Chances are, if you are reading this post, you are at the start of a spiritual awakening journey. For the average person, this process begins very naturally and oftentimes goes unnoticed in the beginning. However, as the spiritual awakening journey progresses, it becomes very apparent that a shift is occurring.
As the journey becomes more pronounced, it can be confusing and frustrating for some. This may be especially true if they are accustomed to practicing within a structured religious system. Because a spiritual awakening journey can be very unpredictable. It can be a roller coaster ride with many peaks and valleys that can appear endless at times.
There are things that we can and should do to help us effectively navigate this process. So, keep these things in mind if you are confused or overwhelmed during your spiritual awakening experience.
1. Follow Your Intuition
Following your intuition is the single most important factor in having an effective spiritual awakening experience. Spirituality is very different from religion in that it can and often does contrast from person to person. One person could have a spiritual awakening journey that causes them to have a year-long mountaintop experience in the Himalayas. Conversely, another person may retreat into a place of solitude within their own home.
Even more, one person may experiment with different practices such as African spirituality, Buddhism, Taoism, or other traditional systems. Still, another person may simply be guided by Spirit and choose not to engage with any particular system. Each of these paths and others is a valid part of a spiritual awakening journey. This is because Spirit interacts with each of us differently based on our predetermined destinies. And ultimately, Spirit speaks to each of us intuitively, guiding us through our spiritual journeys.
This is why it is vital to honor your intuition above all else if you wish for your journey to be effective. Otherwise, you risk going down the wrong path and wasting significant time and energy before achieving the ultimate level of spiritual awakening that you were destined to achieve.
I emphasize this point because it is often difficult to trust ourselves when we embark on a spiritual journey. It can oftentimes feel odd and contradictory to everything that we know. Also, our family and friends may try to get us to return to our previous way of being, making our transformation even more difficult. Therefore, it is important to be consistently guided by our intuition as we embark on this journey.
2. Spend Time Alone
Spending quality time alone is vital during all of the many phases of an awakening journey. It is during such times that we can truly connect with ourselves and with Spirit. By spending time alone, I mean more than simply being by yourself. I mean spending time in quiet contemplation and introspection when you are alone. This means turning off your phone, social media, the television, and any other distraction that will keep you otherwise engaged.
A spiritual awakening journey is all about connecting with Spirit on a deeper, higher level. A higher level of consciousness cannot be achieved without communing with Spirit. How and where you spend your time alone is up to you, but quality alone time is essential on a spiritual awakening journey.
3. Study and Research
Whenever you begin to experience new spiritual phenomena or learn about new spiritual principles, it is imperative to study and research this information. There are many different reasons why certain spiritual phenomena occur or why we have spiritual experiences. Many spiritual practices may appeal to you during your awakening journey. This is why you must take the time to understand them.
One of the things that I see many people do is jump right into a spiritual practice before taking the time to understand it. This can be detrimental, especially if you get involved in spiritism. Spiritism practices such as Ifa, voodoo, hoodoo, Santeria, Lucumi, etc., are replete with various rituals, ceremonies, etc., that require a significant amount of time, resources, and dedication. If you begin practicing such rituals without proper knowledge, you can easily invite unwanted spirits into your space.
As such, I typically recommend that people spend 6-12 months or more learning about a particular practice before fully devoting themselves to it. There are many ways to do this in most cases. You can typically find many articles, posts, videos, books, and other references for many forms of spirituality online or in physical format.
4. CONNECT WITH A MENTOR OR GUIDE
This tip is connected to my previous point about studying different spiritual practices. While I am grateful that many spiritual resources are available online or in other formats, I know they are not all reputable. Even more, some reputable resources can be dangerous in the wrong hands.
As such, I recommend connecting with a mentor, guide, spiritualist, etc., if you decide to devote yourself to a particular spiritual practice along your awakening journey. It is best to have someone who can properly guide you along a spiritual path rather than for you to be alone.
You will likewise need to do research and take time to find a reputable mentor. But doing so can save you from many problems in the long run. A knowledgeable and reliable spiritual mentor or guide can help you navigate a spiritual system with greater ease and efficiency. This can make your spiritual awakening process less cumbersome in many ways.
5. Record Your Experiences
One of the most effective things you can do for yourself during a spiritual awakening journey is to record your experiences. This does not necessarily change the process or make the journey easier. However, this method can help you measure your progress and serve as a reflective tool.
There are many ways to record your spiritual awakening journey. A manual or digital journal is always helpful for this purpose. However, you can also record your experiences using audiovisual devices such as video recorders, phones, tablets, etc.
It does not have to be anything fancy – you can simply record yourself at any time in any location as your spirit moves you. But you can invest in some self-improvement journals that guide you through soul-searching prompts. These resources can be invaluable as you start a spiritual journey. Additionally, it is not necessary to publish your recordings, although you can if you desire to do so.
Blogging is another common way that people record their spiritual journeys. This is akin to maintaining a journal. As with audiovisual recordings, it is not necessary to publish your blog. You can maintain a completely private blog, share your blog with select individuals, or publish it worldwide.
There are many alternative means of recording your thoughts and experiences when you start a spiritual journey. The goal is to record as much as possible and to reflect upon your recordings periodically. Doing so will give you greater insight and better recall of many facets of your journey.
6. Avoid Comparisons and Competition
This is connected to my first point about following your intuition. As mentioned, your journey is your journey. It is meant to be a unique and individual experience tailor-made for you. Therefore, you will enjoy your awakening journey much better and have a more streamlined experience if you refrain from comparing your journey with others. The same is true if you avoid competing with others as you start a spiritual awakening journey. Neither of these dynamics will benefit you at any stage of the process.
Instead, comparing and competing with others during your awakening journey will only serve to frustrate you (and possibly others). When you compare your experiences with others, you only make yourself miserable because you cease to be content with your own progress. Likewise, when you compete with others, you will generally end up trying to force something to happen that may or may not be necessary for your awakening process.
Keep in mind that everyone will not have the exact same experiences when they start a spiritual awakening journey. So if you see, hear, read, or otherwise find out about something in another person’s journey, don’t compare that to your own experiences. Everyone’s journey will look different because we are not meant to experience the same thing along our paths. We all have individual destinies, which necessitates that our journeys be slightly, partially, or vastly different from others.
7. Prepare for the Darkness
This point deserves its own post, which I will probably cover in more detail at some point. But suffice it to say that a spiritual awakening journey is not all sunshine and roses. Conversely, we often experience our darkest moments when we are in the midst of a spiritual awakening journey. This is because a spiritual awakening journey is a rebirth process. It is very similar to the journey of childbirth and infancy.
Sometimes we will feel very lost, vulnerable, frustrated, exhausted, lonely, abandoned, angry, etc. It is best to keep in mind that the ultimate goal of an awakening journey is to achieve a shift in consciousness. As such, this experience is not always pleasurable.
Thus, to have a more effective journey, you should try your best to prepare yourself for this reality. Spend time learning about all the signs and symptoms of a spiritual awakening journey – the good, the bad, and the ordinary. Doing so will better prepare you for the tough times.
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