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- Three Necessary Conditions for the Divine Power To Work Through the Seeker in the Outward Life - by Submitted on Oct 04, 2025 from santosh krinskyUnder normal conditions, we are pushed from one reaction to another by external impulsions and our trained responses to circumstances. There is very little chance, therefore, to inject a higher divine power directly into the life-action. Sri Aurobindo outlines the conditions that help the ...
Views: 118 - Personal Effort Needed in Spiritual Practice and the Action of the Divine Force - by Submitted on Oct 29, 2025 from santosh krinskyThe spiritual seeker starts out from the standpoint of the human individual, the ego-consciousness. The process of spiritual development involves a systematic shift of the standpoint to the divine standpoint. This process does not occur overnight, and does not proceed ‘automatically’ but ...
Views: 117 - The Effort of the Spiritual Seeker in Distinguishing the Action of the Divine Force from the Promptings of the Ego - by Submitted on Nov 08, 2025 from santosh krinskyA constant concern for spiritual aspirants is to distinguish the divine Will from their own ego-personality’s desires or ambitions. The vital nature has the uncanny ability to convince the mind that what it desires is actually something that can and should be justified, and once the mind adheres ...
Views: 115 - The Right Attitude Turns Difficulties Into Opportunities for the Spiritual Aspirant - by Submitted on Dec 04, 2025 from santosh krinskyParticularly (but not exclusively) in the beginning of the spiritual sadhana, the seeker has to find a way to navigate through the countless obstacles, resistances and difficulties that arise as he tries to transition from a focus on the external responses of the ego-personality and the embedded ...
Views: 115 - Overcoming Self-Doubt and Fear of Incapacity in the Spiritual Endeavour - by Submitted on Nov 07, 2025 from santosh krinskySpiritual seekers throughout the ages have been confronted with internal anguish about whether they actually have the capacity and ability to succeed in their spiritual endeavour. They go through periods of enthusiasm and joy as they feel the spiritual force working in them, bringing them ...
Views: 114 - Personal Effort and Divine Action in the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Oct 31, 2025 from santosh krinskyWhen we reflect on the action of the Divine Force, and its ability to impact the individual and transform aspects of his life, we are frequently met with the skepticism of those who do not have the experience. How can one explain colors to a person who is blind from birth? How can music be ...
Views: 112 - The Cure for the Spiritual Aspirant for Doubt, Guilt, Feelings of Unsuitability and Despair - by Submitted on Oct 28, 2025 from santosh krinskyAs long as we base ourselves in the individual personal identity, what we term the ‘ego-consciousness’ we are subject to mistakes, failures, indiscretions, and other situations where we do not meet our own internal concept of what we ‘should’ do. Most of this is based on the background and ...
Views: 112 - The Divine Must Always Come First for the Spiritual Seeker - by Submitted on Oct 01, 2025 from santosh krinskyFrom the time of our birth we are directed and focused on the external reality of the material world. We are trained to pay attention to that existence, to develop opportunities, and to find ways to survive and thrive. Along the way, we get successes and failures, meet with positive results and ...
Views: 112 - Spiritual Development Through Action of the Divine Force Rather Than Through Purely Personal Effort - by Submitted on Oct 23, 2025 from santosh krinskyWe are wrapped up in the ego-consciousness from the moment we take birth. The entire societal structure, as well as the weight of millennia of evolutionary development to create an entity that could develop the powers of the vital and mental being as a self-aware and seemingly independent being, ...
Views: 111 - The Focus Needed for Success in the Practice of the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Nov 05, 2025 from santosh krinskyEvery path of Yoga has its own methodologies and expected results, just as every discipline or focus in the external activities have their own methodologies and expected results. An individual can train for sports, for proficiency in a particular science, or even for learning skills in social ...
Views: 111 - The Psychic Being Senses the Divine Presence and Guidance - by Submitted on Nov 06, 2025 from santosh krinskyEverything we experience is sensed or felt by some developed capacity or part of the being. Vibrations that occur within the ranges of the electro-magnetic spectrum that human beings can perceive are identified as light, colors, sound, etc. We have senses of taste, touch and smell, similarly ...
Views: 111 - Awareness and True Discrimination of Forces Are Essential for the Spiritual Seeker to Avoid Distractions and Deviations from the Path - by Submitted on Dec 05, 2025 from santosh krinskyWhen a spiritual seeker begins to appreciate the forces at work in the world that try to influence and manipulate his behaviour, one of the first reactions tends to be to try to close oneself off, wall oneself off, not take cognizance of these forces. This is the power of the anchorite ...
Views: 110 - Identifying and Addressing Obstacles Through Inner Development for Spiritual Progress - by Submitted on Nov 15, 2025 from santosh krinskyIt is a somewhat natural tendency in human nature to blame others, or circumstances, or fate, when obstacles arise. We tend to bemoan how ‘unfair’ life can be. We see conspiracies and power structures that are preventing us from accomplishing what it is that we believe we are meant to ...
