0:34

I was a soldier who spent 12 years in combat zones

0:36

in Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan. And now I walk

0:39

a spiritual path and I get to talk to people

0:41

like you every single week. Have you

0:43

ever felt like there's something more to life

0:45

than what's on the surface? That beneath

0:48

all this hustle and noise, there's a deeper,

0:50

more meaningful path? If you've

0:52

ever since this call to explore beyond

0:54

the ordinary and step into this

0:56

extraordinary personal discovery, you're not

0:58

by yourself. You're not alone. And today, I'm

1:01

going to guide you A path

1:07

that promises to transform your life from the inside out.

1:10

And you'll awaken to a life filled with deeper meaning

1:13

and peace. I'm also going to tell you which step

1:15

I think is most often overlooked,

1:18

and it's one that I think can derail people

1:20

the fastest. before we

1:22

get into the eight steps on how we're going to start

1:24

your awakening, I feel like it's important

1:27

for you to understand what spiritual

1:29

awakening is all about, and it's

1:31

going to vary from person to person,

1:33

but there are overlapping consistencies

1:36

in what you might expect and see and feel,

1:40

and we need to set a base or a foundation that you can

1:42

build from being able to see your sense

1:45

where you're going to be going is this really

1:47

powerful thing. I personally

1:49

described my awakening event as having

1:52

ultimate clarity or understanding of the universe,

1:55

and I really think it's just that simple for me,

1:58

and I. I don't know a better way

2:01

to describe it, but for discussion sake,

2:03

I think we have to expand on that because I don't think

2:06

that's enough. There's

2:08

an expansion of consciousness. It's moving

2:10

beyond the everyday sense of self

2:12

where you experience at greater and more connect

2:16

and have this awareness of your true self

2:18

in the universe. you'll have increased perception,

2:21

experiencing heightened sensory, emotional

2:23

and intuitive perceptions

2:26

of the world around you.

2:29

Things that are happening deep inside of yourself,

2:31

which is that connection to the universe.

2:33

You're going to have a greater sense of all that you're going

2:35

to have a better idea

2:37

of inner peace and what true calm really

2:40

looks like. It's this enduring peace

2:42

and calmness that persist through all of

2:45

these challenges that you face in life.

2:47

So as you are faced with things

2:49

in life that are difficult, you're going to find yourself more resilient.

2:53

You're going to have insight into universal truth,

2:55

gaining insight into life, existence and

2:59

just these things that govern your reality.

3:02

There's a sense of empathy and compassion that comes along

3:04

with awakening. It's an increased sense of these things

3:07

towards others. And I think it's

3:09

probably driven by this interconnectedness

3:11

that you will feel when you're

3:14

more awake. There's a transcendence of

3:16

that ego in the mind where you're

3:19

less attached to materialistic things,

3:22

and these things that are associated with your physical self

3:25

and the ego and mind. They're so loud

3:27

in our day to day life, they're always talking to us

3:30

and they're telling us all these things are trying to keep us alive.

3:33

They're really good at that. It's a super important function,

3:35

but they overperform. And so as you

3:38

start to wake up, you start to realize that your mind and ego

3:41

are way too noisy and that you kind of need

3:43

to set them aside a little bit, still listen to

3:45

them, but have them kind of

3:48

in a corner, kind of in a more disciplined way.

3:50

You're going to see a realignment of values

3:52

and beliefs and a shift in priorities

3:55

towards more fulfilling purposes.

3:58

And this can lead to pretty significant lifestyle

4:00

changes. And you might see a sense

4:02

of purpose and direction. And this is usually where

4:05

you're going to see something like higher purpose

4:07

or your dharma. You know, what you're meant to do

4:10

in this world. I kind of think we all have this one

4:12

unique thing that's, you know, specific to us

4:15

that we're meant to do in the world. And so as

4:17

you start to spiritually awaken, you start

4:19

to come into focus of what

4:21

that thing is specifically for you, where your higher

4:23

purpose is. You're going to have

4:26

an enhanced, intuition and enhance

4:28

creativity. Your creativity is this base

4:30

universal thing. And so is intuition.

4:33

again, going back to that mind and ego that are

4:35

telling you things that are kind of important to keep you alive,

4:38

you know, watch out for this. Oh, hey, go over here.

4:40

Don't go over there. You know, some important stuff.

