Insights About the Need for Strength and Flexibility in the Practice of the Integral Yoga

Sri Aurobindo makes several essential points here that bear some reflection. First, the need for strength in all the parts of the being. Until it actually begins to happen to an individual, he has no idea about the power of the Divine Force descending into the being and what impact it has on the mind, the vital being and the body. There are warnings in some of the traditional yogic paths about the potential imbalances that can occur when the yogic power awakens in an individual who is not properly prepared. An unprepared mind can become imbalanced or subject to chaotic and uncontrollable thoughts and ideas, or receive suggestions that can lead to negative consequences. An unprepared nerve channel can lead to nervous breakdowns and uncontrolled vital reactions, roller-coaster emotions, mood swings and trembling or twitching of the body. An unprepared physical body can become ill or break down in various ways, up to and including incapacitation or even death. Sri Aurobindo therefore stresses the need for the preparation, the development of strength and solidity in all the parts of the being, an unshakable force of peace that widens the being and thereby creates a vessel that can hold the Force without spilling it.

The second essential point Sri Aurobindo makes here relates to the need for intelligent insight, flexibility and receptivity as the yogic process progresses. Yogic practice is not a roadmap or a cookbook of fixed recipes. The practitioners start from various stages of development, and each one has unique challenges and situations to work out. Yoga is a form of applied psychology rather than a fixed methodology that is “one size fits all”. Observation, insight, reflection and a flexible approach, while maintaining the core aspiration and focus, are the necessary powers to be employed in the practice of the integral yoga.

Sri Aurobindo notes: “A strong mind and body and life-force are needed in the sadhana. Especially steps should be taken to throw out tamas and bring strength and force into the frame of the nature.”

“The way of Yoga must be a living thing, not a mental principle or a set method to be stuck to against all necessary variations.”

Sri Aurobindo, Bases of Yoga, Chapter 1, Calm — Peace — Equality, pg. 18