Study Notes
PARAGRAPH 2
This solution has to be sought by the mind, but not by the mind alone; it has to be a solution in Life, in act of being as well as in consciousness of being. Consciousness as Force has created the world-movement and its problems; consciousness as Force has to solve the problems it has created and carry the world-movement to the inevitable fulfilment of its secret sense and evolving Truth. But this Life has taken successively three appearances. The first is material, —a submerged consciousness is concealed in its own superficial expressive action and representative forms of force; for the consciousness itself disappears from view in the act and is lost in the form. The second is vital, —an emerging consciousness is half-apparent as power of life and process of the growth, activity and decay of form, it is half-delivered out of its original imprisonment, it has become vibrant in power, as vital craving and satisfaction or repulsion, but at first not at all and then only imperfectly vibrant in light as knowledge of its own self-existence and its environment. The third is mental,—an emerged consciousness reflects fact of life as mental sense and responsive perception and idea while as new idea it tries to become fact of life, modifies the internal and attempts to modify conformably the external existence of the being. Here, in mind, consciousness is delivered out of its imprisonment in the act and form of its own force; but it is not yet master of the act and form because it has emerged as an individual consciousness and is aware therefore only of a fragmentary movement of its own total activities.
EXPLANATION
It is the divided action of the Mind which creates the false appearance of opposites of Sachchidananda in the world and therefore the problem of Life. Naturally the solution has to be sought by the Mind. But not by the Mind alone. It has to be a solution in Life. A solution both in Consciousness-Force and Consciousness. We know that it is the Consciousness-Force that creates the world movement and its problems. Therefore, it is the consciousness as Force has to solve the problems it has created; it should carry the world-movement to the inevitable fulfilment of its secret sense and the evolving truth. It has to carry the world in its evolution from the state of division and dualities to the state of unity and bliss.
Life has taken three successive appearances. In the first stage the consciousness in submerged in Matter and hidden behind the superficial action. It is dominated by the force that represents it. The consciousness disappears in the act and is lost in the form. The action is purely mechanical and seems to be devoid of consciousness.
Life takes on the appearance of vital power in the second stage. There is an emerging consciousness. It is partly visible as power of Life and process of growth, activity and decay of form. It is partly delivered out of its imprisonment in matter. It becomes vibrant in power in its desire and satisfaction or repulsion (strong dislike). About its knowledge of its own self-existence and its environment it is initially not aware and it later becomes imperfectly aware. This stage refers to all life forms below man.
The third is the mental appearance. The mind plays the prominent role in man. A consciousness which has emerged reflects the facts of life as mental sense and responsive perception and idea. We see everything in life around us through our mind. Life becomes more than satisfying our bodily needs. The emergence of mind brings with it, new ideas which tend to become fact of life. New ideas modify our internal being. They try to modify comfortably the external existence of the being. It is our mind that arranges our life.
Here in mind, the consciousness is no more imprisoned in the act. It forms its own force. Yet it is not the master of the act and form. Because, it remains only as an individual consciousness; it is aware of only the fragmentary movement of its own total activities.
PARAGRAPH 3
The whole crux and difficulty of human life lies here. Man is this mental being, this mental consciousness working as mental force, aware in a way of the universal force and life of which he is part but, because he has not knowledge of its universality or even of the totality of his own being, unable to deal either with life in general or with his own life in a really effective and victorious movement of mastery. He seeks to know Matter in order to be master of the material environment, to know Life in order to be master of the vital existence, to know Mind in order to be master of the great obscure movement of mentality in which he is not only a jet of light of self-consciousness like the animal, but also more and more a flame of growing knowledge.
EXPLANATION
The mental consciousness in man is working as mental force. He is aware of the universal force and universal life of which he is part. Yet he does not have the knowledge of its universality and the totality of his own being. He is not aware that in his essential being he is Sachchidananda. His consciousness is divided from the oneness of Sachchidananda. Because of his deficiency, he is unable to deal with life in general and with his own life. He cannot have an effective and victorious movement of mastery over life.
He seeks to gain knowledge over the matter in order to master his material environment. He seeks to know Life in order to be the master of his vital existence. He seeks to know the Mind in order to master the obscure (unclear) movements of his mentality in which he is more and more a flame of growing knowledge.
