Exposing four spiritual dangers in Eastern meditation: its non-Christian roots, mind-emptying problems, the potential to invite demonic affliction, & its self-focus over God-focus.
Short Answer
The four spiritual dangers in Eastern meditation are its non-Christian roots, mind-emptying issues, the potential to invite demonic affliction, & its self-focus over God-focus.
Long Answer
The Western world has become enamored with Eastern meditation. From its supposed practical benefits, to its filling a vacuum in our secular society, meditation promises much to the “spiritual but not religious” crowd. Some Christians are even attracted to it. Despite its seemingly innocuous qualities, Eastern meditation is not harmless.
There are four spiritual dangers associated with meditation as many people practice it. Meditation is usually synonymous with Eastern meditation, so the following concerns are directed toward Eastern religious meditations like Zen meditation, transcendental meditation, yoga, Chinese meditation, Hindu meditation, or guided meditation.
In this post, I aim to expose four spiritual dangers in Eastern meditation: its non-Christian roots, mind-emptying problems, the potential to invite demonic affliction, and its self-focus over God-focus.
Note: This critique is NOT directed toward those who practice a genuine and thoroughly Christian meditation.
Spiritual Danger #1:
Meditation Has Non-Christian Roots
No matter how someone learns about Eastern meditation, its roots cannot be ignored: it was developed in Hindu, Buddhist, and other religious contexts, not within Christianity. Though many will object because they personally do not practice meditation in a religious manner, it doesn’t change the source of the practice: Eastern religions.
The problem with following Eastern religious practices is God forbids it. Just before the Israelites entered the Promised Land, Moses forbade the people from doing any native religious practices. Moses wrote…
“Take care that you be not ensnared to follow them, after they have been destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire about their gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their gods?—that I also may do the same.’ You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the LORD hates they have done for their gods.” (Deuteronomy 12:30-31).
This command was an Old Testament directive, but it’s closely aligned with forbidding idolatry, something the New Testament also forbids (1 John 5:21). God wants his people to worship him alone and not borrow any formalities from other religions. God is jealous for our affections (Exodus 20:5).
“You shall have no other gods before me.” (Exodus 20:3)
Spiritual Danger #2:
Mind-Emptying Meditation Is NOT Biblical
One of the core tenets of most Eastern meditation is mind-emptying. In other words, meditation aims to remove your conscious thoughts so your mind is at rest or empty. This may not seem problematic, but there is a major issue with it.
It’s not a Christian idea.
According to Donald Whitney, a professor of Biblical Spirituality at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary…
“The idea of emptying the mind is not biblically based. There can be a danger. Some of the yoga stuff, where you’re given a mantra, that is rooted in false religions.”
As Whitney points out, the approach of emptying your mind is not a Biblical idea. In fact God praises an opposite practice: meditating on his Word. For instance, Psalm 1 commends the person who “meditates day and night” on God’s law (Psalm 1:2). The Apostle Paul instructs us, “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely…think about these things” (Philippians 4:8).
The Bible’s approach to meditation is very different from Eastern meditation. Instead of filling your mind with nothingness, Biblical meditation is filling your mind with God, his word, his ways, and his works. For instance, the Bible speaks of meditating on…
- God (Isaiah 28:3)
- God’s Law (Joshua 1:8, Psalm 1:2)
- God’s ways (Psalm 119:15)
- God’s works (Psalm 143:5)
- What is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8)
“I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.” (Psalm 119:15,16)
Spiritual Danger #3:
Meditation Can Lead To Demonic Affliction
The third problem is meditation may lead to demon affliction. The Gospel narratives (Jesus’ biographies) are filled with demonic activity (Matthew 9:32,33, Mark 9:29, etc.) Jesus encountered many people plagued by demons or evil spiritual beings. Somehow those demons got a foothold in those people and they wreaked havoc in a person’s life until Jesus cast them out.
It’s common knowledge in the exorcist community that demons afflict people due to non-Christian religious practices. Jesus alluded to something like this when he described how demons look for their hosts.
“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, but finds none. Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order. Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of that person is worse than the first.” (Matthew 12:43-45)
In this passage, Jesus describes how homeless spirits wander looking for cleaned-up “houses” to inhabit. Mind-emptying meditation is basically a “cleaned house.” It’s a ripe location for new or renewed demonic activity.
We live in a spiritual world. Whether we acknowledge the reality of demonic entities, they exist. Just as in Jesus’ day, demons afflict people and even possess some people. Eastern meditation seems to be one of the ways demons gain entrance and affect people. If you do not want demonic influence in your life, then avoid that type of meditation that seeks to empty your mind.
“And demons also came out of many, crying, ‘You are the Son of God!’ But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Christ.” (Luke 4:41)
Spiritual Danger #4:
Meditation is Self-Focused NOT God-Focused
God is clear. He wants to be first place in our affections (Mark 12:30). Eastern meditation is the opposite of that. The focus of meditation is more about yourself than God.
Rosilind Jukic has researched Eastern meditation from a Christian perspective. She also finds several problems associated with meditation. Jukic wrote…
“Eastern meditation focuses on self: centering yourself, your inner self, self actualization, your breathing, physical feelings and emotions. The enemy will do anything to get us to stop focusing on Christ…Eastern meditation practices rely on self as the agent to bring peace, tranquility and oneness with deity—the original lie: ‘You can become like God.’”
This is a scary assertion for any student of the Bible.
Jukic is referring to the serpent’s temptation to Eve in the Garden of Eden when he promised God-likeness to the woman (Genesis 3:5). If Jukic is right (and I think she is), Eastern meditation isn’t just an extracurricular activity of other religions. It comes straight from Satan himself. The underlying philosophy of Eastern meditation is not Christian – instead it’s Satanic.
“You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, LORD, do I seek.” (Psalm 27:8)
In Meditation: God’s Way Is Always The Best Way
God wants his people to meditate. But he wants us to do it his way, not in a way that will be detrimental to our souls.
With so much information everywhere that encourages meditation the wrong way, it’s hard to do the right thing. But we must be vigilant to seek God’s direction in all of these sometimes-confusing areas. God wants what is our ultimate good – communion with him. And God’s way is always the best way.
Resources
- The Empty Promise of Meditation – Albert Mohler
- 6 Reasons Why This Popular Mediation Trend is Dangerous for Christians – Rosalind Jukic
- What is Christian Meditation? – Brandon Clay
- How to Meditate as a Christian in 8 Steps – Brandon Clay
Oh geez. This reminds me of the same nonsense those Peters Brothers would spread about rock n roll, making all those sheep burn their rock albums. It’s all turd polishing man.
Sorry, did you have an argument?
Great article. I just went through the new age phase myself. Just recently thought I was going crazy, etc. I think I let some bad spirits in, but I now have Faith in Jesus. So maybe that was the plan along. Thinking about going back to college for biblical studies/counseling. I think a large part of getting into new age was I was going to therapy for anxiety/depression and it was all about meditation etc.
Thanks for dropping by, Kyle. Meditation is not something to play around with. We live in a spiritual world and the enemy is out to harm us. Thankfully you’re in a better place – keep seeking him!
I was reading a book called ” calling in the one” and it have activities for meditation which I did. A spirit entered me and I am just realizing that’s what I was doing during the time when it happened. How do I fix this?
Sorry that happened. If that occurred with me, I would look into a deliverance ministry.
