A self-awakened individual has let go of their attachment to the outside world.
Someone who is aware understands that all meaning and fulfillment must come from within. Life is not about what happens to us, but how we respond to what happens to us.
This mentality is what leads to freedom, happiness, and personal fulfillment.
Awareness is also the ultimate form of self-care, since attachment to externals always causes stress to the body and mind one way or another.
Attachment is Unnatural
To understand the difference between the “sleeping” and “awake,” we must understand attachment.
To be attached is to expect that some form of gratification, happiness, or fulfillment will come from an outside source. This can be anything, from expectations you have for a sports team, to expecting your partner to act a certain way in a relationship, to thinking that a new car or house will bring you happiness.
Attachment can vary wildly, and as long as you have some form of ego, it is unavoidable.
Even the act of sitting down to a sumptuous meal and expecting that it will taste good and make you feel good is a form of attachment, albeit relatively harmless.
When considering toxic attachments, these mostly revolve around core emotional states. For example, someone who is always sad when a certain item they like is out of stock when they visit the store.
If your emotions are dictated by outside stimuli, it means you are unhealthily attached to the outside world.
To be self-awakened is to understand the absurdity of attachment and realize that fulfillment and gratification are yours to seek and experience on your own terms.
What are the Benefits of Being Self-Awakened?
A life full of bounty instead of disappointment is the best way to describe the awakened state. Being “awake” unlocks your life’s purpose and allows you to see, possibly for the first time, the true nature of the world around you and the Path you should be following.
1. Stronger Sense of Purpose
Unshakable and purpose-driven, an awakened soul has made peace with themselves and can better tap into their life’s purpose. This is because, lacking the blinders of the ego, it is much easier to see the threads of energy around us and work on more meaningful goals.
2. Control Over Your Emotions
Emotional mastery is one of the highlights of the awakened state. Far too many people are slaves to their own emotions, forced to have to deal with whatever “feelings” arise due to outside stimuli. The self-awakened individual is not pulled by the tides of happenstance, which leads to personal liberation from the bondage of negative and depressive states like anger and jealousy.
3. Form Your True Identity
Most of us hardly know our true selves, because they are hidden by our egos. Once the ego has been dissolved, your true Self is allowed to shine through. Many find that their true identity shares little in common with their “sleeping self.” They are happier, more energetic, more creative, and no longer form opinions or beliefs based on attachment.
4. Healing From Trauma
Trauma is one of the leading causes of overdeveloped egos, and while this is somewhat of a protection mechanism, it leads to complications as we grow older. The self-awakening process heals your trauma by helping you overcome the attachments that are associated with the traumatic event. This includes, shame, regret, and the endless “what if” scenarios that get lodged in our psyche.
5. Healthier Life Decisions
Once you are more self-aware, it becomes far easier to make better decisions. This includes having enough self-compassion to eat better, form better relationships, and discard bad habits. The awakened are also far more prone to spiritual endeavors, as they understand better the nature of reality and their place in it.
6. Easier to Live in the Moment
To be as impactful and fulfilled as possible, you have to live in the moment. Attachment to the past or future is a sickness that leads to anger, apathy, inaction, fear, and a lack of purpose. Once you are able to fully embrace the present moment, you become acquire that charismatic energy of attraction that enables you to smash your goals and live your purpose.
7. Resilient Under Stress
When you lack perspective, it becomes difficult to endure stress. An awakened individual understands the full scope of what’s going on and holds no attachment to outcomes. This makes them extremely hardy both emotionally and mentally.
8. Better Serve Those Around You
When you are free from attachment and emotionalism, you can be of much greater use to others. This is because your assistance will never come with caveats or stipulations, you will make better decisions in general, and your empathy and compassion will give you insight into the true core needs of others.
Achieving Self-Empowerment Through Awakening
The awakened are empowered, not because of a superiority complex or anything so mundane, but because they are comfortable with themselves and understand that they hold all the cards.
Until you are fully “awake and aware,” you’re not going to feel like the main character in your own story. This is because the energy and actions of others can easily sway you.
