by Brian Robinson
Upon arriving in Rishikesh I was struck by the number of swamis or renunciants wandering the streets and the ashrams. Rishikesh is considered a holy city as it is mostly made up of ashrams. The Ganges, a holy river that originates high up in the Himalayas and is the source of numerous myths, runs swiftly through this little city, spiritually purifying many who would dare enter its severely polluted waters.
People come to Rishikesh in search for the elusive goal of enlightenment and I was no exception. Having been on different paths for a couple of years I was still naïve and impressionable wandering around in the dark in search of light I had heard would lead to a permanent state of bliss and transcendence.
I felt awake in a way that was beyond mental alertness and encapsulated a mysterious depth that goes largely unnoticed by the masses.
I wasn’t to find this enlightenment but was to get a taste of something immaculate and transcendent that has made an impression on my soul and strengthened my search.
It was a break time between a yoga class and satsang and I was sitting on a stone wall looking out at the beauty of the mountains in the distance and the colourful ashrams across the Ganges. A man sat beside me on the ledge. I was not expecting anything from our conversation and was even feeling a little bothered by someone sitting so close as I was interested in preserving my personal egoic space. After some small talk, the man informed me that he used to hold satsangs there but then moved on to something else. He said that he was teaching Raja yoga and I asked him what ‘raja’ meant hoping for a very brief answer.
Instead he seemed to well up with passionate interest and motioning at our view and beyond stated, “there must be some Mind that contains all of this.” It wasn’t so much of what he said but the transmission of what was in the words that impacted me. As he spoke, I felt my consciousness open up and embrace my surroundings, leaving my old, unattractive, contracted ego-state behind. Bliss welled up in my face and I think he noticed. It was a mutual recognition of a higher Truth generally transmitted by a guru to a student in satsang. I was ecstatic and full of energy. I felt awake in a way that was beyond mental alertness and encapsulated a mysterious depth that goes largely unnoticed by the masses.
My perception of everything changed. I experienced an indescribable unity that just seemed to be present. It didn’t seem within or without but just present. It was a radical shift in consciousness in which my experience of self was totally different. I felt as if my consciousness contained the trees, the mountains and the sky. Looking into another human being’s eyes was like a lucid reflection of this higher consciousness and I was sure that the Mind that the man spoke about, was real.
This experience must have lasted about seven days because when I returned to the cement-like surroundings of Toronto the experience was still there for another five days or so. I was a little disappointed to experience this state dissipate. I don’t lament this experience anymore because a part of it remains with me and I’ve learned not to be attached to passing states. I now believe that these experiences are important as glimpses into what is possible if we remain true to the path. The experience in Rishikesh has motivated me to become much more dedicated to the transformation of consciousness on this planet in these most dangerous times.
Brian Robinson has graduated from McMaster University, Ontario, Canada. His keen interest in spirituality has taken him to the jungles of Peru among Native shamans and also to the Northern Himalayas in India. He currently lives in Toronto continuing search for his heart’s desire.
