"Man and Battle of Life" is about the gist of Gita with the finding that the teaching of Gita is not a physical asceticism, but an inner askesis.
About the writer Sri Aurobindo
Siri Aurobindo (1872-1950) was born in Kolkata, India. He is
known to the entire world as a great scholar, a national leader, and a
spiritual guru. His education began in a Christian convent School in
Darjeeling. He attained his basic as well as higher education from the United
Kingdom. He returned to India as a civil servant.
From 1902 to 1910 he partook in the struggle to free India from the British rule. As a result to his political activities, he was imprisoned for the years. At Pondicherry, he developed a spiritual practice - Integral Yoga. The central theme of his vision was the evolution of human life into a divine life. His writing promoted the idea of complete independence for India thereby landing him in jail for political unrest. He is remembered as an influential leader, and spiritual reformer on human progress and spiritual evolution.
About the text Man and the Battle of Life by Sri Aurobindo
The essay "Man and Battle of Life" explains the
gist of Gita with the conclusion that the teaching of Gita is not a physical
asceticism, but an inner askesis. The Gita is addressed to a fighter, a man of
action, one whose duty in life is that of war and protection of the weak and
the oppressed and for the maintenance of right and justice in the world.
The author talks about the division of work, battle for justice, essential qualities of the world energy, the meaning of Sattva (the mode of poise, knowledge and satisfaction), Rajas (the mode of passion, action and struggling emotion) and Tamas (the mode of ignorance and inertia) as explained in the Bhagawat Gita.
Summary of the essay Man and the battle of life
‘Man and the battle' of life is an essay written by a great scholar and a spiritual guru Sri Aurobindo. The essay explains the main idea of Gita with the conclusion that the teachings of Gita are not only physical self-discipline but inner self-discipline. The essay presents spiritual ideas through reference from Hindu mythology. The essay also presents variety of topics including division of works, battle for justice, essential qualities(modes) of world energy; sattva, rajas and tamas.
The divine charioteer of Kurukshetra reveals himself as two things: one as the lord of all worlds and the friend and all-knowing guide of all the creatures and on the other side as time the destroyer of all people. Gita accepts the existence of God as the omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent yet always transcendent being who manifests the world and himself in the world.
the text says a human has to see God everywhere and this enigma that is the god must have a solution and beyond the ignorance in which he dwells a knowledge that restores.
A human whatever he/she is has a faith that is ‘even if you slay me, I shall trust you.’
Human faith admits the disagreements of this world and believes in God at any point that it shall enable us to transcend, overcome and harmonise those disagreements.
Gita is addressed to soldiers, men of action for the maintenance of right and justice in the world.
The text mentions the strangeness in ancient Indian civilization as it judged on peoples’ ethical type, function, and place in the society rather than the individual’s nature, tendency, and temperament.
The modern idea of a common obligation has its advantages and disadvantages. It helps in unity and fullness in the life of a community and more all-round development of complete human being. In contrast, it also has led to unpleasant wars from the common military obligations.
A man is a thinker, worker, and a fighter all in one. The tendency of the social system is to lump (mix) all those activities and to demand from every individual his contribution to the intellectual, economical and military life and needs of the community without paying any attention to himself.
The fanatics of pacifism deny the Indian ideal of kshatriya and Japanese ideal of samurai because they are soldiers, people of war which disapproves of pacifism.
The author says that war typifies and embodies the physical aspect of battle and struggle which belongs to all life, both inner and outer living because every life that exists has an inner conflict in them between good and evil.
According to Sankhya philosophy the three modes of the world energy are sattva (the mode of poise, knowledge and satisfaction), rajas (the mode of passion, action and struggling emotion) and tamas (the mode of ignorance and inertia).
When a man is dominated by tamas he only seeks to survive as long as he may, to make himself busy in thought and action. A man dominated by rajas sends himself into battle and attempts to use the struggle of forces for his own egoistic benefit. A man dominated by sattva seeks law, peace, harmony in the midst of conflict.
Sannyasa is the renunciation of life, action and the three qualities of the world energy but Sannyasa has to be approached by any one of the three qualities.
The Sanskrit words in the story
Sattva – the mode of poise, knowledge and
satisfaction
Rajas- the mode of passion, action and struggling
emotion
Tamas- the mode of ignorance and inertia
Sannyasa- the rejection of life and action