Secret of Siddhi

[aditya]

What is the secret of siddhi? There must be a fine point that people miss and that is why siddhi seems so elusive. I know someone who has been practising Yoga and meditation for around 30 years. That person looks younger than his age, but has never got any siddhi. So what is that we miss?

If I do not sound stupid, here is an incident I would like to share: I met someone in India - somewhere in a Himalayan village (my first visit to meet that gentleman) - who achieved siddhi using Mantra and Tantra. He could see anyone on Earth, just by concentrating on him/her. He can hear someone talking (and will express it in a form that it is obvious to you too) in any place on earth. He can appear in your dreams, can give you directions to do thing, even without you realizing that it is he who made you do things. Is it that you can gain power only when you pratice tamasik things?

When I hear someone saying that one should reject power - the first thing that comes in my mind is - what to reject when I do not have it in first place? It is like saying - I do not want to be Bill Gates - I reject the proposal.

Now without further ado, here is my question - if I want to get clairaudience and clairvoyance, please explain me in plain simple English, what do I do? I am 'Upvishya Nishad' at feet of wisdom.

In Pursuit,
A

[aditya]

Melissa,

I rejected that idea (magical route) long time back.

Now I am pursuing it from a view where there is no broken link and a path which anyone can pursue without ambiguity. It all started with a quest - a simple quest to quit smoking and then it just went on and on. Manytimes I feel that I am pulled at the right spot in the right time. For example - yesterday to get train in flooded subway of New York and then I was thinking  - will I be able to catch my regular NJ Transit train? Lol - I was able to catch my regular train (it got late so...). Is this pure co-incidence? Am I just thinking too much? lol!

And then why is this knowledge hidden? Is it just by fluke that people attain it or that no one knows how it happens? My scientific mind refuses to accept it. I have done vigorous practices - I am convinced there is truth in these things. I have been able to find right people - for ex Swami Sivananda, Paramhans Yogananda, Swami J, Yogani, SriRam Sharma Acharya and so many others.  I am sure if I pursue  -knowledge  will be divulged too.

I would like to go beyond this too. What is the best place to keep your consciousness at, when you offer prayer? Where to visualize HIS form? I have more question.However right now I am starting with basics.

I Hope you understand churning of my heart.

In Pursuit,
A

[riptiz]

Hi,
The siddhis are a natural development that all are given as a byproduct of the purification process.Each one of us will be blessed with different siddhis but I do believe it is possible to steer oneself towards a particular one.This is regarded as an abuse of the gifts and has been a downfall of many gurus. The siddhis are not actively sought as they are considered a distraction from the path.I consider them like walking to the garden gate.If you walk directly to the gate without stopping to smell the flowers(siddhis), then you will get there quicker although you will still smell the flowers as you pass by. If you stop to smell the flowers it will take you longer to reach the gate(enlightnement).BTW is not the act of looking younger a blessing? I also do not want to be Bill gates!
As for looking for clairvoyance etc you are stepping into the realms of working with spirits which the yogis do not recommend as it is dangerous working with spirits as they drain your life force.I have a frined in Santa Monica who has many siddhis since birth and worked with spirits for many years . The consequence was a heart attack in his early twenties.When he was told it was caused by working with spirits they confirmed this although it was not a deliberate action. I am sure many will dismiss this as dribble but I can tell you that my friend is a genuine and honest guy who I regard as having high integrity.If you wish to develop siddhis I am sure there are more efficient ways than the yogic way such as working in a spiritualist church etc.
L&L
Dave

'the mind can see further than the eyes'

[Etherfish]

I think one of the problems with trying to develop siddhis without just letting them happen as a byproduct of balanced development, is that you tend to remove yourself from the normal world.

Since siddhis are not a normal thing for normal people, the more you focus your mind on things like that the more you will have problems dealing with the everyday world. You will start to see and hear things other people don't see and hear, and people will start to notice things about you that makes them think you are "weird" or "crazy". Some of it will just be their intuition. Most people are not impressed or amazed with siddhis. Rather, they refuse to believe them and it alienates them from you. It's no fun at all, and it puts you in a place of not understanding why they are reacting that way.

So that's why we need to let them pass by as scenery, and concentrate on the balanced practice of meditation.

[Jim and His Karma]

The big truths, boiled down, all sound like banal platitudes. The biggest truths are worst of all. With that in mind, here goes. There's a lot in here even though it sounds like a freaking greeting card:

The greatest siddhi is peace and happiness.


