Yoga Sutra III- 16 - PARINAMA TRAYA SAMYAMAD ATITANAGATA JNANAM - By practicing samyama on the three stages of evolution comes knowledge of past and future. Swami Satchidananda - "In this and in the following Sutras, Patanjali describes various samyamas and the siddhis which will result."
The commentary from "How to Know God - The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali" translated and commented on by Swami Prabhavananda and Christopher Isherwood is as follows:
"Patanjali now begins to describe the various occult powers and the methods by which they are acquired. All authorities, including Patanjali himself, regard occult powers as the greatest stumbling blocks in the path to the truth. " The commentary states that Sri Ramakrishna called the occult powers "Heaps of rubbish" and that Buddha told his disciples never to put faith in miracles "but to see the truth in the eternal principles. Christ spoke sharply against those who 'seek for a sign,' and it is unfortunate that his strictures were not taken more seriously to heart by his followers."
"Occult powers do, however, exist, and Patanjali, in his comprehensive treatise on yoga psychology, obviously cannot ignore them." Swami Prabhavananda and Christopher Isherwood state that they translate the following Yoga Sutras ( aphorisms) " for the sake of completeness," but doing so with a minimum of technical explanation. "The sincere spiritual aspirant can have very little concern with such matters."
In the last part of the commentary, it is pointed out how "In the West these powers are hardly exhibited and that there is a good deal of skepticism as well. We are told these power are all within each of us, however, western man has made the choice to concentrate on production of the mechanical as opposed to the psychological powers. So instead of :
- telepathy - telephone
- levitation - helicopter
- clairvoyance - television
Finally, we are told that even though we may regret materialism by such a choice, it might be the better of two evils. "A community of degenerated yogis, using psychic powers for business and political ends, would be even more unpleasant to live in than our own atom-wielding world." Ultimately, instead of hankering over psychic powers we should turn our attention back to the true path of spiritual growth. Patanjali's warning: "They are the powers of the worldly state, but they are obstacles to samadhi."
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4 comments:
I've often considered the situation with Jesus, his path was filled with signs, and the people came for that, but did they hear his words.
Good reminder of where to put our attention! Thanks
Greetings Anne! Thanks for the comments and you are welcome! It is a good reminder of where our attention should be.
Take care.
A perspective I have not really ever considered! Thanks for sharing this!
You are welcome C.Om! All great beings say the same thing about the siddhis. It was fascinating how the siddhis were broken down with the mechanical process.
Blessings to you.
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