What role do rituals, traditions and religious communities have in an individual's path to spiritual awakening? Can religion help us reach our ultimate potential? Or, are they nothing but superstitions and fairy tales? Do they create positive outlets for spiritual growth, or do they simply further divide our already divided planet?
In today's podcast, I explore the pros and cons of going to church, temple or mosque. I dive into what religions can offer, what we can expect to gain from them, and most importantly, what faith can look like now and in the future in order to provide the most benefit to the most people without the negative and often violent outcomes that we have seen in the past.
Please enjoy other episodes where Todd shares meditation techniques, tips and spiritual lessons from around the world for peaceful and stress-free living. Remember to subscribe to stay up-to-date.
*****
If you ever feel like my words brought a change in your life, and want to show your SUPPORT for what I am doing, click here.
Find all of my BOOKS for wherever you are on your spiritual journey: https://www.eastwesticism.org/spiritual-meditation-books/
Want to gift a book to a prisoner? Go here.
What role do rituals, traditions and religious communities have in an individual's path to spiritual awakening? Can religion help us reach our ultimate potential? Or, are they nothing but superstitions and fairy tales? Do they create positive outlets for spiritual growth, or do they simply further divide our already divided planet?
In today's podcast, I explore the pros and cons of going to church, temple or mosque. I dive into what religions can offer, what we can expect to gain from them, and most importantly, what faith can look like now and in the future in order to provide the most benefit to the most people without the negative and often violent outcomes that we have seen in the past.
Please enjoy other episodes where Todd shares meditation techniques, tips and spiritual lessons from around the world for peaceful and stress-free living. Remember to subscribe to stay up-to-date.
*****
If you ever feel like my words brought a change in your life, and want to show your SUPPORT for what I am doing, click here.
Find all of my BOOKS for wherever you are on your spiritual journey: https://www.eastwesticism.org/spiritual-meditation-books/
Want to gift a book to a prisoner? Go here.
0:02
Welcome to path to peace with Todd Perelmuter. I'm your host, Todd Perelmuter our world is a projection of our collective consciousness. The more peace we bring into our lives, the more peace we bring into this world. So let the transformation begin.
0:23
Hello, and welcome to path to peace with Todd Perelmuter. I'm your host, Todd Perelmuter.
0:29
Today, the question is, does going to temple or church do any good?
0:37
And this is such an important question, because we see all the time in the news, stories of priest wrongdoing. We see stories of ideological extremists in certain parts of the world causing destruction.
1:04
And we even see a rise of cults and extremist groups popping up all over our own countries. And we can begin to wonder, is this doing more harm than good? Is it dividing us more than it is? Creating communities? And is it building the foundations of irrational thinking?
1:40
In people who are growing up in these religions, some people may wonder, are religions in superstitions that we grew up with his children, setting a foundation in our mindset for the rest of our lives, that in certain cases, we can forego rational thinking, we can let go of critical thinking and reasoning and believe in magic or superstition, or mythology. And that that upbringing is what enables adults to fall for cults or to fall for extreme ideologies. And so there's really two things that factor into this discussion that we need to think about up front and that is, what is the temple? What is the belief? What are they teaching?
2:48
And the second part to that equation is, what am I hoping to gain and benefit? And then I am not able to get from other sources. And then the third thing we'll talk about is, what would an ideal religion look like? If we were starting from scratch? What kind of belief system would we want to set up that does the most good and the least harm?
3:19
And then we can see if a particular faith or religion falls in line with that kind of value system? Or is opposing it?
3:36
So the first thing is, what are they teaching? What are they promoting? At the core of what all religions teach?
3:47
Essentially, they are the same. And what I mean by that, is that in a spiritual sense, what happens without religion and spirituality, is that we think we're these bodies. And we assume that the thoughts in our head are who we really are.
4:14
And these thoughts pop into our head out of nowhere, and we unconsciously, unintentionally, often negatively, are lost in thought for most of our lives.
4:29
And there's really two ways we can deal with that. We can clear our mind of all thoughts, we can try very extreme practices to do that very long meditations, fasting, giving up all material possessions and living as an aesthetic trying to go without all the time.
5:00
Applications of life so that we can be fully free from thought, that is what some have tried to do, totally, of escape from society, and try to create a situational life where there is no need for thought, and nothing distracting us from the practice of freeing ourselves from thought.
5:30
These have been wandering monks and Sadhus throughout the East who have given up everything except a bowl and a robe and the bowl is what they beg for and where they're given food.
5:46
And that may be their only possession.
