,transcriber's ,notes ,inconsistent punctuation has been silently corrected4 ,obvious misspellings have been silently corrected1 and the following corrections made to the text4 ,other spelling and hyphenation variations have not been modified4 ,pages #cj #ca - ,headings referred to 8,,chapter01 but all other sections are simply numbered4 ,format of these section headings was modified to match the rest of the chapters4 ,page #bja - ,chapter ,,xviii heading 8,ascertainment of the ,example ,or ,major ,proposition0 added to match table of contents4 ,page #cec - ,chapter ,,xxvi heading 8,meeting the ,siddhas0 added to match table of contents4 ,page #djc - ,section number changed from ,,iii to ,,ii1 to match table of contents4 ,the spelling of ,sanskrit words are normalized to some extent1 including correct_/addition of accents where necessary4 ,note that the author uses 1 1 to indicate long vowels4 ,this notation has not been changed4 ,the ,,lpp edition 7#aiii7 which has been scanned for this ebook1 is of poor quality1 and in some cases text was missing4 ,where possible1 the missing_/unclear text has been supplied from another edition1 which has the same typographical basis 7both editions are photographical reprints of the same source1 or perhaps one is a copy of the other73 ,bharatiya ,publishing ,house1 ,delhi #aigh4 ,a third edition1 ,parimal ,publications1 ,delhi #aiih1 which is based on an ,,ocr scanning of the same typographical basis1 has also been consulted4 ,the term 8,gloss40 or 8,glossary0 probably refers to the extensive classical commentary to ,yoga ,vsishtha by ,ananda ,bodhendra ,saraswati 7only available in ,sanskrit74 ,angle brackets 444 have been used by the transcriber to indicate light editing of the text to insert missing words4 ---------------------------------------- -------------------------------- ,,the ,,yoga-,v,,sishtha-,,mah,r,m,,yana4 ,,vol4 ,i ---------------------------------------- -------------------------------- ,,prospectus4 ,plato advised the ,athenians to betake themselves to the study of ,mathematics1 in order to evade the pestilence incident to the international war which was raging in ,greece2 so it is the intention of this publication1 to exhort our countrymen to the investigation of ,metaphysics1 in order to escape the contagion of ,politics and quasi politics1 which has been spreading far and wide over this devoted land4 ,v4 ,l4 ,m4 ---------------------------------------- -------------------------------- ,,the ,,yoga-,v,,sishtha ,,mah,r,m,,yana ,,of ,v,,lm,,ki in #d vols4 in #g pts4 7,bound in #d47 ,vol4 #a ,containing ,the ,vairagya1 ,mumukshu1 ,prakaranas and ,the ,utpatti ,khanda to ,chapter ,l4 ,translated from the original ,sanskrit ,by ,,vihari-,,lala ,,mitra ,distributed ,by3 ,d ,k ,publishers ,distributors ,p ,ltd4 #a1 ,ansari ,road1 ,darya ,ganj1 ,new ,delhi-#aajjjb ,phones3 #cbghcfh1 #cbfadfe ,fax3 #cbfdcfh visit us at3 www4dkpdindia4com e-mail3 dkpddel#c4vsnl4net4in ,reprinted in ,,lpp #aiii ,,isbn #ha-gecf-agi-d 7set7 ,,isbn #ha-gecf-ahj-h 7vol4 #a7 ,published ,by3 ,low ,price ,publications ,b-#b1 ,vardhaman ,palace1 ,nimri ,commercial ,centre1 ,ashok ,vihar ,phase-,,iv1 ,delhi-#aajjeb ,phone3 #gdjafgb visit us at3 www4lppindia4com e-mail3 lppnde4vsnl4net4in ,printed ,at3 ,d ,k ,fine ,art ,press ,p ,ltd4 ,delhi-#aajjeb ,,printed ,,in ,,india ,,preface4 ,in this age of the cultivation of universal learning and its investigation into the deep recesses of the dead languages of antiquity1 when the literati of both continents are so sedulously employed in exploring the rich and almost inexhaustible mines of the ancient literature of this country1 it has given an impetus to the philanthropy of our wise and benign ,government to the institution of a searching enquiry into the sacred language of this land4 ,and when the restoration of the long lost works of its venerable sages and authors through the instrumentality of the greatest bibliomaniac savants and linguists in the several ,presidencies1#a has led the literary ,asiatic ,societies of the ,east and ,west to the publication of the rarest and most valuable ,sanskrit ,manuscripts1 it cannot be deemed preposterous in me to presume1 to lay before the ,public a work of no less merit and sanctity than any hitherto published4 ,the ,yoga ,vasishtha is the earliest work on ,yoga or ,speculative and ,abstruse philosophy delivered by the venerable ,vedic sage ,vasishtha to his royal pupil ,rma2 the victor of ,rvana1 and hero of the first ,epic ,rmyana1 and written in the language of ,vlmiki1 the prime bard in pure ,sanskrit1 the author of that popular ,epic1 and ,homer of ,india4 ,it embodies in itself the ,loci ,communes or common places relating to the science of ,ontology1 the knowledge of ,sat--,real ,entity1 and ,asat--,unreal ,non-entity2 the principles of ,psychology or doctrines of the ,passions and ,feelings2 the speculations of ,metaphysics in dwelling upon our cognition1 volition and other faculties of the ,mind 71 1 1 1 7 and the tenets1 of ,ethics and practical morality 7 74 ,besides there are a great many precepts on ,theology1 and the nature of the ,divinity 7 71 and discourses on ,spirituality and ,theosophy 7 72 all delivered in the form of ,plato's ,dialogues between the sages1 and tending to the main enquiry concerning the true felicity1 final beatitude or ,summum bonum 7 7 of all true philosophy4 ,these topics have singly and jointly contributed to the structure of several separate ,systems of ,science and ,philosophy in succeeding ages1 and have formed the subjects of study both with the juvenile and senile classes of people in former and present times1 and ,i may say1 almost among all nations in all countries throughout the civilized world4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it is felt at present to be a matter of the highest importance by the native community at large1 to repress the growing ardour of our youth in political polemics and practical tactics1 that are equally pernicious to and destructive of the felicity of their temporal and future lives1 by a revival of the humble instructions of their peaceful preceptors of old1 and reclaiming them to the simple mode of life led by their forefathers1 from the perverted course now gaining ground among them under the influence of ,western refinement4 ,outward peace 77 with internal tranquility 7 7 is the teaching of our ,sastras1 and these united with contentment 77 and indifference to worldly pleasures 771 were believed according to the tenets of ,yoga doctrines1 to form the perfect man1--a character which the ,aryans have invariably preserved amidst the revolutions of ages and empires4 ,it is the degeneracy of the rising generation1 however1 owing to their adoption of foreign habits and manners from an utter ignorance of their own moral code1 which the publication of the present work is intended to obviate4 ,from the description of the ,hindu mind given by ,max ,mller2 in his ,history of the ,ancient ,literature of ,india 7p4 #ah7 it will appear1 that the esoteric faith of the ,aryan ,indian is of that realistic cast as the ,platonic1 whose theory of ontology viewed all existence1 even that of the celestial bodies1 with their movements among the precepta of sense1 and marked them among the unreal phantoms 7 7 or vain mirage1 77 as the ,hindu calls them1 that are interesting in appearance but useless to observe4 ,they may be the best of all precepta1 but fall very short of that perfection1 which the mental eye contemplates in its meditation-yoga4 ,the ,hindu ,yogi views the visible world exactly in the same light as ,plato has represented it in the simile commencing the seventh book of his ,republic4 ,he compares mankind to prisoners in a cave1 chained in one particular attitude1 so as to behold only an ever varying multiplicity of shadows1 projected through the opening of the cave upon the wall before them1 by certain unseen realities behind4 ,the philosopher alone1 who by training or inspiration is enabled to turn his face from these visions1 and contemplate with his mind1 that can see at-once the unchangeable reality amidst these transient shadows4 ,the first record that we have of ,vasishtha is1 that he was the author of the #gth ,mandala of the ,rig ,veda 7,ashtaka v4 #ae-aah74 ,he is next mentioned as ,purohita or joint minister with ,viswmitra to king ,sudsa1 and to have a violent contest with his rival for the 77 or ministerial office 7,mll4 ,hist4 ,s4 ,lit4 page #dhf1 ,web4 ,id4 p4 #ch74 ,he is said to have accompanied the army of ,sudsa1 when that king is said to have conquered the ten invading chiefs who had crossed over the river ,parushni--7,hydroates or ,ravi7 to his dominions 7,mll4 ,id4 p4 #dhf74 ,viswmitra accompanied ,sudsa himself beyond ,vipsa1--,hyphasis or ,beah and ,satadru--,hisaudras-,sutlej 7,max ,mller1 ,ancient ,sanscrit literature page #dhf74 ,these events are recorded to have occurred prior to ,vasishtha's composition of the ,mandala which passes under his name and in which they are recorded4 7,mll4 ,id4 p4 #dhf74 ,the enmity and implacable hatred of the two families of ,vasishthas and ,viswmitras for generations1 form subjects prominent throughout the ,vedic antiquity1 and preserved in the tradition of ages 7,mll4 ,id4 p4 #dhf1 ,web4 ,id4 p4 #cg74 ,another cause of it was that1 ,harischandra1 ,king of ,ayodhy1 was cursed by ,vasishtha1 whereupon he made ,viswmitra his priest to the annoyance of ,vasishtha1 although the office of ,brhmana was held by him 7,mller ,id4 page #djh ,web4 pp4 #ca-cg74 ,in the ,brhmana period we find ,vasishtha forming a family title for the whole ,vasishtha race still continuing as a ,gotra name1 and that these ,vasishthas continued as hereditary ,gurus and purohitas to the kings of the solar race from generation to generation under the same title4 ,the ,vasishthas were always the ,brahmanas or ,high priests in every ceremony1 which could not be held by other ,brhmanas according to the ,sta patha ,brhmana 7,mll4 ,id4 page #ib72 and particularly the ,indra ceremony had always to be performed by a ,vasishtha1 because it was revealed to their ancestor the sage ,vasishtha only 7,web4 ,ind4 ,lit4 p4 #abc72 and as the ,stapatha ,brhmana-,taittiriya ,sanhit mentions it4 8,the ,rishis do not see ,indra clearly1 but ,vasishtha saw him4 ,indra said1 ,i will tell you1 ,o ,brhman1 so that all men who are born1 will have a ,vasishtha for his ,purohita0 7,max ,mll4 ,anc4 ,sans4 ,lit4 p4 #ib4 ,web4 ,id4 p4 #abc74 ,this will show that the ,sloka works1 which are attributed to ,vasishtha1 ,yjnavalkya or any other ,vedic ,rishi1 could not be the composition of the old ,rishis1 but of some one of their posterity2 though they might have been propounded by the eldest sages1 and then put to writing by oral communication or successive tradition by a distant descendant or disciple of the primitive ,rishis4 ,thus we see the ,drhyyana ,sutras of the ,sama ,veda is also called the ,vasishtha ,sutras1 from the author's family name of ,vasishtha 7,web4 ,id4 p4 #gi74 ,the svalyana ,grihya ,sutra assigns some other works to ,vasishtha1 viz41 the ,vasishtha pragth1 probably ,vashishtha ,hymni of ,bopp2 the ,pavamnya1 ,kshudra sukta1 ,mahsukta c4 written in the vedic style4 ,there are two other works attributed to ,vasishtha1 the ,vasishtha ,sanhit on ,astronomy 7,web4 ,id4 p4 #beh7 and the ,vasishtha ,smriti on ,law 7,web4 ,id4 p4 #cbj71 which from their compositions in ,sanscrit slokas1 could not be the language or work of the ,vedic ,rishi1 but of some one late member of that family4 ,thus our work of ,yoga ,vasishtha has no claim or pretension to its being the composition of the ,vedic sage2 but as one propounded by the sage1 and written by ,vlmiki in his modern ,sanskrit4 ,here the question is whether ,vasishtha the preceptor of ,rma1 was the ,vedic ,vasishtha or one of his descendants1 ,i must leave for others to determine4 ,again in the later ranyaka period we have an account of a theologian ,vasishtha given in the rshikopanishad1 as holding a dialogue on the nature of tm or soul between the sages1 ,viswmitra1 ,jamadagni1 ,bharadwja1 ,gautama and himself2 when ,vasishtha appealing to the opinion of ,kapila obtained their assent 7,weber ,id4 p4 #afb74 ,this appears very probably to be the theological author of our yoga1 and eminent above his contemporaries in his knowledge of the ,kapila yoga sstra which was then current1 from this sage's having been a contemporary with king ,sagara1 a predecessor of ,rama4 ,in the latest ,stra period we find a passage in the ,grihya-,stra-parisishta1 about the distinctive mark of the ,vasishtha ,family from those of the other parishads or classes of the priesthood4 ,it says2 8,the ,vasishthas wear a braid 7lock of hair7 on the right side1 the treyas wear three braids1 the ,angiras have five braids1 the ,bhrigus are bald1 and all others have a single crest10 7,mller ,id4 p4 #ec74 ,the ,karma pradpa says1 8the ,vasishthas exclude meat from their sacrifice2 0 7,mller ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 p4 #ed71 and the colour of their dress was white 7,id4 p4 #dhc74 ,many ,vasishthas are named in different works as2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 and some others1 bearing no other connection with our author1 than that of their having been members of the same family 7,mller's ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 p4 #dd74 ,without dilating any longer with further accounts relating to the sage ,vasishtha of which many more might be gathered from various sastras1 ,i shall add in the conclusion the following notice which is taken of this work by ,professor ,monier ,williams in his work on ,indian ,wisdom p4 #cgj4 8,there is10 says he1 8a remarkable work called ,vasishtha ,rmyana or ,yoga ,vsishtha or ,vasishtha ,mahrmyana in the form of an exhortation1 with illustrative narratives addressed by ,vasishtha to his pupil the youthful ,rma1 on the best means of attaining true happiness1 and considered to have been composed as an appendage to the ,rmyana by ,vlmiki himself4 ,there is another work of the same nature called the ,adhytma ,rmyana which is attributed to ,vysa1 and treat of the moral and theological subjects connected with the life and acts of that great hero of ,indian history4 ,many other works are extant in the vernacular dialects having the same theme for their subject which it is needless to notice in this place40 ,vasishtha1 known as the wisest of sages1 like ,solomon the wisest of men1 and ,aurelius the wisest of emperors1 puts forth in the first part and in the mouth of ,rma the great question of the vanity of the world1 which is shown synthetically to a great length from the state of all living existences1 the instinct1 inclinations1 and passions of men1 the nature of their aims and objects1 with some discussions about destiny1 necessity1 activity and the state of the soul and spirit4 ,the second part embraces various directions for the union of the individual with the universal ,abstract ,existence--the ,supreme ,spirit--the subjective and the objective truth--and the common topics of all speculative philosophy4 ,thus says ,milton2 8,the end of learning is to know ,god40 ,so the ,persian adage1 8,akhiral ilm buad ilmi ,khod40 ,such also the ,sanskrit1 8,svidy tan matir yay40 ,and the sruti says1 8,yad jntw nparan jnnam40 i4 e4 8,it is that which being known1 there is nothing else required to be known40 ,,footnotes3 #a ,dr4 ,rajendra ,lala ,mitra in ,bengal1 ,benares and ,orissa2 ,dr4 ,buhler in ,guzrat2 ,dr4 ,kielhorn in the ,central ,provinces2 ,dr4 ,burnell and other ,collectors of ,sanskrit manuscripts in the ,presidencies of ,bombay1 ,madras and ,oudh1 whose notices and catalogues have highly contributed to bring the hidden treasures of the literature of this country to light4 ---------------------------------------- -------------------------------- ,,contents ,,of ,,the ,,first ,,volume4 ,,prolegomena4 ,,prol4 ,,page4 #a4 ,the ,yoga ,philosophy 0 #a #b4 ,the ,om ,tat ,sat 0 #cd ,,vair,,gya ,,khanda4 ,,book ,i4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,introduction4 ,page ,,section ,i4 ,divine ,adoration #a ,,section ,,ii4 ,narrative of ,sutkshna #a ,,section ,,iii4 ,anecdote of ,krunya #b ,,section ,,iv4 ,story of ,suruchi #c ,,section ,v4 ,account of ,arishtanemi #c ,,section ,,vi4 ,history of ,rma #f ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,reason of writing the ,rmyana #h ,,section ,i ,persons entitled to its ,perusal #h ,,section ,,ii4 ,brahm's ,behest #i ,,section ,,iii4 ,inquiry of ,bharadwja #aj ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,vlmki's ,admonition #ab ,,section ,i4 ,on ,true ,knowledge #ab ,,section ,,ii4 ,early ,history of ,rma #ac ,,section ,,iii4 ,rma's ,pilgrimage #ae ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,rma's ,return from ,pilgrimage #ag ,,chapter ,v4 ,of ,rma's ,self-,dejection and its ,cause #ai ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,advent of ,viswmitra to the ,royal ,court #ba ,,section ,,ii4 ,address of ,king-,dasaratha #bd ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,viswmitra's ,request for ,rma #bf ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,dasaratha's ,reply to ,viswmitra #bi ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,viswmitra's ,wrath and his ,enraged ,speech #cc ,,chapter ,x4 ,melancholy of ,rma #cf ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,consolation of ,rma #da ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,rma's ,reply #de ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,vituperation of ,riches #dh ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,depreciation of ,human ,life #ej ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,obloquy of ,egoism #ec ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,the ,ungovernableness of the ,mind #ef ,,chapter ,,xvii4 ,on ,cupidity #ei ,,chapter ,,xviii4 ,obloquy of the ,body #fd ,,chapter ,,xix4 ,blemishes of ,boyhood #gj ,,chapter ,,xx4 ,vituperation of ,youth #gc ,,chapter ,,xxi4 ,vituperation of ,women #gg ,,chapter ,,xxii4 ,obloquy of ,old ,age #ha ,,chapter ,,xxiii4 ,vicissitudes of ,times #he ,,chapter ,,xxiv4 ,ravages of ,time #ij ,,chapter ,,xxv4 ,sports of ,death #ia ,,chapter ,,xxvi4 ,the ,acts of ,destiny #ie ,,chapter ,,xxvii4 ,vanity of the ,world #ajj ,,chapter ,,xxviii4 ,mutability of the ,world #aje ,,chapter ,,xxix4 ,unreliableness of ,worldly ,things #aji ,,chapter ,,xxx4 ,self-,disparagement #aab ,,chapter ,,xxxi4 ,queries of ,rma #aae ,,chapter ,,xxxii4 ,praises of ,rma's ,speech #aah ,,chapter ,,xxxiii4 ,association of ,aerial and ,earthly ,beings #aba ,,book ,,ii4 ,,mumukshu ,,khanda4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,page ,liberation of ,sukadeva #abg ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,speech of ,viswmitra #acb ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,on the ,repeated ,creations of the ,world #ace ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,praise ,of ,acts and ,exertions #aci ,,chapter ,v4 ,necessity of ,activity #adb ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,refutation of ,fatalism #ade ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,on the ,necessity of ,activity #aej ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,invalidation of ,destiny #aed ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,investigation of ,acts #aeg ,,chapter ,x4 ,descension of ,knowledge #afa ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,on the qualifications of the ,inquirer and ,lecturer #aff ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,greatness of ,true ,knowledge #agc ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,on ,peace and ,tranquility of mind #agf ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,on the ,ascertainment of an argument #ahd ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,on ,contentment #ahi ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,on ,good ,conduct #aia ,,chapter ,,xvii4 ,on the ,contents of the ,work #aie ,,chapter ,,xviii4 ,ascertainment of the ,example or ,major ,proposition #bja ,,chapter ,,xix4 ,ascertainment of ,true ,evidence #bjh ,,chapter ,,xx4 ,on ,good ,conduct #bab ,,book ,,iii4 ,,utpatti ,,khanda4 ,,evolution ,,of ,,the ,,world4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,causes ,,of ,,bondage ,,to ,,it4 ,,section ,i4 ,page ,exordium #bae ,,section ,,ii4 ,worldly ,bondage #baf ,,section ,,iii4 ,phases of ,the ,spirit #baf ,,section ,,iv4 ,nature of ,bondage #bah ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,first ,,cause4 ,,section ,i4 ,narrative of the ,air-born and ,aeriform ,brhman #bbc ,,section ,,ii4 ,state of the ,soul #bbd ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,causes of ,bondage in the ,body #bbi ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,,section ,i4 ,description of the ,night-,fall #bcd ,,section ,,ii4 ,nature of the ,mind #bcg ,,section ,,iii4 ,kaivalya or ,mental ,abstraction #bci ,,chapter ,v4 ,on the ,original ,cause #bdc ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,admonition for attempt of ,liberation #bdf ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,recognition of the ,nihility of the ,phenomenal ,world #bdi ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,nature of good ,sstras #bee ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,on the ,supreme cause of ,all #beg ,,chapter ,x4 ,description of the ,chaotic ,state #bff ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,spiritual ,view of ,creation #bgc ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,the ,idealistic ,theo-,cosmogony of ,vednta #bgg ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,on the ,production of the ,self-,born #bha ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,establishment of ,brahma #bhh ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,story of the ,temple and its ,prince #bii ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,joy and ,grief of the ,princess #cjc ,,chapter ,,xvii4 ,story of the ,doubtful ,realm or ,reverie of ,ll #cji ,,section ,i4 ,description of the ,court ,house and the ,cortes #cac ,,chapter ,,xviii4 ,exposure of the ,errors of this ,world #cae ,,chapter ,,xix4 ,story of a ,former ,vasishtha and his ,wife #cai ,,chapter ,,xx4 ,,section ,i ,the ,moral of the ,tale of ,ll #cbb ,,section ,,ii4 ,state of ,the ,human ,soul after ,death #cbe ,,chapter ,,xxi4 ,guide to ,peace #cbh ,,chapter ,,xxii4 ,practice of ,wisdom or ,wisdom in ,practice #ccf ,,section ,i4 ,abandonment of ,desires #ccf ,,section ,,ii4 ,on the ,practice of ,yoga #cch ,,chapter ,,xxiii4 ,the ,aerial ,journey of ,spiritual ,bodies #cdj ,,chapter ,,xxiv4 ,the ,aerial ,journey 7continued7 #cdb ,,section ,,ii4 ,description of the ,heavens #cdc ,,chapter ,,xxv4 ,description of the ,earth #cdi ,,chapter ,,xxvi4 ,meeting the ,siddhas #cec ,,chapter ,,xxvii4 ,past lives of ,ll #cei ,,chapter ,,xxviii4 ,,section ,i4 ,exposition of ,ll's ,vision #cfe ,,section ,,ii4 ,description of the ,mountainous ,habitation #cff ,,chapter ,,xxix4 ,account of the ,previous ,life of ,ll #cgb ,,chapter ,,xxx4 ,description of the ,mundane ,egg #cgh ,,chapter ,,xxxi4 ,,section ,i4 ,alighting of the ,ladies on ,earth #chb ,,section ,,ii4 ,sight of a ,battle ,array in ,earth and ,air #chc ,,chapter ,,xxxii4 ,onset of the ,war #chf ,,chapter ,,xxxiii4 ,commingled ,fighting #chi ,,chapter ,,xxxiv4 ,description of the ,battle #cib ,,chapter ,,xxxv4 ,description of the ,battlefield #cih ,,chapter ,,xxxvi4 ,,section ,i4 ,collision of ,equal ,arms and ,armigerents #dja ,,section ,,ii4 ,catalogue of the ,forces #djc ,,chapter ,,xxxvii4 ,catalogue of the ,forces 7continued7 #djh ,,chapter ,,xxxviii4 ,cessation of the ,war #dad ,,chapter ,,xxxix4 ,description of ,the ,battle ,field ,infested by ,nocturnal ,fiends #dbj ,,chapter ,,xl4 ,reflections on ,human ,life and ,mind #dbc ,,chapter ,,xli4 ,discrimination of ,error #dca ,,chapter ,,xlii4 ,philosophy of ,dreaming #dch ,,chapter ,,xliii4 ,burning of the ,city #ddb ,,chapter ,,xliv4 ,spiritual ,interpretation of the ,vision #ddh ,,chapter ,,xlv4 ,theism consisting in ,true ,knowledge #ded ,,chapter ,,xlvi4 ,onslaught of ,vidratha #deg ,,chapter ,,xlvii4 ,encounter of ,sindhu and ,vidratha #dfa ,,chapter ,,xlviii4 ,description of ,daivstras or ,supernatural ,weapons #dfe ,,chapter ,,xlix4 ,description of other kinds of ,weapons #dgc ,,chapter ,l4 ,death of ,vidratha #dgg ,conclusion #dhb ,genealogy #dhe ,,the ,,yoga ,,philosophy4 ,the ,yoga or contemplative philosophy of the ,hindus1 is rich1 exuberant1 grand and sublime1 in as much as it comprehends within its ample sphere and deep recesses of meditation1 all that is of the greatest value1 best interest and highest importance to mankind1 as physical1 moral1 intellectual and spiritual beings--a knowledge of the cosmos--of the physical and intellectual worlds4 ,it is rich in the almost exhaustless treasure of works existing on the subject in the sacred and vernacular languages of the country both of ancient and modern times4 ,it is exuberant in the profusion of erudition and prolixity of ingenuity displayed in the ,yoga philosophy of ,patanjali1 commensurate with the extraordinary calibre of the author in his commentary of the ,mahbhshya on ,pnini 7,mller's ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 p4 #bce74 ,its grandeur is exhibited in the abstract and abstruse reflections and investigations of philosophers in the intellectual and spiritual worlds as far as human penetration has been able to reach4 ,and its sublimity is manifested in its aspiring disquisition into the nature of the human and divine souls1 which it aims to unite with the one self-same and all pervading spirit4 ,it has employed the minds of gods1 sages1 and saints1 and even those of heroes and monarchs1 to the exaltation of their natures above the rest of mankind1 and elevation of their dignities to the rank of gods1 as nothing less than a godly nature can approach and approximate that of the ,all-perfect ,divinity4 ,so says ,plato in his ,phaedras2 8,to contemplate these things is the privilege of the gods1 and to do so is also the aspiration of the immortal soul of man generally2 though only in a few cases is such aspiration realized40 ,the principal gods ,brahm and ,siva are represented as ,yogis1 the chief sages ,vysa1 ,vlmiki1 ,vasishtha and ,yjnavalkya were propounders of ,yoga systems2 the saints one and all were adepts in ,yoga2 the heroes ,rma and ,krishna were initiated in it1 and the kings ,dasaratha and ,janaka and their fellow prince ,buddha were both practitioners and preceptors of ,yoga4 ,mohammed held his nightly communions with ,god and his angels1 and ,jesus often went over the hills--there to pray and contemplate4 ,socrates had his demon to communicate with1 and in fact every man has his genius with whom he communes on all matters4 ,all this is ,yoga1 and so is all knowledge derived by intuition1 inspiration and revelation1 said to be the result of ,yoga4 ,,ii4 ,,sciences ,,connected ,,with ,,yoga ,the yoga philosophy1 while it treats of a variety of subjects1 is necessarily a congeries of many sciences in itself4 ,it is the ,hindu form of metaphysical argument for the existence of the #8,one ,eternal'--the ,platonic 8,reality40 ,it is ontology in as much as it teaches a priori the being of ,god4 ,it is psychology in its treatment of the doctrine of feelings and passions1 and it is morality in teaching us to keep them under control as brutal propensities1 for the sake of securing our final emancipation and ultimate restoration into the spirit of spirits4 ,thus it partakes of the nature of many sciences in treating of the particular subject of divinity4 ,the ,yoga in its widest sense of the application of the mind to any subject is both practical1 called kriy ,yoga1 as also theoretical1 known as ,jnna ,yoga2 and includes in itself the two processes of synthesis and analysis alike1 in its combination 7,yoga7 of things together1 and discrimination 7,viveka7 of one from the other1 in its inquiry into the nature of things 7,vastuvichra71 and investigation of their abstract essence called ,satynusandhnn4 ,it uses both the a priori 7prvavat7 and a posteriori 7paravat7 arguments to prove the existence of the world from its ,maker and the vice versa1 as indicated in the two aphorisms of induction and deduction ,yatov imani and ,janmadyasya yatah c4 ,it views both subjectively and objectively the one self in many and the many in one unto which all is to return1 by the two mysterious formulas of ,so ham and tat twam c4 ,it is the reunion of detached souls with the ,supreme that is the chief object of the ,yoga philosophy to effect by the aforesaid processes and other means1 which we propose fully to elucidate in the following pages2 and there is no soul we think so very reprobate1 that will feel disinclined to take a deep interest in them1 in order to effect its reunion with the main source of its being and the only fountain of all blessings4 ,on the contrary we are led to believe from the revival of the yoga-cult with the spiritualists and theosophists of the present day under the teachings of ,madame ,blavatsky and the lectures of ,col4 ,olcott1 that the ,indian public are beginning to appreciate the efficacy of ,yoga meditation1 and its practice gaining ground among the pious and educated men in this country4 ,notwithstanding the various significations of ,yoga and the different lights in which it is viewed by several schools1 as we shall see afterwards1 it is most commonly understood in the sense of the esoteric faith of the ,hindus1 and the occult adoration of ,god by spiritual meditation4 ,this is considered on all hands as the only means of one's ultimate liberation from the general doom of birth and death and the miseries of this world1 and the surest way towards the final absorption of one's-self in the ,supreme1--the highest state of perfection and the ,summum bonum of the ,hindu4 ,the subject of ,yoga ,vasishtha is no other than the effecting of that union of the human with the ,divine ,soul1 amidst all the trials and tribulations of life4 ,,iii4 ,,the ,,yoga ,,of ,,english ,,writers4 ,the yoga considered merely as a mode or system of meditation is variously described by ,european authors1 as we shall see below4 ,monier ,williams says 8,according to ,patanjali--the founder of the system1 the word yoga is interpreted to mean the act of 8fixing or concentration of the mind in abstract meditation04 ,its aim is to teach the means by which the human soul may attain complete union with the ,supreme ,soul1 and of effecting the complete fusion of the individual with the universal spirit even in the body01 ,indian ,wisdom p4 #ajb4 ,weber speaking of the yoga of the ,atharvan ,upanishads says2 8,it is the absorption in tman1 the stages of this absorption and the external means of attaining it40 ,again says he2 8,the yoga in the sense of union with the ,supreme ,being1 is absorption therein by means of meditation4 ,it occurs first in the latter ,upanishads1 especially the tenth book of the ,taittirya and the ,katha ,upanishads1 where the very doctrine is itself enunciated01 ,hist4 ,ind ,lit p4 #aec-aga4 ,mllins in his prize essay on ,vedanta says1 the ,sankhya yoga is the union of the body and mind1 p4 #ahc4 ,in its ,vedantic view1 it is the joining of the individual with the ,supreme ,spirit by holy communion of the one with the other through intermediate grades1 whereby the limited soul may be led to approach its unlimited fountain and lose itself in the same4 ,,iv4 ,,yoga-,,characteristic ,,of ,,the ,,hindus4 ,max ,mller characterises the ,hindu as naturally disposed to ,yoga or a contemplative turn of his mind for his final beatitude in the next life1 amidst all his cares1 concerns and callings in this world1 which he looks upon with indifference as the transient shadows of passing clouds1 that serve but to dim for a moment but never shut out from his view the full blaze of his luminous futurity4 ,this description is so exactly graphic of the ,hindu mind1 that we can not with-hold giving it entire as a mirror of the ,hindu mind to our readers on account of the scarcity of the work in this country4 8,the ,hindu0 says he 8enters the world as a stranger2 all his thoughts are directed to another world1 he takes no part even where he is driven to act1 and even when he sacrifices his life1 it is but to be delivered from it40 ,again 8,they shut their eyes to this world of outward seeming activity1 to open them full on the world of thought and rest4 ,their life was a yearning for eternity2 their activity was a struggle to return to that divine essence from which this life seemed to have severed them4 ,believing as they did in a really existing and eternal ,being to ontos-onton they could not believe in the existence of this passing world40 8,if the one existed1 the other could only seem to exist2 if they lived in the one they could not live in the other4 ,their existence on earth was to them a problem1 their eternal life a certainty4 ,the highest object of their religion was to restore that bond by which their own self 7tman7 was linked to the eternal self 7paramtman72 to recover that unity which had been clouded and obscured by the magical illusions of reality1 by the so-called ,my of creation40 8,it scarcely entered their mind to doubt or to affirm the immortality of the soul 7pretya-bhva74 ,not only their religion and literature1 but their very language reminded them daily of that relation between the real and seeming world40 7,hist ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 p4 #ah74 ,in the view of ,max ,mller as quoted above1 the ,hindu mind would seem to be of that realistic cast as the ,platonic1 whose theory of ,ontology viewed all existence as mere phantoms and precepta of sense1 and very short of that perfection1 which the mind realizes in its meditation or ,yoga reveries4 ,the ,hindu ,yogi views the visible world exactly in the same light as we have said before1 that ,plato has represented it in the simile commencing the seventh book of his ,republic4 8,he compares mankind to prisoners in a cave1 chained in one particular attitude1 so as to behold only an ever-varying multiplicity of shadows1 projected through the opening of the cave upon the wall before them1 by some unseen realities behind4 ,the philosopher alone1 who by training or inspiration1 is enabled to turn his face from these visions1 and contemplate with his mind1 that can at once see the unchangeable reality amidst these transient shadows01 ,baine on ,realism pp4 #f and #g4 ,v4 ,,various ,,significations ,,of ,,yoga4 ,the ,vchaspati lexicon gives us about fifty different meanings of the word ,yoga1 according to the several branches of art or science to which it appertains1 and the multifarious affairs of life in which the word is used either singly or in composition with others4 ,we shall give some of them below1 in order to prevent our mistaking any one of these senses for the special signification which the term is made to bear in our system of ,yoga meditation4 ,the word ,yoga from the root 8jung0 7,lat47 ,jungere means the joining of any two things or numbers together4 ,amara ,kosha gives five different meanings of it as1 2 the other ,koshas give five others1 viz41 #a4 ,in ,arithmetic it is or addition1 and is addition and subtraction4 #b4 ,in ,astronomy the conjunction of planets and stars #c4 ,in ,grammar it is the joining of letters and words #d4 ,in ,nyya it means the power of the parts taken together 1 #e4 ,in ,mmnsa it is defined to be the force conveyed by the united members of a sentence4 ,in contemplative philosophy it means2 #a4 ,according to ,ptanjali1--the suppression of mental functions #b4 ,the ,buddhists mean by it--the abstraction of the mind from all objects4 #c4 ,the ,vedanta meaning of it is-- the union of the human soul with the ,supreme spirit4 #d4 ,its meaning in the ,yoga system is nearly the same1 i4 e41 the joining of the vital spirit with the soul2 #e4 ,every process of meditation is called also as ,yoga4 ,others again use it in senses adapted to their own views and subjects2 such as the ,vaiseshika philosophy uses it to mean1 the fixing of the attention to only one subject by abstracting it from all others #b4 ,the ,rmnuja sect define it as the seeking of one's particular ,deity ,in this sense all sectarian cults are accounted as so many kinds of ,yogas by their respective votaries4 #c4 ,according to some ,buddhists it is the seeking of one's object of desire #d4 ,and with others1 it is a search after every desirable object4 #e4 ,in ,rhetoric it means the union of lovers ,in ,medicine it means the compounding of drugs under which head there are many works that are at first sight mistaken for ,yoga philosophy4 ,again there are many compound words with ,yoga which mean only 8a treatise0 on those subjects1 such as1 works on wisdom1 on ,acts1 on ,faith c41 are called 1 1 4 ,moreover the words ,yoga and ,viyoga are used to express the two processes of synthesis and analysis both in the abstract and practical sciences for the combination and disjoining of ideas and things4 ,,vi4 ,,the ,,different ,,stages ,,of ,,yoga4 ,the constituent parts and progressive steps of ,yoga1 are composed of a series of bodily1 mental and spiritual practices1 the proper exercise of which conduces to the making of a perfect man1 as a moral1 intellectual and spiritual being1 to be united to his ,maker in the present and future worlds4 ,these are called the eight stages of ,yoga 7 71 of which some are external 77 and others internal 774 ,the external ones are3 #ast4 ,yama 772 ,forbearance or restraint of passions1 feelings c41 including the best moral rules in all religions4 #bnd4 ,niyama 7 72 ,particular rules and vows for the observance of the ,yogi4 #crd4 ,asana 772 sedate position of the body to help deep meditation4 #dth4 ,prnyma 772 ,suppression and suspension of breath4 #eth4 ,pratyhra 771 ,restraint or control of senses and organs4 ,among the internal practices are reckoned the following2 viz42 #fth4 ,dhyna 772 ,inward contemplation and meditation4 #gth4 ,dhran 772 ,steadiness of the mind in study4 #hth4 ,samdhi 771 ,trance1 the last stage of ,yoga4 ,these again comprise some other acts under each of them1 such as2 ,i4 ,yama 77 ,restraint includes five acts under it2 #ast4 ,ahims 772 ,universal innocence or hurting no animal creature4 #bnd4 ,asteyam 772 ,avoidance of theft or stealth4 #crd4 ,satyam 772 ,observance of truth4 #dth4 ,brahmacharyam 772 consisting in purity and chastity4 #eth4 ,aparigraha 772 ,disinterestedness4 ,,ii4 ,niyama 7 72 ,moral rules consisting of five-fold acts4 ,viz42 #ast4 ,saucham 772 ,personal cleanliness4 #bnd4 ,santosha 772 contentment4 #crd4 ,tapas 772 ,devotion including self denial and self mortification4 #dth4 ,sdhyya 772 knowledge of all nature4 #eth4 ,pranidhna 7 72 ,adoration of ,god4 ,,iii4 ,asana 772 ,different modes of postures1 tranquil posture 77 c4 ,,iv4 ,prnyma 772 ,rules of ,respiration1 three sorts1 viz42 #ast4 ,rechaka 772 ,expiration or ,exhalation4 #bnd4 ,praka 772 ,inspiration or ,inhalation4 #crd4 ,kumbhaka 7 72 ,suppression of breathing1 eight ways4 ,v4 ,pratyhra 7 7 ,restraining the senses from their gratifications in many ways4 ,,vi4 ,dhyna 7 72 ,abstract contemplation1 apart from the testimonies of3-- #a4 ,pratyaxa 772 ,perceptions4 #b4 ,pramna 772 ,apprehensions4 #c4 ,anumna 772 ,inference4 #d4 ,sabda 772 ,verbal testimony4 ,,vii4 ,dhran 772 ,retentiveness4 ,,viii4 ,samdhi 772 ,absorption in meditation1 in two ways2 #a4 ,savikalpa 772 ,with retention of self volition4 #b4 ,nirvikalpa 772 ,with loss of volition4 ,the ,upyas 772 ,or the means spoken of before are2 #a4 ,uposhana 772 ,abstinence4 #b4 ,mitsana 772 ,temperance4 #c4 srama 772 ,sheltered abodes4 #d4 ,visrma 77 ,rest and repose from labor4 #e4 ,avarodha 772 ,self confinement in closets4 #f4 ,asanam 772 ,subsistence on light food4 ,beside these there are many vices called ,apyas or dshas 77 which are obstacles to meditation1 and which we omit on account of their prolixity4 ,,vii4 ,,nature ,,of ,,the ,,soul4 ,now as the end and aim of ,yoga is the emancipation of the ,soul1 it is necessary to give some account of the nature of the soul 7tmatatwa7 as far as it was known to the sages of ,india1 and formed the primary subject of inquiry with the wise men of every country according to the sayings2 8,gnothe seauton10 8,nosce teipsum10 8,know thyself01 8,khodra bedan10 and ,arabic 8,taalam ,nafsaka10 c4 8,the word ,atman10 says ,max ,mller1 8which in the ,veda occurs as often as 8twan10 meant life1 particularly animal life0 7,vide ,rig ,veda ,i4 #fc1 #h47 ,atm in the sense of self occurs also in the ,rig ,veda 7,i4 #afb4 #bj71 in the passage - 4 ,it is also found to be used in the higher sense of soul in the verse 8,the sun is the soul of all that moves and rests 7,r4 ,i4 #aae4 #a74 ,the highest soul is called paramtman 77 of which all other souls partake1 from which all reality in this created world emanates1 and into which every thing will return40 ,atman originally meant air as the ,greek atmos1 ,gothic ahma1 ,zend tmnam1 ,sanscrit and 1 ,cuniform adam1 ,persian dam1 whence we derive ,sans4 ,hindi ,uria and ,prakrit and ,bengali 1 c4 ,the ,greek and ,latin ego and ,german ich are all derived from the same source4 ,the ,romance je and ,hindi ji are corruptions of ,sanskrit meaning life and spirit4 ,again the ,pli and the ,prakrit is from the ,sanscrit 1 which is in ,hindi1 in ,bengali and in ,uria c4 ,the ,persian 8man0 is evidently the ,stman by elision of the initial syllable4 ,these meanings of tman the self and ego form the basis of the knowledge of the ,divine soul both of the ,hindu as of any other people1 who from the consciousness of their own selves rise to that of the ,supreme4 ,thus says ,max ,mller on the subject1 8,a ,hindu speaking of himself spoke also1 though unconsciously of the soul of the universe 1 and to know himself1 was to him to know both his own self and the ,universal soul1 or to know himself in the ,divine self40 ,we give below the different lights in which the ,divine soul was viewed by the different schools of ,hindu philosophy1 and adopted accordingly in their respective modes of ,yoga meditation4 ,the ,upanishads called it ,brahma of eternal and infinite wisdom ,the ,vedantists2--,a ,being full of intelligence and blissfulness ,the ,snkaras2--,a continued consciousness of one self4 ,the doctrine of ,descartes and ,malebranche4 ,the ,materialists--convert the soul to all material forms ,the ,lokyatas--take the body with intelligence to be the soul2 ,the ,chrvkas--call the organs and sensations as soul2 ,do4 ,another sect--take the cognitive faculties as such2 ,do4 ,others--,understand the mind as soul ,do4 ,others--call the vital breath as soul ,do4 ,others--understand the son as soul ,the ,digambaras--say1 the complete human body is the soul ,the ,mdhyamikas--take the vacuum for their soul ,the ,yogchris--understand the soul to be a transient flash of knowledge in the spirit in meditation4 ,the ,sautrntas--call it a short inferior knowledge4 ,the ,vaibhshikas--take it to be a momentary perception ,the ,jainas--take their preceptor to be their soul ,the ,logicians--,a bodiless active and passive agency ,the ,naiyyikas--understand the spirit to be self manifest ,the ,snkhyas1--call the spirit to be passive1 not active ,the ,yogis--call ,him a separate omnipotent ,being ,the ,saivas1--designate the spirit as knowledge itself ,the ,mayvdis1--style ,brahma as the soul ,the ,vaiseshikas1--acknowledge two souls--the ,vital and ,supreme ,the ,nyay says--because the soul is immortal there is a future state ,and thus there are many other theories about the nature of the soul4 ,the ,atmvdis--spiritualists1 consider the existence of the body as unnecessary to the existence of the soul4 ,,viii4 ,,final ,,emancipation ,,or ,,beatitude4 ,the object of ,yoga1 as already said1 being the emancipation of the soul from the miseries of the world1 and its attainment to a state of highest felicity1 it is to be seen what this state of felicity is1 which it is the concern of every man to know1 and which the ,yogi takes so much pains to acquire4 ,the ,vedantic ,yogi1 as it is well known1 aims at nothing less than in his absorption in the ,supreme ,spirit and loosing himself in infinite bliss4 ,but it is not so with others1 who are averse to loose the sense of their personal identity1 and look forward to a state of self existence either in this life or next1 in which they shall be perfectly happy4 ,the ,yogis of ,india have various states of this bliss which they aim at according to the faith to which they belong1 as we shall show below4 ,the ,vedantic ,yogi has two states of bliss in view2 viz42 the one inferior which is attained in this life by means of knowledge 1 and the other superior1 obtainable after many births of gradual advancement to perfection ,the ,chrvkas say1 that it is either independence or death that is bliss4 ,the ,mdhyamikas say2 it is extinction of self that is called liberation ,the ,vijnni philosophers--have it to be clear and elevated understanding ,the ,arhatas have it in deliverance from all veil and covering ,the ,myvdis say1 that it is removal of the error of one's separate existence as a particle of the ,supreme spirit ,the ,rmnujas called it to be the knowledge of ,vsudeva as cause of all1 ,the ,mdhyamikas have it for the perfect bliss enjoyed by ,vishnu ,the ,ballabhis expect it in sporting with ,krishna in heaven ,the ,psupatas and ,mheswaras place it in the possession of all dignity ,the ,kplikas place it in the fond embraces of ,hara and ,durga ,the ,pratyabhijnnis call it to be the perfection of the soul4 ,the ,raseswara ,vdis have it in the health of body produced by mercury ,the ,vaisesikas seek it in the extinction of all kinds of pain ,the ,mimnsakas view their happiness in heavenly bliss ,the ,sarvajnas say that1 it is the continued feeling of highest felicity ,the ,pnini philologers find it in the powers of speech ,the ,snkhyas find it in the union of force with matter ,the ,udsna ,atheists have it as consisting in the ignoring of self identity ,the ,ptanjalas view it in the unconnected unity of the soul ,the ,persian ,sufis call it zdigi or unattachment of the soul to any worldly object4 ,,ix4 ,,origin ,,of ,,yoga ,,in ,,the ,,vedas4 ,sidenote3 ,not in the ,vedic ,period4 ,the origin of yoga meditation is placed at a period comparatively less ancient than the earliest ,sanhita or hymnic period of vedic history1 when the ,rishis followed the elementary worship of the physical forces1 or the ,brahmanic age when they were employed in the ceremonial observances4 ,sidenote3 ,some ,traces of it4 ,there are however some traces of abstract contemplation 8dhyna yoga0 to be occasionally met with in the early ,vedas1 where the ,rishis are mentioned to have indulged themselves in such reveries4 ,thus in the ,rig ,veda--#abi4 #d4 8,the poets discovered in their heart1 through meditation1 the bond of the existing in the non-existing40 ,m4 ,mller4 ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 7p4 #ai47 ,sidenote3 ,the ,gyatr ,meditation4 ,we have it explicitly mentioned in the ,gyatr hymn of the ,rig ,veda1 which is daily recited by every ,brahman1 and wherein its author ,viswmitra 8meditated on the glory of the ,lord for the illumination of his understanding0 ,but this bespeaks a development of intellectual meditation 8jnana yoga0 only1 and not spiritual as there is no prayer for 77 liberation4 ,sidenote3 ranyaka ,period4 ,it was in the third or ranyaka period1 that the yoga came in vogue with the second class of the ,atharva ,upanishads1 presenting certain phases in its successive stages1 as we find in the following analysis of them given by ,professor ,weber in his ,history of ,ancient ,sanskrit ,literature4 ,this class of works1 he says1 is chiefly made up of subjects relating to yoga1 as consisting in divine meditation and giving up all earthly connections4 7,ibid p4 #afc74 ,sidenote3 ,yoga ,upanishads4 ,to this class belong the ,jbla1 ,katha--sruti1 ,bhallavi1 ,samvartasruti1 ,sannysa1 ,hansa and ,paramhansa ,upanishads1 ,srimaddatta1 the ,mndukya and ,tarkopanishads1 and a few others1 7,ibid4 p4 #afd74 ,it will exceed our bounds to give an account of the mode of yoga treated in these treatises1 which however may be easily gathered by the reader from a reference to the ,fifty two ,upanishads lately published in this city4 ,sidenote3 ,their different modes of yoga4 ,beside the above1 we find mention of yoga and the various modes of conducting it in some other ,upanishads1 as given below by the same author and analyst4 ,the ,kathopanishad or ,kathavall of the ,atharva ,veda1 treats of the first principles of ,deistic ,yoga4 ,ibid4 p4 #aeh4 ,the ,garbhopanishad speaks of the ,snkhya and ,ptanjali yoga systems as the means of knowing ,nryana4 7,ibid4 p4 #afj74 ,the ,brahmaopanishad1 says ,weber1 belongs more properly to the yoga ,upanishads spoken of before4 7,ibid4 p4 #afa74 ,the ,nirlambopanishad exhibits essentially the yoga stand point according to ,dr4 ,rajendra ,lala ,mitra 7,notices of ,s4 ,mss4 ,,ii #ie4 ,weber's ,id4 p4 #afb74 ,the yoga tatwa and yoga sikh belong to yoga also1 and depict the majesty of tm4 7,ibid4 p4 #afe74 ,among the ,sectarian ,upanishads will be found the ,nryanopanishad1 which is of special significance in relation to the ,snkhya and ,yoga doctrines 7,ibid4 p4 #aff74 ,sidenote3 ,snkhya and ,ptanjala ,yogas4 ,it is plain from the recurrence of the word ,snkhya in the later ,upanishads of the ,taittirya and ,atharva vedas and in the ,nirukta and ,bhagavad ,gt1 that the ,snkhya ,yoga was long known to the ancients1 and the ,ptanjala was a further development of it4 7,ibid4 p4 #acg74 ,sidenote3 ,yoga ,yjnavalkya4 ,along with or prior to ,ptanjali comes the ,yoga ,sstra of ,yogi ,yjnavalkya1 the leading authority of the ,stapatha ,brhmana1 who is also regarded as a main originator of the yoga doctrine in his later writings4 7,ibid4 p4 #bcg74 ,yjnavalkya speaks of his obtaining the ,yoga ,sstra from the sun1 8,he who wishes to attain yoga must know the ranyaka which ,i have received from the sun1 and the ,yoga sstra which ,i have taught40 ,x4 ,,rise ,,of ,,the ,,heretical ,,yogas4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,buddhist and ,jain ,yogas4 ,beside the ,orthodox yoga systems of the ,upanishads1 we have the ,heterodox ,yoga ,sastras of the ,buddhists and ,jains completely concordant with those of ,yjnavalkya in the ,brihad ranyaka and ,atharvan ,upanishads1 7,weber's ,id4 p4 #bhe74 ,sidenote3 ,the concordance with the ,vedantic4 ,the points of coincidence of the vednta yoga with those of ,buddhism and ,jainism1 consist in as much as both of them inculcate the doctrine of the interminable metempsychosis of the human soul1 as a consequence of bodily acts1 previous to its state of final absorption or utter annihilation1 according to the difference in their respective views4 ,or to explain it more clearly they say that1 8,the state of humanity in its present1 past and future lives1 is the necessary result of its own acts 8,karma0 in previous births40 ,sidenote3 ,the weal or woe of mankind4 ,that misery or happiness in this life is the unavoidable sequence of conduct in former states of existence1 and that our present actions will determine our states to come2 that is1 their weal or woe depending solely on the merit or demerit of acts4 ,it is1 therefore1 one's cessation from action by confining himself to holy meditation1 that secures to him his final absorption in the supreme according to the one2 and by his nescience of himself that ensures his utter extinction according to the other4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,purnic yoga4 ,in the ,purnic period we get ample accounts of yoga and yogis4 ,the ,kurma purana gives a string of names of yoga teachers4 ,the practice of yoga is frequently alluded to in the ,vana parva of ,mahbhrata4 ,the observances of yoga are detailed at considerable length and strenuously enjoined in the ,udyoga parva of the said epic4 ,besides in modern times we have accounts of yogis in the ,sakuntala of ,klidsa 7,,vii4 #age7 and in the ,mdhava ,mlati of ,bhava-bhti 7act ,v474 ,the ,rmayana gives an account of a ,sdra yogi1 and the ,bhgavatgt treats also of yoga as necessary to be practiced 7chap4 ,,vi4 ,v4 #ac74 ,sidenote3 ,the ,tntrika yoga4 ,the ,tantras or cabalistic works of modern times are all and every one of them no other than yoga sastras1 containing directions and formulas for the adoration of innumerable deities for the purpose of their votaries' attainment of consummation 8,yoga ,siddhi0 through them4 ,it is the ,tntrika yoga which is chiefly current in ,bengal1 though the old forms may be in use in other parts of the country4 ,it is reckoned with the heretical systems1 because the processes and practices of its yoga are mostly at variance with the spiritual yoga of old4 ,it has invented many mdras or masonic signs1 monograms and mysterious symbols1 which are wholly unintelligible to the yogis of the old school1 and has the carnal rites of the pancha-makra for immediate consummation which a spiritualist will feel ashamed to learn 7,see ,wilson4 ,h4 ,religion74 ,sidenote3 ,the ,hatha ,yoga4 ,this system1 which as its name implies consists of the forced contortions of the body in order to subdue the hardy boors to quiescence1 is rather a training of the body than a mental or spiritual discipline of a moral and intelligent being for the benefit of the rational soul4 ,the votaries of this system are mostly of a vagrant and mendicant order1 and subject to the slander of foreigners1 though they command veneration over the ignorant multitude4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,sectarian yogas4 ,the modern sectarians in upper ,hindustan1 namely the followers of ,rmnuja1 ,gorakhnth1 ,nnak1 ,kabir and others1 possess their respective modes of yoga1 written in the dialects of ,hindi1 for their practice in the maths or monasteries peculiar to their different orders4 ,sidenote3 ,yoga an indigene of ,india4 ,lux-ab-oriens4 8,light from the east30 and ,india has given more light to the west than it has derived from that quarter4 ,we see ,india in ,greece in many things1 but not ,greece in ,india in any4 ,and when we see a correspondence of the ,asiatic with the ,european1 we have more reason to suppose its introduction to the west by its travellers to the east1 since the days of ,alexander the ,great1 than the ,indians' importation of any thing from ,europe1 by crossing the seas which they had neither the means nor privilege to do by the laws of their country4 ,whatever1 therefore1 the ,indian has is the indigenous growth of the land1 or else they would be as refined as the productions of ,europe are generally found to be4 ,sidenote3 ,its ,european forms c4 ,professor ,monier ,williams speaking of the yoga philosophy says2 8,the votaries of animal magnetism1 clairvoyance and so called spiritualism1 will find most of their theories represented or far outdone by corresponding notions existing in the yoga system for more than two thousand years ago40 ,in speaking of the ,vedanta he declares2 8,the philosophy of the ,sufis1 alleged to be developed out of the ,koran1 appears to be a kind of pantheism very similar to that of the ,vedanta40 ,he has next shewn the correspondence of its doctrines with those of ,plato4 ,again he says about the ,snkhya2 8,it may not be altogether unworthy of the attention of ,darwinians0 7,ind4 ,wisdom74 ,sidenote3 ,the yoga c4 in ,greece4 ,the ,dialectic ,nyya in the opinion of ,sir ,william ,jones expressed in his ,discourse on ,hindu philosophy1 was taken up by the followers of ,alexander and communicated by them to ,aristotle3 and that ,pythagoras derived his doctrine of ,metempsychosis from the ,hindu yoga in his travels through ,india4 ,his philosophy was of a contemplative cast from the sensible to the immaterial ,intelligibles4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,gnostic yoga4 ,weber says2 8,the most flourishing epoch of the ,snkhya-yoga1 belongs most probably to the first centuries of our eras1 the influence it exercised upon the development of gnosticism in ,asia ,minor being unmistakable2 while further both through that channel and afterwards directly also1 it had an important influence upon the growth of ,sophi-philosophy0 7,see ,lassen ,i4 ,a4 ,k4 ,gildemeister1 ,scrip4 ,arab4 de rebus indicis loci et opuscula47 ,sidenote3 ,yoga among ,moslems4 ,it was at the beginning of the #aath century that ,albiruni translated ,ptanjali's work 7,yoga-,stra7 into ,arabic1 and it would appear the ,snkhya ,stras also2 though the information we have of the contents of these works1 do not harmonize with the sanskrit originals4 7,reinaud ,journal ,asiatique and ,h4 ,m4 ,elliot ,mahomedan ,history of ,india4 ,weber's ,ind4 ,lit4 p4 #bci74 ,sidenote3 ,buddhistic ,yoga in ,europe4 ,the ,gnostic doctrines derived especially from ,buddhistic missions through ,persia and ,punjab1 were spread over ,europe1 and embraced and cultivated particularly by ,basilides1 ,valentinian1 and ,bardesanes as well as ,manes4 ,sidenote3 ,manechian ,doctrines4 ,it is1 however1 a question as to the amount of influence to be ascribed to ,indian philosophy generally1 in shaping these gnostic doctrines of ,manes in particular1 was a most important one1 as has been shown by ,lassen ,,iii4 #dae4 ,beal4 ,i4 ,r4 ,a4 ,s4 ,,ii4 #dbd4 ,web4 ,ind4 ,lit4 p4 #cji4 ,sidenote3 ,buddhist and ,snkhya yogas4 ,it must be remembered that ,buddhism and its yoga are but offshoots of ,snkhya yoga1 and sprung from the same place the ,kapila ,vstu4 ,,xii4 ,,different ,,aspects ,,of ,,yoga4 ,sidenote3 ,varieties of yoga4 ,the ,yoga system will be found1 what ,monier ,williams says of ,hinduism at large1 8to present its spiritual and material aspects1 its esoteric and exoteric1 its subjective and objective1 its pure and impure sides to the observer40 8,it is10 he says1 8at once vulgarly pantheistic1 severely monotheistic1 grossly polytheistic and coldly atheistic4 ,it has a side for the practical and another for the devotional and another for the speculative40 ,again says he2 8,those1 who rest in ceremonial observances1 find it all satisfying2 those1 who deny the efficacy of works and make faith the one thing needful1 need not wander from its pale2 those1 who delight in meditating on the nature of ,god and man1 the relation of matter and spirit1 the mystery of separate existence and the origin of evil1 may here indulge their love of speculation40 7,introduction to ,indian ,wisdom p4 xxvii47 ,we shall treat of these seriatim1 by way of notes to or interpretation of the above1 as applying to the different modes of yoga practised by these several orders of sectarians4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,spiritual yoga4 ,that the earliest form of yoga was purely spiritual1 is evident from the ,upanishads1 the ,vednta doctrines of ,vysa and all works on the knowledge of the soul 7adhytma ,vidy74 8,all the early ,upanishads01 says ,weber1 8teach the doctrine of atm-spirit1 and the later ones deal with yoga meditation to attain complete union with tm or the ,supreme ,spirit40 ,web4 ,ind4 ,lit4 p4 #aef4 8,the tm soul or self and the supreme spirit 7paramtm7 of which all other souls partake1 is the spiritual object of meditation 7yoga740 ,max ,mller's ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 p4 #bj4 ,yajnavalkya says2 8,the ,divine ,spirit is to be seen1 heard1 perceived and meditated upon c40 ,if we see1 hear1 perceive and know ,him1 then this whole universe is known to us4 ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 p4 #bc4 ,again1 8,whosoever looks for ,brahmahood elsewhere than in the ,divine ,spirit1 should be abandoned4 ,whosoever looks for ,kshatra power elsewhere than in the ,divine ,spirit1 should be abandoned4 ,this ,brahmahood1 this ,kshatra power1 this world1 these gods1 these beings1 this universe1 all is ,divine ,spirit40 ,ibid4 ,the meaning of the last passage is evidently that1 the spirit of ,god pervades the whole1 and not that these are ,god2 for that would be pantheism and materialism2 whereas the ,sruti says that1 8,god is to be worshipped in spirit and not in any material object40 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,the ,materialistic yoga4 ,the materialistic side of the yoga1 or what is called the ,prkritika yoga1 was propounded at first in the ,snkhya yoga system1 and thence taken up in the ,purnas and ,tantras1 which set up a primeval matter as the basis of the universe1 and the purusha or animal soul as evolved out of it1 and subsisting in matter4 ,weber's ,ind4 ,lit4 p4 #bce4 ,sidenote3 ,of ,matter--,prakriti4 ,here1 the avyakta--matter is reckoned as prior to the purusha or animal soul2 whereas in the ,vednta the purusha or primeval soul is considered as prior to the avyakta-matter4 ,the ,snkhya1 therefore1 recognizes the adoration of matter as its yoga1 and its founder ,kapila was a yogi of this kind4 ,later materialists meditate on the material principles and agencies as the causes of all1 as in the ,vidyanmoda ,tarangin2 ,sidenote3 ,of ,spirit--,purusha4 ,these agencies were first viewed as concentrated in a male form1 as in the persons of ,buddha1 ,jina and ,siva1 as described in the ,kumra ,sambhava 2 and when in the female figure of ,prakriti or nature personified1 otherwise called ,saktirup or the personification of energy1 as in the ,devi mhtmya2 c4 ,they were afterwards viewed in the five elements panchabhta1 which formed the elemental worship of the ancients1 either singly or conjointly as in the pancha-bhutik upsan1 described in the ,sarva darsana sangraha4 ,sidenote3 ,nature worship in eight forms4 ,the materialistic or nature worship was at last diversified into eight forms called ashta mrti1 consisting of earth1 water1 fire1 air1 sky1 sun1 moon1 and the sacrificial priest1 which were believed to be so many forms of ,god sa1 and forming the objects of his meditation also4 ,the eight forms are summed up in the lines2 or as it is more commonly read in ,bengal1 ,that they were forms of sa is thus expressed by ,klidsa in the ,raghu-vansa2 2 and that they were meditated upon by him as expressed by the same in his ,kumra ,sambhava2 ,the prologue to the ,sakuntal will at once prove this great poet to have been a materialist of this kind2 thus2 8,water the first work of the creator1 and ,fire which receives the oblations ordained by law c4 c4 ,may sa1 the ,god of ,nature1 apparent in these forms1 bless and sustain you40 ,besides all this the ,sivites of the present day1 are found to be votaries of this materialistic faith in their daily adoration of the eight forms of ,siva in the following formula of their ritual2 ,both the ,snkhya and ,saiva materialism are deprecated in orthodox works as atheistic and heretical1 like the impious doctrines of the modern positivists and materialists of ,europe1 on account of their disbelief in the existence of a personal and spiritual ,god4 ,thus says1 ,kumrila2 7,max ,mller's ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 p4 #gh47 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the ,esoteric 8,jnna yoga40 ,it is the occult and mystic meditation of the ,divinity1 practised by religious recluses after their retirement from the world in the deep recesses of forests1 according to the teachings of the ranyakas of the ,vedas4 ,in this sense it is called 8,alaukika0 or recluse1 as opposed to the 8laukika0 or the popular form4 ,it is as well practicable in domestic circles by those that are qualified to practise the 8,jnna yoga0 77 or transcendental speculation at their leisure4 ,of the former kind were the ,rishis ,ska deva1 ,yjnavalkya and others1 and of the latter sort were the royal personages ,janaka and other kings and the sages ,vasistha1 ,vysa and many more of the 8munis40 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,the ,exoteric ,rja yoga4 ,this is the 8laukika0 or popular form of devotion practised chiefly by the outward formulae--vahirangas of yoga1 with observance of the customary rites and duties of religion4 ,the former kind called ,vidy 77 and the latter ,avidy 771 are enjoined to be performed together in the ,veda1 which says3 c4 ,the ,bhagavadgit says to the same effect1 4 ,the yoga ,vsishtha inculcates the same doctrine in conformity with the ,sruti which says3 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,the ,subjective or ,hansa yoga4 ,the hansa or paramahansa yoga is the subjective form1 which consists in the perception of one's identity with that of the supreme being1 whereby men are elevated above life and death4 7,weber's ,ind4 ,lit4 p4 #aeg47 ,the formula of meditation is 8soham1 hansah0 7 7 ,i am ,he1 ,ego sum ,is1 and the ,arabic 8,anal ,haq02 wherein the ,ego is identified with the absolute4 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,the objective word ,tattwamasi4 ,the objective side of yoga is clearly seen in its formula of tat twam asi--8thou art ,he40 ,here 8thou0 the object of cognition--a non ego1 is made the absolute subjective 7,weber4 ,ind4 ,lit4 p4 #afb74 ,this formula is reduced to one word tatwam denoting 8truth10 which contained in viewing every thing as ,himself1 or having subordinated all cosmical speculations to the objective method4 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,the ,pure yoga-,suddha ,brahmacharyam4 ,the pure ,yoga has two meanings viz42 the holy and unmixed forms of it4 ,the former was practised by the celibate ,brahmachris and ,brahmachrinis of yore1 and is now in practice with the ,knphutta yogis and yoginis of ,katiyawar in ,guzerat and ,bombay4 ,its unmixed form is found among the ,brahmavdis and ,vdinis1 who practise the pure contemplative yoga of ,vednta without any intermixture of sectarian forms4 ,it corresponds with the philosophical mysticism of saint ,bernard1 and the mystic devotion of the ,sufis of ,persia4 7,see ,sir ,wm4 ,jones4 ,on the ,mystic ,poetry of the ,hindus1 ,persians and ,greeks47 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,the ,impure or ,bhanda yoga4 ,the impure yoga in both its significations of unholiness and intermixture1 is now largely in vogue with the followers of the tantras1 the worshippers of ,siva and ,sakti1 the modern ,gosavis of ,deccan1 the ,bullabhchris of ,brindaban1 the ,gosains1 ,bhairavis and ,vaishnava sects in ,india1 the ,aghoris of ,hindustan1 and the ,kartbhajs and ,ner-neris of ,bengal4 ,sidenote3 #i4 ,the ,pantheistic or ,visvtm yoga4 ,this is well known from the pantheistic doctrines of ,vednta1 to consist in the meditation of every thing in ,god and ,god in every thing2 8,sarvam khalvidam ,brahama0 2 and that such contemplation alone leads to immortality4 ,it corresponds with the pantheism of ,persian ,sufis and those of ,spinoza and ,tindal in the west4 ,even ,sadi says2 8,hamn nestand unche hasti tui10 there is nothing else but thyself4 ,so in ,urdu1 ,jo kuch hai ohi hai nahin aur kuchh4 ,sidenote3 #aj4 ,the ,monotheistic or ,adwaita ,brahma yoga4 ,it consists in the meditation of the creed of the ,brahmans1 like the 8,wahed ,ho0 of ,moslems1 and that ,god is one of ,unitarian ,christians4 ,the monotheistic yoga is embodied in the ,svetswatara and other ,upanishads 7,weber p4 #beb a74 ,as for severe monotheism the ,mosaic and ,moslem religions are unparalleled1 whose tenet it is 8la sharik laho0 one without a partner2 and1 8,thou shalt have no other ,god but ,me40 ,sidenote3 #aa4 ,the ,dualistic or ,dwaita yoga4 ,the dualistic yoga originated with ,patanjali1 substituting his ,isvara for the ,purusha of ,snkhya1 and taking the ,prakriti as his associate4 8,from these10 says ,weber1 8the doctrine seems to rest substantially upon a dualism of the ,purusha male and avyakta or ,prakriti--the female40 ,this has also given birth to the dualistic faith of the androgyne divinity--the ,protogonus of the ,greek mythology1 the ardhanriswara of ,manu1 the undivided ,adam of the scriptures1 the ,hara-,gauri and ,um-,maheswara of the ,hindu ,sktas4 ,but there is another dualism of two male duties joined in one person of ,hari-hara or ,hara-hari2 whose worshippers are called dwaita-vdis1 and among whom the famous grammarian ,vopadeva ranks the foremost4 ,sidenote3 #ab4 ,the ,trialistic or ,traita-yoga4 ,the doctrines of the ,hindu trinity of ,brahma1 ,vishnu and ,siva1 and that of the ,platonic triad and ,christian ,holy ,trinity are well known to inculcate the worship and meditation of the three persons in one1 so that in adoring one of them1 a man unknowingly worships all the three together4 ,sidenote3 #ac4 ,the ,polytheistic yoga or ,sarva ,devopsana4 ,this consists of the adoration of a plurality of deities in the mythology by every ,hindu1 though every one has a special divinity of whom he is the votary for his particular meditation4 ,the later upanishads have promulgated the worship of several forms of ,vishnu and ,siva 7,web4 ,i4 ,lit4 p4 #afa72 and the ,tantras have given the dhynas or forms of meditation of a vast member of deities in their various forms and images 7,ibid4 p4 #bcf74 ,sidenote3 #ad4 ,the ,atheistic or ,nirswara yoga4 ,the ,atheistic yoga is found in the niriswara or hylo-theistic system of ,kapila1 who transmitted his faith 8in nothing0 to the ,buddhists and ,jains1 who having no ,god to adore1 worship themselves1 in sedate and silent meditation4 7,monier ,williams1 ,hindu ,wisdom p4 #ig74 ,sidenote3 #ae4 ,the ,theistic or stikya yoga4 ,the ,theistic yoga system of ,patanjala3 otherwise called the seswara yoga1 was ingrafted on the old atheistic system of ,snkhya with a belief in the ,iswara4 ,it is this system to which the name yoga specially belongs4 7,weber's ,ind4 ,lit4 pp4 #bch and #beb74 ,sidenote3 #af4 ,the ,practical ,yoga ,sdhana4 8,the yoga system10 says ,weber1 8developed itself in course of time in outward practices of penance and mortifications1 whereby absorption in the ,supreme ,being was sought to be obtained4 ,we discover its early traces in the ,epics and specially in the ,atharva upanishads40 7,ind4 ,lit4 p4 #bci74 ,the practical yoga ,sdhana is now practised by every devotee in the service of his respective divinity4 ,sidenote3 #ag4 ,the devotional or ,sannysa yoga4 ,the devotional side of the yoga is noticed in the instance of ,janaka in the ,mahbhrata1 and of ,yjnavalkhya in the ,brihadranyaka in the practice of their devotions in domestic life4 ,these examples may have given a powerful impetus to the yogis in the succeeding ages1 to the practice of secluded yoga in ascetism and abandonment of the world1 and its concerns called ,sannysa as in the case of ,chaitanya and others4 ,sidenote3 #ah4 ,the ,speculative ,dhyna yoga4 ,it had its rise in the first or earliest class of ,upanishads1 when the minds of the ,rishis were employed in speculations about their future state and immortality1 and about the nature and attributes of the ,supreme ,being4 ,sidenote3 #ai4 ,the ,ceremonial or ,kriy yoga4 ,this commenced with the second class or medieval upanishads1 which gave the means and stages1 whereby men may even in this world attain complete union with the tma 7,web4 ,i4 ,lit4 p4 #aef74 ,the yogchara of ,manu relates to the daily ceremonies of house-keepers1 and the ,kriy yoga of the ,purnas treats about pilgrimages and pious acts of religion4 ,sidenote3 #bj4 ,the ,pseudo or ,bhkta yoga4 ,the pure yoga being perverted by the mimicry of false pretenders to sanctity and holiness1 have assumed all those degenerate forms which are commonly to be seen in the mendicant ,fakirs1 strolling about with mock shows to earn a livelihood from the imposed vulgar4 ,these being the most conspicuous have infused a wrong notion of yoga into the minds of foreigners4 ,sidenote3 #ba4 ,the ,bhakti yoga4 ,the ,bhakti yoga first appears in the ,swetswatara ,upanishad where the ,bhakti element of faith shoots forth to light 7,web4 ,ind4 ,lit4 pp4 #beb and #bch74 ,it indicates acquaintance with the corresponding doctrine of ,christianity4 ,the ,bhgavad ,gt lays special stress upon faith in the ,supreme ,being4 ,it is the united opinion of the majority of ,european scholars1 that the ,hindu ,bhakti is derived from the faith 7fides7 of ,christian ,theology4 ,it has taken the place of or belief among all sects1 and has been introduced of late in the ,brahma ,samjas with other ,vaishnava practices4 ,the other topics of ,prof4 ,monier ,williams being irrelevant to our subject1 are left out from being treated in the present dissertation4 ,,xiii4 ,,the ,,consummation ,,of ,,yoga 7,,siddhi74 ,sidenote3 #bb4 ,by assimilation to the object4 ,the ,yogi by continually meditating on the perfections of the ,all ,perfect ,being1 becomes eventually a perfect being himself1 just as a man that devotes his sole attention to the acquisition a particular science1 attains in time not only to a perfection in it1 but becomes as it were identified with that science4 ,or to use a natural phenomenon in the metamorphoses of insects1 the transformation of the cockroach to the conchfly1 by its constant dread of the latter when caught by it1 and the cameleon's changing its colour for those of the objects about it1 serve well to elucidate the ,brahmahood of the contemplative yogi4 ,but to illustrate this point more clearly we will cite the argument of ,plotinus of the ,neo-,platonic school1 to prove the elevation of the meditative yogi to the perfection of the ,being he meditates upon4 ,he says1 8,man is a finite being1 how can he comprehend the ,infinite8 ,but as soon as he comprehends the ,infinite1 he is infinite himself3 that is to say2 he is no longer himself1 no longer that finite being having a consciousness of his own separate existence2 but is lost in and becomes one with the ,infinite40 ,sidenote3 ,by identification with the object4 ,here says ,mr4 ,lewes1 8,if ,i attain to a knowledge of the ,infinite1 it is not by my reason which is finite1 but by some higher faculty which identifies itself with its object4 ,hence the identity of subject and object1 of the thought and the thing thought of is the only possible ground of knowledge4 ,knowledge and ,being are identical1 and to know more is to be more04 ,but says ,plotinus2 8,if knowledge is the same as the thing known1 the finite as finite1 can never know the ,infinite1 because he cannot be ,infinite04 ,hist4 ,phil4 ,i4 p4 #cia4 ,sidenote3 ,by meditation of ,divine attributes4 ,therefore the yogi takes himself as his preliminary step1 to the meditations of some particular attribute or perfection of the deity1 to which he is assimilated in thought1 which is called his state of lower perfection2 until he is prepared by his highest degree of ecstacy to lose the sense of his own personality1 and become absorbed in the ,infinite ,intelligence called his ultimate consummation or ,samdhi1 which makes him one with the ,infinite1 and unites the knower and the known together2 ,sidenote3 ,the ,sufi ,perfection4 ,the perfection of the yogi bears a striking resemblance with maarfat of the ,sufis of ,persia1 and it is described at length by ,al-,gazzali1 a famous sophist1 of which we have an ,english translation given by ,g4 ,k4 ,lewes in his ,history of ,philosophy4 7,vol4 ,,ii4 p4 #ee74 8,from the very first the ,sufis have such astonishing revelations1 that they are enabled1 while waking1 to see visions of angels and the souls of prophets2 they hear their voices and receive their favours40 ,sidenote3 ,ultimate consummation 8,afterwards a transport exalts them beyond the mere perception of forms1 to a degree which exceeds all expression1 and concerning which one cannot speak without employing a language that would sound blasphemous4 ,in fact some have gone so far as to imagine themselves amalgamated with ,god1 others identified with ,him1 and others to be associated with ,him40 ,these states are called 1 c41 in ,hindu yoga as we shall presently see4 ,,xiv4 ,,the ,,different ,,degrees ,,of ,,perfection4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,eight perfections4 8,the supernatural faculties0 says ,wilson1 8are acquired in various degrees according to the greater or lesser perfection of the adept40 ,h4 ,rel4 p4 #aca4 ,these perfections are commonly enumerated as eight in number 7 71 and are said to be acquired by the particular mode in which the devotee concentrates himself in the ,divine spirit or contemplates it within himself4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,microcosm or ,anim4 ,the specific property of the minuteness of the soul or universal spirit1 that it is minuter than the minutest 7 74 ,by thinking himself as such1 the yogi by a single expiration of air1 makes his whole body assume a lank and lean appearance1 and penetrates his soul into all bodies4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,macrocosm or ,mahim4 ,this also is a special quality of the soul that it fills the body1 and extends through all space and encloses it within itself 7 72 by thinking so1 the yogi by a mere respiration of air makes his body round and turgid as a frog1 and comprehends the universe in himself4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,lightness or ,laghim4 ,from thinking on the lightness of the soul1 the yogi produces a diminution of his specific gravity by swallowing large draughts of air1 and thereby keeps himself in an aerial posture both on sea and land4 ,this the ,sruti says as 774 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,gravity or ,garim4 ,this practice is opposed to the above1 and it is by the same process of swallowing great draughts of air1 and compressing them within the system1 that the yogi acquires an increase of his specific gravity or garim 774 ,krishna is said to have assumed his in this way1 which preponderated all weights in the opposite scale4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,success or ,prpti4 ,this is the obtaining of desired objects and supernatural powers as by inspiration from above4 ,the yogi in a state of trance acquires the power of predicting future events1 of understanding unknown languages1 of curing divers diseases1 of hearing distant sounds1 of divining unexpressed thoughts of others1 of seeing distant objects1 or smelling mystical fragrant odours1 and of understanding the language of beasts and birds4 ,hence the prophets all dived into futurity1 the oracles declared future events1 ,jina understood pasubhsh1 and ,christ healed diseases and infirmities4 ,so also ,sanjaya saw the battles waged at ,kurukshetra from the palace of king ,dhritarshtra4 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,overgain--,pra,kmya ,prakmya is obtaining more than one's expectations1 and consists in the power of casting the old skin and maintaining a youth-like appearance for an unusual period of time1 as it is recorded of king ,yayti 7,japhet or ,jypati72 and of ,alcibiades who maintained an unfading youth to his last4 ,by some writers it is defined to be the property of entering into the system of another person2 as it is related of ,sankarchrya's entering the dead body of prince ,amaru in the ,sankara ,vijaya4 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,subjection ,vasitwam4 ,this is the power of taming living creatures and bringing them under control4 ,it is defined also to be the restraint of passions and emotions as 1 and likewise the bringing of men and women under subjection4 ,this made ,orpheus tame the wild animals and stop the course of rivers by the music of his lyre1 and gave ,pythagoras 7who derived it from ,india7 the power of subduing a furious bear by the influence of his will or word1 as also of preventing an ox from eating his beans1 and stopping an eagle in its flight4 ,it was by this that ,prospero subdued the elements and aerial spirits with his magic wand1 and ,draupadi and ,mahommed obtained the powers of stopping the courses of the sun and moon4 ,the ,magis of ,persia are said to have derived their magical powers from the ,myis of ,india who first cultivated the magical art4 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,dominion or ,ishitwam4 ,it is the obtaining of universal dominion either in this life or next by means of yoga1 as it is recorded of ,rvana1 ,mndht and others in the traditions4 ,it is also said to be the attainment of divine powers1 when the yogi finds himself in a blaze of light4 ,,xv4 ,,the ,,state ,,of ,a ,,perfect ,,yogi4 ,sidenote3 ,authority of ,h4 ,h4 ,wilson ,when the mystic union is effected1 he 7the yogi7 can make himself lighter than the lightest substance1 and heavier than the heaviest2 can become as vast or as minute as he pleases2 can traverse all space1 can animate any dead body by transferring his spirit into it from his own frame4 ,he can render himself invisible1 can attain all objects1 become equally acquainted with the present1 past and future1 and is finally united with ,siva1 and consequently exempted from being born again upon earth4 7,see ,wilson's ,hindu ,religion p4 #aca74 ,sidenote3 ,ditto of ,plato4 ,we find the same doctrine in ,plato's ,phaedrus where ,socrates delivers a highly poetical effusion respecting the partial intercourse or the human soul with eternal intellectual ,realia4 ,he says moreover that1 all objects which are invisible can be apprehended only by cogitation 7yoga72 and that none but philosophers 7yogis71 and a few of them can attain such mental energy during this life 772 nor even they fully and perfectly in the present state4 ,but they will attain it fully after death2 if their lives have been passed in sober philosophical training 774 ,and that all souls enjoyed it before birth1 before junction with the body1 which are forgotten during childhood1 but recalled in the way of reminiscence by association4 ,the revival of the divine elements is an inspiration of the nature of madness 7trance or ecstasy of the yoga74 ,the soul becoming insensible to ordinary pursuits1 contracts a passionate tendency to the universal4 7,baine on ,realism4 pp4 #f and #g74 ,sidenote3 ,authority of ,plotinus4 8,it is ecstasy the faculty by which the soul divests itself of its personality4 ,in this state the soul becomes loosened from its material prison1 separated from individual consciousness1 and becomes absorbed in the ,infinite ,intelligence from which it emanated4 ,in this ecstasy it contemplates real existence2 and identifies itself with that which it contemplates40 7,lewes4 ,hist4 of ,philosophy ,vol4 ,i4 p4 #chi74 ,,xvi4 ,,criticism ,,on ,,yoga ,,practice4 ,sidenote3 ,disbelief in yoga4 ,notwithstanding all that we have said and the authorities we have cited in the preceding article on the efficacy of yoga1 we find some scholars in ,europe and many educated men in this country1 are disposed to discredit the efficiency of yoga to effect supernatural results or to be good for any thing4 ,we shall state some of these objections which will be found to bear their own refutation on the grounds of their misrepresentation and self-contradiction4 ,sidenote3 ,its painful practices4 ,professor ,monier ,williams says that1 8yoga system appears1 in fact1 to be a mere contrivance of getting rid of all thought1 or at least of concentrating the mind with the utmost intensity upon nothing in particular4 ,it is a strange compound of mental and bodily exercises consisting of unnatural restraint1 forced and painful postures1 twistings and contortions of the limbs1 suppression of breath and utter absence of mind04 7,indian wisdom p4 #ajc7 7so also ,wilson's ,hindu ,religion p4 #acb74 ,sidenote3 ,its questionable ,features4 ,he then starts the question1 8,how is it that faith in a false system can operate with sufficient force upon the ,hindu1 to impel him to submit voluntarily to almost incredible restraints1 mortifications of the flesh and physical tortures8 ,how is it that an amount of physical endurance may be exhibited by an apparently weakly and emaciated ,asiatic1 which would be impossible to a ,european1 the climate and diet in one case tending to debilitate and in the other to invigorate80 7,ibid p4 #ajd74 ,sidenote3 ,their ,illegitimacy4 ,professor ,monier's statement of the existence of the aforesaid self mortifications and voluntary contortions of the limbs of the yogis for two thousand years or since the invention of yoga philosophy1 is open to refutation on the ground of there being no mention of them in the old systems of yoga inculcated either in the ,vednta or ,patanjali's philosophy1 or even in the yoga ,vsishtha1 as it is evident from the practices and processes of yoga we have already given before4 ,those processes are seen to be simply moral restraints1 and no physical torture of any kind1 and such moral restraints must be acknowledged on all hands1 to be indispensable to the concentration of the mind on any subject of far less importance than the contemplation of the inscrutable nature of the ,divinity4 ,sidenote3 ,abuses of ,hatha yoga4 ,the abuses he speaks of must be those of the arduous practices of the ,hatha yoga1 which have been in vogue with pseudo yogis of the later times1 from their superstitious belief in bodily tortures as their best penance and only means1 7as the author himself avows71 8of their fancied attainment of extraordinary sanctity and supernatural powers40 7,ibid74 ,but such practices as have degenerated to deceptive tricks in this country1 and are carried on by the cheating and cheated fools under the false name of yoga1 present their counterparts also in the trickeries of the fanatics and fakirs under every form of faith on earth1 without affecting the true religion or creating any misconception of the yoga doctrine4 ,sidenote3 ,sacrifice of the spirit4 ,in vindication of our spiritual yoga we have to say that it is no exoteric religion1 and requires no bodily mortification or sacrifice in any shape whatever1 as it is the usual practice of all forms of religion among mankind4 ,the yoga is the speculative training of the human soul1 and concerns the castigation of the spirit and not the mortification of flesh4 ,it has nothing to do with the body which is of this earth1 and which we have to leave here behind us4 ,sidenote3 ,sacrifice of the ,body4 ,the universal doom of death pronounced on the original guilt of man1 is not to be averted by physical death or any deadly torture of the body1 as it is commonly believed by the bulk of mankind1 to consist in bodily mortifications and sacrifices2 but in the contrition and penitence of the spirit1 and sacrifice of the soul as the only sin-offering for the atonement of our original and actual transgressions4 ,the ,purusha medha sacrifice of the ,veda which is misunderstood for the offering of a male-being1 a man1 a horse1 a bull or a he-goat or male of any animal1 meant originally the sacrifice of the human soul1 or self-immolation of the purusha or embodied intelligence to the ,supreme ,spirit1 by means of its concentration into the same through the instrumentality of yoga abstraction4 ,dr4 ,k4 ,m4 ,banerjia's interpretation of the ,purusha medha as typical of the crucifixion of ,christ1 is more conformable with his ,christian view of the mysticism1 than the spiritual sense of self-sacrifice1 in which it is generally understood by the speculative ,yogi and the philosophical ,vedantist4 ,,the ,,om ,,tat ,,sat4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,preamble of ,om tat sat4 ,after consideration of ,yoga the title of our work1 and all its component parts tending to the exercise of meditation1 together with an investigation into the nature of tman or soul1 as the agent of the act of meditating and procuring its salvation1 we are led by a natural and coherent train of thought to an inquiry into the nature of that grand object of our holy and profound meditation1 which is the only means of our emancipation1 and which is presented at once to our view in the exordium of the work in the mystical characters of ,om ,tat ,sat ,on ,id ,est4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,ambiguity of the word ,om4 ,the word ,om forming the initial of the said epigraph standing prominent at the top of the opening page of the work1 and being more than a multinymous term and ambiguous in its acceptations1 requires to be treated at some length1 in order to discover the hidden meaning lying buried under that mystic emblem of the grand arcanum of ,brahmanical and ,universal religion1 from amidst a variety of significations which are heaped upon it in the sacred writings and holy speculations of the early sages of ,india4 ,,the ,,sruti ,,says3-- ,sidenote3 #c4 ,in the beginning was the word ,om4 1 ,so saith the ,holy scripture3-- 8,in the beginning was the word1 the word was with ,god1 and the word was ,god4 ,all this was made by him1 and without him was not anything made1 that was made and0 ,st4 ,john #a4a-c4 ,sidenote3 ,om1 the light of the world4 ,and again says the ,sruti 8,that ,om shone forth as light1 but they received it not1 and hid it in darkness40 ,so the ,scripture3-- 8,that was the light of the world1 and the light shone upon the world1 but the world knew it not c40 ,st4 ,john1 ,ch #a1 ,v4 #e4 #i4 #aj4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,its ,revelation to mankind4 ,again says the ,scripture3--8,god sent one to bear witness of the light1 that all men through him might believe40 ,id #a4g4 ,so ,brahm the god revealed its meaning to his first begotten son ,atharvan1 and ,atharvan1 the ,prajpati1 gave instruction on the subject to ,pippalda1 ,sanatkumra and ,angira 7,weber ,a4 ,s4 ,l41 p4 #afd74 ,again ,angiras1 who communicated it to ,saunaka1 had obtained it from ,bharadvja ,satyavha1 and the latter again from ngira1 the pupil of ,atharvan1 to whom it was revealed by ,brahm himself 7,weber ,a4 ,s4 ,l41 p4 #aeh74 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,works on its ,disquisition4 ,hence it is the ,atharva ,sikh ,upanishad in which the investigation of the sacred word ,om is principally conducted apart from those of the ,mndukya1 ,maitr and ,traka ,upanishads4 7,web4 ,id41 p4 #afd74 ,these together with their ,bhshyas by ,sankara1 the ,kriks of ,gaudapda1 and the commentaries of nandagiri on them1 are chiefly devoted to the scrutiny of the sacred syllable1 beside the partial disquisition of every other ,upanishad and theological work into the hidden sense of this mystic word4 ,weber points out the ,saunaka and ,pranava ,upanishads among the number 7,a4 ,s4 ,l41 p4 #afe74 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,mode of our ,investigation4 ,we shall proceed in this prolegomena first to investigate into the orthographical character and structure of this syllable1 and then to inquire into the designations and etymological synonyms or the word1 with the lexical meanings that we can get of them1 and lastly to treat of the many mystical interpretations which this single word is made to bear as a common emblem of them4 ,,ii4 ,,orthography ,,of ,,om4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,the letter ,firstly3 ,om with respect1 to its name and utterance is called ,onkra1 that is1 the nasal ,on in combination with the adjunct kra 7signifying a sound7 and meaning the letter ,on4 ,for all sounds whether vocal 77 or sonant 771 nasal 77 or not-nasal 771 articulate 77 or onomatopoeia 771 are denominated letters2 as the letters a c4 77 are called vowels1 the letters ,ka c4 77 consonants2 so the nasals n1 in 7 7 c41 as also the inarticulate ones 77 c41 are all letters2 but the ,onkra is the root of all2 thus ,manu calls it a letter in the passage3--8,this one letter is the emblem of the ,most ,high04 ,,ii4#hc4 ,vide ,dr4 ,mitra's ,ch'hnd ,up1 p4 #d4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,a conjunct ,letter ,but here a question is raised as to whether a conjunct vowel or consonant may with propriety be styled a single letter or not4 ,to this says ,dr4 ,r4 ,l4 ,mitra in a foot-note to his translation of the ,ch'hndogya ,upanishad that--8,it is true that this emblem conveys two sounds1 that of ,o and m1 nevertheless it is held to be one letter in the above sense2 and we meet with instances even in the ancient and modern languages of ,europe that can justify such privileges1 such as xi and psi1 reckoned single letters in ,greek1 and ,q4 ,w4 ,x4 in ,english and others40 7,ch #a4 ,sec4 #a4 p4 #d74 ,so is lmlif in ,persian c4 ,the ,sanskrit conjunct ksha 77 is considered a single consonant1 when they say1 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the ,syllable ,om ,it is also like every other single or conjoint letter of the alphabet 7 7 termed an akshara 77 or syllable1 which forms either a word by itself when standing alone1 or part of a word followed by an adjunct as 1 1 c42 where the first is a word of one syllable or monosyllabic term 1 and the others as dissyllabic and trisyllabic words 71 71 according as they are uttered by the help of one or more articulations of the voice4 ,om akshara apart from its other signification of the ,imperishable and the like1 and its symbolism of the ,supreme ,spirit1 is also used in the sense of a syllable in the original writings and their translations4 ,thus says the ,kathopanishad2 99 99 99 99 99 ,manu says3--8,that which passeth not away is declared to be the syllable om1 thence called akshara40 ,he calls it also a triliteral monosyllable4 ,,ii4 #hd4 ,so says ,mon4 ,wm3 8,om is a most sacred monosyllable significant of the ,supreme ,being40 7,indian ,wisdom p4 #ajc note #a74 99 99 99 99 99 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,the character ,om ,omkra likewise indicates the written character ,om1 because the suffix ,kra like kra is used to signify its written form or sign 7 71 and in this sense the ,bengali 1 corresponds with ,greek character w omega the inverted 1 or the ,omikron ,english ,o1 and ,oao ,persian1 and likens to the ,sanskrit bindu ,o1 which is but another name of ,om 7 74 ,but the is formed by the union of two dots or cyphers 7,o bindu7 like ,greek ,omega of two omicrons and the ,english w of two u's4 ,so says the ,gyatr ,tantra1 ,and again3 4 8,it is the union of two circlets1 one being the symbol of one's own divinity and the other that of ,brahma40 ,this character by itself is regarded with high veneration as an emblem of the ,infinite1 independent of its meaning or utterance1 and is marked on the forehead of every devotee in the form of a spot or crescent4 99 99 99 99 99 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,the ,symbol ,the symbolical ,om is represented by four cyphers as placed over one another 1 and each designated by a different name in the aforesaid ,tantra1 and supposed to form the cavities of the heart and mouth of ,brahm1 ,these bindus or cyphers are differently named in the ,vednta1 as we shall shortly come to see under the denominations of omkra4 7,no4 ,,iv74 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,symbolized as ,jaganntha4 ,the best representation of ,om is the image of the god ,jaganntha1 which is said to be an incarnation of the mystic syllable 1 or made in the form of ,om1 and not in that of ,buddha1 as some of our antiquarians have erroneously supposed it to be4 ,there is a learned dissertation on the subject of ,jaganntha's representation of ,onkra to be found in one of the early articles of the ,asiatic ,society's ,researches1 where the reader will get much more light on this mysterious subject4 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,comparison of om and on4 ,it will further be found on comparison that bears not only a great resemblance to the ,greek on written as with the nasal above the ,o1 but their perfect agreement with each other in sense will leave no ground of suspecting their identity with one another1 as it will be fully treated of afterwards4 ,,iii4 ,,the ,,ortheopy ,,or ,,analysis ,,of ,om4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,a ,monad4 ,we have already seen that the circular form of the letter ,o in ,om1 called a bindu dot or cypher1 was used like a geometrical point to denote a monad without parts1 and represent the ,supreme ,being subsisting as the central point of the great circle of ,universe1 and filling the infinity of its circumference with his own life and light4 ,the ,vedas and the early theology of the ,upanishads invariably understood the ,om as synonymous with ,one1 and expressive of the unity of the ,god-head2 as in the motto of the ,vedantists1 corresponding with the monotheistic creed of ,christians and ,mahomedans 8,god is one0 and 8without an equal0 8,wahed ,ho la ,sharik laho0 8,the unity of the ,god-head is the dictum of the ,koran and ,vednta40 7,mon4 ,wm's4 ,hindu ,wisd4 p4 ,,xli4 #a74 ,the ,manduka and similar ,upanishads describe the majesty of the one4 7,weber1 p4 #afa74 8,that one breathed breathless by itself0 c4 ,max ,mller's ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 p4 #efj4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,om a ,duad4 ,formerly the letter ,o of om1 on1 and ,one was considered a pure and simple sound1 and made to represent a monad or ,unity2 but in course of time and with the progress of language it was found out to be a compound letter 771 formed by the union of a u o 7 71 and two o's in w omega or two u's in w4 7,see4 ,s4 ,gr4 ,baine's grs74 ,then the perfect figure of the great circle was considered to be composed of two semicircles which the w was made to represent4 ,this gave rise to the conception of a duality in the divine person1 and hence grew the theory of the male and female in the original androgyne of the ,sankhya and ,hara ,gauri 7 and 7 of the ,tantra4 ,hence it is said2 ,the syllable ov on is a word for ,brahma 7,god71 and the other cypher represents nature 7the world74 ,there is no ,brahma1 but ov or ,the dualism of ,sankhya yoga is too well known to require an explanation4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,om a ,triad4 ,at a later period and posterior to the dualistic doctrines of the aforesaid ,tantra and ,ptanjala yoga systems1 the ,om branched out into a ,triad by the union of the nasal letter m or n with the or w1 and forming the conjoined character and wn in ,sanskrit and ,greek4 ,henceforward ,onkra is regarded as a triliteral word composed of aum to represent a triplicate deity4 ,thus says ,monier ,williams3-- 8,om is supposed to be composed of three letters ,a1 ,u1 ,m1 which form a most sacred monosyllable 771 significant of the ,supreme ,being as developing himself in the ,triad of gods1 ,brahm1 ,vishnu and ,siva0 7,indian ,wisdom p4 #ajc note ,i74 ,so we have in ,manu ,,ii4 #hc and #hd3-- ,so also the ,bhagavad ,git4 ,,viii4 #ac4 ,here the two halves of the circle comprise ,vishnu and ,siva as joined in the bipartite body of ,hari ,hara alias ,hara ,hari1 adored by the dualists called 1 or more fully as and ,brahm the god of ,manu1 is placed in the circlet above the great circle of his created world4 ,we need but hint to our readers in this place1 to observe how the original word ,om or ,ov and ,one developed itself into the existing faith of trinity4 ,the ,tntrica ,sivites however place their god ,siva in the upper semicirclet formed by m the initial of ,maheswara 771 and say3-- ,this is more reasonable to believe from both the letter m's and its god ,siva's amalgamation with the early ,aryan duality to form the present faith of triality at a much later period4 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,om the ,tetrad4 ,we next see a further progress of ,om in its development from the triliteral to a quadriliteral form1 by its assumption of a crescent or half circlet 77 according to the ,tantra1 or a half ,mtr 7 7 of the ,vednta4 ,the ,tantra says ,the ,maitr ,upanishad mentions only of the three ,mtrs of ,om 7,ch4 vi ,sec4 #c74 8,but the ,mundak ,upanishad0 says ,weber1 8refers to the half ,mtr 7mora71 to which the word ,om here appearing in its full glory1 is entitled in addition to its three ,mtrs 7morae7 a4 u4 m4 ,this is evidently a later addition by some one who did not like to miss the mention of the subject in the ,atharvana ,upanishad in which it occurs40 p4 #afj4 ,again says he--8,the ,mndukya ,upanishad which treats of the three and half ,mtrs of the word ,om1 is to be looked upon as the real ,mndukya1 all the rest is the work of the ,gaudapda1 whose pupil ,govinda was the teacher of ,sankarchrya about the seventh century ,a4 ,d40 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,om the ,pentad4 ,we find next a quinquiliteral figure of ,om in its component parts of the three mtrs1 m1 and the bindu or the fifth4 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,om the ,hexad4 ,and then again with a sextuple or ,hexaliteral ,om composed of the sixth member of ,nda 77 over and above the aforesaid five parts4 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,om the ,heptad4 ,the septuple ,om is described in the ,ramatpaniya upanishad as consisting of 1 1 1 1 1 and ,weber's ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 p4 #cab4 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,om the ,octad4 ,this consists of the aforesaid seven parts1 which together with ,snti called in ,persian ,skat complete the number1 ,weber4 ,id4 p4 #cae4 ,,iv4 ,,the ,,different ,,denominations ,,of ,,om4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,the ,initial of the ,veda4 ,the om is denominated the heading of the ,veda 77 as the ,gyatr hymn is termed to be its parent 774 ,it stands at the top 77 of every book 771 chapter 771 and hymn 77 of every ,veda either alone by itself or two or three oms put together1 as on ignem aiede of the ,rigveda1 ,on triseptem c4 of the ,atharvan2 again on ,i salute thee ,o ,rigveda c4 ,it is hence used at the head 77 of every book on any branch of knowledge 77 which is a paronym of and derived from the same root 7 ,video7 with ,veda 774 ,the ,tantra calls it as the heading of the ,gyatr which begins with the syllable2 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,the sacred ,syllable4 ,it is called the sacred syllable because it is used in sacred writings and in the sacred ,vedic and ,sanskrit languages only1 and never in the popular vernacular tongues1 which are known as unsacred and impure 774 ,moreover it is used in sacerdotal functions of the sacerdotal class 7 7 or regenerate classes of men1 and never by the impure ,sdra on pain of damnation 7 71 unless he is sacrified by investiture of the sacred or sacrificial thread1 774 ,thus says the ,sstra2 1 ,the sacredness of the word ,om1 as the expression for the eternal position of things1 is specially emphasised in the ,katha ,upanishad 7,weber4 p4 #aeh74 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the ,holy syllable ,it is held as the most holy syllable being an appellation of the ,most ,high1 and must not be uttered in unholiness even by the holy orders of men3 so says the ,katha ,up2--8,this is the most holy syllable1 this the supreme syllable1 whosoever knoweth this syllable getteth whatever he desireth40 7,cowell's ,maitr ,upanishad4 ,ch4 ,,vi4 ,s4 #d7 note4 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,the ,mystic ,syllable ,this is styled the mystic syllable because the most recondite and abstruse doctrines of ,brahmanical theism are hidden under its symbolical garb1 and form the foundation of those wonderful structures of the mystic poetry and philosophy of nations1 which have been beautifully illustrated by ,sir ,w4 ,jones in his 8,mystic ,poetry of the ,hindus1 ,persians1 and ,greeks40 ,it was this mysticism which invited a ,pythagoras of old to ,india4 ,manu says2--8,he knows the ,veda1 who distinctly knows the mystic sense of this word40 ,chap ,,xi4 #bff4 ,these senses are recommended to be deeply studied by the ,upanishads themselves1 saying2--8,the om is a subject of deep study0 7,web4 p4 #afc71 and forms of itself 8as another triple ,veda40 7,manu ,,xi4 #bfe74 ,it is enjoined to be carefully kept in secrecy by the ,tantras and ,smritis4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,the ,mysterious syllable ,om again as a symbol of the eternal position of things 1 presents to us a mysterious round of the mystic dance of myriads of spheres1 emitting an inaudible sound reaching beyond its utmost limit to the unknown ,one who sitteth above the circumference of its visible horizon2 or as the sacred writer expresses it2 8,he that sitteth on the circle of the earth40 ,isaiah4 ,chap4 ,x4 #a4 ,the ,tantra speaks of its encompassing the world2 1 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,the sphere of sound ,that om contains within it the whole sphere of sounds 77 is beautifully illustrated in twenty slokas or stanzas in an ,upanishad of that name the 7,weber1 p4 #afe74 ,it shows how the eternal sound om emitted by ,brahma pervaded throughout the ,universe1 and the manner in which all other sounds are propelled by continual vibrations of air like curves upon the surface of water 77 to the auditory of the other4 ,the ,vindu is a ,mudr in ,tantra ,compare the ,pythagorean music of the spheres4 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,the ,focus of light ,the ,tejovindu ,upanishad describes ,om as the source and focus of light in fourteen slokas1 and the empyrean above it as the abode of pure ineffable light 7 7 of ,god that illumines the other spheres4 7,web4 p4 #afe74 ,this light is viewed in the orb of the sun and in fire by their worshippers4 ,compare ,milton's hymn to light2 8,hail holy light0 c4 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,the spot of immortality ,again ,om is termed the reservoir of immortality or endless life in the ,amritavindu ,upanishad which describes it in thirty stanzas1 to be the eternal fountain of the infinity of lives that fills all animated nature1 and is drawn back to it4 ,its circumference extends to the regions of light and life1 and beyond it is the region of death and darkness4 8,in this word there is light and life0 7,john #a7 see ,weber's ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 pp4 #fi1 #aed1 #afe4 ,sidenote3 #i4 ,the centre of ,meditation ,therefore ,om is called the centre of meditation in the ,dhynavindu ,upanishad of twenty one stanzas1 which direct the concentration of our thoughts to that centre for the attainment of perpetual light and life which flow from it4 7,weber p4 #afe74 ,the ,tantra takes a or and the ,buddhist a chink in the wall to fix the sight in meditation4 ,sidenote3 #aj4 ,the ,position of ,brahma ,and lastly ,om is styled the receptacle of the great ,god1 whose essence fills1 pervades1 and encompasses the whole orbit of the ,universe1 as it is described in twenty two slokas of the ,brahma ,vindu-,upanishad4 ,it is called ,brahma ,mudr in the ,tantra4 7,weber1 p4 p4 #ii1 #aeh1 #afe74 ,v4 ,,etymology ,,of ,,the ,,word ,om4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,etymology of the ,om4 ,having thus far seen the mysterious nature of the letter and syllable ,om in its ,orthography1 we shall now consider it as a word1 and see that not a less but much greater mystery is attached to its etymology than has been hitherto thought of by any1 and which will be found upon examination to be more inscrutable in its nature than the mysteries of ,eleusis and the inexplicable hieroglyphics of the ,egyptian priests4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,its symbolism of ,brahmanism ,these secret and sacred treasures of ,brahmanic enigmas and symbols1 have been carefully preserved by the ,brahmahood in their cabalistic writings of the ,tantras1 which serve to be a secure safeguard of their religion amidst the ravages of foreigners in their liberty and literature1 and require to be diligently searched into for a thorough mastery of these mysticisms4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,its derivation ,om is denominated a word 77 in the ,veda and other sacred scriptures1 and explained as a noun also 77 in the ,nirukta and other lexicons4 ,it is derived in the ,koshas from the root aba or ava to protect1 or save 77 with the ,unadi suffix an anomalous formation into om to denote 8protection40 ,dr4 ,mitra too derives it from the radical 8to preserve0 with the suffix to denote the ,most ,high according to ,manu and ,gt4 7,translation of ,ch'hndogya ,up4 p4 #d74 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,its ,primary sense ,apart from the symbolical significations of ,om 7of which there are several as we shall come to notice afterwards71 its primary and literal sense would make us give different interpretations of it according to the derivation of the term both in its verbal and nominal forms4 as a verb in the imperative mood means 8save0 as 1 1 c4 in the ,mugdhabodha1 corresponding with the expressions1 ,ave ,maria1 salve salvator1 salve ,deus1 save ,o ,god c4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,its ,nominal sense ,but aba to protect or preserve gives us the nominal 77 forms of aba1 ba1 bu1 and buka 71 1 1 71 meaning a father or preserver in the ,prkrit ,speech of ,sanskrit dramas1 and these are found to agree in both respects of sound and sense with the words b1 b1 bu1 buka1 abi as buka c4 in ,hebrew1 ,chaldee1 ,syriac and ,arabic languages4 ,this gives us the original meaning of of which is a derivative form1 and shows the close affinity which the ,aryan root bears to the ,semitic1 both in its sound and signification of 8,father0 7 and 7 applied to the ,great ,god4 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,the word ,om ,but our question being ,om and not the root 1 we ought to know to what part of speech it belongs and what sense we are to give of it here4 ,it is said to be a word indicative of auspiciousness when used at the beginning2 7 74 ,but whether as a verb or noun or any other part of speech1 we know nothing of1 and we are utterly at a loss what word to substitute for it in its translation4 ,this is the reason why the word ,om1 is used by itself in the translations of ,sanskrit works by ,europeans and our countrymen also for want of a proper term1 as it is seen in the ,english versions of ,vedas and ,upanishads4 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,an aptot noun ,om is enlisted as an indeclinable word in grammar having no inflection of its own in gender1 number1 case or person1 and agreeing with all words in its unchanged state1 as in the examples3-- 1 1 1 1 c4 ,it is included in the 77 as an aptot noun1 and with indeclinable particles 771 as an adverb1 conjunction and interjection also with various significations4 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,the initial ,om ,the anomalous and multinymous particle ,om was first discovered by ,ram ,mohun ,roy to be no other than the participal noun onbeing which as ,max ,mller says is to on ontws the ,being of ,beings ,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 pp4 #cba et passim4 ,the ,latin ens and the ,french on as t'on1 bear close affinity to ,on and both in their sound and sense4 ,sidenote3 #i4 ,the ,final ,om ,dr4 ,rjendra ,lla ,mitra has in one of his works pointed out the ,vedic ,om1 to correspond with the ,hebrew 8,amen10 and this will be found so true of the final ,om of ,brahmanical prayers1 that its corresponding word ,amin invariably forms the last word of every prayer in ,arabic1 ,persian and all other ,mahomedan and ,semitic languages4 ,thus it is to be seen how intimately are both of these grand families of mankind connected with each other in the main point of their different creeds4 ,,vi4 ,,lexical ,,meanings ,,of ,om4 ,sidenote3 ,adverbial ,meanings4 ,after the etymological and philological interpretations that we have been given of the word ,om1 it is worthwhileto attend to its meanings given in the current lexicons for the information of the majority1 with whom the evidence of the history of philology is of little weight and value4 ,tranth's ,sanskrit dictionary 77 presents us with following adverbial meanings of the word4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,an ,inceptive ,particle4 ,the ,medinikosha says he1 expounds it as an inchoative particle 7 7 to mean the beginning of a thing 771 and we find it accordingly used in the form of a proemial monogram at the exordium of a book or ,vedic hymn1 sacred rite or lecture1 in the ,sanhitas1 ,brhmanas and ,upanishads according to the passage quoted by ,trntha in his dictionary2 ,it answers the of the ,purna and the words now and then in ,english as in the passage of the ,kathavalli2 ,it is synonymous with beginning 77 in the ,ch'hndogya ,upanishad1 whereupon the poet has well said4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,illustrations of ,ditto ,krishna 7under the conception of the identity of his soul with that of the ,divine71 speaks of himself in the ,bhgavadgt that1 he was the letter a of the alphabet1 and the ,om of words 7 74 ,this is shown in the latest ,english translation of the work to be a doctrine derived from ,christianity and corresponds with the passage 8,i am ,alpha c40 in the book of ,revelations 7,ch4 ,i4 ,v4 #h74 ,there is a similar passage in the ,koran which says 8,he 7,god7 is the first2 ,ho al awl corresponding with the ,greek0 ,ho esten arche2 and this passage and sometimes its initial 7,gr47 and our 1 is used by ,moslems at the top and commencement of their books and other writings4 ,again like ,alpha of the holy ,scripture we find the use of ,alif upon the head of all writings in ,urdu1 ,persian1 ,arabic and ,hebrew in daily practice4 ,hence it is hard to say who is the borrower1 though every one will boast itself to be the lender4 7,vide ,weber's paper on the ,rm ,tap ,up4 pp4 #bgf1 and #cfj74 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,an ,initiatory ,particle ,the ,kosha adds the sense of auspiciousness and prosperity 77 to the above1 and this as we have already observed forms like the names of gods1 the initiatory vocable of meritorious undertakings 7 74 8,om0 says the ,ch'hndogya1 8is also prosperity0 7,i1 #h47 ,to this the scholiast ,sankara says2 8the letter ,om is called prosperity1 because it is possessed of the property and attribute of prosperity4 ,the prosperous alone can pass the word ,om0 7,chh4 up4 ,ch4 #a1 p4 #h74 ,its use is not confined to the sacred and antiquated language of ,vedic writing and the liturgy1 but is to be met with in the classic ,sanskrit of ancient bards and modern poets4 ,thus we have in the ,rmyana of our author 7 74 ,in this sense we discover a curious affinity of the ,aryan ,om with the ,semitic man ,amn and ,aiman1 as in the ,persian phrase ,aiman bud corresponding with or ,sidenote3 #d4 ,gratulatory1 ,particle ,the word has been rendered in our translation by the salutatory term 8,hail01 from a supposed similarity of its meaning with that of namo which is used by women and ,sdras in lieu of the sacred ,om in their salutations to gods and superior beings1 owing to the denunciation pronounced upon their utterance of the sacred syllable 7 74 ,we find its use in the same sense in ,dr4 ,roer's ,translation of the ,aitareya ,upanishad1 where it is rendered by 8salutation to the ,supreme ,soul0 and by 8adoration0 in ,cowell's version of the ,maitr ,upanishad4 ,we are however at a loss of authority to warrant our adoption of namo as a synonym of ,om4 ,we meet with instances of the use of ,om and namo together to mean salutation1 as1 and in the ,mugdhabodha1 where namo1 expresses obeisance and governs in the dative1 and not ,om which has no governing power4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,invocatory particle ,om in the sense of invocation is an absolute monoptot like 1 1 1 c41 without the power of governing the following word1 as 1 and its double use as in the ,aitareya ,upanishad 7#a72 so 1 in the ,mugdhabodha2 but and its synonyms 1 1 1 govern the dative as 1 1 1 c4 ,the invocatory ,om is synonymous with the interjections ,o1 1 1 and all other single vowels whether nasal or not 771 all of which are ungoverning particles in this sense4 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,a ,laudatory particle ,om is usually termed as pranava or praise or word of praise1 from the root nu 7 7 to laud1 and in this sense it might mean the glorification of ,te ,deum4 ,thus 8,om is the pranava or initial word of the ,rigveda priests1 and it is termed the ,udgtha 77 of ,sma ,veda choristers who chaunt it04 7 74 ,but it is made to signify the object of the verb1 or the ,being that is lauded 772 and in this sense it means1 8,the ,purusha or spirit who is unaffected by works1 affections c41 and having the appellation of ,pranava0 7see ,monier ,williams' ,wisdom of the ,hindus p4 #ajc71 so says ,gaudapda in his ,krik4 ,in the former sense1 ,pranava corresponds with halleluyas and hosannas of ,christians1 and hamd o ,salaut of ,moslems1 which are deemed sacred by their votaries4 ,the ,krik has the following stanzas on it3-- ,sidenote3 #g4 ,a ,permissive ,particle ,it is used in a permissive sense both in ,vedic and classic ,sanskrit1 and expressed in ,english by the words 8on0 8go on0 and the like4 ,we have an instance of it in the ,mgha ,kvya1 in the passage3 ,sidenote3 7a47 ,an ,injunctive 8,verily this is an injunctive term 771 signifying injunction1 order1 and whatever is enjoined1 and ultimately the letter ,om40 7,ch'hndogya ,upanishad74 ,the scholium 77 explains it by saying that1 8,whatever is enjoined by the learned or wealthy regarding learning and wealth1 it is done by saying 8,om040 7,ibid ,i4 #h4 p4 #h47 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,a ,particle of assent ,it bears also the sense of assent and consent 77 meaning 8ay0 8aye0 8yea0 and 8yes01 and in ,bengali and ,vernaculars and 4 ,so says ,sankarchrya3--8,whatever is assented to by the learned and wealthy1 it is done by saying 8,om040 ,thus in the ,vedic tradition2 ,yjnavalkya having been asked by ,skalya as to how many gods there were1 said2 8,thirty-three40 ,skalya assented by saying 8,om40 ,among modern writings1 the ,shitya ,darpana cites the following instance of ,om being used in this sense3-- ,sidenote3 #i4 ,a ,particle of ,repulse4 ,it is used as the interjectional particle expressive of repelling or driving off another from one like 8,avaunt0 in ,english4 ,we meet with an instance of its use in this sense in the ,vetla ,panchavinsati of ,lassen 7,,vi47 ,thus1 ,sidenote3 #aj4 ,do4 of ,ratifying4 ,it occurs in the sense of confirmation at the end of hymns and prayers in the ,vedic writings1 and corresponds with the words 8,amen0 and 8,amin0 at the conclusion of ,christian and ,moslem sermons and prayers as we have said long before4 ,we have a verse of ,hafiz to this effect1 where he says bishnow ,o min bogo i4 e4 8,hear and say amen40 ,there are many instances of it in the ,upanishads1 such as 1 and so in the ,gyatr hymn which begins and ends with ,om1 agreeably to the precept which says2 ,,vii4 ,,the ,,nominal ,,meanings ,,of ,om4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,nominal ,meanings of ,om4 ,besides the meanings already given of ,om as a particle1 there are many other nominal significations attached to it as a significant noun or rather symbol to express certain attributes belonging to the nature of the ,deity1 that bear little or no connection with the etymology of the word4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,om the ,creator ,om is used to denote the creative power of ,god in ,sankara's scholium4 ,this sense is had from the primordial word logos the ov be or fiat buad uttered by ,god in his creation of the world1 as we have in the scripture4 8,and god said1 8,let there be0 and there was04 ,latin ,fiat-et-fit2 and ,arabic ,kom fa ,kna4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,om is ,god ,ptanjala takes it as denotative of ,god himself 2 and others as a denotation of the ,supreme ,god ,sidenote3 #d4 ,om is ,brahma4 ,om is the verbal symbol of ,brahma signifying the ,universal spirit so says the ,katha ,upanishad ,this meaning is obtained from om signifying being or existence1 and referring to the totality of existence expressed by the word ,brahma 7formed of 7 universal pervasion4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,greatness of ,brahma ,om is used also to denote the vast magnitude of ,brahma 7 7 in the ,maitr ,upanishad1 which says 8,om is the greatness of ,brahman1 says one who continually meditates thereon40 7,see ,cowell's ,translation of ,id4 ,,iv4 #d4 p4 #bec74 ,this idea is naturally suggested by the infinity of the ,universe pervaded and encompassed by the spirit of ,god4 ,the ,ch'hndogya ,upanishad speaks of the greatness and effects of ,om 7,i4 #i74 ,to this the scholium raises the question1 what are its greatness and effects8 ,then answers it by saying2--8by the greatness of ,om is implied the existence of priests1 the institutions of sacrifices c4 c4 ,therefore is its greatness40 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,om is the way to ,brahma 8,om10 says the ,mndukya ,upanishad1 8is the means 7symbol7 leading to ,brahma10 as a hieroglyphic character to its significate4 ,here says the commentator nandagiri 7p4#ccf47 8,it is known in all the ,vedntas as the best means towards the accomplishment of one's adoration40 7,ch'hndogya ,upanishad p4 #e note47 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,immutable ,imperishable ,it is immutable1 undecayable1 imperishable1 indestructible and immortal 774 ,thus in the ,mndukya2 ,the circle of ,o is considered the most perfect of all geometrical figures1 as it was held by the ,pythagoreans to be the best symbol to represent the perfections of the ,supreme ,being4 ,it is the sign of divine immutability from the fact of every other figure changing its shape by its constant rotation round the centre and becoming a spheroid which is no more susceptible of change4 ,such is the changeable nature of all things until they become one with the ,divinity4 ,sidenote3 ,om ,knowable4 ,om the symbol of ,god is said to be the knowable1 because every part of its circumference is equidistant from the central observer4 ,so is ,god said to be knowable 77 in ,yoga philosophy for his knowableness to every one by means of meditation4 ,hence the ,yoga system is called gnosticism contrary to the unknowableness of agnosticism4 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,eternity ,om is called eternal 771 because its circular form is the representation of eternity1 having neither its beginning nor end 773 so it is the symbol of infinity1 the circle being described by an infinite line4 ,thus ,gaudapda2 ,sidenote3 #i4 ,the ,first and ,last4 ,again ,om is said to be the first and last of all things1 because1 says ,trntha1 every thing proceeds from its centre as its source1 and returns to that centre as its reservoir4 2 or that every thing like the line of the circle meets at the same point from where it is drawn and stretched4 ,moreover ,om as has been already said1 is used both as the initial and final word of ,mantras and prayers1 so it is understood to be the beginning and end of all motions and utterances4 ,in these senses it answers the ,alpha and ,omega of the ,revelation1 and the initium and finem--,hoal awl ,hoal kher of the ,koran4 ,sidenote3 #aj4 ,the ,first1 ,last and ,midst4 ,but ,om is declared again to be the first1 last and midst of things1 from its being uttered in the beginning1 middle and end of prayers and recitals of sacred hymns according to the ordinance which says that1 ,om is to be repeated thrice at every recital in the beginning1 middle and end3-- ,this rule is said to bear reference to the triple state of the progression of mortal beings1--their evolution1 sustentation and dissolution4 ,the triple utterance of ,om