Yājñavalkya
Table of Contents
Origins and Names of Yājñavalkya
In the land of Kuru and Panchāla, on the banks of the Gaṅgā, lay the sacred town of Camatkāra. There dwelt a foremost brāhmaṇa, renowned for his mastery of yajñas and the Vedas. His eloquence earned him the name Yājñavalkya, while his generous tradition of food-offering (annadāna) called him Vājasanī, for “vāj” also signifies the ritual of offering food. As preceptor of the Brahmanas, he was hailed as Brahmarātaḥ, and by divine grace he begot a son, thus revered as Devarātaḥ, “protected by the gods.”
Divine Birth of Yājñavalkya
By the favor of Īśvara, Yājñavalkya’s wife Sūnandā conceived on Kārtika śuddha-dvādaśī, a Thursday in the Dhanu-lagna. At the sight of the child’s luminous form, all proclaimed him none other than Brahmādeva incarnate. In homage to his lineage and gifts, he was named Yājñavalkya, Vājasanī, Brahmarātaḥ, and Devarātaḥ—titles reflecting both mortal and divine descent.
Early Education and Vedic Training
At age five, his father performed the akṣarābhyāsa rite, and at eight, the upanayana. For his schooling he was entrusted to the sage Bāśkala, under whom he studied the Ṛgveda. From Jaimini he learned the Sāma-veda, and from the seer Aruṇi (alias Uddālaka) the Atharva-veda. When his mastery of the three Vedas was complete, his father presented him to Vaiśampāyana Maharṣi—appointed by Kṛṣṇa-Dvaipāyana Vyāsa to teach the entire Yajur-veda. Impressed by the boy’s aptitude, Vaiśampāyana accepted him as foremost among his disciples.
Counsel of Father and Devotion to Guru
On seeing his son embraced by the great sage, Yājñavalkya’s father declared, “My son, our merit is profound. You have no master but this guru—no deity but this one. Consider no other as supreme.” From that moment, Yājñavalkya devoted himself entirely to Vaiśampāyana, serving him with unwavering diligence. So pleased was the guru that, after imparting the Yajur-veda, he revealed to Yājñavalkya numerous secret teachings, conferring both brahma-tejas and the merit of devoted service.
Pride and the Test of Brahmāhatyā
Endowed with sattvaguṇa, Yājñavalkya’s confidence blossomed into sattvikāhaṅkāra—pride in his purity and wisdom. When a visitor dared imply he harbored anger, he retorted fiercely, denying any flaw. Observing this, Vaiśampāyana chose to overlook the fault. Yet when Yājñavalkya boasted before the assembled students of his power to atone for any brahma-hatyā, the guru’s patience wore thin.
One day the guru’s disciple committed a grave misdeed. In wrath, Vaiśampāyana struck him with his foot—an act equated with brahma-hatyā. Distressed, he summoned all disciples and lamented his deed, seeking a remedy. Yājñavalkya proclaimed himself alone capable of removing the sin, urging the guru to entrust the task to him. Incensed, Vaiśampāyana rebuked him for arrogance and ordered him to forsake all learning and depart.
The Vow and the Birth of the Taittirīya
Humbly, Yājñavalkya fell at his guru’s feet, confessed pride, and begged forgiveness. Yet the guru insisted that all his knowledge be renounced. Obediently, Yājñavalkya expelled the Yajur-veda from his body in a stream of blood, offering it as his guru’s due. Birds—tittiriḥ—alighted and consumed the sacred lore. Thus was born the Taittirīya branch of the Yajur-veda, its teachings preserved by the titiri birds and later uttered in “Taittirīya Upaniṣad.”
Revival through Tapas and Sun Worship
Having relinquished his Vedic learning, Yājñavalkya performed austere tapas to worship Sūrya. The sun god, pleased by his devotion, appeared in radiance and offered a boon. Yājñavalkya requested the knowledge he had surrendered. Sūrya replied, “O Yājñavalkya, I shall teach you as guru that which your former teacher cannot: the Śukla-Yajur-veda. By its power you shall surpass your preceptor. For other Vedas, worship Sarasvatī and she will grant them.” Thereupon Yājñavalkya worshipped Sarasvatī with reverence; she manifested and bestowed upon him all knowledge. Gratified, he praised her and became resplendent as the repository of transcendent lore.
Establishment of the Vājasaneyī Śākhā
Under Yājñavalkya’s instruction, the Śukla-Yajur-veda proliferated in many recensions known as Vājasaneyī Śākhā. His foremost disciple, Kauṇva, gave rise to the Kauṇveyas. Thus Yājñavalkya uniquely founded this Vedic branch before withdrawing from the world. Today only a few of the original fifteen sub-branches survive, testament to his singular legacy.
