A spiritual breakthrough is when we really let go of something and more deeply experience reality. Unlike a spiritual opening, this lasts. There can be many breakthroughs under the umbrella term of spiritual awakening or the larger term of spiritual shift.  You have changed.  You know it. Now is a time of acclimating, integrating, and rest to understand what you are now seeing that your ego had not let you see. For more resources, check out these posts: Feeling Uneasy in Spaciousness The Newness and Uncertainty After Releasing an Issue Integrating Your Spiritual Awakening ..read more

Two big things are present for me today: How people try to use spiritual teachers as therapists How people seek substances to have preferred spiritual experiences Therapy is really important. There are people trained to help others move through intense emotions, thoughts, and sensations. Spiritual teachers work in their own level of intensity, and because of that, having a healed and whole psyche is really important to handle the challenges of ego dissolution. Substances, at best, show people that they don't have to be the person that they think they are. However, many people try to re-create ..read more

There is a lot of fear in the world today. Maybe it is better to say that there are a lot more ways to incite fear in others to benefit the inciter than there used to be. What do I mean? Political groups incite fear to get people to take action for political causes. Businesses incite fear to get people to buy products. Romantic partners incite fear in their partnerships to get the partner to stay with them, have sex, do things, etc. And all these amazing communications tools--the Internet, radios, televisions, phones, etc.--are regularly used for that purpose. It's really ugly how often our p ..read more

You can read the earlier stories in the stories featuring Mikayla on this link. Spiritual Allegories and Stories Three years passed as Mikayla learned every and any thing she could from The Penitents. She became not just one of the most trusted Neophytes, but trusted of anyone in the spiritual order in regards to rescue in the mountains. She learned every form of rescue that was taught. She could find trails submerged under six feet of snow. She knew how to perform multiple forms of resuscitation and more. If a problem arose in the mountains, Mikayla was the first Neophyte Penitents Chen, Fal ..read more

This path is so simple. Why does it often feel so hard?  Why does it sometimes feel like a total grind? Maybe you've learned to watch your thoughts, emotions, and body sensations, but yet, these old responses still happen. You feel strangely powerless over them.  Are you doing this wrong? Nope.  You are coming into recognition of how out of control you are.  It's ironic, I know. You thought you were in control of your life, making decisions correctly, and perceiving reality clearly. Now, you find out that you're in this total whirlwind of emotions, thoughts, and sensations ..read more

Sex can be beautiful, enlivening, and fun. And somehow in modern Western Society that isn't okay. Touch is deeply connecting, rejuvenating, and grounding. Somehow touch is mostly off-limits as well.  When was the last time you got a hug? I mean a REAL hug. Not a chest thump, clavicle bump, ass-out hug. I mean one where you stepped out and felt truly held by another. When was the last time you got a hug outside your family? Your immediate circle of friends? The answers for a lot of people tend to be sobering as it may have been months, years, or not since childhood that a person has had s ..read more

This story follows up on A Flood of Questions as we continue to watch Mikayla's development on her spiritual path. You can find other stories about Mikayla and her journey to be a spiritual teacher as well as other spiritual allegories on this link: Spiritual Allegories and Stories Mikayla swiftly settled into the routines and disciplines of the spiritual order of The Penitents. She didn't mind washing clothes, getting up in the dark to make breakfast for everyone, or cleaning the communal latrines. She was finally somewhere she could achieve her dream of becoming a spiritual teacher. She lo ..read more

Hey all! I'm currently off work, but I scheduled this post ahead of time for all of you in case you are looking for a little inspiration. As usual, I have my thoughts on the coming year, and I have some suggestions for your New Year's resolutions. Additionally, I have a post for those of you who feel like you finally, truly understand what this path is and the deeper level of commitment that comes after such a realization. Finally, the last post is a heavily revised post from 2015 on how to get started on the spiritual path. Or, for some of you, how to get re-started. Enjoy and feel free to ..read more

This story picks up right after Digging Out the Roots of Prejudice where we first met Mikayla who is on a quest to become a spiritual teacher. You can find more of my spiritual allegories here: Spiritual Allegories and Stories  Following the advice of ClearSky, Mikayla headed north. And she encountered the same experiences, comments, and questions she'd already had with Tom the Rancher and others before him, including her own family. "Why are you doing this?" "Why do you want to be a spiritual teacher?" "Aren't you too young to do so?" "This path is too dangerous for someone like you ..read more

This spiritual allegory continues to follow the conversations and experiences of ClearSky and the Rancher. You can find more of their stories and other spiritual allegories on this link: Spiritual Allegories and Stories For several days, ClearSky and the Rancher had been digging out an old, massive stump in the northwest corner of ClearSky's fields. He had decided to create an apricot grove there, but the stump and its extensive root system required him to hack away at this sizable blockage to his plans. Covered in sweat from exertion and the midday sun, the two men leaned on their tools--a p ..read more