Tommy is a 1975 Columbia Pictures movie about the spiritual journey of a disabled boy and his liberation from darkness into light via sensory deprivation. It stars the members of the band The Who. Lead singer Roger Daltrey plays the lead role of Tommy. The movie also includes roles portrayed by other famous rock stars, including Elton John, Eric Clapton and Tina Turner. The movie also features actress Ann Marget as Tommy's mother and actor Jack Nicholson as a doctor.
Notice the Columbia Pictures intro shows the goddess Columbia standing atop a stepped pyramid. This is reminiscent of the Paramount Pictures logo which, true to the name Paramount, shows a mountain surrounded by stars in a semi-circle like a sunrise. In the Columbia Pictures logo she is holding a lighted torch which morphs into the sun and a sunrise logo. Columbia was the original name for the United States and the District of Columbia is the capital for Washington D.C. which is just outside of Mary-land. CBS is Columbia Broadcasting System. Columbia Records is one of the major record labels. Columbia University is a prestigious Ivy League school. Columbia is likely Virgo or the Virgin Mary, that is Isis/Venus/Lucifer and Lady Liberty, the statue of liberty, may be an aspect of Columbia as well. She holds up the torch of enlightenment or reason.
The sun and moon are prominent symbols in the movie Tommy. The opening and ending frames feature the setting and rising of the sun, respectively.
Tommy's mother, played by Ann Margret, is constantly shown with Venus and lunar symbolism. For example, one scene shows her in an all white room, in a white sequined dress and covered in white furs, Venus in Furs. Like Aphrodite, she is sitting in front of an eight-pointed mirror which, like a moongate, is ground level. There are a couple half-shell chairs symbolizing Venus on a half shell. There is even the famous Venus de Milo statue.
Interestingly, 'tommy' is a word which can also mean a British soldier. In the movie, Tommy, played by lead singer of The Who, Roger Daltrey, is the son of a soldier. Tommy yearns to see himself by constantly looking into a mirror, but only sees his reflection, not his true self. I'm very surprised they didn't use The Who's song The Real Me for the movie. It was recorded in 1972 and released in 1973. The lyrics are perfect for the movie since Eric Clapton plays a preacher, Jack Nicholson plays a doctor and Ann Margret plays a significant role as his mother. "Can you see the real me, preacher? Can you see the real me, doctor? Can you see the real me, mother? Can you see the real me?"
Tommy ostensibly attains salvation from suffering through darkness and sensory deprivation. But ultimately he is liberated when his mother throws him through a mirror which smashes the mirror. But was he really liberated since he became a new messiah and started his own religion? His family became greedy and made a lot of money off fleecing the sheep. At first his disciples worshiped Tommy as a messiah but it wasn't until they grew discontent following a religion with an external authority that he began to enlighten and liberate others by teaching his intuitive method using sensory deprivation techniques. He showed them how to intuitively play the game of pinball, a metaphor for life, by giving them earplugs, shades and corks for their mouths. They soon revolt and smash the pinball machines in a fashion similar to the smashing of Tommy's mirror.
The movie begins with Tommy's father standing on a small mountain, facing the sun. When the sun sets, he comes down and appears to conceive Tommy in a pool of water beneath a waterfall. Tommy's father is drafted into the war before he is born. He goes missing in action and is believed to be dead. Tommy's mother grows lonely and hooks up with another man. Tommy's real father comes home from war only to find the two lovers in bed.
The ensuing confrontation results in Tommy's stepfather killing his real father with a light. Tommy witnesses the altercation and is traumatized. They bring him through a tunnel of lights. "Now he is deaf, now he is dumb, now he is blind" and there's "nothing to hear, nothing to say and nothing to see". They tell him to forget what he saw and not to remember any of it: "You didn't hear it", "You didn't see it", and "You won't say nothing."
Suffering begins him on his path to enlightenment. "Sickness will surely take the mind where minds can't usually go. Come on the amazing journey and learn all you should know." Tommy's father becomes his guide "He is your leader, he is your guide". "On the amazing journey, together you'll ride." "His eyes are the eyes that transmit all they know. The truth burns so bright. It can melt winter snow. A towering shadow so black and so high. A white sun burning the earth and the sky."
