The Cosmic Symposium: Vasishta’s Tale of Padhma & Lila
(A dialogue blending Vedantic wisdom, Taoist paradox, and Mosaic introspection)
Scene I: The Banyan Grove of Timelessness
Setting: A monsoon breeze stirs the jasmine-laden air. Sage Vasishta sits beneath a banyan tree, its roots cradling Rama. Lao Tzu reclines on a mossy stone, puffing his pipe, while Moses kneels by a still lake, watching boats glide. Lao Tzu’s daughter, Li Jing, weaves lotus garlands as children’s laughter echoes from bamboo groves.
Vasishta (eyes like smoldering embers):
“Rama, listen—the world is a story within a story. Let me tell you of Queen Lila and her cosmic dream…”
A flock of cranes arcs overhead, their shadows rippling across the lake. Lao Tzu exhales smoke that twists into the Tao symbol ☯.
II. Lila’s Illusion: The Tale Within
Vasishta’s Narrative:
“Queen Lila’s husband, Padhma, died. Yet she refused grief, knowing death was illusion. She invoked Yogic power, journeying to the realm of the ancestors. There, she found Padhma reborn as another king, wed to another queen! She asked: ‘Which is real—my grief or his new life?’”
Rama (leaning forward):
“Gurudev, how can love be a dream?”
Vasishta:
“What is a dream but consciousness folded upon itself? Lila realized both her sorrow and Padhma’s rebirth were threads in Brahma’s loom.”
Moses (stirring, staff glinting):
“But Sage—does this not mock the Covenant? If death is illusion, why did Adonai command us to ‘choose life’?”
Lao Tzu (blowing a smoke-ring):
“The Tao that can be named is not the eternal Tao. Grief and joy are two sides of the same uncarved block.”
Li Jing offers mint tea in clay cups. The steam curls into Sanskrit glyphs: असतो मा सद्गमय (Lead me from untruth to truth).
III. The Monsoon Interlude
A child’s kite—a paper tiger—dances in the wind. Vasishta continues:
“Lila awoke from her trance, yet remained in meditation. She saw Padhma’s soul as a drop in the ocean of Brahman. ‘My love,’ she whispered, ‘was but a ripple.’”
Rama (plucking a lotus):
“Then is dharma—my duty as prince—also a ripple?”
Vasishta:
“Dharma is the boat, Rama, not the river. Row with devotion, but know the water is illusion.”
Moses (gazing at the lake):
“My people crossed a sea they believed real. Now you say even the Promised Land is… a dream?”
Lao Tzu:
“The still lake reflects the sky, yet both are empty. Drink your tea, Moses—it’s getting cold.”
Li Jing giggles as a kingfisher dives, shattering the lake’s mirror into a thousand suns.
IV. Echoes of the Children
Vasishta’s Voice Merges with the Wind:
“Lila’s story is your story, Rama. You are both the dreamer and the dreamed.”
Rama (standing, fists clenched):
“Then why fight Ravana? Why not dissolve into Brahman?”
Lao Tzu (grinning):
“A tiger asked the same before pouncing. The answer is in the pounce.”
Moses (softly):
“In Egypt, we built pyramids to touch eternity. Now I see eternity was in the brick dust.”
A monsoon shower begins. The group shelters under the banyan, sipping mint tea as Vasishta chants:
“न जायते म्रियते वा विपश्चित्”
“The wise one is neither born nor dies.”
Epilogue: The Cranes’ Flight
As the rain clears, the children chase paper boats. Lao Tzu murmurs:
“The best boat is the one that forgets it’s floating.”
Moses traces Hebrew letters in the mud—חַיִּים (Life)—while Rama whispers to the lake:
“I will fight Ravana… even if he is my own reflection.”
The cranes vanish into the horizon, their cries blending with Vasishta’s laughter.
Key Citations & Symbolism
- Lila’s Illusion: Yoga Vasistha’s discourse on non-duality .
- Mint Tea & Monsoon: Sensory metaphors for impermanence.
- Mosaic Paradox: Tension between Covenant and Vedantic oneness.
- Taoist Interjections: Lao Tzu’s wu wei reframes dharma as effortless action.
This scene collapses temporal and doctrinal boundaries, framing Rama’s dilemma through a prism of cross-cultural wisdom—where even the children’s laughter becomes a hymn to the unreal.