To The Aurovillians - 18 June 2002 - Audio

Let me first explain the purpose for this meeting. I feel that Auroville is drawing very close to a very important stage of its development and certain problems which confront Auroville today though they may seem to be formidable, I wish to share with you my feeling that we shall arrive at a very bright situation. Mother has said be voluntary optimists and we should share optimism together. As I have explained elsewhere to many friends in Auroville, I have a debt to pay to Auroville. This debt is due to the fact that at a certain stage of development of Auroville my inmost being sprang into some kind of intervention, and if one intervenes in a situation, one has a responsibility to do one’s best to discharge the consequences of that intervention.

Mother once explained to me that she had three steps of her work. The first step was to develop the Sri Aurobindo International Center of Education at Pondicherry in the Ashram. Second step she said is Auroville, and third step she said is Sri Aurobindo’s Action; this is what she told me in 1971. And she had encouraged me at that time to go round the whole country in connection with Sri Aurobindo’s Action. This gave me a great opportunity to study Sri Aurobindo’s works more and more intensely, because Mother said that the task of Sri Aurobindo’s Action was to give to the whole country the solutions that Sri Aurobindo has given to the problems of India.

This was for me a new horizon because although I had read a good deal of Sri Aurobindo’s works, I had read them particularly for my personal understanding, enlightenment and guidance. But when this new work started, I had to study again from this new point of view, ‒ what are the solutions that Sri Aurobindo has given to the country’s problems? And this new search that I made, it is still continuing with me, I am still a student of this very important problem. And this is what has taken me to various parts of India. And I am constantly in different parts of India for different purposes, but all of them centered on this question that there are problems of India which are very acute and Sri Aurobindo has given a solution to these problems and myself studying those solutions whenever possible and I have shared these solutions with a number of people in our country. But the solution to these problems cannot be presented adequately or effectively, if Auroville does not develop on the lines envisaged by the Mother.As Mother had explained to me that this is her second step before Sri Aurobindo’s Action is the second step. If we don’t take the second step firmly and fully, the third step cannot be fully worked out. But apart from my personal enthusiasm for Auroville, my whole-hearted adherence to the ideals of Auroville, even from my point-of-view for India I come back to Auroville because without this work the work for India cannot be fulfilled. So I have this double aspiration in Auroville. And it is in connection with this work of Auroville that the given stage I happened to intervene and therefore, I feel a great responsibility.

Let me explain one of the aspects of this responsibility and this is what I want to share with you. The one great responsibility arose from the fact, that I was responsible for the formulation of the Auroville Foundation Act. And at that time this I have explained to many friends elsewhere but I would like to share with everyone here. When this question of Auroville Foundation Act was on the anvil in the Government, I had the privilege myself of having the file of Auroville on my desk and I was constantly thinking as to how this Act should be formulated and there were many, many suggestions from many quarters as to how Auroville Act should be formulated. One of the suggestions was that a high powered body should be put in Auroville and decisions regarding Auroville should be taken by that high powered body. I could not agree with that proposal, because I had seen even the well intentioned oligarchy turning into some kind of tyranny. Then there was a suggestion that somehow some people should be chosen from Auroville, who should be given the charge of Auroville. This also I could not accept because it closes the door for other, all people to participate in Auroville and develop Auroville. There was also a suggestion that there should be representatives of the whole world on the committee of Auroville and the whole world should look after Auroville. This also I could not accept, although as you will see that in the final Act, which did give place to what is called the International Advisory Council, where representatives of humanity as a whole would have a place.

I had constantly thought of what is now called Resident’s Assembly. And even with regard to the Resident’s Assembly, when I was discussing this problem with some friends and eminent friends in India they had felt that I should provide for periodical election in the Auroville Foundation Act; that would mean that some kind of Parliamentary Democracy would take a permanent form in Auroville. I had made a good study of Sri Aurobindo’s vision of the future and his commentary on democracy. And there are two important statements of Sri Aurobindo on democracy, which have guided me very much. Democracy is not the last word, but democracy is the sign of the arrival of self-consciousness in the society, ‒ this is the merit of democracy, arrival of self-consciousness in the society.

