bom a Kshatriya, but by intense austerities raised himself to Brahminhood and became one of the seven great Rishis. Vishwamitra occupies a prominent position in the Rig-veda, being the Rishi of most of the hymns in the third Mandala, including the one that contains the famous Gayatri mantra. He is spoken of as the son of a king named Kusika (or Kusinabha). In the Maha- bharata, however, he is described as the son of Gadhi (or Gathin). A noteworthy feature about the Vishwamitra of legend is his animosity and active and persistent struggle for supremacy with Vasishtha. The story of their reconciliation is given in the Ramayana. Other popular legends connected with Vishwamitra describe his relationships with Rishi Jamadagni, Trishanku, Harishchandra, RAMA', and with the Apsara Menaka (resulting in the birth of Shakuntala). Some authorities hold that the Vishwamitra of these legends is different froro the seer Vishwamitra of the Vedic hymns. (Dow.; V. Index; M.N.) Var: Vis(h)vamitra 4: 17-18, 23-24, 26, 29 9: 72, 207 10: 5, 13, 54-56, 103, 108, 112-13, 183-84, 186, 207, 219, 249, 283, 458 11:105, 109,
Page 344
147 13:39 14:267 XIV: 133 XV: 11, 30, 39 XVI: 146: 47, 156, 158 XVII: 32, 56, 59-60
Vishwasaman a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. (V. Index) n ll: 234
Vishwawara a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Atri. 11: 243 Vision The Vision, an English monthly magazine "devoted to universal love", issued from Anandashram (Kanhangad, Kerala). Started in 1933, it contains the teachings of Swami Ramdas. 23: 798 A Vision of Science a short poem by Sri Aurobindo; it was written during the period 1895-1908 and first published in the collec- tion Ahana and Other Poems (1915). (I&G) 22:207 Visions and Voices title of a book (1929) by Amrita, a disciple of Sri Aurobindo. (See Amrita, K.) 25: 74
Visnagar a town in the former princely state of Baroda (now in the state of Gujarat), about ten miles northeast of Mehsana. (A; S. Atlas) 27: 116
Visvadevas See Vishwadevas Visvakannan "doing or wroughting all". This name seems to have been originally an epithet of any powerful god, but in course of time it came to designate a personification of the creative power, invested with the powers and offices of TWASHTRI. In the Ramayana, Visvakarma is represented as having built the city of Lanka. Visvakannan revealed the sciences of architecture and mechanics to men and is the patron deity of workmen, artisans, and artists. (Dow., Enc. Br.) VI: 182 Visvamitri a small river flowing north-south near Baroda (now known as Vadodara). On both sides of the river there is an extensive park, laid out during Sri Aurobindo's time, with several bridges spanning the river. <G.R.A.) a XXI: 13 Visvas the Reception Officer at Srinagar, Kashmir; he was a Bengali at whose house Sri Aurobindo met several other Bengalis during his Kashmir tour of 1903. (A) IV: 194-95
Visve Devah; Viswadevas See Vishwadevas
Viswamitra See Vis(h)wamitra
Vitahavya Angirasa (Vitahavya Angirasa), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Angiras. 11:271,
Vithova (Vithoba), an incarnation of Vishnu who is the Ista-devata (chosen deity) of the Varkari sect among the people of Maharashtra and Karnataka. 3: 483
Vittoria Corombona chief character of a tragedy named The White Devil of Vittoria Corombona by J. Webster. The play is based on events that took place in Italy in 1581-85. Vittoria is tried for adultery and the murder of her husband, and, in spite of her "innocent-resembling boldness", is sentenced to confinement, whence she is carried off and married by the duke of Brachiano, her lover. Towards the end, she is killed and Brachiano is poisoned. (Ox. Comp.) 3:276 X: 157
Vivasvan literally ' 'the bright one''; in Hindu religion, an epithet or name of the Sun-god. (Dow.) Var: Vivaswan 3:173 8: 88 12: 238, 462 13:24, 137 VI:155 XIV: 125
Vivekacudamani a Sanskrit poem attributed to Shankaracharya. (A) Var: Viveka- chudamani n 14: 309 18: 439 19:683
Vivekananda, Swami (1863-1902), one of the greatest spiritual teachers of modern India, who carried the message of Vedanta to the West and won international renown. His original name was Narendranath Dutta. While a student of law, he met Sri Rama- krishna, and became his chosen disciple. In 1898, after his master's passing, he founded the Ramakrishna Mission, a society having its headquarters at Belur Math near Cal- cutta. To organize the work of the Mission, Vivekananda travelled widely, establishing branches of the Mission throughout India and in the West. To the catholicity and universalism of the religious teachings of Sri Ramakrishna he added an emphasis on social service - to ameliorate the sufferings of men and to remove their ignorance. He also dedi- cated himself to the national regeneration of India. This was to be effected by improv- ing character and developing the spirit of self-sacrifice. His speeches and writings, published by the Ramakrishna Mission, fill eight volumes. (A; D.I.H.) 1:65-66, 428, 715, 855 2:37, 88, 171, 412 3: 344, 375, 463 4: 239, 293, 305, 310 13: 30 14: 8, 129, 187, 415, 419 17: 56, 68, 90, 98, 100, 332 19:1050 20:2, 51, 257, 260 22:32, 55, 149-50, 178, 358, 407, 456 23: 552, 557, 619, 621, 721, 731, 773, 789 24: 1388 26: 16, 24, 58, 68, 106, 117, 125, 151, 258, 354, 383 27: 65, 435 29: 797 IV: 169, 198 VI: 164 VIII: 172
Page 345
XII: 171 XIII: 29 XIV: 124, 131, 139, 163-64 XVII: 7, 9 XVIII: 152 XIX: 57
Vividha Rachana First published in 1955, the book contains miscellaneous unrevised writings by Sri Aurobindo in Bengali prose taken from his notebooks. In the 2nd edition (1975) two incomplete poems have been included, 4: pre.Vladivostok a seaport and administrative centre of Primorsky maritime territory, Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic, in the Soviet Far East. It is the terminus of the Trans-Siberian Railroad. (Enc. Br.) 27: 123
Vocoolavalica See Vacoola(valica)
Volapuk an artificial language constructed in 1880 by Johann Martin Schleyer, a German cleric, and intended for use as an inter- national language. Although the complexity of Volaplik grammar made it difficult to learn, hundreds of thousands of enthusiasts studied and tried to popularize the language before it lost out to its more successful competitor ESPERANTO, which appeared in 1887. (Enc. Br.) D 26: 321
Volga a river of central and East-European Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic. It is the largest river of Europe and the principal waterway of the U.S.S.R. It rises in the Valdai Hills and falls into the Caspian Sea. (Col. Enc.) 6:543 27:347
Volsungsaga Volsungasaga, saga of the Volsungs, the descendants ofVoIsi, a legendary king; it is an Icelandic heroic saga based evidently on earlier poetic materials which are represented in Germany by the Nibelungenlied. It was probably compiled in the 12th or 13th century. (Col. Enc.; Web.) 27: 90
Voltaire Francois-Marie-Arouet de Voltaire (1694-1778), French philosopher and one of the greatest of 18th-century authors, remem- bered as a crusader against tyranny, bigotry, and cruelty, and noted for his characteris- tic wit, satire, and critical acumen. His pub- lished writings cover more than fifty volumes, leaving aside his huge correspondence. Biographies and studies of Voltaire reflect continued controversy as to his real thought and beliefs. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 1: 862 3: 455 4: 218 9: 522, 545, 552 15: 1 Voronoff, Serge (1866-1951), French surgeon and pathologist. He specialized in the trans- plantation of animal (chiefly monkey) glands in the treatment of thyroid deficiency in children and for rejuvenation in old age. (Enc. Am.; Col. Enc.) 24:1229
Vredenburg, E. an art critic who contrib- uted an article to Rupam on the continuity of the pictorial tradition in Indian art. (A) D 17: 302-03
Vricodar in the Mahabharata, an epithet of Bhimasen, meaning "Wolf-belly". He had an enormous appetite. (Dow.) 4: 76 8: 51
Vriddha Kshatra in the Mahabharata, king of Sindhu and the father of Jayadratha. (M.N.) 3: 191
Vrikas "the tearers", "wolves"; in the Veda, a class of adversaries. (M.W.) a XXII: 183
Vrindavan a forest grove, in the district of Mathura in Uttar Pradesh, where Krishna passed his youth as Gopala among the cow- herds. In place of the grove there exists now a town called Vrindavan, the most sacred place on earth for devotees of Krishna. (Dow.) Var: Brindaban; Brindabon; Brindavan 1:665, 811 3:84, 295, 354 4: 14, 29 5: 532, 536, 548-50 7: 750 8: 255-57 9: 380 13: 13 16: 276, 429 17: 83, 241 18: 23 22: 83, 315, 392, 426-27 23: 676 26: 130, 136 II: 59 X: 145
Vrisha Jana (Vrsa Jana), a Vedic Rishi, also known as VrsaJara. a n: 203
Vrishaparvan in the Mahabharata, an Asura or Daitya, son of Kashyapa by Danu. He had a daughter named Sarmistha (see Surmishtha) Var: Vrishopurvan 3: 176 8: 31 27: 158
Vrishny (Vrsni), in Hindu mythology, a descendant of Yadu and an ancestor of Krishna, from whom he got the name Varsneya. The descendants of Vrishny are also called VrisZobeidah (d. 831), wife of Harun-al-Rashid, the Caliph of Baghdad. She was renowned for her beauty. (Enc. Br.) a 7:696 hnis. (Dow.) 5:319 8:43, 45, 51 13:151, 350 27:83
Vrishopurvan See Vrishaparvan
Vrishtihavya a Vedic Rishi whose sons were the Upastutas. (V. Index) a 11: 429 Vritra in the Veda, the Coverer who holds back the Light and the waters and hides from us our full powers and activi ties. Vritra, the Serpent (Ahi), is the grand adversary, for he obstructs with his coils of darkness all possibility of divine existence and divine action. Indra is constantly at war with him. The Vritras are powers and forces of Vritra that fulfil his function. (A; V.G.; Dow.) Var: Ahi Vritra Der: Vritric 4: 22-23, 25, 29, 37 8: 68 10: 19, 29, 44, 56, 71, 100, 104, 107-08, 121, 126, 134, 138-40, 145, 161, 163, 166, 169, 171-74, 182-83, 187, 189, 193-94, 199, 209-10, 216, 221, 227, 232-34, 237-38, 246-47, 250-51, 253, 297, 300, 309-10, 335, 423, 448, 450, 493, 502, 513, 534 11: 9-10, 13-14, 17, 27, 29, 32, 47, 143, 288, 326, 363-65, 467, 478 12: 130, 410 27: 189, 191 II: 55-56 IV: 128 V: 28 VI: 145, 147, 149 IX:
Page 346
3-7 X: 180 XIII: 56, 59-60 XIV: 131 XV: 27, 49 XVI: 144, 152, 170, 174 XVII: 45, 54, 56, 59 XVIII: 172, 183 XXI: 17, 35, 88 XXII: 183, 196
Vulcan in Roman religion, the god of fire, particularly in its destructive aspects as volcanoes or conflagrations. Poetically he is given all the attributes of the Greek HHPHAESTUS. (Enc. Br.) a 7: 1074
Vuthsa (Udayan) a character - King of Cowsambie - in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. Vatsa, the name of the kingdom in the tale of the Kathasaritsagara on which the play is based, is in the play used as a personal name of King Udayan. Historically, Udayan (6th cent. Be) was king of Vatsa and was commonly called Vatsaraja. He was a direct descendant of the Pandavas, and his capital was Kausambhi. (A; Dow.) Var: Udaian; Udayan n 6: 205, 207, 211, 215-33, 236-43, 245-50, 252, 255-60, 262-67, 269-79, 281-93, 296-309, 312-29 7: 748
Vyara a town about twenty km east of BarodainGujarat. (G.R.A.) a XV: 72
Vyas(a) (fl. 5th cent. BC?), "an arranger". This title is common to many old authors and compilers, but it is especially applied to Veda-vyasa or Krsna Dvaipayana. He was the illegitimate son of Rishi Parasara and Satyavati. From his complexion (dark) he received the name Krsna, and from his birthplace (an island, dvip, in the Yamuna), the name Dvaipayana. He was a very learned sage and is traditionally cited as the author of the Mahabharata and many other works, but he is best known as the compiler of the Vedas. (Dow.; I & G) Var: Krishna Dvypaiana Vyasa; Krishna Dwypaiana Vyasa; Krishna of the Island; Dwaipayana; Dwypaian; Veda Vyasa Der: Vyasian; Vyasic a 3: 141-42, 145-50, 152-59, 162-66, 168, 170, 172, 174-79, 185, 187, 200-03, 205, 213, 217-18, 220-21, 223, 227, 229, 276, 295, 312, 322 4: 59, 71, 81-82, 127, 291 5: 83-84 8: 37 9: 310, 334, 521-23 10: 10, 15, 461 11: 451 13:151-52, 344, 350, 425 16: 429 17: 182 26: 234 27: 80-82, 150, 154, 248 29: 815 II: 37 III: 14, 19 VI: 137, 156, 175 X: 145, 157 XVI: 147
Vyashwa a Vedic Rishi whose name occurs in several hymns of the eighth Mandala of the Rig-veda. (V. Index) a 11:333-34 Vyshya See Vaishya
W
Wacha SeeWa(t)cha, D.E.
Wagner, (Wilhelm) Richard (1813-83), German musical dramatist whose operatic creations represent a new art form on drama- tic, musical, and verbal levels. His work marked a Romantic culmination. Much of the later history of music stems from him, either by extension of his discoveries or in reaction against them. (Enc. Br.) a 15:35 17:318 Wales one of the four constituent countries of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is usually described as a principality. Wales is a peninsula jutting westward from England into the Irish Sea. It possesses a distinctive culture based largely on the Welsh language, which is still spoken by a quarter of the population. (Enc. Br.) Der: Welsh (in senses other than the lan- guage) n 1: 38, 367 2: 379 3: 486 4: 248 9: 42 15: 268, 291, 306, 308-10, 349, 475, 479, 496, 520-21 II: 6, 15
Wallace, Sir William (c. 1270-1305), one of Scotland's greatest national heroes, leader of the Scottish resistance forces during the first years of the long, and ultimately successful, struggle to free Scotland from English rule. (Enc.Br.) o l: 623
Waller, Edmund (1606-87), English poet whose adoption of smooth, regular versi- fication in place of the argumentative struc- ture and dramatic immediacy characteristic of earlier 17th-century poetry prepared the way for the heroic couplet's emergence by the end of that century as the dominant form of poetic expression. (Enc.Br.) a 9: 80 1:13
Walloons general term applied to the French-speaking people of Belgium living mainly in the south and east, in contrast to the Flemish-speaking FLEMINGS of the northern and western provinces. Walloon in its proper meaning is a French dialect spoken in the Liege region. The rivalry between the Walloons and the Flemings remains a critical political issue. (Col. Enc.) 15: 417
Page 347
Walpole, Horace (1717-97), 4th Earl of Oxford, writer, connoisseur, and collector, who is remembered today as perhaps the most assiduous letter-writer in the English language. (Enc. Br.) II: 18
Waltair a city of Andhra Pradesh, near the port of Vishakhapatnam on the Bay of Bengal. It is the seat of Andhra University. (S. Atlas) II: 85
Walter Abelard a character - Stephen's grandfather - in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Door at Abelard". a 7:1026, 1034 War and Self-Determination a collection of four essays by Sri Aurobindo first published in 1920. Three of these essays were repro- duced from Arya, and a fourth written especially for the volume. (I & G) 27: 485
Warburton an Anglo-Indian employee, or the Resident, of the princely state of Patiala in 1909. (A) a 2:250
War-god See Kartikeya
Warsaw capital and cultural centre of Poland and an autonomous administrative unit and chief town of Warsaw province in central Poland, on both banks of the Vistula. (Col. Enc.) 15: 643
Warton, Thomas (1728-90), poet laureate from 1785, and author of the first history of English poetry. (Enc. Br.) a n: n
Washington, George (1732-99), commander- in-chief of the Continental army in the American Revolution and first President (1789-97) of the United States of America. He is called the "Father" of the country. (Col. Enc.) 1: 379 12: 484 17: 385
Wa(t)cha, D. E. Dinshaw Eduiji Watcha (1844-1936), a Moderate leader of Bombay, and a close associate of Sir Pherozshah Mehta. He was one of the pioneers of the nationalist movement in India, taking an especial interest in economic problems. He presided over the Calcutta session of the Congress in 1901. (A;Enc.Ind.) 1: 192-93, 195-96, 587 2: 216 4: 179, 231 27: 33, 41-42
Waterloo a town in Belgium, nine miles south of Brussels; the famous battle of Waterloo was fought just south of the town in June 1815. In this battle the power of Napoleon I was wiped out by the combined British and German forces. (Col. Enc.) 24: 1588 III: 23 XIII: 44 Watson, Sir (John) William (1858-1935)
English poet, author of lyrical and political verse with a special gift for occasional poems; "a genuine poet... but somewhat thin in thought and substance". (Enc. Br.; A) 26:254
Wavell Archibald Percival Wavell (1883-1950), 1st Earl Wavell, British field marshal and Viceroy of India from 1942 to 1947. In a speech delivered in New Delhi on 14 June 1945, he made certain proposals known as the Wavell Plan designed to ease the political situation. He invited prominent leaders of various communities and political parties to a conference in order to consider these proposals. This was held at Simla from 25 June to 14 July. Disagreement among the various parties, aggravated by the inflexible stance of the Muslim League, led to the failure of the Simla Conference. (Enc. Ind.; A & R, XVII: 76) XVH: 65 Weber possibly Prof. A. Weber of Berlin, a distinguished scholar of Sanskrit, one of those who helped in the compilation of the great seven-volumed Sanskrit-German Thesaurus. (M.W., p.v) a 3:143-45, 188
Web of Indian Life The Web of Indian Life, title of a book by Sister Nivedita, first published in 1904. n 14:43
Webster', John (c. 1580-1625), English playwright whose major plays. The White Devil and The Duchess ofMalfi, are generally regarded as the paramount 17th-century English tragedies outside Shakespeare and as masterpieces of poetic drama. (Enc. Br.) 5: 349 9: 69 XIII: 53
Webster2 (Webster's Dictionary); Noah Webster (1758-1843) was an American lexicographer known for his American Spelling Book (1783) and his American Dictionary of the English Language (1828). There are many editions of this dictionary, abridged and unabridged. (Enc. Br.) 1: 455
Wedderbum, Sir William (1838-1918), a distinguished member of the I.C.S. who represented Liberal England and, after " retirement, took a leading part in encour- aging the founding of the Indian National Congress. Later, he presided over its annual sessions held at Bombay in 1889, and at Allahabad in 1910. (D.I.H.) 1:172, 186, 201, 565 27:18, 33
Wellesleys 1. Marquess Richard Colley Wellesley, the Governor-General of India from 1798 to 1805, one of the greatest British rulers of India. 2. Arthur Wellesley (later Duke of Wellington), a younger brother of Lord Wellesley. He was a military officer in the service of the East India Company from 1797 to 1805 and won great renown by defeating the Marathas at the battles of Assaye and Argaon. See also the next entry. (D.I.H.) 1: 738
Page 348
Wellington, (Duke of) Arthur Wellesley (1769-1852), 1st Duke of Wellington, British soldier and statesman, conqueror of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo, and prime minister of England from 1828 to 1830. In 1842 he was made Commander- in-Chief for life and on his death was buried with great pomp in St. Paul's. See also the previous entry. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) D 1: 704 2: 255
Wells, H. G. Herbert George Wells (1866-1946), English journalist, novelist, sociologist, and popular historian who exerted a powerful influence in the 20th- century movement toward change in society, morals, and religious beliefs. Much of Wells' writing was ephemeral, but he was one of the most forward-looking and influential writers of his time. Sri Aurobindo's idea that within a generation of Wells' death his speculations would cease to be read or remembered, has proved true except with regard to his stories, especially his science- fiction. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; A) 9:548, 551-52 17: 324-26 26: 378
Welsh (language) language of Wales, with an unbroken literary history since the 6th century AD. (Pears) a l: 526 15:306, 390, 480, 496 II: 15 West, the or The Occident; Europe and North America considered as a cultural unit. Since the Second World War it has come to denote the countries of Western Europe and America as opposed to the Communist countries of Eastern Europe and Asia. Der: Western; Westerner; Westemise(d);
Occidental(ism) D 1:40-41, 48, 50, 62, 67-68, 176, 199, 242, 259-60, 320, 365, 466-68, 481, 560, 570, 654-55, 712, 732, 741-42, 756-57, 759, 770-71, 800, 807, 813-15, 902 2:17-18, 20, 29, 49, 78, 86, 122, 209, 217-18, 253, 338, 381, 402 3: 30, 81, 101, 113, 122, 228, 232, 338, 345.359, 417, 429, 447, 463 4: 24-25,49, 81, 86, 92, 113, 115, 117, 127, 131, 139-41, 143-44, 151.154-56, 159-60, 163, 165-68, 193, 212, 216, 219, 251-52, 271, 291, 299-303, 306, 311-12 5: 399, 404, 408 6: 7, 432 7:773 9: 55, 97, 110, 285, 443, 455, 504 10: 341, 352, 546 11: 12, 468 12: 4, 8, 53, 57, 492, 499, 520 13: 10 14: 8, 11-12, 15, 17-20, 23, 26, 33-35, 37, 44, 47, 49-51, 54, 56, 58, 60-63, 65-66, 70, 73, 75-76, 78, 80-82, 85-88, 91-92, 94, 98-100, 104, 110, 123, 129-30, 132-35, 139, 147-48, 176-77, 211, 233, 244-45, 252, 261, 266, 270, 336, 362, 364, 367, 377, 380-81, 385-87, 399-400, 409, 411-13, 415, 429, 431-33 15: 11, 14-15, 19, 30, 33, 123, 166, 168, 251, 295, 328, 332, 340-41, 348, 356, 384, 418, 445, -46, 454, 460. 480, 495, 521, 566 16: 79, 125-26, 241, 312-13,
324, 326-27, 329-31, 370 17: 93, 180-82, 184, 193-94, 196, 252, 265, 275-76, 279-81, 313-16, 324, 327, 337, 339-40, 367, 370, 393, 400-01, 404 18: 114, 324 19: 696, 754, 873, 876, 879-80 22: 67, 132, 158-60, 305-06 23: 556-59, 676 24: 1236, 1256 25: 228 26: 137, 354, 378, 381, 406, 413-16 27: 68, 112, 116, 124, 149, 265, 486 I: 48-49, 60 II: 84 III: 1, 5, 26, 28 IV: 161, 163 V: 79 VI: 191, 199 VIII: 158, 173, 193 IX: 31 X: 111, 161 XIII: 24-25, 29, 38-41 XIV: 116-18, 126 XV: 3, 24, 41 XVI: 133-34, 181-82, 184, 186 XVII: 10-11, 34, 37 XVIII: 150, 155 XIX: 25
West Indian of the West Indies, an archi- pelago, more than 1500 miles in length, that lies between North America and South America, separating the Atlantic from the Caribbean. (Enc. Br.; N.L.W.D.) 27: 439
Westminster officially "City of Westmin- ster", one of the thirty-two boroughs in Greater London. Situated in the heart of London's West End, it is London for many tourists. Sri Aurobindo uses the term also for Westminster Palace and the House of Parliament. (Enc. Br.)- 1:97, 350, 463, 550 15: 420
Westmoreland former county of England, which in 1974 became part of the county of Cumbria. Much of it lies in the pictuesque region'known as the Lake District. (Enc. Br.) 2: 379
Whiggism .See Tory a 1:849
White House 1. the official residence of the President of the United States of America in Washington D.C. It is a white building in Palladian style, officially called the "Execu- tive Mansion"; hence 2. the executive branch of the United States Government. (Web.; N.L.W.D.) 1:507 White Codges In theosophy, the Brother- hood of the White Lodge is the hierarchy of adepts who watch over and guide the evolution of humanity, and who have preserved the ancient truths unimpaired, reasserting them from time to time, as necessity arose. There are different occult lodges throughout the world, ranging from white through all shades of grey to black. (Occultists who are unselfish and wholly devoted to carrying out the Divine Will, or who are aiming to attain these virtues, are called "white". Those who are selfish and are working against the Divine purpose in the universe are called "black".) It is to some members of the Great White Lodge - the Himalayan or Tibetan Brotherhood, as it is often called - that the Theosophical Society owes its inception. (A.W., pp. 46 and 85) XIII: 33
Page 349
White Russia also called Byelorussia, republic of west European U.S.S.R. It borders on Poland in the west, on Lithuania and Latvia in the northwest, on the Russian Socialist Federated Soviet Republic in the east, and on Ukraine in the south. (Col. Enc.) 15: 512
Whitman, Walt(er) (1819-92), American journalist, essayist, and poet whose Leaves of Grass (first edition 1855) was so radical in form and content that it made him a revolu- tionary figure in American literature. (Enc. Br.) Der: Whitmanesque; Whitmanic 5: 371-73, 375 9: 18, 31, 147-55, 157-58, 163, 179-81, 183, 185, 187-88, 196, 203, 223, 229, 252, 284, 287-88 15: 81 26: 250 29: 795 VI: 198
Why I am not a Christian a booklet of thirty- one pages by Bertrand Russell, published in 1927 by Watts & Co., London. a 9: 554
Wilberfbrce, William (1759-1833), English politician and philanthropist who was prominent from 1787 in the struggle to abolish the slave trade and then to abolish slavery itself in British overseas possessions. (Enc. Br.) 27: 121
Wilde Oscar (Fingal O'Flahertie Wills) Wilde (1854-1900), Irish-born British wit, poet, and dramatist whose reputation rests on his comic masterpiece The Importance of Being Earnest. He was a spokesman of the late 19th-century Aesthetic movement in England, which advocated art for art's sake. Sri Aurobindo refers to him as the "Irish Plato" in "The Harmony of Virtue" (3:3). Wilde was a friend of Sri Aurobindo's brother Manmohan. (Enc. Br.) 9:545, 548-49, 551
