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Aspiritual practice orspiritual discipline (often includingspiritual exercises) is the regular or full-time performance of actions and activities undertaken for the purpose of inducingspiritual experiences and cultivatingspiritual development. A common metaphor used in the spiritual traditions of the world's great religions is that of walking a path.[1] Therefore, a spiritual practice moves a person along a path towards a goal. The goal is variously referred to assalvation,liberation or union (with God). A person who walks such a path is sometimes referred to as a wayfarer or apilgrim.
Jewish spiritual practices may includeprayer (including theShema andAmidah), recitingblessings,Jewish meditation,Torah study, following dietary laws ofkashrut, observingShabbat,fasting, practices ofteshuvah, givingtzedakah, and performing deeds ofloving-kindness.[2]Kavanah is the directing of the heart to achieve higher contemplative thoughts and attain inner strength. Various Jewish movements throughout history have encouraged a range of other spiritual practices. TheMusar movement, for example, encourages a variety ofmeditations, guided contemplations, and chanting exercises.[3] Certain times of year are often associated with certain spiritual practices, including practices ofteshuvah duringElul and theHigh Holy Days, and other practices associated with certainJewish holidays.
InChristianity, spiritual disciplines may include:prayer,fasting, reading through theChristian Bible along with adaily devotional, frequentchurch attendance, constant partaking of thesacraments, such as theEucharist, careful observance of theLord's Day (cf.Sunday Sabbatarianism), making aChristian pilgrimage to theHoly Land, visiting and praying at achurch, offering dailyprayer at one'shome altar while kneeling at aprie-dieu, making aspiritual communion,Christian monasticism,Bible study,chanting, the use ofprayer beads,mortification of the flesh,Christian meditation or contemplative prayer,almsgiving, blessing oneself at theirhome stoup daily, observingmodest fashion,reconciliation, andLectio Divina.[4]
Spiritual disciplines can also include any combination of the following:chastity,confession,fasting,[5] fellowship, frugality, giving, guidance, hospitality, humility, intimacy,meditation,prayer,quiet time, reflection, self-control, servanthood, service, simplicity, singing, slowing, solitude, study,submission, surrender, teaching, andworship.
In the Christianliturgical calendar, there are certain spiritual disciplines that are emphasized during various seasons of the Church Year. For example, in the calendar's first liturgical season,Advent, Christians of manydenominations prepare for the arrival ofChristmastide by praying through adaily devotional, as well as marking anAdvent calendar and lighting anAdvent wreath. InLent, the preparatory season forEastertide, many Christians (especiallyCatholics,Methodists andAnglicans) participate in theFriday Fast, pray theStations of the Cross, mark aLenten calendar, and make aLenten sacrifice such as giving up alcohol and practicingteetotalism.[6][7]
CertainChristian denominations emphasize various spiritual disciplines. Praying therosary, performing corporal and spiritual acts of mercy, and makingacts of reparation are spiritual disciplines that are esteemed in theCatholic Church. InMethodism, theworks of mercy andworks of piety are indispensable spiritual disciplines with respect to one'ssanctification.[8] TheReligious Society of Friends (also known as theQuakers) practices silent worship, which is punctuated by vocal ministry.Quakers have little to nocreed ordoctrine, and so their practices constitute a large portion of their group identity.
A well-known writer on Christian spiritual disciplines,Richard Foster, has emphasized that Christian meditation focuses not of the emptying of themind orself, but rather on the filling up of the mind or self with God.[9]
Spiritual practice inIslam is practiced withinsalat (ritual prayer) during which Muslims subdue all thoughts and concentrate solely onAllah, also through other forms of worship activities likefasting, andHajj. Among many Muslim groups, immersion in spiritual practices is thought of as more noticeable and deep as practiced bySufis includingDhikr,Muraqaba, andSama (Sufi whirling).
