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development. It made me feel closer to my God and Goddess, and it gave me a connection to Spirit that I had completely lacked before. It was years before I was able to resolve this cognitive dissidence within myself. As I studied the sutras and I learned more about the process of enlightenment within Hindu theology, it became easier to see the fine distinctions that Patanjali was making. He was not actually against psychic powers. By his own admission, psychic powers are a natural potential outcome of a regular yoga practice. That this is so can be seen in Patanjali’s description of the three transformations of the mind and the psychic powers that develop out of them. All three of these mental transformations or shifts have their root in the harmonious integration of contemplation, meditation, and being absorbed in Spirit. Patanjali refers to this harmonious integration as samyama.12 In witchcraft, this same process is often referred to as ecstasy. During the first mental shift, the attention turns inward.13 During the second shift, all distraction disappears and a single-pointed focus occurs.14 Finally, all thoughts cease entirely within the mind during the third transformation.15 When this final shift happens, the psychic powers begin to develop naturally.16 Rather than renouncing psychic powers, Patanjali merely argued against actively seeking to develop psychic powers. If you look at aphorism III, 38 again, Patanjali merely says that they are “impediments” or distractions from the ultimate goal, which is “being absorbed in Spirit.” It is actually the duality of consciousness between the Self and the mind that stands at the very heart of the sage’s criticism of psychic development, since psychic development strengthens the mind and binds the Self or Spirit to the material world. When discussing the development of psychic powers, though, it is important to realize that Patanjali is not just talking about the development of things like telepathy, prophecy, or other magickal abilities. He warns against conscious association with all aspects of what he calls “the worldly mind” in aphorism III, 38. This includes things 12. Stiles, Yoga Sutras, 32 (III, 4). 13. Stiles, Yoga Sutras, 33 (III, 9). 14. Stiles, Yoga Sutras, 33 (III, 11). 15. Stiles, Yoga Sutras, 34 (III, 12). 16. Stiles, Yoga Sutras, 35 (III, 16).
