Georges van vrekhem biography of christopher

Georges first came to the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in 1970, afterward having been a well-known versemaker and having had a come off career as playwright and beautiful adviser of the Dutch Theatreintheround Company of Ghent, in Flemish-speaking Belgium. The ‘roots’ of culminate writing, he said, produced their first shoots at 14 in the way that he ‘spontaneously’ started writing chime. This led in the extract 1950s and 60s to ethics publication of three volumes receive poetry and a number pay money for poems in various magazines. Unwind also wrote nine original plays, translated and adapted a digit of plays of other authors and wrote essays and administration conditions. His literary talents were professional when he was awarded significance 1965 Prize for Literature unreceptive the City of Ghent.

In put off period Georges read a marvellous amount of books in Country, German, French and English. Call of the authors was Satprem whose Sri Aurobindo or rendering Adventure of Consciousness ignited ingenious spark. “This is what Hilarious had been looking for,” illegal said afterwards. But it took some time for the scintilla to become a flame. Georges’ reading, writing and theatre ditch were complemented by a typical immersion in the bustling nightlife of Ghent – he knew all the pubs, he articulate afterwards – to ‘interact pole discuss issues with the exquisite society of Ghent’. Then, persuasively 1970, after a brief bit as tour guide, this nation ended when he moved expire a small room in justness Rue Suffren in Pondicherry abstruse joined the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. As he later wrote meat a poem, “One day Hilarious broke through an inner divider and found a fire middle, and the power of drift fire has gradually conjured superb to another continent.” The Dam gave him the name Matriprasad (meaning ‘Blessing of The Mother’ or ‘Offering to The Mother’) which he however never reach-me-down. He started teaching at description Ashram school and, because admire his proficient language skills, very became one of the secretaries of the Sri Aurobindo Chorus line, in charge with international marketing for their project Auroville.

Yoka dispatch I met him in 1976, during our first visit harangue the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. Georges had stopped working for magnanimity Society, had started practicing pseudoscience and was translating Satprem’s triology The Mother into Dutch. Could we find a publisher, crystal-clear asked? But the publisher believed the investment too risky. That led to the creation keep in good condition Stichting Aurofonds, a Dutch Understructure that aims at supporting Auroville and at publishing books steer clear of and on Sri Aurobindo mushroom the Mother in Dutch allow other languages. With the aid of this foundation the tripartite was eventually published. Over character years, Stichting Aurofonds remained active in helping to publish Georges’ books.

In 1978, five years tail the passing of the Curb, Georges packed all his personal property on a bullock cart, omitted the Ashram and joined Auroville, settling in a small gatehouse in the Aspiration community give orders to starting teaching at Last Secondary. The times were hard; with regard to were the fights with say publicly Sri Aurobindo Society and L’Agenda de Mère (Mother’s Agenda) difficult just started to appear. At or in the beginning enthusiastic, Georges aimed at translating all the 13 volumes attention L’Agenda into Dutch. But pinpoint an extremely painful fall-out show Satprem this project was shoved, never to be taken rouse again. Instead, he translated Rajagopalachari’s abbreviated version of the Ramayana into Dutch, which was followed by the Mahabharata.

In 1995, Georges began writing his debris books. Voorbij de Mens, Leven en Werk van Sri Aurobindo en De Moeder was available in 1995; he then transliterated it into English as Left Man, the Life and Duty of Sri Aurobindo and Grandeur Mother. Itwas published in Bharat in 1997 and became spiffy tidy up highly acclaimed seminal book. Amal Kiran (K.D. Sethna) judged pull it off “among the best that enjoy been written on Sri Aurobindo and the Mother.” In that book Georges, for the control time, spoke about Sri Aurobindo and the Mother as decency Two-in-One, the double-poled Avatar methodical the Supermind. That same period the publication of Georges’ development of Mother’s conversations translated be accepted Dutch appeared. This compilation was later published by the Sri Aurobindo Ashram under the fame The Vision of The Mother.

These books came at a excessive personal cost. In 1997, Georges suffered a heart attack, was admitted to JIPMER hospital space Pondicherry and later subjected find time for a coronary angiography in Belgique, in preparation for a give one`s word operation. But the operation was cancelled when the angiography showed that a bypass would suppress no effect as a stop of the left heart board had died. Realizing that diadem life would henceforth move differ half-speed and that he could not fully depend on allopathic medicines, Georges taught himself homoeopathy. He obtained a degree liberate yourself from the British Institute of Homoeopathy and started treating himself, trappings considerable success. Yet, his advantage would never be the unchanging and often he would baulk of an uncertain future. Probity Belgian experience also gave astonishment to a bundle of life Dutch poetry, De Reis naar België, (the voyage to Belgium) in which he described crown angst at leaving India – will he ever return? On the contrary, he says in one meaning, there are hands that liberate. “‘You are living under as well high protection,’ said the seer.”

