Written by Kirsti Formoso,

MSc. Transpersonal Psychology, BSc. Psychology

woman on spiritual journey walking on a spiritual path that is mystical

How do you start your spiritual journey? The good news is, you already did! Or you wouldn't be reading this. Maybe you're doubting yourself, feeling frustrated that you’re not getting anywhere, or wondering how to start. With so many traditions, practices, and spiritual pastimes to choose from, it can be confusing to know which direction to take.

I’ve been on my spiritual path for over 30 years. And for much of it, I didn’t have a clue what I was doing or which path to take. But eventually, I had some real breakthroughs. I had my first profound spiritual awakening ten years ago, and shortly after, I experienced an awakening into pure consciousness that lasted nearly two years.

I discovered what works and what doesn’t through trial and error on my own long, winding path. But the truth is, this path is being mapped out through research. And to find out more, I did an MSc in Consciousness, Spirituality and Transpersonal Psychology. I spent three years exploring what the research says about spiritual development, spiritual practices and enlightenment. Now I guide people at all stages of their spiritual journey. And in this article, I’m going to share the best way to start your spiritual journey.

I’ll show you how to create a good foundation for the rest of your journey. It’s like packing a backpack for travel; if you’ve got the right things in your bag when you leave home, your journey will be a lot smoother. Many people miss these fundamentals and spend years wasting time seeking where there is nothing to be found. I’ll walk you through step by step, the things I think were fundamental to my awakening and how you can awaken your spirit.

This article focuses on the spiritual journey for beginners. If you’ve already started your spiritual journey and are looking for a broader psychological and spiritual exploration of the spiritual awakening process, including its stages and common misunderstandings, I’ve written about that in depth in A Psychologist’s Guide to Spiritual Awakening Stages.

If you’re wondering where you are on your spiritual path and whether you're moving in the right direction, this spiritual awakening test will help you recognise the progress you’ve made and understand if what you’re doing is making a difference. It’s a free self-reflection tool with no email required. Most people find that the results page really resonates and helps them understand exactly where they are in the process of awakening.

START YOUR SPIRITUAL JOURNEY NOW

If you’re here looking for a quick way to start your spiritual journey, something you can do right now to get on the path without thinking about it too much, my free Presence Kit will get you started off on the right foot. With easy micro-practices, an audio, journal prompts, and a set of presence reminder cards, you can build a solid foundation for your journey. Honestly, if you just used this kit for the next year, you’d be set. You will have a better start than most on the spiritual path.

IT’S ABOUT THE JOURNEY, NOT THE DESTINATION

As you set out on your spiritual journey, the most important thing to remember is that it’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey. I know it's cliché, but it’s true.

The spiritual path is not a straight road. Awakening is different for everyone and will take many twists and turns. It’s not about getting to some far-off destination called Enlightenment, but about how you tread the path, how you live what you seek, and how you embody what you discover.

Some people’s paths unfold quickly, causing profound shifts that are difficult to integrate; others take a slower, gentler ascension path. Either way, being equipped from the beginning will make your spiritual journey safe, smooth, and enjoyable.

I know, we’re impatient beings, and we want what we want now, but my honest advice to you, after working with people in spiritual crisis, is: take your time on the path; don’t be in a rush to reach your destination. If you find yourself at the beginning of your path, in a spontaneous spiritual awakening or intense kundalini awakening, seek out appropriate help and support.

For those of us on a gradual ascension path, trust that your path is unfolding in good time, gently and in beautiful order. At the same time, don’t waste time on the path and don’t get distracted. There are many things that will keep you distracted from finding what you are seeking.

THE SPIRITUAL JOURNEY MAPPED IN PSYCHOLOGY

When I started out on my spiritual path, it was difficult to get information, direction or even guidance. There was no internet, no apps, and spirituality wasn’t mainstream. You had to hunt for information like it was a wild animal on the verge of extinction. Today, we live in a different world.

Information is everywhere. And everyone seems to be an expert on spirituality. But what many people don’t realise is that some people have spent entire lifetimes studying spirituality, spiritual development, spiritual practices and the transformation that occurs when we engage in those practices. By diligently publishing their theories and research on the spiritual journey, they have contributed to an emerging discipline called Transpersonal Psychology.

