Pitfalls & Blind Spots
on the Spiritual Path
'When you start loving God, he starts putting money into your life or a lovely woman or a temptation like power or authority. He puts it before you to see if you will let it go, to see who you love most.' Yogi Bhajan
'The more spiritual you become the harder times you experience; the more spiritual you become, the more slandered you are.' Yogi Bhajan
'Not having flexibility to change is a tragedy in itself, and having too much flexibility not to stand for anything is a tragedy in itself.' Yogi Bhajan
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As we follow the teachings and as we practice, we will inevitably discover certain truths about ourselves that stand out prominently: There are places where we always get stuck; there are habitual patterns and strategies that are the legacy of negative karma, which we continuously repeat and reinforce; there are particular ways of seeing things—those tired old explanations of ourselves and the world around us—that are quite mistaken yet which we hold onto as authentic, and so distort our whole view of reality.
When we persevere on the spiritual path, and examine ourselves honestly, it begins to dawn on us more and more that our perceptions are nothing more than a web of illusions. Simply to acknowledge our confusion, even though we cannot accept it completely, can bring some light of understanding and spark off in us a new process, a process of healing. Sogyal Rinpoche
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The teachings tell us what it is we need to realize, but we also have to go on our own journey, in order to come to a personal realization. That journey may take us through suffering, difficulties, and doubts of all kinds, but they will become our greatest teachers. Through them we will learn the humility to recognize our limitations, and through them we will discover the inner strength and fearlessness we need to emerge from our old habits and set patterns, and surrender into the vaster vision of real freedom offered by the spiritual teachings. Sogyal Rinpoche
When little obstacles crop up on the spiritual path, a good practitioner does not lose faith and begin to doubt, but has the discernment to recognize difficulties, whatever they may be, for what they are—just obstacles, and nothing more. It is the nature of things that when you recognize an obstacle as such, it ceases to be an obstacle. Equally, it is by failing to recognize an obstacle for what it is, and therefore taking it seriously, that it is empowered and solidified and becomes a real blockage.
Sogyal Rinpoche
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Contents:
Excerpts from -The Intuitive Way, A guide to living from Inner Wisdom by Penney Peirce
Traps of the ego by David Joshua Stone
Chapter 5: Human Hiding Places: Methods of Ego -defense.
How Delusions Arise by Lama Thubten Yeshe
Some things to Watch out for
As on any path to higher awareness, we are bound to make some errors of judgment while developing intuition - after all, to know ourselves as spiritual beings requires a fairly dramatic shift from our everyday consciousness. That's probably why every spiritual path has had its blind spots; it's hard to see the whole picture all at once. Channeling ascended masters may seem as far off the mark to future generations as vowing not to eat or speak, trying to appease the gods through blood letting and human sacrifice., and burning women who practiced natural healing and midwifery now seems to us. To err is human, but we can learn to identify our perceptual "mistakes," correct them, let them go, and move on more rapidly.
Really, the worst that might happen if you make a mess of things is that you'll stall your own growth for a while and possibly contribute to stalling other peoples growth. You might add some negativity to the world and reaffirm the already overwhelming thought we all unconsciously buy into - that the world is a place of suffering, and we'll never get out of it, and we have to sacrifice our true selves to incarnate. But the more conscious and intentional you become, the less you'll be able to tolerate causing any level of pain, confusion, or even inconvenience to others. To speed your process of growth and not get bogged down in mistakes, you need to pay close attention to your anxiety signals and commit to living from a state of deep comfort. Let's look at some of the common stumbling blocks to maintaining clear intuition.
The Quick Fix and the Easy Answer
Today, our generation has been programmed to be consumers and to have short attention spans during which we must respond to intense stimulation. We therefore want enlightenment to happen instantly, and if one technique isn't interesting enough or doesn't give immediate results, why, we just flip the channel.
If you tried one of the intuitive techniques, for example, but couldn't visualize an answer, you may have gotten frustrated and passed over that particular use of intuition. And yet it's fairly common to have ambiguous results at first, or to have some time for you to acquaint yourself with these new perceptual circuits.
