Chapter 3.43, Verses 48–61

Yoga Vashishtha 3.43.48–61

(Sage Vasishta uses this graphic imagery in these verses to illustrate the transient and painful nature of worldly life)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच ।

दह्यमानो विनिर्याति न कलत्रं विना नरः ।

अहो बत दुरुच्छेदाः प्राणिनां स्नेहवागुराः ॥ ४८ ॥

करी रभसनिर्लूनज्वलदङ्गारपादपः।

प्लुष्टपुष्करकः कोपान्मग्नः पुष्करदं सरः ॥ ४९ ॥

धूमोऽम्बुदपदं प्राप्य विलोलान्तस्तडिल्लतः ।

ज्वलदङ्गारनाराचनिकरं परिवर्षति ॥ ५० ॥

देव धूमस्फुरद्वह्निकण आवर्तवृत्तिमान्।

स्थित आपीडवात्तव्योम्नि रत्नपूर्ण इवार्णवः ॥ ५१ ॥

गौरमम्बरमाभाति ज्वालाशिखरतेजसा।

मृत्युनेवोत्सवे दत्तः कुङ्कुमाक्तकरण्डकः ॥ ५२ ॥

अहो नु विषमं चेदं वर्तते वृत्तवर्जितम्।

ध्रियन्ते राजनार्योऽपि वैरिवीरैरुदायुधैः ॥ ५३ ॥

लोलस्रग्दामकुसुमैर्मार्गप्राकारकारकैः ।

अर्धनिर्दग्धकबरीकीर्णवक्षस्थलस्तनाः ॥ ५४ ॥

आलोलाम्बरसंलक्ष्यनितम्बजघनस्थलाः ।

पतन्माणिक्यवलयवलितावनिमण्डलाः ॥ ५५ ॥

छिन्नहारलताजालविकीर्णामलमौक्तिकाः ।

दृष्टादृष्टस्तनश्रेणीपार्श्वोद्यत्कनकप्रभाः ॥ ५६ ॥

कुररीकर्कशाक्रन्दमन्दीकृतरणारवाः।

धारावाहास्रुतारावभिन्नपार्श्वविचेतनाः ॥ ५७ ॥

रक्तकर्दमवाष्पाम्बुक्लिन्नग्रन्धितवाससः ।

भुजमूलार्पितभुजैर्नीयमाना बलान्नृभिः ॥ ५८ ॥

क इवास्मिन्परित्राता स्यादित्यादीनवीक्षितैः ।

उत्पलालीव वर्षद्भिः परिरोदितसैनिकाः ॥ ५९ ॥

मृणालकोमलाच्छोरुमूलजालैः सुनिर्मलैः ।

स्वच्छाम्बरतलालक्ष्यैराकाशनलिनीनिभाः ॥ ६० ॥

आलोलमाल्यवसनाभरणाङ्गरागा बाष्पाकुलाततचलालकवल्लरीकाः।

आनन्दमन्दरनिरन्तरमथ्यमानात्कामार्णवात्समुदिता इव राजलक्ष्म्यः ॥ ६१ ॥

Maharishi Vashishta continued:

3.43.48–52

> A man burning in fire comes out only if his wife is not with him. Alas, how difficult to cut are the nets of attachment for living beings!

> An elephant, in furious rage, uproots a burning tree of coals and plunges into the lake of lotuses that is now on fire.

> The smoke, reaching the position of clouds, with flickering inner lightning streaks, showers a shower of burning coal-arrows.

> O God, the smoke with sparks of fire whirling in circles stands in the sky like an ocean full of gems, pressed by the wind from above.

> The sky appears white with the brilliance of flame-crests, like a turmeric-smeared basket of offerings given to Death in celebration.

3.43.53–61

> Alas, this world is so strange and without any proper order—even royal ladies are carried away by enemy warriors with raised weapons.

> With swaying garlands of flowers and bouquets adorning the path and ramparts, their half-burnt hair scattered on their chests and breasts.

> Their swaying garments revealing their hips and thighs, falling ruby bangles encircling the earth's orb.

> Broken pearl strings from necklaces scattered, pure pearls strewn about, their rows of breasts seen and unseen on the sides shining with golden light.

> Their cries like those of female ospreys softening the roar of battle, their sides split and senseless from streams of flowing blood.

> Clothes knotted and wet with steam from red mud-like blood-water, dragged forcibly by men with arms placed around their shoulders.

> "Who can save us in this?"—seeing such sights, the soldiers weep like blooming lotuses in the rain.

> With soft, pure lotus-stalk-like thighs and clear, shining lower garments visible like sky lotuses.

> With swaying garlands, clothes, ornaments, and body-paint, their curly hair clusters moving due to tears, they appear like royal goddesses risen from the ocean of passion churned endlessly by the Mandara of bliss.

Detailed Summary of the Teachings:

These verses vividly describe a scene of a city engulfed in flames during a war or destruction, focusing on the intense suffering of its people, especially the royal women who are captured and dragged away by victorious enemies.  The burning city symbolizes the impermanence of material existence, where even the mightiest fall, and attachments lead to unbearable agony. The attachment to loved ones is so strong that a person would rather burn with his wife than escape alone, showing how deep-rooted bonds trap beings in cycles of pain.

The description shifts to natural elements gone chaotic—elephants plunging into burning lakes, smoke forming cloud-like structures raining fire, and the sky turning white with flames—highlighting how destruction disrupts the natural order. This chaos mirrors the turmoil caused by desires and attachments in human life. Vasishta points out the irony and strangeness of the world, where no hierarchy or dharma protects even noble queens from humiliation and violence. The teachings emphasize that worldly power, beauty, and status offer no real security against inevitable downfall and suffering.

The verses portray the pitiable state of the captured women in distressing detail—their disheveled hair, torn ornaments, blood-soaked clothes, cries, and forced dragging—to evoke revulsion toward sensory pleasures and attachments. These women, once adorned like goddesses, are reduced to objects of conquest. This serves to awaken dispassion (vairagya) in the seeker by showing the fragility of physical beauty, wealth, and relationships, which can vanish in an instant through calamity or death.

