Categories: Cosmic Messengers
May the blessings of the Triple Gem be with you all!
Welcome. In our exploration of the spiritual life, we often encounter phenomena that are unseen and difficult to explain. Today, we return to a topic we have discussed before: the concept of “Agents from the Universe.” Specifically, we will explore the different ways these agents, and the universe itself, deliver messages to us. This is a topic born from 100% direct experience, and I hope to provide you with a full and correct understanding.
This experience of receiving what feels like messages from the universe is not uncommon. It happens to people both within Sri Lanka and abroad, across all nationalities and walks of life. Whether you are rich or poor, educated or uneducated, from any religion or background, these experiences can occur. I have met professors with PhDs and people with no formal education who have had these encounters. Because this is a shared human experience, I feel it is important to offer some knowledge and clarity on the subject.
Discerning Wisdom from Illusion: A Gentle Warning
Before we proceed, we must address a common misunderstanding. Because these topics are not easily understood, they are sometimes met with ridicule. Others, particularly in Western psychology, may label these experiences as a mental illness. It’s true that some individuals do experience mental health conditions that mimic these phenomena. However, it is also true that many people genuinely receive these messages from the universe.
As we explore this teaching, you will learn to distinguish between them. It is my hope that by listening with a neutral, open mind, you can understand your own experiences or those of a friend. You will be able to ask: Is this a sign of mental illness? Or are real messages from the universe being received? Is this person living in a fantasy world of their own making, or is there a genuine spiritual connection? My goal is to provide a broad understanding so you can navigate your own path and help those around you with wisdom and compassion.
The First Way: Direct Messages to the Mind
The most common way messages from the universe are received is directly into the mind. It is not a dream, but a sudden, clear thought or feeling that arises spontaneously.
Let me give you some recent examples. Before the COVID-19 pandemic became a global crisis, some people received a sudden, internal message warning them that a virus was coming and they should be careful. They couldn’t explain where the thought came from, but it was there. Because they heeded this inner warning, many were able to protect themselves.
Similarly, during the recent economic hardships in Sri Lanka, many people had to wait in long lines for fuel, gas, and food. However, certain individuals received a clear message beforehand:“Queues are coming.” Though they had no political connections or inside information, they felt a strong urge to prepare.
These people, rich and poor, educated and uneducated, bought an extra gas cylinder or stored some extra food. While others suffered in the queues, they were safe and comfortable at home, all because they listened to that initial, inexplicable message.
A more dramatic example is the 2004 tsunami. Some people living near the coast received a sudden, powerful message: “The sea is coming ashore.” It came as a clear thought, a direct communication to their mind. Acting on this, they traveled inland for a holiday or to visit relatives and were saved from the disaster.
These messages can be about global events, like warnings of a world war, or they can be intensely personal. You might receive a sudden insight about a challenge or opportunity within your family, a friend, your workplace, or society. These are not elaborate visions, but simple, direct messages arriving in the mind.
A Crucial Guideline: The Wisdom of Silence
Now, I must offer a piece of advice that I will repeat throughout this discussion. Never, ever tell people about these experiences if they do not trust you. If you share this with those who do not understand, you will simply be labeled as mentally ill. The reality is that very few people in this world, even in Sri Lanka, have a deep understanding of these unseen spiritual dimensions. The majority operate from a place of non-understanding.
When you speak of something people haven’t seen, they will measure you by the standards of modern Western science and technology. Since your experience falls outside those limited measurements, you will be dismissed as a fool. Western science has not yet developed the technology to scan the messages from the universe that are received by these spiritual agents.
This happens even to scientists at institutions like NASA, who often use various meditation techniques to try and connect their minds with beings on other planets or in other realms, what we might simply call extraterrestrial life. Those who study astronomy and planetary science know that meditation is used to explore beyond the limits of technology. While it may sound foolish to the uninformed, wise people have always experimented with these methods.
So, remember this. The information you receive is for you. Be silent. There is no need to prove anything to anyone.
The Second Way: A Conversation with the Mind
The second way messages are received is through a direct conversation with the mind. This is different from the first method. It feels as if someone is speaking with you, mind-to-mind.