Hey is it possible for me to mediate but with Christian music
Thanks for dropping by, Kendrick. Here’s a post we did on how to meditate as a Christian: https://truthstory.org/blog/how-to-meditate-as-a-christian/
Wow probably one of the most racist uneducated articles I’ve ever read. So since it’s not part of your religion it’s demonic…. Stop spreading fear.
I approved the comment so that others could see how the woke argue: call anything you disagree with “racist” in an effort to silence your opponent — even when the idea has nothing to do with race. That tactic doesn’t work here.
I had a similar experience. After leaving Mormonism I fell into new age and felt like I was having a psychotic break. My “higher self” but actually was an evil spirit was trying to get me to commit suicide by starving myself. It told me that I was the only “I AM” in this universe and that nothing and no one existed but me. I called on Jesus’s name and it was gone.
It’s strange. I talked to our fathe in heaven and he said “I AM” too. But I called upon Jesus before to make sure. Maybe god did talk to you.
My testimony (short):
Just what I needed to read! Thank you. I’ve been a Christian and believer ever since I can remember. I have many believers in my family and I was raised with faith. However, about 13 years ago my life was a huge mess.. my bf broke up with me after 4 years. I was miserable at my work and just felt so lost. That’s when I came across the Law of Attraction, shortly after yoga and eventually the entire New Age movement. Those other spirits must have sensed that and got so deceived in thinking that all of it is actually helping me getting out of suffering. Man was I wrong!!!! People watch out for that stuff. In the beginning I felt great.. I started manifesting money, stuff and thought my life was in order. But after the money came into my life literally out of nowhere (big red flag!) I started to feel anxious and afraid. I couldn’t sleep for months on end and had zero energy left to get anything done. Then a couple years went by, I still didn’t know about the dangers of the whole New Age movement and I thought I lived a pretty normal life. But.. I’ve been friends with a girl from university for 12 years and we both shared our interest in the New Age movement. Due to her mother’s Thai background and her upbringing she also believes in Buddhism. I broke all ties to her recently and distanced myself from her because I started to feel very drained and had again zero energy. Only because of Jesus’ Grace have I found the way back to my Christian faith and never want to look back.
Eastern meditation is dangerous, so is the LOA and New Age thinking.
I don’t believe God would ever be jealous it makes no sense nor self centered…. it does not make a bit of sense those feelings could never come from God in my opinion and all the literature in the world couldn’t change my mind because I feel the betrayal in statements like those deep in my soul….they sound like lies
Exactly because how could I be a symbol of love but also envy and hate😂
Great article! Thank you for putting this together. I’m certain God will use this in many ways. Blessings!
Rev. Roger Strick
Thanks, Roger. Blessings to you!
This was very informative. When I left Mormonism and became Christian I started reading the Bible religiously. It was God’s word and Holy Spirit that urged me to quit all eastern practices. I was convicted it was allowing the enemy a foothold. I try to help my Mormon friends and family understand this but they are still led captive by the prince of the air working in them.
Tenneva, the literature you should be reading is God’s word found in the holy Bible. God himself says He is jealous for your love. His first commandment is You shall have no other gods before me. I pray you will study His word and get a better understanding of His heart.
Thank you for this insight I am seriously disturbed. I am attending a Bible university in Portland Oregon and I am in the Mac Program ( Masters of Arts of Counseling) and they are pushing mindfulness mostly breathing I think, however, yoga moves and this certain guru that eaches mindfulness teaches mindfulness I am not sure what to do iv been praying about it
I’m glad I happened to come across this article. Learned something and going to look more into it .I was raised in Catholic school short time then family church Baptist grandparents Nazarene and step grandparents pentecostal long story I always wondered why my grandparents didn’t like yoga or meditation I was young and well I have fell out started away from Jesus but I still pray or try too . Anyway thank you for this.
Sorry you are being held captive by a demon who has supplanted your thought life with scorn at this information. Just know you’ve been informed.
Dick, Music has also been infiltrated by Satan and his minions. Many people in the world music industry have exposed occult rituals being performed over the albums and blood sacrifices being done to inject demonic energy into all the listeners. Demons and hell is very real, and heaven is very real! You choose each day blessings or curses. You live by the truth of God you are blessed. You live as your own god you’re cursed. Ask God Almighty to reveal the truth to you, and set you free from your mocking demon through the One True King Jesus Christ Almighty! He will!
You are right. I made the mistake of doing eastern meditation. I didn’t know it at the time. The psychic tricked me. How do I get rid of it? It opened my heart chakra.
I strongly believe that Eastern meditation is very dangerous!
Me too. Thanks, Kevin!
I currently work for an agency where I do mental health therapy. They want me to co-lead and teach clients mindfulness. I ring a Tibetan singing bowl to start and have the clients to deep breathe and talk them through a mindfulness exercise. I am not comfortable at all doing this as a Christian!! What do you think?
A very good and practical question, April. If you are uncomfortable with this practice, it’s likely violating your conscience. And that is not a good place to be. You may need to start looking for a new position where your employer doesn’t require you to violate your conscience. The Lord does provide.
This Hinduism new aged stuff is showing up everywhere. I’m well versed in this area , since my family has been practicing meditation snd such since I was a child. I know It’s occultism and yet still I go to watch a psalms guided meditation youtube video to fall alseep to and wham I have a nightmare paired with sleep paralysis. I am so sensitive to anything demonic or satanic so I woke up at 4am and just checked the comments of the video. I saw a few other comments saying that something about the video wasn’t right. We have to stay prayed up and filled with the holy spirit!!! They are mingling these practices in everything!
That is interesting about the Psalms, Aungelique. I would recommend NOT using any meditation video that is NOT pure Scripture. I think you will be safe with just the Bible.
Also, the free YouVersion Bible App has an audio only version. The NIV has some soft music playing in the background which may help if you’re trying to go to sleep. https://www.youversion.com/the-bible-app/
Your article was very helpful. Thank you. I did some studies on eastern religions a while back. Someone I love recently suggested I try meditation and as he was only trying to help, I knew it was wrong. I needed clear, to the point, information to share with him. Thank you again.
Glad it was useful, Mel.
Have a blessed weekend!
I have been meditating for years and I can confidentiality say that I have never had any encounters with “demonic activity”. It has helped me get more in tune with my physical body and helped me to identify areas that I needed to focus on and heal. I have received many messages from God through my meditations. One message was clear as day telling me that Real Estate was the path for me. 4 years later and I now own my own successful Real Estate Business. I am disheartened by this article that discredits the beauty of giving your mind a break from chaotic everyday life to get in touch with God as a form of prayer. I say we be open to how each person finds it best to connect with God to achieve happiness and peace. It’s a very distasteful article.
Thanks for dropping by, E Price. You will notice the article was not speaking against meditation in general, but more against the Eastern variety. We have nothing against meditation per se. In fact, it’s a very biblical: https://truthstory.org/blog/how-to-meditate-as-a-christian/
I am happy that you confirmed my thoughts. I’m an esthetician for 24 years. They offered Reiki certificate but I didn’t want to open myself to that. Recently I watched something by Dr Greer and again, interesting but doing good hat stuff can open yourself to demonic activity or an entity that will latch on that is not welcome… I’ve seen it I’ve felt it, and I want to continue to protect myself from it. I’m 41 with a 2 year old daughter, I shut down that “openness” some time ago since I’m can easily reconnect with it, but thank you for reassurance to continue my Christian path.
Thanks, Christine! Blessings to you.