Tommy keeps seeing mirror balls (moon) on an amusement park ride. Each sensation makes a note in his symphony. His father teaches him to shoot, that is to be a tommy, a soldier. Tommy is shown on the beach with a cube over his head blinding him. The cube may be symbolic of Saturn.
His real father is holding up a white sun. The sun morphs into what is perhaps a kind of triangular void out in space. The void is full of airplanes in the shape of a cross. Tommy's father was shot down in an airplane during war and was wrongly presumed to be dead. The white orb or sun ignites the heart of a bunch of crosses and finally the heart of "Tommy" who is crucified on a cross/plane/weapon of destruction.
Tommy's ego perhaps is shown to be split in half and then it recombines into one again.
Tommy's parents seem concerned about Tommy's salvation and finding a cure for him. Tommy's mother wonders, "But how can men who've never seen light be enlightened? Only if he's cured will his spirit's future level ever heighten. And Tommy doesn't know what day it is. He doesn't know who Jesus was or what praying is. How can he be saved from the eternal grave?" His new father holds up a Santa mask (demiurge/Satan?) in front of his face while looking at Tommy.
An eclipse in shown on the head? splits into right and left halves and then reunites into one again, zooms in on right which shows a bunch of his selves / lives/ oversoul dancing, dancing in front of mirrors. There are split images standing in front of mirrors perhaps representing is split ego. Notice the eclipse, the merging of the sun and moon, depicted on his shirt.
In all honesty, the first half or so of the movie is not that good and contains sick, twisted, disturbing imagery as Tommy is abused, but the last half or so is good. At a Christmas party his parents ask "how can he be saved from the eternal grave?" "Let's think of a game to play... do you know how to play Hide-and-seek?"
His parents try a few unorthadox methods to heal him, including a Marilyn Monroe cult ran by preacher Eric Clapton and an acid queen played by Tina Turner who is "guaranteed to tear your soul apart". "Your mind must learn to roam", she tells him. He spends one night with her in a dark pyramidal shaped room. "Just give me one night", she claims.
The techniques of the Acid Queen involve an AI mask and makes his mind roam. He becomes one with the mirrored Frankenstein monster silver machine? He merges with real father? He symbolically dies and is born again? There are snakes, lots of snakes. His parents leave him with his Cousin Kevin who physically abuses him and his Uncle Ernie who sexually abuses him.
Then they leave him in front of the mirror. Three of his selves merge and the light body (higher self?) leads him so he can see again? His light body leads his shadow self through a junkyard and then disappears, leaving him blind again.
During the song Sparks, the white light sun shines near him, he touches it and an eyeball flashes quickly. But he discovers a pinball machine there and beings to play. He begins playing pinball on a pinball machine named Kings and Queens perhaps representative of duality and the masculine and feminine.
As a "deaf, dumb (mute) and blind kid", Tommy makes the "big game" against the Pinball Wizard, played by Elton John. The song Extra, Extra touts the match, "You can rule the world, pinball, lets play... hurry to the show, we're nearly on the air". Tommy arrives at the match. There are some signs of the fans such as "Tommy, you're a wizard", "pinball lord", "Tommy for table king". Elton John's version of Pinball Wizard is played while he battles Tommy in pinball. "That deaf dumb and blind kid sure plays a mean pinball!"
"I played the silver ball... ... Tommy "becomes part of the machine", "He plays by intuition"......He's a pinball wizard. There has to be a twist". He has "no distractions, can't hear no buzers or bells, plays by sense of smell, don't see lights flashing"...
Tommy wins and becomes "the world's new pinball lord".
Tommy bcomes rich and famous and his mother is enjoying a extravagant lifestyle. In her luxurious suite she watches a TV ad: "Eat Rex beans. Fit for a queen". Rex is latin for "king" so this is king and queen symbolism, duality. So she is living a life fit for a queen which is fitting because symbolically she is Venus, queen of the night. She is in an all white room, Venus in furs, in front of eight-pointed mirror next to a Venus de Milo statue, with white balls everywhere and a half chair (Venus on a half shell?). On the TV, Tommy is telepathically sending a plea for help. "See me, feel me, touch me, heal me." She notes they are making tons of money from his adoring fans and she says "we'll just play along"... Also she sings of "peacock's wings". The imagery of the peacock is very interesting as a peacock can be symbolic of an angel and resurrection, but also is a symbol of the Demiurge.
