-21_Glossary and Index Page 243 to 257.htm

Patiala a protected princely state till its merger with the Indian Federal Republic in 1948. It first formed part of PEPSU (Patiala and East Punjab States’ Union), but in 1956 it was merged in the state of Punjab. It is about 125 miles to the northwest of Delhi. In the days of British domination the Patiala chief Maharaja Bhupendra Singh (1891-1938) greatly developed the state. (D.I.H.)  2:249-50, 353-56

Patmore, Coventry Coventry (Kersey Dighton) Patmore (1823-96), English poet and essayist whose allusive poetry reflects a deep knowledge and understanding of 17th- century metaphysical poetry, unusual in one of his day. (Enc. Br.)  26:258 29:797

Patmos smallest (22 sq. miles) and most northerly of the original twelve Greek islands in the Aegean Sea off the coast of southwest Asia Minor. Both the Gospel and the Revelation to John are said to have been written by John on this island. (Enc. Br.; Web.)  5:61

Patrawali a collection of letters of Sri Aurobindo written in Bengali (to female disciples who did not know English). It is in two parts; the first was published in 1951 and the second in 1959. (A) a 4: pre.

Patrick (Curran) a character – second son of Sir Gerald Curran – in Sri Aurobindo’s story "The Devil’s Mastiff", 7:1047-50

Patrika See Amrita Bazar Patrika

Patriot See (Hindu) Patriot or (Indian) Patriot

Pattan Patan (Patan), a town about seventy miles north-northwest ofAhmedabad, in the state of Gujarat. Formerly Patan was part of the princely state of Baroda. (S. Atlas; A)  27:113

Pattison, Mark (1813-84), English scholar, memorable more for his devotion to an intellectual ideal rather than for positive literary achievements. He was rector of Lincoln College, Oxford. (Enc. Br.) D 9:522

Pattison Ely a character participating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) written by Sri Aurobindo around 1891. (A & R – II) D 11:8

Patwardhan, Anna Saheb (1847-1917), the "Maharshi of Poona", famous as the guru of Lokamanya Tilak. He presided over the meeting held on Tilak’s premises on 13 January 1908 which was addressed by Sri Aurobindo. (D.N.B.; A)  27:62

Paul, St. (d. AD 67?), the apostle to the Gentiles. St. Paul’s figure dominates the apostolic age, and his epistles have left a tremendous impress on Christianity. By way of Macedonia he went to Corinth to help the Christians there, then back to Ephesus, and thence to Jerusalem. (Col. Enc.)  5:366 12:15 17:169 24:1237 27:485 XV: 24

Paulomie in Hindu mythology, daughter of the Asura Puloman; consort of ndra, and mother of Jayanta. She is also known as Saci. (Dow.)  7:1001

Paundra1 in the Mahabharata, the name of the conch-shell of Bhima. (M.N.) 4:76

Paundra2 name of a people and of a country said to include part of south Bihar and Bengal. (M.W.) a XVIII: 138

Pausanias (d. probably between 470 and 465 BC), Spartan commander during the Greco- Persian Wars who was accused of treason- able dealings with the enemy. A member of the Agiad royal family, Pausanias was the son of King Cleombrotus I and nephew of King Leomidas. It is conceivable that the Spartans made Pausanias a scapegoat for their failure to retain the leadership of Greece; nevertheless, some of his activities seem to justify suspicion. (Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]

Pavaka a name and epithet of Agni, the purifying Fire. (A)  [Indexed with Agni]

Pax Britannica peace dictated to a subjugated people by the British. (Web.) 0 1: 336, 354, 372-73, 377, 431, 539, 563, 598, 790 111:7-8

Payoshni in the Mahabharata, a sacred river that rises in the Vindhyas and flows south- ward. (M.N.) a 3:154

Payu Bharadwaja (Payu Bharadwaja) a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Bharadwaja. n 11:415

Pe in "Record of Yoga", used for POINCARE.

Peak of Gold See Meru

Peary, Commander Robert Edwin Peary (1856-1920), American naval officer and a distinguished explorer. He was the first man to reach the North Pole (6 April 1909). See a/w Cook, Dr. (Col. Enc.) D 2:217

Pecksniff a hypocritical personage in Dickens’ novel Martin Chuzzlewit. The term is now used for any unctuous hypocrite prating of benevolence etc. (Enc. Am.; C.O.D.) Der: Pecksniffian  1:547, 550

Pedro a common Spanish masculine name, the equivalent of Peter in English, used by Sri Aurobindo in his play The Maid in the Mill. a 7:857

Peele, George (1556-96), English dramatist and clergyman, predecessor of Shakespeare, who

experimented in many forms of theatrical art: pastoral, history, melodrama, trage- dy, folkplay, and pageant. (Enc. Br.) 9:69, 82

Pegasus in Greek legend, immortal winged horse, offspring of Poseidon and Medusa, who became the faithful companion of Bellerophon. The spring Hippocrene, sacred to the Muses, was made by a print of his hoof; it gave the gift of song to all who drank of it. (Col. Enc.)  3: 65, 105 9: 19 10: 87-88 XIII: 39 XVII: 4

Pehlava Pehlavas were a people of Parthian origin who came to India in the 1st century Be and established some kingdoms in north- west India in cooperation with the Sakas. They are to be distinguished from the Pallavas of the Deccan. The Pehlavas are also mentioned in the Mahabharata. According to Manu they were among the northern nations and were once Kshatriyas but had become outcastes. (D.I.H.; Dow.) a 3:198

Peitho Greek goddess who was essentially a personification of the act of persuading (Peitho is a Greek word meaning "Persuasion"). In literature she is often mentioned only figuratively, though as early as Hesiod she is curiously described as the daughter of Oceanus. In both art and poetry Peitho was introduced as an attendant of Aphrodite, goddess of love. (Enc. Br.) a 11:7

Pekin a former variant of Peking, a conventional Western spelling of the Chinese Pei-ching, the capital of China, which is now known as Bei-jing, a Pin-yin romanization of Pei-ching. (Enc. Br.; Web.) Q 7:598

Pelasgian of the Pelasgians, early inhabitants of the Aegean area, of vague identity, dispersed and assimilated by the Achaians. (M.I.) a 5:485

Pelava a character – a disciple of Bharat, the Preceptor of the Arts in Heaven – in the play Vikramorvasie, Sri Aurobindo’s translation of the drama of Kalidasa. Var: Pellava a 7:909, 951-52

Peleid in Greek legend, a title of Achilles (son of Peleus). The term is derived from the Greek Peleides. The Latin form is PELIDES. (M.I.; Web.) n 5:458, 464, 467

Peleus in Greek legend, son of Aeacus and king of the MYRMIDONS. For his virtue, he was given

THETIS, the sea-nymph, as wife, and she bore him Achilles. (M.I.; Web.)  5:405, 414, 420, 464-65.467, 473-74, 476, 479, 483, 516 12:37 11:26 VI: 134

Pelides in Greek legend, an epithet of Achilles (son of Peleus). See also Peleid. (M.I.) Der:Pelidean  5:421, 452, 458, 463, 468, 477, 487-88, 490, 513, 517-18 11:26 VI:135

Pelion a mountain of eastern Thessaly (Greece), near the Aegean coast. According to ancient legend, the centaurs lived on this mountain, and the giants Aloidae once piled Pelion on Ossa to reach heaven. (Col. Enc.) n 5:498 9:150

Pellava See Pelava

Pellico, Silvio (1789-1854), Italian patriot and dramatist. His Le mie prigioni (1832; English translation. My Prisons, 1853), memoirs of his sufferings as a political prisoner, inspired widespread sympathy for the-Italian nationalist movement, the Risorgimento. (Enc. Br.)  1:335.362

Pelops in Greek mythology, son of Tantalus. In childhood he was killed and cooked by his father, who served his flesh to the gods to see if they could tell it was not that of a beast. Demeter inadvertently ate part of his shoulder. The gods brought Pelops back to life, replacing his lost part bv ivory, and punished his father with everlasting torture. Later, Pelops, to win the hand of Hippo- damia, had to outdistance her father Oeno- maus, king of Elis, in a chariot race. He bribed the king’s charioteer to wreck the chariot in the race and thus won the bride. But he refused to give the charioteer his promised reward and threw him into the sea. The dying man cursed Pelops and this curse continued to work its effects on Pelops’ family. Succeeding to the throne of Oeno- maus as king of Elis, Pelops subjugated the rest of the Peloponnesus (the peninsula constituting southern Greece), to which he gave its name. meaning "Pelops’ island". (M.I.) D 5:422, 436, 479 7:1016

