One of the statements I frequently make in my videos and writing is that you are the ultimate authority of your life. I go onto point out that no one else, me and other occult authors included, are the authority of your life. I make this statement for a couple very important reasons that I think need to be spelled out, because all too often people give away their own authority to someone else they deem to be a guru or spiritual master.
A person who self-proclaims themselves to be a guru or a master isn’t one at all. They are making such a proclamation from a place of ego and insecurity, and perhaps because they want power over other people. Such a person should always be regarded with skepticism and carefully tested, and perhaps ultimately avoided, because anything they offer is coming from the wrong place. The fact that they need to proclaim themselves an authority makes them suspect and even if they do offer some genuine wisdom, you will want to temper that offer carefully.
When people try to put such a label on myself, I always put it back on them and tell them that they, themselves, are their own ultimate authority. At best I’m a guide, with some experiences and advice I can offer. However I am also a fallible person who has made mistakes, and what I offer may not even be right for you. The only person who can determine that is you, because you must take what is offered and turn it into your own experiences. Your experiences will transform you and speak to and through you.
At one point, a few years ago, I did fall into the guru trap. I wasn’t running around proclaiming myself a master, but I had gotten to a place where people were sharing their experiences and feeling shot down by my responses. When someone pointed this out to me, I was really surprised, but I really listened and carefully re-examined past interactions and came to the conclusion that I had, in fact, gone part way down the guru trap. I ended up making a public apology and then took a step back and made some changes in my spiritual practice that essentially involved me starting over with it. I did this purposely to put myself back into the shoes of a beginner. I couldn’t undo all my experiences, but by transforming my spiritual practice, I was able to recognize my weaknesses and make corrective changes.
And since then I am very careful to review everything I say from a place of asking: “Am I truly sharing from the right place, from a place of service to my community, as opposed to the wrong place, from a place of desiring recognition?”
Most of the time I get it right, and occasionally I still get it wrong. When I get it wrong, I work to recognize it quickly and work through the narrative and emotions coming up around that offering, so that I can re-orient myself to the right place of service to the community.
I’ve had my own experiences with people who’ve set themselves up as gurus of sorts and I’ve also my experiences with people I would consider to be genuine authorities who nonetheless do not call themselves as such and make a point to remind people that the work itself, done by the person, must be the ultimate authority, because it is through that work that the person connects with the deepest parts of themselves, and to their own authority.
You are your own authority. Other people may come into your life as guides, or mentors, but if they’re doing those roles right, they will always remind you that you are your own authority and encourage you to look to your experiences and realizations as the best place to find the questions and answers you seek. They will respect you and your journey and help you along, but also know when to step back and let you do the work for yourself.
