Skepticism In the Midst of Personal Enlightenment
January 9th, 2008 by John Wolfe
Once we begin opening up to a more conscious spiritual awareness and taking the road less traveled, an interesting thing often occurs. Many of our past relationships and experiences cease to fit into our current view on existence. We may find we have less of an inclination to spend (as much) time with friends and family who continue to view life in the same manner we used to perceive it.
As we move away from our old habits and interactions, we may find ourselves in a sort of no man’s land. Our personal experiences prevent us from going back to the activities, interactions and ideas we used to believe in, yet we aren’t quite sure where the direction we’re headed is taking us either. It’s at this time we must trust our own inner guidance more than ever.
As our view of the Universe and our place in it continues to expand beyond our old concepts, we may find ourselves consistently drawing in brand new information and ideas. This is when it becomes even more important to determine the validity of these new ways of thinking, as they apply to our personal experience.
If we don’t sort out the way information feels as it comes to us, then we risk trading our old habits and thoughts for more of the same, only this time applied towards the new ideas and beliefs. There seems to be a situation among new age teachings and spiritual ideas where those who hold strongly to the ideas are often doing so without testing their validity or resonance with the information.
They break free from their older limiting ideas to adopt these new mind opening philosophies. However, in the midst of this new information they settle right back into a dogged attitude that these new ideas are now the only way to go for everyone, forever.
I have been having similar experiences myself recently. It’s not that I ever lost sight in understanding that no one teaching can work for and apply to everyone. But I have found myself feeling guilty when I start questioning aspects of certain popular metaphysical teachings and ideas.
I have to remind myself that we must be skeptical, to a certain extent, to continue to expand our awareness of the life experience. If we weren’t somewhat skeptical initially, then many of us never would have thrown off the trappings of old concepts and dogmatic rigid beliefs. We never could have discovered the road less traveled had we not begun questioning common, blindly accepted views and ideologies.
A degree of skepticism can be an important tool to use anytime we come across new concepts. However, I’ve learned not to confuse skepticism with cynicism and closed mindedness. It’s imperative we weigh out a new idea or concept (or even an old one we’ve adhered to) and perhaps try seriously implementing it into our experience prior to adopting it or casting it aside.
Keep in mind we want to be careful to not throw the proverbial baby out with the bathwater here. Sometimes, certain parts of teachings and ideas may successfully apply while other parts aren’t serving us. Hold onto the parts that are working and release the rest, without always feeling the need to abandon the entire philosophy. While it’s true, we must fully believe in something for it to work, there’s no point in pushing forward with an idea while our gut may be telling us otherwise.
Although, being skeptical seems to be the opposite of believing, it can actually be a vital resource for strengthening our beliefs and taking them to the next level. Once we’ve gone through the process of weighing out an idea, applying it and finding out if it works for us, then our impression and attitude toward the experience (and the concept) will be positively reinforced. Our belief can then move into a feeling of knowing and expectation, which can be a thousand times stronger than the initial belief.
Beliefs are fantastic, but are often built on blind faith which was never tested in the first place. If we take everything on faith alone then there’s always room for nagging doubts in the back of our mind. It’s these very doubts that serve to undermine our intentional progression forward. By testing these ideas and beliefs, we can strengthen those which are working for us and release the ones which are riddled with doubt.
When a concept or idea doesn’t fit into our current experience, we should let it go without feeling guilt or worry, despite the fact it may be extremely popular and working for others. It may be worth implementing again at a later date, but from our current perspective, it just doesn’t fit and that’s ok. I’ve found if an idea has any merit in my life (even though I’ve disregarded it at a specific time) it will find its way back to me when I’m better prepared to look at it again.
This whole concept of testing can be tricky when we already understand our thoughts are responsible for creating our reality. In other words, if we are initially skeptical of something then doesn’t that mean we’ve already doomed ourselves to a negative outcome prior to implementing it into our experience? That could be the case if we approach it from a point of harsh cynicism. However, I’m suggesting we test it from a balanced good feeling place within ourselves. I don’t believe being skeptical has to be equated with severe doubt or negative thoughts and emotions.
Even though we are all one in this experience, we still have our own unique and varied ways of taking our individual journey. This is one of the paradoxes of life. The idea is to come back to the understanding we are all interconnected (as esoteric philosophy has stated for centuries and science has recently validated); yet find a place of happily allowing each piece of the whole to determine its own way. This is why I stress that my readers only take away from my writing that which feels good and resonates with them.
Always stay open to new information, but feel your way through it and test its validity for yourself. You may be only a step away from moving beyond blind faith, beyond belief and uncovering a rock solid knowing of your abilities and your greatness.
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