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Spirituality.
So much to say, yet such a mystery it is. And then
again, spirituality explains so much. Spirituality
means many different things to many different people.
While for some, an entire faith may be built upon
spirituality, for others, spirituality can be a
threat to one's religious values. Unfortunately, from
both sides of the camp, a gulf is sometimes created
between spirituality and religion. This is by no means
the intent here. Rather, our goal is to find a bridge
between religion and spirituality. Better yet, how
about a bridge between religion, spirituality and
science, which have long been opposed to one another?
Spirituality and Religion
Let's first examine how spirituality and religion can be
united into the single pursuit of self growth, wisdom,
evolution...however you want to call it.
There is no doubt that a primary motivation for people
to become religious and/or spiritual is in order to be
good and better people. Certainly, there are other
motivations as well, such as an internal conviction
and desire, a need for fulfillment, a reason to exist,
power, doing as your told, a fear of being alone, etc.
Each person's story is different and unique. And each
story is tied to the lessons we all have to learn in
this lifetime. Even if you don't believe in a grand
purpose of life, you probably can at least agree that
life is full of lessons, discovery and rediscovery.
Touch that and you will get burned. Drink that and you
will get sick. Harbor that thought and you will be
unhappy.
We all need to have something to live for. We need
values, faith, religion, spirituality. Whether you're
living for streets paved with gold, eternal bliss,
sainthood or absolute enlightenment, to live for
something that impels us to be smarter, wiser, happier
people, is an impulse that unites us all. At the core
essence of religion and spirituality there is no gulf
at all. The only thing that stands between these three
entities is intolerance and an unwillingness to see
the commonalities and unity existing between them. You
have probably heard that a spiritual movement - new
age spirituality - is taking place right now. You
might very well be a part of it. You could say there
are many reasons why it's happening. A search for
something more than the dogmatic perhaps?
It's not that religion is declining and spirituality
is taking over (although some people would argue that
to be the case). What is certainly happening is that an
increasing number of people are supplementing their
religion or religious beliefs with spirituality because they are beginning
to see there is no conflict of interest between the
two. Mystical
branches of various religions, such as the Islamic
Sufis, Christian Gnostics, and the Kaballah of Judaism
are growing in numbers, while an increasing number of
people are now practicing Christian spirituality,
Native American spirituality, Rosicrucianism, Masonry
and other, often misunderstood, spiritual paths like
Wicca, Zoroastrianism, and Astrology, just to name a
few.
Let's hypothetically say that you live
by a religious faith - however you understand that to be.
One of the rites you practice is to pray and give
thanks before sitting down to every meal - an
honorable rite to say the least. You give thanks to
the God of your heart. In other words, you give thanks
to the recipient of you devotion...whoever or whatever that may
be. Now, would it be contradictory to also
give thanks to the food itself? If you eat meat, what about giving thanks to the animal for
the sacrifice of its life?
Giving
thanks to an animal Spirit is a practice common to
Native American spirituality. Although some religious
traditions do
not say it is necessary to give thanks to an animal
spirit, does not this conflict
with one's faith? Certainly it could be
argued that God giveth life and God taketh away life,
and that humans were given dominion over the animal
kingdom, and that giving thanks to an animal spirit is
unnecessary. But the question remains, does this act
conflict with one's faith? Well, it certainly doesn't have to. It only conflicts
when our shortsightedness keeps us from seeing a
bigger, more expanded picture. Thanking an animal spirit is not a lack of
faith in one's religious convictions. It is simply a supplement to a traditionally religious prayer. This is what it
means to spiritualize a religious ideal. Simply put,
the more religious ideals get spiritualized, the more
global consciousness will rise and evolve...thus
ensuring the perpetuity of wisdom and knowledge passed
on from prior generations and civilizations.
Spirituality and Science
So what about this
thing called science, which is oftentimes placed in
contradiction with religion and spirituality? Well,
these days, science is actually doing more to verify the
"mysteries" of faith and spirituality.
Let's start off with an example, shall we? You
may or may not have heard about Quantum Physics - the
burgeoning field of science that is essentially the
study of the relationship between energy and matter, as
well as "reality". Although there are critics of the
movie
"What the Bleep do we Know?" (there are critics of
everything for that matter), many people and notable
scientists will agree this movie offers an easy-to-grasp
introduction to the higher teachings of quantum physics
and its relationship to consciousness, thoughts and
spirituality.
Let's take a look at some of the discoveries
resulting from the study of quantum physics and
consciousness. The biggie is this:
Thoughts are things.
