“Ruskan has achieved a challenging and difficult task, clarifying the

interface between Eastern spiritual tradition and Western psychology.”

- Dr. Harville Hendrix, author of GETTING THE LOVE YOU WANT

Emotional
CLEARING
An East/West Guide to
Releasing Negative Feelings
and Awakening

JOHN RUSKAN
Unconditional Happiness
 self-help / psychology

Emotional
CLEARING
In this ground-breaking work, John Ruskan focuses on the vital but often
misunderstood issue of emotional healing and growth on the path to
higher consciousness. He presents a revolutionary synthesis of Eastern and Western
psychological principles, resulting in a profound system of spiritual self-therapy called
Integrative Processing that can touch and transform all levels of your being.

“John Ruskan has accomplished a great work. He has written a book

that integrates the wisdom of ancient spiritual practices with our modern
psychological understanding, and he has done it skillfully. Step by step, he has
clarified a method of self-work that can truly open the way to well-being, Wis-
dom, and the recovery of love for oneself and the world.”
Robert K. Hall, M.D., Psychiatrist
co-founder, Lomi School of Psychotherapy

“John Ruskan's Emotional Clearing is a fresh, original work that

makes an important contribution to contemporary consciousness research. His in-
tegration of Eastern meditative practice with the Western concern for emotional
healing is a union that can yield great benefit to aspirants of both East and West.
Ruskan's work offers valuable insights to persons seeking tools for self-therapy
as well as to professional therapists. I hope this cutting-edge work
will find a wide audience.”
Martha Crampton, Ph.D., Psychotherapist
Director, New York Open Center's Program in Integrative Therapy

“I appreciate what John Ruskan has undertaken in Emotional Clearing

and wholeheartedly support him and it. There is no doubt that the tools and in-
sights presented in this book are vital to anyone who is on a
journey of self-actualization.”
Richard Moss, M.D., Transformational Psychologist
author of The Black Butterfly and The I That Is We

“Ruskan’s book is full of useful insights into emotional healing, and deserves
a wide audience among both psychotherapists and yogis alike.”
Yoga Journal

published by: R. Wyler & Co.

New York
 An East/West Guide to

Releasing Negative Feelings

and Awakening

Unconditional Happiness

Emotional
Clearing
John Ruskan

R. WYLER & CO. N EW YO R K

EMOTIONAL CLEARING by John Ruskan

Copyright © 2003 John Ruskan

All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book
may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage
and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher.

ISBN 0-9629295-3-0

Published by R. Wyler & Co. 2003

email: [email protected]

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Ruskan, John.
Emotional clearing : an east/west guide to releasing negative feelings
and awakening unconditional happiness / John Ruskan.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 0-9629295-3-0 (pbk.)

1. Psychology. 2. Emotions.
3. Meditation. 4. East/West Psychology

CIP 93 - 221606

Publishing history:
Original tradepaper edition published by R. Wyler & Co. 1993
Random House / Broadway Books hardbound edition 2000
dedicated to
spiritual seekers
everywhere
Acknowledgments

I would like to extend my most heartfelt appreci-

ation to the people who have helped me in the
crystallizing of this book . . .
The Kriya Yoga tradition and the spiritual
master Babaji, for my first guidance on the path.
Gurudev Amrit Desai and his ashram family
of 1987–88, for showing me how to love myself
and for being the inspiration for this book.
Therapists who have provided invaluable sup-
port for the book: Martha Crampton, Robert
Hall, Richard Moss, Sharry Rose, Hazel Stanley.
The growing family of Emotional Clearing
Facilitators, who are bringing life to the work.
Editors Peter Gault and Tony Hoffman, for
helping make the manuscript into a book.
Readers from all over the world who, during
the past years, have found this book to be of value
as they have traveled the often difficult spiritual
path.
Contents
Preface xiv
Introduction: The Art of LovingYourself 1

Part 1: Em otional Clear ing

1. The A c c e pta nc e of F e e li ng 9
The Therapeutic Encounter 11
Acceptance 13
Awakening Self-Acceptance 15
Working on Yourself 16
The Emotional Clearing Process 17

2. Crea ti ng the S ubc ons ci ous 23

Resisting Our Experience 23
Beliefs 24
Suppression 26
The Subconscious 28
Projection 33
Clearing 36

3. The P l a y of O ppos i te s 41
Duality 42
Dualistic Projection 45
Integration of Dualities 48
4. F e e l ing T hrough the Body 53
Storing Negativity 54
Thinking and Feeling 54
Releasing Negativity 57
The Wisdom of the Body 60
Loving Your Body 61
Breath 64

5. T he C e nte rs of Cons c i ous ne s s 67

The Chakras 67
The Sense of Separation 72
The Planes of Individuality 73
Development 74
Integration and Addiction 75
The Centers of Consciousness 77
Survival 77
Power 79
Sensation 81
Nurturing 82
Significance 84
Heart 86
Expression 88
Intuitive 89
Creative 90
Spiritual 91

Par t 2: Proc es s ing

The Steps of Emotional Clearing Processing 94

6. Awa re ne s s 97
Focus on the Present 98
Do Not Seek Understanding 98
Maintain Inner Awareness 100
Identify Your Feelings 103
Chakras and Feelings 108
Identify the Dualistic Pattern 114
 Own Your Experience 117
Dualistic Projection 118
Shadow Projection 119
Clearing Projection 119
Manifestation Projection 120
Spontaneous Clearing 122
Affirm That You Are Processing 123

7. Acc e ptanc e 125

Accept Yourself 127
Accept Your Feelings 127
Accept the External 131
Be Nonreactive 133
Identify Self-Rejection 136
The Ways of Self-Rejection 139
Repression 139
Resistance 140
Blame 140
Guilt 143
Blameful Expression 145
Acting Out 147
Motivation/Acting On 147
Worry 149
Activity/Excitement 150
Ambition 151
Impatience 152
Second Reaction/Overly Emotional 152
Drama 154
Control 155
Judging 155
Concepts/Expectations 156
Self-Image 157
Identification 158
Future Orientation/Hope 160
Past Orientation/Idealizing 161
Trauma 161
 Seeking Understanding/Searching/
Analyzing/Rationalizing 162
Escapist Behavior/Boredom 163
Substance Addiction 164
Relationships 165
Affirmations 166
Activate Your Heart Center 166

8. D i re c t E x pe ri e nc e 169
Experience, Not Expression 170
Process the Feeling 173
Process Feelings Behind the Addiction 177
Use Breath and Bodywork 179
Process Feelings During Meditation 170
Bring Up Past Unresolved Issues 184
Accept Blocking 185
Bring Your Feelings to a Crisis 186
Observe Your Toleration Point 188

9. Tra ns forma ti on 191

Activate the Witness 192
Allow Psychic Energies to Balance 195
Open Yourself to Transformation 197
Trust 199
Understand Psychic Cleansing 200
Recognize the Hindrances 202
Take Part in Group Work 203

Par t 3: L oving Your s elf

10. L ov e from W i thi n 207

Unconditional Happiness 207
Dependent Love 211
Loving Yourself 216
The Higher Self as Teacher 218
Love Through the Body 220
Part 4: Wor king on Your s elf

11. Pra c ti c e 225

Bodywork 227
Activating Healing Energy 231
Breathwork 241
The Cleansing Breath 241
Additional Breathwork Techniques 249
The Integrating Breath 251
Breathwork Meditation 254
Meditative Processing 256
Close Practice 257
Emotional Clearing Practice Summary 258

12. Inte gra ti ng 261

Integrating Depression 262
Integrating Fear 265
Integrating Sex 268
Integrating Anger 271
Integrating the Heart 274

13. Pra c ti c a l I nne r Work 281

Healing 281
Emotionality 283
Positive Attitude 284
Affirmations 285
Environment 293
Buying Into 295
Problem Solving 295
Dreamwork 296

