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Summary of Conclusions
Recent questions about the Revised Edition of Savitri can be grouped under four headings. The explanations offered in this booklet are summarised below:
(1) The authority for the new edition. Some aspects of this question were discussed in the first booklet "On the New Edition of Savitri". In the present booklet, it has been shown more clearly that Sri Aurobindo and the Mother knew that errors could enter the text and approved of correcting these errors. The final decisions for the new edition have been made, after looking closely at the manuscripts, by disciples authorised by the Mother to make such decisions.
(2) Agreement with the Mother’s translation. The Mother used the 1954 edition when she translated passages of Savitri into French. Her translation differs, therefore, from the Centenary edition. While it does not correspond exactly to any one edition, her translation agrees with some of the corrections made in the new edition.
(3) The subjective element. The manuscripts, fair copies and typescripts of Savitri show what Sri Aurobindo intended and how the text was sometimes altered when it passed through other hands. These documents have survived in almost all cases. The correction of mistakes in transcription and the restoration of authentic readings is usually a straightforward procedure. But Sri Aurobindo dictated his final revision. This left room for errors due to the scribe’s misunderstanding of the dictation. These errors are evident only from the context. Some such errors have been emended in each edition. In the work Page – 106 on the new edition, the discovery of previously unknown drafts by Sri Aurobindo has minimised the number of corrections that have had to be made without manuscript support. Where the exercise of editorial judgment could not be avoided, alternative readings with notes have been provided in the Supplement. As the examples discussed in this booklet illustrate, all editorial decisions have been made with the aim of publishing Savitri in Sri Aurobindo’s own words and in the form that most accurately represents his intention.
(4) Differences between editions. A list of examples of alleged "mistakes" in the Revised Edition of Savitri has been circulated by a group critical of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Trust. A discussion of the items selected by that group has formed most of this booklet. Detailed analysis of the disputed points has provided readers with the information needed to evaluate the readings in the new edition. Page – 107 |