Let Go of Judgement to Find your Inner Master

One question I've been asked a lot lately is this: 

"How can I find answers for myself, without feeling a need for external validation?" 

Client after client is asking me, through the tarot cards, and in general, how they can tune in to their own innate wisdom, and essentially, become their own master. Some have told me they would like to learn to read tarot, others have said they want to start channeling, and others still have expressed a yearning to personally know the truth of divinity.  

As a reader deeply committed to the highest good of my clients, these questions are music to my ears! 

Since it can be of benefit to all of us, not just those who have asked, let me share with you all the answer I give to my clients when they are ready to embrace their gurus within.

First and foremost, before we can see our own divinity, find the Truth of our Being, and get the answers we seek from within our selves, we must let go the judgements we carry. 

All of them.

Only when there is no more judgement within us, we will be able to tune ourselves to the frequencies of Light, Love, and Highest Truth.

Extreme repatterning and redirection of our energy is needed to let go of all our judgement.

We are conditioned from birth to be judgemental. We enter this world directly into a society that harbors inner opinions and rigid definitions. We are taught by our parents, teachers and friends to feel apart from the rest. We are taught to have an ‘us against them’ attitude towards those we deem as ‘others’ in the world. And even within ourselves, we feel conflicted, torn apart, caught between various beliefs and self-imposed ideologies.

Letting go of judgementalism means feeling we are each a part, not apart. We each play a part in the play that is the world. We are united in our playing of these unique parts. We may each play a part, but that doesn't mean we must keep ourselves apart.

Some of our judgements can be called positive, some can be called negative, and some can be called neutral. A positive judgement would be, “I like this person.” A negative judgement would be, “I don’t like that person.” A neutral judgement would be, “I neither like nor dislike another person.”

It doesn’t matter whether we are holding good, bad or neutral judgements. Holding any judgements at all will prevent us from progressing on the path of spiritual discovery. 

Those who have found themselves to be masters, those who hear spiritual truth, those whom we elevate as harbingers of mystical fulfillment, are all inclusive, not exclusive. If we want to be like the saints we revere, we must also live in a state of non-jedgemental, inclusive, unconditionality.

Judgement excludes. 

Judgement sets apart. 

Judgement limits.

To awaken our inner master, we must be open, inclusive, and unlimited.

***

Whenever I suggest that a client stop being judgemental, the inevitable follow-up question for me is, “How?”

How to stop being judgemental?

Look at the word. 

Judgemental. Judge-mental. It’s a mentality, which can only be sparked in the mind. Whenever we’re hindered by our judgement, the only way past the obstacle of our hinderance is by letting go of the restrictive thought patterning that led us into the judgement in the first place. 

There is no such word as judge-physical. Or judge-emotional. Or judge-spiritual. There is only judge-mental.

If we want to find truth, we have to drop our incessant judgement and instead live with innocence, love and bliss. We must center ourselves within our physicality, emotionality and spirituality, as much as we are already stuck in our mentality.

In so doing, we can become as inclusive as are the masters we revere!

Meditation is the key here. A dynamic meditation that works on all layers of our being- our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual bodies- is best. By setting a strong intention to let go of judgement while meditating deeply, we will All be able to find Truth. 

(Nithya Dhyaan and eN Kriya are excellent for this; and Inner Awakening is truly the greatest opportunity. www.nithyananda.org )

This statement I’m making is not morality. I’m not suggesting that everyone drop their judgement so that the world will become a better place. Of course, if we all drop our exclusivist judgements, the world will become a better place, but within the context of answering this question- how to find the inner master- letting go of judgement is not a moral stance, but a necessary first step.

This is not about right or wrong, good or bad. That labeling would only be more judgement. This is simple practicality.

We need not drop our judgement for the sake of those whom we are judging, we need only drop our judgement for the sake of creating the space within ourselves for something higher.

So long as we are overly judging and therefore overly mental, we will incessantly question not only others but also ourselves. That is what blocks us from finding our Truth.

With judgement, when we try to listen to our own inner voice, no matter how wise the message it has for us may be, we will not believe ourselves. 

Our judgement will cause us to say, “No, I can’t know what I know, because it’s only coming from me, and not from _________.” 

__________ can represent an advisor, psychiatrist, psychic, or guru. Anybody whom we judge is more in tune with truth than our own self.

The ‘I don’t believe it if it comes from me’ attitude, is self-judgement. 