14. Ope ni ng to Yours e l f 299

Sandy 301
Jim 305
Ellen 311
Group Work 315

Resources 318
Disclaimer

T he author of this book does not presume to

offer psychological therapy or advocate the
use of any technique for the treatment of any
specific or traumatic psychological condition
without the approval and guidance of a qualified
psychologist. The intent of the author is only to
relate his personal experience in the hope that it
may help you in your quest for emotional and
spiritual health. If you use any of the informa-
tion as a form of self-therapy, the author and
publisher assume no responsibility for your
actions.
Preface

T hroughout my years of involvement in the spiritual and healing

communities, I have noticed something that has prompted the
writing of this book: Many people who are earnest seekers after spir-
itual growth tend to be unfamiliar with the methods or the impor-
tance of working with the emotional component of the psyche. They –
as well as myself for a long while in the past – approach inner growth
by concentrating only on the “higher” idealistic aspects that they
hope to develop, such as love, and ignore the more unpleasant emo-
tional aspects of the self. Often there is a tremendous gap in aware-
ness about the emotional self and even the assumption that the
emotions are not really important. At the same time, those involved
in psychological therapy, where emotional healing is the main con-
cern, often cannot see how to combine spiritual arts with inner work.
The premise of this book is that no real growth into higher con-
sciousness can occur unless working with the emotions becomes a
central part of inner work. Moreover, I hope to show that working
with emotion as well as feeling in general can become a most vital
and even primary path to self-realization, enabling us to release the
inner forces that keep us blocked and from our full potential.
This book is the product of the merging of two cultural, intellec-
tual, and spiritual traditions. As I have worked, I have felt these two
lines of tradition meeting in my thoughts and then converging into
the writing, like a prism in reverse. Like female and male, mother and
father, yin and yang, each element has been necessary to fully actual-
ize the other. In the broadest terms, the East has represented the
mother – the mystical, nurturing connection to the inner source of
spiritual replenishment, healing, and growth. The West has repre-
sented the father – the rational intellect, the organizing, pragmatic
principle that gives form and structure to the healing force.
 What has resulted is not a comparison or analysis of these two
ways but a synthesis. It has been my intention to show how both
paths may be unified into a single approach that will provide a system
of self-work that can be followed intellectually and will lead to an
opening of the Heart. I feel that this approach can be vital for us of
the West in our quest for spiritual wholeness and resolution of the
ever-present pain of existence.
If this book, my gift to you, can be of any value to you, you have
in turn helped me as well as all of us, because the pain you feel is not
only your pain but the pain of the world. Separateness is an illusion.
When you heal yourself, you heal the world.
I wish you continual fulfillment in every aspect of your life. I
wish you the wisdom to make the most of the limitless possibilities
that life offers. Most important, I wish you the power to activate the
love and healing that lie so close within.
Emotional Clearing first appeared in consciousness bookstores in
1993 as a self-published book. It was one of the first books of the
decade to identify the vital importance of releasing negative feelings
as a key part of spiritual growth. I am pleased that the audience it has
found has been steadily growing. In this latest edition I have extend-
ed the sections on meditation, practice, depression, the correlation
between chakras and feelings, and have updated and clarified the
writing wherever I felt it was needed.

John Ruskan
New York, 2003
I understand that my love for myself is the

greatest possession I will ever have. Love

for myself comes into being only when I

accept and experience my feelings as they

are, at this very moment, both pleasant

and unpleasant. As I welcome my painful

self, it heals. Loving myself provides the

power for transformation.

 I N T R O D U C T I O N

The Art of
Loving Yourself
P eople sometimes envy the artist’s life. They feel the artist’s life is an
exciting one, expressing the instinct to break free. The artist is
seen as struggling with the essential problems of human existence,
facing those issues within, and bringing them into concrete expres-
sion. The courage to engage in the inner confrontation is admired. I
know I felt like this before deciding to devote much of my time to
the understanding and practice of art. It is one reason I became an
artist.
The real artist – one who is truly exploring issues of the self and
not just exploiting a technique – is operating on a high level of con-
sciousness. Artistic expression comes from the Creative center of con-
sciousness, which, in Eastern psychology, is even higher than the
Heart, accounting for the unusually intense experience of the artist.
Artists can run into problems with their work, however. Often
problems begin when the artist tries to establish a sense of social

1
 E M O T I O N A L C L E A R I N G

identity and acceptance through the art. The motivation shifts from
pure self-expression to concern with whatever is being gained from
the work. The shift of motivation can be subtle but still can result in
hampered creativity and eventual self-defeat.
Even though I was strongly drawn to art and the quest for inner
growth at about the same time in my life, the spiritual principles that
I was learning did not prevent me from falling into the destructive
cycle I am about to describe. I had been taught that happiness did
not come from the results of one’s work, or from the approval of oth-
ers, but from the joy of the doing. I agreed, and in my own work as
an artist, I felt that I was coming from the heart, not looking for
approval. Art for me meant going inside and bringing forth. Creative
expression was exhilarating and ecstatic. I felt I was developing the
capacity to mobilize the incredible energies I perceived.
Because for me, the essence of the creative act was perception. I
could find ecstasy in just looking at painting, dance, architecture, or
listening to music. I later realized that the power is in the perceiver.
The work of art is simply the framework onto which we project our
artistic experience, much like life in general.
From the act of perception it was natural for me to go to actual
creation. Yet it wasn’t really me who created. I just watched while
some other creative power came forth. My role as the artist was to
perceive, to be moved by what manifested. My skill as the artist was
in getting my conscious mind out of the way so the process could
occur. If something happened in this process that moved me, then I
had produced a piece of “art,” something interesting enough to share
with others. And sharing was something I wanted to do.
For while I was aware of the pitfalls of using art as a means of
bringing attention to myself, it seemed natural to want to share what
I had created with others. I allowed that I was not perfect and that
there was bound to be a certain amount of ego attachment to my
work. If I needed to have a minimum of recognition, I felt I should
accept the need, along with whatever limitations it might bring.
The incident that helped me become aware of the destructive
cycle in which I was enmeshed occurred during a weeklong work-
shop on Body Wisdom I was attending. By the third day, there had
not yet been much catharsis in the group. Our leader guided us into

2
 T H E A R T O F L O V I N G Y O U R S E L F

an extended holding of a yoga posture, the Mountain. Holding this

posture puts a great strain on the body, and many people started
trembling and shaking. Energy was starting to move in our bodies.
We finally released the pose and were instructed to move around the
room in any manner we chose.
As I moved, I suddenly began to sense the energy in my body.
The energy was taking the form of classical ballet positions I could
not name. Although I have not had any ballet training, and I am not
at all what might be called a “ballet” type of person, I have always
had a natural aptitude for dancing, and many of my friends have
been dancers. I always had assumed that somewhere in the past, if
there really were past lives, I had been a dancer. Still, I had never gone
beyond the intellectual assumption.
This experience was not intellectual. The energy in my body was
assuming perfect classical positions, drawing my imperfect physical
pose into as close a correspondence as possible. The inner seeing and
feeling of the energy taking the archetypal ballet positions, the real-
ization that the positions were indeed archetypal, and the ecstasy
from the inner perception were all overwhelming. I was taken
through a beautiful and moving artistic experience.
Nevertheless, linked with the beauty that I was witnessing inside
myself was the sense of pain – the pain of isolation. I realized that I
was reliving my pain from the past life as a dancer. I went into a
major catharsis of emotion. I knew that whenever catharsis is linked
to what might be past life recall, there is a good possibility that the
recall is real and not imagined. I knew I was tying into my suppressed
pain from the previous life and that it was being released.
I saw that a large part of my present life had been the same as the
previous life, except now I was involved mostly with music. I was
again consumed with the ecstasy of creation and the pain of isolation,
without understanding that the two – at least for me – are insepara-
ble, that they are dualistic complements. The suppressed pain from
the previous life was the source of the present pattern.
The incredible experience of creation on which artists are focused
does not come without its complement. The act of creation brings
with it the sense of isolation and inner emptiness from having
exhausted energies. The ecstasy is balanced by the pain.

