Siddha

You may have heard of legendary supernormal abilities of advanced yogis. Such legends abound not only in yogic traditions, but in many religious traditions around the world. Christianity, for instance is full of such references, from Christ himself walking on water and performing other miracles, to St. Francis, St. Teresa of Avila, and others levitating. India’s Yogic tradition is unique, however, in that it presents a systematic means to master such abilities, known as siddhis.

This is not an exercise in idle curiosity or attraction to the sensational. Rather, developing the siddhis through the practice of samyama develops prajñā, the light of spiritual wisdom that is a major milestone on the path to enlightenment. Patanjali did not dedicate a full quarter of his Yoga Sutras to sensationalism; the siddhis are part and parcel of the traditional path of Yoga towards liberation. What’s more, the siddhis represent the activation of the profound potentiality of consciousness, which is infinite, ALL possibilities.