Categories: Third Eye: Practical Meditation
May the blessings of the Triple Gem be with you all!
Today, we continue our exploration of the spiritual life, offering a practical meditation program for those of you who are sincerely investigating your inner world. This teaching is specifically designed to provide practical training in an advanced skill for those who have successfully opened the Third Eye. We will be exploring something that can be practiced by those whose spiritual faculties are already awakened.
It is important to understand that the practice we are about to describe is only accessible to those whose Third Eye is already active. If you are still in the intermediate stages, perhaps seeing mental images or light signals, you will not yet be able to perform these exercises. We mention this for the sake of clarity, for anyone who might be new to this path. This is an advanced step for those who are ready.
Through our shared journey, we have offered these teachings freely and without reservation. Many of you have followed these methods and successfully developed your spirituality, awakening the Third Eye. This particular teaching on Manomaya Iddhi is for you, to help you further develop and refine your practice.
What is Manomaya Iddhi? Understanding Mind-Made Power
The specific topic we will delve into today is a profound spiritual skill known as Manomaya Iddhi, which can be translated as ‘mind-made power.’ This ability is one of the ten forms of Iddhi, or psychic powers, which are part of the five Abhiññā, or ‘higher knowledges’ described in Buddhist teachings.
However, we must be very clear from the outset: simply having an awakened Third Eye does not automatically guarantee that you can master Manomaya Iddhi. The ability to perform this is deeply connected to one’s accumulated spiritual merits and meditation practice from past lives.
It is a result of one’s inner cultivation over a long period. Therefore, we cannot say for certain that everyone will be able to do this; some may find it accessible, while others may not. But there is absolutely no harm in trying. In fact, practical experimentation is essential. It is only through practice that we can discover the latent spiritual potentials we carry from our past.
Preparing for Practice: Foundational Steps and Mindset
Before we begin, a word of guidance. If you are new to these teachings, we kindly ask that you start with our foundational articles. This is an advanced topic, and you will benefit most by building a proper foundation first. There are those who will believe in these things and those who will not, and that is not an issue for us.
However, for someone without any practical training, simply reading this out of curiosity may not be the best use of your time. As I always say, your time is precious; please use it for something that brings you tangible results.
Now, for those who are ready to practice, let us begin. Find your usual meditation space in your home and settle into your meditation posture. Close your eyes. As someone whose Third Eye is awakened, you are ready to proceed. This awakened faculty is also known as Dibba-cakkhu, the ‘Divine Eye.’ Though the names are different, they refer to the same capacity, as those of you who have followed these teachings from the beginning already know.
Distinguishing Vision from Projection: Two Types of Third Eye Experience
In our Third Eye practice series, we have previously guided you to use your awakened vision to observe sacred places like the great Ruwanwelisaya stupa, or ancient sites like Sigiriya. When you do this, there are generally two types of experiences one can have.
Some of you may see these places as if you are watching a television screen, the image is clear, but it is a remote viewing. Others may have a different experience: they see a subtle, radiant body of their own,sometimes colorful, sometimes luminous, which we can call a manokāya (mind-made body) or an inner radiant body. This body can travel, perhaps flying over the Ruwanwelisaya. This second experience is the domain of Manomaya Iddhi. The ability to project a mind-made body is what we are working with today.
Those who experience the ‘television-like’ viewing do not yet have Manomaya Iddhi, although their Third Eye is certainly open. For them, this practice might be difficult. However, we can never be completely certain of our full potential. Therefore, it is still worth trying with a spirit of open inquiry. For those who already perceive and travel with a mind-made body, this practice is a direct next step.
Step 1: The Practice of Transformation , Altering Your Subtle Body’s Size
Once your eyes are closed and you perceive your radiant body, what some in English call the ‘Astral Body’, the first exercise is to test your ability to change it at will.
Making It Larger
First, attempt to make it larger. For example, if your physical body is five or six feet tall, your radiant body will likely appear the same size. Now, form a clear and firm intention, a resolution known in Pali as adhiṭṭhāna. Someone in a deep meditative state has a powerful mind, so your intention will be potent. Resolve, ‘May my radiant body become ten feet tall.’
You will immediately perceive your mind-made body stretching and growing taller, even as your physical body remains still. If you see this happen, you have successfully completed the first part. This is an indication that you have the past karmic foundation for Manomaya Iddhi. You can then continue to practice, resolving for it to become fifteen feet, then twenty feet, testing the strength of your mind.
Making It Smaller
Next, reverse the process. With your physical body in meditation, you are now working entirely with this mind-made body. Resolve, ‘May I become three feet short,’ or ‘two feet,’ or even ‘one foot.’ As you see yourself shrinking, continue the practice. Can you become as small as twelve inches? Six inches? Three? One? Can you become small enough to pass through a keyhole? This requires focused intention. For some, this ability may come instantly; for others, it might take months of patient practice. This is the first set of exercises to explore.
The Crucial Role of Non-Attachment in Practice
It is essential to approach this practice with the right mindset. Do not rush. You can try both enlarging and shrinking in one session if it comes easily, but there is no need to force it. The greatest obstacle you will face is craving, a strong desire or eagerness to succeed. In Pali, this is called taṇhā or āsāva. This spiritual craving creates a blockage. It can cause you to misunderstand the process and prevent you from succeeding.