The soldiers' helpless weeping, compared to lotuses in rain, underscores the universality of sorrow in samsara—no one is spared from grief when attachments are severed by force or fate. The final verse poetically contrasts their former royal splendor with their current misery, likening them to Lakshmis emerging from an ocean of passion, but now in torment. This highlights how the pursuit of sensory enjoyment (kama) churns the mind like the mythical ocean, producing temporary bliss mixed with inevitable pain.

Overall, these verses teach the core Yoga Vasishta doctrine that the world is an illusion born of attachment and ignorance. True liberation comes from recognizing the impermanence and suffering inherent in worldly bonds, cultivating detachment, and Realizing the Self beyond the body and its relations. By contemplating such scenes of destruction and loss, one develops aversion to transient pleasures and turns inward toward Self-Knowledge and Brahm, the only Unchanging Reality.

Chapter 3.38, Verses 41–58

Yoga Vashishtha 3.38.41–58

(The verses portray the scene as a terrifying, blood-soaked landscape resembling the end of the world or the mouth of death)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच ।

मर्मच्छेदशराघातव्यथाविदितदुष्कृति ।

कबन्धबन्धप्रारब्धवेतालवदनाक्रमम् ॥ ४१ ॥

उह्यमानध्वजच्छत्रचारुचामरपङ्कजम् ।

किरत्संध्यारुणं दिक्षु तेजस्कं रक्तपङ्कजम् ॥ ४२ ॥

रथचक्रधरावर्तं रक्तार्णवमिवाष्टमम् ।

पताकाफेनपुञ्जाढ्यं चारुचामरबुद्बुदम् ॥ ४३ ॥

विपर्यस्तरथं भूमिपङ्कमग्नपुरोपमम् ।

उत्पातवातनिर्धूतद्रुमं वनमिवाततम् ॥ ४४ ॥

कल्पदग्धजगत्प्रख्यं मुनिपीतार्णवोपमम् ।

अतिवृष्टिहतं देशमिव प्रोज्झितमानवम् ॥ ४५ ॥

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रक्तनिःस्वनभाङ्कारफेत्कारार्धमृतारवम् ।

शिलामुखललद्रक्तधाराधूतरजःखगम् ॥ ५४ ॥

सुतालोत्तालवेतालतालताण्डवसंकटम् ।

पर्यस्तरथदार्वन्तरर्धान्तरितसद्भटम् ॥ ५५ ॥

अन्तस्थसज्जीवभटस्पन्दिस्पन्दनभीतिदम् ।

रक्तकर्दमपूर्णास्यकिंचिज्जीवकृपाच्छवम् ॥ ५६ ॥

किंचिज्जीवनरोद्ग्रीवदुःखदृष्टश्ववायसम् ।

एकामिषोत्कक्रव्यादयुद्धकोलाहलाकुलम् ।

एकामिषार्थयुद्धेहामृतक्रव्यादसंकुलम् ॥ ५७ ॥

विवृत्तासंख्याश्वद्विरदपुरुषाधीश्वररथप्रकृत्तोष्ट्रग्रीवाप्रसृतरुधिरोद्गारसुसरित् ।

रणोद्यानं मृत्योस्तदभवदशुष्कायुधलतं सशैलं कल्पान्ते जगदिव विपर्यस्तमखिलम् ॥ ५८ ॥

Maharishi Vashishta continued:

3.38.41–45

> The battlefield appeared like a demon (vetala) that had pierced the vital points with arrows, causing pain to the wicked, and like a headless torso (kabanda) that had begun its destined actions. It was carried along with beautiful flags, umbrellas, charming chowries (fly-whisks), and lotuses. It scattered the red glow of twilight in all directions, shining with splendor and like a red lotus. It resembled the eighth ocean of blood with whirlpools from chariot wheels, full of foam-like banners and bubbles from lovely chowries.

3.38.46–53

> The field was filled with the half-dead cries, groans, screams, and sounds of agony mixed with the clashing of weapons and the fluttering of vultures disturbed by streams of blood from stone-like faces. It was crowded with the wild dance of ghosts and goblins in rhythmic steps, with broken chariots and scattered remains of warriors half-hidden between wooden fragments. Inside, the trembling bodies of dying soldiers caused fear, their mouths filled with blood-mud and showing slight signs of lingering life and compassion in death. Some showed necks strained in pain, eyes staring at crows and dogs in misery. It was chaotic with battles among carnivorous beasts fighting over single pieces of flesh, and crowded with predators battling for the meat of the dead in a frenzy of slaughter.

3.38.54–58

> The place echoed with blood-curdling noises, half-screams of the dying, and birds shaken by flowing blood from rock-like mouths. It was dense with the frantic dance of ghosts and demons in loud rhythms. Half-burnt chariots and scattered warriors filled the gaps, terrifying with the faint movements of life within dying bodies. Mouths full of red mud showed a little life and pitiful remains. Some men with strained necks in pain gazed at scavenging birds and dogs. It was full of uproar from carnivores fighting over one piece of meat, and crowded with flesh-eating creatures battling for corpses. Countless horses, elephants, men, lords, and chariots lay cut down, with blood gushing from severed camel-like necks in streams. This war-garden of death had become dry-weapon creepers, with mountains, like the entire inverted world at the end of a cosmic cycle.

Detailed summary of the teachings:

These verses vividly describe a devastated battlefield after a massive war, using extreme imagery of blood, death, severed bodies, scavenging birds, and demonic forces to show the horrifying results of violence and attachment to power. The scene is compared to the destruction at the end of a world cycle (kalpanta), emphasizing how human conflicts mirror cosmic dissolution. The teaching here is that worldly pursuits like ambition, conquest, and ego-driven battles lead only to ruin, pain, and meaningless suffering, reminding us that the material world is transient and full of horror when viewed without wisdom.

