Synchronicities in the Sky
Life in our magical universe
This article is an exploration of celestial synchronicities, meaning anomalies in the sky that were seemingly connected with meditative states of mind. These other worldly states of mind were generated from experiments in Tibetan Buddhism, mystical Christianity and Shamanism. While these are certainly unusual bedfellows, there is, as we shall see, a deep commonality that transcends their individual dogmas. But first I would like to mention Carl Jung.
Carl Jung (1875 – 19661) was a Swiss Psychiatrist who described synchronicities as artifacts of the human psyche. He postulated that deep movement within the mind and emotions could generate phenomena in the outer world. In other words, the ephemeral realms of consciousness could, under the right conditions, create changes in the environment that could be verified by other persons who could observe the outer phenomena even if they were unaware of the inner world of the individual who might be responsible for the synchronicity.
What follows are descriptions of three synchronicities that appeared while I was practicing various Tibetan Buddhist meditations. I will also describe an incident that occurred in a Catholic Church where I was receiving the Holy Sacrament. That experience was a mystical absorption into the Divine Feminine involving Mother Mary. I will then discuss an incident at a native Powwow I attended with a Upik shaman in Alaska and I will also explore a fascinating synchronicity involving a Spirit Singer and, of all things, a bunch of crows.
Longchenpa
Longchenpa (1308 – 1368 A.D.) was a Dzogchen master in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.
He was a highly acclaimed tantric practitioner and was a proponent of the mind’s ability to directly perceive its own inherent lucidity (i.e., enlightened mind).
This was in stark contrast to various Mahayana schools that taught progressive meditation practices which eventually led one to the equanimity of Rigpa (the inherently enlightened mind).
His approach was to push these progressive forms off the table, so to speak, in favor of the vajra mind (that which cuts through illusions) through the potent power of direct perception of one’s own inherent bodhichitta or Buddha nature.
Longchenpa wrote extensively on various topics including many references to the attainment of Rigpa via direct perception. He dictated one of his sutras, called Immaculate Light, to his disciples for the benefit of future practitioners while he was in the last stages of his own death process. While reading this text, I was overcome with awe and gratitude that he would undertake such a benevolent action while in the throws of the dying process. I also had the clear sensation that Longchenpa was transmitting the shakti (spiritual power) of his own enlightened mind to those reading this text.
Later, I discovered that others had written about Longchenpa’s direct transmission of bodhichitta to them through the mere act of reading his words.
You can read Longchenpa’s final advice by reading The Fearless Lion’s Roar, Profound Instructions on Dzogchen, the Great Perfection by Nyoshul Kenpo, translated by David Christensen, published by Shambala Publications. This manuscript includes the entire Immaculate Mind text that Longchenpa dictated. The book is available in both paperback from Shambala and as an eBook through Kindle Books (amazon.com).
As I attuned myself more deeply to this direct transmission of Rigpa through Longchenpa’s mind-essence, I read everything I could get my hands on. I was greatly aided in this by some friends in Kathmandu who mailed me difficult to obtain translations. And I would like to acknowledge both Burgi and Freya for their generosity. for in the dance of life, the generosity of others can be a significant boon.
I continued my reading of Longchenpa’s texts and immersion into his mind-essence by merely reading his words. Whenever I felt connected to Longchenpa I found that Rigpa naturally arose in me. When my wife, Judi, and I went to Hawaii a few years ago, I was fully focused on Longchenpa’s transmissions and was going in and out of spontaneous Rigpa through the potency of this tantric master’s mind-essence.
This immersion into Longchenpa’s buddha-mind, culminated when I was not in meditation, but shopping for groceries. As I was walking through the produce section I dropped into a profound altered state and my perception of the world radically changed. I was both keenly aware of my body and surrounding environment, but at the same time I was in a relaxed state of body and mind in which I felt connected to, yet detached from, both my body and my environment. I had stumbled into the most powerful episode of Rigpa I had experienced to date.
I was on the verge of bliss as I passed the watermelons, which amused me greatly.
Then I heard Longchenpa’s voice in my mind. His voice was a mental impression, what is often referred to as clairaudience (or psychic hearing). He said five simple words: “Go outside and look up.”
I paid for my groceries, went outside and looked up at the sky. I was stunned by the rare beauty of a double rainbow that was emerging from the morning mist.
I stood in a type of paralysis for a minute or so as I contemplated the situation. Had Longchenpa actually manipulated the weather? He did not speak to me again, but I had the strong impression that somehow this tantric master had done just that. This was, mind you, a feeling and had no basis in objective fact. In fact, at a logical level, I classified the whole affair as an interesting coincidence. But the nagging feeling that the phenomenon had been the playfulness of Longchenpa persisted.
The Blue Medicine Buddha
I will come back to Longchenpa and the nature of synchronicities in a bit, but I would now like to turn my attention to another celestial anomaly that was connected with a Tibetan Buddhist tutelary deity known as The Blue Medicine Buddha.
The anomaly appeared to me while I was in the parking lot, waiting for a delayed ferry.
