On Spirituality

“Sciene is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality. When we recognize our place in an immensity of light years and in the passage of ages, when we grasp the intricacy, beauty and subtlety of life, then the soaring feeling, that sense of elation and humility combined, is surely spiritual. So are our emotions in the presence of great art or music or literature, or acts of exemplary selfless courage such as those of Mohandas Gandhi or Martin Luther King, Jr. The notion that science and spirituality are somehow mutually exclusive does a disservice to both.”

–Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World: Science as Candle in the Dark

“My religion consists of a humble admiration of  the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind.”

–Albert Einstein

“We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having human experience.”

–Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

Introduction: Is Spirituality Religiosity?

On a very casual plane of thought, spirituality is automatically associated with religion. In fact, a religious person is readily said to be spiritual at the same time. In this very superficial sense, the meaning of spirituality is hence derived from religiosity which is not anomalous at all for in certain instances, a religious person exemplifies the characteristics of a spiritual person. Now, we are drawn to the nitty-gritty of the issue at hand as we focus on the question: What are the characteristics that define a person to be called spiritual?

Since the present initial understanding of spirituality is derived from religiosity, a spiritual person is one who shows piety. A religious person being spiritual is thus said to be pious and being such is basically manifested in the performance of certain religious duties and responsibilities prescribed by the religion of which the person is an active member like for example: prayers, confession of sins, penance, regular church (service or mass) attendance, partaking of the Eucharist, tithing, engaged in a special apostolate, among others. Outside church-related activities, a person is reckoned as spiritual in the religious sense if s/he is obviously well-mannered and considerate, pleasant and gentle, not used to mouth cuss, offensive and vulgar words in the course of a casual conversation, not an excessive drinker or a glutton in gatherings, not conceited and overtly arrogant towards other people, among others.

But do all these outward appearances truly define spirituality which in the present discussion is yet correlated with religiosity? Can´t a person be called spiritual even without getting involved in the likes of the aforementioned religious practices or without toeing the line of what society expects from a religious person? Is there a way to get rid of the religious and get to a better understanding of spirituality in a secular, humanistic sense? Or perhaps there is yet a much more fundamental phase to consider before we get to this level of discussion and that is exploring more deeply the essence of spirituality sans religiosity. At this point, we get to take the challenge of isolating the issue of spirituality from the sphere of religion.

To Be Endowed with The ¨Spirit¨

A spiritual person is one who is basically endowed with the ¨spirit¨. But what is that so-called ¨spirit¨? In certain instances, we hear comments like, ¨That guy has overcome a tremendous challenge in his life because of his indomitable spirit.¨ . . . ¨Coping resolutely with all the difficulties and tragedies after the horrendous super typhoon that recently hit the Philippines was a sheer display of the Filipinos´ undaunted spirit.¨ . . . ¨Victory goes not to the skilled but to the spirited.¨ . . . ¨That´s the spirit! Don´t give up! You will prevail!¨ . . . ¨They could have won the game had they not lost the spirit towards the end.¨ . . . ¨Let´s uphold the spirit of sportsmanship.¨  . . . ¨The unrelenting spirit of patriotism in the hearts of the people of East Timor won for them their most cherished independence.¨

With all these states of affairs being realistically considered, we are led to a point where the issue of the spirit becomes a natural and spontaneous aspect of concrete human experience that finds its signification not only in reticent musing but likewise in linguistic expression. In other words, the spirit is not simply a matter of personal and private feeling but a shared empirical event whose articulation is not questioned but accepted as something inherent in the human condition. In practically all instances, the ¨spirit¨ evokes the significance of a life-giving energy. A sheer exercise of uncomplicated imagination presents the ¨spirit¨ as a power/force—an energy—that bestows an upward push. We could think of some moments of discouragement in life when someone who cares comes along with her/his high energy to lift us up. Following this line of thought brings us to the notion that the spirit reckoned as a force or energy is akin to life. It is the spirit that sustains and lifts life whether we take it literally or metaphorically. The spirit is therefore a life-bestowing power: to appropriate Henri Bergson´s terminology, the spirit is the élan vital, the life-force.

Spirit as Life-Bestowing Energy . . . Life as Spirit-Endowed

Hebrew ontology (applied and hence reflected in theological formulation via the Jewish Holy Scripture called the TANAKH which also constitutes the Old Testament of the Christian Bible) brings to light how the concept of the spirit (ruach in Hebrew) is necessarily tied up with the concept of life. The indisputable Hebrew ontological principle is that there cannot be a living nepesh (being) without the life-giving ruach (which in Hebrew theology is exclusively associated with human life).

A more detailed study of the Hebrew concept of ruach leads us to its most basic meanings as ¨wind,¨ ¨air,¨ and ¨breath¨ which is not alien to the concept of force, power and energy. Whether we take it theistically as in the Jewish scripture or non-theistically/atheistically by a semantic understanding, ruach in the physico-naturalistic sense as breath, wind or air, or in the philosophico-metaphorical sense as spirit (i.e., force, power, energy), one incontrovertible issue stands out and that is the fact that ruach as such is necessarily connected with life. The spirit is therefore not only life-giving but may logically be construed as life itself for life manifests energy. In contrast with this conception is a life that treads the path of death while its energy is fading away.

A Spiritual Life . . . An Energetic Life

A spiritual life is an energetic life. In this sense, spirituality is more meaningfully understood in its inalienable correlation with life itself. Further stretching this line of thought brings us to the notion that spirituality is life-promoting, life-loving, life-appreciating, life-empowering, life-preserving. A spiritual person is therefore a committed defender of life.

There is no question that death is inevitable for death befalls all living organisms alike, including humans. But a vicious human being who has caused irreparable damage to and destruction of life by way of an irrational action and wanton violence to achieve a selfish ambition or goal is a foremost violator and transgressor of the supreme virtue of spirituality. This precise understanding of the notion of spirituality diametrically opposes all atrocious and malevolent instrumentalities and agencies that sustain the culture of death.

Life being energy-endowed likewise characterizes the Earth. This very planet we call home is replete with energies in its geological and atmospheric constituents that sustain life for its flora and fauna. The earth is therefore alive. In this connection, there is something very spiritual in focusing on ecological concerns and advocacies to save the Earth from destruction in the hands of idiotic humanity.

Conclusion

In the final analysis, we have come to the conclusive point that spirituality understood much better as an inherent aspect of cosmic reality—whereof human reality is part and parcel—looms larger than religiosity. Religion that brazenly claims spirituality as its exclusive possession damages the profound essence of spirituality. Spirituality cannot be contained within the limited space of any religion for it is more fundamental than religion. In this light, a particular religion may only be perceived as a respectable human institution if it is well-entrenched on a solid spiritual foundation—a religion committed to promote the culture of life—for spirituality in its most genuine sense is the abundant emission of energies that love, promote, appreciate, sustain, preserve and empower life within and without religion.

© Ruel F. Pepa, 05 January 2014