The Occult Third Eye vs Orthodox Nous | Occult to Orthodoxy Series (Part 10) | Ep. 124
There is a growing belief in modern spirituality that human beings possess a hidden power—a “third eye”—that can be activated to access higher realms, divine knowledge, and spiritual awakening.
You’ll hear that Jesus Himself was a mystic.
That Scripture contains secret teachings about unlocking inner sight.
That enlightenment comes through awakening what lies dormant within you.
But this narrative is not new.
It is the same ancient temptation: to become like God… apart from God.
And while it may sound spiritual—even holy—it is, in reality, a dangerous counterfeit.
The Rise of the “Third Eye”
In New Age spirituality, the “third eye” refers to the Ajna chakra, believed to sit between the eyebrows and serve as a gateway to higher consciousness.
Practices used to “activate” it include:
Focused meditation on the forehead
Visualizing light or energy
Chanting mantras
Breathwork techniques
Using crystals like amethyst
Sound frequencies and binaural beats
Psychedelics and plant medicine
Those who pursue this often report:
Vivid visions or “sacred geometry”
Heightened sensory perception
Hearing inner voices or receiving “downloads”
Seeing auras or spiritual beings
Intense dreams or altered states of consciousness
At first glance, these experiences may seem enlightening—even divine.
But the question is not what you are experiencing.
The question is: where is it coming from?
My Experience in the Occult
I did all of these practices aimed at opening your third eye while I was in the New Age, and the effects came on gradually, without me even realizing they were happening. It wasn’t something I studied, I just did the meditations. Took the psychedelics. Used the crystals. Did the kundalini yoga.
And before I knew it, I was seeing sacred geometry everywhere, having contact with what I thought were aliens, telepathically communicating with others, and going into different realms while gazing into my friend’s eyes.
I didn’t really know this was called third eye activation, or the fact that what that really meant wasn’t that I now had divine eyesight, but had acquired the spiritual sight of the demonic.
Once the visions began showing me deeper and darker things, spiritual entities I could no longer deny to be demons, I knew I had opened a door I had no business opening, and that I was standing out in the spirit realm alone and unprotected.
It was only then that it made sense to me why God forbids divination and occult means of accessing the spirit realm in the Bible, not because Christianity was a compromised religion meant to control and oppress us, but because the God who created us and the entire world around us, wanted to keep us spiritually protected.
The Counterfeit vs. the Original
Almost every ancient spiritual system has some version of a “spiritual eye”:
Hinduism’s Ajna chakra
Buddhism’s “wisdom eye”
Taoism’s “heavenly eye”
Egypt’s Eye of Horus
In the 19th century, movements like Theosophy repackaged these ideas for the modern West, teaching that the “third eye” was linked to the pineal gland and could be reactivated to restore human divinity.
But here’s the pattern:
God creates.
The enemy counterfeits.
Within Christianity, there is a concept of a spiritual “eye”—but it is radically different from what the New Age teaches.
The Orthodox Teaching: The Nous
In Orthodox Christianity, the true “eye of the soul” is called the nous.
It is not a mystical organ to be activated.
It is a spiritual faculty that must be healed.
The nous was created for one purpose:
to perceive God and live in communion with Him.
Scripture speaks directly to this reality:
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8)
“The eyes of your heart may be enlightened…” (Ephesians 1:18)
But because of sin, this inner vision has become darkened—like a window covered in grime.
The goal of the Christian life is not to force it open, but to cleanse it.
Activation vs. Purification
Here is the fundamental difference:
The New Age approach:
Seeks to activate spiritual sight
Pursues power, knowledge, and experiences
Often leads to pride, confusion, and instability
The Orthodox path:
Seeks to purify the heart
Pursues repentance, humility, and union with Christ
Leads to peace, clarity, and true spiritual vision
One forces the door open.
The other allows God to open it—when the soul is ready.
The Danger of Spiritual Delusion
The Church Fathers call spiritual deception prelest—a state in which a person believes they are encountering divine truth, when in reality they are being misled.
How can you discern the difference?
Ask yourself:
Does this make me feel spiritually superior to others?
Does it feed my curiosity more than my repentance?
Does it leave me restless, anxious, or disturbed?
True encounters with God produce:
Humility
Peace
Love
A deeper awareness of one’s own sin
False experiences often produce:
Pride
Obsession with hidden knowledge
Emotional instability
A sense of being “chosen” or elevated
“If Your Eye Is Single…”
Many point to Matthew 6:22—“If your eye is single, your whole body will be full of light”—as proof of the third eye.
But the Church Fathers, such as St. John Chrysostom, explain this differently.
Christ is speaking about singleness of heart—a life fully devoted to God, not divided between competing desires.
It has nothing to do with activating a hidden organ.
It has everything to do with purity.
Sealed, Not Open
The modern spiritual world encourages openness—to energies, guides, and unseen forces.
Orthodox Christianity teaches the opposite.
We are not meant to be “open.”
We are meant to be sealed.
In baptism and chrismation, the Church declares:
“The seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
This is protection.
Because not every spirit is from God.
If You’ve Opened the Door
If you’ve participated in third eye practices, occult rituals, or New Age spirituality, you are not stuck.
There is a way back.
Close the doors – remove objects, practices, and influences tied to the occult
Repent and confess – bring everything into the light before God
Return to the Church – seek guidance from an Orthodox priest
Guard your soul – through prayer, Scripture, and the Sacramental life of the Church
The True Spiritual Gifts
Orthodox Christianity does not deny the supernatural.
The Saints themselves experienced profound spiritual realities.
But they did not seek them.
They did not trust them blindly.
And they never used them to elevate themselves.
True spiritual gifts are:
Given by God
Rooted in humility
Used for love, healing, and repentance
Not for curiosity.
Not for power.
Not for identity.
The Way Home
You do not need to unlock hidden power within you.
You need to be restored by the One who created you.
And when the heart is purified…
when the soul is humbled…
when the nous is healed…
Then—and only then—will you truly see.
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Coming Up Next
Coming up next: In the next episode, we will be talking about the Orthodox Christian perspectives on past lives and reincarnation.