We are impatient about the physical transformation. But our impatience really means nothing. There is a process, and there are imponderables of time and of what is beyond it, and there has always to be the sanction of the Supreme. The Mother constantly spoke of trying it in her own body, trying it in the divine pragmatism. That was the only positive attitude possible for her, and leaving everything to the higher Will and Wisdom. She never thought that transformation could come quickly, in a jiffy. One must first appreciate that there is such a big difference between Matter as it is and the Divine Existence as Matter, that which is not at every second tied to the obscurity of a half inconscient stuff. The question as to how long it will take, could be viewed in another way. Now that the consciousness is there, a fairly well-developed mental consciousness, things can possibly go much quicker. The bulk of the work is done, says the Mother. Yet the danger of haste cannot be underestimated. Truth born too soon might shatter this imperfect earth, writes Sri Aurobindo in Savitri. “If the divine Consciousness, the divine Power, the divine Love, the Truth manifested itself too rapidly upon the earth, the earth would be dissolved! She would not be able to bear it... brrf!” Yet the Mother had prepared herself, prepared her physical self that it could do wonderful things. The divine Presence, the divine Consciousness, the divine Truth could manifest as in a flash, could change it. She perceived that it is a Force, a Will that moves forward step by step. The truth is, there is none who is not ruled by the law of inconscience. There is prevalent disorganisation that prevents the cohesion necessary for the cells to constitute an individual body. But there is the aspiration of the cells, and there is something like a central consciousness of the body which aspires intensely, with a surrender as complete as it can make. There is peace and light, and there is the Harmony. There is at once this feeling in the cells that they live the eternity, for the eternity. “This happens many times in a day. At times it is like a mass. Sometimes it is only a thing that touches; then in the consciousness of the body it translates itself in this way, as a kind of thanksgiving: a progress in fact over the inconscience. There was, as it were, a total vision of this effort of the earth towards its divinisation. It belongs to a domain which is not yet ready to be explained, to be manifested in words. What is spoken is almost incomprehensible.”

15 November 1967

I never thought—I never thought that it, transformation, could come quickly. First of all, one has only to try, as I do, on one’s own body, see the difference between matter as it is, the constitution as it is, and then... what one may conceive of a divine existence—that is to say, divine, which is not at every second tied to the obscurity of a half inconscient matter... How long will it take? How long has it taken to change the stone into the plant, the plant into the animal, the animal...? We do not know, but in the way things move... Naturally, the more it moves, the more it goes quickly, it is understood, but quickly... quickly?

Nature has arranged things progressively to manifest the consciousness; that is to say, the whole work has been to prepare the Inconscient in such a way that it may become conscious. Now the consciousness is there, at least in a large measure; hence it goes much quicker; that is to say, the bulk of the work is done. But still, as I have said, when one sees the degree to which it is tied to inconscience, to a half-vague consciousness, and sees that men who do not know still feel the “fatality”, the “destiny”—what they call “Nature” and all that dominates and rules—well, for the last change to be done, all that must become fully conscious, and not only in the mental way but in the divine way! So, much remains to be done.

This is just what I see every day with this poor little body, and then, all that surrounds it, all this substance as it is, oh!... nothing but illness and misery and disorder. Oh! All that has nothing in common with the Divine. An unconscious mass. ...

But Sri Aurobindo says that if the divine Consciousness, the divine Power, the divine Love, the Truth manifested itself too rapidly upon the earth, the earth would be dissolved! She would not be able to bear it... brrf! ...

The smaller dose is always there. It is always there, a small dose; there is even a somewhat strong dose, and if one looks at That, one is full of wonder. But it is just because of That that one still sees... how things are.

An infinitesimal drop of That, can cure you in a minute—“it can”: it does cure you, not “it can”; you are all the while in that state, poised, and the least failing means disorder and the end; and just one drop of That... it becomes light and progress. The two extremes are side by side.

