Inward reflection means taking responsibility.
Only the most courageous of us choose to look within. Some of us do it to heal our trauma. Some of us do it to find a purpose here. Others are searching for answers to various ailments and karmic cycles. Only when you look within can you truly know the self, and that can change your life.
But when most people turn their awareness to the inner planes instead of the outer planes, what they find can be so hard to process that they have to look away and distract themselves immediately. It’s too difficult to face. It seems easier to keep going the way they’ve already been used to — on a broken path that’s familiar.
Reasons to Try to Look Within
There are some good reasons to embark on this journey. Looking within can heal trauma, help you embody your purpose, and it can also help you break harmful cycles. But it isn’t easy. It is literally the hardest thing you’ll ever learn to do.
Trauma consists of heavy energies that we carry that sometimes bubble up when triggered and haunt our lives if we aren’t mindful of them. So, it’s in our interest to try to look deeply at the past and what’s happened to us. But that can often be too painful for people to do.
When you understand your purpose, it may be terrifying because you are forced to reconcile your new awareness with the habits and work you’ve been doing already. Big changes may need to happen. of course, they are good changes, but the process may seem daunting.
When we understand that the karmic cycles we’re stuck in are a product of our own past actions, it can be hard to swallow. It means that our choices are all meaningful. The law of karma creates justice, and you create your own destiny. So, when looking within means you have to take responsibility for your own choices, this can be too heavy a task for many people.
It’s Scary and Distractions Are Just Easier
People naturally choose to look away from the self. They want to be distracted by the outside world — to find simple pleasures to soothe them temporarily and to blame things and people for their woes. It’s just easier.
The problem is that simple pleasures in their finite nature can lead to addictions as you seek more and more of them. It is never enough. And blaming others only creates a great degree of negativity and anger within.
Neither of these things solves the problem. If you’re seeking healing, purpose, and to break cycles, courage is required. Determination to look at the self is key. You have to be willing to commit to a long and challenging journey. This is why looking within can be really scary for some people — some people aren’t ready for this inner work.
To meaningfully heal, you have to be willing to go through 3 steps:
- See the problem as it exists within
- Fully understand it
- Make the change
Seeing the problem is a big first step. Acknowledging it’s you that needs to change is huge. But this isn’t all that is required, and it’s only the beginning of the journey. Many people on a healing journey will stop there, thinking that acknowledging their toxic traits is noble.
You have to be willing to stare at the problem, sit with the pain, integrate it all, and then take action. Leave the old habits behind. These steps take a large degree of effort.
Knowing the Self Means Accepting Responsibility
The biggest problem I see in humanity right now is that people are entitled. They feel that they don’t have to accept responsibility for the results of their choices. They think that everyone is entitled to a comfortable life, and therefore, they will not change what they’re doing unless forced, even when they’re aware that it is destructive to the planet, other people, or themselves.
In modern society, we seem to believe that in principle, we are validated in our consumerism and materialism. We don’t have to feel guilty about our life choices, even when they are toxic. We’re supposed to believe in personal freedom, and people will defend that to the last, even when the freedom leads to self-harm and overall chaos.
We’re allowed to have relationships that repeatedly fail, going from one to the other with toxic behavior that we attribute to a “bad personality match”, always seeking a better person to be with. We’re allowed to be wasteful of our possessions, constantly seeking to make new acquisitions and purchases of “stuff” that no one needs, and throwing away more “stuff” that goes out of sight to a landfill or the ocean.
We are used to blaming anything but ourselves for this, constantly seeking new things and people to try to fulfill us. We are often validated in our misery, and in our addictions to try to distract ourselves from that self-created misery. Few voices in society are encouraging us to know the self deeply — which is why I try to add my voice to the mix.
Knowing the self is never going to be easy. The hardest part will always be accepting responsibility for your situation and destiny. Inward reflection takes a lot of strength and courage. But when you finally do it, a whole new world is opened up. You’ll feel very powerful and in control of your life when you finally see that all of your thoughts, actions, and choices are meaningful.
Spiritual Guidance, Tarot, and Psychic Readings
Are you experiencing changes in your life and seeking answers? Book a session with Emily to understand the spiritual significance of what’s happening to you and receive guidance on moving forward.
Buy the Book
Learn how meditation can change your life even with mental health struggles. Understand how it connects you with your soul and the universe.
About Emily
Emily is a writer, coach, intuitive reader, and content creator with a background in philosophy.
