Is it Real?
Evaluating Spiritual Experiences
Evaluating Spiritual Experiences: Real or False?
The spiritual journey is a deeply personal path, often marked by unique and transformative experiences. Many practitioners report phenomena such as visions, sensations, or states of ecstasy, which they associate with spiritual awakening. These occurrences can be exhilarating, but it’s important to approach them with discernment. Are these genuine spiritual milestones, or are they mental projections, physiological reactions, or even hallucinations?
This question is particularly relevant to some experiences, such as:
- Perceiving intense lights at the center of the eyebrows or crown chakra during Sadhana
- Experiencing spontaneous physical movements or sounds (e.g., body rocking, involuntary shaking, or making unusual sounds)
…are described in scriptures or observed in advanced practitioners. However, they can also arise due to heightened emotional states, physical imbalances, or overactive imagination. While such experiences might mark the beginning of the spiritual journey, they are not definitive indicators of progress.
The Need for Discernment in Spiritual Experiences
True spiritual experiences are not merely transient phenomena but lead to a shift in consciousness. They transform the individual at a deeper level, fostering qualities such as peace, selflessness, love, and inner clarity.
To distinguish genuine spiritual experiences from hallucinations or mental projections, use introspection and self-assessment. Below is a framework for evaluating your inner state.
10 Questions to Evaluate Your Spiritual Experiences
- Am I equipoised under all circumstances?
Do I remain calm and centred, unaffected by external ups and downs? True spiritual growth brings balance in joy and sorrow, success and failure. - Do I experience joy without reason?
Is my happiness intrinsic, no longer tied to possessions, relationships, or achievements? Inner joy is a hallmark of spiritual maturity. - Do I see divinity everywhere?
Can I perceive the divine presence in people, nature, and even challenging situations? This universal vision reflects a deeper connection with the Self. - Do I love all creatures as reflections of God?
Is my love unconditional and non-judgmental, extending beyond my preferences or biases? This is the essence of universal compassion. - Have I stopped noticing faults in others, but can identify and correct my own flaws?
Spiritual growth shifts focus from judging others to self-improvement. Am I mindful of my actions and thoughts while forgiving others? - Do praise and criticism not affect me?
Have I transcended the need for validation or fear of disapproval? Equanimity in the face of both praise and blame is a sign of inner freedom. - Am I comfortable giving and receiving love?
Is my heart open to expressing and accepting love without fear or expectations? Love becomes natural when the ego dissolves. - Do I refrain from speaking ill of others or gossiping?
Is my speech pure, uplifting, and aligned with truth? Gossip and criticism stem from ego; spiritual growth fosters words of wisdom and kindness. - Do I feel God or my Sadguru’s presence within and without?
Is there a constant awareness of divine grace, whether through meditation or daily life? This sense of presence is a sign of deep connection. - Have I let go of past baggage, desires, and unfulfilled wants?
Am I free from regrets, grievances, and attachments to material cravings? Letting go allows the mind to dwell in the present moment, where divinity resides.
Guidelines for Evaluation
- If you can answer “Yes” to all ten questions, your experiences likely reflect genuine spiritual progress.
- If several answers are “No,” it may indicate areas where the mind is still entangled in ego, desires, or attachments. In such cases, the experiences could be fleeting sensations or projections of the mind rather than true spiritual realizations.
How to Deepen Discernment
Spiritual growth is a journey of progressive inner transformation. Use these guidelines not as rigid standards but as tools for honest self-reflection. Here are some ways to cultivate deeper discernment:
- Stay Grounded in Daily Practice:
Maintain regular Sadhana (meditation, prayer, or yoga) to stabilize your mind and emotions. - Seek Guidance from a Sadguru or Scriptures:
The wisdom of enlightened beings and sacred texts can illuminate the true nature of spiritual experiences. - Develop Viveka (Discrimination):
Learn to differentiate between sensory, emotional, and spiritual experiences. Spiritual insights bring lasting peace and clarity, while mental projections often create excitement or confusion. - Surrender to Divine Will:
Trust the process and let go of the need to analyze or label your experiences. True spirituality unfolds naturally when the ego subsides. - Focus on Inner Transformation:
Rather than seeking extraordinary experiences, prioritize the cultivation of virtues like humility, patience, and love.
