Frances Vaughan on Spiritual Enlightenment

TheVintageNestBlog | Frances Vaughan on Spiritual Enlightenment | Frances Vaughan has earned a place among the pantheon of great writers. She also works as a psychologist and teacher in Marin County.  She belongs to the Fetzer Institute, where she is currently a trustee. Fetzer has published several books on a wide range of subjects and specializes in the field of transpersonal psychology. She talks about the inner workings of the mind and body, and she also touches on the spiritual practices of people of different faiths. Frances contributes to a number of periodicals, including the Fetzer Institute Newsletter.

Vaughan has placed a great deal of emphasis on spirituality. Frances writes frequently about the importance of spiritual enlightenment, arguing that it has a significant impact on your development as a whole person. She has even compiled a checklist of characteristics indicative of a person’s spiritual enlightenment. Essentially, they are the indicators of one’s degree of spiritual enlightenment.

The initial mark of spiritual enlightenment is based on how a person presents or expresses himself. An important factor here is remembering to put others aside from oneself. Vaughan calls this being considerate. Individuals who have attained a level of spiritual enlightenment have the traits of self-consciousness as well as awareness of people and relationships in their immediate environment.

Another indicator of an individual’s level of spiritual development is one’s capacity to experience and express emotion. How do you emotionally relate to other people? Are you typically a critical person? Do you become angry quickly? If you answered “yes,” then you have not yet achieved spiritual enlightenment. Anger should be replaced by forgiveness, and judgment by compassion, in the life of a spiritually awakened individual. The capacity for empathy is a core human trait that one should possess.

Lastly, one of the most important characteristics of spiritual enlightenment is motivation. This refers to the inspiration that comes from within, what one may also call the spiritual drive. A person who is spiritually motivated may be identified by a number of different qualities. To begin, one often has a great deal of knowledge. Not a single shred of naivete can be found in this person. Second, the person has a propensity to substitute love for fear. This results in a feeling of inner calm in the person regardless of the circumstances that they are in. And finally, the person has reached their full potential. This is freedom from all the ties that bind us to this world, including addictions. If you possess these qualities, then it is certain that you have attained spiritual enlightenment.