Govardhan Dave responds to “Sridharan” reg. ‘Ashram Affairs’ in AVT

The article on recent ‘Ashram Affairs’ that was published in the October 2013 issue of ‘Auroville Today’ has most certainly irked those anti-Ashram elements like Raman Reddy, Sraddhalu Ranade and R.Y. Deshpande that hide behind the alias of ‘Sridharan.’ In an attempt to settle scores against their critics, these anti-Ashram elements have picked upon Govardhan Dave who had in the past presented on this website a factual analysis of the controversy initiated by these troublemakers. Govardhan Dave had lucidly, respectfully and accurately made the point that the rationale and mode of operation of the agitation initiated by these trouble-making anti-Ashram elements is not in consonance with the teachings of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, despite all their efforts to disguise their personally motivated agitation as a noble cause that they claim was meant to protect “Sri Aurobindo’s Image.” The article in the issue of ‘Auroville Today’ had also used several of Govardhan Dave’s apt quotes.

Increasingly cornered and with their backs against the wall, these desperate anti-Ashram elements have resorted to their favorite form of retaliation in which they go all out to try and assassinate the character of their critics by raking up personal issues and hitting below the belt. On their CHOLA-TLOSA website, ‘Sridharan & Co.’ have thus tried to pooh-pooh Govardhan Dave’s long-standing and close association with the Sri Aurobindo Ashram, they have tried to taint some of the legal battles he is personally involved in – in which it turns out that the Sri Aurobindo Society had a part to play – and they have tried to personally humiliate him by remarking that his “mind seems to be thus working in reverse gear!”

‘Sridharan’s’ offensive tirade against Govardhan Dave has forced the latter to present the facts on all of the issues that the former has raked up. We reproduce below Govardhan Dave’s comment that was posted on this website.

We have felt it helpful to break-up Govardhan Dave’s presentation in the following parts:

I – Sri Aurobindo Society’s (SAS) dubious interference and financial dealings in the case of the Navsarjan Society.

II – Govardhan Dave’s interest in the Peter Heehs affair.

III – Democracy and the Sri Aurobindo Ashram.

IV – Issues of racial discrimination

V – Government intervention in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram

VI – Conclusion

Text added by our editorial team is indicated within square brackets like so: […text added by editors…].

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FACTUAL ANALYSIS OF THE CONTROVERSY INITIATED BY SOME DEVOTEES – II

I have read with interest the write-up of Mr. Sridharan on the article published in the ‘Auroville Today’ on the Ashram Affairs in which he has raised a few significant points which deserve clarification. Hence these detailed comments, which I hope would put the matter in almost right perspective besides clearing the misunderstandings that his presentation has created.

[I – Sri Aurobindo Society’s (SAS) dubious interference and financial dealings in the case of the Navsarjan Society.]

1. Initially, I prefer to clarify the confusion created by his observations about my background which are based on misinformation and are not relevant to the issues under consideration and he too had not shown the impact of this background on my views expressed in the write-up under reference. He in his attempted research to dig it out has come across a concocted version which has prompted me to put the record straight. Till now I was avoiding to present the facts in this connection in public forum which would have caused embarrassment to some distinguished persons in Sri Aurobindo Ashram and Sri Aurobindo Society. But now in order to uphold the dignity of our Trust in Gujarat known as Navsarjan Society which is wedded to the Mother’s ideals and of which I am one of the founder trustees, as well as that of the Society of which I am a life member, and also of Sri Aurobindo Ashram, which I adore, it has become necessary to reveal the real facts.

2. To say that Sri Aurobindo Society had stepped in to offer financial aid when the School managed by me was running in loss is far from truth, as this Society actually had not taken any initiative to help us, but it was just dragged in by its office-bearers and that too in the mire of corrupt practices, under the pretext of helping us but evidently to serve their dubious intentions as would become evident from the verifiable facts related herein under.

