The Ramban and I are homies...

"I'm not so religious, I'm more spiritual."

This phrase has always bothered me. I understand why people say it and it makes sense to search for something that is spiritual in such a materially saturated world...but it's not neccessarily grounded. Then again, being 'religious' isn't neccessarily grounded either.

We often have moments when we feel spiritual. They are real moments, deep, intrinsic and hopefully full of clarity.
We don't want to let them go, we could stay in that moment forever and not miss anything. Because we feel connected and fullfilled.
That moment of truth, of holistic purity inevitably passes. Why? If spirituality is what makes the world goes around, why can't we just be spiritual all day?

I learned a wonderful definition from a friend about spirituality.
Spirituality=knowing through experiences and actions.
We acquire and understand it because it is a knowing, not a thought. We feel it to be true, therefore there is no argument about whatever the spiritual experience is.
When we stand in nature, no one has to prove to us that the wind is blowing, the trees are green and the scene is beautiful.
You know that it is because your senses feel it, your eyes see it and your being is uplifted.
This could happen for any situation, a conversation with a good friend, a great meal, a meaningful and productive day, tears being shed in a moment of depth, looking at a great piece of art....depends on the person and what they find to be meaningful.

Why do we want spirituality? Do we want to float all day? Do we want to feel connected? How do we get there?
I think the reason why we have a sense of this urning is because we want to create hoiness...we want to uplift that which is around us.
So why is this something we have to work for? Why isn't it so obvious and easy to attain?

Because that which is holy is hidden. And it is up to us to move towards it, work for it and acquire it.
This example became most evident to me when I thought about my experience as a child in Hebrew School. I hated going to synagogue on Friday nights. Since I didnt live in a predominantly Jewish community, most of my friends were going out and being social. But I was stuck listening to the cantor. And I didn't understand why I had to sit there-couldn't we just have our services on Sundays just like the rest of society??Even Saturday night would be better!!
(If someone would have told me in that moment that I would one day be keeping shabbat, I would have laughed in their faces.)
Today, it's still that way...I am walking to shul on Friday night and the rest of the world is out having drinks and dinners at fun restaurants with friends. I could do that if I wanted to....but Shabbat never lets me down. Why go out?
Shabbat is a great example of that which is holy, but hidden. We have to be the ones who see it and work towards it. And when we do, we actually acquire it for our own, therefore, creating a spirituality that is our own, private, consistent and truly filled with wisdom according to our individual experiences. It's amazing....
Love is another example...sometimes it's hard to give love. Or maybe a person isn't so loving. but how can they acquire the spirituality to feel and be a more loving person? By doing acts of love, even if it isn't easy. When we will to do, in time we understand. We truly can exercise our spiritual and emotional muscles and become a deeper person through doing.

So maybe the statement isn't, I'm being spiritual. Maybe it's really, I'm doing spiritual.
And then is this really a question of religious or spiritual?
Then isn't it a question of what we are actually doing with our time to acquire and reveal sparks of holiness in the world?
Food for thought...spiritual food. :)