By Wes Annac, Editor, Openhearted Rebel

I wrote the following for the 268th issue of the Weekly Awareness Guide, a written document distributed weekly via email that I offer for $11.11 a month.

Income from the guide helps me get by and ensures I can continue to offer free content, and every subscription is appreciated. The option to subscribe is given at the bottom of this post (learn about subscribing with cash/check here).

The answers you seek live within you, in the consciousness that comprises who you are as a human and spiritual being.

We tend to search for fulfillment everywhere but the one place we find it in abundance: in ourselves. We accumulate external things in hopes that they’ll fill the void within, unaware that true fulfillment comes from exploring that sense of emptiness.

Spiritual seekers are no different, as we also avoid the emptiness with external things we believe will increase or enhance our spirituality. Crystals are a good example. We convince ourselves they help our spiritual growth, which they can if we don’t use them to avoid doing the difficult inner work that leads to evolution.

I won’t argue whether crystals help or not, but we can easily get caught in the luster of it all and lose sight of the original goal – spiritual growth – which we attain not through external things, but through looking within.

This will be a common theme throughout this week’s guide.

To realize it all comes from within and stay dedicated to exploring your consciousness is the hardest part of spiritual growth. It’s far easier to think something external will get you there with no hard work on your end.

I had to realize the hard way that happiness, wholeness, and spiritual growth are all inside jobs. I had to go through the gut-wrenching process of falling in love with external things, convincing myself I need them to grow creatively and spiritually, and being unhappy when forced to go without them.

It wasn’t easy, but I had to realize I’m still me even when I don’t have those things I think I need. With or without them, my love is strong. And my mind is either an assistant or a hindrance depending on how I use it.

Not only are external things unnecessary for spiritual growth; they can get in the way. If we let them, they can erect walls in the mind where there were once open fields. They can begin to block the flow of awareness while making us think we need more of them to feel better or even just to feel normal.

For most people, this is where addictions come in.

Keep in mind that external things can mean almost anything. For spiritual seekers, it could be something as innocent as crystals. For seekers and non-seekers, it can be hard drugs or anything destructive that keeps us hooked on the external world.

Don’t get me wrong; there are substances like psychedelics that genuinely expand consciousness and help us realize our multidimensional nature. But those things can consume you if you don’t use them with a clear intention.

For them to work properly, you must understand why you use them and what they can do for you if used with the proper focus. Otherwise, they can become just another external addiction that gradually removes you from the awareness you sought from the start.

This awareness exists in abundance if you know how and where to look for it. Even seemingly innocent things like crystals become a hindrance if you focus more on them than your Self.

Consciousness and awareness are already here for you. Despite our attempts to unite with the Source, we don’t need to do anything to find it. There’s nothing to tune into and no miraculous process that will get you there. Your consciousness – your very aliveness – is what you seek.

Your ability to see, hear, feel, taste, and generally sense the world is your gateway to higher consciousness. But before you can go higher, you must recognize the miracle that is life. You’re a sentient being embedded in a human body that will return to infinity when the body ceases to live.

Enlightenment is natural. It happens with or without our participation. It’s akin to sunshine and rain; we’re aware of it, we experience it, and yet, we can’t control it. We recognize that it simply is.

We are beings of consciousness and self-awareness, in that we’re conscious and aware of life. We’re mostly unaware of the higher states that await us, but we’re aware of ourselves and the fact that we’re alive.

As confusing as it might sound, recognizing this basic awareness is key to spiritual growth. We might not get there by taking psychedelics in a forest and expecting instant enlightenment, but when we’re aware of our consciousness, we can use those substances properly and get somewhere real with them.

If you worry you’ll miss evolution or enlightenment, don’t. You are a conscious being, and whether you realize it or not, your self-awareness will grow on its own.

It obviously helps to engage your evolution and be an active part of it, but overall, looking to the external world for assistance will only hold you back. Look within and let the miracle of your increasingly higher consciousness unfold before you.