Penal Code, Indian a code of law, introduced in 1860, that established a uniform system of penal laws all over British India. It was the fruit of the labours of the Law Commission appointed during the Governor-Generalship of Lord William Bentinck (1828-35), of which Lord Macaulay was the most important member. (D.I.H.) a 1:215, 270, 393, 423, 529, 531

Penates more properly Di Penates, household gods of the Romans and other Latin peoples. They are associated with other deities of the house, such as Vesta and the LARES. The Penates were worshipped privately as protectors of the individual household and also publicly as protectors of the Roman state. (Enc. Br.)  XVI: 141

Peneus a river in Thessaly in northern Greece. (M.I.)  5:414, 464

Pentateuch the first five books of the Old Testament (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy) – traditionally ascribed to Moses, the recipient of the original revelation on Mt. Sinai. (Enc. Br.) l-l 10:547

Pentaur an ancient Egyptian poet who wrote on the conquests of RAMESES.  26:234

Pentecostal of Pentecost, a major festival in the Christian Church, celebrated on the Sunday that falls on the 50th day after Easter. The Christian Pentecost commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit on the disciples, which occurred on the Jewish Pentecost (a Jewish harvest festival), after the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. (Enc. Br.)  3:444

Penthesilea in Greek mythology, queen of the Amazons and daughter of Ares. She came to the aid of the Trojans in the last year of the war after Hector was killed and gave them new hope, slaughtering the Greeks, who fought without Achilles. Her beauty was such that it is told that when Achilles, finally killing her in battle, removed her helmet and looked on her face, he fell wildly in love with her and was filled with remorse. (M.I.)  5:400-01, 404, 406-08, 412, 427, 430, 439. 443-44, 455-60, 465-68, 470, 474-75, 477, 493, 514-17 VI:134

Percival a contemporary of LITTLETON. (A)  3:486-88

Percy, Thomas (1729-1811), antiquary scholar and bishop whose collection of ballads etc. (see Reliques) awakened widespread interest in English and Scottish traditional songs, formerly ignored in literary circles. (Enc. Br.) II:, l8

Pere Goriot hero of the French novel Le Pere Goriot, a masterpiece of Balzac. (Ox. Comp.) n 3:307

The Perennial Philosophy a book by Aldous

Huxley, first published in 1944. It is a compilation/nostly of writings of mystics and religious figures. (A) 0 22:126 26:85

Pergama a name of Troy, meaning "citadel". (M.I.) Der: Pergaman  5:358, 392-93, 396, 401, 405, 419, 457, 460

Peri in Persian mythology, supernatural female being, comparable to fairies and elves. (Col. Enc.) a 5:261, 263

Pericarpus in Sri Aurobindo’s drama Perseus the Deliverer, name of a Syrian soldier. (A) D 6: 102

Pericles (c. 495-429 sc), Athenian statesman who brought ancient Athenian democracy to its height and nearly established Athens as the leading power in Greece. He was a great patron of arts and encouraged music and drama. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) Der: Periclean  3:10 9:410 14:27, 192 15:89

Perigune in Greek legend, a daughter of Sinis (see Sinnis. a misspelling), the "Pine- bender". (N.C.C.H.) D 5:34

Perissus a character – a citizen and a butcher - in Sri Aurobindo’s play Perseus the Deliverer, 6:3, 101, 110-14.135, 139, 143, 145-47, 152-56, 167-69, 171-72, 177-78, 180-81, 190-91, 198

Perizade a Persian term, meaning literally "born of a fairy", used for a character in the dialogue "Dinshaw-Perizade" and for some- one in "Fragment of a Drama".  3:475-76 7:1086

Permanent Settlement a system of land tenure and revenue collection introduced in Bengal (then including Bihar and Orissa) by Lord Cornwallis in 1793. According to it the zamindar was recognised as the proprietor of the land on condition that he paid to the Government 90% of the estimated annual revenue that he received from the ryots who held lands at his pleasure. Diametrically opposite views were expressed as to its benefits to the Government, the zamindar, and the people. (The system was abolished in West Bengal some time after indepen- dence.) (D.I.H.)  1:90, 240

Persepolis ancient city, ceremonial capital of the Persian empire under Darius and his successors. The administrative capitals were elsewhere – notably at Susa and Babylon. (Col. Enc.)  6:350, 353-54, 394, 399-401

Perseus in Greek legend, son of Zeus and Danae; slayer of the Gorgon Medusa and rescuer of Andromeda from a sea monster. He is the hero of Sri Aurobindo’s drama

Perseus the Deliverer. (A)  6:1, 3, 9-10, 15-21, 23-26, 66-74, 82-89, 95-96, 126-27, 129-30, 161-65, 172-73, 175, 177-81, 183-85, 188, 190-91, 193-201 XIV: 168

Perseus the Deliverer a play by Sri Aurobindo, written between 1906 and 1907. It first appeared serially in the weekly Bande Mataram, and was reproduced with the author’s revisions and some additional passages in Collected Poems and Plays (1942). Two scenes of the 1906-07 version were rediscovered and included in the text when the drama appeared separately in book form in 1955. (I&G) a 26:44, 254, 256 XIV: 168

Persia the name used for centuries, mostly in the West, for the kingdom of Iran in south- western Asia. (Enc. Br.) Der: Persian (in senses other than the language) n 1:242, 261, 310, 391, 481, 506, 520, 527, 576, 619-20, 769, 815 2: 35, 117-18, 192-93, 248-49, 274, 278, 390, 406 3: 10, 198-99 4: 187-88, 214 5: 176, 272, 277 6: 362, 380 7: 561, 579, 590, 592, 603-05, 607, 621, 704 8:61 9:237, 410 11:4 14:148, 190-91, 223, 241, 253, 329, 366, 373 15: 33, 178, 324, 343, 412, 444, 447, 467, 501-02, 506, 646 16: 407 17: 185, 278, 299, 302, 306-07 22: 417" 26: 233 27: 122 I: 31 II: 38 III: 24 XV: 5 XVI: 134, 180 XVII: 11, 43

Persia, the evidently, the name of a ship that was stranded sometime before 16 July 1912. (A) D XX: 130

Persian (language) member of the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian language family. It is the official language of Iran (Persia) and is also widely spoken in Afghanistan. Written in Arabic characters, modern Persian also has many Arabic loan-words and an exten- sive literature. (Enc.Br.) a ll: 506 17: 307 26: 234 I: 25 XV: 17

Persian Eclogues by Collins, published in 1742 (2nd edition: Oriental Eclogues, 1757). He composed them at the age of seventeen under the influence of Pope’s Pastorals. (Enc. Br.) n II: 13

Persian Gulf an arm (length 420 miles) of the Arabian Sea, between Arabia and Iran. (Web.) a i: 804

Peru a country, now a republic, of western South America, astride the Andes Mountains. Lima is its capital. (Col. Enc.) Der: Peruvian a 1:306, 389 14:10, 77 15: 323 III: 11

Peshawar capital of the North-West Frontier Province of British India, (now in Pakistan). It occupies an important strategic position. (Enc. Br.)  1:140

Peshwas’ hereditary sovereigns (earlier, chief ministers) of the Maratha state in India. The first Peshwa, also called "Mukhya Pradhan", was the chief minister of Shivaji. In the reign of Shahu, with the appointment, in 1720, of Baji Rao I, the office practically became hereditary. In 1749, on the death of childless Raja Shahu, the Peshwaship became the supreme office in the Maratha state, and the history of the Marathas merged in the history of the Peshwas. They became very powerful and aimed at establishing a Maratha empire in place of the Moghul. After the Third Maratha War (1817-19), in which the Peshwa was decisively defeated, the Peshwaship was abolished. (C.O.D.;D.I.H.) D 14:364, 380

Pestalozzi, Johann Heinrich (1746-1827), Swiss educational reformer who was among the first to stress the need for better popular education. His theories laid the foundation of modern elementary education. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) n 14:66

Peter, St. (died c. 64), "prince of the Apostles", recognized in the early Christian Church as the leader of the disciples of Jesus Christ and by the Roman Catholic Church as the first of its unbroken succession of popes. His original name was Simeon, but Jesus gave him the nickname Cephas, i.e. "Rock". Hence Peter, from the Greek "petros" (Latin "petrus"). (Col. Enc.; Enc.Br.) n i: 699 4:334 26:259 29:798 VII: 9, 22