Wilhelm II, Kaiser Friedrich Wilhelm Victor Albert (1859-1941), last German emperor and king of Prussia (1888-1918), popularly regarded in Allied countries as the prime instigator of World War I. He abdicated after his defeat. (Enc. Br.; Web.) Var: William II 4: 156 15: 34, 503
Wilkes, John (1727-97), outspoken journalist and popular - in some circles, notorious - London politician who came to be regarded as a victim of persecution and a champion of liberty because he was repeatedly expelled from Parliament. (Enc. Br.) l: 619
William II See Wilhelm II, Kaiser
Wilson Broome Wilson, one of the partici- pants in the dialogues "The Harmony of Virtue" and "Beauty in the Real", two of the earliest surviving writings of Sri Aurobindo. 3: 1-19, 21-25, 29-30, 32-63, 65-66, 68
Wilson, President (Thomas) Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), 28th President of the United States of America (1913-21), recognised as one of the pivotal figures of American and world history, and noted for his high-minded and sometimes inflexible idealism. His daughter Margaret became a disciple of Sri Aurobindo in 1938; she settled in the Ashram and died.here in 1944. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 15:507 Wilson, Prof. probably Prof. H. H. Wilson, British Sanskritist and lexicographer, the first occupant (1832) of the Boden Chair at Oxford University. He was a distinguished predecessor and teacher of Monier Monier- Williams, the compiler of the famous Sanskrit- English Dictionary. (M.W., p. ix) III: 19 X: 154
The Wind and the Whirlwind a poem addressed to England, composed by Wilfrid Blunt, some verses of which admirably express the basic motive of the Nationalist movement in India. (A) 1: 465
Windsor Forest a pastoral poem by Pope, published in 1713, combining descriptions of the English countryside and field sports with historical, literary, and political passages. (Ox. Comp.) I: 12
The Witch of Atlas a poem in ottava rima by Shelley, composed in 1820. It is evidently here and there a fantasia on such inventions as steam or electricity can animate. (Ox. Comp.; Enc. Am.) 3:291, 294 9:528 X: 141, 144
Wolfe, James (1727-59), British soldier who was given the command of an expedition against Quebec which he himself had urged. He took 5, 000 men in boats down the St. Lawrence by night. He was victorious, but in the hour of victory he fell. (Col. Enc.) 1: 704
Woodburn, Sir John (1843-1902), Lt. Governor of Bengal from 1898 till his death. He joined the I.C.S. in 1863. After spending his early career in Oudh, he became Chief Commissioner of Central Provinces
Page 350
(1893-96) and Member of the Viceroy's Council (1896-98). (Dutt; Gilbert, p. 77) 1: 479
Woodroffe, Sir John a British judge in India who became, under the pen-name of Arthur AVALON, a well-known scholar of Tantric philosophy. He translated a number of Tan- tric texts and expounded and popularized the basic principles of Saktism, dispelling many false ideas about Sakta observances. He described the Sakta doctrine as the wor- ship of the Supreme Power in the form of the Mother. (Gaz.-I) 14:1, 8, 10, 17, 43, 46, 77
Woodward, Helen a character participating in "A Dialogue", written by Sri Aurobindo around 1891. (A & R, II) 11:5, 7-9 Woolf, Leonard Leonard (Sidney) Woolf (1880-1969), English man of letters, pub- lisher, political worker, journalist, and inter- nationalist who influenced literary and political life and thought more by his personality than by any one achievement. Woolf s most en- during accomplishment was probably his autobiography. (Enc. Br.) 22: 167, 185-86 26: 387 ,
WT^lf Vi.-CTin;-. ( A ylolir.o't \/;mn; 0 Wnlf Woolf, Virginia (Adeline) Virginia Woolf (1882-1941), English author who made an original contribution to the form of the novel, and was one of the most distinguished critics of her time. She was the wife of Leonard Woolf. (Enc. Br.) 9:327 Worcester Battle of Worcester (1651), between the armies of Oliver Cromwell and King Charles II of England, which ended in the final victory of the former and a com- plete rout of the latter. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 7: 1048 Wordsworth, William (1770-1850), the great- est poet of the English Romantic movement, who described himself as a "worshipper of Nature" and is often referred to as "Nature's priest". His name is inextricably linked with his native Lake District in the north of Eng- land, from which he derived the inspiration for much of his best work. (Enc. Br.) Der: Wordsworthian 3:101, 107, 47, 156, 253 5:8 9:51, 53-54, 74, 86, 91-94, 100, 112, 115-17, 119-21, 123, 126-27, 129, 131, 133, 162, 171-72, 192, 212, 246, 253, 271, 273-76, 303-05, 324, 368-69, 379, 472, 521-22, 524-25 20: 292 23: 896 24: 1296 26: 238, 267, 297-98, 314, 328, 331-32 27:120 29:785, 803, 805, 809 1:9-10, 13 II: 11-12, 16 VI: 198 XV: 37 XVI: 142
World The World, a London newspaper founded in 1787. (Enc. Br.) a 2:119
(World) War 1. World War I, a war lasting from 1914 to 1918, in which Austria- Hungary, Germany, and Turkey (the principal Central Powers) were opposed by Russia, France, and Great Britain (the Entente Powe'rs or Allies),
who were joined by Japan, Italy, the United States and vari- ous smaller nations. The United States entered the war in 1917. (Enc. Br.) 15: 25, 27, 33, 36, 44, 224, 235, 288, 312, 319, 324, 328, 330, 367, 441, 447-48, 530, 618, 637, 642 17: 404-05 22: 153 25:72 26:368 27: 466-67, 479
2. World War II, a war lasting from 1939 to 1945, in which fifty-seven nations. Allied and Axis, were belligerents. This war gave a great impetus to the awakening of backward and colonial peoples. (Enc. Br. 1960 ed., Vol. 23, pp. 793, Q and R) a 15: 566 ("the last war") 26: 393 ("On the War"), 394 ("Mother's War")
Womdale in Sri Aurobindo's story "The Devil's Mastiff", name of an imaginary place where there was a church. 7: 1049, 1051 Worship title of a poem by Harindranath '"'h'stt^iT'lrlh'.'^v -tnhli^h^cE i" hi"; fnllpptinn Chattopadhyay, published in his collection The Feast of Youth, which was reviewed by Sri Aurobindo in Arya. 17: 308
Wotan also known as Odin, one of the principal gods in Norse mythology. His exact nature and role are difficult to determine; but from earliest times he was a war-god, and appeared in heroic literature as the protector of heroes. Odin was the great magician among the gods and was associated with runes. See also Odin. (Enc. Br.) a 5:112 Wrecker The Wrecker, a novel (1892) by R. L. Stevenson, written in collaboration with Lloyd Osbourne. (Col. Enc.) 3: 184
Wriothesley, Henry (1573-1624), 3rd Earl of Southampton, English nobleman and patron of letters. He is chiefly remembered as a patron of Shakespeare, who dedicated to Wriothesley two of his principal poems Venus and Adonis (1593) and The Rape of Lucrece(1594). (Col. Enc.) 3:230
X
Xanthus a name of the river SCAMANDER or, as in Homer, the god of that river. (M.I.) 5: 391-92, 403, 411, 413, 426, 439-40, 457-59, 461, 463, 465, 468, 474, 488, 491, 504, 514, 517 VI: 134-35
Xantippe Xanthippe (fl. late 5th cent. Be), wife of the Greek philosopher Socrates, the prototype of the quarrelsome, nagging wife. (Enc.Br.;Web.)- D 7:652
Page 351
Y
Yadava(s) descendant(s) ofYADu2. Yadava is used as an epithet of Krishna, who was born in the Yadu line. Under him the Yadavas established a kingdom at Dwarka in Gujarat. The city was submerged by the ocean after Krishna withdrew from the body, and all the Yadavas who were present in the city perished. A few who were absent perpetuated the race, from which many princes and chiefs still claim their descent. The Yadava dynasty was founded c. AD 1191 at Devagiri (site of modern Daulatabad), its capital. The dynasty ended in 1318. (Dow.; D. I. H.) Var: Jadhavas; Yadav(s); Yadove 1:599, 768 3:191, 193, 215 4:93, 95 8:30, 38, 41, 58 13:375, 378
Yadneshwar, Manohar one of the persons who received Sri Aurobindo at Nasik Road station on 24 January 1908. (A) a 1:1
Yadove See Yadava(s)
Yadu1 in the Veda, an adorer of Indra and' an enemy of Sudasa. The name occurs many times in the Rig-veda, in both singular and plural; Yadu seems to be closely related to Turvasha. (B.P.C.) ll:49 11:45 VI: 148
Yadu2 in the Mahabharata, the first son of King Yayati of the Lunar race and founder of the line of the Yadavas in which Krishna was born. (Dow.;M.N.) 27:140
Yahweh See Jehovah
Yajnavalkya a celebrated Vedic Rishi to whom are attributed the Sukia (White) Yajur-veda, the Satapatha Brahmana, the Brhad Aranyaka (with its Upanishad) and the Ydjnavalkya-Smrti, a code of law. (Dow.) 4: 121 9: 555 11: 443 12: 495 14:280 17: 183 18: 452 20: 99 22: 97, 234 23: 773 26: 133 III: 71 IV: 168 VIII: 179-80, 184 XIII: 24 XIV: 124-25, 133 XVI: 134 XVII: 32
Yajur (Veda) the second Veda, the manual of the priesthood, which also contains some prose passages. The Yajur has two Sarhhitas commonly known as the Black (Krsna) and the White (Sukia). The former is more ancient, while the latter is more orderly and systematic and contains some additional texts. A mantra of the Yajur-veda is called a
Yajus. (Dow.) D 9:218 12:64, 270, 276, 300, 309-10, 321, 329, 386, 448 13: 314 14: 277 19: 702 DC: 11 XV: 57 XVII: 24, 33, 63
Yaksha(s) in Hindu mythology, a class of supernatural beings attendant on Kuvera, the god of wealth. See also Gandharva(s). (Dow.) Var: Yuksha 3: 241 4: 91 12:216, 409 13:349, 470 14:197 27:101, 159 II: 37 VI: 183
Yakshini a female YAKSHA. D 5: 543
Yama in Hindu religion, the Lord of death, generally looked upon with terror. He is also the guardian of Dharma, the master of the Law in the world, dispensing rewards and punishments according to deserts. In the Rig-veda he seems to be originally a form of the Sun (even as late as the Isha Upanishad, we find the name used as an appellation of the Sun). Later he is described as one of the twin children of the wide-shining Lord of Truth. Yama has many names descriptive of his office. Those occurring in Sri Aurobindo's writings are: Controller, Critanta (Krtanta), Death, Dharma (or Dhurma), Ender, Ordainer, Shade, Shadow. (Dow.; V.G.; I & G) a 4: 12 5: 243-44, 249, 252-56 8: 57 10: 53, 152, 180, 184, 213, 232, 440 11: 14 12: 67, 125-26, 237-47, 253-54, 262, 265, 334, 356-57 13: 349, 374 14: 275, 278 16: 91-92 17: 257, 339 27: 154, 156, 158-59 28: 13, 17 29: 565, 575, 577, 580, 585-86, 588-90, 592-95, 605, 612, 614, 616-17, 621, 623, 626, 633-38, 647, 649-54, 656, 663-68 II: 37 XVIII: 140
Yami in the Veda, daughter of Surya, and twin-sister of Yama. The word seems to be the origin of the "Yamuna" of the Puranas. (Dow.) 10: 184 Yam(o)una a river which rises in the Himalayas near Jamnotri and joins the Ganga near Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh. The river is personified as the daughter of Surya and twin-sister of Yama. The Yamuna is known by a number of other names, of which Sri Aurobindo has used one, namely Kalindi (or Calindie). (Dow.) Var: Jamouna; Jamuna; Jumna 4: 50 5: 532, 536, 548, 550 7: 935, 941, 990 8: 42, 231, 256, 281, 291-92 9: 145, 380 10: 89, 136, 543 14: 313 27: 159 III: 34 XVI: 146 XVIII: 144
Yanoun or Yanam, formerly one of the settlements comprising the overseas territory of French India. Since the transfer of the territory to the Government of India in 1954, it has been one of the four constituents of the centrally governed state of Pondicherry. Yanam is an enclave within the East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh with an area of7.8sq. miles, on the principal mouth of the Godavari River. (Enc. Br.) a n: 403
Page 352
Yara in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric, name of the town where Eric, the king of Norway, lived. (A) 6:473, 538
Yarislaf in Sri Aurobindo's play Eric, the father of Eric. (A) 6:539-40, 543, 547-48
Yaska (fl. c. 4th cent. AD), ancient Indian lexicographer, author of the Nirukta, the oldest known gloss on the text of the Vedic hymns. He lived before the time of Panini, who refers to his work. Yaska was not, however, the first writer of a Nirukta, for he himself refers to several predecessors. (Dow.;M.W.) a 4:21, 24 10:14, 17, 30 11:5-6, 470-71, 476 27:166 XIV: 124 XV: 25 XVI: 135, 163 XVII: 45 XVIII: 154
Yatudhanas In Indian mythology, Yatu- dhana was one of the sons of Kasyapa and Surasa. All the Rakshasas born in this family are known as Yatudhanas. (Pur. Enc.) Der: Yatudhani (female) a 17: 378, 381 XVI: 152
Yavan(a) a Sanskrit term that may have originally indicated the lonians, perhaps derived from Yauna, which would be the equivalent of lonia. The Puranas represent the Yavanas to be descendants of Turvasa, son of King Yayati by Devayani. They are always associated with the tribes of the northwest frontier, and it is possible that the Macedonian or Bactrian Greeks are the people usually intended by the term. To the present day it is applied to the Persians, Afghans and other races northwest of India, and more widely to Mohammadans in general. (Dow.;A) a l: 705 3:198-99 8: 40 XVIII: 136
Yayati in the Mahabharata, the fifth king of the Lunar dynasty, son of Nahusa. Yayati was a man of amorous disposition. He had two wives, Devayani and Sarmistha (see Surmishtha). The former gave birth to Yadu and the latter to Puru. (Dow.) o 8:39 27: 158 XIII: 44
Yeats, William Butler (1865-1939), Irish poet and playwright and nationalist politician. He is the greatest lyric poet Ireland has pro- duced and one of the major figures of 20th- century literature. He was the winner of the Nobel Prize for literature in 1923. (Col. Enc.) n 9:2-3, 7, 157, 159, 161, 165, 174-75, 187, 196, 210, 229, 346, 444, 532-34 26:255, 273, 289-90 Yellow Peril the alleged danger to the world supremacy of the white, or Caucasian, peoples created by the vast numbers and potential political power of the yellow, or Mongolian, peoples. (Web.) 1: 814
Yemen a republic (formerly a kingdom) in southwest Arabia, the most southerly part of the Red Sea coast, bounded by Saudi Arabia in the north and Southern Yemen (which became an independent sovereign state in 1967) in the south. (Col. Enc.; Pears) D 5:276 7:597
Yildiz Palace Yildiz Kiosk (Pavilion) of the former sultan of Turkey, located north of Pera on the Bosphorus. The sultans shifted their residence from Istanbul (Constantinople) to this kiosk and the Dolma Bagtche palace in the 19th century. (Col. Enc., under Istanbul) a 2: 248
The Yoga and its Objects a book by Sri Aurobindo, first published in 1921. An earlier version was worked on by him sometime before 1913. The book represents an early stage of Sri Aurobindo's sadhana. (I & G; A) a 2: pre. 16: 409 22: 48, 64, 223 24:1760 26:372 27:431, 434 IV: 192
Yoga-Sutras popular name of a Sanskrit work (Pdtanjala) Yoga Darsanam by Patanjali (2nd cent. BC). A collection of terse aphoristic sentences, it is the basic text of the orthodox Yoga philosophy. See also Patanjali. a 24: 1236
Yoga-Vasistha also called Vasistha Ramayana, a Sanskrit work in the form of a dialogue between Vasistha and his pupil Ramachandra, treating of the way to obtain happiness and liberation. (M.W.) n 22: 79, 333, 364
Yogi, Ram Rao name assumed by a Maharashtrian in the hire of the British police as a detective to watch the movements of Sri Aurobindo and his associates in Pondicherry around 1911. (A) a XIX: 29
Yogic Sdahan a book received by Sri Aurobindo as automatic writing in 1910; at one time its publishers claimed that the book was written by Sri Aurobindo, but he dis- claimed personal responsibility. He once mentioned that he thought that Ram Mohan Roy had some connection with the book's origination. Sri Aurobindo contributed a short "Editor's Epilogue" when the book was published in 1911 by K. V. Rangaswamy lyengar, the zamindar of Kodailam, at Vani Vilas Press, Srirangapuram. The epilogue was signed "Uttara Yogi" (Yogi from the North) - a name by which Sri Aurobindo came to be known in South India because of a prediction made by lyengar's guru that a yogi, later recognised as Sri Aurobindo, would come to the South from the North. The book was later
Page 353
published in 1933 by the Arya Publishing House, Calcutta. More than fifty years later, Yogic Sadhan was published again in the April 1986 issue of Sri Aurobindo: Archives and Research as an example of Sri Aurobindo's automatic writing. (A; Purani; Auro-II) 26: 372-73 IV: 192 XIX: 15-16, 55-57
Yokohama a city in Kanazawa prefecture, central Honshu, Japan; now part of the Tokyo-Yokohama metropolitan area, an urban agglomeration on Tokyo-wan, an inlet of the Pacific. The area includes the national capital Tokyo, the port city Yokohama, and the manufacturing centre Kawasaki. (Enc. Br.; Pears) 22:190
Yorkshire formerly the largest county of England; after 1974 it was partitioned to form the county of North Yorkshire and the metropolitan counties of West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire. (Enc. Br.) 2: 379 3: 41
Yougundharayan a character - Minister of Vuthsa Udayan, King of Cousambie, formerly the Regent - in Sri Aurobindo's play Vasavadutta. a 6: 205, 207, 215-20, 222-26, 238, 243-45, 299-300, 319, 321-27
Young, Edward (1683-1765), English poet, dramatist, and literary critic, author of Night Thoughts. (Enc. Br.) a n: n, 16
Younghusband, Sir Francis Sir Francis Edward Younghusband (1863-1942), army officer and explorer whose travels, mainly in northern India and Tibet, yielded major contributions to our geographical knowledge of this region. He also forced the conclusion of the Anglo-Tibetan Treaty (1904), in which Britain won long-sought trade concessions. (Enc. Br.) a 1: 394, 396
Young Italy an Italian journal (in Italian, Glovine Italia) published by Mazzini from 1832 to 1834 to propagate his ideas. "Young Italy" was^also the name of the movement founded by Mazzini. (Enc. Br.; A) n 2: 164
Young Turks popular name for the Committee of Union and Progress, a revolutionary group that led a rebellion against the authoritarian regime of the Ottoman sultan Abdul Hamid II in 1908. The term is also applied to other insurgent groups within organizations or political parties. (Enc. Br.) a 2: 167 XXI: 94
Yudhaman'yu in the Mahabharata, a great hero who fought for the Pandavas. He was prince of Panchala. (M.N.) a 4:75 8:77
Yudhishthira in the Mahabharata, the eldest of the five Pandava brothers, and mythologi- cally the son of Dharma or Yama, the god of justice. He was renowned as a man of calm, passionless judgment, strict veracity, un- swerving rectitude, and rigid justice. He excelled as a ruler, but not as a warrior. (Dow.) Var: Yudhishthere; Yudhisthere;
Yudhisthir(a); Yudisthira (a misspelling) 1:146 3:161, 191-96, 201, 203, 207-09 4: 68, 71, 77, 84-85, 88, 93-96 8: 27, 29-30, 34-38, 42, 44, 47, 59-61, 77 14: 193, 292, 372 22: 93 26: 136 27: 79, 83 IV: 115-16 VII: 51 XVII: 44
Yugantar a Bengali weekly of Calcutta, the organ of the revolutionary party in Bengal. It was started in March 1906 by a band of young patriots including Barindra Kumar Ghose, Abinash Chandra Bhattacharya, Bhupendra Dutta, and others. It ceased publication in May 1908. Sri Aurobindo wrote articles for some of the earlier issues of the paper and always exercised general control over it. (I & G) a 1: 262, 430, 490, 492, 497, 505, 522, 542, 544, 549, 652, 792, 907 2: 383-84 4: pre. 26: 16, 24, 41-42, 44, 69 27: 68 IV: 110 VIII: 132
Yugoslavia formerly a kingdom, now a socialist federal republic of southeastern Europe, largely in the Balkan Peninsula. Belgrade is its capital. See also Serbia. (Col. Enc.) Der: Yugoslav a 5:596 15:301, 625
Yuksha See Yaksha
Yuvanas(h)wa in the Mahabharata, a king of the Solar dynasty, father of Mandhata. A legend represents this son as being conceived by and born of his father. (Dow.; M.N.) 0 3: 190 8: 46
Yuyudhana See Satyaki(e)
Z
Zaruthrusta the same as Zarathustra or Zarathrushtra (see Zoroaster). (Enc. Br.) a: 38 Zeb in Sri Aurobindo's play The Viziers of Bassora, a companion of Nureddene. (A) 7: 630, 643, 645 Zendavesta Zend-Avesta. See Avesta D XVI: 166
Zephyr Greek personification of the westerly winds. He was gentle, and his mythical role was of a peacemaker. (Col. Enc.) a 5: 25, 34 7: 877, 1080
Page 354
Zero translation of the Sanskrit word "sunya", used by Bengali writers wishing to remain anonymous. The seven articles of the series "Bankim Chandra Chatterji", written by Sri Aurobindo, were published in Indu- prakash of Bombay in 1894 over the signature "Zero". (A) n 3:73
Zethus in Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, a Hellene chieftain, son of Arithoa. He seems to have been promised a boon by Achilles for saving his life in "Memnon's battle". Zethus re- quests "to meet Penthesilea in battle" as his boon. The boon is granted and in the battle he is slain by Penthesilea. (M.I.) a 5: 514-15, 517 VI: 134-35
Zeus the supreme god in Greek religion; son of Cronos, the Titan, whom he overthrew. He decrees all that shall be, subject only to the mysterious power of ANANKE. The lord of the heavens, he has as his special manifestations in Nature: thunder, lightning and the tempest. He is regarded as the universal Father, though mythology makes him the actual father (by a variety of goddesses and mortal women besides his consort Hera) of only some of the gods and certain extra- ordinary human beings such as Perseus, Helen, Sarpedon, and Dardanus. In Sri Aurobindo's Ilion, the fall of Troy is the inscrutable will of Zeus which even the gods cannot prevent, though they are free to struggle against it. By his command, the gods withdrew from the fighting during the last year of the Trojan War, resuming their participation'only when Achilles returned to the battle. (M.I.) 5:394, 405-06, 420, 424-26, 428-29, 431, 434, 437, 449-50, 455, 457-58, 468, 470, 472-74, 476, 480, 483, 485, 490-94, 496, 498, 501-11, 515-16 6: 1, 3, 12-13, 22, 24, 30, 34, 39, 53, 82-84, 129, 151, 163, 171, 173, 177, 198, 200, 392, 433 8: 409-10 9: 317, 333 10: 153 11: 3 16: 125, 337, 346-50, 357, 360, 368 17: 257 II: 26 VI: 135 XV: 11, 15
Ziauddin, Dr. Dr. Ziauddin Ahmad (1878- 1947), a well-known mathematician; he served as a teacher of mathematics at M.A.O. College, Aligarh (U.P.), and later became first pro-vice-chancellor (1920-28) and then vice-chancellor (1935-47) of Aligarh Muslim University. (D.N.B.) a 1:480
Zobeidah (d. 831), wife of Harun-al-Rashid, the Caliph of Baghdad. She was renowned for her beauty. (Enc. Br.) a 7:696
Zola, Emile (-Edouard-Charles-Antoine) (1840-1902), French novelist and critic, the founder of the Naturalist movement in literature. (Enc. Br.) Q 9: 329
Zollverein German customs union, estab- lished in 1834 under Prussian leadership. It created a free-trade area throughout much of Germany and was a key step towards German reunification. (Enc. Br.) n 15:312, 315
Zones, Joe probably, JoeGans (1874-1910), a professional boxer known as the "Old Master". A Negro, he was perhaps the greatest fighter in the history of the light- weight division. (Enc. Br.) a 26: 378
Zoroaster (c. 628 - c. 551 BC), a great religious teacher and reformer of ancient Persia, the founder of Zoroastrianism, or Parsiism, as it is known in India. Little is known with certainty about Zoroaster's life. He is said to have received a vision from Ahura Mazda, the Wise Lord, who appointed him to preach the Truth. Zoroaster is the Greek form of Zarathus(h)tra, the Persian name. In Old Italian the form is Zarathrusthtra. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) Var: Jarad-Drashta; Jarat-Karu (doubtful reading); Zaruthrusta a 13:454 22:393 II: 38 XVII: 43
Zoroastrian (adherent) of the religious system taught by Zoroaster and his followers in the Avesta or Zend-Avesta. Zoroastrianism, founded in the 6th century BC, is the ancient pre-Islamic religion of Iran (Persia) that survives there in isolated areas and more prosperously in India, where the descendants of Zoroastrian immigrants are known as Parsees or Parsis. (Enc. Br.) Der: Zoroastrianism a 10: 44 13: 163 17: 341 18: 603
Zoyla a character - attendant of Cleopatra - in Sri Aurobindo's play Rodogune. 6: 333, 342, 417-18
Zuleikha according to Muslim tradition, the name of Potiphar's wife who tempted Joseph. Some call her Rail, but the name by which she is best known is Zoleikha. (Ox. Comp.) 5: 275
Page 355
This book is primarily intended to provide information about the proper names used by Sri Aurobindo in his writings. But it may also be used as an index or concordance to find whether a certain name occurs in Sri Aurobindo's works. Readers wishing to use the book in this way should remember the following points:
1. Sri Aurobindo may not have used the conventional form or normal spelling of a name, but instead an alternative, variant, or derivative, or else an older form that is no longer in vogue.
