4 ms·

I'd suggest that "spiritual skills" encompass an understanding that there are connections between ourselves and our surroundings that defy precise, scientific d

I'd suggest that "spiritual skills" encompass an understanding that there are connections between ourselves and our surroundings that defy precise, scientific description. Whether that's a feeling of camaraderie with your teammates, or a sense that one's office is warm and inviting or cold and unpleasant, or an immediate response upon meeting someone for the first time that you can trust them implicitly--or that you absolutely cannot--these are skills that can be developed and improved over time, and the effective use of which can enhance an individual's overall health, productivity, and success.

jiggy2011 14y ago
All of those things you mentioned are to a large degree explained by science. Spirituality appears to require at least some belief in something beyond the material world. There are certainly things that can be taken from spiritual practises that can be useful but in most cases there is an explanation for this value that does not require any belief in the supernatural.
- seanmcdirmid 14y ago
  Relying on some kind of placebo or customs to enrich our lives is perhaps not very crazy. If we take everything at face value, the universe is vast in time and space and so our lives are very insignificant or meaningful; its hard to justify doing anything at all in that case. Just replace spirituality with custom, culture, emotion, and its not so anti-intellectual.
  - jiggy2011 14y ago
    The article talks about stuff like meditation, that isn't really a placebo or custom. There is research done that is showing benefits of this.
mikeash 14y ago
None of what you describe is what I would categorize as "spiritual".
- pjscott 14y ago
  I can't shake the feeling that we could be having a much more fruitful conversation if we simply removed the word "spiritual" from it, and talked about the concepts themselves. Arguing over the definitions of words has got to be one of the most exhausting and futile acts in existence.
  - mikeash 14y ago
    That's kind of my point. Why label a section with a title that's bound to be controversial and confusing, only to include almost nothing relevant to that title?

jiggy2011 14y ago

All of those things you mentioned are to a large degree explained by science. Spirituality appears to require at least some belief in something beyond the material world. There are certainly things that can be taken from spiritual practises that can be useful but in most cases there is an explanation for this value that does not require any belief in the supernatural.

seanmcdirmid 14y ago
Relying on some kind of placebo or customs to enrich our lives is perhaps not very crazy. If we take everything at face value, the universe is vast in time and space and so our lives are very insignificant or meaningful; its hard to justify doing anything at all in that case. Just replace spirituality with custom, culture, emotion, and its not so anti-intellectual.
- jiggy2011 14y ago
  The article talks about stuff like meditation, that isn't really a placebo or custom. There is research done that is showing benefits of this.

mikeash 14y ago

None of what you describe is what I would categorize as "spiritual".

pjscott 14y ago
I can't shake the feeling that we could be having a much more fruitful conversation if we simply removed the word "spiritual" from it, and talked about the concepts themselves. Arguing over the definitions of words has got to be one of the most exhausting and futile acts in existence.
- mikeash 14y ago
  That's kind of my point. Why label a section with a title that's bound to be controversial and confusing, only to include almost nothing relevant to that title?