3
 E M O T I O N A L C L E A R I N G

After understanding the dualistic nature of my creative experi-

ence, my life came into focus. I had spent much of my life taking in
the ecstasy and then not understanding what the pain was all about.
The pain of isolation, from both the present and the previous life,
was the motive behind sharing my work and the strong, partly
unconscious motivation for establishing a social identity as an artist. I
felt if I could reach out with my work, the terrible pain of isolation
would be relieved. That it never was relieved added to my confusion
because even when my work received acceptance – when I got recog-
nition – the pain was still there. I became confused and hurt. Recog-
nition became pointless. I questioned the value of what I was doing
and became self-destructive, probably in more ways than I realize
even now.
The problem came into being when I allowed myself to be moti-
vated by the pain of isolation; when I tried to seek its relief through
recognition – what I thought was my desire to share. In similar ways,
we all try to avoid our pain, without understanding that when we are
motivated by the desire to avoid negativity, there is no escape from it.
I had spent much of my life unconsciously locked into a cycle of
addiction to creative work. From the ecstasy of the creation, I would
fall into its complement, the isolation of the creator. Seeking to avoid
the negative aspect, either I would turn to sharing my work as the
antidote for the isolation or, not finding relief there, I would again go
back to the creative experience to escape the pain. I became compul-
sive about creating as a means to escape the isolation that came with
creating. Not being released, the isolation was only suppressed. It
built to the point where I became compulsive in other areas of my life
as well, such as relationships. Eventually, the suppressed pain became
so great that I had to stop work, reaching the point of burnout. The
catharsis I had in the workshop helped me understand that it was the
buildup of suppressed pain, from both the present and previous life,
that had contributed to blocking me and holding me back.
How do we get rid of the isolation that may come with the act of
creating as well as other emotional problems we may have? That is
what this book is about. The first step is to integrate, to reclaim and
accept, the feelings we are concerned with. When something has
been integrated, it has not gone away but is no longer perceived as

4
 T H E A R T O F L O V I N G Y O U R S E L F

disturbing. Most of the pain is there because the feelings are uninte-
grated. Integration starts the process of healing and clearing. All
aspects of life, not just the creative, have both positive and negative
complements. We must learn how to integrate, not avoid, the nega-
tive. In so doing, something may be learned from the artist.
Artists are concerned with the unwholesome side of life as well as
the beautiful. Often artists portray ugliness, disharmony, strife;
indeed, many artists today live in the ghettos of our cities. They
appear to have some connection to the sordid side of life that goes
beyond the low rent. This is because the artist accepts, celebrates, and
expresses the negative aspect of existence, both in the outer world and
the inner feelings. The artist does this primarily to achieve his or her
integration of it but also to show us that we cannot escape the
responsibility of integrating our own personal experience. When we
try to escape, we only suppress, and whatever we try to escape from
or fight keeps building.
The inclination to escape is a problem inherent to the New Age.
When first attracted to New Age activity, we may approach it with
the intent of enjoying peace and harmony. This may be an important
first step, especially if we are stressed out, but we miss the point if we
continually try to avoid the negative in favor of the positive. We must
learn how to integrate what we seek to avoid, with the courage of the
artist.
We can all become artists, for art does not depend on technique
but on the sensitivity of the perceiver. You can change your mode of
perceiving so that life is not seen as something outside yourself that
you must battle and control. Life becomes a reflection of yourself,
which you may either accept or reject, in turn accepting or rejecting
yourself.
When you perceive with acceptance, you allow the creative
process to begin. Just as when an artist produces a painting by step-
ping aside and letting another power come through in the creation,
you can use the same approach in ordinary life. You become the
artist, with life as your canvas. You become the witness to creative
transformation. You experience the exhilaration of the creative act
and find beauty in the most miserable parts of existence.

5
 E M O T I O N A L C L E A R I N G

When you perceive with acceptance, something else is accom-

plished. You learn that acceptance is love and that, in accepting your-
self and your feelings as they are, you build the experience of love for
yourself in a way that could never be done through any other means.
Loving yourself becomes the healing power that transforms your
inner world. Loving yourself is the highest art.

6
part
Emotional Clearing

1
 When I accept myself and my

feelings as they are, I become

whole. I am no longer split –

fighting or condemning part of

myself. The power of self-

acceptance and self-love builds

within me. I acquire the ability to

heal myself and the conditions of

my life. I awaken the power for

transformation.
 1
The Acceptance
of Feeling
W e all want to be whole. We would like to have an approach that
can help us in the quest to wholeness. We are all too familiar
with the sensation of being split, of working against ourselves in spite
of our best intentions. A path to inner growth that invites us to
accept all aspects of ourselves as a means to becoming whole would
appear to be reasonable. Yet when we learn exactly what is to be
accepted, confusion and doubt may arise.
The acceptance of joy seems natural, but it may not be clear why
we should accept heartbreak or fear. Negative feelings like these are
exactly what we want to avoid. Normally we think of negative feel-
ings as preventing or interfering with happiness. We all have some
concept of ourselves as we would like to be – without certain faults,
limitations, or emotional “problems.” We fight these conditions,
expecting to be happier if only we could get rid of the negative
aspects of ourselves, if we could only improve ourselves. We fight
unhappiness itself.
9
 E M O T I O N A L C L E A R I N G

Nevertheless, contemporary psychology teaches that there is a

place for acceptance of negative feelings and conditions. In fact, by
not accepting, we perpetuate negativity instead of releasing it. Accep-
tance is a difficult concept to grasp, because we have been trained to
resist and fight what we don’t like. Indeed, the understanding of
acceptance is subtle, and the basic questions remain: How? How do I
accept my anger? What does it mean to accept my helplessness? How
can I resolve my problem if I am to accept it?
Feelings are painful and become problems only because they are
not accepted, or integrated. We create pain through resistance and
nonacceptance. To go beyond pain and to enjoy wholeness, we must
learn to integrate those parts of life we find painful and would like to
avoid. Once integrated, they are no longer painful. Instead, they add
new dimensions to our existence. These new dimensions cannot be
foreseen. Life becomes richer, resulting in real, not pseudo, spiritual
and material prosperity consciousness. The creative is allowed to
manifest. Happiness becomes unconditional. We become artists of
life and realize that what we were resisting was really inside ourselves,
not in the outside world.
The Emotional Clearing Process is a method of inner work that
will enable you to transform your emotions and your life simply and
effectively. You will learn exactly why acceptance is important and
how to accept in a way that does not mean you must try to like some-
thing you don’t. The essence of processing is to accept your feelings,
whatever they are, even your feelings of dislike. The problem is that
you usually resist and reject the feelings, thus creating the pain.
We will explore concepts that may be new and challenging but
are of immense value. You will learn a definite and clear method of
resolving any psychological or material problem. Moreover, you will
learn a highly practical approach to life that enables you to use all
your experiences, both negative and positive, in the most productive
way possible. You will awaken your latent potential for love and cre-
ativity, and initiate personal growth.

