Divyaśrotra
By Swami Harshananda
Divyaśrotra literally means ‘divine ear’.
The Yogasutras of Patañjali describe several supernatural powers that a yogi develops by practicing saiyama as directed in it. ‘Saiyama’ is a technical term signifying dhāraṇā,[1] dhyāna,[2] and samādhi[3] on the same object. There is a relation between pure ākāśa[4] and hearing organs. Both of them are the products of ahaṅkāra or the cosmic ego-principle. By practicing saiyama on both, the power to hear sounds originating from great distance is attained. One can also differentiate in the mixed sounds and find the origin of each sound. This is called ‘divyaśrotra’.
The same technique can be applied to other organs thereby attaining similar divine powers pertaining to the eye, the nose, the tongue and the skin.[5]
References[edit]
- ↑ Dhāraṇā is called as fixing the mind on the object of concentration.
- ↑ Dhyāna is called as continuous meditation on the object of concentration.
- ↑ Samādhi means perfect concentration resulting in supernatural or psychic experience.
- ↑ Ākāśa is the ether principle called ‘śabdatanmātra’.
- ↑ Yogasutras 3.41.
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore