RELIGION
AND SPIRITUALITY- A PERSONAL EXPLORATION!
Going ‘deeper’ is
paradoxically a tool to arrive at the simple!Going 'deeper' into
anything is reaching its utter simplicity!
Religion and spirituality brings to mind an old joke: Two friends are
arguing about free will and destiny; the one who believes in destiny concludes
by saying the other is destined to believe in freewill! And the one who
ascribes to free will concludes by saying the other is free to believe in
destiny! I start with this joke
because I find religion and spirituality are often viewed in the same manner,
as two opposite sides of a coin instead of the coin itself! And indeed having been like those friends in
the above joke, I confess I was firmly on one side- of spirituality - till I
moved from viewing them only as heads… or tails! I will share through this
writing my personal exploration of these terms-with the coin now well up in the
air- not heads, nor tails, but one shiny whole coin showing me both aspects as
it twirls around in the air!
Humanity, to me, is a beautiful and brave experience I choose as
spirit! And I am a firm believer that we as spirit gave ourselves all the
tools and aids to make this adventure the joyful and fulfilling experience that
we ventured out for! And in that, religion
(which means ‘to re-align’) was at its purest a vital tool that spirit created to
facilitate the game of life! It is only in moving away from that purity, to the
structure and rules that often develop do they become limiting and self serving
instead. For religions are paths successfully traversed and described by
another (or a set of others) and in that they hold vital clues towards the path
you now navigate- for the journey is the same, with the different routes converging
at the same place. In this understanding I realized that shunning them was as
meaningless as those following them as a set of must-do rules! I realized it’s
best to adopt the middle line, not allowing them to limit and restrain me like
some tower of Babel which must then be struck open; but being open to harnessing
the wisdom that others before me have tapped into, using
from this storehouse what works for me, perhaps expanding some of its
concepts in ways which are applicable to the time and space coordinate that I
am in… so that ‘religions’ do what they are for…what I indeed as spirit
designed them for… to help us re-align with the Spirit I Am! And in this as our
‘spirituality’ blossoms… we can then contribute to ‘religion’ in unique and
contemporary ways! And the two…religion and spirituality begin to meet rather
than stare doggedly in opposite directions!
Religions to me are thus tools, the means, and not the goal! In analogy they are like the booklets of
instructions and guidelines, which accompany our more physical board games- but
they do not replace the actual game itself, which must be played out in
individual ways! They are good starting points, offering a description of the
game, the parameters within which it is set, some guidelines and goals yes, but
thereafter leaving it to the individuals to play the game in individual ways,
or what use of playing a game! They do not, do not indeed, become manuals
detailing every step of the game: throw dice, you will get a six… partner
throws dice, he will get a four… and so on… making the very playing redundant! And
in the ‘playing’ of the game of life, with a deeper (and deeper!) understanding
of the game and the larger context in which I play it…indeed in the escalating
states of joy and expanding states of love… is my spirituality!
The different religions thus became for me the various ways in which
the game of life can be played! With each of us resonating to a certain approach
or style! Of course when viewed deeper, we will born within that cultural
milieu or religion (or lack off) which we need as a backdrop for the current
life and all that we have chosen to experience, expand and disempower within
it. More so in different lives we will indeed choose different religions so
that each of us may view life and self and God through the myriad lens offered
to humanity! Let me quote Rumi here:
“Sometimes devout Christian Sometimes staunchly Jewish Until our inner love fits with
everyone” Rumi
Personal Experience (and the sharing of those I reach out to) further
showed me that when any religion, or indeed any path, has done its work within
us, is when we begin to lose interest or feel drawn to another…and instead
of feeling guilty of betraying our God or path…it is indeed a signal from that
very God or Master or path urging us forward! For truly in the larger picture
they are all One and it is that Oneness which guides us at every point whether
to move on or stay put…whatever is for our highest good and growth! Let me
bring this alive through some personal experiences touching on these very
points:
I am born a Jain, with a Hindu mother; and while both influences were
subtly present neither was highlighted (nor impacted me) because through my
growing days every individual in my very large joint family resonated to
different Living Masters and this was the major influence on my psyche! And it was only on retrospect that I saw how
this backdrop paved the way ideally for the journey of universal spirituality
that I have now consciously embarked on and reach out through!
More so, when I began my journey as a channel receiving and sharing
spiritual wisdom …I went through the initial pangs of wondering if I was being
disloyal to my Living Master; and he oh so beautifully came to me in meditation
and indeed danced the waltz with me, swirling me into the arms of my new
channeled Master…telling me symbolically what I am trying to convey to you dear
readers!
Indeed it was at this point that I grasped another vital aspect- for as
little as a year before this- I had felt
somewhat rejected by my Living Master when he gently suggested I wait a while
for the initiation I requested... promising me he would give it if I still
wanted it next year! At that point I did not know…what I know now… My Living
Master and all Masters are indeed one and orchestrate the show together …weaning me off one desire, as its
foundation is laid and propelling towards another where it will best continue!!
