Spiritual Stories by Ramana

[Guest guest]

Yoga Vasishtam

 

Yoga Vasishta is a dialogue between Sage Vasishta and Sri Rama

during which advaita is expounded illustrated profusely with

stories. Sri Bhagavan referred to Yoga Vasishta frequently and

has even incorporated nine verses from it, in his Supplement to

Forty Verses.

 

BRAHMA, THE CREATOR

 

In the course of a conversation a devotee queried, “In Vasishtam it is

stated that everything comes upon a person by the desires of the mind

and that it is the mind that creates them all. But how is it possible,

Bhagavan?†“You ask how! Is this not stated in the story about the ten

brahmins? That story is also in the Vasishtam,†said Bhagavan. When

asked about it, Sri Bhagavan cheerfully began telling the devotees the

story.

 

ONCE UPON A time Brahma, the creator, after performing his duties the

whole day, went to sleep at nightfall. When the night was over, he

woke up. After completing his morning ablutions, he looked at the sky

before beginning his day’s work of creation, and he saw that there

were several other worlds. His work of creation was being performed

properly so there was no justification for the other worlds to come

into existence.

 

“What! The worlds that should remain dormant until I created them have

come into existence! How have these worlds come into existence?â€

Greatly surprised at this, with the power of his mind he summoned one

of the suns in those worlds and asked “Sir, how have these worlds come

into existence?†The sun replied, “Oh, my Lord, you are the Brahma.

What is there that you do not know? Even so, if you want to hear from

me, I will tell you.†So saying, he began relating as follows: “Swami,

a brahmin living in a city under Mount Kailas, with his wife prayed to

Parameswara for children as he had none. In course of time they begot

ten children. The children in due course grew up and studied the

Sastras. After some time, the parents passed away and the boys were

filled with grief. They had no near relatives and consequently could

not continue to live in that house. They climbed Mount Kailas and

decided to do tapas there. They then began considering what exactly

they should do to get rid of their sorrows. At first they thought

wealth would give them happiness but dismissed the idea as there would

always be wealthier people than them. It would be the same thing with

regard to kingship or even the Lordship of Mahendra. They therefore

felt that there was no fulfilment in any of those things. Finally the

eldest amongst them said, ‘He who creates all these is Brahma and so

Brahma is the greatest of them all.’ They all felt happy at the

suggestion and said, ‘What is the way to achieve Brahma-hood

(Brahmatvam)?’ After thinking for a while, the eldest said, ‘It is not

so difficult. Mind is the basic cause of everything. So let us all sit

in a lonely place and practice concentration for attaining Brahmatvam,

giving up thoughts on all other matters, including the body.

 

Continuously feel that you are seated on a lotus, that you are

lustrous and that you are creating this world and destroying it. I

will also do likewise.’ All of them felt happy at the idea ‘I am

Brahma with four faces.’ The idea became firmly fixed in their minds

and they forgot completely about their bodies. Subsequently those

bodies fell off like dry leaves from a tree. On account of the

intensity of their desires ten worlds have come into existence as all

the ten of them have become Brahmas. The force of their desires is now

stationary in the Chit akasa. I am the sun of one of the ten worlds.â€

So saying, the sun went back to his original place.