 Good evening. Namaste. Bonjour, when I come. So, today is a very eventful day, November 1st, and on behalf of Indira Gandhi Centre for, no, did I get it? Yeah, Centre for Arts, the Pondicherry branch. We are really, really proud to have them over here to do the book launch of Dr. Ananda Reddy. So, thank you for coming here. The rain gods really tested our will. So really, really grateful and appreciative that you made it over here to celebrate what I think is going to be a beautiful contribution. Because I just happened to have a peek-a-boo at the book and truly promising. It sounds like a good read. So, without much ado, I'm going to invite the dignitaries to light the lamp, which is traditionally the welcome that we do. Because any book is a form of Vidya. It's a form of Saraswati. It's a form of our inner wisdom. And in India, anything that's got to do with inner wisdom, we light our inner light. So, though we will be lighting our lamps, the idea is that we light our inner light. So, before we start, I'm just going to invite you to close your eyes. And let's just take a moment of silence and truly connect within to bring your space and the sacredness to this book launch. And may the efforts of IGNCA launching this book really reach far and wide. May it touch humanity with the message of Sri Aurobindo. And the efforts of Dr. Reddy to really bring it to humankind. Thank you so much. Dr. Jayanthi Ravi, Dr. Reddy, Dr. Gopal, Sri Raghunji and... Bilu, is that our voice? Bilu, yeah. Welcome you to the stage, please. Thank you so much for lighting the lamp and if you feel like offering the flowers, they're there at the bottom. Dr. Reddy, some flowers. Jayanthi. IGNCA though is a very well-known and reputed center. The Pondicherry branch was just established in 2018. And the center is committed to raise the level of consciousness through arts by promoting and supporting different activities. And today is one such occasion. We have Sri Raghunji with us, a researcher and I think has contributed quite a bit to the research that Dr. Reddy has needed for his book. I'm going to invite him to welcome the August audience. Thank you so much. Good evening to all. This is Dr. KTV Raghavan, Ashtan Professor in IGNCA. Pranodevi Saraswati, Vajabhir Vajaniyavati, Dhinama Vitriyavatu, Saraswati Enamaha. Now I welcome all dignitaries, audience and the supporters of this function who have attended here by accepting our invitation as soon as we request to this function. Just a second. It's just that the Vice Chancellor is on his way. He is just asking for how to reach over here. So we'll... sorry for that. One of the chief guest, Dr. Prof. Gurumit Singh is coming now. So we can wait a little bit. So first of all, I welcome Dr. Jayanthi Ravi, Madam, Secretary, Aravil Foundation. We are very fortunate to have her presence here. I hear her speech in a webinar which was conducted by National Sanskrit University Tirupati. I was impressed. And then I understood that she is a dynamic administrator as well as highly spiritual personality. And she is always very busy by involving many multiple administrative works. Even though she attended to this function, it is our very fortunate. Later we are waiting for our another chief guest, Prof. Gurumit Singh Ji, Vice Chancellor of Pondicherry University. Let me welcome to Prof. Gurumit Singh Ji. He has many responsibilities in two universities, two famous universities. We are very fortunate to have him, his presence in this event. After that, I welcome Dr. Belu Mehra, Senior Academic Mentor, Aravarty, who is rendering her services to promote, spread the ideas, thinking, writings of Sri Aravindra across the world. So I welcome her. After that, who is the key role of today's function? Dr. V. Anand Reddy. I welcome him. Because of him only, we are assembled here today. Today is very auspicious day. I think that we are very delighted to release this book here. Because this is a mostly sacred place and very suitable place to it. When I asked Sri Aravindra Reddy Ji what is the best place to release this book, then he said to me, only one place that Aravil is the only best place and unique place in the world where the ideas of Sri Aravindra and mother are the foundation. So that we are very fortunate to hear. I think most of you may ever about IGNCA, some of you not ever. I would like to mention, introduce with few lines regarding about IGNCA. IGNCA is an autonomous organization under the Ministry of Culture, Government of India. By the recognizing the need to preserve the roots of Indian arts and culture, the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts serves a major resource center for the arts and culture by art, written oral and other forms of the arts. So our another Chief Guest, Prof. Gurmeet Singh Ji is coming. Welcome to Prof. Gurmeet Singh Ji. The Regional Centre of IGNCA Puducherry is situated at Art and Craft Village, Princess Murugambakum Puducherry. Its main aim is to serve as a research and resource center for the arts and culture. We are all known that Sri Aravindra was a pioneer Indian freedom, struggle and spiritual leader, philosopher, Maharishi, yogi and great writer and more. On this occasion, on the occasion of Sri Aravindra's 150 birth anniversary and Ajadika Amrut Mahotsav, the Puducherry Regional Centre of IGNCA organized three programs to show the glory of Sri Aravindra to the world. So we have conducted a series of webinars on Sri Aravindra and we organized a photo descriptive exhibition on the life journey of Sri Aravindra, titled as Resolution to Evolution. So I think it was closed yesterday in Aravindra also. After that, now we are here to launch the great book Sri Aravindra and the grand synthesis written by Sri Anand Reddy. So this is the third program of Regional Centre of IGNCA Puducherry. Now, so again, I welcome to all audience, participants and dignitaries and other supporters of this function today. Thank you. Thank you so much, Raghunji. Since we have Professor Gurmit Singh with us and thank you. It is really an honor and privilege to always have you visit this campus. He is for you for a very brief while because he is on his way to the airport. He was committed to be here for the full function and really appreciate you going out of the way to make this visit. So I now welcome Dr. Gopal to welcome them by honoring them, each of them. So we slightly changed the sequence, Dr. Reddy, because since Gurmit Singh Ji is here. So we'll just honor him and yes, please, Professor Gurmit Singh. His contributions in the field of academia is breathless. The number of papers, the contributions that he has written is really worth, I don't know what to say, a million, million contributions for a mankind to come by. Dr. Ananda Reddy, the author, whose contribution today is to Yorubindo the grand synthesis. Dr. Jayanthi Ravi, secretary of the Orville Foundation. Herself in academia, a wide variety of fields, but at heart, a sadhaka. And finally, Dr. Belumira, senior academic mentor at Aurobarathy. And it's a privilege to have you here. Thank you so much. And with your permission, could we have the book released while Professor Gurmit Singh Ji is here? And then we can change the sequence a little bit. Just to give a little bit introduction about Dr. Ananda Reddy. And I think this is a very fitting contribution that it is so big that it can fly away from my hand too. So Dr. V. Ananda Reddy, the author today who launches Shri Yorubindo the grand synthesis. He is the founder-director of Shri Yorubindo Center for Advanced Research at Pondicherry. Having completed his studies at Shri Yorubindo International Center for Education, in 1969 he joined Orville in 1971 and that goes back to explain his love and why he would want it to be only launched in Orville. He has participated very early towards the human unity and how befitting that he would want to do it at Unity Pavilion itself. A widely traveled gentleman and it says travel does open mind. I think he has added a lot of value from that experience into his work and bringing out the books that he has. He's conducted several workshops on the basis of the vision of Shri Yorubindo and