Thanks for the information and encouragement. My oldest son (29 yrs old) is a believer and served almost 5 yrs with the organization YWAM. Anyhow, he has fallen into yoga mediation but assures us that he doesn’t talk to entities and still loves Jesus. Although he is living with his girlfriend, doesn’t go to church anymore and has embraced practices that we don’t agree with. We also have a discernment that his girlfriend is a somewhat practicing witch. She does tarot card readings and is currently in Peru to learn more about a poisonous frog’s venom that is supposed to cleanse your body! She once was practicing Christianity but has fallen as well. We continue to plead the Blood of Jesus over our son, speak Truth into him, occasionally have heated discussions with him, and continue to build relationship with him. At this prayer, prayer and more spiritual warfare is what we continue to do as well as praying for deliverance as well as praying that this relationship with his girlfriend be severed. Thanks again.
Thanks for sharing, Paul. Based on your information, I would also be concerned about your son’s practicing meditation and drifting. May the Lord open both your son’s and girlfriend’s eyes to serve the living and true God. I think you’re on the right track in praying for deliverance and spiritual warfare.
Lord, may you hear my brother’s prayers.
And grant Paul’s son a vision of the dangers of messing with demonic entities.
Fasting along with prayer is said to be like an atom bomb on spiritual warfare. Its highly recommended to look into it.
Indeed, Ben. We don’t talk about fasting as much as other things, but it’s a powerful part of the Christian experience.
I would like your opinion on mindfulness as explained in the book “Mindfulness On The Go” by Padraig O’Morain .
Thanks for checking-in, Frank! I have not read O-Morain’s book. In general, mindfulness training seems to be a mild form of meditation. Sort of like ‘meditation-lite’ – a possible ‘gateway drug’. I would be wary.
Thank your for this articles, it gave me all the answers I was seeking.
I came across the idea that yoga was dangerous when I was practising yoga nidra and I had a terrible vision.
Thank you, Maya. Yes, we do live in a spiritual universe and there are many spirits that are evil.
Curious to get an opinion on frequency meditation. I just started to meditate. I’ve been listening to the alleged God frequency of 436 hz while meditating. The claim is everything God made, has it’s own frequency, and vibration. God DID create us with a vibration. His voice. And sound is just vibration. So if I raise my vibration while I meditate on his word… well I dont see nothing wrong. I do enjoy the sound while trying to be still. Your thoughts??
Brian
Brian – I’ve never heard of the “God frequency”. I would be careful of anything that’s supposedly from God not addressed in Scripture. The thing is, many spirits have gone out into the world (1 John 4:1). So many so-called God things are nothing of the sort. But we can be sure of his leading through his word.
If you want to meditate, I would encourage using the Psalms as a guide. Feel free to use light music without words. But stay tethered to the Scripture in your thoughts. Otherwise, you could be dealing with demonic doorways. You don’t want to invite that sort of oppression.
I have practiced Zen meditation for some 30 years, and I am having trouble understanding just what makes it unbiblical. I can understand that if a meditative practice chants mantras, but the Zen variety almost entirely a breathing exercise. You maintain a particular posture. . . spine erect, head straight, sitting upright as comfortably as you can, exerting yourself only enough to maintain posture. Eyes open, and breathing slowly and deeply. Breathing with your entire abdomen, not just the upper chest as most people do. That’s it. No mantra, no chanting. Posture and breathing.
What is the difference between biblical and unbiblical posture and breathing?
Hi GM – Assuming that breathing and posture are all that’s involved, that seems innocuous. But you did not mention the mind-emptying aspect of Zen. So there is more than posture and breathing. Unless you know more than these guys: https://zmm.org/teachings-and-training/meditation-instructions/
I do. After reading the Bible through 3 times, and studying Biblical literature and history at a Christian college I find 4 major issue with your argument:
1. Jesus quotes Buddha over 400 times . The Way, Truth, and Light of the World are all Eastern concepts written about by the Buddha. Jesus studied these principals as he was raised in Egypt and spent many hours studying the ancient laws and scrolls.
2. Inviting a demonic presence is not possible if one has been born again, as he has been covered by the blood sacrifice of Christ. Here I reference John 10:28. If we have accepted the gift of eternal life and are in fact in the hands of God, how would a demon enter us?
3. Non-christian roots: The word “Christ” literally translates as Anointed Messiah – But Jesus wept as he rode on the donkey as the people mistakenly called him this!
4. Eastern world refers to nations in the Asia and Middle East. Middle east countries are:Saudi Arabia , Kuwait , Yemen , Oman , Bahrain , Qatar , United Arab Emirates ,Palestine,Jordan,Lebanon,Iran & Iraq.
These countries make up the surrounding areas of both Jesus ministry and the roots of “Eastern Meditation”
Thanks for dropping by, Josephine. Here are the responses to your arguments.
1. Jesus did not quote the Buddha 400 times. False. Where are your 400 references from the New Testament?
2. Inviting a demonic influence is not the same thing as inviting demonic possession. Your reference of John 10:28 does not address the argument.
3. Not sure what you’re saying here. When did Jesus weep when he rode on a donkey in the New Testament?
4. Perhaps I was unclear. In this context, by “Eastern Meditation” I am referring to the Far East – not the Middle East.
It sounds like you accept other references for Jesus aside from the New Testament. The references Reformed believers consider authorative for spiritual instruction are the Old and New Testaments, not extra-biblical documents.
https://today.oregonstate.edu/archives/1998/mar/new-book-looks-parallel-sayings-jesus-buddha
My apologies Jesus only quotes Buddha 100 times
Also Jesus weeps as he nears Jerusalem on what we call Palm Sunday!
Luke 19:28–44
I am very concerned you have not read this passage and today is Easter Sunday!!!
Regarding the donkey and Jesus, I had never considered where Jesus was when he wept over Jerusalem. From the Luke 19:28-44 passage, that sure looks like Jesus was riding a donkey at the time. Good reference.
Regarding to similar statements between Jesus and other religious leaders: correlation does not mean causation. Just because Jesus said things that were similar to other religious teachers does not mean he lifted them from their writings or disciples. There’s no evidence that Jesus traveled to anywhere near India during his time on earth if we are to take primary source documents seriously. Here’s a good overview of Jesus and Buddha, with a special emphasis on the primary source documents for both Christianity and Buddhism: https://carm.org/the-historical-reliability-of-jesus-and-buddha
I think one of the reasons you find commonalities between Christianity and Buddhism ethical statements is Buddhism’s appeal to a universal ethic. Paul says, “They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them” (Romans 2:15). In other words, everyone knows what is right and wrong: “the law is written on their hearts.” But you will notice in the link you provided, Jesus is coming from a radically different worldview than the Buddha. For instance, “Let us live most happily, possessing nothing; let us feed on joy, like radiant gods.” (Dhammapada 15.4) – Jesus would never affirm the polytheism taught in the Buddha’s statement. Similar ethic, but the opposite metaphysic (one God vs. many gods).
Brandon, Buddhism is not polytheistic. Buddha was an atheist. He did not believe in gods. He was only comparing people to the concept of “gods.” If I say something is pink like a unicorn, this does not mean I believe in unicorns.
Thanks so much for this article as it was a blessing to my family. My son was falling victim to many of the Eastern practices, but knew all along in his spirit that something was very wrong. Your scriptural references were spot on as the Lord leads us to be transformed by and sold out to Him, and focused on others —not ourselves. He provides all the blessings we need as we help minister to those around us. Romans 10:13 Jesus saves! 💪🏽
As an ex-New Ager who meditated a lot for 27 years, your article explains perfectly what happened to me after meditating for long periods. Stuff happened that was not good and I can only presume I got possessed. I was asking the Holy Spirit to let me know the technical manner of how this happened as I need to explain it to people who say meditation is harmless if done at only 10-20 mins. (Holy Spirit lead me to your article). I meditated for long periods and released too much ‘stuff’ at once (clearing out my house) and then I began to get psychotic episodes (the demons had entered in) then I lost it mentally. Spent years looking for solutions to get my mind back until I found Jesus.
