Friday, May 31, 2013

The Yoga Vasishta in Poem (Chapter Six) -15




























THE YOGA VASISTHA
IN POEM
CHAPTER Six

By Swami Suryadevananda





The Third State of Yoga



Non-attachment heralds the third state
Freedom comes with non-attachment
One simply leaves the past without effort
Like taking off a coat as it gets warmer



He resorts to seclusion and solitude
Inwardly and perhaps outwardly as well
Striving to understand the mind's chaos
Attention's flame restores inward order



Virtuous conduct becomes natural to him
The old ways are not even a choice at all
Virtue's gift is inner strength to face the light
With nary a glance in the rearview mirror



One feels he is neither doer nor enjoyer
Does not afflict others and is unafflicted
All past momentum towards facing the light
Joins present effort as helping hands



He rises free above all mental distress
Physical illnesses too are taken in stride
He sees change brought about by time only
Practicing non-attachment, freedom is gained



Diligence in treading the yoga path
Resorting to good and holy company
Avoiding those who prefer worldliness
Steady on the path without compromise



Steady on the path and ever vigilant
One realizes the supreme in the heart
Essence of truth, beyond samsara
Doership and its limitation fall away



He abandons vain and meaningless words
Abiding in unbroken inner quietude
This is beyond mere absence of speech
Inner quietude is mental silence



Superior to non-attachment and freedom
Dependency has been long abandoned
He shines like supportless, limitless space
Enjoying peace, contentment and self-inquiry



Focus on the First to the Third States



The first state of yoga just presents itself
You can call it accidental coincidence
If one has lived a pure and virtuous life
The first state comes upon one suddenly



Like a runner's second wind is the first
One has to be prepared for at every moment
Seizing the opportunity—great momentum itself
A tremendous loss if unready or unwilling



If one does not seize the first's momentum
The steps beyond will not be seen
Seizing and nurturing the first precious gift
Will gain one entry to the second—self-inquiry



Inquiry must be practiced diligently
Not something you do when convenient
An inner revolution must be brought about
Every thought is scrutinized with impartiality



Freedom's gates are not for the careless
The faint at heart need not apply at all
Fearlessness tempered with genuine humility
Perseverance to the end—regardless the path


After many lives comes the first state
Suddenly, seeming quite accidental
Till then one revolves in samsara's wheel
Dispassion's sudden rising points a way out



Fan the spark of dispassion to flame
Or it will extinguish and great be the loss
You'll return back to samsara's spokes
Grinding and being ground all over again



Perfect practice is not important at first
Detailed orientation destroys the spirit
Even imperfect practice if sincere
Will perfect itself in sincerity's flames



Steady in sincere practice if one departs
It is said one will return to continue again
In more favorable conditions than before
Till gradually one ascends the highest rung



The first three are known as waking states
In them, there's no division in consciousness
As sattva, purity or holiness grow within
One moves from the first to the third state



Diligent practice on and off the mat
Your life must be aspiration's testimony
For ignorance to be destroyed in the heart
The flames of wisdom must ever burn



The Fourth State of Yoga



Mind's divisionlessness heralds the fourth
The mind is now free from all division
Unity is unceasing, unbroken and steady
One sees this world just as a dream



The Fifth State of Yoga



Established in non-division heralds the fifth
Hence it is likened to the deep-sleep state
Though engaged in diverse activities
The yogi rests in himself unmoved



The Sixth State of Yoga



Moving through states, turiya is reached
This is the sixth, a glorious state
One transcends real, unreal and ego
Ignorance's fuel has run completely dry



Like a lamp without fuel is the yogi
Empty and yet full within
All doubts have been laid to rest
The yogi rests in himself as himself



The Seventh State of Yoga



Words cannot describe this seventh state
Though many attempts have been made
All words fall short so best to just say
They are known as disembodied and liberated



Vasistha's Instructions



Those who practice this supreme yoga
Ascending the seven steps diligently
Come to no harm or grief or incur loss
Putting the mad elephant mind to rest



This elephant is intoxicated by desires
Completely maddened by sensuousness
Restless, driven by its own conditioning
This elephant destroys everything everywhere



The mad elephant mind has to be slain
With the weapon of courage and determination
Born of the realization of existing oneness
Or it will subject you to repeated suffering



This mad elephant mind is samsara
The feeling, 'this is…' about everything
Its death is moksha or liberation
This is the essence of jnana or wisdom



Abandon all thoughts concerning the past
Abandon hopes about the future too
These ropes will bind you to suffering
Samsara is not outside but self-sustained


