Multidharma

1

Authentic spiritual insight will inevitably be challenging. While the social media version of spirituality makes it seem like everything should be unicorns and rainbows, authentic engagement with transformative practices inevitably leads to some challenging experiences. The traditions tell us that the purpose of these practices are the dissolution of the self, seeing the illusory nature of reality, and other similarly transformational goals. Changes at this level of depth will naturally involve periods of destabilization, the falling away of things one held dear, the arising of things you’d rather not feel, facing your core fears, and other existential difficulties. This is all quite normal and expected.

2

It is important to stay healthy and balanced when engaging in these practices. While expecting to avoid all such challenges is unreasonable, many people find it is possible to “smooth the ride” a bit by emphasizing wellbeing and balance while engaging in serious practice. I particularly suggest learning some fundamental grounding techniques before engaging in any deeper spiritual techniques, taking it slow when starting up with new practices, and maintaining a healthy balance between spirituality and ordinary life. Details about how to get started in a responsible way are discussed in my beginning book, A Lamp Unto Yourself.

3

Seek help from the right people when you need spiritual guidance. It is a good idea to request guidance and advice from long-term practitioners who have experienced the ups and downs of these kinds of transformations before you. When doing so, knowing who to call upon for spiritual advice is important. (You don’t call a plumber for an electrical problem, I like to say.) Multidharma’s four-thread system might help you to select the right kind of spiritual teacher with the optimal blend of experience and perspective.

4

Spiritual guidance is never a replacement for medical or mental health advice. Don’t let spirituality override your common sense. If your challenges are persistent, if you feel overwhelmed, if you are in danger of harming yourself or others, if you are having trouble distinguishing the shared-consensus-world from spiritual realities, or if there are any physical symptoms or manifestations, you should always get checked out by a doctor or mental health professional. If you have severe energetic symptoms, see a traditional medicine practitioner (such as an acupuncturist). Multidharma is not designed to help with such issues.

5

Where Multidharma can be helpful. Sometimes, the unexpected or confusing nature of awakening experiences is itself a challenge. The purpose of Multidharma is to provide an alternative map of the awakening territory that can help to make sense of things that don’t seem to fit into the maps you already have. Multidharma is not a replacement for medical advice or spiritual guidance, but if you feel lost and think a new map might help you to get oriented, you may find it to be useful. Even so, Multidharma is strictly informational and does not offer personalized care of any kind.