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Are you a spiritual person?

missy

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I am not religious but I am a very spiritual person.

What about you? If you are a spiritual person how do you navigate this world (which at times seems detrimental to our very core)?


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missy

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I consider myself very spiritual.

I love the environment and nature and animals. I am very introspective.
I surround myself with positivity and kindness and distance myself from those who are negative.
I am not afraid to share my feelings and express myself to others. I think this is key. People cannot read our minds so it is on us to explain how and why we are feeling a certain way to improve one's relationships. IMO it always comes down to communication. I try to treat myself well and with kindness. By eating well and exercising and taking care of my body as well as my mind and soul. This helps me feel at peace with the world and myself. I know we are but a tiny part of a greater whole and it is important to always work towards being better as an individual and as a society and as a world.

Kindess to animals and people are key and to the environment critical. I always have this in mind with almost everything I do. These words remain dear to my heart. Always.

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. To seek to reduce the suffering of those who are completely under one's domination, and unable to fight back, is truly a mark of a civilized society."



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If you are a spiritual person how do you do it in today's chaotic world?
 

dk168

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I am an Agnostic, and I would celebrate any festivities as long as there is food involved! :lol-2:

DK :))
 

missy

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I am an Agnostic, and I would celebrate any festivities as long as there is food involved! :lol-2:

DK :))

I too am agnostic. But I don't think spirituality has anything to do with religion. At least from my perspective. I understand others might have different definitions.
 

DAF

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I'm not religious either, but was baptized Catholic. Due to a difficult childhood and family tragedies, I feel abandoned by that God. I am well aware of the saying that you're never given more than you can bear. I just think that is BS. None of the childhood issues were my doing, and honestly, the family tragedies were due to the behaviors of the main person affected.

What I will say is that I came out of all of that a better person, one who tries to live by the credo "Do unto others as you would have done to you". I do consider myself to be very spiritual as well, and very in tune to nature and animals, and people as well. I feel as though I sense and feel other's emotions and adjust my manner to be in tune with them. All in all, I just try to be what I think is a good person.
 

GliderPoss

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I’m atheist (raised vaguely Presbyterian) but I guess I’m interested in other religions if that makes sense? I find it intriguing all the history, the rites and rituals etc. Not so I can join, just because it’s interesting to see what motivates & controls people... :read:
 

stracci2000

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I am also agnostic. Shhhh...Don't tell my mother...she will freak out!
I do feel spiritual from time to time, though.
 

lyra

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I've had a loss of faith, which is a severe thing in my life. I wouldn't call myself atheist, but maybe I've gone toward agnostic. Even so, I consider myself spiritual in the way Missy described. I've always had a deep affinity with nature and animals. People, not so much haha. I grew up with a strong feeling of community, although not based on religion, and I wish I still had that.
 

dk168

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I believe in karma; and what goes round, comes around.

I do not wish anyone any ills, regardless how much I dislike a person, which is quite hard to do lately due to so many Covidiots and really nasty people about, and I found myself thinking "I hope he/she/they get what he/she/they deserve(s)".

Be kind, be nice, treat people the way I would like to be treated.

And be nice to animals (except perhaps spiders and other flying pests) and the environment as they cannot defend themselves against human cruelty and interventions.

Hey ho!

DK :confused2:
 

missy

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I believe in karma; and what goes round, comes around.

I do not wish anyone any ills, regardless how much I dislike a person, which is quite hard to do lately due to so many Covidiots and really nasty people about, and I found myself thinking "I hope he/she/they get what he/she/they deserve(s)".

Be kind, be nice, treat people the way I would like to be treated.

And be nice to animals (except perhaps spiders and other flying pests) and the environment as they cannot defend themselves against human cruelty and interventions.

Hey ho!