The poet-sage uses this graphic picture to illustrate the impermanence (anitya) of the body and life. Heads roll, bodies are torn, blood flows like rivers, and even mighty warriors become food for crows and beasts. Nothing lasts—flags, chariots, umbrellas, and chowries that once symbolized glory now float in gore. This teaches detachment (vairagya) from physical forms and sensory pleasures, as everything ends in decay and feeds the cycle of nature.

A deeper lesson is the illusory nature of the world (maya). The battlefield looks like an inverted universe or the mouth of death, but it is just a play of forms in Consciousness. The verses show how the mind projects grand wars and victories, yet they collapse into chaos. True Knowledge reveals that all this is like a dream or mirage—real only to the ignorant who cling to it.

The description warns against the fruits of adharma (unrighteousness) and unchecked desire. The "wicked" feel the pain of arrow-wounds, and the proud fall headless. It points to karma: actions driven by anger, greed, or pride create destruction for oneself and others. Peace comes not from winning battles but from transcending the ego that starts them.

Ultimately, these verses urge turning inward for liberation (moksha). By seeing the horror of samsara (worldly existence) as clearly as this battlefield, one develops disgust for transient things and seeks the eternal Self (Atman). The wise sage uses such terrifying images not to scare but to awaken dispassion, leading to Realization that the True Reality is beyond birth, death, and all dualities — Pure, Unchanging Consciousness.

Chapter 3.38, Verses 21–40

Yoga Vashishtha 3.38.21–40

(THE HORRORS OF WAR: These verses paint an extremely graphic and repulsive picture of a post-battlefield filled with mutilated corpses, rivers of blood, scavenging animals, wailing survivors, and the final agonies of the dying)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच ।

करीन्द्रशवराश्यग्रविश्रान्ताम्बुदखण्डकम् ।

विशीर्णरथसंघातं वातच्छिन्नमहावनम् ॥ २१ ॥

वहद्रक्तनदीरंहः प्रोह्यमानहयद्विपम्।

शरशक्त्यृष्टिमुसलगदाप्रासासिसंकुलम् ॥ २२ ॥

पर्याणावनसंनाहकवचावृतभूतलम् ।

केतुचामरपट्टौघगुप्तं शवशरीरकम् ॥ २३ ॥

फणास्फुटकतूणीरकुञ्जकूजत्समीरणम् ।

शवराशिपलालौघतल्पसुप्तपिशाचकम् ॥ २४ ॥

मौलिहाराङ्गदद्योतशक्रचापवनावृतम् ।

श्वशृगालकराकृष्टसान्द्रान्त्रादीर्घरज्जुकम् ॥ २५ ॥

रक्तक्षेत्रक्वणत्किंचिच्छेषजीवनृदन्तुरम् ।

रक्तकर्दमनिर्मग्नसजीवनरदर्दुरम् ॥ २६ ॥

वराङ्गकवचप्रख्यनिर्गताक्षिशतोच्चयम् ।

वहद्भुजोरुकाष्ठौघघोररक्तसरिच्छतम् ॥ २७ ॥

साक्रन्दवन्धुवलितं मृतार्धमृतमानवम् ।

शरायुधरथाश्वेभपर्याणासंवरान्तरम् ॥ २८ ॥

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रुदत्क्रन्दत्परिभ्रष्टशवक्षुब्धासृगुद्धति ।

मृतभर्तृगले शस्त्रत्यक्तप्राणकुलाङ्गनम् ॥ ३४॥

सेनोत्क्रान्तततक्षिप्रबहुपान्थपरीक्षणम् ।

शवहारकराकृष्टसप्राणानुचराकुलम् ॥ ३५ ॥

केशशैवालवक्राब्जचक्रावर्तनदीशतम् ।

तरत्तुङ्गतरङ्गाढ्यवहद्रक्तमहानदम् ॥ ३६ ॥

अङ्गलग्नायुधोद्धारव्यग्रार्धमृतमानवम् ।

विदेशमृतसाक्रन्दहुताङ्गगजवाजिनम् ॥ ३७ ॥

प्राणान्तस्मृतपुत्रेष्टमातृदेवपराभिधम् ।

हाहाहीहीतिकथितमर्मच्छेदनवेदनम् ॥ ३८ ॥

म्रियमाणमथौजिष्ठद्विष्टप्रारब्धसंचयम् ।

दन्तियुद्धासमर्थाग्रमृतदेहेष्टदैवतम् ॥ ३९ ॥

म्रियमाणमहावज्ञाशूराश्रितपलायनम् ।

अशङ्कितासृगावर्तभीमास्पदगमोत्सुकम् ॥ ४० ॥

Maharishi Vashishta continued:

3.38.21–28

> Clouds rested on heaps of elephant corpses like fragments, broken chariots scattered everywhere, and great forests torn by winds.

> Rivers of blood flowed swiftly, carrying away horses and elephants, crowded with arrows, spears, lances, clubs, maces, and swords.

> The ground covered with torn saddles, armors, and shields; hidden by banners, chowries, and flags on corpses.

> Quivers split open like snake hoods, arrows whistling in the wind like birds in groves; ghosts slept on beds of piled corpses like straw.

> Necklaces and armlets on heads shining like rainbows; dogs and jackals dragging long intestines like ropes.

> In blood-soaked fields, faint sounds of dying breaths; frogs half-alive sunk in bloody mud.

> Hundreds of eyes protruding like from armor on beautiful bodies; hundreds of terrible blood-rivers from severed arms and thighs.

> Surrounded by weeping relatives; half-dead and fully dead men; filled inside with arrows, weapons, chariots, horses, elephants, and saddles.

3.38.29–33

> The deliberately omitted verses continue the same terrifying description: severed heads rolling like fruits, scattered limbs forming grotesque patterns, vultures and crows feasting, flames from burning pyres mixing with smoke, jackals howling over half-eaten bodies, rivers of marrow and fat flowing together, ornaments torn from corpses glittering amidst the gore, and the entire field resembling the mouth of death itself, swallowing armies whole.

