On Education

by The Mother

This book is a collection of articles, messages, letters, and conversations of the Mother that touches on subjects like an educational discipline aimed at developing all the principal faculties of the individual, the various aspects of the teaching method known as the free progress system followed at the Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education, and the fundamentals of physical education, including the disciplines and attitudes helpful to developing a strong, healthy, and conscious body. Also included are three dramas written for the annual dramatic performance day.

517 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Mirra Alfassa, later Mirra Morisset and Mirra Richard, also known as The Mother, was the spiritual collaborator of Sri Aurobindo.

She was born in Paris to Turkish and Egyptian parents and came to Sri Aurobindo's retreat on March 29, 1914 in Pondicherry, India to collaborate on editing the Arya. Having to leave Pondicherry during World War I, she spent most of her time in Japan where she met the poet Rabindranath Tagore. Finally she returned to Pondicherry and settled there in 1920. After November 24, 1926, when Sri Aurobindo retired into seclusion, she founded his ashram (Sri Aurobindo Ashram), with a handful of disciples living around the Master. With Sri Aurobindo's full approval she became the leader of the community, a position she held until her death. The Trust she had registered after Sri Aurobindo's death in 1950 continues to look after the institution.

Reviews

[Neel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read only Part One - Articles. Each article, though only a few pages long each, clearly takes on its subject and provides a lifetime's worth of insight and understanding. The clarity, simplicity (considering the complexity of the subject matter), and depth and breadth of perspective are unparalleled in the field of education, and remain not just relevant, but revolutionary even 50 years after publication.