Mental Formations Mixing With Vital Forces

An incident was observed and reported by several people which illustrates how mental formations can create entities on the vital plane which become visible to those who have eyes to see. The incident occurred in 1981 in California. An individual had come to the West and took the role of a guru and had assembled a number of people around him, young people who aspired for guidance in yoga. He fell under the spell of sexual desire and a desire to control and master others, and the control of money. Power, wealth and sex, the three strong forces of vital desire had taken hold of him. One of the individuals in the group became aware of the pressure and determined to leave the group. This enraged the leader who assembled the entire group and engaged in an extended rant, attacking the individual and demanding the others choose sides. That is the setting of the experience reported here.

Several individuals saw a dark entity surround the guru during the rant. It seemed to come out of him and superimpose itself over his face, projecting itself into the room. It was an angry, lustful, desire-filled entity that manifested itself under the pressure of the situation. It shocked these individuals to such a degree that they later discussed it and found that they had a very similar description of what they had seen.

It should be noted that these individuals left the group and went on their own. The person in question was later convicted of sexual and physical abuse of minor children and sentenced to prison for some years. He had also, prior to his arrest and conviction, been accused of forcible rape by several women. Clearly the entity that was formed around him through the development of his vital desires had obtained such a power over him that he lost all control and sense of balance and proportion in his dealings with others.

The formations were so well formed that they could be observed by others and identified for the dark and foreboding nature of their energy. While this is an extreme case, it illustrates clearly how the vital nature and the mental nature intertwine and create strong formations which can take on a visible form, which itself impacts and interacts with others on the mental, vital and even physical levels.

The Mother observes: “People who have desires add to the mental formation a kind of small envelope, a vital shell which gives it a still greater reality. These people are usually surrounded by a number of tiny entities which are their own formations, their own mental formations clothed with vital force, which come all the time to strike them to try to make them realise materially the formations they have made.”

“You have perhaps read the books of Maurice Magre; there are some in the library. He describes this; he had come here, Maurice Magre, and we spoke and he told me that he had always noticed — he was highly sensitive — he had always noticed that people who have sexual desires are surrounded by a kind of small swarm of entities who are somewhat viscous and rather ugly and which torment them constantly, awakening desire in them. He said he had seen this around certain people. It was like being surrounded by a swarm of mosquitoes, yes! But it is more gross, and much uglier still, and it is viscous, it is horrible, and it turns round and round the person and gives him no peace, and it awakens in him the desire that has formed these entities and they batten on it. It is their food. This is absolutely true. His observation was quite correct. His vision was very true. It is like that.”

“But everyone carries around himself the atmosphere of his own desires. So you don’t at all require that people should tell you anything; you have only to look and you see around them exactly the state they are in. They may want to give themselves the airs of angels or saints but they can’t deceive you, because that thing is there, turning around them. So, just imagine! (Mother points to all those seated in front of her.) You see what you are like, how many of you there, all of you here, and each one has his own little world in this way, of mental formations of which some are clothed in vital substance, and all these crawl together, mix with each other, knock against each other. There is a struggle to see which is the strongest, which tries to realise itself, and all this creates an atmosphere indeed!…”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 3 Hidden Forces Around, pp. 69-70

Unconscious and Automatic Action of Thought Forms and Formations in Daily Life

A story was related by an individual in business which. at the time, seemed somewhat unusual, but now, in context, makes a lot of sense. He indicated that he had a customer who would think about him when she needed to place an order for goods for her store. They seemed to have a very tight communication with one another at this level, despite a physical distance of thousands of miles, so generally, he would call her within a few hours or a day and indicate that it felt like you wanted to place an order, to which she happily admitted and indicated she had been thinking about it and wanted him to call! This practice went on regularly for some years on random days and times, without a formal schedule or pattern, and there was a regular communication on this level. At one point, the business person was in Europe and he felt her trying to contact him to place an order. It was before the days of instant world-wide communication, so there was nothing he could do. When he returned a couple of weeks later, he immediately called her. She asked, with some consternation, why he had not called sooner as she had been reaching out daily for several weeks! He indicated that he knew that, but being in Europe he had no way to let her know, and that in the interim, he had gotten a headache from the intensity of her concentration, day after day, after a couple of weeks!