Thanks for your testimony, Lucyna. May the Lord continue to bring you peace. And perhaps you can now help others caught in the web of unholy meditation – through Jesus. Peace.
God doesn’t punish you for relaxing don’t clean your whole house but meditate on the visualization of golden light and Jesus in your heart obviously being an idiot and letting everything up to the universe will only allow demons to enter your not claiming your sacred space in the name of Jesus Christ however emptiness can be very good if your intent is correct it’s like how animals do not tell the difference of good and evil they are completely empty yet completely connected to god through there hearts pure ness of heart meditation will not allow you to be possessed don’t be afraid of the unknown or the unknown will see you as the most viable vessel to work through rather fortify your mind in scripture and Christ and venture into the unknown holding gods light in your heart a lot of people won’t understand this and will get scared to be themselves but when I tell you an empty pure mind can be like living with god for the first time it’s the truth I was almost satanicly influenced by emptiness because I was worshiping myself but now I realize that the only way to meditate is with prayer and a strong connection with the Devine aka yeshua and god meaning have your heart open to love and purity don’t just empty your mind to be influenced have strong biblical morals and simply follow the word of god and you will never be lead into darkness “the one who drinks from the water I give him will never be thirsty again” don’t drink from emptiness drink from Jesus’s overflowing unconditional love which will lead you to tranquility rather then emptiness which is satan being completely alert like an animal is our natural state but meditation without intent of Jesus will lead to negative things that’s a no brainer haha get what I did there no brainer
Thanks, Holden. Have a great week!
I have a real problem with this blog post, in that the misinformation therein used to “debunk” the practice of meditation sets up your whole argument as a straw man. I too hold a Master’s degree in theology — same as you — from an accredited graduate seminary, and have been a clergy person with standing in a mainstream denomination for 16 years. Here is a different take on the merits of meditation from this clergyperson’s point of view, but without the fear and misinformation presented here.
Point #1: “Meditation has non-Christian roots.” You present this as if Christianity is a stand-alone religion with no basis in other religions, or without theological roots in Greek philosophy, primarily Platonism. The Eucharist — the very heart of Christian worship, was derived from the Roman social practice of the symposium. Christianity has roots in several other religions and philosophies. The practice of meditation is a nearly universal occurrence in world religions; it is not primarily “Eastern.” The Christian practice of meditation derives from Judaism (itself an “Eastern” religion — as is Christianity). The Deuteronomy and Exodus sources you cite are not, of themselves, “Christian” texts; they are Judaic texts. Do you see how the “purity” argument lacks argumentative legs? Further, your whole take on meditation “following Eastern religion practices” is theologically bogus. It is not akin to “idolatry.” Clearly, from what I read here, you have a faulty definition of “idolatry.” I suggest you bone up on the correct definition. It has nothing to do with the practice of meditation.
Contemplative prayer (a form of meditation) is a time-honored Christian practice, fully embraced by Gregory of Nyssa in the fourth century. Meditation has been embraced by both the Roman Church and the Eastern Church since at least the third century. In fact, the Psalms direct us to “be still and know.” And Jesus, in the Gospel accounts, often goes off by himself to pray in silence.
Point #1 debunked.
Point #2: “Mind-emptying meditation is not biblical.” The spiritual practice of meditation is a very broad practice. This is simply not a “core tenet” of Eastern meditation. Not all Eastern meditation is “mind-emptying.” In fact, mindfulness meditation follows the Christian contemplative prayer model of invoking deep focus on a single thought. You’ve managed to create a straw man in this point, too. Meditation authority after meditation authority is very clear on this point. You’re simply fomenting fear of something you clearly don’t understand, and passing it off as “authoritatively Christian.”
Point #2 debunked.
Point #3: “Meditation can lead to demonic affliction.” This point depends a great deal on the “mind-emptying” codswallop above. In fact, the Psalmist asks God to “create in me a clean heart.” The point of meditation is to help us clear away the emotional flotsam and bad energy of anxiety, worry, depression, and stress. It clears us of heaviness, so that we can allow light to come in (Jesus is the Light of the world, yes?).
Point #3 debunked.
Point #4: “Meditation is self-focused, not God focused.” Wait… I thought you just said that meditation was about “emptying.” “Emptying” is patently not “self- focus.” It’s “emptying.” They’re mutually-exclusive, so your argument fails on that point of fallacy alone. Further, there are many kinds of meditation that focus on the life-force within. In Genesis, God blew “ruach” (meaning both “breath” and “spirit”) into humanity, and it was then that humanity became “nephesh” — a “living being.” That Ruach is the life-force within. How can you possibly claim that meditation is all “self-focused,” when, in fact, in many cases it’s about deep focus on the Spirit within that gives us life?
Point #4 debunked.
There’s nothing wrong or “ungodly” about meditation with good intent. It’s Biblically-sound, it has been practiced and sanctioned by the church since at least the 3rd century — if not before. You’re creating a false distinction between “Eastern” and “Christian” meditative practices; they are essentially the same thing — just with a slightly different set of spiritual metaphors. Fear and misinformation are patently not biblical, however, nor are they sanctioned by the Body of Christ. I invite you to bone up, both on your theology of spiritual formation and the practice of meditation.
Thanks for dropping by, David. Instead of addressing the points, I suggest two other issues. Point one: we have different starting points. I view Deuteronomy and Exodus as authoritative. Christians inherited the Old Testament from Jewish sources – sure, but it doesn’t mean they are not the Bible to us. And that early Catholics or Orthodox practice something does not justify anything biblically. Whatever your minsterial credentials or degrees, argument from tradition doesn’t work for me.
Point two, that Eastern meditation can invite demonic affliction is pretty much common knowledge in this arena. That you are so familiar with meditation and also not concerned about evil spirits afflicting those who practice Eastern meditation sounds odd to me. This post in particular has generated much interest from those who have been demonically afflicated. Several have reached out about it. See above. I hope in your practice that you have guided people away from spiritually detrimental meditation practices.
I had not linked to it earlier, but I do not discount all meditation. Some is quite helpful. Here’s a post where I provide a more biblical approach to meditation: https://truthstory.org/blog/how-to-meditate-as-a-christian/
Thanks, Brandon. to your first point, yes, we do have different starting points. I also view Deuteronomy and Exodus as authoritative. But my point was that they are not purely “Christian texts,” which seems to be a criterion for the validity of a practice or belief in your argument. They are Jewish texts. Christians did inherit them from Jewish sources — just as Christianity borrowed other traditions from other sources. And just because their source is not purely Christian does not mean (as you say) that they cannot be valid expressions for us. That the early Church practiced something means that the Church Fathers found the practices to be valid, and so established an orthopraxy, just as they found certain texts to be valid and created between them several canons of collected texts we call the “Bible.”
“Argument from Tradition” doesn’t work for you because you approach the religion from a standpoint of sola scriptura (which did not exist in Christianity for the first 1500 years of her existence). The traditional Church claims that orthopraxy and orthodoxy derive from a threefold platform including scripture, Tradition, and reason. Your stance, while acknowledged as valid, is not the only valid Christian stance, nor is it the most ancient and established — whatever your ministerial credentials or degrees. This seriously cripples the global authority with which you present your opinions on the matter of meditation (for that’s what they are: your opinions — and not anything globally authoritative for Christianity). There are other, equally valid Christian opinions on the subject, such as mine.
