Chapter 3.100, Verses 1–11

Yoga Vashishtha 3.100.1–11

(Mind originates from the Highest State of Brahm and is both non-different from and different from it)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

चित्तमेतदुपायातं ब्रह्मणः परमात्पदात्।

अतन्मयं तन्मयं च तरङ्गः सागरादिव ॥ १॥

प्रबुद्धानां मनो राम ब्रह्मैवेह हि नेतरत्।

जलसामान्यबुद्धीनामब्धेर्नान्यस्तरङ्गकः ॥ २॥

मनो रामाप्रबुद्धानां संसारभ्रमकारणम्।

अपश्यतोऽम्बुसामान्यमन्यताम्बुतरङ्गयोः ॥ ३॥

अप्रबुद्धदृशां पक्षे तत्प्रबोधाय केवलम्।

वाच्यवाचकसंबन्धकृतो भेदः प्रकल्प्यते ॥ ४॥

सर्वशक्ति परं ब्रह्म नित्यमापूर्णमव्ययम्।

न तदस्ति न तस्मिन्यद्विद्यते विततात्मनि ॥ ५॥

सर्वशक्तिर्हि भगवान्यैव तस्मै हि रोचते।

शक्तिं तामेव विततां प्रकाशयति सर्वगः ॥ ६॥

चिच्छक्तिर्ब्रह्मणो राम शरीरेष्वभिदृश्यते।

स्पन्दशक्तिश्च वातेषु जडशक्तिस्तथोपले ॥ ७॥

द्रवशक्तिस्तथाम्भःसु तेजःशक्तिस्तथाऽनले।

शून्यशक्तिस्तथाकाशे भावशक्तिर्भवस्थितौ ॥ ८॥

ब्रह्मणः सर्वशक्तिर्हि दृश्यते दशदिग्गता।

नाशशक्तिर्विनाशेषु शोकशक्तिश्च शोकिषु ॥ ९॥

आनन्दशक्तिर्मुदिते वीर्यशक्तिस्तथा भटे।

सर्गेषु सर्गशक्तिश्च कल्पान्ते सर्वशक्तिता ॥ १०॥

फलपुष्पलतापत्रशाखा विटपमूलवान्।

वृक्षबीजे यथा वृक्षस्तथेदं ब्रह्मणि स्थितम् ॥ ११॥

Sage Vasistha said: 

3.100.1–11

> This mind has arisen from the Supreme State of Brahm. It is both different from it and identical with it, just as a wave is from the Ocean.

> O Rama, for the awakened ones the mind is nothing but Brahm itself here. For those who understand the common nature of water, a wave is not separate from the Ocean.

> O Rama, for the unawakened the mind is the cause of the delusion of worldly existence. It is like one who fails to see the common nature of water and therefore regards water and wave as different.

> From the standpoint of the unawakened, solely for the sake of their awakening, a distinction is imagined that arises from the relation between the word and its meaning.

> The Supreme Brahm is all-powerful, eternal, complete and imperishable. There is nothing that does not exist in it, nor is there anything in the Infinite Self that is absent from it.

> The Lord is all-powerful; whichever power is pleasing to him, that alone the all-pervading one manifests as the expanded power.

> O Rama, the Consciousness-power of Brahn is seen in bodies. The power of movement appears in winds, and the power of inertness appears in stones.

> The power of fluidity appears in waters, the power of brilliance in fire, the power of emptiness in Space, and the power of existence in the State of Becoming.

> The all-power of Brahm is seen spread throughout the ten directions. The power of destruction appears in destructions, and the power of sorrow appears in those who grieve.

> The power of Bliss appears in the joyful, the power of valor in the warrior, the power of creation in creations, and at the end of a Cosmic cycle the state of all-power itself.

> Just as a tree complete with fruits, flowers, creepers, leaves, branches, trunk and roots exists within the seed of the tree, so does this entire Universe exist within Brahm.

Summary of the Teachings:

These verses teach that the mind originates from the Highest State of Brahm and is both non-different from and different from it, like a wave arising from the Ocean. For those who have awakened to Truth, the mind is recognized as Pure Brahm itself; nothing else exists. For those still bound by ignorance the mind appears as the Source of the endless cycle of worldly delusion, because they fail to perceive the underlying unity of the water that is both ocean and wave.

A provisional distinction between names and forms is therefore allowed only as a temporary device to help the unawakened move toward understanding. In Reality the Supreme Brahm is the one all-powerful, eternal, complete and unchanging Reality. Nothing lies outside it and nothing within it is missing; it is the Infinite Self that contains all.

Because Brahm is all-powerful, it freely manifests whatever power it chooses. The same Undivided Consciousness appears as different capacities according to the medium: awareness in living bodies, motion in air, inertia in solid matter, fluidity in water, radiance in fire, emptiness in Space, and the power of Existence itself in the process of Becoming.

These powers are visible everywhere—in destruction, sorrow, joy, courage, creation, and even in the total dissolution at the end of a Cosmic age. The entire variety of the Universe is therefore only the varied expression of the single power of Brahm.

The final image of the tree already present within its seed makes the teaching concrete: just as every part of the fully grown tree—roots, trunk, branches, leaves, flowers and fruits—exists potentially and completely inside the tiny seed, so the whole of Creation rests Undivided within Brahm. Realization consists in seeing that the apparent multiplicity of mind, world and powers is only Brahm appearing as itself.

Chapter 3.99, Verses 37–44

Yoga Vashishtha 3.99.37–44

(Mind is the sole creator of its own bondage and suffering)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

स्ववासनोपतप्तानि सर्वाण्येव मनांसि हि।

स्वयमेव पलायन्ते गन्तुं युक्तानि तत्पदम् ॥ ३७॥

यदिदं विततं दुःखं तत्तनोति स्वयं मनः।

स्वयमेवातिखिन्नं तु पुनस्तस्मात्पलायते ॥ ३८॥

संकल्पवासनाजालैः स्वयमायाति बन्धनम्।

मनो लालामयैर्जालैः कोशकारकृमिर्यथा ॥ ३९॥

यथानर्थमवाप्नोति तथा क्रीडति चञ्चलम्।

भाविदुःखमपश्यन्स्वं दुर्लीलाभिरिवार्भकः ॥ ४०॥

अपश्यन्काष्ठरन्ध्रस्थवृषणाक्रमणं यथा।

कीलोत्पाटी कपिर्दुःखमेतीदं हि तथा मनः ॥ ४१॥

चिरपालनया चैव चिरभावनया तथा।

अभ्यासात्तुच्छतामेत्य न भूयः परिशोचति ॥ ४२॥

मनःप्रमादाद्वर्धन्ते दुःखानि गिरिकूटवत्।

तद्वशादेव नश्यन्ति सूर्यस्याग्रे हिमं यथा ॥ ४३॥

यावज्जीवमनिन्द्यया च रमते शास्त्रार्थसंजातया तुल्यं वासनया मनो हि मुनिवन्मौनेन रागादिषु।

पश्चात्पावनपावनं पदमजं तत्प्राप्य तच्छीतलं तत्संस्थेन न शोच्यते पुनरलं पुंसा महापत्स्वपि ॥ ४४॥

Sage Vasishta continued: 

3.99.37–44

> All minds heated and distressed by their own latent desires themselves run away, being fit to reach that Supreme State.

> This widespread suffering is itself spread by the mind. Extremely distressed by itself, it then flees from that suffering again.

> By the nets of its own mental constructs and desires, the mind binds itself, just as a silkworm is trapped by the sticky threads of its own saliva.

> Just as it meets misfortune, so the restless mind plays about, not seeing the coming suffering, like a child lost in mischievous play.

> Not seeing how its testicles get crushed in the hole of the wood, the monkey that pulls out the peg suffers pain; in the same way this mind suffers.

> Through long nurturing and long contemplation, by steady practice the mind becomes insignificant and no longer grieves.

> From the mind’s carelessness, sufferings grow high like mountain peaks. By control of the mind alone they melt away, like snow before the sun.

> Throughout life the mind delights equally in the pure tendency born of scriptural understanding, remaining silent like a Sage toward attachments and the rest. Afterwards, attaining that purest, purifying, unborn, cool State and resting there, a person does not grieve again even in the greatest calamities.

Summary of the Teachings: 

These verses teach that the mind is the sole creator of its own bondage and suffering. Every sorrow a person experiences is produced and expanded by the mind itself through its latent desires and restless mental activity. The mind first generates the pain, then feels overwhelmed by it and tries to escape, yet the escape remains incomplete because the root cause—its own tendencies—stays intact.

The mind traps itself in a web of its own making, exactly as a silkworm spins sticky threads that become its prison. Restless and playful, it pursues fleeting pleasures without noticing the future pain that follows, just as a child continues mischievous games without seeing the harm. In a still more vivid image, the mind acts like a foolish monkey that pulls a peg from a split log and thereby crushes its own sensitive parts, bringing needless agony upon itself through its own impulsive action.

Liberation does not come from flight or external change. Only long, steady practice of restraint, contemplation, and right understanding can make the troublesome tendencies of the mind grow weak and insignificant. When the mind is carefully governed, the mountains of accumulated sorrow dissolve as quickly as snow melts under the morning sun.

Therefore a person should train the mind, throughout the whole of life, to take delight only in pure tendencies that arise from the clear understanding of scriptural Truth. Remaining inwardly silent toward all attachments and aversions, like a Sage, the mind gradually settles into the Pure, cool, Unborn State that is free from disturbance. Established in that State, one remains unshaken and free from grief even when the greatest outward calamities arise.

In essence the teaching is simple and practical: the mind alone binds and the mind alone liberates. By recognizing its self-created suffering, refusing to feed its restless play, and patiently training it in pure understanding and silence, a person reaches lasting inner peace that no external event can destroy.

