All of us frame objects and situations automatically. Our focus is on the situation itself, and we are typically blind to the effects of our frames. Our prior experiences affect how we think and feel about what's presently around us in subtle ways. We believe we're seeing reality – seeing what is there.

It might be useful to interpret these curious phenomena in the light of current neuroscientific thinking in an attempt to diminish the otherness, the stigmatising pathology, of these altered states. Light is without colour. The redness of the apple is not inherent in the apple. The colour of red is not generated in my mind as an outcome of a series of complex processes beginning with light waves of various frequencies, but without colour, impinging on the rods and cones of my retina. This same apple is without taste or flavour until it enters my mouth and its purgency activates taste buds and olfactory cells. These sensory experiences are complex and intensely subjective.

We’ve seen a lot, and we continue to watch, to notice, to see more. What we call a ‘thinking session’ is not a methodology because it is never finished. If it is anything, it is a kind of life form. Nature is too complex for us to penetrate fully or entirely accurately. So we cannot complete it. We can only keep our eyes open.

We can’t understand what is happening to us, and if we are in the habit of always wanting to know what is going on, this aspect of the dark night will be maddening. We can find meaning in these times of change, but we have to think differently about our lives, be less psychological in our approach, and more philosophical and spiritual.

Tip: Remember that writing out the problem makes the invisible visible. Write down what you think the problem is, and then look at it the next day. If you find yourself using jargon in your description, it’s a sign that you don’t fully understand the problem. And if you don’t understand it, you shouldn’t be making a decision about it.