SPIRITUAL AWAKENING: What it Means to Live a Spiritual Life

by Julianne Kulosa

Julianne is a Spiritual Intuitive and Guide, empowering others to live a life of miracles and magic through trusting the power of love.

Spirituality is something I’ve been passionate about since I was a child.  I’ve been most interested in lifting that thin veil between the reality we’ve been taught is “real” and the one that contains magic and miracles, the one where anything is possible and everything is an aspect of the divine.  Some people have stories of their spiritual awakening, those sudden profound experiences that changed their world.  Others, like me, are slow and steady.
 
I understand that spirituality is also my “hobby”.  Not everyone is an avid researcher and experience seeker like me.  Maybe you are passionate about your relationships, career, health, nature, music, art, or sports.
 
Most of us weren’t trained to talk about spirituality, so it’s becomes a bit of a mystery.  It’s either enmeshed in religion, a taboo subject at the dinner table like politics is, or considered unrealistic, “woo-woo” or new age thinking.  If we do go there, it’s compartmentalized.  Today I’ll be spiritual when I meditate in the morning, then I’ll eat, get some exercise, work, be with and take care of my family and friends, and relax in front of the television.  
 
The thing is, spirituality isn’t just a form of entertainment or a hobby.  It is the nature of who we are.  It permeates every aspect of our lives.  It is there when you wake and while you are sleeping.  Why would you want to consciously separate it out from the rest of your life?
 
That’s an easy one to answer:  When we feel separate, or compartmentalize spirituality from other aspects of our lives, it is simply a part of our forgetting.  Spirituality is a journey, one of forgetting our true divine nature and then remembering. 
 
Truth, deep wisdom, is a felt experience and state of being, so it is difficult to put words to.  Once we start to talk about our true nature, there is a natural feeling of separation from it in order to understand and dissect it. 
 
What I want you to know is that you cannot separate yourself or your life from your true authentic self.  It’s all part of the game, an illusion!  It’s not like, “Well, I don’t meditate, I don’t live from my heart, I don’t believe in God, or I don’t go to church.  I’m not into spirituality.”  Or worse, “I’m not spiritual enough.  I’m not aware enough, loving enough, happy enough, or don't practice enough.”
 
Being spiritual can easily become a game of getting to some place, some ideal life or way of being, that you aren’t already at.  One day, you’ll arrive.

What if you have arrived, right here, right now?  What if there’s nothing to do but practice remembering you’re perfect just the way you are, with all your “imperfections”? 
 
Yes, it is a practice.  We’ve built up a strong wall to have us feel safe and in control of an ever-changing reality.  This wall is filled with habits that have us successfully survive this life yet keep in place the veil of illusion between what we were raised to believe reality is and the true nature of ourselves and the universe. 
 
Are we doing something wrong if we’re suffering?  Absolutely not!  Suffering is what propels us toward remembering.  Suffering is purposeful and part of our soul’s journey.  It is a gift, a teacher and is divine. 

Whatever screams at you as not divine and spiritual is exactly the thing asking you to remember.
 
There is a reason why you’ll keep hearing about the power of the present moment.  It is because your spiritual practice is right now, in this moment.  Right now you can choose to remember, despite any circumstance. 
 
What could be more important? 
 
If you are struggling financially, consciously practicing living a spiritual life makes available the reality that abundance is the nature of the universe.  If you notice your home is dirty or you need to take a shower, it could be because you are drawn toward the truth of beauty and the deep care for honoring your body and environment.  If you want more love in your life, it could be because you are being called to love yourself more than ever before.  If you are upset with someone, it could be a call to listen to and understand others, and yourself, more deeply.  If someone is violent toward you or others, it could be a way to alert you to the violence within yourself and to see that you deserve to be honored, respected and loved.  If you want to lose weight, it could be a call to love your body, care for it more deeply, and shift your relationship with food from enjoying your food to infusing your food with joy.  There is plenty more to list, but you can see that spirituality is a shift in perspective and a state of being that includes every aspect of our lives. 
 
Who does not want to feel free to be authentically self-expressed, seen and loved for all that they are?  Who does not want to trust themselves, to feel joy, to feel loved, and have a rich and meaningful life?  Spirituality gives us an opportunity to be empowered rather than victimized by a dangerous world, filled with rules, limitations, lack and just simply unfair experiences. 
 
We do not need to seek out living a spiritual life, for we are already living one. Waking up to this reality is what has the universe be able to support the fulfillment of our dreams in magical and miraculous ways. 

Most of the world is asleep, and this is also a part of the game afoot.  You, my beloved, are waking up.  How do I know?  Because you’re reading this.  Know that it’s not your job to wake others up.  It is for you to wake up more fully, experiencing the beauty, perfection, magic and love that permeates every moment of your life when you choose to see it.  This includes when you notice you are sleepy, drowsy or asleep.  It’s all a part of your waking up to the truth of who you authentically are. It is your offering and service to the world.
 
Is the goal, then, to wake up fully?  It would be easy to say yes, but honestly, I’m so done with that goal.  Instead, let your goal be to trust your process here and now, infusing your life with joy in all that you are and all that you do.  For today you are alive!  How cool is it to get to be a multi-dimensional spiritual being able to create and have experiences in a dense physical world? 
 
Let it go, just let all that “yadda yadda” talk in your head go, for just this moment.  Put your hands on your heart and breathe.  Right now, at this very moment, there is so much to be grateful for and appreciate.  Truly!  Look around you or look within you, seeking out the sparks of beauty, love, care, peacefulness, connection and abundance that are here right now.  Right now, move in the direction of your deepest values, your greatest heart’s desires and full self-expression of the wonderful, magical, divine and joyful gift that YOU are.