TelosianEmbrace
24th October 2011, 13:23
The Saddhus of India have traditions that go back thousands and thousands of years. Their spiritual science is as precise and exacting as any on Earth today. I regard them as my true brothers, for theirs is the eternal quest for enlightenment. Many have achieved incredible talents, called siddhas, as detailed in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Glimpses of some of these wondrous beings are found in such books as 'Autobiography of a Yogi' by Yogananda, and 'Living with the Himalayan Masters' by Swami Rama.
At various stages I have been in close proximity to certain aware beings. I have witnessed the materialisation of a necklace, of holy ash seemingly sloughing off the surface of a picture or painting, amrita oozing endlessly from an amulet, and a Ganesha statue that drinks endless teaspoons of milk.
I had read these stories of the saddhus with siddhis, and thought they were amazing, but it was only a few years ago when I heard a tale first hand.
I was staying at an ashram in southern India, and was pestered by this man, Clarence, for money. It seemed odd, but he seemed genuine and he was only asking for a few hundred rupees, claiming he would pay it back. I decided to humour him. It was only later, when he came back with the money, that we got the chance to chat.
Clarence had walked up into the mountains in search of a guru. He met a wandering saddhu in an auspicious way, and the saddhu told him all about Clarence's life. Clarence was amazed at the clarity of the 'reading' and took up the saddhu's offer to travel with him and learn from him. For weeks he walked with the saddhu through the mountains, and practiced an energy technique very similar in its initial stages to Tai Chi. He learnt quickly, and within a very short period of time, with the assistance of the saddhu, learned a handful of siddhis. The saddhu flew. He flew. The saddhu put his toe to the edge of a huge boulder and effortlessly flicked it down the mountainside. Clarence was able to do the same.
Then the test came that he had been warned about, the test that he would either pass and continue with his lessons, or fail and return to his mundane life. The saddhu turned to him one day and said simply "Bring me the Sun". Instantly C's mind jumped in, questioning how he was going to be able to do it, and in that moment he failed. He had to return to civilisation and pick up the threads of his mundane life.
Of course, I asked him to show me something incredible! I mean, wouldn't you? His powers had waned, he was finding it difficult to do his practices, and even his effortless manifestation of money was no more. He truly believed money would simply come to him. He was trying to open a school in his native country, paid for with donations, that would teach these energy exercises. It was painful to see him grappling with the diametrically opposed systems. One of belief in abundance and ease, and the other, the western world we live in of fear, need and hardship. I really felt for him.
It gave me food for thought, in particular why the saddhu had singled him out and gave him that incredibly rare experience. Perhaps it was told to me so that one day I would have a similar experience and when asked, I would bring the Sun to my teacher without hesitation. Perhaps...
In summary, we all have the potential to be whoever we want to be, and do whatever we want to do.
Believe in yourself.
At various stages I have been in close proximity to certain aware beings. I have witnessed the materialisation of a necklace, of holy ash seemingly sloughing off the surface of a picture or painting, amrita oozing endlessly from an amulet, and a Ganesha statue that drinks endless teaspoons of milk.
I had read these stories of the saddhus with siddhis, and thought they were amazing, but it was only a few years ago when I heard a tale first hand.
I was staying at an ashram in southern India, and was pestered by this man, Clarence, for money. It seemed odd, but he seemed genuine and he was only asking for a few hundred rupees, claiming he would pay it back. I decided to humour him. It was only later, when he came back with the money, that we got the chance to chat.
Clarence had walked up into the mountains in search of a guru. He met a wandering saddhu in an auspicious way, and the saddhu told him all about Clarence's life. Clarence was amazed at the clarity of the 'reading' and took up the saddhu's offer to travel with him and learn from him. For weeks he walked with the saddhu through the mountains, and practiced an energy technique very similar in its initial stages to Tai Chi. He learnt quickly, and within a very short period of time, with the assistance of the saddhu, learned a handful of siddhis. The saddhu flew. He flew. The saddhu put his toe to the edge of a huge boulder and effortlessly flicked it down the mountainside. Clarence was able to do the same.
Then the test came that he had been warned about, the test that he would either pass and continue with his lessons, or fail and return to his mundane life. The saddhu turned to him one day and said simply "Bring me the Sun". Instantly C's mind jumped in, questioning how he was going to be able to do it, and in that moment he failed. He had to return to civilisation and pick up the threads of his mundane life.
Of course, I asked him to show me something incredible! I mean, wouldn't you? His powers had waned, he was finding it difficult to do his practices, and even his effortless manifestation of money was no more. He truly believed money would simply come to him. He was trying to open a school in his native country, paid for with donations, that would teach these energy exercises. It was painful to see him grappling with the diametrically opposed systems. One of belief in abundance and ease, and the other, the western world we live in of fear, need and hardship. I really felt for him.
It gave me food for thought, in particular why the saddhu had singled him out and gave him that incredibly rare experience. Perhaps it was told to me so that one day I would have a similar experience and when asked, I would bring the Sun to my teacher without hesitation. Perhaps...
In summary, we all have the potential to be whoever we want to be, and do whatever we want to do.
Believe in yourself.