Wednesday, August 09, 2006

Sri Aurobindo Ashram Delhi Branch: February

February Flames from the Fringe- Celebrations at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Delhi Branch
February was witness to a number of grand celebrations at Sri Aurobindo Ashram Delhi Branch. The first in the line up was the Golden Jubilee celebrations which began on Saturday, the 11th of February and continued into Sunday evening, ending with an inaudible bang, as the March Past around the Samadhi wound itself to a poignant close to a day of remembrance, self-renewal and a quiet resolution to continue with the march forward.
Offerings of various kinds decorated the grand event that marked 50 years of growth. In ‘Reminiscences of Delhi Ashram’, the older Aspirants of the Ashram remembered with fondness its founder, Surendranath Jauhar and all that he stood for, as well as the marked way in which he influenced their lives as he offered his work and the sprawling estate that is the Ashram ground now, at the feet of The Mother. Some speakers spoke of activities that branched off from the Ashram, like Mirambika. Silently, it seemed, the speakers were also contemplating on the greater journey they are consistently on for wider and deeper discoveries of the inner worlds, of the great battles to be fought within and won in close collaboration with the Divine.
A photo exhibition that was set up at the central courtyard of the Ashram painted fresh pictures of the beginning of the Ashram and the mission of collaboration with the Divine. It portrayed the many activities that have grown with the Ashram over the years and the force behind these activities.
Musical offerings added colour to the event as seasoned musicians as well as novices, young and the not so young offered their best to the Divine upon the altar of the stage. Two talks marked the occasion as well, one of which was by Dr M V Nadkarni entitled ‘A golden jubilee tribute’. The second was a talk by Prof C S Rath. Both talks were deep in their content. However, the veteran speakers brought the content material close to the very doors of our heart in the manner in which they addressed the topics and the audience. Humility and a certain resignation to The Mother was inherent in their addresses both scholastic and starkly real.
Shining with resplendence in the midst of all these were the portraits of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother in the meditation room and the Samadhi in the lawn. The portraits were lined with garlands of yellow and orange marigolds. Strings of marigolds formed a floral screen of golden hue above the portraits. Vases of smiling flowers became one with the gathering of devotees seated on the floor of the room. The Samadhi looked immaculate with the dome wrapped around with golden material and the crown as well as the edges draped with strings of marigolds, again yellow and orange. More flowers were decked on the shrine. The Samadhi appeared a masterpiece drawing one to it in a simple call of love. A great silence, concrete and soft, all at once, wrapped around the Samadhi and probably all who came within its embrace.
The grand finale took place outdoors, around the Samadhi. At 6pm sharp, the bass drum was struck and the contingents appeared from a corner of the Meditation block, to the beat of the drum. The first to appear was a flag-bearer who bore the Mother’s flag. The first sight of the flag hit one like a flying object from the sky. Tears welled up in the eyes as the flag appeared. There was just too much in it. It spoke its silent language whether one cared to listen or not, and poured out its grace on all irrespective of everything in us that failed what it stood for. A silent and prolonged salutation shot out from within as the flag appeared and cruised jubilantly around the Samadhi. The leader of the contingent followed, erect, graceful and sure-footed. The contingents followed, all focused on their march that was their offering for the moment. The contingents assembled neatly on lawn around the Samadhi. The Mother’s flag was lowered as a mark of respect at Sri Aurobindo’s Samadhi as Vande Mataram was sung.
The entire ground where this poignant ceremony was taking place was steeped in silence. Even the planes that incessantly passed overhead the Ashram every few minutes on their way to the I.G.I Airport were markedly absent as Vande Mataram was sung with quiet fervour. It was a blessing to be there, with the small crowd that quietly stood by lining the pathways taken by the marching contingent, and which remained at the same place as the contingent formed into blocks on the field around the Samadhi, as Vande Mataram was sung and as a display of lamps illumined the field as the aspirants broke out into graceful and slow movements to the accompaniment of the second piece of music. The quiet and silence in the midst of all actions was palpable. Then, as a finale to the march past, all present formed a queue leading to the Samadhi. Lamps were handed to us, which we lit up with already lit lamps and lined them on the periphery of marble slabs around the Samadhi. The entire area glowed with hundreds of little flames from lit lamps, later placed around the lawn surrounding the Samadhi. It was a jubilant proclamation of victory, it appeared. One Aspirant’s chant as she gazed at the Samadhi came to mind - "Jai Ma!"
The boughs of the tall ancient trees around the Samadhi were bent over, watching the spectacle in silent reverence. The squirrels had retired to their hideouts and took a peek at things below and around with interest and the birds fell silent. The breeze as usual, visited us at apt moments, connecting all present there with her gentle caresses. 50 years ago, on the 12th of February, the opening of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram - Delhi Branch was blessed by The Mother with the following words:
Let this place be worthyof its name and manifestthe true spirit of Sri Aurobindo’steaching and message tothe world.
This Ashram cannot but carry these words of The Mother in its heart for all the years to come, as it must have in the fifty years past. This has to be so only because the Ashram branch is consecrated to Her, to the Divine, in everyway.
The Mother’s 128th Birth Anniversary was celebrated on the 21st of February. Together with a host of activities, the same march past marked the grand finale on the evening that Tuesday too. Musical offerings marked this day too. One performance I remember with clarity is a flute recital by one from America. One can remember how his body moved smoothly with the different measures of rhythm, with the ascending and descending scales. This music drew everyone like how music from the snake charmers’ ‘magudi’ awakes and draws the docile cobra lying within a basket to life. The performance on Hans Veena followed. This too had the power to pierce through the being in strange ways. The mind wonders how this is at all possible. Skills that come from years of patient practice and sincerity and humility together with a total spirit of offering to the Divine in an artist can do wonders. Perhaps that would be a simple response to the querying mind from the heart that feels.
The third occasion was the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Supramental Manifestation observed on the 28th of February. The Prasad which we relished on this occasion was a delightfully delicious golden halwa! What more could one feed this material frame on this significant occasion but a golden halwa consecrated to the Divine!
On all occasions, to drink in what was offered was to quench a thirst somewhere within for the unexplainable. A very small receptacle within was filled and a tiny gap was closed. Life went on after these spectacular events. Above the celebration and the display and the offering was one constant strain that attracted one’s attention. The Samadhi stood as majestic as ever in its unassuming humility, in its regal splendour. The shrine represented everything and yet stood small, a closed pink lotus bud; it stood a magnificent symbol of all that life strove for, yet to flower into what it ought to be. The atmosphere around the Samadhi was as serene as ever, pouring out its infinite blessings on the surroundings and on all those who chose to walk into that dimension. It marked, in a symbolic way, our existence. The Quiet one resides within, does all the work and leaves no residue behind that is visible to mortal eyes. All that happens, happens within. The revolution is silent, the shift, the flowering out, measuring perhaps an equivalent of a fraction of a fraction of a millimeter. And like this, life moves on, towards that One, wherever He or She or It resides. A certain harmony, a certain plan is preserved despite all the differences, at the heart of the matter. - Jayanthy

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