There is a candle in your heart, ready to be kindled.
– Rumi
There is a void in your soul, ready to be filled.
You feel it, don’t you?
Welcome dear wanderer.
You’ve come to this page seeking guidance, and that’s what I intend to give you wholeheartedly.
If you’re short on time, scroll down to see the Table of Contents. Otherwise, I promise you that this article is worth reading from start to finish.
Let’s begin with the uncomfortable truth:
Most of us in the modern world have resigned ourselves to a cliched existence, indulging in endless distractions.
We go through life with minimal or pseudo-faith, and avoid grasping the emptiness of our lives. We are endlessly haunted by the shallowness of our relationships, neurotic issues, and inescapable loneliness.
And yet there’s so much more to us as a species than what we really know.
You and I carry the most mysterious and magnificent qualities within us imaginable. Yet, we unknowingly guard and protect the greatest gift that is our Souls from the world.
It’s so easy for us to feel meaningless when we perceive ourselves as mere cogs in society’s machine.
The truth is that we are much more than slaves of 9 to 5 jobs. We are capable of creating deeply meaningful, mystical, and fulfilling lives. We are capable of finding our true calling and personal destiny.
For centuries the indigenous people throughout the world have known that to fully explore the depths of the Soul we must go on a spiritual journey into the unknown lands within ourselves.
In many ancient cultures, they had Elders and Shamans to encourage and oversee these journeys toward a deeper spiritual existence. Sadly, these days in our own culture, we have lost such sacred rites and rituals. Instead, orthodox religion has replaced living spirituality with a theoretical god, dismissing, and outlawing personal experimentation and union with the Divine.
In this article, my aim is to help you start your spiritual journey.
Table of contents
What is the Spiritual Journey?
The spiritual journey is a personal quest we undertake to reconnect with our Souls, find our authentic life purpose, and embody our True Nature. In a nutshell, the spiritual journey is about returning to the Centre of our being: it’s a path traditionally undertaken by mystics, shamans, and sages. But in this day and age where times have changed, and we’re suffering from collective soul loss, the spiritual journey is accessible to all people. Indeed, it’s our deepest longing and highest calling as a species.
12 Signs You’re Called to the Spiritual Journey (the Ancient Hero/ine’s Path)
People have felt a pull toward something greater than themselves since the beginning of time.
Ancient cultures had many stories that served to illustrate the journey to fulfilling one’s destiny and experiencing Wholeness or Enlightenment. These journeys mythologist Joseph Campbell described as the “Calls to Adventure.”
A call to adventure is something we all experience at least once in life. When we embark on this adventure, we begin the process of gaining self-understanding and reclaiming our precious Soul gifts.
The archetype of the hero/heroine discovering their true spiritual nature goes back thousands of years. The Greek’s told the story of Orpheus who descended into the underworld to rescue his bride Eurydice from Hades. The Nordic people had their hero-warrior Beowulf, and the Sumerians wrote of Inanna who battled her sister in the dark world. Throughout history, there have been so many stories of individuals who have struggled through hardship to find themselves. But of what importance are they to our path?
Essentially, these hero/ines symbolize our spiritual journeys: of leaving everything familiar behind, entering the unknown, encountering numerous unconscious monsters, and finally returning back home with a sense of renewed fulfillment and wisdom.
Here are 12 signs you’re being called to walk the spiritual journey of awakening:
- You feel lost in life
- You long for a place that feels like your ‘true home’
- You keep wondering what your meaning or purpose is
- You feel like you have a big destiny to fulfill (which is yet to be revealed)
- You sense that there’s much more to life than meets the eye
- You’re experiencing strange synchronicities, signs, and omens
- You’re shedding your old self and are transforming, but you don’t know who you truly are yet
- There’s a sense of nostalgia and nagging longing for something you can’t pinpoint
- You experience bouts of melancholy, depression, and existential crisis
- You feel extra sensitive and fragile
- A lot of what you once valued seems meaningless and empty
- It feels like the rug has been pulled out from underneath you, and you’re falling
Can you relate to any of the above signs? If you can, you’re most certainly being called to embark on the spiritual journey.
The 3 Worlds of the Spiritual Journey (Which Are You Inhabiting?)
The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you. Don’t go back to sleep. You must ask for what you really want. Don’t go back to sleep. People are going back and forth across the doorsill where the two worlds touch. The door is round and open. Don’t go back to sleep.
– Rumi
At some point in life, we all experience the “call to adventure.” Often our journeys start when we experience a sudden spiritual awakening or dark night of the soul. Often without wanting to, we are cast onto the path of Soul expansion.
Like you, I have wandered these paths and have at times wound up lost and confused. For this reason, I find it useful to map out the spiritual journey in a way that helps the human mind know where it is, and where it will go next.