2. When writing about a person (real or fictional), he may have used a pseudonym, nickname, or patronymic.
3. When writing about literary works, Sri Aurobindo may have used an abbreviated form of the title, e.g. Lays, Malavica, Richard Feveral, or a translation of the original title, e.g. Toy Cart, The Prince, The Sacrifice of the Sikh.
4. Many variant spellings result from attempts to render the sounds of one language in another. The reader should note in particular:
(a) North Indian languages, which are generally written in a number of related scripts, are transliterated into the Roman alphabet in various ways. Many of these variants occur in Sri Aurobindo, for example,
(i) The sound "i" is represented in at least four different ways: Bharati, Bheels, Bannerjea, Kashi'e.
(ii) The letter "u" sometimes takes the place of "a" in the middle of the name, and occasionally also at the beginning, e.g. Dimbhuc, (/mballa. (iii) "oo" or "ou" is occasionally used in place of "u", e.g. Arjoona, Vaicountha. (iv) "aa" is occasionally used in place of "a", e.g. Aacrity, Sanoaman. (v) Following a habit of Latin-educated scholars, Sri Aurobindo often used the letter "c" for the sound usually transliterated "k", e.g. Acrur, Calindi, Sanscrit.
(b) The peculiarities of Bengali pronunciation have affected spellings in various ways:
(i) "o" sometimes takes the place of "a", e^. Soroyu, Ocroor (ii) "b" sometimes takes the place of "v" , e.g. Bibhishan (iii) "s" sometimes takes the place of "sh", e.g. Sudra, Parasurama (iv) "kh" sometimes takes the place of "ksh", e.g. Ofe/iaya
5. One should also remember that Bengali surnames are spelled in many different ways, e.g. Banerjea, Banerjee, Banerji, Bannerjee, Bannerji, Bonerji, Bonnerji, etc.
Besides keeping the above points in mind one may also make use of the following table. Here, under "For" are given most of the names that are dealt with in this book but not listed in their conventional or normal form. Under "See" against each of these names is noted the entry under which it is treated.
Page 357
Page 359
(The abbreviation used for the source is given at the end in parentheses.)
I BOOKS
1. Antony, Francis Cyril, ed. Gazetteer of India: Territory of Pondicherry. 2 vols. Pondicherry: Administration of the Union Territory of Pondicherry, 1982. (Gaz. P.)
2. Apte, V. S. Sanskrit-English Dictionary. 3 vols. Poona: Prasad Prakashan, 1957. (Apte)
3. Archer, William. India and the Future. London: Hutchinson & Co., 1917. (Archer)
4. Avery, Catherine B., ed. The New Century Classical Handbook. New York: Appleton Century-Crafts, 1962. (N.C.C.H.)
5. Barker, L. Mary, ed. Pears Cyclopaedia. 80th ed. Suffolk: Pelham Books Ltd., 1971- 72. (Pears)
6. Benet, William Rose, ed. Reader's Encyclopedia. 3rd ed. New York: Harper & Row, 1987. (R. Enc.)
7. Besant, Annie. The Ancient Wisdom - An Outline of Theosophical Teachings. 5th ed. Madras : Adyar Publishing House, 1954, (A.W.)
8. Bhattachary»; Sachchidananda. A Dictionary of Indian History. Calcutta: University of Calcutta, 1972. (D.I.H.)
9. Blavatsky, H. P. The Theosophical Glossary. Los Angeles: The Theosophy Company, 1930 [Photographic reproduction of 1892 edition]. (T.G.)
10. Bose, Bejoy Krishna. The Alipore Bomb Trial. Calcutta: Butterworth & Co., 1922. (A.B.T.)
11. Brahmachari, Prabhu Datta. Shri Shri Chaitanya Charitavali (Hindi), pt. 2. Gorakhpur (U.P.): Gita Press, 1959. (Ch. Ch.)
12. Brewer, E. Cobham. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. London: Cassell & Co., n.d. (Brewer)
13. Bridgwater, William, and Sherwood, Elizabeth J., eds. The Columbia Encyclopaedia in one volume. New York: Columbia University Press, 1950. (Col. Enc.)
14. Buch, H. H. Maharaja Sayajirao Trija (Gujarat^). Vadodara: Prachya Vidya Mandir, 1988. (Sayaji.)
15. Cary, M., and others, eds. The Oxford Classical Dictionary. London: Oxford University Press, 1961. (O.C1.D.)
16. Cavendish, Richard, ed. Encyclopaedia of the Unexplained. London: Rutledge & Kegan Paul, 1974. (Enc. Unex.)
17. Chatterji, Bankim Chandra. Bankim Rachanavali (Bengali). 2 vols. Life and Notes by Yogesh Chandra Bagal. Calcutta: Sahitya Samsad, 1962. (B.R.)
18. Chitrava, Siddheshwar Shastri. Bharatavarshiya Arvachina Charitrakosha (Marathi). Pune: Bharatavarshiya Charitrakosha Mandala, 1946. (B.A.C.)
19. Chitrava, Siddheshwar Shastri. Bharatavarshiya Prachina Charitrakosha (Marathi). Pune: Bharatavarshiya Charitrakosha Mandala, 1932. (B.P.C.)
20. Chopra, P. N., ed. The Gazetteer of India. 3 vols. New Delhi: Ministry of Education and Social Welfare, 1973, 1973, 1975. (Gaz.)
Page 361
21. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English, adapted by H. W. Fowler and F. G. Fowler. 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1944. (C.O.D.)
22. A Concordance to the Holy Scriptures (on the Basis of Cruden). London: The Religious Tract Society, n.d. (Concord.)
23. Das Kluge Alphabet (German). Vol. 2. Berlin: Propylain Verlag, 1934. (D.K.A.)
24. Datta, B. N. Swami Vivekananda - Patriot - Prophet. Calcutta: Navabharat Publishers, 1954. (S.V.P.P.)
25. Deb, Asutosh. Nutan Bangia Abhidhan (Bengali). Calcutta: Deb Sahitya Kutir, 1938. (N.B.A.)
26. Der Grosse Brockhaus (German). 18th ed. Vol. 5. Wiesbaden: F. A. Brockhaus, 1979. (D.G.B.)
27. Dipti's Calcutta & Howrah Guide with Map. 8th ed. Calcutta: Print & Publication Sales Concern, n.d. (Guide)
28. Dowson, John. A Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology and Religion. Geography, History, and Literature. 12th ed. Ludhiana (Punjab): Lyall Book Depot, n.d. (Dow.)
29. Encyclopaedia of World Biography. 12 vols. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1973. (Enc. W.B.)
30. Encyclopaedia Americana - International Edition. 30 vols. New York: American Corporation, 1966. (Enc. Am.)
31. Fox, Elio, ed. Rome - in History - in Christianity - in Civilization. Translated from the Italian by Angelo Marin. 3rd ed. Verona (Italy): Arti Grafiche Bellomi Inc., 1975. (Fox)
32. Ghose, Lotika. Manmohan Ghose. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi, 1975. (Lotika)
33. Ghosh, K. C. The Roll of Honour. Calcutta: Vidya Bharati, 1965. (R.O.H.)
34. Gilbert, Martin. Servant of India. London: Longmans, 1966. (Gilbert)
35. Gordon, Leonard A. Bengal: The Nationalist Movement 1876-1940. 1st Indian ed. New Delhi: Manohar Book Service, 1974. (Gordon)
36. Grand Larousse encyclopedique. Vol. 10. Paris: Librairie Larousse, 1964. (Larousse)
37. Gupta, Mahendra Nath ["M"]. The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. Translated from the Bengali by Swami Nikhilananda. 6th ed. Madras: Sri Ramakrishna Math, 1974. (Gospel)
38. Gupta, Nolini Kanta. Collected Works of Nolini Kanta Gupta. Vol. 7. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education, 1978. (C.W.N.)
39. Gupta, Nolini Kanta, and Amrita, K, Reminiscences. Pondicherry: Mother India, Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1969. (Remini.)
40. Harvey, Sir Paul, comp. and ed. The Oxford Companion to Classical Literature. London: Oxford University Press, 1962. ' (O.C.C.L.)
41. Harvey, Sir Paul, comp. and ed. The Oxford Companion to English Literature. 4th ed. rev. Dorothy Eagle. London: Oxford University Press, 1967. (Ox. Comp.)
42. The Holy Bible - King James' Authorized Version of 1611. London: British and Foreign Bible Society, n.d. (Bible)
43. Index and Glossary of Sanskrit and Other Indian Terms. Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library, Vol. 30. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1976. (I & G)
44. lyengar, K. R. Srinivasa. On the Mother: The Chronicle of a Manifestation and Ministry. 2 vols. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education, 1978. (Mother)
45. lyengar, K. R. Srinivasa. Sri Aurobindo: A Biography and a History. 2 vols. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education, 1972. (Auro)
Page 362
46. lyengar, M. A. Narayana. "Foreword" to S. Parthasarathy lyengar. The Bhagavad Gita: A Simple Paraphrase into English. Madras: Gyana-Vigyana Trust, Gautama- sramam, 1959. (B. Gita)
47. Joshi, Mahadeva Shastri, ed. Bharatiya Sanskriti Kosha (Marathi). 10 vols. Pune:
Bharatiya Sanskriti Kosha Mandala, 1962-79. (Bh.S.K.)
48. Karandikar, S. L. Lokamanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak. Poona: 399/3, Sadashiv Peth, 1957. (Karandikar)
49. Ker, James Campbell. Political Trouble in India: 1907-1917. Calcutta: Editions Indian, 1973. (P.T.I.)
50. Kulkarni, Krishnaji Pandurang. Marathi Vyutpatti Kosha (Marathi). 2nd ed. Pune:
Lekhan Vachan Bhandar, 1964. (M.V.K.)
51. Lewis, Charlton T., and Short, Charles. A Latin Dictionary. London: Oxford Univer- sity Press, 1962. (Latin D.)
52. Leadbeater, C. W. A Textbook of Theosophy. Madras: The Theosophical Publishing House, 1941. (Theos.)
53. Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth. Poetical Works of Longfellow. London: Oxford Uni- versity Press, 1925. (P.W.L.)
54. Macdonald, A. M. ed. Chamber's Twentieth Century Dictionary. New ed. Bombay:
Allied Publishers Private Ltd., 1972. (C.T.C.D.)
55. Macdonell, Arthur Anthony, and Keith, Arthur Berriedale. Vedic Index of Names and Subjects. 2 vols. Banaras (Varanasi): Motilal Banarsidass, 1958. (V. Index)
56. Maddah (Mohd. Mustafa Khan). Urdu-Hindi Shabdakosha (Hindi). Lucknow: Pub- lication Wing, Department of Information, U.P., 1959. (U.H.S.)
57. Mahabharata ki Namanukramanlka (Hindi). Gorakhpur (U.P.): Gita Press, 1959. (M.N.)
58. Majumdar, Bimanbehari. Militant Nationalism in India. Calcutta: General Printers and Publishers, 1966. (B. Maj.)
59. Majumdar, R. C. An Advanced History of India. 3 vols. Calcutta: Firma K. L. Mukhopadhyay, 1963. (A.H.I.)
60. Majumdar, R. C. History of the Freedom Movement in India. 3 vols. Calcutta: Firma K. L. Mukhopadhyay, 1 (1971), 11 (1975), III (1963). (Maj.)
61. Majumdar, R. C., and Majumdar, A. K. Struggle for Freedom. 2nd ed. Bombay:
Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1978. (S.F.F.)
62. Malory, James, and others, eds. Dictionary of Peoples and Places. London & Glasgow:
William Collins & Co., 1975. (P.P.)
63. Mani, Vettam. Puranic Encyclopaedia. 1st ed. in English. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1975. (Pur. Enc.)
64. Monier-Williams, Sir Monier. Sanskrit-English Dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1956. (M.W.)
65. The Mother. Tales of All Times. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1955. (T.A.T.)
66. Mukherjee, Haridas, and Mukherjee, Uma. India's Fight for Freedom or the Swadeshi Movement (1905-1906). Calcutta: Firma K. L. Mukhopadhyay, 1958. (I.F.F.)
67. Murray, Sir James A. H., and others, eds. A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles. 11 vols. London: Oxford University Press, 1888-1933. (O.E.D.)
68. Nehru, Jawarharlal. Glimpses of World History. Bombay: Asia Publishing House, 1975. (G.W.H.)
69. Nevinson, Henry W. The New Spirit in India. Delhi: Metropolitan Book Co., 1975. (N.S.I.)
Page 363
70. The New Encyclopaedia Britannica. 30 vols. 15th ed. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britan- nica Inc., 1977. (Enc. Br.)
71. The New Lexicon Webster's Dictionary. New York: Lexicon Publications, 1987. (N.L.W.D.)
72. Padmanabhan, R. A. V.V.S. Aiyar. New Delhi: National Book Trust, India, 1980. (V.V.S.)
73. Pandit, M. P., ed. Breath of Grace. Pondicherry: Dipti Publications, 1973. (B.G.)
74. Purani, A. B. The Life of Sri Aurobindo. 4th rev. ed. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Publication Department, 1978. (Purani)
75. Purani, A. B., recorder. Evening Talks with Sri Aurobindo. 3rd ed. (complete in one vol.). Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Society, 1982. (Eve. T.)
76. Purani, A. B., comp. Sri Aurobindo's Vedic Glossary. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1962. (V.G.)
77. Raghunath Singh, Dr. Jonardjakrta Rdjatarangini. Varanasi: Chowkhambha Sanskrit Series Office, 1972. (J.R.)
78. Ramasamy, A. A History of Pondicherry. New Delhi: Sterling Publishers, 1987. (H.P.)
79. Richard, Paul, comp. The Eternal Wisdom. Vol. 1. Madras: Ganesh & Co., 1922. (E.W.)
80. Roy, Dilip Kumar. Yogi Sri Krishnaprem. Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1969. (SKP)
81. Roy, Shankar Nath. Bharater Sadhak (Bengali). Calcutta: Sudhir Mukherji, Reuter's Colony, 87 Dharamtalla Street, 1957. (B.S.)
82. Rushbrode, L. F. ed. Great Men of India. Bombay: The Home Library Club, n.d. (G.M.I.)
83. Sadananda. Vedantasara of Sadananda. ed. and translated by Swami Nikhilananda. 5th reprint ed. Calcutta: Advaita Ashram, 1968. (Ved. S.)
84. Saradananda, Swami. Sri Ramakrishna the Great Master. 4th ed. Translated from the Bengali Sri Sri Ramakrishna Lilaprasanga, 5 vols. Madras: Sri Ramakrishna Math, 1952. (S.R.G.M.)
85. Sarkar, Jadunath. Shivaji (Hindi). Bombay: Hindi Grantha Ratnakar, 1959. (Shiva)
86. Sarkar, Sudhir Chandra, comp. Pauranika Abhidhana (Bengali). Calcutta: S.C. Sarkar & Sons,1963. (P.A.)
87. Satprem, ed. L'Agenda de Mere - II, 1961 (French). Paris: Institut de Recherches Evolutives, 1978. (Agenda)
88. Sen, S. P., ed. Dictionary of National Biography. 4 vols. Calcutta: Institute of Historical Studies, 1972-74. (D.N.B.)
89. Sengupta, Subodh Chandra, chief ed. Sarnsad Bangali Charitabhidan (Bengali). Calcutta: Sahitya Samsad, 1976. (S.B.C.)
90. Sethna, K. D. Sri Aurobindo: The Poet. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education, 1970. (A-Poet))
91. Shakespeare, William. William Shakespeare: The Complete Works. The Tudor ed., Peter Alexander. London & Glasgow: The English Language Book Society & Collins, 1964. (Shakes.)
92. Shankaracharya. Srimadbhagavadgita: Shankara-bhashya (Sanskrit). Translated into Hindi by Harikrishnadas Goenka. 8th ed. Gorakhpur (U.P.): Gita Press, 1931. (Gita S.)
93. Sharma, Jagdish Saran. Encyclopaedia Indica. New Delhi: S. Chand & Co., 1975. (Enc. Ind.)
Page 364
94. Shyam Sundar Das, and others, eds. Hindi Shabda Sagar. 10 vols. Varanasi: Nagari Pracharini Sabha, 1965-75. (H. S. S.)
95. Sri Aurobindo. Light to Superlight (unpublished letters). Notes and annexures by Arun Chandra Dutt. Calcutta: Prabartak Publishers, 1972. (L. to Sl.)
96. Sri Aurobindo. Sonnets. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Publication Department, 1980. (Sonnets)
97. Sri Aurobindo. Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library. 30 vols. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1970-76. And previously unpublished writings of Sri Aurobindo in Sri Aurobindo: Archives and Research. Vols. 1 to 11. Pondicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram Trust, 1977-87. (A)
98. Srivastava, S. N., ed. Surdas: Poetry and Personality. Agra: Sur Smarak Mandal, 1978. (Sur)
99. Tarachand. History of the Freedom Movement in India. Vol. 3. New Delhi: Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, 1972. (H.F.M.I.)
100. Thrall, William Flint, and Hibbard, Addison, eds. A Handbook to Literature. 2nd ed., rev. C. Hugh Holman. New York: The Odyssey Press, 1960. (H.L.)
101. Upadhyaya, Baldeva. Bharatiya Darshan (Hindi). Varanasi: Sharda Mandir, 1948. (Bh. Dar.)
102. Venna, Dhirendra, and others, eds. Hindi Vishva Kosha. 10 vols. Varanasi: Nagari Pracharini Sabha, 1963. (H.V.K.)
103. Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary. A Merriam-Webster publication. Indian ed. of 1981. Calcutta: Scientific Book Agency, 1985. (Web. N.C.D.)
104. Webster's New International Dictionary. 2nd ed. Springfield (Mass., U.S.A.): G. & C. Merriam Co., 1959. (Web. N.I.D.)
105. Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language. College ed. Cleveland and New York: The World Publishing Co., 1968. (Web.)
106. Who Was Who, 1916-28 - a well-known British biographical dictionary of important persons living in the period. (W.W.W.)
107. Wolpert, Stanley A. Morley and India, 1906-1910. Berkeley and Los Angeles: Univer- sity of California Press, 1967. (Wolpert)
108. Yajnik, Indulal. Shyamji Krishnavarma. Bombay: Lakshmi Publications, 1950. (Shyamji)
109. Zacharias, H.C.F. Renascent India: From Rammohan Roy to Mahatma Gandhi. London: George Alien & Unwin Ltd., 1933. (Zach.)
II ATLASES AND MAPS
110. Gujarat Road Atlas. Ahmedabad: Gyan Vigyan Prakashan, 1984. (G.R.A.)
111. Hammond's Ambassador World Atlas. New Jersey: C. S. Hammond & Co., n.d. (H. Atlas)
112. The Oxford School Atlas. 22nd ed. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1973. (S. Atlas)
113. Road Map of India. 2nd ed. Government of India, Survey of India Offices (H.L.O.), 1962. (R. Map)
Page 365
III JOURNALS AND NEWSPAPERS
114. Bengal Past and Present, Vol. XCVIII, Part II", Serial No. 187 (July-Dec., 1979). ed. Pratui Chandra Gupta. pub. Calcutta Historical Society. (B.P.P.)
115. Dey, Mukul Chandra. "My Darshan of Sri Aurobindo at Pondicherry". The Heritage 4 (1988): no. 8 (August). Madras: Chandamama Publications. (Heritage)
116. The Hindu (daily newspaper), Madras, ed. G. Kasturi. Dates mentioned in entries.
117. Hughes, Eric. "Name Glossary to Sri Aurobindo's Ilion". Mother India 21 (1969): nos. 7 to 11 (August to December: copies in the Ashram Archives Library, with the articles revised and enlarged). (M.I.)
118. Kalyana (Hindi monthly) 22 (1948): 1 Nari-anka. ed. Hanuman Prasad Poddar and Chimmanlal Goswami. pub. Gita Press, Gorakhpur (U.P.) (Nari)
119. Kalyana (Hindi monthly) 23 (1949): 1 Upanishad-anka. ed. Hanuman Prasad Poddar and Chimmanlal Goswami. pub. Gita Press, Gorakhpur (U.P.) (Up. K.)
120. Kalyana (Hindi monthly) 26 (1952): 1 Bhakta-charitanka. ed. Hanuman Prasad Poddar and Chimmanlal Goswami. pub. Gita Press, Gorakhpur (U.P.) (Bhakta Ch.)
121. Kalyana (Hindi monthly) 27 (1953): 1 Balaka-anka. ed. Hanuman Prasad Poddar and Chimmanlal Goswami. pub. Gita Press, Gorakhpur (U.P.) (Balak)
122. The Mail (daily newspaper), Madras, ed. V.P.V. Rajan. Dates mentioned in entries.
123. Mother India (Monthly Review of Culture), ed. K. D. Sethna. pub. Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry. Issue mentioned in entries. (M.I.)
124. Salomon, Richard. "The Three Cursed Rivers of the East, and their Significance for the Historical Geography of India". Brahmavidya: The Adyar Library Bulletin 42 (1978):
40-42. pub. The Adyar Library and Research Centre, Theosophical Society, Adyar, Madras. (B.V.)
