The
Yoga Vasishtha
Maharamayana
of Valmiki
The only complete English translation is
by Vihari Lala Mitra (1891).
THE
YOGA-VASISHTHA-MAHA RA MAYANA .
VOL. I.
PROSPECTUS.
Plato advised the Athenians to betake
themselves to the study of
Mathematics, in order to evade the pestilence
incident to the
international war which was raging in Greece;
so it is the intention of
this publication, to exhort our countrymen to
the investigation of
Metaphysics, in order to escape the contagion
of Politics and quasi
politics, which has been spreading far and
wide over this devoted land.
Vihari Lala Mitra
THE YOGA-VASISHTHA MAHARAMAYANA
OF
VALMIKI
In 4 vols. in 7 pts.
(Bound in 4.)
Vol. 1
Containing The Vairāgya and Mumukshu
Prakaranas and
The Utpatti Khanda to Chapter L.
Translated from the original Sanskrit
By
VIHARI-LALA MITRA
CONTENTS
OF
THE FIRST VOLUME.
VAIRﾁGYA KHANDA.
BOOK I.
CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION.
SECTION I.
Divine Adoration 1
SECTION II.
Narrative of Sutīkshna 1
SECTION III.
Anecdote of Kārunya 2
SECTION IV.
Story of Suruchi 3
SECTION V.
Account of Arishtanemi 3
SECTION VI.
History of Rāma 6
CHAPTER II.
Reason of writing the Rāmāyana 8
SECTION I
Persons entitled to its Perusal 8
SECTION II.
Brahmā's Behest 9
SECTION III.
Inquiry of Bharadwāja 10
CHAPTER III.
Vālmīki's Admonition 12
SECTION I.
On True Knowledge 13
SECTION II.
Early History of Rāma 13
SECTION III.
Rāma's Pilgrimage 15
CHAPTER IV.
Rāma's Return from Pilgrimage 17
CHAPTER V.
Of Rāma's Self-Dejection and its Cause 19
CHAPTER VI.
Advent of Viswāmitra to the Royal Court 21
SECTION II.
Address of King-Dasaratha 24
CHAPTER VII.
Viswāmitra's Request for Rāma 26
CHAPTER VIII.
Dasaratha's Reply to Viswāmitra 29
CHAPTER IX.
Viswāmitra's Wrath and his Enraged Speech 33
CHAPTER X.
Melancholy of Rāma 36
CHAPTER XI.
Consolation of Rāma 41
CHAPTER XII.
Rāma's Reply 45
CHAPTER XIII.
Vituperation of Riches 48
CHAPTER XIV.
Depreciation of Human Life 50
CHAPTER XV.
Obloquy of Egoism 53
CHAPTER XVI.
The Ungovernableness of the Mind 56
CHAPTER XVII.
On Cupidity 59
CHAPTER XVIII.
Obloquy of the Body 64
CHAPTER XIX.
Blemishes of Boyhood 70
CHAPTER XX.
Vituperation of Youth 73
CHAPTER XXI.
Vituperation of Women 77
CHAPTER XXII.
Obloquy of Old Age 81
CHAPTER XXIII.
Vicissitudes of Times 85
CHAPTER XXIV.
Ravages of Time 90
CHAPTER XXV.
Sports of Death 91
CHAPTER XXVI.
The Acts of Destiny 95
CHAPTER XXVII.
Vanity of the World 100
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Mutability of the World 105
CHAPTER XXIX.
Unreliableness of Worldly Things 109
CHAPTER XXX.
Self-Disparagement 112
CHAPTER XXXI.
Queries of Rāma 115
CHAPTER XXXII.
Praises of Rāma's Speech 118
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Association of Aerial and Earthly Beings 121
BOOK II.
MUMUKSHU KHANDA.
CHAPTER I.
Liberation of Sukadeva 127
CHAPTER II.
Speech of Viswāmitra 132
CHAPTER III.
On the Repeated Creations of the World 135
CHAPTER IV.
Praise Of Acts and Exertions 139
CHAPTER V.
Necessity of Activity 142
CHAPTER VI.
Refutation of Fatalism 145
CHAPTER VII.
On the Necessity of Activity 150
CHAPTER VIII.
Invalidation of Destiny 154
CHAPTER IX.
Investigation of Acts 157
CHAPTER X.
