Many people seek the spiritual gifts of insight, but when they find them, the outcomes are not what they were expecting. True spiritual insight opens our hearts and minds, which has some unintended consequences.
Increasing the bandwidth of the heart can be scary because you are venturing into unknown territory, which is a big change in how we perceive reality. Change is terrifying, even when you know it is for the better. Understanding change is an excellent place to start this journey of self-discovery.
Most people think of perception as something that happens with the senses, but our senses are only part of the equation. Perception is a process that involves our whole being, body, mind, and soul; this is where the heart comes in.
True Spiritual Insight and Perception
Insight is the ability to see clearly and grasp the solution to a complex problem. It can be a sudden revelation or an eureka experience. Einstein calls this intuitive thinking. People usually associate perception with the five senses, but perception takes place in the mind, not the senses.
Perception is a subjective process. The mind filters data using the values and beliefs from our worldview and then provides it to create a picture that aligns with these beliefs. Expanding awareness is the key to increasing the bandwidth of both insight and perception.
“While part of what we perceive comes through our senses, another part (and it may be the larger part) always comes out of our own mind.” — William James
“If you have the understanding to first notice the signs, continue with the courage to follow them.” ― Nikki Rowe
It is only natural for the spiritual explorer to seek spiritual gifts of insight that help to move us along the path. At first, we welcome the increase in perception, but we soon realize it increases our awareness and emotional vulnerability. That makes things interesting. These changes in awareness and emotion can provide the catalyst for positive activism, or they can be the source of frustration.
This new level of insight and perception is also emotional territory. It can be scary. The immediate reaction of the ego is to run and hide from this new level of vulnerability. That is when you need to have the courage to follow your heart.
“Spiritual awakening is the most essential thing in man’s life, and it is the sole purpose of being. Is not civilization, in all its tragic forms, a supreme motive for awakening?”― Khalil Gibran
It may be essential for the spiritual being, but it is disastrous for the ego and it’s also not something the popular culture likes either. You can’t package and sell it, so it is a threat to all things commercial. (1)
Many of the holy texts of religion contain the key to understanding true spiritual insight, but it is not what you think. Look closely at the lives of Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad. They did not receive their revelations by reading texts. The stories of the great sages reveal that their eureka revelations came while they were in contemplation or meditation in the wilderness.
Spiritual Gifts of Insight
The first and most significant sign of the expansion of consciousness is when the qualities of the spirit come online. These are the gifts our ancestors keep safe in our DNA. We need something to open them.
The study of the Enneagram is one of the best tools for this task, as it will help you unmask the components of ego, our personality, and instincts. It will help you see the thought scripts of your default settings.
A companion tool with the Enneagram is the Repeating Question Exercise. Together, these methods will open the doors of the subconscious mind. These are tools that reveal gifts.
Learn to meditate. There are progressions for any lifestyle or situation. Anyone can use a simple two-step method that helps calm the active mind. It takes only one minute to learn and can be used almost anywhere.
There are four major categories of spiritual techniques that you can learn here for free.
1) Critical Thinking Methods
2) Techniques to Expand Awareness
3) Meditation Methods
4) Healing Techniques
All these methods provide gateways to the virtues of the soul or the spiritual gifts of insight.
How To Become One With Spiritual Insight
Among the gifts we have locked away in our minds are virtues of the spirit, which are the highest values of our nature. Once opened, they give us the motivation and ability to show them through actions. If we cultivate the virtues, the artificial boundaries of religious belief are unnecessary. It makes achieving oneness a possibility.
“The world does not need to be conquered. Instead, we need to conquer ourselves. To do this, we need to apply the tools which open our hearts and awareness to the virtues of the spirit. These are the spiritual gifts of insight and perception.” — Guru Tua
What are these virtues?
1) Appreciation
2) Blissfulness
3) Gratitude
4) Happiness
5) Joyfulness
6) Love
7) Mindfulness
8) Thankfulness
9) Serenity
These are the real treasures locked in our DNA. Each of these nine virtues of the spirit corresponds to the nine personality types, and each provides a doorway to our higher self. It opens the door to our virtues and reveals new levels of awareness, new feelings, and deep emotional ties to people and places.
When you read the list of these elements, most people don’t understand that they are something we live and “experience.” We are not just talking about them as philosophical propositions. These virtues are values of experience.
The funny thing is that awakening accomplishes everything religion promises but never delivers. One with spiritual insight forges their own path. They are not followers of religious doctrine or dogma. All you need to do is use the processes for expanding awareness and consciousness. The result is an awakening. Then, the virtues of our spirit become a welcome side effect.