Tommy has a silver ball on top of head perhaps indicating he is still ruled by the moon. Tommy's father bursts into the suite and announces,"A doctor I've found can cure the boy". More peacock symbolism at the doctor's office. The doctor, played by Jack Nicholson, has two big peacocks prominently displayed on his double door entrance and also another one inside the office. The doctor informs then, "His eyes react to light, the dials detected. "
The doctor says, "All hope lies with him and none with me." "He hears but cannot answer to your call". "Imagine the shock from isolation when he suddenly can hear and speak and see." "There is no machine to remove his inner block".
Tommy's new father laments, "Look at him now in the mirror, dreaming". Tommy keeps gazing at his own reflection in the mirror. His mother says,"But I think you can see yourself. How can the mirror affect you?" Also, the mirror starts at the floor making the mirror like a moongate. The doctor prescribes for Tommy to "go to the mirror" and seems to transmit subliminal mental messages to Tommy's mother like a form of hypnosis or mind control.
Later, back at the suite, Tommy's mother asks the question, "Do I smash the mirror?" and throws Tommy through the mirror, smashing it into pieces. He falls through the mirror, lands in water and sees the sunlight. Tommy is now healed and "free" and can see. He sings, "I'm free and freedom tastes of reality. I'm free and I'm waiting for you to follow me." He sings, "Messiah's pointed to the door, but no one had the guts to leave the temple." He runs through high waves, fire, and climbs rock.
"Tommy, can you hear me?" Tommy, now reborn asks, "Who am I? Where did I come from?". He seems reborn, but almost seems to have had his memory erased. She tells him, "You're adored and you're loved. Thousands watch you play, pinball. It's a fever and you're the master of the game and now that you're whole, you'll be champion of their very souls".
So is Tommy really free, or is he now just a useful tool for the Demiurge? Tommy sings, "Yes, I'm healed, delivered from silent darkness."
"Pinball. What I see now before me is far beyond a game, beyond your wildest dreams. Those who love me have a higher path to follow now." Tommy
stands on the silver ball.
He becomes the new messiah.
"Can't you feel him?" Tommy flies in on a hanglider singing, "You'll feel me coming, a new vibration. From afar you'll see me, I'm a sensation." Tommy exhorts the people coming together as one, "The few I touched are now disciples, love as one, I am the light, I am the light." They worship Tommy.
Tommy is on stage in front of throngs of devotees with the sun shown behind him.
"The darkness of my childhood has passed. The pinball game I played so well reflects a way of life. This meeting is just another game. Let's play to win tonight." His staff has the silver ball moon atop it. He is still ruled by the lunar self, the moon? He says, "Try to walk the path I walk. Never mind the pain and fear. Each one of you has freedom in your heart without my grace."
The family sets up a holiday camp for worshipers to pay to come to. Tommy sits like a guru on the roof singing.
Tommy appears to walk on water and his disciples are in the water in a symbolic baptism perhaps. Tommy says, "Come to me now."
"Come to my house, be one of the comfortable people... come to this house, be one of us". He is encouraging people to join the religion.
"stop/children" sun sign? The family is encouraging him to bring more, "You can help to collect some more in. Young and old people. Let's get them all in."
"There's more at the door." Tommy sings, "We need more room, build an extension, a colorful palace, spare no expense now". The family sees more dollar signs so they expand the enterprise.
"Pinball tables, gold and silver, altars to the master's plan." Altars are where sacrifices are sometimes made. What is the master's plan and just who is the master? The Demiurge? Are the gold and silver subtle references to the sun and moon? Greedily, they set up a new religion they use to fleece the masses of money. Uncle Ernie, the sexual deviant, plays the organ at the camp. Disciples are encouraged to spend money, "Get your Tommy mirrors to smash", "Buy your way to heaven", "Buy his shades and earplugs here."
Tommy sits indian style atop a huge pinball with light behind him singing, "I became aware this year, if you want to follow me, you've got to play pinball, and put in your earplugs, put on the eyeshades. You know where to put the cork". The disciples chant, "These pricey deals don't teach us. Your freedom doesn't reach us. Enlightenment escapes us. How can all this trivia take us to the goal you reached? We came here to be like you and find the world you've reached."
