Raja Marathe’s Letter to Peter Heehs

["Raja" Shreehari Marathe is Peter's close and personal friend for the last 20 years.]

Dear Peter,

I have been reflecting on the recent events in your life and in the Ashram, and have come to certain entirely personal understandings. I am sharing them with you and several friends with whom I have discussed these matters in my recent stay in the Ashram. I was avoiding putting these thoughts on paper but considering that the controversy is still raging, I consider it my obligation to be a part of this debate.

About the preface to "Many lives of Sri Aurobindo"

• Your attack in the preface on all earlier biographers was unwarranted; in the first place many of them are not living, and have no way of defending themselves. In addition some of them were early disciples of Sri Aurobindo, and had seen him alive and possibly had more insight into Sri Aurobindo than you.
  
• As a historian your sources have been at best secondary and many of them tertiary and hearsay accounts. Instead of attacking the earlier biographers in this way, you could have easily acknowledged them with thanks and gratitude for showing you another side of Sri Aurobindo.

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