The Mother writes: “But, you see, in a smaller measure and less perfectly one is making formations all the time. When, for instance, one thinks of somebody quite powerfully, there is a small emanation of mental substance which, instantaneously, goes to this person, you understand, a vibration of your thought which goes and touches his; and if he is receptive, he sees you. He sees you and tells you, ‘You came last night to see me!’ That’s because you made a small formation and this formation went and did its work, which was to put you into contact with this person or else to carry a message if you had something special to tell him; and that was done. This happens constantly, but as it is quite a constant and spontaneous phenomenon and done in ignorance, one is not even aware that one does this, one does it automatically.”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 3 Hidden Forces Around, pg. 69

Thought-Forms

When we examine the question of thought-forms, we recognise that people usually want to imply that a thought is able to turn into some kind of physical reality, purely through the power of thought. This, however, is one element of the question, but not the only element. Thought-forms have a variety of mechanisms for being created and effectuated.

Whenever we conceive of an idea, a plan, an invention, a creative direction, we are creating thought-forms at the mental level, on the mental plane, if you will. These forms, in order to be effectuated in the world, can act either purely on the mental level, can influence and create a force on the vital level, or can directly work on creating a physical form. How this happens is really the ultimate question.

Most people have a constant array of thoughts flitting in and out of their mind. They generally have very little focus or power and tend not to go very far in terms of effectuation or any detailed manifestation. Those who focus on an effort of some sort, such as a scientific, creative, artistic, emotional, vital or physical activity channel and concentrate specific thought-forms to carry out that effort.

The action may be developed through a process of externatlisation, a communication process, whether oral, written or communicated through some form of visual, tactile or olfactory, etc. expression. Converting a thought-form into any form of actual communication in the external world is one means of effectuating it. The great writers, composers, artists of the world functioned in this manner. We can actually trace the influence of particular thought-forms through history when we work to identify for instance, the influence of Plato, the influence of the Vedic Rishis, the influence of Confucius, the influence of Shakespeare and the influence of Leonardo da Vinci, Nikola Tesla, Albert Einstein, Sri Aurobindo, or any other individual whose work has clearly influenced the development of humanity in a meaningful way.

Another method does not involve external action, but rather, the focus of the will power or the innate power of the mind to create vibrations and disseminate them. The action of the ‘silent will’ is one that many people have experienced through history, and people sometimes remark about the intensity of a certain person or atmosphere as that person is concentrating his force.

Certain spiritual traditions, such as Tibetan Buddhism, put a strong emphasis on the training and development of powers of mind, such as through extensive and detailed visualisation processes as part of their practice. It is reported that some advanced practitioners are able to create an actual physically visible or palpable formation in this way. Tibet’s great yogi, Milarepa, was reported to have appeared in a physical form and provided a last teaching prior to his death, to various disciples in diverse locales, all at the same time, appearing in his ‘rainbow body’.

The use of mantras has been known to create intense thought forms, even when not verbalized, that can influence events in the world simply through the power of the concentrated thought.

The entire issue of the power of a curse or a blessing on an individual revolves around the power of thought. There are instances recounted in the great scriptural texts of how formations were consciously created to harm another individual. If that individual was able to reject that force, it would rebound upon the sender as it had a power of effectuation that could not be denied.

It should be noted that harnessing brain waves for an external result is now an accepted part of Western medical science, as there are advances that harness an individual’s brain waves to operate artificial limbs, or operate a computer. As this science develops it is certain to show that brain waves, in and of themselves, are powers, unseen, yet real and effective, in the world.

A disciple asks: “How can human thought create forms?”

The Mother notes: “In the mental world human thought is constantly creating forms. Human thought is very creative in the mental world. All the time when you are thinking, you are creating forms and you send them out in the atmosphere and they go and do their work. Constantly you are surrounded by a heap of small formations.”

