This post is a guide to the spiritual awakening process.
January 16, 2022
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If you asked me when I was twenty-five if I had spiritually awakened, I’d probably have answered “yes.” But at that time, I had no idea what was in store for me seven years later.
Like love, spiritual awakening is a concept that you can only truly understand by experiencing it.
And if you’re not sure if you’re currently experiencing it, or are simply curious about it, this post is for you.
Navigation
- The Spiritual Awakening Process
- Your Cosmic Alarm Clock
- Spiritual Awakening Misconceptions
- 11 Spiritual Awakening Signs, Symptoms & Gifts
- Additional Support
THE SPIRITUAL AWAKENING PROCESS
I believe that those open to it, move through the experience of awakening throughout their entire lives. Some call this a spiritual journey, others, ascension.
But the term “spiritual awakening” is used to describe the most profound energetic shift in consciousness experienced in your lifetime, which causes you to see yourself and the world in a new light.
Spiritual awakening is a very personal unfolding process. All that has bound you in inauthenticity begins to fall away and the knowledge and voice of your true self emerges.
It can truly feel like waking up. As if you’d been existing in a daze but now see things with a much sharper focus.
YOUR COSMIC ALARM CLOCK
I love this term, coined by the spiritual thought leader, Dr. Barbara De Angelis in her book Soul Shifts.
She describes awakening as a cosmic alarm clock going off inside you, and an urgent realization that you’d been asleep in your life and need to get up.
She explains what any of us who’ve experienced a spiritual awakening already know:
“The thing about the Cosmic Alarm Clock is that once it goes off, no matter how many times you push the snooze button and try to ignore the alert, it is going to keep ringing until you pay attention.”
She also highlights that the concept of spiritual awakening was written over a thousand years ago in 9th century Hindu philosophy.
It’s not a new concept. But for many years, a forgotten or misunderstood one.
Living at this time, we’re so blessed to have the resources and support to understand and integrate this incredible shift into our lives.
SPIRITUAL AWAKENING MISCONCEPTIONS
Spiritual awakening equals enlightenment.
Spiritual awakening is the stepping-off point of a deeper spiritual journey, but enlightenment is a whole other ballgame (which could take a lifetime or lifetimes to reach).
Instead of targeting enlightenment, enjoy the path you’re on, the progression, the transformation, and see where it takes you.
If you’re awakened, you serve a higher purpose than those who aren’t.
If you believe in the law of one, every single person on this planet is part of the greater whole.
Those who don’t awaken in this lifetime may be catalysts to awaken others from their soul family, by being the contrast that pushes them to finally break free.
It’s contrast that’s waking up so many at this time.
Spiritual awakening is a totally joyful process.
Joy, a sense of freedom, and new beginnings are definitely part of the process, but not the whole process.
Diving into the shadows of stored emotion, questioning relationships and the external systems you conform to, and reassessing who you are can all be pretty uncomfortable — but worth it.
It takes a catastrophic event to awaken.
For some, a traumatic event or near-death experience can be the catalyst that kick-starts the spiritual awakening process, but for others, it’s more of an inner shift.
SPIRITUAL AWAKENING SIGNS, SYMPTOMS & GIFTS
Here are eleven of the most common things you may experience during the spiritual awakening process (I sure did!).
1: Wild Emotion
I call it “wild” because if you were someone who had previously suppressed emotion, giddy up because these emotions will do everything they can to be witnessed and set free.
I believe that once you start raising your frequency, your body needs to detox old, stuck feelings and emotional patterns. It just can’t tolerate that low-frequency energy anymore.
So expect to be triggered. Big time.
But know that your triggers are a smoke signal — guiding you to exactly what needs to be healed within.
And my goodness, does it feel amazing when those healings occur.
Related post: EFT/Tapping for Healing.
2: Ascension Symptoms
Am I a hypochondriac or am I experiencing ascension symptoms?
Learning about ascension symptoms was a massive aha moment for me.
When devoting more time to my spiritual practice, clearing my energy, and raising my vibration, I experienced energetic shifts that caused surprising physical symptoms called ascension symptoms.
Here are some of the physical ascension symptoms I personally experienced from the spiritual awakening process:
- Headaches
- Exhaustion
- Back and neck pain
- Ears ringing
- Blurred vision
- Bloating and digestive upset
- Feeling of not being fully in my body — floaty, dizzy
(Obviously, always check with a doctor if something feels off physically, but if all is considered well and you’re currently experiencing the spiritual awakening process and an energetic upgrade, it may be ascension symptoms).
3: Relationships Falling Away
This is a tough one.
When you’re awakening, your new sense of perception can reveal unhealthy patterns in relationships.
You may have always known something wasn’t quite right in a relationship with a family member or friend but felt more comfortable ignoring it than investigating it.
But once you see it — the passive aggressiveness, the codependency, the control, the manipulation, the neediness — you can’t unsee it.
And your heightened desire for authenticity means you won’t likely be able to tolerate it anymore.