Transpersonal psychology is a branch of psychology that seeks to understand spirituality and the spiritual path. And while each of our journeys is unique, there are common threads along those paths. Transpersonal psychology maps the spiritual journey and how we can transform through practice and intention. From this discipline, we can understand how to best start our spiritual journey.

WHAT IS A SPIRITUAL AWAKENING JOURNEY

The spiritual awakening journey is a spiritual adventure that is our birthright. As spiritual beings in a physical body, we've forgotten who we really are. The spiritual journey is about remembering who we are. At our core, in our essence. And orienting ourselves more and more towards that essence.

You see, we tend to think in terms of roles and identities when we think about who we are. I am a psychologist, a wife, a daughter, a friend, a spiritual seeker. But this is not who I truly am. For all these things are temporary identities. I was not always a wife, and I will not always be a daughter.

The spiritual path is about discovering who we are when all the temporary stuff is taken away. What remains behind all that noise? What never changes? What is stable?

That is the spiritual adventure, to discover that which is our true nature. (And let me tell you, it's worth the journey).

We discover our spiritual nature and inner self by mastering the egoic program. That is what spiritual practice is all about.

seedling growing and evolving from seed to sprouting plants

3 GAME CHANGERS ON THE SPIRITUAL PATH

Being on my spiritual path for over 30 years, I’ve dabbled in many things from tarot cards and crystals to sweat lodges and mediumship. Today, there’s even more to choose from when it comes to spiritual hobbies and spiritual practices. So, I want to share what I think really moves the needle and gets people off to a good start on their spiritual journey.

🔶 Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction

We all know that meditation and spirituality are synonymous, but which meditation? I’m telling you, mindfulness is the secret tool on the spiritual path. For me, the most powerful way to start your spiritual journey is to do an 8-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course. This course is the most widely researched meditation method, and there is a ton of evidence for its well-being benefits.

5 reasons MBSR is a must when starting out on your spiritual journey:

MBSR combines psychology and meditation (inner work)
MBSR teaches both formal and informal meditation
MBSR provides accountability
MBSR will change you if you fully show up
MBSR is an easy way to start your meditation practice and develop presence

🔶 Journalling

The spiritual journey is all about developing spiritual awareness, and nothing does that better than journaling. When we journal for spirituality, we develop the ability to self-reflect, which generally increases our awareness of the more subtle dimensions of life. To get you started, head over to How to Use Journaling as a Tool for Spiritual Awakening and Growth, where you’ll find 7 prompts you can use right now.

🔶 Practising Integrity

People don’t talk about integrity; let’s face it, it’s not the most glamorous of spiritual practices. It certainly doesn’t make for fabulous photos like the scorpion asana, and it doesn’t make for fun pub talk like tarot. You get no recognition for it, and it’s really hard. But if you’re a serious spiritual seeker, and you’re not practising integrity, you’ll always be limited on how far you can go on your journey. And the further along your journey to spiritual awakening, the more important it becomes.

7 STEPS TO AWAKEN YOUR SPIRIT

So, I’ve given you my top 3 game changers on starting your spiritual journey and developing a strong foundation. And hopefully, you got yourself the free Presence Kit. But if you’re keen, you’ll be wondering what else you can do to awaken your spirit, right?

Here are 7 steps to laying a good foundation so you can start your spiritual awakening journey on the right foot.

1. Simplify Your Environment

Declutter your space and reduce distractions. A calm, clean space can reflect and support inner clarity and spiritual focus. A chaotic living environment will busy your mind and keep you distracted from the more subtle aspects of life, which is what spirituality is about.

2. Start a Spiritual Journal

Begin writing down thoughts, questions, dreams, and emotions. This becomes a mirror for your inner landscape and helps track your growth and patterns over time. Self-reflection is a fundamental skill on the path. It keeps you grounded and real and helps protect against spiritual bypassing.

3. Clarify Your Intention

Ask yourself: “What am I truly seeking?” Whether it’s peace, connection, healing, or truth, naming your desire gives your journey direction. It’s ok if you don’t come up with a solid answer, just the action of reflecting on your intention is powerful.

