The domain of our knowledge is often limited. We know only what we have heard, learned, or personally experienced, but there are many more things worth knowing but cannot be perceived through our gross senses. A lot of knowledge is hidden in the world. Those who can tap into this resource with ease reap rich benefits. Many astrologers and soothsayers can answer unspoken questions, read minds, or describe the past and future. To say that all of them are liars or cheats is not correct. Many of them have extraordinary powers; they can spring great surprises with their knowledge.
The state of mind in which such subtle knowledge can be experienced is known as samadhi or clairvoyance. Clairvoyance means a clear vision. Dull and fogged gross senses cannot see subtle things. If the subtle senses that can see more deeply are awakened, this state of clairvoyance can be achieved. Unfortunately, the rat race of life, instabilities, and worldly problems cast excessive pressure on the mind and make it dull. But, if we turn ourselves inwards and focus less on the external dealings and more on training the inner self, we can go nearer to the state of samadhi.
As per yogic sciences, the advanced state of samadhi, in which blood circulation and respiration completely stop and yet the person stays alive, is not being discussed here. That is a very high level of samadhi that can be achieved only by great yoga experts and not by ordinary people. But lower levels of samadhi can be attained by common people also, and for that, it is not necessary to elevate oneself completely beyond senses. In the texts on hatha yoga, seven levels of samadhi are described. Some lower levels of these can be attained by many seekers through some practice. There are many people in the world who may not be well-educated, cultured and intelligent, but can reveal many secret things with complete clarity.
Feeling human bioenergy or aura, understanding the flow pattern of people’s thoughts, knowing the location of lost objects, knowing the history of some object, premonition of future events, etc. are some of the extrasensory powers that get awakened either because of the sanskaras of past lives or through present efforts. When the state of mind is hazy, these experiences are unclear, but as the mind comes closer to the state of samadhi, the experiences become more transparent and accurate.
Several extraordinary capabilities are given to us naturally, and we don’t need to acquire them from outside. The need is to cleanse the dirt that has settled on the mind. No difficult practices need to be followed to develop clairvoyance. Any practice like turning our outlook inwards and spending time in self-contemplation, worshipping a favorite deity, chanting mantras, or adopting some spiritual method, can help open the door towards this if we do it with devotion and firm resolve. The virtues that are beneficial in this pursuit are steadfastness of mind and purity of heart. Evil-minded people with wicked hearts can never achieve this state.
Some Hatha yogis consume cocaine, marijuana, hashish, alcohol, etc., so that their external consciousness goes to sleep, and they begin to experience the pleasure of samadhi. But such people are disillusioned and earn no real benefit from these. Putting external consciousness to sleep is meaningless until the inner consciousness is awakened. And these intoxicating substances, instead of awakening the internal elements, put them to an even deeper state of inertness. This is why spiritual aspirants should never consume intoxicating substances.
The only way to quieten the external consciousness is through focusing the mind and developing inner peace. This can lead to the awakening of the subtle senses. Those who wish to pursue this goal can take up the following practice: Choose an object of your liking and mentally focus on it for a long time. For example, if you like a diamond ring, then keep that in front, concentrate the mind on it. Practicing this for 5-10 minutes daily will gradually begin to reveal many subtle things about the ring and the diamond in your mind. A continuous practice for six weeks will show great results.
Initial practice can be on inert objects. After about six weeks, a course of mediation can be initiated, in which one can focus on the idol of a chosen deity. The effort should be to visualize in mind every detail of the deity’s form. This helps in cleansing the subtle consciousness. What cannot be observed by physical senses begins to reveal itself to the mind. Clairvoyance needs a zeal towards spiritual elevation and not intoxication. Even while
performing our worldly duties, if we learn detachment from the world and stay in spiritual spheres, we can access these divine powers. We can test our proficiency by attempting to know what is going on in others’ minds and learn about their nature and past. Even if only one-fourth of our guess turns out to be correct, we should not get discouraged. As practice increases, one-third, half, and three-fourth of our guesses will begin to show right.
Eventually, a day may come when nothing would remain hidden in this world, and we may start seeing the subtle world as clearly as we see the gross objects.