Facing the Inner Enemies Workshop


First of all I want to thank all of you for showing up for battle!

Although we will not be suiting up with armor, the battle as you will learn, is no less serious in the stakes that are being played for.

There are some simple keys to unlocking some of the hidden doors within our selves.

The first key is to hold the intention of participating as fully as you can, with a willingness to stretch and grow beyond your usually held concepts.

The second key is to be willing to embrace the truth about your self. It will become clear from the processes the true nature of your inner world and that may have some surprising revelations for many of you.

The third key is to have as much compassion and respect for others in the workshop as you can.

We will all be going into issues that will prove challenging so we can actually facilitate each other by being respectful and compassionate.

Do I have your commitment to participate fully, so you can get the most out of this workshop? Good!







What are these inner enemies?

Classically, they are six:
 Delusion
 Desire
 Greed
 Pride
 Envy
 Anger

There will be a few of our assistants that will be handing out cards with these six enemies, and I want you to all get real familiar with them over the next couple of days.

Raise your hands anyone who may not have gotten a card with the six inner enemies on it. OK? Great!

I want to read a quote concerning some of these inner enemies!

“People are not really destroyed by outside forces – but always by those within. Even when a war or crime takes place, it’s only someone’s anger, envy, hatred, or greed – expressing themselves in the world. In fact, one might say that the reason that battles and wars are fought in the world is because they haven’t been fought – and won – on the inside, where it really matters.”

--Peter Hayes—
Darshan Magazine Vol 49


Now I want to read this again and think about what this really means!
(Repeat Peter Hayes Quote)

The inner enemies cause a great deal of misery, suffering and degradation in the world. They destroy lives and relationships; they vanquish empires and dissipate countries. They bring one’s downfall and enslave countless others.

Delusion’s powers are extraordinary. Not only can he make one thing appear to be another, but he can make himself and his cohorts invisible, appearing not to exist at all. This feature of delusion is sometimes called “denial”.

(Does everyone understand what I am saying here? Please ask me to repeat it if you didn’t grasp it or hear me properly. OK
Good!)

Even if we admit that we do have a problem, delusion has a funny way of weakening and disempowering us against it. It is here in this invisible, hidden, murky and unconscious country that our inner enemies dwell. And when they are hiding here, we literally cannot see them.

By choosing to engage our inner enemies we side with the force that will uplift us and benefit those around us. By choosing denial we start running down the path of our own destruction and maybe bring down some others with us.

So it becomes extremely important to flush out these enemies so you can get a better look at them and understand how they often operate under the radar. This is why we do some of the processes. Don’t let any judgements that come up for you take you out of the game, watch them they are very tricky.




So let us begin with the, I love you exercise! So if I can get everyone to stand up and pick a partner around your own age group. So everyone please keep your note pads and pens handy you ‘re going to need those!

* Special note, don’t censor yourself when you are writing down your inner observations. Do it from the place inside of the unattached observer.

Does everyone have a partner? Yes? Great! Let’s begin!

Decide which of you wants to go first. Ok the person going first,
looks into their partners eyes and says I love you.

The person receiving this news is to stand silently and look compassionately at the person telling you that they love you.

Then the person saying,” I love you” gives the quiet person a hug.

All the while both of you are to notice the inner voice and inner feelings that come up inside, and write them on your pad after each comment and hug.

Does everyone understand how this is going to work? Repeat if necessary!

I want you to repeat this at least ten times. OK now go for it!

When you are done this part just sit and relax until everyone is finished.

Now stand up again get the same partner and reverse the roles. So what will happen is that the quiet participant will now be saying I love you, and giving a hug. And the other person will silently accept the hug. Taking careful notice of the inner feelings each time. OK GO!

Remember repeat this process at least ten times!

At the conclusion of the process thank the person who participated with you. Then sit down with your notes and contemplate the inner feelings that came up for you.

Check to see when everyone is finished! Once they are finished they are to find a partner that is much older or much younger than themselves and go through the whole process again.

Any questions?! OK Let’s do it!

NOW, please sit and look over your notes and think about the nature of your inner world in that little interaction.

After giving a few moments to contemplate their notes you can continue with the following.

At some point we must ask our Self; where we stand in relation to our inner enemies.

The reason we must ask this question is because we must overcome them if we are ever to be free of their ability to cause us suffering, steal our happiness, or prevent us from loving another completely.


Please hand out the delusion or denial sheets, and if anyone doesn’t get a sheet please raise your hand so we can see you and get one to you.

OK has everyone received a sheet of paper with delusion or denial written at the top?
I thought I would start this workshop with one of the enemies that really has a very powerful influence in how we see the world around us, and how we see ourselves and others. That particular enemy is delusion, and sometimes referred to as denial.

I want to take the beginning of this workshop to sweep away a few things so delusion doesn’t get a chance to settle in before we even get started.

The first thing I would say is that I am not a Guru, a scholar, an expert or any other label that gives the impression that I know more than you, or that I am in some way better than you.

Regardless of appearance, social position, financial attainment, certification or educational degree, or any of the other masks and roles we play, we are all equal in the eyes of that one Divine being who peers through every set of eyes. That divine being exists as the inner being of everyone, it is eternal and all knowing but it is the inner enemies that keep us from really understanding that. We have to start with the truth, proceed with the truth and end with the truth.

Is everyone with me so far? If not don’t worry things will become more clear as we progress in the workshop.

So we are going to start with the reality that we are all equal, and if something comes up in your mind that disagrees with this truth I want you to stop and examine what it is. For instance if you think you are better than someone else around you, recognize that particular enemy as pride, and see how it keeps you separate from naturally feeling love for that person, for they really are another aspect of you. If you think someone is better than you it is a sense of unworthiness that separates you, and that is a trick of the ego as well. We are equal!

I speak about these inner enemies from the standpoint of someone that has consciously battled with them for some time and have been humbled by them, and almost destroyed by them several times. I do this from the standpoint of a friend who found out something he wants to tell you because he cares about you, and want to save you as much unnecessary suffering in the future as he can.

Is everyone clear on that? OK Great! Let’s proceed.

Now we can start with the sheets you were given with delusion or denial at the top of the page.

Does everyone have a copy of this? Yes? Good OK.