Reliance on the Divine Power Rather Than on the Individual Mind and Will

A strong mental consciousness and will may aid the individual in determining a way forward, but they are not the powers that can eventually succeed in the yogic process. If we view the yoga of Nature, we find that as a new power emerges, it brings with it unique, new ways of dealing with the need of the time and the evolutionary process as it takes shape at that moment.

In his Thoughts and Glimpses, Sri Aurobindo states the case succinctly: ""When we have passed beyond knowings, then we shall have Knowledge. Reason was the helper; Reason is the bar. When we have passed beyond willings, then we shall have Power. Effort was the helper; Effort is the bar. When we have passed beyond enjoyings, then we shall have Bliss. Desire was the helper; Desire is the bar. When we have passed beyond individualising, then we shall be real Persons. Ego was the helper; Ego is the bar. When we have passed beyond humanity, then we shall be the Man. The Animal was the helper; the Animal is the bar."

Spiritual development is not a mental process and eventually, the mental understanding and will must agree to give way to a different form and way of 'knowing' and 'being', a way more aligned with the nature of the spiritual consciousness. This is most easily accomplished if the seeker can develop the power of aspiration and receptivity to the higher force, and find a way to remain focused there rather than on the individual effort.

In his Uttarpara Speech, Sri Aurobindo relates an anecdote about the sedition trial he was undergoing before a judge representing the British Empire. He began to write out detailed points for his atto
ey, but then he received an inner command to remain calm and observe, and that everything would be worked out by a different force that was at work. He saw each player in the drama of his trial as an expression of Vasudeva, and undrerstood that everything was being done for him as a means to a greater end.

Sri Aurobindo notes: "There has always been too much reliance on the action of your own mind and will -- that is why you cannot progress. If you could once get the habit of silent reliance on the power of the Mother, -- not merely calling it in to support your own effort, -- the obstacle would diminish and eventually disappear."

Sri Aurobindo, Bases of Yoga, Chapter 2, Faith -- Aspiration -- Surrender, pg. 26