the mother and has delivered extensive lectures. And one of the compliments I must say I've heard is that you delivered in a very structured manner so I'm really looking forward to listening to you. He has authored more than ten volumes of Shri Yorubindo's Life Divine and one on Savitri, about 20 volumes on Synthesis of Yoga. S's on the Gita, the mother and other books are in the pipeline. He has, to his credit, about 2,000 hours of audio-video recording on the works and vision of Shri Yorubindo and the mother. For his contributions to Shri Yorubindo's work, he has been awarded the Shri Yorubindo Purishkar and the Auro Ratna. So truly befitting and truly an honor to have you. So, Professor Gurumal Singh Ji, Dr. Jayanthi Ravi and Dr. Abelu if we could really have the book release done in your august hands. So in a nutshell, this book is the essence of ten major works of Shri Yorubindo. So you don't really, I mean, with no due offence, but I guess like the way we say Savitri is the book, maybe this book is the book for Shri Yorubindo's works to understand. The author has highlighted a few ideas from each work and explained them in a crisp but in a very simple manner. Shri Yorubindo stands for a grand synthesis of the East and the West, and all while that seems contradictory in the world, these different aspects has been made to come alive in this book. And may I invite Professor Gurumal Singh Ji to say a few words on the occasion before the airport calls you. Thank you very much. Pardon me because I have some throat. Well, I'm delighted to be here. Dr. Janti Ravi, Dr. Anand, who is the sheet anchor and the main brain behind this work, Dr. Belu Mehra, who has been associated with us, our other friend and Dr. Gopal. I'm delighted to be here, as I said, because ever since I've joined here, we have been hearing about Shri Yorubindo. We have been attending webinars, seminars, functions, plays, all kinds of programs I've attended. And during this time, I have come to know that there was a great personality associated with Pondicherry, of course, but what was required was that this personality should have known all over. Shri Yorubindo is known all over, but to my little dismay are youngsters who are going to be the torch bearers of our country's future, are the ones who are not into it to the extent I would have loved them to be. Now, the reasons are very many, and ever since I joined, as I said, in all the seminars I've been emphasizing this, and I have also been telling that I'm trying my best to get Shri Yorubindo's chair in our society, in our university, so that we can collaborate, and the philosophy of Shri Yorubindo can be propagated to the younger lot in the way it should go. And I'm delighted to tell you that about a month back, we got a letter from UGC that ultimately what we wanted has come through, and the chair has been granted to the university. On certain terms, which are very convenient, anybody who would be occupying this chair will find a very convenient way of researching on Shri Yorubindo. The chair has come after a relentless effort of four years, but anything, all that, the one, something that ends in the way we want that has come through, that is one of the good news I thought I would share with this. Now the kind of time that we are in, everybody's in a hurry. I do not know for what reasons. We teach them something, they don't go to the depth of that. We try to send some message, they will just, peripherally, they will take it. And there was a great need for some kind of a capsule which will catch the philosophy of Shri Yorubindo. And so we know, has written in many aspects, spirituality is there, yoga is there, religion is there, nationalism is there. In fact, if I just, whatever little I have read over the last four years and whatever I have heard, the first work on Raj Darshan, nationalism, if you analyze came from Shri Yorubindo. He was the first pioneering work in this. Many people are not aware of this. So on all these aspects where Shri Yorubindo has written, if I tell the youngsters to go through that, probably again they will be touching the peripheries and will never be able to go to the depth of that. So something was needed for this younger generation so that we can give them a capsule and they get a quick treatment on the philosophy of whatever we want them to learn. And I did try to lay my hand on many writings, but then as I said, no capsule was there and I'm very happy that Dr. Anandre D. ultimately came out with this book, which is very timely, which was needed. It's neither we are, there's no doubt about it because ten aspects have been covered here. All philosophy of Shri Yorubindo from all angles have been covered and I could read two, three pages here because of a variety of reasons. I'm into a little too many things for the next ten days. That's about it. I'll be able to certainly go through this book, but any youngsters who will read will find the essence of everything that one needs to know. This is a very heartening feature. Dr. Anandre D. has done a lot of work on Shri Yorubindo, but this was the most urgent thing that was needed for our young minds. I'm particularly laying emphasis on young minds because they are the ones who have to be given a direction in the direction where Shri Yorubindo wanted them to move in. They debated a bit, I'm not saying considerably, but this book will provide, as I said, the time of quick healing, quick learning, quick reaching, quick flying. So all that is in this. It's a real good capsule which everybody will find it very useful and anybody who doesn't have time will force him to go through this book and then you'll find what is the beauty of this and what is the beauty and depth of Shri Yorubindo's philosophy which needs to be propagated not only in and around, all through the word. If that we can do it, I think our place will be a much better place to live in and if that philosophy goes further down in everybody's mind, probably, I think I'm very right when I'm making this statement, things like Russia or Ukraine would not have been there, had this been followed. But unfortunately, this has to go a long way and we hope that word comes to this direction and learns the right kind of lessons so that this place becomes a better place to live. I wish the author and the book and the society and those who are involved in propagating Shri Yorubindo's work grant success in their endeavors and I'm sure this will be a great step forward in making our chair that we have got a grand affair, a successful affair and whatever we want out of this chair will come through for the younger generations. Very soon, we will have somebody occupying that chair and that work of Shri Yorubindo will be carried forward further and this book will be a great help to everybody. Thank you so very much for inviting me over here. I would apologize because I have to rush somewhere urgently and that's why I will not be able to stay throughout this function. I would beg your leave and wish the function a grand success. Thank you very much. I'm grateful to you. Thank you, Professor Grimacing for sharing those good news and especially for your untiring efforts to spread the message of Shri Yorubindo and for the inspirational message for the young minds and I truly hope that the young minds take to this book which probably would give the essence and the wisdom in a nutshell. I'm now going to invite Dr. Gopal, Dr. Gopal who heads and leads under his able leadership IGNCE, a Puducherry branch comes with 29 years of rich experience in this field and at IGNCE, a Pondicherry since 2018 and a beautiful quality about him that he paints. He's a visual artist, has held several exhibitions and is beautiful to know that in addition to being an academic person and contributing to the efforts, he's also artistic. I'm going to invite him to share a few words on this occasion before we move on to Dr. Anand Reddy to know a little bit more about your book. Good evening. Respected and our adorable secretary madam and respected and honorable VC sir respected author, Reddy sir and Dr. Belomidam and who gathers here the scholars, artists and