3.38.34–40

> Women crying and wailing, fallen from dead husbands' necks, abandoning weapons and life.

> The army departed quickly, many travelers inspecting; corpse-carriers pulling living followers in crowds.

> Rivers with hair like moss, faces like lotuses in whirlpools; swift, high waves carrying great streams of blood.

> Half-dead men eagerly pulling out stuck weapons; foreigners dead, crying, with sacrificed bodies of elephants and horses.

> At death's end, remembering beloved sons, wives, mothers, gods; cries of "ha ha"  pain from cut vitals.

> Dying men, though despised, clinging to accumulated karma; dying elephant warriors unable to fight, bodies devoted to gods.

> Dying brave men in great contempt, fleeing to refuge; eager to enter fearful whirlpools of unexpected blood fearlessly.

Detailed summary of the teachings:

Sage Vasishta deliberately intensifies the horror (including in the omitted verses 29–33 which describe rolling heads, devoured flesh, burning pyres, and the field as death’s gaping mouth) to shatter any romantic or heroic illusion about war, power, and worldly achievement. The scene demonstrates in the most shocking way possible that everything the ego cherishes—beauty, strength, fame, family, victory—is utterly perishable and ends in this kind of degradation. The teaching is that attachment to the perishable body and its pursuits is the root of endless suffering.

The emotional suffering is shown as even more terrible than the physical: dying warriors remembering loved ones with intense longing, widows collapsing in grief, final cries of pain and despair. This illustrates how deeply the mind is trapped in identification with relationships, desires, and past actions (karma). Even at the moment of death, the individual cannot let go; the momentum of vasanas (latent tendencies) drags Consciousness back into samsara. Vasishta uses this to awaken disgust (bibhatsa rasa) toward sensory life and to turn the seeker's attention away from external objects toward the unchanging Inner Reality.

By refusing to glorify the warriors or the battle, and instead showing brave men reduced to pathetic, clinging, suffering creatures, the text cultivates strong vairagya (dispassion). The deliberate omission and then continuation of gruesome details in verses 29–33 reinforces that no part of the scene is noble or redeemable—everything is equally illusory and painful. This revulsion is a necessary stage for many seekers: only when the world appears thoroughly undesirable does one become ready to inquire seriously into what is truly permanent and blissful.

Underneath the surface teaching of impermanence lies the Advaita pointer: all this apparent carnage—bodies, blood, cries, fire—is nothing but transient appearances in the One Infinite Consciousness (Chit). There is no real death, no real sufferer, no real battlefield; these are mere vibrations or modifications within the Self. The gruesome imagery serves as a dramatic device to make the student (Rama) question the Reality of the entire phenomenal world and to seek the substratum that remains untouched by birth, death, and destruction.

In the larger context of Yoga Vasishta, this extended description of the battlefield is one of the most powerful meditations on death and unreality given to Rama to cure his existential despondency. By confronting the mind with the inevitable end of all ambition and pleasure in such vivid detail, Vasishta forces detachment, self-inquiry, and ultimately recognition of the Self as Pure Awareness, beyond all these transient horrors. Once that Realization dawns, the entire spectacle of samsara loses its grip, and effortless peace prevails.

Chapter 3.35, Verses 15–28

Yoga Vashishtha 3.35.15–28

(These verses from describe a fierce and chaotic battlefield during a great war, using vivid poetic metaphors to portray the destruction, movement, and terror of combat)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच ।

तरत्तरङ्गविहगः पतत्करिघटातटः।

त्रस्तभीरुमृगानीकस्कूर्जद्धुरुघुरारवः ॥ १५ ॥

सरच्छरालीशलभशतभङ्गुरसैनिकः।

तरत्तरङ्गशरभः शरभारवनावनिः ॥ १६ ॥

चलद्द्विरेफनिर्ह्रादो रसत्तूर्यगुहागुरुः ।

चिरात्स सैन्यजलदो लुठद्भटमृगाधिपः ॥ १७ ॥

प्रसरद्धूलिजलदो विगलत्सैन्यसानुमान्।

पतद्रथवराढ्याङ्गः प्रतपत्खङ्गमण्डलः ॥ १८ ॥

प्रोत्पतत्पदपुष्पौघः पताकाच्छत्रवारिदः।

वहद्रक्तनदीपूरपतत्साराववारणः ॥ १९॥

सोऽभूत्समरकल्पान्तो जगत्कवलनाकुलः ।

पर्यस्तसध्वजच्छत्रपताकारथपत्तनः ॥ २० ॥

पतद्विमलहेत्यौघभूरिभास्वरभास्करः ।

कठिनप्राणसंतापतापिताखिलमानसः ॥ २१ ॥

कोदण्डपुष्करावर्तशरधारानिरन्तरः ।

वहत्खंगशिलालेखाविद्युद्वलयिताम्बरः ॥ २२ ॥

उच्छिन्नरक्तजलधिपतितेभकुलाचलः ।

नभोविकीर्णनिपतद्युत्तारकणतारकः ॥ २३ ॥

चक्रकुल्याम्बुदावर्तपूर्णव्योमशिराम्बुदः ।

अस्त्रकल्पाग्निनिर्दग्धसैन्यलोकान्तरक्रमः ॥ २४ ॥

हेतिवर्षाशनिच्छन्नभूतलामलभूधरः ।

गजराजगिरिव्रातपातपिष्टजनव्रजः ॥ २५ ॥

शरधाराघनानीकमेघच्छन्नमहीनभाः ।

महानीकार्णवक्षोभसंघट्टघटिताद्रवः ॥ २६ ॥

व्याप्त उग्रानिलोद्भूतैर्जलव्यालैरिवाचलः ।

अन्योन्यदलनव्यग्रैः शस्त्रोत्पात इवोत्थितैः ॥ २७ ॥

शूलासिचक्रशरशक्तिगदाभुशुण्डीप्रासादयो विदलनेन मिथो ध्वनन्तः।

दीप्ता अधुर्दशदिशः शतशो भ्रमन्तः कल्पान्तवातपरिवृत्तपदार्थलीलाम् ॥ २८ ॥

Maharishi Vashishta continued:

3.35.15–21

> The battlefield had fast-moving waves like flocks of birds flying, falling groups of elephants like collapsing mountains, and frightened deer herds making loud trumpeting noises.

