Yoga Vashishtha 1.30.1–9
(disillusionment with pleasure)
श्रीराम उवाच ।
एवमभ्युत्थितानर्थशतसंकटकोटरे ।
जगदालोक्य निर्मग्नं मनो मननकर्दमे ॥ १ ॥
मनो मे भ्रमतीवेदं संभ्रमश्चोपजायते।
गात्राणि परिकम्पन्ते पत्राणीव जरत्तरोः ॥ २ ॥
अनाप्तोत्तमसंतोषधैर्योत्सङ्गाकुला मतिः ।
शून्यास्पदा बिभेतीह बालेवाल्पबलेश्वरा ॥ ३ ॥
विकल्पेभ्यो लुठन्त्येताश्चान्तःकरणवृत्तयः ।
श्वभ्रेभ्य इव सारङ्गास्तुच्छालम्बविडम्बिताः ॥ ४॥
अविवेकास्पदा भ्रष्टाः कष्टे रूढा न सत्पदे ।
अन्धकूपमिवापन्ना वराकाश्चक्षुरादयः ॥ ५ ॥
नावस्थितिमुपायाति न च याति यथेप्सितम् ।
चिन्ता जीवेश्वरायत्ता कान्तेव प्रियसद्मनि ॥ ६ ॥
जर्जरीकृत्य वस्तूनि त्यजन्ती विभ्रती तथा ।
मार्गशीर्षान्तवल्लीव धृतिर्विधुरतां गता ॥ ७ ॥
अपहस्तितसर्वार्थमनवस्थितिरा स्थिता ।
गृहीत्वोत्सृज्य चात्मानं भवस्थितिरवस्थिता ॥ ८ ॥
चलिताचलितेनान्तरवष्टम्भेन मे मतिः।
दरिद्रा छिन्नवृक्षस्य मूलेनेव विडम्ब्यते ॥ ९ ॥
Sriram said:
1. "O Sage, I observe this world caught in a tangle of countless afflictions and catastrophes, and my mind, immersed in the mire of endless thoughts, is deeply disturbed."
2. "My mind spins restlessly, overwhelmed by confusion. My limbs tremble like the dry leaves of an old tree shaken by the wind."
3. "My intellect, deprived of true contentment, courage, and noble association, is gripped by fear, like a weak ruler presiding over an empty realm."
4. "The inner movements of my mind roll helplessly among conflicting thoughts, like deer slipping into ravines, deceived by the illusion of support."
5. "Falling from the ground of discernment, these faculties become entrenched in error, failing to reach the good path—like blind eyes plunged into a dark well."
6. "My thoughts do not attain stability, nor do they move toward what is truly desirable. They are bound to fleeting concerns, like a lover clinging to her beloved's home in his absence."
7. "Having worn out all objects of interest, my resolution abandons them even as it continues to carry them. It has become weary and desolate, like a vine in the late winter season."
8. "My mind has let go of all meaning and remains unanchored. It grasps at the Self, then discards it—this is the condition in which my being now remains."
9. "My intellect is mocked by the weakness within, unstable and broken, like a tree that has lost its roots and stands exposed in desolation."
Summary of Teachings:
These verses express a deep existential and psychological crisis experienced by Śrī Rāma. Through poetic imagery, they reveal the confusion and sorrow of a mind that has recognized the futility of worldly experience. The mental state he describes is not just sad but profoundly disoriented—where the faculties of thought, decision, and perception have become unreliable. This is a typical yogic depiction of vairāgya
(dispassion), born not of defeat but of insight into the unsatisfactory nature of transient reality.
The imagery is particularly vivid and meaningful: trembling limbs, desolate vines, blind eyes, and uprooted trees all symbolize the fragility and instability of a mind caught in saṁsāra. Śrī Rāma is not simply depressed; he is awakening to the illusions of external gratification and the volatility of mental constructs. The “mire of thoughts” and “conflicting ideas” are portrayed as traps that deceive the soul and keep it bound to suffering.
This condition of mind is not condemned but presented as a significant spiritual threshold. The very disillusionment with pleasure, meaning, and control reveals a maturity that is necessary for genuine inquiry.
Rāma's sense of helplessness and alienation from ordinary pursuits prepares the ground for Self-Knowledge. The Yoga Vāsiṣṭha often emphasizes that such existential despair is not a defect but a blessing when it turns one inward.
What also emerges here is the importance of viveka (discernment) and dhiḥ (intelligence) as stabilizing forces, whose absence leads to confusion and misidentification.
The intellect that loses its root in wisdom becomes like a tree with no foundation—it may still stand, but only as a hollow form. This state is a warning and a lesson: without inner grounding, even the brightest mind falls into error.
Ultimately, these verses point toward the need for inner clarity, detachment, and insight. Śrī Rāma's anguish becomes the catalyst for his instruction under Vasiṣṭha. The Yoga Vāsiṣṭha uses this turning point to emphasize the unreliability of worldly supports and the necessity of self-inquiry (ātma-vicāra) as the way to peace and Realization. It is through the recognition of this inner collapse that the door to true spiritual knowledge opens.
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