He teaches the disciples to play pinball by intuition. They chant "We're not gonna take it" and start breaking the machines. One machine has the sun and Saturn.
They chant, "Don't want no religion".
Tommy climbs atop giant pinballs,
seems to always be asking for mother/parents to see him, hear him etc. He carrries his mother over to where his father is, unites his mother and father's hands, that is, he unites the opposites of the king and queen, father and mother, masculine and feminine? He throws the cross away.
Tommy runs through the pinball machines which are on fire. He runs to the end of a dock and jumps in the water while singing a motivational song.
He swims across the water, then ascends some slippery rocks and scales the mountain singing, "Listening to you, I get the music. Gazing at you, I get the heat. Following you, I climb the mountain. I get excitement at your feet. Right behind you, I see the millions. On you, I see the glory. From you, I get opinions. From you, I get the story." The big question is who is the "you" Tommy is singing about at the end of the movie ? Is it his father? Is it God? The Demiurge? Has Tommy finally found salvation through religion? Is it the sun? Is it his higher, true self within which is represented by gazing into the mirror? It seems his whole process of enlightenment and salvation began with the suffering and trauma that left him deaf, dumb and blind. The suffering was brought on by the horror of witnessing his father brutally killed not to mention the poor parenting skills of his parents. Being deaf, dumb and blind, he was catapulted into a world of sensory deprivation which led to his discovering the power of his intuition and his inner spirit. So this sensory deprivation and isolation apparently was a catalyst that led to his enlightenment.
However, it is unclear to me what the overall message The Who originally wished to convey and, subsequently, the directors of the movie wanted to convey. I guess people can read any message into it they like. If one is Christian, one can say he finally found the light of god and his son/sun. If one is more spiritual and less religious, one can say he found enlightenment within. If one is conspiratorial, one can say he did the bidding of the Demiurge.
At the top of the mountain, perhaps the same mountain that his father came down from at the beginning of the movie, Tommy raises the sun with his arms and the movie fades into white light.
"Sickness will surely take the mind where minds can't usually go. Come on the amazing journey and learn all you should know. His eyes are the eyes that transmit all they know. The truth burns so bright. It can melt winter snow. A towering shadow so black and so high. A white sun burning the earth and the sky."
"I'm free. I'm free. And freedom tastes of reality."
"Listening to you, I get the music. Gazing at you, I get the heat. Following you, I climb the mountain. I get excitement at your feet. Right behind you, I see the millions. On you, I see the glory. From you, I get opinions. From you, I get the story."
I participated in a self-imposed, do-it-yourself 8-10 day darkness retreat. I did not travel to Thailand or Guatemala. I tried to do it from my own home using a "Mindfold" blindfold that shuts out all light. However, in retrospect, I would not recommend using a blindfold.
From the book Darkness Technology: Darkness Techniques for Enlightenment by Mantak Chia: "All spiritual traditions have used Darkness Techniques in the pursuit of enlightenment. In Europe, the dark room often appeared in underground form as a network of tunnels, in Egypt as the Pyramids, in Rome as the catacombs, and by the Essenes, near the Dead Sea in Israel, as caves. In the Taoist tradition caves have been used throughout the ages for higher level practices. In the Tao, the cave, the Immortal Mountain, the Wu San, represents the Perfect Inner Alchemy Chamber. Meditating and fasting in the cave is the final journey of spiritual work. The caves are the Earth Mother and its energy lines. Like the hollow bones, caves contain the earliest information of life stored inside the Earth. Caves contain the vital essence of the Earth Power. The Tao says: ‘When you go into the dark and this becomes total, the Darkness soon turns into light.’ In the Darkness, our mind and soul begin to wander freely in the vast realms of psychic and spiritual experience. When you enter this primordial state or force you are reunited with the true self and divinity within. You literally ‘conduct’ the universal energy. You may see into the past and future, understand the true meaning of existence, and begin to understand the order of things. You return to the womb, the cocoon of our material structure and Nature’s original Darkness. Complete darkness profoundly changes the sensory sensibilities of the body/brain. We are deprived of all visual reference. Sounds begin to fall away as we lose contact with the external world and turn the senses inward. The effect of darkness is to shut down major cortical centers in the brain, depressing mental and cognitive functions in the higher brain centers. Emotional and feeling states are enhanced, especially the sense of smell and the finer senses of psychic perception. Dreams become more lucid, and the dream state manifests in our conscious awareness. Eventually, we awaken within ourselves the awareness of the Source, the spirit, the soul. We descend into the void, into the darkness of deep, inner space. The light appears..."
