When people think of the higher self, they often think of something separate from the physical body, or possibly some old Indian esoteric theory or myth.
Some people don't even think about it at all. Some even confuse the higher self with the human conscious or soul. The truth is, the higher self is an elevated form of consciousness that exists whether you are aware of it or not. Being able to communicate openly with your higher self is what the true meaning of "woke" is.
According to Roxane Burnett, "Your Higher Self is, in simple terms, the highest aspect of you that can be attained and held in the physical body. It is the part of you that knows, sees, and understands at the highest level possible, while the physical part of you still continues to move around in the third dimension. Anchoring the wisdom of the Higher Self into your physicality is very much a part of our human spiritual evolution and purpose."
The process of "anchoring the wisdom of your omniscient higher self into your physicality," is called "Integration." Before completely understanding this process, one must go through the journey of spiritual Ascension. Opening, healing, tuning, and balancing your chakras will most definitely aid in this transformation.
Related: How Opening Your 7 Chakras Can Transform Your Mind, Body & Spirit
This read will list 5 universal and collective higher self truths that will help you navigate through life struggles with more clarity and ease.
1. You Are The Co-Creator Of Your Reality
When I was growing up, my mother used to always say, that "it is not up to man to direct his step." It always annoyed me because I wrote it off as some religious rhetoric that preached against having an "independent spirit" or the desire to live out your own life how you saw fit. Now that I am older, and have learned how to tap into my higher self, I finally realize the true meaning of that scripture.
It means that at a higher conscious level, we are truly creating our experience from our higher selves. This is where the ideas of "creating your own reality," "manifestation," and the "law of attraction" is powered. We have been born into a consciousness that tells us the world outside ourselves is what creates the circumstances of our lives.
In reality, everything about our existence is created from within.
Think of your higher self as a puppet master in a higher dimension, controlling your thoughts and your actions. That puppet is you. While you can't control the actions of others or the external unforeseen circumstances that affect you all the time, you can most definitely receive guidance from your puppet master, or your higher self as to what the next steps are to take in this journey called life.
When you fully become aware of your "creator consciousness," you can actively begin to change your reality. Tapping into this consciousness is tapping into the wholeness of yourself and the infinite connectedness to everyone and thing that exists in and out of your realm of awareness.
In this awareness, you go from being a victim to victor, feeling power-less to power-ful.
You truly become a free spirit.
2. Everyone You Meet Is A Reflection Of Yourself
Everyone who comes into your life does not come by chance. Think of people in your families or your circles as part of your individual human manifestation and you are part of theirs. This idea is also related to the "Six Degrees of Separation" theory. Each relationship, no matter how long, deep, or brief, is a mirror into your own soul.
On a higher level, if your spirit is wounded in any way, you will attract someone to you whose own energetic wounds will reflect yours.
For instance, I once had an old roommate who assumed that I abandoned her in the city after she had taken quite a while during a walk-in interview. I waited for some time out in the sun before I decided to go grab a slice of pizza for her and I. When I returned, she was nowhere to be found and her phone was off, so I went home. Once I got home, she went off on me for leaving her in the city. My rebuttal was that I did not leave her and that I actually was looking out for her, as I tossed her pizza on the kitchen table. She triggered me into a full-fledged panic attack.
Her fear of abandonment mirrored my frustration with feeling underappreciated and unreciprocated by my friends and family. From a higher level of awareness, I was able to understand why I was triggered in her reaction to how I triggered her.
This understanding can help you better deal with conflicts with people in your life. Using your higher self to understand arguments allows you to acknowledge your own trauma that you find in the reflection of others. It is in this moment that you can heal your own pain and empathize with the trauma of the person who pulled the trigger.
3. Everything Happens For A Reason
People have been using this saying wrong since the times of Aristotle. There is a difference between things happening as a result of cause or effect, versus as a result of something that is divinely purposed.
When an electrical fire starts in a building, killing an innocent family, the reason for this may be that there was a faulty wire within the walls that went under the radar because the landlord did not keep up with his building inspections. The term becomes true of divinely orchestrated purpose when you are walking in your truth, guided by your higher self. Every soul has a purpose.
When your soul has a purpose, you spend your lifetime, through trial and error, learning what your purpose is.