Chapter 3.99, Verses 25–36

Yoga Vashishtha 3.99.25–36

(These verses explain that partial spiritual discrimination brings greater suffering when the mind begins to detach from the body and the world, because the Pure State has not yet been reached)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

अर्धप्राप्तविवेकस्य न प्राप्तस्यामलं पदम्।

चेतसस्त्यजतोऽङ्गानि परितापो हि वर्धते ॥ २५॥

हसितं तु यदानन्दि पुंसा मदवबोधतः।

परिप्राप्तविवेकेन तत्तुष्टं राम चेतसा ॥ २६॥

परिप्राप्तविवेकस्य त्यक्तसंसारसंस्थितेः।

चेतसस्त्यजतो रूपमानन्दो हि विवर्धते ॥ २७॥

हसताङ्गानि दृष्टानि पुंसा यान्युपहासतः।

तानि दृष्टानि मनसा विप्रलम्भपदानि ह ॥ २८॥

मिथ्याविकल्परचितैर्विप्रलब्धमहो चिरम्।

इत्यङ्गान्युपहासेन दृष्टानि स्वानि चेतसा ॥ २९॥

मनः प्राप्तविवेकं हि विश्रान्तं वितते पदे।

प्राक्तनादीनताधारं हसन्पश्यति दूरतः ॥ ३०॥

यदसौ समवष्टभ्य मया पृष्टः प्रयत्नतः।

तद्विवेको बलाच्चित्तमादत्त इति दर्शितम् ॥ ३१॥

यदङ्गानि विशीर्णानि गतान्यन्तर्धिमग्रतः।

तच्चित्तेन विनार्थाशा शाम्यतीति प्रदर्शितम् ॥ ३२॥

सहस्रनेत्रहस्तत्वं यत्पुंसः परिवर्णितम्।

तदनन्ताकृतित्वं हि चेतसः परिदर्शितम् ॥ ३३॥

यदात्मनि प्रहारौघैः पुमान्प्रहरति स्वयम्।

तत्तत्कुकल्पनाघातैः प्रहरत्यात्मनो मनः ॥ ३४॥

पलायते यत्पुरुषः स्वात्मनः प्रहरन्स्वयम्।

स्ववासनाप्रहारेभ्यस्तन्मनः प्रपलायते ॥ ३५॥

स्वयं प्रहरति स्वान्तं स्वयमेव स्वयेच्छया।

पलायते स्वयं चैव पश्याज्ञानविजृम्भितम् ॥ ३६॥

Sage Vashishta continued:

3.99.25–36

> For one who has only partially attained discrimination and has not yet reached the Pure State, when the mind abandons the body and its limbs, suffering only increases.  

> The joyful laughter that arises in a person from the Realization that comes with (the intoxication of) true understanding, when discrimination is fully attained, is the contentment of the mind, O Rama.  

> For one who has fully attained discrimination and has abandoned the condition of Worldly existence, when the mind gives up form, Bliss indeed increases.  

> The limbs that a person looks upon with laughter out of mockery are seen by the mind as positions of deception and betrayal.  

> “Alas, I have long been deceived by false imaginings!”—thus one’s own limbs are viewed by the mind with mockery.  

> The mind that has attained discrimination and rests in the expansive State laughs as it looks from afar upon its former dependence on lower conditions.  

> That which I firmly grasped and questioned with great effort—discrimination forcibly takes hold of the mind—this has been shown.  

> That the limbs decay and disappear before one’s eyes shows that without the mind the hope for objects comes to rest.  

> The description of a person having a thousand eyes and hands points to the Infinite, formless nature of the mind.  

> When a person strikes himself with a stream of blows, it is the mind striking itself with the blows of false imaginations.  

> When a person flees while striking himself, it is the mind fleeing from the blows of its own latent tendencies.  

> One strikes one’s own inner self by oneself and of one’s own will, and flees by oneself as well—behold the play of ignorance.  

Summary of the Teachings: 

Full discrimination produces contentment and growing Bliss as the mind naturally releases attachment to form and Worldly existence. The earlier laughter of mockery toward the body becomes the wise mind’s recognition that the body and its experiences were long-standing deceptions created by false imaginings.  

A mind established in discrimination rests in an expansive, peaceful state and looks back with amusement on its former dependence on limited, lower conditions. Discrimination itself is shown to seize the mind by force once it is earnestly sought, ending the mind’s restless hold on appearances.  

The decay and disappearance of the body illustrate that all hope directed toward external objects ceases when the mind no longer supports them. Descriptions of a being with countless eyes and hands simply reveal the mind’s own infinite, formless capacity.  

All self-inflicted suffering—striking oneself and then fleeing—is revealed as the mind attacking itself through false imaginations and then running from the very latent tendencies it has created. Ignorance alone makes a person both the striker and the one who flees, all by his own will.  

In essence the teaching is that complete discrimination ends the cycle of self-torment. The mind, once free of false notions, rests in Bliss, sees the World as its own deceptive creation, and no longer harms or flees from itself.  

Chapter 3.99, Verses 13–24

Yoga Vashishtha 3.99.13–24

(These verses use vivid images to show how the mind becomes trapped or freed)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

पुण्यसंभारयुक्तानि तानि चित्तानि राघव।

करञ्जवनयातानि निर्गतानि न यानि तु ॥ १३॥

तानि मानुष्यजातानि चित्तानि रघुनन्दन।

कानिचित्संप्रबुद्धानि तत्र मुक्तानि बन्धनात् ॥ १४॥

कानिचिद्बहुरूपाणि योनेर्योनिं विशन्ति हि।

मनांसि तानि तिष्ठन्ति निपतन्त्युत्पतन्ति च ॥ १५॥

यत्तत्करञ्जगहनं तत्कलत्ररसं विदुः।

दुःखकण्टकसंबाधं मानुष्यं विविधैषणम् ॥ १६॥

करञ्जगहनं यानि प्रविष्टानि मनांसि तु।

मानुष्ये तानि जातानि तत्रैव रसिकानि च ॥ १७॥

कदलीकाननं यत्तच्छशाङ्ककरशीतलम्।

तन्मनोह्लादनकरं स्वर्गं विद्धि रघूद्वह ॥ १८॥

कानिचित्पुण्यभूतेन तपसा धारणात्मना।

धारयन्ति शरीराणि संस्थितान्युदितान्यपि ॥ १९॥

यैरहं पुंभिरबुधैर्बुद्धिचित्ततिरस्कृतः।

तैर्मनोभिरनात्मज्ञैः स्वविवेकस्तिरस्कृतः ॥ २०॥

त्वया दृष्टो विनष्टोऽस्मि त्वं मे शत्रुरिति द्रुतम्।

यदुक्तं तद्धि चित्तेन गलता परिदेवितम् ॥ २१॥

रुदितं यन्महाक्रन्दं पुंसा बह्नाशु राघव।

तद्भोगजालं त्यजता मनसा रोदनं कृतम् ॥ २२॥

अर्धप्राप्तविवेकस्य न प्राप्तस्यामलं पदम्।

चेतसस्त्यजतो भोगान्परितापो भृशं भवेत् ॥ २३॥

रुदताङ्गानि दृष्टानि कारुण्येनावबोधिना।

कष्टमेतानि संत्यज्य किं प्रयामीति चेतसा ॥ २४॥

Sage Vashishta continued:

3.99.13–17

> O Raghava, those minds endowed with stores of merit that have entered the thickets of the karanja tree do not come out again.

> O delight of the Raghus, among the minds born as human beings, some become fully awakened and are freed from bondage there.

> Some take on many forms and keep entering one birth after another; those minds remain, falling and rising again and again.

> Know that dense karanja thicket to be the attachment to wife and family—full of the thorns of sorrow and crowded with the many desires of human life.

> The minds that have entered that karanja thicket are born as human beings and remain attached to the enjoyments found there.

3.99.18–24

> O support of the Raghu line, know that plantain grove, cool with the rays of the moon and delighting the mind, to be heaven.

> Some, through the power of meritorious austerity and firm concentration, continue to uphold their bodies even after they have risen high.

> Those ignorant men who disregarded me, suppressing their intelligence and mind—by those minds that do not know the Self, their own discrimination was also suppressed.

> The quick cry “I am ruined by seeing you; you are my enemy” was only the lament of a melting mind.

> O Raghava, the loud weeping and flood of tears of many men was the mind’s own crying as it gave up the net of enjoyments.

> For a mind that has gained only partial discrimination and has not yet reached the Pure State, great anguish arises when it abandons enjoyments.

> Seeing the limbs with compassion and understanding, the mind weeps: “Alas, abandoning these, where shall I go?”

Summary of the Teachings: 

The karanja thicket stands for family ties, marriage, and worldly desires that prick like thorns and keep the mind bound in repeated human births full of pain. Only some minds, through accumulated merit and awakening, escape this entanglement and gain Freedom.

Heaven is pictured as a cool, moonlit plantain grove that refreshes the soul. Minds that reach it do so through virtue and steady austerity; they may even keep their bodies while rising higher. In contrast, minds that reject wisdom suppress their own power of discrimination and remain ignorant of the Self.

When true understanding begins to dawn, the mind often resists. It feels as if it is being destroyed, calls the guide an enemy, and weeps loudly because it must leave the familiar net of pleasures. Even a partially awakened mind suffers intense grief at the thought of giving up enjoyments before it has fully attained the Pure State.

The final image shows a compassionate mind looking at the body it has sustained through hard work for family and feeling sorrow at the idea of leaving it. Together the verses teach that bondage and liberation both rest in the mind: attachment to worldly relations and pleasures keeps it cycling through births, while merit, discrimination, and turning away from those attachments lead it toward Freedom and the delight of Higher States.