My Andean ancestry speaks of three worlds that we can experience in life: the Upper World (Hanaq Pacha), the Middle World (Kay Pacha), and the Lower World (Ukhu Pacha).
In many traditions and mythologies, these three worlds correspond to the different realms of Self.
The Upper World is the home of Spirit, the Underworld the home of Souls, and the Middle World is the home of the physical body and human ego.
Different practices and techniques are used in each of the three realms to help us spiritually mature and rediscover joy, peace, and wholeness.
Below I’ll explore each of these three realms with you:
Middle World
Purpose: Personality development
In our everyday lives, we function within the middle world. The middle world is responsible for our ego development, and yet many people on the spiritual path ignore this vital element of inner growth. Without developing a healthy personality, our spiritual growth reaches a dead end.
In life, we all begin within the middle world, or physical realm. As children and teenagers we go through various years of personality change and growth. Finally, as adults, we all have developed unique personalities. Yet many of us fail to continue our self-development, getting lost in corporate jobs and the pursuit of money, status, and fame.
The goal of the middle world path is to develop a healthy personality or ego. Tasks involved in this process include the exploration of core emotional wounds, self-love, and the cultivation of authenticity. A healthy adult ego will be able to love freely, be vulnerable, express creativity, and display empathy towards others.
We cannot develop a healthy personality by using techniques from the Upper or Under World such as meditation or shadow work. Instead, we must use techniques that pertain to ego development and healing such as assertiveness training, non-violent communication techniques, cognitive behavioral therapy, NLP, and other psychological avenues of self-development.
Under World
Purpose: Soul discovery
Our Soul is the vital, mysterious, and wild core of our individual selves. It is the unique essence within each of us that goes deeper than our personalities.
Think of your Soul as a stream that is connected to the ocean of Spirit. Our Souls contain our destiny, purpose, gifts, and the ultimate significance of our individual lives. To access these deep layers and qualities we must descend into the Under World of our unconscious minds.
Unfortunately, for thousands of years, our culture has “protected” us from the hardships and dangers of the descent into the Soul. This has been done through the establishment of comfortable, predictable, and clockwork lives that revolve around material pleasures and shallow values. In fact, thanks to religious thought, the descent into our Under Worlds has been condemned as “evil” and wayward. Only Shamanic cultures and a few Western mystical schools like Hermeticism and Alchemy have dedicated themselves to exploring the Under World.
The descent into the Under World has been so feared and avoided because it is a perilous journey. There is a reason why Christianity referred to this place as “hell.” Within our Under Worlds lie our repressed thoughts, feelings, desires, traumas, and denied gifts. Often when we descend, or inscend, into ourselves, we come across many demons, ghastly creatures, and other parts of our Shadow Selves that we’ve been unconsciously hiding from.
Yet despite the fact that the Under World journey can be such a harrowing and haunting experience, it is ultimately a powerful odyssey. Only by descending into our personal Under Worlds can we truly embrace our true life calling, talents, gifts, and deepest values.
Under World, or soulwork techniques, include practices that allow us to access altered states of consciousness. These may include crafts such as lucid dreaming, drumming, shadow work, shamanic trances, breathwork, vision quests, etc.
Upper World
Purpose: Uniting with Spirit
The Upper World journey, or that of the ascent, is what we often refer to as Self-Realization.
There comes a moment in our journey between the middle world and the underworld in which a fine balance is formed, allowing us to move up into the Upper World. For example, it’s much harder to “Spiritually Awaken” to the Upper World when our unconscious minds are plagued with deep childhood traumas (that stem from the underworld), trust issues (underworld problem), and poor self-esteem (middle world problem).
We enter the path of ascent up into the Upper World when we learn to surrender our ego identification (known as ego death) and Soul identification. Ultimately, we not only intellectually understand that everything is One, but we experience this truth at a core level. At this point, we are free from the illusion of having a separate self. This has also been commonly referred to as the state of complete self-realization or Enlightenment.
This permanent shift of consciousness is about merging with the Infinite, Divine, Eternal, and Absolute. Techniques used to taste this state of being are often found in the mystical schools of Zen, Kundalini, Taoism, Sufism, and disciplines such as meditation and yoga.
Note: Unfortunately many people in the spiritual community believe that spiritual ascension is all that is needed to experience peace and wholeness. As a result, the middle world and under world paths have been cast aside as if they don’t matter. However, only focusing on your “higher chakras,” cultivating positivity and Oneness with Spirit, creates lopsided individuals. When the darker and more down-to-earth elements of self-growth are ignored, the result is imbalanced and unhealthy individuals.
Download FREE Spiritual Journey Worksheets!
Go deeper with a spiritual journey journaling prompt + printable meditation mandala!