During this time, certain karmic situations and relationships happen in order for you to learn lessons that bring you closer to fulfilling your purpose. The way in which these lessons unfold, is "what happens for a reason." Since you are the co-creator of your reality, certain things happen in your experience that are most definitely orchestrated by your higher self.
This is what the saying, "God doesn't give you more than you can handle" means. If you are indeed directing your step, wouldn't you know from a higher level of awareness what you can or cannot deal with? Don't you get back up with every lesson that makes you fall, with a new awareness, understanding, motivation, or redirection?
That does not happen for no reason.
As for all the folks that lose their physical bodies along their current lifetimes, due to things beyond their control, I believe it is up to that soul to incarnate into another lifetime and continue living its soul purpose.
4. Intuition Is Direction From Your Higher Self
Your intuition acts as divine direction from your higher self. Whenever you have a gut feeling or intuitive hunch about something, you are receiving a message from a higher form of consciousness. When you get a tingle that rises up your spine, or if the hair on your arms or neck stand up, this is a physical response to intuition, and something you should pay attention to. Intuition is also known as "The Sixth Sense." It extends past our 3D physical senses of, sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste.
Intuition is pure cognitive information that is not interfered by conscious reasoning. This intuitive guidance comes in the form of dreams, signs, synchronicities, clairvoyance, claircognizance, clairsentience, and clairaudience. Intuition also brings forth creativity, innovation, change, and free thinking.
Intuition connects you to the highest form of truth, which cannot come from outside of you, rather within.
The heart and the mind can both succumb to ego, which can be swayed by illusion, and 3D low vibrational energies. When you connect to your higher self, you connect to your ultimate truth, which collectively unites all humanity. This means that intuition is energetic. It is mind-blowing to understand that we have the ability to tap into something that comes directly from higher realms, connected to a field of energy or collective consciousness web, measured in vibrations and frequency.
5. Your Higher Self Doesn't Recognize Time
Your higher self exists in a space that transcends linear time tables. It doesn't have to worry about running late, or clocking in, and it doesn't place timers on when it wants to start a family, or open a new business. It exists perfectly in a higher frequency that is untouched by a three-dimensional understanding of time, or anything for that matter. I am learning that the old way of viewing time is not only toxic, but it causes panic, anxiety, unrealistic expectations, and self-doubt.
As we all begin to ascend, our attachments with time, or the expectation of when things should happen, will begin to dissolve in a very painful way, however, it will not remain painful, if you learn to replace your expectation of time with your realization of surrender. I have driven myself crazy waiting for my soulmate to show up, or waiting for a response for a new job, or waiting for other people to be ready to meet me where I am, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. I have finally realized that I am causing my own demise by depending on my own 3D expectation of time.
There is divine timing and order to everything.
You must trust that you are infinitely guided by your own higher self. I will no longer ask my spirit guides how long something is going to take. I will only ask them to steer me in the right direction. The next time you feel yourself stressing over time. Just STOP. Put a middle finger up to it, breath, and just be present.
When you are so wrapped up in time, you are missing the opportunity to absorb divine information from your higher self. Be quiet and listen. If time waits for nobody, why do we wait for time?
Featured image by Getty Images
- A Guide To Opening Chakras - xoNecole: Women's Interest, Love, Wellness, Beauty ›
- Human Design + You, Me & Intimacy - xoNecole: Women's Interest, Love, Wellness, Beauty ›
RELATED
While speaking to xoNecole, Eva shares that she’s a lot like the beloved 1994 character in many ways. “Lyric is so me. She's the odd flower. A flower nonetheless, but definitely not a peony,” she tells us.
“She's not the average flower you see presented, and so she reminds me of myself. I'm a sunflower, beautiful, but different. And what I loved about her character then, and even more so now, is that she was very sure of herself.
"Sure of what she wanted in life and okay to sacrifice her moments right now, to get what she knew she deserved later. And that is me. I'm not an instant gratification kind of a person. I am a long game. I'm not a sprinter, I'm a marathon.
America first fell in love with Eva when she graced our screens on cycle 3 of America’s Next Top Model in 2004, which she emerged as the winner. Since then, she's ventured into different avenues, from acting on various TV series like House of Payne to starring on Real Housewives of Atlanta.
