New Words of the Mother

This book is the third in a series of five books intended to bring the publication of the Mother’s writings and talks up to date. Although it is issued as an independent book, it is a supplement to the Collected Works of the Mother. The book contains 530 pages of texts not published in the Collected Works. All are short written statements arranged by subject. The material includes public messages, private notes and (mainly) letters to Ashram sadhaks. The texts in this book supplement similar material in four volumes of the Collected Works: On Education and Words of the Mother—I, II and III. Let us look, then, at a few of the new “words”.

Volume 12. On Education. The first entry is a prayer written by the Mother for the children of the small school she opened in December 1943. They recited it together every day
before starting classes: “Sweet Mother, Grant that we may be, now and for ever, simply thy little children.” (p. 3)

There follow almost fifty pages of advice on education. A student asked, “What advantage do we have of being here in the Ashram right from our childhood?” The Mother replied, “The advantage of living in the Truth atmosphere that Sri Aurobindo has created here.” (15) A teacher wanted to extend his class period beyond one hour. The Mother explained the ground reality to him: “It is difficult for children to be attentive more than one hour; that is why the classes are of one hour only.” (17)

A group of teachers criticised the students of the Free Progress system for their indiscipline, irregularity and poor work; the teachers concluded that out of 134 students, only 4 were doing good work and 3 very good work. The Mother wrote to them: “In spite of what one might think, the proportion of very good students is satisfactory. If out of 150 students, there are 7 individuals of genuine value, it is very good.” She added that “the whole purpose of our school is to discover and encourage those in whom the need for progress has become conscious enough to direct their lives”. (22)

A teacher had difficulty interesting the boys in her class in study. The Mother advised her, “Instead of trying to teach them . . . try to learn with them, study the subject with them, and with them make an effort to understand better.” (30) A most original outlook on teaching.
A teacher composing a dance wanted only boys to be butterflies because “boys jump better than girls”. The Mother remarked, “Here, the girls too jump well. It would be better to try them before rejecting them.” (46)

There are also six pages of letters on physical education. A charming example:
I hear that you have challenged two of my boys or either of the two, announcing that you
can knock them out easily. Just now it would not be a fair fight as they have long been out
of practice. But after a period of one month I agree to their answering the challenge. (56)

Volume 13.Words of the Mother I. This volume has letters, notes and messages on Sri Aurobindo, the Mother, the Ashram, Auroville, India and other nations. The material on herself includes a dozen pages of inspiring prayers and mantras which she recited regularly as part of her “sadhana of the body”. For example:

O my sweet Master,
Lord God of Goodness and Mercy.
What you want us to know, we shall know,
what you want us to do, we shall do,
what you want us to be, we shall be—for ever. (75)

There is also a letter in which she defends the use of make-up and concludes:
If a sadhika has the spare time and the inclination to wear make-up, I see no harm in that, provided she does not do it out of vanity or affectation.
What matters in sadhana is not what one does but the spirit in which one does it. Ill will, criticism, doubt, scepticism and depression are far more serious obstacles to spiritual development than the trifles and childish pursuits of life accepted without attaching importance to them. (87)

The section on the Ashram contains a number of sobering letters. A respected older sadhak sought approval for the “psychic relation” he had formed with a young woman. The Mother set him straight: “There is nothing like a psychic relation or attraction. The psychic lives always entirely consecrated to the Divine and does not concern itself with any human relation.” (119) The editor of an Ashram journal sent his article on “the Indo-Pak conflict” for her approval. She crossed out the entire article with two large Xs and wrote, “NO politics in any of our publications.” (131)

Volume 14. Words of the Mother II. This volume contains letters, notes and messages on relationship with the Divine, the path of Yoga, elements of Yoga, difficulties, human relationships and work.

Someone asked, “Where does God live? Can I ever see him?” The Mother replied, “God lives everywhere and in everything, and you will be able to see Him if you can find Him deep in yourself.” (241) To a disciple who may have been trying to do the Yoga too much by himself, she counselled:

Give up trying.
Give up the will for progress.
Give up the aspiration for Realisation.
Give up everything and say to the Lord in all sincerity, Let Thy will be done.
With love and blessings (273)

A comment on freedom: “Those who are truly free never worry about lack of freedom.” And a clue: “If you want to be free, first liberate yourself from the slavery to desires.” (297) When should one lie? “You must never lie. There is no good or useful lie. He who lies has no power.” (301) Someone complained to the Mother that she had not sent him a word of sympathy for the difficulties he faced. She wrote back, “I am full of sympathy but unshakably convinced that each one meets in this life the circumstances which he has, inwardly and outwardly, built for himself.” (305) On work she remarked, “If one does not like work, one is always unhappy in life. To be truly happy in life, one must like work.” (364)

Volume 15. Words of the Mother III. This volume consists of letters, notes and messages on the Divine and the universe, religion, morality, wealth, government, progress, perfection, transformation, the future, health, messages, prayers and practical affairs.

The Mother gave this mantra for the removal of adverse beings or forces:

In the name of The Mother
For the sake of The Mother
By the power of The Mother
With the strength of The Mother
To all adverse harmful beings or forces
I order to quit this place at once and for ever. (383)

On money she observed, “Money is like water, to remain pure it must run.” (394) On wealth she offered this insight: “We become richer with what we give than with what we take.” (395)
On government, she opined, “It is not the bottom that must govern, it is the top.” (399)
To save the world, she put her faith in no ideology or system: “Nothing but a radical change of consciousness can save humanity from the terrible plight into which it is plunged.” (401)
How to progress? “The greatest progress is made through steadfast and joyful equality.” (407)
A reminder about karmic consequences: “The harm you have caused willfully always comes back to you in one form or another.” (420)

On medicines she declared, “The best medicines are Hope, Confidence, Courage.” (452)
On seeing doctors: “Once you have gone to the Doctor you must take his treatment.” (453)

On medical treatment, a thumbs up:
There is no slavery in following a medical treatment. Sometimes it is quite indispensable to help the body to overcome its difficulties, and taken in the right spirit – as a help to the Divine action – it does not interfere with this action and keeps you receptive to the Force of the Grace. (453)

The volume concludes with messages, prayers, personal letters and notes and letters on practical affairs. New Words is a composite volume covering many subjects. Each of the hundreds of entries is a potential help to the reader.

—Bob Zwicker
Bob is the Director of the Archives and Research Library of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram


Reviewed in August, 2024