Scientists know that cells react the same way in our
bodies when actually going through an experience, as
they do when recalling that experience from memory. The
cell knows absolutely no difference between living the
actual experience and thinking about the experience
(albeit the degree of reality will vary depending on the
intensity of the memory and focus of thought). Scientists
now see that certain
thoughts and experiences produce different chemicals in
the body, which in turn, are "absorbed" by cells - brain
cells included. Taking a closer look at this process,
scientists have begun to study how the cells are
specifically affected. What they have already discovered is nothing
short of groundbreaking. Upon repeated exposure to
specific chemicals produced by specific emotions like
anger, love, stress and lust, which consequently,
dictate one's thoughts (and vice versa), scientists
could see that tiny transmembrane receptors on each
cell's membrane wall - also called peptide receptors
- would receive these signaling molecule peptides and
generate specific responses. For example, adrenaline and
pheromones are two chemicals that can be produced by
thoughts and which are composed of different peptides,
accordingly.
The
more a cell is exposed to a particular peptide, the more
peptide receptors a cell will have. In other words,
cells are conditioned to receive peptides they are
exposed to more often. Therefore, the human body's
natural response is, "Oh, this is what I should be
thinking...well then, allow me!" The actual neurological
network inside the human brain then begins to remap
itself according to the changes taking place in the
cells. The body simply makes it easier for emotionally
produced chemicals, like adrenaline, to be integrated
with the body's cells. In essence, we become addicted to
our emotions. This is why people have sexual addictions
(fueled by lustful thoughts), compulsive anger (fueled
by angry thoughts), and unbreakable contentment (fueled
by peaceful thoughts). It seems so elementary , does it
not? And it certainly is. We've just been so busy
thinking that we haven't been thinking about thinking!
Okay,
so what does all this have to do with spirituality?
Well, besides serving as a middle ground between the
scientist or skeptic who says, "I'll only believe it if
I see it" and the devout follower who says "I believe it
because I am told to believe it", the discoveries of
quantum physics show us just how big of a role our
thoughts and emotions play in our well being and our
individual realities...In other words, how we see the
world around us. And how we see, live and create in the
world is influenced by one's spirituality, faith or
belief system.
Here
is one of many examples of how spirituality and science
can be united: Doctors and scientists have proven that
when we do not breathe properly - meaning too shallow -
the body is prone to becoming stressed. There is less
Oxygen being delivered to our cells, which consequently
creates a chain effect that stresses out all of the
different systems in the human body. When we're
stressed, we're prone to be overcome by emotions, and
consequently, prone to react in ways not becoming of our
religious and spiritual ideals. In other words, we are
more likely to blow a fuse or react to someone in a way
we would normally not do if we were but centered and
calm.
Considering that most of us do not breathe like we
really should be, it would certainly serve us well to
pay attention to our breathing and focus on doing it
better. Meditation, which is primarily a spiritual
practice that incorporates the use of deep breathing,
would make for an excellent tool for everybody in this
regard. The act of meditating and deep breathing is yet
another spiritual supplement. So simple, but true!
Love
There
is something we have not mentioned yet, but which
certainly needs to be mentioned, for it is the greatest
unifying force between spirituality, religion and
science. This unifying force is Love...and we all are
familiar with it on one level or another.
All
religions have long placed importance on the value of
love and loving one's neighbor. But why is this so? Many
a person has asked, "Why should I love simply because I
am told to? I don't feel it in my heart, I have never
received it in my life, so why should I give it?" A
skeptic of the the spiritual dimensions of quantum
physics might retort, "So what if science
has proven this? It doesn't mean it has value. Why does
this imply that
I should still love myself and my neighbor?" And
yet, the faithful would say "the motivation to love
should not even come from a scientific discovery at all,
but should come from the heart". These are all valid
points. This type of debate can go on and on without
end. And while there is more incentive to love because
we can now see just how real the effects of love
are - even on the cellular level - at some point, every
human must embrace the mystery and direct their
faith (because we are always directing our faith in
one thing or another) toward the infinitude of possibility.
Eventually, we all must love because we feel it is right
to do so in our hearts. The impulse must eventually come
from within. We may not always see the proof of the
power of love outside of ourselves, yet it's always
there. Science is just beginning to show the measurable
effects of Love.
In the
meantime, it is our quest to keep seeking to know
ourselves - the manifestations of which are expressed in
our beliefs, faith, self-expression, lifestyle - in
short, everything! Spirituality keeps us searching for
more answers, while at the same time providing answers.
This is the spiritual quest. And while is is necessary
for humankind to keep bearing the torch that shines
Light on our existence and the path ahead, we must also
understand that we are exactly where we need to be.
Right here. Right now.
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