Je-Caryous Johnson Entertainment
Eva praises her castmates and the play’s producer, Je’Caryous for her positive experience. “You know what? Je’Caryous fuels my audacity car daily, ‘cause I consider myself an extremely audacious woman, and I believe in what I know, even if no one else knows it, because God gave it to me. So I know what I know. That is who Je’Caryous is.”
But the mom of three isn’t the only one in the family who enjoys acting. Eva reveals her daughter Marley has also caught the acting bug.
“It is the most adorable thing you can ever see. She’s got a part in her school play. She's in her chorus, and she loves it,” she says. “I don't know if she loves it, because it's like, mommy does it, so maybe I should do it, but there is something about her.”
Overall, Eva hopes that her contribution to the role and the play as a whole serves as motivation for others to reach for the stars.
“I want them to walk out with hope. I want them to re-vision their dreams. Whatever they were. Whatever they are. To re-see them and then have that thing inside of them say, ‘You know what? I'm going to do that. Whatever dream you put on the back burner, go pick it up.
"Whatever dream you've accomplished, make a new dream, but continue to reach for the stars. Continue to reach for what is beyond what people say we can do, especially as [a] Black collective but especially as Black women. When it comes to us and who we are and what we accept and what we're worth, it's not about having seen it before. It's about knowing that I deserve it.”
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Let’s make things inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter for love, wellness, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Feature image by Leon Bennett/WireImage
You know, sometimes, when I go back and look at some of the articles that I’ve penned for the platform before, I truly can’t believe how fast time flies. Take the piece, “What's The Difference Between Being 'Religious' And Being 'Spiritual', Anyway?” — now, how in the world did it turn five this year? I can’t even begin to wrap my mind around it. And although the piece does address some key points — like the fact that there is somewhat of a difference between being spiritual and being religious (although more people should read James 1:27 in order to understand how the Bible defines religion to be…it just might surprise them) — I want to explore a deeper angle of our spirituality, along with what we should require of it.
Today, let’s look at spirituality from the perspective of “the quality of being concerned with the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things,” “a quality that goes beyond religious affiliation, that strives for inspiration, reverence, awe, meaning and purpose…” (Murray and Zentner) and, perhaps, more than anything else, “the relationship between ourselves and something larger."
You know, it’s a woman by the name of Dr. Maya Spencer who once said, “Spirituality means knowing that our lives have significance in a context beyond a mundane everyday existence at the level of biological needs that drive selfishness and aggression. It means knowing that we are a significant part of a purposeful unfolding of Life in our universe.” Indeed.
And while keeping that in mind, if this is a time of your life when you would like to “clean or cleanse your spirituality” by doing things like removing negative energy, getting rid of old or counterproductive patterns and/or by stepping into an elevated space as far as your human spirit and soul are concerned, you might be pleasantly surprised by how easy and even fun that can be for you to do.
To effectively clean/cleanse your spirit, start by asking — and answering — the following five spirituality-focused questions:
What Inspires You?
Unsplash
Remember how, in the intro, I shared that one definition of spirituality is “a quality that goes beyond religious affiliation, that strives for inspiration, reverence, awe, meaning and purpose…”? That is actually where I am pulling a lot of these questions from because, the reality is that focusing on things that inspire you, intentionally pondering your purpose, and also by encouraging yourself to become an overall better human being — these things definitely tie into your spiritual side whether you are “traditionally religious” or not.
And so, when it comes to cleansing your spirituality in this season, a great question to start off with is what actually inspires you? And listen, believe it or not, inspire is a pretty layered word. I say that because, while one definition is “to produce or arouse (a feeling, thought, etc.),” another is “to communicate or suggest by a divine or supernatural influence,” while synonyms of the word include excite, affect, cause, motivate, provoke, and instill. This means that if you truly want to say or do things from a place of inspiration, you need to produce things from a divine or supernatural space (interesting, right?).
The reason why it’s so important to “spring clean” in this department is, oftentimes you can be motivated or provoked by things that aren’t really all that good, healthy and/or beneficial for you (social media fast, anyone?) — things that take your mind off of what’s divine — sacred, godly and extremely good. As a result, you find yourself producing out of a mind and heart space that is compromised when it comes to your core standards, values, and even goals.
So yes, in the effort to cleanse your spirituality, begin by really reflecting on what you claim inspires you — then revisit what the word actually means…just to be sure that you are being honest with yourself about whether something or one is truly inspiring you…or not.