philosophers, writers. I can see so many faces here. Good evening once again. To be very frank, this is such a wonderful gathering. Actually this book release function is supposed to happen in January. Somehow it's delayed. We had planned in Osmani University initially. Then Delhi IGNCE. But somehow it's delayed because of some official reason. But what I feel right now is that this is the right place the book release function has happened. Maybe Sri Aurobindo and mother his own plan to release the book release in this unity pavilion. So on behalf of IGNCE members on behalf of other headquarters higher authority members I would like to extend our immense gratitude to the Aurobindo society and Sri Aurobindo Auroville particularly unity pavilion responsible persons. This book Sri Aurobindo the grand synthesis book the author mentions that this book is an overview of Sri Aurobindo's major works. But when I read I found in the references around 46 books he referred which is wonderful reference he collected. Though he has the overview of Sri Aurobindo major books 10 but 46 books he referred and he made like our VC mentioned is a treasure of capsule philosophy and not only the philosophy and when I gave this book to my students those who are doing master degree level students find out visual art. They said that sir is easily readable firstly and within two months they came back again and they shown me their the way how they impressed the books it is really outstanding. I felt as a tutor I felt this is the success of that book. Anand Rediji's yes of course is very difficult to weigh his knowledge but the way how he expressed Sri Aurobindo's philosophy it is very simple and crispy as our compare mentions. Anand Rediji thank you so much once again for giving us opportunity to release this book. And also in this book there are two part I have noted. In this two part he has mentioned very very reasonably contributions to humanity, realization and Sri Aurobindo future. This some topics which I I immersed in this book because of the way how the narrator I would like to point out few points particularly in this contemporary world we are facing a lot of problems. Of course we have spiritual leaders we have enough equipments we have manpower we have space, everything we have but what I felt as an artist and as a spiritual seeker there is only one is missing that is understanding. Understanding others and understanding us particularly like Ramana Maharishi mentions who am I we are failing to understand who am I, who we are. I think this books definitely will lead to break all the kind of barrier which will show the proper path to understand who we are. Though it was compiled by Rediji Sri Aurobindo's philosophy itself definitely will break the barrier and also if we understand who am I definitely there will be success the success of the life particularly the education, the purpose of the education is to understand who we are that's what I feel it. And Dr. Anand Rediji sir mentioned so many areas she pointed out this beautiful verses particularly Savitri and Divine Light etc. really is remarkable. Once again I would like to extend our immense gratitude to Auroville Foundation and also our another Redicer another Redicer in this juncture I would like to mention that though it is delayed I think it happens in the right place last year January sorry December we had a planned in Hyderabad, sorry Osmosia University to release this function as I mentioned earlier but this gathering I feel very comfortable because of the climate condition right now what we are enjoying and also the quietness here really I feel this is the right place another Redicer once again I would like to convey our wishes at the same time immense gratitude to all the viewers who are gathered here for making this function successfully. Thank you so much once again Madam, thanks a lot. Thank you so much Dr. Gopal for the untiring efforts, the faith and the belief to bring the book on this auspicious occasion now we invite Dr. Ananda Reddy nonetheless but him the voice the inspiration and the visionary behind the book so I'm going to invite him to of course you have what you have to share but I would love to know what inspired you to really bring this book about and what has that journey been like for you to read and put together in a nutshell a sense and if there has been something outstanding in the journey for you any anecdote or anything that you would like to share and what the readers look for and of course your book Well what inspired me to write this book I think is a very difficult question because if you ask me the question what makes you breathe there's no answer for that it's part of your living you cannot live without breath so it's sure even though for me a living breath so it's not that I thought of doing this and I thought of writing this it so happened actually the genesis is like this that year back Sakkar was had planned to give some series of talks and I took up this venture of giving series of talks on all the major books of the Arya there were the nine books that all of you know and you know I had one hour talk each one was one hour and then to put the substance of a book not a chapter or a sort the life divine the synthesis, the human cycle of poetry it was a Herculean task and something that people should not even dare to do but somehow I took it up as a challenge and said here is what I challenge the mother saying can you do that for me put something in a nutshell because humanly it was not my venture not my adventure not my courage sitting down to see what is it and the most important thing that I found but there are so many different things different books but essentially it is Sri Aurobindo and his experience so what is magnificent about all his books that there is some experience the life divine it has the four major spiritual experiences it says on the Gita his contact with Sri Krishna about his Indian culture about his you know the foundations of Indian culture everywhere he has brought out his experiences and expressed them in rational terms so I said I should go beyond the book and catch his experience and it is which experience has been expressed in which book that is where my effort was and the book otherwise it is not possible to summarize any book there are thousands of ideas so that was the first challenge and obviously as I said it had to be her grace my mental audacity would not have worked out so that is the first question Sudha secondly now as I went giving these talks my team at Saka they are the beautiful transcription editing and all that then I said let me bring it out in the form of a book because being the 150th anniversary we wanted Saka to bring out something as a homage to Shravindo while I was doing that I mean I had not yet planned anything about it they dropped in my friend Raghavan Dr. Raghavan one fine afternoon he says are you Dr. Reddy I said yes can I come to your office I said please welcome and during the conversation he says we at Igna are wanting to celebrate Shravindo by a book I said here is a manuscript almost getting ready so I was wondering mother what are you trying to do I mean here is the book which is almost complete and here is a man who is eager to publish it so I told Raghavan please give me two months to finish it because you see in the initial stages I had not completed the books and there is the role of a wife who rightly or wrongly pesters you to finish something and she said look Anand you are not done your future poetry in the talks so better take a future poetry take up the foundations finish that and as I was finishing up finishing all those nine then I said what about the tenth one the Savitri I mean what the mother says the message is the real message rest is all a preparation I said I would not be doing my duty and work if I don't write on Savitri because that is the real message rest is all a preparation I mean to tell you frankly it was a bit of a shocker for me to know that but then I had to find out the meaning why the mother said that so I said let me take up Savitri also so that is how I ventured out into writing on all those