The reason it's the greatest is that once you have it, you require no other siddhi (you require nothing, period). And practices such as AYP, done diligently over long term, GUARANTEE this greatest of siddhi as a result.

Enjoy.

[Manipura]

I second what Jim says.  When you're deep in meditation and you feel the energy flowing through you and your heart is breaking with love and acceptance of all that is, the last thing you'll be thinking about are siddhis.

"Seek ye first the kingdom of God, then everything else will be added unto you."  Something like that.

[Victor]

maybe we should talk about the little siddhis that we do experience. They happen to me all the time but i call them "synchronicities". One that has been recurring is that i may be in a crowd of people and someones face appears to resemble someone that I know. Then within a short time that person contacts me or shows up.
 Another one  recently happened in the supermarket. I was randomly shopping and not paying attention to the cost but when i got to the checkout i realized that i needed to keep it as close to $100 as possible. when the checker rang it up it came to a bit over and i said "ouch". she looked again and said that my safeway club card had not gone through and to type my number again. i did and the charge came to exactly $100.89!
 OK, so i was telling this story to an online friend and was listening to a Grateful Dead streaming online radio station and quoted one of their songs. I typed "some folks trust to reason, others trust in might, I don't trust in nothing but I know it come out right". as soon as i typed those lyrics the station started playing that song.
this sort of stuff happens to me all the time. I don't get all serious about it but do take notice that there is more than meets the eye and i smile and enjoy the humor of it.

[aditya]

Hi Victor,

You got it right. These things happen with me too. Do you get distracted by this? I guess - no! Nor do I. Now, I do not even realize that these 'miracles' are happening. Earlier I used to be so curious and happy to discover a parking lot in a packed mall, now I take it easy. (even if I do not get one - I know - this is not for me). See - curiousity is satisfied.

The moment you talk about siddhi - people say - NO NO - Don't! Off! It is like saying - do not use cellphone - you will miss your flight. Come on - how many people really miss flight due to cell phone? Maybe few. Now - count how many everyday catch a delayed flight without a boring wait in lobby? See my point?

I understand, there are times when you need to put it on vibration or switch it off. Maybe you need it for only one call in 24 hours, but there is a use, it is always good to have a cell phone handy. Why shun the concept of Siddhi? Why not define a path towards it too? Why not enjoy the whole journey with active control on mind? (people who get off wrong exit do not deserve to complete journey anyway).

[nearoanoke]

very interesting discussion. Thanks to Melissa for pointing out regarding astral projection, magical route, mental wandering etc... Even though it might be dangerous to practice these, they will be something very interesting to read.

The coincidences happen to me too. I was chatting with my gf and i got a phone call, so i told her "go and apply oil to ur moms legs i will come in 5 mins". At the exact same time her mother asked her "come for 5 mins and apply oil to my legs". Whenever I get a phone call, I just say "gimme a minute", thats the first time I jokingly said go and apply oil and her mother also happened to say the same thing. There are other coincidences that happen too.

Most of these things are not in my hand and they just happen.

-Near

[Etherfish]

Aditya wrote:
"Why shun the concept of Siddhi? Why not define a path towards it too? Why not enjoy the whole journey with active control on mind?"

It's not the concept that should be shunned. and yes, siddhis are useful tools. Those you will be given when you are ready. I wouldn't try to tell you not to do something you really want to do. just that siddhis are an illusory part of maya's total illusion, and they will cause pain if you pursue them just like pursuing other parts of the illusion. Having them as a goal is much worse than other illusory goals however because they are not a part of the belief systems of most people, and unity with the human race is one of the most important goals we are after.

It's like telling a kid not to play in the explosives shed until he learns how to use them; he says there is so much power and usefullness in there; i'll just play with a couple sticks of dynamite!
If you're determined, I would suggest setting aside a year maybe to study siddhis and see where it takes you, with the contract with yourself that if you aren't happier at the end of that time you'll quit. It's an addictive path, and can be full of fear and insanity.

but having said that, those coincidences happen to me all the time too. the whole world around you tells you things if you listen without your ego. Really want to go to a store, but can't find a place to park? Don't go today. Really want to tell someone something but can't get ahold of them? Don't tell them today, etc. interesting how you'll find out later why that was the right path to follow. You can see signals telling you something in the flight of birds, the wind, the way people say something, everywhere. . .watch what you are thinking in relation to what is happening around you; the world is talking to you.

