Spiritual Practise

I've looked into a great many teachings, religions, & spiritual systems, read a great many books, & spoken with a great many people. & have considered, pondered, reflected, analysed, contemplated & thought very deeply about a lot.

There are many complex & in depth understandings, views & concepts about spirituality/reality.

I'd primarily go with a mixture of Jungian/inter-life ideas; some Osho/Zen/Pantheism & Shamanism. (with a mixture & assortment of other stuff). I don't really go with the ideas of Deities/Religious figures. But I'm not keen on labels or on defining things as anything.

But what am I left with? - for me my spirituality is simply a set of principles - to be calm, in stillness, in an inner World of peace & harmony - to practise kindness, understanding, empathy, compassion, & service to others. To see beyond all appearances to the hearts & souls of all individuals. To look within - to go on the inner search for truth, with open-mindedness & willingness. To find my own truth; & be connected & centred with my own spirit.

I don't adhere to any one religion or spiritual system - to any one teacher or specific practise. In essence - what I hold to is a set of principles of utter simplicity; that anyone of any persuasion could practise.

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& here is the rub - to my understanding; the essence of all religions/spirituality/systems & practises is basically the same. But the key is not in understanding different ideas, concepts, & different World-views - But rather it is in the application of these things.

To live & practise what I wrote above - to be kind to all in all circumstances - to be peaceful in all circumstances - is simplicity is itself - (it's 2 words - kindness & peace) - But in practise; in application, in Being such things there can be great difficulty.

It's similar for calmness - to be in a place of calmness in all circumstances - to 'have' an inner World of peace & harmony - is simplicity in itself to understand & have as an idea - or a concept - But the application of this is an entirely different thing. How many can say that they have genuinely achieved such things?

I think that this is why so many search & search & search - it's not that they don't have the answers - they already do & did to begin with - what's missing is the application.

A summary of some of the principles to allow the application of such 'attributes' seems to be very simple as well - through allowance & acceptance of all things we find a place of inner stillness - We explore the question of Who & What am I? & in discovering we manifest & apply the nature of the soul/spirit - the core of who we are.

The more that I consider all these things the more simple all of it seems to become. It's not to say that there is anything 'simple' about life or the experiences of such things - or to say that simple is easy! It isn't! - But that spirituality (for me) appears very much to be based on the action/application of some very basic principles. It also doesn't mean that there isn't often very complex & difficult life situations, circumstances & problems to deal with & address - because there is for all of us (some harder than others) - But that in essence - The spiritual solution; in principle; is simplicity in itself.

Does that make sense to others?

Yes

WOW - what a FANTASTIC topic!

Where to begin??

Spiritual practice for me is many things. Reading spiritual books, listening to music/watching entertainment with a high vibrational rate, my interactions with others in daily life, the execution of daily tasks, and yes even participating in this forum I consider a spiritual practice! I suspect everything in life is a potential spiritual practice if we approach it correctly.

Of course the core of spiritual practice is just as you say, to 'be connected & centred with my own spirit'. This is the source of direction for all other practice. In meditation, in intimate contact with my own Awareness, in the vast flowing stillness of peace, love, openness, and luminous joy, I have direct confirmation of what I am practicing for.

Because that is what the things I do during the day are - PRACTICE - wilfully integrating spiritual principles into my daily consciousness and life.

Simple, yes - but easy? What I have noticed is that even though things like peace, kindness, compassion, empathy, love, are very soft and warm words, integrating these values into my self requires a certain hard ruthlesness that seems at odds with the very things I am trying to instill. I suppose that is a paradox - but that's the way it seems.

It does get better though. The further I go, the easier it seems to get. I must always remain vigilant, aware - going on autopilot quickly leaves me stranded - but the effects of integration are definitely changing my life for the better.

Spirituality seems very complex on the surface.There are so many spiritual teachers. Some these spiritual teachers are true or enlightened masters but many are not true. You will find plenty of dodgy spiritual teachers in India. Teachings seems to vary even among the true teachers. Each teacher emphasize on a particular aspect of spirituality. Some teachers emphasize on surrendering while others on discovering the human nature or nature of our mind. There are others who emphasize on devotion, self enquiry, Yoga, chanting, meditation or detachment etc.. Which is the correct method? There is no correct method. Purpose of all these methods is to wear out your mind so that the mind eventually realises its limitations and surrenders to the Truth. How do you wear out your mind will depend upon the nature of your mind? Some persons are more emotional while others are more of thinkers. There are some who are active or doers. Broadly spiritual practice can be divided into four methods:

- Physical yoga such as breathing exercises and other stretching exercises etc..
- Karam yoga which is the yoga of selfless action i.e. service without any expectation in return.
- Self enquiry i.e questioning such as "who am I" or whether my thoughts are true ect..
- Devotion i.e. the yoga of feeling or emotion such as chanting, meditation etc..

You can choose any of the above methods based on nature of your mind. All of the above methods seem to end in devotion. Devotion is the most effective method as it is based on feelings which is relatively closed to the spirit. Self enquiry is second best method as it works on the mind and mind is closer to the spirit than body. Selfless service can be considered as next one in the line as it is based on action and action is driven by the mind. Physical yoga is the last as body is also driven by the mind. So a new person on spiritual path can start with physical yoga and then move to selfless service then to self enquiry and end up in devotion. Some persons practice all of these methods simultaneously while others can take any one of them.

[Xan]

in essence - The spiritual solution; in principle; is simplicity in itself.

Yes... A good spiritual practice focuses increasingly on the essence of being and everything else simply follows along.


Xan

Far too many spiritual teachers seem to fall into what I call the "guru trap"; not understanding that "enlightenment" is not a one-time flashbulb-type occurrence but a continuous, lifelong process, they are so overwhelmed by their one sudden insight that they immediately leap to the conclusion "I'm enlightened; woo-hoo!!" and start teaching - and stop learning.

The only legitimate function of any teacher, it seems to me, is to bring the student to the point where he or she doesn't need the teacher any more. Any good teacher will recognise this and, when he/she judges that the student needs to move on, or when the student reches the same conclusion, simply let go. Any teacher who desperately tries to hold on to his/her students at all costs (especially where money is involved) is most likely on an ego trip, and should be avoided.

I've encountered quite a few self-appointed gurus of this type. A favourite ploy is to give you some superficially wise-sounding aphorism such as, "the time when you feel like leaving is when you really need to continue". This is when alarm bells should start to sound. Would you believe someone who told you "when you don't feel hungry any more is the time when you really need to keep eating"?

Another favourite ploy is "Oh, your rational mind is getting in the way". Well, it seems to me that we humans come equipped by nature with rational minds for a very good reason; another term for "rational mind" is "** Detector". The kind of guru who is afraid of rational questioning is the kind of guru who is dispensing **, and the kind to avoid.

The best advice I can give (based on almost 50 years of experience) is to trust your own intuition. If it doesn't feel right, don't do it.

Alchymist

For me, enjoyed all of the above - Thanks. lets me know I'm on the right path.

I personally think the truth is so simple that we don't "get it" because we try to grasp something with our mind that is beyond mind. But the other day I was watching a documentary on hinduism and when I saw that they were all worshiping and following some guru and practicing different rituals and yet all in harmony together I understood that there are many ways to seek and find.

It's all beautiful : )