To your second point: you claim that meditation can cause demonic affliction, and you further claim that it’s “common knowledge.” In other words, you’re claiming it as a fact “in this arena.” But the claim (including the above posts) is wholly anecdotal, without a shred of verifiable, empirical evidence to support the claim as “fact.” That means that the claim is your opinion, and that opinion is not universally held by Christianity — or even by the most authoritative expressions of Christianity. Your “arena” is a fairly small puddle in the ocean of Christianity.
If you want to make that claim, that’s fine. I’m not here to trample on your first amendment rights, nor to dictate to you the scope of orthodoxy on this matter. But if you make the claim, you should state that the claim is your opinion, and forego any hint of a base of biblical authority on the matter. It seems just as odd to me that you place such a high value on the written word, yet you interject your interpretations and opinions with the same authority that you ascribe to the texts, themselves.
In my considered opinion, the Biblical texts are theologically authoritative, but by no means comprehensive in Christian experience. Further, they are multivalent. That’s why the Jews developed Talmud, and it’s why we have commentaries. It’s also one reason why Christianity is a multifaceted and three dimensional jewel of religious experience, and not simply a flat caricature of religion. Sola scriptura and the notion of a single, valid and literalistic interpretation don’t fly for most Christians.
Meditation is a nearly universal and valid spiritual practice — in any religious setting. It can be quite beneficial. And yes, it can be dangerous. But I believe it’s “dangerous” in the same way that cars are “dangerous.” It depends to a great degree on preparation and intent. If one wants to drive to the store, having received training, having absorbed the rules of the road, and being in control of one’s mental acuity and situational awareness, a car is fairly benign. If, however, one wants to cozy up to a bottle of liquor or go run over protestors in Charlottesville, then a car can be fairly dangerous. Many people begin a meditation practice on their own, without receiving any guidance. God wants us to clean house, but God intends for us to use a broom, not an atomic weapon, in cleaning our house. That’s where most people get themselves into emotional, mental and spiritual trouble. In my practice, I guide people in using the right spiritual tool for the right job. I caution them to receive guidance from a qualified spiritual director. Most of my parishioners and clients make use of methods that are firmly rooted in Christian Tradition, such as centering prayer and other contemplative forms.
In your link, you say, “Always depend on Scripture for all decisions.” Again, this is a sola scriptura stance that addresses one particular cross section of Christianity. More of us depend on the Holy Spirit and reason, as well as scripture, in making spiritual decisions. And that’s valid, too. In short, I (and others) would find your approach and opinions much too narrow and fear-based. When we approach Abba —“Daddy,” in prayer and meditation, we don’t empty our minds, we focus them. And we trust that, when meditative techniques are utilized judiciously, God will allow in only that which is for our highest good.
Your references to the Jewish “hagah” is correct. But verbalization is verbalization, whether it be “groaning,” or whether it be a mantra, or whether it be “Om.” Additionally, there’s far more to meditation than simply mental and verbal exercise. There is also the opening of the heart and spirit. In fact, that’s what the verbalizations and mental exercises are designed to do. Opening to the Divine is the whole point of Christian meditation — no matter which technique is used. Jesus says, “If anyone opens, I will come in.”
You also reference the Puritans in the 16th and 17th centuries and their form of Biblical meditation. I submit that most of us don’t come out of the Puritan tradition of the Reformation — some of us have remained good Anglicans (and other catholic traditions). I counter that reference with the Church Fathers, such as Gregory of Nyssa, whom I mentioned above, and with the Desert Fathers and Mothers of the 200s C.E., of which Anthony the Great may be most famous (Athanasius was his biographer). These religious teachers developed Christian meditation techniques that go way beyond what you outline in your blog post. That tradition is alive and well, and is helping many spiritual seekers to a deeper discovery of the sacred, and is providing safe pathways for meditative practice that deepen our connections with God, with others and with ourselves. These connections form the basis for fostering the right relationship Jesus teaches so much about in the Gospels, and illustrates for us in the Eucharist.
Look, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with your form of Biblical meditation. I’m merely saying that there is much more in addition to that form, that other forms have been practiced by notable Church authorities across the centuries, and that, with the right guidance (please note that caveat!) meditation is safe and spiritually beneficial — and nothing to be feared or disregarded as “unChristian.”
Thanks for providing this forum, and for the opportunity for me to express opposing views on the subject. May God bless your ministry as you seek to serve others through Jesus Christ.
There was a definite tone to this comment and response to the author’s comment. I am one such that was influenced and even posessed when I was in new age meditation. Anecdotal evidence is evidence. Just because you tag “anecdotal” to it doesn’t obfuscate the validity of it. Witness testimony is powerful whether or not you or someone else experienced it. I find it ironic that you are a Christian pastor who literally relies on anecdotal evidence for your belief, The Word of God but you are quibbling over this same point. Perhaps, you should make sure it’s not a prideful Spirit causing you to react so strongly to a pastor who seeks only to warn his flock of potential threats while you seek to excuse teaching a potentially dangerous activity. I say that lovingly because as a pastor you will be held responsible for causing “a little one” or one of God’s children to stumble. If anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which accords with godliness, he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions,
I Timothy 6:3-4 NKJV
No, Coko, anecdotal evidence is not credible. No researcher would ever tell you you can just rely off of anecdotal evidence for a conclusion. You could have hallucinated or experienced psychotic symptoms that have a psychological explanation, not some devil.
The Word of God is a completely different matter altogether. We believe in it because of faith.
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1
This is completely different from using anecdotes as evidence. Anecdotes are highly unreliable because they are not empirical.
We also believe the Word of God because of logical evidence, which is DIFFERENT from anecdotal evidence. Christianity is unique. It is a relationship, not a religion. All others are religions.
Very much agreed, William.
David – appreciate your response. I will not attempt to match your word count, but suffice to say two things: one caution and one clarification.
On the caution, your appeals to authorities besides the Scriptures (ex. “tradition”) is, I think, the reason for your toleration of Eastern Meditation practices. Once you open that door, you can pretty much justify anything. All kinds of unbibiblical doctrines crop up in tradition: Origin taught a form of universalism and Martin Luther outlined several contadictions in the Fathers and Councils at the Diet of Worms. Tradition has been a poor authority a long time. Useful, but not authoritative. This issue may be distracting you from very real dangers in the spiritual realm vis-a-vis meditation to where you completely ignore the unsolicited testimonies on this very page. And no, sola scriptura wasn’t invented by the Refomers. Jesus taught it: “Have you not read?” speaking of Scripture — he didn’t say, “The Rabbis taught…”
On the clarification, I admit there are other potential ways to meditate safely in a Christian not outlined in another blog post. Fair point. Many saints have gone before me and many know a genuine Christian meditation better than my limited understanding on the area. As a Reformed believer, I do not reject the Fathers as helpful. Like modern Christian writers, early Christian leaders can light the path in a dark world. Church history is a very interesting and useful area of study and could be useful in studying and the practice of a Christian meditation.
The point David was trying to make was that the church fathers were the ones who got to decide what books made up the Bible, and they were able to discern fact from baloney. These were the same people who came up with the contemplative tradition.
