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How does your spirituality or lack of it influence your daily life?

Lark

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I am thinking principally of your behaviour towards others, are you more or less kind than you believe you otherwise would be?
 

ceecee

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I'm kind to strangers i.e holding doors, I always give people my cart at Aldi's and never take their quarter, and general nice behavior. My family, I am very kind and loving to. My lack of spirituality has no bearing on it. Maybe it is easier for me to be kind because I don't have the burden of spirituality or religion in the back of my mind. There is nothing driving me but me.
 

Lark

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I'm kind to strangers i.e holding doors, I always give people my cart at Aldi's and never take their quarter, and general nice behavior. My family, I am very kind and loving to. My lack of spirituality has no bearing on it. Maybe it is easier for me to be kind because I don't have the burden of spirituality or religion in the back of my mind. There is nothing driving me but me.

You think spirituality is a demotivator to kindness?
 

iwakar

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I act on my personal, evolving opinions of what is warranted toward myself and others. Basing my behaviors on a preexisting, external, fixed mandate is at odds with mine and other humans' individuality and would negate our need to reason for ourselves.

We were born with free will. I use mine to love, hate, befriend, vilify, learn, teach, accept, reject, experience, withdraw, take, give, bestow, receive, eat, sleep and live like everyone else.

I was religious in my youth. I am now agnostic. Differences? I am more cautious, thoughtful, compassionate, confident, straightforward, and tolerant. I believe this is the result of maturity and fastidious introspection. The only things I'm sure I can attribute to a change in self-mandate from foreign-mandate is the reduced guilt I experience for not meeting others expectations as they relate to religious doctrine. Now I only experience guilt for not meeting my own expectations as it relates to my personal judgment of fair and just self-conduct.
 

EcK

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define 'spirituality'.
How can people reach a conclusion if they dont even agree on the terms.

If you mean all the current variations on religion and its psychological bases well, I find sanity suits me.
But then again it's all , processes we use everyday. A little bit of assuming the world's structure emerge from an essentially similar process by which ppl act in the world, a little bit of trying to find patterns and using most available\instinctive shapes\concepts (most modern science though based on observed phenomena is counter instinctive for perfectly reasonable evolutionary reasons) and all that wrapped in the imperatives of bounded rationality.

People can choose to see phenomena in themselves and their environment in that anthropocentric light, personally I find I prefer to take a step back. Especially when it comes to defining morals based on a 'spirituality' inspired vision of the world. But that is a very large question and set of answers as spirituality itself is too vague and multiple a concept.

If we're talking about belief well, I believe in a lot of things. I believe a door is solid, I believe you are also consciously experiencing life when i'm talking to you, I am assuming my perceptions are correlated with the rest of the system I am part of. I assume that if it seems like we are speaking the same language my meaning will be translated correctly in your own brain.
Is that spirituality?
In a sense yes. In the sense of essentialism at least, the sense of spirituality being structurally different from 'the mere physical'. That there is more to a star than alot of atoms, and to a person than alot of cells. In a sense there is, but I find spirituality often takes the easy way out by drawing a new picture rather than trying to assemble the puzzle.
 

Lark

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define 'spirituality'.
How can people reach a conclusion if they dont even agree on the terms.

If you mean all the current variations on religion and its psychological bases well, I find sanity suits me.
But then again it's all , processes we use everyday. A little bit of assuming the world's structure emerge from an essentially similar process by which ppl act in the world, a little bit of trying to find patterns and using most available\instinctive shapes\concepts (most modern science though based on observed phenomena is counter instinctive for perfectly reasonable evolutionary reasons) and all that wrapped in the imperatives of bounded rationality.

People can choose to see phenomena in themselves and their environment in that anthropocentric light, personally I find I prefer to take a step back. Especially when it comes to defining morals based on a 'spirituality' inspired vision of the world. But that is a very large question and set of answers as spirituality itself is too vague and multiple a concept.

If we're talking about belief well, I believe in a lot of things. I believe a door is solid, I believe you are also consciously experiencing life when i'm talking to you, I am assuming my perceptions are correlated with the rest of the system I am part of. I assume that if it seems like we are speaking the same language my meaning will be translated correctly in your own brain.
Is that spirituality?
In a sense yes. In the sense of essentialism at least, the sense of spirituality being structurally different from 'the mere physical'. That there is more to a star than alot of atoms, and to a person than alot of cells. In a sense there is, but I find spirituality often takes the easy way out by drawing a new picture rather than trying to assemble the puzzle.

