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Spirituality versus Religion

pirituality vs. religion... Is it six in one hand, half a dozen in the other? What's the difference?

I coined a saying decades ago: "Religion is for people who don't want to go to hell. Spirituality is for people who have already been there and don't want to go back."

What do you think?

Do you think a person who doesn't follow a religion is wrong? Are all forms of religions good?

Do you think a person who isn't into spirituality is somehow doomed? Are all forms fo spirituality good?

Do you think there's a difference?
 

Unfathomable Tao

Student of the Way
I wouldn't personally know what spirituality is, unless a spirit were defined to me. What definition of spirituality? There's a few.
 

jeager106

Learning more about Jehovah.
Premium Member
  • Spirituality is born in a person and develops in the person. It may be kick started by a religion, or it may be kick started by a revelation. Spirituality extends to all facets of a person’s life. Spirituality is chosen while religion is often times forced. Being spiritual to me is more important and better than being religious.


  • True spirituality is something that is found deep within oneself. It is your way of loving, accepting and relating to the world and people around you. It cannot be found in a church or by believing in a certain way.
This is something I found on the net.
This definition works well enough for me.
I doubt spirituality can be taught. It must be felt and developed by the individual.
Any religion can be taught to anyone.
I don't like religions much at all.
Religion is responsible for millions and millions of deaths world wide over thousands
of years.
"We are right". "We Are Right". W.A.R. WAR!
Oh! Get that?^^^
Florida debacle anyone? Murder in the name of Islam?
Blow up abortion clinics and kill doctors in the name of Jesus?
Pass around a basket of deadly rattlesnakes to "prove" faith in a god?
If bitten refuse medical help to "prove" some false "god" will save you?
(stupid what?)
How about isolating your children from b-days, holidays, sports, the internet, college education, military, because your interpretation of the Bible says these things are SINS.
How 'bout a religion that boots your arse out because you may have gotten drunk
at a function?
How 'bout a religion that says "let your kids DIE by refusing a blood transfusion or some

other "forbidden" medical procedure?
Or boots your arse out because you elected to go to the military when drafted
instead of prison? Never mind the drafted man served with distinction with medals
to show for it. (yeah he's a friend of mine)


Yeah. I LOVE religion.
 
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BSM1

What? Me worry?
pirituality vs. religion... Is it six in one hand, half a dozen in the other? What's the difference?

I coined a saying decades ago: "Religion is for people who don't want to go to hell. Spirituality is for people who have already been there and don't want to go back."

What do you think?

Do you think a person who doesn't follow a religion is wrong? Are all forms of religions good?

Do you think a person who isn't into spirituality is somehow doomed? Are all forms fo spirituality good?

Do you think there's a difference?

It seems religion is more group-think whereas spirituality is a personal awakening. Most religious people that I have met were not spiritual (no matter how many tongues they spoke) and most spiritual people I've run across were not religious.
 

Quintessence

Consults with Trees
Staff member
Premium Member
In my experience, "spirituality" is what some people call their religion when they (1) have negative associations with the word religion and therefore don't want to be associated with it, and/or (2) have a limited understanding of what religion is that centers around Abrahamic models and therefore fails to recognize that all this "spiritual" stuff they are doing is still religious.

But I'll admit that the word "spiritual" tends to strike me as nonsense gobbledygook whenever it comes up in conversation, in part because I'm a non-dualist, so in my worldview there is no "spirit vs matter" thing going on anyway. XD
 

Jayhawker Soule

-- untitled --
Premium Member
pirituality vs. religion... Is it six in one hand, half a dozen in the other? What's the difference?

I coined a saying decades ago: "Religion is for people who don't want to go to hell. Spirituality is for people who have already been there and don't want to go back."

What do you think?
I think it shows baseless contempt for the religious.
 

GoodbyeDave

Well-Known Member
I think Quintessence has the right idea. I've always has a difficulty with those who make this distinction and I've come to realise that it's because I speak English and they speak American! A lot of people in the USA probably associate "religion" with evangelical Christianity, which seems to be the only game in town in some areas, while on this side of the pond it's rather rare.
 

Windwalker

Veteran Member
Premium Member
But I'll admit that the word "spiritual" tends to strike me as nonsense gobbledygook whenever it comes up in conversation
I don't avoid what are good words because a lot a people simply don't apply them correctly. I'm an advocate of supplying better uses of the words to the point where the "gobbledgook" meanings are no longer considered viable. I believe in reclaiming the language through using words in fuller and richer contexts.

in part because I'm a non-dualist, so in my worldview there is no "spirit vs matter" thing going on anyway. XD
I too am a nonduallist, and I don't see the term spirituality as having anything to do with a dichotomy between spirit and matter. In reality, spirituality encompasses the whole person in all aspects of life. For it to be compartmentalized as something "over there and not here", should be a different word. Focusing on the inner person, interior work, etc, is specific like exercising your muscles by jogging is. Spirituality covers all bases, body, mind, soul, spirit.

As a quick footnote, actually nonduality can and does embrace duality as well. It doesn't exclude it. If it does, if it excludes duality, then it itself is simply a subtle form of duality, "This, and not that". Monism for instance is not nonduality. It says everything is all one substance, making everything One by elimination of differences. Nonduality embraces differences and oneness, One and Many. Not one, not two. Neither and both; neither both and neither neither.
 
