I went through a life-changing experience in Mexico, some years back.
This took place in the same general area that Carlos Castaneda wrote about in his chronicles of his time spent with Don Juan.
In the shadow of 'Tetakawi', in the Sonoran Desert, I meditated for weeks, maybe months, slow-breathing, while slowly starving.
And finally, every last 'thought' vanished from my mind.
I felt, for some time, as if I might have done myself some sort of permanent damage: my mind was so silent.
Absolutely nothing was happening inside my head. It was eerie. Desolate. Null and void.
But you get used to anything, after a while, and so this state became the new 'normal'.
Today, my mind isn't quite as empty as it was, then, but it's still pretty damned quiet.
Not a lot goes on.
I've come to realize that almost nobody in the Western world has ever experienced anything close to this.
Almost never as much as a missed-meal, let alone regular starvation.
And never, ever, an empty mind.
Have any of you ever had any experiences along these lines?
Hunger? Meditation? Empty-mindedness? Total solitude?