Descension of Knowledge 161
CHAPTER XI.
On the qualifications of the Inquirer and
Lecturer 166
CHAPTER XII.
Greatness of True Knowledge 173
CHAPTER XIII.
On Peace and Tranquillity of mind 176
CHAPTER XIV.
On the Ascertainment of an argument 184
CHAPTER XV.
On Contentment 189
CHAPTER XVI.
On Good Conduct 191
CHAPTER XVII.
On the Contents of the Work 195
CHAPTER XVIII.
Ascertainment of the Example or Major
Proposition 201
CHAPTER XIX.
Ascertainment of True Evidence 208
CHAPTER XX.
On Good Conduct 212
BOOK III.
UTPATTI KHANDA.
EVOLUTION OF THE WORLD.
CHAPTER I.
Causes of bondage to it.
SECTION I.
Exordium 215
SECTION II.
Worldly Bondage 216
SECTION III.
Phases of The Spirit 216
SECTION IV.
Nature of Bondage 218
CHAPTER II.
DESCRIPTION OF THE FIRST CAUSE.
SECTION I.
Narrative of the Air-born and Aeriform Brāhman
223
SECTION II.
State of the Soul 224
CHAPTER III.
Causes of Bondage in the Body 229
CHAPTER IV.
SECTION I.
Description of the Night-Fall 234
SECTION II.
Nature of the Mind 237
SECTION III.
Kaivalya or Mental Abstraction 239
CHAPTER V.
On the Original Cause 243
CHAPTER VI.
Admonition for attempt of Liberation 246
CHAPTER VII.
Recognition of the Nihility of the Phenomenal
World 249
CHAPTER VIII.
Nature of good Sāstras 255
CHAPTER IX.
On the Supreme cause of All 257
CHAPTER X.
Description of the Chaotic State 266
CHAPTER XI.
Spiritual View of Creation 273
CHAPTER XII.
The Idealistic Theo-Cosmogony of Vedānta 277
CHAPTER XIII.
On the Production of the Self-Born 281
CHAPTER XIV.
Establishment of Brahma 288
CHAPTER XV.
Story of the Temple and its Prince 299
CHAPTER XVI.
Joy and Grief of the Princess 303
CHAPTER XVII.
Story of the Doubtful Realm or Reverie of
Līlā 309
SECTION I.
Description of the Court House and the Cortes
313
CHAPTER XVIII.
Exposure of the Errors of this World 315
CHAPTER XIX.
Story of a Former Vasishtha and his Wife 319
CHAPTER XX.
The Moral of the Tale of Līlā 322
SECTION II.
State of The Human Soul after Death 325
CHAPTER XXI.
Guide to Peace 328
CHAPTER XXII.
Practice of Wisdom or Wisdom in Practice 336
SECTION I.
Abandonment of Desires 336
SECTION II.
On the Practice of Yoga 338
CHAPTER XXIII.
The Aerial Journey of Spiritual Bodies 340
CHAPTER XXIV.
The Aerial Journey (continued) 342
SECTION II.
Description of the Heavens 343
CHAPTER XXV.
Description of the Earth 349
CHAPTER XXVI.
Meeting the Siddhas 353
CHAPTER XXVII.
Past lives of Līlā 359
CHAPTER XXVIII.
SECTION I.
Exposition of Līlā's Vision 365
SECTION II.
Description of the Mountainous Habitation 366
CHAPTER XXIX.
Account of the Previous Life of Līlā 372
CHAPTER XXX.
Description of the Mundane Egg 378
CHAPTER XXXI.
SECTION I.
Alighting of the Ladies on Earth 382
SECTION II.
Sight of a Battle Array in Earth and Air 383
CHAPTER XXXII.
Onset of the War 386
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Commingled Fighting 389
CHAPTER XXXIV.
Description of the Battle 392
CHAPTER XXXV.
Description of the Battlefield 398
CHAPTER XXXVI.
SECTION I.
Collision of Equal Arms and Armigerents 401
SECTION II.
Catalogue of the Forces 403
CHAPTER XXXVII.
Catalogue of the Forces (continued) 408
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
Cessation of the War 414
CHAPTER XXXIX.
Description of The Battlefield Infested by
Nocturnal Fiends 420
CHAPTER XL.
Reflections on Human Life and Mind 423
CHAPTER XLI.
