Why are you here? Have you ever asked that question? It's THE question we all seek to answer, and it takes a life time to (maybe) get one. The journey of spiritual awakening, evolution, or transformation is not an easy one. Yet, what else do we have to do while we're here? Isn't coming to recognize ourselves as a reflection of the supreme intelligence, divine consciousness, or source of all that is, a worthy cause?
My own journey of spiritual transformation has been a bit rough so far, and wildly blessed too. I wouldn't change a thing. It's gotten me here, and here is a mighty distance from where I began. A road map for guidance at the start of my journey would have been nice, and I imagine they are out there in "spiritual land" if you go looking for them. But in the interest of making your life a bit easier, here are five key principles of personal transformation—validated through my own experience—in a nutshell:
1. TIMING IS EVERYTHING
Things happen in perfect divine timing. It may not feel like it, because this is a "soul thing," not a "mind thing." We can't figure it out with our mind. The mind is linear, energy flow is not. And we only have eyes on one tiny thread of an entire tapestry of evolving life, so we can't grasp how all of the moving parts interconnect and influence each other. Plus, it's usually only in hindsight that we see the gifts of our experiences.
2. INTUITION RULES
Follow your instincts and listen to your intuition. Then let your mind work out the details. Your mind is not meant to be the driver of your life. It's meant to be your map reader in the passenger seat. It's not the boss of you. It's your heart and soul's employee. Catch my drift?
3. CONTROL STIFLES
Control is an illusion. When we try to control our lives, we subvert the flow of supreme intelligence through our reality, pretending we know better than the supreme source of all that is. But we don't. We can't, because our view is too limited, while supreme intelligence is infinite. Trying to outpace or outguess supreme intelligence doesn't get us anywhere fun. So pay attention to what's moving, deeply listen to your heart's wisdom and guidance, be willing to take some wise risks on your behalf, and stop trying to force things to happen that may not want to or that you may not be ready for...because if you bite off more than you can chew, you'll choke.
4. PATIENCE PAYS
Be patient. Re-read the last sentence of #3 above. There's no benefit to rushing through transformation. That defeats the purpose and the process. While devotion to the journey is imperative, pushing the river of transformation stalls the very thing we're trying to achieve. It's not where we go that counts. It's what we do with where we are. We're only ready for what's next when we're ready, and not a moment before. So racing forward doesn't serve. We must face what's before us and deal with it. We must go through the pressure to become the diamond.
5. TRUST THE PROCESS
Transformation is an evolving process, not one event. When walking a path of spiritual transformation, we experience multiple mini (and sometimes not so mini) transformations along the way. The path is an upward spiral, not a straight line. The answers we seek are found in new ways we relate to old things, not in encountering completely new things. We revisit places we've already been, and each time we do, it's from a higher perspective than before, with deeper wisdom born out of prior experiences. Sept by step, day by day. This is why transformation is a process and not an event. We could say it is a trail of events, though.
Happy Spiritual Transformation Trails!