10
 T H E A C C E P T A N C E O F F E E L I N G

THE THERAPEUTIC ENCOUNTER

For the past fifty years or so, psychological therapy has been the most
common means for people in the West to receive help in dealing
with stressful emotional conditions or simply to become more sensi-
tive to themselves. Before therapy became available, such help was
provided by the church. Today the psychological has largely become
separated from the spiritual. Spirituality is often overlooked, or not
desired, by persons who turn to psychology for assistance.
The therapeutic effort is devoted, first, to uncovering or making
conscious the feelings and patterns that are unconsciously influenc-
ing the client in undesirable ways. Second, therapy is directed toward
releasing stored negativity through various approaches, depending on
the school.
The therapist accepts the client

Regardless of the approach, therapists who are effective share a

common quality: They accept the client without conditions. Uncon-
ditional acceptance can be startling and transformative, because the
problem is not what the client usually thinks it is. The real problem is
that the client is not self-accepting, often not even having any con-
cept of self-acceptance. Through the therapist, the client learns how
to accept him- or herself, outgrowing negative patterns.
During therapy, blocks are uncovered and loosened up, and the
client becomes aware of self-limiting tendencies. This happens pri-
marily because of the therapist’s attitude of acceptance, not because
of incredible insights or wonderfully effective techniques. The thera-
peutic use of acceptance can be understood and applied only by one
who has mastered self-acceptance on a deep level; it is fallacious to
assume that one who is not whole within could ever provide this
kind of healing for another. A successful outcome to therapy is
achieved when the client no longer needs the supportive energy of
the therapist but can provide support through self-acceptance. The
client has not become a perfect human being but is now self-sustain-
ing, able to provide nurturing and healing from within.

11
 E M O T I O N A L C L E A R I N G

The role of therapist in the West closely corresponds to the tradi-

tional role of guru in the East. The guru provides the same kind of
nurturing relationship that the therapist does, for the same reasons.
The guru accepts the disciple unconditionally, knowing that accep-
tance from another is what the disciple needs to learn self-acceptance
and to grow as a human being. In the East, however, the role of guru
is more comprehensive, including not only psychology but philoso-
phy, religion, and physical culture, all addressing the question of spir-
itual growth.
This broadness of perspective does not in the least render the
psychological aspect shallow or unstudied. The Eastern understand-
ing of the mind has a history and tradition thousands of years old.
The ancients of the East were, indeed, master psychologists. Western
psychological thought is, for the most part, a few hundred years old
and is still being formulated; Eastern thought has been formulated
and offers much to be learned.
Psychology’s connection
to spirituality is critical

Psychology in the East has a built-in connection to spirituality. In

contrast, Western psychology is limited exactly because it usually has
no such link. Many psychologists are now coming to this realization
and are trying to establish a spiritual connection. For some, this may
mean turning to organized Western religion, which to me is like
going one step forward and two steps back. Certain religious institu-
tions of the East also may be considered dogmatic and outdated but,
when we come to yoga or Buddhism, we find a flexible and intelli-
gent approach to both psychology and spirituality.
We are not going to discuss spirituality directly in this book. The
principles of psychology that we will discuss, however, are related to
developing the capacity for spiritual experience. The overwhelming
contribution of Eastern thought is that as we go within, we discover
the Infinite. Nothing more needs to be said about spirituality. Some
Western thinkers have come to a similar conclusion, notably Jung,
but he was deeply influenced by Eastern thought. Please note, then,
that when I refer to “spirituality,” I am referring to the inner meeting
with the self, not to the trappings of any organized religion, East or
West.
12
 T H E A C C E P T A N C E O F F E E L I N G

We have touched on the function of the therapist or guru in

awakening the power of self-acceptance in the client or disciple. It is
noteworthy that in the East, this guidance traditionally is considered
to be a normal requirement of education; in the West, it usually is
reserved for those in a stressful or unstable condition. Lest we roman-
ticize the East, it should be recognized that in modern times only a
small percentage of people there are exposed to traditional teachings,
just as in the West, only a small percentage are exposed to psy-
chotherapy. Still, we should reconsider the conservative view that
therapy is primarily for the mentally ill. Therapy of some sort is the
choice of the sensitive and intelligent individual concerned with per-
sonal growth.
The student of the East learns, in this basic training for life, a vast
and refined system of knowledge, including disciplines for strength-
ening and purifying mind and body. “Purifying” has exactly the same
purpose as in Western psychology, that of bringing to the surface
suppressed material and dissolving unconscious blocks that interfere
with the productive enjoyment of life. Nevertheless, in the East it is
understood that techniques for personal growth are most effective
when the disciple has direct contact with a guru. This is not because
only the guru can give correct instructions in technique but because
the disciple learns self-acceptance through personal interaction. The
concept of acceptance is at the core of both Eastern and Western
psychology.

AC C E P TA N C E
Why is acceptance so powerful and transformative? We will explore
this question at length throughout the book. No short explanation
can hope to convey a real understanding. Still, I will say a few things
here to introduce you to the topic.
Acceptance means
opening to your feelings

Acceptance does not mean automatic approval of any event,

whether an inner feeling or the interaction with another person or

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happening in the outside world. Acceptance means rather that we are

open to the experience of the event. We may retain our intellectual
discrimination, preferring that something be different from the way
it is manifesting; however, we do not allow our preference to interfere
with the experience. This is possible because experience takes place
on a feeling level, not an intellectual level. As we open ourselves fully
to experience on the feeling level, we accept it.
The capacity for feeling is of utmost importance. Feelings are our
connection to life; without them we are stale, hollow, and cut off
from true fulfillment. Self-blocking occurs on the feeling level, not
the mental or intellectual level. The feeling level is where we are most
unconscious. People who have achieved self-acceptance have devel-
oped the capacity for feeling deeply, without resistance, whatever is
happening in their inner life. Most of us do not do this but block
feelings from entering consciousness, resulting in emotional imbal-
ance and confusion.
Unconditional love is
unconditional acceptance

When we interact with a person who is self-accepting, we sense

that this relationship differs from most. A self-accepting person has
the ability to accept others, to be open to others, and to receive their
energy without resistance. A person who is not self-accepting cannot
accept or be open to others. Because we seldom encounter self-
accepting people, we have no real sense of what a relationship based
on acceptance is like. When we meet a self-accepting person who
accepts us, who does not unconsciously resist us, we experience a
revelation. We can feel that we are being accepted on a deep energy
level. We are disarmed. There is no reason to resist back. We sense
love. Unconditional love is nothing more than unconditional accep-
tance, whether of yourself or another person.
When unconditional acceptance is part of the therapeutic
encounter, it supplies the power for transformation. Healing occurs
because of the power of love. Psychological blocks dissolve; there is
no need to fight them. The relationship with the therapist intensifies,
and the potential problem of dependency arises.

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 T H E A C C E P T A N C E O F F E E L I N G

A WA K E N I N G S E L F - A C C E P T A N C E
The real purpose of the therapeutic relationship is the ultimate awak-
ening of self-acceptance in the client. This happens magically in the
interaction, through a kind of resonance. The result is what has been
called self-actualization in the West and self-realization in the East. In
either case, what has been awakened is the ability to love oneself.
One gains the ability to evoke healing power from within, through
self-love.
There is no longer any craving or searching for love outside one-
self; one is complete as one is, feeling love from within. Relationships
are approached as a vehicle through which the love within is
expressed rather than as a context in which one seeks to be loved. Life
has become essentially, miraculously changed.
Must you find a therapist or guru before you can learn to love
yourself effectively? This is a controversial question; authorities advo-
cate both sides. There is no doubt that the kind of relationship I
have described can be instrumental in awakening self-love. Yet find-
ing such a relationship can be difficult and is customarily thought of
as “happening” rather than being found through active search.
I have seen through my own experience and that of others that it
is possible to make substantial, if not completely adequate, progress
on our own. For that reason, I have formalized the Emotional Clear-
ing system, a self-therapy devoted to awakening the power of self-
acceptance and self-love as well as the higher centers of consciousness
and realization. You will learn how to activate yourself through the
intellectual approach rather than through the personal influence of a
teacher.
If you have a personal healer, therapist, or guru with whom you
are working, however, feel free to stay with them if you so desire. Pro-
cessing is nondogmatic and compatible with any humanistic psy-
chology with which you may be involved. As you learn processing,
you will gain a technical knowledge, both theoretical and practical, of
powerful psychological principles. If you have no personal teacher,
assume that you don’t need one at this point. You will surely draw
someone into your life at the right time, if you need such a relation-
ship.

