In more very recent times people are waking up about the value of our intuition just as there is an increased interest in our greater awareness and acceptance of the potential of transformative, transpersonal, and noetic experiences, often called spiritual awakening, to positively benefit both physical and mental health. This article covers:
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- The Intuition and Meditation Connection
- The Definition of Intuition
- Intuition in the Physical Body
- Accessing Intuition
- Why We Are Revaluing Intuition at This Time
- Businesses and Universities and Intuition
- Creativity Development and Intuition
- Transformative Experiences
- Psychedelic Assisted Interventions
- Ego Boundary Expansion
- Evolution, Spiritual Transformation, and Intuition
How are intuition and meditation connected?
While there has been a huge surge in the interest to see people who use their intuition, (also known as psychics), in readings of all kinds I am also referring to big business and universities not only acknowledging the value of intuition but also developing courses and programs to help professionals use their intuition. Why would they do that and what is happening now that is pushing people to examine and cultivate their intuition?
What is intuition?
Before answering those questions defining intuition is important. Intuition is our lightning-fast response that arises mostly unbidden for most people. However, we can cultivate and expand out intuition while we are awake through acknowledging its presence, and through intuition development programs and by learning methods that apply and develop it. But we also gain intuitive information from our nighttime dreams as insight that applies to our daily life about current situations, about the past that may be unresolved, and even message dreams where a clear message occurs in the dream through visual and/or auditory content or knowing. We also can wake up from sleep and suddenly have insight or intuition about a situation. Another method of acquiring insight from a dream is through dream incubation by intending to gain intuitive information about a topic before falling asleep. But intuition is even more valuable and multi-faceted.
Intuition can be auditory, internally or externally visual, involve olfactory, tactile, taste, feeling and often is beyond our five senses. While some people call intuition the 6th sense or the spidey sense, I have identified over 55 kinds of intuition in the book, 55+ Kinds of Intuition which shows these abilities that are not categorized in the current model of explaining our five senses. While over 55 different kinds of intuitive abilities might seem incomprehensible, there is plenty of evidence our government has recognized and valued intuition with the remote viewing experiments conducted by Russell Targ and Harold Puthoff from Stanford University over 50 years ago, in and before 1974!
Where does intuition occur in the physical body?
Intuition has been identified as occurring within a location in the brain as the ventromedial prefrontal cortex but we also know intuition is not limited to a place in the brain because there are many kinds of intuitive responses that occur in the body as knowing, ‘gut feelings’, tingling, shivers or horripilation-that is the hair standing up on the arms or the back of the neck, a heightened sense of awareness, tuning in through feeling are only naming a few.
What are the benefits of intuition?
Over many hundreds and even thousands of years there has been suppression of individuals using their intuition. Using our intuition is a way you become powerful because you are self-reliant with trusting your guidance which means you have a direct connection and have no need for others to create the rules about accessing that guidance. This self-reliance was taken away because it was threatening to those who wanted to maintain their power. This suppression was especially towards women and different cultural groups who learned to doubt themselves and their intuition.
Now, there is a resurgence of interest in intuition for self-use because we are re-connecting to our internal navigation systems and reclaiming ancient knowledge and our heritage. As we begin shirking off our doubt and intuition estrangement
Often people find themselves thinking they don’t really have intuition,
Other people’s intuition may seem better or more developed because of doubt, or
Often we don’t realize when intuition is occurring because it is so innate!
Why are we re-learning how to attune and value our intuition, and go beyond to develop, encourage, heighten, and accelerate our intuition now?
There are several precipitating factors. One is intuition is a powerful component of the power of now and being in the present moment. We collectively know the benefits of being in the present moment. Also, healing the past, including childhood experiences, familial, and generational trauma allows us to become more present which is where we experience our intuitive responses. The more we are in the present moment and tune into our full awareness, the more we notice our intuition, and as this process continues the building of intuitive trust continues and our intuition expands.
But what about using intuition for professional use?
Some universities and professional programs understand intuition is critical to solving problems in management and every other area, developing new innovations, gaining insight about situations, learning about interacting with people and their motives, as well as personal growth which is beneficial to companies and their product development and services. Knowing intuition is valuable and learning the tools that develop intuition then are critical to the advancement of the corporate and professional workspace.
As Steve Jobs said, intuition is “more powerful than intellect.” And “Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”
“Learning to trust your instincts, using your intuitive sense of what’s best for you, is paramount for any lasting success. I’ve trusted the still, small voice of intuition my entire life. And the only time I’ve made mistakes is when I didn’t listen.” Oprah Winfrey.
“I believe in intuition and inspiration. Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution. It is, strictly speaking, a real factor in scientific research.” “Indeed, it is not intellect, [which means book knowledge and empiricism for him], but intuition which advances humanity. Intuition tells man his real purpose in this life.” Albert Einstein.
“Don’t try to comprehend with your mind. Your minds are very limited. Use your intuition.” Award-winning author, Madeline L’Engle.
How is intuition developed? And how is intuition connected to meditation?