5:50
But what we all know deep down is that true spirituality and religion allows us to live in the world, but not be consumed by it, to fulfill our earthly duties, responsibilities and roles, but to maintain a peacefulness, a joy, and playfulness, and ultimately to remember that those roles are not who we truly are.
6:23
That that is not the end all be all that it doesn't contain the magnitude and magnificence of our lives, that those are simply the way we interact physically, and how we navigate this world. But it isn't, what is most important.
6:49
What is most important, is remembering our connection with everything with God, or the universe, or our fellow living beings we share this planet with, and to never lose that awe and wonder, and majesty and mystery of life.
7:16
So that we remain grateful, and that we remain filled with that love that has brought us into this world sustained us, and which we pass on to nourish and sustain others.
7:34
For many people, religion provides that framework to exist in society.
7:44
And the teachings, the stories, the metaphors, the prayers that we say throughout the day, become like new software for the brain that allows space for intentional, conscious, positive thoughts to take place. And that is an essential part of who we are.
8:14
Because we all have these brains that run off and jump from thought to thought and topic to topic and go crazy imagining the worst possible scenarios of every imagined situation.
8:33
And so creating this script, this blueprint, this practice for injecting some positive messages is deeply beneficial. And it doesn't just have to come from religion.
8:53
But when we live in a world where the most messages come from advertisements, TV and movies, music, books, and magazines, social media, then churches and temples have become largely the only source for positive messaging that nourishes the soul without the overt goal of profiting off of you.
9:30
It would be incredibly amazing if half the billboards reminded us to be more grateful to take a deep breath to relax and let go of our stress to help others and be kinder.
9:47
Unfortunately, we have zero ads that say that we have a few for churches and temples and that's really, when it's pure and it's an intent is to truly be that positive framework for our mindset. It's beautiful and wonderful that there's at least these organizations out there, offering people some spiritual help and guidance.
10:19
And at the end of the day, that is really what all religions do with their stories, and their regular holidays and festivals is to create that mental focal point of attention to be positive, and helpful.
10:37
And in that way, many people find going to church going to temple to be incredibly peaceful, and incredibly transformative for how they view the world, and how they interact with society.
10:56
Of course, the details may all be different the stories, the names of the characters, the names we use for God or many gods. But at the root, it is these stories that we carry with us in that we think about throughout our day and our lives.
11:19
And in a world with too few positive messages, these can be essential to find some respite and solace. Not to mention, when we walk into a beautiful church, or temple or Cathedral, the inspiration, we feel is profound and measurable and impacts our lives. Simply being in a beautiful place, where we're not rushed, where we can take a deep breath.
11:57
And we can be inspired, and uplifted.
12:03
Similarly, every religion has their spiritual practices, whether it's prayers, or lighting, candles, or tying string or holding beads, or lighting, incense, all of the beautiful traditions, these all create more opportunities to be fully present. And that just one moment of presence, just one moment between thoughts.
12:33
When we engage in a ceremony, it creates this order, and routine to otherwise chaotic and random lives. And even that can feel very reassuring, and gives many people a very deep sense of calm, which is so important to the spiritual health and wealth of a people. And so there has been tons of evidence and research done into the benefits of having rituals, and the impact that beautiful architecture has on our psyche and positive stories that give us hope for the future.
13:31
So for many people, not everybody, but for many people, religion, going to a certain place, creating these traditions that will pass down to our future generations has immense benefits. In Hinduism, there are four what they call paths of yoga, and these are paths to enlightenment or liberation or to finding our true self.
14:07
And it can be called Buddha hood, or Christ consciousness, or simply salvation or reaching that state of bliss and freedom from suffering. And one of those four paths is called bhakti. Yoga and bhakti yoga is the path of devotion and love towards your deity. So, this is one of those paths that helped us reach our highest potential.
14:43
While there are still three other paths that work for others and all of these paths can be combined in any combination for any person. There is no one way there is as Gandhi said. There are many paths, but the truth is one. And others have described it like reaching the peak of a mountain, there are many ways, and they all go to the same peak.
15:12
And so in this bhakti yoga, this path of devotion. This is that role that religions, temples, churches, mosques, all fulfill this is that loving worship of a lord or God, or many gods.
15:33
One could even be fully devoted to the universe as their deity, simply the miracle of existence itself.
15:43
And while the other paths are the paths of selfless service, and charity, and other path is, knowledge and intellect, like learning the scriptures, and analyzing deeply about the nature of our reality, and our suffering.
16:03
And yet another path is the path of yoga and meditation, in deeper reflection, in that practice of stillness and presence, becoming our habit. But for bhakti, yoga for that religious devotional path, we reach that state of constant love by using these rituals, and these deities, the faiths and the stories, and for people drawn to that path, going to church, going to temple is essential, and it calls them. And if it doesn't call you, if you get no benefit out of it, then maybe that isn't the path for you.
