7 Differences between Religion and Spirituality

This is not meant to be a judgement against those who are religious, my friends.

I know some religious people who are some of the best people you will ever meet (they just are not aware of spiritual truths).

I guess I would just like to point out that if you are looking for a true spiritual experience, organized religion is probably not the place to find it.

In the words of the man who is considered the #1 spiritual teacher in the world, spirituality is all about consciousness, and nothing do to with religion (said by Eckhart Tolle, and it may have been a bit of a paraphrase).

I have talked to some of my relatives about this topic at length, and they are always quoting this or that person, or the bible. Whereas I guess I gravitate to those teachings that resonate with me - I don't really care what others think. Having that philosophy, I was happy to see the Deepak Chopra quote at the top of this article:

Religion is belief in someone else's experience. Spirituality is having your own experience.

It was extremely interesting timing, as I had been reading some posts today by another member I respect, MamaJ, and she had been discussing a similar topic.

I personally think it is impossible to be religious and truly spiritual at the same time, for if you are truly spiritual and go to some form of organized worship, by the definition of "spiritual" you must reject its ideology and dogma (a principle or set of principles laid down by an authority as incontrovertibly true), maybe you are there for your spouse, kids, friends etc, but you are not truly religious. Again, I'm attempting to make an observation and not a judgement.

Here is the article:

7 Differences between Religion and Spirituality

a reply to: PlanetXisHERE

Is it possible that Religion is the will to give and Spirituality is the will to receive? What happens when either on becomes the will to take? I believe will is the defining element of both. Gods will is the will to give and receive. The thieves reveal themselves by the opposing marker of service to self over the will to give.

Its a very good article. Can't read it out to some family members, and that's not even the religious ones, because even some dogmatic, spiritually minded people still adamantly insist you're given over to evil if you don't believe exactly what they believe.

Evil to many isn't what you do, its what you believe. Some rationalize what they do, in the name of what they believe. Nothing to do with belief matters anywhere near as much as what a person does or stands for or intends.

I have my own search and finding on the universe and meaning for life, spiritual insights. But the process of being free, going within, and searching, finding answers is far more important than packaging something up and forcing others into it.

Yet all should be able share their views without arguments and condemnations erupting. Except on behaviors where some are civilized and some harm others.

a reply to: AlephBet

Religion is beast, its an outer falsehood that corrupts inner meanings and metaphors in the original documents and contorts them to cut people off from their own insight, and pineal, from their own awakening and ascension or progression. Beast equates the primitive body and outer material world. ie, the marbles materialistic scientists think the universe is made of despite all evidence to the contrary, that its all waves and your brain is the computer that deciphers the wave lengths and erects the picture in a dark brain. The real world is just as Icke said in his latest book, being born is like logging onto your computer body, and playing the universe program or planet program.

Now of course we don't all have to be on the same page as this, but the point is to do the search and ask to be woken up.

One of the best passages for that is in the scriptures, new testament, Matthew 13. I was able to decipher some of the metaphors myself, and was lead to certain works like Michael Tsarion and the Trees of Life. Genesis 32 30, in the first book of scripture as its compiled in the bible, we are told its all inner, your pineal. Thats where you meet your Source. And gain your guidance. Including gain greater access to the information and places you can access in the infinite multiverse.

But when I saw this whole passage about overcoming programs in the world, and waking up to use your talents and gifts to help others and grow them. And then the last passage where he tells us our eyes and ears have been dumbed so we cannot see, but if we prayed it would be healed.

Start there and ask your Source before you sleep to deprogram you from all your false beliefs and the world and to wake up, to see and understand, and to be able to help others, to nudge them to love and happiness and progression and higher Love homecoming.

And, that is what a lot more was given. Whole passages and their meanings were given to me, and different links to read, sites.

Its a spiritual journey. Not a box you go into and prey to entities and become a child in. Its about becoming, Love and Peace and Goodness and a true Child of God.

Again, my two cents, because anyone who is drawing the highest Good out of their beliefs is still seeking and striving to grow up more. Less ego and help more. I don't think a specific path is required. But questioning within is the start of the journey.

a reply to: Unity_99

Thanks for your response Unity_99, I always enjoy reading your posts.

