FIRE YOUR GURU!
5 Hacks to DIY Spiritual Liberation
“Perfect Love Cast Out Fear”
In our chaotic times, it seems second nature to walk this earth in fear. It feels easy to fear. We fear for our planet, our loved ones, our financial stability, and our health (often due to our shitty health care system). We fear subliminally what those in institutional power may do to us, since they literally “lord over us” in these times.
In fear, “we live, and move, and have our being” (to echo Saint Paul). Yet, the ultimate fear we have lies buried deep within, bubbling below the surface of our outward presentation to the world — and to the fool we see in mirror each day. Our quiet lurking fear is of this; our own personal power. We live in terror of our own power — more than anything else in this universe.
You may argue with that analysis. The self-talk within your mind will most likely disagree with that statement. Yet, your actions and behaviors betray you. Deep to your marrow, you fear yourself and what you are capable of; if you unleash your own intrinsic power.
This fact is especially true in our spiritual lives. We fear that our internal guidance system, our quiet intuition — may somehow guide us astray and dash us upon the rocks. Though we give self-determination “lip service” (like, “I always follow my heart”) we secretly fear our own spiritual potency.
Why is that? First of all, we fear power in general. Yet, more so we fear the culpability that comes along with our personal power. If we are truly powerful over our lives, destiny, and even our soul — then when things get screwed up, whom can we blame?
We feel we must blame something (or someone) else to feel safer and more self-righteous. If we let go of that ultimate parachute for our ego, we feel we may destroy ourselves and any self-respect we still retain. This is why we profoundly fear our own latent power.
As a result, we spend the bulk of our lives capitulating to those who claim to have the simple answers to life’s questions. We assume we do not have any. So, we look for someone or something outside of us that holds this Holy Grail. We seek these “anointed ones,” the chosen ones, the Gurus to, not really teach us how to live — but rather absolve us of the responsibility of leading ourselves. For that is far too much work, too much painful introspection. Such nebulous ambiguity bears far too much foggy twilight for us. As simple humans we long for simple answers; as we long for the clarity of the dawn.
Spiritual Babies Need to Grow Up
If you have finally come to a space in your adult life where you are ready to take on the responsibilities of spiritual adulthood, these 5 steps below will provide training wheels for the wild ride ahead. Not that you need them, because you will figure it out — one way or another. Yet, going DIY in your spiritual journey will move more efficiently by utilizing these spiritual hacks along this bumpy road.
It is time to fire your Guru! You have a remarkably unique journey that only you can discern and work out. When you finally get around to “adulting” your spiritual life, you will come to taste living waters that will lure you into those transcendent depths that satisfies — — better than the best high you ever felt. This is the high that the mystics like Rumi, Jesus, Mohammed and Buddha got drunk on. If you didn’t know — Now you know: Sober spirituality is the “new high.”
Here Are 5 Hacks That Cut Your Learning Curve Towards DIY Spiritual Liberation:
1) Acknowledge Your Own Power: This is a deep issue; more than a brief article can break down. So, the bottom line is that even the “conservative” scriptures that Jesus himself quoted from declares this truth: “You have made them [humans] a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor” (Psalm 8:5). Since you are made in the image and likeness of God, then you intrinsically have the power of your will, self-determination, and the ability to create (or at least “co-create” with the Grand Creator). There are so many tools in existence to teach us skills in manifestation, visualization, harnessing our powerful subconscious, etc. You are deceiving yourself if you think you need someone (or something) outside of you to “show you the way.”
2) Trust Your Heart (as trite as that sounds): “Be a light unto yourself. Be your own confidence. Hold to the truth within.” — The Buddha. “And as for you, the anointing you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you. . .” (I John 2:27). Your soul is one of a kind. It has its own intrinsic DNA marks for its specific and unique spiritual trajectory. This can sometimes be smothered by too deep of an immersion into organized religious and spiritual systems. Give your Swami, Pastor, Priest, and Guru a long term vacation. This is your journey. Take active responsibility for that. It really boils down to that. It is all on you. It always has been and always will be. You were born alone and will die alone. Face that fact and acknowledge that you are intrinsically equipped with everything you need to achieve spiritual liberation.
3) Learn Directly from The Source: Read spiritual scriptures for yourself. Do not (at first) read commentaries or intellectual interpretations or summaries about them. If you do that you are only getting one human’s spin on it. Read solid translations of the Bible, Sutras, Koran, Midrash, Vedas, etc. Keep a journal and write any insights or questions that arise. Then research on your own with the same exact tools your Gurus uses; commentaries on original languages, historical background of the writings, etc. At the beginning, stick to relatively accepted standard sources, rather than specialized niche commentaries or books. For example, it makes more sense to read scholarly sources from main branches of say, Christian history, rather than from specialized sects like the “Jehovah Witness,” “Mormons,” etc. Study Sunni Islam first, not the “Nation of Islam” (which is a small sub-sect). Go from big to small, broad to niche, not the other way around.
4) Meditate as Often as Possible: Quieting the noise of your mind is like connecting a USB cord to the Godhead. This does not have to be some “formal” form of meditation, like Zen or Transcendental Meditation, or Christian prayers, etc. Find a good interpreter of mediation to Westerners, like the works of Thich Nhat Hahn, or Eckhart Tolle. A slow walk in nature or listening to meditative music will help. If you have difficulty, try a moving meditation like Qigong or Tai Chi. The bottom line is just to stop your head from talking and begin to deeply listen. You will then softly sense the timeless, wordless whispers that inspired Rumi, Saint Francis, Thomas Merton, and a host of women and men throughout human history in all spiritual lineages. Meditation is the cream that acts as a balm to our souls. It profoundly heals the emptiness and fear that taunts our hearts.
5) Do Not Sell Your Soul to Religious Organizations. Often it is helpful to learn spiritual growth in the context of community — we need and benefit from relationships for they too are part of our spiritual life lessons. Though I have been badly burned by some spiritual group experiences in the past, I learned a lot from that friction. Ideally, we want a supportive, non-judgmental community context in which to grow. Still, good luck finding that, since too often religious/spiritual groups devolve into a “pep rally” for those “special enlightened ones” who are “smart” or “good” enough to “know” the truth. Your open mindedness may be an offensive challenge to this “in-group” thinking that communities of worship tend to breed. None the less, the reality is that for millennia, we have experienced our spiritual relationship with God in the context of community. No one is an island unto themselves (This is also a great book by Thomas Merton — “No Man Is an Island”).
“Isn’t It A Lovely Ride?” — James Taylor (“The Secret of Life”)
Can we learn from others in the realm of spiritual truth? Yes. Is there benefit in developing one’s spiritual growth in the context of community? Of course. Yet, at the end of the day, never capitulate your own power (and responsibility) to navigate your soul along its unique path to spiritual liberation. For only you have the map of that path engraved upon the DNA embedded deep in the quiet space of your soul.
Enjoy this lovely and wild ride. Drink from that chalice which is yours alone. You will find that when other aspects of your life disintegrate, your spiritual liberation will be your rudder, anchor, and sure sail that keeps your head far above the turbulence of life’s sometimes murky waters.