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DEVELOPMENT OF MENTAL POWERS AND THEIR USE
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Spiritual sādhana is the supreme sādhanā. In sādhanā 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 ananyadarși.
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 vacanagupați (speech control), manugūpți (control of the mind) and kāyaguppi (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 ihe 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 stand-still. 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 bhāvana (feeling). Exercises in bhāvanā are very difficult. Bhāvanā 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. Bhāvitātma 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 some body else. It means controlling and putting the stamp of the
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