Is Meditation Satanic?

I was always fascinated about the concept of a literal, collective consciousness and that we are part of it. Some call it the truth, some call it the grand scheme of things, some call it the universe, and some call it God. There is a little voice in each of us that tells us to tune ourselves with this collective consciousness, and by doing that, we gain a sense of unity with nature.

One of the methods to connect to this vast network of energy is through meditation. Through meditation, one can acquire a higher level of consciousness by opening one’s self to the energies of the universe.

One day, I suddenly got this urge to try it, with the selfish intent of improving my spirituality and connection with nature. This post is not about my personal experience about meditation, so let me just delve into it briefly. In the first few minutes of meditating, my mind was much clustered with random thoughts. However, the number of thoughts decreased in time, and my body felt weightless. It all climaxed with an incredible surge of energy that felt like a strong wind. This sensation distracted me, putting me away from the meditative state. It felt very good yet eerie at the same time, like a drug. It was as if my conscience was telling me that this sensation was merely a false sense of spirituality, and that it was something I should not be involved.

When I opened my eyes, I felt very refreshed. However, the eerie sensation I felt in the meditative state bothered me. That was the point when I decided that I had to understand meditation further.

I read many materials about meditation in general, not just in Breath Meditation, the kind of meditation I have practiced. I learned many things, some of which were pretty disturbing, at least for me. However, what really captured my attention were the “third eye” and the “kundalini,” powers that a meditation practitioner could awaken.

The third eye refers to the brow chakra, one of the chakra points in the body where the energy mainly flows. Through Third Eye Meditation, one can open his or her third eye. Those with open third eyes gain sight beyond the physical world. They could see spiritual beings from different dimensions and worlds, auras and other energies, and many more. In the writings that I have read, it appears that they have these powers even when they are not in the meditative state.

The kundalini, also known as the “serpent power,” is a sleeping force in the root chakra, located in the base of the spine in the tailbone area. It is the energy of the Self, wherein the Self is the universal consciousness. The awakening of kundalini should be slow, since it is the time when one’s mental and physical structure is changing, to get ready for a more spiritual energy. A rapid kundalini awakening can cause frightening visions, including snakes and conversations about snakes, and physical discomfort due to the rapid rise of energy levels that could not be contained by the unprepared body.

What I find disturbing is the connection of the third eye, the kundalini and meditation in general, to Hinduism. At plain sight, this is not surprising, since meditation has its roots from Hinduism. However, I think that this is part of a bigger picture.

Hinduism is basically about achieving Moksha, the liberation from the endless cycle of death and rebirth. One can achieve Moksha by letting go of Avidya, the ignorance about the nature of Being, which is the cause of suffering. Hindus believe that God is everything and everything is God. Once one has finally found his or her true essence, he or she will be united with the central being of God, the “Brahma.” This ideology is similar to the new age concept of meditation, that everything is energy and we are part of that energy, that we are spiritual beings with great potential to be “Gods” ourselves if we learn how to connect with the universal energy. As I mentioned earlier, this is not surprising. Not until we compare it to Christian beliefs.

It is important to note that the “Serpent” has always been a prominent symbol in both Christianity and Hinduism. However, these two religions have opposing views toward the snake. Christians see the snake as a being associated with the devil. Hindus, however, and not to mention Egyptians and other peoples, see the snake as a being with high status, totally opposite to the Christian belief.

        And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:

        For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your

        eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good

        and evil.

That is a passage from the book of Genesis, wherein the serpent is enticing Eve to open her eyes and be God. It is strangely similar to Hinduism and new age meditation beliefs. Is it possible that the Hindus are actually embracing the ideologies of the biblical serpent? Is the biblical serpent the kundalini, and is it referring to the third eye in this passage? I do not have the right to say so, nor do I have any right to bash any religion.

It all boils down to the fact that I am still suspicious to the good yet eerie sensation I felt during meditation. According to websites concerning meditation, since the discipline is about opening one’s self to the energies of the universe, he or she is also prone to negative energies; and the only way to channel positive energies exclusively is by good intention. If this is true, why are there meditation practitioners who do have good intentions, still have frightening experiences, like feeling eerie presences and seeing demonic beings?

As of now, I am not sure if I should continue meditation to find out the answers myself. The only thing I am sure of is my determination to keep an eye on meditation, since it is a trend that is rapidly spreading.

Do you think that my mere lack of experience in meditation is the cause of the eerie sensation? Do you think that I am over thinking things? What are your views towards this subject?