The Value of Spiritual Practice

Women magazine describes daily spiritual practice as “any ritual that we perform each day to nur­ture our deep inner being.”

Spiritual practice does not need to happen daily in order to be beneficial to your well-being. However, I do think that spiritual practice needs to happen consistently – a regular and reliable time to find balance, peace, and wisdom, in order to be effective.

Spiritual practice is about intent. It is the opportunity to focus on specific aspects of your life that need attention.

A worry that is affecting your sleep
A hope for success at something
A concern for a loved one
A desire to achieve a goal

Spiritual practice is the ability to focus all your energy – targeted, amplified, compressed – into a single point, so that you can …

Alter your thoughts
Direct your energy
Adjust your attitude

… to purposefully work toward and manifest your objective.

Different faiths have different versions of spiritual practice. Meditation, dancing, prayer, chanting, yoga, tai chi – all are methods of turning off the stress and routine of daily life and focusing inward. What works for one person, may not work for someone else. Spiritual practice is a deeply personal act.

"Round Dance"
Painting by Christine Siegfried
http://www.christineupstairs.com/collections/private-collection-of-the-artist/

My spiritual practice integrates with the changing of the seasons and with the cycles of the moon. My spiritual practice is ritual – and ritual can be just about anything.

It can be a ceremony on the equinox to manifest balance in my life.

It can be a bonfire on the new moon to banish an old habit and initiate a new one.

It can be a feast on the solstice to celebrate the end of the long nights and return of the sun.

And each of these can include dancing or chanting or meditating or any number of other doings.

Regardless of the specific action, spiritual practice can be valuable for many reasons. Its greatest value, in my opinion, is that it is a concerted, conscious, and committed action to direct your life, your body, and your mind to where you want them to be. Spiritual practice is a way to be intentional about all aspects of your life.

Spiritual practice is a path to self-realization and fulfillment.

Something of great value, indeed.