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 E M O T I O N A L C L E A R I N G

WO R K I N G ON YO U R S E L F
Many people have never been exposed to either a therapist or a guru.
Yet virtually all of us need to learn how to awaken the qualities of
self-acceptance and self-love. I feel this is the tremendous spiritual
challenge of our time.
Life is evolutionary, and we are all “works in progress.” The pur-
pose of life is to awaken and expand our dormant capacities for love,
creativity, and intelligence, but a program is needed to support us in
the awakening. When you get in sync with this natural evolutionary
urge, you will immediately feel more at peace with yourself – you are
no longer purposeless. The joy that comes from growth itself is
enough to keep you interested in life.
To seek personal evolution means you must work on yourself.
Most people understand that effort is required and apply themselves
with enthusiasm. No one, not even your therapist, can do the work
for you. You must be at the point where you understand that work-
ing on yourself is a priority – that you are tired of functioning (or not
functioning) as you are. Even so, many people tend to make a signifi-
cant mistake when beginning to work on themselves. It is normal to
question one’s life and perhaps decide that changes are required, but
questioning can carry over into a nonproductive habit – the habit of
excessive thinking.
Working on yourself is not
constantly thinking about yourself

The issue of excessive thinking is crucial. Working on yourself is

not primarily analyzing yourself and your motives, or being thought-
fully introspective, or trying to control yourself and do better, or try-
ing to be something you are not. Using the mind in this manner is
self-defeating. You must learn to substitute feeling for thinking. You
must learn to sense what is through the feeling center rather than evalu-
ate experience through the thinking center.
Many people who think they are working on themselves are
deceiving themselves, because they do not have an accurate under-
standing of how to proceed. They spend their time in constant self-
evaluation, which merely makes them absorbed in themselves. After

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you have read this book, you will have a definite understanding of
how to work on yourself.

EMOTIONAL CLEARING
Emotional Clearing is the name I have given to the system of self-
therapy that has evolved from my own work on myself. It is derived
from the traditional wisdom of the East as well as the contemporary
psychological knowledge of the West. I have tried to combine the
strongest and most compatible elements from each tradition.
Integration means accepting yourself
and your feelings as you are

Integration is the condition of accepting and including, of not

resisting, parts of yourself or your experience. When something is not
integrated, it forms the basis of conflict. We resist something – a feel-
ing, for example – because we believe the feeling is bad for us. It
makes us uncomfortable. In fighting the feeling, we further the split
between ourselves and the feeling, and thus we increase the sense of
conflict.
Resistance creates pain

The conflict that is created through resistance causes pain. This is

a key concept. What causes most of our pain is our resistance to a
feeling, not the actual feeling itself, even a “negative” feeling. A cer-
tain amount of pain may be inherent in negative feelings, but we
amplify, exaggerate, and prolong that pain through resistance. Learn-
ing how to accept experience is the means to minimizing pain.

Experiencing takes
place in the moment

After we have learned to accept, however, experience is not yet

completely integrated. It must be digested in a certain way, called
direct experience, in which it is absorbed or dissolved completely. The
ability for direct experience is gained through the cultivation of
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 E M O T I O N A L C L E A R I N G

“being in the moment.” Being in the moment is a mystical perspec-

tive. Witness consciousness is activated, and we function on a new
and higher plane that results in a sense of well-being and euphoria as
well as calling into play transpersonal powers that have been blocked
by the personal ego. These powers operate on a very practical level,
effecting transformation in situations that we previously resisted. By
accepting, we go beyond. We reach the spiritual through the mun-
dane. We discover the spiritual in the mundane.
It is essential to learn how to open up on the feeling level. You
may think you are feeling your pain right now. The problem, howev-
er, is that you continue to resist the pain with unconscious self-rejec-
tion, which prevents the pain from being resolved and intensifies it.
Developing the capacity to accept leads to unobstructed feeling,
catharsis, and the release of pain.
Processing consists of four steps, each step corresponding to a
plane of consciousness. The steps are taken to achieve integration of
any event. The event can be an inner feeling or emotion or a happen-
ing in the external world. We can use processing especially in stressful
circumstances but also as an approach to all life’s happenings, “posi-
tive” as well as “negative.” Once integrated, we no longer fail to expe-
rience the event completely. The energy of the event is dissolved,
having run its natural course, instead of being trapped and continu-
ing to affect us. We become “clear.” In Part 2, we will go through
these steps in detail.

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 T H E A C C E P T A N C E O F F E E L I N G

THE STEPS OF EMOTIONAL CLEARING

Step Plane Function

1. AWARENESS Intellectual Knowing
2. ACCEPTANCE Mental Thinking
3. DIRECT EXPERIENCE Body Feeling
4. TRANSFORMATION Spiritual Transcending

1. awa r e n e s s . Intellectual plane: Basic awareness of the event,

whether a feeling or an external happening. Awareness includes
“owning” of the event; the recognition that the event corresponds
to a projection of suppressed energy held in the subconscious.
Awareness also includes understanding the basic principles of how
to work on yourself and consciously deciding to apply them.
2. ac c e p ta n c e . Mental plane: Ceasing resistance to the event.
Normally, experience is blocked unconsciously through various
self-rejecting maneuvers of the mind. In accepting ourselves, these
mechanisms become conscious and are dropped. In so doing, self-
love is awakened, and the gate to direct experience of feeling is
opened.
3. di rect experience. Body plane: Being in the feeling cen-
ter, or “in the moment” with the event. Feelings are entered com-
pletely, without resistance, analysis, or blame. The event is
experienced on a body level until the energy is dissolved.
4. transformation. Spiritual plane: Witness consciousness is
activated, and the higher transpersonal intelligence guides the
energies, leading to internal catharsis and unexpected creative
external change. The flow of life is not obstructed. Adjustment
occurs spontaneously and without conscious control.

Thus, we sequence through the various levels of experience in

logical order, culminating in the spiritual. What may be surprising to
many is that the spiritual is reached through the body, or the feeling
center, not through the mind or intellect. Of course, I am not refer-
ring to the sensual nature of the body but to the higher centers of
consciousness that are approached only through feeling.

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 E M O T I O N A L C L E A R I N G

Our common misconception is that fulfillment, peace, and hap-

piness can be reached through knowing, accomplishment, or posses-
sions. As we survey the twentieth century, the fallacy of this position
should be most evident. True happiness is unconditional; it is
achieved when we use the intellect to understand that knowledge is
important but ultimately not fulfilling; when we go beyond the self-
orientation and possessiveness of the mind; when we enter the direct
experience of ourselves and the universe; when we have the percep-
tion that we are the universe.

20
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I understand that when I don’t

accept myself or my feelings, I

create a debt to myself. The

feelings don’t go away, but

become hidden in my

subconscious, only to come out

later. When I accept my feelings

as they are, I no longer create a

debt. I experience life fully and

allow growth to occur.

 Creating the
2
Subconscious
RESISTING OUR EXPERIENCE

It is human nature to strive for a sense of well-being. We have basic,

legitimate needs for sustenance, shelter, companionship, love, self-
expression. We work to satisfy these needs. In acting with goals in
mind, we become concerned about how we expend our energy and
about the results of our work. We find it natural to accept certain cir-
cumstances and to resist others.
Our selective orientation toward experience becomes associated
with pleasure or pain. We develop a natural predisposition to choose
conditions that are either pleasurable in themselves or lead to plea-
surable outcomes and to resist conditions that are painful or lead to
painful outcomes. What could be wrong with this? It seems to be a
basic description of what life is all about.

