A good chunk of us associate "Spirit" with blind belief or irrationality. That comes from the current stage our society is in -- traditional rational thinking. There were stages before it, and will be stages after it, but for now, the majority of us in the West fall into this stage of thinking.

Traditional rational thinking, as it exists, comes with the notion that everything that we can measure is real, and everything we can't measure is either imaginary or to be left out.

Of course we can't measure "Spirit" the way we measure, say, the distance to the moon or the temperature of the sun. "Spirit", by definition, is a quality that precedes everything. "Spirit" precedes our measuring tools.

So how do we see Spirit? Well, we turn our awareness the opposite way -- instead of looking out, we look within. When our awareness is turned inwards, we can see Spirit. Many of us have had such a fleeting glimpse without identifying it as such...usually we've had some form of a peak experience where time stands still and we feel at one with everyone, and at complete peace. Lots of people describe feeling this during childbirth, or when winning a major sporting event, or making love with a connected partner, or in a beautiful natural environment.

The most common practices to actively and consistently experience "Spirit" are through meditation or contemplative prayer. A meditation practice retrains our awareness to point inward instead of outward (paying attention to our sensations or internal voices for instance, instead of our environment or surroundings). At initial stages, we glimpse of how our body or mind are behaving. At later stages, we tune into the witness inside us that we call "Spirit" within us. And that glimpse is profound.

It is impossible to get into a discussion of spirituality on traditional rational terms. As we discussed, we can't point at or take a picture of "Spirit". However, by those who've experienced it, the experience of "Spirit" is more "real" than any traditional rational claim or argument.

So ultimately what do we need to do? We need to expand the way we rationalize to accommodate both external and internal inquiry. Then, we can all move to the next level of thinking!

Along with all the wonderful joys of the spiritual journey, we also have a shadow that follows right behind, tricking, sabotaging, undermining our every step. I strongly feel that understanding the shadow is key to spiritual growth, more than anything else we learn.

So what is this shadow? Denied aspects of ourselves. Could be jealousy, or lust, or exhaustion, or desire, or passion, or greed, or self-centeredness. It includes underdeveloped qualities -- maybe we aren't as intelligent as we'd like to be, or attractive, or secure, or developed, or disciplined, or eloquent, or simply good. Whatever -- if we are hiding or denying who we are, in some way, we create a shadow. (As a note, shadows can be positive traits too, but I'll deal with these "golden shadows" in later posts.)

On a spiritual path, shadows are usually created when we take what's called a "holy" path - a very bad idea! Here are different things someone on a "holy" path might say:

-"Aahh the spiritual path is just so good...the insights, the joys, the bliss, positive experiences, continuous improvement, and purity of mind are amaazing. Life is just wonderful, always a gift."

-"I will meditate and pray even more, do even more good deeds, be extra kind to my neighbors, love everyone around me. Try even harder -- 110%. Always."

-"I am doing the right thing in life. I would never even consider stealing, lying, cheating, or having sex. People who do these things are immoral and reprehensible. I actually need to teach others a thing or two, I really know that they are messed up and must be helped."

-"I am always happy and joyous...but there is a little something about myself that is bothering me that I can't put my finger on."

Well THAT little something is a shadow, and is NOT that little at all. And the more "holy" our path, the stronger our shadow can become. Eventually, it can get suffocated off and disowned to the extent we don't even know we have a shadow...except that we crash and burn time and time again, and do things progressively more deviant and harmful to others without even realizing.

Shadows are tricky, because they are invisible by definition. I know many trained psychologists and spiritual seekers completely oblivious to their own shadows (including I know myself). The best way to recognize them is by noticing what upsets us in other people. These are 95% of the time reflections of our own shadow. I'll be talking about the shadow quite a bit in my blog, and how I am learning to recognize and acknolwedge them. It's funny that the world around us is one big hall of mirrors...the realizations sometimes are so profound and hilarious.

So then, what is the spiritual path about anyway? Well, the spiritual path ultimately isn't about being good or holy, but it isn't about being bad or evil either. The path is about finding what's genuine within ourselves. And by tuning into what is genuine within ourselves, we can get closer to God. And that's the conclusion I'm coming to, after a lifetime of shadow fighting.

Next post, I'll start sharing some anecdotes (may the stories begin)!

I. PATHS:
A path is usually an established tradition of spiritual inquiry (Zen Buddhism, Christianity, Catholicism, Taoism, and the Scientific Method are examples). Perhaps we are already in of a tradition that clicks with us, or one we grew up embracing.

Starting with an established path is practically a requirement. Charting the waters without one is like trying to sail to the New World from Europe without a compass (and with blinders and no crew). Well, I'm exaggerating a bit, but it is almost mandatory to follow an already charted course in the beginning. Later on, we leave the chart behind and chart our own path.

II. TOOLS:
When we are clear what path serves as our backbone, we include tools that help us explore different aspects of ourselves. Some of these tools, broken into these aspects, are:
spirit tools (vipassana meditation, zen meditation, centering prayer) *
body tools (weightlifting, yoga),
mental tools (scripture study, analysis),
expression tools (improvisation, acting, blogging),
sexual tools (tantra, visualization practices),
work tools (right livelihood, organization),
ethical tools (moral/ethical code),
shadow tools (psychotherapy, psychoanalysis).

