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A spiritual awakening is a long journey, not one single event. You will go through many different stages, though the exact stages people go through vary slightly. Here are some things you might experience.
Awareness and Awakening
The first stage is what I like to call the “awareness and awakening” stage. This is often when you first notice signs of something different happening. It can include quite a few different things, from being more aware of your disconnection and dissatisfaction with your current life, to becoming awakened to your true self. It is not quite the stage of self-discovery, but it is when you are more self-aware and understand that shifts are happening within you.
Here are some signs you are going through this stage:
- You feel disconnected from yourself or your life
- You have feelings of depression
- You feel like something is missing, but not sure what it is
- You are questioning your current reality
- You seek a deeper meaning in life
- You start becoming more curious and a desire to learn more about the universe
- You begin to explore spiritual practices
It is not unusual during this stage to become interested in spiritual activities and practices you had never even considered before, from tarot to consciousness expansion.
Self-Reflection and Discovery
The next stage of a spiritual awakening shortly follows the awareness and awakening stage, which is when you go down the path of self-reflection and self-discovery. You have started to become more aware of the changes within you, and now you want to explore it further.
This is a stage of introspection, where you do everything you can to learn more about your true self and higher purpose, and the universe around you. You might reflect on your past experiences and even traumas you have gone through, you explore your shadow side and become more in-tune to your inner child, and you seek knowledge and understanding of spiritual practices.
Many people going through this stage find they are more interested in finding their true purpose and they begin to explore their true identity. You might also become more involved and passionate about personal growth and discovery.
Some common habits and practices during this stage include:
- Journaling
- Reading
- Meditation
- Solitude
This is the part of the journey when you are beginning to understand yourself more, and become more accepting of the fact that you are going through a spiritual awakening. But what comes next is perhaps the hardest part of this path.
Dark Night of the Soul
You are now about to experience the most uncomfortable, but also most transformative stage of a spiritual awakening – the dark night of the soul. This is also when you go through what is referred to as an “ego death” which is when you completely let go of your old self and embrace your new identity.
An ego death is when you begin to completely shed those layers of your past self, because they are no longer part of your current identity. But this experience of the dark night of the soul is often the most painful and difficult things to go through.
It can bring with it a feeling of loneliness and isolation, where you feel disconnected from yourself and the people in your life. You often question the meaning of life and your own existence in it, and with that comes feelings of sadness and despair. People sometimes confuse a dark night of the soul with a severe depressive episode, so that is something to keep in mind.
A dark night of the soul is a more extreme form of an existential crisis, but on a spiritual level. This can range from feeling lost and confused about what is going on, to being in intense emotional pain and feeling very hopeless. This is because the process of shedding your own self and having an ego death is a painful one; the person you have known your entire life you are realizing isn’t your true self.
It can be one of the hardest breakups you go through in your life, but with it comes healing and rebuilding your true identity. This is where the most profound spiritual growth happens – in the pain.
Rebuilding Your Identity
After you have gone through the dark night of the soul, you will be ready to rebuild your identity and enter your new higher level of consciousness. It feels like you are being reborn, and you get to start the most magical healing process you have ever gone through. You change your habits, often have new relationships in your life, and release your own past traumas.
Think about renewal with this stage, as if you are reconstructing who you truly are. Everything from your habits and routines, to interests and passions often shift during this time. It can be very empowering realizing the power you hold and that you can fully embrace this new sense of self.
Soul Expansion
Another stage during the spiritual awakening that you might go through is your soul expansion. Not everyone notices this stage, this is when your soul allows you to feel fully connected to the universe, mother nature, and all living beings. You are more aligned to your true self and find your purpose in life. Your soul already knows who you are deep down, but during a spiritual awakening, you are more in-tune to what your soul wants for you – and that is such a beautiful and empowering thing.
Surrender
Finally, you are going to completely surrender to this awakening and enlightenment. You will go through this during other stages as well, but it takes a while before you fully and completely let go. Even after an ego death, you might not have surrendered completely yet.
When you are in the surrender stage, you have let go of the past self, you have shed your old identity, and you are now living in alignment with your higher self. This opens you up to all the possibilities, where you are living your purpose.
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