ten books and there after a couple of months I called Raghavan and I said here it is and Raghavan did his duty he went to the director Dr. Gopal and Dr. Gopal went to his director Dr. MS Women and the member secretary Sachidan and the Doshi in Delhi and then somehow the word reached the Kishan Reddy Garu the minister of culture and there was an okay from all along right from minister to Raghavan there it is it has a sanction of the mother so I started working and polishing editing and all my colleagues are there to help me and so therefore the book was ready but even then I wanted her blessings I mean I have done my part of the job so I took a dummy of the book even including the cover and through the central office at Ashram I sent it to the mother's room got her blessings and that was the end of my journey and then began the journey of IGNCA to publish it well that's what took a bit of a long time as Gopal Ji told you it has taken its time then it wanted to be at Hyderabad then Delhi and then ultimately I said maybe the mother wants it to be here I mean IGNCA is in Pondicherry why are you going to Delhi and then when it came back to Pondicherry the obvious choice was as somebody already told you Auroville and then in Auroville the most significant spot the name itself tells us is the Unity Pavilion and I said that's a very important signal that we should do things at Unity Pavilion it's not just launching of a book but should also carry the message of Unity so that was a long story but now as she asked me very cleverly the impact of the ultimately what I learned from this well that's a bit of a confession after writing the book after reading so much the conclusion that I got to was Sri Aurobindo is indescribable his writings are beyond the human mind now what do I mean by that well first of all he is indescribable he is ununderstandable but what I gained out of all that is he is adorable he is just adorable and as you go along he is absolutely admirable you understand or don't understand but you begin to admire this personality and after a point you don't even see the person called Sri Aurobindo you see more of a consciousness a consciousness so comprehensive so vast so cosmic and then when you realize that this is a consciousness that has manifested out of his grace some of these books for our benefit and what was the thing you see I was really happy to see somebody like most of you know the name Amal Kiran called him the Mount Everest among the poets of the world and then you have also heard of the Nolene Kanto Gupta he said Sri Aurobindo is the extraordinary phenomenon I think Nolene Kanto Gupta caught the right word he is not a person he is a phenomenon and there I learned these two new words but for me personally he is the great synthesis a synthesis not of east and west this and that we can all analyze but essentially the synthesis of all the heights of spiritual experiences that the world has in every religion whatever the religion may be and he has synthesized the peak ideas in all the greatest thinkers of the world so I found that this title of the book the great synthesis perfectly suits him not because of his books or anything but for me essentially is that and it is these works that he has really given in those nine books in this vision that he has given in these nine books or ten books and there I see that he has given us a new trend of thinking a new trend of thought a new vision a new future I mean look at his idol of humanity the greatest idol of humanity look at his human cycle of spiritual age look at his foundations of Indian culture look at his future poetry everywhere it is the prophetic future and there I see that all these writings are not only a proof of the fulfillment of the great Vedic prayer ultimately I see he is a fulfillment of the Vedic prayer Asatomah, Sadgamaya, Tamasomah, Jyotirgamaya Mityuramah, Amritamgamaya and if you really want to put it put all these works into three single lines I have put only this Vedic prayer beads, avitri or anything ultimately he is the fulfillment of the Vedic prayer Asatomah, Sadgamaya, Tamasomah, Mityuramah so there I realize the greatness the genius that Sri Aurobindo is he is a fulfillment of the eternal prayer of humanity he has pulled us out out of this ignorance darkness and death and dying well that is not the last sentence I would like to tell about Sri Aurobindo the more I raise Sri Aurobindo the more I felt I don't know him I don't understand him you cannot decipher him he is he becomes so large in front of you it's like you are standing against the Himalayas you can't describe it anymore in the beginning you say oh Himalayas is there it's nice this in Kanchanjanga this Nanda Devi this Everest as you go closer to the Himalayas you lose sight of the dimension and you have nothing else but only to bow down at his feet that's the only way I think that's the best way and the most effective way to surrender and not only surrender in our Indian style the Sastanga Pranam you wish to do that not just do a Namaskaram you want to do a Sastanga Pranam and that is the ultimate lesson that I've learned that there's only way to approach him is to do a Sastanga Pranam and be eternally grateful to him that is my inner being inner call externally when things go beautiful I think all beautiful people come together to help you not only ING and CSA came to publish this book when I wanted to hold the function here Dr. Ravi Jayanthi was very gracious to immediately said yes why don't you do it at Unity Pavilion she immediately called up and arranged fix for this meeting so I think when the time comes the mother takes over she does all the things so friends I see so many of me as somebody said we are a family and somebody said we are even beyond a family true when I come to Auroville that's my feeling a lot of time has elucidated between our meetings sometimes 3 years or 30 years or 40 years but somehow the original born which we had with friends at Auroville and at Ashram and at Auroville Matamande and aspiration is still very alive so thank you friends for coming to share with me the joy of reading Shravanthi thank you so much Thank you Dr. Ravi for not only just a mesmerizing and a heartfelt rendition but it was delightful and I was sitting at the back and listening to you I could just be only looking at the mountain and the way you describe your relationship with Shravanthi when it works and what was beautiful is the way you brought one aspect that I could never ever relate to Shravanthi was adorable and thank you for that gift because in a way I kind of identify with that that he grows on you it's not something I remember many years ago when I came to this and I brought his books I used to read his page and I said I'm never going to get him I don't know why I brought this books his English is way beyond and I would keep them in my cupboard and I said okay some time I will read this and like as you said when the time is right it happens and I've become a voracious reader of his books and especially of Sarvi 3 every time I read it it's something beautiful opens up so thank you for that offering of that him being the adorable one being the consciousness and really lifting and giving the gift to what is the deepest yearning in all of us and thank you for sharing that and thank you for bringing that to your book and on the launch occasion the member secretary of Ignadeli and the honorable minister of culture they could not be present here but they have shared their messages and Dr. Gopal if you would be kind enough to just read them and then I'm going to invite Dr. Bailu and finally Dr. Jayanthi Ravi Thank you so much this message is from our honorable member secretary Dr. Sachidan Joshi in Draganthi National Centre for Others New Delhi Sri Arbindo is here phenomenon in every sense he is beyond the human mind's grasp his brief passage in Indian politics at the time of the freedom movement of India was not only an ideological revolt against the Britishers but in reality a reawakening of India's soul to its mission in the world his revolutionary ideas were later translated into a mass movement by the political