Hi, Phil,

Under the heading of "Pentecostal phenomena" in your book The Kundalini Process: A Christian Perspective, you speak highly of receiving the gift of tongues, which you received through the laying on of hands in 1973:

quote:

It's as though the prayer opens a channel for the Spirit to work in the soul. I consider it to be a type of mystical contemplation, as it is non-discursive, though not in the manner of many apophatic prayer forms. It is certainly a bridge to contemplative rest.

Shasha was also enthusiastic about a pentecostal impartation she received from Bill Johnson circa 2007:

quote:

I feel such a passion for praying for and with others like never before. Something in me has changed since Bill Johnson laid hands on me--an impartation and blessing, I'm pretty sure of it. I've noticed that: The more I pray for others, the more I want to pray, the more I experience peace and healing in myself. And of course, logically, the more people I pray for, the more people receive peace and healing.

Now, there are plenty of videos on YouTube critical of pentecostal practices. But these tend to be made by outsiders and bystanders rather than by actual participants.

So my question is this: Have you ever heard any first-hand reports of people receiving a "dirty shaktipat" as a result of pentecostal impartation?

Great question, Derek.

My experience, here, is limited, as I was involved in charismatic prayer groups for only a couple of years in the late 1970s. Even so, the gift of tongues that that I received then has continued to be a part of my prayer for all these years.

There's obviously a shaktipat-like dynamic with the laying on of hands for the baptism of the Spirit, but from what I recall, no one ever complained about being contaminated with another person's energy. Mostly, people were more aware of God's presence and filled with joyful praise from the experience.

I have been present on a few occasions where people were "slain in the Spirit," falling to the ground and seemingly out of it, even shaking at times. That even happened on one occasion when I was praying with someone. Eventually, the person came around and felt blessed from it. I had mixed feelings about that.

The gift of tongues seemed to be widely evidenced in early Christianity, as we read in Acts and Paul's epistles. 1 Cor. 14 goes into this matter in some depth, indicating clearly that its most common manifestation was as a private prayer language.

You're probably already familiar with the series I presented on the Spirit years ago, but for those interested, it's now on this board at the link below:

https://shalomplace.org/eve/forums/a/frm/f/18110765