4. Create Space for Stillness

Try setting aside 10 minutes a day for silence or meditation. Get off your phone, turn off the music, and just be. Closing your eyes helps you tune into your inner world and start recognising what’s really going on beneath the surface. Alternatively, you can keep your eyes open and just tune your awareness to the space around you rather than the objects. This helps you fine tune your awareness to the subtleties of life.

5. Spend Time in Nature

Nature is a powerful force and can help us to be still and present, which is what we need to connect to our spiritual dimension. Research suggests that nature can bring us into a spiritually altered state of consciousness, akin to the mystical state. But the key is not to be distracted in nature, not to be busy catching up with your best friend, but to be still and quiet and tune in.

6. Spiritual Practices and Support

Join an yoga class, a meditation group, use an app, read spiritual texts, or find a teacher/mentor. Join my mailing list! It’s easy to get distracted from the spiritual journey. Attending frequent classes or receiving insights and tips straight to your inbox can provide an anchor, a reminder, something to draw you back to your spiritual dimension and journey.

7. Practice Mindful Awareness and Presence

If you can, do an 8-week MBSR course. If not, just notice your daily thoughts, feelings, and actions without judgment; you can record them in your journal if you like. Get your free Presence Kit, which is packed with lovely ways to be present in your life and the subtler realms.

STARTING YOUR SPIRITUAL JOURNEY

Your spiritual journey begins the moment you start searching and seeking. Often, people on their spiritual journey are unable to articulate what it is they are searching for, but they know they're searching for something. They know there is more to life than the material world and the physical plane. They know there is a deeper meaning and a deeper understanding to be found.

The searching and seeking may not look like a spiritual journey at first. For some, it can be expressed as travel, for others it's experimenting with drugs, and still others might nourish their spiritual dimension in the service of others, looking for deeper connections.

And for some, it may never look like a spiritual path, but they are nevertheless searching and nourishing their spiritual dimension.

Just because it doesn't feel like you're awakening or on your spiritual path doesn't mean you're not. It's like the seed that was planted deep in the ground a long time ago. It sits dormant for some time. When the conditions and environment are right, a process begins beneath the surface that no one can see.

The seed germinates for some time before cracking open. And a shoot emerges, pushing its way up through the ground. Eventually, it surfaces, and there is some small sign of growth. It continues to grow, reaching for the sun and the moon. It takes time, and sometimes it looks like nothing is happening, and then one day, it blossoms.

The spiritual journey can feel like this, and that can be a source of frustration. Often, my clients feel like they’re not getting anywhere, but I see in them the heightened sensitivity and awareness that has evolved slowly in their psyche over time.

SIGNS YOU MAY ALREADY BE ON YOUR SPIRITUAL JOURNEY

The call to the spiritual path is often marked by shifts in our emotions and consciousness. If you’re feeling any of these emotions, it's a sure sign you're on your personal journey to spiritual awakening.

Disillusionment – A sense that something is deeply wrong or missing in life.
Confusion – Not understanding why things feel off, even if life appears “fine” on the outside.
Longing – A deep yearning for truth, peace, purpose, or something beyond the material.
Fear– Anxiety about the unknown or what this awakening might require.
Grief– Mourning a loss (literal or symbolic), or the collapse of a former identity or belief system.
Restlessness – Feeling unsettled, like life can’t go on the way it has.
Isolation – A sense of being misunderstood or alone in your experience.
Curiosity – A spark of interest in exploring deeper questions or paths.
Despair– A spiritual or existential crisis, often referred to as "the Dark Night of the Soul."
Hope – Despite the chaos, a subtle sense that this disruption might lead somewhere meaningful.

INNER WORK FOUNDATIONS

Inner work is the combination of spiritual practices that develop transcendence and soul-level work that addresses our psyche and trauma. We tend to favour one or the other, but as with all things spiritual, we need balance, and nowhere is that balance more important than in our inner work.

I always say we can only transcend as far as we descend. We can only soar high as far as we dive deep. You can not have one without the other.

When these two aspects are out of balance, you end up with problems. Too much spiritual practice without depth psychological work ends in spiritual bypassing.

Too much depth, psychological soul-level work will result in self-obsession, over-identification with the egoic self. Both extremes will land you in trouble on your spiritual path.

