Your Third Eye Enigma
Is It Waiting To Be Discovered?
When I was decidedly younger, with that abundant, carefree energy of youth surging through my being, I developed an avid interest in Eastern religions, hoping I could find some answers to the perennial quest for the true meaning of man’s existence.
A close friend invited me to a meeting of the Divine Light Mission, a quasi-Hindu, religious movement, that had established an ‘ashram’ in an ornate Edwardian villa in a leafy suburb of our hometown. The area was decidedly upmarket, chosen by professionals as a desirable place to live.
I’m not sure if the Divine Light Mission still exists (readers please let me know) but its leader, a young man called Guru Maharaj Ji, proclaimed as the Second Christ in some of the more radical, counter culture press, eventually proved to be a controversial character, using funds donated by believers to, apparently, fund his lavish, jet-set lifestyle.
But, the meeting I attended was interesting. I was one of about fifteen, of both sexes and with an average age of about thirty-five, who gathered together that evening not sure exactly what to expect.
I can’t recall any ‘elderly’ persons being present, but then perhaps they had seen this kind of thing before.
We sat cross-legged, surrounded by a wispy cloud of aromatic smoke produced by the many joss sticks spread out around the large, carpeted room. There was no furniture apart from an antique, long-case clock that propped up a corner of the room. It ticked agreeably, enhancing the calm ambience of the meeting.
Our tutor for the session was a long-haired, bearded young man suitably dressed in the hippie fashions of the day. The talk outlined the teachings of their leader and how each of us could expand our consciousness, but only with the help of our own personal mantra provided by the Guru.
A donation to the movement would be required, of course, but this would lead to our awareness of cosmic consciousness and the development of our ‘Third Eye.’
Several hours later, I left the gathering feeling unusually elated. We had all drunk tea that was offered during the session. I remember it tasted unusually pleasant and had an aromatic bouquet. I have often wondered whether they laced it with something that induced my euphoric state. Or am I being too cynical?
If you are wondering whether such an organ as the third eye, did, does or could exist, then the following might stimulate your imagination, perhaps even illuminate a path to spiritual enlightenment or awaken your search for a personal guru. Or maybe not.
In Hindu mythology, they say each human being possesses a third eye whose power we can develop, through various meditation techniques, to aid increased spiritual awareness. In fact, people with a scientific or medical bent hold the view that this is already an anatomical reality, called the pineal gland, which is situated roughly in the centre of the brain.
We have known of its existence for centuries. Herophilus, 335–280BC, the Greek physician believed it was the physical organ that regulates the flow of thought, acting like a ‘valve’ or sphincter. And Descartes, the 17th century anatomist, believed that it was the point where the mind and body met.
The pineal gland has intrigued medical professionals as it has its own unique existence with no ‘duplicate’ aspect, like so many parts of the brain. But this tiny grey mass, 6.35 mm long and weighing 0.94 grams, may once have been an all-seeing eye.
Evolution may offer some evidence of this assertion if you believe that our evolutionary journey involved human beings spending some time (say several million years) as reptiles.
Apart from sheep, New Zealand is the home of the Tuatara lizard. This creature has a crevice in the centre of its skull that is covered with a transparent membrane. Underneath is a vestigial eye, with a pigmented retina and a crude form of lens. However, it has no connections to the nervous system and seems to have lost its purpose in the process of evolution.
Some 19th Century anatomists were of the opinion that this ‘eye’ was identical to the pineal gland, that exists today in us humans and other creatures, but which has become concealed in the brains of men and animals as time has marched on along the evolutionary ladder.
In 1958, scientists isolated the hormone secreted by the pineal body. They gave it the name melatonin, meaning ‘darkness limiting,’ because when this hormone was injected or fed into other animals, it turned them a lighter colour. It was further discovered the pineal gland manufactures melatonin through the action of a hormone called serotonin, a chemical messenger which transmits nerve impulses across synapses.
We know that the level of serotonin in a human body can induce feelings of well–being and euphoria. Athletes can produce higher levels of serotonin because of their constant regime of fitness training. Scientists have also discovered that schizophrenics have far less serotonin in their brains than other people.
Interestingly, the drug LSD and other hallucinogenics will react with serotonin and other chemicals within the brain and may create mind expanding, ‘spiritual’ experiences. So the interconnection between the pineal gland, melatonin and serotonin, appears to have a link with man’s higher spiritual aspirations.
Whether such evidence can justifiably confirm that the third eye, or pineal body, is Man’s ‘spiritual’ centre is still open to debate.
I have often wondered whether those other searchers, after meaning and truth who, like me, felt the curious inclination to investigate the teachings of the young guru all those years ago, persisted in their search.
Perhaps some even experienced the gateway of the Third Eye.
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