Thus he seeks to know himself in order to be master of himself, to know the world in order to be master of the world. This is the urge of Existence in him, the necessity of the Consciousness he is, the impulsion of the Force that is his life, the secret will of Sachchidananda appearing as the individual in a world in which He expresses and yet seems to deny Himself. To find the conditions under which this inner impulsion is satisfied is the problem man must strive always to resolve and to that he is compelled by the very nature of his own existence and by the Deity seated within him; and until the problem is solved, the impulse satisfied, the human race cannot rest from its labour. Either man must fulfil himself by satisfying the Divine within him or he must produce out of himself a new and greater being who will be more capable of satisfying it. He must either himself become a divine humanity or give place to Superman.
EXPLANATION
Man wants to be the master of himself and the world by knowing himself and the world. This impulse is driven by Existence (Sat) in him. It is the necessity of the Consciousness (Chit) that he is. This is the impulsion of Force (Chit-shakti) that is his life. Ultimately it is the secret will of Sachchidananda appearing as the individual in the world. It is in the world Sachchidananda expresses and yet seems to deny Himself.
Man must always strive to find the conditions under which this inner impulsion satisfied. To fulfil this task, he is compelled by the very nature of his own existence and by the Divine seated in him.
Human race cannot rest from its labour until the problem is solved and the impulse is satisfied. Either man must fulfil himself by satisfying the Divine within him. Or he must produce out of himself a new and greater being who will be more capable of achieving this goal. He must either become a divine man or give place to Superman.
PARAGRAPH 4
This results from the very logic of things because, the mental consciousness of man not being the completely illumined consciousness entirely emerged out of the obscuration of Matter but only a progressive term in the great emergence, the line of evolutionary creation in which he has appeared cannot stop where he now is, but must go either beyond its present term in him or else beyond him if he himself has not the force to go forward. Mental idea trying to become fact of life must pass on till it becomes the whole Truth of existence delivering itself out of its successive wrappings, revealed and progressively fulfilled in light of consciousness and joyously fulfilled in power; for in and through these two terms of power and light Existence manifests itself, because existence is in its nature Consciousness and Force: but the third term in which these, its two constituents, meet, become one and are ultimately fulfilled, is satisfied Delight of self-existence.
EXPLANATION
Man giving place to Superman is a logical necessity. Because man’s mind is an evolutionary development from the obscurity of matter. His consciousness is not completely illumined. It is only in a state of progression. The line of evolutionary creation in which man appears as a mental being cannot stop. It must go beyond its present term. Or it must go beyond the man himself if he has not the force in himself to develop further.
Man, the mental being, presently derives the facts of life based on his mental idea. But whatever man learns through his mind is only a partial truth. This will continue till he is capable of knowing the whole Truth of existence.
The Truth in its whole will reveal itself out of its successive wrappings progressively fulfilled in light of consciousness and joyously fulfilled in power. Because the Existence (Sat) manifests itself in and through light and power. Existence (Sat) is in its nature Consciousness (Chit) and Force (Chit-Shakti). It is in satisfied Delight of self-existence (Ananda), the light and power become one and are ultimately fulfilled.
For an evolving life like ours this inevitable culmination must necessarily mean the finding of the self that was contained in the seed of its own birth and, with that self-finding, the complete working out of the potentialities deposited in the movement of Conscious-Force from which this life took its rise. The potentiality thus contained in our human existence is Sachchidananda realising Himself in a certain harmony and unification of the individual life and the universal so that mankind shall express in a common consciousness, common movement of power, common delight the transcendent Something which has cast itself into this form of things.
EXPLANATION
What is the inevitable culmination of evolving life of man? Sri Aurobindo says it must be finding of the self that was contained in the seed of its own birth. It is a process of self-finding. This life took its rise from the movement of Conscious-Force (Chit-Shakti). Therefore, for life in its evolutionary journey this means complete working out of the potentialities contained in the movement of Conscious-Force.
The potentiality thus contained in our human existence is Sachchidananda realising Himself. He realises Himself in a certain harmony and unification of individual life and universal life. By this unification, mankind shall express the transcendent Something which manifests itself in various forms, in a common consciousness (instead of individual), common movement of power (instead of individual power) and common delight (instead of individual delight).