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The book “The Supreme Yoga” is the teaching of the sage Vasistha imparted to Sri Rama. It contains true understanding about the creation of the world i.e. the world is nothing but the play of consciousness. the Yoga Vasistha is the greatest help to the spiritual awakening and direct experience of Truth. Vasistha demands direct observation of the mind, its motion, its notions, its reasoning, the assumed cause and the projected result. The book is a translation into English by Swami Venkatesananda of Divine Life Society, Rishikesh India. The article is primarily based on it.
The Yoga Vasistha repeatedly emphasizes that "the mind alone is the creator of the world." Just as a dream creates a complete, diverse world with various beings within the dreamer's mind, so too does the Universal Mind (Brahman) project the entire cosmos, with all its myriad forms and living beings. Individual minds then perceive and experience aspects of this cosmic projection, sometimes adding their own unique mental constructs. Actually, mind is the creator of the world-appearance. Essentially, everything seen is in Pure Consciousness itself whether scene, sight or seer. The diversity is merely a play of consciousness. The diversity arises from Vasana (latent impressions or desires) and Karma (actions and their accumulated effects). Universes are the creations of the desires that arise in the heart, like castles built in the air. Neither the world of matter nor the modes of creation are truly real; yet the living and the dead think and feel they are real. Ignorance of this truth keeps up the appearance. Cosmic Mind: Creator is none other than the cosmic mind. All objects and substances in this universe have emerged in Brahman the absolute, just as waves manifest in the ocean. Infinite numbers of diverse creatures manifest themselves in this cosmic mind and they are then known as diverse Jiva. Desire alone is thereafter the cause of all this. They are naturally good and devoted to good deeds. They reach liberation in a few lifetimes. They are full of the quality of purity and light (sattva). World - The five elements are the seed of the world; and the eternal consciousness is the seed for the elements. As is the seed, so is the fruit (world). Therefore, the world is nothing but Brahman the absolute. In every atom there are worlds within worlds. Just as space does not have a fixed span, time does not have a fixed span either. Just as the world and its creation are mere appearances, a moment and epoch are also imaginary, not real. This world and this creation are nothing but memory, dream, distance and measures of time. Memory is like space, empty. All creation here is the effect of that emptiness – and hence the creation is empty. Neither freedom from sorrow nor realisation of one’s real nature is possible as long as the conviction does not arise in one that the world-appearance is unreal. And this arises when one studies this scripture with diligence. Everything in this world is dependent upon the mind, upon one’s mental attitude. On examination, the mind itself appears to be unreal. But we are bewitched by it. We seem to be running after mirage in the desert to slake our thirst. The world appears real because:
Relative Reality of Appearances: While the diverse creatures appear real to our senses, the Yoga Vasistha states that they are as real as a mirage or a city in the sky. They have no independent existence apart from the mind that conceives them. This doesn't mean they don't exist in our experiential reality, but that their ultimate nature is not solid or separate from consciousness. The difference between the dream world and the waking world is primarily a matter of duration and shared experience, not of fundamental reality. Vasana and Karma as Seeds of Diversity: The diversity arises from Vasana (latent impressions or desires) and Karma (actions and their accumulated effects). These deeply ingrained tendencies in the Cosmic Mind (or individual minds, reflecting the Cosmic Mind) manifest as the various forms and experiences.
In essence: According to the Yoga Vasistha, the diversity of creatures is like the diverse characters and scenarios in a dream or a mental projection. They are "real" within the framework of that projection, but they have no independent existence outside the mind that conceives them. When the "dreamer" (whether individual consciousness or the Cosmic Consciousness) awakens to its true nature, the apparent diversity dissolves into the non-dual reality of pure consciousness, which is the sole substance of everything. The manifold forms are simply the myriad ways in which the One Consciousness expresses or appears to itself The goal of Yoga Vasistha is not to deny our everyday experience or to suggest we live in a hallucination in the pathological sense. Rather, it's to reveal that the ultimate reality of what we perceive as "real" is consciousness itself, and that the perceived solidity and separateness are ultimately superimpositions, like reflections in a mirror or characters in a dream. The world is real as an appearance but not as an independently existing, separate substance.
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The book “The Supreme Yoga” is the teaching of the sage Vasistha imparted to Sri Rama. It contains true understanding about the creation of the world i.e. the world is nothing but the play of consciousness. the Yoga Vasistha is the greatest help to the spiritual awakening and direct experience of Truth. Vasistha demands direct observation of the mind, its motion, its notions, its reasoning, the assumed cause and the projected result. The book is a translation into English by Swami Venkatesananda of Divine Life Society, Rishikesh India. The article is primarily based on it.
