Religious/spiritual experiences. Tell me about them.

2456

Comments

  • baraka
    baraka Posts: 1,268
    Jeanie wrote:
    Hi baraka. :)

    I had a look at your link, but it just sent me off to a whole bunch of different videos, what is the name of the one you are referring too please?

    It sounds really interesting, and I'd really like to see it. :)


    Hi Jeanie!

    Sorry about this. Try this one

    http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=9122930135704146433
    The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance,
    but the illusion of knowledge.
    ~Daniel Boorstin

    Only a life lived for others is worth living.
    ~Albert Einstein
  • soulsinging
    soulsinging Posts: 13,202
    Jeanie wrote:
    That's a shame ss.
    But I do understand completely what you are saying and respect your decision. :)

    I guess I'm at the point where I don't care so much about the sarcastic and arrogant cynicism anymore. I figure if you are the kind of person that has to be that way toward others on a message board then you can't really have much to look forward to in life, and probably should be ignored or pitied anyway.

    i just really do not want to end up in another nonsensical debate with ahnimus about how what i experienced was just *insert wikipedia based scientific phenomena here*
  • catefrances
    catefrances Posts: 29,003
    Jeanie wrote:
    wow cate! so how do you view the whole episode now?

    now, i just accept it for what it was. for the longest time i tried to deny what i saw and what i felt. but i couldn't stop thinking about it. people dont think of me as a flighty person so when i tell them about my wraith they are rather taken aback. not so much that it happened, but that it happened to me.
    hear my name
    take a good look
    this could be the day
    hold my hand
    lie beside me
    i just need to say
  • harmless_little_f***
    harmless_little_f*** Posts: 8,005
    Jeanie wrote:
    That's a shame ss.
    But I do understand completely what you are saying and respect your decision. :)

    I guess I'm at the point where I don't care so much about the sarcastic and arrogant cynicism anymore. I figure if you are the kind of person that has to be that way toward others on a message board then you can't really have much to look forward to in life, and probably should be ignored or pitied anyway.

    Agree completely. I'm interested in writing a response to this thread, but I'm just thinking about how to put it all across. Watch this space...
    'We're learning songs for baby Jesus' birthday. His mum and dad were Merry and Joseph. He had a bed made of clay and the three kings bought him Gold, Frankenstein and Merv as presents.'

    - the great Sir Leo Harrison
  • Jeanie
    Jeanie Posts: 9,446
    baraka wrote:
    Hi Jeanie!

    Sorry about this. Try this one

    http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=9122930135704146433


    WOW baraka!! This is soooo interesting!!!!

    I'm about half way through, and will be back to post when I've finished, but gee it's interesting. :)

    I'M SOOOOOOOO GLAD I"VE GOT BROADBAND FINALLY!!!! :D
    NOPE!!!

    *~You're IT Bert!~*

    Hold on to the thread
    The currents will shift
  • Jeanie
    Jeanie Posts: 9,446
    soulsinging wrote:
    i just really do not want to end up in another nonsensical debate with ahnimus about how what i experienced was just *insert wikipedia based scientific phenomena here*

    Yes, I completely understand ss. :)

    I'm quite sure that whatever you experienced was a profound and emotional experience for you that quite possibly made amazing change in your life.
    And I completely understand why you would want to keep that from being dissected clinically and potentially null and voided and why you would prefer not to have to "defend" it or argue whether or not you even experienced what you think you did.
    NOPE!!!

    *~You're IT Bert!~*

    Hold on to the thread
    The currents will shift
  • Collin
    Collin Posts: 4,931
    I agree with Ahnimus, I don't call my experiences spiritual. It's simple things that usually do it, things that make me realise how utterly insignificant I am. Seeing a plane in the air, a severe thunderstorm, a flood... when I realise I have no control... Anything can create these feelings, but I have to be in the right mood. Drugs often help. Just watching how everything around me changes, clouds, birds that quiet down when it becomes darker, the gradual change from light to darkness, the wind... It makes me realise how small and insignificant I truly am, and I like that feeling. I'd say there's a lack of anything spiritual and the experience rises out of total emptiness... I can't really explain.
    THANK YOU, LOSTDAWG!


    naděje umírá poslední
  • Jeanie
    Jeanie Posts: 9,446
    catefrances wrote:
    now, i just accept it for what it was. for the longest time i tried to deny what i saw and what i felt. but i couldn't stop thinking about it. people dont think of me as a flighty person so when i tell them about my wraith they are rather taken aback. not so much that it happened, but that it happened to me.

    yes cate, it was a very similar experience for me too.

    I really struggled to even speak out loud what had happened to me because I was busy with my denial, and because I was surrounded by people that I was unaware had expectations of who I was, until I did try to put into words my experience. But like you I think, I have found that it is much better to accept the experience even if we can't explain it.
    NOPE!!!

