Does this ring a bell?

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chris mc, modified 9 Years ago at 1/4/15 10:54 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 1/4/15 10:51 PM

Does this ring a bell?

Posts: 57 Join Date: 5/31/12 Recent Posts
This has happened to me about fifteen times in my life.  The first time was when i was a kid, about five (?) sitting in the bathtub.  All other times have been when I was lying in bed, either just going to sleep, or just waking up, with my eyes closed.

My meditation practice has had no effect on this phenomenon, in terms of frequency or intensity or duration of it happening.  It happens suddenly, without warning, I can be thinking about something random, and then...

If my sense of reality is normally 'flat', like I close my eyes and everything seems to be at the same level or on the same plane, or sensations are all happening at the same level of intensity...   then suddenly a tab or donut-shaped thing becomes really obvious in the center foreground, in a 3D way.  Like my sense of everything has just warped, and this big circular thing is either infinitely big, or everything else is infinitely small?

And then it just goes away and I can't really put it into words.  I know this will make zero sense to someone if you haven't experienced it,  but I'm sure I'm not the only one who has had something like this happen to them.

I don't think this means anything, I'm just curious to hear someone say "yeah, this happened to me in this stage" or whatever.

Thanks for reading,
Chris,
Darin, modified 9 Years ago at 1/4/15 11:03 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 1/4/15 11:03 PM

RE: Does this ring a bell?

Posts: 22 Join Date: 2/3/13 Recent Posts
Hi Chris.  I've had those sensations before.  I had them as a child and a few times in the last few years in my formal meditations.  
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chris mc, modified 9 Years ago at 1/9/15 4:58 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 1/9/15 4:58 PM

RE: Does this ring a bell?

Posts: 57 Join Date: 5/31/12 Recent Posts
Thanks Darin,

Can I ask, what kind of meditation were you doing, where were you at, when it happened?
Darin, modified 9 Years ago at 1/10/15 4:50 AM
Created 9 Years ago at 1/10/15 4:50 AM

RE: Does this ring a bell?

Posts: 22 Join Date: 2/3/13 Recent Posts
Hi Chris, the last time I had those sensations I had been applying a mixture of concentration and noting with the emphasis on concentration.  This is my usual technique.  The particular experience to which you refere is distinct from the states usualy encountered.  I don't know if I'd use the word "donut" to describe it.  Rather it's like an awareness of contrasting densities located within two spheres, one very small and one very large. The two spheres seem to but up against one another.