The second statement that is very relevant is that the final form which will be ideal is to be worked up ‒ and this is very important. Sri Aurobindo has not given as to what will be the form in which the ideal society should function; it has to be worked out. But he has certainly spoken of something that goes beyond democracy, which does not annul the basic truth of democracy, or basic truth for that matter any other form of government, ‒ monarchy, oligarchy and various kinds of republican forms and democracy and different forms of democracies. The truths of all these have to understood, to be interwoven, to be synthesized and something beyond. Sri Aurobindo has spoken of spiritual ideal of anarchism, as the final term of the journey of social existence in its ideal condition. Where Sri Aurobindo says in his Human Cycle the ideal law of individual development and the ideal of social development, where the two will adhere in such a way that society looks after the fulfillment of each individual and each individual adheres to the fullest development of the society, ‒ this mutual relationship that would mean that the individuals are so enlightened that they would strive to arrive at the highest welfare of the society and society has itself reached such a height that it is able and wants to promote the highest welfare of each individual. And I could see that what Sri Aurobindo and Mother wanted through Auroville, was an experiment in this great important problem of mankind. And Auroville therefore should be given such a form and that was my understanding that it would fulfill that ideal functioning of spiritual anarchism. Sri Aurobindo has spoken of divine anarchy as a state of existence in which the Divine’s will manifests through the hearts and minds of people.

Now, if you follow this important statement, you find that people’s hearts and minds are central in this matter, it’s not only a few individuals. However enlightened they may be but ultimately it is the enlightened condition of the people that is the most important thing. And therefore, I insisted that you should give in the Foundation Act, no form to the Resident’s Assembly. Resident’s Assembly has been left without any particular form. There is no provision for election, there is no provision for any direction, and this is deliberately left there was a very big difficulty in getting this accepted by the Government but ultimately, miraculously, it happened and Auroville Act was passed with this kind of Resident’s Assembly. We are therefore in a happy condition that we can think as to what kind of organization, we should have in Auroville and we are free.

Now when I speak of my responsibility it is not my intention that I should intervene and impose upon Auroville any kind of formed organisation and this is not my idea at all. I am a brother, I am a friend and I simply want that the residents themselves on their own initiative come up with various ideas and out of the churning, a new form is evolved. In any case there is no formula from outside which you can say here is a formula, you take it and do it; such a formula doesn’t exist. It is I that sense an adventure into the unknown. We do not know what is that form in which Auroville Resident’s Assembly will ultimately take its form, or various kinds of experimental forms step by step, stage by stage. I think this should be emphasized, and this should be nourished in Auroville. But there is one thing which is indispensable in Auroville and that is that the Residents Assembly should create a real concrete sense of collectivity. As Mother said: If Auroville is created for a collective realization there must be a collectivity and there must be a sense of collectivity and this is indispensible. This is the basic frame, therefore I would say that the Resident’s Assembly first role, the first task to emphasise, and to create, and to nourish and to nurture, constantly the sense of collectivity.

So whatever other tasks the Resident’s Assembly may have but this task is the fundamental task and this sense of collectivity can be nourished as I feel by four words which Mother has given in regard to Auroville, ‒ Harmony, Goodwill, Discipline, Truth. These four words according to me are extremely important and underlined, ‒ it’s a formula of our collective existence. If we constantly emphasise harmony, constantly emphasise goodwill, constantly emphasise discipline and constantly be in search of the truth and quest of the truth, I think the real collectivity will be formed. We shall be a vibrant and collective organisation in which problems when thrown will be melted, and solutions will emerge.  

