Yoga Vashishtha 1.17.17 - 26
(Desire - contd.)
श्रीराम उवाच।
कुटिला कोमलस्पर्शा विषवैषम्यशंसिनी।
दशत्यपि मनाक्स्पृष्टा तृष्णा कृष्णेव भोगिनी ॥ १७ ॥
भिन्दती हृदयं पुंसां मायामयविधायिनी।
दौर्भाग्यदायिनी दीना तृष्णा कृष्णेव राक्षसी ॥ १८ ॥
तन्द्रीतन्त्रीगणैः कोशं दधाना परिवेष्टितम् ।
नानन्दे राजते ब्रह्मंस्तृष्णा जर्जरवल्लकी ॥ १९ ॥
नित्यमेवातिमलिना कटुकोन्माददायिनी।
दीर्घतन्त्री घनस्नेहा तृष्णा गह्वरवल्लरी ॥ २० ॥
अनानन्दकरी शून्या निष्फला व्यर्थमुन्नता ।
अमङ्गलकरी क्रूरा तृष्णा क्षीणेव मञ्जरी ॥ २१ ॥
अनावर्जितचित्तापि सर्वमेवानुधावति ।
न चाप्नोति फलं किंचित्तृष्णा जीर्णेव कामिनी ॥ २२ ॥
संसारवृन्दे महति नानारससमाकुले ।
भुवनाभोगरङ्गेषु तृष्णा जरठनर्तकी ॥ २३ ॥
जराकुसुमितारूढा पातोत्पातफलावलिः।
संसारजंगले दीर्घे तृष्णा विषलता तता ॥ २४ ॥
यन्न शक्रोति तत्रापि धत्ते ताण्डवितां गतिम् ।
नृत्यत्यानन्दरहितं तृष्णा जीर्णेव नर्तकी ॥ २५ ॥
भृशं स्फुरति नीहारे शाम्यत्यालोक आगते ।
दुर्लङ्घयेषु पदं धत्ते चिन्ता चपलबर्हिणी ॥ २६ ॥
17. "Desire is crooked yet soft to the touch; she promises pleasures but carries poison. Even the slightest contact with her stings like a venomous courtesan."
Deceptive Nature of Desire:
Desire appears attractive and gentle at first but conceals a poisonous sting. Its initial allure masks its destructive power. (Verse 17)
18. "She pierces the hearts of men with her illusory ways; she is the creator of misfortune, miserable herself, and like a demonic temptress."
Illusion and Misery:
Desire manipulates the heart through illusion, bringing suffering and misfortune. It is likened to a demonic force, an agent of bondage and delusion. (Verse 18)
19. "Entwined with the strings of laziness and inertia, she wraps around the mind like an old broken veena—desire, the decaying instrument that produces no joy."
Obstruction to Joy and Awakening:
Desire, entwined with laziness and delusion, deadens the mind. It makes the mind incapable of producing the Joy of True Awareness. (Verse 19)
20. "Ever unclean and the bringer of bitter madness, she is deeply attached, long-strung, and dark like a vine growing in a hollow cave."
Attachment and Madness:
It is unclean, bitter, and rooted in obsession. Like a vine growing in darkness, it thrives in ignorance and leads to mental instability. (Verse 20)
21. "Desire gives no joy, is empty within, fruitless despite rising high; she is inauspicious and cruel, like a withered flower cluster."
Futility and Emptiness:
Desire fails to deliver Real Joy or fulfillment. It rises high in ambition but ends in frustration and inauspiciousness. (Verse 21)
22. "Though the mind does not welcome her, she still chases everything relentlessly. Yet she gains nothing—like an aged courtesan who can no longer seduce."
Uninvited Yet Clinging:
Even when not consciously entertained, desire pursues all experiences compulsively and without success—symbolizing the habitual mind. (Verse 22)
23. "In the great carnival of samsara, filled with many flavors and worldly entertainments, desire is like an aged dancer, still trying to perform on the worldly stage."
Desire in Worldly Life:
The world is presented as a stage where desire performs her outdated dance. Yet she is no longer graceful, only pitiful—suggesting the exhausted efforts of worldly pursuits. (Verse 23)
24. "Rooted in decay, blooming with the flowers of old age, and yielding the fruits of downfall and catastrophe, desire is a venomous creeper in the forest of existence."
Decay and Danger:
With old age, desire becomes grotesque. It bears fruits of calamity and spiritual downfall, growing like a poisonous creeper in the jungle of existence. (Verse 24)
25. "Even where she has no power, she dances violently. Her dance is joyless, like that of an old and forgotten dancer."
Unreasonable Persistence:
Even when powerless, desire does not cease. It continues its meaningless dance, devoid of joy, driven by blind momentum. (Verse 25)
26. "She flickers intensely like mist, only to disappear when true light arrives. In inaccessible places, she lays her steps—desire is like a restless peahen, driven by anxiety."
Anxiety and Dissolution:
Like mist, desire seems to envelop the mind but vanishes upon the rise of wisdom (symbolized by light). It places restless steps even in difficult terrains—representing how worry and desire persist even in adversity. (Verse 26)
Summary of the Teachings:
These ten verses from Yoga Vāsiṣṭha form a poetic and philosophical allegory of tṛṣṇā—desire or craving—as the root cause of human suffering and bondage in saṁsāra (the cycle of birth and death). Each verse compares desire to progressively darker and decaying images, offering a deeply reflective and psychological insight.
Key Philosophical Insights:
1. These verses reflect a classical Vedantic dissection of desire (kāma) as the source of suffering and delusion.
2. Desire is not inherently powerful but is granted power by the mind’s ignorance and habit.
3. Even age, failure, or suffering do not weaken desire’s grip unless Awareness and Wisdom arise.
4. The imagery of dance, music, and decay emphasize the performative but empty nature of worldly craving.
5. Ultimately, only light (of Knowledge or Self-Realization) can dispel the mist of desire.
This section of the Yoga Vāsiṣṭha urges the aspirant to reflect deeply on the illusory and compulsive nature of desire, encouraging vairāgya (dispassion) as the first step toward Realization.
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