125. Sri Aurobindo: Archives and Research (semi-annual), pub. Publication Department, Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry. Issue mentioned in entries. (A & R)
126. Sri Aurobindo Mandir Annual 27 (1968): 161 fn. ed. Nolini Kanta Gupta. pub. Sri Aurobindo Path Mandir, Calcutta. (S.A.M.A.)
Page 366
Corrigenda-cum-Addenda
The December-1994 issue of the journal "Sri Aurobindo: Archives & Research" was the last to come out for the present. The Glossary and Index of Proper Names in Sri Aurobindo's Works, published in 1989, covers issues of the journal up to the year 1987. Relevant information occurring in the issues of 1988 to 1994 is given in this Supplement to the Glossary and Index. In addition, the Supplement corrects errors, supplies omissions, and provides improved versions of some of the glossary articles.
The name-entries are in alphabetical order, followed by the page numbers of the book in square brackets. Most of these entries are already listed in the main series. The rest, marked with an asterisk, are either new names or cross-references left out by oversight. The new entries have been dealt with in full according to the procedure adopted in the book. In the other entries (i.e., those already listed in the book), the abbreviated instructions used are as follows:-
Note: The line numbers (mentioned in making changes) relate to the glossary article.
In the index references, the following Roman figures have been used for the post-1987 issues of the journal. These may be added to the list given on page xvi of the book.
XXIV
Names taken from the Record of Yoga were listed in the book in advance of the publication of the Record. Some of them are not found in the Record as it is now finally published. They are, therefore, to be withdrawn from the book.
Aacrity [p.l] include XXVI: 137
Abdul Baha [p.l] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVII: 21 XXXV: 81-82
Abhimanyu [p.l] include XXVI: 149
Achilleid [p.2] include XXV: 2 XXVI: 124
Achilles [p.2] include XXVI: 135
Aditi [p.3]- include XXVII: 41 XXXVI: 152
Adrianople [p.3] include XXXV: 62
* The Advent [p.3] "A Quarterly Devoted to the Exposition of Sri Aurobindo's Vision of the Future", started in 1944 by Sri Aurobindo Library, Madras, and from 1957 published by Sri Aurobindo Ashram at Pondicherry. (I & G) n 24:1777 29:818
Aeneid [pp.3-4] include XXV: 32
Aeschylus [p.4] include XXV: 10,35
Aetna [p.4] (1) line 1-'Etna'to be boldface, and the parentheses to be deleted (2) include 29: 507
Afghan [p.4] include XXVI: 147
Africa [p.4] include XXIV: 143
Agathon [p.5] include XXXV: 55
*Agesilaus [p.5] Agesilaus II (c. 444-360 BC), king of Sparta (c.400-360 BC). His rule had seen the ruin of Sparta though he was much admired by some contemporaries, notably Xenophon. (Col. Enc.) XXXV: 55
Agis [p.5] include XXXV: 55
Agni [pp.5-6] (1) Delete all page numbers relating to volume No. 11, and subs. PASSIM. (2) include 24:1238,1502 XXIII: 59 XXIV: 141,151,154-55,163 XXV: 72 XXVI: 166 XXVII: 36, 38,41 XXIX: 47, 54,73 XXX: 141,147,190,194 XXXI:
47-49 XXXII: 112-13 XXXIII: 72
Agrippa [p.6] (1) include Var: Agrippe (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXV: 86
Ahana [p.6] include XXVIII: 124
Ahmedabad [p.6] include XXVII: 60, 84
*Ain-I-Akbari [p.7] a unique work in Persian written by Emperor Akbar's friend and minister Abul Fazi about the middle of the seventeenth century. It is a survey of Akbar's empire and of the imperial system, throwing a flood of light on the economic condition and administrative system of the Moghuls. (D.I.H.) XXVII: 69
Aitareya (Upanishad) [p.7] include XXVIII: 123
*Ajamede¹ [p.7] See Ajamida
Ajamede [p.7] Add superscript numeral² at the end.
Ajamida [p.7] include V'sec: Ajamede² XXVI: 141
Ajwa [p.8] (1) add (end) Originally named Sayaji Sarovar and built by Sayajirao III in 1892, it was renamed Pratap Sarovar in 1930. (2) add (source) ;HasitBuch: Maharaja Sayajirao III, 1988
Akashic records [p.8] line 1 - ākāśa-lipi to be in boldface italic type
Akbar [p.8] (1) Give more space between 3:176 and 4:147, (2) include XXV:34
Alcibiades [p.9] include XXXV: 55
Alexander' [p.9] include XXVI: 147-48 Alipore [p.10] include XXIII: 15,62
XXIV: 101,118 XXVI: 165,186 XXIX: 83 XXXVI: 214
Aloyse Abelard [p. 10] include Var: Mrs. Sieurcaye
Alsace [p.10] include XXVIII: 130, 137, 139
Alt-Breisach [p.ll] (1) line 3 - Put 'West' in parentheses. (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 145
America [pp.11-12] include XXIX: 133 XXVII: 60,76 XXX: 234,238
Among the Great [p. 12] line 5 -for Betrand read Bertrand
Anandaloka [p.13] (1) add (end) In the Record of Yoga, Sri Aurobindo distinguishes a supreme Anandaloka, part of the "Eternal Manifestation" and another which is part of the "mental series". (A & R, April '86, p.90) (2) include XX: 131
*Ananda Mimansa [p.13] title of a Sanskrit text. The term literally means "inquiry into the nature of bliss". (A & R, December '86, p.162) a XX: 124
Ananke [p.13] Add (end) She was sister of THEMIS.
*Anaryan [p.l3] See Arya
Anathema Maranatha [p.l3] line 3-Add a full stop at the end (after "accursed").
Andamans [p.14] include XXIX: 115
Andersen, Hans [p. 14] last but one line of the entry -for Var.: read Var:
Andhra [p.14] for XVIII: 136,138 read XVIII: 136-39
Angah [p. 15] (1) Put the last letter h in parentheses. (2) for XVIII: 136 read XVIII: 136-37
Angiras(a) [p. 15] include XXVII: 42
*Anglo-French [p. 15] the French language
Pg. 1
used in medieval England (Web.N.C.D.) XXVIII: 163
Anglo-India(n) [p.15] include 1:435
Anglo-Saxon [p. 15] add (end) (H.L.)
Aniruddha [pp. 15-16] include XXIII: 55 XXIX: 97,102 XXX: 133,195-96 XXXIII: 3
Antony, Mark [p. 17] include XXXV: 86 (Antony)
Antony and Cleopatra [p. 17] include XXVI: 133
Antwerp [p. 17] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 183-84,187 XXIX: 74
Apollo [p. 17] line 4 — Insert the following between the full stop and 'In':- He was the son of Zeus and Leto and is represented as the most handsome of masterful young men, the ideal image of the youthful god.
Apte [p. 18] include XXIV: 124 XXVI: 150
*Ar. [p. 18] apparently an abbreviation of the name of a person, occurring in "lipis" (in "Record of Yoga"), XXVIII: 171, 187
Arabia [p. 18] include XXVII: 64-65
Aracan [p. 18] line 2 - Insert the following between 'Burma' and the comma:- (now called Myanmar)
Aranyani [p. 19] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVII: 41
Arcadia [p. 19] include XXV: 14
Areopagus [p. 19] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIX: 61
Ares [p. 19] include XXX: 187
Arjoon(a) [p.20] add (to the name-entry) ; Arjouna
Arjun(a) [pp.20-21] include Var: Arjouna XXV: 27-30, 33 XXVI: 138
Arnold, Sir Edwin [p.21] (1) This name is to be listed after Arnold, Matthew. (2) In references from Volume 1, delete 54 together with the comma preceding it.
Arnold, Matthew [p.21] include 1:54
Arya [p.22] (1) In the derivative Anaryan, put the last n in parentheses. (2) In references from Volume 4, delete 116. (3) Change the references from Volume XVIII as follows: XVIII: 134-43, 148-51, 177 (4) include XXIII: 32 XXV: 2, 24, 32-33 XXVI: 123,136-37,140 XXVII: 2 XXVIII: 124
Arya [p.22] (I) In references from Volume 27, for 456, 463, 468, subs. 455-57, 460-63, 468-70 (2) include 22:149, XXV: 76, 78-79 XXVIII: 182 XXXII: 103, 127-28 XXXVI: 216-17
Aryama(n) [pp.22-23] include XXVII: 38, 41 XXVIII: 137 XXIX: 41,73
Ashoka [p.23] (1) After the variatives, give more space between Asoka and Der: (2) include XXVIII: 70
As(h)wamedha [p.24] (l) line l - "Horse-Sacrifice" to be in boldface type (2) After sources of glossary article, delete Var:
Asvamedha (3) In references, for 12: 371, 399-400 subs. 11: 242 12: 399-400
Ashwamedha (Bharata) [p.24] include Var: Aśvamedha
As(h)wattha [p.24] In the first variant Asvattha, replace ś by s
As(h)watthama [p.24] include XXVI: 141
As(h)wins [p.24] include Var: Aśvin XXIV: 156,163 XXVIII: 183 XXIX: 73 XXX: 187
Asia [p.24] include XXVI: 136 XXXVI: 185-88,198-99
Asita [p.24] Replace existing entry by:- name of a descendant of the Vedic Rishi KASHYAPA. He is also called Devala or Asita Devala. (M.W.) 13:344 Assyria [p.25] include XXVIII: 143,150
Asura [p. 25] include Der: Asuro (combining form) 23:1055 XXIII: 14 XXIV: 128-29,147 XXV: 33-35, 39 XXIX: 21 XXX: 156, 195 XXXVI: 192 Aśvamedha [p. 25] Delete the parentheses in which 'h' is placed, and after this name, add (Bharata)
Atlanta in Caly don [p. 26] for Atlanta read Atalanta
Atris² [p. 27] include XXV: 66 XXVIII: 121, 149
*Auchulos [p. 27] in the Record of Yoga, a term occurring in a "lipi". (A) XXV: 69
Austria [p.28] include XXVIII: 137,158
Austro-German [p.28] include XXVIII: 145
Avesta [p.29] last line- for five books, subs. five books (including the Khurd Avesta).
Ayar, J. [p.29] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIV: 121
Ayasya [p. 29] (1) add (end) Ayasya is said to be the discoverer of the "fourth state" or a "fourth world" beyond those already known to the Rishis. (2) add (source) ; SABCL,10:169
Back to Methuselah [p.30] This entry is to be delisted.
Pg. 2
Bactria [pp.30-31] (1) lines 4-5 -for Uzbek and Tadzhik Soviet Socialist Republics, subs. Independent States of Uzbek and Tadzhik. (2) include XXVI: 147
Bahuka [p.31] (1) lines 3-4 -for accomplished cook subs. charioteer (2) include Var: Vahuka XXV: 14
*Bala-Kali [p.32] See Kali²
Balaki [p.32] line 4 -for Drpta- read Drpta-
*Bala-Krishna [p.32] See Krishna
Balaram(a) [p.32] (1) line 2 -for He was the son of Nanda and Yasodha, subs. He was son of Vasudeva and Rohini brought up by Nanda and Yasoda, (2) include XXIII: 55 XXIX: 97,102 XXX: 133,195-96 XXXV: 58
Balfour [p.32] In the name-entry and line 1, make the following changes:- for Balfour, Arthur James subs. Balfour; Balfour, A.J. Arthur James Balfour
Bande Mataram¹ [p.33] include XXIX: 23,114-15 XXXVI: 214
Banerji, Aswini [p.34] In the variant, after the name Aswinicoomar, add Banerji
Bangabasi (School and) College [p.35] line 3- for it was read it is
Barhadratha [p.36] (1) add (begin) (son) (2) include Var: Barhodruth XXVI: 137
*Barhodruth [p.36] See Barhadratha
Baroda College [p.36] include XXIV: 163
Bases of Yoga [p.37] include 24:1777
Beadon Square [p. 38] The glossary article together with its source is to be replaced by the following:- one of several open spaces in north Calcutta where public meetings were held. Located at the south-west corner of Beadon Street (now Abhedananda Road) and Upper Chitpore Road (now Rabindra Sarani), it is at present called Rabindra Kanan. (A & R, April '91, p.127) Beethoven [p. 38] Add a comma after the name-entry.
Belgium [p.38] include XXVIII: 175
Benares [p.39] include XXVI: 128
Bengal [pp. 39-40] include XVIII: 145 XXIV: 116, 160 XXV: 77 XXVI: 137, 140 XXVII: 8, 74 XXXV: 60 (Bengal Provincial Conference)
Bengali¹ [p.40] include XXIII: 11 XXV: 47 XXVI: 147 XXVII: 34 XXIX: 30 XXXI: 38
Bengali² [p.40] include XXVII: 34 XXIX: 27, 30 XXXV: 86 (Bengal) National College [p.41] include XXIX: 115
Berlin [p.41] (1) Replace the glossary article by the following:- Once capital of Prussia, Berlin was from 1871 to 1945 the capital of Germany. Then, devastated by the Second World War, the city was politically divided in 1948 (and physically by a wall in 1961) into East Berlin (the East German capital) and West Berlin, which comprised a Land (state) and a city of the Federal Republic of (West) Germany. With the reunification of Germany in 1990, the Berlin Wall having collapsed in November of the previous year, there was a public debate over the choice of the national capital: Bonn or Berlin. The final vote favoured Berlin marginally, and consequently, Berlin became the administrative and legislative centre as well as capital of reunited Germany. (Enc. Br.; The Hindu, 19 August '91, p. 21) (2) include XXVIII: 137, 171
Besant, Annie [p.42] include XXXVI: 191, 193, 212
Bhaga¹ [p.42] (1) line 4 - Between 'are' and 'more' insert: , however, (2) include XXVII: 38, 41 XXVIII: 137-38 XXIX: 41, 73
Bhagavadgita [p.42] include XXV: 27, 28 ("Geta" - a slip or a misreading), 30-31 XXVII: 53
Bhagawan Das [p.43] line 4- for Banaras subs. BENARES
Bhagirath(a) [p.43] (1) line 2- for (a king of Ayodhya), subs. (of the race of Ikshvaku, and a king of Ayodhya), (2) include Var: Bhogiratha XXVI: 136-37
Bharat(a)² [pp.43-44] (1) for XVIII: 134, 138, 146, 148, 150 subs. XVIII: 134-35, 138-39, 146-51
(2) include XXV: 1, 4, 12, 21-22, 30 XXVI: 136-37, 141, 143, 149
Bharata [p.44] include XXVI: 126, 144, 148
Bharathi, Suddhananda [p.44] (1) for (1897- ) subs. (1893-1990) (2) line 9- Between 1951/52 and the full point, insert: , renamed Radhananda by Sri Aurobindo (3) In the sources, between 1984 and the parenthesis, insert:, and 8/9 March 1990
Bharati² [p.44] in index references, alter the last page number 146 to 146-47.
Bharati³ [p.44] include XXIV: 119,150 XXXI: 35, 38-39
Bharga Pragatha [p. 45] line.7- for Brhati read Brhati
*Bhatgaum [p.45] apparently, a small town in the former territory of KHANDESH. XXVII: 70
Pg. 3
*Bhatias [p.45] members of a caste (Bhatiya) among the Hindus of Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Punjab. They claim to be Kshatriyas. (H.S.S.) XXVII: 64, 67
Bhatt, Professor [p.45] line 1 - for an imaginary subs. the
Bhattacharjee, Basanta [p.45] line 3- Insert a comma before the last word 'he'.
*Bhawani [p.46] the Mother of the Universe, the Infinite Energy, pure Shakti, Knowledge, Love and sometimes even Pity. She is Durga, She is Kali, She is Radha, She is Lakshmi. Bhawani Bharati is Mother of India. See also the next entry. (A) Var: Bhavani 1:61,70 XVIII: 131,136-37, 144-49
Bhema; Bheme [p.46] In the name-entry, for Bhema subs. Bhema(sena)
Bhima(sena) [p.46] (1) in variants, Bhema to be replaced by Bhema(sena) (2) include XXV: 8, 11-12 XXVI: 142,146
Bhis(h)ma [p.46] (1) line 1 - Between 'Devavrata' and the comma, insert: (see Devavrath) (2) include XXVI: 141-42 XXXV: 60
Bhishmue [p.46] (1) for king of Vidaebha, and father of subs. king of Vidarbha in the Bhoja dynasty of the Lunar Race. He was the father of (2) include XXVI: 137 (3) add (source) ; M.N.
Bhogavat(h)ie [p.46] Put the 'e' of Boithorinie in parentheses.
"Bhogiratha [p.46] see Bhagirath(a)
Bhoja(s) [p.46] (1) In index references, for 3: 162, 189 subs. 3:162, 189-90 [Note: The term "Kurus" in the expression "the Kurus under Bhishmue" on p. 190 (line 4b) is a slip. It should be "Bhojas". Bhishmue was a king in the Bhoja dynasty of the Lunar Race. (M.N.)] (2) The subsequent references (from Volumes 4, 5, and 8) are all to be retained. (3) include XXV: 21 XXVI: 136-37
Bhrigus [p.47] include XXVII; 42
Bhujyu [p.47] add (end) See also Tugra
Bhur; Bhurloka [p.47] (l)linel- for Bhu, read Bhu(h), (2) last but one line
* for the sky read that sky (3) include XXIV: 134, 153 XXVII: 23, 26 XXIX: 102
Bhurishrava(s) [p.47] (1) In the name-entry, put the second h in
parentheses. (2) include XXVI: 139
Bhuvar; Bhuvarloka [p.47] include XXIII: 39 XXIV: 134, 140, 153 XXV: 72 XXVIII: 154 XXX: 175
*Bi. [p.48] See Biren4
Bible [p.48] lines 5-6 from the last - Delete 'probably' and the comma preceding it.
Bijoy [p.48] include XXIII: 41 XXIV: 119, 129, 150 XXV: 50, 72 XXVII: 49
Biren4 [p.49] (I) add (end) In the Record of Yoga Sri Aurobindo has sometimes abbreviated the name to Bi. or Br. (2) include XXIII: 41 XXIV: 150
XXV: 52
*Birendro [p.49] See Ghose, Barindra Kumar
*Birkbeck, George [p.49] (1776-1841), English physician who pioneered the founding of classes for workmen. In 1823 he promoted the foundation of the London Mechanic's Institution of which he was president until his death. In 1907 the institution was renamed Birkbeck College. (Enc.Br.) XXVII: 81
Bis(h)abriksha [p.49] line 1 - (Poison-Tree) to be in boldface type
Blavatsky, Madame [p.49] include XXXVI: 192
Blotton,Mr. [p.49] include XXV: 3 XXVI: 125
Bluysen [p.50] (1) add (end) In the Record of Yoga Sri Aurobindo refers to him also as B. (2) include XXV: 55, 72 XXVIII: 148
Bodhisattwa [p.50] include Var: Bodhi-sattwa XXX: 183
Bohemia [p.50] Replace the glossary article together with its source by the following: region of western Czechoslovakia; once a kingdom, later a province. The term "Bohemian society" (15: 88) refers to the unconventional way of life of Bohemians. (Web.N.C.D., pp.1417 and 123)
*Bol. [p.50] in the Record of Yoga, a word seen in a "lipi". XXIV: 121
Bolshevik(s) [pp.50-51] include 9:554 XXXVI: 179,196
Bombay [p.51] include XXVII: 74,79
Bose, Sudhira [p.53] add (begin) (1889-1920),
Boulogne [p.53] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 141
Br. [p.53] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. o Indexed with Biren4
Brahma [p.54] (1) In references, for XVIII: 140 read XVIII: 140-41 (2) include XXVII: 41
Brahmaputra [p.54] line 2 - Between 'of ' and 1800, insert: about
Brahmavarta [p.55] include XXVI: 152
Pg. 4
Brahmin [p.55] (1) line 1 - delete (Dwija) (2) in variants, add Dvija (twice-born: the "sacred thread ceremony" regarded as giving a second birth) (3) in references, for XVIII: 134, 136 read XVIII: 134-36 (4) include XXV: 3, 21, 29, 31 XXVI: 124-25, 136 XXVII: 21, 29
*Brasidas [p.55] (d. 422 BC), Spartan officer generally considered the only commander of genius produced by Sparta during the Archidamian War (431-21 BC), the first decade of the Peloponnesian War (431-04 BC), between Athens and Sparta. (Enc.Br.) XXXV: 55
Brazil [p.55] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIII: 30
Brihadaranyaka [p.56] include XXIII: 11
Brihadrath(a)¹ [p.56] include Var: Brihodruth Der: Barhodruth XXV: 137
Brihaspati [p.56] include Var: Vrihaspati XXIV: 151 XXV: 34 XXVII: 38 XXIX: 47,73
*Brihodruth [p.56] See Brihadrath(a)¹
Brindaban; Brindabon; Brindavan [p.56] In Brindavan, add (a) at the end.
Britain [p.57] include XXIV: 171, 173 XXVI: 151 XXVII: 65-66, 71, 78 XXVIII: 141, 146 XXIX: 44 XXX: 235-37, 240, 242 XXXVI: 198, 214-15
Brittany [p.57] include XXVI: 133
Browning, Oscar [p.58] line 1 - for (1883-1929) subs. (1837-1923)
Brussels [p.58] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 145
Bucoleon [p.58] last line- for Laomeodon read Laomedon
Buddha; Gautama Buddha [p.59] (l) In the name-entry, put the second Buddha in parentheses. (2) include XXV: 27 XXVI: 147
Buddhism [p.59] include XXV: 2-3, 28, 30-31, 35, 83 XXVI: 125, 147
Bug, the [p.59] (1) line 2- for Ukranian S.S.R. subs. Ukranian state (2) line 5 - add (end) (now known as the Commonwealth of Independent States). (3) for [From "Record of Yoga"..] subs. XXVIII: 137
Bull [p.60] (1) line 1 - for Taurus, a zodiacal constellation, subs. or Taurus, a zodiacal constellation lying between Aries and Gemini, (2) add (source) ; Enc. Br. (3) include XVII: 46-47
Burma [p.60] Replace the last sentence by the following: Presently it is a federal republic known as Myanmar; its capital is Yangon (Rangoon renamed).
Byron, Lord [p. 61] include XXV: 7 XXVI: 145
Cacootstha [p.61] add (begin) (Kakutstha),
Caesar(s) [p.61] line 2 from the last - for Kaisar read Kaiser Cailleux [pp.61-62] (1) In the name-entry replace e by a. (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIV: 119,123 Cairgorm [p. 62] In the name-entry insert n between the first r and g.
*Cakyas [p. 62] See (Sakyas)
Calcutta [p.62] include XXVIII: 180
Calmeth [p.62] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIV: 119
Calvin [p. 63] In the name-entry add a comma at the end.
*Cape [p.64] See Comorin, Cape
Carlyle¹ [p.64] (1) add (end) The French Revolution, perhaps his greatest work, came out in 1837. (2) delete 13: 131 Carranza [p.65] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVII: 4 Cartoveriya [p.65] Add the following to
the name-entry: ; Cartoverya, Haihaya Arjouna
Caucasus [p. 66] line 1 - Between USSR and the comma, insert: (the present Commonwealth of Independent States)
*Cauvery [p.66] or Kaveri, a sacred river of South India flowing east and entering the Bay of Bengal in a wide delta. Known to devout Hindus as Dakshina Ganga (Ganges of the South). (Web.; Enc. Br.) XXVII: 79
"Cawnpore [p.66] (now spelled Kanpur) administrative headquarters of Kanpur district in U.P., on the River Ganga. It is the largest city of Uttar Pradesh and one of the largest in India, being a major commercial and industrial centre especially famous for its textiles and leather products. Kanpur played an important role in the Sepoy Mutiny (1857) and also in the later struggle for independence. (Enc. Br.) XXVII: 74
Celt [p.67] include XXXV: 86
Ceylon [p.67] include XXV: 83
Chaitanya [p. 68] include XXVII: 63
Chakravarti, Suresh (Chandra) [p.68] (1)
Pg. 5
last line - Insert the following between "M" and 'in':- (also occasionally as My) (2) include XXIV: 161,163 XXVIII: 177 XXXI: 35, 38, 40, 62, 65, 68 XXXII: 127 XXXVI: 163
Chaldea [pp.68-69] include XXXVI: 200
Champaklal [p.69] (l) line l- for (1903- ) read (1903-92) (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXVI: 163
Chanakya [p.69] include XXV: 24
Chandemagore [p.69] include XXV: 58 XXXII: 125
Chandra¹ [p.70] include XXXIII: 72-73
Chandra² [p.70] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXVI: 200
Chandragupta [p.70] include Var: Chundragupta XXVI: 148
Chandra Vansa [p.70] for Vansa subs. Vamśa
*Charana [p.71] the celestial singer (M.W.) XXVII: 54
Charleroi [p.71] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 146 ("Charlevoi" - a misprint)
Charles V [p.71] This entry is to be , delisted.