has given rise to the triplicate invocation of ,hari1 1 and with what ,milton has expressed in his glorious hymn in the ,paradise ,lost4 8,him first1 ,him last1 ,him midst1 and without end40 ,the reverend ,gaudapda enjoins the same ordinance in his versified commentary or ,krik to the ,mndukya ,upanishad1 where he says 7verse #bg73-- ,,viii4 ,,application ,,of ,om ,,in ,,the ,,vedas ,,and ,,vedanta4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,pranava ,adorable4 8,o venerable1 let me enter thee 7viz4 the word ,om7--the sheath of ,brahm1 swh4 ,o venerable do thou enter me1 swh4 ,o venerable1 ,i shall be purified by thee40 7,taittirya ,up4 ,,iv4 #c74 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,the ,burden of song4 8,om1 the hymns of the ,sma ,sing1 ,om1 ,som1 the hymns proclaim40 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,commanding and assenting4 8,by ,om1 the ,adhwarju gives his reply3--,by ,om the ,brahm commands2--,by ,om he gives his orders for the burnt offering0 7,ibid ,,viii4 ,anuvk74 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,beginning4 8,om1 says the ,brhman1 when he commences to read the ,veda40 7,ibid74 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,om is ,multinymous4 8,om is ,brahman1 it is immortal1 it is light1 it is truthful1 and a portion of holy light40 8,it is the sun1 the truthful1 the ,yajur1 devotion1 fire1 wind and air40 8,it is the moon1 strength1 immortality1 and the means of attaining ,brahma0 7,maitr ,upanishad ,,vi4 #ce47 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,it is all significant4 ,but apart from all the particular objects to which this word is severally applied1 ,om is found from its general sense of 8a being0 at large1 to be significant of 8all things10 as its archetype ,brahman is made to stand for universal existence both collectively as well as singly 7in toto et per singulatim71 as it is said in the ,mndukya ,upanishad1 1 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,om includes all things4 8,om0 says the ,sruti1 8is immortal40 ,its explanation is 8this all02 what was1 what is1 and what will be1 all is verily the word 8,om02 and every thing else which is beyond the three-fold time is also verily the word 8,om40 ,for this all 7represented by 8,om07 is ,brahma1 and ,brahma is 8all40 7,mndukya ,upanishad ,bhshya verse #a and #b74 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,scholium on the above4 ,according to ,sankara's explanation the rendering would be as follows3--8,om0 this sound 7or immortal7 is this 8,all10 and its explanation is 8what was1 what is1 and will be1 all is verily the word 8,om040 7,sankara's ,bhshya of the above74 nandagiri's explanation is to the same purport2 thus says he3-- ,,ix4 ,,theology ,,of ,,om ,,in ,,the ,,monads ,,of ,,monotheistic ,,creeds4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,monads or ,unities4 ,we have seen that ,om expresses all things 7,sarvamonkra71 by virtue of the word like its kindred ,greek and ,latin on and ens 7,b4 haon71 signifying 8a being0 by synecdoche 7laxan7 of a part for the whole4 ,and this is done of all things whether concrete or discrete and taken either singly or by groups of two or more things together2 as it is said--8,ekasadvisastrisas0 c41 i4 e4 ,singulatim1 dualiter1 pluraliter c4 ,we shall first come to see the monads expressed by ,om and leave it to the reader to discover the relation which the significates may bear to the symbol1 or rest satisfied with the idea of their being meaningless or arbitrary4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,om is speech or voice ,om1 says the ,sruti is ,sarvvk 8all voice and speech02 and we shall come to see below that it is applied alike to denote both human and brute speech1 and words belonging to all the different parts of speech4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,om is sound and word 8,all things are united with words which express them1 and all words are contained in the mystical syllable ,om1 7 74 ,om1 pervades all sounds2 he rises above all objects which are expressed by sounds1 who repeats this sound ,om0 7,ch'hndogya ,,ii4#bc47 7,maitr p4 #bec74 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,om is ,brahman 8,om is ,brahman called sound 7sabda74 ,by means of ,om rising above all things1 a man merges in the ,supreme called ,para ,brahma40 8,om is the emblem of the ,most ,high40 7,ch'hndogya p4 #d4 ,manu ,,ii4 #hc4 ,bhgavad ,gt74 ,so says the ,maitr ,upanishad 7,,vi4 #bb7 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,om is ,fire and its splendour 8,om was splendour and fire at first4 ,by this syllable ,om the splendour germinates1 it shoots upward1 it expands1 and becomes the vehicle of divine worship4 ,the splendour germinates in the form of the mystic syllable ,om1 as a seed germinates2 i4 e4 ,it is manifested as the primeval form of the ,veda1 it next shoots upward as the internal sound ,om itself40 ,maitr ,up4 ,,vii4 #aa4 ,fire was the first object of adoration of the ,rigveda and of the fire worshippers of ,india and ,persia4 ,it is believed to be the arche or beginning of all things according to ,heraclitus4 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,om is light4 8,om is light and manifest as light1 the sleepless1 deathless and sorrowless light40 ,again2 8,om is light which shines in yonder sun1 and in the moon1 fire1 and lightning0 7,maitr ,upanishad ,,vi4 #be474 ,so says the ,bhgavad ,gt1 8,that splendour which abiding in the sun illumines the whole world1 which abides in the moon and in fire1 that splendour know to be mine0 7,,xv4 #ab47 ,light was the first work of creation and the 8first born0 of ,heaven4 ,god said 8,lux fiat et lux fit40--8,let there be light and there was light40 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,om is ,lightening4 8,the ,veda is called lightening1 since the moment when it is uttered 7as ,om71 it enlightens every incorporated being2 therefore by the syllable ,om let a man adore the infinite splendour of ,brahman0 7,maitr ,upanishad ,,vii4 #aa47 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,om is the ,brahman light4 8,the syllable ,om is the ,brahman light or pure intelligence1 veiled behind the fire and breath1 and manifested itself at first as the one undivided sound ,om40 ,thus the ,maitr ,upanishad ,tk 7,,vii4 #aa74 ,sidenote3 #i4 ,om is ,water4 8,om shines in the waters0 7,maitr ,upanishad ,,vi4 #ce74 ,water is said to be the first work of ,god 7 7 8and the ,spirit of ,god floated on the surface of the waters0 hence called 7,genesis and ,manu74 ,thales found water to be the origin of all things4 ,sidenote3 #aj4 ,om is ,flavour c4 8,om is ,rasa1 moisture1 flavour1 taste1 relish and love 7,maitr ,up4 ,,vi4 #ce74 ,the goodness of ,god is flavour1 a man having attained flavour1 becomes possessed of joy0 7,taittirya ,up ,,ii4 #g47 8 ,by flavour rasa they mean love also and love is believed to be the formative power according to ,empedocles4 ,sidenote3 #aa4 ,om is ,ambrosia4 8,om is ambrosia the food of gods4 7,gr4 ,he ambrosia est setos theon74 ,it is also honey and all sweet40 ,so the ,sruti2 ,sidenote3 #ab4 ,om ,udgtha4 8,om1 this letter the ,udgtha1 should be adored1 ,om is chaunted40 7,ch'hndogya ,i4 #a74 8,the ,udgtha of ,sma ,veda1 corresponds with the pranava of the ,rig ,veda40 7,cowel's ,mait ,,vi4 #c74 8,the ,udgtha is the principle part of the ,sma verse1 and sung by ,udgtri priests40 8,it is chaunted 7,udgyate71 and is therefore called ,udgtha and is a ,karmngvayava or part of the liturgy40 8,what is ,udgtha1 that is ,om2 what is ,om1 that is ,udgtha40 7,maitr4 ,ch'chndogya74 ,sidenote3 #ac4 ,om is breath4 8,om called the ,udgtha is breath10 7,ch'hndogya ,upanishad p4 #ab74 ,sidenote3 #ad4 ,om is sun4 8,the sun is ,om1 ,om is ,udgtha1 the sun is ,udgtha1 he is ,om40 7,maitr ,,iv4 #d74 8,the splendour of ,brahman is yonder sun1 and it too is the splendour of ,om40 7,ibid74 ,sidenote3 #ae4 ,om the soul4 8,the soul is looked upon as ,om40 7,ch'hndogya ,upanishad4 p4 #ab74 8,for this all represented by ,om is ,brahma4 ,this soul is ,brahma40 7,mndukya ,v4 #b74 ,sidenote3 #af4 ,om the ,supreme spirit4 8,om is the most appropriate name for the ,supreme ,spirit paramtman40 7,ch'hndogya ,i4 #a74 8,the ,universal soul is the totality of individual souls40 7 74 ,sidenote3 #ag4 ,om is ,mind4 8,om is mind manas1 the self consciousness or ahankra of the ,snkhya40 7,ibid p4 #c74 ,sidenote3 #ah4 ,om is ,body4 8,om is corporeal40 7,ch'hndogya p4 #c74 ,sidenote3 #ai4 ,om is ,adorable 8,the letter ,om is eulogised for its adorableness1 and is an inducement to its worship40 7,ch'hndogya ,i4 #i4 p4 #h74 ,sidenote3 #bj4 ,om a ,vehicle 8,om is the vehicle of the worship and knowledge of the superior and inferior ,brahma40 7,maitr ,up4 #bfj74 ,sidenote3 #ba4 ,om is a ,raft4 8,om is a raft of ,brahman to cross over the torrents of the world40 7,swetswatara ,,ii4 #h4 p4 #ec74 ,sidenote3 #bb4 ,om an arrow4 8,the body is the bow1 ,om is the arrow1 with which one pierces the mark ,brahma through darkness40 ,sidenote3 #bc4 ,om a ,bridge4 ,and so ,om is used to represent many other single objects4 7,maitr ,up4 p4 #bga74 ,it is represented as a bridge in the ,atharva ,veda 7,,vi4 #aj and ,,viii4 #d74 ,x4 ,,duads ,,or ,,duples ,,of ,,the ,,bipartite ,,om ,,in ,,dualistic ,,theories4 ,sidenote3 ,duads4 ,om a couple4 8,om unites couples together and gratifies the wish of the adorer40 7,ch'hndogya ,i4 #f74 ,again 8couples being incorporated with the letter ,om1 establish the all-gratifying power and attribute of ,om40 7,sankara's ,scholium to ,ch'hndogya74 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,the ,couple ,udgtha ,pranava4 ,om combines the ,udgtha of the ,sma with the pranava of the ,rig ,veda1 the first couple2 and therefore speech 7,vk7 and breath 7prna7 the sources of the ,rik and ,sma1 the second couple2 and lastly the said two ,vedas themselves as the third couple4 7,ch'hndogya ,i4 #a-h71 and consequently the ,hotri and ,udgtri priests the fourth couple4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,brahma and ,para ,brahma4 ,om is the superior and inferior ,brahma conjointly4 ,the superior or ,para ,brahma is the one eternal and infinite ,god2 and the inferior or ,apara ,brahm is the finite ,god3--the demiurge of ,plato1 and the ,prajpati and ,indra of ,vedanta theology4 ,the ,aitareya reckons the pentad of the five elementary bodies1 under the latter category4 7,v4 #c74 ,klidsa speaks of this as the pancha mah bhta samdhi in the first book of his ,raghu ,vansa4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the two pronunciations4 8,om is pronounced as svarati in the ,rigveda and ,svara in the ,yajur ,veda40 7,ch'hndogya ,,iv4 #d4 ,manu ,,xi4 #bfe74 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,the ,human ,divine ,souls4 8,om is tman or soul4 ,two souls are said to enter the body2 the individual and the undivided or universal soul40 7,ait4 ,,iii4 #a74 8,two birds 7the supreme and individual souls7 dwell upon the same tree of the body40 7,svetsvatara ,upanishad74 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,the ,soul and ,matter4 8,om is both spirit and matter10 viewed as the same thing in the materialistic light of the ,snkhya1 and dualistic view of others4 ,spinoza defines them both as the 8,substantia cogitans1 et substantia extensa1 una eademque est substantia1 quae jam sub hoc1 jam sub illo attributo comprehenditur40 7,ethics4 #a ,pr4 #g schol74 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,the ,male and ,female4 8,om ,strpum the divine male and female02 the original androgyne or bisex being combined in the person of the first human being1 ,brahm or ,adam1 and called the ,prakriti-purusha or pradhna c41 in the ,yoga and ,puranic ,systems4 ,so says ,manu also 7,i1 #cb74 8,the power became half male half female or nature active and passive1 and divided itself in twain40 7,ibid74 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,the cause and effect4 8,om implies the two states of mundane existence1 viz1 the cause dynamic and the effect energy4 ,the effect also is two fold1 the gross and subtile40 7 74 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,the ,two ,elements4 ,the subtile elements 77 and the gross elements 77 forming the ,sthla or gross body and the linga ,sarra or subtile body1--the two component parts of all living bodies4 ,sidenote3 #i4 ,knowledge ,ignorance4 ,the two states of the soul1 knowledge and ignorance 7 7 and the two states of knowledge2 namely that which is known 771 and what is unknown 771 corresponding with two others--the 77 the manifest and unmanifest4 ,sidenote3 #aj4 ,the two states of ,life4 ,knowledge and action or ,jnna and ,karman1--theory and practice1 are the two inseparable conditions of life2 the one leading to the other1 which is the result of the former1 and according to others its cause1 in the celebrated dispute between theorists and practitioners4 ,sidenote3 #aa4 ,other ,pairs4 ,in this way many other pairs are joined together forming as they were the two halves of the great circle of ,om1 and whether diametrically or obversely opposed or attached to each other1 they form together1 the same circle of which each of them is but an imperfect part or half4 ,sidenote3 #ab4 ,geometry of ,om4 ,sidenote3 #ac4 ,logical ,use of ,om4 ,hence we see the mystery of the cypher of ,om to be no less wonderful and efficacious in the investigation of theological truths1 than the great instrument of ,euclid's compass in the bisection and measurement of geometrical dimensions4 ,and as the circle is latterly found to be made use of in the demonstration of propositions in ,logic1 how much must we wonder to reflect on the use and application of the sacred instrument of ,om by the ancient ,rishis of ,india1 to all things of the physical1 intellectual and spiritual world 7,sarvamonkra eva7 as their common measure4 ,sidenote3 #ad4 ,dualism overthrown ,having thus observed the deficiency of dualities and the imperfection of dualistic theories1 by the instrumentality of ,om1 and the application of its cypher of unity to them1 to make up that unity which is essential to the true knowledge of ,god1 whose nature is a perfect unity and without divisibility 7,ekamevdwita71 the sages next proceeded to the investigation of trialities and pluralities of tri-une doctrines and so forth1 which had been gaining ground even in those early stages of society1 by the application of the same test of the unity of ,om to them1 till at last all these partitions are lost in the cypher of ,one indivisible whole4 ,sidenote3 #ae4 ,the ,metrical ,sense of ,om4 ,om in the sense of a compass or metrical instrument1 is derived from ,o the cypher1 letter or circle1 and ma to measure1 meaning the circle of measurement4 ,,xi4 ,,triads ,,or ,,triples ,,or ,,tripartite ,,om ,,in ,,trinitarian ,,systems4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,triads or ,triples of ,om 8,but when considered as a triliteral word consisting of a1 u1 m1 71 1 71 ,om implies1 the three ,vedas1 the three states of human nature2 the three divisions of the ,universe2 the three deities1 agents of the three states of things--the creation1 preservation and destruction2 or properly speaking2 the three principle attributes of the ,supreme ,being4 ,in this sense it implies in fact the ,universe controlled by the ,supreme ,being40 ,rm ,mohun ,roy4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,their ,external ,manifestations4 ,the idea of the trisection of the circle of ,om followed that of its bisection1 together with that of the three fold division of ,divine nature1 much earlier in the minds of the ,aryans of ,india1 than the three sectors of the circle were unfolded by ,euclid1 and the mystery of the tri-une nature of the ,divinity was discovered by the divine ,plato1 or that of the three persons in the ,god-head was revealed by the ,gospel4 ,but not content with this discovery1 the ancient sages applied this triplicate division of ,om to many other things as the three fold manifestations of the ,one ,deity represented by the triliteral and trilateral figure of ,om1 and fell to their adoration1 until they were recalled to the worship of the invisible unity of ,om by the ,vednta doctrines4 ,we shall now see these triples called the ,vyhrits 77 or three fold manifestations in their order4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,the #c ,vedas4 ,om represents the three ,vedas by its three letters1 viz2 the ,rik1 ,yajur and ,sman1 consisting of the ,hymns1 ,ceremonies and ,psalms4 ,the first like the hymns of ,hesiod and ,orpheus1 the second like the ,levitican laws1 and the third resembling the ,psalms of ,david1 all of which are said to be of ,divine origin4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,the #c ,states4 ,these have no apposite terms in ,english1 and are variously rendered to express the states of quietism1 action and passion or excess of a feeling1 leading to error4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the #c ,worlds4 ,the earth1 sky and heavens1 called the three great evolutions 7 7 of ,om4 ,but those were afterwards subdivided into twenty one 7#cg7 each named as ,om 7 7 as in the beginning of ,atharva ,sanhit --8,the ,universe composed of thrice seven worlds40 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,the #c states of things4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,the #c ,agencies ,personified ,these are the creation1 preservation1 and destruction of all things 71 1 71 or as philosophically called their evolution1 sustentation and dissolution 71 1 71 and their agents1 ,brahm the creator1 ,vishnu1 the preserver1 and ,siva the destroyer of each and all1 corresponding with ,jupiter1 ,neptune and ,pluto1 and ,osiris1 ,horus and ,typhon 774 ,but this trinity is refuted by the ,vedntic doctrine of unity1 which repudiates a secondary cause4 7 74 ,the ,maitr ,upanishad makes mention of many more triads which were glorified with the aforesaid hallowed epithet ,om 7,,vi4 #e47 ,viz4 the following3-- ,sidenote3 #a4 ,the ,trisex ,divinity4 ,om composed of the three genders1 masculine1 feminine and neuter 774 ,but the ,vednta refutes the generic distinctions of the ,one unknown 7 74 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,the #c ,elemental forms4 ,the fire1 wind and sun1 7 71 the three powerful manifestations of the ,deity each of which had its votaries in the early fire1 wind and sun worshippers of ,india4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the #c ,agencies as above4 ,the creation1 preservation and destruction of things in the forms of ,brahm1 ,vishnu and ,siva as said above4 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,the #c ,fires4 ,om the three sacrificial fires called the 1 and 1 which were continually preserved in families4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,the #c ,vedas4 ,om the triple learning contained in the ,rik1 ,yajur and ,sman1 which were identified with ,god for their being his words4 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,the #c ,intelligences4 ,the three ,intellectual faculties consisting of the ,mind1 ,intellect or ,reason1 and the conscious soul4 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,the #c ,times4 ,present1 past and future composing the circle of the eternity of ,om 774 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,the #c ,aliments4 ,food and water and moon4 ,the water and food are eulogised as ,om in ,bhrigu ,valli as 1 and the moon is reckoned as such for its containing the ambrosial beverage of the gods4 ,sidenote3 #i4 ,the ,mental ,powers4 ,the three intellectual faculties1 the mind1 intellect and consciousness as the spiritual manifestations of the ,invisible ,spirit4 ,sidenote3 #aj4 ,the three ,vital ,airs4 ,those of respiration1 circulation and secretion called the respiratory breath or air and others3 there are two others which with these three will be found among the pentads 774 ,sidenote3 #aa4 ,the three feet of ,god4 ,these are the different hypostases of ,god or rather of the ,divine soul in its three states of universality1 individuality and external appearances1 each of which is subdivided into three states4 ,sidenote3 #ab4 ,the #c ,totals4 ,the ,strtm1 ,taijana and ,hiranygarbha 7universal soul7 7 72 ,the three emanations of infinite ,intelligence from the ,unity of ,god4 ,sidenote3 #ac4 ,the three ,specials4 ,the ,visva1 ,taijasha1 and ,prajn 7,individual ,souls7 7 74 ,the three emanations of finite souls from ,divine ,intelligence4 ,sidenote3 #ad4 ,the three externals4 ,the ,vaiswnara1 ,visvarpa and ,virt the three manifest and visible forms2 7 74 ,hence the nature of ,god is a triplicate threefold unity or the thrice three hypostases of the ,one ,being4 ,sidenote3 #ae4 ,the three ,forms of ,devotion4 ,the three forms of our devotion and ,communion with ,god1 that he is praised1 worshipped and ascribed with attributes4 ,sidenote3 #af4 ,the ,triple man4 ,his body--the bow1 his mind--the arrow1 and his soul--the aim4 7,mndukya ,,ii4 #d4 p4 #aei74 ,sidenote3 #ag4 ,the #c ,states of the ,soul4 ,of waking1 dreaming and sound sleep of the soul4 7 74 ,sidenote3 #ah4 ,the #c ,humours of the ,body4 ,the bile1 phlegm and choler or flatulence 7 7 are the preservatives of the body and life4 ,sidenote3 #ai4 ,three ,matrs4 ,the three mor or vowels1 the long1 short and prolated4 7 74 ,sidenote3 #bj4 ,three ,accents4 ,the acute1 grave and circumflex4 4 ,sidenote3 #ba4 ,three ,utterances of speech4 ,human speech consisting of letters1 words and sentences treated of in ,orthography1 ,etymology and ,syntax4 7 74 ,sidenote3 #bb4 ,three ,pronunciations ,distinct1 indistinct and half distinct4 7,anquetil74 7 74 ,sidenote3 #bc4 ,do4 of ,three ,vedas4 ,the ,swarat of ,rik1 the ,swara of ,yajus1 and ,swnvat of ,sma4 7 74 ,sidenote3 #bd4 ,the #c ,letters4 ,of ,om viz4 a1 u1 m1 agree with the first1 second and third word of every triad1 i4e41 each to each4 ,sidenote3 #be4 ,the #c ,merits4 ,of the meditation of the three letters of ,om described at length in the ,upanishads4 ,,xii4 ,,the ,,tetrads ,,or ,,quadruples ,,of ,,om4 ,sidenote3 ,i4 ,tetrads of ,om4 ,we have next to consider the tetrads or quadruple divinities in the quadrants or four fold divisions of the circle of ,om consisting of its four letters a1 u1 or crescent of ,om1 and the circlet of entire ,om styled ,chandravindu as given by ,professor ,monier ,williams from the ,nirukta of yaska4 7,indian ,wisdom p4 #afi74 ,sidenote3 ,,ii4 ,in sciences4 #a4 ,the ,om of orthographers consisting of the four stages of speech2 namely1 and #b4 ,of ,grammarians2 the four parts of speech1 nouns1 verbs1 prepositions and particles4 #c4 ,of ,ritualists2 ,the hymns1 liturgical precepts1 ,brhmanas and ordinary language4 #d4 ,of philologers or ,sbdikas2 the speech of serpents1 beasts1 birds and vernaculars4 #e4 ,of ,etymologists2 ,the ,rik1 ,yajur and ,sma ,vedas and current language4 #f4 ,of ,spiritualists2 ,the language of beasts1 wild animals1 musical instruments and soul4 #g4 ,of ,manu 7,,iv4 #abf74 ,the ,pranava and the three ,vyahrtis4 7 74 #h4 ,of ,manu 7,,iv4 #abd74 ,the ,rik sacred to the gods1 the ,yajur relating to mankind and the ,sma concerning the manes1 and its sound4 #i4 ,of ,smrtas2 ,the four stages2--of students1 householders1 mendicants and ascetics4 #aj4 ,of ,purnas4 ,the four ,ages2--,satya1 ,tret1 ,dwpara and ,kali4 ,the four castes c4 ,sidenote3 ,,iii4 ,in ,divinity ,a for pta or ,vypta--pervading all worlds1 represents the divine hypostasis of ,viswa4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,the #d ,conditions of ,brahma4 ,u--for ,utkarshat1 i4 e41 more elevated than ,a2 as the ,taijas than ,visva4 774 ,m--for mna or measure1 as the prajn like a prastha measures the above two4 774 ,om--i4 e41 the entire and without parts1 is the fourth and perfect condition of ,brahma4 774 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,the #d states of the ,soul4 for the waking 7,jgrat7 state1 when the soul is subject to gross senses4 ,u--for the swapna or dreaming state1 when the soul is withdrawn from visible objects4 ,m--the susupta or sound sleeping state1 in which the soul is unconscious of itself4 ,om--the absolute and perfect state of the soul viewing all in itself4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the #d ,manifestations of ,god4 ,a--is external manifestation of the ,universal soul in objects4 ,u--,internal manifestation perceived in the operations of the soul in dream4 ,m--unmanifested existence2 or the self consciousness of the soul4 ,om--,unmanifest state of the soul1 unmodified and inactive state4 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,the #d ,titles of the soul4 ,a--,viswa or ,vaiswnara who abides manifest in the waking state4 ,u--,taijasa2 abiding in dreams and knowing all without objects4 ,m--,prajn1 the perfect wise abiding in deep sleep4 ,om--,absolute ,brahma called ,turya which is perfect and all knowing4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,four fold ,tetrads3 ,i4 ,a--ptah1 pervading4 ,u--,utkarsha1 ,exalted4 ,m--,mna1 ,measure4 ,om--,brahma1 ,absolute4 ,,ii4 ,jgrat1 ,waking4 ,swapna1 ,dreaming4 ,susupti1 ,sleeping4 ,sthira1 ,calm4 ,,iii4 ,a--,vyakta1 external state4 ,u--,antar1 internal state4 ,m--,avyakta1 unmanifested4 ,om ,ananta1 ,infinity4 ,,iv4 ,viswa1 the visible world4 ,taijasa1 the thinking soul4 ,pragn1 ,consciousness4 ,turya1 ,omniscience4 ,,xiii4 ,,the ,,pentads ,c41 ,,of ,om4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,pentads of ,om4 ,the quintuples of om are composed of five letters or divisions of the symbolical circle1 standing for so many different things each of which forms a part of the whole1 and is called an ,om4 ,the five parts are1 ,a1 ,u1 ,m1 ,o and the nda--the nasal half circle above4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,the ,five ,vital ,airs4 ,respiration1 flatulence1 circulation1 pulsation and assimilation1 commonly known by the names of ,prna1 ,apna1 ,vyna1 ,udna and ,samna4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,the ,five ,caverns4 ,pancha koshas or sheaths of the soul1 folding one over the other 8like the coats of an onion04 #a4 ,the sheath of the intellect4 #b4 ,the sheath of the mind4 #c4 ,the sheath of breathing4 #d4 ,the subtle and corporeal bodies4 #e4 ,the sheath of ,supreme bliss1 not admitted by all4 71 1 1 1 7 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the ,five ,internal organs1 senses and their objects4 ,the ear1 eye1 skin1 nose and tongue1 of hearing1 sight1 feeling1 smell and taste4 ,their five objects--sound1 colour1 touch1 savour and smell4 7 7 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,the ,five external ,do4 ,the voice1 hands1 feet1 the organs of generation and secretion are organs of action4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,the ,five ,elements4 ,earth1 air1 fire1 water and ether4 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,the ,five classes of ,ignorance4 #a4 ,obscurity 771 #b4 ,illusion771 #c4 ,extreme illusion771 #d4 ,gloom 771 #e4 ,utter gloom 7 74 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,the six letters of ,hexads or sextuples4 ,the sextuples of ,om are composed of a1 u1 o1 m1 the ,vindu1 cypher1 and the nda2 and according to another account1 the ,ardha mtr of ,om is the fourth and the ,vindu and nda the fifth and sixth aksharas4 7,weber's ,rma ,tapanya p4 p4 #bib1 #cab4 ,cowell's ,maitr ,up4 p4 #bga74 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,the #f ,organs4 ,the five organs of sense2 viz the nose1 tongue1 the eye1 ear1 skin and the mind4 7,gotama ,sutra ,i4 #a1 #ab74 ,but according to others the mind is not reckoned an organ4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,other ,sextuples ,the six seasons 771 the six flavours 771 the six musical modes 771 the six ,vedngas2 but ,i never met a passage of their being preceded by ,om4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,the ,heptads or ,septuples4 ,the ,septuples are formed by a1 u1 o1 m1 ,vindu1 nda and ,snta or ultimate silence1 and these are used to symbolise the pantheistic form of the god ,virj1 in the following description of him given by ,sankara4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,the #g ,parts of ,virj ,body4 8,his head--the heavens2 his eye--the sun2 his breath--the wind2 his center--the ether2 his urine--the water2 his feet--the earth2 his mouth the fire40 ,anquetil gives the five senses1 the mind and intellect as his seven members4 7,weber's ,indian ,studien4 ,vol4 ,,ii4 p4 #ajg74 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the ,other ,heptads4 ,according to other accounts there is a sevenfold septuples included in the figure ,om comprising the ,universe4 ,the first trisaptaka or triplex septuple comprises the seven spheres of heaven1 the seven ptlas or infernal regions1 and the seven ,bhuvanas of earth4 ,the second trisapta consists of the sapta dwpas or seven continents of the earth1 the seven oceans1 and the seven planets2 and lastly the sapta swara or the seven notes emitted by the planetary motions4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,octads or octuples4 ,the octuples consist of the aforesaid seven parts and the skti or word namo added to them at the end1 and are used as symbols of ,virj for the five vital airs1 or the five organs of action and those of intellect i4 e4 the mind1 intellect and self consciousness or chtta4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,nonads4 ,these are nine cavities of the body the abode of ,brahma4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,decads4 ,these are the ten internal and external organs 7 and 7 of the body--the seats of ,brahma4 ,,xiv4 ,,philosophy ,,of ,,the ,,numerical ,,groups ,,contained ,,under ,,the ,,mystic ,,syllable ,,om4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,inquiry into the numerical groups4 ,after the lengthy account we have given of the various classes of words contained under the different numbers and divisions and subdivisions of the mysterious letter ,om1 it must be asked by the inquisitive reader1 what do these clusters of concrete and abstract terms which are numerically jumbled together under the unintelligible character ,om serve to mean1 and of what use are they to the contemplative ,yogi in his meditation on the attributes of his ,maker by that symbol8 ,sidenote3 #b 7a74 ,enlargement of the understanding4 ,in answer to this query we are bound to repeat the definition of yoga1 that it is the process of joining the ideas in the mind1 and practicing the limited powers of the understanding to rise by degrees from their grasping the ideas of unities or single objects at a time1 to the comprehension of dualities and pluralities for the enlargement of the intellect1 till at last the mind is fraught with a clear and distinct idea of every thing in the universe comprised under the several groups or generalizations of particulars4 ,sidenote3 #b 7b74 ,their ,pantheistic view4 ,and also as we have more than once mentioned in the preceding articles1 that ,god is aham bahushym--one in many1 to on to pan of the ,greeks1 or the unity divided into and containing an ,infinity of parts2 so ,his symbol the holy ,om is one circle and emblem of infinity1 which for the sake of our conception and convenience is viewed in its ,finite parts of monads c41 and their ever increasing multiples by all other numbers4 ,but the monad like the prime number one whether multiplied or divided by any number in arithmetic1 remains still the same simple one4 ,thus 7#a #b #b #a72 7and #a_/b #a #b1 or #a_/b #a #a_/b74 ,this is the root of the pantheistic doctrine of the ,vednta4 ,this ,one is all3 and the whole being taken from the whole the remainder is whole4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the ,numerical ,philosophy4 ,it was the oldest ,snkhya or numerical school of philosophy in ,india1 like the ancient ,ionian school of ,greece1 that first made a classification of all objects in nature under certain co-ordinate groups for our contemplation of them under those classes2 which its later development of the yoga system has converted to the objects of our meditation as same with or pervaded by the ,deity2 or in other words1 has recommended the meditation of nature's ,god in nature itself as in ,natural ,theology4 ,it was the ,tantra worship of later ages that divided the symbol of unity and infinity of the divine om into a decad of parts1 as it is the custom of mathematicians to divide the great circle of infinity into #cfj degrees1 though it might be divided into an infinity of parts4 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,the ,snkhya and ,pythagorean4 ,the ,snkhya system of evolution which is closely allied to that of the ,darwinian1 views the monad as the elementary protozoa1 which combined with other monads make up the duads1 triads c4 we have mentioned before1 and all which are resolvable to the primary monad4 ,om is always #8one' thing2 nothing can destroy that numerical existence1 combine the thing in every possible variety of ways1 and it still remains #8one4' ,it cannot be less than one1 it cannot be more4 ,as 7#b #a #a ,,ii #c #a #a #a ,,iii74 ,resolve it into its minutest particles1 and each particle is one4 ,as 71 1 c474 ,one is the only absolute number2 all others are but relations to it4 ,the ,infinite therefore must be one1 and if you take infinity and the infinitesimals from the infinite1 there remains also the same infinity2 according to the ,vednta paradox and all modes of existence are but finite aspects of the ,infinite4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,different aspects of the soul4 ,the soul being a self moved monad1 is one1 whether it connects itself with two or with three2 in other words the essence remains the same whatever its manifestations may be4 ,the one soul may have two aspects1 ,intelligence and ,passion1 as in brutes2 or it may have three aspects1 as in man c4 ,for more of this see ,lewes' ,history of ,philosophy 7,vol4 ,i p4 #cc and p4 #cd74 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,query concerning ,nature ,worship4 ,there rises another question of some importance in this place as1 what has the ,yogi or worshipper of ,god to do with the objects presented to him in the different groups under the partitions of ,om1 when his business is solely to meditate on the nature and attributes of the ,deity8 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,spiritual ,worship4 ,to this it may be answered that1 the ,hindu ,yogi or meditative sage is enjoined to meditate on the ,supreme ,spirit in ,spirit1 8tm tmanyeva chintayet04 7 74 ,he does not adore any visible object1 but contemplates his creator with all his attributes as displayed in creation1 which he sums up abstractedly in his own spirit and mind4 ,there can be no contemplation of the inscrutable and incomprehensible nature of ,god apart from the light we derive from the abstract meditation of all sensible and intellectual natures4 8,observe every thing in thyself and so shalt thou behold the ,supreme40 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,self knowledge4 ,what8 ,the old rule of self knowledge or know thyself 1 which was believed to constitute highest wisdom1 and which has given rise to different interpretations in various schools of philosophy1 does not mean the knowledge of one's state and nature to be sufficient for him2 but that of his soul which makes him truly great4 ,the wise ,socrates looked inwards1 and there discovered the moral and psychological truths the world has derived from him4 ,his pupil the divine ,plato looked within him1 and there found the eternal ideas of which sense awakened reminiscence4 ,sidenote3 #i4 ,knowledge of the ,soul4 ,the ,hindu ,yogi too looks inward and views within the circle of his cranium symbolized as ,om1 his soul seated as a ray and figure of the ,divinity1 and encompassed by the abstract ideas of all things whose impressions he has received by sense and mind4 ,he then learns to distinguish by his discriminative power called the tmntma viveka1 77 the soul of the ,universe from all the representations which it presents to his mind4 ,sidenote3 #aj4 ,of one in ,many4 ,the ,platonic system had also a sort of classification in which the search for ,one in ,many and ,many in ,one1 together with the detection of the ,one in the ,many was the constant aim1 consult for further information on this head in ,lewes' ,history of ,philosophy4 7,vol4 #a4 p4 #bcg and p4 #dje74 ,,xv4 ,,the ,,unitarian ,,formula ,,one ,,that ,,is4 ,sidenote3 #a4 ,om the one4 ,from all our investigation into the origin1 rise1 and extent of meaning of the word ,om in its orthography1 etymology and theology1 it is evident that the ,indo-,aryan mind was early infused with the idea of an absolute ,om corresponding with the ,greek ,on and n1 and ,en and also ,aeon of the ,gnostics1 ,latin ,ens1 ,unum and ,entity1 ,romance ,on and un1 and one in ,english1 whose unity was the source of all diversity in the plurality of creation1 agreeably to the text aham bahu ,sym ,ego multus sim of the ,sruti4 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,the ,universal soul1 ,vswtman4 ,it was at first known as one and then as the self or soul by the silent and innate intuition of the intellect1 as it is declared in the ,mandukya ,upanishad ,,ii4 #b1 #e4 1 ,max ,mller says 7,a4 ,s4 ,lit4 p4 #bc and p4 #cbb73 8,the tman was next conceived as the ,spirit air1 tm and anime40 8,that one breathed breathless by itself3 other than it nothing since has been40 ,thus says the ,sruti 7,mller p4 #efj74 8,this one tman 7atmos7 fills1 animates and pervades the whole02 as the poet sings 8spreads unspent0 throughout the infinity of worlds3 8,which are but parts of one undivided whole whose body nature is1 and ,god the soul40 7,pope74 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,called as ,tat that ,the inherent one of all ones 8to on ontwn10 the unit of unities1 the ,ens of entities1 the soul of the world 8,viswtman0 was yet without a name1 nor did they know how to call him1 than by the designation of tat 8that10 which they say is expressive of the idea of ,brahma ,because says ,vchaspati1 the nature of the one ,om1 was unknown even to the learned 2 and therefore it was specified by the demonstrative pronoun that 8tat10 which sometimes preceded the as c4 7,greek to on74 ,the necessity of pronouncing ,om with tat sat in the beginning of every ,vedic rite1 is strictly enjoined in ,bhgavad-,gt4 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,the ,impersonal and ,personal ,god4 ,the word 8tat0 in the neuter gender1 was used for the one self1 which as an element or material cause1 had evolved all things out of its immaterial essence1 and expressed an impersonal ,god1 which the creed of the early philosophers had established in the ,vedas4 ,it was at a much later period that the belief of a personal ,god1 is said to have been introduced by the sage ,sndilya in the ,ch'hndogya and ,swetsvatara ,upanishads1 where the self is used in the masculine gender1 and the masculine pronoun ,sa and tam 7,greek 8ho and ton10 ,lat 8is071 was substituted for tat 7,greek to ,lat id7 in the subjective mantra 2 but in the objective mantra it is neuter as ,sidenote3 #e4 ,of the ,brhma ,somja ,the ,brhma ,samj has preserved both the formula of the ,impersonal ,god 7 7 as their motto1 as well as addressed their prayers to the personal ,god by use of the masculine pronoun sa and tam instead of tat4 ,thus in the opening hymn of ,ram ,mohun ,roy's ,prayer ,book ,so in ,devendra ,natha ,thkur's hymn ,this is in accordance to the creed of all civilized nations to apply the masculine pronoun to the ,deity4 ,the ,koran has 8hohe0 in its formulas of 8,ho'lahad0 8,ho'lghani0 c41 and so also the ho of the ,bible4 ,tat like ,on is sometimes used alone and by itself for ,god1 at the opening of books and chapters1 and upon the tops of pages with the ,sat following it as 4 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,ditto in the ,feminine ,gender4 ,but those who have heard the preachings of ,keshub ,chandra ,sen1 may well remember his exclamations as 1 1 in imitation of the ,roman idolatrous philosopher's acclamation to ,god1 8tu pater1 tu mater1 tu mas1 tu femme0 c41 in ,cudworth's ,intellectual ,system4 ,there is no masculine or feminine representative of the pronoun tat or any other pronoun in the vernaculars1 where they are all of the common gender1 hence 1 1 1 c41 used for tat by the ,heathen ,hindus1 are applied alike to their gods and goddesses1 while the ,sanskrit sah ho in ,greek1 ,arabic and ,hebrew designates the masculine ,deity only4 ,mahommed says in the ,koran1 8ye are ashamed of your female children1 but not of assigning female attributes to the ,deity40 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,ditto in the ,neuter ,gender4 ,the following passages will serve to show the early creed of the impersonal ,god1 from the application of the neuter pronoun tat to him in the ,mndukya ,upanishad4 7#aa4 #b7 1 ,meaning3--8,the sun1 moon and stars what are they8 ,but a glimpse of light caught from ,that 7,tat740 c4 ,,xvi4 ,,ontology ,,of ,,the ,,self ,,existent ,sat ,,being4 ,sidenote3 ,philology of ,sat4 #a4 ,the last word of the formular motto of ,vednta is sat1 which derived from the root asa1 ,lat4 esse--to be1 makes the present participle ,sat and means a being1 like the ,latin ens and ,greek ,on1 the participial noun of eimi meaning a being4 ,thus the knowledge of sat which is ,satyam reality1 is the doctrine of ,on--the real being1 which as said before is to on onton--the being of beings and prime cause of all existences1 and forms the main subject of ,ontology4 ,this primary and fundamental truth of the existence of a first cause1 led the ,rishi a priori to deduce all other existences from it by the text ,ego in multis et pluribus--the one in many3 or in other words1 when the ,brhman believes in but one real being in the ,universe1 he believes also that this being constitutes the ,universe4 7,m4,w4 ,indian ,wisdom p4 #cf74 ,sidenote3 #b4 ,etymology of ,sat4 #b4 ,the noun ,sat in its verbal form is equivalent to asti1 corresponding with ,lat4 est1 ,gr4 esti1 ,persic ast and hast1 ,bengali-chhe1 ,uria achchhe c4 ,eng4 is1 ,ger4 ,ist and the like4 ,and tat sat together makes the ,greek to estin1 ,lat4 ,id est ,french ,il est c42 ,arabic alast1 ,persic ost1 and ,hindi ,ohihae4 ,the ,om ,tat ,sat is either an identic proposition1 meaning the 8,being that is0 or a definitive one1 expressing ,om that 7is7 existent4 ,sidenote3 #c4 ,the ,ontology of ,sat or ,being4 #c4 ,the ,ch'hndogya ,upanishad says2 8,in the beginning there was the mere state of sat--being 7to on7--the one only without a second40 ,some however say that1 8in the beginning there was a state of asat--not being2 7,lat4 non est1 ,gr4 to mi on71 the one without a second4 ,hence out of a state of non-being would proceed a state of being4 ,but how can this be8 ,how can sat being1 proceed out of asat not being80 ,it is logically absurd by the well known maxim ,ex nihilo nihil fit of ,lucretius4 8,hence in the beginning there was a mere state of being 7the om74 ,one only without a second4 7om eka mev dvityam 74 ,he willed and became many0 7,chnd4 ,,vi4 #b4 ,m4 ,w4 ,ind4 ,wisdom p4 #da74 ,sidenote3 #d4 ,a ,priori ,argument of ,vednta4 #d4 ,the ,original text runs thus4 1 1 ,the above cited passage and numerous other texts of the ,vednta such as the following1 and c41 unanimously prove a priori and by deductive reasoning that ,brahma is the primary cause from which all others are derived and deduced by reason4 ,this is called the ,prva vat or a priori reasoning in the ,nyaya philosophy1 which is shewn to be the logical inference of the effect from its cause4 ,sidenote3 #e4 ,evidences of the ,first cause4 #e4 ,the priori inference of a pre-existent cause is supported by many other modes of reasoning as we shall state below4 #a4 ,by the ,cosmological reasoning of ,humboldt1 ,leibnitz and others1 it is evident that some being was uncaused1 or was of itself without a cause4 ,therefore ,god is the first cause of all things4 7,leibnitz74 #b4 ,by the ,anthropological reasoning founded on certain observed facts or phenomena of human consciousness1 its knowledge of the subjective ego and objective non ego c4 #c4 ,by the ,ontological1 we find the existence in the mind of a clear and distinct idea of ,god1 as a perfect ,being or ,ens or entity 7sat7 perfectly eminent4 #d4 ,psychological ,intuitive reasoning shows us clearly that 8we may form the idea of a supremely perfect being of whom we have a conscious proof4 ,and as in the exercise of our intellect we become conscious of a subjective unity underlying the external diversity1 so by the unvarying revelations of reason1 we are led to recognize the existence of a ,deity who1 amidst all the shifting phenomena of the universe remains one and ,immutable40 ,vide ,devendra ,nth ,tagore's ,ontology p4 #ad4 ,sidenote3 #f4 ,a ,posteriori ,argument4 ,the ,vednta philosophy pursues also a course of inductive reasoning in its aphorism of 1 rising from the creation to its maker4 ,this is the process of or a posteriori reasoning of the ,nyya philosophy1 in its inference of the cause fire from its effect the smoke 7 71 or of the major term from the middle ,this is the physical reasoning of modern inductive science1 which infers from the facts of existence an author of these facts4 ,the ,universe exists1 therefore it has a cause1 which is prior to all other causes4 ,there are some who attempt to prove the posteriori argument of the ,veda from a different construction of the ,gyatri hymn1 ascending from the ,vyhritis or creation of the worlds 77 to their creator 2 but this mode of reasoning is not justified by others1 by reason of the initial ,om ,god4 ,sidenote3 #g4 ,ambiguity of the word ,sat4 ,we shall now take notice of the other meanings which the lexicons assign to sat1 beside the being and entity of ,god we have so long dwelt upon4 ,it means the goodness and excellence of a thing4 ,in this sense the phrase ,om tat sat would mean 8,god ,the ,good01 which is quite correct on all hands4 ,in ,english the etymology of ,god is good1 and so the ,sanskrit sat means both ,god and good2 thus also all systems of philosophy predicate the attribute of goodness of the nature of ,god4 ,the ,persian term ,khoda though so nearly allied to ,god and sat in sound1 will be found to bear no affinity with either2 but to owe its derivation to the ,sanskrit 7from 7 meaning self-produced2 swa being invariably rendered into kha in ,persian1 as swata khod1 swasri khwahir c4 ,sidenote3 #h4 ,another sense of ,sat4 ,sat appears moreover in the sense of sitting in composition with an objective word preceding it1 as diri-shad a celestial1 sabhsat a courtier4 ,it is from the root sad1 ,latin sedo--to sit1 with the suffix kwip4 ,thus we have in the ,kath ,vall3 7,v4 #b47 8,the ,hansa1 7,god7 sits above the heavens1 it dwells in the atmosphere1 as invokers it dwells in temples1 and as guests it is not afar from us4 ,it dwells in man1 in truth1 in the ether1 in water1 mountains c4 c40 ,,xvii4 ,,the ,,conclusive ,,lesson ,,on ,,the ,,practice ,,of ,,yoga4 ,after our long and lengthy discussion on the subject of ,yoga1 and the sacred and mysterious words wherewith it is conducted1 our treatise will be deemed incomplete until we set a form or praxis of the manner in which it is to be conducted2 and particularly by those who are fully persuaded of its efficacy1 and prepared for its practice1 but are prevented from it for want of proper guides to initiate them into it1 or deterred by the arduousness of the rites imposed upon them by false ,yogis1 as to give up the exercise in disgust and hopelessness of their possibility ever to master it4 ,we shall set to these a short lesson from the ,upanishad with directions from the ,bhgavad ,gt1 works which are believed to be of the highest authority and sanctity by every ,hindu1 and which can never be suspected of misleading any body2 but on the other hand universally acknowledged as the only luminaries amidst the intellectual gloom of superstition and ignorance4 ,the ,kathopanishad says that the light of truth is to be gained by yoga only 1 and the ,bhgavad ,gt declares1 that knowledge1 faith and practice are the only means of its attainment 4 ,it directs all men of competence to betake themselves to the acquisition of learning1 and the incompetent to the practice of acts thus3 1 ,the ,maitr ,upanishad gives the following directions for the practice of yoga4 8,in the same way 7is declared7 the rule for the exercise of these means 7for the concentration of the mind74 ,this concentration 7yoga7 has six parts3--restraint of the breath 7prnyma71 restraint of the senses 7pratyhra71 meditation 7dhyna71 attention 7dhran72 self examination 7tarka71 and absorption 7samdhi74 ,when beholding by this manner of contemplation1 he beholds the golden coloured1 the doer1 the lord1 the spirit1 ,brahman1 the cause2 then the seer abandoning his merits and sins1 reduces every thing to unity in the ,supreme indestructible 7soul74 ,thus says the ,sruti2--,as beasts and birds approach not a blazing mountain1 so faults never approach those who know ,brahman04 7#ah74 8,it has been also said elsewhere when the sage1 conditioned as prna1 has obtained the mastery over his mind1 and left outside all the objects of the senses1 then let him remain void of all volition4 ,since the individual soul called prna springs from the non-prna 7,supreme ,intelligence72 hence let the 7apparent7 prna fix itself in the fourth stage 7of pure intelligence74 ,thus saith the ,sruti2--8,that which is itself apart from intellect1 which yet abides in the midst of intellect1 the inconceivable1 the supremely secret1 on this let him fix his intellect 7chitta72 thus this subtle body having no object1 is merged 7in the ,supreme740 7#ai74 8,it hath also been said elsewhere2 there is yet a higher exercise of attention 7dhran7 for the sage2 after pressing the end of his tongue against his palate and restraining his voice1 mind and breath1 he beholds ,brahman by contemplation4 ,when thus by the annihilation of the mind1 he beholds the self-manifesting soul1 the less than the least1 as identified with the supreme soul1 then having seen the soul thus identified1 he becomes divested of self4 ,being thus divested1 he becomes unlimited1 destitute of material support1 only an object of pure thought4 ,this is the great secret1--final emancipation4 ,thus saith the ,sruti2--,by the serenity of the intellect he destroys all action1 good or bad2 with serene soul1 abiding in the ,divine ,soul1 he enjoys undying bliss40 7#bj74 8,it hath been said also2 the artery1 called sushumn1 which supplies the passage for the vital air1 rises upward 7from the heart7 and is interrupted in the middle of the palate4 ,by means of this artery1 conjoined with the prna 7brought under subjection71 the mind merged by contemplation into its object ,brahman1 and the repetition of the mystic syllable ,om1 let him rise upwards turning the end of his tongue on the palate1 and uniting the senses 7with the prna and mind7 4 ,let the absence of limitation contemplate itself 7i4 e4 let him contemplate on the unlimited ,brahman74 ,then he attains freedom from all organs2 and becomes no longer capable of pain or pleasure4 ,he gains absolute unity40 ,thus saith the ,sruti3-- 8,first having mastered prna1 then having fixed it on the palate1 having crossed the state of limitation1 let him in the crown of his head1 merge 7the soul7 in the unlimited ,brahman40 7#ba74 8,thus he may contemplate ,om as the sound and non-sound c4 7#bb and #bc74 ,then ,om as light1 and all other significates of ,om40 7#bd c474 ,those who may think the ,english version of the lesson on ,yoga as not very explicit1 will do well to consult the subjoined text in the original4 -- ,,xviii4 ,,symbolical ,,yoga ,,cult ,,of ,,mudr ,,or ,,chakra ,,diagrams4 ,om the object of ,yoga meditation1 being already described in sections ,,ix4 c4 of this article as symbolical of ,divine nature1 and its different divisions as emblematical of the eternal attributes or hypostases of the ,self--same ,unity1 they are as shown before1 represented by the component letters of that mystic syllable1 and meditated upon by the mental arithmetic of the speculative theosophist1 the vedntist and yogi4 ,but as the majority of people of grosser understandings are more dependant on ocular and sensible symbolism than abstract idealism1 the ,tantras have purposely contrived many a figure and diagram 7,mudrs and ,chakras7 for their guidance1 of which we will give a few below with their geometrical names and notations4 ,it will appear from the diagrams described hereafter that ,om the symbol of ,brahman the ,universal ,sat or existence1 serves to show us as a chart of the world1 or representation of the cranium1 everything existing in the physical and intellectual world1 which is expressed by the word ,om 7 71 in its different divisions and partitions for our meditation and contemplation4 ,the pious and religious spiritualist may employ them in ,divine contemplation1 but the majority are at liberty to use them in the meditation of every other subject which comes to be comprised within the compass of their thought1 in the groups of significations which the letters are said to convey4 ,hence the ,yoga of old1 meant only an intense application of the mind to all subjects of thought and knowledge4 ,thus the end of our ,yoga philosophy is not only the abstruse meditation of ,divine attributes1 but the mental reflection of every thing besides4 ,,xix4 ,,mathematical ,,investigation ,,into ,,the ,,diagrams ,,of ,,om4 ,sidenote3 ,correctness of the ,diagrams4 ,we have seen from the diagrams given in the following section1 that the ,tntrika formulists have spared no pains to divide the great circle of the ,universe1 filled by the omnipresence of ,brahma and represented by the figure om1 into several parts for the purpose of meditating ,his different hypostases1 and contemplation o the various orders of creation4 ,we are now to inquire as to whether these several divisions of a mathematical circle of #cfj degrees are geometrically correct1 or mere arbitrary partitions made by ignorant priests for their own amusement and deception of their proselytes4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,heptagon and ,nonagon4 ,now for instance1 the problem of inscribing a heptagon or a nonagon in a circle will at once startle a student of ,euclid as altogether impossible1 and identical with that which was celebrated among ,greek geometricians as the problem of the trisection of the angle4 ,if treated algebraically1 it leads to a cubic equation with three real roots1 the arithmetical value of which can be found only approximately4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,llvat's solution4 ,the author of the ,llvat has solved the problems1 but given no account of the way in which he got the numbers stated by him2 if they had been obtained by solution of the above mentioned equation1 they would probably have been more accurate than they are4 ,he only lays down an arbitrary rule1 that the side of the heptagon is #ebjee_/abjjjj of the diameter1 and that of the nonagon #dajha_/abjjjj of the same4 ,neither of these is very far from the truth4 ,the accurate value of the side of the heptagon lies between #hb_/ahb and #aje_/bdb4 ,the side of the nonagon lies between #ac_/ch and #aje_/cjg4 ,sidenote3 ,commentators on ,llvat4 ,among the commentators on ,llvat1 ,rmakrishna1 ,gangdhara1 and ,rangantha have not attempted any demonstration of the problems in question1 and have contented themselves with merely repeating the figures contained in the text4 ,ganesa confesses that the proof of the sides of the regular pentagon1 heptagon and nonagon cannot be shown in a manner similar to that of the triangle1 square and octagon4 ,sidenote3 ,the ,pentagon4 ,but this is untrue of the pentagon2 its side can be geometrically found as shown in ,euclid ,book ,,iv4 ,prop #aa2 and the admission of ,ganesa serves only to prove1 that he was unacquainted with the ,sanskrit translation of ,euclid which contains a solution of this problem4 ,ganesa cannot mean only that the side of the pentagon is incommensurable with the diameter2 for that is equally true of the triangle1 square and octagon1 inscribed in a circle4 ,,the ,,figures4 ,,of ,,om 7,,on ,,or ,,en7 ,,of ,,hindu ,,ontology4 ,i4 ,mudr1 ,madawar1 ,sphere or ,sphaira4 ,a ,symbol of the ,universe and ,universalia4 ,a ,system of the ,universal ,religion4 ,,ii4 ,the circle ,o1 ,an ,emblem of infinity and ,eternity4 ,a ,type of the ,catholic ,theism of ,hindus4 ,,iii4 ,the convexity of ,o4 ,a ,type of the ,extramundane1 ,unknowable and ,absolute ,supreme ,brahma4 ,significant of ,agnoism and ,agnosticism4 ,,iv4 ,the concavity of ,o4 ,emblem of ,intramundane ,immensity of knowable ,nature and its ,god ,brahma 4 ,and ,indicative of ,gnosticism and ,pantheism4 ,v4 ,the circle with the ,central point or ,monad4 ,a ,symbol of the ,definite and known world and its ,god4 ,and signifying the ,monotheism of all nations4 #a4 ,the circle with the central ,a1 ,alif or ,unit4 ,emblematical of the unity of a ,personal ,god4 ,and the ,primary unity of all things in ,nature4 ,and significant of unitarianity or ,advaita matam4 #b4 ,the two ,semicircles of ,o4 ,symbolical of ,duad or ,duality 4 ,in the dualism of ,persons in the ,god-head as ,dvaitam4 ,and the ,duads of ,co-ordinate ,principles in ,nature4 ,and signifying the ,ditheism of all ,dualistic creeds4 #c4 ,the ,trisected circle of ,om4 ,a symbol of the ,triad or ,trinity4 ,indicative of a ,triality of ,persons in the ,god-head as ,traitam4 ,and the co-ordinate ,triples of the ,principles in ,nature4 ,and signifying the ,tritheism of ,trinitarianity4 #c4 7a7 ,the ,tripartite circle4 ,with the ,inscribed ,triangle ,euclid 7,,iv4 #b74 ,a symbol of the ,holy ,trinity 7,trimrti on the three sides74 ,and the ,triangular female emblem of ,god-mother in the midst4 ,and ,indicating the ,materialistic ,trinitarianism of ,hindus4 #d4 ,the ,four ,quadrants of the circle of ,om or a square4 ,emblematical of the ,tetrad of the ,divinity4 ,and the co-ordinate ,quadruples of ,things4 ,and signifying the ,quaternity of certain creeds4 #e4 ,the ,pentagon ,inscribed in the circle4 ,denoting the ,pentad4 ,the ,angular ,points ,a4 ,b4 ,c4 ,d4 ,e4 ,meeting at the ,centre ,o 7,euclid ,,iv4 #aa74 ,indicative of the ,quintuple ,hypostases of the ,deity4 ,the ,quintessence and the ,five fold co-ordinates of ,elementary bodies4 #f4 ,the ,hexagon in the ,circle4 ,significant of the ,hexad4 ,the ,angular ,points ,a4,b4,c4,d4,e4,f4 ,meeting at the centre 7,euclid ,,iv4 #ae74 ,denotative of the sextuple ,evolutions of the ,monad ,o4 ,and ,indicative of the ,six ,internal and ,external ,organs of sense4 #g4 ,the ,heptagon4 ,inscribed in the circle ,o4 ,indicates the ,heptad4 ,the ,angular ,points ,a4 ,b4 ,c4 ,d4 ,e4 ,f4 ,g4 ,meeting at the centre ,o4 ,according to the ,process of ,llvat mentioned below4 ,indicates the septuple ,hypostases of ,divine ,essence1 viz2 ,the ,five ,external senses1 mind and intellect4 7,anquetil74 ,and the seven fold co-ordinate bodies in creation1 viz2 the seven ,worlds1 seven ,planets1 seven ,continents and ,oceans4 #h4 ,the ,octagon 7,a4 ,b4 ,c4 ,d4 ,e4 ,f4 ,g4 ,h74 ,inscribed in the circle ,o4 ,by ,bisection of the ,quadrants 7in ,figure #d74 ,indicative of the ,octad or ,octuple states of ,spirit and ,body4 viz1 the five ,vital airs or the five external or five ,internal senses with the ,mind1 ,intellect and consciousness 7,chittam74 ,all forms of the ,spirit4 ,and the eight material forms of ,earth c41 treated of in the ,ashta ,mrti4 #i4 ,the ,nonagon ,a1 ,b1 ,c1 ,d1 ,e1 ,f1 ,g1 ,h1 ,i4 ,inscribed in the circle ,o4 ,by ,trisection of the three sections of a ,tripartite circle4 ,symbolical of a nonad or nine fold nature of the ,deity4 ,and the nine doors or organs of ,animal bodies4 -- - - - - #aj4 ,the ,decagon in a ,circle4 ,emblematical of the ,decad4 ,the ,decagon ,a1 ,b1 ,c1 ,d1 ,e1 ,f1 ,g1 ,h1 ,i1 ,j4 ,by ,bisection of the ,pentagon4 ,significant of the ,five ,internal and five ,external ,senses4 ,and the ,ten ,directions of space4 ,all filled by ,divine ,spirit4 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ,these figures might be multiplied ad infinitum1 as there is no limit of created things and the attributes of the ,creator2 but as neither ,infinity nor ,immensity is comprehensible by the limited understanding of man1 the ,yogi takes some definite ideas and determinate objects for his meditation1 as he is directed by the ,natural ,religion of mankind4 ,,note ,,to ,,figure #g4 ,solution of the ,problem of inscribing a heptagon in a circle1 or dividing the circle into seven equal parts4 ,according to ,sryadsa's commentary on ,llvat4 8,for the heptagon describe a circle1 and an equilateral heptagon in it1 then a line being drawn between the extremities of any two sides--at pleasure1 and three lines from the centre of the circle to the angles indicated by those extremities 1 an unequal quadrilateral is formed4 ,the greater sides and the least diagonal thereof are equal to the semi-diameter 04 ,the value of the greater diagonal1 which is assumed arbitrarily1 is the chord of the arc encompassing the two sides4 ,its arrow being deduced in the manner before directed1 is the side of a small rectangular triangle ,thus the greater diagonal 1 being arbitrarily assumed to be #ic1hjd1 is the chord sought 2 its arrow found in the manner directed is #bb1egi2 this is the side1 and half the base or chord is the upright #df1ijb2 their squares are #ejigaabda and #baiigfjd2 the square root of the sum of which is the side of the heptagon or #eb1jee ,these numbers are given from the copy of ,sryadsa's commentary on the ,llvat in the library of the ,as4 ,society4 ,there are two obvious errors in them1 probably of the copyist 2 viz4 #bb1egi should be #bb4eha1 and #baiigfjd should be #baiigigfjd4 ,,note ,,to ,,fig4 #i4 ,to inscribe a nonagon in a circle1 i4 e41 to divide it into nine parts4 8,a circle being described as before1 inscribe a triangle in it4 ,thus the circle is divided into three parts4 ,three equal chords being drawn in each of these portions1 a nonagon is thus inscribed in it 2 and three oblongs are formed within the same2 of which the base is equal to the side of the 7inscribed7 triangle ,then two perpendiculars being drawn in the oblong1 it is divided into three portions1 the first and last of which are triangles 2 and the intermediate one is a tetragon4 ,the base in each of them is a third part of the side of the inscribed triangle 7874 ,it is the upright 7of a rectangular triangle7 2 the perpendicular is its side2 and the square root of the sum of their squares is the hypotenuse 1 and is the side of the nonagon 4 8,to find the perpendicular 1 put an assumed chord equal to half the chord of the 7inscribed7 tetragon2 find its arrow in the manner aforesaid1 and subtract that from the arrow of the chord of the 7inscribed7 triangle1 the remainder is the perpendicular4 ,thus the perpendicular comes out #ba1ihi3 it is the side of a rectangular triangle4 ,the third part of the inscribed triangle is #cd1fda3 it is the upright4 ,the square root of the sum of their squares is #da1jca3 and is the side of the inscribed nonagon40 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,om ,,tat ,,sat4 ,,yoga ,v,,sishtha4 ,,book ,i4 ,,on ,,moral ,,apathy ,,chapter ,i4 ,,introduction4 ,,section ,i4 ,,divine ,,adoration ,hail ,the ,eternal4 ,om1 salutation to the self-same ,reality1 from whom all beings proceed1 by whom they are manifest1 upon whom they depend1 and in whom they become extinct 7in the end74 #b4 ,he is the knower1 the knowledge and all that is to be known4 ,he is the seer1 the 7act of7 seeing1 and all that is to be seen4 ,he is the actor1 the cause and the effect3 therefore salutation to ,him 7who is all7 knowledge himself4 #c4 ,salutation to ,him 7who is7 supreme bliss itself1 from whom flow the dews of delight 7as water springs from a fountain7 both in heaven and earth1 and who is the life of all4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,narrative ,,of ,,sut,,kshna4 #d4 ,one ,sutkshna1 a ,brhmana1 whose mind was full of doubts1 went to the hermitage of ,agasti and asked the sage respectfully3-- #e4 ,oh great sage6 that art informed in all the ways and truths of virtue1 and knowest with certainty all the ,sstras1 ,i am in a great doubt 7about something7 which ,i pray you will kindly remove4 #f4 ,tell me whether a man's acts or his knowledge or both of these1 is in your opinion1 the cause of his emancipation4 #g4 ,agasti replied3-- ,as the flight of birds in the air is effected by means of both their wings1 so the highest state of emancipation is attained through the instrumentality of both knowledge and acts4 #h4 ,it is neither our acts nor knowledge alone that produces emancipation1 but both together are known as the means of it4 ,,section ,,iii4 ,,anecdote ,,of ,k,,runya4 #i4 ,i will recite to you an instance on this subject from the old traditions1 relating a ,brhman named ,krunya1 who was learned in the ,vedas in days of yore4 #aj4 ,he was the son of ,agnivesya and accomplished in the ,vedas and all their branches1 and after finishing his studies at the preceptor's1 returned to his own abode4 #aa4 ,he remained a sceptic at home1 holding his taciturnity and inertness to acts3 when his father ,agnivesya saw his son so slack in his duties1 he upbraided him thus for his good4 #ab-ac4 ,agnivesya said3-- ,why my son do you not discharge your duties1 tell me how can you succeed 7in anything7 if you remain inactive1 and tell me also the reason of your cessation from acts4 #ad4 ,krunya replied3-- ,the offering of daily oblations1 and performance of morning and evening devotions during life1 are inculcated in the ,veda and law as the active duties 7of men74 #ae4 ,but it is neither by acts or riches1 nor by means of progeny1 that one obtains his liberation1 it is solely by self-denial that ,stoics taste the ambrosia 7of emancipation74 #af4 ,tell me my father6 which of these two ordinances is to be observed by me8 ,doubtful of this ,i have become indifferent to acts4 #ag4 ,agasti said3-- ,hear me my son1 that ,krunya after saying so held his silence2 when his father seeing him thus1 rejoined his speech4 #ah4 ,agnivesya said3-- ,hear me relate a narrative 7to you7 my son1 and you having fully considered its purport in your mind1 may do as you may choose 7best for you74 ,,section ,,iv4 ,,story ,,of ,,suruchi4 #ai4 ,there was a damsel named ,suruchi1 the best of the ,apsar nymphs1 who was seated on the mountain peak of ,himlaya1 beset by peacocks around4 #bj4 ,here ,kinnaras inflamed by love sported with their mates1 and the fall of heavenly streams 7,gang and ,yamun71 served to expurgate the gravest sins 7of men74 #ba4 ,she beheld a messenger of ,indra making his way through the sky2 and then this most fortunate and best of ,apsars1 addressed him thus3 #bb4 ,suruchi said3-- ,o thou herald of gods1 tell me kindly whence thou comest and whither art thou destined at present4 ,,section ,v4 ,,account ,,of ,,arishtanemi4 #bc4 ,the divine ,ariel replied3--,well hast thou asked ,oh pretty browed maid1 and ,i will tell thee all as it is4 ,know1 ,arishtanemi the royal sage1 who has made over his realm to his son4 #bd4 ,he has 7now7 with religious indifference 7to the world71 set out to the forest for 7practice of7 asceticism1 and is performing his austerities on the ,gandha ,mdana mountains4 #be4 ,i am now returning from there after discharge of my errand1 and repairing to ,sakra's 7palace7 to report the matter4 #bf4 ,suruchi said3-- ,tell me1 my ,lord1 what matter has taken place there4 ,i am with submission 7much7 inquisitive after it1 nor shouldest thou cause me 7the pain of7 anxiety4 #bg4 ,the messenger replied3-- ,hear me gentle maid1 relate to thee in length 7everything7 as it has occurred4 #bh4 ,on hearing that the king was practising the utmost rigors of asceticism in that forest1 ,indra1 the lord of gods1 desired me to take this heavenly car and repair at once to the spot4 #bi4 8,take this car10 said he1 8bearing the 7dancing7 ,apsars equipped with all their musical instruments1 and furnished with a band of ,gandharvas1 ,siddhas1 ,yakshas and ,kinnaras40 #cj4 8,convey them10 said he1 8with all their wired instruments1 flutes and drums to the auspices of the ,sylvan mount of ,gandha ,mdana4 #ca4 8,there having placed the ,prince ,aristanemi in the vehicle1 bring him to the enjoyment of heavenly delight in this city of ,amarvati 7the seat of immortals740 #cb4 ,the messenger added3-- ,receiving this injunction of ,indra and taking the car with all its equipments1 ,i proceeded to that mountain4 #cc4 ,having arrived at the mountain and advancing to the hermitage of the king1 ,i delivered to him the orders of the great ,indra4 #cd4 ,hearing my words1 ,oh happy damsel6 the king spoke to me with reluctance and said3 8,i wish to ask thee something ,o messenger1 which 7,i hope7 thou wilt deign to answer4 #ce4 8,tell me what good and what evils there are in heaven1 that knowing them 7beforehand71 ,i may think of settling there as ,i may choose40 #cf4 ,i answered1 saying3-- ,in heaven there is ample reward for merit1 conferring perfect bliss 7to all72 but it is the degree of meritoriousness that leads one to higher heavens4 #cg4 ,by moderate virtue1 one is certainly entitled to a middle station1 and virtue of an inferior order1 leads a person to a lower position 7in the heavens74 #ch4 ,but one's virtue is destroyed by his impatience at the excellence of his betters1 by his haughtiness to his equals1 and by his joy at the inferiority of others4 #ci4 ,when one's virtue is thus destroyed1 he must enter the abode of mortals4 ,these and the like are the effects of merit and demerit 7with us7 in heaven4 #dj4 ,hearing this1 ,oh good maiden1 the king answered and said3 8,i do not1 ,oh divine messenger6 like the heaven that is of such like conditions4 #da4 8,i will henceforth practise the most austere form of devotion1 and abandon this my unhallowed human frame in the same way1 as the snake abandons his time-worn-skin 7slough74 #db4 8,be thou pleased1 ,oh delegate of the gods6 to return with thy heavenly car to the presence of the great ,indra whence thou comest1 and fare thee well40 #dc4 ,the celestial emissary resumed3-- ,thus being bid1 ,i went ,oh goodly dame to the presence of ,sakra to report the matter4 ,who upon my rehearsal of the matter1 was struck with great wonder4 #dd4 ,then the great ,indra again spoke to me with a sweet voice and said3 8,go you my herald again to that king1 and take him to the hermitage of ,vlmki4 #de4 8,he is well acquainted with every truth1 tell him my errand for the instruction of the dispassionate prince1 saying3-- #df4 #8,oh thou great sage6 remonstrate with this prince who is humble and dispassionate1 and dislikes the enjoyments of heaven4 #dg4 #8,so that this prince who is aggrieved at the miseries of the world1 may gradually come to attain his emancipation4'0 #dh4 ,i then went and explained my mission to the royal hermit1 took him to the sage ,vlmki 7who had grown amidst the ant-hills71 and to whom ,i delivered great ,indr's charge for the king's practice 7of the means7 for his final liberation4 #di4 ,then the sage 7named after the ant-hill in which he had grown71 welcomed the ,king with gentle inquiries regarding his welfare4 #ej4 ,the prince replied3-- 8,oh great seer1 that art informed in all the truths of religion1 and art the greatest of them that know the knowable1 thy very sight has given me all that ,i desired1 and therein is all my welfare4 #ea4 8,great sire1 ,i wish to learn from thee how ,i may escape the miseries which arise from one's connection with this world1 and which 7,i hope7 thou wilt reveal to me without reserve40 #eb4 ,vlmki said3-- ,hear me ,oh king6 ,i will relate to you the entire ,rmyana1 by the hearing and understanding of which you will be saved even while in this life4 ,,section ,,vi4 ,,history ,,of ,r,,ma4 #ec4 ,hear me ,oh great and intelligent king1 repeat to you the sacred conversation which took place between ,rma and ,vasishtha relating the way to liberation1 and which ,i well know from my knowledge 7of human nature74 #ed4 ,the prince said3-- 8,o thou best of sages1 tell me precisely who and what this ,rma was1 what was his bondage and how he got freed from it40 #ee4 ,vlmki said3-- ,hari was proscribed under an imprecation to take upon himself the form of a prince1 with an assumed ignorance as that of a man of little understanding4 #ef4 ,the prince said3 8,tell me who was the author of that imprecation1 and how it could befal on ,rma1 who was the personification of consciousness and felicity1 and the very image of wisdom40 #eg4 ,vlmki replied3 ,sanat-kumra1 who was devoid of desires1 had been residing at the abode of ,brahm1 to which ,vishnu1 the ,lord of the three worlds1 was a visitor from ,vaikuntha4 #eh4 ,the ,lord ,god was welcomed by all the inhabitants of the ,brahmaloka as well as by ,brahm himself1 except by ,sanat-kumra who was thus beheld and addressed to by the god4 #ei4 8,sanat-kumr1 it is ignorance that makes thee forsake thy desires for fear of regeneration 7on earth71 therefore must thou be born under the name of ,sara-janm to be troubled with desires40 #fj4 ,sanat-kumra in return denounced ,vishnu by saying3--8,even all discerning as thou art1 thou shalt have to sacrifice thine omniscience for some time1 and pass as an ignorant mortal 7on earth740 #fa4 ,there was another anathema pronounced upon ,vishnu by the sage ,bhrigu1 who seeing his wife killed 7by him71 became incensed with anger and said3 8,vishnu thou shalt have also to be bereft of thy wife40 #fb4 ,he was again cursed by ,vrind to be deprived of his wife1 on account of his beguiling her 7in the form of her husband74 #fc4 ,again when the pregnant wife of ,deva-datta was killed 7with fear7 on seeing the man-lion figure of ,vishnu2 #fd4 ,the leonine ,hari was denounced by the husband1 who was sorely afflicted at the loss of his consort1 to be thus separated from his wife also4 #fe4 ,thus denounced by ,bhrigu1 by ,sanat-kumra1 ,deva-datta and ,vrind1 he was obliged 7to be born in this earth7 in the figure of a human being4 #ff4 ,i have thus explained to you the causes of all the imprecations 7which were passed on ,vishnu71 and will now relate to you all other things which you shall have carefully to attend to4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,reason ,,of ,,writing ,,the ,r,m,,yana4 ,,section ,i4 ,,persons ,,entitled ,,to ,,its ,,perusal4 ,salutation to the ,lord1 the universal soul1 shining manifest in heaven1 earth and the sky1 and both within and without myself4 #b4 ,one convinced of his constraint 7in this mortal world71 and desiring his liberation from it1 and1 who is neither wholly ignorant of1 nor quite conversant with divine knowledge1 is entitled to 7the perusal of7 this work4 #c4 ,the wise man1 who having well considered the narrative 7of ,rma7 as the first step1 comes afterwards to think on the means of liberation 7as are expounded herein71 he shall verily be exempt from transmigration 7of his soul74 #d4 ,know1 ,o destroyer of thy enemies6 that ,i have first embodied the history of ,rma in this ,rmyana 7as the preparatory step to salvation74 #e4 ,and ,i have given the same to my attentive pupil the obedient and intelligent ,bharadwja1 as the sea yields his gems to their seeker4 #f4 ,these historical preparatories were rehearsed by the learned ,bharadwja in the presence of ,brahm1 seated in a certain forest of the ,sumeru ,mountain4 #g4 ,then the lord ,brahm1 the great grandfather of the inhabitants 7of the three worlds71 was so highly pleased with him that he addressed him saying3 8,oh my son6 ask the best boon that thou wishest for40 #h4 ,bharadwja said3--8,oh thou lord1 that art master of the past and future times1 grant me the desired boon of communicating to me the means whereby people are liberated from their miseries40 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,brahm',s ,,behest4 #i4 ,brahm said3--8,go ask diligently of thy preceptor ,vlmki1 to complete the faultless ,rmyana that he has undertaken 7to write74 #aj4 8,by the hearing of which men will get over their manifold errors1 in the same manner as they pass over the sea by the bridge built over it by the great ,rma1 who was fraught with all good qualities40 #aa4 ,vlmki said3--,saying this to ,bharadwja1 the supreme maker of all beings 7,brahm7 accompanied him to my hermitage4 #ab4 ,in right earnest was the god welcomed by me with the argha and offerings of water and the like1 when the lord of truth spoke to me for the good of all creatures4 #ac4 ,brahm spake to me saying3--8,do not ,oh sage6 give up your undertaking until its final completion4 ,no pains ought to be spared to make the history of ,rma as faultless as it ought to be4 #ad4 8,by this work of yours men will forthwith pass over this hazardous world1 in the same manner as one crosses the sea in a vessel40 #ae4 ,again said the increate ,brahm to me3--8,i come to tell this very thing to you1 that you complete the work for the benefit of mankind40 #af4 ,then ,oh king1 the ,god disappeared from my sacred hermitage in a moment1 just as the wave subsides in the water no sooner it has heaved itself4 #ag4 ,i was struck with wonder at the disappearance of that 7deity71 and then being composed in my mind1 ,i inquired of ,bharadwja1 saying3-- #ah4 ,tell me1 ,bharadwja1 what ,brahm spoke 7to me7 in the hermitage2 to which he answered saying3-- #ai4 8,the ,god commanded you to complete the ,rmyana for the good of men1 and as a means of their crossing over the gulf of the world40 ,,section ,,iii4 ,,inquiry ,,of ,,bharadw,,ja4 #bj4 8,now ,sir01 said ,bharadwja1 8explain to me how the great minded ,rma and ,bhrata conducted themselves amidst the troubles of this world4 #ba4 8,tell me also how did ,satrughna1 ,lakshmana1 and the renowned ,st1 and all those who followed ,rma1 as also the ministers and their highly intelligent sons1 conduct themselves 7on earth74 #bb4 8,tell me clearly how they escaped all its miseries1 that ,i may do the same with the rest of mankind3 7for our salvation740 #bc4 ,being thus respectfully addressed by ,bharadwja1 ,i was led1 ,oh great ,king6 to carry out the behest of my lord 7,brahm71 and to narrate the ,rmyana to him2 saying3-- #bd4 ,hear my son ,bharadwja1 ,i will tell you all that you have asked1 and by the hearing of which you shall be enabled to cast away the dross of errors 7under which you labour74 #be4 ,you are wise and have to manage yourself in the manner of the felicitous and lotus-eyed ,rma1 with a mind free from 7worldly7 attachments4 #bf4 7,know that7 ,lakshmana1 ,bhrata1 the great minded ,satrughna1 ,kausaly1 ,st1 ,sumitr as well as ,dasaratha2-- #bg4 ,with ,kritstra and the two friends of ,rma1 and ,vasishtha and ,vmadeva1 and the eight ministers of state as well as many others1 had reached the summit of knowledge 7by this means74 #bh4 ,their names are ,dhrishta1 ,jayanta1 ,bhsa1 ,satya1 ,vijaya1 ,vibshanah1 ,sushena and ,hanumna4 ,and also ,indrajta 7who had attained his highest knowledge74 #bi4 ,these were the eight ministers of ,rma1 who are said to have been equally dispassionate in their minds1 and content with what was their lot4 ,they were great souls1 and free in their lives4 #cj4 ,well my son1 if you follow the manner in which these men observed sacrificial rites1 gave and received their offerings1 and how they lived and thought1 you are at once freed from the turmoils 7of life74 #ca4 ,one fallen in this boundless ocean of the world1 may enjoy 7the bliss of7 liberation by the magnanimity of his soul4 ,he shall not come across grief or destitution1 but remain ever satisfied by being freed from the fever of anxiety4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,v,,lm,,ki',s ,,admonition4 ,,section ,i4 ,,on ,,true ,,knowledge4 ,bharadwja said1 ,o ,brhman6 relate to me first about ,rma1 and then enlighten me by degrees with the conditions of attaining liberation in this life1 that ,i may be happy for ever4 #b4 ,vlmki replied3--,know1 holy ,saint6 all worldly conceptions to be as erroneous as the various hues that taint the clear firmament4 ,it is better therefore to efface them in oblivion1 rather than revive their reminiscence 7in repeated states of existence74 #c4 ,all visible objects are absolute negation2 we have no idea of them save from sensation4 ,inquire into these apprehensions1 and you will never find them as real4 #d4 ,it is possible here 7on earth7 to attain to this knowledge 7of worldly vanities7 which is fully expounded herein3 if you will listen to it attentively1 you shall get at the truth and not otherwise4 #e4 ,the conception of this world is a mistake1 and though we actually see it1 it is never in existence4 ,it appears in the same light1 ,o sinless saint1 as the variegated colours in the sky4 #f4 ,the conviction of the non-existence of the objects of vision1 leads to efface their impressions from the mind4 ,thus perfected1 there springs in it the supreme and eternal bliss of self-extinction4 #g4 ,otherwise there is no quietism to be had herein by men like you1 rolling in the depths of science for thousands of years and unacquainted with the true knowledge4 #h4 ,complete abandonment of desires1 styled as the best state of liberation1 is the only pure step towards beatitude4 #i4 ,the absence of desires leads to the extinction of mental actions1 in the same manner as the absence of cold conduces to the dissolution of small particles of ice4 #aj4 ,our desires which uphold our living bodies 7and minds71 bind us fast as by strings to our bodily prison4 ,these being loosened1 the inward soul is liberated 7as a bird from its cage74 #aa4 ,desires are of two kinds1 pure and impure4 ,the impure ones are the cause of transmigration1 while the pure ones serve to destroy it4 #ab4 ,an impure desire is of the form of a mist of ignorance1 consisting in the feeling of an obdurate egoism4 ,this is said by the wise to be the cause of birth 7transmigration74 #ac4 ,a pure desire is like a parched seed incapable to bring forth the germ of transmigration1 and only supports the present body 7in its dry rigidity74 #ad4 ,the pure desires which are unattended with transmigration1 reside in the bodies of living-liberated men1 like unmoving wheels 7unable to move them to action74 #ae4 ,those that have the pure desires are not liable to transmigration1 and are said to be knowing in all things that ought to be known4 ,these are called the living-liberated and are of superior intelligence4 #af4 ,i will explain to you how the high minded ,rma attained the state of liberation in life1 hear you this that old age and death may not come upon you4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,early ,,history ,,of ,r,,ma4 #ag4 ,hear1 ,oh highly intelligent ,bharadawja1 the auspicious course and conduct of ,rma's life3 whereby you shall be enabled to understand everything at all times4 #ah4 ,the lotus-eyed ,rma after coming out of his school1 remained for many days at home in his diversions1 and without anything to fear4 #ai4 ,in the course of time as he took the reins of the ,government1 7in his hand71 his people enjoyed all the bliss that absence of grief and diseases could impart 7to them74 #bj4 ,at one time ,rma's mind virtuous as he was1 became anxious to see the different places of pilgrimage1 the cities and hermitages 7that lay about74 #ba4 ,so ,rghava with this view1 approached his father's feet1 he touched the nails 7of his toes7 as a swan lays hold on the buds of lotus4 #bb4 8,oh my father01 he said1 8my mind is desirous to see the different places of pilgrimage1 temples of gods1 forests and abodes 7of men74 #bc4 8,grant me my lord this my petition1 as there is no petitioner of thine on earth whom didst thou ever dishonor40 #bd4 ,thus solicited 7by ,rma71 the king consulted with ,vasishtha1 and after much reflection granted him the first request he ever made4 #be4 ,on a day of lucky stars ,rma set out 7on his journey7 with his two brothers 7,lakshmana and ,satrughna71 having his body adorned with auspicious marks1 and 7receiving the7 benedictions which were pronounced on him by the priests4 #bf4 ,accompanied also by a body of learned ,brhmans whom ,vasishtha had chosen on the occasion1 and a select party of his associate princes2 #bg4 ,he started from home towards his pilgrimage after he received the benedictions and embraces of his mothers4 #bh4 ,as he went out of his city1 the citizens welcomed him with the sounds of trumpets1 while the bee-like fickle eyes of the city ladies were fixed upon his lotus like face4 #bi4 ,he was bestrewn with handfuls of fried paddy thrown over his body by the beautiful hands of village-women1 that made him appear like the ,himlaya covered over with snow4 #cj4 ,he dismissed the ,brhmans with honor1 and went on hearing the benedictions of the people1 and taking a full view of the landscape around him until he proceeded towards the forest4 #ca4 ,he went on distributing alms after making his holy ablutions and performing his devotion and meditation1 as he gradually passed the limits of ,kosala after starting from his palace4 ,,section ,,iii4 ,r,,ma',s ,,pilgrimage4 #cb4 ,he went about seeing the many rivers and their banks1 visiting the shrines of gods1 sacred forests and deserts far and remote from the resorts of men1 as also the hills1 seas and their shores4 #cc4 ,he saw the ,mandkin bright as the moon1 the ,klindi1 clear as the lotus1 and also the following rivers1 ,sarasvat1 ,satadru1 ,chandrabhg and ,irvat4 #cd4 ,also ,ven1 ,krishnaven1 ,nirvindhy1 ,saraju1 ,charmanvat1 ,vitast1 ,vips and ,bhdak4 #ce4 ,he saw also the 7holy places of7 ,prayga1 the ,naimisha1 the ,dharmaranya1 ,gy1 ,varnas1 ,srgiri1 ,kedra and ,pushkara4 #cf4 ,he saw the ,mnasa and the northern ,mnsaravara lakes1 and many fiery lakes and springs1 the ,bda1 the ,vindhy range and the sea4 #cg4 ,he saw the fiery pool of ,jwlmukh1 the great shrine of ,jaganntha1 the fountain of ,indradumna and many other reservoirs1 rivers and lakes4 #ch4 ,he visited the shrine of ,krtikeya and the ,gandak river of ,slagrmas1 and also the sixty four shrines sacred to ,hari and ,hara4 #ci4 ,he saw various wonders1 the coasts of the four seas1 the ,vindhy range1 the groves of ,hara1 and the boundary hills and level lands4 #dj4 ,he visited the places of the great ,rjarshis and the ,brahmarshis1 and went wherever there was any auspicious sanctuary of the gods and ,brhmans4 #da4 ,thus they all honouring ,rma1 travelled far and wide in company with his two brothers1 and traversed all the four quarters on the surface of the earth4 #db4 ,honoured by the gods1 ,kinnaras and by men1 and having seen all the places on earth1 the descendant of ,raghu returned home1 like ,siva when he returns to the ,sivaloka4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,r,,ma',s ,,return ,,from ,,pilgrimage4 ,rma strewn over with handfuls of flowers by the citizens 7surrounding him7 entered the palace1 as when the beauteous ,jayanta 7son of ,indra7 enters his celestial abode4 #b4 ,on his first arrival he bent himself in reverence before his father1 before ,vasishtha1 before his brothers1 his friends1 the ,brhmanas and the elderly members of the family4 #c4 ,repeatedly embraced as he was by friends1 by his father1 mothers and by the ,brhmanas1 the son of ,raghu bowed down his head to them with joy4 #d4 ,the assembled people after their familiar conversation with ,rma in the palace1 strolled about on all sides highly delighted with his speech1 resembling the music of a flute4 #e4 ,thus eight days were passed in festive mirth consequent to the arrival of ,rma1 and shouts of joy were sent forth by the elated multitude4 #f4 ,thenceforth ,rghava continued to dwell happily at home1 with relating to his friends1 the different customs and manners of the countries 7he visited7 on all sides4 #g4 ,he rose early in the morning and performed his morning service according to law4 ,he then visited his father seated as ,indra in his ,council4 #h4 ,he next passed a fourth part of the day in company with ,vasishtha and other sages1 and was greatly edified by their conversations which were full of instruction4 #i4 ,he used also to go out for sport under orders of his father2 and surrounded by a large number of troops1 to forests full of 7wild7 boars and buffaloes4 #aj4 ,then after returning home and performing his bath and other rites with his friends1 he took his meal with them1 and passed the night in company with his beloved companions4 #aa4 ,in these and similar practices did he pass his days with his brothers at his father's house1 after his return from the pilgrimage4 #ab4 ,oh sinless 7,bharadwja71 with his conduct becoming a prince1 ,rma passed his days with giving delight to the good men that surrounded him1 in the manner of the moon that gladdens mankind with his soothing ambrosial beams4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,,of ,r,,ma',s ,,self-,,dejection ,,and ,,its ,,cause4 ,vlmki said3-- ,afterwards ,rma attained the fifteenth year of his age1 and so also ,satrughna and ,lakshmana who followed ,rma 7in birth71 attained also the same age4 #b4 ,bhrata continued to dwell with joy at the house of his maternal grandfather1 and the king 7,dasaratha7 ruled the whole earth as usual4 #c4 ,the most wise king ,dasaratha 7now7 consulted his ministers day after day about the marriage of his sons4 #d4 ,but as ,rma remained at home since his return from pilgrimage1 he began to decay day by day as the translucent lake in autumn4 #e4 ,his blooming face with its out-stretched eyes1 assumed by degrees a paleness like that of the withering petals of the white lotus beset by a swarm of bees4 #f4 ,he sat silent and motionless in the posture of his folded legs 7,padmsana71 and remained absorbed in thought with his palm placed under his cheek and neck4 #g4 ,being emaciated in person1 and growing thoughtful1 sad and distracted in his mind1 he remained speechless as a mute picture in painting4 #h4 ,on being repeatedly requested by the anxious inmates of the family to perform his daily rites1 he discharged them with a melancholy countenance 7literally--with his faded lotus-like face74 #i4 ,seeing the accomplished ,rma--the mine of merits in such a plight1 all his brothers likewise were reduced to the same condition with him4 #aj4 ,the king of the earth observing all his three sons thus dejected and lean1 gave way to anxiety together with all his queens4 #aa4 ,dasaratha asked ,rma repeatedly and in a gentle voice 7to tell him7 what his anxiety was1 and what was the cause of his thoughtfulness2 but he returned no answer to it4 #ab4 ,then being taken up in his father's lap1 the lotus-eyed ,rma replied1 that he had no anxiety whatever1 and held his silence4 #ac4 ,afterwards the king ,dasaratha asked ,vasishtha1 the best of speakers and well informed in all matters1 as to the cause why ,rma was so sorrowful4 #ad4 ,the sage ,vasishtha thought over the matter 7for a while71 and then said1 8,there is ,oh king6 a cause of ,rma's sadness1 but you need not be anxious about it4 #ae4 8,wise men1 ,oh king6 never entertain the fluctuations of anger or grief1 or a lengthened delight from frivolous causes1 just as the great elements of the world do not change their states 7of inertness7 unless it were for the sake of 7some new7 production40 ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,,advent ,,of ,,visw,,mitra ,,to ,,the ,,royal ,,court4 ,the king was thrown into sorrow and suspense at these words of the prince of sages 7,vasishtha72 but kept his silence for sometime1 and waited 7that time might work a change74 #b4 7,meanwhile7 the queens of the palace1 kept themselves watchful of the movements of ,rma with anxious carefulness4 #c4 ,at this very time the famous ,viswmitra1 the great sage came to visit the king of men at ,ayodhy4 #d4 ,the intelligent and wise seer had his sacrificial rites disturbed by the ,rkshasas1 who were deceitfully powerful and giddy with their strength4 #e4 ,it was for the security of his sacrifice that the sage waited on the king1 because he was unable to accomplish it in peace 7by himself74 #f4 ,it was also for the purpose of their destruction1 that the illustrious ,viswmitra1 who was the gem of austere devotion had come to the city of ,ayodhy4 #g4 ,desirous of seeing the king1 he spoke to the guards at the gate1 to report the arrival of ,kausika the son of ,gdhi to the king with despatch4 #h4 ,on hearing these words1 the guards were struck with fear in their minds1 and ran as they were bid to the palace of the king4 #i4 ,coming to the ,royal abode1 the door-keepers informed the chief-warder of the arrival of ,viswmitra the royal sage4 #aj4 ,the staff-bearer immediately proceeded to the presence of the king1 seated among the princes and chiefs 7under him7 in the ,court house1 and gave his report saying3-- #aa4 8,please your majestic1 there is waiting at the door a mighty personage of majestic appearance1 bright as the morning sun1 with his pendant locks of hair 7red and ruddy7 as sunbeams4 #ab4 8,the brilliancy of his person has brightened the place from the top-most flag down to the ground1 and made the horses1 men and armory shine as with a golden hue40 #ac4 ,no sooner had the warder appeared 7before the king71 and with hurried words announced the arrival of the sage ,viswmitra3 #ad4 ,then the best of kings as he heard the herald say so1 rose at once from his throne of gold with all the ministers and chiefs that surrounded him4 #ae4 ,he walked immediately on foot with the staff of princes and chiefs by whom he was held in honour and regard1 and in company with ,vasishtha and ,vmadeva4 #af4 ,he went to the spot where the great sage was waiting1 and saw ,viswmitra the chief of sages standing at the gateway4 #ag4 ,his priestly prowess joined with his military valour1 made him appear as the sun descended on earth on some account4 #ah4 ,he was hoary with old age1 rough-skinned by the practice of austerities1 and covered down to his shoulders by red-bright braids of hair1 resembling the evening clouds over topping a mountain brow4 #ai4 ,he was mild looking and engaging in his appearance1 but at the same time as brilliant as the orb of the sun4 ,he was neither assuming nor repulsive1 but possessed of an ineffable gravity and majesty in his person4 #bj4 ,he was attractive yet formidable 7in his look71 clear yet vast 7in his mind71 deep and full 7in knowledge71 and shining 7with his inward light74 #ba4 ,his life time had no limit1 nor his mind any bound to it1 nor had age impaired his understanding4 ,he held the ascetics pot in one hand1 that went 7through life7 as his only faithful companion4 #bb4 ,the compassionateness of his mind1 added to the sweet complacency of his speech and looks1 pleased the people as if they were actually served with nectar drops1 or sprinkled over with ambrosial dews4 #bc4 ,his body decorated by the sacred thread1 and his white prominent eyebrows1 made him appear as a wonder to the eyes of his beholders4 #bd4 ,on seeing the sage1 the lord of earth lowly bent himself at a distance1 and then bowed down to him 7so low71 that the ground was decorated by the gems pendant upon his crown4 #be4 ,the sage also in his turn greeted the ,lord of the earth on the spot with sweet and kind words1 like the sun greeting the lord of the gods4 #bf4 ,afterwards the assembled ,brhmans 7of the court7 headed by ,vasishtha1 honoured him with their welcomes4 #bg4 ,the king said3--,we are as highly favoured1 ,oh holy sage6 by thine unexpected appearance and thy glorious sight1 as a bed of lotuses at the sight of the luminous sun4 #bh4 ,oh sage1 ,i have felt at thine appearance the happiness which knows no bounds1 and which has no diminution in it4 #bi4 ,this day we must be placed at the front rank of the fortunate1 as we have become the object of thine advent4 #cj4 ,with these and similar conversations that went on among the princes and the sages1 they proceeded to the court-hall where they took their respective seats4 #ca4 ,the king finding the best of sages 7,viswmitra7 so very prosperous in his devotion1 felt some hesitation to offer him the arghya 7honorarium7 himself with his cheerful countenance4 #cb4 ,he 7the sage7 accepted the arghya offered him by the king1 and hailed him during his act of turning round 7the sage71 according to the rules of ,sstra4 #cc4 ,thus honoured by the king1 he with a cheerful countenance asked the ,lord of men about the good health 7of himself and family71 and the fulness of his finance4 #cd4 ,then coming in contact with ,vasishtha1 the great sage saluted him as he deserved with a smile1 and asked him about his health 7and of those in his hermitage74 #ce4 ,after their interview and exchange of due courtesies had lasted for a while to the satisfaction of all in the royal assembly2 #cf4 ,they both took their respective seats2 when every one 7in the court7 respectfully greeted the sage of exalted prowess4 #cg4 ,after the sapient sage 7,viswmitra7 was seated1 they made various offerings of pdya1 arghya and kine to him4 #ch4 ,having honoured ,viswmitra in due form1 the lord of men condescended to address him with a gladdest mind and in submissive terms1 with his palms folded over each other4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,address ,,of ,,king ,,dasaratha4 #ci4 ,he said1 8,sir1 your coming here is as grateful to me as the obtaining of nectar by one1 as a rainfall after a drought1 and as the gaining of sight by the blind40 #dj4 ,again it is as delightful to me as the getting of a son by a childless man in his beloved wife1 and coming in possession of a treasure in a dream4 #da4 ,your advent is no less pleasing to me than one's meeting with the object of his wishes1 the arrival of a friend1 and the recovery of thing that was given for lost4 #db4 ,it gives me the joy that is derived from the sight of a deceased friend suddenly returning by the way of the sky4 ,it is thus ,oh ,brhman1 ,i welcome your visit to me4 #dc4 ,who is there that is not glad to live in the heaven 7,brahma-loka78 ,i feel myself as happy ,oh sage6 at your advent1 and this ,i tell you truly4 #dd4 7,now tell me7 what is your best pleasure1 and what ,i may do for you2 ,o ,vipra1 that are the best of the virtuous1 and most properly deserving of my services4 #de4 ,formerly had you been famed under the title of ,rjarshi 7or royal sage72 but since1 made glorious by dint of your asceticism1 you have been promoted to the rank of a ,brahmarshi 7or ,brahman sage74 ,wherefore you are truly the object of my worship4 #df4 ,i am so glad at your sight that it soothes my inmost soul1 in the same manner as an ablution in ,gang's stream cheers the mind4 #dg4 ,free as you are from fears and desires1 from wrath and passions and the feelings of pleasure1 pain and disease1 it is very wonderful1 ,oh ,brhman1 that you should have recourse to me 7for anything74 #dh4 ,i consider myself as situated at a holy sanctuary1 and absolved from all my sins1 or as merged in the lunar sphere 7by your presence71 ,oh6 best of the learned in the truths of the ,vedas4 #di4 ,i understand your appearance as that of ,brahm himself before me1 and ,i confess myself1 ,o sage6 to be purified and favoured by your advent4 #ej4 ,i am indeed so gratified at your arrival1 that ,i deem myself fortunate in this birth1 and that ,i have not lived in vain but led a truly good life4 #ea4 ,my heart cannot contain within itself1 but overflows 7with joy7 like the sea at the sight of the moon1 since ,i beheld your person here and made my respectful obeisance to you4 #eb4 ,whatever is your commission1 and whatsoever may be the object1 ,o greatest of sages6 which has brought you hither1 know it as already granted 7by me72 for your commands are always to be obeyed by me4 #ec4 ,you need not hesitate to communicate to me your hest1 ,o progeny of ,kausika1 there is nothing1 with me which is to be kept from you1 if you should ask for it4 #ed4 ,you need not dubitate about my performance of the act4 ,i tell it solemnly that ,i will execute your behest to the last item1 as ,i take you in the light of a superior divinity4 #ee4 ,upon hearing these sweet words 7of the king71 which were pleasing to the ears1 and delivered with a humility worthy of one knowing himself1 the far famed and meritorious chief of the sages felt highly gratified in himself4 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,,visw,,mitra',s ,,request ,,for ,r,,ma4 ,after the illustrious ,viswmitra had heard the aforesaid unusually lengthy speech of the lion among kings1 his hairs stood erect with joy1 and he said 7in reply74 #b4 ,this speech is worthy of thee1 ,o best of kings on earth1 and one descended from a royal race1 and guided by the sage ,vasishtha himself4 #c4 ,consider well ,o king about the performance of the act which ,i have in mind1 and support 7the cause of7 virtue4 #d4 ,i am employed1 ,o chief of men1 in religious acts for attainment of my consummation1 whereto the horrible ,rkshasas have become my great obstructions4 #e4 ,whenever ,i betake myself to offer sacrifices 7to the gods7 at any place1 instantly do these nocturnal demons appear to destroy my sacrificial rites4 #f4 ,the chiefs of the ,rkshasas fling heaps of flesh and blood on the sacrificial ground 7before me71 on very many occasions that ,i commence my ceremonies4 #g4 ,being thus obstructed in my sacrificial duties1 ,i now come to thee from that spot and with a broken spirit1 after having laboured in vain 7for completion of the rites74 #h4 ,i have no mind ,o king1 to give vent to my anger by imprecations1 which have no room in my conduct 7of religious life74 #i4 ,such being the sacrificial law1 ,i expect to gain its great object in peace by thy favor4 #aj4 ,being thus oppressed ,i have recourse to thy protection1 and thou shouldst protect me 7from wrongs72 otherwise it is an insult to solicitors to be put to disappointment by the best of men 7as thyself74 #aa4 ,thou hast a son1 the beauteous ,rma1 powerful as the fierce tiger1 and strong as the great ,indra himself4 ,he it is who is able to destroy the ,rkshasas4 #ab4 ,now mayst thou deliver to me that ,rma thy eldest son1 having his youthful locks of hair like the sable plumage of a crow1 but possessing the true valour of a hero4 #ac4 ,protected under my sacred authority1 he will be able by his personal prowess1 to sever the heads of the malicious ,rkshasas4 #ad4 ,i will do him an infinity of good services1 whereby he will in the end become adored by the inhabitants of the three worlds4 #ae4 ,the night-wandering ,rkshasas cannot abide in the field before ,rma1 but must fly like stags in the wilderness before the furious lion4 #af4 ,no other man than ,rma can make bold to fight with the ,rkshasas2 as no animal other than the furious lion can stand to fight with the wild elephants4 #ag4 ,elated with their strength these vicious beings have become 7as deadly7 as poisoned shafts in fighting1 and being delegates of ,khara and ,dushana1 they are as furious as death itself4 #ah4 ,they cannot1 ,oh thou tiger among kings6 be able to sustain the arrows of ,rma1 but must set down like the flying dust under the ceaseless showers of his arrows4 #ai4 ,let not paternal affection prevail over thee ,o king 7to withhold thy son71 as there is nothing in this world1 which the high-minded will refuse to part with 7to their suitor74 #bj4 ,i know it for certain1 and so shouldst thou know also1 that the ,rkshasas must be destroyed by him2 and 7believe me7 that wise men like ourselves will never undertake to engage in an uncertainty4 #ba4 ,i well know the great soul of the lotus-eyed ,rma1 and so does the illustrious ,vasishtha1 and all other far-seeing 7sages and seers74 #bb4 ,should the sense of greatness1 duty and renown1 have a seat in thy soul1 thou shouldst deliver my desired object--thy son to me4 #bc4 ,it will take me ten nights to perform the rites of my sacrifice1 at which ,rma shall have to stay with me and kill the ,rkshasas1 who are obnoxious to my rites and enemies of the sacrifice4 #bd4 ,let the ministers1 ,oh ,kkutstha6 headed by ,vasishtha join to give their assent 7to it71 and deliver thy ,rma to me4 #be4 ,thou ,o son of ,raghu1 that knowest the times 7of religious observances7 must not allow my time to slip1 so do as ,i may have ,rma4 ,be blest and give not way to sorrow4 #bf4 ,even the smallest service appears to be much if done in good time1 and the best service is of no avail if done out of season4 #bg4 ,the illustrious and holy chief of the sages ,viswmitra1 paused after saying these words fraught with a virtuous and useful intention4 #bh4 ,hearing these words of the great sage1 the magnanimous king held his silence for some time1 with a view to prepare a fitting answer2 because no man of sense is ever satisfied with talking unreasonably either before others or to himself4 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,,dasaratha',s ,,reply ,,to ,,visw,,mitra4 ,vlmki added3--,on hearing these words of ,viswmitra1 the tiger among kings remained speechless for a moment1 and then besought him in the lowliness of his spirit4 #b4 ,rma my lotus-eyed boy is only of fifteen years of age4 ,i do not see he is a match for the ,rkshasas4 #c4 ,here is a full akshauhin legion of my soldiers2 of whom1 ,oh my ,lord6 ,i am the sole commander2 surrounded by them ,i will offer battle to the ,rkshasas cannibals4 #d4 ,here are my brave generals who are well disciplined in warfare2 ,i will be their leader in the height of war with my bow in hand4 #e4 ,accompanied with these1 ,i can offer fight to the enemies of the gods1 and to the great ,indra himself1 in the same manner as the lion withstands the wild elephants4 #f4 ,rma is but a boy who has no knowledge of the strength of our forces1 and whose experience has scarcely stretched to the battle field beyond the inner apartments 7of the house74 #g4 ,he is not well trained in arms1 nor is he skilled in warfare4 ,he does not know to fight with a foe1 arrayed in the order of battle4 #h4 ,he only knows how to walk about in the gardens of this city and amidst the arbours and pleasant groves4 #i4 ,he only knows how to play with his brother princes1 in the flowery parks set apart for his play within the precincts of the palace4 #aj4 ,nowadays1 ,oh ,brhman6 he has become by a sad reverse of my fortune1 as lean and pale as the withering lotus under the dews4 #aa4 ,he has no taste for his food1 nor can he walk from one room to another1 but remains ever silent and slow brooding over his inward grief and melancholy4 #ab4 ,in my great anxiety about him1 ,o chief of sages1 ,i have been1 with my family and dependants1 deprived of the gist of our bodies1 and become as empty clouds of autumn4 #ac4 ,can my boy1 so young as he is1 and thus subjected to distemper1 be fit to fight at all1 and again with those marauders who rove about at nights4 #ad4 ,oh thou high-minded sage6 it is one's affection for his son that affords him far greater pleasure than his possession of a kingdom1 or his connection with beauteous females1 or even his relish for the juice of nectar4 #ae4 ,it is from paternal affection that good people 7engage to7 perform the hardest duties and austerities of religion1 and any thing which is painfull in the three worlds4 #af4 ,men are even prepared under certain circumstances to sacrifice their own lives1 riches and wives2 but they can never sacrifice their children3 this is the nature with all living beings4 #ag4 ,the ,rkshasas are very cruel in their actions and fight deceitful warfares3 so that ,rma should fight them1 is an idea which is very painful to me4 #ah4 ,i that have a desire to live1 cannot dare to live for a moment in separation from ,rma2 therefore thou shouldst not take him away 7from me74 #ai4 ,i have ,o ,kausika6 passed nine thousand rains in my lifetime1 ere these four boys were born to me after much austerity4 #bj4 ,the lotus-eyed ,rma is the eldest of these without whom the three others can hardly bear to live4 #ba4 ,this ,rma is going to be conveyed by thee against the ,rkshasas2 but when ,i am deprived of that son1 know me certainly for dead4 #bb4 ,of my four sons he is the one in whom rests my greatest love4 ,therefore do not take away ,rma--my eldest and most virtuous son from me4 #bc4 ,if thy intention ,oh sage1 is to destroy the force of night wanderers1 take me there accompanied by the four kinds 7elephants1 horse1 chariots and foot soldiers7 of mine army4 #bd4 ,describe to me clearly what these ,rkshasas are1 how strong they are1 whose sons they be and what their size and figure4 #be4 ,tell me the way in which the ,rkshasas are to be destroyed by ,rma or my boys or by myself1 when they are known to be treacherous in warfare4 #bf4 ,tell me all these1 ,oh great sage6 that ,i can calculate the possibility of our making a stand against the fiercely disposed ,rkshasas in the open field1 when they are certainly so very powerful4 #bg4 ,the ,rkshasa named ,rvana is heard as being very powerful1 he is brother of ,kubera himself1 and is the son of the sage ,visravas4 #bh4 ,if it is he1 the evil minded ,rvana1 that stands in the way of thy rites1 we are unable to contend with that pest4 #bi4 ,power and prosperity in all their flourish come within the reach of the living at times1 but they disappear at others4 #cj4 ,nowadays we are no match for such foes as ,rvana and some others4 ,such is the decree of destiny4 #ca4 ,therefore1 ,o thou1 that art acquainted with law1 do this favour to my son 7as not to take him away72 unlucky as ,i am1 it is thou that art the arbiter of my fate4 #cb4 ,the gods1 and ,asuras1 the ,gandharvas and ,yakshas1 the huge beasts1 birds and serpents are unable to fight with ,rvana3 what are we human beings in arms to him4 #cc4 ,that ,rkshasa holds the prowess of the most powerful1 we cannot afford to fight with him1 nor even with his children4 #cd4 ,this is a peculiar age in which good people are made powerless2 ,i am moreover disabled by old age and want that spirit 7that ,i was expected to possess7 derived as ,i am from 7the most powerful7 race of the ,raghus4 #ce4 ,tell me ,o ,brhmana6 if it is ,lavan the son of ,madhu 7the notorious ,asra7 that disturbs the sacrificial rites2 in that case also ,i will not part with my son4 #cf4 ,if it be the two sons of ,sunda and ,upasunda terrible as they are like the sons of the sun1 that disturb your sacrifice1 in that case also ,i will not give my son to thee4 #cg4 ,but after all1 ,o ,brhman1 shouldest thou snatch him from me 7by dint of the supernatural power that thou possessest71 then ,i am also dead and gone with him4 ,i do not see any other chance of a lasting success of thy devotion 7except by my death74 #ch4 ,saying these gentle words1 the descendant of ,raghu was drowned in the sea of suspense with regard to the demand of the sage1 but being unable to arrive at a conclusion1 the great king was carried away by the current of his thoughts as one by the high waves of the sea4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,,visw,,mitra',s ,,wrath4 ,,and ,,his ,,enraged ,,speech4 ,vlmki said3--,on hearing this speech of the king with his piteous look and eyes full of tears1 the son of ,kausika became highly incensed and replied4 #b4 ,thou art about to break thy promise after pledging thyself to its performance1 and thus wishest to behave as a deer after having been a lion 7before74 #c4 ,this is unbecoming of the race of ,raghu1 it is acting contrary 7to the rules7 of this great family4 ,hot rays must not proceed from the cool beamed moon4 #d4 ,if thou art so impotent ,oh king6 let me return as ,i came4 ,thou promise-breaking ,kkustha live happily with thy friends4 #e4 ,as the high spirited ,viswmitra now moved with ire1 the earth trembled under him1 and the gods were filled with fear4 #f4 ,vasishtha the meek and wise and observant of his vows1 perceiving the great sage and friend of the world thus influenced by ire1 gave vent to his speech 7as follows74 #g4 ,oh king that art born of the race of the ,ikshkus1 and art a form of virtue itself1 and called ,dasaratha the fortunate1 and art adorned with all the good qualities known in the three worlds4 #h4 ,being famed for thy meekness and strictness to thy vows1 and renowned in all three worlds for thy virtues and fame1 thou canst not break thy plighted faith4 #i4 ,preserve thy virtue and think not to break thy faith1 comply with the request of the sage who is honoured in all the three worlds4 #aj4 ,saying1 thou wilt do it1 if thou retract thy promise1 thou losest the object of thy yet unfulfilled desires4 ,therefore part with ,rma from thee4 #aa4 ,descended from the race of ,ikshaku1 and being ,dasaratha thyself1 if thou failest to perform thy promise1 who else on earth will ever keep his word8 #ab4 ,it is in pursuance of the conduct of great men like thee1 that low people even do not dare to transgress the bounds of their duty1 how then dost thou wish to violate it thyself4 #ac4 ,guarded by this lion-like man 7,viswmitra7 in the manner of ambrosia by fire1 no ,rkshasa will have power to prevail over ,rma1 whether he be accoutered and armed or not4 #ad4 ,behold him here as the personification of virtue1 the mightiest of the mighty1 and superior to all in the world in his intelligence1 and devotedness to asceticism4 #ae4 ,he is skilled in all warlike arms that are known in the three worlds1 no other man knows them so well nor shall ever be able to master them like him4 #af4 ,among the ,gods1 the ,sages1 the ,asuras1 the ,rkshasas1 the ,ngas1 the ,yakshas and ,gandharvas1 there is none equal to him 7in might74 #ag4 ,in bygone days when this son of ,kaushika used to rule over his realm1 he was furnished with all the arms by ,krisswa1 and which no enemy can baffle4 #ah4 ,these arms were the progeny of ,krisswa1 and were equally radiant and powerful as the progeny of the ,prajpati1 and followed him 7in his train74 #ai4 ,now ,daksha 7the patriarch7 had two beauteous daughters ,jay and ,supraj 7alias ,vijay71 who had a hundred offspring 7as personifications of the implements71 that are invincible in war4 #bj4 ,of these the favoured ,jay has given birth to fifty sons of old1 who are implacable agents of the destruction of ,asra forces4 #ba4 ,in like manner1 ,supraj gave birth to fifty sons of very superior qualities1 who are very powerful and terrible in their appearance1 and indomitably aggressive4 #bb4 ,thus ,viswmitra is strengthened and grown powerful 7by means of these74 ,he is acknowledged as a sage in the three worlds1 ,thou therefore must not think otherwise than deliver ,rma to him4 #bc4 ,this mighty and virtuous man and prince of sages being nigh1 any one even at the point of death in his presence1 is sure to attain his immortality 7on earth73 therefore be not disheartened like an insensible man4 ,,chapter ,x4 ,,melancholy ,,of ,r,,ma4 ,vlmki related3--,after ,vasishtha had done saying in this manner1 king ,dasaratha was glad to send for ,rma with ,lakshmana1 and said3 #b4 ,go you chamberlain1 and bring here quickly the truly mighty and long armed ,rma with ,lakshmana1 for the meritorious purpose of removing the impediments 7in the way of religious acts74 #c4 ,thus sent by the king he went to the inner apartment1 and coming back in a moment informed the king4 #d4 ,oh sire6 ,rma1 whose arms have crushed all his foes1 remains rapt in thoughts in his room like the bee closed in the lotus at night4 #e4 ,he said1 he is coming in a moment1 but is so abstracted in his lonely meditation that he likes no body to be near him4 #f4 ,thus acquainted by the chamberlain1 the king called one of the attendants of ,rma to him1 and having given him every assurance1 asked him to relate the particulars4 #g4 ,on being asked by the king how ,rma had come to that state1 the attendant thus replied to him in a sorrowful mood4 #h4 ,sir1 we have also become as lean as sticks in our persons1 in sorrow for the fading away of your son ,rma in his body4 #i4 ,the lotus-eyed ,rma appears dejected ever since he has come back from his pilgrimage in company with the ,brhmanas4 #aj4 ,when besought by us with importunity to perform his daily rites1 he sometimes discharges them with a placid countenance1 and wholly dispenses with them at others4 #aa4 ,he is averse1 ,oh ,lord6 to bathing1 to worshipping the gods1 to the distribution of alms1 and to his meals also2 and even when importuned by us he does not take his food with a good relish4 #ab4 ,he no longer suffers himself to be rocked in the swinging cradles by the playful girls of the harem1 nor does he divert himself under the showering fountains like the chtaka 7in rain water74 #ac4 ,no ornaments beset with the bud-shaped rubies1 no bracelets nor necklace1 ,oh king1 can please him now1 in the same manner as nothing in heaven can please its inhabitants who expect their fall from it 7after the expiration of their terms74 #ad4 ,he is sorrowful even while sitting in the arbours of creepers1 regaled by flowery breezes1 and amidst the looks of damsels playing around him4 #ae4 ,whatever thing ,oh king6 is good and sweet1 elegant and pleasing1 to the soul1 he looks at them with sorrowful eyes1 like one whose eyes are already satiate with viewing them heaped up in piles 7before him74 #af4 ,he would speak ill of the girls that would dance merrily before him1 and exclaim out saying1 8why should these ladies of the harem flutter about in this way causing grief in me40 #ag4 ,his doings are like those of a madman1 who takes no delight at his food or rest1 his vehicles or seats1 his baths and other pleasures1 however excellent they be4 #ah4 ,as regards prosperity or adversity1 his habitation or any other desirable things1 he says of them to be all unreal1 and then holds his silence4 #ai4 ,he cannot be excited to pleasantry nor tempted to taste of pleasures2 he attends to no business1 but remains in silence4 #bj4 ,no woman with her loosened locks and tresses1 and the negligent glances of her eyes1 can please him any more than the playful fawn can please the trees in the forest4 #ba4 ,like a man sold among savages1 he takes delight in lonely places1 in remotest skirts1 in the banks 7of rivers7 and wild deserts4 #bb4 ,his aversion to clothing and conveyance1 food and presents1 bespeaks ,o king6 that he is following the line of life led by wandering ascetics4 #bc4 ,he lives alone1 ,oh lord of men6 in a lonely place1 and neither laughs nor sings nor cries aloud from a sense of their indifference to him4 #bd4 ,seated in the posture of folded legs 7,padmsana71 he stays with a distracted mind1 reclining his cheek on his left palm4 #be4 ,he assumes no pride to himself nor wishes for the dignity of sovereignty2 he is neither elated with joy nor depressed by grief or pain4 #bf4 ,we do not know where he goes1 what he does1 what he desires1 what he meditates upon1 whence and when he comes and what he follows4 #bg4 ,he is getting lean every day1 growing pale day by day1 and like a tree at the end of autumn1 he is becoming discoloured day after day4 #bh4 ,satrughna and ,lakshmana are1 ,oh king6 the followers of all his habits1 and resemble his very shadows4 #bi4 ,being repeatedly asked by his servants1 his brother-princes and his mothers 7as to the cause of his dementedness71 he says he has none1 and then resumes his taciturnity and indifference4 #cj4 ,he would lecture his companions and friends saying1 8do not set your mind to sensual enjoyments which are only pleasing for the time being40 #ca4 ,he has no affection for the richly adorned women of the harem1 but rather looks upon them as the cause of destruction presented before him4 #cb4 ,he often chaunts in plaintive notes1 how his life is being spent in vain cares1 estranged from those of the easily attainable state of 7heavenly bliss74 #cc4 ,should some dependant courtier speak of his being an emperor 7one day71 he smiles at him as upon a raving madman1 and then remains silent as one distracted in his mind4 #cd4 ,he does not pay heed to what is said to him1 nor does he look at any thing presented before him4 ,he hates to look upon things even the most charming 7to sight74 #ce4 ,as it is chimerical to suppose the existence of an etherial lake1 and lotus growing in the same1 so it is false to believe the reality of the mind and its conceptions4 ,saying so ,rma marvels at nothing4 #cf4 ,even when sitting amidst beauteous maids1 the darts of ,cupid fail to pierce his impenetrable heart1 as showers of rain the 7unimpregnable7 rock4 #cg4 ,that 8no sensible man should ever wish for riches which are but the seats of dangers02 making this his motto1 ,rma gives away all that he has to beggars4 #ch4 ,he sings some verses to this effect that 8it is an error to call one thing as prosperity and the other adversity1 when they are both but imaginations of the mind04 #ci4 ,he repeats some words to this purport that1 8though it is the general cry1 8,o ,i am gone1 ,i am helpless grown10 yet it is a wonder1 that no body should betake himself to utter indifference40 #dj4 ,that ,rma1 the destroyer of enemies1 the great ,sla 7oak7 that is grown in the garden of ,raghu1 should get into such a state of mind is what causes grief in us4 #da4 ,we do not know1 ,oh great armed and lotus-eyed king6 what to do with him in this state of his mind4 ,we hope only in thee4 #db4 ,he laughs to scorn the counsels of the princes and ,brhmans before him1 and spurns them as if they were fools4 #dc4 ,he remains inactive with the conviction1 that the world which appears to our view is a vanity1 and the idea of self is also a vanity4 #dd4 ,he has no respect for foes or friends1 for himself or his kingdom1 mother or riches1 nor does he pay any regard to prosperity or adversity4 #de4 ,he is altogether quiescent1 without any desire or effort1 and devoid of a mainstay2 he is neither captivated by any thing nor freed from worldly thoughts4 ,these are the reasons which afflict us most4 #df4 ,he says1 8what have we to do with riches1 with our mothers1 with this kingdom and all our activities40 ,under these impressions1 he is about to give up his life4 #dg4 ,as the chtaka 7swallow7 grows restless at the obstruction of rains 7by hurricanes71 so has ,rma become impatient 7under the restraint7 of his father and mother1 his friends and kingdom1 his enjoyments and even his own life4 #dh4 ,now in compassion on thy son1 incline to root out this chagrin which like a noxious creeper has been spreading its branches 7in his mind74 #di4 ,for notwithstanding his possession of all affluence1 he looks upon the enjoyments of the world as his poison under such a disposition of his mind4 #ej4 ,where is that potent person in this earth1 who can restore him to proper conduct 7as by a potent medicine874 #ea4 ,who is there1 that like the sun removing the darkness of the world by his rays1 will remove the errors that have been the cause of grief in ,rma's mind1 and thereby make his generosity effectual in his case4 ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,,consolation ,,of ,r,,ma4 ,viswmitra said3--,if such is the case1 you who are intelligent1 may go at once1 and persuade that progeny of ,raghu to come hither2 as they do one deer by others 7of the train74 #b4 ,this stupor of ,rma is not caused by any 7external7 accident or 7inward7 affection2 it is ,i think the development of that superior intellect which rises from the right reasoning of dispassionate men4 #c4 ,let ,rma come here for a while1 and here shall we in a moment