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Difference between revisions of "Siddhi"

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In the Bhagavata Purana, the five [[Siddhis]] of Yoga and [[Meditation]] are described as below:
 
In the Bhagavata Purana, the five [[Siddhis]] of Yoga and [[Meditation]] are described as below:
  
*    tri-kāla-jñatvam: knowing the past, present and future
+
*    tri-kāla-jñatvam:             knowing the past, present and future
*    advandvam: tolerance of heat, cold and other dualities
+
*    advandvam:                     tolerance of heat, cold and other dualities
*    para [[Citta]] ādi abhijñatā: knowing the minds of others and so on
+
*    para [[Citta]] ādi abhijñatā: knowing the minds of others and so on
*    agni arka ambu viṣa ādīnām pratiṣṭambhaḥ: checking the influence of [[Fire]], sun, water, poison, and so on
+
*    agni arka ambu viṣa ādīnām     pratiṣṭambhaḥ: checking the influence of [[Fire]], sun, water, poison, and so on
*    aparājayah: remaining unconquered by others
+
*    aparājayah:                   remaining unconquered by others
  
 
== Eight primary [[Siddhis]] ==
 
== Eight primary [[Siddhis]] ==
Line 33: Line 33:
 
There is the concept of the Ashta Siddhi (eight [[Siddhis]]) in [[Hinduism]]. These are:
 
There is the concept of the Ashta Siddhi (eight [[Siddhis]]) in [[Hinduism]]. These are:
  
*    Aṇimā: reducing one's [[Body]] even to the size of an atom
+
*    Aṇimā:       reducing one's [[Body]] even to the size of an atom
*    Mahima: expanding one's [[Body]] to an infinitely large size
+
*    Mahima:     expanding one's [[Body]] to an infinitely large size
*    Garima: becoming infinitely heavy
+
*    Garima:     becoming infinitely heavy
*    Laghima: becoming almost weightless
+
*    Laghima:     becoming almost weightless
*    Prāpti: having unrestricted access to all places
+
*    Prāpti:     having unrestricted access to all places
*    Prākāmya: realizing whatever one desires
+
*    Prākāmya:   realizing whatever one desires
*    Iṣṭva: possessing absolute lordship
+
*    Iṣṭva:       possessing absolute lordship
*    Vaśtva: the [[Power]] to subjugate all
+
*    Vaśtva:     the [[Power]] to subjugate all
  
 
The eight [[Siddhis]] hinted at by Kapila in his [[Sutra]] - अष्टधा सिद्धिः ||१५|| - are as explained in Verse 51 of Samkhyakarika :-
 
The eight [[Siddhis]] hinted at by Kapila in his [[Sutra]] - अष्टधा सिद्धिः ||१५|| - are as explained in Verse 51 of Samkhyakarika :-
  
 
*    Uuha: based on the samskaras of previous births the attainment of [[Knowledge]] about the twenty-four Tatwas gained by examining the determinable and the indeterminable conscious and the non-conscious constituents of creation,
 
*    Uuha: based on the samskaras of previous births the attainment of [[Knowledge]] about the twenty-four Tatwas gained by examining the determinable and the indeterminable conscious and the non-conscious constituents of creation,
*    Shabad: [[Knowledge]] gained by associating with an enlightened person ([[Guru]] – upadesh),
+
*    Shabad:               [[Knowledge]] gained by associating with an enlightened person ([[Guru]] – upadesh),
*    Addhyyan: [[Knowledge]] gained through study of the [[Vedas]] and other standard ancillary texts,
+
*    Addhyyan:             [[Knowledge]] gained through study of the [[Vedas]] and other standard ancillary texts,
*    Suhritprapti: [[Knowledge]] gained from a kind-hearted person, while engaged in the spread of [[Knowledge]]
+
*    Suhritprapti:         [[Knowledge]] gained from a kind-hearted person, while engaged in the spread of [[Knowledge]]
*    Daan: [[Knowledge]] gained regardless of one’s own needs while attending to the requirements of those engaged in the search of the highest [[Truth]],
+
*    Daan: [[Knowledge]]     gained regardless of one’s own needs while attending to the requirements of those engaged in the search of the highest [[Truth]],
*    Aadhyaatmik dukkh-haan: freedom from pain, disappointment, etc; arising due to lack of spiritual, metaphysical, mystic [[Knowledge]] and experience,
+
*    Aadhyaatmik dukkh-haan: freedom from pain, disappointment, etc; arising due to lack of spiritual, metaphysical, mystic [[Knowledge]] and experience,
 
*    Aadhibhautik dukkh-haan: freedom from pain etc; arising by possessing and being attached to various materialistic gains,
 
*    Aadhibhautik dukkh-haan: freedom from pain etc; arising by possessing and being attached to various materialistic gains,
*    Aadhidaivik dukkh-haan: freedom from pain etc; caused by fate or due to reliance on fate,
+
*    Aadhidaivik dukkh-haan: freedom from pain etc; caused by fate or due to reliance on fate,
  
 
the attainment of which eight [[Siddhis]] makes one become rid of pain-causing [[Ignorance]] through gain of [[Knowledge]], and experience bliss. The aim of Samkhya is to eliminate all kinds of physical and [[Mental]] pains and to receive [[Liberation]].
 
the attainment of which eight [[Siddhis]] makes one become rid of pain-causing [[Ignorance]] through gain of [[Knowledge]], and experience bliss. The aim of Samkhya is to eliminate all kinds of physical and [[Mental]] pains and to receive [[Liberation]].
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The following list shows the Sanskrit names for some of the better known siddhis.
 
