Spiritual Teachers: Accepting when it’s time to move on
Spiritual Bonding
The bond that develops with a spiritual teacher is a strong one. These light-holders of the universe mirror to us the light of our own consciousness, take us by the hand and show us the way through the thick overgrown forests of our egos and lead us toward feeling the spirit, that has been up till then, at best…a mental concept in our heads.
It is natural to become deeply attached to your spiritual mentor, to trust their judgement and assessment over your own and to come to rely upon them for your spiritual connection. This is usually a necessity in the beginning when our connections with our own consciousness are deeply buried within our egos, when we can’t feel our own oneness with all of creation and when we can’t yet hear the voice of our own inner wisdom.
Through universal oneness…someone who is deeply conscious brings consciousness to those they are in close contact with. This is the burning log that can ignite the wood that is as of yet untouched by spiritual fire. But keep in mind that the purpose of this relationship is to get your own fire started. There will come a time when you will have to rely upon yourself or you will stunt your own growth. At this point your relationship with your spiritual teacher may not end but it will definitely change.
Moving from Student to Practitioner
The time to move on will present itself in your ability to handle your own issues. This will usually first happen in the circumstances when your teacher is not available for whatever reason and you are left with no choice but to work it out. When you become increasingly adept at this…your own readiness is presenting itself and it’s time to start seriously listening to the still small voice within and to seek it out before you approach your spiritual mentor.
When you do seek your own wisdom do you:
feel the same sense of relief that you experience with your teacher?
are you able to achieve the same level of connectedness?
find that things are working themselves out with little or no effort on your part aside of taking charge of your state of consciousness?
find that you need to talk to you mentor less and less?
find yourself capable of being motivated to explore spiritually on your own…independent of your spiritual teacher?
If you can answer yes to these questions then you may have to soon accept that it is time to move on.
Accepting the Change
It’s very possible that you can and will remain very close to your mentor…but also you may move in different directions. This can be a difficult transition to make due to the close bond you’ve developed but whether or not it is helpful to continue contact is a very personal decision; one that is made by both student and teacher.
Sometimes, each finds they need the space that opens up to continue their spiritual work; in which case they will have very little contact with one another. Other times they find that they can now mentor each other and develop a wonderful relationship in which they move fully into supporting each other’s spiritual growth.
However it goes…it is important to hold your mentor in your heart…flood them with your consciousness…and then let go. What arises out of this process will be exactly what you need to grow!
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