leaders who came on the political arena once Sri Arbindo shifted to Pondicherry to initiate a revolution of human consciousness he lived for the ultimate liberation of humankind he is indeed a messenger and a force for the next future in human evolution it is this inimicable aspects of Sri Arbindo's life and mission that have been stressed in Dr. V. Ananda Reddy's compact book Sri Arbindo the Grand Synthesis the author has brought out this essence of Sri Arbindo's major works which reflect the multiple dimensions of the Maharishi it is written in simple language keeping in focus the major thrust of the books that he has taken up to introduce Sri Arbindo's philosophy yoga, social and political thought poetry and poetics each section of the book unveils a new phase of the revolutionary personality hence Sri Arbindo becomes a guide showing to the youth of the present and future a new way of life Dr. Reddy's book is a befitting tribute to Sri Arbindo's magnanimous personality brought out in this 150th birth anniversary of the personality who represent a great synthesis on all levels of human consciousness this book is greatly recommended as a mandatory reading for all students of all universities and disciples of the globe it is in this manner that IGNCA itself could pay its homage to India's greatest luminary of the present times May 2022, New Delhi it is from member secretary of Indiraagudi National centre for the arts New Delhi the next message is from Honourable Minister for culture and tourism and development of northern eastern region G Kishan Reddy G this year marks the 150th birth anniversary of Sri Arbindo what could be a better tribute to this Maha Yogi than to present his spiritual vision to the humanity the book Sri Arbindo the grand synthesis by Dr. V Anand Reddy highlights and summarises different ideas and thoughts of Sri Arbindo Sri Arbindo indeed stood for a grand synthesis of the east and the west of science and spirituality of matter and spirit and of all that is seemingly contradictory his works present an integral vision of the future of humanity today when the world is facing so many challenges Sri Arbindo's works can become the guiding light for human unity his solutions to human problems start with change of consciousness of the individuals eventually affecting the collectivity it is therefore imperative that people take to reading Sri Arbindo's works and this book by Dr. Reddy is a wonderful window to the thought vision and world of Sri Arbindo I congratulate IGNCA Pudicherry for publishing this book in this auspicious year my best wishes for Dr. V Anand Reddy and IGNCA with regards yours sincerely G. Kesharanthi Thank you so much Thank you for sharing that note and it's a privilege for the support that you provide I'm now going to invite Dr. Belumira I was just reading her biography and honestly that's quite an in-depth one I'm going to let her words speak for herself because whatever I say about what qualification she has is going to fall short about what she's going to share but she is part she's a senior academic mentor at Sri Arbindo society and she also edits their online journal but I think most beautiful what she really has to offer is the gift of mentoring and furthering the works of Sri Arbindo so I'm just going to invite you to share from your heart in this beautiful space on the occasion of the book launch she said to speak from the heart but I've been a student of Anand Bhaiya I don't call him Dr. V Anand Reddy but in this space of course he is the esteemed author of this book I've been a student of his for many years and as somebody pointed out that he's very structured in his talks so my mind also works in a little bit structured way so I have to write down some notes as to what I felt about the book when I read it so I'm just going to refer to some points I jotted down just this morning so before I begin let me just extend my namaskars and warm greetings to Dr. Jayanthi Ravi Foundation and Dr. Gopal Jayaraman from Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts and welcome to all the namaskars to all the guests from Auroville, Sarkar Trust Sri Aurobindo Washroom and of course a very very heartfelt greeting to my elder brother Anand Bhaiya who is the author of this book who is the reason why we are here today I just you know I felt very honored and privileged and really blessed when he asked me to share a few thoughts about what I think about the book and I was one of the few ones I think who were blessed to have an advanced copy of the book I actually remember the date when he lovingly with his signature gave me a copy of that book August 9th and it was late evening and I went home in fact after that we went out for a little idly and then we I went home and I left the book to be picked up next day or next week but I still wanted to skim through the book a little bit and the first thing that I felt was very I felt very drawn towards was the way the book has been organized as somebody pointed out there are two sections or two parts to the book titles of all the chapters and the parts they tell you a little bit about what you will get once you start reading about the book I also think that maybe it's not just two parts because the epilogue itself is a very important part of the book itself and I'll come to that in a minute but let me just speak about what is very unique about the organization so the part one of the book when you opened it's titled Sri Aurobindo the Future it's very interesting this title that has been used there because the title itself tells you that even though there will be a looking back at the past history of the evolutionary march of spirit in humanity and the Indian spiritual journey as such but all that is being done with a purpose and a very clear focus towards future and that's how he introduces Sri Aurobindo especially those for whom Sri Aurobindo is still very new so he introduces Sri Aurobindo as a messenger of the future and that's what I thought that was so very interesting about this book and reading through there are three chapters in this first part and what I felt was a great sense of calm and assurance that no matter how horrible the world is at the moment no matter what the term oils or the chaos that we see or hear about or read about there is Sri Aurobindo and there is the mother and there is that promise of the glorious supramental future that awaits so that I think is the really like a punching way to start the book really admirable in that sense and those of us who've had this feeling of spending some concentrated time with the works of Sri Aurobindo and the mother know this that this is very unique aspect unique quality in the force in their words but what is very interesting in this book Sri Aurobindo the grand synthesis is that here someone like Anand bhaiya who has spent several decades synthesizing and integrating within him all the major and minor works of Sri Aurobindo and the mother he brings out this note of assurance in Sri Aurobindo's words and Sri Aurobindo's vision in a very very simple way which makes it even more assuring and calming in that sense so that is a section that is really a very unique I felt as a way to start a book on Sri Aurobindo so what happens is that you know as we read through these first chapters the outcome of his masterful analysis is like a kind of a three fold I felt one there is of course a brilliant summary of Sri Aurobindo's message the second is that the key point in the message he's elaborated upon that using very relevant very pertinent contemporary situations and realities especially if you read through the chapter on five dreams of Sri Aurobindo and the third thing is that reading these chapters also do this amazing job of lighting that flame of aspiration to pick up the original works where Sri Aurobindo has written from where he's citing if you have already read it pick them up again maybe a third time to savor that rasa again and again so that is really beautiful in the way masterful writing of that part of the book and I think maybe that's why he kind of knew that what would enable that kind of a clarity or that assurance