Benefits and Effects of The Virtues
Greater Line-of-Sight
When we increase insight and perception also increase the line-of-sight of our awareness, which means we see things and value things differently. We see things we didn’t see before. An increase in the line of sight is also one of the irreversible signs of the growth of consciousness. On the one hand, this feels great. You recognize the small things that give our fragile world beauty. You can see the value of other people, places, and things.
But on the other hand, it means you see the pain and inequality in the world. This new line-of-sight gives you a new perspective on everything. One with spiritual insight is more empathic and sympathetic to injustice and inequity. These are symptoms that people don’t expect. It’s also one you can’t reverse.
When you are awake, you find gratitude and thankfulness in almost any situation. You learn to appreciate the people and circumstances in your life which are there to teach us lessons about life. Perspective provides beautiful insight. A beginner’s attitude leads to internal serenity, even when things aren’t going our way. If we allow our vision to expand, we see more than just our self-interests. The virtues of the heart shine through.
One of the easiest and most practical ways to increase awareness is to include self-observation skills in your wellness routine. These skills help you spot negative self-talk. These scripts often contain the roadblocks to your growth.
“Spiritual Awakening is awakening from the dream of thought.” — Eckhart Tolle
Increased Emotional Bandwidth
There is also more room in our hearts than we thought. So, this is good. It means we are no longer numb to the emotions of love and compassion. But it also makes us more emotionally vulnerable. So, we don’t just empathize with other people; we can feel their pain. This expansion of the heart empowers us to respond to others’ needs and other living things in the environment. It also means we experience the depth of new lows. (2)
If you are an Empath, you must learn skills to cope with the extra input. Thankfully, as you increase in the things you feel, you also have a more remarkable ability to guard against absorbing negative energy.
Sorry, but this is one of the spiritual awakening signs and irreversible symptoms. You can’t stop feeling empathy for people and the world. The growth of conscience is a side effect. So, it is an excellent strategy to include self-care in your wellness plan.
Stimulates Intellectual Curiosity
The growth of consciousness stimulates our curiosity. Again, this is a good thing. We learn to question everything. Your perception of the world will become more clear when engaging your interest with increased line-of-sight. Now, the logical fallacies of the cultural narrative will become more pronounced. (3)
Exercising your mind needs to be as important as exercising your body. The study of logical reasoning is a practical to exercise and protect your mind.
If you live in a culture or social situation where curiosity is not welcome, you must learn to be prudent when asking sensitive questions about beliefs. Spiritual awakening signs and symptoms are scary to those still awake. Your awakening may not be a good thing for those who don’t want you to change. Learn to guard your words and actions. However, controlling what you say doesn’t mean you should be fake and inauthentic.
We’ve learned that some cultures can be dangerous places for those who are freethinkers. Sadly, today, cultures still persecute those who dare to be innovative and think of the prescribed belief system.
Increased Ability to Connect with the Infinite
The more you meditate and connect with the infinite, the more you awaken. As a result, the more it becomes easier to meditate and connect with the transcendent. The side effects of awakening are synergistic.
The more you mediate, the easier it is for the mind to connect with the transcendent. As the mind becomes familiar with the bliss of pure consciousness, it will become easier to open the doors to higher consciousness states.
The transcendent is the 4th state of consciousness, also known as consciousness as pure consciousness or bliss consciousness. It is a partition of consciousness with unique metabolic characteristics that differ from waking, dreaming, and sleeping. It underlies all other states of awareness.
“There is one unity, unified wholeness, total natural law, in the transcendental unified consciousness.” — Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
“Your greatest awakening comes when you are aware of your infinite nature.” — Amit Ray
As your mind becomes familiar with this state, it grows into waking consciousness. Some know the resulting experience as “witnessing.” It’s the result of the mind’s natural growth of awareness.
Summation
Consciousness is like a rainbow with many colors of awareness. Don’t fear true spiritual insight. We will become more sensitive and vulnerable, but our capacity to compensate also increases. If you become a better person, you will become more empathetic. It brings the inequities and suffering of others into focus. It’s a perspective that will change your priorities, and the world will be better for it. So, be sure to include proper self-care and keep yourself well.
Don’t be afraid of growth and change. Learn to accept it and understand that it brings a whole new way of perceiving reality. Chances are, it will change the way you think. Those in your inner circle will notice the transformation. The downside is that this change in dynamics can cause differences of opinion.
References
(1) Reintroducing Consciousness in Psychopathology: Review of the Literature and Conceptual Framework: National Library of Medicine
(2) What is the Bandwidth of Perceptual Experience?: National Library of Medicine
(3) How Curiosity Enhances Hippocampus-Dependent Memory: The Prediction, Appraisal, Curiosity, and Exploration (PACE) Framework: National Library of Medicine h