Twelve Types of Practice for Creating A Unique Spiritual Path

Just before retiring I went through an existential crisis. I know because someone in the mental health assessment team told me. She said that my heightened anxiety wasn’t down to diagnosable mental illness. Rather I was in a veritable shit shower that didn’t seem to be of my own making. Instead of signposting me to therapy or recommending medication the practitioner referred me to a chaplain.

Now the chaplain I met in a local coffee shop was an evangelical Christian who’d been the leader of the type of church that I regarded as happy-clappy. In my teens and early twenties I’d had a pretty bad experience with the type of fundamental Christianity that I believed that he represented. I was understandably wary. Thankfully this guy’s remit wasn’t to initiate me into his own clan. Instead he supported me with my own goal. I wanted to find my own spiritual tribe. With his encouragement, I’ve done so.

I’m now a member of the worldwide community that study ‘A Course in Miracles‘, a program that seeks to undo the idea of separation and promote inner peace. While some see this as a work of Christian mysticism I don’t view myself as a follower of Christianity or indeed any religion. Rather I’m picking and choosing my own individual path. There’s actually a name for this bits and piece type approach. It’s called syncretism. I like to keep unusual words alive. So I entered it as my religion on the last National Census form. I bet someone had to get a dictionary out to find out what that was!

The Twelve Practices: An Overview

Sometimes we use the words spirituality and religion interchangeably. However they have different meanings. Even people who don’t believe in the existence of a God or higher power can have a rich spiritual life. Go and have a look at what Wikipedia says about it!

I’ve been thinking about how a fulfilled spiritual life might be made up of practices that fall into distinct categories. Here’s my fledging idea of what these may be. I haven’t gone into too much detail . It’s merely an overview that I might expand on sometime in the future. It’s as much for me to ponder on as anyone else.

The Practice of Presence

Some method of being able to connect with the present moment was the first thing that sprung to mind. Hence it’s at the top of my list. Of course you will have heard of mindfulness but it’s not a ‘one glove fits all’ approach. Many of the major religions have their own approach but it doesn’t have to be a faith practice either. Here’s a link to one person’s experience of secular meditation.

Inquiry

Study in order to develop your own version of spirituality seems integral to the plan. I read from ‘A Course in Miracles’ pretty much every day. Then there are the YouTube videos that I watch and online courses that I take. In the main these are free although some are by donation.

As I mentioned above my lines of spiritual inquiry are diverse and i don’t restrict myself a narrow perspective. On my future reading list I have both the Bible and the Quran. There’s so much we can learn from each other.

Dialogue with an Inner Voice

Even if are an atheist can I convince you that you have two inner voices? There’s one that does all the moaning and groaning. Then there’s a calmer one that watches all the palaver going on. I see that one as having a link to a Higher Power but you don’t have to. The point is that the better you get at observing and integrating your inner voices the easier it seems to be to come to a state of harmony and peace.

Loving Actions

Gifting yourself and your possessions is arguably the most important practice. As I was writing this the very well known passage about love from the Bible, 1 Corinthians 13, came to mind, It beautifully sums up what I’d like to say here.

Serving with love has been an important part of my life while I’ve been intensively caring for my parents. Now I have a little routine of spiritual practices that take up the early hours. That’s sometimes gone awry when Mum and Dad awake early and there’s a crisis to avert. Meditation, reading and reflection go out of the window at these times. It seems right and proper that service overrides these.

Atonement (Letting Go)

Traditionally people from the Judeo-Christian tradition would see this as asking for forgiveness for things that we have done wrong. Of course those Catholic confessionals come to mind. There’s also the sometimes hard task of ‘forgiving those who have sinned against us’.

Personally I see the value of using release techniques to detach myself from guilt and anger. ‘A Course in Miracles’ is big on the practice of atonement. I also find the Ho’oponono technique valuable in its simplicity.

I’ve been musing over how this idea can be viewed from a much wider spiritual perspective. How could the idea of atonement be embraced by those who belief systems don’t include a higher being. My ideas about this topic are in a early stage. My navel needs to be looked at for much longer! But I wonder if, for some, incorporating changed thinking that comes about from counselling and therapy fits here.

Body Work

For most people yoga is the first thing that comes to mind when they think about physical activity in a spiritual sense. However this type of practice is not the only way of moving that allows energy to flow, stills the mind and reconnect us with meaning. Other spiritual traditions incorporate movement into their practice. I’ve used a picture of the wonderful Whirling Dervishes from the Islamic faith as an example.

A spiritual dimension can be brought into common and garden exercise too. Walking and dance come immediately to mind for me. However on reflection it seems that spirituality can be a feature of most sporting activities. I found this beautiful article on the Living Water website that explores this idea further.

Let’s not forget that leading a healthy lifestyle can be a spiritual practice too. It’s all about maintaining a body in its best possible shape so it’s an effective tool in service to ourselves, others and the planet.

