Clean, Part 1: Awareness of Self

Continuing on with my expansion upon a definition of fitness.  A couple weeks ago, I explained my concept of “Clean” as encompassing the idea of Spiritual Fitness.  Now I’m going to write a 3-parter that breaks down the big umbrella-categories that I put under spiritual fitness: awareness of self, awareness of context, and awareness of eternity. 

Awareness of Self

Creating a definition of spiritual fitness is a pretty bold undertaking, I know. Other people have talked about this, I’m not inventing it, but I am inventing my own way of measuring and communicating about this idea. It comes out of my personal experience, and I recommend that’s where you start as well.

When I talk about self-awareness, I’m talking about being 100% honest with yourself about who you are, where you’ve been, what you’ve felt and experienced, and the conclusions you’ve drawn from that. This is all about looking in the mirror and asking some heavy questions of yourself. This doesn’t have to be a literal mirror, it might actually be a journal page, or you might have your eyes closed in meditation. You’ve lived your life your way, so do this your way too.

Who are you and where have you been?

I’d say the first step is understanding your own narrative. Write down your story, or at least repeat it in your head enough times that you can start to see the shape of it. Practice telling it out loud to others. You’ll start to recognize outlines and patterns and discover meaning in it.

What have you done and what have you learned?

These ones are all about understanding your own lessons. You’ve done a lot of things, some worked out and some didn’t. These experiences have taught you principles of the universe and facts about yourself. Reflect on some of the certainties that you have discovered through your life experience, as well as the uncertainties that remain.

What are you and why do you exist?

Then comes the really heavy stuff: understanding your own existential philosophy. If you’ve looked at the patterns of your life and all of the evidence of your personal experiences, what does that tell you about life in general? Is there meaning to any of this? How has your perspective about it changed over time?

In my view, spirituality is a network that connects us to one another, to the creator, and to every part of creation. You don’t have to agree with this, but either way the work starts within yourself.