5 Phases of the Spiritual Journey
Roughly speaking, there are about five phases of the spiritual journey.
I refer to these as ‘phases’ and not stages because the spiritual journey is not a linear process that has a start and end: it is cyclical. It’s like the moon. It’s a spiraling dance of energy that is ever-deepening and changing.
Here are the five phases. We’ve also linked to the various ‘parts’ of each phase that we’ve both uniquely discovered and defined after many years on the path:
1. Soul-searching
This phase is divided into the following two parts (which are also linked to in the menu of this website). Feel free to click on any for further guidance:
Summary: Phase one of the spiritual journey begins with a deep craving and longing for something more than mundane daily life. There may be a sense that life has become a dry, desolate, meaningless, and barren wasteland without some kind of spiritual dimension. This type of existential crisis can arise spontaneously, due to a traumatic situation, mental or physical health issues, or simply due to one’s sensitive temperament. The result is a search for meaning, purpose, and greater spiritual connection – or what is commonly known as soul searching.
2. Awakening & learning
This phase is divided into the following two parts (which are also linked to in the menu of this website). Feel free to click on any for further guidance:
Summary: Awakening and learning is the next phase of the spiritual journey. Once one has listened to the ‘call to adventure’ and has begun searching for answers, the sense of inner deadness and stagnation lifts. The veil is pulled from our eyes. We awaken to fresh possibilities, new horizons, and deep insights. There is renewed hope, ecstatic zest for life, joyful anticipation, and the passion to learn, explore, and grow. It’s as if the sun has finally emerged from its slumber and we’re bathed in the dawning light of spiritual awakening.
3. Death & demons
This phase is divided into the following two parts (which are also linked to in the menu of this website). Feel free to click on any for further guidance:
Summary: As our spiritual journey matures, we eventually face a crossroads. To continue growing, we must enter through the gates of our personal Underworld and face our demons. We learn that the spiritual journey is beautiful, yes. But it’s also demanding. If we’re sincere about authentic spiritual growth, we need to illuminate our inner darkness, explore our shadow selves, and heal our buried traumas. This death of the spiritual ‘high’ of the previous phase can lead to much fear and confusion. The result is often an experience of the Dark Night of the Soul where we step out of the ‘sunshine and rainbows’ world into the moonlit world of ghosts and ghouls.
4. Rebirth & reward
This phase is divided into the following two parts (which are also linked to in the menu of this website). Feel free to click on any for further guidance:
Summary: Eventually, we emerge out of the other side of the Dark Night of the Soul. We have been to hell and back – we’ve had our hearts ripped open and minds excavated. But we arise victorious with Souls blazing bright and newfound inner strength. This rebirth and reward often result in newfound clarity, mystical experiences, moments of Satori (Enlightened awareness), and the development or rediscovery of various spiritual gifts. We go through a new level of awakening, this time at an energetic level via an experience known as the Kundalini awakening. However, this experience is not all love and light. There are many lurking shadows and spiritual traps to be wary of.
5. Illumination & sharing
This phase is divided into the following two parts (which are also linked to in the menu of this website). Feel free to click on any for further guidance:
Summary: After the body, heart, and mind undergo this cleansing and purging journey, a deeper level of Illumination is experienced. We begin to integrate all the lessons we’ve learned and gifts we’ve developed, bringing them into our daily lives. This is the moment where we truly start walking the talk. As such, there is a strong desire within us to share our personal ‘elixir’ and hard-earned wisdom with those who need support. We may adopt the role of teacher, guide, or mentor – or otherwise, embrace new ways of helping others. Perhaps the key defining quality of this phase is a strong connection to one’s True Nature. There’s an intimate, inner knowing of the Divine as one’s true face, authentic essence, and ultimate home.
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Again, the above five phases are by no means linear or static. They are cyclical and ever-deepening. This is the nature of life where we gradually discover that we are Life itself.
How to Start Your Spiritual Journey (7 Steps)
Everyone’s spiritual journey is unique, ever-changing, and ongoing.
There is no single point at which we stop this inner transformation. In fact, the whole mistaken idea of reaching a state of “perfection” really only equals death and stagnation. And what happens when things stop growing and flowing? They become lethargic, break down, rot, and disintegrate.
While the demands for constant growth and evolution may be difficult to handle at times, they are necessary for us to find our life purpose and fulfill our destiny on this planet.
If you wish to live a deep, meaningful, rich, rewarding, and loving life that is full of heart and Soul, beginning your spiritual journey is not only important but crucial.
Understandably, you might feel a bit intimidated and lost, not knowing where to start. As someone who has dedicated a large portion of their life to the spiritual journey, as well as guiding others through theirs, here are my tips:
1. Be gentle and go at your own pace
It’s normal to feel overwhelmed and a little inundated by the influx of information when first beginning your spiritual journey. My advice is to go slowly, be gentle, and go at your own pace. You don’t need to know every tiny detail of every field of wisdom ever created. (I know it’s tempting!)
