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I don’t hide that I’m a superhero geek. The Marvel Universe is rich with fascinating comics and heroes that have come to life through cinema. In a crowded field of fantastic and memorable heroes, there is one character who stands out to me the most – Dr. Strange. Not to sound too nerdy here, but he is arguably the most powerful character within the comic book universe. I find Dr. Strange’s origins to be quite compelling and memorable, and it’s a path that I identify with and find deep connection.

With that said, fellow superhero nerds, let’s talk about Dr. Strange and what led him to find his purpose in life to serve others. It’s a process that I refer to as a “Spiritual Awakening.”

The Story of Stephen Strange

Stephen Strange thinks he has the answers to everything and anything. He has achieved mastery in his craft as a surgeon. He achieves a status that few can comprehend or achieve. As a result, he becomes arrogant, ignorant, and unwilling to change his behaviors and perspectives. His resistance to change is understandable. After all, he saves lives that once seemed lost, and he’s the best in the world at what he does. He has fame, success, money, and notoriety. What else can there be?

But then his life is completely changed through a severe car accident. As a result, he loses his ability to use his hands, can no longer perform the work he has dedicated his life to and finds himself questioning his purpose. When hope feels lost, he becomes curious about other ways to heal. It leads him down a path towards a sacred art – leading him to the “Ancient One.” As he mocks the atmosphere, practices, and perspectives of her wisdom, she utilizes her magic and sends him into a portal of a multidimensional reality trip. This shows him the infinite possibilities of the mystic arts and soon he is begging to learn more from the Ancient One. He gets so desperate that he is on his knees asking her “teach me.” Alas, she denies his request.

You might get the point by now – and I don’t want to take too much time talking about one of my favorite superhero characters; eventually, he learns the mystic arts and becomes one of the most powerful superheroes with a life’s purpose to help save humanity.  Here is the important part of the story (and the part that made a lasting impact on my own life), as Dr. Strange comes to open his mind, body, and soul to new possibilities, he gets some life-changing advice. Prior to officially becoming a student of the Ancient One, Baron Mardo (his accomplice) tells him, “forget everything you think you know.”

My Personal Spiritual Awakening

Dr. Strange’s origin story connected with me on many levels. His life, and that quote, have propelled me on my own journey of exploring spirituality. I might not have superpowers in the way that Dr. Strange does, but my origin story is very similar to my favorite hero. Between the ages of 13-17, I placed all my energy and effort into athletics. My family, coaches, and my abilities positioned me to succeed in sports – specifically football. I became fixated on football; it was my life. It was deeply intertwined with my identity… my future was fully based on football. It clouded both my ego and judgment, but like Dr. Strange, the Universe had different plans for me.

Prior to a very promising senior season, I was diagnosed with Leukemia (Blood Cancer). Like Dr. Strange, my diagnosis sparked my curiosity to seek a path of healing and deeper meaning beyond what I once knew.

Saying Goodbye to the Material World – Welcoming the Spiritual Universe

Up until my diagnosis, I was busy looking and listening in the “material” world. Afterward, I began to open my eyes to the spiritual universe – it was my personal divine intervention. Like Dr. Strange, my entire sense of self-worth was placed into something that was taken from me. I was thrust forth on a path to redefine my identity and place in the universe. I had to forget everything [that I thought I] knew. It has allowed me to open my mind to new perspectives, and become my own version of a wizard with a purpose to serve others.

By this point, you might be wondering what this has to do with you. My goal is to help you understand that we all have a spiritual path. You might not be looking for it. You might not even want it right now, but you have a spiritual path and a powerful purpose. The spiritual realm can be vast and complicated, and it requires us to be open-minded. However, if you take anything away from this article, remember this – tap into your own Dr. Strange mindset and open your perspectives. Have the courage and tenacity to seek meaning, newfound purpose, and your own Spiritual Awakening. Don’t be afraid to “forget everything.”

What is Spirituality?