Remember, the purpose here is to develop a spiritual skill, not to become attached to beautiful forms, the thrill of the experience, or the power itself. Attachment, especially rooted in sensual desire (rāga), is not the goal. If you become attached to these abilities, they can become damaged or even disappear entirely, leading to spiritual decline. These are very subtle phenomena.
To protect and develop them, you must have your mental defilements (kilesa) either temporarily suppressed through deep meditative states or permanently eliminated through wisdom. This purity of mind is what allows these abilities to stabilize and grow.
Step 2: Altering Form, Appearance, and Features
Once you have practiced changing size, you can move on to altering the form of your mind-made body.
- Changing Build: If you are physically thin, resolve for your radiant body to become heavy and robust. If you are heavy, resolve for it to become thin. Observe if your intention manifests this change.
- Changing Color: Your radiant body often mirrors the skin tone of your physical body. However, you can change this. If you have a darker complexion, resolve to become fair. If you are fair, resolve to have a darker or tan complexion. See if the radiant body changes its color according to your will.
- Changing Features: You can also alter specific features. For instance, if you have straight hair, make the resolution for your hair to become curly.
A crucial reminder: this is an exercise of mental power, not an act of vanity. Avoid approaching this with the mindset of visiting a salon. The purpose is to witness the power of your mind and develop your spiritual faculties without getting entangled in attachment to the appearances you create.
Step 3: Advanced Transformations , Gender, Age, and Identity
As you become more skilled, you can attempt more profound transformations. The power lies solely in your intention, regardless of your native language, nationality, or religion.
- Changing Gender: If you are a woman, you can resolve, ‘May my body become that of a handsome man.’ If you are a man, you can resolve to become a woman.
- Changing Age: Resolve to become a small child. You can even be specific: ‘May I transform into a five-year-old boy,’ or ‘a five-year-old girl.’
- Adopting Another’s Form: You can also practice taking on the form of people you know, such as your spouse or a sibling. Form the intention, ‘May my astral body take on the form of my brother.’ Depending on the strength of your mind and past merits, the transformation can be very precise, matching their height and sometimes even their voice.
As a reminder, these practices are only for those whose Third Eye is truly awakened. I repeat this throughout the teaching because people with various levels of understanding are reading, and it is crucial to avoid confusion or misinterpretation.
Step 4: Multiplication and Shapeshifting into Other Beings
The potential of Manomaya Iddhi extends even further.
- Multiplication: Begin by resolving, ‘May another one of me be created.’ See if you can manifest two bodies. If successful, try for three, four, five, ten, twenty, fifty, a hundred. You can test your limits and see how many copies of yourself you can create, potentially forming an entire army of your own likeness.
- Combining Transformations: You can mix these skills. For example, a woman can first transform into a man and then multiply that male form a thousand times.
- Animal Forms: You can take on the form of any animal. Simply make the resolution. For instance, ‘May my radiant body take the form of a dog.’ The same principle applies to any being in the animal realm.
- Divine Forms: For practitioners with immense spiritual momentum (pāramitā), especially great Bodhisattvas (beings training for Buddhahood), it is even possible to take on the form of a deity, such as the benevolent god Sumana Saman.
Understanding Your Limits and the Long-Term Path
I must emphasize again: even with an awakened Third Eye, it is unlikely that everyone will be able to perform all of these feats. Some may only manage one or two. This is entirely dependent on your practice in previous lives. Please do not become discouraged, sad, or frustrated. The key is to practice without expectation, free from craving and attachment.
The effort itself is never wasted. This practice builds your spiritual perfections, or pāramitā. Even if you do not achieve full mastery in this life and do not attain Nibbāna (liberation), this training will carry over. Should you be reborn as a human and take up meditation again, you will master these skills with great ease. This practice supports your spiritual journey, whether you are a Bodhisattva aspiring for Buddhahood or a disciple (sāvaka) on the path to liberation. It is important to know that while these skills can arise on the path, they are not a requirement for attaining Nibbāna.
Great Bodhisattvas who develop these powers understand their path and do not misuse them to harm others. The practice we have discussed here involves the mind-made body. To be able to influence the physical world with the physical body through such powers is a much higher attainment, requiring extraordinary mental energy. Understand this boundary as you practice.
Conclusion and Blessing for Your Practice
This teaching covers the first series of exercises you can undertake to develop Manomaya Iddhi. There is more to learn, and we will explore further aspects and applications of this mind-made power in future discussions. For now, I have given you what you need to begin.
Please engage in this training for some time. I will not make this article too long, as the essential points have been made. Practice these steps, and as you do, may you find success. With the power and blessings of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha, the Triple Gem, I bless all of you with awakened Third Eyes to be able to train in these skills practically and fruitfully.
We invite you to walk this path with us. Read our teachings, and most importantly, apply them practically in your own life. as you practice, questions will naturally arise. Please feel free to share your experiences and questions in the comments below, via email or contact form. I will do my best to offer guidance in future talks based on your progress. For now, begin this practice with an open heart and a mind free from expectation. Cultivate it correctly, and may you find the clarity and peace you seek.
Thank you for joining us. We hope this blog will be of great benefit to your spiritual journey.
May you all be well and happy.
May the blessings of the Triple Gem be with you all!.
