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Discover a deeper understanding of
awakening, life’s purpose, and the
possibility of transformation.

Discover a deeper understanding of awakening, life’s purpose, and the possibility of transformation.

An Online Resource for Spiritual Discovery

Awakening 101 is a spiritual online resource combining personal blogs and images with the teachings of spiritual leaders and well-known sages. Intended to be like a library, readers can visit with curiosity and find inspiration. The aim of Awakening 101 is to be as a source of light, encouraging readers to ignite their own personal growth and continue evolving emotionally and spiritually.

"Moments of awakening happen to all of us, all of the time.

"Moments of awakening happen to all of us,

all of the time.

"Moments of awakening happen to

all of us, all of the time.

They are glimpses – pauses in our incessant thought stream – where for an instant, we are completely present. Our minds are still, and our hearts filled with unconditional love and a feeling of deep connection to the world around us. It is in this present moment, free from resistance, a place of complete surrender … where we discover our true Selves.”

Read the blog
Listen to the podcast
Explore the resource library
Read the blog
Listen to the podcast
Explore the resource library

Explore the Awakening Process

The awakening process wheel shown below is our attempt at the often-indescribable journey of spiritual awakening in a linear way. Engage with the tools and elements of Awakening 101, and uncover fresh perspectives and insights to guide you further on your spiritual journey.

Learn more about the awakening process

Awakening Process 101:

A Podcast About Emotional Health and Modern Spirituality

Introducing the podcast “Awakening Process 101,” inspired by the themes and concepts of Awakening 101. Join me, Pernilla Burke, writer, photographer and founder of Awakening 101, along with my best friend, Louise Juel, Buddhist and yoga teacher, and engage in conversations about spirituality, emotional health, healing, and what awakening truly means in the context of our modern lives. Filled with stories, sarcasm, and laughter, our podcast aims to be a message to anyone who is curious about deepening their connection to their inner selves.

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Louise Juel

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Pernilla Burke

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Letter from Pernilla, the Founder of Awakening 101

I am not a doctor or therapist or researcher. I am first and foremost a mother and a deeply spiritual being who recovered from addiction to drugs and alcohol. It has been a life-long fascination of mine to try to find out why I felt the way I felt and why the things that came about for me came about.  The impetus to understand all of this became even stronger when I had children. I started wondering, “What are the key ingredients to an emotionally and spiritually balanced human being?” In other words, the opposite of what I once was?

“My mission is to increase your awareness of the many doorways of awakening through life’s

journey.”

“My mission is to increase your awareness of the

many doorways of awakening through life’s journey."

“My mission is to increase your awareness

of the many doorways of awakening

through life’s journey."

“My mission is to increase your

awareness of the many doorways of

awakening through life’s journey."

“My mission is to increase your awareness of

the many doorways of awakening through

life’s journey."

Throughout my own life, healing, and discovery, I found what I believe to be the foundational components of emotional and spiritual health – components I wish I’d had earlier in life. I realized that life and life’s lessons are one incredible puzzle, slowly becoming an awakening process. If you choose to continue, resisting the urge to hide, you will find that life’s purpose is just this: to connect deeply with yourself, your soul, and the vital energy that sustains us all.

Pernilla Burke

Founder, Author & Photographer

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© Awakening 101 – 2022. All rights reserved. Copy writing & photography by Pernilla Burke. Site design & Development by Ahvay Creative Studio. Copy Editing by Britt Olson. 

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Abdi Assadi

Abdi Assadi Picture

Website 
Books:
A Healer’s Handbook
Shadows on the Path

Abdi Assadi is unlike any other healer or spiritual teacher ever encountered. He is an expert in martial arts, and a dynamic healer practicing a diverse array of Chinese and Eastern Medicine, indigenous shamanic rituals, and meditation techniques. With a clinical practice in New York City for almost 4 decades, Abdi has accumulated a vast knowledge of real life experience working with several thousands of individuals, guiding them through the most difficult times, and teaching them how to understand themselves. One of the greatest things about him is he merges the human psyche with the spiritual psyche.

Steeped in deep wisdom and insight that is rare to find on this planet in these modern times, Abdi has an extraordinary ability in perceiving and comprehending human souls and their individual psyche. Guided by the divine, Abdi guides you to open up and see beyond your limited Self, into your own soul. His impeccable discernment enables him to unleash personal remarks that pierce through your veil, statements that you will never forget and in an instant alter your perception of yourself and your reality.

– Quotes from Shadows on the Path by Abdi Assadi:


All spiritual masters teach us that love is an activity before it is a condition – and that love is all-encompassing.
Page 18


It felt like I was coming off a race track and driving in a school zone. He knew, years before I did, that my speed was my way of suppressing my early childhood anxiety, and that only slowing down could heal it.

Why do you need to use all these words like God and spirituality? It is right here Abdi, all around you, all the time
Page 40


one does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.
Page 51


Ultimately it keeps grace out of our lives because we are using our will power to manipulate every event and person around us.
Page 74


His lesson, which I had begun to learn for myself, is that outside circumstances do not define our internal experience if we can surrender into them. Painful or undesirable situations will always arise; true suffering comes from our ego’s desire to resist life as it is.
Page 77


Note from Pernilla:
I met Abdi in the fall of 2014 and when I arrived in his office the first thing he said was, “It’s time that you stop carrying other people’s anxiety.” In the year that followed, my entrenched codependency patterns reared their ugly heads and I was confronted with a part of myself that I had never even known was there.

A few years later, Abdi said, “When are you going to start writing your book?”I looked at him in surprise. I was not a writer. My expertise was centered around creating crazy good Excel spreadsheets. However, I started writing and collecting notes about life issues and life experiences … and here we are a few years later.

Sally Kempton

Website
Youtube Channel
Books on Amazon
Interviews

Sally Kempton is a preeminent meditation teacher of our time.

She is an expert scholar in Hinduism and all Hindu texts especially in Kashmir Shaivisim. Formerly Swami Durgananda, she left monastic life in the 1980’s to teach publicly. She has written several books and is one of the most known and loved spiritual teachers in our time.

Note from Pernilla:

I met Sally at one of her workshops at City Yoga in LA in 2003. She had the most gentle and loving disposition, and I just wanted to always be around her. I was fortunate to have been part of her two year-long “Transformative journey” courses in 2006 and 2007 and many retreats ever since. She is the true representation of unconditional love and transmits intense shakti from her Guru Swami Muktananda.

Sally is the primary building block and foundation in my spiritual journey. Without her, I would have never found and stuck with meditation – the most transformative experience of my life. Without her, I would have been lost without a clue where to go next. Her wealth of knowledge of yogic philosophy and incredible understanding of the human condition is what makes her a force to be reckoned with.  She understands your depth and makes you feel seen, heard, validated, and deeply loved.