I see people, particularly in the New Age movement, jumping impatiently from technique to technique - purifying themselves with special diets, chanting, dousing out their decisions with pendulums, smelling aromatic oils, shining coloured lights on themselves, journeying to ancient power places and so on. These tools and techniques worked in ancient times to raise awareness, and they can still help us. But let's remember that tools are simply a means to an end and shouldn't be confused with the real inner work.
Many people are also seduced by paths to higher knowing where a neat and tidy doctrine is laid out for them by a powerful parental figure like a church, a guru, a shaman, a spaceship commander from Arcturus, or a teacher claiming to be a high priest of the Order of Melchizedek. Knowing just what rule to follow in every circumstance is a relief if you don't trust your own intuition. But going too fast, skipping from method to method, and settling for answers you had no part in originating can leave you open for a bad spill.
The first phase of the spiritual path, including the intuitive way, is to subject yourself to a scrupulous and ongoing character assessment. Here's where so many of our perceptual mistakes are made. We are tripped up by what were unconscious about. Removing fear from our thoughts and behaviors is not a particularly pleasant or speedy job. In fact, most people do everything possible to avoid facing their dark side, and when they do, they'd like to think that one quick pass through the underworld will clinch it. If you've been working with clearing your subconscious mind, you know that we cycle around many times to dissolve hundreds of large and small interrelated confusions and blockages. It takes great ongoing compassion for yourself - and patience - to become clear, No amount of magical thinking, talking the good talk, or blindly following someone else's rules will do the trick.
Control, Hypocrisy and Ambition
As we open to intuition, if there is still some fear lurking below the surface, there will also be some form of ego, some sneaky little way our mind tries to control the world to make us feel secure and right. Hidden ego games. After you learned that you could get information about other people intuitively, were you tempted at all to show off or to use this new skill to fortify your position at work or with friends?
As Marge started opening her intuition, she discovered that she had a real sensitivity to the subtle energies in the human body. She could feel hot and cold spots, too much electrical force, and could direct and balance the flow of energy with her hands. So successful was she at healing people that she eventually made it her livelihood. Her confidence grew and she exuded a take-charge attitude. She always seemed certain about what was causing her client's pain and presented her assessments with great authority.
"You are a mess, but I can help you," she would cheerfully say. Though this reassured many people, her presentation was subtly geared to bring her attention, and it actually complicated the client's healing process. To heal, they were now saddled with overcoming a judgment about their basic "flawed" nature as well as needing to realize that, in spite of Marge's talent and engaging performance, all healing still had to occur by means of their own soul and the divine. Do you have an expounder or a savior in your "My many Faces" list.
You get a clue about your blind spots by first noticing hypocrisy, ambivalence, or double-talk in others. If you are triggered by issues you see in others, the same thing may exist in you but in a different form. Watch for people who claim to be spiritual or moral yet act in a way that goes against common-sense principles. Notice the man who meditates and reads voraciously about Buddhism yet still demeans women. Or the spiritual counselor who advises people to clean up their lives but gossips about her clients. Or the strict vegetarian who feels threatened by a roommate who eats eggs or chicken. Or the teacher who claims to be the exclusive voice of Mother Mary or who doesn't make a decision unless advised by beings from an advanced star system. Or the Christian who discriminates against gays, Jews, Democrats, and people of colour. Do you ever choose role models who display this kind of split in their basic character? Are these people really showing you how to live more skillfully?
Self Righteousness
List five things that offend you and raise your hackles. As you imagine each thing, notice what you want to yell at the offender. Write down your scathing comments.
How do you do each of the things that offend you? Is there another area of your life where the behaviour occurs? If you are offended by someome who stole your wallet for example, might you be stealing attention from your husband when you're out with friends?
Keep your eye peeled as well for inconsistencies pertaining to greed and ambition in relation to your intuitive growth. It's possible to be greedy for information as well as material things. Do you buy piles of books that sit by your nightstand unread? Do you know people who binge on psychological and spiritual leading edge ideas? If you're overly ambitious in your intuitive growth, you may get too far ahead of yourself and not fully integrate your insights and lessons.
Attachment
When opening intuition you may seek security by becoming attached to a particular spiritual tradition or methodology, as others become attached to their car or mate. For example, you might be convinced about the rightness of going to confession and be totally unwilling to experience the benefits of creative visualization. Or you may have a bias against working with entities.