Besides, everything that you’re learning about is already within you. Yes, you have all the answers you need at a Soul level because you are an expression of the Divine at your core. Everyone else is just a mirror of that.
So cut yourself some slack. The key is to go gently but deeply – that is how you will learn and grow the most.
2. Figure out the purpose/aim of your journey
Think carefully about why you want to begin walking the spiritual path. Do you have a specific goal, purpose, or intention in mind? Are you wanting to find something or avoid something? (Or perhaps both.) Perhaps you would like to achieve or experience something?
There are a myriad of reasons why people enter the spiritual journey. For example, some people want to experience enlightenment, connect with their spirit guides, develop their spiritual gifts, find their life’s purpose, taste truth/freedom, be free of an old trauma/addiction, and so on.
Keep in mind that your purpose/aim will likely shift and change as you progress through your spiritual path – this is completely normal. Your path and needs are unique to you, so embrace them.
3. Pay attention to philosophies, tools, or practices that intrigue you
Once you’ve figured out why you want to explore the spiritual path, simply pay attention. Notice what spiritual fields, ideas, philosophies, and practices pique your interest. The spiritual journey doesn’t have to be something dry, monotone, and repetitive (unless you want it to be). This is a quest that ideally involves play, joy, and passion. In fact, you will likely get the most out of your spiritual path if you approach it from this heart-centered place. Neuroscience has proven that we learn the most when we’re having fun – so find your bliss. Walk a path with heart. This is the path you’re meant to be on.
4. Go deep-diving
One of the main issues that often arises on the spiritual path is a certain kind of spiritual materialism or spiritual window-shopping.
Jumping from practice to practice can be useful at the beginning (to become familiar with the territory). But if we get into the addictive habit of finding the “next and best” spiritual practice, tool, workshop, etc. we are doing ourselves a great disservice. We are not only approaching spirituality with a materialistic mindset, but we’re also avoiding the fundamental purpose of the spiritual path: to deeply transform and evolve.
Once you have done some dabbling here and there (this might involve watching youtube videos, readings books, attending workshops, etc.), it’s time to slow down and commit to something. Don’t worry if you discover later down the road that the path you’re on is not for you, you can always change route. What’s important is that you slow down and commit to something, to begin with – this is the only way to extract the nutrients, deep essential truths, and embodied wisdom.
So tune into yourself and figure out what sets your Soul on fire. What speaks to you on a profound level? What has benefited you the most? Begin to circle around that topic, practice, or path and dedicate your full attention to it. (And if there are a handful of paths, that’s okay too, stick with them.)
5. Be aware of sharks
You’ll meet many people on your spiritual path (whether online or in-the-flesh). Some of these people will genuinely have your best interests in mind. But others won’t. Yes, there are many ‘spiritual sharks’ out there, aka. there are sleazy, snake-oil salesmen and women who are intentionally out to use you for personal gain. There are also some people (typically leaders of spiritual communities or certain gurus) who are totally unaware of their unconscious shadow motivations (but are equally as dangerous). So be discerning. Learn to trust your intuition and gut instincts. Tap into your inner lone wolf: that primal wisdom you carry inside which drove you to begin this quest to begin with.
Even if you do fall into the jaws of a shark, know that you can get out. You can actually use the experience as a lesson and fuel to grow even stronger. No one can take away your power from you unless you willingly give it to them. And even if you do, you can get it back.
6. Record what you’ve learned and experienced
We hear a lot of pretty-sounding words and mystical ideas on the spiritual path. But all of them mean little if we don’t actively find ways of absorbing them into our being.
One of the simplest ways of recording what you’ve learned and experienced is simply through the act of journaling. Have a special journal or diary that you dedicate to writing down your thoughts, experiences, ideas, and discoveries. You don’t need to be a good writer (or even good at spelling/grammar) to do this – forget about that! What matters is that you have a solid record that you can refer back to throughout your journey. Learn more about how to journal.
There are also other ways of recording what you’ve learned/experienced such as creating pieces of art or composing music. Find whatever creative outlet suits you the most. That might even include creating a vlog where you go into your daily experience (and you can keep this private or share it with others).
Here are a variety of inner work Journals that we’ve created which might help you get started. »
7. Integrate and embody your spirituality
It’s easy to go spiritual window shopping and jump onto whatever new and exciting bandwagon emerges. But it takes much more strength of character, sincerity, and courage to actively integrate and embody what you’ve learned.
To integrate means to absorb something into your being; to make it a living and breathing part of you. To embody means to be an expression of what you have learned: to be the change you’re looking for, to infuse your life with the essence of what you’ve discovered.
