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The Right Way to Acquire Psychic Powers (Yoga Siddhis)
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The Right Way to Acquire Psychic Powers (Yoga Siddhis)
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: Personal Development & Spiritual Growth
Lately I have been getting many requests with regard to psychic powers, their acquisition, value, purpose etc. Although I can’t cover all these aspects in one article, this post will kick off the series in which I will delve into these topics.
In Yoga terminology psychic powers are called Siddhis and they are addressed in detail in many books on Yoga and Tantra. A good resource for the study of these Yogic Powers is of course the Yoga Sutras (threads) of Sage Patanjali, where in Book 3 (Vibhuti Pada) Patanjali details the psychic powers and the methodology for their attainment. Swami Satchidananda has written a very nice book with commentaries on Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and I want to provide his view on Yogic Powers as they are quite in line with my views as well.
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
Integral Yoga Publications
Translation & Commentary By Sri Swami Satchidananda
Pages: 199-200
Patanjali Yoga Sutra 51 says that "By non-attachment to even Psychic Powers, the seeds of bondage are destroyed and independence gained." Here are Swami Satchidananda’s commentaries on this sutra and Yogic Siddhis in general.
"This means that all these siddhis are beautiful, but they will bind us, because siddhis are the outcome of the mind. The mind wants something. It wants to achieve this or that. What for? To be proud of itself. It develops ego. It makes your "I" and "mine" bigger. Selfish desires are still there. If you are after siddhis like astral traveling, clairvoyance and clairaudience, I ask you why. You may say, "Oh, I thought I could help people." I say that this is just an excuse. You want to show you can do something. You want to be proud of it.
Are the siddhis bad then? If so, why are they there? I say they are not bad. They are beautiful; they are good. When? Whey they come to you. When you run after them they are bad. That’s all the difference. Let the siddhis come and beg, "Hey, can’t I do something for you?" Then they are beautiful. If you don’t run after them and your don’t crave them, they are not yours. They want to have you as theirs. They want to be with you and serve you. Then they are okay. That’s why, even in the Bible, you come across these powers. Everything will come to you. When? When you seek the Kingdom. "Seek ye first the Kingdom of Heaven; everything else will be added unto you." You don’t need to run after them one by one. When you become the boss, you get everything. You don’t need to run after small jobs."
The above is the perfect place to start when studying the topic of Psychic Powers. This understanding will ensure that you are not being distracted by the acquisition of Yogic Siddhis and that you are aiming only for the Highest; only the Truth. Along the way let these powers come as they wish. When they come to you in this fashion, you will not misuse them for self aggrandization because your target is still God, which means you are passionate about egolessness.
Given the above I will provide techniques for obtaining psychic powers in future articles in these series. Hopefully having understood the reasoning above you will undertake their pursuit impersonally or for scientific study. Often, yogic siddhis are byproducts of prolonged practice of certain powerful meditations and kriyas (sets) and there are already several such meditations detailed on this website. Of these, the two that are highly reputed for bestowing such powers are Sodarshan Chakra Kriya - 3 Most Powerful Yoga Pranayamas & Kriyas and Ajana Chakra Meditation Technique (3rd Eye). I wonder if that is the reason why these are among the most popular articles on this website :-P.
Article Series - Psychic Powers, Yoga Siddhis Philosophy and Techniques
- The Right Way to Acquire Psychic Powers (Yoga Siddhis)
on September 3rd, 2007 at 11:24 am
You mean Patanjali, right? :)
on September 3rd, 2007 at 12:07 pm
Was actually referring to his lesser known twin :-D. Thanks for pointing that out.
on September 3rd, 2007 at 9:43 pm
Great article - so true. Psychic ability is a by-product of spiritual development, but should never be the desired end result of spiritual practice. It is easy to get hung up on “look what I can do” … of course, these abilities are obtainable by everyone. Like everything else, psychic ability can be a useful tool, or become our master.
Blessings,
Andrea
http://www.EmpoweredSoul.com
on September 4th, 2007 at 12:57 pm
Perfectly said! Thank you for your insights.
Best,
Anmol
on September 4th, 2007 at 2:39 pm
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on September 5th, 2007 at 12:34 pm
I’ve always found the siddhis to be a bit of a conundrum. They necessarily mark a certain level of spiritual attainment, therefore are sought after. Yet danger lies within becoming attached to the siddhis, for the attachment can stop true liberation.
It’s an interesting situation.
I think it is important to view them as a gift from God, and as with all gifts from God the proper thing to do with them is to use them in acts of service to the Lord. Laying the fruits of one’s labors at the feet of the Lord.
on September 6th, 2007 at 9:00 pm
Well said. With regard to siddhis here is some food for thought. Some schools assert that the onset of psychic powers imply that Kundalini is stuck in a particular chakra and the flow is actually imbalanced. Thus Yogic Powers indicate where more work is needed, as opposed to the yogi thinking they have acheived something special. Just another view to add to the conundrum :-D.
Blessings,
Anmol
on September 22nd, 2007 at 12:53 am
the Yoga terminology is very helpful, i just discovered “Psychic” Healing, early this summer in a Hatha based, Yoga Text book. I am a Metaphysical, Psychic, we use different terminology.
on September 23rd, 2007 at 7:00 pm
on October 10th, 2007 at 7:11 am
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on June 27th, 2008 at 5:05 pm
Sat Nam Anmol and all the other yogis and yoginis out there!
I find the siddhis very interesting. May be one day I wake up and I will have some of them? Who knows?
Does anybody of you know somebody who acquired any siddhis. I mean there are thousands of people meditating on a regular base. Or is it a very rare phenomena?
Curious Sotantar
on August 8th, 2008 at 7:34 pm
It is a very rare phenomena for sure. Also, these powers come and go. I have met a few yogis who have had some for some time, but no one who has mastered them yet :-D.
Cheers,
Anmol