Spiritual Bypass

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No, I ask what is the risk of someone who takes up the four noble tasks and has as his reference point for progress the gradual eradication of the lower and higher fetters to still be accused of spiritual bypass?

In other words, in what sense the cultivation of the path as formulated in the Suttas could leave open the possibility if someone manifesting in himself spiritual bypass as defined by modern scholars?

Last but not least, as on the topic’s opening, would it be right to say that for the Buddha dhamma the only modes of spiritual bypass that matter to be addressed are those which relate to the ten fetters?

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You seem to be focused on spiritual bypass, but this is simply one sort of unhealthy coping mechanism. There are many sorts, and the risk for these things varies with the individual & their context. Actively engaging in a religion can be done for healthy or unhealthy reasons, and Buddhism is no exception here.

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Thanks @daverupa, yes I am focused on spiritual bypass here, that’s the idea / theme of the topic! :blush:

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Sure; what I said applies to spiritual bypass with respect to variation among individuals & contexts; Buddhism does not offer a special immunity here. Psychologically un/healthy individuals can be found all over, and indeed many people seek a religion in order to find coping tools.

But religions are the words of another; the key issue is whether one has careful or careless attention, and so we can see that someone working on the Path can have e.g. spiritual bypass issues, or other unhealthy coping mechanisms, right alongside healthy ones.

I’m not sure that working on the fetters is necessarily different than working on unhealthy coping skills…

…but I think the fetters encompass more. So working on the fetters appropriately can address e.g. spiritual bypass, but so can other methods. The fetters indicate further issues, further efforts to be made.

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Since ignorance is the final fetter & only an arahant is free from this fetter, it seems for non-arahants many modes of spiritual bypass would be left not addressed.

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Yes, that’s my understanding as well. Avijjā is indeed a powerful catch-all! :grin:

But let’s think in terms of what us non-enlightened things have to deal with. It seems that the five lower fetters alone are already very comprehensive in terms of what modes of spiritual bypass they can address.

Now, thinking of one already beyond the level of stream entry, the first two of the higher fetters should address the potential for “spiritual bypassing through deep samadhi”…

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I already posted that, in my view, most supramundane path factors, such as non-craving, non-judging, non-thinking, non-attachment, non-selfing, etc, can result in ‘spiritual bypass’.

The typical issues that remain unreconciled in spiritual bypass are generally moral issues (such as issues arising from past personal & parental relationships) and these can be fully awakened to on the moral level (‘sila’).

While the non-personal emptiness (‘panna’) provides the most secure & advantageous foundation, the spiritual bypass resolution can come from the 2nd knowledge, as i previously posted.

Whether issues arose from our own past actions or the past actions of others, an effective way to remove spiritual bypass, imo, is to ‘right’ those past (‘wrong’) actions in our mind.

This not only helps oneself but, most importantly, places one in a position to help others. For example, a practitioner that abides in impersonal emptiness (sunnata) may still struggle to help others with mundane issues because that sunnata practitioner lacks deep insight of the mundane laws of kamma such as in Sigalovada Sutta (DN 31), Samajivina Sutta (AN 4.55), etc).

:seedling:

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I have been pondering and reading a little bit more about the topic.

It seems to me that once all that is needed for stream entry to take place is the dropping the first three lower fetters - self-identification views (sakkāya-diṭṭhi), doubt/uncertainty (vicikiccha) and wrong grasping at precepts and practices (sīlabbata-parāmāsa) - it may be very possible to see someone at this stage of enlightenment stuck in some sort of spiritual bypass.

However, given that the further attainments of sakadagami (“once returnership”) and anagami (“non-returnership”) require a material or total dropping of the fetters of ill will/resistance (vyāpāda) and sensual passion/desire (kāma-rāga), I don’t see much room for problematic spiritual bypassing by someone at those stages.

Nevertheless, as before, I reckon that those higher stages there is indeed room for some sort of “spiritual bypass by spiritual bliss”, this is for in those passion/lust for (subtle) form (rūpa-rāga) and passion/lust for formless phenomena (arūpa-rāga) - usually linked with jhana-related realms of existence / modes of being - may still be very much present.