Peters Probably the following rulers (empe- rors and czars) of Russia are meant: Peter I or Peter the Great (1672-1725), emperor (1721-25) and czar (1682-1725); Peter II (1715-30), emperor and czar (1727-30); Peter III (1728-62), emperor and czar (1762). (Col. Enc.) a 15:356, 513

Peter the Great See under Peters a 15:357

Petlad a town in the former princely state of Baroda (now in the state of Gujarat), about 50 miles south of Ahmedabad. (A; S. Atlas) n 27:116

Petman apparently, one of the counsels for the prosecution in the Patiala Case (c. 1910) (A) n 2: 370

Petrarch Francesco Petrarca (1304-74), Italian poet, scholar and humanist whose poems, addressed to Laura, an idealized beloved, inspired the Renaissance flowering of lyric poetry in Italy, France, Spain, and England. (Enc. Br.) a 9:61 I: 7

Petrograd former name of Leningrad (Russia), from 1914 to 1924. (Web.) a 4: 24

Petrus probably the name of a woman of Pondicherry. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct.'27]

Petucchur in the Mahabharata, name of a country and its people and king who migrated south out of fear of JARASANDHA. (M.N.) D 8: 41

Pfleiderer, Otto (1839-1908), German Protestant theologian and religious historian. (Enc. Br.) a 16: 336

Phaethon in Greek mythology, son of Helios (Sun-god), who drove his father’s chariot one day in spite of the warning of Helios. The horses bolted from the course. To save the earth from being burnt up, Zeus hurled a thunderbolt at Phaethon, who fell into the River Eridanus (later identified variously by the ancients, often with the Po in Italy). His sisters wept for him till they were turned into poplars; their tears, oozing from the trees, are hardened into amber. (O.C.C.L.) a 5:7

Pharaohs generic name or title of ancient Egyptian kings. It is a Greek form derived from a Hebrew version of the Egyptian word meaning "great house", signifying the royal palace, but used, in the New Kingdom and after, as a title of respect to the Egyptian king himself. In the 22nd dynasty the title was added to the king’s personal name. (Enc. Br.) D l: 413 XIII: 44

Pharatus in Sri Aurobindo’s Ilion, one of Penthesilea’s captains. (M.I.) a 5:455, 516-17

(Pharisaical) of the PHARISEES a 1:257, 305, 903 2:4 IV:170

(Pharisees) members of ancient Jewish sect distinguished by strict observance of traditional and written law and pretensions to sanctity. Pharisees were one of the two great Jewish religious parties that arose within the synagogue. The opponents were the SADDUCEES. (C.O.D.;Col.Enc.) 0 1: 277, 863 2: 218 3: 177 14: 79 16: 211 17: 133, 138, 163

Phamabazus (fl. late 5th and early 4th century Be), Persian soldier and statesman, hereditary satrap of Dascylium under Darius II and Artaxerxes II. He was governor of the Persian province of the Hellespont and an outstanding military and naval commander in Persia’s wars against Athens and Sparta. (Enc.Br.)

[From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]

Pharphar title of a poem written by ARJAVA on a river of this name. It is very probably an imaginary river. (Col. Enc.; A) n 9: 357-58

Pharsalia an ancient Greek district of Thessaly surrounding the city of Pharsalus. (Web.) a v:63

Pharsalus an ancient city in Thessaly (Greece). It was the scene of a battle (48 Be) of the Roman Civil War in which Caesar defeated Pompey. (Web.) a 5:516

Phayllus a character – Chancellor of Syria – in Sri Aurobindo’s play Rodogune. 0 6: 333, 343-45, 365-70, 372-75, 377, 385, 388-90, 394, 397-98, 400, 404, 406, 408-12, 421-27, 436, 438-41, 444-47, 450-56, 459-60, 463-64, 466-68

Pheidias See Phidias

Phelps, Myron Myron H. Phelps, a member of the New York Bar. He was a sincere well-wisher of the Indian nation. In June 1907 he addressed a letter to the Indians, pointing to the necessity of more orgnaised propaganda for the Indian cause in America. He drew their attention to "some remarkable parallelisms" between the American freedom movement and the Swadeshi movement then going on in India, relating how the American people, indignant at the British policy of systematic exploitation, expressed their grievances by the refusal to buy English goods. (I.F.F.) a 1:615

Pherozshah, Sir See Mehta, Sir Pherozshah

Phidias (c. 500 – c. 432 Be), Greek sculptor, considered the greatest artist of ancient Greece. (Col. Enc.) Var: Pheidias a 5:254 9:61, 333, 381 14:228, 231 15: 91 17: 303 XIV: 116

Philip a character paricipating in "A Dialogue" (incomplete) which Sri Aurobindo seems to have written at Cambridge in 1891. (A&R-II, p.91) n 11:8

Philip (of Macedon) Philip II (382-336 Be), king of Macedon (359-336 Be). He unified his nation and made it supreme in Greece, laying the foundations for the great expan- sion accomplished by his son Alexander the Great. (Enc. Br.) a 14:328 15:343 16:90

Phillip II (1527-98), king of Spain (1556-98), and also of the Netherlands, Franche Comte, Sicily, Sardinia, Naples, and Milan, as well as the Spanish possessions in America. He was the most powerful monarch in Christen- dom, determined to strengthen royal power in Spain. His ambitious foreign policy led him to aim at the subjugation of England, to intervene actively in the struggles of France, and to war

with the powerful Ottoman Empire. (R. Enc.) n 3: 193 15: 357

Philip IV apparently, Philip IV "the Fair" (1268-1314), king of France (1285-1314). He was one of the greatest kings of France’s Capetian dynasty; he established his author- ity in ecclesiastical matters over the papacy and instituted important reforms in govern- ment. In 1303 he deposed Pope Boniface VIII and transferred the papacy to Avigpon. (P.P.; Enc. Br.) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]

Philippines group of about 7100 islands and islets off Southeast Asia, in the Malay Archipelago, now constituting the Republic of the Philippines (proclaimed in 1946). (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) a l: 260 15:328, 333, 508 26: 395

Philip Polo name (real or made up) of a resident ofMymensingh around 1910. The Englishmen who assaulted an innocent Pundit at Goalundo came to Mymensingh the next day and stayed at Polo’s bungalow for a day. (A) a 4: 248

Philistia ancient region of southwestern Palestine, comprising a fertile plain ex- tending to the Mediterranean and including a portion of South Canaan. (Col. Enc.) Der: Philistian a 5: 14 6: 8

Philistine member of a warlike people of Aegean origin who settled on the southern coast of Palestine in the 12th century BC shortly before the arrival of the Israelites. The use of the term Philistine for a person deficient in liberal culture and whose chief interests are material, prosaic, and common- place arose in the mid-19th century. It was popularised by English authors. The term is now often used of those who oppose innova- tions in the arts. (Enc. Br.) Der: Philistinism  l: 13, 277 3: 99 15: 79-80, 82, 85, 88, 151 III: 7, 14 XIII: 47

Phillips, Stephen (1864-1915), English poet and actor who was briefly successful as a playwright. (Enc. Br.) a 9:2, 157, 163, 174, 184, 461 26:254, 264-67, 273, 312

Philo or Philo Judaeus (c. 20 BC – c. AD 50), Alexandrian Jewish philosopher. His doc- trines had an extraordinary influence on both Jewish and Christian religious writings. (Col. Enc.) a 16:368

Philoctetes’ in Greek mythology, king of the Malians of Mt. Oeta. He was a friend of Hercules and inherited his bow and poisoned arrows. On the way to the Trojan War, he was bitten by a snake, and his

companions left hnn on the desolate island of Lemnos. When the oracle declared that Troy would not be taken without the weapons of Her- cules, Philoctetes was brought by Diomedes and Odysseus to Troy, where he was healed of his wound by Machson, son of the physi- cian Asclepius. Philoctetes killed Paris in the war. (Col. Enc.) a 5:491

Philoctetes2 a character – companion of Antiochus – in Sri Aurobindo’s play Rodo- gune. 0 6:333, 346-49, 394-95, 397, 404, 408-10, 413, 426-27, 435-37, 442-43, 449, 455, 461-62, 464, 469

The Philosophy of Benedetto Croce a book by Carr, published in 1917. (A) a 9:485

Phineus’ in Greek legend, the blind and aged king whom the Argonauts (a band of fifty heroes sent to fetch the Golden Fleece in the ship "Argo") met at the entrance to the Euxine. Phineus told them the course to Colchis and how to pass through the Cya- nean rocks – two cliffs that moved on their bases and crushed whoever sought to pass through them. (Enc. Br.) n 26:245 29:791, 807