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 E M O T I O N A L C L E A R I N G

Philosophers through the centuries, however, have addressed the

implications of a life based on seeking pleasure and avoiding pain,
because experience has demonstrated that such a life does not lead to
happiness. These philosophers then conceived of other systems of
values that might be more helpful in fostering the sense of fulfillment
we seek. Of course, our level of maturity has much to do with what
we consider to be worth pursuing. As we grow, we outgrow certain
needs and adopt – it is hoped – broader, less self-centered ones. Still,
the basic needs of security, power, sensation, and relationship are
what most of us revolve around.
Many of our “needs” are the result of social conditioning. They
are artificial – programmed into us by society. We assign the same
urgency and feel the same anxiety about the attainment of artificial
needs as we do with more genuine needs. This mistake is the result of
our level of consciousness, our lack of vision, our susceptibility to be
programmed. However, there is no point in my trying to describe
what I think these false needs might be. My opinions would not do
the slightest to change anyone else’s perception of their needs, nor
should they. We are all at our own individual and proper level of
growth.

BELIEFS
Needs result from beliefs. Beliefs are the filters through which we
perceive reality. Along with instinctual beliefs, such as the belief in
basic survival, and beliefs that society has conditioned into us, we
hold beliefs that have developed from personal experience in meeting
life. Many beliefs are irrational, limiting, and destructive. Once we
become aware of them and their counterproductive nature, we may
want to change them – but deliberate change is difficult.
Beliefs are maintained by
suppressed energy

Beliefs are conditioned states of mind, occurring mostly on the

unconscious level. What may be a limiting belief is difficult to repro-

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gram directly, even with the use of techniques such as affirmations,

because it is held in place by suppressed energy formations; the sup-
pressed energy supports and maintains the belief. In our work, we do
not attempt directly to uncover or change unconscious beliefs. I con-
sider such action to be invasive and disvalidating. Instead, in accept-
ing ourselves, we accept our beliefs as they are. Processing of feelings
will release the energy that is behind the belief and maintains it. The
limiting or destructive belief is outgrown naturally, instead of in a
forced manner.
Much of what we consider important is important only because
we consider it so. Our outlook will change as time goes by and as
growth occurs, but for now we accept that we assign an emotional
value to the attainment of circumstances that our beliefs call for and
to the avoidance of whatever threatens the circumstances. Thus, the
teenager buying his first car agonizes over what model to get; the sci-
entist agonizes over the results of his work. They are at different levels
of growth concerning their goals. Still, both may undergo unneces-
sary anxiety because of a misplaced, compulsive attachment to the
outcome of their respective endeavors, unconsciously believing that
their self-worth depends on the approval of their peers. In this
respect, they are at psychologically similar levels of growth.
It may be assumed, therefore, that the individual has an exten-
sive, intensive, self-projected belief system which is considered
primary in attaining happiness. The belief system creates needs.
Through subjective pain when these needs are not realized, the indi-
vidual learns to strive for conditions to satisfy the needs. The habitu-
al orientation of evaluating which elements of experience will be
allowed or resisted to satisfy needs carries over into the inner life: feel-
ings, emotions, and attitudes. A strong judgmentalism develops
toward inner experience as well as toward outer experience.
We have fallen into a trap. We must resist certain conditions to
survive, but unwittingly we extend this logic to areas where resis-
tance is inappropriate, leading to unresolved energies, entanglement,
and sickness. Resistance of experience occurs on a subtle yet powerful
level and is the beginning of what is called suppression.

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 E M O T I O N A L C L E A R I N G

SUPPRESSION
Suppression is the primary psychological mechanism that leads to
emotional and spiritual dysfunction. The central purpose of all psy-
chotherapy is to clear suppressed material that is affecting us adverse-
ly. Suppression is something that we all do. Those who reach the
point of severe distress have merely gone further in suppressing than
the average person; those who are considered well balanced suppress
less than normal. The standard of emotional health in our society,
therefore, is far below the potential possible for humankind, but this
just has to do with our current evolutionary level of growth.
Suppression begins
with resistance

It is important to understand how suppression works. When

something is resisted, a condition is set up within us that affects us
deeply. The electromagnetic field surrounding the individual, known
as the aura, actually becomes steeled against letting in any outer expe-
rience that is resisted. In effect, resistance builds a shield to the
exchange of energy on the psychic level, where experience primarily
takes place. This shield is quite tangible on the psychic level, and
may be felt and seen by a psychic. A person with ordinary but sensi-
tive perceptions often can sense the shield, or “wall,” around people
who are particularly suppressed.
With inner feelings, resistance has a similar effect. A kind of ener-
gy shield is built around the feeling centers, so feelings will not be
allowed into consciousness. As experiences occur and are resisted, the
energy of the feeling encounters the shield. The energy is unable to
be released because it has been blocked rather than absorbed; it can-
not complete its cycle; it cannot discharge into consciousness. What we
don’t realize is that when the energy of a feeling is not released, it does
not go away but stays with us, in latent form, as part of the psychic
energy body.
The motive behind resistance to an unpleasant experience is that
we would rather not feel the pain involved. Avoidance of feelings is
not always done out of deliberate choice but often because we lack

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the knowledge to confront life directly. We don’t know why or how

to experience fully so that there are no loose ends, no lingering or
unresolved energies. Over time, the habit of resistance results in
chronic blocking of the centers and accumulation of the suppressed
energy. Thus, we do not succeed in avoiding the feeling, as we
intend, but merely prevent the energy from entering our field of
awareness.
Suppression operates both
inwardly and outwardly

Suppression is the act of rejecting experience from the field of

awareness. Outwardly, we suppress awareness of aspects of other peo-
ple, happenings, and conditions that are displeasing. We close our-
selves off to vital parts of life, becoming judgmental and
self-centered. We call something evil when it merely conflicts with
our “need.” Inwardly, we suppress awareness of painful feelings,
including anything about ourselves that we dislike, such as perceived
faults or weaknesses. External suppression can make us limited and
bigoted, but the consequences of internal suppression can be even
more severe.
We think that it is possible simply to close the door on negativity
and walk away from it. We forcefully try to exclude pain from our
awareness by any number of evasive maneuvers. What we are doing,
however, is rejecting ourselves, because the pain is part of ourselves.
In our rejection, we deepen the inner split; we go in the opposite
direction from integration and wholeness; and we ultimately feel the
consequences in depression, despair, and hopelessness.
When we suppress an unpleasant feeling, we interrupt the natur-
al flow of energies. We do not allow the feeling to clear itself, to
resolve itself, to regain its natural equilibrium. The energy becomes
trapped, held in storage in a static condition. Where does the energy
get stored? It is held in what has come to be called “the subcon-
scious.”

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Suppression creates
subconscious Karma

The mechanism of suppression, therefore, creates much if not all

of the mysterious subconscious that has been puzzled over and glam-
orized since Freud. The subconscious is nothing more than a buildup
of energies, potential forces that lie dormant because they were never
adequately resolved when they originally occurred. In rejecting our
experience, we have created the reservoir of the subconscious. In
Eastern terms, the buildup of subconscious forces is called Karma.

THE SUBCONSCIOUS
The subconscious is simply a part of ourselves from which we have
turned away. The capacity of the mind to achieve withdrawal of
awareness and subconscious containment of energies is itself remark-
able, and although it appears to be mostly unbeneficial, the habit of
suppression and the influence it has had on us has been a major fac-
tor in shaping our life and history. We have chosen to turn away, but
we can easily turn back to the feelings in the subconscious if we so
desire. The inner wall that has grown to divide ourselves is not that
solid; it is more like a gray area, where tips of the iceberg are always
coming into view. We have only hypnotized ourselves not to fully see
and feel those hidden things.
The problem with suppression of feelings is that the feelings are
not resolved but merely hidden. When something is suppressed, it is
made temporarily unconscious, only to accumulate and break forth
at some later time. Anger, for example, does not dissolve when sup-
pressed but remains as forceful as when originally felt, except that it is
no longer within the field of awareness. When it erupts, it is likely to
cause much more damage because of the buildup that has occurred.
Suppressed feelings influence us in even more far-reaching ways.
They leave us much in the position of being ruled by hidden forces –
forces that at times can seem uncontrollable, like a separate entity
with an independent intelligence and will. We become guided by
neurotic, unconscious urges that lead to irrational, self-destructive