4:42

But your intuition is that gut feeling

4:45

that is separate from your mind, and you go, it's that connection

4:47

to the universe to saying, this is

4:49

what you know is the right way.

4:51

So you kind of learn to listen to that

4:53

and be able to hear it in a much more,

4:56

intentional and clear way. And so now

4:59

we're going to get into what these eight steps are.

5:02

But before we move on, please subscribe

5:04

by hitting the watermark in the lower right hand corner of this video

5:07

and share this with your friends or family who you think

5:09

might benefit from it. We're always trying to help people out.

5:11

That's what our channel is all about. So step one is

5:13

becoming aware. Awareness is

5:16

this crazy thing. It's easily

5:19

right there within our grasp, but we don't reach out to it.

5:22

We know it's there, but we don't use it often.

5:24

We we move through life

5:27

without being aware of how

5:29

we're moving through life or what

5:31

we're doing, and we're

5:33

reacting to things without considering

5:36

how are reacting or why

5:38

we're reacting in a certain way.

5:40

And if we can slow things down,

5:43

then suddenly we see that

5:45

all we ever have is this

5:47

present moment. Mike here now, like you

5:49

watching this video and being here

5:52

listening to me and like, we're having

5:54

this kind of connection, this moment

5:57

is present moment that that's life.

6:00

And everything happens here,

6:02

right now, in this moment. All the other

6:04

stuff that that was or may be,

6:07

it doesn't matter. And awareness

6:09

is this habit. there's a trick to it where

6:11

you have to become aware that you need to be aware.

6:14

And I think maybe that sounds a little strange

6:16

or impossible, but it isn't.

6:18

It just takes practice. So try and set

6:22

something out that will remind you to be aware.

6:25

It could be a stone Buddha, or across

6:27

some type of crystal, or a necklace.

6:30

It doesn't really matter what it is. It only matters

6:33

that you remember to be aware

6:36

and stay in this present moment.

6:39

That's where spirituality happens

6:41

and happens when you're present. Because

6:44

regardless of where you think you're going

6:46

or where you think you might get to, it's

6:48

hardly ever going to look like what you think.

6:51

And so if we don't enjoy the journey along the way,

6:54

then we're just kind of wasting away our life or wishing it

6:57

away because we're so focused on something

6:59

else. So we really have to appreciate

7:01

this present moment. There's deep

7:04

spiritual things that happen when we're here

7:06

in the present. Step two is setting intentions

7:09

work to establish a clear goal that guides

7:12

your spiritual practices

7:14

and your daily life choices. This isn't some fleeting

7:17

or passing things. This is not a this isn't

7:19

a whim. It's your mission

7:22

and something that you have resolve in.

7:25

And so ask yourself what's moving you

7:28

and motivating you to pursue this path

7:31

to seek spiritual awakening.

7:33

Do you want it? Do you need it?

7:36

And try to ensure that your intentions align

7:39

with your core values and your higher beliefs?

7:43

They are you living what you, what you are

7:45

meant to live, as far as what you value

7:48

and what you believe. And you're

7:51

going to have this resolve. But you also

7:54

have to be dynamic and adaptable

7:57

because things change. The universe is

7:59

always changing. The universe is always in motion. So be open to

8:01

the universe, and you got to put yourself

8:04

out there and receive mode and don't

8:06

have this predetermined expectation about

8:09

what this is going to look like, because we really don't know

8:12

what the universe is going to send our way.

8:15

We may ask the universe for something and it may send it,

8:17

but we're looking for something else.

8:19

So embrace change and be in

8:22

the rhythm and flow of the universe and regularly

8:24

reflect on your intention,

8:27

this mission that you're on, and see

8:30

how the progress is going and reaffirm

8:32

your commitment and make adjustments.

8:35

And remember that those adjustments

8:37

are critical because they're just adjustments

8:40

as you walk down this path. And there

8:42

might be something in the way. So just notice it

8:44

and move around it or under it or over it

8:47

or through it, and maybe

8:49

even write down what your intention here is like.

8:52

I'm on the spiritual path. I'm seeking spiritual

8:54

awakening, however you see it.