dispel the delusion 7of his mind71 as the wind drives away the clouds from the mountain-tops4 #d4 ,after his hebetude is removed by my reasoning1 he shall be enabled to repose in that happy state of mind1 to which we have arrived4 #e4 ,he shall not only attain to pure truth and a clear understanding of uninterrupted tranquility1 but secure to himself a plumpness and beauteousness of his figure and complexion1 as one derives from a potion of ambrosia4 #f4 ,he will then attend with all his heart to the full discharge of the proper course of his duties without remission1 which will redound to his honour4 #g4 ,he will become strong with a knowledge of both worlds1 and his exemption from the states of pleasure and pain1 and then he will look upon gold and stones with an indifferent eye4 #h4 ,after the chief of the sages had spoken in this manner1 the king resumed the firmness of his mind1 and sent heralds after heralds to bring ,rma to him4 #i4 ,by this very time ,rma was preparing to rise from his seat in the palace to come over to his father1 in the manner that the sun rises from the mountain in the east4 #aj4 ,surrounded by a few of his servants1 he came with his two brothers to the hallowed hall of his father1 resembling the heaven of the king of gods4 #aa4 ,he saw at a distance his kingly sire seated amidst the assemblage of princes1 as ,indra surrounded by the gods4 #ab4 ,he was accompanied on either side by the sages ,vasishtha and ,viswmitra1 and respectfully attended by his staff of ministers1 all well versed in the interpretation of all ,sstras4 #ac4 ,he was fanned by charming damsels1 waving the fine chauri flappers in their hands1 and equalling in beauty the goddesses presiding over the quarters of heaven4 #ad4 ,vasishtha1 ,viswmitra and the other sages1 with ,dasaratha and his chiefs1 saw ,rma coming at a distance as beautiful as ,skanda himself4 #ae4 ,he appeared by his qualities of mildness and gravity to resemble the mount ,himlaya 7with his cooling frost and firmness71 and was esteemed by all for the depth and clearness 7of his understanding74 #af4 ,he was handsome and well proportioned 7in his features71 auspicious in his look1 but humble and magnanimous in his mind4 ,with loveliness and mildness of his person1 he was possessed of all manly prowess4 #ag4 ,he was just developed to youth1 yet he was as majestic as an elderly man4 ,he was neither morose nor merry1 but seemed to be fully satisfied with himself1 as if he had obtained all the objects of his desire4 #ah4 ,he was a good judge of the world1 and possessed of all holy virtues4 ,the purity of his mind was the attraction for all the virtues which met in him4 #ai4 ,the receptacle of his mind was filled by his magnanimity and honourable virtues1 and the candour of his conduct showed him in the light of perfection 7to every body74 #bj4 ,endowed with these various virtues and decorated by his necklace and fine apparel1 ,rma the support of ,raghu's race1 approached 7his father7 with a smiling countenance4 #ba4 ,he bowed his head to his father with the sparkling gems trembling in his locks1 and imparting to his head the graceful appearance of the mountain ,sumeru shaken by an earth-quake4 #bb4 ,the lotus-eyed ,rma came up to salute the feet of his father1 when the lord of the sages 7,viswmitra7 was speaking with him4 #bc4 ,first of all ,rma saluted his father1 and then the two honorable sages1 he next saluted the ,brhmanas1 and then his relations1 and lastly his elders and well wishing friends4 #bd4 ,he then received and returned the salutations of the chiefs and princes1 bowing to him with graceful motion of their heads and respectful addresses4 #be4 ,rma of god-like beauty and equanimity of mind1 approached the sacred presence of his father1 with the blessings of the two sages4 #bf4 ,during the act of his saluting the feet of his father1 the lord of the earth repeatedly kissed his head and face1 and embraced him with fondness4 #bg4 ,at the same time1 he the destroyer of his enemies1 embraced ,lakshmana and ,satrughna1 with as intense an affection as the swan embracing the lotus flowers4 #bh4 8,be you seated my son upon my lap01 said the king to ,rma1 who however1 took his seat on a fine piece of cloth spread on the floor by his servants4 #bi4 ,the king said 8,o my son and receptacle of blessings1 you have attained the age of discretion1 so put not yourself to that state of self-mortification1 as the dull-headed do from their crazy understandings4 #cj4 8,know that it is by following the course of his elders1 guides and ,brhmanas1 that one attains to meritoriousness1 and not by his persistence in error4 #ca4 8,so long will the train of our misfortunes lie at a distance1 as we do not allow the seeds of error to have access to us40 #cb4 ,vasishtha said1 ,oh strong armed prince6 you are truly heroic to have conquered your worldly appetites1 which are at once as difficult to be eradicated as they are fierce in their action4 #cc4 ,why do you allow yourself like the unlearned1 to be drowned in this rolling sea of errors1 causing such dull inactivity in you8 #cd4 ,viswmitra said 8why are your eyes so unsteady 7with doubts7 as the tremulous clusters of blue lotuses4 ,you ought to do away with this unsteadiness1 and tell us what is that grief 7which rankles7 in your mind4 #ce4 8,what are these thoughts1 and what are their names and natures1 their number and causes1 that infest your mind like its maladies 7in the same manner7 as the mice undermine a fabric40 #cf4 ,i am disposed to think1 that you are not the person to be troubled with those evils and distempers1 to which the base and vile alone are subject4 #cg4 ,tell me the craving of your heart1 ,o sinless ,rma6 and they will be requited in a manner1 as will prevent their recurrence to you4 #ch4 ,rma--the standard of ,raghu's race having listened to the reasonable and graceful speech of the good-intentioned sage1 shook off his sorrowing1 like the peacock at the roaring of a cloud1 in the hope of gaining his object4 ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,r,,ma',s ,,reply4 ,vlmki related3--,being thus asked with soothing words by the chief of the sages1 ,rma made his answer in a soft and graceful speech replete with good sense4 #b4 ,rma said1 ,oh venerable sage6 ,i will tell thee in truth1 untutored though ,i am1 all the particulars as asked by thee2 for who would disobey the bidding of the wise8 #c4 ,since ,i was born in this mansion of my father ,i have all along remained1 grown up and received my education 7in this very place74 #d4 ,then ,o leader of sages6 being desirous to learn good usages 7of mankind71 ,i set out to travel to holy places all over this sea-girt earth4 #e4 ,it was by this time that there arose a train of reflections in my mind of the following nature which shook my confidence in worldly objects4 #f4 ,my mind was employed in the discrimination of the nature of things which led me gradually to discard all thoughts of sensual enjoyments4 #g4 ,what are these worldly pleasures good for1 7thought ,i71 and what means the multiplication 7of our species7 on earth8 ,men are born to die1 and they die to be born again4 #h4 ,there is no stability in the tendencies of beings whether movable or immovable4 ,they all tend to vice1 decay and danger2 and all our possessions are the grounds of our penury4 #i4 ,all objects 7of sense7 are detached from each other as iron rods or needles from one another2 it is imagination alone which attaches them to our minds4 #aj4 ,it is the mind that pictures the existence of the world as a reality1 but the deceptiveness of the mind 7being known7 we are safe from such deception4 #aa4 ,if the world is an unreality1 it is a pity that ignorant men should be allured by it1 like the deer tempted by a distant mirage 7appearing7 as water4 #ab4 ,we are sold by none 7to any one7 and yet we remain as if enslaved to the world2 and knowing this well1 we are spellbound to riches1 as it were by the magic wand of ,sambara4 #ac4 ,what are the enjoyments in this quintessence 7of the world7 but misery2 and yet we are foolishly caught in its thoughts1 as if clogged in honey 7like bees74 #ad4 ,ah6 ,i perceive after long that we have insensibly fallen into errors1 like senseless stags falling into caverns in the wilderness4 #ae4 ,of what use is royalty and these enjoyments to me8 ,what am ,i and whence are all these things8 ,they are but vanities1 and let them continue as such without any good or loss to any body4 #af4 ,reasoning in this manner ,oh ,brhman1 ,i came to be disgusted with the world1 like a traveller in 7his journey through7 a desert4 #ag4 ,now tell me1 ,o venerable sir6 whether this world is advancing to its dissolution1 or continued reproduction1 or is it in course of its endless progression4 #ah4 ,if there is any progress here1 it is that of the appearance and disappearance of old age and decease1 of prosperity and adversity by turns4 #ai4 ,behold how the variety of our trifling enjoyments hastens our decay1 they are like hurricanes shattering the mountain trees4 #bj4 ,men continue in vain to breathe their vital breath as hollow-bamboo wind-pipes having no sense4 #ba4 ,how is 7human7 misery to be alleviated1 is the 7only7 thought that consumes me like wild fire in the hollow of a withered tree4 #bb4 ,the weight of worldly miseries sits heavy on my heart as a rock1 and obstructs my lungs to breathe out4 ,i have a mind to weep1 but am prevented from shedding my tears for fear of my people4 #bc4 ,my tearless weeping and speechless mouth1 give no indication of my inward sorrow to any body1 except my consciousness the silent witness in my solitude4 #bd4 ,i wait to think on the positive and negative states 7of worldly bliss71 as a ruined man bewails to reflect on his former state of affluence 7and present indigence74 #be4 ,i take prosperity to be a seducing cheat1 for its deluding the mind1 impairing the good qualities 7of men71 and spreading the net of our miseries4 #bf4 ,to me1 like one fallen into great difficulties1 no riches1 offspring1 consorts or home afford any delight1 but they seem to be 7so many sources of7 misery4 #bg4 ,i1 like a wild elephant in chains1 find no rest in my mind1 by reflecting on the various evils of the world1 and by thinking on the causes of our frailties4 #bh4 ,there are wicked passions prying at all times1 under the dark mist of the night of our ignorance2 and there are hundreds of objects1 which like so many cunning rogues1 are about all men in broad day-light1 and lurking on all sides to rob us of our reason4 ,what mighty champions can we delegate 7now7 to fight with these than our knowledge of truth8 ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,,vituperation ,,of ,,riches4 ,rma said3--,it is opulence1 ,oh sage6 that is reckoned a blessing here2 it is even she that is the cause of our troubles and errors4 #b4 ,she bears away as a river in the rainy season1 all high-spirited simpletons overpowered by its current4 #c4 ,her daughters are anxieties fostered by many a malpractice1 like the waves of a stream raised by the winds4 #d4 ,she can never stand steady on her legs any where1 but like a wretched woman who has burnt her feet1 she limps from one place to another4 #e4 ,fortune like a lamp both burns and blackens its possessor1 until it is extinguished by its own inflammation4 #f4 ,she is unapproachable as princes and fools1 and likewise as favourable as they to her adherents1 without scanning their merits or faults4 #g4 ,she begets only evils in them by their various acts 7of profligacy71 as good milk given to serpents1 serves but to increase the poignancy of their poison4 #h4 ,men 7by nature7 are gentle and kind hearted to friends and strangers1 until they are hardheartened by their riches1 which like blasts of wind1 serve to stiffen 7the liquid7 frost4 #i4 ,as brilliant gems are soiled by dust1 so are the learned1 the brave1 the grateful1 the mild and gentle1 corrupted by riches4 #aj4 ,riches do not conduce to one's happiness1 but redound to his woe and destruction1 as the plant aconite when fostered1 hides in itself the fatal poison4 #aa4 ,a rich man without blemish1 a brave man devoid of vanity1 and a master wanting partiality1 are the three rarities on earth4 #ab4 ,the rich are as inaccessible as the dark cavern of a dragon1 and as unapproachable as the deep wilderness of the ,vindhy mountain inhabited by fierce elephants4 #ac4 ,riches like the shadow of night1 overcast the good qualities of men1 and like moon-beams brings to bloom the buds of their misery4 ,they blow away the brightness of a fair prospect as a hurricane1 and resemble a sea with huge surges 7of disquiet74 #ad4 ,they bring upon us a cloud of fear and error1 increase the poison of despondence and regret1 and are like the dreadful snakes in the field of our choice4 #ae4 ,fortune is 7as a killing7 frost to the bondsmen of asceticism1 and as the night to the owls of libertinism2 she is an eclipse to the moonlight of reason1 and as moonbeams to the bloom of the lilies of folly4 #af4 ,she is as transitory as the ,iris1 and alike pleasant to view by the play of her colours2 she is as fickle as the lightening1 which vanishes no sooner it appears to sight4 ,hence none but the ignorant have reliance in her4 #ag4 ,she is as unsteady as a well born damsel following a base-born man to the words2 and like a 7deceptive7 mirage that tempts the run-aways to fall to it as the doe4 #ah4 ,unsteady as the wave1 she is never steady in any place2 7but is ever wavering to all sides7 like the flickering flame of a lamp4 ,so her leaning is known to nobody4 #ai4 ,she like the lioness is ever prompt in fighting1 and like the leader of elephants favourable to her partizans4 ,she is as sharp as the blade of a sword 7to cut off all obstacles71 and is the patroness of sharp-witted sharpers4 #bj4 ,i see no felicity in uncivil prosperity1 which is full of treachery1 and replete with every kind of danger and trouble4 #ba4 ,it is pity that prosperity1 like a shameless wench will again lay hold on a man1 after being abandoned by him in his association with 7her rival7 ,poverty4 #bb4 ,what is she with all her loveliness and attraction of human hearts1 but momentary thing obtained by all manner of evil means1 and resembling at best a flower shrub1 growing out of a cave inhabited by a snake1 and beset by reptiles all about its stem4 ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,,depreciation ,,of ,,human ,,life4 ,human life is as frail as a pendant drop of water tripling on the tip of a leaflet2 and as irrepressible as a raving madman1 that breaks loose from its bodily imprisonment out of its proper season4 #b4 ,again the lives of those whose minds are infected by the poison of worldly affairs1 and who are incapable of judging for themselves1 are 7verily7 but causes of their torment4 #c4 ,those knowing the knowable1 and resting in the all-pervading spirit1 and acquiescing alike to their wants and gains1 enjoy lives of perfect tranquility4 #d4 ,we that have certain belief of our being but limited beings1 can have no enjoyment in our transient lives1 which are but flashes of lightenings amidst the cloudy sky of the world4 #e4 ,it is as impossible to keep the winds in confinement1 to tear asunder the sky to pieces1 and wreathe the waves to a chaplet1 as to place any reliance in our lives4 #f4 ,fast as the fleeting clouds in autumn1 and short as the light of an oilless lamp1 our lives appear to pass away as evanescent as the rolling waves in the sea4 #g4 ,rather attempt to lay hold on the shadow of the moon in the waves1 the fleeting lightenings in the sky1 and the ideal lotus blossoms in the ether1 than ever place any reliance upon this unsteady life4 #h4 ,men of restless minds1 desiring to prolong their useless and toilsome lives1 resemble the she-mule conceiving by a horse 7which causes her destruction abortion or unfructification74 #i4 ,this world 7,sansra7 is as a whirlpool amidst the ocean of creation1 and every individual body is as 7evanescent7 as a foam or froth or bubble1 which can give me no relish in this life4 #aj4 ,that is called true living1 which gains what is worth gaining1 which has no cause of sorrow or remorse1 and which is a state of transcendental tranquility4 #aa4 ,there is a vegetable life in plants1 and an animal life in beasts1 and birds3 man leads a thinking life1 but true life is above 7the succession of7 thoughts4 #ab4 ,all those living beings are said to have lived well in this earth1 who being once born herein have no more to return to it4 ,the rest are no better than old asses 7of burthen74 #ac4 ,knowledge is an encumbrance to the unthinking1 and wisdom is cumbersome to the passionate2 intellect--is a heavy load to the restless1 and the body is a ponderous burden to one ignorant of his soul4 #ad4 ,a goodly person possessed of life1 mind1 intellect and self-consciousness and its occupations1 is of no avail to the unwise1 but seem to be his over-loadings as those upon a porter4 #ae4 ,the discontented mind is the great arena of all evils1 and the nestling place of diseases which alight upon it like birds of the air3 such a life is the abode of toil and misery4 #af4 ,as a house is slowly dilapidated by the mice continually burrowing under it1 so is the body of the living gradually corroded by the 7pernicious7 teeth of time boring within it4 #ag4 ,deadly diseases bred within the body1 feed upon our vital breath1 as poisonous snakes born in caves of the woods consume the meadow air4 #ah4 ,as the withered tree is perforated by minutest worms residing in them1 so are our bodies continually wasted by many inborn diseases and noxious secretions4 #ai4 ,death is incessantly staring and growling at our face1 as a cat looks and purrs at the mouse in order to devour it4 #bj4 ,old age wastes us as soon as a glutton digests his food2 and it reduces one to weakness as an old harlot1 by no other charm than her paint and perfumes4 #ba4 ,youth forsakes us as soon1 as a good man abandons his wicked friend in disgust1 after his foibles come to be known to him in a few days4 #bb4 ,death the lover of destruction1 and friend of old age and ruin1 likes the sensual man1 as a lecher likes a beauty4 #bc4 ,thus there is nothing so worthless in the world as this life1 which is devoid of every good quality and ever subject to death1 unless it is attended by the permanent felicity of emancipation4 ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,,obloquy ,,on ,,egoism4 ,rma continued3-- ,egoism springs from false conceit1 and it is vanity 7or vain glory7 which fosters it2 ,i am much afraid of this baneful egotism which is an enemy 7to human kind74 #b4 ,it is under the influence of egotism that all men in this diversified world1 and even the very poorest of them1 fall into the dungeon of evils1 and misdeeds4 #c4 ,all accidents1 anxieties1 troubles and wicked exertions proceed from egoism or self-confidence2 hence ,i deem egoism as a disease4 #d4 ,being subject to that everlasting arch-enemy--the cynic egoism1 ,i have refrained from my food and drink4 ,what other enjoyment is there for me to partake of8 #e4 ,this world resembles a long continuous night1 in which our egoism like a hunter1 spreads the snare of affections 7to entrap us in it74 #f4 ,all our great and intolerable miseries1 growing as rank as the thorny plants of the catechu1 are but results of our egoism4 #g4 ,it overcasts the equanimity of mind as an eclipse overshadows the moon2 it destroys our virtues as a frost destroys the lotus flowers2 it dispels the peace of men as the autumn drives away the clouds4 ,i must therefore get rid of this egoistic feeling4 #h4 ,i am not ,rma the prince1 ,i have no desire nor should ,i wish for affluence2 but ,i wish to have the peace of my mind and remain as the self-satisfied old sage ,jina4 #i4 ,all that ,i have eaten1 done or offered in sacrifice under the influence of egoism1 have gone for nothing2 it is the absence of egoism which 7,i call7 to be real good4 #aj4 ,so long1 ,o ,brhman6 as there is 7the feeling of7 egoism in one1 he is subject to sorrow at his difficulties2 but being devoid of it1 he becomes happy2 hence it is better to be without it4 #aa4 ,i am free from anxiety1 ,o sage6 ever since ,i have got the tranquility of my mind after giving up my 7sense of7 egoism2 and known the transitoriness of all enjoyments4 #ab4 ,as long1 ,o ,brhman6 as the cloud of egoism overspreads 7the region of our minds71 so long our desires expand themselves like the buds of kurchi plants 7in the rains74 #ac4 ,but when the cloud of egoism is dispersed1 the lightning of avarice vanishes away1 just as the lamp being extinguished1 its light immediately disappears4 #ad4 ,the mind vaunts with egoism1 like a furious elephant in the ,vindhyan hills1 when it hears the thunder-claps in the clouds4 #ae4 ,again egoism residing like a lion in the vast forest of all human bodies1 ranges about at large throughout the whole extent of this earth4 #af4 ,the self-conceited are decorated with a string of pearls about their necks1 of which avarice forms the thread1 and repeated births--the pearls4 #ag4 ,our inveterate enemy of egoism1 has 7like a magician7 spread about us the enchantments of our wives1 friends and children1 whose spells it is hard to break4 #ah4 ,as soon as the 7impression of the7 word 7ego7 is effaced from the mind1 all our anxieties and troubles are wiped out of it4 #ai4 ,the cloud of egoism being dispelled from the sky of our minds1 the mist of error which it spreads to destroy our peace1 will be dispersed also4 #bj4 ,i have given up my 7sense of7 egoism1 yet is my mind stupified with sorrow by my ignorance4 ,tell me1 ,o ,brhman6 what thou thinkest right for me under these circumstances4 #ba4 ,i have with much ado given up this egoism1 and like no more to resort to this source of all evils and perturbation4 ,it retains its seat in the breast for our annoyance only1 and without benefiting us by any good quality of its own4 ,direct me now1 you men of great understandings6 7to what is right74 ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,,the ,,ungovernableness ,,of ,,the ,,mind4 ,our minds are infested by evil passions and faults1 and fluctuate in their observance of duty and service to superiors1 as the plumes of a peacock fluttering at the breeze4 #b4 ,they rove about at random with ardour and without rest from one place to another1 like the poor village dog running afar and wide in quest of food4 #c4 ,it seldom finds any thing any where1 and happening even to get a good store some where1 it is as little content with it as a wicker vessel filled with water4 #d4 ,the vacant mind1 ,oh sage6 is ever entrapped in its evil desires1 and is never at rest with itself2 but roves at large as a stray deer separated from its herd4 #e4 ,human mind is of the nature of the unsteady wave1 and as light as the minutest particle4 ,it can therefore have no rest in spite of 7the fickleness and levity of7 its nature4 #f4 ,disturbed by its thoughts1 the mind is tossed in all directions1 like the waters of the milk-white ocean when churned by the ,mandara mountain4 #g4 ,i can not curb my mind1 resembling the vast ocean 7in its course71 and running with its huge surges 7of the passions71 with whirlpools 7of error71 and beset by the whales of delusion4 #h4 ,our minds run afar1 ,o ,brhman6 after sensual enjoyments1 like the deer running towards the tender blades of grass1 and unmindful of falling into the pits 7hid under them74 #i4 ,the mind can never get rid of its wavering state owing to the habitual fickleness of its nature1 resembling the restlessness of the sea4 #aj4 ,the mind with its natural fickleness and restless thoughts1 finds no repose at any place1 as a lion 7has no rest7 in his prison-house4 #aa4 ,the mind seated in the car of delusion1 absorbs the sweet1 peaceful and undisturbed rest of the body1 like the gander sucking up pure milk from amidst the water4 #ab4 ,o chief of sages6 ,i grieve much to find the faculties of the mind lying dormant upon the bed of imaginary delights1 from which it is hard to waken them4 #ac4 ,i am caught1 ,o ,brhman6 like a bird in the net by the knots 7of my egoism71 and held fast in it by the thread of my avarice4 #ad4 ,i burn in my mind1 ,o sage1 like the dried hay on fire1 by the flame of my anxieties and under the spreading fumes of my impatience4 #ae4 ,i am devoured1 ,o ,brhman6 like a clod of cold meat1 by the cruelty and greediness of my heart1 as a carcase is swallowed by a hungry dog and its greedy mate4 #af4 ,i am borne away1 ,o sage6 by the current of my heart1 as a tree on the bank is carried away by the waters and waves beating upon it4 #ag4 ,i am led afar by my 7greedy7 mind1 like a straw carried off by the hurricane1 either to flutter in the air or fall upon the ground4 #ah4 ,my earthly mindedness has put a stop to my desire of crossing over the ocean of the world1 as an embankment stops the course of the waters 7of a stream74 #ai4 ,i am lifted up and let down again by the baseness of my heart1 like a log of wood tied to a rope dragging it in and out of a well4 #bj4 ,as a child is seized by the false apparition of a demon1 so ,i find myself in the grasp of my wicked mind1 representing falsities as true4 #ba4 ,it is hard to repress the mind1 which is hotter than fire1 more inaccessible than a hill1 and stronger than a thunder bolt4 #bb4 ,the mind is attracted to its objects as a bird to its prey1 and has no respite for a moment as a boy from his play4 #bc4 ,my mind resembling the sea both in its dullness as well as restlessness1 in its extent and fulness with whirlpools and dragons1 keeps me far from advancing towards it4 #bd4 ,it is more difficult to subdue the mind than to drink off the ocean1 or to upset the ,sumeru mountain4 ,it is ever harder than the hardest thing4 #be4 ,the mind is the cause of all exertions1 and the sensorium of the three worlds4 ,its weakness weakens all worldliness1 and requires to be cured with care4 #bf4 ,it is the mind from which arise our pains and pleasures by hundreds1 as the woods growing in groups upon a hill2 but no sooner is the scythe of reason applied to them1 than they fall off one by one4 #bg4 ,i am ready to subdue my mind which is my greatest enemy in this world1 for the purpose of mastering all the virtues1 which the learned say depend upon it4 ,my want of desires has made me averse to wealth and the gross pleasures it yields1 which are as tints of clouds tainting the 7clear disk of the7 moon 7of our mind74 ,,chapter ,,xvii4 ,,on ,,cupidity4 ,i see our vices like a flock of owls flying about in the region of our minds1 under the darkness of our affections1 and in the lonesome night of our avarice4 #b4 ,i am parched by my anxieties like the wet clay under solar rays1 infusing an inward heat in it by extraction of its soft moisture4 #c4 ,my mind is like a vast and lonesome wilderness1 covered under the mist of errors1 and infested by the terrible fiend of desire is continually floundering about it4 #d4 ,my wailings and tears serve only to expand and mature my anxiety1 as the dews of night open and ripen the blossoms of beans and give them a bright golden hue4 #e4 ,avarice by raising expectations in men1 serves only to whirl them about1 as the vortex of the sea wallows the marine animals in it4 #f4 ,the stream of worldly avarice flows like a rapid current within the rock of my body1 with precipitate force 7in my actions71 and loud resounding waves 7of my speech74 #g4 ,our minds are driven by foul avarice from one place to another1 as the dusty dry hays are borne away by the winds1 and as the ,chtakas are impelled by thirst to fly about 7for drink74 #h4 ,it is avarice which destroys all the good qualities and grace which we adopted to ourselves in good faith1 just as the mischievous mouse severs the wires 7of a musical instrument74 #i4 ,we turn about upon the wheel of our cares1 like withered leaves 7floating7 upon the water1 and like dry grass uplifted by the wind1 and as autumnal clouds 7moving7 in the sky4 #aj4 ,being over powered by avarice1 we are disable to reach the goal 7of perfection71 as a bird entangled in the snare1 is kept from its flight4 #aa4 ,i am so greatly burnt by the flame of avarice1 that ,i doubt whether this inflammation may be assuaged even by administration of nectar itself4 #ab4 ,avarice like a heated-mare takes me far and farther still from my place1 and brings me back to it again and again4 ,thus it hurries me up and down and to and fro in all directions for ever4 #ac4 ,we are pulled up and cast down again like a bucket in the well1 by the string of avarice 7tied about our necks74 #ad4 ,man is led about like a bullock of burthen by his avarice1 which bends his heart as fast as the string does the beast1 and which it is hard for him to break4 #ae4 ,as the huntress spreads her net to catch birds in it1 so does our affection for our friends1 wives and children stretch these snares to entrap us every day4 #af4 ,avarice like a dark night terrifies even the wise1 blindfolds the keen-sighted1 and depresses the spirit of the happiest of men4 #ag4 ,our appetite is as heinous as a serpent1 soft to feel1 but full of deadly poison1 and bites us as soon as it is felt4 #ah4 ,it is also like a black sorceress that deludes men by her magic1 but pierces him in his heart1 and exposes him to danger afterwards4 #ai4 ,this body of ours shattered by our avarice is like a worn out lute1 fastened by arteries resembling the wires1 but emitting no pleasing sound4 #bj4 ,our avarice is like the long fibered1 dark and juicy poisonous creeper called ,kaduka1 that grows in the caverns of mountains1 and maddens men by its flavour4 #ba4 ,avarice is as vain and inane1 fruitless and aspiring1 unpleasant and perilous1 as the dry twig of a tree1 which 7bears no fruit or flower7 but is hurtful with its prickly point4 #bb4 ,venality is like a churlish old woman1 who from the incontinence of her heart1 courts the company of every man1 without gaining the object of her desire4 #bc4 ,greediness as an old actress plays her various parts in the vast theatre of world1 in order to please the different tastes of her audience4 #bd4 ,parsimony is as a poisonous plant growing in the wide wilderness of the world1 bearing old age and infirmity as its flowers1 and producing our troubles as its fruits4 #be4 ,our churlishnesss resembles an aged actress1 attempting a manly feat she has not the strength to perform1 yet keeping up the dance without pleasing 7herself or any body74 #bf4 ,our fleeting thoughts are as fickle as pea-hens1 soaring over inaccessible heights under the clouds 7of ignorance72 but ceasing to fly in the day light 7of reason74 #bg4 ,avarice is like a river in the rains1 rising for a time with its rolling waves1 and afterwards lying low in its empty bed4 7,such are the avaricious by the flux and reflux of their fortunes74 #bh4 ,avarice is as inconstant as a female bird1 which changes her mates at times1 and quits the arbor that no longer bears any fruit4 #bi4 ,the greedy are as unsteady as the flouncing monkey1 which is never restive at any place1 but moves to places impassable by others1 and craving for fruits even when satiate4 #cj4 ,the acts of avarice are as inconstant as those of chance1 both of which are ever on the alert1 but never attended with their sequence4 #ca4 ,our venality is like a black-bee sitting upon the lotus of our hearts1 and thence making its rambles above1 below and all about us in a moment4 #cb4 ,of all worldly evils1 avarice is the source of the longest woe4 ,she exposes to peril even the most secluded man4 #cc4 ,avarice like a group of clouds1 is fraught with a thick mist of error1 obstructing the light of heaven1 and causing a dull insensibility 7in its possessor74 #cd4 ,penury which seems to gird the breasts of worldly people with chains of gems and jewels1 binds them as beasts with halters about the necks4 #ce4 ,covetousness stretches itself long and wide and presents to us a variety of hues as the rainbow4 ,it is equally unsubstantial and without any property as the iris1 resting in vapour and vacuum and being but a shadow itself4 #cf4 ,it burns away our good qualities as electric fire does the hay2 it numbs our good sense as the frost freezes the lotus2 it grows our evils as autumn does the grass2 and it increases our ignorance as the winter prolongs the night4 #cg4 ,greediness is as an actress in the stage of the world2 she is as a bird flying out of the nest of our houses2 as a deer running about in the desert of our hearts2 and as a lute making us sing and dance at its tune4 #ch4 ,our desires like billows toss us about in the ocean of our earthly cares2 they bind us fast to delusion as fetters do the elephant4 ,like the ficus indicus they produce the roots of our regeneration1 and like moon beams they put our budding woes to bloom4 #ci4 ,avarice like 7,pandora's7 box is filled with miseries1 decrepitude and death1 and is full of disorder and disasters like a mad bacchanal4 #dj4 ,our wishes are sometimes as pure as light and at others as foul as darkness2 now they are as clear as the milky way1 and again as obscure as thickest mists4 #da4 ,all our bodily troubles are avoided by our abstaining from avarice1 as we are freed from fear of night goblins at the dispersion of darkness4 #db4 ,so long do men remain in their state of 7dead like7 dumbness and mental delirium1 as they are subject to the poisonous cholic of avarice4 #dc4 ,men may get rid of their misery by their being freed from anxieties4 ,it is the abandonment of cares which is said to be the best remedy of avarice4 #dd4 ,as the fishes in a pond fondly grasp the bait in expectation of a sop1 so do the avaricious lay hold on any thing1 be it wood or stone or even a straw4 #de4 ,avarice like an acute pain excites even the gravest of men to motion1 just as the rays of the sun raise the lotus blossoms 7above the water74 #df4 ,it is compared with the bamboo in its length1 hollowness1 hard knots1 and thorny prickles1 and yet it is entertained in expectation of its yielding the manna and a pearly substance4 #dg4 ,yet it is a wonder that high-minded men1 have been able to cut off this almost unseverable knot of avarice1 by the glittering sword of reason3 #dh4 ,as neither the edge of the sword1 nor the fire of lightening1 nor the sparks of the red-hot iron1 are sharp enough to sever the keen avarice seated in our hearts4 #di4 ,it is like the flame of a lamp which is bright but blackening and acutely burning at its end4 ,it is fed by the oily wicks 7of years71 is vivid in all1 but never handled by any body4 #ej4 ,penury has the power of bemeaning the best of men to 7the baseness of7 straws in a moment1 notwithstanding their wisdom1 heroism and gravity in other respects4 #ea4 ,avarice is like the great valley of the ,vindhy hills1 that is beset with deserts and impenetrable forests1 is terrible and full of snares laid by the hunters1 and filled with the dust and mist 7of delusion74 #eb4 ,one single avarice has every thing in the world for its object1 and though seated in the breast1 it is imperceptible to all4 ,it is as the undulating ,milky ocean in this fluctuating world1 sweeping all things yet regaling mankind with its odorous waves4 ,,chapter ,,xviii4 ,,obloquy ,,of ,,the ,,body4 ,this body of ours that struts about on earth1 is but a mass of humid entrails and tendons1 tending to decay and disease1 and to our torment alone4 #b4 ,it is neither quiescent nor wholly sentient1 neither ignorant nor quite intelligent4 ,its inherent soul is a wonder1 and it is reason 7and its absence7 that makes it graceful or otherwise4 #c4 ,the sceptic is doubtful of its inertness and intellection3 and the unreasonable and ignorant people are ever subject to error and illusion4 #d4 ,the body is as easily gratified with a little1 as it is exhausted in an instant1 hence there is nothing so pitiable1 abject and worthless as our bodies4 #e4 ,the face is as frail as a fading flower3 now it shoots forth its teeth like filaments1 and now it dresses itself with blooming and blushing smiles as blossoms4 #f4 ,the body is as a tree1 having its arms resembling the branches1 the shoulder-blades like stems1 the teeth as rows of birds1 the eye-holes like its hollows1 and the head as a big fruit4 #g4 ,the ears are as two wood-peckers1 the fingers of both hands and feet as so many leaves of the branches1 the diseases as 7parasite7 plants1 and the acts of the body are as axes felling this tree1 which is the seat of the two birds the soul and intelligence4 #h4 ,this shady arbor of the body1 is but the temporary resort of the passing soul1 what then whether it be akin to or apart from anybody1 or whether one would rely in it or not4 #i4 ,what man is there1 ,o venerable fathers6 that would stoop to reflect within himself1 that this body is repeatedly assumed only to serve him as a boat to pass over the sea of the world4 #aj4 ,who can rely any confidence in his body1 which is as a forest full of holes1 and abounds in hairs resembling its trees8 #aa4 ,the body composed of flesh1 nerves and bones1 resembles a drum without any musical sound1 and yet ,i sit watching it as a cat 7for the squeaking of mice74 #ab4 ,our bodies are as trees growing in the forest of the world1 bearing the flowers of anxiety1 and perforated by the worms of woe and misery1 and mounted upon by the apish mind4 #ac4 ,the body with its smiling face appears a goodly plant1 bearing the fruits both of good and evil2 but it has become the abode of the dragon of avarice1 and a rookery of the ravens of anger4 #ad4 ,our arms are as the boughs of trees1 and our open palms like beautiful clusters of flowers1 the other limbs are as twigs and leaves1 and are continually shaken by the breath of life4 #ae4 ,the two legs are the erect stems 7of the arbor of the body71 and the organs are the seats of the birds of sense4 ,its youthful bloom is a shade for the passing traveller of love4 #af4 ,the hanging hairs of the head resemble the long grass growing on the tree 7of the body72 and egoism like a vulture 7in hollow71 cracks the ear with its hideous shrieks4 #ag4 ,our various desires like the pendant roots and fibres of the fig tree1 seem to support its trunk of the body1 though it is worn out by labour to unpleasantness4 #ah4 ,the body is the big abode of its owner's egoism1 and therefore it is of no interest to me whether it lasts or falls 7for egoism is the bane of happiness74 #ai4 ,this body which is linked with its limbs like beasts of burthen labour1 and is the abode of its mistress ,avarice--painted over by her taints of passions1 affords me no delight whatever4 #bj4 ,this abode of the body which is built by the frame-work of the back-bone and ribs1 and composed of cellular vessels1 tied together by ropes of the entrails1 is no way desirable to me4 #ba4 ,this mansion of the body1 which is tied with strings of the tendons1 and built with the clay of blood and moisture1 and plastered white with old age1 is no way suited to my liking4 #bb4 ,the mind is the architect and master of this bodily dwelling1 and our activities are its supports and servants2 it is filled with errors and delusions which ,i do not like4 #bc4 ,i do not like this dwelling of the body with its bed of pleasure on one side1 and the cries of pain as those of its children on the other1 and where our evil desires are at work like its bawling hand-maids4 #bd4 ,i cannot like this body1 which like a pot of filth1 is full of the foulness of worldly affairs1 and mouldering under the rust of our ignorance4 #be4 ,it is a hovel standing on the two props of our heels1 and supported by the two posts of our legs4 #bf4 ,it is no lovely house where the external organs are playing their parts1 while its mistress the understanding sits inside with her brood of anxieties4 #bg4 ,it is a hut which is thatched over with the hairs on the head1 decorated with the turrets of the ears1 and adorned with jewels on the crest1 which ,i do not like4 #bh4 ,this house of the body is walled about by all its members1 and beset by hairs growing like ears of corn on it4 ,it has an empty space of the belly within 7which is never full71 and which ,i do not like4 #bi4 ,this body with its nails as those of spiders1 and its entrails growling within like barking dogs1 and the internal winds emitting fearful sounds1 is never delightsome to me4 #cj4 ,what is this body but a passage for the ceaseless inhaling and breathing out of the vital air8 ,its eyes are as two windows which are continually oped and closed by the eyelids4 ,i do not like such a mansion as this4 #ca4 ,this mansion of the body with its formidable 7wide-open7 door of the mouth1 and 7ever-moving7 bolt of the tongue and bars of the teeth1 is not pleasant to me4 #cb4 ,this house of the body1 having the white-wash of ointments on the outer skin1 and the machinery of the limbs in continued motion1 and the restless mind burrowing its base like the mischievous mouse1 is not liked by me4 #cc4 ,sweet smiles like shining lamps1 serve to lighten this house of the body for a moment1 but it is soon darkened by a cloud of melancholy1 wherefore ,i cannot be pleased with it4 #cd4 ,this body which is the abode of diseases1 and subject to wrinkles and decay1 and all kinds of pain1 is a mansion wherewith ,i am not pleased4 #ce4 ,i do not like this wilderness of the body1 which is infested by the bears of the senses4 ,it is empty and hollow within1 with dark groves 7of entrails7 in the inside4 #cf4 ,i am unable1 ,o chief of sages6 to drag my domicile of the body1 just as a weak elephant is incapable to draw out another immerged in a muddy pit4 #cg4 ,of what good is affluence or royalty1 this body and all its efforts to one1 when the hand of time must destroy them all in a few days4 #ch4 ,tell me1 ,o sage6 what is charming in this body1 that is only a composition of flesh and blood both within and without it and frail in its nature4 #ci4 ,the body does not follow the soul upon death2 tell me ,sir1 what regard should the learned have for such an ungrateful thing as this4 #dj4 ,it is as unsteady as the ears of an infuriate elephant1 and as fickle as drops of water that trickle on their tips4 ,i should like therefore to abandon it1 before it comes to abandon me4 #da4 ,it is as tremulous as the leaves of a tree shaken by the breeze1 and oppressed by diseases and fluctuations of pleasure and pain4 ,i have no relish in its pungency and bitterness4 #db4 ,with all its food and drink for evermore1 it is as tender as a leaflet and is reduced to leanness in spite of all our cares1 and runs fast towards its dissolution4 #dc4 ,it is repeatedly subjected to pleasure and pain1 and to the succession of affluence and destitution1 without being ashamed of itself as the shameless vulgar herd 7at their ups and downs74 #dd4 ,why nourish this body any longer1 when it acquires no excellence nor durability of its state1 after its enjoyment of prosperity and exercise of authority for a length of time4 #de4 ,the bodies of the rich as well as those of the poor1 are alike subject to decay and death at their appointed times4 #df4 ,the body lies as a tortoise in the cave of avarice amidst the ocean of the world4 ,it remains there in the mud in a mute and torpid state1 without an effort for its liberation4 #dg4 ,our bodies floating as heaps of wood on the waves of the world1 serve at last for the fuel of funeral fire 7on the pile72 except a few of these which pass for human bodies in the sight of the wise4 #dh4 ,the wise have little to do with this tree of the body1 which is beset by evils like noxious orchids about it1 and produces the fruit of perdition4 #di4 ,the body like a frog1 lies merged in the mire of mortality1 where it perishes no sooner it is known to have lived and gone4 #ej4 ,our bodies are as empty and fleeting as gusts of wind1 passing over a dusty ground1 where nobody knows whence they come1 and whither they go4 #ea4 ,we know not the course of our bodies 7their transmigrations71 as we do not know those of the winds1 light and our thoughts2 they all come and go1 but from where and whither1 we know nothing of4 #eb4 ,fie and shame to them1 that are so giddy with the ebriety of their error1 as to rely on any state or durability of their bodies4 #ec4 ,they are the best of men1 ,o sage6 whose minds are at rest with the thought1 that their ego does not subsist in their bodies1 nor are the bodies theirs at the end 7of their lives74 #ed4 ,those mistaken men that have a high sense of honor and fear dishonor1 and take a pleasure in the excess of their gains1 are verily the killers both of their bodies and souls4 #ee4 ,we are deceived by the delusion of egoism1 which like a female fiend 7sorceress7 lies hid within the cavity of the body with all her sorcery4 #ef4 ,our reason unaided 7by religion7 is kept in bondage like a female slave within the prison of our bodies1 by the malicious fiend of false knowledge 7or sophistry74 #eg4 ,it is certain that whatever we see here is unreal1 and yet it is a wonder1 that the mass of men are led to deception by the vile body1 which has injured the cause of the soul4 #eh4 ,our bodies are as fleeting as the drops of a water-fall1 and they fall off in a few days like the withered leaves of trees4 #ei4 ,they are as quickly dissolved as bubbles in the ocean2 it is in vain therefore that it should hurl about in the whirlpool of business4 #fj4 ,i have not a moment's reliance in this body1 which is ever hastening to decay2 and ,i regard its changeful delusions as a state of dreaming4 #fa4 ,let those who have any faith in the stability of the lightning1 of the autumn clouds1 and in glacial castles1 place their reliance in this body4 #fb4 ,it has outdone all other things that are doomed to destruction in its instability and perishableness4 ,it is moreover subject to very many evils2 wherefore ,i have set it at naught as a straw1 and thereby obtained my repose4 ,,chapter ,,xix4 ,,blemishes ,,of ,,boyhood4 ,one receiving his birth in the unstable ocean of the world1 which is disturbed by the billows of the bustle of business1 has to pass his boyhood in sufferings only4 #b4 ,want of strength and sense1 and subjection to diseases and dangers1 muteness and appetence1 joined with longings and helplessness1 are the concomitants of infancy4 #c4 ,childhood is chained to fretting and crying1 to fits of anger1 craving and every kind of incapacity1 as an elephant when tied to the post by its shackles4 #d4 ,the vexations which tease the infant breast1 are far greater than those which trouble us in youth and old age1 or disturb one in disease1 danger or at the approach of death4 #e4 ,the acts of a boy are as those of young animals1 that are always restless and snubbed by every body4 ,hence boyhood is more intolerable than death itself4 #f4 ,how can boyhood be pleasing to any body1 when it is but a semblance of gross ignorance1 and full of whims and hobbies1 and ever subject to miscarriages4 #g4 ,it is this silly boyhood which is in constant dread of dangers arising at every step from fire1 water and air1 and which rarely betide us in other states of life4 #h4 ,boys are liable to very many errors in their plays and wicked frolics1 and in all their wishes and attempts beyond their capacities3 hence boyhood is the most perilous state 7of life74 #i4 ,boys are engaged in false pursuits and wicked sports1 and are subject to all foolish puerilities4 ,hence boyhood is fit for the rod and not for rest4 #aj4 ,all faults1 misconduct1 transgressions and heart-aches1 lie hidden in boyhood like owls in hollow caves4 #aa4 ,fie to those ignorant and foolish people1 who are falsely led to imagine boyhood as the most pleasant period of life4 #ab4 ,how can boyhood appear pleasing to any one1 when the mind swings like a cradle towards every object of desire1 however wrong it is deemed to be in both worlds4 #ac4 ,the minds of all living beings are ever restless1 but those of young people are ten times more at unrest4 #ad4 ,the mind is naturally unsteady1 and so is boyhood also4 ,say what can save us from that state of life1 when both these vagrant things combine to our destruction4 #ae4 ,the glances of women1 the flashes of lightning1 the flame of fire1 and the ever-rolling waves1 have all imitated the fickleness of boyhood4 #af4 ,minority seems to be a twin brother to the mind1 and resembles it in the unsteadiness and frailty of all its purposes4 #ag4 ,all kinds of miseries1 misdeeds and miscarriages await on boyhood1 as all sorts of men hang upon the rich 7for their supportance74 #ah4 ,boys are fond of fresh things at all times1 and on their failing to get the same1 they fall to a fainting fit1 as if from the effect of poison4 #ai4 ,a boy like a dog1 is as easily tamed as he is irritated at a little1 and he is as glad to lie in the dust1 as to play with dirt4 #bj4 ,a foolish fretful boy with his body daubed in mire with the tears in his eyes1 appears as a heap of dry clay soiled by a shower of rain4 #ba4 ,boys are subject to fear and voracity2 they are helpless but fond of every thing they have seen or heard1 and equally fickle in their bodies and mind4 ,hence boyhood is a source of troubles only4 #bb4 ,the foolish and helpless child1 becomes as sad and sour when he fails to get the object of his fancy1 as when he is thwarted from the thing desired4 #bc4 ,children have much difficulty to get at the things they want1 and which they can ask only by indistinct words4 ,hence no one suffers so much as boys4 #bd4 ,a boy is as much irritated by the eagerness of his whimsical desires1 as a patch of ground in the desert is parched by the summer heat4 #be4 ,a boy on entering his school1 is subjected to corrections1 which are as painful to him as the goading and fetters to the elephant4 #bf4 ,a great many whims and hobbies1 and a variety of false fancies1 tend continually to afflict boyhood1 which is ever fond of toys and trifles4 #bg4 ,how can senseless childhood be said to be a happy state of life1 when the child is led by its ignorance to swallow everything in the world1 and to wish to lay hold on the moon in the sky4 #bh4 ,say great sage6 what difference is there between a child and a tree1 both of which have sensitiveness1 but unable to defend themselves from heat and cold4 #bi4 ,boys are of the nature of birds1 being both subject to fear and hunger1 and ready to fly about when impelled by them4 #cj4 ,again boyhood is the abode of fear from all sides2 such as from the tutor1 father1 mother1 elder brother and elderly boys1 and from every body besides4 #ca4 ,hence the hopeless state of childhood1 which is full of faults and errors1 and addicted to sports and thoughtlessness1 cannot be satisfactory to any body4 ,,chapter ,,xx4 ,,vituperation ,,of ,,youth4 ,rma continued3-- ,the boy having passed his state of blemishes1 gladly steps to his youth with hopes of gaining his objects that tend only to his ruin4 #b4 ,the insensible youth feels at this time the wanton inclinations of his loose mind1 and goes on falling from one tribulation to another4 #c4 ,he is overcome as one subdued by the power of delusive ,cupid1 lying hidden in the cavity of the heart 7hence called ,manoja74 #d4 ,his ungoverned mind gives rise to loose thoughts like those of voluptuous women1 and these serve to beguile him like the magic collyrium 7in the hand7 of boys 7called ,siddhnjana74 #e4 ,vices of the most heinous kind betake persons of such 7perverse7 minds in their youth1 and lead them to their ruin4 #f4 ,the paths of youth lead them to the gate of hell through a maze of errors4 ,those that have been left uncorrupt by their youth1 are not to be corrupted by anything else4 #g4 ,whoso has passed the dreadfully enchanted coast of youth1 fraught with various flavours and wonders1 are said to be truly wise4 #h4 ,i take no delight in our unwelcome youth1 which appears to us in the form of a momentary flash of lightning1 and soon succeeded by the loud roaring of the clouds 7of manhood74 #i4 ,youth like rich wine is sweet and delicious 7at first71 but becomes bitter1 insipid and noxious in a short time4 ,hence it is not delectable to me4 #aj4 ,youth appearing 7at first7 as a reality1 is found to be a false1 transient thing1 as deceptive as a fairy dream by night4 ,hence ,i like it not4 #aa4 ,it is the most charming of all things to men1 but its charm is soon lost and fled4 ,therefore the phantasmagoria of youth is not pleasing to me4 #ab4 ,youth as an arrow-shot is pleasant to see1 but painful to feel its smart4 ,hence ,i do not like youth that produces blood heat 7in the veins74 #ac4 ,youth as a harlot is charming at first sight1 but turning heartless soon after4 ,hence it is not to my liking4 #ad4 ,as the efforts of a dying man are all for his torment1 so the exertions of the young are portentous of his destruction4 #ae4 ,puberty advances as a dark night spreading the shadow of destruction4 ,it darkens the heart and mind by its hedious appearance1 and intimidates even the god 7,siva himself74 #af4 ,errors growing in youth1 cause copious mistakes in life1 by upsetting good sense and setting at naught the approved good manners 7of society74 #ag4 ,the raging fire in the hearts of the young1 caused by separation of their mates1 burns them down like trees by a wild fire4 #ah4 ,as a clear1 sacred and wide stream1 becomes muddy in the rains1 so doth the mind of man however clear1 pure and expanded it may be1 gets polluted in his youth4 #ai4 ,it is possible for one to cross over a river made terrible by its waves1 but no way possible to him to get over the boisterous expanse of his youthful desires4 #bj4 ,o how 7lamentably7 is one's youth worn out with the thoughts of his mistress1 her swollen breasts1 her beautiful face and her sweet caresses4 #ba4 ,the young man afflicted with the pain of soft desire1 is regarded by the wise in no better light than a fragment of 7useless7 straw4 #bb4 ,youth is the stake of haughty self-esteem1 as the rack is for the immolation of the elephant giddy with its frontal pearl4 #bc4 ,youth is a lamentable forest1 where the mind as the root of all1 gives growth to jungles of 7love sick7 groans and sighs1 and tears of sorrow4 ,the vices of this time1 are as venomous snakes of the forest4 #bd4 ,know youthful bloom of the person to resemble the blooming lotus of the lake3--the one is full of affections1 bad desires and evil intents1 as the other is fraught with bees1 filaments1 petals and leaves4 #be4 ,the new bloom of youth is the resort of anxiety and disease1 which like two birds with their 7black and white7 plumage of vice and virtue1 frequent the fountain of the young man's heart4 #bf4 ,early youth resembles a deep sea1 disturbed by the waves of numberless amusements1 transgressing all bounds1 and regardless of death and disease4 #bg4 ,youth is like a furious gust of wind1 over-loaded with the dust of pride and vanity1 and sweeps away every trace of the good qualities 7early acquired by one74 #bh4 ,the rude dust of the passions of youths1 disfigures their face1 and the hurricane of their sensualities cover their good qualities 7as flying leaves overspread the ground74 #bi4 ,youthful vigour awakens a series of faults1 and destroys a group of good qualities1 by increasing the vice of pleasures4 #cj4 ,youthful bloom confines the fickle mind to some beauteous person1 as the bright moon-beams serve to shut the flitting bee in the dust of the closing lotus4 #ca4 ,youth like a delightsome cluster of flowers1 growing in the arbour of human body1 attracts the mind as the bee to it1 and makes it giddy 7with its sweets74 #cb4 ,the human mind anxious to derive pleasure from the youthfulness of the body1 falls into the cave of sensuality1 as a deer running after the mirage of desert heat1 falls down into a pit4 #cc4 ,i take no delight in moony youth1 which guilds the dark body with its beams1 and resembles the stern mane of the leonine mind4 ,it is a surge in the ocean of our lives 7that tosses us all about74 #cd4 ,there is no reliance in youth1 which fades away as soon as summer flowers in this desert of the body4 #ce4 ,youth is as a bird1 and as soon flies away from our bodily cage as the philosopher's stone1 which quickly disappears from the hands of the unfortunate4 #cf4 ,as youth advances to its highest pitch1 so the feverish passions wax stronger for our destruction only4 #cg4 ,as long as the night 7delusion7 of youth does not come to its end1 so long the fiends of our passion do not cease to rage in the desert of the body4 #ch4 ,pity me1 ,o sage6 in this state of youth1 which is so full of perturbations1 as to have deprived me of the sight 7light7 of reason4 ,o pity me as thou wouldst for thy dying son4 #ci4 ,the foolish man who ignorantly rejoices at his transient youth1 is considered as a human beast4 #dj4 ,the foolish fellow who is fond of his youth which is flushed with pride and fraught with errors1 comes to repent 7of his folly7 in a short time4 #da4 ,those great minded men are honoured on earth1 who have safely passed over the perils of youth4 #db4 ,one crosses over with ease the wide ocean which is the horrible habitation of huge whales2 but it is hard to pass over our youth1 that is so full of vices and the billows 7of our passions74 #dc4 ,it is very rare to have that happy youth which is fraught with humility1 and spent in the company of respectable men2 which is distinguished by feelings of sympathy1 and is joined with good qualities and virtues4 ,,chapter ,,xxi4 ,,vituperation ,,of ,,women4 ,rma added3-- ,what beauty is there in the person of a woman1 composed of nerves1 bones and joints8 ,she is a mere statue of flesh1 and a frame of moving machinery with her ribs and limbs4 #b4 ,can you find any thing beautiful in the female form1 separated from its 7component parts of the7 flesh1 skin1 blood and water1 that is worth beholding8 ,why then dote upon it8 #c4 ,this fairy frame consisting of hairs in one part and blood in the other1 cannot engage the attention of a high-minded man to its blemishes4 #d4 ,the bodies of females1 that are so covered with clothing and repeatedly besmeared with paints and perfumes1 are 7at last7 devoured by carnivorous 7beasts and worms74 #e4 ,the breasts of women decorated with strings of pearl1 appear as charming as the pinnacles of ,sumeru1 washed by the waters of ,ganges falling upon them4 #f4 ,look at these very breasts of the woman becoming at last a lump of food1 to be devoured by dogs in cemeteries and on the naked ground4 #g4 ,there is no difference between a woman and a young elephant that lives in the jungle1 both of them being made of blood1 flesh and bones4 ,then why hunt after her4 #h4 ,a woman is charming only for a short time1 and does not long last to be so4 ,i look upon her merely as a cause of delusion4 #i4 ,there is no difference between wine and a woman1 both of them tending equally to produce high-flown mirth and jollity1 and creating revelry and lust4 #aj4 ,uxorious men are like chained elephants among mankind1 that will never come to sense however goaded by the hooks of reason4 #aa4 ,women are the flames of vice1 their black-dyed eye and hairs are as their smoke and soot4 ,they are as intangible as fire1 though pleasing to the sight4 ,they burn the man as fire consumes the straw4 #ab4 ,they burn from afar 7more than fire71 and are as dry as bones 7in their hearts71 though appearing as soft and juicy to sight4 ,they serve as fuel to the fire of hell1 and are dangerous with their charmingness4 #ac4 ,the woman resembles a moon-light night1 veiled over by her loosened locks1 and looking through her starry eyes4 ,she shows her moon-like face amidst her flowery smiles4 #ad4 ,her soft dalliance destroys all manly energy1 and her caresses overpower the good sense of men1 as the shade of night does the sleeping 7world74 #ae4 ,the woman is as lovely as a creeper in its flowering time4 ,her palm are the leaves and her eyes as the black-bees 7on the flower74 ,her breasts are as the uplifted tops of the plant4 #af4 ,the lovely damsel is like a poisonous creeper1 fair as the filament of a flower but destructive of life1 by causing inebriation and insensibility4 #ag4 ,as the snake-catcher entices the snake by his breath and brings it out of its hole1 so does the woman allure the man by her officious civilities1 and gets him under her control4 #ah4 ,concupiscence as a huntsman1 has spread his nets in the forms of women1 for the purpose of ensnaring the persons of deluded men like silly birds4 #ai4 ,the mind of man though as fierce as that of a furious elephant1 is tied fast by the chain of love to the fulcrum of women1 just as an elephant is fastened 7by his leg7 to the post1 where he remains dull and dumb for ever4 #bj4 ,human life is as a pool in which the mind moves about in its mud and mire 7as a fish74 ,here it is caught by the bait of woman1 and dragged along by the thread of its impure desires4 #ba4 ,the beauteous-eyed damsel is a bondage to man1 as the stable is to the horse1 the fastening post to the elephant1 and as spells are to the snakes4 #bb4 ,this wondrous world1 with all its delights and enjoyments1 began with woman and depends on women for its continuance4 #bc4 ,a woman is the casket of all gems of vice 7,pandora's box71 she is the cause of the chain of our everlasting misery1 and is of no use to me4 #bd4 ,what shall ,i do with her breast1 her eyes1 her loins1 her eyebrows1 the substance of which is but flesh1 and which therefore is altogether unsubstantial4 #be4 ,here and there1 ,o ,brhman6 her flesh and blood and bones undergo a change for the worse in course of a few days4 #bf4 ,you see sir1 those dearly beloved mistresses1 who are so much fondled by foolish men1 lying at last in the cemetery1 and the members of their bodies all mangled and falling off from their places4 #bg4 ,o ,brhman6 those dear objects of love--the faces of damsels1 so fondly decorated by their lovers with paints and pastes1 are at last to be singed on the piles 7by those very hands74 #bh4 ,their braided hairs now hang as flappers of chouri on the arbors of the cemetery1 and their whitened bones are strewn about as shining stars after a few days4 #bi4 ,behold their blood sucked in by the dust of the earth1 voracious beasts and worms feeding upon their flesh1 jackals tearing their skin1 and their vital air wafted in the vacuum4 #cj4 ,this is the state to which the members of the female body must shortly come to pass1 you say all existence to be delusion1 tell me therefore why do you allow yourselves to fall into error8 #ca4 ,a woman is no other than a form composed of the five elements1 then why should intelligent men be fondly attached to her 7at the risk of their ruin78 #cb4 ,men's longing for women is likened to the creeper called ,suta1 which stretches its sprigs to a great length1 but bears plenty of bitter and sour fruits4 #cc4 ,a man blinded by avarice 7for the supportance of his mate7 is as a stray deer from its herd2 and not knowing which way to go1 is lost in the maze of illusion4 #cd4 ,a young man under the control of a young woman1 is as much lamentable as an elephant fallen into a pit of the ,vindhya mountain in pursuit of his mate4 #ce4 ,he that has a wife1 has an appetite for enjoyment on earth2 but one without her has no object of desire4 ,abandonment of the wife amounts to the abandoning of the world1 and forsaking the world is the path to true happiness4 #cf4 ,i am not content1 ,o ,brhman6 with these unmanageable enjoyments which are as flickering as the wings of bees1 and are as soon at an end as they are born 7like the ephemerids of a day74 ,i long only for the state of supreme bliss1 from my fear of repeated-births 7transmigration71 decay and death4 ,,chapter ,,xxii4 ,,obloquy ,,of ,,old ,,age4 ,boyhood has scarcely lost its boyishness when it is overtaken by youth1 which is soon followed by a ruthless old age1 devouring the other two4 #b4 ,old age withers the body like a frost freezing the lake of lilies4 ,it drives away the beauty of the person as a storm does the autumnal clouds2 and it pulls down the body1 as a current carries away a tree on the bank4 #c4 ,the old man with his limbs slackened and worn out by age1 and his body weakened by infirmity1 is treated by women as a useless beast4 #d4 ,old age drives a man's good sense1 as a good wife is driven away by her step dame4 #e4 ,a man in his state of tottering old age1 is scoffed at as a dotard by his own sons and servants1 and even by his wife1 and all his friends and relations4 #f4 ,insatiable avarice like a greedy vulture alights on the heads of the aged1 when their appearance grows uncouth1 and their bodies become helpless1 and devoid of all manly qualities and powers4 #g4 ,appetite the constant companion of my youth1 is thriving along with my age1 accompanied with her evils of indigence1 and heart-burning cares and restlessness4 #h4 ,ah me6 what must ,i do to remove my present and future pains8 ,it is this fear which increases with old age1 and finds no remedy4 #i4 ,what am ,i that am brought to this extremity of senselessness1 what can ,i do in this state4 ,i must remain dumb and silent4 ,under these reflections there is an increased sense of helplessness in old age4 #aj4 ,how and when and what shall ,i eat1 and what is sweet to taste8 ,these are the thoughts which trouble the mind of one when old age comes upon him4 #aa4 ,there is an insatiable desire for enjoyments1 but the powers to enjoy them are lacking4 ,it is the want of strength which afflicts the heart in old age4 #ab4 ,hoary old age sits and shrieks as a heron on the top of the tree of this body1 which is infested within it by the serpents of sickness4 #ac4 ,as the grave owl--the bird of night1 appears unexpectedly to our sight soon as the evening shades cover the landscape1 so does the solemn appearance of death overtake us in the eve of our life4 #ad4 ,as darkness prevails over the world at the eve of the day1 so doth death overtake the body at the eve of the life4 #ae4 ,death overtakes a man in his hoary old age1 just as an ape alights on a tree covered with pearly flowers4 #af4 ,even a deserted city1 a leafless tree and parched up land may present a fair aspect1 but never does the body look well that is pulled down by hoary age4 #ag4 ,old age with its hooping cough lays hold on a man1 just as a vulture seizes its prey with loud shrieks in order to devour it4 #ah4 ,as a girl eagerly lays hold on a lotus flower whenever she meets with one1 and then plucks it from its stalk and tears it to pieces1 so does old age overtake the body of a person and break it down at last4 #ai4 ,as the chill blast of winter shakes a tree and covers its leaves with dust1 so does old age seize the body with a tremor and fill all its limbs with the rust of diseases4 #bj4 ,the body overtaken by old age becomes as pale and battered1 as a lotus flower beaten by frost becomes withered and shattered4 #ba4 ,as moon-beams contribute to the growth of ,kumuda flowers on the top of mountains1 so does old age produce grey hairs resembling casla flowers on the heads of men 7with inward phlegm and gout74 #bb4 ,death the lord of all beings1 views the grey head of a man as a ripe pumpkin seasoned with the salt of old age1 and devours it with zest4 #bc4 ,as the ,ganges upsets a neighbouring tree by its rapid course1 so does old age destroy the body1 as the current of our life runs fast to decay4 #bd4 ,old age which preys on the flesh of the human body1 takes as much delight in devouring its youthful bloom as a cat does in feeding upon a mouse4 #be4 ,decrepitude raises its ominous hoarse sound of hiccough in the body1 as the jackal sends forth her hideous cry amidst the forest4 #bf4 ,dotage as an inward flame consumes the living body as a wet log of wood1 which thereupon emits its hissing sounds of hiccough and hard breathing1 and sends up the gloomy fumes of woe and sighs4 #bg4 ,the body like a flowering creeper1 bends down under the pressure of age1 turns to grey like the fading leaves of a plant1 and becomes as lean and thin as a plant after its flowering time is over4 #bh4 ,as the infuriate elephant upsets the white plantain tree in a moment1 so does old age destroy the body that becomes as white as camphor all over4 #bi4 ,senility1 ,o sage6 is as the standard bearer of the king of death1 flapping his chouri of grey hairs before him1 and bringing in his train an army of diseases and troubles4 #cj4 ,the monster of old age1 will even overcome those that were never defeated in wars by their enemies1 and those that hide themselves in the inaccessible caverns of mountains4 #ca4 ,as infants cannot play in a room that has become cold with snow1 so the senses can have no play in the body that is stricken with age4 #cb4 ,old age like a juggling girl1 struts on three legs at the sound of coughing and whiffing1 beating as a tymbal on both sides4 #cc4 ,the tuft of grey hairs on the head of the aged body1 represents a white flapper 7chouri7 fastened to the top of a handle of white sandal wood1 to welcome the despot of death4 #cd4 ,as hoary age makes his advance like moon-light on the site of the body1 he calls forth the hidden death to come out of it1 as the moon-light makes the nilumbium to unfold its buds4 #ce4 ,again as the white wash of old age whitens the outer body1 so debility1 diseases and dangers become its inmates in the inner apartment4 #cf4 ,it is the extinction of being that is preceded by old age2 therefore ,i as a man of little understanding1 can have no reliance in old age 7though extolled by some7#a #cg4 ,what then is the good of this miserable life1 which lives under the subjection of old age8 ,senility is irresistable in this world1 and defies all efforts to avoid or overcome it4 ,,chapter ,,xxiii4 ,,vicissitudes ,,of ,,times4 ,men of little understandings are found to fall into grave errors in this pit of the world1 by their much idle talk1 ever doubting scepticism1 and schisms 7in religion74 #b4 ,good people can have no more confidence in the net work of their ribs1 than little children may have a liking for fruits reflected in a mirror4 #c4 ,time is a rat that cuts off the threads of all thoughts 7prospects71 which men may entertain here about the contemptible pleasures of this world4 #d4 ,there is nothing in this world which the all-devouring time will spare4 ,he devours all things as the submarine fire consumes the over-flowing sea4 #e4 ,time is the sovran lord of all1 and equally terrible to all things4 ,he is ever ready to devour all visible beings4 #f4 ,time as master of all1 spares not even the greatest of us for a moment4 ,he swallows the universe within himself1 whence he is known as the universal soul4 #g4 ,time pervades all things1 but has no perceptible feature of his own1 except that he is imperfectly known by the names of years1 ages and kalpas 7millenniums74 #h4 ,all that was fair and good1 and as great as the mount of ,meru1 have gone down in the womb of eternity1 as the snakes are gorged by the greedy ,garuda4 #i4 ,there was no one ever so unkind1 hard-hearted1 cruel1 harsh or miserly1 whom time has not devoured4 #aj4 ,time is ever greedy although he should devour the mountains4 ,this great gourmand is not satiated with gorging every thing in all the worlds4 #aa4 ,time like an actor plays many parts on the stage of the world4 ,he abstracts and kills1 produces and devours and at last destroys every thing4 #ab4 ,time is incessantly picking up the seeds of all the four kinds of living beings from this unreal world1 as a parrot picks up the seeds from under the cracked shell of a pomegranate4 7,viz4 the ovipari1 vivipari1 vegetables and the ephemerids74 #ac4 ,time like a wild elephant uproots all proud living beings in this world1 as the other pulls up the trees of the forest with their tusks4 #ad4 ,this creation of ,god is like a forest1 having ,brahm for its foundation and its trees full of the great fruits of gods4 ,time commands it throughout its length and breadth4 #ae4 ,time glides along incessantly as a creeping plant1 composed of years and ages as its parts1 and the sable nights as black bees chasing after them4 #af4 ,time1 ,o sage1 is the subtlest of all things4 ,it is divided though indivisible1 it is consumed though incombustible1 it is perceived though imperceptible in its nature4 #ag4 ,time like the mind is strong enough to create and demolish any thing in a trice1 and its province is equally extensive with it4 #ah4 ,time is a whirlpool to men2 and being accompanied with desire his insatiable and ungovernable mistress and delighting in illicit enjoyments1 he makes them do and undo the same thing over and again4 #ai4 ,time is prompted by his rapacity to appropriate every thing to himself1 from the meanest straw1 dust1 leaves and worms1 to the greatest ,indra and the mount ,meru itself4 #bj4 ,time is the source of all malice and greediness1 and the spring of all misfortunes1 and intolerable fluctuations of our states4 #ba4 ,as boys with their balls play about their play-ground1 so does time in his arena of the sky1 play with his two balls of the sun and moon4 #bb4 ,time at the expiration of the kalpa age1 will dance about with a long chain of the bones of the dead hanging from his neck to the feet4 #bc4 ,the gale of desolation rising from the body of this desolator of the world at the end of a kalpa age1 causes the fragments of mount ,meru to fly about in the air like the rinds of the bhoja-petera tree4 #bd4 ,time then assumes his terrific form of fire 771 to dissolve the world in empty space1 when the gods ,brahm and ,indra and all others cease to exist4 #be4 ,as the sea shows himself in a continued series of waves rising and falling one after another1 so it is time that creates and dissolves the world1 and appears to rise and fall in the rotation of days and nights4 #bf4 ,time plucks the gods and demigods as ripe fruits1 from their great arbor of existence1 at the end of the world 7to make them his food74 #bg4 ,time resembles a large fig tree 7,ficus religiosus71 studded with all the worlds as its fruits1 and resonant with the noise of living beings like the hissing of gnats about them4 #bh4 ,time accompanied by ,action as his mate1 regales himself in the garden of the world1 blossoming with the moon-beams of the ,divine ,spirit4 #bi4 ,as the high and huge rock supports its body upon the basis of the earth1 so does time rest itself in endless and interminable eternity4 #cj4 ,time assumes to himself various hues of black1 white and red 7at night1 day and midday7 which serve for his vestures4 #ca4 ,as the earth is the great support of hills which are fixed upon it1 so is time the support of all the innumerable ponderous worlds that constitute the universe4 #cb4 ,hundreds of great kalpa ages 7of the creation and dissolution of the world7 may pass away1 yet there is nothing that can move eternity to pity or concern1 or stop or expedite his course4 ,it neither sets nor rises 7as time74 #cc4 ,time is never proud to think1 that it is he who without the least sense of pain and labor1 brings this world into play and makes it to exist4 #cd4 ,time is like a reservoir in which the nights are as mud1 the days as lotuses1 and the clouds as bees4 #ce4 ,as a covetous man1 with worn out broom sticks in hand1 sweeps over a mountain to gather the particles of gold strewn over it1 so does time with his sweeping course of days and nights1 collect in one mass of the dead all living beings in the world4 #cf4 ,as a miserly man trims and lights a lamp with his own fingers1 to look into his stores at each corner of the room2 so does time light the lamps of the sun and moon to look into the living beings in every nook and corner of the world4 #cg4 ,as one ripens the raw fruits in sun and fire in order to devour them1 so does time ripen men by their sun and fire worship1 to bring them under his jaws at last4 #ch4 ,the world is a dilapidated cottage and men of parts are rare gems in it4 ,time hides them in the casket of his belly1 as a miser keeps his treasure in a coffer4 #ci4 ,good men are like a chaplet of gems1 which time puts on his head for a time with fondness1 and then tears and tramples it down 7under his feet74 #dj4 ,strings of days1 nights and stars1 resembling beads and bracelets of white and black lotuses1 are continually turning round the arm of time4 #da4 ,time 7as a vulture7 looks upon the world as 7the carcase of7 a ram1 with its mountains1 seas1 sky and earth as its four horns1 and the stars as its drops of blood which it drinks day by day4 #db4 ,time destroys youth as the moon shuts the petals of the lotus4 ,it destroys life as the lion kills the elephant3 there is nothing however insignificant that time steals not away4 #dc4 ,time after sporting for a ,kalpa period in the act of killing and crushing of all living beings1 comes to lose its own existence and becomes extinct in the eternity of the ,spirit of spirits4 #dd4 ,time after a short rest and respite reappears as the creator1 preserver1 destroyer and remembrancer of all4 ,he shows the shapes of all things whether good or bad1 keeping his own nature beyond the knowledge of all4 ,thus doth time expand and preserve and finally dissolve all things by way of sport4 ,,chapter ,,xxiv4 ,,ravages ,,of ,,time4 ,rma rejoined3--,time is a self-willed sportsman as a prince1 who is inaccessible to dangers and whose powers are unlimited4 #b4 ,this world is as it were a forest and sporting ground of time1 wherein the poor deluded worldlings are caught in his snare like a body of wounded stags4 #c4 ,the ocean of universal deluge is a pleasure-pond of time1 and the submarine fires bursting therein as lotus flowers 7serve to beautify that dismal scene74 #d4 ,time makes his breakfast of this vapid and stale earth1 flavoured with the milk and curd of the seas of those names4 #e4 ,his wife ,chandi 7,hecate7 with her train of ,mtris 7furies71 ranges all about this wide world as a ferocious tigress 7with horrid devastation74 #f4 ,the earth with her waters is like a bowl of wine in the hand of time1 dressed and flavoured with all sorts of lilies and lotuses4 #g4 ,the lion with his huge body and startling mane1 his loud roaring and tremendous groans1 seems as a caged bird of sport in the hand of time4 #h4 ,the ,mahkla like a playful young ,kokila 7cuckoo71 appears in the figure of the blue autumnal sky1 and warbling as sweet as the notes of a lute of gourd 7in the music of the spheres74 #i4 ,the restless bow of death is found flinging its woeful arrows 7darts of death7 with ceaseless thunder claps on all sides4 #aj4 ,this world is like a forest1 wherein sorrows are ranging about as playful apes1 and time like a sportive prince in this forest1 is now roving1 now walking1 now playing and now killing his games4 ,,chapter ,,xxv4 ,,sports ,,of ,,death4 ,time stands the foremost of all deceitful players in this world4 ,he acts the double parts of creation and destruction1 and of action and fate 7utility and fatality74 #b4 ,time has no other character but those of action and motion by which his existence is known to us1 and which bind all beings 7in the succession of thoughts and acts74 #c4 ,fate is that which frustrates 7the necessary consequences of7 the acts of all created beings1 as the solar heat serves to dissolve the conglomeration of snows4 #d4 ,this wide world is the stage wherein the giddy mob dance about 7in their appointed times74 #e4 ,time has a third name of a terrifying nature known as ,kritntah 7,fate71 who in the form of a ,kplika 7one holding human skulls in his hand71 dances about in the world4 #f4 ,this dancing and loving ,kritntah 7,fate71 is accompanied by his consort called ,destiny to whom he is greatly attached 7as his colleague74 #g4 ,time 7as ,siva71 wears on his bosom of the world1 the triplicate white and holy thread composed of the serpent named ,ananta and the stream of ,ganges1 and the digit of the moon on his forehead 7to measure his course74 7,viz3--the ,zodiacal belt2 the milky way1 and the lunar mansions74 #h4 ,the sun and the moon are the golden armlets of time1 who holds in his palm the mundane world as the paltry plaything of a nosegay4 #i4 ,the firmament with its stars appears like a garment with coloured spots in it2 the clouds called ,pushkara and ,avarta are as the skirts of that garment1 which are washed by ,time in the waters of the universal deluge4 #aj4 ,before him1 dances his beloved ,destiny with all her arts for ever1 to beguile the living that are fond of worldly enjoyments4 #aa4 ,people hurry up and down to witness the dance of ,destiny1 whose unrestrained motion keeps them at work1 and causes their repeated births and deaths4 #ab4 ,the people of all the worlds are studded about her person as her ornaments1 and the sky stretching from the heaven of gods to the infernal regions1 serves for the veil on her head4 #ac4 ,her feet are planted in the infernal regions1 and the hell-pits ring at her feet like trinkets1 tied by the string of evil deeds or sins 7of men74 #ad4 ,she is painted all over from head to foot by the god ,chitra ,gupta with ornamental marks prepared by her attendants 7the deeds of men71 and perfumed with the essence of those deeds4 #ae4 ,she dances and reels at the nod of her husband at the end of the ,kalpas1 and makes the mountains crack and crash at her foot-falls4 #af4 ,behind her dance the peacocks of the god ,kumra2 and ,kla the god of death staring with his three wide open eyes1 utters his hideous cries 7of destruction74 #ag4 ,death dances about in the form of the five headed ,hara1 with the loosened braids of hair upon him2 while ,destiny in the form of ,gaur1 and her locks adorned with ,mandra flowers keeps her pace with him4 #ah4 ,this ,destiny in her war-dance1 bears a capacious gourd representing her big belly1 and her body is adorned with hundreds of hollow human skulls jingling like the alms-pots of the ,kapli mendicants4 #ai4 ,she has filled 7reached7 the sky with the emaciated skeleton of her body1 and gets terrified at her all destructive figure4 #bj4 ,the skulls of the dead of various shapes adorn her body like a beautiful garland of lotuses1 which keep hanging to and fro during her dance at the end of a ,kalpa age4 #ba4 ,the horrible roaring of the giddy clouds ,pushkara and ,avarta at the end of the ,kalpa1 serves to represent the beating of her ,damaru drum1 and put to flight the heavenly choir of ,tumburu4 #bb4 ,as death dances along1 the moon appears like his ear-ring1 and the moon-beams and stars appear like his crest made of peacocks' feathers4 #bc4 ,the snow-capt ,himlaya1 appears like a circlet of bones in the upper loop of his right ear1 and the mount ,meru as a golden areola in that of the left4 #bd4 ,under their lobes are suspended the moon and the sun1 as pendant ear-rings glittering over his cheeks4 ,the mountain ranges called the lokloka are fastened like chains around his waist4 #be4 ,the lightnings are the bracelets and armlets of ,destiny1 which move to and fro as she dances along4 ,the clouds are her wrappers that fly about her in the air4 #bf4 ,death is furnished with many weapons1 as clubs1 axes1 missiles1 spears1 shovels1 mallets and sharp swords1 all of which are sure weapons of destruction4 #bg4 ,mundane enjoyments are no other than long ropes dropped down by the hand of death1 and keeping all mankind fast bound to the world2 while the great thread of infinity 7ananta7 is worn by him as his wreath of flowers4 #bh4 ,the belts of the seven oceans are worn about the arms of ,death as his bracelets resplendent with the living sea-animals1 and the bright gems contained in their depths4 #bi4 ,the great vortices of customs1 the successions of joy and grief1 the excess of pride and the darkness of passions1 form the streaks of hair on his body4 #cj4 ,after the end of the world1 he ceases to dance1 and creates anew all things from the lowest animal that lives in the earth1 to the highest ,brahm and ,siva 7when he resumes his dance74 #ca4 ,destiny as an actress1 acts by turns her parts of creation and destruction1 diversified by scenes of old age1 sorrow and misery4 #cb4 ,time repeatedly creates the worlds and their woods1 with the different abodes and localities teeming with population4 ,he forms the moveable and immovable substances1 establishes customs and again dissolves them1 as boys make their dolls of clay and break them soon afterwards4 ,,chapter ,,xxvi4 ,,the ,,acts ,,of ,,destiny4 ,rma said3--,such being the all destructive conduct of time and others 7as already described71 what confidence1 ,o great sage1 can men like me1 have upon them8 #b4 ,we all remain here1 ,o sage6 as slaves sold to ,fate and ,destiny1 and are deceived by their allurements as beasts of the forest4 #c4 ,this ,fate whose conduct is so very inhuman1 is always up to devour all beings1 and is incessantly throwing men into the sea of troubles4 #d4 ,he is led by his malicious attempts to inflame the mind with inordinary desires1 as the fire raises its flames to burn down a habitation4 #e4 ,destiny the faithful and obedient wife of ,fate1 is naturally fickle on account of her being a female1 and is always bent on mischief and disturbing the patience 7even of the wisest of men74 #f4 ,as the heinous serpent feeds upon the air1 so does cruel ,death ever swallow the living4 ,he ripens the body with old age to create his zest1 and then devours all animals warm with life4 #g4 ,death is called a relentless tyrant1 having no pity even for the sick and weak2 nor any regard for any one in any state of life4 #h4 ,every one in this world is fond of affluence and pleasures1 not knowing that these are only calculated to lead him to his ruin4 #i4 ,life is very unsteady4 ,death is very cruel4 ,youth is very frail and fickle1 and boyhood is full of dullness and insensibility4 #aj4 ,man is defiled by his worldliness1 his friends are ties to the world1 his enjoyments are the greatest of his diseases in life1 and his avarice and ambition are the mirage that always allures him 7to ruin74 #aa4 ,our very senses are our enemies1 before which even truth appears as falsehood2 the mind is the enemy of the mind and self is the enemy of self4 7i4e4 ,they are all deceptive74 #ab4 ,self-esteem is stained 7with the name of selfishness71 intelligence is blamed for its fallaciousness1 our actions are attended with bad results1 and our pleasures tend only to effeminacy4 #ac4 ,all our desires are directed to enjoyments2 our love of truth is lost2 our women are the ensigns of vice1 and all that were once so sweet1 have become tasteless and vapid4 #ad4 ,things that are not real1 are believed as real1 and have become the cause of our pride1 by hardening us in untruth1 and keeping us from the light of truth4 #ae4 ,my mind is at a loss to think what to do2 it regrets at its increased appetite for pleasure1 and for want of that self-denial 7which ,i require74 #af4 ,my sight is dimmed by the dust of sensuality3 the darkness of self-esteem prevails upon me3 the purity of mind is never reached to1 and truth is far off from me4 #ag4 ,life is become uncertain and death is always advancing nigh2 my patience is disturbed1 and there is an increased appetite for whatever is false4 #ah4 ,the mind is soiled by dullness1 and the body is cloyed with surfeit and ready to fall2 old age exults over the body1 and sins are conspicuous at every step4 #ai4 ,youth flies fast away with all our care to preserve it2 the company of the good is at a distance2 the light of truth shines from no where2 and ,i can have recourse to nothing in this world4 #bj4 ,the mind is stupified within itself1 and its contentment has fled from it3 there is no rise of enlightened sentiments in it1 and meanness makes its advance to it from a distance4 #ba4 ,patience is converted into impatience2 man is liable to the states of birth and death2 good company is rare1 but bad company is ever within the reach of every body4 #bb4 ,all individual existences are liable to appear and disappear2 all desires are chains to the world1 and all worldly beings are ever seen to be led away perforce where no body can tell4 #bc4 ,what reliance can there be on human life1 when the points of the compass become indistinct and undiscernible2 when the countries and places change their positions and names1 and when mountains even are liable to be dilapidated8 #bd4 ,what reliance can there be on man1 when the heavens are swallowed in infinity1 when this world is absorbed in nothingness1 and the very earth loses her stability8 #be4 ,what reliance can there be on men like ourselves1 when the very seas are liable to be dried up1 when the stars are doomed to fade away and disappear1 and when the most perfect of beings are liable to dissolution8 #bf4 ,what reliance can there be on men like us1 when even the demigods are liable to destruction1 when the polar star is known to change its place1 and when the immortal gods are doomed to mortality8 #bg4 ,what reliance can there be on men like us1 when ,indra is doomed to be defeated by demons2 when even death is hindered from his aim1 and when the current air ceases to breathe8 #bh4 ,what reliance can there be on men like us1 when the very moon is to vanish with the sky1 when the very sun is to be split into pieces1 and when fire itself is to become frigid and cold8 #bi4 ,what reliance can there be on men like us1 when the very ,hari and ,brahm are to be absorbed into the ,great ,one1 and when ,siva himself is to be no more4 #cj4 ,what reliance can there be on men like us1 when the duration of time comes to be counted1 when ,destiny is destined to her final destiny1 and when all vacuity loses itself in infinity8 #ca4 ,that which is inaudible1 unspeakable1 invisible1 and unknowable in his real form1 displays to us these wondrous worlds by some fallacy 7in our conceptions74 #cb4 ,no one conscious of himself 7his egoism71 can disown his subjection to that ,being1 that dwells in the hearts of every one4 #cc4 ,this sun--the lord of worlds1 is impelled 7by that power7 to run over hills1 rocks and fields1 like an inert piece of stone1 hurled down from a mountain and borne away by a current stream4 #cd4 ,this globe of earth1 the seat of all the ,suras and ,asuras1 and surrounded by the luminous sphere in the manner of a walnut covered by its hard crust1 subsists under ,his command4 #ce4 ,the gods in the heavens1 the men on earth and the serpents in the nether world1 are brought into existence and led to decay by ,his will only4 #cf4 ,kma 7,cupid7 that is arbitrarily powerful1 and has forcibly overpowered on all the living world1 has derived his unconquerable might from the ,lord of worlds4 #cg4 ,as the heated elephant regales the air with his spirituous exudation1 so does the spring perfume the air with his profusion of flowers1 unsettling the minds of men 7at the will of the ,almighty74 #ch4 ,so are the loose glances of loving damsels directed to inflict deep wounds in the heart of man1 which his best reason is unable to heal4 #ci4 ,one whose best endeavour is always to do good to others1 and who feels for others' woes1 is really intelligent and happy under the influence of his cool judgment4 #dj4 ,who can count the number of beings resembling the waves of the ocean1 and on whom death has been darting the submarine fire of destruction4 #da4 ,all mankind are deluded to entrap themselves in the snare of avarice1 and to be afflicted with all evils in life1 as the deer entangled in the thickets of a jungle4 #db4 ,the term of human life in this world1 is decreased in each generation in proportion to 7the increase of their wicked acts74 ,the desire of fruition is as vain as the expectation of reaping fruits from a creeper growing in the sky3 yet ,i know not why men of reason would not understand this truth4 #dc4 ,this is a day of festivity1 a season of joy and a time of procession4 ,here are our friends1 here the pleasures and here the variety of our entertainments4 ,thus do men of vacant minds amuse themselves with weaving the web of their desires1 until they become extinct4 ,,chapter ,,xxvii4 ,,vanity ,,of ,,the ,,world4 ,rma said3--,o sage6 this seemingly pleasing but actually unpleasant world1 has nothing in it that is productive of such a thing as can afford tranquility to the soul4 #b4 ,after the playful boyhood is over1 the mind wastes itself in the society of women like the deer fallen in a cavern1 then the body bends down under old age1 and the man has only to grieve 7for his folly74 #c4 ,as the body is stricken with the frost of old age1 its beauty flies afar from it like the bloom of the fading lotus1 and then the fountain of man's worldliness is at once dried up4 #d4 ,as the body gets towards its decline1 so much doth death rejoice in it4 ,the body grows lean with grey hairs upon the head1 just as a creeper fades away with the flowers upon it4 #e4 ,all living creatures are borne away by the stream of avarice1 which upsets the tree of contentment growing on the bank and flows on for ever in this world4 #f4 ,human body is like a vessel covered with skin2 and glides over the ocean of the world 7without its helmsman of reason74 ,it is tossed about by sensual pleasures1 and goes down under the water by the pressure of its whale-like passions4 #g4 ,the world is a wilderness abounding in creepers of avarice and trees of sensuality1 with hundreds of desires as their branches4 ,our minds like monkeys pass their time in roving about this forest without getting the fruits 7they seek74 #h4 ,those that do not yield to grief in troubles1 that are not elated with prosperity1 nor smitten at heart by women1 are rare in this world4 #i4 ,those who fight boldly in the battle fields and withstand the war-elephants1 are not so very brave in my opinion1 as those who withstand the surges of the mind amidst the streams of carnal appetites4 #aj4 ,i see no such deeds in the world which endure to the last 7or final emancipation7 of men4 ,actions proceeding from a desire of fruition in fools1 serve only for their restlessness on earth4 #aa4 ,such men are rare in the world1 that have filled the corners of the world with their fame and valour1 who have filled their houses with true riches acquired by honest means and an unwavering patience4 #ab4 ,good and bad fortune always overtake a man1 even if he were living in an aperture of the rock or within the walls of mountains1 or even if he were enclosed within an iron built closet4 #ac4 ,our sons and riches are mere objects of delight to us4 ,it is as erroneous to suppose them to be of any good to us at the end1 as to expect any benefit from the decoction of poison4 #ad4 ,old people being reduced to calamitous circumstances at the pitiable state of the decay of their bodies and decline of life1 have greatly to be tormented at the thoughts of the impious deeds 7of their past lives74 #ae4 ,men having passed their early days in the gratification of their desires and other worldly pursuits at the expense of the acts of virtue and piety1 are as much troubled with anxieties at the end1 that their minds are seized with a tremor like that of the plumage of a peacock shaken by the breeze4 ,how then can a man attain to tranquility at any time8 #af4 ,wealth whether forthcoming or unattainable1 whether got by labour or given by fortune1 is all as deceitful to the worldly minded1 as the high waters of rivers 7swelling only to subside74 #ag4 ,that such and such desirable acts are to be done1 are the constant thoughts of men1 who desire to please their sons and wives1 until they are worn out with age and become crazy in their minds4 #ah4 ,like leaves on trees that grow to fall1 and falling make room for others to shoot forth1 are those men who devoid of reason1 die away daily to be born again4 #ai4 ,men having travelled here and there and far and near1 return to their homes at the end of the day2 but none of them can have rest by day or night1 except the virtuous few that live by honest dealings4 #bj4 ,after quelling his enemies and getting enough of riches in his clutches1 the rich man just sits down to enjoy his gains2 when death comes upon him1 and interrupts his joy4 #ba4 ,seeing the vile trash of worldly gains earned and accumulated by the basest means to be but transitory1 the infatuated mob do not perceive their approaching dissolution4 #bb4 ,men loving their own lives1 and making mouths at the demise of others1 are like a herd of sheep bound to the stake1 and staring at the slaughter of their fellows1 yet feeding themselves to fall as fattened victims to death4 #bc4 ,the multitude of people on earth1 is ever seen to appear in and disappear from it as fast as the passing waves of the sea1 but who can tell whence they come and whither they return4 #bd4 ,women are as delicate as poisonous creepers1 that with their red petaled lips and garments1 and their eyes as busy as fluttering bees1 are killers of mankind and stealers of their ravished hearts4 #be4 ,men are as passengers in a procession1 repairing from this side and that to join at the place of their meeting4 ,such is the delusive union of our wives and friends here 7for our meeting in the next world74 #bf4 ,as the burning and extinguishing of the lamp depend on the wick and its moistening oil2 so does our course in this transitory world 7depend on our acts and affections only74 ,nobody knows the true cause of this mysterious existence4 #bg4 ,the revolution of the world is comparable with that of the potter's wheel and the floating bubbles of rain water2 that appear to be lasting to the ignorant observer only4 #bh4 ,the blooming beauty and graces 7of youth71 are destined to be snatched away at the approach of old age4 ,the youthful hopes also of men fly at a distance like the bloom of lotus buds in winter4 #bi4 ,the tree which is ordained to be useful to mankind by the loads of fruits and flowers that it bears upon its body1 is fated also to be hewn down by the cruel axe at last4 ,how then can beneficent men expect to avoid the cruel hand of death4 #cj4 ,society with relatives is 7of all others7 as perilous as that of a poisonous plant2 it is pleasant for its domestic affections1 which are in reality but delusions of the soul4 #ca4 ,what is that thing in the world1 which has no fault in it2 and what is that which does not afflict or grieve us2 what being is born that is not subjected to death1 and what are those acts that are free from deceit8 #cb4 ,those living a ,kalpa age are reckoned as short-lived1 compared with those living for many ,kalpas1 and they again are so in respect to ,brahm4 ,hence the parts of time being all finite1 the ideas of their length or shortness are altogether false4 #cc4 ,things that are called mountains are made of rocks1 those that are called trees are made of wood1 and those that are made of flesh are called animals1 and man is the best of them4 ,but they are all made of matter1 and doomed to death and decay4 #cd4 ,many things appear to be endued with intelligence1 and the heavenly bodies seem to be full of water2 but physicists have found out by analysis that1 there is no other thing any where except 7minuti of7 matter4 #ce4 ,it is no wonder that this 7unreal world7 should appear a miraculous 7reality7 to the wise1 and seem marvelously striking in the minds of mankind2 since the visions in our dreams also appear so very fascinating to every one in their state of dreaming4 #cf4 ,those that are corrupted in their greediness 7after worldly enjoyments71 will not even in their old age1 receive the sermons on their eternal concerns1 which they think to be false chimeras as those of a flower or a creeper growing in the sky4 #cg4 ,people are still deluded in their minds in wishing to attain the state of their superiors2 but they fall down still lower like beasts 7goats7 from the top of a hill1 in wishing to lay hold on the fruits of a verdant creeper out of their reach4 #ch4 ,young men spending their wealth in personal gratifications1 are as useless as plants growing in the bowels of a deep and inaccessible cavern1 which spread their fruits and flowers1 leaves and branches and their shades to the use of nobody4 #ci4 ,men are found to resemble the black antelopes 7in their wanderings73 some of them roving about the sweet1 soft and beautiful sceneries of the country1 and others roaming in sterile tracts and parts of boundless forests4 7i4e4 ,some living in the society of men1 and others as recluses from it74 #dj4 ,the daily and diversified acts of nature are all pernicious in their nature2 they appear pleasant and ravishing to the heart for a time1 but are attainded with pain in the end1 and fill the mind of the wise with dismay4 #da4 ,man is addicted to greediness1 and is prone to a variety of wicked shifts and plots2 a good man is not now to be seen even in a dream1 and there is no act which is free from difficulty4 ,i know not how to pass this state of human life4 ,,chapter ,,xxviii4 ,,mutability ,,of ,,the ,,world4 ,rma said3-- ,whatever we see of all moveable or immovable things in this world1 they are all as evanescent as things viewed in a dream4 #b4 ,the hollow desert that appears as the dried bed of a sea to-day1 will be found to-morrow to be a running flood by the accumulation of rain-water in it4 #c4 ,what is to-day a mountain reaching the sky and with extensive forests on it1 is in course of time levelled to the ground1 and is afterwards dug into pit4 #d4 ,the body that is clothed to-day with garments of silk1 and decorated with garlands and fragrance1 is to be cast away naked into a ditch to-morrow4 #e4 ,what is seen to be a city to-day1 and busy with the bustle of various occupations1 passes in course of a few days into the condition of an uninhabited wilderness4 #f4 ,the man who is very powerful to-day and presides over principalities1 is reduced in a few days to a heap of ashes4 #g4 ,the very forest which is so formidable to-day and appears as blue as the azure skies1 turns to be a city in the course of time1 with its banners hoisted in the air4 #h4 ,what is 7to-day7 a formidable jungle of thick forests1 turns in time to be a table-land as on the mount ,meru4 #i4 ,water becomes land and land becomes water4 ,thus the world composed of wood1 grass and water becomes otherwise with all its contents in course of time4 #aj4 ,our boyhood and youth1 bodies and possessions are all but transient things1 and they change from one state to another1 as the ever fluctuating waves of the ocean4 #aa4 ,our lives in this 7mortal7 world1 are as unsteady as the flame of a lamp placed at the window1 and the splendour of all the objects in the three worlds1 is as flickering as the flashing of the lightning4 #ab4 ,as a granary stored with heaps of grains is exhausted by its continued waste1 so is the stock of life spent away by its repeated respirations4 #ac4 ,the mind of man is as fluctuating as a flag waving in the air and filled with the dust of sin1 to indicate its wavering between the paths of heaven and hell4 #ad4 ,the existence of this delusive world1 is as the appearance of an actress on the stage1 shuffling her vests as she trudges along in her dancing4 #ae4 ,it's scenes are as changeful and fascinating as those of a magic city2 and its dealings as bewitching and momentary as the glances of a juggling girl4 #af4 ,the stage of the world presents us a scene of continued dancing 7of the sorceress of deception71 and the deceptive glances of her eyes resembling the fleeting flashes of lightning4 #ag4 ,the days1 the great men1 their hey-days and deeds 7that are past and gone71 are now retained in our memory only1 and such must be our cases also in a short time4 #ah4 ,many things are going to decay and many coming anew day by day2 and there is yet no end of this accursed course of events in this ever-changeful world4 #ai4 ,men degenerate into lower animals1 and those again rise to humanity 7by metempsychosis71 gods become no-gods1 and there is nothing that remains the same4 #bj4 ,the sun displays every thing to light by his rays1 and watches over the rotations of days and nights1 to witness like time the dissolution of all things4 #ba4 ,the gods ,brahm1 ,vishnu and ,siva and all material productions1 are reduced to nothingness1 like the submarine fire subsiding under the waters of the deep4 #bb4 ,the heaven1 the earth1 the air1 the sky1 the mountains1 the rivers1 and all the quarters of the globe1 are subject to destruction like the dry fuel by the all-destroying fire of the last day4 #bc4 ,riches and relatives1 friends1 servants and affluence1 are of no pleasure to him who is in constant dread of death4 #bd4 ,all these are so long delightful to a sensible man1 as the monster of death does not appear before the eye of his mind4 #be4 ,we have prosperity at one moment1 succeeded by adversity at another2 so we have health at one time1 followed by sickness soon after4 #bf4 ,what intelligent being is there1 that is not misled by these delusions of the world1 which represent things otherwise than what they are1 and serve to bewilder the mind8 #bg4 7,the world is as varying7 as the face of the skies2 it is now as black as dark clay1 and in the next moment bright with the golden hues of fair light4 #bh4 ,it is now over-cast by azure clouds resembling the blue lotuses of the lake1 and roaring loudly for a time and then being dumb and silent on a sudden3 #bi4 ,now studded with stars1 and now glowing with the glory of the sun2 then graced by the pleasant moonbeams1 and at last without any light at all4 #cj4 ,who is there so sedate and firm1 that is not terrified at these sudden appearances and their disappearance1 and the momentary durations and final dissolution of worldly things8 #ca4 ,what is the nature of this world1 where we are overtaken by adversity at one moment1 and elated by prosperity at another1 where one is born at a time1 and dies away at another8 #cb4 ,one that was something else before1 is born as a man in this life1 and is changed to another state in course of a few days2 thus there is no being that remains steadily in the same state4 #cc4 ,a pot is made of clay1 and cloth is made of cotton1 and they are still the same dull materials of which they are composed3 thus there is nothing new in this world that was not seen or known before1 and that changes not its form4 7i4e4 ,all is but a formal and no material change74 #cd4 ,the acts of creation and destruction1 of diffusion1 production1 and sustentation follow one another1 as the revolution of day and night to man4 #ce4 ,it happens sometimes1 that an impotent man slays a hero1 and that hundreds are killed by one individual2 so also a commoner becomes a noble man1 and thus every thing is changeful in this varying world4 #cf4 ,these bodies of men that are always changing their states1 are as bodies of waters rising and falling in waves by motion of the winds4 #cg4 ,boyhood lasts but a few days1 and then it is succeeded by youth which is as quickly followed by old age3 thus there being no identity of the same person1 how can one rely on the uniformity of external objects8 #ch4 ,the mind that gets delighted in a moment and becomes dejected in the next1 and assumes likewise its equanimity at another1 is indeed as changeful as an actor4 #ci4 ,the creator who is ever turning one thing into another in his work of creation1 is like a child who makes and breaks his doll without concern4 #dj4 ,the actions of producing and collecting 7of grains71 of feeding 7one's self7 and destroying 7others71 come by turns to mankind like the rotation of day and night4 #da4 ,neither adversity nor prosperity is of long continuance in the case of worldly people1 but they are ever subject to appearance and disappearance by turns4 #db4 ,time is a skilful player and plays many parts with ease2 but he is chiefly skilled in tragedy1 and often plays his tragic part in the affairs of men4 #dc4 ,all beings are produced as fruits in the great forest of the universe1 by virtue of their good and bad acts 7of past lives73 and time like a gust of wind blasts them day by day before their maturity4 ,,chapter ,,xxix4 ,,unreliableness ,,of ,,worldly ,,things4 ,thus is my heart consumed by the wild-fire of those great worldly evils1 and there rises in me no desire of enjoying them1 as there rises no mirage from a lake4 #b4 ,my existence upon earth gets bitter day by day1 and though ,i have got some experience in it1 yet its associations have made me as sour as the ,nimba plant by its immersion in water4 #c4 ,i see wickedness on the increase1 and righteousness on the decline in the mind of man1 which like the sour ,karanja 7crab7 fruit1 becomes sourer every day4 #d4 ,i see honour is eaten up every day by mutual altercations of men1 using harsh words to each other as they crack the nuts under their teeth4 #e4 ,too much eagerness for royalty and worldly enjoyments1 is equally prejudicial to our welfare2 as we loose our future prospects by the former1 and our present happiness by the latter4 #f4 ,i take no delight in my gardens nor have any pleasure in women2 ,i feel no joy at the prospect of riches1 but enjoy my solace in my own heart and mind4 #g4 ,frail are the pleasures of the world1 and avarice is altogether intolerable2 the bustle of business has broken down my heart1 and 7,i know not7 where to have my tranquility4 #h4 ,neither do ,i hail death nor am ,i in love with my life2 but remain as ,i do1 devoid of all anxiety and care4 #i4 ,what have ,i to do with a kingdom and with all its enjoyments8 ,of what avail are riches to me1 and what is the end of all our exertions8 ,all these are but requirements of self-love1 from which ,i am entirely free4 #aj4 ,the chain of 7repeated7 births is a bond that binds fast all men by its strong knots of the senses2 those striving to break loose from this bondage for their liberation1 are 7said to be7 the best of men4 #aa4 ,these haughty damsels whom the god of love employs to ravage the hearts of men1 resemble a group of elephants subverting a lotus bed under their feet4 #ab4 ,the treatment of the mind with pure reason being neglected now 7in youth71 it is hard to heal it afterwards 7in age71 when it admits of no cure4 #ac4 ,it is the worldliness of man that is his true poison1 while real poison is no poison to him4 ,it is the poison of worldliness which destroys his future life1 while real poison is only locally injurious to him 7in his present state74 #ad4 ,neither pleasure nor pain1 nor friends nor relatives1 nor even life and death1 can enchain 7affect7 the mind that has received the light of truth4 #ae4 ,teach me1 ,oh ,brhman6 that art the best of the learned in the mysteries of the past and future1 teach me so that ,i may soon become like one devoid of grief and fear and worldly troubles1 and may have the light of truth beaming upon me4 #af4 ,the forest of ignorance is laid over with the snare of desire1 it is full of the thorns of misery1 and is the dreadful seat of destruction and the danger 7of repeated births and deaths74 #ag4 ,i can rather suffer myself to be put under the jaws of death with his rows of teeth like saws1 but cannot bear the dreadly pains of worldly cares and anxieties4 #ah4 ,it is a gloomy error in this world to think that ,i have this and have not the other2 it serves to toss about our minds as a gust of wind disperses the dust of the earth4 #ai4 ,it is the thread of avarice that links together all living beings like a chaplet of pearls2 the mind serves to twirl about this chain1 but pure consciousness sits quiet to observe its rotation4 #bj4 ,i who am devoid of desires1 would like to break this ornamental chain of worldliness1 hanging about me as a deadly serpent1 in the same manner1 as a lion breaks asunder the net 7which is laid to ensnare him74 #ba4 ,do you now1 ,o most learned sage1 scatter the mist which has overspread the forest of my heart1 and the darkness which has overcast my mind1 by the light of true knowledge4 #bb4 ,there are no anxieties1 ,o sage6 which cannot be put to an end by the society of good minded men2 the darkness of night can be well removed by moon-beams4 #bc4 ,life is as fickle as a drop of water pending on a mass of clouds blown away by the winds4 ,our enjoyments are as unsteady as the lightning that flickers in the midst of clouds4 ,the pleasures of youth are as slippery as water4 ,with these reflections in my mind1 ,i have subdued them all under the province of peace and tranquility4 ,,chapter ,,xxx4 ,,self-,,disparagement4 ,seeing the world thus ingulphed amidst the abyss of hundreds of rising dangers and difficulties1 my mind is immerged in the mire of anxieties4 #b4 ,my mind is wandering everywhere and ,i am struck with fear at every thing2 my limbs are shaking with fear like the leaves of a withered tree4 #c4 ,my mind is bewildered by impatience for its want of true contentment1 just as a young woman is afraid in a desert for want of the company of her strong handed husband4 #d4 ,the thoughts of my mind are entangled in my desire for worldly enjoyments1 as stags are caught in the pit strewn with grass over it4 #e4 ,the senses of an unreasonable man1 ever run astray to the wrong and never turn to the right way2 so the eyes of a blind man lead him but to fall into the pit4 #f4 ,human thoughts are linked to the animal soul as consorts to their lords4 ,they can neither sit idle nor ramble at liberty1 but must remain as wives under the control of their husbands4 #g4 ,my patience is almost worn out1 like that of a creeper under the winter frost4 ,it is decayed1 and neither lives nor perishes at once4 #h4 ,our minds are partly settled in worldly things1 and partly fixed in their giver 7the ,supreme soul74 ,this divided state of the mind is termed its half waking condition4 #i4 ,my mind is in a state of suspense1 being unable to ascertain the real nature of my soul4 ,i am like one in the dark1 who is deceived by the stump of a fallen tree at a distance1 to think it a human figure4 #aj4 ,our minds are naturally fickle and wandering all about the earth4 ,they cannot forsake their restlessness1 as the vital airs cannot subsist without their motion4 #aa4 ,tell me ,oh sage1 what is that state of life which is dignified above others1 which is unassociated with the troubles 7incident to birth and death71 unqualified by the conditions of humanity1 and apart from errors1 and wherein griefs are unknown4 #ab4 7,tell me also7 how ,janaka and the other good men1 who are conspicuous for their ceremonious acts1 and distinguished for their good conduct1 have acquired their excellence 7in holy knowledge74 #ac4 7,tell me likewise7 ,oh source of my honor1 how a man1 who is besmeared all over his body with the dirt of worldliness1 may yet be cleansed and get rid of it4 #ad4 ,tell me what is that knowledge1 by resorting to which1 the serpents of worldliness1 may be freed from their worldly crookedness1 and become straight in their conduct4 #ae4 ,tell me how the foulness of my heart may regain its clearness1 after it is so much soiled by errors and tainted with evils1 like a lake disturbed by elephants and polluted with dirt4 #af4 ,how is it possible for one engaged in the affairs of the world1 to be untainted with its blemishes1 and remain as pure and intact as a drop of water on the lotus leaf4 #ag4 ,how may one attain his excellence by dealing with others as with himself1 and minding the goods of others as straws1 and by remaining aloof from love4 #ah4 ,who is that great man that has got over the great ocean of the world1 whose exemplary conduct 7if followed7 exempts one from misery4 #ai4 ,what is the best of things that ought to be pursued after1 and what is that fruit which is worth obtaining8 ,which is the best course of life in this inconsistent world4 #bj4 ,tell me the manner by which ,i may have a knowledge of the past and future events of the world1 and the nature of the unsteady works of its creator4 #ba4 ,do so1 that my mind which is as the moon in the sky of my heart1 may be cleared of its impurities4 #bb4 ,tell me what thing is most delectable to the mind1 and what most abominable to it2 as also how this fickle and inconstant mind may get its fixedness like that of a rock4 #bc4 ,tell me what is that holy charm1 which can remove this cholic pain of worldliness1 that is attended with numberless troubles4 #bd4 ,tell me how can ,i entertain within my heart1 the blossoms of the arbor of heavenly happiness1 that sheds about it the coolness of the full-moon beams4 #be4 ,oh ye good men6 that are present and learned in divine knowledge1 teach me so that ,i may obtain the fullness of my heart1 and may not come to grief and sorrow any more4 #bf4 ,my mind is devoid of that tranquility which results chiefly from holy happiness1 and is perplexed with endless doubts1 that disturb my peace as the dogs molest smaller animals in the desert4 ,,chapter ,,xxxi4 ,,queries ,,of ,r,,ma4 ,rma said3--,i have no reliance on the durability of life1 which is as transient as a drop of water that sticks to the point of a shaking leaf on a lofty tree2 and as short as the cusp of the moon on ,siva's forehead4 #b4 ,i have no credit in the durability of life1 which is transient as the swelling that take place in the pouch of a frog while it croaks in the meadow4 ,nor have ,i any trust in the company of friends1 which are as dangerous as the treacherous snare of hunters4 #c4 ,what can we do under the misty cloud of error 7overhanging our minds71 and raising our tempestuous desires which flash forth in lightnings of ambition1 and burst out in the thunder claps of selfishness8 #d4 ,how shall we save ourselves from the temptations of our desires dancing like peacocks 7and displaying their gaudy train7 around us2 and from the bustle of the world breaking in upon us as thickly as the blossoms of the ,kurchi plant4 #e4 ,how can we fly from the clutches of cruel ,fate1 who like a cat kills the living as poor mice1 and falls unwearied and unexpectedly upon his prey in the twinkling of an eye4 #f4 ,what expedient1 what course1 what reflections1 and what refuge must we have recourse to1 in order to avoid the unknown tracks of future lives8 #g4 ,there is nothing so trifling in this earth below1 or in the heavens above1 which ye gifted men cannot raise to consequence4 #h4 ,how can this accursed1 troublesome and vapid world1 be relished by one unless he is infatuated by ignorance8 #i4 ,it is the fusion of desires1 which produces the milky beverage of contentment1 and fills the earth with delights as the spring adorns it with flowers4 #aj4 ,tell me ,o sage1 how the mist of our desires1 which darkens the moon of our intellects1 is to be dispelled from our minds1 so as to make it shine forth in its full brightness4 #aa4 ,how are we to deal in this wilderness of the world1 knowing well that it is destructive both of our present and future interest8 #ab4 ,what man is there that moves about in this ocean of the earth1 who has not to buffet in the waves of his passions and diseases1 and the currents of his enjoyments and prosperity4 #ac4 ,tell me1 ,o thou best of sages1 how one may escape unburnt like mercury 7in its chemical process71 when fallen upon the furnace of the earth4 #ad4 7,how can one get rid of the world7 when it is impossible for him to avoid dealing in it1 in the same manner as it is not possible for aquatic animals to live without their native element4 #ae4 ,our good deeds even are not devoid 7of their motives7 of affection and hatred1 pleasure and pain1 similarly as no flame of fire is unaccompanied by its power of burning4 #af4 ,as it is not possible to restrain the mind from thinking on worldly matters1 without the process of right reasoning1 deign to communicate to me therefore1 the dictates of sound reason for my guidance4 #ag4 ,give me the best instruction for warding off the miseries 7of the world71 either by my dealing with or renouncing 7the affairs of life74 #ah4 ,tell me of that man of enlightened understanding who had attained to the highest state of holiness and tranquility of his mind of yore1 and the deeds and manner by which he achieved the same4 #ai4 ,tell me good sir1 how the saints 7of old7 fled out of the reach of misery1 that ,i may learn the same for suppression of my erroneous conceptions4 #bj4 ,or if there be no such precept 7as ,i am in need of7 in existence1 or being in esse1 it is not to be revealed to me by any body4 #ba4 ,and should ,i fail of myself 7by intuition7 to attain that highest state of tranquility1 then ,i must remain inactive 7as ,i am71 and avoid my sense of egoism altogether4 #bb4 ,i will refrain from eating and drinking even of water1 and from clothing myself with apparels2 ,i will cease from all my actions of bathing and making my offerings1 as also from my diet and the like4 #bc4 ,i will attend to no duty1 nor care about prosperity or calamity4 ,i will be free from all desires except that of the abandonment of this body4 #bd4 ,i must remain aloof from all fears and sympathies1 from selfish feelings and emulation1 and continue to sit quietly as a figure in painting4 #be4 ,i will gradually do away with the inspiration and respiration of my breath and outward sensations2 till ,i part with this trifle--the seat all of troubles--this the so called body4 #bf4 ,i do not belong to this body1 nor does it belong to me1 nor is any thing else mine2 ,i shall be null and void like the oil-less lamp1 and abandon every thing with this body4 #bg4 ,vlmki said3--,then ,rma who was as lovely as the moon1 and whose mind was well fraught with reasoning1 became silent before the assemblage of the eminent men1 as the peacock ceases from his screaming before the gathering clouds in awe4 ,,chapter ,,xxxii4 ,,praises ,,on ,r,,ma',s ,,speech4 ,vlmki said3--,when the prince ,rma 7having his eyes resembling the petals of a lotus71 had concluded his speech calculated to remove all ignorance from the mind4 #b4 ,all the men in the assembly had their eyes beaming forth with wonder1 and the hairs on their bodies stood erect and pierced through their garments1 as if wishing to hear the speech4 #c4 ,the assembly seemed for a moment to have lost their worldly desires in their eagerness after a stoic indifference1 and to be rolling in the sea of nectar4 #d4 ,the audience remained 7motionless7 as the figures in a painting1 being enraptured with internal delight at hearing the sweet words of the fortunate ,rma4 #e4 ,there were ,vasishtha and ,viswmitra with other sages1 and the prime minister ,jayanta and other counsellors 7of the king7 then seated in that assembly4 #f4 ,there were also king ,dasaratha and his subordinate rajas1 with the citizens and foreign delegates1 the chieftains and princes1 together with ,brhmans and men learned in the ,vedas and divine knowledge4 #g4 ,these accompanied by their friends and allies1 with the birds in the cages and the royal antelopes and steeds of sport 7about the palace71 listened to ,rma with fixed and mute attention4 #h4 ,there were likewise the queen ,kausaly and other ladies adorned with their best jewels1 and seated at the windows1 all mute and motionless4 #i4 ,besides these the birds on the trees and creepers of the princely pleasure garden1 were listening to ,rma without fluttering their wings or making any motion or sound4 #aj4 ,there were the ,siddhas and rial beings1 and the tribes of ,gandharvas and ,kinnaras1 together with ,nrada1 ,vysa and ,pulapa the chiefs of sages 7present at that place74 #aa4 ,there were also some of the gods and chiefs of gods1 ,vidydharas and the ,ngas1 who heard the speech of ,rma which was full of meaning and clearness4 #ab4 ,as ,rma whose eyes were beautiful as the lotus1 whose face was as lovely as the moon1 and who likened the nocturnal luminary in the atmosphere of ,raghu's family1 held his silence4 #ac4 ,flowers were cast upon him from heaven in showers by the hands of the divine personages with their loud cheers and blessings4 #ad4 ,the people in the assembly were highly regaled with the sweet scent and beauty of these flowers of paradise fraught with humming bees in their cells4 #ae4 ,these flowers when blown in the air by the breeze