Spiritual Awakening Is Just The Beginning
I've spent nearly half my life trying to understand the circumstances which produce transformational experiences in some, while leaving others bound by the limiting stories of their minds. I’ve witnessed people have direct experience of the divine, only to shortly thereafter revert back into their old default view of reality. Almost as if nothing ever happened. I've also met others who’ve only needed gentle guidance in order to produce a profound shift in their lives.
But why does this happen? Why are some people able to “hold” these experiences, while others slip back into their old ways?
The first mistake most of us make is underestimating just how dedicated we must remain to the path of personal growth. When you go to see a healer, or sit in ceremony with plant medicine, you are likely to experience some profound shifts in an incredibly short amount of time. However, if that shift is not married with cultivating a daily practice, and a vow to maintain a consistent connection to your truest self, then the magic is likely to slip away. It takes an incredible amount of will and personal diligence to remain on the path of personal transformation. At times it may feel as if the entire culture around you is trying to pull you into the river with them. This main stream has been fed for centuries and it's momentum can't be underestimated. When we get lazy about personal care, we are more likely to get triggered. When we're triggered, we're more pulled back into the same vibration as the collective, and their terrifying view of reality.
Even if I could somehow guarantee you an experience of spiritual awakening, it would still be up to you to choose how to integrate that experience. Spontaneous spiritual awakenings, and transformational medicine ceremonies are usually a temporary visit with the divine. I often say it is akin to time-traveling to an enlightened state of consciousness. However, eventually you will return to your body. In order to make this experience truly transformative, with tangible results, you must now take what you learned and embody it, putting it into practice everyday. Your way of doing this, will likely not be the same as mine. Don't be discouraged if it takes time to figure out your unique practice, you will get there.
Shamans in traditional cultures around the world have used ceremonies to lay down perceptual highways, dropping breadcrumbs along the way, so that they can follow those pathways once they return to their natural waking consciousness. After being given a high dose of LSD by Ram Das, the famous guru Majaraj ji explained that, “The 'Yogi medicine' puts you in a room with Christ, but it can't keep you there. The only thing that can keep you there is love.”
So many spiritual seekers are chasing the dragon, looking for answers in the next retreat, the next plant medicine ceremony, or their next certification, without ever finishing the homework they were given during their last ceremony. No matter how profound your experiences may be, if you don’t take the brave steps to embody these changes, the magic will slip away.
There are countless ways for us to strengthen our spiritual muscles. For the shaman, these practices might be ceremonial, creating sacred rituals as a way to shift from our default third dimensional perspective into a higher consciousness. While for the Zen student this shift is achieved through daily mindfulness meditation. I encourage you to follow the practices that excite you, and to move through the challenges, knowing that you are growing.
Most of the lessons I’ve learned, and continue to learn, come from personal experience. The shaman's path is one of the wounded healer. What this really means, is that we use our own struggles as complex healing puzzles which, once solved, can be passed along to others in hopes of lightening their load. We are all meant to be of service to the world, and our wounds can be a great hint as to where our medicine lies.
Much of my time as of late has been spent writing a book on spiritual awakening and personal transformation. It has been quite the journey, and I am extremely excited to share it with you once completed! I have also been moving away from some of my previous offerings, and I will be sharing some new opportunities to work with me in the coming months. Joy is infectious, and I want to ensure that what I offer to my community, also lights me up inside. That is my promise to you, and to me.
