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Dear Soul Arcanum:

I have been getting readings from a gifted psychic for years. I recently tried to sign up for her psychic development course, but she told me that I wasn’t ready yet, which left me feeling rejected. When I asked her what made me not ready, she pointed out my dependence on prescription medication for a mental health problem, and some deep issues I have been struggling to get past in my own life for a number of years. She also mentioned that I often fail to take the advice given in readings, and said that this indicates a lack of readiness for new lessons. I’m really upset by all of this, and I’m wondering if she was offended or something because I didn’t follow her advice. I also regret telling her about the mental health issue. Does someone have to be “perfect” to be ready for psychic development? Would you ever refuse a student as not ready like this?
– G.

Dear G.:

My sense is that your teacher is wisely trying to guide you to the safest path for you, for psychic development without a strong spiritual foundation is always a foolish undertaking.

There is a definite relationship between spiritual awakening (which includes the natural development of psychic abilities) and “madness.” If we are reckless with this powerful process, we risk temporary insanity, by which I mean the ability to cope with life on a psychological level. (This is not to be confused with the very normal experience of awakening and wondering if we’re losing our minds. If we’re suddenly seeing things others can’t and having all kinds of far out experiences, wondering if we could be nuts is a very healthy sign.)

Interest in psychic phenomena often develops naturally in the early stages of spiritual awakening, for that is when folks usually have their first psychic experiences. However, awakening and immediately leaping into psychic development is sort of like being born on Earth and as an infant, being thrust out into the hustle and bustle of worldly affairs. We’re fragile and thin-skinned and we know nothing about this strange new realm. We need time to grow and get used to our new bodies and this new dimension of experience before we go exploring its strangest corners.

Many awakening people in the process of getting acclimated are overwhelmed by everyday life. This is because they are now “hypersensitive.” On a physical level, stimuli that others consider normal or tolerable may be literally painful to them. Psychologically and emotionally, they are deeply affected by everything around them, and may care so much it hurts. At the same time, they frequently experience surges of kundalini (life force energy) that they have no creative outlets for.

Modern Western culture has no real knowledge of this spiritual awakening process and no established course for navigating its unique challenges, so early awakening is often a time of profound struggle, and many people develop addictions as coping mechanisms. Alcohol is a very quick remedy for hypersensitivity, for it brings temporary relief by dulling the senses. Compulsive eating, drug use, sexual addiction – anything that may feel comforting or offer an outlet for overwhelming energy may become an addiction at this point.

Conversely, a person may cope by “shutting down” into depression and withdrawing from life in general. They may also seek help from “experts” who tell them what is “wrong” with them and give them a magic pill like Prozac to help them limp by. I am not saying any of these things are “wrong,” mind you – sometimes, they are the only way an individual can cope given the spiritual ignorance of the modern world. They are all crutches, however, and to be ready for big spiritual adventures, we must be able to stand on our own two feet. When one has a sprained ankle, the crutches are not the problem; they are a sign that there is a problem, and that undertaking a big journey now would probably prove dangerous or painful.

Just as a baby learns and grows and gets acclimated, all of this will eventually work itself out. Part of getting comfortable at this new vibration involves honestly facing and healing fears and wounds. When our shadows and self-deceptions have been burned off through the fire of spiritual growth, we will rise from our own ashes into new personal power and understanding. This doesn’t happen just once of course; it’s an endless spiraling process of personal evolution.

As the lower self/ego resists its demise, it will try to defend itself with all kinds of tactics designed to distract us from our spiritual path. These may be frightening experiences, addictions, cyclic problems and dramas, physical pain, romantic/ sexual addictions, unusual habits or obsessions, etc. The more these things hold our attention and energy, the more the lower self is in control.

Some of the things you mentioned, such as the dependence on psychiatric drugs and your failure to move past recurring personal problems, suggest that you’re having trouble rising above the lower self and coping with everyday life. Again, there is nothing “wrong” with this. I know few people who don’t have trouble coping now and then, myself included. However, if we can’t manage to get up in the morning and handle the tasks of the day, or we can’t deal with normal people and normal situations without medication, then we’ve got no business galloping off into strange new realms. This is not just my opinion; many teachers and healers report that certain psychoactive drugs, including commonly prescribed medications, can profoundly aggravate spiritual emergencies.

Folks in the fragile state of early awakening don’t need new spiritual challenges; they need help with getting comfortable in their new skin. Before we start seeking greater powers, we must learn how to handle the power we’ve already acquired.

As a student, I used to think warnings about being ready before exploring psi experiences were just plain paranoid, but as a teacher, I’ve learned how important it is for students to be strong, capable and grounded. Now before I’d teach someone struggling with “normal life” how to explore subtle realms of experience, I’d help them learn how to cope with their hypersensitivity, face their own inner shadows, heal buried wounds, and find their way to a place of new strength, well-being and discernment. I’d insist my students be healthy in body and mind and free from addictions and other “coping” mechanisms. While they might have “problems” or issues like anyone else, they could not be dependent on psychiatric drugs in order to cope with everyday life.

While I’m all for taking the path of least resistance, spiritual development does require discipline and character. The popular New Age attachment to doing only whatever most pleases us in the moment often traps those with strong egos in endless loops of temporal avoidance and gratification. There’s nothing wrong with wanting pleasure all the time, but NEEDING it is a sign that the lower self is steering the ship. To prepare to develop higher powers, we must master the drives of the lower self, such as our endless hunger for emotional comfort and pleasure.

Cultivating self-awareness and stretching yourself into ever greater competency with your normal life will naturally ready you for conscious spiritual development. When you feel grounded, comfortable, and capable of standing on your own two feet in everyday situations, you will be ready for extraordinary new spiritual adventures.

– Soul Arcanum

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