Collected Poems - Sri Aurobindo Ashram

712 Collected Poems
PART SEVEN: PONDICHERRY, CIRCA 1927 – 1947
Sri Aurobindo published three short volumes of poetry, and a volume
on poetics that included poems as illustrations, between 1934
and 1946. One of the volumes of poems, Poems Past and Present,
comprises Part Six of the present volume. The other volumes are
included in this part, which also contains complete and incomplete
poems from his manuscripts of the same period.
Six Poems
These poems were written in 1932, 1933 and 1934. In 1934 a book
was planned that would include the six poems along with translations
of them into Bengali by disciples of Sri Aurobindo. This book was
published by Rameshwar & Co., Chandernagore, before the end of the
year. Shown a proposed publicity blurb for the book, Sri Aurobindo
wrote: “One can’t blow one’s own trumpet in this monstrous way, nor
do I want it to be indicated that I am publishing this book. It is Nolini’s
publication, not mine. Why can’t a decent notice be given instead of
these terrible blurbs?” He also wrote his own descriptive paragraph
stating that the six poems were in “novel English metres” and that the
book included “notes on the metres of the poems and their significance
drawn from the letters of Sri Aurobindo”. The texts as well as the notes
were reprinted in Collected Poems and Plays (1942).
The Bird of Fire. 17 October 1933. No handwritten manuscripts of
this poem survive. There are three typed manuscripts, two of which
are dated 17 October 1933. In a letter written shortly afterwards, Sri
Aurobindo said that “Bird of Fire” was “written on two consecutive
days — and afterwards revised”. He also wrote that this poem and
“Trance” (see below) were completed the same day. 2
Trance. 16 October 1933. There are two handwritten manuscripts and
one typed manuscript, which is dated “16.10.33”. In the same letter
in which Sri Aurobindo wrote about the composition of “The Bird of
Fire” (see above), he noted that “Trance” was written “at one sitting
2 Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Poetry and Art, volume 27 of THE COMPLETE WORKS
OF SRI AUROBINDO, p. 244.