The Bible and Meditation Techniques

When understood from the perspective of its original Northeast Afrikan and Afrikan-influenced languages of Hebrew, Aramaic and koine Greek, the bible a powerful, foundational text for both theological reflection and mystical experiences.  With the bible as its foundation, theology (Greek, theos + logos = god-talk) is the study of how the Creator of the universe interacts with creation.  It assumes that there is a dynamic relationship between the two that began with the process of creation continues into the present and will flow into eternity.  Although there many different interpretations of this motif, the basic understanding of this pattern has been maintained for centuries in various religious and spiritual traditions.  Mysticism (Greek, mysterion, Latin, mysterium = secret) is the experience of the numinous encounter with the no-thing that undergirds and sustains all-things, seen and unseen.  Mystical powerful is innate.  At the same time, it can be cultivated through specific techniques and disciplines.

As a teacher, I approach both theology and mysticism as organic and dynamic fields of research and exploration into multidimensional health.  For me, this entails understanding and experiencing the transformative powers that become available through cultivating balance between the energies of the breath, body, mind and spirit.  The breath is the primary energy that transports the life force throughout the temple of the human body.  As the temple of the breath, the body is constituted as the foundation for all the physical and mental activities.  A strong mind stems from a healthy body. And the transcendental mind soars into the heavens.  This four-fold approach to theological mysticism and multidimensional illumination may be further described in the following manner.

Body and Breath: The point of departure for all spiritual work in this approach is on the power of the body as a condensed form of intelligence that is in the image of the creative powers of the universe.  Focusing on the intelligence of the physical body as the temple of spirit of the creative powers will engender a stronger connection to its capacities to create and heal, as well as sustain, the mundane functions associated with it.  It is the kingdom through which all spiritual work is fulfilled.  Likewise, the breath is the divine way in which the connection between the physical and spiritual dimensions is manifested.  Giving special attention to rhythmic breathing will enhance the powers of both the body and the mind.  This consciousness also extends the powers of both.  Profound breathing is the link between this world and the non-physical one.

Sound and Symbol: The voice and the production of sounds from deep within the body is the most immediate and effective passageway into altered states of consciousness.   When you learn how to intone from deep within your body you will feel the effect through it and the immediate environment in which you are meditating.  This has a special impact upon your body all the way down to the cellular and atomic dimensions.  Correspondingly, symbols help the superconscious, conscious and subconscious mind (the singularity of this noun is intentional) to focus on one-pointedness as it returns to the source of creativity.  Symbols are holy writings that become a portal, through vision, into the realms beyond the physical one.  Through them we can receive insight into how the universe works (the macrocosm) and apply this knowledge in our daily lives (the microcosms).  “As above, so below;” as within so without.

Mind and Spirit:  The more advanced work moves into another dimension in the transition from body and breath to mind and spirit.  These latter two are extensions and transformations of the former ones.  While the body and breath are the foundation and link between the physical and non-physical worlds, mind and spirit permeate and expand consciousness.  Dreams and visions are enhanced through the cultivation and application of techniques that are grounded in the body and breath.  These techniques are also built upon the specific meditations associated with sound and symbol.  Both intonation and visualization techniques are amplified through more intensive meditation strategies that explore the powers of the mind and spirit.

Symbol and Number: In more advanced visualization techniques the mind is infused with images that are consciously constructed through intensive internal listening to repeated and amplified sounds.  Interpretive reading of the Hebrew and/or transliteral English of key passages from the Hebrew and Greek text can enhance expansion of consciousness.  Just as the prophets, prophetesses and seers utilized powerful meditation techniques to induce altered states of consciousness, so too we can build upon the foundation of basic meditation techniques in order to enter the higher and deeper realms of consciousness and retrieve information that can enhance both our lives and others.  In the final analysis, true prophetic consciousness is a communal asset.  In other words, it should be developed to benefit a specific community and humanity in general.

Will Coleman, Ph.D.

© 2007 Coleman-Taylor Heritage, LLC