DK :confused2:

I agree with all the above with one exception. I try (really hard sometimes lol) not to ever think I hope she/he gets what they deserve. Unless someone hurts an animal and then all bets are off. Otherwise I try never wishing anything bad on anyone because it goes against what I was taught as a child and still believe in very strongly. I wish I could remember the origin of those teachings but suffice to say I never wish bad upon anyone. Unless they hurt an animal as I wrote above. To me that is the one big exception. And children too. Do not hurt a child or I cannot control my thoughts. :x2
 

missy

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I've had a loss of faith, which is a severe thing in my life. I wouldn't call myself atheist, but maybe I've gone toward agnostic. Even so, I consider myself spiritual in the way Missy described. I've always had a deep affinity with nature and animals. People, not so much haha. I grew up with a strong feeling of community, although not based on religion, and I wish I still had that.

Lyra I get what you wrote. Faith gives (many/some) people strength and goals and a reason to continue. I understand why some are religious because for those people it does impart an important sense of community. As human beings we are all connected in one very important way and we all need each other to some degree.
 

missy

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I am also agnostic. Shhhh...Don't tell my mother...she will freak out!
I do feel spiritual from time to time, though.

Haha your secret is safe with me. Greg always refers to his religious affiliation as being a "recovering Catholic". LOL his mother did not find that amusing. She was a very religious woman and very much an important part of her Church. May she RIP. I hope she was right and she is where she thought she would be after she left this earth.
 

missy

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I’m atheist (raised vaguely Presbyterian) but I guess I’m interested in other religions if that makes sense? I find it intriguing all the history, the rites and rituals etc. Not so I can join, just because it’s interesting to see what motivates & controls people... :read:

I find religion fascinating and it is a very good read learning about all the religions. It's an important part of history and also philosophy and I have always loved history and philosophy.
 

missy

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I'm not religious either, but was baptized Catholic. Due to a difficult childhood and family tragedies, I feel abandoned by that God. I am well aware of the saying that you're never given more than you can bear. I just think that is BS. None of the childhood issues were my doing, and honestly, the family tragedies were due to the behaviors of the main person affected.

What I will say is that I came out of all of that a better person, one who tries to live by the credo "Do unto others as you would have done to you". I do consider myself to be very spiritual as well, and very in tune to nature and animals, and people as well. I feel as though I sense and feel other's emotions and adjust my manner to be in tune with them. All in all, I just try to be what I think is a good person.

I am sorry you went through a challenging period and I agree with all your comments. Especially living by the credo "Do unto others as you would have done to you". I could not agree more emphatically. I do not always succeed but that is not for lack of trying. I am human and sometimes I fail. But always trying to be as good an individual as possible. To leave this earth a little better for having been here.
 

AprilBaby

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I am a person of deep faith. It would be hard for me to get thru life without it.
 

Big Fat Facets

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i consider myself spiritual. to me, it is a practice and way of life. it is this faith and spiritualism from within, that has helped and guided me through life

i am not religious. in fact, i make it a point to steer clear of religious fundamentalists and extremists.

i do notice religious influences that i have due to attending 12 years of catholic girls school
 

stracci2000

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Haha your secret is safe with me. Greg always refers to his religious affiliation as being a "recovering Catholic". LOL his mother did not find that amusing. She was a very religious woman and very much an important part of her Church. May she RIP. I hope she was right and she is where she thought she would be after she left this earth.

My very devout mother watches the religious TV channel all day o_O.
Mom actually dumped one of her friends because this lady told mom that she lost her faith after being molested as a child. Mom couldn't be friends with a non-believer.

I can't imagine what she'd say if I told her how I really feel about religion!
 

jaysonsmom

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I am a person of deep faith. It would be hard for me to get thru life without it.

I am the same, but my faith is my personal relationship with my God and I love all people, not just those who share my faith. My husband is agnostic, and my children have grown and fallen out of the faith I raised them in. I do not impose my belief on others and I’m very interested in hearing about other people’s beliefs whether it be other religions, spiritual practices, or even self reliance.
 

YadaYadaYada

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Well I am spiritual, religious the whole nine, I believe in the man in the sky and all the "hocus pocus" as some would say.

My beliefs have kept me alive in dark times, that doesn't mean I agree with everything that my religion does though.
 
