The Yogi of Many Worlds

The sages told the Pandavas of Jaigishavya, the great master of yoga, and of Asita Devala, the proud ascetic whom he humbled and taught - a tale of the true goal of yoga, of the emptiness of mere powers, and of the supreme peace of the soul that is free of both joy and sorrow.

There were in olden times two great ascetics. The one was Asita Devala, a sage of fierce austerity and great learning, devoted to penance and to virtue, who had attained much by his discipline and was honored among men. The other was Jaigishavya, a master of yoga so deep and so high that few could comprehend his attainment - a sage who had passed beyond the common bounds of the spiritual life into states and realms unknown to others, and who dwelt in a profound silence and peace, saying little, his greatness hidden beneath a quiet exterior. Asita Devala knew of Jaigishavya, and they dwelt for a time near one another; but Asita did not yet understand how far the other had surpassed him.