The Three Stages of Awakening

The other day a reporter asked me, ‘Where do you see yourself a year from now?’

In the past I would have given him a sincere accounting of what I hoped to achieve. I’d talk about my plans, goals, and intentions. I’d tell him about books I wanted to write or things I wanted to be, do, create, or buy. But because all of the work I’ve done with Dr Hew Len, I no longer state goals or intentions or make plans for the future. So I instead replied with the truth of this moment:

‘Wherever I’ll be will be far better than I can imagine right now.’

There’s more depth to that answer than you might first notice. It came from inspiration. The answer surprised me as I said it. It also revealed where my mind is these days: I’m more interested in this moment than the next one. As I pay attention to this moment, all the future ones unfold quite nicely. As I once told Dr Hew Len, ‘My intention these days is to honour the intention of the Divine.’

I relayed the reporter’s question and my inspired answer to a friend just a few minutes ago. He loved it. He’s been doing ho’oponopono with me for a few months now, so he understood the ultimate truth: When you let go of your ego and the ego’s desires, you allow something better to guide you: the Divine.

This new me, and new understanding, is all part of my vivification. This didn’t all happen overnight, of course. But by saying ‘I love you’ and all the other statements, I’ve been led to a deeper awareness, what some might call an awakening, maybe even an enlightenment itself. I came to understand there are at least three stages to this awakening, and they’re almost a map of life’s spiritual journey. They are:

1. You’re a victim. We are virtually all born feeling we are powerless. Most of us stay that way. We think the world is out to get us: the government, the neighbours, the society, the bad guys in whatever form they seem to take. We don’t feel we have any influence. We’re the the effect of the rest of the world’s cause. We gripe, complain, protest, and gather in groups to fight those in charge of us. Except for a party now and then, life, in general, sucks.

2. You’re in control. At some point you see a life-changing movie like The Secret, or your read a book, such as The Attractor Factor or The Magic of Believing, and you wake up to your own power. You realize the power of setting intentions. You realize the power you have to visualize what you want, take action, and achieve it. You begin to experience some magic. You start to experience some cool results. Life, in general, begins to look pretty good.

3. You’re awakening. As some point after stage two, you begin to realize your intentions are limitations. You begin to see that with all your newfound power, your’re still not able to control everything. You begin to realize that when you surrender to a greater power, miracles tend to happen. You begin to let go, and trust. You begin to practice, moment by moment, awareness of your connection with the Divine. You learn to recognize the inspiration when it comes to you, and you act on it. You realize that you have choice but no control of your life. You realize the greatest thing you can do is agree to each moment. In this stage, miracles happen, and they constantly astonish you as they do. You live, in general, in a constant state of amazement, wonder, and gratitude.

I’ve entered the third stage, and maybe you have, too, by now. Since you’ve come along for the ride with me, let me try to further explain my own awakening. It may help prepare you for what you will soon experience, or help you better understand what you are currently experiencing.

I had a glimpse of the Divine in the first seminar with Dr Hew Len. It was during those first days with him that I stopped my mental chatter. I accepted it all. There was a peace almost beyond understanding. Love was my mantra. It was the song always playing in my brain. But this glimpse didn’t stop there.

Whenever I was in the presence of Dr Hew Len, I felt peace. I’m sure it was the tuning-fork effect. His tone affected mine. It brought me into harmony with peace.

During the second seminar I began to have what some would call psychic flashes. I saw auras. I saw angels around people. I received images. I still remember seeing invisible cats around Nerissa’s neck. When I told her, she smiled. Whether the image was real or not, it sure altered her mood. She beamed.

Dr Hew Len often sees question marks floating above people’s head’s which tell him which person to call on in an event. Whenever he sees invisible symbols or beings, he adds, ‘I know it sounds crazy. Psychiatrists would lock up someone for saying things like that.’

He’s right, of course, but once an awakening takes place, there’s no looking back. In my first Beyond Manifestation weekend, I read some of the people’s energy fields. They were in awe. I can’t say it is a gift so much as it is an opening. A previously unused part of my brain turned on and lit up. Now my eyes see, if I let them. I told Dr Hew Len, ‘Everything seems to talk to me. Everything seems alive.’ He smiled knowingly.

By the time of my second Beyond Manifestation weekend, I had another satori experience. Satori is a glimpse of enlightenment, a taste of the Divine. It’s as though a window slides open and for a moment you merge with the source of life. It’s as difficult to explain as describing a flower from another planet. But by seeing that I could disappear and experience zero limits transformed me. I have that experience as a touchstone. I can recall it and return to it. One one level this is wonderful, as it’s my ticket back to bliss. But on another level this is just another memory, keeping me from experiencing this moment. All I can do is keep cleaning.

Sometimes when I’m in a meeting, I’ll relax and unfocus my eyes, and I’ll be able to see the truth behind a situation. It’s as though times stops or at least slows down. What I then perceive is the underlying tapestry of life. It’s a little like peeling off the top level of a painting to find a masterpiece underneath it. Call it psychic vision, X-ray vision, or Divine sight. I’d say that ‘Joe Vitale’ disappears into the zero state, or my eyes perceive it. There are zero limits. There just is. At that place, there’s no confusion. It’s all clarity. I don’t live in that state. I still come back to so-called reality. I still have challenges. When Larry King asked me if I had a bad day, I said yes. I still do. Dr Hew Len said we would always have problems. But ho’oponopono is a problem-solving technique. As longas I keep saying ‘I love you’ to the

Divine and I keep cleaning, I return to the place of zero limits.

The signal from zero is, if we try to put words on it, ‘love.’ So saying ‘I love you’ nonstop helps us tune in. Repeating it helps neutralize the memories, programs and limitations that are in the way of your ownawakening. As I keep cleaning, I keep tuning in to pure inspiration. As I act on that inspiration, better miracles that I could ever have imagined take place. All I have to do is keep at it.

Some people think they understand the voice of inspiration by paying attention to the tone of the voices they hear in their heads. A friend once said, ‘I know the difference between my ego’s voice and inspiration’s voice because the ego has an urgency to it and the inspiration is gentler.’

I think this is deceiving. A voice that sounds harsh and a voice that sounds gentle are still voices from the ego. Even right now, as you read these words, you are talking to yourself. You are questioning what you are reading. You’ve come to identify with that voice and to think its you. It’s not. Divinity, and inspiration, are behind those voices. As you keep practicing ho’oponopono, you keep getting clearer about what is actually inspiration and what isn’t.

As Dr Hew Len keeps reminding us, ‘This is not a fast-food approach to healing. It takes time.’

I’d add that awakening can happen at any time. Even while reading this book. Or taking a walk. Or petting a dog. The situation doesn’t matter. Your internal state does. And it all begins, and ends, with one beautiful phrase: ‘I love you.’