Phineus2 a character – King of Tyre – in Sri Aurobindo’s play Perseus the Deliverer, a 6:3, 13, 22, 24, 29, 36-37, 44, 48-56, 62-64, 100-04, 107-08, 111, 113-14, 134, 150, 152-54, 181, 190-97

Phliaps in Sri Aurobindo’s play Rodogune, a Syrian leader. 1-1 6:412

Phoces in Sri Aurobindo’s llion, a Phthian warrior, Amarus’ son. He is the first man to be slain in llion (by Helanus). (M.I.) a 5:518 VI: 135

Phocian (inhabitant) of Phocis, a country of central Greece comprising the middle Cephissus valley and the valley of Crisa, which are linked loosely by passes over the southern spurs ofMt. Parnassus. (O.C1.D.) a 5:488, 508

Phoebus in Greek mythology, epithet of Apollo in his aspect of sun-god and dispenser of light. He took on many aspects of the older sun-god Helios. (M.I.) a 5:428, 437, 442-43, 446, 489 6:91 17:257 26:345

Phoenicia ancient name given to a region corresponding to modern Lebanon with adjoining parts of modern Syria and Israel. The Phoenicians were merchants and manufacturers, and very skilful in shipbuilding and navigation. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.; M.I.) Der: Phoenician a 2:34 5:419 6:12-13, 191, 195 14:392 16:406 17:195

Phraates in Sri Aurobindo’s play Rodogune, father of Rodogune and king of Parthia. Historically, the Phraates were kings of Parthia of the dynasty of Arsaces. (Col. Enc.) a 6:333, 380, 394, 399, 430, 432, 436, 447

Phrinix in Sri Aurobindo’s epic Ilion, father of Ascanus, a Phthian warrior. (M.I.) 0 VI: 135

Phrygia ancient region which included varying portions of the central plateau and western flank of Asia Minor. In Sri Aurobindo’s Ilion, the Phrygians are identified with the Trojans, as sometimes in Greek literature, and seem to be regarded as descendants of PHRYX. (M.I.) Der: Phrygian a 5:392-93, 403, 407-08, 418, 456, 464, 468, 480, 485, 553 9:400 11:32 XV: 20

Phryne nickname of the famous Athenian courtesan Muesarete (fl. 4th cent. Be). She was charged with impiety and defended by Hyperides, a distinguished Attic orator who was one of her lovers. He secured her ac- quittal by appealing to the sentiments of the jury, throwing open her dress and show- ing the beauty of her bosom. (Enc. Br.; Col.Enc.;O.C.C.L.) D 3:297 X: 161

Phryx in Sri Aurobindo’s Ilion, the primeval founder of Troy. (M.I.) a 5:402, 410, 412, 417, 434

Phthia a district and town of Thessaly, Greece. It was the realm of Achilles. The term "Phthian" has therefore frequently been used, in Sri Aurobindo’s Ilion, as an epithet of Achilles. (M.I.) Der: Phthian(s)  5: 397, 401-02, 406-07, 438, 456, 459, 464, 466, 468, 470-71, 474, 483, 486-87, 491, 514, 516 VI: 134

Pickwick, Mr. the main character of Dickens’ novel The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club (1836-37). The allusion here (3: 144) is to the scene where Mr. Pickwick accuses Mr. Blotton of acting in a "vile and calumnious manner", whereupon Mr. Blotton retorts by calling Mr. Pickwick a humbug. It finally is made to appear that both use the offensive words only in a Pick- wickian sense and that each has, in fact, the highest regard for the other. (The expression "in a Pickwickian sense" refers to words or epithets usually of a derogatory or insulting kind, which, in the circumstances in which they are employed, are not to be taken as having quite the same force or implication as they normally would have.) (R. Enc.) Der: Pickwickian o 3: 144

Pictish of Picts, a Scottish people who forged their own kingdom before uniting in AD 843 with the rest of Scotland. (Enc. Br.) a 7: 883, 886

Piedmont a region of northwestern Italy. It was a major battlefield in the Italian Wars (16th century), the wars of Louis XIV, and the French Revolutionary Wars. The dukes of Savoy, who in 1720 became kings of Sardinia, acquired all of present Piedmont by 1748. From 1798 to 1814 Piedmont was annexed to France. After its restoration to the kingdom of Sardinia it was the nucleus of Italian unification during the Risorgimento. (Col. Enc.) o l: 506, 766, 876 9: 325

Pierre, Gaston, an active and strong supporter of Lemaire in the 1914 election to the French Chamber. He came to Pondicherry as a judge, but later resigned, started a practice and soon became an eminent lawyer. (A) D 27: 442, 445, 448-50

Pilate See (Pontius) Pilate

Pilgrim’s Progress, The a book by John Bunyan, a symbolic vision of the good man’s pilgrimage through life, at one time second only to the Bible in popularity in England. It is in two parts: Part I was published in 1678 and Part II in 1684. (Enc. Br.)  23:789 24: 1634 26:464

Pillai, Chidambaram V. 0. Chidambaram Pillai (1872-1936), a nationalist pleader of Tuticorin, South India, who courageously and successfully fought for the cause of the labourers in the Coral Mills and floated the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company. The latter step particularly went very much against British interests in India and they implicated him in a false case. In 1908 he was sentenced to transportation for life, but the sentence was reduced by the High Court to six years’ imprisonment. (P.T.I.; Auro-I; Tamil Reader-111)  1:727, 745, 752, 793, 797, 803, 805 2: 76, 137 4: 242

Pillay, Vishambhar imaginary name of a supposed leader of the secret society sup- plied to GOSSAIN in the jail by a pretended approver in the Alipore Bomb Trial. (A)  4: 296

Pinaka in Hindu mythology, the bow of the god Shiva. Pinaka was formerly the three- forked spike (trident) of Shiva. Once it fell down from his hands and took the shape of a bow. From then onwards it was used as a bow. (Pur. Enc.) 3:308

Pindi See Rawalpindi

Pindi Das (1886-1969), better known as Lala Pindi Dass, a journalist, who started an Urdu weekly The India from Gujranwala in Punjab (now in Pakistan) in 1907. A special feature of the journal was the publication, under the pen name of Shiv Shambhoo, of a series of articles called "Shiv Shambhoo ka Chittha" which exposed the misdeeds of British officials. He was a revolutionary in the beginning, but later on joined the Congress and professed the principle of non- violence. (D.N.B.) a 1: 433

Pindus in Sri Aurobindo’s Ilion, a Phthian warrior, brother of Zethus. (M.I.) D 5: 514-15

Pineus a river in the Peloponnesus (southernmost region of continental Greece), emptying into the Ionian Sea. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) a 5: 411

Pioneer English daily newspaper (tri-weekly from 1865 to 1869), founded in 1865 by George Alien. The paper was originally published from Allahabad. Later on it was shifted to Lucknow. For all intents and purposes, the Pioneer was an official organ of the British government. (Cal. Lib.; N.S.I.;S.F.F, p.l031) n 1:132, 155-56, 174, 189, 196, 242, 267, 479, 527, 630, 632

Pippa the main character, an imaginative creation, in Pippa Passes, a brief but delightful poetic drama by Robert Browning. Pippa is a little Italian girl of Asolo who on New Year’s Day passes singing through the streets and by her songs changes the life of other persons. (Enc. Am.) D 27: 132

Pippalada name of a Rishi mentioned in the Prashna Upanishad. D 12: 295-96, 299, 302, 305, 309, 311-12 VIII: 184

Pisachas; Pisachi See Pis(h)achas

Pisgah the mountain ridge from which Moses viewed the Promised Land. It is in Jordan, just east of the northern Dead Sea and of the southern Jordan valley. (C.O.D.; Col. Enc.) D 3: 66

Pis(h)achas (anti-divine) beings of the lower vital plane. In the mythology of India, the Pishacha is a fiend or evil spirit, said to drink blood and to rend human flesh. In the evolutionary scale of man, the Pishacha is the third type from below of the ten forms of consciousness. The Pishacha mind is concentrated on the senses and the knowledge part of the citta. (A & R, XII: 216; Enc. Br.; A) Der: Pis(h)achi (the feminine form) 0 4:12, 22, 24, 91, 121,

165-66, 247 12: 532 13: 455 17:73 18: 603 20: 222 22: 382, 394-96 24: 1094, 1648 25: 27, 62 ‘VI: 183-84, 187, 189-90 XII: 194 XIX: 24

Pisistratus (c. 605-527 BC) , Greek statesman, tyrant of Athens. He had an official text of Homer written down, probably the first. (Col. Enc.) n 3:142

