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Combining business with spirituality
Jeroen
Not all those who wander are lostNetherlands Veteran
I was talking to a cousin of mine, and she is involved with a “consciousness coach” who teaches certain spiritual subjects like breathing meditation, organises retreats, and so on. But this coach’s about-me page on her website reads more like a curriculum vitae, with references to roles she fulfilled in the business world and in functions within the government.
I’m struggling a little to see how to fit these things together. What do you think about people who try to combine business with spirituality?
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I am wary of those that promote spirituality as a means to business or material advancement, thus making spirituality secondary and merely a means to a wordly end.
That said, some or even many seem to believe that being a businesperson somehow disqualifies one from being spiritual. I don't think that's true. Lay people are not monks and need to support themselves + it can be just another arena for practice. I know of many higly advanced or even realized people who just so happened to be businespeople.
That was always my standpoint too. But this woman appears to have made a business out of ‘consciousness coaching’, giving masterclasses and training up other consciousness coaches. She even uses quotes by for example Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj to promote her website.
But when you dig a little deeper into what she actually does, she seems to rely more on western psychology tools such as the MBTI Personality framework, and she does more standard business coaching.
A very confusing mixture. I think I would classify it as “business coaching with hints of spirituality”. I’m tempted to call this coach more a kind of self-help guru in the style of Tony Robbins, rather than an actual spiritual teacher.
I think its a matter of degree. SN Goenka, who taught the likes of Jack Kornfield was a business man before becoming a spiritual teacher. Dan Harris of 10% Happier doesn't promote himself as a teacher (in fact he makes a point of saying he's not and being self depricating) but is a big promoter of spiritual and psychological work and makes a living off of it.
And to echo @marcitko in the west there isn't enough financial support generally for someone to support themselves teaching and having an income stream from it is often necessary.
But in the example you give, it does seem like this person is more than trying to be of service in the spiritual arena, using spirituality as a means to earn a living.
Though I have a "wide net" sort of attitude. I'm fine with people using spirituality in a shallow way, it can bring more people in. It will offer some level of more superficial benefit to a greater number of people, that might not otherwise have met with the teachings, than only having a pure offering. And for some it will be an entry point to the deeper end of the pool.
Unfortunately my cousin is very loyal and has stuck by this “teacher” for 10 years.