8:56

And then after you've written it down, speak it out loud

8:59

each morning. The spoken word has this

9:02

great power. And so when you speak things

9:04

out loud, you speak them into existence. They're far more

9:07

likely to happen. Step three is creating a

9:09

sacred space. It's important to create

9:12

dedicated spaces for your spiritual

9:14

practice. You have to choose the right location.

9:17

Select something and some place

9:19

is quiet, undisturbed. Some place

9:21

probably in your home that feels comforting

9:23

and secure. You want to feel safe. There,

9:26

and it could be a small corner of a room.

9:29

A whole room could be

9:31

part of your garden. You know, I've set up

9:33

space in my closet, and it was this great,

9:36

amazing place. I felt safe there.

9:38

it was clean. It was. It was simple.

9:41

And I was able to get a lot of reflection done there.

9:44

And so clearing cleanse your space. You might, start

9:48

by physically clean the area up, make it

9:50

organized, make it approachable. You can even

9:52

spiritually cleanse it, with maybe

9:54

some sage. And then personalize your space

9:57

decorated with stuff that has significance

9:59

to you. This could be pictures, crystals, stones,

10:02

statues, candles or almost

10:05

anything that is important

10:07

to you. And you can add natural elements.

10:10

Maybe you have some plants or maybe

10:12

some water features. Maybe a little portable fountain.

10:15

Something that creates this grounded

10:18

atmosphere because it's always

10:20

really great to be connected to the natural world.

10:23

You have pillows and cloth to make it as comfortable

10:25

as possible. You want this space to be so inviting

10:28

and welcoming that you want to go there. You seek it out.

10:31

You can set up lighting so that the ambiance is

10:34

exactly what you need it to be for you

10:36

to be centered and happy.

10:38

So whatever that level of lighting is,

10:40

use that and make that happen. Consider

10:43

what sound you'll have available. This could be something like

10:45

soothing music, nature sounds,

10:47

guided meditations. You might even

10:50

play an instrument, something like a panda drum.

10:52

and keep this space sacred.

10:54

Set boundaries around this space so that you're

10:57

able to maintain your spiritual

10:59

connection to it. and just make it

11:02

something that is just yours. And other people

11:04

may come and go, but make sure that you have

11:07

this attachment to it. We have a whole video

11:09

on creating your own rituals, and if you're

11:11

interested, please click on a watermark in the upper right hand

11:13

corner of this video and check it out. It's really,

11:16

important for you to create something

11:18

that works best for you, because what works best

11:21

for me, or what works best for someone else

11:23

may not be the best thing for you. Step four

11:25

is daily meditation. It's hard

11:27

to reach that awakening point

11:30

if you don't work to connect with yourself

11:32

in your base consciousness every single day.

11:35

And we're talking about that inner self, or that

11:37

divine thing inside of you that connects you

11:40

to the universe. There's hundreds of ways

11:42

that you can meditate, and what meditation

11:45

works best for you is kind of like what I just said with rituals.

11:49

the meditation that works best for you might not be

11:51

what works best for the person next to you.

11:54

And so remember that meditating doesn't have

11:56

to look like any single thing

11:58

that you've been presented with in movies

12:00

or books. There's no right or wrong

12:03

way to meditate, and meditation isn't something

12:06

that's always easy to get into. And so I want

12:08

you to know that it sometimes requires

12:11

this intent to set all this noise

12:13

aside. That's in the world around you and inside

12:15

of you. There's all this external distraction

12:17

and noise that you have from your digital devices

12:20

or people who want your attention,

12:22

your relationships. There's internal

12:24

distractions from your mind and your inner

12:27

monologue that's noisy stuff.

12:29

And so when you sit with yourself

12:31

and you begin this process of stillness,

12:33

you have to face yourself. And you know

12:36

that can be uncomfortable. It can even be really difficult.

12:38

It can be a little scary. And I think

12:40

we can admit that to ourselves. I think sometimes

12:43

we have to have that that

12:45

vulnerability in ourselves and for ourselves,

12:47

because that's how we get through

12:49

to the other side. And during

12:52

these initial periods of meditation, you are

12:55

going to face these uncomfortable aspects of yourself

12:57

and maybe stuff from the past. It might be

13:00

anxiety about the future. And we have a

13:02

pretty great video on getting started in meditation,

13:04

and you can check it out by hitting the watermark

13:07

in the upper right hand corner of this video. It can

13:09

really help you get started, but what I would encourage

13:11

you to do is figure out what works best for you

13:15

and just start. Commit yourself

13:17

to just five minutes a day for a whole week,

13:20

and then commit yourself to ten minutes a day

13:22

for the week after that. See where

13:25

this takes you and give it

13:27

a real chance. Like be true

13:29

to yourself and be true to the process

13:32

and make this effort. Stay consistent for yourself.

