Chapter 1.25, Verses 23–32

Yoga Vashishtha 1.25.23–32

(The illusory Noose of Time)

श्रीराम उवाच ।

एकस्मिञ्छ्रवणे दीप्ता हिमवानस्थिमुद्रिका ।

अपरे च महामेरुः कान्ता काञ्चनकर्णिका ॥ २३ ॥

अत्रैव कुण्डले लोले चन्द्रार्कौ गण्डमण्डले।

लोकालोकाचलश्रेणी सर्वतः कटिमेखला ॥ २४ ॥

इतश्चेतश्च गच्छन्ती विद्युद्वलयकर्णिका।

अनिलान्दोलिता भाति नीरदांशुकपट्टिका ॥ २५ ॥

मुसलैः पट्टिशैः प्रासैः शूलैस्तोमरमुद्गरैः।

तीक्ष्णैः क्षीणजगद्वान्तकृतान्तैरिव संभृतैः ॥ २६ ॥

संसारबन्धनादीर्घे पाशे कालकरच्युते।

शेषभोगमहासूत्रप्रोते मालास्य शोभते ॥ २७ ॥

जीवोल्लसन्मकरिकारत्नतेजोभिरुज्ज्वला ।

सप्ताब्धिकङ्कणश्रेणी भुजयोरस्य भूषणम् ॥ २८ ॥

व्यवहारमहावर्ता सुखदुःखपरम्परा ।

रजःपूर्णतमःश्यामा रोमाली तस्य राजते ॥ २९ ॥

एवंप्रायः स कल्पान्ते कृतान्तस्ताण्डवोद्भवाम् ।

उपसंहृत्य नृत्येहां सृष्ट्वा सह महेश्वरम् ॥ ३० ॥

पुनर्लास्यमयीं नृत्यलीलां सर्गस्वरूपिणीम् ।

तनोतीमां जराशोकदुःखाभिभवभूषिताम् ॥ ३१॥

भूयः करोति भुवनानि वनान्तराणि लोकान्तराणि जनजालककल्पनां च ।

आचारचारुकलनामचलां चलां च पङ्काद्यथार्भकजनो रचनामखिन्नः ॥ ३२॥

Sriram said:

23. "In a single moment of hearing, a dazzling vision appeared: a shining ring of bones formed like the Himalayas, and on another side, a magnificent Meru, with delicate earrings made of gold."

24. "In the swaying loops of those earrings, the sun and the moon shone on the cheeks like ornaments, while the entire range of Lokāloka mountains formed a glowing girdle around the waist."

25. "Dancing in all directions, the lightning-like earrings glimmered as if set in motion by the wind, appearing like flowing silk garments made of clouds."

26. "Weapons such as clubs, spears, tridents, and hammers — fierce and sharp — seemed to surround the scene like destructive forces ready to dissolve the weary world."

27. "Time, like a dark noose cast from its hand, bound all in the long chain of worldly existence. Upon this noose gleamed a garland, strung with the grand serpent of Śeṣa as its thread."

28. "Glowing with the radiance of jewels and crocodile-shaped ornaments on the living beings, a splendid string of seven-ocean bangles adorned the arms and chest as ornaments."

29. "A swirling whirlpool of worldly affairs, the unending sequence of pleasure and pain, formed a dark and dusty garland made of passion and ignorance that adorned this vision."

30. "At the end of the kalpa (Cosmic age), Time — appearing like the destructive Tandava of death — ends this dance that was jointly created with the great Lord Maheshvara."

31. "Then again, it unfolds into a playful dance — the form of creation — adorned with old age, sorrow, and suffering, as if these were its very jewels."

32. "Once more, it fashions worlds, forests, dimensions, and clusters of living beings — beautifully imagined forms of conduct and culture, both fixed and shifting — much like a child plays tirelessly with mud, creating again and again."

Summary of Teachings:

1. The World as a Dreamlike Vision:

These verses present a powerful poetic imagery of the Universe as a dazzling vision perceived in a moment of deep contemplation. Using elaborate metaphors — Himalayas as bones, earrings containing the sun and moon, Lokāloka 

mountains as waist-ornaments — the text illustrates how the entire cosmos appears as an ornamented body. This imagery implies that the phenomenal world is an internally projected illusion or dream-like appearance, not ultimately Real.

2. Nature of Māyā and Cosmic Ornaments:

The ornaments and weapons described are not literal but symbolic. They represent the various forces of nature and time — creation, sustenance, and destruction. The swaying ornaments, flashing like lightning, and garments like clouds suggest the transitory, insubstantial nature of worldly forms. Māyā (illusion) dresses up the formless Absolute in the colorful play of the elements and dualities of experience.

3. Time as the Great Binder and Destroyer:

Time (Kāla) is depicted as the wielder of bondage — casting nooses that tie beings into the long cycle of samsāra (worldly existence). Yet, this very Time is also the creator and destroyer of worlds. The image of Time collaborating with Maheshvara 

(Shiva) to create and dissolve the cosmic dance suggests that all phenomena are cyclic, impermanent, and rooted in cosmic rhythm.

4. Ornamentation of Sorrow and Duality:

Even suffering, old age, and sorrow are portrayed as ornaments of this cosmic dance. The chain of pleasure and pain, woven with rajas (activity) and tamas (inertia), forms the emotional texture of life. The world is not just adorned with beauty but also decorated with suffering, indicating that joy and pain are both part of the same divine play.

5. Creation as Play (Līlā):

The final verse powerfully asserts that the Universe is a child’s play — endless, effortless, and filled with imagination. Like a child repeatedly making mud structures without weariness, the creative Consciousness continually weaves and re-weaves the tapestry of Existence. This reveals the Yogic insight: that the entire world is a spontaneous projection of Consciousness, where bondage and liberation depend on one’s understanding of its illusory nature.