I declare with uplifted arms again and again
The thought-free, notionless state is best
Infinitely superior to world sovereignty
A mind free of thought is the best yoga



Remain established in this yoga state
Do actions that feel appropriate to you
Or, you can chose to do nothing at all
For when thoughts cease—sorrow ceases



Knowing all about this supreme yoga
Do as you please, it is your choice
The thought-free, notionless state is best
A mind free of thought is the best yoga



Valmiki to Bharadvaja



Having heard the quintessence of wisdom
Rama remained absorbed in meditation
All questions ceased, realization blossomed
He became established in the highest state



Thus I've narrated to you in full
The dialogue between Rama and Vasistha
Consider it well and do as you will
For it is also my instruction to you



There's no division in consciousness
Just how can the world seem separate
Waking and dream are creation's parts
Enlightenment is characterized by pure light



Beginningless false self-limitation
Makes the unreal appear very real
This generates tremendous confusion
Only because you have not inquired



Who tells you to go along with the flow
You have inner intelligence—awaken it
Empower it—the way out will be seen
Exert, make self-effort and go beyond



Delusion is an accepted weakness
Taking the path of least resistance
Why swallow the poison of self-limitation
And endure the results of conditioning



This delusion continues till you reach
The feet of those who have overcome
Seek right knowledge from these sages
And exert relentlessly in yoga’s path



What did not exist in the beginning
Cannot exist now, think about this
Something cannot come from nothing
The absolute is the only reality



All appears and disappears in the infinite
The ocean of samsara is ignorance
The notion of 'I' is self-limitation
Generating mineness, attraction and repulsion



When these notions take root within
One falls prey to endless calamities and grief
Dive deep into the existing inner peace
Never into turbulent waters of diversity



Self alone is the only reality
Why get lost in false notions
Truth is simple, it is just One
Why complicate by standing apart



Reject all theories about creation
They are stories for the childish only
Meant to entertain the foolish and ignorant
The enlightened abide in the unchanging



Bharadvaja to Valmiki




Lord, I'm free now from the subtle body
Swimming in the ocean of bliss
I am the indivisible supreme self
Possessing consciousness and unconsciousness



As fire thrown into fire becomes fire
The insentient when offered to consciousness
Becomes indistinguishably one with it
Abandoning any hint or trace of separateness



I have entered into infinite consciousness
I am that supreme Brahman—eternal
Omnipresent, pure, peaceful and indivisible
Devoid of any form of scattering at all



The source of this vast universe am I
Light of lights, one without a second
Thus should one vehemently assert
It will alleviate mind's pointless agitation  



When the mind's movement ceases
The self shines brightly by its own light
In that light sorrow comes to end
The self experiences its bliss—that's all




There is direct awareness of the self
None other but the self exists
O master, your instruction has awakened me
World-appearance does not seem real at all




Just what do men of self-knowledge do
Do they have any duties or none at all
Pray, please instruct me further
Kindly accept my respectful obeisance



Valmiki to Bharadvaja




Those desiring freedom from samsara
Should engage themselves in right action
Free from defects of selfishness and sin
Till the mind is free of all its qualities



It then takes on qualities of the infinite
The individual no longer is an individual
One realizes he is beyond individuality
All beings and things are the self only



Through all states including the highest
One ever abides in infinite consciousness
Immersed in the nectar of pure bliss
Never again wet at diversity's shores



I have narrated to you in full
The supreme yoga of sage Vasistha
Steady your mind by diligent practice
You will in time realize everything



Valmiki's Closing Comments



Seeing Rama ever absorbed in the self
Sage Vishvamitra requested of sage Vasistha
To bring Rama back to normal consciousness
As there was important work to be done by him



After telling the assembly gathered
That Rama was godhead incarnate
He was here for the welfare of all beings
And brought him out of deep meditation



Vasistha to Rama



O Rama, this is not the time to rest
Get up and bring joy to the world
People are still in bondage here
It is not proper to continue absorbed



Rama to Vasistha



Rama awoke from deep meditation
Placing his head at Vasistha's feet
"There is nothing I should or should not do
But, thy word will be always honored"



Valmiki Closes



Thus I have told you Rama's story
By this practice attain supreme bliss
He who studies this most diligently
Will attain Brahman and be liberated



End of Chapter VI
 





Om Tat Sat
                                                        
(End of Chapter Six) 



( My humble salutations to H H Sri Swami  Suryadevananda ji and H H Sri Swami Venkatesananda ji for the collection)