Final Reflection
The litmus test of spiritual experiences lies in their effect on your inner state and behaviour. Do they lead to deeper peace, unconditional love, and freedom from ego? Spirituality is not about fleeting visions or phenomena but about a permanent shift in awareness.
As the Bhagavad Gita (2:55) teaches:
A person of steady wisdom is one who is content within, undisturbed by external influences, and free from desires.
Approach your journey with humility and perseverance, and let your life become the true testimony of spiritual awakening.
There are 4 comments on this post
As a young man when I was living in London, I was a devotee of Baba Muktananda. During many years of practice of Siddha Yoga, I had many experiences of kundalini awakening including feeling my body taken over by Bade Baba and falling into ecstasy while crawling around the floor and growling. In 1981 I spent 3 months in Gurudev Siddha Peeth in Ganeshpuri.. When I arrived there was about 30 people staying there, but after a few weeks the guru returned and that number increased to 350.
I was a serious Siddha yoga practitioner and experienced a number of kundalini experiences (blisses, states of expansion, visions) and surrendered joyfully to the non-stop demand to practice chanting, meditation, work, and study. I was rising at 4.30 in the morning and meditating a number of times a day, chanting for five hours a day, working as demanded and studying sacred spiritual literature.
My meditation practiced changed from mentally repeating "Om Namah Shivaya" to "So Ham" while noticing my breathing, to simply allowing all movements in awareness and external phenomena to be exactly as they were.
After a few months, one beautiful evening while looking at the pink-tinged skies, in an instant it was obvious that there was only the evening. I had completely lost a sense of duality; no myself and a separate environment. Only one event.
There was a sense of great relief, great expansion and a subtle bliss to this “experience of non-separation” between myself and the environment.
After a few days, I still couldn’t find a “myself” or conventional mind. I also knew I had to shortly return to the UK and function in the world.
This sense of non-separate headlessness continued. I would wake with “no head” and spend the day “headless”.
A state of subtle unease arose, how could I function in a Western environment in such an unusual state? I felt powerfully drawn to go to Bhagavan Nityananda’s samadhi shrine in the nearby tiny village.
I went there one afternoon. There was no-one in the temple and trusting Bhagavan Nityananda completely, I threw my body in full prostration on the floor and surrendered.
At that moment, the full, deep and overwhelming force of eternal divine love-bliss swept me away completely.
It felt obvious that this love-bliss is the real nature of every moment of existence. No time. No space. No form. It is eternal, because all sense of time had disappeared and formless because no sense of a boundary occurs..
When I left the temple, a young Indian boy ran up to me and gave me a small photo of Bhagavan Nityananda with his hands raised in front of his face. The photo was in a shiny cheap metal frame.
I presumed the boy wanted money. He said, “No, no money! Bhagavan wants you to have this photo!”
I felt this was external confirmation of what had just occurred.
Bade Baba is clearly the manifestation of this Love-Bliss.
Jaya Bhagavan
Dear Chidambar,
My Namaskara to Bhagavan Nityananda. My namaskar to you.
Thank you for sharing your wonderful and divine experience of the love and grace of Bhagavan. My family has been blessed by Him for five generations, I been the fourth. I make efforts to make His Love available to all. Such feedback like yours, motivates and inspires me. Thank you very much. I look forward for your regular visits to this site and have Prasad of His Grace.
In his Prem,
At His Lotus Feet,
I remain
Gopalkrishna
Thank you Chidambar for your beautiful account, and thank you Gopal Krishna and Niranjan for having this wonderful website.
Namaste
Carlos
Thank you.