Dealing With ‘Unawakened’ Friends And Family

Spiritual awakening is a profound shift in our perception that forever alters the way we experience life. But after we have made the shift it can be difficult to relate to less spiritually aware friends and relatives and leave one feeling lonely and deeply isolated.

The following strategies can be helpful in cultivating more harmony between yourself and ‘unconscious’ people without compromising your own energy vibration.

COMPASSION AND EMPATHY

At one time you were also not awakened. Think back to what that was like. What kind of thoughts dominated your mind? How did you feel about your life? How did you feel in general? The truth is, although you’ve gone through a spiritual awakening, you can still relate to those who have not. You have a point of reference for this.

Someone who is unconscious typically doesn’t have a pleasant inner world, because they aren’t intentionally governing it. Think back to what your life and most importantly – your relationship with yourself and your mind – looked like before your awakening. What did your own resistance look like? At some point your perspective shifted. But prior to that point – how receptive were you to changing your views and ideas? Especially when a family member came to you and said, “Hey, you’re doing it wrong.”

Put yourself in their shoes. Now that you’ve awakened you have the pleasure to start putting it to use in a way that serves the highest and best good of all. Remember that every soul is a spiritual being, and just because you have awakened to this fact, does not make you ‘better than’ anyone else. This is a trap that the ego likes to throw up early, and often along the spiritual path.

The ego is something we must constantly be mindful of. You are not more spiritual because you are vegan, or because you meditate, or because you do Yoga. If you are living in judgment of others through these practices, you are trapped in ego. Be mindful of yourself and come back to a state of compassion and empathy. Allow people to awaken in their own time.

You have to grow from the inside out. None can teach you, none can make you spiritual. There is no other teacher but your own soul ~ Swami Vivekananda

DISCRETION AND TACT

Just because you know something, doesn’t mean you should share it with everyone who cares to listen.

Allow people to awaken in their own time. You are likely to notice where people can make minor shifts in their life and create a great deal more harmony for themselves… and of course you want to share that! The problem is, in a lower state of consciousness, unsolicited advice almost always feels like judgment. If you think about it, you’re basically telling the person they aren’t good enough the way they are.

Remember your own process of awakening? You had experiences that provided the evidence that supported your new understanding and awareness. Don’t expect people to simply take your word, when they have no experience of their own yet. Instead, meet them where they are, not where you are.

If you just dump information or unsolicited opinions on friends and family, they are not likely to be very receptive. They’re not aligned with that vibration yet, so they can’t actually receive the information. Don’t stress out about it. Wait until you are asked for guidance or insight. Allow their awakening to be an organic process.

Remember there is great wisdom in silence. Knowing when to speak and when not to speak. If you’re living the example of the principles you want to see in your friends and family, they will come to you. Just live within the integrity and authenticity of Spirit.

By the way, they may ask you for advice and then not follow it. Accept this and don’t take it personally. Be assured, if nothing else, that you have planted a seed.

The great awareness comes slowly, piece by piece. The path of spiritual growth is a path of lifelong learning. The experience of spiritual power is basically a joyful one ~ M. Scott Peck

LEARN AND GROW

Unwakened people bring you blessings in the form of challenges. They are asking you to grow and to define your own experience. They teach you to react less and get in touch with a deeper compassion that sees their experience for what it is. A lower vibration expression in resistance to the beautiful abundant and mystical flow of the universe.

They call on you to practice the soul perspective, and to hone your own sense of connectedness and unconditional love. They also highlight that you have come to hold judgment against aspects that you feel are ‘not spiritual’ or ‘lower vibration’. This is a form of resistance in you.

When we regard lower vibration experiences with compassion instead of judgment, we not only create more harmony in our relationships, but we also heal this rift within ourselves and come to know ourselves more authentically.

There will always be times when you aren’t at your best spiritually, but that does not make your spiritual experience any less meaningful or necessary. That’s true for you and for anyone else. It’s okay to have lower vibration experiences, the idea is to learn from them so you can grow beyond. And then to use your experience to connect and empathize even more deeply with others.

RELEASE AND LET GO

Something a lot of people don’t realize when they begin awakening, is that not all of their loved ones are coming with them on the same journey right now. Depending on where someone’s level of consciousness is, they may be downright hostile to your new spiritual outlook on life. Some of these people are going to exit your life, and that’s okay. Let them go with love.

You may also come to realize that there are certain situations you can no longer tolerate. Especially in the case of abusive relationships, its important to honor this.

We are all equally capable of spiritual awakening. It may not seem that way, at times. Some of us are so caught up in the drama of our day-to-day existence that we have lost track of who we really are. But eventually, all of us will make the discovery of our true nature ~ Victor Shamas

A spiritual awakening can leave you feeling isolated, lonely and that no one understands you anymore. Some ambiguous sense of belonging you didn’t realize you had, is suddenly gone and you feel like an outsider. You may have explosive conflicts with people, or people may just quietly drift away from you. As you raise your vibration you may come to a place where you are no longer in alignment with some of the people in your life.

There is a profound lesson here around letting go of the attachment to outcomes in our lives. We let go of the exceptions we have around the people in our lives. We accept that our paths may diverge, and we can love them and let them go without judgment. We may be hopeful that our paths may come together again one day, but not in a desperate, or needy way. So, allow this to happen and don’t take it personally if some paths diverge.

If you’re feeling isolated in your Spiritual awakening, I hope these strategies will help you find common ground with those who have not yet awakened, and deal with this sometimes challenging dynamic from a heart-centered state that helps you maintain and even deepen your relationships.