Also, Sola Scriptura was invented by the reformers. One example of Jesus telling people to read does not prove that it wasn’t. Jesus even referred to the Bible as a tradition in 2 Thessalonians 2:15.
Saying some traditions (such as the contemplative tradition, with centering prayer) have some authority, as David said, is not opening the door to anything. He points out that the Bible has primary authority, to which traditions and reason are subordinate.
Jesus says that there is more to Christianity than the Bible. “I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them at the present time. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.” -[John 16:12-13].
Augustine said all truth is God’s truth.
Far eastern meditation is NOT inherently spiritually dangerous or evil as you falsely claim. “Unsolicited testimonies” do not serve as good evidence that it is. Researchers never use anecdotes to arrive at conclusions because anecdotes are almost never reliable for a plethora of reasons that are common sense to any researcher. The people on this page could have been mentally ill or experienced symptoms of mental illness that are completely unrelated to the spiritual whatsoever, and you cannot prove that they are not just psychological. Even if they don’t have mental illness, meditation has been shown to create symptoms of mental illness in certain individuals. It is most likely this and not some spiritual thing. So instead of being superstitious and spreading unnecessary fear, actually think about this logically.
Hey there! Just had to hop in here. I don’t have any theological degree. Degrees literally mean zero about your understanding of what the Holy Spirit reveals to you.
Salvation came from the Jews. They are God’s chosen people. New Testament says this. John 4:22. God’s Word and laws were passed down to all the world through the Jews! It is how we know we are sinners. Romans 3. It literally sums it all up. God gave us the law and then gave us Christ to accomplish the law and set us free from sin. New Testament confirms Old Testament laws and teachings, which came from…. The Jews. Christianity came from Christ, period. Who was He? A Jew by blood. Christians were not called Christian until Acts 11. In Acts 11:26 Paul, Barnabas, Peter and some other apostles were spreading the Good News and this is when they were first called Christian. Christian means Christ follower and a believer in Christ’s teaching. Read all the gospels and there’s Christ’s teaching. Jesus wasn’t taught Egyptian religions. He was a child when in Egypt. The earliest documentation of his involvement in his biblical education was when he was 12 and he stayed behind in Jerusalem to be at the temple to learn, study and ask questions about…. Jewish documents and laws! AKA the Torah.
Anyways, what I would like to bring to light for you is that Satan is crafty and cunning. He will find any way to lead anyone astray, degree in theology or not. If anything is learned outside of the Bible, it most often times did not come from God and is not sound teaching…. Meditation included. All meditation should be based soundly off scripture, which is what this post references. Anything out of scripture is the craftiness of Satan. That’s all there is to it.
I have been through a spiritual battle where a friend of mine who lived with me got into the New Age stuff, and even pulled me in with the saging (only done twice because I was clueless). The Holy Spirit came over me one night and cast demons out of my home who were physically moving my bed underneath me and chasing my children, as well as grabbing them. It was terrifying. Meditation is also no joke. That same friend had the meditation music playing in her van when I went to help her on a job, and I literally felt sick in my spirit so much I felt like I would throw up. It was the same spiritual feeling I got when I heard death metal for the first time (which is satanic music entirely). Just wanted to share a little bit about my experience based off the subject of the post.
My advice to you, throw that degree out the window and meditate on God’s word. Dig into it. You can read the Bible forwards and backwards and have zero understanding. Reading the Bible is just like reading any other book unless you actually meditate on it. One thing a leader of mine said is think of it as a lion gnawing on a piece of meat. Lions go at it. They chew and chew and chew. That’s what we should do with the Word. Re-read the Gospels, Romans, and Acts. Break it down with the SOAP method. Scripture (Read it), Observation (Ask God what He is saying in that scripture), Application (Ask God how you can apply the scripture to your own life), Prayer (Pray whatever you feel you need after God answers your Observation and Application questions). And remember, God qualifies those He calls, not our degrees. Yes, degrees are helpful and getting training to teach others is great, but when we fall off of sound teaching and go our own way because of it…. Then it means nothing. It’s purpose is lost.
What’s next? Not praying bowing down because Muslims do that? Not eating chocolate because Mayan pagans did that? Oh, Jesus never used the internet. The internet was never mentioned in the Bible. Maybe it’s demonic too. Maybe that’s all there is to it. You have obviously never gotten into meditation and don’t know squat about any kind of meditation other than bible study.
I think you are forgetting that, as St. Augustine said, all truth is God’s truth.
I agree with you, David. Don’t listen to these people saying all meditation not in the Bible is demonic. I mean, what’s next? Not praying bowing down because Muslims do that? Not eating chocolate because Mayan pagans did that? Oh, Jesus never used the internet. The internet was never mentioned in the Bible. Maybe it’s demonic too. Maybe that’s all there is to it, as C Santos said. These people have obviously never gotten into meditation and don’t know squat about any kind of meditation other than bible study.
This was very informative. When I left Mormonism and became Christian I started reading the Bible religiously. It was God’s word and Holy Spirit that urged me to quit all eastern practices. I was convicted it was allowing the enemy a foothold. I try to help my Mormon friends and family understand this but they are still led captive by the prince of the air working in them.
I haven’t tried meditation before and I was curious because most successful people do meditate like Oprah, etc. So I tried it once by following the Silva method on youtube because it says you can bend reality and have what you desire in life but along the way of meditation I saw a human form but like a demon trying to lick me. I opened my eyes and it disappear why would I have such image in my mind when meditating from out of nowhere?
I just read this because I was watching Right Now Media lesson on Be Still and it said transcendental meditation was dangerous. I’ve been a Christian my whole life and recently tried some meditations on you tube to help me relax. I began waking up with headaches and this overwhelming sadness. I now know the answer why. I am thankful for this information. We have to be aware because the enemy can use something we think is harmless or helpful to attack us.
I believe a lot of people who practice the Eastern Meditations, and a good amount of those who practice Yoga are not Christians. Many have grown-up as Christians and have rejected Christianity for a more new age type of spirituality. I am personally witnessing this in two of my four children, both aged 27. I look at the challenges they have been experiencing in their lives for the past few years and I do believe that they are being attacked by demons. My son recently spent two years living in New Zealand and I am pretty sure participated in a polyamorous relationship with a heterosexual couple (they may individually be bisexual, I’m not sure. He says he is bisexual but not sexually attracted to men so I don’t really know what that means.) He says he believes in non-traditional, unstructured relationships. He has participated in a ten-day silent meditation retreat in New Zealand, and a ceremony in PERU where he drank some concoction that gave him clear, vivid memories of his past. I don’t think his twin sister has experienced anything like he has, she is not as much of a searcher as he is, but she also rejects her Catholic upbringing, and organized religion on the whole and also looks more within herself for God, in what I would consider to be a new-age spirituality. She has been experiencing a lot of anxiety and unhappiness and unsettled feelings for several years. Interestingly, of the two, my son was a very strong Catholic through a good part of college. I believe he was a target of the evil one. They are good loving kids, we have good relationships and they would think I’m crazy to say that they have demons within. However, I am a strong believer in God and I believe that we are naive to think we are always in control. Regarding the above discussions between David and Brandon, it seems like there is agreement that meditation, contemplation, etc. can safely be undertaken with a proper focus on God so as not to leave our minds a blank slate that can be written on by dark powers. I would say I don’t see the harm in that. The more I read David’s perspective, the more I found myself aligning with him because as a Catholic, I do believe in tradition as well as written scripture. But David’s support of Eastern Meditation did not, in my mind, caution enough against the potential for demonic infiltration. I think such types of meditation CAN leave one ripe for demonic residence when the practitioner is already oriented toward new-age spirituality (and even if one is a weak Christian) as many, many young people who were raised in Christian homes have become. I pray fervently for my children and constantly ask the Holy Spirt to flourish anew in them. I trust the Lord for his protection and provision and believe that one day they will return to their traditional roots and will understand how some of the things they believe are truly outside of God’s will for them. As an aside, I often listen to Catholic apologists and I have never heard anyone say that practicing Yoga or Eastern meditations, etc. is safe so it was my understanding that the Catholic church is strongly against that, but maybe not the Anglican Church?
