Timing, Synchronicity and Coincidences

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

Hello all!
I’ve been reading through the many great discussions on the forum for a while but this is my first post.

I just wanted to know if any of you have had any personal experiences, or can shed some light on timing, synchronicity and coincidences and their relationship to Yoga?

I guess I should tell you a little about myself and what makes me ask. I’ve been practicing Yoga for about ten months now, and really ‘fell in love’ with it my first class (which didn’t actually consist of any Yoga but rather my instructor talking about it and related topics). To say the least Yoga has changed me. I wouldn’t say drastically as much and radically and fundamentally. Anywho-

Something more far out is that my sense of timing has noticeably improved. And, what’s more, is the amount of “coincidences” that happen to and around me, along with a overall sense of synchronicity. Things just tend to fall together for me. A “chance event” that at first seems random will tie two or more things together that ends up having significant meaning. It makes one wonder about the interconnectedness of everything. Mind boggling.

I can’t tell you how many times I say “It’s [I]so[/I] funny that you say that because…”

For the sake of keeping this short(ish) i’ll end here, but I honestly feel I could fill a journal with this stuff (and really should).

Thanks in advance and ANY input is greatly appreciated.
I’m eagerly awaiting your responses, Namaste.

#2

Ive experienced what you are talking about. at times I got too attached to the whys and hows and too much in the head about it. My advice, if you like talking about it and find it enjoyable conversation, why not do that. If it gets you thinking in a bad way, leave it alone.
best to you
Brother Neil

#3

It`s really amazing.
Sometimes I notice such “coincidents”. But not very often to say it is related with yoga. They used to happen even before I started doing yoga.
Will be interesting to hear the most interesting examples from you, Casasajc and other people here, who have experienced this.

#4

I’ve noticed it, over time, as a result of my practice. However after several years it becomes “accepted” and I don’t spend too much time dwelling or marveling. I try not too draw to broad a picture from it but do believe one can be plugged in (connected) in a variety of ways, though “normal” people are more likely to be disconnected and unaware of their surroundings.

#5

Everything has actually stayed exactly the same, but you have changed as you rightly pointed it out. And that change, the expansion of your consciousness, your awareness, that has brought you to a place of greater insight.

The world, (call it maya, the illusion etc,) that never changes, but we change, we evolve, we expand and that change our perception of the world. A wonderful power within that can be unlocked by many practices of which yoga is one.

#6

I feel what Pandara brought up about about the expansion of consciousness and awareness is the way I best describe it to myself as well. And also of being “plugged in” as innerathlete puts it.

But can one become [I]more[/I] plugged in? Or are we becoming more aware of how we all affect each other? Like, coincidences aren’t happening more, but rather one just becomes more aware of them? I would have to say no because often times these coincidences are things that can’t be ignored, even by the more ignorant of us. I think of how a person I haven’t seen for quite a while will come through my thoughts for whatever reason, and then I’ll happen to bump into then within a week. This actually happened to me yesterday after I posted this topic.

Or, (and this is always fun) how you’ll be sitting there thinking about someone, and when you open your phone to call them you answer they’re phone call.

One of the aspects that makes these kinds of happening significant is that they usually only hold relevance to the person who realises them. Once shared with another person they can be easily dismissed as coincidences.

Oh, and thank you Brother Neil for the good advice about “leaving it alone if it gets you thinking in a bad way.” I haven’t had that happen to me personally, but a good friend of mine had a rather dramatic experience with this. His was having epiphany after epiphany and feeling like he was figuring everything out and understanding ‘how it all works’. I told him that it was great and that I could totally relate, but to TAKE IT SLOW, because in the end there’s nothing to figure out. Long story short he did the opposite and drank some psychedelic mushroom tea which acted as a catalyst for the blooming of his consciousness, so to speak. He ended up doubting every aspect of reality and because of all these “coincidences” felt like everything was a dream. He’s fine now, but it was a hell of a ride for everyone involved.

I’d like to share a quote from Autobiography of a Yogi- “Every saint that has penetrated to the core of Reality has testified that a divine universal plan exists, and that it is beautiful and full of joy.”

Thanks for your responses. It’s nice to be able to relate to others on these kind of topics.

#7

[QUOTE=Casasajc;33274]. And, what’s more, is the amount of “coincidences” that happen to and around me, along with a overall sense of synchronicity. Things just tend to fall together for me. A “chance event” that at first seems random will tie two or more things together that ends up having significant meaning. It makes one wonder about the interconnectedness of everything.
.[/QUOTE]

Indeed! I wanted to post the same thread!