“Naturally, there are people who can’t even think clearly. So they form nothing at all except faint eddies. But people who think clearly are surrounded by a heap of little forms which, sometimes, go out to do some work in others; and when one thinks of them again, they return.”

“And we have instances of people who are troubled by their own formations, which return constantly as though to take possession of them, and which they can’t get rid of because they don’t know how to undo the formations they have made. There are more cases of this kind than one would think. When they have made a particularly strong formation — for themselves, you see, relatively — this formation is always tied up with the one who makes it and returns to knock at the brain to receive forces and ends up by truly acting as a necessity. It is a whole world to know; one truly lives in ignorance, one has powers one doesn’t know about, so naturally one uses them very badly. One uses them somewhat unconsciously and very badly.”

“I don’t know if you have ever heard of Madame David-Neel who went to Tibet and has written books on Tibet, and who was a Buddhist; and Buddhists — Buddhists of the strictest tradition — do not believe in the Divine, do not believe in his Eternity and do not believe in gods who are truly divine, but they know admirably how to use the mental domain; and Buddhist discipline makes you a good master of the mental instrument and mental domain.”

“We used to discuss many things and once she told me ‘Listen, I made an experiment.’ (She had studied a bit of Theosophy also.) She said, ‘I formed a mahatma; with my thought I formed a mahatma.’ And she knew (this has been proved) that at a given moment mental formations acquire a personal life independent of the fashioner — though they are linked with him — but independent, in the sense that they can have their own will. And so she told me: ‘Just imagine, I had made my mahatma so well that he became a personality independent of me and constantly came to trouble me1 He used to come, scold me for one thing, give me advice for another, and he wanted to direct my life; and I could not succeed in getting rid of him. It was extremely difficult, and I didn’t know what to do!’ “

“So I asked her how she tried. She told me how. She said, ‘He troubles me a lot, my mahatma is very troublesome. He does not leave me in peace. He disturbs my meditations, he hinders me from working; and yet I know quite well that it is I who created him, and I can’t get rid of him!’ Then I said, ‘That’s because you don’t have the ‘trick’….’ (Mother laughs) And I explained to her what she should do. And the next day — I used to see her almost every day in those days, you see — the next day she came and told me, ‘Ah, I am freed from my mahatma!’ (Laughter) She had not cut the connection because that’s of no use. One must know how to re-absorb one’s creation, that is the only way. To swallow up again one’s formations.”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 3 Hidden Forces Around, pp. 67-69

Becoming Aware of and Distinguishing the Source of Vibrations Impacting our Lives

Our consciousness tends to be so fluid and so mixed that it is difficult, if not practically impossible, to distinguish what represents our own internal process and what is coming to us from outside, from our interaction with others, from environmental influences. None of these things remains pure and unadulterated. There is a constant mixing process that goes on. We can observe the thoughts. We can observe the emotions. We can observe the vital reactions. We can observe the physical responses. But we generally are not able to separate the various elements or threads that constitute each of these things and see clearly what we are taking on, and how it is impacting us, from our external life.

If we can identify one clear benefit from a period of separation from the life of the world, through withdrawing to the cave, the ashram, the monastery, the mountain or the desert or the forest, it is that we can theoretically use that time, examining our own process and thus, establish what may be considered a baseline representing our current organised being and personality. Obviously, this is itself constructed from our earlier life, the impact of our forbears, and any family or social influences that helped create the identity we consider to be ourselves. As an observational stage, however, the value comes when we eventually return to the larger active life in the world, as we can begin to distinguish what we knew to be our own baseline from new energetic responses and effects that we begin to experience. This helps us to create a differential diagnosis and gain clarity about the mix of vibrations that is always occurring and how it impacts us and how it changes us. At the same time, we may be able to observe how our own characteristic vibrations go out and impact others in the world and change their responses!