Thankyou so much for this article. I have been going through tough mental times these last few months ever since I was betrayed by someone I truly loved (wont go into details) which shook my mental balance and sent me down a dark spiral. I somehow came out of it (praise God), but not fully as I still felt that loneliness and emptiness inside me. I was browsing youtube videos generally when one popped out that talked about meditation and while listening to it I started feeling like this is the way I should move now as everyone is saying how peaceful it makes them and how it makes them feel closer to God and I wondered if it was truly demonic then how is it that it was bringing peace to the people. Infact I was almost about to start my journey when an inner voice (am sure its God still protecting me) suggested I search the net for it once to see what’s the biblical perspective. And I eventually landed on this page and it gave me complete clarity on how and why the meditation I was about to undertake can actually open the door to evil spirits (specially the clear distinction you presented where hindu meditation requires you to empty your mind whereas the Bible talks about meditating on the Word of God and thus is completely the opposite!
Thankyou once again for this article! I am sure when you were driven towards writing this, you must have had a thought atleast once on how helpful it will be, but it truly has been a blessing and I would say you have saved me from getting into something that might have become difficult to get out of without any damage.
Thanks for dropping by, Anonymous. May the Lord guide and bless you.
Dear readers, please note meditation has got nothing to do with evil, you create your own demons, not some satan.
For those who say its evil please look closely within yourself.
Thanks for dropping by, Jeremy. Our aim for this blog is to think biblically about things – including meditation. Demons and Satan are very much a part of a biblical worldview. As is the evil within ourselves (sin nature).
Hi Brandon
My husband started this Silent Prayer which was recommended by Jesse lee Peterson he is so attached to that guy. I’ve notice some strange things ever since he started doing the silent prayer and he will do it before bed time and in the morning he has a routine. I don’t know for how long is he doing it because we only been married for two years. But ever since his been doing this silent prayer his feelings has change he seems cold and distant his not the same anymore. Whenever we talk about the word of God it always ended up in an argument we clash a lot when it comes to scripture. But when i talk to other Christian people who believes we talk for hours and agree on most scriptures and i feel at peace but it is the total opposite with my husband. So i dont know what is happening that we clash so much when it comes to the word of God. It feels like i dont know him anymore he became a whole different person.
Hello – I haven’t heard anything about silent prayer and I don’t know much about Peterson. But if you and your husband are at odds, certainly your prayers to the Lord can be powerful. You may even enlist the help of a prayer warrior and a biblical counselor to help guide you through this rough patch. May the Lord guide you both and help your marriage.
Indeed, there is much evil in ourselves: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9)
I was led to your site while I was researching a book that my daughter has started reading through a book club at work. It’s called The Tibetan Book on Living and Dying. Several of her co-workers are into numerology and meditation. I started out just to give her Biblical references on why she needed to stay away from all this. But on further study I’m actually terrified of the things she and my other daughter seem to be tolerant of. Im so thankful to have found your site – I will be sharing this with them and praying they will take this seriously. Thank you for your work in this area.
Thanks for dropping by, ConcernedMama. May the Lord grant you wisdom and direction with your family.
Eastern meditation is not inherently evil. No offense to him but Brandon is ignorant and misinformed, as believers go into trances in the Bible when they receive messages from God. The intent is what matters the most during meditation. You say these people your daughter talks to are into astrology, which is inherently evil, so I would warn your daughter against them. Also, there are negative side effects to meditation that are neurobiological, but they normally only happen to certain individuals.
Brandon, I think you have a fundamental misunderstanding of meditation and how it relates to the body and the spirit. I’m going to try to explain it, wish me luck.
Imagine your brain as two levels: you have the spirit, or the will, that is connected to God. It is the part that has higher goals, and tries to lead you (basically the body) to do the right thing. Then you have the body, which directly relates to the outer world. It’s like “the id,” in Freudian terms. The body produces the base desires, like, sex, food, or power.
Try this: Stop your thoughts for a moment. Now predict your next thought. You can’t, can you? It was a random sprout.
In the framework I’m giving you (I believe it’s true, but we need to think about it a certain way), your thoughts are random sproutings that come from the body. They’re automatic. They do not come from “the higher you,” or the spirit.
In the eastern meditation we’re talking about, the spirit is practicing control over the body. With the method where you try to stop your thoughts, the objective is to make your thoughts less automatic, so they align more with what the spirit and God desires.
Then there’s mindfulness, where your spirit watches your thoughts sprout, with the intention of being more cognizant of the automatic nature of your thoughts. The objective is for the spirit to be less muddied with your automatic thoughts, so you can be more aware of what intentions come from the body, and what come from the spirit.
“Emptying your mind” is not an accurate representation of this process. It’s impossible to actually empty your mind. The only time your mind is actually empty is when you’re dead. Even when people are in a coma, the brain is still active.
What you’re doing is focusing. You’re practicing control over your mindset- so the spirit has more control over the body, and therefore your base desires.
Think about Matthew 26:41. “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” In the framework I’m giving you, it’s not that the flesh is weak, it’s that it’s stronger than the spirit. The objective of eastern meditation is for the spirit to have dominion over the flesh, so the spirit can better do the Lord’s will.
So you said basically “eastern meditation comes from a religion that is not Christianity, and therefore it is bad.” Brandon, Christians do not have a monopoly on good ideas. Humans in general, not just christian humans, are made in the image and likeness of God. Everyone has a spirit that is connected, or has the potential to be connected to God. It’s like all the worlds religions are different interpretations of God’s nature. Like the story of several blind men who meet an elephant, and each touches a different part of it, then describe the elephant differently. They’re all correct, to an extent, but incomplete.
By the way, ALL religious people think their own religion is the true one, and the other religions are false. Like the blind men who think the others are mistaken, because each one is touching a different part of the elephant.
I hope this helps. Feel free to email me if you want to discuss this more.
“Peace be still” is the same as emptying or quieting the mind. We can unconsciously have a lot of chatter in our minds that can cause unease. Meditation can be taking some time out your day to breathe and let go of the chatter. This can help you “let go and let God”. Some religions use mantras doing meditation, you may use the Word of God to focus upon. I do not believe in calling other people’s (such as Buddhist) religious practices as evil. Jesus teaches non-duality and conditional love just like the Buddhist. Also, God’s presence is ominous, meaning no one is living outside of God’s presence or His love. Find peace, get go of judgement, and let the spirit of God guide you.
I completely agree with you, Cici. The spirit of God guided me, and I found contemplative prayer and eastern meditation. And I feel that it changed my life.
Mediation is mentioned 23 times in the Bible. This is separate from prayer. The goal is not to empty your mind but rather to fill it with it with altruistic thought and love for God. A state of deep gratitude. Christians only see the Eastern aspects or New Age religions. It should be highly encouraged.
