Study Notes
PARAGRAPH 18
As to suffering, which is so great a stumbling-block to our understanding of the universe, it is evidently a consequence of the limitation of consciousness, the restriction of force which prevents us from mastering or assimilating the touch of what is to us other-force: the result of this incapacity and disharmony is that the delight of the touch cannot be seized and it affects our sense with a reaction of discomfort or pain, a defect or excess, a discord resultant in inner or outer injury, born of division between our power of being and the power of being that meets us.
EXPLANATION
Next Sri Aurobindo takes up the question of suffering. It is true that suffering acts as a great stumbling-block to our understanding of the universe. He says, suffering is evidently a consequence of the limitation of consciousness. There is a restriction of force which prevents us from mastering or assimilating the touch of what appears to us as the other-force.
Because of this incapacity and disharmony we are unable to seize the delight of the touch. It affects our sense with a reaction of discomfort or pain. We either feel a defect or an excess. There is a discord as a result of an inner or outer injury. This is because of the division between our power of being and the power of being that meets us.
(Each form, each one of us represents a certain limited formation of force, of consciousness. We are exposed always to impacts, contacts of other formations of force, of consciousness, particularly on a universal scale and when we are unable to meet those contacts, to front these impacts and bear them, we react with shrinking, a withdrawal or depression, we suffer. Now if our fund of consciousness and force were adequate to receive and hold the contacts or the impacts of other consciousnesses and forces, there would be only an exchange of joy, exchange of delight, because behind the consciousness, behind the force, there is this stream of delight – Shri M.P.Pandit: Talks on the Life Divine: Vol II : p. 51)
Behind in our self and spirit is the All-Delight of the universal being which takes its account of the contact, a delight first in the enduring and then in the conquest of the suffering and finally in its transmutation that shall come hereafter; for pain and suffering are a perverse and contrary term of the delight of existence and they can turn into their opposite, even into the original All- Delight, Ananda. This All-Delight is not present in the universal alone, but it is here secret in ourselves, as we discover when we go back from our outward consciousness into the Self within us; the psychic being in us takes its account even of its most perverse or contrary as well as its more benign experiences and grows by the rejection of them or acceptance; it extracts a divine meaning and use from our most poignant sufferings, difficulties, misfortunes.
EXPLANATION
There is the All-Delight of the universal being behind, in our self and spirit. It takes its account of the contact. There is delight first in enduring the suffering. Next there is delight in the conquest of the suffering. Finally there is delight in transmutation of suffering into bliss that shall come hereafter.
Because pain and suffering are a perverse and contrary term of the delight of existence. They can turn into their opposite (pleasure), even into the original All-Delight, Ananda.
This All-Delight is not present in the universal alone. But it is here secret in ourselves. We discover this All-Delight in ourselves when we go back from our outward consciousness into the Self within us. The psychic being in us takes its account even of its most perverse or contrary as well as its more benign experiences. It grows by the rejection of them or acceptance of them.
Our psychic being extracts a divine meaning and use from our most pitiful sufferings, difficulties, misfortunes.
(Suffering is how our external being renders a particular contact, a particular experience, but the soul in us, the psychic being, registers the same experience in a different manner. What we feel to be suffering, the inner soul, the psychic being may not, and normally does not, experience as suffering. It renders it differently, constitutes it as a part of its experience which adds to its evolution. What we feel to be suffering on the surface renders itself as an element of growth, an element of strength inside. So there is this distinction between the reception and the rendering of the experience inside and outside. From a certain point of view what we feel as suffering contributes more to the rapid growth of the soul than pleasurable contacts – Shri M.P.Pandit: Talks on the Life Divine: Vol II : p. 52)
Nothing but this All-Delight could dare or bear to impose such experiences on itself or on us; nothing else could turn them thus to its own utility and our spiritual profit. So too nothing but an inalienable harmony of being inherent in an inalienable unity of being would throw out so many harshest apparent discords and yet force them to its purpose so that in the end they are unable to do anything else but to serve and secure, and even themselves change into elements that constitute, a growing universal rhythm and ultimate harmony.
EXPLANATION
Because this All-Delight is present in us, it could dare or bear to impose such experiences as sufferings, misfortunes on itself or on us. Nothing else than this All-Delight could turn them thus to its own utility and to our spiritual profit.
There is an inalienable (inseparable) harmony of being inherent in an inalienable unity of being. It throws out so many harshest apparent discords. Yet it forces them to its purpose so that in the end they would not do anything else than to serve and secure a growing universal rhythm and ultimate harmony. They, even, themselves change into elements that constitute the harmony.
At every turn it is the divine Reality which we can discover behind that which we are yet compelled by the nature of the superficial consciousness in which we dwell to call undivine and in a sense are right in using that appellation; for these appearances are a veil over the Divine Perfection, a veil necessary for the present, but not at all the true and complete figure.
EXPLANATION
We are compelled by the nature of the superficial consciousness in which we dwell to call something undivine. Yet at every turn it is the divine Reality that we can discover behind what we call undivine. In a sense we are right in using the name ‘undivine’. Because these appearances are a veil over the Divine Perfection. It is a veil necessary for the present. But it is not at all the true and complete figure.
PARAGRAPH 19
But even when we thus regard the universe, we cannot and ought not to dismiss as entirely and radically false and unreal the values that are given to it by our own limited human consciousness. For grief, pain, suffering, error, falsehood, ignorance, weakness, wickedness, incapacity, non-doing of what should be done and wrong-doing, deviation of will and denial of will, egoism, limitation, division from other beings with whom we should be one, all that makes up the effective figure of what we call evil, are facts of the world-consciousness, not fictions and unrealities, although they are facts whose complete sense or true value is not that which we assign to them in our ignorance. Still our sense of them is part of a true sense, our values of them are necessary to their complete values.
EXPLANATION
We have seen in the earlier paragraph that it is the Divine Reality that we can discover behind what we call undivine in this world. Yet we cannot dismiss the values given to the universe by our own limited human consciousness as false.
We face grief, pain, suffering, error, falsehood, ignorance, weakness, wickedness, incapacity, failure in doing the right things, egoism, limitation, division from other beings. They all make up the effective figure of what we call evil.
Yet we must consider that they are facts of world- consciousness. They are not fictions and unrealities even though their complete sense or true value is not that we assign to them in our ignorance. Yet our sense of them is part of a true sense and our values of them are necessary for their completeness.
One side of the truth of these things we discover when we get into a deeper and larger consciousness; for we find then that there is a cosmic and individual utility in what presents itself to us as adverse and evil. For without experience of pain we would not get all the infinite value of the divine delight of which pain is in travail; all ignorance is a penumbra which environs an orb of knowledge, every error is significant of the possibility and the effort of a discovery of truth; every weakness and failure is a first sounding of gulfs of power and potentiality; all division is intended to enrich by an experience of various sweetness of unification the joy of realised unity.
EXPLANATION
When we get into a deeper and larger consciousness, we discover one side of the truth of these things. We realise that there is a cosmic and individual utility in what we call evil. Because without experience of pain we would not get all the infinite value of the divine delight; it is through the labour of pain that the delight is trying to express itself.
Ignorance is only a shade that surrounds the true knowledge. Every error represents a significant possibility and effort of a discovery of truth. Every weakness and failure is a promise of power and potentiality. The division is intended to enrich the joy of realised unity by unification of various sweetness.