Views: 110 - The Secret of Success in Spiritual Sadhana Is to Maintain the Aspiration and Focus and Never Give Up - by Submitted on Nov 01, 2025 from santosh krinskyFailure turns out to be the stepping stone to success. We tend to become obsessed with being ‘perfect’ in the spiritual sadhana. We identify things we should be thinking, things we should be doing, ways we should be acting and responding to situations, and create for ourselves a set of rules or ...
Views: 110 - “Ego Was the Helper, Ego Is the Bar” - by Submitted on Dec 02, 2025 from santosh krinskySri Aurobindo’s famous aphorism, cited in the headline above, describes the issue that spiritual aspirants have to resolve as they take up the practice of Yoga. Human individuality was developed to create an apparently independent nexus of observation and action, thus providing a platform for ...
Views: 110 - Patience, Perseverance and Firm Faith Are Needed Qualities on the Long Road of Yoga - by Submitted on Nov 14, 2025 from santosh krinskyThe seeker gets glimpses of spiritual opening, experiences of a vastness and a deep silence when the mind falls utterly still. He may get a vision of forces and powers that act in the world and in himself. He may get the sense that he is crossing a threshold into a space where he no longer ...
Views: 109 - Self-Surrender in Principle and Self-Surrender in Detail - by Submitted on Nov 12, 2025 from santosh krinskyWhen the seeker takes up the path of yoga and surrender of the ego-consciousness to the Divine, he identifies himself with the psychic being, the soul entity, in his being and makes the offering from that part of his being. What is frequently not recognised however is that the human being is ...
Views: 109 - The Principle Thing in the Practice of Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Nov 03, 2025 from santosh krinskyIn his book The Mother, Sri Aurobindo provides a detailed roadmap for understanding the relatively simple idea that one must have the ‘will to overcome all attachments’, etc. In order to do this, we need to be able to appreciate what is meant by ‘attachments’. Most people would associate this ...
Views: 109 - The Spiritual Seeker Should Focus on the Aspiration and Recognize Weaknesses Without Obsessing About Them - by Submitted on Nov 19, 2025 from santosh krinskyObsessing about failures, weaknesses, lapses, and obstructions can turn into a full-time occupation! All of human nature has to be taken up and modified, transformed or outright rejected for the next evolutionary manifestation to fully take up its role in the life of the planet. All seekers ...
Views: 109 - Faithfulness to the Divine Light and the Divine Call - by Submitted on Dec 19, 2025 from santosh krinskySpiritual seekers face a long and difficult road trying to sort out what thoughts, emotions, feelings, movements, actions and responses are expressive of and related to their spiritual calling, and which ones are part of the old ways of the external nature and the vital ego. They frequently ...
Views: 108 - The Main Conditions of Preparation for the Supramental Change - by Submitted on Nov 14, 2025 from santosh krinskyIn a brief compass, Sri Aurobindo outlines the attitude to be assumed and the nature of the work to be done to prepare the being for the consummation of the path of the integral Yoga. Sri Aurobindo writes: "Get the psychic being in front and keep it there, putting its power on the mind, vital ...
Views: 108 - The Needed Effort to Resolve the Deformations of the Lower Vital Nature - by Submitted on Nov 19, 2025 from santosh krinskyIn his application of yoga as applied psychology, Sri Aurobindo identifies a number of different planes and parts of the being that make up the human individual. There are various levels of mind, vital being and physical being. Each level carries out specific types of functions and responds to ...
Views: 108 - Dealing With Vital Forces of Opposition to the Spiritual Sadhana Through the Intervention of The Divine Shakti, the Mother - by Submitted on Dec 11, 2025 from santosh krinskyThe vital forces that have, for the most part, gained substantial control of the earth-nature’s vital existence, are very protective of their ‘turf’, so to speak. They do not cede the ground easily, and once they are dismissed from an individual’s nature, they still maintain both their existence ...
Views: 107 - Finding the Poise of the Consciousness Needed for the Practice of the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Nov 10, 2025 from santosh krinskyThe spiritual seeker, starting from the ego-consciousness, wants to identify progress and success in the sadhana. The operation of the 3 Gunas, the qualities of Nature, impact the seeker’s view and orientation towards the process. There is a distinct difference between a psychic aspiration and ...
Views: 107 - The Spiritual Aspirant’s Opening to the Action of the Spiritual Force - by Submitted on Nov 04, 2025 from santosh krinskyThere are many things in the world that we cannot directly observe with our senses, yet which we otherwise believe to be real, based on the noticeable and palpable effects they have. We cannot ‘see’ gravity, but we feel its effects. Similarly, we cannot ‘see’ electricity, but we not only can ...
