{"id":35274,"date":"2017-01-30T16:51:37","date_gmt":"2017-01-30T16:51:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/?p=35274"},"modified":"2023-07-24T11:19:07","modified_gmt":"2023-07-24T11:19:07","slug":"sutra-1-40-another-post-about-miracles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/en\/sutra-1-40-another-post-about-miracles\/","title":{"rendered":"Sutra 1.40. Another Post About Miracles"},"content":{"rendered":"
Many people are looking for kitschy miracles<\/i><\/div>\n
but turn their blind eye to the major one<\/i><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The sutra 1.40 been quoted out of context gave rise to numerous twisted fantasies that I intend to dispel.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
This sutra completes the passage on scattered mind (chitta vikshepa) restoration and stabilization methods, and reads as follows<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\u092a\u0930\u092e\u093e\u0923\u0941 \u092a\u0930\u092e\u092e\u0939\u0924\u094d\u0924\u094d\u0935\u093e\u0928\u094d\u0924\u094b\u093d\u0938\u094d\u092f \u0935\u0936\u0940\u0915\u093e\u0930\u0903 \u0965 \u096a\u0966\u0965<\/b><\/div>\n
1.40 param\u0101\u1e47u paramamahattv\u0101nto’sya va\u015b\u012bk\u0101ra\u1e25\u00a0<\/i><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
In order to explain what I mean I shall instead of giving the line detailed interpretation first start with quoting the translation variants available:
\n<\/a><\/div>\n
1.40. Thereafter, a yogi\u2019s mastery stretches from the smallest atom to the biggest objects.<\/i><\/div>\n
1.40. His mastery extends right to the ultimate atom and to the ultimate magnitude<\/i><\/div>\n
1.40. For one whose thought is tranquil, mastery extends from the most minute particle to the vast expanse.<\/i><\/div>\n
1.40. Mastery of tranquility extends from the most minute particle to the largest, the form of the entire cosmos.<\/i><\/div>\n
1.40. In time, the heart can hold the smallest thing, and the uncontainable.<\/i><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
As we can see, the interpreters tend to translate this line in somewhat pompous way implying a yogi acquires a kind of super-power and masters siddhis. And this interpretation has classical groundwork to rely on. Indeed, by his starting the given recital with param\u00e2\u00f1u (\u201cthe smallest objects\u201d) parama-mahat (\u201cthe largest objects\u201d) Patanjali definitely alludes to the list of 8 Mahasiddhis. And his earliest commentators were totally aware of the issue that modern searchers of Eastern miracles would refuse to admit: these siddhis to be of cognitive nature<\/b>. Thus they were already Vyasa followed by Bhojaraja who were interpreting this line in the context of chitta\u2019, or manas\u2019, capability to \u201cpenetrate within\u201d \u201cthin\u201d or \u201ccoarse\u201d objects.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\u09651.40\u0965 s\u016bk\u1e63me nivi\u015bam\u0101nasya param\u0101\u1e47vanta\u1e43 sthitipada\u1e43 labhata iti\u0964 sth\u016ble nivi\u015bam\u0101nasya paramamahattv\u0101nta\u1e43 sthitipada\u1e43 cittasya\u0964<\/i><\/div>\n
By focusing on fine objects (the Yogi) attains the state of chitta steadiness up to the level of the minutest atoms. By focusing on coarse objects (the Yogi) attains the state of chitta steadiness up to the level of the largest objects.\u00a0<\/i><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The key word here is \u201cchitta\u201d that undergoes transformations.<\/div>\n
The commentary of Bhojaraja runs as follows:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\u09651.40\u0965 na kvacittaparam\u0101\u1e47uparyante s\u016bk\u1e63me vi\u1e63aye’sya mana\u1e25 pratihanyata ityartha\u1e25\u0964 eva\u1e43 sth\u016blam\u0101k\u0101\u015b\u0101diparamamahatparyanta\u1e43 bh\u0101vayato na kvaciccetasa\u1e25 pratigh\u0101ta utpadyate sarvatra sv\u0101tantrya\u1e43 bhavat\u012btyartha\u1e25\u0964 evamebhirup\u0101yai\u1e25 sa\u1e43sk\u1e5btasya cetasa\u1e25 k\u012bd\u1e5bgr\u016bpa\u1e43 bhavat\u012bty\u0101ha.<\/i><\/div>\n
None of \u201cfine\u201d, none of minutest objects can withstand his mind (manas! i.e. intellectual process \u2013 A.S.\u2019 note). Likewise none of \u201ccoarse\u201d, even the largest, same as sky, cannot stand against (his mind)\u2026<\/i><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Thus even the most ancient commentators referred to the idea of this sutra\u2019s being not about the \u201cgrowth\u201d or \u201creduction\u201d of physical body that we find in na\u00efve interpretations of parlour mysticism adherents, yet the ability of the one who has attained mind integrity to speculate on most different objects, to \u201cpenetrate\u201d (nivi\u015b) into them with his chitta or manas.<\/div>\n
And we can indeed observe the human mind \u201csupremacy\u201d over the \u201cmost minute objects\u201d in the field of nucleus fission, DNA sequence deciphering and transformation, quantum computers etc. As well as over the \u201cbig\u201d ones \u2013 space flights, development of black holes theory \u201cwith a point of a pen\u201d and conceptualization of the Universe\u2019 first minutes. It is the improvement of cognitive intelligence that makes the objective of human being\u2019 true evolvement, while his spiritual maturity lies in inexhaustible craving for knowledge. <\/b>And there isn\u2019t any other miracle in the world greater than Mind, but many people don\u2019t notice this. Or never use it.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Of course not all of us are directly engaged in big science. But being a part of the mankind, every person can be involved in panhuman development by improving oneself, by having the desire to stay at the cutting edge of science and technology, by dealing with the most recent discoveries and fostering the same. Let me remind here that svadhyaya, or self-education, is one of Yoga\u2019 basic niyamas.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
A parlour belief in primitive miracles is a far cry from both genuine Yoga and common sense. Searching for spirituality from \u201cbabus\u201d of little education, stories about objects \u201cmaterialization\u201d, \u201ccleaning chakras\u201d with help of singing bowls and other things of the kind is just an aimless pursuit. These things seem to be trifles, but what they have behind them are global involutive processes occurring intensively in the world of today. They are drop of education average level against traditionalism that is walking tall again, with some people even returning to religious description methods. Still I believe that the voice of Reason and person\u2019s inner need for development shall manage to overcome.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many people are looking for kitschy miracles but turn their blind eye to the major one The sutra 1.40 been quoted out of context gave rise to numerous twisted fantasies that I intend to dispel. This sutra completes the passage on scattered mind (chitta vikshepa) restoration and stabilization methods, and reads as follows \u092a\u0930\u092e\u093e\u0923\u0941 \u092a\u0930\u092e\u092e\u0939\u0924\u094d\u0924\u094d\u0935\u093e\u0928\u094d\u0924\u094b\u093d\u0938\u094d\u092f… Continue reading Sutra 1.40. Another Post About Miracles<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[200],"tags":[241,669,674,672,251,627],"class_list":["post-35274","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-yoga-sutra-en","tag-chitta-vritti-nirodha","tag-manas-en","tag-nirodha-en","tag-niyama-en","tag-patanjali","tag-vyasa-en","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35274","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35274"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35274\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35274"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35274"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.in.yoga\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35274"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}