“Doubling down” has meaning in gambling. In Blackjack, “doubling down” doubles the original bid in exchange for only one more card. In everyday usage, “doubling down” refers to becoming more tenacious, zealous, or resolute in a position or undertaking that may be risky.
It is my opinion that doubling down for spirituality is potentially harmful to health and well-being. And even if it doesn’t lead to a kundalini crisis, doubling down results in impractical decisions in life.
When someone finds that their religion, meditation, and prayer aren’t resulting in the type of life that they want, there is a tendency to double down by becoming more pious in a last-chance effort. Many people double down because they assume that failure is their own fault and is unrelated to the limitations or falsity of the spiritual teaching. Consequently, spiritual people often continue to double down week after week, month after month, year after year.
In the 1980’s I was not satisfied with not being enlightened, so I doubled down in my meditation, spiritual study, diet, and other so-called health-promoting activities. I accepted the yogic advice that fanning the flames of spiritual desire would lead to enlightenment; in retrospect, I think it led to the mania of my kundalini crisis.
When faced with disappointment at one’s progress to enlightenment, here are 3 options:
- Double down in enlightenment attempts (that many consider to be dodgy)
- Continue on the spiritual path in a non-extreme way while living a balanced life
- Stop seeking; start questioning basic premises of spiritual knowledge and experience
My Enlightenment Delusion 