Though there are many ideas of what a spiritual awakening is, the experience itself is beyond description and as unique as our individual responses and reactions to it. For the purpose of connecting with those among you inspiring these words, I will attempt to capture the essence of awakening in this article but have no intention of being comprehensive or definitive.
As you know, Truth transcends words and definitions.
What Is a Spiritual Awakening?
Awakening is not scientific or methodical. You cannot think your way into awakened states. It’s not just ‘spiritual’ and ‘light’. A spiritual awakening is a raw, unfiltered, earthbound human encounter with Existence, often triggered by deep-rooted emotional discomfort.
Nothing changes. You don’t become or acquire something. You recognize a state of Being that’s always been alive as you.
What Triggers an Awakening
In short, suffering is the trigger.
Emotions perceived as overwhelming to the brain inspire the human thought-train to stop. Anxiety and pain from fear-provoking thoughts become too much to bear. The circuitry of the brain overloads. Perhaps as an act of self-preservation, the firing of neurons that have supported self-defeating beliefs cease to have power. Your nervous system calms and your mind aligns with your true Nature.
Memories of your Earth story and judgments disappear, there are no demands of others or yourself, no wish of a different past or particular future, no worries of what may happen next, no comparisons, no pressure about what you should do next or should have done before, no thoughts of the collective human drama, or the drama unfolding in your space – the mind-chatter stops.
You let go.
You are in communion with NOW, without memories and imagined futures thoughtfully colliding in your attention span. The simplicity of Existence is wholly comprehended by your entire body and its connection to it. You realize yourself as a compelling, effortlessly active, unconditionally loving, potential-ridden, creative connection to Life.
Silence is alive.
A Total Awakening
Totally awakening to the reality of your mind, heart, and body cooperating in unison with every other mind, heart, and body in Life is a sacred remembrance – familiar and true. This is a homecoming on Earth, through the human perspective.
Though often punctuated with a momentous happening, a total spiritual awakening is not a singular event. We continually awaken and evolve throughout our earth-time. Breakthroughs, epiphanies, moments of clarity, metaphysical experiences, falling in love, and being immersed in creative expression are some examples of awakenings – or surrendering to our Being. In these instances, recognition of Self may inspire life-affirming changes in perspective and intentions.
This article focuses on the experience of an all-embracing, complete spiritual awakening. However it unfolds, the feeling experience of a total awakening is the same:
- Heart Awakening. An abiding love and appreciation for all of life. A need to give and receive love openly and unconditionally. Gratitude, compassion, and kindness are natural.
- Soul Awakening. A sense of joy without cause, boundless inspiration, and certainty grounded in a feeling of unshakable peace. Energetic communication is naturally exchanged with ease. You recognize your Soul ties in every aspect of life.
- Body Awakening. You become conscious of the energetic properties of your body and keenly aware of each of its biological functions cooperating in unison. You realize the Supreme engineering, the play of energy animating physical matter that makes your human self possible. Your primal senses ignite.
- Universal Awakening. Unity is no longer an idea to be achieved – you sense your connection to everything, and everything’s connection to the Unknown. You’re conscious of the laws of the universe and notice the patterns of all sources of life. You realize your history is beyond time and extends infinitely.
- Intellectual Awakening. All of the above work together to inform your intellectual processes. You realize the capacity to comprehend, simplify, and convey enormous amounts of data in less time than you could before. New interests and areas of study capture your attention.
Whether you’ve awakened gradually or seemed to have suddenly gotten It all at once, you know your life is beginning – again. You’re seeing this world for the first time – again. Your mind has been unleashed from the mental haze we humans tend to dwell in. And again, you begin redefining your relationship with everyone and everything.
You’re up now, and going back to sleep isn’t possible.
A Complete Rebirth
If you’ve experienced a total awakening, who you thought you were (your identity) has shattered. Truth has incinerated the concept of personality.
You haven’t lost yourself. Who you thought you should be, who you were trying to be, and who you wish you were, have naturally dissolved. You have remembered your Self.
You’re not smarter, or wiser, or better than – you simply know:
All that is, just Is.
And we’re here, of Earth, expanding upon that Is.
And Then There’s Our Earthly Reality
Awakening doesn’t abolish earthly concerns and responsibilities. Circumstances you’ve (co)created from confusion, righteousness, despair, and insecurity are no longer tolerable. Now that you’ve regained awareness of limiting habitual thoughts, you can no longer pretend ignorance. You’re empowered to step out of comfort zones in favor of your well-being.
Who You Thought You Were
As you awaken, you recognize and dissolve habits and thought patterns that have pinched you off from your Soul. You’ll continue to resolve old beliefs and self-defeating behaviors. From time to time, you’ll revert to the tried and true ways you’ve lived in the past to feel safe or keep the peace, yet the old ways of living this world will feel fake, isolating, and stifling.
The lies you’ve been living, the false hopes, judgments of yourself and others, where you’ve given your power away, how you’ve taken power away from others, the pain you carry from traumatic events, ways you’ve mismanaged your resources, and how you’ve adopted other people’s ideas of living no longer make sense.
