Canto IV: The Secret Knowledge

For Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, the Earth is not just a piece of mud and clay but a conscious being, a soul, a goddess, which occupies a special place in creation since it is only upon Earth that there is found the psychic presence. That is why we see here upon Earth an impulse for evolution, which becomes in human beings an urge for conscious growth, conscious progress and ultimately an aspiration for yoga.

Sri Aurobindo, like a Master Artist, contrasts the deeper view of a spiritual gaze with the superficial one that we are accustomed to. This is our human state as long as we remain subject to Ignorance, as long as our soul has not yet found its freedom.

The Divine revelation takes a number of forms and proceeds along several lines of spiritual experience. Some of these are being described here, especially the various forms in which we come into contact with the inner Fire, the divinity within man.

This passage about a chosen human vessel should not be taken as if others are excluded. Chosen simply means that the time has come for this soul to realize the Divine or to become a conscious and willing instrument of the Divine Work.

In this canto we are given a glimpse of the secret knowledge discovered by the yogi and seer Ashwapati. A higher light, a deeper seeing must emerge to lead us to the doorway of this secret knowledge hidden in the heart of creation.