spiritual mis-leadership

What is meant by spiritual mis-leadership?

Spirituality, or, the path, is the inward oriented investigation of what is absolute, or, absolutely true, aka, The Truth. Simply put, the inspection of what I am which is unchanging under any & all circumstances, free of experience.

In this investigation, or, along the path if you will, much misunderstanding, misinterpretation & misidentification is dispelled. These misunderstandings, misinterpretations & misidentifications are no more than thoughts. If you will, the activity of thought.

Discordant emotion is a term for how these thoughts feel. Each discordant thought points to why the thoughts is discordant, or, that the thought is of misunderstanding, misinterpretation & misidentification.

Inspecting why some thoughts are discordant, on a thought by thought basis - is unveiling, unfettering or un-obscuring that which is absolute and unchanging under any and all circumstances. This discord empties from the apparent body, mind, or body-mind.

Spiritual mis-leadership arises as spiritual ego, which is ordinary emotional suppression, which is mental aversion from feeling… with the addition of a mental and apparently convincing narrative about there being - “spiritual teachers”.

That there are spiritual teachers is the very misunderstanding, misinterpretation & misidentification being referred to. The “teacher” presents as if higher, knowing, or understanding… that which is absolute and unchanging under all circumstances. These are the very beliefs which perpetuate misidentification, which is what suffering is. Thus, the “teacher” can seemingly “teach you” many things, but can never teach liberation of suffering - because the teacher is the means of aversion from feeling in the first place. The belief that there are spiritual teachers is the fundamental mental aversion from feeling. One is not ‘being taught’ anything of any value; one is believably only joining in on an assumed ‘others’ aversion.

The pillars of manipulation & deception in regard to “spiritual teachers” which ‘hold themself’ as higher, knowing or understanding are meaning, purpose, value & worth. These aspects perpetuate misunderstanding, misinterpretation and misidentification.

What the “spiritual teacher” is overlooking is misunderstanding, misinterpretation & misidentification. What you as it were are joining in, inherently therein, is a sharing of & reinforcing of; misunderstanding, misinterpretation & misidentification.

Misunderstanding, misinterpretation & misidentification are no more than - the believing of thoughts.

Thus the discord felt, is already felt by that which is appearing as - thoughts.

Thus, an addition of “teachings” only confuses & contributes to the already occurring overlooking of the discord felt. Aversion is from feeling, ‘into’ so to speak, the believing of thoughts. One therein seeks a solution to suffering overlooking the inherent infinite guidance already felt. The “solution” to suffering is that there already isn’t a problem. What’s felt in this regard is misunderstanding, misinterpretation & misidentification. What there is, is aversion from feeling, and the belief the discord felt is “a problem”.

In truth, it is only that which is absolute and unchanging under any all circumstances which is what’s feeling - ALREADY. Thus, every believed thought about - is the very overlooking of - that which is absolute, nondual & unconditional.

The denial of the truth of suffering, is the denial of the discord felt with respect to thoughts (misunderstanding, misinterpretation & misidentification). Thus, being a spiritual teacher is in fact the very denial, ignorance and suffering - which “the student” is looking to “the teacher” to liberate of. The root of all separation is the belief in separate selves. The misidentification that you are a separate finite self. Thus the presentation of / as “a teacher” (a separate finite self) is the mis-leadership of - spiritual mis-leadership.

More simply put, it’s a ‘not doing the work’, while telling you what spirituality is, what the truth is, what they know, what they understand and therein - how to ‘do the work’… such that you too might bypass & delude yourself as they are, via overlooking, denial, ignorance, pride, suppression, vanity, arrogance, etc, etc. Again, the root of all suffering is the belief in separation; in separate selves. The ‘believing’ occurs only via thought attachment, or most simply put - believing thoughts, assuming truth is found in thought(s) and or concepts.

The difficulty in recognizing spiritual mis-leadership lies in the inherent nature of thought attachment. Spiritual insights & experiences are identified with via hindsight thoughts about a separate self. My understanding, my awakening(s), my insights. That is ‘the ego’, or ‘separate self’ of thoughts. The ‘separate self of thoughts’ is not a self, but is the believing of thoughts about there being, separate selves. This belief is only reinforced by the purporting of being a “spiritual teacher”, and therein so is the discord / suffering.

How the ‘ego’, ‘separate self of thoughts’, or ‘spiritual ego’ functions:

Waitress: Chicken, or steak?

Thought arises: Chicken.

Hindsight thought arises: I chose chicken.

It is the simplicity of the ‘separate self of thoughts’ which is elusive. There is nothing complex about the ‘matter’ whatsoever. Adding layers of concepts confuses, and does not clarify.

The ‘one who chose’ simply wasn’t present when the thought, ‘chicken’ arose. The ‘ego’ is the hindsight thought which is the claiming of a doing and or a choosing having happened at all.

