English
Summary — In this story, another means of medita* tation besides the three modes mentioned in the previous story is given to cognize that all is Brahman. Rama asked — When the Ahankaric mind is divested of its illusory form and maintains its real state, what is its dis tinguishing characteristic ? 318 YOGA-VA'SISHTA. Vasishta replied — Now listen attentively to the charac teristics of a mind which has perished, while yet its (spiritual) form survives. No amount of desires, illusions and other stains will unsettle a person who is firmly under the influence of his Atma, like water on a lotus leaf. The good qualities of benevolence, &c., will ever sweetly beam in his face. All sins he will destroy ; the bondage of Vdsanas will gradually loosen their hold on him. Anger will be slain ; the tendency of the mind towards desires will be lost ; all the bad impulses of Kama(passions) will be dispelled. All illusions in him, will look about for some befitting quarters elsewhere. The five organs will not be active in the discharge of their functions. Neither pains will arise and afflict him nor pleasures will increase. Through internal contentment and freedom from pains, there will arise in him an equanimity of mind over all and in all places. Even when pains and the rest attaching themselvestohis body, exhibit themselves on his face, his mind will never writhe under them or their antitheses. If the mind should only perish, then Devas even will contract his friendship through sheer love and he will enjoy great felicity. He will then regard all equally. A perfect harmony and beauty will prevail in him, rendering cool even his very marrow and he will be glorified everywhere. Samsaric illusions, oh gracious Rama of large expanding eyes, will never affect those painless wise person ages, however much such illusions are productive of great surprises, or make them oscillate ever with their never- ceasing changes of birth and destruction or generate many myriads of pleasures and pains. Fie on those low-minded persons of the world who do not long for and attain that Supreme Principle which can be cognized through Jndna. Vision only and wherein all accidents are unknown. Now hear the means through which persons cross this ocean of existence of bondage replete with the rubies of pains, arising through the conjunction of some periods of time. (It is thus; — who am " I" that has the potentiality of getting the quiescence of mind which will enable it to wade through this ocean of fleshy existence ? What is the nature of this uni verse? Who is that supreme One sought after ? Of what avail are material enjoyments? Such a discriminative en quiry is, according to the Vedas, the best of means. There- THE STORY OF IKSHWA'KU. 319 fore, thou shall hear from me, how Ikshwdku*, the foremost and the first king of thy race, managed to attain Jnana, the Moksha. While the graceful king was ruling over the seeming earth through the path of the ancients, he held secret com munion within himself thus — " What is the stainless cause of this world teeming with dotage and death, pleasures and pains, fancies and misconceptions, etc., beyond number ?" In spite of his deep thought over the same, he was unable to solve it. Therefore having visited and paid due respects to the Lord, the first Manuf who came down from Satyaloka, he addressed him thus — Oh mine of mercy who deigned to descend easily to this earth from Satyaloka, vouchsafe to enlighten me as to my real self through the attaining of the eternal and the giving up of pains. Whence the origin of this universe? What is its form ? How long does it last? To whom does it owe its origin ? At what period and through what cause did it arise into existence ? Like a bird getting out of a snare, may I get out of this universe of different gradations. At these words Manu replied — "Very wonderful. Thy question arising through thy excessive discrimination and extending over long eeons of period will (when answered) destroy all Mdya. All these paltry universes do not exist, appearing like a Gandharva city or the mirage in an oasis. It is only Atmic Reality that ever is beyond the reach of the organs, more subtle than Akasa, unlimited by space and indestructible. All the visibles of objects composed of the five elements are but reflections in this great mirror of Atma. Some effulgent Saktis (potencies) arising out of Brahman, commingled together and became of the form of the mun dane egg. Some were of the form of Siva's hosts. Some assumed the Devalokic form. Thus is the truth about the manifesting Saktis. There is no such thing as bondage or Moksha. Brahman alone is, that is without pains. It is the eternal Jndna alone, that shines as the world of variegated * He was the first of the Solar Kings and Son of the present Manu Vaivaswata. f Swayambhu Manu, 320 YO*A-VA'SISHTA objects, like waves differentiating" the water into many kinds of foam, etc. Nought else is but the one Brahman." " Having- dispelled the thoughts of bondage and Moksha from arising (in thee) and mastered them, ma>est thou be free from all fears and be as firm as a rock. But if thou shouldst associate thyself with thoughts of Sankalpa, then the Chinmatra Jnana will reach the state of a Jiva (in thee), like water transformed into waves, &c. Then the Jivas will ever be whirling in the cycle of re-births, existing from a remote period. All the delusions of pains and pleasures are the attributes of the mind and not of Attna. Like Rahu* which, though not visible at other times, is manifested in conjunction with the moon, Atma, when it com^s into direct experience, will be seen visibly. This Brahman which can not be cognized through Jna"na-6astras and Acharyas alone can be directly perceived in its own state through one self and his intelligence. Look upon thy enemy, the organs in the same listless manner in which a wayfarer regards objects in his way. It is not proper on thy part to love or hate the organs, since the body and other objects, being but the re sult of Karma, will inevitably come to take shape. Therefore having given them up mentally and made thy mind cool (without the feverish thirst for it), mayest thou be Brahman itself." The self-identification of " I" with this body, produces the bondage of existence. But this idea is foreign to an aspirant after salvation free from all pains, who becomes of the nature of Chinmatra. An impartial intelligence of such a person, which is more subtle than the all-pervading Aka6a, will destroy existence. Then Atma which shines in all objects, will be like the sun's rays, shining both in clear water and out of it. It will enter the heart of all forms and shine everywhere, like gold appearing in all (golden) orna ments. It is only his ripened and part-less form (or aspect) that manifests itself, as this world pervaded by the Atmic Satta (Be-ness). Know also Atma to be like Kumbha-Muni, Agastya who sipped the whole of the waters in this ocean of terrific time, pervaded by the destructive Vadava-Agni,fullof * One of the nodes of the moon producing eclipses. THE STORY OF IKSIIWA'KU. 321 the waves of the many rivers of the universes flowing into It." " May you be according to your free will and with great intelligence, having first dispelled, through your intelligence, the countless array of objects such as body, etc., which are non-Atma and as such pertain to the world and being quite humble, through the development of Jnana. Like a mother who, utterly unmindful of the child that rests on her lap, be comes of an afflicted heart, by causing search to be made everywhere for it, so all people, without cognizing Atma within which is without dotage or death, indulge in all sorts of griefs to the effect that they are utterly spoiled, or have-no protector or they are destroyed with the destruction of their body nourished by food. Like water which, through agitation in it, generates waves and others, so also through the excess of Sankalpa, the delusions of Chit greatly increase ; but should the stains of Sankalpa be removed and the expanded Chitta be concentrated firmly upon Atma, thou wilt be able, oh King, to rule thy realm long without any fluctuation, even in the tossing waves of (Samsaric) ocean and being immovable in thy Atma, to be eternal and blissful. Then Atma, which, remains after all, will through its Sankalpic (or voluntary; potencies create diverse sports like children in this world.