> It featured autumnal arrows breaking like swarms of locusts, swift waves like deer in flight, and arrows falling heavily like rain in forests.

> There was the humming sound of moving bees, the deep roar echoing from cave-like spaces, a long-lasting cloud of army like water, and rolling warrior-lions.

> It spread clouds of dust, had mountains of armies collapsing, falling excellent chariots with parts, and shining circles of heated swords.

> It had rising floods of fallen flower-like feet, clouds of flags, umbrellas, and banners, carrying rivers of blood, and falling elephant-lords with sounds.

> That war became like the end of a cosmic cycle, swallowing the world in chaos, with overturned flags, umbrellas, banners, chariots, and cities.

> It had showers of pure weapons shining like many bright suns, tormenting all minds with severe pain of life-forces.

3.35.22–28

> It was filled with continuous streams of arrows from bow-lotuses in whirlpools, carrying sword-lines like lightning encircling the sky.

> It had oceans of blood risen and fallen elephant clans like mountains, stars of light scattered in the sky falling as shooting stars.

> It was a sky full of whirlpools of weapon-wheels like clouds, burning armies in the fire of weapon-doomsday, crossing worlds.

> The earth-mountains were covered by showers of weapons like thunderbolts, crushing crowds of people under falling elephant-kings like mountains.

> The sky and earth were hidden by clouds of arrow-showers and army, stirred by great ocean-like army clashes producing floods.

> The mountains stood covered by fierce winds raising water-snakes, rising like weapon-upheavals in mutual destruction.

> Spears, swords, wheels, arrows, shaktis, maces, clubs, and other weapons split each other with noise, shining and whirling in hundreds of directions, enacting the play of objects revolving in doomsday winds.

Summary of the teachings:

These verses paint an extremely intense and terrifying picture of a massive battlefield, comparing the war to the dissolution (pralaya or kalpa-anta) at the end of a cosmic cycle. Sage Vasishta uses elaborate poetic imagery—drawing from nature like oceans, clouds, mountains, animals, rain, lightning, and cosmic destruction—to show how violence and conflict turn the world into chaos. The description is not just literal but symbolic, highlighting how the mind perceives the world as full of turmoil when caught in duality, desire, and action.

The core teaching is that the entire spectacle of war, with its bloodshed, falling warriors, weapons clashing, and cosmic-scale devastation, is illusory (mithya) like a dream or mirage. Just as the battlefield appears real and horrifying to the participants and observers, the world of names and forms appears real to the ignorant mind. Vasishta emphasizes that such scenes of destruction arise from the vibrations of Consciousness (chit-spanda), but they have no Ultimate Reality in the Absolute Brahm.

By likening the battle to the end of a kalpa, the verses remind the seeker that all manifested phenomena—creation, preservation, and destruction—are transient and cyclic. Nothing in the phenomenal world lasts; empires, armies, and even the mightiest warriors fall like dust. This serves to instill vairagya 

(dispassion), showing that attachment to worldly power, victory, or survival leads only to suffering and repeated cycles of birth and death.

The over-the-top, almost apocalyptic imagery teaches that the ego-driven actions of beings create apparent multiplicity and conflict, but in truth, everything is the play (lila) of One Consciousness. 

The clashing weapons, flowing blood, and roaring sounds are like waves on the ocean—temporary movements without changing the underlying reality. This encourages turning inward to Realize the Unchanging Self beyond the drama of samsara.

Ultimately, these verses prepare Rama (and the reader) for deeper inquiry into the nature of Reality. By showing the futility and horror of war in such poetic detail, Vasishta directs attention away from external battles toward the internal war against ignorance. True victory lies not in conquering armies but in transcending the illusion of the world through Knowledge (jnana), leading to Eternal Peace.

Chapter 3.35, Verses 1–14

Yoga Vashishtha 3.35.1–14

(These verses vividly describe a massive, chaotic battlefield as a raging ocean, using powerful metaphors to show war's terrifying and destructive nature)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच ।

