Threads of Awakening

A multidimensional map of the spiritual journey

There is not THE way and THE truth. Every dogma is (spiritual) bullsh*t. And perhaps you have also noticed on your spiritual journey that you don’t really fit in and that the pre-defined paths, stages and goals of classical traditions simply don’t suit you.

Congratulations! – on your instinct to trust your own experience more than anything anyone else says. Still, it can be quite lonely and frustrating to face the challenges of awakening seemingly alone and on your own.

Here comes the good news: There is a map of awakening in which you and your experiences have a place! It is called “Threads of Awakening” and was developed by Prof. Pierce Salguero.

Fäden des Erwachens - eine multidimensionale Landkarte des Erwachens

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“A map is not the territory it represents.”

Alfred Korzybski

Even if no map is ever the territory, there are some that fit your own experiences better than others. The “Threads of Awakening” is such a map – it is independent of any tradition and incorporates the wide range of different awakening experiences.

The most common
“Threads of Awakening”

The Emptiness Thread

The Emptiness Thread is very well known, as it appears in many traditions: it is about deconstructing the entire reality. All concepts are questioned, all identifications are dropped. The thread usually begins with seeing through the illusion of Self. In the end, nothing remains. Everything is empty, even emptiness is empty.

Related traditions: Advaita Vedanta, Theravada Buddhism, Zen and other traditions that focus on meditation and self-inquiry as the most important spiritual practices.

The Oneness Thread

If the Oneness Thread is part of your awakening, you experience everything as one. Often this thread opens with a visceral emotional, religious or mystical experience of e.g. universal compassion, love or divine presence. As the thread deepens, it becomes clear that nothing is separate from the One. Everything is one love/divinity.

Related traditions: Christian mysticism, Sufism, Mahayana Buddhism, devotion-based Hinduism and Goddess traditions around the world.

The Energy Thread

The Energy Thread is about experiences and phenomena of energies such as Kundalini, auras, chakras, etc. If these energy phenomena not only appear sporadically, but deepen and follow a distinct trajectory, you probably have an active Energy Thread. At the end of the thread, however, even these phenomena dissolve and the entire cosmos collapses into pure potential.

Related traditions: Most traditional forms of Yoga, Daoism, Vajrayana Buddhism, Kashmir Shaivism and other Tantric traditions from across the Asian continent.

The Psyche Thread

The Psyche Thread does not only contain conditioning and trauma, but goes far beyond the personal biography. Experiences with ancestors, past lives, transpersonal shadows and supernatural phenomena are all part of this thread. At the end of the thread, it becomes obvious that absolutely everything you experience is created and projected by your Psyche.

Related traditions: Psychotherapy, Jungian-inspired Active Imagination and Shadow Work, Shamanism, Paganism and other indigenous traditions.

Want to find out more? Get in touch!

Author of “The Threads of Awakening”

The “Threads of Awakening” model was developed by Pierce Salguero, Professor of Asian history, religions, and healing traditions.

He himself has gone through an awakening process and has talked to many awakening people about their individual processes.

Read the full version of "The Threads of Awakening"

Awakening as a multi-threaded process

1

Opening
Not every spiritual experience is a thread, but every thread opens at some point with a profound experience. What follows is a deepening of the thread through further experiences that continue to develop the theme of the thread. This trajectory can be experienced as a straightforward process, but just as often it can feel like two steps forward, one step back.
2

Braiding
If your awakening process involves more than one thread, you will notice that the individual threads seem to contradict each other. The threads may take turns coming forward, like weaving a braid, temporarily obscuring other threads. Your experience may jump back and forth between different threads; it may also be that you are on one thread for a very long time. This process is very individual and all your experiences have a place in it.
3

Integrating
The longer the braiding process progresses, the more you will notice that the threads no longer seem so separate from each other. The contradictions become fewer, the insights of the threads “color” each other. At some point it becomes clear that there is no difference between Emptiness, Oneness, Energy and the Psyche. Yes, that there is not even a difference between spiritual and everyday life. Everything is merged into one single multidimensional braid.

While the braiding process comes to an end in the integration stage, the deepening of the threads themselves also comes to an end. Each thread becomes nondual and absolute at its end point – nothing, absolutely nothing could ever take place outside the realization of the thread.
4

Releasing
Releasing may come as a surprise, as deep experiences can emerge towards the end of the integration phase. Realizing that even these are not the end of the awakening process can be quite shocking. It can also be that the Releasing happens very gradually and at some point it becomes clear that there is simply what is. Nothing needs to be named, understood or evaluated.

Releasing the threads also means letting go of all experiences, identifications, perspectives and ontologies. Even the idea of awakening and spirituality no longer makes sense. There is nothing more to say. Over time, the awakening process is forgotten and all that remains is ordinary day to day life.