Holistic Education for Integral Human Development
Cultivating our minds can take place at any time, when we maintain mindfulness within and harmlessness towards all beings.
Spiritual practice is the regular performance of wholesome activities through our actions, speech and thoughts, for the purpose of spiritual development. A common metaphor used to describe this development is that of “walking a path”. Spiritual practice moves a practitioner along a path towards a goal – that of liberation from afflictions through purification of morality, concentration and wisdom.
The focus of spiritual practice is not just the physical actions we perform, but about the mental purification that takes place. For example, it is not just how long we are able to meditate, rather it is more about the peace and serenity we develop in our daily lives. It not about how often we go to the temple, but the quality of our interactions with the community; and it is not about how many Pāli words we know, but how deep we understand and practice the Buddha’s teachings.
Spirituality is really about our capacity and willingness to be guided by the Dhamma. This means :
- Adopting a sincere practice of inquiry leading to inner experience and freedom.
- Letting go of attachments to how we think things should be.
- Quieting the voice of our ego so we can hear the voice of wisdom.
- Stepping out of our comfort zone to change ourselves for the better.
- Rendering our service to the community.
It is important to keep in mind that our worldly pursuits need not conflict with commitment to our spiritual practice and service to the Sāsana. Rather, we should use every opportunity to cultivate virtuous and skillful states of mind. If every moment, and every day is spent well in accordance with Dhamma, we have truly lived well.