Consciousness being infinite and all-pervading, has no birth nor death, nor is it possessed by anyone. It has nothing to gain by ‘living’ as a separate entity, since it is all-pervading. The entire universe is forever non-different from the consciousness that dwells in every atom, even as an ornament is non-different from gold. In reality neither the objective universe, nor the perceiving self, nor perception as such, nor void, nor inertness exists; only one is – cosmic consciousness (Chit). Consciousness or Space is threefold – the infinite space of undivided consciousness, the finite space of divided consciousness and the physical space in which the material worlds exist. The infinite space of undivided consciousness (chida akasa) is that which exists in all, inside and outside, as the pure witness of that which is real and of that which appears to be. The finite space of divided consciousness (chitta akasa) is that which creates the division of time, which pervades all beings, and which is interested in the welfare of all beings. The physical space is that in which the other elements (air, etc.) exist. The latter two are not independent of the first. In fact, the others do not exist. Consciousness energy (chit Shakti) is larger than the universe and yet subtler than minutest atomic particle and therefore invisible. I am the consciousness that exists everywhere like butter in milk, and whose very nature is experiencing. The supreme consciousness alone exists. It is supreme truth, untainted by any impurity, forever in a state of perfect equilibrium and devoid of ego-sense. Once this truth is realised, it shines constantly without setting. “It is this consciousness that is known by various means – Brahman, supreme self, etc. In it there is no division into subject-object and their relationship (knowledge). It is this consciousness alone that is manifest as the mind, intellect and the senses. This world-appearance, too, is but consciousness, apart from which nothing is. Consciousness does not undergo any change: the only apparent change is the illusory appearance, which is illusory and therefore not real! That consciousness is the reality that bestows the individual characteristic on each and every substance in the universe, and though within all and so nearest to all, is far on account of its inaccessibility to the mind and the senses. After the cosmic dissolution and before the next epoch dawned, the entire objective universe was in a state of perfect equilibrium. There then existed the supreme Lod, the eternal unborn, self-effulgent, who is that all and who is omnipotent. From him emerge countless divinities like Lord Vishnu, even as countless rays emerge from sun; from him emerge infinite worlds as ripples arise from the surface of the ocean. Ego-Sense - On account of momentary conceptualisation, the pure consciousness gives rise to the ego-sense (I know). This ego-sense then gives rise to the notions of time and space. Endowed with the energy of the vital air, it then becomes Jiva or the individual. The individual thenceforward follows the dictates of the notions and slips into dense ignorance. Thus is the mind born in conjunction with the ego-sense and the different forms of psychological energy. All these together are known as the ‘ativahika’ body, the subtle body which moves from one plane to another. Various senses (sight, touch, hearing, taste and smell) are known as the puryastaka and in their subtle state they are also known as the atvahika body. Pure consciousness which is not affected by the illusory perception of the diverse of creation. Consciousness - It is infinite consciousness that is perceived by the ignorant as the universe. Just as a whole city exists within dreamer, the three worlds exist in a small atom. In that infinite consciousness there are countless universes which do not know of one another’s existence. Within every atom is the potential experience of every kind. Therefore, give up all your notions of diversity or unity. Time, space, action (or motion) and matter are all different aspects of the one infinite consciousness. the rare few realise that the world-appearance seen within themselves is illusory, except as the one infinite consciousness which alone is ever true. That state which endures is known as the waking state; and that which is transient is the dream state. During the period of even the dream, it takes on the characteristics of the waking state; and when the waking state is realised to be a fleeting nature, it gets the characteristic of dream. The two are the same. That consciousness which is awake even in deep sleep and which is also the light that shines in waking and dreaming, is the transcendental consciousness, truiya. It is only when the mind has become devoid of all attachment, when it is not swayed by the pairs of opposites, when it is not attracted by objects and when it is totally independent of all supports, that it is freed from the cage of delusion. When all doubt comes to rest and when there is neither elation nor depression, then the mind shines like the full moon. When there is cessation of the flow of the life-breath, the consciousness of the individual becomes utterly passive. Consciousness is pure, eternal and infinite: it does not arise nor cease to be. It is ever there in the moving unmoving creatures, in the sky, on the mountain and in fire and air. When the life-breath ceases, the body is said to ‘dead or inert’. The life-breath returns to its source – air – and consciousness freed from memory and tendencies remain as the self. That atomic ethereal particle which is possessed of these memories and tendencies