16:52
But there are other ways. And it doesn't have to be from one particular religion, or tradition, it can be from many, you can create it however you want it. And that ties me into the second topic of today, which is, what do you hope to get from your spiritual journey from your spiritual practices.
17:18
Some people may be just looking for community. And that is something meditation is much more difficult to fulfill.
17:27
And going to a church or a temple is one of the ways our modern society, our modern, technologically advanced, socially disconnected, society can find that comfort of community and community is healing. In places where people live the longest, they have the tightest, closest communities, and every member of the community is valued and feels needed.
17:58
And for so many people who live in a house or apartment with just them in their immediate family, who may only know people at work, or in their family, these opportunities to create a larger community can be very beneficial to mental health, physical health and spiritual health. If you want to sing in a choir or dance or festivities, then again religions and these spiritual traditions can be essential to fulfilling those needs.
18:40
If beautiful culture and ritual fills your soul, and your spirit, then again, these are essential to living in a way that honors those needs. For some people, watching a traditional holiday or festival is the most beautiful thing they've ever seen. For some people, it's the most boring thing I've ever seen. And it just goes to show that we are all different, we all have different needs, we all are drawn to different paths, but they all do lead to the same truth.
19:24
And lastly, which should religion and spirituality look like? If we were starting from scratch? If we knew then what we know now, how would we design the most beneficial, least harmful religion or spirituality?
19:52
And I think we would all agree that love should be at the core that you Unity, and unifying all of not even just humans, but all of God's creatures all of the universe's living beings, and does the least to divide us to create disagreements and arguments to have the least opportunity for extremists to hijack.
20:26
By claiming metaphors as literal, or myths as factual, we would want it to incorporate all of the paths to liberation and freedom. We would want charity, we would want loving devotion, meditation, and wisdom, knowledge, and intellectual analysis.
21:00
In fortunately, many of our modern religions do provide this space for personal interpretation. They provide space for accepting what speaks to you, and leaving aside what doesn't.
21:20
They allow for context and understanding of what society was like when these ancient texts were written, and what kind of audience they were speaking to, and how while it may not seem like it would be applicable or important to today, we can understand how at the time, it was a monumental leap forward.
21:51
And we can even acknowledge that if we were creating a religion today, it may not have worked 2000 years ago, when people were sacrificing animals and living in a much different way, dying from poor sanitation, or killing over minor disputes.
22:16
But fortunately, the majority of religious people are moderates. And they do bring rational thinking to their faith. And they are able to understand context of the time that the book was written.
22:40
And their religious leaders may share many of these more modern reflections of our ideals. And so it's not a stretch to imagine that one day we can have a religion that is the source of a tight knit community, but one where even outsiders feel welcomed.
23:08
Where we can understand that God, and soul are just names for incomprehensible, unimaginable concepts that we can never fully understand or wrap our heads around. And that these words, these names we use, are of very little importance because God is not the word God.
23:42
God cannot even be understood by a human mind. And these souls, these conscious awarenesses, we all have these words spirit and soul are merely pointers, they can only point us towards the truth, these words and names can never be the truth. And if we remember that these rituals, these names of God, they are merely the pointers, and which pointer doesn't matter. And when we can fully understand as a people, that the names you and I use may be different.
24:33
But we are all the children of this universe, the children of God, we are all looking for meaning and no one has a bigger God antenna than anyone else. And the danger of someone saying they speak for God. They know God's will. And then a religion turns from looking to God to looking to up arson is really where these problems arise.
25:05
And I do use the terms, God in the universe interchangeably, because it's very clear that all of these religions believe that there is this omnipresent God which means if God is everywhere, God isn't just in every atom and particle and every breath we breathe, but God is every atom in particle, all of it. And that if God is everywhere, God is everything. And that means that God and the universe are one, and that we are all God. And that we don't have to go to a temple or a church or cathedral.
25:52
We can go into a forest, we can go inward, and close our eyes, and turn our attention to that source of life and the universe within us, because it's there. It is everywhere. And it's not as much about a place that we physically go to experience it. It's simply about carrying it with us, wherever we go. And that is the source of freedom, salvation, and bliss. That all religions and gurus and temples and mosques are all helping us to find.
26:48
I hope you find it, peace and love.
26:53
You've been listening to path to peace with Todd Perelmuter. Being here and putting in this important and noble work is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself and others. If you found this podcast even a little helpful. Please make sure to leave a review so it can reach others who may be in need. And remember, the path to peace starts with a single step.