What Was Henry Shukman's Awakening Like?

Henry Shukman had an awakening as a youth, far from home, so complete that he felt he could die that night because his life had already been fulfilled. Six weeks after he went home, he collapsed in despair and had a breakdown.

For several years he lived with deep shame and despair after losing a priceless treasure and truth he had found by accident. He had not been meditating. The awakening came out of nowhere. One factor he can point to is really difficult eczema from a very young age. Living with it was incredibly hard. The eczema was all over his body for periods of time, never gone, sometimes receded, then bad again, and he was hospitalized a number of times. The eczema was very traumatic. He would not wish it on anyone, and he thinks learning to live with it was some kind of training.