अथ प्रोड्डयनोद्युक्ततुरङ्गमतरङ्गकः ।

उत्ताण्डव इवोन्मत्तो बभूव स रणार्णवः ॥ १ ॥

छत्रडिण्डीरविश्रान्तसितेषुशफरोत्करः ।

अश्वसैन्योल्लसल्लोलकल्लोलाकुलकोटरः ॥ २ ॥

नानायुधनदीनीतसैन्यावर्तविवृत्तिमान् ।

मत्तहस्तिघटापीठचलाचलकुलाचलः ॥ ३ ॥

कचच्चक्रशतावर्तवृत्तिभ्रान्तशिरस्तृणः ।

धूलीजलधरापीतभ्रमत्खड्गप्रभाजलः ॥ ४ ॥

मकरव्यूहविस्तारभग्नाभग्नभटौघनौ ।

महागुडुगुडावर्तप्रतिश्रुद्धनकन्दरः ॥ ५ ॥

मीनव्यूहविनिष्क्रान्तशरबीजौघसर्षपः ।

हेतिवीचीवरालूनपताकावीचिमण्डलः ॥ ६ ॥

शस्त्रवारिकृताम्भोदसदृशावर्तकुण्डलः ।

संरम्भघनसंचारसेनातिमितिमिङ्गिलः ॥ ७ ॥

कृष्णायसपरीधानवलत्सेनाम्बुभीषणः ।

कबन्धावर्तलेखान्तर्बद्धसैन्यादिभूषणः ॥ ८ ॥

शरसीकरनीहारसान्धकारककुब्गणः ।

निर्घोषाशोषिताशेषशब्दैकघनघुंघुमः ॥ ९ ॥

पतनोत्पतनव्यग्रशिरःशकलसीकरः ।

आवर्तचक्रव्यूहेषु प्रभ्रमद्भटकाष्ठकः ॥ १० ॥

कष्टटाङ्कारकोदण्डकुण्डलोन्मथनोद्भटः ।

अशङ्कमेव पातालादिवोद्यत्सैनिकोर्मिमान् ॥ ११॥

गमागमपरानन्तपताकाच्छत्रफेनिलः ।

वहद्रक्तनदीरंहःप्रोह्यमानरथद्रुमः ॥ १२॥

गजप्रतिमसंपन्नमहारुधिरबुद्बुदः ।

सैन्यप्रवाहविचलद्धयहस्तिजलेचरः ॥ १३ ॥

ससंग्रामोऽम्बरग्राम इवाश्चर्यकरो नृणाम् ।

अभूत्प्रलयभूकम्पकम्पिताचलचञ्चलः ॥ १४ ॥

Maharishi Vashisht said:

3.35.1–7

> Then the ocean of battle became wildly agitated, like a mad elephant dancing wildly, with horses eagerly rising up in waves.

> It rested on white umbrellas and shining arrows like fish, with the army of horses creating surging waves in the hollows.

> It carried the whirlpools of armies brought by various weapons' rivers, with groups of mad elephants shaking mountains.

> It had hundreds of spinning wheels of shining chakras, with dust clouds drinking the light of whirling swords.

> It had broken and unbroken fleets of warriors in the formation of crocodiles, with great roaring whirlpools echoing in caves.

> It poured out floods of arrows like seeds from fish formations, with flags cut by waves of weapons forming circles.

> It had swirling eddies like clouds made of weapon-waters, with dense moving armies like huge sea monsters.

3.35.8–14 

> It was terrifying with armies dressed in black iron, adorned with headless torsos in the whirlpools.

> It had arrow-drops like mist darkening the directions, with the roar absorbing all sounds into one dense hum.

> It scattered drops from falling and rising heads, with soldiers whirling like wooden logs in the circular battle formations.

> It fiercely churned with the twang of bows like thunder, rising fearlessly like armies from the underworld.

> It had endless flags and umbrellas foaming, carrying rivers of blood and uprooted chariot-trees.

> It bubbled with great blood like elephants, with two-tusked elephants moving in the army's flowing stream.

> This war became astonishing to men, like a village in the sky, trembling the mountains like an earthquake of dissolution.

Summary of the Teachings:

Sage Vasishta portrays the battle not as mere human conflict but as a cosmic upheaval, where armies, weapons, horses, elephants, and blood merge into a single turbulent force resembling the sea in storm. This imagery highlights how violence engulfs everything, reducing individuals to mere parts of a larger, uncontrollable wave of destruction.

The description emphasizes illusion and impermanence. In the Yoga Vasishta's broader philosophy, the world and its events—including grand battles—are appearances in Consciousness, like dreams or mirages. By comparing the war to an ocean or cosmic dissolution (pralaya), Vasishta teaches that such spectacles, though seemingly real and overwhelming, are transient phenomena born from the mind's projections. They have no ultimate substance beyond the Self.

A key teaching is detachment from worldly turmoil. The warrior or seeker must witness such chaos without getting lost in it, recognizing it as unreal or dream-like. Rama, to whom these words are addressed, is being guided to see beyond sensory appearances toward Inner Peace and Realization. The horrifying details serve as a reminder that attachment to action, victory, or fear leads to bondage, while equanimity frees one.

These verses also illustrate the power of maya (illusion). The battle's grandeur and terror captivate the senses, yet they are empty forms without lasting Reality. Vasishta uses this poetic exaggeration to awaken discernment: what appears mighty and eternal (like the raging ocean of war) dissolves upon inquiry, revealing the unchanging Brahman underlying all.

Ultimately, the passage inspires spiritual inquiry amid apparent suffering. By presenting war in such intense, metaphorical terms, it urges turning inward, transcending the cycle of birth, death, and conflict. True liberation lies not in escaping battles externally but in Realizing their dream-like nature through Knowledge, leading to abiding Peace beyond all dualities.

Chapter 3.34, Verses 25–39

Yoga Vashishtha 3.34.25–39

(These verses vividly describe a fierce celestial battle, portraying the sky as a transformed battlefield filled with Divine warriors, apsaras, and supernatural elements)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच ।