Pitriloka in Hindu religion, the second of the eight lokas or regions of material existence recognised by the Sankhya and Vedanta schools of philosophy; the loka of the Pitris, Rishis, and Prajapatis; the world of divinised ancestors. The Pitris are the fathers, the Manes. (Dow.) D 4:80 11:453′

Pizarro, Francisco (c. 1475-1541), Spanish conquistador, conqueror of the Inca Empire of Peru. (Enc.Br.) a 15:323

Planck, Max (Kari Ernst Ludwig) (1858- 1947), German theoretical physicist who originated the quantum theory. He was awarded the 1918 Nobel Prize for physics. (Enc.Br.) a 22:471, 473

Plantagenet a surname commonly applied to members of the royal house of England between 1154 and 1485, the members of which descended from the union between Geoffrey, Count of Anjou (d. 1151), and the Empress Matilda, daughter of the English king Henry I. (Enc.Br.) n 15:356 18:436

Plassey historic village in Nadia district of West Bengal. It was the scene of the decisive victory of the army of the East India Com- pany led by Robert Clive over the army of Nawab Sirajuddaulah of Bengal on 23 June 1757. The battle was a mere skirmish and lasted only a few hours, but its results were far-reaching, since it marked the beginning of British domination of India. (Enc. Br.; D.I.H.) a 1:492 8: 341 27: 124′

Plataea ancient city in southern Boetia (Greece), below the modern village of Plataiai. It was the site of a Greek victory during the Greco-Persian Wars. (Enc.Br.) D 1: 116

Plato (c. 428-348/347 Be), the second of the great trio of ancient Greeks – Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle who laid the philosophical foundations of Western culture and developed a wide-ranging system of philosophy that was strongly ethical while remaining basically rationalistic. Plato was a pupil and friend of Socrates. In Athens he founded a school in the grove of Academus, the Academy, where he taught mathematics and philosophy until his death. Plato’s greatest work is contained in his dialogues.

"Irish Plato" (3: 3) is a reference to Oscar Wilde. (Enc.Br.;Col.Enc.) Der: Platonic; Platonist  3: pre., 3, 11, 72, 431 7: 855 8: 411 9: 167. 241, 331, 381, 545-47 10: 4, 25 11: 7, 17 12: 47, 499 14: 56-57, 99, 147, 270 15:90 16:102, 110, 339, 341, 354, 356, 362, 366, 370 17:245, 388 18:299 19: 763 22: 423, 454 26: 383 II: 6 III: 14 V: 93 XIII: 45 XIV: 127, 163 XVII: 7

Plaza Mayor name of a square in Madrid, Spain. (Enc. Br.) a 7: 873

Pleasures of Imagination the poem of Akenside by which he is best known. It is an eclectic philosophical essay written in blank verse derived from Milton’s and modelled on the Roman poets Virgil and Horace. It first appeared in three books in 1744; a fourth was added later. (Enc. Br.) a 11:15

Pliny Pliny the Younger (61/62 -C.I 13), Roman author and administrator who left a collection of private letters of great literary charm, intimately illustrating public and private life in the heyday of the Roman Empire. The first nine of the ten books of Pliny’s correspondence belong to the years 97-109, and were published during his lifetime. Unlike Cicero’s letters, they were written, or rewritten, with a view to pub- lication. (Enc. Br.;O.Cl.D.) I: 8

Plotinus (c. 205-270), philosopher and religious genius, a native of Egypt, who transformed a revival of Platonism in the Roman Empire into what modern scholars call Neoplatonism, a school of thought which exercised great inflluence on Islamic and European thought until the late 17th cen- tury. (Enc.Br.)  9:381, 546 17:388 23: 555

Plutarch (c. 46- after 119), Greek essayist and biographer whose works strongly influ- enced the evolution of the essay, the biog- raphy, and historical writing in Europe from the 16th to the 19th century. The English translation of his great work The Parallel Lives supplied the factual bases for Shakes- peare’s Coriolanus, Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, and Timon of Athens. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.) 4:.284 27:80

Pluto in Greek mythology, god of the underworld, also called Hades. Pluto means literally "wealth"; the ancients commonly used this term as a euphemism for Hades, who was possessor of all the rich metals and gems of the earth. He is known to the Romans as Orcus or Dis. (Pears)  5:33

Plutus in Greek religion, god of abundance or wealth, a personification of ‘ploutos’ (Greek word for ‘riches’). (Enc. Br.) a 6: 188-89

P.M. In Record of Yoga, used for Sir Pherozshah Mehta. See Mehta, Sir Pherozshah

Pocock Edward Pocock(e) (1604-91), English Orientalist. (Col. Enc.)  3: 198

Poems’ a collection of six poems of Sri Aurobindo, published in 1941. Three of these poems first appeared in the Calcutta Review of October 1934; all the six were included in Collected Poems and Plays (1942).  26:254

Poems’ a collection of poems by Arj ava, published in 1939.  9:356, 409

Poems – Past and Present a collection of eight poems of Sri Aurobindo, published by the Ashram in 1946. Five of these had been written in the late 1930s. (I & G) n 26:153

Poerio, Carlo (1803-67), the younger of the two Italian brothers distinguished for their services to Liberalism in the Italian Risorgi- mento. Poerio was active in the revolution of 1848. In 1851 he was sentenced with his fellow Liberals to twenty-four years in irons. The case became notorious throughout Europe, but Poerio was not released until 1859. (Enc. Br.) Var: Poeris (a misprint) 0 1: 335, 362

Poeseidon See Poseidon, the correct spelling of the name.

Poetry American literary magazine (monthly), founded in 1912; it was published from Chicago and edited by Harriet Monroe. (Cal.Lib.;H.L., p.261)  17: 321

A Poet’s Stammer poem (composed in 1937) by K. D. Sethna, editor of the Ashram monthly journal Mother India. It was iden- tified by Sri Aurobindo as an example of poetry of the intuitive mind.  9:351

Poincare, Raymond (1860-1934), French statesman who was the 9th president of France (1913-20), and four times its premier. In "Record of Yoga", Sri Aurobindo some- times abbreviated his name to Pe. (Enc. W.B.)  27: 450 XX: 124 XXI: 89-90

Poison-Tree See Bis(h)abriksha

Polak probably, Graham Polak who, along with his wife, lived as part of Gandhiji’s household for many years in South Africa, perhaps from 1904 to 1914. (Enc. Ind.) 2: 301-02 4: 224

Poland a country (presently a socialist republic) in east central Europe. Warsaw is its capital. (Col. Enc.) Der: Poles; Polish I: 526 15: 291, 293, 298-99, 357, 375, 413, 419, 505, 512-13, 518, 625 17:386 XUI: 45

Pole See North Pole

Polites in Greek legend, son of Priam and Hecuba. He was a swift runner, and so was used as a scout. (M.I.)  5: 460

Pollux See Castor and Pollux

Polonius a character in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, an old courtier given to offering unwelcome advice. (Ox. Comp.)  26:67

Poludeukes strict transliteration of the Greek form of the Latin name Pollux. a 10: 318

Polydamas in Greek legend, a son of Panthous, noted for his sage advice. In Sri Aurobindo’s Ilion, he seems to be a son of Antenor (see Eurus) already slain before the opening of the poem. (M.I.) n 5:439, 443-46, 456, 459

Polydaon a character – priest of Poseidon, the sea-god – in Sri Aurobindo’s play Perseus the Deliverer. D 6:3, 11-12, 22-24, 29, 36-37, 43-56, 64, 84, 97-114, 119, 122-24, 127, 135, 137, 139-41, 143-44, 146-51, 155-56, 166-73, 176-78, 180 XIV: 168

Polydeuces Latinised transliteration of the Greek form of the Latin name Pollux. See Castor and Pollux.