There is no mind in which self-judgement and pure knowing of Truth can co-exist.

Whether we seek Truth from channeling, psychic intuitive opening, mystical revelation or the ultimate merging with God, letting go of judgement is the essential first step.

If we’re holding judgement, we do not have a clear picture of ourselves, or of those who live around us. Thus, we will always confine ourselves by mentally imposed limits. When, in such a state of limitation, a true message sneaks past our judgemental barricade and into our physical mind, we will disbelieve it, censor and condition that message of truth by contaminating it with what we think we know already.

As long as we have judgement in any part of our being, we will judge every part of our being.

We are all able to realize Truth. We are all divine, psychic and profoundly wise beings, who have forgotten our divinity, psychic ability and profound wisdom by adopting this habit of judging.

Judging is a habit. For some, it is an addiction. But, for all, it can be let go.

***

When the time comes to let go of judgement, many often feel a deep fear of losing their identities.

It is not identity, though, but ego, that lives in judgement.

This fear is the result of societal propaganda, perpetuated by others who reinforce their judgements upon us, without knowing any better way of being, than in a state of judging.

We have learned to define ourselves by what we aren’t, rather than what we are.

Letting go of judgement allows us to see who we are, and who others are, as positive sparks of existence, not negative points of difference. Without the filters of judgement, we see valid reality, not an invalid opinion.

Without judgement, we know red is red because it is red. With judgement, we know only the partial truth that red is red because it is not blue.

Judgement is conditioned understanding of truth based on limitation and separation.

Non-judgement is open, trusting, innocent realization of pure truth. 

***

Some will judge it as a disservice to their teacher to drop the judgements that prevent them from becoming their own source of divine understanding. They fear it will hurt their master if they become their own master. This is the very last judgement to drop. This is what masters are referring to when they say, “The last attachment to drop is the attachment to the form of the Master.”

A master- spiritual guru, divine teacher, whether living or ascended- will always lead us to our own Truth by helping us to drop our conditioned beliefs and judgements. But a true master will never hold us back, once we have dropped ALL other judgements, from dropping the final judgement we hold, which relates to the need for the master him or herself.

All good teachers will tell us that it's their job to put themselves out of business! 

Paramahamsa Nithyananda Swamiji, for example, has often said that he is here to awaken the inner guru within all of his followers; that he is here to turn his followers into Leaders. He assures us that he is not dependent on having disciples, or needy for devotees. 

One close devotee of Swamiji’s told me about a powerful dream experience she had of him. She said that in her dream, Swamiji appeared, and she reverently touched his feet. He asked her what blessing she wants, and she replied, filled with devotion, "Swamiji, I want to worship you always. Let me be your disciple in all your future incarnations!" He looked at her sternly, and asked, "Why do you always want to be my follower? When will you ask to become me!" 

In the profound book Living Enlightenment, Swamiji says very beautifully,

“Coming closer to the master is the path to becoming the master.” p.703

By experiencing the unconditional love and total acceptance of one who lives with pure Truth, we learn what it really means to be free from judgement. Masters show us, by living without any inner judgement themselves, that we, too, can not only survive, but thrive, by living a judgement free life.

“The purity in the relationship with the master,” says Swamiji, “is that there is no attempt to make something else of you. You actually love the master because he gives you the complete freedom to be just what you are with no strings attached.”

As the master does not judge, if we are to become like him, we must not judge.

What we need to do first to awaken our inner guru, then- to find leaders in our own selves, to know the Truth- is to simply relax and be ourselves completely. Without judgement.

Until such a time as this total relaxation happens, we must not look at the master, but rather, look to the master. Emulate the master. Catch the beingness of the master. See how he is, not just who he is, and be that way, also.

***

The greatest revelation that happened in me, after my recent experience of seeing all of God’s many forms, then merging as One with them into Godhead, is this: I know what I know. 

I knew what I knew before that experience, too, of course; but before, I questioned the validity of what I knew by judging myself as unworthy to know it. I thought I knew what I knew. Now, I know what I know. As long as I only thought I knew what I knew, I always looked to some other source for confirmation of what I knew.

I would ask Swamiji to confirm my truth during darshans, or I would ask the tarot cards to confirm my truth during readings. I didn’t innocently trust myself to know what I knew; I judged myself as less trustworthy. 