There are numerous ways to integrate and embody your spirituality, but remember that this is an organic process that takes time. You cannot rush or force spiritual integration/embodiment – it is the natural product of Soulful maturation and spiritual ripening.
There are, however, numerous ways to begin the integration/embodiment part of your journey. Some of these practices include:
- Meditation
- Mindfulness
- Contemplation
- Breathwork
- Shadow Work
- Self-love
- Inner child work
Anything that helps you to slow down, be introspective, and go inwards while encouraging present moment awareness, will help you to integrate and embody what you experience.
Instead of being a magical sounding idea, you will actively live and express qualities such as lovingkindness, presence, and wisdom. But first, you need to be sincere and dedicated to this path.
Note:
In my honest opinion, no spiritual journey is balanced (or healthy) without some level of psychological healing. We need to focus not just on ascending to the Upper World but also on working with the Middle and Under World. See the following articles for more guidance:
- What is Inner Work? (& Why Most People Are Terrified By it)
- Spiritual Psychology: Why Meditation Isn’t Enough
The Spiritual Journey is a Valley, Not a Mountain
Contrary to popular depiction, the spiritual journey isn’t like climbing a mountain.
We rarely start at the bottom and climb to the top. Instead, for most of us the spiritual journey is like hiking through a series of beautiful, but perilous range of valleys.
Our spiritual journeys alternate between periods of descending and ascending. In one period of our lives we may cultivate our connection with Spirit, while in other parts we may descend to the Soul to heal core wounds, or the middle world to develop self-care.
Finally, it is very possible and also quite common to get hung up in these valleys. Many of us become lost, distracted, and even forget why we were trying to get to the top of the mountain in the first place. (See our article on traps of spiritual growth for more guidance.) However, with guidance, willpower, and persistence, we can make our way through.
In the end, you will find that the spiritual journey is like a mystical marriage between the ego, the Soul, and the Spirit. One cannot exist without the other.
I truly hope this article has given you a place to start. This whole website is based on giving free guidance for the spiritual awakening journey, so please feel free to poke around and learn some more. It’s our gift and mission in life to help you with this.
GREAT WORK YOU ARE DOING.
PL ACCEPT MY REGARDS.
Dear Mateo, first of all thank you for your precious work and words. This clear vision of the three worlds is very useful and helps clearing up a bit the cylces of Awakening. Please allow me to pin point a couple of things, though, that are of course related to my experience: the first one I would like to address is something I mistake too, and is to “sell” the truth as unique. I see a lot of enphasis on this website regarding inner work on what is referred to as “lower self”. I do see the point, yet I would like to observe how not only spiritual bypass is a risk, but also inner work obsession. A time comes when our inner push is toward Higher, divine, and this inner power is actually what can really support the mind and the “personal” self even in the releasing of old energies and drop away. A point comes when keeping believing in the real existence of a “person” is just detrimental and keep working actively on what we used to call “parts of me” just keeps us in the illusion or is already not possible anymore. The integrity arises as we let go of the illusion of these being “parts of us” personally, and realize and welcome all which emerges as impersonal, ego-less energy. For the same reason I would not say “A healthy adult ego will be able to love freely” since in no way it is possible for the ego – that is a survival mechanism – to love freely. When you can love freely you are rooted in the Self, it is not ego anymore. (But maybe we have different definitions of what ego is). Thank you again.
Thank you Maddalena for sharing your insights. I agree with your view, everything arises in polarities and just as easily as we get trapped in the games of spiritual bypassing, so we get trapped in the games of endless work on the false self. We’ve tried to illustrate this with the dual nature of the wolf in our logo.
That said, the amount of bypassing is so prevalent nowadays that our emphasis goes towards that. Perhaps we’ll include more of the other side as we see the shifts align towards that. :)
Thanks & Appreciate!✊️.
I understand that money makes the world go around , but I cannot find someone to help and guide me for free. As I do not have access to money. When I do would I love to donate. I just don’t understand how to continue with out money. But I know I have started my spiritual journey. Any ideas how one can get guidance that I know must have to continue.
Thank you
Love
James Lavigueur
Hey James,
It’s a tricky world to navigate, as many are offering their services and solutions at a cost. Some are genuine, some are taking advantage of the lack of accountability that exists in this modern spiritual path that is divorced from any central authorities as they had in the past with organized religions.
I’d focus on finding established disciplines that resonate with your own values and insights into truth, for me, for example, I find many aspects of Buddhism and contemplative mysticism valuable and there are a few local groups and centers that provide that in most places.
I hope that helps.
