What is Spirituality?

“Spirituality is not about beliefs – it is about the way we live and conduct our day-to-day lives.”

Satish Kumar

Spirituality in traditional societies was known as the process of self-transformation, which was often achieved through religious practices. Therefore in those days there was a close relationship between religion and spirituality. Only as early as the 19th century, spirituality got separated from religion, as it was focusing more on self-development and subjective experiences rather than beliefs and practices. In this way any meaningful act, meditation, character building and blissful experience was considered spiritual. This made “spirituality” a broad term that could be practiced by anyone at any time with any structure; even the ones who did not practice any religion, started practicing spirituality.

So, what is spirituality in this context?

Basically spirituality comes from the term “spirit,” meaning “The principle of conscious life; the vital principle in humans, animating the body. The non-physical part of a person that is the seat of emotions and character or what is known as the soul.” Spirit is derived from the Latin word “spiritus” referring to “soul, vigor and breath.” In this way spirituality refers to any practice that concerns the spirit or the soul, and is not just confined to practicing certain kinds of meditations. It is in fact any practice that leads to greater union, yoga or realization of the soul.

Throughout history many spiritual Masters and Teachers have emphasized the real nature of spirituality and its main purpose as achieving union with the higher soul or higher self that relies on how we live our life; how we think, speak and act.

“Spirituality is a way of Life. It is not just doing meditation.”

Master Choa Kok Sui

What is spirituality from the eyes of the general public?

Often people have a wrong perception about spirituality. The general public thinks of a spiritual practitioner as a weak and slow person, who does not have any physical possessions and who meditates most of his time. Therefore many people are afraid that by becoming spiritual, they might lose practicality, family life, prosperity and the enjoyments of life.

This is a wrong perception about spirituality!

So, what is spirituality in the real sense and who is a spiritual person?!

“People on the Spiritual Path are not anemic. They must be sharp, strong, and courageous. Being Spiritual means being Powerful, Dynamic and Intelligent… The standard for a person on the Spiritual Path is high. What cannot be done by ordinary people can be done by you.”

Master Choa Kok Sui

The reason why spiritual practitioners should become powerful, loving and intelligent relies on the development of their chakras. When more soul energy descends to the body, it activates, strengthens and transforms the chakras! The chakras of the spiritual practitioners are no longer the same as before; they are no longer only 3-4 inches as they become more activated!

As the chakras get bigger and more activated, the positive qualities of the chakras should become evident in the person. As the Ajna chakra gets strengthened and transformed, intelligence and will power will get activated. As the Heart chakra gets activated, the person will become more loving and as the Crown chakra gets transformed, unconditional love will be experienced.

The expectation from spiritual practitioners is therefore much higher than the ordinary people. What cannot be done by the general public, should be possible by people on the spiritual path as they have the means and their chakras are more developed.

“The spiritual life does not remove us from the world but leads us deeper into it.”

Henri J. M. Nouwen

References

• Master Choa Kok Sui. (2006). Creative Transformation, The Golden Lotus Sutras on Spiritual Practice. The Institute for Inner Studies Publishing Foundation, Inc.
• Oxford Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/spirit?q=spirit
• Snyder, C., & Lopez, S. J. (2007). Positive Psychology. Sage Publications.
• Houtman, D., & Aupers, S. (2007). The Spiritual Turn and the Decline of Tradition: The Spread of Post-Christian Spirituality in 14 Western Countries, 1981-2000. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion , 305-320.
• Spiritual England. (n.d.). Retrieved from And so what is Spirituality?: http://www.spiritualengland.org.uk/index.php/spirituality/spirituality-what-it/