Today I would like to address a topic that has been on my mind for some time. It's about false gurus and influencers, which you can find in abundance on YouTube and Instagram in particular. It's about people who pretend to be wise and spread New Age teachings that don't help you. The idea that you should remove the energy from all evil and negativity by ignoring it stands out in particular. At the same time, however, they say that you should do shadow work. It is legitimate to ask how this is supposed to work. How can you do shadow work if you ignore the shadow? As we all know, the shadow doesn't get smaller if you don't deal with it. On the contrary. It grows and grows and grows. Only when you accept the shadow and integrate it can you bring it into the light. That is the essence of shadow work.
A few years ago, the book "The Secret" and the accompanying film were published. It is about the law of attraction. This is based on one of the seven hermetic principles. Unfortunately, the film failed to present the hermetic laws as a whole. They focussed on a single aspect and then misrepresented it. This effectively laid the foundation for the spiritual aberration described above. The law in question is the principle of resonance. It says that you attract what you are and not what you desire. This has been twisted so that people believe they can simply wish for something and it will manifest itself. They then use affirmations, rituals and I don't know what else. Negative thoughts naturally have no place in this attitude, because who wants to manifest something negative? But something that has already been manifested will not simply disappear just because you no longer pay attention to it. That is a fallacy. You manoeuvre yourself into a dead end with that thinking. The easy way does not exist. Wishful thinking is just that, a wish. Action is what counts.
The real secret, as correctly described by the principle of resonance, is this: You attract what you are. If you want to change your reality, you must first change yourself. You manifest what you send out. As long as your shadow has not been guided into the light, the shadow will not let go of you. And it goes even further, because there is also the collective shadow of humanity. This must also be guided into the light. Ignoring all evil may be well-intentioned, but it has exactly the opposite effect. You can't take the energy out of it by simply looking away, as these false gurus would have us believe. It simply takes the energy from us until we transform it and lead it into the light. In other words, we have to transform ourselves so that the universe can give us back what we send out. The universe is a mirror and it also reflects shadows. This is further reinforced because the brain filters and interprets everything it perceives. The program of these filters is determined by past experiences. These are anchored in the subconscious and thus determine the perceived reality. It does not necessarily have to correspond to objective reality. Our perception is individual. That is why the universe you perceive is always a mirror of yourself. If we ignore the whole thing, the effect becomes increasingly stronger. We attract more of what we don't actually want to see. This can be verified easily by observing the people around us. As soon as a trauma has been resolved, the effects disappear.
The tragic thing about it all is that the followers of these false New Age teachings are lying to themselves. They want to create heaven on earth without lifting a finger. Yes, without investing any effort! They know that it doesn't work, but they ignore it and become increasingly frustrated over time. They often try to be spiritual by any means necessary. Or should I say pretend? The funny thing is that for this no effort is spared. Everything is turned into a ceremony. You can no longer drink a cup of cocoa or tea without setting up an altar with incense sticks, crystals and everything else that goes with it. They want to be cool. They want to belong to the spiritually awakened caste of humanity. But the only thing they actually need to do, is to find themselves. To be themselves instead of imitating the influencers. Everything you need is inside you. You have to look there. Inside, not outside. Yes, your shadow is waiting for you there too. And yes, it hurts. But only once. Then it's behind you and you're free. It is not possible to become one if you ignore half of your own being. No pain, no gain, as the saying goes.
For the sake of completeness, here are the seven hermetic laws in their full splendour:
The principle of creation: The origin of all being is mental in nature. It is our thoughts that create reality, set changes in motion and create something new.
The principle of resonance: As above, so below. As without, so within. What is alike attracts. What is unalike repels. Only those who change themselves can change the outside world.
The principle of vibration: Stagnation does not exist. Everything oscillates at its own frequency. Every atom, every quantum particle, every thought has its very own vibration.
The principle of polarity: Where there is light, there is shadow. Good and evil always form two opposing poles that cannot exist without each other. Yin and yang. Everything is one.
The principle of rhythm: Everything always swings from one pole to the other. Nothing stands still. It is a perpetual cycle that determines all life.
The principle of cause and effect: Nothing happens without a reason. Everything we do has consequences. Even what we don't do has consequences. All processes in life are interrelated. Coincidence does not exist.
The principle of gender: Male and female principles are united in everything. We need both to unfold our creative power.
As you can see, there is a lot more to it than just wishful thinking. You have to understand and live these principles in their entirety for manifestation to work. When we wish to achieve something in the future, we send out the message that we have not achieved it. So we will receive more of this non-achievement. Instead, we should adopt an attitude where we have already achieved our goals and at the same time start working on achieving them. The universe will respond accordingly. And during shadow work, we should of course also make sure that we leave enough space for the light. If you lose yourself in the shadow, you attract more of it. Just like the shadow, however, the light also grows more and more if you ignore it for a longer period of time, until it reclaims its rightful place. Both balance each other out and we constantly swing from one pole to the other. Every night is followed by sunshine.
Finally, a few tips on how you can easily recognise fake gurus. The most important thing, however, is to trust your gut feeling. Your intuition knows what is right for you and what is not.
Fake gurus cavort almost exclusively on social media platforms. You find them where they can earn a lot of money without much effort. They limit themselves to spreading teachings that are convenient. They only give you half-truths. Statements along the lines of "everything is beautiful, everything is light, everything is love" are particularly popular. Followers of this attitude are sometimes referred to somewhat disparagingly as the "love and light faction". It's not very helpful to use such terms, but I understand the frustration of those who really want to help. Real gurus have personally gone through hell. They have done the necessary shadow work. That's why they would never spread such a banal teaching. They know that light and darkness are inseparable.
Fake gurus sometimes shape their appearance to look like an enlightened being. If you see a Jesus figure who also uses a corresponding name, you should be critical. In general, if someone has to call themselves blah-blah-guru to attract attention, they are trying to sell you an image. Real gurus are usually modest. They don't need to label themselves as such. They are labelled as such by their followers, who look up to them.
Fake gurus talk a lot and say nothing. When meaningful questions are asked, they evade them. Sometimes they tell endless stories that don't really relate to the topic of the question, after which you don't even know anymore what the original question was. This gives you the impression that you are too stupid to understand their wisdom. It's the same technique that's used in our schools to destroy the children's self-esteem. It does happen that they have a good interview partner who actually has something useful to say. But if they then say something themselves in between, it leaves a pale aftertaste. Again, just a lot of talking, nothing said.