Chapter 3.99, Verses 1–12

Yoga Vashishtha 3.99.1–12

(The forest of samsara)

श्रीराम उवाच।

कासौ महाटवी ब्रह्मन्कदा दृष्टा कथं मया।

के च ते पुरुषास्तत्र किं तत्कर्तुं कृतोद्यमाः ॥ १॥

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

रघुनाथ महाबाहो श्रृणु वक्ष्यामि तेऽखिलम्।

न सा महाटवी राम दूरे नैव च ते नराः ॥ २॥

येयं संसारपदवी गम्भीराऽपारकोटरा।

तां तां शून्यां विकाराढ्यां विद्धि राम महाटवीम् ॥ ३॥

विचारालोकलभ्येयं यदैकेनैव वस्तुना।

पूर्णा नान्येन संयुक्ता केवलेव तदैव सा ॥ ४॥

तत्र ये ते महाकाराः पुरुषाः प्रभ्रमन्ति हि।

मनांसि तानि विद्धि त्वं दुःखे निपतितान्यलम् ॥ ५॥

द्रष्टा योऽयमहं तेषां सविवेको महामते।

विवेकेन मया तानि दृष्टान्यन्येव नानघ ॥ ६॥

मया तान्येव बोध्यन्ते विवेकेन मनांसि हि।

सततं सुप्रकाशेन कमलानीव भानुना ॥ ७॥

मत्प्रबोधं समासाद्य मत्प्रसादान्महामते।

मनांसि कानि चित्तानि गतान्युपशमात्परम् ॥ ८॥

कानिचिन्नाभिनन्दन्ति मां विवेकं विमोहतः।

मत्तिरस्कारवशतः कूपेष्वेव पतन्त्यधः ॥ ९॥

ये तेऽन्धकूपा गहना नरकास्ते रधूद्वह।

कदलीकाननं यानि संप्रविष्टानि तानि तु ॥ १०॥

स्वर्गैकरसिकानि त्वं मनांसि ज्ञातुमर्हसि।

प्रविष्टान्यन्धकूपान्तर्निर्गतानि न यानि तु ॥ ११॥

महापातकयुक्तानि तानि चित्तानि राघव।

कदलीकाननस्थानि निर्गतानि न यानि तु ॥ १२॥

Sriram asked: 

3.99.1

> O Brahman, what is that great forest? When was it seen by me and how? Who are those men there, and what are they striving to do?

Sage Vasistha answered: 

3.99.2–12

> O mighty-armed Raghunatha, listen; I shall tell you everything. O Rama, that great forest is not far away, nor are those men.

> This path of Worldly existence, deep and full of boundless hollows—know that empty, modification-filled expanse as the great forest, O Rama.

> It is attained through the light of inquiry when it is filled with only one Reality, unconnected with anything else, and pure by itself.

> Those great-formed men who wander about there—know them as the minds that have thoroughly fallen into suffering.

> The Seer among them who is this “I,” endowed with discrimination, O great-minded one—by discrimination I have seen them, and not otherwise, O sinless one.

> Those very minds are enlightened by me through discrimination, constantly with clear light, just as lotuses are by the sun.

> Having attained my enlightenment and by my Grace, O great-minded one, some minds and thoughts have gone beyond to Supreme Peace.

> Some do not welcome me—the discrimination—because of delusion; under the force of rejecting me they fall downward into wells.

> Those deep blind wells are the hells, O descendant of Raghu. Those that have entered the plantain grove...

> You should understand the minds that are solely attached to heaven—those that have entered inside the blind wells and have not come out.

> Those minds associated with great sins, O Raghava, that remain in the plantain grove and have not emerged.

Summary of the Teachings:

These verses present the World of ordinary experience as a vast, empty forest of samsara. The forest is not a distant physical place but the deep, hollow path of worldly life itself—filled with constant change yet essentially void. The men wandering inside it are not external beings; they are the individual minds that have fallen into suffering through endless roaming within this apparent multiplicity.

True Knowledge of this forest arises only through discriminative inquiry. When the light of discrimination reveals that the forest is filled solely by one undivided Reality and is free of any second thing, the entire expanse is understood as pure and empty of independent existence. The seer who recognizes this is the discriminating “I” that observes the minds without being trapped by them.

Discrimination acts like the sun that opens lotuses: it steadily illuminates the minds and frees those that accept its light. Through the teacher’s grace and the arising of this clear understanding, certain minds cross beyond agitation and rest in lasting peace. Others, clouded by delusion, refuse the same discrimination; rejecting it, they sink into deeper darkness.

The “blind wells” into which the rejecting minds fall are the various hells of continued suffering. Minds solely attached to heavenly pleasures or weighed down by great sins remain trapped inside these wells or inside the plantain grove of fleeting enjoyments and never emerge. Thus the teaching underscores that liberation depends on welcoming discriminative insight; without it the mind stays imprisoned in the forest of samsara.

Chapter 3.98, Verses 21~45

Yoga Vashishtha 3.98.21~45

(The mind as a restless, self-torturing giant wandering in a vast, empty, terrifying desert that represents the World of samsara)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

इति पृष्टेन कथितं तेन मे रघुनन्दन।

नाहं कश्चिन्न चैवेदं मुने किंचित्करोम्यहम् ॥ २१॥

त्वयाहमवभग्नोऽस्मि त्वं मे शत्रुरहो वत।

त्वया दृष्टोऽस्मि नष्टोऽस्मि दुःखाय च सुखाय च ॥ २२॥

इत्युक्त्वा विक्लवान्यङ्गान्यालोक्य स्वान्यतुष्टिमान्।

रुरोदातिरवं दीनो मेघो वर्षन्निवाटवीम् ॥ २३॥

क्षणमात्रेण तत्रासावुपसंहृत्य रोदनम्।

स्वान्यङ्गानि समालोक्य जहास च ननाद च ॥ २४॥

अथाट्टहासपर्यन्ते स पुमान्पुरतो मम।

क्रमेण तानि तत्याज स्वान्यङ्गानि समंततः ॥ २५॥

(३.९८.२६–४०)

मदुक्तं नाभिनन्दन्ति केचिच्छवतनुं यथा।

विनिपत्यान्धकूपेभ्यः केचित्तत्प्रोत्थिताः पुनः ॥ ४१॥

कदलीखण्डकात्केचिच्चिरेणापि न निर्गताः।

केचिदन्तर्हिताः स्फारे करञ्जवनगुल्मके ॥ ४२॥

न क्वचित्स्थितिमायान्ति केचिद्धर्मपरायणाः।

एवंविधा सा वितता रघूद्वह महाटवी ॥ ४३॥

अद्यापि विद्यते यस्यामित्थं ते पुरुषाः स्थिताः।

सा च दृष्टा त्वया राम त्वयेह व्यवहारिणी।

बाल्यात्तु बुद्धितत्त्वस्य न तां स्मरसि राघव ॥ ४४॥

सा भीषणा विविधकण्टकसङ्कटाङ्गी घोराटवी घनतमोगहनापि लोके।

आगत्य निर्वृतिमलब्धपरावबोधैरासेव्यते कुसुमगुल्मकवाटिकेव ॥ ४५॥

Sage Vashishta continued:

3.98.21–25

> O joy of the Raghu race, when I asked him, he replied to me: “O sage, I am nobody, and I am doing nothing at all.”

> “You have broken me. You are my enemy, alas! You have seen me, and I am destroyed—both for sorrow and for joy.”

> Saying this, the miserable one looked at his own limbs with dissatisfaction, and wept loudly, like a cloud raining upon the forest.

> In a moment he stopped his weeping. Looking at his own limbs, he laughed and shouted.

> Then, at the end of his loud laughter, that man before me gradually abandoned all his own limbs on every side.

3.98.26–40

> Many more similar men appeared one after another in the same vast desert. They too struck themselves, ran about in fear, fell into dark pits, rose again or stayed trapped, entered thorny thickets or pleasant plantain groves, and either escaped, remained stuck, or disappeared. Vasistha tried to stop and question them, but most ignored him, answered with mixed crying and laughing, or simply continued their self-harm and flight until they discarded their bodies or vanished, showing the same endless pattern of self-inflicted suffering.

3.98.41–45

> Some do not welcome my words, just as one ignores a dead body. Some fall into blind wells and rise out again.

> Some never come out of the plantain thicket even after a long time. Some disappear forever inside the wide karanja bush thicket.

> Some devoted to dharma never find a settled place anywhere. Such is this vast great forest, O best of the Raghus.

> Even today that forest exists, and such men still stand in it in this way. You have seen that forest yourself, Rama, as the place of worldly action. From childhood until the rise of true understanding, you do not remember it, O Raghava.

> That fearful forest, with many kinds of thorny obstacles in its body, is terrible in the world and dense with thick darkness. Yet those who have not gained Higher Knowledge come and enjoy it as if it were a garden of flowering bushes, seeking rest but finding none.

Summary of the teachings:

These verses form part of the allegory of the mind as a restless, self-torturing giant wandering in a vast, empty, terrifying desert that represents the world of samsara. The desert is boundless, dark, full of dangers, and without true peace; the giant with a thousand arms and eyes is the individual mind that endlessly strikes itself with its own weapons of desire, fear, and attachment, then flees in panic, only to fall into pits of suffering, rise again, get caught in thorns of further misery, or briefly rest in temporary pleasures before repeating the cycle.

The conversation between Vasistha (as the voice of discriminating reason) and the self-harming figures shows that the mind denies its own actions and identity—“I am nobody and do nothing”—while still blaming the observer and oscillating between extreme grief and sudden laughter. This reveals the mind’s deep delusion: it refuses to recognize that all its pain is self-created, and it continues the same destructive pattern even when confronted with clear insight.

Verses 26–40 illustrate the universality of this condition. Countless similar minds appear one after another, each repeating the identical drama of self-punishment, flight, temporary relief, and renewed torment. Most ignore or reject the attempt to stop them; a few rise from the pits, some remain trapped in pleasant or painful places, and others vanish, showing that without awakening, the cycle simply multiplies across lives and individuals.

The forest still exists today and is none other than the ordinary world of human activity that every person experiences from childhood. Ordinary people, lacking Higher Knowledge, treat this thorny, dark wilderness as if it were a pleasant flower garden, seeking comfort and rest in it while remaining bound by its dangers. Only those who gain true understanding of the Self see it for what it is and cease to be trapped by it.

