The Spiritual meaning of "The Golden Hour" and how it can support your Spiritual Awakening Journey

The Golden Hour in Ibiza - circa 2018

Over the years The Golden Hour has taken on many different meanings to me and each one was a download directly from Source and my Higher Self. I've had a very intimate Soul connection with the term The Golden Hour as my own Spiritual teacher and wisdom guide. It's taken me on a journey of awakening to Self that goes far beyond just a pretty sunrise or sunset.

The Golden Hour has served my remembering of so many hidden and forgotten Spiritual Truths and it has been my constant support and solace through the darkness, as well as a reminder of my Light.

Each new meaning and spiritual understanding of The Golden Hour over the years is reflective of a shift in my own consciousness and this has been my path of coming home to myself and my Spirit more deeply, serving my own inner healing path of unfolding to being more of my unique Self. I know that for many, the pain of not feeling as though it is safe to unfurl into living a life of your truth or at times even knowing what that is, creates so much disharmony. So these downloads from The Golden Hour were never just for me, but all those that have been hiding from themselves and are ready to accept that they are indeed their own Golden Hour.

I've known this information was being channeled through me for a collective that resonates with the medicine of the Sun and it needed to be shared, and so around 8 years ago, I created a platform online called The Golden Hour, first through my Instagram and then through my 1:1 offerings, programmes and now this blog.

If you are feeling the intuitive nudge to work with the Sun or The Golden Hour as part of your daily meditation practice or perhaps you are moving through states and stages of your own Spiritual Awakening, I hope the below messages are a supportive guide for you at this time.

1. The Witching Hour - The first stage of Awakening with The Golden Hour is to wake up to your own Soul

   
   

   In the early days of my awakening, when I began to consciously hear and feel my own inner guidance, along with my spirit guides for the first time, I was waking up constantly between the hours of 3am - 5am. I'd often see 3.30am, 3.33am, 4am and 4.44am. These exact timings of awakening would occur and I knew there must have been a Divine reason for it. When I'd wake up, I would feel all the things I didn't quite get to sort out in my day suddenly work themself out. The Higher Guidance would settle into my conscious awareness, showing me a way through with clarity and support.

   
   

   The 'witching hour' is a time of complete stillness when you are more awake and receptive to receive the messages of your Soul. It is referred to as the 'witching hour' as these are the pivotal times, we are somehow in deeper connection with the Universe, Nature and Spirit, just as a witch or priest/priestess is.

   
   

   These hours of awakening act like a 'wake up call' to start connecting with the whispers of your Soul and the more we ignore the inner guidance during the day, the harder life becomes and the more mental chaos seems to ensue. Think of waking up during these hours, as a sign from your higher self to peer through the veil of illusion during this window of time, remembering the truth of your own Soul with greater ease.

   
   

   In Vedic teachings, the time from 3.30am - 4.30am is known as Brahma Muhurta, when the Spiritual connection to the Universe is at it's peak and therefore the mind is at it's most peaceful. This is why many mystics naturally rise during these hours for their sadhana (meditation, yoga, breathwork, mantra practices). When the rest of the world sleeps and the collective noise it as it's lowest, the connection to Spirit is elevated.

   
   

   Although these early hours are most commonly known as 'the witching hour' or 'the 'magic hour' and for Hindu's, Brahma Muhurta, I began to refer to it as The Golden Hour as it was when I would receive golden nuggets of wisdom, just before dawn and dusk. It became my sacred time to connect within.

   
   

   These wake up calls were my introduction to channeling words of wisdom for myself and the collective and it was here I first experienced the freedom and liberation that comes from raw self expression, from being myself in the moment, without inhibition. First it was poetry, then messages of guidance for myself and eventually messages for the wider collective followed. You may or not be channeling at this hour, however, chances are, there are whispers of your Soul that want to be heard and felt and this is a sign that you very well may be about to start experiencing your Higher Self.

