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English >> Works of Other Authors >> Social and Political Thought |
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Sri Aurobindo and India's Rebirth— Edited by Michel Danino
About Sri Aurobindo and India's RebirthA compilation of Sri Aurobindo’s writings on his vision of India, the material in this book is presented chronologically from 1893 to 1950 to better show the evolution of Sri Aurobindo’s thought and action concerning India’s political, social, and spiritual destiny. A timeline, editorial notes, and footnotes serve to anchor the compilation in a historical context. The extracts, beginning with his revolutionary writings and proceeding with his early essays and articles, followed by the records of the evening talks (1923–26 and 1938–40), and including letters and messages during his years in seclusion, show his care for his motherland—her liberation from colonial rule, her post-liberation reconstruction, and what he foresaw as her special place as a world leader. REVIEWAs the global balance of power tilts towards Asia, the issue of India’s future and her role in the community of nations has never been more important. Over the last three decades enormous economic, social, and political changes have swept across the country, but, while there is a resurgence of national pride in line with similar movements around the world, the question of India’s deeper raison d’être has remained in the shadows. Sri Aurobindo’s concern with the fate of India dates back to his days as a young man in England as he prepared himself for a return to the country of his birth and his future action. His role in shaping the destiny of India evolved with time. In a series of articles soon after taking up the Maharaja’s service in Baroda (written when he was just twenty-one years old) he launched a scathing attack on the moderate policies of the Congress at the time, and foreshadowed the genius he would manifest more fully a decade later. After years spent deepening his connection with India through her texts and languages, Sri Aurobindo plunged into political action in 1905. For the next five years, Sri Aurobindo helped shape the course of India’s freedom struggle, most noticeably through his electric writings and inspiring speeches. Later in Pondicherry, from 1910 onwards till his passing in 1950, even while his focus shifted from a “national yoga” to a yoga of human transformation, he followed closely the events taking place in India, wrote frequently to correspondents on the burning issues of the day, and shared his views on them in conversations with disciples. Thus, a large body of material exists spanning almost sixty years for anyone interested in Sri Aurobindo’s evolving but constant engagement with the role and destiny of India. This can be found in numerous volumes of The Complete Works of Sri Aurobindo, and also in published conversations with disciples, such as Evening Talks with Sri Aurobindo by A. B. Purani, Talks with Sri Aurobindo by Nirodbaran, and Sri Aurobindo’s Talks of 1926 by Anilbaran Roy. Sri Aurobindo also delivered a few messages on important occasions that clearly expressed some of his last views on issues pertaining to India, for instance, his Independence Day message of 15 August 1947 and his message to Andhra University in 1948. Sri Aurobindo and India’s Rebirth, edited by Michel Danino, does an outstanding job of presenting a selection from all of the above sources in a succinct and chronological format. The second edition of this popular book (earlier titled simply India’s Rebirth) builds on the success of the first, and answers the urgent need to engage with Sri Aurobindo’s perspective on India in an easy-to-browse format. The compilation is divided into six neat chronological sections: Revolutionary Writings (1893-1910), Essays, Letters and Articles (1910-1922), Talks (1923-1926), Letters (1926-1938), Talks (1938-1940), and Letters and Messages (1940-1950). The book begins with a useful timeline of important events and a pertinent introduction that brings into focus the considerable work that remains to be done for the fulfilment of Sri Aurobindo’s vision of India. The author’s brief historical notes are a very helpful feature of this book. Short introductory paragraphs explaining contemporary issues, as also biographical notes on Sri Aurobindo, preface the extracts every few pages and help the reader navigate their context. Presenting Sri Aurobindo chronologically highlights how Sri Aurobindo’s own engagement with India evolved and deepened. While his early writings and speeches are full of a tremendous intensity and call to action, his later views reflect on the dangers of excessive sentimentalism and emotional outpouring vitiating the slow and patient work of spiritual nation-building. By their very nature, compilations present a limited view on any topic as complexity of thought is often diluted in extracts. Their perspective is shaped by the editor, and they work to the extent that they respond to the needs of the reader. In this respect, the editor has been eminently successful in answering the needs of various kinds of readers. Those interested in the political views of Sri Aurobindo will not be disappointed; neither will those seeking a deeper understanding of India’s soul-purpose. As the title of the book suggests, the preoccupation of the editor is with India’s renaissance, and various aspects of Sri Aurobindo’s thought relevant to his purpose are presented. Important topics include nationalism, internationalism, Hinduism, democracy and its suitability for India, the Hindu-Muslim problem, Gandhi and non-violence, the partition of India, and World War II. Other diverse topics such as the status of women, religious fanaticism, Indian art, and the Aryan-Dravidian theory are also briefly presented. Readers interested in the political developments in the years leading up to Indian independence will find much to ruminate on. Sri Aurobindo’s perspective on the Khilafat movement, the methods of Gandhi, the Cripps proposal, and the partition of India – which he vehemently opposed – are unique in their honest analysis of the forces at work behind the façades. In line with its focus, the book mostly skips over Sri Aurobindo’s extensive interpretations of Indian texts such as the Vedas, the Upanishads or the Gita, or his detailed explorations of the Hindu dharma that we find in The Renaissance in India and Other Essays on Indian Culture. Finally, this book offers not only insights into the past, but casts its gaze into the future. There are warnings that ring true some seventy-five years after they were given; for instance, the danger posed by an authoritarian China, the unsuitability of a political structure not sufficiently adapted to India’s needs, and the perils of excessive centralisation. But there is also hope and promise in these passages. The Mother writes: “Sri Aurobindo always loved deeply his Motherland. But he wished her to be great, noble, pure and worthy of her big mission in the world.” Sri Aurobindo believed that the rebirth of India was intimately connected to a rediscovery of her spiritual purpose and its manifestation in the life of the nation. As the post-World War II order crumbles and newly independent nations with ancient cultures take centre stage once again, which direction will India choose on the cusp of this new age? Can she cast ancient wisdom in new forms? Will she, in the words of the Mother, wake up to her true mission in the world and show the way to union and harmony? —Devdip Ganguli Devdip resides in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. He teaches History in the Higher Secondary section of SAICE and also offers courses on the social and political thought of Sri Aurobindo in the Higher Course section.
Reviewed in February 2021 |
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