As I Know: The Lord of the Mountains – Shiv Purana: 157

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Impediments – mostly personal – on the path to attain excellence in yoga create difficulties…powers a yogi attains are immense, for he controls everything and enjoys the pleasure of the world and the world beyond.

Monk Upamanyu also lists out the obstructions devotees or men in pursuit of yogic goal face when Krishna asks. If men on the path of yoga want perfection, they should avoid laziness, dangerous or severe diseases because of bad life styles or food, pleasures, and doubts about place, instability of mind, disbelief or lack of faith, life of illusion or delusion, suffering, dejection or depression in life or indulgence in physical pleasures. If a man gets rid of such personality flaws, one is on the right path of yoga. One also suffers from inner tumult or spiritual misery, physical and material despair. If one works hard toward perfection and is devoid of any flaw while in deep introspective mode, a divine glow appears on the face, and at this time, body has unique energy beyond presumption, for if body is healthy and sound, it gives birth to noble thoughts resulting in noble karmas.

When one understands lexis of personified beings, it is varta. He also talks about the correct aptitude that enables – to hear sounds, to know, to taste, and to touch. One understands the aroma around and owns the talent to recognise the indefinite, the celestial and the infinite. At least, efforts ought to continue, he advises. In fact, all stand before the yogi and pay obeisance. He talks of yogic siddhis of worldly, physical or material powers, powers relating to water, powers over fire, power over air or vayu, time and space and so on. Powers of various kinds are under the control of a yogi. To control and create immense powers out of water, fire and air is yogic perfection. Yogic powers are also absence of sense powers, and the skill to enter region – visible or invisible also.

Yogi has the capacity to acquire or possess anything as he exercises mental powers, and nobody can know what he does. Yogi enjoys the power to hold, hurt, strike, release …any created beings living life on earth, and so keeps effective control on existence. Yogi exerts influence though mental powers – a mere thought materialises what he desires because he is the lord of powers over the living and the dead.

To attain anything through the mental powers brings him near Brahma. Yoga turns auspicious into inauspicious and the inauspicious into auspicious so is called Bodh Aisvarya and it functions through brain and thus, a yogi enjoys power and pleasures not only of the beyond but greater than this Vaisnava – Prakrita. If the great monk speaks of various material, divine or other powers over objects belonging to nature and extraterrestrial or celestial powers, he tells plainly of the incredible powers a man of yogic siddhis (perfections) enjoys on earth and beyond.

Here, he stands very near Brahma. His status is beyond the competence of expressions. A true yogic man or a monk or sage with yogic powers, who throws away the powers as if worthless or insignificant–worldly or divine, which heavenly beings, gods, asuras and kings enjoy, he attains the highest status of yoga and ultimately attains moksa – deliverance. Certain conditions require fulfillment before yogic discipline elevates and sanctifies a man on the path to yogic ecstasy…relevance and essence of eight murties – the sacred images will reveal many latent aspects.

To undertake yogic practices requires certain conditions, a devotee desires that yoga should fulfill if possible to attain correct results. One ought to be particular about the auspicious time, purity of place etc. If it is region of lord Shiva, temple and complete solitude sans disturbance of any kind, without any living being or noise and without possibility of any future obstruction, it is ideal. At such a place, the devotee should ensure that he purifies it with sweet fragrance etc. and strews flowers around so that it looks good and elegant.

When a man is impure, he should stay away from yogic exercises. Not only place, situation and location should be clean but also he should take care of food of good quality bereft of violence. Whatever karmas or functions he performs should be in commensurate with the purity of exercise he will undergo while adhering to right postures for which he should seek counsel of a guru or reliable textual stuff and adhere thoroughly to instructions.

Yogic exercises want certain conditions fulfilled for the attainment of beneficial results for the man and society. An image before the eyes and mind will benefit immensely. To fix mind on an image of one’s taste, choice and beauty is good, for it makes the mind still, steady and steadfast while he concentrates on the lord and the goddess.

Here, he reminds of the images of Shiva and then, he suggests that he can think of other forms like – pure thumb, clean and dazzling lamp or flame – an image of Shakti, god and goddess, star, lotus or even a dew drop…anything where a sadhaka feels comfortable. Think of him, as the lord of all tattvas of earth and cosmos where a man in deep meditation or yogic postures wants total control. He, who wishes to attain victory over tattva, should meditate on the real meaning, the object.

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