English
After having destroyed the impure mind through your pure mind like a tree felled by an axe, may you be firmly seated in the supreme Paramapada (supreme seat). Having firmly convinced yourself of the illusory character of the worldly actions, such as going and returning, waking and sleeping, standing and sitting, &c., abandon quite all the desires of your heart. The ever-fluctuating mind goes after Jnana through its natural Vasanas, like a cat following a tiger through the flavor of its flesh. Again just as through the intrepidity of a lion a cat feeds itself on what it gets, so also the follower of the mind gets hold of the sensual objects through its intelligence. If the mind is thus engaged in the visibles, then it will never be destroyed. Hence there arises no freedom from bondage. But if the visibles are removed, then destruction of the mind will ensue and thereby Nirvana. May you rest as firm rooted as Mahameru without the conception of the difference of " I" and these (objects). May you, after rendering your mind as immaculate as the stainless Akasa, unintermittingly be in the cognition of your Atmic Reality, the Jnana which shines above in the midst of the knower and the known that are, from the standpoint of the beneficent mind, respectively Atma and the universe. May you be of the nature of the one Reality after having enquired fully into the one Bliss which shines in the midst of the blissful object and enjoyer, having1 rid yourself of both these. THE STORY OF PUNNYA AND PA'VANA. 151 May you without desires cling to and rest in " That," which ever is, in the midst of the enjoyer and the enjoyed. It is indeed impossible, for persons beset with the corro ding desires, to continue their life in this world ; but not so persons bound by a mere cord. Therefore you should cut asunder the bond of desires through the destruction of San- kalpa. Having severed the Idea of 4 I' with the sword of ' non-I,' may you, oh Rama, contemplate upon Atma and reach Moksha devoid of the seven births and in a state of non- fear to any. At these words of Vasishta, Rama remarked thus — " Thou wert pleased to say that 1 should destroy the desires arising from the ideation of ' I' in actions pursued. These words, when 1 ponder over them, are too deep for me. I can rather destroy this body, the causer than the Ahankaric con ception. With the annihilation of '!,' the body will perish like a tree felled to its root." Vasishta thereupon replied — "Men versed in the sacred lore state that there are two paths by which the Ahankdric Vasanas can be destroyed. Instead of thinking with certainty — as we do now — we live for objects or the objects live for us ; or in the absence of these invalua ble objects, the * I' does not exist or these objects do not exist in the absence of 'I, 'one should, through pure enquiry, differentiate himself (as separate) from the objects, with the idea the ' 1' does not belong to the objects or the objects do do not belong to the ' I' ; and his mind should give up all Vdsanas with no faltering certitude and should perform all things, as if in sport. This is what is called Dheya-Tyaga (or the renunciation of that fit to be given up), oh R£ma showering grace like clouds. Then having destroyed the Vasanas and looking with an equal vision over all, if one should abandon this burden of the body, then such an extinction of Vasanas constitutes the stainless Jneya-Tyaga (or the renunciation of the Known). Those only are the wise who have given up all the Vasanas which have concreted themselves into the tangible shape of the body of Ahankara. Those sturdy persons who come under the first category are called Jivanmuktas ; while those who come, under the second heading, after destroying to the root all Vasanas and actions and rendering their mind completely quiescent, are 152 YOGA-VA'SISHTA. called Videhamuktas. Oh victorious Rama, these two kinds of renunciation resemble one another. They pertain to Jivan- muktas and Videhamuktas respectively. They lead one to Brahman, free him from the trammels of pains and enable him to attain Moksha. Those only whose minds do neither sink nor float amidst the pleasures or pains by which they are environed are Jivan- muktas. Those whose minds have not experienced (or are not affected in this life by) exultation, fear, anger, poverty, stains or pains which arise in them through their previous destiny, are Jivanmuktas. Those who are ever in a dreamy state of abstraction with a mind rendered, while performing actions, as quiescent as in Sushupti and whose company is ever courted after by the wise, are fit to be termed Jivanmuktas. When the attraction towards external objects ceases, then there yet remains the internal craving which is called Trishna (thirst). But when the attraction towards objects external as well as internal ceases without any veil, then it is termed Mukta (freed) Trishna. The mere thought of longing that such and such a thing should arise to oneself is Trishna. It is this strong golden chain of Trishna that you should unshackle yourself from, without the least hindrance. May you be in that immaculate and transcendent Atma-Jnana Reality, after allowing all conceptions of yea or nay not to transcend their limits, becoming of full mind freed from all desires and giving up completely all desires for salvation or bondage as well as pleasures and pains. May you, Oh Rama, be immovable like an ocean without foams or waves. Listen attentively to what I am now going to give out to you. In the case of the stainless en quirers after Atma, there are four kinds of certitudes. The first kind is that where the " 1" identifies itself with this body from head to foot and thinks itself to be no other than the one generated by the parent. As this idea is not real, this certitude leads to dire bondage. The second kind of cer titude arises when the " I" finds itself to be above and other than all (gross) objects and to be more subtle than the tail end of paddy. This certitude when attained leads to THE STORY OF PUNNYA AND PA'VANA. 1 53 Moksha and arises in the case of the wise. The direct cogni tion within, without doubt, that all the universes are no other than the modes or aspects of ' I' and that the ' I' is indestructible is the third kind of certitude. This is the Moksha lacking nothing. The fourth kind of certitude arises when the perishable universe and the knower are cognized to be unreal and all the ' IV ever are, like the Akasa pervading everywhere. This is the incomparable and supreme Moksha. Of these, the first kind of certitude is ever associated with bondage generating Trishna. But the other three being associated with the emancipated and pure Trishna, is to be found in Jivanmuktas only. Of these, if one is impressed with the incomparable certitude that all things are no other than the ' I/ then the mind will never be affected by pleasures or pains. (All being one), the Void, Prakriti, Maya, Brahma, the Light of Chit, Intelligence, the stainless Purusha, Atma, Esa (Lord) and Siva — all these can be termed Parabrahm it self. It is Brahmic Sakti (potency) that sporting in the crea tion of this universe brings about the differentiations of the numberless divisions in it. This incomparable Sakti re siding in the non-dual Brahman exists through the impartite nature in it and then flourishes (manifold). Therefore, oh Rama, banish from your mind all thoughts of differentiations of " I" or " thou," birth or death, or pleasures or pains in objects or actions. Those persons who, being above all, concentrate their attention uponlhe supreme Seat with a cool mind unaffected by pleasures or pains will never subject them selves to the trammels of re -births. Those persons following the footsteps of the ancients who shew the same leniency and mercy towards both their friends of virtuous deeds and their enemies of vicious deeds will never render themselves liable to the trammels of re-births. Such persons will never think of nobility or lowness ; will never have love or hatred ; will not have actions to do or not to do ; will not associate them selves with re-birth. Shining with divine effulgence, they will speak lovingly to all. Having known the true proper ties of all objects, they will be ignorant of re-birth.