Sorry to hear about your family, hope they are not close relatives. Luckily my evangelical relatives are not my immediate family......they are good people......but I feel sorry for them.

Have you had any luck activating your pineal? Have you tried iodine? How do you know if it is activated?

a reply to: Unity_99

You are confusing religion with dogma. Religion is service to others in need. The will to give and receive revolve around doing. Doing for and doing to are separated by the will of the individual. The will to take is that of the thief. Religion is not defined by the will to take, but by the will to give. False religion can be seen only when you examine the intent of the person practicing.

What you are describing is not religion. Spirituality seeks to receive from a giving God. There is also a false spirituality called Theurgy that seeks to take for self.

The real problem I have with some Christians is that they know the words from the book but have no experience and when you talk about experience and choose words that are other religions they get annoyed that it is not from their book and therefor it have to be satanic.

From my point of view the reason we use eastern philosophies to describe things is that the eastern philosophies have a better model of how the light energizes the body and increases awareness and vibrates thru the body and the different feelings people have in their bodies.

I wonder how this world would have been if all knew how the energized states felt like. I wanna be in a place like that where you can discuss it openly one on one.

a reply to: PlanetXisHERE

I see religion to be totally different to spirituality, and it only so happens that religions contain concepts dealing with the spirit. The point of religion is to practice it and follow it. Spirituality has nothing to do with religion, it just happens to deal with a topic that religion happens to deal with - the nature of life after death and the nature of the spirit. Science to a small degree also deals with these concepts and philosophy also deals with these concepts.

I disagree that spirituality and religion are polar opposites, they are totally different to each other and should not be compared in pairs of opposites. It looks like they are trying to promote spirituality by shunning religion.

There are many different "schools":

Religion - Practice
Spirituality - Experience
Science - Experiment
Philosophy - Explore

One should be well rounded.

Often we have principles that we follow, certain rights and wrongs that we practice in our day to day lives, we might not be doing it because Jesus had said so, however, we are religious in the way that we define what we "should do" and what we "should not" do. Often too we need to understand the worlds of conscious experience, and many do this when on recreational drugs or when practicing such things as meditation. Sometimes though, we need factual information we need to understand technology, and this is where science comes into the picture. Of course, we sometimes simply want to question and wonder about what "could be" and this is where philosophy comes into the picture.

a reply to: PlanetXisHERE

Religion™ is for folks afraid of Hell, 'Spirituality' is for folks that have already been... The Great Sioux Nation.

a reply to: PlanetXisHERE

The iodide crystals that I was trying may have detoxed me, but also increased my arthritis. But as for pineal, it is and always has been awake. There are doors we need to keep shut and lock even, not sure the veil is meant to be completely gone in the danger zone, as earth is, walking through the dark valley. But we're meant to rise above the reactions our body and world induce, and gain Mindfulness and Stand Still and choose wisely. This is a long term project for most. And also envision a better world and believe it, believe nothing else but the torch we hold and envision is from Goodness and nothing can overcome it. Yesterday was reading in David Icke's latest book. He gave the sequence for phi and it repeats to infinity. All creation comes from this code, the code in the Matrix. And my phone number leaped in, 6 numbers, 2 sets of 3 in a row. And when I added up all the numbers that weren't mine, they added to the missing one. To me, that synchronicity is rather large and probably a huge nudge in the direction of what we're meant to. While they continue to direct events towards bringing in a complete remaking of earth, destruction and polluting of our genes to diminish us into their drones, or depopulate and reform out of their seed banks, we're supposed to be the real designers/creators/co-creators ourselves. Good visions of Equality and Freedom and Progression, ie clean advanced technology, upgrades, happiness for all, need to be forefront in our minds, and everything we can do, be it meditating, envisioning, praying, posting, taking action steps that are positive.

But if you're just one of a few, and you don't mind writing to nudge others out of the box, but don't want to reel them in, instead delight in the diversity and freedom and empowerment of many. Then how does one paint the page up into a new and more positive creation. Is it just subjective, you change the world for you and your family, or a few of your family? Is it still only subjective?