Why dont you define it for the purposes of your reply post?

There's no trap here, its a discussion and I'm interested in everyones individual conclusions. I'm not interested in the rightness or wrongness or the ethics involved, I'm interested in the connections people make "I believe this, so I behave like that" sort of thing.
 

Lark

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I act on my personal, evolving opinions of what is warranted toward myself and others. Basing my behaviors on a preexisting, external, fixed mandate is at odds with mine and other humans' individuality and would negate our need to reason for ourselves.

We were born with free will. I use mine to love, hate, befriend, vilify, learn, teach, accept, reject, experience, withdraw, take, give, bestow, receive, eat, sleep and live like everyone else.

I was religious in my youth. I am now agnostic. Differences? I am more cautious, thoughtful, compassionate, confident, straightforward, and tolerant. I believe this is the result of maturity and fastidious introspection. The only things I'm sure I can attribute to a change in self-mandate from foreign-mandate is the reduced guilt I experience for not meeting others expectations as they relate to religious doctrine. Now I only experience guilt for not meeting my own expectations as it relates to my personal judgment of fair and just self-conduct.

This is very interesting to me.

Religion or spiritual disciplines do seem to positively correlate with self-reproach for many people I've known. I have heard many people at revival or faith understood together meetings or forums speak of traditional outlooks as typifying this and their personal wish to reframe, reform or change this. It is not something I have experienced or at least no longer experience and yet I dont consider myself to at odds with a traditional outlook, although admittedly it is tradition as I understand it and my religion as I understand it too, I hope there are shared meanings but I also know there are differences too.

Thanks for your response it is interesting.
 

EcK

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Why dont you define it for the purposes of your reply post?

There's no trap here, its a discussion and I'm interested in everyones individual conclusions. I'm not interested in the rightness or wrongness or the ethics involved, I'm interested in the connections people make "I believe this, so I behave like that" sort of thing.

People believe stuff but dont act on it every day, that's a wider topic than spirituality.
Some people believe they shouldnt eat burgers, but still eat them etc.
Because we are not only communicating with other people, we are also communicating within ourselves, and this communication isn't perfect, nor do our internal components always agree.
We fool ourselves because our self esteem and ego is linked to the emotional value we attach to tags rather than their content.
 

Lark

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People believe stuff but dont act on it every day, that's a wider topic than spirituality.


Some people believe they shouldnt eat burgers, but still eat them etc.



Because we are not only communicating with other people, we are also communicating within ourselves, and this communication isn't perfect, not do the part always agree.
We fool ourselves because our self esteem and ego is linked to the emotional value we attach to tags rather than their content
.

Because its not kosher or hallal?

Symbolic Interactionism?
 

EcK

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I think that if spirituality has anything to do with essentialism it should push people to see common structures in the world rather than as an excuse for intellectual laziness. Motivate them to search for the connections and to make sense. to be more coherent people. It's tough, it's a war, battles will be lost, but I think it's worth the effort
 

EcK

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Because its not kosher or hallal?

Symbolic Interactionism?


belief is belief. Whether they believe that god is going to strike them down contrary to all evidence or that they're going to turn obese because it's a burger and burgers are bad (and eat stuff that will lead to the same result without any guilt because it doesn't hold that negative tag). We need belief because it is linked to 1) motivation and drive for action through the emotional component
2) we do not have enough time to collect infinite evidence of everything and are creatures of bounded rationality
 

Mole

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I am thinking principally of your behaviour towards others, are you more or less kind than you believe you otherwise would be?

My spiritual life is devoted to making the outer and the inner, one.

That is to make the outer self and the inner self, one.

Or perhaps I might say I am devoted to overcoming the dissociation of everyday life. Or I am devoted to overcoming the alienation of the quotidian, the every day.

Unfortunately everyone I know are dissociated. They are divided into being good on one hand, and doing what they want on the other. For instance many go to work and do a good job, but hate going to work. So there is a constant struggle to be good within themselves. They are divided selves.