13:35

Be patient and have grace for yourself.

13:37

Understand this is okay. This is hard.

13:39

Where I didn't get through the whole five minutes, or

13:41

I felt like I wasted the whole five minutes. That's okay.

13:44

Keep doing it. there's a

13:47

lot to be said for not having success

13:49

the first time, or not having this thing

13:51

be what you thought it was going to be the first time,

13:53

and sticking with it. That's how you

13:56

start something special. That's how you start

13:59

this journey of a thousand miles, right?

14:01

You have to take that first step, but you have to also take

14:03

the next step. It's not just about taking that first step,

14:06

it's about taking the next step and the step

14:08

after that. So commit to that. Commit yourself

14:11

to taking those steps. And I

14:13

definitely recommend that you start with something

14:15

like maybe guided meditations. You can use

14:17

an app like Insight Timer. It's free

14:20

and easy to use, and it can really help you start

14:23

this part of your journey. And I'm not affiliated

14:25

with Insight Timer in any type of way.

14:27

It just works great. And like I said, it's free.

14:29

Step five is educating yourself.

14:32

You never stop learning. It's a keystone

14:34

to both personal and spiritual growth.

14:37

After I had my awakening, I think I read it over

14:39

to 60 books in four months. That's all I did.

14:41

I just read, and as I read

14:44

I would rotate between the Abrahamic

14:46

religions, Hinduism, the eastern faiths,

14:49

indigenous traditions, paganism, philosophy,

14:51

New Age spirituality, self-help.

14:54

I mean, I would rotate

14:56

through all these different genres, and then I would just

14:58

kind of go back to the beginning and read

15:01

different books from all those different genres

15:04

again. And I wanted to

15:06

understand all the different possible paths

15:08

for my spiritual journey, because I didn't know where I was going to go.

15:12

And I wanted to be able to speak to people like you in terms

15:16

that you'd understand and relate to.

15:19

You know, regardless of what part of the world you're from

15:22

or what spiritual philosophy that you believe in.

15:24

I wanted to be able to have that conversation, and you never

15:27

know what's going to speak to you. You never know

15:30

what message you're going to hear that resonates with you.

15:32

Because, you know, we hear

15:35

all these different things from across the world

15:37

in different sources. That's what makes,

15:39

you know, spirituality and religion,

15:42

all around the world so powerful. There's all this

15:45

different stuff and, half our videos,

15:48

on this channel, our spiritual discussions

15:50

about our journey and what it is

15:53

and where it may go. And the other half of our videos

15:56

on our channel are about books,

15:58

these books on spirituality, religion, philosophy,

16:01

self-help. please check, our videos out.

16:03

We have a playlist for each of these. One's called

16:05

your spiritual Journey and the other is our Beyond

16:08

the Book series. So go out

16:10

and read books for yourself as well. There's so

16:13

much amazing wisdom out there

16:15

and the overall theme here again is step five.

16:18

Never stop learning, always be

16:21

learning. it's really going to progress

16:23

you down your path and really strengthen

16:26

what you see in the spiritual realm. Step six

16:29

is reflection and journaling.

16:31

And as you're doing all the things

16:33

that we've already talked about, it's important

16:36

to have perspective and reflect on how

16:38

your journey is going as you're doing it.

16:40

Are you happy? Are you sad?

16:43

Are you in the flow? Are you frustrated?

16:45

And be honest with yourself and consider

16:48

journaling about your experiences.

16:50

And there's few things that you're going to do as you're

16:54

walking down this path that can be as powerful

16:56

as journaling. When you speak

16:58

to yourself, you have this

17:01

uncanny ability to work through things.

17:03

You'll discover paths that you didn't

17:05

even know existed, and you'll be able

17:07

to identify obstacles that you couldn't see.

17:10

And I just want to give you

17:12

a few journaling prompts that you could use along the way.

17:15

These are just suggestions. You can find more online.

