What is spirituality? Is it looking inward?
What is spirituality? Is it looking inward? Before I answer the question, what is spirituality? Some questions also come to my mind. Which I think also bothers you.
Like Is spirituality looking inwards? Is spirituality worship of god? Is spirituality to know yourself? The difference between spirituality and religion. The benefits of spirituality.
In simple words, spirituality is the connection between us and the supreme power, who run this universe. It is the connection of our body, mind, and soul.
What is spirituality?
Spirituality is enlightenment, awareness, and it connects the holy spirit and spirit of ourselves. It is the ultimate knowledge of the truth. This is our true introduction to ourselves. It is end and origin.
Spirituality can be divided into two parts. The first is spirit + rituality. This means that spirituality is the worship of the supreme power who made us. It may be according to his religious belief or which custom he follows.
The second is spirit +actuality. This means that spirituality is the connection of a person with his spirit and soul. Mean spirituality is looking inside yourself. Spirituality is knowing yourself the truth. Who am I? What is the purpose of my life? Why do I come into the world?
Both are right in his place. Because both establish a connection between us with the holy spirit. The difference is that one is outward-looking, and the other is inward-looking.
Is spirituality looking inward?
Our sense organs show us the view of the outside world. They give us a sense of worldliness. But do not show us the reality of ourselves. It does not show the path of spirituality.
To move on the spiritual path, we have to look within ourselves. When the outer consciousness turns inward, you become aware of the truth.
It is this knowledge of the truth that then gives the realization of Brahman. Philosophy is to look beyond the senses, while spirituality means to look within.
When you look within, you understand that what does not change is the truth. The mind is far superior to those senses. Which gives it information. Lifeforce Pervades every substance.
The biggest challenge before mankind is that man does not look inward, he keeps looking outside. No psychologist or psychiatrist defines this. They are not capable of defining what the mind is?
But our ancient sages have said what is mind. They used to call it manah. The word mind means consciousness, the name of outgoing consciousness is mind.
When the consciousness going towards the soul turns inward, then it is called namah, that is, the absence of mind.
Thus it is consciousness, which goes out of the eyes and sees the world. And it projects itself. Whatever is in the mind, consciousness casts it.
Sometimes people ask me, ‘Why are you so angry with me? You didn’t look at me. This is the people’s projection. What we have in our mind, we try to project onto others’ minds.
Maybe he is not thinking about you. The mind is going out. That is consciousness. It is the mind that flows out of the eyes.
Eyes do not see. But with the eyes, one sees all these. Through the ears, one hears everything. Through the nose, one smells everything.
It is the mind, which measures everything. This whole world is called Maya. Maya means that which can be measured. Everything can be measured here.
You can tell what the intensity of this light is or how strong that sound is. All sensory perceptions can be measured through the five senses.
Measurement is not reality, because it keeps changing from time to time and from place to place. Truth is what is unaffected by time and place. This is the truth.
Is our body real? No, because it is affected by time and place. Everything you see changes. The flower is here today, but will not be there tomorrow and there was no tomorrow, so it is not true.
Whatever is not affected by time i.e. past, present and future is the truth. The world is not real, because the world is influenced by time.
Our perception is influenced by time and space. Hence the assumption is not true.
Whatever you see in the world around you is not the truth. In a jiffy, it all goes away. Your perception of what means possible is faulty.
When someone tells you to tell the truth, just smile. Tell the truth? Truth is unconditional, it is not restricted by time.
Yesterday’s reality is false today, and today’s reality never existed yesterday, and it cannot exist tomorrow.
Circumstances change. If you call someone a fool, it is not true.
Because tomorrow he may be very intelligent. What you called a great success yesterday, you don’t know what it will be tomorrow.
He may be sad or the sad one is doing well now. Everything changes, but what is the truth?
This is the journey: what is truth? What is it that you can call the truth? What is this consciousness, which is behind everything, behind all this existence?
Is some god in heaven pointing fingers at you and sitting with a pen, what mistakes have you committed and trying to punish you?
Is there any God who is going to get angry over all your mistakes? God is not a person. That which is truth, knowledge, and infinite, that is divinity.
If you insert the paper into the fax machine and you press a button here, that print is carried electronically somewhere.
What happened to the information that you put in here and leave it in the universe?