For sure, Christians can and should meditate. Here’s a related article to that effect: https://truthstory.org/blog/how-to-meditate-as-a-christian/
Hi, i recently tried an app called sos method it is eastern meditation, and. I felt it did exactly what you wrote and I don’t know what to do:(
Helene – repent, delete the app, and pursue Christ. If you’re still interested in meditation as a Christian try this: https://truthstory.org/blog/how-to-meditate-as-a-christian/
There are so many problems with this post. This is nothing short of ignorant fearmongering and misinformation. I have prayed to God long ago asking Him to give me a way to become closer to Him, and He led me to contemplative prayer and eastern meditation. There is nothing wrong with it given the right intent.
#1: “It is not christian” – well guess what, Christmas, Easter, Halloween, eating chocolate, yawning with your hand over your mouth, and many more practices we all do originated for pagan metaphysical purposes. But it doesn’t matter. Just read what the Bible has to say about meat offered to idols. By the way, eating it was used as a pagan ritual back in the day.
#2: Mind-emptying – this is not evil. In fact, it makes it easier to take thoughts captive in day to day life. It helps one recognize bad thoughts and move on without giving in to them. God even puts people in trances in the Bible, which is essentially mind-emptying.
#3: Demonic affliction – the exorcist/deliverance community is generally unreliable, as many of them apply unorthodox concepts to their work. Also, you misquote the Bible verse. It is talking about whether or not that person has Jesus filling their life, not whether or not their mind is empty. If anything, yoga and meditation help fend off demonic oppression as they help you connect your soul more with your body.
#4: Self-focused: actually, studies show eastern meditation can bring about compassionate behavior.
But ultimately it was far more than human research and investigation that led me to contemplative prayer and eastern meditation. It was the Holy Spirit.
What are your thoughts on quantum physics and vibration healing?
Mary – I don’t know much about either. Blessings.
I should start by saying that I don’t have time to read all the comments above and so might be repeating what someone else has said (for which I apologise if this is the case)… Because for my nursing studies I’ve been trying to get my head around meditation as a concept and whether Eastern meditation should be a definition of this. My initial response to meditation (ie. the Eastern style of it) is that “it is not in the Bible and so can’t be God’s will for us” (a bit like what is stated as your spiritual danger #1). I see many others online saying this and that the only valid form of meditation is thinking about what is read in the Bible. However, I feel a restlessness inside of me like that simple answer is not complete. Part of the reason for this is that so many people say that it can help your mental and emotional health. I don’t feel it is intelligent/mature to discount them because “meditation (ie. the Eastern style of it) must be wrong because it is not in the Bible”. There are lots of things in our modern life that are not in the Bible (eg. Western education) that Christians have no problem with because they simply treat them as tools. That doesn’t mean Eastern meditation is necessarily spiritually healthy but just that a simple discounting of it I don’t find fair. And I’m not disagreeing that Eastern style meditation can be dangerous. I’m just saying it doesn’t seem to necessarily have to be so. And so I’m interested to know why sometimes it is dangerous and sometimes it is not.
A couple of days ago I was thinking about loving-kindness meditation where you are trying to teach your brain to express loving-kindness to people by imagining receiving it from someone else and then imagining giving it to yourself and others. The Bible seems to give several ways for Christian to be loving. The Gal 5 fruit of God’s Spirit seems to describe God gracing it to us as we keep in step with him. The fact that God hasn’t made me stronger in the areas of the fruit of his spirit is a perpetual frustration to me and so I personally can’t expound much on this verse. However 1Jn says that we love because he first loved us. That is, as we know how much loves we start to reflect that love. I started to put that together with Jn 3:15-16 where it talks about that the way God loved the world in sending Lord Jesus is the same way he loved the Israelites in Numbers 21 – in providing them a way to be rescued from consequences of their sin once they realised they needed rescue. Also recently I have noticed how gentle and kind God has dealt with me and others in the context of mistakes we make (ie. in not imposing consequences of mistakes immediately). I used to see God’s love as an abstract concept that I had to believe in as a Christian but never really saw the truth of it beyond that. Now seeing these specific ways of how God loves me in reality enables me to practice loving-kindness meditation while focusing on him and trying to teach myself to respond to others similarly – helping them in the areas that see they need help, and being gentle with them with the mistakes they because of their personal weaknesses. I’m very much on a journey but this is some of what I’ve come to so far.
I don’t agree with New Age too because religion/spiritual practice is a very serious thing. People can turn crazy if something goes wrong, so tradition is extremely important. Students must follow a really reliable master to guide them through practices, like meditation. Meditation can mess up your brain (only if you meditate intensively and without a reliable teacher) but it won’t lead to spirit possession. You can become sensitive to the environment or start to receive messages like Charismatic Christians do. But again, it is not possession. As far as I am concerned, there are many methods of meditation, and mind-emptying is not any of them. There must be other causes if one is possessed.
This kind of article will create only fears and doubts and makes no good for anyone/any group/society. It simply amplifies demonic power in our day-to-day life and people fall. In Old Testament, it doesn’t demonize Gods of other religions as it says “You must not worship any Other Gods except me.”
It seems demonizing others’ Gods/religious practices irresponsibly is Christians’ exclusive feature. I even see Evangelic Christians demonise Charismatic Christians’ Holy Spirit and then exorcize them.
I think it is the test of faith and the Bible knowledge from the demon as there is a very strange method of exorcism created by a pastor from the Protestantism evangelical branch. Some people experienced crazy things due to the Exorcism method and lost their ability to work afterwards. One victim is suffering for 6 years already. Such a method uses pen and paper to draw and test the evil spirit in your body, which has no support from the Bible. But still, many people believe in it and think the pastor is used by God. I am so worried to see this crazy thing and worried there will be more victims.
And this is the reason it is so important to respect and have the traditional teaching and a correct understanding of the Bible.
The current trend in big companies pushing mindfulness and meditationto their employees is concerning. We know most globalist companies are run by satanic leaders. Do everything you can to skip these mindfulness programs or you will find yourself led away from Christ. The justifications given for eastern meditation above are incredibly worrying from Christians to say the least. Do these people also smoke pot, weed and take recreational drugs to keep their highs?
Of course meditation is non Christian. Of course it’s non biblical. Eastern religions was there way before Christianity and the bible. The vedas were written thousands of years before the bible. What a completely stupid article. Thanks for the laugh though 👍
Thanks for an objective, informative biblical viewpoint on meditation and mindfullness; a helpful resource to the disciple of Christ seeking to look past the “open -mindedness” of the world even in many if not all professional medical and counselling sectors, and know instead the wisdom of God. Truly, the practice of meditation can be regarded by the believer as something to be avoided at all costs as we are not called to passivity of mind, will, reason and judgement, and conscience, but instead are commanded to vigilance, and to test all things. Thanks again for setting forth the truth.
To be honest I’m not even sure what I just read. Seeing your replies to people with differing point of views seems like sharing my perspective might not be something you care for. But I hope you’re able to see the good in certain practices as well, even if you don’t participate. At least looking at the full picture/positive experiences people have had would equal out your interpretive playing field.
ALL those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life are REDEEMED
by the Blood of Jesus Christ, and were ALL known by God before He created
a single subatomic particle.
If you THOUGHT you were saved, yet traded your “salvation” for Zen Buddhism,
or Transcendental Meditation, or ANY pagan religion, or New Age philosophy,
at the Last, Great White Throne Judgment, where Jesus sits as Supreme Judge,
you will find yourself cast into everlasting torment, in the Lake of Fire. PERIOD.
No ifs, ands or buts. “…what concord hath Christ with Belial?” NONE AT ALL.