Out of the Darkness

In his latest book, Out of the Darkness, Steve Taylor continues his exploration of the awakening or enlightenment process begun in Waking from Sleep. He uses his collection of case studies to illustrate and analyse how and why some people are transformed by traumatic experiences - often dramatically, suddenly and permanently. It's as if the old identity is blown apart, and a new person is born. These new personas experience greater happiness and a deeper sense of connection to nature and people. As a result, their relationships become deeper, and they are more empathic, compassionate and altruistic. Ceasing to take their blessings for granted, they live more in the present. Losing their interest in materialism and success, they find life more meaningful and purposeful. With their heads less cluttered by mind-chatter, they are happy doing nothing or being alone. In many cases, they lose their fear of death, and may experience themselves as an integral part of a universe permeated by benevolent and meaningful consciousness. Steve Taylor acknowledges that such transformations are not an automatic result, stating that: 'It goes almost without saying that the long-term effects of turmoil and trauma are usually profoundly negative.' Thus, trauma is two-faced. What most of us see and experience is the damaging impact on individuals, families, communities and civilisation; the mental disorders, ill health, domestic violence, child abuse, sexual oppression, addiction, war, genocide and other consequences. Amongst the numerous positive cases cited by Taylor, it is easy to lose sight of this negative reality. Taylor argues that intense turmoil causes the ego to collapse. In most cases, this results in a psychotic break, but for some it leads to the emergence of a new self. Such Suffering-Induced Transformational Experiences (or SITEs as he calls them) can break us loose from our desire for wealth, status, success and the many other attachments which form the building blocks of ego. Breaking these attachments is painful, shattering our identity and leaving us empty. But when we face up to our predicament with courage, surrender to the inevitable, and accept our situation, a space is opened for a new self to be born. By contrast, transformation is blocked when we resist, and try to avoid, ignore or deny what is happening. Resistance may also be why the transformation sometimes fades with time as the old ego recovers. Steve Taylor carefully distinguishes SITEs from religious conversions. He argues that most conversions happen to adolescent males, involve acceptance of a particular belief system and worldview, and do not last. By contrast, SITEs are more common amongst women and adults, do not require the adoption of specific beliefs, and are permanent. Conversion, he concludes, does not replace the ego, but supports it by bringing consolation and meaning to the isolated self, thus giving it hope for the future and a sense of belonging. Spiritual transformation, on the other hand, transcends the separate self and enables the higher self to be born. Taylor also addresses the question of whether or not SITEs are psychological defences against traumatic life situations in which we create a more acceptable, but delusional, reality for ourselves. He argues that the transformation is actually progressive, not regressive, leading to greater integration and higher functioning than normal. Thus, it is not an evasion of reality, but a journey deeper into it. Despite their transformative potential, Steve Taylor does not recommend seeking out traumatic experiences. Nor is asceticism, renunciation or other forms of rejection of the world the way to go. Rather, we should apply the lessons from his analysis of SITEs in our everyday lives. First, we should reduce our dependence on psychological attachments by identifying them and consciously detaching from them. Although this brings feelings of insecurity and lack at first, he argues that in the long run it will create room for our true selves to grow.

A second lesson is that meditation and other spiritual practices such as mindfulness, yoga and tai chi are powerful ways to reduce the need for attachments and to heal the separateness of the ego. Service also softens the boundaries of the ego and enhances the sense of connection. Finally, actively and directly facing the reality of death can release us from the anxiety and insecurity that arise from suppressing fear of it. We can do this in a few ways. We can imagine our own death, or deliberately live as if this were our last year. We can allow ourselves to feel fully the loss and grief when a loved-one dies rather than pushing it away. We can reflect on our mortality whenever we see a dead person or creature. And we can accompany dying friends on their journey, or become hospice volunteers. Taylor presents meditation as a purely benign and positive way to encourage awakening. But from our research and personal experience, we believe it is not without dangers. The ego structures which meditation can dissolve are partly built of defence mechanisms we adopt to contain traumatic memories. Breaking down those defences can release the trauma. As a result, meditators sometimes become emotionally and psychologically overwhelmed. They may dissociate or become temporarily psychotic, and, if the turmoil continues, can suffer long-term mental illness. If they repress the trauma again, they may become depressed, and possibly suicidal. Stan and Christina Grof called such experiences 'spiritual emergencies', and established a Spiritual Emergency Network to support those affected. Emergencies may be triggered by many things besides meditation, including the Grof's Holotropic Breathwork which Steve Taylor mentions with approval. For some people, the issues that arise in meditation and other practices are simply too difficult to manage without assistance. Spiritual teachers often do not have an adequate understanding of the psychological processes involved, and the guidance of a skilled therapist may be needed in order to release trauma. We believe that the vast majority of us have buried traumas, and can benefit from therapy even if we function reasonably well. A good therapist can also help us become aware of our own behaviour patterns, and slowly dismantle our ego structure. In conclusion, Out of the Darkness complements and balances the more negative view of trauma presented in our own book, Hope for Humanity, which is reviewed above. We share Steve Taylor's belief that enlightenment is the normal human state, and that average consciousness is a subnormal, ego-driven condition. His suggestions for encouraging awakening, combined with our strategies for preventing and healing trauma, could transform human civilisation. We could move from a culture of domination, violence and destruction, to one of partnership, peace and respect for nature. Out of the Darkness is an important contribution to achieving this dream.