Discrimination of Error 431
CHAPTER XLII.
Philosophy of Dreaming 439
CHAPTER XLIII.
Burning of the City 442
CHAPTER XLIV.
Spiritual Interpretation of the Vision 443
CHAPTER XLV.
Theism consisting in True Knowledge 454
CHAPTER XLVI.
Onslaught of Vidūratha 457
CHAPTER XLVII.
Encounter of Sindhu and Vidūratha 461
CHAPTER XLVIII.
Description of Daivāstras or Supernatural
Weapons 465
CHAPTER XLIX.
Description of other kinds of Weapons 473
CHAPTER L.
Death of Vidūratha 477
Conclusion 482
Genealogy 485
Transcriber's Notes
YOGA VﾁSISHTHA.
BOOK I.
ON MORAL APATHY
CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION.
SECTION 1.
DIVINE ADORATION.
Hail The Eternal.
Om, salutation to the self-same Reality, from
whom all beings proceed,
by whom they are manifest, upon whom they
depend, and in whom they
become extinct (in the end).
2. He is the knower, the knowledge and all
that is to be known. He is
the seer, the (act of) seeing, and all that
is to be seen. He is the
actor, the cause and the effect: therefore
salutation to Him (who is
all) knowledge himself.
3. Salutation to Him (who is) supreme bliss
itself, from whom flow the
dews of delight (as water springs from a
fountain) both in heaven and
earth, and who is the life of all.
SECTION II.
NARRATIVE OF SUTﾍKSHNA.
4. One Sutīkshna, a Brāhmana, whose mind was
full of doubts, went to the
hermitage of Agasti and asked the sage
respectfully:—
5. Oh great sage! that art informed in all
the ways and truths of
virtue, and knowest with certainty all the
Sāstras, I am in a great
doubt (about something) which I pray you will
kindly remove.
6. Tell me whether a man's acts or his
knowledge or both of these, is in
your opinion, the cause of his emancipation.
7. Agasti replied:—
As the flight of birds in the air is effected
by means of both their
wings, so the highest state of emancipation
is attained through the
instrumentality of both knowledge and acts.
8. It is neither our acts nor knowledge alone
that produces
emancipation, but both together are known as
the means of it.
SECTION III.
ANECDOTE OF KﾁRUNYA.
9. I will recite to you an instance on this
subject from the old
traditions, relating a Brāhman named Kārunya,
who was learned in the
Vedas in days of yore.
10. He was the son of Agnivesya and
accomplished in the Vedas and all
their branches, and after finishing his
studies at the preceptor's,
returned to his own abode.
11. He remained a sceptic at home, holding
his taciturnity and inertness
to acts: when his father Agnivesya saw his
son so slack in his duties,
he upbraided him thus for his good.
12-13. Agnivesya said:—
Why my son do you not discharge your duties,
tell me how can you succeed
(in anything) if you remain inactive, and
tell me also the reason of
your cessation from acts.
14. Kārunya replied:—
The offering of daily oblations, and
performance of morning and evening
devotions during life, are inculcated in the
Veda and law as the
active duties (of men).
15. But it is neither by acts or riches, nor
by means of progeny, that
one obtains his liberation, it is solely by
self-denial that Stoics
taste the ambrosia (of emancipation).
16. Tell me my father! which of these two
ordinances is to be observed
by me? Doubtful of this I have become
indifferent to acts.
17. Agasti said:—
Hear me my son, that Kārunya after saying so
held his silence; when his
father seeing him thus, rejoined his speech.
18. Agnivesya said:—
Hear me relate a narrative (to you) my son,
and you having fully
considered its purport in your mind, may do
as you may choose (best for
you).
SECTION IV.
STORY OF SURUCHI.
19. There was a damsel named Suruchi, the
best of the Apsarā nymphs,
who was seated on the mountain peak of
Himālaya, beset by peacocks
around.
20. Here Kinnaras inflamed by love sported
with their mates, and the
fall of heavenly streams (Gangā and Yamunā),
served to expurgate the
gravest sins (of men).
21. She beheld a messenger of Indra making
his way through the sky; and
then this most fortunate and best of Apsarās, addressed him thus:
22. Suruchi said:—
O thou herald of gods, tell me kindly whence
thou comest and whither art
thou destined at present.