At the time, I was dealing with a rather serious illness and had, upon the advice of my lama, Khentrul Lodro Rinpoche (KataCholing), begun chanting to and meditating on the nature of this extraordinary light-being.
I was deep in contemplation as I circumambulated the parking lot, silently chanting his mantra. And then I spontaneously slipped into Rigpa, that feeling of blissful equanimity, which I believe was precipitated by the vibrational field that opened up as I went into bhakti or devotion to this Buddha’s enigmatic and healing nature.
I then felt an impulse to look up at the sky. The image, to the left, is that of a sun halo created by various meteorological conditions having to do with such things as cloud formations and fog. It is a relatively rare event, but I have seen them before.
This solar halo, however, seemed connected with a powerful experience in my mind. As I thought about the odds against something like this occurring, I had a strong sense that this was, indeed, a synchronicity.
The Wind Horse
The Wind Horse is a symbol common to both Tibetan Buddhism and the Bon Po (the indigenous shamanic culture of Tibet).
It is a symbol of enlightenment, good fortune and is also seen as a way to carry one’s positive intentions on the wind.
This pic of what seemed to me like a Wind Horse, appeared while I was taking a package to UPS. I was, at the time, silently chanting to Amitayus, a primordial Buddha associated with Infinite Life. His counterpart is Amitabha, the Buddha of Infinite Light and, together, they represent enlightened Mind and enlightened action in the world.
I had pulled the tailgate down on my car so I could address the box before taking it into the UPS Office. As I turned to walk into UPS, I was shocked to see a Wind Horse in the sky. It was a windy day, and the image of the horse was already starting to morph.
The halo around the “horse’s” head is the sun blocked by clouds, which accounts for the glow.
It felt to me, at the time, that this was a synchronicity associated with my chanting. But at the same time, I thought that it was really just an interesting coincidence.
If I compare this event with the other two previous ones, one of the main differences was the intensity level of my feelings. In the previous two events my emotions were very strong, but not so much with this one. This is why I consider it to be more a coincidence than a synchronicity. But I thought it worth mentioning.
A Communion with Mother Mary
At the time of this incident, I was in my early twenties and had been exploring mystical Christianity through the writings of the Great Contemplatives of the Middle Ages, such as St. Francis of Assisi, St. Claire, Meister Eckhart and Theresa Avignon among many others.
I had been intensively exploring mystical states of perception through contemplative prayer and by saying the rosary—both of which sent me into bhakti, a yogic term meaning devotion to the divine. When my feelings of devotion increased so did my sense of divine love.
I was virtually swimming in a sea of intoxicating agape (a Greek word for divine love) when one day I went to receive mass at a nearby Catholic church.
For some reason, unknown to me, the priest who usually gave the eucharist had engaged the help of a young nun. And instead of a single line, as had always been the case before, he divided the congregation into two lines. As I stood in line with the other parishioners, I noticed the nun’s beatific other-worldly state of being. And I suddenly found myself wishing I could receive the wafer from her as a representative of the Holy Mother herself. But I was in the wrong line.
Unexpectedly the priest motioned her to change places with him. As they changed locations, I stepped up to the railing right in front of the nun.
And then it happened. The sun, which had been obscured by clouds suddenly broke free and sunlight poured through the stained glass window bathing the nun in golden light. I nearly swooned from the vision. For one shimmering moment, I was transported from this world to another realm where a nun had become a vessel for Mother Mary herself.
The intensity of the bhakti was so potent, I was awash in divine love for hours.
I was also caught in the snares of a dilemma. Was it actually possible for a divine being like Mary to enter into or work through a human being?
My logical mind doubted it, but my heart was brimming with the exquisite mystical bliss of a divine encounter (whatever its nature might turn out to be).
On Eagles’ Wings
Many years ago, I was in Anchorage, Alaska to teach a workshop. And I was also hanging out with a Upik Shaman friend and Native Healer.
Rita was a very powerful shaman, in fact, one of the most powerful I had ever met.
I had no idea that the local tribe had called for a Powwow, and Rita didn’t mention it. All she said was I want to show you something. The next thing I knew we were driving to the site of the gathering. In a large tent, Rita showed me how to sing a Upik chant with the drum. Then she got up and said follow me. We were with a small group of natives, none of whom I knew.
Suddenly we were on a stage in front of dozens upon dozens of tribal peoples. Rita handed me her drum, pushed me to a lone microphone and said “Sing!”
I closed my eyes and began drumming and then chanted along with the pulse of the drum. I had no idea what I sang as I was in a profoundly altered state of mind. The world disappeared for me as I became lost in the sounds, not even knowing their origins.
When I finished, I opened my eyes and saw the entire gathering looking up. As I gazed up at the sky I was shocked to see three eagles circling several hundred feet above the ground.
I have had some interesting synchronicities with wild animals in the past, especially birds. Some traditions refer to birds as messengers. And I personally believe they can be just that under the right conditions. My take on this synchronicity is that it was our collective energy that drew the eagles—not just my drumming and chanting.
