Far and above what we already know about creation and its breathtaking characteristics, every creature has been endowed with incredible powers beyond whatever you can imagine or what we may have discovered. Man prides himself in supremacy amongst all creation because he has invented diverse means of dominating his environment. Yet there are other creatures equipped with incredible abilities that man can only imagine.
Man’s closest animals, dogs, for instance, have been reported to smell objects or people as far as 20km away, under perfect conditions. That’s because dogs have many more smell receptors than humans. Dogs also have a lot more surface area in their noses and are better at moving air through their noses than us. If more air passes through their nose, they have more chance to pick up smells. Dogs also hear sound frequencies at least three times as high compared to humans. Polar bears too can smell seals, which they hunt from more than 30km away.
Sharks can see clearly even in dark or murky waters. Frogs, Bluebottle Butterflies, and Owls can see color in near-total darkness. An eagle perched on top of a 10-storey building can see an insect crawling on the sidewalk below. A chameleon’s eyes work like turrets, each one moving independently for an incredible combined 360° visibility.
These characteristics are not what some of those men are equipped with. But we also still have superhumans who possess extraordinary abilities only comparable to fictional superheroes. With traits that even science is still incapable of explaining.
Wim Hof, a.k.a ‘The Iceman’ from the Netherlands, has stunned scientists with his ability to stay submerged in ice for more than two hours without his body temperature changing one bit. If anyone else tries doing what Wim Hof does, the person would definitely freeze to death. Wim was able to climb Mount Everest just in his shorts.
One of India’s most famous unsolved mysteries is how a man, Prahlad Jani, a devotee of Amba Mata, has been able to survive without a morsel of food and water since 1940. He was once locked in a room for 10 days for observational studies, where it was found that he was perfectly healthy without food and water.
Deceased 16-year-old Ben Underwood, from Elk Grove, California, lost his eyesight when he was three. But Underwood could still see without his eyes. Like dolphins, he used sound to detect the exact location of anything. This ability helped Ben to take part in activities like running, basketball, bicycle riding, football, and skateboarding.
Vietnamese, Ngoc Thai, has not been able to sleep since 1973, and doctors say there are no side effects. Despite carrying 50kg bags of pig feed for 4km every day, his tired body doesn’t go to sleep. Therapies and sleeping pills have no effect on Ngoc.
Tibetan monks are still using the Tummo technique to change their body temperature using their mind power. These monks can also lower their metabolism just with their sheer mind power. Science has failed to explain how meditation and yoga can help these monks do such unnatural things.
Natasha Demkina, a Russian girl born in 1987, is reputed to have X-ray vision that can see through people’s skin. She once told a doctor where all his scars from a previous car accident were.
Now you need to turn your attention to yourself. Agree that there is superhero content in all of us minus none. Take some deep breaths and a good look at yourself in front of a mirror. You are neither Iceman, Wim Hof nor Natasha Demkina nor a yoga-loving Tibetan monk. You are YOU. You are a bundle of incredible mysteries that you are yet to unleash. Deep within you is the spark of stunning possibilities that your fears have kept bound. If you look well enough, if you meditate deeply enough, if you pray fervently enough, if you listen quietly enough, and work hard at it enough, you will also emerge magnificently enough for yourself.
Citizen Agba Jalingo is the Publisher of CrossRiverWatch and a rights activist, a Cross Riverian, and writes from Lagos.
NB: Opinions expressed in this article are strictly attributable to the author, Agba Jalingo, and do not represent the opinion of CrossRiverWatch or any other organization the author works for/with.