What Amplifies Your Purpose?
Unsplash
Purpose is always something that is going to be a pretty big deal to me. That’s why I’ve written articles for the platform like “What Does It Mean To Have 'Purposeful Relationships'?,” “Please Stop Picking People Who Don't 'Fit' Your Purpose,” “The Conversation You Need To Have With Yourself Before The New Year Begins,” “How To Handle 'Purpose Fatigue'” and “5 Signs You Are Living Your True Purpose.” It’s because really, if you’re not focused, most of all, on the reason why you exist in the first place, nothing else is going to be fully, truly, and authentically fulfilling for you.
So, when it comes to this part of your spirituality, first take some time to make sure that you know what your purpose is. If you have no clue and you’re ready to find out, as a wise person once said, wisdom comes in the questions, even more than the answers, and Rockwood Leadership Institute has a whopping 132 questions that you can ask yourself in order to get to the root of what your purpose is here. On the flip side, if you do know and you’re just not feeling completely satisfied in what you are currently doing as it relates to executing your purpose, it sounds to me like you are going through a bit of a “purpose growth spurt,” and yes, there is such a thing.
For instance, I am very clear on what my purpose in life is — I am here to teach what I study and research about when it comes to the topics of covenant marriage, sex, and the biblical Sabbath. All are covenant principles that have been unbelievably compromised in a thousand different ways. However, as I evolve, transform, and mature, my understanding of what I know does as well, and that “upgrades” how I approach and share my purpose with others. You see, purpose is never supposed to be stagnant…it is ever-shifting as far as how you accomplish things within it.
And that’s why, spiritually, it’s so important that you make sure that you are AMPLIFYING YOUR PURPOSE. To amplify is “to make larger, greater, or stronger; enlarge; extend.” If you are not putting forth the effort to do just this, there is some spiritual cleansing that must be done because, if there is one thing about a person’s purpose, it’s the fact that it’s HUGE which means that there will always be plenty to do within it until their time on this earth ends.
What Makes You Love Better…and More?
Unsplash
I believe I’ve mentioned before that a show that I loathe with every fiber of my being (and there really is so much to choose from these days — SMDH) is TV One’s For My Man. Not only is it a program that discourages full-level accountability, but it irks me to no end every time that it says that a woman did some heinous crime in the name of love. According to Scripture, GOD IS LOVE (I John 4:8&16). Not only that, but the Love Chapter in Scripture has a very healthy, sane, and mature take on how we should love and require love in return (I’m going to share two translations of I Corinthians 13:4-8 for expanded context):
“Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self. Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have. Love doesn’t strut, doesn’t have a swelled head, doesn’t force itself on others, isn’t always ‘me first,’ doesn’t fly off the handle, doesn’t keep score of the sins of others, doesn’t revel when others grovel, takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, puts up with anything, trusts God always, always looks for the best, never looks back, but keeps going to the end. Love never dies.” (I Corinthians 13 — Message)
“Love endures long and is patient and kind; love never is envious nor boils over with jealousy, is not boastful or vainglorious, does not display itself haughtily. It is not conceited (arrogant and inflated with pride); it is not rude (unmannerly) and does not act unbecomingly. Love (God’s love in us) does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking; it is not touchy or fretful or resentful; it takes no account of the evil done to it [it pays no attention to a suffered wrong]. It does not rejoice at injustice and unrighteousness, but rejoices when right and truth prevail. Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything [without weakening]. Love never fails [never fades out or becomes obsolete or comes to an end].” (I Corinthians 13 — AMPC)
Now, think about what you see displayed on television when it comes to relationships. Based on these verses, is it love? Is it really? Ponder all of the relationship content that’s on social media. Does it sound like this kind of love? Does it really? The times when you’ve done things that you know were purely rooted in selfishness, impatience, and/or refusing to do for others what you would want them to do for you — how can any of that be loving? If you do believe in God and you also believe that you were made in his image (Genesis 1:26-28), this means that a part of your own spiritual DNA is love. This also means that if you know that your love has been tainted by material or physical things (which, by definition, is the opposite of spirituality), it’s time to make some real adjustments.
That said, take some time, think about the people and things that you profess to love, and ask yourself if it’s really love or is it lust or entitlement or immaturity. Then ask yourself what you can do to love those individuals and items better.
