Sri Aurobindo (Aurobindo Ghose) (15 August 1872 – 5 December 1950) was an Indian nationalist and freedom fighter, major Indian English poet, philosopher, and yogi. The central theme of Sri Aurobindo's vision is the evolution of life into a "life divine". In his own words: "Man is a transitional being. He is not final. The step from man to superman is the next approaching achievement in the earth evolution. It is inevitable because it is at once the intention of the inner spirit and the logic of Nature's process". [Wikipedia.org]

Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American recording artist, entertainer, and philanthropist. Referred to as the "King of Pop", Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time. His contribution to music, dance and fashion, along with a much-publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture worldwide for over four decades. [Wikipedia.org]

A short comparison between SRI AUROBINDO (SA) and MICHAEL JACKSON (MJ)

It seems incredible that a Spirit of a great profound secluded yogi to reincarnate itself in a so much exposed stage artist! There are many similarities between the lives of the two famous men that nobody would have thought of until the Spirit revealed that It endowed with life both of them. Here are a few of them:

They both followed a vegetarian diet.

SA experimented the prolonged fast without devitalization. The same did MJ, but without the support of yoga practice, he suffered a lot.

At one time SA swallowed a large quantity of poison which he neutralized by the power of his trained mind. MJ did not restrict himself to take dangerous substances in exchange for an unnatural vitality.

SA’s ideal was not only to find God in spirit, but to bring Him down into matter and unconsciousness. He arduously wanted his inner transformation from human to superhuman (as a model for the future humanity). We may see MJ's same wish to transform himself, which took the form of external changes (extravagant clothing, lifestyle and facial aspect). They both wanted to do the impossible in a noble meaning, SA by transcending his psychological human condition, while MJ, his physical condition.

SA wanted to do more than just purify his own unconsciousness; he tried to extend this process to the higher level of the collective unconsciousness, for the whole planet to be quicker spiritualized. He yearned after a goal he eventually did not achieve, but he insisted in realizing the Impossible. MJ was the personality who supported the largest number of humanitarian organizations worldwide, reason for which he was registered in the Book of Records. In some of his songs can be heard the message of peace and brotherhood among people to “heal the planet” (Heal the World, We Are the World).

SA reached to a point of extraordinary purity of his being; he secluded himself in an almost total solitude for his last 24 years. He kept contact with the world only through his few near friends and his correspondence with his worldwide disciples in Integral Yoga. MJ had a rare ingenuity so far that a psychiatrist said he had a 10-year-old boy profile. MJ preferred to isolate himself from people, too, maybe because of his celebrity.

SA was a great learned man, a scholar educated in the European culture. He had artistic interests like poetry and painting. MJ was a true-born artist interested in music, reading, painting, drawing, dancing, acting, sculpture. SA had a renowned poetic inspiration; for instance his poem "Savitri" has about 24000 lines. MJ’s plastic surgeon relates how he wrote the lyrics for "Billie Jean" in just 3 minutes. "He told me the verses simply kept coming into his mind, continuously", says the doctor.

SA established an ashram at Pondicherry, in southern India, where he abode for his last 30 years. MJ also built a refuge of his own, Neverland, in the sunny California.

We may find in both of them the same Genius, Universality, Celebrity and Excellence in their actions.

It is remarkable the similarity regarding the father’s role in both of these famous men’s lives. SA’s father deprived him totally of  the influence of Indian culture in which he was born, as he appreciated the supremacy of British culture. Thus SA was entirely educated in the canons of European civilization, totally protected from any Indian influence, "for his own good". MJ’s father deprived him of his childhood, by compelling him to sing as a professional artist since he was 10, "for his own good", too. Both SA and MJ later managed to compensate for these frustrations. After returning from England, SA learn by himself Bengali and Sanskrit, letting himself be absorbed into the Indian spiritual tradition. In his turn, MJ built himself a farm where he could enjoy freely the forbidden childhood pleasures.

At a close look, we may find also some differences between the two men linked through the same Spirit. Here are some examples:

They say that SA descended into hell during his meditations, in order to save the souls enchained in spiritual darkness. In his turn, MJ released the famous Thriller video, which speaks about scary movies with monsters and awaken corpses. The explanation for this may be the psychological trauma suffered by MJ in childhood because of his father, but also the reminiscences of "spiritual adventures" from his previous life.

SA went to jail because of his ideals for the independence of India, as an active revolutionist, pursued by the British authorities as a very dangerous propagandist. In his turn, MJ was afraid of microbes.

SA defeated his physical problems only by the use of his well trained and powerful mind. In his turn, MJ did not know the needs of his organism, only relying on doctors opinions and the medicines they prescribed.

What the visitors was stricken most when in contact with SA was the deep silence he emanated, the peace and silence of thoughts which instantly contaminated them. MJ’s career in the show industry may seem quite opposite, rather agitating the mind and body of the pop-music consumers.

Nevertheless, all these differences and similarities underline the close link between the two incarnations of the same Spirit. The karmic seeds may germinate in different ways, according to circumstances and because of the transgressions in one life which call for opposite excesses in the next life.

23 July 2009
Razvan PETRE