of heaven1 appeared as they were clusters of stars1 which after their fall brightened the ground with their beauty as with the beaming smiles of heavenly maids4 #af4 ,they appeared in the form of rain drops falling from the clouds1 and blazing by the light of mute lightenings1 and scattering about like balls of fresh butter4 #ag4 ,they resembled also as particles of snow-balls1 or as the grains of a necklace of pearls or as beams of moon-light1 or as the little billows of the sea of milk1 or like drops of ice-cream4 #ah4 ,there were also borne by the loose and sweet winds of heaven1 some lotuses with long filaments1 and attended by clusters of bees humming and flying about them4 #ai4 ,there were also to be seen heaps of ketaki and ,kairava1 ,kunda and blue lotus flowers1 falling and shining brightly among them4 #bj4 ,these flowers covered the court hall and the roofs of houses and their courtyards4 ,the men and women in the city raised their heads to behold them falling4 #ba4 ,the sky was quite unclouded when the flowers fell incessantly from above4 ,a sight like this that was never seen before struck the people with wonder4 #bb4 ,the shower of flowers fell for quarter of an hour1 but the ,siddhas from whose hands they fell were unseen all the while4 #bc4 ,the falling of the flowers having ceased after the assembly was covered with them1 they heard the following words1 coming to them from the divine personages in the sky4 #bd4 8,we have been travelling every where in whole bodies of the ,siddhas from the beginning of creation2 but never have we heard any where so sweet a speech as this4 #be4 8,such a magnanimous speech of indifference as has been just now spoken by ,rma--the moon of ,raghu's race1 was never heard even by gods like ourselves4 #bf4 8,we account ourselves truly blessed to hear this highly charming and wondrous speech from the mouth of ,rma himself to-day4 #bg4 8,indeed we are awakened and edified by attending diligently to this truly excellent speech1 delivered by ,rma on the ambrosial bliss of asceticism1 and leading to the highest felicity of men04 ,,chapter ,,xxxiii4 ,,association ,,of ,,aerial ,,and ,,earthly ,,beings4 ,the ,siddhas said3-- ,it behoves us to hear the decision of the great sages1 in reply to the holy sermon1 already delivered by the chief of ,raghu's race4 #b4 ,come forward you great chiefs of the sages1 you ,nrada1 ,vysa1 ,pulaha and all ye great sages1 and be ready 7to hear74 #c4 ,let us descend to the full open court of ,dasaratha1 which is as bright as gold and free from stain1 in the manner of bees alighting on the aureate and immaculate lotus4 #d4 ,vlmki said3-- ,so saying1 the whole company of divine sages alighted themselves in that court from their aerial abode4 #e4 ,there ,nrada the chief of sages1 sat foremost playing on his lute1 and in the midst was ,vysa1 with his dark blue complexion resembling a rainy cloud4 #f4 ,it was more over adorned with the presence of the chief sages ,bhrigu1 ,angiras1 ,pulastya and others1 with ,chyavana1 ,uddlaka1 ,usira1 ,saraloman and many more about them4 #g4 ,their garments of deer skins hang loosely down as they embraced one another4 ,their beads of rudrksha moved in one hand1 and their water pots shook in the other4 #h4 ,their bodies shed a lustre in the ,court-hall1 resembling the yellow light of the stars in the sky1 and like the beams of so many suns blazing upon one another4 #i4 ,they appeared as a shower of moon beams or as a halo about the full moon1 or as a circle about the orb of the sun out of its season4 #aj4 ,they looked like a circlet of gems of varied colors1 or like a belt of pearls of great lustre4 #aa4 ,vysa appeared at the place where he sat1 to be as a dark cloud amidst the stars2 and ,nrada was beheld upon his seat as the white orb of the moon amongst the starry group4 #ab4 ,here ,pulastya shone as ,indra among the gods1 and there ,angir blazed as the sun amidst the heavenly bodies4 #ac4 ,on seeing the body of ,siddhas descending from the sky on earth1 the whole court of king ,dasaratha rose up 7to greet them74 #ad4 ,there was a promiscuous assemblage of the aerial and earthly sages1 whose commingled glory spread a lustre to the ten sides of the ,court4 #ae4 ,some of them held bamboo sticks in their hands1 and others had lotuses in theirs4 ,some had put the sacred grass in their crests1 while others had inserted some gems to the braids of their hair4 #af4 ,some had matted and tawny brown hairs on their heads1 and others wore garlands of flowers on theirs4 ,some had strings of beads for their bracelets and others wore wristlets made of the jasmine flowers4 #ag4 ,some were clothed in tatters1 and others wore garments made of bark1 while there were others who wore raiments of silk4 ,some were girt with girdles of grass and skin about their waists1 and others wore waist bands with pendant strings of pearl4 #ah4 ,vasishtha and ,viswmitra honoured the aerials one by one2 with respectful offerings and water and courteous address4 #ai4 ,the great body of the etherials also honored ,vasistha and ,viswmitra in their turn1 with water and offerings worthy of them and with polite speeches4 #bj4 ,the king also honoured the gods and the body of the ,siddhas1 who in return greeted the monarch with inquiries about his welfare4 #ba4 ,then the heavenly and earthly saints interchanged their greetings with one another with cordial welcomes and gestures1 and were all seated afterwards on seats made of the kusa grass4 #bb4 ,they next honoured ,rma1 who lay bowing before them1 with gentle words and congratulations accompanied with shedding of flowers4 #bc4 ,there were seated in that assembly the sages3--,viswmitra1 ,vasishtha1 ,vma ,deva and the ministers of state4 #bd4 ,there were also ,nrada1 the son of ,brahm1 ,vysa the greatest of sages1 ,marchi1 ,durvsa and ,angir4 #be4 ,there were ,kratu1 ,pulastya1 ,pulaha1 ,saraloma1 the great sage ,vtsyana1 ,bharadwja1 ,vlmki the great bard and sage4 #bf4 ,there were also ,uddlaka1 ,richika1 ,sarjati as well as ,chyavana4 #bg4 ,these and many others versed in the ,vedas and their branches1 and knowing all things worth knowing1 were the leading members 7of the assembly74 #bh4 ,then ,nrada and others joined with ,viswmitra and ,vasishtha in addressing ,rma1 who was sitting silent with his face turned downwards2 and said3-- #bi4 ,we admire the blest and graceful speech of the prince which is dignified with the spirit of stoicism that breathes through the whole of it4 #cj4 ,it is full of thought1 perspicuous1 elegant1 clear1 dignified1 sweet and worthy of noble minded men1 by its lucid style and wants of faults4 #ca4 ,who is there that is not struck with admiration at the speech of ,rma8 ,it is well expressive of his thoughts1 correct in its diction plain and sweet and agreeable to all3 #cb4 ,it is rare to find one man among a hundred who is so eloquent as to combine dignity and force with a clearness and sweetness1 that may command the admiration of all4 #cc4 ,who has such a clear head as our prince1 a head which is as penetrating as the best pointed arrow1 and as fruitful and beauteous as the creeping plant4 #cd4 ,he is truly a man whose intellectual light like that of ,rma's1 burns as the flame of a lamp within himself and enlightens all about him4 #ce4 ,man's blood1 flesh1 and bones with other 7parts of his body7 serve as machines to supply him with sensations of external object2 but there is no intelligence in them4 #cf4 ,life and death1 old age and troubles1 repeatedly overtake every man2 but they are beasts who are so infatuated as never to think of these4 #cg4 ,there is scarcely any man to be seen1 who is of so clear an understanding as ,rma 7the destroyer of his enemies71 who is able to judge of the future by the past4 #ch4 ,rma is the most excellent1 admirable1 useful1 and well shaped person amongst men1 as is the mango tree 7in the vegetable world74 #ci4 ,it is only to-day that we see that a man of ,rma's age has acquired so much experience of the world1 and such extraordinarily mature an understanding4 #dj4 ,there are many such trees found growing in every place as are beautiful to see1 easy of ascent1 abundant in flowers and leaves2 but there is no tree of paradise growing on earth4 #da4 ,there may grow in every forest1 trees with goodly flowers and leaves2 but the extraordinary and fair clove tree is not always to be met with4 #db4 ,rma has displayed the wonder of his knowledge1 as the moon displays her cooling beams and good trees their clusters of blossoms1 and as the flowers diffuse their fragrance all about4 #dc4 ,it is very difficult to get the essence of true knowledge in this accursed world1 which is constructed by the ungovernable and dominant predestination 7of our past acts for misleading us to error and misery74 #dd4 ,those only are reckoned the best of men1 and leaders of the good1 who try their best to gain the essence of truth1 and whose minds are fixed on glory as their best treasure4 #de4 ,we do not see any one in all this world1 who is equal to ,rma in discrimination and magnanimity2 nor shall there be one like him in future4 ,this is our firm conviction4 #df4 ,if this speech of ,rma1 which has filled every one here with admiration1 fail to get its reply to the satisfaction of ,rma's mind1 it is certain that all of us here1 must pass for senseless sages 7on earth74 ,,yoga ,v,,sishtha4 ,,book ,,ii4 ,,mumukshu ,,khanda ,,or ,,the ,,means ,,of ,,final ,,liberation4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,liberation of ,sukadeva4 ,after ,rma had delivered his speech in an audible voice before the assembly1 he was tenderly accosted by the sage ,viswmitra who sat before him2 saying3-- #b4 ,rma6 that art the best of the most intelligent1 and hast nothing more to learn besides all that thou hast come to know by thy nice observation4 #c4 ,thou hast an understanding clear as the mirror by its own nature 7reflecting every image within itself72 and yet thy queries about the same1 serve as the cleansing of the reflector 7in order to refract its light to others74 #d4 ,thou hast a mind like that of ,suka--the son of the great ,vysa1 who knowing the knowable by intuition1 was yet in need of some precepts for confirmation of his belief4 #e4 ,rma said3 ,how was it sir1 that ,suka--the son of the great ,vysa--who did not rest assured at first of his knowledge of the knowable1 came to be settled in his belief afterwards4 #f4 ,viswmitra answered3 8,hear me relate to thee ,rma1 the narrative of ,sukadeva1 whose case was exactly like thine1 and the narration of which is a preventive of future births 7in this world740 #g4 ,there is the great ,vysa sitting on his seat of gold by thy father's side1 swarthy in his complexion like a coal-black hill1 but blazing as the burning sun 7by his brilliancy74 #h4 ,his son was named ,suka1 a boy of great learning and wisdom1 of a moon-like countenance1 and a stature sedate as the sacrificial altar4 #i4 ,he reflected in his mind the vanity of worldly affairs like thyself1 and became equally indifferent to all its concerns4 #aj4 ,it was then that this great minded youth was led by his own discriminative understanding to a long inquiry after what was true1 which he found out at last by his own investigation4 #aa4 ,having obtained the highest truth1 he was still unsettled in his mind1 and could not come to the belief of the certainty of his knowledge4 #ab4 ,his mind grew indifferent to its perceptions of the transitory enjoyments of the world1 and like the ,chtaka thirsted only after the dew drops of heavenly bliss4 #ac4 ,once upon a time the clear sighted ,suka finding his father the sage ,krishna-,dwaipyana--,vysa1 sitting quietly alone by himself1 he asked him with reverence2 saying3-- #ad4 ,tell me1 ,o sage6 whence this commotion of the world had its rise1 and how it may subside4 ,what is its cause1 how far is it to extend1 and where is it to end8 #ae4 ,the sage ,vysa who knew the nature of the soul1 being thus asked by his son1 explained to him clearly all that was to be said 7on the subject74 #af4 ,suka thought that he already knew all this by his good understanding1 and did not therefore think much of his father's instructions4 #ag4 ,vysa understanding the thoughts of his son1 replied to him saying that1 he knew no better the true nature of these things4 #ah4 ,but that there was a prince named ,janaka in this land1 who well knew the knowledge of the knowable1 and from whom ,suka could learn every thing4 #ai4 ,suka being thus directed by his father1 repaired to the city of ,videha at the foot of mount ,sumeru1 which was under the rule of ,janaka4 #bj4 ,the club-bearer 7door keeper7 informed the high minded ,janaka of his coming1 telling him that ,suka the son of ,vysa was waiting at the gate4 #ba4 ,janaka who understood that ,suka had come to learn from him1 gave no heed to the informant1 but held his silence for seven days afterwards4 #bb4 ,the prince then ordered him to be brought in the outer compound1 where he had to remain in the vexation of his spirit for seven days more as before4 #bc4 ,suka was then commanded to enter the inner apartment1 where he continued a week more without seeing the prince4 #bd4 ,here ,janaka entertained the moon-faced ,suka with abundance of eatables1 perfumeries and lusty damsels4 #be4 ,but neither those vexations nor these entertainments could affect the tenor of ,suka's mind1 which remained firm as a rock at the blasts of wind4 #bf4 ,he remained there as the full moon 7without any wane or increase71 tranquil in his desires1 silent and contented in his mind4 #bg4 ,the prince ,janaka having thus known the 7unalterable7 disposition of ,suka's mind1 had him introduced to his presence1 where seeing the complacency of his soul1 he rose up and bowed down to him4 #bh4 ,janaka said3 8,you have accomplished to the full all your duties in this world1 and obtained the object of your heart's desire to its utmost extent2 what is it that you now desire for which you are welcome at mine04 #bi4 ,suka said3 8,tell me my guide whence sprang all this bustle 7of worldly life72 and tell me also how it may soon come to its subsidence40 #cj4 ,viswmitra said3 ,being thus asked by ,suka1 ,janaka spoke to him the same things which he had learned from his great souled father4 #ca4 ,suka then said3 8,all this ,i have come to know long before by my own intuition1 and then from the speech of my father in answer to my query4 #cb4 8,you sir1 who are the most eloquent of all1 have spoken to the same purport1 and the same is found to be the true sense of the ,sstras4 #cc4 8,that the world is a creation of volition1 and loses itself with the absence of our desires2 and that it is an accursed and unsubstantial world after all1 is the conclusion arrived at by all sages4 #cd4 8,now tell me truly you long armed prince1 what you think this world to be 7whether a reality or unreality72 that my mind may be set at rest by you from its wandering all about the world 7in search of truth740 #ce4 ,janaka replied3 8,there is nothing more certain1 ,o sage6 than what you have known by yourself and heard from your father4 #cf4 8,there is but one undivided intelligent spirit known as the universal soul and nothing besides2 it becomes confined by its desires1 and freed by its want of them4 #cg4 8,you have truly come to the knowledge of the knowable1 whereby your great soul has desisted from its attachment to objects of enjoyment and vision4 #ch4 8,you must be a hero to have overcome your desire in the lengthening chain of attractive enjoyments from your early youth4 ,what more do you want to hear8 #ci4 8,even your father1 with all his learning in every science1 and devotedness to austerities1 has not arrived to the state of perfection like you4 #dj4 8,i am a pupil of ,vysa1 and you are his son2 but you are greater than both of us1 by your abandonment of the taste for the enjoyments of life4 #da4 8,you have obtained whatever is obtainable by the comprehensiveness of your mind2 and as you take no interest in the outer and visible world1 you are liberated from it1 and have nothing to doubt of40 #db4 ,being thus advised by the magnanimous ,janaka1 ,suka remained silent with his mind fixed in the purely supreme object4 #dc4 ,then being devoid of sorrow and fear1 and released from all efforts1 exertions and doubts1 he repaired to a peaceful summit of the mount ,meru to obtain his final absorption4 #dd4 ,there he passed ten thousands of rains in a state of unalterable meditation1 till at last he broke his mortal coil1 and was extinguished in the supreme soul like a lamp without oil4 #de4 ,thus purified from the stain of transmigration by abstaining from earthly desires1 the great souled ,suka sank into the holy state of the ,supreme ,spirit1 as a drop of water mixes with the waters or merges into the depth of the ocean4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,speech ,,of ,,visw,,mitra4 ,viswmitra said3-- ,rma6 it now becomes you to have your mind properly purified from its doubts1 as it was done in the case of the son of ,vysa4 #b4 ,you see1 ,o great sages6 how perfectly the knowable is known to ,rma1 whose good understanding has learnt to feel a distaste for worldly enjoyments1 as if they were diseases unto him4 #c4 ,you well know that the fixed principle in the mind of one knowing the knowable1 is to have an aversion to all the enjoyments of life4 #d4 ,it is the desire of fruition that chains down a man fastly to the earth2 but the knowledge of the frailties here serves to dispel his darkness4 #e4 ,know ,rma that it is the curtailing of desires which the wise call liberty1 and the fastening of our desires to earthly objects1 is what is termed our confinement here4 #f4 ,spiritual knowledge is easily obtainable by most men here1 but a distaste to 7pleasurable7 objects is hard to be had 7however painful it is to procure them74 #g4 ,he who fully comprehends a thing1 is said to know it1 and who so knows what is knowable1 is called a learned man2 no earthly enjoyments can be delectable to such high minded men4 #h4 ,the mind that has no zest for earthly pleasures1 except the glory of disinterested deeds1 is said to be liberated even in the present life4 #i4 ,as there grows no vegetable in a sterile soil1 so there grows no disinclination to worldliness1 until one comes to know the knowable reality 7i4e4 to say3 neither the godly can be worldly1 nor the worldly be godly74 #aj4 ,hence know this supporter of ,raghu's race to have verily known the knowable1 which has made him disgusted with his princely enjoyments4 #aa4 ,i tell you great sages that1 whatever ,rma has come to know by his intuition1 requires to be confirmed by ,vasishtha for the tranquility of his mind4 #ab4 ,it is only a reliance in the ,unity1 that ,rma now requires for his repose1 just as the beauty of autumn depends on the clearness of the firmament4 #ac4 ,let the venerable ,vasishtha then reason with the high minded ,rma1 and restore the peace of his mind4 #ad4 ,for he is the master and family preceptor of the whole race of the ,raghus2 besides he is all knowing and all seeing2 and has a clear insight 7into all things7 of the three times 7present1 past and future74 #ae4 ,then addressing himself to ,vasishtha he said3--you well remember sir1 the instruction given us of old1 for pacifying our mutual enmity1 and promoting the welfare of the high minded sages4 #af4 ,when our lord the lotus-born ,brahm1 seated on the table land of ,nishadha mountain1 and shaded by the ,sarala trees1 delivered his wise lectures to us and the sages4 #ag4 ,it is by means of that knowledge of liberation that our worldly desires are dispelled like the darkness of night by sun-beams4 #ah4 ,please now1 ,o ,brhman1 to communicate that rational knowledge of the knowable to your pupil ,rma1 whereby he may gain the peace of his mind4 #ai4 ,it will be no difficult task for you to teach the spotless ,rma1 whose mirror-like mind is quite clear to take the reflection4 #bj4 ,the wisdom of the holy1 their learning of the ,sstras1 and the scholarship of the learned1 are then only praiseworthy1 when they are communicated to a good student1 and those who are disgusted with the world4 #ba4 ,but instruction given to one who is no student nor disgusted with the world1 becomes as polluted as milk put in a hide vessel4 #bb4 ,again the instruction imparted by one devoid of passions and affections1 fear and anger1 pride and sin1 serves to infuse tranquility into the mind4 #bc4 ,at these words of ,viswmitra the son of ,gadhi1 the assembled sages ,vysa1 ,nrada and others1 honoured his saying with the exclamation 8bravo01 8well said0 c4 #bd4 ,then the venerable ,vasishtha brilliant as ,brahm his father1 and seated by the side of the king1 spoke in reply3 #be4 ,o sage1 ,i will perform without fail1 what you have commanded me to do1 for who1 though mighty1 can refuse to perform the behests of the good and wise8 #bf4 ,i will destroy the mental darkness of the princes ,rma and others by the light of knowledge1 as we dispel the gloom of night by the light of a lamp4 #bg4 ,i well remember the instructions which were given of yore by the lotus-born ,brahm on the ,nishadha mountain1 for dispelling the errors of the world4 #bh4 ,having said so1 the high-minded ,vasishtha made up his mind as one girds up his loins1 to deliver his lecture to ,rma for dispelling his ignorance1 and showing him the state of supreme felicity4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,,on ,,the ,,repeated ,,creations ,,of ,,the ,,world4 ,vasishtha said3-- 8,i will now expound to you ,rma6 the knowledge that was imparted of old by our lord the lotus-born 7,brahm71 after creation of the world1 for the peace of mankind40 #b4 ,rma said3--,i know sir1 you will expound to me the subject of liberation in full length2 but remove first my fallacy about the frailty of this world4 #c4 ,and how it was that1 the great sage ,vysa--the father and guide of ,suka1 did not attain to disembodied emancipation 7after his death7 with all his omniscience1 while his son did so4 #d4 ,vasishtha said3--7,hear me ,rma71 there is no counting of the atoms proceeding from the spirit and forming the three worlds both before and after the birth of the glorious sun4 #e4 ,there is no body even who can count the millions of orbs which at present form the three worlds4 #f4 ,nor can any one say by calculation1 what numbers of creation will rise from the 7unlimited7 ocean of divine existence1 like its interminable waves 7for ever74 #g4 ,rma said3--,it is needless to talk of worlds gone by or yet to come2 say what you will of the present 7state of existence74 #h4 ,vasishtha said3--,this world consists of brute1 human and heavenly beings1 whose lives when they are said to perish in any part of it are really existent in the same part4 #i4 ,the mind is called to be ever-fluctuating1 and gives rise to 7all things in7 the three worlds in itself4 ,it resides in vacuity in the form of the heart1 and the increate 7,god7 also residing in the vacuous soul 7gives the mind the power to realize the latent ideas of the soul74 #aj4 ,the millions of beings that are dead1 those that are dying and will die hereafter1 are all to be reborn here according to the different desires in their minds4 #aa4 ,the external world appearing as a reality1 is in truth but a creation of our desires2 it is an ideal castle in the air1 and a magic view spread before us4 #ab4 ,it is as false as an earthquake in a fit of delirium1 as a hobgoblin that is shown to terrify children1 as a string of pearls in the clear firmament1 and as the moving trees on the bank to a passenger in the boat4 #ac4 ,it is an illusion as the phantom of a city in a dream1 and as untrue as the imagination of a flower growing in the air4 ,the unreality of the world best appears to one at the point of and after his death4 #ad4 ,but this knowledge of 7the unreality of the world7 becomes darkened upon one's being reborn on earth1 when the shadow of this world falls again on the mirror of his sentient soul4 #ae4 ,thus there is a struggle for repeated births and deaths here1 and a fancy for the next world after one's death4 #af4 ,after one's shuffling off his body1 he assumes another and then another form1 and thus the world is as unstable as a stool made of plantain leaves and its coatings4 #ag4 ,the dead have no sensation of the earth and other elementary bodies1 nor of the course of the world2 but they fall again to these errors upon their being reborn here4 #ah4 ,there is an interminable ignorance resembling an immense river enveloping the face of creation1 and breaking into streamlets of unfordable ignorance4 #ai4 ,the ,divinity like a sea shoots forth in the various waves of creation1 which rise incessantly and plentifully one after the other4 #bj4 ,all beings here are but the waves of this sea1 of which some are alike to one another in their minds and natures1 while others are half alike1 and some quite different from the rest4 #ba4 ,i reckon yonder sagely ,vysa as one of the thirty two of these waves1 on account of his vast knowledge1 and good looking appearance4 #bb4 ,there were twelve of them possessed of a lesser understanding1 they were the patriarchs of men1 and endued with equal energy4 ,ten of them were men of subdued spirits1 and the rest were adepts in their family duties4 #bc4 ,there will be born again other ,vysas and ,vlmkis1 and likewise some other ,bhrigus and ,angirs1 as well as other ,pulastyas and others in different forms4 #bd4 ,all other men1 ,asuras and gods with all their hosts are repeatedly born and destroyed either in their former or different shapes4 #be4 ,like this there are seventy two ,tret cycles in a ,kalpa age of ,brahm1 some of which have passed by and others to follow4 ,thus will there be other people like those that have gone by1 and as ,i understand1 another ,rma and ,vasishtha like ourselves 7by the eternal rotation of ideas in the ,divine mind74 #bf4 ,there have been ten successive incarnations of this ,vysa1 who has done such wondrous acts1 and is famed for his vast knowledge4 #bg4 ,myself and ,vlmki have been contemporaries many a time1 as also born in different ages and very many times4 #bh4 ,we have been many times1 and there were others also like myself1 and so was ,i born also in many forms 7in many ages74 #bi4 ,this ,vysa will again be born eight times hereafter1 and again will he write his ,mahbhrata and the ,purna histories4 #cj4 ,he having divided the ,vedas and described the acts of ,bhrata's race 7in the ,mahbhrata71 and established the knowledge of ,brahm 7in the ,vednta71 is to attain to his disembodied liberation 7after his final termination74 #ca4 ,this ,vysa who is devoid of fear and sorrow1 and has become tranquil and emancipate in himself after subduing his mind and discarding the worldly desires is said to be liberated even in his present life time4 #cb4 ,the living emancipate may sometimes be associated by his relatives and estates1 his acts and duties1 his knowledge and wisdom1 and all his exertions like other men's1 or he may forsake them all at once4 #cc4 ,these beings are either reborn a hundred times in some age or never at all 7as in the case of divine incarnations71 and depending on the inscrutable will 7,my7 of ,god4 #cd4 ,there souls undergo the like changes by repetition1 as a bushel of grain1 which is collected to be sown repeatedly1 and to be reaped again and again 7in the same or some other field74 #ce4 ,as the sea heaves its incessant surges of different shapes1 so are all beings born incessantly in various forms in the vast ocean of time4 #cf4 ,the wise man who is liberated in his life time1 lives with his internal belief 7of ,god7 in a state of tranquility1 without any doubt in his mind1 and quite content with the ambrosia of equanimity4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,,praise ,,of ,,acts ,,and ,,exertions4 ,vasishtha said3-- ,i know gentle ,rma that1 liberation of the soul1 whether in its embodied or disembodied state is both alike1 as the sea-water and its waves are the same liquid substance4 #b4 ,the liberation whether of embodied or disembodied spirits1 consists in their detachment from the objects of sense3 hence the soul unattached to sensual gratification1 is 7said to be7 liberated1 having no idea of sensible objects4 #c4 ,and though we see before us the living liberated sage 7,vysa7 as an embodied person1 yet we have no doubt of the detachment of his inward soul from the 7mortal coil of his7 body4 #d4 ,the difference between the embodied and disembodied souls1 when they are equally enlightened and liberated1 is like that of the sea-water in its calm and billowy states4 #e4 ,there is no more difference between bodily and unembodied liberation than there is betwixt the air in motion and at rest4 #f4 ,liberation whether with or without the body1 is productive of unselfishness2 we have lost our selfishness ever since we have come to the knowledge of an undivided unity 7of the soul74 #g4 ,now therefore attend to the true doctrine that ,i am going to deliver to you1 which will be a jewel to your ears as it will dispel the darkness of ignorance 7from your mind74 #h4 ,know1 ,o son of ,raghu1 that every thing in this world is obtainable by our efforts being properly employed 7to our purposes74 #i4 ,this 7knowledge of truth7 rises as the moon 7in the human mind71 and sheds its cooling and delightsome influence to the heart1 that there is no other way to gain the fruits of our exertions but by our efforts4 #aj4 ,we evidently see the results of the exercise of our efforts1 and nothing coming out from what the dull and mistaken call as chance or fate4 #aa4 ,an effort when directed according to the counsel and conduct of the good in the exercise of the action of the body and mind1 it is attended with success1 otherwise it is as vain as the freak of a madman4 #ab4 ,thus he who wishes to acquire riches1 and perseveres in its acquisition1 surely succeeds in gaining them2 or else he stops short in the midway4 #ac4 ,it was by means of the exertion of their efforts that some particular persons have obtained the paramount dominion of ,indra over the three worlds4 #ad4 ,it is by the exertion of one's efforts that he attains to the rank of the lotus-born 7,brahm72 and some even gain the inward joy of the state of ,brahm by it4 #ae4 ,it was by virtue of his self-exertion that some body has become the best among men1 even as he who bears the ensign of the eagle 7,vishnu among the gods74 #af4 ,it was by the exertion of one's efforts that some persons succeeded to obtain the form of ,siva accompanied by his female power1 and adorned by the semi-circle of the moon in his crest4 #ag4 ,know our actions to be of two kinds namely1 those of former and present lives3 and that acts of the present life generally supersede those of the past4 #ah4 ,know also that energy joined with constant practice1 and supported by wisdom and some stimulating force1 is able to break down the mount of ,meru1 and the demerits of acts in the former lives of men4 #ai4 ,the exertions of a man proceeding from his good efforts and countenanced by the law1 lead to his success1 or else they either go for nothing or turn to his disadvantage4 #bj4 ,so a man laid up in a state of disability1 is unable to twist his fingers in order to hold a little water in the hollow of his palm for drink3 while there is another who 7by his well directed efforts7 gets the possession of seas and islands1 mountains and cities for himself1 supports all his dependents and relations1 and does not think this earth too great for him4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,,necessity ,,of ,,activity4 ,vasishtha said3-- ,it is the will or inclination that is the prime instrument of all actions done even according to the rules of law and sstras1 as it is the reflection of light that gives various hues to things4 #b4 ,whoever wishes to do anything desirable to him by unlawful acts1 it becomes as fruitless as the endeavours of a madman4 #c4 ,as you try so you get both of good and evil3 and fortune and exertion are the joint causes of acts according to fatalists4 #d4 ,human exertions are either lawful or unlawful2 the former leading to success1 and the latter to dangerous consequences4 #e4 ,fortune and exertions contend with each other like two rams of unequal strength1 wherein the mightier overcomes the other4 #f4 ,therefore should man apply himself diligently 7to his duties71 and employ his skill and promptness after them in such a way1 as his to-day may overcome the morrow 7i4e41 do the works of to-morrow to-day74 #g4 ,when two unequal forces 7of two persons7 contend with one another like two rams1 the stronger force whether of this or that man1 overcomes the other4 #h4 ,when one incurs a failure or danger even by his lawful exertions1 he should know it to be the result of his misapplied exertions4 #i4 ,one by his utmost exertion in the right way1 as by the gnashing of his teeth 7and the like71 can overcome his misfortune and so does his bad luck sometimes baffle his exertions4 #aj4 ,when one finds himself to be led astray by the demerit of his acts of a former state of existence1 he must attempt to subdue the same by greater energy of his present state4 #aa4 ,so far should one diligently endeavour to exercise his exertions1 as he may be able to beat down the evils resulting from his bad fortune 7or predestination74 #ab4 ,the evils of bad fortune are undoubtedly removed by the meritorious acts of the present life1 as the bad consequence of an act of yesterday is averted by its remedy of today4 #ac4 ,having trampled over an unfavorable fortune by one's reliance on his continuous energy1 he must attempt to secure to himself every good for his well-being in his present life4 #ad4 ,know that tranquility is not to be found by the effortlessness of dull ass-like men2 it is the lawful energy of men which is said to secure his welfare in both worlds4 #ae4 ,and that one should make his way out of the pit of this world by force of his energy and diligence1 just as the lion breaks out from his cage4 #af4 ,one must ponder in himself every day that his body is subject to corruption1 his beastly acts must be kept backward and man like acts put forward4 #ag4 ,it is our good exertions that are attended by good results as the bad ones are followed by bad consequences4 ,chance is a mere meaningless word4 #ah4 ,do not make your bloom of youth useless as ashes by sitting idly at home and enjoying the bliss of the harem like a worm in the sore4 #ai4 ,he who has no reliance on present objects1 but depends upon suppositions of the past1 is as a man flying for fear of his own hands supposing them as snakes4 #bj4 ,it is a pleasure to men of perverted understandings to think themselves guided by their fortunes1 prosperity flies away far off from such men who depend on their fortunes4 #ba4 ,therefore let a man diligently apply himself first to 7the cultivation of7 his reason1 and then investigate into the works of abstruse spiritual knowledge4 #bb4 ,those who do not set their hearts to acts according to the dictates of the sstras1 but exert themselves otherwise to gain 7their ends71 are accursed as mad men for their vain attempts4 #bc4 ,thinking there is no end of exertions one declines to take the pains 7after anything71 and says that1 no pains can bring out a gem from a stone 7or oil from water74 #bd4 ,know that there is a limitation both of human lot and exertion1 as of all other things as a pot or picture having a 7limited capacity and length74 #be4 ,and that it is by means of good conduct derived from best precepts and the company of the good1 that one succeeds to his object1 and a disposition that breaks loose of these 7bounds71 is sure to fall to the contrary 7extreme of7 ruin4 #bf4 ,again any man who conducts himself in the right course of action1 never fails in his attempts at any time4 #bg4 ,some among the best of men1 who had been reduced to misery by their poverty and helplessness1 have again risen to the eminence of ,indra by exertion of their manhood4 #bh4 ,by learning the ,sstras well from boyhood1 by keeping company with the good1 and by possession of good qualities1 as also by diligent application1 a man is sure to gain his object4 #bi4 ,it has been seen1 known1 heard1 and experienced 7by us7 that acts are rewarded with success2 and they are dull-headed who think of obtaining it from fortune or by chance4 #cj4 ,had there not been the folly of idleness in this world1 what man would fail either to be rich or learned8 ,it is by reason of idleness that this earth is filled to its utmost limit of the sea with indigent and beastly men4 #ca4 ,let a man after passing his childhood1 and getting rid of its false and idle playfulness and when he has attained the age of youthful vigour1 apply himself diligently to the company of wise men1 and to the cultivation of his understanding by a knowledge of the ,sstras and their meanings1 and by scanning well his own faults and qualities4 #cb4 ,vlmki said3--,after the sage had said these sayings1 the day passed away1 and the sages went to bathe after taking leave of the assembly1 where they joined again with the rising beams of the sun dispelling the gloom of night4 ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,,refutation ,,of ,,fatalism4 ,vasishtha resumed saying3-- ,now fate being no other than the result of our actions of the former state of our existence1 it is possible to leave it at a distance1 and to extricate one's self 7from its fetters7 by betaking himself to good company and study of moral ,sstras4 #b4 ,whatever one attempts to do1 he readily meets with its reward3 this being the effect of exertion4 ,fate is no other but the same thing4 #c4 ,men laboring hard1 are heard to exclaim 8,o how painful it is03 so men suffering under fate cry out 8,o hard is fate60 7so the one is as bad as the other74 #d4 ,thus then fate being no other than a name for our past actions1 it is as easily overcome 7by present acts7 as a boy 7is subdued7 by an adult youth4 #e4 ,as some bad conduct of yesterday is corrected by proper behaviour of the present day1 so the anterior fate is removed by 7posterior7 acts4 #f4 ,those carnal minded libertines who do not try the means 7of reforming their fate71 but depend upon the favor of fortune1 are perverted in their nature and marked for misery4 #g4 ,thus if the acts of manliness are capable of forefending one's misfortunes1 it must be acknowledged that manliness which destroys the other1 is the mightier of the two4 #h4 ,as of two fruits growing on the same fore-stalk1 the one is found to be empty within and the other full of juice1 so the fruit of fate is rendered abortive by that of manliness4 #i4 ,seeing the decay of the best things in the world1 we must own the predominant power of the cause of this decay4 #aj4 ,like two rams our fate and exertions are fighting with one another1 wherein the victory is always on the side of the stronger4 #aa4 ,in the case of the royal elephant's taking up a beggar boy for being made the ruler 7of a country71 its cause is to be attributed more to the vote of the country-men and citizens 7than to chance or fortune74 #ab4 ,as a man takes his food and grinds it under his teeth1 so is one 7depending on fate7 crushed by the stronger party relying on his exertions4 #ac4 ,inferior servants are thus employed like clods of earth by their more active masters in any work they like4 #ad4 ,silly and impotent men seeing the strong thriving by their exertions whether apparent or unseen1 are apt to attribute it to their good fortune 7instead of their diligence74 #ae4 ,the strong efforts of men truly constitute their presiding fortune1 and these two are viewed alike by the wise4 #af4 ,in the case of the 7aforesaid7 beggar boy's installation to the ruling and protection of the people of a realm1 the unanimous concurrence of the law and ministers1 of the elephant and citizens 7is to be taken as the chief cause74 #ag4 ,should the beggar boy be ever elected for a ruler by the royal elephant itself 7without the assent of men71 in that case it is to be attributed to the boy's good fortune only 7because there was no sensible exertion on his side74 #ah4 ,present acts destroy those of the past life and so also the vice-versa comes to pass2 but the exertions of a man are undoubtedly successful 7at all times74 #ai4 ,of these two powers that of the present state is manifestly superior to the other2 hence it is as possible to overcome the past by the present1 as to lick a boy by an adult4 #bj4 ,as a hail shower lays waste the cultivation of a whole year1 so also doth the predominant fate sometimes overpower the attempts of this life4 #ba4 ,however it does not behoove us to be sorry at the loss of our long earned treasure 7as of the harvest71 for what avails our sorrow at what is beyond our control4 #bb4 ,if ,i should sorrow for what ,i have not the power to prevent1 ,i must then weep all the days of my life because ,i am not to be spared by death4 #bc4 ,all our acts are subject to their proper time and place1 and to the modes of their operation and combination according to the course of nature2 hence it is that the more diligent are the most successful 7everywhere74 #bd4 ,we ought therefore to rely in our exertions and clearness of understanding by the help of ,sstras and association with the wise1 for fording over the ocean of this world4 #be4 ,actions of the past and present lives are the two fruit trees growing in the garden of humanity2 of which the one that is cultivated best1 thrives and fructifies the most4 #bf4 ,he who is unable to overcome his false fate by his best exertions 7in this life71 is no better than an ignorant beast that has no power over its pain or pleasure4 #bg4 ,he who thinks of going to heaven or hell by the will of the ,maker1 is also a slave to destiny and no better than a beast4 #bh4 ,the man of a noble mind and one employed in acts of goodness1 breaks off from the errors of the world as a lion from its cage4 #bi4 ,those who vainly imagine themselves to be led about by some 7supernatural power71 and so slight their necessary duties1 are to be shunned at a distance as the mean and base4 #cj4 ,there are thousands of acts that are attended with gain or loss to their doers2 but it is the duty of man to do what is right whether they are pleasant or painful4 #ca4 ,he who does not transgress the bounds of law1 nor forsake the duties 7of his race71 is attended by every blessing abundant as the pearls in the sea4 #cb4 ,devoted diligence in acts leading to one's object1 is termed to be his manliness by the wise2 and that being guided by the ,sstra leads to his success4 #cc4 ,an act accompanied by exertion1 is of itself the accomplisher of one's object1 and the company of the wise and study of good books serve to raise a man by brightening his understanding4 #cd4 ,the infinite happiness or a tranquil spirit is known as the ,summum bonum by the wise2 and those good works are fit for study which lead to that state4 #ce4 ,the acts of our former lives constitute what we call our destiny1 and they return to us from the region of the gods1 for our good in both worlds4 #cf4 ,we blame the fate which is a creation of the fancy of the ignorant1 who by their adoration of the same come to meet their destruction4 #cg4 ,one benefits himself always by his activity in both worlds1 as his good acts of to-day gives a grace to those of yesterday4 #ch4 ,whoso therefore applies himself with diligence to his acts1 reaps their fruits like that of an ,amalaki in his palm1 which though it is within his grasp1 yet it could not be obtained without the cost of some labour3 #ci4 ,it is the ignorant only that depart from the beaten path1 and fall into the error of fatalism4 ,therefore give up that false faith in an unreal fate1 which is a mere creation of the imagination and devoid of any cause or effect2 and apply to your manly exertions4 #dj4 ,the fruit of following the ,sstras and observing the good customs and local usages1 is long known 7to be wholesome71 as exciting the heart and the exertion of the limbs to action4 ,this it is what they called 8manly activity40 #da4 ,all wise men after discussion of the subject of fate and acts1 have applied themselves to activity by utter rejection of fatality1 and accomplished their ends by attendance on the good and wise4 #db4 ,knowing the efficacy of activity1 every one should betake himself to his personal exertions1 and attain to his highest perfection by attending to good ,sstras and the wise counsels of learned men4 #dc4 ,and knowing the bondage of our births to be full of pain1 let people strive for the exercise of their activities1 and obtain the true and sweet blessing of tranquility by their attendance on the wise4 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,,on ,,the ,,necessity ,,of ,,activity4 ,having obtained a body free from disease and a mind free from trouble1 one should try to know the knowable to prevent his further birth 7in this world74 #b4 ,whoso wishes to avert his destiny by means of his activity1 obtains the acme of his wishes both in this world as well as in the next4 #c4 ,but whoever is averse to assiduity and relies in his luck1 he is an enemy to his own soul1 and sacrifices all his virtues1 riches and hopes 7to his idleness74 #d4 ,it is the exercise of our sensuous and mental faculties as also of the members of the body1 which are the different modes of our exertions1 that leads us to success4 #e4 ,our perceptions are the cause of our mental activity1 and this actuates the body to action1 whereby we obtain the fruits of our desire4 #f4 ,in whatever case there is some act 7enjoined in the ,sstra71 it points us to our exertions and never to destiny4 ,even children are well aware of this4 #g4 ,it was by the exercise of their exertions that ,divaspati 7,jupiter7 became the lord of gods1 and ,sukra obtained the preceptorship of demons4 #h4 ,there have been many weak1 poor and miserable men1 who have by means of their manly exertions become equal to ,indra himself4 #i4 ,so also there have been many great men on earth1 who after enjoyment of a great many extraordinary things and luxuries here1 have become guests in hell for want of the exercise of their manly virtues4 #aj4 ,in this manner have all beings evaded the effects of their various states of want and opulence by means of their own exertions 7in the right way74 #aa4 ,there are three fold benefits derived from the study of books1 from lectures of a preceptor1 and from one's own industry1 all of which are attendant on our exertions and not destiny4 #ab4 ,this is the long and short of all the ,sstras1 that diligence preserves our minds from all evils1 by employing them to whatever is good and right4 #ac4 ,to apply with diligence to whatever is excellent1 not low or mean and not liable to loss or decay1 is the precept of parents and preceptors to their sons and pupils4 #ad4 ,i get the immediate fruit of my labour in proportion to my exertion3 hence ,i say1 ,i enjoy the fruit of my labour and not of fortune4 #ae4 ,activity gives us success and it is this that elevates the intelligent4 ,but men of little understandings rely only in fortune in their miserable state4 #af4 ,we have ocular evidence 7of the efficacy7 of activity every day1 in the instances of men travelling in distant countries 7for the sake of gain74 #ag4 ,he that eats becomes satiate and not who starves3 so he who walks is said to proceed and not one who rests3 and in like manner whoso speaks is called a speaker and not the silent man3 thus action makes the man4 #ah4 ,wise men escape from great difficulties by means of their exertions2 but not so the mistaken fatalist by his fruitless inertness4 #ai4 ,whoso acts in any manner1 gets his reward accordingly2 but the restive man has nothing to expect anywhere4 #bj4 ,by well directed industry a man reaps the best reward1 as he meets with its reverse by his misapplied labour3 think upon this ,o ,rma6 and do as you like4 #ba4 ,the reward of industry which a man meets with sooner or later at any time or place1 the same is said by the wise to be his fortune4 #bb4 ,no one can see his fortune1 nor has any body ever seen the same1 nor is there such a thing to be found in any world3 it is but the merit of our acts here which they place in the other world4 #bc4 ,a man is born on earth to grow up and decay in his time1 and no destiny is seen therein in the same way as his childhood1 youth and old age4 #bd4 ,one's application to diligence and action for the attainment of an object1 is known by the term exertion by the wise1 whereby all things are accomplished 7and which is no destiny74 #be4 ,one's going from one place to another1 his holding a thing in the hand1 and the movement of his limbs1 are all the acts of his exertion and not his destiny4 #bf4 ,there is another kind of propensity to acts productive of evil2 this sort of action is likened to the attempt of a mad man which yields no good4 #bg4 ,men of acute understandings raise themselves to elevation1 by their association with the virtuous1 study of good works and active employment to duties tending to their own good4 #bh4 ,the boundless joy arising from equanimity1 is said to constitute one's ,summum bonum 7upon earth74 ,this blessing also results from a man's diligent application to the ,sstras 7and not from his destiny74 #bi4 ,it is the understanding that leads to the knowledge of the ,sstras1 as it is the other that tends to our right understanding of things4 ,just so does the lotus serve to beautify a lake1 as it is the lake which lends its grace to the lotus4 7i4e4 ,they serve mutually to assist each other74 #cj4 ,it is also by virtue of one's deep study and good company in youth1 that a man attains his desirable objects afterwards 7which are the results of his exertions74 #ca4 ,it was by means of his activity that ,vishnu had conquered the demons1 and established the order of the world4 ,it was by this that he created the worlds none of which could be the work of fate4 #cb4 ,now1 ,o lord of ,raghu's race6 employ your efforts to the exertion of your manly activities in such a way in this earth1 that you may live free from fear of being bitten by the serpentine people in this arbor of the world 7i4e4 crush the malice of your enemies74 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,,invalidation ,,of ,,destiny4 ,vasishtha continued saying that3-- ,what does destiny mean1 which has no form1 nor act1 no motion nor might1 but is a false notion rooted in the 7minds7 of the ignorant4 #b4 ,it is a word that has come into vogue from the idea of the future retribution of one's past actions 7or retributive justice7 and the like1 which is designated 8destiny04 #c4 ,from this the ignorant are led to believe that there is a thing as destiny3 the inscrutability of which has led them to the fallacy as that of the supposition of a snake in a rope4 #d4 ,as a past misdeed of yesterday is rectified by a good action of the following day1 let this day therefore supercede the past1 and employ yourself to-day to action4 #e4 ,the perverted understanding that believes in a destiny grounded on its erroneous conception1 may well enter into the fire from his conviction that it will not burn him unless it is so destined4 #f4 ,if destiny is the sole cause of every thing1 why then should a man betake himself to his actions of bathing and making his offerings1 sitting and walking1 all of which may be done by his destiny4 #g4 ,what then is the necessity of one's advising another to do a thing when destiny is the director of all8 ,let then all be silent and say nothing to nobody4 #h4 ,there is no one to be seen on earth that is motionless except the bodies of the dead2 and if it is action that produces anything1 it is useless to believe in destiny4 #i4 ,nor is there any co-operative power of the invisible destiny perceptible in the actions of men1 whence it is but a meaningless word4 #aj4 ,two things as the implements and members of the body being joined together1 have each their several action 7as that of the pen and razor and the hand in writing and shaving72 but the hand being wanted1 nothing can be done by destiny 7with its having those tools74 #aa4 ,there is no such clear idea of a destiny like those of the mind and intellect1 even in the 7illiterate7 cow-herd or in the 7learned7 pandit4 ,hence it is a mere non-entity4 #ab4 ,if the concept of destiny be other 7than that of an agent71 it must mean something else2 or if it be the same thing 7with the agent7 why then give it a different name 7as destiny78 ,if it be proved to be an imaginary term1 then why not imagine your exertion to be agent 7of your action78 #ac4 ,the immaterial destiny like vacuity has no connection with the material body4 ,if it had a form or figure it would be visible 7to some one or other72 hence destiny is a nullity4 #ad4 ,if destiny is the main spring of the movements of all beings in the three worlds1 then let all creatures rest at ease 7with the assurance7 that destiny will perform their parts4 #ae4 ,the belief that we are guided by destiny and do as we are led to do1 is a deception and an allegation 7of self excuse72 in fact there is no such thing as destiny4 #af4 ,it is the fool that fancies to himself a destiny and relies on it to his own disadvantage2 while the intelligent raise themselves to better states by means of their exertion4 #ag4 ,say who is there among the mighty and brave1 the intelligent and learned1 that looks or waits upon destiny in this world8 #ah4 ,destiny may be said good1 if it can have the power of saving a man from being beheaded1 whom fortune-tellers had pronounced by their calculation to be long lived4 #ai4 ,again1 ,o ,rghava1 should one who is foretold by his fortune-teller to become a learned man1 attain his learning without being taught in it1 then may we believe fortune to be true4 #bj4 ,mark1 ,o ,rma6 how the sage ,viswmitra has cast away his destiny at a distance2 and attained to ,brahmahood by his own exertions4 #ba4 ,look at us and others who have become sages1 that it was by our industry we became aeronauts or wanderers in the etherial regions4 #bb4 ,remember1 ,o ,rma1 how the chiefs of the ,dnava race1 have established their empires on earth by their prowess1 and by discarding their destinies altogether4 #bc4 ,look again how the chiefs of gods have wrested the extensive earth from those demons by their valourous deeds of slaying and harassing them 7in battle74 #bd4 ,see ,rma6 how they make handsome wicker vessels 7of bamboo work7 for the holding of water by their own industry1 and without the aid of any destiny to the completion of the same4 #be4 ,in all our works of giving and receiving1 walking1 resting and the like1 we see no causality of destiny in their completion1 as we see of medicines 7in healing diseases74 #bf4 ,therefore ,o ,rma1 give up this destiny of your mistaken fancy2 which is in reality devoid of its cause or effect1 and is a false and ideal nullity2 and betake yourself to your best exertions4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,,investigation ,,of ,,acts4 ,rma asked3-- 8,will you ,sir1 that art versed in all knowledge1 kindly explain the true sense of destiny in popular use40 #b4 ,vasistha replied3--,it is a man's activity and no other1 ,o ,rghava1 that is the cause of all his actions1 and the recipient of their consequence1 wherein destiny has nothing to do4 #c4 ,destiny is a mere imaginary thing1 which neither exists nor acts nor feels 7their effects74 ,it is neither seen nor regarded 7by any body74 #d4 ,the good or bad result which proceeds from the accomplished acts of successful activity1 is expressed by the word destiny4 #e4 ,the wished for and unwished for consequences resulting from the good and bad deeds of human activity1 are termed the effects of destiny by people4 #f4 ,human activity which is the only cause of some unavoidable future consequence1 is called as destiny by the majority of mankind4 #g4 ,truly1 ,o ,rghava6 destiny though void as vacuity1 appears as real to some body1 who thinks it to be an active agent1 while others know it to be inactive4 #h4 ,again destiny is a mere saying uttered by men upon the result of some good or bad effect of their actual exertion1 that 8it is this which has produced the other40 #i4 ,it is my belief and ,i have known it for certain that1 destiny is no more than the word uttered by people upon their attainment of the object of their exertions4 #aj4 ,destiny is that word of consolation which is uttered by men1 as significant of the good or evil which they meet with and which they call to be the effect of the other4 #aa4 ,rma asked3--,how is it sir1 that you who are all wise1 do now contradict your own assertion that destiny is the result of the stock of our former acts 7of past life78 #ab4 ,vasishtha answered saying3--,well said ,o ,rma6 you know every thing2 but hear me tell you the whole of it1 whereby you will have a firm belief in the nullity of destiny4 #ac4 ,all the various desires which men may have entertained in their minds before1 even those come to be accounted as his deeds 7or mental actions7 at last4 #ad4 ,all animals are seen also to act according to their desires1 and to do nothing to which an inclination was wanting in their natures4 #ae4 ,as the villager goes to his village and the townsman comes to the town3 so it is the nature of the desire that leads men to their particular acts4 #af4 ,the keen and firm resolution with which an act was done in the former state of life1 that verily is termed destiny in the successive births1 or generations of living beings4 #ag4 ,thus are the acts of all active beings conformable with their natures1 and the actions of men are in accordance to their desires1 the desire is no other than the mind itself1 and the mind is self-same with the human soul4 #ah4 ,the mind is the soul and cause of all acts which they call the doings of destiny1 certainly there is no other thing as destiny beside the mind4 #ai4 ,this mind is verily the living soul1 which acts as it desires1 and enjoys accordingly the fruits thereof1 and is same with destiny4 #bj4 ,know ,rma that the mind1 the heart1 desire1 action and destiny are synonymous terms1 and applied by the virtuous to the unascertainable soul 7evolved in these forms74 #ba4 ,now whatever the so named soul undertakes to do continually and with a firm resolution1 it obtains the fruit thereof accordingly4 #bb4 ,it is by means of the activity or exertion of this soul1 and by no other means1 ,o support of ,raghu's race1 that it obtains everything1 and may it lead you to your good only4 #bc4 ,rma said3--,being caught in the net of my pre-existent desire1 ,i remain a captive to them and do as they lead me to4 ,say then1 ,o sage what else ,i can do4 #bd4 ,vasishtha replied3--,so then ,o ,rma1 you will be able to reach to your lasting good1 if you will but exert your activity for it1 without which there is no other way to it4 #be4 ,these desires are of two kinds1 some leading to good and others to evil4 ,hence the desire of one's prior state must have been of one kind or other4 #bf4 ,if you will be guided now by the pure desires 7of your nature71 you will be gradually led by means of your good acts to attain the state of your lasting welfare4 #bg4 ,but if your wrong inclinations tend to lead you to difficulties1 you must try your best to overcome such propensities perforce4 #bh4 ,you ,rma are wise and perfectly intelligent1 and not composed of a dull 7material7 body only2 now if you should be in need of another's guidance to waken your intellect1 say where lies your own intelligence4 #bi4 ,if you would have one to enlighten your understanding1 say where is that another to illumine him1 and who is the other to illuminate him also4 ,hence as no one is wholly devoid of understanding1 let him improve it himself4 #cj4 ,the current of our desires is flowing betwixt the two channels of good and evil2 it must be by exertion of our activity that we must turn it to the right course4 #ca4 ,you who are the mightiest of the mighty1 must exert the force of your activity to turn your mind to a profitable course from its direction to the profitless4 #cb4 ,by directing the mind to the right way from the wrong1 it will take the right course and so the vice versa4 ,but as human mind is as 7tender as7 a child1 it must not be employed by force 7but gentle measures74 #cc4 ,the training of the child like that of the mind1 is effected slowly by gentleness and indulgence1 and not by force and hurry4 #cd4 ,you have already by your constant practice1 got a mastery over all your good and bad desires2 you have hence forward to direct your tendencies to good only4 #ce4 ,o victorious ,rma6 ,when by your pristine habits you have an aptitude to do what is good1 learn that it is the result of your good nature4 #cf4 ,o sinless ,rma1 your desires are at present lying dormant in your mind1 and require some practice to be employed only to the doing of good4 #cg4 ,if you will not exert yourself at present to improve your dormant desires by constant practice1 you can never expect to be happy4 #ch4 ,when it is doubtful 7to know the nature of the innate propensity71 do you incline to what is good1 and as you thrive in this1 you shall have no evil to fear4 #ci4 ,whatever one practices1 he becomes perfect in that in time2 as studying from childhood makes the learned free from error4 #dj4 ,when you have the good will in you1 you must accomplish your purpose1 by means of your activity and subjection of the organs of your body4 #da4 ,so long as your mind is imperfect and unacquainted with the state of divine truth1 you must attend to your teacher1 books and reasoning1 and act according to their directions 7in the paths of truth74 #db4 ,having first finished your acts and known the truth1 you must abandon even your meritorious deeds1 and all your desires with them4 #dc4 ,having known by your good understanding1 that the virtuous course led by honorable men is truly good1 give particular attention to know the nature of ,god1 then forsake even that 7enquiry71 and remain 7silent7 as a saint 7muni74 ,,chapter ,x4 ,,descension ,,of ,,knowledge4 ,vasistha resumed3-- ,this thing called destiny is as true as the reality of ,god4 ,it is the cause of causes and effect of effects4 7,it is an attribute of ,god74 #b4 ,now attend to my words and depend on your exertions1 and intently apply your ever confident mind to the attainment of your chief good4 #c4 ,try your exertions to turn to your subjection the misleading senses from pursuing their objects4 #d4 ,i will now propound to you a code containing of the essence of the best means of liberation1 which will confer the fruits of your exertions and lead you to your welfare in both worlds4 #e4 ,let them that have great minds1 forsake their worldly desires in order to avoid their future births1 and attend to these lectures with calm contentment 7in their minds74 #f4 ,weigh well the meanings of the antecedent and subsequent propositions1 repress your mind from its worldly cares1 and dispose your self to equanimity for its inquiry after truth4 #g4 ,hear me relate to you ,rma1 the way to emancipation1 which will remove your feelings of pain and pleasure1 and become the surest means to lead you to supreme happiness4 #h4 ,on hearing this lecture on liberation in the company of all those reasonable men1 you will know that highest state which is free from pain1 and of which there is no termination4 #i4 ,this was spoken of old in a former ,kalpa age by ,brahm abiding in the ,supreme spirit4 ,it is the remover of all anxiety and giver of all comfort to the soul4 #aj4 ,rma asked saying3--,say ,o ,brhman--that art my guide1 what cause moved ,brahm himself of old to reveal this knowledge1 and in what manner was it obtained by you4 #aa4 ,vasishtha replied3--,the supreme soul of infinite manifestations exists by itself2 it passes through and supports the whole in the form of vacuity and understanding1 and as light to all living beings4 #ab4 ,from him who remains the same 7unaltered being7 in his rest and motion1 the great ,vishnu was born1 like a moving wave on the quiet waters of the sea4 #ac4 ,then was ,brahm produced from the lotus of his heart1 having the mount ,meru for its pericarp1 and the points of the compass for its petals1 and the stars for its pistils4 #ad4 ,he being beset by gods and sages acquainted with the ,vedas and their significations1 created all the worlds and the minds with their various thoughts4 #ae4 ,he then created the groups of men in the ,bhrata division 7,india7 in a corner of ,jambudwpa 7,asia71 and subjected them to all manner of diseases and afflictions4 #af4 ,they are also troubled with the possession and want of many things1 and their subjection to dangers and diseases4 ,here all species of created beings are subjected to a variety of tribulations and afflictions4 #ag4 ,the lord and creator of worlds1 seeing the misery of these people1 felt compassion for them1 as a father does for his children4 #ah4 ,he then pondered within himself for a moment with intensity of thought and for the good of all creatures1 how to exterminate the misery of these beings who were subjected to death and despair4 #ai4 ,with this thought the lord god 7,brahm71 established himself the rules of austerity1 piety1 charity1 veracity and pilgrimage4 #bj4 ,having established these1 the lord and creator again thought within himself1 how to make an end of the many miseries of the men he had created4 #ba4 ,he thought upon self-extinction as the ,supreme bliss1 which was obtainable only through a knowledge of the ,deity1 and whereby man might be exempted from repeated births and deaths4 #bb4 ,it was divine knowledge1 he thought1 the only means of men's crossing over 7the ocean7 of this world2 but austerity1 charity and pilgrimage were no means to it4 7,but mere preparatives to knowledge74 #bc4 ,upon this said he 8,i will immediately make a new and sure bridge for the salvation of men and for their liberation from pain40 #bd4 ,having thought so1 the lord ,brahm sitting on the lotus1 meditated in his mind1 and produced me from himself4 #be4 ,being thus produced1 ,i stood forthwith in the presence of my progenitor1 as a wave rising from the sea leans towards it4 #bf4 ,i then bowed down to the god who held a water-pot in one hand and a rosary in the other1 with a pitcher and a bead of seeds in my either hand1 and was thus addressed by him4 #bg4 ,come my son said he1 and then holding me with his hand1 made me sit on the northern petal of his lotus of truth1 which shone as bright as the moon amidst the silvery clouds4 #bh4 ,wearing the skin of an antelope1 ,brahm my father1 spoke to me who was in the like habit1 with the voice of a gander addressing a stork 7i4e4 a talkative person addressing a mute one74 #bi4 ,he said 8,i will for a moment overpower thy ficklemindedness under a mist of insensibility1 as a dark cloud overshadows the disk of the moon40 #cj4 ,it was under this imprecation that ,i lost my reason and forgot every thing1 even the clear idea ,i had of ,god4 #ca4 ,i then became as helpless as one out of his wits1 and came to be afflicted with distress and sorrow like an indigent person4 #cb4 ,ah woeful is this world6 said ,i1 and how came evil to dwell in it8 ,with these thoughts ,i remained in silence 7pondering on the origin of evil74 #cc4 ,then he my father spoke to me saying3 ,ah my son1 why art thou so afflicted8 ,ask of me the remedy for thy affliction1 and thou shalt become happy4 #cd4 ,then the lord creator of all peoples was asked by me1 seated as ,i had been on the gold-coloured leaflet of the lotus1 about the medicine of worldly woes4 #ce4 ,how came1 said ,i1 ,o my lord1 this world to be so full of misery1 and how can people get rid of it1 is what ,i ask of thee 7to know74 #cf4 ,i then learnt the most holy wisdom which ,brhman my father delivered to me1 and following his advice1 ,i became quite composed 7in my mind74 #cg4 ,then the ,creator of the world and revealer of all causes1 seeing me knowing the knowable and restored to my own natural state said3-- #ch4 ,i had turned thee to insanity my son1 by an illusion1 in order to make thee an enquirer into the essence of true knowledge for the welfare of mankind4 #ci4 ,now art thou released from the curse of illusion1 and arrived to thy highest state of understanding4 ,thou hast become as one soul 7with the ,supreme71 and art as pure gold 7after its purification from dross74 #dj4 ,now shut thy heart against the world1 and proceed to the land of ,bharata on the surface of the earth for the good of mankind4 #da4 ,there employ thyself to ceremonial duties to the best of thy knowledge2 and advise others to ritual acts in their proper order 7of exoteric faith74 #db4 ,but such as are disgusted 7with the world7 in their hearts1 and are rational with their elevated understandings1 are to be counseled to esoteric knowledge which confers true felicity 7to man74 #dc4 ,being thus appointed by him who was born in the lotus1 ,i continue to abide herein throughout the succession of beings4 7i4e4 for ages74 #dd4 ,i have no duty to perform here1 but live while ,i have to live free from all cares4 ,i do my acts always with as tranquil a mind as it were in a state of sleep2 ,i do my works with the body2 but ,i do nothing here with my soul 7which is fixed in ,god74 ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,,on ,,the ,,qualifications ,,of ,,the ,,inquirer ,,and ,,lecturer4 ,vasishtha continued3-- ,i have thus related to you fully about the descent of knowledge on earth1 with the reason of my birth and the intention of the lotus born ,brahm 7in making me his apostle74 #b4 ,now ,rma1 as you are eager to learn the transcendental knowledge1 and feel so great an anxiety for it in your mind1 it must be the effect of your pristine merit4 #c4 ,rma said3--,how was it sir1 that the ,supreme lord felt a desire to send down knowledge on earth after his creation of it 7and not along with it87 #d4 ,vasishtha replied3--,this ,brahm is in his own nature the same with the ,supreme ,brahm1 and is born in him1 as a billow is born of the waters of the deep4 7,the co-eternal logos74 #e4 ,this great lord saw the imperfection of his creation1 and saw its whole course 7at one view7 in times past1 present and future4 7,the perversion of mankind subsequent to their fall74 #f4 ,he saw the decay of ceremonial rites after the end of the ,satya 7golden7 and other ages1 and considering the error to which men were to fall afterward1 he felt pity for their states 7for want of sacrifices74 #g4 ,then the ,lord thought of endowing me with true knowledge1 and sent me on the surface of the earth for dispelling the ignorance of mankind4 #h4 ,like me he has sent also some other great sages here1 as ,sanat ,kumra1 ,nrada and many others also4 #i4 ,he has sent them all for the redemption of mankind from the fetters of their ignorance by a series of meritorious acts1 and their progress in divine knowledge also4 #aj4 ,these great sages seeing at the end of the past golden age1 the gradual decay of the holy ritualistic rites on earth3 #aa4 ,they created the rulers of earth at different divisions of the land1 for regulating the course of duties1 and observing their proper limits 7of action74 #ab4 ,they have made many works on the traditional law and sacrificial rules to be observed on earth1 and many appropriate provisions for the accomplishment of religious and temporal duties 7in the smritis74 #ac4 ,but in the revolution of time1 all these duties became slack in their course1 and men have no other thought except that of seeking their daily maintenance4 #ad4 ,every day disputes are rising among the land-owners on account of their estates and properties1 and the people are subjected to various penalties in large numbers4 #ae4 ,in such a state1 it is not possible for the rulers to rule over their states without fighting with one another1 when they with their subjects are inevitably reduced to wretchedness 7by warfare74 #af4 ,in order to remove the impotence 7of such princes71 and to lead them to a comprehensive view of things1 we have prescribed to them many excellent precepts of knowledge4 #ag4 ,it was the spiritual knowledge which had been at first propounded to princes2 but it came afterwards to be known under the title of royal science 7polity74 #ah4 ,this royal science is of a recondite nature1 and is also the best kind of spiritual knowledge4 ,many kings have been set beyond the reach of calamity by a knowledge of this science4 #ai4 ,it is after many such fair-famed princes that have gone by1 that your mighty self was begotten by the present king ,dasaratha4 #bj4 ,o slayer of your enemies1 ,i find a very agreeable and holy kind of apathy growing spontaneously in your most clear understanding4 #ba4 ,there is another kind of cold-heartedness1 ,o ,rma1 which is caused 7by some sorrow7 in the minds of the virtuous and reasonable men1 that is styled their casual indifference4 #bb4 ,but your unprecedented and astonishing apathy1 which is produced without any cause and by your reason only1 is called real stoicism by the wise4 #bc4 ,seeing the obnoxiousness of worldly things1 what man will not grow averse to them8 ,the best displacency to them1 is what rises in the mind of one from his own judgment4 #bd4 ,they are reckoned as great men and greatly wise also1 whose indifference springs without any cause 7of detestation to the world71 and whose minds are clear 7of all gloomy thoughts74 #be4 ,one whose mind feels a disgust 7to the world7 from its own judgement and nice discrimination 7of things71 is as graceful to see as the youthful bridegroom adorned with chaplets of flowers4 #bf4 ,they are esteemed as the best of men1 who betake themselves to indifference after judicious consideration of the worldly troubles4 #bg4 ,it must be by one's repeated and judicious examination of the inward and outward illusions 7of this world71 that he should forcibly withdraw himself from them4 #bh4 ,who is there that feels not an aversion to worldliness at the doleful sight of a funeral event8 ,it is that aversion however1 which is born of itself that is highly commendable4 #bi4 ,i see you are sincerely indifferent1 and reaching the acme of true greatness4 ,you are worthy of the best knowledge as is the moist earth of receiving the seeds4 #cj4 ,it is by the grace of the ,lord ,god and ,supreme spirit1 that a lucky understanding like yours1 naturally inclines to reason4 #ca4 ,it is by performance of ritual duties and observance of the prescribed rules1 that the demerits of former births are expunged4 #cb4 ,upon expurgation of former demerits1 the understanding turns of itself to take cognizance of spiritual matters1 like the simultaneous flight of the crow towards the falling fruit of the palm4 #cc4 ,but those that are devoted only to ritual acts1 are like persons plunged in an eddy1 wherein they are whirled up and down until they come to perceive the state of supreme 7felicity74 #cd4 ,seeing this 7illusory7 state of the world1 a man must shake off the delusion of his worldly-mindedness1 just as the elephant breaks loose from his fetters4 #ce4 ,it is too intricate1 ,o ,rma6 to understand the course of this boundless world1 and not even the greatest of embodied beings 7as man7 can know it without true knowledge4 #cf4 ,know1 ,o support of ,raghu's race6 that men of great understandings have got over the unfordable ocean of the world by means of the raft of their knowledge and reason4 #cg4 ,now hear with attention and steadiness of your mind1 this rational knowledge for your deliverance from the flood of this world4 #ch4 ,the unceasing excitements of the senses and the fears and miseries of the world1 will continually disturb the mind1 without the remedy of right reason4 #ci4 ,there is naught beside rational knowledge1 that can enable holy men to endure the afflictions of the opposite extremes of heat and cold and wind and rain4 #dj4 ,the incessant cares and miseries which befal to men at every step1 serve sometimes to torment the ignorant mind as a flame of fire burns away the straw4 #da4 ,but the troubles of this world can not afflict the wise man1 who knows the knowable1 and discerns all things 7in their true light72 just as it is impossible for the flame of fire to burn down a wood drenched by the rains4 #db4 ,the man knowing the truth resembles the firm arbor of the oak 7,kalpa71 which no whirlwind of disease or distress1 raised by the hot winds of this desert of the world1 has the power to upset4 #dc4 ,the intelligent man who has a mind to know the truth1 must diligently serve his wise preceptor with loving regard4 #dd4 ,the sayings of the well-minded preceptor who is asked about anything1 must be carefully preserved in the mind1 as a piece of fine muslin receives the dye 7with which it is dyed74 #de4 ,o best of the eloquent1 you must not receive the instruction of one unacquainted with truth himself2 whoever asks him anything is the greatest of fools4 #df4 ,whoever does not carefully attend to the words of the truth-telling preceptor who is asked about anything1 is the basest of men4 #dg4 ,he is the best inquirer who makes his enquiry of one after ascertaining by his deeds whether he knows the knowable or not4 #dh4 ,but he is reckoned a vile inquirer and incapable of knowing great things1 who makes a boyish query without ascertaining the lecturer's 7qualifications74 #di4 ,the wise man when asked1 will reply to him who is able to comprehend the antecedent and subsequent propositions1 and is possessed of a good understanding2 but he should make no answer to a vile brutish being4 #ej4 ,the preceptor who gives his lecture without examining the capacity of the inquirer to grasp his meaning1 is pronounced unwise by the learned4 #ea4 ,o delight of ,raghu's race6 this our meeting is a very congenial one and well adapted to each other1 wherein you as inquirer are an admirer of virtue1 and ,i the speaker1 am well acquainted 7with the subject74 #eb4 ,you that understand the meaning of words1 should well consider all what ,i tell you1 and take them to your heart4 #ec4 ,you are truly great and disgusted with the world1 and know the truth among mankind2 whatever is spoken to you must be impressed in your mind as the red dye on muslin4 #ed4 ,you by your attention to what ,i say and discrimination of spiritual matters1 can make your understanding receive my instruction as the waters reflect the sun-light4 #ee4 ,receive all that ,i say and store them diligently in your mind2 or else it is useless to ask me anything4 #ef4 ,the mind1 ,o ,rma6 is as fickle as an ape in the forest1 correct it carefully and attend to spiritual instruction4 #eg4 ,keep yourself always from the injudicious and ignorant1 and those addicted to the company of wicked people1 and honour the virtuous4 #eh4 ,it is by association with good people that we can gain wisdom1 which resembles a tree yielding the fruits both of enjoyment and liberation 7i4e41 both of worldly and future good74 #ei4 ,there are four guards said to keep watch at the gate of ,liberation1 namely3 peace1 judgment1 contentment and the society of the good4 #fj4 ,all these or three or two of them are to be attended with care1 because they shall open to you the door leading to the abode of liberation4 #fa4 ,or at last one of them is to be resorted to with diligence and even at the expense of one's life2 because by securing one of these a man can reconcile and gain all the four 7to his favour74 #fb4 ,the wise man is the receptacle of all ,sstras and ,srutis1 of all knowledge and austerity1 and is a gem on earth1 as the sun is the receptacle of light 7and gem of heaven74 #fc4 ,the dull understanding of the senseless man becomes as stiff as a 7motionless7 block1 and like the frozen water becoming as hard as stone4 #fd4 ,your good nature and good qualities1 ,o ,rma6 and the counsels of the learned in the ,sstras1 have made you sit here with a heart blooming like lotus at the rising sun4 #fe4 ,your lifted ears to hear these wise lectures1 have enabled you to repress your thoughts2 as the music of the lute attracts the mind of the deer4 #ff4 ,now secure1 ,o ,rma6 the treasures of peace and good nature by your practice of indifference of which there is no decay4 #fg4 ,your knowledge of the attainment of liberation will be increased by your attending to the ,sstras and the society of good men1 as also by your practice of austerity and self subjection4 #fh4 ,you must know that1 it is the study of divine knowledge with a clear understanding1 that is a sure remedy against ignorance4 #fi4 ,know this world to be a poisonous plant and seat of dangers4 ,it infects the ignorant at all times1 unless one will take the pains to dispel his darkness4 #gj4 ,avarice accompanied by ignorance moves within the heart in a serpentine course1 and expands and contracts it by turns like the bellows of a blacksmith4 #ga4 ,the true light of things dawns only in the minds of the wise1 as the gentle moon appears to sight only in the clear and cloudless sky4 #gb4 ,he is truly called a man who can judge 7the truth7 by the major and minor propositions1 whose mind is expanded and fraught with brilliant ingenuity4 #gc4 ,rma6 the clear wisdom of your mind1 makes you shine as the full moon dispelling the darkness of the cloudless sky by her cooling and translucent beams4 ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,,greatness ,,of ,,true ,,knowledge4 ,vasishtha said3-- ,rma6 ,i honor you as one of a perfect mind4 ,you know what to ask1 and understand what is spoken to you4 ,i will therefore go on speaking respectfully to you4 #b4 ,be still to attend to knowledge by keeping your mind fixed in yourself1 and being freed from pride and passions1 incline yourself to pure truth4 #c4 ,you are possessed of all the qualities of an enquirer1 and ,i those of the speaker1 in as much as there are gems in the ocean4 #d4 ,you have gained my son the insouciance which is cognate with reason1 like the humidity of the moonstone bearing its correlation with the gentle beams of the moon4 #e4 ,rma6 your long and early practiced pure virtues and good qualities1 have raised your fame1 as the long stretching white fibers of the stalk exalt the spotless lotus4 #f4 ,now hear the words ,i tell you ,rma2 for you alone are fit to receive them1 as the moon only is able to open the ,kumuda petals4 #g4 ,whatever business or investigation is undertaken by any body1 it must be brought to a happy close1 tending to his peace and tranquility 7or to his rest and quiet74 #h4 ,had not there been the solace of philosophy for men of good understanding1 what rational being could dare to bear the misery brought on in this world by ignorance4 #i4 ,all the faculties of the mind are absorbed in the contemplation of the ,supreme1 like the dissolution of the rocks of boundary mountains by the solar heat at the end of the 7,kalpa7 world4 #aj4 ,rma6 the intolerable cholic pain caused by this venomous world1 is healed only by yoga meditation1 as the poison of snake-biting is removed by ,garuda incantations4 #aa4 ,the capacity of yoga is obtained by discussion of the ,sstras in the company of good people1 which alone can furnish us with the great charm of spiritual knowledge4 #ab4 ,it must be owned that we lessen our woes by acting with reason3 therefore reasonable men are never to be looked upon with disregard4 #ac4 ,the reasoning man gets released from his worldly sickness1 and quits his frame which is full of diseases1 as a snake casts off his time worn slough2 and looks with a placid mind and calm composure upon the magic scenes of the world4 ,hence the fully wise man is not subject to the misery of the imperfectly wise4 #ad4 ,the rough and uneven pleasure of the world is but a disease to men1 and stings them like a snake4 ,it cuts them as a sword1 and pierces them as a spear4 ,it binds them fast as by a rope1 and burns them as with the fire1 and blindfolds their understanding as in the darkness of the night4 ,it makes them as prostrate and dull as a slab of stone4 ,it destroys one's prudence and lowers his position4 ,it casts them into the pit of error1 and torments them with avarice4 ,thus there is almost no kind of trouble which does not betide worldly minded men4 #ae4 ,worldliness is as dangerous a disease as cholera1 which unless it is healed in time1 is sure to trouble its patient with the torments of hell3-- #af4 ,such as those caused by the eating of stones1 wounds of swords and spears2 being pelted with stones1 burnt by fire1 and numbed by frost2 loosing of limbs1 besmearing the body with blood as with sandal paste2 by being bored by worms as worm-eaten trees1 and pricked in the body by pikes and broomsticks1 or pierced by the fiery shafts and bolts continually falling in battle4 ,by toiling and moiling in the sun and working in cold and rain as in a summer fountain house2 or remaining dumb and deaf and without rest or sleep1 and finally by loosing the head 7in war or penalty74 #ag4 ,under thousands of such intolerable pangs of worldly life1 no one should remain negligent of his release from this state2 but ought to think that it is his reflection in the ,sstras only1 that can produce his real good4 #ah4 ,look here ,rma6 on these great sages and ,rishis1 these ,brhmans and princes1 who having fortified themselves by the armour of wisdom1 and being liable to no pain or grief2 have yet engaged themselves to the arduous affairs of this world with minds as placid as yours4 #ai4 ,moreover there are many of the best of men1 who with their spiritual light and pure understandings1 reside in this world as the gods ,hari1 ,hara and ,brahm1 who were above all concerns and fluctuating desires of life4 #bj4 ,the journey of this world is delightful to one1 who after the removal of his errors and dispersion of the cloud of his ignorance1 has come to the knowledge of truth4 #ba4 ,that the serenity of the mind and calm repose of the heart being secured1 all the senses are subjected to peace1 and every thing is viewed in an equal light2 and this knowledge of the truth gives a delight to our journey in this world4 #bb4 ,know also that1 this body of ours is the car1 and these organs are its horses1 our breathings are the winds blowing upon it1 and the mind is the driver that feels the delight of driving2 the atomic soul is the rider who is conscious of wandering about the world4 ,the knowledge of this truth makes our earthly journey a pleasant one4 ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,,on ,,peace ,,and ,,tranquility ,,of ,,mind4 ,intelligent men that have seen the spirit1 fix their sight upon it1 and rove about in the world as persons of great and elevated souls4 #b4 ,they 7that are liberated in this life71 neither grieve nor wish nor ask for aught of good or evil 7in this world74 ,they do their works as if doing nothing 7i4e4 with indifference74 #c4 ,those that rely on theirselves1 remain both quietly1 as well as act their parts with a calm serenity 7of their minds72 and take no concern either for what is noxious or delectable to them4 #d4 ,their coming and not coming1 going and not going1 doing or not doing1 and speaking or not speaking are alike indifferent to them4 #e4 ,whatever acts or sights may appear pleasant or disgusting to any body1 cease to affect them in any way after they have come to know their ,god 7as the ,author of all good74 #f4 ,the mind getting rid of its desires feels a sweet composure associated with a bliss as if descending from the heavenly orb of the moon all about it4 #g4 ,by being unmindful of worldly affairs and regardless of all its excitements1 the soul is filled with a felicity resembling the ambrosial waters in the moon4 #h4 ,he who ceases to act his magical parts 7in this playground of the earth71 and desists from following his inclinations and childish pranks1 shines forth in his spiritual light4 #i4 ,such are the powers gained from spiritual knowledge1 and by no other means whatever4 #aj4 ,therefore should a man try to seek and know and adore the ,supreme soul1 by means of his reasoning powers during life4 #aa4 ,it is the concordance of one's belief with the precepts of the ,sstra and his instructor1 joined with his constant meditation1 that can give him a full view of the ,supreme spirit4 #ab4 ,the fool slighting the ,sstra and its instructions1 and disregarding the counsels of great men1 are exposed to difficulties and dangers from which they can have no release4 #ac4 ,there is no disease nor poison1 nor trouble nor affliction1 so painful to one in this earth1 as the ignorance which is bred in himself4 #ad4 ,those whose intellects are a little purified1 will find this work to be of greater efficacy to dispel their ignorance than any other ,sstra4 #ae4 ,this ,sstra with its beautiful examples and pleasing lessons and want of discordance1 should be diligently attended to by every body who is a friend to good sayings and their senses4 #af4 ,want of dignity1 inextricable difficulties1 baseness and degeneracy1 are all offsprings of ignorance1 as the thorns are the offshoots of the prickly ,ketaki plant4 #ag4 ,it is far better1 ,o ,rma6 to rove about a begging with a pot in hand to the abodes of the vile ,chandlas1 than lead a life deadened by ignorance4 #ah4 ,rather dwell in dark dismal cells or dry dreary wells1 and in the hollow of trees1 or remain as solitary blind worms 7under the ground71 than labour under the miseries of ignorance4 #ai4 ,the man receiving the light leading to his liberation1 will never fall into the darkness of error or gloom of death4 #bj4 ,so long will chill frost of penury continue to contract the lotus of humanity1 as the clear light of reason does not shine upon the mind like the sun4 #ba4 ,one must know the true nature of the soul both from his preceptor and the evidence of the ,sstras1 as also from friends like ourselves1 for the sake of liberating himself from the misery of the world4 #bb4 ,try ,o ,rma6 to imitate those that are liberated in their life time1 who are free to roam about like the gods ,hari1 ,hara1 and others1 and as the holy sages among ,brhmans4 #bc4 ,here 7on earth7 our miseries are as endless as atoms1 and our happiness as little as a drop of water on the stalk of a straw2 therefore do not fix your sight upon that little happiness which is beset by misery4 #bd4 ,but let the intelligent man diligently apply himself to the attainment of that state of endless happiness which is free from pain and constitutes his highest consummation4 #be4 ,they are reckoned the best of men and deserving of consummation1 whose minds are freed from the fever 7of worldly cares71 and attached to the transcendental state 7of ultimate beatitude74 #bf4 ,those base minded mortals that are satisfied with their enjoyments1 eating and drinking1 and the pleasures of their worldly possessions1 are reckoned as stark-blind frogs 7in a well74 #bg4 ,all who are attached to the company of imposters and wicked men1 as of those that are addicted to the practice of evil deeds1 and are enemies in the garb of friendship1 and are given up to gluttony3-- #bh4 ,such foolish men of mistaken and stupid minds fall into the hardest of hardships1 to the misery of miseries1 and the horror of horrors and the hell of hells4 #bi4 ,happiness and misery destroy and succeed each other by turns1 and are as fleeting as flashes of lightnings4 ,hence it is impossible to be happy for ever4 #cj4 ,those great souls who are indifferent and well judging like yourself1 are known as the most honourable of men1 and worthy alike both of temporal enjoyments and spiritual emancipation4 #ca4 ,by reliance upon right reasoning joined with a habit of dispassionateness1 men are enabled to get over the dark and dangerous torrents of this world4 #cb4 ,no man of reason should allow himself to sleep 7in negligence7 amidst the illusions of the world1 well knowing their noxious property to derange the understanding4 #cc4 ,whoso remains neglectful in his worldliness1 resembles a man sleeping negligent on a grassy bed when his house is on fire4 #cd4 ,what being arrived at1 there is no returning from it2 and what being gained1 there is no cause of sorrowing2 that state is undoubtedly attainable by divine knowledge only2 and is a certain truth4 #ce4 ,should there be no such future state1 yet there is no harm to believe in it2 but if there be such a state1 its belief will save you from the 7dreadful7 ocean of this world4 #cf4 ,whenever a man is inclined to think on the means of his salvation1 he is sure to be soon entitled to his liberation4 #cg4 ,the undecaying1 unerring and fearless state of tranquility1 is no where to be had in the three worlds1 without one's union 7with the ,supreme74 #ch4 ,having gained that best of gains1 no one is liable to the pain from which no wealth1 friend or relation can save any body4 #ci4 ,neither the actions of one's hands and feet in his offerings and pilgrimage to distant lands1 nor the bodily pains of asceticism1 nor his refuge in a holy place can serve his salvation4 #dj4 ,it is only by means of one's best exertions and the fixing of his mind to one object1 as also by the subjection of his desires1 that the ultimate state 7of bliss7 can be arrived at4 #da4 ,so it is by means of discrimination1 reasoning and ultimate ascertainment of truth1 that a man may avoid the snares of misery1 and attain his best state4 #db4 ,one sitting at ease in his seat and meditating within himself 7the nature of the soul71 attains the blissful state1 which is free from sorrow and future birth4 #dc4 ,all holy men are known to be situated beyond the bounds of the frail pleasures 7of this life72 their optimum quiescence is reckoned the ultimate bliss4 #dd4 ,they have given up all thoughts both of humanity and heaven 7i4e4 of both worlds71 which are devoid of true felicity as the mirage is void of water4 #de4 ,therefore should one think of subduing his mind1 and resort to peace and contentment as the means 7to happiness72 these joined with an unbounded equanimity produce true happiness4 #df4 ,it is not to be had by sitting 7quietly at home71 or going up and down 7from place to place72 and neither by wandering 7in pilgrimage71 nor prostrating 7before the altar74 ,it is not to be acquired by the ,rkshasas1 demons1 deities or ignorant-men4 #dg4 ,that ultimate felicity is born of and obtainable from the peace of mind3 it is the fruit of the high arbor of reason from its blossom of peace4 #dh4 ,those that are engaged in worldliness but do not mix in it like the all-illumining sun1 are known as the best of men4 #di4 ,the mind that is at peace and rest1 that is clear and free from errors1 and without any attempt or desire1 doth neither forsake nor wish for the world4 #ej4 ,hear me tell you of the warders at the gate of salvation in their order1 some one of which being secured1 one may have his entrance into it4 #ea4 ,thirst after pleasure is a state of protracted disease1 and this world is full of mirage 7all parched and dry74 ,it is equanimity alone that can cool this dryness as the moistening beams of the moon4 #eb4 ,it is quiescence which leads to all good and is reckoned the best state of being4 ,quietism is felicity1 it is peace and the preventive of error4 #ec4 ,the man who lives content with his quiet and a calm clearness of his soul1 with a mind fraught with stoicism1 makes friends of his enemies4 #ed4 ,those whose minds are adorned with the moon light of quietism1 feel a flux of the beams of purity rising in them like the hoary waves of the milky ocean4 #ee4 ,those holy men who have the lotus-like flower of quietism growing in the lotiform receptacle of their hearts1 are said to have a secondary heart like the two pericardiums of the god ,hari 7holding ,brahm in one of them74 #ef4 ,they whose untainted faces shine as the moon with the lustre of quiescence1 are to be honoured as the luminaries of their families1 and ravishers of the senses of others by the charming beauty of their countenance4 #eg4 ,whatever is beautiful in the three worlds1 and in the shape of imperial prosperity and grandeur1 there is nothing in them that can afford a happiness equal to that of quietism4 #eh4 ,whatever misery1 anxiety and intolerable difficulty 7may overtake a man71 they are lost in the tranquil mind like darkness in the sun4 #ei4 ,the mind of no living being is so delighted with moon beams1 as that of the peaceful man from his heart-felt joy4 #fj4 ,the virtuous man that is calm and quiet1 and friendly to all living beings1 feels the benign influence of highest truths appearing of themselves in his mind4 #fa4 ,as all children whether good or bad1 have a strict faith in their mother1 so all beings here have a reliance on the man of an even disposition4 #fb4 ,neither does a cooling ambrosial draught nor the kind embrace of prosperity1 afford such gratification to the soul1 as one's inward satisfaction of the mind4 #fc4 ,whether afflicted by diseases or disasters1 or dragged by the rope of avarice1 do you bear up yourself1 ,o ,rma1 by the equanimity of your mind4 #fd4 ,whatever thou dost and eatest with the calm coolness of thy mind1 all that is sweeter far to the soul than anything sweet to taste4 #fe4 ,the mind that is overpowered by the ambrosial flavour of quietism and desists from activity1 may have the body lacerated 7for a time71 but it will be filled up shortly4 #ff4 ,neither imps nor goblins1 demons or enemies1 nor tigers nor snakes1 ever annoy a peaceful man4 #fg4 ,he who has his mind and body well guarded by the invulnerable armour of meekness1 can never be pierced by the shafts of adversity2 but remains as the thunder-stone impenetrable by arrows4 #fh4 ,the king seated in his palace is not so graceful to sight1 as the quiet peaceful man is graced by his equanimity and clearness of understanding4 #fi4 ,no one is so delighted at seeing a thing dearer than his life1 as by the satisfaction which he feels at the sight of a contented and peaceful man4 #gj4 ,he who lives a holy life with his gentle and peaceful conduct1 is said to be truly living in this world and no other4 #ga4 ,the sober minded1 meek and honest man pleases every one by all that he does1 and as it were captivates all beings to himself4 #gb4 ,he is called the meek who neither feels pleasure or pain at the sight1 touch or hearing and tasting of anything good or bad 7to the senses74 #gc4 ,he who is indifferent to all objects1 and neither leaves nor longs for any thing2 but keeps his senses and appetites under subjection1 is called a saint4 #gd4 ,whoso knowing all things both internally as well as externally with a clear understanding1 attends and looks to his own concerns1 he is verily said to be a saint4 #ge4 ,he whose mind is as calm as moon beams both at the approach of a feast or fighting1 and even at the moment of death1 is said to be a saint4 #gf4 ,who though present at a place1 neither rejoices nor murmurs at any thing1 but remains as if he were absent from it1 and conducts himself as quietly as if he were fast asleep2 such a one is called a saint4 #gg4 ,he whose complaisant look casts a graceful nectarious radiance on all around him1 is said to be a saint4 #gh4 ,who feels a cool calmness within himself1 and is not disturbed or immerged in any state of life1 and who though a layman is not worldly minded1 such a man is termed a saint4 #gi4 ,he who takes not to his mind the tribulations of this life1 however long or great they may be1 nor thinks this base 7bodily frame7 to be himself1 is known to be a saint4 #hj4 ,the man of the world who has a mind clear as the firmament1 and not tainted 7by worldliness71 is said to be a saint4 #ha4 ,the quiet ,platonic shines forth among sages and ascetics1 among priests and princes1 and among the mighty and learned4 #hb4 ,great and meritorious men1 whose minds are attached to ,quietism1 feel a rest rising in their souls like the cooling beams of the moon4 #hc4 ,quietism is the utmost limit of the assemblage of virtues1 and the best decoration of manliness2 it shines resplendent in all dangers and difficulties4 #hd4 ,do you now1 ,o ,rma6 follow for your perfection in the way in which high-minded men have attained their perfect state1 by holding fast on quietism as an imperishable virtue1 preserved by the respectable1 and never to be lost or stolen by any4 ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,,on ,,the ,,ascertainment ,,of ,,an ,,argument4 ,it must be the duty of one1 whose understanding is cleared and purified by a knowledge of the ,sstras1 to argue incessantly with a guide knowing how to reason aright4 #b4 ,the understanding when sharpened by reasoning1 comes to view the transcendent state4 ,it is reasoning which is the only best medicine for the chronic disease of worldliness4 #c4 ,the world is of the form of a wood of troubles1 shooting in sprouts of endless desires which being once felled under the saw of reason1 will germinate no more4 #d4 ,o wise ,rma6 our understandings are shrouded under unconsciousness at the loss of our friends1 at times of danger1 and even of quiet4 ,it is reason that is our only companion 7at these times74 #e4 ,there is no expedient for the learned and wise except reason2 it is by means of reason that the minds of good people can avoid evil and secure their good4 #f4 ,all our strength and understanding1 our valour and renown1 and the ends of our actions1 result from our reasoning with the intelligent4 #g4 ,reason is the lamp to show us the right and wrong1 and the instrument for accomplishment of our desires3--by reliance on right reason1 one crosses over easily the wide ocean of the world4 #h4 ,pure reasoning like a strong lion1 tears asunder the elephants of great error1 which ravage the lotus beds of the mind 7or mental faculties74 #i4 ,if ignorant men have at any time attained a better state in life1 it was all owing to the light of the lamp of their reasoning4 #aj4 ,know ,o ,rghava that1 dominion and fair prosperity1 together with our enjoyments and eternal salvation1 are all but fruits of the celestial ,kalpa plant of reasoning4 #aa4 ,the minds of great men1 which are expanded by reasoning here1 are never liable to be immerged under the currents of calamity 7but float above them7 like gourds upon water4 #ab4 ,those who conduct themselves with their intellects shining forth with reason1 become the recipients of its most liberal gifts4 #ac4 ,want of reason is like the thorny and sour plant of ,karanja sprouting forth with blossoms of woe1 and growing in the brakes of ignorant minds in order to shut out their hopes and prospects4 #ad4 ,do you1 ,o ,rghava6 shake off the lethargy caused by your neglect of reasoning4 ,this torpor darkens your vision as it were by the inky powder of collyrium1 and maddens your mind as it were1 by the ebriety of wine4 #ae4 ,the man of right judgment is not liable to fall into the long and dangerous maze of error 7like others72 but remains as a blaze of light amidst the gloom 7of ignorance74 #af4 ,the reasoning faculties shine1 as a bed of lotuses in the limpid lake of the mind3 whoso has such a reasoning mind1 exalts his head as high as the ,himlayan height4 #ag4 ,the man having a dull mind and incapable of reasoning 7of reason7 as a flash of lightening1 and like boys1 sees false apparitions about him4 #ah4 ,rma1 you must shun at a distance the base unreasonable man1 who grows as plump as a ,khanda cane to cause sorrow and resembles the spring season to grow fresh weeds of evil4 #ai4 ,whatever misdeeds1 misconducts and mischances present themselves to man1 they are all the effects of his want of the light of reason1 and lay hold on him like ghosts appearing in the dark4 #bj4 ,o support of ,raghu's race1 do you shun at a distance the unreasonable man of the nature of a solitary wild tree1 which comes to no good use 7to mankind74 #ba4 ,the mind that is fraught with reason and devoid of the impatience attendant on worldly desires1 feels the light of transcendent quietism shining in the soul with the full lustre of the moon4 #bb4 ,when the light of reason shines in any person1 it imparts the coolness and good grace of moon-beams to all things around him4 #bc4 ,the reasoning power of man accompanied with the flag of divine knowledge and the silvery flapper of good understanding1 shines as moon-light in the darkness of night4 #bd4 ,men with the good grace of their reason1 throw a radiance like that of the sun on all sides about them1 and dispel the gloom of worldliness4 #be4 ,reasoning serves to destroy the false apparitions of errors which present themselves to the minds of boys like ghosts in the sky at night4 #bf4 ,all things in the world appear as charming 7as if they were realities72 but they are 7in fact7 but unrealities1 and liken the clods of earth that are broken 7to pieces7 by the hammering stone of reason4 #bg4 ,men are theirself tormenters by the false imagination of their own minds2 it is reason alone that can drive away this inveterate spectre from the mind4 #bh4 ,know the fruit of the high arbor of reason1 to be the even1 unobstructed1 interminable and independent happiness called ,kaivalya4 #bi4 ,it is by means of reason and its evident influence on the deprivation of 7physical7 gratifications1 that there rises an unshaken and exalted disinterestedness in the mind1 like the cooling beams of the moon4 #cj4 ,when the saint has reached his perfection by means of the elixir of judgment seated in his mind1 he neither desires for more nor leaves 7what he has74 #ca4 ,the mind relying on that state of equanimity and perceiving the clear light 7of truth within itself71 has neither its fall nor elevation1 but enjoys its inward expansion as that of vacuum for ever4 #cb4 ,one unconcerned with the world1 neither gives nor receives any thing1 nor feels himself elated or depressed at any event1 but views every thing as an indifferent spectator4 #cc4 ,he is neither torpidly cold nor does he dwell on anything internally or externally4 ,he is neither inactive nor merged in activity4 #cd4 ,he slights the loss of anything1 and lives content with what he has2 he is neither depressed nor elevated2 but remains as full as the 7tideless7 sea4 #ce4 ,it is in this manner that the high-souled and high-aspiring ,yogis conduct themselves in this world1 with their fullness 7of joy7 and living as they are liberated in this life4 #cf4 ,these saintly sages having lived as long as they like 7in this earth71 abandon it at last1 and gain their eternal unity 7after death74 #cg4 ,the sapient man should intently consider within himself1 who and whose he is1 what is his family and by whom he is surrounded1 and think on the remedy 7of his worldliness74 #ch4 ,it is the king1 ,o ,rma6 who well knows the difficult and doubtful state of the business 7before him72 and his success or failure depends solely on his right judgment and on nothing else4 #ci4 ,it is the dicta and data established by the ,veda and ,vednta that form the grounds of our evidence1 and these are to be ascertained by our reason as by the help of a lamp in the gloom of night4 #dj4 ,the bright eye-sight of reason1 is neither blinded by the darkness 7of night71 nor dimmed by the full blaze 7of the day71 even when it has to view things 7situated7 at a distance4 #da4 ,he who is blind to reason is as one born blind1 and a demented man is an object of universal pity2 but the man with a reasoning soul is said to be possessed of divine eye-sight1 and becomes victorious in all things 7he undertakes74 #db4 ,the miraculous power of reason is acknowledged to be a divine attribute and an instrument to highest felicity2 wherefore it is not to be lost sight of for a moment4 #dc4 ,the man graced by reason is loved even by the great1 as the delicious and ripe mango fruit is delectable to all4 #dd4 ,men with their minds illumed by the light of reason1 are like travellers acquainted with their way1 and are not liable to pit falls of incessant danger and misery4 #de4 ,neither doth the sickman nor one beset by a hundred evils wail so bitterly1 as the ignorant man whose soul is deprived of reason4 #df4 ,rather leap as a frog in the mud1 or creep as a worm in the dirt1 rather lie as a snake in a dark cell or crawl on the ground1 than walk as a man devoid of reason4 #dg4 ,therefore get rid of unreasonableness which is the abode of all your dangers1 is reprobated by the wise 7as the bane of mankind71 and is the terminus of all your calamities4 #dh4 ,great men must always be in full possession of their reasoning1 because those unsupported by their reason are liable to fall into the pits of darkness4 #di4 ,let every one keep his soul under the control 7of his own reason71 and by this means1 deliver the fawn of his mind from falling into the mirage of this world4 #ej4 ,it is the province of reasoning to consider logically in one's self1 whence the evil1 known as worldliness1 had its rise4 #ea4 ,the thick mist of error is only for the continued misery of man1 and it prevails on the stony minds of those that are demented by the loss of reason4 #eb4 ,the wise that hold fast on the truth and forsake all untruth in this world1 are yet unable to discern their true natures without the aid of reason4 #ec4 ,it is by means of reason that one comes to the knowledge of truth2 and by means of truth that he gets the peace of his mind2 and it is the tranquility of the mind that dispels the misery of men4 #ed4 ,now ,rma1 do you take delight in such acts as may be productive of utility to the world1 and whereby you may arrive to perfection4 ,weigh all things with the clear eye of reason1 which will make you blessed for ever4 ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,,on ,,contentment4 ,vasishtha continued3--,contentment is the chief good2 contentment is called the 7true7 enjoyment2 and the contented man1 ,o thou destroyer of enemies1 gets the best repose4 #b4 ,those who are happy with their prosperity of contentment1 and possess the calm repose of their souls1 are as holy saints1 and think a sovereignty no better than a bit of rotten straw4 #c4 ,whoever retains a contented mind amidst all the affairs of the world1 he is never disturbed ,o ,rma1 in adverse circumstances nor ever dejected 7in his spirit74 #d4 ,the saints that are satisfied with the ambrosial draught of contentment1 think the highest affluence and enjoyments 7of the rich7 but poison 7to their souls74 #e4 ,even the waves of liquid nectar fail to afford that pleasure1 which the sweetest taste of contentment--the healer of all evils2 gives to its possessor4 #f4 ,abandonment of unfruitful desires and calmness in those that are obtained1 feeling no pain at and having no sense of pleasure 7in any thing71 constitute what is called contentment here below4 #g4 ,until the mind can enjoy the contentment rising spontaneously in the soul of itself1 so long will troubles continue to grow in it as briars and brambles in a bog4 #h4 ,the mind cooled by calm contentment1 and purified by the light of philosophy1 is always in its full bloom as the lotus under sun-beams4 #i4 ,the ungoverned mind which is under the subjection of desires and devoid of contentment1 does not receive the light of knowledge1 as a soiled mirror takes no reflection of the face4 #aj4 ,the man whose mind is always bright with the sunshine of contentment1 does not shrivel itself like the lotus in the dark night of ignorance 7or adversity74 #aa4 ,a man though poor1 enjoys the happiness of sovereignty1 who is devoid of diseases and anxieties1 and whose mind is contented4 #ab4 ,he is called a contented man1 who does not long after what he is not possessed of1 and enjoys what he has in its right manner1 and is always graceful in his manners4 #ac4 ,there is a beauty shining in the face of one1 whose mind has the satisfaction of contentment1 the fulness of magnanimity and the purity of thoughts like that of the milky ocean in it4 #ad4 ,let a man entertain his self-possession within himself1 and abandon his craving of all things1 by reliance on his manly exertions4 #ae4 ,he whose mind is full with the ambrosia of contentment and a calm and cool understanding1 acquires a perpetual composure within himself1 as it were by the cooling beams of the moon4 #af4 ,all great fortunes wait on him whose mind is strengthened by contentment1 as if they were his servants1 and as they remain in attendance upon a king4 #ag4 ,one remaining content and composed in himself1 quells all his anxieties and cares1 as the rains set down the dust of the earth4 #ah4 ,rma6 a man shines by the contentment of his mind and the purity of his conduct1 as the cooling and spotless moon when she is full4 #ai4 ,no one receives so much delight from his accumulation of wealth1 as he derives from the sight of the beautiful placid countenance 7of a contented person74 #bj4 ,know1 ,o thou delight of ,raghu's race6 that the best of men who are decorated with grace of equanimity 7the only quality that adorns the wise71 are more honoured both by gods and sages than any4 ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,,on ,,good ,,conduct4 ,vasishtha resumed saying3-- ,know1 ,o highly intelligent ,rma6 that the company of the virtuous is everywhere of the greatest benefit to men for their crossing over the ocean of the world4 #b4 ,it is the arbour of virtuous company that produces the fresh blossom of discrimination2 which being cherished by high-souled men1 yields to them its fruits of prosperity4 #c4 ,the society of the learned makes solitude appear as company1 and the evil of death as good as a festivity2 and converts a difficulty to ease4 #d4 ,it is the society of the virtuous which wards off all disasters1 that like the frost1 invade the lotus beds of our hearts2 and baffle the icy breath of ignorance 7which deadens our souls74 #e4 ,know the society of the virtuous to be the best improver of the understanding1 the destroyer of the tree of ignorance2 and remover of all our mental diseases4 #f4 ,the society of the virtuous produces the light of reason1 which is as charmingly fair as a cluster of flowers after its being washed by rain-water4 #g4 ,it is the influence of virtuous company that teaches us the best mode of life1 which is never impaired or obstructed by anything1 and is ever full in itself4 #h4 ,let no man ever keep himself from the association of the virtuous1 though he is involved in utmost distress1 and cast in irremediable circumstances4 #i4 ,the society of the virtuous1 lends a light to the right path4 ,it destroys the internal darkness of man1 by the rays of the sun of knowledge4 #aj4 ,whoever has bathed in the cold and clear stream of good company is not in need of the merit derived from acts of charity1 pilgrimage1 austerity and sacrifice4 #aa4 ,whoever has the society of virtuous men1 and whose lives are free from passions and sins1 and doubts and the knots 7of scruples in their hearts71 of what use is 7the observance of7 austerity1 or 7performance of7 pilgrimage 7to him78 #ab4 ,blessed are the peaceful in their minds1 who are viewed with as great an ardour by people1 as poor men fondly dote upon gems and jewels4 #ac4 ,the intelligent mind with its gracefulness derived from good company1 shines always as the goddess of riches in the company of fairy nymphs4 #ad4 ,therefore that blessed man is renowned as having attained the crown of a clear understanding1 who never abstains himself from the company of the holy4 #ae4 ,hence all unscrupulous believers1 holy men and those who are revered by people1 are to be served by all means for crossing over the ocean of the world4 #af4 ,surely do they serve as dry fuel to hell-fire1 who neglect the company of the saints1 which is known as rain water to extinguish the flames of hell4 #ag4 ,the medicine of holy association1 serves to allay entirely all the afflictions consequent to poverty and death and tribulations of worldly affairs4 #ah4 ,contentment1 society of the virtuous1 ratiocination and quietism1 are the several means for crossing over the ocean of the world by mankind4 #ai4 ,contentment is reckoned as the best gain1 good company the right course1 reasoning the true knowledge1 and quietism the highest bliss 7of man74 #bj4 ,these are the four surest means to break off the trammels of the world1 and whoever is practiced in these1 has surely passed over the erroneous waters of the terrestrial sea4 #ba4 ,learn1 ,o best of the intelligent6 that the practice of some one of these pure virtues1 leads to an assuetude of all the four 7cardinal virtues74 #bb4 ,every one of these separately is a leader to the others2 wherefore diligently apply yourself to one of these for your success in getting them all4 #bc4 ,association with the good1 contentment1 right reasoning1 and good judgment1 joined with peace and tranquility1 serve as cargo-ships in the ocean of the world4 #bd4 ,all prosperity attends on him who is possessed of reason1 contentment1 quietism and the habit of keeping good company1 like the fruits of the kalpa tree 7satisfying every desire74 #be4 ,the man possessed of reasoning1 contentment1 quietude1 and a proclivity to keep good company1 is attended by every grace1 as all the digits unite in the full moon4 #bf4 ,the happy mind which is fraught with contentment1 quietness1 reasoning power1 and a tendency to good company1 meets with the prosperity and success1 as they attend on kings 7who are7 guided by 7the counsels of7 good ministers4 #bg4 ,therefore1 ,o delight of ,raghu's race6 do you bravely govern your mind1 and always practise with diligence some one of these virtues 7for your conduct in life74 #bh4 ,exert your best manliness to subdue your elephantine mind1 and know that until you have mastered one of these cardinal virtues1 you can make no progress 7in holiness74 #bi4 ,it must be1 ,o ,rma6 that you shall have to set your heart to work by the exertion of your manliness and the gnashing of your teeth1 for your success in meritorious deeds4 #cj4 ,for whether you be a god or yaksha or a man or an arbor1 you cannot1 ,o long-armed ,rma6 have a better course till then 7i4e4 before mastering one of these qualities74 #ca4 ,as soon as one of these virtues is strengthened and made fruitful in you1 it will serve to weaken the force of the faults of your ungovernable mind4 #cb4 ,the cultivation of virtues leads to their full growth and suppression of vice2 but the fostering of vice will 7on the other hand7 conduce to the increase of vices and suppression of good qualities4 #cc4 ,the mind is a wilderness of errors1 in which the stream of our desires is running with full force1 amidst its two banks of good and evil whereon we hold our stand4 #cd4 ,it bears away and throws the man on that bank which he strives to reach by his own exertion1 therefore ,o ,rma1 do as you like to reach to either shore4 #ce4 ,now try by degrees with all the exertion of your manly force1 to turn the course of your desires towards the happy shore in the forest of your mind2 and know1 ,o high-minded ,rma2 that one's own disposition is as a rapid current to him1 which must not be permitted to bear him away 7to the perilous coast74 ,,chapter ,,xvii4 ,,on ,,the ,,contents ,,of ,,the ,,work4 ,thus1 ,o progeny of ,raghu6 it is the reasoning soul that is worthy of attending to the words of wisdom1 as a prince 7is inclined to listen7 to a discourse on polity4 #b4 ,the clear and high-minded man1 who has renounced the company of stupid folks1 is capable of fair reasoning1 as the clear sky has the capacity of receiving the moon-light4 #c4 ,you who are replete with the entire grace of this quality1 should now attend to the words1 that ,i say1 to remove the errors of your mind4 #d4 ,he1 the arbour of whose merits is bending down with the load of its fruits1 feels a desire to hear these words for the sake of his salvation4 #e4 ,it is the noble minded only and not the base1 that are receptacles of grand and holy sermons conferring the knowledge of their future state4 #f4 ,this collection consisting of thirty-two thousand stanzas1 is deemed as containing the essence of the means conducing to liberation1 and conferring the final annihilation 7of our being74 #g4 ,as a lighted lamp presents its light to every waking man1 so does this work effect the ultimate extinction of every person whether he would like it or not4 #h4 ,one's knowledge of this work whether by his own perusal or hearing of it from the rehearsal of others1 tends to the immediate obliteration of his errors and augmentation of his delight1 as it is done by the holy river of heaven 7,ganges74 #i4 ,as the fallacy of a snake in the rope is removed by examining it1 so the fallacy of the reality of the world is removed by perusal of this work1 which gives peace to one who is vexed with and tired of the world4 #aj4 ,it contains six books all fraught with sentences full of reason1 and each distinct from the other in its import4 ,it has many verses containing chosen examples on all subjects4 #aa4 ,the first book treats of ,indifference1 and causes the growth of apathy 7in the mind7 like that of a tree in the desert soil4 #ab4 ,it contains one thousand and five hundred stanzas1 which being well considered in the mind1 must impart a purity to it like the lustre of a gem after its polish4 #ac4 ,the next book dwells on the conduct of one longing after his liberation1 and contains a thousand slokas arranged in judicious order4 #ad4 ,it describes the nature of men desiring their liberation4 ,then follows the book on the creation of the world1 and filled with narratives and examples 7of various kinds74 #ae4 ,it has seven thousand stanzas teaching sound philosophy about the spectator and spectacle of the world in the forms of--,i and thou1 designated the ego and non-ego4 #af4 ,it contains a description of the production of the world from its state of non-existence4 ,a diligent attention to this chapter will convey a full knowledge of this world into the mind of the hearer4 #ag4 ,this ego and non-ego1 and this vast expanse with all the worlds1 space and mountains1 are 7to be viewed7 as having no form nor foundation1 and as there are no such things 7in reality74 #ah4 ,there are no elements as the earth and others which exist in our fancy only1 and are like phantoms appearing in a dream1 or as aerial castles and chimeras of the mind4 #bj4 ,they resemble the moving hills on the shore to one passing in a boat1 without any actual movement in them2 or liken the hobgoblins appearing to an unsound mind4 ,such is the appearance of the world without any seed or source or origin of its own4 #ba4 ,it is as the impression of a tale in the mind1 or the sight of a chain of pearls in the sky1 or taking a bracelet for its gold or a wave for the water4 7i4e4 ,taking the appearance for its cause1 or the phenomena for the noumena74 #bb4 ,or as the blueness of the sky is always apparent to sight without its reality1 and evercharming to behold without the existence of any colour in it4 #bc4 ,thus whatever unreal wonders always appear to us in our dreams or in the sky1 they are but the resemblances of a fire in a picture1 which seems to be burning without having any fire in it4 #bd4 ,the word 8jagat0 or passing1 is appropriately applied to the transitory world1 which passes like the sea with its heaving waves1 appearing as a chain of lotus flowers in dancing4 #be4 ,it is 7as false7 as one's imagination of a body of waters at a spot1 from the sound of the ruddy geese 7that live by rivers72 and 7as useless7 as a withered forest in autumn1 when the leaves and fruits fall off1 and yield neither shade nor luscious nutriment1 7to the traveller74 #bf4 ,it is full with delirious cravings as of men at the point of death1 and as dark as caverns in the mountains4 ,hence the efforts of men are but acts of their phrensy4 #bg4 ,it is better to dwell in the clear sky of the autumnal 7atmosphere of7 philosophy1 after subsidence of the frost of ignorance1 than to view at this world1 which is no more than an