Spiritual Egotism – The Dark Side of New Age Philosophy

I was studying philosophy at the time, which was how I’d met my friends. The difference between them and me was that I saw the essence of philosophy as a critical inquiry; a method of asking tough questions about the nature of things, as opposed to becoming enthralled by an idea or by the person who promotes it.

Because I hadn’t been involved with the center or the scandal, my feelings about spirituality weren’t tainted and after graduation, I maintained an interest in philosophy, both Eastern and Western. I began to attend lectures by various people who were practicing and writing about spirituality and was able to gain some insight into my earlier experiences.

I remember Ram Dass, a popular and well-respected practitioner of meditation who taught that one of the pitfalls on the spiritual path was how easy it was for people to become self-important along the way. He himself struggled with the impact of his fame, and I remember hearing him say on more than one occasion that what was important was his message, as opposed to his personality. He was sincerely trying to break free of the trap of spiritual egotism.

People who choose to pursue spirituality, whether as the main course in life, a side dish or a condiment,  all do it for very personal reasons. Some people believe that we have a soul which needs to be nurtured, developed or healed. Some people practice spirituality as part of their religion, while others are secular yet spiritual. Some people take their spirituality for granted as a natural part of their life, with others making a conscious choice to embrace it.

People choose spirituality with many goals in mind: it can be a means of seeking freedom, achieving transcendence or learning how to be more detached from the people or possessions which might ultimately cause them suffering. Spirituality, for some people, is a way of expanding their consciousness; some are searching for inner peace, and others want to attain what are called “siddhis,” or the powers which come from intensely focusing the mind.

People can use their spirituality in order to do good or for less noble ends. Like anything that is associated with power, spirituality can be misused. Some individuals practice their spirituality by following a charismatic leader, and sometimes these followers are only too willing to give up their personal power, becoming dependent on their “master” most likely in the unconscious hope of being loved and cared for by this replacement parent.

These spiritual leaders, when surrounded by adoring followers who idolize them, can sometimes find it hard to resist the temptation to exploit their position of absolute authority. To some followers, their leader is near-divine, and even the most serious spiritual practitioner must have their act squarely together or risk succumbing to the dark side of their psyche.

Some people choose a spiritual path as a way to escape from their emotional or psychological problems or a dysfunctional family environment. Rather than going for counseling or psychotherapy, they withdraw into an ashram or a spiritual community. Often, this experience is disempowering and only serves to reinforce their passivity, because they are treated much like children who must practice strict obedience to the will of the parent-like leader.

If someone leaves the community, they find themselves ill-prepared for the world outside. They still have their unresolved emotional or psychological issues; only now there’s an added layer of learned helplessness attached to their already-fragile ego. Spirituality in the service of avoiding one’s problems, escaping from life or finding the “good parent” they never had is, in my opinion, the antithesis of what it ought to be.

In the mid-1990’s, I was beginning to work as a psychotherapist and interested in incorporating some meditation and relaxation techniques into my practice. One of the most enlightening talks I attended was given by a woman named Ruth Gilbert. She was a psychotherapist and a practitioner of Tibetan Buddhist meditation. Her explanation of the risks inherent in spirituality made a lot of sense to me.

What Ms. Gilbert said was that meditating brings energy to every part of a person; to the body, the soul, the emotions and the psyche. She explained that any emotional wounds or psychological complexes a person is carrying will therefore be reinforced by the practice of meditation.

She advised us that if someone is seriously interested in taking up meditation, they should also have a course of psychotherapy, so that when the emotional or psychological issues came up they could be properly dealt with, rather than leaking out as some sort of dysfunctional behavior.

This put into perspective the seeming epidemic of gurus who take advantage of their disciples. Whether they exploit their followers financially, sexually or emotionally, many gurus or spiritual leaders seem incapable of resisting the temptation to misuse their power. In fact, consistent with Ms. Gilbert’s theory, the more powerful or influential the spiritual leader, the more likely they are to be abusive in some way.

Just recently, there was a huge scandal coming out of a very famous yoga center in Massachusetts, where the highly-regarded guru was found to have been mismanaging the finances as well as sleeping with some of the female devotees, while at the same time preaching his philosophy of chastity and poverty.

The idea that spiritual powers can be both positive and negative makes sense to me, in that spirituality embraces the idea of yin and yang, or the unity in duality. Since I came to understand this idea, I’ve been that much more aware of how easily a person involved in spirituality can be taken down a path of egotism and the abuse of power, as opposed to one of compassion and connectedness.

Very recently, there was a terrible tragedy involving a noted author and spiritual leader who brought together about 50 people in order to spend several days meditating in a large sweat-lodge, but who failed to provide sufficient food, water or breaks to cool off.

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It appears that this gentleman didn’t have a thorough understanding of the proper design or use of a sweat lodge. Traditionally, these are small structures, meant to be used by just a few people over periods of 20 or 30 minutes, not days on end. This man also seemed ignorant of how the human body collapses in response to extended periods of intense heat, physical and emotional stress and dehydration.

According to eye-witness reports, after three days in the sweat lodge, people were fainting; some were screaming and begging to be let out. In his hubris, the leader had decided that this was simply their resistance to the experience, and no-one was permitted to leave. In the end, dozens were deeply traumatized; at least two people succumbed to the heat, and a number of court cases are now pending.

This, to me, is the supreme example of spiritual egotism: a man is so convinced of his moral superiority and the rightness of his vision that he proceeds in ignorance, deciding that regardless, he alone knows what’s good for other people; the result being a needless tragedy.

As a psychotherapist, I’m well aware of how resistance can impede the process of personal growth, but I’m also educated and experienced enough to know that forcing someone to confront their resistance before they’re ready will result in the undermining of their trust in me and their therapy.

Tragically, even if these participants had been caught up in psychological resistance, as opposed to the physical crisis they were actually facing, a competent group leader would have never forced anyone to remain in a situation which was causing them distress.

I believe that the leader’s huge spiritual egotism completely distorted his ability to recognize the reality of the situation. His spiritual egotism prevented him from acknowledging and properly responding to the legitimate signs of emotional panic and physical desperation in his followers, and it’s this which ultimately resulted in the horrifying outcome.

Spiritual Egotism is a travesty of the principles of spirituality and goes against basic spiritual values such as kindness, acceptance, and altruism. In part two of the article, I’ll discuss some current examples of spiritual egotism and how the practice of Ruthless Compassion is the antidote to this.

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About the Author

Marcia Sirota MD FRCP(C) is a board-certified psychiatrist, that does not ascribe to any one theoretical school. Rather, she has integrated her education and life experiences into a unique approach to the practice of psychotherapy. She considers herself a realist with a healthy measure of optimism. Sign up here for her free monthly wellness newsletter.