Views: 107 - Addressing Obstacles, Weaknesses and Limitations Through the Connection with the Divine Power - by Submitted on Nov 27, 2025 from santosh krinskyThere are so many obstacles and difficulties that confront the spiritual seeker, precisely because the work of transforming human nature in each element involves dealing with endless numbers of embedded habits, instincts, trained responses, etc. It is virtually a constant effort to address each ...
Views: 105 - Distinguishing and Addressing Undivine and Antidivine Forces - by Submitted on Nov 20, 2025 from santosh krinskyThere is a real difference in motivation and intention between what may be considered to be ignorant responses, and those that are malignant. Seekers face a difficulty or some resistance in the external nature constantly. For the most part, this resistance is due to the long embedded habits and ...
Views: 105 - The Flame of Aspiration, the Mystic Fire - by Submitted on Nov 02, 2025 from santosh krinskyThe Rig Veda has a large number of hymns to Agni, the mystic fire. Sri Aurobindo translated and commented on the hymns to Agni in his book, Hymns to the Mystic Fire. The importance of the mystic fire, which we may call the flame of aspiration for the spiritual seeker is evidenced by both the ...
Views: 105 - The Necessity of Receptivity to the Force of the Divine Shakti to Accomplish the Sadhana of the Integral Yoga - by Submitted on Dec 17, 2025 from santosh krinskyFor the practitioner of the integral yoga, it becomes evident that the transformation of human nature is not something that can be done by his own capacity alone. His mental ideas, the will power, vital drives and physical powers have their limitations and remain relatively fixed within the ...
Views: 105 - Hostile Forces, the Law of Attraction and Progress in Spiritual Development - by Submitted on Dec 09, 2025 from santosh krinskyThere are powers at work in the world that have a vested interest in maintaining the current status. They have control, they have power, they can exult in their predominance. They do not want to see their power or influence wane or disappear. On the contrary, they may seek further control and ...
Views: 104 - “Are We There Yet?” - by Submitted on Nov 11, 2025 from santosh krinskyJust about anyone who has experienced a long trip with young children will relate to the question ‘Are We There Yet?’. Ten minutes into the journey, and every 5 or 10 minutes thereafter, the children ask if we are at the destination yet. They have no realistic sense of time, distance or process. ...
Views: 104 - Ascent and Integration Define Spiritual Progress for the Seeker - by Submitted on Nov 25, 2025 from santosh krinskyTransforming human nature does not happen overnight. There are thus periods when the spiritual force is actively experienced and descending into the being; and then, there are other periods where it needs to adjust the responses of the mind, the life energy and the physical body to both hold and ...
Views: 103 - Standing Back from the Reactions of the External Nature - by Submitted on Nov 21, 2025 from santosh krinskyThe action of the three Gunas rules our external nature. Rajas active in the vital being tends to fixate on the fulfillment and satisfaction of desires of whatever kind. Desires, however, cannot ever be fully satisfied as the fulfillment of a desire simply increases the vital’s push for more. A ...
Views: 103 - Success in Yoga Despite Negative Suggestions of Unfitness or Impossibility - by Submitted on Dec 04, 2025 from santosh krinskyAs the three Gunas continue to rotate their action in the external personality, there are times when Rajas presides and there is potentially a sense of ambition and with it, a sustained effort. When Tamas presides, however, there is a tendency to fall into despondency or depression, seeing ...
Views: 102 - Suppression Without True Rejection of the Sexual Impulse Does Not Solve the Issue for the Spiritual Seeker - by Submitted on Jan 05, 2026 from santosh krinskyThe first impulse of religious or spiritual paths with respect to the sex impulse has frequently been to simply suppress and deny it. When any form of energy is forcefully suppressed, it acts like a coiled spring, storing that energy and building up its potential power, until such time as it is ...
Views: 102 - The Different Processes for Change of the Vital Nature and the Psychic Being - by Submitted on Dec 08, 2025 from santosh krinskyThe vital nature, under the influence of the Guna of Rajas, tends to create drama. Struggle, disruption, aggressive responses are all a part of this vital play. One of the manifestations of this drama is to raise the temperature about any resistance, obstacle, delay etc. that the individual ...
Views: 102 - Dealing With Periods of Dissipation and Distraction in the Spiritual Sadhana - by Submitted on Nov 29, 2025 from santosh krinskySpiritual aspirants tend to have periods of concentration, intense experiences, positive forward movement centered around our deepest aspirations, only to find that after some time the energy withdraws, or they sink back into old habits or comfortable patterns of the past. They may look for ...