Debate at King Janaka’s Yajña
Once King Janaka, the cakravartin, performed a grand yāga and invited Yājñavalkya to attend. The sage arrived and beheld many maharṣiḥs assembled. Janaka addressed them: “O venerable ones, here are vast heaps of wealth; if any among you deems himself worthy, let him take them.” However, the Upaniṣad notes that these treasures were but cows, not gold or jewels.
Each sage inwardly thought, “Am I not complete?” yet none dared to claim the wealth—except Yājñavalkya. He summoned his own disciples and directed them to carry off all the treasures. A few challenged him, disputing his greatness, but were vanquished in debate and departed in defeat.
Among the assembly was the ascetic Śākalya. He confronted Yājñavalkya: “What arrogance is this? Do you think none here equals you? If you possess such prowess, argue with me and prevail.” Yājñavalkya replied, “Where shall we begin? You are far inferior.” Undeterred, Śākalya demanded, “If I lose, I shall commit suicide—do you agree?” Yājñavalkya consented: “If you are vanquished, you may take your own life.” Thus the wager was set.
Yājñavalkya subjected Śākalya to a hundred questions in succession, answering each with perfect truth. Finally, he posed a single query to Śākalya, who could not respond. True to his word, Śākalya ended his life, and Yājñavalkya reclaimed the treasures.
Recognition and Resurrection by Janaka
King Janaka exclaimed, “This Śākalya was no ordinary ascetic. He was learned, austere, and a great brāhmaṇa. To perish in debate against you is no glory. By your tapas you have the power even to restore him to life.” Delighted, Yājñavalkya revived Śākalya by his ascetic potency.
Impressed further, Janaka acknowledged Yājñavalkya’s mastery: “By you I understand what indriyaḥs are, what avyaktaḥ is, what brahman is, and what param is, as well as the processes of creation and dissolution and the numbers that pertain to time. All this is contained in the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad.”
Teachings on Prakṛti and Puruṣa
Yājñavalkya taught that to achieve an undisturbed mind, one must comprehend prakṛti and puruṣa. Just as one lamp may light many others, so prakṛti manifests myriad guṇaḥs that interact and grow. Sattvaguṇaḥ comprises qualities such as sukha, ānanda, ārogya, akrodha, ārjava, śuddhi, prakāśatva, sthairya, ahiṃsā, nirmala-śraddhā, vinīti, and lajja. Rājas-guṇaḥ includes viṣaya (desire), darpa (pride), tiraskāra (contempt), kāma-krodha (lust, anger), mātsarya (jealousy), and absence of karuṇā. Tāmas-guṇaḥ is marked by darkness, overeating, moha (delusion), vāda (argumentation), fear, ignorance, and inertia.
He explained that puruṣa is the witness, prakṛti the seen; the self remains untouched by prakṛti’s fluctuations. When mind, indriyaḥ, buddhi, and ahaṅkāra merge with prakṛti, one attains dhyāna. True mokṣa arises when buddhi transcends prakṛti, realizing parā-prakṛti and abiding as akṣaraḥ, the unborn, unchanging witness.
Discourse with Gandharva King Viśvāvasu
Thereafter, the gandharva-rāja Viśvāvasu came to Yājñavalkya and requested instruction. “O seer, teach me the knowledge of Viśva, Mitra, Varuṇa, Jñānajaya, the nature of knowledge, tapas, the sun, the sciences, the objects and non‐objects of knowledge, and motion and rest (these constitute Sāṃkhya).”
Yājñavalkya replied: “O gandharva-rāja, Viśva denotes prakṛti in both manifest and unmanifest aspects. Viśva is that which creates the past, present, and future; it is the common essence named as manifest and unmanifest. In this understanding all doubt vanishes. Manifest and unmanifest prakṛti are one. Those yet to manifest are future; those that endure are beyond decay. Thus the terms jñeya-ajāñeya, vedyā-avedyā, calacala signify puruṣa and prakṛti respectively.
Puruṣa experiences prakṛti yet remains its witness and is not bound. To realize mokṣa, one discerns that although experiencing the world, the self is distinct from prakṛti. At death one sheds the body and abides in one’s true nature, free from rebirth.
Thus did Yājñavalkya impart profound wisdom before departing.
Marriage to Kaṭhyāyānī and Maitreyi
Near the city of Mithilā, in a forest hermitage, dwelt the sage Kaṭuḍa, who had a daughter named Kaṭhyāyanī. When she reached the age suitable for marriage, her father offered her to Yājñavalkya, who gladly wed her. In mantra-śāstra the name Kaṭhyāyanī implies “one without a husband,” not one who has lost a husband.
