OVERVIEW: In this in‑depth spiritual journey guide, you’ll discover the three evolutionary stages of transformation, common spiritual traps, the signs you’re genuinely progressing, and the road back Home.
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What is a spiritual journey?
We all eventually ask one unavoidable question: Who am I, really?
That question marks the beginning of a spiritual journey—a passage from the known into the unknown, from our outer self-identity toward our inner truth.
While each traveler’s path is unique, the underlying architecture is universal: we outgrow ourselves, descend into shadow and healing, and return with deeper wisdom.
This inner odyssey mirrors Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey and appears in nearly every wisdom tradition.
In this in-depth guide, we’ll explore the ins and outs of this transformational journey.
Let’s dive in …
What is a Spiritual Journey?
A spiritual journey is the process of getting to know ourselves, healing ourselves, and realizing our true nature. It is a developmental process through which consciousness expands from ego‑identification to unity with the Higher Self or Spirit.
While a spiritual journey will be perceived differently depending on an individual’s religious orientation (for example, Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, or secularist), the stages one goes through are relatively the same.
That is, while the experience of the spiritual journey may vary from individual to individual, it still follows a universal structure, as we’ll see below.
Under ideal conditions, this inner journey to realize our true nature would be a natural and organic process.
However, these “ideal conditions” rarely, if ever, exist. As such, heroic effort is usually needed to “complete” this quest.
Three Triggers That Begin the Journey
The “call to adventure” that initiates one’s spiritual journey can come from numerous sources, including:
- A personal crisis
- A desire for growth
- An inner calling
Let’s look at all three.
1 – Personal Crisis
With a personal crisis, there’s usually an intense emotional upheaval that rattles the individual to their core. This type of crisis may include:
- Getting divorced
- Losing a loved one
- Being laid off from work
- Getting diagnosed with an illness
- Losing the battle against an addiction
Whatever the crisis, the old programs running within one’s ego structure get disrupted, allowing something new to emerge.
2 – Desire for Growth
As we’ll see below, the initial stage of the spiritual journey often coincides with an interest in self-discovery. Initially, the focus is frequently on self-improvement, self-growth, and professional development.
While this self-discovery phase is not necessarily “spiritual,” it’s often still a sign the individual has said “Yes” to their adventure.
As they come to know their personality, something else will likely emerge within them that will command their attention to delve deeper into understanding themselves.
3 – Inner Calling
Other times, an internal tension begins to rise spontaneously from within. Something deep within the individual starts bubbling up from the unconscious with no external, preemptive cause.
Here, an inner calling triggers one’s quest. It’s as if something deep inside us is searching for an understanding of ourselves, personal meaning, and the nature of existence itself.
This quest for meaning can lead to existential angst and create a crisis of meaninglessness. In some cases, it leads to existential depression that plunges the individual into the pit of despair.
These existential bouts often occur at midlife (“midlife crisis”). Christians frequently refer to this existential angst as “the Dark Night of the Soul.”
Shrouded in darkness, the individual, whether realizing it or not, is trying to return home to themselves. But they may not yet realize that they have initiated their spiritual journey.
Nine Signs You’re on the Path
So, how do you know you’re on a spiritual journey?
- Discontent: A cloud of discontent grows within you. You’re realizing that the material world just can’t be all there is. Many of the things you once valued now seem empty and pointless.
- Search for Meaning: Instead of just chasing fleeting pleasures and dopamine hits, there’s an internal directive searching for something more meaningful (even if you don’t know what that is).
- Existentialism: You often find yourself thinking about topics like meaning, purpose, or metaphysics (beyond the physical). You might experience melancholy or depression of an existential variety.
- Sensitivity: You may feel more “raw” or sensitive than you ever have before. Your interactions with others may be less enjoyable now. Consequently, there may be an impulse to isolate yourself.
- Upheaval: You are feeling progressively ungrounded, as if the world you knew is falling away, and you can’t seem to get your footing with what is real.
- Identity: You are starting to realize you’re not the person you thought you were, but you’re unsure who you are or what it all means.
- Willingness: Whereas before you sought perpetual comfort in distractions and the material world’s regular programming, there’s now a renewed willingness to explore more challenging topics, lean into discomfort, and see where it leads you.
- Truth Hunt: You find yourself reading lots of spiritual books from various traditions, as if you’re hunting for the Truth.
- Synchronicity: You may be experiencing meaningful coincidences, as if some hidden hand is guiding you in a particular direction.
Now, let’s turn our attention to the specific spiritual journey stages.
The Hero’s Journey: The Cycle of Departure and Return
The Hero’s Journey Framework
As we covered in this Spiritual Growth guide, a spiritual journey follows the quintessential hero’s journey structure illuminated by the late mythologist Joseph Campbell.
