Unmistakable Signs You're Ready to Find a Spiritual Teacher

There is a saying in wisdom traditions that states, “When a student is ready, the teacher will come.” 

As you continue moving along your spiritual path, you may start to crave an expansion of practice that cannot be gained from books, community, or personal practice alone. It is at this juncture that you may feel the willingness to seek out the guidance of a teacher who can provide knowledge, direction, and even a healthy dose of compassionate discipline. 

But this desire for guidance is often accompanied by an internal resistance. The ego-driven mind is always working with an attitude of skepticism, and may generate ways to resist the kind of vulnerability that comes with entrusting your spiritual progress to a guide. But the drive for spiritual evolution is strong even when there are cautious calls to remain stagnant. 

To help you decide if we may be ready to commit to the direction of a spiritual guide, gently connect to the Higher Self and consider the following signs.

A Strong Desire to Deepen Your Spiritual Practice

If you are experiencing restlessness or dissatisfaction with your current spiritual path, or a sense that there is something missing in your life, it may be a sign that you're ready for something greater. Perhaps there is a feeling of longing to have deeper, more expansive experiences. You may also feel a strong pull towards certain spiritual practices or traditions and a desire to learn more about them.  

A Sense of Openness and Willingness to Learn

Have you encountered a recent influx in your desire to learn, grow, and expand? This desire for openness and a willingness to learn is a sign that you're seeking new ideas and perspectives. You have likely entered a phase in life where you take a fresh look at the beliefs that brought you to this point in your life while examining the assumptions that shape your behavior. 

This reevaluation goes hand-in-hand with a desire for new practices or techniques that can expand your capacity to tackle the challenges of life. This desire to learn is essential for growth and transformation and can be a great moment to bring in the guidance of a teacher to make the most of this spiritual momentum. 

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Craving a Long-term Relationship with Your Teacher

Finding the right spiritual teacher is not a one-time event, but rather a long-term commitment. Perhaps after years of being self-taught and simply following whatever lessons you come across, you feel the need to stop “shopping around” and choose a streamlined path. The desire to commit to a unified source of wisdom can arise because the mix-and-match approach is creating gaps in your spiritual understanding. In some cases, the material you’re learning may even be in conflict with each other! In either case, the clarity and consistency of a centralized source of spiritual guidance can keep you focused and driven.

A Strong Desire for Personal Growth and Development

Do you feel like you've hit a plateau working on your own? It’s common to make significant strides when first starting out, only to feel like your progress slows down over time. Even with years of practice, stubborn, reoccurring mental or behavioral patterns can continue to persist despite your best efforts. This sense of feeling stuck, alongside the sensation that life is moving quickly can make one eager to truly embrace the spiritual work that needs to be done in order to live a life in alignment with your full potential. If you find yourself at this juncture, the accountability of having a spiritual teacher is actually more appealing than it is uncomfortable. 

Craving an Experiential Understanding of Spirituality

When you’re a self-taught student, you often spend time with books, workshops, seminars, and other means of learning that may be more mental than experiential. Perhaps you’ve read about what it feels like to have deep revelations during meditation, but have not actually experienced it for yourself. Or, conversely, maybe you have had these kinds of experiences and are longing to place them in the context of a more universal understanding. A spiritual teacher can help you bridge the gap between theory and practice while guiding you towards a more profound and transformative spiritual comprehension.

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Contemplation for Deciding If You’re Ready for a Spiritual Teacher 

In her recent book, The Spiritual Teachings of Higher Self Yoga, HSY founder Nanette V. Hucknall provides a contemplation for considering if you are ready to connect with a spiritual teacher. To consider these contemplations, first, connect with your Higher Self through your heart center, then observe your response to the following statements: 

 My heart feels connected to something greater, and I have a desire to fully experience its essence 

I know intuitively that there is  more to learn, and I deeply desire to expand my understanding 

Sometimes I feel an inexplicable connection to higher realms

When I meditate, I feel the potential to transform the learned habits of my mental experience 

I have a strong desire to overcome the negative aspects of my personality and to develop the positive ones. 

If any of these statements ring true to you, it could be time to embrace the spiritual path you have been exploring in a greater way. If the lessons you have been experiencing through the articles, workshops, and meditations here at Higher Self Yoga have been resonating with you, there are a few ways you can deepen your connection, including, meeting with a Higher Self Yoga Coach. 

If the lessons mentioned here appeal to you, you can read more in Nanette V Hucknall’s latest book, The Spiritual Teachings of Higher Self Yoga.