A Higher Level of Being

Is there more than one level of Being?

I’m referring to the experience of Being, beingness, and not to “beings”, entities, persons.

I was in bed early this morning, probably asleep, when I had a vivid impression of a level of Being above the one I’ve always known.

That’s all there was to my “vision” or dream: First, the accustomed level of Being, and then a sensation of moving up, brightening, expanding – revealing that there was something beyond what I had ever known.

You might suspect that I experienced some heightening of my senses, but my senses were hardly involved in my experience, which took place in a kind of awareness without perceptible content – except that I was left with the visual impression that the higher level of Being was indicated by a light gray square with rounded corners, which later brought to my conscious mind the idea of an entranceway or hatch.

The entranceway did not open for me. The “vision” woke me up, and dumped me into my usual state of Being, but with a conviction that there is a higher level. As I went about the routines of brushing my teeth and making coffee I felt a dimension of hopefulness I had not felt before. This “higher level of Being” was something that I and others might aspire to attain.

It has become popular to say that what we experience in the life after this life is determined by our own beliefs, desires, and imaginations. I find that idea believable, and creating a good afterlife for myself has become a priority. At first I was somewhat distressed to find that the highest and best thing I could imagine was paradisiacal sex. I was distressed because I’ve often been told that such physical desires, though in no way “bad”, will bind us to go through more of this mixed bag of physical suffering, fear, and short-lived pleasure on “the Earth plane”.

So, I would enthusiastically welcome a paradise populated by beautiful females –- or just the right female -- especially if hors d’oeuvres were available -- but it presumably would impede my evolution to higher planes. Other than imagining my spirit body flying over oceans and across new solar systems, I couldn’t come up with a goal to compete with a woman. But now that I’ve experienced an awareness of a higher level of Being I feel that I have been shown a new path to explore.

To get an idea of my pre-dawn experience, imagine yourself in your house at night with all the usual lighting on, when suddenly all the lights become brighter. You think, “This is much better!” “I never imagined it could be like this.”

I’ll conclude by mentioning another, similar, experience I had a year or two ago. I’m not good at meditating, but I’ve tried, and while in a meditative state I had what might qualify as a “vision” because it was visually so clear and memorable: It was as if the top of my head was open and I could see above me a sky of incredibly deep blue surrounded by rich golden clouds – colors unlike any I’d seen before. The spectacle was shaped like a sky painting in the dome of some European cathedral or castle, but the quality was superior, and there were no annoying cherubs. I felt that I’d had a glimpse of a heaven. The vision continues to inspire me.