Campbell discovered this “monomyth” structure by studying the religious stories, myths, and legends from a wide range of traditions throughout recorded history.
Although Campbell’s framework has 17 “steps,” the core of the hero’s journey has three main stages:
- Departure: Accepting the Call to Adventure
- Initiation: Trials and Tribulations
- Return: Synthesis and Integration
First, let’s quickly run through each of these three stages before we apply them directly to one’s spiritual journey.
Stage 1: Departure
In the departure stage, the hero leaves the safe world where things are known and enters the unknown. Here, we depart from the “conventional world” of the status quo and enter a “special world” that is largely foreign to us.
Stage 2: Initiation
In the initiation stage, the hero faces many ordeals. These trials and tribulations illustrate that the journey isn’t easy or safe. The journey can be dangerous. Defeat in battle is possible. One encounters friends and foes during this stage. The hero also meets a sage-like character with supernatural aid.
Stage 3: Return
In the final stage, the hero returns home with battle scars, having endured the trials and hardships of the initiation phase. The maturation process, shaped by revealing experiences and life lessons, transforms the hero internally. That is, the individual who began the journey is no longer the same.
Stages of the Spiritual Journey
Three Stages of the Spiritual Journey
Now, let’s take this essential 3-part hero’s journey structure and apply it to the spiritual journey specifically.
These three development stages are:
- Departure: Self-Discovery
- Initiation: Self-Healing
- Return: Self-Realization (Returning Home to the Self, or God)
But first, let’s clarify our starting point before the spiritual journey begins…
Our Social Masks
Before we begin our journey, we wear various social masks that Carl Jung referred to as personae.
When we identify with our social masks, we might say things like:
- I am an athlete.
- I am a parent.
- I am a lawyer.
- I am an artist.
- I am a [insert your religious affiliation here].
The point is that we identify with various masks and roles as the core of what we are.
It’s not that there’s anything inherently wrong with, for example, identifying yourself as a “Christian wife and mother of three children” or an “ambitious executive and talented athlete.” But these are just external labels.
They represent roles and ways in which you interface with the external world. However, these social masks do not reveal your core personality—of who you truly are.
All of our personae and self-identities are shaped virtually exclusively by prior programming and conditioning from the outside world. In Campbell’s language, these social masks are part of the “ordinary world.”
To begin our spiritual journey, we need to examine the individual behind these social masks.
And with that, we move on to Stage 1 …
Stage 1: Departure | Self-Discovery
In accepting the “Call to Adventure” of our spiritual journey, we begin the self-discovery process.
Here, we get to know our conscious self, or the personality in its current form:
- What do you value?
- What do you truly stand for?
- What are your greatest strengths and weaknesses?
- What are your fears, desires, dreams, ambitions, and goals?
- What’s your personality type (for example, your Enneagram type)?
This initial stage involves taking a personal inventory of one’s life. This self-discovery phase is driven by:
- A desire to know yourself,
- A curiosity about what you’re going to discover, and
- A prevailing sense of purpose.
Personal growth takes center stage in this initial phase of the journey.
Stage 2: Initiation | Self-Healing
While getting to know your current personality is part of the process, this initial inquiry is still an exploration of what’s mainly conscious and known.
The second phase of our spiritual journey is where things get messy. In this alchemical process, we begin a deeper exploration of the unknown—the stuff buried inside of us (the unconscious). As such, the genuine ordeals, trials, and tribulations begin to unfold.
In this stage, we explore our past and get to know the archetypes (or parts) within our psyche. Even though we consciously don’t recall many events from childhood, it’s all recorded within our field.
During this stage of the spiritual journey, we unearth childhood traumas. These traumas created divides within our psyche that need healing.
Modern neuroscience demonstrates that trauma reshapes neural pathways responsible for emotional regulation and self‑connection.
However, these same circuits show measurable plasticity when we engage in integrative practices often used during this stage.1Konrad, A. C., Miu, A. C., Trautmann, S., & Kanske, P. (2025). Neural correlates and plasticity of explicit emotion regulation following the experience of trauma. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 19, 1523035. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2025.1523035
In this stage, the focus is on self-analysis, inner observation, cultivating understanding, and self-healing.
Stage 3: Return | Self-Realization
The final stage of our spiritual journey comes after we bring the splits in the psyche to consciousness and address them. Much of the stagnant psychic energy caused by trauma and repression is released and returns to us.
The self we were before is now seen as the false self. It was a set of concepts based on prior conditioning and programming. We can fully see that now. In observing this, we stand separate from it (as the witness). It’s still there, but we are certainly not that.
Having transcended the prior two stages, we integrate all of this psychic material and hold to the Center, stabilizing within ourselves.
