Commitment To Self Healing & The Path Of The Spiritual Warrior

by Kaz Hanford (a universal Life Church minister)

The decision to embark on a path of self discovery and self healing is one which requires great courage, perseverance and single minded determination. It is not a decision that should be made on the spur of a whim or without an honest desire to search into our most hidden, darkest, secret corners.

Indeed, that is where the truth always lies - in places we have done our best to hide and forget about... places which hold our most frightening secrets...our largest most terrifying demons...

Places which many of us have become proficient at creating and then burying with the intent that they never be uncovered again because we didn't want to deal with them in the first place. The mark of a great warrior or master is that they are willing time and again to face their own darkness, their own demons, to have the courage to face their inner selves. This requires the stripping of layers that we have built up on false foundations with which we covered our true selves...our souls.

These layers warp our lives and distort our true potential. They send us off on wrong pathways, purposeless tangents and create disharmony. The process of stripping away that which does not serve us in a positive manner requires great courage and the knowledge that to be whole we have to live in truth not distortion. It is a process which takes as long as it takes and may require us to be naked and vulnerable for a long period of time. Only a true warrior is able to endure this and realize that this may take a lifetime/s of seeking the inner soul essence...the mark of a warrior is that they will return time and again often weary and a little battered to strip away yet another layer in order to come closer to their own truth.

The warrior knows that truth brings you closer to the source...the source which feeds us and makes us whole. The warrior knows that to live a lie dishonors both themselves and the source from which they came. To knowingly live a lie is like permanent death for only by living in truth can we truly exist and grow. There are many souls, including those who pretend to be warriors or masters, who are not prepared to do this. They build up the layers around them which stifle and suffocate their soul essence until nothing can be seen of their inner self - indeed even they themselves do not know who they truly are. They are like blind souls stumbling in the darkness of fear and untruth. The dead wood that surrounds them holds no life and only the sharpest tomahawk of truth can cut through these dead layers to reveal the tiny, inner soul huddled miserably in the core...unfed and dying slowly from neglect and a lack of love.

My heart cries out for these souls for it only needs the tiniest spark of love for self to begin the process of self healing...only a tiny mouthful will feed the tiny soul inside and sustain it till it can bathe in the light of self discovery, truth and healing. Many souls do not understand this and thus know no better. However, a professed spiritual warrior brings dishonor on themselves when they live in lies and untruths. They have no business shining a light for others when they live in darkness - for how can you radiate light when you have none to give? Self denial becomes the disease.

Whoever takes on the spiritual pathway and the road to self healing must be warned that this will bring inevitable change on all levels and scales. It may mean the coming of the tower which rips apart your life - but only because it is built on falsity and lies and needs to be torn down so that truth may rebuild a structure which will never fall no matter how big and wide it grows. It may be gentle and slow bringing gentle, slow changes. It may be a tidal wave after which rebuilding on a massive scale occurs - and we all know someone who has had to do this with their lives...someone who has made drastic changes but are more peaceful and balanced within themselves because of it.

When embarking on a course of healing either with yourself or with a healer, walk in with your eyes and heart open and there will be many (both in this life and in spirit) who will be there to help and support you. Also know that they cannot do it for you...they cannot carry you or give you all the answers. These are your layers and your lessons - they do not belong to anyone else. The warrior does not send another into battle in his place...he goes in and faces the battle himself - not behind the shield of others. However, at the same time you will never be alone. The healer and the healee need space between them in between each healing. The healee needs space to come to their own realizations for it is not the healer's job to give them answers. Part of the healing process is that the soul being healed discovers their own truth for themselves.

The healee also needs time in between sessions away from the healer because the healer brings painful issues and realizations to the surface. This can often make the healee angry and resentful, projecting these feelings and the blame on the person healing them. This is natural and a professional healer expects, knows this and is prepared for it. This is why many professional healers choose not to heal family and friends when they know deep issues are at hand. There are many too who live in their mouths and by that I mean they speak of their desire to heal but their heart is not in it. There are many who lie before a healer and will not accept the energy or who will turn it all in to a drama in order to create diversions away from the underlying issues. This way they do not have to truly look within and face what is there. A person committed to their own healing and growth will come no matter what...there will be no excuses and they will listen with their ears and their hearts and absorb all that they are given.

Often too, unless there is an exchange of energy (which in today's world means mostly a monetary exchange although it can be otherwise), the healing is not appreciated.... It is taken for granted or simply not valued. You may get someone telling you as the healer that they got nothing out of it. Many want a quick fix or a "Valium healing" and thus only take the required amount of energy. These people always get off the table smiling - these are surface dwellers or those who only wish to live on the surface of their lives for if they went deeper they would have to start scratching the surface of all they've buried and this is not what they truly want. The true intuitive healer knows all this. There are people who use their spirituality as a toy with which they play and as play does not involve heavy, nasty, soul rending things - these are not addressed or acknowledged. Play holds lots of role playing and drama queens, laying blame at the doors of others, and conditions. This just leads in circles and goes nowhere very fast. Unfortunately there are many of these 'players' and the great shame is that they claim to bring light yet are not capable of it. In this way the path of the spiritual warrior holds great responsibility for there are only a very few warriors and many, many souls who need and are asking for direction and light in their lives.

It is a commitment to help others by first helping yourself. Thus, we can see that the path of a true spiritual warrior or master is full of constant challenge and battle to allow the true essence self to grow and develop unrestricted by falsity. It requires constant attention for the path holds much that would distract us from our true purpose. Masters need to be especially aware as we have taken on the responsibility to help bring healing and light to others. This does not mean that we are or should be perfect. However, it does mean that we need to question ourselves, our lives, and our motives. We need to be ever seeking the truth both within and outside of ourselves and be mindful of helping others (who wish to be helped) to do the same.

This brings me to my next point which is that there are many who do not wish to seek and grow even though they wear the mask of good intent. These people may well seek out a master and show sincerity and interest but in reality are attracted to the energy and will seek to poach it. These people are takers and give nothing back. Those of you who are energy workers or are receptive and sensitive to energy will understand what I mean. In a healthy relationship that is devoted to growth and spiritual development there is always a give and take of energy. One which involves a "taker" quickly leaves one feeling drained and ill. Some openly take from your energy centers. Others take energy in quick attacks like an ambush. Still others wear a pleasant mask while they steal energy. As individuals we have to become aware of these kind of people - even if they are other healers and masters. Understand that we are all at our own levels of growth and spiritual development, however, if others keep failing to understand the same lesson we need to realize that they are not yet capable of that level of understanding. Often we must walk away for our own sakes - for these people will block us and drain us. There are too many souls who are ready to learn for us to spend time wasted on those who are unwilling or incapable of the next step.

So remember if you will, through courage, perseverance and love for self we make the commitment to self healing and then if we are called - to help others to do the same.