Remember, since you are made from Love, it’s important that you love like you are.
How Effective Are You When It Comes to Compassion?
Unsplash
Personally, I think that whenever someone does something reckless and then follows up with the Bible says not to judge, I find it to be a supreme level of gaslighting. The context of that verse is saying that in the way that you judge, you will be judged and that you should make sure that you are right in the area that you are judging before you judge someone else (Matthew 7:1-5); however, be clear that judgment is a form of accountability which is why there are also verses like “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment” (John 7:24 — NKJV) that exist — not to mention the fact that discernment literally means “keen judgment” and the Good Book supremely promotes that: “Strike a scoffer, and the simple will become wary; rebuke one who has understanding, and hewill discern knowledge.” (Proverbs 19:25 — NKJV)
And that’s why, any time the topic of “don’t judge” comes up, I am known for saying something along the lines of, “PUH-LEEZE. If I say ‘You’re cute,’ I just judged you. Humans don’t have a problem with judgment; they don’t like criticism or accountability.” And gee, is that unfortunate because it’s hard to grow without both of those things. However, the key that comes with being on the giving end of criticism or holding someone accountable is applying a quote by author Anne McCaffrey: “Make no judgments where you have no compassion.”
This world has a lot of…stuff going on, stuff that needs to be addressed and stuff that needs compassion applied while it is. By definition, compassion is about having concern for others, especially if what you see them going through, they have either told you or you can discern is tied to some level of internal suffering. And that’s why, in the spirit of spiritual cleansing, something else to ask is if you are holding others and even yourself accountable while operating from a place of genuine care and concern or is your ego just wanting to elevate itself or prove that it’s right?
You know, we’re living in a time when, more and more, people are frowning on humility which is unfortunate because a definite quality that comes with being a compassionate person is absolutely that — “By humility and the fear of the Lord are riches and honor and life.” (Proverbs 22:4 — NKJV)
It really is almost impossible to be profoundly spiritual without being a compassionate person. Is this an area that needs some “cleaning up”? If so, there is no time like the present.
What Encourages You to Be Wiser and Full of More Truth?
Unsplash
Musician Jimi Hendrix once said, “Knowledge speaks, wisdom listens.” Aristotle once said, “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.” Confucius once said, “By three methods we may learn wisdom: first, by reflection, which is the noblest; second, by imitation, which is the easiest; and third, by experience, which is the bitterest." Thomas Jefferson once said, “The wisest men know their weakness.” Author Gift Gugu Mona once said, “A woman of peace is a wise woman who understands that peace is more powerful than trying to prove a point.”
And what does it mean to be wise?
People who can regulate their emotions are wise. People who actually learn from their experiences (and the experiences of others, so that they don’t have to experience everything) are wise. People who know how to tame their ego are wise. People who are flexible/adaptable, non-materialistic, are self-aware, can be relied upon for great perspectives and insights, and are teachable are wise. The self-disciplined are wise. The patient are wise. The non-entitled are wise. Those who prioritize well are wise.
Those who do not live above their means (across the board), they are also wise. And there is no way that you can be wise without being willing to be completely honest, yes truthful with yourself about where you could stand to gain more wisdom and what must be done — and sometimes sacrificed — in order to get it.
And so, as I close this piece out, when it comes to spring cleaning your spirituality, ask yourself who and what encourages and enables you to become a wiser individual — AND who and what hinders that from transpiring. Then be honest with yourself about what is challenging you for the better and what, frankly, is only dumbing you down. Indeed, in order to live out the full potential of your spirituality, wisdom must come into play. However, it’s important to keep in mind that, for wisdom to truly flourish, it is a conscious choice — a daily decision.
And it will never come so long as you are making up excuses, justifying poor behavior (check out “Accountability Time: Let's Stop Calling It A 'Mistake' When It Was A 'Choice'”) or lying to yourself about what needs to be done. Taking those approaches to life is literally the opposite of being wise.
A French priest by the name of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin once said, “We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.” I can only imagine how much the quality of our lives would improve if we took that in on a very serious level.
The good news is you can choose to do it — right here and right now.
See yourself as a spiritual being.
Clean/cleanse whatever hinders that reality.
And watch how you begin to soar, supernaturally, by design, because of it, sis.
Let’s make things inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter for love, wellness, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Featured image by Guido Mieth/Getty Images