As for the darkness experiment I was just curious to know what it would be like to be in darkness to prepare myself for what it might be like initially at death. Even though you aren't doing anything, the meditation can be pretty demanding. It's encouraged to be without electronics and to be off the grid without electrosmog, but I don't want to spend that kind of money and thought just being in the dark would release the chemicals. I had to regroup after a day so I could prepare better for it. I did several things to make the time more comfortable for me and easier. Even though I had an alarm set for once a day so I could know what day it was, I wanted to know what time it was so I set up my cell phone so I could audibly ask. It helped to know.
I also tried using the mask with my eyes open during the day which I came to regret. My eye sockets began to ache some. Also I was listening to youTube talks like John Cleese reading The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying and Richard Gere reading The Tibetan Book of the Dead. The concentration of listening gave me a headache.So I made a playlist of light-hearted music and music I enjoyed. I tried listening to a classical music station, but got a bit bored from it after a while.I had to stop again because one of my eyes started hurting -- probably from the strain of trying to see in the dark (and maybe because it wasn't getting enough oxygen?). So I took another time off. Once I decided to keep my eyes closed it helped a lot. The mask was a bit heavy resting on my nose so I started using a $1 black bandana or black shirt over my eyes, alternating. In retrospect, I think it would have been worth the effort to use some black plastic sheeting or light-blocking curtain to cover the windows so that no cover for the eyes would be necessary. One could use a bathroom (a walk-in closet has no ventilation and can get hot), but it's a tight fit and not too comfortable even with a mattress. i did have a few very vivid dreams. In one of them I saw a bright light and thought I had messed up, but then realized I was dreaming and still had my eyes covered. I'm not sure I would recommend the practice. I wasn't able to go more than 2-3 days at a time. I might try it sometime later when my eyes have rested up. But it is not something to take lightly.More from the book by Mantak Chia:
"The Darkness enables the body and mind to undergo a series of profound transformations. The ‘states of consciousness’ appear correlated with the organic synthesis and accumulation of psychedelic chemicals in the brain, especially melatonin (Days 1 to 3), pinoline (Days 3 to 5), 5-MeO-DMT (Days 6 to 8), and DMT (Days 9 to 12). The pharmacology of these states is as follows.
" ‘Melatonin Stage’ (Day 1 to 3) Complete isolation from external light causes the pineal gland to flood the brain with the neurotransmitter melatonin (average 2 to 5mg/day), manifesting initially as the need for sleep and rest. The eyes recuperate from the over-stimulation of the visual world, releasing the grip of mental concerns, plans, agendas, and letting the energies settle. Melatonin is essential for maintaining the hibernation state, which facilitates the emergence of spiritual consciousness. The person retains a child-like biological condition where melatonin is conserved and recycled, not wasted in biological continuation. When this substance works together with the yellow marrow in the bone, the reddish firing reaction will activate a gentle interaction between the sacred water and the light. The sacred waters are the inner fluids that are responsible for producing bone marrow and other bodily fluids. The waters run not only in the center of the bones, but also in the spinal connections between the Crown and Perineum Points.
" ‘Pinoline Stage’ (Day 3 to 5) After about three days, when melatonin concentration reaches sufficient levels (15 to 20 mg) the body then begins to produce the superconductor pinoline, whereby a greater fluidity of thought and healing of the body starts to occur. Pinoline induces cell replication (mitosis) and intercalates with DNA molecules. The ‘pinoline stage’ is normally activated only in the womb, in lucid dreaming, or in near death experiences. Within this state we can metaprogram the brain to the Unity of Self, heightening awareness of the pathways with which we filter reality. At this stage, the nervous system becomes aware of itself. We become aware of the hologram of the external world that we create constantly in our head.