If outside events can force you to “feel” something, you will subconsciously understand that you are powerless and ineffectual. This causes deep-seated anger and frustration.
You can trace most “bad moods” to this exact kind of frustration that comes from lack of empowerment.
Negative emotions are typically the result of some inner feeling of powerlessness over the world around you. A person didn’t act the way you wanted and there was nothing you could do about it, your favorite sports team lost and all your friends are getting on you about it, you’re stuck in traffic but you expected not to be.
We feel powerless and unable to exert our Will over the world around us, and this causes automatic frustration.
It’s a childlike response born of the ego, that exists just to trick you into feeling like you have some kind of power. It’s all an illusion however.
There is no power in emotionalism and attachment.
Self-empowerment comes from control, and this control is achieved through living wide awake.
Learn to Let Go of Attachment
Attachment will never serve you. Understanding this is a key part of self-mastery and practicing it will empower you to do great things and live a happier, more fulfilled life.
- Practice appreciation and observation instead of immersion.
- Remind yourself to stop and center yourself in the moment whenever possible. “Stop and smell the roses” often.
- Put yourself in situations and make choices where both outcomes provide no benefit to you.
- Learn emotional self-care. If an emotion makes you feel bad, know that it is 100% okay to let go of it.
- Start living minimalist. Discard junk and unnecessary items. Physical clutter and mental clutter are relational energies of attachment.
- Base your decisions not off of what other people can do for you but what you can do for other people.
- Never expect anyone to cater to you for any reason.
- Meditate and become comfortable with your Self.
One of the best methods for learning how to let go of attachment is to practice what I call the “island meditation.”
Find a quiet space and put away all distractions. Meditate in a comfortable position at length, until you feel more relaxed.
Once you are ready, imagine yourself on a lost island. You don’t want for anything because the island is bountiful and the weather is fair. You have shelter, food, water, and no danger is currently present.
The only caveat is that there are no other people, you have none of your personal belongings, and you are not being rescued any time soon.
Imagine that this is the state you will live in for the next year. Or the next decade. Or perhaps forever.
Digest the feelings that arise from this and learn to be comfortable with the idea that you are all you need.
Until you truly lose your attachment to others and external events, you will act problematically.
An egoistic response might be, “what about my kids? What about my husband? What about my mother?”
What about them? You can miss and mourn a person without letting their absence cripple you or make you angry.
That is the key behind being self-awakened. Understanding the scope of your power and presence that no one can take away, either by their actions or lack thereof.
What most people assume is compassion and love is actually a toxic cocktail of attachment and emotionalism.
If you can’t bear the thought of being separated from someone, ask yourself, how do these emotions help the situation? How better could you serve a person if you weren’t tied up in your expectations and false “version” of them?
Living in an Awakened State
Internalize the points above and begin living a more purposeful life.
Over time you come to realize that many of our biggest problems are of our own making and that if not kept in check, our mind is one of our greatest enemies.
Once you wrestle down these forces and reclaim control, it is like lifting a veil.
Sages have always referred to these different states as being “sleeping” or “awake” because they are so accurate.
A sleeping individual is powerless, led around by mental phantasms. The real world is hidden from them behind a colorful dream, that’s often loaded with emotionalism and fear.
On the other hand, an awakened individual sees the world for what it truly is. They are in control and can’t be swayed by dreams.
Stop relying on your emotions and start letting truth guide your way.
— Digital Sages (@DigitalSages) August 22, 2020
When you are asleep, everything may appear hazy, confusing, and may contain horrors lurking behind every corner. Even when you feel in control, that control can be snatched from you in an instant. Such is life when you are attached.
In the awakened state however, life is clear and refreshing. Everything falls into place and makes sense, and rarely dissolves into fear-based chaos.
The quality of your life is in your hands. It all starts by daring to open your eyes.
The founder of Digital Sages, Matt has an extensive background in self-mastery and has authored several books on the subject. His goal is to demystify important esoteric subjects and help people transform their lives through self-awareness and personal empowerment.