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A once-returner has not uprooted ill-will & lust. They have only significantly lessened (attenuated) them. So when certain sense contacts occur that trigger off the spiritual bypass, ill-will & kinds of lust can arise. :ox:

those bhikkhus who have abandoned three fetters and attenuated lust, hate and delusion are all once-returners, returning to this world to make an end of suffering. MN 22

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Hi Deeele, mind that the type of lust the Buddha is referring to in the case of a sakadagami and anagami is a very refined one and relates to the potential for getting entangled or stuck in the material and immaterial absorptions - deep samadhi experiences. That is why they were called higher fetters.

An example of this is what we find in the descripition of Maechee Kaew’s anagami fruition mentioned in this other topic/post:

The mind’s usual sense of physical limitation and embodiment completely disappeared. She felt her being dissolve, expand outward and merge with all things, as though forming one essence with the universe; resting within, unfettered by any dependency, was a supreme emptiness — clear, bright and still."

Later on in the book you will see that Luangta Maha Boowa had to guide her to move on further in her practice:

"She spoke of her progress over the past year, carefully detailing the consecutive stages of her experience, and concluded with her “lion’s roar”, the radiant emptiness of mind that permeated the entire cosmos and transcended all conditions.

When she stopped speaking, Ajaan Mahā Boowa looked up and calmly asked, “Is that all?” Mae Chee Kaew nodded. Ajaan Mahā Boowa paused for a moment and then spoke:

(…)

Returning to the nunnery that evening, Mae Chee Kaew reflected on how the radiant mind had become her sole lingering attachment.

Cherishing and safeguarding it more than anything else, she hardly wanted to interfere with it. Within the entire mind and body, nothing stood out so prominently as that luminance. It provoked such a riveting sense of inner amazement — and consequently, such a protective feeling of attachment — that she wanted nothing to
disturb it.

Because of Mae Chee Kaew’s delusion about the mind essence that knows all things, she forgot to investigate and pass judgment on the true nature of that essence. When the scope of the mind drew inward, it gathered itself into a radiant nucleus — bright, cheerful and bold. Every mental act arose from that nucleus. Consciousness flowed from that nucleus. Thoughts formed there.

All happiness seemed to gather there. So she had believed that it must be Nibbāna, the center of her being that was so bright and clear all the time. But she now realized that it was actually the nucleus of the origin of suffering."
–page 194-198

Hence, yes, this is the sort of “spiritual bypass by lust” possible to a anagami.

Much better than the usual spiritual bypass by desire for pizza, ice cream and even internet debating of us unenlightened things! :yum:

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My two cents…

I suppose if it’s a case where the spiritual bypassing is causing someone to truly harm themselves (or others) then perhaps it is useful to work on it. But beyond this, I cannot see how it is useful; so I guess I am asking myself how useful it is to focus on this in a therapeutic setting. Perhaps those of you who have done so might share? Just to be clear, this is a genuine question as I truly don’t know and 'am truly interested to find out. Just to be very clear, I’m not knocking or being critical of what anyone does. I’m asking with great respect to all those who have committed their lives to helping those of us in crisis.

However, I can see a possible negative in pointing out to someone that their particular delusive coping strategy is not real. I have seen how this can be a serious discouragement to the growth of someone’s spiritual life. Okay, so somebody is intent on thinking that they are practising non-attachment, when they’re clearly attached to all manner of things, including depression or anxiety or anger or whatever. But instead of blowing this out of the water, is it not possible to use the value and worth they see in growing non-attachment in order to help them become happier and healthier? So using their crutch as a way in, a way in for them to see the other pieces of the puzzle, other aspects of the maze, that they have been ignoring.

**

Another few cents…

The other thing that ocurrs to me is that Buddhism is about finding emotional and psychological balance. It absolutely is. One cannot hope to understand deep metaphysical truths without using one’s emotional/mental world as the playing field. Existential truth and pyschological truths are deeply intertwined within the 8 fold path.

Although, I don’t think they will be usefully intertwined if one spiritually bypasses even a tiny bit of Right View. Of course, as far as the EBTs that I’ve read go, only the Awakened ones have really got Right View. But the rest of us need to at least have a reflective understanding of it and some degree of faith/confidence in it so that we look at the world and at ourselves through this lens. Then, in my humble experience, the metaphysical and the psychological begin to become one and the same thing.