*Charlevoi [p.71] See Charleroi
Chatterjee, Satish Chandra [p.72] last 2 lines - Replace the last sentence by the following:- Satish Chandra was one of the
nine leaders deported in 1908.
Chatterji, Bankim Chandra [p.72] include XXVI: 129
Chattopadhyay(a), Bankim (Chandra) [p.72] This entry of two lines is to be listed after the entry Chattopadhyay, Mrinalini. Chattopadhyay, Harindranath [p.72] (1) line 1 - In the parentheses, fill in the blank with 1990 (2) line 3 - Replace the word 'statesman' by 'musician'. (3) add (source) ; The Hindu, 24 June 1990
Chattopadhyay, Mrinalini [p.72] include XXXVI: 201
Chedi(s) [p.73] include Var: Chedies XXVI: 136-38
Cheops [p.73] line 4-In the word 'great', replace 'g' by capital 'G'.
*Cherub [p.73] one of an order of angels, known collectively as Cherubim. Also see the next entry. (Web.N.C.D.) 29: 758
Cherubim and Seraphim [p.73] (1) line 7 - for is an angel subs. are angels (2) last line - Between 'Venas' and 'of, insert: (also to Angirasas and Bhrigus) (3) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVII: 42
Chhandogya (Upanishad) [p.74] (1) add (end) It seems to be the most ancient of the extant Upanishads. (2) add (source) ; A & R, Dec.'79, p. 155 ChildeHarold [p.74] line 2- for canto i & ii read cantos i & ii
Chile [p.74] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIII: 30
China [p.74] include XXIII: 30 XXIV: 171 XXVII: 4 XXXVI: 199
Chola(S) [p. 75] in references, for XVIII: 136 read XVIII: 136-37
Chosroes [p.75] line 1 - for Chosroes I read Chosroe I
Christ, Jesus [pp.75-76] include XXIV: 163 XXV: 27,35 XXVIII: 172 XXIX: 12,37 XXX: 149
Christian(ity) [p.76] (1) add (end) It is based on the Bible as sacred scripture and professed by Eastern, Roman Catholic, and Protestant bodies. (2) add (source) ;Web.N.C.D. (3) include XXIV: 115 XXV: 28, 32, 35
Chudamani [p.76] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIV: 121
*Chundragupta [p.77] See Chandragupta
Cicero [p-77] (1) add (end) His surviving letters of which there are four collections containing numerous volumes, "constitute a primary historical source such as exists for no other part of the ancient world". (2) In the source, after Enc.Br. add , Macro 4:608
C.I.D. [p.77] include 3:470
Clarence [p.77] This entry is to be delisted.
Cleopatra¹ [p. 78] (1) Leave more space between 9: 316 and 14:192 (2) include XXXV: 86-87
Cloud-Messenger [p.78] (1) Replace the last sentence (It seems ... kept it.) of the glossary article by the following two sentences:- Actually, Sri Aurobindo entrusted it for safety's sake to a politician friend M. David in Pondicherry. Years later when it was sought to be recovered, its caretaker who had tucked it away at the bottom of a trunk found to his dismay that white ants had completely eaten it up. (2) add (source) ; M.I., April 1991, p. 270
*Cluses [p.78] town in Haute Savoie, the departement in which the French Alps lie. (A & R, April'89, p.85) XXV: 80-81
Coleridge [p.79] include XXV: 7
Pg. 6
College Square [p.79] (1) for Gol Dighi read Goaldighi (2) include 26: 61
Colmar [p.79] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 141
Colootola [p.79] linel- for locality subs. street
Commons, House of [pp.79-80] include XXIV: 171-72
Commonwealth, British [p.80] include 26: 395
Comorin, Cape [p.80] include 24:1706
Conservative Party [p.81] include XXX: 235, 240
Coontybhoj [p.81] Replace the glossary article etc. by the following cross reference:- See Kuntibhoja
Coral Mill(s) [p.82] line 2 - Replace the comma by a semi-colon.
Corsican [p.82] (1) line 1 - Put the first words 'a native' in parentheses. (2) lines 4-7 - Delete the sentence: 'Corsica formerly ...du Sud.'
Coshala [p.82] The name-entry should be Coshala(n)
Coué [p.82] include Der: Coueism ; Coueistic
Cousins, James H. [p.83] include XXXVI: 196
Cousins, Mme [p.83] (1) Add the following at the end: ; her name occurs in an automatic writing. (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXVI: 197 Curzon.Lord [p.85] include XXX: 234, 239
Cushan [p.85] (1) Alter the name-entry to Cushanian (2) add (begin) adj. derived from Cushan (Kushan). (3) delete Der: Cushanian
Czar [p.86] include XXXII: 139 XXXII: 125
Daksha [p.87] include XXIV: 146 XXVII: 36
Damayanti [p.87] include Var: Damayunti(e) XXV: 14,19-20
Darius (Hystaspes) [p.89] include XXVI: 148
Darjeeling [p.89] include XXXVI: 214
Darshana(s) [p.89] include XXIV: 104
*Dasa [p.89] in the Veda, a demon, enemy or power of darkness. (A & R, April '90, p.88) a XXVII: 2
Dasyu(s) [p.90] include XXIV: 114
David Neel, Madame [p.90] (1) lines 1-2 - Alexandra David-Neel to be in boldface type (2) include XXV: 82-83
*Dayabhai Harjivandas [p.90] an officer of the Baroda State around 1902. Probably the term "Damn-you-bhai" refers to this officer. (A) I: 74
Dayananda (Saraswati), Swami [p.91] (1) Put the last 'a' of Dayananda in parentheses. (2) include XXVII: 63
*Les Debats [p.91] The official French publication giving details of the debates in the Legislature. XXVIII: 196
Deccan, the [p.91] include XXVI: 139
Demiurge [p.92] include 13:336 28:307
*The Descent ofAhana and Other Poems [p.93] See Ahana and Ahana and Other Poems. XXVIII: 124
Deva [pp.93-94] include 12:410 XXIII: 14 XXIV: 128,130,134,140,151,161-63, 167-68 XXV: 34-35, 39, 42 XXVIII: 138 XXIX: 21,73 XXXVI: 191-92 Devaki [p.94] include XXVI: 148
Devanagari [p.94] include XXV: 47
Devasura [p.94] include XXIII: 14 XXIV: 128 XXV: 39 XXXVI: 144
Devavrath [p.94] add (begin) Devavrata,
*Dhanakas [p.95] members of a caste of eastern India. (H.S.S.) XXVII: 73
Dharma² [p.95] include XXVII: 55
Dhartarashtras ; Dhartarashtrians [p.95] Put the second h in parentheses in both the terms.
Dhritarashtra [p.96] (1) Put the second h in parentheses. (2) include XXV: 11, 27 XXVI: 137-38,141-42,148
*Les Dieux [p.96] (The Gods), a book by Paul Richard, published in 1914. (A & R, April '89, p.83 fn) a XXIV: 167 XXV: 83
Diogenes [p.97] for (c. 412-323 BC), Greek philosopher, subs. the pen-name of a writer in The Statesman taken from the name of a famous Greek philosopher (c. 412-323 BC),
Dniester [p.98] (1) line 2- for European USSR. subs. Russia. (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 137
Draupadi(e) [p. 99] include XXV: 11, 20-21,33 XXVI: 138,144
Dravidian(s) [p.99] include XXVI: 147
Drina [p.99] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 137
Drona [p.100] include XXVI: 141
Drupad(a) [p. 100] include XXVI: 137, 141,152
Pg. 7
Dryden (p.100] (1) line 3 - Between 'the' and 'literature', insert: English (2) line 4 - delete in English (3) include XXV: 16
D. Swami [p. 100] This entry is to be delisted.
Duhsasana [pp. 100-01] include XXVI: 141
Durga [p.101] include XXIX: 61
Duryodhan(a) [pp. 101-02] include XXV: 11,34-35 XXVI: 138-42, 144, 151
Dushyanta [p.101] lines 2-3 - for He was husband of Shakuntala, subs. He married Shakuntala,
Dutch [p. 102] include XXVI: 140
Dutt, Hirendranath [p. 102] Replace the last sentence by the following:- He supported the people's agitation in Bengal against the partition in 1905.
Dutt, Kshitish [p. 102] This entry is to be delisted.
Dutta [p.103] This entry is to be delisted.
Dutt(a), Aswini (Kumar) [p. 103] add (end) Aswini Kumar was one of the nine leaders deported in December 1908.
Dwar(a)ka [p. 103] (1) line 7 - for after his passing away. subs. after he left his body. (2) include XXV: 40
Dwayawins [p. 103] (1) include Var: Dwayavins (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 120-21, 126, 142, 149, 167-68, 180-81 XXIX: 19 XXX: 137, 150, 165, 179
East, the ; the Orient [p. 104] include 22: 185 XXIII:30 XXV: 79 XXVII: 64 XXXVI: 179
*East India Company [p.104] British commercial and political organisation in India from 1600 to 1873. It was incorporated by royal charter on Dec. 31, 1600. Starting as a monopolistic trading body, the Company became involved in politics and acted as an agent of British imperialism in India from the mid-18th century. Its commercial monopoly was broken in 1813 and from 1834 it was merely a managing agency for the British Govt. of India. It was deprived of this power after the Indian Mutiny (1857), and it ceased to exist as a legal entity in 1873. (Enc.Br.) a XXVII: 65-66
* East Prussia [p. 104] a region in the north of Europe bordering on the Baltic Sea, east of Pomerania. Formerly if was a province of Prussia, for a time (1919-39) forming an exclave separated from the rest of Prussia by the Polish Corridor. Since 1945 it is divided between Poland and Russia. (Web.N.C.D.) XVIII: 150,158
*Economic History of British India [p. 104] Written in two volumes by Romesh Chandra Dutt, it is the first authoritative and scholarly exposition of the economic exploitation of India under British rule covering the period 1757 to 1900. (D.I.H., p.334) XXVII: 65
Edward II [p. 105] include XXVI: 133
Egypt [p. 105] include XXIII: 30 XXVI: 133 XXXV: 86
Elizabeth [p. 106] include XXVI: 145
Empire [p.107] (1) for journal subs. evening newspaper (2) for (N.S.I.) subs. (A & R, April '91, p. 128) (3) include XXIX: 114-15
England [p. 108] include XXIII: 66 XXIV: 112, 144, 171-74 XXV: 32, 69 XXVI: 140, 145, 151 XXVII: 20, 63, 65-66, 79, 81 XXVIII: 126, 136, 187 XXX: 234-38, 240, 242-43 XXXVI: 186, 189
English (language) [p. 108] include 9: 511 25:156 26:248 XXV: 7 XXVI: 131-32,145,185
Enoch Arden [p. 109] line 1 - for a collection of poems subs. a poem
Epictetus [p. 109] line 1 - for remember read remembered
Eric [p.110] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIII: 11
Essays on the Gita [p. 110] include XXVIII: 121
L'Essence Unique [p. 110] This entry is to be delisted.
*L'Ether Vivant [p. 111] (The Living Ether), L'Ether vivant et realisme supreme veaux, a book by Paul Richard, published in Paris (n.d.) XXV: 82-83
Etna [p. 111] All the details in this entry are to be replaced by a cross-reference: See Aetna
Euripides [p.111] include XXXV: 55
Europe [pp.111-12] include XXII: 22 XXIV: 124, 158 XXV: 2-3, 24, 29, 32, 35 XXVI: 124-25, 128-29, 136, 146-47, 189 XXVII: 61-65, 67, 71, 74-77, 80, 83 XXIX: 76, 83 XXX: 184, 234, 238 XXXVI: 179, 185
*Ezekial [p. 113] the Book of Ezekiel ('Ezekial' is a misspelling), one of the major prophetical books of the Old Testament.
Pg. 8
According to the dates given in the text, the priest Ezekiel received his prophetic call in the fifth year of the first deportation to Babylonia (592 BC) and was active until at least 571 BC. The Book, in its final form, contains 44 chapters, exhibiting a threefold theme. Chapter 34, mentioned in the Record of Yoga forms part of the last theme: prophecies of restoration and hope (chapters 33-34). (Enc. Br.) XXIX: 61
Ezra [p.113] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIX: 61
Fafner [p.113] line 2 - 'Nibelungenlied' should be in italics.
Falstaff [pp. 113-14] include XXV: 59
Far East [p.114] include XXXVI: 199
Faustus [p.114] include XXVI: 133
Fife [p. 115] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIV: 160
*Flemish¹ [p.116] of, relating to, or characteristic of Flanders, or the Flemings. (Web.N.C.D.) XXVIII: 148
Flemish [p.116] Add superscript numeral² to the term.
France [p. 117] include XXIII: 30, 66 XXIV: 134 XXV: 55, 74 XXVI: 128, 166, 174 XXVIII: 130-32, 137, 139, 141, 145-46, 148, 175 XXX: 234, 238
Francis Joseph [p. 117] for [From "Record of Yoga",..] subs. XXVIII: 158
Franco-German war [p. 117] include XXIX: 112
Francois I [p.118] This entry is to be delisted.
Frankenstein [p.118] line 3 - for Wollstonecroft read Wollstonecraft
Fraser [p.118] for (3:180) subs. (3: 180; XXVI: 124)
Fraser, Sir Andrew [p.118] line 2 - for an Englishman subs. a Scot
Frazer [p.118] include XXVI: 124 ("Fraser" is a misspelling)
French (language) [p.118] include 24: 1273 XXIII: 11 XXVI: 170 XXX: 201 XXXVI: 190
French Revolution [pp.118-19] include XXX: 234, 238 XXXVI: 196
Furies ; Fury [p. 119] for the ERINNYES subs. the Erinyes (see Erinnyes)
Ganapati ; Ganesh(a) [pp. 120-21] include XXV: 9-10
Gandhara(s) [p. 121] (1) delete (s) from the name-entry (2) include XXVI: 138-39
Gandhari [p. 121] include XXVI: 138
Gandharva(s) [p. 121] include Var: Gandhurva XXIV: 128,132 XXV: 5 XXVI: 127 XXVII: 42, 54 XXXVI: 193
Gandharvi¹ [p. 121] (1) line 2 - Replace the full point by a semicolon. (2) add (end) KALi2 manifested in the Gandharva type. (3) add (source) (A&R, Dec.'91,p.249) (4) include XXIV: 128 XXX: 156
Gandhi, (Mahatma) [p.121] include Var: Mahatma XXXVI: 186,192-93
*Gandhurva [p. 121] See Gandharva(s)
Ganga [pp.121-22] (1) last sentence - for and bore a son, Bhishma. subs. and Bhishma was their eighth and youngest son. (2) include XXVI: 139
Gargi [p. 122] This entry is to be delisted.
Gaudapada [p. 123] include XXV: 47
Gaupayanas or Laupayanas [p. 123] line 3 - for hymns subs. verses
Gautama Buddha [p. 123] Alter the name-entry as follows: Gautama¹; Gautama Buddha
Gaya² [p. 123] line 3 - Delete the first word 'seven'.
Georgia [p. 124] (1) line 3 - for It now forms subs. It was later (2) add (end) Later still, on the formation of the Commonwealth of Independent States, it became one of its members.
Germany [pp. 124-25] (1) line 7 - Insert the following sentence between the full point and 'The':- In 1990, however, the two Germanys were reunited - a process which began with the collapse of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 and culminated in the official proclamation of unity on October 3, 1990. (2) add (source) ; The Hindu of 19 August'91, p.21 (3) include XXV: 2 XXVI: 124,128,145 XXVII: 60,75-76, 79 XXVIII: 130-32,136-37,139,145-46, 156,158,161-62,187 XXIX: 44
Ghose, A.K. [p.125] In references, delete the parenthesis after the last page number 151.
Ghose, Barindra Kumar [pp. 125-26] (1) add (end) In The Empire of 18 August 1908, his name appeared as Birendro Kumar Ghose. (2) include XXIX: 114-15
Pg. 9
*Ghose, Birendro Kumar [p. 126] See Ghose, Barindra Kumar
Ghose, K.D. [p.126] include XXIV: 144
Ghose, Sarojini [p. 127] (1) add (begin) (1877-1957) (2) last line - Between 'Saro' and the full point, insert: (or Soro) (3) add (source) ; A & R, April '90, p.95 Girl [p. 128] line 3 from the last - Between 'term' and 'inappropriate', insert: Kanya
Gladstone [p. 128] include XXIV: 172-73
Gnossus [p. 128] Replace the glossary article together with its source by the following:- or Cnossus or Knossus, ruined city of ancient Crete near the north coast, southeast of modern Candia. (Web.N.C.D.)
Goethe [p. 129] include XXV: 7
Golconde [p. 129] line 7 - Replace this line by its revised version as follows:- Francois Sammer and others including George Nakashima, a Japanese.
Goswami, Bijoy [p. 130] lines 1-2 from the last -for he was reconverted to Hinduism. subs. he reverted to traditional Hinduism.
Gotama (Rahugana) [p. 130] include XXIX: 45
Grand Trunk Road [p. 132] for road constructed by Sher Shah (1540-45), read road constructed (1540-45) by Sher Shah,
Greco-Turkish peace [p. 132] (1) Put 'peace' in parentheses. (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVI: 185 XXVII: 8
Greece [p. 132] include XXV: 18 XXVI: 135,147-48,174
XXVII: 4 Greek (language) [p.133] include XXVI: 146-48 XXX: 201 XXXI: 40 XXXV: 55, 60,86
Gujarat [p.134] include Der: Gujarati (in senses other than the language) XXV: 15 XXVII: 72, 74, 77, 84
Gujaria [p.134] line 4 - for Ahmedabad, subs. Mehsana,
Gupta, Kedar Das [p. 134] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIII: 25
Gupta, Nolini Kanta [pp.134-35] (1) line enclosed by parentheses after the two variants - for referred to as N) subs. also referred to as N or N.) (2) include XXIII: 41 XXIV: 109 XXXI: 35, 40, 62,65-66, 68-69 XXXII: 127
Haider Ali [p. 135] include Var: Hyderali XXVII: 63
Haihayas [pp. 135-36]- (1) include XXVI: 136 (2) This term is to be listed after the next on p. 136
Haihaya Arjuna Kartavirya [p. 136] Alter the name-entry as follows: Haihaya Arj(o)una Kartavirya (or Cartoverya)
Hall [p. 136] include XXVI: 144
Haridrumata (The Gautama) [p. 138] last line - 'Chhandogya' to be in italics
Hariu(dranath) [p. 138] line 2 - Delete the parentheses enclosing 'dranath'
Harris, Lord [p.139] line 5- Subs. a comma for the semi-colon
Hastinapur [p.139] (1) In the name-entry, add (a) at the end. (2) include XXVI: 138
Hatha(yoga) [p.139] include 24:1478
Hebrew [p. 140] include XXXV: 61 XXXVI: 200
Hellene(s) [p. 141] (1) line 7 - Ththia'to be in small caps (2) include XXVI: 147
Heraclitus [p.142] (1) line 4 - Between 'change' and the semi-colon, insert: (panto rhei, all things are in flux) (2) add (end) "Heraclitus' account of the cosmos is an evolution and involution out of his one eternal principle of Fire, - at once the one substance and the one force — which he expresses in his figurative language as the upward and the downward road." (16: 352) (3) add (source) ;Web.N.C.D. ; A
Herzegovina [p. 143] The revised version of the glossary article together with its source to be as follows:- region of west central Yugoslavia south of Bosnia and north-west of Montenegro, now part of "Bosnia and Herzegovina" republic. (Web.N.C.D.)
Himalaya(s) [p. 143] in index references, for XVIII: 138,142 read XVIII: 138-39, 142-43
Hindi [p. 143] include XXVII: 21
Hindu, The [p.144] (1) lines 2-4 from the last - for published from ... Madurai and Gurgaon. subs. printed at Coimbatore, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Madurai, Gurgaon and Visakhapatnam. (2) include XXVIII: 146 XXXVI: 214
Hindu(ism) [p.144] include XXV: 22, 24-25, 29. 31, 33, 35 XXVI: 123,128,132, 135-36,147-48 XXVII: 70, 83
(Hindu) Patriot [p. 144] (1) add (begin) The Hindoo Patriot, (2) add (source) ; A & R, Dec.'82, pp. 229-33 fn.
Hindustani (language) [p. 145] (1) line 2 - for (Hindustan) subs. (also known as Hindustan) (2) line 6 - for
Pg. 10
(KhariBoli) subs: (also called Khari Boli)
Hiranyagarbha¹ [p. 145] (1) Put 'garbha' in, parentheses. (2) include XXIV: 159
*Hissar [p. 145] a city and district in the state of Haryana (formerly in the undivided province of Punjab), India. (S. Atlas) XXVII: 70
History of Indian Literature [p. 146] include XXVI: 124
*Hohlenberg, Johannes [p.146] (1881-1960) Danish artist. Between 1906 and 1912 he lived in Paris, where he met the Mother and Paul Richard. In 1915 he came to India, and in Pondicherry, conversed with, and sketched Sri Aurobindo. After his return to Europe he painted a portrait of Sri Aurobindo based on his sketches, which is now in Sri Aurobindo Ashram. a XXV: 80-81
Holinshed [p. 146] include XXVI: 144
Holkar [p. 146] include XXVI: 141
Homer [p.147] include XXV: 2-3,22 XXVI: 124-25,134-35
Home Rule (Movement) [p.147] include 2: 30 XXIV: 155,160 (Federal Home Rule) XXVI: 185
Hooshka [p.147] In page references, for 782-83 read 782-84
"Horse-Sacrifice [p.147] See As(h)wamedha
Howrah [p. 148] include XXXVI: 215
*Huerta [p. 148] Victoriano Huerta (1854-1916), Mexican general and president (1913-14). He served under Porfirio Diaz, and after the successful revolution of Madero (1911) aided the new president (Madero) in his fight against various revolutionaries. In 1913, however, he brought about the ruin of Madero. Huerto then himself became the president and established a reactionary rule. This led to the outbreak of numerous counter-revolutions, including the one led by Carranza, Villa, and Zapata. Huerta resigned in July 1914, went first to Europe, then to the United States, where he was arrested for revolutionary activities along the border. He died while in the custody of United States Government. (Col. Enc.) XXVII: 20, 27
Hun(a) [pp. 148-49] include XXVI: 147 ""Hyderabad [p. 149] former native state of south-central India in the Deccan. It was merged in the Indian Republic in 1948, now forming part of the state of Andhra Pradesh. Certain minerals e.g. China Clay, coal, salt and glass sands are obtained from the area formerly-covered by the state. (Enc.Br. ; S. Atlas) XXVII: 78
*Hyderali [p. 149] See HaiderAli
*Hymns to the Ribhus [p. 149] Sri Aurobindo translated only three hymns to the Ribhus - Rigveda-1.20,110 and 111. Of these the first (1.20) was published in SABCL Vol. 10 (p.32A). XXVII: 53
Hyperion [p.149] include XXVI: 134
Ida [p.150] include 5: 507
"L'ldée nouvelle" [p.150] (1) in the name-entry, the lowercase n to be replaced by a capital N (2) line 1 - for the "New Idea", read "The New Idea", (3) line 2 - Before the first word 'society', add short-lived (4) include XXV: 76
Idylls of Earth and Heaven [p. 151] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXV: 52
Ikshvaku [p. 151] include Var: Ikshwaku : XXV: 24, 31 XXVI: 136-37, 139
Ila [p. 151] line 6 from the last - for in to read into
Iliad [p. 151] include XXV: 2-3, 32 XXVI: 124-25,135
Ilian¹ [p.151] include XXVI: 137
Ilion [pp.151-52] include XXVIII: 124 XXXIII: 11
*L'Inde où j'ai vécu [p. 152] L' Inde où j' ai vécu : Avant et après Indépendence, a book by Madame David-Néel, published in 1951 XXV: 83
Indian Association [p. 152] This entry is to be delisted.