I know what you are talking about. When I was a kid I seem to create some near future events. I do notice it now as well… not as much thought…

I think this is just a rare or rare showing quality of our mind to create situations that will lead to the happy coincidences… kind of create our own reality.

Fore me yoga helps with it too, because it brings me to that state of mind when I was a child and created reality at very successful rate…

#8

Coincidences are inevitable in life. That does not necessarily mean they are pre-ordained or caused by some higher power, nor that you are becoming “more spiritual” and hence experiencing them more. They’re called coincidences for a reason, after all.

People tend to notice what they are looking for. It’s called “confirmation bias”. If you are noticing “cosmic coincidences” it’s because you believe that the universe magically provides them. Your mind is interpreting the events it witnesses according to the beliefs it has or according to what it wants to believe about the world.

#9

[QUOTE=PsyDev;33787]Coincidences are inevitable in life. That does not necessarily mean they are pre-ordained or caused by some higher power, nor that you are becoming “more spiritual” and hence experiencing them more. They’re called coincidences for a reason, after all.

People tend to notice what they are looking for. It’s called “confirmation bias”. If you are noticing “cosmic coincidences” it’s because you believe that the universe magically provides them. Your mind is interpreting the events it witnesses according to the beliefs it has or according to what it wants to believe about the world.[/QUOTE]

I wonder if you have ever experienced any of this personally? Or if you’ve had a serious case of deja vu? The reason I put “coincidences” in quotation marks is because I don’t believe in them. A couple years ago I would have agreed with you completely. But after “coincidences” happen on a regular basis are they still coincidences? ‘Regular coincidences’ is almost an oxymoron.

Here’s another fun one that happened to my friend a few weeks ago. He was singing a song in his head and then my other friend started to hum it. This kind of thing happens to me. People think my thoughts out loud before i get a chance to say them, and vice versa.

Like I said earlier, the list goes on and on and mostly they are things you need to experience for yourself. Some mind bogglingly significant, others are just make you smile and laugh.

This reminds me of something Jesus said- “lest ye see miracles, ye will not believe”.

I hope you have a personal experience of this nature some day, one that your logical mind can’t begin to explain. It feels awesome in the true sense of the word.

All the best,

Arthur.

#10

[QUOTE=PsyDev;33787]Coincidences are inevitable in life. That does not necessarily mean they are pre-ordained or caused by some higher power, nor that you are becoming “more spiritual” and hence experiencing them more. They’re called coincidences for a reason, after all.

People tend to notice what they are looking for. It’s called “confirmation bias”. If you are noticing “cosmic coincidences” it’s because you believe that the universe magically provides them. Your mind is interpreting the events it witnesses according to the beliefs it has or according to what it wants to believe about the world.[/QUOTE]

It is a probability…

I’m highly skeptical. But I always look for coincidence and so to say “sings”. And sometimes they just not coming for years… Suddenly, I start to encounter amazing “coincidences” … and most of times it happens when I start practice a lot…say for example silent meditation for days…or something else.

I think that this is something we do not know about. I prefer not to deny it since it was happening to me at amazing frequency and many times I foreseen what will happen. Im not superstitious and I read a lot scientific literature about it and their explanations failed to work for many of mine cases.

#11

[QUOTE=Casasajc;33848]
He was singing a song in his head and then my other friend started to hum it. This kind of thing happens to me. People think my thoughts out loud before i get a chance to say them, and vice versa.
[/QUOTE]

These thins happen. But then the question is, how do you interpret that event? After this happens, do you then say to yourself:
“Therefore, we must be telepathic”
“Therefore, god must have wanted this to happen for me [and for me to see]”
"Therefore, … "?

If you try actually reasoning it through, you will likely find that there’s no reason to believe that these are “miracles”. For instance, since there are billions of people on the planet, someone will win the lottery twice simply due to chance. And someone else will be struck by lightning 6 times in their life. Extremely unlikely, but statistically, it can (and does) happen to people.
Miracle? Divine intervention? Or just nature at work, producing (purely natural) patterns we see as significant, which we then invent crazy beliefs to explain?
Again, if your mind believes that interpreting coincidences a certain way is valid, it will do so and it will not feel the need to look for contradictory evidence. In short, our hunches are often wrong but we believe we’re infallible and we don’t realize how wrong we are until someone actually demonstrates it to us. Being rational is questioning yourself, too.