"When the pinoline is triggered you activate your clairsentient and clairaudient powers. You may see light and visions, hear music, and gain phenomenal insight. A decoding of the DNA then begins to take place. Cosmic particles are attracted to us and decoded in the form of sound, light, knowledge and realization. The particles, which have the same cell structures as humans (and from which the Tao believes you evolved), are attracted to you magnetically. The body has approximately six trillion cells, which correspond to the universe ‘without’. Each of these cells can be seen as a computer with unlimited power and potential. Each cell can become a super conductor, able to receive information from space. You are able to decode this universal information carried from outer space, which may be as old as nothingness itself. When you enter this primordial state or force you are reunited with the true self and divinity within. You literally ‘conduct’ the universal energy. You may see into the past and future, understand the true meaning of existence, and begin to understand the order of things. You return to the womb, the cocoon of our material structure and Nature’s original Darkness.
" ‘5-MeO-DMT Stage’ (Day 6 to 8) At this stage the pineal gland starts to produce the neuro-hormone 5-MeO-DMT (aka ‘akashon’). This psychoactive tryptamine is highly luminescent and also extremely phosphorescent due to the amount of phosphene that it transmits onto the visual cortex. 5-MeO-DMT switches on 40% more of the cerebral cortex and awakens the nervous system to become aware of itself; ‘beingness’ results. Hence,the possibility of metaprogramming the nervous system’s bio-computer - activating healing and conflict message assortment of the nervous system. 5-MeO-DMT is the empathogenic neurotransmitter that expands the emotional body between ‘infinity and zero’. It gives rise to telepathy in the emotional and intuitive bodies. It engages the awakening of the ‘Flower of Life’, the spine, which begins to glow in a state of beingness and peace. 5-Meo-DMT discharges the Darkness from the Darkness. A bright light is activated and one experiences a born-again mentality."
I'm not sure how much of this is true. Much of it may be exaggerated and intended to encourage tourism to their garden getaway, but it sounds like an interesting and hopefully worthwhile experiment to conduct on my own from home.
Update March, 2021
I previously wrote about a darkness retreat experiment I conducted. The goal was to stay in darkness for a week or more to see if DMT would be released from the pineal gland and flood my third eye with light. I blocked the light coming in from my windows and I used a makeshift type of mask to do this: a black bandana and a black t-shirt. I kept my eyes open for the most part during the day. I had to stop the experiment because it felt like I was straining my eyes and was concerned I might break a blood vessel or something.
But if I were to do it again, I might just make a dark room that is pitch black and not put anything over my eyes. If it caused strain, I might use a sleep mask instead, keeping my eyes closed.
This section is taken from a post made by Neuromute on the Godlike Productions forum in March, 2021. It confirms my suspicions that meditating in darkness for long periods could lead to enlightenment and escape. I did see some colors like he mentioned. I think they were mostly purple to start with. I think his idea of being completely deprived of senses would be ideal. So if one could get access to a sensory deprivation machine, that could work well.
So this is his post. He wrote:
"Normally we have the ability to focus on any of these realities and experience what goes on there, usually in the form of a humanoid body. The problem is, this reality, the one we are in now, has been taken over by another being.
It has devised a trap to keep us here. This trap is re-incarnation (i.e. an endless loop in this simulation). It captures anyone that ventures into this reality and doesn't let them escape. Our natural ability to skip around to different realities has been cut off, and we are forced to forget who we truly are.
I believe there is a way to escape this, and the key is sensory deprivation.
When we pretend we're dead, the simulation ends, and we are transported to a holding state where we can choose our own reality again. Because our body is not actually dead, the re-incarnation process doesn't get triggered and we are able to bypass the trap.
I have experienced this holding state and seen the other windows of reality.As I said, sensory deprivation is the key. The same results can be achieved using sensory deprivation tanks or by experimenting with the Ganzfeld effect, but my steps are more practical. They can be done anywhere you can eliminate all light sources, and I suspect this may be a practice that some indigenous cultures did and why caves were so sacred to a lot of them.
Summary
Every night, with the lights off, find a comfortable position to sit in and silently observe the darkness.