is known as Jiva: and it remains there itself, in the space where the dead body is. When that intelligence, which is part of the infinite consciousness, fancied itself to be a tree, it becomes a tree; or a rock, it becomes a rock; or grass, it becomes a grass. There is no distinction between the sentient and the insentient, between the intelligent and the inert: there is no difference at all in the essence of substances, for the infinite consciousness is present everywhere equally. In the infinite ocean of consciousness, whirlpools known as the three worlds arise spontaneously and naturally, even so whirlpools are caused by the very nature of the running water. Because this consciousness is beyond the reach of the mind and senses, it seems to be void; but since it can be known as self-knowledge, it is not a void. On account of the indivisibility of consciousness, I am you and you are me; but the indivisible consciousness itself has become neither I or You. When the wrong notions of ‘you’ and ‘I’ are given up, there arises the awareness that there is neither you nor I, nor everything; perhaps it alone is everything. It is the eternal light which shines in the sun, the moon and the fire, but independent of them. There is no world independent of the consciousness. as long as one sees the bracelet, it is not seen as gold; but when it is seen that ‘bracelet’ is just a word and not the reality, then gold is seen. Even so, when the world is assumed to be real, the self is not seen: but when this assumption is discarded, consciousness is realised. Self - Self is subtler that even space, since it has no name and cannot be described; and neither the mind nor the senses can reach it or comprehend it. It is pure consciousness. the entire universe exists in the consciousness that is atomic, even as a tree exists within seed: then the universe exists as consciousness and does not exist as the universe. That consciousness exists, however, because such is the experience of all, and since it alone is the self of all. Since it is, all else is. That self is empty like space; but it is not nothingness, since it is consciousness. it is: yet because it cannot be experienced by the mind and senses, it is not. It being the self of all. The self, being infinite, moves not through moving, and yet is forever established in every atom of existence. The self does not go nor does it ever come: for space and time derive their meaning from consciousness alone. Where can the self-go when all that is, is within it? If a pot is taken from one place to another the space within does not move from one place to another, for everything is forever in space. The light of self-knowledge alone illumines all experiences. It shines by its own light. Indeed, all this infinite consciousness alone is all this: and all the hands and eyes are its own, though being extremely subtle, it has no limbs. Though the self is neither the doer of actions nor the experiencer of experiences, it is the doer of all actions and the experiencer of all experiences: there is nothing apart from it. Within the atom of infinite consciousness, the doer-ship and the experiencer are inherent. Manifestation of Consciousness - One can say that this world appearance is real only so far as it is the manifestation of consciousness and because of direct experience; and it is unreal when it is grasped with the mind and the sense organs. In the mirror of infinite consciousness are seen countless reflections which constitute the appearance of the world. These are the Jiva. Jiva is like unto just a little agitation on the surface of the ocean of Brahman; or just a little movement of the flame of a candle in a windless room. Consciousness, when it is fed by tendencies and memories, condenses into egotism – ‘I’-ness. This I-ness is not a solid reality; but the Jiva sees it as real, like the blueness of the sky. When the egotism begins to entertain its own notions it gives rise to the mind-stuff, the concept of an independent and separate Jiva, mind, Maya or cosmic illusion, cosmic nature etc. Creation (of mind) is but agitation of consciousness; and the world exists in the mind. One Brahman appears to be many. When one contemplates the unreality of this diversity he is freed from sorrow. The world-appearance is the waking state of consciousness; egotism is the dreaming state; the mind-stuff is the deep sleep state; and pure consciousness is the fourth state or uncontradicted truth. Beyond even this fourth state there is absolute purity of consciousness. One who is established in it goes beyond sorrow. The vibration in the infinite consciousness is not different from that consciousness itself. From that vibration, just as the Jiva becomes manifest, even so from the Jiva the mind becomes manifest because the Jiva thinks. The mind itself entertains the notions of the five elements and it transforms itself into these elements. Whatever the mind thinks of, that alone it sees. After this, one by one the Jiva acquires the sense organs – the tongue, the eyes, the nose, the sense of touch etc. In this there is no causal connection between the mind and senses, but there is the coincidence of the thought and of the manifestation of the sense organs. The impure is the cause of birth; the pure liberates one from the birth. Both Work (Self-efforts) and Knowledge (Self-Knowledge) together lead to the supreme goal of liberation. The self-effort, neither fate nor a god’s order, is responsible for whatever man gets here. There are four gate-keepers at the entrance to the realm of freedom (Moksha). They are self-spirit, spirit of enquiry, contentment and good company.