The Mother observes: “Are you able to know, when you are with others, what comes from you and what from the others? To what extent their way of being, their particular vibrations act upon you? You are not aware of this at all. You live in a kind of ‘approximate’ consciousness, half-awake, half-asleep, in something very vague, where you have to grope like this in order to catch things. But do you have a precise, clear, exact notion of what goes on in you, why it goes on in you? And then, this: the vibrations which come to you from outside and those which come from within you? And then, again, what can come from others, changing all this, giving another orientation? You live in a kind of hazy fluidity, certain small things suddenly crystallise in your consciousness, you have just caught them for a moment; and it is just clear enough like that, as though there was a projector, just something passing on the screen and becoming clear for a second: the next minute everything has become vague, imprecise, but you are not aware of this because you have not even asked yourself the question, because you live in this way.”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 3 Hidden Forces Around, pp. 66-67

Transmission of Vibrational Patterns in the Physical World

The transmission from one individual to another, or from an atmosphere created by a number of individuals together upon others entering that environment, is both a matter for vibration and a matter for actual physical carriers of those vibrations. The body exudes these particles as it vibrates to a particular frequency. They strike the subtle body of others and can get incorporated and begin the process of vibration in those others. Unless we examine the mode of transmission of the various vibrations that impact us in the world, we do not actually always recognise the physical component of the vibrational transmission.

Physicists debate whether, for instance, light moves in space through a vacuum or whether there is some form of “matter” (the ancients called it “ether”) which acts as the medium of light transmission. We know that although generally unseen, we have an atmosphere around us consisting of material elements which carry sounds, sights, scents to us. Vital and emotional vibrations are carried within this material world in a physical manner as well.

We recognise a process of this sort with respect to diseases, which we acknowledge are caused by the entry and activation within us of bacteria or viruses, or fungus or mold spores, etc. These ‘particles’ (as the Mother calls the elements we are describing) then set up the vibrational pattern once they have infiltrated the body and gotten beyond its physical and vital defense mechanisms.

We also recognise that sexual vibrations are carried by pheromones, and that the impact of various fragrances or scents is communicated through particulate elements that traverse the air and enter our olfactory organ. Just as pheromones carry sexual excitation energy, so a similar process occurs with other vital forces, such as the force of anger, the force of peace, etc.

Genetic material is communicated from one being to another through the instrumentality of physical particles as well. This is encoded data that instructs the appropriate functionality in the body to create and reproduce a particular pattern in the form of offspring.

Quantum physics now recognises also that energy, such as light energy, acts as either a wave or a particle depending on the state of observation.

We know that the operation of energy on unseen particles of material substance activates or excites those particles and gets them vibrating in a certain intensity. For instance, applying heat energy to water converts it to a gaseous form of matter. Energy is communicated through air, which allows for the atmosphere around us to warm up. This is accomplished through excitation of energy in the material substance of, first the water, then the air.

The Mother writes: “It is the same thing for anger. It is very clear, one receives it suddenly, not even from a person, from the atmosphere — it is there — and then all of a sudden it enters you and usually it gets hold of you from below and then rises up and pushes you, and so off you go. A minute earlier you were not angry, you were quite self-possessed, you had no intention of losing your temper. And this seizes you so strongly that you can’t resist — because you are not sufficiently conscious, you let it enter you, and it makes use of you — you… what you call ‘yourself’, that is to say, your body; for apparently (I say apparently) it is something separate from your neighbour’s body. But that is only an optical illusion, because in fact all the time there are what may be called particles, even physical particles, like a sort of radiation which comes out of the body and gets mixed with others; and because of this, when one is very sensitive, one can feel things at a distance.”

“It is said, for instance, that the blind develop such a sensitivity, so delicate a sense-perception, that when they are nearing an object they feel an impact at a distance. But one can quite easily make the experiment. For example, drawing near to someone without making any noise, then bringing one’s hand quite close — sensitive people feel it at once. You haven’t put your will for them to feel it, you haven’t brought in any psychological element, you have only made a purely physical experiment of approaching noiselessly and without being heard — a sensitive person will feel it at once.”

“That means that the body seems to end there, but it’s simply the way our eyes are made. If we had a little more subtle vision, with a little wider range, well, we would see that there is something which comes out, as something comes out from other bodies — and that all this gets mixed up and interacts.”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 3 Hidden Forces Around, pp. 65-66

The Subtle Energetic Interchange That Accompanies All Interaction in the World

One of the reasons that spiritual seekers have traditionally been advised to seek solitude and not engage in society is that there is a constant, subliminal interchange that takes place between all human beings. We generally do not notice it, but on an energetic, a vibrational level, we are constantly receiving (and sending) vibrations that impact how we respond to situations, what we are feeling, and even what we are thinking about in many cases. There is of course also the overt communication activity that is taking place, but what is not recognised is the subtle exchange of energy that is taking place all the time.

It is not necessary, in fact, to totally abandon life in favor of the spiritual pursuit. It may, of course, be helpful for an individual, for a period of time, to step back from the external life, but this is not a permanent solution. Eventually, the seeker needs to become conscious and thereby be able to recognise and address the subtle vibrations that come forward. This type of practice is the solid underpinning of a spiritual growth within the context of life.

Sri Aurobindo does not accept what he calls the “refusal of the ascetic” as the sole path of realisation. Nor does he accept the “materialist denial” which supports the reality of the external life to the exclusion of the spiritual endeavor; rather he describes an ‘omnipresent reality’ which encompasses the integration of the two poles of a complete life, accepting both spirit and matter as one, unified reality.

The Mother notes: “One lives amidst constant collective suggestions, constantly; for example, I don’t know if you have been present at funerals, or if you have been in a a house where someone has died — naturally you must observe yourself a little, otherwise you won’t notice anything — but if you observe yourself a little, you will see that you had no special reason to feel any sorrow or grief whatever for the passing away of this person; he is a person like many others; this has happened and by a combination of social circumstances you have come to that house. And there, suddenly, without knowing why or how, you feel a strong emotion, a great sorrow, a deep pain, and you ask yourself, ‘Why am I so unhappy?’ It is quite simply the vibrations which have entered you, nothing else.”

“And I tell you it is easy to observe, for it is an experience I had when I was a little child — and at that time I was not yet doing conscious yoga; perhaps I was doing yoga but not consciously — and I observed it very, very clearly. I told myself, ‘Surely it is their sorrow I am feeling, for I have no reason to be specially affected by this person’s death’; and all of a sudden, tears came to my eyes, I felt as though a lump were in my throat and I wanted to cry, as though I were in great sorrow — I was a small child — and immediately I understood, ‘Oh! it is their sorrow which has come inside me.’ “

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 3 Hidden Forces Around, pp. 64-65

Physical Senses Beyond the Five We Ordinarily Recognise

Sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. We all recognise the input we receive from the five physical senses. These perceptions form the basis for much of our interpretation of our reality and our decision processes. Most people never consider that there are other senses possible, or available, to us. We do recognise that there are other senses in various animal species, such as the sonar or echolocation sense used by dolphins, homing sense available to many species (not just homing pigeons), etc. However, if we reflect for a moment, we may recognise that on various occasions we have ourselves received input from senses other than the five we ordinarily recognise.

Some people remark that they have an innate sense of direction and can always somehow align themselves in the world. Others note that they have the ability to judge the weight of something by holding it in their hand. Others sense the vital body or aura of other individuals. Some can feel changes in the energetic action of the moon (which is known to impact tides of the oceans as well). People can many times sense when someone is observing them without directly seeing it occurring. Others report a feeling of unease in certain locations where danger may be approaching them. Some people report a connection to another individual far away who may be thinking about them, or, as in the case of some documented cases out of the first world war, when a close relation was injured and dying on the battlefield. Still others report a sense of a different ‘atmosphere’ in one locale or another that may register subtle physical characteristics, differences in weight of the atmosphere, etc. All of these are signs of additional senses that provide us input without our overtly recognising where and how that input is reaching us. There is of course also an entire range of powers that include telepathic communication, remote viewing, etc. Many of these clearly represent physical senses, while others may belong more properly to the vital aspect of our being or direct powers of mind not specifically based in the five physical senses of perception.

A disciple asks: “You said that our body can become receptive to forces which are concentrated in certain places or in certain countries. But can we have this physical sensation without a preliminary preparation of the consciousness? Or is it truly a spontaneous sensation like heat, cold or goose-flesh, for example?

