Metaphor: Truth bent around reality

Metaphor (from the Greek: metapherin) is a rhetorical trope defined as a direct comparison between two seemingly unrelated subjects.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metaphor

In the view of the mystic, wisdom is transmitted through language via imagery, metaphor, similie, parable and comparison. In most cases, the images are but carriers for the scent of truth. A fellow mystic will divine the wisdom and giggle with delight, weep, gasp or sigh deeply. The non mystic will see the imagery, respond, perhaps, to it - but they will have missed it entirely.

Where things get interesting is when the wisdom appears allegorical but is literal. What appears to be a folk tale or a parable is instead a literal retelling of events.

To whit:

The buddhist saint Atisha was travelling to Indonesia:
…on the ocean a great storm arose and Atisha… meditated on red Yamantaka and completely subdued… the storm.
– Pabongka Rinpoche

This is not folk tale, not allegory, not fantasy.

The storm was subdued by the act of the meditator.

Meditation changes the fabric of reality. Not all kinds of meditation have this effect, but there are types that do. Some meditations build the capacity of the meditator, so they may stay in samadhi for longer periods of time. Other meditations re-structure the mind to accept the burden of other kinds of meditations. Some meditations develop better abilities to deal with hinderances to the meditative state, such as expanding the memory structures to allow access to transpersonal information or meditations to alter emotional reactions to disturbing content.

Tangible, though seemingly acausal, results occur once you move into the energetic realm of meditation. Magnificent and stunning changes happen to the world around us because of the merit of meditation. It is not that the meditator, by reforming their mind becomes a better human being, and that has a positive influence on others, and in some abstract way, the world. The nature of our shared reality is actually changed by the meditator. Reality bends to the energy of meditation. The world becomes just a little nicer, people become a little stronger and braver. Compassion and love become more accessable.

This is the way it runs. You learn and become proficient in the Dhyana (Zen) techniques, you learn the techniques and mindset of the Sufi. You saturate yourself in the oil of the divine, and the storm obeys.

What is wonderful about this is, no matter how greedy you may be for the power to still the storm, it cannot happen without full realization of the essence of the divine. Personal goals limit this realization. No realization, no magic powers. Realization, no selfish desires for the power.

While few will ever be able to stop a storm, most of us can seriously and positively impact the wellbeing of others. This is the reason I am a zensufi. This is the reason I have claimed my membership in the brotherhood of mystics that predates all religions. This stuff really works.