The other point that I should like to make about Auroville organisation is that at present happily, in Auroville there is a serious thinking on the subject of organization. We had six drafts on divine anarchy, which were widely studied, debated, discussed and many good suggestions have come. Then the working committee has taken up this task of contemplating on this subject, discussing it. Some of the papers I have read, and a good deal of thought is being given, many good suggestions have come through these papers which have been brought out.  And I'm very happy that there is a wide collaboration from all sides and I would like to welcome it very much. As a contribution to this thinking I would only like to make two statements. I would very much like that the fundamental role of the Residents Assembly is to define, is to so conceive that it is a body to promote among all the people, particularly when a problem is confronted collectively and the problem is presented to the Residents Assembly, the first task should be not to do anything but to see where the disagreement can be healed? How, if there is a disagreement how it can be overcome. This should be the first task of the Assembly. One can discuss problems in many ways, but if this is the focus of attention, according to me, it will be very, very salutary, very beneficial. How a problem can be resolved and then how forces of agreement can be nourished and can be created in Auroville in regard to any problem. If this effort is made very consciously and deliberately, this will be the second task, to create forces among the residents whereby agreement is promoted. As Mother has said somewhere: You must all agree. All other ways of solution to the problems, they are all approximate and that is how we can go one step farther from ordinary processes of discussions, which are taken by many groups in the world. So this is the first thing that I would like to suggest for your consideration.

The second is that while discussing a problem some kind of study is necessary for any problem and in regard to any problem I would suggest a study group should be formed; not only one study group there could be two study group or there can be even more, different forms of study groups but the problems have to be studied in depth. I personally feel if the problems are studied in depth the solutions will emerge.

The role of Residents Assembly in this light is not that of a parliament. In a parliament a decision is taken by debate of opposition and one party retaining its own opposition and in spite of opposition, the decision is taken, this is the present form. It is in fact jurisprudent phrase that democracy is a government by opposition. The very root of democratic functioning is by opposition and that is why it is not a satisfactory method of solving problems. And if you want to take one step forward I don’t see a leap into many steps forward or even one step forward, if you want to take then this is the one step forward.

I would very much like that this work which is being done in regard to the organisation be shared by all the people in Auroville, it is a very important problem and it is a question of conscious participation by means of conscious will. We all have to work together so that something that is appropriate to us as a society, which is built on the basis of becoming servitors of divine consciousness, I think this is a very important proposition; we are all servants of divine consciousness. Appropriate to us as such we should be able to join together in giving shape to this task of organisation of Auroville.

I should next like to come to the question of Auroville economy. As you know since the last three years since I came here recently in Auroville, I’ve been constantly feeling that our economy requires a very serious in look. We have to consider the present condition of economy, the way in which our economy has grown up and is being conducted and we have to take into account the ideals that have been put forward for Auroville in the field of economic organisation and build our economy on the lines which have been given to us. I am happy that recently the white paper was produced, after a lot of research in the economy of Auroville. And it has pointed out that there is a good deal of work that has to be done in the field of economy of Auroville. It does not give a very brilliant picture of Auroville’s economy, on the contrary and I think it should make us all aware that this is a problem which you have to consider in depth. I am happy that a task force is organised and I am studying the paper prepared by several members of this task force, Jeal and Olivia and Pala ……I have discussed with … and others, and I am studying myself these problems. I am happy that this task was addressed recently, some very good papers, and I would like that these papers are studied by everybody so that you can all join together.

I believe that when Mother speaks of no exchange of money among members of Auroville, it is not only an ideal that she has put forward. To my mind it is a practical step, it is purely practical; if it is implemented by any group then some of the most important economic concepts which are highest, they can be implemented. If you want that the communist form of the economy is surpassed, if you want that capitalist form of economic system is surpassed, if you want that socialist pattern of society is to surpassed and they have to be surpassed because each one of them has been demonstrated to be inadequate; none of them solves the problems of society. The rich and the poor, the gulfs are created and they remain. Some people are obliged to live in starvation, some in luxury and wasteful luxury. We are not able to give work everyone according to his capacity. We are unable to give to everyone according to his needs, we are not able to take out from everybody what he can give, and the sense of brotherhood in the field of economy seems to be a kind of a strange foreigner in economy, but if we want to develop true fraternity then this is very important. There is a very important statement Sri Aurobindo has made about the joint-family system in India, not that the joint family system is to be advocated but joint family system has one very important item, ‒ there was no exchange of money in the joint-family. All the money was a collective money in the joint family; there was no exchange of money within the family members. All expenditure was done by what is called the karta ‒ the one who is the in charge, as the trustee of the whole family, the elderly one. And expenditure for anybody, who needed, had to be met and for that if anybody had to sacrifice something then that sacrifice came about automatically by being a member of the family, nobody was required to extract something from someone, it was understood. In the sense somebody may be crippled, some may be handicapped, somebody may be very bright, very gifted, very talented, some maybe very capable of producing a lot, others may not be but if the joint family lives together then everybody shares and then ultimately everybody prospers and everybody looks after the best of everybody. Now there were many difficulties of the joint family system that is why one should not advocate it. And there was the heavy hand of collectivity of the whole joint family on the individual and therefore the individual’s growth, economically he would be looked after but growth of the individual was greatly hampered; and therefore that is not an ideal system. But there was something in it which was very important and precious. And if every group of a society lives as a joint family, as one family then the problems will be easy, but for that no exchange of money is a very practical proposition. It is not an ideal that something tremendous has to develop among us to arrive at it, it is a very practical step and I would say that even for villages in India there are so many villages, small villages ‒ five hundred people eight hundred people and today they are all living in poverty but if they have this mantra, ‒ no exchange of money within themselves, only exchange of with others and if every village does this then economy of India itself will be recovered. Many problems of money would be resolved. So I would like very much that everyone thinks about it and participates in it. I find that there are circles, and that there are many experiments going on, some are very nice but not all of them are robust in their health and that is because many people have not participated and from my side I would only like that we should aspire together to see that this collective experiment is supported and is nurtured.

