This document discusses the concept of the spiritual self, distinguishing between spirituality and religiosity, and exploring personal growth through understanding one's spirituality. It emphasizes that spirituality is a personal experience related to finding purpose in life, while religiosity involves beliefs and practices associated with religion. The text also highlights the importance of inspiration and sources of meaning such as work, love, suffering, and relationships in cultivating a fulfilling spiritual life.

1. The
spIRITUAL
self

2. LEARNING OUTCOMES;
At the end of this lesson, the students shall have;
explained the nature of spiritual self
discussed the aspects of spirituality and
assessed the level of their spirituality
and religiosity.

3. This chapter focuses on the nature of
spiritual self, the aspects spirituality, the
difference between spirituality and
religiosity and an assessment of one’s
spirtuality and religiosity.

4. The Nature of Spiritual Self
Spiritual self is another dimension of the Self. It
is personal to each of us. It is referred to as the
real, true, or authentic YOU, without influence,
stereotypes, or assumptions. It is not related to our
race, our religion, gender, nor our concerns, NOT
even our physical appearance. It is the YOU without
patterns. It is the beautiful YOU in appearance form.

5. David James Lee, Spirituality expert of Wei Wu
Wisdom, described our spiritual self as our intangible
and invisible self, the gut feeling and inspiration
inside us. It is true to us ONLY. Lee compared it to a
beautiful candle that never extinguishes. No one else
could extinguish it, but ourselves. It is the spiritual
energy that makes intuition flow without effort from
within, the source of inspiration that motivates us to
move on.

6. The word "inspiration" connotes the presence
of a spirit within us. Inspiration keeps us going,
living a more positive life. One who is inspired
never stops moving forward. He is motivated to
go a mile more and achieve more and live more
productive life. Such is the role of inspiration in
our life.

7. Bob Mangroo, in his blog, Your Spiritual Self,
beautifully referred to spiritual self as the eternal self, the
intangible, non- physical, invisible part of our existence.
He called it, SOUL. He claims that with our physical
reality, we can identify our date and place of our birth,
meaning the beginning of our existence. However, it is not
true with our soul. We cannot tell when our soul was born,
when it began to exist and where it is located within us.
That is so because our soul has been in existence even
before our physical existence and will continue to exist
even after we are gone.

8. The terms spirituality and religiosity are
often times used interchangeably but one is
distinct from the other. Let us clarify this
distinction.
Spirituality and Religiosity

9. Typically, spirituality is usually associated with our
own existence and a search for the purpose and meaning
of life. It is a universal human experience that has touched
us all. Some people deem spirituality as a spiritual
experience that is sacred and transcendent, or something
that is beyond any other ordinary experience; to others, it
is simply an awareness of being alive and of how one
lives his life.

10. Religiosity is defined by Sherkat (2015) as a
characterisitic of individuals and collectivities that
displays various features of beliefs about the
supernatural. It refers to how individuals and social
groups engage in a behavior related to the Higher Being.
It is a term used to describe the extent to which religion
influences Societies and intersects with the other areas of
public life.

11. Religion is the belief in and reverence for
something holy and sacred. On the other hand,
religiosity is the adherence to and involvement in a
belief system and practices associated with
religious activity.

12. Religiosity Spirituality
Believes in Religion May not believe in Religion
Talks about God Makes us godly
About who is in and who is out Discovering who you are and
why you exist
Collective belief Individual belief
Identifies religion from each
other
Unites world religion
Specific Broad
Distinctions between Religiosity and Spirituality

13. Our spirituality helps us live a balanced and
focused life, a balanced mental health and well-being.
With this kind of life, we become aware of our choices,
behavior and actions. We live simply and in moderation.
Our spiritual life will direct us to focus only on the basics
and essential with preference to what is sacred and
transcendental. In such a state, we can enjoy a more
peaceful life and develop our fullest potentials.
The Importance of Spirituality

14. Spirituality is part of our natural process of self-
development. It grows as we live in and within, our respective
communities and as we maintain our relationship with our
family and the society, in general. In the home, children can
imbibe spirituality from their parents by the positive and
nurturing relationship experienced from them and through the
spiritual orientation parents provide them with to serve as a
solid foundation of their healthy spiritual life.
Strengthening Spirituality

15. Frankl strongly believes that man's
ultimate task is to search for meaning in life.
The meaning of life depends on finding a
purpose and taking responsibility for yourself
and other people.
SOURCES OF MEANING, ACCORDING TO VIKTOR E.
FRANKL

16. Sources of meaning, according to Frankl:
Work - Doing something significant for yourself and for others, giving
meaning to your life
Love - You only see the worth or essence of an individual if you love
them. Loving someone other than yourself gives you a reason to live
with and to live for.
Suffering (Courage during difficult times) - Suffering is not necessary
pdt Settinge to find meaning, but you can still find meaning in
suffering if it is unavoidable by turning personal misfortune into a
victory and one's dilemma into your personal success.

17. Creative Value - Realizing the importance of doing something in the
service of others.
Experiential Value - Life is meaningless alone; connecting with other
people gives you meaningful relationships. That is why we experience
more pain when people we love get hurt than when we hurt ourselves.
It is more meaningful to die for other people, especially our loved
ones, than to die for our delight.
Attitudinal Value - Everything you love may be taken from you, but
your freedom to choose to respond or react to any suffering will
remain within you. When things cannot be changed, you are
challenged to change yourself.
Three Ways of Discovering Meaning in Life

18. Revitalize your spirit by listening to relaxing music, reading
inspirational books, meditating, etc.
Help those who are in need
Practice gratitude
Practice mindfulness.
Practice patience.
Express yourself
Additional tips on how to become more spiritual;