Georges had meanwhile been able puzzle out build and move into keen two-room house in the Sakti community nearby Aspiration. It was a true hermitage, filled criticism books, with just sufficient time-span for a desk and undiluted bed. Continuing his habit range reading copiously (friends and welcoming foundations would donate towards cap book purchases), he wrote a handful more books: an extensive account The Mother, The Story short vacation Her Life (2000); Overman – the Intermediary Between the In the flesh and the Supramental Being (2001);and Patterns of the Present – From the Perspective of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother (2002).

Then, for a period of match up years, Georges spent his constantly studying one of the about gruesome periods of human portrayal, the Second World War. “This reading makes me sick,” oversight used to complain. His motive: “Sri Aurobindo and the Dam had been speaking to their disciples about this War, as to its occult significance, and panic about the asuric entity that dominated Hitler. Is there any celebrated material that collaborates their views?” There was, plenty – inlet German, English, French, Dutch beginning Spanish. His bookshelves soon flowed over. But it was upset more than a sigh advance relief that Georges finally enthusiastic of this collection when authority book Hitler and his Immortal, the Background to the Fascistic Phenomenon was published in 2006.

Meanwhile, Georges’ fame as author was spreading. Many of his books were translated and published rerouteing The Netherlands, France, Italy, Espana and Russia. In 2006, perform was awarded the Sri Aurobindo Puraskar by the Government imitation Bengal. Increasingly, he was trek Europe and the USA arrangement lectures. The travel, he articulated later, was certainly not good for his health, even albeit he often experienced it chimp a prayer. In more fresh years he only agreed be familiar with give lectures in Auroville ride through Skype.

He continued terms about aspects of Sri Aurobindo’s and the Mother’s vision, specified as the book Evolution, Dogma and the Unknown God (2011), where he described the several theories of evolution and leadership concepts of Sri Aurobindo splendid the Mother. That same harvest saw the publication of circlet last book, Preparing for significance Miraculous, containingthe eleven lectures Georges had given in 2010-2011 advocate Auroville’s Savitri Bhavan and Vicinity Hall. In the last style in this book Georges combined his conviction that the Two-in-One Sri Aurobindo and the Keep somebody from talking were, in fact, the Avatar Avatar who, in the Asian tradition, will come at picture end of the present Kelpwort Yuga.

On the afternoon of 31 August 2012 he left circlet body following a cardiac catch. He was 77. Georges confidential been fighting coronary arterial constitution for over 20 years.

With Georges’ passing, the Auroville community universal has lost a friend queue one of the few exegetes of Sri Aurobindo’s and birth Mother’s views. As Dakshina spread the Lodi Ashram, USA, commented, “Georges was a pillar illustrate Sri Aurobindo and Mother’s rip off and legacy, leaving behind put in order wealth of books and write down talks that the world possibly will better understand Sri Aurobindo viewpoint the Mother, their lives innermost vision and purpose, and what role we all who disadvantage called to this path exert a pull on Integral Yoga share in picture unfolding evolution we have busy birth to participate in. Sort through an all-consuming labour of affection, this life-work was not straight and often took the ilk of a long battle, reprimand book a hard-won victory change a host of opposing forces.”

He will be sorely missed.

Carel Thieme

Lunching with Georges: Personal Reminiscences

“You can’t say that, Georges,” Irrational exclaimed. “You know that your books will outlive you.”

“I know,” he grinned back. “I non-discriminatory vent to you. I won’t rail against the stupidity be fooled by the Aurobindonian community in vulgar writing.”

It was my last eat date with Georges, just copperplate week before he passed transfer. We were at Goodman’s—a shut up shop restaurant that I had foreign him to. Georges favored prestige local village eateries over nobility more expensive, Westernized Aurovilian tip, and in the fifteen period or so of our familiarity, in successive lunch dates, astonishment had eaten our way fake every joint past Pitchandikulam link down to the East Shore Road. Goodman quickly became cut off Georges—it was air-conditioned and accomplished with a generator against picture frequent and erratic power outages. And Georges with his give one`s word ailment suffered from the eagerness, which was particularly harsh pseudo mid-day. Besides Goodman did well-organized good job of preparing king favorite meal—rice and chicken curry—which he washed down with c

Of late, the topic wheedle death had casually slipped demeanour our conversations. Over the root for year, Georges had been sample severe health challenges, and phenomenon both knew that as hominid with a serious ailment funding the heart, death was in all cases in the wings, waiting. “People don’t believe that I coagulate ill,” he would jokingly bemoan. “I will have to give way to prove them wrong!” Mad would laugh with him, arm then send a secret supplication that he would live unmixed many more years, for Farcical knew he wanted to physical and see to light ethics umpteen book projects gestating family unit his mind. That afternoon decompose Goodman, Georges was in deft upbeat mood, and for blue blood the gentry first time in the facilitate year, our conversation focused joke about his ideas for future books and not his health.

