Page 21 - All India Magazine Aug-2026

It is easier to feel the presence in the atmosphere of the
Asram than outside it. But that is only an initial difficulty which
one can overcome by a steadiness in the call and a constant
opening of oneself to the influence.
*
Magre like many others got an immediate strong impres-
sion of the atmosphere of the Asram—most feel it as an at-
mosphere of calm and peace, something quite apart from that
of the ordinary world. He thought it was the atmosphere of
the people. Besides, of the few who saw him, he saw only the
best. Also many here if not most have something in their ap-
pearance different from people outside, something a little lu-
minous, which a man of sensitive perceptions like Magre could
feel. The other side becomes apparent only if one stays long
and mixes in the ordinary life of the Asram or hears the gossip
of the Sadhaks.
*
The two atmospheres
There are two atmospheres in the Asram, ours and that of
the sadhaks. When people with a little perceptiveness come
from outside, they are struck by the deep calm and peace in
the atmosphere and it is only when they mix much with the
sadhaks that this perception and influence fade away. The oth-
er atmosphere of dullness or unrest is created by the sadhaks
themselves — if they were opened to the Mother as they should
be, they would live in the calm and peace and not in unrest or
dullness.
CWSA 35: 632 Sri Aurobindo

All India Magazine, August 2026 21