“Spiritual awakening refers to a shift in consciousness, a perception of reality which had been previously unrealized. The culmination of such realizations is in the recognition of oneness with all of existence.” from the Urban Dictionary
This is a good comprehensive description of awakening. I would add, that awakening is an on-going process for the vast majority … but only if we engage with the process consciously.
Awakening is the topic of our time, because it’s a very real, exciting, evolutionary leap that humanity is making present day.
But what does this really mean?
What does this feel & look like?
Who does it affect?
Why does it matter?
Who is awakening?
I can only share from my personal, direct experience & from witnessing the journey of others, whether it be friends, family, or clients. As the quote from the Urban Dictionary expresses above, as we begin to wake-up, our perceptions change & consciousness expands. Yet this can still seem quite vague to some still asleep or just on the cusp of waking.
It helps me to break it down in specific, tangible examples, even though it can often defy any kind of concrete description. Waking-up is a deeply personal voyage we take into our own heart & soul. As we awaken, our perceptions of what we believed to be true begin to shift, morph, fall away & expand. This may happen in a flash from an intense experience that forever changes our awareness. Or it may happen subtly, over time, from beginning a practice of yoga or meditation. It may also come on in trauma, from an injury or illness, or perhaps from the loss of someone we loved dearly.
Rumi wrote in this poem, a key phrase: Don’t go back to sleep.
For years, copying other people, I tried to know myself.
From within, I couldn’t decide what to do.
Unable to see, I heard my name being called.
Then I walked outside.
The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you.
Don’t go back to sleep.
You must ask for what you really want.
Don’t go back to sleep.
People are going back and forth across the door sill
where the two worlds touch.
The door is round and open.
Don’t go back to sleep.
What does this look & feel like? Before we begin our awakening, we are living in a state of slumber, asleep without knowing it. We most likely won’t even understand the meaning of being asleep, until we begin to wake.
While asleep, we are living from unconscious programs & conditioning. There is an acceptance of thought forms & beliefs that we learn form the majority. This majority may include family, education systems, culture, societal rules, etc. They tend towards thing in terms of black & white, right & wrongs; judgments, prejudices, fears & divisions, that have crept into our psyche by osmosis; the systems that ‘run’ the world are rarely questioned; and the mundane, contentment of empty entertainment/substances as the stress release from the accepted pressures of ‘this is how life is’ resolve.
But when we begin to awaken, we begin to question, we begin to seek, we desire to know more deeply who we are & why are we here. Although for me, those questions weren’t quite that clear, however as I awoke, I came closer to what seemed like the answers.
The process may be as soft as a whisper or as abrupt as thunder.
The purpose of life may take on new meaning, perhaps a new creativity springs forth, or an unquenchable thirst for learning becomes a driving force. Many experience the desire to change their eating habits to a kinder diet. Others may begin feeling called to seek truth & justice, via activism. Some find a strong call to connect with nature, while others find the need for emotional healing. Still others seek God/Spirit directly.
As we begin to look at ourselves & the world through new colored lenses, our mind & heart expand into new realizations and epiphanies. There are new qualities of being that are accessed. While some may begin to experience as sense of Peace for the first time ever, another may feel newly energized after being previously identified by depression.
One may experience states of Bliss or Joy. This realization awakens them to another level of expanded awareness ~ that our true inner expression IS Bliss or Joy, not the personality with whom we’ve thought ourselves to be!
There are as many unique expressions of waking-up, as there are souls.
What does this mean? Waking up, Awakening … means, we are accessing new levels of awareness, consciousness, knowing of ourselves beyond all that we have believed when we were asleep. It is this expansion of consciousness which also helps us to connect more deeply with our Soul, with the desire for more Truth, Justice, or Freedom, to feel more Peace, Compassion, Harmony, Higher Connection.
It is this expansion of consciousness which also connects us more to our heart intelligence, to Love, to our intuition, and to an inner guidance that deeply supports us in becoming free-thinking, verse conforming to the collective, mass consciousness, blindly.
Awakening inspires us to realize that we carry emotional/mental wounds. A deeper awareness begins to inform us, that these hurts we carry, often compel us to hurt ourselves & others, whether we mean to or not. If we continue to stay open & willing to awaken, we’re inspired to heal our wounds, resolve hurts with others, and eventually to expand our focus from our individual lives, into how we can serve our sisters, brothers, Mother Nature & all living beings.
What I once believed as black & white, becomes grey & the full spectrum of color.
Where once I saw our world from one dimension, now expands to many.
That which was once experienced as solid, is now all energy.
Though in the past I believed myself to be seperate from you, truly we are all connected.
And as we continue on the path of awakening, we begin to find it is unending, never dull, always full of wonder & magic, and that there are stages & phases of growth & change, upon stages & phases of expansion. We grow into our Wholeness. We transform. Our life transforms. . . Beautifully & continually.
Why does this matter & who does it affect? This matters tremendously because it affects everyone! Firstly, it affects each of us, as expressed above. Secondly, our world is in desperate need of awakened hearts & minds. Souls who have healed themselves, and can bring that harmonized, balanced, clear perspective to all Life.
Our collective consciousness & those leading the majority thought forms on our planet, have been deeply asleep, separated from their own loving depths of being. As we awaken, we become the new free-thinking, expansive, exploring higher states of being consciousness. This uplifts all of humanity & Mother Earth.
Each of us matter. And each one of us who takes on the responsibility of Awakening, makes an impact.
Who is Awakening? My guess is, that if you’re reading this, you’ve begun! Many more around the world are beginning this amazing, glorious mass awakening at hand today, as it is written in the stars, so to speak, and the energy of this time on Earth.
Awakening isn’t a one time event. We may have a great moment or period of time, where everything is opening up in a new way. There may be a powerful epiphany which has re-set the course of a life. This is awesome & perfect. But, in the way in which I hold this awareness, that doesn’t mean we’re awake. That means we’re on the path, we’re in process, and the path is stretched our before us to continue our journey.
Some of us choose this path, because the old ways of our life aren’t bringing us happiness, health, freedom. Some begin awakening because their Soul & Life has deemed it time! The beauty is, we don’t need to be in crisis to begin. We simply need to choose.
Are you awakening? Ultimately, you’re the only one who can answer that.
Seek within your own heart & being. Listen to that still small voice.
In quoting Rumi again … Can you hear “the breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you”?
Listen … and “Don’t go back to sleep!”
For guidance on your path, I offer sessions both via distance & in studio. You’re invited to reach out for a complimentary consultation lotus@artofsacredembodiment.net
Blessings & Love on Your Awakening Journey~
Lotus
