Social change and World Peace through TM

Many books about awakening mention that it can be done without a teacher. After all, Jesus and Buddha didn’t have teachers and they were able to figure it out. While it’s true that some people have the ability to awaken and allow the awakening process to unfold without the aid of others, the majority of people will need some kind of guidance, at least at the beginning. That doesn’t mean that you need to go out and find a guru and listen to his/her every word. In fact, I’d discourage you from doing that or picking a specific religion or spiritual path to follow.

I find the most value and direction comes from investigating different paths and noticing the commonalities between them. When you commit yourself to one spiritual path, not only does it give you a limited perspective on awakening, but it may reinforce your egoic identity. For example, if you decided to follow Buddhism only and don’t look into any other paths, that may reinforce your identity as a Buddhist. You may begin referring to yourself as a Buddhist when talking to other people, which reinforces your separation from others and the world around you.

This is a very common trap, and it may get you even if you don’t commit to a specific path, teaching, or guru. I’ve seen many people who begin to identify themselves as “spiritual seekers.” This is just another way to reinforce your ego and separateness. To prevent this in my own situation, I don’t tell ANYONE outside of my sister, cousin, and mother what I am doing or working on spiritually. I will almost never engage anyone in a discussion or debate that has anything to do with religion or spirituality. I’ve told no one about this blog, and will work hard to remain anonymous for as long as I write. I don’t want to create any kind of identity around spirituality or as a guide for beginners on a spiritual path. This is why I refer to myself as a non-spiritual non-teacher. I’ll continue to try and help anyone that I notice is trying to awaken, but I’ll refuse to gain any credit or recognition for it. I’ve worked extremely hard to diminish my ego as much as I have so far, and takingsteps backwards is not on the agenda.