You only need one
Usually, the early stages of the spiritual path are characterized by a big appetite for knowledge. And we “satisfy” this appetite by reading all sorts of books on spirituality, by going to workshops, by listening to different teachers, by trying different spiritual exercises, etcetera.
Then comes the time when we become more curious about ourselves, about our true nature, about our path in life. That’s also when we start looking more into unusual means to find our answers. We learn about numerology as an example, or astrology. We use divination tools. We go to “psychics” and if we are lucky, we come across truly genuine people that can actually give us some answers.
While the above may give us some sense of accomplishment; as we soon realize — it doesn’t last. Our thoughts remain scattered. And although we “know” what we are supposed to do, who/what we are supposed to be, and what our life should be about — it doesn’t change much for us.
And that is because only using our intellect to understand ourselves is limiting.
The intellect, which develops itself through information, is a tiny tool that our soul uses to function in this plane of existence that spirituals usually call the “3D.” The intellect is like the body, a tool we use to make sense, and go through different experiences on Earth.
Now here is the interesting part, as we go through these experiences in our daily lives — they impact us in different ways. Some experiences give us a feeling of expansion, of growth, of satisfaction. Others give us a feeling of contraction, of unease, of suffering.
It is through the use of our body, and our mind (mental and emotional activities) that we get to receive and process the incoming information from our experiences. We get? Who gets? You have to discover that for yourself. This very process is how we are able to learn.
In most cases however, people do not choose to learn, instead, they let their past make the best out of them.
Because we live in the “3D,” it is normal to carry some form of “emotional damage” (in the words of the wise Steven He) in our subconscious mind. This means that most people, to this day, still carry hurts and difficult experiences from their past. And that these unprocessed memories cloud their perception — which in turn, prevents them from learning from their life experiences.
How does this happen? We all have triggers, right? Generally, whenever we’re triggered — our past makes the best out of us, and we react strongly to protect ourselves. It’s instinctual. At first it’s okay. If we are on a spiritual path however, what we want to do is to eventually take a step back, become more aware of our reactions, and in time, remain conscious during triggering events.
This will allow us to go deeper into our wounds, and kick-start the healing process.
In terms of spiritual growth, learning means healing. Not learning about books, but learning about yourself. “Knowing Thyself.”
Naturally, on this healing/learning journey — what we are basically doing is releasing our past “burdens.” And in doing so, we realign our perception with reality. And from this realignment — we see things as they are; which helps us “understand what we are and why we are here, as well as what is our purpose” (in your words.)
Of course, this process does take some time. For the average adult, we have been carrying such emotions and limited thoughts for many years. We have been so accustomed to them, and their energies that they make the person we are today. It is normal then that releasing those patterns makes us feel anxious because it literally means changing ourselves completely as a person.
That is why I would advise you to feed your intellectual hunger if you are at such a stage. Try different things, but make sure that you are not taking unnecessary risks. If you have someone to guide you through this process, all the better.
In case you expected some books or practices, you can easily find lists of them all over the web. Be aware however that just like with our mouth, everything we consume can either improve or worsen our health. Once you are tired with knowing things intellectually, you will naturally want to know things from your soul — and the above is how to do that.
Lastly.
If you would like to approach your spiritual growth and healing from a practical place, one that doesn’t leave you in the air with abstract concepts that get you nowhere — but one that actually helps you experience deeper growth; I invite you to subscribe to my newsletter from where I help you with that.
Blessings.