The unwinding of our ability to reach higher states of consciousness has been going on for thousands of years.
Humankind's journey through evolution has gone in a direction that has ultimately filtered out the need or desire to use that part of us. However, there are still religious practices today that believe in this state of mind and strive to achieve enlightenment through it.
Today I have chosen to discuss different ways to achieve higher forms of consciousness.
1.) Meditation
I personally enjoy this method.
Meditation has been an effective way to achieve different states of consciousness even long before the times of Christ. And has been used by dozens of religions through out time.
If you are anything like me meditation can be a little difficult. It is very hard to turn off your mind, which is a very important if you wish to use this method.
Not that long ago a friend of mine recommended a 6 part video to me.
And it did in fact, prove it's self effective where other guided meditations had always failed me.
2.) Contemplation:
The contemplation of art and nature can lead to epiphanies.
No longer does the word just apply to its Greek origin meaning manifestation of a god or deity, but also a special and usually sudden raptures, where the meaning or reality of something becomes clear. Also known as, Enlightenment!
^.^
3.) Sex:
Yes, let's not act like children.
Sex is in fact a way to experience another form of consciousness.
I'm not saying every time you go do it you are going to have a god like experience.
But I am asking you to look back at one of the handfuls of times you may have had sex where you remember something incredible changing, not just with your body but your mind also took a trip. Believe it or not, your state of consciousness did change.
4.) Mind-altering substances:
I am going to tread carefully on this particular topic so I don't influence people to do something incredibly stupid and also so you, the reader don't get the wrong idea about how I conduct myself.
I am not in anyway telling any of you to go out and do a bunch of drugs so you can talk to god.
With that being said, I'll continue.
"In ancient times, people all over the world grew or gathered sacred plants (and fungi) with the power to inspire visions or conduct them on journeys to other worlds; some of these people, who are sometimes called shamans, returned with the kind of spiritual knowledge that underwrites whole religions."
A big mystery of human life, as Michael Pollan puts it, is that "there are plants in the garden that manufacture molecules with the power to change the subjective experience of reality we call consciousness."
5.) Theta waves:
A man named Robert Monroe said he had developed tapes which send different sound signals to each ear, signals of 400 to 404 hertz resulting in a blending inside the brain and forming a binaural beat frequency of 4hz (theta waves).
This produces a state of brain hemisphere equilibrium, and an altered state of mind.
These sounds are usually listened to with head phones to ensure each ear gets the sound designed for it.
It's actually a pretty interesting experience.
So there you have it, just because a higher state of consciousness doesn't come naturally to most of us anymore, doesn't mean we are incapable of reaching it.
I'm hoping this first post wasn't too much of a let down.
Plenty more to come.
-Ashlee
First off, this was in no way a let down.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of altering our minds to achieve higher levels of consciousness has been at the forefront of my most frequent thoughts. I think that, at one point or another, everyone has a moment in their lives in which they realize they want to understand everything better. Almost as if there is another universe of clairvoyance, filled with differing schools of thought that would give anyone in a normal state of mind a headache.
The methods you posted are all very interesting. The idea of sex as a method of heightening the mental senses is thought-provoking. I have looked into meditation and theta waves in the past, and have tried a combination of the two. Although I did feel a sense of calming, I almost always ended up in a more relaxed state than anything.
To be honest, most of my thoughts about this world come to me only when I am presented with an example. I try to spend my waking hours outside of a normal mental drone, taking in each aspect of my surroundings. It's during these times that I can really contemplate the actions of others, as well as the near infinite combinations of brainwaves that could be clicking away at everyone's personality.
Don't get me wrong, I am not disassociated with humanity. In fact, I cherish human life now more than ever. A person, no matter who they are, has in their head an endless pool of ideas that only they can come up with. Their minds are capable of intermingling with even more differing ideals and perspectives. The sheer power of the mind is enough to knock you off your feet.
That being said, I look at the world through a concoction of psychology and science. The levels of these two subjects are both shrouded in mystery, and I would rather explore the depths of the unknown through higher levels of consciousness than anything else.
-Mitch
Mitch,
ReplyDeleteYou've made a very good point when you were talking about the meditation and theta waves making you more relaxed. One thing you really have to make sure is that you don't fall asleep during these experiments. I also think it's all about practice. I think the first few times you try it, it's a little odd because you don't know what to expect for one thing and I also think it's going to take practice in order for us to condition our brains to receive information in that state.
The mediation I used for this post, I just started using about a month ago. I have noticed a significant difference between that video and ones I have tried in the past. Instead of using mantras or visualizing something in particular, it asks you to just focus on your breathing. I have had the most luck with that.
I can definitely relate to kind of disengaging from a normal mind set in a way and just observing. There is so much to learn just from looking at the world around us from a third person perspective. That started for me when I woke up one morning and almost suddenly
realized everyone is running around on a hamster wheel, not really making any progress or growing from life experiences. And I decided I wanted to get off the wheel. I expect it's different for everyone though...and you are exactly right, the mind is an unfathomably powerful tool. I can't even begin to image what we are actually capable of.
I'm sure exploring both of those subjects in particular at a higher state of consciousness would result in many enlightening revelations.
I look forward to talking more.
-Ashlee