BLUFF OF WALKING ON WATER ETC.

BLUFF OF WALKING ON WATER ETC
SUTRA (III-39, III-40) – MIRACLES OF YOG
VERSUS THE BLUFFS OF YOGA
ALL THE BLUFF – CALL THE BLUFF

PUNCH LINE
Barring conveniently manufactured anecdotes that are quoted to prove the abilities of walking on water, mud and thorns no practitioner of spiritualist YOGA sitting, lying or standing in an idle pose, hidden in some remote Himalayan cave has ever come down or is likely to come down to demonstrate such a proficiency because of a taboo favorably interpreted in sutra III-51. The practitioners roaming in the plains have consistently failed to do so. It is high time we come out of this slumber and at least try to find out if Patanjali meant it as a spiritualist understands it or he is hinting at some principle of making the things lighter, defying gravitational pull or negotiating hurdles by not coming into contact.

BLUFF OF POSSESSING ABILITY OF WALKING ON WATER ETC. – SUTRA (III-39)

Patanjali sutra quoted as authority for spreading this bluff is:

(III-39) UDAN JAYAJ (first part) JAL PANK KANTAKADISU ASANG UTKRANTISHCHA (third part)
(III-39) उदान जयाज्जलपंककण्टकआदिसु असँग उत्क्रान्तिश्च
In this sutra also word of the second part SANYAM संयम is not written and it is understood to be present. As usual the STANDARD SPIRITUALISTIC translation is as under which is arrived at by filling in the blanks of the outline

STANDARD SPIRITUALISTIC TRANSLATION

By MEDITATING / CONCENTRATING on conquering (JAYAT जयात्) of UDAN (उदान), a kind of breath traveling from the throat to the head it is possible to avoid contact (ASANG असँग) with water, mud and thorns and go above these (UTKRANTISHCHA उत्क्रान्तिश्च)

BLUFF PROPAGATED – A yogi possesses the ability of walking on water, fire and thorns etc as he knows how to levitate and go above these.

GLARING INFIRMITIES

The spiritualistic translation suffers from the following additional infirmities besides the non-cognizance of the contexts of SANYAM and PARINAM that are common to all the sutras of this chapter:
• No effort is found in any spiritualistic translation to explain the exact nature and composition of the kind of breath UDAN (उदान) but for its place of traveling that is from throat to the head and this place is not mentioned in Patanjali sutra. In the next sutra III-40 there is a mention about another kind of breath SAMAN (समान) that is responsible for an entirely different kind of operation i.e. glow on face and entire body ( PRAJWALAM प्रज्वलम) and its place of traveling has been presumed from heart to navel by the spiritualistic translations. Again there is no such mention about the place in Patanjali sutra.
(III-40) SAMAN JAYAT (first part) PRAJWALAM (third part)
(III-40) समान जयात्प्रज्व्लम
• The other three kinds of breath as per spiritualist explanations are PRAN प्राण, APAN अपान and VYAN व्यान. The place of traveling for PRAN प्राण is from nose to the heart. The place of traveling for APAN अपान is from navel to the foot and the place of traveling for VYAN व्यान is entire body. The places of travel and presumption as kinds of breath are entirely spiritualistic explanations. Patanjali sutras don’t give either hint. Accepting these as the kinds of breath only no effort is found in any spiritualistic translation to explain the exact nature and composition scientifically. Rather the insistence is on effortless techniques of sitting in idle postures of meditation on these breaths and suddenly acquiring the imaginary and non-demonstrable powers May be it is not breath at all as postulated by the spiritualistic explanations! The terms might be the principles responsible for making the things lighter, brighter, heavier, smoother, faster and slower etc.

• The normal queries that go unanswered are like these. Are these breaths some kinds of oxygen or oxygen undergoing changes in composition at different places in a body and thus acquiring entirely different properties, symptoms and capabilities? Are these various gasses. Are these reagents already present in the body taking part in chemical reactions? Or are these the names of the very processes of change? Is there any relation between the feelings of hurt and the periods of contact with damaging elements so that an action is completed within harmless intervals and the impressions of miracles defying nature are conveyed with a view to bluffing? Are these some kinds of juices that travel from place A to B in a physical body? Is it a hint towards a system like respiratory or circulatory? Instead an all-out effort is made to paint a practitioner of spiritualist YOGA that he achieves all these miraculous feats just by sitting in an idle pose and controlling the various breaths named as PRAN (प्राण), APAN (अपान), UDAN (उदान), SAMAN (समान) and VYAN (व्यान). That way it is quite probable that complete scientific terms that could have been standardized have been converted into spiritual jargons with no hope of recovery.

MIRACLE AS MEANT BY PATANJALI

The same sutra gives the entirely logical and practical approach to the subject if the contexts of SANYAM संयम and PARINAM परिणाम as explained by Patanjali are duly kept in mind. The translation will read as under:

STANDARD TRANSLATION AS PATANJALI MEANT

If you have made up your mind (DHARNA धारणा) to choose your subject of study as finding out the properties (DHARM धर्म), the symptoms (LAKSHAN लक्षण) and the states of existence (AWASTHA अवस्था), the three dimensions of PARINAM (परिणाम), about UDAN उदान a subject of senses (INDRIYAN इन्द्रियां covered under ATM GYAN आत्मज्ञान) or a subject of natural elements (भूत) covered under BRAHM GYAN (ब्रह्म ज्ञान)

And you are determined to pay never distractible attention (DHYAN ध्यान) in order to stick to this decision under any circumstances and you are confident of working wholeheartedly (SAMADHI समाधि) come what may for execution of this decision; you are likely to get that insight (PRAGYA प्रज्ञा) into the underlying principles of sequence (KRAM क्रम) about composition and nature of UDAN (उदान), the subject of your study which will be of help to you

In understanding the underlying reasons of things becoming lighter or avoiding contact and thus making them cross water mud , thorns or such obstacles by going above them, which you should be able to make use or implement (VINIYOG विनियोग) it in any field of further exploration and invention etc”.

BRANCHES OF KNOWLEDGE INDICATED – dynamics, statics hydrostatics, hydrodynamics, cosmetics, factors affecting the internal functions of the body, chemical engineering etc.

RECIPROCAL STATEMENT OF THIS SUTRA –.if you want to walk on water then find out the properties and symptoms of UDAN (उदान).

ANALYSIS OF THE COMPARISON AND CONCLUSIONS

The very concepts of UDAN (उदान), SAMAN (समान) etc. have been lost due to spiritualistic insistence of considering these as some kinds of breath only. There is no doubt that breath in a human body is responsible for umpteen chemical reactions but the very path of finding these out has been blocked by spreading the bluff that a spiritualist YOGI knows all and he is not going to tell due to better ordained considerations and therefore a commandment for ordinary mortals to have ASTHA आस्था – (a term coined by the spiritualists for a kind of faith) in the spiritualist explanations only. I call the term coinage for the simple reason that it neither exists anywhere in Patanjali YOGSUTRAS nor in VEDAS. The irony is that different shades of spiritualists don’t mind indulging gleefully and cruelly in the travesty of keeping the contradictory creed bluffs alive even at the cost of human blood, violence of grotesque kinds and proportions, treachery, deceit, immoral trafficking, personal revenge, cut throat tactics and all inhuman acts and all in the name of highly laudable, not to be touched holy cow called ASTHA आस्था.