For you to walk your own spiritual path, let’s take some time to talk about spirituality and what it means. First, you must detach (forget) from the material world. Some examples from the material world are:

• Tangible (physical) aspects of life (wealth, physical markers of success)
• Social statuses/Social Values
• Ego-driven outcomes (yourself over others)
• Consumerism (products = happiness)
• Temporary outcomes. The “more is better” mindset
• Validation from superficial sources (social media approval)
• Confined to set belief systems such as:
  • We are only a physical body (3 Dimensional beings)
  • We are the only living beings in the universe
  • Religions and Sciences that disallow curiosity and evolution

The most substantial barrier to spiritual living (unfortunately) is Western/American culture. In a consumer-focused world, we’ve become greatly detached from Spirituality. Modern technology and our insatiable thirst for the material world have been pivotal in our evolution – and it has its place. You cannot thrive by living entirely in the material realm. My hope is to inspire you to shift your perspectives to learn the spiritual realm’s potential. This will help you balance the modern mindset and channel your inner Dr. Strange. Get ready to become a wizard!

Steps to Walking a Spiritual Path

Like Dr. Strange, my path was forced by drastic and traumatic change. Suddenly, life as we both knew it was changed forever and we were forced to deeply reflect on our meaning and purpose. Most human beings do not need to go through a life-changing event to initiate this process, nor does it necessarily have to be the driving force to explore spirituality. The goal is to explore spiritual concepts, no matter your situation, so you can foster a wholisitic approach to becoming the best version of yourself. The steps below provide practical ways for you to explore spiritual concepts.

Step 1: Honor the Universe

For this step, we need to honor that our perceptions are limited. This sparks the paradigm shift from the material world to the spiritual world. The Universe has a very specific plan for each of us that we need to accept and understand. Sometimes in spirituality, these instances are made not by choice. For Dr. Strange and me, this was triggered by a crisis, a life-changing event. For most of humanity, we simply need to accept that there’s more to life than meets the eye. This sounds simple, but it’s far from it. For many of us it’s difficult to accept that we are just a part of the universe, rather than the center of the universe. Beyond that, everyone should remain in a constant state of growth and evolution.

Step 2: Acceptance, Surrender, and Letting Go

Dr. Strange’s pivotal moment came when he accepted his vulnerability and surrendered to the wisdom of the Ancient One. A spiritual journey demands acceptance – a full surrender to the flow of life. Spiritual growth involves us letting go of attachments, beliefs, and behaviors that no longer serve us. Both Strange and I had to let go of our egos and attachments to our former identities, and similarly, we had to shed our self-limiting beliefs and attachments.

Step 3: Humility, Openness, Embracing the Unknown

Our humility and willingness to learn are key factors in our spiritual transformations. Similarly, a spiritual journey requires us to set aside our preconceptions and be open to new perspectives and teachings. Are you willing to explore a journey into realms beyond the ordinary? On the spiritual path, embracing the unknown and stepping outside of our comfort zones is crucial for growth and expansion. This can be difficult for many – and requires tremendous strength. The unknown can be frightening, but you must learn to embrace uncertainty with open arms.

Step 4: Less Ego, More Service

A spiritual path involves transcending ego-driven identity. If we want to connect with a higher version of ourselves, we have to say goodbye to our ego. It requires self-care and self-love, alongside a purpose for service and compassion. For Dr. Strange and me, our final step was to use our newfound purpose for the greater good. Similarly, the spiritual path often leads to a deep sense of compassion and a desire to serve others and contribute positively to the world.

Step 5: Understand the Collective Consciousness

This step involves the rather profound interconnectedness of human nature. In other words, there is a unifying, shared pool of knowledge, thoughts, emotions, and experiences that bind us together. It’s a spiritual concept that transcends materialism and cannot be proved or quantified through scientific data. Rather, it relies heavily on both conscious and subconscious factors that cannot be expressed through tangible data or evidence.

This is no new concept. Carl Jung is a famous psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who specifically studied collective consciousness. Throughout human history, different cultures, philosophies, and religions have explored our powerful, connected nature. Within Christianity for example: God creates all life>God is within all things>We are all connected.

