How to Find Your True Self In A Spiritual Way

In 2008, these two questions unexpectedly showed up and disturbed me from within for many years.

Who am I?

How can I find my true self?

Clueless about where and how to search for the answers, I took one step at a time and trusted my instinct, which paved the way to knowing myself deeper. Finding my true self was a long process of discomforts, difficult-to-understand revelations, and recurring confrontations with my demons.

One important lesson I learned about finding your true self is that: it is a journey of discovering and living out your sacred purpose, without expecting a reward or recognition from the world. It is a divine task between yourself and the Creator.

Asking the question ‘how can I find my true self’ can take you to different dimensions of mental, emotional, and spiritual experiences that will test your character and determination to change your life. And you will discover more about the spiritual side of yourself – the true you.

What is Your True Self?

The term ‘true self’ has been used in different ways nowadays. While there is nothing wrong with the interchanging use of the term, I have to clarify that the true self I refer to in this article is the soul-based or spiritual kind, not the personality.

1. Personal True Self

This true self is based on our personality or how we see and act out ourselves. It is the most authentic version of your behavior, character, and beliefs. It is who you are when you are alone, open, vulnerable, and do not care what others think of you. 

Some examples of personal true self are:

• “I am just being true to myself…”

• Acting or behaving comfortably, without fearing what other people might say, as long as you are not harming or offending anyone.

• Who you are when you are alone.

While this concept of true self is not wrong, it operates on the conscious mind. It is achieved out of maturity or coming of age where you have a stronger sense of who you are as an individual. 

When I was younger, I used to be loud and expressive to avoid being tagged as boring and not nice, even though I was an introvert. I had to pretend to gain attention and friends. However, now that I am in my mid-thirties, I am no longer bothered by what other people would say or think about me anymore. I became comfortable with prioritizing my needs and saying no if necessary.

2. Spiritual True Self

Your spiritual true self is the identity of your soul. Knowing your true Self is knowing that you are a piece of the divine Creator or God, and living in alignment with your soul.

It is also called the Higher Self or Higher Consciousness. It is spiritual and explores the unknown realms of life. Finding your true Self is the path to fulfilling your life purpose.

On the day we were born, we forgot our true identity as soul energy. Our personality, character, and beliefs dominated the creation of our reality on earth. However, if we dare to explore who we truly are, we can awaken and reconnect with our forgotten selves. In this article, I will share 10 lessons to help you find your spiritual true self. 

How to Find Your True Self In A Spiritual Way

There is no right or wrong way of finding your true self because it is a journey that honors the uniqueness of your soul and purpose. Here are some tips that can help you figure out what your life is about.

1. Recognize that you are a soul and not just a personality.

Try this simple exercise: Close your eyes and quiet your mind. Take 3 mindful breathings and imagine a ball of light at the center of your heart. Spread the ball of light to your entire body, and let it flow to the tip of your head, fingers, and toes.

Do you feel the energy from within? It’s because you are not just your body and personality. You are the soul inside you.

Becoming aware that your soul is more important than the image you project to the world, you will realize that personality is not the only way to be. It will reveal new truths that will help dissolve false beliefs the world puts upon you.

2. Remind yourself that you are not how the world sees you.

The world is brutally persistent in convincing you that you are your looks, intellect, and capabilities. And it’s difficult to resist.

Remind yourself that you are not how this world defines you. Even if you do not know who you are yet, one thing is for sure: you are not the collection of people’s opinions and beliefs.

You are you.

Constantly affirm that your life should not be boxed by the rules of the world. This will help liberate yourself from limiting beliefs and to bridge the gap between your body, mind, and spirit.

3. Know that you have a unique divine purpose and honor it.

You have a unique and sacred purpose whether you know it or not. This is the purpose of the soul — to learn and grow by living out its divine purpose.

Finding your true self takes time, but as you discover your life purpose, you will also figure out who you are in the process.

I knew early in life that my purpose was to be a writer. However, it took me more than two decades before I had the courage to honor it. Being my purpose painted vivid colors to my soul. It made me more defined and aligned with my mission.

4. Identify your passion and do it.

Your true passion is your unique divine purpose. Passion is the voice of the soul. It is the compass that points you to the reason of your existence.

Passion does not have standards. It doesn’t have to be impressive or profitable. Doing what you are passionate about stirs and grows love in your soul.

5. Constantly communicate with your inner voice.

Your true self always speaks from within in the form of inner voices. Your inner voice will be your first guide and companion as you figure out who you are.

However, connecting with your inner voice and tapping into your spirit is not easy in the beginning. It takes constant listening and talking to your soul through the heart and mind. 

Inner voice reveals your truths. It guides you on becoming your most authentic state. Communicating with your inner self often strengthens your ability to decipher its messages for you.

6. Stop asking for love by pleasing other people.

The biggest block that prevents us from becoming the truest version of ourselves is pleasing other people. People-pleasing behavior roots out from the absence of love for oneself and fear of judgment. The Soul is pure love and non-judgmental. When you please others for attention and value, you create a false and artificial version of love that covers up the soul’s true identity.

Finding your true self is a journey of genuinely loving yourself again. You can only do this when you stop pleasing others and focus on loving yourself.

Practice in all of your relationships making decisions that are true for you even if they won’t make others happy. Whether you are at work or home, let them know your ‘no’ without feeling guilty or afraid.

7. Do solo activities to quiet your mind and spirit.

Silence is essential in finding your true self. Solo activities like walking along the shore or going to places you’ve never been before help connect with yourself more. The voice of your soul speaks loud when your external world is quiet.

Spending time alone with myself helped me a lot to gain clarity about what I want to do and be in life. It gave me space to think about the things that I don’t usually entertain when I am with people or busy with daily responsibilities.

Other quieting activities for the mind and soul that I love are meditation, writing a reflective journal, and reading books on spirituality.

8. Remember that you are an energy of love.

When our soul incarnates to the earth as physical bodies, it gets disconnected from the Divine Source or God. We forget that our soul is a portion of God’s sacred energy of love.

We are energies of love. Our instincts know this, that’s why we want to love and be loved. We want to reclaim our original nature. When you have the awareness that you are love, you will see new ways of understanding people and experiences. This stimulates your soul energy and helps you shift from an ego-driven life to a spirit-led life. 

9. Submit to the process of inner healing.

Your spiritual true self is your healed self. And to find it, you must first heal.

Finding your true self is not just looking for what you haven’t figured out about yourself yet. It is a long process of inner healing you must go through. Inner healing involves spiritual awakening, the dark night of the soul, releasing emotional baggage, and rebirth. If you encounter these things along the way, you’re in the right direction.

Healing is never easy, but submitting to it with all your heart could make it bearable.

10. Be courageous.

“Courage is the first spiritual quality that you need to have.” ~ Paulo Coelho

Finding your true self is a tormenting process of confronting inner traumas, anger, and regrets, forgiving yourself and the people who destroyed you, accepting your dirt and imperfections, loving yourself, and putting your dreams and purpose into action. All these things require courage.

Be courageous and never give up on yourself. You can only discover who you are when you let courage guide and support you. You will face lots of fear and pain but know that courage is more powerful than any of them.

Final Thoughts

In the spiritual quest to find my true self, I learned there are no shortcuts or easy routes.

It is a long and lonely journey that nobody can make up for you, but the universe always provides help. You just have to open your eyes and receive it. 

If you feel lonely in finding your true self, this website offers a safe place. I also send bi-weekly E-letters for the Soul to empower and inspire your soul. To receive them straight to your inbox, join my mailing list.

May the universe give you all the strength and courage you need to find your true self.