You can do this with your eyes closed or open. It's easier to do it with your eyes closed because there is no preparation needed. However, there is a benefit to doing it with your eyes open. When you start to see things, you will be much more convinced that it's real.
If you do it with your eyes open then you will need to make the room as dark as possible. All light sources need to be covered. It should be pitch black and hard to see what's around you.
Now sit and wait. I hope you are comfortable because this is the hard part. You will need to sit in silence for at least 1 hr, and sometimes up to 2 hrs, for things to appear. If you are thinking about work, or your day, then nothing will happen.
You must get past the boredom, ignore the urge to move, and observe the darkness in silence.
What you're looking for is colors. Treat this as a science experiment. Put your full attention into finding colors in the darkness.
They will start off as tiny dots or flowing, wispy trails, and over time they will increase in size, number and intensity. The common ones to see are red, white, and blue, but any color is possible. There is an awareness behind these colors, and you are acknowledging their presence.
Sometimes faces will begin to appear, and if you maintain this state long enough then you will enter into the holding area between realities.
Here are the phases you go through during the practice.
Phase 1 - Bliss
This part usually takes 20 to 30 minutes to achieve. Your breathing tends to slow down and move to your abdomen, and you begin to feel slightly euphoric. If you've ever done meditation, then you will know what I'm talking about. If not, then think of it as being similar to that warm, hazy, relaxing feeling you get on those days you don't want to get out of bed. It is blissful, and people who meditate usually stop here. You must continue.
Phase 2 - Unusual Sounds
For the next 20 - 30 minutes, nothing much will happen. This is where boredom creeps in and you must make a heroic effort to continue sitting there. However, you will know you are on the right track when you start hearing unusual sounds.
The common ones are loud, cracking sounds that come out of nowhere, but they can be more disturbing than that. You might hear someone knocking on the door, a loud plane flying overhead, rushing water, someone saying your name, and even far away whispers or children giggling. Do not quit now! You must continue.
Phase 3 - Colors
At this point, you will start seeing colors. I have already described what they look like in the summary, and so I won't repeat it here.
Follow the colors around with your eyes and continue to observe them. You may acknowledge them with simple thoughts, but don't do this too much. Maintaining silence is very important at this point.
Phase 4 - Contact
It's hard to say how long the color phase will last for you. It depends on the quality of your silence. Some nights, that might be all you get, but on others, something very distinct will happen. A colored smoke, mist or fog-like substance will appear. It will quite literally appear out of nowhere.
It usually starts off small, but eventually billows everywhere and blocks your entire vision. The smoke is almost always purple, blue or grey, but I have heard of other people seeing different colors.
You are very close now! Do nothing and continue to observe.
At some point, the smoke will disappear, and one of three things will happen.
a) You will be presented with a window, or a series of windows, that contains a live scene playing inside of it
This is not a hallucination. If you look inside the window, you will be peering into an alternate reality, as real as our own. It is something you can even step into, if you dare. At least, that's what other people have told me, who do a similar practice. I have only experienced this a few times, and it was always so mesmerizing that all I could do was stare.
I am told, if you can get past the shock and are able to step into one of the realities, then your consciousness will get put into a body in the new world. You will begin to have memories of your life there (even though you have never lived it), and you will slowly start to integrate with the new reality and understand how it works. They all told me they were too scared to go any further and would always step back within a couple minutes of going in.
b) You will see the room you are practicing in, as clear as day, even though you are sitting in darkness or have your eyes closed
c) You will see a black wall
Unfortunately, the windows are rare. These last two are more likely to occur.
And they usually cause a shadow-like being to appear. It will most likely make a run for you, and it will be the most terrifying experience of your life!
I believe these beings are the gatekeepers of the re-incarnation trap. They make sure no one tries to escape, and they keep you in line by inducing fear.
However, if you can be calm and stand your ground, it will neutralize any attack and give you control over the situation. They will recognize this, and instead, they will exchange energy with you.
This usually knocks you out, but it often leads to wildly lucid dreams, and a lot of times they will show up in them too. They usually appear in your dreams as quick-moving, shadow people or black creatures, such as cats or blobs. Also, in your real life, you will start having more synchronicities occur too."
So that was his post. I think it is a very interesting one and worthy of consideration.