The Yoga Vasistha, a profound spiritual text in Advaita Vedanta, outlines a progressive path to self-realization through what are known as the Seven Jnana Bhumika (stages of wisdom or knowledge). These stages describe the inner journey of a spiritual seeker towards liberation (Jivanmukta). Seven Steps of Self-Realization as per Yoga Vasistha:
These stages represent a progressive refinement of consciousness, leading from intellectual understanding to direct, experiential realization of the supreme truth. The Yoga Vasistha emphasizes self-effort, inquiry, and the guidance of a wise teacher as crucial elements in this journey. From Duality to Unity - Spiritual traditions, particularly Advaita Vedanta and various forms of Yoga refer to a fundamental shift in perception and identity, moving from seeing oneself as a separate individual in a material world to recognizing oneself as one with the underlying, all-pervading Universal Consciousness (Brahman, God, the Absolute, etc.). This process often involves overcoming what is known as Maya – the cosmic illusion that makes the diverse, phenomenal world appear real and separate from the ultimate reality. Key Principles - 1. Understanding the Nature of "World Appearance" (Maya) -
This "graduation" is not an intellectual exercise but a deep, experiential realization. It typically involves a combination of practices:
The Process is Gradual (usually): While sudden awakenings (like that of Ramana Maharshi) do occur, for most, the "graduation" is a gradual unfolding, often described in stages like the Yoga Vasistha's Seven Jnana Bhumikas. It involves persistent practice, self-observation, and a willingness to let go of deeply ingrained beliefs and identifications. Ultimately, graduating from world appearance to universal consciousness is the journey of remembering what you already are. It's not about acquiring something new, but about removing the veils that obscure the ever-present, infinite reality of your true Self. The book “The Supreme Yoga” is the teaching of the sage Vasistha imparted to Sri Rama. It contains true understanding about the creation of the world i.e. the world is nothing but the play of consciousness. the Yoga Vasistha is the greatest help to the spiritual awakening and direct experience of Truth. Vasistha demands direct observation of the mind, its motion, its notions, its reasoning, the assumed cause and the projected result. The book is a translation into English by Swami Venkatesananda of Divine Life Society, Rishikesh India. The article is primarily based on it.
All enjoyments in this world are delusion. All the hopes of man in this world are consistently destroyed by time. Time alone creates innumerable universes and in a very short time, Time destroys everything. All beings in this world take birth but to die, and they die to be born; these phenomena are the roots of suffering and sin. Egotism is the sole cause of mental distress. Egotism eclipses self-control, destroys virtue and dissipates equanimity. Non-egotism alone is truth. The notion ‘I am’ is the source of all distress. The absence of such a feeling is perfection. Realise ‘I am not that ego-sense’ and rest in pure awareness. When such pure awareness arises, all notions subside. When the ego-sense is non-existent, where is samsara (the cycle of birth and death)? When thus samsara does not exist, the supreme being alone remains. Egotism promotes cravings; without it they perish. Craving is the root of sorrow. The cravings dry up the good and noble qualities of the mind and heart, like sweetness and gentleness of disposition, and makes hard and cruel. Man is caught in the wheel of craving. The characteristic of this craving is that it has no direction. Despite eyes, it makes blind; despite full of joy, it makes miserable. One should abandon craving for pleasures (those that have been experienced in the past and others that have not yet been experienced but for which one craves) and thus gradually weaken the mind by the abandonment of taste for them. By the cultivation of the false relationship with what is not self (the body and those related to it such as wife, son, family etc.) the mind becomes gross. The notions of “I” and “mine” make the mind dense and ignorant. This is further aggravated by old age, sorrow, ambitions, psychological distress, efforts to acquire and to abandon, attachments, greed, lust for wealth and sex and by the enjoyment of sense-pleasures, all of which are based on ignorance and delusion. Neither in childhood nor in youth nor in old age does one enjoy any happiness. He is happy who is free from egotism and who is not swayed by craving for sense-pleasure. Even though the busy overcomes all his earthy enemies and surrounds himself with wealth and luxury, and even when he boasts that he is happy, death creeps in upon him. Renounce everything. “By ‘total’ is meant only the mind, for mind is the all. Renunciation of the mind is total renunciation”. Mind is the “I”. the ego-sense that arises within you is the mind. The relationship between the mind and prana is that of a rider and the vehicle. When the mind and the prana function in harmony, the person engages himself in various activities. When there is disturbance there is disharmony. When both are at rest there is sleep. When the Nadi are clogged by food or when there is weakness of fatigue, there is sleep, because the prana is unable to move properly. Body - This tree which is the body is born in the forest known as Samsara, the restless monkey (mind) plays on it, it is the abode of worries, it is constantly eaten by the insects (of endless sufferings), it shelters the venomous serpents (of cravings), and the wild crow (of anger) dwells on it. On it are the flowers (of laughter), its fruits are good and evil, it