Polyxena in Greek legend, Trojan princess, daughter of Priam and Hecuba. After the fall of Troy Achilles’ ghost claimed her as his prize and she was sacrificed on his tomb. Hence the story, adopted in Ilion, that the two were in love in life. (M.I.) Q 5:402, 404, 414, 421, 455, 467, 489-90

Pompey Pompey the Great, anglicized form of the Latin Gracus Pompeius Magnus (106-48 BC), one of the greatest statesmen and generals of the late Roman Republic. He was an associate and later opponent of Julius Caesar, who defeated him at PHARSALUS. Pursued by Caesar, Pompey moved on to Cilicia and Cyprus and thence to Egypt, where he was murdered. (Enc. Br.) D XIII: 44

Pondicherry a former French territory (from 1816 to 1954), the largest of the settlements constituting French India, having the town of Pondicherry as its capital. In 1954 the French settlements were merged

with the Republic of India as a centrally governed Union territory named Pondicherry, with four constituents: Pondicherry (an enclave within South Arcot district of Tamil Nadu state,113.1 sq. miles), Karaikal (an enclave within Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu, 62.8 sq. miles) , ‘Mahe (an enclave within Cannanore district ofKerala, 3.5 sq. miles), and Yanam (an enclave within East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, 7.8 sq. miles). The town of Pondicherry lies 105 miles to the south of Madras. Its main attraction is the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. (The Hindu, 18-10-78)  2:413 4: pre., 325, 327 9:330 17:403 22: 40 23: 1051 24: 1657, 1659, 1662 25: 98 26: 12, 18-19, 26-27, 36-37, 57-58, 60-61, 63, 65-66, 68, 71, 153, 169, 244, 252, 364-65, 374, 417, 421, 423, 429-30, 432, 435-36, 438, 479-80 27: pre., 161, 197, 349, 416-17, 422, 425, 427, 431, 438-39, 443-47, 449-50, 469, 471, 474, 485, 494-95, 498, 500-01 29: 790 I: 18, 32 II: 24 V: 101 VII: 1, 11, 23 X: 186-87 XV: 61 XVI: 193-94 XVII: 65-66, 69-70 XIX: 56 XXI: 11 XXII: 138

Pontic of Pontus, an ancient region on the Black Sea coast in northeastern Asia Minor. "Pontic waters" therefore means Pontus Euxinus or Black Sea. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) D 5:439

(Pontius)-Pilate (d. after AD 36), Roman procurator of Judaea (c. 26-36/37) who condemned Jesus Christ to be crucified. Various legends stressing Pilate’s efforts to release Jesus, whom he considered innocent but whom he condemned in order to escape accusation of disloyalty to the Emperor, made him almost a hero in some Christian traditions. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.) 0 1: 597 17: 163-65

Poona an important city of the former Bombay Presidency, some 100 miles south- east of the city of Bombay. Now known as "Pune", it is the administrative headquarters of Pune district and division in the state of Maharashtra. Called the "Queen of the Deccan", Pune is the cultural capital of Maharashtra. (Enc. Br.) 0 1: 363, 475, 479-80, 600, 635, 658, 684, 818-19, 825-26, 897 2: 75-76, 79, 113, 138, 153, 297 4: 179, 203, 211, 222, 225, 250-51, 268 26: 49, 58 27: 62, 64, 66 I: 1 VIII: 121 XV: 64

Pope, Alexander (1688-1744), outstanding poet of the English AUGUSTAN period. (Enc.Br.) D 3:71, 106, 156 9:26-27, 51, 53, 78, 80, 86-87, 91, 113, 132, 161, 246, 272, 377, 387, 421, 425, 472, 478-79 26: 254 29: 754, 758, 800 I: 9-13, 15 II: 11-17, 19

Porte, the "Sublime Porte", name used by Europeans to designate the government of Ottoman Turkey. It is a translation of the Turkish "Babiali" (High Gate), meaning the entrance to the grand vizier’s palace in Istanbul. (Enc. Br.)  XXII: 132

Portugal a country occupying the western section of the Iberian Peninsula at the , extreme west of the European continent. (Enc. Br.) Der: Portuguese D 15:328, 445, 505

Poseidon in Greek mythology, the sea-god, protector of all waters. He bore the trident, and when he shook it he caused storms and , earthquakes. A brother of Zeus, he was a son of the Titans Cronus and Rhea. With Apollo, he built the walls of Troy for Lao- medon, whose failure to pay for the work turned Poseidon against the Trojans. The Romans identified Poseidon with Neptune. (M.I.; Col. Enc.) Var: Poeseidon (a misprint) n 5:394, 401, 422, 427, 429, 433-34, 439, 444, 469, 471, 494, 504-06, 510 6: 1, 3, 5-12, 14, 16, 21-23, 27-28, 34-35, 40, 42-46, 49-52, 60-61, 70, 73, 82-83, 85, 87, 90, 95, 97-104, 107, 111-15, 117-19, 121-24, 127, 135, 138-39, 141, 143-47, 149-52, 154-55, 161-62, 166, 169-71, 173-74, 178-79, 187, 192-93, 200 7: 1075 8: 409 17:257 XIV:168

Posen German form of Poznan, city and capital of the province of Posen in west central Poland. (Enc. Br.)  15: 299 27: 466

Pound, Ezra Ezra (Loomis) Pound (1885-1972), American poet and critic of outstanding importance in the history of 20th-century English letters. (Enc. Br.) D 29: 780

Poundra (Pundra), name of an ancient country that was conquered by Pandu. According to modem scholars Pundra included the region covered by the modem district of Malda (West Bengal state), part of Purnea (Bihar state) east of the Kosi River, part ofDinajpur, and Rajshahi (both in Bangladesh). (M.N.) Der: Poundrian n 5: 246 8: 40

Poundrian Vasudeva (Paundraka Vasudeva), king of the country called Pundra (see Poundra). He was ruler also ofBanga and many other countries, and an ally of Jara- sandha. He was a pretender who, on the strength of being a Vasudeva (descendant of one named Vasudeva), set himself up in opposition to Krishna and assumed his style and insignia. He was supported by the king of Kashi, but he was defeated and killed by Krishna. (M.N.;Dow.)  3:191 8:40

Le Pourquoi des Mondes title of a series of articles by Paul Richard, published in the French adition ofArya from August 1914 to July 1915. An English translation by Sri Aurobindo, "The Wherefore of the Worlds", came out at the same time in the English edition.

(Arya) [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]

Pourujit in the Mahabharata, a Kshatriya king, son of Kuntibhoj and brother of Kunti. He was killed by Dronacharya in the great battle. (M.N.) Var: Kuntivardhan Purujit  4:75 8:40, 77

Powell a character participating in "A Dialogue" written by Sri Aurobindo around 1891.(A&R-II)  11:6-9

PR In "Record of Yoga", used for Paul Richard.

Prabartak Bengali monthly journal founded by Motilal Roy at Chandernagore in 1915, having as its object to put Sri Aurobindo’s ideals before Bengal. After 1920, when Motilal separated from Sri Aurobindo, it became the mouthpiece of the then alienated Prabartak Sangh of which Motilal Roy was the leader. Afterwards the journal was pub- lished from Calcutta and edited by Arun Chandra Datta and Radharaman Chaudhuri. (Purani; L. to Sl.; Cal. Lib.)  4:pre. 27:477, 483, 492-93 VII: 4, 6-7, 10, 14, 18-19, 23

Prabartak Sangh(a) a spiritual commune founded in Chandernagore by Motilal Roy sometime after 1914 under the inspiration of Sri Aurobindo. At one time all Bengali books and many English books connected with Sri Aurobindo as well as the two journals, Prabartak and The Standard Bearer, were published by the Sangha. Around 1921, however, some spiritual differences grew up between Motilal and Sri Aurobindo, and after the former’s departure from Pondicherry in August 1921, the inner spiritual connection between the Chander- nagore Centre and Sri Aurobindo was gradually cut off. "Commune, Culture and Commerce" became the motto of the Sangha. (Purani) a 27:349, 417, 487, 489 VII: 14

Prabasi Bengali (illustrated) monthly of Calcutta, edited by Ramananda Chatter ji. Started in 1901, it was distinguished for its editorials and views and a wealth of infor- mation culled from various sources. (Cal. Lib.;S.F.F.)  3:421, 426 26:61-62 27:483

Prabhas Babu See Deb, Prabhas(chandra)

Prabhas-Patan a religious and historic place on the southwestern coast of Gujarat, also called Somnath Patan. The Mahabharata describes Prabhas as one of the most important places of pilgrimage. 0 1:44

Prabhou See Deshpande, Baji (Prabhou)

Prabuddha Bharat or A wakened India, an English monthly journal started by Swami Vivekananda in 1896 at Calcutta. It is a journal of the Ramakrishna Order, and continues to be published from Calcutta. Its editorial office, however, is now at Mayavati, another centre of the Mission (known as Advaita Ashram) in the Pithoragarh district of Uttar Pradesh, about forty-five miles from Almora.  26:106

Pradhan, Ramchandra Ganesh one of the persons who received Sri Aurobindo at Nasik Road station on 24 January 1908. (A)  1:1, 6

Pradyot ruler of Magadha, and founder of a dynasty in East India about a century after the war of the Mahabharata. o 6:205