SECTION V.
ACCOUNT OF ARISHTANEMI.
23. The divine Ariel replied:—Well hast thou
asked Oh pretty browed
maid, and I will tell thee all as it is.
Know, Arishtanemi the royal
sage, who has made over his realm to his son.
24. He has (now) with religious indifference
(to the world), set out to
the forest for (practice of) asceticism, and
is performing his
austerities on the Gandha Mādana mountains.
25. I am now returning from there after
discharge of my errand, and
repairing to Sakra's (palace) to report the
matter.
26. Suruchi said:—
Tell me, my Lord, what matter has taken place
there. I am with
submission (much) inquisitive after it, nor
shouldest thou cause me (the
pain of) anxiety.
27. The messenger replied:—
Hear me gentle maid, relate to thee in length
(everything) as it has
occurred.
28. On hearing that the king was practising
the utmost rigors of
asceticism in that forest, Indra, the lord of
Gods, desired me to take
this heavenly car and repair at once to the
spot.
29. "Take this car," said he,
"bearing the (dancing) Apsarās equipped
with all their musical instruments, and
furnished with a band of
Gandharvas, Siddhas, Yakshas and
Kinnaras."
30. "Convey them," said he,
"with all their wired instruments, flutes
and drums to the auspices of the Sylvan mount
of Gandha Mādana.
31. "There having placed the Prince
Aristanemi in the vehicle, bring him
to the enjoyment of heavenly delight in this
city of Amarāvati (the
seat of immortals)."
32. The messenger added:—
Receiving this injunction of Indra and taking
the car with all its
equipments, I proceeded to that mountain.
33. Having arrived at the mountain and
advancing to the hermitage of the
king, I delivered to him the orders of the
great Indra.
34. Hearing my words, Oh happy damsel! the
king spoke to me with
reluctance and said: "I wish to ask thee
something O messenger, which (I
hope) thou wilt deign to answer.
35. "Tell me what good and what evils
there are in heaven, that knowing
them (beforehand), I may think of settling
there as I may choose."
36. I answered, saying:—
In heaven there is ample reward for merit,
conferring perfect bliss (to
all); but it is the degree of meritoriousness
that leads one to higher
heavens.
37. By moderate virtue, one is certainly
entitled to a middle station,
and virtue of an inferior order, leads a person
to a lower position (in
the heavens).
38. But one's virtue is destroyed by his
impatience at the excellence of
his betters, by his haughtiness to his
equals, and by his joy at the
inferiority of others.
39. When one's virtue is thus destroyed, he
must enter the abode of
mortals. These and the like are the effects
of merit and demerit (with
us) in heaven.
40. Hearing this, Oh good maiden, the king
answered and said: "I do not,
Oh divine messenger! like the heaven that is
of such like conditions.
41. "I will henceforth practise the most
austere form of devotion, and
abandon this my unhallowed human frame in the
same way, as the snake
abandons his time-worn-skin (slough).
42. "Be thou pleased, Oh delegate of the
Gods! to return with thy
heavenly car to the presence of the great
Indra whence thou comest, and
fare thee well."
43. The celestial emissary resumed:—
Thus being bid, I went Oh goodly dame to the
presence of Sakra to report
the matter. Who upon my rehearsal of the
matter, was struck with great
wonder.
44. Then the great Indra again spoke to me
with a sweet voice and said:
"Go you my herald again to that king,
and take him to the hermitage of
Vālmīki.
45. "He is well acquainted with every
truth, tell him my errand for the
instruction of the dispassionate prince,
saying:—
46. "Oh thou great sage! remonstrate
with this prince who is humble and
dispassionate, and dislikes the enjoyments of
heaven.
47. "So that this prince who is
aggrieved at the miseries of the world,
may gradually come to attain his
emancipation."
48. I then went and explained my mission to
the royal hermit, took him
to the sage Vālmīki (who had grown amidst the
ant-hills), and to whom I
delivered great Indrā's charge for the king's
practice (of the means)
for his final liberation.
49. Then the sage (named after the ant-hill
in which he had grown),
welcomed the King with gentle inquiries
regarding his welfare.
50. The prince replied:—
"Oh great seer, that art informed in all the truths of religion, and
art the greatest of them that know the
knowable, thy very sight has
given me all that I desired, and therein is
all my welfare.