to the reader which is why in this very chapter on five dreams of Sri Aurobindo he refers to those lines from Savitri which all of us love God shall grow up while the wise men talk and sleep and for man shall not know the coming till its hour and belief shall be not till the work is done and belief shall be not till the work is done and then he starts the work of summarizing ten books of Sri Aurobindo but I guess summarizing is probably not the right word at least that's not how I felt that they are in the series before I go to that part two where those ten books are described there is another important thing that I felt very I was very drawn to was like throughout the book he's also referred to several conversations and talks of Sri Aurobindo with the disciples which were recorded by either Purani Ji or Nerodbaran Ji or another Anilbaran Roy and when you come across those little talks and conversations in between as a reader I felt here is Sri Aurobindo himself explaining his own profound points and then Anandbhaiya is sort of becoming the sutradhar of conveying that that felt like a multi-layered experience in the line so that again was very enjoyable delightful experience so coming to the part two of the book where the ten books have been presented he's titled that that whole section as Sri Aurobindo's contribution to humanity and the very first chapter which is titled stages of Sri Aurobindo's literary output that's like a very very important chapter to be included in this book and I felt that the very fact that it has been included and the way it has been organized and presented it can really give a reader especially those who are new to Sri Aurobindo the right key to enter the works of Sri Aurobindo and in fact you know as has been said earlier from Professor Gurmeet Singh Ji also and others that the whole book in fact has been written with this object in mind that the young seekers those who have an aspiration to pick up the works of Sri Aurobindo and to go through them patiently and carefully but somehow get intimidated by the very volume and size of these books here is this answer this book gives the answer don't fear start with me I'll show you the path walk slowly come with me so that's how this book communicates I think but going back to that one chapter Sri Aurobindo's stages of Sri Aurobindo's literary output it's very interesting how Anand Bhaiya writes rather than me paraphrasing I thought I'll just read two paragraphs short paragraphs from this chapter which will give us a way of how the rest of the book proceeds so he writes I don't have the page number here he writes Sri Aurobindo can be understood on three different levels of consciousness which are visible in his outer world action although he has always said that we should not judge him from his outer surface activities we see that there were three different there were different stages in his life and as he moved from one stage to another he displayed a different consciousness Aurobindo Ghosh of Baroda was not the same as Sri Aurobindo of Pondicherry there was a remarkable growth in his consciousness all along this is what I will trace the author will trace for our benefit and see in each stage what has been his outer contribution especially in literature as we are here to focus on his writings not on his inner realizations I have categorized his life's journey into three stages to demarcate his literary output which show different levels of inspiration and consciousness although we do not know the level of consciousness behind each stage of his writings I venture into such a classification only to facilitate the different stages of his written works and of course the three stages that he speaks of then are the mental stage the over mental stage and the supramental stage and in the supramental stage of course that is where Deep Shikha these insistence on how can you forget Savitri there is a two paragraph wonderful description of this super epic mantric poem Savitri and there again I think for someone who is new to Sri Aurobindo or relatively new to Sri Aurobindo or even when somebody has spent years in Sri Aurobindo you get you know you come face to face with phrases like spiritual panacea and future scripture of humanity and you know somewhere you get the sense that it's okay the mind the intellect gets this assurance even if you don't understand Savitri it's alright actually that's the exact phrase he uses it's alright it's okay and then of course he reminds the mother used to say to read Savitri in the true manner is to practice integral yoga so this tone of assurance this tone of that the you know master is there the mother is there to take you along is something very interesting and unique aspect of the book and then after this two paragraph description he gives us another assurance and where he talks about this deep truth about all spiritual works and he says it's sort of like you know as if it's coming from this inner poise of a Bhakta he says this is the greatness of all spiritual works we cannot understand them by ourselves so don't even track however brilliant we may be intellectually we need the Ashirva the grace of the divine master who is ever with us with this he launches into the description the summary the presentation whatever word will fit in depending on how we read what he has presented as the great grand synthesis so then there are the 10 chapters and again divided into three sub sections I particularly I mean it's like you know he starts from life divine the life divine and ends with the Savitri a legend and a symbol but I'll just take one or two examples before I conclude in the chapter on the life divine like I said it's not really a summary as such because how would you summarize the life divine so what he does is something very helpful as a reader I found very helpful and very engaging as well because I think after you've read that what the feeling you get is that ah now I am prepared to take up the book you get a sense of preparation he prepares you because he's not giving you like a cheat sheet he's not even giving you what wonders of it he's presenting what the book is about so what he's done in this chapter on the life divine is the last seven pages of that chapter it's like a masterful description of the very title of the book itself and he does that by addressing three questions what is the more profound implication of life what is the divine can the life of a human being be transformed into a life divine and these seven pages address these three questions and through that you get a sense I'm really curious now what is the real meaning of life and can my life be transformed into divine life let me go through this huge life divine so he does that in seven chapters he arouses this curiosity he lights up that flame of you know aspiration so that I really encourage to read that chapter on the life divine all the other chapters of course then again in the essays on the Gita he 18 adhyayas of Gita and then many many essays two series of Sri Aurobindo but he speaks of four essential truths of Bhagavad Gita selected in the light of Sri Aurobindo's essays on the Gita two from the spiritual metaphysical point of view and two from the yoga sadhana point of view and very masterfully again very precisely he speaks of those four essential truths similarly when you get to the books on the spirit and significance of Indian culture one thing that appealed to me very much was his chapter on Isha Upanishad which Sri Aurobindo also speaks of as the very foundation of the life divine and there you know as we know the title of the book again gets justified because Isha Upanishad itself is a sort of like a synthesis or a reconciliation of what seem like contradictory oppositions and to do that he's only selected three verses if I remember correctly to highlight that aspect so in that sense you know each chapter is a full read in itself you get the summary again summary is not the right word but I can't think of another word you get the sense of the book itself so I think yeah I started off by mentioning epilogue I want to come to that which I think is another important part of