STARTING A SPIRITUAL PRACTICE

Spiritual practice is, therefore, a cornerstone of the spiritual awakening journey. For me, the most powerful spiritual practices have been yoga, breathwork, mindfulness, and Vipassana meditation. But I have friends who have reached wonderful places on their spiritual journey through practices like Qi Gong and gratitude.

In the beginning, you might like to cast your net wide and try various spiritual practices. There are endless options. Find what works for you. Here are a few to try:

Meditation
Prayer
Chanting
Contemplation
Mindfulness
Gratitude
Fasting
Pilgrimage
Almsgiving
Service
Yoga
Sacred Dance
Rituals
Sacred Reading
Silence
Nature Immersion
Forgiveness
Loving-Kindness
Breathwork
Visualisation

If you try one and think it’s not for you, I suggest giving it another go with another spiritual community or teacher. Just because you didn’t like one type of yoga or meditation doesn’t mean you won’t like others. Similarly, just because you didn’t like how one teacher teaches breathwork doesn’t mean you won’t like how another teacher teaches breathwork. Experiment, find what you like, and then go deeper with that practice, community or teacher.

SOUL WORK AND DEPTH PSYCHOLOGY

And to balance all that spiritual practice and protect against spiritual bypassing, the gritty work of depth psychological reflection and healing. There's no way around it. If you're serious about your spiritual path, doing the hard work of understanding your personal egoic program will serve you in the end. It will be painful, and none of us likes that, but it's essential work.

It's irrelevant that you can meditate in a cave for 20 years if you come down from the mountain and start shouting at your parents. Even worse, when you think you're spiritual but you're backstabbing, gossiping, and always falling out with people because you haven’t addressed your attachment style issues.

Soul-level psychological work is all part of the spiritual journey. And like spiritual practices, there are many ways to go about it. You can work alone, with a practitioner or in a group at workshops. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Family Constellation Work
Inner Child Healing
Shadow Work
Parts Work / Internal Family Systems (IFS)
Somatic Release Practices
Holotropic Breathwork
Emotional Release Techniques
Guided Trauma-Informed Meditation / Visualization
Schema Therapy
Psychodynamic Therapy
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)
Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)
Exposure Therapy
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
Art Therapy
Trauma-Informed Yoga
Hypnotherapy
Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP)
Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT/Tapping)
Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)

HOW TO START YOUR SPIRITUAL JOURNEY

Start with a simple practice, such as presence or mindfulness. Start right now. Do it every day. Don’t be put off if you forget. Or if you haven’t got time. You don’t have to go in at the deep end. Start slow and small but consistent. Here’s two simple ways you can start your spiritual practice as a beginner:

Get your free Presence Kit below.
Learn to take a transitional moment with this article: Take A Transitional Moment For A Mindful Check-in

The transitional moment and the Presence Kit are the easiest ways to start a spiritual practice. They are designed to be simple yet powerful tools. I use them all the time with my clients, and it’s amazing the difference it makes in their levels of self-awareness and spiritual awareness.

SPIRITUALITY FOR BEGINNERS

No one embarks on a spiritual journey because it’s easy. We are called by something deep within. A deep desire for spiritual awakening. To reconnect with our inner self, true nature and sacred spirit. It's a personal journey, one that we and only we can tread. No one can do it for us. We must meet our inner demons ourselves. And in return, we transcend into realms of pure bliss, sacred wisdom and inner peace.

The spiritual journey is the only journey worth taking. I've been on it for over 30 years, and while the trials and tribulations are many, the rewards are out of this world. And I would not have it any other way. So, if you are just starting out on your journey, I encourage you to start a spiritual practice like presence or mindfulness today. Make this moment the conscious and proactive start of your spiritual journey.

I welcome you on your spiritual journey to spiritual awakening. May the path always be illuminated for you, may you cultivate integrity, surrender, and self-discipline as the tools that will protect and guide you along the way.

How to Start Your Spiritual Journey: 7 Steps to Awaken Your Spirit

START YOUR SPIRITUAL JOURNEY NOW

IT’S ABOUT THE JOURNEY, NOT THE DESTINATION

THE SPIRITUAL JOURNEY MAPPED IN PSYCHOLOGY

WHAT IS A SPIRITUAL AWAKENING JOURNEY