Our true nature does not lie in the plane of this world. The knowledge of this truth is within each of us, obscured by the world of illusion. It is true that all around us is real in the sense that we inhabit the world with our bodies and interpret experiences with our minds, but the reality that our spirits know is greater and not bound by the pale perceptions of our physical senses. Real meditation, and the true perceptions it leads to, are not enhanced by the drugs and deprivations so touted by some Western mystics. These practices distort spiritual reality by allowing the mind to interpret the experience.
Spirituality is understood by the heart.
Your mind is the gateway. Your heart is the path. There are many techniques and methods of meditation. In The Hall Of The Peaceful Dragon, Buddhist and Taoist meditations are taught. Westerners are apt to misunderstand these teachings.