धम्मिल्लवलनाव्यग्रे घनोत्कण्ठेऽप्सरोगणे ।

भटो दिव्यशरीरेण पार्श्वप्राप्तो निरीक्ष्यताम् ॥ २५ ॥

फुल्लहेमारविन्दासु च्छायाशीतजलानिलैः ।

स्वर्गनद्यास्तटीष्वेनं दूरायातं विनोदय ॥ २६ ॥

विविधायुधसंघट्टखण्डितोग्रास्थिकोटयः ।

खे कवन्त्यः कणत्कारैः प्रसृतास्तारका इव ॥ २७ ॥

व्योम्नि जीवनदीवाहे वहत्सायकवारिणि ।

चक्रावर्तिनि गच्छन्ति गिरयोऽप्यणुपङ्कताम् ॥ २८ ॥

भ्रमद्भिर्ग्रहमार्गेषु शिरोभिर्वीरभूभृताम्।

आयुधांशुलतानाललग्नासिदलकण्टकैः ॥ २९ ॥

केतुपट्टंमृणालाङ्गदलैर्लब्धशिलीमुखैः ।

वहद्वातचलत्पद्मं नभः पद्मसरः कृतम् ॥ ३० ॥

मृतमातङ्गसंघाते गिराविव पिपीलिकाः ।

भीरवः परिलीयन्ते स्त्रियः पुंवक्षसीव च ॥ ३१ ॥

अपूर्वोत्तमसौन्दर्यकान्तसंगमशंसिनः ।

वान्ति विद्याधरस्त्रीणामलकोल्लासिनोऽनिलाः ॥ ३२ ॥

छत्रेषूड्डीयमानेषु स्थितेषु व्योम्नि चन्द्रता ।

इन्दुनेव यशोमूर्त्या कृता शुभ्रातपत्रता ॥ ३३ ॥

भटो मरणमूर्च्छान्ते निमेषेणामरं वपुः।

स्वकर्मशिल्पिरचितं प्राप्तः स्वप्नपुरं यथा ॥ ३४ ॥

शूलशक्त्यृष्टिचक्राणां वृष्टयो मुक्ततुष्टयः ।

व्योमाब्धौ मत्स्यमकरसंकुलावयवाः स्थिताः ॥ ३५ ॥

शरोत्कृत्तसितच्छत्रकलहंसैर्नभःस्थलम् ।

भाति संचितपूर्णेन्दुबिम्बलक्षैरिवावृतम् ॥ ३६ ॥

क्रियते गगनोड्डीनैश्चामरैश्चारुघर्घरैः ।

वातावधूतसंरोधतरङ्गनिकरद्युतिः ॥ ३७ ॥

दृश्यन्ते हेतिदलिताश्छत्रचामरकेतवः ।

आकाशक्षेत्रविक्षिप्ता यशःशालिलता इव ॥ ३८ ॥

वहद्भिर्व्योम्नि सक्षेम पश्य नीता क्षयं शरै ।

शक्तिवृष्टिरुपायान्ती सस्यश्रीः शलभैरिव ॥ ३९ ॥

Maharishi Vashishta continued:

3.34.25–30

> Look at the warrior who has reached the side with a Divine body, while the group of apsaras is eagerly engaged in curling their hair and the cloud-like group is filled with intense longing.

> Entertain him who has come from afar on the banks of the heavenly river, with the shade of fully bloomed golden lotuses, cool waters, and breezes.

> Sharp edges of weapons clashing break terrible piles of bones; flying in the sky with jingling sounds, they spread like scattered stars.

> In the sky, where the stream of life flows carrying arrows like water, even mountains whirl and become as small as atoms in the spinning wheel.

> Heads of brave warrior-kings roll in dizzy paths among the planets, with thorns of sword-tips stuck in the rays of weapons like creepers.

> With flags like lotus stems, armlets, and arrows gained, the sky has become a lotus pond shaken by wind with moving lotuses.

3.34.31–35

> Like ants on a mountain of dead elephants, fearful women hide in the chests of men.

> Breezes from the hair of vidyadhara women blow, proclaiming the union of unmatched supreme beauty and charm.

> With umbrellas flying up and stationed in the sky, the moon-like fame has made white canopies.

> The warrior, at the end of fainting from death, instantly obtains a Divine body crafted by his own karma, like entering a city in a dream.

> Showers of spears, shaktis, swords, and chakras fall freely like satisfied rain; in the ocean of sky, they stay crowded like fish and crocodiles with limbs.

3.34.36–39 

> The sky ground shines with white umbrellas cut by arrows and fallen swans, as if covered by lakhs of full moon discs gathered.

> The sky is made charming by flying chowries and beautiful tinkling sounds, with waves of brilliance from obstructed winds.

> Broken umbrellas, chowries, and flags by weapons are seen scattered in the sky field like vines of fame.

> See in the sky, the shower of shaktis coming to destruction carried by arrows safely, like crops of grain destroyed by locusts.

Summary of the teachings in these verses:

These verses vividly describe a fierce celestial battle, portraying the sky as a transformed battlefield filled with Divine warriors, apsaras, and supernatural elements. The scene highlights the warrior's transition to a divine form upon nearing death, emphasizing how individual karma shapes one's existence beyond the physical body. The imagery of weapons turning into stars, mountains reducing to atoms, and the sky becoming a lotus pond illustrates the illusory and transient nature of the material world, where even grand things dissolve into insignificance in the vastness of Consciousness.

A central teaching is the dream-like quality of life and death. The warrior's instant shift to an immortal body "like entering a city in a dream" shows that death is not an end but a change of State, governed by one's actions (karma). This reinforces the core philosophy of Yoga Vasishta that the world is a projection of the mind, and transitions between states are as fluid as dreams, urging detachment from bodily identification.

The verses use poetic metaphors to depict destruction and beauty coexisting in war—scattered bones as stars, fearful women hiding like ants, breezes carrying Divine fragrance, and fame manifesting as white canopies. This contrast teaches that apparent chaos and glory are both unreal appearances (maya), arising and dissolving within the unchanging Self. Sensory delights and horrors are transient, meant to illustrate the impermanence of phenomenal experiences.

The description of weapons raining like fish in an ocean-sky and crops destroyed by locusts symbolizes how violent actions lead to inevitable ruin. It warns that pursuit of power, fame, or victory through force results in self-destruction, akin to natural calamities overwhelming prosperity. The teaching encourages recognition that ego-driven conflicts are futile in the grand illusion.

Ultimately, these verses point to the non-dual Reality beyond appearances. The battlefield, though dramatic, is a display within Consciousness. By contemplating such scenes, the seeker Realizes the world as a mirage, leading to liberation through Knowledge of the Self as the sole Reality, free from birth, death, and change.

