“SAVITRI” by Sri Aurobindo (Republished edition of the 1st edition 1950-51, draft approved by Sri Aurobindo before his death) Book Six—The Book of Fate (Contd. from yesterday, November 22, 2013) Canto I The WORD OF FATE Only the gods can speak what now thou speakst. Thou who art human, think not like a god. For man, below the god, above the brute, Is given the calm reason as his guide; He is not driven by an unthinking will As are the actions of the bird and beast; He is not moved by stark Necessity Like the senseless motion of inconscient things. The giant’s and the titan’s furious march Climbs to usurp the kingdom of the gods Or skirts the demon magnitudes of Hell; In the unreflecting passion of their hearts They dash their lives against the eternal Law And fall and break by their own violent mass: The middle path is made for thinking man. To choose his steps by reason’s vigilant light, To chose his path among the many paths Is given him, for each his difficult goal Hewn out of infinite possibility. Leave not thy goal to follow a beautiful face. Only when thou hast climbed above thy mind And livst in the calm vastness of the One Can love be eternal in the eternal bliss And Love divine replace the human tie. There is a shrouded law, an austere force: It bids thee strengthen thy undying spirit; It offers its severe benignances Of work and thought and measured grave delight As steps to climb to God’s far secret heights. Then is our life a tranquil pilgrimage, Each year a mile from the heavenly Way, Each dawn opens into a larger Light. Thy acts are thy helpers, or events are signs, Waking and sleep are opportunities Given to thee by an immortal Power: So canst thou raise thy pure unvanquished spirit Till spread to heaven in a wide vesper calm Indifferent and gentle as the sky, It greatens slowly into timeless peace.”
Posted on: Sat, 23 Nov 2013 10:44:43 +0000
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