The meaning of spirituality has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which “aims to recover the original shape of man”, oriented at “the image of God” as exemplified by the founders and sacred texts of the religions of the world. The term was used within early Christianity to refer to a life oriented toward the Holy Spirit and broadened during the Late Middle Ages to include mental aspects of life.
In modern times, the term both spread to other religious traditions and broadened to refer to a wider range of experiences, including a range of esoteric and religious traditions. Modern usages tend to refer to a subjective experience of a sacred dimension and the “deepest values and meanings by which people live”, often in a context separate from organized religious institutions. This may involve belief in a supernatural realm beyond the ordinarily observable world, personal growth, a quest for an ultimate or sacred meaning, religious experience, or an encounter with one’s own “inner dimension”.
There are three principles that we emphasize:
- These human values do not need to be taught or learned rather than they must be evoked or unveiled, sometimes by unlearning the ways we keep them hidden.
- These human values represent humanity at its fullest.
- These human values can be understood from three perspectives which are their cross-cultural expressions, their spiritual essence, and their expressions.
The 5 most common spiritual values
Harmony
Life is generally full of contradictions, conflicts and disagreements. The spirit is a unity that must be based on harmony. In this way, by expressing and keeping our lives in harmony, we are working hard to reach a state of Spiritual awareness.
When this state of harmony is reached, the spirit opens itself to unexpected opportunities, there is a process of expansion of consciousness outside the physical plane and the human being experiences a permanent state of joy, having the ability to discover its reality in another way And acquire superior knowledge.
Harmony allows human beings to crave wellness for everything around them. It is a state of peace and fulfillment that allows the soul to move towards happiness.
An example of harmony can be seen when an individual is dedicated to doing what makes him happy and in turn, seeks to make other people happy.
Truth
Truth is the ultimate expression of divinity. Truth is essentially reality. To have true thoughts, both words and actions must be aligned with the rest of our lives in a coherent way, only then can we reach a greater state of consciousness.
Being honest is not just talking to the truth, it is being completely transparent with our attitudes and attitudes towards life.
In this way, it is said that all circumstances are lived inflexibly true, allowing the soul to rise above the plane of human consciousness, reaching spiritual height.
To live according to the spiritual value of truth is to live consistently. For example, if we fervently believe in something, we act according to our beliefs and not in a contradictory way.
Charity
Spiritual progress means going beyond the limits of the ego. The ego only cares about your well-being and pleasure. To genuinely change the direction of our lives, we must change from ego to spirit.
Many times, it is normal to see that in practice, one individual helps another expecting something in return. These actions are not charitable and seek love, material goods or favors in consideration.
Charity means that we do not feel superior or give others what they need to feel better about our lives. Charity brings with it genuine and deep joy to do good to other people, without being very aware of what is given.
This spiritual value is understood as compassion for a person alien to our reality. He tries to feel the pain of the other as if it were his own, to seek a remedy for this pain without expecting anything in return.
Fe
Faith is often regarded as a faculty and not as a value. However, the mind can accept the idea of faith and turn it into a dynamic principle of life. Faith is described as the knowledge of the soul that the mind does not yet master.
Everything we do in life requires having faith in something, in our capacities, in technology, in the law, in the honesty and values of other people, among others.
Often our faith is limited by our past experiences and our willingness to trust others.
In order for faith to be part of a person’s spiritual values, we must first change the orientation of our confidence from ourselves, other people, money, or any material element, to our spirit. When you trust in the spirit, you understand life from a higher reality.
Faith is the blunt affirmation that there is a higher divinity willing to contribute to our personal development and well-being.
For this reason, the value of faith helps the human being to mitigate his worries, not to lose hope and face life without fear.
Hope
Hope is a spiritual value that plays a fundamental role in Religions Like the Catholic and Christian.
At the spiritual level, this value is based on the belief that the spirit of human beings is not an ephemeral element, but transcends a supernatural plane after death.
Out of the Christian religion, hope is more than a spiritual value and is also understood as a personal value that gives human beings the possibility of living life with optimism, directing energy to the fulfillment of goals.
It is an engine that allows us to open and build roads that lead us to what we long for. It is the possibility to dream and operate as a motor of life.