I was not practicing Sri Aurobindo's yoga. It was a fake

On July 2nd Serge Brelin left his body at the age of 53...

We have not understood what a collective being is. Our understanding is mostly political, and that takes over. It should not. This is what I understood. A community, or a collectivity, is just a space for the individuals to grow, but in which they are all one, thus creating a being. But this being is not political. It is not something that can be expressed in institutions, in rules and regulations and all these things.

Sri Aurobindo used to say that he had repeatedly broken all that he believed was true and started afresh. Of course, we cannot undo what has been done on the ground. But we can certainly make our mindset blank. What makes us die is this constant repetition of all that we believe is true, all our habits.

So if we would succeed, individually and collectively, just to make blank, to switch off, for a while, I believe that something will flow in. And that suddenly our relationship with all that is here will change, and that we will see new solutions, new ways of dealing with our so-called problems. And maybe, these problems will even vanish. But the machine has to stop. And I do believe that it has to stop first in our heads. If more and more individuals take it upon themselves to switch off the machine in themselves, something new will flow in.

Interview by Doris and Francis
An earlier interview with Serge titled “In relentless pursuit of Divine Anarchy” appeared in AVToday # 176, September 2003 Photo credit: Photo courtesy Doris and Francis Home > Journals & Media > Journals > Auroville Today > We are one being, feeling, thinking, living together Current issue August 2008 Archive copies The Auroville Experience