The core teaching is that bondage and liberation both depend entirely on the mind. When the mind is directed toward the Supreme and freed from latent desires and imaginations, it becomes Pure and rests in its True Nature. Until then, the mind continues to create and suffer its own endless desert of delusion. Discriminating Wisdom alone can stop the self-inflicted suffering and reveal the Peace that is already present beyond the illusory forest.

Chapter 3.98, Verses 1~20

Yoga Vashishtha 3.98.1~20

(Mind is the root of both bondage and freedom)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

यतःकुतश्चिदुत्पन्नं चित्तं यत्किंचिदेव हि।

नित्यमात्मविमोक्षाय योजयेद्यत्नतोऽनघ ॥ १॥

संयोजितं परे चित्तं शुद्धं निर्वासनं भवेत्।

ततस्तु कल्पनाशून्यमात्मतां याति राघव ॥ २॥

चित्तायत्तमिदं सर्वं जगत्स्थिरचरात्मकम्।

चित्ताधीनवतो राम बन्धमोक्षावपि स्फुटम् ॥ ३॥

अत्रार्थे कथ्यमानं मे चित्ताख्यानमनुत्तमम्।

ब्रह्मणा यत्पुरा प्रोक्तं श्रृणु रामातियत्नतः ॥ ४॥

अस्ति रामाटवी स्फारा शून्याशान्तातिभीषणा।

योजनानां शतं यस्यां लक्ष्यते कणमात्रकम् ॥ ५॥

तस्यामेको हि पुरुषः सहस्रकरलोचनः।

पर्याकुलमतिर्भीमः संस्थितो वितताकृतिः ॥ ६॥

(३.९८.७–१६)

अन्धकूपात्समुत्थाय प्रविष्टः कदलीवनम्।

कदलीकाननाच्छ्वभ्रं करञ्जवनगुल्मकम् ॥ १७॥

करञ्जकाननात्कूपं कूपाद्रम्भावनान्तरम्।

प्रविशन्प्रहरंश्चैव स्वयमात्मनि संस्थितः ॥ १८॥

एवंरूपनिजाचारः सोऽवलोक्य चिरं मया।

अवष्टभ्य बलादेव मुहूर्तं रोधितः पथि ॥ १९॥

पृष्टः स कस्त्वं किमिदं केनार्थेन करोषि वा।

किं नामाभिमतं तेऽत्र किं मुधा परिमुह्यसि ॥ २०॥

Sage Vasishta said: 

3.98.1–6

> O sinless one, the mind arises from whatever source and is of whatever nature. One should always carefully direct it toward liberation of the Self.

> O Raghava, when the mind is joined to the Supreme, it becomes pure and free from latent tendencies. Then, empty of all imaginings, it attains the Nature of the Self.

> O Rama, this entire World of things that move and things that do not move depends on the mind. Bondage and liberation clearly depend on the mind as well.

> O Rama, listen with great care to this excellent story of the mind that I am telling you. Brahmadev himself spoke it long ago.

> There is a vast, empty, restless, and extremely terrifying forest called Ramatavi forest. In it, a distance of a hundred yojanas looks like a mere speck.

> In that forest stands one man with a thousand hands and a thousand eyes. He is of huge form, fearsome, and his mind is greatly disturbed.

3.98.7–16

The man seizes many clubs with his thousand arms, beats his own back and body, then flees in terror from himself. Exhausted and crying, he falls into a deep, pitch-dark well. After a long time he climbs out, resumes beating himself, and runs farther. He plunges into a thorny Karanja thicket like a moth into fire, escapes, continues the self-beating and flight, enters a cool and lovely banana grove as if laughing, leaves it, and finally rushes again into the same dark well, his body broken and worn.

3.98.17–20

> Rising from the dark well, he entered a banana grove. From the banana forest he went into a pit, then into a thicket of Karanja bushes.

> From the Karanja thicket he entered a well, and from the well he entered another banana grove. Thus he keeps entering and striking while remaining within himself.

> I (Brahmadev) watched this kind of behavior of his for a long time. Then, using force, I blocked his path for a short while.

> I asked him: Who are you? What is this? For what purpose do you do it? What do you wish for here? Why do you uselessly delude yourself?

Summary of the Teachings:

These verses teach that the mind is the root of both bondage and freedom. Whatever its origin or present State, it must be steadily turned toward the Self. When fixed on the Supreme it is purified, loses its deep-seated tendencies, and finally becomes free of all imagination, resting as Pure Self-nature.

The world of moving and unmoving things is shown to be entirely dependent on the mind. Bondage and liberation are therefore not external conditions but States of the mind itself. The allegory that follows makes this concrete.

The vast, empty, terrifying forest stands for the cycle of Worldly Existence. In delusion it appears immense; with right understanding it is seen as insignificant. The single man with a thousand hands and eyes is the mind itself, filled with countless desires and perceptions. By its own desires it strikes itself and then flees from the pain it has created, running endlessly through experiences of pleasure and pain.

The dark well represents states of deep suffering or hellish existence. The thorny thicket stands for ordinary worldly life full of sharp attachments and cares. The pleasant banana grove stands for temporary heavenly or sensual enjoyments. The mind repeatedly leaves one and plunges into another, never finding rest because the root cause—its own restless activity—remains.

The final teaching is that the mind’s endless self-torture and flight can be interrupted only by firm inquiry and discrimination. When the mind is held and questioned, its false activity is exposed. Liberation begins the moment the mind is stopped in its tracks and turned from self-created suffering toward the Stillness of the Self.

Chapter 3.97, Verses 12–27

Yoga Vashishtha 3.97.12–27

(Mind is the root of the different kinds of human experience)

श्रीराम उवाच।

भगवन्भवता प्रोक्ता जातयस्त्रिविधा नृणाम्।

प्रथमं कारणं तासां मनः सदसदात्मकम् ॥ १२॥

तत्कथं शुद्धचिन्नाम्नस्तत्त्वाद्बुद्धिवि वर्जितात्।

उत्थितं स्फारतां यातं जगच्चित्रकरं मनः ॥ १३॥

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

आकाशा हि त्रयो राम विद्यन्ते विततान्तराः।

चित्ताकाशश्चिदाकाशो भूताकाशस्तृतीयकः ॥ १४॥

एते हि सर्वसामान्याः सर्वत्रैव व्यवस्थिताः।

शुद्धचित्तत्वशक्त्या तु लब्धसत्तात्मतां गताः ॥ १५॥

सबाह्याभ्यन्तरस्थो यः सत्तासत्तावबोधकः।

व्यापी समस्तभूतानां चिदाकाशः स उच्यते ॥ १६॥

सर्वभूतहितः श्रेष्ठो यः कालकलनात्मकः।

येनेदमाततं सर्वं चित्ताकाशः स उच्यते ॥ १७॥

दशदिङ्मण्डलाभोगैरव्युच्छिन्नवपुर्हि यः।

भूतात्मासौ य आकाशः पवनाब्दादिसंश्रयः ॥ १८॥

आकाशचित्ताकाशौ द्वौ चिदाकाशबलोद्भवौ।

चित्कारणं हि सर्वस्य कार्यौघस्य दिनं यथा ॥ १९॥

जडोऽस्मि न जडोऽस्मीति निश्चयो मलिनश्चितः।

यस्तदेव मनो विद्धि तेनाकाशादि भाव्यते ॥ २०॥

अप्रबुद्धात्मविषयमाकाशत्रयकल्पनम्।

कल्प्यते उपदेशार्थं प्रबुद्धविषयं न तु ॥ २१॥

एकमेव परं ब्रह्म सर्व सर्वावपूरकूम्।

प्रबुद्धविषयं नित्यं कलाकलनवर्जितम् ॥ २२॥

द्वैताद्वैतसमुद्भेदैर्वाक्यसंदर्भ गर्भितैः।

उपदेश्यत एवाज्ञो न प्रबुद्धः कथंचन ॥ २३॥

यावद्रामाप्रबुद्धस्त्वमाकाशत्रय कल्पना।

तावदेवावबोधार्थं मया त्वमुपदिश्यसे ॥ २४॥

आकाशचित्ताकाशाद्याश्चिदाकाशकलङ्कितात्।

प्रसूता दावदहनाद्यथा मरुमरीचयः ॥ २५॥

चिनोति मलिनं रूपं चित्ततां समुपागतम्।

त्रिजगन्तीन्द्रजालानि रचयत्याकुलात्मकम् ॥ २६॥

चित्तत्वमस्य मलिनस्य चिदात्मकस्य तत्त्वस्य दृश्यत इदं ननु बोधहीनैः।

शुक्तौ यथा रजतता नतु बोधवद्भिर्मौर्ख्येण बन्ध इह बोधबलेन मोक्षः ॥ २७॥

Sriram asked:

3.97.12–13

> O venerable one, you have said that there are three kinds of people. The first cause of them is the mind, which is of the nature of both existence and non-existence.

> How then did the mind, which paints the picture of the world and has expanded, arise from that Pure Consciousness which is without intellect?

Sage Vashishta answered: 

3.97.14–20

> O Rama, there are three spaces with vast interiors: the space of the mind, the space of Consciousness, and the third is the physical space of the elements.

> These are common to all and exist everywhere. Through the power of Pure Consciousness they have gained the nature of existence.

> That which is present both outside and inside, which makes known existence and non-existence, and which pervades all Beings is called the space of Consciousness.

> That which is beneficial to all Beings, the highest, of the nature of the calculation of time, and by which this whole World is spread is called the space of the mind.

> That which has an unbroken body filling the circles of the ten directions, the self of the elements, which is space and the support of wind, water and the rest.

> The two, physical space and mind-space, arise from the power of the Space of Consciousness. Consciousness is the cause of the whole mass of effects, just as day is the cause of the day’s activities.

> The impure mind is the firm belief “I am inert” or “I am not inert.” Know that itself to be the mind; by it space and the rest are imagined.

3.97.21–27

> The idea of the three spaces is formed for those whose self is not awakened, for the sake of teaching. It is not meant for the Awakened.

