Newsletter June 2024 – Spiritual bypassing
‘No tree, it is said, can grow to heaven unless its roots reach down to hell’ Carl Jung
Whilst the road of spirituality holds great healing and nourishment, there are also a myriad of problems with it too. Far too many to talk about in one small article, but there is one I would like to address. That is the problem of ‘spiritual bypassing’. This is effectively using spirituality as an escape or a bypass to more challenging psychological problems that all human beings face.
Let me clarify that no matter where you are on the ‘path’ we will all do this to some degree. This also goes for all spiritual, religious groups too across the world Bypassing does not differentiate between cultures. It is part of being human. The difference though, is through recognising it and becoming more aware of it, you can lessen its impact. It is ongoing though, and just like most of spirituality, as you move thorough one door, another opens, and so on.
A good example of this is many people you find who preach the ‘love and light’ message, and basically come out with quotes on how wonderful everything is, and how we need to love everybody. They also often preach that since finding ‘God/universe/consciousness’ they have found complete peace and are kind to everyone and everything. Another example which I have run into is those who have found they have an ability to communicate with ‘Spirit’ and start talking as if they are in constant communion with the Divine. The list goes on. What is interesting though, is if you spend some time with these people and truly get to know them or see them behind closed doors you see they can have enormous psychological issues (like all humans!) and have used their newfound spirituality to either bandage their pain or suppress it. Refusing to go near their own darkness. This is deeply problematic. An extreme example of this, but one that is much more common than you would like to believe, is the rise of sexual abuse in so called ‘spiritual communities’. Often a result of the ‘spiritual bypassing’ that has taken place.
The irony of this is through our uncovering and then acceptance of these darker/more challenging parts of our psyche we move closer to a life of ‘love and light’ where all things are seen as part of the Divine. Even those that make us extremely uncomfortable.
To finish, I will give you an example in my life of doing this. I realised this year that I have been using food, typically high-sugar foods, to escape/bypass challenging emotions that surface. Since recognising this and cutting back on these foods, for a time all hell broke loose in my ‘inner world’ with powerful emotions that I realised linked to past events in my life. So instead of escaping from them with food, I faced them and accepted them instead. Very difficult and not every day I succeed. I am still amid this process, but already not only am I finding more peace in day to day life, my ability as a medium is deepening and expanding.
So, for all of you, currently facing some of your own demons, keep walking, keep accepting, keep living and I promise you it will be worth it. This is what a key part of spirituality has always been about.