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Are you a newcomer to the realm of spirituality and are you in need of a guide that can offer you some valuable insights?
First of all, welcome to this wonderful universe!
The staff of The Spiritual Seek created this guide to point you toward the most significant content in the spiritual field, while trying not to overload it with unhelpful or boring information. It will take you toward the key concepts of soul and spirit with content-rich articles, unique personality tests, and a mindset focused on gaining greater awareness.
Let’s begin.
1. As a first step, we need to explore the differences between Religion and Spirituality.
The differences between these two spheres are similar to those between BELIEVING and HAVING FAITH. The believer is one who, experiencing a sense of inner emptiness, tries to fill it by turning to the outside world, inevitably ending up settling for comforting and simplistic answers. In fact, religion, whatever it is, has only one purpose: to make us feel guilty while giving us false hopes, so that we obey without ever questioning authority. There is no evolutionary purpose in this, but only the need to control and direct the human flock where it is needed. In this sense, religion and politics are very similar; however, while the former appeals to the highest needs of human beings, the latter deals exclusively with practical and material matters. Both divide individuals into groups and categories (good and evil, conservative and progressive, etc.), ostensibly for their own good, but actually in order to better control them, also turning them against each other when they become too critical of authority itself. This concept was well described by the ancient Latins with the expression “Divide et Impera” (divide and rule).
Now pause for a moment and think about how often this ploy is put into practice, still today, by institutions, be they religious, political or otherwise. Duality operates exactly in this way, very often without us even realizing it. Religion and politics thus pursue the same purposes, but with different words.
Unlike religion, spirituality does not divide but unites; it does not produce duality but complementarity. Since the celestial dimension is completely independent of the earthly world and material things, it cannot be manipulated by human beings either. The only thing we can do is try to attune ourselves to the spiritual dimension and contemplate it. It exists regardless of us and what we create or destroy in our limited earthly reality.
If the believer goes in search of easy and convenient external answers, finding them in religion, the one who has faith, on the contrary, searches within themselves. While the former is satisfied, the latter is insatiable and never ceases to inquire. To have faith is to perceive within oneself the immensity of the universe, or creation, of which we are a part, and to know that we are a soul and a spirit even before we are a body and a mind. Such awareness conveys a sense of inner peace that has nothing to do with the dogmas and ambiguous hopes advocated by religions. One who has faith is sufficient to themselves by perceiving themselves as part of the Whole, or, if you prefer, by finding God within themselves. The religious or believing person does not perceive this connection to the Whole because he or she is unable to tune in to the frequencies typical of the spiritual world, or the divine.
2. Secondly, we should also clarify the differences between Psychology and Spirituality.
Psychology deals primarily with the human mind, deliberately neglecting more intangible and hardly measurable aspects of our essence. This discipline was born out of an attempt to transform philosophy into a scientific subject. Focusing essentially on the mental mechanisms that motivate human behavior, psychology deepens and at the same time simplifies the human being. The mind represents only one of several components of what we might call the intricate human nature. Moreover, psychology, like all other disciplines that are more or less scientific, is also a child of its time. While until the 1990s it tended to pathologize most non-standardized human behavior, in recent decades it has taken a diametrically opposite direction, going so far as to legitimize and deem acceptable what was previously termed “deviant” or “pathological”. Indeed, the Zeitgeist of the twenty-first century seems to be that of freedom at all costs and forced acceptance of every slightest human impulse or whim.
This phenomenon of switching from one extreme to the other, of doing and then undoing, of idealizing and eventually denying, and so on, is typical of duality. Everything produced by the human mind works this way, including psychology.
Spirituality, the genuine kind, on the contrary, is timeless and has no earthly reference points. What does this mean? Simply put, soul and spirit do not belong to the earthly dimension, and their goal is the search for the absolute. The earthly world is a triumph of relativism and false certainties, while the divine world is composed of timeless universal truths, or at least of the constant search for them. We cannot avoid using the dual mind we are equipped with, yet we can try to keep it at bay by acknowledging its limitations and focusing on the eternal and immortal nature of our most authentic essence. Spirituality consists fundamentally of this continuous process of acquiring awareness. Psychology, on the contrary, does not pursue absolute truths, its purpose being to understand the human mind and its interaction with earthly life.
In conclusion, we can say that psychology deals exclusively with one component, the mental one, as well as its repercussions on daily life; whereas, on the other hand, spiritual research examines the human being in its essence, recognizing its connections with dimensions completely unrelated to the earthly one, and having reunification with the Whole as its goal.