2. Experiencing Spirit through the most beautiful Golden Hour!

   
   
   
   

   

   Serengeti Sunrise & Golden Hour - circa 2016

   
   

   The first time I saw the Golden Hour and really saw it, truly, deeply and consciously with my heart and not just my eyes, was in Tanzania, on a solo trip after one of my first 'break downs to break open' moments. The funny thing about breaking open, that we don't often realise at the time, is that something is being released, cleared and transformed to make space for a new awareness to be birthed.

   
   

   I could never have known before taking this trip, that the breaking open during such a rock bottom chapter would lead me to having a deeper, more real and present relationship with the Divine. During my first dark night of the soul, I was sure I was in it alone and the only thing I knew to do, was to surrender into the unknown through taking an unplanned trip of my souls choosing. This was certainly the beginning of my Spiritual Awakening.

   
   

   As I embarked on this solo trip just before my 30th birthday, I was letting go of a lot of things, people and habits that were no longer serving me. For the first time, I was finally ready to experience the act of 'letting go and letting God.' With no plans other than to assist an NGO in Tanzania for an open amount of time, I packed my bags from Dubai, in the hope of seeing where life could take me.

   
   

   On my 30th birthday, as I looked out across the horizon of the Serengeti on a hot air balloon ride just before dawn, I witnessed the most stunning Golden Hour I had ever seen. In that instance a new awareness pierced my heart. It was a moment that will stay with me forever. I saw that sunrise and realised that only something so pure, so encapsulating and breathtakingly brilliant could be of God's creation. I didn't just see God's creation, I felt God staring at me through the Sun, speaking directly to the broken pieces of me. Reminding me of the Presence of Spirit through the messiest parts of life. It was a feeling I will never forget. A voice that said, 'I'm here, right where you are, in the Sun is where you'll find me, the Spirit of Life itself.'

   
   

   Whenever we have moments like this, the kind that stay with us for a lifetime, I believe it's part of our destiny to have that experience. For me in that moment, it was not just something I witnessed or heard, but was an experience that was so visceral and I will always remember the feeling coming over me like a wave of unconditional love shocking me with its purity and strength.

   
   

   I experienced the Divine and it's presence moving through me, showing me even for just a moment, as my breath was paused in gratitude and tears flowed in remembrance; I was not alone, I was loved, I was exactly where I was meant to be and I was supported.

   
   

   It is perhaps why people from all walks of life gather for the golden hour. No matter where you are, what country you're in, the universal language we all speak is the appreciation of nature and her beauty, especially that of a magical sunrise and sunset. It is unanimously a symbol for something much greater than ourselves being witnessed by us all. As though for just a moment we are all humbled by the magnitude of the unexplainable being witnessed, reminding us to be with the unexplainable, larger part of ourselves too.

   
   

   As many stop and take photos or videos to capture it before it passes, on one hand you may think they're just admiring something that they want to remember forever but what I've come to realise is, there is so much more to this global phenomena. To witness nature in all its glory is to witness the Divine at work, just being. What if in these moments we are all seeking to remember the presence of the Divine and our connection with it for just a moment longer than our minds would have us believe is possible. We have come to think we are so separate from Spirit and so we hold on to so many things outside of ourselves to bring us closer to being in connection again. What we really seek is to be in connection with our own Spirit.

   
   
   
   

3. Becoming aware of your Divine Reflection in the Golden Hour

   
   

   There is a great Spirit of Life that keeps our hearts beating, our lungs breathing, that keep our feet on the ground, the Sun rising each day and setting each night, that ensures the oceans rise and fall in rhythm with the moons cycles. There is a powerful all knowing, ever present, awareness of Life itself in favour of keeping you alive and to have you here at this time. None of it is by accident. You are needed, wanted and very much here by design and bearing witness to the design of Life through the Sun's Golden Hour reminds us of the presence of the Divine at work. You are not alone, you are here for a reason and the Divine is Present no matter the stories your mind tells you.In that moment, when I saw the piercing golden hues of the Sun staring at me, I felt the overflow of God, Source, Creation being witnessed by me, being seen by me, being noticed by me.

