Sri Aurobindo and Mother to Prithwi Singh

4 September 1934

Mother,

Bury the dead past. Let the memories of the past,—memories of sad mistakes, false identification, haltings and delayings on the way, deviations, weak-kneed aspiration, dilettantism, oscillations and such ignorant clinging to the habits and formations of life,—no more afflict the being. They try to cast a spell of gloom over the bright and sanguine movements of the higher nature, suggesting, "How sad mistakes did you commit in the past; you got true impulses and true attitude very often but failed to remain faithful to them." It suggests, moreover, that had I remained faithful to the call, what a wonderful progress would I have made by this time. That is why, I pray to Thee, O Mother, bury the past fraught with sad memories and let it not have the strength to cast shadows upon the play of Light, Truth and Joy. If the past has had a long history of tragic errors and ignorant activities, it had also to counterbalance them, bright movements, true formations, upward pushes, ardent aspiration, sincere invocation to Light, Power and Joy, moments of unconditioned opening to the Supreme Truth, dedication, loving remembrance and many such movements of Light. The past, I see, is not an unmixed evil. It records a mixed play of light and darkness, power and weakness, truth and untruth and even the stumblings and failures, I feel, have but served the Divine Purpose and been wisely manipulated by the Supreme Will and Wisdom to lead the being towards the Supreme Felicity. Pray, let me have the strength to turn my back upon the past life and look forward and fix my steadfast gaze upon the Light and the Truth. I do not belong to the past dawns but to the noons of the future.¹¹ The past is past and it cannot bind the future. May the future movements be an unbroken history of luminous movements and flaming intensities.