Mysteries of Mind

Author(s): Mahapragna Acharya
Publisher: Today and Tomorrows Book Agency

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on the aim which the meditator has chosen, whether it is the powers of the mind or those of speech or those of the senseorgans.
THE MYSTERIES OF MIND
The practitioner must first decide what exactly he wants to achieve. Suppose, he wants to achieve an ideal physical strength. An ideal has no form. However, the practitioner will have to build a symbolic image representing his ideal in his mind. For example, the mythical Bahubali is a symbol of ideal physical strength. Once the symbolical image of Bahubali has been formed in his mind, the practitioner should meditate on this image. But evidently there is a distance between the practitioner and the ideal which he wants to achieve. The purpose of meditation is to obliterate this distance. The distance will go on progressively disappearing in the course of meditation. The meditator will be ultimately absorbed in the symbolic image he is meditating upon. In other words, he will be transplanted into the ideal. will become Bahubali.
He
Complete relaxation of the body i.e. käyotsarga is an essential condition of this kind of meditation. The body of the meditator will have to be completely immobilized so that it becomes as good as dead. A complete absorption in the ideal will bring about a transformation of his energy and he will ultimately come to feel that his body has gained immense strength. To summarize, the following points should be kept in mind:
1. A decision about the ideal to be achieved.
2. To form a symbolic image of the ideal in the mind.
3. To divert the entire energy generated in the state of meditation towards this ideal.
4. To become absorbed or transplanted into the ideal.
This is how energy can be developed. We may choose either mental or physical or speech energy. The method mentioned above is also the method of achieving rddhis (spiritual powers) or labdhis (yogic achievements). There is no hard and fast rule in this respect. Sometimes people achieve success even without observing any rule at all.