Understanding the Terminology in Sri Aurobindo’s Use of the Words ‘Soul’ and ‘Psychic’

Sri Aurobindo’s use of the terms ‘soul’ and ‘psychic’ started out with the common usage of the time, but as his work developed, he determined it was best to create a more precise terminology than was commonly in use. In order to appreciate the nuances involved and follow along with the central sense being communicated, we take a moment to focus on these terms which will appear constantly in our review of the current text.

As cited in the publisher’s preface:: “The reason why Sri Aurobindo adopted the term ‘psychic being’ has been stated by him as follows: ‘The word soul is very vaguely used in English — as it often refers to the whole non-physical consciousness including even the vital with all its desires and passions. That is why the word psychic being has to be used so as to distinguish this divine portion from the instrumental parts of the nature.’

“The word ‘psychic’ too, as Sri Aurobindo points out, has been used in a confused manner. Therefore the first section of the compilation contains extracts which deal with the various meanings of the words ‘soul’ and ‘psychic’, and clarify their connotations in Sri Aurobindo’s yoga. To avoid confusion to those who might read some of Sri Aurobindo’s earlier writings, particularly the unrevised parts of The Synthesis of Yoga, it may be pointed out that Sri Aurobindo had at first used the terms ‘psychic’ and ‘psychical’ interchangeably in referring to the occult phenomena. He also used the term ‘psychic’ in such exprssions as ‘psychic Prana’ (as distinguished from physical Prana) and ‘psychic soul’ (as distinguished from the desire-soul) to distinguish what is deeper or below the surface from that which is more on the surface. However, in the revised parts of the earlier writings and in later writings, he always used the term ‘psychic’ to refer to the soul or inmost part of the being, which from the very beginning he called the psyche.”

“One of the most important points to be grasped clearly is the vital distinction between the soul in its essence — referred to variously by Sri Aurobindo as the psyche, psychic essence, psychic entity, psychic existence, soul-spark or soul element — and the soul in its evolved, individualised form, called the psychic being, psychic personality, soul-form, or soul-personality, which, in Sri Aurobindo’s words, is ‘the spark growing into a fire, evolving with the growth of consciousness’. It should also be pointed out that the terms ‘soul’ and ‘the psychic’, when used without an epithet, sometimes refer to the soul-spark or psychic essence and sometimes to the soul-personality or psychic being.”

reference: Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, The Psychic Being — Soul: Its Nature, MIssion and Evolution, Preface by the publisher, pp. i – iii