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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.
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