Experience synchronicity. Types of Spiritual Experiences, Part 4

"Everything happens for a reason."  

"Everything that happens, happens for the better." 

"Everything happens the way it's supposed to." 

"God is not a little child."

These and other phrases with a similar meaning often accompany us in our daily lives. At times when events take a turn for the worse, they offer comfort and hope for a brighter future. Holding on to the idea that suffering, pain and other negative emotions serve a greater purpose helps us to remain optimistic. In turn, this type of pleasant mood in everyday life beliefs and approach to life creates a greater sense of meaning for the events in which we are involved.

The idea that everything has a deeper meaning, and that behind the veil of everyday reality, some organising force is purposefully weaving the threads of everything, is common to all religions and spiritual traditions.

It is on the "basis" of these beliefs that one type of spiritual experience is formed - the experience of synchronicity.

Let's gut it! What does science say about synchronicities?

What are synchronies?

Synchronicities are spiritual experiences in which a person sees personal meaning and significant coincidences in events that an outside observer would regard as mere coincidence.

The term "synchronicity" is mainly associated with the work of the Swiss psychiatrist and founder of analytical psychology, Carl Gustav Jung, and his belief that there are parts of the mind that are woven into a reality outside the world we physically perceive. This is a purely speculative view that is currently impossible to test empirically - it is a theological, philosophical idea about the order of things in the world.

...and perhaps the best answer for a believer to the question "why do we experience synchronicities?" is indeed that God, or some higher being, is in control of the universe, and that any of us can notice this control if we pay attention.

...while sceptics would tend to argue that this phenomenon is merely a "God of the gaps" - the attribution of a higher power to everything that cannot be explained. Moreover, the argument goes, as science advances, there are fewer and fewer places where God can intervene.

Be that as it may, this article is not about answering the question of whether or not such an umbrella organisation exists. It is about those particular aspects of the synchronicity experience that can be studied scientifically.

Why are we experiencing synchronicities? An explanation of psychology

Let's start with the most rational, uninteresting and, for believers, unpleasant part of the aura of magic - the part where everything can be explained by the workings of the human psyche.

In psychology, it is known that humans have a tendency to "superimpose" or "attach" our expectations and interpretations to what we perceive through our senses, and a tendency to derive and attach our personal meaning to events.

We have a natural inclination to look for meaning in everything we experience - even random events that we know are unrelated.

Moreover, this kind of "seeing things" is quite easy to induce (specific technique on how to do this in the next entry).

Synchronicity is an experience - not a belief, faith or conviction

However...

"Everything happens for a reason" is not just a belief - it is also a sense of transcendence that we "catch" when we experience surprising coincidences that leave us a little shocked, overwhelmed and focused on the present. In these moments we experience the realisation that everything in this world is in perfect order - that everything is happening as it should.

Synchronities appear intuitively, on the fly and for no particular reason. They can vary in intensity from light, vague, hazy déjà vu to an overwhelming, emotionally felt, vividly noticeable experience that events, life, have an elaborate pattern that is only roughly guessed, intuitively felt and revealed rather than planned.

Experiencing synchronicities is associated with a greater sense of meaning in life, higher levels of positive emotions and better interpersonal relationships.

Interestingly, some people have a greater ability to "see behind the veil" than others. Sometimes this ability can help people to see less obvious but existing connections, and sometimes it can encourage them to see something that is not there.

But...Too much is too bad! Does this also apply to synchronies?

Yes!

Looked at from a different psychopathological perspective, the perception of connections between unrelated events is called apophenia, and indicates a tendency to over-mentalise perceived events.

People who score high in apophenia usually suffer from paranoia, such as haunting ideas that someone is threatening them.

Another form of apophenia is attachment to conspiracy theories, which hangs on seeing confirmation of these theories in external everyday events.

Falling into extremes does not help mental health

To continue, we need to distinguish between two similar phenomena: paranoia and prononia.

In paranoia, the person interprets the apparent connections as threatening ("the world is conspiring to do me harm").

In the case of Pronia, man's interpretation is positive ("the world has conspired to do me good").

In the case of synchronicities, man is more prone to pronyas. However, there are downsides to prone too - it can result in gullibility and over-reliance on circumstances.

In a word, extremes are not healthy in either their negative or positive forms. When one starts to see complex connections and special messages in almost every event, it is time to see a mental health professional.

Summing up on a good note

Yes, our psyche is wired to search for and attach meaning to events, and we really have no way of denying or confirming the existence of this deeper meaning. And - although the tendency to experience synchronicities is associated with various mental illnesses, for the most part synchronicities are not pathological.

Research shows that people perceive and describe synchronicities as spiritual experiences. Not from the more intense spectrum, but still. They are momentary encounters with something that stands beyond us.

These experiences can give us a sense of the world as a wondrous place. They help us to see the events around us as meaningful and to have faith that life has a tendency to turn in our favour. They help us to find the silver lining in the cloud.

The synchronicities are our everyday miracles that evoke a sense of reverence for the way this world is arranged and how we are each connected to it. And the people who experience them are actually a little bit happier...

Bonus: Want to experience "synchronicities"?  Here's a technique to increase the chance of them appearing

Follow the steps:

1. Choose a symbol, object or event that you see or experience often! For example, a car number plate, a clock face, a book, listening to the radio, watching TV, trees in a forest, plants in a meadow, etc.
2. Pay close attention to this symbol, object or event.
3. You will probably start to notice certain number combinations, texts, themes, etc.
4. Extend the information you see - look for the meaning behind it! For example, think about the symbolic meaning of the objects you see (e.g. a white bird symbolises peace) and try to decipher how this relates to your life?
5. If you interpret these signs as messages from a higher power, you are likely to feel an emotional lift.

Note that this technique was created by people who deny the existence of any kind of coincidence, and encourages people to search purposefully for a deeper meaning behind everyday events.

On a more down-to-earth level, practising this technique can be translated as both a search for signs from God and a way of using the weaknesses of our minds to see greater meaning in coincidences. To prove whether these are signs or mere coincidences is currently impossible.

Personally, I think that practicing such a technique is just fiddling with the white spaces of our mind. But for fun, maybe! 🙂

This free content is produced in my spare time without pay. If you see value in what I do, I'd be happy to make you a coffee! It's like a spur to create new content! 🙂

Source: 

Yaden & Newberg. (2022). The Varieties of Spiritual Experiences. 21st Century Research and Perspectives. Oxford University Press