Coaches Note: This concept of interconnection involves all LIVING things, such as plants, animals, mountains, Celestial beings (Sun/Moon/Stars), and the ocean. We have the potential to access/understand the spiritual energy of these organisms.

The important question now is – How do we become more awakened, spiritual human beings through these first 5 steps? Steps 6 and 7 provide practical information to help you start connecting the dots to realize your own purpose.

Step 6: Utilize Your Own Tools

Connect to your Breath: Your breath is a portal to reflect deeper into conscious, unconscious, and subconscious layers. This is within past, present, and future experiences. If you utilize your breath for the physiological benefits, you will become more aware, more still, and more understanding of life around you. This allows you to connect with steps 1 through 5. 

Engage with Psychedelic (Plant) Medicine: Yes, I am suggesting that “drugs” can be a beautiful gateway to begin a spiritual path. Some examples I am referring to are Psilocybin (Mushrooms), Ayuhwaska (DMT), Peyote (Cactus), MDMA, LSD, Ketamine, and Cannabis (not considered a classic psychedelic). These drugs/medicines can be controversial within the Western/Materialistic culture. However, more research and information continue to come out about psychedelics that demonstrate how they can be helpful tools. There is an increasing number of findings that show how these tools can be positive and impactful. Some examples are:

• Ability to develop new behaviors and perspectives through chemical changes within the brain’s default mode network. This is done through the effect of Neuroplasticity.
• Feel that you have access to an “inner healer” by revealing all conscious, subconscious, and unconscious experiences and emotions that limit you from becoming the highest version of yourself. 
• Learn to comprehend, manage, and prioritize any forms of trauma (physical, emotional, ancestral, etc.)
• Encounter Mystical experiences that create curiosity toward the meaning of life.
• Understand you are a soul connected to all living things. This could be from accessing past lives, intuition, and subconscious/unconscious experiences.
• Help us realize that we are multi-dimensional beings with a higher purpose.
• *Note: This is a very, very brief overview. There are many logistics, protocols, and layers when it comes to using psychedelics in a safe, intentional way. I would not suggest engaging in any of these without the right guidance, preparation, and facilitation. In addition, psychedelics could lead to a spiritual “emergency” without proper integration strategies before, during, and post-psychedelic experiences. If you are curious about the benefits of psychedelics, I suggest trying transpersonal (holotropic) breathwork first. The experience provides similar effects to plant medicine. For more about psychedlics, read my Beginners Guide to Psychonautics HERE.

Prayer, Faith and Gratitude (PFG): Each of these allows you  to express your thoughts, feelings, and intentions that go further past the materialistic point of view. Start to practice communication with the divine, a higher power, or your inner self.  Feel trust in something beyond the tangible and a belief in the inherent goodness of life. Practice recognizing, appreciating what you HAVE in your life, VS what you LACK in your life. Whether through meditation, church, journaling, reflection or just simple daily expression, these practices of PFG can slowly help you develop a new perspective to spirituality.

Movement and Nutrition: Your physical body is a vehicle to enhance your spiritual path. This is much more than enhancing the mind-body connections, or supporting your vitality and healthspan with proper fueling. It is about using these tools to continue to explore spirituality. If we live in dysfunction or illness, we are not honoring the vehicle that our soul has chosen to fulfill its mission in, and miss opportunities to live our lives to their best.

Step 7: Seeking Guidance and Integration Tools

Connection empowers us. Dr. Strange sought out the Ancient One for guidance, and I found mentorship from a wise Yogi. We often seek teachers, mentors, or spiritual guides who can help us navigate the complexities of the spiritual realm. More importantly, having a strong support system of individuals who are willing to understand your spiritual process is extremely important for you to properly integrate these steps.

