llap Posted August 11, 2016 Share Posted August 11, 2016 I disagree. I can explain complex spiritual concepts to laymen and refine the explanation according to the person. I have read a medical book on the back and a lot of it is "meaningless" to me too. Idiots may not share it on FB but.....uh, can you remind me again why idiots sharing something on FB makes it invalid? I can think of many "idiots on FB" who post medical advice or seek money for medical advice. Perhaps I should go to a medical school? Of maybe I'm smart enough to know there are idiots out there who post crap and distinguish them from genuine things. Double standards, ya know... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrighty Posted August 11, 2016 Share Posted August 11, 2016 Explain 'yearn for a connectedness to the universe' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
llap Posted August 11, 2016 Share Posted August 11, 2016 Explain 'yearn for a connectedness to the universe' Beholding a sense of one's part in the universe; a profound re-assessment of one's life and priorities; becoming truly aware of how fragile and precious life (both individual and global) is on this "pale blue dot". The intense feeling of being connected with past generations and wanting to preserve our planet for our posterity. Basically, humility and a sense of responsibility that comes with being a self-conscious lifeform on the only planet we know is capable of harbouring life as we know it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dilligaf Posted August 11, 2016 Share Posted August 11, 2016 Explain 'yearn for a connectedness to the universe' Beholding a sense of one's part in the universe; a profound re-assessment of one's life and priorities; becoming truly aware of how fragile and precious life (both individual and global) is on this "pale blue dot". The intense feeling of being connected with past generations and wanting to preserve our planet for our posterity. Basically, humility and a sense of responsibility that comes with being a self-conscious lifeform on the only planet we know is capable of harbouring life as we know it. So you can't explain it then, eh? 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La_Dolce_Vita Posted August 12, 2016 Share Posted August 12, 2016 This web link provides some definitions of "spirituality", as it's one of those words that means many things to different people. When I say spirituality, I'm talking about what they've listed. http://nccc.georgetown.edu/body_mind_spirit/definitions_spirituality_religion.html You don't have to believe in God, religion or supernaturalism to be be "spiritual". An Atheist can be spiritual while a Theist religious nutter could be the least spiritual person if they're just blindly following dogmas.That's the problem. When people talk of spirituality nobody really knows what they mean. I usually understand people perfectly well when they talk of spirituality. Maybe you're just thick? How can you know what they really mean when there are so many differing definitions? I assume that you can only assume you know what they are talking about and that you don't really know. Maybe you just assume they mean the same thing as you do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La_Dolce_Vita Posted August 12, 2016 Share Posted August 12, 2016 Explain 'yearn for a connectedness to the universe' Beholding a sense of one's part in the universe; a profound re-assessment of one's life and priorities; becoming truly aware of how fragile and precious life (both individual and global) is on this "pale blue dot". The intense feeling of being connected with past generations and wanting to preserve our planet for our posterity. Basically, humility and a sense of responsibility that comes with being a self-conscious lifeform on the only planet we know is capable of harbouring life as we know it. That's much more specific definition of spirituality than the definitions you gave before. When someone mentions spirituality, I think it would do you good to explain what you understand by the meaning and ask them what they mean too. Just helpful advice. Otherwise, you could just get confused. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
llap Posted August 13, 2016 Share Posted August 13, 2016 LDV, you're making an argument from ignorance. Just because you personally become confused by spirituality and can't make sense of it doesn't mean it doesn't exist or that it should be dismissed as nonsense. There's a reason religion and spirituality are listed separately in the dictionary: they don't mean the same thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quilp Posted August 13, 2016 Share Posted August 13, 2016 Is spirituality acknowledgment of a 'soul'? Is it a romantic and simplistic way of describing any extra-ordinary, 'Eureka' moments that occur along life's path? For some, spirituality is a way of life, a substantiation of the true reason for human existence. For others it is just a moment, albeit one that can change lives. Whatever 'spirituality' is, it is a truly personal, existential experience that is wholly subjective. There is no common form. This may be what LDV is alluding to. It's all brain-chem cocktails and imagination, really. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisenchuk Posted August 13, 2016 Share Posted August 13, 2016 Whatever 'spirituality' is, it is a truly personal, existential experience that is wholly subjective. There is no common form.It's all brain-chem cocktails and imagination, really. To add: and it's no bugger else's business what I or anyone else is experiencing along those lines at any time,though many seem to think we all need some divine interference on the subject. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dilligaf Posted August 13, 2016 Share Posted August 13, 2016 Whatever 'spirituality' is, it is a truly personal, existential experience that is wholly subjective. There is no common form. It's all brain-chem cocktails and imagination, really. To add: and it's no bugger else's business what I or anyone else is experiencing along those lines at any time,though many seem to think we all need some divine interference on the subject. I thought they were trying to stop that sort of thing ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
llap Posted August 13, 2016 Share Posted August 13, 2016 Is spirituality acknowledgment of a 'soul'? Is it a romantic and simplistic way of describing any extra-ordinary, 'Eureka' moments that occur along life's path? For some, spirituality is a way of life, a substantiation of the true reason for human existence. For others it is just a moment, albeit one that can change lives. Whatever 'spirituality' is, it is a truly personal, existential experience that is wholly subjective. There is no common form. This may be what LDV is alluding to. It's all brain-chem cocktails and imagination, really. That's just it, spirituality is a personal thing. It's not that it doesn't mean something specific, it's just that it's a term that can include a lot of things, because everyone is different and so yes it's subjective. Religion, on the other hand, is a collective institutional thing and it purports to be objective and universally applied. Is it really all down to brain chemicals, or could they just be a medium by which we experience and perceive? I mean, even our experience of the "real world" comes to us through our senses which can be influenced by and can produce chemicals. Everything outside of us that we see and hear is coming to us via our brain. Spirituality could be defined as the way we perceive things, our general outlook on life and the world around us. That's why I consider art, music and literature to be spiritual, because it's a creative expression of our humanity. Spirituality could be defined as the reverse: a creative introspection into our own humanity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisenchuk Posted August 13, 2016 Share Posted August 13, 2016 Problem with your thesis being that not all brains perceive and process input in the same manner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
llap Posted August 13, 2016 Share Posted August 13, 2016 That's not a problem with my thesis. I mentioned it several times. Spirituality is a personal thing, so everyone's perception and input is going to be unique. Art, literature and music would be rather dull if it was any other way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisenchuk Posted August 13, 2016 Share Posted August 13, 2016 Amen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La_Dolce_Vita Posted August 14, 2016 Share Posted August 14, 2016 (edited) LDV, you're making an argument from ignorance. Just because you personally become confused by spirituality and can't make sense of it doesn't mean it doesn't exist or that it should be dismissed as nonsense. There's a reason religion and spirituality are listed separately in the dictionary: they don't mean the same thing. Argument from ignorance? Misuse of the term. I think you misunderstand. What I am saying really getting at is that the term spirituality is bandied around to mean so many things that it really deserves definition by anyone using it to avoid confusion. It is especially deserved when it is already known that so many people have bullshit ideas and have never bothered to take an interest in the truth, such as the non-specific idea of believing that 'something is out there'. When people are so apt to believe all sorts of nonsense it is better to get the specifics and see whether the person knows what they are talking about or not. For instance, if someone said that they mean spirituality to be a desire or strong feeling of connectedness with other people and the world, I can them go on from there and listen to what they want to say. If anything they say has mention of soul, spiritual forces, energies etc. then we can't yet put the bullshit detector away and have to ask more questions on what they mean by these things. Edited August 14, 2016 by La_Dolce_Vita Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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