The Healing Power of Darkness

Jeff opens his blinds each morning to the glow of twilight on the horizon. He is not groggy or stiff. He yawns and stretches, feeling completely restored. He then enters his meditation space to face east. Raising his arms out to his sides, he chants a strange, sonorous invocation:

“Hail unto thee who art Ra in thy rising!
Even unto thee who art Ra in thy strength
Who travellest over the heavens in thy bark
At the uprising of the Sun
Tahuti standeth in his splendor at the prow
And Ra-Hoor abideth at the helm
Hail unto thee from the abodes of Night!”

It may not be obvious, but this odd little ritual gives us an example of what mysticism is all about. Mysticism is not just an intense form of religion. It’s an ancient technology that some people still use essentially to hack into their own biology. They use it to keep themselves healthy, well adapted, and connected to the universe. In this case, Jeff’s invocation of the sun shows us that light is an important aspect of that connection. And so is darkness.

Ritual isn’t the only form of technology Jeff uses. After the Sun goes down, you might see him wearing a fashionable-looking pair of eyeglasses — except for that strange orange tint. This kind…