Chapter 1.23, Verses 35–45

Yoga Vashishtha 1.23.35–45

(Time, the veil and the revealer)

श्रीराम उवाच ।

गृहीत्वा कृपणः कृष्णां रजनीं जीर्णमार्जनीम् ।

आलोककनकक्षोदानाहरत्यभितो गिरिम् ॥ ३५ ॥

संचारयन्क्रियाङ्गुल्या कोणकेष्वर्कदीपिकाम् ।

जगत्सद्मनि कार्पण्यात्क्व किमस्तीति वीक्षते ॥ ३६ ॥

प्रेक्ष्याहर्विनिमेषेण सूर्याक्ष्णा पाकवन्त्यलम् ।

लोकपालफलान्यत्ति जगज्जीर्णवनादयम् ॥ ३७ ॥

जगज्जीर्णकुटीकीर्णानर्पयत्युग्रकोटरे ।

क्रमेण गुणवल्लोकमणीन्मृत्युसमुद्गके ॥ ३८ ॥

गुणैरापूर्यते यैव लोकरत्नावली भृशम्।

भूषार्थमिव तामङ्गे कृत्वा भूयो निकृन्तति ॥ ३९ ॥

दिनहंसानुसृतया निशेन्दीवरमालया।

तारकेसरयाजस्रं चपलो वलयत्यलम् ॥ ४० ॥

शैलार्णद्युधराशृङ्गजगदूर्णायुसौनिकः ।

प्रत्यहं पिबते प्रेक्ष्य तारारक्तकणानपि ॥ ४१ ॥

तारुण्यनलिनीसोम आयुर्मातङ्गकेसरी।

न तदस्ति न यस्यायं तुच्छातुच्छस्य तस्करः ॥ ४२ ॥

कल्पकेलिविलासेन पिष्टपातितजन्तुना।

अभावो भावभासेन रमते स्वात्मनात्मनि ॥ ४३ ॥

कर्ता भोक्ताथ संहर्ता स्मर्ता सर्वपदं गतः ॥ ४४ ॥

सकलमप्यकलाकलितान्तरं सुभगदुर्भगरूपधरं वपुः ।

प्रकटयन्सहसैव च गोपयन् विलसतीह हि कालबलं नृषु ॥ ४५ ॥

Sriram said:

35. "The pitiful man, having grasped the dark, worn-out broom of night, circles the mountain of existence, sweeping it with the dust of ignorance."

36. With his fingers of action, he twirls the lamp of the sun's light in all directions, and in his delusion, examines the vast mansion of the world, asking, "What is this? Where is that?"

37. "In the blink of an eye, the sun consumes the ripe fruits of day—those that are like offerings of the guardians of the world—and devours this world, likened to an ancient forest."

38. "Time, like a ferocious being dwelling in a dark cave, gradually swallows all—the mansions of the world, worn and broken—storing the jewels of virtues in the chest of death."

39. "It adorns itself with the shining garland of the world’s virtues and ornaments, as if for beautification, only to sever them again without remorse."

40. "With the garland of blue lotus-like nights trailing behind the swan of day, the fickle Time twirls the eternal stars and the radiance of the sun like bangles on its arms."

41. "Like a wild hunter who feasts on the mountain peaks, rivers, oceans, and all the world’s forms, Time greedily drinks in the glowing particles of stars each day."

42. "Time is the lion who devours the moon-like lake of youth and the elephant of life-force. There is nothing so great or so petty that it escapes this thief."

43. "With the sportful delight of the cosmic cycle, it grinds beings into nonexistence while making nonexistence appear as if Real, delighting in its own self through illusion."

44. "It is the doer, the enjoyer, the destroyer, the rememberer, and the one who passes through all states of Being."

45. "It reveals and conceals simultaneously the whole, the parts within the parts, the beautiful and the dreadful—all of which manifest as the power of Time in human beings."

Summary of Teachings:

These verses from the Yoga Vāsiṣṭha present a vivid poetic meditation on Time (Kāla) and its all-consuming, illusory, and Divine Nature. Time is described not just as a linear measure but as an active cosmic force—sweeping away creation like a worn broom over dust, inspecting the world with a lamp of sunlight, and ultimately consuming all phenomena in a great cycle of rise and dissolution. This dramatization serves to awaken a profound sense of impermanence and existential introspection.

Time is personified as a powerful entity—a thief, a hunter, a lion—that feeds upon youth, virtue, mountains, rivers, and even stars. Nothing is exempt from its reach. Whether noble or petty, everything is subject to its devouring rhythm. In this portrayal, Time is not merely a backdrop but an active agent of change, devouring the apparent solidity of the world while playing with its fleeting beauty.

Despite its destructive aspect, Time is also shown to have a paradoxical role—it creates and destroys, reveals and conceals, adorns and cuts away. This reflects the deeper Advaitic insight: that what appears to be multiplicity and movement is in fact a play of appearances upon the changeless Self. Time, then, becomes both the veil and the revealer, a force that leads either into bondage through ignorance or into liberation through wisdom.

The illusory nature of existence is emphasized: Time causes the unreal to appear Real and makes Beings believe in what is ultimately insubstantial. The Self, untouched by Time, watches this dance unfold, and the wise are those who turn inward to witness this without getting entangled.

Ultimately, these verses aim to cultivate vairāgya (dispassion) and viveka (discernment) in the listener or reader. By confronting the power and pervasiveness of Time, and understanding that all worldly phenomena are subject to its flux, the seeker is encouraged to turn away from transient pleasures and attachments and instead seek the eternal, unchanging Reality—the Self (Ātman)—which alone endures beyond the reach of Time.