Yoga Vasishta, otherwise known as Maha Ramayana, is written by the Sage Valmiki. It appears as a sub plot in the Ramayana but is bigger than the main plot as it contains 32000 verses compared to 24000 verses of the Ramayana. A tenth century Kashmiri Pandit named Sri Abhinav Gupta...

There once lived a brahmin called Gaadhi in a country called Kosala. He was very pious and carried out prescribed austerities and duties very sincerely. After some years, he retired to a forest for contemplation. There, he intensely meditated on Lord Vishnu who appeared in front of him and asked...

Sage Vasishta was explaining to Sri Rama the illusory nature of mind. He said that since the mind itself is not real, all the imaginations of the mind are also not real. However, if we believe that all we see is  true then our mind will never be at peace....

Sage Vasishta was explaining to Sri Rama that whatever one deeply contemplates about is what they experience later. ‘To illustrate this, I will tell you a story’, the sage said. There lived a demoness (Raakshasi) on the slopes of Himalayas. Her name was Karkati. She had a towering presence, massive...

Sage Vasishta was explaining to Sri Rama, that the mind should be directed constantly towards liberation and a sustained self-effort is required to achieve that ultimate goal. Once the mind is freed from Vasanas (latent tendencies) it gains self-knowledge. He went on to add a profound statement that, since entire...

Story of Lavana, the illustrious king Sage Vasishta was explaining to Sri Rama, the attributes of our mind and how the mind controls time and space. It is a general perception that it is the other way around. He said, “I will tell you the story of King Lavana and...

Sage Vasishta was explaining to Sri Rama that liberation and perfection can be attained in two ways. One is by the method of Self-Enquiry and the other by having complete control over life-breath, called Prana. The second method is commonly called Yoga. Both lead the practitioners to the same result....

Story of Hundred Rudras Sage Vasishta was explaining to Sri Rama about the power of Maya. He said ‘I will tell you a story to illustrate this’. He said “O Rama there lived a mendicant who spent all his time in meditation of great intensity. His mind was so purified...