The Yoga-Vasishtha Maharamayana of Valmiki, Vol. 4 (of 4), Part 2 (of 2) — Story, Setting & Ideas

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Authors: Valmiki, Mitra, Viharilala [Translator] Digital Source: Project Gutenberg Gutenberg Release Year: 2023 First Publication Year: Not confirmed

Key Word: Religious life -- Hinduism -- Early works to 1800; Hinduism -- Doctrines -- Early works to 1800 Target Reader: Readers of public-domain and historical texts

Book Edition: Project Gutenberg digital edition Book Language: en

Edition facts

Words 191,356

Reading time 832 min

Text sections 116

For The Yoga-Vasishtha Maharamayana of Valmiki, Vol. 4 (of 4), Part 2 (of 2) — Story, Setting & Ideas, the stored edition analysis reports 191,356 words, 13 hr 52 min estimated reading time, and 116 detected text sections.

The text analysis averages about 30.3 words per sentence, while the detected sections provide another way to judge how the source is divided.

Project Gutenberg metadata also associates the work with “Religious life -- Hinduism -- Early works to 1800,” connecting these edition facts with the source record’s subject description.

Source: Project Gutenberg record #71249

This editorial note examines how the opening, middle, and later excerpts of Valmiki's Yoga-Vasishtha Maharamayana, Vol. 4, Part 2, guide a first reading, focusing on its dialogic structure, use of metaphor, and self-referential commentary on the text's own value.

Editorial Edition Score 4.9/5

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Description quality20 pts
Title & short description10 pts
Source metadata20 pts
Text length15 pts
Chapters / structure15 pts
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, may be altered and restored to its former figure, of bright and unalloyed gold.

4. I will now try the means of his restoration in your presence, as you may all witness it with your open eyes; and this stag will of itself enter into the fire before your sight.

5. Válmíki related:--Saying so, the benevolent sage, touched his water pot with his hand, and muttered his mantras upon it in the proper form (_i.e._ with fixed attention).

6. He thought intently upon the god of fire, with his flashing flames all around him; and immediately there sprang a blaze of fire, upon his reflection on it (in the midst of the royal hall).

7. This was a pure flame, kindled without any coal or fuel, and burning with a rumbling noise, without emitting any smoke or soot or sloe.

8. Brighter and brighter it burnt in its beauty, and shone as a dome of gold, by shedding a golden lustre all about; it was as flushing as the blushing _kinsuka_ blossom, and as glowing as the evening clouds of heaven.

9. The assembled hosts receded backward, upon beholding the spreading flame; but the stag flushed with the fervour of its former faith, on seeing its adored deity manifest before its sight.

10. As it looked on the fire with its ardent desire, he got rid of his sins, as if they were burnt away by its flames; and then advancing slowly towards it, he jumped at once amidst the blaze, as a lion springs aloft on his prey.

11. At this moment, the Muni moved his mind to meditation, and found the sins of the prince were burnt away from his soul; and then addressed the god, saying:--

12. O lord, that bearest the sacrificial butter to the celestials, recall to thy mind the past acts of the prince, in his faith to thee; and kindly restore him, to his former handsome figure again.

13. As the sage was praying in this manner, he saw the stag to be released from the flame, and running towards the assembled princes, with the velocity of an arrow flying towards its butt end or mark.

14. Having entered into the burning fire, he appeared as a flaming body, and was seen by the assembly to be of a form, as bright as the appearance of an evening cloud.

15. Thus the stag was changed to the form of a man, before the sight of the assembled princes; as a spot of cloud is seen to assume another figure in the face of the bright vault of heaven.

16. It was seen amidst the flame, to assume a figure as that of pure gold; which afterwards took the form of a man, of handsome shape and appearance. (So the funeral fire purifies the soul of its impurities, and gives it a brighter form afterwards).

17. He appeared as the orb of the sun, or as the disc of the moon in the sky; or as the god Varuna in the waters of the deep, or as the evening cloud or rising moon.

18. There was the reflexion of the sun in the pupils of his eyes, as it was reflected on the surface of water, or on a mirror or bright gem; and the fire of his faith, blazed serenely in the sockets of his eyeballs.

19. Shortly afterwards this blaze of light disappeared from the court, as the light of a lamp is blown away by the breath of wind; or as the tinges of evening clouds vanish in the sky under the shades of night.

20. The man then stood as plainly in the hall, as the idol of a deity is seen to stand in a dilapidated temple (without its brightness); or as an actor is seen behind the scene (without his dress).

