Section Française
“Lord, very humbly I pray to Thee that I may be equal to my task, that nothing in me, conscious or unconscious, may betray Thee by neglecting to serve Thy sacred mission.”
The Mother, Prayers and Meditations-20.02.1914
<<Seigneur, très humblement, je prie pour être à la hauteur de ma tâche, que rien en moi, conscient ou non, ne Te trahisse en négligeant de servir Ta mission sacrée.>>
La Mère, Prières et Méditations-20.02.1914
(Some French words used in Sri Aurobindo's epic Savitri.)
The complete list of French words :
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repliques (Savitri-75)
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façade (Savitri-88, Savitri-232)
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tour-de-force (Savitri-86)
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communiqué (Savitri-217)
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antre (Savitri-42, Savitri-480, Savitri-533)
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astuce (Savitri-512)
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point d'appui (Savitri-549)
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amour (Savitri-632)
"The deep oxymoron of its truth’s repliques," Savitri-75
Meaning: Directly borrowed from the French réplique (a retort, counter-argument, or a replica/copy). Sri Aurobindo uses it to depict how the lower material Nature gives a paradoxical response or an imperfect echo to the absolute Divine Truth.
“A balcony and miraculous façade.” Savitri-88
“Hell split across its huge abrupt façade” Savitri-232)
Meaning: Directly borrowed from the French façade (the face/front of a building). Sri Aurobindo uses it to depict the outward, deceptive, or structural appearance of cosmic planes.
“All worlds she makes the partners of her deeds,
Accomplices of her mighty violence,
Her daring leaps into the impossible:
From every source she has taken her cunning means,
She draws from the free-love marriage of the planes
Elements for her creation's tour-de-force:” Savitri-86, Book-1, Canto-5,
Meaning: Tour-de-force is a French word which means: tower-of-strength or feat of strength.
“The sky above a communiqué of Doom,” Savitri-217
Meaning: French line communiqué means communicated or an official announcement.
"Locked in blind antres of the ignorant flood" Savitri-42
“And the Beast grovels in his antre den:” Savitri-480, Book-7, Canto-2
"A victim in the dismal antre of death" Savitri-533
Meaning: Antre: French word of cave used in English for poetic use.
“Like God in his astuce of artist skill,” Savitri-512, Book-7, Canto-4
Meaning: astuce (French word): trick, cunning.
“Could be again self’s point d’ appui to live,” Savitri-549
(‘Point D’ Appui’ is a French word which means ‘support point.’)
“Time thrills to the sapphics of her amour-song” Savitri-632
Meaning: The French word for love or a love affair. It replaces the more common English word to lend an exotic, intense, and rhythmic texture to the cosmic song.
"Question: Is it right to say that those who know French will be able to serve the Mother better in the years to come?
Answer: It is mostly that it brings a certain closeness to one side of the Mother.”
Sri Aurobindo
SABCL/25/The Mother/p-368-369
“Sri Aurobindo had a great liking for France. I was born there – certainly for a reason. In my case, I know it very well: it was the need of culture, of a clear and precise mind, of refined thought, taste and clarity of mind – there is no other country in the world for that. None. And Sri Aurobindo had a liking for France for that same reason, a great liking. He used to say that throughout his (fourteen years) life in England, he had a much greater liking for France than for England!”
The Mother
The Mother’s Agenda/July 3, 1963
"Sri Aurobindo aimait beaucoup la France. Je suis née là-bas – il y a certainement une raison. Pour moi, je sais très bien: c'était la nécessité de la culture, de l’esprit clair, précis; du raffinement de la pensée, du goût, et de la clarté d'esprit – il n'y a pas de pays au monde comme cela. Il n'y en a pas. Et Sri Aurobindo aimait la France à cause de cela aussi, beaucoup-beaucoup. Il disait que pendant toute sa vie en Angleterre, il aimait beaucoup plus la France que l’Angleterre!"
La Mère
L'Agenda de Mère/3 juillet 1963
“Everything can be part of “sadhana”; it depends on the inner attitude. Naturally, if one lets himself be invaded by the Western atmosphere, farewell to the sadhana. But even in the most materialistic milieu, if one retains one’s aspiration and one’s faith in the Divine Life, the sadhana can and should continue.”
The Mother
TMCW-14/Words of the Mother-II/p-44
“In the West the physical mind is too dominant, so that the psychic does not so easily get a chance — except of course in exceptional people.”
Sri Aurobindo
CWSA-31/Letters on Yoga-IV/p-8