SRI AUROBINDO'S PACINGS

   He used to pace for hours together. This he did in each of the houses in which he lived. I remember, when we first came in 1921 to the Guest House, we saw a small narrow passage-like line in the middle of the rooms; it was at least a quarter of an inch deep, from one end to the other. The floor was, of course not made of cement but of chunam. We could guess that the depression must have been made by his walking and that was confirmed.
This attitude has remained with me. For instance, one day when I was" working in the Library House in her own room, Mother came towards me with a smiling face beaming with tender love and joy, looked at me and stretching her hand, said 'Champaklal, take this, I give this to you as your pocket expense."
     I saw in her hand one French note (the first one I got from her and that is still with me), but I could not stretch my hand. She noticed my hesitation and unwillingness on my part to receive the note and said to me, "Champaklal, take it, Sri Aurobindo has said that one rupee is very indispensable. So I give it to you for your pocket expense, take it."
     I took it, but I still remember that I did not receive it in the attitude I should have done. Now I realise that I was at that time under the influence of my old fixed ideas.
     Later she started giving to each sadhak two rupees as pocket expense in Prosperity on the first of each month. The practice stopped during the wartime.

TRADITIONAL LEARNING AND I

As you know, every Brahmin must learn certain things after his thread ceremony, upanayana. My father had taught me sandhya. But I was never interested in it though my elder brother, Sunderlal, was just the opposite, and yet both of us were brought up under the same samskaras. Father had sent us both to a well-known Pundit for coaching. This Pundit was very particular in the pronouncing of words and alphabets correctly. Now, when the matter of pronouncing sa, ,sa, sa came up, my elder brother learnt it in one day but I could not do so even after a week. So the teacher was very displeased. I felt very uneasy. He was taking a lot of pain but I simply could not do it, especially ,sa. I did not know what to do.
  Our town Patan is a very old place. There is a big gate at the entrance of every locality and this is called pole. Generally there is a watchman at the gate and he keeps some donkeys. Now, hear what happened.
  I told Sunderlal that I was tired of our Punditji. All the same we both would start with the pothi (file of papers) in hand. But near the gate I would halt and remain there sitting till my brother finished his lessons and returned. On his return, he would join me and we both would go back home together. One month passed this way. One day an unusual thing happened. Usually the Pundit did not go out of his house. This day he came to the gate and saw me sitting there. I did not know he had seen me. He went back. He asked my brother: What ? Champaklal is watching the donkeys there ?
  My brother did not say anything, because he knew why I was not going to the house of the Pundit. He informed my father but my father, unique in many ways, did not say anything. He provided facilities for our education but never pressed things. I was then 19.
  My uncle used to go to a village near our town Patan, for a month every year and stay there for worship in the Shiva temple. After his passing away, I went there with my aunt Motibai who is now here. The temple was visited by hardly anybody and so it was very quiet. The practice was that during this period one had to do certain japa for three to four hours a day. But I would spend that time in my own way.
  There was a nice pond outside the village and every morning I would go there for a bath. In the afternoons I would climb the tree above the pond and jump into the water many times and thus enjoy myself. One day I spent more time there than usual and was returning to the village with my aunt. At the entrance of the village there were two beautiful neem trees on either side which had just blossomed. Every day I used to enjoy the sight while passing that way. But this day I stood there for awhile and, while enjoying the scene, told my aunt: Look, how beautiful they are!
  Then we returned to our place in the village and I was resting lying down. Suddenly my teeth got clenched, I could not speak. Aunt tried to speak to me but I could not reply. I had a feeling that all would be well after two hours but I could not make her understand. I showed her two fingers, but in vain. I was indrawn. Soon a villager came followed by a sadhu who rushed in when he learnt about me, for he had respect for me. He came with a big bundle of long peacock feathers and started turning them over me. I protested, but none listened. All were busy hearing the story from my aunt. At the end of the narration the villager told my aunt that the tree over the pond was the haunt of a ghost.
   I knew it had nothing to do with my condition but I could not explain to anyone. I was not in a position to do so. The two hours passed wonderfully and things became 'normal'.
   The same sadhu came here in 1923 and saw Sri Aurobindo who spoke highly of him. Of his eyes, Sri Aurobindo said: You can see from his eyes that he has done tapascaryii (penance). And it was under that very tree that he had done the tapas before he came to the village and settled there;

LELE AND HIS MIRACLES

I have personally witnessed the miracles performed by Lele when he had come to ,our town Patan. When some school boys came and requested him to speak, he said my sister's little daughter would make the speech and in fact the girl did deliver a short wonderful speech! He would ask some persons to look into the eyes of this niece of mine -Lakshmi is her name -and they used to get wonderful experiences. Lakshmi was mad about him. And even when he had left, he once wrote to me to go to see him with Lakshmi. He arranged with Ambalal Sarabhai to keep Lakshmi at their place for study along with the family children (Sarabhai's). But my father did not permit.
      This niece was very fond of me and insisted on accompanying me whenever I went out. She had a younger sister, who fell sick, and, when I was out, she went on asking for me. As soon as I was back, I took her on my lap. She went on looking at me and then left her body. I asked everybody there not to weep, but a little afterwards a few tears came out spontaneously from my eyes and then everyone started weeping.
      As I told you before, we had a small Ashram. Lele asked that it be dissolved. He asked Dikshit to disappear without telling anyone of his destination. He told Punamchand to proceed to Bombay where he would arrange for him. To me he gave two alternatives:
      I) to go out on the street and if anyone needed help, to give that help. E.g. to the blind, the lame etc.
      2) to work as a blacksmith in a neighbouring factory where they were manufacturing brass nut-crackers.
      I knew my mother would not like the work of helping beggars' etc. to be done by me who was the son of a well-known family of Puraniks. So I chose the blacksmith factory and started working there. In the same compound there was a temple and a priest was living there -he had given up everything and was staying in that temple. There was a short cut to the factory which ran across some debris and few people used it. One day I went up by this way and got stung by a scorpion. I screamed a little and on reaching the factory, informed the people there. They insisted that I inform the priest at the temple in the same compound. I agreed and when I went there with the factory people, imagine my amazement to find that the priest was none other than my oId Sanskrit Pundit from whose classes I had been absconding.
      He was sitting surrounded by his disciples. He enquired what had happened but did not believe that I had been stung by a scorpion. I got annoyed and immediately I went back to the spot with the people who had brought me there. We searched a little and, did find a scorpion there after all ! I was satisfied that they were convinced I had not told a lie.

HOW I CAME

It was 1923.
  Punamchand spoke to Sri Aurobindo about our small Ashram at Patan in Gujarat, my native place. He mentioned that if his wife Champa came to Pondicherry she would be very helpful in looking after the kitchen in Sri Aurobindo's establishment. He said that he had already spoken to Purani about it, Purani being in charge of the Guest House'"during those days. Sri Aurobindo approved of the idea and it was arranged that Punamchand would go and return with Champa.
  When he was to leave, Sri Aurobindo asked Punamchand: What is Champaklal doing there ?
  Punamchand replied suitably.
  Then Sri Aurobindo told him: Bring him also when you come. Now you know how I came here!