It is for this reason that mental disorientation often occurs with the use of psychedelic drugs such as LSD or mescaline. Not that drugs disclose any of the Whys and Wherefores of existence, but they do powerfully destroy the earthbound concepts of body, space and time, as perceived by the senses. This can hurl the unprepared mind into a terrifying inter-dimensional wilderness. When the ‘psychic filters’ between the surface mind of man and his subconscious realms are suddenly removed by drug activity, the protective ‘shell’ is cracked, and, if he is spiritually or psychically unready for even such low-level relations, then the results can be mind deranging. Stripped of his habitual sensory faculties and sense-of-ego (his ‘psychic shell’) he is exposed either to the delirious joy of mental freedom and ecstasy, and an overwhelming love too enormous to bear, or— if he retains the sense-of-ego, then he can find himself in the grip of inexpressible terror in a hellishly chaotic and demented formless universe.

The terror seems to come from being unable to adjust quickly enough to the perception of other conditions of existence and having the ground of the previous ‘knowledge-of-the-world’ pulled from under his feet. Similar conditions prevail, on a lesser scale, for the developing spiritual seeker as his ‘psychic shell’ begins to dissolve. If he tries to rush things, he may soon find himself out of his depth. This is why no true Master ever tries to force the pace of a student’s growth, nor promises enlightenment-in-five-minutes, but allows the student to determine his own rate of development and advocates a slow step-by-step opening up of his mind and spirit, together with the steady dissolution of his sense-of-ego.

Beneficial

Developing oneself in such a manner is most beneficial for creating the needful conditions in body and mind towards an ultimate harmonious union with the ‘Absolute’ (or the ‘God’ experience), or at least, towards preparing the ground for a ‘sunconscious’ or insightful mystical experience. Although the mystical experience, and even full Cosmic Consciousness (which is a complete identification with, and absorption in, the total cosmic creation), are admittedly still of a relativistic nature, on variously ascending levels, they are, however, of a higher aspect of consciousness, capable of causing a catalytic elevation of the spirit and—in varying degrees—a refining of the moral and ethical sensibilities in the experiencer. Such experiences thus serve as valuable and encouraging stepping-stones along the ‘Inward Path’ from relative to Absolute Knowledge or Truth.

Development

Unfortunately, today’s miseducation system is not geared towards self-understanding or intuitive development, but seems bent on producing only keen intellects. (Instead of which, its main success is in producing masses of bored empty-heads and potential couch-potatoes). However, even a keen intellect is not advantageous for encouraging mystical experience, and can be a major disadvantage. The mystical experience occurs to simple peasants and tradesmen, whose hearts are open, as well as to profound thinkers. Although the peasant may have an inborn wisdom, it is not intellectualised knowledge, but a natural inner-knowing, and thus he may be in a far better intuitive condition to receive mystical insight. A thinker whose heart is involved in keeping his thoughts elevated towards the intuitive sunconscious is also in a receptive condition.

For those who have experienced the phenomenon, a moment of mystical consciousness is regarded as the most real and elevating experience of a lifetime. It is a state of being which—by comparison with anything previously experienced since birth—makes our everyday world either pale into a mirage-like unreality and relative insignificance, or opens it up into a multi-dimensional super reality full of depth and richness of meaning.

Credits: Supplied Image; Author: Muz Murray;

Two months off my twenty-fourth birthday, I was completely ignorant about mystical consciousness and viewed such presumed delusions with a derisive youthful scepticism. In fact, since the age of seven or eight, I had been adamantly anti-religious. At that time, my parents, who had no religious inclinations themselves, had packed me off to Sunday school every Sunday morning, under the impression that a religious ‘education’ might be good for me. It was during one of these school sermon sessions that I suddenly perceived with an awful awareness that those who were ‘talking down’ to us kids with their saccharine-sweet versions of Jesus, meek and mild, neither understood, nor, in their heart of hearts, believed what they were telling us.

It sickened me to realise that they wanted us to believe what they were saying in order to feel useful and comfortable in themselves. The motivation of evangelism was revealed to me in that moment and I never forgot it. I walked out, feeling my intelligence had been insulted. And I never went back. From then on, through all the years of my teens, I avoided anything which vaguely smelled of religion. Despising churchly hypocrisy, I considered myself a confirmed atheist, a God-less ‘free-thinker’ and proud of it. Therefore, my about-face was all the more wondrous to me because of it.

It was in Cyprus, January 1964, during seven years of vagabondage around the world, when it happened.

I had been through a great deal of emotional turmoil and privation during my travels. My money had just been stolen and I arrived at the port of Limassol with only seven and a half pounds in my pocket. I was at a crossroads in my life, not knowing which way to turn.

It was then that the extraordinary event occurred that changed the whole course of my life.

To be continued in Part 3

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Author

British mystic, author, psychotherapist, spiritual counsellor, mantra yogi, fine artist and illustrator, theatrical set and costume designer. Founder-editor of Gandalf’s Garden magazine and Community in the London Sixties, and 3 years as columnist for Yoga Today magazine, BBC 4 Scriptwriter, author of four spiritual self-development books and two storybooks for children. 

Muz Murray