    *~You're IT Bert!~*

    Hold on to the thread
    The currents will shift
  • Jeanie
    Jeanie Posts: 9,446
    harmless_little_f*** wrote:
    Agree completely. I'm interested in writing a response to this thread, but I'm just thinking about how to put it all across. Watch this space...

    I'll be watching harmless. :)

    And don't worry so much about how to put it across, I'm sure those of us that do understand will support you and ask questions if we aren't sure what you mean, just as I would hope people would question me if they didn't understand.
    :)
    NOPE!!!

    *~You're IT Bert!~*

    Hold on to the thread
    The currents will shift
  • baraka
    baraka Posts: 1,268
    Jeanie wrote:
    WOW baraka!! This is soooo interesting!!!!

    I'm about half way through, and will be back to post when I've finished, but gee it's interesting. :)

    I'M SOOOOOOOO GLAD I"VE GOT BROADBAND FINALLY!!!! :D

    This thread has me 'reading up' on some unexplained phenomena.

    Here is an interesting article on near death experiences. It seems like the more research that is done, the more strange the findings seem. Some researchers have even concluded that an explanation should be sought in the 'trancendence of consciousness' idea, because other 'mundane' explanations no longer seem sufficient to explain them.

    http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/06/28/tech/main298885.shtml


    There are a couple of interesting articles on meditation:

    http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/101/46/16369
    http://www.biologynews.net/archives/2005/06/06/meditation_skills_of_buddhist_monks_yield_clues_to_brains_regulation_of_attention.html
    The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance,
    but the illusion of knowledge.
    ~Daniel Boorstin

    Only a life lived for others is worth living.
    ~Albert Einstein
  • Jeanie
    Jeanie Posts: 9,446
    baraka wrote:
    This thread has me 'reading up' on some unexplained phenomena.

    Here is an interesting article on near death experiences. It seems like the more research that is done, the more strange the findings seem. Some researchers have even concluded that an explanation should be sought in the 'trancendence of consciousness' idea, because other 'mundane' explanations no longer seem sufficient to explain them.

    http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/06/28/tech/main298885.shtml


    There are a couple of interesting articles on meditation:

    http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/101/46/16369
    http://www.biologynews.net/archives/2005/06/06/meditation_skills_of_buddhist_monks_yield_clues_to_brains_regulation_of_attention.html

    thanks baraka. :)
    I've finished watching Dr Newberg and I've read the first article you posted here. I attempted to read the first one on meditation but I gotta stop now, coz I think I've got brain overload!! :)
    I'll have another go at it tomorrow.

    It's all very interesting though.

    I'd particularly like to get my hands on a copy of Why God Won't Go Away.
    Sounds very interesting.
    I'm really looking forward to scientists doing more studies in this area and eventually coming to a more inclusive consensus.
    I liked what Dr Newberg said about the intensity of the experience being more vivid than the usual experience. I've found I really identified with that.
    As though time has slowed down and everything is etched more firmly in my brain.
    NOPE!!!

    *~You're IT Bert!~*

    Hold on to the thread
    The currents will shift
  • Ms. Haiku
    Ms. Haiku Washington DC Posts: 7,371
    Post #11

    http://forums.pearljam.com/showthread.php?t=198207&highlight=surgery
    There is no such thing as leftover pizza. There is now pizza and later pizza. - anonymous
    The risk I took was calculated, but man, am I bad at math - The Mincing Mockingbird
  • Rats of Multa
    Rats of Multa Posts: 250
    i woke up again this morning.

    :D
    we don’t know just where our bones will rest,
    to dust i guess,
    forgotten and absorbed into the earth below,..
  • Jeanie
    Jeanie Posts: 9,446
    Ms. Haiku wrote:
    Post #11

    http://forums.pearljam.com/showthread.php?t=198207&highlight=surgery

    Wow! That's quite the experience Ms H.
    Isn't it interesting how we try so hard to explain these things in our minds?
    I can't really be sure, if I haven't filtered my experiences over the years, each time I've gone over them. I'm sure I probably have actually. But something happened. That's for sure. Same as something happened to you.
    It's interesting how your grandfather came, and helped because you were scared of your father. That's a really cool story. Thanks for sharing. :)

    PS: I got you a card. Finally!!! And I promise to write tomorrow. Sorry that I'm soo slow. :o
    NOPE!!!

    *~You're IT Bert!~*

    Hold on to the thread
    The currents will shift
  • deadnothingbetter
    deadnothingbetter Posts: 2,202
    OutOfBreath wrote:
    After debating a lot about spirituality and transcendental experiences in the last week, I now wanna hear from some of you about how you experience these things. Whether you are christian, pagan, muslim or whatever is not the point. I want to get at the core of these experiences. This could be interesting for all. I promise my motive is not to slam anyone or use it against them in any way, I am just curious really.

