Self-inquiry at a distance: a qualitative study of spiritual emergence in a 7-day virtual retreat

Abstract

ABSTRACT In this study, I investigate the transformative potential of online spiritual retreats by analyzing participant experiences from a 7-day virtual program integrating continuous self-inquiry, meditation, and breathwork. Fifty-six participants completed a post-retreat integration and feedback form designed to elicit reflective insights into their contemplative experiences. Using grounded theory techniques within an interpretivist framework, the analysis yielded three overarching categories: (1) inner peace, (2) transformation process, and; (3) emotional and ego challenges. The findings advance scholarly understanding of digital spirituality through three core contributions. First, the concept of digital containment is introduced as a structural and energetic matrix capable of supporting unitive states, ego dissolution, and sustained ontological insight. Second, the data challenge disembodied models of awakening by demonstrating that emotional catharsis and somatic intensity are not ancillary but central to spiritual transformation – even in virtual settings. Third, the study identifies ontological uncertainty as a generative post-awakening phase, reframing epistemic disorientation not as regression but as a deepening of existential surrender. Collectively, these contributions revise assumptions about the limitations of digitally mediated contemplative practice and expand the theoretical landscape of transpersonal psychology, spiritual emergence, and online retreat design.