Seeing Visions in Meditation? Here’s Why
I’ve had meditation visions that left me in awe—and others that left me wondering if I was losing touch with reality. Sometimes they were so vivid, so intense, that I couldn’t focus on daily life, would question my own perceptions, and even feel grounded in my body.
Having been meditating for nearly 30 years, I’ve seen it all: Spirit guides, flickering light, vivid geometric patterns… And for a long time, I didn’t know what to make of it.
If you’ve experienced strange or beautiful imagery during meditation, you’re not alone. Meditation visions are more common than most people realize—but they’re rarely talked about in grounded, honest terms.
In this guide, I’ll share what I’ve learned—from science, from spiritual traditions, and from my experience as a meditation teacher —so you can better understand what’s happening and what to do with it.
What Are Visions in Meditation?
Meditation visions are images or scenes that appear in the mind’s eye. For instance, one of my clients, Dominik, came to me after he’d been seeing volcanoes while meditating. Others see different characters like spirit guides and various animals, and some experience fascinating light patterns and geometric forms.
There are many different understandings of exactly what these visions are, why they occur, and what they mean. For instance, there’s the scientific explanation that they occur due to changes in brain states that lead to subconscious imaginings. And there are spiritual explanations, which are plentiful and range from Akashic Records to shamanic visions. More on those later.
What’s important is recognizing that how you interpret them shapes your experience — and that interpretation isn’t always straightforward.
Types of Visions in Meditation & Their Meaning
Geometric Shapes
These can vary from specific sacred geometry (such as the Merkaba symbol) to colorful shapes whose meanings may not be immediately clear. Examples include bright tunnels representing life and rebirth, and honeycomb patterns, which can represent cosmic order among other things.
Numbers, Symbols & Language
These can range from recognizable words in a language you do or do not know to numbers and symbols such as the sign for infinity or even computer code. These often represent higher knowledge or ancestral memories.
Faces & Eyes
Faces and eyes are two of the most recognizable shapes to the brain, so it is not unusual to see them in meditation. They could simply be memory fragments, they could represent your spirit guide, or they could represent spiritual awakening (especially if it is an Eye of Horus).
Animals
Some of the most commonly seen animals during meditation are wolves, snakes, dragons, big cats, and birds. Scientifically, we associate different animals with specific traits (such as tigers for power and eagles for freedom), so seeing them could represent certain emotions or qualities. Animals are also closely related to spirituality, and certain animals can mean specific things, such as snakes and dragons sometimes representing Kundalini awakening.
Different Environments / Landscapes
We naturally associate different landscapes with different emotions, such as a quiet park being peaceful and a volcano being dangerous, so seeing these places could represent emotions. Some spaces do have spiritual meanings as well, like a church or temple being divine or the ocean representing the collective unconscious.
Visions of the Past or Future
It’s not unusual to see memories from your past or possible scenes of your future. When you meditate, your mind organizes a lot of information, and you also become more aware of your subconscious, so remembering the past and imagining the future is normal. Sometimes you might also recall a past life or see glimpses of the Akashic Records.
Out of Body / Energy Visions
My most intense vision in meditation was floating around England above the clouds. Such out-of-body experiences are uncommon and they have been interpreted in many ways. Some see them as expansions of consciousness, others as contact with spiritual beings. When I was working with one of my clients, Sam, she had a visitation from a friendly old lady whom she took to be a spirit guide and whom imparted a deeply personal wisdom to her.
| Vision | Possible Meaning |
|---|---|
| Bright Light | Spiritual awakening, connection to the divine, or entering deeper states of consciousness (often reported in Yogic and Buddhist traditions). |
| Mandala or Geometric Patterns | Inner harmony, balance of the mind; may reflect alignment of energy centers (chakras) or subconscious integration. |
| Faces or Eyes | Could possibly represent repressed memories, intuitive insight, or symbolic encounters with aspects of the self or guides. But as with all visions, this is complex and making interpretations without professional guidance can be confusing. |
| Nature Scenes (forests, rivers, animals) | Grounding, healing, and reconnection with natural rhythms; may reflect inner peace or unresolved emotions. |
| Tunnel or Vortex | Transition between levels of consciousness, symbolic of inner journeying or transformation. |
| Deities or Spiritual Beings | Messages from the unconscious, archetypal imagery, or spiritual guidance depending on personal beliefs. |
| Shadowy Figures | Shadow work or unresolved fears surfacing; could reflect parts of the self that seek attention or healing. |
| Flashes of Color | Chakra activity or emotional states; e.g., blue for calm, red for energy, violet for spiritual insight. |
| Symbols (crosses, lotus, OM, etc.) | Activation of spiritual archetypes or alignment with certain philosophical or religious energies. |
| Flying or Floating | Freedom from ego, transcendence, or lucid awareness of consciousness beyond the body. |
The Science Behind Meditation Visions
Visions during meditation are often linked to changes in brainwave states, particularly an increase in theta waves (which are associated with deep relaxation, dreaming, and subconscious activity). The visual cortex can also generate spontaneous imagery when sensory input is reduced, leading to geometric patterns and abstract visuals. This is similar to what happens in hypnagogia, the state between wakefulness and sleep, where the brain processes subconscious material in visual form.
These experiences may also be influenced by the default mode network (DMN), the part of the brain responsible for self-referential thinking and inner imagery. As meditation caused the DMN to quieten, deeper layers of the mind become more accessible, which could explain why some people experience past-life visions, symbolic imagery, or vivid subconscious memories. In my lessons I’ve noticed that the deeper my students go the more likely they are to experience visions.
While science can explain some of the mechanisms, it can’t tell you the exact meaning of your visions. Each person’s mind, history, and nervous system shapes the experience. That’s why it can be tricky to interpret alone — even with the right knowledge.