Thursday, May 30, 2013

The Yoga Vasishta in Poem (Chapter Six) -14





























THE YOGA VASISTHA
IN POEM
CHAPTER Six

By Swami Suryadevananda




18. THE STORY OF BHRINGISA
Background


Bhringisa once approached Lord Siva
For a way out of delusion and bondage
Siva gave this advice to Bhringisa
By which he attained total freedom



Give up doubts, resort to moral courage
Be a supreme doer of actions
A supreme enjoyer of delight
And, a supreme renouncer of all



Be a Great Doer



Be free of all doubt and confusion
Do what is appropriate in each situation
Natural action does not depend upon
Whether others consider it right or wrong



Do not be swayed by likes and dislikes
Success, failure, gain, ambition or greed
Remain steady in silence and purity
Unattached, without any selfish motive



Be a witness to all and everything
Do what needs to be done with full heart
Indifferent to how things may turn out
Do the best without any attachment



Act with a mind completely at peace
Steady, without excitement or exultation
Do the best in each situation afresh
In perfect equilibrium all the while you act



Be a Great Enjoyer



Free from hate or any longing
Enjoy what comes along naturally
Without clinging or rejecting
Even while engaged in action



Without experience though experiencing
Witness of world-play though unaffected
With mind balanced in pleasure and pain
These come naturally in the course of life



Free from natural changes that occur
Reactions to change cause confusion
Find joy in misfortune, poverty and calamity
In old age and death too—all natural changes


Be non-violent and an abode of virtue
Enjoy sweet and bitter with equal relish
Avoid completely all arbitrary distinctions
Enjoy each moment as it comes naturally



Be a Great Renouncer



Banish from your mind all concepts
Ideas of what is right and wrong too
What is considered pain and pleasure
Desires, doubts and all convictions too



See falsity in the experience of pain
By realizing that you are not the body
Abandon completely from the heart
The idea of world-appearance as reality



Vasistha's Comments



Thus did Siva instruct Bhringisa
Who then became enlightened
Adopt this very attitude yourself
And transcend sorrow completely



19. THE STORY OF IKSVAKU

When the Ego-Sense Dissolves



When the ego-sense dissolves in the mind
Such a mind is free of greed and delusion
No provocation can shake the virtue
Of he who delights in the true welfare of all



Conditioning and tendencies are undone
Anger does not surge uncontrollably
Desires just do not reside within
The senses function in perfect balance



Pleasure and pain come and go
Without disturbing the inner storefront
The heart regards these as insignificant
And rests in peace and equanimity



All these virtues reside naturally in him
Effortlessly he glides through all action
Responding to situations best as they come
Without personal agenda, confusion or pain



He who ignores self-knowledge's path
Which is within reach of all, in every condition
Abandons his highest good and supreme peace
Choosing to continue in samsara's wheel



Iksvaku, your Ancestor



Your own ancestor, the king Iksvaku
Pondered deeply while ruling as king
The way out of suffering once and for all
And sought instruction from his father



Manu's Instructions



His wise father, having attained the supreme
Instructed him thus: listen attentively
"What you see here does not exist
Beyond the senses, nothing is seen



The eternal and infinite self alone exists
The universe you see reflects within it
Because energy is inherent in consciousness
Everything appears alive and most real



There is neither bondage nor liberation
One infinite consciousness alone exists
Abandon notions of bondage and liberation
Abide in the self and rest in peace



The actions of one of self-knowledge
Are non-volitional, never motivated
Hence he is free of their merit
Beyond praise and censure is he



He is not agitated by others at all
He himself does not agitate anyone
The self isn't attained by rites or rituals
Only by worship of sages who've attained



Vasistha's Insight



Thus instructed Iksvaku was enlightened
You too should adopt such an attitude
The ignorant are dazzled by cheap tricks
Cheap shows put on by two-bit imposters



Psychic ability is not holiness's sign
Only purity of mind and craving's absence
Absence of confusion and delusion
These are real characteristics of the holy



When samsara has come to an end in one
He is free from confusion and delusion
Lust, anger, grief, greed and attachment
These are totally absent in the enlightened



The Lord assumes individuality as jivas
Creation arises in Him spontaneously
Individuals too arise without reason
Individual actions bring bondage, not other



Pleasure and pain come by our choices
Limitations are they in one's understanding
Resulting in actions that are solely individual
Inviting consequences of wrong understanding



Existing notions are the cause of bondage
Absence of all notions is itself liberation
Why do you harbor such painful seeds
Abandon all notions for your own welfare



