16. Don’t make gods into demons; abandon poisonous food; don’t act with a twist.

The first two slogans here describe the common experience of turning something beneficial, such as gods or food, into something harmful, such as demons or poison. For example, although exercise is beneficial to my body, if I overdo it or become obsessed with it then I might actually harm myself. This applies to the spiritual path as well. Even if I am practicing regularly, I can still turn the path into an ego trip or a self-improvement project. I can also use practice to reinforce “me” and distance myself from other people and the world around me.

“Acting with a twist” points to why we practice. Am I trying to become a “better me,” to be happier or more content? In Reflections on Silver River, Ken McLeod tells us:

Do not use practice to improve the situation of your life. Use the situation of your life to practice… You are not aiming to improve your life. Rather, your life goes where your practice goes, and it is not always an improvement… Any aim you bring to practice is a reassertion of old patterns…[that] distorts experience… Let all agendas go, …even the idea of accomplishing anything. There really is nothing to achieve.

So you could ask yourself, “Why do I practice?”

11.2025