Raja Yoga (the Yoga Sūtras with commentary) — trans. Swami Vivekananda (1896)
The text is shown on its own: no facing layer is held for this issue.
The translator’s English as printed (Swami Vivekananda). The original-language text is not held; names are romanised as the translator printed them.
39. By conquering the current called Udana the
Yogi does not sink in water, or in swamps, and he can walk on thorns.
Udana is the name of the ner\e current that governs the lungs, and all the upper parts of the body, and when he is master of it he becomes light in weight. He
YOGA APHORISMS.
cannot sink in water ; he can walk on thorns and sword blades, and stand in fire, and so on.
40. By the conquest of the current Samana he is surrounded by blaze.
Whenever he likes light flashes from his body.
41. By making Samyama on the relation between the ear and the Akasa conies divine hearing.
There is the Akasa, the ether, and the instrument, the ear. By making Samyama on them the Yogi gets divine hearing ; he hears everything. Anything spoken or sounded miles away he can hear.
42. By making Samyama on the relation between the Akasa and the body the Yogi becoming light as cotton w^ool goes through the skies.
This Akasa is the material of this body ; it is only Akasa in a certain form that has become the body. If the Yogi makes a Samyama on this Akasa material of his body, it acquires the lightness of Akasa, and can go anywhere through the air.
43. By making Samyama on the real modifications of the mind, -which are outside, called great disembodiedness, oomes disappearance of the covering to light.
The mind in its foolishness thinks that it is working in this body. Why should I be bound by one system of nerves, and put the Ego only in one body, if the mind is omnipresent ? There is no reason why I should. The Yogi wants to feel the Ego wherever he likes. When he has succeeded in that all covering to light goes away, and all darkness and ignorance vanish. Everything appears to him to be full of knowledge.
44. By making Samyama on the elements, beginning with the gross, and ending with the superfine, comes mastery of the elements.
The Yogi makes Samyama on the elements, first on the gross, and then on the finer states. This Samyama is taken up more by a sect of the Buddhists. They take a lump of clay, and make Samyama on that, and gradually they begin to see the fine materials of which it is composed, and when they have known all the fine materials in it, they get power over that element. So with all the elements, the Yogi can conquer them all.
45. From that comes minuteness, etc., glorification of the body, and indestructibleness of the bodily qualities.
This means that the Yogi has attained the eight powers. He can make himself as light as a particle, he can make himself huge, as heavy as the earth, or as light as the air ; he will rule everything he wants, he will conquer everything he wants, a lion will sit at his feet like a lamb, and all his desires be fulfilled at will.
YOGA APHORISMS. 20i
46. The glorification of the body are beauty, complexion, strength, adamantine hardness.
The body becomes indestructible ; fire cannot injure it. Nothing can injure it. Nothing can destroy it until the Yogi wishes. " Breaking the rod of time he lives in this universe with his body." In the Vedas it is written that for that man there is no more disease, death or pain.
47. By making Samyama on the objectivity, knowledge and egoism of the organs, by gradation comes the conquest of the organs.
In perception of external objects the organs leave their place in the mind and go towards the object ; that is followed by knoAvledge and egoism. When the Yogi makes Samyama on these by gradation he conquers the organs. Take up anything that you see or feel, a book, for instance, and first concentrate the mind on the thing itself. Then on the knowledge that is in the form of a book, and then the Ego that sees the book. By that practice all the organs will be conquered.
48. From that comes glorified mind, power of the organs independently of the body, and conquest of nature.
Just as by the conquest of the elements comes glorified body, so from the conquest of the mind will come glorified mind.
49. By making Samyama on the Sattva, to him who has discriminated between the intellect and the Purusa come omnipresence and omniscience.
When we have conquered nature, and realised the difference between the Purusa and nature, that the Purusa is indestructible, pure and perfect, when the Yogi has realised this, then comes omnipotence and omniscience.