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Quintessence

Consults with Trees
Staff member
Premium Member
I don't avoid what are good words because a lot a people simply don't apply them correctly. I'm an advocate of supplying better uses of the words to the point where the "gobbledgook" meanings are no longer considered viable. I believe in reclaiming the language through using words in fuller and richer contexts.

Sure. I have no idea how to meaningfully reclaim that word. Therefore, I don't bother, and I'm not particularly interested in trying. Because of what the word "spirit" means to me, terms like "spirituality" and "spiritual" are nonsense terms. "Spirituality" ends up translating to "the state of being being" and "spiritual" ends up translating to "of the kind of kind." Yay, useless? Not interested in warping how I understand the word "spirit" for terms like "spirituality" and "spiritual" to become useful.
 

Orbit

I'm a planet
pirituality vs. religion... Is it six in one hand, half a dozen in the other? What's the difference?

I coined a saying decades ago: "Religion is for people who don't want to go to hell. Spirituality is for people who have already been there and don't want to go back."

What do you think?

Do you think a person who doesn't follow a religion is wrong? Are all forms of religions good?

Do you think a person who isn't into spirituality is somehow doomed? Are all forms fo spirituality good?

Do you think there's a difference?
To me, "religion" refers to an affiliation with a tradition or religious organization. Hopefully spirituality happens there. But spirituality can happen anywhere, including outside of religion, because it is a basic human experience.
 

LuisDantas

Aura of atheification
Premium Member
Both words are understood in wildly different ways, so a proper context would need to be established before a meaningful answer can be offered.
 

Windwalker

Veteran Member
Premium Member
Sure. I have no idea how to meaningfully reclaim that word.
Are you being sarcastic? My talking about me trying to reclaim the word, which I see as perfectly valid, is because of what you said in that how when you hear people talk about it, "But I'll admit that the word "spiritual" tends to strike me as nonsense gobbledygook whenever it comes up in conversation". Does it sound like gobbledygook to you when I use it?

Therefore, I don't bother, and I'm not particularly interested in trying.
No one is asking you to.

Because of what the word "spirit" means to me, terms like "spirituality" and "spiritual" are nonsense terms.
Again, when I speak of spirituality and spirit, or God for that matter, do I sound like I'm saying what you believe you hear others saying? Does it sound to you like I believe in disembodied spirits, spirit beings, and so forth?

"Spirituality" ends up translating to "the state of being being" and "spiritual" ends up translating to "of the kind of kind." Yay, useless?
I've never heard these descriptions.

Not interested in warping how I understand the word "spirit" for terms like "spirituality" and "spiritual" to become useful.
So how do you understand the term spirit?
 

jeager106

Learning more about Jehovah.
Premium Member
It seems religion is more group-think whereas spirituality is a personal awakening. Most religious people that I have met were not spiritual (no matter how many tongues they spoke) and most spiritual people I've run across were not religious.

SPIRITUAL AWAKENING

A.A. Step 12

  • "Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics and to practice these principles in all our affairs."

    Tell me please. Does anyone know of any other group of people that share a
    common FATAL disease (disorder for those that can swallow the disease concept)
    and WORK DAILY to improve conscious contact with "god" as we understand Him"?
    I take a DAILY inventory of MY conduct and if I'm wrong and treated someone
    less than respectfully I'm compelled to make amends lest I get spiritually ill.
    Get that?
    Do church goers do this? Doubtful, perhaps some, but not most.
    After all church Christians pay a preacher to eat spiritual food for them.
    Whoooooooooooo-boy!
    "here. eat my food so I'll feel good." HA!
 

jeager106

Learning more about Jehovah.
Premium Member
I've been in rehab with heroin addicts, and dealers, coke whores, thieves, all
manner of low life people that turn the corner and became fine people, fathers, mother,
brothers, sisters, ALL because they relied on a Power greater than them and stopped
addictive behavior.
Sadly I've know a few that got sober and became sober jackasses.:eek::eek:
 

VioletVortex

Well-Known Member
Spirituality is the belief that there is existence that isn't material. Religion is mass worship. I am not religious, I consider Theistic Satanism to be a spiritual philosophy.
 

Quintessence

Consults with Trees
Staff member
Premium Member
Are you being sarcastic? My talking about me trying to reclaim the word, which I see as perfectly valid, is because of what you said in that how when you hear people talk about it, "But I'll admit that the word "spiritual" tends to strike me as nonsense gobbledygook whenever it comes up in conversation". Does it sound like gobbledygook to you when I use it?

Nope, not being sarcastic at all. I get the sense that maybe you decided to take my response to your post personally? It wasn't intended as such. I don't think we need to make this any sort of criticism about how you, personally, use what words you use in whatever way you use them. If you've been able to reclaim it, great. I don't see that happening for me. That's really all I was saying there.

There are other reasons I don't see it happening for me, and that's in part because I refuse to get on the "let's demonize religion" bandwagon. As far as I can tell, everything about this word "spiritual" is already covered under the auspices of religion. But as a culture, some people like to stick all the mean, evil, nasty, dislikable things on that word "religion" and then give "spiritual" a warm, fuzzy, free pass. No. I don't agree with that smear campaign, and I refuse to be a party to it. When I see things like "religion is for people who don't want to go to hell. Spirituality is for people who have already been there and don't want to go back," yeah... I will not play that game. Many religions don't have a hell.
 
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