   
   

   As my Awakening journey continued, years passed and I began seeing the golden hour a little differently. I began asking questions.

   
   

   If I am seeing God in this piercingly beautiful golden Sun, then who and what is seeing me? Is my reflection being mirrored to me?

   Am I seeing a reflection of my own perfection in the Sun?

   Am I seeing the perfection of my own Spirit being mirrored right now? Could it be that just as I see the Sun as the Spirit of Life, as God itself, am I actually witnessing a reflection of my own Divinity. Am I truly bearing witness to my Divine Reflection that is ever present, perfect and whole?

   
   

   I began to receive downloads and heard, 'yes, as you see me, I see you too. The perfection of Spirit is a reflection of the power, beauty and brilliance of your own Spirit being mirrored to you. I am you, you are me.'

   
   

   When you are witnessing the beauty, perfection and brilliance of God's creation, you are also witnessing the Divine Reflection of your Spirit and True Nature and this can certainly be overwhelming to take in with your ego. However, as an experience this is not of the egos making nor for it's understanding. This is of the hearts making and therefore your heart will awaken your mind to be directed towards new possibilities.

   It is about experiencing and witnessing the Truth of your Spirit just as Life, Creator, Source or God witnesses you. In all your glory, simply breathtakingly beautiful, present and Whole. This part of my journey was very much about the knowing that Spirit is a presence with me, within us all and not a concept or presence outside of ourselves.

   
   

   This concept cannot be taught or understood with just words or in theory, it is something that can only be understood through experience. Often these experiences hit us when we least expect it, when we are our lowest and perhaps the mind has surrendered enough and we have nowhere else to turn, but inwards. When the search for answers in the external proves insufficient and we finally grow weary, we lean in and in moments of stillness, we can meet the Presence within and finally catch a glimpse of our Divine reflection.

4. Accepting your colours and shadows is what makes you human and a unique Soul

   
   

   One of the most crucial aspects of Spiritual Awakening and truly healing is knowing, experiencing and mastering your fullest spectrum of emotions and colours, without judgement.

   
   

   In my experience, the path of being Spiritual, is actually the path of being human and self mastery requires compassion as we move towards self acceptance, not perfection.

   
   
   
   

   

   
   

   As we begin to close the gap towards self judgement and separation towards being truly human, we allow the stories and experiences of the past to be healed, for the parts of ourselves we have rejected as unworthy or bad to be loved into our conscious awareness. As we do so, we meet more of our Divinity.

   
   

   It was during these years of looking at the golden hour with this lens, that I started to not just see the Sun and understand the truth of my Spirit, but I was beginning to notice all the colours and shadows and the necessity and beauty within all of it. I understood I needed to embrace being human and for me this meant also embracing my darkness, not just my light.

   
   

   This knowing became the basis of me beginning my journey with shadow work. If I was deeply held by my Spirit, my Wholeness, My True Nature, could I finally venture into my darkness and be with the parts of myself that were previously so judged, rejected and kept hidden, without fearing I would become it. Could I finally feel safe to be in my own darkness and find beauty there.

   
   

   Being human is a journey of accepting your emotions as a gateway to acknowledging what lies beneath them, unconsciously. The parts of your soul you felt were not worthy of the light of day, that perhaps are perfect in whatever colour or shade they present themselves as, they are indeed what make the entirety of your unique soul picture; much like the golden hour.

   
   

   I believe the first part of the inner healing journey is to provide a safe space for yourself to feel the full spectrum of emotions you have buried within you, that arise naturally after being suppressed for years, if not lifetimes. As you provide safety for the emotions to move through you, you provide the space for your Inner Wisdom to perceive your own needs and wants to be met and in doing so, a part of your unconscious self, your shadow self is made aware. These are the parts of ourselves that are often so obscured from our awareness, hidden, rejected and abandoned into our subconscious are to be loved, through non judgement, just being aware of them firstly, without having to do anything, is the first step towards deeper healing.

