How do you integrate your spirituality into daily life?

[Amargith]

Are there certain rituals and routines you incorporate in your day-to-day life? Do you find yourself noticing certain signs through the day? Are you often struck by an epiphany? Do you just incorporate the values of your spirituality into the way you interact with the world?

And what does it do for you? Do you feel more connected? Is it somethign that you recognize as being different from the rest of your life or is it part of it? And if it is part of it, do you find yourself sometimes wondering if you overlook things you should have probably paid closer attention to coz they are such an integral part of your life?

What does it mean to you to be spiritual?

 

[Lark]

My life and my spirituality are synomyous they are indivisible.

Even when I am overcome with doubts, as has happened to me once or twice in my life, in the moments when my head or my heart can not agree to the testamony I hold to be true, I will still speak that testamony. Humans are weak, God is good. God is always good.

 

[Thalassa]

I meditate and do yoga, and if I get too bogged down in everything else for too long I feel like shit, so it's a state of mind (and body) and I definitely would call it "being connected" ... I completely understand why some Catholics go pray every morning at 7 or go to morning mass...those people are just more spiritual than others.

I don't necessarily think it's compulsive religion. It does for them what doing yoga does for me, or something.

I also try to notice what things happening in my life are trying to tell me, and if I ignore those things, and live on the surface, then I also feel less connected.

I'm always very connected to my values, but I'm not always sure my deepest values are as spiritual as they should be; many of them are, but some of it is ego driven, and examining why some of my values are so ego driven probably has to do with things like fear and self-preservation.

 

[Stanton Moore]

I shoot squirrels from mah porch.

 

[Nicodemus]

I honor the tree gods by cowering inside my room while their miniature armies roam the air outside. It is an annual ritual I perform with pathological devotion.

 

[Mole]

Of course we show we are superior to religion by being 'spiritual'.

And even better, we are seen to be superior.

 

[kyli_ryan]

Besides prayers during the day, I enjoy reading and listening to radio broadcasts that expand my knowledge of the faith

 

[cafe]

I don't think I'm particularly spiritual. My religious beliefs influenced my thought and my behavior, but ritual and altered states of consciousness don't appeal to me a whole lot.

Two scriptures that have become touchstones to me are:

He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing.

That's more or less what I'm working towards, with varying levels of success.

 

[Mole]

'Spiritual' is a buzz word. Why fall for it?

 

[cafe]

'Spiritual' is a buzz word. Why fall for it?

My own reaction to it is "What does that even mean?" But it does seem to mean a lot to a lot of people, so I just figured I was missing some important component to my psyche or something. But my dad is kind of the same way and he is an admirable and ethical man, so I feel like I can be a decent human being while being (kind of) religious, but not spiritual.

 

[Mole]

My own reaction to it is "What does that even mean?" But it does seem to mean a lot to a lot of people, so I just figured I was missing some important component to my psyche or something. But my dad is kind of the same way and he is an admirable and ethical man, so I feel like I can be a decent human being while being (kind of) religious, but not spiritual.

Religion has fallen out of favour. Or we might say, religion is not cool. But we all have a psyche, even your own father, so we seek for some way to express it. Some of us have become 'spiritual'. Some of us are decent and ethical. I long to fall into Alph, the sacred river, running through caverns measureless to man, feed on honey dew and drink the milk of paradise. Yet here we stand, on the shore.

 

[Amargith]

For clarification purposes:

I used spiritual in stead of religious in an attempt to encompass both religion and those that practice 'enlightenment' practices who are not exactly comfortable with the word 'religious' (like some agnostics and those refusing to associate with a particular organised religion). Iow, to make it as broad an umbrella term as possible.

 

[Kayness]

I listen to the Hanuman chalisa, Hare Krishna (the mantra not the society) and Raghupati Raghav Rajaram.

not that I'm doing it to be spiritual, but because I just like them.

that's as close to being spiritual as I get.

 

[Cellmold]

I think I lack spirituality to be honest.

I only feel connected to people through the bonds we build. But sometimes I look up at the sky at night and the starts blink and I am overwhelmed with gladness that i'm allowed to see them....just this once.

Then it reminds me of the relationships between the beautiful systems of nature. That is about as spiritual as I become.

 

[unnamed]

Yeah,if I say I pray to flying spaghetti monster everyday,would you believe I am very spiritual and kind?

RAmen!

 

[Amargith]

Interesting. I thought there were a lot of spiritual/religious people on this forum. But what does it then entail/mean to them? Or are people reluctant to share due to the private nature and potential risk of ridiculing that exists on here on a topic that is perhaps too sensitive to bear it?

 

[mintleaf]

I try to recognize the sacred/sublime in everyday life. I don't have any special rituals, it's just become a habit to keep it in mind and try to act accordingly: to be constantly striving towards a. a widened and refreshed perspective and b. self-actualization and the actualization of others.

My ideologies are very similar to those of Marilynne Robinson, so instead of my own incoherent thoughts I'll just share a few of hers:

http://chronicle.com/article/Reclaiming-a-Sense-of-the/130705/ (I don't expect anyone to read this, really, but I promise it's good)

"We explain others to ourselves without reference to what were once called their souls, to their solitary and singular participation in this mystery of being. We are not much in awe of each other these days."

there's also this quote by Duane Elgin that touches on the same idea

"consequently, by virtue of a largely unconscious social agreement about the nature of our inner thought processes, we live individually and collectively almost totally embedded within our mentally constructed reality. we are so busy creating ever more appealing images or social facades for others to see, and so distracted from the simplicity of our spontaneously arising self, that we do not truly encounter either ourselves or one another. in the process we lose a large measure of our innate capacity for voluntary, deliberate, intentional action."

I've never referred to myself as "spiritual" because I really dislike the connotations, but yeah, this is how I maintain my connection with what I feel is most essential and real.

 

[RaptorWizard]

I've always found metaphysics far more valuable than spiritualism - but I do have one spirituality link in my singnature regardless, just to fill up the whole spectrum; it's titled "Divine Master".

 

[prplchknz]

pretty much I've been working on mine lately: try to pray twice a day, and help people when I can. But not pray in a religious sense, and I don't pray for things I want i pray for god's will and for other people (often those I hold resentments against). It actually helps me accept things for how they are, I don't know if I am praying to anything, but it helps regardless, it's crazy. Also I make a gratitude list daily, and try to be as honest as i can about what i'm grateful for. somedays are easy some days are hard.

believe it or not doing those simple things put me in a better headspace in general

 

[Pseudo]

I don't have a daily ritual...of any kind... I'm not a very structured or organized person. but I so try to make sure I connect with god. I usually pray during the day, I have a devotional book I've been working out of, I like reading theology and when I'm alone sometimes I like to make up/sing worship like songs. When I go to yoga generally I try to focus on god. I journal my prayers because it feels easier than speaking. I go to a women's group.

What I've really trying to be disciplined about lately is meditating, be quiet and listening.

One things that's always been good for me in walks in nature.