First, we must distinguish this from two other phenomena. One is the ordinary chatter of the mind we observe in mindfulness meditation, which we have discussed in our teachings on Vipassana (insight meditation). That is simply the mind playing back a recording of your life’s experiences. The other is a symptom of a mental illness known as schizophrenia (Binnonmadaya in Sinhala), where a person hears voices.
A person experiencing genuine messages from the universe understands the need for silence. They do not feel compelled to tell everyone what they hear. They simply observe what is happening in the world and act accordingly. However, a person with the illness often behaves differently. Outwardly, they may appear perfectly normal, well-dressed, and articulate. They can discuss any ordinary topic coherently.
But when a spiritual or controversial topic is raised, like the modern-day people in Sri Lanka who claim to be historical figures like King Ravana or the prophesied Diyasena, their behavior changes. In a group of people who are skeptical, they will launch into their topic without considering their audience. They will speak loudly, rapidly, and without stopping, regardless of who is listening. This compulsion to speak in unsuitable places is a key sign.
A truly capable person feels no need to boast or announce who they are. They are silent. They know what is happening and what will happen, and they have no need to broadcast their past lives or their importance. Those who constantly boast about who they are or were often fall into a state of mental illness, and when their prophecies fail to materialize, their condition worsens.
This illness can also be influenced by external content. I have met many young people who have consumed numerous YouTube videos about figures like Ravana and Diyasena. They absorb this information, internalize it, and begin to believe that the voices in their head are divine messages about their own grand identity. They feel, “This story is about me.” This is how they become self-proclaimed kings and queens from history. But this is not a message from the universe; it is their own mind, replaying and personalizing data it has absorbed.
How to Differentiate: The Test of Reality
So, how can you know the difference? How can you tell if it is your own mind, a sign of illness, or a genuine conversation with an unseen agent from the universe, be it a deity (deva), a high-powered being, a universal guardian, or a Brahma? Usually, the being communicating with you has a past connection.
They may be from a realm you came from in a past life, a former guide, or the leader of a group you belonged to. They speak to you mind-to-mind, like a friend. Crucially, they will not push you towards a state of mental imbalance. They will only speak when necessary and will not answer every question you ask.
Deities and Brahmas have great wisdom. They do not cater to our every whim. They provide the necessary information and then fall silent. You can cry and roll on the floor, but if the information is not for you to know, they will not give it. This is a key difference.
The best way to know for sure is to test it. You must become a scientist of your own mind using mindfulness. If you practice mindfulness meditation as we teach, you will be able to see clearly whether the voice is coming from your own database of memories and information gathered through your five senses, or if it is something external. Here is a practical method:
- The Food Test: Imagine someone gives you a box of sweets. The voice in your mind says, “Do not eat that. An enemy has put something in it to harm you. You will get a stomach ache or vomit.” If you are uncertain, conduct an experiment. Eat the sweets. If nothing happens, no stomach ache, no vomiting, then you know it was your own mind creating stories based on things you have seen or heard. You can smile, realizing you have seen through the illusion with mindfulness.
- The Action Test: The voice may say, “Do not apply for that loan. It will not be successful.” If you are uncertain, be stubborn. Go and try your best to get the loan. If, after every possible effort, it fails just as the voice predicted, then you can begin to trust that a genuine agent is speaking to you.
- The Journey Test: If the voice says, “Do not take that journey today,” and you go anyway and return completely safe, you know it was just your mind’s chatter. However, if you go and narrowly escape an accident, a “close call”, then you understand that someone was trying to protect you.
Perform several such experiments. True messages from the universe will prove themselves in reality. If their predictions about your personal life or world events come true, you can trust them. If not, you must recognize it as your mind’s own creation and use mindfulness to let it go. You do not need any medication; you just need to be honest with yourself.
The Third Way: Clearly Hearing the Message
The third method is unmistakable: you hear the voice with your ears, as clearly as you are hearing me now. This is a spiritual ability known in Buddhism as Dibba-sota, or the “divine ear.” A person may not have the “third eye” open, but they can have this faculty of clairaudience.