Philosophical Consideration
On the one hand we have three possible synchronicities connected with Tibetan Buddhism, one unfolded in a Catholic Church and finally one was shamanic in origins.
The common factor in all of these was my emotional state. And as Carl Jung postulated, synchronicities are driven by strong mental/emotional states.
These three categories of events were Tibetan, Christian and Shamanic. But despite their differences in cosmology and dogmas, all of these generated seeming synchronicities.
I wonder if the element of faith was a factor in all of these incidents.
When the event with the nun, aka Mother Mary, occurred I was in a fervent state of bhakti (divine love), and it is clear to me that this could have been the element responsible for the synchronicity.
Two of the three experiences connected with Tibetan Buddhism tutelary deities had also generated strong feelings of love, while the last one (the Wind Horse) seemed to be less driven by strong emotions, which is why I questioned whether this was a synchronicity or an interesting coincidence.
The last event, with the three eagles flying overhead, was clearly shamanic in nature. I cannot report whether I was in a strong emotional state or not as I was deeply altered and was absorbed into the sound matrix that came out of me as I was drumming with Rita’s drum. I do suspect that Rita’s drum “spoke” to me as I was drumming, and from a shamanic standpoint there were multiple levels involved. First of all, Rita’s hide drum had been prepared in the native fashion and was thus connected to the spirit of the animal and the drum would have also absorbed the numerous energies that Rita called in during shamanic ceremonies. Then there was the collective energy of the tribal peoples that had gathered. And finally, whatever I added to the energy-mix would have had an effect as well. All of these elements together produced, in my mind, the calling of the eagles.
I mentioned earlier that I have had numerous synchronicities in relation to animals, especially birds.
Many years ago, shortly after I first made contact with a Spirit Singer by the name of Tazukan a most interesting synchronicity appeared. Tazukan is a spirit being out of the shamanic traditions of the Andes and his power animal is the Condor.
One night around twilight, Judi and I were talking philosophically about Tazukan and heard a commotion on the roof. We went out to investigate and were shocked to see dozens upon dozens of crows bouncing up and down on the roof tiles. Perplexed we went back inside wondering what had just happened as crows had never bounced on the roof before (or since I might add). Immediately, Tazukan spoke to me psychically and said that he had called the crows. I asked why crows, and he quipped back because there were no Condors in the area!
This was a very interesting situation from the standpoint of synchronicities. I was not in a heightened mental state. If anything I was in my skeptical mode wondering if Tazukan was real or if, perhaps, he was just a figment of my own imagination.
The invasion of the crows squawking and bouncing on the roof seemed to be an emphatic message from Tazukan—“No, I am not a figment of your imagination. I am real.”
You can hear a sample of Tazukan singing by going to the online Store (www.tomkenyon.com) and clicking on the Shaman’s Dream CD. There you will see a bunch of short audio samples.
It is here at this juncture in our discussion that I feel compelled to mention an interesting philosophical monkey wrench.
The question of what is real and what is not real has been with me since I was a young child when I confused the word reality for realty, and I wondered what reality agents did for a living.
As I moved deeper into the practice of Vajrayana Buddhism the question of real vs unreal took an interesting turn.
From the standpoint of Vajrayana, our experience of the sensory world is a type of hallucination.
We are, from the standpoint of Buddhist Tantra, duped into believing that our senses are telling us what is real.
But they are neither real nor unreal according to Vajrayana. They are magical displays of light and energy that we interpret as objectively real when, in fact, the only thing real in all of this is our own Mind. But this type of Mind, indicated by a capital M, is not the mind we know on a day-to-day basis. Rather it is what the Tibetans call Big Mind”, a Mind that is intimately connected to the underlying reality behind all things.
This philosophical conundrum is summed up by the tantric statement “neither real nor unreal, both existing nor non-existing.” Such statements claiming to be an accurate description of ultimate reality are vexing to my Aristotelian trained sense of logic. But mulling over this tantric perspective can yield some interesting insights.
Final Thoughts
I think it would behoove us to think of synchronicities, not as objective messengers of significance but rather as interesting phenomena.
And I think it would also be good not to jump to conclusions as to what a given synchronicity “means.” In other words I don’t think that synchronicities necessarily have meaning. They may primarily be just a result of activity in the deeper levels of our own minds.
Years ago, the friend of a friend took off for New Mexico because she had “heard” a message from the Pleiadians that they would pick her up at a designated location in the New Mexico desert. Simultaneously as she heard the message, a shooting star crossed the heavens. This was a powerful synchronicity for her, and she packed up her things and drove out to the desert.
Once there she waited patiently to be picked up. But they never came.
Finally, low on money she returned home to re-create her life.
Such incidents should encourage us to be cautious when interpreting any perceived meaning regarding synchronicities, especially if we use it as a motivation for action.
I continue to be fascinated by synchronicities in all their complexities, and I have come to view them as one of the many signs that unfold all around us that we do, in fact, live in a magical universe.