We know from research intuition is cultivated though changing our brain waves from our normal beta state into alpha, delta, and theta. When the changes in brain waves occur, there are simultaneous changes in respiration, and heart rate. In the relaxed states of alpha, delta, and theta we are more receptive and intuitive than in ordinary waking consciousness. Relaxing, noticing, and being fully present are ways we are able to connect to our intuition and develop trust in it. Shifting out of ordinary brain waves, where respiration and heart rate change simultaneously are the same characteristics of the relaxation response. The relaxation response also occurs in effective meditation. Therefore, the act of meditation encourages intuition and creativity because the same requirements exist for both to occur. Shifting our brain waves, heart rate, and respiration occur in intuitive, creative, and meditative states.
Creativity
Creativity is an intuitive process that involves ideas, imagination, knowings, into something tangible all built on intuitive trust. During creativity hidden patterns may be noticed, connections between things that aren’t normally related, and coming up with new ideas occur though intuition which are all components of problem-solving. These moments of intuitive trust occur in the present moment and are also identified as inner wisdom, direct knowing, or implicit understanding which are all generally identified as intuition. These kinds of experiences can transcend an individual’s self-identity and change the perspective of limitations of space-time which often have a profound and transformative impact upon the person as a one-time dynamic experience or a series of smaller experiences occurring over a time interval and/or through a lifetime.
What does it take to transform?
While meditation slowly builds with repetitive and daily practice, it potentiates transformation; a continuous process and sometimes a discontinuous leap forward in consciousness, wherein the person is significantly changed in terms of world view, behavior, and attitude. This shift occurs often in small increments of mini-transcendent states also known as repeated changes in brain waves, heart rate, and respiration which are states of meditation.
Psychedelic Interventions and Meditation
People who are seeking to expand their intuition or heal themselves of depression or other mental or physical health concerns with a psychedelic, after their psychedelic experience, need stabilization and repeated connection to the relaxation response through meditation practices because it keeps them in balance as they reconnect to these relaxed states, and they don’t lose what they gained from their experience. A consistent effective meditation practice is a foundational tool to anchor the electro-magnetic energy for successful navigation in the ordinary world and sustains their connection to their newly discovered spiritual heightened awareness.
Whether transformation and spiritual awakening occurs through regular meditation and the development of intuition or the use of a psychedelic intervention the shift in perspective and lessening of limitations is the transformative element.
Additional research into the use of intuition reveals our transformation involves integrating beyond the five senses experiences, expansion of consciousness and usual ego boundaries because it is critical. When we expand our current space/time limitations through meditation, as a component of spiritual awakening, we access understanding of our psyche, other life forms, and the cosmos. The same experiences beyond the five senses, expansion of consciousness and usual ego boundaries expand our intuition, innovation, insight, inspiration, and creativity that give us the tools for living and thriving for ourselves, with others and other creatures, the Earth, and multiverse. It is critical to move beyond the current restrictive parameters and ways of thinking, accessing new insights and creative ways of problem-solving. Using the tool of meditation is one of the keys to resolving different current issues of mental and physical health that are the canaries in the coal mine about our current state of the world while accessing, developing, and deepening our intuition and our evolution.
References
Awakening Intuition, How Intuition Taps the Subconscious Mind. (Equisync Institute). (2022). https://eocinstitute.org/meditation/how-to-awaken-your-intuition-with-meditation/
Banks, Adrian. (2014). Research Insight, Fresh thinking in learning and development part 2 of 3. Cognition, decision, and expertise. Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, London England.
Creativity, The Psychology of Discovery and Invention (2013). Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. Electronic copy.
Intuition Is Our Next Stage of Evolution. (2006). James, Susan Sophia. Om Publishing House.
Jacobs, G. D. (2001). Clinical applications of the relaxation response and mind-body interventions. Journal of Alternative & Complementary Medicine, 7(6), 93-101. doi:10.1089/107555301753393850
James, Susan Sophia. (2016). 50+ Kinds of Intuition & Exercises for Moving to the Next Level, Om House Publishing, Tucson, Arizona.
McGurk, John. (2014). Conclusion and Practice Pointers. Research Insight, Fresh thinking in learning and development. Cognition, decision, and expertise. Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, London England.
Remove Viewing of Natural Targets, SRI. Russel Targ and Harold Puthoff. (1998). Freedom of Information Act Electronic Reading Room. https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/document/cia-rdp96-00787r000500410001-3
Shetkar , R. M., Hankey, A. , Nagendra , H. R., Pradhan, B. (2019). Association between Cyclic Meditation and Creative Cognition: Optimizing Connectivity between the Frontal and Parietal Lobes. National Library of Medicine. National Center for Biotechnology Information. doi: 10.4103/ijoy.IJOY_26_17
Wahbeh, H., Fry, N., Speirn, P., Hrnjic, L., Ancel, E., & Niebauer, E. (2022). Qualitative analysis of first-person accounts of noetic experiences. Research Institute of Noetic Sciences. Neurology, Oregon Health & Science, University. doi:10.4103/ijoy.IJOY_26_17 S
