It was fun to read Swami Shyamendra's version of the 100 Rudras that you found. Thanks for that. Below is an excerpt from the same story from Swami Venkatesananda's Yoga Vasishta published by the SUNY Press.
*** THE STORY OF THE HUNDRED RUDRAS VASISHTA continued: In this connection I shall narrate a legend to you, O Rama, to which please lend your ear. There once lived a mendicant who was devoted to meditation. His mind, having been purified by such meditation, came to possess the power to materialise its thoughts. One day, being tired of continuous meditation, yet having his mind fully concentrated, he thought of doing something. He fancied birth as one who was illiterate and of a non-brahmana family. Instantly, he had become, as it were, a tribesman: there arose in him the feeling 'I am Jivata'. This dream-being roamed for some time in the city also built of dream-objects. One day he got drunk and slept. He dreamt that he was a brahmana endowed with knowledge of the scriptures. While he was living a righteous life, one day this brahmana dreamt that he was a powerful king. He dreamt that he was a mighty emperor of unequalled glory. One day he indulged in royal pleasures and after that slept and dreamt of a celestial nymph. Similarly, this nymph one day dreamt that she was a deer. And this deer dreamt that it was a creeper. Surely, even animals behold dreams, for such is the nature of the mind which can recollect what has been seen and what has been heard. The deer became a creeper. The inner intelligence in the creeper saw in its own heart a bee. It became a bee -- and the bee began to drink the nectar in the flowers on the creeper. It became attached to the nectar in one of those flowers, surely for its own destruction! At night an elephant approached this creeper and plucked it, along with the bee, and crushed it in its mouth. However, the bee, having seen the elephant, contemplated the elephant and became an elephant. The elephant was captured by a king. One day it saw a hive of bees and on account of the memory of its own past birth it became a bee. It began to drink the nectar of the flowers in wild creepers. It became a creeper. The creeper was destroyed by an elephant, but because the creeper had seen swans in the nearby lake, it became a swan. One day this swan was roaming in the company of many other swans. While the mendicant was meditating upon this swan, he was overcome by death. His consciousness therefore became embodied in the swan. VASISHTA continued: That swan once beheld lord Rudra and in his heart there arose the conviction 'I am Rudra'. Instantly it abandoned its body as swan and became Rudra. And that Rudra dwelt in the abode of Rudra. However, since Rudra was endowed with true knowledge, he remembered all that had taken place! *** The story continues for another 9-10 pages and is one of my favorites in the whole Yoga Vasishta. The Yoga Vasishta is just a wonderful book and incomparable. I highly recommend it. ** --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Marek Reavis" > <reavismarek@> wrote: > <snip> > > The story of The One Hundred Rudras in the Yoga Vasishta is a > > delightful, mobius strip-like exposition of how human experience > > creates and accomodates "changes" through time and space. I'm sure > > you've probably read it in the past. > > I was intrigued by your description and went > looking on the Web for the story. The only > thing I could find was what follows, on the Web > site of one Swami Shyamendra. I assume it's the > story you're referring to; I found this rendition > of it delightful. (I thought the Swami's whole > Web site was charming. I had never heard of him. > He must have some sort of organization, but it > looks to me as though he wrote most of the content > himself.) > > I've quoted just the story itself; it's > preceded and followed by explanations and > elaborations. > > Ecstacy of Just Being Myself? > YOGA VASISTHA Vol II > by Swami Shyam Paramahansa > SECTION 2 > THE STORY OF JHIWAT > > A monk was practicing Yoga. > > Systematically he succeeded to master states of non- > violence, non-falsehood, non-sensationalism, non-alluring and non- > possessiveness of mind. > He mastered then inner and outer cleanliness, > contentment, austerity, study of scriptures and abiding by the will > of the cosmic. > Then he mastered pyramidical posture, then balanced prana > and prana airs. > Then he disconnected the urges of senses from their > moorings towards their objects. > Then he focused concentration, then penetrated deeper > recesses of his consciousness crossing all the way from sub, > unconscious and deeper unconscious to the state of Mystica > Trancensia. He enjoyed it so much. He stayed on that ascended state > of timeless, breathless and bodiless state of relaxation longer and > longer. When he descended down back to body consciousness he > strolled around, ate something, smelled some flowers growing outside, > then entered into the state of trance again. A long time