Prime Minister's Office
English rendering of PM’s address at a programme to commemorate 150th Birth Anniversary of Sri Aurobindo
Namaskar!
I heartily congratulate all of you on this important program of Sri Aurobindo's 150th birth anniversary. I also extend my best wishes to all the countrymen on this auspicious occasion. Sri Aurobindo's 150th birth anniversary is a historic occasion for the entire country. The country had resolved to celebrate this entire year especially in order to take his inspirations and ideas to our new generation. A special high level committee was constituted in this regard. Several programs are also being organized under the aegis of the Ministry of Culture. As part of this, today the nation is paying him a grateful tribute on the land of Puducherry, where Maharishi spent considerable time. Today a commemorative coin and postal stamp on Sri Aurobindo has also been released. I am sure that the efforts of the nation drawing inspiration from the life and teachings of Sri Aurobindo will give new energy and strength to our resolutions.
Friends,
Several amazing events happen simultaneously in the same period several times during history. But, these are generally considered to be just a coincidence. I believe there is some ‘Yoga Shakti’ behind such coincidences. ‘Yoga Shakti’ means a collective power, a power that unites all! You see, there have been many such great personalities in the history of India, who strengthened the spirit of freedom and revived the soul. Three of these great men are -- Sri Aurobindo, Swami Vivekananda and Mahatma Gandhi -- in whose lives the most important events happened at the same time. These incidents changed the lives of these great men and also brought major changes in the nation. Sri Aurobindo returned to India from England in 1893 after 14 years. It was only in 1893 that Swami Vivekananda went to America for his famous speech at the Parliament of World Religions. And, in the same year, Gandhiji went to South Africa from where his journey to become Mahatma Gandhi began, and later the country got the freedom fighter in him.
Brothers and sisters,
Today, once again our India is witnessing many such coincidences simultaneously. When the country completed 75 years of its independence, our journey to ‘Amrit Kaal’  began and at the same time we are celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Sri Aurobindo. In this period, we have been witness to occasions like the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. When motivation and action are combined, even seemingly impossible goals are inevitably accomplished. The nation’s successes in the ‘Amrit Kaal’ of independence and the resolve of ‘Sabka Prayas’  are proof of this.
Friends,
The life of Sri Aurobindo is a reflection of ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’. He was born in Bengal but he was proficient in many languages including Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, Hindi and Sanskrit. Although he was born in Bengal, he spent most of his life in Gujarat and Puducherry. Wherever he went, he left a deep impression of his personality. Today, wherever you go in any part of the country, you will find Maharishi Aurobindo's ashrams, his followers and admirers. He showed us that when we become aware of our traditions and culture and begin to live through them, our diversity becomes a natural celebration of our lives.
Friends,
This is a great inspiration for the ‘Amrit Kaal’ of independence. What can be a better encouragement for ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’? A few days back. I went to Kashi. I was privileged to be a part of the Kasi-Tamil Sangamam program there. This is a wonderful event. We got to see in that festival how India is imperishable and steadfast through its tradition and culture. It was seen in Kashi-Tamil Sangamam what today’s youth thinks. Today, the youth of the whole country is inspired by the national policy of ‘Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat’, leaving behind the politics that discriminate on the basis of language and dress. Today, when we are remembering Sri Aurobindo and celebrating the ‘Amrit Mahotsav’ of independence, then we have to expand the spirit of Kashi-Tamil Sangamam.
Friends,
We find the soul of India and the fundamental philosophy of India's development journey if we look closely at the life of Maharishi Aurobindo. Aurobindo was such a personality whose life had a modern scientific temper, political resistance and ‘Brahma Bodh’  as well. He was educated in the best institutions of England. He got the most modern environment of that era. He himself embraced modernity with an equal open mind. But, when the same Aurobindo returns to the country, he becomes the hero of resistance to British rule. He actively participated in the freedom struggle for the independence of the country. He was one of the first freedom fighters who openly talked about complete Swaraj and openly criticized the pro-British policies of the Congress. He had said- "If we want to rebuild our nation, we have to stop pleading like a crying baby before the British Parliament".
Aurobindo recruited the youth and gave the slogan – ‘No compromise’ during the partition of Bengal. He printed pamphlets named 'Bhavani Mandir' and made people surrounded by despair see the cultural nation. Such ideological clarity, such cultural firmness and patriotism! This is the reason why the great freedom fighters of that era used to consider Sri Aurobindo as their source of inspiration. Revolutionaries like Netaji Subhas drew inspiration from him regarding their resolutions. On the other hand, when you look into the intellectual and spiritual depth of his life, you will find an equally serious and mindful sage. He would discourse on serious topics like soul and God and explain ‘Brahma Tatva’ and Upanishads. He added social service in the philosophy of soul and God. You can easily learn from the words of Sri Aurobindo how to connect with God. This is the whole character of India, in which there is material strength of ‘Artha’  and ‘Kaam’ , in which there is wonderful devotion to ‘Dharma’ , and there is salvation i.e., realization of spirituality. Therefore, when the country is once again moving towards its reorganization in the ‘Amrit Kaal’, this totality is reflected in our 'Panch Prana' . Today we are accepting and adopting all modern ideas and best practices to make a developed India. We are working with the mantra of 'India First' without any compromise. And at the same time, we are presenting our heritage and identity with pride before the entire world.
Brothers and sisters,
The life of Maharishi Aurobindo introduces us to another strength of India that India possesses which is also one of the five pledges -“Freedom from the mentality of slavery”. Maharishi Aurobindo's father, initially under English influence, wanted to keep him completely away from India and Indian culture. He remained completely cut off from the country as he was thousands of miles away from India in an English environment. But Aurobindo emerged as the loudest voice of Indian culture after he returned to India and studied the Gita in prison. He studied the scriptures. He translated texts from Ramayana, Mahabharata and Upanishads to Kalidas, Bhavabhuti and Bharatthari. People started seeing India in the thoughts of Aurobindo who himself was kept away from Indianness in his youth. This is the real strength of India and Indianness. No matter how much someone tries to erase it and remove it from within us, India is that immortal seed which may be suppressed a little under adverse circumstances; may wither a little, but it cannot die; it is immortal. Because, India is the most refined idea of human civilization, the most natural voice of humanity. India was immortal even in the time of Maharishi Aurobindo, and it is immortal even today in the ‘Amrit Kaal’ of freedom. Today the youth of India is taking pride in its culture. There are dire challenges in the world today. India's role in overcoming these challenges is important. Therefore, we have to prepare ourselves by taking inspiration from Maharishi Aurobindo and create a developed India by ‘Sabka Prayas’. Saluting Maharishi Aurobindo once again, many thanks to all of you from the bottom of my heart!
DISCLAIMER: This is the approximate translation of PM’s speech. Original speech was delivered in Hindi.