A buddhist priest I once knew discounted most of what I said because I referred to clearing emotions that originated in past lives, which he considered to be a New Age concept and thus inferior to his traditional spiritual lineage. Placing too much value on any one way of being or doing things can blind you and lead to debilitating self-importance. Attachment slows the evolution of the soul and makes it difficult for other options to educate, nurture and round you out. If you place to much emphasis on form whether it be one form or many forms, whether it be a technique or a belief system, you will miss the direct, mystical communion that surpasses all the explanation of the mind. What we're aiming for in the intuitive way is a lively balance between the ability to concentrate and the ability to adapt.
Boundaries
If you pay too much attention to others and the outside world, and if you constantly compare yourself to others, you won't be in the habit of feeling your body or recognizing the tone of your own particular energy. Then you'll be plagued with self-doubt and will have problems defining who you are and recognizing what is inappropriate, or even dangerous, for you.
If the boundaries of your personal self are not firm and you don't occupy your space fully, psychic, emotional, and physical invasion can occur. This is not as scary as it sounds, but it can be troublesome because you can confuse other people's needs and agenda's with your own.
You may also develop boundary problems as you become receptive to subtler forms of information, because as you look for these intuitive insights your conscious mind feels like it is stretching outward in search of finer and finer levels of data. It's easy to think that you're flowing into various situation or people to get an intuitive sense of them. If you flow into them, you will also unconsciously assume that you're flowing out of yourself.
This can cause you to feel empty and inadvertently misidentify yourself with whatever you flow into. Then you become the human chameleon. You'll articulate around highly verbal people, defensive around defended people, and self expressive around animated people. If you spend too much time with complainers, victims, and depressed people, you'll feel like a stone. This shape shifting tendency eventually stops the flow of your creativity and can lead to severe energy drain as well as mental problems. As one of my friends told me the other day, "You know what killed the chameleon, don't you? Sitting on plaid!"
False Humility, Sacrificial Service and Messiah Complexes
No matter where you are born, as you stretch out to open your intuition and spiritual life, you unconsciously carry your culture's religious beliefs with you. Developing induction will eventually require you to reexamine your religious faith and re own parts that align with your deepest ethics and common sense . You may still prefer to practice Buddhism, Jainism, Judaism, Hinduism, or Christianity, but the precepts you live by will have been clarified and internalized through your own super conscious choice .
If you have not give your religious beliefs much thought, some of the unconscious assumptions may interfere with your obtaining the fullest experience of yourself as a soul.
For example, from our prevailing Western religion we inherit the idea that we are born flawed and incomplete. We are supposed to be objectively humble with little sense of personal self, and we are taught not to try to find enlightenment through our own efforts but to surrender and let a more divine person do it for us. We are taught that it is noble to sacrifice ourselves and suffer for others. Many Eastern religions, for example, place a high value on collectivity and emptiness, so emphasis on the personal self, even on the soul, is discouraged for a different reason.
As you venture beyond the confines of religion into a study of metaphysics and intuition, you'll discover for yourself that there are universal principles that are inherent in human nature, no matter what our culture or religion. The study of these principles is neutral, almost scientific - and it is what every religion originally concerned itself with. And yet, as you begin practicing alignment with these natural laws, as you apply intuition to daily life you're bound to come up against this thought:
"I'm being too egotistical-who am I to think I could know this information directly? Who am I to think I could heal someone?" Or there's the more passionate stance: "I am nothing; I give myself in service to everyone and need nothing personally! I am just a vehicle for God's will."
This humility often leads to the messiah complex, a deceptive form of ego that comes from trying to be a saint or savior. Your clarity can easily become distorted when you have to help, when you can't allow others to have their own experiences but instead try to rescue them from their suffering. Some people take on great camouflaged self -importance and a strange sense of worth through self-sacrifice. Yet this kind of covert superiority robs everyone of their unique connection to the divine and drowns clear intuitive knowing in a pool of personal will power.
Sacrificial service doesn't help either the helper (whose capacity to receive eventually dries up) or the unconsciously guilt laden "helpee." Be aware, then, of the imbalances in yourself and others when there is the appearance of too much or too little: too much personal power, too little credit, too much humility, too little responsibility.