image at a post or a picture upon the wall4 #bh4 ,know all sensible and insensible things to be made of dust 7to be reduced to dust again74 ,next follows the book on ,existence4 #bi4 ,it contains three thousand stanzas full of explanations and narratives1 showing the existence of the world to be a form 7or development7 of the essence of the ,ego 7in a subjective light74 #cj4 ,it treats of the manner in which the spectator 7,ego7 is manifest as the spectacle 7non-ego71 and how the ten-sided sphere of the arbour of the world is manifest both as the subjective and objective 7at the same time74 #ca4 ,it has thus arrived at its development which is said to be everlasting4 ,next follows the book on quietude consisting of five thousand stanzas4 #cb4 ,the fifth is styled the book on holiness1 containing a series of excellent lectures1 and shewing the erroneous conception of the world1 as ,i1 thou and he 7as distinct existences74 #cc4 ,it is the suppression of this error1 which forms the subject of this book2 and the hearing of the chapter on quietude1 serves to put an end to our transmigration in this world4 #cd4 ,after suppression of the train of errors1 there still remain slight vestiges of it to a hundredth part1 as the dispersed troops in a picture afford us some faint idea of them4 #ce4 ,aiming at the object of another person is as vain as looking at the beauty of an imaginary city1 and sitting in expectation of an unattainable object4 ,it is as a noisy fighting for something in sleep4 #cf4 ,it is as vain as a man of unsubdued desires1 bursting into a roaring like that of the loud and tremendous thunder-claps1 and as the raising of a city on the model of one's effaced impressions in a dream4 #cg4 ,it is as vain as a would-be city1 with its garden and flowers and fruits growing in it3 and as a sterile woman bragging of the valorous deeds of her unborn and would-be sons4 #ch4 ,or when a painter is about to draw the picture of an imaginary city on the ground work of a chart1 by forgetting to sketch a plan of it beforehand4 #ci4 ,it is as vain as to expect evergreen herbage and fruitage of all seasons1 and the breeze of an ungrown arbour2 or to it in a future flowery parterre1 pleasant with the sweets of spring4 #dj4 ,then follows the sixth book entitled annihilation1 which is as clear as the waters of a river after subsidence of its billows within itself4 #da4 ,it contains the remaining number of slokas 7i4e4 #adejj ,stanzas of the aggregate number of #cbjjj ,slokas composing the entire work71 a knowledge of these is pregnant with great meanings1 and the understanding of them leads to the chief good of utter extinction and pacification of desires4 #db4 ,the intellect being abstracted from all its objects1 presents the manifestation of the soul1 which is full of intelligence and free from all impurity4 ,it is enveloped in the sheath of infinite vacuity1 and is wholly pure and devoid of worldly errors4 #dc4 ,having finished its journey through the world and performed its duties here1 the soul assumes a calmness as that of the adamantine column of the sky1 reflecting the images of the tumultuous world 7without changing itself74 #dd4 ,it rejoices exceedingly at its being delivered from the innumerable snares of the world1 and becomes as light as air by being freed from its desire of looking after the endless objects 7of its enjoyments74 #de4 ,the soul that takes no notice of the cause or effect or doing of any thing1 as also of what is to be avoided or accepted 7i4e4 which remains totally indifferent to every thing71 is said to be disembodied though encumbered with a body1 and to become unworldly in its worldly state4 #df4 ,the intelligent soul is compared to a solid rock1 compact and without any gap in it4 ,it is the sun of intelligence which enlightens all people1 and dispels the darkness of ignorance4 #dg4 7,this soul7 though so very luminous1 has become grossly darkened 7in its nature71 by being confined to the vile fooleries of the world1 and wasted by the malady of its cravings4 #dh4 ,when freed from the chimera of its egoism1 it becomes incorporeal even in its embodied state1 and beholds 7the glory of7 the whole world as it was placed at the point of one of the myriads of hairs 7on its body71 or like a bee sitting on a flower upon the ,sumeru mountain4 #di4 ,the intelligent and vacuous soul contains and beholds in its sphere a thousand glories of the world1 shining in each atom1 as it was in a mirror4 #ej4 ,it is not even possible to thousands of ,haris1 ,haras and ,brahms1 to equal the great minded sage in the extent of his comprehensive soul2 because the liberated have their chief good 7of internal joy7 stretched to a far greater limit than any4 ,,chapter ,,xviii4 ,,ascertainment ,,of ,,the ,,example ,,or ,,major ,,proposition ,vasishtha said3-- ,the several parts of this work as already related1 give rise to the understanding1 as seeds sown in a good field never fail to produce good fruitage4 #b4 ,even human compositions are acceptable when they are instructive of good sense2 otherwise the ,vedas also are to be renounced 7as unreliable72 because men are required always to abide by reason4 #c4 ,words conformable with reason are to be received even if spoken by boys2 otherwise they are to be rejected as straws though pronounced by the lotus-born 7,brahm himself74 #d4 ,whoever drinks from a well by reason of its being dug by his ancestors1 and rejects the holy water of the ,ganges even when placed before him1 is an incorrigible simpleton4 #e4 ,as early dawn is invariably accompanied by its train of light1 so is good judgment an inevitable attendant on the perusal of this work4 #f4 ,whether these lessons are heard from the mouth of the learned1 or well studied by one's self1 they will gradually make their impressions upon the mind by one's constant reflection on their sense4 #g4 ,they will first furnish 7to the learner7 a variety of ,sanskrit expressions1 and then spread before him a series of holy and judicious maxims1 like so many ornamental creepers to decorate the hall4 #h4 ,they will produce a cleverness joined with such qualifications and greatness1 as to engage the good grace of gods and kings4 #i4 ,they are called the intelligent who know the cause and effect of things1 and are likened to a torch-bearer who is clear sighted in the darkness of the night4 7,like the stoa of the ,stoics74 #aj4 ,all their erroneous and covetous thoughts become weaker by degrees1 as the regions of the sky are cleared of their mists at the approach of autumn4 #aa4 ,your thoughts require only the guidance of reason 7to hit the right71 as every action needs be duly performed to make it successful4 #ab4 ,the intellect becomes 7by culture7 as clear as a great lake in autumn1 and it gets its calmness 7by reason71 like that of the sea after its churning by the ,mandara mountain4 #ac4 ,like the flame of a chandelier cleansed of its sootiness and dispelling the shroud of darkness1 the refined intellect shines forth in full brightness1 and distinguishes 7the different natures of7 things4 #ad4 ,the evils of penury and poverty cannot overpower on them1 whose strong sight can discern the evils of their opposites 7wealth and riches72 as no dart can pierce the mortal parts of a soldier clad in full armour4 #ae4 ,no worldly fears can daunt the heart of the wise man1 however nearest they may approach to him4 ,just as no arrow can pierce through a huge solid stone4 #af4 ,such doubts as 8whether it is destiny or our own merit that is the cause of our births and actions10 are removed 7by learning71 as darkness is dispelled by day-light4 #ag4 ,there is a calm tranquility attending upon the wise at all times and in all conditions 7of life72 so also does the light of reason like solar rays1 follow the dark night of error4 #ah4 ,the man of right judgment has a soul as deep as the ocean and as firm as a mountain1 and a cool serenity always shines within him like that of moon-light4 #ai4 ,it is he who arrives slowly at what is called 8living-liberation20 who remains calm amidst the endless turmoils 7of the world71 and is quite aloof from common talk 7i4e4 unnoticed by the world74 #bj4 ,his mind is calm and cool at every thing2 it is pure and full of heavenly light2 shining serenely as the autumnal night with the radiance of moon-beams4 #ba4 ,when the sun of reason illumines the cloudless region of the mind1 no portentous comet of evil can make its appearance 7within its sphere74 #bb4 ,all desires are at rest with the elevated2 they are pure with the steady1 and indifferent to the inert1 like the body of light clouds in autumn4 #bc4 ,the slanders of envious ill-wishers are put out of countenance 7by the wise71 as the frolics of goblins disappear at the approach of day4 #bd4 ,the mind that is fixed on the firm basis of virtue1 and placed under the burthen of patience1 is not to be shaken by accidents2 but remains as a plant in a painting 7unmoved by winds74 #be4 ,the knowing man does not fall into the pit-falls lying all about the affairs of this world3 for who that knows the way will run into the ditch8 #bf4 ,the minds of the wise are as much delighted in acting conformably to the precepts of good books and the examples of the virtuous1 as chaste women are fond of keeping themselves within the bounds of the inner apartments4 #bg4 ,of the innumerable millions of atoms which compose this universe1 every one of them is viewed in the light of a world in the mind of the abstracted philosopher4 #bh4 ,the man whose mind is purified by a knowledge of the precepts of liberation1 neither repines nor rejoices at the loss or gain of the objects of enjoyment4 #bi4 ,men of unfettered minds look upon the appearance and disappearance of every atomic world1 as the fluctuating wave of the sea4 #cj4 ,they neither grieve at unwished-for occurrences nor pine for their wished-for chances2 and knowing well all accidents to be the consequences of their actions1 they remain as unconscious as trees 7totally insensible of them74 #ca4 ,these 7holy men7 appear as common people1 and live upon what they get2 whether they meet with aught of welcome or unwelcome to them1 their minds remain unconquered4 #cb4 ,they having understood the whole of this ,sstra1 and having read and considered it well1 as well as pondered 7on its purport71 hold their silence as in the case of a curse or blessing 7which is never uttered by saints74 #cc4 ,this ,sstra is easy to be understood1 and is ornamented with figures 7of speech74 ,it is a poem full of flavours and embellished with beautiful similes4 #cd4 ,one may be self taught in it who has a slight knowledge of words and their senses2 but he who does not understand the purport well1 should learn it from a pandit4 #ce4 ,after hearing1 thinking and understanding this work1 one has no more need of practising austerities1 or of meditation and repeating the ,mantras and other rites3 and a man requires nothing else in this world for the attainment of his liberation4 #cf4 ,by deep study of this work and its repeated perusal1 a man attains to an uncommon scholarship next to the purification of his soul4 #cg4 ,the ego and the non-ego1 that is1 the viewer and the view1 are both but chimeras of the imagination1 and it is their annihilation alone1 that leads insensibly to the vision of the soul4 #ch4 ,the error of the reality of ego and the perceptible world1 will vanish away as visions in a dream2 for who1 that knows the falsehood of dreams1 will fall into the error 7of taking them for truth87 #ci4 ,as an imaginary palace gives no joy or grief to any body1 so it is in the case of the erroneous conception of the world4 #dj4 ,as no body is afraid of a serpent that he sees in painting1 so the sight of a living serpent neither terrifies nor pleases one who knows it4 #da4 ,and as it is our knowledge of the painted serpent that removes our fear of it as a serpent1 so our conviction of the unreality of the world1 must disperse our mistake of its existence4 #db4 ,even the plucking of a flower or tearing of its 7tender7 leaflet1 is attended with a little exertion 7of the nails and fingers71 but no 7bodily7 exertion whatever is required to gain the blessed state 7of ,yoga meditation74 #dc4 ,there is an action of the members of body1 accompanied with the act of plucking or pulling off a flower2 but in the other case 7of ,yoga71 you have only to fix your mind1 and make no exertion of your body4 #dd4 ,it is practicable with ease by any one sitting on his easy seat and fed with his usual food1 and not addicted to gross pleasures1 nor trespassing the rules of good conduct4 #de4 ,you can derive happiness at each place and time1 from your own observations1 as also from your association with the good wherever it is available4 ,this is an optional rule4 #df4 ,these are the means of gaining a knowledge of the highest wisdom1 conferring peace in this world1 and saving us from the pain of being reborn in the womb4 #dg4 ,but such as are afraid of this course1 and are addicted to the vicious pleasures of the world1 are to be reckoned as too base1 and no better than faeces and worms of their mother's bowels4 #dh4 ,attend now1 ,rma1 to what ,i am going to say with regard to the advancement of knowledge1 and improvement of the understanding in another way4 #di4 ,hear now the recent method in which this ,sstra is learnt 7by people71 and its true sense interpreted to them by means of its ,exposition4 #ej4 ,that thing which serves to explain the unapparent meaning 7of a passage71 by its illustration by some thing that is well known1 and which may be useful to help the understanding 7of the passage7 is called a simile or ,example4 #ea4 ,it is hard to understand the meaning given before without an instance1 just as it is useless to have a lampstick at home without setting a lamp on it at night4 #eb4 ,whatever similes and examples ,i have used to make you understand 7the precepts71 are all derived from some cause or other1 but they lead to knowledge of the uncaused ,brahma4 #ec4 ,wherever the comparisons and compared objects are used as expressive of the cause and effect1 they apply to all cases except ,brahma 7who is without a cause74 #ed4 ,the examples that are given to explain the nature of ,brahma1 are to be taken in their partial 7and not general7 sense4 #ee4 ,whatever examples are given here as explanatory of divine nature1 they are to be understood as appertaining to a world seen in a dream4 #ef4 ,in such cases1 no corporeal instance can apply to the incorporeal ,brahma1 nor optional and ambiguous expressions give a definite idea of ,him4 #eg4 ,those who find fault with instances of an imperfect or contradictory nature1 cannot blame our comparison of the appearance of the world to a vision in dream4 #eh4 ,a prior and posterior non-entity is considered as existent at the present moment 7as is the visible world which was not1 nor will be afterwards74 ,so the waking and dreaming states are known to be alike from our boyhood4 #ei4 ,the simile of the existence of the world with the dreaming state is exact in all instances1 as our desires1 thoughts1 our pleasures and displeasures1 and all other acts are alike in both states4 #fj4 ,both this work and others which have been composed by other authors on the means of salvation1 have all pursued the same plan in their explanation of the knowable4 #fa4 ,the resemblance of the world to a dream is found also in the ,srutis or ,vednta4 ,it is not to be explained in a word1 but requires a continued course of lectures 7on the subject74 #fb4 ,the comparison of the world to an imagery in the dream or an imaginary ,utopia of the mind1 is also adduced in examples of this kind in preference to others4 #fc4 ,whenever a causality is shown by a simile of something which is no cause1 there the simile is applied in some particular and not all its general attributes4 #fd4 ,the partial similitude of this comparison with some property of the compared object1 is unhesitatingly acknowledged by the learned in all their illustrations4 #fe4 ,the light of the sense 7of some thing7 is compared with a lamp in its brightness only1 in disregard of its stand or stick1 the oil or the wick4 #ff4 ,the compared object is to be understood in its capacity of admitting a partial comparison 7of the properties72 as in the instance of sense and light1 the simile consists in the brightness of both4 #fg4 ,when the knowledge of the knowable thing is derived from some particular property of the comparison1 it is granted as a suitable simile1 in understanding the sense of some great saying 7passage in the scriptures74 #fh4 ,we must not overshadow our intellect by bad logic1 nor set at naught our common sense by an unholy scepticism4 #fi4 ,we have by our reasoning well weighed the verbosity of our opinionative adversaries1 and never set aside the holy sayings of the ,vedas1 even when they are at variance with the opinions of our families4 #gj4 ,o ,rma6 we have stored in our minds the truths resulting from the unanimous voice of all the ,sstras1 whereby it will be evident that we have attained the object of our belief1 apart from the fabricated systems of heretical ,sstras4 ,,chapter ,,xix4 ,,ascertainment ,,of ,,true ,,evidence4 ,it is the similarity of some particular property 7of one thing to that of another7 which constitutes a simile2 whereas a complete similitude between the comparison and compared object1 destroys their difference 7and makes them the one and same thing74 #b4 ,from the knowledge of parables follows the cognition of the one soul treated of in the ,sstras 7,vednta72 and the peace which attends on the meditation of the ,holy ,word1 is styled ,extinction4 #c4 ,it is therefore useless to talk of either 7the complete or partial7 agreement 7of the properties7 of the example and the exemplar2 it is enough to the purpose to comprehend the purport of the holy word in some way or other4 #d4 ,know your peace to be the chief good1 and be diligent to secure the same4 ,when you have got the food for your eating1 it is useless to talk about how you came by it4 #e4 ,a cause is compared with 7or shewn for its explication by7 something which is no cause at all3 so is a comparison given to express its partial agreement in some respect with the compared object4 #f4 ,we must not be so absorbed in the pleasures of the world as to be devoid of all sensibility2 like some blind frogs which are generated and grow fat amidst the stones4 #g4 ,be attentive to these parables and learn your best state from them2 all reasonable men should abide by the lessons of religious works for their internal peace4 #h4 ,as also by the precepts of the ,sstras1 by the rules of humanity1 prudence and spiritual knowledge2 and also by the continued practice of the acts of religious merit4 #i4 ,let the wise continue their inquiries until they can obtain their internal peace1 and until they may arrive at the fourth stage 7turya7 of felicity known by the name of indestructible tranquility4 #aj4 ,whoso has gained this fourth state of tranquil felicity1 he has really passed beyond the limits of the ocean of the world1 whether he is alive or not1 or a house-holder or an ascetic4 #aa4 ,such a man remains steady at his place like the calm sea undisturbed by the ,mandara mountain1 whether he has performed his duties according to the ,srutis and ,smritis or not4 #ab4 ,when there is a partial agreement of the comparison with the nature of the compared object1 it is to be considered maturely for the well understanding of the point in question1 and not to be made a matter of controversy4 #ac4 ,from every form of argument you are to understand the intelligible 7that is explained to you72 but the confounded disputant is blind both to right and false reasoning4 #ad4 ,the notion of self 7soul or ,god7 being clear 7self-evident7 in the sphere of our consciousness within the mind4 ,any one who prattles meaninglessly about this truth1 is said to be defective in his understanding 7i4e4 our consciousness of self-existence according to the maxim 8,ego sum qui cogito10 is an undeniable truth74 #ae4 ,it is partly by pride and partly by their doubts1 that the ignorant are led to altercate about their cognitions1 and thereby they obscure the region of their inward understanding1 as the clouds overshadow the clear firmament4 #af4 ,of all sorts of proofs it is the evidence of perception which forms their fountain-head1 as the sea is the mainspring of all its waters4 ,it is this alone which is used in this place as you shall learn below4 #ag4 ,the substance of all sensations is said to be the supersensible apprehension 7or inward knowledge of things7 by the wise2 and it is verily their right concept which is meant by their perception4 #ah4 ,thus the notion1 knowledge and certainty 7of things7 as derived from words1 are styled the triplicate perception as we have of the living soul4 #ai4 ,this soul is consciousness and egoism1 and is of the masculine termination1 and the cognition of the object whereby it is manifested to us1 is called a category4 7,viz4 samvid1 samvitti and padrtha74 #bj4 ,it becomes manifest in the form of the passing world by the multifarious acts and shifts of its volition and option1 as the water exhibits itself in the shape of its waves and bubbles4 #ba4 ,it was uncausal before1 and then developed itself as the cause of all in its act of creating at the beginning of creation1 and became perceptible by itself4 #bb4 ,the causality was a product of the discrimination of the living soul1 that was in a state of inexistence 7before72 until it became manifest as existent in the form of the material world4 #bc4 ,reason says1 that the self-same being destroys the body which was produced of itself1 and manifests itself in its transcendental magnitude 7of intelligence74 #bd4 ,when the reasoning man comes to know the soul1 he finds by his reason the presence of the indescribable being1 before him4 #be4 ,the mind being free from desire1 the organs of sense are relieved from their action1 the soul becomes devoid of the results of its past actions as of those it has left undone4 #bf4 ,the mind being set at ease and freed from its desires1 the organs of action are restrained from their acts1 as an engine when stopped in its motion4 #bg4 ,it is sensuousness which is reckoned as the cause that puts the machinery of the mind to work1 just as the rope tied to the log and fastened about the neck of a ram1 propels him to fighting4 #bh4 ,the sight of external objects and the purposes of the internal mind1 set all men at play1 as the inward force of the air puts the winds to motion4 #bi4 ,all spiritual knowledge is holy wherever it is found in any one3 it adds a lustre to the body and mind like that of the expanded region of the sky4 #cj4 ,he sees the appearances of all visible objects1 and maintains his own position among them4 ,he views the spirit in the same light in which it presents itself in any place4 #ca4 ,wherever the universal soul appears itself in any light1 it remains there and then in the same form in which it exhibits itself unto us4 #cb4 ,the universal soul being alike in all1 the looker and the object seen are both the same being4 ,the looker and the looked being one1 their appearance as otherwise is all unreal4 #cc4 ,hence the world is without a cause 7because it is an unreality and not caused by any one74 ,all existence is evidently ,brahma himself1 the perceptible cause of all4 ,hence perception 7pratyaxa7 is the basis of evidence1 and inference and others as analogy and verbal testimony are but parts of it 7anumna1 upam1 sbdah74 #cd4 ,now let the worshippers of fate who apply the term destiny to all their exertions1 cast off their false faith2 and let the brave exert their manliness to attain their highest state4 #ce4 ,continue ,o ,rma1 to consider the true and lucid doctrines of the successive teachers 7of mankind71 until you can arrive to a clear conception of the infinitely ,supreme being in your own mind4 ,,chapter ,,xx4 ,,on ,,good ,,conduct4 ,it is the society of the respectable and reasoning with them1 that leads most efficiently to the improvement of the understanding1 and next to the making of a great man1 with all the characteristics of greatness4 #b4 ,whatever man excels in any quality here1 he becomes distinguished by it3 therefore learn it from him1 and improve your understanding by the same4 #c4 ,true greatness consists in quietness and other virtues1 without a knowledge of which it is impossible1 ,o ,rma6 to be successful in anything4 #d4 ,learning produces quiet and other qualities1 and increases the virtues of good people2 all which are praised by their good effects on the mind1 as the rain is hailed for its growing the new sprouts of plants4 #e4 ,the qualities of quietude and other virtues serve to increase the best knowledge 7of men72 as sacrifice with rice serves to produce felicitous rains for the harvest4 #f4 ,as learning produces the qualities of quiet and the like1 so do these qualities give rise to learning2 thus they serve to grow each other1 as the lake and lotuses contribute to their mutual benefit 7excellence74 #g4 ,learning is produced by right conduct as good conduct results from learning2 thus wisdom and morality are natural helps to one another4 #h4 ,the intelligent man who is possessed of quietude1 meekness and good conduct1 should practise wisdom1 and follow the ways of good people4 #i4 ,unless one should bring to practice his wisdom and good conduct in an equal degree1 he will never be successful in either of them4 #aj4 ,both of these should be conjoined together like the song united with percussion1 as it is done by the husbandman and his wife in sowing the seeds and driving away the 7seed-picking7 birds from their fields of grain4 #aa4 ,it is by practice of wisdom and right conduct 7as causes of one another71 that good people are enabled to acquire both of them in an equal degree4 #ab4 ,i have already expounded to you1 ,o ,rma1 the rule of good conduct1 and will now explain to you fully the way of gaining learning4 #ac4 ,learning conduces to renown1 long life and to the acquisition of the object of your exertion2 therefore should the intelligent learn the good sciences from those who have studied and mastered them4 #ad4 ,by hearing 7these lectures7 with a clear understanding1 you will surely attain the state of perfection1 as dirty water is purified by infusion of the ,kata fruits4 #ae4 ,the sage who has known the knowable1 has his mind drawn insensibly to the blissful state2 and that highest state of unbounded felicity being once known and felt 7in the mind71 it is hard to loose its impression at any time4 ,,yoga ,v,,sishtha ,,book ,,iii4 ,,utpatti-,,khanda4 ,,evolution ,,of ,,the ,,world4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,causes ,,of ,,bondage ,,to ,,it4 ,,section ,i4 ,,exordium 7,,bh,,mik47 ,it is both by means of words and lights 7,vgbhbhis i4e4 the words of the scripture and the lights of nature and reason71 that the knower of the ,great ,god 7,brahmavid71 perceives the spirit of ,brahma appearing within himself as in a dream4 ,and he also knows him as such1 who understands him according to the purport of the holy text4 8,what this is1 that is the self40 7i4e4 ,he is all in all74 #b4 ,this passage shows in short1 the visible world to reside in the vacuous bosom of ,brahma at its creation3 it is now to be known in length1 what this creation is1 whence it takes its rise1 and wherein it becomes extinct at last4 #c4 ,hear me1 ,o intelligent ,rma6 now expound to you all things according to my best knowledge of them1 and agreeably to their nature and substance in the order of creation4 #d4 ,one conscious of himself as a spiritual and intelligent being1 views the passing world as a ,somnum 7swapnam7 dream3 and this dreaming simile of the passing world1 applies equally to our knowledge of ego and tu or non-ego 7which is as false as our cognitions in a dream74 #e4 ,next to the book describing the conduct of the seekers of liberation 7mumukshu-vyavahra71 then follows the book of evolution 7utpatti71 which ,i am now going to propound to you4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,worldly ,,bondage4 #f4 ,bondage consists in our belief of the reality of the visible world 7and our relation with its phenomena1 ,gloss74 ,so our release depends on the negation of phenomenals4 ,now hear me tell you how to get rid of the visible 7fetters of our minds74 #g4 ,whoever is born in this world1 continues to progress1 till at last he obtains his final liberation 7his ultimum and optimum perfection72 or rises towards heaven or falls into hell 7under the subjection of his righteous and unrighteous actions 7,gloss774 #h4 ,i shall therefore expound for your understanding every thing relating to the production and continuance of things1 and their prior states as they were4 #i4 ,hear me ,rma1 now give you an abstract of this book in brief1 and ,i will here-after dilate upon it1 as you may wish to know more of this 7theory of production74 ,,section ,,iii4 ,,phases ,,of ,,the ,,spirit4 #aj4 ,whatever appears either as moving or unmoving in this world1 know them all as appearances in a dream in a state of sound sleep 7susupti72 which become extinct at the end of a ,kalpa-age4 7,the events of a ,kalpa or day of ,brahm are as his day dream74 #aa4 ,then there remains a nameless and undeveloped something1 in a state of deep1 dark and dank abyss1 without any light or thick-spread 7nebulae7 over it4 7,the ,teo and ,beo of ,moses1 the tama teom of ,manu and ,veda1 and the ,moisture of ,thales74 #ab4 ,this great self-existence is afterwards attributed with the titles of ,reality 7,rita71 self 7tma71 ,supreme 7,param71 ,immense 7,brahma71 ,truth 7,satyam7 and so forth by the wise1 as expressions for the ,great ,spirit 7mahtman7 for popular use4 7,vide ,gloss for definitions of these terms74 #ac4 ,this self-same spirit next shows itself in another form1 which is called the living soul 7,jvtm71 and comes afterwards to be understood in the limited sense of life4 7,jva1 ,jv1 ,zeu or ,zeus2 ,ji and ,jn2 ,zoa ,protozoa c474 7,but it is the undivided and universal soul of which the divided1 individual and particular souls are but parts and particles4 ,gloss74 #ad4 ,this inert living principle 7,jva-,life or the ,protozoa71 becomes according to its literal signification the moving spirit 7kultma71 which afterwards with its power of thinking 7manana7 becomes the ,mind1 and lastly the embodied soul 7,bhttm74 7,so says the ,sruti2 ,etasmt ,jyate prnah1 manah1 sarvendriynicha1 ,kham1 ,vyurp1 ,prithiv c4 7i4e4 ,from ,him--the ,spirit1 is derived the life1 mind and the organs of sense or body1 whence he is styled the ,living1 ,thinking and ,all acting ,deity774 #ae4 ,thus the mind is produced and changed from the quiescent nature of the ,great ,supreme ,spirit to a state of restlessness 7asthirkra7 like that of a surge1 heaving itself in the 7,pacific7 ,ocean 7i4e4 the restful spirit of ,god-,brahma is transformed to the restless state of the ,mind1 personified as ,brahm or ,hiranyagarbha1 called the ,atmabhu--the son of the spirit of ,god or ,god the ,son1 ,demiurge74 #af4 ,the mind soon evolves itself as a self-volitive power which exercises its desires at all times whereby this extensive magic scene of the world is displayed to our view4 ,this scene is figured as ,virjmrti1 or manifestation of the desires of the will of ,divine mind1 and represented as the offspring of ,brahm in the ,indian ,theogony4 7,vide ,manu on ,genesis1 chap ,i74 #ag4 ,as the word golden bracelet signifies no other thing than a bracelet made of gold1 so the meaning of the word world is not different from its source--the ,divine will4 7,the difference is formal and not material1 and consists in form and not in the substance1 the divine will being the substratum of the formal world74 #ah4 ,again as the word gold bears the idea of the substance of which the bracelet is made1 so the word ,brahma conveys the meaning of immensity which contains the world in it2 but the word world contains no idea of ,brahma nor bracelet that of gold4 7,the substance contains the form as a stone does the statue1 but the form does not contain the substance1 as the statue may be of earth or metal or of wood74 #ai4 ,the unreality of the world appears as a reality1 just as the heat of the sun presents the unreal mirage in the moving sands of the desert as real waves of the sea4 7,so the phantasm of the mind-,brahm1 presents the phantasmagoria of the world 7,viswarpa7 as a sober reality74 #bj4 ,it is this phantasy 7of the reality of the unreal world71 which the learned in all things1 designate as ignorance--avidy1 nature--sansriti1 bondage--bandha1 illusion--my1 error-moha1 and darkness--tamas4 7,to denote our mental delusion and deception of senses4 ,gloss74 ,,section ,,iv4 ,,nature ,,of ,,bondage4 #ba4 ,now hear me relate to you1 ,o moon-faced ,rma6 about the nature of this bondage1 whereby you will be able to know the mode and manner of our liberation from it 7as the diagnosis of a disease being known1 it is not difficult to heal it74 #bb4 ,the intimate relation of the spectator with the spectacle is called his bondage to the same1 because the looker's mind is fast bound to the object of his sight4 ,it is the absence of the visible objects1 therefore1 from the mirror of the mind1 which is the only means of his liberation4 7,so also is the removal of the objects of the other senses from the mind74 #bc4 ,the knowledge of the world1 ego and tu 7as separate existences7 is said to be an erroneous view of the soul 7which is one and the same in all72 and there can be no liberation of one1 as long as he labours under this blunder of bheda-jnna or knowledge of individualities4 7,this is called savikalpa-jnna or cognition of biplicity1 which cannot lead to ,kaivalya mukti or the felicity derived from a knowledge of universal unity74 #bd4 ,to say that the soul is neither this nor that 7nedam-nedam7 is but false logomachy1 which cannot come to an end4 ,the discrimination of alternatives serves only to increase the ardour for the visibles4 7i4e4 ,the ardour of induction spreads the infection of materialism4 ,the idle neti-neti and tanna-tanna of ,vedanta ,philosophy is mere amphilogy and prevarication of both1 as idem et non idem74 #be4 ,it is not to be obtained by sophists by the chopping of logic or by pilgrimage or ceremonial acts1 any more than by a belief in the reality of the phenomenal world4 7,all these are observances of the esoteric faith and blind persuasion1 but do not appertain to the science of esoteric spiritualism4 ,gloss74 #bf4 ,it is hard to avoid the sight of the phenomenal world1 and to repress one's ardour for the same4 ,but it is certain that1 the visibles can not lead us to the ,reality1 nor the ,real mislead us to unreality 7i4e4 the spiritual and physical knowledge are mutually repugnant to each other74 #bg4 ,wherever the invisible1 inconceivable and intelligent spirit is existent1 there the beholder views the visible beauty of ,god shining even in the midst of atoms4 7i4e4 ,every particle of matter manifests the beauty of its maker2 unless there be a dull material object to intercept the sight of the intelligent soul74 #bh4 ,the phenomenal world has its rise from ,him1 yet those ignorant people that depart from ,him to the adoration of others1 resemble fools1 that forsake rice to feed upon gruel4 7i4e4 ,they take the shadow for the substance74 #bi4 ,although this visible world is apparent to sight1 yet ,o ,rma6 it is but a shadow of that ,being1 who resides alike in the smallest atom as in the mirror of the mind1 that receives the image of the largest as well as minutest things4 7,compare4 ,as full and perfect in a hair as heart4 ,pope47 #cj4 ,the spirit is reflected in every thing like a figure in the mirror1 and it shines equally in rocks and seas1 in the land and water1 as it does in the mirror of the mind4 7compare3 ,wherever ,i cast my eyes1 thy beauty shines74 #ca4 ,the visible world is the scene of incessant woes1 births1 decay and death1 and the states of waking1 dreaming and sound sleep1 are presenting by turns the gross1 subtile and evanescent forms of things for our delusion4 #cb4 ,here ,i sit in my meditative mood 7anirdha71 having wiped off the impressions of the visibles from my mind2 but my meditation is disturbed by the recurrence of my remembrance of the visibles3 and this is the cause of the endless transmigrations of the soul4 7i4e4 ,the reminiscence of the past is the cause of our everlasting bondage in life74 #cc4 ,it is hard to have a fixed 7nirdha7 and unalterable 7nirvikalpa7 meditation 7samdhi71 when the sight of the visible world is present before our bodily and mental vision4 ,even the fourth stage of insensible samdhi called the turya1 in the state of sound sleep 7susupti71 is soon succeeded by one's self-consciousness and external intelligence4 #cd4 ,on rising from this state of deep meditation1 one finds himself as roused from his sound sleep1 in order to view the world full of all its woes and imperfections opening wide before him4 7,compare1 8,i wake to a sea of troubles1 how happy they who wake no more04 ,young74 #ce4 ,what then1 ,o ,rma6 is the good of this transient bliss which one attains by his temporary abstraction 7,dhyna71 when he has to fall again to his sense of the sufferings to which the world is subject as a vale of tears4 7,compare1 8,when the cock crew ,i wept c40 ,young's ,night ,thoughts74 #cf4 ,but if one can attain to a state of unalterable abstraction of his thoughts from all worldly objects1 as he has in his state of sound sleep 7susupti71 he is then said to have reached the highest pitch of his holiness on earth4 7,for it is the entire oblivion of the world that is necessary for our spiritual perfection1 as it is said1 8forget the present for the future074 #cg4 ,no body has ever earned aught of reality in the scene of unreal vanities2 for whenever his thoughts come in contact with any outward thing1 he finds it inseparable from the blemishes of existence4 78,vanity of vanities1 the world is vanity04 ,ecclesiastes47 #ch4 ,should any body 7in the practice of the fixedness of his attention71 fix his sight for a while on a stone1 by forcibly withdrawing it from visible objects1 he is sure to be carried away afterwards by the visibles pressing upon his sight4 #ci4 ,it is well known to all that an unflinching meditation1 having even the firmness of a rock1 can have no durability1 in the practice of the ,yogi owing to his worldly propensities4 #dj4 ,even the nirdha or steadfast meditation which has attained the fixedness of a rock1 cannot advance one step towards the attainment of that tranquillity which has no bounds to it4 7i4e4 ,the everlasting bliss of liberation or moksha74 #da4 ,thus the sight of phenomena being altogether irrepressible1 it is a foolish supposition of its being suppressed by practices of ,jap-tap or prayers and austerities and the like acts of devotion4 #db4 ,the idea of the phenomena 7drisyadhi71 is as inherent in the mind of the spectator of the visible world1 as the seeds of the lotus flower are contained in the inner cells of the pericarp4 #dc4 ,the ideal of the phenomenal world 7drisyadhi71 lies as hidden in the minds of the spectators of the outer world1 as are the in-born flavour and moisture of fruits1 the oil of sesamum seeds2 and the innate sweet scent of flowers4 #dd4 ,as the fragrance of camphor and other odoriferous substances inheres in their nature1 so the reflexion of the visible world resides in the bosom of the intellect4 #de4 ,as your dreams and desires rise and subside of themselves under the province of your intellect1 so the notions of things always recur to your mind from the original ideas of them impressed in the seat of the visibles 7the mind74 #df4 ,the mental apparition of the visible world1 deludes its beholder in the same manner1 as the visual appearance of a spectre or hobgoblin1 misleads a child 7to its destruction74 #dg4 ,the notion of the visible world gradually expands itself1 as the germ of the seed shoots forth in time1 and spreads itself afterwards in the form of a plant4 #dh4 ,as the minute germs and animalcules1 which are contained within the bosoms of fruits and embryos of animals1 expand themselves to wonderfully beauteous forms afterwards1 so the seed of this world 7originally7 lying hid in the ,divine ,mind1 unfolds itself in wonderful forms of the visible phenomena in nature4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,first ,,cause4 ,,section ,i4 ,,narrative ,,of ,,the ,,air-,,born ,,and ,,aeriform ,,br,,hman4 ,vasishtha resumed3--,hear me ,rma2 now relate to you the narrative of one ksaja or air-born ,brhman1 which will be a jewel to your ears1 and enable you the better to understand the drift of the book of ,genesis4 #b4 ,there lived a ,brhman ksaja by name1 who sat always reclined in his meditation1 and was ever inclined to the doing of good to all creatures4 #c4 ,finding him long-lived1 ,death thought within himself saying3--,it is ,i alone that am imperishable1 and devour all things one by one4 #d4 ,how is it that ,i cannot cram myself with this air-born1 wherein ,i find my teeth as blunt in him1 as the edge of a sword is put to the bluff by the solid rock4 #e4 ,so saying1 he proceeded to the abode of the ,brhman1 intent upon making an end of him2 for who is of so dull a nature as is not alert in his practice4 #f4 ,but as he was about to enter the house1 he was opposed by a gorgeous flame of fire1 like the conflagration of final destruction on the last day of the dissolution of the world4 #g4 ,he pierced the ambient flame and entered the dwelling1 where seeing the ,brhman before him1 he stretched his hand to lay hold on him with all avidity4 #h4 ,he was unable even with his hundred hands 7i4e4 with all his might7 to grasp the ,brhman1 as it is impossible for the strongest to withstand the resolute man in his wonted course4 #i4 ,he then had recourse to ,yama--his lord to clear his doubt1 and to learn why he could not devour the air-born 7being74 #aj4 ,yama replied saying3--,death1 trust not too far thy own might1 that makes thee mighty to destroy the living4 ,it is the act of the dying person that is the chief cause of his death and naught otherwise4 #aa4 ,therefore do thou be diligent to find out the acts of the person thou intendest to kill2 because it is by their assistance only that thou canst seize thy prey4 #ab4 ,hereupon ,death betook himself gladly to wander about in all places under the horizon4 ,he roved over the habitable parts1 as also throughout the lacunal and fluvial districts4 #ac4 ,he traversed the forests and jungles1 marshy and rocky grounds and maritime coasts1 and passed to foreign lands and islands1 and pried through their wildernesses1 cities and towns4 #ad4 ,he searched through kingdoms and countries1 villages and deserts2 and surveyed the whole earth to find out some act of the ,brhman in any part of it4 #ae4 ,at last ,death with all his search and effort1 came to find the acts of the air-born ,brhman1 to be as nil as the offspring of a barren woman2 and his mind as transfixed 7in meditation7 as if it were a rock4 #af4 ,he then returned from his reconnoitering to his all-knowing master ,yama1 and besought his advice1 as servants do in matters of doubt and difficulty 7how to proceed74 #ag4 ,death addressed him saying3--8,tell me my lord1 where the acts of the ,air-born ,brhman are to be found20 to which ,yama after a long head-work1 replied as follows4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,state ,,of ,,the ,,soul4 #ah4 ,know1 ,o ,death6 that this air-born seer has no acts whatever2 for as he is born of empty air so his doings are all null and void4 7i4e4 ,the bodiless spirit or mind is devoid of acts requiring physical means and appliances74 #ai4 ,whoso is born of air1 is as pure as air itself1 and has no combination of cause or acts like all embodied 7beings74 #bj4 ,he has no relation with acts of his prior existence4 ,he is nil as the child of an unprolific woman1 and as one unborn1 uncreated and unbegotten4 #ba4 ,want of causes has made him a pure vacuous being1 and the privation of prior acts has made him as nil as an etherial arbor4 #bb4 ,his mind is not ruffled as those of others1 by reason of the privation of his former acts2 nor is there any such act of his present state1 whereby he may become a morsel to death4 #bc4 ,such is the soul seated in the sheath of vacuity1 and remaining for ever as the simple form of its own causality 7kranadeha71 and not guided by any extraneous causation whatever4 #bd4 ,it has no prior deed1 nor does it do any thing at present2 7i4e4 neither led by predestination1 nor actuated by present efforts72 but continues as something in the shape of aeriform intelligence4 #be4 ,our inference of the actions of breathing and motion by the agency of the soul1 is a mere supposition2 because the soul is devoid of every thought of or tendency to action4 #bf4 ,it sits meditating on itself as inseparable from the ,supreme ,intelligence1 just as the images 7in painting and statuary71 are inseparable from the mind of the painter and sculptor4 #bg4 ,the self-born ,brhman is as intimately connected with the objects of his thought1 as fluidity is associated with water and vacuity with the firmament4 #bh4 ,his soul is as immanent in the supreme1 as motion is inherent in the winds4 ,it has neither the accumulated acts of past lives1 nor those of its present state4 7i4e4 ,it is neither a passive nor active agent of prior or present acts2 but is an indifferent witness of the acts of the body and mind74 #bi4 ,it is produced without the co-operation of accompanying causes1 and being free from prior motives1 it is not subjected to the vicissitudes concomitant with human life4 #cj4 ,it is found to be no other than its own cause2 and having no other cause for itself1 it is said to be self-produced4 #ca4 ,say1 how can you lay hold on that being that has done no act before1 nor is in the act of doing any thing at present8 ,it is then only subjected to thee when it thinks itself mortal4 7,but he that knows his soul to be immortal is not subject to death74 #cb4 ,whoso believes his soul to be of this earth1 and thinks himself to be an earthly being1 he may be easily overtaken by thee 7whose power extends over earth-born mortals only74 #cc4 ,this ,brhman is a formless being1 by reason of his disowning the material body4 ,hence it is as hard for thee to enthral him1 as to entwine the air with a rope4 #cd4 ,death rejoined saying3--,tell me my lord6 how may the unborn ,aja or the self-born swayambhu1 be produced out of vacuum1 and how can an earthly or other elemental body be and not be 7at the same time74 #ce4 ,yama replied3--,this ,brhman is neither born nor is nil at any time2 but remains for ever the same1 as the light of intelligence of which there is no decay4 #cf4 ,there remains nothing at the event of the great ,doomsday1 except the tranquil1 imperishable and infinite ,brhman himself in his spiritual form4 #cg4 ,this is the nature of the everlasting vacuum1 too subtile in its essence1 and devoid of all attributes2 but viewing present before its mind1 the stupendous cosmos in the form of a huge mountain in the beginning of recreation4 7,the mind is the noumenon--,brahma1 and the phenomena of the world is the gigantic macrocosm known as ,virjmrti74 #ch4 ,being of the nature of intelligence it is imperishable2 but those who view the spirit in the form of any phenomenal body1 are liable to perish with it like all embodied beings4 #ci4 ,thus this ,brhman remained in the womb of vacuity in the beginning1 in his state of unalterable1 vacuous intelligence4 #dj4 ,it is purely of the nature of the inane understanding1 and of the form of a vast expanse of omniscience2 having neither body nor organism2 no acts nor agency1 nor desire of any kind in itself4 #da4 ,that which is simply of the form of vacuum and pure light1 is never beset by the snare of pristine desires1 as a corporeal being4 #db4 ,it has nothing to know or see without itself 7i4e4 beyond its self-consciousness74 ,the only conception that we have of it1 is what resembles an extended intelligence 7i4e4 an all-diffusive omniscience74 #dc4 ,under these circumstances1 how is it susceptible of any earthly or other external form8 ,therefore ,o ,death6 desist from thy attempt to lay hold on the same4 #dd4 ,hearing these words of ,yama1 ,death thought upon the impracticability of laying hold on empty vacuity by any body1 and sorrowfully returned to his own abode4 #de4 ,rma said3 you said sir1 that ,brahm is your great grand-sire2 ,i think it is he that you mean to say as the unborn1 self-born1 universal soul and intelligence4 #df4 ,so is this ,brahm1 ,rma6 as ,i have spoken to you1 and it was with regard to the same1 that the aforesaid discussion was held of yore between ,death and ,yama 7,pluto74 #dg4 ,again when ,death had made an end of all living beings at the interval of a manwantar1 he thought himself strong enough to make an attempt to bear down upon the lotus-born ,brahm also4 #dh4 ,it was then that he was admonished by ,yama1 saying3--,it is your habit that makes you go on your wonted course of killing4 #di4 ,but the super-etherial form of ,brahm too is beyond your reach3 it being simply of the nature of the mind having connection with its thoughts only1 and no concern with the actual forms of things4 #ej4 ,it is of the form of the wonderfully vacuous intellect1 having the faculty of cognition in it4 ,thus the intellect being but vacuum1 has neither any cause for it1 nor any effect produced by it4 #ea4 ,as the aeriform volitive principle in men1 manifests itself without being connected with material forms1 so is the self-born 7,brahm7 manifest to all in his own immaterial nature4 #eb4 ,like strings of pearl appearing to view in the clear firmament1 and forms of cities seen in a dream1 the self-born 7,brahm7 is manifest of himself without relation to external objects4 #ec4 ,as there is no beholder nor any thing beholden of the solitary ,supreme spirit which is the intellect itself2 so is the mind manifest of itself 7without its looking at or being looked upon by any body74 #ed4 ,it is the volitive mind which is called ,brahm and volition being a spiritual faculty1 has no connection with any material substance4 #ee4 ,as the mind of the painter is fraught with images of various things1 so is the mind of ,brahm full of figures of all created beings4 #ef4 ,the self-born ,brahm is manifest in his own mind as ,brahm is manifested in the vacuous sphere of his intellect4 ,he is without beginning1 middle and end1 and appears to have a figure like that of a male being1 while in reality he has no body1 as the offspring of a barren woman4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,,causes ,,of ,,bondage ,,in ,,the ,,body4 ,rma said3--,it is even so as you have said1 that the mind is a pure essence1 and has no connection with the earth and other material substances2 and that it is verily ,brahm itself4 #b4 ,now tell me1 ,o ,brhman6 ,why the remembrance of his former states 7in the past and previous ,kalpas71 is not 7to be reckoned as7 the cause of his birth1 as it is in the case of mine and yours and of all other beings4 #c4 ,vasishtha replied3--,whoever had a former body1 accompanied with the acts of his prior existence1 retains of course its reminiscence1 which is the cause of his being 7reborn on earth74 #d4 ,but when ,brahm is known to have no prior acts1 how is it possible for him to have his reminiscence of any thing8 #e4 ,therefore he exists without any other cause except the causation of his own mind4 ,it is by his own causality that the ,divine spirit is self-born1 and is himself his own spirit4 #f4 ,he is everlasting1 and his body is born of itself from the self-existent ,brahma4 ,this unborn or self-born ,brahm has no material body whatever1 except his subtile tivhika or linga deha4 #g4 ,rma said3--,the everlasting body is one thing 7called the ,skshma sarra or subtile or immaterial body71 and the mortal body is another 7called the sthladeha or the gross and material frame74 ,now tell me sir1 whether all created beings have a subtile body also as that of ,brahm8 #h4 ,vasishtha replied3--,all created beings that are produced of a cause1 have two bodies 7the skshma and the sthla or the subtile and the gross74 ,but the unborn being which is without a cause1 has one body only 7which is called the tivhika or the everlasting spiritual body74 #i4 ,the increate ,brahm is the cause of all created beings1 but the uncreated spirit having no cause for itself1 has one body for it4 #aj4 ,the prime lord of creatures has no material body2 but manifests himself in the vacuous form of his spiritual body4 #aa4 ,his body is composed of the mind alone1 and has no connection with the earth or any other material substance4 ,he is the first lord of creatures1 that stretched the creation from his vacuous body 7or spiritual essence74 #ab4 ,all these are but forms of the images or ideas in his vacuous mind1 and having no other patterns or originals in their nature4 ,and that every thing is of the same nature with its cause1 is a truth well known to all 7from the identity of the effect and its material cause74 #ac4 ,he is an inexistent being and of the manner of perfect intelligence4 ,he is purely of the form of the mind1 and has an intellectual and no material entity4 #ad4 ,he is prime 7cause7 of all material productions in the physical world1 and is born of himself with his prime mobile force in the form of the mind4 #ae4 ,it was by the first impulse given by the prime moving power1 that this expanse of creation came to be spread in the same ratio1 as the currents of air and water 7or the velocity of winds and tides71 are in proportion to the impetus given to them4 #af4 ,this creation shining so bright to our sight1 has caught its light from the luminous mind of the formless ,brahm1 and appears as real to our conceptions 7as they are ideal in the ,divine mind74 #ag4 ,our vision in a dream is the best illustration of this 7unreality of worldly things73 as that of the enjoyment of connubial bliss in dreaming4 ,it is then that an unreal object of desire1 presents itself as an actual gain to our fond and false imagination4 #ah4 ,the vacuous1 immaterial and formless spirit1 is now represented as the self-born and corporeal lord of creatures in the form of the first male4 7,protogonus or the only begotten son of ,god74 #ai4 ,he remains undiscerned in his state of pure intelligence2 but becomes manifest to all by the evolution of his volition4 ,he is indiscernible in his absolute state 7of inaction72 but becomes conspicuous to us in the display of his nature 7in creation74 #bj4 ,brahm is the divine power of volition 7or the will of ,god74 ,he is personified as the first male agent of creation1 but devoid of a corporeal body4 ,he is only of the spiritual form of the mind1 and the sole cause of the existence of the triple world4 #ba4 ,it is his volition that makes the self-born 7,brahm7 to exert his energies1 as human desires impel all mankind to action3 and the vacuous mind manifests itself as a mountain of desires4 #bb4 ,it then forgets its everlasting and incorporeal nature1 and assumes to itself the solid material body1 and shows itself in the shape of a delusive apparition 7in his creation74 #bc4 ,but ,brahm1 who is of an unsullied understanding1 is not involved in oblivion of himself1 by the transformation of his unknowable nature to the known state of volition 7or change of the nirguna to saguna74 #bd4 ,being unborn of material substance1 he sees no apparition like others1 who are exposed by their ignorance to the misleading errors of falsehood1 appearing in the shape of a mirage before them4 #be4 ,as ,brahm is merely of the form of the mind1 and not composed of any material substance1 so the world being the product of the eternal mind1 is of the same nature with its original archetype4 #bf4 ,again as the uncreated ,brahm is without any accompanying causality with himself1 so his creation has no other cause beside himself 7i4e4 ,there is no secondary cause of the universe74 #bg4 ,hence there is no difference in the product from its producer2 because it is certain1 that the work must be as perfect as its author 7so says the ,sruti3--,prnat prnam c474 #bh4 ,but there is nothing as a cause and effect to be found in this creation1 because the three worlds are but the prototypes of the archetype of the divine mind4 #bi4 ,the world is stretched out in the model of the ,divine mind1 and not formed by any other holy spirit4 ,it is as immanent in the mind of ,god1 as fluidity is inherent in water4 #cj4 ,it is the mind which spreads out this extended unreality of the world like castles in the air1 and builds ,utopian cities 7by its imagination only74 #ca4 ,there is no such thing as materiality1 which is as false a conception as that of a snake in a rope4 ,hence it is no way possible for ,brahma and other beings to exist as individual bodies4 #cb4 ,even spiritual bodies are inexistent to enlightened understandings4 ,as for the material body1 it has no room in existence4 7,matter or a corporeal substance or an unseen substratum is a non-entity4 ,berkeley74 #cc4 ,man 7manu7 who derives his name from his mind 7mana7 is a form of the volitive soul called ,verinchi 7,lat4 vir--inchoare the inchoative spirit of ,brahma72 and has for his dominion the mental or intellectual world mano-rajyam 7,lat4 mentis regio vel regnum7 where all things are situated in the form of realities4 #cd4 ,the mind is the creative ,brahma called ,verinchitvas 7,lat4 ,virinchoativus71 by the exercise of its inherent sankalpa or the volition of incipience or creation--sisriksha2 and displays itself in the form of the visible universe by development of its own essence4 #ce4 ,this ,virinchi or the creative power is of the form of the mind manas1 as the mind itself is of the form of ,virinchi also4 ,it has no connection with any material substance1 which is a mere creation of the imagination4 7,that is to say1 matter is an imaginary substance or substratum of qualities only74 #cf4 ,all visible things are contained in the bosom of the mind1 as the lotus-bud and blossom reside in the seed of the lotus4 ,hence there is no difference between the mental and visible appearances of things1 nor has any one ever doubted of it any where4 #cg4 ,whatever things you see in a dream1 whatever desires you have at heart and all the ideals of your fancy1 together with your ideas1 notions and impressions of the visibles1 know your mind to be the receptacle of them all4 #ch4 ,but the visible objects relating to the option of the mind 7i4e4 which are desirable1 to every one71 are as baneful to their beholder1 as an apparition is to a child 7i4e4 they are equally tempting and misleading to all74 #ci4 ,the ideal of the phenomenal drisyadhi1 developes itself as the germ contained in the seed and becomes in its proper time and place a large tree 7comparable with the great arbor of the world known as sansramah ruha or ,vriksha74 #dj4 ,if there is no rest with what is real1 there can be no peace with the phenomenals which are full of troubles1 and give no solace to the mind4 ,it is impossible that the feeling of the perception of visibles will be ever lost to their perceiver 7observer71 though its subsidence only is said to constitute liberation4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,,section ,i4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,night-,,fall4 ,vlmki related3-- ,while ,vasistha--the leading sage1 was thus going on with his lecture without interruption1 the whole assembly was intent upon listening to it with a fixed tone and tenor of their minds4 #b4 ,the string of bells 7tied to the waists of warriors7 ceased to jingle1 every one was motionless1 and even the parrots in the cages ceased to warble and flutter4 #c4 ,the ladies forgot their dalliance and were quietly attentive to the sermon3 and all in the royal hall1 were fixed in attention as they were paintings and statues4 #d4 ,there remained but an hour to the closing of the day1 and the sun-beams became agreeable to all4 ,the busy bustle of the world was dwindling away with the glimmering light of the setting sun4 #e4 ,the beds of full-blown lotuses exhaled their fragrance all around1 and soft ,zephyrs were playing about1 as if to attend the audience4 #f4 ,the sun glided away from his diurnal course1 and advanced to the top of his solitary setting mountain1 as if he meant to reflect on all that he had heard4 #g4 ,the shades of night began to cover the landscape1 and the frost to overspread the forest-lands2 as if they were cooled by the cooling lectures on philosophy4 #h4 ,now failed the concourse of the people in all directions1 as if they had availed themselves of the instructions of the sage to abate the fervour of their exertions4 #i4 ,all objects on earth cast their lengthened shadows1 as if they stretched their necks to hear the preaching of ,vasishtha4 #aj4 ,the chamberlain then advanced lowly to the monarch of the earth1 and begged to inform1 that the time for evening ablution and service1 was about to expire4 #aa4 ,upon this the sage ,vasishtha1 curbed his sweet speech and said3--,let thus far1 mighty king6 be your hearing of this day1 and ,i will resume my lecture1 and speak of other things to-morrow4 #ab4 ,here the sage held his silence1 when the king responded 8,be it so as you will10 and rose from his seat4 #ac4 ,he honoured for his own good1 that godly sage and the other seers and ,brhmans1 with due respects and offerings of flowers1 water1 worthy honorariums1 fees1 gifts and homage4 #ad4 ,then rose the whole assembly with the king and the assemblage of sages2 and the gems and jewels that decked the persons of the princes and people1 shed their lustres on the faces of all4 #ae4 ,there was a commingled tinkling of the bracelets and armlets of the throng caused by the collision of their bodies 7in their egress71 and mixed flashing of the necklaces and brocades that decorated their persons4 #af4 ,the jewels attached to the tufts and crests of hair on the tops of their heads1 emitted a jingling sound resembling the humming of bees amidst their flowery braids4 #ag4 ,the face of the sky on all sides1 that shone with a purple hue reflected by the golden ornaments on their persons1 seemed as it was pleased with the wise sayings and sense of the sage4 #ah4 ,the aerial visitants vanished in the air1 and the earthly guests repaired to their respective habitations on earth where they all performed their daily 7evening7 services in their own residences4 #ai4 ,in the meantime sable night made her appearance on earth1 and like a bashful young lady1 withdrew to the closet apart from the rest of mankind4 #bj4 ,the lord of the day passed to other lands to shine upon them1 for verily it is the avowed duty of every good person to give the benefit of equal light to all4 #ba4 ,the shade of evening veiled all sides1 and uplifted the canopy of the starry sphere on high1 which like the vernal atmosphere1 was emblazoned with the starlike flowers of kinsuka4 #bb4 ,the birds of air took to their repose in the hollows of mango trees1 or on the tops of ,kdamba arbours1 as honest people of fair dealing1 find their rest in the purity of their minds1 and contriteness of their inward hearts4 #bc4 ,the skirts of the clouds tinged with red by the slanting beams of the setting sun1 and with a shade of yellow hue upon them1 decorated the western hills with vests of yellow garb while the sky crowned their heads with gemming wreaths of starry groups4 #bd4 ,the ,goddess of evening 7,vespera71 having departed after receiving her homage 7by the vespers of mankind71 was followed by her train of dark night shades1 appearing as black-bodied fiends--,vetlas 7night roving nischaras of deserts74 #be4 ,a gentle and cooling breeze was blowing softened by the dew drops of night1 and opening the petals of the ,kumuda flowers 7nylumbium71 and bearing their fragrance all around4 #bf4 ,a thick gloom covered the face of nature1 and the stars were hid under the mists of night1 and all the quarters of the skies1 seemed with their overhanging loose and hairy mists1 as the faces of widows shrouded by the dark dishevelled hair of mourning 7for their departed lord the sun74 #bg4 ,now appeared the moist orb of the moon in her ambrosial form in the milky ocean of the sky1 to moisten the mundane heat with her milk-white beams 7sudh-subhra-ddhiti74 #bh4 ,on her rising1 the thick mists of darkness fled from the eastern hemisphere1 and became invisible in the air2 as the darkness of ignorance is put to flight from the minds of monarchs1 by their attendance to the sayings of wisdom4 #bi4 ,then the sages and seers1 the rulers and priests of the people1 took their rest in their respective beds1 as the words of ,vasishtha which were full of meaning1 reposed in the recesses of their hearts4 #cj4 ,as the thick darkness of night1 resembling the dark complexion of death1 receded from the arena of the skies1 there followed close on its foot-steps the dewy dawn of the day with her slow moving pace4 #ca4 ,the twinkling stars now disappeared from the sky1 as the flowers on the trees were blown away by the breeze1 and strewn on the ground as the fallen stars of heaven4 #cb4 ,the sun became visible to the eyes1 which his rays had roused from their sleep1 as the new-rising faculty of reason becomes conspicuous in the minds of enlightened great souls4 #cc4 ,fragments of clouds shining with solar gleams1 spread a yellow mantle over the eastern hills1 which were still decorated with strings of stars1 pendant on the crests of their lofty heads 7like strings of pearls suspended to the crowns of kings74 #cd4 ,all the terrestrial and celestial congress assembled again at the royal hall1 in the order and manner 7of their meeting7 of the day before1 after the performance of their morning services4 7,originally prtastanh matins or matutinal ceremonies74 #ce4 ,the whole assemblage took their seats as on the previous day1 and sat unmoved in their places1 as a lotus-lake in its calmness after a storm4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,nature ,,of ,,the ,,mind4 #cf4 ,then ,rma addressed the most eloquent of sages ,vasishtha1 with his mellifluent words regarding the subject under investigation 7the nature of the mind74 #cg4 ,he said3--,tell me plainly1 ,o venerable sir6 about the form of the mind1 which developed itself in all things of the universe1 as they were offshoots of it 7or manifestations of the mind74 #ch4 ,vasishtha replied3--,rma6 there is no form whatever of the mind1 that may be seen by any body4 ,it has nothing substantial besides its name as that of the formless and irremovable vacuity3 7with which it is compared in its all-comprehensiveness1 all-diffusiveness and all-pervasiveness74 #ci4 ,the mind as an ens or entity 7sat71 is not situated in the outer body 7or any part of it71 nor is it confined in the cavity of the inward heart or brain4 ,but know it ,o ,rma1 to be situated everywhere1 as the all encompassing vacuum4 7,being all-pervading and all-diffusive in its nature as vacuity itself74 #dj4 ,this world is produced from it1 and likens to the waters of the mirage4 ,it manifests itself in the forms of its fleeting thoughts1 which are as false as the appearance of secondary moons in the vapours4 #da4 ,the thinking principle is generally believed as something intermediate between the positive and negative1 or real and unreal1 you must know it as such and no other 7i4e4 neither material as the body1 nor immaterial as the soul1 but a faculty appertaining to the nature of both74 #db4 ,that which is the representative of all objects is called the mind3 there is nothing besides to which the term mind is applicable4 #dc4 ,know volition to be the same as the mind1 which is nothing different from the will1 just as fluidity is the same with water1 and as there is no difference between the air and its motion in the wind4 7,the inseparable property answering for its substance74 #dd4 ,for wherever there is any will1 there is that attribute of the mind also and nobody has ever taken the will and the mind for different things4 #de4 ,the representation of any object whether it is real or unreal is mind1 and that is to be known as ,brahma the great father of all4 #df4 ,the incorporeal soul in the body is called the mind1 as having the sensuous knowledge or everlasting ideas of the corporeal world in itself4 7i4e4 ,the sentient and thinking soul is the same with mind74 #dg4 ,the learned have given the several names of ignorance1 intellect1 mind1 bondage1 sin and darkness1 to the visible appearance of creation4 #dh4 ,the mind has no other image than that 7of a receptacle and reflector of the ideas7 of the visible world1 which1 ,i repeat to say1 is no new creation 7but a reflexion of the mind74 #di4 ,the visible world is situated in an atom of the great mind1 in the same manner1 as the germ of the lotus plant is contained within its seed4 #ej4 ,the visible world is as innate in the all-knowing mind1 as the light is inherent in the sun-beams1 and velocity and fluidity are inborn in the winds and liquids4 #ea4 ,but the visionary ideas of the visibles are as false and fleeting in the minds of their observers1 as the form of a jewel in gold1 and water in the mirage2 and as wrong as the foundation of a castle in the air1 and the view of a city in a dream4 ,,section ,,iii4 ,,kaivalya ,,or ,,mental ,,abstraction4 #eb4 ,but as the phenomenals appear as no other than real to their observer1 ,i will ,o ,rma6 cleanse them now from thy mind as they do the soil from a mirror4 #ec4 ,as the disappearance of an appearance makes the observer no observer of it1 know such to be the state of the abstraction of the mind from whatever is real or unreal in the world4 7,this is called ,kevalbhva or non-chalance of all things74 #ed4 ,this state being arrived1 all the passions of the soul1 and the desires of the mind1 will be at rest1 as torrents of rivers at the calm ensuing upon the stillness of the wind4 #ee4 ,it is impossible that things having the forms of space1 earth and air 7i4e4 material objects7 will present the same features in the clear light 7of induction71 as they do to our open sight4 #ef4 ,thus when the observer comes to know the unreality of the phenomena of the three worlds1 as well as of his own entity1 it is then that his pure soul attains to the knowledge of kaivalya or solity of divine existence4 #eg4 ,it is such a mind that reflects the image of ,god in itself as in a mirror2 while all others are as blocks of stone1 and incapable of receiving any reflexion at all4 #eh4 ,after suppression of the sense of ego and tu 7or both the subjective and objective knowledge71 and the error of the reality of the outer world the beholder becomes abstracted and remains without vision of external things in his sitting posture4 #ei4 ,rma rejoined3--,if the perception of entity is not to be put down1 nor an entity become a non-entity nor when ,i cannot view the visibles 7which are the causes of our error71 as non-entities2 #fj4 ,then tell me ,o ,brhman6 how to uproot this disease of our eagerness for the visibles from the mind1 which bewilders the understanding1 and afflicts us with a train of troubles4 #fa4 ,vasishtha replied3--,now hear my advice1 ,rma1 for the suppression of this phantom of phenomenon1 whereby it will surely die away and become utterly extinct4 #fb4 ,know ,rma1 that nothing that is1 can ever be destroyed or become extinct2 and though you remove it1 yet it will leave its seed or trace in the mind4 #fc4 ,this seed is the memory of such things1 which reopens the ideas of the visibles in the mind1 expanding themselves in the fallacious notions of the forms of big worlds and skies1 mountains and oceans4 #fd4 ,these 7wrong notions7 called doshas or faults and defects of understanding1 are obstacles in the way to liberation2 but they do not affect the sages who are found to be liberated4 #fe4 ,again if the world and all other things are real existences 7as the ,snkhyas maintain73 yet they cannot confer liberation on any one2 because the visibles1 whether they are situated within or without us are perishable themselves4 #ff4 ,learn therefore this dreadful proposition 7solemn truth71 which will be fully explained to you in the subsequent parts of this work4 7,note3--,a dreadful dogma it is to physicists and 8divdis0 or asserters of the encipientes mundi or beginning of the world74 #fg4 ,that all things appearing in the forms of vacuity1 elementary bodies1 the world1 and ego et tu1 are non-entities1 and have no meanings in them4 #fh4 ,whatever is seen apparent before us1 is no other but the supreme ,brahma himself1 and his undecaying and imperishable essence4 #fi4 ,the plenitude of creation is an expansion of his plenum1 and the quiet of the universe rests in his quietude4 ,it is his beom which is the substance of vacuum1 and it is his immensity that is the substratum of the immense cosmos4 #gj4 ,nothing visible is real1 and there is neither any spectator nor spectacle here4 ,there is nothing as vacuity or solidity in nature1 but all this is but a piece of extended ,intelligence4 #ga4 ,rma rejoined3--,the adages relating the grinding of stones by the son of a barren woman1 the horns of a hare1 and the dancing of a hill with its extended arms2 #gb4 ,and the oozing of oil from sand1 the reading 7of books7 by dolls of marble1 and the roaring of clouds in a painting1 and such others are applicable to your words 7of the reality of an unreal essence of ,god74 #gc4 ,i see this world to be full of diseases1 deaths and troubles1 mountains1 vacuities and other things1 and how is it sir1 that you tell me of their non-existence8 #gd4 ,tell me ,sir1 how you call this world to be unsubstantial1 unproduced and inexistent1 that ,i may be certain of this truth4 #ge4 ,vasishtha replied3--,know ,rma1 that ,i am no inconsistent speaker1 and hear me explain to you how the unreality appears as real1 as the son of a barren woman has come to rumour4 #gf4 ,all this was unproduced before1 and did not exist in the beginning of creation4 ,it comes to appearance from the mind like that of a city in a dream4 7i4e4 ,they are all but creations of the mind and fancy74 #gg4 ,the mind also was not produced in the beginning of creation and was an unreality itself4 ,hear me tell you therefore1 how we come to a notion of it4 #gh4 ,this unreal mind spreads by itself the false and changing scenes of the visible world1 just as we dream of changeful unrealities as true in a state of dreaming4 7,here the dreaming philosopher sees dreams in his dream74 #gi4 ,it then exerts its volition in the fabrication of the body and spreads far and wide the magic scene of the phenomenal world4 #hj4 ,the mind by its potentiality of vacillation has many actions of its own1 as those of expansion1 saltation1 and motion1 of craving1 roving1 diving and seizing1 and many other voluntary efforts 7the causes of physical operations74 ,,chapter ,v4 ,,on ,,the ,,original ,,cause4 7,m,,la-,k,,rana74 ,rma said3--,tell me1 ,o chief of the sages6 what cause is it that leads to our misconception of the mind1 how it is produced and what is the source of its illusion4 #b4 ,tell me sir1 in brief of the first production 7of the mind71 and then1 ,o best of the eloquent1 you may tell the rest1 that is to be said on the subject4 #c4 ,vasishtha replied3--,incident to the universal dissolution1 when all things were reduced to nothing1 this infinity of visible objects remained in a state of calm and quiet before their creation4 #d4 ,there was then the only great ,god in existence1 who is increate and undecaying1 who is the creator of all at all times1 who is all in all1 and supreme soul of all1 and resembling the sun that never sets4 #e4 ,he whom language fails to describe1 and who is known to the liberated alone2 who is termed the soul by fiction only1 and not by his real nature 7which is unknowable74 #f4 ,who is the prime ,male of ,snkhya philosophers and the ,brahma of ,vednta followers2 who is the ,intelligence of gnostics and who is wholly pure and apart from all 7personalities74 #g4 ,who is known as vacuum by vacuists1 who is the enlightener of solar light1 who is truth itself1 and the power of speech and thought and vision1 and all action and passion for ever4 #h4 ,who though ever existent everywhere appears as inexistent to the world1 and though situated in all bodies1 seems to be far from them4 ,he is the enlightener of our understanding as the solar light 7of the world74 #i4 ,from whom the gods ,vishnu and others are produced as solar rays from the sun2 and from whom infinite worlds have come into existence like bubbles of the sea4 #aj4 ,unto whom these multitudes of visible creations return as the waters of the earth to the sea1 and who like a lamp enlightens the souls and bodies 7of all immaterial and material beings74 #aa4 ,who is present alike in heaven as in earth and the nether worlds2 and who abides equally in all bodies whether of the mineral1 vegetable or animal creation4 ,he resides alike in each particle of dust as in the high and huge mountain ranges2 and rides as swift on the wings of winds1 as he sleeps in the depths of the main4 #ab4 ,he who appoints the eight internal and external organs 7,paryashtakas7 of sense and action to their several functions2 and who has made the dull and dumb creatures as inert as stones1 and as mute as they are sitting in their meditative mood4 #ac4 ,he who has filled the skies with vacuity and the rocks with solidity2 who has dissolved the waters to fluidity1 and concentrated all light and heat in the sun4 #ad4 ,he who has spread these wonderful scenes of the world1 as the clouds sprinkle the charming showers of rain2 both as endless and incessant1 as they are charming and dulcet to sight4 #ae4 ,he who causes the appearance and disappearance of worlds in the sphere of his infinity like waves in the ocean2 and in whom these phenomena rise and set like the running sands in the desert4 #af4 ,his spirit the indestructible soul1 resides as the germ of decay and destruction in the interior 7vitals7 of animals4 ,it is as minute as to lie hid in the body1 and as magnified as to fill all existence4 #ag4 ,his nature 7,prakriti7 spreads herself like a magic creeper 7my lat7 all over the space of vacuity1 and produces the fair fruit in the form of the mundane egg 7,brahmnda72 while the outward organs of bodies1 resembling the branches of this plant1 keep dancing about the stem 7the intelligent soul71 shaken by the breeze of life which is everfleeting4 #ah4 ,it is ,he1 that shines as the gem of intelligence in the heart of the human body2 and it is he from whom1 the luminous orbs constituting the universe1 continually derive their lustre4 #ai4 ,it is that colossus of intelligence1 which like a cloud sheds ambrosial draughts of delight to soothe our souls1 and showers forth innumerable beings as rain drops on all sides4 ,it bursts into incessant flashes showing the prospects of repeated creations which are as 7momentary as7 flashes of lightenings4 #bj4 ,it is his wondrous light which displays the worlds to our wondering sight2 and it is from his entity that both what is real and unreal1 have derived their reality and unreality4 #ba4 ,it is the insensible and ungodly soul1 that turns to the attractions of others against its purpose2 while the tranquil soul rests in itself 7as in the spirit of ,god74 #bb4 ,he who transcends all existences1 and by whom all existent beings are bound to their destined actions in their proper times and places1 and also to their free actions and motions and exertions of all kinds4 #bc4 ,it is he who from his personality of pure consciousness1 became of the form of vacuum 7pervading all nature71 and then by means of his vacuous mind and empty thoughts filled it with substances1 wherein his soul was to reside1 and whereon his spirit had to preside4 #bd4 ,having thus made the infinite hosts of worlds in the immense sphere of the universe1 he is yet neither the agent of any action nor the author of any act in it2 but remains ever the same as the sole one alone1 in his unchangeable and unimpairing state of self-consciousness1 and without any fluctuation1 evolution or inhesion of himself1 as he is quite unconcerned with the world4 ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,,admonition ,,for ,,attempt ,,to ,,liberation4 ,mumukshu ,pratyopadesa4 ,vasishtha said3--,it is by the knowledge of this transcendent supreme spirit and ,god of gods1 that one may become an adept 7in divine service71 and not by the rigour of religious austerities and practices4 7,proficiency by theoretic knowledge74 #b4 ,here nothing is needed than the culture and practice of divine knowledge1 and thereby the truth being known1 one views the errors of the world1 as a satiate traveller looks at a mirage in a clear light4 #c4 ,he 7,god7 is not far from nor too near us1 nor is he obtainable by what he is not 7as the adoration of images and ceremonial acts74 ,he is the image of light and felicity1 and is perceivable in ourselves4 #d4 ,here austerities and charities1 religious vows and observances1 are of no good whatever4 ,it is the calm quietude of one's own nature only that is serviceable to him in his services to ,god4 #e4 ,fondness for the society of the righteous and devotedness to the study of good books1 are the best means of divine knowledge2 while ritual services and practices1 serve only to strengthen the snare of our in-born delusions1 which true knowledge alone can sever4 #f4 ,no sooner one has known this inward light of his as the very ,god1 than he gets rid of his miseries1 and becomes liberated in this his living state4 #g4 ,rma said3--,having known the ,self in himself1 one is no more exposed to the evils of life and even to death itself4 #h4 ,but say how is this great ,god of gods to be attained from such great distance 7as we are placed from him71 and what rigorous austerities and amount of pains are necessary for it4 #i4 ,vasishtha replied3--,he is to be known by means of your manly exertions 7in knowledge and faith71 and by the aid of a clear understanding and right reasoning1 and never by the practice of austerities and ablutions1 nor by acts attended with bodily pain of any kind4 7,hence the mistake of ,hatha yoga74 #aj4 ,for know1 ,o ,rma6 all your austerities and charities1 your painstaking and mortification are of no efficacy1 unless you wholly renounce your passions and enmity1 your anger and pride1 your selfishness and your envy and jealousy4 #aa4 ,for whoever is liberal of any money which he has earned by defrauding others1 and with a heart full of vile passions1 the merit of such liberality accrues to the rightful owner of the property and not to its professed donor4 #ab4 ,and whoever observes any vow or rite with a mind actuated by passions1 he passes for a hypocrite and reaps no benefit of his acts4 #ac4 ,therefore try your manly exertions in securing the best remedies of good precepts and good company1 for putting down the diseases and disturbances of the world4 #ad4 ,no other course of action except that of the exertion of one's manliness1 is conducive to the allaying of all the miseries and troubles of this life4 #ae4 ,now learn the nature of this manliness for your attainment to wisdom1 and annihilation of the maladies of passions and affections and animosity of your nature4 #af4 ,true manliness consists in your continuance in an honest calling conformable with the law and good usage of your country2 and in a contented mind which shrinks from smelling the enjoyments of life4 #ag4 ,it consists in the exertion of one's energies to the utmost of his power1 without bearing any murmur or grief in his soul2 and in one's devotedness to the society of the good and perusal of good works and ,sstras4 #ah4 ,he is styled the truly brave who is quite content with what he gets1 and spurns at what is unlawful for him to take2 who is attached to good company1 and ready at the study of unblamable works4 #ai4 ,and they who are of great minds1 and have known their own natures and those of all others by their right reasoning1 are honoured by the gods ,brahm1 ,vishnu1 ,indra and ,siva4 #bj4 ,he who is called a righteous man by the majority of the good people of the place1 is to be resorted to with all diligence as the best and most upright of men4 #ba4 ,those religious works are said to compose the best ,sstra1 which treat chiefly of ,spiritual knowledge2 and one who constantly meditates on them1 is surely liberated 7from the bonds of this world74 #bb4 ,it is by means of right discrimination derived from the keeping of good company and study of holy works1 that our understanding is cleared of its ignorance1 as dirty water is purified by ,kata seeds1 and as the minds of men are expurgated by the ,yoga philosophy4 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,,recognition ,,of ,,the ,,nihility ,,of ,,the ,,phenomenal ,,world4 7,drisysatt ,pratijnnam74 ,rma said3-- ,tell me1 ,o ,brhman6 where is this ,god situated and how can ,i know him1 of whom you spoke all this1 and whose knowledge you said1 leads to our liberation4 #b4 ,vasishtha replied3--,this ,god of whom ,i spoke1 is not at a distance from us4 ,he is situated in these our bodies1 and is known to be of the form of mere ,intellect 7chinmtra7 to us4 ,so says ,fichte3 ,the ,infinite ,reason 7chit7 alone exists in himself--the finite in him4 ,lewis vol4 ,,ii4 p4 #efc4 #c4 ,he is all in all1 though all this world is not the omnipresent ,himself4 ,he is one alone and is not termed the all that is visible 7to us74 ,so ,fichte3 ,god is infinite and embraces the finite1 but the finite can not encompass the ,infinite4 ,lewis vol4 ,,ii4 p4 #egc4 #d4 ,it is this ,intellect which is in ,siva1 that wears the cusp of the moon in his crest2 the same is in ,vishnu that rides on his eagle ,garuda1 and in ,brahm that is born of the lotus4 ,the sun also is a particle of this ,intellect 7but they are not the self-same ,intellect themselves74 #e4 ,rma rejoined3--,so it is2 and even boys say this also1 that if the whole world is mere ,intelligence 7chetana mtrakam72 then why call it by another name 7as the world71 and what is the use of giving admonition of it to anybody 7when every one is full of intelligence74 #f4 ,vasishtha replied3--,if you have known the mere ,intellect 7,chinmtram71 to be the same with the intelligent world 7chetana viswa71 you have then known nothing for getting rid of this world4 #g4 ,the world is verily intelligent1 ,o ,rma 7with the mundane soul72 but the animal soul 7,jva7 is called pasu or brutish observer of things pasyati1 on account of its looking after sensual gratifications only as brutes1 and giving rise only to the fears of disease1 decay and death 7from its love of itself1 and care for self-preservation74 #h4 ,the animal soul 7,jva71 though an incorporeal substance1 is an ignorant thing and subject to pain and sorrow4 ,the mind manas also1 though it is capable of intelligence--chetanyam1 has become the root of all evils4 7i4e4 ,with its power of intellection and nature of intelligence 7chetanam71 it is yet ever inclined to the wrong side by itself74 #i4 ,intellectual liberation 7chetya mukta7 from thoughts of the world1 is one state 7of the soul71 and unintelligent gazing 7unmukhat7 at it1 is another4 ,he who knows the better of these two the states of the soul1 has no cause of sorrow 7i4e4 the rational from the irrational soul74 #aj4 ,he who has seen the all surpassing ,supreme ,being1 has his heartstrings all cut asunder1 and the doubts of his mind all driven away4 ,the sequences of his acts are washed away 7and leave no fear of his transmigration74 #aa4 ,the longing after perceptibles 7,chetyas7 does not cease1 unless the perception of the visibles is effaced from the mind4 #ab4 ,how then is this perception to be effaced8 ,how is it possible to have a longing after the unintelligible ,intelligence1 without suppression of our longing for the visibles8 ,it is only to be effected by avoiding the external perceptions of the mind4 #ac4 ,rma said3--,tell me sir1 where and how is that vacuous soul called pasu1 by the knowledge of which no one can get rid of his transmigration 7i4e4 the worshippers of the jvtm or animal soul called jvavdis1 are not entitled to their final liberation--mukti74 #ad4 ,tell me also1 who is that man1 who by his company with the good and study of good works1 has gone over the ocean of the world1 and beholds the ,supreme soul in himself4 #ae4 ,vasishtha replied3--,whatever animal souls being cast in the wilderness of this life1 long after this intelligent soul 7chetantman71 they are truly wise1 and know him 7in themselves74 #af4 ,whoso believes the animal soul as the life of the world 7or mundane soul71 and thinks 7the knowledge of the7 ,intelligence to be attended with pain only1 he can never know ,him anywhere 7in this world74 #ag4 ,if the ,supreme soul be known to us1 ,o ,rma6 the string of our woes is put to an end1 like the fatal cholera after termination of its cholic pain or extraction of its poison4 #ah4 ,rma said3--,tell me1 ,o ,brhman6 the true form of the ,supreme soul1 by light of which the mind may escape from all its errors4 #ai4 ,vasishtha replied3--,the ,supreme soul is seen in the same way in ourselves and within our bodies1 as we are conscious of our minds to be seated within us1 after its flight to distant countries4 #bj4 ,our notion of the ,supreme spirit is often lost in the depth of our minds1 in the same way1 as the existence of the outer world 7objective knowledge71 becomes extinct in our consciousness in yoga meditation4 #ba4 ,it is ,he in whose knowledge we lose our sense of the beholder and visibles1 and who is an invacuous vacuum or a substantive vacuity himself4 7i4e4 ,who being known1 we forget our knowledge both of the subjective and objective1 and view his unity as the only to on or substratum of all74 ,so ,fichte3 ,in thee1 the ,incomprehensible1 does my own existence1 and that of the world become comprehensible to me4 ,lewis4 ,phil4 vol4 ,,ii4 ,p4 #efc4 #bb4 ,he whose substance appears as the vacuum1 and in whom subsists the vacuous plenum of the universe2 and who appears as vacuity itself1 notwithstanding the plenitude of his creation subsisting in him1 is verily the form of the ,supreme soul 7that you want to know74 #bc4 ,who though full of intelligence1 appears to stand as an unconscious huge rock before us2 and who though quite subtile in his nature1 seems as some gross body to our conception3 such is the form of the ,supreme soul 7that you want to know74 #bd4 ,that which encompasses the inside and outside of every thing1 and assumes the name and nature of the very thing to itself1 is verily the form of the ,supreme 7that you want to know74 #be4 ,as light is connected with sunshine and vacuity with the firmament and as ,omnipresence is present with every thing and every where3 such is the form of the ,supreme spirit 7that you want to know74 #bf4 ,rma asked3--,but how are we to understand that ,he who bears the name and nature of absolute and infinite reality should yet be compressed within any thing visible in the world1 which is quite impossible to believe8 #bg4 ,vasishtha replied3--,the erroneous conception of the creation of the world1 resembles the false impression of colours in the clear sky2 wherefore it is wrong1 ,o ,rma6 to take a thing as real1 of which there is an absolute privation in nature4 #bh4 ,it is the knowledge of ,brahma that constitutes his form1 or else there is no act of his whereby he may be known to us 7the universe being but a development of himself74 ,he is entirely devoid of any visible form1 and therefore there is no better course for any one than to know him as truth4 #bi4 ,after an absolute negation of the visibles comes to be known 7i4e4 after disappearance of the traces of phenomenals from the mind71 there remains a pre-eminent object of conception1 which is inborn and manifest of itself4 #cj4 ,this concept 7of the ,super-eminent7 has oftentimes no reflexion1 owing to its having no visible appearance2 and at others it is not without its reflexion on the mirror of the mind 7which has received its image74 #ca4 ,no body has ever conceived this transcendent verity in himself1 who has not at the same time been convinced of the impossibility of the existence of the visible world4 7i4e4 ,conviction of the nullity of the phenomenal alone1 leads to the perception of the ,reality74 #cb4 ,rma rejoined3--,tell me1 ,o sage6 how the existence of so many extensive worlds composing the visible ,universe1 can be thought of as unreal1 or comprised in the chinmtram 7or minutiae of the divine mind71 as the mount ,meru in the sesamum seed4 #cc4 ,vasishtha replied3--,if you will but stay a few days in the company of holy men1 and study the sacred ,sstras with a steady mind with me3 #cd4 ,then ,i will purge away this false view of the visibles from your understanding1 like the delusive mirage from one's sight4 ,this absence of the view will extinguish your sense of being the viewer1 and restore you to your intelligence alone4 #ce4 ,when the viewer is united with the view1 and the view with the viewer1 there then turns out an unity of the duality1 and the duality blends into an inseparable unity4 #cf4 ,without union of the two there is no success of either2 and this union of both the viewer and the view having disappeared at last1 there remains an only one unity 7which is indissoluble74#b #cg4 ,i will now cleanse away the dross of all your sense of egoism and tuism1 with that of the world and all other things from the mirror of your mind1 by bringing you to your consciousness of self1 and total negation of every thing besides4 #ch4 ,from nothing never comes a something1 nor from something ever proceeds a nothing2 and there is no difficulty whatever in removing what does not exist in nature 7i4e4 ,that a nil is nil is self evident1 and no argument is required to prove it so74 #ci4 ,this world which appears so very vast and extensive1 was not in being at the beginning4 ,it resided in the pure spirit of ,brahma1 and was evolved from the mind 7,chitta7 of ,brahm4 #dj4 ,the thing called the world was never produced1 nor is it in being nor in actual appearance4 ,it is as the form of a bracelet in gold1 which it is not difficult to alter and reduce to its gross metallic state4 #da4 ,i will explain it fully by other reasons1 whereby this truth may appear of itself1 and impress irresistibly in your mind4 #db4 ,how can that be said to have its being1 which was not brought into being before1 and how can there be a rivulet in the mirage1 or the ring of an eclipse in the moon8 #dc4 ,as a barren woman has no son nor a mirage any water in it2 and as the firmament has no plant growing in it1 so there is no such thing which we erroneously call the world4 #dd4 ,whatever you see1 ,o ,rma6 is the indestructible ,brahma himself3 this ,i have many times shown you with good reasons1 and not in mere words 7as my ipse dixit only74 #de4 ,it is unreasonable1 ,o intelligent ,rma6 to disregard what a learned man speaks to you with good reasons2 because the dull-headed fellow who neglects to listen to the words of reason and wisdom1 is deemed as a fool1 and is subject to all sorts of difficulties4 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,,nature ,,of ,,good ,s,,stras4 ,rma asked3--,how can it be reasonably shewn and established1 that there is nothing to be known and seen in this world1 although we have evident notions of it supported by sense and right reasoning8 #b4 ,vasishtha answered3--,it is from a long time1 that this endemic of the fallacious knowledge 7of the reality of the world71 is prevalent 7among mankind72 and it is by means of true knowledge only that this wrong application of the word world1 can be removed from the mind4 #c4 ,i will tell you a story1 ,rma6 for your success in 7the attainment of7 this knowledge2 if you will but attend to it1 you will become both intelligent and emancipate4 #d4 ,but if from the impatience of your nature like that of brute creatures1 you get up and go away after hearing half of this 7narrative71 you shall then reap no benefit from it4 #e4 ,whoever seeks some object and strives after it1 he of course succeeds in getting the same2 but if he become tired of it he fails therein4 #f4 ,if you will betake yourself1 ,rma6 to the company of the good and study of good ,sstras1 you will surely arrive at your state of perfection in course of a few days or mouths1 according to the degree of your diligence4 #g4 ,rma said3--,o you1 that are best acquainted with the ,sstras1 tell me which is the best ,sstra for the attainment of spiritual knowledge1 and a conversancy with which may release us from the sorrows of this life4 #h4 ,vasishtha replied3--,know1 ,o high minded ,rma6 this work 7the ,vsishtha ,sanhit7 to be the best of all others on spiritual knowledge4 ,it is the auspicious ,great ,rmyana and the ,sstra of sstras4 #i4 ,the ,rmyana is the best of histories1 and serves to enlighten the understanding4 ,it is known as containing the essence of all histories4 #aj4 ,but by hearing these doctrines one easily finds his liberation coming of itself to him2 wherefore it is reckoned as the most holy record4 #aa4 ,all the existing scenes of the world will vanish away upon their mature consideration2 as the thoughts occurring in a dream1 are dispersed upon the knowledge of the dreaming state after waking4 #ab4 ,whatever there is in this work1 may be found in others also1 but what is not found here1 cannot be found elsewhere 7in other works72 and therefore the learned call it the thesaurus 7sanhit7 or store-house 7of philosophy74 #ac4 ,whoever attends to these lectures every day1 shall have his excellent understanding undoubtedly stored with transcendent knowledge of divinity day by day4 #ad4 ,he who feels this ,sstra disagreeable to his vitiated taste1 may take a fancy to the perusal of some other sstra that is more wordy and eloquent4 #ae4 ,one feels himself liberated in this life by the hearing of these lectures1 just as one finds himself healed of a disease by a potion of some efficacious medicine4 #af4 ,the attentive hearer of these sermons1 perceives their efficacy in himself1 in the same way as one feels the effects of the curses or blessings pronounced upon him which never go for nothing 7but have their full effects in time74 #ag4 ,all worldly miseries are at an end with him1 who considers well these spiritual lectures within himself1 and which is hard to be effected by charities and austerities1 or performance of the acts ordained in the sraut or ceremonial vedas1 or by hundreds of practices in obedience to the ordinances appointed by them4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,,on ,,the ,,supreme ,,cause ,,of ,,all4 7,,parama ,k,,rana74 ,vasishtha continued3-- ,they are truly delighted and gratified 7in their souls71 who are ever devoted with all their hearts and minds in holy conversation among themselves4 #b4 ,those that are devoted to the acquisition of knowledge and investigation of spiritual science1 enjoy the same bliss of liberation in their living state1 as it is said to attend on disembodied souls4 #c4 ,rma said3--,tell me ,o ,brhman6 the distinct natures of the living and disembodied liberations1 that ,i may try to learn the same1 with an understanding enlightened by the light of ,sstras 7literally1 having the eye-sight of ,sstras74 #d4 ,vasishtha said3--,who ever remains as he is 7i4e4 without any perturbation in his worldly course71 and continues intact as vacuity amidst society3 such a one is called the living liberated 7,jvan mukta74 #e4 ,who so is employed in his intellection only and seems to be sleeping in his waking state1 though while conducting his worldly affairs3 such a one is called the living liberated4 #f4 ,whose countenance is neither flushed nor dejected in pleasure or pain 7in joy or grief and such other reverses72 and who remains contented with what he gets3 such a one is called liberated while he is living4 #g4 ,whose waking is as a state of sound sleep1 and who is not awake to the accidents of the waking state1 and whose waking state is insensible of the desires incident to it3 such a one is called liberated in his life4 #h4 ,who though actuated by the feelings of affection1 enmity1 fear and the like1 is at rest1 and as clear and undisturbed as vacuity within himself3 such a one is called liberated while he is alive4 #i4 ,who has not an air of pride in him1 and is not conceited 7with a notion of his greatness7 when he does or refrains to do anything3 such a one is called self-liberated in his life time4 #aj4 ,who at one glance or winking of his eye1 has a full view of the whole creation and final destruction of the world1 like the ,supreme self 7to which he is assimilated73 such a one is said to be liberated in his life time4 #aa4 ,who ever is not feared by nor is afraid of any body1 and who is freed from the emotions of joy1 anger and fear3 such a one is liberated in life4 #ab4 ,who is quiet and quietly disposes his business of this world1 and who though he stands as an individual in the sight of men1 attaches no individuality to himself2 and who though a sentient being1 is insensible to all impressions3 such is the living liberated soul4 #ac4 ,who being full of all possessions1 and having every thing present before him1 remains cold and apathetic to them1 as if they were useless to him3 such a man is liberated in his life4 #ad4 ,now leaving the subject of 8living liberation10 ,i will tell you what they call the 8disembodied liberation10 which like a breath of wind enters into the soul1 after it has fled from the mortal body4 #ae4 ,the disembodied free spirit neither rises nor sets 7like the sun71 nor is it subject to wane 7like the moon72 it is neither manifest nor hidden2 it is not at a distance1 nor is it in me1 thee or in any other person4 #af4 ,it shines forth in the form of the sun1 and preserves the world in the manner of ,vishnu4 ,it creates the world in the shape of the lotus-born ,brahm1 and destroys all as ,rudra or ,siva4 #ag4 ,it takes the form of the sky supported on the shoulders of air1 which supports all living beings1 the gods1 sages and demigods in the three worlds4 ,it takes the form of boundary mountains and separates the different regions 7of the earth and skies74 #ah4 ,it becomes the earth and supports these numerous sets of beings1 it takes the forms of trees1 plants and grass1 and yields fruits and grains for supportance 7of all living creatures74 #ai4 ,it takes the forms of fire and water and burns and melts in them by itself4 ,it sheds ambrosia in the form of the moon1 and causes death in the shape of poison4 #bj4 ,it becomes light wherewith it fills the space of the firmament1 and spreads darkness in the form of ,erebus 7tama or ,teom74 ,it becomes vacuum 7vyom or beom7 to leave empty space for all1 while in the form of hills it obstructs their free passage on earth4 #ba4 ,in the form of the fleet mind1 it moves the self-moving animals1 and in that of dull matter it settles the unmoving immovables4 ,it girds the earth by its form of the ocean1 as a bracelet encircles the arm4 #bb4 ,the bodiless spirit takes upon it the great body of the sun1 and illumes all the worlds with their minute particles1 while it remains quiet in itself4 #bc4 ,whatever is shining in this universe or ever was or is to be so1 in any of the three--past1 present and future times1 know them all ,o ,rma6 as forms of the ,divine ,spirit 7which is free to take any shape it likes74 #bd4 ,rma said3--,tell me1 ,o ,brhman6 why this view of liberation1 appears so very difficult to me1 as to make me believe it altogether incomprehensible to and unattainable by any body4 #be4 ,vasishtha replied3--,this 7disembodied7 liberation is called nirvna or total extinction of self-consciousness1 and is styled ,brahma also 7in whom the human soul is finally absorbed74 ,attend now to the means of its attainment4 #bf4 ,all such visible objects known as ,i1 thou1 this c41 being unproduced 7anutpanna7 from the eternal sat or entity of ,god1 it is impossible to have any conception of them in our minds4#c #bg4 ,rma said3--,methinks1 ,o best of them that know the knowable6 that the bodiless souls of the liberated1 when they pass through the bounds of the three worlds1 have again to be born according to the course of nature4 #bh4 ,vasishtha replied3--,those that retain the reminiscence of the three worlds have to move about in them1 but such as have lost the idea of their existence1 are absorbed in infinity4 #bi4 ,for how can one derive the knowledge of the unity of ,god from his belief in the duality of the separate existence of the world8 ,therefore the figurative sense of cosmos as ,god 7,viswa7 can not give the spiritual and infinite idea of ,brahma4 #cj4 ,he is no other but himself1 of the nature of pure intellect1 and of the form of the clear and tranquil vacuum 7that pervades all things74 ,brahma is said to be the world1 to signify his manifestation of its unreality as a reality unto us4 #ca4 ,i have well considered about a golden bracelet1 and found nothing as a bracelet in it save its gold4 7,the form is changeable1 but the substance is real74 #cb4 ,i observed the billows1 and found nothing in them but water2 and where there was no water ,i saw no billow to rise4 7,it is the substance and not its shape or shadow that is to be looked into74 #cc4 ,i see no oscillation any where except in the winds1 which are no other than this force in motion1 and moving all things in the world4 7,thus the spirit of ,god is the fountain or primum mobile of all forces1 which are but forms of the main force74 #cd4 ,as vacuity abides in air1 and water appears in the burning deserts1 and as there is light spread over all creation2 so is the spirit of ,brahma manifest in the three worlds in the forms of the very worlds4 #ce4 ,rma said3--,tell me1 ,o sage6 the cause which makes this world with its nature of absolute negation or non-existence1 to exhibit such distinct appearances in its phenomena4 #cf4 ,tell me also1 how the viewer and the view 7of these worlds7 being both extinct 7as they are equally unreal in their nature71 there remains their nirvna or absorption in the ,deity without their personalities4 #cg4 ,again as it is impossible to conceive the existence of the visible objects1 say how is it possible to conceive the existence of the invisible ,brahma in his own nature 7of incomprehensibility74 #ch4 ,say by what mode of reasoning this truth may be known and ascertained1 and this being accomplished1 there remains nothing else to be inquired into4 #ci4 ,vasishtha replied3--,this false knowledge or prejudice of the reality of the world1 has been long prevalent like a chronic disease 7among mankind72 and requires to be removed by the specific charm 7mantra7 of reasoning only4 #dj4 ,it can not however be expelled quickly and in a minute1 but requires length of time1 like the ascent and descent of an even sided precipice4 #da4 ,therefore hearken to what ,i say1 for dispelling your fallacy of the world1 by means of arguments1 logical inferences1 and habitual meditation 7about the nature of ,god74 #db4 ,attend now ,rma6 to a tale that ,i am to tell you for your attainment of this knowledge1 and by the hearing of which you will become intelligent1 wise and liberated4 #dc4 ,i will even now relate to you the subject of the production of the world1 in order to show you1 that all that is produced serves to bind our souls to the earth1 and that you may live quite free from the same4 #dd4 ,i will tell you at present under this topic of creation1 that the erroneous conception of the world is as unsubstantial as ,vacuum itself4 7i4e4 ,all this is null and void74 #de4 ,because this world which appears to contain these moving and unmoving beings1 and abounds in various races of gods1 ,asura--giants and ,kinnara--pigmies4 #df4 ,all these together with the ,rudras and other demigods1 become invisible and lose themselves in nothing at the ultimate dissolution of the world4 7,this final disappearance tirobhva of all things1 proves their present appearance virbhva to be mere phantoms of our brain4 ,gloss74 #dg4 ,then there remains a moist and hollow deep1 without light and thick spread with mist2 all undefinable and undeveloped1 save something which is ,real and lasts for ever4 #dh4 ,there was no air nor form of any thing1 no sight nor any thing to be seen4 ,there were not these multitudes of created and material beings1 that appear to be endless and everlasting to view4 #di4 ,there was a nameless self1 the fullest of the full in its form2 it was no ens nor non ens1 no entity nor non-entity1 no reality nor unreality neither4 #ej4 ,it was mere intellect without its intellection1 infinite without decay1 auspicious and full of bliss4 ,it was without its beginning1 middle and end1 eternal and imperishable4 #ea4 ,in him this world is manifest as a pearly goose in painting2 ,he is and yet is not this 7creation71 and is the soul of both what is real as well as unreal4 7,sadasadtman74 #eb4 ,he is without ears1 tongue1 nose1 eyes and touch1 yet he hears1 tastes1 smells1 sees and feels every thing in all places and at all times4 #ec4 ,he is also that 7intellectual7 light 7chidloka71 whereby the form of that real as well as unreal ,being--sadasadtma is discerned by us in his perspective of creation1 as one without beginning or end1 and presenting a representation that is without any colour or shade4 #ded4 ,he is that vacuous ,soul who views the worlds as clearly1 as the yogi beholds ,him in the form of ineffable light1 with his half closed eyes1 and fixing his sight to the midst of his eyebrows 7in his khechar mudr or aerial mode of meditation74 #ee4 ,he is the cause of all1 and whose cause is as nil as the horns of a hare2 and whose works are all these worlds1 like so many waves of the sea4 #ef4 ,his light is ever shining every where1 and he has his seat in the human heart2 and it is from the candle light of his intellect1 that all the worlds derive their light4 #eg4 ,it is ,he without whose light the sun would dwindle into darkness2 and whose existence alone gives the world its appearance of a mirage4 #eh4 ,it is his pulsation that vibrates throughout the universe1 and it is his inertia that stops the course of the whole2 it is on that pivot that the world has its revolution1 just as the turning round of a fire brand describes a circle4 #ei4 ,his nature is pure and unchangeable2 and the works of creation and destruction1 are mere acts of his volition 7,vilsa71 in the persons of ,brahma and ,hara4 #fj4 ,it is his inertia and force that gives rest and motion to all things1 like the ubiquious course of the winds4 ,but this is the common belief that he moves1 while in reality his nature is free from all mutability 7like the immovable rock74 #fa4 ,he is always awake in his ever sleeping state1 and therefore can neither be said to be waking nor sleeping any where or at any time1 but is both awake and asleep every where and at all times4#e #fb4 ,his quiescence is attended with bliss and tranquillity1 and his agitation puts the world in motion and in its course of action2 which is said to remain unaltered in both states which unite in him4 #fc4 ,he is inherent in all things as fragrance is innate in the flower1 and is indestructible as its odour at the destruction of the flower4 ,he pervades all things1 and is yet as intangible as the whiteness of linen4 #fd4 ,who though speechless1 is the author of all speech and sound1 and who though he appears to be as incogitant as a stone1 is full of cogitation 7being the intellect itself74 ,who though fully satisfied with his bliss1 enjoys all things1 although he requires nothing for himself4 #fe4 ,who though bodiless actuates all the members of the body2 and is attributed with a thousand arms and eyes 7in the ,veda72 and who having no support for himself1 is yet the support of all1 and pervades the whole without being seated any where4 #ff4 ,who having no organs nor organic power1 is the organ of organs1 and performs the functions of innumerable organs2 and who without a sensorial mind1 exhibits endless designs of his ,divine mind in the infinity of creation4 #fg4 ,it is for want of our 7knowledge7 of him1 that we are in constant dread of this delusive world as in that of a dragon or hydra2 but it is at his sight 7or by our knowledge of him71 that all our fears and desires fly away afar from us4 #fh4 ,it is in the presence of the clear light of that ,god of ,truth1 that all the wishes of our minds have a better play1 just as actors dance the best as long as they have the lights4 #fi4 ,it is by him that a hundred series of visible objects 7as pots and plates--ghata-patd71 rise every moment to our view1 like the ceaseless series of waves1 billows and surges rising on the surface of the waters4 #gj4 ,it is he that exhibits himself otherwise than what he is1 in hundreds of different shapes to our mistaken minds1 as the substance of gold is made to appear to our view in the various forms of bracelets1 armlets1 and a hundred other sorts of trinkets4 #ga4 ,he who manifests himself as the soul1 abiding in me1 thee and in this or that person1 and is neither myself1 thyself1 himself nor itself1 is the ,supreme soul or ,self1 that is the same with and apart from all4 #gb4 ,it is he and the self-same being1 whether you view him in one or more objects1 as it is the same water that heaves itself in this one or the other wave4 ,thus all visible phenomena have their rise from him4 #gc4 ,he from whom time has its counting and the visibles have their view2 by whom the mind exercises its thinking powers1 and by whose light the world is enlightened2 is the ,supreme4 #gd4 ,whatever forms1 figures and their actions1 whatsoever flavours and odours1 and what sounds1 touch1 feelings and perceptions soever1 you are sensible of1 know them all and their cause also to be the ,supreme4 #ge4 ,you will be able to know your soul1 ,o good ,rma6 if you will take it in the light of the sight or faculty of vision1 that lies between the looker and the object looked upon4 #gf4 ,know it as increate and indestructible1 and without beginning and end4 ,it is the eternal and everlasting ,brahma and bliss itself4 ,it is immaculate and infallible1 highly adorable and unblamable in its nature4 ,it is beyond all description and a mere void in its form4 ,it is the cause of causes and a notion of something that is unknowable4 ,it is the understanding1 and the inward faculty of the intellect or the mind4 7i4e4 ,it is a spiritual substance and must be known in the spirit74 ,,chapter ,x4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,chaotic ,,state4 ,rma said3--,that which remains incident to the ,universal dissolution 7mah-pralaya71 is commonly designated by the term 8formless void40 #b4 ,how then said you1 there was no void1 and how could there be no light nor darkness neither8 #c4 ,how could it be without the intellect and the living principle1 and how could the entities of the mind and understanding be wanting in it8 #d4 ,how could there be nothing and not all things8 ,such like paradoxical expressions of yours1 have created much confusion in me4 #e4 ,vasishtha said3--,you have raised a difficult extra-question1 ,rma6 but ,i shall have no difficulty to solve it1 as the sun is at no pains to dispel the nocturnal gloom4 #f4 ,on the occasion or the termination of a great kalpa age1 when there remains ,that ,entity 7the ,tat sat7 of ,god1 it cannot be said to be a void1 as ,i will now explain to you4 ,attend ,rma and hear4 #g4 ,like images carved in bas-relief upon a pillar1 was this world situated in relievo of ,that ,entity1 and cannot be said to have been a void4#f #h4 ,again when there was the representation of the plenitude under the appellation of the world at any place 7in the essence of ,god71 and be it real or unreal1 it could not have been a void and vacuity4 #i4 ,as a pillar with carved or painted figures1 cannot be said to be devoid of them2 so ,brahma exhibiting the worlds contained in him1 can not become a void4 7i4e4 ,as a pillar is not devoid of figures which has carved images on it2 so ,brahma is not a void1 having the worlds contained in him4 ,this is a negative enthymem74 #aj4 ,but the world contained in ,brahma1 becomes both something and nothing2 as billows in calm waters may either exist or not exist4 7,so the appearance and disappearance of the worlds in ,brahma1 like those of the little billows in a quiet lake1 prove their existence and non-existence at the same time1 as it is predicated of the ,chaos or the ,mahpralaya4 ,gloss74#g #aa4 ,again it happens that certain figures are marked on some insensible trees in some places by the hand of time1 which people mistake for images2 so it comes to pass that certain figures of evanescent matter1 occur in the eternal mind1 which men mistake for the real world4 #ab4 ,this comparison of the figured pillar and tree and the world1 is a partial and not complete simile2 the similitude here referring only to the situation of the transient world in the substance of the permanent ,brahma 7like the appearance of false figures in the firmly fixed pillar and on the standing tree74 #ac4 ,but this appearance of the world is not caused by another 7as in the case of the pillar1 figures and pictures carved and painted by the hands of the statuary and painter74 ,it rises1 lasts and sets spontaneously and of itself in the self-same essence of ,brahma 7as the figures in the tree or the waves of the ,ocean74 ,it is the property of the divine soul and mind to raise and set such imageries in them by turns1 like the creations of our imagination4#h #ad4 ,the meaning of the word void 7snya7 instead of no void 7asnya7 or existence1 is a fiction as false as inanity is a nullity in nature4 ,something must come out of something1 and never from a void nothing2 and how can nothing be reduced to nothing in the end--mahpralaya 7snyat snyate katham78 7,ex nihilo nihil fit1 et in nihilum nihil reverti posse74 #ae4 ,in answer to your second question it has been said 8there was darkness neither40 ,because the divine light of ,brahma 7which existed before creation71 was not like the light of a material luminary 7which is followed by darkness74 ,the everlasting light was not to be obscured by darkness1 like the sunshine1 or moon-light or the blazing of fire or the twinkling of stars or our eyes4 #af4 ,it is the absence of the light of the great celestial luminaries1 that is called darkness1 and there being no material property in the immaterial essence of ,god1 there could be no such light or darkness with him before creation4 #ag4 ,the light of the vacuous ,brahma is an internal perception of the soul1 and is only felt and perceived within one's self1 and never externally by any body2 nor is this spiritual light ever clouded by any mist or darkness of temporal objects4 #ah4 ,the indestructible ,brahma is beyond and free from external and visible light and darkness2 and is above the region of vacuum which is contained1 as it were1 within his bosom1 and contains the universe as sheathed within its hollow womb4 #ai4 ,as there is no difference between the outside and inside of a fruit 7both of which is the same thing72 so there is no shade of difference betwixt ,brahma and the universe 7the one pervading and the other pervaded by his spirit74 #bj4 ,as the billow is contained in and composed of the water and the pot of the earth1 so the world being contained in ,brahma1 it can not be said as null and void1 but full of the spirit of ,god4 #ba4 ,the comparison of earth and water does not agree corporeally with the spiritual essence of ,god1 whose vacuous spirit contains and comprises the whole 7,visva7 within itself1 as those elements do their component parts and productions4 #bb4 ,now as the sphere of the intellect is clearer and brighter far than the spheres of air and empty space2 so the sense and idea of the word world as situated in the divine mind1 is clearer in a far greater degree than this visible world appears to us4 #bc4 7,in answer to the third question with regard to the want of intellect71 it is said thus3--,as the pungency of pepper is perceived by one who tastes it1 and not by him who has never tasted it2 so the minutiae of the ,intellect are known in the intellectual sphere by a cultivated intelligence1 and by none who is without it4 #bd4 ,thus the ,intellect appears as no intellect to one who is devoid of intelligence in himself 7i4e4 one having the ,intellect1 does not perceive it without a cultivated understanding74 ,so this world is seen in the spirit of ,god or otherwise1 according as one has cultivated or neglected his spiritual knowledge4 #be4 ,the world as it is1 is seen either in its outward figure or in a spiritual light1 as other than or the same with ,brahma 7by the materialist and spiritualist72 but the ,yogi views it in its fourth 7turya7 state of susupta or utter extinction in his unconscious soul4 #bf4 ,therefore the ,yogi1 though leading a secular life1 remains somnolent 7,susupta7 in his soul1 and tranquil 7,snta7 in his mind4 ,he lives like ,brahma unknown to and unnoticed by others1 and though knowing all and full of thoughts in himself1 he is as a treasury of ,knowledge1 unknown to the rest of mankind4 #bg4 7,in answer to the question how corporeal beings could proceed from the incorporeal ,brahma74 ,vasishtha says3--,as waves of various shapes rise and fall in the still and shapeless breast of the sea1 so innumerable worlds of various forms1 float about in the unaltered and formless vacuity of ,brahma's bosom4 #bh4 ,from the fullness of the ,divine soul 7,brahmtm71 proceeds the fullness of the living soul 7,jvtm71 which is formless also 7nirkriti74 ,this aspect of ,brahma is said to be owing to the purpose of manifesting himself 7as living in all living beings74 #bi4 ,so the totality of worlds proceeding from the plenum of ,brahma1 there remains the same sum total also as the plenitude of ,brahma himself4 #cj4 ,considering the world as synonymous with ,brahma in our minds1 we find their identity 7in the same manner71 as one finds by taste the pepper and its pungency to be the same thing4 #ca4 ,such being the state of the unreality of the mind and its cognizables1 their reflexions upon each other 7i4e4 of the mind upon the object and those of the object on the mind71 are equally untrue as the shadow of a shadow4 7,here is an utter negation of perception and perceptibles4 ,there being no material subtratum1 the shadowy scene of the world is a mere mental synthesis4 ,berkeley74#i #cb4 ,know ,brahma to be smaller than the smallest atom1 and minutest of minutest particles4 ,he is purer than air1 and more tranquil than the subtile ether which is embosomed in him4 #cc4 ,unbounded by space and time1 his form is the most extensive of all4 ,he is without beginning and end1 and an ineffable light without brightness in it4 7,he is the light of lights74 #cd4 ,he is of the form of intellect--chit and life eternal1 without the conditions and accidents of vitality--jvat4 ,the ,divine ,mind has its will eternal1 and is devoid of the desires of finite minds--chittata4 #ce4 ,without the rise of the intellect 7i4e4 its development71 there is neither vitality nor understanding1 no intellection nor any organic action or sensation1 and no mental desire or feeling whatever 7all of which are but products of the intellect or ,ego74 #cf4 ,hence the ,being that is full of these powers 7and without which no power has its display71 and who is without decline or decay1 is seen by us to be seated in his state of tranquil vacuity1 and is rarer than the rarefied vacuum of the etherial regions4 #cg4 ,rma