Are You Spiritual?
Author’s Note : This is the fifty sixth installment in my 100 days, 100 blogs challenge. In case you missed it, the previous installment is about Weddings and Biological Clocks.
One of the most recurring questions of the celebrity interviews, this question is representative of an extremely ironic reality of our times — the quest of spirituality in an age that is professedly material.
Why is it so that spirituality has suddenly started occupying a prominent position in our day to day discourse? While being a country that has been traditionally recognized as the spiritual capital of the World, it would have been obvious — the sudden spurt in the recognition of the existence of this domain is still undoubtedly remarkable.
The cause, somewhere lies in what science recognizes as the principle of elasticity. Everything, when deformed, tends to return back to its original shape. In simpler, non-scientific words, no matter how much you stretch a rubber band, it always returns back to its original shape.
Or it breaks. But more on that later.
This is precisely the phenomenon that is being exhibited by our contemporary world. We have been pushed beyond limits and deformed to unimaginable extents by the materialistic forces. And everything and everyone is now exerting a collective effort to return back to their original shape and position.
No prizes for guessing that this original shape implies and includes spiritual awareness of the self.
The theory is broad brush strokes and may not explain the specifics. But it does offer us some justification for the mass obsession with all things spiritual, the boom in the market of self help publications and sudden spurt of good life lessons on every available media. This may also lend semblance of sanity to the insane impact seers, gurus, babas, religious leaders and Godmen seem to have on the masses everywhere.
The whole point of highlighting this point here is to bring forth one simple idea — the importance of being spiritual. Being spiritual is our natural state and being divorced from this domain for long may lead us to a point of breaking — just like a rubber band. And the symptoms are way more tangible — stress triggered disorders, lifestyle diseases, fractured relationship and an all pervading sense of dissatisfaction.
The point here is not that spirituality is a magical cure for all ills in life. It is not. It is rather a way of life which equips us better to face everything. It is way of life that inevitably leads to a better, happier and more fulfilling existence. It counters the negatives and accentuates the positives. And when life gets really nasty, it gives solace and courage to see ourselves through.
But what is spirituality? A religion, fear of God, some mystical force?
Spirituality is definitely not religion and hence the done to death celebrity response, “I am not religious. I am spiritual.”
Apart from the fact that the statement sounds cool, it also has a ring of truth. Religion has got nothing to do with spirituality. Hell, even belief in God is not a prerequisite. I have known people who professed atheism and yet were more spiritual than many of the so called religious individuals.
Being spiritual is akin to being aware; being in touch with our own selves; being in love. And simple as it sounds, being in touch with our own selves is probably the toughest milestone of any spiritual journey. And being in love? Well, this is not the romantic love. This is the love that is all encompassing; love that breeds empathy and compassion for our fellow beings. Love that lets us be ourselves, unapologetic.
Spirituality is not a virtue that is inhabitant of any unknown plane. Cosmos, soul, higher planes and such mystical, complicated terms have obfuscated the essence of spirituality which is simple and applicable. Spirituality is not meant to be an entity that is meant to be looked up to with awe and accessible by a privileged few, blessed by some Higher powers. Spirituality is universal and egalitarian. Irrespective of who we are, what we do and what our beliefs are, we always have a choice to be spiritual and in turn choose a better existence. The operative word here is ‘choice’.
Originally published in speakingtree.in.
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