The ropes of attraction bind the careless
You are free if attraction does not attract
You can still enjoy natural pleasures as they come
Without attraction which craves and binds



Do what has to be done, as it comes
With full heart, mind and energy
Avoid all personal interests—poisons all
Bringing untold suffering and increased delusion



All notions exist in the mind
Conquer the mind by the mind
Purify the mind by the mind
Destroy the mind by the mind



A washerman washes dirt with dirt
A thorn is removed by another thorn
Poison is the antidote for poison
Resort to the all—letting go of the small



Resort to pure unmodified consciousness
The supreme reality, the cosmic being
Remain ever firmly established in it
Resolutely and firmly rejecting all else



20. THE HUNTER AND THE DEER
The State of Turiya



That pure and equanimous state
Devoid of ego and non-ego too
Beyond real and unreal as well
Is a free fourth state called turiya



'Tis the state of liberated sages
Unbroken witness consciousness
Different from waking and dream
Both characterized by thought movement



'Tis different from deep sleep too
Characterized by inertia and ignorance
When the ego-sense is fully abandoned
Turiya manifests in that equilibrium



Hear now a story in this regard
It will bring out subtle points very well
If you hear it with rapt attention
You will certainly become enlightened


The Hunter and the Deer



In a certain forest there lived a sage
He shone with extraordinary radiance
A hunter once approached to ask
If he had seen a wounded deer recently



The sage replied to the hunter thus:
"Only holy men dwell in this forest
Our nature is peace, free from ego-sense
Ego-sense being the cause of restlessness



This ego-sense and its activating mind
Have come to a rest in us forest sages
We do not know what you're alluding to
In us, objects as such just do not exist"


Vasistha's Insight


The hunter could not understand at all
What the radiant sage was referring to
He went his way nodding his head
The sage was firmly established in turiya



There is naught but this glorious state
Turiya, unmodified consciousness alone exists
Waking, dream and sleep are in the mind
When they cease—the mind too ceases to be



The pure state that is—continues to be
This glorious state the yogis try to reach
This is the conclusion of all scriptures
Brahman alone exists—there is naught else



Some call it void, some consciousness
Others still call it the supreme Lord
Arguing foolishly among themselves
Abandon all these notions completely



Rest in nirvana without thought movement
With mind greatly weakened and at peace
The inner intelligence now fully awakened
Abide in the self, the eternal and infinite



Inwardly abandon, relinquish everything
Externally engage yourself in right action
The mind is happiness and unhappiness
Not objects, people or any conditions


Remain eternally aware of the mind
Unaffected by attraction and repulsion
By just this much self-effort you'll achieve
Freedom from samsara's grip completely



Be unaware of pleasure and pain too
And even that which lies in between
You'll rise beyond sorrow and limitation
This self-effort will take you to the infinite


21. THE SEVEN STATES OF YOGA
Background



Some accept world-appearance as reality
They bind themselves by attraction
Others who question world-appearance
Strive to know the truth by direct experience



The latter are seekers, they seek the truth
Not answers, explanations or vain theories
Dispassion naturally arises in seekers
As they seek truth, not passing pleasures



Truth is enduring, never at the mercy of change
But passing pleasures ever are
The seeker finds strength in the changeless
Those after pleasure must stay in pursuit



The First State of Yoga



When one is disinterested in passing pleasures
Seeing the defects in pursuing the sought
One faces the unchanging with all being
The seed of inner change flowers into dispassion



One is afraid to sin or cause anyone hurt
Knowing truth deep in heart—'one alone is'
He has set foot on the first state of yoga
And is devoted to the service of holy ones



With scriptures he engages in self-study
One thought fills his mind at all times
"Just how to cross samsara's ocean"
He alone is a seeker, others are still selfish



The Second State of Yoga



Inquiry's beginning heralds the second state
He now resorts to the company of holy ones
He seeks to understand the way, the path
The means of yoga for the other shore



He knows well what is to be done
And also knows what is not to be done
The blossoming of this inner clarity
Leaves no doubt about any decision



If there is still faltering in decision
Understand wisdom has not as yet dawned
Intellectual understanding is but ignorance
Concepts are impotent to empower change



He earnestly learns the yoga way
To discover the underlying unity
Sincere, humble, with unwavering dedication—
Inner flowering has begun






Om Tat Sat
                                                        
(Continued...) 


( My humble salutations to H H Sri Swami  Suryadevananda ji and H H Sri Swami Venkatesananda ji for the collection)