**

And…

I also think that if one looks at the Vitakkasanthana sutta (MN 20), the first strategy outlined for removing distracting thoughts can be viewed as a positive, useful, deeply insight rich form of spiritual bypassing. To illustrate this, I’ve posted a link to a wonderful cartoon by Michael Leunig. The angel realises he can substitute a wholesome mind state for an unwholesome one.

Years ago I was talking to Ajahn Brahm about how growing wholesome states is like climbing a gradually sloping mountain. The further up you go, the happier you get. And I remember he said instead of climbing the mountain, you can just jump from peak to peak. I didn’t get it. I didn’t get it for years. Truly though, I still don’t get it because I am nowhere near proficient at the practice of this. However, I’ve got a reflective understanding of what he meant (I think)…it’s about letting go. It’s about a positive form of spiritual bypassing. Where you just leave behind the whole, you don’t bring any parts of the whole with you…no lingering doubts, fears, what ifs or maybes…it’s just gone and you’ve moved on. No analysing or indepth questioning even. It’s just not in your world anymore. Gone. And you’re in another more useful, more happy place. Most of the time I am climbing the slope…leaving behind in my wake large traces of the treacle that I’m wading in to get to the top. Occasionally I just take that leap of faith, convinced suddenly, in one moment, that I don’t need to have an understanding of the mire I’m bogged down in, in order to take the next step up and be a little more free…instead, I just jump, fly almost…

As I’m writing all this I’m asking myself why this happens…because it just happens…out of nowhere I deeply remember and it just happens… I’m not really sure why. But I’m guessing it’s just the result of putting in the causes…of being deeply interested in wanting to understand and practice all of the aspects of the 8 fold path. I am hoping that if I keep going, it’ll just become habit; that I’ll hopefully become an expert at this “positive spiritual bypassing” and totally understand myself and my world and the hows and whys and whats of both.

**

With metta

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21

Hi Kay,

Thanks for all those ‘cents’ and your lovely, rich descriptions :blush:

I think spiritual bypassing always hurts a person, or others, otherwise it wouldn’t be a problem.

I can’t talk about my personal experience here, as this is a publicly accessible forum where I am potentially identifiable. If you do want to ask more about it, please feel free to private message! :slight_smile:

Let me first say that in the latter part of your post you present the excellent technique of ‘replacing an unwholesome thought with a wholesome thought’ from the Vitakkasanthana sutta. In fact, this technique is also used as part of Acceptance and Commitment therapy, along with simply distracting oneself from the thought, or denigrating the importance or value of that thought. These techniques are all highly effective.

But I believe many people and particularly those who suffer with mental illness or a period of emotional difficulty are not capable of calming their minds, identifying thoughts and taking control of their thoughts, particularly at critical moments.

We also live in a society (or at least I do) where we don’t naturally incline to helping people with these kinds of issues in social settings. So the ongoing support and guidance of a therapist can help us when we are particularly confused or troubled, to begin to get some feedback and clarity in our minds. This also takes the burden off friends/family who may be struggling themselves or don’t know how to help.

Of course, we are all responsible for our own progress, and making that resolute choice is the determining factor for lasting success.

But the misconception, around ‘we can solve everything by ourselves by just changing our thoughts/using mindfulness/meditation’ I fear, is part of the insidious belief we carry that the mentally ‘struggling’ should just ‘pull their socks up’ or ‘snap out of it’.

Most therapy courses don’t consist of you showing up and the therapist telling you “Oh by the way sorry your coping strategies aren’t real!” But more often it’s a chance to say “Ok, you’ve got this pattern and it’s a problem for you, how does it start, lead on, result?”. Actually some of the greatest healing can come from someone just listening, or just sitting with you without expectation or judgement (except the expectation of getting paid :laughing:). Really, just having someone you can talk to helps enormously.

We live in the world of our own minds, but talking in therapy is a chance to open and confront the habitual and often addictive and determining patterns we take that lead to a certain consequences. It can be hard to self reflect when a pattern is particularly strong and stifling, so it’s not always possible to get out of alone.

As an example, I used to be a dietitian and 90% of the people who came to me wanted to lose weight. Surprise, surprise. They also almost always knew how to do it. But they couldn’t actually do the things they needed to do in order to lose weight. Of course, it would have been easy for me to say ‘Ok eat less, exercise more, bye!’, but that would do nothing. What I actually needed to do was talk with them, discussing what they were doing step by step, helping them bring awareness to habits and underlying beliefs and break them down, helping cultivate mindfulness so they could actually make a choice - something we basically don’t do, most of the time, despite what we think :smirk:.

