The Winds of Wonder

Apropos of Two Vast Negations — 12

The Prayer and the Boon

Yogi Aswapati does not accept the proposition offered by the supreme Mother. His plea and solicitation have another intensity and pertinence. He is as if impatient and asks her “How long shall our spirits battle with the Night and bear the brute yoke of Death”.

How shall I rest content with mortal days

And the dull measure of terrestrial things,

I who have seen behind the cosmic mask

The glory and the beauty of thy face? ||90.3||

He even lets her know that he saw

… the Omnipotent’s flaming pioneers

Over the heavenly verge which turns towards life

Come crowding down the amber stairs of birth;

Forerunners of a divine multitude

Out of the paths of the morning star they came

Into the little room of mortal life. ||90.28||

But still

Heavy unchanged weighs still the imperfect world;

The splendid youth of Time has passed and failed;

Heavy and long are the years our labour counts

And still the seals are firm upon man’s soul

And weary is the ancient Mother’s heart. ||90.35||

The only way out is, she herself must enter into mortal birth and bring to this creation the living dynamism of a life that does not meet Death,  divine life in a divine body:

O Truth defended in thy secret sun,

Voice of her mighty musings in shut heavens

On things withdrawn within her luminous depths,

O Wisdom-Splendour, Mother of the universe,

Creatrix, the Eternal’s artist Bride,

Linger not long with thy transmuting hand

Pressed vainly on one golden bar of Time,

As if Time dare not open its heart to God. ||90.36||

O radiant fountain of the world’s delight

World-free and unattainable above,

O Bliss who ever dwellst deep hid within

While men seek thee outside and never find,

Mystery and Muse with hieratic tongue,

Incarnate the white passion of thy force,

Mission to earth some living form of thee. ||90.37||

One moment fill with thy eternity,

Let thy infinity in one body live,

All-Knowledge wrap one mind in seas of light,

All-Love throb single in one human heart. ||90.38||

Immortal, treading the earth with mortal feet

All heaven’s beauty crowd in earthly limbs! ||90.39||

Omnipotence, girdle with the power of God

Movements and moments of a mortal will,

Pack with the eternal might one human hour

And with one gesture change all future time. ||90.40||

Incarnate the white passion of thy force, — and she grants the rarest and most precious Boon:

One shall descend and break the iron Law,

Change Nature’s doom by the lone Spirit’s power. ||91.4||

She shall bear Wisdom in her voiceless bosom,

Strength shall be with her like a conqueror’s sword

And from her eyes the Eternal’s bliss shall gaze. ||91.8||

A seed shall be sown in Death’s tremendous hour,

A branch of heaven transplant to human soil;

Nature shall overleap her mortal step …||91.9||

The featured image is a painting by Huta

Savitri Book 3 Canto 4 – The Vision and the Boon

I saw the Omnipotent’s flaming pioneers

Over the heavenly verge which turns towards life

Come crowding down the amber stairs of birth;

Forerunners of a divine multitude,

Out of the paths of the morning star they came

Into the little room of mortal life. ||90.28||

I saw| the Om+nip|+o+tent’s flam|+ing pi|+o+neers|

O+ver| the heav|+en+ly verge| which turns| to+wards life|

Come crowd|+ing down| the am|+ber stairs| of birth;|

Fore+run|+ners of| a di|+vine mul}+ti+tude|

Out of| the paths| of the morn|+ing star| they came|

In+to| the lit|+tle room| of mor|+tal life.| 90.28