Out of Body Experience…Today!

Hello.  Interesting day.  Work was good. It was a Monday and I embraced Monday and, as a result, enjoyed my day.  Many people plan to hate Mondays, so they do.  Plan to have a bad day and you are pretty much guaranteed to have one.  Plan to have a good day and you may not have one (in your opinion) but…it is much more likely that you will.  There is really only one choice that makes any sense but many humans seem to enjoy making themselves miserable and then try to find someone or something to blame it on.

Okay…so to the topic.  I had regular out of body experiences in my late 30s.  I was around 37 and there was a 6 month or so period where I could have them at will.  It was wonderful.  I had them daily.  I bought a book on the topic and it said it could be addicting.  It sure was.  My spirit was always traveling.  I would mostly fly to the places I felt like going but sometimes I would find myself on a train to unknown places. By the way, when I said fly I don’t mean in a plane.  My spirit would fly.

I knew when it was going to happen.  I would hear noise in my ears and then I would leave my body through the top of my head.  In the book I read, it described it just like that.  The author described the noise as people talking (souls talking).  After reading that, I realized it did sound like that. Those were some great journeys.  I have not been able to do this now for a lot of years.  My experiences became fewer and farther between until I was about forty when the ability left me altogether.

Today was different.   I was out on my mountain bike.  It could have been an out of body experience or near death experience or an “I think I’m dying experience.”  It was hot so maybe it was just the heat but I was well hydrated.  Anyway…I was meditating on my ride.  I came to a point where the sky just looked serene.  The sun was shining through some clouds and I was overwhelmed with calm.  Then my chest got warmer and warmer and I briefly left my body.  I thought, but quite calmly, that perhaps I was having a heart attack and was going to die.  I didn’t panic as I was really ready to embrace the next place.  It wasn’t scary…it was peaceful.

Anyway, a short time later I was back, present on my bike and present on the trail.  It was a wonderful experience.  I don’t fear death.  Not because of what happened today.  I just don’t fear it.  I have faith.  It’s strong.  I’m strong.  God is within me!

Peace…

Awakening The Buddha Within

This is a book I recently finished, written by Lama Surya Das who, among other things, did two back to back three year silent retreats as a Buddhist Monk.  Then, like many, came to a point where monastic life no longer made sense.

Here are some thoughts or ideas brought up in the book:

Many of the unenlightened ask themselves things like:” When does my real life begin?”  “Is this all there is?”  “Why does life often seem barren and lonely?”  “Why is there so much anxiety, fear and doubt in my heart?”  In actuality, we create our own reality.

Enlightenment is not about becoming divine.  Quite the opposite as it is about becoming more fully human.  Enlightened living is a compassionate path.  Zen Master Dogen said, “To be enlightened is to be one with all things.”  Makes sense to me.  Every living thing on this planet is connected to every other.  That is not a theory.  That is a fact.  It’s just common sense.

The only place you are going to find your truth is in your genuine spiritual center.  Be who you are and where you are.  Be present.  Within you and all of God’s creatures there is an inner radiance.  The luminosity is birthless and deathless.  It carries unconditional compassion and love.  We can awaken it if we want to.  We can become enlightened.  Seek enlightenment and you will not find it but clear your mind and you may learn that it was there all the time.

Enlightenment means an end to directionless wandering…

Here’s a meditation:

Breathe, breathe again, smile, relax, arrive where you are, be present only where you are, get rid of the noise in your head, forget what was and what may be, be present now, make it about being and not doing, drop everything and let go, enjoy for a moment this marvelous joy of meditation…

Following a balanced, moderate path that is honest, straightforward and impeccable is living the Dharma.  Learning to live without excessive confusion, anger, clinging, vacillation or greed is following the Dharma.  Be in tune with things as they are…not as you would wish them to be.

Buddha is truth.  Buddha once said, “There is nirvanic peace in things left just as they are.”  It’s about letting go.  It’s like coming home.

There are Four Noble Truths in Tibetan Buddhism (and perhaps the Korean I am involved in).  They are:

1.       Life is difficult.

2.       Life is difficult because of attachment.  We crave satisfaction in inherently dissatisfying ways.

3.       The possibility of liberation from difficulties exists for everyone.

4.       The way to realize the liberation and enlightenment is by leading a compassionate life of virtue, wisdom and meditation.  These three spiritual trainings comprise the teachings of the Eight-Fold Path to Enlightenment.

Soon I will discuss the Eight-Fold Path.  Peace and God bless!