Introduction
In today’s society, we have this concept of good health versus poor health. If we are in “poor” health, we consider ourselves to be “broken” and believe that it is the responsibility of the medical establishment to “fix us.” I call this the “fix me doc” attitude.
If we are in physical pain, we go to the doctor for a diagnosis and treatment. If we are in emotional pain, we often go to a psychiatrist for a diagnosis and treatment. We firmly believe that there is something wrong that needs to be fixed. And we often believe that we aren’t responsible for the illness or the cure.
Spiritual Perspective of Ill Health
From a spiritual perspective, ill health is not an indication that something is broken. On the contrary, it means that our systems are working correctly. Ill health is an internal warning system that indicates that something in our lives is out of balance and needs to be corrected.
The ego likes to abuse this concept by suggesting that a person who has poor health is being punished for being a bad person. But this isn’t the case at all. Instead, we specifically chose (before birth) to experience certain situations that would cause imbalances in our lives. This was done for the purposes of soul growth. These imbalances do result in poor health, which in turn is a wake-up call to figure out how to get our lives back on track.
Consider that the phrase “spiritual awakening” presupposes that we are asleep. What we are asleep to is our true, divine nature. We are asleep because we think we are this little ego that is being attacked from all sides and is in constant danger of being in lack of food, money, love, and health. From the ego’s perspective, our job here on the Earth is to be a good little humans, strive for what we need to be happy, and then die. If there is an afterlife, we hope to go to heaven, but we are always fearful of ending up in hell.
The trick of the ego is that it is never satisfied with the status quo. There is always something that is wrong. We never have enough of something, whether it’s money, entertainment, love, or health. This means that if we listen to the ego, we will never be able to be happy because we will always believe there is something wrong with the present.
The spiritual path approaches life very differently. Spirituality says that we can only find inner peace and bliss in the present moment. We can’t find peace in a future moment; only this present moment. Take a minute to think about everything that is not right in your life right now. From a spiritual perspective, everything is just as it needs to be. This doesn’t mean that your ego is going to be happy with it. But it does mean that your true Divine self can be a peace with this moment. In fact, your true self can be in a state of bliss in each moment, regardless of what is happening in the world.
So, what is preventing us from connecting with the Divine part of ourselves? It is our psychological defenses that the ego has put in place to protect us. But instead of protecting us, these defenses have made us fearful of experiencing life. We have become scared of what will happen, and thus cannot relax and be at peace with what is in the present.
Purpose of Spiritual Healing
The psychological defenses that are meant to protect us actually do the opposite. They keep us in negative patterns of behavior which results in emotionally devastating situations and relationships. Instead of intuitively following the directions of our hearts, these defenses cause us to instantly react to situations by defending ourselves, attacking others, refusing to admit when we are wrong, and shutting down any signs of vulnerability. Any change to our present situations is considered frightening and “not worth the risk.”
The purpose of spiritual healing is to release all of these psychological defenses that are preventing us from connecting with our true selves, following our dreams, and enjoying life. Spiritual healing involves creating a safe environment that can be used to begin to recognize these defenses and the negative patterns they cause. Once they are recognized as destructive, clients can begin the long process of replacing false belief systems and thought patterns with beliefs based on love, trust, gratitude, forgiveness, and non judgement. Vital to spiritual healing sessions are the clearing out of stuck negative emotions (AKA emotional baggage) that is released and replaced with love and compassion.
Successful spiritual healing often involves a “healer” who acts as a guide to figuratively rebirth a new person. This new individual is the one who is aware of their divine self and has a healthy and unselfish sense of their self-worth. By shedding away the layers of the false self, this new person is now fully able to love the process of spiritual development and is no longer phased by the “good versus bad” struggle of duality. Instead of needing everything to be “right,” the healed individual is now in a state of bliss in each moment and lives each day in gratitude and awe. Perhaps just as importantly, this new person is now in the position to turn around and become a guide and spiritual healer to others who are still struggling on the spiritual path.
Photo by Arina Krasnikova