the book and why that is very relevant so that epilogue is in a way let me just remember what I felt yeah it's not really a meta summary if each of the chapters are not summaries obviously epilogue cannot be a meta summary of each of these chapters but they bring a new light to what has been said in the previous 10 chapters so after you read the epilogue my suggestion would be to go back and reread the earlier chapters because now you'll have a different understanding of each of these chapters having read how he has presented the synthesis part in Sri Aurobindo in that epilogue I don't want to like be the spoiler girl here revealing what the epilogue is about but what he said that if Sri Aurobindo is the fulfillment of that Vedic prayer you get an absolute clear reflection and answer of that in the epilogue part of his book so I think I have and in that sense again epilogue kind of justifies the title and it fulfills the purpose and the truth of the title of this book Sri Aurobindo The Grand Synthesis so I hope I have been able to give you a little teaser as to what this book is about and maybe you will be maybe you should spend some time reading through this book and I really want to thank the organizers of the event for inviting me to share a few thoughts about the book and my thanks to Indira Gandhi National Center of Arts for publishing this book very important book like I said not only for the young minds but we are all young in that sense we are all seeking that truth and my many many many thanks and congratulations to Anand Bhaiya for really making this book available for us thank you I can't beat you to that I remember as you know young children or even adults when you would watch a good movie or read a good book and somebody would come to say you know what the story is and you say no no no don't watch because I want to see it for myself experience and immerse you're not being a spoiler I think you said he vets the appetite you vetted our appetite now really lay our hands on those books and the books are available outside for sale so please do grab a copy on your way out but thank you so much I mean it almost seemed like the book came alive through your sharing and if you can be so structured in your presentation I wonder what your book Understanding Contemporary India in the light of Sri Aurobindo may have been so thank you for sharing such beautiful thoughts this beautiful listening to you and as we come close to this beautiful evening I invite none other than Dr. Jayanthi Ravi the secretary of Auroville Foundation and who's here she dons many hats but I think at the heart of it a voracious reader a thinker combines with artistic and creative activities and not to say that she's not an administrator but at this point in time I think I would love her teacher a thinker and a reflector speak on this occasion most of us good evening would find it a little more unapproachable or more difficult to come close to the lord and master and you may want to first start there but with this book I dare stand here hoping that just as one finds reading the mother and understanding her easy but also trying to understand what Sri Aurobindo writes which a lot of us do find sometimes very dense a little difficult to understand I think this makes it easier so I take the liberty of choosing to stand here today with full respect of course to mother I can see her better from here and of course in the sun and here of the lord and a big congratulations to Anandaji for this beautiful effort I think people have said many things I don't want to repeat it but I think I wouldn't claim I've read the entire book but the portions that I've read starting from the size of the font, the print I think everything makes it a little easier more accessible, more approachable and may this book as has been told by all several of the speakers in the beginning may it really be something that spreads something that is absolutely invaluable precious worth something that cannot be measured in terms of any currency or anything may this be a vehicle of spreading this thought this message this direct action of Sri Aurobindo across India, across the globe to every mind of any age any gender across all the barriers the human barriers that we create labels and as I was reading this there are a few things which came to me as a bit of a reflection of Anandaji some nuggets certain important things years ago when I was reading the Isha Upanishad the original Sanskrit and trying to understand it there was something that would often get me foxed there's a sentence that translated roughly says those that follow the path of Avidya fall into a deep dark hole that made sense to me I think I understood that because you're generally taught that don't engage yourself with too much of the material but when I read the next line which says those that follow the path of Avidya fall into a deeper darker hole Vidya those that follow the path of Vidya first it said Avidya that made sense now this really got me foxed and I think it was much later maybe about 20 25 years ago that when I read the commentary of Sri Aurobindo and that's when this meaning of the word integral synthesis where he's really able to say that it's not about this or that but it's about how you synthesize and I think the title of it being a grand synthesis actually explains it and for example he says and I think this is a very interesting point I'm reading from Anandaji's book here page 114 so I'm letting it out Sudha a bit of it but I think it's something that I liked it is significant because before Sri Aurobindo took up the series on the life divine in Arya he wrote a commentary on the Isha Upanishad and called it the life divine did you know that I didn't know that so the fact that life divine had a kind of connection genesis with Isha Upanishad which is what it is now once you know it you're able to connect and say of course yeah then that gives us a hint that Isha Upanishad had thoughts and ideas which he would further develop in his book the life divine the many ideas but the most important one is the integral life which the life divine presents and I dare say that is the the central theme of Sri Aurobindo which cuts across runs across most of his works and then he goes on to talk about the opposites in the 18 verses I think this is again a beautiful way of analyzing it because you also need we're all creatures that have been in a way nurtured by the education that we've all been put through isn't it so the mind is whether we wish it or not the mind is also one of these stepping stones that we'll have to use to be able to then transcend it so in that way this analysis, structure understanding, mental understanding is also it's like you can't literally kick or give up one for the other we need a blend of both so in this again he goes on to say in this Upanishad the emphasis is on the integration and reconciliation of various pairs of opposites the 18 verses and I didn't quite in all these years this is one of my favorite Upanishads that I used to sort of read every morning the original verse to for many years and I never looked at it in this way while it is there but I just thought for the benefit of many of us it says the 18 verses deal with nine pairs of opposites which are these number one the conscious Lord and phenomenal nature Purusha Prakriti but you know to put it this way renunciation and enjoyment tena tyaktena bunjitha so it's not bunjitha is not a bad word it doesn't say that enjoyment it says yes the rasas the enjoyment the beauty aesthetics all that is to be enjoyed action in nature and freedom in the soul so important for all of us who are in any active form of life those of us in the civil services or I think all of us because while you have to be really with very busy hands but you need a warm heart you need a cool head and I think that is something the one stable Brahman Brahman and the multiple movement and that's where this definition of the word unity it's that oneness which is there and therefore the fact that we all connect to each other being and becoming the active Lord and the indifferent Akshara Brahman Brahman Vidya and