Reviews

LIVING WITHIN THE YOGA APPROACH TO PSYCHOLO­GICAL HEALTH AND GROWTH, Selection from the works of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, compiled with an Introduction By A. S.Dalal. Pondichery: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1987. Price not mentioned.

The book under review, Life Within The Yoga Approach to Psychological Health and Growth is a very useful and a professional attempt at describing the problems of human mind and practical remedies for them through Integral Yoga. As the writer describes to us the relationship of mental health and Yoga, “the Quintessence of mental health ... lies in a change of consciousness, from one that is governed primarily by the outer consciousness of the physical the vital or the mental to one that reflects more and more an inner or a higher consciousness (Introduction P. xxxvi). Thus the intention of the book is presenting some of the principles and purposes of Integral Yoga from the writings and commitments of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother for assuring the positive mental health to human beings and making the vital mind realize the Divine Peace, Bliss and Knowledge.

The book is systematically divided into dealing with different states of mind, for progressing from the “physical” mind, passing through the “vital” mind and finally reaching the “vital physical”. Disturbances of the mind are caused by impure and unholy thoughts. Anxiety and unruly thoughts result in “mental noise”. “The mind must learn to be silent,” we are told. There are four movements to reach a state of purified mind. They are, to observe, to watch over, control and master our feelings. Detachment from our action is an essential quality in this regard. Likewise, fear and depression cause “disturbances of the vital”. Remorse and repentance are the natural responses of the vital, when it commits a mistake. How can we transform the vital mind from an insecure mind in the direction of a peaceful mind? We can do so by sincerity, aspiration and perseverance. Subconscient is “the lower basis of ignorance.” and its actions are “irrational, mechanical and repetitive.” Finally, the last chapter, “Exercises for Growth and Mastery” is the most crucial and operative part of the book. Here, the writer lucidly describes the various Yogic practices. We feel, Yoga is a very concrete exercise. It involves selection, identi­fication and desire for the liberation of the self to widen one’s self to reach out the Divine self. There are methods and practices in this. Some are based on simple psychological and emotional principles, such as self-awareness, concentration and self-observation. But, at its core, the effort is purely spiritual, to seek that “inner light” around that “psychic centre”. The Question is how to rouse the inner consciousness. By a process of dynamic meditation, and self-identification with “something vast”, we can liberate our limited self into the vast universal self. This is perhaps the best part of the book. The book is an organically knit and well-conceived, an addition to Sri Aurobindo scholarship and to the practice of Integral Yoga. Though the book is a compilation, there is an unmistakable stamp of authenticity and conviction in the presenta­tion of the material.

Reviewed by DR. M. MADHUSUDHANA RAO.

RABINDRANATH TAGORe: A STUDY OF WOMEN CHA­RACTERS By M. Sarada, Book No. 8503. New Delhi: Sterling Publishers, 1988, PP 148. Price. Rs. 100/-

The book under review, Rabindranath Tagore: A study of Women Characters seeks to make a social, or even socio-political and psychological study of the women in Tagore’s fictional world. The writer of this book lays emphasis on the realistic and psycho­logical portrayal of Tagore’s Women Characters in his novels. The book is usefully divided into 11 chapters and provides an historical overview of the socio-political, cultural, religious and other influe­nces on the Bengali women folk at the turn of the century, in the First Chapter. In the last chapter, as a conclusion, the writer tries to classify Tagore’s Women characters under various heads, such as the Heroines, Mothers and Aunts. Excluding these two chapters, there are altogether 9 chapters, each chapter dealing with one specific novel.

It is true that the writer of this book does make a very patient and perceptive study of the “inner workings, the crisscross move­ments of their (of the characters) thoughts “(p. 128), as she puts it. Throughout this book, the writer, M. Sarada, makes a close study of the socia-cultural and religious milieu, in its state of flux and dynamic change. The writer succeeds, at least to an appreciable degree in making us feel the inner mind of Tagore’s women. There is a rich diversity in Tagore’s women, both in his conception and rendering of them. As the writer says, these characters are “as varied as life itself”. In any case, one will not fail to notice the same nature of events and the recurrent causes for such events, in the lives of these women. It may be a quest for economic or moral freedom, (as in Bimala) or it may be an interest in the cult in modernism, which is an important streak of their personality in all these women. In any case, as the writer rightly says. Tagore’s women are for more complex, and vital and profound than their men who “look dull, drab and dry”.

Thus. M. Sarada’s presentation of Tagore’s women in this book is sound and the book is eminently readable. Sometimes, one may get a feeling that, there is a persistent attempt at summarising than analysing each character. But all in all, this book, said to be a pioneering venture, in this regard bears out rich scholarship and the appended bibliography is comprehensive and useful.

Reviewed by Dr. M. MADHUSUDHANA RAO