Latest / Sri Aurobindo Studies / Liberation and Self-Perfection: Adherence to the Divine Intention in the Universal Manifestation

Transcript

Liberation and Self-Perfection: Adherence to the Divine Intention in the Universal Manifestation · Sri Aurobindo Studies

• 0:01
  Much of the historical context of spirituality has been
• 0:04
  centered around the idea of individual realization and
• 0:08
  liberation. The disciplines, practices and
• 0:12
  methods have been geared towards the individual achieving some
• 0:16
  form of release from what is recognized to be the illusion of
• 0:20
  the external world around us and the chasing after transitory
• 0:25
  rewards to be acquired in that external world in the form of
• 0:29
  wealth, prestige, fame, power, physical, vital or mental
• 0:35
  satisfactions or gratifications, et cetera.
• 0:40
  The focus on individual salvation has, however, seen
• 0:43
  modifications in some traditions.
• 0:46
  The Bodhisattva vow in the Buddhist tradition is an
• 0:49
  example. The Bodhisattva reaches to the
• 0:53
  very border of liberation into Nirvana, but vows not to
• 0:57
  crossover until every sentient being has also been liberated.
• 1:03
  While the focus remains on liberation as a goal, the
• 1:07
  Bodhisattva forsakes individual achievement of the goal in favor
• 1:12
  of a collective result encompassing all beings.
• 1:16
  The idea of the Kingdom of God being realized on earth
• 1:20
  represents another attempt to bridge the gap between the
• 1:23
  individual and the external reality and the collective
• 1:28
  realization in the life divine. Sri Aurobindo moves beyond the
• 1:34
  traditional focus on a purely individual salvation.
• 1:38
  He acknowledges the reality of both the process of liberation
• 1:43
  and the process of perfection as part of the external
• 1:47
  manifestation which are normally considered to be at odds with
• 1:51
  one another. As he maps out the omnipresent
• 1:55
  reality that incorporates both aspects in the synthesis of
• 2:01
  yoga, Sri Aurobindo introduces the Yoga of Self Perfection to
• 2:05
  model a yogic sadhana that incorporates this integral
• 2:09
  perspective. Sri Aurobindo's recognition of a
• 2:13
  universal Divine intention and consciousness, which is
• 2:16
  manifesting the evolution of consciousness as the defining
• 2:20
  motive of the Divine's force in the world, moves beyond the
• 2:25
  focus on the individual and places the individual in a
• 2:29
  situation of consciously accepting and collaborating with
• 2:33
  this larger movement for which individual liberation is a part
• 2:39
  but not the entire meaning of existence.
• 2:43
  The Mother notes quote, a supreme disinterestedness and a
• 2:48
  supreme liberation is to follow the discipline of self
• 2:51
  perfection, the March of progress, not with a precise end
• 2:57
  in view, the liberation of Nirvana, but because this March
• 3:02
  of progress is the profound law and the purpose of earthly life,
• 3:07
  the truth of universal existence, and because you put
• 3:11
  yourself in harmony with it spontaneously.
• 3:15
  Whatever the result may be, there is a deep trust in the
• 3:19
  Divine grace, a total surrender to the Divine will, an integral
• 3:25
  adhesion to the Divine plan which makes one do the thing to
• 3:29
  be done without concern for the result.
• 3:33
  That is the perfect liberation. End Quote.
• 3:38
  Reference Sri Aurobindo and the Mother Looking from Within,
• 3:42
  Chapter 5, Attitudes on the Path, page 168.