said3--,tell me again and more precisely of the form of this transcendental ,being1 who is of the nature of infinite intelligence1 and which may give more light to my understanding4 #ch4 ,vasistha said3--,i have told you repeatedly1 that there is one supreme ,brahma1 the cause of causes1 who remains alone by himself1 when the universe is finally dissolved or absorbed in him4 ,hear me describe ,him fully to you4 #ci4 ,that which the ,yogi sees within himself after forgetting his personality1 and repressing the faculties and functions of his mind1 in his ,samdhi--meditation1 is verily the form of the unspeakable ,being4 #dj4 ,as the ,yogi who is absorbed in his meditation in absence of the visible world1 and in privation of the viewer and visibles1 and sees the light shining in himself1 even such is the form of that ,being4 #da4 ,who having forgotten the nature of the living soul--jva1 and his proclivity towards the intelligibles1 remains in the pure light and tranquil state of his intellect 7as in ,yoga71 such is the form of the ,supreme ,spirit4 #db4 ,he who has no feeling of the breathing of the winds1 or of the touch or pressure of any thing upon his body2 but lives as a mass of intelligence in this life2 is verily the form of the ,supreme4 #dc4 ,again that state of the mind1 which a man of sense enjoys in his long and sound sleep1 that is undisturbed by dreams and gnats1 is verily the form of the ,supreme4 #dd4 ,that which abides in the hearts of vacuum1 air and stone1 and is the intellect of all inanimate beings1 is the form of the ,supreme4 #de4 ,again whatever irrational and insensible beings live by nature1 as without the soul and mind 7as vegetables and minerals71 the tranquil state of their existence is the nature of the ,supreme ,soul4 #df4 ,that which is seated in the midst of the intellectual light of the soul1 and what is situated in the midst of the etherial light of the sun1 and that which is in the midst of our visual light1 is verily the form of the ,supreme4 7,this passage admits of an occult interpretation in the ,yoga system74 #dg4 ,the soul which is the witness of our knowledge1 of solar and visual lights and darkness1 is without beginning and end1 and is the form of the ,supreme4 #dh4 ,he who manifests this world to us1 and keeps himself hidden from view1 be he the same with or distinct from the world1 is the form of the ,supreme4 #di4 ,who though full of activity1 is sedate as a rock1 and who though not a vacuum 7being the plenum of all71 appears yet as an empty vacuity1 such is the form of the ,supreme4 #ej4 ,he who is the source and terminus of our triple consciousness of the knower1 known and knowledge 7i4e4 from whom they rise and in whom they set by turns72 is most difficult of attainment4 #ea4 ,he who shines forth with the lustre of the triple conditions of the knowable1 knower and their knowledge1 and shows them to us as a large insensible mirror1 is verily the form of the ,supreme1 who is here represented not as the cause--nimitta1 but as the source--vivarta of the triple category4 #eb4 ,the mind that is liberated from bodily activities 7as in the waking ,jagrat state7 from its dreaming 7as in the swapna or sleeping state71 and is concentrated in the intellect 7as in the state of susupti or sound sleep71 and abides alike in all moving as well as unmoving bodies 7as in the turya or fourth state of the soul71 is said to remain in the end of our being4 #ec4 ,the intelligent mind which is as fixed as an immovable body1 and freed from the exercise of its faculties1 is comparable with the ,divine ,mind4#aj ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,,spiritual ,,view ,,of ,,creation4 ,rma said3--,tell me1 ,o ,brhman1 wherein this world abides at its last dissolution1 when it does not retain its present form1 nor this resplendent show 7as we see in it now74 #b4 ,vasishtha answered3--,tell me1 ,rma1 what is the form of the barren woman's son1 and wherefrom he comes and where he goes1 tell me also from where comes the sky-arbour 7aerial castle71 and where it remains4 #c4 ,rma replied3--,there never was1 nor is1 nor ever will be the son of a barren woman or an arbour in the sky2 why then ask about the form and figure of what is nothing8 #d4 ,vasishtha said3--,as there never was a barren woman's son or a forest in the air1 so there existed no such scene as that of the world before4 #e4 ,that which has no existence at all1 could have neither its production before1 nor can it have its dissolution afterwards4 ,what shall ,i then tell you regarding its genesis or exit4 #f4 ,rma rejoined3--,the son of a barren woman and a forest in the sky are mere fictions1 but the visible world is not so1 which has both its beginning and end4 #g4 ,vasishtha replied3--,it is hard to have a comparison of the compared object1 agreeing in all respects with what it is compared4 ,the comparison of the world1 is as a simile of those objects1 which admit of no comparison 7but with themselves74 #h4 ,the appearance of the world1 is compared with that of a bracelet1 because the one is as false as the other1 and neither of them is real4 #i4 ,and as there is nothing in the sky except a negative emptiness1 so the existence of the world in ,brahma1 is but a negative idea4 #aj4 ,as the collyrium is no other than blackness1 and as there is no difference between frost and its coldness1 so the world is not otherwise than the great ,brahma himself4 #aa4 ,as coldness can not be negatived of the moon and frost1 so creation can not be negated of ,god4 7,literally1 creation is no negative property of ,brahma1 but essential to his nature74 #ab4 ,as there is no water in a sea of the mirage1 nor light in the new moon1 so this world1 as it is1 does not abide in the pure spirit of ,god 7in its gross state74 #ac4 ,that which did not exist at first owing to its want of a cause1 has neither its existence at present1 nor can it be destroyed 7when it is a nil itself74 #ad4 ,how is it possible for a dull material object to have any other cause but a material one2 just as it is not the light 7but some solid substance71 that is the cause of a shadow4 #ae4 ,but as none of these works1 has come into existence without some cause1 that cause whatever it is1 is situated in these productions of it3 7i4e4 the author is displayed in his works74 #af4 ,whatever appears as ignorance or delusion 7as this world71 has some appearance of intelligence or truth 7of the ,divinity7 in it1 as the delusion of the world seen in a dream1 is the effect of the intellect within us4 7,consciousness is awake in our dreams also74 #ag4 ,as the illusion of the world in a dream1 is not without our inward consciousness of it1 in like manner ,brahma was not unconscious of the expansion of the world1 at the beginning of creation4 #ah4 ,all this that we behold about us1 is situated in the divine soul 7in the same manner as the visions in our dreams1 are but archetypes of our souls72 there is no other world that rises and sets 7but what is imprinted in our minds74 #ai4 ,as fluidity is another name for water1 and fluctuation the same with wind2 and as sunshine is no other than light1 so the world is naught but ,brahma 7displayed in nature74 #bj4 ,as the figure of a city1 resides in the inward intellect of one1 who is conscious of his dreaming1 in the same manner this world1 is displayed in the ,supreme soul4 #ba4 ,rma said3--,if it is so1 then tell me1 ,o ,brhman6 whence is this our belief of its substantiality1 and how this unreal and visionary ideal1 presents its baneful visible aspect unto us4 #bb4 ,for the view being in existence1 there must be its viewer also1 and when there is the viewer1 there is the view likewise4 ,as long as either of these is in existence1 there is our bondage1 and it is on the disappearance of both1 that our liberation chiefly depends3 7which can hardly take place74 #bc4 ,it is entirely impossible to be so1 as long as our notion of the view1 is not lost in our minds1 for unless the view is vanished both from the vision of the eyes and mind1 no one can even form an idea of liberation in his mind4 #bd4 ,again the representation of the view at first1 and its obliteration afterwards1 is not enough for our liberation1 because the remembrance of the view1 is bondage of the soul4 #be4 ,moreover when the picture of the view1 is settled in the soul1 and reflected in the mirror of the mind1 there is no necessity of its recollection 7for what is deeply rooted in the soul1 comes out of itself74 #bf4 ,the intellect which was without the notion of the visibles at first1 would be entitled to liberation1 were it not owing to the nature of the viewer 7to imbibe the ideas of visibles74 #bg4 ,now sir1 please to remove by your reasoning1 my hopelessness of liberation1 which ,i ween1 is unattainable by any4 #bh4 ,vasishtha said3--,hear me1 ,rma6 explain to you in length1 how the unreal world with all its contents1 appears as real to us4 #bi4 ,for unless it is explained to you by my reasoning1 and the narratives and instances 7of the practice of others71 this doubt will not subside in your breast1 as dirt sets down in the lake4 #cj4 ,then ,rma1 you will be able to conduct yourself on earth1 as one under assurance of the erroneous conception of the creation and existence of the world4 #ca4 ,you will then remain as a rock against the impressions of affluence and want1 and of gain and loss1 and your relation with whatever1 is fleeting or lasting and the like4 #cb4 ,mind1 that there is that only one spirit1 which is self-existent1 and all besides is mere fiction4 ,i will now tell you1 how the triple world was produced and formed4 #cc4 ,it was from ,him1 that all these beings have come to existence2 while ,he of himself1 is all and every thing in it4 ,he likewise appears to us and disappears also1 both as forms and their appearances1 and as the mind and its faculties1 and as figures and their shapes1 and as modes and motions of all things4 ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,,the ,,idealistic ,,theo-,,cosmogony ,,of ,,ved,,nta4 ,vasishtha said3-- ,from the state of perfect quiescence and tranquillity of the supremely ,holy spirit1 the universe rose to being in the manner1 which you must hear with your best understanding and attention4 #b4 ,as sound sleep displays itself in visionary dreams1 so does ,brahma manifest himself in the works of creation1 of which he is the soul and receptacle3 7i4e4 who contains and forms and enlivens the whole74 #c4 ,the world1 which of its nature is continually progressive in its course1 is identic with the essence of that ,being1 whose form is selfsame with the ineffable glory of his eternally gemming ,intellect 7chin-mani74 #d4 ,this chit or ,intellect1 then 7i4e4 after its inert quiescence71 gets of itself an intellection 7chety7 in itself1 before assuming to itself consciousness or the knowledge of egoism4 7,this is the first stage of the percipient soul74 #e4 ,then this thinking ,intellect 7chetya-chit71 gets the notions 7bodhas7 of some faint images 7hita-rpas71 which are purer and lighter than air1 and which have received their names and forms afterwards4 7,the innate ideas are born in it before the embryonic mind or soul74 #f4 ,afterwards this transcendent essence 7,intellect71 becomes an intelligent principle 7sacheta71 and eager for intelligence 7chetana74 ,it is now worthy of its name as ,intellect or chit1 on account of its attaining to what is called intelligence4 #g4 ,lastly it takes the form of gross consciousness 7ghana-samvedana71 and receives the name of the living soul--jva4 ,it now loses its divine nature by reflecting on itself3 7i4e4 its own personality74 #h4 ,this living principle1 is then involved in thoughts relating to the world only2 but depends by its nature on the divine essence3 7as the fallacy of the snake1 depends on the substance of the rope74#aa #i4 ,afterwards there rises a void space into being1 called ,kham--vacuum 7,arabic ,khviyetun71 which is the seed or source of the property of sound1 and which became expressive of meaning afterwards4 7,it is called ksa or sky-light from ksa to shine1 as light was the first work of ,god74 #aj4 ,next in order are produced the elements of egoism and duration in the living soul 7i4e4 the simultaneousness of the ideas of self-entity and duration in the living principle74 ,and these two terms1 are the roots of the subsistence of future worlds4 7i4e4 ,the individuality and durability of things74 #aa4 ,this ideal knowledge1 of the unreal forms of the net-work of world1 in divine ,spirit1 was made to appear as a reality by the ,omnipotent power4 7i4e4 ,the ideal world appeared afterwards as real74 #ab4 ,thus the ideal self-consciousness became the seed 7or root7 of the tree of desires1 which were vacillated by egoism in the form of air4 #ac4 ,the intellect in the form of the airy ego1 thinks on the element of sounds 7sabda tanmtram72 it becomes by degrees denser than the rarefied air1 and produces the element of mind4 #ad4 ,sound is the seed 7or root7 of words1 which were afterwards diversified in the forms of names or nouns and significant terms2 and the assemblage of words1 as shoots of trees1 is varied in padas or inflected words1 vkyas or sentences1 and the collections of ,vedas and ,sstras4 #ae4 ,it is from this ,supreme spirit1 that all these worlds derived their beauty afterwards2 and the multitude of words 7which sprang from the sounds71 and were full of meaning1 became widely spread at last4 #af4 ,the ,intellect having such a family as its offspring1 is expressed by the word jva 7zoa7 or the living soul1 which became afterwards the arbor 7or source7 of all forms of beings1 known under a variety of expressions and their significations4 7i4e4 ,the living god ,brahm became the cause of the formal world1 from the tanmtra elements produced by ,brahma74 #ag4 ,the fourteen kinds of living beings1 which fill the cells in the bowels of all worlds1 sprang afterwards from this living soul4 7,these include all vegetable and animal life and all such as increase in bulk and growth74 #ah4 ,it was then1 that the ,intellect by a motion and inflation of itself1 and at an instantaneous thought1 became the element tanmtra of touch and feeling 7the air71 which was yet without its name and action4 7,the ,spirit breathed breathless4 ,sruti74 ,this breath caused air1 which expanded itself and filled all bodies1 which are objects of touch and feeling4 #ai4 ,the air1 which is the seed 7root7 of the tree of tangibles1 then developed itself into branches1 composed of the 7#di7 various kinds of winds1 that are the causes of the breathings and motions of all beings4 #bj4 ,then the ,intellect produced at pleasure and from its idea of light1 the elemental essence of lustre1 which received afterwards its different names 7from the light of the sun and moon and the stars1 as also from those of fire and lightning74 #ba4 ,then the sun1 fire1 lightning and others1 which are the seeds 7or roots7 of the tree of light1 caused the various colours of bodies that filled the world4 7,that light is the cause of colour1 was known to the ancient ,rishi74 #bb4 ,it reflected on the want of fluidity1 and produced the liquid body of waters1 whose taste constitutes the element 7tanmtra7 of flavour4 #bc4 ,the desire of the soul for different flavours 7rasas71 is the seed of the tree of taste1 and it is by the relish of a variety of tastes1 that the world is to go on in its course4 #bd4 ,then the self-willed ,brahm1 wishing to produce the visible earth1 caused the property of smell to appertain to it from his own element of it4 #be4 ,he made his elementary solidity1 the seed or source of the tree of forms 7morphology72 as he made his own element of rotundity the substratum of the spherical world4 #bf4 ,those elements being all evolved from the ,intellect1 are again involved of themselves in it1 as the bubbles of water rise and subside in itself4 #bg4 ,in this manner1 all those beings remain in their combined states1 until their final dissolution into their simple and separate forms4 #bh4 ,all those things1 which are but forms and formations of pure ,intellect1 remain within the sphere of ,divine ,intelligence1 as the germs of the big banian tree1 reside in the forms of pollen and the seed4 #bi4 ,these sprouted forth in time1 and burst out into a hundred branches3 and after having been concealed in an atom1 became as big as they were to last for ever4 #cj4 ,such is the growth and multiplication of things by pervasion of the ,intellect1 until they are put to a stop by its contraction and when weakened in their bodies by its desertion1 they droop down in the end4 #ca4 ,thus is this class of elementary tanmtras1 produced in the ,intellect out of its own volition1 and are manifested in the form of formless minuti to sight4#ab 7trasaranus74 #cb4 ,these five-fold elements are verily the only seeds of all things in the world4 ,they are the seeds of the primary momentum that was given to them 7in the beginning74 ,in our notions1 they are the seeds of elementary bodies1 but in their real nature1 they are the increate ideal shapes of the ,intellect replenishing the world4 ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,,on ,,the ,,production ,,of ,,the ,,self-,,born4 ,vasishtha said3-- ,rma6 ,when the ,supreme ,brahma remains in his resplendent and tranquil state 7before creation71 there is no essence of etherial light or heat or even darkness produced in the intellectual spirit4 7,but they lie hidden there as if buried in oblivion74 #b4 ,the ,sat-,god has the attribute of ,chetya--intellectuality at first1 and it is from the intellection 7,chetana7 of his intellectual part 7,chetynsa71 that the epithet of mind 7,chitta7 is attributed to him4 ,the faculties 7,sakti7 of his intellect 7,chit71 are called its intelligence 7,chetan74 #c4 ,the ,chit or intellect has then the attribute of the ,living soul 7,jva71 from its intelligence 7,chetan71 and connection with the chetya or intelligible objects in nature4 ,it is next attributed with the title of my or illusion1 from the subjection of its ,chetya or cognizable objects only to itself--,aham mtra4 #d4 ,it has then the attribute of understanding 7buddhi71 from the excess of its egoism 7ahant71 which is full with the purposes of its mind and the elements of sound c4 7i4e4 with a desire for all sensible objects74 #e4 ,this 7living1 deluded and self reflecting7 ego1 is puffed up with thoughts of 7possessing7 all things1 and looks upon the great arbour of the visible world 7as the great garden for its pleasure and gain74 #f4 ,but the living souls1 like so many evanescent objects seen in a dream1 are made to rise and fall one after the other1 in this great forest of the world surrounded by the skies4 #g4 ,but the world is 7as continuous7 as the grove of ,karajna plants1 growing from unsown seeds2 and its elementary bodies of the water1 fire1 earth and air1 have no regard for any body2 7that is living or dead74 #h4 ,the intellect which is the soul of the universe1 creates afterwards the earth and all other things1 as one remembering the objects of his dream 7recalls them to his memory74 #i4 ,wherever there is the germ of the world1 it develops itself even at that place2 the live elements are the five fold seed of the world1 but the undecaying intellect is the seed of the quintuple 7pancha-bhta74 #aj4 ,as is the seed so is its fruit2 hence know the world to be a form and full of ,god2 and the spacious firmament to be the reservoir of the quintuple elements in the beginning of creation4 #aa4 ,the soul like the body1 is composed of the powers of the ,intellect1 and does not subsist of itself2 but being inflated by the same1 it extends its bulk4 #ab4 ,but the vacuous form of the intellect1 which is seated in the spiritual body of the soul1 cannot be composed of solid reality 7as the primary elements of matter74 ,this is not possible2 hence nothing can come out from an impossibility4 #ac4 ,again that which is changeable in its form1 cannot have its sameness at all times3 hence if the essence of the quintuple elements1 be attributed to ,brahma1 from the idea of their being the quintessence of his spirit1 there can be no immaterial and immutable ,brahma4 #ad4 ,therefore know this quintuple to be the developed ,brahma himself1 as he evolved them in the beginning1 and as he is their producer for the creation of the world4 #ae4 ,thus ,he being the prime cause of their production1 there is nothing that is produced 7without7 him1 and the world is no product of itself4 #af4 ,the unreal appears as real as a city seen in a dream1 and as a castle built in air by our hopes3 so we place the living soul in ourselves1 which has its foundation in the vacuous spirit of ,god4 #ag4 ,thus the brilliant spirit1 which is situated in the ,divine ,intellect1 being no earthly or any other material substance1 is styled the living soul1 and remains in vacuum as a luminous body rising in the sky4 #ah4 ,hear now how this vacuous living soul1 comes to be embodied in the human body1 after its detachment as a spark from the totality of vital spirits1 in the empty sphere of divine ,intellect4 #ai4 ,the soul thinks itself as 8a minute particle of light0 at first1 and then it considers itself as growing in the sphere of its consciousness4 #bj4 ,the unreal appearing as real1 proves to be unreal at last2 as the fictitious moon becomes a nullity afterwards2 so the soul continues to view itself subjectively and objectively both as the viewer and the view4 #ba4 ,thus the single self becomes double as one sees his own death in a dream2 and thus it waxes into bigness and thinks its vital spark as a star4 7,this is the form of the lingadeha or sentient soul within the body74 #bb4 ,as the soul goes on thinking itself the microcosm of the world 7,viswarpa71 so it falsely thinks itself as such in reality1 as it is expressed by the dictum 8,soham0 8so am ,i40 #bc4 ,by thinking himself as such1 man comes to believe it as true1 as one believes himself as a traveller in his dream4 ,so by thinking the soul as a star1 he views it so within himself4 #bd4 ,by continued meditation of his soul as such1 he loses his external sensations1 and views this star in his cranium4 #be4 ,he sees the soul within him though it be without him2 just as the mirror reflects the distant hill in itself2 and the soul remains confined within him1 as a body is confined in a well1 and as a sound is shut up in the hollow of a cave4 #bf4 ,the consciousness of our dreams and desires1 is but a particle 7attribute7 of the living soul1 whose real form is that of a star waking 7keeping watch7 within us4 7,consciousness of external objects in our dream and desire1 is compared to the reflection of outward images in a glass or bubble of water1 and to the echo of a distant sound in a hollow cave74 #bg4 ,now this vacuous life1 which is composed of the essences of the mind1 understanding and knowledge1 resides in the hollow sheath of the star4 7,the star is supposed to be the eye-sight and residence of life4 ,gloss74 #bh4 ,it appears to me to take its flight to the sky1 to see what is passing there 7i4e4 the manner in which the mental eye of the ,yogi penetrates the regions of air74 ,and then it enters the body by two holes1 which have the names of the external organs 7of sight7 given them afterwards4 7,the whole sphere of air is thought to teem with life or living souls and spirits1 which rove free in the air1 until they are made to enter and pass out of the body by two unknown holes1 whether of the nostrils or sockets or glottis1 remains undefined and undetermined74 #bi4 ,the organs by which the embodied living soul1 is to see 7external objects71 are called the eyes-netras 7from their receiving 7nayana7 the light of the soul74 ,that by which it is to feel1 is styled the skin 7twak or touch72 and those whereby it is to hear1 are termed the ears 7srutis from sru to hear1 corresponding with suna or shunu in vernaculars and ,persian74 #cj4 ,the organ of smelling is the nose--ghrna from its bearing the scent--ghrna to the soul2 and that of taste is named as tongue rasan1 for its conducting the rasa taste or flavour to the spirit4 #ca4 ,then there is the breathing air 7the air of breath or breath of life71 which actuates the energies of the organs of action4 ,it is this air which is the cause--of vision1 and mover of the internal organs of the mind and thought4 #cb4 ,this 7vital breath7 supports the embodied and all supporting soul 7tivhika-dehtm7 in the vacuity of the body1 and fills and kindles it as the air does a spark of fire4 #cc4 ,the word ,jva or the living soul 7zoa71 is brought under a figurative sense1 #8to mean something real in the unreal body'4 ,hence ,brahm is said to be the life and soul of the unreal world4 #cd4 ,the gross embodied soul1 is of the form of vacuum like the mind and yet it imagines itself to reside in an ovum in the body1 as ,brahm is supposed to be seated in the mundane egg4 7i4e4 ,the soul loses its light airy shape and free range1 by being confined in the body74 #ce4 ,some view the spirit of ,god as floating on the surface of the 7ante-mundane7 waters 7in the form of ,nryana72 and others view it in the person of the ,lord of creatures 7,brahm72 while there are others1 who look at it as infused throughout the creation in the figure of virj4 ,these are called the subtile and gross bodies of the soul 7sthla and skshma sarras74 #cf4 ,the soul or spirit is the spacious womb of productions1 and the means of executing its own purposes1 and of knowing the proper time and place1 and the article and the manner of action 7modus operandi74 #cg4 ,the mind is the inventor of words1 expressive of ideas 7in the soul71 and subjects itself to the arbitary sounds of its own invention4 ,hence ,god is erroneously said to be embodied in words 7sabda ,brahma of ,mimns philosophy7 in this world of errors4 #ch4 ,the unproduced and self-born ,brahm1 that has risen of himself 7and represents the mind71 is as unreal as the soaring of a man in the sky in his dream4 #ci4 ,this all supporting-embodied soul1 is the prime ,lord of creatures1 who is said to have formed this illusory frame of the world4 #dj4 ,but there was nothing formed or born in it 7in reality72 nor is there any substance to be found in the world4 ,it is the same vacuous form of ,brahma still1 whose essence is known to extend as the infinite space itself4 #da4 ,things appearing as real1 are as unreal as an imaginary city 7,utopia71 which presents a variety 7of forms and colours7 to the fancy1 without being built or painted by any body4 7,the phenomenal appearance of the world1 is likened to a phantasmagoria74 #db4 ,nothing that is unmade or unthought of1 can be real 7either in substance or idea72 and the gods ,brahm and others1 being freed from their avocations at the universal dissolution of existence1 could neither resume their functions nor have materials for the same4 #dc4 ,the self-born ,brahm1 having then neither his remembrance of the past1 nor any material appliance at hand1 could neither form an ideal or material world out of nothing4 ,therefore production of ,brahm and formation of the universe are alike 7chimerical74 #dd4 ,the earth and all other existences1 are but the eternal ideas of the divine mind1 and they appear to us as objects of a dream in our waking state3 7when they vanish into airy nothing74 #de4 ,the divine spirit is known to be vacuum only1 and so also is the world ever known to be3 7because the like produces the like74 ,so all waters are alike liquid bodies1 though they are made to pass under different names4 #df4 ,this creation is every where the same in the ,supreme ,spirit4 ,it is but an evolution of the same 7though presenting different aspects to us72 and the creator is always and everywhere immutable in his nature4 #dg4 ,the vacuous universe1 under the name of the mundane egg1 shines as clearly as the ,divine ,spirit3 it is calm in its appearance1 and becomes disturbed by causes born in itself4 7,nature is uniform1 but ruffled by accidents74 #dh4 ,it is supported by the supportless supporter of all1 who is one and without a second1 but devoid of unity in 7the variety of his7 creation4 ,all this is born in his consciousness1 and therefore there is nothing that is produced anew4 #di4 ,he1 who is of the form of unlimited space1 and without any vacuity in it 7because nature abhors a vacuum72 who is transparent yet teeming with abundance2 who is the whole world 7,god in nature71 without any worldliness in him2 is verily the substratum of all4 #ej4 ,he1 who is neither the container nor the contained1 nor the view of the world2 who is neither the world nor its creator 7,brahm71 and about whom there can be no dispute nor disputant2 is verily the unknown ,god4 #ea4 ,he1 who is neither the passing world nor any of its passing things2 who is quite at rest1 yet situated in all things1 7whether moving or quiescent72 is the only ,brahma that shines of himself in himself 7as the soul of and all in all74 #eb4 ,as we form in ourselves the image of a whirlpool1 by the idea of the fluidity of water in our minds2 so the sight of the world produces the false notion of its reality in the mind4 #ec4 ,all unrealities become extinct at the end1 as we see the death of our frail bodies in dreams4 ,so we find on the contrary the essential part of our soul1 to be unscathed by its own nature of indestructibility1 and remaining in the form of everlasting consciousness in the atmosphere of our intellects4 #ed4 ,brahm the prime ,lord of creatures1 is ever manifest by himself in the form of vacuity in the ,supreme spirit2 and he being of a spiritual form as the mind1 has no material body formed of earth as all other corporeal beings2 and is therefore both real and unborn 7in his essence74 ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,,establishment ,,of ,,brahma4 ,vasishtha added3-- ,in this manner the visible world1 myself1 thyself and all other things are nothing2 all these being unmade and unborn are inexistent3 it is the ,supreme spirit only that is existent of itself4 #b4 ,the primeval vacuous soul is awakened at first of itself1 and by its own energy from its quietness1 and begins to have a motion in itself like the troubled waters of the deep4 #c4 ,it then begins to reflect in itself1 as in a dream or in imagination1 without changing its vacuous form1 which is likened to a rock with the inward faculty of thought4 #d4 ,the body of the ,great ,virj also1 is devoid of any material form1 either of earthly or any other elemental shape1 7as it is viewed in the ,vedas74 ,it is purely a spiritual1 intellectual and etherial form1 and as transparent as the ether itself4 #e4 ,it is undecaying and steady as a rock1 and as airy as a city seen in a dream4 ,it is immovable as the line of a regiment represented in a picture4 #f4 ,all other souls are as pictures of dolls and puppets1 painted and not engraven on the body of ,virj as upon a huge pillar2 and he standing as an uncarved column in the empty sphere of ,brahm1 represents all souls 7and not bodies7 as they are mere pictures on it4 #g4 ,the prime ,lord of creatures is said to be self-born at first1 and he is known as the increate 7,brahm71 for want of his prior acts to cause his birth4 7,he is coeternal with the eternal ,brahma1 and is therefore not subject to birth and death74 #h4 ,the primeval patriarchs1 who obtain their ultimate liberation at the final dissolution of the world1 have no antecedent cause to be reborn as unliberated mortals4 7,so the emancipate souls of the living and dead1 are freed from the doom of regeneration47 #i4 ,brahma1 who is the reflector of all souls1 is himself invisible in the inward mirror of other souls3 7i4e4 he reflects all images in himself1 but never casts his own reflexion upon any74 ,he is neither the view nor the viewer1 and neither the creation nor the creator himself4 7,these being the functions of the creative and representative powers of ,brahm and ,virj74 #aj4 ,though thus negated of all predicates1 yet is ,brahma the soul of all predicables1 that may be affirmed or denied of him 7since he is all in all74 ,he is the source of these chains of living beings1 as light is the cause of a line of lighted lamps in illuminations4 #aa4 ,the will of the gods 7,brahm and ,virj71 proceeding from the volition of ,brahma1 is of that spiritual nature as the other2 just as one dream rising in another1 is equally unsubstantial as the first3 7i4e4 the products of spiritual causes1 are also spiritual1 by the rule of the homogeneity of the cause and effect74 #ab4 ,hence all living souls1 which are evolved from the breathing of the ,supreme ,spirit1 are of the same nature as their origin for want of an auxiliary causality4 7,god made man in his own image1 and as perfect as himself3 and this man is manas the ,brahm1 or as he is named ,adam1 corresponding with ,adima or ,adyam purusham--the first male or ,protogonus74 #ac4 ,want of a secondary agency1 produces the equality of effects with their cause 7as the fruits and flowers of trees1 are of the same kind with the parent tree1 unless there rises a difference in them by cause of engraftments74 ,hence the uniformity of created things1 proves the conception of their creation by a secondary cause1 to be wholly erroneous4 #ad4 ,brahma himself is the prime soul of ,virj and self-same with him1 and ,virj is the soul of creation and identical with it4 ,he is the vacuous vitality of all2 and it is from him that the unreal earth and other things have their rise4 7,virj is the spirit of ,god diffused in nature74 #ae4 ,rma said3--,tell me1 whether the living soul1 is a limited thing or an unlimited mass of life2 or does the unbounded spirit of ,god1 exist in the shape of a mountainous heap of living souls3 7i4e4 whether it is to be taken in a collective or integral sense1 and whether it forms a totality--samashti existent in the ,divinity1 of which all individual souls are either as parts vyashti or separate existences74 #af4 ,are these living souls like showers of rain-water falling from above1 or as the drizzling drops of waves in the vast ocean of creation1 or as the sparks of fire struck out of a red-hot iron1 and from whence they flow1 and by whom they are emitted4 #ag4 ,tell me sir1 the truth concerning the profusion of living souls1 and though ,i have a partial knowledge of it1 ,i require it to be more fully and clearly explained by you4 #ah4 ,vasishtha replied3--,there being but one living soul of the universe1 you can not call it a multitude4 ,your question therefore is quite out of place1 as the query about the horns of hares 7which do not exist in nature74 #ai4 ,there are no detached living souls1 ,o ,rma1 nor are they to be found in multitudes any where1 nor was there a mountainous heap of souls known to have existed at any time4 #bj4 ,living soul is but a fictitious word1 and it is heaped with many fictions1 all of which1 you must know for certain1 do not apply to the soul4 #ba4 ,there is but one pure and immaculate ,brahma1 who is mere ,intellect 7chinmtram7 and all pervasive4 ,he assumes to himself all attributes by his almighty power4 7,here ,brahma is represented not only as ,omniscient and ,omnipotent2 but as saguna also by his assumption of all attributes74 #bb4 ,the living soul is viewed by many to evolve itself from the intellect into many visible and invisible forms 7mrta-mtam72 just as a plant is seen to develope itself into its fruits and flowers4 #bc4 ,they add to their knowledge of the soul the attributes of the living principle1 understanding1 action1 motion1 mind and unity and duality1 as if these appertain to its nature4 #bd4 ,but all this is caused by ignorance1 while right understanding assigns them to ,brahma4 ,the ignorant are bewildered by these distinct views 7of the soul71 and will not be awakened to sense4 #be4 ,these different believers are lost 7in their various views71 as the light is lost under darkness4 ,they will never come to the knowledge of truth as it is the case with the ignorant4 #bf4 ,know ,brahma himself as the living soul without any divisibility or distinction4 ,he is without beginning or end4 ,he is omnipotent1 and is of the form of the great ,intellect which forms his essence4 #bg4 ,his want of minuteness 7i4e4 his fulness7 in all places1 precludes his distinctive appellations every where4 ,whatever attributes are given him 7by fiction71 are all to be understood to mean ,brahma himself4 #bh4 ,rma asked3--,how comes it1 ,o ,brhman8 that the totality of the living souls in the world1 is guided by the will of one universal soul1 which governs the whole1 and to which all others are subject4 #bi4 ,vasishtha replied3--,brahma the great living soul and ,omnipotent power1 remained from eternity with his volition 7satya sankalpa--fixed determination7 of creation1 without partition or alteration of himself4 #cj4 ,whatever is wished by that great soul1 comes to take place immediately4 ,the wish it formed in its unity at first1 became a positive duality at last4 ,then its wish 8to be many0 7,aham bahu syam71 became the separate existences afterwards4 #ca4 ,all these dualities of his self-divided powers 7the different living souls71 had their several routines of action allotted to them1 as 8this is for that02 meaning 8this being is for that duty1 and such action is for such end04 #cb4 ,thus though there can be no act without exertion 7by the general rule as in the case of mortals71 yet the predominant will of ,brahm1 is always prevailing without its exertion to action1 7as in the case of saints whose wills are effective of their ends without the aid of action74 #cc4 ,though they that bear the name of living beings1 effect their purposes by exertion of their energies1 yet they can effect nothing without acting according to the law appointed by the predominant power4 #cd4 ,if the law of the predominant power1 is effective of its end 7i4e4 the law of action for production of acts72 then the exertions of the subordinate powers 7the living souls71 must also be attended with success3 7i4e4 the attainment of the like result of the like action74 #ce4 ,thus ,brahma alone is the great living soul that exists for ever and without end2 and these millions of living beings are no other in the world 7than agents of the divine energies74 #cf4 ,it is with a consciousness of the intellectual soul 7i4e4 the inward knowledge of the divinity within themselves71 that all living souls are born in this world2 but losing that consciousness 7their knowledge of ,god7 afterwards1 they became alienated from him4 #cg4 ,hence men of inferior souls1 should pursue the course of conduct led by the superior souls1 for regaining their spiritual life tmajvatwam1 as the copper becomes transformed into gold 7by chemical process74 #ch4 ,thus the whole body of living beings1 that had been as inexistent as air before1 come into existence1 and rise resplendent with the wonderful intellect4 #ci4 ,whoso perceives this wondrous intellect in his mind1 and gets afterwards a body and the consciousness of his egoism1 he is then said to be an embodied living soul4 #dj4 ,the mind that is gratified with intellectual delights1 becomes as expanded as the intellect itself1 and thinks those pleasures to constitute the sum total of worldly enjoyments4 #da4 ,the ,intellect is said to remain unchanged in all its succeeding stages2 and though it never changes from that state1 yet it wakes 7developes7 by a power intrinsic in itself4 #db4 ,the uninterrupted activity of the ,intellect1 indulges itself in the amusement of manifesting the intelligibles in the form of the world 7i4e4 ,of evolving the knowables from its own knowledge of them4 ,or it is the pleasure of the intellect to unfold the secrets of nature to view74 #dc4 ,the extent of the intellectual faculty1 is wider and more rarefied than the surrounding air1 and yet it perceives its distinct egoism by itself and of its own nature4 7,the subjective knowledge of ego--self74 #dd4 ,its knowledge of self1 springs of itself in itself like the water of a fountain2 and it perceives itself 7its ego7 to be but an atom amidst the endless worlds4 #de4 ,it perceives also in itself the beautiful and wondrous world1 which is amazing to the understanding1 and which is thereafter named the universe4 7i4e4 ,the one existing in the other and not without it3 meaning1 the soul to be the seat of both the subjective and objective knowledge74 #df4 ,now ,rma1 our egoism being but a conception of the intellect is a mere fiction 7kalpan72 and the elementary principles being but creatures of egoism1 they are also fictions of the intellect4 #dg4 ,again the living soul being but a resultant of our acts and desires1 you have to renounce these causes1 in order to get rid of your knowledge of ego and tu 7i4e4 of the existence of yourself and that of others72 and then you attain to the knowledge of the true one1 after discarding the fictions of the real and unreal4 #dh4 ,as the sky looks as clear as ever1 after the shadows of clouds are dispersed from it1 so does the soul look as bright as it existed at first in the intellect1 after its overshadowing fictions have been removed4 #di4 ,the universe is a vacuum1 and the world is a name for the field of our exertions4 ,this vacuity is the abode of the gods 7,viswa and ,virj1 both of whom are formless74 ,the wonderful frame of plastic nature1 is but a form of the formless intellect and no other4 #ej4 ,what is one's nature never leaves him at any time2 how then can a form or figure be given to the formless ,divinity8 #ea4 ,the divine intellect is exempt from all the names and forms which are given to unintelligent worldly things1 it being the pervader and enlivener1 of all that shines in the world4 7,intellect is the power of understanding74 #eb4 ,the mind1 understanding and egoism1 with the elements1 the hills and skies1 and all things that compose and support the world1 are made of the essences proceeding from the intellect4 7,the intellect from interlegere contains all things74 #ec4 ,know the world to compose the mind-chitta of the intellect-chit of ,god1 because the mind does not subsist without the world4 ,want of the world would prove the inexistence of the mind and intellect which consist of the world4 7,hence the identity of the intelligent world with the mind and intellect of ,god74 #ed4 ,the intellect like the pepper seed1 is possest of an exquisite property within itself1 and bears like the flavour of the other1 the element of the living soul1 which is the element of animated nature4 #ee4 ,as the mind exerts its power and assumes its sense of egoism1 it derives the principle of the living soul from the ,intellect1 which with its breath of life and action1 is called a living being afterwards4 7,the mind is what thinks1 moves and acts74 #ef4 ,the intellect 7chit71 exhibiting itself as the mind 7chitta71 bears the name of the purpose it has to accomplish1 which being temporary and changeable1 is different from the chit and a nullity4 7,the mind being the principle of volition1 is applied also to the object of the will1 as we say1 ,i have a mind to play2 which is equal to the expression1 ,i have a playful mind3 and this state of the mind being variable1 is said to be null74 #eg4 ,the distinction of actor and act1 does not consist in the intellect1 it being eternal1 is neither the author or the work itself4 ,but the living soul1 which is active and productive of acts1 is called the purusha or the embodied soul residing in the body--purau-sete4 ,it is action which makes the man-purusha1 from which is derived his manhood-paurusha4 #eh4 ,life with the action of the mind constitutes the mind of man4 ,the mind taking a sensitive form1 employs the organs of sense to their different functions4 7,the sensitivity of the mind bears an active and not the passive sense of sensitiveness or sensibility74 #ei4 ,he1 the radiance of the light of whose intellect1 is the cause of infinite blessings to the world1 is both its author and workmanship from all eternity1 and there is none beside him4 7,he is the ,pratyagtm the all-pervading soul74 #fj4 ,hence the ego or living soul is indivisible1 uninflammable1 unsoilable and undriable in its essence2 it is everlasting and infinite 7ubiquious71 and as immovable as a mountain4 7,the living soul is viewed in the light of the eternal soul74 #fa4 ,there are many that dispute on this point1 as they dispute on other matters1 in their error1 and mislead others into the same2 but we are set free from all mistake4 7,the disputants are the dualists1 who make a distinction between the eternal and created souls4 7,jvtm-paramtm-dvaita-vdis774 #fb4 ,the dualist relying on the phenomena1 is deceived by their varying appearances2 but the believer in the formless unity1 relies in the everlasting blessed spirit 7which he views in his intellect74 #fc4 ,fondness for intellectual culture1 is attended with the vernal blossoms of intellect1 which are as white as the clear firmament1 and as numberless as the parts of time4 #fd4 ,the intellect exhibits itself in the form of the boundless and wonderful mundane egg1 and it breathes out the breath of its own spirit in the same egg4 7,the breathing soul is called the strtm one of the ten hypostases of ,brahma1 the vital air is the first of the elementary bodies1 in the order of emanation alias creation74 #fe4 ,it then showed itself in the wondrous form of the antimundane waters1 not as they rise from springs or fall into reservoirs1 as also in those of the substances constituting the bodies of the best of beings4 #ff4 ,it next shone forth with its own intellectual light1 which shines as bright as the humid beams of the full moon4 #fg4 ,then as the intellect rises in full light with its internal knowledge1 upon disappearance of the visibles from sight2 so also it is transformed to dullness by dwelling upon gross objects1 when it is said to be lie dormant4 ,in this state of the intellect1 it is lowered to and confined in the earth4 #fh4 ,the world is in motion by the force of the ,intellect1 in whose great vacuity it is settled2 it is lighted by the light of that ,intellect1 and is therefore said to be both existent as well as inexistent by itself4 #fi4 ,like the vacuity of that ,intellect1 the world is said now to exist and now to be inexistent2 and like the light of that ,intellect1 it now appears and now disappears from view4 #gj4 ,like the fleeting wind which is breathed by that ,intellect1 the world is now in existence and now inexistent2 and like the cloudy and unclouded sphere of that ,intellect1 the world is now in being and now a not being4 #ga4 ,like the broad day light of that ,intellect1 the world is now in existence1 and like the disappearance of that light1 it now becomes nothing4 ,it is formed like collyrium from the particles of the oil of the rajas quality of the ,intellect4 #gb4 ,it is the intellectual fire that gives warmth to the world1 and it is the alabaster 7conch7 of the intellect that causes its whiteness2 the rock of intellect gives it hardness1 and its water causes its fluidity4 #gc4 ,the sweetness of the world1 is derived from the sugar of the intellect1 and its juiciness from the milk in the divine mind2 its coldness is from the ice1 and its heat from the fire contained in the same4 7i4e4 ,the divine ,intellect is the material cause 7updna krana7 of the world74 #gd4 ,the world is oily by the mustard seeds contained in the ,intellect2 and billowy in the sea of the divine mind4 ,it is dulcet by the honey and aureate by the gold contained in the same4 #ge4 ,the world is a fruit of the tree of ,intellect1 and its fragrance is derived from the flowers growing in the arbour of the mind4 ,it is the ens of the ,intellect1 that gives the world its entity1 and it is the mould of the eternal mind1 that gives its form4 #gf4 ,the difference is1 that this world is changeful1 while the clear atmosphere of the ,intellect has no change in it2 and the unreal world becomes real1 when it is seen as full of the ,divine spirit4 #gg4 ,the invariable self-sameness of the ,divine spirit1 makes the entity and non-entity of the world alike 7because it has no existence of its own1 but in the ,supreme soul74 ,and the words #8part and whole' are wholly meaningless1 because both of these are full with the divine spirit4 #gh4 ,fie to them1 that deride notions as false talk2 because the world with its hills1 and seas1 earth and rivers1 is all untrue without the notion of ,god's presence in it4 7,the ,buddhists are perceptionalists1 and have no faith in any thing beyond their sensible perceptions 7pratyaksha72 but the ,vedantic spiritualists1 on the contrary1 are abstract conceptionalists1 and believe nothing to be true1 of which they have no notion or inward conception74 #gi4 ,the intellect being an unity1 cannot be mistaken for a part of any thing2 and though it may become as solid as a stone1 yet it shines brightly in the sphere of its vacuity4#ac #hj4 ,it has a clear vacuous space in its inside1 as a transparent crystal1 which reflects the images of all objects1 though it is as clear as the sky4 #ha4 ,as the lines on the leaves of trees1 are neither the parts of the leaves nor distinct from them1 so the world situated in the ,intellect1 is no part of it nor separate from it4 #hb4 ,no detached soul is of heterogeneous growth1 but retains in its nature the nature of the intellect1 and ,brahm is the primary cause of causes4 7,hence called ,hiranyagarbha47 #hc4 ,the mind is of its own nature a causal principle1 by reason of its notion of the ,intellect2 but its existence is hard to be proved1 when it is insensible and unconscious of the intellect4 #hd4 ,whatever is in the root1 comes out in the tree1 as we see the seed shoot forth in plants of its own species4 #he4 ,all the worlds are as void as vacuity1 and yet they appear otherwise1 as they are situated in the ,great ,intellect4 ,all this is the seat of the ,supreme1 and you must know it by your intellection4 #hf4 ,as the ,muni spake these words1 the day declined to its evening twilight4 ,the assembly broke with mutual salutations1 to perform their vesperal ablutions1 and met again at the court hall with the rising sunbeams1 after dispersion of the nocturnal gloom4 ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,,story ,,of ,,the ,,temple ,,and ,,its ,,prince4 ,vasishtha said3--,the world is a void and as null as the pearls in the sky 7seen by optical delusion74 ,it is as unreal as the soul in the vacuity of the intellect4 #b4 ,all its objects appear1 as unengraven images on the column of the mind1 which is without any engraving or engraver of it4 #c4 ,as the intermotion of the waters in the sea1 causes the waves to rise of themselves1 so the visibles as they appear to us1 are as waves in the calm spirit of the ,supreme4 7,the variety of the waves1 with the pearls1 shells and froth they pour out1 resemble the multiformity of worldly productions74 #d4 ,as sun-beams seen under the water1 and as water appearing in the sands of the desert 7mirage72 so it is the fancy1 that paints the world as true to us2 and its bulk is like that of an atom1 appearing as a hill 7when seen through the microscope74 #e4 ,the fancied world is no more than a facsimile of the mind of its ,maker1 just as the sun beams under the water1 are but reflexions of the light above2 and no other than a negative notion 7a false idea74 #f4 ,the ideal world is but an aerial castle1 and this earth 7with its contents71 is as unreal as a dream1 and as false as the objects of our desire4 #g4 ,the earth appearing as solid1 is in the light of philosophy1 no better than the liquid water of a river1 in the mirage of a sandy desert1 and is never in existence4 #h4 ,the illusive forms of the visibles1 in this supposed substantial form of the world1 resemble at least1 but aerial castles and rivers in the mirage4 #i4 ,the visionary scenes of the world being taken to the scales1 will be found when weighed1 to be light as air and as hollow as vacuum4 #aj4 ,the ignorant that are taken away by the sound of words in disregard of sense1 will find when they come to sense1 that there is no difference between the world and ,brahma3 7the one being but the reflection of the other74 #aa4 ,the dull world is the issue of the ,intellect1 like the beams of the sun in the sky4 ,the light of the intellect1 is as light as the rarefied rays of the sun2 but it raises like the other1 the huge clouds1 to water the shooting seeds of plants4 #ab4 ,as a city in a dream1 is finer than one seen in the waking state1 so this visionary world is as subtile as an imaginary one4 #ac4 ,know therefore the insensible world to be the inverse of the sensible soul1 and the substantive world as the reverse of the unsubstantial vacuum4 ,the words plenum and vacuum are both as inane as airy breath1 because these opposites are but different views of the same ,intellect4 #ad4 ,know therefore this visible world to be no production at all2 it is as nameless as it is undeveloped1 and as inexistent as its seeming existence4 #ae4 ,the universe is the sphere of the spirit of ,god in the infinite space2 it has no foundation elsewhere except in that ,spirit of which it is but a particle1 and filling a space equal to a bit of infinity4 #af4 ,it is as transparent as the sky1 and without any solidity at all2 it is as empty as empty air1 and as a city pictured in imagination4 #ag4 ,attend now to the story of the ,temple which is pleasant to hear1 and which will impress this truth deeply in your mind4 #ah4 ,rma said3--,tell me at once1 ,o ,brhman1 the long and short of the story of the temple1 which will help my understanding of these things4 #ai4 ,vasishtha said3--,there lived of yore a prince on the surface of the earth1 whose name was ,padma from his being like the blooming and fragrant lotus of his race2 and who was equally blessed with wisdom1 prosperity and good children4 #bj4 ,he observed the bounds of his duties1 as the sea preserves the boundaries of countries2 and destroyed the mist of his adversaries1 as the sun dispels the darkness at night4 ,he was as the moon to his lotus-like queen1 and as burning fire to the hay of evils and crimes4 #ba4 ,he was the asylum of the learned1 as the mount ,meru was the residence of the gods2 he was the moon of fair fame risen from the ocean of the earth2 and was as a lake to the geese of good qualities2 and like the sun to the lotuses of purity4 #bb4 ,he was as a blast to the creepers of his antagonists in warfare2 and as a lion to the elephants of his mind 7appetites74 ,he was the favourite of all learning1 and a patron of the learned1 and a mine of all admirable qualities4 #bc4 ,he stood fixed as the mount ,mandara1 after it had churned the ocean of the demons4 ,he was as the vernal season to the blossoms of joy1 and as the god of the floral bow to the flowers of blooming prosperity4 #bd4 ,he was the gentle breeze to the vacillation of the playful creepers1 and as the god ,hari in his valour and energy4 ,he shone as the moon on the florets of good manners1 and as wildfire to the brambles of licentiousness4 #be4 ,his consort was the happy ,lla1 playful as her name implied1 and fraught with every grace1 as if the goddess of prosperity1 had appeared in person upon earth4 #bf4 ,she was gentle with her submissiveness to her lord1 and was sweet in her speech without art2 she was always happy and slow in her movements1 and ever smiling as the moon4 #bg4 ,her lovely lotus-white face was decorated with painted spots1 and her fair form which was as fresh as a new blown bud1 appeared as a moving bed of lotuses4 #bh4 ,she was buxom as a playful plant1 and bright as a branch of kunda flowers1 and full of glee and good humour4 ,with her palms red as corals1 and her fingers white as lilies1 she was in her person a congeries of vernal beauties4 #bi4 ,her pure form was sacred to touch1 and conferred a hilarity to the heart1 as the holy stream of the ,ganges1 exhilarates the flock of swans floating upon it4 #cj4 ,she was as a second ,rati1 born to serve her lord1 who was ,kma in person on earth to give joy to all souls4 #ca4 ,she was sorry at his sorrow1 and delighted to see him delightful2 and was thoughtful to see him pensive4 ,thus was she an exact picture of her lord1 except that she was afraid to find him angry4 ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,,joy ,,and ,,grief ,,of ,,the ,,princess4 ,this single wived husband1 enjoyed the pleasure of an undivided and unfeigned love1 in company with his only consort1 as with an ,apsar 7or heavenly nymph7 on earth4 7,the ,apsaras are the ,abisares of ,ptolemy and ,absairs of the ,persians3 a term applied to the fairy race in the watery valley of ,cashmere1 supposed to be the site of ,paradise-,firdous1 and the scene of innocent attachment74 #b4 ,the seats of their youthful sports were the gardens and groves1 the arbours of shrubberies1 and forests of ,tamla trees4 ,they sported also in the pleasant arbours of creepers and delightful alcoves of flowers4 #c4 ,they delighted themselves in the inner apartments1 on beds decked with fragrant flowers1 and on walks strewn over with fresh blossoms4 ,they amused in their swinging cradles in their pleasure gardens in spring1 and in rowing their tow-boats in summer heat4 #d4 ,hills overgrown with sandal woods and shades of shady forests2 the alcoves of ,npa and ,kadamba trees1 and coverts of the ,pribhadra or ,devadru-cedars1 were their favourite resorts in summer4 #e4 ,they sat besides the beds of kunda and ,mandra plants1 redolent with the fragrance of full-blown flowers2 and strayed about the vernal green-woods1 resounding with the melody of kokilas' notes4 #f4 ,the glossy beds of grassy tufts1 the mossy seats of woods and lawns1 and water-falls flooding the level lands with showers of rain 7were also their favourite resorts74 #g4 ,mountain layers overlaid with gems1 minerals and richest stones2 the shrines of gods and saints1 holy hermitages and places of pilgrimage1 were oft visited by them4 #h4 ,lakes of full-blown lotuses and lilies1 smiling ,kumudas of various hues1 and wood-lands darkened by green foliage1 or overhung with flowers and fruitage1 were their frequent haunts4 #i4 ,they passed their time in the amorous dalliances of godlike youths2 and their personal beauty1 was graced by the generous pastimes1 of their mutual fondness and affection4 #aj4 ,they amused each other with bon-mots and witticisms and solution of riddles2 with story telling and playing the tricks of hold-fists mushti-bandha 7purmuthi71 and the various games of chess and dice4 #aa4 ,they diverted themselves with the reading of dramas and narratives1 and interpretation of stanzas difficult even to the learned4 ,and sometimes they roamed about cities1 towns and villages4 #ab4 ,they decorated their persons with wreaths of flowers and ornaments of various kinds2 fared and feasted on a variety of flavours1 and moved about with playful negligence4 #ac4 ,they chewed betel leaves mixed with moistened mace and camphor1 and saffron2 and hid the love marks on their bodies1 under wreaths of flowers and corals1 with which they were adorned4 #ad4 ,they played the frolics of 8hide and find0 7,beng4 lukichuri71 tossing of wreaths and garlands1 and swinging one another in cradles bestrewn with flowers4 #ae4 ,they made their trips in pleasure-boats1 and on yokes of elephants and tame camels2 and sported in their pleasure-ponds by pattering water upon one another4 #af4 ,they had their manly and womanly dances1 the sprightly tndava and the merry lsya2 and songs of masculine and effeminate voices the ,kal and gta4 ,they had symphonious and euphonious music1 and played on the lute and tabor1 7the wired and percussive instruments74 #ag4 ,they passed in their flowery conveyances through gardens and parterres1 by river sides and highways1 and amidst their inner apartments and royal palaces4 #ah4 ,the loving and beloved princess being thus brought up in pleasure and indulgence1 thought at one time with a wistful heart within herself3-- #ai4 8,how will this my lord and ruler of earth1 who is in the bloom of youth and prosperity1 and who is dearer to me than my life1 be free from old age and death4 #bj4 8,and how will ,i enjoy his company on beds of flowers in the palace1 possessed of my youth and free-will1 for the long long period of hundreds of years4 #ba4 8,i will therefore endeavour with all my vigilance and prayers1 and austerities and endeavours1 how this moon-faced prince1 may become free from death and decline4 #bb4 8,i will ask the most knowing1 and the most austere and very learned ,brhmans1 how men may evade death40 #bc4 ,she accordingly invited the ,brhmans and honoured them with presents1 and asked them lowly1 to tell her how men might become immortal on earth4 #bd4 ,the ,brhmans replied3--8,great queen6 holy men may obtain success in every thing by their austerities1 prayers and observance of religious rites2 but no body can ever attain to immortality here below40 #be4 ,hearing this from the mouths of the ,brhmans1 she thought again in her own mind1 and with fear for the demise of her loving lord4 #bf4 8,should it happen1 that ,i come to die before my lord1 ,i shall then be released from all pain of separation from him1 and be quite at rest in myself4 #bg4 8,but if my husband happen to die before me1 even after a thousand years of our lives1 ,i shall so manage it1 that his soul 7the immortal part of his body71 may not depart from the confines of this mansion 7the charnel-house74 #bh4 8,so that the spirit of my lord1 will rove about the holy vault in the inner apartment1 and ,i shall feel the satisfaction of moving about in his presence at all times40 #bi4 8,i will commence even from this day1 to worship ,sarasvat--the goddess of ,intelligence1 and offer my prayers to her for this purpose1 with observance of fasts and other rites to my heart's content40 #cj4 ,having determined so1 she betook herself to observe the strict ceremonials of the ,sstra1 and without the knowledge of her lord4 #ca4 ,she kept her fasts1 and broke them at the end of every third night2 and then entertained the gods1 ,brhmans1 the priests and holy people1 with feasts and due honours4 #cb4 ,she was then employed in the performance of her daily ablutions1 in her act of alms-giving1 in the observance of her austerities and in meditation2 in all of which she was painstaking1 an observant of the rules of pious theism4 #cc4 ,she attended also to her incognizant husband at stated times1 and ministered unto him to the utmost1 her duties as required by law and usage4 #cd4 ,thus observant of her vows1 the young princess passed a hundred of her trinoctial ceremony1 with resolute and persevering pains-taking and unfailing austerities4 #ce4 ,the fair goddess of speech1 was pleased at the completion of her hundredth trinoctial observance1 in which she was honoured by her1 with all outward and spiritual complaisance1 and then bespoke to her4 #cf4 ,sarasvat said3--8,i am pleased my child6 with thy continued devotion to me1 and thy constant devotedness to thy husband4 ,now ask the boon that thou wouldst have of me40 #cg4 ,the princess replied3--8,be victorious1 ,o moon-bright goddess6 that puttest to an end all the pains of our birth and death1 and the troubles1 afflictions and evils of this world2 and that like the sun1 puttest to flight the darkness of our affections and afflictions in this life4 #ch4 8,save me ,o goddess1 and thou parent of the world1 and have pity on this wretched devotee1 and grant her these two boons1 that she supplicates of thee4 #ci4 8,the one is1 that after my husband is dead1 his soul may not go beyond the precincts of this shrine in the inner apartment4 #dj4 8,the second is1 that thou shalt hear my prayer1 and appear before me1 whenever ,i raise my voice to thee1 for having thy sight and blessing40 #da4 ,hearing this1 the goddess said1 8,be it so20 and immediately disappeared in the air 7whence she came72 as the wave subsides in the sea whence it rises to view4 #db4 ,the princess being blessed by the presence and good grace of the goddess1 was as delighted as a doe at the hearing of music4 #dc4 ,the wheel of time rolled on its two semicircles of the fort-nights4 ,the spikes of months1 the arcs of the seasons1 the loops of days and nights and the orbit of years4 ,the axle composed of fleeting moments2 giving incessant momentum to the wheel4 #dd4 ,the perceptions of the prince1 entered into the inner man within the body 7lingadeha72 and he looked in a short time1 as dry as a withered leaf without its juicy gloss4 #de4 ,the dead body of the warlike prince1 being laid over the sepulchre1 in the inside of the palace1 the princess began to fade away at its sight1 like a lotus flower without its natal water 7of the lake74 #df4 ,her lips grew pale by her hot and poisoned breath of sorrow2 and she was in the agony of death1 as a doe pierced by a dart 7in her mortal part74 #dg4 ,her eyes were covered in darkness at the death of her lord1 as a house becomes dark at the extinction of the light of its lamp4 #dh4 ,she became leaner every moment1 in her sad melancholy2 and turned as a dried channel covered with dirt in lieu of its water4 #di4 ,she moved one moment and was then mute as a statue2 she was about to die of grief1 as the ruddy goose at the separation of her mate4 #ej4 ,then the etherial goddess ,sarasvat1 took pity on the excess of her grief1 and showed as much compassion for her relief1 as the first shower of rain1 does to the dying fishes in a drying pond4 ,,chapter ,,xvii4 ,,story ,,of ,,the ,,doubtful ,,realm ,,or ,,reverie ,,of ,l,l4 ,sarasvat said3--,remove my child1 the dead body of thy husband to yonder shrine6 and strew those flowers over it1 and thou shalt have thy husband again4 #b4 ,never will this body rot or fade as long as the flowers are fresh over it1 and know thy husband will shortly return to life again4 7,the strewing of flowers over the dead body and the grave1 is a practice common in many religions74 #c4 ,his living soul which is as pure as air1 will never depart from this cemetery of thy inner apartment4 7,the departed soul is believed to hover about the crypt or cairn until the day of resurrection74 #d4 ,the black-eyed princess1 with her eyebrows resembling a cluster of black-bees1 heard this consolatory speech of the goddess1 and was cheered in her spirit1 as the lotus-bed on return of the rains4 #e4 ,she placed the corpse of her husband there1 and hid it under the flowers1 and remained in expectation of its rising1 as a poor man fosters the hope of finding a treasure4 #f4 ,it was at midnight of the very day1 when all the members of the family had fallen fast asleep1 that ,ll repaired to the shrine in the inward apartment4 #g4 ,there she meditated on the goddess of knowledge1 in the recess of her understanding1 and called her in earnest in the sorrow of her heart1 when she heard the divine voice thus addressing to her4 #h4 8,why dost thou call me1 child1 and why art thou so sorrowful in thy countenance8 ,the world is full of errors1 glaring as false water in a mirage40 #i4 ,ll answered3--8,tell me goddess1 where my husband resides at present1 and what he has been doing now4 ,take me to his presence1 as ,i am unable to bear the load of my life without him40 #aj4 ,the goddess replied3--8,his spirit is now roving in the sky1 of which there are three kinds3--one the firmament or region of the sensible worlds2 the other is the region of the mind1 the seat of volition and creation2 and third is the region of ,intellect1 which contains the two others4 #aa4 8,your husband's soul is now in the sheath of the region of ,intellect 7being withdrawn both from the regions of the visible world and sensuous mind74 ,it is now by seeking in the region of the ,intellect1 that things which are inexistent here1 are to be found there4 #ab4 8,as in passing from one place to another1 you are conscious of standing in the mid spot 7which is neither the one nor the other72 so you will arrive in an instant at the intermediate region of the intellectual world 7lying between this sensible and spiritual worlds74 #ac4 8,if you will abide in that intellectual world1 after forsaking all your mental desires1 you will certainly come to the knowledge of that spiritual ,being who comprehends all in himself4 #ad4 8,it is only by your knowledge of the negative existence of the world1 that you can come to know the positive existence of that ,being1 as you will now be able to do by my grace1 and by no other means whatever40 7,forget the sensible to get to the ,spiritual4 ,hafiz74 #ae4 ,vasishtha said3--so saying1 the goddess repaired to her heavenly seat2 and ,ll sat gladly in her mood of steadfast meditation4 7,platonism74 #af4 ,she quitted in a moment the prison house of her body1 and her soul broke out of its inner bound of the mind1 to fly freely in the air1 like a bird freed from its cage3 7so ,plato compares the flight of the parting soul with that of a bird from its cage74 #ag4 ,she ascended to the airy region of the ,intellect1 and saw 7by her intellectual light7 her husband seated there in his seat1 amidst a group of princes and rulers of the earth 7who had received various forms and states according to their acts and desires74 #ah4 ,he was seated on a throne1 and lauded with the loud acclamations of 8,long live the king10 and 8,be he victorious40 ,his officers were prompt in the discharge of their several duties4 #ai4 ,the royal palace and hall were decorated with rows of flags1 and there was an assemblage of unnumbered sages and saints1 ,brhmans and ,rishis at the eastern entrance of the hall4 #bj4 ,there stood a levy of innumerable princes and chiefs of men at the southern porch1 and a bevy of young ladies standing at the western door-way4 #ba4 ,the northern gateway was blocked by lines of horse1 carriages and elephants2 when a guard advanced and informed the king of a warfare in ,deccan4 #bb4 ,he said that the chief of ,karnatic1 has made an attack on the eastern frontier2 and that the chieftain of ,surat1 has brought to subjection the barbarous tribes on the north2 and that the ruler of ,malwa1 has besieged the city of ,tonkan on the west4 #bc4 ,then there was the reception of the ambassador from ,lank1 coming from the coast of the southern sea4 #bd4 ,there appeared next the ,siddhas1 coming from the ,mahendra mountains bordering the eastern main1 and traversing the numerous rivers of their fluvial districts2 as also the ambassador of the ,guhyaka or ,yaksha tribes1 inhabiting the shores of the northern sea4 #be4 ,there were likewise the envoys1 visiting the shores of the western main1 and relating the state of affairs of that territory to the king4 ,the whole courtyard was filled with lustre by the assemblage of unnumbered chieftains from all quarters4 #bf4 ,the recitals of ,brhmans on sacrificial altars1 died away under the sound of the timbrels2 and the loud shouts of panegyrists1 were re-echoed by the uproar of elephants4 #bg4 ,the vault of heaven1 resounding to the sound of the vocal and instrumental music2 and the dust raised by the procession of elephants and chariots1 and the trotting of horses' hoofs1 obscured the face of the sky as by a cloud4 #bh4 ,the air was perfumed by the fragrance of flowers1 camphor and heaps of frankincense2 and the royal hall was filled with presents sent from different provinces4 #bi4 ,his fair fame shone forth as a burning hill of white camphor1 and raised a column of splendour reaching to the sky1 and casting into shade the solar light4 #cj4 ,there were the rulers of districts1 who were busily employed in their grave and momentous duties1 and the great architects who conducted the building of many cities4 #ca4 ,then the ardent ,ll entered the court-hall of the ruler of men1 and unseen by any1 just as one void mixes with another void1 and as air is lost in the air4 #cb4 ,she wandered about without being seen by any body there2 just as a fair figure1 formed by false imagination of our fond desire1 is not to be perceived by any one without ourselves4 #cc4 ,in this manner she continued to walk about the palace unperceived by all1 as the aerial castle built in one's mind1 is not perceived by another4 #cd4 ,she beheld them all assembled in the royal court in their former forms1 and saw all the cities of the princes1 as concentrated in that single city of her lord's4 #ce4 ,she viewed the same places1 the same dealings1 the same concourse of boys1 and the same sorts of men and women1 and the same ministers as before4 #cf4 ,she saw the same rulers of earth1 and the very same ,pandits as before2 the identic courtiers and the self-same servants as ever4 #cg4 ,there was the same assemblage of the learned men and friends as before1 and the like throng of citizens pursuing their former course of business4 #ch4 ,she saw on a sudden1 the flames of wild fire spreading on all sides even in broad midday light2 and the sun and moon appearing both at once in the sky1 and the clouds roaring with a tremendous noise1 with the whistling of the winds4 #ci4 ,she saw the trees1 the hills1 the rivers and the cities flourishing with population2 and the many towns1 and villages and forests all about4 #dj4 ,she beheld her royal consort as a boy of ten years of age after shaking off his former frame of old age1 sitting amidst the hall with all his former retinue1 and all the inhabitants of his village4 ,,section ,i4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,court ,,house ,,and ,,the ,,cortes4 #da4 ,ll having seen all these began to reflect within herself1 whether the inhabitants of this place were living beings or the ghosts of their former living souls4 #db4 ,then having recovered her sense at the removal of her trance1 she entered into her inner apartment at midnight1 and found the inmates fast bound in sleep4 #dc4 ,she raised one by one her sleeping companions1 and said she was anxious to visit the royal hall4 #dd4 ,she wanted to be seated beside the throne of her lord1 and to clear her doubt by seeing the courtiers all alive4 #de4 ,the royal menials rose up at her call1 and obedient to her command they said 8,be it so10 and attended to their respective duties4 #df4 ,a train of club-bearers ran to all sides to call the courtiers from the city1 and sweepers came and swept the ground as clean as the sun had shed his rays upon it4 #dg4 ,a better set of servants cleansed the court-yard as clean1 as autumn days clear the firmament of its rainy clouds4 #dh4 ,rows of lights were placed about the court-yard1 which looked as beautiful as clusters of stars in the clear sky4 #di4 ,the ground of the court-yard was filled by throngs of people1 as the earth was covered of yore by floods of the great deluge4 #ej4 ,the dignified ministers and chiefs attended first and took their respective seats1 and appeared as a set of the newly created rulers of people of the world on all sides1 or the regents of the quarters of the sky4 #ea4 ,the cooling and fragrant odour of thickly pasted camphor filled the palace1 and the sweet-scented zephyrs breathed profusely the fragrance of the lotus flowers1 which they bore from all sides4 #eb4 ,the chamberlains stood all around in their white garbs1 and appeared as an assemblage of silvery clouds1 hanging over the burning hills under the equator4 #ec4 ,the ground was strewn over by the morning breeze with heaps of flowers1 bright as the beaming dawn dispelling the gloom of night1 and etiolated as clusters of stars fallen upon the ground4 #ed4 ,the palace was crowded by the retinue of the chiefs of the land1 and seemed as it was a lake full of full-blown lotuses1 with the fair swimming swans rambling about them4 #ee4 ,there ,ll took her seat on a golden seat by the side of the throne1 and appeared as the beauteous ,rati seated in the joyous heart of ,kma 7i4e4 as ,venus sitting in the lap of aureate lighted ,phoebus74 #ef4 ,she saw all the princes seated in their order as before1 and the elders of the people and the nobles of men and all her friends and relatives1 seated in their proper places4 #eg4 ,she was highly delighted to behold them all in their former states1 and shone forth as the moon with the brightness of her countenance1 to find them all alive again4 ,,chapter ,,xviii4 ,,exposure ,,of ,,the ,,errors ,,of ,,this ,,world4 ,she said1 8,i have much consolation in you1 and now will ,i console my sorrowing heart40 ,so saying1 she made a sign for the assembly to break1 and rose from her royal seat4 #b4 ,she entered the inner apartment and sat by the side of the dead body of her lord1 hidden under the heap of flowers1 and thus began to reflect within herself4 #c4 ,she exclaimed3--8,o the wondrous magic6 that presents these people of my place situated in the same manner without myself1 as they were seen to be seated within me4 #d4 8,o how great is the extent of this delusion1 as to contain the same high hills1 and the same spacious forests of palm and ,hintla trees1 both in the outside as well as they are situated in the inside of myself4 #e4 8,as the mirror shows the reflexion of the hills within itself as they are without it1 so the reflector of the intellect presents the whole creation inwardly as it has outwards of itself4 #f4 8,i must now invoke the goddess of wisdom to ascertain which of these is illusion1 and which the sober and certain reality40 #g4 ,so saying1 she worshipped and invoked the goddess1 and beheld her immediately present before herself1 in the form of a virgin4 #h4 ,she made the goddess sit on the elevated seat1 and having seated herself low upon the ground before her1 asked that divine power to tell her the truth4 #i4 ,ll said3--8,vouchsafe1 ,o goddess1 and clear this doubt of thy suppliant2 for it is thy wisdom which has framed this beautiful system of the universe at first and knows the truth4 7,divine wisdom is the prime cause of all74 #aj4 8,tell me1 ,o great goddess1 about what ,i am going to lay before thee at present1 for it is by thy favour alone that ,i may be successful to know it4 #aa4 8,i saw the pattern of this world in the intellect1 which is more transparent than the etherial sphere1 and as extensive as to contain millions and millions of miles in a small space of it4 #ab4 8,it is what no definite words can express1 and what is known as the calm1 cool and ineffable light4 ,this is called the unintelligible intelligence1 and is without any cover or support 7nirvarana nirbhitti74 #ac4 8,it exhibits the reflexions of space and the course of time1 and those of the sky and its light1 and the course of events concentrating in itself4 #ad4 8,thus the images of the worlds1 are to be seen both within and without the intellect1 and it is hard to distinguish the real and unreal ones between them40 #ae4 ,the goddess asked3--,tell me fair lady1 what is the nature of the real world1 and what you mean1 by its unreality4 #af4 ,ll replied3--,i know the nature of the real to be such as ,i find myself to be sitting here1 and looking upon you as seated in this place4 #ag4 ,and ,i mean that to be unreal1 as the state in which ,i beheld my husband in the etherial region erewhile2 because vacuity has no limit of time or place in it4 #ah4 ,the goddess rejoined3--,the real creation cannot produce an unreal figure1 nor a similar cause produce a dissimilar effect4 #ai4 ,ll replied3--,but we often see1 ,o goddess6 dissimilar effects to be produced from similar causes3 thus1 the earth and earthen pot though similar in their substance1 yet the one is seen to melt in water1 and the other to carry water in it4 #bj4 ,the goddess said3--,yes1 when an act is done by the aid of auxiliary means1 there the effect is found to be somewhat different from the primary cause4 7,thus the earthen pot being produced by the auxiliary appliances of fire1 the potter's wheel and the like1 differs in its quality from the original clay74 #ba4 ,say ,o beauteous lady6 what were the causes of thy husband's being born in this earth8 ,the same led to his birth in the other world also 7i4e4 the merit of the acts and desires of men1 are the causes of their transmigrations in both worlds74 #bb4 ,when the soul has fled from here1 how can the earth follow him there any more1 and what auxiliary causes can there be in connection with this cause8 #bc4 ,wherever there arises a coaction with its apparent causality1 it is usually attributed by every one to some unknown antecedent cause or motive4 #bd4 ,ll said3--,methinks goddess1 that it was the expansion of my husband's memory that was the cause of his regenerations2 because it is certain that reminiscence is the cause of the reproduction of objects before us4 #be4 ,the goddess replied that1 memory is an aerial substance1 and its productions are as unsubstantial as itself4 #bf4 ,ll said3--,yes ,i find reminiscence to be an airy thing1 and its reproduction of my husband and all other things within me to be but empty shadows in the mind4 #bg4 ,the goddess replied3--,so verily was this reproduction of thy husband and all those things which appeared to thy sight in thy reverie2 and so1 my daughter1 is the appearance of all things ,i see in this world4 #bh4 ,ll said3--,tell me goddess for the removal of my conception of the reality of the world1 how the false appearance of my formless lord1 was produced before me by the unreal world1 7since nothing unsubstantial can cast a shadow74 #bi4 ,the goddess replied3--,as this illusive world appeared a reality to thee before thy reminiscence of it1 so must thou know all this to be unreal from what ,i am going to relate to thee4 #cj4 ,there is in some part of the sphere of the ,intellect the great fabric of the world1 with the glassy vault of the firmament for its roof on all sides4 #ca4 ,the ,meru 7the polar axle or mountain7 is its pillar1 beset around by the regents of the ten sides1 as statues carved upon it4 ,the fourteen regions are as so many apartments of it1 and the hollow concavity containing the three worlds1 is lighted by the lamp of the luminous sun4 #cb4 ,its corners are inhabited by living creatures resembling ants and emmets1 which are surrounded by mountains appearing as ant-hills in the sight of ,brahm1 the prime lord of creatures and the primeval patriarch of many races of men4 #cc4 ,all animal beings are as worms confined in the cocoons 7prison houses7 of their own making4 ,the azure skies above and below are as the soot of this house1 beset by bodies of ,siddhas 7or departed spirits71 resembling groups of gnats buzzing in the air4 #cd4 ,the fleeting clouds are the smoke of this house or as webs of spiders in its corners1 and the hollow air is full of aerial spirits1 like holes of bamboos filled with flies4 #ce4 ,there are also the playful spirits of gods and demigods1 hovering over human habitations1 as swarms of busy and buzzing bees about vessels of honey4 #cf4 ,here there lay amidst the cavity of heaven1 earth and the infernal regions1 tracts of land well watered by rivers1 lakes and the sea on all sides4 #cg4 ,in a corner of this land1 there was situated a secluded piece of ground 7a vale or village71 sheltered by hills and craigs about it4 #ch4 ,in this secluded spot thus sheltered by hills1 rivers and forests1 there lived a ,brhman with his wife and children1 free from disease and care of gain and fear of a ruler1 and passed his days in his fire-worship and hospitality1 with the produce of his kine and lands4 ,,chapter ,,xix4 ,,story ,,of ,a ,,former ,,vasishtha ,,and ,,his ,,wife4 ,this ,brhman was equal to his namesake--the sage ,vasishtha1 in his age and attire1 in his learning and wealth1 and in all his actions and pursuits1 except in his profession4 7,the one being a secular man1 and the other the priest of the royal family74 #b4 ,his name was ,vasishtha1 and that of his wife ,arundhat2 who was as fair as the moon1 and as the star of the same name on earth4 #c4 ,she resembled her namesake the priestess of the solar race1 in her virtues and parts and in all things1 except in her soul and body4 #d4 ,she passed her time in true love and affection in his company1 and was his all in the world1 with her sweet smiling face resembling the ,kumuda flower4 #e4 ,this ,brhman had been sitting once under the shady sarala trees1 on the table land of his native hill1 when he saw the ruler of the land1 passing with his gaudy train below4 #f4 ,he was accompanied by all the members of the royal family and his troops and soldiers1 and was going to a chase1 with a clamour that resounded in the hills and forests4 #g4 ,the white flappers shed a stream of moon light1 and the lifted banners appeared as a moving forest1 and the white umbrellas made the sky a canopy to them4 #h4 ,the air was filled with dust raised by the hoofs of horses from the ground1 and lines of elephants with their high hads1 seemed as moving towers1 to protect them from the solar heat and sultry winds4 #i4 ,the wild animals were running on all sides at the loud uproar of the party1 resembling the roaring of a whirlpool1 and shining gems and jewels were flashing all about on the persons of the party4 #aj4 ,the ,brhman saw the procession and said to himself1 8,o how charming is royalty1 which is fraught with such splendour and prosperity40 #aa4 ,ah6 how shall ,i become the monarch of all the ten sides1 and have such a retinue of horse and elephants and foot soldiers1 with a similar train of flags and flappers and blazing umbrellas4 #ab4 ,when will the breeze waft the fragrance of kunda flowers1 and the farina of lotuses to my bed-chamber1 to lull me and my consorts to sleep4 #ac4 ,when shall ,i adorn the countenances of my chamber maids with camphor and sandal paste1 and enlighten the faces of the four quarters with my fair fame1 as the moon-beams decorate the night4 #ad4 ,with these thoughts1 the ,brhman was thenceforth determined to apply himself with vigilance1 to the rigid austerities of his religion for life4 #ae4 ,he was at last overtaken by infirmities which shattered his frame1 as the sleets of snowfall1 batter the blooming lotuses in the lake4 #af4 ,seeing his approaching death1 his faithful wife was fading away with fear1 as a creeper withers at the departure of spring1 for fear of the summer heat4 #ag4 ,this lady then began to worship me 7the personification of ,wisdom7 like thyself1 for obtaining the boon of immortality which is hard to be had4 #ah4 ,she prayed saying3--,ordain1 ,o goddess6 that the spirit of my lord may not depart from this sepulchre after his demise3 and ,i granted her request4 #ai4 ,after sometime the ,brhman died1 and his vacuous spirit remained in the vacuity of that abode4 #bj4 ,this aeriform spirit of the ,brhman1 assumed the shape of a mighty man on earth1 by virtue of the excessive desire and merit of acts in his former state of existence4 #ba4 ,he became the victorious monarch of the three realms1 by subjugating the surface of the earth by his might1 by laying hold on the high steeps 7of the gods7 by his valour1 and his kind protection of the nether lands 7watery regions7 under his sway4 #bb4 ,he was as a conflagration to the forest of his enemies1 and as the steadfast ,meru amidst the rushing winds of business on all sides4 ,he was as the sun expanding the lotus-like hearts of the virtuous1 and as the god of the makara ensign 7,kama or ,cupid7 to the eyes of women4 #bc4 ,he was the model of all learning1 and the all giving ,kalpa tree to his suitors2 he was the footstool of great ,pandits1 and as the full-moon shedding the ambrosial beams of polity all around4 #bd4 ,but after the ,brhman was dead1 and his dead body had disappeared in the forms of elementary particles in air1 and his airy spirit had reposed in the aerial intellectual soul within the empty space of his house4 #be4 ,his ,brhmanic widow 7born of the priestly class71 was pining away in her sorrow1 and her heart was rent in twain as the dried pod of ,simbi4 #bf4 ,she became a dead body like her husband1 and her spirit by shuffling off its mortal coil1 resumed its subtile and immortal form1 in which it met the departed ghost of her husband4 #bg4 ,she advanced to her lord1 as rapidly as a river runs to meet the sea below its level2 and became as cheerful to join him1 as a cluster of flowers to inhale the vernal air4 #bh4 ,the houses1 lands and all the immovable properties and movable riches of this ,brhman1 are still existent in that rocky village1 and it is only eight days past1 that the souls of this loving pair1 are reunited in the hollow vault of their house4 ,,chapter ,,xx4 ,,the ,,moral ,,of ,,the ,,tale ,,of ,l,l4 ,the goddess said3--,that ,brhman whom ,i said before1 had become a monarch on earth1 is the same with thy husband1 and his wife ,arundhati1 is no other than thyself--the best of women4 #b4 ,you two are the same pair now reigning over this realm1 and resembling a pair of doves in your nuptial love1 and the deities ,siva and ,prvati in your might4 #c4 ,i have thus related to you the state of your past lives1 that you may know the living soul to be but air1 and the knowledge of its reality is but an error4 #d4 ,the erroneous knowledge 7derived from sense71 casts its reflection in the intellect1 and causes its error also 7errors in the senses breed errors in the mind72 and this makes you doubtful of the truth and untruth of the two states 7of the sensible and intellectual worlds74 #e4 ,therefore the question1 #8which is true and which is untrue1' has no better solution than that all creations 7whether visible or invisible1 mental or ideal71 are equally false and unsubstantial4 #f4 ,vasishtha said3--,hearing these words of the goddess1 ,ll was confused in her mind1 and with her eyes staring with wonder1 she addressed her softly4 #g4 ,ll said3--,how is it1 ,o goddess6 that your words are so incoherent with truth1 you make us the same1 with the ,brahmanic pair1 who are in their own house1 and we are sitting here in our palace4 #h4 ,and how is it possible that the small space of the room in which my husband's body is lying1 could contain those spacious lands and hills and the ten sides of the sky3 7as ,i already saw in my trance--,samdhi74 #i4 ,it is as impossible as to confine an elephant in a mustard seed1 and as the fighting of a gnat with a body of lions in a nut-shell4 #aj4 ,it is as incredible as to believe a lotus seed containing a hill in it1 and to be devoured by a little bee2 or that the peacocks are dancing on hearing the roaring of clouds in a dream4 #aa4 ,it is equally inconsistent to say1 ,o great goddess of gods6 that this earth with all its mountains and other things1 are contained within the small space of a sleeping room4 #ab4 ,deign therefore1 ,o goddess to explain this mystery clearly unto me2 because it is by thy favour only that the learned are cleared of their doubts4 #ac4 ,the goddess said3--,hear me fair lady6 ,i do not tell thee a lie2 because transgression of the law is a thing unknown to us4 7,the law is nnritam vadeta--never tell an untruth74 #ad4 ,it is ,i that establish the law when others are about to break it2 if then ,i should slight the same1 who else is there who would observe it4 #ae4 ,the living soul of the village ,brhman1 saw within itself and in the very house1 the image of this great kingdom1 as his departed spirit now views the same in its empty vacuity4 7,therefore both these states are equally ideal74 #af4 ,but you have lost the remembrance of the states of your former lives after death1 as they lose the recollection of waking events in the dreaming state4 #ag4 ,as the appearance of the three worlds in dream1 and their formation in the imagination2 or as the description of a warfare in an epic poem and water in the mirage of a maru or sandy desert 7are all false73 #ah4 ,so were the hills and habitations which were seen in the empty space of the ,brhman's house1 which was no other than the capacity of his own mind to form the images of its fancy1 and receive the external impressions like a reflecting mirror 7all mere ideal74 #ai4 ,all these though unreal1 yet they appear as real substances on account of the reality of the intellect1 which is seated in the cavity of the inmost sheath of the body and reflects the images4 #bj4 ,but these images1 which are derived from the remembrance of unreal objects of the world1 are as unreal as those objects which cast their reflexions in the intellect2 just as the waves rising in the river of a mirage1 are as unreal as the mirage itself4 #ba4 ,know this seat 7sadana7 of yours1 which is set in this closet 7kosha7 of the house1 as well as myself and thyself and all things about us1 to be but the reflections of our intellect only1 without which nothing would be perceptible1 as to one who is devoid of his intellect4 #bb4 ,our dreams and fallacies1 our desires and fancies1 as also our notions and ideas1 serve as the best evidences1 that afford us their light for the understanding of this truth3 7that nothing is true beside the subjective mind1 which creates and forms1 produces and presents all objects to our view74 #bc4 ,the spirit of the ,brhman resided in the vacuity of his house 7the body71 with the seas and forests and the earth 7i4e4 their impressions7 within itself1 as the bee abides in the lotus4 #bd4 ,thus the habitable globe with every thing it contains1 is situated in a small cell in one corner of the intellect1 as a spot of flimsy cloud in the firmament4 #be4 ,the ,house of the ,brhman was situated in the same locality of the intellect1 which contains all the worlds in one of its atomic particles4 #bf4 ,the intelligent soul contains in every atom of it1 unnumbered worlds within worlds1 enough to remove your doubt2 of the ,brhman's viewing a whole realm within the space of his intellect4 #bg4 ,ll asked3--,how can the ,brhmanic pair be ourselves1 when they are dead only eight days before1 and we have been reigning here for so many years8 #bh4 ,the goddess replied3--,there is neither any limit of space or duration1 nor any distance of place or length of time in reality3 hear me now tell you the reason of it4 #bi4 ,as the universe is the reflexion of the divine mind1 so are infinity and eternity but representations of himself4 #cj4 ,attend to what ,i tell you about the manner in which we form the idea of time1 and its distinct parts of a moment and an age1 in the same way as we make the distinction of individualities in me1 thee and this or that person 7which are essentially the same undivided spirit and duration74#ad ,,section ,,ii4 ,state of the ,human soul after death4 #ca4 ,hear now1 that no sooner does any one come to feel the insensibility consequent to his death1 than he forgets his former nature and thinks himself as another being4 #cb4 ,he then assumes an empty form in the womb of vacuity in the twinkling of an eye1 and being contained in that container1 he thinks within himself in the same receptacle4 #cc4 8,this is my body with its hands and feet40 ,thus the body he thinks upon1 he finds the same presented before him4 #cd4 ,he then thinks in himself3 8,i am the son of this father and am so many years old2 these are my dear friends and this is my pleasant abode40 #ce4 8,i was born and became a boy1 and then grew up to this age4 ,there are all my friends and in the same course of their lives40 #cf4 ,thus the compact density of the sphere of his soul1 presents him many other figures1 which appear to rise in it as in some part of the world4 #cg4 ,but they neither rise nor remain in the soul itself1 which is as transparent as the empty air2 they appear to the intellect as a vision seen in a dream4 #ch4 ,as the view beheld in a dream1 presents the sights of all things in one place1 so does every thing appear to the eye of the beholder of the other world as in his dream4 #ci4 ,again whatever is seen in the other world1 the same occurs to men in their present states also2 wherefore the reality of this and unreality of the other world1 are both alike to a state of dreaming4 #dj4 ,and as there is no difference in the waves of the same sea-water1 so the produced visible creation is no other than the unproduced intellectual world1 both of which are equally indestructible3 7the one being but a copy of the other74 #da4 ,but in reality the appearance is nothing but a reflection of the intellect2 and which apart from the intelligible spirit1 is merely an empty vacuity4 #db4 ,the creation though presided by the intelligible spirit1 is itself a mere void1 its intelligible soul being the only substance of it as the water of the waves4 #dc4 ,the waves though formed of water1 are themselves as false as the horns of hares2 and their appearance as natural objects3 is altogether false 7because they are the effects of the auxiliary cause of the winds which have raised them74 #dd4 ,hence there being no visible object in reality 7except a false appearance of such71 how can the observer have any idea of the visible1 which loses its delusion at the moment of his death4 #de4 ,after disappearance of the visible outer world from sight1 the soul reflects on its reminiscence of the creation in its inner world of the mind1 according to the proper time and place of every thing4 #df4 ,it remembers its birth1 its parents1 its age and its residence1 with its learning and all other pursuits in their exact manner and order4 #dg4 ,it thinks of its friends and servants1 and of the success and failure of its attempts4 ,and thus the increate and incorporeal soul1 ruminates on the events of its created and corporeal state in its intellectual form4 #dh4 ,it does not however remain long in this state1 but enters a new body soon after its death1 to which the properties of the mind and senses1 are added afterwards in their proper times4 #di4 ,it then becomes a baby1 and finds a new father and mother1 and begins to grow4 ,thus whether one may perceive it or not1 it is all the product of his former reminiscence4 #ej4 ,then upon waking from this state of trance1 like a fruit from the cell of a flower1 it comes to find that a single moment appeared to it as the period of an age4 #ea4 ,so ,king ,harish ,chandra of yore thought one night as a period of twelve years2 and so one day seems as long as a year to them that are separated from their beloved objects4 #eb4 ,again as the birth or death of one in his dream1 or his getting a begotten father in infancy1 or a hungry man's faring on dainty food in thought1 is all false3 #ec4 ,so when a sated man says he is starving1 or one declares he is an eye witness of a thing he has not seen1 or an empty space is full of people1 or that he has got a lost treasure in his dream1 who is there to believe him8 #ed4 ,but this visible world rests in the invisible spirit of ,god1 as the property of pungency1 resides in the particles1 of the pepper seed1 and as the painted pictures on a column4 ,but where are the open and clear sighted eyes to perceive the same8 ,,interpretation ,,of ,l,l',s ,,vision4 #ee4 ,the vision of ,ll1 called samdhi in ,yoga and clairvoyance of spiritualism1 was the abstract meditation of her lord in her memory4 ,which presented her with a full view of every thing imprinted in it4 ,the memory is taken for the whole intellect chit1 which is identified with ,god1 in whose essence the images of all things1 are said to be eternally present4 ,,chapter ,,xxi4 ,,guide ,,to ,,peace4 ,soon after the insensibility occasioned by one's death is over1 there appears to him 7soul7 the sight of the world1 as he viewed it with his open eyes when he was living4 #b4 ,it presents before him the circle of the sky and its sides with the cycle of its seasons and times1 and shows him the deeds of his pious and secular acts1 as they were to continue to eternity4 #c4 ,objects never seen nor thought of before1 also offer themselves to his view1 as the sight of his own death in a dream1 and as they were the prints in his memory4 #d4 ,but the infinity of objects1 appearing in the empty sphere of the immaterial intellect1 is mere illusion1 and the baseless city of the world1 like an aerial castle1 is but the creation of imagination4 #e4 ,it is the remembrance of the past world1 that makes it known to us 7because it is impossible to recognise any thing without a previous impression of its kind in the mind74 ,hence the length of a kalpa age and the shortness of a moment1 are but erroneous impressions proceeding from the rapidity and slowness of our thoughts4 #f4 ,therefore knowledge1 based upon previous notions or otherwise1 is of two kinds1 and things known without their cause1 are attributed to ,divine ,intelligence 7as the hidden cause of all74 #g4 ,we are conscious also of thoughts1 unthought of before in our minds1 as we often have in our dreams2 and think of our parents after their demise by mistake of other persons as such4 #h4 ,sometimes genius supercedes the province of memory1 as in the first creation or discovery of a thing1 which is afterwards continued by its remembrance4 #i4 ,according to some1 those visible worlds are said to have remained in their ideal state in the ,divine mind2 and according to others1 that there were no pre-existent notions of these in the mind of ,god4 #aj4 ,according to some others1 the world manifested itself not from the memory1 but by the power and will of ,god2 while others maintain it to be the production of a fortuitous combination1 of intelligence and atomic principles on a sudden 7,kkatlya sanyoga74 #aa4 ,it is the entire forgetfulness of the world1 which is styled liberation1 and which can not be had from attachment to what is desirable or aversion of the undesirable4 #ab4 ,it is difficult to effect an entire negation1 both of one's subjective as well as objective knowledge of his self1 and the existence of the outer world2 and yet no body can be freed without obliteration of both4 #ac4 ,as the fallacy of taking a rope for a snake1 is not removed until the meaning of the world snake1 is known to be inapplicable to the rope2 so no one can have rest and peace of his mind1 unless he is convinced of the illusive nature of the world4 #ad4 ,one party1 who is at peace with himself 7by his abandonment of the world71 can not be wholly at rest without divine knowledge2 as the ghost of his inward ignorance1 may overtake him after his getting rid of the devil of worldliness4 #ae4 ,the world is certainly a monster in itself without the knowledge of its ,author2 but the difficulty of knowing the first cause1 has rendered it an impassable wilderness4 #af4 ,ll said3--,if reminiscence be the cause of one's reproduction1 then say1 ,o goddess6 what were the causes of the birth of the ,brhmanic pair1 without the vestiges of their past remembrance4 #ag4 ,the goddess replied3--,know that ,brahm the first progenitor of mankind1 who was absolute in himself1 did not retain any vestige of his past remembrance in him4 #ah4 ,the first born1 who had nothing to remember of a prior birth1 was born in the lotus with his own intelligence--chaitanya2 7and not because of his remembrance74 #ai4 ,the lord of creatures being thus born by chance of his own genius or creative power1 and without any assignable cause or design on his part1 reflected within himself 8now ,i am become another and the source of creation40 #bj4 ,whatever is thus born of itself1 is as it were nothing and never produced at all1 but remained as the absolute intellect itself in nubibus 7chinnabhas74 #ba4 ,it is the ,supreme being that is the sole cause of both states of reminiscence 7i4e4 the one caused by vestiges of prior impressions1 and the other produced by prior desires72 and both the conditions of cause and effect combine in ,him in the sphere of his intellect4 #bb4 ,thus it is the knowledge of the union of the cause and effect1 and the auxiliary cause in ,him1 that gives us our tranquillity and naught otherwise4 #bc4 ,causality and consequence are mere empty words of no significance1 since it is the recognition of the universal intellect1 which constitutes true wisdom4 #bd4 ,hence nothing is produced that is seen in the phenomenal1 or known in the noumenal or intellectual world 7,chid-jagat72 but every thing is situated within the space of the sphere of the intellect in one's own soul4 #be4 ,ll said3--,o6 wonderful was the sight thou hast shown me1 ,o goddess2 it was a fair prospect of the world as in its morning light1 and as brilliant as in the glare of a lightning4 #bf4 ,now goddess6 deign to satisfy my curiosity1 until ,i become conversant with it by my intense application and study4 #bg4 ,kindly take me to that dwelling where the ,brhman pair dwelt together1 and show me that mountainous spot of their former residence4 #bh4 ,the goddess replied3--,if you want to see that sight1 you shall have to be immaculate1 by forsaking the sense of your personality 7mana or meum71 and betaking yourself to the clairvoyance or clear sightedness of seeing the unintelligible ,intellect 7achetya-chit7 within the soul4 #bi4 ,you shall then find yourself in a vacuous atmosphere 7vyomtman71 and situated in the sky 7nabhas-nubibus71 resembling the prospects of earthly men1 and the apartments of the firmament 7i4e4 all nil and void74 #cj4 ,in this state we shall be able to see them with all their possessions without any obstruction2 otherwise this body is a great barrier in the way of spiritual vision4 #ca4 ,ll said3--,tell me kindly1 ,o goddess6 the reason1 why do we not see the other world with these eyes1 nor go there with these bodies of ours4 #cb4 ,the goddess replied3--,the reason is that you take the true futurity for false1 and believe the untrue present as true4 ,for these worlds which are formless1 appear as having forms to your eyes1 as you take the substance gold in its form of a ring4 #cc4 ,gold though fashioned as a circlet1 has no circularity in it2 so the spirit of ,god appearing in the form of the world1 is not the world itself4 #cd4 ,the world is a vacuity full with the spirit of ,god2 and whatever else is visible in it1 is as the dust appearing to fly over the sea4 7,hence called my or illusion of vision1 as specks peopling the summer skies74 #ce4 ,this illusory quintessence of the world is all false1 the true reality being the subjective ,brahma alone2 and in support of this truth we have the evidence of our guides in ,vednta philosophy1 and the conviction of our consciousness4 #cf4 ,the ,brahma believer sees ,brahma alone and no other anywhere1 and he looks to ,brahma through ,brahma himself1 as the creator and preserver of all1 and whose nature includes all other attributes in itself4 #cg4 ,brahma is not known only as the author of his work of the creation of worlds1 but as existent of himself without any causation or auxiliary causality 7i4e4 as neither the creator or created1 nor supporter of nor supported by another74 #ch4 ,until you are trained by your practice of ,yoga1 to rely in one unity1 by discarding all duality and variety in your belief1 so long you are barred from viewing ,brahma in his true light4 #ci4 ,being settled in this belief of unity1 we find ourselves by our constant practice of ,yoga communion1 to rest in the ,supreme spirit4 #dj4 ,we then find our bodies mixing with the air as an aerial substance1 and at last come to the sight of ,brahma with these our mortal frames4 #da4 ,being then endued with pure1 enlightened and spiritual frames1 like those of ,brahm and the gods1 the holy saints are placed in some part of the divine essence4 #db4 ,without practice of yoga1 you can not approach ,god with your mortal frame4 ,the soul that is sullied by sense1 can never see the image of ,god4 #dc4 ,it is impossible for one to arrive at the aerial castle 7objects of the wish7 of another1 when it is not possible for him to come to the castle 7wished for object71 which he has himself built in air4 #dd4 ,forsake therefore this gross body1 and assume your light intellectual frame2 then betake yourself to the practice of yoga1 that you may see ,god face to face4 #de4 ,as it may be possible to realize an aerial castle by the labour of building it1 so it is possible to behold ,god1 either with this body or without it1 by practice of yoga only and not otherwise4 #df4 ,and as the erroneous conception of the existence of the world1 has continued since its first creation 7by the will of ,brahma72 so it has been ever since attributed to an eternal fate--niyati 7by fatalists71 and to an illusory power 7my sakti of ,my vadis74 #dg4 ,ll asked3--,thou saidst ,o goddess8 that we shall go together to the abode of the ,brahman pair1 but ,i ask thee to tell me1 how are we to effect our journey there8 #dh4 ,as for me1 ,i shall be able to go there with the purer part of my essence the sentient soul 7after leaving this my gross body here74 ,but tell me how wilt thou that art pure intellect 7chetas71 go to that place8 #di4 ,the goddess replied3--,i tell thee lady1 that the divine will is an aerial tree1 and its fruits are as unsubstantial as air1 having no figure nor form nor substance in them4 #ej4 ,and whatever is formed by the will of ,god from the pure essence of his intelligent nature1 is only a likeness of himself1 and bears little difference from its original4 #ea4 ,this body of mine is of the like kind1 and ,i will not lay it aside1 but find out that place by means of this as the breeze finds the odours4 #eb4 ,and as water mixes with water1 fire with fire and air with air1 so does this spiritual body easily join with any material form that it likes4 #ec4 ,but a corporeal body cannot mix with an incorporeal substance1 nor a solid rock become the same with an ideal hill4 #ed4 ,and as your body1 which is composed both of its spiritual and mental parts1 has become corporeal by its habitual tendency to corporeality4 #ee4 ,so your material body becomes spiritual 7tivhika71 by means of your leaning to spirituality1 as in your sleep1 in your protracted meditation1 insensibility1 fancies and reveries4 #ef4 ,your spiritual nature will then return to your body1 when your earthly desires are lessened and curbed within the mind4 #eg4 ,ll said3--,say goddess1 what becomes of the spiritual body after it has attained its compactness by constant practice of yoga2 whether it becomes indestructible1 or perishes like all other finite bodies4 #eh4 ,the goddess replied3--,any thing that exists is perishable1 and of course liable to death2 but how can that thing die which is nothing1 and is imperishable in its nature8 7,such is the spirit74 #ei4 ,again the fallacy of the snake in a rope being removed1 the snake disappears of itself1 and no one doubts of it any more4 #fj4 ,thus1 as the true knowledge of the rope1 removes the erroneous conception of the snake in it1 so the recognition of the spiritual body1 dispels the misconception of its materiality4 #fa4 ,all imagery is at an end when there is no image at all1 as the art of statuary must cease for want of stones on earth4 7,thus they attribute materiality to the immaterial spirit from their familiarity with matter74 #fb4 ,we see clearly our bodies full of the spirit of ,god1 which you can not perceive owing to your gross understanding4 #fc4 ,in the beginning when the intellect--chit1 is engrossed with the imagination of the mind--chitta1 it loses thenceforth its sight of the only one object 7the unity of ,god74 #fd4 ,ll asked3--,but how can imagination have any room or trace out anything in that unity1 wherein the divisions of time and space and all things1 are lost in an undistinguishable mass8 #fe4 ,the goddess replied3--,like the bracelet in gold and waves in water1 the show of truth in dreams1 and the resemblance of aerial castles3-- #ff4 ,as all these vanish on the right apprehension of them1 so the imaginary attributes of the unpredicable ,god1 are all nothing whatever4 #fg4 ,as there is no dust in the sky1 so there can be no ascribing of any attribute or partial property to ,god2 whose nature is indivisible and unimaginable1 who is an unborn unity1 tranquil and all-pervading4 #fh4 ,whatever shines about us1 is the pure light of that being1 who scatters his lustre like a transcendental gem all around4 #fi4 ,ll said3--,if it is so at all times1 then tell me1 ,o goddess6 how we happened to fall into the error of attributing duality and diversity to ,his nature4 #gj4 ,the goddess replied3--,it was your want of reason that has led you to error so long2 and it is the absence of reasoning that is the natural bane of mankind1 and requires to be remedied by your attending to reason4 #ga4 ,when reason takes the place of the want of reason1 it introduces in a moment the light of knowledge in the soul1 in lieu of its former darkness4 #gb4 ,as reason advances1 your want of reason and knowledge and your bondage to prejudice1 are put to flight2 and then you have an unobstructed liberation and pure understanding in this world4 #gc4 ,as long as you had remained without reasoning on this subject1 so long were you either dormant or wandering in error4 #gd4 ,you are awakened from this day both to your reason and liberation1 and the seeds for the suppression of your desires1 are sown in your heart4 #ge4 ,at first neither was this visible world presented to you nor you to it1 how long will you therefore reside in it1 and what other desires have you herein8 #gf4 ,withdraw your mind from its thoughts of the visitor1 visibles and vision of this world1 and settle it in the idea of the entire negation of all existence1 then fix your meditation solely in the supreme ,being1 and sit in a state of unalterable insensibility 7by forgetting yourself to a stone74 #gg4 ,when the seed of inappetency has taken root in your heart1 and begun to germinate in it1 the sprouts of your affections and hatred 7literally--pathos and apathy71 will be destroyed of themselves4 #gh4 ,then the impression of the world will be utterly effaced from the mind1 and an unshaken anesthesia will overtake you all at once4 #gi4 ,remaining thus entranced in your abstract meditation1 you will have in process of time a soul1 as luminous as a luminary in the clear firmament of heaven1 freed from the concatenation of all causes and their consequences for evermore4 ,,chapter ,,xxii4 ,,practice ,,of ,,wisdom ,,or ,,wisdom ,,in ,,practice4 7,,vijn,,na-,,bhy,,sa74 ,,section ,i4 ,,abandonment ,,of ,,desires4 ,bsan ,tyga4 ,the goddess continued3-- ,as objects seen in a dream1 prove to be false as the dream1 on being roused from sleep and upon knowing them as fumes of fancy2 so the belief in the reality of the body1 becomes unfounded upon dissolution of our desires4 #b4 ,as the thing dreamt of disappears upon waking1 so does the waking body disappear in sleep1 when the desires lie dormant in the soul4 #c4 ,as our corporeal bodies are awakened after the states of our dreaming and desiring1 so is our spiritual body awakened after we cease to think of our corporeal states4 #d4 ,as a sound sleep succeeds the dormancy which is devoid of desires 7i4e4 when we are unconscious of the actions and volition of our minds72 so does the tranquillity of liberation follow the state of our inappetency even in our waking bodies4 #e4 ,the desire of living-liberated men 7jvan-muktas71 is not properly any desire at all1 since it is the pure desire relating to universal weal and happiness4 #f4 ,the sleep in which the will and wish are dormant1 is called the sound sleep susupta1 but the dormancy of desires in the waking state1 is known as insensibility moha or mrchh4 #g4 ,again the sleep which is wholly devoid of desire1 is designated the turya or the fourth stage of yoga1 and which in the waking state is called samdhi or union with ,supreme4 #h4 ,the living man1 whose life is freed from all desires in this world1 is called the living liberated--jvan-mukta1 a state which is unknown to them that are not liberated 7amukta74 #i4 ,when the mind becomes a pure essence 7as in its samdhi71 and its desires are weakened1 it becomes spiritualised 7ativhika71 and then it glows and flows1 as the snow melts to water by application of heat4 #aj4 ,the spiritualised mind1 being awakened 7as if it were from its drowsiness or lethargy71 mixes with the holy spirits of departed souls in the other world4 #aa4 ,when your egoism is moderated by your practice of yoga1 then the perception of the invisible1 will of itself rise clearly before your mind4 #ab4 ,and when spiritual knowledge gains a firm footing in your mind1 you will then behold the hallowed scenes of the other world more than your expectation4 #ac4 ,therefore ,o blameless lady6 try your utmost to deaden your desires1 and when you have gained sufficient strength in that practice1 know yourself to be liberated in this life4 #ad4 ,until the moon of your intellectual knowledge1 comes to shine forth fully with her cooling beams1 so long you shall have to leave this body of yours here1 in order to have a view of the other world4 #ae4 ,this fleshy body of yours1 can have no tangible connection with one which is without flesh2 nor can the intellectual body 7lingadeha71 perform any action of the corporeal system4 #af4 ,i have told you all this according to my best knowledge1 and the state of things as they are3 and my sayings are known even to boys1 to be as efficacious as the curse or blessing of a deity4 #ag4 ,it is the habitual reliance of men in their gross bodies1 and their fond attachment to them1 that bind their souls down1 and bring them back to the earth2 while the weakening of earthly desires serve to clothe them with spiritual bodies4 #ah4 ,no body believes in his having a spiritual body here even at his death bed2 but every one thinks the dying man to be dead with his body for ever4 #ai4 ,this body however1 neither dies1 nor is it alive at any time2 for both life and death are mere resemblances of aerial dreams and desires in all respects4 #bj4 ,the life and death of beings here below1 are as false as the appearances and disappearance of persons in imagination1 7or a man in the moon71 or of dolls in play or puppet shows4 #ba4 ,ll said3--,the pure knowledge1 ,o goddess6 that thou hast imparted to me1 serves on its being instilled into my ears1 as a healing balm to the pain caused by the phenomenals4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,on ,,the ,,practice ,,of ,,yoga4 #bb4 ,now tell me the name and nature of the practice1 that may be of use to ,spiritualism1 how it is to be perfected and what is the end of such perfection4 #bc4 ,the goddess replied3--,whatever a man attempts to do here at any time1 he can hardly ever effect its completion1 without his painful practice of it to the utmost of his power4 #bd4 ,practice is said by the wise1 to consist in the conference of the same thing with one another1 in understanding it thoroughly1 and in devoting one's self solely to his object4 #be4 ,and those great souls become successful in this world1 who are disgusted with the world1 and are moderate in their enjoyments and desires1 and do not think on the attainment of what they are in want of4 #bf4 ,and those great minds are said to be best trained1 which are graced with liberal views1 and are delighted with the relish of unconcernedness with the world1 and enraptured with the streams of heavenly felicity4 #bg4 ,again they are called the best practised in divine knowledge1 who are employed in preaching the absolute negation of the knower and knowables in this world1 by the light of reasoning and ,sstras4 #bh4 ,also the knowledge1 that there was nothing produced in the beginning1 and that nothing which is visible1 as this world or one's self1 is true at any time1 is called to be practical knowledge by some4 #bi4 ,the strong tendency of the soul towards the spirit of ,god1 which results from a knowledge of the nihility of visibles1 and subsidence of the passions1 is said to be the effect of the practice of ,yoga4 #cj4 ,but mere knowledge of the inexistence of the world1 without subduing the passions1 is known as knowledge without practice1 and is of no good to its possessor4 #ca4 ,consciousness of the inexistence of the visible world1 constitutes the true knowledge of the knowable4 ,this habitude of the mind is called the practice of ,yoga1 and leads one to his final extinction--nirvna4 #cb4 ,the mind thus prepared by practice of ,yoga1 awakens the intelligence which lay dormant in the dark night of this world1 and which now sheds its cooling showers of reason1 like dew drops in the frosty night of autumn4 #cc4 ,as the sage was sermonizing in this manner1 the day departed as to its evening service1 and led the assembled train to their evening ablutions4 ,they met again with their mutual greetings at the rising beams of the sun after the darkness of night was dispelled4 ,,chapter ,,xxiii4 ,,the ,,aerial ,,journey ,,of ,,spiritual ,,bodies4 ,vasishtha said3-- ,after this conference between the goddess and that excellent lady on that night1 they found the inmates of the family fast asleep in the inner apartment4 #b4 ,they entered the charnel-house which was closely shut on all sides by latches fastened to the doors and windows1 and which was perfumed with the fragrance of heaps of flowers4 #c4 ,they sat beside the corpse decorated with fresh flowers and garments1 with their faces shining like the fair full-moon2 and brightening the place4 #d4 ,they then went to the cemetery and stood motionless on the spot1 as if they were sculptures engraven on marble columns1 or as pictures drawn upon the wall4 #e4 ,they shook off all their thoughts and cares1 and became as contracted as the faded blossoms of the lotus at the decline of the day1 when their fragrance has fled from them4 #f4 ,they remained still1 calm and quiet and without any motion of their limbs1 like a sheet of clouds hanging on the mountain top in the calm of autumn4 #g4 ,they continued in fixed attention without any external sensation1 like some lonely creepers shrivelled for want of the moisture of the season4 #h4 ,they were fully impressed with the disbelief of their own existence1 and that of all other things in the world1 and were altogether absorbed in the thought of an absolute privation of every thing at large4 #i4 ,they lost the remembrance of the phantom of the phenomenal world1 which is as unreal as the horn of a hare4 #aj4 ,what was a non ens at first1 is even so a not-being at present1 and what appears as existent1 is as inexistent as the water in a mirage4 #aa4 ,the two ladies then became as quiet as inert nature herself1 and as still as firmament before the luminous bodies rolled about in its ample sphere4 #ab4 ,they then began to move with their own bodies1 the goddess of wisdom in her form of intelligence1 and the queen in her intellectual and meditative mood4 #ac4 ,with their new bodies they rose as high as one span above the ground1 then taking the forms of the empty intellect1 they began to mount in the sky4 #ad4 ,the two ladies then with their playful open eyes1 ascended to the higher region of the sky1 by their nature of intellectual knowledge4 #ae4 ,then they flew higher and higher by force of their intellect1 and arrived at a region stretching millions of leagues in length4 #af4 ,here the pair in their etherial forms1 looked about according to their nature in search of some visible objects2 but finding no other figure except their own1 they became much more attached to each other by their mutual affection4 ,,chapter ,,xxiv4 ,,the ,,aerial ,,journey4 ,vasishtha continued3-- ,thus ascending higher and higher and reaching by degrees the highest station1 they went on viewing the heavens1 with their hands clasped in each other's4 #b4 ,they saw a vast expanse as that of the wide extended universal ocean1 deep and translucent within2 but soft with etherial mildness1 and a cooling breeze infusing heavenly delight4 #c4 ,all delightsome and pleasant was the vast ,ocean of vacuity1 into which they dived1 and which afforded them a delight far greater in its purity1 than what is derived from the company of the virtuous4 #d4 ,they wandered about all sides of heaven1 under the beams of the full moon shining above them2 and now halted under the clear vault of the clouds1 covering the mountain tops of ,meru1 as if