[Shanti]

Hi Aditya,
In AYP we do a practice called Shamyama..  "which involves moving outward with our attention in pure bliss consciousness, resulting in the cultivation of so-called yogic powers (siddhis)as a side effect."- Lesson 149.

I am not sure if you are looking for a way to gain siddhis or trying to find out why people tell you to not look for them. Maybe both.
Either way, Yogani covers both of these in his lessons.
Go over..
Lesson76-Siddhis:Are powers real?

Lesson 243 - Meditation and Powers (Siddhis)

Lesson 149 - The eight limbs of yoga, and samyama – Melting the darkness

Lesson 150 - Samyama practice
 
There are a few more, but start off with these, and if it gets you interested go to the
Topic Index
and look for Siddhis/Powers.

[Jim and His Karma]

If it seems like my posting above was glossing over the issue, being moralistic, etc, then I gave the wrong impression. It was literally true.

I may be able to walk on water right now. I may be reading people's minds. I may have all sorts of stuff going on. But I have no idea. I wouldn't notice. Whatever yoga's given me in the way of "powers" would be so unbelievably uninteresting compared to the increasing liberation from the feelings of isolation, emptiness, meaninglessness, drabness, and slogging, drudging misery I'd previously felt for nearly all my life- with the exception of a few peak moments when the truth of things peaked through (hee....I like the redefinition of "peak"). We don't realize the extent of our misery and imprisonment until we step outside it.

This is so humongously amazing and relieving to me that the thought of being able to, like, turn jellybeans into gold pieces wouldn't occur to me in a million years. It would be like a feature on a VCR remote control I never knew about. Damn, I coulda been recording on timer ALL THIS TIME!

Anyone who experiences the dense all-pervasive love in which we all unknowingly bathe 24/7 could not possibly spend a millisecond contemplating cheap magic tricks.

There's nothing wrong or taboo about pursuing siddhis. It just has nothing to do with surrendering to God (i.e. yoga). It's  a distraction from that (every attempt to grab the fruits of one's actions moves one further and further away from realization). Anyone the least bit surrendered, who has experienced the miracle of peace, can only giggle at the thought of lesser siddhis (all siddhis besides peace are lesser siddhis). The world is heart breakingly beautiful and I have a sacred place in this collaborative work of art....and I'm going to spend twenty years learning to live on sunlight? HUH???

[Alvin Chan]

Hi aditya,

You may enjoy this thread: http://www.aypsite.com/plus-forum/index.php?topic=367

You will be disappointed if you want some advices on how you can get clairaudience and clairvoyance. Quite the opposite, you will find plenty of evidences against the idea that siddhis can be demonstrated at will by anyone who want to demonstrate. (In my mind, I go further. But I would stop here.)

No more arguments here. I would just add that I am willing to accept the idea of siddhis if there are enough concrete, rigorous evidences.

If you want to amuse people, the surest way is to learn some simple magic. In fact, many spiritual leaders (including many Indian "sages")demonstrate "siddhis" by some magical tricks. The difference of such "guru" and magicians is just that the latter tell you that it's just a trick!

Alvin

[cosmic_troll]

I don't even have 24/7 ecstatic bliss yet, but I happily take what I've gotten from AYP already over siddhis any day...

That being said, I think you're more likely to attain siddhis if you dedicate their use (via prayer) to the benefit and enlightenment of all beings. And if the only siddhi you receive is a killer smile, the world will be a better place for it. And at that point you won't give a crap about siddhis anyways...

[Manipura]

quote:Originally posted by cosmic_troll

 I think you're more likely to attain siddhis if you dedicate their use (via prayer) to the benefit and enlightenment of all beings.

Do you think that's true?  I'd like it to be true, but there seem to be plenty of cases where siddhis were meted out to reckless gurus or plain folk who used them for personal gain.  I wonder if they're sometimes given to less-than-stellar characters who, by the very choice in how they handle them, are expanded toward enlightenment or degraded in ego fulfilllment.  As always, it's a matter of free will, and the latent powers in siddhis may go beyond the obvious feats of display, whether one takes them on the high or low road.  

We all like to think we'd take the high road should powers be given us, but who knows?  Who could resist the harmless act of showing off a siddhi or 2 to someone who would appreciate the display, and the temptation to repeat the act would be overwhelming.  I hope I'm never put to the test!  Besides finding siddhis relatively uninteresting, I'm not so sure I'd handle them with integrity.  And then what?  What happens internally with the energy when the powers are abused?  Wouldn't one's inner silence be corrupted?