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behavior. We are attracted to the wrong people, reject the right peo-
ple, and become compulsive, addictive, and unreliable, all in spite of
our best intentions. Our urges are strong and difficult to oppose.
Indeed, opposition is impossible because the suppressed energy even-
tually has to come out. Holding it back will only bring a more
destructive release later. We go through life leaving more or less a
shambles behind us, accumulating more unresolved energies and
adding to our Karma.
Energy is what
becomes suppressed

Unpleasant feelings as well as unresolved situations are the kinds

of things that are suppressed, but when we suppress, it is energy that
is put into storage. Emotions can run high, and emotions are nothing
but energy moving through the centers of consciousness. When peo-
ple interact, there is an energy exchange between them. Energy is
what enables us to have experiences. Experiences are kinds of energy
that we assimilate. Of course, I am referring to psychic energy, which
is not yet generally recognized by science. Nevertheless, subconscious
energy can build to a considerable strength. It becomes part of our
personality, affecting us as well as others.
Since we suppress in consistent yet individual ways, we build a
reservoir of negative energy of a specific type. Some people suppress
mainly anxiety; some, the sense of worthlessness or sexual frustration,
for example. The suppressed energy then creates patterns: uncon-
scious, individualistic ways in which we meet life. Patterns would
not be a problem, except that they are often negative, keeping us
from full realization of our creative power. Because patterns are usu-
ally unconscious, we don’t know that it is we who are limiting our-
selves.
Suppression leads
to addiction

To suppress requires psychic energy. It takes energy to suppress

energy; it takes energy to block. The demand for energy becomes a
drain on our resources, creating conditions that encourage the addic-
tive cycle. Because addiction provides energy, taken either from out-

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side sources or inner reserves, it facilitates suppression. When this

additional energy is not available, it is not as easy to suppress, and we
come face to face with our pain. Thus, when we suppress, energy is
diverted from its positive and constructive expression; we become
split, working against ourselves, unaware of our self-undoing.
Repression

When the suppression syndrome becomes unconscious, it is

called repression. Repression is the same as suppression, except that
there is no awareness of feelings or the avoidance of them. For exam-
ple, if you are sad but do not consciously recognize your sadness, it
becomes repressed. Proper release is not possible, and the sadness is
stored subconsciously. Repression, unfortunately, is common in the
modern world. Freud, in Civilization and Its Discontents, said that he
thought it was unavoidable. His statement is even more appropriate
today. Repression comes about because of all the desensitizing that
we undergo. Life is so busy, so anxiety ridden, with our attention
constantly enticed outward, that we do not realize what our real feel-
ings are. We have lost touch with ourselves.
Continual repression results in neurosis and extensive blocking of
the human organism. The result on the emotional level is addiction,
depression, and unconscious destructive patterns; and on the physical
level, disease. Blocked energy easily can reach the level where it affects
the physical, and what is disease but blockage? Looking at prevalent
twentieth-century ailments such as heart disease and cancer, I can’t
help but feel that a main cause is the buildup of subconscious nega-
tive forces that the modern way of life encourages. However, it
should not be forgotten that humans have been creating their sub-
conscious all throughout history, so modern life should not be con-
demned outright. The average person, now and in previous times,
has always had personal blocking and Karma to contend with.
We are all so similar when looked at from a distance. We all have
unconscious yet individualistic tendencies that keep us from reaching
our maximum potential. Rarely do we fully realize the higher side of
our nature, the love and creative centers. Rarely do we relate to others
or ourselves directly, without distorting grossly through our own par-

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ticular filters of suppressed energy. We must recognize the truth with-

out becoming pessimistic. We are as we are because life and con-
sciousness is evolutionary. We are growing, and in progress. Our
capacities only reflect our current levels of growth.
Let’s look specifically at some kinds of feelings that are common-
ly suppressed or repressed, becoming buried in the subconscious.
Our feelings usually relate to the following areas:

survival: Fear, anxiety, insecurity about health, money, pos-

sessions, death
p ower: Anger, hostility, aggressiveness, helplessness
s e nsat i on: Sexual and sensual feelings
n u r t u r i n g : Cravings for food, alcohol, smoking, drugs,
general emotional neediness
s i g n i f i c a n c e : Worthlessness, lack of self-esteem and
meaningful social identity
h e art : Loneliness, jealousy, hate, sadness, grief

Different feelings may be linked, forming complex systems of

blocking and suppression. Thus, sexual issues may be associated
disharmoniously in one person with security issues and in another
with power issues. The accumulation of these negative energies
results in stress. If we knew how to dissolve and avoid the buildup of
negative energies, we could avoid stress.
The buildup of suppressed energy can vary over short or long
intervals. Short-term emotional suppression can happen with fears,
sexual impulses, or any feeling that cannot be dissolved immediately.
For example, a person may experience frustration in the workplace
and not know how to release it, and then go home and take it out on
the family. The attempt to release the energy by venting on a neutral
party is known as displacement. Displacement is common, resulting
in hurt feelings, miscommunication, and damaged relationships.
Long-term avoidance of feelings builds a structure of a quite dif-
ferent and unsuspected magnitude. It can build to the extent that a
person’s whole life is shaped by internal forces of which there is no

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conscious knowledge. Conditions that were unresolved in the past

have a way of recurring with new faces or circumstances, and we have
the choice of taking responsibility and experiencing, or avoiding and
suppressing once again.
The subconscious is carried
over from previous existences

It may seem remarkable that such complex systems of avoidance,

blocking, and suppression could be formed in one short lifetime. My
feeling is that they aren’t, but that they have formed over extensive
periods in prior existences. Whether you choose to believe in reincar-
nation is a personal decision. For me, it seems obvious that there is
some sort of preexistence to physical birth. Just looking at how
quickly and definitely children form their individualities is enough to
convince me of a previous life.
I believe that Karma, the subconscious, is carried over from pre-
vious existences. Life’s events are then formed by subconscious forces,
to be played out. It is not necessary to agree with the doctrine of rein-
carnation to have success with processing, but the notion of a previ-
ous existence may help clarify a few things for you. For one, you will
find it easier to take responsibility for yourself and where you are at,
rather than blaming your childhood and your parents. You will real-
ize that early incidents with family, no matter how painful, were
merely catalysts to make you conscious of what was already latent
within you. In fact, you chose those very circumstances for just that
opportunity.
Focus on present
feelings, not causes

Because there is usually no conscious memory of previous exis-

tences, and because the causes of most emotional suppression are in
those existences, it is difficult to pinpoint the source of any current
condition. However, understanding the cause is not required to
release feelings. In our work, we focus on present feelings, not causes.
Accepting the possibility of a previous existence also implies the
continuity of life after “death.” This idea greatly helps me – intellec-
tually at least – in working with the fear of death, which is really the

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primal fear. Psychics have brought back much documentation of life

on the “other side.” I personally find their reports, taken as a whole,
to be adequate evidence of something beyond the earthly shell.