If this instrument was made to observe, to explain, to describe, it could say wonderful things, but, well... I think—I do not know, but it seems to be the first time that the instrument, instead of being made in order to bring the “Good Tidings”, the “Revelation”, to give the signal, has been made to... to try to realise—to do the work, the obscure task. And so it observes, and it is compelled at every minute to see how much work still remains to be done.... And so, as regards itself it can rejoice only when the work has been done—but what does that mean, the “work done”?

This divine Presence, this divine Consciousness, this divine Truth manifests itself like this, in a flash, and then... everything goes on in its usual trot—there is a change, but an imperceptible change. Well, for the body this is all right, and I think it is that which sustains its courage and gives it a kind of smiling peace in spite of all that is so little satisfactory with regard to the result; but this cannot satisfy it, it will be satisfied only... when the thing will be done, that is to say, when what is now a revelation—dazzling but short-lived—will be an established fact, when truly there will be divine bodies, divine beings dealing with the world in a divine way; then, then only it will say, “Yes, that is it”, but not before. Well, that, I do not believe that it can be immediately.

It is a... a Force, a Will that moves forward step by step and that cannot stop in order to tell the story, to rest content with what has been done.

Is there anywhere upon earth a being truly divine, that is to say, who is not ruled by any law of inconscience?... One would know, it seems to me. If it existed and I did not know it, then I must say that I must have somewhere in me a very great insincerity for such a thing to happen.

To say the truth, I do not ask myself the question. ... The process I do not see, how to get out of this inertia, this unconsciousness. This process of transformation—it does not stop!

There is the perception, the perception of a kind of disorganisation, like a current of disorganisation; then the substance constituting the body begins at first by feeling, then by noticing the effect, then everything begins to be disorganised. It is this disorganisation that prevents the cohesion necessary for the cells to constitute an individual body; then one knows, ah! There is going to be dissolution. Then the cells aspire, and there is something like a central consciousness of the body which aspires intensely, with a surrender as complete as it can make: “Thy Will, Lord, Thy Will, Thy Will.” Then there is a kind of—not anything bursting aloud, not any dazzling flash, but a kind of... yes, it gives the feeling of a condensation of this current of disorganisation, and then something stops; at first a peace, then a light, then the Harmony—and the disorder disappears. And when the disorder has disappeared, at once there is this feeling in the cells that they live the eternity, for the eternity.

Well, this, in this way, with all the intensity of concrete reality, is happening not only daily but many times in a day. At times it is very severe, that is to say, like a mass. Sometimes it is only a thing that touches; then in the consciousness of the body it translates itself in this way, as a kind of thanksgiving: a progress in fact over the inconscience. Only, these are not resounding events; the human neighbour does not even know it, he can perhaps notice a kind of cessation in the outward activity, a kind of concentration, but that’s all. So one does not speak of the matter, one cannot write books on it, one does not do propaganda about it.... It is this, the work. ...

It is a day or two now, I do not know, there was, as it were, a total vision of this effort of the earth towards its divinisation, and it was as if someone were saying (it is not “someone”, it is the witness consciousness, the consciousness that observes, but it formulates itself in words; very often it formulates itself in English and I have the feeling that it is Sri Aurobindo, the active consciousness of Sri Aurobindo, but sometimes it is translated into words only in my consciousness) and it was something that said, “Yes, the time of proclamations, of revelations is gone—now to action.”

In fact, proclamations, revelations, prophecies, all that is very agreeable, it gives the feeling of something “concrete”; now it is very obscure, the feeling that it is very obscure, invisible (the results will be visible only a long, long time hereafter), not understood.

It belongs to a domain which is not yet ready to be explained, to be manifested in words. And indeed, to the extent that it is truly new, it is incomprehensible. What I say does not correspond to any experience lived through by him who reads about it.

And I see quite well, I see so well the little work like this (gesture of reversal) which would be needed for it to become a prophetic revelation. A little work, a little reversal in the mind —the experience is altogether outside the mind, and so what is spoken of it (Mother tilts her head)... Precisely because it is not mental, the thing is almost incomprehensible; and for all this (oh! it is visible) for all this to become accessible, just a little reversal (same gesture) in the mind and it becomes a prophecy. And that... that is not possible. It will lose its truth.