The strategy of using spiritual beliefs to avoid facing one's unresolved wounds or unmet needs. A form of avoidance and resistance, the shadow side of spirituality, and the opposite of authenticity. Spiritual Bypassing teaches us to run away from our problems.

Examples:
1) Just Be Positive (renders shadow work impossible)
2) Blind Compassion (confrontation-phobic attempt at caring)
3) Pathologizing the Ego (the ego as an obstruction, something to be eliminated)
4) Non-Duality (removing everything uncomfortable to avoid in-depth psychological work)
5) Transcendence (escapism)
6) Magical Thinking (giving unwarranted weight to coincidence. Ex: "everything happens for a reason", over-reliance on "signs")
7) Blame Game (the opposite of self-empowerment)
8) You're Just Projecting (say this to avoid responsibility for your own behaviors)
9) Avoidance of Anger (a tendency to shun or repress the healthy expression of anger in the guise of spiritual correctness)
10) Wishful Thinking (the persistent avoidance of professional clinical attention in favor of spiritual solutions that do little to address core wounding)
11) Karmic Contract Bypass (a tendency to attribute every single event on the planet to universal or soulular intentionality)
12) Short-Cutting (disguised as permanent solutions to circumvent necessary arduous and time-consuming inner-work)
13) All is One (remaining perpetually focused on unity in an effort to avoid one's particular issues and challenges.

Jill: "Sarah is going to another Love and Light workshop next week."
Beth: "Again? Isn't that the tenth time this year?"
Jill: "Yeah, she said it makes her feel good."
Beth: "If it's so good, then why does she need to keep going back?"
Jill: "It's spiritual bypassing. She's not ready to do the deep inner work yet, so she avoids it by doing all those Love and Light trainings all over the world."

Spiritual Bypassing by Dr. Carey Perkins January 11, 2022

Related Words

badassing • badamsing • badassiness • Fadassing • Bad Assighstan • Badass Nigger • Badassness • badassity • badassitude • badassical

badabingo

An expression used on Blagulon Kappa (according to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Series).
Used to confirm something said by another.

"So your'e saying I'm froody?" "Badabingo."

badabingo by Random F. F. Dent July 1, 2019

Badassium

Elemental form of badassedness

Badassium can be located on any periodic table between technetium and promethium

Badassium by InventoBadas December 18, 2008

badassnessicity

The extreme form of being a badass. Only an elite few will ever reach this form of coolness.

He has the most badassnessicity of life! Fosh!

badassnessicity by Rachel Harper February 7, 2007

Bypassing

Bypassing is when somebody misspells a word on purpose to avoid detection from censorship.

Tom: I totally bypassed instagrams detection tactics by misspelling the Lamar: bypassing is not cool man. Not cool ...

Bypassing by Albinosextime November 20, 2020

badassness

the state of being badass

Anthony and Chanelle will always be known for their badassness.

badassness by chennla May 29, 2008

God Shot

A chance happening with profound meaning, an unexpected blessing, a "sign".

Dr. Drew on Celebrity Rehab said "All of a sudden what had been just another Hollywood proposal became for him an unexpected blessing, an opportunity for growth. In drug recovery language, that's called a "God shot."

God Shot by Imogen1564 February 25, 2011

Word of the Day on September 18, 2026

city chicken

A food native to Pittsburgh/Western Pennsylvania in which cubes of pork and/or veal are put on a short, wooden skewer, breaded, then baked and/or fried.

I've heard that city chicken originated during the Great Depression, when folks didn't have enough money to buy full cuts of meat, so they assembled meat scraps on a wooden skewer, creating a make-shift drumstick. Hence the name.

Are yinz havin' city chicken for dinner?

city chicken by TRF August 31, 2006

Word of the Day on September 17, 2026

Is that cake?

Another way to say is this fake? Like the show real or cake

“Slayyyter just announced another album last night”
“No way, is that cake?”
“Yeah whoops this isn’t real”

Is that cake? by Sexyyred September 15, 2026

Word of the Day on September 16, 2026

just fokin missing her

native american reservation origin... to miss an ex so badly that everyone can see it.. can be used for either sex eg. just fokin missing her/him

friend : *noticably sad*
me : look at you all sad & shit
friend : shut up!
me : just fokin missing her huh?

just fokin missing her by d i z k o 2 0 8 September 14, 2026

Word of the Day on September 15, 2026

endwarfins

The rush of neurotransmitters and neuropeptides triggered specifically by watching the Seven Dwarfs march home singing "Heigh-Ho" — that particular high of pickaxes, whistling while you work, and communal domestic bliss in a cottage built for men half your height.

I only meant to watch the Heigh-Ho scene for the endwarfins, and then it was two hours later and I'd watched the whole movie.

Endwarfins aren't just a Snow White thing — I get the same hit off the Lollipop Guild in Oz.

endwarfins by Howard Ogden September 13, 2026

Word of the Day on September 14, 2026

caillou

A slang term used to describe a bald person, typically someone who is completely bald or has a closely shaved head. The term is derived from the infamous, hairless kids’ cartoon character of the same name.

Example 1:
“Did you see that caillou over there? His head is reflecting the sun like a disco ball.”
Example 2:
“I think Dave is finally accepting his hair loss. He just went full caillou and shaved the whole thing off.”

caillou by WMH01 September 12, 2026

Word of the Day on September 13, 2026