Pradyumna in Hindu mythology, a son of Krishna by Rukmini, said to be a reincar- nation of Kamadeva, the god of love, who was reduced to ashes by the fiery glance of ~ Shiva. Symbolically, Sri Aurobindo (3:452-53) sees Pradyumna as the third Power of the Chaturvyuha, with love as His manifestation, and sweetness and delight as His attributes; the Dwapara Yuga is full of Pradyumna, the Vaishya. He is identified with Vishnu, and his Shakti is Mahalakshmi. (Dow.;A;A&R, XIX:93) D 3:200, 207, 452-53 8:43, 59 IV: 115 XIX: 54 XXII: 135

Prahlada in Hindu mythology, son of the Daitya king Hiranyakashipu. While yet a boy he became an ardent devotee of Vishnu. This enraged his father, who tried to get him killed in various ways. Prahlada, however, escaped unhurt every time. Ultimately Vishnu in his incarnation as Narasimha (Man-Lion) killed Hiranyakashipu. (Dow.) D 12:408 13:349 27:326 111:6

Prajapati(s) one of the creator-figures of ancient India. In the Veda the term Prajapati is applied to Indra, Savitri, Soma, Hiranya- garbha, and other deities. In the post-Vedic age he came to be identified with Brahma, who gradually surpassed him in importance. Used in the plural, the term refers to the "mind-born" children of Brahma. Their number (generally considered ten) and names vary. (Dow.; A)  1:892-94

10:68 11:22 12:107, 126, 335, 363, 367, 416 13:374 17:278 27:360 VI: 182-84 VII: 66 XV: 11

Prakrit one of the various middle Indo- Aryan languages that represented a departure from the fixed form of Sanskrit. They began as vernacular dialects which were often distinguished by regional names, and

eventually developed distinct literary styles. The modem languages of India developed from the Prakrit languages, of which Apabhramsa was the latest stage. (Enc. Br.) Der: Prakritic  3:198 10:51 11:505 14:47, 186

Pramadvura in the Mahabharata, wife of Ruru, and mother of the Rishi Sunaka. (M.N.)  5:258

Pramathanatha an epithet of Shiva, meaning "master of the Pramathas". His Pramathas or attendants are numerous; they are imps and demons of various kinds. (Dow.)  17:378

Pramathas the fourth type from below of the ten forms of consciousness in the evolutionary scale of man. The Pramatha mind is concentrated on the heart and the emotional and aesthetic part of the citta. In Hindu mythology, Pramathas are a class of beings (demons) attending on Shiva. (A;

I&G) 0 22:395 VI: 183-85, 188-89 XIX: 24

Pramatheshwari spouse of Shiva who is Pramatheshwar (Lord of the Pramathas). [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]

Pramati in the Mahabharata, son of the sage Chyavan. Pramati fathered a son named Ruaru or Ruru by an Apsara. (M.N.)  27:152 .

Prapthie (Prapti), in the Mahabharata, daughter of Jarasandha, and younger sister of Sahadeva. She and her sister Asti (see Ustie) were wives of Kansa. (Dow.)  8:41

Pmshna Upanishad "Upanishad of the Questions", an Upanishad of the Atharva Veda. (Up.K.)  12: pre., 56, 295 14: 275-76, 278 18: 412, 501, 511 20: 7 V: 36 XV: 58 XVIII: 156

Praskanwa Kanwa (Praskanva Kanva), a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Kanva. a 10: 124 XVI: 160-62, 164

Pratap, Rao of Ichalgurh a character – a Chouhan noble – in Sri Aurobindo’s play Prince of Edur. Var: Ichalgurh a 7:739, 783-86, 789-90, 794-804, 812

Pratapaditya (1564-1612?), a valiant landlord of Jessore in Bengal (now in Bangladesh). He refused to pay tribute to Akbar and defeated a Moghul army. Ultimately, however, he was overpowered, made captive and sent to Delhi, dying on the way. According to some accounts he had a very large area – covering Jessore, Khulna, and 24-Parganas – under his rule. (D.I.H.; S.B.C.) a 3:214 4:99, 129 1:22

Pratap Singh better known as Rana Pratap Singh (15457-97), ruler of the Rajput confederacy of Mewar (now in northwest India and Pakistan) from 1572 to 1597. He was a unique figure in the history of India, a great hero and a true patriot who stood against immense odds to uphold the indepen- dence of his country. (D.I.H.; Enc. Br.) D 1:623 4:99, 129 12:484

Pratibasi a journal published from Calcutta around 1907. (A) a l: 478

Pratisthana an ancient Indian city, the capital of the early kings of the Lunar dynasty. It was perhaps situated on the eastern side of the confluence of the Ganga and the Yamuna, opposite to the site of modem Allahabad. (Dow.)  5:217-18 7: 909, 926, 990

Praxilla a character – head of the palace household in the women’s apartments – in Sri Aurobindo’s play Perseus the Deliverer. 0 6: 3, 27-38, 41-42, 57-58, 61, 64-65, 127, 131-32, 135, 137-38, 141, 143, 182, 185-86, 192

Praxiteles sculptor of Athens (fl. 370-330 Be), greatest of the Attic sculptors of the 4th century BC, and one of the most original of Greek artists. (Enc. Br.)  14: 228 II: 6 XIV: 116

Prayag(a) a place of Hindu pilgimage in Uttar Pradesh at the confluence of the rivers Ganga and Yamuna (it is said that an under- ground stream, the Saraswati, also joins them). The city that has grown up nearby is now known as Allahabad. (Dow.) Var: Proyaga (as pronounced by the Bengalis) •  8:246, 355 27: 159 XVI: 146

Prayaswats (Prayasvantah), names of Vedic Rishis, descendants of Atri. (B.P.C.; V. Index) a n: 232

Prayer of Columbus one of the most notable poems of Walt Whitman. (Enc. W.B.)  9: 152

Prayers and Meditations English translation of the Mother’s Prieres et Meditations, written mostly in France. Some of these prayers were translated by Sri Aurobindo, and this translation was first published in 1941. An enlarged edition, including additional prayers that were translated by others, first came out in 1948. n 25: 48, 219, 369, 383, 403 26: 508

Prayoga Bhargava a Vedic Rishi, descendant of Bhrigu. II: 370

Premanand famous medieval Gujarati poet of the latter half of the 17th century. He wrote on an epic

scale, drawing upon Puranic and indigenous themes. His mastery of verse is highlighted by a luxurious colourful diction and a unique creative touch, a 3: 155 14: 320

Presidency College established under the name of Hindu College at Calcutta in 1817, mainly through the efforts of Raja Ram- mohan Roy and David Hare. It afterwards developed into Presidency College. (A.H.I.) n 3:76, 80 27:351

Pretas in the mythology of India, the spirit of a dead person for whom funeral rites have not yet been performed. If denied the final obsequies, apreta may become a bhuta, or wandering ghost. (Enc. Br.) a 27:430

Prezonysl name of a place in Europe. [From "Record of Yoga" MSS Nov. 1913-Oct. '27]

Priam in Greek legend, the last Trojan king, who resigned during the Trojan War. He was a son of Laomedon. His wife was Hecuba, and he had many children including Hector and Paris. In Sri Aurobindo’s Ilion, he is pictured as an old man of imposing presence who has retired from active rule. (M.I.; Col. Enc.; Web.) 0 5:392, 399-400, 402-04, 408, 411-13, 424, 429-30, 433, 435, 439-40, 442, 445-50, 453-56, 460-61, 464-65, 467, 479, 483, 514 II: 26 IV: 114 VI: 135

Priamid an epithet of Priam’s sons. (M.I.)  5: 401, 408, 433, 454, 458-59, 513 VI: 134

Price, Dr. Richard Price (1723-91), English theologian and political philosopher. He ardently supported the French.Revolution and was subsequently criticized by Edmund Burke in his Reflections on the Revolution in France. (Col. Enc.)  1: 648

Prieres et Meditations selected "Prayers" of the Mother, originally written in French and first published in 1932.  25:367, 383, 403

Primrose, Dr. a character, the hero of Goldsmith’s Vicar of Wakefield (1766). (Ox. Comp.; Col. Enc.)  II: 19

Prince, the "The Prince", title translated into English of a book in Italian Ilprincipe (1532), Machiavelli’s best-known work. It has made his name a symbol of political immortality. His exact intentions in writing

Ilprincipe remain a mystery and a matter of controversy. (Col. Enc.) Q 1:579

Prince of Darkness an epithet of Satan. (C.O.D.)  1:601

Princep, Justice chairman of the Official Emoluments Commission at Baruipur (Bengal). He was replaced by Bankim Chandra. (A)  3: 84

