What it is
A cognitive bypass is any frame or story that gets around the mind’s defenses, mostly the ego’s need to protect itself, so a hard truth can land. Parables do this. So does looking at someone else’s life and slowly realizing it’s yours.
You can’t argue with a story the way you argue with an accusation, and that’s why it works.
How it shows up for me
The clearest one for me was watching a relative repeat something I do and judging him for it, then realizing I was describing myself. If someone had told me directly, I would have defended myself for an hour.