We all worship something…

…be it your god, your job, or whatever you deem precious.
(I definitely worship my cats for instance 😬).

How might you consciously choose your sacred?

Take a 5 Minute Break…

INSIGHT ^{_{(what we need)}}

We are losing the practice of how to give up something of perceived value for something that might be more important.

I had a revelatory conversation with a friend the other night about the concept of “sacrifice.” We were essentially trying to define the word from our very different contexts: hers from a Western European Catholic-influenced lineage of severing one’s life for the sake of another person or cause; mine from an East Asian Buddhist-influenced notion of relinquishing the self as a devotional act. For the record, neither of these definitions is ‘correct’ — only dimensions of a concept that exists in all religious contexts as a way to “get beyond the self” — whether by forceful volition, undesired circumstance, or devotional love. 

She expressed a deep sense of loss from her perspective: one that would rob her life of a sacred quality that she protects fervently. I tussled with my sense that the loss involved was more of a relinquishing of ego or opportunity to devote oneself a new dimension of sacredness that extended beyond me. We then recognized the difference between sacrifice and devotion. We exchanged some examples of how we both sacrifice as women in a modern world, finding that balance of selfless devotion and self-preservation that is necessary to hold one’s integrity. We also acknowledged that neither of us are particularly religious, but very much in touch with our ‘spirits.’

What it revealed to me was the importance of the sacred inquiry itself. To have a deep relationship with our sense of wholeness and integrity as it also occasionally melts into otherness. That inquiry alone without some kind of devotional practice of something outside oneself (purposely leaving out the word “sacrifice” here as it’s loaded) falls short in the spiritual quest of ‘going beyond’. Being “spiritual” is henceforth not a practice of escaping life through increasingly beautiful moments of non-attachment, but nourishing it by addressing deep human needs for belonging, becoming, and going beyond our perceived preciousness.

Our sacredness is embodied. For anyone who has had an experience of ‘beyond,’ you know the deeply embodied transformation that occurs. Not at all a mental bliss out, there are real biological markers of a spiritual experience that literally change our chemistry. We heal. Period. The trouble with the psychologically-induced, often drug-related, ‘spiritual experience’ without an embodied coupling is its dissociative proneness. Without a period of devoted integration, where we mindfully pull the pieces of our selves back together more intentionally with that new chemistry, then it’s just a blissed out trip. The comeback is one that embodies a new way of being and belonging that we were missing from our fragmentation.

Spirituality has lost touch with some of its positive religious roots. With people’s distrust of institution in general, spiritual paths have transitioned out of their religious context and into an ‘industry’ of healing. The industry is rife with both con artists and well-intentioned healers alike whose profiteering focus has turned the industry into one of magical promises and quick wins. Rather than the slow meandering process of development that it is. Ironically, to secularize spirituality so that it’s appealing to a non-religious generation, we may need to revisit  those religious factors that have stood the test of time and sit above cultural beliefs. Since religious dogma and institution has left behind some traumatic residue, we need to zoom out and look at the principles behind what makes religion so effective in providing people with that quality of healing.

Universal dimensions of spirituality. The Department of Clinical Psychology at Columbia University did just that! They hypothesized that there are very real biological markers of the spiritual experience that are supportive towards one’s mental wellbeing. A 5000+ survey of participants across China, India and the United States allowed them to empirically extract the underlying dimensions of spirituality as it’s cross-culturally conceived. Examining these factors of spiritual experience against clinical patients helped determine the universal predictors (or protectors) of depression, generalized anxiety, substance-related disorders and suicidal ideation. 

1. Reality, experiencing truth, and the fabric of our relationality, as sacred.

2. Otherness, or a sense of unifying interconnectedness and energetic oneness with other beings in the universe.

3. Contemplation, on our day-to-day lived experience and a life well-examined.

4. Embodied Practice, through like meditation, prayer, yoga, qigong or breathing;

5. Service, as a devotion or caring commitment beyond the self.

These core principles, when rooted in deep practice over time, help address one’s spiritual longings – increasingly important in our isolated, distracted and dissociated world. For many, these longings are addressed within religious traditions and communities. Yet, like my friend and I, more and more people are religiously unaffiliated, dissatisfied, or embracing hybrid or individuated spiritual paths. Knowing these factors can allow one to examine their relationship with spirit in a way that is rooted in practice, not belief. We can then live spiritual lives by observing and living in the very real, universal, human longings of growing into the people we are called to be, knowing the truth of our experiences and being known, and experiencing ourselves as part of something more. 

INSPIRATION ^{_{(what i want)}}

Sacred Design Lab: A soul-centered research and development lab devoted to understanding and designing for 21st center spiritual well-being. 

• Researchers, scientists and experts translate ancient wisdom and practices to help client partners develop products, programs, and experiences that ground people’s social and spiritual lives.

• Oriented around the idea that the systems of oppression that are pulling people apart in our modern world are creating a chasm of unmet needs for meaning and connection. 

• Responding to the problem with soul-deep solutions that look to creating belonging, becoming and going beyond while applying ancient wisdom to an emergent world. 

• These soul-centered solutions aid in our collective liberation — where every person is cared for and free from oppression. 

• Designing new interlocking systems of justice, beauty, healing and wholeness; that never uses shame as a strategy. 

INNOVATION ^{_{(what i wish for)}}

Inward Bound: a secularized spiritual camp to learn the importance of love, altruism, devotion, presence and the sacredness of life.

A sacred summer where children and young adults develop a practice of devoted service and deeper listening as they close each day in playful contemplative circles.

The inwards version of Outward Bound!

• A non-religious camp of secular spirit, exploring the human experience in a safe space in nature with a high ratio of guides to participants. 

• Designed to cater to three groups: pre-teens (ages 8-12), teens (ages 13-15) and young adults (16-22) — each focusing on engaging the children’s spirit in a deeper way through play, practice and purpose.  

• Daily practices (as ‘chores of devotion’ that take care of the greater community) are there to ground the participants with a sense of responsibility and purpose. 

• Group embodiment practices focus on one’s relationship to being in the now and how we are shaped with moving through space in relation to ‘other.’

• Each participant is individually coached on their definition of what is sacred — exploring with curiosity during the camp how to amplify that feeling with presence and gratitude.

• Closing contemplative circles that train participants in the science and art of meditation and how it supports the examination of one’s life (rather than being an escapist route). 

• Participants’ parents sign up their children knowing well this experience is scientific and wholly secular — where religion may be discussed but solely as a human story.