Now, there is no more feeling of a need within me to get confirmation or validation from anything or anyone else. I know what I know. Because I know what I know, more and more and more is being revealed to me. Downloads are happening continuously. Bliss is happening continuously. Channeling is happening. Revelations are happening. Why? Because, I Know What I Know. Period.

That is the only difference between me, as I am now, and me, as I was before. How am I now living as my own master? How am I now channeling my Higher Self. How do I know my Truth? 

I know what I know.

And for you, it is the same. To find your own inner master, to channel your own higher self, to experience cosmic downloads, to accurately read tarot cards, and to access long-dormant psychic powers, just remember:

“You know what you know.”

It’s a very simple concept, and it applies to everyone who is without judgement. 

***

Please don’t confuse judgement with discernment. 

We must be discerning about what we know. This is the reason for meditation. When we know what we know comes from our heart and our being, then we know what we know is truth not judgement. 

When it is Truth not judgement, we can declare, “I Know What I Know.”

To assist in this process, let me share with you a recent situation that came up between myself and one of my clients. 

This client recently expressed to me that he wants to start channeling, but finds the opening difficult.

 I understood the source of his difficulties in the channeling process when he casually revealed two of his judgements to me.  

Neither of them were ‘good’ or ‘bad’ judgements; they were both neutral, and they came up after his reading, not during. He is a very kind and caring person, so I'm not making a case out of him as an example of someone with 'a lot of judgement;' actually, I'm using these examples because they show us common, everyday judgement.

This should allow you to see what a judgement is:

He said, first, that he can’t understand why I work one day a week at a store called Dragonspace. I asked what he found odd about that, and he said, “It doesn’t look like your kind of place. It looks like a store for Dungeons and Dragons players.” 

It’s not- Dragonspace is actually a store founded by spiritual mythologists, who relished the ancient beliefs about dragons connected to such ideas as guardian energy, and alchemy. It was his judgement to assume that since the store’s name contains, and sign depicts, a dragon, it must be for enthusiasts of mythic role-playing games.  

Another judgement wrapped up within the first was the judgement that it was not 'my kind of place.' What is one person's kind of place, and what is another's? Is a person only able to enjoy the things we imagine he or she enjoys?

It’s a common type of thought coming from typical judgemental mentality: first, judging a place by it’s name. Second, judging whether or not another person will like a place based on that person’s likes and dislikes.

What makes this judgement so inebriating to the knowing of truth is that it assumes it knows what it knows while it doesn't actually know anything.

Swamiji tells a story about a learned professor who visits a Zen master for a lesson. On arrival, the professor lists all of his honours, all his degrees and certificates, all his observations. The master, all the while, prepares tea. As the professor goes on and on listing all that he knows about enlightenment, the path of seeking and realization, the master sets an empty cup in front of him. The master takes the tea pot, and starts to pour. The professor continues to list his qualifications, and the master continues to pour, until the tea is spilling out over the rim of the cup. The professor watches, as the tea overflows past the edge of the saucer, and still, the master keeps pouring. Finally, the contents of the pot itself are nearly emptied, and tea starts to run down the legs of the table to the floor. Finally, the professor asks the master why he doesn't pay attention to what he's doing. He is a Zen master. He knew exactly what he was doing. "When a cup is overflowing, we cannot pour anything more into it." The professor understood. He thought he knew so much, that the Zen master saw him as an unfit student. 

Like that professor filled with thoughts, if we are filled with judgements, our higher minds cannot channel wisdom down to us; that wisdom would only spill out and be lost amidst all the other thoughts.

His other judgement was this: "Don't be offended, but I really don't see 'you' in the painting on your business card."

A number of judgements here: first, who does he think I am? Why does he think I want that painting to represent me? What kind of a person does he see in it?

So much mentality. 

The technique I gave him to break free from his judgementalism will work for all of us, and so, here it is:

First, let go of the idea that you know anybody you think you know.

Every single person alive on planet Earth is the author of his or her own autobiography. We are not the writers of one another’s story, and so, to assume that the character profile we’ve written for another fully encapsulates his or her full identity is completely wrong. We must live as if we are meeting everyone around us for the first time, every time we meet. Because, we are. 

I said to him, “Instead of looking at my painting, and wondering how it fits in with the ideas you’ve built up about me, look at the ideas you’ve built up about me, and expand them to include the painting. Then, let all of them go, and understand that I am not the sum total of all your thoughts about me.”

