A Guru Predator | letters from Dena
- Dena Bradford
- Oct 15, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: Feb 19
You can't always Intuit the guru predator.
"Intuit" is a verb that means to understand or know something based on a feeling or sense rather than on evidence. "Guru" is typically a spiritual leader.
I once sat with a Yogi during my certification to become a meditation instructor. My yogi cautioned everyone attending his class to be weary of a concept of Highway 42.
Highway 42?
What the hell is highway 42 ????
Highway 42 is what he called the energetic path between the 2nd Chakra of Passion/Sex and the 4th Chakra of the Heart.
My yogi spoke about trauma blocking these two vital energy pathways in the body — and the caution of the student/teacher dynamic as this energy flow is restored in the body. Energy may manifest as feelings of lust or love.
When working through traumas, it can be confusing to feel alive and vital in areas of the body that were once stagnant.
You may feel a false sense of sexual connection.
The student will want to water the new seed of heart and sex planted. If not aware, the teacher may also develop feelings of lust or love.
And thus, the Guru Sex Abuse Predator is born.
The guru predator sexual abuse cycle is due to a difference in the power dynamic between a "leader" and a "follower".
The Past |
I have only personally seen this in person once between this lecture and my typing today — and it was from a distance.
I won't bore you with the details, but when the student rang the proverbial alarm bells, she was discredited and traumatized.
A community rose -- not to protect her but to silence her.
To protect his integrity as the guru. To protect the predator.
Guru predator sex abuse cycles can become larger than just the student and the teacher - a group can take on the dynamic by extension.
She and I were taking a class on Andean Cosmology and energy healing and had split into a workgroup with just the two of us.
I did my task as outlined by our group leader: just listen. She told me her story and her plan for navigating the future with this issue -- with him, with everyone involved.
It was a monumental task.
To listen.
Not advise.
Not do anything.
JUST TO LISTEN TO HER PAIN.
The Present |
Last night, my sister sent me a text about another Guru predator.
I've been busy these past two years and deviated from spiritual/growth practices.
Not plugged into any of my usual circles.
A headline from Boulder, Colorado.
A Man arrested on child exploitation charges.
I felt punched in the gut. Angry. Sad. Dirty. A little guilty.
A Mentor.
A Somewhat Crush.
Feeling physically Ill.
How/Could I Have Known? This question has been replayed in my head for the last 24 hours. A person doesn't just wake up on a random Tuesday and decide to exploit children.
How long has he been doing this? Was there some sign I missed?
The reality is this: I could not have known what this man was doing in the privacy of his home.
But I struggle with that, and I still feel dirty….like a thousand steaming baths couldn't clean my energy field. I feel ick by association.
I feel sad.
I feel mad.
I feel betrayed.
The Future |
I will never be idle in the face of abuse.
Reflection question for learning:
Journal about the concept of highway 42, and how you might you navigate feelings of desire for a person in a position of authority now that you understand the subtle flow of body energy in motion?
If you try this exercise, and get hung up-- drop me a line and I'll help. I really want you to understand this concept.
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