5 Things You Realize When You Wake Up and Question Reality

Get the latest Waking Times articles delivered to your inbox. Sign up here.

Dylan Charles, Editor

Waking Times

“What is real? How do you define real? If you’re talking about what you can feel, what you can smell, what you can taste and see, then real is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain.” ~Morpheus, The Matrix

Ever get the feeling that reality isn’t really what we think it is?

The further science, technology and human evolution take us the more questions we have about the nature of reality and the role of consciousness. Is this a hologram or an illusion? Are we dreaming or in a simulation? Do we shift between parallel universes as we make different choices? And what of the spiritual dimensions? Are human beings really just a single unified cosmic consciousness experiencing itself from billions of points of isolated and limited perception? Does anyone know for sure?

Few are privy to the secrets of reality, but the journey of awakening begins when one starts questioning everything. Whether it be the big global conspiracies, secret societies, the corporate control matrix, big pharma and the medical cartel, the banking establishment, the shape of the earth, or the purpose of life, the journey is at first an inquisition.

Along the way you notice ways in which approaching life with an open-mind changes you, and how it turns long-held beliefs and assumptions upside down, forever altering your perception and relation to it all.

1. You Realize that Patterns and Programs Govern Everything and Everyone

We learn primarily by mimicry…. monkey see, monkey do. As a child grows and develops consciousness over time, they move from confusion to differentiation, to situational awareness, then to identification, ultimately arriving at self-awareness. By the time they become self-aware, their perception of what the world is all about is well-formed. The programs in play here affect the rest of their lives.

“We laugh at sheep because sheep just follow the one in front. We humans have out-sheeped the sheep, because at least the sheep need a sheep dog to keep them in line. Humans keep each other in line. And they do it by ridiculing or condemning anyone who commits the crime, and that’s what it’s become, of being different.” ~David Icke

Conformity to patterns of thought and patterns of behavior are learned, and when you watch people closely, you notice that most of them are imitating the examples they’ve seen their whole lives. Emotional behavior, notions of success, relationships, rules, laws, and even love for self are all ingrained programs, many of which need to be undone in order for spiritual growth to occur.

If we can be programmed, we can also be re-programmed.

2. You Learn that the Most Valuable Commodity is Your Attention

Advertisers, governments, media organizations and business are quickly learning that in this new age of technological wonders capturing people’s attention is priority number one. Attention is the greatest commodity of today.

With so much competition for your attention, you begin to realize how valuable it is to others, and eventually you realize how valuable it is to yourself. You notice that what you give your attention to creates the environment in which you live, and therefore the information and ideas you focus on and consume will work together to shape your personal reality.

This is why it is absolutely essential to consciously direct your focus where it is deserved, carefully choosing which ideas and perspectives are worthy of your time and congruent with the life you wish to lead. And your time is your life, so your attention is priceless.

3. You Notice that Perceptions Can Change in an Instant, Changing Everything

It only takes the right scrap of information, the right quote, or the right idea at the right time to change your whole understanding of the world.

“Change the way you see things and the things you see will change.” ~Wayne Dyer

Again, media organizations and propagandists already know this, which is why news is crafted the way it is, carefully framing, suggesting and omitting ideas so as to manage the perceptions of the masses. The crux of mind control is perception management.

When you begin to question everything, you start to wonder if your perceptions and belief about society and your own life are really true. You wonder if they are your own perceptions or if they belong to someone else. You begin to ask if your outlook is based on the complete picture, or if it is based on a limited understanding and a limited knowing.

When you grasp this, you begin to understand just how much power you have to control your own perceptions, and then your own reality, and are no longer bound to the whims of others.

4. You Begin to See that Everything is an Illusion

The eyes turn tricks with light to create images inside the brain using only a tiny fraction of the entire spectrum of electromagnetic frequencies in front of us. The subconscious mind makes a fool of the conscious mind by secretly adding depth and meaning to the images we create. These images combine with experience to form beliefs, and the ego constructs an identity out of them. Above all of this sits the spirit, watching and waiting for an opportunity to break free from the illusions of what we think it means to be alive and conscious in a material world.

But the world we are in is insufferably material, and this materialism works magic with light, symbols and imagery in order to create illusions. Illusions about authority, happiness, truth and success can be incredibly powerful, but upon deeper inquiry, you’ll eventually notice that nothing is ever what it seems.

The rich and famous aren’t always happy or healthy. Those who enforce the law don’t always follow the law. The powerful are often bested by the weak. The aim of politics is not to unite, but to divide. Time isn’t money, it is your life. And on and on.

“We live in a culture where everything tastes good but nothing satisfies.” ~Daniel Pinchbeck

5. You Finally Realize there is Nothing to Fear

In the exploration of the self, fear is the first thing to go, and once it is unwound and cast aside a tremendous sense of freedom takes over, defying the negative shock programming in our world today. This runs counter to the messages of the media who rely on stoking fear to control and to sell, but once you’ve broken through the illusions that create a false reality, and are able to see that love is the organizing force in our universe, fear dissolves entirely.

“Everything is the light.” ~Nikola Tesla

Eventually, upon self-reflection, it becomes clear that consciousness and the soul are eternal. We truly are cosmic beings having a human experience, and we are capable of knowing that once this existence comes to an end something greater and more magical awaits us.

The greatest realization of them all is that there is nothing to fear.

Final Thoughts

Our shared world is created by the collected thoughts and actions of individuals. Therefore, to change the world for the better we must first elevate our own consciousness so that we may overcome the traps and obstacles set before us by a dying culture and a psychopathic power structure. The only way to do this is to turn our attention onto the act of understanding how we as individuals perceive and relate to the world we share. This is how we evolve.

“You have to take seriously the notion that understanding the universe is your responsibility, because the only understanding of the universe that will be useful to you is your own understanding.” ~Terence McKenna

Read more articles by Dylan Charles .

About the Author

Dylan Charles is the editor of Waking Times and host of The Battered Souls Podcast, both dedicated to ideas of personal transformation, societal awakening, and planetary renewal. His personal journey is deeply inspired by shamanic plant medicines and the arts of Kung Fu, Qi Gong and Yoga. After seven years of living in Costa Rica, he now lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains, where he practices Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and enjoys spending time with family. He has written hundreds of articles, reaching and inspiring millions of people around the world.

This article (5 Things You Realize When You Wake Up and Question Reality) was originally created and published by Waking Times and is published here under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Dylan Charles and WakingTimes.com. It may be re-posted freely with proper attribution, author bio, and this copyright statement.