Acharya Mahaprajna
Ramakrisna Paramahamsa said to Vivekanand, "You are short of financial resources. Go to goddess Kalli and seek her help." Vivekananda went to the temple of the goddess, stood before her and began to meditate'. He did so for a number of days. He could not speak to the goddess about his difficulty. After a few days Ramakrisna asked him, '"Did you pray to the goddess to get rid of your financial difficulty?" The latter replied that his financial difficulty was such a small thing that he felt shy to speak of it to the goddess.
Great spiritual practitioners never had the intention to produce miracles. Only those who did not practise self-exertion and belonged to a mediocre category took interest in miracles. They remained satisfied with pleasing and impressing the masses. Their sadhana aimed only at giving boons or inflicting losses on others. It was with this yardstick that they measured their powers. Such practitioners create a sense of awe among the masses. It is awe, which compels the ignorant to seek their help. These practitioners do not lead a happy life but miserable in the end. Ultimately they begin to denounce their art.
Speculators often tell people not to take to the dirty business of speculation. They begin to criticise themselves and say that it was due to their weakness that they speculated. Those who try to employ their mental powers in achieving trifling material gains fare no better. Attracted by small siddhis or supernatural powers they turn away from their grand aim. It is due to our inclinations that we choose either spiritual exertion or miracles. The journey to miracles is an external journey whereas the journey to self-realization is an internal journey. Mental powers can be aroused by both the journeys. The difference between the two is a difference in direction and in the use to which we put our mental powers.
Spiritual sadhana is the supreme sadhana. In sadhana mental powers are developed for spiritual purposes only and not for producing miracles. As a matter of fact self-realization is the greatest miracle. There is no other greater miracle. It is the greatest achievement man is capable of. The seeker of the self does not see anybody else except himself. He is an ananyadarsi.
Our dictum is: see the self through the self. Breath perception is also self-perception. Breath is a part of the soul. It is propelled by the soul. If there were no soul, there will be no breath. Body perception or perceiving the constituents of the body is also self-perception. All the vibrations of the body are the vibrations of the soul. We perceive them in order to perceive the soul. Only a highly developed practitioner is capable of perceiving the soul.
The manifestation of mental powers is the precondition of self-perception. Perfect calm and complete relaxation alone can arouse mental energy. It can be aroused by vacana gupti (speech control), manugupti (control of the mind) and kaya gupti (control of the body). Physical rest under the advice of a physician means keeping one's body stretched on a bed. According to the spiritual view complete rest or relaxation means making the mind, body and speech go to sleep. The physician advises rest to the body only. The spiritual practitioner is advised to give rest not only to the body but to the mind and speech also. Sometimes physicians advise their patients not to speak. But the physician does not advise bringing the mind to a standstill. The spiritual practitioner practises complete immobilization of the mind, body and speech. Once they have been immobilized all the impulses and emotions come to an end.
The fourth area is bhavana (feeling). Exercises in bhavana are very difficult. Bhavana means the orientation of the mind in a different framework of reference. Until the mind has been seized by the self, it is incapable of manifesting its energies. Bhavitatma is a very important term in the Jain scriptures. It is a mysterious state of the mind. It means mind possessed by the self. It means to be in the mood of the self. It does not mean simply thinking oneself to be somebody else. It means controlling and putting the stamp of the soul on all the tissues and cells participating in the apparatus of knowledge.
There are billions and billions of living cells or neurons in the body. They control the tendencies and impulses of the body. An idea, which comes in contact with the neurons, can be easily materialized. It is very difficult to understand their workings. They lie scattered across the brain in billions. They are highly useful in arousing mental powers.
Naturopaths advise us that if we suffered from constipation, we should sit in easy posture and give a suggestion to the knowledge tissues to open the bowels. The knowledge tissues will become active. This will make stool pass. Autosuggestion plays a very important part in mental development. Sammohana (deluding) can be brought about by the knowledge centres working under suggestion. What is needed is to plant our desires and tendencies into the knowledge tissues. Once this has been done the knowledge tissues will become active and make us achieve what we want to achieve. Let us merge our desires, etc. into the knowledge tissues to create new things and to replace old ones with them. We have to establish our identity with them. That is the process of self-transformation. That is also the method of arousing mental powers.