Gratitude

For me practising gratitude falls into two main categories: private and public expressions. The private aspect involves setting aside time to acknowledge the things that I appreciate in life. My gratitude journal fulfils this role. Each morning I write down ten things that I’m thankful for from the preceding day. This practice is especially valuable during challenging times. The search for goodness amidst the turmoil is deeply fulfilling.

The public aspect revolves around openly expressing gratitude to others for the positive impact that they’ve had on your life. These expressions can be small gestures like a smile of appreciation when someone holds the door open or gives up their seat on a train. At the other end of the scale expressions of gratitude can be overwhelmingly generous gifts of material possessions or expanses of time.

For a deeper dive into this topic, I highly recommend reading this insightful and thorough article on the Mindful website. I offer my sincere thanks to the author of this exceptional piece!

Simplicity

I’ve popped this heading under gratitude as the two topics seem to go hand in hand The idea of being content with a reduced portfolio of possessions seems to come into the spiritual realm. A quick Google search suggest others seem to agree. I was quite taken by Decluttering and Disposal as Sacred Acts by Anna Havron. Before I read this article I’d forgotten that the ideas of Marie Kondo, the ultimate guru in this field, were derived from her Shinto perspective of objects having life energy themselves.

Material simplicity is completely in vogue as the moment. Most who practice it acknowledge the sense of freedom that decluttering brings . Yes I’m a bit of an advocate in spite of the Mad Walls! Year by year I definitely let go of many more of my possessions than the new objects that are brought into our home.

But simplifying life isn’t merely about getting rid of physical possession. There are far more aspects to this. Examples of spiritual practices that fall under this heading include mental and emotional decluttering and simplifying routines.

Connection

Although some on a spiritual path value solitude so much that they become hermits, most of us would benefit support on their spiritual journey. So it is good to find a like minded group of people to fulfil this role.

This is so easy to do now. even if you aren’t in an area where there are physical groups. As long as there’s Internet signal you can find your particular tribe. What’s been particularly lovely is that through the media of online communities I’ve been able to find fellow students who are geographically close to me.

Connection too isn’t just about our interaction with other human beings. Practices that bring us closer to nature might also be considered under this heading.

Creativity

We are all creative beings. Now some would baulk at that idea. ‘But Lovely Grey I can’t draw for toffee!’ I can hear that cry from out there somewhere. But creativity isn’t just about making art, music or writing.

We ‘create’ on a day to day basis as we go about our lives. When I get up and do my exercises, for instance, I’m having an effect, albeit small, on my physical body. If I tidy the kitchen I’m creating a space that fosters a sense of calm and allows me to prepare food, another creative activity, in an ordered way.

If I look around my home everything that I see has been created by myself or another human being. Wow! That book has been put together in a way that its pages don’t fall out when I read it. My frying pan has been perfectly engineered so food heats evenly and doesn’t stick. Are you getting the idea?

It seems that spirituality and creativity are inextricable from each other. As we focus on a spiritual pathway the quality of our creation intensifies. Conversely if we are intentional about our creative life this leads us to a deeper connection with our spiritual nature.

Discipline

I popped this one in as an afterthought but it might be important. I am wondering whether a feature of a spiritual life is a degree of commitment and consistency. Jay Shetty’s book Think Like a Monk expands on this idea.

Pilgrimage

Finally a practice that seems great fun. My picture is taken on one of the Caminos de Santiago, the walking, cycling and riding routes to the beautiful cathedral at Santiago de Compostela which have scallop shell markers. The trails seem to crop up everywhere we go on our Spanish travels One day I’d like to walk one of them as a pilgrim. Paul, my partner, isn’t so keen so he could come as my backup crew so I could sleep in our motorhome every night.

Pilgrimage to sacred spots seems to be a feature of many faiths. Here’s a little list of places that pilgrims visit around the world. The Muslim’s obligatory trip to Mecca was the first thing that sprung to mind.

The act of pilgrimage doesn’t preclude those without a distinct religion or conventional spiritual path. This certainly applies to many who walk the Caminos. It seems to be a term that can be applied to any special journey to a place that has significant meaning for the person. Examples could include a trip to visit the grave of an ancestor or of someone highly inspirational. A building, monument or natural wonder could have special meaning and therefore warrant this type of quest. Heck it could even be a sports stadium.

I wonder if special effort has to be made to reach your sacred spot. That’s why all the pilgrims on the Camino I’ve seen are heading to Santiago under their own steam and not in their cars. After all according to that well worn hackneyed phrase that I love: ‘It’s not the destination but the journey.’

Final Thoughts

So am I barking up the right tree here? Have I cinched the idea of what makes up a spiritual life? Are some of the things that I’ve thought of unnecessary or have I missed something out? I’d love to hear from anyone who has thoughts on this.

Disclaimer

This post contains links to companies and organisations just because I’m happy with the products or services that they supply or I’m spreading the word about what they do. There may also be affiliate links to Amazon for books and other items that I am personally recommending. If you decide to make a purchase from them, I might get a little bit of commission at no cost to you.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *