The
Divine Body
Page 2
This
destiny of the body has rarely in the past been envisaged
or else not for the body here upon earth; such forms would
rather be imagined or visioned as the privilege of celestial
beings and not possible as the physical residence of a soul
still bound to terrestrial nature. The Vaishnavas have spoken
of a spiritualised conscious body, cinmaya deha; there has
been the conception of a radiant or luminous body, which
might be the Vedic jyotirmaya deha. A light has been seen
by some radiating from the bodies of highly developed spiritual
persons, even extending to the emission of an enveloping
aura andthere has been recorded an initial phenomenon of
this kind in the life of so great a spiritual personality
as Ramakrishna. But these things have been either conceptual
only or rare and occasional and for the most part the body
has not been regardedas possessed of spiritual possibility
or capable of transformation. It has been spoken of as the
means of effectuation of the dharma and dharma here includes
all high purposes, achievements and ideals of life not excluding
the spiritual change: but it is an instrument that must
be dropped when its work is done and though there may be
and must be spiritual realisation while yet in the body,
it can only come to its full fruition after the abandonment
of the physical frame. More ordinarily in the spiritual
tradition the body has been regarded as an obstacle, incapable
of spiritualisation or transmutation and a heavy weight
holding the soul to earthly nature and preventing its ascent
either to spiritual fulfilment in the Supreme or to the
dissolution of its individual being in the Supreme. But
while this conception of the role of the body in our destiny
is suitable enough for a sadhana that sees earth only as
a field of the ignorance and earth-life as a preparation
for a saving withdrawal from life which is the indispensable
condition for spiritual liberation, it is insufficient for
a sadhana which conceives of a divine life upon earth and
liberation of earth-nature itself as part of a total purpose
of the embodiment of the spirit here. If a total transformation
of the being is our aim, a transformation of the body must
be an indispensable part of it; without that no
full divine life on earth is possible.
It
is the past evolution of the body and especially its animal
nature and animal history which seems to stand in the way
of this consummation. The body, as we have seen, is an offspring
and creation of the Inconscient, itself inconscient or only
half-conscious; it began as a form of unconscious Matter,
developed life and from a material object became a living
growth, developed mind and from the subconsciousness of
the plant and the initial rudimentary mind or incomplete
intelligence of the animal developed the intellectual mind
and more complete intelligence of man and now serves as
the physical base, container and instrumental means of our
total spiritual endeavour. Its animal character and its
gross limitations stand indeed as an obstacle to our spiritual
perfection; but the fact that it has developed a soul and
is capable of serving it as a means may indicate that it
is capable of further development and may become a shrine
and expression of the spirit, reveal a secret spirituality
of Matter, become entirely and not only half-conscious,
reach a certain oneness with the spirit. This much it must
do, so far at least it must transcend its original earth-nature,
if it is to be the complete instrument of the divine life
and no longer an obstacle.
-
Sri Aurobindo