There are 1000s of tools out there -- the key is to focus on a handful of them. Which ones to pick? The ones that challenge us, yet still resonate with us, and still address all major aspects of ourselves. As a note, spirit tools especially are of primary importance (for obvious reasons).

III. GUIDES:
Well, we have a path, and we have tools to help us walk on the path -- but we are not set, yet. It also really helps to have a guide. A guide is someone or something who helps us make day to day decisions in the right direction. Not many of us have the benefit of having someone show us the ropes, and even fewer of us have one we can trust. However, nothing to fear. There are surrogate guides in the form of I-Ching and Tarot Cards we can use. More about them in future posts.

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So now that I've clearly outlined the groundwork for the spiritual path, we're ready to start talking about my own adventures and discoveries (the fun stuff!) Right?? No wait, there's an important thing to keep in mind from the beginning -- the shadow! The shadow is so important that I'll dedicate my entire next post to it. A spiritual journey that ignores the shadow is screwed.

To recap what I mentioned last time, this path is an adventure in all senses of the word, except that we are exploring ourselves instead of the outside world, and we are pursuing results beyond anything we can imagine. Sages and mystics describe the result of the spiritual path as the achievement of eternal peace, wisdom, happiness, and universal love flowing through each particle of our being -- you may not buy it, but you certainly can't beat it!

People label this state "Enlightenment", "Awakening", "Union with God", Eternal Bliss", "Genuine Existence", or "Ground of All Being". Whatever phrase we use for it, the ones who have centered in it describe it as the highest state we can achieve.

What more could we want, right? Well, we won't necessarily *want* more than this, but we also still have an inescapable impulse to take this "Enlightenment" through our life and environment. So it isn't about sitting around pursuing eternal happiness all day -- it is about sharing energy and wisdom with everyone (and everything) around us.

Now the spiritual path is cool, but what about my other aspirations? I want to develop relationships, go to dance clubs, make a lot of money, start a nonprofit, travel the world, and listen to gansta' rap...you know?

Well, I'll clarify a very important point. Spirituality in the 21st century isn't about denying our "material" or "worldly" interests. In the olden times things were much simpler -- we had a single path, a single teacher, and prehaps a single ideal of God. And we have undoubtedly achieved heights. While a "spiritual path" may still connotate leaving the world and living in seclusion, praying or meditating for years and years, that isn't what it is truly about. Spirituality is really about being genuine, and integrating with the world around us to whatever degree we are compelled to. We are the most broad minded, advanced, and knowledgeable human beings ever in the history of minkind. And our path should honor that.

In other words, spirituality evolves along with society.

So does that mean I can do whatever I want and I'd still be on a spiritual path? Yes, if our intent is genuine. But as we spend more time on the path, we notice lots of activities we do actually don't produce the fruits we desire. Also, we start becoming more sensitive to our actions, how they affect us, and how they affect others. So we naturally do things differently, and even willingly endure arduous practices at times.

In a nutshell: the spiritual path is a path meant to take us to the highest level of happiness, and it benefits the people around us to the highest level possible. Sounds obvious that all of us would want to include some sort of spirituality in life, right? It is to me (hence the blog)!

Looking forward to explaining some of the tools next time....and describe how can we actually practice!

Well what do I mean by my spiritual adventure? I mean the journey to understand who I am, why I am here, what am I supposed to do, how do I relate to the world and to God, and how do I get through suffering and find lasting happiness.

So what does the spiritural path consist of? Well, it's like any other adventure. First off, we chart our own trail, use tools and maps in the form of philosophies and religion, experience adventure, and overcome challenges along the way. The difference (and fundamental difference) is that we are not exploring anywhere outside, but rather exploring ourselves inside. And that makes the journey and the rewards so special. I'll get to all the details in my future posts, of course.

Why am I blogging? Because I want to share with everyone what a spiritual path is -- it may not be something we really talk about in an intelligent and honest way. I'm trying to keep this blog free from abstractions or philosophies -- I really want to be able to communicate my experiences genuinely, without too much airiness. That's my intention -- you guys can let me know if it happens or not. :)

The spiritual path in the 21st century is a lot different than what our notions of what a spiritual path might look like. Today, we have for the first time in history, all the practices and wisdom from around the world at our fingertips (thanks TBLee, thanks I-I). Plus, new technologies and insights keep popping up all over the place -- a very exciting time.

I've been on this path for a while, and although it's been tough as crap, I never for a second would have it any other way. As we go further, we start to expand our journey to encompass more and more of ourselves and others.

Our consciousness gets bigger and bigger, broader and broader, uniting with the plants, animals, and people around us, and then starts encompassing planets, stars and galaxies, until it stretches the whole universe and unites with God Himself (sorry, I have to throw in a little bit of this stuff now and then :) ).

I look forward to posting again. I hope to layout the course in more and more detail, and sharing war stories (or shall we say, peace stories).

Little footnote: this is actually my very first blog post....ever! I'm pretty excited. Don't know where this is gonna go, but should be a blast nonetheless.