The Mother responds: “If it were the result of a thought or a will, it would not be an experience and it would have no value. You understand, I affirm absolutely that any experience that is the result of a thought or preconceived will has no value from the spiritual point of view.”

“But were you not in a state, so to say, ‘favourable’ to this sensation?”

“There are people who live constantly in a higher consciousness, while others have to make an effort to enter there. But here it is an altogether different thing; in the experience I was speaking about [In the preceding talk, Mother had described how on her return from Japan she had all of a sudden physically felt the atmosphere of Sri Aurobindo at a distaince of two nautical miles from Pondicherry] what gave it all its value was that I was not expecting it at all, not at all. I knew very well, I had been for a very long time and continuously in ‘spiritual’ contact, if I may say so, with the atmosphere of Sri Aurobindo, but I had never thought of the possibility of a modification in the physical air and I was not expecting it in the least, and it was this that gave the whole value to the experience, which came like that, quite suddenly, just as when one enters a place with another temperature or another altitude…. I do not know if you have noticed that the air you breathe is not always the same, that there are different vibrations in the air of one country and in the air of another, in the air of one place and in the air of another. If indeed you are accustomed to have this perception of the subtle physical, you can say immediately, ‘Ah! this air is as in France’ or ‘This is the air of Japan.’ It is something indefinable like taste or smell. But in this instance it is not that, it is a perception of another sense. It is a physical sense, it is not a vital or mental sense; it is a sense of the physical world, but there are other senses than the five that we usually have at our disposal — there are many others.”

“In fact, for the physical being — note that I say the physical being — to be fully developed, it must have twelve senses. It is one of these senses which gives you the kind of perception I was speaking of. You cannot say that it is taste, smell, hearing, etc., but it is something which gives you a very precise impression of the difference of quality. And it is very precise, as distinct as seeing black and white, it is truly a sense perception.”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 3 Hidden Forces Around, pp. 62-64

Close Observation Can Identify the Influence of Vital Beings and Forces

One of the key points in any attempt to change one’s actions or reactions, one’s behaviour or characteristic ways of responding to situations, is to determine, through careful observation, that these things are not an essential part of oneself or one’s character; rather, that they are external to oneself, and thus, can be changed or dispensed with more easily than if one accepts their centrality in one’s own being.

One of the most powerful methods is to bifurcate the being inwardly and shift the stance of observation from the surface nature to what Sri Aurobindo calls the ‘witness consciousness’, the standpoint of the Purusha, observing the actions of the nature, Prakriti. The Purusha is unmoved and does not accept these actions as its own. It thus gains the power to deny, remove or modify that is not readily available when one feels bound up and intimately connected to the actions of the nature as essential components of one’s existence.

Once one attains the standpoint of the witness, however, even further understanding results. One begins to recognise that most, if not all, that one takes as one’s own decisions or reactions actually originates outside oneself. A vibration occurs and it strikes the consciousness, perhaps in a very subtle manner, enters into the being, sets off a ‘sympathetic’ vibration internally, which then can rise to the surface and suddenly we are reacting based on that vibrational pattern.

It is through this means that one can begin to recognise the action of vital forces and beings as they attempt to take control of one’s reactions. Sometimes one feels a ripple in one’s vital envelope as the vibrations work their way into the being. Sometimes it may register as a feeling of discomfort in the physical body. In other cases, it may become a nagging thought or idea that pushes one into a certain line of action. In many cases, the vibration is contrary to one’s own normal state of being, and thus, an observant ‘witness’ can spot the anomaly and recognise the foreign nature of the pressure. This understanding may take time to develop, through repeated inner attempts at observation.

Many people have taken up the practice of ‘mindfulness’ or vipassana. This practice requires the individual to undertake each action consciously, with full attention. it also means that every internal reaction or response needs to be observed and thus, it can potentially aid in gaining the observational leverage needed to spot the influx of the vital influences.