What You Know You Are
You are Love. Love must Be expressed. Love must create. Love must connect. Love seeks open and direct interactive experiences with Life. Love must share. Love is free. Love must evolve through creative processes. Love is prosperous. Love embraces the pits of darkness and the liberating light. Love enjoys this Earth as is. Love must live as it Is!
Love is complete reverence for living.
Contrasts of Reality
As you feel the contrasts between who you thought you were and what you know you are, you may be tempted to withdraw into the blissful states now remembered by simply being still. As all senses awaken, metaphysical experiences may become an entertaining distraction. But, Earth life continually insists you show up because you are here, being human at this time.
Relationships shift as those you’ve surrounded yourself with may not understand what you’re experiencing or approve of how you’re transforming. You may feel isolated, yet you need connection.
Physical and metaphysical openings and related intellectual shifts require quiet spaces and plenty of rest to process. Yet you need to regularly exercise your body and brain to keep intense levels of energy flowing through your body.
Solitude is vital as you awaken, yet so is actively engaging with our world. You’re practicing the art of directing the life force you are within to move the Earth without – in ways that honor your Soul’s intentions. A spiritual awakening is an integration and harmonizing of all aspects of your existence.
Spirit and Earth are the Same
We’re not here to withdraw; we’re wired to share. Given all That we are and all we’ve been given – we’re here to co-create the Earthly experiences we desire as we’re Soulfully inspired.
Awakening doesn’t elevate you above earthy matters; it immerses you into this reality: You are living as Earth, NOW.
As you process awakening experiences, what isn’t in alignment with the Laws of Nature becomes clear. Now the real work of resolving what hasn’t served your well-being, and opening to what does, calls for courage, responsibility, and self-accountability – with a dedication to moment-to-moment awareness.
It’s intense – at first.
Life After a Spiritual Awakening
If you’ve regained consciousness, you know spiritual awakenings aren’t a bypass of the Human experience or guarantee of constant bliss. Awakening is an opening to humankind’s most challenging and rewarding work – knowing thyself and honoring this opportunity to live as Spirit, of Earth, as You.
This sacred experience of rebirthing marks a major turning point in your life story. You’ll face old pain, make hard decisions, try new things, and establish new boundaries.
Eventually, you won’t identify with the labels of awakened, enlightened, conscious, spiritual, and the like. Those words are Humanity’s best attempt to capture the Wordless (like the words you’re reading now).
About Spiritual Awakening Symptoms
The discomforts and challenges that arise through a spiritual awakening (commonly called spiritual awakening signs or symptoms) are not side-effects of awakening. These are the effects of your mind questioning what your Soul knows without question. This is completely normal. As humans, we question and resist what our brains don’t readily grasp.
As you unlearn and release the beliefs that previously blocked your Soul’s song, honoring your earthly needs is vitally important through the stages of awakening. Focusing your energy on realistic and practical ways to integrate the profound shifts and openings of awakening into your everyday life will liberate you from fear. The challenges will fade as you develop new habits of making decisions and taking actions that are aligned with your well-being.
Take Your Time
It takes time, maybe years, to integrate the fruits of awakening into your earthly experience, but you will. At times you’ll forget your life is unfolding as it is because you asked:
for peace,
for relief,
for wisdom,
to embody your power,
to be content in your body,
to give Love,
to receive Love,
to Be Love,
to be free,
and
to realize your potential through your purposes.
You asked, and life is showing you as it has always been. And again, your mind is unified with the sanity of your Soul’s Flow.
May you be patient with yourself and our Humanity and Love your aliveness eternally.
Welcome Home, Knowing Soul.
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My Story
A spontaneous awakening graced my life in 2010. I wasn’t sure what was unfolding, but I knew it was True. I’d never heard of the term ‘spiritual awakening’ and didn’t consider myself ‘spiritual’ (though others did).
“Magnificent Mind-Blow” was the term I initially used to describe my experience of awakening. Everything simply and suddenly made perfect sense without data or explanation – opinions, beliefs, labels, and judgments I’d used to define my identity were no longer relevant. As the logo above reflects, awakening imparted an open curiosity that leaves me simply saying, ‘Oh, I See!’ to what I previously thought needed proof and explanation.
After my sudden awakening, I searched the Internet and joined spiritually focused groups. I knew I wasn’t the only one experiencing this Recognition. Many people knew about the experience but didn’t know the experience. As material manifestations of my old, habitual ways of perceiving began disintegrating, practical matters of life demanded my attention as I faced some of my worst imagined fears.
I soon realized my intimate exploration through time could only be known by me and that this return to my True being is ever-evolving. As I ask: ‘Show me how to use what I Now See in service to Humanity’, the services I provide through Knowing Soul LLC (psychic mediumship, censer art, genealogy, and life coaching) continue to evolve.
I’m grateful and honored to recognize Grace as ego and spirit commingling in harmony as one.
And the story continues…
