Jasmine St. John ’s Reviews > White Hot Truth: Clarity for Keeping It Real on Your Spiritual Path - from One Seeker to Another > Status Update

This is why, even in horrible sorrow, we can still feel the joy of being connected to our Truth. Joy is foundational; you can put anything on top of it. This means that it’s possible to grieve intensely and still sense joy. You can feel bitter, and be aware of joy waiting patiently for your return. You can be hollowed out by loss, and feel held by the container of the joy of your existence.

We’re taught not to express our disgust. It’s labelled as a negative emotion because it is a negative emotion. It’s dehumanizing if used against someone else & its buildup can be poison to us. It can be an incredibly effective for mindfulness. “It’s Disgust’s job to keep us from being poisoned—physically/socially." Disgust is like the spit-out function of both our bodies and Souls—life-saving though not so glamorous.

Don’t waver in your gratitude for what is good and miraculous. Refuse to go numb. Instead, use questions to build your strength. You will get angry. Some days you will be devastated. But even on the days when you might fail to be compassionate, please don’t let go of what you know in your bones: that compassion illuminates the darkness.

When you respect your valuable time, when you listen to what
your body tells you, when you create space for peace in your life—
you are in harmony with your Soul. From that equilibrium, you can
create masterpieces, you can weather life’s storms, and you can help
heal a lot of people, starting with yourself.

Think of the fear-ego,as a monster at your table. It’s your monster your creation & you’re going to treat it like familyi. Your inner creature responds well to Love/clarity. You have something to tell me. I’m glad you told me & showed why I’m frightened. Since you’re here now please sit up straight. If you try to banish ego monster it will break back in. It wasn't misbehaving. It was trying to make you feel special.

Somehow we got the idea that being whole is about being perfectly consistent. I’d rather we be perfectly honest. We can’t put parts of ourselves aside in thinking it will make us more wholesome. Crushing our vices being robotically disciplined & formulaically polite can stifle our power. “We have to be careful that in throwing out the devil,” said Nietzsche, “that we don’t throw out the best part of ourselves.”

And too many of us think that other people’s opinions are a higher power. We stoop and shrink to give more space to outside input. We become cautious and accommodating. We choose to believe that we are less powerful so that someone else can feel important when they approve of and “Love” us—but at least we get the Love we crave—not that it’s real
Love. If there ever was a vicious cycle

I need a Truth I can work with. I want a spirituality that I can apply to my everyday, ambitious, very private, somewhat public, sweet, little, big, messy, gorgeous, desirous, meaningful, normal existence. I need a “presence” that takes my entire life into consideration. ...Our fulfillment stems from our motives. It’s not how we seek spiritual growth, it’s why we seek it.

Psychologist John Welwood coined: spiritual bypassing. He defines it as: “The use of spiritual practices & beliefs to avoid dealing w/ our painful feelings, unresolved wounds, & developmental needs.” Robert Augustus Masters sums it up by saying: “exaggerated detachment, emotional numbing & repression, overemphasis on the positive, anger-phobia, blind intolerant compassion, weak boundaries, and lopsided development.”