Avoidance, addiction, Denial, and Drama
TO avoid feeling fear and to cope with subliminal emotional pain, we create thousands of ingenious distractions. I'm sure you know someome who lives for romance or to be different or dramatic. On the path of the intuition, people can avoid the real world by becoming preoccupied with the details of psychology and metaphysics: who abused you in your childhood, your sacrifices and betrayals, past lives, dream realities, parallel worlds, messages from angels, gemstones and gadgets that affect subtle energy bodies, or even the idea of being abducted by aliens.
We need to watch for hidden agendas marked by ;longing for glamour and romance where we avoid the mundane - and thus miss the guidance coming from our bodies, which are firmly planted in daily reality. I have seen people change their personalities radically when they begin spiritual studies. A rambunctious, funny, outgoing young man suddenly becomes blissful, mellow, mild and humble, hardly talks, gives away all his money, and reverently raises his hands in prayer to everyone - after joining an ashram.
A practical businesswoman changes her name to Mary Lightning Bolt, Says "Ho"" after people speak, and starts wearing ethnic jewelry and fringed skirts, burning sage in her office, and drumming with her women's group - after she attends a Native American sweat lodge ceremony. These total immersions in specific forms of spiritual practice can be educational, yet at the same time they can stop the flow of our authentic expression.
Ironically, even the pursuit of healing and knowledge can be a distraction. "Maybe, if I keep taking workshops, reading the newest books, doing therapy, seeing the latest healers and psychics in town, I'll find the magic elixir!" Some people are addicted to seminars, and their social lives revolve entirely around the human potential movement. Other people are on a mission for perfect health of their bodies. They have had everything from candida to parasites to chronic fatigue syndrome and are experts on homeopathy, acupuncture, herbs, colonics, aromatherapy, chi kung, Bach flower remedies, and fasting on watermelon. One week it's no red meat, the next, only protein. Then it's no wheat or sugar, followed by no dairy products or spices.
If your attention is riveted on controlling the minutiae of your diet, there's not much time to feel deep emotions. Since it's not OK to be addicted to alcohol, drugs or cigarettes anymore, we've tricked ourselves into justifying our addiction to "good" things that are supposedly growth inducing.
We should also examine our need for drama, magic, and miracles. A woman I recently met at a luncheon told me of a particularly dysfunctional relationship she had entered into primarily because she'd been attracted to a house she saw as she walked along a beach. A few days later she met and befriended a girl on the same beach who turned out to be living the house, and soon after that, she met a man at a conference who turned out to live in the house, and soon after that, she met a man at a conference who turned out to be the girl's father. "It's synchronicity!" she thought. "This must mean something; it must be significant. Why else was I drawn to that particular house? This must be a powerful relationship.
I've also known people who got involved in disastrous relationships and adventures because they had a precognitive, though somewhat vague, dream that seemed to highlight some aspect of the subsequent real-world experience." But he was wearing a red shirt and his name was Dan - just like in my dream." Perhaps our subconscious mind is drawing attention to the man with the daughter with the house on the beach or to the man named Dan in the red shirt, not because they're our soul mates, but because they represent unfinished business in our subconscious or an example of what not to do.
Don't give more or less than is required by the situation at hand
The Essenes believed that it is just as much a sin to have too little as it is to have too much. At either polarity, the optimal flow of creativity gets jammed up. But if you have just what you need, life flows perfectly. The same thing applies when healing and teaching others or in communicating your new found knowledge to strangers, friends, relatives. In healing or counseling, if you give more energy and information than the client's body and mind can absorb, you may actually make things worse. In teaching we are told not to throw pearls before swine2 - in other words, not to waste precious resources in inappropriate situations.
Balance is the key word here. The universe doesn't waste energy. If you give less than a person needs, the resulting dissatisfaction can produce repercussions like pain, negative thought patterns, and wasteful acting out of dramas. If you take two steps towards a relationship with someone when they take only a step's worth so the energy can flow evenly. Give too much and you may feel insulted. Give too little and you'll never know your true self or anyone else. Use your truth and anxiety signals to know when to stop.