51. "Great sire, I wish to learn from
thee how I may escape the miseries
which arise from one's connection with this
world, and which (I hope)
thou wilt reveal to me without reserve."
52. Vālmīki said:—
Hear me Oh king! I will relate to you the
entire Rāmāyana, by the
hearing and understanding of which you will
be saved even while in this
life.
SECTION VI.
HISTORY OF RﾁMA.
53. Hear me Oh great and intelligent king,
repeat to you the sacred
conversation which took place between Rāma
and Vasishtha relating the
way to liberation, and which I well know from
my knowledge (of human
nature).
54. The prince said:—
"O thou best of sages, tell me precisely
who and what this Rāma was,
what was his bondage and how he got freed
from it."
55. Vālmīki said:—
Hari was proscribed under an imprecation to
take upon himself the form
of a prince, with an assumed ignorance as
that of a man of little
understanding.
56. The prince said: "Tell me who was
the author of that imprecation,
and how it could befall on Rāma, who was the
personification of
consciousness and felicity, and the very
image of wisdom."
57. Vālmīki replied: Sanat-kumāra, who was
devoid of desires, had been
residing at the abode of Brahmā, to which Vishnu,
the Lord of the three
worlds, was a visitor from Vaikuntha.
58. The Lord God was welcomed by all the
inhabitants of the
Brahmaloka as well as by Brahmā himself, except by Sanat-kumāra who
was thus beheld and addressed to by the god.
59. "Sanat-kumār, it is ignorance that
makes thee forsake thy desires
for fear of regeneration (on earth),
therefore must thou be born under
the name of Sara-janmā to be troubled with desires."
60. Sanat-kumāra in return denounced Vishnu
by saying:—"Even all
discerning as thou art, thou shalt have to
sacrifice thine omniscience
for some time, and pass as an ignorant mortal
(on earth)."
61. There was another anathema pronounced
upon Vishnu by the sage
Bhrigu, who seeing his wife killed (by him),
became incensed with anger
and said: "Vishnu thou shalt have also
to be bereft of thy wife."
62. He was again cursed by Vrindā to be deprived of his wife, on
account of his beguiling her (in the form of
her husband).
63. Again when the pregnant wife of
Deva-datta was killed (with fear) on
seeing the man-lion figure of Vishnu;
64. The leonine Hari was denounced by the
husband, who was sorely
afflicted at the loss of his consort, to be
thus separated from his wife
also.
65. Thus denounced by Bhrigu, by
Sanat-kumāra, Deva-datta and Vrindā, he
was obliged (to be born in this earth) in the
figure of a human being.
66. I have thus explained to you the causes
of all the imprecations
(which were passed on Vishnu), and will now
relate to you all other
things which you shall have carefully to
attend to.
CHAPTER II.
REASON OF WRITING THE RﾁMﾁYANA.
SECTION I.
PERSONS ENTITLED TO ITS PERUSAL.
Salutation to the Lord, the universal soul,
shining manifest in heaven,
earth and the sky, and both within and
without myself.
2. One convinced of his constraint (in this
mortal world), and desiring
his liberation from it, and, who is neither
wholly ignorant of, nor
quite conversant with divine knowledge, is
entitled to (the perusal of)
this work.
3. The wise man, who having well considered
the narrative (of Rāma) as
the first step, comes afterwards to think on
the means of liberation (as
are expounded herein), he shall verily be
exempt from transmigration (of
his soul).
4. Know, O destroyer of thy enemies! that I
have first embodied the
history of Rāma in this Rāmāyana (as the
preparatory step to salvation).
5. And I have given the same to my attentive
pupil the obedient and
intelligent Bharadwāja, as the sea yields his
gems to their seeker.
6. These historical preparatories were
rehearsed by the learned
Bharadwāja in the presence of Brahmā, seated
in a certain forest of the
Sumeru Mountain.
7. Then the lord Brahmā, the great
grandfather of the inhabitants (of
the three worlds), was so highly pleased with
him that he addressed him
saying: "Oh my son! ask the best boon
that thou wishest for."
8. Bharadwāja said:—"Oh thou lord, that
art master of the past and
future times, grant me the desired boon of
communicating to me the means
whereby people are liberated from their
miseries."
SECTION II.
BRAHMA'S BEHEST.
