Yoga Vashishtha 1.19.1 – 10
(Perils of childhood)
श्रीराम उवाच ।
लब्ध्वापि तरलाकारे कार्यभारतरंगिणि ।
संसारसागरे जन्म बाल्यं दुःखाय केवलम् ॥ १ ॥
अशक्तिरापदस्तृष्णा मूकता मूढबुद्धिता।
गृध्नुता लोलता दैन्यं सर्वं बाल्ये प्रवर्तते ॥ २ ॥
रोषरोदनरौद्रासु दैन्यजर्जरितासु च ।
दशासु बन्धनं बाल्यमालानं करिणामिव ॥ ३ ॥
न मृतौ न जरारोगे न चापदि न यौवने।
ताश्चिन्ताः परिकृन्तन्ति हृदयं शैशवेषु याः ॥ ४ ॥
तिर्यग्जातिसमारम्भः सर्वैरेवावधीरितः ।
लोलो बालसमाचारो मरणादपि दुःखदः ॥ ५ ॥
प्रतिबिम्बघनाज्ञानं नानासंकल्पपेलवम्।
बाल्यमालूनसंशीर्णमनः कस्य सुखावहम् ॥ ६ ॥
जलवह्नयनिलाजस्रजातभीत्या पदे पदे।
यद्भयं शैशवेऽबुद्ध्या कस्यापदि हि तद्भवेत् ॥ ७ ॥
लीलासु दुर्विलासेषु दुरीहासु दुराशये।
परमं मोहमाधत्ते बालो बलवदापतन् ॥ ८ ॥
विकल्पकल्पितारम्भं दुर्विलारसं दुरास्पदम् ।
शैशवं शासनायैव पुरुषस्य न शान्तये ॥ ९ ॥
ये दोषा ये दुराचारा दुष्क्रमा ये दुराधयः।
ते सर्वे संस्थिता बाल्ये दुर्गर्त इव कौशिकाः ॥ १० ॥
Sriram said:
1. "Even after attaining life in the world, in the form of fleeting and restless duties upon the waves of worldly existence, childhood is only a cause of sorrow."
2. "In childhood arise helplessness, calamities, intense craving, speechlessness, dullness of intellect, greed, instability, and misery — all these are predominant in that stage."
3. "When struck by states like anger, crying, cruelty, and wretchedness, childhood binds the individual like the heavy chains placed upon an elephant."
4. "The worries that torment the heart during childhood — they do not arise even in death, old age, sickness, or youth."
5. "The beginning of life in the lower orders of existence is ridiculed by all, and the unstable behavior of childhood is more painful even than death."
6. "Childhood is characterized by dense ignorance and scattered thoughts filled with countless vain imaginations — whose mind, caught in this torn and bruised state, can find happiness?"
7. "With every step in childhood, there is fear born of water, fire, wind, darkness, and other such natural elements — where else could such continuous fear exist even amidst calamities?"
8. "In engaging in playful but unrighteous acts, low pursuits, and impure desires, a child sinks into profound delusion, which befalls him with overwhelming force."
9. "Childhood creates pursuits born of imagined fancies, indulging in wrongful pleasures, and seeking unattainable objects — it exists only to impose discipline upon a person, not to bring about peace."
10. "All faults, wicked behaviors, difficult acts, and evil intentions are present in childhood, like the many dangers hidden within a deep forest."
Overall Summary of the Teachings of these Verses:
These verses of the Yoga Vāsiṣṭha offer a profound critique of the condition of childhood from a spiritual and philosophical perspective. They describe childhood not with the common romanticization of innocence, but as a stage fraught with ignorance, suffering, and bondage. Far from being a carefree time, childhood is depicted as a period dominated by helplessness, instability, and subjection to powerful emotions and uncontrollable fears.
Childhood is shown to be a time when the mind is scattered and overwhelmed by countless imaginations and vain pursuits. The mental state during this phase is compared to a bruised and tattered cloth, incapable of sustaining true peace or happiness. Despite physical vitality, the child is caught in intense fears of the elements, reflecting a deep-rooted vulnerability that surpasses the anxieties of old age or disease.
The text emphasizes how deeply ingrained ignorance and delusion are during early life. Activities pursued during childhood are portrayed as unwholesome, leading to attachment and sorrow rather than growth. The playful acts of a child, while appearing innocent, are seen as seeds of deeper worldly entanglements that harden over time into binding habits.
The purpose of childhood, according to these verses, is paradoxically seen not as a phase of joy, but as a disciplinary field for the spirit. Through the sufferings and follies of childhood, the being is subtly prepared for the later realization of the need for wisdom and spiritual striving. In this sense, childhood is an arena where the lessons of imperfection and suffering are first impressed upon the soul.
Finally, the text underscores that all human faults — deceit, anger, desire, error — have their seeds in childhood. Just as thickets and dangers fill a dark forest, so too childhood is filled with latent faults that must be overcome. True spiritual wisdom, therefore, begins with the recognition of the limitations and inherent suffering embedded even in the earliest stages of life.
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