> There is only One Supreme Brahm that fills everything. For the Awakened it is Eternal and free from all parts and distinctions.

> Only the ignorant are taught through statements filled with distinctions of duality and non-duality. The Awakened are never taught in that way.

> O Rama, as long as you remain unawakened and hold the idea of the three spaces, so long I instruct you for the sake of understanding.

> Physical space, mind-space and the rest arise from the Space of Consciousness that appears stained, just as mirages arise from a forest fire.

> Having taken on a defiled form that has become mind, it creates the three worlds as confused magical shows.

> This State of mind of the defiled essence, which is truly of the Nature of Consciousness, is seen by the unenlightened, just as silver is seen in a mother-of-pearl shell, but not by the wise. Here bondage comes from ignorance and liberation comes through the power of Knowledge.

Summary of the Teachings:

These verses explain that the mind is the root of the different kinds of human experience. Pure Consciousness itself has no mind or intellect, yet the mind appears to arise from it and spreads out to paint the whole picture of the World. To help the seeker understand this appearance, three kinds of space are described: the Space of Pure Consciousness, the space of the mind, and ordinary physical space.

The Space of Pure Consciousness is all-pervading, present both inside and outside, and the ground of both existence and non-existence. From its power arise the other two spaces. The space of the mind is connected with time and the welfare of Beings, while physical space is the unbroken expanse that holds the elements. Consciousness is the True Cause of everything, just as day is the condition for the activities of the day.

The mind itself is nothing but impure conviction—such as “I am inert” or “I am not inert.” Through this conviction the elements and the World are imagined. The teaching about the three spaces is only a temporary device meant for those who are still unawakened; it is not needed by those who already know the truth.

For the Awakened there is only the one Supreme Brahm, Eternal, without parts or distinctions, filling all. Teachings that speak of duality and non-duality are given only to the ignorant. As long as a person remains unawakened and still thinks in terms of the three spaces, such instruction continues for the sake of awakening.

Finally, the mind and the World arise from Pure Consciousness that seems to be stained, like mirages arising from a forest fire. The mind takes on a defiled form and projects the three worlds as magical illusions. What the ignorant see as mind is only an appearance on Pure Consciousness, like the false silver seen in a shell. Bondage comes from this ignorance; liberation comes from the strength of True Knowledge.

Chapter 3.97, Verses 1–11

Yoga Vashishtha 3.97.1–11

(The entire visible and invisible display of the World is a product of the mind)

श्रीराम उवाच।

ब्रह्मन्मनस एवेदमन्तश्चाडम्बरं सृतम्।

यतस्तदेव कर्मेति वाक्यार्थादुपलभ्यते ॥ १॥

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

दृढभावोपरक्तेन मनसैवोररीकृतम्।

मरुचण्डातपेनेव भास्वरावरणं पुनः ॥ २॥

ब्रह्मात्मनि जगत्यस्मिन्मन एकाकृतिं गतम्।

क्वचिन्नरतया रूढं क्वचित्सुरतयोत्थितम् ॥ ३॥

क्वचिद्दैत्यतयोल्लासि क्वचिद्यक्षतयोदितम्।

क्वचिद्गन्धर्वतां प्राप्तं क्वचित्किन्नररूपि च ॥ ४॥

नानाचारनभोभागपुरपत्तनरूपया।

मन्ये विततयाकृत्या मन एव विजृम्भते ॥ ५॥

एवं स्थिते शरीरौघस्तृणकाष्ठलतोपमः।

तद्विचारणया कोऽर्थो विचार्यं मन एव नः ॥ ६॥

तेनेदं सर्वमाभोगि जगदित्याकुलं ततम्।

मन्ये तद्व्यतिरेकेण परमात्मैव शिष्यते ॥ ७॥

आत्मा सर्वपदातीतः सर्वगः सर्वसंश्रयः।

तत्प्रसादेन संसारे मनो धावति वल्गति ॥ ८॥

मनो मन्ये मनः कर्म तच्छरीरेषु कारणम्।

जायते म्रियते तद्धि नात्मनीदृग्विधा गुणाः ॥ ९॥

मन एव विचारेण मन्ये विलयमेष्यति।

मनोविलयमात्रेण ततः श्रेयो भविष्यति ॥ १०॥

मनोनाम्नि परिक्षीणे कर्मण्याहितसंभ्रमे।

मुक्त इत्युच्यते जन्तुः पुनर्नाम न जायते ॥ ११॥

Sriram said:

3.97.1

> O Brahman, this entire internal display and manifestation arises from the mind itself. From the meaning of the words, it is understood that this very (mental activity) is action (karma).

Sage Vasishta answered: 

3.97.2–6

> It is again taken up by the mind itself when that mind is coloured by firm conviction, just as a shining covering is taken up by the fierce heat of the sun.

> In this world which is the Self of Brahm, the mind has assumed a single form. Sometimes it is established as a human Being, and sometimes it rises as a god.

> Sometimes it shines forth as a demon, sometimes it appears as a yaksha, sometimes it attains the State of a gandharva, and sometimes it takes the form of a kinnara.

> I believe that the mind itself expands and manifests through this vast form, which takes the shape of various customs, regions of the sky, cities and towns.

> When this is so, the multitude of bodies is like grass, wood and creepers. What is the use of examining them? For us, the mind alone is to be examined.

3.97.7–11

> I believe that this entire expansive World, full of turmoil, is spread out by that (mind). Apart from it, only the Supreme Self remains.

> The Self is beyond all categories, all-pervading and the support of everything. By its Grace the mind runs and leaps about in the cycle of Worldly existence.

> I consider the mind itself to be action, and that is the cause in the bodies. Indeed it is born and dies; such qualities do not exist in the Self.

> I believe that the mind itself will dissolve through proper inquiry. Then, merely by the dissolution of the mind, the Highest good will result.

> When the thing called mind is completely worn away and the agitation inherent in action is overcome, the living Being is said to be liberated and is not born again under any name.

Summary of the teachings:

These verses teach that the entire visible and invisible display of the World is a product of the mind. Rama first recognises that all internal show and outer activity arise from the mind, and that what we call action is really mental activity. Vasishta confirms that the mind, when coloured by firm belief, holds on to this appearance exactly as intense sunlight holds a shining covering.

The mind is not separate from Brahm; it is Brahm appearing in a single form that then takes countless shapes. It appears as human, god, demon, yaksha, gandharva or kinnara, and it stretches itself out as the many customs, skies, cities and towns of the world. All the countless bodies that fill existence are therefore as insubstantial as grass, wood or creepers. Examining the bodies is pointless; the only thing worth examining is the mind itself.

Because the whole restless, spreading World is produced by the mind, once the mind is set aside only the Supreme Self remains. That Self is beyond every category, present everywhere and the sole support of all. It is by the Grace of this Self that the mind is able to run and leap through the cycle of birth and death.

The mind is both action and the Cause of the body. The mind is born and dies; the Self has none of these changing qualities. Through careful inquiry the mind dissolves. When the mind dissolves, the highest good automatically follows.

Finally, when the entity called mind is completely exhausted and the restless activity that belongs to action ceases, the living Being is declared free. Such a Being is never born again under any name. Liberation is therefore nothing other than the ending of the mind and its restless work.

Chapter 3.96, Verses 66–73

Yoga Vashishtha 3.96.66–73

(The mind is essentially One, yet appears many because of the force of actions and latent impressions)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

नानाकर्मवशावेशान्मनो नानाभिधेयताम्।

एकं विचित्रतामेति कालो नाना यथर्तुमिः ॥ ६६॥

यदि नामामनस्कारमहंकारेन्द्रियक्रियाः।

क्षोभयन्ति शरीरं तत्सन्तु जीवादयः परे ॥ ६७॥

दर्शनेषु तु ये प्रोक्ता भेदा मनसि तर्कतः।

क्वचित्कचिद्वादकरैरपवादकरैः किल ॥ ६८॥

ते हि राम न बुध्यन्ते विशिष्यन्ते न च क्वचित्।

सर्वा हि शक्तयो देवे विद्यन्ते सर्वगा यतः ॥ ६९॥

यदैव खलु शुद्धाया मनागपि हि संविदः।

जडेव शक्तिरुदिता तदा वैचित्र्यमागतम् ॥ ७०॥

ऊर्णनाभाद्यथा तन्तुर्जायते चेतनाज्जडः।

नित्यप्रबुद्धात्पुरुषाद्ब्रह्मणः प्रकृतिस्तथा ॥ ७१॥

अविद्यावशतश्चित्तभावनाः स्थितिमागताः।

चिति पर्यायशब्दा हि भिन्नास्ते नेह वादिनाम् ॥ ७२॥

जीवो मनश्च ननु बुद्धिरहंकृतिश्चेत्येवं प्रथामुपगतेयमनिर्मला चित्।

सैषोच्यते जगति चेतनचित्तजीवसंज्ञागणेन किल नास्ति विवाद एषः ॥ ७३॥

Sage Vashishta said:

3.96.66–73

> The mind, though one, takes on many names and forms under the influence of different actions, just as time becomes many through the seasons.  

> If the activities of ego and the senses can agitate a body that has no mind, then let individual souls and similar things be regarded as higher or transcendent.  

> The distinctions concerning the mind that various systems of thought declare through reasoning are put forward here and there by both those who support them and those who oppose them.  

> O Rama, those people neither understand nor are ever truly distinguished, because every all-pervading power exists in the Divine Being.  

> The moment even a slight power that appears inert arises from Pure Consciousness, diversity comes into existence.  

> Just as an inert thread is spun from a conscious spider, so Nature arises from the eternally awake Person, from Brahm.  

> Under the sway of ignorance the mind’s conceptions gain a seeming solid existence. For True Knowers these are only alternative names for Consciousness itself and are not different from one another.  

> This impure Consciousness becomes known as the individual soul, the mind, the intellect and the ego. In the World it is therefore called by the collective names “conscious being,” “mind” and “individual soul.” There is no real dispute about this.  

