Spiritual Awareness vs. Spiritual Intellect
Posted on August 21, 2007
Filed Under Meditation, Society, Spirituality, Consciousness |
I have been compelled recently to figure out exactly what I consider to be “spiritual”. It seems to me that there are a lot of definitions floating around out there - and many of them are very vague, whilst others appear to be based on intellectual concepts rather than any form of spiritual reality. The first point I am faced with then, is what I would call the Spiritual Intellect or the “Spiritualect”. The Spiritualect has ideas about what they consider to be spiritual - but in practice these ideas are little more than intellectual notions, based upon certain belief systems, or various schools of science such as psychology. I must admit I hate making these distinctions - because I feel they come across as elitist. So I will make a point here of stating the fact that when I started out on my spiritual path I was very much a Spiritualect.
I read up on some Zen, Buddhism, Tao and other such stuff, and it all fitted in with my intellectual view of the world. Of course my Intellectual view was built up from notions, concepts, theories and ideals. So it was only natural for me to absorb something spiritual and then convert it into an intellectual concept.
But that is part of the beauty of the intellect. It can transform the entire world into notions and ideas in order to understand it through the creation of concepts. What the intellect lacks is the ability to reassemble those concepts back into their original form.
Reality is very much more than the sum of its parts - just as a human is more than the sum of their physical parts. There is an indefinable spark so to speak, comprising of many elements - one of which is the spirit. So when the Intellect breaks apart reality or spirituality, you end up with hundreds of parts. All of which you can analyse and study any which-way you like…but the parts do not contain that elemental spark. Here is a rather poor analogy; if you break apart a radio, you can study the radio as much as you like - but you won’t find the radio signal itself. Unlike in the radio analogy - reality, spirituality and the human don’t contain any real physical clues as to where that indefinable spark maybe coming from.
So what is Spiritual Awareness? Well to me spirituality is all about feeling and experiencing that indefinable spark rather than making an intellectual study of it. I learnt over the years that concepts and intellectual notions of spirituality will only carry you so far - at some point you will come crashing down pretty hard, and it is at that point where the true spiritual journey often begins.
Spiritual Awareness then; if we must give it a label, is about balancing your inner and outer realities. It is the process of getting beneath personal issues, ideals and beliefs, working your way inwards until you get to your very core. Not through the use of psychological analysis, or mechanical notions - but through allowing yourself to flower outwards by releasing the accumulated personal pressures; by casting off the Shadow. Further, through that process comes the development of increased awareness, which in turn allows you to consciously see inside of yourself as well as the world around you. In short then, spirituality is developing an awareness of inner and outer reality on all levels.
To put it another way. Spiritual Awareness, or to be more concise; Spirituality is about Consciousness, which in turn is everything we experience. Spiritual Development then, (at least as far as I personally see it) is the process of becoming aware of self and reality on every single level.
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I really like some of the points you make, such as a reality being the sum of more than all of its parts. There is something much deeper at play I feel than jobs, houses, families, and all the normalities of day to day life. You say spiritual development is about becoming AWARE, and I agree, this is what it is all about, becoming aware of self.
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