The Sage Vitahavya's Samadhi - Absorption and Return

Rama asked with some concern: "O Sage, I hear of yogis entering deep meditation and remaining there for centuries. What happens in such states? Can one become lost in absorption and forget to return? Is there danger in going too deep?"

Vasishtha replied thoughtfully: "Let me tell you of the sage Vitahavya, whose story addresses your questions directly."

"I have not heard of him."

"Few have, for he was absorbed for so long that the world forgot him. Vitahavya was a realized sage who, having understood the nature of reality, sat down to rest in the Self. He closed his eyes, turned his awareness inward, and entered the deepest state of samadhi—absorption in pure consciousness without any objective content."

"How long did he remain thus?"

"Ages passed. Kingdoms rose and fell. The very geography of the land changed. Rivers shifted their courses; forests grew where cities had stood; languages transformed beyond recognition. When Vitahavya finally opened his eyes, he found himself in a world completely unfamiliar."

Rama was amazed: "Did he not need food? Water? Did his body not decay?"

Vasishtha nodded: "In deep samadhi, bodily needs are suspended. The life force sustains the body in a minimal way, requiring nothing from outside. His body had aged slightly, but not as countless years would normally age it. Time, like all else, is experienced by consciousness—when consciousness is not experiencing time, time does not touch it."

"What did he do upon awakening?"

"Here is the profound part. Vitahavya looked around, saw that everything he had known was gone, and felt... nothing. No regret, no disorientation, no grasping after the vanished past. He simply began functioning again—walking, teaching, interacting with whoever appeared. The world had changed utterly, yet for him, it was simply another appearance of consciousness, neither better nor worse than the world he had known."

Rama marveled: "He felt no attachment to his previous life? His disciples, his home, his era?"

"Attachment requires a sense of 'mine.' Vitahavya had no sense of 'mine' before entering samadhi; he did not develop one upon emerging. For him, the previous world and this world were equally dreamlike—equally valid as manifestations, equally empty of inherent existence. He taught wherever he found himself, rested when he wished, and eventually returned to absorption."

"Did he achieve something greater through such long absorption? Some special power or attainment?"

Vasishtha smiled: "This is where your question is most important. Vitahavya achieved nothing in samadhi that he did not already have. He did not become more liberated through sitting for ages—he was already liberated before he sat. The absorption was not a means to an end; it was simply rest. Like a tired person sleeping, he rested in his true nature. When he awakened, he was the same as before: free, unbound, complete."

"Then what is the purpose of such long absorptions?"

"They have no purpose in the sense of producing results. They are expressions of freedom, not means to freedom. A liberated being may choose activity or stillness, engagement or withdrawal—the choice makes no difference to the liberation itself. Vitahavya chose stillness for ages, then chose engagement. Neither was higher or lower; both were plays of consciousness."

Rama asked: "Could one become attached to the bliss of samadhi? Could one prefer absorption to activity?"

Vasishtha acknowledged: "This is a subtle trap for some. The bliss of samadhi can become another attachment—a spiritual attachment, but attachment nonetheless. The truly free being is not attached even to the peace of absorption. Vitahavya demonstrated this by emerging naturally, without resistance, without preference. He was as content in the chaos of a new era as in the stillness of absorption."

Rama reflected: "Then the test of realization is not how long one can sit in samadhi, but how freely one moves between states?"

"Precisely. Some beings need long periods of absorption to stabilize in realization. Others stabilize quickly. Vitahavya may have needed those ages; others might need only moments. The duration is not the point. The point is: can you move between deep stillness and active engagement without losing yourself? Can you meet the world without becoming the world? Can you rest in the Self without clinging to rest?"

Rama bowed: "I shall seek liberation without seeking escape. Activity and stillness, both as expressions of freedom."

Vasishtha concluded: "Vitahavya's story is told not to encourage you to sit for ages, but to show that liberation is not disturbed by any duration—whether of absorption or activity. The free being is free in an instant or an eon, in meditation or in marketplace. Time does not measure the timeless."