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Yoga Vashishtha 3.12.24–32
(Universe is nothing but this Unborn, Beginningless Consciousness—experienced directly as the only Reality)
श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।
भविष्यद्रूपसंकल्पनामासौ कल्पनात्मकः ।
संकल्पात्मगुणैर्गन्धतन्मात्रत्वं प्रपश्यति ॥ २४ ॥
भाविभूगोलकत्वेन बीजमाकृतिशाखिनः ।
सर्वाधारात्मनस्तस्मात्संसारः प्रसरिष्यति ॥ २५ ॥
चिता विभाव्यमानानि तन्मात्राणि परस्परम् ।
स्वयं परिणतान्यन्तरम्बुनीव निरन्तरम् ॥ २६ ॥
तथैतानि विमिश्राणि विविक्तानि पुनर्यथा ।
न शुद्धान्युपलभ्यन्ते सर्वनाशान्तमेव हि ॥ २७ ॥
संवित्तिमात्ररूपाणि स्थितानि गगनोदरे ।
भवन्ति वटजालानि यथा बीजकणान्तरे ॥ २८ ॥
प्रसवं परिपश्यन्ति शतशाखं स्फुरन्ति च ।
परमाण्वन्तरे भान्ति क्षणात्कल्पीभवन्ति च ॥ २९ ॥
विवर्तमेव धावन्ति निर्विवर्तानि सन्ति च ।
चिद्वेधितानि सर्वाणि क्षणात्पिण्डीभवन्ति च ॥ ३० ॥
तन्मात्रगणमेतत्स्यात्सा संकल्पात्मिका चितिः ।
वेदनात्रसरेण्वाभमनाकारैव पश्यति ॥ ३१ ॥
बीजं जगत्सु ननु पञ्चकमात्रमेव बीजं पराव्यवहितस्थितिशक्तिराद्या ।
बीजं तदेव भवतीति सदानुभूतं चिन्मात्रमेवमजमाद्यमतो जगच्छीः ॥ ३२ ॥
Maharishi Vashishta concluded:
3.12.24: This imaginative power, which consists entirely of concepts about what will come into Being in the future, perceives the subtle essence of smell through the qualities that belong to the very nature of imagination itself.
3.12.25: From that seed—like the future form of a sphere and the shape of a tree with branches—the entire cycle of worldly existence will spread outward, rooted in the one Reality that serves as the foundation of everything.
3.12.26: The subtle elements that the mind imagines transform themselves into one another without any gap, just as water particles blend continuously and seamlessly within the sky of Consciousness.
3.12.27: In the same way, these elements mix together and then separate again, yet they are never experienced in a pure, isolated state; everything ends only in total dissolution.
3.12.28: Existing solely as forms of Pure Awareness within the womb of Infinite Space, they become networks of banyan trees, just as they do inside a tiny seed.
3.12.29: They witness their own sprouting, burst forth with hundreds of branches, shine within a single atom, and in an instant turn into fully formed worlds that last for eons.
3.12.30: They rush forward as mere appearances, yet remain without any real transformation; pierced by Consciousness, all of them instantly condense into solid, tangible forms.
3.12.31: This collection of subtle elements arises from that Consciousness which is made of pure imagination; it perceives everything through the thread of immediate knowing, yet remains formless itself.
3.12.32: The seed of the Universe is nothing but these five subtle elements alone; that seed is the first power of Existence, standing apart from all transactions. It is always experienced as that very seed, so the world is nothing but Unborn Consciousness—the first and only Reality.
Summary of the Teachings:
The verses describe the Universe as originating from a single imaginative act of Consciousness, not from any material cause. Future forms are mere concepts (sankalpa) within Pure Awareness, and the subtle essence of smell is the first quality perceived by this imaginative power. From this arises the "seed" of existence—a spherical, tree-like structure symbolizing the entire cosmos—rooted in the one all-supporting Reality. Nothing external or independent exists; the world is an extension of this internal imaginative process.
The five subtle elements (tanmatras) imagined by Consciousness transform fluidly into one another, like water droplets merging in empty space. They mix, separate, and recombine endlessly, yet never appear in pure form because their true nature is constant flux leading to dissolution. This process happens within the "sky" of Awareness, where vast worlds sprout from a point no larger than an atom, illustrating that scale and time are illusions created by the mind.
Entire Universes—complete with branching complexities—emerge, shine, and endure for cosmic ages, all within a single instant and a single speck of Space. They appear to evolve and solidify, yet remain unchanged at their core, "pierced" and animated only by Consciousness. What seems like creation, growth, and manifestation is merely an apparent unfolding (vivarta) with no real substance or transformation.
Consciousness itself, though formless and beyond shape, knows everything through direct, thread-like Awareness. It is the sole "Seed" of the five elements and thus of the whole world. This Seed is not born, does not transact, and stands eternally apart from change. The verses conclude that the Universe is nothing but this unborn, beginningless Consciousness—experienced directly as the only Reality.
Ultimately, the teaching dissolves the distinction between Creator, Creation, and Process: all is one imagination-free Consciousness. Worlds arise and subside within it like banyan groves in a seed, yet nothing ever truly leaves or enters that Pure Awareness. Recognizing this ends the illusion of a separate, solid existence and reveals the Peaceful, Formless ground of Being.
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