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Yoga Vashishtha 3.133.21–30
(Craving or desire and the power of mental illusion)
श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच।
वक्रा विषमयी तन्वी मृद्वी संकटकर्कशा।
ललनाचञ्चला लुब्धा तृष्णा कृष्णेव भोगिनी ॥ २१॥
स्वयं दीपशिखेवाशु क्षीयते स्नेहसंक्षये।
सिन्दूरधूलिलेखेव विना रागं विराजते ॥ २२॥
क्षणप्रकाशतरला कृतसंस्था जडाशया।
मुग्धानां त्रासजननी वक्रा विद्युदिवोदिता ॥ २३॥
यत्नाद्गृहीत्वा दहति भूत्वा भूत्वा प्रलीयते।
लभ्यतेऽपि हि नान्विष्टा विद्युद्वदतिभङ्गुरा ॥ २४॥
अप्रार्थितैवोपनता रमणीयाप्यनर्थदा।
अकालपुष्पमालेव श्रेयसेनाभिनन्दिता ॥ २५॥
अत्यन्तविस्मृतैवातिसुखाय भ्रमदायिनी।
दुःस्वप्नकलनेवेयमनर्थायैव तर्किता ॥ २६॥
प्रतिभासवशादेषा त्रिजगन्ति महान्ति च।
मुहूर्तमात्रेणोत्पाद्य धत्ते ग्रासीकरोति च ॥ २७॥
मुहूर्तो वत्सरश्रेणी लवणस्यानया कृता।
रात्रिर्द्वादशवर्षाणि हरिश्चन्द्रस्य निर्मिता ॥ २८॥
वियोगिनामथान्येषां कान्ताविभवशालिनाम्।
रात्रिर्वत्सरवद्दीर्घा भवेत्तस्याः प्रसादतः ॥ २९॥
सुखितस्याल्पतामेति दुःखितस्यैति दीर्घताम्।
कालो यस्याः प्रसादेन विपर्यासैकशीलिनाम् ॥ ३०॥
Sage Vashishta continued:
3.113.21–25
> Craving is crooked, full of poison, thin and soft, yet becomes harsh in times of difficulty; restless and greedy like a fickle woman, it is like a dark, thirsty serpent.
> Like the flame of a lamp, it quickly dies out when the oil runs dry; like a streak of vermilion powder, it appears bright even without any real colour or passion.
> Flickering brightly for only a moment, looking fixed in form yet dull by nature, it frightens the simple-minded and rises crooked like a flash of lightning.
> Even when grasped with effort it burns; it appears and vanishes again and again; though not sought after it is still obtained, extremely fragile and fleeting like lightning.
> It arrives unasked; though charming it brings only harm; like a garland of flowers that bloom out of season, those who seek the highest good do not welcome it.
3.113.26–30
> Even when completely forgotten it still produces great pleasure through delusion; like the imagining of a bad dream, it is understood to lead only to misfortune.
> By the force of mere appearance, in a single moment it creates the vast three worlds, sustains them, and then swallows them up again.
> By this power a mere moment was stretched into a long series of years for King Lavana, and a single night was turned into twelve years for King Harishchandra.
> Through its favour, for those separated from their beloved and for others who enjoy prosperity with their beloved, a night can stretch out as long as a whole year.
> Through its favour time becomes short for the happy and long for the sorrowful, for those whose nature is to turn things upside down.
Detailed summary of the teachings:
These verses continue the description of craving or desire (trishna) and the power of mental illusion. They show how desire is deceptive in every way: it looks gentle and attractive yet is poisonous and harsh, restless and greedy, and always ready to cause harm. Like a lamp flame that dies when the oil is gone or a streak of coloured powder that has no real substance, desire has no lasting power of its own and fades the moment its supporting conditions disappear.
The verses use sharp images of lightning, untimely flowers and bad dreams to underline that desire is momentary, frightening to the naïve, and ultimately useless for anyone who seeks true welfare. It comes without being invited, burns those who try to hold it, and leads only to pain, even when it seems to offer pleasure.
A striking teaching is the power of this illusion to distort time itself. What is only a moment can feel like years, and a single night can feel like a dozen years, depending on whether the mind is filled with longing, enjoyment or suffering. The stories of King Lavana and King Harishchandra are cited as examples of how mental projection alone can stretch or shrink the experience of time.
The same power that creates the appearance of the three worlds in an instant can also dissolve them. Nothing that arises from this craving or mental construction has independent reality; it is sustained only by the force of appearance and vanishes when that force is withdrawn.
In essence the teaching is that desire and the mental world it projects are empty of substance, harmful when clung to, and completely dependent on the mind’s momentary projections. Seeing this clearly removes their hold and frees the seeker from the distortions of pleasure, pain and Time.
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