Man has always aspired for God, Perfection, Truth, Bliss and Immortality. Even though man has studied the external nature in the form of science he has not been satisfied with its results. His thirst for Truth is unquenched. Hence man always returns to his search. His search is not in vain as his earliest aspiration is bound to be fulfilled. Man finds that his reality is in direct contradiction to his aspiration. Man’s higher aspiration indicates that there are higher realities waiting in potential without being fulfilled yet. They can be achieved either through an individual’s effort or through the general march of Nature. Sri Aurobindo offers us a glimpse of the destiny which awaits us. We can convert our animal life into the divine life, our half blinded physical mind into the illumined supermind, our pain and emotional suffering can be replaced by peace and bliss, we can find freedom even in our rigid mechanical life, we can attain immortality in a body that is usually subjected to death. This would be the manifestation of God in Matter. However, our ordinary material intellect looks at these unrealized ideals as something that is unachievable based on our current limitations. If we take a deliberate view of the world, we will find that opposition is in fact a sanction of the unrealized ideals.
All the problems that we face arise from an imbalance – we perceive a problem at hand and we feel an instinct of an undiscovered unity behind the problem. So there is a lack of harmony. The practical man can rest content with a problem by either shutting out the problem or accepting a compromise. However, the fully awakened mind of man will not rest until it finds a solution. Mind, Life and Matter seek a harmony. The greater the disorder, the stronger will be the drive to achieve a higher order behind the opposing appearances. One of the examples of reconciling opposites is dynamic Life bestowed on inert Matter. If we extend this line of opposition, the final solution would be the inert Matter gaining immortality. Another example of opposites where Nature has produced marvelous results is conscious mind and will bestowed on matter and sub-conscious life. By extending this line, we will end up with an animal consciousness that directly possesses Truth, Light and Knowledge. So the impulse in Man towards higher opposites is not only rational but also logical because it is the fundamental method of Nature to reconcile opposites.
When we look at evolution, we say Life evolved from Matter and Mind from Life. This is equal to saying that the chicken came out of the egg without explaining why. The chicken lies in potential inside the egg. What comes out already exists inside the thing(involution). Hence, Mind is hidden in Life and Life in Matter. Evolution brings out what lies hidden. So when Man feels an impulse towards God, he is seeking to evolve beyond Mind just as metals show an impulse for life and plants/animals an impulse for Mind. This upward impulse in man is obscure currently but it is bound to evolve by developing the necessary faculties in man. Man is the working laboratory for Nature to evolve the superman. God who lies in potential inside Man (involved) needs to be manifested (evolved). This is the legitimate aim of man on earth. Thus paradoxes become truths and it is possible for immortality in a mortal body, a universal consciousness in a separate and divided ego. These are justifiable not just to our instinct but also to our reason.
When man aspires for God, Light, Freedom and Immortality attempts are made to stifle the questioning as these are considered insoluble by logical thought and that man should only focus on the immediate problems of his daily material existence. However, We should not stop our inquiry in the middle. Just because a truth is difficult to justify by tangible results is no reason for it to be denied. It is more rational to convert our random aspiration and blind intuition into reason and a constantly self-guiding will. We should not fear to aspire as the next resting place for man is a higher state of consciousness that is veiled behind Mind.
#SriAurobindo #TheLifeDivine #TheHumanAspiration #Chapter1
Saraswathi.org 