The following list shows the Sanskrit names for some of the better known siddhis.
  
     anima: decreasing one's size at will
+
     anima:           decreasing one's size at will
     antardhana: making oneself invisible
+
     antardhana:       making oneself invisible
     kamarupitva: assuming forms at will
+
     kamarupitva:       assuming forms at will
     kamavasaita: power to control one's passion
+
     kamavasaita:       power to control one's passion
     khecara: the power to fly
+
     khecara:           the power to fly
     kramana: the power to enter another person's body (i.e. possession)
+
     kramana:           the power to enter another person's body (i.e. possession)
     laghiman: the power to cancel out gravity (i.e. levitation)
+
     laghiman:         the power to cancel out gravity (i.e. levitation)
     mahima: increasing one's size at will
+
     mahima:           increasing one's size at will
     mohana: rendering a person unconscious
+
     mohana:           rendering a person unconscious
     manojavitva: achieving high speed
+
     manojavitva:       achieving high speed
     padalepa: to move about anywhere, unnoticed
+
     padalepa:         to move about anywhere, unnoticed
     prapti: the power of obtaining everything
+
     prapti:           the power of obtaining everything
     prakamya: irresistible willpower
+
     prakamya:         irresistible willpower
     stambhana: causing temporary paralysis in someone
+
     stambhana:         causing temporary paralysis in someone
     vasitva: control over others
+
     vasitva:           control over others
 
     vikaranadharmitva: infinite mental powers
 
     vikaranadharmitva: infinite mental powers
  

Revision as of 18:14, 30 May 2013

Hevajrah99.jpg

Siddhi (Devanagari सिद्धि; IAST: siddhi; Tibetan: དངོས་གྲུབ, Wylie: dngos grub) is a Sanskrit noun that can be translated as "perfection", "accomplishment", "attainment", or "success". The term is first attested in the Mahabharata. In the Pancatantra, a siddhi may be any unusual skill or faculty or capability. As a term in the Manusmriti, it refers to the settlement of a debt.

Siddhi is produced by sadhana. The former term, which literally means "success," includes accomplishment, achievement, success, and fruition of all kinds. A person may thus gain siddhi in speech, siddhi in Mantra, etc. A person is Siddha also who has perfected his spiritual development. The various powers attainable – namely, anima, mahima, laghima, garima, prapti, prakamya, ishitva, vashitva, the powers of becoming small, great, Light, heavy, attaining what one wills, and the like – are known as the eight siddhi.

The thirty-ninth chapter of the Brahmavaivarta Purana mentions eighteen kinds, but there are many others, including such minor accomplishments as nakhadarpana siddhi or "nail-gazing." The great siddhi is spiritual perfection. Even the mighty powers of the "eight siddhi" are known as the "lesser siddhi," since the greatest of all siddhi is full Liberation (mahanirvana) from the bonds of phenomenal Life and union with the Paramatma, which is the supreme object (paramartha) to be attained through human birth.


Magical accomplishment siddhi nectar elixir transmission. The Dalai Lama's Secret Temple, Tantric Wall Paintings from Tibet, Ian Baker, Thomas Laird.

In the Samkhya Karika and Tattva Samasa, it refers to the attainment of eight Siddhis that make one become rid of pain-causing Ignorance, to gain Knowledge, and experience bliss. In Tantric Buddhism, it specifically refers to the acquisition of supernatural powers by psychic or magical means or the supposed faculty so acquired. These powers include items such as clairvoyance, levitation, bilocation, becoming as small as an atom, materialization, having access to memories from past lives, etc. The term is also used in this sense in the Sarva-darśana-saṃgraha of Madhvacharya (1238–1317).

In Patanjali's Yoga Sutras IV.1 it is stated (rendered in IAST):

janma auṣadhi Mantra tapaḥ samādhijāḥ siddhayaḥ

where janma ("birth"), auṣadhi ("medicinal plant, herb, drug, Incense, elixir"), Mantra ("incantation, charm, spell"), tapaḥ ("heat, burning, shining, as ascetic devotional practice, burning desire to reach perfection, that which burns all impurities"), Samādhi ("profound Meditation, total absorption"), jāḥ ("born") and siddhayaḥ ("perfections, accomplishments, fulfillments, attainments") are rendered in English by Iyengar (1966, 2002: p. 246) thus:

Accomplishments may be attained through birth, the use of herbs, incantations, self-discipline or Samadhi.

