Shloka 59
Saṃhāra-krama (The Sequence of Cosmic Dissolution) — Yājñavalkya’s Discourse
तमश्न कष्ट सुमहद् रजश्न सत्त्वं विशुद्ध प्रकृति परां च । सिद्धि च देवीं वरुणस्य पत्नीं तेजश्न कृत्स्नं सुमहच्च धैर्यम्,महात्मन्! योगसिद्ध महात्मा पुरुष यदि चाहे तो तुरंत ही मुक्त होकर महान् परब्रह्मके स्वरूपको प्राप्त कर लेता है अथवा वह अपने योगबलसे भगवान् ब्रह्मा, वरदायक विष्णु, महादेवजी, धर्म, छः मुखोंवाले कार्त्तिकेय, ब्रह्माजीके महानुभाव पुत्र सनकादि, कष्ट-दायक तमोगुण, महान् रजोगुण, विशुद्ध सत्त्वगुण, मूल प्रकृति, वरुणपत्नी सिद्धिदेवी, सम्पूर्ण तेज, महान् धैर्य, ताराओंसहित आकाशमें प्रकाशित होनेवाले निर्मल तारापति चन्द्रमा, विश्वेदेव, नाग, पितर, सम्पूर्ण पर्वत, भयंकर समुद्र, सम्पूर्ण नदी-समुदाय, वन, मेघ, नाग, वृक्ष, यक्ष, दिशा, गन्धर्वगण, समस्त पुरुष और स्त्री--इनमेंसे प्रत्येकके पास पहुँचकर उसके भीतर प्रवेश कर सकता है
bhīṣma uvāca | tamaś ca kaṣṭaṃ sumahad rajaś ca sattvaṃ viśuddhaṃ prakṛtiṃ parāṃ ca | siddhiṃ ca devīṃ varuṇasya patnīṃ tejaś ca kṛtsnaṃ sumahac ca dhairyam ||
Bhishma said: “(The yogin can enter) harsh, oppressive Darkness (tamas), the mighty Force of Passion (rajas), and pure Clarity (sattva); he can enter the supreme Prakriti itself; he can enter the goddess Siddhi, the consort of Varuna; and he can enter the entirety of radiance and great steadfastness. Thus, a great-souled person perfected in yoga, if he so wills, becomes liberated at once and attains the form of the supreme Brahman; or, by the power of yoga, he may reach each of these cosmic principles and divine stations and enter into them.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A yogin perfected in yoga can, by will and yogic power, transcend ordinary embodiment: either attain immediate liberation and realize the supreme Brahman, or deliberately enter various cosmic principles (the guṇas, Prakriti) and divine powers (such as Siddhi), showing mastery over the constituents of nature rather than being bound by them.
In Shanti Parva’s instruction on liberation and yogic attainment, Bhishma continues his discourse to Yudhishthira, listing the cosmic principles and divine stations that an accomplished yogin can reach and ‘enter,’ emphasizing the extraordinary scope of yogic mastery alongside the higher option of final liberation.