A friend forwarded this to me from the Conversations with God folks.
Dalai Lama on a New Spirituality:
“I believe deeply that we must find, all of us together, a new spirituality. This new concept ought to be elaborated alongside the religions in such a way that all people of good will could adhere to it.
We need a new concept, a lay spirituality. We ought to promote this concept with the help of scientists. It could lead us to set up what we are all looking for — a secular morality.”
Dalai Lama
Spiritual Leader of Tibetan Buddhism
Quoted in “Violence and Compassion: Conversations with the Dalai Lama”
Hey, thanks for commenting on my blog.
I suspect that the spirituality/religion distinction has been overdrawn, particularly in the modern context where the two blur. I have just posted on it. In case you are interested, here is the link. http://deligentia.wordpress.com/2009/10/30/spirituality-and-religion-a-false-dichotomy/
There is a saying in spiritual circles:
“Religion is for people who fear hell.
Spirituality is for people who have been there.”
From my perspective, religion is spirituality that over time has become formalized and codified. As your post mentions, it dwells within religion. But it becomes possible to be religious without being spiritual.
To me, spirituality is the essence of religion and of who we are. It’s more important than the box or “domain” it plays in. A common feature of many paths is a falling away from the early teaching to find ones own journey. Sometimes, the person returns to the “faith” renewed. Sometimes, they forge a new process.
The terms are used and abused in other ways though. Many describe themselves as ‘spiritual’ to indicate they are NOT part of a formal religion, yet may be more dogmatic.
I would agree its a modern debate but what it illustrates more importantly is a rethinking of who we are.