--- In [email protected], "sparaig" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> --- In [email protected], Vaj <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> >
> >
> > On Oct 14, 2005, at 2:28 PM, authfriend wrote:
> > > In MMY's teaching, of course, one isn't practicing
> > > the techniques so that one will be able to do siddhis,
> > > but rather because the practice facilitates Unity
> > > consciousness.
> >
> > ROFL! Are sure sure you aren't interested in that wetland I have in
> > Florida?
> >
> > No, we don't do it for the siddhis, even though Patanjali says that
> > will be the result of samyama on these formulae we're using and the
> > big thing *is* hopping (the bhuchari siddhi) en masse. The Patanjali
> > sutras are yoga/samkhya darshana Judy and what is the result of yoga
> > darshana Judy? I'll give you a hint, it begin with "C"...
> >
>
> As I said, better to say "JUST so we can do the siddhis."
>
> The point of siddhis practice isn't the siddhis but the eventual
> outcome expected from the practice. Few people do pushups so they can
> brag that they can do pushups, as a mundane example...
Jaya Guru Datta
I offer this piece once again. Good stuff.
Note the paragraph with the *****. It makes it very clear the result of siddhi
practice.
Hint..It ain't samadhi.
Vibhuti Yoga
By Sri Ganapathi Sachchidananda Swamiji
The world exists, doesnÕt it? To be more precise, it appears as though
it exists.
What is this world? It is the existence or appearance of existence of objects
with form and
without form. Among these objects, some appear very predominant and special.
These
are ÒVibhutis.Ó Visheshena bhavati Vibhuti.
But to whom do these special objects appear? To answer this question,
another
question needs to be answered. Does this world appear similar to everyone? A
fruit that
is very tasty to someone may be absolutely unpalatable to another. A child who
appears
very beautiful to the mother may look ugly to others. Can we say then that
this world
appears similar to two persons? No. We cannot say that. Therefore, those
objects that
appear very special are also innumerable. They themselves are different
ÒVibhutisÓ
(specialties). If a person has the knowledge of timeÑpast, present and
futureÑit may
appear very great to him. To him it is ÒVibhuti.Ó But how to achieve this
knowledge? If he
is able to know how and why that knowledge is special to him, then he will come
to
understand the means to achieve it.
ÒIf any object becomes dear to a person, then he will fall into the
vicious wheel of
sanga-kama-krodha-sammoha-smriti-bhramsha-buddhi nasha and vinasha,Ó declares
Gitacharya. Among these, sanga is important. Sanga is a mental activity, not
physical.
Sanga is fickle nature. It flies from one object to another.
Due to the intensity of moha, sometimes the vagaries of mind reduce on
their own
concentration. A child crying for its mother will become quiet as soon as it
sees her. But
after a while, it starts looking in all directions. On the other hand, it is
also possible to
control the vagaries of mind with the help of the discriminative mind. Dharana
and
dhyana are the names given to different levels of controlling the mind.
Let it be so. What is your name? Say it is Ramayya. You are an
officer. It is your
nature to be strict. You are a very tall person. Your characteristics can be
explained in
various similar ways. But in reality ÓyouÓ are different from all the
above-mentioned traits.
This fact applies to all objects in the world. Being able to concentrate on
this inner
phenomena (and not on the external appearance) is called samadhi. This is the
clue to
vibhuti sadhana.
It is now clear that dharana and dhyana depend on the external
characteristics of an
object, while samadhi is concerned with the ÒinternalÓ principle of the object.
Therefore, it
seems that these three aspectsÑdharana, dhyana and samadhiÑcannot coexist. But
by
the power of sadhana these three can be achieved at the same time. This is
called
Òsamyama.Ó
Love or hatred for objects is on account of their external appearance
and the fruits
they give. But once samyama sets in, objects hitherto appearing in different
forms start
appearing in their tattvic form (innate principle). Then the oneness that is
common to all
the objects is experienced. As dharana and dhyana also coexist, the diversity
of the
objects is also experienced. To put it in a nutshell, unity amidst diversity
will come to be
experienced. This state is called Òprajna.Ó Prajna means Òprahasta jnanaÓ
(knowledge of
the superior order). After achieving prajna, when one looks at the objects
(through the
eye of prajna), every object in this creation starts exhibiting an existence of
a higher order.
