Often spirituality is mistaken to be religiousness and vice-versa …but they are two different aspects of the human experience even though spirituality can be called the ” mystical face ” of religion. What is spirituality and how does it differ from religiousness?
Spirituality can be called the ultimate reality,an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of their being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.”It is more of your personal search, to finding greater meaning and purpose in your existence. Some elements of spirituality include – Looking beyond outer appearances to the deeper significance and soul of everything,Love and respect for God, Love and respect for yourself, Love and respect for everybody. Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop an individual’s inner life; such practices often lead to an experience of connectedness with a larger reality, yielding a more comprehensive understanding of the self; relationship with other individuals or the human community; relationship with nature or the cosmos; or even with God .
“Religion is most often used to describe an organized group or culture that has generally been sparked by the fire of a spiritual or divine soul. Religions usually act with a mission and intention of presenting specific teachings and doctrines while nurturing and propagating a particular way of life.”Religion is a philosophy , a way of life, a belief system that has been followed for centuries . ”
Religions are so many…each one following different methods .”Different religions can look quite unlike one another. Some participants bow to colorful statues of deities, others listen to inspired sermons while dressed in their Sunday finery, and yet others set out their prayer rugs five times a day to bow their heads to the ground. Regardless of these different outer manifestations of worship, the kernel of religion is spirituality, and the essence of spirituality is God or the Supreme Being”
Spirituality is: Beyond all religions yet containing all religions… Beyond all science yet containing all science …. Beyond all philosophy yet containing all philosophy.Spirituality to a large extent goes even beyond religion. When one seeks and finds spirituality all anger , and animalistic aggressions like fighting, jealousy, trying to control the beliefs of other people are all cast aside very easily and the person starts to believe that every image of divinity , even though called different is just another face of their own …the eternal ever present God. That stems from spirituality.
Loving and respecting every religion doesn’t mean you have given up on your own 
You may not agree to every thing that is a part of another faith , for that matter you may not agree to all the doctrines of the religion you follow either .This goes for any teachings you may encounter along your path. Everybody thinks that what they are doing is right. That’s what’s so fun about the world. Everybody is doing something different, and each one believes deep in his soul that what he believes is right — some with more contemplation and conviction than others.
I believe that religiousness n spirituality should go hand in hand . Being spiritual ,while giving you a deeper understanding of yourself will also help in understanding the religion you follow and also a deeper understanding of the other faiths followed. It develops within you a sense of calm and acceptance that helps maintain not just inner peace but also a peace in the world you live in. I just wish more people believed in becoming spiritual then maybe the world would be free from the religion based squabbles n differences we face in our lives .
January 9th, 2011 at 2:31 am
Very well written and explained Di. I've always felt that it's important for people to understand the difference between being religious and being spiritual. Even though they go hand-in-hand, most people don't realize it. I'm believer of respecting every religion because no religion that one follows teaches us to hate another. If you can't respect other religions then you can't respect your own religion. Simple as that. It's easy to read a Holy book but if you don't understand the meaning of what you've read..then what's the point? It's important to understand the meaning because that's the only we'll really and truly understand our faith and this world. It's the only way to not let fundamentalist brainwash you into believing something that isn't true.