3. After I retired from the active management of the Navsarjan Trust in June 2007 a team of our three trustees namely Roshan Dumasia, Apurva Joshi – who are attached to the Ashram in some manner – and Kamal Mangal – basically a businessman – took over the management in September 2008. Their mismanagement culminated in the Government passing an order to withdraw the affiliation of our prestigious School having 40 years of reputation in Gujarat and forced its closure. This team then made efforts in explicit and implicit manner to facilitate the transfer of the management control of our Trust to the one managed by Kamal Mangal which does not subscribe to our ideal. These efforts did not succeed because of my insistence on preserving the identity of our Trust and keep intact its property.

4. Under these circumstances when no other trustee was willing to make any kind of effort to salvage the Institution, I moved all alone and after several efforts succeeded in obtaining a reliable assurance of help to the tune of 25 to 30 Crores of Rupees on the basis of which I prepared in January 2010 a detailed program to restart the School with better outfit from June 2010 and also for the total renovation of its entire campus.

5. This proposal was duly verified by the trustees and then given written sanction. Subsequently, I made serious efforts to work out the program. However when the first phase of this program was nearing completion, this team mysteriously sabotaged the entire program in May 2010, since they feared that its success would have otherwise prevented fulfilling their dubious agenda.

6. It is at this juncture that this team thought of transferring the responsibility of our work to some other party and with that in view it sought the help of Pradip Narang of Sri Aurobindo Society and on his advice appointed three members of its executive committee namely Pradip Narang, Vijay Poddar and Kaivalya Smart as Trustees along with two of its other members namely Akshay Mehta and Shreyans Jain. All these members were appointed in their individual capacity and not as representatives of the Society.

7. This new team took over the management of this Institution, i.e. Navsarjan Trust in June 2011 with a mandate to take up some Constructive Program. However, while conveniently sidetracking this mandate, Kaivalya Smart on behalf of the team appointed his close relative, one Shraddha Mehta as Principal of a School, which was not in existence and under the pretext of monthly salary, arranged to send to her residence at Mumbai a hefty amount of Rs 45,000/- every month from July 2011 onwards, although she had done no work, nor was any work assigned to her in the Navsarjan and she had not even marked her presence in its roll for a single day. I alerted Pradip Narang about this dealing being not in order, but he instead of mending things preferred to approve it through a resolution adopted in a meeting held in January 2012 which was approved by all the members of his team and also by the three old trustees. He made an attempt through this resolution to justify the entire deal through an explanation that during this period she was working for Sri Aurobindo Society and was temporarily transferred to its roll. This excuse was evidently false as she was continued on our roll only and the salary amount that was paid to her was paid through the books of accounts of our trust.

8. This team in order to arrange for such unusually out of the way dealings had preferred to open a special account in a bank at Nargol in the name of Sri Aurobindo Society, although no work of the Society was on the anvil there, nor was there any of its franchisees. In order to accomplish this uncanny task the above mentioned three members of its executive committee abused their power and authority and coerced the members of this committee to adopt a resolution for opening this account and also for regular remittance of money from its funds in this account to meet their personal obligations that had arisen out of their working in our trust. Thus the Society had to scoff off about thirteen Lakh Rupees over a period, might be more to oblige its office bearers. I wonder how these out of the way dealing would be accounted in the books of the Society which is a Society registered under the Societies Registration Act.

9. Realizing the criminal implications of such an out of the way working, Kaivalya Smart in a bid to destroy the evidence manipulated the accounts and put the same for consideration in a meeting held in August 2012. Although I had duly acquainted these members including Vijay Poddar and Pradip Narang of the accounts thus being deprived of their reliability, none of them objected to such wrongful indulgence having criminal overtones.

10. These above cited acts do not come any way near the avowed contention of Sridharan. Instead, they reveal how these two Institutions, Sri Aurobindo Society and our Navsarjan Trust were duped and defrauded by these persons who were supposed to be the promoters and protectors of interest of these two Institutions. They had thus tarnished the image of the Institutions which were held in high esteem by people. Hence, if Sridharan had taken care to verify his premises he would not have made such embarrassing and baseless observations about my background. It is needless to say that in a healthy dialogue people just dwell upon the merits of the contents of the issues involved and do not cast aspersions, and that too unfounded, and create thereby a prejudice against persons with whom they do not agree. I suppose his thoughtless reference to my background was not in good taste, to say the least.

