How you define spirituality for yourself has a big impact on your daily experience of life. Everyone has some sort of a definition for the intangible dimension of life.
Your relationship to this intangible dimension of life affects your world view and is like a filter through which you “see” everything in your world and in your life.
On a very fundamental level we can define spirituality as everything that deals with matters of our spirit (or our soul).
Each and every one of us have an aspect of ourselves that is invisible but even though you can not see it, you know it is very real.
In fact this invisible part of ourselves is the very essence of our lives and spirituality is about being connected with this spiritual part while being in the physical world.
We all have spiritual experiences all the time.
Spirituality is not just about recognizing these spiritual experiences, but consciously seeking these experiences and to develop a greater sensitivity to the spiritual in life.
It’s about growing this tiny spark that’s inside each and every one of us to become a more dominant force in your everyday life. By nurturing the seeds of divinity that’s inside each and every one of us, you can start to deliberately work with the very ‘laws’ that govern all of life and the physical world.
That Which Is Seen, Comes From The Unseen
Everything in the physical world emanates from an invisible source.
Spirituality connects you with this profoundly and powerful divine force that’s present in all of the universe. So often we try and change our physical circumstances by ‘moving things around’ in the physical world.
The transforming truth about spirituality is that the solutions to our external conditions lie inside.
The outer world flows from the inner world.
When you are connected to your own spirituality you are connected to the very source of everything in the universe. You uplift your world by first transforming and uplifting your own inner world and your inner vision.
Spirituality and Religion
The greatest challenge is that many people define spirituality by religious connotations and religion is almost exclusively based on outward experience and conforming to someone else’s rules.
I’ve written a more detailed about religion and spirituality where I outline all the differences and similarities. I will briefly touch on a few important points here.
Spirituality has nothing to do with what or who you believe in.
Those are functions of the ego.
Spirituality is not so much about external observations, but more about inner experiences.
It is deeply personal and something that only you can truly define for yourself since these inner experiences are often very hard to fully express in words and explanations.
Since the seeds of divinity is already inside you (it is the essence of life), hearing the right words may trigger within you your own awakening to a higher level of consciousness.
This is a spiritual consciousness that transcends the physical world and your ordinary sensory perceptions of life.
From this point of view religion can be very useful in assisting you to find your own spiritual centre, but religion without spirituality can be very empty and most often it becomes an emotional experience rather than a spiritual one.
For the most part religion is riddled with superstition, rules and dogma. It’s predominantly based on someone else’s beliefs and experiences rather the personal experience of God within.
It’s a bit like wearing someone else’s shoes – even if it is the right size it feels uncomfortable, but if you wear it enough eventually you get used to it until it becomes your very own.
This explains why so many “good” religious people can not live by their won rules – or at least the rules that they proclaim to live by.
How Others Define Spirituality
By now you’ve probably realised that there are many ways to define spirituality. At its core, spirituality is defined by your relationship with the invisible life force; the invisible dimension of life.
I’ve collected a few really great definitions of spirituality by some famous and some not-so-famous authors.
Seeing other people’s definitions of spirituality can help us understand it better and give us some more insight into formulating our own definition.
Spirituality which comes from the Latin spiritus, meaning “breath of life” is a way of being and experiencing that comes through awareness of a transcendental dimension and that is characterized by certain identifiable values in regard to self, others, nature, life and whatever one considers to be the Ultimate.
– David N. Elkins
Your life is your spiritual path. It’s what’s right in front of you. You can’t live anyone else’s life. The task is to live yours and stop trying to copy one you think looks better.
– Sandy Nathan
Spirituality is not a different way of living. Spirituality is the tool, the compass, which guides me in my normal day-to-day living–whether personal, professional life, family life. That is spirituality. My power lies in the present moment.
– Sister Shivani
Spirituality is fearlessness. It is a way of looking boldly at this life we have been given, here, now, on earth, as this human being.
– Elizabeth Lesser
Spirituality is the experience of awareness outside the boundaries of your skin. Spirituality is to experience a domain of awareness which is universal. And when we experience that domain of awareness, which is beyond our personal skin encapsulated ego identities, then we have the spontaneous understanding of love, compassion. It becomes our nature.
– Deepak Chopra
Being spiritual has nothing to do with what you believe and everything to do with your state of consciousness.
– Eckhart Tolle
You are an infinite spiritual being having a temporary human experience
– Wayne Dyer
Defining Spirituality For Yourself
The reason why I say that defining spirituality is weird is because there is no real definition. There are countless definitions because it is so hard to put in words the innermost feelings of consciousness.
The more you allow your consciousness to expand the more you see just how weird life and everything really is. Life really is just an illusion and spirituality helps us make sense of it all.
One of the most powerful and useful ways to define spirituality for yourself is to recognise and nurture that divine spark deep within you.
As you grow in your understanding of this spiritual dimension of life, you will be able to transcend the illusion of everyday awareness. Life is not a series of random events.
You are not a pawn getting moved around by some outside force.
Ultimately spirituality is about enriching your experience of life and to see a greater sense of meaning and purpose in life.
Regardless of how you define spirituality, it is that still silent voice deep within. It is your spirit and it is your constant companion on life’s journey.
It is your own personal connection to the higher intelligence that’s present in all of life. Ultimately spirituality is your intimate connection to God within you.
You can call it God, Higher Self, Soul, Spirit, Jesus and the list goes on. What you call it is not important. Knowing “it” and knowing it intimately is what brings a greater understanding of life.
It enriches our journey of life because it opens our eyes to the illusion of events, circumstances and conditions in everyday life. It helps us to see beyond the obvious and the mundane.