Prince Paradox See Treneth

Princess, the The Princess (1847), a long narrative poem by Tennyson, reissued in 1850 with the interspersed songs which are its chief beauty. (Enc. Br.; Col. Enc.)  9: 63, 456

Prior, Matthew (1664-1721), one of the neatest of English epigrammatists who, in occasional pieces and familiar verse, had no rival. (Ox. Comp.)  11:13

Prishni in the Vedas and Puranas, the earth, mother of the Maruts. In the Vedas the name is also used for a cow. (Dow.)  10: 157

Pritha a name of Kunti. See Kunti(e)’

Prithivi in the Rig-veda, the "earth" as the "broad" or "wide" one; later she is personified as a deity both alone and with Div or "Heaven". She is the goddess Earth, the mother of all beings. In the Vishnu Purana she is represented as receiving her name from PRITHU, who granted her life, and so was as a father to her. (V. Index; Dow.) Var: prthivi  3:30, 32 10:114, 171, 275 12:84 19:780 V: 25, 68 XV: 44

Prithu or Prithi or Prithi-vainya. In Hindu mythology there are many Prithus. The ref- erence here (8: 99) is to Prithi-vainya, the son of Vena. He was said to be the first king, and from him the earth received her name Prithivi. His subjects suffered from famine because the earth withheld edible plants. Prithu became angry. The earth assumed the form of a cow and promised to restore all the needed fruits if a calf were given to her through which she might be able to secrete milk. Prithu thereupon made Swayambhuva Manu the calf and milked the earth. Thence proceeded all kinds of corn and vegetables. (Dow.) n 8:99

Prithuraj a character – companion of Bappa; a young Rajpoot refugee – in Sri Aurobindo’s play Prince ofEdur.  7:739, 756-59, 765, 767-68, 797, 801, 811-14

Prithvish Babu Prithvish Chandra Roy (1870-1928), a Congress leader of Bengal, belonging to the Moderate party, and closely associated with Gokhale, Watcha, and Surendranath Banerji. He was the editor of the Indian World and author of a number of books in English. (S.B.C.)  4:238

Priyamvada a character – a friend and companion of Shakuntala – in Kalidasa’s famous play Abhijndna Sdkuntalam.  3: 231

Priyumvada a character in the long narrative poem Love and Death by Sri Aurobindo. The name is a substitute for Pramadvara of the story of Ruru and Pramadvara told in the Mahabharata, on which the theme of the poem is based, 5:231, 233, 235, 238-39, 258 27:153-54

Prizrend Prizren, a city in southern Serbia (now in Yugoslavia), northwest of Skoplje. Its population consists chiefly of Albanians. Prizren was taken by the Serbians in 1912 and assigned to them by the Treaty of Bucharest (1913). (Col. Enc.)  XXI: 71

The Problem of Rebirth a book by Sri Aurobindo published in 1952 containing essays from Arya, reprinted with minor revisions and a letter by the author in reply to a question about this series of articles. (I&G)  22:302

Procrustean of or relating to Procrustes, a robber in Greek legend. He had an iron bed (or according to some accounts, two beds) on which he compelled his victims to lie, stretching or cutting off their legs to make them fit the bed’s length. The "bed of Procrustes" has become proverbial for inflexibility, and the word "Procrustean" has come to mean "tending to produce uniformity by violent methods". (Enc. Br.;

C.O.D.) D 10: 86 15: 608 17: 338 V: 87

Progress of Poesy a Pindaric ode by Gray, written in 1754 and published in 1759. (Ox. Comp.)I: 14-15

Prometheus in Greek religion, Titan or demigod who made man from clay, stole fire from Olympus and taught men the use of it and also various arts. Zeus punished him by chaining him to a rock in Caucasus where a vulture daily devoured his liver. He suffered this torment until Hercules set him free. (Col. Enc.)  1:744-45 15:97 29:506

Prometheus Unbound a closet drama composed in 1820 by Shelley. Known for its rich variety, it is the poet’s supreme effort and one of the masterpieces of poetry. (Col. Enc.; A)  1:558 3:294 9:127-28 X: 144

The Prophecy of Famine a poem by Charles Churchill, published in 1763. (Ox. Comp.)  II: 19

Propontis in ancient times, name of the Sea of Marmora, from its position relative to the Black Sea. (Propontis is a Greek word meaning "fore-sea".) (Enc. Br.) o 5: 444

Prospero a character – the deposed duke of Milan – in Shakespeare’s comedy The Tempest. By magic he raises a tempest off the island he inhabits with his daughter Miranda, and then acts as host to the shipwrecked malefactors. (Web.) D 4:64 26:335, 337-38

Protestantism one of the three major branches of Christianity, originating in 16th-century Reformation, characterized by its doctrines of justification by grace through faith, the priesthood of all believers, and the authority of the Scriptures. (Enc. Br.) Var: Protestant Christianity; Protestant Reformation a 4: 147 12: 55-56 14: 79 15: 10 16: 365 XIV: 127

Proteus in Greek mythology, the prophetic old man of the sea and shepherd of the sea’s flocks (e.g. seals). He knew all things – past, present, and future – but disliked telling what he knew. Those who wished to consult him had first to surprise and bind him during his noonday slumber. Even when caught he would try to escape by assuming all sorts of shapes, for he had the power of assuming whatever shape he pleased. (Enc. Br.)  II: 6

Prothero, George Walter (1848-1922), member of the faculty of King’s College, Cambridge: Fellow, 1872-96; Tutor, 1876-94;

Senior Proctor, 1888-89. He was professor of history at Edinburgh University, 1894-99;

editor of Quarterly Review, 1899-1922;

Director of the historical section of the Foreign Office, 1918-19. (Prothero was never Provost as asserted by Sri Aurobindo. Leigh was elected in 1889 and followed by M. R. James in 1905.) (A&R-IL97)  26:1 II: 87 ("C.W." is a misprint for "G.W.")

Prothoenor in Greek legend, a Theban prince and a leader of the Boeotians in the Trojan War. (M.I.)  5:479-80, 491

Prothous in Sri Aurobindo’s Ilion, a Greek warrior. (M.I.) n 5:491

Provencal a Romance language spoken by more than 12 million persons in southern France. All Provencal speakers use French as their official and cultural language, but Provencal dialects are used for

everyday purposes and show no sign of extinction. The earliest written material in Provencal is said to date from the 10th century. Literature in Provencal is plentiful, for it was a standard and literary language in France and northern Spain from the 12th to the 14th century. (Enc. Br.) 0 15:310, 480, 496

Provence a former province of France, on the Mediterranean coast between the Alps and the Rhone. A centre of the civilisation of southern France, Provence has kept the tradition of its distinctive language and literature. (Enc. Br.) Der: Provencal (in senses other than the language) Q 1:38, 526 7:1027 15:291, 526

Proyaga See Prayag(a)

Prussia name applied from 1701 to the kingdom ruled by the German Hohenzollern dynasty, including former Prussia (the land of the Prussians on the southeastern coast of the Baltic Sea) and Brandenburg, with Berlin as its capital. Prussia expanded far beyond these boundaries in the 18th and 19th cen- turies. After the fall of the Hohenzollerns in 1918, the name Prussia was applied to the "Land" (state) in the German "Reich" which included most of their former kingdom. This was abolished by the Allies in 1947 as part of their political reorganization of Germany after its defeat in World War II. (Enc. Br.) Der: Prussian; Prussianism; Prussianise (assimilate to the Prussian system of sacrificing the individual to the state) a 1:526 2:406 15:288, 299, 417, 420, 497 17:244

Pryas in Sri Aurobindo’s Ilion, a Thessalian, killed by Pharatus. (M.I.) D 5:516

P.S.;Psalmodist See Parthasarathi

Psychology an abridged edition (1905), read by Sri Aurobindo, of Principles of Psychology (1890), a two-volume work by the American psychologist William James that became a basic text. (Enc. Br.)  9:560 26:384

Ptolemaic of Ptolemy, a celebrated Alexandrine astronomer, geographer, and mathematician of the 2nd century, who held Earth to be stationary. (Col. Enc.; Enc. Br.)  16:97

Ptolemy one of the Ptolemies, fourteen rulers of Egypt from the death of Alexander the Great to Cleopatra, i.e. from 323 to 30 BC. (C.O.D.;Enc.Br.)  6:361, 402, 427, 447, 469

Pulinda, the name of a barbarous tribe; a member or the king of this tribe. (M. W.) a XXII: 135