Spiritual bypassing [is] the use of spiritual practices and beliefs to avoid dealing with our painful feelings, unresolved wounds, and developmental needs. It would have us rise above is precisely what we need to enter, and enter deeply, with as little self-numbing as possible. To this end, it is crucial that we see through whatever practices we have, spiritual or otherwise, that tranquilize rather than illuminate and awaken us. Tranquilizers, meditative or otherwise, simply numb us, and if we have any investment in being numb, we may be drawn to meditative practices that keep us distant or safely removed from our pain. As long as we are consciously and skillfully turning toward our pain and difficulties, staying close enough to them to work with them effectively, we will be less easily seduced by the desire to sedate ourselves. Spiritual bypassing is not something to eradicate, but it is something to outgrow. Let us treat it as such, recognizing that real spirituality is not an escape but rather an arrival. -Robert Augustus Masters
Posted on: Tue, 20 May 2014 15:25:48 +0000
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