The spiritual ego is exactly the same, in that the claiming of spiritual insights and experiences are hindsight thoughts, as ‘what I know’, ‘my understanding’, ‘my insights’.

‘Knower’ is the thought; ‘knower’. Like ‘unicorn’, there is the thought, but there isn’t the ‘thing’. Again, the belief in separation, in separate selves - is what suffering is.

The ‘knower’ is no more actual, real or present than a ‘chooser’, ‘doer’, or unicorn. The believing of these thoughts is the experience of - thought attachment. The very thoughts one on the path as it were, is aiming to dispel and liberate of.

Spiritual leadership, if there is such a thing, is assistance with the investigation, and the emptying body-mind, and ranges from sharing techniques & practices such as meditation, yoga, breath-work or mindfulness in assistance with the inspection of & dispelling of beliefs.

What is already the case or actuality can not be found, learned about or arrived at - because ‘it’ is what is already being overlooked.

When all beliefs are dispelled, only The Truth remains. Therein this is referred to as awakening, transcendence of mistaken identity, enlightenment, or ‘seeing reality as it is’ - as ‘it’ already is.

That there is a person or self which becomes awakened, enlightened, or has awakenings, is the ignorance of thought attachment - the ignore-ance of the discord already felt and the aversion from feeling which is already occuring, and is the purporting of the very misinformation that is, spiritual mis-leadership.

Assistance with spirituality as the inspection for what is absolutely true is non-aversion, non-suppression and non-conceptualization. An uncovering of the actuality - not an adding of complex concepts about.

Spiritual mis-leadership sounds like ‘ignore what you’re feeling and trust me & what I am saying’ as ‘the one who knows or understands’ - as the authority on spirituality.

Spiritual mis-leadership is complication, rather than simplification - adding vs dispelling. At it’s worst, spiritual mis-leadership / spiritual ego sounds like; ‘you need to know or understand what I know & understand to be as awake as me’ and or ‘reach levels I’ve reached’. These are personal beliefs based on the very misidentification awakening or enlightenment dispels.

Spirituality, as the investigation for what is absolute, is not mental and emotional manipulation & deception. That feels very off, because it is very off.

(Please visit the Meditation and Tools pages for more information.)

The ‘new identity’ or spiritual ego which is conceptualized via thought attachment, is a strengthened continuation or furthering of the emotional suppression and aversion from feeling overlooked or ignored in the first place. It is feeling good about a ‘self image’ or ‘separate self’ of thought as “the teacher”, and is not the actuality and unconditional nature of feeling (Being) Itself, if you will.

This results in defensive, protective, isolating behaviors which center around perpetuating the aggrandizing of the ‘separate self’, or, spiritual ego, as a spiritual leader. Most difficult perhaps, is that one ‘doing so’ is not aware one is doing so - because of the very nature of emotional suppression, aversion from feeling, and thought attachment.

This often sounds like ‘you need me and or my unique intellectual offering of knowledge’, and or ‘to know what I know’, ‘to understand what I understand’, ‘to comprehend what I comprehend’… so that you can awaken, be enlightened, or self realized - like me. Again, there is awakening, there is enlightenment - there is not anyone who is or becomes awakened or enlightened.

Due to the absolute innocence of Ourself, the manipulative nature of spiritual mis-leadship which is a projection of suppression & aversion, is often and most unfortunately internalized by listeners, resulting in doubt, fear and lack, via believing there is… ‘something I need to know or understand’, to be able to feel the Truth of the happiness, love, and peace - that I (already) am.

Truth is uncovered, not added.

The rhetoric of spiritual mis-leadership becomes seeds of self doubt, for ‘not knowing what they know’, and or ‘not being as intellectual or intelligent’ or as ‘conscious or awake’ as ‘they are’. The manipulation of the dualistic nature of language in this manor unfortunately reinforces, rather than dispels, beliefs like ‘I am not enough’, or ‘something is wrong with me’, as the comparative discordant concepts offered convincingly by ‘the teacher’, are internalized by the ‘follower’. Awakening is not perpetuating these cycles, but is the end of these cycles.

The suffering of aversion is quite literally the recognition of what is absolute & unchanging, which is not separate, and is what’s being referred to as emotional guidance. Aversion is not a problem to be solved. The fact that aversion can be felt, is the very evidence of the unconditional guidance; the unconditional Truth.

If you suspect that you are experiencing spiritual mis-leadership, and the facade of spiritual authority & the confusion therein, simply take time away and clarity will naturally arise. Be mindful not to underestimate or hold expectations as to how long it might take.

If you feel unable to take time away, research cults & brainwashing. This will allow dots to connect as to the ‘practices’ of manipulation & deception employed which are the purporting to be a “spiritual teacher” and sheds clarity on the situation. Honor, respect, ‘listen to’ & explore and dispel any discord felt, as that is already the very guidance & presence of the unconditional ‘feeling’ spoken of, and all to the contrary are - beliefs.