Thousands of miles away the same information is printed in the same way. How is this possible? Have you ever thought about it?
In a cell phone, if you say something, those words go into it and then they go into space and are reproduced somewhere else, just like that.
So, where / how is this information carried between these two cell phones? Have you ever thought about it? It takes practically no time here, plus the information remains intact.
The medium through which this knowledge is flowing is full of information. That is Brahma.
The three elements of spirituality.
As I mentioned above spirituality is based on three elements or pillars. Our body, spirit, and mind.
In Hindi, mana, sarir, and Atma. Our body represents physicality, our spirit represents wisdom, and our mind represents mental status or sense.
The establishment of coordination between these three elements is called spirituality. When our body acts as our mind thinks and our mind thinks as our soul instructs our mind. We can reach the zenith of spirituality.
When we think with consciousness. What do we do? Why do we do it? And how do we do it? is called spiritual.
Difference between spirituality and religions.
1. Spirituality has no rule. You can start anywhere, anytime, and without any rituals. But religion has specific rules and regulations. It has a prescribed place, time, and rituals.
2. Spirituality has no boundaries. It is above the boundary. But religion has boundaries. It has some prescribed limits. No one has the right to break rules.
3. Spirituality is above right or wrong. But religions can either be right or wrong.
4. Spirituality gives you the freedom to question. But religion does not give you freedom.
5. Spirituality is a broader concept. Religion is a part of spirituality.
How, when and where do we start the practice of spirituality?
The answer to when and where we start the practice of spirituality is anywhere and anytime. In the answer to how you start, I say you already started it. Every process of life is spirituality
Maybe you work to survive, you want to be rich and powerful, and your affection and love. All are spiritual practices. This means you do the spiritual practice but in an unconscious and unaware way.
This means your body performs the work, but not your mind is not aware of it. Or if the mind is aware of it, then it does not listen to the words of your soul.
This means there are coordination lapses between the three pillars of spirituality. So when you perform any work with consciousness and awareness you automatically perform spirituality.
So for coordination and consciousness. You perform meditation, mindfulness practice, and yoga. It helps you to increase your focus. And established coordination between these three elements of spirituality.
The benefit of spirituality.
I am going to discuss the 5 benefits of spirituality. Which not only helps us to improve ourselves from the inside but also strengthens our outside
1. Helps to protect from depression-
A study on depressed people revealed that. The people who take part in meditation and other religious activities daily.
In the brain of those people, the area of the cortex starts getting thicker. And With this, helps to avoid depression.
2. Suppress the suicide wish-
Most people these days are combatting mental stress. In such a situation, many times people feel depressed, anxious, and sad.
Because of these mental conditions many times they take steps like suicide. However, according to a study published in the journal JAMA Network, people who participate in spiritual activities feel less suicidal feelings.
The other point is spirituality helps you to know yourself from the inside. Which is a must for anyone.
Because most people never know about them. They are living in the illusion that they are very powerful.
But when the wave of miseries comes into their life they blow with it like a dried leaf. And commit suicide.
3. Increase your endurance-
Spirituality not only makes you strong on a mental level to face the situations that come in life. But, at the same time, it also helps in protecting the body’s immune system from infections and viral diseases.
Spirituality also has a positive effect on our nervous system. Due to this, the immune system helps to function and the immunity of the body increases.
4. Decrease the level of ego-
The other benefit of spirituality is the downgrade of the ego. As long as we live with ego, we will continue to suffer from anger, hatred, vengeance and jealousy.
Spirituality only liberates me from this pain. Ego can affect your life. Therefore, when we come to know that we are divine souls, we know that we are nothing.
5. liberation-
The benefit of spirituality is to make us happy and healthy. By being freed from the constant cycle of death and rebirth. Which will lead us to return to earth and suffer again and again. Not only does one get freedom from sorrows on earth. But one also gets freedom from rebirth.
So these are the 5 benefits of spirituality. Which helps to encourage you to take a step toward spirituality.
Conclusion
So, If anyone says to me to conclude the definition of what is spirituality? In one sentence. My answer is that spirituality is an end and origin.
Spirituality is infinite and beyond religion. Spirituality is true of yourself. And it is inward-looking at yourself.
Spirituality is in everyone. But we are unaware of it. We live a misguided life. So our life is only guided by spirituality. So by spirituality, be spiritual.
Best of luck.