Now, we can return home to the Higher Self, Spirit, or God (depending on your background and worldview).
Ultimately, “the Return” is to our true nature, unconditioned and ever-present.
Common Spiritual Traps
The spiritual journey can be treacherous. Like any true adventure, it isn’t safe, and success is not guaranteed.
Some individuals fall into various spiritual traps that can divert the quest for years, if not a lifetime.
Here are three common spiritual traps to be particularly mindful of.
1 – Falling for the Spiritual Bypass
Let’s start with one of the biggest culprits that can hinder one’s spiritual journey. This spiritual block can stop the quest in its tracks.
Some people refer to it as the “spiritual bypass” or “spiritual materialism.” It occurs when we use spiritual concepts and practices to avoid unresolved emotional and psychological wounds.
With the spiritual bypass, the individual learns spiritual ideas and methods in stage 1 (self-discovery) and tries to skip directly to stage 3 (self-realization). That is, they attempt to bypass stage 2 (self-healing).
As we covered above, stage 2 is where things get messy. Virtually all of the discomfort unfolds during this initiation stage, including:
- Getting to know the shadow
- Wrestling with inner demons
- Confronting our closely held but false views of ourselves
- Becoming conscious of our past trauma
- Understanding the source of our emotional triggers
Virtually every emotional trigger we have, everything that sets us off as adults, was installed long ago. Even physically addressing the pain and numbness stored within the body (energetically) can cause significant discomfort during stage 2.
With this pervasive spiritual block, individuals might sit in meditation, envision “beings of light”, and chant “OM” secretly to avoid getting messy and doing the real internal work necessary for self-healing.
2 – Repressing Your Fear of the Unknown
Having someone tell us what the truth is can bring comfort because it eliminates feelings of uncertainty.
Uncertainty and doubt create mental discomfort. The mind seeks to resolve, suppress, or repress this discomfort. Absolutism or fundamentalism is one way this “resolution” manifests. This rigid thinking keeps us from reflecting on questions like:
- What if my beliefs aren’t true?
- What if the cosmology I grew up with is wrong?
- What if specific individuals created my beliefs as a system of control?
- What if academia and other industries are funded by specific groups with a nefarious agenda?
- What if …
Another underlying fear relates to feelings of meaninglessness and existential despair. To avoid such overwhelming feelings, we may cling to the known (that is, our cherished, pre-programmed beliefs).
The key to overcoming this spiritual block is to acknowledge one’s fear of the unknown rather than pretend it’s not there. Then, begin to lean into the discomfort and see where it takes you.
3 – Avoiding Genuine Practice
This final spiritual trap affects individuals on devout religious, new age, and secular paths alike.
Without a strong foundation of how spiritual practices can transform us and help us develop, spiritual knowledge tends to remain exclusively conceptual (with no direct insights).
When conceptual learning (book learning, sermons, and seminars) is not balanced with developmental practices, spiritual pride tends to grow instead of the individual. That is, the authentic spiritual journey stagnates.
When an individual proudly identifies themselves as “spiritual” or “religious,” they are maintaining an external identification (social mask). Identifying oneself as “spiritual” leads one into a standard ego game.
Consequently, they may find themselves avoiding genuine self-discovery, inner work, or an examination of their shadow (unconscious).
Unknowningly, they simultaneously abort self-actualization and their authentic spiritual journey.
The Three Poisons and Their Antidotes
Along your journey, what the Buddhist tradition calls the “three poisons” will no doubt confront you. These three poisons are:
- Attraction, greed, or sensual pleasure
- Aversion, anger, ill-will, or hate
- Ignorance, confusion, or delusion
These three poisons are represented by a rooster (greed), a snake (anger), and a pig (ignorance). These three animals are located at the center of the Buddhist Wheel of Life (above). This wheel itself represents the cycle of Samsara (suffering).
So, attraction, aversion, and ignorance are at the center of this cycle of suffering; they are the fulcrum upon which the Wheel of Life spins.
How the Three Poisons Hinder Us
All three poisons can, and often do, actively hinder one’s spiritual journey.
Our desires fuel the false self, blocking us from stabilizing and transcending the mind. How to remove greed, avarice, and desire is a common theme in the Wisdom traditions.
Anger and hate represent an unwillingness to release and let go of the past. This type of aversion will also stall growth and healing.
Ignorance and delusion are the sources of most suffering in this world, including self-inflicted negative states.
The Antidote to the Three Poisons
One of the antidotes to the three poisons offered by the ancient traditions is to cultivate virtues.
For example:
- Temperance or moderation keeps greed and desire in check.
- Benevolence or magnanimity deflates anger and hate.
- Wisdom or prudence quells the fire of ignorance.