The being speaks to you as if they were on the phone or standing right in front of you. This is how powerful beings, like the tempter Mara, communicate with their agents in the human world. In the same way, benevolent universal agents communicate with their representatives on Earth.
However, the same principles apply. These highly intelligent beings, whether deities or Brahmas, are incredibly wise. As wisdom increases, unnecessary speech decreases. They use the fewest possible words to convey the most profound and useful meaning. They will not engage in idle gossip. They will deliver the necessary message and then fall silent.
If they tell you, “A natural disaster is coming,” and you pester them with questions, “When? How? Where?”, they will not answer. If you insist, they may give you a false date to teach you a lesson. They might say “December,” but the event happens at another time.
If you try to become a prophet and announce this to your friends and family, you will be made to look like a fool. The message is for your protection only. It is not for you to become famous. So, receive the message, take the necessary precautions silently, and do not tell anyone who does not need to know.
The Fourth Way: Insights Through Dreams
The fourth way messages from the universe arrive is through dreams. I have spoken with many people, including university students, who experience this. They see future events in their dreams, sometimes good things, sometimes accidents or misfortunes that will befall their friends or family.
These dreams can be about your personal future, the future of your country, or the future of the world. As we have taught before in our discussion on dreams, those that occur in the late hours of the night, closer to dawn, are often the most potent and likely to come true.
When you have such a dream, what should you do? If it is a warning of danger, do your best to protect the people involved. If you cannot, understand that it may be the result of their own kamma (intentional action) and find peace in that understanding. If the dream is of something good, you can simply rejoice.
The key is to approach these dreams with mindfulness. When you awaken, remain mindful and observe. Sometimes the meaning of a dream is not immediately clear. Give it time. Later, when an event occurs, you will realize, “Ah, this is what that dream was pointing to.” Over time, you will learn your own dream language and be able to discern whether a particular dream signals a positive or negative outcome. Be an explorer of your own inner world.
The Fifth Way: Through Developed Spiritual Faculties
The fifth way messages are received is through developed spiritual or extrasensory abilities. Many people in the world today, across all ages, backgrounds, and religions, are awakening to these faculties.
These include:
- Dibba-cakkhu (The Divine Eye): Often called the “third eye,” this is the ability to see things not visible to the physical eyes.
- Paracitta-vijanana (Knowing the Minds of Others): The ability to read or perceive the thoughts and intentions of others.
- Knowledge of Past Lives: The ability to see one’s own or others’ past existences.
These are part of what Buddhism calls the Panca-abhinna, or the five mundane supernormal knowledges. Some people may have one, two, or all of these abilities. Through these faculties, they can receive clear information. While meditating, or by setting a clear intention (adhitthana), they can see the future of their own life, their country, or their friends.
However, the same warning applies here with even greater force. Even if you see a future event through these abilities, the exact time may be withheld. The information is given for a specific purpose, and sharing it indiscriminately can lead to trouble.
If you feel compelled to share a vision, use your ability to discern who is truly ready to hear it. Otherwise, stay silent. As I have said before, do not try to be a prophet. Use this knowledge to live wisely.
These are the primary ways that messages from the universe reach us. I hope this explanation has brought you a broader and deeper understanding. Use this knowledge with wisdom, intelligence, and silence to navigate your spiritual journey.
Conclusion
Today, we have explored the intricate ways in which guidance can be received. It is my sincere wish that with the power and blessings of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha, the Triple Gem, you may grasp these points clearly. May you act with understanding, wisdom, and discernment. With this blessing, I conclude today’s teaching.
We invite you to walk this path with us. Read our teachings, and most importantly, apply them practically in your own life. as you practice, questions will naturally arise. Please feel free to share your experiences and questions in the comments below, via email or contact form. I will do my best to offer guidance in future talks based on your progress. For now, begin this practice with an open heart and a mind free from expectation. Cultivate it correctly, and may you find the clarity and peace you seek.
Thank you for joining us. We hope this blog will be of great benefit to your spiritual journey.
May you all be well and happy.
May the blessings of the Triple Gem be with you all!
