Thiruvananthapuram, March 7 ,2023: A National seminar on ‘The Relevance of Sri Aurobindo in Our Times’ will be inaugurated by Indian Council of Philosophical Research (ICPR) Member Secretary Prof Sachchidananda Mishra here on March 9.
The two-day seminar, in connection with the 150th birth anniversary of Sri Aurobindo, is being organised by the Bharatheeya Vichara Kendram in association with the Indian Council of Philosophical Research (ICPR), Ministry of Education, Government of India.
The seminar, aiming to bring out the significance of Sri Aurobindo’s life and his teachings, will be attended by eminent scholars .
“The proposed seminar will focus on ttopics including Contribution of Sri Aurobindo to the national movement and the freedom struggle, Indian Renaissance and Sri Aurobindo, Sri Aurobindo’s socio- political vision, Sri Aurobindo’s vision for evolution of humanity, Sri Aurobindo’s commentaries on the ancient Indian scriptures and its contemporary relevance, Sri Aurobindo’s vision for human unity, Sri Aurobindo as a creative artist,” R Sanjayan Director, Bhartheeya Vichara Kendram, said.
“Apart from being a master craftsman in English and a poet, Sri Aurobindo was also a philosopher and a mystic. A deep study of the works of Sri Aurobindo is absolutely essential for our times to instill patriotism among the youth and create national integration,” he pointed out.
Seminar coordinator Dr R Subramony said “Sri Aurobindo contributed immensely to the national resurgence of India. He was the prophet of the Life Divine, the harbinger of a New Dawn. Sri Aurobindo had carried out an intense political propaganda in order to familiarize people with the ideas of democracy, freedom and independence.”
The two journals edited by Sri Aurobindo until 1909, Bande Mataram and Karmayogin contain valuable insights on almost every sociological/political issue which haunted India, he added.
“Sri Aurobindo was arrested in the Alipur Bomb Case in May 1908. During the hard period of confinement in Alipore jail, Sri Aurobindo used to read the Gita and the Upanishads and was immersed in his sadhana.”
“He had immense spiritual experiences in the prison. Sri Aurobindo was acquitted in 1909. On 30th May, he delivered the famous speech at Uttarapara in which he described many of his spiritual experiences.”
In 1910 he shifted to Chandranagore and finally settled in Pondicherry, then a French occupied territory and there continued his spiritual sadhana and intellectual activities.
The philosophical journal Arya was started on August 15, 1914.The serialised essays of the Arya were later compiled into separate books such as The Life Divine, The Synthesis of Yoga, The Ideal of Human Unity, The Human Cycle, The Secret of the Vedas, Essays on the Gita, The Future Poetry. In The Life Divine he expounded his integral philosophy binding a unique synthesis of ancient and modern thought of East and West. Savitri written by Sri Aurobindo is the largest epic in English.
