Inner Realm: Is there a spiritual significance to speaking in tongues?
Researcher coined the term "xenoglossy" to refer to cases where people speak languages they have never learned. Case of Uttara is example.
Richet, a researcher, during 1905-1907 coined the term “xenoglossy” to refer to cases wherein persons speak a real language not known to them in their ordinary states of consciousness. It is, thus, the ability to speak a language with no history of ever having learnt it.
The well-documented case of Uttara (and Sharada) may be considered for reference. Ian Stevenson and Satwant Pasricha wrote a paper titled “A preliminary report on an unusual case of the reincarnation type with xenoglossy” published in The Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research, 1980. Uttara Huddar, the subject, was born on March 14, 1941, at Nagpur Maternity Hospital, Nagpur.
Xenoglossy developed in the then 32-year-old in 1974 when a new personality, calling herself Sharada, suddenly emerged. Sharada could not speak Marathi (Uttara’s native language) but spoke Bengali fluently, when she did not possess the working knowledge of the eastern language. Although Uttara was unmarried, Sharada dressed and behaved like a shy, married Bengali woman with “sindoor” placed on her forehead. She did not recognise Uttara’s parents and friends and rather gave details about her life, mentioning the names of places in Bengal she was familiar with. Going by her account, it was found that a person corresponding to Sharada’s statements had lived during the years between 1810 and 1830.
Two events that occurred in late 1973 and early 1974 might have stimulated Sharada’s emergence. First, practising meditation with breathing exercises induced an altered state of consciousness in her. Then, Uttara’s encounter with a man to whom Sharada, after her emergence, felt strongly attracted to, added to the surfacing of the latter’s personality.
Uttara had returned to her normal personality and Sharada remained “in control” for several weeks. However, Sharada resurfaced later, and continued to do so intermittently at least up to 1979.
The details of her life in Bengal in the 18th century were provided by Sharada and much was verified by the researchers. The man with whom Sharada got attached to was identified by her as her husband in the previous birth.
Ultimately, the researchers came to the conclusion that the case appeared to be either one of Uttara’s possession by the entity Sharda or one where Sharda had been reborn as Uttara.
There are other dimensions of xenoglossy as well.
In the religious literature, especially in Pentecostal and Charismatic movements, this ability is referred to as “Speaking in tongues”, regarding it as evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit. The word itself is derived from the Greek term “xenos”, stranger or foreigner, plus glossa, language; also known as xenoglossia.
During my spiritual journey of decades when I sought to unravel the “truth”, I met a great mystic. He revealed that in almost all spiritual literatures of varied cultures, “speaking in tongues” is recorded. In a deep meditative state, one can experience such a phenomenon. However, the meditation has to be one of profound surrender. It could lead to an awakening.
In Australia, many years ago, I also witnessed a person who could enter into such a state and have complete conversations in languages he had never known. I have seen mediums do it and invoke the spirits of dead people. A person in Benaras, India suddenly started to speak in fluent Spanish and Russian when in self-induced trance. This phenomenon has also been recognised and researched by parapsychology.
Where xenoglossy is purely spiritual in nature, it cannot be in full public view. Plus, in spiritual practices, “Speaking in tongues” is not a complete conversation in a foreign language. It expresses only as a few almost unintelligible words and not as a complete conversation in an unknown language.
A number of “pseudo sadhus” do it to attract followers. These are invariably cases of dark art and should be avoided. For true spiritual significance, one should refer to the divine scriptures where true and false states are elucidated in detail.
(The writer is the principal chief commissioner, Income Tax. The views expressed are personal.)