[II – Govardhan Dave’s interest in the Peter Heehs affair.]

11. With regard to the Ashram trustees and Peter Heehs referred to by him, I say that I do not hold any brief for either of them and my write-up under consideration was not meant to defend any party and denounce or denigrate another. If they are defended, it was just incidental and was not my motive. However, I do believe and repeat my observation made in my write-up under reference that the means employed by those inmates and devotees of the Ashram who had targeted its trustees to humiliate or intimidate them through the crowd gathered from near and far at some cost and in order to malign them to pump vehemently and ceaselessly in public mind the manipulated and malicious information through different media and through street demonstrations and through sting operations and character assassination or in order to accomplish short term gains to seek assistance of unscrupulous politicians etc. being patent tools of falsehood do not concur with the Mother’s teachings. I have also come across the stance of some other devotees of the Ashram who have used emotive or emotionally charged language in their zeal to defend the Ashram Trustees and had entertained the intention to pay the attackers in the same coin in order to give vent to their anguish and indignation. In this connection also I say that this style of presentation does not go well with the Mother’s Teachings. Actually for all those who profess to serve the Mother and desire to stand by truth there is a patent advice that implores us to behave as if She is looking at us, and indeed She is looking at us.

12. Sridharan in this write-up seems to be worried about “why I had not presented my views on this controversy when it had erupted in August 2008 and had come up when an inquiry on the Ashram Trustees was sought from the Puduchery Collector”. In response, may I ask why he had sought to dwell over the alleged shortcomings of my write-up in December 2013 after I was quoted in Auroville Today, when it was already published a year before in December 2012? He would certainly find his answer as both of us were waiting for a right time.

13. Sridharan’s another worry is why I did not express my views on several allegations made against the Ashram Trustees. In this connection I have to say that I prefer to express my opinion on matters when I am in possession of reliable evidence for proper evaluation. I suppose I am right when I discriminate between having information and having knowledge and do not jump to judge the matters from the surface appearances on a spur of the moment. Besides for my purpose when I had dispassionately presented my analysis of the facts related to the entire controversy in general, to opine on particular issues had become redundant. However this purpose is also served as the Ashram Trustees have now agreed to impartial investigation of the allegations made against them by a High Court Judge. If they were found to be averse earlier, it was against politically engineered investigation and not against investigation as such. I suppose, their stand was right.

[III – Democracy and the Sri Aurobindo Ashram]

14. Sridharan seems to hold an opinion that Democracy because of its pluralistic orientation promotes freedom even to hold divergent views. Then why to put ban on the publication of the book written by Peter Hees on Sri Aurobindo. Would it not be violating the tenets of Democracy, if someone is denigrated because he does not support the demand to ban this or that book? And what ambiguity or inconsistency is there if Manoj Dasgupta at some point of time had found some faults in Peter’s book and then he pronounces in his capacity as the Managing Trustee of the Ashram that the Ashram does not prescribe or proscribe the book? Is this attitude not consistent with the Spirit of Democracy?

15. And it is beyond understanding that the revised version of Savitri is made an issue on which people thought it wise to approach the Courts. Those who have attempted to decipher the hand writings of Sri Aurobindo have found it very difficult to say with certainty that their reading was perfect. Then what is wrong if the previous script was revised, when someone came across some mistakes, unless it is shown that some dubious intention had prompted such revision.

16. And now about the central issue raised by Sridharan about my observations on the broad-based democratic set-up to replace the present working of the Ashram and about sarcastic remark made by him whether I prefer Dictatorship or Oligarchy or One Party Rule or Anarchy. With regard to my observations about Democracy turning into Mobocracy, he opines that the mob does not come to spiritual Institutions; it is only the spiritual elite, the psychically awakened who come to settle in the Ashram. Is it really so? Even the Mother in Her reply to a question as to how many persons in the Ashram had reached to the state of Nirvana had observed that there were very few there, the rest were children still to grow up, still to become mature. Hence, the membership of the Ashram of such persons, who are still a bit away from maturity, does not necessarily vouch for their fully imbibing the spirit of the Ashram, much less of their being psychically awakened.