9. Brahmā said:—"Go ask diligently of
thy preceptor Vālmīki, to
complete the faultless Rāmāyana that he has
undertaken (to write).
10. "By the hearing of which men will
get over their manifold errors, in
the same manner as they pass over the sea by
the bridge built over it by
the great Rāma, who was fraught with all good
qualities."
11. Vālmīki said:—Saying this to Bharadwāja,
the supreme maker of all
beings (Brahmā) accompanied him to my
hermitage.
12. In right earnest was the god welcomed by
me with the argha and
offerings of water and the like, when the
lord of truth spoke to me for
the good of all creatures.
13. Brahmā spake to me saying:—"Do not
Oh sage! give up your
undertaking until its final completion. No
pains ought to be spared to
make the history of Rāma as faultless as it
ought to be.
14. "By this work of yours men will
forthwith pass over this hazardous
world, in the same manner as one crosses the
sea in a vessel."
15. Again said the increate Brahmā to
me:—"I come to tell this very
thing to you, that you complete the work for
the benefit of mankind."
16. Then Oh king, the God disappeared from my
sacred hermitage in a
moment, just as the wave subsides in the
water no sooner it has heaved
itself.
17. I was struck with wonder at the disappearance
of that (deity), and
then being composed in my mind, I inquired of
Bharadwāja, saying:—
18. Tell me, Bharadwāja, what Brahmā spoke
(to me) in the hermitage; to
which he answered saying:—
19. "The God commanded you to complete
the Rāmāyana for the good of men,
and as a means of their crossing over the
gulf of the world."
SECTION III.
INQUIRY OF BHARADWAJA.
20. "Now Sir" said Bharadwāja,
"explain to me how the great minded Rāma
and Bhārata conducted themselves amidst the
troubles of this world.
21. "Tell me also how did Satrughna,
Lakshmana, and the renowned Sītā,
and all those who followed Rāma, as also the
ministers and their highly
intelligent sons, conduct themselves (on
earth).
22. "Tell me clearly how they escaped
all its miseries, that I may do
the same with the rest of mankind: (for our
salvation)."
23. Being thus respectfully addressed by
Bharadwāja, I was led, Oh great
King! to carry out the behest of my lord
(Brahmā), and to narrate the
Rāmāyana to him; saying:—
24. Hear my son Bharadwāja, I will tell you
all that you have asked, and
by the hearing of which you shall be enabled
to cast away the dross of
errors (under which you labour).
25. You are wise and have to manage yourself
in the manner of the
felicitous and lotus-eyed Rāma, with a mind
free from (worldly)
attachments,
26. (Know that) Lakshmana, Bhārata, the great
minded Satrughna,
Kausalyā, Sītā, Sumitrā as well as
Dasaratha;—
27. With Kritāstra and the two friends of
Rāma, and Vasishtha and
Vāmadeva, and the eight ministers of state as
well as many others, had
reached the summit of knowledge (by this means).
28. Their names are Dhrishta, Jayanta, Bhāsa,
Satya, Vijaya, Vibīshanah,
Sushena and Hanumāna. And also Indrajīta (who
had attained his highest
knowledge).
29. These were the eight ministers of Rāma,
who are said to have been
equally dispassionate in their minds, and
content with what was their
lot. They were great souls, and free in their
lives.
30. Well my son,
if you follow the manner in which these men
observed sacrificial rites,
gave and received their offerings, and how
they lived and thought, you
are at once freed from the turmoils (of
life).
31. One fallen in this boundless ocean of the
world, may enjoy (the
bliss of) liberation by the magnanimity of
his soul. He shall not come
across grief or destitution, but remain ever
satisfied by being freed
from the fever of anxiety.
CHAPTER III.
VALMIKI ‘S ADMONITION.
SECTION I.
ON TRUE KNOWLEDGE.
Bharadwāja said, O Brāhman! relate to me
first about Rāma, and then
enlighten me by degrees with the conditions
of attaining liberation in
this life, that I may be happy for ever.
2. Vālmīki replied:—"Know, holy Saint!
all worldly conceptions to be as
erroneous as the various hues that taint the
clear firmament. It is
better therefore to efface them in oblivion,
rather than revive their
reminiscence (in repeated states of
existence).
3. All visible objects are absolute negation;
we have no idea of them
save from sensation. Inquire into these
apprehensions, and you will
never find them as real.