appears to be animated by the wind (of life force), it supports the birds (of senses), it is resorted to be the traveller (lust or desire) for it provides the shade of pleasure, the formidable vulture (egotism) is seated on it and it is hollow and empty. It is certainly not meant to promote happiness. This body is home of illness, the field of mental distress and changing emotions and mental states. Unmindful of old age and death that are common to the rich and the poor, it seeks wealth and power. This body passes through childhood, youth and old age. Helplessness, mishaps, inability, to express oneself, utter foolishness, playfulness, instability, weakness – all these characterise childhood. The child is easily offended, easily roused to anger, easily bursts into tears. He is at the mercy of others. Though the child may appear to be innocent, the truth is that all sorts of defects, sinful tendencies and neurotic behaviour lie hidden and dormant in it. The child’s mind is extremely restless which is the cause of unhappiness. Leaving the period of childhood behind, the human being goes to the stage of youth, but he is unable to leave the unhappiness behind. Rather he progresses from misery to greater misery and embraces the terrible goblin known as lust that resides in his heart. His life is full of desire and anxiety. Though youthfulness appears to be very desirable to the body, it is destructive to the mind. In youth, the man is tempted by the mirage of happiness and in its pursuit, he falls into the well of sorrow. Alas, even when youth is about to leave the body, the passions that had been aroused by the youth burn the more fiercely and bring about one’s quick destruction. In his youth, man is a slave of sexual attraction. Very soon the very flesh that contributed to the attractiveness, the charm and the beauty of the beloved is transformed first into the shrivelled ugliness of the old age, and later consumed by fire, or by worms, or by vultures. Roots of Suffering – Ignorant of the truth, we aimlessly wandering in this dense forest called the world. Equally useless is wealth which deludes the ignorant. Wealth gives birth to numerous worries and generates an insatiable craving for more. Both the good and the wicked can become wealthy. Wealth and happiness do not dwell together. Rare is that wealthy man who does not have rivals.
No-Mind State - All beings in this world are tainted with evil; all relationships are bondage; all enjoyments are great diseases; and desire for happiness is only mirage. One’s own senses are one’s enemies; one’s own mind has become one’s worst enemy. All these phenomena seem to have a transient reality, like dream experiences, visions in the state of delirium, hallucinations of a drunkard, optical illusions, psychosomatic illness, emotional disturbances and psychotic states. Lover suffers from the very imagination of his beloved’s separation. But, of course, this is not your fault; it is my fault that I still cling to the notion that you, my mind, are a real entity. When I realise that all these are illusory appearances, then you will become no-mind and all the memories of sense-experiences, etc. will come to an end. When the mind perceives the body as distinct from it, abandons its own conditioning (the concepts) and recognises its own transient nature, it is victorious. The mind gives birth to the body through its own thought-force and throughout the body’s life-time the mind feeds it with its (the mind’s) own sorrow. Thus, tortured by sorrow the body wishes to destroy the mind, its own parent! There is no friend nor enemy in the world; that which gives us pleasure is considered our friend and that which causes pain is our enemy! The body tries every day (in deep sleep) to destroy the mind. However, until self-knowledge is attained, one unwittingly promotes the strength of the other and they seem to function together for a common purpose – even as water and fire, though opposed to each other, work together for a common cause (e.g. cooking). One should strive to kill the mind. On account of the modification (thought), this consciousness is apparently veiled and is not realised. It is this self or consciousness that activates the mind even as wind rustles at leaves; it makes the senses function as the rider guides the horse. Alas, on account of your identification with the embodiment, you O self-had, as it were, forgotten your own nature. Hence, you had to undergo endless suffering in repeated births, experiencing external perceptions without self-knowledge. You (self) dwell in ‘me’ in a state of equilibrium, as pure witness consciousness, without form and without the divisions of space and time. He is fit to die who is sunk in ignorance and sorrow. Living is appropriate to one whose mind is well controlled by his self-knowledge and who is aware of the truth. He should live who does not entertain notions of egoism and who is unattached to anything, who is free from likes and dislikes and has a calm mind, whose mind has reached the state of no-mind. Self-Knowledge - Where there is self-knowledge there is neither mind nor the senses, nor the tendencies and habits (the concepts and precepts). The mind, body and senses are playthings. Purity, total fulfilment of all desires (hence, their absence), friendliness to all, truthfulness, wisdom, tranquillity and blissfulness, sweetness of speech, supreme magnanimity, lustrousness, one pointedness, realisation of cosmic unity, fearlessness, absence of divided consciousness, non-perversity – these are my constant companions. The holy word OM which bestows the highest state. He intoned OM in such a way that is vibrations filled his while being right up to the crown of his head.
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