Monday, April 30, 2012
It was during the meditation session with the shy, or not so shy, abbot, that I experienced something unusual. As I proceeded through the usual stages of my mind wandering, my breathing slowing, and the images flashing through my mind without control, I noticed the frequency of my distractions slowing. My body seemed swollen or fuzzy, at times I felt like I was falling, almost about to fall asleep. Then I had a sensation of warmth, and a vision of a landscape with extremely, almost painfully, bright light. But then a sensation of extreme happiness, perhaps joy, came over me. Before I knew it, it was gone, as if someone had removed the spot light that was temporarily focused on me. A chill came over my body, “what was that”? I could not return to my meditative state. I was too focused on what had just happened. This was definitely strange. Something karmic? Otherworldly? No, but it was a sign to me that I had made some kind of transition in my mind, at least temporarily. My next thought was could I do it again?