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WHAT IS SPIRITUALITY OR SPIRITUALISM?Before I say anything about Spirituality and spiritualism one must first realize thatthere is a marked difference between religion and spirituality. The immediatedifference between religion and spirituality is that while religion is exclusive- in thatone has to subscribe to that one religion at the exclusion of all other religions,faiths, and beliefs, spirituality is inclusive in that any one adherent of any religioncan embrace spirituality and retain his or her religious status or place in thatreligion. Spirituality cuts across religious, cultural, traditional, social-political andacademic barriers. In other words, one does not need to abandon one’s religion inorder to be a devotee, student or practitioner of spirituality. In this way, religions arelimiting but spirituality is not. For this reason one can rightly say that compared toreligion, spirituality can be said to be the higher state or consciousness of religion. If it were a coin, the religious side bears limitations of beliefs, faith and dogma andthe spirituality side is the mark of infinite consciousness and freedom.“Religion is the manifestation of the divinity which is already present in the humanbeing” said swami Vivekananda. Each soul is potentially divine. To manifest thatvery divinity within, Man should control his nature externally and internally. Do thiseither by work, or worship, or psychic control, or philosophy by one or more or all of these and be free. This is the whole of religion. Doctrines or Dogmas or rituals orbooks, or temples, or forms, all are but secondary details. The more our bliss iswithin, the more spiritual we are and let us not depend upon the world of today forpleasure. This is spirituality. Spirituality is one’s character or quality that makes onetranscend the barriers of worldliness, caste, creed and sensuality; and realize one'sconnection with the Truth. Spiritualism means to merge with consciousness.Different religions are like different route or means to reach there. It is like you wantto go to Delhi you can go by train, flight, or by bus again you can to Delhi viaAhmedabad, or Via Kolkata, or via Nagpur. You will ultimately reach Delhi.Spirituality is a concept and most of the times it is wrongly understood by usmortals. Some think that spirituality is something to be achieved, which means it isexternal and is not within. Some think that it is to with prayers and offerings to god.Spiritual consciousness is a “depth experience, ”which makes us conscious of thedeeper dimensions of life. It is an abiding inner awareness of the interconnectedness of one’s own spirit with the supreme spirit. It is also a cosmicawareness of “one in all and all in one”. Through spiritual consciousness we learn tolook beyond and behind the surface reality. The way to attain this very spiritualconsciousness is the way to the liberation of the soul through Self-Knowledge iscalled yoga. Vedanta speaks of four yogas, or paths to the goal: (i) Jnana-Yoga, orthe direct way of Knowledge; (ii) Bhakti-Yoga, or the natural way of divine love; (iii)Karma-Yoga, or the practical way of unselfish work; and (iv) Raja-Yoga, or thescientific way of concentration and meditation. The primary road block to Self-Knowledge is the restless mind. The four Yogas are four ways to overcome the
 
restlessness. Love is the root and the selfless service is the fruit of this very spiritualconsciousness or the liberation of the soul. The essence of every religion, fundamentally, is aimed for the attainment of spiritual enlightenment, spiritual consciousness proximity to God, love, compassion,and eternal peace in the life here after. Under such a common definition andunderstanding, it becomes obvious that religion is bound to be deeply a personalmatter in every sense of the word. On the contrary, if religion assumes thecharacteristics of a doctrine that is primarily concerned with issuing laws on how tooffer prayers and how many times, people’s wealth and its distribution, dress code,sex life, punishment for crimes etc, then the whole concept of spirituality loses itsGodly element. A religion of such nature, then simply becomes part of humancivilization, a political ideology for a group of people who choose to follow a certainsocial orders and customs. Then we as humans go far away from spirituality andspiritualism. Spirituality is one's character or quality that makes one transcend thebarriers of worldliness, caste, creed and sensuality; and realize one's connectionwith the Truth. At this point I would like to say a few words about Islam which is thesecond largest religion in the world. Does Islam allow an individual’s quest for theknowledge of the existence of God on a personal level, using his own intellect,senses, and wisdom? The answer is a big NO! A Muslim is bound to restrict hisfreedom of conscience within the frame of Quranic prescriptions. The moment hehas questions on metaphysical issues, he is considered an outcast or an apostate.People of other religions, including Christianity and Hinduism has already startedshedding their inhibitions or political correctness and are not reluctant to cast theirdoubts about the origins and contemporary relevance of religious scriptures andbelief systems. No authority is interested in issuing “fatwas” against them. ButIslam is different. As time passes, Imams and Islamic clergies are becoming moreand more powerful enough to tighten their noose around the freedom of thought. Inmy capacity as a crew flying for an international airline I have been to Jeddah andmedina to ferry passengers for annual hajj pilgrimage umpteen number of times. The one thing that I have noticed is that, Medina is a very holy place and thepresence of the power that be can be felt and it really makes one self spiritualbecause there is a flow of positivity of the place to oneself. This flow creates wonderwhen assimilated. It makes one self humble, It calms the inner aggression of oneself, It helps to be in a meditative state where one’s mind becomes thoughtless andone attains spirituality momentarily. Such is the power, or one may say, the qualityof that place. The pilgrims returning from this place after the end of the arduous40days hajj starts squabbling as soon as they board the aircraft over trivialities. Iwonder why they cannot bring with them the positive energy and all that they havelearnt and practiced for the 40 long days. Somehow and somewhere the concept of spiritual and spirituality is lost.In predominant Western religions the Divine is worshiped as Father but not asMother. This heavenly Father is often portrayed as a stern, angry or jealous God, astrict judge and giver of punishment to those of his children who violate his
 
seemingly arbitrary laws. Protestant Christianity and Islam have banished the DivineMother from their religions. Catholic and Greek Orthodox Christianity have acceptedthe feminine as the mother of Jesus, not as God in her own right, though it appearsthat devotion to the Madonna has been the strongest living mystical force withinChristianity. Sanatana Dharma as a universal tradition recognizes the importance of the Divine Mother. According to Hinduism the deepest relationship that we can havewith God is that of the Mother. No human relationship is closer than that of themother and child. It best mirrors our relationship with God. India itself is lookedupon as the Mother. The Hindu religion itself is regarded as a mother and itsteachings are her milk.Sanatan dharma, The backbone of Hinduism is basically a way of life based onnature and universe where every particle that constitute the universe and naturehas a soul and is connected to the divine and hence everything has to be respectedand revered. Sanatan dharma developed over time and there is no one person or astartup date for this religion. It is based on observations of heavenly bodies andtheir characters and the effect that it has on the population, environment, andbehavioral patterns of each and every particle that constitutes nature and universe. This Sanatan Dharma is what the western scholars call as paganism. The concept of Spirituality and spiritualism should therefore be that every person isa wondrous, sacred, creation. Every plant, rock, tree, everything seen and unseen,is unique and beautiful. The purpose of life as seen should therefore be to live inharmony with nature, to develop our personal and spiritual potential, and to beaware of and to manifest the inherent divinity within us all. This holds true for everyone and for every religion. Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism, Bahai, Christianity, everyother religion the concept of spirituality is no different.Spirituality is a matter of contemplative meditation designed to bring thepractitioner to the point of vacating his physical body at will, merge his mind intoUniversal Mind realm and remain in his or her pure spiritual form as a Spirit (of God)in its pristine nature and then traverse higher spiritual planes until one re-mergesinto divine union with the Supreme Being and become one with that Being even asone still dwells in this world doing his work and taking care of family and socialresponsibilities. TAGS:religion,spirituality,spiritualism,islam,Jainism,budhism,Christianity,mind,realm,Sikhism,bahai,divine,harmony,nature,
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