Understanding Experience of a Shift from the External to the Inward Consciousness

As the seeker begins to go inwards in his awareness, theare are innumerable new experiences that take place. He generally is not able to determine exactly what they mean. In this case, the guidance of an experienced practitioner or of a Guru can be of immense assistance. If a seeker is proceeding without a guide, or if an experience comes upon an individual more or less suddenly without conscious intention or preparation, he needs to appreciate that the exploration of inner space with bring forward many things formerly unknon and unseen previously. One of the benefits of first developing a foundation of calm, peace and equality is that the seeker can observe whatever happens without undue excitement or any rising of fear of the unknown things that begin to occur. As the seeker gains more experience he is able to recognise the progress that such experiences highlight for him.

To the extent that an individual is taken by surprise, perhaps because his life has been focused exte
ally and he was not actively seeking development along the lines of yoga in his outer ego-personality, he may be distressed or disturbed by some experience and even believe that he is losing his mind, or that he is experiencing something abnormal. He may feel like he cannot relate to the experience nor be able to discuss it with others. He may feel disoriented. If he makes others aware of what he is experiencing, he is frequently advised to go for ‘therapy’, when in fact, the psychologists and psychiatrists are not the right parties to explain these inner events and reactions. If he begins seeking real answers to the experiences he is having, he may find the guidance and support he needs, in a book, online or through a ‘chance’ meeting with someone who is able to shed light on what is taking place within him.

Sri Aurobindo observes: “The cry you heard was not in the physical heart, but in the emotional centre. The breaking of the wall meant the breaking of the obstacle or at least of some obstacle there between your inner and your outer being. Most people live in their ordinary outer ignorant personality which does not easily open to the Divine; but there is an inner being within them of which they do not know, which can easily open to the Truth and the Light. But there is a wall which divides them from it, a wall of obscurity and unconsciousness. When it breaks down, then there is a release; the feelings of calm, Ananda, joy which you had immediately afterwards were due to that release. The cry you heard was the cry of the vital part in you overcome by the suddenness of the breaking of the wall and the opening.”

Sri Aurobindo, Bases of Yoga, Chapter 3, In Difficulty, pp.53-54