But in this understanding, there arose in me an even deeper eureka! And
I share this as an important message to those of us who may try converting
everyone onto ‘our’ path! At some level it is natural, for when you find
something that works for you, one wants to share it with beloveds! And when you
have found your God…Self…the desire to share is even stronger! But if another’s
path fulfills them, and feels right for them, there is no use convincing them
onto yours! It is indeed a disservice and distraction rather than any service
you may feel you are doing! For that voice of fulfillment is indeed their soul
voice, whispering to them that this is where their current growth lays. And even if your path seems to you the
more expanded or better one, we must operate from the complete conscious
awareness that there is no lesser or better path… for each one resonates to what
is best for them in any Now! Read Rum’s poem again…Different religions offer
different views of the same One Divine understanding…and we are born into or
come across or attracted to that which we need to encompass in the now!
In my growing up days, I would indeed flout religion in
favor of spirituality…chaffing at the myriad gods and rituals that religion
prescribed, and to be honest, I felt ‘one up’! But now, somewhat older and hopefully a little wiser…I understand that religion
and spirituality though different approaches, are not at odds with each other; each
has its role to play. Some need what
religion offers and you can indeed not be truly spiritual if you belittle that!
You may have chosen a life plan to get some structure to your free flowing spirituality!
You may have chosen to explore a certain faith which you have perhaps condemned
in some past! You may just have opted to add to your exploration of the whole
through another lens! And some need to move away from religion into a wider and
more personal exploration offered by spirituality! We may never know ‘why’ we
are drawn to what we are, but if we know that everything is chosen for our
highest good and growth- even our spiritual journeys- and indeed encoded within
our DNA as our desires and what feels ‘right’ for each life time, this judgment
about any being better begins to fade!
Over the years my spirituality has enabled me to appreciate the various
religions for the symbolic representations they so beautifully bestow on the
more abstract understandings of the macrocosm! It has worked in reverse for
me…instead of my religion taking me to my spirituality, my spirituality and its
in-depth understanding of concepts like prayer and gods and temples has brought
me to appreciate the secrets encoded in the rich history and imagery of
religions! And in this blend can I remain Creator… Godself…. Self -Empowered
without the need for images and forms and formal prayers and rituals, and yet
can I just as beautifully sit in temples and havans and bhajans and enjoy
instead of shun, these beautiful …beautiful tools and mirrors!
Religion and spirituality need not be two mutually exclusive states,
and we can each arrive at our own combination! Sometimes as ‘spiritual’ beings
different from our ‘religious’ co-travelers …we feel compelled to keep ‘gods’ out
of our lives. And even as I grappled with this, strangely developing an altar
after more than 40 years of rejecting idolatry… I realized that I am on a
physical planet, and just as I enjoy my other reflections: beloveds, friends
and family firmly knowing there is no one other than I; and they are but the
mirror of relationships; may I in this complete self empowerment enjoy the
beautiful ambience I have created as an altar! Knowing these beautiful pictures
and crystals- gifts coming from seemingly no where- are but aspects of Self!
Knowing I sit in an altar to Self! Not
worried if it isn’t there, yet enjoying it when I choose! Again a beautiful
verse highlights this (alas it is forward from the web and I do not know and
thus cannot acknowledge the poet, but remain deeply thankful to whoever it is):
I "Woke Up" one day and
looked in the mirror
What did I see? ... Me.
I looked at my friends, family and relationships.
What did I see? ... But Me.
I looked at my world,
and what did I see? ... But Me again. I integrated into the spiritual,
and what did I see?
Oh my God, but you are a splendid mirror of Me?
Both Spirituality and religion are a search for truth, and
at a deeper level a means to wholly optimizing our human journey! Religions offer these
truths, each through a different lens; each one a finely honed focus - like
websites that keep their information intact and inviolate so that it doesn’t
get mixed up with all the information on the World Wide Web. Spirituality is like the World Wide Web-
embracing all truths rather than stressing on ‘one truth for all’; and indeed
extends further by allowing each to arrive at their own truths, (in our analogy
leaving us free to make our own website!) through the aid of surfing
‘religions’ or a more independent means of enquiry! Yet these truths have all
been touched upon by different religions and spirituality only combines them
all in a personal package right for each one thereby making the sum larger than
its parts! The other difference if any is that religions are journey’s recorded
from the ‘beginning’ to any Now…and in
that some of its ideas may seem outdated in any current context, unless you in
connection with the spirit that you are, through your spirituality, can
interpret them in context of where humanity’s ( and your personal) evolution
currently stands! Once you are open to this, religion and spirituality enable
each other… and you… and humanity!
Follow your inner voice; arrive at your own conclusions in every NOW! Constantly
upgrade your religious understanding, and in that spirituality forge your own
unique path, even whilst you are using from others what they have so generously
shared towards this inimitable and individual journey to Self! Allow religion
and spirituality to comfortably coexist … and your coin falls on that side- which you need in the now!
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