21. He stood silent holding a rosary on his hand, and having his sacred thread, hanging down a chain of gold about his neck; he wore a robe of pure white blanched by the fiery heat; and appeared as the bright moon, rising before the assembly.

22. On seeing the brightness of his person and attire, the courtiers all and every one, cried out saying, “O to the lustre”; and because he was as lustrous as day light, he was named, “Lustre” by all.

23. The courtiers also confirmed it by saying that, because he is as bright as brightness itself, let him be styled the “bright or Bhása”, the name that he bore on him ever afterwards.

24. He sat in the hall in his meditative mood, and remembered all the incidents of his past life and former body.

25. The assembly was struck with wonder, and remained quite motionless and speechless and absorbed in thought; as Bhása was reflecting in his mind the adventures of his past life.

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The volume opens with chapter CVI, which immediately plunges into a sustained critique of causality, using the metaphor of sweeping away dust to describe the removal of ignorance. The translator, Viharilala Mitra, preserves the verse numbering and the dialogic frame of Vasishtha instructing Rama, a structure that recurs throughout. The text explicitly positions itself as a work to be read repeatedly, comparing itself to the Vedas and claiming to embody both practical and spiritual doctrines. This self-conscious framing is a key feature for first-time readers to note.

Dialogic Structure and Direct Address

The excerpts consistently employ direct address, with Vasishtha speaking to Rama and, by extension, to the reader. Phrases such as “Thus have I said at length, to impress in you the necessity of intense devotion” and “It is from my sympathy for you all, that I propound these doctrines to you” create a sense of ongoing oral instruction. This rhetorical strategy invites the reader into the role of a pupil. The text also anticipates objections, as when it notes that “the evil-minded” may slight the teachings. This built-in rebuttal suggests that the work expects resistance and is designed to overcome it through repetition and reasoned argument.

Metaphors of Purification and Value

A striking pattern in the excerpts is the use of concrete metaphors to convey abstract spiritual concepts. Ignorance is likened to “dirt and dross” that must be swept away. The text compares itself to “salt” that seasons other teachings, and disparages those who turn to “unspiritual books” as collecting “burnt ashes after the fire is extinguished.” These metaphors are not merely decorative; they structure the argument by making the intangible tangible. For a first reader, attending to these images can clarify the text’s hierarchy of knowledge: spiritual insight is essential, while worldly pursuits are dismissed as “mere straws.”

Self-Referential Commentary on the Text

The excerpts contain explicit instructions on how the work itself should be used. It is to be “read always, like the recital of the vedas” and studied “with reverence, and rightly explained with diligence.” The text claims to encapsulate the doctrines of Vedanta, Tarka, and Siddhanta, positioning itself as a comprehensive source. This self-promotion is a deliberate rhetorical move, but it also provides a practical reading strategy: the reader is encouraged to engage slowly and repeatedly. The translator’s note about missing text and corrections further underscores that this is a scholarly edition, where textual accuracy matters.

Philosophical Assertions and Their Limits

The excerpts present strong philosophical claims, such as the invalidation of cause and effect, and the assertion that “the mind that has gained its peace and tranquility in truth and Divine knowledge, spurns at the state of gods and kings as mere straws.” However, the excerpts are incomplete, and the reasoning behind these claims is only partially visible. For instance, the argument against causality is cut off mid-sentence. A first reader should note that the text builds its case through a series of numbered verses, each adding a layer, but the full dialectic may require consulting the complete volume or earlier parts. The translator’s corrections (e.g., adding “neither” and “not”) indicate that the text’s meaning can hinge on small words.

First-time readers of this volume will benefit from treating it as a spoken discourse rather than a systematic treatise. The verse format, direct address, and recurring metaphors reward slow, attentive reading. The text’s own advice—to read it repeatedly and with reverence—is a practical starting point. Because this is part 2 of volume 4, readers unfamiliar with earlier sections may encounter references to previous teachings; the dialogic frame, however, provides enough context to follow the argument. The editorial corrections remind us that the text has a complex transmission history, but the core instruction remains accessible.

That rainy afternoon, the fourth volume of the Yoga-Vasishtha felt less like philosophy and more like a patient voice asking me to notice how easily I clung to rigid ideas. It made me wonder about the quiet weight of vows, which led me, almost by accident, to The Inevitable Crimes of Celibacy The Vices of Convents and Monasteries, Priests and Nuns — Background and Themes. Different worlds, yet the same shadow of restraint.