He was worried that I would be offended by the fact that he didn’t see the painting as a reflection of my being, and even that was another judgement: the judgement that I would be offended by someone else’s judgement.

What I suggested he do as an exercise to let go of all the judgement, was to make a list of all the people he thinks he knows. 

We can all do this. 

List relatives, friends, customers, coworkers. Everyone. Then, list beside each of their names, all the things about them that we don’t feel ‘suit’ them. Maybe one guy has a haircut that doesn’t seem to fit his personality; another might work at a company that doesn’t seem connected with his beliefs; a girl may hang our with a friend who seems wrong for her. Anything about a person we have thought contradicts the person.

The next step is to expand the view we have of all these people, to include the ideas of whatever it is about them we judge as being contradictory. If we can stretch our definition to be inclusive of this seemingly contradictory trait, we can see something closer to the full person.

Take it a step further. Imagine each person on the list suddenly exchanges traits, behaviors and styles with each other person on the list. And expand again. Break all the definitions made about each and every character. 

Masters have been known to suddenly do something extremely unexpected in front of their disciples. They may make blatantly opposing statements, one following the other, and act as if they totally believe each. They may state that there is one thing they will never, ever do, and the next day, that's what they will do. They do this to force the minds of their disciples to open up; to expand; to drop the judgement.

If you don't have the blessing of a master in your life, then by doing this list, you yourself can see the huge benefit of dissolving the thoughts, ideas, and judgements you have of the people around you.

To be without judgement is to simply accept anything, about anybody, at any time, without a thought or opinion on the matter. 

Beyond that, to be without judgement is to accept anything about ourselves at any time.

To channel, to develop psychic ability, to find Truth and ultimately to meet God, we have to be completely open and innocent. Free of judgement.

Why? Because, as long as we are judging, we are not open to receive anything that does not fit into the framework of our limited beliefs.

There is no room for thought of separation beyond the veils of this dimension.

The act discovering inner spiritual Truth is the act of bringing heaven down to earth. We must do it, by dropping our limited, ego-based, judgemental thought.

This is why Swamiji Nithyananda tells us not to condition the master by putting him in a frame.

This is why Jesus says that only those who have become like little children can enter into the kingdom of God.

This is why Osho tell us to be deeply innocent.

This is why Shiva tells Devi to receive.

Receptivity is freedom from judgement. Openness is freedom from judgement. Children are free from judgement. Innocence is free from judgement. 

Be innocent, receptive and unconditional and know Truth. 

***

Each of us has, on some level of our being, an idea that we seek love, acceptance, truth, bliss. We keep these yearnings hidden, all the while craving for them to be validated. We catch glimpses of understanding, then relegate those to the depths of unspoken fancy. We wait until some being whom we perceive as higher, or more in tune with truth than us, confirms what we already know. 

Essentially, the confirmation will always validate, We Know What We Know.

This is the blessing of a master. Until we know what we know, the master will remind us, though clicks of wisdom and energy transfers and encouragement, to get back into the mode of knowing.

To be as a master, we must reconcile our inner desire, with itself. We must have an unsullied inner space. 

We may have this as an inner desire: “I want to know God,” while a conflicting judgement tells us, “I don’t deserve to know God because I am not a saint.” 

One inner desire may be, “I wish to have smooth relationships,” while a contradictory judgement negates it: “The people around me are dysfunctional, so I must have dysfunctional relationships with them.”

We might know, “I am as telepathic and empathetic as any professional psychic out there,” but a contradictory judgement says, “It takes hard work to tune in to telepathy and empathy... I’m not cut out for that.”

We struggle, on and on, trying to figure ourselves out amidst the inner tug of war between conflicting hopes and fears, dreams and nightmares, desires and guilts, Truth and judgement.

Masters, like Nithyanandaji, live conflict free lives. 

But we will miss their deep and profound teachings if we only seek their approval without also following their example!

How many times has Swamiji told us that we must not idolize Shiva as a god, but instead, learn from Shiva as a teacher!

Be as innocent as a child, as receptive as a Devi, and as nonjudgemental as a saint. Say Shivoham. I AM That I AM. I know what I know. Ahambrahmasmi. 

If you can say those words without thinking about how others will react to your affirmation; without judging yourself as worthy or unworthy of their profound Truth, then Tattvamasi- you have found your Inner Master.