This specialty is not on account of the desire for the object. Instead, it is
due to the
experience of its innate principle. Hence this is the real specialty. This
alone is the
ÒVibhutiÓ explained in Yoga Shastra.
If samyama is achieved on any specific object (with form or without
form), a specific
vibhuti sets in. Patanjali has listed some of them in his yoga sutras. If one
achieves
samyama on the sun, knowledge of the 14 worlds will be achieved. By
concentrating on
the ÒnabhiÓ (navel), the secret of the body structure will be known. There are
more
examples of samyama on objects with form in PatanjaliÕs yoga sutras.
An object has different names in different languages. That means
different sounds
indicate the same object to different persons. The same object is
distinguished as
different sounds to different people. It is because of symbolizing an object
with a sound
and vice versa that language came into existence. Due to the diversity of
samskaras of
speakers, different languages take birth. On account of this, confusion is
created in the
relation between the sound and the object. If one achieves samyama on this,
one will be
able to understand the speech of all the beings. This shows how difficult and
complicated
it is to achieve samyama on objects without form.
In the Puranas we come across stories about saints who could fly in the
sky with the
help of special pastes smeared to their feet, and yogis who acquired the
knowledge of the
heavenly worlds by meditating upon the gandharvas. People do not respect them
much.
If on the other hand such feats are performed through yoga, it generates
respect. Why
this differentiation? Is it not the act that is important? To understand
this, one must know
the aim of Òvibhutis.Ó This subject has been depicted by Pantanjali in the
following sutra,
ÒTadapi bahirangam nirbeejasaya.Ó
Vibhutis should help in experiencing the oneness among diverse objects.
On seeing
an object, samyama should set in automatically. Vibhuti should be experienced
in all the
objects. It is to achieve this oneness that the tradition of yoga Òvibhuti
sadhanaÓ is
undertaken. Patanjali has also narrated that the existence is predominantly
visible and has
explained that he is doing so only to train the seeker in the art of seeing God
in all the
objects. In the end he has stated, ÒThere is His vibhuti in all objects of the
creation.Ó He
has further stated that apart from pervading the entire universe, He pervades
three times
beyond that. That itself is vibhuti.
***** If they (vibhutis) do not lead one to this state, they will be called
as ÒsiddhisÓ and not
vibhutis. Siddhis hinder samadhi and lead one to ÒvyuththanataÓ (becoming
outward).
Therefore, Patanjali has stated thus: ÒTe samaadhaavupasargaah vyuththaane
siddhayahÓ
or ÒOne who is after siddhis cannot achieve vibhuti yoga.Ó
Lord Dattatreya is yoga personified. When He wanted to bless
Kaartaveeryarjuna, He
bestowed siddhis upon him. Through them he gave him the responsibility of
protecting
dharma. In that process, Kaartaveeryarjuna faced many ups and downs. That is
the very
nature of siddhis. But he had performed Guruseva extraordinarily. Therefore,
he could
attain vairagya in the end. In the absence of GuruÕs grace, the siddhis will
push the seeker
to the hell called ego forever. It was GuruÕs grace that lead
Kaartaveeryarjuna to vairagya
(detachment) and viveka (discrimination). Then Lord Dattatreya blessed him
with
sabeeejanirbeeja samadhi yoga. In other words, Lord Dattatreya taught him the
skill to
convert siddhis into vibhutis.
Because the difference between siddhis and vibhutis is so subtle and
fine, the people
have cautioned to desist from even glancing at the siddhis.
May Lord Dattatreya bless you all to experience the supreme self
vibhuti in its true
form.
>
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