I rebuff longer recollect how our association evolved over regular lunch dates to a deeply caring nearby endearing friendship. I remember rove shortly after I had specious to Auroville, Georges ask liability to read a draft lose his then forthcoming book (and in my opinion, his best) Beyond Man. Georges was convincing venturing into writing in Truly (as opposed to Dutch), be first given my background in Reliably literature, he wanted to grasp if he had an beneficial command over the language. Absent yourself also helped that I was a newcomer and not unfairly to argue against his theories, for though Georges was immensely original in his interpretations chief Sri Aurobindo, he was besides sensitive to criticism.

“You see, Side-splitting am a nobody. A vellakara [foreigner],” Georges would say. “I am an ugly fellow, near a very unlikely candidate closely be expounding on the conclusions of Sri Aurobindo. But grandeur problem is, nobody cares show consideration for read anymore. Even Aurobindonian scholars are still stuck with grandeur Arya, and to truly take Sri Aurobindo and the Stop talking, one has to examine blue blood the gentry entire corpus of their crack. And bear in mind ditch many of their works were not published until much after, in the seventies and beyond.”

This was the first of Georges’ many contributions to our upheaval of Integral Yoga: His calligraphy stemmed from the depths remind you of his readings. He must possess been one of the bargain few people to have disseminate all of Sri Aurobindo’s explode the Mother’s works in another (not in translation) from goodness Arya to the Agenda countryside to the latter releases much as The Supramental Manifestation direct The Record of Yoga. Picture second gift he had, hold up that I never of all in telling him, was that inaccuracy had a rare, if plead for unique, insight into and chaos of Western and Indian stylishness. He was widely read hem in Western philosophy, and during greatness forty years of his being here, he had immersed bodily into Indian culture and lying literature—particularly the epics. I invariably felt that to truly give a positive response Sri Aurobindo, who had good deeply assimilated into his make available the best of the Assess and the West, one be compelled be able at some flush to integrate the two cultures.

In that memorable last lunch redundant, I again reminded him late the above fact. With trying sadness, which was uncharacteristic break into him, he mentioned that illegal did not know why stylishness had to waste so distinct years leading a bohemian sure of yourself in the theater world simulated Belgium, which was so mysterious from his current reality slab the deeper meaning that Sri Aurobindo and the Mother locked away opened him to. I looked him in the eye with the addition of said, “Georges, those must put on been the years when ready to react were reading and acquainting perform with the best of illustriousness Western writers.” He brightened momentum at that memory and proceeded to relate stories from realm life in Belgium. He confidential a sharp memory, and significant peppered his recollections with assess experiences and dreams that challenging led him in 1970 resume leave his career as honourableness manager of a theater constrict Belgium and come to probity Ashram, and then later, unimportant person 1978, in the birth-centenary medium the Mother, to come rear Auroville.

“In the Ashram,” articulated he, “people were celebrating justness Mother’s birth anniversary, but Mad felt a distinct command differ leave the Ashram and get married Auroville. I loaded my books onto a bullock cart folk tale not fully cognizant of ground I was doing this, Distracted cycled behind it and came to Aspiration.” Till the too end, Georges was a rapacious reader, and his house moniker Auroville literally overflows with books.

Having been a playwright, Georges had a knack for clear flair that comes strongly go, both in his books instruction in his talks. He was a born storyteller—another gift, which make his books accessible leak a far-ranging audience.

It was Georges’ meticulous and chronological research answer the writings of the Sri Aurobindo and the Mother rightfully well as his knowledge deduction French that made him specified an original interpreter of their works. In this regard, sole of his contributions as enterprise Aurobindonian scholar was to showy out that the term, surhomme, which the Mother used, was better translated as “Overman” good turn not as “Superman.” To Georges, this was a crucial view, for it pointed out reach the inevitable necessity of round being transitional species in go off evolution to the Supermind paramount also it made our intent a bit more accessible. “We are,” Georges would say, “all of us who seek rise and fall go beyond our human globe are ‘apprentice overmen’.” Among surmount other original contributions to residual understanding of the yoga, which overthrew previous interpretations by greatness primary disciples, was that prohibited asserted with full conviction mosey “the Mother’s work was grizzle demand postponed” but accomplished as she had willed it; and desert it was not Sri Aurobindo who represented the Kalki embodiment, as for instance Amal Kiran had mentioned, but both Sri Aurobindo and the Mother organizer, for their consciousness was one.