The Mother observes: “There it is a little easier to recognise the influence, for, if you are the least bit attentive, you become aware of something that has suddenly awakened within you. For example, those who are in the habit of losing their temper, if they have attempted ever so little to control their anger, they will find something coming from outside or rising from below which actually takes hold of their consciousness and arouses anger in them. I don’t mean that everybody is capable of this discernment; I am speaking of those who have tried to understand their being and control it. These adverse suggestions are easier to distinguish than, for instance, your response to the will or desire of a being who is of the same nature as yourself, another human being, who consequently acts on you without this giving you a clear impression of something coming from outside: the vibrations are too alike, too similar in their nature, and you have to be much more attentive and have a much sharper discernment to realise that these movements which seem to come out from you are not really yours but come from outside. But with the adverse forces, if you are in the least sincere and observe yourself attentively, you become aware that it is something in the being which is responding to an influence, an impulse, a suggestion, even something at times very concrete, which enters and produces similar vibrations in the being.”

“There, now. That is the problem.”

“The remedy?… It is always the same: goodwill, sincerity, insight, patience — oh! an untiring patience and a perseverance which assures you that what you have not succeeded in doing today, you will succeed in doing another time, and makes you go on trying until you do succeed.”

“And this brings us back to Sri Aurobindo’s sentence: if this control seems to you quite impossible today, well, that means that not only will it be possible, but that it will be realised later.”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 3 Hidden Forces Around, pp. 61-62

Suggestions Coming from the Vital World Also Impact Our Responses

The vital worlds are generally unseen and unrecognised by us, as they do not take physical forms in the same way as our external world within which we live and act. This does not imply, however, that they do not have interaction with our world and the beings, including ourselves, that inhabit this physical world. Almost everyone has the experience of some event that occurs in a dream-state or in other circumstances where our mind and senses are shifted away from the focus and attention demanded by the outer world. The phenomenon of astral projection is one such circumstance. When one enters one of the vital worlds, there is an interaction with the beings who inhabit the particular locus that one is visiting. These could be fierce and dangerous interactions, but they can also be uplifting, such as interacting with a sage or teacher and being guided and educated in a non-physical setting. The physical body, and our awake mental attention, combined with a strong vital sheath, or aura, are protections for us from the total control by these vital forces.

Just as there are circumstances whereby we can enter into one of the vital worlds, so also vital beings from those worlds can, and do, enter into our world. In some cases it is with beneficent intention; in others, it is to seek to create vital reactions that feed their hunger, or lust, or passionate desire. The physical body, and our awake mental attention, combined with a strong vital sheath, or aura, are protections for us from the total control by these vital forces. The interaction of vital beings in our lives adds another layer of complexity to the issue of identifying and overcoming the power of suggestion that arises within us and moves our actions and reactions.

The Mother writes: “If that were the end of the problem, one could yet come out of the mess; but there is a complication. This terrestrial world, this human world is constantly invaded by the forces of the neighboring world, that is, of the vital world, the subtler region beyond the fourfold earth atmosphere (consisting of the four principles: physical, vital, mental and psychic), and this vital world which is not under the influence of the psychic forces or the psychic consciousness is essentially a world of ill-will, of disorder, disequilibrium, indeed of all the most anti-divine things one could imagine. This vital world is constantly penetrating the physical world, and being much more subtle than the physical, it is very often quite imperceptible except to a few rare individuals. There are entities, beings, wills, various kinds of individualities in that world, who have all kinds of intentions and make use of every opportunity either to amuse themselves if they are small beings or to do harm and create disorder if they are beings with a greater capacity. And the latter have a very considerable power of penetration and suggestion, and wherever there is the least opening, the least affinity, they rush in, for it is a game which delights them.”

