Summary

The text discusses the author's journey from skepticism to embracing mystical experiences as a means to connect with a deeper reality beyond the five senses, emphasizing the importance of love and oneness in these encounters.

Abstract

The author reflects on the evolution of their understanding of spirituality, moving from a tribal evangelical perspective to one that includes intuition and direct experiences of the divine. They critique the way religious institutions often gatekeep access to the divine through rituals and conformity, and celebrate the influence of Eastern religions in rekindling the pursuit of enlightenment as a personal quest. The text underscores that true mystical experiences are characterized by feelings of oneness and love, rather than temporary euphoria. It also explores the permeable barrier between life and the afterlife, as observed in various cultural practices and sacred texts, suggesting that the departed continue to interact with the living. While the author has not had grandiose mystical experiences, they find profound connections in everyday moments, such as gardening or being with pets, which they describe as "ordinary mysticism." These moments offer glimpses into a greater consciousness and serve as a reminder of the spiritual hunger for Presence within all individuals.

Opinions

The author believes that direct contact with the divine through meditation was once encouraged by religious institutions but was later suppressed in favor of rituals and conformity.
They argue that the value of mystical experiences is not in the 'buzz' but in the feelings of oneness and love they engender.
The author has come to appreciate other ways of knowing, such as intuition and gut feelings, which complement rational categories and traditional religious teachings.
They suggest that consciousness extends beyond the brain and is not limited to our physical existence.
The text conveys the author's belief in the permeability of the barrier between this life and the next, influenced by cultural practices like the Day of the Dead and Native American traditions.
The author values "ordinary mysticism" – the everyday experiences that connect us to the divine – as much as the grand mystical experiences recorded in religious history.
They acknowledge a spiritual hunger within themselves and the need to dismantle mental biases to experience Ultimate Reality more fully.

Mystical Moments Matter

(An excerpt from my unpublished memoir “Heart Wide Open”)

How do you make contact with the world beyond your five senses?

And how do you even stop being distracted from that world by your restless mini-ego mind?

Followers of all world religious traditions and people in every culture have stories of how they encountered Presence beyond their thought perception.

The problem with many religious institutions was that in their early days direct contact with the Deity through meditation was encouraged.

However, the more the institution became concerned for its status and survival, the more it made contact with God dependent on its rituals, priests, and conformity to its teachings.

Thus meditation was stamped out until the influence of Eastern Religions came West. Enlightenment became a personal quest again.

This ‘direct’ experience has been been variously described as insights, visions, prayers, trances, mystical encounters, near-death experiences, and meetings with ancestors and spiritual guides.

In all instances the value of the experience was not measured by the ‘buzz’ the seeker received. The way we know that the encounter was the real thing was measured by oneness and love.

In the past, I would have considered this “Woo Woo” stuff, not aligned with my Tribal Evangelical beliefs or even rational categories. I once thought, “If you cannot observe and measure and have it replicated by others then the knowledge is spurious”.

What I came to learn was that there are other ways of knowing including intuition, a gut sense, and tapping into awake-awareness. In the end truth percolates through the filters of our experience, the sacred writings, and religious tradition.

In mystical knowing the point of contact with truth is deep within.

The eternal is within us and consciousness is a part of but not confined to our brains. It does not die when our brain turns to dust.

I have learned from other cultures especially in Latin America and Native American peoples that the barrier between this life and the next is permeable.

At the Day of the Dead celebration, Mexicans gather at the grave of a departed loved one. All are conscious that the person is actually there with them. In the ancient Hebraic sacred writings, there are records of visits from the other world like angels meeting with Abraham. Native Americans routinely call out to their ancestors for wisdom in life and courage to cross the River Styx when they die. I am also starting to sense that the departed dead surround, protect, and encourage us even when we are not conscious of them.

I’ve never had any of those “big” mystical experiences as seen throughout religious history. When the Angel Gabriel appeared to the prophet Muhammad over the span of twenty-three years and revealed the Qur’an, Moses on the mountain received the 10 Commandments, and the Theresa of Avila experienced ecstasy, they were hardly typical revelations and certainly not mine.

My experience of the other world is always fleeting. Once in a while while I’m embedded in silence and also in nature I catch glimpses out of the corner of my eye. My goal is that trough practice and distance from my chattering mind I will have a sustained resting in that consciousness.

Ah well, maybe after leave this body.

Messages come in all shapes and sizes to receptive individuals throughout the ages.

We just have to be open and receptive.

My garden-variety “contact” experiences are more mundane but not necessarily less significant. For instance, when I shovel dirt in my garden dampened by the rain, I am at one with what I am doing. When I experience a close emotional connection with my dogs, I am encountering the divine in them. When I stop to contemplate a powerful line in a poem, I am standing on the threshold of heaven. When I sit silently with a friend in deep sorrow, I am experiencing oneness with him. In those moments of delicious newness I am there.

Each experience of ordinary mysticism helps me glide through the portals to another world, go inward towards a place with infinite possibilities, instruct my intuitive capacities, enable me to hear the voice of the Spirit, and open my heart to love.

Each “mystical” experience taught me that I have a spiritual hunger for Presence or the sacred. I also continually need to be reminded that love resides in the depth of my being.

Now I’m in the process of dismantling my wall of mental bias with its bricks of ignorance, deception, and illusion. I cannot say that I have had a sustained direct experience with Ultimate Reality. Mostly, I have glimpsed it out of the corner of my eye in fleeting moments. Each one was an open window that brought fresh information to my borderline calcified life.

Now the quest is to make such awareness a daily practice.