#12

[QUOTE=PsyDev;34859]These thins happen. But then the question is, how do you interpret that event? After this happens, do you then say to yourself:
“Therefore, we must be telepathic”
“Therefore, god must have wanted this to happen for me [and for me to see]”
"Therefore, … "?
[/QUOTE]

First off, I wonder if you have personally experienced something that your logic absolutely fails to explain? Seeing is believing. Hearing a story about something has no validity of its own. And I don’t draw any conclusion. I just observe and appreciate these type of events. I also agree that one must question himself, he must even question he ability to question. And in this questioning he must use truth, truth that isn’t tainted with any personal agenda, need, or desire.

I’ve realized that in many ways I, like everyone else, creates their own reality. The most logical way in which we do this is through projecting our own subconsciously held beliefs onto everything any everyone we encounter. It’s not a matter of who does this, but to what degree. So, yes, if i really wanted to have a mystical experience I would create that for myself whether it was due to a divine force or disillusionment. But when you are open to everything and hold on to nothing anything can happen. I say being skeptical is having a closed mind. You put yourself in a predisposition to dismiss something because your conditioning says it’s too unlikely to happen. Why? Because you’ve learned from others what is possible and what is not. However, one should doubt everything and accept nothing as absolutely true. Holding this fine balance is the necessary to recognize truth.

When things happen to me, such as thinking about something and then having it happen (repeatedly) I don’t get a sense of validation such as “Oh, that proves it, my thoughts create my reality”. I’m not looking for evidence because it’s superfluous. The proof is in the pudding, so to speak. The event validates itself. I hope I don’t sound contradictory, if anything is unclear I can reiterate. If I can’t present my perspective I like to lean on someone else, so to speak. So I’ll end with a quote that very much touches on what how I feel.

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed.” -Albert Einstein

#13

Coincidences are those special things that happen to everyone, that live in the unexplained. Some can be rationalized, but really is a nice mystery of the universe.

But, your awareness of them can be explained. You say you began noticing growing incidences after you began asana practice a few months ago (love at first salutation). Asana practice is designed to improve physical and energy flows throughout the body, and thoughts/perception is a very biological process. The more efficiently blood/energy flows through your brain and body, the more heightened your awareness becomes making you notice coincidences and synchronicity even more. There are many people I see everyday who simply sleep-walk through their lives noticing nothing and unattuned to their environment.

In my neck of the woods, the entry to yoga is usually through the asana door. I can’t tell you how many times I have listened as someone tells me how open they are to other levels of yoga after starting asana practice. May have something to do with the opening of their energy flow.

#14

When I first saw this thread, I immediately thought of expressions like “being in the zone” or “in a groove”. Things like momentum are well known in the world of sports. Maybe its not exactly the same thing as coincidence or synchronicity, but I think its related. I also think that you have to really believe in these things. In order to get momentum going, you have to take the ball and run with it, when your opportunity arises. If you let your opportunity pass you by, you’ve lost your momentum.

#15

I just started my spiritual yoga path within these last few months, and things have kept coming together in almost unbelievable ways. I just look at it as a reminder that I’m moving in the right direction, we can see God if we look for Him.

#16

It sounds like you have some momentum happening. Keep it up! But I wouldn’t be so quick to attribute it to God. I think of it as more of a natural phenomenon. You’re beginning to discover something about how the world works.

#17

[QUOTE=Casasajc;34885]First off, I wonder if you have personally experienced something that your logic absolutely fails to explain?
[/QUOTE]

I think the answer in that case would be negative.

some atheists do not believe in god because they have never seen IT.

my grand-grand-mom did not believed in bacterias since she have never seen them.

It is very ignorant to deny things you can explain.

I have experienced dejavu and I do know the scientific nature of them. But some dejavu can not be explained.
I still have not found any decent explanation to the phenomena to the dreams that come true.

People who deny things like that are consider themselves as logical and intelligent. But the one who is really intelligent understand that everything that is happening is logical, but for today we just have not evolved enought to find that logic…

#18

The beauty of this universe lies with the mystery it has. Science will never be able to reveal everything. The more secrets science discovers the more mysteries will come in font. Meditation is the only way to get glimpses of such miracles because meditation kills your ego which is always present to hide such things from you.
The degree of our awareness lead you towards the sense of such phenomenon and meditation is the only way to make you more and more aware by and by.