The true meaning of spiritual awakening, as it has been known classically in both Christian and Buddhist traditions is the waking up of consciousness to the remembrance of its original nature. It is a movement of the psyche where the individual sense of self-identification has fallen away, and awareness stands with nothing to identify itself, and yet it knows itself as being aware. It is like moving from being a noun to a verb. Instead of being some one, we know we are aware-ing, sensing, thinking, feeling or being whatever movement is happening in this one moment. At the same time the physical body/mind has become irrelevant. Proverbs chapter 18 The spirit of a mighty man, a man of spirit, that has a spirit of fortitude, even of natural fortitude, that has a spirit of might upon him, of power, and sound mind; that is renewed in the spirit of his mind; who is a spiritual man, and has the Spirit of God in him, as well as a rational soul, an immaterial, immortal, and never dying substance. Such a man will bear up under many trials and exercises of life; What meaning does this mean to you? later on I will share with you my experience of an spiritual awakening. Here are some examples and indications of a spiritual awakening. Heart Opening: A deep sense of opening in the chest, often with an overwhelming sense of unconditional love for all beings, which brings about a significant change in the psychological orientation, increasing sensitivity, compassion and appreciation for life. Psychic Opening: An eruption of an image or an inner knowing about people, events, other lives, physics, celestial music, auras or other paranormal, visionary or auditory experiences. Initial Mystical Experience: Consciousness breaks through it’s boundaries of your personal self, and experiences a vast expanse of being or presence, great light, a spiritual vision or a sense of cosmic connectedness for a brief period of time, occasionally lasting for a few days. Sometimes understanding about the nature of reality, or other aspects of wisdom or love accompany the experience. There you are three examples heart opening, psychic opening, and initial mystical experience. Okay I said earlier I would share with you my own spiritual awakening. It started when I was sent to prision for the possesion and supply of class A drugs Heroin and crack cocaine. My addiction with drugs started when I was nine years of age but I didnt start taking heroin and crack until I was sixteen. which lead me into the selling of theses drugs. This is not what brought about my spiritual awakening this is what happened. My only focus and love in life was drugs where my thoughts and attitudes was the getting of these drugs to what ever means. I was getting drugs brought into prison by taking on visits then getting them onto the wings and passing them around the prison eventually I got caught and was sent down to the block segregation wing whilst I was there in this dark, damp empty cell with only a bed and a little tiny square window I saw on the floor a piece of a page from the bible out of bordem I started to read this single page which was out of the book of Matthew. When he came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean." Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately he was cured of his leprosy. Let me explain when I read this something inside me began to happen. this was my spirit bringing about an awareness I read it again and again clean to me was not been physical dependent and mentally dependent on drugs I was ill and I was desperate doing a cold turkey in this cell so like the man with leprosy I fell to my knees out of desperation and prayed to a God I didn't understand and believe in and I prayed Lord if you are willing you can make me clean you can stop this pain. In this moment something unexplainable happened the small square windown a warm light came through and lit up the cell I was filled with an overwhelming sense of love content and peace within and not only this the physical withdrawals was gone. then when the light passed and I was left in the darkened cell I again I had a clarity of thought which brought about a change a change in my thoughts and attitudes and a change of beliefs. this was my spiritual awakening. Waking up is what happens in response to the question “Who is having these experiences?” and searching neither thought nor emotion to find an answer. It is not the process of having an experience, however ecstatic and profoundly mystical it may be. It is the understanding of that which has an experience, or that which lives through us and is eternally present through all time and experience. To wake up we have to give up the idea that we are a personal identity who is seeking experiences, and begin to wonder what is really true underneath and behind all experiences that humans live. my addiction was like leprosy I had a disease of addiction which manifested isteslf in many forms. sexual material aswel as a mind altering substance. I was waking up I had a renewal of the mind I had a spiritual awakening. which leaded me into a spiritual life a selfless life and change in the very way I live my life to day thanks to my higher power.

How awesome for you...Enlightenment and Awakening is a beautiful thing to experience...

Once the soul awakens, the search begins and you can never go back. From then on, you are inflamed with a special longing that will never again let you linger in the lowlands of complacency and partial fulfillment. The eternal makes you urgent. You are loath to let compromise or the threat of danger hold you back from striving toward the summit of fulfillment.

“Once the soul awakens, the search begins and you can never go back. From then on, you are inflamed with a special longing that will never again let you linger in the lowlands of complacency and partial fulfillment. The eternal makes you urgent. You are loath to let compromise or the threat of danger hold you back from striving toward the summit of fulfillment.”

― John O'Donohue, Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom

Ok this was long . . . and being that I'm quite tired I had to go back a few times to read this. I like it though. Kind of sums up what life really is/means