The third problem that I wanted to present to you is the problem of education. This is a problem of which I have spoken more often then of other problems that is because I feel that education is of fundamental importance, of paramount importance. A society which does not look after the children has no future. And as Mother said: as soon as the children are on the field they should be put in the center; and all the activities of society should be so organised that they contribute to the children’s growth and development. I should say that we have been in Auroville a good number of teachers, who are extremely devoted they are doing exceedingly good work. I would like that more teachers, in fact once Mother told me in the Ashram that everyone in the Ashram is a teacher and I would like to say the same thing regarding Auroville, everyone in Auroville has to be a teacher. In fact that is the normal function of every individual, whether you like it or not, every individual is in a sense is a student and a teacher; we are both student and teacher at the same time that is our natural task. In any case it is our natural psychological task. So my first proposition is that anyone who has ability, inclination should come forward and become a teacher and should contribute to the task of teaching. I do believe that we do need a large number of teachers. Many, many people in Auroville have got great capacities and they should find time to devote to teaching.

My second feeling about education is that there is a good deal of groping to realise the ideal that Mother has put forward before us but there is not much success so far as I can see. Mother said: There must be a place on the earth where children do not study for passing examinations and obtaining certificates. I have spoken on this subject earlier and I should like to repeat once again. There is only one place on the earth, where this dream can be realized that is Auroville. And if Auroville cannot realize this dream, I do not know where one can turn. This is the place created for that purpose and we cannot give a concrete shape to it, then it means there is something which we are not confronting whole-heartedly.

I have tried to understand this problem and I admire everybody who has made an effort in this direction, and I would say that we need to examine this problem very seriously. I find that there are some people who believe that children have to face examinations, and have to pass examinations, and have to get certificates; they have to stand in the world and so on. And this argument has a great force. And yet you know that Mother has said that there should be a place on the earth where children do not study for the sake of passing examinations and obtaining certificates.

Now if Mother has said, and all of us know that I tell you Mother is obliviously a highly practical being. In fact the most practical person in the world history ‒ is the Mother. She will not propose to mankind something that is not possible and something which is not healthy for mankind. If she has proposed it is because she thinks that it is highly practical, applicable and has to be realised on the earth. And as servants of divine consciousness, I think it is the work of highest utility to speak that this dream of the Mother is realized. I can only tell this as a brother to all of you, please make an effort to understand the problem.

I know some children who want to go out, they want to study out, they want to pass the examinations; I know this and I have nothing to say to them. I will only turn to ourselves, are we ourselves committed to the idea that children should not study for the sake of passing the examinations, examinations are all right. ‘Examinations are and will be’ this is what Mother told me, not that we should have no examinations, not that study is not related to examination, ‒ no. The question is motivation, you study for what? Today I study British history because it is a part of my O-level examination. I study British history, why? Because I have to pass the examination whether I like history or not. I don’t study Indian history but I must study British history because it is a part of O-level, A-level whatever it is. I am obliged to do it because I must pass the examination. If I want to study the world history in a way in which Sri Aurobindo put the whole world history before us, in no curriculum in the world that vision is present. And if I want my children to grow into that new vision how shall we do it? Unless we create ourselves a new kind of curriculum here, a new method of learning and teaching and give to the children.