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Petalouda

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I surround myself with positivity and kindness and distance myself from those who are negative.

Hi Missy. I have a question for you. What do you consider negative? I ask because when my Mom passed in my mid 20s, I had a friend who told me I was so negative during that time and she couldn’t be around me because I “never saw the good.” I took her words and perspective and when my Father died two years later, I retreated to myself. Same when my brother unexpectedly passed two years ago. I felt like expressing myself would make me a burden to others because of my negative emotions. Perhaps I’m ( and some members of society) are not defining negative correctly.
 
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Petalouda

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I find I’m both spiritual and religious. My faith and prayers have really carried me through my dysfunctional childhood and the losses in my adulthood. Doesn’t mean I never questioned though. I did... a lot. It’s a big burden being a parentified child. I don’t think my brother could get past the trauma and repeated my parents behavior and addictions that led to his untimely death. I have become much more private about my spirituality and religion the past few years.
 

inne

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No. I am atheist and was raised in an atheist family in one of the least religious countries in the world. I wouldn't even know how to start being spiritual :)
 

Karl_K

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I am a Christian.
Kind of a lone wolf Christian in that I do not see the need to join a large group to have a relationship with God at this time.
Others are called to join groups and I do not have a problem with that, it is just not my calling at this time.
 

missy

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Hi Missy. I have a question for you. What do you consider negative? I ask because when my Mom passed in my mid 20s, I had a friend who told me I was so negative during that time and she couldn’t be around me because I “never saw the good.” I took her words and perspective and when my Father died two years later, I retreated to myself. Same when my brother unexpectedly passed two years ago. I felt like expressing myself would make me a burden to others because of my negative emotions. Perhaps I’m ( and some members of society) are not defining negative correctly.
I’m writing on my phone so forgive the brevity but I don’t think you’re negative if you share your grief.

I define a negative person as someone who always complains and only sees the negative in life. Who talks about others behind their backs. Always saying not nice things. Who brings you down because their outlook is always gloomy. They are never grateful or appreciative of the good things they have and instead only see the negative.

Not someone who shares their grief with you. I’m so sorry for your losses:(. If we were friends I’d want you to share your feelings and your grief with me. I’d be there for you.
Grief shared us grief halved. Joy shared is joy doubled. I truly believe that. (((Hugs))).
 
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Queenie60

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I am religious and spiritual - I have a strong relationship with God and pray regularly. Most of all, I try to live each day with a positive attitude, help others when needed and try to be kind to everyone.
 

eapj

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Such a good question. I actually googled what spiritual means as I’ve heard that term a lot and never quite understood it. I have pondered the meaning of life and why we’re all here and have no idea. I believe in being kind to others and animals because it’s the right thing to do, not because a book says so. I was raised religious but never believed. I am definitely not religious and wouldn’t deceive myself as spiritual, either. Perhaps it’s just all too complicated for me!
 

PreRaphaelite

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I’ve wavered in my spirituality, but other than a few moments of radical nihilism (as a result of impotent rage against the universe during/after the loss of my beloved), I’ve pretty much stayed a Non-theist Quaker. For a while there, I went the other direction toward more conservative orthodox Quaker, including plain dress, and plain speaking. But anyone who has read my babbling posts on PS will understand how difficult it is for me to conform to Plain Speaking.

I wouldn’t say that my spirituality gives me any solace, however. It doesn’t make me feel better about mortality, or the presence of evil in the world, and it doesn’t make me expect that ‘good things are coming’ or anything like that. What it does give me is a private, small, silent hope that there is Meaning in life. Not bliss, not miracles, just meaning.
 

Tekate

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I'm am spiritual, but these days it's been very hard to feel spiritual, times feel sad and forlorn, but we persevere and I have hope and spirit that things will get better no matter what. xoxoxoxo
 

AprilBaby

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Athiest. Also not spiritual. Although I can appreciate art, music and kindness.

Anne

I’m genuinely curious. Is it possible to be a spiritual atheist?
 
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