Examining the work of spiritual masters from the six major world religions, I found an amazing point-for-point correspondence between all six at virtually every stage of the journey. Here is what I found, examining their writings at a granular level.
A Model for Spiritual Development
1. At the very beginning, four of the six authors discussed the necessity of faith. Of note, this wasn't so much faith in a particular theology as faith that there is a better way of life—rather different from what one might expect.
2. Next, all six spiritual masters agreed that behavior change was necessary to make spiritual progress. Even more impressive, they agreed on precisely the same changes. These include the renunciation of behaviors based on falsehood, theft, sexual improprieties, violence, and greed. (Read the book to discover why they chose these same behaviors! There is a clear and convincing logic here.)
3. As these negative behaviors cease, all six of our spiritual masters agreed that the next step in the journey involves some form of concentration in prayer or meditation. While our usual control over our attention is sufficient for most day-to-day purposes, much more control is necessary for spiritual progress.
4. Ultimately, in spiritual development, one must focus attention so entirely that there is nothing else in one's mind but the Divine. When this occurs, the wayfarer enters a preliminary union with the Divine, marked by overwhelming ecstasy and bliss – the First Absorption. Five of our six authors described this stage.
5. The wayfarer enters the Second Absorption as this concentration deepens and the focus sharpens even further. All six of our authors described this as a psychological state characterized by an opening to what they called the subtle or fine material world. This marks the beginning of wisdom, one of the distinctive characteristics of the saints of all religions.
6. The Third Absorption, described by four of our masters, involves a deeper focus and a further unification of the mind. One's detachment from external things increases, and a deep sense of peacefulness develops. The feelings of bliss that were so pronounced in the First Absorption fall away as one's concentration continues and the mind's focus unifies.
7. As this process of interior unification deepens, the mind becomes utterly detached and pure, and the heart becomes free from all cares – the Fourth Absorption. During this process, there is an unexpected grace from the Unseen with a "divinely infused knowledge which cannot be acquired by learning." All of this is to say that psychic powers become available at this stage in the journey. You know, things like levitation, reading the minds of others, bilocation, and the like. Four authors explicitly state this; the other two imply that psychic powers become available here. (I know, mind-boggling, isn't it? I could hardly believe my eyes as these data emerged.)
8. Then comes a most interesting stage, identified by four of our six spiritual masters, where their belief system appears as an objective reality. For the Hindu, there is a perception of universal consciousness; for the Buddhist, a sense of boundless consciousness and a total disengagement from objects-of-consciousness; for the Jew, a comprehension of the Divine by the divine soul in the practitioner; for the Muslim, a direct knowledge of the Divine and the arising of wisdom. It is as if the theological understanding of each faith somehow manifests to the writer as an objective reality.
9. Following this, the first stage of enlightenment arises. Here, five of our six authors state that in an instant, there is an annihilation of whatever is left of the personal sense of self as one enters into a profoundly unitive state with God. There is perfect serenity here: the mind is utterly empty and still. This state is described as qualitatively different from all of the preceding states.
10. Finally, the second and final enlightenment state arises, described by all six of our spiritual masters. A deeper kind of ecstasy develops, and all of one's conditioned habits of mind are eliminated. While there is some variability in the description of this state, these differences result from the different belief systems. When one looks at all of these data, our authors describe, as best as they can with the crude tools of language, the same inner state, or at least, very similar states.
If you think this is amazing, I encourage you to read the whole book, not just this summary. The conclusions drawn from these data are absolutely astounding. They will revolutionize your understanding of the spiritual journey, the nature of God, and your own human capacity for joy!
