Anilbaran Roy’s Interviews with Sri Aurobindo
Posted on: February 19, 2013
Dear Friends,
During the early years of his stay at Pondicherry, Sri Aurobindo used to have informal conversations with people who would come to visit him. These talks, which were held after the evening meditation at 4 o’clock in the evening, depended on the leisure hours of Sri Aurobindo. From 1918 to 1922 these conversations took place on the verandah in the first floor of the ‘Guest House’ situated at 41 Rue François Martin Street.
2 Responses to "Anilbaran Roy’s Interviews with Sri Aurobindo"
March 8, 2013 at 1:24 AM
Anurag Banerjee said, March 7, 2013 at 7:05 pm
Here is a brief biography of Anilbaran Roy.
Anilbaran Roy (3.7.1890—3.11.1974) was born in the village of Guir in the district of Burdwan in Bengal to Nabakumar Roy and Chandibala Devi. He was a student of Scottish Church College and St. Xavier’s College of Kolkata. He obtained his M.A. degree in English and Philosophy and Bachelor of Law degree from the Calcutta University. He was a remarkable scholar who excelled not only in subjects like Physics and Mathematics but also in languages like Sanskrit, French and German. He worked as a professor in Hetampur College of Birbhum and Christian College of Bankura. In 1921 he resigned from his services and joined the Non-Cooperation Movement started by Mahatma Gandhi. He was also elected as the Secretary of the Bengal Provincial Congress Committee. In 1924 he was in charge of the Corporation Elections which was initiated under the New Law. The aforesaid election elevated Chittaranjan Das and Subhash Chandra Bose to the posts of Mayor and Chief Executive respectively. He also played a pivotal role in organizing the Swaraj Party established by Chittaranjan Das and Pandit Motilal Nehru.
He was introduced to Sri Aurobindo’s works during the peak of his political career. In 1924 he was arrested and imprisoned at the Alipore Central Jail and Berhampore Central Jail respectively. After his release from prison in 1926 he left for Pondicherry following the instruction of Sri Aurobindo and spent 40 years in Sri Aurobindo Ashram during which he engrossed himself in the Integral Yoga. He was acclaimed as the best exponent of the Gita as interpreted by Sri Aurobindo. ‘The Message of the Gita’ edited by him was taught at the University of Cambridge. In 1935 as a mark of protest against a defamatory book penned by Miss Mayo he wrote the book ‘Mother India’ with Sri Aurobindo’s approval. His other notable works include ‘Srimad Bhagavat Gita’, ‘Gitar Bani’, ‘Purushottam Sri Aurobindo’, ‘Sri Aurobindo O Bartaman Jagat’, ‘Songs from the Soul’, ‘India’s Mission in the World’, ‘Sri Aurobindo and the New Age’, ‘World Crisis’, etc. He also translated Sri Aurobindo’s ‘Essays on the Gita’, ‘Uttarpara Speech’ and ‘Yoga and Its Objects’ into Bengali.
In 1966 he returned to Bengal to spread the message of Sri Aurobindo after spending forty years in the Ashram. He worked to abolish the partition of India and unite the nation on the lines of provincial self-government as preached by Sri Aurobindo. He started the publication of a Bengali weekly named ‘Swarnayug’ and an English monthly named ‘Light of India’ and edited both the journals. He also established the ‘Sarva Sewak Sangha’ to spread the teachings of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother. [Courtesy: Dr. Sailendra Laha: email: sailendralaha@yahoo.com]
February 26, 2013 at 9:05 PM
great help to sadhana. thank you for publishing it.