Shloka 61
Saṃhāra-krama (The Sequence of Cosmic Dissolution) — Yājñavalkya’s Discourse
नागान् नगान् यक्षगणान् दिशश्व गन्धर्वसंघान् पुरुषान् स्त्रियश्न । परस्पर प्राप्प महान्महात्मा विशेत योगी न चिराद् विमुक्त:
bhīṣma uvāca |
nāgān nagān yakṣagaṇān diśaś ca gandharvasaṅghān puruṣān striyaś ca |
parasparaṃ prāpya mahān mahātmā viśet yogī na cirād vimuktaḥ ||
Bhīṣma dit : «Le yogin à la grande âme, parvenu à la maîtrise, peut promptement être délivré. Ou bien, par la puissance du yoga, allant d’un ordre d’êtres à un autre, il peut atteindre et pénétrer les Nāgas, les montagnes, les troupes de Yakṣas, les directions, les compagnies de Gandharvas, et même les hommes et les femmes—circulant parmi eux à son gré grâce à la force du yoga.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Yogic mastery can yield extraordinary powers (such as moving among and ‘entering’ various beings or realms), but the higher aim is swift liberation (vimukti). The verse contrasts siddhi-like capacities with the superior goal of moksha.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and spiritual disciplines, Bhishma describes the capacities of a perfected yogin: he may quickly attain liberation, or—by yogic power—move through different classes of beings and realms, reaching and entering them at will.