My spiritual journey
I grew up thinking spirituality was all about going to church, reading the Bible, and growing closer to God. I might have even considered myself spiritual.
As time went on, I have wrestled with a few conflicting ideas, events, and beliefs — fodder for a future discussion — and I have come to the conclusion that that is not what my spirituality is all about. “That” was all about being religious. Being religious was not the same as my being spiritual. I believe it is possible to be both religious and spiritual, and it is also possible to just be spiritual or just be religious. At least, that is how I see the world right now.
But what is spirituality? If you search for definitions, you will find what I found – there is no consistency in what people define it as. Just take a look at Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirituality. One definition which I do like is from the Oxford Dictionary:
“the quality of being concerned with the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things.”
I like the distinction between the material or physical versus the human spirit or soul. It’s not something I can touch, taste, smell, hear or see. My soul is just infused in all my being.
I began to think about what else is not material or physical.
How about the mind? The mind is neither material nor physical.
Hmmm, that made me curious.
Given both my mind and my soul are neither physical nor material, what if my soul is my mind? Maybe they are one and the same. Maybe one holds the other. I’m not quite sure yet, but I just believe they are connected somehow.
If my mind and my soul are connected, what does that mean for me?
The most spiritual I can be is to have the most presence of mind.
Where I can see not only myself, but how I connect to those around me – how I connect to something larger and more powerful.
Where my path forward is clear, paved with all the lessons from the past, and opportunities to use the gifts I’ve been given to make the world a better place than when I arrived in it.
Where I feel the calmest and the most confident.
Where congruence is alive and well in the stories I tell myself, woven together by connecting bodily sensations with past memories.
Where I become aware of, and can release, tension in various parts of my body.
Where I feel lightness, stillness, and peace.
Where I feel most like my authentic self.
Where I belong.
I love the space for all of that.
I want more of it.
It is very special for me when all or some of that happens – and I am on a mission to create more moments just like that.
This feels like the most amazing gift I can give myself and to the world.
Raymond Prior might jump in here and tell me these are signs of a very healthy psychological framework. However, it feels like this is more than that. It feels spiritual to me. And I like that.
I suspect there is much more to find in the coming weeks, months and years. And that is okay. I’m here for the long run. And what a journey it will be.
Resources
Parker, Phil. 2013. Get the Life You Love, Now: How to Use the Lightning Process Toolkit for Happiness and Fulfilment. UK: Hay House.
Prior, Raymond. 2023. Golf Beneath the Surface. Dallas, Texas: BenBella Books, Inc.
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