So what I want to reiterate again is that some people in difficult situations are not capable of ‘pulling themselves out of it’ or willing their thoughts to change, because these are very strong ingrained patterns. I mean, as experienced meditators we know how hard it can be to really see our own minds! The patterns at least will be difficult to do change alone, although admittedly not impossible.

As an aside, I also want to note that with the increasing secularisation of Buddhism and ‘dhammafication’ of psychology, there’s definitely the potential for ‘psychological bypass’! And that’s the point I got to, because psychology can’t answer all our questions, and it would be inappropriate to solve our spiritual or existential ‘problems’ with psychology.

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Hi Cara

Thank you very much for your reply.

You’ve really answered my initial question/request for information!

So clearly, within a therapeutic setting, “spiritual bypass” is a term that is rather specific and using it in this setting is clearly appropriate, particulary with a competent therapist.

What I feel sometimes happens is that it is used by those who are not competent therapists and in settings that are just the run of the mill, ordinary life situations and about people who only qualified people should be diagnosing (and then usually with their permission). It’s so easy to look at someone and say, “this is what’s wrong with you”. In terms of spiritual practice and psychological growth, I feel this is a purely personal business and people should only interfere if invited to do so.

Many thanks again Cara.

With Metta

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Before I continue to read I would like to express my gratitude for starting this topic. I was about to start a topic about spiritual bypassing in relation to buddha dhamma and EBT but searched first and found this. Thank you for expressing so eloquently that which I would have struggled to do so.

:pray::pray::pray:
Tom

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There is an aphorism of the Persians, which shows they’ve known about “Spiritual Bypass” for a long time already (however, they of course never phrased it using that much more recent terminology):

“The lower the soul of a person, the higher the nose stretches up. He stretches his nose to where the soul has not grown”

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Yes, this is an excellent topic. Thank you Gabriel!

Even with its general hubris, the field of psychology has been quite useful for me in my Buddhist path and practice. I have no illusions that therapy has any hope of being that which leads me out of samsara, but it has often helped me uncover blind spots, areas where fetters and hinderances are operating.

For instance, through marital counseling and discussing recurring issues in my marriage, I’ve been able able to see subtle manifestations of all manner of delusion including self-identification, restlessness and ignorance. Once seen, the Dhamma, the 37 Wings to Awakening, Dependent Origination as well as sound psychological relational principals are where I put effort. Instead of Spiritual Bypass, “unresolved emotional issues, psychological wounds, and unfinished developmental tasks” can be addressed skillfully with the Dhamma.

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Hi Tom @Buddho93

You might be interested in my 4 part series on spiritual bypassing and Buddhism that I did last year for Tilorien monastery’s public programs.

And this talk about ignorance/delusion and spiritual bypassing that I did with the Australian Association of Buddhist Counsellors and Psychotherapists.

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After watching Bhante @Akaliko’s AABCP presentation, I am lead to wonder how much of the spiritual bypassing which happens in Buddhist circles is down to what I will term ‘Buddhist Religious Culture’ or even moreso, the Westernisation of it?
It seems like the EBT are all for pointing out the areas where we trip up. They present practice, deep meditation and attainments as a progressive process and have excellent pointers for if defilement x happens then the antidote is y type suttas, especially in AN.
Within modern goal oriented cultures we have the tendency to want to skip the messy or ‘boring’ stuff, practice to get something and shoot for the end goal straight away.
However, one of the things I got out of Bhante’s presentation is that spiritual bypassing kind of a natural thing for us to do. It’s just our inbuilt avijja. So don’t get too hung up on it if you find yourself going ‘oops’ or ‘ouch’.

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Thanks Ven @Pasanna , I think you are right in your analysis. For me it’s that gap between how we perceive our spiritual self and the reality of our deluded mind that we constantly have to interrogate. I think we all need to become more reflective spiritual practitioners and as you say, it’s likely we will all have areas we can improve and it’s okay, but that’s where the work is if we want to make actual progress on the path!

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Thank you Bhante @Akaliko I will be sure to take a look at these :pray:

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