I had the pleasure of hearing John Cianciosi speak at the Mid-South Federation of the Theosophical Society in America Annual Meeting at Lake Junaluska, North Carolina. John was ordained as a Buddhist Monk in Thailand and trained under one of Thailand’s most gifted and influential meditation masters, the late Venerable Ajahn Chah. He is also author of 2 books titled “True Freedom” and “The Meditative Path“. What I loved most about hearing John speak was how he put what I knew to be true (the most likely barriers to achieving a true inner state of bliss or oneness with meditation) in the most direct, simple and easy to understand way. In this post I intend to share my wisdom along with John’s clear explanations. I hope it is helpful!

The goal or purpose of meditation is achieving a state of perfect clarity/perfect unity with the “wonderful Radiant Luminous Mind”- or “Radiant Heart”.

What is this state of ‘Radiant Luminous Mind’ or ‘Radiant Heart’? John Cianciosi likes to say “If you are thinking about it, then that is not it“. When you reach a state of luminous unity or luminous absorption, the world of the 5 senses ceases. When in the state of ‘Radiant Mind’, a person reaches bliss and pure awareness with no sense of duality (the highest goal). Such a state changes our attitude, perception and false views about our self.

5 Hindrances to Achieving ‘Radiant Mind’/'Radiant Heart’ in Meditation:

1. Preoccupation With the Physical/Sensory World (the 5 Senses): We must be willing to let go of the world of physical senses at least temporarily when in a state of meditation. This is why it is advised to seek out places of silence/quiet and spaciousness in the early stages of meditative practice. This can, however, be difficult for people who are faced with survival issues on a daily basis or for those who have a need for hypervigilance of their surroundings (such as some people with control issues, Read More→