What is spiritual Awakening?

Using the word 'Awakening' when we speak about spirituality or personal development has become very regular. It's a loved and hated word.

Yet not ofte do we have the conversation about what really is meant by Awakening.

Leaving many of us with different idea's and believes about what it means, while thinking we're talking about the same thing.

So let's unpack: What is Awakening?

In Ing-words:

To understand the concept of Awakening, we need to ask ourselves - "what are we awaking from? When we talk about this concept while clearly not being asleep in our bed.. but awake in our human life.

To understand spiritual and personal Awakening we first need to understand how our relationship to our daily life has come about. And for this let's introduce the word 'Programming'

We are all deeply programmed Culturally, socially, emotionally

Another way of explaining ‘Being programmed’ is like this:

From your birth onwards you have been taught and told how to be a human being, how to behave and how not to, what to believe and what not to, who to trust and who not to, what is normal and what is not, When you are accepted by the people around you, when you aren’t

You learn traditions and rituals from the people who guide you

Yes, even in non religious, hedonistic western families your life is full of rituals and believes

Even growing up eating fastfood in front of the television is a ritual if it happens often enough

Getting candy when you are sad is a ritual

Not believing in God for example is a form of faith and believe too.

But even our way of relating to emotions, how we look at success, what we believe we deserve or not… it’s all part of how we are programmed

The people teaching you these ‘rules’, traditions and theories are your parents, your family, siblings, teachers, friends, communities we’re part of, television, newspapers, the music we listen to, etc.

This all ingrains deep conscious and subconscious believes  and though patterns within us

Another way of saying that is: it programs us.

This programming runs at the core of our personalities and the choices we make.

Especially as it starts from birth, before we have clear human memories or language.

Or actually, it already starts before birth. Your mother’s emotions, her stresslevels, her hormonal patterns, her heartbeat, the food she eats.. it is all part of your earliest programming.

Now, probably your parents didn’t consciously think when you were born:

‘hah, let program the shit out of this new child of ours’

Not in that way. But with their idea’s and dream and fears for you, with how they envisioned YOUR life and with HOW THEY LIVE THEIRS; they sure did (Anyone who made choices that mismatch the way or their family will know)

The process we call ‘Awakening’ often starts when we begin to realize that the way we were programmed to think and to believe is not the only way.

The process of Awakening is the process of breaking out of your cultural, social and emotional programming and discovering who and what you are beyond these imprinted believes

There by reconnecting to the essence of what always is, always has been and always will be

The All

It’s a process of questioning who and what you are beyond these imprinted believes and patterns

and start to realize all the parts of your self, of your inner self, that we’ve been disconnecting from or have been pushing away to fit into the ‘programming’

In another article I also described this as ‘breaking out of the hypnosis of your life’ you can read it here to get an additional perspective: 

https://www.ingvildmolenaar.com/post/spiritual-awakening-and-breaking-out-of-hypnosis

The early stages of this process can often feel like

• Burn-out: the old constructed way of being (your identity) is played out, burned-out, burned-up. You cannot do it anymore

• Identity crisis: ‘If I thought to be, I had to be one way all my life, and now I find out it’s not the only way… who am I?’

• A form of Dying: You no longer fit the roll(s) you played that were so familiar. It can feel like those rolls are dying, it can feel like a phase of mourning

This process is also often triggered through intense life changing experiences from outside like: divorce, illness, losing a loved one, loosing your job etc

Naturally phases of breaking out of what you thought was your life, what you thought was the truth: go hand in hand with confusion, feelings of having no grip, existential doubts, resistance, conflict, and sometimes can be very scary and lonely.

This is why many people, at the start and through many stages of this process start looking for guidance in personal development and spirituality as well as through courses, modalities, books and coaches.

It is highly recommended to do so an to do find a great and awakened guide. also when your more spiritual and energetic sides come online it can be helpful to go to Kundalini Activation sessions which will help you harmonize and integrate your process.

And to do Chakra Meditations, something you can do on your own at any time, also with the effects of harmonizing your energy and finding strong inner guidance.

Please do reach out if you are in your process and are looking for guidance.