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The Yoga Vasistha has been a favourite book of spiritual seekers in India
these several centuries. Its special appeal lies in its thoroughly rational
approach, and in its presentation of Vedanta as a philosophy to bridge the gulf
between the secular and the sacred, action and contemplation, in human life,
through a comprehensive and lofty spirituality. This monumental scripture is the
greatest help to the spiritual awakening and the direct experience of the truth.
This is certain. If this is what you want, you are welcome to the Yoga Vasistha.
An oft-recurring expression in this scripture is 'kakataliya'--a crow alights on
the coconut palm tree and at that very moment a ripe coconut falls. The two
unrelated events thus seem to be related in time and space, though there is no
causal relationship. Such is life. Such is 'creation'. But the mind caught up in
its own trap of logic questions why, invents a 'why' and a 'wherefore' to
satisfy itself, conveniently ignoring the inconvenient questions that still
haunt an intelligent mind. Vasistha demands direct observation of the mind, its
motion, its notions, its reasoning, the assumed cause and the projected result,
and even the observer, the observed and the observation--and the realisation of
their indivisible unity as the infinite consciousness.
About the Author:
Swami Venkatesananda, who has been working untiringly
for decades to spread the life-giving messagye of Yoga and Vedanta in East and
West, as done a great service to spiritual seekers far and wide by bringing out
this translation of the Yoga Vasistha . The Swami has arranged the verses of the
book in such a way as to convert them into a rosary of daily thoughts throughout
the year, on the lines of this two other books published, namely The Srimad
Bhagavatam or Book of God, and The Bhagavad Gita or The Song of
God.
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