We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience. – Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
The Oxford Dictionary defines spirituality as “the quality of being concerned with the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things.” It is the search for something beyond the physical world, attempting to connect to our spirit or soul, that is the bedrock of spirituality; that we are more than a physical being, and that it is this spirit or soul that makes us who we are, and breathes life into our bodies. The word “spirituality” comes from the Latin word spiritus which means “breath.” The breath is what allows life to exist. The Buddha felt that the soul was an essential part of being human and said, “Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, man cannot live without a spiritual life.” The physical and spiritual go hand in hand. This search for — and belief in — the connection between the physical and the spiritual is also the path to wisdom.
While some believe that spirituality and religion are interchangeable, others see each of these as separate ideologies. They might have similar goals of understanding the divine and discerning our path to spiritual enlightenment but may go about it in very different ways. Religion is based upon an organized particular system of worship, with a specific dogma containing a set of principles laid down by an authority as incontrovertibly true. No questioning; no gray areas; finite. Many believe that spirituality is more of an individual practice leading to a sense of peace and purpose by developing beliefs around the meaning of life and connection with others. Spirituality is more about inner understanding than it is about outer worship. Either of these are a matter of personal choice. Either will, hopefully, move you closer to attaining wisdom.