🤔dear Liza: why do you swear so much? isn't meditation sacred?
If you are part of the EFF THIS! Meditation community over on Instagram, you already know this: I swear. A lot. Sometimes I get admonished for it (I’ve been told it lowers my vibration; but I actually think it clears my throat chakra, ha!)
Today’s question, which comes from the lovely Sattva of Mindfulness With Sattva:
Hi Liza! I love your content so much, I really do. I am curious about the cursing. I don't necessarily like or dislike it, I'm impartial to it, I'm just wondering why your consciousness has chosen to use profanity to get the point across? Would love to hear your insights.
I love this question so much! My choice to use profanity is actually a really thoughtful one. Here are my reasons for using it:
I've always loved when my teachers find the sacred in the mundane (or sometimes in the profane!) because to me it makes the teachings and the spiritual path more relatable—so I made that element a conscious choice in my own teaching. I often think of the video of the Dalai Lama laughing about his farts . . . strong grasp, light touch, as the saying goes. In my case I hope that’s a strong background and deep respect for the fundamental teachings of Buddhism, presented with humor and with modern language.
For me, the juxtaposition of the levity of the profanity with the seriousness of the messages makes them both stand out more and also stick in my mind better. Take a look at the images above and below; they are hard to forget!
My goal is to make meditation more accessible to a certain type of person (cynics, skeptics, people who are overwhelmed and fed up—like me). Many meditation teachers work to make meditation more accessible: by teaching in schools or prisons, offering scholarships, focusing on diversity and inclusion, etc. For me, the profanity serves as a way to make meditation and a spiritual path more accessible to people who may be put off or intimidated by the preciousness of a lot of spirituality. I want people to know that all are welcome on this path.
It’s like an antidote to the whitewashed, happy-all-the-time, everything-is-great version of spirituality that’s put out there by so many people. My own spiritual path has been gritty, raw, and not complete bliss–and I believe being truthful about that (and presenting it in a way that reflects that) is actually a service as it allows people to accept all parts of their own path as well.
I get that combining profanity and a spiritual path is not for everyone! Sometimes people complain to me, and that's okay. But it's not going to change me. I have a really strong point of view on this, and I get that. But for every one person who complains, I have a dozen more who message me saying how much these messages resonate with them. So these words come from my heart, uncensored.
LOVE,
{Image credits are all linked.}