The Winds of Wonder

A columned shaft of fire and light

This is from Book Nine Canto One of Savitri. The dutiful God of Death has collected the soul of Satyavan and is taking it to his abode in the South. Into a deep and unfamiliar air enormous, windless, without stir or sound they seemed to enlarge away. Now, now they would escape, escape from the sight of Savitri who is following them, the spirit of Satyavan in the front and behind him the God, he as if functionally standing between the eternal lovers. But to win victory over him flames out the power of Love in her, she embodying it in the very physical.

Then flaming from her body’s nest, alarmed,

Her violent spirit soared at Satyavan. ||136.11||

A fierce she-eagle threatened in her brood,

Borne on a rush of puissance and a cry,

Outwinging like a mass of golden fire. ||136.12||…

Turning arrested luminous Satyavan

Looked back with his wonderful eyes at Savitri. ||136.25||

But Death pealed forth his vast abysmal cry:

“O mortal, turn back to thy transient kind;

Aspire not to accompany Death to his home,

As if thy breath could live where Time must die.” ||136.26||…

The Woman answered not. Her high nude soul,

Stripped of the girdle of mortality,

Against fixed destiny and the grooves of law

Stood up in its sheer will a primal force. ||136.37||…

Against midnight’s dumb abysses piled in front

A columned shaft of fire and light she rose. ||136.38||

https://motherandsriaurobindo.in/The-Mother/meditations-on-savitri/

Savitri Book 9 Canto 1 – Towards the Black Void

Into a deep and unfamiliar air
Enormous, windless, without stir or sound
They seemed to enlarge away, drawn by some wide
Pale distance, from the warm control of earth
And her grown far: now, now they would escape. ||136.10||
Then flaming from her body’s nest alarmed,
Her violent spirit soared at Satyavan. ||136.11||

The painting is by Huta: IX:1 #8

In+to| a deep| and un|+fa+mil|+iar air|
E+nor|+mous, wind|+less, with|+out stir| or sound|
They seemed| to en+large| a+way,| drawn by| some wide|
Pale dis|+tance, from| the warm| con+trol| of earth|
And her| grown far.| Now, now| they would| es+cape.|

Then flam|+ing from| her bod|+y’s nest,| a+larmed,|
Her vi|+o+lent spir}+it soared| at Sat|+ya+van.|