Summary of the teachings: 

These verses teach that the mind is essentially one, yet appears many because of the force of actions and latent impressions, just as one continuous time appears as many seasons. All the varied labels that different schools invent for the mind—ego, intellect, individual soul and the rest—are secondary designations that arise only when pure consciousness is veiled by a slight appearance of inert power.  

The diversity of the world and of mental functions therefore begins the moment Pure Awareness allows even a faint vibration that looks unconscious. That vibration is compared to the thread a spider spins out of itself: the spider is conscious, the thread is inert, yet both are continuous. In the same way nature and all mental phenomena proceed from the ever-awake Brahm without ever becoming truly separate from it.  

Because of ignorance these mental movements seem to stand on their own and receive separate names. The wise, however, recognise that the names are only synonyms pointing back to the same Consciousness. There is therefore no genuine disagreement among those who see clearly; the apparent multiplicity is only a matter of conventional speech.  

The verses thereby dissolve the notion of an independent mind or an independent individual soul. Both are temporary superimpositions on the One Undivided Awareness. When the superimposition is understood for what it is, the many names fall away and the original unity is restored.  

In short, the teaching points the seeker away from endless classification and argument toward the direct recognition that every power, every form and every name is already contained within the single, all-pervading Divine Consciousness.

Chapter 3.96, Verses 55–65

Yoga Vashishtha 3.96.55–65

(Mind, the central force behind all experience and the appearance of the World)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

यथैव पुरुषः स्नानदानादानादिकाः क्रियाः।

कुर्वंस्तत्कर्तृवैचित्र्यमेति तद्वदिदं मनः ॥ ५५॥

विचित्रकार्यवशतो नामभेदेन कर्तृता।

मनः संप्रोच्यते जीववासनाकर्मनामभिः ॥ ५६॥

चित्तमेवेदमखिलं सर्वेणैवानुभूयते।

अचित्तो हि नरो लोकं पश्यन्नपि न पश्यति ॥ ५७॥

श्रुत्वा स्पृष्ट्वा च दृष्ट्वा च भुक्त्वा घ्रात्वा शुभाशुभम्।

अन्तर्हर्षं विषादं च समनस्को हि विन्दति ॥ ५८॥

आलोक इव रूपाणामर्थानां कारणं मनः।

बध्यते बद्धचित्तो हि मुक्तचित्तो हि मुच्यते ॥ ५९॥

तज्जडानां परं विद्धि जडं येनोच्यते मनः।

न चावगच्छति जडं मनो यस्य हि चेतनम् ॥ ६०॥

न चेतनं न च जडं यदिदं प्रोत्थितं मनः।

विचित्रसुखदुःखेहं जगदभ्युदितं तदा ॥ ६१॥

एकरूपे हि मनसि संसारः प्रविलीयते।

उपाविलं कारणं तैर्भ्रान्त्या जगदुपस्थितम् ॥ ६२॥

अजडं हि मनो राम संसारस्य न कारणम्।

जडं चोपलधर्मापि संसारस्य न कारणम् ॥ ६३॥

न चेतनं न च जडं तस्माज्जगति राघव।

मनः कारणमर्थानां रूपाणामिव भासनम् ॥ ६४॥

चित्तादृतेऽन्यद्यद्यस्ति तदचित्तस्य किं जगत्।

सर्वस्य भूतजातस्य समग्रं प्रविलीयते ॥ ६५॥

Sage Vashishta said:

3.96.55–65

> Just as a person, while performing actions like bathing, giving gifts, and receiving things, comes to be known by different names according to those varied roles, in the same way this mind also becomes known by different names through the variety of its actions.

> Because of the many different kinds of work it does, the mind is called by various names such as the living Being (jiva), desire (vasana), and action (karma).

> This entire World is experienced only through the mind. A person without mind, even while looking at the World, does not truly see it.

> Only a person who has a mind feels inner joy or sorrow after hearing, touching, seeing, tasting, or smelling things that are good or bad.

> Just as light is the cause that makes forms visible, the mind is the cause that makes all objects known. One whose mind is bound remains bound; one whose mind is free becomes free.

> Know that those who call the mind inert (jada) are themselves the most inert. A mind that is truly Conscious never understands itself as inert.

> This mind that has arisen is neither purely Conscious nor purely inert. When it arises, the World full of varied pleasures and pains also appears.

> When the mind becomes one-pointed and pure, the world of birth and death dissolves. Because of impurity and confusion, the World appears through those restless movements of the mind.

> O Rama, a mind that is not inert is not the cause of the World of birth and death. An inert mind, even if it has the nature of a stone, is also not the cause of the World of birth and death.

> Therefore, O Raghava, in this World the mind is neither purely Conscious nor purely inert. The mind is the cause of all objects, just as light is the cause that reveals forms.

> If anything exists apart from the mind, what world remains for one who has no mind? For every living Being, the whole World dissolves when the mind dissolves.

Summary of the teachings:

These verses teach that the mind is the central force behind all experience and the appearance of the World. Just as a person receives different names according to the different actions he performs, the mind receives many names—living soul, desire, action, and others—because of the many roles it plays. Without the mind there is no real perception of the World; a person may look at things yet not truly see them if the mind is absent. All feelings of joy and sorrow arise only when the mind is present and active through the senses.

The mind is described as the light that reveals objects, just as ordinary light reveals forms and colours. Bondage and freedom depend entirely on the state of the mind: a bound mind keeps a person in bondage, while a free mind brings liberation. The mind is neither purely conscious nor purely inert; it stands in between and, when it arises with its restlessness, the world of pleasure and pain appears with it.

When the mind becomes pure, steady, and one-pointed, the entire cycle of birth and death dissolves. Impurity and confusion in the mind create the false appearance of the world. Neither Pure Consciousness alone nor dull matter alone can produce the world; it is the mind, standing between the two, that acts as the cause of all objects and experiences, just as light makes forms visible.

Finally, the verses declare that without the mind there is no World at all. For every living Being the whole Universe disappears the moment the mind itself disappears. Therefore, understanding, purifying, and ultimately transcending the mind is the key to freedom from the world of suffering and the cycle of birth and death.

Chapter 3.96, Verses 45–54

Yoga Vashishtha 3.96.45–54

(The many definitions of the mind)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

या एताः कथिताः संज्ञा मया राघव चेतसः।

एता एवान्यथा प्रोक्ता वादिभिः कल्पनाशतैः ॥ ४५॥

स्वभावाभिमतां बुद्धिमारोप्य मनसा कृताः।

मनोबुद्धीन्द्रियादीनां विचित्रा नामरीतयः ॥ ४६॥

मनो हि जडमन्यस्य भिन्नमन्यस्य जीवतः।

तथाहंकृतिरन्यस्य बुद्धिरन्यस्य वादिनः ॥ ४७॥

अहंकारमनोबुद्धिदृष्टयः सृष्टिकल्पनाः।

एकरूपतया प्रोक्ता या मया रघुनन्दन ॥ ४८॥

नैयायिकैरितरथा तादृशैः परिकल्पिताः।

अन्यथा कल्पिताः सांख्यैश्चार्वाकैरपि चान्यथा ॥ ४९॥

जैमिनीयैश्चार्हतैश्च बौद्धैर्वैशेषिकैस्तथा।

अन्यैरपि विचित्रैस्तैः पाञ्चरात्रादिभिस्तथा ॥ ५०॥

सर्वैरेव च गन्तव्यं तैः पदं पारमार्थिकम्।

विचित्रं देशकालोत्थैः पुरमेकमिवाध्वगैः ॥ ५१॥

अज्ञानात्परमार्थस्य विपरीतावबोधतः।

केवलं विवदन्त्येते विकल्पैरारुरुक्षवः ॥ ५२॥

स्वमार्गमभिशंसन्ति वादिनश्चित्रया दृशा।

विचित्रदेशकालोत्था मार्गं स्वं पथिका इव ॥ ५३॥

तैर्मिथ्या राघव प्रोक्ताः कर्ममानसचेतसाम्।

स्वविकल्पार्पितैरर्थैः स्वाः स्वा वैचित्र्ययुक्तयः ॥ ५४॥

Sage Vashishta continued:

3.96.45–54

> O Raghava, these designations of the mind that I have described are spoken of differently by various debaters through hundreds of imaginations.

> Having superimposed their preferred ideas of its nature, the mind itself creates these. There arise many different ways of naming the mind, intellect, senses and so on.

> For some the mind is inert; for others it is different and living. In the same way the ego is seen differently by some, and the intellect differently by other debaters.

> The views concerning ego, mind and intellect are imaginations about Creation. I have described them as being of one Nature, O delight of the Raghu line.

> The Naiyayikas imagine them in another way, and so do others of similar views; the Sankhyas conceive them differently, and the Charvakas also in yet another manner.

> So too the followers of Jaimini, the Arhats, the Buddhists, the Vaisheshikas, and various others such as the Pancharatras.

> Yet all of them must ultimately reach the same Supreme Reality, just as travellers from different places and times all head toward one city.

> Because of ignorance of the Highest Truth and through inverted understanding, they merely keep arguing with their differing views while wishing to rise higher.

> The debaters praise their own path according to their varied outlooks, just as travellers coming from different regions and times each speak of their own road.

> O Raghava, through their false statements about action, mind and Consciousness, each group sets forth its own strange reasonings by projecting meanings born of its own imaginations.

Summary of the teachings:

These verses teach that the many names and definitions given to mind, intellect, ego and the senses are not absolute. Different schools simply invent various labels according to their own preferences and mental constructions. What appears as separate categories is in truth one continuous Reality of Consciousness that has been divided by thought.

The text points out that philosophical systems such as Nyaya, Sankhya, Charvaka, Mimamsa, Jain, Buddhist, Vaisheshika and Pancharatra each describe these faculties differently. Their disagreements arise only from limited viewpoints and the tendency to superimpose personal ideas onto the same underlying experience.