P RO J E C T I O N
Projection results from the accumulation of energy generated by sup-
pression. It is an automatic, unconscious mechanism, which assigns
subjective value and identity to persons or events in the “outside”
world. Feelings that are suppressed are experienced indirectly through
the other persons or events – it appears as if the feelings are caused by
or coming from others. In addition, suppressed qualities are attrib-
uted to others. Others are usually then criticized for the feelings or
qualities that we have projected onto them. In advanced cases of pro-
jection, we actually attract people and circumstances to us that corre-
spond to the feelings we are holding within.
In projection, we try to avoid
responsibility for certain feelings

When we project, we unconsciously assign responsibility for our

feelings to other persons or situations, and we think that they
“caused” our feelings. We generally choose these persons or situa-
tions skillfully, to appear justified to others and to ourselves. We fail
to see that the other is only “bringing up” suppressed material from
inside ourselves. They are not the cause of our feelings, although they
may be considered to be the stimulus. If that feeling or reaction was
not already latent within, we would not have responded in that par-
ticular way. Think of how differently various people react to the same
situation. In projecting, we see through the distorting filters of our
own suppressed energies. We do not see reality as it is, and we react
inappropriately.
For example, if you have suppressed your anger, you will see oth-
ers as responsible for “making” you angry because of what they do.
You will blame them. You also will perceive others as being angry and
directing their anger toward you when you are not angry. You will be
likely to condemn them for their anger. If you have suppressed your

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sexual feelings, you will perceive others as making uncalled-for sexual

approaches toward you, and you will judge them harshly as well as
condemn other forms of sexual expression not directly concerned
with you. If you have suppressed your feelings of rejection toward
others, you will think others are rejecting you, and you will blame
them.
Similarly, after you have blocked your power through suppression
of your energies, you will assign that role to outside agencies, think-
ing they are responsible for blocking you. You will appear to be
entirely justified in your blame. Even an impartial observer might
agree that you are contending with an outside force.
The truth is that there is no outside force. Miraculously, we pro-
ject our subconscious energies onto what appears to be the outside
world, creating our entire experience. We are literally responsible for
our perceptions as well as whatever happens to us. Accidents that
happen “to us” are, unfortunately, only extreme cases of the negative
forces that are hidden and stored within building to the point where
they can affect us physically. Remember, energy is what gets stored in
the subconscious, and energy can build to powerful levels if not
released.
We never see what is. We see only what we have projected.
Because of the hidden magnitude of the built-up subconscious, the
extent and significance of the suppression-projection mechanism
cannot be clearly perceived. To succeed in processing, you must ac-
cept intellectually the condition of suppression-projection as a work-
ing axiom, even if you have to do so on faith. As you begin to
integrate material that was previously suppressed, the truth gradually
will become evident, and you will be astounded as well as fascinated.
Up to now, we have examined the suppression of negative feel-
ings and interactions. However, positive events also are suppressed
and then projected onto the “outside” world. The shield that was
created to avoid negative feelings also blocks positive feelings, and
projection becomes the sole means to connect to the feelings. Your
most cherished times, someone you thought really loved you, was
just the love already within you. Someone who helped you was you
helping yourself.

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To succeed at self-transformation, you must make the leap from

perceiving the universe as a collection of separate individuals and
objects acting on you, to perceiving it as a field for your energies,
which you project and then take back as if there were an objective
outside world. Incredibly, other individuals also have the exact same
capability of creating their own universes, simultaneously with you.
Try this right now to develop your feeling capability.

exercise
Feel your energies as they go out into the world. Assume that
you assign the value and identity to everything you perceive.
Your impression of the external world comes to you through
your filters of suppressed energy, and your suppressed energy
draws corresponding events to you. Assume that when some-
thing happens, it has not happened by itself but you uncon-
sciously created it through projection or attracted it to you. If
a person seems to behave in a certain way, it is your percep-
tion. Focus your awareness on your energy field, and feel the
connection you have with your perceptions and reactions. I
am not referring to intellectual understanding but to feeling.
Simply feel your connection to what you perceive as the qual-
ities of the other.

While you should cultivate a sense of responsibility for your feelings

and experiences, based on an understanding of suppression-projection,
by no means should you assume guilt or be self-condemning. Remember
that others are also ultimately responsible for what happens to them,
although this does not excuse us from hurting them.
We have taken the concept of suppression-projection further
than psychology usually goes with it. We have entered the mystical
realm where reasoning and thinking do not apply. This is necessary
to reach our goal of inner integration. Fulfillment can never be found
through the analytic faculties of the mind; fulfillment comes through
the feeling center.
When we project, the world becomes a mirror, reflecting our own
qualities back to us. Of course, a great deal of independent activity
does go on outside of ourselves, and other people do have a basis of

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independent character. When we project, we carefully select the

appropriate “screen” – a person or situation with some element of
what we are projecting – and we load our perception of them with
our own energy.
If we try to analyze how much of our perception is projected, and
how much is “real,” we become distracted from our work on our-
selves. No objective evaluation is possible anyway, because we are not
clear within ourselves. Therefore, we assume that we are projecting
the entire contents of our perception when we use processing tech-
niques. It is very likely that after the issue has been integrated, we will
spontaneously see exactly what the other is bringing and what we are
bringing to the situation.
The client projects
onto the therapist

In light of our discussion of projection, we may more completely

understand the value of the relationship with the enlightened thera-
pist. In contrast to an interaction with an average person, where both
people normally project onto each other, the therapist ideally does
not project subconscious energies onto the client, or at least remains
aware of and nonreactive to these projections. This includes having
no demands or expectations. In addition, the therapist does not react
to or reject but maintains awareness and acceptance of the projec-
tions of the client onto the therapist. This is the essence of therapy
and the catalyst for the healing transformation. The client is able to
become aware of projections more clearly than in relationship with
other people, because the mirror is now exceptionally clear. Nonethe-
less, you should not become discouraged from processing interac-
tions with people in general.
Whenever you react strongly to the stimulus that another person
provides, it is safe to assume that suppressed energies within you are
surfacing. If you were clear within yourself, you would not be so
affected by the negativity of others. Your reactions would not be as
pronounced or as judgmental. You might then experience a “normal”
amount of negative emotion in response to certain circumstances,
but processing techniques are still an excellent approach for clearing
these feelings.

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CLEARING
On the psychic level, the purpose of projection is clearing. The psy-
chic body, which stores the suppressed emotional energy, naturally
wants to clear, or cleanse, itself of this negativity. Projection automat-
ically occurs to bring the energy to a conscious level. However, pro-
jection by itself does not result in clearing. If it did, all the world
would be liberated. The projected feelings must be handled correctly,
or it is all in vain – the projected experiences are resisted and resup-
pressed, and the amount of negative energy in the subconscious
grows. The opportunity to learn through projection is lost.
Feelings must be experienced
in order to clear

Clearing of suppressed material takes place only when you finally

allow yourself the experience that you have been avoiding. The ener-
gy, the feeling, must be allowed into consciousness without resistance
in order to be integrated. With painful events, the pain must be
accepted and experienced, but you will learn how to minimize and
neutralize pain by observing it from the Witness vantage point. The
Witness capacity brings about a nonidentification with painful feel-
ings, making them more easily integrated and released.
Suppressed energy is released through conscious experience of it.
As you allow yourself to have the feeling, the feeling will change.
Pain will dissolve, becoming neutralized. Facing feelings is all that is
necessary to clear suppressed negativity, and once something is faced,
it can be cleared in a surprisingly short interval. The problem is that
our unconscious self-rejection prevents us from really facing our feel-
ings, even when we want to – we have lost the capacity for feeling.
Exploring and regaining that capacity is what we are learning here.
Life becomes your therapist

As you go through life, you will have various encounters that

bring up your subconscious energies into conscious awareness. These
energies surface when conditions are appropriate for them to be
released. If you can learn to integrate these energies as they come up,

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you will be meeting life most creatively. You will be using your cir-
cumstances instead of being abused by them. It is for this opportuni-
ty that we incarnate on the Earth plane.
Amazingly, each individual’s life is designed to provide just the
right circumstances for the clearing of hidden negative forces within.
By correctly utilizing these circumstances, you can work on yourself
very effectively without a therapist. Life becomes the therapist, and
indeed, life is the best and ultimately the only therapist. Your cir-
cumstances at this very moment are the ones you need. They are
bringing up negative energies from your subconscious to be cleared.
When you integrate them, that is, when you accept and experience
them without resistance, clearing takes place.
Projection may lessen if you practice contacting your feelings
directly, as in meditation. However, you should not expect to stop
projecting, because projection is a natural way of clearing. You must
learn to become aware. Realizing what is happening, you will smile to
yourself. You will not “buy into” thinking that the other is responsi-
ble for your experience; you will “own” your experience, meaning
that you take responsibility for what is before you. In so doing, you
achieve the control over your life that you seek.

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