Avidya, births, non-birth works and knowledge so in this way there are many interesting things that I thought I loved in this book portions of it that I've read I want to again congratulate Ananda Ji for this and specially thank Deep Shikaji also because there's a stereotypical saying that behind every successful person there is you know another human being who is with him or her but I think in her own right I think she has a beautiful identity does a lot of things but sometimes these partnerships also help us make each one of us do outbeat ourselves it's not about competing with someone else but sometimes we create our own barriers and think I can't do beyond this but when there's somebody and that's only possible by someone who's close to you who can take the liberty of fighting with you sometimes pestering you pushing you and saying that no and I see many of them actually jostling each other now to actually make you go beyond what you believe were your limits and actually have faith in yourself and out to yourself to create something of enduring beauty of value for the rest of the world which is I think the least that all of us ought to do because otherwise it would be an act of selfishness right that I have got something I've learned it I've loved it I've understood but then I think that's out of that deep compassion that even drove the Buddha got enlightened and he could have just walked away and said but then I think out of the deep compassion where you want to do your bit and share it with everybody even if it means getting pelted with stones and getting attacked at every point and I think that's the inspiration that drives all of us I didn't know another connection of Anandaji with Auroville I don't know how many of you know that he began his career here or his life here that he also used to teach at the school in aspiration and also learned that unfortunately the library there and the buildings there were also at some time torched, burned but I do hope that as we all move together forward, Sangat Shatvam Vada Tvam, Sambhomanand Sijanatha as we move together let's hope that we all learn to be more open to knowing ourselves as Gopal Ji so beautifully said the process of education as Sri Aurobindo says is the process of knowing oneself, knowing the environment and learning how to be in harmony with the two I'm proud of raising it so I think on this beautiful occasion the first of November which is a very special month we're very privileged to be all here together in this beautiful space created with so much of care, attention love and beauty by Jaya and now Sudha too I think the kind of energy that we're all bringing in and I think each one of you present here I want to specially thank IGNCA and Bhagwan Ji and of course Belugia Mehta and Anandaji most of all I do hope this book itself brings about a great revolution on this very very significant 150th birth anniversary and let's hope this finds its way into every mind of every human being across the world there are several instances like this that really leave us surprised I met a gentleman I don't know if you all have known of him someone who has the marathon at the Ponditiri Ashram every year Ramesh Bhai Patel when sometime back I was talking to him way back as a small child growing up in Kenya I'm told that he would his mother and father's parents probably had nothing to do directly with Shorbindo and the mother while everybody has something to do with the divine but they were not aware of some connect but I believe there was a little small poster or a little pamphlet which talked about the ideal child and there was a picture of Shorbindo as a little boy and the mother as a little girl I'm sure many of you have seen this picture and there's a little pamphlet called the ideal child so that came somewhere in his school and I believe he would every day cry, protest and tell his mother he'll only go to school if that pamphlet was given to him it probably sowed the seed somewhere when he was all of 5 years old and then now he's all of 80 and that little exposure to Shorbindo has completely transformed his life and the lives of many others he runs the center in London and then does this marathon and so on so let's hope that this book also is able to have a very beautiful snowballing effect where not only does it metamorphose transform the nature of people who read it but they in turn become instruments of changing the humanity around them and the traditions again, thank you Namaste This beautiful evening this beautiful Sangha and a beautiful sharing of a space of Shorbindo the grand synthesis Thank you for giving us this honour and this privilege of sharing a space to listen to him even more and appreciate something even more that we could have on behalf of Jaya who has created this beautiful space and really held it in the spirit of the team I really want to thank you grateful and inviting Dr. Shruti Bidvaikar assistant director no director at okay future promotion already guaranteed let's look at it that way sorry didn't mean in any ways to give the vote of thanks and as we draw this evening to a close there are refreshments available please do have a nice cup of hot tea and some snacks books are available for sale and thank you once again for really really being here over to you Shruti good evening dignitaries on the dais and all the esteemed guests and friends of Auroville of Saka of Dr. Anand Reddy many many thanks for coming here I must thank distinguishedly Dr. Jayanti Ravi Professor Gurmeet Singh Ji Dr. Bedu Mehra Dr. Gopal and Dr. Raghavan KTV for organizing this very beautiful evening for all of us for Dr. Anand Reddy's book launch as he mentioned initially that it was the book was ready by June but it took us a little while to get it released because maybe it was supposed to have happened here because he came to Auroville Dr. Anand Reddy came to Auroville in the very beginning of his career and now when he is 75 it was not my intention to speak about his age but what we feel very happy about is on this in this year of India's Amrit Mahotsav 75 years of India's independence Sir also has become 75 and this is a wonderful gift that we felt at SAKAR that IGNCA has given to Dr. Reddy by publishing his wonderful work as we say in Hindi or in Sanskrit the SAR the very essence of what Sri Aurobin those works have been nobody could have done it but him because he has read for since the age of 18 he has read Sri Aurobin those works again and again and again he has read Mother's Blessings to understand them to concentrate on them and then with Mother's Blessings he has deliberated on them as Sudhati mentioned we have unfortunately only 2,000 hours of his recorded works there are many that we discovered this morning he said when I went abroad and talked for months together they were not recorded so the losses hours of course but we are really very very grateful for having organized this wonderful publication and thank you Dr. Ravi for having taken time this evening and released this book for us thank you so much thanks to the lovely audience and Sudhati, Jayati all of you for this wonderful organization the entire audio team the camera person has been constantly he has been very active taking a lot of photographs everyone's presence despite the rains so the rains really challenged us we were wondering if the rains are going to hamper the program but we are really happy to see all of you gather here so many many thanks once again to all our team in fact Deepshika aunty Dr. Larry they are here, they have edited the book we have all edited the book also we have our pagination master Mr. Vipul is here who has paginated and then we sent it to IGNCA for further if they wanted to do any further editing and yes ma'am about the font he was very particular that it if it's a heavy book it should not be in small font so he mentioned that so that we don't people find it easier to read that's one of the things so many many thanks once again and you are always welcome to Sakaar always welcome to I mean you know to Dr. Reddy for any questions queries thanks to Unity Pavilion once again for uniting us all of us here thank you