What Makes Our Experiences Real?

What Makes Our Experiences Real? April 18, 2018

A friend asked me a question the other day about whether or not our spiritual experiences should be considered “real” if we know that those experiences were induced by low blow sugar or sleep paralysis, for example.

It’s a great question. In fact, as I was watching the Netflix mini-series “Wild Wild Country”, I had a very similar conversation with my wife about the spiritual experiences induced by the meditative techniques of the Rajneesh cult.

The cult leader, Bhagwan, had new disciples to his cult undergo an initiation of sorts in which they had to spend 3 minutes breathing in and out as rapidly as possible [to induce hyperventilation and starve oxygen to their brains], then they would jump up and down for 3 minutes and shout “Woo!” every time their feet hit the ground [to induce euphoria], and then they would spend 3 minutes acting out every random impulse that came to their minds, like screaming, shouting, dancing, rolling on the floor, etc. [to overstimulate their brain activity], and then finally he had them stop and sit silently for 3 minutes [to allow their brains to process all of these experiences]. Invariably, everyone who underwent this process ended up crying, hearing God’s voice, seeing a vision, or simply felt overcome with an overwhelming sense of peace that they had never felt before.

Once people had this profound spiritual experience, they became convinced that their spiritual guru had great powers of enlightenment and they also started to crave more of these kinds of experiences, which of course the cult readily offered to them.

Honestly, these steps outlined above mirror very closely what I personally experienced as part of a Charismatic Christian worship service. We would start out with a high-energy set of songs where people would literally pogo in the front of the room and shout “Woo!” [which created both the hyperventilation effect and the euphoria effect simultaneously], then the worship songs would slow down to a more meditative vibe and we’d stand there deep in a trance with our eyes closed, swaying like trees, and then finally we’d be engulfed in a wave of silent meditation at the end where we laid on the floor or knelt on the ground with our noses in a puddle of tears and snot. That’s when we’d have a vision from God or hear a word from Jesus about something deep and profound in our own personal experience.

So, the question is: Were those experiences “real” or were they predictable physiological effects induced by a lack of oxygen to the brain, euphoric dancing and collective silence?

I believe the answer is “Yes” to both questions.

See, I believe that God is real. I also believe that we are spiritual beings having a temporary physical experience. So, it’s not unusual for us, as spiritual beings, to encounter the Divine. The fact that there are methods we can employ to facilitate those spiritual experiences does not negate the experience.

Here’s another way to look at it: Movies, music, art and poetry have the power to stimulate our emotions. We watch an emotional scene in a film and we start to cry. We hear a beautiful song and we feel our chest expand with joy. We stand in awe of a painting in a museum and we feel connected to the Universe. We hear a line of poetry and we feel as if we can discern the meaning of life, even if we can’t quite put it into words.

Do those experiences lose meaning because they were induced by music, or art? Hardly. If anything, the power of music and art to jump-start our emotions and remind us of our deeper identity as human beings is precisely why we value them so much. Spiritual experiences are no different.

Certainly, we can take a cynical posture – and many do – and conclude that our spiritual experiences are merely the result of chemical changes in our bloodstream. For some, the existence of God or any spiritual reality is predefined as a fantasy. In those cases, there is no scientific explanation that could possibly convince them that there is a spiritual reality to be experienced, or a Divine being to be known.

This blog post won’t change their minds.

But for some of us, the spiritual reality is possible and the Divine presence is an ongoing experience that we treasure and affirm.

The bottom line is: The opposite of Faith is not Doubt, it’s Certainty. Those who believe are not discouraged by doubts. We embrace mystery. In fact, we take great comfort in mystery. What we need isn’t certainty. What we really need is a greater connection with the Divine Mystery that we call “God”, or “Christ.”

So, those Rajneesh cultists were inducing an experience that, I would say, was – and is – real. Those people really were hacking their brains to facilitate an actual spiritual connection with God. The problem is – and the danger for all of us – is how we define those experiences and what power we allow others to have over us as the result of those experiences.

I see no problem with anyone having a spiritual experience, in any context. But I do see a problem whenever we surrender our hearts and minds to other people like ourselves rather than to the Divine Presence we are experiencing.

For me, the question is not: “Is this experience real?”, it’s “Is this experience being used by others to manipulate me?”

Jesus said he came to give us an abundant life and that following him would set us free. Those who seek to have power over us are not truly in connection with Christ. His yoke is easy and his burden is light.

We can draw near to Him, and if we do, then His promise is to draw near to us.

There’s no need for any other mediator between us and God.

What do you think?

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Keith Giles is the author of several books, including “Jesus Untangled: Crucifying Our Politics To Pledge Allegiance To The Lamb”. He is also the co-host of the Heretic Happy Hour Podcast on iTunes and Podbean. He and his wife live in Orange, CA with their two sons.

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