Indian Civil Service [p. 152] include XXIV: 71 (Civil Service of India)
Indian National Congress [p.153] include XXX: 234-37, 239-42
Indian Review [p. 153] include XXVI: 123
India Office [p. 154] (1) add (begin) (in Record of Yoga, "IO" used as an abbreviation) (2) include XXX: 201
*Indo China [p. 154] former federation of states in South-East Asia. It comprised the French colony of Cochin China and the French protectorates of Tonkin, Annam, Laos, and Cambodia (Cochin China, Tonkin and Annam later united to form Vietnam). (Col.Enc.) XXXVI: 199
Indra [p.154] include Der: Indrabhava XXIV: 145,163 XXV: 28, 34, 68 XXVI:
Pg. 11
159, 166 XXVII: 29, 36, 38, 41 XXVIII: 137 XXIX: 47,73 XXXI: 60,62 XXXII: 112-13 XXXV: 54 Indu (Prakash) [p. 155] include XXIV: 173 Indus [p. 155] include XXVI: 148
*The Introduction to the Study of the Upanishads [p. 155] title of a book Sri Aurobindo proposed to write as revealed by a "script" belonging to the period 1911-20 (mid-July 1912 being a likely time). (A & R, April ‘94, p. 99) XXXV: 52 Ionians [p. 155] include XXVI: 147-48 Ireland [p. 156] include XXIII: 30, 66 XXIV: 172 XXVI: 157 XXVII: 4 Irish National Volunteers [p. 156] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVI: 165-66,174,185 and 189 (Irish N.V.) XXVII: 4
Iron Age [p.156] include 27:154 Isaie [p.156] This entry is to be delisted. Isha (Upanishad)1 [p.156] include XXIII: 11 XXV: 68, 74 XXVI: 177,181 XXVII: 56, 58 XXVIII: 123,149-50,169,182
*Is(h)wara [p. 157] the Lord; in the Record, the Īśvara is mostly identified with Krishna and is regarded as having a fourfold manifestation (Srikrishna, Balarama, Pradyumna, Aniruddha) corresponding to the four aspects of the divine Shakti. (A & R, Dec. ‘91, p. 249) Der: Is(h)warabhava (lordship) ; Ishwaradarshan(a) (This term has been indexed only when occurring in the Record of Yoga with a capital I. Otherwise it is a common noun meaning "lord".) XIX: 39-40,49 XX: 113,125 XXII: 133 XXIII: 5-7, 29 XXVII: 43 XXIX: 78-79, 82, 84, 88, 94, 97,100,102 XXX: 133-35,139-40,142,147,149-50,153, 165,171,173,184,188,196, 205-06, 208, 214-15, 220-21, 225, 232-33 XXXI: 3, 6, 8, 14,17, 44-45, 47-48, 50, 56 XXXII: 107, 113,117-18,121,123-24,128,135-37,140, 143,147,149,154,157-58,168,180 XXXIII: 4, 6,12, 67-68, 71, 73, 79-80, 90 XXXIV: 106,108,111,122,128,136-38,142, 151,157 XXXV: 23, 29, 39, 41, 66 XXXVI: 166
Ishwari [p. 157] All the four lines, including the last enclosed by square brackets, to be replaced by the following :- the all-ruling Goddess. (A & R, Dec. '91, p.249) Der: Ishwaribhava (the state of manifesting Ishwari) XXIX: 102 XXX: 133,138,144,163-64 XXXI: 51, 79 XXXIV: 151 XXXV: 30
*Iswara [p. 157] See Is(h)wara Italy [pp. 157-58] include XXIII: 30 XXVII: 64 XXVIII: 48 XXXV: 86
J [p. 158] for XIX: 21 read XIX: 21-22
Jaafar (Bin Barmak) [p. 158] Delete the vertical line between 'in' and 'Sir'. Jadabharata [p.159] include XXIII: 62 Jadhav(a), K.B. (or Khaserao) [p. 159] In Jadhav(a), put also h in parentheses. Jaipur [p. 160] include XXVII: 79 Jamadagni (Bhargava) [p. 160] include XXVI: 136
James, King [p. 160] 'See previous entry' to be in lightface type. Janak(a) [p. 160] include XXV: 49 Jana(loka) [p. 160] (1) add (begin) also called ANANDALOKA, (2) include XXIV: 139 XXVII: 43
Janamejaya [p. 160] include XXVI: 148 Japan [p. 161] include XXIII: 30 XXVII: 75 XXVIII: 146 XXX: 183, 235, 239 XXXVI: 179,199 Jarasandh(a) [p. 161] include Var: Jarasundha XXVI: 137-38,140-41 Jayadratha [p. 162] (1) In the name-entry, put the last a in parentheses. (2) include XXVI: 137 J.C.B. [p.162] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVI: 189 XXVII: 20 Jehovah [p.163] (1) line 3 - 'Yahweh' to be in bold-face type, and the quotation marks to be deleted (2) include
XXVIII: 137
Jerico [p. 163] (1) In the name-entry, insert 'h' between 'c' and 'o'. (2) add (end)According to the Bible (Joshua: 6), the armed men, when they heard the sound of the trumpets blown by the seven priests who followed them, they "shouted with a great shout" in obedience to the command of Joshua; and it so happened that the walls of Jericho "fell down flat". (3) add source)The Scofield Reference Bible, 1917 ed., 1945 reprint, pp. 264-65 (4) include 3:368 Jessore [p. 163] include XXXV: 60 Jesuit [p. 163] include XXV: 24 Julius Caesar [p. 166] include XXVI: 133 Jupiter1 [p. 166] include 3: 44 Jyotirmayee [p. 167] lines 2-3 -, for Sri Aurobindo who stayed... read Sri Aurobindo; she stayed...
Pg. 12
Kabir [p.167] include XXVII: 63 *Kalappa, N.P.K. [p.168] name of a person who took part in Automatic Writing seances in Pondicherry with Sri Aurobindo. XXXVI: 203
Kali2 [p. 168] (1) add (end) In the Record of Yoga, Kali usually designates the divine Shakti, the Power who carries out the will of the Lord (Krishna). (2) add(source) ;A & R, Dec.'91, p.249 (3) in Derivatives, add:- Kalidarshana; Bala-Kali (the girl Kali, the girlish mood or personality of the Shakti) (4) Replace the index references from Vol. XVIII as follows:- XVIII: 132-33,136-46,148-49 (5) include 27:365 XXIII: 4,15,18,21, 23, 49 XXIV: 130,133,138,147,162-64 XXV: 38,40 XVII: 30,49 XXVIII: 135, 141-42,196 XXIX: 11, 21, 25, 31, 40, 61, 69, 79, 97,104 XXX: 133,135,156,183, 232 XXXI: 18, 56 XXXII: 128,136,157,180 XXXIII: 3,7 XXXIV: 125,128, 136-37 XXXV: 70
Kalidasa [pp. 168-69] include XXV: 7, 12, 16, 18 XXVI: 132,145
Kalikrishna [p. 169] include XXX: 133, 189 XXXII: 157
Kalindi [p. 169] for from its source subs. ; the daughter, in mythology, of
Kalinga [p. 169] for XVIII: 136 read XVIII: 136-37
Kali(yuga) [p. 169] include XVIII: 137 XXIV: 138 XXVI: 123
Kandahar [p. 170] include XXVI: 139
Kansa [p. 170] line 2 - for brother subs. cousin
*Kantaiyar, Ka. Neela [p. 171] name of a person who took part in Automatic Writing seances in Pondicherry with Sri Aurobindo XXXVI: 204
Kanunga [p. 171] (1) Delete the second 'n' in the name-entry. (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"... ] subs. XXXVI: 163
Kanwa2;... [p. 171] line 1 - for Kanwa read Kanva
*Kapadwanj [p. 171] Kapadvanj, a small town of Gujarat about 25 miles NNE of Nadiad. (R. Map, 1939 ed.) XXVII: 74 Karna [p. 172] include XXV: 27 XXVI: 141 Kartavirya, Haihaya Arjuna [p. 172] include Var: Haihaya Arjouna Cartoverya XXVI: 136 Kartick [p.172] include XXIII: 42
Kashi(e) [p. 172] In index references, for XVIII: 150 read XVIII: 150-51 Kashyapa, King [p. 173] line 1 - for Kaśyapa I read Kāśyapa I
*Kathak Upanishad [p.173] an edition of the Katha (or Kāthaka) Upanishad — Kathaka is another name of Katha. It contains commentaries of Shankara etc. edited by Hari Narayan Apte, and was published in 1906 by Anand Ashram Press, Poona, as Anand Ashram Series No. 7. Var: Kathakopanishad XXIV: 136
Katha (Upanishad) [p. 173] includeXXIV: 124 (Apte's ed.)
Kaurav(a)(s) [p. 173] (1) line 4 – In Dhartarashtras, put the second 'h' in parentheses. (2) include XXVI: 138, 142,152
Keats [p. 174] include XXV: 7, 16 XXVI: 134,145
Keltic faith [p. 174] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIX: 17
Kena (Upanishad) [p. 174] include XXV: 70 XXVIII: 123 XXXV: 52
*Khandesh [p. 175] old name of a territory in the valley of the River Tapti, south-central India, roughly corresponding to the present districts of Jalgaon and Dhulia in Maharashtra. It was a small kingdom founded in 1382 which came to be known as Khandesh after the title "Khan" borne by its rulers. (D.I.H.; R.Map, 1939 ed.) XXVII: 70
Khaserao [p. 175] include XXIV: 145 (K.B.J.)
*Khojas [p.176] a class of Indian Muslims, who were converted from Hinduism to Islam in the 14th century. The term Khoja is not a religious designation but a purely caste distinction that was carried over from the Hindu background of the group. Found in India and East Africa, Khojas are mostly traders. (Enc.Br.) XXVII: 64
Khorassan [p. 176] line 3 – Between U.S.S.R. and the comma, insert: (recently reorganised and named Commonwealth of Independent States)
King Henry VI [p. 176] include XXVI: 132
Kinnar(a); Kinnari(e) [p. 176] includeXXV: 14
*Komagata Maru [p. 177] name of a Japanese ship chartered early in 1914 to transport Punjabis living in the Far East to Vancouver. For details refer to footnote 3 on p. 109 of A & R, April 1989. XXVII: 14
Koran [p. 177] include XXVIII: 180
Pg. 13
Koshala [p. 178] include Der: Coshalan XXV: 22, 24 XXVI: 136-37,140 Kripa [p. 178] include XXVI: 141,143 Krishna [p. 178] (1) In index references, for XVIII: 134, 144 read XVIII: 134-35, 144-45 (2) include Var: Sri K; Sri Krishna Der: Bala-Krishna (child Krishna); Krishna-Bodha; (Sri) Krishnadarshan(a) (or... -Darshana); Krishna-Drishti XXIII: 4, 49 XXIV: 130,134,137,159,162,164-65 XXV: 4, 9, 11, 20, 25, 27, 29-33, 39-40, 51, 54, 58-59, 67 XXVI: 123, 126,129-30, 138-42,148-52,156-57,159,165-66,169,172, 182, 191 XXVII: 4-7,14,18, 22, 26, 29-30, 37-41,43,45-46,49,52,56 XXVIII: 133-35,138-39, 141, 150,167, 171 XXIX: 4, 17-18, 21, 34, 40-41, 73-74, 77, 79, 83-84, 95, 97, 102,104 XXX: 132-33,135,152, 185-86,188,191,193,195-98, 202, 204, 206, 208-11, 214-15, 217-18, 223-29, 231-32 XXXI: 6, 8,10-12,14,16, 20-23,25-27,34, 36-37, 39, 56 XXXII: 128,136,157 XXXIV: 128,136-37 XXXV: 52-53 Krishnacharit(ra) [p. 178] include XXVI: 129
*Krishnadarshan(a) [p. 179] the vision of Krishna in all, a form of Brahma-darshana. Its three intensities are defined in the record of 30 May 1915 as - (1) "Krishna seen behind the human mask"; (2) "Krishna seen in the human being"; (3) "the human being seen in Krishna". The three degrees in the third intensity are "Sarvamaya", "Anantagunamaya" and "Anandamaya Krishna". Beyond these is the consummation: "The human being = Krishna". (A & R, Dec.'91, p. 250) a Indexed under Krishna
Krishnakali [p. 179] include XXVI: 192 XXVII: 46 XXVIII: 143, 192 XXIX: 51, 72-73, 87, 97,104,107 XXX: 132,134-35, 145,161,163-64,167,171,184-86,189,197, 203,206,211-12,215,221,224,226-28 XXXI: 3, 34-35, 46, 54-56 XXXII: 115,119, 133,163 XXXIII: 91 XXXIV: 106,171
Krishnaprem [p. 179] (1) for (c. 1895-1965) read (1898-1965) (2) add (end) After 1950 he gradually gave up the Vaishnava rituals and practised universal compassion.
Kristmavarma, Shyamji [p.179] line 2 from the last - for (1908) read (1907)
*Ks ; Ks. [p. 179] apparently, the initials of some person in Pondicherry. XXV: 67 Kshatriya [pp. 179-80] (1) In index references, for XVIII: 134 read XVIII: 134-35
Kshetro [p. 180] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIX: 23
Kumar(a)sambhava(m) [p. 180] last line - The Birth of the War-God. Should be in boldface italics.
Kuntibhoja [p. 180] include Var: Coontybhoj 8:77
Kunti(e)1 [p.180] include XXV: 12,30
Kuru [pp.180-81] (1) Between the source of the glossary article and the sign insert the following lines:- Note: The term "Kurus" in the expression "the Kurus under Bhishmuc" (3:190, line 4b) seems to be a slip; maybe, it is Bhojas. Bhishmuc was a king in the Bhoja dynasty of the Lunar Race. (M.N.) (2) In index references, for XVIII: 136 read XVIII: 136-37 (3) include XXV: 3,21 XXVI: 125, 136-39,141-43,149,151-52
Kushikas [p.181] last line of the entry to be moved one space to the right
Kutthumi [p. 181] include XXXVI: 192, 206
Kuvera [p. 181] lines 1-2 from the last - for mansion near Shiva's abode on Mt. Kailasa. subs. city on the golden mountain Sumeru.
Lacedaemon [p.182] include 5: 403 Lakshmi [p. 182] include XVIII: 150-51 Laomedon [p. 183] (1) in Derivatives, (i) delete Laomedonian; (ii) after Laomedontian add (descendent of Laomedon; an epithet of Deiphobus) (2) in page numbers of Vol. 5, for 402-03 read 402
*Laon [p. 183] a commune in northern France, northeast of Paris. (Web.N.C.D.) XXVIII: 161
Latin [p. 184] include XXIX: 17 *Laupayanas [p. 184] See Gaupayanas Leie [p. 185] include XXVI: 149-50
*Lely, Mr. [p. 185] the popular Commissioner of Ahmedabad (Gujarat) c. 1902 who took a keen and encouraging interest in the Industrial Exhibition held there in the month of December. (A) XXVII: 84
*Leo [p.186] a Latin word meaning "lion". It also occurs in Italian names, e.g. of some popes and Roman emperors. (Col. Enc.) XXV: 59
Pg. 14
Letherbridge, Sir Roper [p. 186] for Letherbridge subs. Lethbridge
Letters [p.186] (1) lines 1-2 for Letters of Sri Aurobindo (First,... ... Series) subs. Letters of Sri Aurobindo - extracts from letters to disciples written mostly in the 1930s (First, Second and Fourth Series on Yoga) (2) include 24:1777
Letters on Yoga [p. 186] include 24:1777 *Levi [p. 186] in the Bible, the third son born to Jacob and his first wife, Leah. He was traditional ancestor of the Levites. (Enc. Br.) XXIX: 14
Liberal (Party) [p. 187] include XXIV: 172-73 XXX: 235-36,240
Liège [p. 187] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 130,137 XXIX: 74
The Life Divine [p.187] include XXIII: 11,26 XXV: 38,54,65 XXVI: 171,175, 178,185,190 XXVII 50-51,53,56,58 XXVIII: 123,148-50,155-56,169
Lights on Yoga [p.187] include 24:1777
Lithuania [p. 188] (1) lines 2-3 – for Since 1940 it has...... the U.S.S.R. subs. From 1940 it was a constituent republic of the U.S.S.R. Following the break-up of the U.S.S.R., it became a constituent State of the Commmonwealth of Independent States. (2) lines 4-7 (i) for the Latvian S.S.R. subs. Latvia (ii) for the Belorussian S.S.R. subs. Belorussia (iii) for the Russian S.F.S.R. subs. Russia
Lithuanian [p. 188] line 2 from the last - delete (presently the Lithuanian S.S.R.)
London [p.189] include XXIV: 163 XXVII: 77
Lords, House of [p. 190] include XXVII: 14
Lorraine [p.190] include XXVIII: 137, 145-46
Louis IX [p. 190] This entry is to be delisted.
Louis XII [p. 190] This entry is to be delisted.
Lunar Dynasty [p. 191] (l) line l- for (CHANDRA VANSA) subs. (Chandra Vamśa) (2) include XXXI: 14
Lynsander [p. 192] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXV: 55
M., Dr. [p, 192] This entry is to be delisted.
Maagadh [p.192] last line - for Magadhas. read Magadhas. Macedon(ia) [p. 193] include XXVI: 147-48
*Mclaren [p. 193] a Liberal member of the British Parliament c. 1893 who was "pledged to champion the Congress movement". (A) XXIV: 172
*McNeill, Swift [p. 193] John Gordon Swift MacNeill (1849-1926), Irish politician and jurist. A professor of Law, he was also a Nationalist member of the Parliament from 1887 to 1919, and an authority on Parliamentary procedure. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) XXIV: 172
Madh(o)u [p.193] line 3 - delete 3:201
*Madhou, the den of [p.193] The word "den" occurring in this phrase on p. 201 of The Harmony of Virtue is a misreading of the manuscript. The corrected version of the essay (in the A & R, Dec.'89 issue) gives the phrase as "the Son ofModhou" (p. 150), i.e. a descendent of Madhu, Krishna. Madhu was an ancestor of Krishna; this is the reason why the latter was also known as Madhava. (M.W.) 3: 201
*Madhousudan [p.193] See Dutt, (Michael) Madhusudan
Madra [p.194] include XXVI: 138-39
Madras [p.194] include XXVII: 70-71,74, 78
(Madras) Mail [p.194] add (end)Originally British-owned, the Mail was mostly read and patronized by the Anglo-Indian community in the South.
(Madras) Standard [p.194] (1) line 2 - for 1917 subs. 1915 (2) add (end) See also New India2 (3) add (source) ; S. F. F.
Madras Times [p.194] include XXXVI: 215
Magadh(a) [p.195] (1) for XVIII: 136 read XVIII: 136-37 (2) include XXVI: 136-38,141
Mahabharat(a)1 [p.195] include XXV: 1-6, 8-9,12-13,15,20, 24,27,29-30, 32-33 XXVI: 123-30,132,134-35,137-38,141, 143-45,148-49 XXX: 234, 238
Mahakali [p. 196] include Der: Mahakalibhava XXIII: 4-5, 8,10,12, 14, 20-22, 32-33, 35-37,40. 44-45,47, 53, 56, 65 XXIV: 100,157,162- 65,167-69 XXV: 38, 40, 48, 52, 67 XXVI: 167,176-77 XXVII: 12,16, 26, 29 XXVIII: 174 XXIX: 21-25, 27, 31,73 XXX: 133,145, 155-56,166-71,207, 212, 226-27 XXXI: 3,
Pg. 15
7,10-11,15,17-18,20,23,46,51, 56, 60 XXXII: 107,109-10,113,116,125,180-81 XXXIII: 3-4, 35 XXXV: 69 XXXVI: 182
Mahalakshmi [p. 196] include Var: Mahaluxmi XXIV: 157,162,169 XXV: 72 XXIX: 31, 97 XXX: 133,155-56, 166-67,169, 226 XXXI: 3, 5,11,18, 46, 52, 56 XXXII: 101,110,125,180 XXXIII: 3-4,35
Mahar(loka) [p. 196] include XXIV: 128 XXVIII: 132, 150-51
Mahasaraswati [p.196] include XXIII: 12, 14, 26, 32, 36-37, 45,47, 52, 65 XXIV: 128, 157,162-63,169 XXV: 38, 40, 63 XXVI: 167,177 XXVII: 26, 29 XXVIII: 174 XXIX: 21-23, 31 XXX: 133,145,155-56, 169,207,226 XXXI: 3,11,18, 25, 46, 51-52 XXXII: 101,110,125,157,180 XXXIII: 3-4, 35 XXXVI: 182
Mahatmas [pp. 196-97] include XIX: 33
Mahayana [p. 197] (1) line 7 from the last - Between 'They' and 'attribute', insert: (the Mahayanists) (2) last line — in the first word, 'v' to be replaced by 'w'.
Mahes(h)wari [p. 197] include XXIII: 12, 20-21, 26, 65 XXIV: 157,162-63 XXV: 38, 40 XXVI: 167,177 XXIX: 21, 31 XXX: 133,156,169, 226 XXXI: 3,11,18, 46, 52 XXXII: 101,109-10,125,180 XXXIII: 3-4, 35 XXXV: 69
Mahomedan [p. 198] include XVIII: 137 XXV: 24 XXVII: 71, 83 XXXI: 63 XXXVI: 188,199
Mahratta [p. 198] (1) line 5 - delete It was edited by N.C. Kelkar. (2) include XXVI: 181 XXVIII: 169
Malplaquet (p. 200] line 4- for Eugine read Eugene
Manchester Grammar School [p.200] line 2 - for Manchester, England read Manchester (England)
Mandhata [p.201] include XXVI: 136
Mandukya Upanishad [p.201] include XXV: 47 XXVIII: 123
Manek [p.201] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXVI: 175
*Manoloka [p.201] the mental world XXIII: 56
Manu(s) ; Manu Vaivaswata [p. 202] include XXIV: 114,138 XXV: 31
Marlowe [p.203] include XXVI: 133
Mars [p.203] (1) Add superscript numeral1 at the end of the name-entry. (2) add (begin) in astronomy, (3) In references from Volume 7, delete 1024 and the preceding comma.
*Mars2 [p.203] ancient Roman deity, in importance second only to Jupiter. Little is known of his original character. It is clear, however, that by historical times he had developed into a god of war. In literature and art he is hardly distinguished from the Greek Ares. (Enc.Br.) 7:1074
*Martin [p.203] name of the owner of the house (presently 3 Rue Jawaharial Nehru) in Pondicherry that was rented by the Mother and Paul Richard in 1914. XXV: 76 Marut(s) [p.204] include XXIX: 47, 73 XXXI: 43, 47, 60
Marutta [p.204] include XXVI: 136 Maskelyne [p.204] line 6 - for tury read century. Massis, Henri [p.204] line 3 - for defense read defense Mataris(h)wan [p.204] line 2 - The comma should be after 'who', not before it. Matsya(s) [p.205] include XXVI: 138, 141-42, 151. Maurya2 [p.205] include XXXV: 82 XXXVI: 192 Mazzini [p.206] (1) for Mazzini read Mazzini, (2) include XXX: 234,238
*Medinipur [p.206] See Midnapur Mehtar [p.207] for Bhangi read Bhangī
Mesopotamia [p.208] include XXXVI: 198
Messages from the Future [p.208] This entry is to be delisted. Mexican War [p.209] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVI: 167,177 Mexico [p.209] include XXIII: 30 XXV: 46 XXVI: 185,189 XXVII: 4, 20, 27 Michael [p.209] Add superscript numeral1 to the name-entry.
*Michael2 [p.209] The Grand Duke Michael Romanov (the Romanovs were the ruling dynasty of Russia from 1613 to 1917). At the request of the top-ranking generals his brother, the Tsar, abdicated and relinquished the throne in his favour. But the next day (c. 18 March 1917) Michael, not wishing to ascend the throne in the midst of a revolution, also abdicated, XXXII: 125
Midnapur [p.209] add (begin) (in Bengali)
Milton [p.210] include XXVI: 133-34,145
Mirra [pp.210-11] (1) line 1 – for Mirra Richard read Mirra P. Richard (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXV: 82-83 XXXVI: 193
Mitra [p.211] include XXVII: 38, 41, 47 XXVIII: 138 XXIX: 47, 73
Pg. 16
Mitra, Bhababhusan [p.211] This entry has to be delisted. Mitra, Kumudini [p.2ll] add (begin) (1878-1943),
*Mno [p.212] In the Record of Yoga, abbreviation of the name of an unknown person XXVIII: 177
*Modhou, the Son of [p.212] Madhava (a descendant of Madhu in the Yadava line) i.e. Krishna. (M.W.) 3:201 (See Madhou, the den of) XXVI: 150
Molière [p.213] (1) add (end) In 1673 Moliere collapsed on the stage during an early performance of his new play Le malade imaginaire (The Imaginary Invalid), and died the same night. He was acting the part of the hypochondriac. (2) add (source) ; Enc. Br.
