Sri Vasista
O Rama, the conclusion from the above is that Maya, the name of the world movement and existence will not decline or cease without the conquest of one's mind.
I shall now tell you a story to establish the myriad surprises and strangenesses of the maya of the world. Listen to this for your good, O Sinless one.
-5 There was once on this earth, a country called Kosala. It was full of riches. In that, there lived a brahmin called Gadhi. He was well versed in Vedas and is a picture of dharma. Right from his childhood, he was disinterested in worldly things.
-10 Gadhi wanted to know something and for that he left all his people and left for a forest to do penance for the purpose. He reached a lake which is full of lotuses and was shining like a starfilled sky in the night. Gadhi entered the lake and dipped himself upto his neck. In this posture he did penance for eight months with a desire to have the 'darshan' of Lord Vishnu. One day Sri Hari appeared before him.
Sri Bhagawan
O wise brahmin! Rise from the waters! Ask for the boon you like. The time of flowering of the tree of your 'tapas' has arrived.
Gadhi, the brahmin
O Lord, you are the bee residing in the heart - lotus of all the beings in the world. You are the lake in which the lotus of worlds is located. Salutations to you O Vishnu.
O Bhagawan, I have a desire to see the 'maya' which is the cause of the darkness called 'samsara' which you have created/designed in the supreme Self.
Sri Vasista
'You shall have a view of it. After that you shall discard it.' - saying this Lord Vishnu vanished like a city in the sky.
-17 . After Lord Narayana left, Gadhi rose from the waters. Being cool and clean, he appeared to be a moon who rose from the milk ocean. He was absolutely pleased and felt contented with the sight of Vishnu. It was like lotuses which bloom on seeing the sun and the touch of his rays. After that he spent a few days in the forest musing on the delightful meeting with Vishnu.
One day while bathing in the lake, he recollected and reflected on the words of Vishnu, like a great seer.
-20 . After finishing his bath, he started chanting a 'mantra' in praise of Lord Surya in order to get rid of all his sins. He suddenly forgot the mantra. Another mantra was coming up into his consciousness. He saw the following vision.
He saw in the waters that he was dead in his house and fell sharply down with great speed like a tree into a cave.
-24 . With flow of vital airs in the body coming to a standstill, all his limbs were still and quiet. His face turned pale and was like a ripe leaf. His body was like a lotus without stalk and so completely withered. It was like the sky without stars at the turn of night. It was like a dustladen village.
-32 . His relatives surrounded the body with tear-filled eyes. His wife sat at his feet with dimmed eyes and grief sticken face like a tank which lost waters due to a burst in the bank. His mother was crying in varying tones looking at his young son with a youthful moustache. All were like dried leaves under a tree with dew on them. His limbs looked as if scared of losing their togetherness. With the lips staying apart, his teeth, which were white, looked luminous. The body looked as if it was pretending to be still, with a desire to test the affinity and love that each one of his relatives had for him.
-40 . After all the weeping, the relatives took the body to the cremation ground. It was full of flesh and bones. There were many bodies waiting to be cremated. There were eagles flying above (awaiting an instant when they can swoop down on the bodies). The cremation fires were all over illuminating the whole place. Gadhi's relatives started cremating the corpse. The corpse started blowing up into peices due to the intense heat of the fire. The sound emanating was as if an elephant was breaking down bamboo bushes. The smoke from the fire travelled up into the sky. The fire finally burnt up the entire body into ashes.
