Character Motivation Thesaurus: Achieving Spiritual Enlightenment

What does your character want? This is an important question to answer because it determines what your protagonist hopes to achieve by the story’s end. If the goal, or outer motivation, is written well, readers will identify fairly quickly what the overall story goal’s going to be and they’ll know what to root for. But how do you know what outer motivation to choose?

If you read enough books, you’ll see the same goals being used for different characters in new scenarios. This thesaurus explores common outer motivations so you can see your options and what those goals might look like on a deeper level.

Goal (Outer Motivation):
Achieving Spiritual Enlightenment

Forms This Might Take
A new awareness of how society’s perceptions have become distorted (materialism, commercialism, racism, moral ambiguity, etc.)
Becoming self-aware in a way that evokes curiosity and creates the desire for an even deeper understanding
Awakening to new-found levels of love and connectedness with people, nature, animals, sacred spaces, the cosmos, God, etc.
…

Human Need Driving the Goal (Inner Motivation): self-actualization

How the Character May Prepare for This Goal
Fasting
Going on a pilgrimage
Attempting a near-death experience
Partaking in hallucinogenics or activities that encourage hallucinations
…

Possible Sacrifices or Costs Associated With This Goal
Pushing the mind or body too far
Unintentionally neglecting loved ones in one’s pursuit of internal awareness
Letting go of experiences, items, or activities that are symbols of materialism even though it conflicts with what family members cherish
…

Roadblocks Which Could Prevent This Goal from Being Achieved
Being scammed by people who are out to take advantage
Discovering a mentor is not who they appeared to be and this leading to one questioning one’s path and beliefs
Experiencing an event that causes disillusionment (seeing cruelty, observing godly people acting ungodly, etc.)
…

Talents & Skills That Will Help the Character Achieve This Goal
A Knack for Languages
A Way with Animals
Astral Projection
…

Possible Fallout For the Protagonist if This Goal Is Not Met
Going back “to sleep” (and re-embracing distorted perceptions)
Feeling disconnected with people and the world in general
…

We hope you’ve found this sample useful. To access the complete entry and our full range of thesauruses, head on over to One Stop for Writers.

What does your character want, and how far will they go to achieve it?

On the surface, the protagonist’s goal seems to be the most important, but the inner motivation driving your character toward this goal (despite pain, suffering, fear, setbacks, and sacrifice) is what really draws readers in. Understanding the four cornerstones of character arc and how they frame a story is paramount for today’s writers. To help with this, we have integrated this Character Motivation Thesaurus into our online library at One Stop For Writers.

Each entry has been enhanced to provide even more information about your character’s motivation and is cross-referenced with our other thesauruses for easy searchability. We’ve also included a must-see tutorial on character motivation.

Interested in seeing these expanded entries? Head on over and take advantage of our FREE TRIAL!