17:19

how am I feeling today? Really? What emotions

17:21

are surfacing and what might be triggering them?

17:24

You can write something on that. You can also

17:26

write something about. Am I feeling

17:28

in sync with my spiritual practices? What aspects

17:31

of my journey feel flowing, and where am I encountering

17:33

resistance? Another one could be.

17:36

What challenges have I faced recently in my

17:39

spiritual practices? How have I address these

17:41

challenges and what have I learned from them?

17:44

Another one could be in what areas

17:46

of my life am I struggling

17:49

to be honest with myself? How can I

17:51

confront these truths to foster growth?

17:54

So there's just a few prompts that you can use

17:56

as you're kind of reflecting on the journey

17:59

you're taking, and how you can make

18:01

adjustments that work best for you.

18:03

Step seven is finding a community

18:06

or a support group. People often believe

18:08

that the spiritual path has to be this lonely

18:10

thing, that couldn't be further from the truth.

18:13

And I it's a common misconception.

18:15

spirituality will always be something

18:17

that is deeply personal to each person.

18:20

People can be completely empowered

18:22

with themselves and still

18:24

reach out to a group or a community

18:26

to have meaningful discussions, and what works

18:29

for someone might not work for you, but

18:31

it might inform your own practice

18:33

or philosophy in a meaningful way.

18:36

we're communal tribal creatures, we just have

18:38

to find good communities and good tribes,

18:41

and we don't have to to fight that.

18:45

We can embrace it, and then we're going to come out

18:47

stronger for ourself.

18:49

And Kishar is a nonprofit, online

18:51

spiritual community that sponsors this channel.

18:54

We have discussions and work on subjects like this

18:56

every day. And if you head over to kishar.org

18:59

you can join our community. I encourage you to go over there

19:01

and join up. But regardless, try and find warmth

19:04

with others as you walk your path.

19:06

Wherever you find it, just find someone out there

19:09

that can can discuss this with you and help you.

19:11

Step eight being grounded in your day to day.

19:14

I told you I'd let you know what I thought the most overlooked step

19:16

was on the path to spiritual awakening.

19:19

And it's this step. If you aren't grounded

19:22

in your daily life, it's going to be tremendously

19:24

difficult to find your way down

19:27

your spiritual path. We're talking about things

19:29

like sleep and nutrition,

19:31

fitness, relationships, finances,

19:34

and everything else that we're managing every

19:36

single day. When you're centered and

19:39

grounded and your routines and habits,

19:41

suddenly you have all this space

19:43

to be spiritual and you have time to

19:46

be spiritual. And I call these

19:48

daily things in our life the life blocks,

19:50

because these blocks of life create this

19:53

amazing foundation for us. and when they're

19:55

all in alignment, we're going to be more prone

19:57

to be calm, peaceful, and joyful.

19:59

It really supercharges

20:02

your spiritual journey. So again, the eight

20:04

steps are becoming aware.

20:07

Setting your intentions. Creating a

20:09

sacred space, meditating daily,

20:13

educating yourself. Reflecting

20:15

and journaling. Having

20:18

a community and being

20:20

grounded in your day to day. If you do

20:22

those things, you're going to find your way

20:25

to awakening. You're going to find your way to peace.

20:28

You're going to find your way to this amazing

20:32

letting go and surrender where you're

20:34

completely connected with the oneness

20:36

of the universe. It's something that I hope

20:39

that each of you are able to do.

20:42

I hope that each of you are able to find your way and

20:46

I would encourage each of you to to take

20:48

this journey at your own pace. Don't feel like

20:50

you have to get there tomorrow or next week.

20:53

You know it happens when it happens and enjoy

20:56

the journey along the way. Again, if you're not enjoying

20:58

the process, it's going to be harder.

21:01

And so what's your own experience with spiritual

21:04

awakening? And have you had an awakening?

21:06

Are you moving anywhere? Are you moving

21:09

towards an awakening? And how do you think that these steps

21:12

can help you on your spiritual journey?

21:14

Please hit me up in the comments and I will absolutely

21:16

get back to you. I feel like

21:19

what I want to do here is have a conversation with you, then have

21:21

a two way conversation. So please

21:23

comment. Let's talk about it.

21:26

please like this video. If you want us to keep making content

21:28

just like this. And until next time,

21:31

I wish you peace on your journey.