3. Are you ready to move on? After clarifying that psychology and spirituality are two different things, we suggest you consult this philosophy-oriented article, which is useful for encouraging an introspective and curious attitude typical of the spiritual seeker:
The origins of our motto: Gnōthi Seauton – Nosce Te Ipsum – Know Thyself
Indeed, you should know that philosophy and spirituality have much in common; in fact, the thought of philosophers of the past is an excellent starting point in preparation for an immersion into deeper celestial concepts.
4. Next, why don’t you take the Awakening Test and the Awareness Test?
Mark your current scores, then come back and repeat the tests after you have completed the readings that follow; that way, you will find out if you have become a more aware and profound person in the meantime.
5. Let’s move on. The next article briefly explains the four basic components of human beings, namely: body, mind, soul and spirit. The order is not random; in fact, body and mind are our material parts, while soul and spirit are the ethereal ones. The body is what most holds us in the world of matter, while the spirit is the furthest we can be from the material dimension:
The intricate nature of humanity: Body, Mind, Soul, and Spirit
6. If this topic fascinates you, and you wish to pursue it, the next step is to familiarize yourself with the concept of Spiritual Awakening:
“The Truman Show” and the Metaphor of Spiritual Awakening: A Transcendental Analysis
7. Sticking with the theme of illusions and soul awakening, we recommend this other article that analyzes Plato’s timeless Myth of the Cave:
From Illusion to Insight: Understanding The Myth of the Cave Meaning in Modern Times
8. You should now have a clearer idea of what the world of spirituality is, and about its relationship to the illusory world of matter. If you feel you are ready to tackle more complex, but equally fascinating and relevant topics, you should definitely read our interpretation of an emblematic speech of Jesus:
Being IN the World but not OF the World: A Mystical-Spiritual Journey
9. Did you enjoy our explanation of Jesus’ words? If your answer is yes, you will find the next article about the universe of Gnosis exciting as well. This word of Greek origin literally means “knowledge”. The spiritual seeker is perpetually thirsty for knowledge, as were the ancient followers of the Gnostic philosophy, which was inspired by the so-called Gnostic gospels, not coincidentally considered illegitimate by the Church:
The World of Gnosis: An Insider’s View of Gnostic Knowledge
10. After delving into the figure of Jesus and the various otherworldly interpretations that can be ascribed to his words and his own earthly manifestation, we think you are now ready to continue your journey into the transcendent; here is an essay on the difference between Consciousness and Awareness:
Awareness and Consciousness: The Two Foundations of Spiritual Evolution
Fascinating, isn’t it?
11. Now it is time to contemplate the concept of reincarnation. Although the human soul is immortal, it nevertheless seems to be subject to a continuous cycle of death and rebirth that affects its material receptacle, namely the body. This phenomenon is largely shrouded in mystery, even though some useful information about it has been provided by people who have experienced so-called Near-Death Experiences (NDEs):
The Enigma of Near-Death Experiences: Scientific and Spiritual Interpretations
12. Therefore, something ambiguous seems to be involved in the process of reincarnation. Not surprisingly, in the very ancient Indian spiritual culture there is a concept that is completely absent in the English language, the concept of MOKSHA. What does this Sanskrit word mean? It has to do with the liberation of the soul from the cycle of reincarnation. Here is an article that explains this notion better:
Moksha and Liberation: Walking the Path of Spiritual Freedom
13. How did you feel about the essay on spiritual liberation? For us, this is a topic of utmost importance, and we believe it should be so for any spiritual seeker truly interested in understanding the mysteries of the universe. Since this is such an intricate as well as compelling subject, we decided to dedicate a second article to it, this time focusing on the 14 stages of what we might call the process of inner liberation. Don’t miss it!
The 14 Stages of Spiritual Liberation: From a State of Unconsciousness to the State of Awareness
If you have come this far and found the information we have been providing enlightening, you are ready to embark on your own personal journey into the realm of the transcendent and discover your deepest nature. Remember that spiritual evolution and expansion of awareness never end. The soul’s journey has a beginning, but no final destination. It kicks off from a spark that strikes within us like lightning on a sunny day, and from that moment on, there is no turning back. There is, in fact, no such thing as the opposite of awakening. Those who sleep are not aware of anything, while those who awaken can no longer pretend not to see, perceive and know.
Don’t forget to take the Awakening Test and the Awareness Test again.
Have you noticed any difference in the initial results and the later ones?
We are sure you have.
Enjoy your journey.
The staff of The Spiritual Seek