17. Moreover, as the proposal for broad-based management as it envisages participation of the devotees all over the world creates a greater mob, especially because in the present set up of life, the domination of the awareness of the Rights over that of the Duty generates conditions favorable to creation of a mob which would relegate those who are consciously pursuing Sadhana to a negligible minority. It is such mobs or masses known as public and their ideology, or rather lack of ideology that is found determining in some manner the working of our Governments, which are presently under dominating influence of the power of money and muscles. And when a mob come to a Spiritual Institutions and starts influencing its management there emerge a tendency to bring Spirituality to its level instead of raising the life of people to the level of Spirituality. This had been the fate of several Religions in the world. It is quite likely that the Ashram too might fall in line, and get exposed to the deviating influence of the prevalent state of affairs. Plato, who had envisaged this conversion of Democracy into Mobocracy is proved right by the present developments. Our Mother has moved far ahead of this stage of Human Evolution and has laid down the foundation of the new mode of management which would concur with the life to come.

18. Historically Democracy is the product of the transition of the Society from its conservative pattern to the individualistic creating conditions favorable to the gradual replacement of the hold of the Traditions by that of Reason. But in the present stage of evolution of Man, because of the unregenerate state of the majority of the humans, Reasoning is found giving way to Rationalizing and the support of the enlightened public opinion which is the necessary condition of the success of Democracy remains unfulfilled. Consequently the Rule of Ignorance continues and Rule by Knowledge is still a far cry.

19. As envisaged by Sri Aurobindo, humanity is to proceed to the transition from the Individualistic to the Subjective or Spiritual pattern of life, which alone would facilitate the replacement of the Rule of Ignorance by that of Knowledge. And it seems that our Ashram is an Institution chosen to work out the possibility of this transition for the mankind. To leave midway this experiment launched by the Mother and fall back to the prevalent mode of working because of our familiarity with it would certainly amount to disowning the Mother as brought out by me in my write-up under reference.

[IV – Issues of racial discrimination]

20. And there is still a greater problem as the promoters of the proposal for the democratization of the Ashram management did not include the Aurovillians therein which amounts to saying that they do not qualify for participation in the management of the Ashram. This interpretation is confirmed by the attempt of Sridharan to equate Aurovillians with the Westerners and has promoted a theory of Indians there being dominated by the views of the Westerners in order to upheld this equation, might be in his role as a spokesperson of this team. While subscribing to this equation he seems to be quite doubtful about the allegiance of these Westerners to the work of the Mother and about their capacity to absorb Her influence in their beings. He also seems to believe that they were cursing the Ashram as a decrepit Institution and looking down upon it and therefore is wondering about their new-found respect that they have suddenly acquired and feels that their overnight support wells from selfish interest of a few foreigners who are more concerned about their visa than the spiritual future of Sri Aurobindo Ashram. On the basis of this diagnosis he has offered a remedy that these foreigners, which would or rather should include non-foreign Aurovillians, i.e. Brown Aurovillians (in the style adopted in the Colonial India in which some people were branded Black Europeans – Kala Angrej) should not be allowed to indulge in internal politics of this country where they were granted visa for the practice of Yoga and a certain limitation should be attached to their right to express their views as there is with Indians residing abroad. It appears that it is in view of this belief that this team of which Sridharan seems to be a spokesperson has virtually proposed to debar Aurovillians from participating in the proposed scheme and thereby has virtually rejected the Mother’s Synthesis of the East and the West and her vision of Global Township.

21. Then would not the declaration of the Aurovillians being persona non grata cover the Auroville, it being contaminated by such Aurovillians? And what about Matrimandir? And while extending further this logic should it not be proposed to include Pavitra and Andre and the score of several other foreign Ashramites, and lastly or rather most importantly, the Mother herself also in their list of persona non grata? Then, why to keep Sri Aurobindo out of this list? He too at some point of time was a foreigner.

