The Razor’s Edge

It was late March and I was in Rishikesh, hanging out at Moktan Café, a cool little bakery in Tapovan.

I was sipping a ginger lemon tea, just relaxing and checking my phone when an older woman came and sat next to me.

We got chatting.

She told me she was from Turkey and came to Rishikesh regularly.

A long-time meditation and yoga teacher.

We spoke for about an hour. She asked if I had Instagram.

I told her I didn’t have Facebook or Instagram, I couldn’t think of anything worse.

I had zero interest.

She smiled, pulled out her phone, and showed me her Instagram anyway.

Turns out she had over 60,000 followers.

She seemed popular.

I wasn’t phased.

We kept talking, metaphysical stuff, healing, practices.

She told me she had cancer.

And she was receiving treatment from a bee farmer, letting bees sting her as a form of therapy.

Apparently it triggered some healing response in the body.

It was the first time I’d ever heard of such a thing.

But I listened openly.

I didn’t accept it; I didn’t reject it. I just let it sit.

I’m always happy to hear anything and I trust whatever rises from within.

Then the conversation shifted

She started talking about her guru a man in his 60s.

She told me she had brought many of her “devotees” to see him.

And then, she admitted something I didn’t expect:

Years ago, there had been a controversy.

A heap of people had left his ashram after it was revealed he’d been sleeping with devotees’ wives.

I just looked at her.

She caught my expression instantly.

And then came the justifications.

He’s older now.

Maybe he didn’t know what he was doing.

She said she’d brought so many people to him that she felt she couldn’t walk away.

She was too invested.

That moment said it all.

Let this be a clear lesson to anyone walking a spiritual path:

A true guru will never take your power away. A true guru will light the flame within you not draw you into their shadows.

If a Guru takes form outside of you, it’s a blessing.

But only if they reflect the light that already lives inside.

Be serious about who you give your energy, devotion, and trust to.

This path is razor sharp that’s why it’s often referred to as the razor’s edge.

It is so delicate.

And a real path… is hard to find.

Following the wrong person can cost you years.

Sometimes it takes even longer to recover from the pain of realising you were misled.

This woman, knowingly or not had betrayed her followers.

She clung to a broken system to protect her image.

That’s not truth.

Don’t be fooled by flashy Instagram posts, poetic captions and glowing testimonials.

You don’t need 60,000 followers.

You need stillness, self-honesty, and a heart tuned to what’s real.