application of these methods mentioned earlier. What happens to the mind in the
process of communion, what modifications it undergoes, is also described through
the transformations, or parinamas as Patanjali puts it—nirodha parinama, samadhi
parinama and ekagrata parinama. Consequently, and conversely, we are also told
that there is a similar process of transformation taking place in the objects and the
whole universe—the bhutas, or the elements, and the indriyas, or the senses—by
such names which are given in the sutra as dharma, laksana, avastha, etc.
Then we are told that the practice of samyama can lead to great powers, and these
powers are classified as the objective, the subjective and the absolute. The objective
powers are those that are experienced by the control of the elements—earth, water,
fire, air and ether—by a communion with them in deep meditation and the entry of
the mind into the structure of the elements internally, by which the mind gains
control over the constituents of the whole of prakriti, namely, the grosser forms
which are controlled earlier, and later on the subtler ones come into manifestation. It
is mentioned that such mastery is effected through the control of the five elements,
and that things become possible for the yogin which are usually impossible for the
ordinary human being.
Then it is said that, subsequently, there is also a perfection of the body. The
perfection that one gains due to the concentration of the mind on the elements brings
about a simultaneous effect upon the body also, because the body is made up of the
five elements. Then there is a tremendous control gained over the mind, which
enables the yogin to materialise his thoughts and to bring about such
transformations in the outer world which correspond to the thoughts of the mind of
the yogin.
While various other perfections of this kind have been enumerated, the last
perfection is said to be the absolution of the spirit—namely, the liberation of the
soul—for which greater effort is needed than the efforts put forth for the purpose of
the control of the elements, the perfection of the body and the restriction of the
senses. This is because, in the last few sutras towards the end of the Vibhuti Pada
where we are given an idea as to the process of the liberation of the spirit, we are also
told that it is a question of increase in knowledge—width as well as depth—and not
merely a possession of objects.
We are clearly told that liberation is not a possession of an object, but it is an
enlightenment and an awakening of consciousness into its true nature, whereby it
comprehends all things in its perfection in such a manner that the objects become
part and parcel of its own being. This is something very peculiar. That is, we are told
with sufficient emphasis that what we call the objects of the world, which are
presented before the senses and over which we usually try to gain control or mastery,
are part and parcel of this knowledge which is gained at the time of the liberation of
the soul, so that knowledge is not a process of information. It is not a gathering of
learning in the sense of academic knowledge that we gain in universities, but a grasp
of insight into the nature of things—an entry into the constitution of the object, so
that the object becomes part and parcel of the being of the subject—and then
knowledge becomes infinite. Thus is the conclusion of the Vibhuti Pada of Patanjali.