Levitation: what it is - how it works - how to do it PDF
Preview Levitation: what it is - how it works - how to do it
Levitation L e v I believe I can fl y. i t a t i o Steve Richards n Levitation—is it possible? Can human beings really leave the ground through R the power of the mind alone? How can this extraordinary defi ance of gravity ic h be induced at will? These are some of the questions answered in this a r d epoch- making book, one of the fi rst ever to lay bare the occult meditational s techniques by which the mind can lift the body off the ground. The secrets of levitation are centuries old, but they have remained in the hands of a few adepts—until now. This book gives you the facts, the history, the controversies, the theories, and, above all the techniques—everything, in fact, you should know about meditation. Among the topics covered here are: Transcendental Meditation™ and levitation Science and levitation Famous fakirs and fakers The connection between levitation and the chakras Astral power The power of the mind—how to harness it This is an essential guide for anyone interested in the power of the mind, the legends of the East, Transcendental Meditation™, occult and metaphysical practices, and of course, anyone interested in a good giggle. www.redwheelweiser.com ISBN: 978-1-57863-579-5 US $14.95 Cover design: Graham Lester LEVITATION Levitation Final Pages.indd 1 7/26/15 11:45 AM Levitation Final Pages.indd 2 7/26/15 11:45 AM Levitation Steve Richards What It Is, How It Works, How to Do It Levitation Final Pages.indd 3 7/26/15 11:45 AM This edition first published in 2015 by Weiser Books, an imprint of Red Wheel/Weiser, llc With offices at: 665 Third Street, Suite 400 San Francisco, CA 94107 www.redwheelweiser.com Copyright © 1980 by Steve Richards All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from Red Wheel/Weiser, llc. Reviewers may quote brief passages. Originally published in 1980 by Aquarian Press, a part of the Thorsons Publishing Group, ISBN: 1-85538-089-7. ISBN: 978-1-57863-579-5 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available upon request Cover design by Graham Lester Text design by Jane Hagaman Printed in the United States of America M&G 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Levitation Final Pages.indd 4 7/26/15 11:45 AM CONTENTS Acknowledgements vii 1. Can Man Fly? 1 2. The Gravity of It All 11 3. Fakirs and Fakers 23 4. A Word with You 45 5. Astral Energies 59 6. Some Practical Secrets 69 7. The Element of Will 85 8. Sanyama 99 9. So You Can Fly . . . Now What? 125 Appendix 139 Notes 143 Index 153 Levitation Final Pages.indd 5 7/26/15 11:45 AM Levitation Final Pages.indd 6 7/26/15 11:45 AM ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank Mr. Stephen Rozman of Tougaloo College for his very interesting interview; the editors of The Theosophi- cal Publishing House in Madras, India, for permission to quote some early articles from The Theosophist; Mr. Don Barcell of Campbell, California, for the loan of his photograph and per- mission to reproduce it; the staff of the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres, International, for the photographs and information they provided, as well as for permission to reproduce their pho- tographs; and finally the staff of the Olcott Library and Research Centre in Wheaton, Illinois, for their assistance in locating arti- cles and loaning documents. Levitation Final Pages.indd 7 7/26/15 11:45 AM The Madras Brahman who claimed to sit in the air by Yoga powers. Reward of Rs. 1,000. The above sum is offered to any one who, by yoga pow- ers, will raise himself three feet from the ground, and remain suspended for ten minutes. Levitation in British India: the Madras Brahman who sat on air. From The Sacred Books of the East Described (1897). Levitation Final Pages.indd 8 7/26/15 11:45 AM CHAPTER ONE CAN MAN FLY? Levitation! Is it for real? Students of psychic phenomena have been asking that question for centuries, and not getting many answers. Levitation is a rather unique kind of psychic phenome- non. It is not like astral projection, or psychometry, or precogni- tion. It is the sort of thing Joseph of Cupertino might have done three centuries ago, or that some mahatma in India or Tibet might do today. But it is not the kind of thing an ordinary per- son would expect to do. And certainly not in the Western World. That is why a lot of eyebrows were raised in mid-1977 when the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi announced that not only could he levitate; he could teach others to do it, too. After all, the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi is famous for his Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique. He has a reputation for methods that are not only sim- ple to teach and easy to learn, but also that work—and work well. ‘Levitation is the most profound of the siddhis yet avail- able,’ a TM instructor told me. ‘Maharishi says it’s all a matter of mind-body coordination. Tell your body to walk and it does it. No problem. But tell it to rise into the air “by mere intention” and it doesn’t. Improve your mind-body coordination and you can do that too.’ It all sounded familiar. Since the early seventies TM peo- ple have been amassing study after study, showing that med- itators have better memories than other people, sleep better, run faster, make better grades in school, even see better. One TM instructor I interviewed even says meditators have fewer cavities. But levitation? Levitation Final Pages.indd 1 7/26/15 11:45 AM
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