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"Since everything is but an apparition, Perfect in being what it is. Having nothing to do with good or bad. Acceptance or rejection, One may as well burst out in laughter. "
Longchenpa
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Traps of the Ego
The requirement for ascension is the balancing of 51% of your karma. This will indeed free you from the wheel of rebirth upon the physical realms and open you up to deeper advancements upon the inner realms. This is not the total picture, however, which is why this book is being written. There is, in truth, much to be considered before "Integrated Ascension," involving all the bodies, is complete. "Integrated Ascension" is what we are ultimately after, for in order to fully ascend, all of the bodies and many other quotients must be lifted up to GOD. In a similar vein, the GOD force must also be brought down by what is called the process of 'decension', or anchoring spirit into the body (matter). Initiation, leading to ascension, must therefore be seen and embraced through a full spectrum lens.
Another example of the negative ego contamination and interference in this quotient in the New Age movement is when a person acts from a place of self-righteousness and/or being a know-it-all. They think because they have achieved their ascension that they are a Master which gives them a right to order people around and tell them what to do. They perceive themselves as speaking as the voice of the Master which in truth is the voice of the negative ego and a massive power trip that is most often unconscious, which actually is the exact opposite of what true spiritual leadership is.
Another example is a woman who is more feminine and soft in nature who is not an informational channel trying to be an informational channel, when their true destiny might be to lead through the example of love and more lady Master energetic meditations. A woman may be trying to bring through her spirituality and service work in a more masculine paradigm, when her true spiritual mission is to bring it through the Goddess paradigm.
Another similar but different example might be a man or a woman who brings through wonderful channeling's, however, when they try to teach from their conscious mind, or maybe write from their conscious mind rather than the channeled state it just doesn't work. It is important for every light worker to know their puzzle piece and not try to move into a puzzle piece that is not their destiny or forte.
In reverse, a person could be an excellent spiritual teacher and try to force clairaudient voice channeling when their true purpose is to be more of an integrated channel or a telepathic channel, or just speak from their own inner wisdom and not think about channeling at all.
Other examples in the New Age movement are mystics who are forcing themselves to be occultists and occultists who are trying to force themselves to be mystics when this is not their true destiny. This may manifest in a person wanting to serve in the capacity of being a voice channel when their true channeling ability might be in the form of being a writer or channeling poetry and/or music.
To many light workers being a channel, psychic, spiritual teacher, author, and healer may seem glamorous, when in truth it is not. It is not glamour that should be sought but rather divine right spiritual mission. The most effective way to accelerate your ascension is to find your right puzzle piece and to serve and lead in that capacity. A person who is supposed to be a housewife or househusband will move through their initiation process as quickly as a person who is meant to be world famous as a channel, spiritual teacher or governmental leader. In GOD's eyes there is no difference as long as each person is doing their appropriate part in the Divine Plan.
Above excerpt by Dr Joshua David Stone
Possible traps
The golden chain - the ego uses the teachings to control - ego Lies hidden in with truth
wanting everything 'better, faster, stronger, quicker'
Thinking too much, too much research, doubt
over anal-ysis - lower mind analysis
Attachment to Power, Fame, Glamours, Money, Sex, Psychic Powers / Siddhis
think about higher truths, contemplation, mind experiments
Driven by negative ego - accumulating knowledge - to feel powerful, superior
Inadequate teachings - need purification, before kundalini activation
needing answers and guidance for every situation
Hypocrisy, Control, Ambition
ever working over time
chopping and changing spirtual paths & teachings - the ego's sabotage of the spiritual path - stick with one tradition, but have respect for others
power
make it, do it - YESTERDAY!
Needing to believe - seeing what want to see - backing up theory - blind faith
Build good habits, Good Virtues, Positive emotions - then can be unconscious and spontaneous- through Prajna - Wisdom
The fifteen major tests for every Lightworker are
1. Power
2. Fame
3. Money
4. Sexuality
5. Desire
6. Attachment
7. Transcending fear
8. Selfishness
9. False Pride
10. Anger
11. Greed
12. Jealousy
13. Vanity
14. Transcending Duality
15. Egotism
Read about them in books by Dr Joshua David Stone - such as "How to clear the negative ego"