If Mother says you should learn four languages, I don’t think there is any system of education where the examinations are being held, whether it is CBSE or International School Certificate or Cambridge University, or anywhere these four languages are being proposed. I tell you that these four languages are proposed for any particular reason, it is a very practical thing. If you know these four languages, you will have the greatest foundations into the roots of the human culture and the springboard for the future, ‒ English, French, Sanskrit, Tamil, which Mother has proposed for Auroville. We are not able to give shape even to this basic proposition that these four languages are studied by every student. True, some students do study some languages but our language studies they need a lot of development. We need to see how four languages can be studied by our students in a very profitable manner. How to nourish these four languages. In no system of examinations in which our students are going out who have learnt these four languages. Even here we have not yet provided a very good curriculum where these four languages can be studied. Although for the last thirty years you all know four languages have been proposed by the Mother and it is a very important thing.

We are doing, we have an excellent kindergarten, we have excellent transition school, we have excellent experiments in last school, super school, ‒ admirable, but it is not enough. I should like all of us to think very seriously, the motivations of students to study, motivations of ourselves to study and to create a vibration or a quest. Basically, all systems of education can be sustained only by some kind of a great quest and this quest has to be nurtured in Auroville, in a very big way. In fact, I am having dialogues with many teachers and I hope to continue with this dialogue in due course of time but one of the immediate ideas which I have is the need to develop a good curriculum in Auroville and I would like to dwell a little on this subject.

There are three problems of education. First problem is the problem of the aim of education, second is the problem of the method of education and third is the question of the content of education. If you can deal with these questions globally and holistically we have the complete grasp of the entire educational system.

Now first is the question of the aim. Once I asked the Mother: what should be the aim of education that we should give to the country, for India not only for Ashram and Auroville, this was my question. And Mother said: give me a piece of paper, and I gave her a piece of paper and she wrote on it: ‘There is a divine Reality, which wants to manifest in physical life. Our aim is to know that Reality and to manifest it in physical life’. These short sentences she gave me. And she said to me, give this to the nation. She said it is a very difficult task to give it to the nation. I have been trying for the last thirty years to give it to the nation in whatever little form that I can. But where people are afraid even to talk of god, to say that there is a divine Reality and that it wants to manifest in physical life how distant we are. But certainly this is the aim which we can put forward in Auroville. This is the starting point, this is the aim. If we can take our children to understand, what is the divine Reality, what is the question of manifesting that Reality and manifesting in physical life,‒ These three propositions if we can bring to our children, this is the aim. We must strive to see that this aim is realized then our children are helped to grow into this and whenever we discuss the question of education, if this aim is not presented in the forefront that means we are relegating the most important things into the background; we are not confronting the problem squarely. And this is my first suggestion, my second point is that in the Ashram we made a great experiment, an unprecedented experiment. I say unprecedented because I made a study of the history of education, I have made a study of many experiments in education in the country and the world and   I have witnessed and participated personally in the experiment at the Ashram for 20 years. And considering all this, I can say that it is an unprecedented experiment in education. As a result of which what has come out by 1972, we had arrived at an invention of what I call an invention of what I call a new method of education; it was an invention and it is not merely a discovery because it is not something that it has to be discovered, it has to be invented, to be fabricated, to be brought forth in the world, something new.

So a very big effort was made in detail and ultimately by 1972, I regard 1972 as a landmark, because I remember by 1972 this experiment came to a very high level of maturity and something that could be given to the world, as something that is well experimented; experiment which can be given to the world. This is how I understand that experiment but this experiment was largely in regard to the method of education. And this method requires to be understood better and better, more and more, what’s called free progress system requires to be understood and applied very, very seriously and very deliberately. But that is not enough, there is the question if the content of education. And I think that this content of education is very important.