Marco’s Spiritual Meter: Vibration 101 and Increasing Spiritual Potential 

About your Spiritual Meter: In many role-playing video games, your character has a meter that constantly has to be charged and refilled. If full, they are performing at their highest power. Their meters can even be enhanced through various tools. The same concept applies to your ability to receive, create, and manifest spiritual energy through electrical vibrations and frequencies. This is not a new concept by any means in the Psychedelic/Spiritual community. These are examples, from my personal experience, of how you can make positive charges from a variety of stimuli. 

1. Physical Charge: Through Movement
2. Sound Charge: Though Voice and Projection
3. Environmental Charge: Through Light, Nature, and Other Organisms
4. Tactile Charge: Through any variation of touch, from yourself to another human/organism/object.
5. Nutritional Charge: Through Food (Foods with dense nutrition profile, wholesomeness, unprocessed, and containing color/light)
6. Group Connection Charge: Through emotional vibrations of others
7. Charge Combos: Through multiple inputs of charge simultaneously, for example: A 20-second hug provides charges of touch and connection.

Coach’s Notes about your Spiritual Meter: 

1. I consider myself familiar with these charges. We are not limited to these charges only, and there are many others to explore. 
2. This is also coming from a non-materialistic point of view. For example: Instead of fitness releasing X neurotransmitter, think of how movement increases your nonmaterialistic energy that allows you to receive energy and manifest energy.
3. This is my own intuitive way of describing a complex topic. This is solely based on my personal experiences/observations. I still have much to learn and explore. In my opinion, this topic also has infinite possibilities and knowledge to offer.
4. General Thought: Depending on your human design (refer to an expert on this), you may be more sensitive to specific charge types.
5. All Charge types have the ability to decrease your charge meter just as much as increase it. If used for the wrong intent, or from a poorly charged source, your charge meter may level down.
6. Long Term Consistency is Key When Developing Your Spiritual Meter

Get MAD Fit Spiritual Tips

• Start with Self Reflection: A spiritual path begins with intuition. Have you ever felt a deep calling to achieve, do, or complete something in your life? Why do you feel called to this? Why do you feel emotionally invested in something? These are all signs that you have a spiritual connection to that. Especially if you do not have the materialistic viewpoints to WHY you feel that connection.
•  Seeking Balance (Modern vs. Spiritual): I do not want to make it seem like all materialistic viewpoints are negative. I always try to look at things with balance. So, how can you begin to integrate spiritual concepts with the material?
• De-stigmatize: Don’t just assume something is weird or crazy. I always encourage the best practice of reframing perspectives to individuals exploring spirituality. What are their intentions? How can I understand from their point of view? How could I relate to them? What can I learn from them?
• Don’t force it, but be OPEN to receiving it: Exploring spirituality has to be done with an open heart, mind, and soul. Be truly willing to “forget everything that you think you know.”
• Intention to serve others: There is an inherent belief in philosophies and cultures that spirituality is about the greater good of humanity. As you begin to improve your own practices of self-care and love, create an intention to let go of the ego and develop a path to improve the well-being of others around you.
• Understand Path vs Awakening: A spiritual path demands curiosity. Begin adopting practices, beliefs, and principles that align with the goal of reaching a higher state of 4consciousness, wisdom, and self-realization. A spiritual awakening is a profound shift in consciousness that transcends the ordinary perception of reality. Typically, through a series of dramatic changes in one’s life (i.e.: Dr. Strange and myself). It’s a moment of realization where an individual experiences a deep connection with the universal essence and recognizes the illusory nature of an ego-driven identity.
• Practice, Practice, and Practice: Think of us as the basic students within Ka Mortage (training center for students of the mystic arts in Dr. Strange). Our responsibility is to continue to be students that practice who remain curious about understanding the potential of the spiritual realm for the greater good of humanity.

All our journeys are unique, but are wonderfully universal in nature. Like Dr. Strange, my journey was shaped by challenges and triumphs. The spiritual path is long and demands patience and practice. However, every step of the journey is deeply fulfilling.

Fun Fact: I chose 7 Steps for this article for a couple reasons:

1) The number 7 has had many significant appearances throughout my life

2) 7 is a symbol of spiritual depth, transformation, and connection with higher realms of existence