Abstract
Chapter 1, in Thesis – On the Universal Meaning and Significance of Spirituality –
The purpose of this thesis has been to understand the universal meaning and significance of spirituality for human life such that we might wonder about thoughts and emotions. More specifically the research question was “Should Spirituality be Considered a Universal and Vital Dimension of Human Life?” This question is important to answer as we are seeing an unprecedented exodus from religious spirituality and major populations without a spiritual identity in the western world. This is especially true given the fact that spirituality has been a central and highly valued dimension of human life across human culture and history. This exodus from spirituality therefore begs the question – what exactly have these people left behind, and how important is it to human life?
I have investigated this question from five different angles. (1.) By understanding the historical context of spirituality, (2.) By providing a universal understanding of spirituality, (3.) By investigating the universality of spirituality, (4.) By investigating the biological basis of spirituality and (5.) By investigating the health effects of spirituality. Together, these investigations create the outlines of an answer to the research question which are as follows.
In my analysis, I have found good reason and evidence to believe that spirituality is a universal and vital dimension of human life, comparable to thoughts and emotions, and one which is vital to human life both physically and mentally. This is concluded on the following grounds
(a) I have found that spirituality has almost always been a central dimension of human culture throughout history and in the case where a culture did experience a decline of its spiritual dimension, this was met with fierce spiritual counterculture eventually leading to a spiritual renaissance. These are the historical patterns we would expect to see for any natural and vital part of human nature, i.e. we would expect these parts to have been a central priority across cultures and for the cultures who failed to prioritize them to be met with fierce resistance until an eventual renaissance.
(b) I have found that in terms of universal human experience, spirituality fundamentally pertains to the experience of consciousness and its phenomena, and that as a dimension of human life it pertains to the understanding and navigation of the experience of consciousness and its phenomena. This supports the conclusion because, if indeed spirituality pertains to such a fundamental part of the human experience, then we would expect the understanding and navigation of it to be natural and a vital dimension of human life.
(c) I have found that spirituality has been universal to human culture and moreover that there have been fundamental common patterns across the variety of spirituality across history. This too is what we would expect to see if spirituality were a vital part of human nature as opposed to merely a cultural construct.
(d) I have found that spiritual experience is reflected in the nature of human biology at some of its most fundamental levels, and that this nature expresses itself regularly in ordinary human lives in various different ways. This is once again what we would expect to find under the hypothesis that spirituality is a fundamental and vital aspect of human life.
(e) I have found that spiritual practice correlates with human health and lifespan in proportion with the duration and intensity of practice, both within and outside the religious context. Again this is what we would expect to find for the practice of navigating any vital aspect of human nature.
All in all, it appears that all the five angles of this thesis are in support of the hypothesis that spirituality is a universal and vital dimension of human life. Taken together, my answer to the research question “Should Spirituality be Considered a Universal and Vital Dimension of Human Life?” is that spirituality appears to reflect a universal reality of human nature and to have a strong relationship to human vitality, and therefore yes, it should be considered a universal and vital dimension of human life.
Author – Sagi Andersen