Similarly, a brāhmaṇa named Mitra had a daughter Maitreyi. Hearing of Yājñavalkya’s fame, she expressed her desire to marry him, and he accepted. The yogīśvarī Gārgi introduced Maitreyi to Kaṭhyāyanī and placed her in the sage’s service. By Yājñavalkya’s blessing, Kaṭhyāyanī bore three sons—Candrakaṇṭa, Mahāmegha, and Vijayakumāra—as recounted in the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad.
Conferment as Yogīndra
On another occasion, all the maharṣiḥs assembled and posed: “Who among us may bear the title Yogīśvarēśvara or be consecrated as Yogīndra? Who is supreme?” They journeyed to Yājñavalkya and received from him the supreme secrets of yoga. “He is endowed with infinite jñāna; there is none other,” they declared, and crowned him Yogīndra. Their teachings form the twelve chapters of the Yogayājñavalkya.
Renunciation and Counsel to His Wives
In his later years, Yājñavalkya resolved to take sannyāsa. Summoning Kaṭhyāyanī and Maitreyi, he offered them any boon. Having already amassed great wealth, he asked what they desired. Both replied, “We seek only the path to mokṣamārga, free from old age and death.”
To them the sage taught that true love is self-love: a husband loves his wife for his own joy, not for her sake alone. All affection arises from self-interest. Therefore one must inquire, “Who am I that loves? Who is this ‘I’?” He instructed that all perception, reflection, and meditation must turn inward to the self (ātman), for the supreme Self alone is cause of all and the source of Vedic teaching. With these truths imparted, he renounced household life.
Philosophy and Works of Yājñavalkya
Composition of the Yājñavalkya Smṛti
While residing in Mithilā, Yājñavalkya was asked by brāhmaṇa and ṛṣi to expound the duties of varṇa-āśrama. He composed the Yājñavalkya-smṛti in three kāṇḍas of āchāra (conduct), vyavahāra (legal procedure), and prayascitta (penance).
The first kāṇḍa details fourteen vidyāḥ, pariṣad-assemblies, saṃskāra rites, sapinda marriages, snāka rites, and pūrohita duties. The second covers nyāya-procedure, ādhikāra, and strīdhana, affirming a woman’s right to property. The third addresses śauca of apārakarma, duties to guests, and the path to mokṣa, including yama rules and prayascitta for offences. Yājñavalkya’s smṛti thus presents a unified dharma-theory, guiding individuals toward mokṣa across changing times and circumstances.
Yogayājñavalkya and the Twelve Chapters of Yoga
Yājñavalkya expounded the āṅga and upāṅga of yoga in twelve chapters, setting forth its principles to Gārgi in the text known as Yogayājñavalkya. He declares that this yoga-śāstra was revealed to him by Brahmādeva. Even as a gṛhastha, one who abides in svadharma, by the union of karma-vidyā and Vedānta-jñāna one attains samyag-ātma-darśana and becomes mukta. Liberation does not arise from ātma-jñāna alone but from the harmonious blending of karma and jñāna—naiskarmasiddhi.
The Jñāni’s Immunity to Trials
Once liberated, the jñāni faces no downfall. When apsarāḥ or Indraḥ themselves sought to test him, they were confounded by his inner steadiness. After darśana of Brahman, nothing in creation can delude him.
External and Inner Vision
In saṃsāra, outward vision (bāhya-dṛṣṭi) inflicts bondage, while inner vision (antaradṛiṣṭi) protects. The practice (sādhana) is the withdrawal (upasaṃhāra) of bāhya-dṛṣṭi in favor of antaradṛiṣṭi. Attempts to control the indriya-adhāras and conquer kāma-krodha through sādhanā neutralize external distraction. This does not claim self-revelation; rather, it abolishes the power of outward sight, a goal accessible to all.
The Jñāni’s Indifference to Wealth and Power
Asura-sampatti (demonic wealth) and deva-sampatti (divine riches) may torment their possessors—but to the jñāni, these tastes hold no savor. One must practice indifference (upekṣā) toward both. In the āśrama the wicked find safety; in the world they perish—thus one seeks refuge in the hermitage of inner equanimity.
The Place of Each Being in Creation
Just as a bat inhabits the ruins, each being abides where it flourishes by nature. One who harbors enmity toward Īśvara is unseen by Him; but to the devotee, He is fully attentive. This is the essence of guru-tattva: the seers embody the proximity of Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Rudra, yet walk as mortals, rescuing countless souls.
From Rāmeśvara to Kedārānātha, the outward practices—pūjā, mantras, vigraha—may vary, but the metaphysical core remains one. Indian culture rests on guru-tattva, the teaching and surrender to the guru. This lineage of mahārṣiḥs endows our tradition with imperishable vitality. Even as ages pass, the power of their transmission sustains Bharatiya saṃskṛti, renewing it eternally.