    The times I have had experiences approximating what I think a religious experience must be like, it is usually just a great sense of connectedness between everything and myself, coupled with a sense of awe of the complexity of my surroundings. I also frequently get these flashes when listening to music, and some artists/songs in particular, coupled with intense emotions.

    I dont have the expertise on these things, and I dont think I experience in full what some of you others may have experienced.

    I want this thread to be open, and available to all to relate their experiences, compare to others and discuss them. I do fervently hope it doesn't become a slam-fest between those who have experienced something, and others believing them to be crazy. Some openminded debate and a collection of experiences. That's what I hope for.

    Peace
    Dan
    The singing girl


    A young girl lives alone. Walks through the city almost every night. She's a stranger to most. In the midnight weekends she shuts the world away and sings. Her song is like a mystery. Undescribable. Beautiful. Haunting. Hypnotic. She counts her blessings in them. She washes her sins away with them. Her songs are her salvation.

    One night, as she walked alone through the city a man followed her to her home. She didn't notice. Completely oblivious to how her life would change in any moment. She walked into her home and her follower watched behind at a distance as she walked in. Her heart was sinking. For what her days had held for her simply weighed her to the point of breaking. But she didn't know that what would happen would be greater than those of her folly days.

    The man approaches her apartment as soon as she closes the door behind her. She walkes into her bathroom. Disrobed. Crying. Shaken. Scared. But why, I could never know. The man watches through the window. Desperate. Vile. Untethered. He breaks in without a sound. Slowly walks behind her as she stands naked in front of her shower. Her thoughts consumed her deeply of regret and sorrow. As she is standing there, the man is behind breathing softly and patiently prepares to break every part of her innocence. Simultaneously, her feelings stream through her spine and down to her feet. The man slowly raises his hands towards her neck as she begins to sing. The song flowed through her throat in such a gifted way. She sang and sang with all of her being as she uttered these words:

    Longer are the lonely nights that raise our head up high

    Than those of the days that consume us of fear

    It's alright, It's alright

    Frozen and confused, the man stood astounded. He thought she had noticed him, but she did not turn. Her song just kept on playing. His feelings crept somewhere inside of him he didn't know existed. His vile desires had passed away, as he surrendered to a force that had saved this girl all her life.
    This isn't the land of opportunity, it's the land of competition.
  • deadnothingbetter
    deadnothingbetter Posts: 2,202
    hey i wished all these threads were like these... thanks Dan.

    as for my spritual experiences, they are very personal to me. i'm sure it's the same to those who believe they've had spiritual experiences. whenever i tell people about it they look at me like i'm nuts.

    when my father was a pastor we'd have these experiences everytime in our church services. i mean the situations there were not like what you see on tv or how borat portrayed the pentecostal church service which i thought was hilarious. every wednesday nights we would gather at about 70 or 80 in a crowded little house and pray with the lights out. at first it was very unnerving and many questioned my dad why he would turn out the lights. many thought he was doing something that was innappropriate to the christian faith. but my father would simply say, "if you need to go home or have any other reason for not being here then you are free to do as you please." so gradually people were accepting and willing to stay. the first couple of months were very vague and boring. nothng but silence. i was about 14 and i myself would question why my dad would do such things. but then later someone would begin crying... except we didn't know who it was because the lights were out. so we'd just assume that the person was going through some tough times so he/she needed to pour their heart out to God or something. but later that wasn't entirely true cause gradually one after the other there would be what i can barely describe as a sweet weeping. it was a cry, but a beautiful cry. i don't know why or how but it was beautiful. even the children in the rooms that were being cared for would begin to weep with such profound sweet sorrow... it wasn't speaking in tognues... it was like what most would describe an epiphany, an ecstasy of some kind that everyone was experiencing. but literally everyone that was there... not a single soul would sit idle. even one person who was struggling with drug addictions and was involved with a gang lifestyle who didn't want anything to do with church, one day while we were all there weeping for reasons unknown to us approached my dad and kneeled next to him and started crying. and i remember clearly, everyone heard him say, "i don't know why. i never liked church but what i am feeling today is the greatest feeling i've ever had." this wasn't programmed by anyone or anything. it just flowed spontaneously. something that i wish i still were experiencing. i'm sure if anyone felt it... they would describe it as a knot on their chest, like a heavy feeling that almost rivals the feeling you get when you are madly in love or infatuated by someone.
    This isn't the land of opportunity, it's the land of competition.
  • ajedigecko
    ajedigecko \m/deplorable af \m/ Posts: 2,431
    deadnothingbetter wrote:
    hey i wished all these threads were like these... thanks Dan.

    as for my spritual experiences, they are very personal to me. i'm sure it's the same to those who believe they've had spiritual experiences. whenever i tell people about it they look at me like i'm nuts.