“Besides, they are very thirsty or hungry for certain human vital vibrations which for them are a rare dish they love to feed upon; and so their game lies in exciting pernicious movements in man so that man may emanate these forces and they be able to feed on them just as they please. All movements of anger, violence, passion, desire, all these things which make you abruptly throw off certain energies from yourself, project them from yourself, are exactly what these entities of the vital world like best, for, as I said, they enjoy them like a sumptuous dish. Now, their tactics are simple: they send you a little suggestion, a little impulse, a small vibration which enters deep into you and through contagion or sympathy awakens in you the vibration necessary to make you throw off the force they want to absorb.”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 3 Hidden Forces Around, pp. 60–61

The Power of Suggestion Working Through Personal Connections

There is a serious rationale behind the many spiritual paths that counsel the true seeker to abandon his family, his friends, his social life, and live secluded in a cave, in the forest, in the desert, to practice his spiritual discipline. All of these connections and social interactions bring with them vibrational patterns that express the forces of thought, the forces of emotions, the forces of desires, the forces of physical and vital demand, that automatically enter into one and raise those similar vibrations within oneself. There are not only the unspoken assumptions that are part of the cultural background, but very concrete expectations that arise from one’s family, friends, co-workers and associates, even from strangers with whom we have just a passing interaction!

Even a cursory observation can lead one to understand that many of the impulses that arise within each individual are the result of these interactions. We may enter a place that is filled with desire for certain foods and suddenly, we have a craving. Or we may enter a place where people are expressing their sexual desires and suddenly we too may feel that impulse! Someone may be angry and we engage with our own angry response. Or someone may be deep in a state of depression and we feel drained and tired after an interaction with that individual. People who imbibe recreational drugs frequently talk about something they call a “contact high” where an individual, not partaking of the drug, nevertheless gets a glimpse of the experience just from being in the environs of those who are under that influence. Sometimes an individual experiences a sudden fear, and it takes hold of other individuals nearby. People visit churches, temples, ashrams and experience there a deep sense of peace or contentment or a blissful feeling, out of a similar influence from individuals who are experiencing that state in that environment.

It is of course not possible, nor necessary, for everyone seeking spiritual realisation to try to isolate himself from others; nor join an Ashram. And it must be noted that such isolation is in many cases counter-productive or even a failure over the long-term. What is required is an awareness of this influence, and thus an increasing consciousness of the play of forces, of the vibrational patterns that are provoked and the need to exercise a review and some amount of self-control over them, with a recognition that they are coming to one from outside, and are not inherently one’s own feeling, sensation, impulse, desire or thought.

For the most part the vibrations that arise from one’s associations in the world are relatively weak, as most people do not concentrate the force of these vibrations consciously or intensely. There is also a mixing influence as various impulses may cross one another, partially cancel each other out, or dilute themselves. Thus, it is like a low-grade vibrational state that is constantly operative, but which can be viewed and managed with conscious awareness. In rare instances there is someone who is consciously trying to extend a control or an influence and these individuals can have a greater impact, which leads to things we can observe in the world such as the development of a cult of personality where the followers come under the direct influence, and control, of a specific individual, who then becomes a ‘leader’ whether religious. spiritual, political or some form of charismatic individual in any field.

The Mother notes: “You live surrounded by people. These people themselves have desires, stray wishes, impulses which are expressed through them and have all kinds of causes, but take in their consciousness an individual form. For example, to put it in very practical terms, you have a father, a mother, brothers, sisters, friends, comrades; each one has his own way of feeling, willing, and all those with whom you are in relation expect something from you, even as you expect something from them. That something they do not always express to you, but it is more or less conscious in their being, and it makes formations. These formations, according to each one’s capacity of thought and the strength of his vitality, are more or less powerful, but they have their own little strength which is usually much the same as yours; and so what those around you want, desire, hope or expect from you enters in this way in the form of suggestions very rarely expressed, but which you absorb without resistance and which suddenly awaken within you a similar desire, a similar will, a similar impulse…. This happens from morning to night, and again from night to morning, for these things don’t stop while you are sleeping, but on the contrary are very often intensified because your consciousness is no longer awake watching and protecting you to some extent.”

“And this is quite common, so common that it is quite natural and so natural that you need special circumstances and most unusual occasions to become aware of it. Naturally, it goes without saying that your own responses, your own impulses, your own wishes have a similar influence on others, and that all this becomes a marvellous mixture in which might is always right!”

Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Hidden Forces of Life, Ch. 3 Hidden Forces Around, pp. 59-60