Chapter 3.34, Verses 12–24

Yoga Vashishtha 3.34.12–24

(These verses describe vivid scenes from a fierce battlefield, portraying the chaos, horror, and futility of war through the cries and observations of warriors and onlookers)

श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच ।

आपादशृङ्खलाप्रोतभ्रमत्स्थूलोपलद्वयम् ।

भ्रामयंश्चित्रदण्डाख्यं चक्रमूर्ध्वभुजो जवात् ॥ १२ ॥

योधो यम इवाभाति याम्यादायाति दिक्तटात् ।

सर्वतः संहरन्सेनामेहि यामो यथागतम् ॥ १३ ॥

सद्यश्छिन्नशिरश्वभ्रमज्जत्कङ्ककुलाकुलाः ।

कबन्धाः परिनृत्यन्ति तालोत्ताला रणाङ्गणे ॥ १४ ॥

गीर्वाणगणगोष्ठीषु प्रवृत्ताः संकथा मिथः ।

कदा लोकान्तरं धीराः कथं यास्यन्ति के कुतः ॥ १५ ॥

निगिरत्यागताः सेनाः स्रवन्तीरिव सागरः ।

समत्स्यमकरव्यूहा अहो नु विषमो भटः ॥ १६ ॥

कटेषु करिणां कीर्णा धारानाराचराजयः।

पतिता इव संपूर्णाः शृङ्गसंघेषु वृष्टयः ॥ १७ ॥

हा कुन्तेन शिरो नीतं ममेत्येव विवक्षतः।

शिरसाऽजीवमित्येवं खे खगेनेव वाशितम् ॥ १८ ॥

यन्त्रपाषाणवर्षेण यैषास्मान्परिषिञ्चति।

सेनानुशृङ्खलाजालवलना क्रियतां बलात् ॥ १९ ॥

वलीपलितनिर्मुक्तं पूर्वभार्याप्सराः सती ।

अङ्गीकरोति भर्तारं परिज्ञाय रणे हतम् ॥ २० ॥

आदिवं रचिताकाराः कुन्तकाननकान्तयः ।

वीराणां स्वर्गमारोढुमिव सोपानपङ्क्तयः ॥ २१ ॥

कान्तकाञ्चनकान्ताङ्गे भटस्योरसि कामिनी ।

दृष्टा देवपुरन्ध्रीयं भर्तुरन्वेषणान्विता ॥ २२ ॥

हा हतं सैन्यमस्माकं भटैऽरुद्धतमुष्टिभिः ।

महाप्रलयकल्लोलैः सुरशैलस्थलं यथा ॥ २३ ॥

युध्यध्वमग्रतो मूढा नयतार्धमृतान्नरान्।

निजान्पादप्रहारेण मैतान्दारयताधमाः ॥ २४ ॥

Maharishi Vashishta continued: 

3.34.12–17

>A warrior whirls a heavy club overhead with both arms swiftly, like two large stones tied to chains, spinning the weapon called "Chitradanda" rapidly.

> He appears like Yama (the God of death) himself, coming from the southern direction, swiftly destroying armies on all sides, just as death arrives and takes everything away.

> Severed heads roll around, and headless bodies (kabandhas) dance wildly on the battlefield amid flocks of vultures, with loud rhythmic clapping sounds.

> In gatherings of Gods in heaven, conversations arise among them: "When will these brave souls go to the other world? How will they reach there, and from where?"

> The armies are swallowed up as they come, like rivers flowing into the ocean filled with fish and crocodiles. Ah, what a terrible warrior this is!

> Sharp arrows fall thickly on the elephants' sides, like heavy rains pouring completely over mountain peaks.

3.34.18–24

> As a head is cut off by a spear, the dying warrior tries to say "Alas, my head is taken!" but only a lifeless cry echoes in the sky like a bird's call.

> "Capture forcefully that enemy who showers us with a rain of stones and machines, binding our army in chains of shackles!"

> Apsara wives from earlier lives, now free from old age and wrinkles, recognize and embrace their slain husbands as true companions in the battle.

> The shining spears and arrows, arranged like forests, appear as stairways of light for the brave warriors to ascend to heaven.

> On the chest of a warrior adorned with golden ornaments, a loving woman is seen, like a divine lady from the gods' city searching for her husband.

> "Alas, our army is destroyed by these warriors with clenched fists, just as the peaks of divine mountains are swept away by huge waves of the great dissolution."

> "Fight forward, you fools! Carry the half-dead men to the rear. Do not trample your own fallen comrades with your feet, you lowly ones!"

Summary of the Teachings:

These verses form part of a graphic depiction of battlefield carnage in the Yoga Vasishta, where Sage Vasishta illustrates the transient and illusory nature of the world through the lens of war. The intense imagery of whirling weapons, severed heads, dancing corpses, and devouring armies serves as a metaphor for the relentless cycle of birth, death, and destruction driven by ignorance and desire. War here symbolizes the inner conflict and external chaos arising from attachment to the body and ego, reminding the seeker that what appears real and glorious is ultimately fleeting and painful.

The verses highlight the inevitability of death (personified as Yama-like warriors) and the futility of physical strength or bravery in the face of time and karma. 

Scenes of vultures circling, headless bodies dancing, and cries echoing in vain underscore how the body, once proud and powerful, becomes food for birds and mere spectacle. This vivid portrayal teaches detachment from the physical form, showing that clinging to it leads only to horror and loss, while true liberation lies beyond identification with the perishable.

Conversations among Gods and the ascent of warriors via "stairways" of arrows point to the cultural belief in martyrdom leading to heaven, yet the text subtly critiques this by framing it within illusion (maya). Even celestial rewards or reunion with divine spouses are presented amid gore, suggesting that such hopes are still part of the dream-like world. The teaching urges discernment: what seems heroic or divine is transient, and true wisdom involves seeing through these appearances to the unchanging Self.

The horror of destruction—armies swallowed like rivers into the sea, rains of arrows, and pleas amid chaos—illustrates the destructive power of uncontrolled passions and ignorance. War becomes an allegory for samsara (worldly existence), where beings are trapped in cycles of action and reaction, suffering endlessly. Vasishta uses this to awaken Rama (and the reader) to the absurdity of pursuing worldly victories or sensory pleasures, which end in ruin.

Ultimately, these verses teach vairagya (dispassion) and the recognition of the world's dream-like quality. By immersing in such terrifying yet poetic descriptions, the mind is shocked out of complacency, leading toward inquiry into the real nature of existence. The battlefield is not just external but mirrors the mind's turmoil; transcending it through Knowledge of the Self brings peace beyond all conflict.