    when my father was a pastor we'd have these experiences everytime in our church services. i mean the situations there were not like what you see on tv or how borat portrayed the pentecostal church service which i thought was hilarious. every wednesday nights we would gather at about 70 or 80 in a crowded little house and pray with the lights out. at first it was very unnerving and many questioned my dad why he would turn out the lights. many thought he was doing something that was innappropriate to the christian faith. but my father would simply say, "if you need to go home or have any other reason for not being here then you are free to do as you please." so gradually people were accepting and willing to stay. the first couple of months were very vague and boring. nothng but silence. i was about 14 and i myself would question why my dad would do such things. but then later someone would begin crying... except we didn't know who it was because the lights were out. so we'd just assume that the person was going through some tough times so he/she needed to pour their heart out to God or something. but later that wasn't entirely true cause gradually one after the other there would be what i can barely describe as a sweet weeping. it was a cry, but a beautiful cry. i don't know why or how but it was beautiful. even the children in the rooms that were being cared for would begin to weep with such profound sweet sorrow... it wasn't speaking in tognues... it was like what most would describe an epiphany, an ecstasy of some kind that everyone was experiencing. but literally everyone that was there... not a single soul would sit idle. even one person who was struggling with drug addictions and was involved with a gang lifestyle who didn't want anything to do with church, one day while we were all there weeping for reasons unknown to us approached my dad and kneeled next to him and started crying. and i remember clearly, everyone heard him say, "i don't know why. i never liked church but what i am feeling today is the greatest feeling i've ever had." this wasn't programmed by anyone or anything. it just flowed spontaneously. something that i wish i still were experiencing. i'm sure if anyone felt it... they would describe it as a knot on their chest, like a heavy feeling that almost rivals the feeling you get when you are madly in love or infatuated by someone.
    thanks for sharing.
    live and let live...unless it violates the pearligious doctrine.
  • catefrances
    catefrances Posts: 29,003
    Jeanie wrote:
    yes cate, it was a very similar experience for me too.

    I really struggled to even speak out loud what had happened to me because I was busy with my denial, and because I was surrounded by people that I was unaware had expectations of who I was, until I did try to put into words my experience. But like you I think, I have found that it is much better to accept the experience even if we can't explain it.

    well it was my logical side coming out to hassle me that had me in denial. these days i manage to ignore my logical side with more success. :D
    hear my name
    take a good look
    this could be the day
    hold my hand
    lie beside me
    i just need to say
  • Ahnimus
    Ahnimus Posts: 10,560
    baraka wrote:
    This thread has me 'reading up' on some unexplained phenomena.

    Here is an interesting article on near death experiences. It seems like the more research that is done, the more strange the findings seem. Some researchers have even concluded that an explanation should be sought in the 'trancendence of consciousness' idea, because other 'mundane' explanations no longer seem sufficient to explain them.

    http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/06/28/tech/main298885.shtml


    There are a couple of interesting articles on meditation:

    http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/101/46/16369
    http://www.biologynews.net/archives/2005/06/06/meditation_skills_of_buddhist_monks_yield_clues_to_brains_regulation_of_attention.html


    My problem with that is that it doesn't explain anything by any reasoning. For example if we say that consciousness transcends space and time after death, we are only speculating and there is no way of proving that. The only thing I see in that argument is ending debate. Like we could just say everything is determined by God and never investigate. When I look at the experiments that have been done on consciousness I don't see any evidence of transcendence. Even in Zen Meditation it shows a coherence of brain activity and specific wave patterns, but it doesn't show us any evidence of metaphysical phenomena. Stuart Hameroff argues for quantum indeterminacy in the microtubules and this quantum consciousness transcends the body after death. That sounds reasonable, but reasonable isn't enough. It's reasonable that people's experience of events is obscure. We need observable things, some way of guessing that isn't total speculation. What I've seen in research is that you can easily lose consciousness all together. That is observable every night we go to sleep. If consciousness in an alive state is entirely dependent on the brain, how can it transcend after death? See I think there is more evidence against a theory of transcendence than there is for it. Personal experience is great, especially if the individual is trained. Apparently Buddhist Monks achieve greater concentration and awareness of observation, I'd be for making them into scientists. But as a scientist, you do know that modern science has operational control mechanisms that prevent observer bias. I believe this is the reason that theories of transcendence haven't become popular.
    I necessarily have the passion for writing this, and you have the passion for condemning me; both of us are equally fools, equally the toys of destiny. Your nature is to do harm, mine is to love truth, and to make it public in spite of you. - Voltaire
  • Ahnimus
    Ahnimus Posts: 10,560
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eenmBDU_k3o
    I necessarily have the passion for writing this, and you have the passion for condemning me; both of us are equally fools, equally the toys of destiny. Your nature is to do harm, mine is to love truth, and to make it public in spite of you. - Voltaire

Categories