   
   
   
   

5. Embracing your humanity and remembering your Divinity

   
   

   This brings us to the last stage of Awakening with the Golden Hour and that is to embrace your humanity and remember your Divinity.

   
   

   

   South Goa, India - circa 2023

   This is the part of the inner healing journey I would say is truly a process of deep self compassion and patience. If we all had this part down to a tee, we would probably already fully enlightened beings and there would be no need for our incarnations. So, whilst this last teaching is a download I received and I'm aware of, I am very much on this journey, as most of us are, with humility to learn as I go; embracing my humanity and remembering my Divinity is a journey.

   
   

   I've found the real lesson of being able to embrace our humanity AND remember our divinity a little more comes during times of uncertainty. Perhaps it will not always be the case, but for many, it starts off this way. This may come during deeper spiritual initiations, such as moving through grief, during major transformations, transitions or dark nights of the soul and periods of traversing the unknown. When it is much easier to become a victim of our circumstances, to blame ourselves and others for what is being experienced and to criticise what we cannot understand as being 'bad or negative', is actually the time to lean into being with the messy parts of life and ourselves with less judgement.

   
   

   What makes shadow work that much harder or keeps us in a state of resistance to leaning towards being with our own darkness, is fearing there will be no way out. No way out from feeling our darkness and becoming it. I believe this is often the case when we haven't yet experienced our own Spirit or the grounded presence of the Divine. It's so crucial to bring our awareness to the anchor that is always within us, just like the Sun, we are tethered to the Presence of our True Self (Spirit). It is always present, constant and a reminder to be with our breath, as we feel it ALL. Slowly and gently.

   
   

   Whilst we feel our emotions, delving deeper into uncovering our subconscious limited beliefs, wounding and meeting our shadows, it is so important to be anchored into the larger more Whole Truth of ourselves, or else we face our darkness and unknowingly become it, replacing one false identity with another.

   
   

   As we do this work, as we face and accept our many colours, shadows and the full spectrum of emotions and parts of ourselves that make us human. As we give ourselves the safety, space and permission to do so, we find our way home to a little more of our Divinity, which is to allow ourselves to be human and find wholeness in that. In truth our Spirit is Whole, but as human we do not believe ourselves to be.

   
   

   This is perhaps why this last teaching is the most crucial part of the Awakening process, because it comes with having to practice and take action with the awareness we have attained. It's taking the concept of the Golden Hour and now living it as an expression, knowing that, you are the Golden Hour.

   
   

   This last teaching allows for all the stages of consciousness to come together in full realisation and embodiment, knowing that the Sun represents your Spirit, ever present, constant, an undeniable force of unconditional love, that no matter if you can see it, is always there, reflecting the unconditional love within you that is the Divine itself.

   
   

   As we see the beautiful luminous glow of the Sun rising and setting on a new day, we are reminded of the Presence of peace, harmony and goodness that we have access to, especially during that golden time when darkness is also present. If we take a pause and the meet moment with stillness, we will feel a sense of connection as we allow ourselves to be with all of our humanity.

   
   

   Witnessing the Golden Hour is a sacred practice of witnessing yourself in all your glory, both your Spirit and your humanity in all it's colours, shades and shadows. The parts that seem imperfect, messy, not so picture perfect, but yet so unique and somehow exactly how it's supposed to be.

   
   

   The Golden Hour shows us that no matter how broken we have been conditioned to believe being human is, in truth, the more we embrace our humanity, the more we can welcome the parts of our humanity back home to our heart and conscious awareness. The ugly, the angry, the messy, the chaotic, the so called 'negative' aspects of self do not require our judgement but rather to be met with acceptance, to be witnessed, seen and heard and in that moment of a little more embrace, our shadows dissolve into the sunlight a little more.

   It is my hope that if you have found your way to this particular blog, the Golden Hour has something to say to you directly that perhaps you are ready to know and remember. May it's teachings serve you on your path and provide you with the peace it has given me over the years.

   
   

   If this article has resonated with you in some way, I would love to hear from you in the comments below.

   Stay Golden.

   
   

   With gratitude,

   Tarika