When the Veils Lift

The veils are lifting. The sun is shedding light on the underbelly of the world. The landscape that once remained so deeply hidden, so pervasive in its nature, so greatly warped, and shall I say...pure evil.

As difficult as this may be to bear witness to the unveiling of truth, we must not turn an eye. This is not a suggestion of going down the "rabbit hole" by any means. But to observe it - acknowledge it - and send  prayers to the victims - prayers of empowerment  - strong voices of relentless courage. The arrow has been launched and there is no turning back.  This darkness of all dark needs to be brought to the light of day in the pursuit of justice.

For those of you who were perhaps followers of some of the spiritual leaders who are mentioned as participants, it is a humbling moment. A moment in time that you need to love yourself through.  We all have our blind spots. Let the grief, the shame, and/or the misgivings be the fuel that helps you to grow through this. It's never easy to see what we didn't see in the first place.

In the early 90's, I attended a yoga class with an instructor that lived nearby. One evening, as we began our class, she guided our attention to the very large, floor to ceiling poster of her yogi. Everyone in the class oooohed and aaaahed over the anticipation of his coming arrival from India. 

Except for me.

I looked at his larger than life poster and muttered the words under my breath, "I hate you." And then the shame came and the self-interrogation. Why was I having such a visceral reaction to a person I had never met, that to others, was highly revered? And of course, I wouldn't have dared speak the words aloud. Instead I sat in my shame as I continued on with the yoga class. The power of the tribal mind and the fear of going against it.

Three months later, the adored guru faced many accusations of sexual misconduct and assault that took years for the

center to recover from. An upheaval of truths were brought forward that nearly crippled a large spiritual community. But they found their way through it.

For me, I felt relief as well as an understanding of my visceral reaction to seeing his photo months prior. And even though this experience was over 30 years ago, I continue to question my responses to something or someone when others experience the opposite. 

It's a journey, and it's never easy to speak what you believe to be true when faced with an entire tribe of people who believe otherwise.

There's a mismatch that we don't always take into account. We make excuses when we experience a person of authority speaking one thing and acting in a way that is out of alignment with what they're saying. 

With the work of the mystical Qabalah, there are certain "paths" that require a hard look at oneself. Essentially questions to ask yourself, "How do you act in various situations when no one is looking?" In otherwords, does your integrity and honesty and values only hold up when others see? 

Let the dismantling of the old world, fuel the rebuilding of another - one that is built with lasting integrity.

Apply this to your life. Love yourself through the unraveling of your old self, and use it as fuel to reweave a new life.