The Yoga-Vasishtha Maharamayana of Valmiki, Vol. 1 (of 4)Valmiki
Religion
The Yoga-Vasishtha Maharamayana of Valmiki, Vol. 1 (of 4)
Valmiki
Hinduism -- Doctrines -- Early works to 1800; Religious life -- Hinduism -- Early works to 1800
9. The mind can never get rid of its wavering state owing to the
habitual fickleness of its nature, resembling the restlessness of the
sea.
10. The mind with its natural fickleness and restless thoughts, finds
no repose at any place, as a lion (has no rest) in his prison-house.
11. The mind seated in the car of delusion, absorbs the sweet, peaceful
and undisturbed rest of the body, like the gander sucking up pure milk
from amidst the water.
12. O chief of sages! I grieve much to find the faculties of the mind
lying dormant upon the bed of imaginary delights, from which it is hard
to waken them.
13. I am caught, O Bráhman! like a bird in the net by the knots (of my
egoism), and held fast in it by the thread of my avarice.
14. I burn in my mind, O sage, like the dried hay on fire, by the flame
of my anxieties and under the spreading fumes of my impatience.
15. I am devoured, O Bráhman! like a clod of cold meat, by the cruelty
and greediness of my heart, as a carcase is swallowed by a hungry dog
and its greedy mate.
16. I am borne away, O sage! by the current of my heart, as a tree on
the bank is carried away by the waters and waves beating upon it.
17. I am led afar by my (greedy) mind, like a straw carried off by the
hurricane, either to flutter in the air or fall upon the ground.
18. My earthly mindedness has put a stop to my desire of crossing over
the ocean of the world, as an embankment stops the course of the waters
(of a stream).
19. I am lifted up and let down again by the baseness of my heart, like
a log of wood tied to a rope dragging it in and out of a well.
20. As a child is seized by the false apparition of a demon, so I find
myself in the grasp of my wicked mind, representing falsities as true.
21. It is hard to repress the mind, which is hotter than fire, more
inaccessible than a hill, and stronger than a thunder bolt.
22. The mind is attracted to its objects as a bird to its prey, and has
no respite for a moment as a boy from his play.
23. My mind resembling the sea both in its dullness as well as
restlessness, in its extent and fulness with whirlpools and dragons,
keeps me far from advancing towards it.
24. It is more difficult to subdue the mind than to drink off the
ocean, or to upset the Sumeru mountain. It is ever harder than the
hardest thing.
25. The mind is the cause of all exertions, and the sensorium of the
three worlds. Its weakness weakens all worldliness, and requires to be
cured with care.
26. It is the mind from which arise our pains and pleasures by
hundreds, as the woods growing in groups upon a hill; but no sooner is
the scythe of reason applied to them, than they fall off one by one.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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