Unconscious Realms of Consciousness

If you are conscious, then even when you “empty your mind”, your mind is infinitely far from being empty! The empty mind is merely the un-focusing of attention. Or, put another way, it is consciousness focussed on itself. In this state you have the ability to explore consciousness.
By “explore” I mean that you can effectively move about within the world of the “unconscious”, which is in fact an infinite world (as anyone who has ever achieved this level of consciousness well knows!), but that does not mean that it is without structure or laws.
In fact, the laws of the unconscious mind are the only true laws in nature! The first and most important law, for example, is “Do not be ignorant!” (Of course that is only one way to state the law in limited human terms. Another way to say this same thing is, “Love God!” And/or, “Love thy neighbor as thyself!” Which all mean the same thing.) Because this is an absolute law, it cannot be broken, but it is possible to exist in a self imposed state of ignorance (and fear, which is, to “hate God”) but this is purely illusory and has no basis in the conscious or unconscious universe.
I should explain what I mean by “no basis” just to be clear: Ignorance (and fear, which is inextricably intertwined with ignorance) is no more than a substanceless shadow. It can only be perceived at all in the same way we perceive shadows, not by what is there, but by what is NOT there! So, in the same sense that shadows don't exist, so ignorance (and fear, and hate, and “evil”) has no “basis in consciousness”. That does not mean it is unreal, or cannot cause real harm. Just as a shadow can weaken or even kill a plant (by depriving it of sunlight), so ignorance can weaken and even “kill” (destroy) a human “soul”! But also realize that as long as a plant is not kept in the shadow all the time, most can survive and even thrive on very little sunlight. And so it is in the realms of consciousness.
“Light” in the realms of consciousness is “Love” and “Understanding” (which are the same thing). The “physical” world only exists by virtue of mutual ignorance that causes “fixed illusions”, that we all share. Modern science has been studying the edges of this illusion since the beginning of the last century. Quantum physics has clearly established the link between consciousness and the “physical world” for some time now (though few scientists will even admit to themselves what the data from their experiments shows; that we don't even exist! Or, to put it another way, we only exist as “conscious energy” or “thoughts”.
So, a person with a truly “empty mind” is one who has lifted the veil, and sees consciousness for what it is; the source of everything we call “the universe” or “reality”. In such a state of understanding (i.e. Love) this person can move about to any point in space and time of the physical world, but not just space and time, to any point in consciousness itself! That is why such a person cannot easily relate their freedom of movement (a.k.a. freedom of choice, though “movement” in a much better term, it still does not fully express the actuality) into human terms. This is what it means to “know the will of God”. It is to know your own true will! (If you think you already know your own will, then think again! Who decided when you would be conceived? You did! And when you truly realize this – by “visiting” that point in consciousness! - then you will understand what I mean!).
So the next time you meditate – and if you don't meditate then why are you wasting your time by reading this! - try to realize the freedom you have, by letting go of your physical mind (your thoughts and perceptions) and “moving” into the unconscious realms of consciousness, and “see” what you find!

P.S. By “meditation” I do not necessarily mean anything as formal as Zazen (but anyone who practices Zazen regularily will easily follow what I am saying – though they'd probably disagree on a few technicalities). All I mean, is simply the practice of “emptying the mind”, or just “quieting the mind”. Most people meditate without even realizing it when they engage in some kind of “relaxing” activity, such as running, or working on a stamp collection, or such. As long as you suspend your thoughts long enough to become aware of consciousness itself, sometimes perceived as “existence” - so if you do something that makes you “feel real” then you are probably meditating.