Spirituality

We discussed spirituality at a cafe last night.

There was a number of definitions thrown around as to what spirituality is.  I find it difficult to define spirituality in terms such as "energy", "spirit", "soul" as these terms in themselves are illusive and difficult to grasp so definitions built on these terms are also illusive.

Even putting spirituality as something that gives our life meaning becomes difficult as we try to debate what is the "meaning" for life.

So I am back to my understanding of spirituality as an emotional feeling that there is a bigger design, or even a supernatural being behind what we are observing.  That there is something we don't quite understand happening behind what may be rather superficially simple. 

Vivianne mention events that are coincidental, or synchronicity in timing arousing our suspicion of this bigger scheme behind things.  Magnificent vistas such as sunrise, sunsets, clouds parting after a storm, also make us wonder if something or someone is responsible for this.

Steve mentioned that spiritual feelings are intensely personal and it becomes less and less so when shared or compared with others, especially those who may not share the same views.

This may be why a lot of people these days claim to be spiritual but not religious.  They feel the possible existence of a supernatural being to explain what they are feeling but this personal version of the supernatural being does not quite fit the model proposed by any of the established religions.

If we accept that humans are
1. curious,
2. tends to use their past experience to build models and form explanations of what they observe in the present,
3. likes to use these models to predict future events,

then it follows that coincidence and impressive images begs explanations of some kind.

Sometimes, they hit it right. 

Other times, the real reason require much more observations and experimentation to get to the real reason.

It is so obvious that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. No wonder it took a long time to figure out that it is the earth that revolves around the sun.

It is so obvious that water flows down when not contained, of course the earth has to be flat to hold that water and so we won't fall off.

But we can't wait.  We want that reason now.

Emotional responses are our quick take of the situation, then a judgement of whether it is a good or bad situation.  We need this in the amygdala  part of our brain to make a quick decision to fight or flee.

Fast response is preferred over considered deliberation for this.

Spirituality is our emotional response to something we want to explain, and we feel that we are close to an explanation.

The gods must be responsible for the bad weather as ancient Greek sailors would have to think.  Not until we have the telegraph when we can get timely weather information from locations close by that a storm is coming do we understand that weather systems actually move around and not localised just to punish some poor soul.

Something as colossal as earthquakes and floods must be commanded by the gods. Even in modern times we have some religious people blaming these natural disasters on people not behaving.

That is the other part about us, we want to impart intentions to what we see. Bob thinks Mary is not returning his call because she is upset with him when it could be that the phone is not working, she is busy, or any number of other reasons. We seem to want intention as the first explanation. We even personalise "mother earth" so as to get some intention on how the earth reacts.

Is it possible that spirituality is just our emotional quick response to coincidences and impressive vistas, and that these responses require cold hard analysis rather than a quick answer (that can be so satisfying but wrong?)

For the people who continue to believe that natural disasters are an act of god, they are condemning god to be a merciless being as it is not possible for that god to make sure all the people hurt by that disaster is worthy of the suffering inflicted.

And for those who feel spiritual but not religious, they are forming their own model of the supernatural to explain what they observe. It is so subjective and personal that many adjustments are required to fit this model to established religion that the adjusted model no longer relates to the persons emotions.

Is this the reason why there are so many versions of the christian god?

Personal models can be ideal and not subject to reality or other people's spiritual models.  Religion needs to accommodate the common features of most people's spiritual models and inevitably, not appeal to some others.  The fact that religion claims to be the truth also makes it difficult to adjust to changing times.  Truths are not suppose to change with time.

Accommodating all these spiritual models and explaining today's events with 2000 year or older "truths" is not a task that I envy.