I am trying to find happiness within me & true love as well, out of 7 things u listed, I feel a pull towards inner work, shadow work & self love, I tried meditation but failed big time, even breath work makes m restless, I m fairly new to this, I don’t know where to start, sometimes I see signs like repeating numbers 2323, 7575, 222, 333, 555, 888, 77, 88, 2121 & so on, I try to find d meaning & sometimes I am back to square one . I don’t know if I need guidance, I don’t even know if I m on d right path, I really wanna know what shadow work is, I feel like it will change my life for better and I will feel more connected, could you assist me as to where should I start?
Can one travel to his ‘Soul/underground world’ and come back to live…
I just experienced something just now. Where I was being taken to the dark place, it was as if I am taken out of my body… But, I was told things I am going to see there are not going to be pleasant…
It seems as if this is the second step I need to take in my spiritual journey as the first step which was in the physical/material realm I have just accomplished without me realizing. When I lost my job and everything else this was part of my spiritualjourney. The next step to follow after the soul searching it seem like it is going to be ‘enlightenment/upper world’..
However, because of ‘Fear’ that if I travel to this dark place and get trapped there I might have a problem. I abandoned the journey.. This place I was going to, the Bible refers to it as ‘hell’… but I could see that it is my soul, it seems as if my soul has a dark past which I need deal with first before I could be elevated into enlightenment…
How do I overcome the fear
I wanted to ask is there a thing as being too young to start your spiritual journey? I’m 14 but I know that I always wanted to connect with my soul and just live a life filled with peace. My single mom thinks I am too young to start this journey.
I wanted to ask is there anything as being too young to start your spiritual journey? I’m just 14 but all I really want is to live life in peace in nature with my mom. I am content with what I have but I want to rediscover my soul. I have always felt drawn to this mystical path of life and I just felt like I want to return to my true home and not reincarnate again after this life.
Thank you Gratias. We are never too young for the journey, for fundamentally we are all spiritual. But sometimes there’s issues that can arise, especially when done so unguided. For example, by persuing peace at the cost of developing our ‘worldly’ skills, we can become stunted in some ways. There’s plenty of monks who come down from the monasteries and cannot exist in daily life demands.
You can be spiritual but still, pursue a meaningful life. I always worry many of us sacrifice our ‘humanity’ in the pursuit of merging back with the mother womb of Gaia/spirit. Living consciously, intentionally, can be the greatest spiritual path.
I wonder if people with undiagnosed mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder may be particularly susceptible to influence from this website and others like it. I’m not saying the ideas in this website are necessarily wrong, but that it’s interesting to see the alignment between mental illnesses and this version of spirituality.
For example, the concept of “twin flames” could correspond to erotomania. Signs and synchronicity could correspond to delusions of reference. And the “Dark Night of the Soul” could correspond to the depressive phase of bipolar disorder.
Oh, and the “lone wolf” theme could correspond to the social withdrawal associated with schizophrenia.
Hey Anna,
Thank you for sharing your observation. I agree, many of the topics we write about have an overlap with psychological diagnosis or labels, this is not a bug but it’s by design. The deeper you go into learning, the more realize that essentially all knowledge serves as “maps” of a territory, in this case, reality.
But all maps are inherently incorrect because they’re pointing at something rather than being the thing itself (this can be traced back to Plato’s ideas of perfect Forms.) So in psychology they might use words like “complexes” while in spirituality like say Buddhism they talk about the egoic-mind, or illusions, etc.. Solitude can be thought of as ‘social withdrawl’ as you put it, though this is where we distinguish that from loneliness, as many monks practice conscious solitude yet according to your comment they’re schizophrenic.
The rationalist world tries to lay absolute claim on these symptoms and diagnose them accordingly which is helpful in many cases. Yet in many other cases it’s not so, and there’s endless data on patients being medicated and diagnosed for years or their whole lives, incorrectly.
Lonerwolf aims at providing a different approach to many of these symptoms, yet like any imperfect knowledge, it’s open to being misused. I hope that sheds more light on this.
You have a very in depth website here at LonerWolf. I am new to this and just starting to learn more. Thank you.
Thank you Mark, I’m thankful to hear you’re finding it of value, especially when starting the journey as it can be all quite confusing.
Thank you for this article ♥♥♥ I began my journey two decades or so ago, but this was the first time I have seen such a well designed thoughtful plan that both confirms experiences I’ve had and provides insight of that to come. I LOVE how the “three worlds” are explained. Usually Spirit & Soul are wrapped together and used inter-changeably which further complicates the difficulty of understanding their complexities. Thank you for unpackaging that :). My journey has felt like a whirl-wind of discovery and this article has helped me to settle the spiritual dust, so to speak, and bring cohesive organization and sense of peace to it all. When the student is ready… Thank you for sharing your gifts and this wonderful resource!