22. There are still people in India who believe that the foreigners or even the foreign returns can never become spiritual and woman a guru. Are the promoters of this scheme heading towards joining this tribe? It is the height of absurdity where reason has no access. But incidentally it exposes their design to empower themselves with the right to redefine and decide as to which individuals or groups qualify to be devotees and thereby have sought to reserve for themselves the key position or rather the position of Kingmakers in the scheme that they have proposed for the management of the Ashram.

[V – Government intervention in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram]

23. However, Sridharan has opined that nothing of the sort was intended and has stated in the present write up that the group of inmates and devotees who have gone against the present trustees are asking the Government to intervene and appoint an interim or a permanent administrator for Sri Aurobindo Ashram and that they have never sought to appoint themselves in the place of the Trustees. Thus the proposal for the broad-based democratic management boils down to surrendering the Ashram to the Government to be governed by its nominee with a hope that he will resolve the differences that have arisen or would arise in future among the Ashramites.

24. Thus according to these friends the differences could be resolved only by compromising with the identity of the Ashram and transforming it into an ordinary Institution managed by the Government. It is an irony of fate when the Enlightened Chiefs of the Progressive Schools and Universities are clamoring for autonomy and freedom from the Governmental interference, the devotees of an autonomous Ashram on its way to prepare for the advent of a New age for Humanity are inviting the Governmental intervention, even a permanent intervention as contended by Sridharan in his write-up, to mend things.

25. Sridharan expects the Government, which is not capable to resolve its internal differences and dissensions, to resolve our differences through its nominee. Thus it appears that he has conveniently transferred his faith from the Mother to the present day Government. It is again another peak of absurdity from which the Spirituality could be pushed to deep valley without straining any one any further.

26. Since Sridharan expects a Governmental nominee to manage things in the manner that would ensure impartiality and justice, which would certainly necessitate the well-defined rules and regulations for regular reference. This could be done by permanent or semi-permanent codification of the teachings of the Mother in the terms understandable by or acceptable to the present state of the mind in general. It is my apprehension that this move which inadvertently replaces the Mother by the codified version of Her teachings in order to meet certain exigencies might culminate in transforming the Ashram into a Static Unit practically facilitating the formation of a new Religion. And we find that the movement to create Religion on the basis of the Teachings of our Masters which is already on its way in the Ashram and more in the outside world might get accelerated if this proposal gets implemented.

27. If so, is it possible to conveniently avoid codification? Then how would a Government and especially the Democratic Government function in absence of Laws i.e. without codification of the norms of behavior? Actually the Government itself is an Institution and operates through institutionalization of its operations which necessitate the framing of the Rules and Regulations i.e. of the Laws which by their very nature are supposed to be the static formulations. It is this requirement that would certainly lead to the emergence or formation of Religions.
28. Still Sridharan has faith in efficacy of the Democratic set up to resolve the contradictory opinions because of its pluralistic orientation and to bring in harmony where confusion prevails. Well, let us hope. But it contradicts our normal experience of the working of the Democratic Governments in the History of Mankind. Even when the Governmental set up or any other organizational set up has succeeded, it is because it had become a vehicle of the influence of some human good will, i.e. because it had become a medium of transmission of the Consciousness of some enlightened persons. Thus since the Consciousness holds the key, because of which the Mother had insisted upon the Change of Consciousness and I suppose that the Governmental machinery is not equipped to bring in the expected change. Probably the Religions are better placed in this respect because of their roots being a bit near to Spirituality. But even in their present form they also would fall short of the requirement.

[VI – Conclusion]

29. I would say that the entire attack on the Ashram Trustees is ill conceived and the remedy that is proposed to overhaul the Ashram management is self-defeating. One might disagree with some decisions of this or that person might be a real fault, but that does not warrant the reversal proposed eventually disrobing the Ashram of its essential characteristic or to say of its soul and make certain grievances an occasion to promote hatred in the community which is wedded to the Ideal of Harmony.

December 17, 2013 Govardhan Dave