Mommsen [p.213] line 2 - Delete the last word 'his'.
Moon [p. 214] line 2 from the last — for Chandra read Chandra'
Moore [p.214] delete XIII: 50
Mopsus [p.214] line 1 - Between 'name' and 'used', insert: (of two seers in Greek mythology)
Moriey.John [p.214] include XXX: 234, 239
Moscow [p.215] (1) add (begin) once (2) line 3 - for It is subs. It was (3) add (end) Since the collapse of the U.S.S.R., Moscow is the capital of Russia, the largest constituent State of the Commonwealth of Independent States.
The Mother [pp.215-16] (1) Put The in parentheses. (2) add (end) In the Record of Yoga Sri Aurobindo refers to her mostly as Madame Richard or M.R. or Mme R. The two postcards written in French by the Mother in September and November 1911 and published in A & R of April 1989 are signed M.P. Richard and Mirra P. Richard respectively. (3) include XXV: 60, 75, 80-83 XXVII: 33, 35 XXVIII: 151 XXIX: 90 XXXVI: 190
Mother lndia [p.216] include 24: 1777
*Mozufferpore [p.216] See Muzaffarpur Mrinalini (Devi) [p.216] include XXV: 77 Mulhausen [p.217] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 131-32,145 Muzaffarpur [p.219] include Var: Mozufferpore XXIX: 114-15 Mysore [p.220] (1) line 3-7 - for In 1947 ...... to Karnataka. subs. In 1947 it acceded to the Indian Union. In 1956 it became the major part of the enlarged Kannada-speaking state of Mysore (later renamed Karnataka). (2) include XXVI: 139 XXVII: 70, 78-79
Nagen [p. 221] Add superscript numeral1 to the name-entry.
* Nagen2 [p. 221] Nagen Nag, a cousin of Bijoy Kumar Nag. On his doctor's advice, he came to Pondicherry sometime in 1913, and stayed with his cousin in Sri Aurobindo's house. The money he contributed greatly eased the strain on Sri Aurobindo's household enabling them to move from 59 Rue des Missions Etrangeres (rent Rs. 15/-) to 41 Rue Francois Martin (rent Rs. 30/-). (Purani, p. 153 ; M.I., Jan. 1976, pp. 12-13) XXV: 76
Nair2 [p.221] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXV: 84
Nala [pp.221-22] include XXV: 14
Nala, the [p.222] for "Nalopākhyāna" read "Nalopākhyānam"
Naladamayanti [p.222] (1) lines 2-3 - for "Nalopākhyāna". Read "Nalopākhyānam". (2) include Var: the Nulla XXV: 13, 15, 17, 20
Namur [p.222] (1) line 4 — for Siege read Liege (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 145-46
Naoroji, Dadabhai [p.223] include XXIV: 172
Napoleon (Bonaparte) [p.223] include XXV: 34 XXVI: 140
Nar(a)1 [p.223] include Der: Narabhava XXIV: 164, 166-67, 170 XXV: 42 XXX: 210
Nara-Narayana [pp. 223-24] include XXIV: 165,167 XXV: 40, 54
Narayan [p. 224] Add superscript numeral1 to the name-entry.
Narayan(a) [p-224] (1) The name-entry is to be revised as follows:- Narayan2 ;
Narayan(a)1 (2) include Der: Narayan-bodh (awareness of the Narayana-aspect of Krishna); Narayana-Darshana XIV: 159, 164-65,168,170 XXV: 39 XXVI: 172 XXVII: 4-5 XXX: 196, 202-03
*Narayana2 [p.224] author of a Sanskrit commentary on the Sarvopanishad. XXVIII: 160 fn. 6 Nasurullah Khan, Nawabzada [p.224] line 2 - Between 'SACHIN' and the full point, insert: around 1906
Pg. 17
National(ist) (Party) [p.225] include XXXVI: 215 Near East [p.226] include Der: Near-Eastern
Nefdi [p.226] This entry is to be delisted. Neva [p.227] line 3 - Replace the line by only one word: RUSSIA .
*Niagara Mediations [p.228] a conference held in July 1914 in Niagara Falls (a city in Canada located near the famous waterfalls) which was attended by the ABC powers (Argentina, Brazil, and Chile) and the United States. Its purpose was to bring some order in Mexico through discussions with the HUERTA and CARRANZA factions. (Col. Enc., p.926 under "Huerta,Victoriana") XXVI: 174,189
Nidah [p.228] ' (1) add (end) In Record of Yoga they are also referred to as "Confiners" or "Powers of Limitation". (2) add (source) ; A & R, April '90, p. 90 (3) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVI: 175 XXVII: 29, 34, 36, 44-45, 59 XXVIII: 121-22,142, 149 XXX: 179 XXXII: 155 Nishad(h)a [p.229] include XXV: 20 Nokula [p.230] include Var: Nacool Nordic [p. 230] add (begin) (of, or relating to)
North Sea [p.230] include XXVIII: 137, 141,162
*Noyon [p.231] a town in the Oise dèpartement of northern France, north-northeast of Paris. It was formerly an important ecclesiastical centre. World War I caused heavy damage in the town, particularly to its cathedral of Notre-Dame. (Enc.Br.) XXVIII: 161
*Nulla, the [p.231] See Naladamayanti
Octavia [p.232] (1) lines 1-2 from the last - for from Cleopatra read by Cleopatra (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXV: 86
Ode [p.232] The whole entry to be revised as follows: The Collins' ode referred to here is very probably his Ode on the Popular Superstitions of the Highlands (See A & R, Dec.'77, p. 16 fn) II:14
Odysseus [p.232] (1) last line 'Ulysses' should be in boldface type. (2) include 3: 3 22: 417 XXIV: 112
Oedipus [p. 233] line 2 – Between 'greatest' and 'tragedy' insert: surviving
*Old Moore [p. 233] an English almanac, full name: Old Moore's Almanack. Francis Moore (1657-1715?) brought out the first edition of his Vox Stellarum ("The Voice of the Stars") in July 1700. By 1901 the popular name Old Moore's was featured more prominently on the title page. than Vox Stellarum, but the almanac still specialized in "predictions of coming events ... by a notable astrologer of the nineteenth century". It also provided the usual information found in almanacs: rising and setting of the sun and moon, etc. (Enc. Br.; Old Moore's of 1901) XIII: 50
"Olympian1 [p.233] of or relating to OLYMPUS
"Olympian2 [p.233] the term refers to the following twelve gods and goddesses of Greek religion and is derived from Mt. Olympus on which they are believed to reside. Among them Zeus is considered supreme. Zeus, the father, ruled over Hera, his wife and sister; Hestia, his elder sister; Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite, Hebe, his daughters; Hermes, Ares, Apollo, Hephaestus, his sons; and Poseidon, his brother. (Col. Enc.) 5:395 6:9,22, 91,198 9:419
Olympus [p.233] (1) for Der: Olympian subs. Der: Olympian1(adj.); Olympius (adj. in Latin) (2) Delete the following index references: 5: 395 6: 9, 22,91.198 9:419 (3) include XXV: 9
Oread(s) [p. 234] include 3:242
The Origin of Aryan Speech [p. 234] include XXIII: 11 XXVIII: 124
Osboume, Lloyd [p.235] include XXVI: 131
Oxford (University) [p. 236] include XXVI: 131
Pahlavas [p.236] Both the lines of the entry to be replaced by: See Pehlava
Pal, Bepin (Chandra) [p.237] include XXIX: 115
Pal, Kristo Das [p.237] (1) line 1 - Replace the last comma by a semi-colon. (2) line 2 — for the Hindu Patriot. subs. The Hindoo Patriot (an English daily of Calcutta).
*Panchaalas [p.238]. See Panchala
Panchajanya [p.238] line 6 - for learnt
Pg. 18
the use of arms. subs. learnt all the vidyas including the use of arms. Panchala [p.238] include Der: Panchaalas ; Punchalas XXV: 3, 21 XXVI: 125, 136-38, 141-43, 151-52 Pandava(s) [p.238] include XXV: 3, 20, 27, 35 XXVL: 125, 138-39, 142, 144, 146, 149-52 Pand(o)u [p.238] include XXV: 11-12, 27 XXVI: 137
Panini [p.239] include XXVI: 148 Pani(s) [p.239] include XXXV: 54 Paradise Lost [p.239] include XXVI: 134 Paras(h)urama [p.240] include XXVI: 136-37 Paris2 [p.240] include XXIII: 60 XXV: 80-83 XXVII: 60,78 Parnassus [pp.240-41] This entry should be listed after the next entry Parnassians. Parnell, Charles Stewart [p.241] include XXIV: 172 Les Paroles etemelles [p.241] (1) the first e of 'eternelles' to be a capital E (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 125,128
Parsi(s) [p.241] include XXVII: 63 Parthasarathi [p.241] (1) last line – for (27:439) read (27:438-39) (2) include XXV: 70
Pashu [p.242] (1) Put h in parentheses. (2) include XXIII: 14 XXIV: 124,128, 132-33,148 XXVII: 54 XXX: 156
*Pasu [p.242] See Pashu
Patala [p.242] include Var: Pataala 26: 266 XXV: 34,70 XXIX: 89 XXXII: 139
*Paul, Mr. [p.243] a Liberal member of the British Parliament around 1893 who was "pledged to champion the Congress movement" in India. (A) XXIV: 172
Paundra2 [p.243] for XVIII: 138 read XVIII: 138-39
Pausanias [p.243] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXV: 55
Payoshni [p.243] include XXV: 14
Pehlava [p. 244] include Var: Pahlava XVIII: 138-39 XXVI: 147
Peneus [p.245] The full entry is to be revised as follows: a river in the Peloponnesus (southernmost region of continental Greece), emptying into the Ionian Sea. (M.I. ; Col. Enc.) 5: 411 ("Pineus" is a misprint), 414, 464
Penthesilea [p.245] lines 6-7 - for Her beauty was such that it is told subs. It is said of her beauty
Pericles [p.245] include XXXV: 55
Permanent Settlement [p.245] include XXX: 237, 242
Perseus the Deliverer [p. 246] (1) line 7 - for Two scenes read Two more scenes (2) line 8 - for rediscovered subs. discovered later
Persia [p.246] include XVIII: 139 XXIII: 30 XXVI: 147-48 XXVII: 64
Peru [p.246] include XXIII: 30
Petrograd [p. 247] add (end) See also St. Petersburg
Petrus [p.247] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 141
Pharisee(s) [p.247] include XXV: 35
Phamabazus [p.247] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXV: 55
Philip [p.247] Add superscript numeral' to the name-entry.
*Philip2 [p.247] See Philip (of Macedon)
Philip (of Macedon) [p.247] This entry should be listed after Philip IF (the revised form of the name-entry Phillip II), and before Phillipines on p. 248.
*p II1 [p.247] Philip II Augustus, of France (1165-1223), first great Capetian king of medieval France (ruled from 1180 to 1223) who destroyed the Angevin empire of the great kings of England. (Enc. Br. ; Web. N.C.D.) 3:193 XXVI: 140
Phillip II [pp.247-48] (1) Make the following changes in this name: - (i) Replace the double 11 by a single 1, (ii) Add superscript numeral2 at the end. (2) delete 3:193 (3) This entry is then to be listed after the new entry Philip II1
Philip IV [p. 248] This entry is to be delisted.
Note:- The final order of entries between Phidias and Philippines will be as follows: Philip1 / *Philip2 / *Philip II1/ Philip II2 / Philip (of Macedon)
Pickwick, Mr. [p.249] include XXV: 3 XXVI: 125
Pineus [p. 250] Replace all the four lines by the following: - See Peneus (the correct spelling of the name)
Pis(h)achas [p.250] (1) Delete the last s (the plural ending) in the term. (2) line 1 — for beings read being (3) include Der: Pishachic 24:1480 XXIII: 14,23 XXIV: 138,145 XXV: 42 XXVII: 54 XXX: 156
Pisistratus [p.250] include XXV: 2 XXVI: 124
Plutarch [p,251] include XXVI:144
Pg. 19
Poland [p.252] include XXVIII: 137, 139 XXIX: 44
*Polo, Philip See Philip Polo
Pondicherry [p.252] (1) add (begin) (at some places in Record of Yoga, abbreviated to Pondi.) (2) line 4 from the last — Between the full stop and 'The', insert: The de facto merger took place on 1 November 1954; and dejure transfer of power on 16 August 1962. (3) include XXIII: 23 XXIV: 131,154,160,163 XXVI: 186,195 XXXVI: 214-17
Poona [p.252] include XXVII: 74
Pope [p.252] include XXV: 16
Poundrian Vasudeva [p.253] include XXVI: 137
Le Pourquoi des Mondes [p.253] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 125,127-28
*Pracrit [p.254] See Prakrit
Pradyumna [p.254] include XXVI: 149
Prahlada fp.254] include XXIV: 148
Prakrit [p.254] include Var: Pracrit XXVI: 147
Pramathas [p.254] (1) Put the s in parentheses, (2) include XXIII: 14 XXIV: 138 XXVII: 53
Pramatheshwari [p.254] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXX: 156
Premanand [p.255] (1) add (end) Premanand developed "Nalopākhyānam", an episode of the Mahabharata, into the epic poem Nālakhyāna, which is his most famous work. (2) include Var: Premanund XXV: 15
Prezonysl [p.255] Replace both the lines by the following: — misspelling for Przemysl: a city in southeast Poland, in the foothills of the Carpathians and near the former Soviet border. It was twice besieged (1914, 1915) and once occupied (1915) by the Russians. (Col. Enc.) XXVIII: 187
Prithivi [p.256] include XXVII: 41,48 XXX: 175
Protestantism [p.257] (1) Put the last letters ism of the term in parentheses. (2) last line - Between 'Scriptures' and the full point, insert: i.e. primacy of the Bible as the only source of revealed truth. (3) add (source) ; Web.N.C.D. (4) include
15: 357
Prussia [p.257] include XXVIII: 184,187
*Psalms [p.257] a book of the Old Testament that, in the Hebrew Bible, begins the third section of the biblical canon known as the Writings. In its present form, the collection consists of 150 songs, hymns, laments etc. (Enc. Br.) XV: 24 *Punchalas [p.258] See Panchala Punjab [p.258] (1) In index references, for XVIII: 144 read XVIII: 144-45 (2) include XXVII: 74 Purana(s) [p.258] (1) add (end) An English translation of the Puranas is coming out as a mega project of the UNESCO in a series of 100 volumes, the 54th of which has been released recently. (2) add (source) ; Indian Express, 2 March ‘95, p.17 (3) include XXV: 2, 4-5 XXVI: 126-27 XXVII: 41 XXXVI: 206 Purochana [p. 259] include XXVI: 146 Purushottam [p.259] This entry has to be delisted. Pushan [p.259] include XXIX: 47 Pythian [p.260] (1) last line – Between Delphi and the full point, insert: (the old name of Delphi was Pytho) (2) add (source) ; "From Abacus to Zeus" by " James Smith Pierce, p.73
Radha [p.261] In index references, for XVIII: 148 read XVIII: 148-49
Ragh(o)u [p.261] include XXV: 17
Raghuvamsha [p.261] The variant Raghu(vansa) should be in boldface italics.
Raj(a)suya [p.262] include XXVI: 138-40, 144,151
Rajpoot [p.262] include XXVII: 83
Rajputana [pp. 262-63] include XXVII: 78
Rakshas(a) [p.263[ include 1: 778 XVIII: 141 XXIII: 14 XXIV: 128-29,138, 147 XXV: 34 XXVII: 53 XXIX: 21 XXX: 156,179 XXXI: 43,49-50 XXXV: 54 XXXVI: 191, 208
Ram [p. 263] Add superscript numeral1 to the name-entry.
Ram(a)1 [p.263] (1) The name-entry to be as follows: Ram2; Ram(a)1 (2) line 4 from the last - Between Lanka and the full point, insert: and to establish the Rama-rajya (3) include XXV: 33-35 XXVI: 137
Ramaiah [p. 264] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXVI: 202
*Rama-rajya [p.265] Literally meaning the reign of Rama, the term is popularly used, by analogy, for "an order proper to the sattwic civilised human being who governs his life by the reason, the finer emotions,
Pg. 20
morality, or at least moral ideals, such as truth, obedience, co-operation and harmony". (A) 22: 415 Ramayan(a) [p.265] (1) The variant Ramaian should be in bold italics. (2) include XXV: 2, 9,13, 22, 32-33 XXVI:
131-32, 143-44
Rambha [p.265] include Var: Rumbha Ramdas [p.265] (1) line 4 - Between the full point and 'For', insert: In 1954 he went on a world tour to spread the message of universal love and service. Ramdas saw everyone, the sinner and the saint, as Rama1 and related this "experience" repeatedly in his writings. The book referred to as "Vision" (23: 798) is actually entitled In the Vision of God and came out after his first book In Quest of God. (2) add (source) before - (World is God by Swami Ramdas, 3rd ed., pub. Anandashram, Kanhangad, Kerala, pp. ix and 378)
Ranade, Mahadev Govind [p.265] include XXVII: 81
Rangoon [p.266] add (end) The name of Burma has since been changed to Myanmar, and of Rangoon to Yangon. Rangpur [p. 266] include Var: Rangpore RanjitSingh [p.266] include XXVII: 63 Ravana [pp.266-67] include XXV: 33-35 (Reign of) Terror, The [p.268] (1) Replace the first line including the name-entry by the following: - Reign of Terror [p. 268] a term denoting that (2) Delete the index reference 17: 381
Reims [p.268] (1) line 1 - "Rheims" to be in boldface type (2) line 2 - for in northeastern France, in Champagne, read in Champagne (northeastern France), (3) include XXVIII: 161 The Return of Morogiafferi [p.269] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXV: 52
Review [p.269] include XXV: 76 XXVII: 6, 28, 55 XXVIII: 122,125,134, 143, 146-48,151,156,159,163,185 XXIX:
32, 38, 55 XXX: 138-39,145-46,169,172 XXXV: 83 XXXVI: 216
*Rheims [p.269] See Reims Ribhu [p.269] line 1 - (rbhu) and rbhuksan to be in boldface italics Ribhus [p.269] include XXVII: 53 XXIX: 73 Richard1 [p.269] include XXVI: 133
*Richard4 (p.269] See Richard, Paul Richard II [p.269] for tragedy King Richard the Second, read Tragedie of Richard the Second.
Richard III [p. 270] include XXVI: 133
Richard, Madame [p.270] In the name-entry, after Madame, add (or Mme, or M. P., or Mirra P.)
Richard, Paul [p.270] (1) last line - Between "R" and the full point, insert: (at some places as "PR" or "P.R") (2) In references from Vol. 27, delete the last page number 495 along with the preceding comma. (3) include XXIV: 150-52,167 XXV: 47 (Rd.), 52,60, 76 XXVII: 33, 35, 45 XXVIII: 144 XXIX: 90 XXXVI: 191, 205
Richards, the [p.270] include XXV: 70, 76 (M & Madame Richard)
Richardson [p.270] (1) Add superscript numeral1 to the name-entry. (2) delete 26: 256-57
*Richardson2 [p.270] English critic, a contemporary of Sri Aurobindo, who reviewed his Collected Poems and Plays in a theosophical journal published from Madras. He admired Urvasie, Love and Death, and the more romantic poems but thought otherwise about his later work. Richardson was very appreciative of Sri Aurobindo's essay "On Quantitative Metre" and wondered whether modern poets like Eliot had realised its importance as a pointer to new possibilities in English prosody, 26: 256-57
Richmond [p.270] include XXVI: 133 The Riddle of this World [p.270] (1) The 't' of 'this' is to be replaced by a capital T. (2) include 24: 1777
Rig-Veda [pp.270-71] (1) Invariants, for Rig; read Rig(Veda); (2) include XXIII: 11, 59 (Rv.) XXIV: 129, 150 XXVI: 158-59,187 XXVIII: 124 XXIX: 54 XXX: 168
Ripon.Lord [p.271] include XXX: 234, 239
Romanic [p.272] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIV: 138
Rome [p.272] include XXIV: 138
R(o)umania [pp.273-74] include XXXII: 169
Rousseau [p.274] include XXX: 234,238
Roy, Motilal [p.274] include XXVI: 165 (M.R)
Roy, P. C. [p.274] include XXVI: 149
Roy, (Raja) Rammohan [p.275] include XXVII: 63
Rudrani [p.275] for [From "Record of
Pg. 21
Yoga"...] subs. XVIII: 144-47 XXXV: 54
Rudra(s) [p.275] (1) In index references, for XVIII: 144 read XVIII: 144-45 (2) include XXIV: 170 XXVI: 177
XXVII: 41 XXVIII: 137-38 XXIX: 47, 73, 83, 95,102 XXX: 195 XXXV: 90 XXXVI: 208
Rungpore [p.275] In the name-entry, include ; Rungpur
Russia [p.276] (1) line 2 - for now subs. once (2) line 4 - for applies subs. applied (3) add (end) In 1990, with the adoption of democratic ideals by the nation, the "Socialist Republics" became "Sovereign Republics"; but soon afterwards the Union collapsed. The constituent States became independent, but agreed to form a Commonwealth of Independent States (C.I.S.). (4) include Var: Russie XVI: 140 XXVIII: 137,145-46,150,156, 158,171,175,184,187,193 XXXII: 125 XXXVI: 196
Russian (language) [p-276] The major language of the Commonwealth of Independent States (formerly U.S.S.R.) and the mother tongue of over 80% of the population of Russia (formerly R.S.F.S.R.). It is the official language throughout the C.I.S. and is written in Cryllic script.
* Russie [p. 276] See Russia
Ruthenian [p.276] (1) line 2-3 for the UkranianS.S.R. subs. the Ukraine (2) line 4 – Between 'Union' and the comma, insert: (the present Commonwealth of Independent States)
Saar [p.277] (1) add (end) It is probably best known for its extensive deposits of coal and for its steel production, which have been sources of both wealth and political contention for over a thousand years. (2) add (source) ; Enc. Br. (Macro), 16: 113
Sahana [p.278] (1) line 1 -for (1897- ) read (1897-1990) (2) add (source) ; M.I., May 1990, p. 298
*St. Brume [p.278] a name found in the Record of Yoga, presumably in a "lipi". XXVI: 195
St. Hilaire [p.278] line 1 – for Phillipe read Philippe
St. James Gazette [p.278.] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIV: 112
St. Jean [p.278] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIX: 12
St. Joseph's College [p.278] All the five lines to be replaced by the following: founded in 1844 as St. John's School at Nagapattinam, imparting Western type education. It was an autonomous institution. It was affiliated to the Madras University in 1866 and in 1882 it was shifted to Tiruchi. (The Hindu of 15 Sept. 1994) XXIV: 112,144
*St. Paul [p.278] (d. 67 ?), the apostle to the Gentiles. St. Paul's figure dominates the apostolic age and his Epistles have left a tremendous impression on Christianity. Countless interpretations have been given to his teaching; the value of the Epistles depends on the extent to which they are accepted as genuinely written by the apostle. (Col. Enc.) XV: 24
St. Petersburg [p.278] The revised version of the whole entry to be as follows: second largest city of Russia founded by Peter I (Peter the Great); capital of the Russian Empire from 1712 to 1917. The name was changed to Petrograd (1914-24), then to Leningrad (1924-92) and back to St. Petersburg since 1992. (Web.N.C.D.; Indian Express of 22 March'94, p.7) 2: 254
St. Stephen's - Hyslop's College [p.279] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIV: 112
Saka(s) [p.279] include XXVI: 147
Sakya(s) [p.279] include Var: Cakyas 24: 1669 XXVI: 147
Samarcand [p.279] line 3 – Between 'U.S.S.R.' and 'Until', insert: (presently, a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States).
