Note 14: esoteric Hallucinations

21 notes for Meditators: Answers for Questions you never asked!

As much as for peace and happiness, the attraction towards meditation is also for the hope of esoteric experiences. The world of literature is full of esoteric garbage in the name of meditation. Today let’s talk about some of these issues Meditators face during their journey.

Of all the challenges Meditators face during their journey, the most interesting and difficult to overcome is the effect of Knowledge in their meditation practice. For the article’s sake let me explain the clarity on two words I am going to use often, wisdom and knowledge. In an over-simplistic explanation, Knowledge is something you have acquired thru a book, teacher, TV, etc and Wisdom is something you have tasted and experienced first hand.

Meditators during their journey notice that they begin to experience some visions and hallucinations. 99.99% of the time this is mind-created. Meditators often become voracious readers due to their thirst for knowledge. Knowledge becomes a double-edged sword. Without a doubt, knowledge is essential but it only serves a limited purpose. If you are traveling by bus or train to a destination then you do not carry a bus or train to your final destination. The same should be said of the knowledge. It serves its purpose to initiate you into Meditation but to experience ultimate truth you have to drop knowledge.

The root of the mind is stronger than you believe. Meditation is the death of the mind. The mind fights ferociously to hold on to its roots. One of the tricks it plays on your mind is to generate experiences you believe are part of the meditation. Let me give you an example. People often claim that their chakras got opened, kundalini has risen, etc… when you talk to them you will understand that they are merely replicating chapters from the books they have read. This is an ego way of grounding you. This is the way the mind wants to hold on to your roots.

Meditators find it very hard to overcome this stage. Because they have entered into the world of meditation with the baggage of information, they find it hard to digest that unless every ounce of knowledge is dropped wisdom doors may not open fully.

What can you do?

I would like to share something very significant here. The majority of the people who take up meditation never end up tasting silence and awareness. Almost 90% of them are stuck in the knowledge of the experience. They keep telling themselves that they know silence and awareness and never cross the first hurdle at all. The idea and bookish knowledge of silence and awareness are so strong in them that they can never remove knowledge from their meditation and they keep interpreting and translating even silence. Silence becomes just a sentence in their lives!

All experiences as long as the experiencer is alive, need to be discarded. If you are present in an experience then you need to transcend. Do not verify your experience with books and scriptures. The first and foremost advice is don’t share your experience and do not talk about it. Let the experience itself guide you. Let it transform you and show you the next step.

Note to help:

As you spend considerable time and years in Meditation, for some time drop all sources of information regarding Meditation. Let’s say, give a year break from reading or knowing anything about meditation and just practice meditation. Try and drop everything you know about meditation. Let your inner guide carry you. Trust in the wisdom of awareness and let it answer your questions. Unless you drop knowledge you will never discover wisdom.

Have a great weekend and I will see you next week.

~love….Sureshg

Sureshg is the founder of Breathwork India. If you have any doubts , feel free to write in comments or if you have personal or professional question then do use our contact details page to write to him.