Closer to Spiritual....Bitches.

You could call it derivative. Or you could see it as commentary on what I consider to be highly relevant and thought-provoking blogging. Today, in my internet meanderings, I saw that another yoga blogger (whom I am, sadly, unable to link to due to the fact that my sponsors forbid me to link to sites that are not of a "family" nature) posed the question of whether being "spiritual" requires that one be "nice".

The question piqued my interest.

But as I turned the question over in my mind, I realized that I couldn't quite get my arms around it until I understood what it means to be "spiritual". And according to one dictionary source, "spiritual" is an adjective that describes something or someone "of or pertaining to the spirit or soul, as distinguished from the physical nature".

I am sure that when most of us toss around the term, "spiritual", we do not exactly have that meaning in mind. It seems to me that when most of us talk about someone being "spiritual", we mean that their focus often turns to matters of God, the universe or the metaphysical. Someone who tends to ask, "What would Jesus do?" might be considered to be spiritual. Similarly, someone who learns all of the verses of the Hanuman Chaleesa might be considered to be spiritual. Someone who sits in meditation on a daily basis might be considered spiritual, whether or not their meditation has anything to do with any god or gods.

These examples simply follow the form of the definition.

But we also consider people to be "spiritual" who shrug off that which is considered "material" or "worldly". Thus, we might not know about someone's belief system, but we might infer spirituality if we see them wearing dreadlocks tied up in big batik scarves, birkenstocks on their feet. Or, if someone tends to walk around in the latest J Brand Jeans, those ubiquitous telltale red-soled Louboutins and an LV Speedy bag, we assume that they are not spiritual.

Of course, we can't really know whether someone is "spiritual" just by looking at them. And being spiritual is far more than whether you pray, chant, keep kosher, wear a nun's habit, practice yoga (which definitely does NOT mean that one is spiritual...I mean, who knows if someone is in it just for the workout, although I suspect that even if someone believes that they are, they probably are getting more out of it than they realize), meditate, whatever.

But I am quite convinced that being spiritual has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with being nice.

Now, being "yogic" is another story entirely, and one which, by definition, involves the practice of "ahimsa", also known as the practice of doing no harm. It's a tough thing, walking the balance between doing what you think is right and truthful and energy-conserving (as also required by the principles of being "yogic") and what, in fact, is not harmful.

Anyway, that's enough for now.

YC