Thank you Kim, we’re delighted to know you’ve found so much value in the article. We’ve treated this website like our path of service, it’s nice to see it’s fulfilling its purpose :)
I am just after reading this article. I am already feeling so excited about starting this journey. Thoughts exciting thoughts are flooding in.
I have personally been so lost and non existent for so long due to suffering and I didn’t realise it until I read this.
Thank you so much x
Algo dentro de mi me ha dicho que la vida no trata de religion sino de ESPIRITUALUDAD , espiritualidad es escencia !!!!! …. ahora estoy en busca de!!!
Gracias por su conocimieto compartido.
I came across your work by chance. Read about Old Souls and wanted to read more. Was searching. I was pleasantly surprised. Everything you say resonates in me. I feel at home. For a long time i have been too passive, longing to pass on, to die, to go to God. Am 77 and have lived many cycles or spirals of searching learning suffering and growing. I thought it was all over. Apparently not. You have set me on the path once again. Another spiral…shadow work ….thank you.
That’s wonderful to hear Raynah, the spiral always keeps unfolding alongside us. I think the greatest gift we can give back life, spirit/God, is to be humbled enough by life to always maintain that youthful beginner’s openness to growing and learning. :)
Why does the word god have to be added , not all believe in this thing called god and its frustrating people connect the worlds biggest serial killer in history ( DRUNK WITH BLOOD ) to healing of sound WAVES.
New to signing in to the group and newletter…ran across you once or twice online in the last several years previously … todays email to me steering me with helpful suggestions as to whether I’m new to the spiritual path – thanks… however that’s is far from true. From the age of 8-9 I was inwardly questioning and wrestling with what I was being told vs. my interior feelings and intuitions. With no one to share this with outwardly, but nevertheless I dialogued within. At 16 had a near death experience as I was bleeding out internally, 1964. Again, no outward reference / support for my profoundly imprinted experience and no one to talk about it with at that time. However, the experience seemed to further open my physic abilities, intuitions and prophetic (before they happened dreams), that spooked my them husband who I did share them with. I am about to turn 74 … things have changed a lot … even when in the mid-seventies as a young mother of 2 and found a more spiritually open metaphysical organization…you kept a lid on it or you were considered a Unity / Unitic … So, much of what is coming out now and being looked at freshly and with much eager receptivity, for me, is re-enforcement for much of what I carried and expanded on over the years … it is definitely one of the bonuses of internet/online information flow … I just popped out of listening to this link https://youtu.be/FZyT_TKbQ7I … that may only be available for a short time … on trauma and the fellow who is working and writing on the vagus nerve Trauma and the Nervous System from the Polyvagal Theory Perspective w/ Stephen W. Porges, & Dr. Gabor Maté … in fact now there is so much it is hard to keep up with it all … Collectively we are weaving together a more humane perspective forward…
Thank you Carol, and welcome to the pack! :) There’s definitely a lot of information out there to help us in healing us both collectively and individually; it seems like it’s happening just at the right time when the world needs it most.
I understand and admire ur metaphor + I meet the Spiritual criteria U mention’d. But I’m not a wolf. I’m a cat
22/5/21 Spiritual Philosophy – Dualism
We believe we are whole persons experiencing life in a certain set way. For all our lives we have been trained and conditioned in a limited and controlled way. Set down to give limited outcomes and experiences. Within this system, we set our own personal growth and being, expecting that we will find value in our training at some point along the journey, a voice that will proclaim both who we are and why we are upon this Earth. To give value and meaning to our existence and those we know as other human beings.
But our training is brief with high expectations and demands that we know who and what we are, based purely on the expectation, history, thoughts, and actions of others. We become acolytes to a narrow banded system that promotes war, violence, segregation, fear, confusion, and non-liberation. Our inner voice becomes dumbed down isolated and attuned to the narrowness, and selfishness is shown. Locked down upon the ancient constructs, the secrets, the deceptions, the greed, and alienation from what we really are and can be within our spiritual selves.
We shun what is right correct and whole in the strange isolated belief that we, our own singular selves are correct, can cope and survive in this life. Autonomous relying on our constructs only. We swallow what is positive/negative, but mostly negative, bland, minimal, outdated, and stuck in the past constructs. Yet at the same time, we are expected to nurture grand development, quick thinking, arrogant ways to get ahead. We become entrenched and formulated by the system. Till we can not see outside of it. We become just like it. To copy rote learning style to just survive. While within our minds, and emotions we crave the ultimate joy of connection and participation in the enfolding Source or God. This pull or see-saw effect creates two separate modes states. One mind on worldliness support and general survival. The other on inner existence, the life within devoid of worldliness which is uncontaminated, freedom of will and natural pulls of Spirit. This is our stuckness our two separate states at odds with each other. We call this Spiritual Dualism.
