6 Signs You Are Having a Spiritual Awakening

"If you want to awaken all of Humanity, awaken all of yourself" ~ Lao TsuI don't know about you, but when I imagined spiritual awakening, I envisioned a ray of sunshine beaming from the clouds directly on me, and the sound of God’s voice bringing me an aha moment revealing all of the answers to my problems. After further research, I realized that spiritual awakening doesn't quite happen like that. Still, I got an A for effort and uncovered eye-opening information about what spiritual awakening actually is.If you are reading this, chances are you are already on your journey to spiritual awakening or may have already experienced it without knowing. To make it simple, spiritual awakening is the beginning of our initiation on the spiritual path. It's literally when we "wake up" to life.Deepak Chopra, an Indian-American author, doctor, and spiritual advocate describes awakening as "what occurs when we are no longer living in a dream world where we filter everything through our ego and focus on the future and the past." We instead have an awareness of ourselves as individuals and the connection between us and the world.Spiritual awakening is a very personalized experience, and the signs of one vary from person to person. However, here are some of the more common signs that you may be experiencing a spiritual awakening.

Intensified perception of life.

When we are experiencing a spiritual awakening, our perception of the world around us can be intensified. The world feels like a much brighter place, and we can bask in its light. We tend to pay more attention to things others may take for granted such as the beauty found in nature. Our appreciation for the earth's contents like the sky, natural landscapes, plants, even animals, comes from our ability to recognize within it the influence of a higher power.

Discovering inner peace.

The state of being mentally and spiritually at peace, and having the tools to keep ourselves strong in times of distress, is the essence of inner peace. When we have discovered true inner peace, we feel less desire to waste time or energy on unimportant or meaningless thoughts. We don't have time to dwell on pasts hurts. We can fully accept ourselves and see ourselves as worthy of being happy.

Increased compassion for others and yourself.

Being able to extend empathy to others, and act on it with compassion is another indicator of spiritual awakening. It's one thing to feel what someone else may be feeling, but when we let that feeling inspire us to act in a way that serves them, it can be a beautiful and fulfilling experience. Compassion doesn't stop at others though; we have to also be able to extend it to ourselves. When we are kind to ourselves, forgiving of our own mistakes, and able to self-soothe ourselves when we experience pain, we are practicing self- compassion.

Living in authenticity and truth.

Spiritually awakened people no longer wish to live a life that isn't true to who they are. Being true to yourself is a top priority, and you want to live a life that speaks to that. Pretending to be something you're not can be a draining way to live and, in the end, can leave us unhappy. During spiritual awakening, we feel called to get up close and personal with ourselves and to embrace every aspect of our nature.

Asking those big questions.

Have you found yourself asking deep, thought-provoking questions like: What can I do to make this world a better place? How do I know that a higher power hears my prayers? What was I put on this earth to do? Questions like these can leave us in deep thought, but they are powerful because they demonstrate our desire to be connected to the Universe and to grow as individuals. They are an important component of being spiritual awake.

Creating distance from negative energy and people.

When you understand the spiritual path you're on and the importance of protecting your growth, you may feel less inclined to associate with things or people that are negative. Granted, we've probably all engaged in gossip, but when we are on a path to becoming more enlightened, peaceful, and loving beings, we must avoid hurtful gossip and negative people. The negative energy it produces can stunt the spiritual growth we long for. Spiritual awakening is a deeply personal and often quiet experience. There's no one way to experience it. In its most profound moments, it may even feel a bit scary. But the clarity and vision it creates, the personal transformation it enables are well worth the work it requires.