The goal of human life is evolution, and this is about gradual growth and expansion of consciousness. It can be achieved through many different paths that ultimately lead in the same direction. Among them we can find paths of personal or spiritual development, awakening, ascending to higher dimensions, working with karma and much more. For the sake of simplicity, let us assume that all these paths signify evolution, and the latter signifies spiritual development. To sum up: the goal of our life is spiritual development.
What is spiritual development (evolution)? What are its characteristics?
Spiritual growth (evolution) is an internal phenomenon.
Imagine for a moment that there is a person who has negative thoughts and beliefs. He is not responsible for them, he duplicates them. He is not aware of them, and there are various negative situations in his life. Life situations always reflect our inner qualities (whether we are aware of it or not). The external reality acts as a mirror for the internal reality - beliefs, thoughts, ideas, judgments, etc. Therefore, in the above-mentioned example, if such a person does not consciously change beliefs and begin to consciously control the mind, negative situations will not leave his life. (they are just a mirror). Most people who operate on a level of ignorance try to change the outer mirror, rather than engaging in inner work on themselves. It is as if the animal, seeing its reflection in the mirror, frightens itself, does not recognize its reflection, jumps sideways, and then again and again moves away from itself and comes closer. It looks as if the animal did not take into account the possibility that it was just a reflection of itself. Ultimately, such a "struggle" brings failure, because by trying to change the world around us, we discourage people from ourselves, attract similar relationships, similar jobs, and although something has changed, everything seems to be repeating over and over again. The plot is the same, but the decorations change. Is it destiny? Is it a curse? Does it always have to be this way? Despite the change of people and place, we cannot run away from ourselves - our mirror remains a reflection of the same energies that are present inside us. That is why personal development is taking responsibility for yourself and internal work. If we want to change the external reality, which is our reflection, then we should "look at ourselves in the mirror", change something not in our reflection (external reality), but in ourselves (internal reality).
Spiritual development (evolution) is a fully personal, individual process.
Each of us as an individual is responsible for our own spiritual evolution. It means that no one will develop us spiritually on our behalf. Let us imagine for a moment that there is a universe in which spiritual beings mature to become full-fledged, strong co-creators of reality. On their way, they undergo various lessons and learn what and how to do. That is why life lessons are repeated until we learn them ourselves. Does this mean to avoid people? In no case! We need each other. In each of us, there is an aspect to both the student and the teacher. Our presence can be soothing, our wisdom is inspiring, and our words stimulate change. As human beings, we exchange experiences, views, information, and emotions with each other. It is part of the development process, and interpersonal relationships are one of the best laboratories for working on yourself. Let me give you an example now. Imagine a person who thinks they know better than you and tells you what is good for you, even though you are not asking them for advice. How do you feel in this situation? How does it feel to be recognized by someone as not like "you should be"? Do you feel like someone is trying to control you under their own dictation? Are you planning a conscious change? Will your change be out of fear of losing that person or out of love for yourself? It just so happens that people who show such an invasive attitude towards others do not understand that spiritual development is a personal phenomenon - do not interfere, force, induce, convince someone to change something that the person does not feel convinced of. Such actions are only an example of the fact that a person who forces us to do something, cannot take responsibility for himself - for example, find another partner, set boundaries, communicate his needs, change jobs, etc. Instead, he complains about what he sees. It is fruitless and not irresponsible.
Another example illustrating the phenomenon of lack of responsibility for one's own development and interfering with someone else is intolerance. Imagine that a person criticizes you for what you are and tells you what to change. How do you feel about it when you are not hurting anyone? Do you feel this is okay? You don't hurt anyone, you don't force yourself into someone else's life, you are just yourself, and yet someone tells you how you should feel, what to wear or how to function. Don't listen to these people! They cannot take responsibility for their own lives and waste time taking care of yours just to distract from their own. Where would intolerance come from if people took responsibility for themselves without trying to control someone else's path? If you do not tolerate some people in your life, take responsibility for it and change the environment, break off contacts, or move to somewhere else. Instead of trying to change people who are doing well, take care of yourself. Don't bring hatred - take responsibility for yourself instead.
People who focus on others only complicate their lives and their surroundings, unconsciously thinking that they are trying to teach someone how to live "better". People are teachers to others only by being present, helpful, and by example - not by persuasion, governing, or forcing others to change. Spiritual development is taking responsibility for yourself and not for others - it is about working on yourself and learning to control the internal environment, not controlling people (external environment).
Is it worth comparing your development with the spiritual development of another person?
Each person has different lessons to follow. Each person learns differently in the course of his life, and most often at different times. It just means that one person can learn to set personal boundaries today and another in 20 years. Are any of them better? Of course not - every person goes through their own personal and internal processes at the right time and pace for them. Instead of judging yourself or criticizing yourself for shortcomings, grow by appreciating your own pace. Besides, not everyone has to learn the same - we come from different homes and have different problems to solve or gaps to be filled. It must certainly be said that the path of our development is individual and unique, and that is why it should never be compared with the path of another person. It's like arguing about what is better - food, travel, relationships or fun - each of them has a different function, is unique and equally needed in this world. So are you and your path - you are a unique being with extraordinary potential.
How fast should you develop?
Imagine someone who puts spiritual development on the pedestal of his life so much that nothing else matters. He is constantly developing, constantly transforming, constantly talking and doing only what is spiritual, but at dizzying speed. Often such people have a lot of problems with the physical body - it cannot adapt to the changes that have taken place inside. As humans, we have a biological body and any changes that occur within it take time and require patience. You must integrate any spiritual changes, ground your energies and make sure you are in harmony. People who develop too quickly are not in harmony, and instead most often chase perfectionism, run away from reality, or have made their happiness dependent on development. The body cannot keep up with such rapid changes of spirit. Ultimately, such individuals do not respect their own natural pace of development - perhaps they have never taken the time and attention to learn their own pace, or they do not care enough about the only thing that holds them in the physical world - the physical body. They are like an athlete on steroids - they think in the short term, focusing on the whim of growth, ignoring health and side effects.
Since spiritual development is an internal and individual phenomenon, why work with healers? What are some ways to accelerate your spiritual development?
I will answer these and other questions in the next article.
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