The Vortex
My third ceremony. It started with less hesitation and more of a plunge. I finally broke through and experienced a 3+ hour journey. I found myself sitting, laying down on my back, and in other yogic positions—partly for body comfort and to help me channel in better. I did what came naturally to me as I was engaged with what I saw with my eyes shut. I started with the intention of letting go and just surrendering without expectations.
In my journey, a lot happened, and some items I recall better. I remember two specific parts more because they were just so absorbing.
It started in nature. I saw hills and trees. There was my dear dad. Coincidentally, he had passed away precisely nine years prior on this very day of the ceremony. I saw him here again as an older person but suddenly I also saw him morph into a younger middle-aged person. He smiled, and we hugged. I remember hiking around with him. Looking outward together, I saw the rest of my family in the distance: my wife, kids, and mom. We smiled again at each other. After a bit more hiking, we suddenly saw what looked like a funnel, shaped like a vortex or a narrow tornado that reached beyond the eye’s distance into the sky. It was so colorful and beautiful. Within my journey, I remembered what I read about the universal consciousness, and a common theme in spirituality is how our being merges with this consciousness. I couldn’t help but wonder if this vortex symbolized this. I told my dad, “Watch this trick and follow me.” To this point, it was the only time I remember saying anything to anyone within a journey. I reached out with my hand into the vortex and saw my body pixelated into particles and merging into the vortex. My dad followed, and we were pulled in!
I could no longer see us as we rose, but I knew he was with me. We looked down and saw my family roaming around. They were not looking up at us. I believe they were carrying on with their day. Everything became distant as we went deeper into the sky. This vision was so intense that I snapped out of it and opened my eyes. I changed positions and closed my eyes but could not return to that place. It felt so special to reunite with my dad in this other world.
A little later, I had another vision. It was only eight days since Hamas attacked Israel, with so many reports of death and injury in Israel and in Gaza since then. I was particularly bothered by those events and the human condition in the world in general. In my vision, I found myself on the road somewhere in the middle of that conflict. There were spirits in the air that may have been the casualties of this horrific event. There were many terrified and in panic running on the ground.
A man near me was crying. I went to console a couple that were in tears. I did not know any details about their loss or what they experienced, but we embraced each other in warm hugs. We held hands, and others came and joined us, all holding hands to shoulders tightly. It wasn’t just them; the spirits of the dead, who looked more ghostly, joined together. This union kept growing, and the line of beings in this embrace went beyond what the eye could see. All those lined up started losing their human image and morphed into a long distance of colorful, braided rope. This rope contrasted with everything else, resembling smoke and dust from the war and violence. The braided rope reminded me of the vortex that emerged earlier in the night with my dad. I looked at myself and couldn’t see myself, just this rope I was part of. I wondered if this also represented the universal consciousness. I felt an immense sense of the power of belief and the hope that it brings. I felt a deep sense of empathy being part of that rope.
Meanwhile, back in the room, I had lost all touch with where my human body was positioned, and I found myself forehead down in my pillow and on my knees, just shaking. I leaned back in lotus position against the wall and just stared at the playful lights on the ceiling, so blown away and humbled by the experience.
- AC