And just as misery loves company, the dissociated gather together, and reinforce their dissociation. And they instinctively hate those who are sociated. They hate those who have found a way to be one.

And the way I have found to be one is to do things for their own sake.
 
V

violaine

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I'm spiritual. I am not religiously inclined, especially with regard to Christianity. (I find most Christian traditions I've interacted with to be quite soul-crushing). I'm very considerate of others. I feel compassion for most and I like to cultivate that. My compassionate feelings clashed with the religious upbringing I had, particularly the issue of judgement applied to homosexuals, (gosh, even that term, blech). I knew that kind of lifestyle was not for me: peering at everyone else for their flaws, being concerned only with one's own path and too bad for with those who will never measure up... The thought that we as humans are all lesser creatures, always somehow less; that's not for me. I wanted no part of that due to having such strong compassion for others.

I prefer to act with kindness. It's not a stretch for me though (so I'm not patting myself on the back here). I enjoy that mode and don't like operating out of that zone for long. I used to be quite the doormat though so I have developed the ability to push back at someone on the rare occasion that I need to.
 

EcK

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I'm spiritual. I am not religiously inclined, especially with regard to Christianity. (I find most Christian traditions I've interacted with to be quite soul-crushing). I'm very considerate of others. I feel compassion for most and I like to cultivate that.
How is that related to spirituality ? Secular spirituality maybe? But I feel like it's an oxymoron. The term is used for secular stuff but it's often to cover up the lack of coherence of one's vague feelings by wrapping them up into a life style or practices which don't necessarily have any connection what so ever with 'spirituality' except in that they are expression of a person trying to reconcile a gut feeling/pivotal point in one's perception of self worth and ego with observed reality:

homosexuals, (gosh, even that term, blech)
Yes, because heterosexual is so much better. It's actually a quite neutral way to describe sexual orientation.

moist!
 
V

violaine

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I was just explaining how I operate without going into too much detail. We can take it to PM if you'd like as I feel uncomfortable talking about myself in a way that might seem like grandstanding. I'm uncomfortable talking about very personal experiences for the sake of providing proofs to someone.
 

skylights

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i am spiritual, but i think it impacts my behavior little, because i do not have any specific beliefs about an afterlife or anything that would give me impetus to behave differently.

though i do believe in the interconnectedness of all things, which may impact my behavior at a fundamental level. i generally (try to) treat all things - humans, animals, objects - kindly, because i see all as fundamentally One. i suppose my spirituality makes me take a more detached look at things, too. i like to step back and think about the song and dance of the universe.

but it is very hard to detach spirituality from my natural thinking process. i sort of see them as one in the same. so it is rather hard to think about how my behavior would be different, if i did not have the beliefs that i do. perhaps a better answer than it does not really impact my behavior is that it impacts my entire Being so much that i would be an entirely different person without it.
 

EcK

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I was just explaining how I operate without going into too much detail. We can take it to PM if you'd like as I feel uncomfortable talking about myself in a way that might seem like grandstanding. I'm uncomfortable talking about very personal experiences for the sake of providing proofs to someone.
up to you. We aren't contractually linked , I mean except to the informal extent that we share and use a common logosphere\language (so there is a sense that miscommunication should be avoided and information sometimes has to be provided to that end but it's of course purely on a voluntary basis in the absence of agreed upon obligations which language certainly is not
 

Rasofy

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I'm not spiritual. It doesn't really change anything. I have a conscience just like any other neurotypical person. I wouldn't classify myself as kind, since I believe people should take responsability for their destinies and I always strive for win-win relationships; but I'd say I'm a pretty fair person.
 

King sns

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I recently started praying again and it's actually helped my demeanor a lot. With my profession whenever I come across really difficult people who I've had a lot of trouble with I ask God to help me just do or say whatever God wants me to do or say. It has helped incredibly with my relationships with these people. I just respond a little calmer and more patiently. I'm about the same in my interactions overall, but maybe with a more open-minded demeanor, accepting them for whatever is going to come today rather than something that may have happened yesterday. Just a way of reminding me to take a deep breath and think about what I'm saying and how I'm coming off. In turn, difficult people are responding kinder in return and the relationships have gotten better.
 
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