In one of the books on prayers I read about medical schools in US. In 1990, 3 out of 125 medical schools have courses where spirituality was addressed. The no went upto 90 in 2008 in which spiritual lessons were given to correlated spirituality and health. The findings are that the people who practice live longer than those who do not practice it. they have lower incidence of all major diseases.
I belong to India where spirituality is practiced from the word go. (more than 10 thousand years as per the history inputs). Today, for regret, what is achieved by American medical schools through giving importance to spiritual part is hardly seen in medical schools here. Really a very sad part.
Having said this, there are reasons and the main reason looks to be the way commercialization has taken grip over the minds of people here over last 30 odd years. The cooperation is replaced by competition and the need by GREED (the most dangerous enemy of spiritual life).
Religion and spiritual life has become synonyms, unfortunately. Religious people project them as spiritual ones..deteriorating further the essence of spiritual life. There are more followers than leaders, the followers who hardly know the nature and practice of spiritual life.
Religion is definitely not a synonym of spirituality, `peace` surely is. I open this topic for discussion to attain better clarity and spend great life..
Comments
Yes, i mean to say that let them have their own entity, let them act as complementary agents, but not certainly creating a conflict. It is observed that religions have been creating conflicts, spiritually this is not approved. Good to have such debates as finally the aim is reach to a greater clarity..
Of course, spirituality and religion don't have to be considered the same. But nevertheless, one also shouldn't deny the certain fact that they both are connected with each other, having at least one essential thing in common: being practiced appropriately, they can be good contributors to the moral development of personality...