Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra
#OPINION | ‘The Sanatan Dharma that is nationalism’—this might sum up Sri Aurobindo’s credo of what we might term spiritual nationalism. Or still better, the nation of the spirit, writes @MakrandParanspe. #SriAurobindo
Revisiting Sri Aurobindo’s idea of Swaraj suggests to us that we are a Sanatani nation with a secular constitution, that ‘Sanatana Dharma’ cannot be narrow and exclusionary, that the remnants of dead or encrusted knowledge of yesteryears will not suffice to make us a great civilisation again, and that patriotism or devotion to the nation cannot substitute a consistent quest for truth and understanding; and, finally, that new creation requires a new consciousness which cannot spring only from the past. For, as Sri Aurobindo famously said in Essays on the Gita, ‘We do not belong to the past dawns, but...
The Literary Genius of the Isha Upanishad: Shloka 4 pada 2
नैनद्देवा आप्नुवन्पूर्वमर्षत्
Translation: That the devas reach not, for it progresses ever in front (Translated by Sri Aurobindo)
Arshat here is a powerful reference. It means to have reached or arrived. But arka also means the Sun from which come words like Arsha Vidya and Rik. It is not necessarily a shlesha but more a poetic reference or sandarbha to the Vedic Sruti
Aapnuvan is another loaded word. For Apas means water and works. But here it means to reach or achieve. We will meet this dhatu again in the fourth pada of this Shloka and there it shows how Isha enters the pranic sheath of the universe
Sankara said deva here means senses. Sri Aurobindo takes deva literally as the beings of light first described in the Veda. We suddenly realize how deeply integrated the Isha Upanishad is with the Veda. Every word becomes multidimensional when seen in this context
https://x.com/AmazingVedas/status/2110586411904594116
The Literary Genius of Isha Upanishad: Shloka 4 pada 3
तद्धावतोऽन्यानत्येति तिष्ठत्
Translation: That, standing, passes beyond others as they run (By Sri Aurobindo)
This is another paradox or virodhabhasa similar to the one in pada 1. How can One unmoving move faster than the Devas? How can That move faster than the runners while standing?
These statements are koan-like, perhaps our first koans. The only way to solve them is not intellectually but by experiencing that which slips out the usual frame of reference.
We see a tremendous concentration of ta- sounds in this pada. And, interestingly, three more varnas from the ta-varga. Why? Try to feel the pressure and stillness at the same time. Total 9 ta-varga varnas in this pada of 11 varnas. It is a truly total tour-de-force. How natural it sounds despite the obvious artifact of so many ta-varga sounds or dantavya varnas! Then notice how the tha- note brings density to this entire pada at the end. Another masterstroke of onomatopoeia or varna-chitrana
https://x.com/AmazingVedas/status/2110944483319611715
A book I’ve been meaning to read for a long time. Finally diving in....
The Creed of the Aryan fighter - Essays on the gita by Sri Aurobindo
His writing takes time to get into, but the more time I spend with it, the more profound each chapter feels
https://x.com/DharmaParikshit/status/2110783351280095690
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