Samba [p.280] include XXVI: 149
Sambara [p. 280] (1) line 1 - At the end of the line, add (also called a Dasyu) (2) line 3 - for his many (airborne ?) castles subs. his many castles (or aerial cities)
Sanatan Dharma [p.280] (1) in the name-entry, the first word to be altered to Sanatan(a) (2) delete Var: Sanatana Dharma
Sanjay(a)2 [p.281] (1) lines 4-6 for Sanjaya is represented ... Dhritarashtra. (Dow) subs. Sanjaya is later required by Dhritarashtra to narrate to him what was happening on the battle-field, which Sanjaya could see with the Divine Vision (divya drsti)
Pg. 22
bestowed upon him by Vyasa. (Dow.; M.N.) (2) include XXV: 5, 27-28 XXVI: 126-27
Sankhya [p.281] include XXV: 32 Sanskrit [pp.281-82] include XXIII: 11 XXV: 2-3, 5, 21 XXVI: 123-24,126-28,139, 147 XXVIII: 163 XXXV: 51-52
*Santanou [p.282] See Shantanu Sappho [p. 282] add (end) She was born in Lesbos.
Sarajevo [p.282] The article to be revised as follows:- a city located in Bosnia, Central Yugoslavia. It was the administrative headquarters of the Ottoman Empire from 1850. After the Austro-Hungarian Empire ousted the Turks in 1878, finally annexing Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1908, a resistance movement developed that culminated on June 28,1914, when a Bosnian Serb assassinated the heir apparent and his wife. The Austro-Hungarian government used this incident as a pretext for mobilizing against Serbia, thus precipitating World War I.
Sarama [p.282] include XXIV: 146 Saraswat2(e) [p.282] include XXVIII: 133
*Sarvopanishad [p.283] one of the extant less important Upanishads, also known as Sarvasaropanishad. (Up.K.) XXVIII: 160 Satyayuga [p.284] include XXVI: 165 XXVIII: 152
Saubala [p.284] include XXVI: 153 Saumilla [p.284] include XXX: 201 Saurin [p.284] include XXV: 67, 74, 76 XXVII: 8 XXIX: 30 XXX: 135,154XXXI: 32, 35, 38, 40, 62, 66, 68-69 XXXII: 127 XXXV: 55 Save, the [p.285] for [From "Record ofYoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 137 Savitri [p.285] include 29: 818 Savitri, the [p.285] include Var: the Savitrie XXV: 13-15, 20 Sayajirao Gaekwar [p.286] include XXVIII: 60 Sayana [p.286] include XXX: 172
*Schwann, Mr. [p.287] presumably a British M.P. who was critical of Gladstone's proposal regarding the Indian Legislative
Councils, XXIV: 173 , Scindia [p.287] include XXVI: 141 Scindia, Madhoji [p.287] include Var: Mahadaji Scindia XXVII: 63 Scotland [p.287] lines 6-7 for dialects(s) read dialect(s) Sea-horse [p.288] In the name-entry, replace the lowercase 'h' by a capital H The Secret of the Veda [p.288] include XXV: 74 XXVI: 170 XXVII: 30,32-33, 49,56 XXVIII: 122,124,138,141,144,
152,169 XXXV: 52 Sen, Keshab Chandra [p.289] (l) in variants, for Keshav Sen read Keshav (Chandra) Sen (2) include XXVII: 63 Sen Keshav [p.289] Alter the name-entry to Sen, Keshav (Chandra) Sen, Upen [p.290] This entry is to be delisted.
Serbia [p.290] include XXVIII: 137,145 Shakespeare [p.291] include XXV: 16, 59 XXVI: 132-34, 144-45 Shankaracharya [p.292] (1) line 6- Replace 'ents' by 'rents' (2) include 26: 102 XXV: 31, 47 Shantanu [p. 292] include Var: Santanou XXVI: 137
*Shanti-Sechan [p.292] name given to a benediction ceremony held in Calcutta in which Surendranath Banerji, then at the height of his popularity, was in effect "crowned". As reported in the Bengalee of 2 September 1906, a floral chaplet was placed on his head while Brahmins blew conchs and recited Vedic mantras. Severe criticism of this "silly" ceremony appeared in the Bengali press, the mock coronation resulting in a serious setback to Banerji's prestige. The Hindoo Patriot, in its issue of 11 September 1906, described the ceremony as a "miserable crowning farce" and advised the "new king" to retire,
1: 150,186
Shelley, Percy Bysshe [p.293] In the name-entry Percy Bysshe should be lightface type.
*Shilleto [p.294] in the Record of Yoga, a term that repeatedly occurred in the "lipis" of May 1914. XXV: 69 Shishupal(a) [p.294] include XXV: 20 XXVI: 137,140-41 Shiv(a)1 [p.294] (1) line 5 from the last - Replace the 'h' of Kailash by 'a'. (2) The page references from Vol. XVIII to
be revised as follows: - XVIII: 144-47, 150-51 (3) include 28:343 XXXII: 114 XXXVI: 150,163 Shivaji [p.294] include XXVII: 63 Shivaloka [p. 295] last line - Replace the 'h' of Kailash by 'a'. S(h)ruti [p.295] include 1:46 XXIX: 145, 156 XXV: 38 XXVIII: 152 XXX: 164 S(h)udra [p.295] (1) In page reference from Vol. XVIII, for 134 read 134-35 (2) include Der: Sudrani (female Sudra) XXV: 38
Pg. 23
Shuka(deva) [p.296] include XXV: 5 XXVI: 126-27 Shunahshepa (Ajigarti) [p.296] After the variant Sunahshepa, add (a misprint or misspelling)
*Shyam Babu [p.296} See Chakravarti, Shyam Sundar
Siberia [p.296] (1) line 1 - At the end of the line, add: (now of the Commonwealth of Independent States). (2) lines 4-5 for Russian ... Republic, subs. Commonwealth, (3) add (end) From the early 17th century and until the large-scale migration of Russian farmers, Siberia was used as a penal colony and as a place of exile for criminal and political offenders.
Sicily [p.296] include Der: Sicilian Siddha(deva) [p.296] include XXIV: 128 The Siege of Mathura [p.297] (1) 'for in a "lipi" of 1912-13 subs. in an undated' "script" likely to belong to the period around July 1912. (A & R, April '94, p.98) (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXV: 52 Sieyes, [p.297] (1) in the name-entry, for Sieyes read Sieyès (2) line 7 — for Sieyes read Sieyès
Sind(h) [p.297] (1) In page reference from Vol. XVIII, for 136 read 136-37 (2) include XXVII: 64 Sindhu [p.298] include XXVI: 137-38 Sindhu Sauvira [p.298] include XXVI: 139
Sinn Fein [p.298] include XXXVI: 198 Sisyphus [p.298] include XXXV: 68 Sita [pp.298-99] (1) last line - In Vaidehi, at the end, add(e) (2) include XXV: 33, 35
Smrities [p. 300] include 12: 432 Solar Dynasty [p.300] include XVIII: 151 Soma [p.301] (1) last line – for Chandra read Chandra' (2) include XXIII: 59 XXIV: 145,151,154-56 XXV: 68,70 XXVI: 166 XXVII: 42 XXXII: 113
Songhad [p.301] (1) line 3 - 'Songadh' to be in boldface type (2) in page references, after 72 delete (Songadh Vyara) (3) include XXVII: 73 Sophocles [p.302] include XXV: 7 XXXV: 55
South Africa [p.302] include Var: S. Africa XXIV: 160 XXVI: 157, 174
*Southern Presidency [p.302] i.e. the Madras Presidency that extended over the whole of the eastern coast of India from
Orissa to Cape Comorin. (D. I. H.) XXVII: 71 Soviet Union [p.302] (1) line 2 – Between the comma and 'federal', insert: former (2) line 4 — Replace 'is' by 'was'
Sparta [p. 303] include Der: Spartan Spender, Stephen [p. 303] line 2 – for (1909- ) read (1909-95) Spenser [p.303] (1) line 5 - for poet's poet read poets' poet (2) include XXV: 7 XXVI: 145 Sphinx [p.303] include XXXVI: 150
*S. R. [p.303] initials of an unknown person XXIV: 121
Sri Aurobindo [p.304] include 29: 818 XXIII: 30, 50, 66 XXV: 1,7, 50 XXVI: 134,149 XXVII: 60 XXIX: 4,114-15 XXX: 145,183 XXXI: 14, 49, 62 XXXIV: 111 XXXV: 10 XXXVI: 214, 216
Sri Aurobindo: Archives and Research [p.304] include XXIII: 61 XXIV: 124, 126, 132, 136 XXV: 81 XXVI: 24,145 XXVII: 2 XXVIII: 136 XXIX: 4, 18 XXXIV: 156
Sri Aurobindo Ashram [pp. 304-05] (1) add (begin) (at some places mentioned only as "The Ashram") (2) include
24: 1372, 1731, 1777 25:315 (3) In references from - (i) Volume 24, for 1611 read 1610-11 (ii) Volume 25, for 227-31 raed 226-31 (iii) Volume 25, for 247-48 read 247-49
"Sri Aurobindo Birth Centenary Library [p. 305] collected works of Sri Aurobindo published by the Ashram on the occasion of his birth centenary (1972). Issued in two editions, Deluxe and Popular, the Centenary Library contains more than 16000 pages in a large 19cm x 27cm format. It consists of twenty-nine text volumes and one reference volume containing an index, glossary, etc. 29: 818
"Sri Aurobindo Circle (Annual) [p.305] annual journal started by Sri Aurobindo Circle, Bombay, on 24 April 1945. Presently it is published by Sri Aurobindo Society, Pondicherry. The Sri Aurobindo Society Annual was incorporated with it in 1970. 24: 1777 29: 818
*Sri Aurobindo International University Centre [p. 305] an institution inaugurated by the Mother on 6 January 1952 in accordance with a resolution adopted at a convention held on 24 April 1951. In 1959 the name of the institution was changed to
Pg. 24
Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education. The aim of the Centre is to impart literary, cultural, physical, and technical education with a view to developing every aspect of the student. It also publishes a journal (now called Bulletin of Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education) and books, 29: 818
* Sri Aurobindo Mandir (Annual) [p.305] a journal published by Sri Aurobindo Pathmandir, Calcutta, on 15 August every year. It was started in 1942 on the occasion of the 70th birthday of Sri Aurobindo. 24: 1777 29: 818
*Srirāmottaratāpaniyopanisad [p. 305] an Upanishad of the Atharva Veda (Up. K.) XXVIII: 160
Stevenson [p.306] include XXVI: 131
Stone of Ishtar [p.306] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXXV: 52
Story of Truth [p.306] This entry, including the name, is to be replaced by the following:- Story of Trusts (Collins) [p.306] apparently the title of a book on the subject of "Trusts", published by Collins sometime before 1914. (A) XXIV: 136
Strasburg [p.306] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 141
Strymon [p.306] In sources, for M.N. read M. I.
Stuttgart [p.307] line 3 – BetweenGermany and the full point, insert: (now in the reunited Germany)
Suffragettes) [p.307] include XXVI: 159, 165
Sukumar [p.308] include XXV: 76
Sun [pp.308-09] include XXIV: 118, 153, 169 XXV: 11 XXVII: 38, 41, 47 XXVIII: 137 XXIX: 47,73 XXXII: 112-14 XXXIII: 72-73 XXXIV: 157
Suprabhat [p. 309] line 3 - for From 1909 to 1914 subs. Till 1914
Swar; Swarloka [p.311] include XXIII: 39 XXIV: 139-40, 153 XXV: 72 XXVI: 166
Swetas(h)watara (Upanishad) [p.311] include XXIV: 119 (Swet. Up)
*Swiss [p.312] See Switzerland Switzerland [p.312] include Der: Swiss
XXVI: 140 XXVII: 77 Sylhet [p.312] include XXV: 50 XXVII: 13 XXVIII: 131 The Synthesis of Yoga [p.312] include XXVI: 171, 174-75, 178, 196 XXVII: 45, 47, 49 XXVIII: 169
Tagore, Rabindranath [p.313] include XXXVI: 193 Taittiriya (Upanishad) [p.313] include XXVIII: 123
Tamil [p.314] include XXXV: 51,61 Tata, J.N. [p.316] include XXVII: 64 Taurus [p.316] All the details of the entry to be replaced by: see Bull Tchataldja [p.316] for Chataldja read Chatalja Teneriffe [p.317] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVII: 40 Tennyson [p.317] include XXV: 7 XXVI: 145 Teuton [p.317] include XXIV: 132,138 XXV: 3 XXVI: 125,128,134 XXIX: 17 Themistoclean [p.318] add (end) When he suggested a certain plan, the city-rulers opposed him and almost started to hit him. Then he cried out the famous words: "Strike but hear." Theosophical Society [p. 318] include Der: Theosophist XXIV: 124 XXVI: 151, 180 XXX: 183 (Theosophical Path)
XXXVI: 191,192 (T.S.), 206 & 211 (Theosophy) Thermopylae [p.318] In lines 8, 9 and 10 supply the missing first figure or letter 2, 7, and p respectively. Tiglath-pileser [p. 320] add (begin) (in the text "P" is a misprint for 'p') Tilak, (Lokamanya) Bal Gangadhar [p.320] include XXIV: 162 XXXVI: 191 The Times [p.320] (1) Add superscript numeral1 to the term. (2) The entry is then to be listed after the next i.e. Times. *The Times2 [p.320] a term occurring in a "lipi" of March 1914. Maybe it refers to some journal or newspaper of that time.
XXIV: 122 Times Literary Supplement [p.321] Add The before Times . Times of India [p.321] (1) Add The before Times (2) lines 2-3 for (now also from Delhi and Ahmedabad) subs. (later also
from Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Lucknow, Jaipur, and Patna)
Note:- The final order of entries between
Timbuctoo and Timocles will be as follows: Times /The Times1 / *The Times2 / The Times Literary Supplement /The Times ofIndia Tirupati [p. 321] This entry is to be delisted.
Pg. 25
Titaghur Mills [p.321] lines 4-6 – Delete the Note together with the parentheses enclosing it, and the following full point.
Titan(ess) [pp.321-22] (1) To the derivative 'Titanic', add superscript numeral2 (2) include 28: 243 XXV: 9, 33-34
Titanic [p. 322] Add superscript numeral1 to the term.
*Titanic2 [p.322] adjective derived from Titan; indexed with Titan(ess)
Tongres [p.322] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVIII: 137
Trasadasyu [p. 324] The article to be revised as follows: name of a Rishi occurring in some verses of the Rig-veda, e.g. 5.27.3; 5.33.8; 8.19.32 and 36; and 10.150.5. Sri Aurobindo, in his translation of the verses, renders the name respectively as "the disperser of the destroyers" (11: 242), "the scatterer of the dividers" (II: 49), "the Terror of the Destroyer(s)" (11: 329), and "Trasadasyu" (11: 433). See also (Traivrishna) Tryaruna. For index references see the next entry.
Trasadasyu (Paurukutsa) [p. 324] include 11: 329
Trigartas [p.324] include XXVI: 138
*Trishira [p. 325] name of a three-headed demon. (A & R, Dec. '83, p. 173) XIV: 139 Troy [p.326] include XXVI: 135
*T.S. [p.326] See Theosophical Society
Turkey [p.327] include XXIII: 30 XXVI: 174 XXVII: 4 XXVIII: 137 XXXV: 62 Twashtri [p.327] include XXIX: 73
Ugrashravas [p-329] include Var: Ugrosravas XXV: 1 Ukraine [p.329] (1) line 2 - for now subs. once (2) line 4 — for It is subs. and (3) line 5 - Between Kiev and the preceding full point, insert: After the collapse in 1990 of the U.S.S.R. and subsequent formation of the Commonwealth of Independent States, Ukraine became an influential member of the latter.
Ulster [p.329] include XXIV: 160 Ulysses [p.329] include XXIV: 112 Unionist dissensions [p.330] (1) Delete 'dissensions' (2) include 2:379 XXIV:160
United States (of America) [p.330] include XXX: 234, 238 Upadhyay(a), Brahmabndhab [p.330] line 3 from the last - for taken subs. Instituted Upanis(h)ads [pp.330-31] (1) Put the plural ending 's' in the name-entry and of the term 'treatises' (in line 1) in parentheses.
(2) include XXIV: 119 XXV: 10 XXVII: 35 XXXVI: 206 Usha1 [p.332] include XXVII: 38, 41 XXVIII: 185 Uswattha [p. 333] In the name-entry, the first 'a' is to be replaced by 'u'.
Vach [p.333] include XXVI: 179 XXIX: 39
Vahlika; Valhika [p.334] (1) line 2 - for name of a people; subs. Name of an ancient territory and its people; (2) include XXVI: 139,147
*Vahuka [p.334] See Bahuka Vaillant, Le [p.334] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIV: 162 Vaishampaiana [p.334] (1) Put the last 'a' of the name-entry in parentheses (2) include Var: Vyshampaian XXV: 1 Vaishnav(a) [p.334] include 24: 1362 Vaishya [pp.334-35] (1) In page reference from Vol. XVIII, for 136 read 136-37 (2) include XXVII: 21,29 Vala [p.335] include XXV: 73 XXVII: 27 XXX: 179
Vali [p.335] include XXVII: 53 Valmiki(e) [p.335] include
Der: Valmekeian XXV: 9-10, 13, 16-19, 22-24, 32-34 XXVI: 132,134,145,149 XXXV: 59 Vamadeva (Gautama) [p. 336] include XXVI: 185 XXVIII: 121,147 XXX: 172 Vanara [p.336] include 22: 415 Vanga [p.336] In page reference from Vol. XVIII, for 136 read 136-37
*Varahi [p.336] the Sow (feminine counterpart of the Varaha or boar incarnation of Vishnu). (A & R, April '86, p.96) XIX: 52
Varuna1 [p.336] include XXIV: 151 XXVI: 174 XXVII: 38, 41, 47 XXVIII: 137 XXIX: 47,73 XXXI: 17 XXXIII: 4
*Varunian [p.337] See Vanina1
Vayu [p.338] include XXIV: 162 XXVI: 159 XXVII: 5, 38, 41 XXIX: 41, 73
Pg. 26
Veda [p.338] (1) In references from Vol. XVIII, for 150,152-54; subs. 150-54, (2) include 28:393 XXIII: 26, 49 XXIV: 104,107-08,117-18,150-51, 156 XXV: 2, 21, 54, 61-67, 70-72 XXVI: 148,159,170,173-74,179,191,196 XXVII: 14, 28, 30, 41, 53-54 XXVIII: 121-30,136,138-41,143-45,148-50,152, 170 XXIX: 45, 48 XXX: 168,170,172, 175-76,178,187 XXXI: 38, 52 XXXII: 155 XXXV: 52 XXXVI: 206 Vedanta [pp.338-39] include XXIII: 11 XXV: 8, 21, 28, 32 XXVI: 170,175,191 XXVIII: 124,170 XXXV: 52 Vena(s) [p.339] This entry is to be delisted. Venice [pp.339-40] include XXVII: 64 Venumani [p.340] (1) last line – for (Guest House), subs. (now known as "Guest House") in Pondicherry. (2) for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXIV: 115
Venus Ourania [p.340] (1) lines 1-2 - Delete the parentheses, and replace the comma by a full stop. (2) lines 2-3 - delete the goddess of pure and heavenly love.
Verona [p.340] (1) line 2 – delete northern Italy, (2) lines 4-6 - for in Roman ruins, of... used for opera, subs. in Roman ruins. Verona was ceded to Austria by Napoleon I in 1797, and only in 1866 it was united to the kingdom of Italy. Vichitravirya [p.340] include XXVI: 137, 148
Vicuma2 [p.341] include XXVI: 141 Videha [p.341] include XXVI: 136 Vidura [p.341] (1) last line - for sided with the latter, subs. sided, or his sympathies were, with the latter. (2) include XXVI: 138-39,141 Villa [p.343] for [From "Record of Yoga"...] subs. XXVII: 4 Virat(a) [p. 343] include XXVI: 141, 149-50 XXVIII: 121 Virat (Purusha) [p.343] include XXIV: 159
Virgil [p.343] include XXXV: 86 Virochana [p.344] (1) add (end) For the legend of Indra and Virochana see 3:177 (2) include XXV: 28, 34 Vishn(o)u [p.344] include XXIV: 170 XXVII: 41 XXIX: 47, 73, 95,102 XXX: 202-03
*Visvamitra [p.345] See Vis(h)wamitra Visvas [p.345] add (begin) surname of
Vivasvan [p.345] include XXV: 31
Vivekananda, Swami [p.345] lines 7-8 — for In 1898, after his master's passing, subs. A few years after his master's passing, in 1897
Vladivostok [p. 346] lines 2-4 – for maritime territory, Russian ... Far East. subs. maritime territory in Russia.
*Voelcker, Dr. [p.346] a writer who praised Indian cultivators, XXVII: 69
Volga [p.346] (1) lines 1-2 - for East European ... Republic subs. Eastern Russia. (2) line 4 - Between U.S.S.R. and 'It', insert: (since renamed Commonwealth of Independent States).
Voltaire [p.346] include XXIII: 60
Vriddha Kshatra [p.346] include XXVI: 137
*Vrihaspati [p.346] see Brihaspati Vrikas [p.346] include XXV: 66,68 XXXV: 66 Vrindavan [p.346] (1) In the last of the three variants, add (a) to spell it Brindavan(a). (2) include XXV: 40 Vrishaparvan [p.346] include Var: Vrishoparvan XXV: 34 Vrishopurvan [p.346] The name-entry to read: Vrishoparvan; Vrishopurvan Vritra [pp. 346-47] include XXIII: 63 XXV: 66, 73 XXVI: 167,170-72,175 XXVII: 28 XXX: 150,152 XXXI: 60, 62
XXXV: 54-55, 66, 72 Vyas(a) [p.347] include XXV: 1,5-18, 20-24, 27-28, 30, 32-34, 36 XXVI: 123, 126-27,132,134,144-45,149-52 XXXVI: 206
*Vyshampaian [p. 347] See Vaishampaian(a)
Walloons [p. 347] line 7 - for Liège read Liège Weber [p.348] include XXV: 3-5 XXVI: 125-26,135 Wedderbum, Sir William [p.348] include XXIV: 172 West, the [p.349] include 1:880 XXIII: 30 XXV: 32 XXVII: 62, 82, 84 XXIX: 23, 44 XXX: 234-35,238-39 XXXVI: 199 Whiggism [p.349] Replace the entry by the following: Whig [p.349] (for definition) see under Tory.
Der: Whiggism 1: 849 II: 15 White Lodges [pp.349-50] (1) Put 's' in parentheses. (2) include XXXVI: 206
Pg. 27
*White Wolf [p.350] apparently, the name given to a Chinese warlord active in 1914. XXVII: 4
Wordsworth [p.351] include XXV: 16
(World) War [p.351] (1) In index references for World War I, include 9: 445 XXVII: 57 XXVIII: 193 XXIX: 83. (2) In references for World War II, include 26: 399 ("the War") .
Wrecker [p.351] include XXVI: 131
Yadava(s) [p.352] include XXVI: 137-39 Yaksha(s) [p.352] include XXVII: 54 Yama [p.352] include 3:155 XXV: 15 XXIX: 47 Yam(o)una [p.352] In page reference from Vol. XVIII, for 144 read 144-45 Yavan(a) [p.353] include XXVI: 147-48 Yayati [p.353] lines 2-3 - delete Yayati was a man of amorous disposition. Yeats [p.353] In page references from Vol. 9, for 532-34 read 532-35
Yogic Sadhan [pp.353-54] (1) lines 6-7 from the last - for The book was later ..., Calcutta, subs. Three editions of the book came out in 1920,1923 and 1953. (2) add (source) ; A & R, April '86, p.87
Yorkshire [p.354] include XXV: 59
Younghusband, Sir Francis [p.354] include XXVII: 40
Yugoslavia [p. 354] The glossary article (including its source) to be revised as follows: country of southern Europe bordering on the Adriatic Sea. Established in 1918 as a kingdom (Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes) it became a federal socialist republic in 1945, largely in the Balkan Peninsula, with Belgrade as its capital. After the decline of socialism (c. 1990) and the resulting disintegration of the U.S.S.R., this federation also started breaking up. Originally comprising six republics, it had in 1992 only two left in it, namely, Serbia and Montenegro. (Web.. N.C.D.)
Yuvanas(h)wa [p. 354] include Var: Yuvanuswa (a misprint) XXVI: 136
Pg. 28
Home
Sri Aurobindo Ashram
Books
Share your feedback. Help us improve. Or ask a question.