Despite the variety of doctrines, every genuine seeker is moving toward the same ultimate goal—the direct Realization of the Supreme Truth. The different paths are compared to travellers who set out from many places and times yet all journey toward a single city. The destination remains one even when the routes look dissimilar.

Arguments and mutual contradictions among the schools stem from ignorance of that Supreme Reality and from inverted or partial understanding. People cling to their own formulations and praise their chosen method, much as travellers from different regions insist that their road is the correct one.

The verses therefore counsel the aspirant not to be confused by the multiplicity of theories. All such descriptions are mental constructions. What matters is to go beyond the names and concepts and to Realize the single, Undivided Truth that underlies every system.

Chapter 3.96, Verses 36–44

Yoga Vashishtha 3.96.36–44

(The Mind - continued)

श्रीराम उवाच।

मनः किं स्याज्जडं ब्रह्मंस्तथा वापि च चेतनम् ।

इत्येको मम तत्त्वज्ञ निश्चयोऽन्तर्न जायते ॥ ३६॥

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

मनो हि न जडं राम नापि चेतनतां गतम्।

म्लानाऽजडा तदा दृष्टिर्मन इत्येव कथ्यते ॥ ३७॥

मध्ये सदसतो रूपं प्रतिभूतं यदाविलम्।

जगतः कारणं नाम तदेतच्चित्तमुच्यते ॥ ३८॥

शाश्वतेनैकरूपेण निश्चयेन विना स्थितिः।

येन सा चित्तमित्युक्ता तस्माज्जातमिदं जगत् ॥ ३९॥

जडाजडदृशोर्मध्ये दोलारूपं स्वकल्पनम्।

यच्चितो म्लानरूपिण्यास्तदेतन्मन उच्यते ॥ ४०॥

चिन्निःस्पन्दो हि मलिनः कलङ्कविकलान्तरम्।

मन इत्युच्यते राम न जडं न च चिन्मयम् ॥ ४१॥

तस्येमानि विचित्राणि नामानि कलितान्यलम्।

अहंकारमनोबुद्धिजीवाद्यानीतराण्यपि ॥ ४२॥

यथा गच्छति शैलूषो रूपाण्यलं तथैव हि।

मनो नामान्यनेकानि धत्ते कर्मान्तरं व्रजत् ॥ ४३॥

चित्राधिकारवशतो विचित्रा विकृताभिधाः।

यथा याति नरः कर्मवशाद्याति तथा मनः ॥ ४४॥

Sriram asked:

3.96.36

> O Brahman, Knower of Truth, I cannot decide in my heart whether the mind is inert or Conscious.

Sage Vasistha said: 

3.96.37–44

> O Rama, the mind is neither completely inert nor fully Conscious. When Pure Awareness becomes dulled and clouded, that State is simply called the mind.

> When Consciousness appears as a mixed form between existence and non-existence and becomes the Cause of the World, it is called the Heart or mind.

> That which stays without firm, unchanging certainty is called the mind; from it this World arises.

> The mind is the swinging imagination of Consciousness that stands between the views of the inert and the non-inert, and has grown dull.

> O Rama, when Pure Consciousness becomes still, stained, and impure inside, it is called the mind—neither inert matter nor Pure Consciousness.

> This same principle has many names given to it: ego, mind, intellect, living soul, and others as well.

> Just as an actor takes many forms and names while performing different parts, so the mind takes many names as it moves from one action to another.

> Just as a man receives different titles according to the work he does under the force of his actions, so the mind receives varied and changing names according to its activities.

Summary of the teachings:

These verses teach that the mind is not a fixed thing that is either purely material or purely spiritual. It is Pure Consciousness that has become clouded, restless, and mixed. When Awareness loses its clear, steady nature and begins to swing between opposite ideas, it is given the name “mind.”

The mind stands in the middle ground between what is Real and what is unreal, between the inert and the Conscious. Because it lacks firm, unchanging certainty, it creates the appearance of the World. All the variety we see comes from this unsteady, imagining activity of Consciousness.

Pure Consciousness itself does not change, but when it becomes stained by desires, sensations, and inner impurity, it appears as the limited mind. In that condition it is neither solid matter nor pure spirit. It is a dull, restless form of awareness that keeps moving and creating experiences.

This same underlying principle is known by many different names—ego, intellect, and others—depending on the particular function it is performing at any moment. Just as an actor changes costume and name for each role, or a person is called by different titles according to the work he does, the mind receives many labels according to its changing activities.

The teaching points toward understanding that the World and the sense of individuality arise only from this fluctuating, named activity of the mind. When the clouding and restlessness cease, the Pure Consciousness that was always present remains, free of the many names and free of the World that the mind had projected.

Chapter 3.96, Verses 26–35

Yoga Vashishtha 3.96.26–35

(How Consciousness became limited)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

स्फुरत्यात्मविनाशाय विस्मारयति तत्पदम्।

मिथ्याविकल्पजालेन तन्मलं परिकल्प्यते ॥ २६॥

श्रुत्वा स्पृष्ट्वा च दृष्ट्वा च भुक्त्वा घ्रात्वा विमृश्य च।

इन्द्रमानन्दयत्येषा तेनेन्द्रियमिति स्मृतम् ॥ २७॥

सर्वस्य दृश्यजालस्य परमात्मन्यलक्षिते।

प्रकृतत्वेन भावानां लोके प्रकृतिरुच्यते ॥ २८॥

सदसत्तां नयत्याशु सत्तां वा सत्त्वमञ्जसा ।

सत्तासत्ताविकल्पोऽयं तेन मायेति कथ्यते ॥ २९॥

दर्शनश्रवणस्पर्शरसनघ्राणकर्मभिः।

क्रियेति कथ्यते लोके कार्यकारणतां गता ॥ ३०॥

चितेश्चेत्यानुपातिन्या गतायाः सकलङ्कताम्।

प्रस्फुरद्रूपधर्मिण्या एताः पर्यायवृत्तयः ॥ ३१॥

चित्ततामुपयाताया गतायाः प्रकृतं पदम्।

स्वैरेव संकल्पशतैर्भृशं रूढिमुपागताः ॥ ३२॥

चेतनीयकलङ्काङ्काज्जाड्यजालानुपातिनी।

संख्याविभागकलना स्ववैकल्याकुलेव चित् ॥ ३३॥

जीव इत्युच्यते लोके मन इत्यपि कथ्यते।

चित्तमित्युच्यते सैव बुद्धिरित्युच्यते तथा ॥ ३४॥

नानासंकल्पकलिलं पर्यायनिचयं बुधाः।

वदन्त्यस्याः कलङ्किन्याश्च्युतायाः परमात्मनः ॥ ३५॥

Sage Vashishta continued:

3.96.26–35

> It arises leading to the loss of the Self and makes one forget that Supreme State. Through a web of false ideas, that impurity is imagined.

> By hearing, touching, seeing, tasting, smelling and thinking, this faculty delights the individual. Therefore it is remembered as a sense organ.

> When the Supreme Self remains unseen, the natural arising of all visible things in the world is called nature.

> It quickly turns existence into non-existence or non-existence into existence. This shifting idea of Being and non-being is therefore called illusion.

> Through the acts of seeing, hearing, touching, tasting and smelling, action that has entered the relation of cause and effect is called action in the world.

> These are successive changes of Consciousness that has followed objects of thought, become impure, and whose nature is to keep flashing forth in form.

> Having reached the state of mind and left its original nature, it becomes firmly fixed through hundreds of its own imaginations.

> Consciousness, marked by the stain of what is to be known, following the net of dullness, calculating numbers and divisions, seems disturbed by its own incompleteness.

> In the World it is called the living soul; it is also called mind. That same is called thought-mind and likewise intellect.

> The wise say that this stained one, fallen from the Supreme Self, is a confused mass of many imaginations and a collection of changing States.

Summary of teachings:

These verses teach that Pure Consciousness, which is the True Self, appears to become limited when it begins to follow objects and ideas. False notions arise and cover the Pure State, creating a sense of impurity and separation. What we experience as the World and the individual is only this temporary covering.

The senses, nature, illusion and action are different names for the same movement of Consciousness when it turns outward. Seeing, hearing and the other senses simply please the limited self and keep the cycle going. Nature is the way things appear when the Supreme Self is not noticed. Illusion is the rapid change between “is” and “is not.” Action is the chain of cause and effect carried by the senses.

Once Consciousness takes the form of mind, it loses its original pure condition and becomes fixed by countless personal imaginations. It starts counting, dividing and judging, and feels incomplete. In ordinary speech this same limited Consciousness is called the living soul, the mind, the thought-mind or the intellect—different words for one underlying process.

The wise therefore describe the mind as a stained collection of changing thoughts that has slipped away from the Supreme Self. All these names and functions are only temporary appearances. When the false ideas stop, the Pure State is remembered again.

Understanding these teachings helps one see that the sense of a separate self and the busy world of experience are not Ultimate Realities. They are movements of Consciousness that can be recognised and released, returning Awareness to its original, Unchanging Freedom.