Additionally, contemplative meditation combined with self-analysis helps one resolve these three poisons.
Ultimately, as you progress to realize your true nature (the Self), the three poisons become less noxious.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Spiritual Journey
Now, let’s run through a few frequently asked questions.
What are the benefits of going on a spiritual journey?
It’s not a question of benefits or worth. One’s spiritual journey is about stripping away what you’re not (the false self) to return to what you are (one’s true nature as the Self).
From the material world’s perspective, a spiritual journey does not provide any so-called “gains.” The ego itself can’t profit from the journey.
As such, if there isn’t an inner calling to “say yes” to this journey, the individual will not make the journey.
Conversely, if the internal decision to accept the quest has already occurred, one way or another, the journey will continue until moksha (self-liberation) is realized.
Are there specific things I need to do to navigate each stage?
While everyone’s spiritual journey is different, there are “best practices” and methods that support each stage.
For a deeper look at these stage-specific practices, see this guide:
The 3 Stages of Spiritual Growth
Do spiritual journeys necessitate a “spiritual awakening”?
Although it may seem that way from reading many online articles, no, it does not.
Some individuals may have a “defining moment” that will be perceived as an “awakening.”
For example, a major life crisis that radically alters one’s perception of reality.
But in many cases, the journey is just a relatively steady progressive process without a singular “awakening” (at least, as the term is most often used).
Can I help initiate someone else’s journey?
Unfortunately, you can not. The “inward turn” must be self-initiated.
If it’s not, the journey won’t be authentic or meaningful. It will just be another thing the individual does to get someone’s approval.
As such, genuine psychological and spiritual development will not unfold.
What if I feel stuck?
There may be many periods of feeling stuck along the journey, and for various reasons. For example:
- Old programming and conditioning try to reassert themselves, as the old ego seeks to regain control.
- Different archetypes from the unconscious possess the individual, taking them down different tracks.
- Fear and the drive for safety and comfort temporarily win over one’s willingness to explore the unknown (discomfort).
If you are feeling stuck, try the following:
- Accept the feeling of stuckness. There’s no point in fighting this feeling, as it will only strengthen it.
- Let go of expecting things to unfold in a specific way. Embrace the unknown by letting go of the need for control.
- Experiment with various grounding techniques and centering methods to see where they lead you.
These methods will often help you get unstuck rather proficiently.
A Few Final Reminders for Those on the Journey
Here are a few reminders:
- Spiritual growth is a natural and organic process, so learn to get out of its way.
- Especially in the early stages, pay attention to what interests you.
- Notice when you instinctively gravitate towards specific spiritual texts and ideas.
- Herculean effort and will are required in the early stages of one’s journey (to overcome prior conditioning).
- Ensure that you directly address negative emotions, such as fear, anger, and guilt, and their underlying causes.
- While the spiritual journey may follow specific stages, everyone’s experience is unique.
- Feelings of loneliness are part of the journey. Resist these feelings, and you’ll suffer. Accept them, and something extraordinary may well up inside you.
- Even though it’s beneficial to learn from others and seek knowledge, eventually, all that comes from the external world is discarded.
And with that…
Realizing One’s True Nature
The ego (one’s current self-identity as “I”) is conditioned by one’s environment from the moment of birth onward.
In contrast, our true nature—the Self or Original Spirit—is unconditioned by this world. It doesn’t need anything this place has to offer, as it’s already complete and total.
The Self sees through all of the illusions (Maya), including all the false identification and contrived concepts that the mind likes to invent and play with.
We must overcome extensive prior programming (what the Taoists call “mundane conditioning”), contrivance, and inertia along one’s journey to the Self.
As such, many never truly engage with the “adventure,” instead staying exclusively in the material domain (what’s known).
But for those who do say a “hearty yes,” eventually, that Herculean effort that supported earlier stage progress becomes a hindrance. It, too, must be discarded.
Now, instead of pushing, pulling, and exerting effort to realize one’s true nature, spontaneously, the Spirit (or Self) guides us forward.
Then, the Return home is near.
Read Next
A Wildly Practical Guide to Seeking Spiritual Guidance (7 Methods)
Spiritual Healers and Their Shadow: A Real-World Guide
Duality vs Nonduality: An In‑Depth Guide to Awareness Beyond Opposites
5 Powerful Meditation Tools to Help You Train Your Mind
References
- Campbell, J. (1949). The hero with a thousand faces. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
- Jung, C. G. (1959). Aion: Researches into the phenomenology of the Self (R. F. C. Hull, Trans.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1951)
- Konrad, A. C., Miu, A. C., Trautmann, S., & Kanske, P. (2025). Neural correlates and plasticity of explicit emotion regulation following the experience of trauma. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 19, 1523035. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2025.1523035