We have been exploring the interface between the “Higher Self” (Which for purposes here I have designated emanating from the Unconscious) and the subconscious mind, where I believe most dream activity originates, if one can be so linear. Therefore, as I have emphasized repeatedly, although all dreams have “spiritual” import, some have more direct messages from the Higher Self than others. In this column we will investigate those moments and dreams in which the “Higher Self” completely takes over the dream and its landscape. These dreams are so powerful, we usually remember them for the rest of our lives. The vividness of what appears to be deep and pervasive connection to Divine energy often creates an afterglow and depth of feeling that is extraordinary.

These dreams are revelation dreams. Not only are they highly significant for individuals, they also have played an important part in our spiritual history and lore. Often history has turned on such dreams. Emperor Constantine’s dream of a great cross in the sky with the command “Under this sign you shall conquer” is one of the most famous, and completely altered the fate of Western Civilization. Jacob’s dream of the ladder connecting Heaven and Earth with Angels traversing its length establishing the spot for the land of Israel is perhaps the most well known such dream from the Bible.

My own spiritual life, and life itself was completely altered by not one, but literally dozens and dozens of such dreams. The power and intervention of the Divine Center, Source Energy, God, whatever language we wish to use, in the dream state was so forceful, insistent, and all encompassing, that for years it was my main conduit to that center. It created in the most formative way my relationship to that Divine Source. And it so saturated my consciousness, that it took years to fully understand the miraculous nature of the intervention, why it occurred in such fashion, and as a secondary fall out, why my relationship with dreams today is so profound.

The first of these great transformational dreams occurred in an early August morning in 1972. About a year before I had been initiated into an Eastern Yoga Meditation movement called Ananda Marga. What drew me to this particular group was something that was not tangible, but what I now interpret as the force of the Divine Will itself, through events, demanding that I associate myself with this specific group and this particular teacher, whose spiritual name was Shri Shri Anandamurti. Anandamurti was affectionately known to his followers as Baba. (Many Gurus are known in some manner, as Baba, which means “Spiritual Father”, Sai Baba being perhaps the most recognized.) He was considered a Sat Guru or “true Guru”, the highest level of spiritual teacher in this type of tradition. In his case, Baba had not had a teacher himself, but had been self realized, or actualized, at the age of six. There were many extraordinary legends and stories of his childhood and countless amazing experiences by those close to him, and my initiation, which is not the topic here, fit that category.

My first year with the movement was very joyful with a group of friends with whom I grew close in Long Island. We even rented out a house together in Freeport. But the house had disbanded and I needed somewhere to live. I was drawn to explore Philadelphia because at the time it was one of the largest Ananda Marga groups on the East Coast, having developed two centers in different parts of the city. There was a spot open in the house in Germantown, known as a Jagriti, Ananda Marga’s term for Ashram, and myself, and those who lived there were checking each other out. A room was free because its occupant actually was in India attempting to see Baba personally, and that night I slept on the mat in his room.

As I slept I had a dream. In the dream, I was with a group of people and Baba was present. The dream itself was especially vivid. Baba looked exactly as he did in his pictures, a small but dexterous man with closely cropped hair and thick, black rimmed glasses (which I always found funny because it so went against the image of Gurus with long, flowing hair and beards). He was dressed all in white. I remember remarking to myself in the dream how amazing it was to be this close to him. But something was wrong, I was off to the side and there were many people around him and I sadly thought, “I’ll never get his attention”. (This was a motif that would pervade my dreams with him many times, hearkening to my relationship with my own father, who had difficulty acknowledging me until near his death in 2000.) But a path seamed to clear and I found myself moving, almost flowing toward Baba until not only was I next to him, I was also alone with him. At this point I was extremely excited, fascinated, and amazed. What did Baba, this great teacher want with me? How was I so lucky to have the privilege to have him want my attention and presence? I didn’t understand the reason for it, none was given, and Baba began a conversation with me. I didn’t notice anything extraordinary about the conversation, I don’t even remember what it was about, but it was very personal and animated.

I also didn’t realize that as we were having this talk, the energy in the dream began to intensify, to slowly climb the way the mercury rises in a thermometer when put into hot water. Because I was focused visually on Baba, I was unaware of how strong this was becoming. Finally the scene switched and I was in very close proximity to Baba in a very, very intimate situation. We were seated together, across from one another, alone, at the Yoga center a friend of mine had established at Einstein Hospital in Northeast Philadelphia. The light was very soft and dim and Baba and I were sitting cross-legged on the floor. By now the energy was incredible but I was only barely aware of it, as I had been so focused on my Guru and this astonishing turn of events. He said to me “I am now going to give you the third lesson of Ananda Marga (the group followed Baba’s version of Patanjali’s Eight Fold Path and had six lessons, of which by then I had been given two). By now the energy was swirling all around as I tried to concentrate on the Guru’s form and what was to come next.

But to my surprise, the lesson did not come, at least not in the form I expected. As if a giant hand decided it was time that the dream end, like a director saying, “cut”, I had the sensation of a great, but invisible thumb and forefinger gently pinching out a candle. And as they did I instantly woke up. But I awoke with a gasp, my jaw literally open, in amazement. For as I awoke, I felt myself awash in bliss. Ecstasy permeated every pore of my body. I was aware of an extraordinary presence in the room, or the presence of one who had just left. Not only did it saturate my body, it seemed as if the entire room was bathed in it. The bliss hung in the air like a sweet mist that lingered after an incredibly warm, light rain, or a fruit you could just reach out and pluck from the branch of a tree. It was everywhere and I was astonished, my body and mind pulsating with it. The feeling stayed with me for hours, and I remember it today as vividly as when it first happened. What I had received was an incredible gift, the living Darshan of the Guru, the energy of God, but transmitted in a non- physical manner.

This was to become the foundation for one of the great themes of my spiritual life, guidance from the Guru, from God, beyond physical contact. In this time of great spiritual transformation, I know that many in the West have had their own versions of profound mystical experiences without a direct relationship to a specific form. It is one of the tremendous blessings of our time and speaks to the soul evolution of so many on the path. But this is a dream column and most of my revelations initially began in the dream state. As I mentioned previously, this dream was but a beginning, of a process that was to occur repeatedly, and for years, as my God-self through the Guru anchored the Divine frequency into me over and over.

In the next column, we will delve more deeply into the revelation dream, how often the “Higher Self” will use elements from the subconscious to transmit important guidance, how cultivation of dreams can open the doorway to this experience, and why dreams were the conduit chosen in my life for this transmission and contact.

Ken Kaplan is a dream specialist, intuitive counselor, and presenter on spiritual topics. If you wish to inquire about his services, or especially if you desire to work with him on a dream you have had, he can be contacted at kenstories@comcast.net. Ken works most effectively by phone, charges a nominal fee, and emails that just describe dreams seeking answers with no depth of interaction generally are not considered.