79 On Bliss and Ecstasy
Beloved Shya,
Love.
Bliss and Ecstasy are the same force, at different depths.
Bliss is the feeling of wellbeing, of fulfilment, that comes from being in contact with the divine, in meditativeness.
Ecstasy is a deeper plunge into that divine, to the extent that one's own identity disappears in that divine.
One is swimming in the Ocean, the other is diving deep into the Ocean.
Bliss and Ecstasy are positive because they are a real experience, and they confirm the presence of the divine.
They can serve to give you a direct confirmation of the divine, and to encourage you to keep going on the path.
But they can also be a tripwire, in that if you are experiencing bliss without understanding, if you are experiencing it through the veil of your conditionings, you are likely to misinterpret your experience.
There is also a danger of trapping yourself in bliss, of transforming your drive for awareness into a desire for the high of bliss.
Anyone can achieve bliss.
But only through a careful process of meditation can you reach awareness.
Love
Swami