At one time Mother had said: we should prepare our own books; this was regarding content of education. We have to prepare our own books. This is a task which I think is now, before us in Auroville. We have to prepare first a curriculum, and the word curriculum requires to be explained. Very often the word curriculum creates in our mind  an idea of a rigid framework in which a program is laid down and then it’s like a tunnel, a child is put in that tunnel at the end of it he coughs up in a square form and a beautiful form which can be presented to the world. This is the normal idea of a curriculum that we have in the world. Surely when I speak of a curriculum here, I don’t mean that kind of a curriculum. Even the concept of the curriculum has to be different, ‒ a curriculum which respects the child, respects the potentiality of the child, inclinations of the child, the soul of the child. And in a certain sense you might say that there is no prefabricated advance program, the program should develop according to the development of the child, and this is the first premise of the curriculum.

But apart from this there should be however, a very large concept of a program as Mother has given a program to us, she said she is giving us a very big program even for to Auroville she had given a big program this is lead a divine life but not with mystic means but in life itself but no religion, ‒ it's a program. Similarly, we have to have a program for students, a curriculum for students which is very wide, which is very practical and which is full of insight into the development of the child’s soul.

Now this is a research work which has to be done here and I would like to invite all the teachers and even those who are not teaching actually in the formal way or actually in a official manner, I would like everyone who is interested in teaching and learning to come together. We have time in the present visit itself, I would like to meet all of them and discuss this problem in detail. The manner in which I am now contemplating is that a good curriculum should have what I call the spinal cord of the curriculum, which is the core, fundamental core and then following what Sri Aurobindo has spoken of right-hand faculties and left-hand faculties, there should be a right wing of the curriculum and left wing of the curriculum and the central spinal cord is what Mother has called the ‘Science of Living’ and she has given a smaller title ‘To know Oneself and To control Oneself’ this program of knowing oneself and to control oneself could be according to me, the spinal cord of a curriculum of education. I am only speaking to you very roughly but all this requires to be researched in.
And then there is the right-hand faculty and the left-hand faculty, one of the best ways of developing the right-hand faculty is what is what is called the study of history and classics. Study of man himself through history, through literature, through poetry, through music, through art, through dharma and through highest aspirations that man is capable of; this would be the right wing curriculum. And the left wing curriculum would consist of a study of language. And we have now four languages so how to develop a curriculum of four languages, how to learn them. Once Mother told me that you should teach languages simultaneously. You take one word and teach what that word is Tamil, in French, in English, in Sanskrit, the same word. So you learn languages simultaneously. This is an insight which Mother has given; we should think about it and make some experiments in it. We have now a great attempt to make a language laboratory and I would very much like this development to take place in a big way. So that these four languages at least can be learnt simultaneously in Auroville. Language is an important part of this left wing curriculum. And then there is a study of calculation. Every child should learn these four operations quite well, as even when Mother once told me that they should be able to calculate mentally not by putting on computer or on paper.

And then there is a big subject called astronomy, this is a subject which is hardly in any curriculum. But Mother has said that one of the greatest exercises that we should teach children is to visualize of the vastness of the universe, and to see the place of the earth in the universe and the place of our country in this world and the place of ourselves in this vast world.  Astronomy therefore would be a very important subject to be studied right from early stages. There's no curriculum today in India, ancient India it was there. And ancient India Jyotisha that is astronomy was a part of the entire syllabus right from the beginning astronomy was taught but it has been lost. Now at present astronomy is hardly taught in our primary or secondary schools, only in higher levels you study astronomy. But we need to do research in this subject.

And then the subject of Geography, usually geography is given a very minor role in our education system normally, but whatever I have learnt from the Mother she gave a very great importance to geography. The children learn geography very well, and the world geography very well, the kind of mastery they have got on the earthly existence is tremendous, therefore the study of geography. These are all new ideas which need to be experimented upon, which need to be put in our curriculum. And then of course other sciences like physics, chemistry, and physiology and so on. These are left hand faculties and left wing of the curriculum. I am just sharing the ideas with you because I would like everyone to participate in this curriculum making because one of the important problems that Auroville has today is the our students do not have a vision as to what are they to study, or what can be studied, not that they are going to be given as an imperative task, ‒ no.   But they should know that there are so many things to be learnt and it is the vast vision of what is to be done is in the very spirit and yes, I want to do this, I want to do that. At present one of the problems is that our children do not know what is to be done at a higher level. When they grow up what is to be mastered in life. This much I wanted to share with you in regard to education.