passed. > Then one day some visitors came. They left a book of > someone's autobiography in the cottage. Before going to rest he read > the book and entered in sleep. His system was so clean, whatever he > thought reflected in and through his mind all the way. His name > became Jhivat in his dream. He was both a drunkard and serviceful > man to the wise men. After service he drank his favorite Double > Scotch and slept. In dream he became a bramhin. He studied the > scriptures well and became an evangelist and began preaching the word > of God. Exhausted one day after long hours of giving a sermon and > collecting enormous amounts of tithings he slept, while still > counting all the dollar bills. In dream he became a President of > United States of America and began making his army bases in every > third world country and almost buying them. > He slept again one night in his White House and saw > another dream in which he had become the most prosperous President of > the world. He was successfully able to place electrodes in the skull > of governing leaders of every nation of the world. And sitting in > the White House in a huge laboratory with a group of scientists, he > began operating the brains of every leader of the world. One day a > most beautiful lady from Moscow came to visit him. In the White > House they dined together. Music played. After everybody left they > retired to the bedroom where they fell in love and made love > together. Both together, embraced, fell asleep. > He entered then in another dream. He had become a most > beautiful woman, a nymph in heaven. There he grew up as a dancer. > While dancing her eyes met with one of her audience who was a very > handsome angel. After dance he rushed onto the stage and took her in > his warm embrace. They married and started living happily. Then one > evening they went for a walk in a picturesque garden. From there in > a computer they saw all the most beautiful gardens of the earth. > Together they started visiting the planet earth in their well built > flying saucer. Kashmir, Switzerland, Disneyland, Vedaland, Niagra > Falls, they traveled, strolled, sported and played music. > One day she saw a wonderful golden deer. Large eyes > charmed her and she took her to her planet as her pet. She kept her > in the next room. She slept in the night with her angel husband and > saw a dream in which she became a deer. She was wandering forest to > forest in lush, green grass and trees surrounded with vines blooming > with flowers. Seeing these she slept and saw herself being a bumble > bee humming around the flowers. Then she saw herself being a lotus > flower. One day an elephant came and ate the lotus. Then lotus > became an elephant in next life. Rushing towards his girlfriend he > fell in a ditch and was beaten by hunters so much that he swooned and > saw in dream he became a creeper. A swan came from somewhere and ate > it. Then becoming a swan he started swimming in Manasarovar lake. > One day he heard about Bramha. He wanted to become his > vehicle swan. Then as water becomes a wave he became a swan of > Bramha and began carrying him to all different planets of the three > worlds. Then Bramha one day initiated him into the wisdom of > Absolute Truth and he entered into deep meditation. He became > enlightened. > Then one day that swan was flying around Himalayas and he > felt, I must become Lord of yogis--Shiva. And he became Shiva. > Being Lord Shiva he then peeped in and saw all his former bodies > sleeping and was highly surprised to see that he suffered out of > illusion just for nothing. He decided to go to each of them and wake > them up. He stood up, rose into the sky and flew. He arrived to the > spot where the monk was resting. He woke him up. Monk was highly > surprised and happy to see that Lord Shiva himself came to give him > his darshan. He felt there are more of me. Now they both proceeded > further. They arrived at the place of Jhiwat. His body laying like > a corpse, wine pots lying all around. They awoke him too. He was > happy to be awakened before too late to go to work and fishing. He > too felt there is more of his parts. > They went further, arrived at the sea beach residence of > the evangelist where on the heap of a billion dollars, project maps > and documents of a new Biblical University were lying around. They > awoke him. Arrived at the White House, then awoke Mr. President. > Then all the five people came to the new bedroom of Mr. President. > He got up and joined them. They went to the heaven in the home of > the wife of an angel, woke her too. They all began to feel the > entire universe is myself, and all these bodies and suffering I went > through were in vain. And we are in ourself pure consciousness. > Their bodies were separate. Activities too different but decision > was one single piece. Their name became one hundred Rudras. > > http://www.swamishyam.org/Yoga-Vasistha-2/YOGA-V_1.HTM > To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
