What do the concepts of spirituality, spiritual mastery, and spiritual development mean?
In talking with people about spirituality and sharing what I do, I’ve concluded that society often misinterprets this concept.
Some people mistake spirituality for religiosity, various vows and restrictions tied to faith, fanatical service to God, self-sacrifice, and denial of the self.
Others put spirituality on the same level as esotericism, magic, fortune-telling, and consider meditation and belief in the laws of the universe to be frivolous pursuits.
People who have stepped onto the path of spiritual mastery are afraid to come out of the shadows and share that it was precisely spiritual practices and following universal laws that helped them improve their lives, because they don’t see support and understanding from their loved ones.
In this article, we’ll look at other common misconceptions about spirituality and why they are incorrect.
You will see that a spiritual master in the modern sense is a strong, wise, self-loving person with a well-established value system, who is able to see and express their uniqueness and achieve their desired goals.
6 Myths About Spirituality
Myth #1: A Spiritual Person Must Sacrifice Themselves
Spiritual, saintly people have always been associated with self-sacrifice in society. Most saints at some point sacrificed their lives for their faith and for other people.
This connection — spiritual person, hero = sacrificial offering — is firmly rooted in people’s consciousness. And those who sacrifice themselves unconsciously identify with heroes, even if the sacrifice is unjustified.
This inner program is so strong that a person forgets about themselves and endures suffering, even when they need to assert their own interests and stop unworthy treatment.
Today, in everyday life, there is no need to defend one’s faith by suffering and depriving oneself of necessities.
At the Keys of Mastery, we constantly urge you to become aware of your thoughts and actions.
Train yourself to ask every time: “Why am I doing this? What benefit does my action bring to others, and what benefit does it bring to me? Can this issue be resolved differently?”
You will see for yourself that in most of your actions where you deprive yourself of something important for the sake of others’ interests, there is no real need.
A spiritual master realizes that their own life is no less precious than the lives of other people. And their task is to show this to others.
A spiritual person has the right to stand up for their own interests and puts themselves first.
This is not a sign of selfishness, as those around might think and even start shaming them, saying: “You’re so spiritual, how can you be an egoist?!”
The real question is how much you can allow yourself to defend your boundaries and choose yourself.
This is what we regularly encourage in our materials. Here is one of them:
How to stop sacrificing yourself without being an egoist. Read about how to let go of self-sacrifice.
Myth #2: The Meaning of a Spiritual Person’s Life is to Meditate and Pray
In society, there is a persistent image of a spiritual person — it’s either a monk or a strange-looking person, a hippie who sits in the lotus position and meditates all the time.
This is a person who is always daydreaming, as if living in another reality.
There really are many such people, but in our project we promote different values. We show that you can remain a normal modern person and develop spiritually without depriving yourself of worldly pleasures.
A spiritual master uses spiritual practices to solve everyday issues and to improve current life circumstances, not for the sake of the practices themselves. That’s precisely why it’s much easier for them to solve any problem than for an ordinary person.
A spiritual master regularly applies spiritual tools in combination with real actions, because they realize that nothing will happen without their participation.
At the same time, they are able to surrender to the will of higher powers in resolving important matters, trusting what will happen and maintaining a balance between action and inaction.
Read, What you need to know before applying spiritual practices in life.
Myth #3. A spiritual master cannot be wealthy
This is a common misconception about spiritual people. It’s either spirituality or money.
This belief has its roots in the past, when people took a vow of poverty for the sake of spiritual seeking.
The picture that an ordinary person will most likely imagine at the word spirituality is a poor old man in rags.
“Money is evil,” “money doesn’t bring happiness,” and the like — these are perhaps the most persistent beliefs that are hardest for modern spiritual people to free themselves from.
A spiritual master is able to unite the spiritual and the material within themselves.
The more you soar upward to your higher aspects, the more strongly you must be anchored in matter. But in reality, this is hard to believe and accept.
Read more about the spiritual reasons for lack of money in the article Why is there no money? The vow of poverty and spiritual causes of financial problems.
Myth #4. A spiritual person doesn’t eat meat, does yoga
Many schools that teach yoga also promote their philosophy of a healthy lifestyle and abstaining from animal-based food.
But the choice to accept this or follow your own path remains with the person. If you are engaged in spiritual development but still eat meat, that doesn’t make you any less spiritual.
Personally, I am against any kind of restrictions. The main thing is that your desires are truly yours and don’t control your consciousness.
If you smoke, sometimes enjoy a good glass of wine, or eat shashlik, it doesn’t mean there is less inner light within you.
Sooner or later, a moment will come in your life when your body itself will give up certain foods or habits. Without any violence against yourself.
See also To Eat or Not to Eat. And If You Eat, Then What
In this material, you will find the answer to what and how to eat in order to maintain high vibrations and not lose your grounding.
Myth #5. A Spiritual Master Is Always in a Positive Mood
I have repeatedly heard judgmental remarks directed at spiritual masters and teachers, claiming that they should always be in a good mood, smiling, and joyful.
Even if you have mastered the art of positive thinking, you cannot constantly remain in an elevated state of mind.
Every person has their own cycles by which they live. There is no such thing as a constant upward rise. When a person reaches a peak, a decline inevitably follows.
This is a natural process. And you need to be prepared for it and be able to accept and live through this state.
Experiencing negative emotions is not bad; what is much worse is hiding them, deceiving yourself and those around you.
It is hard to smile when you want to cry. It is difficult to endure when you want to vent your anger, even when you are alone with yourself. You are not obligated to be happy if you are sad.
A spiritual master is a mature person who accepts themselves as they are.
The difference between them and an unconscious person is that they allow themselves to live through unpleasant emotions, do not lock them away, accept them, and let them go.
See also Five Indicators for Checking Mastery
Myth #6. A Spiritual Person Has No Flaws
There are a number of people who think that a spiritual master is a person who has eradicated all their flaws and freed themselves from negative beliefs and traumas.
Such demands are especially made of spiritual teachers and coaches from whom people learn, not understanding that they too are living people with their own red buttons and life lessons.
People who constantly remain in a state of peace and bliss can be counted on one hand.
Many mistakenly believe that they first need to replace all negative beliefs with positive ones, free themselves from all programs, and only then will they become enlightened and be able to rightfully call themselves spiritual masters.
But mastery is manifested not only in major achievements, but rather in how you live today, right now, how you react to various situations, what you choose every minute and even every second of your life.
Becoming a spiritual master does not mean getting rid of the darkness within you. This darkness needs to be seen and accepted, and you need to learn to live with it. That is the true manifestation of mastery.
See also Spiritual Growth — Where to Begin. What Those Who Have Just “Awakened” Need to Know
If you have just awakened, are at the beginning of your spiritual growth and don’t know where to start, we recommend studying this manual.