The Reality of Spiritual Growth: It’s a Hard Path to Walk

We don’t walk the path of growth, once we submit to the journey it pulls us through a magical, scary and often confusing set of tests, rituals and lessons. There are running themes I have seen not only within myself, but also in others who are walking this road. Things don’t always run in this order and often people can turn their back on things before they get to a certain place, truth is- everyone’s journey is different and has its own twists, turns and magic from what is uniquely you. Here is my perspective:

Opening The Box

All of our lives we hear the calls, the cosmic nudges and the inclinations. However, we keep the box shut and dare not open it. But the box shakes frantically and even if you have put it out of sight, you can still hear it rattling in the distance. Finally you decide to peek inside, this is the start of the journey, the opening of the box.

There are many ways in which the box can be opened, a few obvious examples are meditation, yoga and reading. But this can be done in an infinite number of ways- such as dance, drumming, singing, art or anything that directs your undivided attention too one thing.

The interesting thing about the opening of the box is it can often leave you feeling like you have arrived at your destination and truth is you have arrived at “a” destination, but never “the end” destination. It is quite common in this phase to gain a feeling of knowing, it is only later when life kicks your backside that you realise you know nothing at all. But I will get to that in a moment.

Euphoria

This often happens upon the opening of the box, you see your power and it excites you. This often results in a massive ego flare and feelings of superiority. This is normal and okay, as sometimes to fully humble ourselves we need to experience its polar opposite. It doesn’t always work out this way, sometimes you just feel great and ready for all the world has for you. Like many areas of spiritual development, we often sit on the borders of sanity and insanity, dipping in and out of both as we proceed.

Darkness

This can come before the euphoria in many cases, but for me personally it came after I opened my box through meditation. I then experienced 6 months of euphoria, and then had a big crash into the darkness. This is something I wrote about in The Dark Side Of Spirituality

Reality

Between these states it is common to get a healthy dose of reality, and the dualistic nature of the human experience. I am a god, but also a mortal. I am a lightworker, but also have a dark side. I experience happiness, sadness and everything inbetween. I am limitless and limited. And so on… It is in these moments when it is good to plan the next steps of your life.

Repeat

Because we are often suckers for punishment, we can repeat this process an infinite amount of times before we get the message. Everytime we feel euphoric we think it will last forever and every time we feel dark we feel the same. I personally had to go through this twice in full force and a few times with less intensity, before getting the message. I like to think I am over it now, but maybe it will happen again who knows!

Acceptance

This is one of the most important things a person can do- to accept! Accept that we know nothing. Accept that we have very little control. Accept that some things don’t make any sense. Accept that we cannot change anyone but ourselves. Accept love. Accept imperfection. Accept that we are on a journey in which the next step could unfold in an infinite amount of ways.

Something real magical happens when you manage to find acceptance in your life and this is a beautiful part of the adventure.

Seeing The Duality

We have 2 sides- the masculine and feminine, the light and dark, the left brain and right brain. Everything in the physical is duel. Seeing this gives us an understanding of how the universe works. Studying it gives us an understanding of how we can overcome whatever life has for us. Accepting that we will never fully understand it gives us a huge sense of empowerment that cannot be achieved until you submit to the unknowable.

Merging The Duality

When you see the duality within yourself, the next step can be to merge the energies. This is often achieved by going into one extreme and then into the other, a bit like the example of entering the darkness and the light in the form of euphoria and helplessness. This is what alchemy is- the transmutation of a substance using its opposite force. To fully embrace one end of the pole you have to experience the opposite. You can see that opposites are the same thing merely at a different measurements and only after experiencing both ends of a spectrum, can one walk the middle ground.

Synchronicity

Synchronicity is real and will lead you through life if you learn the unspoken whisper of the universe. There is a saying “when the student is ready, the teacher will appear” this is also a metaphor for experience. When we are ready the opportunities will present themselves- our job is to tune in and listen.

Magic

When you understand universal law it is easier to conceptualise what magic is. It is not a breaking of the rules or defying the laws of nature. It is merely applying a more powerful law than the one that is there. A good example of this is hot and cold- if you are really cold to the level of hypothermia, you would need to warm up to survive, but warm up to fast and your body will go into shock. You have to be delicate with it and find the perfect balance to heat yourself.

This can be applied to many things which some people may label as impossible or magical, however magic is simply understanding the laws of this dimension, in accordance with other dimensions. As above so below, as below so above.

Learning, Unlearning, Digesting and Decoding

This is a constant throughout life, some will be more inclined to follow a specific path, but throughout our lives we will all need to be doing these 4 things. If you think of our minds like a giant sieve- you tip in a bag of flour- this is learning. You shake the sieve into a bowl and this is the unlearning or removal of the junk. The flour with all the lumps removed in the bowl is the clean information for you to digest. The lumps left in the sieve and there for decoding at a latter date (or discarding). This to my understanding is a never ending process, every time you learn something new, you realise how little you know.
To walk this path is a commitment, one in which clarity often alludes us. However with acceptance- this life can be the most rewarding one can live. Much luck to you on your adventures!

IMAGE CREDIT:jorgophotography / 123RF Stock Photo

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