The term spiritual bypassing was introduced in the early 1980s by John Welwood, a Buddhist teacher and psychotherapist referring to a “tendency to use spiritual ideas and practices to sidestep or avoid facing unresolved emotional issues, psychological wounds, and unfinished developmental tasks”. Spiritual bypass — Wikipedia
Robert Augustus Masters (RAM) (70) — an unredeemed serial community cult leader of 17 years and industrious writer who gained popularity via his most prominent proponent Ken Wilber — made the term “spiritual bypassing” known on a broader level with articles and books issued 2010 onwards.
- “I saw myself — looking back — as bypassing big time. I was probably an ideal person to write a book like ‘Spiritual Bypassing’.” Audio interview Robert Augustus Masters and Diane Bardwell Masters — “Transformation Through Intimacy”, minute 30:28ff, aired 4. November 2010
⚡ Notes on the shadow ♦◊♦ Robert Augustus Masters failing to walk his talk all the way
when above shadow chart of RAM was posted on the google open Facebook accounts of various multiplicators who shared his quotes (regularly posted on his frequented Facebook fan page) in 2015 Masters hastily terminated his Facebook account. RAM could control (and finally sacrifice) his own FB account, but not what went out on Google.
- “I see a lot of people caught in spiritual bypassing as having such poor boundaries they cannot say a clear NO. They are overly attached to being nice, and sweet, and go to look positive. There is this addiction to being positive. And, they are, in a sense, being negative about their negativity.”
Audio interview with ⚡ Robert Augustus Masters, PhD (*1947) Canadian psychologist, psychotherapist, cult leader of Xanthyros community, author, “What Really Matters”, web radio station New Dimensions, program #3392, host Michael Toms, 23. November 2010
as a visiting f.o.c. volunteering guest from abroad in RAM’s Xanthyros cult community in Vancouver in 1991 i said NO to RAM’s request to set up a dependence of his cult in Germany — having had seen enough of RAM’s violent community system (little did i know of the crimes committed by him and on his behalf). i did not receive a thank you, handshake, or farewell from three of RAM’s shadow bearers, his inner circle members, but was screamed down by all three instead. to say NO to the guru’s wishes was anathema and therefore punished by means of entrained group bullying. it took me five weeks to recover from the vicious attack / cult visiting experience losing income that way.
in December 2011–20 years after my approach to test RAM’s community cult — i asked RAM on his facebook fan page “i wish to read an article written by you where you offer a report how the conversion of a former cult leader looks like.” Robert Augustus Masters replied with a Facebook comment ♦ 31. December 2011: “Such an article does not exist, but I plan to write one.”
⚡ “A Needed Shattering” — RAM’s 1st incomplete report on his cult history (February 2015) — RAM’s 1st blurb on his cult history was issued 21 years after the meltdown of his 2nd unredeemed community cult Xanthyros. his text contained two major omissions and two lies. he extended no apologies and offered no restitution to his victims.
subsequently it was erased in October 2018, when RAM felt under pressure to release a 25-paragraph long admission statement addressed to his readers and clients — this time offering general apologies, yet still no restitution.
After the release of Be Scofield’s recent Medium article Spiritual Bypassing Guru Robert Augustus Masters Was an Abusive Cult Leader issued October 2nd, 2018 Robert Augustus Masters suffered from failing health. He had denied her an interview when asked.
- out of concern of losing readers / clients / multiplicators / endorsers / supporters RAM responded with another undated admission statement Robert Augustus Masters: Clarifying My Past issued October 16, 2018
- RAM’s public admission and apology void of a pledge of factual redemption was copied in full and assessed here: ⚡ “Clarifying My Past” — RAM’s 2nd incomplete report on his cult history — 10/2018
- former members of the inner circle of the Xanthyros cult came up with following review: Rebuttal and suggestions by inner circle Xanthyros members addressing RAM’s 2nd public admission — 10/2018
as of now Robert Augustus Masters exemplifies well what spiritual bypassing looks like — his cult history revealed on www (2014 and 2018) yet unredeemed.
why were 15 luminaries asked to endorse RAM’s latest book Bringing Your Shadow Out of the Dark: Breaking Free from the Hidden Forces That Drive You?
among them are first endorsers Gabor Maté · Thomas Hübl and serial endorsers Jeff Brown · Andrew Harvey · Terry Patten · Arjuna Ardagh. partaking in the well oiled “marketing machine”, they neglected due diligence i.e. a background check on their endorsee.
however, there is one remaining silent exception — radical truthteller Danielle LaPorte. the original version of Masters’ new book had a foreword by LaPorte which the final version did not.
first posted on Quora https://www.quora.com/What-is-spiritual-bypassing/answer/Elfriede-Ammann
