Seeing Colors during Meditation

I frequently experience colors during meditation. At first, it was a bit shocking. The world basically dissolved into a mass of light and colors every time I sat down. Eventually, I got used to it, and now it no longer bothers me. I’ve learned to use it to deepen meditation, in fact. In short – there’s nothing to worry about, nor anything to get overly excited about. If we can bring it into the meditation, we can improve and deepen the meditation using the dissolution. We can use it as a teaching vehicle. If not, it becomes a distraction and we tend to lose the meditation.

The first I lost was the clarity. I was too new and didn’t understand it had even happened. Clarity wasn’t a thing I knew of then. After, the stability of the meditation degraded. I became too enthused, thinking something ‘real’ was happening. (Was I getting enlightened? lol. It ain’t that easy!) That excitement caused a loss of stability by definition, as stability is evenness.

Conclusion: the Middle Way is ALWAYS best.

What to do when you see colors during Meditation

Meditate on the color as it arises. Do not grasp onto it. It is empty of substance. Allow the symbolic meaning to communicate itself to you. Often, this is beyond words. Therefore, it occurs at a deep level. See it as it is – empty and luminous. When it departs or fades, let it go.

Don’t try to recreate the experience. This will only dilute and distort it. Don’t discuss it with others. Only relate to a person of real wisdom and genuine meditative experience, a mentor. Don’t assume that it means you are better (or worse) than others. Don’t make it a thing.

Seeing Swirling Colors in Meditation

One is the simple technical reason that when the eyes are still the retina experiences the phenomenon of saturation of color. This tends to create a swirling dissolving situation where the room blurs into a sort of almost formless mass of colors. Different phenomena occur from swirling colors to dots and so forth.

Empty Forms. These are legitimate objects in meditation especially in the Ati approach. They’re called empty forms and it can be quite beneficial to meditate on them. See them as empty when this happens.

Seeing Purple During Meditation

Purple in meditation can be a strong form of color saturation. It’s best not to overly attach meaning to colors in meditation. This has the unfortunate effect of reifying ego. One blogger claims that it has to do with the crown chakra opening and having a grand connection with wisdom. This is likely nonsense.

Many things happen during legitimate meditation – when the mind is truly focused. Some of them are genuine temporary experiences, but most are simply the altered perceptions of mind and body slowing down. Even the mind being without thoughts for a few seconds will seem quite profound the first time it happens. That’s because few people have truly experienced a mind without thoughts moving.

Likewise seeing purple when you meditate. It’s probably simply a visual phenomenon from holding the eyes still. Don’t denigrate it, however. Holding the eyes truly still is a feat. If you do see colors in meditation, then use them. Meditate on the color, without a preconceived idea. Do not turn it into any kind of thing, even the color itself! Simply meditate on it directly as an ’empty form’ without even the idea of ’empty form.’ Though it seems too simple, this is profoundly meaningful and helpful, if you can accomplish it.

Purple can also be a form of the blue color of the Vajra Wisdom – see below.

Seeing colors in meditation – Chakras Opening

Sometimes colors can occur, along with many other experiences, from an opening of the chakras. Be smart here, though. The chakras are not ‘open’ or ‘closed’. It’s more accurate to say they’re tied, or untied. They are constricted. When they open, it’s typically only a slight opening. A full opening would likely be overwhelming for most people. Even seasoned meditators fully open their chakras in a gradual manner.

Meaning of Colors as the 5 Wisdoms in Buddhism

The next approach is also to see colors in terms of the five wisdoms. These are the Buddha, Vajra, Ratna, Padma, and Karma wisdoms or the families of the wisdoms. The colors are associated with primordial Buddhas, as well.

The approach is to study the 5 Buddhas, 5 wisdoms and the 4 karmas, then meditate on these colors with that as background philosophy. You are drawing in the blessings, the wisdom, of the family as you meditate on the color. It is a path to enlightenment.

If you see one color consistently, then make an effort to deepen your connection to that wisdom. Contemplate it in post-meditation, as well. Connect with it in daily life.

White in Meditation – Buddha Jnana

Seeing white when you meditate is associated with the Buddha family. Varoichana is the primordial Buddha associated with this family. Buddha family is also called Dharmadatu wisdom. It’s an open non-descript reality, the wisdom of ultimate space as it were. Meditation on the dharmadatu wisdom can be done by simply meditating on the color white and understanding the underlying meaning of the color. Meditate on pure space or emptiness without any fixed idea.

Seeing White light in meditation or eyes closed

Sometimes, you may see white light with a spiritual meaning or feeling. This has similar associations to the above, but tilts slightly to the clear light nature versus just whiteness which leans toward the pure, empty, or equal aspect of reality. White light meditation benefits are a sense of peace, equanimity, space, openness, evenness, and deep calm. People experience it in Reiki sessions frequently. Some call it divine light. Don’t reify it, but simply meditate on it. It can be a guide to wisdom beyond essence. Simply use it as an object of meditation.

Seeing Blue in Meditation

The color blue is associated with the Vajra family. The primordial Buddha is Akshobya. This blue light is associated with mirror-like wisdom and the activity of pacifying. This insight sees phenomena exactly as they are. Like it says – simply a reflection of phenomena. It cuts through our distortions and biases. Meditating on this blue color with the proper view can cultivate this wisdom. The mirror-like wisdom is also known as the wisdom of clear seeing. It helps to counter aggression.

Seeing Yellow in Meditation

The next family is the Ratna family. The wisdom is equanimity. Ratna is associated with enriching – richness and wealth of all kinds. Meditating on Ratna can overcome pride. It also helps the mind to focus on the inherent richness of life. Cutting through the illusion of, grasping at material wealth. Craving wealth is often based on a mentality of impoverishment or not having enough. Whereas the wisdom of stability sees the sameness of oneself in all other beings. Equality and the equalness of all things is one expression.

Equanimity releases the mind into not seeing oneself as superior or inferior to others or one’s situation as greater or lesser than others but simply part of the flow of timeless reality.

Seeing golden light during meditation has a special case of Ratna wisdom. Gold is the saturation of richness throughout the phenomenal world. When Marpa offered Naropa gold, he threw it into the forest, saying,

What need do I have for gold?
All the world is gold for me.

Seeing Red in Meditation

The third color is Padma. Padma is associated with the primordial Buddha Amitabha. Padma is discriminating awareness. It’s seeing the details of phenomena and noticing how certain ideas fit into a situation better than others. In an absolute sense, one thing is not better or worse, but in a relative way one approach can work better than another.

Padma is associated with the energy of magnetizing. Magnetizing is fascinating to people. One can meditate on the wisdom of magnetizing through the color red and this will help to see the detailed aspects of phenomena.

Seeing Green color during Meditation

The fourth is seeing green or blue-black. Either color in meditation is typically associated with karma energy – action or accomplishment. This can also be associated with the karma activity of subjugating or destroying. This means destroying obstacles to accomplish and anything that harms sentient beings. Accomplishing means to accomplish benefit for others.

Amoghasiddhi is the primordial Buddha here. Meditating on the green color of Karma, a person realizes that all activities are ultimately fruitless. Everything is already accomplished. This is a very fruitional approach. Phenomena are perfect as they are. They don’t need to be altered or changed. We simply need to let go of false views about them.

Seeing multiple colors when you meditate

One can simply see these wisdoms as mixed together – as a pure ground manifested in different colors. Each of these deities and wisdoms is not separate from the others. They’re just different manifestations of the underlying singular wisdom. Meditation on the full display of colors – if that appears – will be sufficient. That will help to bring about that insight.

faq