Some relationships will be able to endure the test of your newfound sense of self and empowerment. Others, not so much.
But the relationships that do fall away allow space for newer, healthier ones to come in.
4: Questioning Everything
Is my career right for me?
What’s my purpose in life?
Do aliens exist?
Is the media honest?
Should I move?
This is SO completely normal and part of the spiritual awakening process.
Your entire grasp of the world comes into question. And that’s a very good thing!
Questions are the seeds of personal power.
They’re the only way we ever take action, evolve, and create a better world.
So keep them coming.
5: Loss of Sense Of Self — Who Am I?
The biggest question that you may ask is, “who am I?”
It may feel like your beliefs and values have changed overnight. Your relationship with your career, your best friends, food, etc.
You may experience this minimally, or you may feel a soul-searching loss of self.
Your old, inauthentic narratives have unraveled and now you’re learning who you truly are without them.
If you don’t let your ego’s fear pull you under, it can be extremely empowering.
You’re detaching from the labels society has put on you. You’re discovering your deepest desires. What you truly want, who you want to share it with, and how you’d like to show up in the world.
But take your time, let it unravel slowly, and enjoy the discovery process.
6: Feeling Lonely or Out of Place In The World
As explained above, when you’re experiencing a radical shift, so much can change in a short timeframe.
If you don’t have like-minded friends or friends who have gone through an awakening to guide you, it can feel very lonely.
My experience with spiritual awakening felt similar to in the movie Passengers when the main character woke up too early on the ship and had to figure out what the heck was going on by himself.
I considered myself a spiritual person but I didn’t have spiritual friends and wasn’t involved in a spiritual community.
If you find yourself in a similar place, know there are so many people waking up and experiencing what you are. And the more authentic you are, the easier it will be for your tribe to find you.
7: Sense of Urgency to Know Your Life Purpose (dharma)
Another question that often arises during the spiritual awakening process is “Why am I here?”, which inevitably leads to “What is my purpose?”
The Sanskrit word is “dharma.”
Deepak Chopra describes the law of dharma being like a jigsaw puzzle. Each person serves a unique purpose and is an integral part of the universal puzzle.
When we awaken to the truth of who we are, we realize that our life is significant. Our life has meaning and purpose. We’re here for a reason.
And of course, this realization sparks a deep desire to know what exactly that is.
Until you feel you’ve discovered what your purpose is, let it be this: To be happy. If you strive for that, you’ll find your purpose along the way.
For more info, read Sahara Rose’s book Discover Your Dharma: A Vedic Guide To Finding Your Purpose.
8: Heightened Intuition
Finally, let’s get to the good stuff!
Spiritual awakening can often be the spark that ignites your intuition. And the more you work at raising your vibrational frequency, the more heightened it becomes.
You may experience your intuitive senses heightening. I’m talking about the “clairs”:
Clairvoyance — intuitive seeing
Clairaudience — intuitive hearing
Clairsentience — intuitive feeling
Claircognizance — intuitive knowing
Rebecca Campbell describes these (and more) in detail in her book Letters To A Starseed.
9: An Abundance of Aha Moments
Yes! Right! I totally get that now!
Perspective is one of the most incredible gifts that come along with spiritual awakening.
When I experienced my most profound awakening, it was like the door to my inner wisdom flung open.
I could zoom out and understand the learnings behind certain events and circumstances in my life. And I understood the benefits to them and how they had led me to that point in my life.
10: Shakti Awakening
A Kundalini Shakti awakening isn’t the same as a spiritual awakening but, from my experience, it can sometimes be a byproduct.
Shakti energy is life-force or consciousness. And when the energy centers (chakras) in your body are in alignment and open, your shakti can flow.
I’ve been able to sense energy throughout my life, so it wasn’t a huge shock to feel the shakti flow through me, but it was definitely a distinct and exciting feeling.
For me, it was the feeling of a bolt of powerful energy rushing from the base of my spine out through my head.
This Mind Body Green article explains it further.
11: Synchronicities & Everyday Miracles
Life becomes so energizing when you start noticing the magic weaved through each day.
When you’re looking for guidance, a perfect book about spirituality may literally fall off a shelf into your arms.
When you’re feeling lonely, you may come home to a lost puppy asleep at your door.
When you’ve been trying for years, you may surprisingly find out you’re pregnant.
Or you may literally bump into someone on the sidewalk who becomes your best friend and soul sister.
Once you start living more in the flow of life, witnessing it unfold around you, and connecting more to your intuition, you will finally learn how truly supported you are.
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT
Further Reading about the Spiritual Awakening Process
Here are the books mentioned that can help you support you during the spiritual awakening process.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
The spiritual awakening process can be uncomfortable but remember it’s a gift.
As you embrace this life-changing transformation, you’ll realize the saying “ignorance is bliss” is entirely wrong.
Awareness is bliss.
Embrace the life changes, the learning, the magic, the transformation.
Know this is the path you chose.
You are the one responsible for setting your cosmic alarm clock before you came here. And no matter what’s going on in your life, the timing is always perfect.
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