One night I had a dream.
I was standing on the shore of a lake. I felt like taking a swim, so I waded into the water. There were many people swimming, playing, and horsing around. I waded deeper into the lake until the water reached my neck.
A rope marked the edge of the safe swimming area and separated it from the rest of the lake. As I touched the rope, everyone suddenly stopped and looked at me. Then there was a commotion, in which everyone angrily shouted at me to come back to the shallow water. Without realizing it, I had touched some nerve in the lake. I felt perplexed and threatened by the crowd.
While trying to decide whether or not to cross the rope, I saw a man on the shore. He was obviously the lifeguard, and no one could cross beyond the rope without his permission.
He read my thought that I wanted to go beyond the safe swimming area. He silently conveyed the question, “Are you sure you have the courage to cross over?”
“Yes,” I mentally assured him.
His calm smile clearly said, “If you have the courage, go ahead.”
Lifting the rope, I stepped into the restricted area. Immediately, the color of the water changed from muddy brown to deep blue. I looked up, and the lifeguard was no longer there.
As I started to swim, a rapid current caught me and carried my body away from the shore. I had no control. An invisible force pulled me faster and faster through the water, as if a ship was taking me someplace.
Suddenly, I slowed down and landed at the edge of a washed-out embankment, which was above my reach. A person reached over and lifted me onto the shore. It soon became clear that people here lived in a totally different dimension. The beach was vertical, as opposed to the horizontal dimension from which I came. I was unsure how to balance myself in this dimension.
Soon a few people appeared. I understood they were the teachers who would guide me.
It took me years to realize that this dream was a harbinger of things to come. I would be entering a world where the perspective was totally different from what I was used to, and I would need teachers and guides who could instruct me.
I encountered a number of such teachers — extraordinary people and events that shook the very foundations of my being. They appeared in many ways: physical and non-physical, in dreams and in waking life. Each encounter moved me a step forward by creating an upheaval in my life, and giving me a glimpse of other dimensions and realities. I learned as much from them as I could, but not always willingly.
What I thought were the teachers were the Mystery.
And, the Mystery was the teacher.
Here, to the best of my ability, I write about some of those teachers — or Mystery, if you will.
balbirmathur.com 