What is Spiritual Dualism?
“Dualism in cosmology or dualistic cosmology is the moral or spiritual belief that two fundamental concepts exist, which often oppose each other. In theology, dualism can also refer to the relationship between the deity and creation of the deity and the universe.”
What is the concept of dualism?
“In the mental and physical – or mind and body or mind and brain – are, in some sense, radically different kinds of thing.”
Religion and Spirituality:- Dualism/Vision
“Dualism has been a feature of many religions and philosophies. Recognizing the Universe has both spiritual and physical aspects…dualism. Examples of epistemological* dualism are being and thought subject and object, and sense and thing, examples of metaphysical dualism are God and the World, matter, and spirit, body and mind, good and evil. *(epistemological adj)- Philosophy of knowledge with regard to its methods and valuation.”
What is the problem with dualism?
“Problems unique to dualism. Power of persuasion outwardly, on the one hand, and things with no final causation inwardly and the capacity outwardly to cause and because only by pushing power, on the other, are, ill-suited for the kind of interaction at which our minds and bodies seem quite good. ”
Conclusion:-
We are thus polarized by these actions. When the outer dominates and transfigures our needs for being the inner suffers, becomes drained, limited in need. A hunger for inner needs becomes paramount and often the search for Spiritual based nourishment becomes a lifelong expression of longing which cannot be abated. Not even by all the outer worldliness of our present times. When inner mode dominates and transfigures our needs, spiritual arrogance becomes paramount. The outer self suffers as we become entrenched singular and enclosed by secular religious domains created by the intellect and persuasive ambitions of those heading or running them. Or limited inner beliefs and practices become swept away by infectious obsessive thoughts which incase the mind and lock people into hellfire and sin mode. So in truth and essence, a balance and unity are needed between the poles and modes of Dualism. So things do not get stuck in either one or the other.
Namaste
Thank you John, Dualism is actually the concept we’ve designed the new logo around. Growing up Catholic it took me many years to appreciate the dualism symbolized within Christianity itself; the crucifixion, the transcending (vertical) and imminent (horizontal) meeting, and the tension between both is where one must live. Without trying to escape the suffering, nor getting lost in its limited nature.
I experienced spiritual enlightening after the Dark Night of the Soul. It was really very beautifull experience and I feel not attached to the important things for this world anymore. I know I am iniciated for spiritual journey I look vorward too. I wrote a story about this about the bird who was afraid to fly. I will stay in contact with Lonerwolf.
i am truly in a spiritual journey or awakening since i met my twin flame.id never thought that this tf journey is so profound that i need to dig in everyday of my life,even at work wherever i go.. i cant help myself reading all about your post. its really a big help that bit by bit i found the answer why it is happening to me. thank you for both of you for helping people like me. tou did your mission so well by sharing all of this stuff to all of us.. Thank you more and more with the both of you
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Yes, Riva I too have the same reasons for trying to learn more. I too got hit with what I think is my Twin Flame. In my entire life I never had anything so “supernatural” happen to me like that. Very overwhelming. There has to be something more to it. This website is very informative. Thank you Lonerwolf.
What do you know about a spiritual Ring.. it’s a band on your right wrist .. or Che chi.. (there was balance in the garden) I’m asking cause I’m walking all this now and this band is important somehow,,, I’m trying to find what culture it comes from and what was it’s intent? I’m not learning in a book .. sorry your website is amazing I didn’t even know what a shaman was … one day I’ll tell u a story.
Wow!!! I am so so happy I stumbled upon your wonderful website!! Or was it synchronicity;-) I, too, was raised in a fundamentalist Christian sect, and have a very controlling, judgmental, and cold mother. My mother wound is still mostly unhealed. I am a Type 4 on the Enneagram, an INFP, married now to an INFJ, with an INFJ 10-year-old daughter, who is my kindred spirit:-) I also have grown children. I have had many mental/emotional challenges, some of which I have healed/overcome, but still struggle very much with abandonment fears, especially in my marriage, and can be pathologically jealous and possessive and controlling, with my husband. I am working now on stopping drinking, (after 5 years of numbing my pain with alcohol), and on healing my mother wound and attachment issues. I have a strong feeling I have discovered a spiritual gold mine, in your work!
My husband is from London. I’m originally from Texas, but California is home now. We have family and friends in Sydney and Melbourne:-) Perth sounds wonderful! One of my favorite writers is from Perth.
So nice to ‘meet’ you!
Stefanie
Welcome to the pack Stefanie!, I’m happy to hear our work resonates with you so much. It’s always interesting hearing the different ‘obstacles’ that seem to force us to search for something deeper within ourselves, it sounds like you’re doing a good job at listening to its inwards calling. I hope to see you around the website :).