Chapter 3.96, Verses 16–25

Yoga Vashishtha 3.96.16–25

(The many mental functions)

श्रीराम उवाच।

परायाः संविदो ब्रह्मन्नेताः पर्यायवृत्तयः।

कल्प्यमानविचित्रार्थाः कथं रूढिमुपागताः ॥ १६॥

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

गतेव सकलङ्कत्वं कदाचित्कल्पनात्मकम्।

उन्मेषरूपिणी नाना तदैव हि मनःस्थिता ॥ १७॥

भावनामनुसंधानं यदा निश्चित्य संस्थिता।

तदैषा प्रोच्यते बुद्धिरियत्ताग्रहणक्षमा ॥ १८॥

यदा मिथ्याभिमानेन सत्तां कल्पयति स्वयम्।

अहंकाराभिमानेन प्रोच्यते भवबन्धनी ॥ १९॥

इदं त्यक्त्वेदमायाति बालवत्पेलवा यदा।

विचारं संपरित्यज्य तदा सा चित्तमुच्यते ॥ २०॥

यदा स्पन्दैकधर्मत्वात्कर्तुर्या शून्यशंसिनी।

आधावति स्पन्दफलं तदा कर्मेत्युदाहृता ॥ २१॥

काकतालीययोगेन त्यक्त्वैकघननिश्चयम्।

यदेहितं कल्पयति भावं तेनेह कल्पना ॥ २२॥

पूर्वदृष्टमदृष्टं वा प्राग्दृष्टमिति निश्चयैः।

यदैवेहां विधत्तेऽन्तस्तदा स्मृतिरुदाहृता ॥ २३॥

यदा पदार्थशक्तीनां संभुक्तानामिवाम्बरे।

वसत्यस्तमितान्येहा वासनेति तदोच्यते ॥ २४॥

अस्त्यात्मतत्त्वं विमलं द्वितीया दृष्टिरङ्किता।

जाता ह्यविद्यमानैव तदा विद्येति कथ्यते ॥ २५॥

Sriram asked:

3.96.16

> O Brahmin, how did these successive changes of the Supreme Consciousness, imagined with many different meanings, come to take firm, fixed forms?

Sage Vashishta answered: 

3.96.17–25

> Sometimes Pure Consciousness seems to take on the nature of imagination and become stained. At that very moment, appearing in many forms, it settles as the mind.

> When it firmly settles after carefully examining a thought or idea, it is called the intellect. This intellect can grasp clear limits and measures of things.

> When, through false pride, it invents its own existence as Real, then by the sense of “I” it is called the ego that binds one to the World.

> When, like a tender child, it leaves one thing and runs to another without any proper thinking, it is called the mind-stuff.

> When, by its very nature of movement alone and showing no solid doer, it runs after the fruit of that movement, it is called action or karma.

> When, by chance like a crow landing on a palm tree, it drops its single firm decision and invents a desired idea, that is called imagination.

> When inside itself, with the firm belief “this was seen before,” it makes an effort about something once seen or not now seen, it is called memory.

> When the powers of objects, as if already enjoyed, rest quietly within like in open space, and other desires have set, that is called latent tendency or vasana.

> The Pure Essence of the Self truly exists. A second, stained view that arises even though it is not real is then called Knowledge (or rather ignorance appearing as knowledge).

Summary of the teachings:

These verses explain that the many names we give to mental functions—mind, intellect, ego, thought, action, imagination, memory, tendency, and so on—are not separate real things. They are only different appearances or stages of one Pure Consciousness when it seems to forget its own Pure Nature and starts imagining.

The Pure Self is ever free and stainless. Yet by a kind of accidental self-forgetfulness it begins to move and imagine. That first movement is called the mind. When the same power looks carefully and decides limits, it is called intellect. When it claims “I exist separately,” it becomes the ego that ties us to repeated birth and suffering.

When the same power jumps restlessly from one object to another without deep thought, it is mind-stuff. When it simply moves toward results, it is called karma. When it invents pictures of what it wants, it is imagination. When it holds past pictures as real, it is memory. When subtle impressions of past experiences stay hidden, they are vasanas. Even the sense of “knowing” objects is only a second, unreal view covering the Pure Self.

The teaching is that none of these States is ultimately Real. They arise only when Pure Consciousness seems to become limited and active. By clear understanding that all these are only names of One Consciousness in different moods, the restless movements quiet down. Then the Pure, Stainless Self shines by itself, free from every name and form.

The practical point is simple: do not take the changing mental states as the True Self. See them as temporary waves on the Ocean of Consciousness. When this clear seeing becomes firm, the waves settle and the boundless Pure Awareness remains.

Chapter 3.96, Verses 1–15

Yoga Vashishtha 3.96.1–15

(The mind)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

मनो हि भावनामात्रं भावना स्पन्दधर्मिणी।

क्रिया तद्भावितारूपं फलं सर्वोऽनुधावति ॥ १॥

श्रीराम उवाच।

विस्तरेण मम ब्रह्मन् जडस्याप्यजडाकृतेः।

रूपमारूढसंकल्पं मनसो वक्तुमर्हसि ॥ २॥

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।

अनन्तस्यात्मतत्त्वस्य सर्वशक्तेर्महात्मनः।

संकल्पशक्ति रचितं यद्रूपं तन्मनो विदुः ॥ ३॥

भावः सदसतोर्मध्ये नृणां चलति यश्चलः।

कलनोन्मुखतां यातस्तद्रूपं मनसो विदुः ॥ ४॥

नाहं वेदावभासात्मा कुर्वाणोऽस्मीति निश्चयः।

तस्मादेकान्तकलनस्तद्रूपं मनसो विदुः ॥ ५॥

कल्पनात्मिकया कर्मशक्त्या विरहितं मनः।

न संभवति लोकेऽस्मिन्गुणहीनो गुणी यथा ॥ ६॥

यथा वह्न्यौष्ण्ययोः सत्ता न संभवति भिन्नयोः।

तथैव कर्ममनसोस्तथात्ममनसोरपि ॥ ७॥

स्वेनैव चित्तरूपेण कर्मणा फलधर्मिणा।

संकल्पैकशरीरेण नानाविस्तरशालिना ॥ ८॥

इदं ततमनेकात्म मायामयमकारणम् ।

विश्वं विगतविन्यासं वासनाकल्पनाकुलम् ॥ ९॥

या येन वासना यत्र सतेवारोपिता यथा।

सा तेन फलसूस्तत्र तदेव प्राप्यते तथा ॥ १०॥

कर्म बीजं मनःस्पन्दः कथ्यतेऽथानुभूयते।

क्रियास्तु विविधास्तस्य शाखाश्चित्रफलास्तरोः ॥ ११ ॥

मनो यदनुसंधत्ते तत्कर्मेन्द्रियवृत्तयः।

सर्वाः संपादयन्त्येतास्तस्मात्कर्म मनः स्मृतम् ॥ १२॥

मनो बुद्धिरहंकारश्चित्तं कर्माथ कल्पना।

संसृतिर्वासना विद्या प्रयत्नः स्मृतिरेव च ॥ १३॥

मनो बुद्धिरहंकारश्चित्तं कर्माथ कल्पना।

संसृतिर्वासना विद्या प्रयत्नः स्मृतिरेव च ॥ १३॥

इन्द्रियं प्रकृतिर्माया क्रिया चेतीतरा अपि।

चित्राः शब्दोक्तयो ब्रह्मन्संसारभ्रमहेतवः ॥ १४॥

काकतालीययोगेन त्यक्तस्फारदृगाकृतेः।

चितेश्चेत्यानुपातिन्याः कृताः पर्यायवृत्तयः ॥ १५॥

Sage Vashishta said:

3.96.1

> The mind is nothing but imagination. Imagination has the nature of movement. Action takes the form shaped by that imagination, and everyone runs after the results.

Sriram asked:

3.96.2

> O Brahman, please explain to me in detail the nature of the mind, which though dull appears as if Conscious and is filled with strong resolve.

Sage Vashishta said:

3.96.3–8

> Know that the form created by the power of resolve of the Infinite, all-powerful Supreme Self is called the mind.

> That restless State which moves among people between the Real and the unreal, and turns toward calculation and thought, is known as the form of the mind.

> The firm idea “I am not the Self shown by the Vedas; I am the doer” – this exclusive thinking is known as the form of the mind.

> The mind without the imaginative power of action cannot exist in this world, just as a person with qualities cannot exist without those qualities.

> Just as fire and its heat cannot exist separately, so action and mind cannot be separate, nor can the Self and the mind.

> By its own Nature as mind, action bears fruits; it has resolve as its single body and spreads out in many forms.

3.96.9–15

> This Universe, spread out in many forms, is made of illusion, without Real Cause, without fixed order, and is full of latent desires and imaginings.

> Whatever latent desire is projected by someone in any place as if Real, that same desire yields its fruit there, and that alone is obtained.

> The seed of action is the movement of the mind; this is said and then experienced. Its many actions are like the branches of a tree that bear varied fruits.

> Whatever the mind thinks of, all the functions of the organs of action accomplish it. Therefore the mind itself is called action.

> Mind, intellect, ego, thought, action, imagination, the cycle of birth and death, latent desire, knowledge, effort, and memory – these are all the same.

> Sense organs, nature, illusion, action, and other such varied names, O Brahman, are the causes of the delusion of Worldly Existence.

> By pure chance, like a crow landing on a palm tree and a fruit falling, when Infinite Consciousness loses its wide vision and follows objects, these alternative names and functions are created.

Summary of the Teachings:

These verses teach that the mind is not a solid thing but pure imagination or feeling. This imagination is always moving, and from it arise all actions and their results. People chase the fruits of their actions because those fruits are shaped by the mind’s own ideas. The mind appears active and conscious even though it is essentially dull matter, because it is filled with strong resolve and thought.

The mind arises from the power of resolve of the Infinite Supreme Self. It is the restless movement of thought that swings between what is real and what is not real. The key error of the mind is the firm belief “I am the doer and not the Pure Self taught in the scriptures.” Without the power of imaginative action the mind cannot exist, just as fire cannot exist without heat. Action, mind, and the Self are inseparable.

The whole Universe is an expansion of this mind. It is made of illusion, has no real independent Cause, and is driven by latent desires and mental pictures. Whatever desire a person plants in the mind as if it were Real, that desire alone produces the matching result in that person’s experience. The movement of the mind is the seed of all action; the many kinds of deeds are only its branches that bear different fruits.

Whatever the mind decides, the organs of action carry out. Therefore the mind itself is action. Names such as mind, intellect, ego, thought, action, imagination, the cycle of rebirth, desire, knowledge, effort, memory, senses, nature, and illusion are only different words for the same mental process. All these names create the confusion of worldly life.

These many names and functions arise by pure accident when Pure Consciousness momentarily forgets its own nature and begins to follow objects. The teaching is that the world and all its activities are only the play of mind. By understanding this, one can stop identifying with the restless mind and rest in the True Self.