== Five Siddhis of Yoga and Meditation ==

In the Bhagavata Purana, the five Siddhis of Yoga and Meditation are described as below:

  • tri-kāla-jñatvam: knowing the past, present and future
  • advandvam: tolerance of heat, cold and other dualities
  • para Citta ādi abhijñatā: knowing the minds of others and so on
  • agni arka ambu viṣa ādīnām pratiṣṭambhaḥ: checking the influence of Fire, sun, water, poison, and so on
  • aparājayah: remaining unconquered by others


== Eight primary Siddhis ==

Ganesha with the ashta (eight) siddhis. The Ashtasiddhi are shown as attendants of Ganesha. Painting by Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906).

There is the concept of the Ashta Siddhi (eight Siddhis) in Hinduism. These are:

  • Aṇimā: reducing one's Body even to the size of an atom
  • Mahima: expanding one's Body to an infinitely large size
  • Garima: becoming infinitely heavy
  • Laghima: becoming almost weightless
  • Prāpti: having unrestricted access to all places
  • Prākāmya: realizing whatever one desires
  • Iṣṭva: possessing absolute lordship
  • Vaśtva: the Power to subjugate all


The eight Siddhis hinted at by Kapila in his Sutra - अष्टधा सिद्धिः ||१५|| - are as explained in Verse 51 of Samkhyakarika :-

  • Uuha: based on the samskaras of previous births the attainment of Knowledge about the twenty-four Tatwas gained by examining the determinable and the indeterminable conscious and the non-conscious constituents of creation,
  • Shabad: Knowledge gained by associating with an enlightened person (Guru – upadesh),
  • Addhyyan: Knowledge gained through study of the Vedas and other standard ancillary texts,
  • Suhritprapti: Knowledge gained from a kind-hearted person, while engaged in the spread of Knowledge
  • Daan: Knowledge gained regardless of one’s own needs while attending to the requirements of those engaged in the search of the highest Truth,
  • Aadhyaatmik dukkh-haan: freedom from pain, disappointment, etc; arising due to lack of spiritual, metaphysical, mystic Knowledge and experience,
  • Aadhibhautik dukkh-haan: freedom from pain etc; arising by possessing and being attached to various materialistic gains,
  • Aadhidaivik dukkh-haan: freedom from pain etc; caused by fate or due to reliance on fate,


the attainment of which eight Siddhis makes one become rid of pain-causing Ignorance through gain of Knowledge, and experience bliss. The aim of Samkhya is to eliminate all kinds of physical and Mental pains and to receive Liberation.
== Ten secondary Siddhis ==

In the Bhagavata Purana, Lord Krishna describes the ten secondary Siddhis as:

  • anūrmi-mattvam: Being undisturbed by hunger, thirst, and other bodily disturbances
  • dūra-śravaṇa: Hearing things far away
  • dūra-darśanam: Seeing things far away
  • manaḥ-javah: Moving the Body wherever Thought goes (teleportation/astral projection)
  • Kāma-rūpam: Assuming any Form desired
  • para-Kāya praveśanam: Entering the bodies of others
  • sva-Chanda mṛtyuh: Dying when one desires
  • devānām saha krīḍā anudarśanam: Witnessing and participating in the pastimes of the gods
  • yathā sańkalpa saḿsiddhiḥ: Perfect accomplishment of one's determination
  • ājñā apratihatā gatiḥ: Orders or commands being unimpeded

== Hindu gods associated with gaining siddhi ==

In Hinduism, both Ganesha and Hanuman possess the eight supernatural powers (ashtamahasiddhis) and can give one access to Ashta Siddhis.

Skt., siddhi: accomplishment, a skill perfected
Tib., dngos-grub: accomplishment, ability of perfection

Term for a type of spiritual and/or mental accomplishment that we can best approximate with modern expressions such as ESP (Extra Sensory Perception) and/or with Colin Wilson's (b. 1931) Faculty X. Phrases such as mystical power, paranormal potential and magical skill are also often used to cover these phenomena.

Vajrayana texts speak of eight types of siddhi only, but one can find a much more detailed classification in the Hindu Tantras, where 84 are recognized. Among these, several phenomena can be found which correspond to those charted by contemporary para-psychology, for example psychokinesis, telekinesis and the astral 'double'. All of these, of course, we also find when studying shamanism - and there is little doubt that Tibetan Buddhism has been very much influenced by that ancient, ‘magic’ oriented religion.
The following list shows the Sanskrit names for some of the better known siddhis.

    anima: decreasing one's size at will
    antardhana: making oneself invisible
    kamarupitva: assuming forms at will
    kamavasaita: power to control one's passion
    khecara: the power to fly
    kramana: the power to enter another person's body (i.e. possession)
    laghiman: the power to cancel out gravity (i.e. levitation)
    mahima: increasing one's size at will
    mohana: rendering a person unconscious
    manojavitva: achieving high speed
    padalepa: to move about anywhere, unnoticed
    prapti: the power of obtaining everything
    prakamya: irresistible willpower
    stambhana: causing temporary paralysis in someone
    vasitva: control over others
    vikaranadharmitva: infinite mental powers

The term siddhi is also at the root of the title for the 84 Greatly Accomplished Ones (Skt., Mahasiddhas), each of whom had achieved one of more of these 'perfections'.

Source

Wikipedia:Siddhi