Sri Vasista
O Rama, (When differentiation takes place) and time appears (as an individual dimension), in course of time, Self sees (in itself) in playful amusement a body - like form. Like a double faced, capricious and quarrelsome mistress, this body reveals out of delight the two (part of it) face and heart.
Even a small gulp of alcohol makes one dizzy. Similarly, out of this sportive play (of Self) - emerges the great tender - bellied 'Maya' (force of decepiton), an arrogant, virile lascivious force of enormous conceit and pride.
Because of this force or vast number of modifications and deformations and becomings of such kind emerge. And arises all this world of phenomenal opulence. It is like water in a desert due to heat.
Mind, Buddhi, ego, vasanas, senses and such - all these that bear names and forms sparkle/spring in the waters of sea of Self.
-7 In reality, there is nothing like mind and ego division. What is mind, that is ego. What is ego, that is mind alone. These are purposeless fabrications. Whiteness is not separate from snow! One protects the other. When mind subsides, ego disappears. When a fabric is wornout along with it its colour too disappears.
Give up fascination for liberation, which is lowly and along with it the sense of bondage and other desires. Destroy the mind purely by dispassion and discrimination.
When the thought that ' I would like to be liberated' occurs then mind arises in all force. With that emerges all problems, weaknesses and blemishes of a body.
O Rama, Self is beyond everything and consequently immanent in all beings. And so what is bondage and what is liberation. Root out all thinking.
-13 . Air is of vibrating nature. And so when it enters the body, it shakes and quivers all the limbs like it shakes the branches of a tree. Self, however, is subtle. It does neither move anything nor will get moved by anything. It is like a steadfast mountain.
Self abides in itself and is reflected in all objects and things. It illumines all the world, like a lamp, through enlightenment
If this is so, how did you slip into the delusion that 'this body is mine; these limbs are mine'? Such delusion is surely sorrow-causing
-17 . Hit by such confusion and perplexity like transience and eternaity, one gets ownership and enjoyment of actions. Such confusion is a deluding vasana. It occurs because of ignorance about the laws of existence like the illusion about a mirage which ocurs due to lack of knowledge about the properties of heat.
A mirage attracts a thirsty deer. Similarly this ignorance is pulling and dragging the animal of mind.
-20 . A low caste woman runs away when she realizes that she is in the midst of brahmins. Similarly when real knowledge is gained, ignorance takes flight. Mind will then not be pulled by ignorance.
-22 . Like light from a lamp which dispells darkness, enlightenment about the supreme goal roots out all ignorance. When it is confirmed that there is no ignorance through the teachings of scriptures, then ignorance too melts away like snow before heat.
'This body is stupid and inconscient. What is the use of pleasures for this body?' This kind of a determination of mind will destroy all impurities of desires like a caged lion breaking away the cage.
O Rama, when the burdensome equipment, called desires is abandoned/ lifted out of the heart, then a person becomes beautiful. Like moon he delights people.
Such a person becomes very cool like a rain - washed mountain. His happiness reaches to heights like that of a common man when he gains a kingdom.
He shines radiantly gaining the wealth, called the Absolute. He springs high within himself like the sea at the time of the aeonic end.
He will be quiet without any turbulence like an autumn cloud which is quiet after draining off the water. He abides in his Self peacefully like a calm ocean.
He becomes immensely courageous and remains steady and steadfast like a 'Meru' mountain. He shines with opulence of wealth (of liberation).
He become quiet in his Self like a steady lamp. He becomes contented like one who has sipped nectar.
He becomes internally luminous like a lamp placed in a pot, like the middle flame of fire.
He sees his Self as all abiding, as immanent in all, as lord of all, as leader of everything, as all - form, and as formless
He smiles at the days that were spent purposelessly (before enlightenment). During those days his mind was fickle and was shaken by cupid's arrows.
The mind of such a person will be utterly pure and holy with all attachments expelled, with all anguish and fevers queitened and abiding in spiritual delight.
-36 . A knower of Self does not want or desire anything. For he has washed away the dirt of lust; he has rooted out all illusions; he is liberated from feelings like hot and cold; he has crossed the ocean of 'samasara', he has attained the supreme repose; he has gained the state beyond all states; he will never he born again; he is respected by all in thought word and deed. Everyone takes delight in his life. But he does not take delight in his life.
Such a person will not give anything nor does he take anything. He does not praise anything nor deos he blame anything. He does not bother about rise or fall of himself. He is neither happy nor sorry for anything.
He gives up all initiations. He is free of all distinctive attributes. He renounces all desires. Such a person is called a 'jivanmukta' (liberated while in life).
Giving up all desires, he becomes silent in his mind. He is like a cloud which has shed all its waters.
-41 . One's heart becomes so happy by the coolness generated by desirelessness that even the joy that is caused by uniting limb to limb with the best of women is uninteresting. Even if moon enters the throat, that coolness will be no where near the coolness generated by desirelessness.
A generous sage will have a mind which will not hope for anything. His mind will be like spring which is full of blossoms and lovely creepers.
The coolness or a hope - free mind can not be matched by snow-covered Himalaya or by moon.
Freedom from expectation and hope is extremely delightful. It is greater than heaven, than kingdom, than moon, than Lord Vishnu, than cohabitation with a woman.
O gentle Rama, before the great peace that is gained by freedom from hope and expectation even the lordship of three words is trivial.