Working With Meditation Visions
Whether you interpret visions through a scientific or spiritual lens, the process of working with them often looks the same. Science views them as insights from the subconscious, while spirituality sees them as messages from a higher source or spirit guide. Regardless of perspective, visions communicate through symbolism, speaking to the deeper layers of the mind. To truly understand them, we must engage with them on a subconscious level.
In my lessons I focus on training my students to let meditation visions unfold naturally—without forcing interpretation (it sounds easy, but many meditators struggle to distinguish insight from imagination without reflection or guidance).
Since this is the language of the subconscious, the conscious mind can’t always steer it directly — which is why interpretation can be surprisingly subtle.
How To Have Meditation Visions / Journeys
I teach many different techniques to help people to take meditation journeys and to see visions, ranging from Third Eye meditation to guided visualizations. All these techniques share certain things in common. For starters, you want to use rhythm to induce theta brainwaves, using either a drum or a chant at a rate of around 4 to 7 beats per minute as is done in shamanic rituals. You also want to lead your mind to daydream, which you can do either by observing the colours and shapes you see with your eyes closed (which is done in Entopic Meditation) or focusing on your Third Eye, which will activate your pineal gland. Doing this in complete darkness will also enhance the effects. Of course this is just a brief guide and proper practice requires either guidance or long-term experience.
Here are six ways to start working with meditation visions.
1) Specific meditation techniques for visions
- Shamanic Journeying
- Third Eye Meditation
- Vipassana with Visual Observation
- Guided Visualization
- Dream Yoga
- Entoptic Meditation
- Chakra Activation Meditation
- Darkness Meditation
- Mantra Meditation
- Scrying Meditation
These techniques can help bring visions into focus… but each mind responds differently, and applying them safely often benefits from supervision.
2) Journal Your Visions
After meditation, write down everything you saw, felt, or experienced. Don’t try to analyze it immediately—just record it as it appeared. Later, revisit your journal and look for recurring symbols or patterns. Over time, patterns will begin to emerge (although interpreting them can require skill and perspective).
3) Symbolic Free Association
Take a key image from your vision and write down the first words or ideas that come to mind. Let your mind wander without judgment. This exercise helps bypass the conscious mind’s tendency to overanalyze and allows deeper insights to emerge.
4) Active Imagination
A technique inspired by Carl Jung, active imagination involves re-entering your vision through meditation or visualization. Instead of passively observing, engage with the vision—ask a symbol or figure what it represents, or see where the imagery leads you. This can provide profound personal insights, although many people need help interpreting those insights.
5) Ask for Clarification in Meditation
If a vision confuses you, return to meditation with the intention of gaining clarity. Before beginning, silently ask, “What do I need to understand about this?” Then, observe what arises without expectation. Sometimes, the answer comes not as another vision but as a feeling, a word, or a sudden realization.
6) Work with Me
Meditation visions can be awe-inspiring, but navigating them safely requires experience. In private sessions, I guide students through these journeys, helping them uncover meaning without getting lost or overwhelmed.
When the Mind Goes Quiet, Images Speak
Whether it’s your subconscious speaking or something deeper reaching out, visions can be awe-inspiring — and sometimes disorienting. You may feel curiosity, excitement… or uncertainty. Alone, it’s easy to misinterpret or feel unmoored. That’s why sitting with someone experienced — someone who can guide and calibrate the journey — can make all the difference. If something’s arisen in your practice that feels powerful, confusing, or impossible to interpret alone, I’ll sit with you and help you navigate it safely.
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Paul Harrison is a meditation teacher with 25 years of experience and a deep passion for helping others. Known for his empathy and authentic approach, he’s dedicated to guiding individuals and teams toward mindfulness, clarity, and well-being.
Hello. I had a very imagery rich meditation today and I’m trying to understand what it means…We had a meditation this morning at the 11 hour. It was 10 minutes I believe. This meditation I was seeing the floating eye with waves of colors reds and blacks. In a sea of black like ocean. Everything is always in currents or wave like motion. The guide on the meditation led us to radiate a beam of power and light from our chest. The floating eye was just flowing in the currents until she said to do this, it went directly to the ocean / sky horizon line. She had us imagine being in a beach. So when she spoke about the beam the eye went straight to the horizon line and my beam was shining directly to the eye and it would immediately lift and begin spreading the energy in purples and bles and blacks as if the eye had wings and the wings were the energy flowing from the wings releasing the energy right back into where I was. But as soon as one eye would lift another was filling and lifting where three of four were flying releasing energy while another was being filled by the energy beam coming from my chest. My eye level was staying above the dark currents and into the color energy but I could easily still see the dark currents. I could see both simultaneously. And when the first one got close to me it dove back into me and the next and the next. It’s like my spirit and the earth were exchanging energy with each other me to it it to me me to it it to me me to it. Over and over. The beam coming from me was going to like the suns position on the horizon but it was my third eye but I was seeing my third eye in 4 or 5 at once during the trade or dance.
Yes. The colors from the flowing from the wings as it fell from the wings onto my surrounding or really back into the black ocean the black was being lifted up into the colors of current and being mixed with it. I had forgotten that part until you mentioned it. I remember it now because I thought how beautiful it all was almost like being a part of a lava lamp
Wow, that sounds incredible. I love how you describe the eyes, the currents, and the back-and-forth of energy—it’s like a dance between you and the world around you. The colors lifting the darkness and flowing together feels like integration, a blending of shadow and light. Seeing your third eye in multiple places while sending the beam to the horizon suggests expanded perception and connection. The lava lamp image really captures the beauty of constant motion and transformation.