Views: 101 - The Value of the Witness Consciousness in the Yogic Endeavour - by Submitted on Nov 23, 2025 from santosh krinskyThe witness consciousness is an extremely useful mode for the seeker to adopt in any attempt to overcome the limitations and deformations of the external nature, whether to try to attain liberation and release from the world, or, as Sri Aurobindo suggests, to work toward the eventual divinsation ...
Views: 101 - Suicide Does Not Provide an Escape From the Difficulties of Life or of Spiritual Development - by Submitted on Dec 14, 2025 from santosh krinskyAn individual reaches an absolute low point in his life. He may be suffering under intense grief, he may have made mistakes that led to catastrophic consequences, he may be faced with exposure and embarassment for actions he has undertaken, he may be in intense pain and suffering from a terminal ...
Views: 100 - Understanding Experience of a Shift from the External to the Inward Consciousness - by Submitted on Dec 06, 2025 from santosh krinskyAs the seeker begins to go inwards in his awareness, theare are innumerable new experiences that take place. He generally is not able to determine exactly what they mean. In this case, the guidance of an experienced practitioner or of a Guru can be of immense assistance. If a seeker is ...
Views: 100 - Face and Conquer the Difficulties in This Life and in This Body - by Submitted on Dec 15, 2025 from santosh krinskyA human birth is prized as it is the gateway to evoution and development. In the Indian tradition, even the gods need to take a human birth if they want to achieve any new form of development or progress. The gods reside normally in a static world which does not have the impetus for ...
Views: 99 - Sadhak of Integral Yoga Rejects Fulfillment of Sexual Impulse to Focus Conscious Force on the Spiritual Realization - by Submitted on Jan 14, 2026 from santosh krinskyThere is a vast difference between the goals of the ordinary human individual and those who have chosen to take up spiritual sadhana. This difference defines the way they respectively look at things, including the various normal and natural functions of human life. For the ordinary individual, ...
Views: 97 - Strength and Courage Are Needed to Face the Difficulties of the Spiritual Path - by Submitted on Dec 13, 2025 from santosh krinskyWhen an individual withdraws from most external activities to focus on spiritual sadhana, people tend to interpret this as a sign of weakness or failure in the outer life. They believe the seeker could not ‘make it’ in the competition in the external world and therefore retreated from it so he ...
Views: 97 - The Difficulty and Time Required for the Transformation of the Nature - by Submitted on Nov 16, 2025 from santosh krinskyWe make ‘new year’s resolutions’ with the idea that we will start the new year with a fresh dedication to undertaking some kind of change to our lives. This may be a mental change, such as a willingness to listen and try to truly understand what others say and think rather than jumping in our ...
Views: 97 - The Mother’s Force Is the Primary Aid in Overcoming the Force of Desire - by Submitted on Dec 23, 2025 from santosh krinskyThere is a dual significance to the term ‘the Mother’s Force’. First, this is the Divine Shakti, which manifests the universal creation, and which acts to bring forth the sequential expression of the consciousness involved in Matter. At the same time, there is the specific reference to the ...
Views: 97 - Converting Primal Physical-Vital Force Into Spiritual Force - by Submitted on Jan 07, 2026 from santosh krinskyThere is a well-known and widely described concept in the spiritual traditions of India whereby the basic force of the first chakra that manifests in the ordinary course through that centre as sexual energy is converted through various processes of tapasya, yogic concentration, into a force that ...
Views: 96 - Distinguishing Vital or Mental Desire or Demand from Aspiration of the Psychic Being - by Submitted on Dec 22, 2025 from santosh krinskyDesire can take many forms, some of them subtle, inasmuch as they are linked to prayer and thus seem to confirm the aspiration. There is a subtle form of bargaining that can take place where the dedication of the seeker is tied to the Divine providing a specific anticipated form of realisation, ...
Views: 96 - Distrust and Disobedience in the Practice of Yoga Interferes With the Action of the Force - by Submitted on Dec 18, 2025 from santosh krinskyWe like to believe that we are independent actors in control of our own destiny and our own lines of development. We want ‘freedom’ to express ourselves. The ego-personality acting in the outside world is very much a captive of past energies, whether those of the formation of physical and vital ...
Views: 96 - Liberating the Consciousness from Imprisonment in the Physical Body - by Submitted on Dec 07, 2025 from santosh krinskyWhen we reflect on our normal state of conscious awareness, we recognise a primary seat of awareness in the mind, while also finding that we respond to impulses that originate in the other chakras, subtle energy centres, from the base of the spine to the crown of the head. Yogic science has long ...
Views: 96 - The Supramental Transformation Represents a Radical Upgrade of Animal and Human Nature - by Submitted on Jan 09, 2026 from santosh krinskyUntil such time as we become capable of drawing infinite energy from the universal force of creation, we have the issue of choosing how we utilize the energy that we have available to us. Through certain types of practices we can actually increase the available energy. The radical transformation ...
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