Perks of Spiritual Minimalism
When I first discovered spirituality, I remember how excited I was to ‘look spiritual.’
I would change up my entire wardrobe to look like a ‘divine feminine goddess’ with bohemian outfits and kimonos. And I would spend all my free time browsing for things to buy– crystals, sound bowls, tarot cards, anything that would help me become more spiritual.
I would learn from various spiritual coaches and books, and try to seek answers from so many outlets: from astrology to human design to akashic records.
Although it can be really exciting to first stumble across the dazzling world of spirituality, I realized later how overwhelming and exhausting ‘spirituality’ can eventually become. .
Instead of seeking for inner peace and contentment, spirituality can become an endless quest to always search for “more”: whether that is to manifest more material objects or consume more ‘spiritual’ information on social media.
Spirituality becomes another one of things to “pursue” rather than a refuge for us to surrender to inner peace. Under the guise of spirituality, New Age Law of Attraction teaches can detour us away from inner contentment, and makes us addicted to buying more/healing more/manifesting more– all for the sake of acquiring more things while making us even trapped into the capitalistic system itself… rather than liberating from it
In other words, we are taught the opposite of what it means to be peaceful right now. Rather, we are taught that peace and happiness are on the other side of your next purchase, your next manifestation, your next healing.
When the truth is, our inner happiness is not correlated to how many things we have, how much money we have manifested. Yes, money can be used pursue our spiritual needs (for it provides our basic+comfort needs) just to a certain extent. However, the things that are outside of us can never replace the inner void of what we feel is missing within us.
Learning to fill in that inner void by yourself, through yourself is spiritual minimalism. It is what allows one to find the inner riches that lives within us.
And instead of chasing/striving for things that are outside, we create the things we love (whether it’d be building a business, a creative project, relationships) from an internal fullness rather than out of ‘lack’ from where we are now.
To me, after dropping the consumeristic nature of spirituality, it has allowed me to be more resourceful, creative, and joyful. Personally it feels lighter and more freeing, as if I am unloading a baggage that I’ve been carrying all along with a name tag that says “spirituality.” It feels like my soul is now free to express herself and finally be herself– because she is no longer attached to the identities and notions of being spiritual.
If that is an inner nudge that you are being called toward, here are some ways of how you can begin your new, refreshed journey of spirituality, from a minimalistic approach.
Practice letting go
The reason why a lot of NewAge spirituality teachings can become burdensome and hard-to-keep-up-with, especially for gentle feminine souls is because we are taught the reverse of our true nature (i.e. simplicity). Rather than letting go of things, what it teaches is about accruing more things/manifestations and then identifying ourselves with them. And even if we let go, it is for an end outcome ( to manifest xyz) rather than just for the bliss of letting go itself.
The truth is, we cannot experience our true nature (i.e. inner tranquility, stillness, and peace), when our surroundings+minds are constantly occupied with “stuff.” Our thoughts and things can become things that clog up our system from fully experiencing the Divine that lives within.
2. Listening to Spirit through the body
Earlier in my spiritual journey, using divination tools (such as tarot decks) and consulting external knowledge (e.g. hiring spirituality coaches) have been really helpful. One, it helped me learn to trust the Divine and two, it helped me connect more to my intuition and thus find my unique soul path.
However, I realized later on that when we are using someone else/ or something else outside of us to give us clarity and guidance, it can become a block to discovering our true selves ourselves. We become reliant on the outside for answers, and when we are constantly in this place, all it leads to is more confusion and doubt, especially when different people/tools say different things to us.
Learning to trust your intuition, through your own body, is what leads you to freedom from needing the outside for answers. When you learn to use your intuition, and trust her, you find that you are always clear on where your path is and you always knows the answers, without needing much guidance from anyone else. And even if you consult the outside for support, it is merely just to supplement what you already know, rather than feeling like you are incomplete without someone else/something else outside of you.
3. Channel your creativity
Creativity teaches that pure abundance comes from being minimal. In fact, you cannot be creative when your attention is occupied by so many possessions and things to think about. Creativity comes from extricating yourself from everything that you don’t need, so that you can finally listen to the nudges of what your heart wants to pour out into the world.
For me, by intending myself to be more creatively productive (and being productive in the soul-sourced way), I have become more fulfilled with inner contentment, thus not needing many things to satisfy me. In fact, all I need is a laptop or a pen and paper to write near the trees each morning and doing that itself makes me so happy. Creativity teaches me that all you need is to be an instrument of God, and let the Divine stream in ideas and inspirations through you.
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My love, if you are on the fence of ‘purging’ things that no longer serve you, even if they are spiritual in a way, I would say go for it. In fact, by letting go of the so-called ‘spiritual’ things, you will become even certain and sure in your true soul-callings.
