What is spirituality?

I ran an event a while ago called "What is Spirituality?". It was a dinner where that questioned was discussed - in order to facilitate discussion I collected peoples' definitions of spirituality. I think peoples answers were interesting so I thought I should share them.  

What is Spirituality?

"Spirituality for me: everything that can't be explained by the natural cause and effect of a purely naturalistic universe. EG, independent thought or consciousness".

"Spirituality is the belief in a higher power, a power that has a different name in each religion, but in each, that power sets out the moral values by which we should live. All religions have very similar moral values and if leaders of the various religions and secular leaders could get together and agree to live by these, the world would be a much better place".

"Our understanding of the human experience that can’t be explained by what we can see".

"Spirituality is our connection with the universe and all other living beings. It is innate and always present within us".

"Spirituality is living a life where you can appreciate the good, accept the bad, be conscious of your effect on others – and not be bad".

"Spirituality is a sense of connection to all, to all of self, all of universe, a connection to simplicity and complexity at once".

"For me, spirituality is a deeply personal connection to the unknown. A search. A quest. An unending journey toward the source. What source? That answer in some ways does not matter. Rather, for me, spirituality is the questioning. Looking inwards whilst simultaneously star gazing… and drawing inspiration from the constellations one finds within. And without. Recognising that our lives are not our own. That we are, in essence, all one".

"A sense of meaning and purpose beyond the individual/self".

"A human need for meaning, order and purpose".

"Connectedness beyond the self and within the self".

"A search for something, more than a sense of being".

"A bullshit cop out for not saying religion".

"A way of thinking beyond what we can see".

"Spirituality is the reason I cried when I met my friend’s newborn baby! Even though I understood the biological process that brought him here, as I held him for the first time I couldn’t comprehend the wholeness of this new life, and part of me didn’t want to…"

"Because as much as we continue to learn about the universe and ourselves, I believe (have faith??) that there will always be some things that remain unknown. And it is in this space, the unknown and the unknowable, that I hold my spirituality. It’s where I keep my lost loved ones, the journey after death and a guiding sense of wonder, because it is wildly fantastical that any of this, and us, should exist at all!"

"The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind. The answer in blowin' in the wind ❤".

"I feel like......it's the experience of the universe in its raw form and the umbrella that all conceptualisation sits underneath".

"For me, Spirituality is the part of me that guides my morality and values, and hence my actions. I see it as evolving, not static, requiring personal reflection and nourishing. And importantly I see it as personal - no-one else can tell you what your Spirituality ought to be, though I think we develop Spirituality through our relationships, with others & our environment. And I can acknowledge that for many, Spirituality involves God - though for me, the 'higher being' that God encompasses is simply the 'higher' part of oneself - an internal aspect, not external force!"

"Being mindful of…living, health, love, family, environment etc".

"Spirituality is the individual’s attempt to understand the stuff that goes on around them that isn’t explainable by current scientific knowledge. But it is so much more than that. It’s hard to put into words".

"Spirituality is dealing with intuition".

"A sense that we are part of a broader system that influences our wellbeing".

"Connection to something greater".

"Spirituality is the belief that all of the unexplainable things that influence everything and us have some sort of meaning. That there is a greater purpose".