We come last to the problem of Matrimandir. It is a very painful problem personally for me, as it must be for many. In fact, I did not know the problem of Matrimandir until 1999, when I came here for the first time and I began to study a little of this problem but as it were from outside I had not entered into the problem But already I had begun to see that the people who were involved in it, and there was a lot of cogitation on the subject, lot of understanding, lot of misunderstanding, and there was a good deal of turmoil on this question. And since I am involved very intimately with many people who are in this turmoil, personally it is a matter of great pain for me, painful problem. It was so painful that when I had recently my operation and when I came out of the operation and doctor told me that now your operation is successful. I was immediately seized with pain. Not a physical pain but psychological pain because immediately the first thing that occurred to me was Matrimandir problem, it came as it were, loomed large in my consciousness, immediately. And even I said to myself: O my Lord, I am still alive to confront that problem. It was so painful that I prayed to the Mother and then I had an experience of great calm, and I felt a long state of thoughtlessness, there was no vibration. When I came out it after about half an hour or so, only two words were floating in my brain, ‒ follow Roger. And then I began to study the problem of Matrimandir.

I had some documents and I began to study the problem. And for several months I studied these documents, happily I found that within all the turmoil there was one statement on which all had agreed: ‘We want to implement the stated wishes of the Mother’. I think is one very important synthetic proposition, something that synthesizes everybody; ‘We want to implement the stated wishes of the Mother’. And this was my guiding line to find out what Mother wants in the Matrimandir.  I was studying it with my heart and with my blood you might say. I was deeply studying this problem. I had discussions with many people, also with Roger, several times I had discussed this problem and one difficulty with Roger was that I always asked: Pease give me the stated wishes of the Mother. He always said Mother told me this, Mother told me that etc. Fine, I want stated wishes of the Mother, something one can study, something which can be seen.

At last he began to make an effort, there was also a study group here which had tried to meet Roger and tried to find out from him and they were not successful. And then asked me also to intervene and be with Roger and people said: come to the study group and I discussed with him this problem, and I was happy that he did come and he presented a paper at least, a short note on the subject.  And this was the first time I could see the statement coming from him had stated a statement for what he had heard from the Mother. It was very helpful and I could see that what he says in that paper, whatever he might have said earlier or elsewhere at least this paper does conform to what Mother has said. When I read the documents in The Mother’s Agenda or in Huta’s books and many other conversations which were produced in ……and I feel that this study shows me that a solution is possible and it gives me a hope. I would like in this regard, there are some people who have made a study this problem quite in depth……. He had made a good compilation.
In fact I would like to discuss with everyone and to contribute in this matter. And more than myself I would like people of Auroville themselves meet each other and frankly discuss this problem.

I would very much like dialogue to be underlined; there is a need to underline. There are some ideas which are not correct according to me. There are some ideas which are half correct, some which are completely correct. I think we need to sort out a good deal of work in this matter. I would very much like that people come forward to study, and I underline study because tell you it is not an easy problem. It is not as if by listening to somebody, or by discussing a little, you’ll be able to understand the problem. You really require a study.

Everyone needs to study this problem in depth, it’s a complex position that Mother has described and the vision that we have comes out, which emerges out has to be very clear for us. So I would very much like that everybody participates in this. There is one important point which I would like to underline, ‒ we must agree, we must arrive at agreement, it’s a great test given to us. This is one problem which we have to resolve. If you resolve this problem, many other problems will have a kind of a precedent; this is the way in which we can resolve problems. You have to resolve the problems in the Auroville manner, not in any artificial manner. All have to agree, all have to come together. There has to be no exclusion, no exclusiveness. I welcome everyone, we should have real experience of universal love, there has to be a true love for everyone, everyone. Well, this is what I wanted to share with you today and my final request to you is let us join together in our aspiration to promote harmony, goodwill, discipline and quest for the truth.

Thank you.