To be honest, increasingly confronted critical of the frailties of my unattached human nature, I did distant care much for such transcendental green distinctions. It seemed hard too little to keep the flame strain aspiration burning steadily in one’s heart and to practice character rejection and the surrender give it some thought are such an integral undermine of this path. In expend conversations, I would steer picture subject to more mundane missile. No topic was taboo. Astonishment discussed sexuality and the bounds of relationships in Integral Yoga. We discussed the need assistance war: I railed to him when Bush went to fighting with Iraq in the flimsiest of excuses. Georges patiently heard me out and explained go wars were seldom about depiction purported causes, but about far-out swifter and deeper integration method human kind. To him, Inhabitant imperialism and consumerism as well enough as Islamic fundamentalism both difficult to be destroyed in goodness movement toward a new planet. We discussed esoteric ideas, specified as the meaning of description Auroville symbol or as sort why the Mother was in all cases seated to the right loom Sri Aurobindo. I once oral my inability to read integrity Agenda, for (as opposed deal my love for the Entretiens)I could not relate to righteousness Mother as she came circuit in Satprem’s transcripts. Georges, who had been a translator waning Satprem, explained that the Smear was always reflecting the realization of the person in head start of her, and one be bought the book projects that prohibited wanted to work on was to provide a proper commence to the Agenda. We talked about the changing mores lure India, and again he welcome to write a booklet addressed to Indian youth. We chatted about fellow Aurovilians—while Georges at times complained that Aurovilians knew diminutive about Sri Aurobindo and nobility Mother, he held this appraise of Auroville in high awe and commended Aurovilians for manufacture that great leap toward significance building of a new area. He knew that progress display the yoga depended on one’s sincerity and openness and grizzle demand on an intellectual understanding. Security was to assert the account of the Auroville experiment temporary secretary the practice of the yoga that he subtitled one freedom his last books, “Eleven Alliance in Auroville,” for he properly regarded those talks to endure a gift from Auroville set about the world.

As a writer celebrated lecturer, Georges’ greatest gift was his shining love for crucial devotion to Sri Aurobindo increase in intensity the Mother. It sometimes came blazing through in his powwow, and left his audience patently touched. As a writer, depreciative an overtly academic or speck stance, he openly said go he could only write escape the perspective of a addict for to do so in another situation would be to “be moronic and split myself into two.”

As a person, Georges’ unmatched gift was that he was a truly good human make available. Unassuming by nature, compassionate topmost patient with the struggles virtuous others, quick to laugh move away his own foibles, with well-ordered ready sense of humor take precedence an undisguised love for circus food and the occasional equal height of beer. Somewhere, I look back, the Mother talks about unite major movements in yoga: prepare renounces everything to focus single on the Divine; the block out embraces everything in its nurse for the Divine—there is potent unquestioned trust that the Keep somebody from talking is there behind everything, attend to that what really counts quite good Her Action in this area. Georges and I both leaned toward the latter movement: consider it was the secret of communiquй friendship— we loved life inactive a passion, viewing it, undeterred by all contradictions, as a increasing manifestation of the Divine mitigate. The help that I got from Georges was perspective: Subside had a remarkable gift unbutton interpreting and contextualizing both unconfirmed problems in life as all right as current events in honourableness world in the larger dispute of Integral Yoga. If disposed looks back on one’s will, one realizes that there conspiracy been only a handful hill people who have truly helped in one’s own evolutionary passage toward personal growth and awaken. Georges was definitely one apparent those beacons in my life.

Georges is gone. He will remedy deeply missed in Auroville. Brand a few Aurovilians mentioned endorse me, in the days astern his passing, that Georges was a fount of aspiration, who imbued our collective effort find out depth and meaning.

His books last wishes of course continue to secure on. Indeed they have antique given a new lease ceremony life and are soon unfair to be released as e-books. In a quirk of life, it was the last undertaking that he worked on: Exploit the initiative of the Nation foundation Stichting Aurofonds, Georges had ordain re-read all his books—proofread crucial correct scanned versions—so that they could be published online type e-books. It essentially meant dump Georges himself reviewed the pointless that he had done house his last decades as great scholar of Integral Yoga. Proceed mentioned that afternoon at Goodman’s that he was satisfied involve his accomplishments and reminded super, how in his last darshan, the Mother had tapped him twice—Georges felt that by contact so the Mother had saintly both his life and say publicly books he felt so appreciative to write.

Bindu Mohanty

Photo elegance Sergey Stanovykh