4. It is possible here (on earth) to attain
to this knowledge (of
worldly vanities) which is fully expounded
herein: if you will listen to
it attentively, you shall get at the truth
and not otherwise.
5. The conception of this world is a mistake,
and though we actually see
it, it is never in existence. It appears in
the same light, O sinless
saint, as the variegated colours in the sky.
6. The conviction of the non-existence of the
objects of vision, leads
to efface their impressions from the mind.
Thus perfected, there springs
in it the supreme and eternal bliss of
self-extinction.
7. Otherwise there is no quietism to be had
herein by men like you,
rolling in the depths of science for
thousands of years and unacquainted
with the true knowledge.
8. Complete abandonment of desires, styled as
the best state of
liberation, is the only pure step towards
beatitude.
9. The absence of desires leads to the
extinction of mental actions,
in the same manner as the absence of cold
conduces to the dissolution of
small particles of ice.
10. Our desires which uphold our living
bodies (and minds), bind us fast
as by strings to our bodily prison. These
being loosened, the inward
soul is liberated (as a bird from its cage).
11. Desires are of two kinds, pure and
impure. The impure ones are the
cause of transmigration, while the pure ones
serve to destroy it.
12. An impure desire is of the form of a mist
of ignorance, consisting
in the feeling of an obdurate egoism. This is
said by the wise to be the
cause of birth (transmigration).
13. A pure desire is like a parched seed
incapable to bring forth the
germ of transmigration, and only supports the
present body (in its dry
rigidity).
14. The pure desires which are unattended
with transmigration, reside in
the bodies of living-liberated men, like
unmoving wheels (unable to move
them to action).
15. Those that have the pure desires are not
liable to transmigration,
and are said to be knowing in all things that
ought to be known. These
are called the living-liberated and are of
superior intelligence.
16. I will explain to you how the high minded
Rāma attained the state of
liberation in life, hear you this that old
age and death may not come
upon you.
SECTION II.
EARLY HISTORY OF RAMA.
17. Hear Oh highly intelligent Bharadawāja,
the auspicious course and
conduct of Rāma's life: whereby you shall be
enabled to understand
everything at all times.
18. The lotus-eyed Rāma after coming out of
his school, remained for
many days at home in his diversions, and
without anything to fear.
19. In the course of time as he took the
reins of the Government, (in
his hand), his people enjoyed all the bliss
that absence of grief and
diseases could impart (to them).
20. At one time Rāma's mind virtuous as he
was, became anxious to see
the different places of pilgrimage, the
cities and hermitages (that lay
about).
21. So Rāghava with this view, approached his
father's feet, he touched
the nails (of his toes) as a swan lays hold
on the buds of lotus.
22. "Oh my father" he said,
"my mind is desirous to see the different
places of pilgrimage, temples of gods, forests
and abodes (of men).
23. "Grant me my lord this my petition,
as there is no petitioner of
thine on earth whom didst thou ever
dishonor."
24. Thus solicited (by Rāma), the king
consulted with Vasishtha, and
after much reflection granted him the first
request he ever made.
25. On a day of lucky stars Rāma set out (on
his journey) with his two
brothers (Lakshmana and Satrughna), having
his body adorned with
auspicious marks, and (receiving the)
benedictions which were pronounced
on him by the priests.
26. Accompanied also by a body of learned
Brāhmans whom Vasishtha had
chosen on the occasion, and a select party of
his associate princes;
27. He started from home towards his
pilgrimage after he received the
benedictions and embraces of his mothers.
28. As he went out of his city, the citizens
welcomed him with the
sounds of trumpets, while the bee-like fickle
eyes of the city ladies
were fixed upon his lotus like face.
29. He was bestrewn with handfuls of fried
paddy thrown over his body by
the beautiful hands of village-women, that
made him appear like the
Himālaya covered over with snow.
30. He dismissed the Brāhmans with honor, and
went on hearing the
benedictions of the people, and taking a full
view of the landscape
around him until he proceeded towards the
forest.
31. He went on distributing alms after making
his holy ablutions and
performing his devotion and meditation, as he
gradually passed the
limits of Kosala after starting from his
palace.
Om Tat Sat
(Continued...)
( My
humble salutations to Brahmasri Sreemaan Vihari Lala Mitra ji for the
collection)
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