Yoga Vasistha

There YOGA-VASISHTA LAGHU-(the smaller)

BY

K. Narayanaswami Aiyar

INTRODUCTION

I. VAIRAGGYA-PRAKARANA the mental despondency of Rama

i. The Story of Sukha

II. MUMUKSHU-PRAKARANA – the longing after Salvation

III. UTPATHTHI-PRAKARANA the Chapter on Origin

1. The Story of Akasaja or Son of Akasa
2. The Story of Lila or Sport
3. The Story of Karkati
4. The Story of Aindhava the son of Indhu or the Moon
5. The Story of the Deceitful Indra
6. The Story of Manas (mind)
7. The Story of a Bsla (lad)
8. The Story of a Siddha
9. The Conclusion of this Prakarana

IV. STHITHI-PRAKARANA the Chapter on Preservation

1. The Story of Sukra or Venus
2. The Story of Dma, Vyala and Kata
3. The Story of Bheema, Bhasa and Drudha
4. The Story of Dhasoora
5. The Story of Kacha
6. The Conclusion of this Prakarana

V, UPASA NTHI-PRAKARANA the Chapter on Quiescence

1. The Story of King Janaka
2. The Story of Punnya and Pavana
3. The Story of the Great Bali
4 . The Story of Prahlada
5. The Story of Gadhi
6. The Story of Uddhalaka
7. The Story of Suraghu
8. The Story of Bhasa and Vilasa
9. The Story of Veethahavya
10. The Conclusion ofthis Prakarana

VI. NIRVA NA PRAKARANA

1. The Story of Bhusunda
2. The Story of Deva-Pujah or the Worship of God
3. The Story of Bilwa Fruit
4. The Story of &ila a Granite
5. The Story of Arjuna
6. The Story of Sata the hundred Rudras
7. The Story of Vetala the Sphynx
8. The Story of Bhageeratha
9. The Story of S ikhidwaja
10. The Story of Kacha
11. The Story of Mithya-Purusha or the Illusory Personage
12. The Story of Bhringi
13. The Story of Ikshwku
14. The Story of a Muni and a Hunter
15. The Conclusion of Nirvana Prakarana

INTRODUCTION.

It is intended to give herein a short introduction to, and an analysis of, Laghu-Yoga-Vasishta. Of course the analysis can not be an exhaustive one, as it will have then to run through many pages and form a book of its own. There are, as at present known to us, two works by the name of Yoga- Vasishta, the larger one going by the name of Brihat-Yoga- Vasishta and the smaller one, Laghu-Yoga-Vasishta. The term Brihat means great, while Laghu signifies small. Vasish- ta is because of this work emanating from Rishi Vasishta as will be seen later on. Though the book is dubbed with the appellation, Yoga- Vasishta, it treats ofjnana only though practical Yoga is dealt with in two stories in this work.
Even there it says that the pure Raja- Yoga is meant and not Hata-Yoga. Rather the word Yoga seems to have been used in the title of this work in its generic sense of including

Jnana-Yoga and other Yogas as in the Bagawatgita, Of the two above mentioned works, the smaller one is an abridgment of the bigger and contains about 6,000 Grandhas, whereas the latter contains 36,000. The commentary of the former has the same number of Grandhas as the original whereas that of the latter amounts to 74,000 Grandhas which with its original is a lakh on the whole. In the abridged text, almost all the words of the bigger one are reproduced verbatim ; the work of the author being generally to clip the bigger of its expansive descriptions and so on ; so that in the work before us, we have got the quintessence extracted. This work seems to have been undertaken by one Abhi- nandana, a great pandit of Cashmere. The authorship or rather writership is attributed to Rishi Valmiki, the author of the Ramayana who is said to have related the whole of Yoga- Vasishta to Rishi Bdradwaja as having occurred between Sri Rama and Rishi Vasishta. But of this later on. The larger work seems to have been partially translated by a gentleman hailing from Bengal. But this one, though small, it is named, is yet big enough.