It feels really cliche to try defining one’s self as spiritual. It tends to conjure the image in my mind of someone who doesn’t hold either a specific religious belief or any particularly interesting personality trait, so they call themselves spiritual because, “like, I don’t know for sure but there’s just that feeling of something bigger than us, you know?”

Which is absolutely an unfair sweeping generalisation of a really broad term. Spirituality, as I understand it, just refers to a sense of something bigger than ourselves. This can mean anything from feeling tiny in a big world to contemplating a supernatural realm by the sounds of it. So what does that mean to me? What spirituality am I seeking in my journey?

I was initially deterred by the thought of it because I don’t find reason to believe a supernatural realm exists at all, let alone souls, spirits, or concepts of the like. Why that is can be detailed another time, but for now I’ll just say I happened upon that broader definition for spirituality and opened up to it.

There are countless ways to describe exactly what is bigger than ourselves, and the exploration of each of these things are what seem the most immersive to me. The common connection humanity has and all the different ways they’re expressed. The sheer complexity of life, the earth, the universe and the properties therein. The glimpses into the imagination internally and from others, opening new avenues of contemplation.

Let’s explore the human aspect I mentioned:

It would seem to me that what makes up one’s personality is the sum of an equation that begins growing at birth, extends to the present, and expands with each new moment. Your birthplace, the circumstances you were born in to, those you like or dislike, those you try to emulate or differ from, etc. The more of these equations we familiarize ourselves with, the more we will notice patterns in the way people operate, how they thrive or falter. 

That being said, I intend to meet as many people as possible, to connect, to flourish, to love. I know my description sounds a little cold and disconnected, and perhaps that is exactly why I meet far more people than I have. I intend to engineer my equation to produce so much happiness in my life as possible, so that my cup may overflow so greatly that it fills the cups of my neighbors.
And that is only to begin looking at one aspect of what inspires a numinous-feeling state within me. Our existence is filled with amazingly transcendent realities, both concrete and abstract. I want to explore these so in-depth that there will be a bounty of places my mind may take me.
Pictured is Bubble Nebula NGC 7635

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