under the dome of a huge white washed edifice4 #e4 ,and now they roved by the regions of ,siddhas and ,gandharvas1 breathing the charming fragrance of ,mandra chaplets2 and now passing the lunar sphere1 they inhaled the sweet scent exhaled by the breeze from that nectarious orb 7,sudhkara74 #f4 ,now tired and perspiring profusely1 they bathed in the lakes of showering clouds1 fraught with the blushing lotuses of lurid lightnings flashing within them4 #g4 ,they promenaded at random of their free will on all sides1 and now alighted like fluttering bees on the tops of high mountains1 appearing as filaments of the lotus-like earth below4 #h4 ,they roved also under the vaults of some fragments of clouds1 which were scattered by the winds1 and raining like the cascade of ,ganges1 thinking them as shower-bath-houses in the air4 #i4 ,then failing in their strength1 they halted in many places1 with their slow and slackened steps1 and beheld the vacuum full of great and wondrous works4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,heaven4 #aj4 ,they saw what they had never seen before1 the tremendous depth of vacuity1 which was not filled up by the myriads of worlds which kept revolving in it4 #aa4 ,over and over and higher and higher1 they saw the celestial spheres filled with luminous orbs adorned with their ornamental stars1 roving one above and around the other4 #ab4 ,huge mountainous bodies as the ,meru moved about in the vacuous space1 and emitted a rubicund glare1 like a flame of fire from within their bowels on all sides4 #ac4 ,there were beautiful table-lands1 like those of the ,himlayas1 with their pearly peaks of snow2 and also mountains of gold1 spreading an aureate hue over the land4 #ad4 ,they saw in some place mountains of emerald1 tinging the landscape with verdant green1 as it were a bed of grass2 and in others some dark cloud1 dimming the sight of the spectator1 and hiding the spectacle in dark blackness4 #ae4 ,they beheld also tracts of blue sapphire1 with creepers of prijta flowers1 blooming with their blossoms as banners in the azure skies4 #af4 ,they saw the flights of ,siddhas 7or departed holy spirits71 the flight of whose minds outstripped the swiftness of the winds2 and heard the vocal music of the songs of heavenly nymphs in their aerial abodes4 #ag4 ,all the great bodies in the universe 7the planetary system71 were in continual motion2 and the spirits of the gods and demigods1 were moving about unseen by one another4 #ah4 ,groups of spiritual beings1 as the ,kushmndas1 ,rkshasas and ,pischas1 were seated in aerial circles at the borders2 and the winds and gales blowing with full force in their etherial course4 #ai4 ,loud roarings of clouds1 as those of the crackling wheels of heavenly cars1 were heard in some places2 and the noise of rapid stars1 resembled the blowing of pneumatic engines4 #bj4 ,there the half burnt ,siddhas1 were flying from their burning cars under the solar rays1 by reason of their nearness to the ,sun2 and the solar embers were flung afar by the breath of the nostrils of his horses4 7,it means the falling of the burning meteors and meteorolites from the sky74 #ba4 ,in some places they beheld the rulers of men1 and trains of ,apsaras1 hurrying up and down the air2 and in others1 the goddesses roving amidst the smoky and fiery clouds in the firmament4 #bb4 ,here they saw some sparks of light1 falling like the jewels of celestial nymphs1 in their hurried flight to their respective spheres2 and there they beheld the lightsome spirits of lesser ,siddhas dwindling into darkness4 #bc4 ,flakes of mists were falling off from the clouds1 as if by friction of the bodies of turbulent spirits1 rushing up and down the skies2 and shrouding the sides of mountains as with sheets of cloth4 #bd4 ,fragments of clouds1 beset by groups in the shapes of crows1 owls and vultures1 were flying about in the air2 and there were seen some monsters also1 as ,dkinis heaving their heads in the forms of huge surges1 in the cloudy ocean of the sky4 #be4 ,there were bodies of ,yogins too1 with their faces resembling those of dogs1 ravens1 asses and camels1 who were traversing the wide expanse of the heavens to no purpose4 #bf4 ,there were ,siddhas and ,gandharvas1 sporting in pairs in the coverts of dark1 smoky and ash coloured clouds1 spread before the regents of the four quarters of the skies4 #bg4 ,they beheld the path of the planets 7the zodiac71 which resounded loudly with the heavenly music of the spheres2 and that path also 7of the lunar mansions71 which incessantly marked the course of the two fortnights4 #bh4 ,they saw the sons of gods moving about in the air1 and viewing with wonder the heavenly stream of ,ganges 7the milky way71 which was studded with stars1 and rolling with the rapidity of winds4 #bi4 ,they saw the gods wielding their thunderbolts1 discuses1 tridents1 swords and missiles2 and heard ,nrada and ,tumburu singing in their aerial abodes on high4 #cj4 ,they beheld the region of the clouds1 where there were huge bodies of them mute as paintings1 and pouring forth floods of rain as in the great deluge4 #ca4 ,in some place they saw a dark cloud1 as high as the mountain-king ,himlaya1 slowly moving in the air2 and at others some of a golden hue as at the setting sun4 #cb4 ,in some place there were flimsy sheets of clouds1 as are said to hover on the peaks of the ,rishya range2 and at another a cloud like the calm blue bed of the ,sea1 without any water in them4 #cc4 ,there were tufts of grass seen in some places1 as if blown up by the winds and floating in the stream of air2 and swarms of butterflies at others with their glossy coats and wings4 #cd4 ,in some place1 there was a cloud of dust raised by the wind1 and appearing as a lake on the top of a mountain4 #ce4 ,the ,mtris were seen1 to be dancing naked in their giddy circles in some place1 and the great ,yogins sat at others1 as if ever and anon giddy with intoxication4 #cf4 ,there were circles of holy men1 sitting in their calm meditation in one place2 and pious saints at others1 who had cast away their worldly cares at a distance4 #cg4 ,there was a conclave of celestial choristers1 composed of heavenly nymphs1 ,kinnaras and ,gandharvas in one place2 and some quiet towns and cities situated at others4 #ch4 ,there were the cities of ,brahm and ,rudra full with their people1 and the city of illusion 7,my7 with its increasing population4 #ci4 ,there were crystal lakes in some places and stagnant pools at others2 and lakes with the ,siddhas seated by them1 and those embosomed by the rising moon4 #dj4 ,they saw the sun rising in one part1 and the darkness of night veiling the others2 the evening casting its shadow on one1 and the dusky mists of dusk obscuring the other4 #da4 ,there were the hoary clouds of winter in some places1 and those of the rains in others2 somewhere they appeared as tracts of land and at another as a sheet of water4 #db4 ,bodies of gods and demigods1 were roving from one side to the other2 some from east to west1 and others from north to the south4 #dc4 ,there were mountains heaving their heads to thousands of miles in their height2 and there were valleys and caves covered in eternal darkness4 #dd4 ,there was a vast inextinguishable fire1 like that of the blazing sun in one place2 and a thickly frost covering the moon-light in another4 7,the burning heat of the tropics and the cold of the frigid zone74 #de4 ,somewhere there was a great city1 flourishing with groves and arbours2 and at another big temples of gods1 levelled to the ground by the might of demons4 #df4 ,in some place there was a streak of light1 described by a falling meteor in the sky2 in another the blaze of a comet with its thousand fiery tails in the air4 #dg4 ,in one place there was a lucky planet1 rising with its full orb to the view2 in another there spread the gloom of night1 and full sunshine in another4 #dh4 ,here the clouds were roaring1 and there they were dumb and mute2 here were the high blasts driving the clouds in air1 and there the gentle breeze dropping the clusters of flowers on the ground4 #di4 ,sometimes the firmament was clear and fair1 and without an intercepting cloud in it1 and as transparent as the soul of a wise man1 delighted with the knowledge of truth4 #ej4 ,the vacuous region of the celestial gods1 was so full with the dewy beams 7himnsu7 of the silvery orb of the moon 7sweta-vha71 that it appeared as a shower of rain1 and raised the loud croaking of the frogs below4 #ea4 ,there appeared flocks of peacocks and goldfinches1 to be fluttering about in some place1 and vehicles of the goddesses and ,vidydharis thronging at another4 #eb4 ,numbers of ,krtikeya's peacocks were seen dancing amidst the clouds1 and a flight of greenish parrots was seen in the sky appearing as a verdant plain4 #ec4 ,dwarfish clouds were moving like the stout buffaloes of ,yama2 and others in the form of horses1 were grazing on the grassy meadows of clouds4 #ed4 ,cities of the gods and demons1 appeared with their towers on high2 and distinct towns and hills1 were seen at distances1 as if detached from one another by the driving winds4 #ee4 ,in some place1 gigantic ,bhairavas were dancing with their mountainous bodies2 and great garudas were flying at another1 as winged mountains in the air4 #ef4 ,huge mountains also1 were tossed about by the blowing of winds2 and the castles of the ,gandharvas1 were rising and falling with the celestial nymphs in them4 #eg4 ,there were some clouds rising on high1 and appearing as rolling mountains in the sky1 crushing down the forests below2 and the sky appeared in some place1 as a clear lake abounding in lotuses4 #eh4 ,the moon-beams shone brightly in one spot1 and sweet cooling breezes blew softly in another4 ,hot sultry winds were blowing in some place1 and singeing the forest on the mountainous clouds4 #ei4 ,there was a dead silence in one spot1 caused by perfect calmness of the breeze2 while another spot presented a scene of a hundred peaks1 rising on a mountainlike cloud4 #fj4 ,in one place the raining clouds1 were roaring loudly in their fury2 and in another a furious battle was waging between the gods and demons in the clouds4 #fa4 ,in some place the geese were seen gabbling in the lotus lake of the sky1 and inviting the ganders by their loud cackling cries4 #fb4 ,forms of fishes1 crocodiles and alligators1 were seen flying in the air1 as if they were transformed to aerial beings1 by the holy waters of their natal ,ganges4 #fc4 ,they saw somewhere the eclipse of the moon1 by the dark shadow of the earth1 as the sun went down the horizon2 and so they saw the eclipse of the sun by the shadow of the moon falling on his disk4 #fd4 ,they saw a magical flower garden1 exhaling its fragrance in the air2 and strewing the floor of heaven1 with profusion of flowers1 scattered by showers of morning dews4 #fe4 ,they beheld all the beings contained in the three worlds1 to be flying in the air1 like a swarm of gnats in the hollow of a fig tree2 and then the two excellent ladies stopped in their aerial journey1 intent upon revisiting the earth4 ,,note4 ,most part of the above description of the heavens1 consists of the various appearances of the clouds1 and bears resemblance to ,shelly's poetical description of them4 ,all this is expressed by one word in the ,cloud-,messenger of ,klidsa1 where the cloud is said to be 8,kma rpa0 or assuming any form at pleasure4 ,,chapter ,,xxv4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,earth4 ,these ladies then alighted from the sky in their forms of intelligence1 and passing over the mountainous regions1 saw the habitations of men on the surface of the earth4 #b4 ,they saw the world situated as a lotus1 in the heart of the first male ,nara 7,brahm72 the eight sides forming the petals of the flower1 the hills being its pistils1 and the pericarp containing its sweet flavour4 #c4 ,the rivers are the tubes of its filaments1 which are covered with drops of snow resembling their dust4 ,the days and nights rolling over it1 like swarms of black-bees and butterflies1 and all its living beings appearing as gnats fluttering about it4 #d4 ,its long stalks which are as white as the bright day light1 are composed of fibres serving for food1 and of tubes conducting the drink to living beings4 #e4 ,it is wet with moisture1 which is sucked by the sun1 resembling the swan swimming about in the air4 ,it folds itself in sleep in the darkness of night in absence of the sun4 #f4 ,the earth like a lotus is situated on the surface of the waters of the ocean1 which make it shake at times1 and cause the earthquake by their motion4 ,it is supported upon the serpent ,vsuki serving for its understalk1 and is girt about by demons as its thorns and prickles4#ae #g4 ,the mount ,meru 7and others7 are its large seeds1 and the great hives of human population2 where the fair daughters of the giant race1 propagated 7the race of men71 by their sweet embrace 7with the sons of ,god74#af #h4 ,it has the extensive continent of ,jambudwpa situated in one petal1 the petioles forming its divisions1 and the tubular filaments its rivers4 #i4 ,the seven elevated mountains1 forming the boundary lines of this continent1 are its seeds2 and the great mount of ,sumeru reaching to the sky1 is situated in the midst4 7i4e4 ,the topmost north pole74 #aj4 ,its lakes are as dewdrops on the lotus-leaf1 and its forests are as the farina of the flower2 and the people inhabiting the land all around1 are as a swarm of bees about it4 #aa4 ,its extent is a thousand yojanas square1 and is surrounded on all sides by the dark sea like a belt of black bees4 #ab4 ,it contains nine varshas or divisions1 which are ruled by nine brother kings1 resembling the regents of its eight petalled sides1 with the ,bhrata-varsha in the midst4 #ac4 ,it stretches a million of miles with more of land than water in it4 ,its habitable parts are as thickly situated as the frozen ice in winter4 #ad4 ,the briny ocean which is twice as large as the continent1 girds it on the outside1 as a bracelet encircles the wrist4 #ae4 ,beyond it lies the ,ska continent of a circular form1 and twice as large as the former one1 which is also encircled by the sea4 #af4 ,this is called the milky ocean for the sweetness of its water1 and is double the size of the former sea of salt4 #ag4 ,beyond that and double its size is the ,kusadwpa continent1 which is full of population4 ,it is also of the size of a circle1 and surrounded by another sea4 #ah4 ,around it lies the belt of the sea of curds1 delectable to the gods1 and double the size of the continent which is encircled by it4 #ai4 ,after that lies the circle of the ,krauncha dwpa1 which is also twice the size of the former one1 and surrounded by a sea in the manner of a city by a canal4 #bj4 ,this sea is called the sea of butter1 and is twice as large as the continent which is girt by it4 ,beyond it lies the ,slmali dwpa1 girt by the foul sea of wine4 #ba4 ,the fair belt of this sea resembles a wreath of white flowers1 like the girdle of the ,sesha serpent1 forming the necklace hanging on the breast of ,hari4 #bb4 ,thereafter is stretched the ,plaxa dwpa1 double the size of the former1 and encircled by the belt of the sea of sugar1 appearing as the snowy plains of ,himlaya4 #bc4 ,after that lies the belt of the ,pushkara dwpa1 twice as large as the preceding one1 and encircled by a sea of sweet water double its circumference4 #bd4 ,hence they saw at the distance of ten degrees1 the descent to the infernal regions2 where there lay the belt of the south polar circle1 with its hideous cave below4 #be4 ,the way to the infernal cave is full of danger and fear1 and ten times in length from the circle of the dwpas 7continents74 #bf4 ,this cave is encompassed on all sides by the dreadful vacuum1 and is half covered below by a thick gloom1 appearing as a blue lotus attached to it4 #bg4 ,there stood the ,lokloka ,kumeru or ,south ,polar mountain1 which is bright with sun-shine on one side1 and covered by darkness on the other1 and is studded with various gems on its tops1 and decked with flowers growing upon it4 #bh4 ,it reflected the glory of the three worlds 7in the everlasting snows71 which are clapped as a cap of hairs on its top4 #bi4 ,at a great distance from it1 is a great forest1 untrodden by the feet of any living being2 and then proceeding upward1 they saw the great northern ocean encompassing the pole on all sides4 #cj4 ,further on they beheld the flaming light of the aurora borealis1 which threatened to melt the snowy mountain to water4 #ca4 ,proceeding onward1 they met with the fierce ,boreas or north winds1 blowing with all their fury and force4 #cb4 ,they threatened to blow away and uproot the mountains1 as if they were dust or grass2 and traversed the empty vacuum with their noiseless motion4 #cc4 ,afar from these they saw the empty space of vacuum1 stretching wide all about them4 #cd4 ,it spreads around to an unlimited extent1 and encompasses the worlds as a golden circlet encircles the wrist 7i4e4 the belt of the zodiac74 #ce4 ,thus ,ll1 having seen the seas and mountains1 the regents of the worlds1 the city of the gods1 the sky above and the earth below in the unlimited concavity of the universe1 returned on a sudden to her own land1 and found herself in her closet again4 ,,chapter ,,xxvi4 ,,meeting ,,the ,,siddhas ,vasishtha said3--,after the excellent ladies had returned from their visit of the mundane sphere1 they entered the abode where the ,brhman had lived before4 #b4 ,there the holy ladies saw in that dwelling1 and unseen by any body1 the tomb or tope of the ,brhman4 #c4 ,here the maid servants were dejected with sorrow1 and the faces of the women were soiled with tears4 ,their countenances had faded away1 like lotuses with their withered leaves4 #d4 ,all joy had fled from the house1 and left it as the dry bed of the dead sea1 after its waters were sucked by the scorching sun 7,agastya74 ,it was as a garden parched in summer1 or a tree struck by lightening4 #e4 ,it was as joyless as the dried lotus1 torn by a blast or withering under the frost2 and as faint as the light of a lamp1 without its wick or oil2 and as dim as the eyeball without its light4 #f4 ,the house without its master1 was as doleful as the countenance of a dying person1 or as a forest with its falling and withered leaves1 and as the dry and dusty ground for want of rain4 #g4 ,vasishtha continued3--,then the lady with her gracefulness of divine knowledge1 and the elegance of her perfections1 and her devotedness to and desire of truth1 thought within herself1 that the inmates of the house might behold her and the goddess1 in their ordinary forms of human beings4 #i4 ,the dwellers of the house then beheld the two ladies as ,laxm and ,gaur together1 and brightening the house with the effulgence of their persons4 #aj4 ,they were adorned from head to foot1 with wreaths of unfading flowers of various kinds2 and they seemed like ,flora--the genius of spring1 perfuming the house with the fragrance of a flower garden4 #aa4 ,they appeared to rise as a pair of moons1 with their cooling and pleasant beams2 infusing a freshness to the family1 as the moonlight does to the medicinal plants in forests and villages4 #ab4 ,the soft glances of their eyes1 under the long1 loose and pendant curls of hair on their foreheads1 shed as it were a shower of white mlati flowers1 from the dark cloudy spots of their nigrescent eyes4 #ac4 ,their bodies were as bright as melted gold1 and as tremulous as the flowing stream4 ,the current of their effulgence1 cast a golden hue on the spot where they stood1 as also over the forest all around4 #ad4 ,the natural beauty of ,laxm's body1 and the tremulous glare of ,ll's person1 spread as it were1 a sea of radiance about them1 in which their persons seemed to move as undulating waves4 #ae4 ,their relaxed arms resembling loose creepers1 with the ruddy leaflets of their palms1 shook as fresh ,kalpa creepers in the forest4 #af4 ,they touched the ground again with their feet1 resembling the fresh and tender petals of a flower1 or like lotuses growing upon the ground4 #ag4 ,their appearance seemed to sprinkle ambrosial dews all around1 and made the dry withered and brown boughs of tamla trees1 to vegetate anew in tender sprouts and leaflets4 #ah4 ,on seeing them1 the whole family with ,jyeshtha ,sarm 7the eldest boy of the deceased ,brhman71 cried aloud and said1 8,obeisance to the sylvan goddesses10 and threw handfuls of flowers on their feet4 #ai4 ,the offerings of flowers which fell on their feet1 resembled the showers of dew-drops1 falling on lotus leaves in a lake of lotuses4 #bj4 ,jyeshtha ,sarm said3--,be victorious1 ye goddesses6 that have come here to dispel our sorrow2 as it is inborn in the nature of good people1 to deliver others from their distress4 #ba4 ,after he had ended1 the goddesses addressed him gently and said1 tell us the cause of your sorrow1 which has made you all so sad4 #bb4 ,then ,jyeshtha ,sarm and others related to them one by one their griefs1 owing to the demise of the ,brhman pair4 #bc4 ,they said3--,know ,o goddess pair6 there lived here a ,brhman and his wife1 who had been the resort of guests and a support of the ,brhminical order4 #bd4 ,they were our parents1 and have lately quitted this abode2 and having abandoned us with all their friends and domestic animals here1 have departed to heaven1 and left us quite helpless in this world4 #be4 ,the birds there sitting on the top of the house1 have been continually pouring in the air1 their pious and mournful ditties over the dead bodies of the deceased4 #bf4 ,there the mountains on all sides1 have been lamenting their loss1 in the hoarse noise 7of the winds7 howling in their caverns1 and shedding showers of their tears in the course of the streams issuing from their sides4 #bg4 ,the clouds have poured their tears in floods of rainwater1 and fled from the skies2 while the quarters of the heavens have been sending their sighs in sultry winds all around4 #bh4 ,the poor village people are wailing in piteous notes1 with their bodies mangled by rolling upon the ground1 and trying to yield up their lives with continued fasting4 #bi4 ,the trees are shedding their tears every day in drops of melting snow1 exuding from the cells of their leaves and flowers1 resembling the sockets of their eyes4 #cj4 ,the streets are deserted for want of passers-bye1 and have become dusty without being watered4 ,they have become as empty as the hearts of men forsaken by their joys of life4 #ca4 ,the fading plants are wailing in the plaintive notes of ,cuckoos and the humming of bees2 and are withering in their leafy limbs by the sultry sighs of their inward grief4 #cb4 ,the snows are melt down by the heat of their grief and falling in the form of cataracts1 which break themselves to a hundred channels by their fall upon stony basins4 #cc4 ,our prosperity has fled from us1 and we sit here in dumb despair of hope4 ,our houses have become dark and gloomy as a desert4 #cd4 ,here the humble bees1 are humming in grief upon the scattered flowers in our garden1 which now sends forth a putrid smell instead of their former fragrance4 #ce4 ,and there the creepers that twined so gayly round the vernal arbors1 are dwindling and dying away with their closing and fading flowers4 #cf4 ,the rivulets with their loose and low purling murmur1 and light undulation of their liquid bodies in the ground1 are running hurriedly in their sorrow1 to cast themselves into the sea4 #cg4 ,the ponds are as still in their sorrow1 as men sitting in their meditative posture 7,samdhi71 notwithstanding the disturbance of the gnats flying incessantly upon them4 #ch4 ,verily is that part of the heaven adorned this day by the presence of our parents1 where the bodies of heavenly choristers1 the ,kinnaras1 ,gandharvas and ,vidydharas1 welcome them with their music4 #ci4 ,therefore1 ,o ,devis6 assuage this our excessive grief2 as the visit of the great never goes for nothing4 #dj4 ,hearing these words1 ,ll gently touched the head of her son with her hand1 as the lotus-bed leans to touch its offshoot by the stalk4 #da4 ,at her touch the boy was relieved of all his sorrow and misfortune1 just as the summer heat of the mountain1 is allayed by the showers of the rainy season4 #db4 ,all others in the house1 were as highly gratified at the sight of the goddesses1 as when a pauper is relieved of his poverty1 and the sick are healed by a draught of nectar4 #dc4 ,rma said3--,remove my doubt1 sir1 why ,ll did not appear in her own figure before her eldest son--,jyeshta ,sarm4 #dd4 ,vasishtha answered3--,you forget1 ,o ,rma6 to think that ,ll had a material body1 or could assume any at pleasure4 ,she was in her form of pure intellect 7lingadeha71 and it was with her spiritual hand that she touched the inner spirit of the boy and not his body4 7,gloss74 ,because whoso believes himself to be composed of his earthly body only1 is verily confined in that2 but he who knows his spirituality1 is as free as air3 7and it was in this aerial form that ,ll was ranging about and touched her son74 #de4 ,belief in materialism leads one to think his unreal earthly frame as real1 as a boy's belief in ghosts makes him take a shadow for a spirit4 #df4 ,but this belief in one's materiality1 is soon over upon conviction of his spirituality2 as the traces of our visions in a dream1 are effaced on the knowledge of their unreality upon waking4 #dg4 ,the belief of matter as 7vacuous7 nothing1 leads to the knowledge of the spirit4 ,and as a glass door appears as an open space to one of a bilious temperament1 so does matter appear as nothing to the wise4 #dh4 ,a dream presents us the sights of cities and lands1 of air and water1 where there are no such things in actuality2 and it causes the movements of our limbs and bodies 7as in somnambulation7 for nothing4 #di4 ,as the air appears as earth in dreaming1 so does the non-existent world appear to be existent in waking4 ,it is thus that men see and talk of things unseen and unknown in their fits of delirium4 #ej4 ,so boys see ghosts in the air1 and the dying man views a forest in it2 others see elephants in clouds1 and some see pearls in sun-beams4 #ea4 ,and thus those that are panic-struck and deranged in their minds1 the halfwaking and passengers in vessels1 see many appearances like the aforesaid ghosts and forests1 as seen by boys and men in the air1 and betray these signs in the motions and movements of their bodies4 #eb4 ,in this manner every one is of the form of whatever he thinks himself to be2 and it is habit only that makes him to believe himself as such1 though he is not so in reality4 #ec4 ,but ,ll who had known the truth and inexistence of the world1 was conscious of its nothingness1 and viewed all things to be but erroneous conceptions of the mind4 #ed4 ,thus he who sees ,brahma only to fill the sphere of his intellect1 has no room for a son or friend or consort to abide in it4 #ee4 ,he who views the whole as full with the spirit of ,brahma1 and nothing produced in it1 has no room for his affection or hatred to any body in it4 #ef4 ,the hand that ,ll laid on the head of ,jyeshtha ,sarm--her eldest son1 was not lain from her maternal affection for him1 but for his edification in intellectual knowledge4 #eg4 ,because the intellect being awakened1 there is all felicity attendant upon it4 ,it is more subtile than ether and far purer than vacuum1 and leads the intellectual being above the region of air4 ,all things beside are as images in a dream4 ,,chapter ,,xxvii4 ,,past ,,lives ,,of ,l,l4 ,the two ladies then disappeared from that place1 leaving the ,brhman family at their house in the mountainous village4 #b4 ,the family exclaimed 8,we are highly favoured by the sylvan goddesses20 and then forgetting their grief1 they betook themselves to their domestic employments4 #c4 ,then the etherial goddess spake to the aerial-,ll1 who stood fixed in air1 over the mansion of the ,brhman1 in a state of mute astonishment4 #d4 ,they then conversed as familiarly with each other1 as persons having the same thoughts and desires1 agree with one another in their views and acts2 and as the dreamers of the same dream hold their mutual correspondence1 like ,usha and ,aniruddha 7the ,cupid and ,psyche of ,india74 #e4 ,their conversation in their immaterial forms1 was of the same intellectual 7psychical7 kind1 as we are conscious of in our dreams and imaginations4 #f4 ,sarasvat said3--,now you have fully known the knowable1 and become acquainted with whatever is visible and invisible3 such is the essence of ,brahma2 say now what more you want to know4 #g4 ,ll said3--,tell me the reason why ,i was seen by my son1 and not where the spirit of my departed lord is reigning over his realm4 #h4 ,sarasvat replied3--,because you were not then perfect by your practice of ,yoga to have your wish fulfilled1 nor had you then lost your sense of duality1 which is a preventive of perfection4 #i4 ,he who has not known the unity1 is not entitled to the acts and benefits of his faith in the true ,god2 as no one sitting in the sun1 can enjoy the coolness of shade4 #aj4 ,you were not practiced to forget your identity as ,ll1 nor learnt that it is not your will1 but the will of ,god that is always fulfilled4 #aa4 ,you have afterwards become of pure desire1 and wished that your son might see you1 whereby he was enabled to have your sight4 #ab4 ,now if you should return to your husband1 and do the like1 you will undoubtedly be successful in your desire4 #ac4 ,ll said3--,i see within the sphere of this dome 7of my mind71 the ,brhman to have been my husband before2 and ,i see also in it1 that he died and became a ruler of the earth afterwards4 #ad4 ,i see in it that spot of the earth1 that city and that palace of his where ,i sat as his queen4 #ae4 ,i see within myself my lord to be reigning in that place1 and ,i see even there how he died afterwards4 #af4 ,i see herein the glory of the sovereign of so many countries on earth1 and ,i see also the perfect frankness of his conduct through life4 #ag4 ,i see the worlds in the inner sky of my mind1 as they are placed in a casket1 or as the oil is contained in a mustard seed4 #ah4 ,i see the bright orb of my husband ever roving before me1 and now ,i pray you to contrive any how to place me by his side4 #ai4 ,the ,goddess replied3--,tell me ,ll1 to what husband you shall go1 as there are hundreds of them that you had1 and shall have in your past and future lives1 and now there are three of them confined in this earth4 #bj4 ,the nearest of the three1 is the ,brhman who is here reduced to ashes2 the next is the prince lying in state and covered with flowers in the inner apartment4 #ba4 ,the third is now a reigning prince in this earth1 and has been buffeting in the waves of error in the vast ocean of the world4 #bb4 ,his intellect is darkened and disordered by the splashing waves of worldliness1 his intelligence is perverted to stupidity1 and he is converted to a tortoise in the ocean of the world4 #bc4 ,the management of his very many disordered state affairs1 has stultified him to a lubbard1 and he is now fast asleep amidst the turmoils of business4 #bd4 ,he is fast bound to subjection by the strong chain of his thoughts1 that he is a lord1 is mighty1 accomplished1 and that he is happy and is to enjoy his estates for ever4 #be4 ,now say1 ,o excellent lady6 to what husband you wish to be led1 in the manner of the fragrance of one forest borne by the breeze to another4 #bf4 ,here you are in one place1 and there they in others amidst this vast world2 and the state of their lives and manners differs widely from one another4 #bg4 ,these orbs of light in the heaven1 though they appear to be placed so near us 7both to our eyesight and in the mind71 are yet situated millions of leagues apart from one another2 and the departed souls are carried in them 7in their endless transmigrations74 #bh4 ,and again all these bodies are as vacuous as air1 though they contain the great mounts ,meru and ,mandara in themselves4 #bi4 ,all bodies are formed by the combination of atoms1 incessantly proceeding from the ,great ,intellect1 like particles of sun-beams over the universe4 #cj4 ,the great and stupendous fabric of the world1 is no more 7in the eye of intelligence71 than a quantity of paddy weighed in the balance4 #ca4 ,as the spangled heavens appear like a forest full of brilliant gems in it1 so the world appears as full of the glory of ,god to the contemplative mind1 and not as composed of earth or other material bodies in it4 #cb4 ,it is intelligence alone1 that shines in the form of world in the intelligent soul1 and not any material body1 which was never brought into being before4 #cc4 ,as billows in the lake1 rise and set and rise again1 so the rising and falling days and nights present these various scenes to our knowledge4 #cd4 ,ll said3--,so it is1 ,o mother of mankind6 and so ,i come to remember now1 that my present birth 7state7 is of a royal 7rjasika7 kind1 and neither of too pure nor gross a nature4 7,sattvika or ,tmasika74 #ce4 ,i having descended from ,brahm1 had undergone a hundred and eight births 7in different shapes72 and after passing various states1 ,i find myself still in existence4 #cf4 ,i recollect1 ,o goddess6 to have been born in another world before1 and to have been the bride of a ,vidydhara1 when ,i used to rove about as freely as a bee over flowers4 #cg4 ,being debased by my libertinism1 ,i was born in this mortal world1 and became the mate of the king of the feathered tribe 7an eagle74 #ch4 ,and then having been a resident in the woods1 ,i was turned to a woodman's mate1 wearing a vest of leaves on my loins4 #ci4 ,growing fond of my life1 ,i sported wantonly about the forest1 and was changed to the guluncha plant1 delighting the woods with my leafy palms and flowering eyes4 #dj4 ,this arboret of the holy hermitage1 was held sacred by the society of saintly sages2 and then ,i was regenerated in the form of an anchorite's child1 after the woods were burnt down by a wild-fire4 #da4 ,here ,i was initiated in the formularies for removing the curse of womanhood1 and became as a male being in the person of the handsome prince of ,surshtra 7,surat71 where ,i reigned for a hundred years 7or for a whole century74 #db4 ,i was then denounced to become a weasel1 and covered with leprosy1 in the lowlands of ,tli1 on account of my misconduct in the government4 #dc4 ,i remember1 ,o goddess6 how ,i became a bullock at ,surat1 and was goaded by thoughtless cowherd boys1 in their merry sport for full eight years4 #dd4 ,i bear in mind when ,i was transformed to a bird1 and with what difficulty ,i broke the net1 that was laid by birdcatchers for my destruction4 ,it was in the same manner as we release ourselves from the snares of sinful desires4 #de4 ,i remember with pleasure when as a bee1 ,i lighted lightly on the leaflets of blossoms1 sipped the honey of the blooming buds1 dined on the pistils1 and slept in the cups of lotus flowers4 #df4 ,i wandered about in pleasant wood-lands and lawns1 with my exalted and branching horns and beautiful eyes1 in the form of an antelope1 till ,i was killed by the dart of a huntsman in my mortal part4 #dg4 ,i have been in the form of a fish1 and was lifted up by the waves of the sea above the surface of the water4 ,i saw how a tortoise was killed by the blow of a club on the neck1 when it failed to break its back-bone4 #dh4 ,i was a ,chandla huntsman once1 roving by the side of ,charmanvat 7the river ,chenab71 when ,i used to quench my thirst with cocoa water1 as ,i was tired with roaming4 #di4 ,i became a stork also1 delighting in lakes with my mate1 and filling the air with our sweet cries4 #ej4 ,in another birth1 ,i rambled about in groves of palm and tamla trees1 and fixed my eyes with amorous looks and glances upon my lover4 #ea4 ,i had next been a fairy ,apsar1 with a form as bright as melted gold1 and features as beautiful as those of the lotus and lily1 in which the celestials like bees and butterflies1 used to take delight4 #eb4 ,i remember to have decked myself in gold and pearls1 and in gems and rubies upon earth1 and to have sported with my youthful consorts in pleasure gardens and groves1 and on hills and mountains4 #ec4 ,and ,i remember also to have lived long as a tortoise on the borders of a river1 and to have been carried away by the waves1 sometimes under an arbour of creepers1 over-hung with clusters of beautiful flowers2 and at others to some wild cave washed by the waves4 #ed4 ,i see how ,i acted the part of a goose with my covering of feathers1 swimming on the high heaving waves on the surface of a lake4 #ee4 ,then seeing a poor gnat hanging on the moving leaf of a ,slmali branch1 ,i became its associate and as contemptible a thing like itself4 #ef4 ,i became an aquatic crane also1 skimming playfully over the waters gushing from the hills1 and slightly kissing the crests of the waves rising over the rapid torrent4 #eg4 ,i remember also how ,i slighted the loves of amorous youths1 and spurned off from me the ,vidydhara boys on the ,gandha ,mdana and ,mandara hills4 #eh4 ,i remember likewise the pangs of a lovelorn lass1 when ,i lay pining in my bed1 strewn over with the fragrance of camphor1 and how ,i was decaying like the disk of the waning moon4 #ei4 ,thus ,i passed through many births1 in the wombs of higher and lower animals1 and found them all to be full of pain4 ,and my soul has run over the billows of the irresistible current of life1 like the fleet antelope1 pacing its speed with the swiftness of the wind 7,vtapram74 ,,chapter ,,xxviii4 ,,section ,i4 ,,exposition ,,of ,l,l',s ,,vision4 ,rma said3--,tell me sir1 in what manner the goddesses broke out of the strongholds of their bodies1 and the prison-house of this world 7where their souls were pent up71 and passed through infinite space1 to survey the scenes beyond its confines4 7i4e4 ,how does the mind and the flight of imagination1 reach to regions unknown and unseen before74 #b4 ,vasishtha replied3--,where is the world and where is its support or solidity8 ,they were all situated in the region within the minds of the goddesses4 #c4 ,they saw in it the hilly tract1 where the ,brhmana ,vasishtha had his abode and his desire of royalty 7pictured it in their minds74 #d4 ,they saw in a corner of it the deserted mansion of the ,brhman1 and they saw in it the surface of the earth stretching to the seas 7i4e4 in their mental view74 #e4 ,they beheld in that imaginary spot of earth the city of the prince1 and the royal palace which he had enjoyed with ,arundhati his consort 7in his imagination74 #f4 ,how she was born under the name of ,ll1 and worshipped the goddess of wisdom--,sarasvat2 by whom she was miraculously conveyed to the delightful region of the sky4 #g4 ,it was in the mansion situated in that hilly village1 that she beheld the world placed within the space of a span of her mind4 #h4 ,having come out of her vision of the world1 she found herself seated in her house1 as one finds himself lying in his own bed1 after his rambling from one dream to another4 #i4 ,all that she saw was mere vision and void2 there was no world nor earth1 nor a house nor the distance thereof4 #aj4 ,it was the mind which showed them these images1 as it presents the objects of our desire to our view2 or else there was neither any world nor earth in actuality4 #aa4 ,the sphere of intelligence is infinite1 and without any covering2 and being agitated by the powers of one's intellect1 it presents all the objects of nature to his view1 as the sky when agitated by heat produces the winds4 #ab4 ,the sphere of the intellect is uncreated 7being a mode of the ,divinity itself72 it is ever calm everywhere2 and is supposed as the world itself by deluded minds4 #ac4 ,he who understands rightly1 views the world to be as unsubstantial as air2 but whoso is misled by his wrong judgment takes it to be as a solid mountain4 #ad4 ,as a house and a city are manifested to us in our dream1 so is this unreal world presented as a reality to our understandings4 #ae4 ,as is the misconception of water in the mirage1 and the mistake of gold in a bracelet2 so does all this unreality appear as a substantiality to the mistaken mind4 #af4 ,discoursing in this manner between themselves1 the two charming ladies1 walked out of the house with their graceful steps4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,mountainous ,,habitation4 #ag4 ,being unseen by the village people1 they viewed the mountain which stood before them1 kissing the vault of heaven1 and touching the orb of the sun with its lofty peaks4 #ah4 ,it was decorated with flowers of various colours1 and covered with a variety of woods of various hues4 ,there were waterfalls gushing with their tremendous roarings on one side1 and groves resounding with the warbling of birds in another4 #ai4 ,the clouds were variegated by the many coloured clusters of flowers sweeping over them1 and cranes and storks sat screeching on the cloud-capt top of gulancha trees4 #bj4 ,there were the robust reeds1 hedging the banks of rivers with their wide stretching stems and roots1 and the strong winds tossing about the tender creepers1 growing out of the rocky caves1 for want of support4 #ba4 ,the tops of trees covered with flowers1 were over-topped by the sheds of clouds hanging from the vault of heaven2 which shed profusely their pearly drops of rain water upon them1 and formed the current streams below4 #bb4 ,the banks of the streamlets were continually laved by the waves1 raised by the winds playing upon the shaking arbours on them2 and a continued cooling shade was spread by the branching trees all around4 #bc4 ,standing on that spot1 the ladies beheld the hilly hamlet in the lawn1 likening a fragment of heaven fallen upon the ground4 #bd4 ,there the purling rills were softly gliding by1 and here the brimming brooks wabbled in the ground4 ,the birds of the air were chirping on the sprays and aquatic fowls were flying about the holes of the sea shore4 #be4 ,there they saw the herds of kine slowly moving and grazing in the plains1 and filling the echoing woods with their loud lowing2 and beheld the space1 interspersed with shady groves and arbours and verdant meadows all about4 #bf4 ,the cliffs were whitened with snow1 impenetrable by sun-beams2 and the tops of hills were covered with bushy brambles1 forming as braids of hair upon their craggy heads4 #bg4 ,cascades falling in torrents in the cavities of rocks1 and scattering their pearly particles afar1 memorialized the churning of the milky ocean by the ,mandara mountain4 #bh4 ,the trees in the glens1 loaded as they were with their fruits and flowers1 appeared as waiters upon the goddesses1 and standing to welcome their approach with their rich presents4 #bi4 ,shaken by gusts of roaring winds1 the forest trees1 were shedding showers of their mellifluent flowers1 as offerings to the sylvan gods and people4 #cj4 ,the birds that approached fearlessly to drink the water dropping from the hill1 now fled for fear of their seeming as sleets1 shells and shots of archers4 #ca4 ,the birds parched by thirst1 and wishing to drink the water dashed by the waves of the rivulet1 were hovering upon it as stars in the sky4 #cb4 ,there were rows of crows sitting on the tops of the tall tla 7or palm7 trees1 from whose sight the boys were hiding the remains of their sweetmeat4 #cc4 ,there they beheld the rustic lads with garlands of flowers on their heads and garments2 and roaming in the cooling shades of the date1 jam and nimba trees4 #cd4 ,they saw the lean and hungry beggar woman passing slowly by the way1 and clad in her flaxen robe1 with chaplets of blossoms for her ear dress4 #ce4 ,they saw the lazy rustics sitting retired in their lonely retreats1 and conversing afar from the noisy brooks where they could hardly hear one another4 #cf4 ,they saw the naked mendicant boys1 besmeared in their face and hands with curd1 and with cow-dung upon their bodies1 and holding the flowery branches of plants in their hands1 and crowding in the compound4 #cg4 ,the bushes on the verdant banks of the river1 were shaken to and fro as in a swing by the dashing of the waves1 which left their marks on the sandy shore1 as the waters receded to their bed4 #ch4 ,the house was full of flies cloyed with the sweets of milk and curds2 but the children were moaning with cries for their want of sufficient food4 #ci4 ,the herdswomen were observed to be fretting1 at seeing their wristlets daubed by the cow-dung 7which they were pasting72 and the men were seen to be smiling1 at seeing the eagerness of women1 for tying the loosened knots of their hair4 #dj4 ,the crows were alighting from the tops of hills1 to pick up the offerings of the holy sages2 and the paths about their houses1 were strewn over with the sacred kuru and kurunta leaves4 #da4 ,the floral plants growing in the caverns of the hills1 and about the precincts of the house1 covered the ground every morning1 with heaps of flowers to the depth of the heels4 #db4 ,there were the chouri kine and antelopes1 grazing in one part of the forest2 and also the tender fawn sleeping on the bed of grass under the gunja groves4 #dc4 ,there were the young calves lying on one side1 and shaking their ears to drive the flies away2 which were fluttering on their faces1 and upon the milk exuding from the sides of their mouths4 #dd4 ,the rooms were stored with honey1 which had been collected by driving the bees from the hives2 the gardens were full of flowering asokas 7asoka ,jonesia72 and their rooms were painted with lacdye4 #de4 ,the winds moistened by the showers of rain1 had given the arboretum to bloom1 and the blooming buds of ,kadamba1 overhung like a canopy1 the beds of green grass below4 #df4 ,the ,ketaka 7keya7 arbour was blooming white by removal of its weeds1 and the water-course was gliding along with its soft murmuring tune4 #dg4 ,the winds whistled in the windows of the caves1 and the clouds rested on the roofs of the mountain tops2 the ponds were brimful of water1 and filled with lotuses like so many lightsome moons4 #dh4 ,the green arbour cast its cooling and undivided shade upon the ground1 where the dew-drops trembling on the blades of grass1 glistened like twinkling stars in the azure sky4 #di4 ,the trees incessantly dropped down their ripened fruits1 and dried flowers and leaves of various sorts1 like showers of snow on the whitened ground4 #ej4 ,there some clouds were seen to hang continually over the household compound1 like the chirinti 7or kulna7 girls1 that never forsake the abode of their parents2 while there were others hovering over the roof of the house1 and flashing in lightenings that supplied the place of lights4 #ea4 ,the altar here1 re-echoed to the loud roaring of the winds1 confined in the caverns of the mountains2 and the temple there1 was graced by the twittering swallows and parrots1 that alighted upon it in their numerous flights4 #eb4 ,soft breezes were moving slowly1 loaded with the fragrance exhaled by the sleepy flowers 7in the evening71 and gently shaking the leaves of trees as they passed along the lawn4 #ec4 ,there the ladies were attentive to the prattling and playful parrots and partridges1 and here they listened to the melodious notes of the ,kokila1 responsive to the jarring crows on the branches4 #ed4 ,the palma and tamla trees were loaded with fruits1 and the forest trees were entwined by creepers1 which waved their leafy palms around them4 #ee4 ,there were the tender ivy creepers1 clasping the branches on one side1 and the fragrance of the efflorescent ,kandala and silindhra plants1 exhaled on the other4 ,the tapering tla and tamla trees rising as high as spires1 and a cooling breeze was blowing amidst the flower plants in the gardens4 #ef4 ,there were the kine hastening to drink the water in the troughs1 and garden trees hanging with loads of green unripe fruits and beautiful flowers2 the running streams were hidden under rows of trees on the banks1 and the stalks of plants were studded with flowers without alternation4 #eg4 ,the gardens were perfumed with the nectarious fragrance of kunda flowers1 and the lakes were redolent with the odour of lotuses1 hiding the humble bees giddy with liquor1 in their honied cells4 ,the air was reddened with the roseate pollen1 flying from the crimson lotuses 7sthala padmas7 of the land1 and mocked the redness of ,indra's palace in the sky4 #eh4 ,the gargling noise of the rivulets running down precipitately from the hills1 and the whiteness of the hoary cloud1 hanging with the hue of kundu flowers over them2 the beauty of the flowery parterres in the compound of the house1 and the melodious warbling of musical birds singing joyous in the air1 enchanted the scene4 #ei4 ,the youths were sporting on their beds of flowers1 and the playful damsels were decked with flowery wreaths hanging down to their feet4 ,the ground was adorned every where with sprouting and prickly shrubs and blades of grass2 and there was a beauty displayed in the clasping of creepers about the clumps of reeds4 #fj4 ,the new shooting buds and blossoms covered the trees around1 and fragments of clouds shrouded the houses below2 the ground was decorated by wreaths of icicles1 and the flash of lightnings in the clouds over the houses1 terrified the women within4 #fa4 ,there was the fragrance of blue lotuses exhaling its sweets about1 and the hoarse lowings of the kine1 hastening to their green grazing ground4 ,the confident deer and does were lying tamely in the house-yard1 and the peacocks dancing merrily before the water-falls1 as if they were the showers of rain water4 #fb4 ,the odoriferous breezes were blowing giddily1 with the flavour of the fragrance they bore about2 and the medicinal plants were lending their lights like lamps at night4 ,the nests of birds were resonant with ceaseless warblings1 and the noise of the cataracts deafened the ears of men on the bank4 #fc4 ,the pearly dew drops1 that were continually dropped on the ground1 from the leaves of trees and blades of grass2 and the gleaming beauty of the ever blooming blossoms above1 form with others1 the everlasting charms of mountainous habitations1 and baffle the description of poets4 ,,chapter ,,xxix4 ,,account ,,of ,,the ,,previous ,,life ,,of ,l,l ,a ,description of the ,domestic ,duties of a ,hindu ,lady4 ,the two goddesses then alighted in that cooling village seat1 as the two states of felicity and liberation1 meet in the tranquil spirit of the man knowing the ,divine spirit4 #b4 ,ll1 who had by this time1 become personified to the form of pure intelligence1 by her knowledge of yoga1 now became a seer of the three times presenting themselves before her4 #c4 ,she remembered the whole course of her past life1 and derived pleasure in relating the events of her former life and death4 #d4 ,ll said3--,i recollect by thy favour1 ,o goddess6 and by sight of this place1 all what ,i did and thought of in my past life4 #e4 ,here ,i had grown up to old age1 and here ,i had withered and become lean and thin as a skeleton4 ,i was a ,brhman here1 and had my body scratched by the dried sacrificial grass 7kusa71 which ,i had to meddle with4 #f4 ,i was the legal wife of my lord1 and producer of his race1 and was employed in the acts of milking the kine1 and churning the curd 7for butter and ghee74 ,i had been mother of many sons1 and a kind hostess to my guests4 #g4 ,i was devoted to the service of the gods1 ,brhmans and good people1 and rubbed my body with cow milk and ghee3 ,i was employed in cleaning the frying pans and the boiling kettles of the house4 #h4 ,i boiled the food daily with a single bracelet of glass and one of conch-shell in my wrists2 and served my father1 mother1 brother and daughters and sons-in-law with their daily victuals4 #i4 ,i was emaciated in my body like a domestic servant1 by working all day and night2 and #8haste and hasten1' were the words ,i used to repeat to myself4 #aj4 ,being thus busied and employed1 ,i was so silly and ignorant1 that ,i never thought within myself1 even in a dream1 about what ,i was and what was this world1 although ,i had been the wife of a ,brhman4 #aa4 ,wholly engaged in the collection of fuel1 cow-dung1 and sacrificial wood and vegetables1 ,i became emaciated in my body1 which was wrapt in a worn out blanket4 #ab4 ,i used to pick out the worms from the ears of the milch cow1 and was prompt to water the garden of greens with watering pots in hand4 #ac4 ,i used to go to the swelling lake every day1 and get the fresh green grass for the fodder of my tender calves4 ,i used to wash and clean the house every morning1 and paint the doorway with the white tints of pasted and powdered rice 7gundi74 #ad4 ,i had to correct my domestics with gentle rebukes1 and tell them to keep within their bounds like the billows in the rivers4 #ae4 ,with my infirm body and ears shaking as dried leaves of trees1 and supporting myself on a stick1 ,i lived here under the dread of old age4 #af4 ,as she was speaking in this manner1 and walking in company with ,sarasvat about the village1 in the valley of the mountain1 she was astonished to see her former seats of pleasure1 and showed them to the goddess4 #ag4 ,this was my flowery arbour1 decorated by these torn ptala plants1 and this was my garden alcove of flowering ,asokas4 #ah4 ,this is the bank of the pond where the calves were loosely tied to the trees2 and this is my pet calf ,karnik1 which has refrained from browzing the leaves 7in my absence74 #ai4 ,this is my watering woman1 now so languid and dirty in her appearance2 and weeping these eight days in my absence1 with her eyes daubed in tears4 #bj4 ,this1 ,o goddess1 is the place1 where ,i used to eat and sit1 and where ,i slept and walked2 and these are the places where ,i gave and received the things to and from my attendants4 #ba4 ,this is my eldest son ,jyeshtha ,sarm1 weeping in the house2 and this is my milch cow1 now grazing on the grassy plain in the forest4 #bb4 ,i see this portico and these windows1 once dear to me as my person1 and besmeared with the dry powder of the huli festival of the vernal season4 #bc4 ,i see these pulpy plants of gourd planted with my own hands1 and dear to me as myself1 now spreading themselves over the oven place4 #bd4 ,i see these relatives of mine1 who had been the bonds of my life before1 now smoking in their eyes with tears1 and carrying the fuel for fire1 with beads of rudrksha seeds on their bodies4 #be4 ,i see that stony shore1 baffling the force of the waves1 which have been pelting their pebbles against it1 now covered by bushes of the beach4 #bf4 ,the verdant meadows were full of leafy plants1 with pendant dew drops on their tips2 and the plains were whitened by the hailstones falling on them in showers4 #bg4 ,the mid-day was mantled by sun beams1 as by a white mist of frost1 and the arbours resounded with the humming of bees1 fluttering about their clustering flowers4 #bh4 ,the blooming palsa glowing as reddish corals1 had covered the trees and the land with heaps of crimson flowers4 #bi4 ,the village rill was flowing with the floating fruits1 which it bore from shore to shore2 and the rustic lads jumbled together with loud noise1 eager to lay hold on them4 #cj4 ,the cool shady beach of the rill1 was strewn over with pebbles1 washed and carried away by the current1 and covered by leaves falling from the trees4 #ca4 ,there ,i see the altar of my house1 which is so beautifully ornamented with the flowering creepers1 and which is overhung on its windows by clusters of fruits and flowers4 #cb4 ,here lived my husband1 whose life has fled to the sky in its aerial form1 and became afterwards the lord of the earth1 reaching to the surrounding seas4 #cc4 ,i remember1 how he had fostered the fond wish of obtaining royal dignity1 and how ardently he looked forward on its attainment4 #cd4 ,i see1 ,o goddess6 his royal dignity of eight days1 which had seemed to be of so long a duration 7as eighty years7 before4 #ce4 ,i see the soul of my ,lord1 residing in the empty space of this mansion1 as in his former kingly state2 although it is invisible to all as the current air in the sky1 and as the odours borne by the winds4 #cf4 ,it is in this vacuous space1 that his soul is contained in the form of a thumb2 which contains in its bosom1 the whole extent of the realm of my lord1 stretching to thousands of leagues in its circumference4 #cg4 ,i see also ,o goddess6 the spacious kingdom of my lord1 in the space of my intellect1 which makes room for thousands of mountains by the miraculous power of ,god1 styled as illusion4 7my74 #ch4 ,i wish now1 ,o ,goddess6 to see the earthly city of my lord again2 let us therefore turn our course that way1 as no place is distant to the resolute4 #ci4 ,vasishtha said3--,having said so1 she bowed down to the goddess and entered into the shrine1 and then like a bird1 she flew into the air with the goddess4 #dj4 ,it was a region devoid of darkness1 and as fair as a sea of moonlight4 ,and then it was as azure as the person of ,nryana1 and as bright as the back of a locust4 #da4 ,they passed above the regions of the clouds and winds1 as also beyond the spheres of the orbits of the sun and moon4 #db4 ,they passed beyond the path of the north polar star1 and the limits of the circuits of the sdhyas and siddhas and other celestial beings4 #dc4 ,thence they ascended to the higher heavens of ,brahm and the ,tushita divinities1 and then upward to the sphere of ,golaka 7the zodiac72 and thence again to the ,sivaloka1 and the sphere of the ,pitris or the departed souls of the dead4 #dd4 ,passing thus beyond the spheres of the embodied living beings1 and bodiless souls of the dead1 they proceeded far and farther to the unknown regions of empty space4 #de4 ,having passed the etherial sphere1 they beheld nothing there1 except the sun1 moon and the stars shining below them4 #df4 ,there was only a deep darkness to be seen1 filling the whole vacuity of space1 and appearing as the basin of the waters of universal deluge1 and as compact as the impenetrable cavity of a rock4 #dg4 ,ll said3--,tell me1 ,o goddess6 what became of the light of the sun and other luminaries1 and whence came this dense darkness as to be compressed under the fist 7mushti-grhya74 #dh4 ,the goddess replied3 you have got to a spot so remote from the spheres of heaven1 that the light of the luminaries can never reach to it4 #di4 ,and as one in a deep dark pit1 can see no light of a fire fly flitting over it2 so the solar light is invisible to one behind the great belt of heaven4 #ej4 ,ll said3--,oh6 the great distance that we have come to1 whence the great luminary of the sun also1 appears as small as an atom below4 #ea4 ,tell me mother1 what sort of a place is that which lies beyond this region1 and how can we come to it after traversing this gloomy expanse4 #eb4 ,sarasvat said3--,behind this is the great pole of the universe1 which is scattered over with innumerable nebular stars in the form of the particles of dust4 #ec4 ,vasishtha said3--,as they were talking in this manner1 they glided imperceptibly to that pole1 as the bee saunters over the solitary hut on the height of a mountain4 #ed4 ,they then were at no pains to come down from that precipice1 as there is no pains to effect what must certainly come to pass in the end1 though it appeared difficult at first4 7,or7 that which is certain must come to pass1 however hard it might seem at first4 #ee4 ,they saw the system of the universe1 laid naked to their sight1 as the bold navigator beholds a world exposed to his view beyond the wide expanse of waters4 #ef4 ,they saw the watery expanse to be ten times greater than the earth1 and enveloping it in the shape of the crust of the walnut fruit4 #eg4 ,then there is a latent heat which is ten times as great as the water1 and the circumambient air which is as much greater than the water2 and then the all encompassing vacuum of which there is no end4 #eh4 ,there is no beginning1 middle or end of that infinite space2 and it is productive of nothing1 like a barren woman of her offspring4 #ei4 ,it is only an extended expanse1 infinite1 calm and without beginning1 middle or end1 and is situated in the ,supreme spirit4 #fj4 ,its immensity is as immeasurable as if a stone is flung with full force from its top1 or if the phnix would fly up to it with all his might1 or if he would traverse through it in full velocity1 it is impossible for him to reach from one end to the other1 in a whole ,kalpa age4 ,,chapter ,,xxx4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,mundane ,,egg--7,,brahm,,nda74 ,they passed in a moment beyond the regions of the earth1 air1 fire1 water1 and vacuum1 and the tracks of the ten planetary spheres4 #b4 ,they reached the boundless space1 whence the universe appeared as an egg 7ovum74 #c4 ,they beheld under its vault millions of luminous particles floating in the air 7nebul74 #d4 ,these were as innumerable bubbles1 floating on the waters of the unlimited ocean of the sphere of the ,intellect4 #e4 ,some of them were going downward1 and others rising upward2 some turning round1 and others appeared to their understanding to remain fixed and immovable4 #f4 ,these different motions appeared to them with respect to their own situations1 as they saw them in their different sides4 #g4 ,here there were no ups and downs and no upside or below1 nor any going forward or backward4 ,here there are no such directions as men take to be by the position of their bodies4 #h4 ,there is but one indefinite space in nature1 as there is but one consciousness in all beings2 yet everything moves in its own way1 as wayward boys take their own course4 #i4 ,rma said3--,tell me sir1 why do we call upward and downward1 forward and backward1 if there are no such things in space and nature4 #aj4 ,vasishtha said3--,there is but one space enveloping all things1 and the worlds which are seen in the infinite and indiscernible womb of vacuity1 are as worms moving on the surface of water4 #aa4 ,all these bodies that move about in the world by their want of freedom 7i4e4 by the power of attraction71 are thought to be up and down by our position on earth4 #ab4 ,so when there is a number of ants on an earthen ball1 all its sides are reckoned below which are under their feet1 and those as above which are over their backs4 #ac4 ,such is this ball of the earth in one of these worlds1 covered by vegetables and animals moving on it1 and by devas1 demons and men walking upon it4 #ad4 ,it is covered also by cities1 towns and mountains1 and their inhabitants and productions1 like the walnut by its coat4 #ae4 ,like elephants appearing as pigmies in the ,vindhyan mountains1 do these worlds appear as particles in the vast expanse of space4 #af4 ,every thing that is any where1 is produced from and subsists in space4 ,it is always all in all things1 which are contained as particles in it4 #ag4 ,such is the pure vacuous space of the ,divine understanding1 that like an ocean of light1 contains these innumerable worlds1 which like the countless waves of the sea1 are revolving for ever in it4 #ah4 ,some of these are hollow within1 and others as dark as the darkness in the end of a kalpa age3 and they are all moving about in the ocean of vacuity1 like the waves of the sea4 #ai4 ,some of these are whirling about with a jarring noise for ever1 which is neither heard by nor known to any body4 ,it is like the motion of men addicted to earthly pursuits by their nature4 #bj4 ,some of these are now growing in form1 as if they were newly created1 and are in the course of their development1 like sprouts in the cells of seeds newly sown in the ground4 #ba4 ,some of these are melting away as icicles under heat1 like the mountains that were melted down by the burning sun and heavenly fire1 at the dissolution of the world4 #bb4 ,others have been continually falling downward without gaining the ground1 till at last they dwindle away1 and melt into the divine ,intellect4 #bc4 ,others are as immovable in the air1 as the animalculae in the water1 which are moved to and fro by the wind1 without any sign of motion or sensation in them4 #bd4 ,again nothing is stable in nature1 but every thing is as changeful as the acts and usages enjoined in the ,vedas and sstras1 are altered and succeeded by others4 #be4 ,there are other ,brahms and other patriarchs1 and many ,vishnus and many ,indras one after the other4 ,we have different kings of men1 and sometimes no ruler of them4 #bf4 ,some are as men and lords of others 7,ishas71 in this multiform creation1 and some are creeping and crooked living beings on earth2 some kinds are as full as the waters of the ocean1 and others have become quite extinct in the world4 #bg4 ,some are as hard as solid stones1 and others as soft as the poor insects and worms2 some are of godly figures as the giants1 and others of puny human forms4 #bh4 ,some are quite blind and suited to darkness 7as owls and moles and bats72 others are suited to light 7as men1 birds and beasts71 and some to both 7as cats and rats74 #bi4 ,some are born as gnats sucking the juice of the fruits of the fig tree2 while others are empty within1 and fly about and feed upon the air4 #cj4 ,the world is thus filled with creatures beyond the conception of ,yogis1 and we can not form even a guess-work of the beings that fill the infinite vacuum4 #ca4 ,this world is the sphere of these living beings2 but the great vacuum spreading beyond it1 is so extensive1 that it is immeasurable by the gods ,vishnu and others1 were they to traverse through it1 for the whole of their lives4 #cb4 ,every one of these etherial globes1 is encircled by a belt resembling a golden bracelet2 and has an attractive power like the earth to attract other objects4 #cc4 ,i have told you all about the grandeur of the universe to my best knowledge1 any thing beyond this1 is what ,i have no knowledge of1 nor power to describe4 #cd4 ,there are many other large worlds1 rolling through the immense space of vacuum1 as the giddy goblins of ,yakshas revel about in the dark and dismal deserts and forests1 unseen by others4 ,,chapter ,,xxxi4 ,,section ,i4 ,,alighting ,,of ,,the ,,ladies ,,on ,,earth4 ,vasishtha said3--,after having seen the worlds in their aerial journey1 the ladies alighted from there1 and quickly entered the inner apartment of the king4 #b4 ,there they saw the dead body of the king lying in state amidst heaps of flowers1 accompanied by the spiritual body of ,ll1 sitting beside the corpse4 #c4 ,it was the dead of night1 and the inmates had fallen into sound sleep one by one2 and the room was perfumed with the incense of resin1 camphor and sandalwood and saffron4 #d4 ,ll1 seeing the house of her latter husband1 and wishing to enter into it1 alighted in her assumed body 7sankalpadeha7 on the spot of his sepulchre4 #e4 ,she then passed through the fictitious spacious palace of her lord 7sankalpasansra71 by breaking out of the confines of her body and cranium called the earthly and worldly environs in ,yoga terminology 7sansra and ,brahmnda-varanas74 #f4 ,then she went again with the goddess to the bright and spacious temple of the world 7,brahmnda-mandapa71 in which she quickly entered4 #g4 ,she saw her husband's imaginary world to lie as a dirty and mossy pool1 as the lioness beholds the mountain cave covered by darkness and clouds4 #h4 ,the goddesses then entered into that vacuous world with their airy bodies1 as weak ants make their passage through the hard crust of the wood-apple or bel-fruit4 #i4 ,there they passed through regions of cloudy hills and skies1 and reached the surface of the earth1 consisting of tracts of land and basins of water4 #aj4 ,they then came to the ,jambudwpa 7,asia71 situated amidst the ninefold petals of the other dwpas 7or continents71 and thence proceeded to the territories of ,ll's husband in the varsha land of ,bharata 7,india74 #aa4 ,at this interval of time they beheld a certain prince--7the ruler of ,sinde71 strengthened by other chiefs1 making an attack on this part which was the beauty of the world4 #ab4 ,they beheld the air crowded by people of the three worlds1 who had assembled there to see the conflict4 #ac4 ,they remained undaunted1 and saw the air crowded by aerial beings in groups like clouds4 #ad4 ,there were the ,siddhas1 ,chranas1 ,gandharvas1 ,vidydharas1 ,sras1 celestials and ,apsars in large bodies4 #ae4 ,there were also the goblins of ,bhtas and ,pischas1 and ,rkshasa cannibals2 while the ,vidydhara females were flinging handfuls of flowers like showers of rain on the combatants4 #af4 ,the ,vetlas1 ,yakshas and ,kushmnds1 that were looking at the affray with pleasure1 took themselves to the shelter of hills1 to avoid the flying darts and weapons4 #ag4 ,the imps were flying from the air1 to keep themselves from the way of the flying weapons2 and the spectators were excited by sound of the war-whoop of the combatants4 #ah4 ,ll who was standing by with a flapper 7or fan7 in her hand1 was frightened at the imminent dreadful conflict1 and smiled to scorn their mutual vauntings4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,sight ,,of ,a ,,battle ,,array ,,in ,,earth ,,and ,,air4 #ai4 ,virtuous people who were unable to endure the horrid sight1 betook themselves to prayers1 with the chief priests for averting the calamity4 #bj4 ,the messengers of ,indra1 were ready with their decorated elephants 7called loka-plas71 for bearing the souls of mighty heroes to grace the seats of heaven4 #ba4 ,the chranas and ,gandharvas1 were singing praises of the advancing heroes2 and heavenly nymphs that liked heroism1 were glancing at the best combatants4 #bb4 ,voluptuous women were wishing to embrace the arms of the brave2 and the fair fame of the heroes1 had turned the hot sunshine to cool moonlight4 #bc4 ,rma asked3--,tell me1 sir1 what sort of a warrior is called a hero1 that becomes a jewel in heaven1 and who is an insurgent4 #bd4 ,vasishtha answered3--,he who engages in a lawful warfare1 and fights for his king1 and whether he dies or becomes victorious in the field1 is called a hero1 and goes to heaven4 #be4 ,whoever kills men otherwise in war and dies afterwards1 in an unjust cause1 is called an insurgent1 and goes to hell at last4 #bf4 ,whoever fights for unlawful property1 and dies in battle1 becomes subject to everlasting hell fire4 #bg4 ,whoso wages a just warfare1 that is justified by law and usage1 that warrior is called both loyal as well as heroic in deed4 #bh4 ,whoever dies in war1 for the preservation of kine1 ,brhmans and friends with a willing mind1 and whoso protects his guest and refugee with all diligence1 he verily becomes an ornament in heaven after his death4 #bi4 ,the king who is steadfast in protecting his subjects and his own country1 is called the just1 and those that die in his cause are called the brave4 #cj4 ,they that die fighting on the side of riotous subjects1 or in the cause of rebellious princes or chiefs1 are doomed to fire4 #ca4 ,they that die fighting unjustly against their kings1 lawgivers and rulers1 are subjected to the torments of hell4 #cb4 ,a war which is just1 serves to establish order2 but the giddy that are fearless of the future1 destroy all order 7by their unjust warfare74 #cc4 ,the hero dying1 goes to heaven1 is the common saying2 and the sstras call the lawful warrior only a hero1 and not otherwise4 #cd4 ,they who suffer wounds on their bodies1 for the protection of the righteous and good1 are said to be heroes1 or else they are insurgents 7dimbhavas74 #ce4 ,it was in expectation of seeing such heroes that the damsels of the gods1 were standing in the air1 and talking to themselves of becoming the spouses of such warriors4 #cf4 ,the air was as decorated as by an illumination on high1 and by rows of the beautiful heavenly cars of gods and ,siddhas1 and presence of celestial maidens1 who sang in sweet notes1 and decorated their locks with mandra flowers4 ,,chapter ,,xxxii4 ,,onset ,,of ,,the ,,war4 ,vasishtha said3--,ll standing with the goddess of wisdom in air1 saw the ,apsars dancing there1 at the eagerness of the combatants for war below4 #b4 ,she beheld the assemblage of the forces in her own territory once governed by her lord2 and saw the field of the air not less formidable by the assembled ghosts 7and its encircling belt composed of the lion1 scorpion1 crab and the archer74 #c4 ,the meeting of the two forces made the ground appear as a billowy sea2 like the meeting of two clouds in the sky1 giving it the appearance of two hostile forces4 #d4 ,the battle array of armoured warriors1 flashing as the fire of heaven1 was succeeded by their commingled blows1 resembling the rattling of thunders above1 deafening the ears and dazzling the sight4 #e4 ,then darts and javelins1 spears and lances1 and many other missiles 7prsas7 began to fall on both sides1 like showers of raindrops1 hailstones and meteorolites from the skies4 #f4 ,showers of shafts fell with a force1 that would pierce the pinions of garuda1 and struck out the glare of sunbeams1 by hitting at the armours of the warriors4 #g4 ,the combatants standing face to face with their lifted arms1 and staring at each other with steadfast looks1 seemed as they were pictures in a painting4 #h4 ,the armies drawn in long regiments1 standing in lines opposite to each other1 were heard to answer one another by their repeated shouts4 #i4 ,the battalia of both armies1 and the drums on both sides1 were put to a stop by the warnings of their leaders1 against striking the first blow4 #aj4 ,the intermediate space of the breadth of two bows1 that separated the hostile forces like a bridge from one another1 appeared as the gap1 caused by the winds in the midst of the ocean at the universal deluge4 7,or more like the partition of the waters of the ,red sea by the rod of ,moses74 #aa4 ,the leaders were drowned in thoughts for fear of bloodshed and massacre2 and the cowardly soldiers groaned in their hearts1 with the hoarse noise of croaking frogs4 #ab4 ,there were numbers of bravoes1 eager to yield up their precious lives in a trice2 and the bowyers stood with their bowstrings drawn to the ear1 and ready to let loose their pointed arrows at the foe4 #ac4 ,others stood dreadfully fixed to strike their arms upon the enemy1 and many were looking sternly at their adversaries1 with their frowning looks4 #ad4 ,the armours were clashing by mutual concussion1 the countenances of the bravoes were burning with rage1 and the faces of cowards were turned towards sheltered retreats for flight4 #ae4 ,the lookers stood in doubt of their lives until the end of the war1 and old men like big elephants1 were covered with horripilation on their bodies4 #af4 ,the silence which ensued at the expectation of the first blow1 resembled the calm of the stormy main1 and the deep sleep of a city at the dead of night4 #ag4 ,the musical instruments1 the drum and conch-shell were all silent1 and a thick cloud of dust1 covered the face of the earth and sky4 #ah4 ,the retreaters were flying from their stronger assailants1 who kept running after them1 in the manner of sharks pursuing the shoals of fishes in the sea4 #ai4 ,the glittering fringes of the flags1 put the etherial stars to blush1 and the lifted goads in the hands of the elephant-drivers1 made a forest of tapering trees in the sky4 #bj4 ,the flinging arrows were flying like flocks of the winged tribe in air1 and the loud beating of drums and blowing of pipes1 resounded amidst the air4 #ba4 ,there was a phalanx in a circular form1 attacking a host of wicked demons1 and here was a squadron in the form of ,garuda1 with its right and left wings1 attacking a body of elephants4 #bb4 ,somewhere a great howling was heard to rise from the vanguard of a body of troops1 disconcerted by a cohort in the form of eagles3 and at another many were seen to fall upon one another with mutual shouts4 #bc4 ,thus a tremendous noise was raised by the warriors of the many legions1 and a multitude of big mallets were seen to be raised on high by the hands of the combatants4 #bd4 ,the glaring of sable steel1 shaded the sunbeams like a cloud1 and hissing darts in the air1 emitted a sound1 resembling the rustling of breeze amidst the dry leaves of trees4 #be4 ,now the brunt of battle1 began like the dashing of clouds upon clouds at the end of a ,kalpa1 and the war raged like the raging sea ruffled by a hurricane4 #bf4 ,big elephants were falling in the field like coal-black rocks1 hurled down by gusts of wind4 #bg4 ,it seemed that the infernal spirits were let loose from their caves of hell1 to rage in the battle field with their horrid and dismal figures4 #bh4 ,the day light was obscured by the sable cloud of swords1 and the mallets and lances were raised up by the black ,kunta warriors1 who seemed bent upon converting the earth to an ocean of bloodshed4 ,,chapter ,,xxxiii4#ag ,,comingled ,,fighting4 ,rma said3--,sir1 relate to me in short and promptly1 about this warfare1 as my ears are delighted with narratives of this kind4 #b4 ,vasishtha said3--,these ladies then1 in order to have a better view of the battle below1 ascended in their imaginary aerial cars vimnas1 to a more retired spot in the higher regions of the sky4 #c4 ,at this interval1 there began a mingled fight of the forces face to face1 with a commingled shout of the two armies1 as the dashing of the waves against one another in the raging sea4 #d4 ,at this instant1 ,vidratha the lord of the realm1 7formerly ,padma--the husband of ,ll71 seeing a daring warrior of the hostile force attack one of his soldiers1 struck him impatiently on the breast1 with the blow of a ponderous mallet4 #e4 ,then the battle raged with the impetuosity of the rolling waves of the stormy main1 and the arms on both sides1 flamed with living fire and flash of fiery lightnings4 #f4 ,now the edges of waving swords 7larattarat71 glittered in the sky1 and cracking and clashing noise 7,kanakana71 filled the air with a hideous crackling 7kadkada74 #g4 ,then flew the winged arrows1 overshadowing the beams of the sun1 and emitting a booming noise 7hunkra71 which hushed the rattling clamour 7gharghara7 of summer clouds4 #h4 ,armours clashed against armours 7,kankata71 with a clanking noise 7tankra71 and shot forth the sparks of glistening fire 7,kanatkana72 and arms1 hashing 7ch'hina-bhinna7 and slashing 7,khanda-khanda7 against arms1 filled the air with their fragments flying like birds in the air4 #i4 ,the shaking 7dodulya7 shanks and arms of the army1 appeared as a moving forest 7dordruma7 on the land1 and the twangings of their bows 7tankra71 and rumbling of the disks 7krenkra71 drove away the birds of the air1 and crackled like the rattling drive of wheels 7dravat7 in heaven4 #aj4 ,the hissing of their loosened strings 7halhala71 resembled the 7ghunghuna7 buzzing of bees1 heard in the samdhi yoga 7by shutting the ears74 #aa4 ,iron shafts like sleets of hailstones1 pierced the heads of the soldiers1 and the 7ranat7 crashing of armours 7sanghatta71 broke the arms of the warriors in mail 7,kankata sankata74 #ab4 ,weapons struck on brazen armours with a howling noise 7hunkra71 made a clanking sound by the stroke 7tnkra71 and flying like drifts of rain water 7tartara71 pierced the face of the air on all sides3 7literally1 denticulated--dantura dingmukha74 #ac4 ,the striking of steel on one another 7sanghatta71 made the hands ring with a jingling sound 7jhanjhanat72 and the continued rapping on the arms 7sphota71 and clapping of hands1 7karasphota71 raised a pattering and chattering sound 7chat chat and pat pat74 #ad4 ,the whizzing noise of unsheathing the sword 7shitkra71 and the hissing of the sparks of fire 7sansana72 the flinging of arrows in all ways 7sadatkra71 and the flying of darts1 likened the rustling of falling leaves 7,kharkhara7 in autumn4 #ae4 ,the spouting of life blood 7dhakdhak71 from the throats separated from the bodies1 the mangled limbs and heads1 and the broken swords filled the whole space4 #af4 ,the flame of fire flaring 7sphurat7 from the armours2 emblazoned the hairs of the warriors1 and the fighting and falling 7ranatpatat7 of swordsmen1 raised a giddy and loud jingling of their weapons 7jhanjhana74 #ag4 ,the lofty elephants pierced by the spears of the ,kunta lancers1 poured out torrents of red-hot blood2 while the tusky tribe was goring whole bodies of them with their shrill cries 7chitkra74 #ah4 ,others crushed by the ponderous maces of their antagonists1 creaked grievously under the blows2 while the heads of the slain soldiers1 swam in the rivers of blood over the plain4 #ai4 ,here the hungry vultures were pouncing from above1 and there the sky was covered by a cloud of dust2 and the weaponless combatants1 were engaged in ,keskes fighting1 by holding each other down by the hairs4 ,,chapter ,,xxxiv4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,battle4 ,now the generals and ministers of the belligerent powers1 and the aerial spectators of the war1 were thus talking among themselves4 #b4 ,lo6 here the ground has become a lake of blood1 with the heads of the slaughtered hosts floating as lotuses upon it2 and there the air has become as the starry heaven1 glittering with broken weapons1 flying like birds in the sky4 #c4 ,behold the air is reddened with the particles of vermeil blood1 borne above by the winds1 and the sky presenting the evening clouds1 with the glow of the setting sun at midday4 #d4 ,what are these1 says one1 that are flying as straws in the firmament8 ,they are1 says the other1 no straws1 but the flight of arrows1 that have filled the atmosphere4 #e4 ,as long as the dust of the earth1 cries another1 is moistened by the bloodshed of the brave1 so long are the heroes entitled to glory1 and have their abode in heaven for myriads of years4#ah #f4 ,fear not these sable swords1 says the sstra1 whose blades are worn by the brave like petals of blue lotuses about their necks and breasts2 and bravoes are favourites in the eyes of the goddess of fortune4 7,fortune favours the brave74 #g4 ,the heavenly nymphs that beheld the fighting1 felt a desire to embrace the brave1 and the god of the flowery bow 7,kma or ,cupid71 was busy to loosen their waist bands4 7,cupid by inversion is ,dpuc1 another name of the ,indian ,kma4 ,and ,fairies or ,paries and ,huries are said to fall to the lot of the fighters in ,jehad-battle4 ,so says ,dryden3 8,none but the brave deserve the fair074 #h4 ,they beckoned their welcome by the waving of their reddish palms1 in the shaking of the ruddy leaves of trees1 and by the round glances of their eyes1 in the blooming blossoms of plants1 and by the perfume of their breath in the honied fragrance of flowers4 #i4 ,the geniuses of the garden of ,paradise1 were singing sweetly in the notes of the sylvan choir1 and betook themselves to dancing in the wagging tails of peacocks4 #aj4 ,as the brave warrior was breaking the line of the enemy with his hardy axe2 so was his beloved breaking his hard heart and spirit1 with the soft glances of her eyes4 #aa4 ,it is by my lance1 says the lancer1 that ,i have severed the head of my adversary with the rings in his ears1 like the head of the ascending node of ,rhu1 approaching the disk of the sun4 #ab4 ,lo6 ,there is a champion1 hurling the blocks of stones1 attached to the end of a chain reaching his feet2 and another whirling his wheel with a wondrous log of wood1 held in his uplifted arm4 #ac4 ,there comes that combatant in the form of ,yama1 appearing from the region of ,pluto 7,preta71 and spreading a horrid devastation all around4 ,come let us go hence as we came4 #ad4 ,look there the ravenous birds1 greedily plunging their long necks in the cells of bodies just separated from their heads1 and glutting themselves with the gushing blood2 and see there the headless trunk of the slain1 moving to and fro in the field of battle4 #ae4 ,the eloquent among the spectators were talking to one another1 about the frailty of human life1 and the uncertainty of the time of their meeting in the next world4 #af4 ,oh6 the stern cannibal of death1 says one1 that devours in one swoop1 whole bodies of the assembled armies1 now weltering in blood2 and levels the levelling hosts to the ground4 #ag4 ,the showers of arrows falling on the bodies of elephants1 resemble the showers of rain drops on mountain tops2 and the darts sticking to their frontal bones1 liken the bolts of lightening piercing the peaks of cliffs4 #ah4 ,while the headless body of the beheaded1 was groveling grievously on the ground for want of its head1 the pate flying on high as a bird of air1 proclaimed its immortality in heaven4 #ai4 ,the army harassed by stones slung on their heads1 cried to entrap the enemy in the snares set at their feet4 #bj4 ,wives that had become ,apsars 7heavenly nymphs7 after death1 were now eager to claim their husbands1 who were restored to their youth1 by virtue of their falling in the field of battle4 #ba4 ,the glaring light of the line of lances that had reached the skies1 seemed as a flight of stairs or golden vistas1 for the ascent of the brave to the gates of heaven4 #bb4 ,the wife of the slain soldier1 seeing now a heavenly goddess1 taking possession of her husband's fair gold-like breast1 was looking about in search of another4 #bc4 ,generals1 wailing loudly with their uplifted arms1 over their fallen armies in the field1 appeared as the cliffs of rocks1 resounding to the clamorous surges below4 #bd4 ,they cried out to fight the foremost in war1 and to remove the wounded to the rear2 and not to trample over the bodies of their own soldiers1 now lying low on the ground4 #be4 ,behold6 there the ,apsars eagerly tying their loosened locks1 and advancing with sobbing bosoms to receive the departed warriors1 joining their company in their celestial forms4 #bf4 ,ah6 receive them says one1 who are our guests from afar1 on the banks of the rivers of ,paradise1 decorated with lotus blossoms of golden hue1 and entertain them with fresh water and cooling breeze4 #bg4 ,look6 there the groups of weapons1 broken into pieces like bones by their concussion1 are huddled in the air with a jingling sound 7kanatkra71 and shining as stars in the sky4 #bh4 ,lo6 the stream of deceased souls1 flowing in arrowy currents and rolling in whirlpools of the flying disks1 is rapidly gliding with the pebbles and stones1 flung from the slings in the air4 #bi4 ,the sky is become as a lake of lotuses with the lotiform heads of warriors flung aloft in the air1 while the flying weapons are floating like their stalks in it1 with the broken swords as their thorns all around4 #cj4 ,the flying fragments of the flags1 forming the folia of the plants1 and the darts sticking to them1 appear as big black bees fluttering about the flowers moving with the breeze4 #ca4 ,the arrows sticking to the dead bodies of elephants1 are as emmets on mountain tops1 and as timid girls clinging to the bosoms of men4 #cb4 ,the winds unfurling the curling locks of ,vidydhara females1 indicate their approaching spousals1 as the unfolding plumage of fowls are predictions of success in augury4 #cc4 ,the lifted umbrellas are shining as so many moons on high and the moon shining above in the form of fair fame1 spreads her light as a white canopy on earth4 #cd4 ,the brave warrior1 soon after his death1 assumes a celestial form framed by his own merit1 as a man in his sleep1 attains to a state1 he has imagined to himself in his waking4 #ce4 ,the flying spears and lances and clubs and disks are hurtling in the air1 like shoals of restless fishes and sharks1 moving about incessantly in the troubled waters of the sea4 #cf4 ,the milk-white rags of umbrellas1 tattered and shattered by arrowy shafts1 are flying as cranes in the crowded air1 and appearing as the disk of the moon broken into a thousand pieces4 #cg4 ,these waving flappers flying in the air with a hoarse gurgling 7gharghara71 seem as the waves of the sea lifted in the air1 and undulating with a babbling noise in the ocean of the sky4 #ch4 ,those slips of the flappers and umbrellas1 hashed by the slashing arms1 appear as the laurels of glory flung aloft and flying in the regions of air4 #ci4 ,behold ye friends6 how these flying arrows and showering spears1 are approaching to us with hits of their spoil1 like bodies of locusts1 bearing away their verdant booty in the air4 #dj4 ,hearken to the clanking sound of the striking steel1 in the uplifted arm of the armoured soldier1 resounding like the loud larum of the regent of death4 #da4 ,hear the tremendous blows of weapons1 like the blowing of an all destroying tornado1 throwing down the elephants like craigs of mountains1 with their long stretching tusks lying like water falls on the ground4 #db4 ,lo6 there the drivers of war chariots are stopped in their course1 and striving to make their way through the puddles of blood1 in which the wheels and horses of the car1 are huddled together as in a bog of quagmire4 #dc4 ,the jingling of arms and armours1 and the jangling of swords and steel1 resound1 as the tinkling of the lute at the dancing of the dire and dreaded dame of death4 #dd4 ,see the skirts of the sky reddened by the roseate particles1 borne by the winds from the streams of blood1 issuing out of the wounds in the bodies of men1 horses and elephants lying dead in the field4 #de4 ,look at the array of arrows formed in the air as a wreath of blossoms1 and falling as the rays of lightnings from the dark black clouds of weapons hanging on high4 #df4 ,lo6 the surface of the earth filled with blood-red weapons1 appearing as faggots of fire strewn over the ground in an universal conflagration4 #dg4 ,the multitudes of commingled weapons1 clashing with and breaking one another into pieces1 are falling down in showers1 like the innumerable rays of the sun4 #dh4 ,the fighting of one man among the motionless many1 is like the magic play of a magician#ai where the conjurer acts his parts amidst the bewitched beholders1 ,lo6 there the indifferent spectators viewing the warfare as a dream 7by their prajna or inward vision of the mind74 #di4 ,the field of battle1 where all other sounds are hushed under the clashing of arms1 resembles the stage of the martial god ,bhairava1 chanting his pitiless war song in jarring cacophony4 #ej4 ,the battlefield is turned to a sea of blood1 filled with the sands of pounded weapons1 and rolling with the waves of broken discuses4 #ea4 ,all the quarters under the regents of the sky1 are filled with martial music loudly resounding on all sides2 and the rebellowing hills seem to challenge one another1 in their aerial flight and fighting 7as in contest of the gods and titans of old74 #eb4 ,alas for shame6 says one1 that these arrows flung with such force from the bow strings1 and flying with such loud hissing1 and glittering as red hot lightnings in the air1 are foiled in their aim of piercing the impenetrable armours1 and driven back by them to hit at the stony hills4 #ec4 ,hear me friend1 that art tired with the sight1 that it is time for us to depart from this place1 ere we are pierced in our bodies by these sharp arrows flashing as fire1 and before the day runs its course of the fourth watch 7evening74 ,,chapter ,,xxxv4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,battlefield4#bj ,vasishtha said3--,then the waves of horse troops mounting to the sky1 made the battlefield appear as a raging sea4 #b4 ,the moving umbrellas floated as its foam and froth1 and the feathered silvery arrows glided like the finny pearly fishes in it1 while the high flight and rush of the cavalry1 heaved and dashed as surges of the sea4 #c4 ,the rushing of the weapons resembled the running of its currents1 and the circles of the soldiers were as vortices of its waters4 ,the elephants were as its islets and their motions resembled the moving rocks in it4 #d4 ,the whirling disks were as its eddies1 and the flying hairs on the heads likened its floating weeds4 ,the sparkling sands were as its shining waters1 and the flash of swords like its glassy spray4 #e4 ,the gigantic warriors were its whales and alligators1 and the resounding caverns like its gurgling whirlpools4 #f4 ,the flying arrows were like its swimming fishes1 and the floating flags likened its uprising waves and bores4 #g4 ,the shining weapons formed the waters of this ocean and their whirlpools also1 while the long lines of forces appeared as the huge and horrible bodies of its whales4 #h4 ,soldiers clad in black iron armour1 were as the dark blue waters of the deep1 and the headless bodies groveling in dust were as the eddies of the sea1 with the encircled equipments as the sea weeds4 #i4 ,the showers of arrows had obscured the skies with a mist1 and the confused rattlings of the battlefield1 were as the roarings of the clouds4 #aj4 ,the flying and falling heads of the slain soldiers1 resembled the large drops of rain1 and their bodies were as pieces of wood1 whirling in the eddies of the disks4 #aa4 ,the bold bowyer1 bending his strong bow in the form of a curve1 and leaping above the ground1 resembled the spouting sea1 rising from underneath the ground with his heaving waves on high4 #ab4 ,the unnumbered umbrellas and flags1 that were moving up and down in the field1 were as the foaming and frothing sea1 rolling in waves of blood1 and carrying away the beams and timbers of the broken cars in its current4 #ac4 ,the march of the army resembled the flowing of the sea waters1 and the blood spouting from the wounds of the elephants likened its bubbles1 while the moving horses and elephants represented the sea animals in their motion4 #ad4 ,the battlefield had become like the wondrous field of the air1 where the furious war1 like a tremendous earthquake1 shook the hills like moving clouds in the sky4 #ae4 ,here the waves were undulating like flights of birds in the air1 and the groups of elephants falling aground like rocks1 and the cowardly ranks were murmuring like herds of the timorous deer4 #af4 ,the field is turned to a forest of arrows1 and wounded soldiers are standing fixed on the ground as trees1 with the arrows flying as locusts1 and the horses moving like antelopes in it4 #ag4 ,here the loud drum sounded as the humming of bees in the hollows of trees1 and the army appearing as a mist1 with the bold warrior sprawling like a lion in it4 #ah4 ,the dust was rising in clouds and the forces falling as rocks2 the huge cars broken down as hills1 and the flaming swords shining on all sides4 #ai4 ,the rise and fall of the foot soldier's feet flitted like the falling flowers on the ground1 and the flags and umbrellas o'ertopped it as clouds2 it was overflown by streams of blood1 and the high-sounding elephants falling as thundering showers of rain4 #bj4 ,the war was as the last doom of death ready to devour the world1 and destroy the flags and banners1 the umbrellas and chariots in a confused chaos4 #ba4 ,the shining weapons were falling like fragments of the refulgent sun1 and burning all things as a burning pain inflames the soul and mind4 #bb4 ,the out-stretched bows were as rainbows1 and the falling arrows as showers of rain2 the flying sabres resembled the forky lightnings1 and their falling fragments like the sparkling hailstones4 #bc4 ,the dire massacre made a sea of blood1 with the hurling stones as its shoals and rocks2 while the flying arms resembled the falling stars from heaven4 #bd4 ,the sky was as a sea full of the whirlpools of the groups of disks and circlets1 that were hurled in the air2 and there were the burning fires1 that performed the funerals of the slain4 #be4 ,the missiles were as bolts of thunder1 which struck the rock-like elephants dead in the field1 to block the passage of men4 #bf4 ,the earth and sky were obscured by a thick cloud of showering arrows1 and the army below was a sea of tempestuous warfare and bloodshed4 #bg4 ,the destructive weapons were flying on all sides1 like huge dragons of the sea1 carried aloft by gusts of wind from the stormy main4 #bh4 ,the flying arms of bolts and swords1 disks1 pikes and lances1 were blazing and breaking one another in the air with such hideous noise1 that it seemed to be a second deluge1 when the last tornado blew up everything on high scattering them in all directions1 and crushing and smashing them with a tremendous peal4 ,,chapter ,,xxxvi4 ,,section ,i4 ,,collision ,,of ,,equal ,,arms ,,and ,,armigerents4 ,the heaps of arrows rising in spires above the ground1 drove the cowards and the wounded afar from the field4 #b4 ,the hills of the dead bodies of men1 horses and elephants1 heaving in promiscuous heaps1 and appearing as clouds fallen upon earth1 invited the ,yakshas and ,rkshasas1 and the carnivorous ,pischas1 to come and sport in the wide ocean of blood4 #c4 ,now there commenced a commutual contest1 betwixt men of rank and virtue1 and those of good character1 valour and strength on both sides2 not excepting even the holy and household people1 all of whom took part in the combat 7that is1 no condition of life1 nor age nor sex1 could escape the contagion of a warfare74 #d4 ,duels were fought between these1 like the clashing of one cloud with another2 and like the confluence of two streams discharging their fury against each other4 #e4 ,as a rib is joined to another1 and one side with the other1 so met the horse against the horse1 and elephant opposed the elephant in mutual conflict4 #f4 ,as one forest clasps and clings to another1 and one hill is linked with the other in a range1 so the duelists strove together1 as one wave dashes against the other4 #g4 ,footmen fought with footmen1 as the reeds crush the reeds1 and bamboos clash against one another1 and the contrary winds struggle between themselves4 #h4 ,cars falling upon cars1 and chariots running against chariots1 broke one another to pieces2 and the citizens beat the rustics1 as the ,devas smote the demons of old4 #i4 ,the sky which had been erewhile clouded by the flight of arrows1 was now emblazoned by the banner of the bowyer1 resembling the rainbow of various colours4 #aj4 ,at last the warriors who were overpowered in their conflict with unequal arms1 fled away from the field1 as they do from the fire of a conflagration4 #aa4 ,now the armigerents with discuses1 met the thwarters of disks 7chakras7 in contest2 and bowyers were opposed to bowmen1 and swordsmen challenged the sword fighters in the field4 ,so met the hookers and crookers with their co-rivals with crowbars 7bhusundis7 in hand4 #ab4 ,maces were opposed to maces 7musalas71 and lancers were set against the lance bearers 7kuntas7 in fighting4 ,spearmen braved the spearmen 7rishtis71 and the throwers of missiles were crossed with missives 7prsas7 in hand4 #ac4 ,mallets militated against mallets 7mudguras71 and clubs were contravened by clubmen in the conflict4 ,combatants with pikes 7saktis71 encountered the pikemen 7sakti-dharas7 face to face2 and iron rods were crossed to pointed rods 7slas7 in the strife4 #ad4 ,pugilists with missive weapons1 counteracted the missiles of their antagonists 7prsas71 and those fighting with battle axes 7parasus71 baffled the poleaxes and pickaxes 7paraswadhas7 of their foes4 #ae4 ,trappers with their traps and snares1 attacked the darters of nooses and lassos 7psas72 and the darters of javelins 7sankus71 withstood the darts of the dartsmen on the other side4 ,daggers were opposed to daggers 7kshurikas71 and cudgels were presented before the cudgels 7bhindiplas of the enemy74 #af4 ,combatants with iron gloves contravened the boxers with iron fistcuffs 7,vajramushtis71 and those with iron cranes1 pursued the fighters with crooked goads 7ankusas7 in hand4 ,warriors with ploughshares attacked the ploughmen1 and those with tridents1 fell upon the trident holders 7trislins7 in contest4 #ag4 ,champions with chained armours set upon the soldiers attired in mail 7srinkhala jla72 and they poured upon the field as flights of locusts1 or as the waves in the troubled sea4 #ah4 ,the air also seemed as a sea1 with flying disks whirling as whirlpools 7chakravartas71 and the flight of reeds whistling like gusts of wind2 while the range of running weapons seemed as sharks and dolphins moving about it4 #ai4 ,the hollow of the heaven became as the great deep of the sea1 impassable by the celestials1 owing to the waving weapons1 moving as sea monsters in the air4 #bj4 ,thus the armies of the two belligerent potentates1 each composed of eight ranks or battalions1 were furiously engaged with one another1 as described below4 ,,section ,,ii4 ,,catalogue ,,of ,,the ,,forces4 #ba4 ,now hear me relate to you1 the forces on the side of ,padma1 now named ,vidratha1 and the allied powers that came to his side1 from the ,central and ,eastern districts4 #bb4 ,there came the hardy warriors of ,kosala 7,oudh7 and ,ksi 7,benares72 those of ,magadha 7,behar7 and ,utkala 7,orissa71 situated in the east2 and the ,mekhalas 7of ,vindhya range71 the ,karkars 7of ,karnatic71 and the ,madras 7of ,madura7 in the south4 #bc4 ,the chiefs of ,hema 7,imaus7 and ,rudras and the ,tmraliptas 7,tamils7 from the south2 the ,prgjyotishas 7of east ,assam71 and the horse faced ,osmuks and ,ambashtha cannibals4 #bd4 ,then there joined the ,varna-koshthas and ,viswotras1 and the eaters of raw food and flesh and the fish eaters 7piscivori72 and those with faces like tigers1 the ,kiratas 7,kirrhoids and ,kira-antis71 with the ,sauviras and one legged people4 #be4 ,next came the mountaineers of ,mlyavna1 ,sibira and ,anjanagiri2 and others having the ensigns of bulls and lotuses1 and the people of the sun rising mountain 7,udaya-giri7 in the east4 #bf4 ,those that joined from the south east 7prgdaxina71 are the following1 namely2 the ,vindhyaris1 the ,chedis1 the ,vatsas1 the ,dasrnas 7near the confluence of the ten streams72 and the ,angas1 ,bangas and ,upabangas 7of ,upper and ,lower ,bengal74 #bg4 ,they that met from the south were1 ,kalingas and ,pundras1 the ,jatharas1 ,vidarbhas and the hill people 7on the ,karnatic coast72 the ,sabaras1 the outcasted savages1 the ,karnas and the ,tripura people4 #bh4 ,those named ,kantakas from their thorny district1 the unenlightened ,komalas 7of ,comilla872 the ,karnas 7,canarese71 the ndhras1 the ,cholas and the people on the borders of the ,charmanvati river4 #bi4 ,the ,kakos or bald-headed and bearded people1 and those of the ,hema-kuta hills2 the frizzled and long necked people1 and the inhabitants of ,kishkindha and cocoa forests4 #cj4 ,the princes that joined with ,ll's husband from the south1 were as follows viz4 the ,vindhyans1 the ,kusumians 7of ,patna71 the ,mahendras and the ,darduras 7of the hills of the same names74 #ca4 ,the ,malays and the solar race1 and the ,prince of the 7#cc7 united states and the rich and united cities of ,avanti and ,smbavati4 #cb4 ,and those of ,dasapura 7or ten cities7 of ,katha 7,kota71 ,chakra1 ,reshika ,cutch and others1 and the foresters of ,upagiri and ,bhadragiri hills4 #cc4 ,the prince of ,nagore and the chiefs of ,dandaka forest1 and the joint states of the people2 the ,sahas1 ,saivas1 and the hill people of the ,rishyamuka and ,karkota and the ,vimbila foresters4 #cd4 ,then came the inhabitants from the banks of ,pamp1 the ,kerakas and ,karkaviras2 with the ,kherikas1 ,asikas and the people of ,dhrumapattana4 #ce4 ,next came the ,ksikas and ,khallukas1 the ,yadas and ,tamraparnikas2 the ,gonardas1 the ,kanakas and the people of ,dinapattam4 #cf4 ,the ,tamris 7,tamils71 ,kadambharas1 ,sahakras and ,enakas 7or deer hunters72 the ,vaitundas1 ,tumba-vanalas1 and those attired in deer and elephant skins4 #cg4 ,then came the lotus-like ,sibis and ,konkans and the inhabitants of ,chitrakuta mountains2 with the people of ,karnata1 the ,mantas1 ,batakas and those of ,cattak4 #ch4 ,the ,andhras and ,kola hill people 7,koles71 the ,avantis and ,chedis2 with the ,chandas and ,devanakas and ,kraunchavahas4 #ci4 ,at last came the people from the three peaks of ,chitrakta mountains1 called the ,silkhra1 ,nanda mardana and ,malaya1 which were the seats of the guardian ,bkshasas of ,lank4 #dj4 ,then those of the southwest where there is the great realm of ,surstra 7,surat71 with the kingdoms of ,sindhu 7,sinde7 ,sauvira1 ,abhra1 and ,dravidas 7in ,deccan74 #da4 ,also those of the districts of ,kikata1 ,siddha ,khanda1 and ,kliruha1 and the mount ,hemagiri or golden hills and the ,raivataka range4 #db4 ,then the warriors of ,jaya ,kachchha 7the victorious ,cutch71 and ,mayavara 7,mewar72 as also the ,yavanas 7,ionians71 the ,bahlikas 7,balkhs71 the ,marganas 7nomads71 and the grey coloured ,tumbas 7on the north74 #dc4 ,then there came ,lahsa races and many hill peoples1 inhabiting the borders of the sea 7,caspian71 forming the limit of the dominion of ,ll's husband 7,hindu ,government7 on the north4 #dd4 ,now know the names of the countries belonging to the enemy in the west1 and of those composed of the following mountain ranges1 viz4 #de4 ,the mount ,manimn and the ,kurar-pana hills1 with the hillocks of ,vanorka1 ,megha-bhava1 and the ,chakra-vana mountain4 #df4 ,there is the country of the five peoples limiting the territory of the ,ksa ,brahmans1 and after that the ,bhraksha1 the ,praka and ,sntika countries4 #dg4 ,thence stretch the countries of the ,saivyas1 ,amarakas1 the ,pachchyas 7,pschtyas7 and ,guhutwas2 and then the ,haihaya country1 and those of the ,suhyas1 ,gayas and ,tajikas and ,hunas 7,huns74 #dh4 ,then along the side of some other countries1 there is the range of ,karka hills1 inhabited by barbarous people1 devoid of caste1 customs and limits of moral duties4 #di4 ,thence stretches a country hundreds of leagues in length1 to the boundary mountain of ,mahendra1 abounding in rich stones and gems4 #ej4 ,after that stands the ,aswa range with hundreds of hills about it2 and extending to the dread ocean on the north of the ,pariytra range4 7,paropamisus74 #ea4 ,on the north western side1 there are countries beyond the boundary mountains 7of ,asia71 where ,venupati was the king of the land4 #eb4 ,then there are the countries of the ,phlgunakas and ,mndavayas and many other peoples2 and those of ,purukundas and ,paras 7,paris87 as bright as the orb of the sun4 #ec4 ,then the races of ,vanmilas and ,nalinas and the ,dirghas2 who are so called1 from their tall statures and long arms and hairs4 ,then there are the ,rangas 7,red men71 ,stnikas with protuberant breasts1 and the ,guruhas and ,chaluhas4 #ed4 ,after that is the kingdom of women 7ruled by a queen71 where they feed upon bullocks and heifers4 ,now about the ,himlayas and its hills in the north 7of ,india73-- #ee4 ,these are the ,krauncha and ,madhumn hills2 and the ,kailsa1 ,vasumn and the ,sumeru peaks2 at the foot of which are the people1 known under many names4 #ef4 ,beside these there met the warlike tribes of ,india consisting of the ,madrawars1 ,malavas and ,sura-senas4 ,the ,rajputs of the race of ,arjuna1 the ,trigartas and the one legged people and ,khudras4 #eg4 ,there were the ,abalas1 ,prakhalas1 and ,sakas 7,sacc or ,scythians74 ,the ,khemadhrtas1 the ,dasadhanas1 the ,gavsanas and ,dandahanas 7club fighters74 #eh4 ,the ,dhnadas and ,sarakas and ,btadhnas also1 with the islanders and ,gndhras and ,avanti warriors of ,malwa4 #ei4 ,the warlike ,takshasilas 7,taxilas71 the ,blavas1 ,godhanas and the renowned warriors of ,pushkara 7,pokhra74 #fj4 ,then there were the ,tkshas and ,klavaras1 and the inhabitants of the cities of ,khaka and ,surabhti likewise4 #fa4 ,there were the people of the ,ratikdarsa and ,antardarsa also2 and the ,pingalas1 the ,pandyas1 ,yamanas and ,ytudhnas ,rkshasas too4 #fb4 ,there were also the races of men1 known as ,hematlas and ,osmuks1 together with the hilly tribes1 inhabiting the ,himalaya1 ,vasumn1 ,krauncha and ,kailasa mountains4 #fc4 ,hear me now relate to you the peoples that came from the north east quarter1 which extends a hundred and eighty leagues in its circumference4 #fd4 ,there came also the ,kalutas and ,brahmaputras1 the ,kunidas and ,khudinas1 with the warlike ,malavas and the champions of the ,randhra and forest states4 #fe4 ,then there were the ,kedavas and ,sinhaputras of dwarfish statures2 the ,sabas 7,sab or ,sabians871 the ,kaccs1 the ,pahlavis 7ancient ,persians71 the ,kamiras and the ,daradas 7the present ,darduis or ,himalayan hills74 #ff4 ,there were also the people of ,abhisa1 the ,jarvakas1 the ,pulolas and ,kuves2 the ,kirtas and ,yamupatas1 together with the poor and rich people of desert lands and tracts of gold4 #fg4 ,thus ,ll saw in one view1 the residences of the devas2 the forest lands and the earth in all their beauty4 ,she saw all the seats of opulence 7viswavasus71 and the edifices with which they were adorned2 she beheld the summit of ,kailsa1 and the delightful groves at its foot1 and the level lands traversed by the aerial cars of ,vidydhara and celestial beings4#ba ,,chapter ,,xxxvii ,,catalogue ,,of ,,the ,,forces ,,continued4#bb ,vasishtha said3--,thus the ravaging war was making a rapid end of men1 horse1 elephants and all2 and the bravos coming foremost in the combat1 fell in equal numbers on both sides4 #b4 ,these 7as named before71 and many others were reduced to dust and ashes2 and the bravery of the brave1 served but to send them like poor moths to the fire and flame of destruction4 #c4 ,know now the names of the central districts1 not yet mentioned by me1 that sent their warriors to the field1 in favour of the consort prince of ,ll4 #d4 ,these were the inland forces of ,sursena 7,muttra71 the ,gudas 7,gaudas871 and the ,asganas 7872 the ,madhymikas and they that dwell under sunlight 7the tropics74 #e4 ,the ,slukas and ,kodmals1 and ,pippalyanas2 the ,mndavyas1 ,pandyans1 ,sugrvas and ,gurjars4 #f4 ,the ,priytras1 ,kurashtras1 ,yamunas and ,udumvaras2 the ,raj-waras1 the ,ujjainas1 the ,klkotas 7,calicuts7 and the ,mathuras 7of ,muttra74 #g4 ,the ,pnchlas 7,pnjbis71 the ,northern and ,southern ,dharmakshetras2 the ,kurukshetriyas1 ,pnchlakas and ,sraswatas4 #h4 ,the line of war chariots from ,avanti1 being opposed by the arms of the warriors of the ,kunta and ,panchanada districts1 fell in fighting by the sides of the hills4 #i4 ,those arrayed in silken attire1 being dismantled by the enemy1 fell upon the ground1 and were trodden down by the elephants4 #aj4 ,the bravadoes of ,daspura1 being hacked in their breasts and shoulders by the hostile weapons1 were pursued by the ,banabhuma warriors1 and driven to the distant pool4 #aa4 ,the ,sntikas being ripped in their bellies1 lay dead and motionless in naked field1 and wrapped in their mangled entrails1 which were torn and devoured by the voracious ,pischas at night4 #ab4 ,there the veteran and vociferous warriors of ,bhadrasiri1 who were well skilled in the battle field1 drove the ,amargas to the ditch1 as they drive the tortoises to their pits4 #ac4 ,the ,haihayas were driving the ,dandakas1 who like fleet stags were flying with the swiftness of winds1 and all gushing in blood by the pointed and piercing arrows of the enemy4 #ad4 ,the ,daradas were gored by the tusks of the elephants of their enemies1 and were borne away in floods of their blood1 like the broken branches of trees4 #ae4 ,the ,chnas 7,chinese7 were mangled in their bodies by darts and arrows1 and cast their tortured bodies in the water1 as a burden they could no longer support4 #af4 ,the ,asras1 pierced in their necks by the flying lances of the ,karnatic lancers1 fled in all directions like the faggots of fire1 or as the flying meteors of heaven4 #ag4 ,the ,skas and ,dsakas were fighting together1 by holding down one another by the hair on their heads1 as if the whales and elephants were struggling mutually from their respective elements4 #ah4 ,the flying cowards were entrapped in the snares cast by the ,dasrna warriors1 as dolphins hiding under the reeds1 are dragged out by nets on the blood-red shore4 #ai4 ,the lifted swords and pikes of the ,tongas 7,tonguise71 destroyed the ,gurjara 7,guzrati7 force by hundreds1 and these like razors balded the heads 7i4e4 made widows7 of hundreds of ,gurjara women4 7,it is their custom to remain baldheaded in widowhood74 #bj4 ,the lustre of the lifted weapons of the warriors1 illumined the land as by flashes of lighting2 and the clouds of arrows were raining like showers of rain in the forest4 #ba4 ,the flight of the crowbars 7bhusundis71 which untimely obscured the orb of the sun1 affrighted the ,abhra 7cowherd7 warriors with the dread of an eclipse1 and overtook them by surprise1 as when they are pursued by a gang of plunderers of their cattle4 #bb4 ,the handsome gold collared army of the ,tmras or tawny coloured soldiers1 were dragged by the ,gauda warriors1 as captors snatch their fair captives by the hair4 #bc4 ,the ,tongons were beset by the ,kanasas1 like cranes by vultures with their blazing weapons1 destroying elephants and breaking the discuses in war4 #bd4 ,the rumbling noise 7gudugudurava71 raised by the whirling of cudgels by the ,gauda gladiators1 frightened the ,gndhras to a degree1 that they were driven like a drove of beasts1 or as the dreading ,drvdas from the field4 #be4 ,the host of the ,ska or ,scythian warriors1 pouring as a blue torrent from the azure sky1 appeared by their sable garb as the mist of night1 approaching before their white robed foes of the ,persians4 #bf4 ,the crowded array of lifted arms in the clear and bright atmosphere1 appeared as a thick forest under the milk white ocean of frost1 that shrouds the mountainous region of ,mandara4 #bg4 ,the flights of arrows which seemed as fragments of clouds in the air from below1 appeared as waves of the sea1 when viewed by the celestials from above4 #bh4 ,the air appeared as a forest thickly beset by the trees of spears and lances1 with the arrows flying as birds and bees2 and innumerable umbrellas1 with their gold and silver mountings1 appearing as so many moons and stars in the sky4 #bi4 ,the ,kekayas made loud shouts1 like the war whoops of drunken soldiers1 and the ,kankas covered the field like a flight of cranes1 and the sky was filled with dust over their heads4 #cj4 ,the ,kirta army made a purling noise 7kulakula7 like the effeminate voice of women2 causing the lusty ,angas to rush upon them with their furious roar4 #ca4 ,the ,ksas 7,khasias7 covering their bodies with kusa grass 7in their grassy garbs71 appeared as birds with feathers1 and raised clouds of dust by flapping their feathered arms4 #cb4 ,the giddy warriors of ,narmada's coasts1 came rushing in the field unarmed with their weapons1 and began to fleer and flout and move about in their merry mood4 #cc4 ,the low statured ,slwas came with the jingling bells of their waist bands1 flinging their arrows in the air1 and darting showers of their darts around4 #cd4 ,the soldiers of ,sibi were pierced with the spears hurled by the ,kuntas4 ,they fell as dead bodies in the field1 but their spirits fled to heaven in the form of ,vidydharas4 #ce4 ,the ,pndu-nagaras were laid groveling on the ground in their quick march1 by the mighty and light footed army1 who had taken possession of the field4 #cf4 ,the big ,pncha-nadas 7,punjabis71 and the furious warriors of ,ksi 7,benares71 crushed the bodies of stalwart warriors with their lances and cudgels1 as elephants crush the mighty trees under their feet and tusks4 #cg4 ,the ,burmese and ,vatsenis were cut down on the ground by the disks of the ,npas 7,nepalese72 and the ,sahyas were sawn down with saws as withered trees4 #ch4 ,the heads of the white ,kkas 7,caucasians71 were lopped off with sharp axes2 and their neighbouring prince of the ,bhadras was burnt down by the fiery arrows 7fire arms74 #ci4 ,the ,matangajas 7of ,elephanta7 fell under the hands of ,kshthayodhas 7of ,katiawar71 as old unchained elephants falling in the miry pit2 and others that came to fight1 fell as dry fuel into the blazing fire4 #dj4 ,the ,mitragartas falling into the hands of the ,trigartas1 were scattered about as straws in the field1 and having their heads struck off in their flight1 they entered the infernal regions of death4 #da4 ,the weak ,vanila force1 falling into the hands of the ,magadha army1 resembling a sea gently shaken by the breeze1 went down in the sands1 as lean and aged elephants4 #db4 ,the ,chedis lost their lines in fighting with the ,tongans1 and lay withered in the field of battle1 as flowers when scattered in the plains1 fade away under the shining sun4 #dc4 ,the ,kosalas were unable to withstand the war cry of the deadly ,pauravas1 and were discomfited by showers of their clubs1 and missile arrows and darts4 #dd4 ,those that were pierced by pikes and spears1 became as coral plants red with blood all over their bodies1 and thus besmeared in bloodshed1 they fled to the sheltering hills like red hot suns to the setting mountains 7astchala74 #de4 ,the flight of arrows and weapons borne away by the rapid winds1 moved about in the air as fragments of clouds1 with a swarm of black bees hovering under them4 #df4 ,the flying arrows seemed as showering clouds1 and their feathers appeared as the woolly breed2 their reedy shafts seeming as trees1 were roving with the roar of elephants4 #dg4 ,the wild elephants and people of the plains1 were all torn to pieces like bits of torn linen4 #dh4 ,war chariots with their broken wheels1 fell into the pits like the broken craigs of mountains1 and the enemy stood upon their tops as a thick mist or cloud4 #di4 ,the multitude of stalwart warriors meeting in the field1 had given it the appearance of a forest of tla and tamla trees2 but their hands being lopped off by weapons1 they made it appear as a mountainous wood1 with its clumps of tapering pine trees4 #ej4 ,the youthful damsels of ,paradise were filled with joy and glee1 to find the groves of their native hill 7,meru71 full of the brave champions 7fallen in the field74 #ea4 ,the forest of the army howled in a tremendous roar1 until it was burnt down by the all devouring fire of the enemy4 #eb4 ,hacked by the ,pischas 7,assamese71 and snatched of their weapons by the ,bhutas 7,bhoteas71 the ,dasrns 7at the confluence of the ten streams of ,vindhya7 threw off their staffs1 and fled as a herd of heifers 7nikuchya karnidhavati--bolted with their broken staves4 ,pnini74 #ec4 ,the ,ksias were eager to despoil the tinsels from the dead bodies of the chiefs by their valour1 as the summer heat robs the beauty of lotuses in a drying pool4 #ed4 ,the ,tushkas were beset by the ,mesalas1 with their darts1 spears and mallets2 and the sly ,katakas were defeated and driven away by the ,narakas in battle4 #ee4 ,the ,kauntas were surrounded by ,prastha warriors1 and were defeated like good people by the treachery of the wily4 #ef4 ,the elephant drivers1 that struck off the heads of their hosts in a trice1 were pursued by the harpooners1 and fled with their severed heads1 as they do with the lotus-flowers plucked by their hands4 #eg4 ,the ,sraswatas fought on both sides with one another until it was evening1 and yet no party was the looser or gainer1 as in a learned discussion between pandits and among lawyers4 #eh4 ,the puny and short statured ,deccanese1 being driven back by the ,rkshas of ,lanka1 redoubled their attack on them1 as the smothering fire is rekindled by fuel4 #ei4 ,what more shall ,i relate ,rma about this war1 which baffles the attempt of the serpent ,vsuki even1 to give a full description of it with his hundred tongues and mouths4 ,,chapter ,,xxxviii4 ,,cessation ,,of ,,the ,,war4 ,vasishtha continued3--,now as the war was waging fiercely1 with mingled shouts on both sides1 the sun shrouded his burnished armour under the mist of darkness1 and was about to set4 #b4 ,the waters of the limpid streams glided with the showers of stones flung by the forces1 and falling on the fading clusters of lotuses growing in them4 #c4 ,flashes of fire glittered in the sky1 by the clashing of the shafts and darts below2 and waves of arrows were seen1 now approaching nigh and now receding at a distance4 #d4 ,severed heads like loose lotuses1 floated and whirled in the whirlpools of blood below1 and the sea of heaven was filled with flying weapons1 moving as marine animals above4 #e4 ,the rustling of the breeze and the whistling of the overshadowing clouds of weapons1 frightened the aerial ,siddhas and sylvan apes1 with the fear of an approaching rain4 #f4 ,the day declined after it had run its course of the eight watches 7,ymrdhas71 and assumed the graceful countenance of a hero1 returning in glory1 after he has fought his battle4 #g4 ,the army like the day1 declined in splendour1 being battered in its cavalry1 and shattered in its force of elephants4 #h4 ,then the commanders of the armies1 in concert with the ministers of war1 sent envoys to the hostile parties for a truce to the fighting4 #i4 ,both parties agreed to the armistice1 seeing how much they were harassed in the engagement2 and the soldiers with one voice1 gave their assent to it4 #aj4 ,they hoisted their soaring banners of truce on the pinnacles of the highest chariots 7rathas72 and a crier on each side1 mounted over one1 to give proclamation to the armies below4 #aa4 ,they furled the white flags on all sides1 which like so many moons in the gloom of night1 proclaimed peace on earth by cessation from contention4 #ab4 ,then the drums sent their loud peals around1 which were resounded by roarings of the clouds 7,pushkarvartas7 above and all about4 #ac4 ,the flights of arrows and weapons1 that had been raging as fire in the atmosphere1 now began to fall in torrents1 like the currents of the lake ,mansaravara on the ground below4 #ad4 ,the hands and arms of the warriors were now at rest like their feet2 as the shaking of trees and the surges of the sea are at an end after the earthquake is over4 #ae4 ,the two armies now went their own ways from the field of battle1 as the arms of the sea run into the land in different directions4 #af4 ,the armies being at rest1 there was an end of all agitation in the field2 as the waves of the ocean are lulled to rest1 on its calm after a storm 7literally1 after its churning by the ,mandara mountain74 #ag4 ,it became in an instant as dreadful as the dismal womb of death 7,ptan72 and as deep and dark as the hollow pit of the sea1 after its waters were sucked up by ,agastya 7the sun74 #ah4 ,it was full of the dead bodies of men and beasts1 and flowed in floods of purpling blood2 it was resonant with the sounds of insects1 like a heath with the humming of beetles4 #ai4 ,the gory bodies were gushing with blood1 and gurgling as the waves of the sea2 and the cries of the wounded who wished to live1 pierced the ears1 and throbbed the heart strings of the living4 #bj4 ,the dead and wounded weltering side by side in streams of blood1 made the living think the dead as still alive like themselves4 #ba4 ,big elephants lying dead in piles in the field appeared as fragments of clouds1 and the heaps of broken chariots seemed as a forest dispersed by the storm4 #bb4 ,streams of blood were running with the dead bodies of horses and elephants1 and heaps of arrows and spears and mattocks and mallets1 flowing together with broken swords and missiles4 #bc4 ,horses were lying girt in their halters and harnesses1 and the soldiers wrapt in their mails and armours2 and flags and flappers and turbans and helmets lay scattered in the field4 #bd4 ,the winds were rustling in the orifice of the quivers1 like the hissing of arrowy snakes1 or as the whistling of the breeze in the holes of bamboo trees2 and the ,pischas were rolling on beds of dead bodies1 as upon their beddings of straws4 #be4 ,the gold chains of the helmets and the head ornaments of the fallen soldiers1 glittered with the various colours of the rainbow1 and greedy dogs and jackals were tearing the entrails of the dead like long ropes or strings4 #bf4 ,the wounded were gnashing their