“I never heard anyone talk about it that way before,” she said. “It makes so much sense.”
That’s what she said to me in response to our very brief discussion about spirituality. I was talking to a woman in her early thirties on break at a conference. She asked about my research. As I spoke, she said that she was an atheist. “I get tired of people talking about spirituality as though it were the same as religion. I know that’s not true,” she shared. I agreed. Spirituality isn’t about a deity or Divine-anything. Spirituality is about us and the lives we lead.
I understand spirituality as part of who we are as human beings. Just like having bodies, emotions, and thoughts, there is a spiritual dimension to who we are as people. It’s the spiritual dimension of our lives which enables us to experience and strive for something more than living our ordinary lives and doing routine tasks. It’s that “more than” part of who we are that enables us to experience things that are meaningful or valuable. When we experience something as meaningful and valuable, our lives take on a sense of meaning and value.
The woman I was speaking to at the conference is a photographer. She told me how the process of taking pictures, whether it’s pictures of nature or events like weddings, opens her to something more than just the skills of photography. She encounters beauty, happiness, and a sense of wonder. I’m suggesting that when this “more than” aspect of photography is at work when she is taking pictures, then something of the spiritual dimension is at work.
In other words, the root of spirituality is found in the experience of our lives and the world around us. Many things in life are simply routine and sometimes even inconvenient to us. Consider caring for a sick child, being stuck in rush hour traffic to get to work, as well as some of the repetitive routines of work itself or keeping a home (is it time to clean the toilet again?): none of these things fall into the category of “living a fabulous life!” However, they take on meaning, purpose, or value because of something more, something greater than the actions themselves. Caring for a sick child, losing sleep, being filled with concern, and the risk of becoming ill take on a sense of purpose because a parent values their child and wants to nurture it to become the best person the child can be. Being stuck in rush hour may have value because of one’s fulfillment at work or because earning a salary allows one to be a provider for the family or have the money for a dream vacation — all something much more than heavy rush hour traffic. And cleaning the toilet…well, I’ll get back to you on that when I figure it out!
My point is that the spiritual dimension of who we are enables us to experience life in ways that are more valuable, more meaningful, and more purposeful than the specific things we are doing. Reciprocally, we experience value, meaning, and purpose in our lives precisely because the things we are doing have taken on meaning, or purpose, or value. This is part of how we are made as human beings. It’s very similar to the way emotions are the result of our experiences. Emotions happen because things we experience elicit happiness, sadness, or something else and we become happy or sad.
What’s the role of religion in spirituality? Religion can help give us a context for understanding our spiritual experience. Such understanding may be in the momentary experience as with someone who is Christian feeling awe at the sunrise and understanding the sunrise as a metaphor for the resurrection of Jesus. Or a Muslim who attends the Hajj may experience a deep sense of connection with Allah and humanity during the crowded shoulder-to-shoulder procession around the Kaaba. In these and many other ways, religion provides metaphors for understanding the experiences which draw us to something “more than” the actual thing we are doing. Over time, the metaphors of religion can help us take on helpful patterns and practices which enrich our lives, like the way in which the Buddhist practice of mindfulness can lead us to a mindful way of living.
Yes, I believe that all people are spiritual. Some people are better able to identify their emotions than others and some people are more physically fit than others, so some people are more attuned to the spiritual dimension of life than others. But just as becoming more physically fit begins with increasing physical activity and exercise, so growth in the spiritual dimension of life occurs as we become more aware of spirituality in our own lives and engage in practices that will support our awareness of the spiritual dimension of our lives.
In the end, spirituality is part of you no matter what you believe or don’t believe. What makes life valuable for us is our ability as human beings to experience something more than our routine lives. That’s where we discover meaning and purpose for our lives. After all, spirituality is part of who we are.
Photo by Calweb on Foter.com / CC BY-SA