InTheravadaBuddhism, the generic term for spiritual cultivation isbhavana. The Pali word "yoga", central to many earlyBuddhist texts, has been often translated as "Spiritual Practice".[10] InBurmese Buddhist tradition,Awgatha is a formulaic prayer that is recited to initiate acts ofBuddhist devotion, includingobeisance to theBuddha andBuddhist monks.[11] InZenBuddhism, meditation (calledzazen), the writing of poetry (especiallyhaiku),painting,calligraphy,flower arranging, theJapanese tea ceremony and the maintenance ofZen gardens are considered to be spiritual practices. TheKorean tea ceremony is also considered spiritual.
InHinduism, the practice of cultivating spirituality is known assādhanā.Japa, the silent or audible repetition of amantra andPuja are commonHindu spiritual practices. According toHindu scriptures, four types ofyoga are highly recommended to attainsalvation orMoksha-Jnana Yoga,Bhakti Yoga,Karma Yoga andRaja Yoga.
Tantric practices are shared in common betweenHinduism and certain Buddhist (especiallyTibetan Buddhist) schools, and involve the deliberate use of the mundane (worldly, physical or material) to access the supramundane (spiritual, energetic or mystical) realms.
Prayer in theBaháʼí Faith, refers to two distinct concepts:obligatory prayer anddevotional prayer (general prayer). Both types ofprayer are composed of reverent words which are addressed toGod,[12] and the act ofprayer is one of the most importantBaháʼí laws for individual discipline.[13]
Passage meditation was a practice recommended byEknath Easwaran which involves the memorization and silent repetition of passages ofscripture from the world'sreligions.[14]
Reiki is a spiritual healing practice that has been popular in New Age spirituality. Reiki is a healing modality that was developed by Japanese lay Buddhist monk Mikao Usui. It spread from Japan to Hawaii and then to the rest of the United States. Reiki involves thelaying on of hands or hovering hands over a person's body in order to address spiritual blockages and other related problems. Patients have reported that reiki is effective at reducing pain, stress, anxiety, and depression; in the medical community, skepticism exists toward the effectiveness of reiki.[15]
The termNeotantra refers to a modern collection of practices and schools in the West that integrates the sacred with the sexual, and de-emphasizes the reliance on Gurus.[citation needed]
Recent and evolving spiritual practices in the West have also explored the integration of aboriginal instruments such as theDidgeridoo, extended chanting as inKirtan, or otherbreathwork taken outside of the context of Eastern lineages or spiritual beliefs, such as Quantum Light Breath.[16]
TheCyrenaics developed the spiritual practice ofnegative visualization, which was later adopted by theStoics.
Epicureanism posits thatphilosophy is not just a set of beliefs or ethical claims, it is aphilosophy of life. Epicurean spiritual practices and exercises include meditating on theTetrapharmakos, the celebration ofEikas, the practice ofaponia, and cultivating the proper understanding of the gods and death so as to remove fear.
Stoicism takes the view thatphilosophy is not just a set ofbeliefs or ethical claims, it is a way of life anddiscourse involving constant practice and training (e.g.,asceticism). Stoic spiritual practices and exercises includecontemplation of death and other events that are typically thought negative, trainingattention to remain in the present moment (similar to some forms of Easternmeditation), daily reflection on everyday problems and possible solutions, keeping a personal journal, and so on. Philosophy for aStoic is an active process of constant practice and self-reminder.[citation needed]
In the context of his spiritual philosophyAnthroposophy,Rudolf Steiner gave an extensive set ofexercises for spiritual development.[17] Some of these were intended for general use, while others were for certain professions, including teachers, doctors, and priests, or were given to private individuals.[18]
Somemartial arts, liketai chi,Aikido,[19] andJujutsu, are considered spiritual practices by some of their practitioners.
He espoused a "method" of study, prayer, and community by which persons might know "sanctification" before God. Wesley thought that the truly devout could "move on to perfection", an ends ethic idea. The MethodistBook of Discipline with "Rules for Methodist Societies" specified what the ways were: daily reading of the Bible, prayer, feeding the hungry, and visiting the sick and those in prison.
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