teeth in the field of blood1 like the croaking of frogs in the miry pool of blood4 #bg4 ,those clad in party coloured coats with a hundred spots on them1 had now their arms and thighs gushing in a hundred streams of blood4 #bh4 ,the friends of the dead and wounded1 were wailing bitterly over their bodies2 lying amidst the heaps of arrows and weapons1 the broken cars and the scattered trappings of horses and elephants1 which had covered the land4 #bi4 ,headless trunks of the goblins were dancing about with their uplifted arms touching the sky2 and the stink of the carrion1 fat and blood1 filled the nostrils with nausea4 #cj4 ,elephants and horses of noble breed1 lay dead and others gasping with their mouths gaping upwards2 and the dashing of the waving streams of blood1 beat as loud as drums against their rock-like bodies4 #ca4 ,the blood gushing out of the pores of the wounded horses and elephants1 ran like that of a wounded whale into a hundred streams4 ,and the blood spouting from the mouths of the dying soldiers flowed into a hundred channels4 #cb4 ,those who were pierced with arrows in their eyes and mouths1 were uttering an inaudible voice in their last gasp of death2 and those pierced in their bellies1 had their bowels gushing out with a horrible stench2 while the ground was reddened with thickened blood issuing out of the wounds4 #cc4 ,half dead elephants grasped the headless trunks with their uplifted trunks 7proboscis71 while the loose horses and elephants1 that had lost their riders1 were trampling over the dead bodies at random4 #cd4 ,the weeping1 crying and tottering wives of the fallen soldiers1 fell upon their dead bodies weltering in blood1 and embracing them fast by their necks1 made an end of themselves with the same weapons4 #ce4 ,bodies of soldiers were sent with their guides on the way1 to fetch the dead bodies from the field2 and the hands of their lively companions1 were busily employed in dragging the dead4 #cf4 ,the field had become a wide river running with waves of blood1 and breaking into a hundred whirling streams1 carrying the severed heads1 as lotuses swimming in them1 and the torn braids of hair floating as bushes on them4 #cg4 ,men were busy to extract the weapons from the bodies of the wounded1 who lamented loudly on account of their dying in a foreign land1 and losing their arms and armours and horses and elephants in the field4 #ch4 ,the dying souls remembered their sons and parents1 their dear ones and their adored deities1 and called out by their names2 and began to sigh and sob with heart-rending heigh-hos and alacks4 #ci4 ,the brave that died cursed their fates1 and those falling in their fighting with elephants1 blamed the unkind gods they had adored in vain4 #dj4 ,the cowards fearing to be killed betook themselves to base flight2 but the dauntless brave stepped forward amidst the whirlpools of blood4 #da4 ,some suffering under the agony of arrows piercing their mortal parts1 thought upon the sins of their past lives1 that had brought this pain upon them2 while the blood sucking ,vetlas1 advanced with their horrid mouths for drinking the blood of the headless trunks 7,kabandhas74 #db4 ,the floating flags and umbrellas and flappers1 seemed as white lotuses in the lake of blood below1 while the evening stretched her train of stars like red lotuses in the etherial sea above4 #dc4 ,the battle field presented the appearance of an eighth sea of blood2 the rathas or warcars forming its rocks1 and their wheels its whirlpools2 the flags being its foam and froth1 and the white flappers as its bubbles4 7,there are seven seas only on record74 #dd4 ,the field of blood with the scattered cars1 appeared as a track of land plunged in mud and mire1 and covered over with woods broken down and blown away by a hurricane4 #de4 ,it was as desolate as a country burnt down by a conflagration1 and as the dry bed of the sea sucked up by the sage ,agastya 7the sun74 ,it was as a district devastated by a sweeping flood4 #df4 ,it was filled with heaps of weapons1 as high as the bodies of big elephants lying dead about the ground4 #dg4 ,the lances which were carried down by the streams of blood1 were as big as the palm trees growing on the summits of mountains4 7,compare the description in ,ossian's poems74 #dh4 ,the weapons sticking in the bodies of the elephants1 seemed as the shining flowers growing on verdant trees3 and the entrails torn and borne up by vultures1 spread a fretted network in the sky4 #di4 ,the lances fixed beside the streams of blood1 were as a woody forest on the bank of a river2 and the flags floating on the surface1 appeared as a bush of lotuses in the liquid-blood4 #ej4 ,dead bodies of men were drawn up by their friends1 from the bloody pool in which they were drowned1 and the embedded bodies of big elephants were marked by men by the jutting weapons sticking in them4 #ea4 ,the trunks of trees which had their branches lopped off by the weapons1 appeared as the headless bodies of slain soldiers1 and the floating carcasses of elephants seemed as so many boats swimming in the sea of blood4 #eb4 ,the white garments that were swept down by the current1 seemed as the froth of the pool of blood1 and were picked up by the servants sent to search them out4 #ec4 ,the demoniac bodies of headless soldiers1 were rising and falling in the field1 and hurling large wheels and disks upon the flying army on all sides4 #ed4 ,the dying warriors were frothing forth floods of blood from their throats1 and stones stained with blood were inviting the greedy vultures to devour them4 #ee4 ,then there were groups of ,sutla1 ,vetla and ,uttla demons dancing their war dance about the field1 and whirling the rafts of the broken cars upon the flying soldiers on all sides4 #ef4 ,the stir and last gasp of those that were yet alive1 were fearful to behold1 and the faces of the dying and the dead that were covered in dust and blood1 were pitiful to the beholder4 #eg4 ,the devouring dogs and ravenous ravens beheld the last gasp of the dying with pity2 while the feeders on carrions were howling and fighting on their common carcass1 till many of them became dead bodies by their mutual fighting4 #eh4 ,now ,i have described the sea of blood1 which flowed fast with the gore of unnumbered hosts of horses1 elephants and camels1 and of warriors and their leaders1 and multitudes of cars1 and war chariots2 but it became a pleasure garden to the god of death1 delighting in his bed of bloodshed1 and grove of the weapons beset all around4 ,,chapter ,,xxxix4 ,,description ,,of ,,the ,,battle-,,field ,,infested ,,by ,,nocturnal ,,fiends4 ,now the blood-red sun set down in the west1 like a hero red with blood2 and hid his lustre1 which was dimmed by the brightness of the weapons of war in the western main4 #b4 ,the sky which had reflected the blood-red flush of the field of blood1 was now dimmed by the setting of the glorious sun1 and darkened by the veil of evening4 #c4 ,thick darkness overspread the face of heaven and earth like the waters of the great deluge1 and there appeared a body of ghosts 7,vetlas71 dancing in a ring and clapping their hands4 #d4 ,the face of the day like that of an elephant1 being besmeared with the blackness of night fall1 was again painted by the light of evening with the pearly spots of stars on the cheeks4 #e4 ,the busy buzz of ,creation being silent in the dead darkness of night1 like the humming of bees over the surface of the waters1 the hearts of men were closed in sleep as in death1 like the petals of the lotus at night4 #f4 ,the birds lay with their folded wings and fallen crests in their nests1 as the dead bodies were lying in the field1 covered with their wounds and weapons4 #g4 ,then the fair moonbeams shone above1 and the white lotuses were blown below2 the hearts of men were gladdened1 and the victors felt joyous in themselves4 #h4 ,the ruddy evening assumed the shape of the blood-red sea of battle1 and the fluttering bees now hid themselves like the faces of the fallen soldiers4 #i4 ,there was an etherial lake above spangled with stars like the white lotuses on high2 and here was the earthly lake below1 beset by lotuses resembling the stars of heaven4 #aj4 ,the bodies that were thought to be lost in darkness1 were now recovered in light1 as the gems hid under the water1 are found scattered about in moonlight4 #aa4 ,the battle field was filled by the ,vetla demons1 howling with their hideous cry2 while bodies of vultures1 crows and owls1 were tearing the carcasses and sporting with the skeletons4 #ab4 ,then blazed the funeral piles as brightly as the starry frame on high1 and the fire consumed the dead bodies together with their bones and raiments4 #ac4 ,the fire burnt the bodies with their bones to ashes1 after which it extinguished itself as if sated with plenty4 ,the female fiends now began to sport in the water4 #ad4 ,there arose a mingled cry of dogs and crows1 of ,yakshas and ,vetlas1 with the clapping of their hands2 and bodies of ghosts were moving about as woods and forests4 #ae4 ,the ,dkinis 7,dyinis7 were eager to steal away the flesh and fat from the piles1 and the ,pischas delighted in sucking the blood and the flesh and bones of the dead4 #af4 ,the demons were now looking and now lurking about the funeral piles1 and the ,rkshasas that rushed in1 bore away the carcasses on their shoulders4 #ag4 ,there came also bodies of ferocious ,kumbhndas1 and big ,dmaras1 uttering their barbarous cries of chumchum1 and hovering over the fumes of fat and flesh in the shapes of clouds4 #ah4 ,bodies of ,vetlas stood in the streams of blood like earthly beings1 and snatched the skeletons with hideous cries4 #ai4 ,the ,vetla younglings slept in the bellies and chests of the elephants1 and the ,rkshasas were drinking their fill in the bloody field4 #bj4 ,the giddy ,vetlas fought with one another with the lighted faggots of the piles1 and the winds were wafting the stench of the putrid carcasses on all sides4 #ba4 ,the female fiends 7,rpiks71 filled the baskets of their bellies with carrion1 with a rat-a-tat 7ratarata7 noise2 and the ,yaksha cannibals were snatching the half-burnt carcasses from the funeral piles1 as their roasted meat and dainty food 7,s4 kali ,a4 ,kul74 #bb4 ,aerial imps 7khagas7 attacked the dead bodies of the big ,bangas and black ,kalingas1 and flouted about with their open mouths1 emitting the blaze of falling meteors4 #bc4 ,the ,vetla goblins fell down in the dark and discoloured blood-pits1 lying hid in the midst of the heaps of dead bodies2 while the ,pischa ogres and the leaders of ,yogini sprites1 laughed at them for their false step 7vetla74 #bd4 ,the pulling of the entrails 7antras-nts71 vibrated as by striking the strings of wired instruments 7tantras--or tnts72 and the ghosts of men that had become fiends from their fiendish desires1 fell a-fighting with one another4 #be4 ,valiant soldiers were affrighted at the sight of the spectres 7,rpks72 and the obsequies were disturbed by the ,vetla and ,rkshasa goblins4 #bf4 ,the hobgoblins of the night 7nischaras71 got frightened at the fall of the carcasses from the shoulders of the elves 7,rpks71 who were carrying them aloft in the air2 where they were waylaid by a throng of ghostly demons 7bhta-sankata74 #bg4 ,many dying bodies1 that were lifted aloft with labour by the bogies 7,dnas71 were let to fall down dead on the ground1 being found unfit for their food4 #bh4 ,pieces of blood-red flesh1 fallen from the fiery jaws of jackals1 resembled clusters of asoka flowers1 strewn all around the funeral ground4 #bi4 ,vetla urchins were busy in putting on the scattered heads over the headless bodies of kabandhas 7acephali72 and bodies of ,yaksha1 ,raksha and ,pischa ogres1 were flashing as firebrands in the sky4 #cj4 ,at last a thick cloud of darkness1 covered the face or the sky1 and the view of the hills and valleys1 gardens and groves1 was hid under an impenetrable gloom4 ,the infernal spirits got loose from their dismal abodes1 and ranged and ravaged at large over the field1 as a hurricane under the vault of heaven4 ,,chapter ,,xl4 ,,reflections ,,on ,,human ,,life ,,and ,,mind4 ,vasishtha related3--,the nocturnal fiends were thus infesting the gloomy field1 and the myrmidons of death 7,yama71 roaming about it as marauders in the day time4 #b4 ,the naked and fleeting ghosts1 were revelling on their provision of carrion in their nightly abode1 and under the canopy of thick darkness1 which was likely to be laid hold upon under the clutches of one's hand 7hasta-grhya74 #c4 ,it was in the still hour of the gloomy night1 when the host of heaven seemed to be fast bound in sleep1 that a sadness stole in upon the mind of ,ll's magnanimous husband 7the belligerent prince ,vidratha by name74 #d4 ,he thought about what was to be done on the next morning1 in council with his ,counsellors2 and then went to his bed1 which was as white as moonlight1 and as cold as frost4 7,a cold bed in the east vs4 a warm one in the west74 #e4 ,his lotus-eyes were closed in sleep for a while in his royal camp1 which was as white as the moonbeams1 and covered by the cold dews of night4 #f4 ,then the two ladies1 issued forth from their vacuous abode1 and entered the tent through a crevice1 as the air penetrates into the heart and amidst an unblown bud of flower4 #g4 ,rma asked3--,how is it possible sir1 that the gross bodies of the goddesses1 with their limited dimensions1 could enter the tent through one of its holes1 as small as the pore of a piece of cloth8 #h4 ,vasishtha answered saying that3--,whoso mistakes himself to be composed of a material body1 it is no way possible for him to enter a small hole with that gross body of his4 #i4 ,but he who thinks himself to be pent up in his corporeal body as in a cage1 and obstructed by it in his flight1 and does not believe himself to fill his frame1 or to be measured by its length2 but has the true notion of his inward subtle spirit1 it is no way impossible for him to have his passage any where he pleases to go4 #aj4 ,he who perceives his original spiritual state1 as forming the better half of his body1 may pass as a spirit through a chink2 but whoso relies in his subsequent half of the material body1 cannot go beyond it in the form of his intellect4 #aa4 ,as the air never rises upward1 nor the flame of fire ever goes downward2 so it is the nature of the spirit to rise upward1 as that of the body to go down2 but the intellect is made to turn in the way in which it is trained4 #ab4 ,as the man sitting in the shade1 has no notion of the feeling of heat or warmth2 so one man has no idea of the knowledge or thoughts of another person4 #ac4 ,as is one's knowledge so is his thought1 and such is the mode of his life2 it is only by means of ardent practice 7of yoga and learning71 that the mind is turned to the right course4 #ad4 ,as one's belief of a snake in a rope1 is removed by the conviction of his error2 so are the bent of the mind and course of conduct in life1 changed from wrong to right by the knowledge of truth4 #ae4 ,it is one's knowledge that gives rise to his thoughts1 and the thoughts that direct his pursuits in life3 this is a truth known even to the young and to every man of sense4 #af4 ,now then the soul that resembles a being seen in a dream or formed in fancy1 and which is of the nature of air and vacuum1 is never liable to be obstructed any where in its course3 7for who can constrain the flight of his imagination874 #ag4 ,there is an intellectual body1 which all living beings possess in every place4 ,it is known both by consciousness1 as well as the feelings of our hearts4 #ah4 ,it is by the divine will1 that the intellect rises and sets by turns4 ,at first it was produced in its natural1 simple and intellectual form1 and then being invested with a material body1 it makes together an unity of the person out of the duality 7of its material and immaterial essences74 #ai4 ,now you must know the triple vacuity1 composed of the three airy substances--the spirit1 mind and space1 to be one and the same thing 7all the three being equally all pervasive72 but not so their receptacle 7of the material body71 which has no pervasion4 #bj4 ,know this intellectual body of beings1 to be like the air1 present with every thing and every where 7over which it extends and which it grasps in itself72 just as your desire of knowing extends over all things in all places1 and presents them all to your knowledge4 #ba4 ,it abides in the smallest particles1 and reaches to the spheres of heavens 7which it grasps within itself73 it reposes in the cells of flowers1 and delights in the leaves of trees4 7i4e4 ,it stretches over all these things in its knowledge of them74 #bb4 ,it delights in hills and dales1 and dances over the waves of the oceans2 it rides over the clouds1 and falls down in the showers of rain and hailstones of heaven4 #bc4 ,it moves at pleasure in the vast firmament1 and penetrates through the solid mountains4 ,its body bears no break in it1 and is as minute as an atom4 #bd4 ,yet it becomes as big as a mountain lifting its head to heaven1 and as large as the earth1 which is the fixed and firm support of all things4 ,it views the inside and outside of every thing1 and bears the forests like hairs on its body4 #be4 ,it extends in the form of the sky1 and contains millions of worlds in itself2 it identifies itself with the ocean1 and transforms its whirlpools to spots upon its person4 #bf4 ,it is of the nature of an uninterrupted understanding1 ever calm and serene in its aspect2 it is possessed of its intellectual form1 from before the creation of the visible world1 and being all comprehensive as vacuity itself1 it is conversant with the natures of all beings4 #bg4 ,it is an unreality as the appearance of water in the mirage1 but manifests itself as a reality to the understanding by its intelligence4 ,without this 7intellection71 the intellectual man is a nil as the son of a barren woman1 and a blank as the figure of a body seen in a dream4 #bh4 ,rma asked3--,how is that mind to which you attribute so many powers1 and what is that again which you say to be nothing8 ,why is it no reality1 and as something distinct from all what we see8 #bi4 ,vasishtha replied3--,all individual minds are indued with these faculties1 except all such individualities1 whose minds are engrossed with the error 7of the reality7 of the outer world4 #cj4 ,all the worlds are either of a longer or shorter duration1 and they appear and disappear at times2 some of these vanish in a moment1 and others endure to the end of a ,kalpa4 ,but it is not so with the mind1 whose progress ,i will now relate to you4 #ca4 ,there is an insensibility which overtakes every man before his death2 this is the darkness of his dissolution 7mah-pralaya-ymin74 #cb4 ,after the shocks of delirium and death are over1 the spiritual part of every man1 is regenerated anew in a different form1 as if it was roused from a state of trance1 reverie or swoon2 7the three states of insensibility--avidy-trayam74 #cc4 ,and as the spirit of ,god1 assumes his triune form with the persons of ,brahm and ,virj1 after the dissolution of the world for its recreation2 so every person receives the triplicate form of his spiritual1 intellectual and corporeal beings1 after the termination of his life by death4 #cd4 ,rma said3--,as we believe ourselves to be reproduced after death by reason of our reminiscence2 so must we understand the recreation of all bodies in the world by the same cause4 ,hence there is nothing uncaused in it 7as it was said with regard to the unproduced ,brahm and others74 #ce4 ,vasishtha replied3--,the gods ,hari1 ,hara and others1 having obtained their disembodied liberation or videha-mukti1 7i4e4 the final extinction of their bodies1 their minds and spirit as in nirvna71 at the universal dissolution1 could not retain their reminiscence to cause their regeneration4 #cf4 ,but human beings having both their spiritual and intellectual bodies entire at their death1 do not lose their remembrance of the past1 nor can they have their final liberation like ,brahm1 unless they obtain their disembodied state1 which is possible to all in this life or hereafter1 by the edification of their souls1 through yoga meditation alone4 #cg4 ,the birth and death of all other beings like yourself1 are caused by their reminiscence1 and for want of their disembodied liberation or eternal salvation4 #ch4 ,the living soul retains its consciousness within itself1 after its pangs of death are over2 but remains in its state of insensibility by virtue of its own nature 7called pradhna74 #ci4 ,the universal vacuum is called nature 7prakriti74 ,it is the reflexion of the invisible divine mind 7chit prativimbam72 and is the parent of all that is dull or moving 7,jad-,jada71 which are so produced by cause of their reminiscence or its absence 7sansmriti and asmriti72 the former causing the regeneration of living beings1 and the latter its cessation as in inert matter4 #dj4 ,as the living principle or animal life begins to have its understanding 7bodha71 it is called mahat or an intelligent being1 which is possessed of its consciousness 7ahankra74 ,it has then the organs of perception and conception1 added to it from their elements 7tanmtras7 residing in the vacuous ether4 #da4 ,this minutely intelligent substance1 is next joined with the five internal senses1 which form its body1 and which is otherwise called its spiritual body 7tivahika or lingadeha74 #db4 ,this spiritual being by its long association with the external senses1 comes to believe itself as a sensible being2 and then by imagining to have the sensible form1 it finds itself invested with a material body 7dhibhautika-deha7 as beautiful as that of a lotus4 #dc4 ,then seated in the embryo1 it reposes in a certain position for sometime1 and inflated itself like the air1 until it is fully expanded4 #dd4 ,it then thinks itself to be fully developed in the womb1 as a man dreams of a fairy form in his sleep1 and believes this illusion as a reality4 #de4 ,he then views the outer world1 where he is born to die1 just as one visits a land where he is destined to meet his death2 and there remains to relish its enjoyments1 as prepared for him4 #df4 ,but the spiritual man soon perceives every thing as pure vacuum1 and that his own body and this world are but illusions and vain vacuities4 #dg4 ,he perceives the gods1 and human habitations1 the hills and the heavens resplendent with the sun and stars1 to be no more than abodes of disease and debility1 decay and ultimate death and destruction4 #dh4 ,he sees nothing but a sad change in the natures of things1 and all that is movable or immovable1 great or small1 together with the seas1 hills and rivers and peoples of this earth and the days and nights1 are all subject to decay sooner or later4 #di4 ,the knowledge that ,i am born here of this father1 and that this is my mother1 these my treasures1 and such are my hopes and expectations1 is as false as empty air4 #ej4 ,that these are my merits and these my demerits1 and these the desires that ,i had at heart2 that ,i was a boy and am now young2 are the airy thoughts of the hollow mind4 #ea4 ,this world resembles a forest1 where every being is like a detached arbor2 the sable clouds are its leaves1 and the stars its full blown flowers4 #eb4 ,the walking men are as its restless deer1 and the aerial gods and demons its birds of the air2 the broad day light is the flying dust of its flowers1 and the dark night the deep covert of its grove4 #ec4 ,the seas are like its rills and fountains1 and the eight boundary mountains as its artificial hills2 the mind is the great tank in it1 containing the weeds and shrubs of human thoughts in abundance4 #ed4 ,wherever a man dies1 he is instantly changed to this state1 and views the same things every where2 and every one thus rises and falls incessantly1 like the leaves of trees in this forest of the world4 #ee4 ,millions of ,brahms1 ,rudras1 ,indras1 ,maruts1 ,vishnus and ,suns1 together with unnumbered mountains and seas1 continents and islands1 have appeared and disappeared in the eternal course of the world4 #ef4 ,thus no one can count the numbers of beings that have passed away1 are passing and shall have to pass hereafter1 nor such as are in existence and have to become extinct in the unfathomable eternity of ,brahma4 #eg4 ,hence it is impossible to comprehend the stupendous fabric of the universe any how except in the mind1 which is as spacious as the infinite space itself1 and as variable as the course of events in the world4 #eh4 ,the mind is the vacuous sphere of the intellect1 and the infinite sphere of the intellect1 is the seat of the ,supreme4 #ei4 ,now know the whirlpool and waves of the sea to be of the same element1 as the sea in which they rise and fall1 though they are not of the same durable nature as the sea water1 by reason of their evanescence4 ,so the phenomena are the same with the ,noumena1 though none of these is a reality4 #fj4 ,the etherial sphere of heaven1 is but a reflexion of the intellectual sphere of the ,divine mind1 and the bright orbs of the firmament1 are as gems in the bosom of ,brahma4 ,its concavity is the cave of the mind of the ,eternal ,one4 #fa4 ,the world according to the sense in which ,i take it1 as the seat of ,god1 is highly interesting1 but not so in your sense of its being a sober reality4 ,so the meaning of the words 8,i and thou10 refers according to me to the intellectual spirit1 and according to you to the living soul and body4 #fb4 ,hence ,ll and ,sarasvat1 being in their vacuous intellectual bodies1 were led by the pure desire of their souls1 to every place without any obstruction or interruption4 #fc4 ,the intellectual spirit has the power1 to present itself wherever it likes1 on earth or in the sky1 and before objects known or unknown and wished to be known by it4 ,it was by this power that they could enter into the tent of the prince4 #fd4 ,the intellect has its way to all places and things1 over which it exercises its powers of observation1 reflection and reasoning to their full extent4 ,this is known as the spiritual and unconfined body 7tivhika71 whose course cannot be obstructed by any restriction whatever4 ,,chapter ,,xli4 ,,discrimination ,,of ,,error4 ,vasishtha said3--,upon the entrance of the ladies in the tent1 it appeared as a bed of lotuses2 and its white vault1 seemed as graceful as the vault of heaven with two moons rising at once under it4 #b4 ,a pure and cooling fragrance spread about it1 as if wafted by the breeze from the ,mandara flowers2 and lulled the prince to sleep1 with every body lying in their camps4 #c4 ,it made the place as pleasant as the garden of ,eden 7,nandana71 and healed all the pains and cares of the people there4 ,it seemed as a vernal garden1 filled with the fragrance of the fresh blown lotuses in the morning4 #d4 ,the cooling and moon-bright radiance of the ladies1 roused the prince from his sleep1 as if he was sprinkled over with the juice of ambrosia4 #e4 ,he beheld upon his rising the forms of two fairies 7apsars71 seated on two stools1 and appearing as two moons risen on two pinnacles of the mount ,meru4 #f4 ,the prince beheld them with wonder1 and after being composed in his mind1 he rose up from his bed1 as the god ,vishnu rises from his bed of the serpent4 #g4 ,then advancing respectfully to them1 with long strings of flowers in his hands1 he made offerings of them to the ladies1 with handfuls of flowers flung at their feet4 #h4 ,leaving his pillowed sofa in the midst of the hall1 he sat with his folded legs on the ground2 and lowly bending his head1 he addressed them saying3-- #i4 ,be victorious1 ,o moon-bright goddesses6 that drive away all the miseries and evils and pains and pangs of life1 by your radiance1 and dispellest all my inward and outward darkness by your sunlike beams4 #aj4 ,saying so he poured handfuls of flowers on their feet1 as the trees on the bank of a lake1 drop down their flowers on the lotuses growing in it4 #aa4 ,then the goddess desiring to unfold the pedigree of the prince1 inspired his minister1 who was lying by1 to relate it to ,ll4 #ab4 ,he upon waking1 saw the nymphs manifest before him1 and advancing lowly before them1 threw handfuls of flowers upon their feet4 #ac4 ,the goddess said3--,let us know1 ,o prince6 who you are and when and of whom you are born herein4 ,hearing these words of the goddess1 the minister spake saying3-- #ad4 ,it is by your favour1 ,o gracious goddesses6 that ,i am empowered to give a relation of my prince's genealogy to your benign graces4 #ae4 ,there was a sovereign1 born of the imperial line of ,ixaku1 by name of ,mukunda-ratha1 who had subjugated the earth under his arms4 #af4 ,he had a moon-faced son by name of ,bhadraratha2 whose son ,viswaratha was father to the renowned prince ,brihadratha4 #ag4 ,his son ,sindhuratha was the father of ,sailaratha1 and his son ,kmaratha was father of ,mahratha4 #ah4 ,his son ,vishnuratha was father of ,nabhoratha1 who gave birth to this my lord of handsome appearance4 #ai4 ,he is renowned as ,vidratha1 and is born with the great virtues of his sire1 as the moon was produced of the milky ocean1 to shed his ambrosial beams over his people4 #bj4 ,he was begotten by his mother ,sumitr1 as the god ,guha of ,gauri2 and was installed in the realm at the tenth year of his age1 owing to his father's betaking himself to asceticism4 #ba4 ,he has been ruling the realm since that time with justice2 and your appearance here to night1 betokens the blossoming of his good fortune4 #bb4 ,o goddesses6 whose presence is hard to be had1 even by the merit of long devotion1 and a hundred austerities1 you see here the lord of the earth-famed ,vidratha1 present before you4 #bc4 ,he is highly blessed to-day by your favour4 ,after saying these words1 the minister remained silent with the lord of the earth4 #bd4 ,they were sitting on the ground with their folded legs 7padmsana71 and clasped hands 7kritnjali71 and downcast looks2 when the goddess of wisdom told the prince1 to remember his former births1 by her inspiration4 #be4 ,so saying1 she touched his head with her hand1 and immediately the dark veil of illusion and oblivion was dispersed from over the lotus of his mind4 #bf4 ,it opened as a blossom by the touch of the genius of intelligence1 and became as bright as the clear firmament1 with the rays of his former reminiscence4 #bg4 ,he remembered by his intelligence his former kingdom1 of which he had been the sole lord1 and recollected all his past sports with ,ll4 #bh4 ,he was led away by the thoughts of the events of his past lives1 as one is carried away by the current of waves1 and reflected in himself1 this world to be a magic sea of illusion4 #bi4 ,he said3 ,i have come to know this by the favour of the goddesses1 but how is it that so many events have occurred to me in course of one day after my death4 #cj4 ,here ,i have passed full seventy years of my lifetime1 and recollect to have done many works1 and remember also to have seen my grand-sire4 #ca4 ,i recollect the bygone days of my boyhood and youth1 and ,i remember well all the friends and relatives and all the apparels and suite1 that ,i had before4 #cb4 ,the goddess replied3--,know ,o king6 that after the fit of insensibility attending on your death was over1 your soul continued to remain in the vacuum of the same place1 of which you are still a resident4 #cc4 ,this royal pavilion1 where you think yourself to abide1 is situated in the vacuous space1 within the house of the ,brhman in that hilly district4 #cd4 ,it is inside that house that you see the appearances of your other abodes present before you3 and it was in that ,brhmana's house1 that you devoted your life to my worship4 #ce4 ,it is the shrine within the very house and on the same spot1 that contains the whole world which you are seeing all about you4 #cf4 ,this abode of yours is situated in the same place1 and within the clear firmament of your mind4 #cg4 ,it is a false notion of your mind1 which you have gained by your habitual mode of thinking1 that you are born in your present state1 of the race of ,ixku4 #ch4 ,it is mere imagination1 which has made you to suppose yourself to be named so and so1 and that such and such persons were your progenitors1 and that you had been a boy of ten years4 #ci4 ,that your father became an ascetic in the woods1 and left you in the government of the realm4 ,and that you have subjugated many countries under your dominion1 and are now reigning as the lord paramount over them4 #dj4 ,and that you are ruling on earth with these ministers and officers of yours1 and are observant of the sacrificial rites1 and a just ruler of your subjects4 #da4 ,you think that you have passed seventy years of your life1 and that you are now beset by very formidable enemies4 #db4 ,and that having waged a furious battle1 you have returned to this abode of yours1 where you are now seated and intend to adore the goddesses1 that have become your guests herein4 #dc4 ,you are thinking that these goddesses will bless you with your desired object1 because one of them has given you the power of recollecting the events of your former births4 #dd4 ,that these goddesses have opened your understanding like the blossom of a lotus1 and that you have the prospect of getting your riddance from all doubts4 #de4 ,that you are now at peace and rest1 and enjoy the solace of your solity2 and that your long continued error 7of this world71 is now removed for ever4 #df4 ,you remember the many acts and enjoyments of your past life1 in the body of prince ,padma1 before you were snatched away by the hand of death4 #dg4 ,you now perceive in your mind1 that your present life is but a shadow of the former1 as it is the same wave1 that carries one onward1 by its rise and fall4 #dh4 ,the incessant current of the mind flows as the stream of a river1 and leads a man1 like a weed1 from one whirlpool into another4 #di4 ,the course of life now runs singly as in dreaming1 and now conjointly with the body as in the waking state1 both of which leave their traces in the mind1 at the hour of death4 #ej4 ,the sun of the intellect being hid under the mist of ignorance1 there arises this network of the erroneous world1 which makes a moment appear as a period of hundred years4 #ea4 ,our lives and deaths are mere phantoms of imagination1 as we imagine houses and towers in aerial castles and icebergs4 #eb4 ,the world is an illusion1 like the delusion of moving banks and trees to a passenger in a vessel on water1 or a rapid vehicle on land2 or as the trembling of a mountain or quaking of the earth1 to one affected by a convulsive disease4 #ec4 ,as one sees extraordinary things in his dream1 such as the decapitation of his own head2 so he views the illusions of the world1 which can hardly be true4 #ed4 ,in reality you were neither born nor dead at any time or place2 but ever remain as pure intelligence in your own tranquility of soul4 #ee4 ,you seem to see all things about you1 but you see nothing real in them2 it is your all seeing soul1 that sees every thing in itself4 #ef4 ,the soul shines as a brilliant gem by its own light1 and nothing that appears beside it1 as this earth or yourself or any thing else1 is a reality4 #eg4 ,these hills and cities1 these people and things1 and ourselves also1 are all unreal and mere phantoms1 appearing in the hollow vault of the ,brhmana of the hilly district4 #eh4 ,the kingdom of ,ll's husband1 was but a picture of this earth1 and his palace with all its grandeur1 is contained in the sphere of the same hollow shrine4 #ei4 ,the known world is contained in the vacuous sphere of that shrine1 and it is in one corner of this mundane habitation1 that all of us here1 are situated4 #fj4 ,the sphere of this vaulted shrine1 is as clear as vacuity itself1 which has no earth nor habitation in it4 #fa4 ,it is without any forest1 hill1 sea or river1 and yet all beings are found to rove about in this empty and homeless abode 7i4e4 in the ,divine ,mind74 #fb4 ,here there are no kings1 nor their retinue1 nor any thing that they have on earth4 ,vidratha asked3--,if it is so1 then tell me goddess6 how ,i happened to have these dependants here8 #fc4 ,a man is rich in his own mind and spirit1 and is it not so ordained by the ,divine mind and spirit also8 ,if not1 then the world must appear as a mere dream1 and all these men and things are but creatures of our dreams4 #fd4 ,tell me goddess1 what things are spiritually true and false1 and how are we to distinguish the one from the other4 #fe4 ,sarasvat answered3--,know prince that1 those who have known the only knowable one1 and are assimilated to the nature of pure understanding1 view nothing as real in the world1 except the vacuous intellect within themselves4 #ff4 ,the misconception of the serpent in a rope being removed1 the fallacy of the rope is removed also2 so the unreality of the world being known1 the error of its existence1 also ceases to exist4 #fg4 ,knowing the falsity of water in the mirage1 no one thirsts after it any more1 so knowing the falsehood of dreams1 no one thinks himself dead as he had dreamt4 ,the fear of dreaming death may overtake the dying1 but it can never assail the living in his dream4 #fh4 ,he whose soul is enlightened with the clear light of the autumnal moon of his pure intellect1 is never misled to believe his own existence or that of others1 by the false application of the terms ,i1 thou1 this c4 #fi4 ,as the sage was sermonizing in this manner1 the day departed to its evening service with the setting sun4 ,the assembly broke with mutual greetings to perform their ablutions1 and it met again with the rising sun1 after dispersion of the gloom of night4 ,,chapter ,,xlii4 ,,philosophy ,,of ,,dreaming4 ,,swapnam ,,or ,,somnum4 ,the man who is devoid of understanding1 ignorant and unacquainted with the ,all-pervading principle1 thinks the unreal world as real1 and as compact as adamant4 #b4 ,as a child is not freed from his fear of ghosts until his death2 so the ignorant man never gets rid of his fallacy of the reality of the unreal world1 as long as he lives4 #c4 ,as the solar heat causes the error of water in the mirage to the deer and unwary people1 so the unreal world appears as real to the ignorant part of mankind4 #d4 ,as the false dream of one's death1 appears to be true in the dreaming state1 so the false world seems to be a field of action and gain to the deluded man4 #e4 ,as one not knowing what is gold1 views a golden bracelet as a mere bracelet1 and not as gold 7i4e4 who takes the form and not the substance for reality72 so are the ignorant ever misled by formal appearances1 without a knowledge of the causal element4 #f4 ,as the ignorant view a city1 a house1 a hill and an elephant1 as they are presented before him2 so the visibles are all taken only as they are seen1 and not what they really are4 #g4 ,as strings of pearls are seen in the sunny sky1 and various paints and taints in the plumage of the peacock2 so the phenomenal world1 presents its false appearances for sober realities4 #h4 ,know life as a long sleep1 and the world with myself and thyself1 are the visions of its dream2 we see many other persons in this sleepy dream1 none of whom is real1 as you will now learn from me4 #i4 ,there is but one ,all-pervading1 quiet1 and spiritually substantial reality4 ,it is of the form of unintelligible intellect1 and an immense outspreading vacuity4 #aj4 ,it is omnipotent1 and all in all by itself1 and is of the form as it manifests itself everywhere4 #aa4 ,hence the citizens that you see in this visionary city1 are but transient forms of men1 presented in your dream by that ,omnipotent ,being4 #ab4 ,the mind of the viewer1 remains in its self-same state amidst the sphere of his dreams1 and represents the images thought of by itself in that visionary sphere of mankind4 7,so the ,divine ,mind presents its various images to the sight of men in this visionary sphere of the world1 which has nothing substantial in it74 #ac4 ,the knowing mind has the same knowledge of things1 both in its waking as well as dreaming states2 and it is by an act of the percipient mind1 that this knowledge is imprinted as true in the conscious souls of men4 #ad4 ,rma said3--,if the persons seen in the dream are unreal1 then tell me sir1 what is that fault in the embodied soul1 which makes them appear as realities4 #ae4 ,vasishtha replied3--,the cities and houses1 which are seen in dreams are in reality nothing4 ,it is only the illusion 7my7 of the embodied soul1 which makes them appear as true like those seen in the waking state1 in this visionary world4 #af4 ,i will tell you in proof of this1 that in the beginning of creation the self-born ,brahm himself1 had the notions of all created things1 in the form of visionary appearances1 as in a dream and their subsequent development1 by the will of the creator2 hence their creator is as unreal as their notions and appearances in the dream4 #ag4 ,learn then this truth of me1 that this world is a dream1 and that you and all other men have your sleeping dreams1 contained in your waking dreams of this visionary world4 7i4e4 ,the one is a night dream and the other a day dream1 and equally untrue in their substance74 #ah4 ,if the scenes that are seen in your sleeping dream1 have no reality in them1 how then can you expect those in your day dreams to be real at all8 #ai4 ,as you take me for a reality1 so do ,i also take you and all other things for realities likewise1 and such is the case with every body in this world of dreams4 #bj4 ,as ,i appear an entity to you in this world of lengthened dreams2 so you too appear an actual entity to me2 and so it is with all in their protracted dreaming4 #ba4 ,rma asked3--,if both these states of dreaming are alike1 then tell me1 why the dreamer in sleep1 does not upon his waking1 think the visions in his dream1 to be as real as those of his day dreaming state8 #bb4 ,vasishtha replied3--,yes1 the day dreaming is of the same nature as night dreams1 in which the dreamt objects appear to be real2 but it is upon the waking from the one1 as upon the death of the day dreamer1 that both these visions are found to vanish in empty air4 #bc4 ,as the objects of your night dreams do not subsist in time or place upon your waking1 so also those of your day dream1 can have no subsistence upon death4 #bd4 ,thus is every thing unreal1 which appears real for the present1 and it disappears into an airy nothing at last1 though it might appear as charming as a fairy form in the dream4 #be4 ,there is one ,intelligence that fills all space1 and appears as every thing both within and without every body2 ,it is only by our illusive conception of it1 that we take it in different lights4 #bf4 ,as one picks up a jewel he happens to meet with in a treasure house1 so do we lay hold on any thing1 with which the vast ,intellect is filled according to our own liking4 7,here we find the free agency of human will74 #bg4 ,the goddess of intelligence1 having thus caused the germ of true knowledge1 to sprout forth in the mind of the prince1 by sprinkling the ambrosial drops of her wisdom over it1 thus spake to him in the end3-- #bh4 ,i have told you all this for the sake of ,ll1 and now1 good prince1 we shall take leave of you1 and these illusory scenes of the world4 #bi4 ,vasishtha said3--,the intelligent prince1 being thus gently addressed by the goddess of wisdom1 besought her in a submissive tone4 #cj4 ,vidratha said3--,your visit1 ,o most bounteous goddess1 cannot go for nothing1 when we poor mortals cannot withhold our bounty from our suppliant visitants4 #ca4 ,i will quit this body to repair to another world1 as one passes from one chain of dreams into another4 #cb4 ,look upon me1 thy suppliant1 with kindness1 and deign to confer the favour ,i ask of thee2 because the great never disdain to grant the prayers of their suppliants4 #cc4 ,ordain that this virgin daughter of my minister1 may accompany me to the region1 where ,i shall be led1 that we may have spiritual joy in each other's company hereafter4 #cd4 ,sarasvat said3--,go now prince to the former palace of your past life1 and there reign without fear1 in the enjoyment of true pleasure4 ,know prince1 that our visits never fail to fulfil the best wishes of our supplicants4 ,,chapter ,,xliii4 ,,burning ,,of ,,the ,,city4 ,the goddess added3--,know further1 ,o prince6 that you are destined to fall in this great battle1 and will have your former realm1 presented to you in the same manner as before4 #b4 ,your minister and his maiden daughter will accompany you to your former city1 and you shall enter your lifeless corpse1 lying in state in the palace4 #c4 ,we shall fly there as winds before you1 and you will follow us accompanied by the minister and his virgin daughter as one returning to his native country4 #d4 ,your courses thereto will be as slow or swift as those of horses1 elephants1 asses1 or camels1 but our course is quite different from any of these4 #e4 ,as the prince and the goddess were going on with this sweet conversation1 there arrived a man on horse back before them in great hurry and confusion4 #f4 ,he said3--,lord6 ,i come to tell that1 there are showers of darts and disks1 and swords and clubs1 falling upon us as rain1 from the hostile forces1 and they have been forcing upon us as a flood on all sides4 #g4 ,they have been raining their heavy weapons upon us at pleasure1 like fragments of rocks hurled down from the heads of high hills1 by the impetuous gusts of a hurricane4 #h4 ,there they have set fire to our rock-like city1 which like a wild fire1 is raging on all sides4 ,it is burning and ravaging with chat chat sounds1 and hurling the houses with a hideous noise4 #i4 ,the smoke rising as heaving hills1 have overspread the skies like diluvian clouds2 and the flame of fire1 ascending on high1 resembles the phnix flying in the sky4 #aj4 ,vasishtha said3--,as the royal marshal was delivering with trepidation this unpleasant intelligence1 there arose a loud cry without1 filling the sky with its uproar 7hallahalloo-kol halam74 #aa4 ,the twanging 7tankra7 of bow strings drawn to the ears1 the rustling 7sarsara7 of flying arrows flung with full force2 the loud roaring 7bringhana7 of furious elephants1 and the shrieks 7chitkra7 of frightened ones4 #ab4 ,the gorgeous elephants bursting in the city with a clattering 7chatchata7 sound2 and the high halloos 7halahala7 of citizens1 whose houses have been burnt down on the ground3--7,here dagdhadra ,arabic daghdaghad-dr1 means both a burnt house and also a burnt wife74 #ac4 ,the falling and flying of burnt embers with a crackling noise 7tankra72 and the burning of raging fire with a hoarse sound 7dhaghdhaga ,arabic daghdagha1 ,bengali dhakdhak73-- #ad4 ,all these were heard and seen by the goddesses and the prince and his minister1 from an opening of the tent2 and the city was found to be in a blaze in the darkness of the night4 #ae4 ,it was as the conflagration or fiery ocean of the last day1 and the city was covered by clouds of the hostile army1 with their flashing weapons1 waving on all sides4 #af4 ,the flame rose as high as the sky1 melted down big edifices like hills by the all dissolving fire of destruction4 #ag4 ,bodies of thick clouds roared on high1 and threatened the people1 like the clamour 7kala-kala7 of the gangs of stout robbers1 that were gathered on the ground for plunder and booty4 #ah4 ,the heavens were hidden under clouds of smoke1 rolling as the shades of ,pushkara and varta1 and the flames of fire1 were flashing1 like the golden peaks of ,meru4 #ai4 ,burning cinders and sparks of fire1 were glittering like meteors and stars in the sky2 and the blazing houses and towers glared as burning mountains in the midst4 #bj4 ,the relics of the forces were beset by the spreading flames of clouds of fire1 and the half burnt citizens 7with their bitter cries71 were kept from flight1 for fear of the threatening enemy abroad4 #ba4 ,sleets of arrowy sparks flying in the air on all sides1 and showers of weapons falling in every way1 burnt and pierced the citizens in large numbers4 #bb4 ,the greatest and most expert champions1 were crashed under the feet of elephants in fighting2 and the roads were heaped with treasures1 wrested from the robbers in their retreat4 #bc4 ,there were wailings of men and women at the falling of fire-brands upon them2 and the splitting of splinters and the slitting of timbers emitted a phat-phat noise all around4 #bd4 ,big blocks of burning wood were blown up1 blazing as burning suns in the air2 and heaps of embers filled the face of the earth with living fire4 #be4 ,the cracking of combustible woods and the bursting of burning bamboos1 the cries of the parched brutes and the howling of the soldiers1 re-echoed in the air4 #bf4 ,the flaming fire was quenched after consuming the royalty to ashes1 and the devouring flame ceased after it had reduced everything to cinders4 #bg4 ,the sudden outbreak of the fire was as the outburst of house breaking robbers upon the sleeping inhabitants2 and it made its prey of everything 7whether living or lifeless71 that fell in its way4 #bh4 ,at this moment the prince ,vidratha heard a voice1 proceeding from his soldiers1 at the sight of their wives flying from the scorching flames4 #bi4 ,oh6 the high winds1 that have blown the flames to the tops of our household trees1 with their rustling sound 7kharakhara7 and hindered our taking shelter under their cooling umbrage4 #cj4 ,woe for the burning of our wives1 who were as cold as frost to our bodies before 7by their assuaging the smart of every pain72 and whose ashes now rest in our breasts1 like the lime of shells1 i4e4 in the sublimated state of spiritual bodies 7skshma-dehas74 #ca4 ,oh6 the mighty power of fire1 that has set to flame the forelocks of our fair damsels1 and is burning the braids of their hair1 like blades of grass or straws4 #cb4 ,the curling smoke is ascending on high1 like a whirling and long meandering river in the air1 and the black and white fumes of fire1 resemble the dark stream of ,yamun in one place1 and the milky path of the etherial ,gang in another4 #cc4 ,streams of smoke bearing the brands of fire on high1 dazzled the sight of the charioteers of heaven by their bubbling sparks4 #cd4 ,there are our fathers1 mothers1 brothers1 sisters1 relations and suckling babes1 all burnt alive in the livid flames2 and here are we burning in grief for them in these houses1 which have been spared by the devouring fire4 #ce4 ,lo6 there the howling fire is fast stretching to these abodes1 and here the cinders are falling as thick as the frost of ,meru4 #cf4 ,behold the direful darts and missiles dropping down as the driving rain1 and penetrating the windows1 like bodies of gnats in the shade of evening4 #cg4 ,the flashing spears and flaming fire1 flaring above the watery ocean of the sky1 resemble the submarine fire ascending to heaven4 #ch4 ,the smoke is rising in clouds1 and the flames are tapering in the form of towers1 and all that was humid and verdant1 is sucked and dried up1 as the hearts of the dispassionate4 #ci4 ,the trees are broken down by the raging element1 like posts of enraged elephants2 and they are falling with a cracking noise 7kata-kata71 as if they were screaking at their fall4 #dj4 ,the trees in the orchards1 now flourishing in their luxuriance of fruits and flowers1 are left bare by the burning fire1 like householders bereft of their properties4 #da4 ,boys abandoned by their parents in the darkness of the night1 were either pierced by flying arrows or crushed under the falling houses1 in their flight through the streets4 #db4 ,the elephants posted at the front of the army1 got frightened at the flying embers driven by the winds1 and fled with loud screaming at the fall of the burning houses upon them4 #dc4 ,oh6 the pain of being put to the sword1 is not more grievous1 than that of being burnt by the fire1 or smashed under the stones of the thundering engine4 #dd4 ,the streets are filled with domestic animals and cattle of all kinds1 that are let loose from their folds and stalls1 to raise their commingled cries like the confused noise of battle in the blocked up paths4 #de4 ,the weeping women were passing as lotus flowers on land1 with their lotus like faces and feet and palms1 and drops of tears fell like fluttering bees from their lotiform eyes and wet apparel upon the ground4 #df4 ,the red taints and spots of alakvali1 blazed as asoka flowers upon their foreheads and cheeks4 #dg4 ,alack for pity6 that the furious flame of fire1 should singe the black bee-like eyelids of our deer-eyed fairies2 like the ruthless victor1 that delights in his acts of inhumanity4 #dh4 ,o the bond of connubial love6 that the faithful wife never fails to follow her burning lord1 and cremates herself in the same flame with him 7this shows the practice of concremation to be older than the days of ,vlmki and ,viswmitra74 #di4 ,the elephant being burnt in his trunk1 in breaking the burning post to which he was tied by the leg1 ran with violence to a lake of lotuses1 in which he fell dead4 7,here is a play upon the homonymous word 8pushkara10 in its triple sense of a lake1 a lotus and the proboscis of an elephant74 #ej4 ,the flames of fire flashing like flitting lightnings amidst the clouds of smoke in the air1 were darting the darts of burning coals like bolts of thunder in showers4 #ea4 ,lord6 the sparks of fire sparkling amidst the dusky clouds1 appear as glittering gems in the bosom of the airy ocean1 and seem by their twirling to gird the crown of heaven with the girdle of ,pleiades4 #eb4 ,the sky was reddened by the light of the flaming fires1 and appeared as the courtyard of ,death dyed with purple hues in joy for reception of the souls of the dead4 #ec4 ,alas6 the day and want of manners6 that the royal dames are carried away by these armed ruffians by force4 7,o tempores ,o mores74 #ed4 ,behold them dragged in the streets from their stately edifices1 and strewing their paths with wreaths of flowers torn from their necks2 while their half burnt locks are hanging loosely upon their bare breasts and bosoms4 #ee4 ,lo6 their loose raiments uncovering their backs and loins1 and the jewels dropt down1 from their wrists1 have strewn the ground with gems4 #ef4 ,their necklaces are torn and their pearls are scattered about2 their bodies are bared of their bodices1 and their breasts appear to view in their golden hue4 #eg4 ,their shrill cries and groans rising above the war cry1 choked their breath and split their sides2 and they fell insensible with their eyes dimmed by ceaseless floods of tears4 #eh4 ,they fell in a body with their arms twisted about the necks of one another1 and the ends of their cloths tied to each other's2 and in this way they were dragged by force of the ruffians1 with their bodies mangled in blood4 #ei4 8,ah6 who will save them from this state10 cried the royal soldiers1 with their piteous looks on the sad plight of the females and shedding big drops of their tears like lotuses4 #fj4 ,the bright face of the sky turned black at the horrible sight1 and it looked with its blue lotus-like eyes of the clouds1 on the fair lotus-like damsels thus scattered on the ground4 #fa4 ,thus was the goddess of royal prosperity1 decorated as she was with her waving and pendant locks1 her flowing garments1 flowery chaplets and gemming ornaments brought to her end like these ladies1 after her enjoyment of the pleasures of royalty and gratification of all her desires4 ,,chapter ,,xliv4 ,,spiritual ,,interpretation ,,of ,,the ,,vision4 ,vasishtha said3--,at this instant the great queen1 who was in the bloom of youthful beauty1 entered the camp of ,vidratha1 as the goddess of grace pops upon the lotus flower4 #b4 ,she was decorated with pendant wreaths of flowers and necklaces1 and accompanied by a train of her youthful companions and handmaids1 all terrified with fear4 #c4 ,with her face as bright as the moon and her form as fair as the lily1 she appeared as a luminary of heaven1 with her teeth shining as sets of stars1 and her bosom throbbing with fear4 #d4 ,then the king was informed by one of her companions about the fate of the warfare1 which resembled the onset of demons upon the ,apsar tribe4 #e4 ,lord6 this lady1 said she1 has fled with us from her seraglio1 to take refuge under thy arms1 as a tender creeper seeks the shelter of a tree1 from a rude gust of wind4 #f4 ,behold6 the ravishers ravishing the wives of the citizens with their uplifted arms1 like the swelling waves of the sea carrying away the arbours of the bank in their rapid current4 #g4 ,the guards of the royal harem are all crushed to death by the haughty marauders1 as the sturdy trees of the forest are broken down by the furious tornado4 #h4 ,our armies frightened by the enemy from afar1 dare not approach the falling city1 as nobody ventures to rescue the lotus beds from a flood1 under the threatening thunders of a rainy night4 #i4 ,the hostile force have poured upon the city in terrible numbers1 and having set it on fire1 are shouting loudly under the clouds of smoke1 with their weapons brandishing on all sides4 #aj4 ,the handsome ladies are dragged by the hair from amidst their families1 in the manner of screaming cranes1 caught and carried away by the cruel fowlers and fishermen4 #aa4 ,now we have brought this exuberant tender creeper to thee1 that thou mayst save her from similar fate by thy might4 #ab4 ,hearing this1 he looked at the goddesses and said1 now will ,i go to the war from here1 and leave this my lady as an humble bee at your lotus feet4 #ac4 ,saying so1 the king rose in a rage from his seat and sprang like the enraged lion from the den1 when pierced and pressed by the tusk of a furious elephant4 #ad4 ,the widowed ,ll beheld the queen ,ll to be exactly of her form and features1 and took her for a true inflexion of herself in a mirror4 #ae4 ,then said the enlightened ,ll to ,sarasvat3--,tell me1 ,o goddess6 how this lady here is exactly as myself1 she is what ,i have been before1 and how she came to be as myself4 #af4 ,i see this prime minister with all these soldiers and citizens1 these forces and vehicles1 to be the same as mine1 and situated in the same place and manner as before4 #ag4 ,how is it then1 ,o goddess6 that they came to be placed in this place4 ,i see them as ,images situated within and without the mirror of my mind1 and know not whether these be living beings 7or the false chimeras of my imagination74 #ah4 ,sarasvat replied3--,all our external perceptions of things1 are the immediate effects of our internal conceptions of them4 ,the intellect has the knowledge of all the intelligibles in it1 as the mind has the impressions of mental objects in itself4 7,or in other words3--the intellect is possessed of all intelligence1 like the mind of its thoughts1 as they present themselves in dreams4 ,gloss74 #ai4 ,the external world appears in an instant in the same form and manner to one1 as he has its notion and impression in his intellect and mind2 and no distance of time or place1 nor any intermediate cause can create any difference in them4 #bj4 ,the inward world is seen on the outside1 as the internal impressions of our minds1 appear to be seen without us in our dreams4 ,whatever is within us1 the same appears without us1 as in our dreams and desires1 and in all our imaginations and fancies of objects4 #ba4 ,it is the constant habitude of your mind1 that presented these things as realities to your sight1 and you saw your husband in the same state in which you thought him to be1 when he died in that city of yours4 #bb4 ,it is the same place wherein he exists at present1 and is presented with the same objects of his thought at present as he had at that moment4 ,any thing that appears to be different in this state1 proceeds from the turn of his mind of thinking it so before4 #bc4 ,all that appears real to him1 is as unreal as his dream or desire1 and the creation of his fancy2 for every thing appears to be the same as it is thought of in the mind4 7,all external objects are representations of their prototypes in the mind74 #bd4 ,say therefore what truth can there be in these visionary objects1 which are altogether unsubstantial as dreams1 and vanish in the end into airy nothing4 #be4 ,know then every thing to be no better than nothing2 and as a dream proves to be nothing upon waking1 so is waking also a dream and equally nothing at death4 #bf4 ,death in life time is a nullity1 and life in death becomes null and extinct2 and these extinctions of life and death1 proceed from the fluctuating nature of our notions of them4 #bg4 ,so there is neither any entity nor nonentity either1 but both appear to us as fallacies by turns4 ,for what neither was before1 nor will be1 after a ,kalpa creation or dissolution1 the same cannot exist to-day or in any ,yuga age1 whether gone before or coming afterwards4 #bh4 ,that which is never inexistent1 is the ever existent ,brahma1 and the same is the world4 ,it is in him that we see everything to rise and fall by our fallacy1 and what we falsely term as the creation or the created4 #bi4 ,as phantoms appearing in the vacuum1 are all vacant and void1 and as the waves of the sea1 are no other than its water2 so do these created things exist and appear in ,brahma only4 #cj4 ,as the minuti appearing in the air1 vanish in the air2 and as the dust driven by the winds1 are lost in the winds2 so the false notions of yourself and myself1 are lost in that ,supreme self1 in which all things rise and fall like waves of the ocean4 #ca4 ,what reliance can there be in this dust of creation1 which is no more than the water of the mirage8 ,the knowledge of individualities is mere fallacy1 when every thing is united in that sole unity4 #cb4 ,we see apparitions in the dark1 though the darkness itself is no apparition2 so our lives and deaths are the false notions of our error1 and the whole existence is equally the production of gross error 7my74 #cc4 ,all this is ,himself1 for ,he is the great ,kalpa or will which produces every thing2 it is ,he that exists when all things are extinct in ,him2 and therefore these appearances1 are neither real nor unreal of themselves4 #cd4 ,but to say both 7the real and unreal7 to be ,brahma1 is a contradiction2 therefore it is ,he1 who fills the infinity of space1 and abides equally in all things and their minutest particles4 #ce4 ,wherever the spirit of ,brahma abides1 and even in the minute animalcule1 it views the whole world in itself2 like one thinking on the heat and cold of fire and frost1 has the same sensation within himself at that moment4 7,vide ,hume74 #cf4 ,so doth the pure intellect perceive the ,holy ,spirit of ,god within itself1 just as one sees the particles of light flying in his closet at sunrise4 #cg4 ,so do these multitudes of worlds1 move about as particles in the infinite space of the ,divine mind1 as the particles of odoriferous substances oscillate in the empty air4 #ch4 ,in this manner does this world abide in its incorporeal state in the mind of ,god1 with all its modifications of existence and inexistence1 emanation and absorption1 of its condensation and subtilization and its mobility and rest4 #ci4 ,but you must know all these modes and these conditions of being to belong to material bodies only and not to the spirit1 which is unconditioned and indivisible 7i4e4 without attributes and parts74 #dj4 ,and as there is no change or division of one's own soul1 so there is no partition or variation of the ,supreme ,spirit4 ,it is according to the ideas in our minds1 that we view things in their different aspects before us4 #da4 ,yet the word world--visva--all1 is not a meaningless term2 it means the all as contained in ,brahma 7who is to pan74 ,therefore it is both real and unreal at the same time like the fallacy of a snake in a rope4 #db4 ,it is the false notion 7of the snake71 that makes the true 7rope7 to appear as the untrue snake to us1 which we are apt to take for the true snake itself1 so we take the ,divine ,intellect1 which is the prime cause of all1 as a living soul 7like ours71 by mistake4 #dc4 ,it is this notion 7of the living soul71 that makes us to think ourselves as living beings1 which whether it be false or true1 is like the appearance of the world in empty air4 #dd4 ,thus these little animals delight themselves with their own misconceived idea of being living beings1 while there are others who think themselves so1 by their preconceived notions as such4 #de4 ,some there are that have no preconceived notions1 and others that retain the same as or somewhat different notions of themselves than before4 ,somewhere the inborn notions are predominant1 and sometimes they are entirely lost4 #df4 ,our preconceived notions of ourselves1 represent unrealities as realities to our minds1 and present the thoughts of our former family and birth1 and the same occupations and professions before us 7as also the enjoyments we had before and no more existent at present74 #dg4 ,such are the representations of your former ministers and citizens1 imprinted as realities in your soul1 together with the exact time and place and manner of their functions1 as before4 #dh4 ,and as the intelligence of all things1 is present in the omniscient spirit of ,god1 so is the idea of royalty inherent in the soul of the prince 7i4e4 like the ex-king ,lear1 he thinks himself every inch a king74 #di4 ,this notion of his goes before him as his shadow in the air1 with the same stature and features1 and the same acts and movements as he had before4 #ej4 ,in this manner1 ,ll6 ,know this world to be but a shadowy reflexion of the eternal ideas of ,god2 and this reflection is caught by or refracted in the consciousness of all animal souls as in a prismatic mirror4 #ea4 ,everything shows itself in every place in the form in which it is2 so whatever there is in the living soul1 casts out a reflexion of itself1 and a shadow of it is caught by the intellect1 which is situated without it4 7,the mind is a mirror of the images in the soul74 #eb4 ,here is the sky containing the world1 which contains this earth1 wherein you and myself and this prince are situated1 as reflexions of the ,one ,ego only4 ,know all these to be contained within the vacuous womb of the ,intellect1 and to remain as tranquil and transparent as vacuity itself4 ,,chapter ,,xlv4 ,,theism ,,consisting ,,in ,,true ,,knowledge4 ,sarasvat continued3--,know ,ll6 this ,vidratha1 thy husband1 will lose his life in this battle-field2 and his soul will repair to the sepulchre in the inner apartment1 where it will resume its former state4 #b4 ,upon hearing these words of the goddess1 the second ,ll1 who was standing by1 bent herself lowly before the goddess1 and addressed her with her folded palms4 #c4 ,the second ,ll's speech4 ,goddess6 the genius of intelligence is ever adored by me1 and she gives me her visits in my nightly dreams4 #d4 ,i find thee here exactly of her likeness2 therefore give me thy blessing1 thou goddess with the beauteous face4 #e4 ,vasishtha said3--,the goddess being thus addressed by the lady1 remembered her faith and reliance in her1 and then spake with complacence to the lady standing suppliant before her4 #f4 ,the goddess said3--,i am pleased my child1 with thy unfailing and unslakened adoration of me all thy lifetime2 now say what thou askest of me4 #g4 ,the second ,ll said3--,ordain ,o goddess1 that ,i may accompany my husband with this body of mine to whatever place he is destined to go1 after his death in the war4 #h4 ,the goddess replied3--,be it so my child2 that hast worshipped me with all diligence and without fail1 with flowers1 incense and offerings4 #i4 ,vasishtha said3--,the second ,ll being gladdened by this blessing of the goddess1 the first ,ll1 was much puzzled in her mind at the difference of their states4 #aj4 ,the first ,ll said3--,those who are desirous of truth1 and they whose desires lean towards godliness1 have all their wishes fulfilled without delay and fail4 #aa4 ,then tell me1 goddess6 why could ,i not keep company with my ,brhmana husband with my body of the ,brhman1 but had to be taken to him in the hilly mansion after my death1 7and reproduction in the present form74 #ab4 ,the goddess answered saying3--,know ,o excellent lady6 that ,i have no power to do anything2 but every thing happens to pass according to the desire of the living being4 #ac4 ,know me only as the presiding divinity of wisdom1 and ,i reveal everything according to my knowledge of it4 ,it is by virtue of the intellectual powers as exhibited in every being1 that it attains its particular end4 #ad4 ,it is according to the development of the mental powers of living beings in every state1 that it obtains its object in the manner and in the same state as it aims at4 #ae4 ,you had attained the powers of your understanding by your devotedness to my service1 and have always desired of me for being liberated from flesh4 #af4 ,i have accordingly awakened your understanding in that way1 whereby you have been able to arrive at your present state of purity4 #ag4 ,it was by cause of your constant desire of liberation1 that you have gained the same state1 by enlargement 7of the powers7 of your intellect4 #ah4 ,whoever exerts his bodily powers according to the dictates of his understanding1 is sure to succeed in gaining his object sooner or later4 #ai4 ,performance of austerities and adoration of gods1 are as vain without cultivation of the intellect1 as to expect the falling of fruits from the sky4 #bj4 ,without cultivation of the intellect and exertion of manly powers1 there is no way to success2 do therefore as you may choose for yourself4 #ba4 ,it is verily the state of one's mind1 that leads his internal soul to that state which it thinks upon1 and to that prosperity which it attempts to obtain4 #bb4 ,now distinguish between what is desirable or disagreeable to you1 and choose that which is holy and perfect1 and you will certainly arrive to it4 ,,chapter ,,xlvi4 ,,onslaught ,,of ,,vid,,ratha4 ,rma said3--,relate to me the acts of ,vidratha1 after he went out enraged from the camp1 and left the ladies and the goddess talking in that manner4 #b4 ,vasishtha said3--,vidratha left his camp in company with a large body of his companions like the bright moon beset by a host of stars4 #c4 ,he was in armour and girt by laces and girdles1 and thus attired in his martial habit1 he went forth amidst the loud war cry of vae victis1 like the god ,indra going to battle4 #d4 ,he gave orders to the soldiers and was informed of the battle array2 and having given directions to his captains1 he mounted his chariot4 #e4 ,it was adorned with mountings resembling the pinnacles of mountains and beset by five flags fringed with strings of pearls and gems1 resembling a celestial car4 #f4 ,the iron hoops of its wheels flashed with their golden pegs1 and the long and beautiful shaft of the car1 rang with the tinkling of pearls which were suspended to it4 #g4 ,it was drawn by long necked1 swift and slender horses of the best breed and auspicious marks2 that seemed to fly in the air by their swiftness and bearing aloft a heavenly car with some god in it4 #h4 ,being impatient of the swiftness of the winds1 they spurred them with their hinder heels and left them behind1 and sped the forepart of their bodies as if to devour the air1 impeding their course4 #i4 ,the car was drawn by eight coursers with their manes hanging down their necks like flappers1 and white spots or circlets resembling the disks of moon on their foreheads1 and filling the eight sides around with their hoarse neighing4 #aj4 ,at this time there rose a loud noise of the elephants1 resounding like drums from the hollows of the distant hills4 #aa4 ,loud clamours 7kala-kalas7 were raised by the infuriate soldiers1 and the tinkling of their belted trinkets 7kinkini71 and clashing of their weapons1 rang afar in the open air4 #ab4 ,the crackling 7chatachata7 of the bows1 and the wheezing 7shitkara7 of the arrows1 joined with the jangle 7jhanjhana7 of armours1 by their clashing against one another1 raised a confused hubbub all around4 #ac4 ,the sparkling 7kanatkara7 of blazing fire1 and the mutual challenge of the champions2 the painful shrieks of the wounded and the piteous cry of captives1 were seen and heard on all sides4 #ad4 ,the mingled sounds thickened in the air1 and filled its cavity and its sides as with solid stones and capable of being clutched in the hands4 #ae4 ,clouds of dust flew as fast and thick into the air1 that they seemed to be the crust or strata of the earth1 rising upward to block the path of the sun in the sky4 #af4 ,the great city was hid in the dark womb of the overspreading dust 7rajas71 as the ignorant state of man is covered in darkness by the rising passion 7rajas7 of juvenescence4 #ag4 ,the burning lights became as dim1 as the fading stars of heaven by day light1 and the darkness of night became as thick1 as the devils of darkness gather their strength at night4 #ah4 ,the two ,lls saw the great battle with the virgin daughter of the minister from the tent2 and they had their eyes enlightened with farsightedness by favour of the goddess4 #ai4 ,now there was an end of the flashing and clashing of the hostile arms in the city1 as the flash and crash of submarine fires were put to an end by the all-submerging floods of the universal deluge4 #bj4 ,vidratha collected his forces and without considering the superiority of the hostile power pressed himself forward amidst them1 as the great ,meru rushed into the waters of the great deluge4 #ba4 ,now the twanging of the bow strings emitted a clattering 7,chatachata7 sound2 and the forces of the enemy advanced in battle array1 like bodies of clouds with rainbows amidst them4 #bb4 ,many kinds of missiles flew as falcons in the air2 and the black steel waved with a dark glare owing to the massacres they made4 #bc4 ,the clashing swords flashed with living flames of fire by their striking against one another2 and showers of arrows whistled like hissing rainfalls in the air4 #bd4 ,two edged saws pierced the bodies of the warriors2 and the flinging weapons hurtled in the air by their clashing at and crashing of each other4 #be4 ,the darkness of the night was put to flight by the blaze of the weapons2 and the whole army was pierced by arrows1 sticking as the hairs on their bodies4 #bf4 ,headless trunks moved about as players in the horrid solemnity of the god of death 7,yama72 and the furies fled about at the dint of war1 like the raving lasses at ,bacchanal revelries4 #bg4 ,elephants fighting with their tusks1 sent a clattering noise in the air2 and the stones flung from the slings1 flew as a flowing stream in the sky4 #bh4 ,bodies of men were falling dead on the ground1 like the dried leaves of forests blown away by blasts2 and streams of blood were running in the field of battle1 as if the heights of war were pouring down the floods of death below4 #bi4 ,the dust of the earth was set down by the floods of blood1 and the darkness was dispelled by the blaze of weapons2 all clamour ceased in intense fighting1 and the fear for life1 was lost under the stern resolution of death4 #cj4 ,the fighting was stern without a cry or noise1 like the pouring of rain in the breezeless sky1 and with the glitter of swords in the darkened air1 like the flashes of forky lightnings amidst the murky clouds4 #ca4 ,the darts were flying about with a hissing noise 7khad-khada72 and the crow-bars hit one another with a harsh 7taktaka7 sound2 large weapons were struck upon one another with a jarring noise 7jhanjhana71 and the dreadful war raged direfully in the dim darkness 7timitimi7 of the night4 ,,chapter ,,xlvii4 ,,encounter ,,of ,,sindhu ,,and ,,vid,,ratha4 ,vasishtha said3--,as the war was waging thus furiously between the two armies1 the two ,lls addressed the goddess of knowledge and said3-- #b4 8,tell us1 ,o goddess6 what unknown cause prevents our husband to gain the victory in this war1 notwithstanding your good grace to him1 and his repelling the hostile elephants in the combat04 #c4 ,sarasvat replied3--,know ye daughters1 that ,i was ever solicited by ,vidratha's enemy to confer him victory in battle1 which your husband never craved of me4 #d4 ,he lives and enjoys his life as it was desired by him1 while his antagonist gains the conquest according to his aim and object4 #e4 ,knowledge is contained in the consciousness of every living being1 and rewards every one according to the desire to which it is directed4 #f4 ,my nature like that of all things is as unchangeable as the heat of fire 7which never changes to cold74 ,so the nature of ,vidratha's knowledge of truth1 and his desire of liberation lead him to the like result 7and not to victory74 #g4 ,the intelligent ,ll also will be liberated with him1 and not the unintelligent one1 who by her nature is yet unprepared for that highest state of bliss4 #h4 ,this enemy of ,vidratha1 the king of ,sinde1 has long worshipped me for his victory in war2 whereby the bodies of ,vidratha and his wife must fall into his hands4 #i4 ,thou girl wilt also have thy liberation like hers in course of time2 but ere that1 this enemy of yours1--the king of ,sinde1 will reign victorious in this earth4 #aj4 ,vasishtha said3--,as the goddess was speaking in this manner1 the sun appeared on his rising hill to behold the wondrous sight of the forces in fighting4 #aa4 ,the thick mists of night disappeared like the hosts of the enemy 7,sinde72 and left the forces of ,vidratha to glitter as stars at the approach of night4 #ab4 ,the hills and dales and the land and water gradually appeared to sight1 and the world seemed to reappear to view from amidst the dark ocean of the 7deluge74 #ac4 ,the bright rays of the rising sun radiated on all sides like the streams of liquid gold1 and made the hills appear as the bodies of warriors besmeared with 7blood74 #ad4 ,the sky seemed as an immense field of battle1 stretched over by the radiant rays of the sun 7,karas71 likening the shining arms 7,karas7 of the warriors1 shaking in their serpentine mood4 #ae4 ,the helmets on their heads raised their lotus-like tops on high1 and the rings about their ears blazed with their gemming glare below4 #af4 ,the pointed weapons were as fixed as the snouts of unicorns1 and the flying darts fled about as butterflies in the air4 ,the bloody field presented a picture of the ruddy dawn and dusk1 and the dead bodies on the ground1 represented the figures of motionless saints in their ,yoga4 #ag4 ,necklaces like snakes overhung their breasts1 and the armours like sloughs of serpents covered their bodies4 ,the flags were flying like crests of creepers on high1 and the legs of the warriors stood as pillars in the field4 #ah4 ,their long arms were as branches of trees1 and the arrows formed a bush of reeds2 the flash of weapons spread as a verdant meadow all around1 while their blades blazed with the lustre of the long-leaved ketaka flowers4 #ai4 ,the long lines of weapons formed as rows of bamboos and bushes of brambles1 and their mutual clashing emitted sparks of fire like clusters of the red asoka flowers4 #bj4 ,the bands of ,siddhas were flying away with their leaders from the air1 to avert the weapons which were blazing there with the radiance of the rising sun1 and forming as it were1 a city of gold on high4 #ba4 ,the sky re-echoed to the clashing of darts and discuses1 of swords and spears and of mallets and clubs in the field2 and the ground was overflown by streams of blood1 bearing away the dead bodies of the slain4 #bb4 ,the land was strewn with crowbars1 lances and spears1 and with tridents and stones on all sides2 and headless bodies were falling hideously1 pierced by poles and pikes and other instruments of death4 #bc4 ,the ghosts and goblins of death were making horrible noise above1 and the shining cars of ,sindhu and ,vidratha1 moved with a loud rumbling below4 #bd4 ,they appeared as the two luminaries of the sun and moon in heaven1 and equipped with their various weapons of disks and rods1 of crowbars and spears1 and other missiles besides4 #be4 ,they were both surrounded by thousands of soldiers1 and turned about as thy liked1 with loud shouts of their retinues4 #bf4 ,crushed under heavy disks1 many fell dead and wounded with loud cries2 and big elephants were floating lightly on the currents of blood4 #bg4 ,the hairs on the heads of dead bodies1 floated like weeds in the stream of blood1 and the floating discuses glided like the disks of the moon1 reflected in the purple streamlet4 #bh4 ,the jingling 7jhanat7 of gemming ornaments1 and the tinkling 7ranat7 bells of war carriages1 with the flapping 7patat7 of flags by the wind1 filled the field with a confused noise4 #bi4 ,numbers of valiant as well as dastardly soldiers followed their respective princes1 some bleeding under the spears of ,kuntas and others pierced by the arrows of bowyers4 #cj4 ,then the two princes turned round their chariots in circling rings over the ground1 and amidst phalanxes armed with all sorts of destructive weapons4 #ca4 ,each confronted the other with his arms1 and having met one another face to face1 commenced showering forth his arrows with the pattering sound of hailstones4 #cb4 ,they both threatened one another with the roaring of loud surges and clouds1 and the two lions among men1 darted their arrows upon one another in their rage4 #cc4 ,they flung their missiles in the air in the form of stones and malls1 and some faced like swords1 and others headed as mallets4 #cd4 ,some were as sharp edged disks1 and some as curved as battle axes2 some were as pointed as pikes and spears1 and others as bars and rods in their forms1 and some were of the shape of tridents1 and others as bulky as blocks of stones4 #ce4 ,these missives were falling as fully and as fast as blocks of stones1 which are hurled down from high and huge rocks1 by gusts of blustering hurricanes4 ,and the meeting of the two armigerent powers1 was as the confluence of the ,indus and the sea1 with tremendous roaring1 and mutual collision and clashing4 ,,chapter ,,xlviii4 ,,description ,,of ,,daiv,,stras ,,or ,,supernatural ,,weapons4#bc ,vasishtha said3--,rj ,vidratha1 finding the high shouldered ,sindhu-rja before him1 was enraged like the raging sun1 in his mid-day fury4 #b4 ,the twanging of his bow resounded in the air on all sides1 and growled as loudly as the howling of winds in the caverns of mountains4 #c4 ,he drew his arrows from the dark quiver1 and darted them like the rays of the sun rising from the womb of night4 #d4 ,each arrow flung from the bowstring1 flew as thousands in the air1 and fell as millions on the ground4 7,the arrow or bna is a name given to bombs which burst out into unnumbered shells74 #e4 ,the king ,sindhu was equally expert in his bowmanship1 as both of these bowyers owed their skill in archery to the favour of ,vishnu4 #f4 ,some of these darts were called bolts1 which blocked the aerial passages as with bolts at their doors1 and fell down on the ground with the loud roar of thunderbolts4 #g4 ,others begirt with gold1 flew hissing as if blown by the winds in the air1 and after shining as stars in the sky1 fell as blazing meteors on the ground4 #h4 ,showers of shafts poured forth incessantly from the hands of ,vidratha1 like the ceaseless torrents of rivers or billows of the sea1 and the endless radiation of solar rays4 #i4 ,shells and bullets were flying about as sparks of fire struck out of the balls of red-hot iron1 and falling as flowers of forests1 blown away by gusts of wind4 #aj4 ,they fell as showers of rainwater1 and as the rush of water-falls2 and as plentifully as the sparks of fire which flew from the burning city of ,vidratha4 #aa4 ,the jarring sound 7chatchat7 of their bowstrings1 hushed the clamour of the two armies1 as a calm quiets the roaring of the raging sea4 #ab4 ,the course of the arrows1 was as the stream of ,ganges 7the milky path7 in heaven1 running towards the king ,sindhu1 as the river runs to meet the sea 7,sindhu74 #ac4 ,the shower of arrows flying from the golden bow of the king1 was as the flood of rain falling under the variegated rainbow in the sky4 #ad4 ,then ,ll the native of that city1 saw from the window the darts of her husband1 rushing like the currents of ,ganges1 against the forces of ,sindhu resembling a sea4 #ae4 ,she understood the flight of those darts to promise victory to her lord1 and then spoke gladly to ,sarasvat1 with her lotus like face 7,lit4--by opening her lotus like mouth74 #af4 ,be victorious ,o goddess6 and behold victory waiting on the side of my lord1 whose darts are piercing the rocks1 and breaking them to pieces4 #ag4 ,as she was uttering these words full of affection 7to her lord71 the goddesses eyed her askance1 and smiled at her womanish tenderness of heart4 #ah4 ,the flaming 7,agastian7 fire of ,sindhu swallowed the raging sea of ,vidratha's arrows1 as the submarine fire consumes the water1 and as ,jahnu drank the stream of ,ganges4 #ai4 ,the missive weapons of ,sindhu1 thwarted the thickening arrows of his adversary1 and drove them back broken and flying as dust in the empty air4 #bj4 ,as an extinguished lamp loses its light in the air1 so the flashes of the fire arms disappeared in the sky1 and nobody knew where they fled4 #ba4 ,having thus dispelled the shower of arrows1 he sent a thick cloud of his weapons1 appearing as hundreds of dead bodies flying in the air4 #bb4 ,vidratha repelled them quickly by means of his better bolts1 as a hurricane disperses the frightening clouds in the air4 #bc4 ,both the kings being thus baffled in their aims by the opposing arms1 which were indiscriminately let loose against one another1 laid hold on more potent missiles 7which they had got as gifts of their gods to them74 #bd4 ,sindhu then let fly his magic missile the gift of a ,gandharva to him1 which kept his hostile army all spell-bound except ,vidratha's self4 #be4 ,struck with this weapon1 the soldiers became as mute as moonstruck1 staring in their looks1 and appearing as dead bodies or as pictures in a painting4 #bf4 ,as the soldiers of ,vidratha remained exorcised in their files1 the king employed his instruments of a counter-charm to remove the spell4 #bg4 ,this awakened the senses of ,vidratha's men as the morning twilight discloses the bed of lotuses1 and the rising sun opens their closed petals to light2 while ,sindhu like the raging sun darted his rage upon them4 #bh4 ,he flung his serpentine weapons upon them1 which bound them as fast as a band all about their bodies1 and encircled the battle ground and air1 like snakes twining round the craigs and rocks4 #bi4 ,the ground was filled with snakes as the lake with the spreading stalks of lotuses1 and the bodies of gigantic warriors were begirt by them1 like hills by huge and horrible hydras4 #cj4 ,everything was overpowered by the poignant power of the poison1 and the inhabitants of the hills and forests were benumbed by the venomous infection4 #ca4 ,the smart poison spread a fiery heat all around1 and the frozen snows like fire-brands sent forth their burning particles which were wafted by the hot winds in the air4 #cb4 ,the armigerous ,vidratha who was equally skilled in arms1 had then recourse to his ,garuda or serpivorous weapons1 which fled like mountainous eagles to all sides4 #cc4 ,their golden pinions spread in the sky on all sides1 and embroidered the air with purple gold2 and the flapping of their wings wheezed like a breeze1 which blew away the poisonous effluvia afar in the air4 #cd4 ,it made the snakes breathe out of their nostrils with a hissing1 resembling the gurgling 7ghurghur7 of waters in a whirlpool in the sea4 #ce4 ,the flying ,garuda weapons devoured the creeping terrene serpents with a whistling noise 7salsala71 like that of the rising waters 7water-spouts71 in the act of their suction by ,agastya--the sun4 #cf4 ,the face of the ground delivered from its covering of these reptiles1 again appeared to view1 as the surface of the earth re-appeared to light1 after its deliverance from the waters of the deluge4 #cg4 ,the army of ,garudas disappeared afterwards from sight1 like a line of lamps put out by the wind1 and the assemblage of clouds vanishing in autumn4 #ch4 ,they fled like flying mountains for fear of the bolts of the thundering ,indra2 and vanished like the evanescent world seen in a dream1 or as an aerial castle built by fancy4 #ci4 ,then king ,sindhu shot his shots of darkness 7smoke71 which darkened the scene like the dark cave under the ground4 #dj4 ,it hid the face of the earth and sky1 like the diluvian waters reaching to the welkin's face2 making the army appear as a shoal of fishes1 and the stars as gems shining in the deep4 #da4 ,the overspreading darkness appeared as a sea of ink or dark quagmire1 or as the particles of ,anjanagiri 7,inky mountain7 wafted by the breeze over the face of nature4 #db4 ,all beings seemed to be immersed in the sea or darkness1 and to lose their energies as in the deep gloom of midnight4 #dc4 ,vidratha the best of the most skilful in ballistics1 shot his sun-bright shot which like the sun illumined the vault of the sky4 #dd4 ,it rose high amidst the overspreading darkness like the sun 7,agastya7 with his effulgent beams1 and dispelled the shades of darkness1 as autumn does the rainy clouds4 #de4 ,the sky being cleared of its veil of darkness1 manifested itself with its reddish clouds1 resembling the blowzy bodices of damsels before the king4 7,here is a pun upon the word payodhara which means both a cloud and the breast of a woman74 #df4 ,now the landscape appeared in full view1 like the understanding 7good sense7 of men coming in full play after the extinction of their avarice4 #dg4 ,the enraged ,sindhu then laid hold on his dreadful ,rkshasa weapon1 which he instantly flung on his foe with its bedeviled darts4 #dh4 ,these horrid and destructive darts flew on all sides in the air1 and roared as the roaring sea and elephantine clouds 7dighastis7 of heaven4 #di4 ,they were as the flames of lambent fire1 with their long licking tongues and ash-coloured and smoky curls1 rising as hoary hairs on the head1 and making a chat-chat sound like that of moist fuel set up on fire4 #ej4 ,they wheeled round in circles through the air1 with a horrible tangtang noise1 now flaming as fire and now fuming as smoke1 and then flying about as sparks of fire4 #ea4 ,with mouths beset by rows of sprouting teeth like lotus stalks1 and faces defaced by dirty and fusty eyes1 their hairy bodies were as stagnate pools full of moss and weeds4 #eb4 ,they flew about and flashed and roared aloud as some dark clouds1 while the locks of hairs on their heads glared as lightnings in the midway sky4 #ec4 ,at this instant ,vidratha the spouse of ,ll1 sent forth his ,nryana weapon1 having the power of suppressing wicked spirits and demons4 #ed4 ,the appearance of this magic weapon1 made the bodies of the ,rkshasas1 disappear as darkness at sun rise4 #ee4 ,the whole army of these fiends was lost in the air1 as the sable clouds of the rainy season1 vanish into nothing at the approach of autumn4 #ef4 ,then ,sindhu discharged his fire arms which set fire to the sky1 and began to burn down every thing1 as by the all destroying conflagration of the last day4 #eg4 ,they filled all the sides of air with clouds of smoke1 which seemed to hide the face of heaven under the darkness of hell4 #eh4 ,they set fire to the woods in the hills1 which burned like mountains of gold2 while the trees appeared to bloom with yellow champaka flowers all around4 #ei4 ,all the sides of the sky above1 and the hills1 woods and groves below1 were enveloped in the flames1 as if they were covered under the red powder of huli1 with which ,yama was sporting over the plain4 #fj4 ,the heaven-spreading flame burnt down the legions in one heap of ashes1 as the submarine fire consumes whole bodies of the fleet and navy in the sea4 #fa4 ,as ,sindhu continued to dart his firearms against his vanquished adversary1 ,vidratha let off his watery arms with reverential regard4 #fb4 ,these filled with water1 flew forward as the shades of darkness from their hidden cells2 and spread up and down and on all sides1 like a melted mountain gushing in a hundred cataracts4 #fc4 ,they stretched as mountainous clouds or as a sea in the air1 and fell in showers of watery arrows and stones on the ground4 #fd4 ,they flew up like large tamla trees1 and being gathered in groups like the shades of night1 appeared as the thick gloom beyond the lokloka or polar mountains4 #fe4 ,they gave the sky the appearance of subterraneous caves1 emitting a gurgling sound 7ghurghura7 like the loud roaring of elephants4 #ff4 ,these waters soon drank 7cooled7 the spreading furious fire1 as the shades of the dark night swallow 7efface7 the surrounding red tints of the evening4 #fg4 ,having swallowed the fires above1 the waters overflooded the ground and filled it with a humidity which served to enervate all bodies1 as the power of sleep numbs every body in death-like torpidity4 #fh4 ,in this manner both the kings were throwing their enchanted weapons against each other1 and found them equally quelling and repelling one another in their course4 #fi4 ,the heavy armed soldiers of ,sindhu and the captains of his regiments were swept away by the flood1 together with the warcars which floated upon it4 #gj4 ,at this moment1 ,sindhu thought upon his anhydrous weapons 7soshanstre--thermal arms71 which possessed the miraculous power of preserving his people from the water1 and hurled them in the air4 #ga4 ,these absorbed the waters as the sun sucks up the moisture of the night1 and dried up the land and revived the soldiers1 except those that were already dead and gone4 #gb4 ,their heat chased the coldness as the rage of the illiterate enrages the learned1 and made the moist ground as dry1 as when the sultry winds strew the forest land with dried leaves4 #gc4 ,it decorated the face of the ground with a golden hue1 as when the royal dames adorn their persons with a yellow paint or ointment4 #gd4 ,it put the soldiers on the opposite side to a state of feverish 7or blood heated7 fainting1 as when the tender leaves of trees are scorched by the warmth of a wild fire in summer heat4 #ge4 ,vidratha in his rage of warfare laid hold on his bow 7kodanda71 and having bent it to a curve1 let fly his cloudy arms on his antagonist4 #gf4 ,they sent forth columns of clouds as thick as the sable shades of night1 which flying upward as a forest of dark tamla trees1 spread an umbrage heavy with water on high4 #gg4 ,they lowered under the weight of their water1 and stood still by their massive thickness2 and roared aloud in their circles all over the sky4 #gh4 ,then blew the winds dropping the dewdrops of the icy store they bore on their pinions2 and showers of rain fell fast from the collections of the clouds on high4 #gi4 ,then flashed the fiery lightnings from them like golden serpents in their serpentine course or rather like the aslant glances of the eyes of heavenly nymphs4 #hj4 ,the roarings of the clouds rebounded in the mountainous caverns of the sky1 and the quarters of heaven re-echoed to the same with the hoarse noise of elephants and the roaring of lions and growling of tigers and bears4 #ha4 ,showers of rain fell in floods with drops as big as musalas--malls or mallets1 and with flashes of lightnings threatening as the stern glancings of the god of death4 #hb4 ,huge mists rising at first in the form of vapours of the earth1 and then borne aloft by the heated air into the sky1 seemed like titans to rise from the infernal regions 7and then invade heaven with their gloomy armament74 #hc4 ,the mirage of the warfare ceased after a while2 as the worldly desires subside to rest upon tasting the sweet joys attending on divine knowledge4 #hd4 ,the ground became full of mud and mire and was impassable in every part of it2 and the forces of ,sindhu were overflown by the watery deluge1 like the river ,sinde or the sea4 #he4 ,he then hurled his airy weapon which filled the vault of heaven with winds1 and raged in all their fury like the ,bhairava-,furies on the last day of resurrection4 #hf4 ,the winds blew on all sides of the sky1 with darts falling as thunder bolts1 and hailstones now piercing and then crushing all bodies as by the last blast of nature on the dooms-day4 ,,chapter ,,xlix4 ,,description ,,of ,,other ,,kinds ,,of ,,weapons4 ,then blew the icy winds of winter1 blasting the beauty of the foliage of forest trees1 and shaking and breaking the beautiful arbors1 and covering them with gusts of dust4 #b4 ,then rose the gale whirling the trees like birds flying in the air1 dashing and smashing the soldiers on the ground1 and hurling and breaking the edifices to dust4 #c4 ,this fearful squall blew away ,vidratha and his force1 as a rapid current carries away the broken and rotten fragments of wood4 #d4 ,then ,vidratha who was skilled in ballistics hurled his huge and heavy arrows1 which stretched themselves to the sky1 and withstood the force of the winds and rain4 #e4 ,opposed by these rock-like barriers1 the airy weapons were at a stand still1 as the animal spirits are checked by the firm stoicity of the soul4 #f4 ,the trees which had been blown up by the winds and floating in the breezy air1 now came down and fell upon the dead bodies1 like flocks of crows upon putrid carcasses4 #g4 ,the shouting 7shitkra7 of the city1 the distant hum 7dtkra7 of the village1 the howling 7bhnkra7 of forests1 and the rustling 7utkra7 of the trees1 ceased on all sides like the vain verbiology of men4 #h4 ,sindhu saw burning rocks 7rockets87 falling from above like leaves of trees1 and flying about as the winged ,mainkas or moving rocks of the sea or ,sinde 7sindhu74 #i4 ,he then hurled his thundering weapons1 falling as flaming thunderbolts from heaven1 which burnt the rocks away as the flaming fire destroys the darkness4 #aj4 ,these falling bolts broke the stones with their pointed ends1 and hewed down the heads 7tops7 of the hills1 like a hurricane scattering the fruits of trees on the ground4 #aa4 ,vidratha then darted his ,brahm weapon to quell the thunderbolts1 which jostling against one another1 disappeared in their mutual conflict4 #ab4 ,sindhu then cast his demoniac weapons 7,pischstras7 as black as darkness1 which fled as lines of horrid ,pischa demons on all sides4 #ac4 ,they filled the firmament with the darkness of their bodies1 and made the daylight turn to the shade of night1 as if it were for fear of them4 #ad4 ,they were as stalwart in their figures as huge columns of smoke1 and as dark in their complexion as the blackest pitch1 and tangible by the hand4 #ae4 ,they were as lean skeletons with erect hairs on their heads and bearded faces1 with looks as pale as those of beggars1 and bodies as black as those of the aerial and nocturnal fiends4 #af4 ,they were terrific and like idiots in their looks1 and moved about with bones and skulls in their hands4 ,they were as meagre as churls1 but more cruel than either the sword or thunderbolt4 #ag4 ,the ,pischas lurk about the woods1 bogs and highways1 and pry into empty and open door houses4 ,they hunt about as ghosts in their dark forms1 and fly away as fast as the fleeting lightning4 #ah4 ,they ran and attacked with fury the remaining forces of the enemy1 that stood weaponless in the field1 with their broken and sorrowful hearts4 #ai4 ,frightened to death they stood motionless1 and dropped down their arms and armours1 and stood petrified as if they were demon-struck1 with staring eyes1 open mouths1 and unmoving hands and feet4 #bj4 ,they let fall both their lower and upper garments1 loosened their bowels and slakened their bodies through fear1 and kept shaking as fixed trees by the winds4 #ba4 ,the line of the ,pischas then advanced to frighten ,vidratha out of his wits1 but he had the good sense to understand them as the mere ,mumbo-jumbos of magic4 #bb4 ,he knew the counter charm to fight out the ,pischas from the field1 and employed his charmed weapons against the ,pischa army of his enemy4 #bc4 ,he darted in his ire the ,rpik weapon1 which gave comfort to his own army1 and deluded the ,pischa force of his adversary4 #bd4 ,these ,rpiks flew in the air with erect hairs on their heads2 their terrific eyes were sunk in their sockets1 and their waists and breasts moved as trees with bunches of fruit4 #be4 ,they had past their youth and become old2 and their bodies were bulky and worn out with age2 they had deformed backs and hips1 and protuberant navels and naves4 #bf4 ,they had dark dusky bodies1 and held human skulls in their hands all besmeared with blood4 ,they had bits of half devoured flesh in their mouths1 and pouring out fresh blood from their sides4 #bg4 ,they had a variety of gestures1 motions and contortions of their bodies1 which were as hard as stone1 with wry faces1 crooked backs and twisted legs and limbs4 #bh4 ,some had their faces like those of dogs1 crows1 and owls1 with broad mouths and flat cheek-bones and bellies1 and held human skulls and entrails in their hands4 #bi4 ,they laid hold of the ,pischas as men catch little boys1 and joined with them in one body as their consorts4 7i4e4 ,the ,rpik witches bewitching the demoniac ,pischas1 got the better of them74 #cj4 ,they joined together in dancing and singing with outstretched arms and mouths and eyes1 now joining hand in hand and now pursuing one another in their merry sport4 #ca4 ,they stretched their long tongues from their horrid mouths1 and licked away the blood exuding from the wounds of the dead bodies4 #cb4 ,they plunged in the pool of blood with as much delight1 as if they dived in a pond of ghee1 and scrabbled in the bloody puddle with outstretched arms and feet1 and uplifted ears and nose4 #cc4 ,they rolled and jostled with one another in the puddle of carrion and blood1 and made it swell like the milky ocean when churned by the ,mandara mountain4 #cd4 ,as ,vidratha employed his magic weapon against the magic of ,sindhu1 so he had recourse to others from a sense of his inferiority4 #ce4 ,he darted his ,vetla weapon1 which made the dead bodies1 whether with or without their heads1 to rise up in a body in their ghastly shapes4 #cf4 ,the joint forces of the ,vetlas1 ,pischas and ,rpiks presented a dreadful appearance as that of the ,kavandhas1 and seemed as they were ready to destroy the earth4 #cg4 ,the other monarch was not slow to show his magical skill1 by hurling his ,rkshasa weapon1 which threatened to grasp and devour the three worlds4 #ch4 ,these with their gigantic bodies rose as high as mountains1 and seemed as hellish fiends appearing from the infernal regions in their ghostly forms4 #ci4 ,the ferocious body of the roaring ,rkshasas1 terrified both the gods and demigods 7sursuras71 by their loud martial music and war dance of their headless trunks 7,kavandhas74 #dj4 ,the giddy ,vetlas1 ,yakshas and ,kushmndas1 devoured the fat and flesh of dead bodies as their toast1 and drank the gory blood as their lurid wines in the coarse of their war dance4 #da4 ,the hopping and jumping of the ,kushmndas1 in their war dance in streams of blood1 scattered its crimson particles in the air1 which assembled in the form of a bridge of red evening clouds over the sparkling sea4 ,,chapter ,l4 ,,death ,,of ,,vid,,ratha4 ,vasishtha said3--,as the tide of war was rolling violently with a general massacre on both sides1 the belligerent monarchs thought on the means of saving their own forces from the impending ruin4 #b4 ,the magnanimous ,sindhurja1 who was armed with patience1 called to his mind the ,vaishnava weapon1 which was the greatest of arms and as powerful as ,siva 7,jove7 himself4 #c4 ,no sooner was the ,vaishnava weapon hurled by him with his best judgment 7mantra71 than it emitted a thousand sparks of fire from its flaming blade on all sides4 #d4 ,these sparks enlarged into balls1 as big and bright as to shine like hundreds of suns in the sky1 and others flew as the lengthy shafts of cudgels in the air4 #e4 ,some of them filled the wide field of the firmament with thunderbolts as thick as the blades of grass1 and others overspread the lake of heaven1 with battle axes as a bed of lotuses4 #f4 ,these poured forth showers of pointed arrows spreading as a net-work in the sky1 and darted the sable blades of swords1 scattered as the leaves of trees in the air4 #g4 ,at this time1 the rival king ,vidratha1 sent forth another ,vaishnava weapon for repelling the former1 and removing the reliance of his foe in his foible4 #h4 ,it sent forth a stream of weapons counteracting those of the other1 and overflowing in currents of arrows and pikes1 clubs and axes and missiles of various kinds4 #i4 ,these weapons struggled with and justled against one another4 ,they split the vault of heaven with their clattering1 and cracked like loud thunder claps cleaving the mountain cliffs4 #aj4 ,the arrows pierced the rods and swords1 and the swords hewed down the axes and lances to pieces4 ,the malls and mallets drove the missiles1 and the pikes broke the spears 7saktis74 #aa4 ,the mallets like ,mandara rocks1 broke and drove away the rushing arrows as waves of the sea1 and the resistless swords broke to pieces by striking at the maces4 #ab4 ,the lances revolved like the halo of the moon1 repelling the black sword-blades as darkness1 and the swift missiles flashed as the destructive fires of ,yama4 #ac4 ,the whirling disks were destroying all other weapons2 they stunned the world by their noise1 and broke the mountains by their strokes4 #ad4 ,the clashing weapons were breaking one another in numbers1 and ,vidratha defeated the arms of ,sindhu1 as the steadfast mountain defies the thunders of ,indra4 #ae4 ,the truncheons 7,sankus7 were blowing away the falchions 7asis72 and the spontoons 7slas7 were warding off the stones of the slings4 ,the crow bars 7bhusundis7 broke down the pointed heads of the pikes 7bhindhiplas74 #af4 ,the iron rods of the enemy 7paraslas7 were broken by tridents 7trislas7 of ,siva1 and the hostile arms were falling down by their crushing one another to pieces4 #ag4 ,the clattering shots stopped the course of the heavenly stream1 and the combustion of powder filled the air with smoke4 #ah4 ,the clashing of dashing weapons lightened the sky like lightnings1 their clattering cracked the worlds like thunderclaps1 and their shock split and broke the mountains like thunderbolts4 #ai4 ,thus were the warring weapons breaking one another by their concussion1 and protracting the engagement by their mutual overthrow4 #bj4 ,as ,sindhu was standing still in defiance of the prowess of his adversary1 ,vidratha lifted his own fire-arm1 and fired it with a thundering sound4 #ba4 ,it set the war chariot of ,sindhu on fire like a heap of hay on the plain1 while the ,vaishnava weapons filled the etherial sphere with their meteoric blaze4 #bb4 ,the two ,kings were thus engaged in fierce fighting with each other1 the one darting his weapons like drops of raging rain1 and the other hurling his arms like currents of a deluging river4 #bc4 ,the two ,kings were thus harassing each other like two brave champions in their contest1 when the chariot of ,sindhu was reduced to ashes by its flame4 #bd4 ,he then fled to the woods like a lion from its cavern in the mountain1 and repelled the fire that pursued him by his aqueous weapons4 #be4 ,after losing his car and alighting on the ground1 he brandished his sword and cut off the hoofs and heels of the horses of his enemy's chariot in the twinkling of an eye4 #bf4 ,he hacked every thing that came before him like the lean stalks of lotuses2 when ,vidratha also left his chariot with his asi 7ensis7 in hand4 #bg4 ,both equally brave and compeers to one another in their skill in warfare1 turned about in their rounds1 and scraped their swords into saws by mutual strokes on one another4 #bh4 ,with their denticulated weapons1 they tore the bodies of their enemies like fishes crushed under the teeth1 when ,vidratha dropt down his broken sword1 and darted his javelin against his adversary4 #bi4 ,it fell with a rattling noise on the bosom of ,sindhu 7the king71 as a flaming meteor falls rumbling in the breast of the sea 7,sindhu74 #cj4 ,but the weapon fell back by hitting upon his breast plate1 as a damsel flies back from the embrace of a lover deemed an unfit match for her4 #ca4 ,its shock made ,sindhu throw out a flood of blood from his lungs1 resembling the water spout let out from the trunk of an elephant4 #cb4 ,seeing this1 the native ,ll cried with joy to her sister ,ll3 see here the demon ,sindhu killed by our lion-like husband4 #cc4 ,sindhu is slain by the javelin of our lion-like lord1 like the wicked demon by the nails of the lion-god ,nrisinha1 and he is spouting forth his blood like the stream of water1 thrown out by the trunk of an elephant from a pool4 #cd4 ,but alas6 this ,sindhu is trying to mount on another car1 although bleeding so profusely from his mouth and nostrils1 as to raise a wheezing 7chulchulu7 sound4 #ce4 ,lo there6 our lord ,vidratha breaking down the golden mountings of his car with the blows of his mallet1 as the thundering clouds--,pushkara and varta break down the gold peaks of ,sumeru4 #cf4 ,see this ,sindhu now mounting on another carriage1 which is now brought before him1 and decorated as the splendid seat of a ,gandharva4 #cg4 ,alack6 our lord is now made the mark of ,sindhu's mallet darted as a thunder bolt against him2 but lo6 how he flies off and avoids the deadly blow of ,sindhu4 #ch4 ,huzza6 how nimbly he has got up upon his own car2 but woe is to me6 that ,sindhu has overtaken him in his flight4 #ci4 ,he mounts on his car as a hunter climbs on a tree1 and pierces my husband1 as a bird-catcher does a parrot hidden in its hollow1 with his pointed arrow4 #dj4 ,behold his car is broken down and its flags flung aside2 his horses are hurt and the driver is driven away4 ,his bow is broken and his armour is shattered1 and his whole body is full of wounds4 #da4 ,his strong breast-plate is broken also by slabs of stone and his big head is pierced by pointed arrows4 ,behold him thrown down on earth1 all mangled in blood4 #db4 ,look with what difficulty he is restored to his senses1 and seated in his seat with his arm cut off and bleeding under ,sindhu's sword4 #dc4 ,see him weltering in blood gushing out profusely from his body1 like a rubicund stream issuing from a hill of rubies4 ,woe is me6 and cursed be the sword of ,sindhu that hath brought this misery on us4 #dd4 ,it has severed his thighs as they dissever a tree with a saw1 and has lopped off his legs like the stalks of trees4 #de4 ,ah6 it is ,i that am so struck and wounded and killed by the enemy4 ,i am dead and gone and burnt away with my husband's body4 #df4 ,saying so1 she began to shudder with fear at the woeful sight of her husband's person1 and fell insensible on the ground like a creeper cut off by an axe4 #dg4 ,vidratha though thus mutilated and disabled1 was rising to smite the enemy in his rage1 when he fell down from his car like an uprooted tree1 and was replaced there by his charioteer ready to make his retreat4 #dh4 ,at this instant1 the savage ,sindhu struck a sabre on his neck1 and pursued the car in which the dying monarch was borne back to his tent4 #di4 ,the body of ,padma 7alias ,vidratha71 was placed like a lotus in the presence of ,sarasvat1 shining with the splendour of the sun2 but the elated ,sindhu was kept from entering that abode1 like a giddy fly from a flame4 #ej4 ,the charioteer entered in the apartment1 and placed the body in its death-bed1 all mangled and besmeared with blood1 exuding from the pores of the severed neck1 in the presence of the goddess1 from where the enemy returned to his camp4 7,gloss74 ,here ,padma fighting in the person of ,vidratha1 and falling bravely in the field1 obtained his redemption by his death in the presence of the goddess2 but the savage ,sindhu1 who slew his foiled foe in his retreat1 proved a ruffian in his barbarous act1 and could have no admittance into the presence of the goddess and to his future salvation4 ,,conclusion4 ,the whole vision of ,ll1 like that of ,mirza1 shows the state of human life1 with its various incidents and phases to its last termination by death4 ,it is not so compact and allegorical as that of the western essayist2 but as idle effusions of those ideal reveries or loose vagaries which are characteristic of the wild imagination of eastern rhapsodists4 ,the discontented ,brhmana longs for royal dignity1 imagines to himself all its enjoyments in the person of ,padma1 and sees at last all its evils in the character of ,vidratha2 which serves as a lesson to aspirants from aiming at high worldly honours which end in their destruction4 ,ll by her wisdom sees in her silent meditation1 the whole course and vicissitudes of the world1 and the rise and fall of human glory in the aspirations of her husband4 ,these parables serve to show the nature of ,yoga philosophy to be no other1 than an absolute idealism or mental abstraction1 consisting in the abstract knowledge of all things appertaining to our temporal as well as ,spiritual concerns4 ,the knowledge is derived either by intuition as that of the ,brhmana and ,padma1 or by inspiration like that of the genius of wisdom to her votary ,ll4 ,it may also be had by means of communication with others1 as in the discourse of ,rma and his preceptor2 as also from the attentive perusal of such works as the present one1 treating both of temporal and spiritual subjects1 and reviewing them with the eye of the mind4 ,the ,yogi is said to know all things through the medium of his intellectual eye 7jnna chakshu71 apart from his connection with every thing in the world called nihsanga1 as it is expressed by the ,persian sophist2--8amokhteh ,oniamekhteh az harche hast04--8,knowing and not mixing with all that is40 ,from this view of ,yoga1 it will appear that1 all kinds of knowledge1 whether as it existed among the ancients1 or is in the course of its improvement in modern times1 forms a subject of the ,yoga or meditative philosophy1 which embraces and comprehends in itself a knowledge of all practical arts and sciences1 as the military art and other things treated of in this work4 ,hence it is evident1 that a large fund of learning forms the greatest ,yoga1 and the most learned among men1 were the greatest thinkers or ,yogis amongst mankind in all ages4 ,no rational being therefore can either refrain from thinking1 or employing his mind to the acquisition of knowledge1 both of which are termed ,yoga in ,indian philosophy4 ,but the yogi is commonly believed to be an inspired sage or seer1 viewing all things appearing before him in his dream and vision4 ,these are sometimes retrospective1 and resultants of the vibrations of waking feelings and imagination1 as in the case of the ,brhmana's anticipation of royalty as a coming reality4 ,in many instances they are believed as prospective and prophetic of future events1 as in ,padma's dread of his future life and fate4 ,in ,ll's case however they were 8no dreams but visions strange0 of supernatural sights1 and prophetical of the future state of her husband1 as it was revealed to her by the goddess4 ,but as there are few that rely any faith 8in the baseless fabric of a vision01 they require to be told that the books of revelation in all religions are based upon these dreams and visions1 which are believed to be the outpouring of the ,holy ,spirit into the souls of saints1 in the sacred records of all nations4 ,the holy scriptures furnish us with many texts on the divine origin of dreams and visions as the following4 8,but this is that which was spoken by the prophet ,joel4 ,and it shall come to pass in the last days1 saith ,god4 ,i shall pour out of my spirit upon all flesh1 and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy1 and your young men shall see visions1 and your old men shall dream dreams4 8,and on my servants and on my handmaidens1 ,i will pour out in those days of my spirit1 and they shall prophesy2 8,and ,i will shew wonders1 in heaven above1 and signs in the earth beneath2 blood1 and fire and vapour of smoke3 8,the sun shall be turned into darkness1 and the moon into blood c40 ,the ,book of ,acts1 ,chap ,,ii4 v4 #af-bj4 ,,end ,,of ,,the ,,first ,,volume4 ,,genealogy ,i4 ,kl ,mitra4#bd ,,ii4 ,srdhara ,mitra4 ,,iii4 ,sukti ,mitra4 ,,iv4 ,sauveri ,mitra4 ,v4 ,hari ,mitra4 ,,vi4 ,soma ,mitra4 ,,vii4 ,kesava ,mitra4 ,,viii4 ,mrityunjaya ,mitra4 ,,ix4 ,dhui ,mitra4#be ,x4 ,nspati ,mitra4 ,,xi4 ,lambodara ,mitra ,alias ,kuvera4 ,,xii4 ,parameswara ,mitra4#bf ,,xiii4 ,dnapati ,mitra4 ,,xiv4 ,jayadeva ,mitra4 ,,xv4 ,shashthivara ,mitra4 ,,xvi4 ,srknta ,mitra4 ,,xvii4 ,sivarma ,mitra4 ,,xviii4 ,krishnarma ,mitra4 ,,xix4 ,strma ,mitra4#bg ,,xx4 ,gocula ,chandra ,mitra4 ,,xxi4 ,jagamohana ,mitra4 ,,xxii4 ,rasika ,lla ,mitra ,,xxiii4 ,vihri ,lla ,mitra4 ,,footnotes3 #a ,cicero 8,de senectute40 #b ,kant says3--#8,the pure ,ego is the condition of all consciousness1 the condition of the sum total of experience1 consequently the ,ego is the source from which the universe is to be deduced4' ,again3 8,the thing per se underlying all phenomena1 is one and the same substance with ,ego4 ,we know not wherein the ,ego is different from it4 ,this identity of both is only an affirmation of ,monism1 not of ,idealism40 ,lewis3 ,hist4-,phil4 ,vol4 ,,ii4 pp4 #cef-g4 ,fichte says3--,the ,non-,ego is a product of the ,ego4 ,it is the ,ego which thus creates the necessity for a ,non-,ego and the ,non-,ego wanted4 ,ibid4 p4 #ceh4 #c ,because the visible and destructible bodies could not proceed from the invisible and indestructible essence of ,god1 nor the invisible and indestructible souls of persons1 which are utpanna or produced from the essence of the eternal and infinite spirit1 can have their extinction except in their main source1 when they become instinct in and identic with the supreme spirit4 #d ,the khecar or aerial mode of meditation is said to confer liberation from sickness and acts and the grasp of death4 ,thus2 ,napdyate rogena nacha lipyate karman1 ,bdhyate sa na kalena1 yo mudrm-vetti khecarm4 ,the mode of conducting it is described as follows4 ,kapla kuhare jihv1 pravesit vipartag1 ,bhruvorantargat drishtir1 mudr-bhavati khecar4 #e ,this passage contradicts the belief of his rising and sleeping by turns at the end of each kalpa of the creation and dissolution of the world1 as well as the popular faith of ,hari's1 sayana and ,utthna at the opposite tropics4 #f ,the pre-existent substratum is the ,noumenon underlying all phenomena4 ,it is the support of qualities1 and something in which all accidents inhere4 ,berkeley4 #g ,it contradicts the well known axiom of ,locke1 that1 8it is impossible for the same thing to be and not be at the same time40 #h ,the unknown substance is the known cause1 a spiritual substance--,god4 ,berkeley4 #i ,the venerable ,vasishtha would not raise question 8where is the shadow of a shadow80 7prativimbasya prativambam kutak71 had he known the discoveries of the modern science of ,optics1 and the achievements of photography and phonography1 the refractions of prismatic lens and the vibrations of musical wires4 #aj ,the gods ,brahma1 ,vishnu1 ,siva1 ,sun1 ,indra and all others1 are assimilated into the ,supreme ,spirit in their state of rest4 ,he is beyond all attribute and out of the sphere of the universe1 and is of the form of an immutable ,intellect4 #aa ,the living soul is the creative spirit of ,god1 represented by the divine hypostasis of ,hiranyagarbha or ,demiurgus1 which is dependent on the ,supreme spirit4 #ab ,tanmtra or tat-mtra might be rendered from its affinity as 8that matter10 but the idealistic theory of vednta being opposed to that of the materialistic1 it expresses only the idea and not the matter4 #ac ,the conceptualism of ,europe1 is a doctrine between ,realism and ,nominalism and betwixt ,idealism and ,relationism4 ,the realist says1 universal genera are real and independent existences2 but the nominalist 7like the ,pratyaksvdi7 says that1 things only exist and universals are ,flatus venti-pralpa4 #ad ,note4 ,it is the mind that lengthens time by the quick succession of its thoughts1 and shortens it by its quiescence4 #ae ,this means the demons to have first peopled the borders and skirts of the earth4 ,see ,hesiod4 ,works and ,days4 ,book ,i4 v4 #bjj4 #af ,that the ,meru or ,altain chain in ,scythia1 was the great hive of human race is an undisputed truth in history4 ,so ,moses speaks of the giant race in ,genesis chapter ,,vi4 v4 #b and #d4 8,and there were giants in the earth in those days1 and also after that4 ,and when the sons of ,god saw the daughters of men fair1 they took them to wives1 of all which they chose40 ,and again3 8when the sons of ,god came in unto the daughters of men1 and they bare children to them1 the same became mighty men1 which were of old1 men of renown04 #ag ,the whole of this chapter abounds in onomatopoeian alliterations1 and is more a play upon words than display of sense4 ,it is interesting however1 for these jingling words in the language1 as also for the names of the warlike weapons in use among the ancients4 #ah ,notwithstanding the reward of heavenly abodes promised to the slayer and slain in war1 in the ,sstra and ,koran1 the ,asiatics are far backward now-a-days1 both to kill and to be killed than the ,europeans1 who are forbidden by the ,holy writ1 to slay and shed human blood4 ,thus there is a laxity of the injunction and prohibition on both sides4 #ai ,p4 mujosi ,s4 ,ytudhna1 ,h4 ,jdugar juggler4 #bj ,the battle ground is compared firstly with the sky1 then with the sea1 next with a forest1 and lastly with the last dooms-day4 #ba ,it was easy for the lively ,ll1 to learn about these peoples and their native lands in her lonely ,yoga meditation1 by the help of the goddess of learning2 but it is hard for us to identify them without subjecting ourselves to a long labour of love1 which is a sort of ,yoga also1 called vidya ,yoga1 or intense application and self devotion to learning4 #bb ,note4 ,it is not easy to say1 whether this continuation and lengthy description of the warfare1 is ,vasishtha's or ,vlmki's own making2 both of them being well acquainted with military tactics3 the former having been the general of ,king ,sudsa against the ,persians1 and the latter the epic poet of ,rma's wars with ,rvana in the celebrated ,ramyana4 ,these descriptions are left out in the vernacular translations of this work as entirely useless in ,yoga philosophy1 without minding1 that they formed the preliminary step to ,rma's military education1 which he was soon after called to complete under the guidance of ,viswmitra in the hermitage4 #bc ,i have always thought the ,daivstras or superhuman arms1 described in the ,ramyana and ,mahbhrata epics1 as a display of pyrotechnic contrivances much in use in early warfare4 ,or they may have been some kinds of electric1 hydraulic1 pneumatic and steam engines emitting gusts of fire1 water1 wind and smoke in the field of war4 ,halhead in his ,gentoo ,laws1 tells them to be shot from a kind of cross-bow used by the ,crusadiers of old4 #bd ,he was formerly an inhabitatnt of ,knya ,kubjya1 ,north ,western ,provinces1 ,india4 ,he being invited on an occasion of a ceremony 7yajna7 by disura1 ,rj of ,gour ,bengal1 paid a visit at his court on ,thursday #abth ,kartick 7,october-,november7 ,sakbda #iid 7,tenth-,eleventh ,century ,a4,d471 and on his request he settled there and became the founder of ,gour ,mitra ,family1 at ,maldah in ,bengal4 #be ,baris1 ,twenty four ,pargannahs1 ,district ,alipur1 ,bengal4 #bf ,bli4 ,boro ,pargunah1 ,district ,hugli4 #bg ,bgbzar1 ,calcutta4