Many teachers have offered maps of consciousness to describe how people grow. One popular map comes from Michael Bernard Beckwith, the American spiritual teacher, who describes four stages of how we relate to life.
Life happens to me
In this stage, we may feel that life is something that happens to us, beyond our control.
Life happens by me
Here, we begin to see that our choices and actions shape our experience.
Life happens through me
In this stage, people describe feeling part of something larger, letting life flow through them.
Life is me
The final stage is described as a deep sense of oneness with all of life.
A map, not a ladder
Maps like this can be helpful for reflection, but they’re not a ranking. Most people move between these stages throughout life, sometimes in the same day. No stage makes anyone better than anyone else.
Real life still counts
Some things really are beyond our control, and that’s not a failure of consciousness. Ordinary days, with dishes, emails and grey weather, still matter.
How little is enough
Think of one situation in your life right now. Which of these four views do you notice yourself taking?
For more, read Be the infinite player! – the spiritual journey as an “infinite game”.
If you’d like a gentle companion for finding your way through change, there’s a guided journal for it on the Guides page.