Did the Buddha have any siddhis?

[django]

Does anyone know if the Buddha had any siddhis? Are there any 'miracles' associated with him? Did he heal people?

[sky]

Buddha and Jesus are both known for miracles involving power over nature, over their own bodies, and the power of divine sight. In general, however, the miracles Buddha performed were not cited as benefiting anyone, or only a few people, particularly in comparison to similar miracles performed by Jesus (or Moses).

The Buddha asked one of his disciples to get him some water, but when the disciple went to the well it was filled with grass and chaff. The Buddha asked him several times, and the answer was always that the water was not drinkable. Eventually the disciple went to the well one last time, and all the grass and chaff had been expelled by the Buddha, so the water was drinkable.

Rather than making water drinkable, Jesus, while attending a wedding, turned water into wine, much to the relief of the wedding host who had run out of wine for his many guests.

The Buddha, when faced with a flood, commanded the flood waters to stand back, and he walked between them on dry ground. No one was cited as being helped.

In contrast, many centuries before Buddha lived, Moses parted the Red Sea so that over two million Israelites could escape from Egypt and slavery under the Pharaoh.

When the disciples were at sea with Jesus and a terrible storm hit, the disciples feared for their lives. Just by speaking Jesus calmed the storm.

Buddha walked on water.When Jesus walked on water, it was a faith-building exercise for Peter and the disciples.

Known as the Twin Miracle, Buddha transformed the top half of his body into flames and the lower half into streams of water. He alternated this from the top and bottom and left and right.[8]*I could not find any reference to anyone being influenced by these miracles.

In the Gospels, Jesus’ transfiguration is described,

After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light.

And in John’s vision in Revelation:

And in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength.

The Buddha passed through solid objects as if through space (intangibility). He rose and sank in the ground as if in the water. He walked through mountains, dove in and out of earth. The Buddha was said to travel to other worlds, like the world of Brahma, with or without his body, and traveled to the heavens to school the gods and returned.

After his resurrection, the Apostles were hiding in fear and gathered in a room with the doors shut. Jesus entered the sealed room by passing through the walls or a closed door.To calm their fears, he twice said “Peace to you.” After being seen by a great number of people , he blessed his disciples and ascended into heaven.

The Buddha was said to have the gift of Divine seeing: telepathy, the ability to see past lives, and knowing a person’s past, their present thoughts, and future events. I was unable to find any references to Buddha’s exercise of these powers affecting or influencing anyone.

When Jesus was talking with the Samaritan woman at the well, he knew her history, that she had had five husbands and was currently living with a man that was not her husband. The woman marveled at his knowledge of her life, and told many in her village. As a result, many people in her village became followers of Jesus.[17]

It's up to you if you believe this or not but I think they are just legends.

[ajay00]

Originally Posted by Ardhanareshvara

Does anyone know if the Buddha had any siddhis? Are there any 'miracles' associated with him? Did he heal people?

Siddhis come even to those who are not enlightened and on account of making some progress in the spiritual field. Obviously then an enlightened one would have siddhis naturally .

Siddhis on their own are not a source of bliss or peace, as is Nirvana and can be detrimental in the sense that they can increase arrogance and consequently unconsciousness. They can however, on a positive note, increase faith in the spiritual process.

[Serrao]

Originally Posted by Ardhanareshvara

Does anyone know if the Buddha had any siddhis? Are there any 'miracles' associated with him? Did he heal people?

Yes, Buddha had siddhis too.
When he attained enlightenment, the devas were wondering too if he had siddhis.
That's when he demonstrated some of his powers for the first time.

I don't know if Buddha healed people physically.
But he surely healed many minds.

[ajay00]

Originally Posted by Serrao

Yes, Buddha had siddhis too.
When he attained enlightenment, the devas were wondering too if he had siddhis.
That's when he demonstrated some of his powers for the first time.

Are you sure about this ! Buddha was not the kind of dude who was interested in power play even when requested .

Originally Posted by Serrao

I don't know if Buddha healed people physically.
But he surely healed many minds.

Just being in the presence of an enlightened master increases prana or chi in oneself.

Diseases arise because of low prana levels. So just being in Buddha or any enlightened master's presence results in physical and mental healing in a sense, even if one is not aware of it.

[Serrao]

Originally Posted by ajay00

Are you sure about this ! Buddha was not the kind of dude who was interested in power play even when requested .

Yes, I'm sure.
I read this somewhere on the internet.
Buddha created a golden bridge in the sky and walked up and down for seven times (if I'm not mistaken).

Perhaps the inquisitiveness was on a kind of irritating and intrusive level.
And he responded in some sort of "let's get over this quickly" way.

Originally Posted by ajay00

Just being in the presence of an enlightened master increases prana or chi in oneself.

Diseases arise because of low prana levels. So just being in Buddha or any enlightened master's presence results in physical and mental healing in a sense, even if one is not aware of it.

I've heard this before.
I've also heard that the energy goes back to normal when seperated again from the master.
Even emotional pain can arise after seperation, which can cause illness too.

[Amilius777]

There are miracles which must be attributed to the Divine and then there are abilities or talents which also must be attributed to the Divine but also credited to the individual. There are plenty of people who can heal, tell the future, see spirits, talk to the dead, and have visions but it doesn't mean they are enlightened. I'd expect Jesus and Buddha to know how to do these things naturally. They were both very psychic. But when it comes to the miracles of Jesus in the Bible, those are of DIVINE origin. You either believe them or you don't. I personally do because they were things surrounding his Life, mission, presence, and through his Body that signaled his purpose in the Earth.

But miracles come to people everyday even in small doses, people are just not looking. Every second of your life is a miracle. It is a miracle how everything works in the universe. The fact that we freely breath is a miracle taken for granted.

[Shaunc]

I love the story of kisa gotami. Although not a miracle in the sense of divine intervention. To me it was a miracle in the sense that it opened her eyes to the world. It was probably the first Buddhist story that I heard and it did the same to me 2500 years later

[ajay00]

Originally Posted by Serrao

Yes, I'm sure.
I read this somewhere on the internet.
Buddha created a golden bridge in the sky and walked up and down for seven times (if I'm not mistaken).

Perhaps the inquisitiveness was on a kind of irritating and intrusive level.
And he responded in some sort of "let's get over this quickly" way.

See, a lot of stories were made to hype up Buddha by his followers in later centuries to give him a superhuman aura, and this probably is one of them.

I see Siddhartha as an honest man with good critical thinking skills, application and a firm determination to find the truth , and this helped him to get over the superstitious beliefs present in Hinduism at that point of time and evolve it to the level of Buddhism. Swami Vivekananda had described Buddhism as 'the logical fulfilment of Hinduism. '

Intelligent and diligent effort is emphasized in Buddhism without any focus on miracles and stuff . Too much focus on miracles and so on can weaken the mind and character, increase fear and reduce self-belief and self-esteem.

[sky]

Originally Posted by Shaunc

I love the story of kisa gotami. Although not a miracle in the sense of divine intervention. To me it was a miracle in the sense that it opened her eyes to the world. It was probably the first Buddhist story that I heard and it did the same to me 2500 years later

Have you read the Patacara story, another heart wrencher...