-48 . O Rama, freedom from hope or expectation is like an axe that fells a throny bush. It causes absolute peace. It is a bouquet of flowers on the tree called peace and quietude. For one who is embellished by freedom from hope the world is small like a cow's foot and the three worlds are trifle. Such a person smiles indulgently at actions like giving, taking, acquiring riches, sons, eating, drinking and dressing beautifully.
With whom can a person, not bound by desire and expectation, be compared in all three worlds?
How can people estimate the greatness of a person, who is in complete control of himself. and in whose heart there is no feeling like 'I want this, I do not want this'?
O Rama, freedom from hope and expectation is the most radiant form of intelligence. It is free from all calamities and a great form of happiness.
O Rama, you are not desire nor desire is yours. If world is all illusion like the trees that appear to be moving when a chariot is moving.
O mighty Rama, Why are you deluded with thoughts like' this is mine, this body is I' etc, in spite of enlightenment.
All this world is Self alone. There is no multiplicity in this. Knowing that this world and Self are one, intelligent people will not grieve.
O Raghava, knowing the real nature of material things will be extremely consoling to discriminating intelligence. That intelligence will attain complete freedom from expectation.
Abide in the state free from becoming and non becoming and end and beginning. From that state understand the nature of matter.
The temptress, the demon of 'Maya' (deception) flees away from the courageous mind with dispassion, like a deer which flees away from a lion.
-60 . A steadfast and wise person of knowledge will look at a woman of unrestrained lasciviousness as a sculpture in stone. Plesure will not give joy to him nor calamities will make him grieve. The opulence of phenomena will not entice him. He will be like a mountain which is not humbled by winds. His mind will shatter the arrows of Cupid even if it is a young lady who is interested in him.
-63 . One who knows truth will not be dragged by attachment and hatred. When he is unmoved by them, how can they overwhelm him? For him a creeper and a fickle woman are same. They are like stones in a hill. He will never amorously unite with pleasures. A traveller cannot take delight in deserts. Whatever occurs to a jnani without his effort will be enjoyed by him as a sport. It is like an eye which enjoys light.
-65 . Whatever happens to a steadfast and wise person in a chance way like women and such enjoyment - will not cause any grief. Lashing waves can not move or shake a mountain. Similarly joys and sorrows cannot cause any anguish to him.
-67 . A jnani who is established in the state of the all-immanent Self, and who is self restrained, looks at all pleasures with a sense of indulgent sportiveness, without any anguish or hurry. He abides free of any bewilderment. Even if he is eagerly intent upon something, he approaches those actions with a collected mind. He is like Brahma who is zealously engaged with his Self (in spite of incessant creation - related activities).
He remains like a rock, unmoved by changing seasons, with out being excited or agitated by the calamities that roll out in a sequence according to this (assigned) times and places.
O Rama, a Jnani may be deeply involved in the world with his organs of action. He, however, does ot drown himself in those actions since his mind is detached.
When gold is impure inside, it is called impure (otherwise not). Similarly only when one is attached emotionally, a person can be called 'attached', not otherwise.
When the limbs of a person, who perceives his body as separate from himself, are cut, it is as if they are not (since he does not feel the cuts).
When one knows about Self, he will never slip into ignorance. Whatever is known remains known as knowledge for ever.
When the illusion of serpent in a rope is gone, how can that illusion return again? When rain water flows down the slopes of a hill, it will never go up.
Gold that has been purified in fire, will never acquire (internal) impurity even if it is buried in mire.
When one's heart is freed form ignorance, it will never again be bound by the qualities. A fruit that has slipped off a tree can never be reattached to the tree.
When a diamond is separted from its mineral state after due investigation, it can never be passed back to the mineral state.
When ignorance is understood and recognised, who will again drown himself in it? When a brahmin recognises that he is in the company of low caste people, why will he try to continue in their company?
One can remove the mistaken notion of water being treated as milk on inquiry. Similarly the vasana of world can be removed through inquiry.
Wise people may drink wine by mistake. Once the mistake is realized, they will not touch that wine.
A lady may be beautiful and lovely. But she is made of mere matter. Such will be the perception of wise people.
A lady in a painting is made up of colours. So is a living woman with hair and lips which are made of fire elements. Why then one gets interested in a living woman only (when there is no real difference between the two)
The taste of jaggery can not be reversed by things like thirst and such. So is the understanding of the nature of Self and experience of it. They can never be reversed by any other (experience)
-84 . When a lady is interested in a person, she will experience the joy of union with him (in her mind) even if she is engaged in her duties. Similarly one who is reposed in Brahman will always be experienceing the bliss of that repose. Even celestial beings can not shake him out of that.
If a lady is amoroulsy involved with another person, which husband can pull her out of that memory? She will be constantly engaged with the memory of amorous union with her lover.
The mind of wise man who knows the truth, can never be turned from the memory of that bliss, which is the very essence of all happiness and joy in the world.
-89 . A lady who is interested in a lover will never be bothered about the sufferings or harassments caused on that account by her husband and other relatives. She will be dreaming about her happy union with her lover. Similarly a 'jnani', who is free of ignorance, will be blissfully united with his Self, even while he is engaged in worldly activities.
A 'jnani' will never be completely lost or destroyed even if his limbs are cut off or even if his body is burnt.
Free and unconscious of all joys and sorrows due to calamities and destiny, a 'jnani' shines bright whether living in a palace or hermitage or on a hill or a forest.
