Summary Human Spirit

THE DECODING OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT
 A Synergy of Spirituality and Character Strengths Toward Wholeness

 Little attention has been given to the integral relationship between
character strengths and spirituality (the search for or communing with
the sacred to derive meaning and purpose).
 In this exploration, we argue that there is a robust synergy of these
sciences and practices revealing that spirituality is vitally concerned
with promoting character strengths.
 At the same time, character strengths can enhance and deepen
spiritual practices, rituals, and experiences. We elaborate on how
character strengths and spirituality come together in the context of
the psycho-spiritual journey toward wholeness.
 "Values in Action Inventory,“(VIA) a psychological assessment
approach.
The VIA Institute on Character
The science of strengths. The practice of wellbeing.
About the VIA Institute on Character
Based in Cincinnati, Ohio, the VIA Institute on Character is a non-
profit organization dedicated to bringing the science of character
strengths to the world.
 By wholeness, we are referring to a way of being in the world that
involves a life-affirming view of oneself and the world, a capacity to
see and approach life with breadth and depth and the ability to
organize the life journey into a cohesive whole. We further discuss six
levels by which spirituality can be integrated within the VIA
Classification, including a meta-perspective in which wholeness
represents a meta-strength or superordinate virtue.
 We frame two pathways of integration: the grounding path, in which
character strengths offer tangibility and thereby deepen and enhance
spirituality, and the sanctification path, in which spirituality elevates
character strengths.
 Finally, we turn to research-based practices and examine how
character strengths might facilitate and contribute to spiritual
practices and, conversely, how spirituality might enhance character
strength practices. Such multifaceted integration offers insight and
wisdom to both areas of study and opens up new directions for
psycho-spiritual research and practices to deepen and broaden our
understanding of what it means to be human.
“If a man is to live, he must be all alive, body, soul, mind, heart, spirit.” –
Thomas Merton
 Spirituality is a significant and universal aspect of human experience.

The specific content of spiritual belief, practice, and experience
varies, but all cultures have a concept of an ultimate, transcendent,
sacred, or divine force (Peterson and Seligman, 2004). Spirituality is
consistently defined by scientists as the search for, or communion
with, the sacred.
 Embedded in this definition are three core concepts – the sacred or
the transcendent (beyond the ordinary), a connection or relationship
with the sacred, and the search for ultimate meaning or purpose.
 The word “sacred” most commonly refers to God, higher power,
divinity, or qualities associated with the divine, such as
transcendence, ultimacy, boundlessness, and deep connectedness.
 People can experience the sacred through a variety of channels,
such as a sense of connection, closeness, or oneness with the
transcendent, a theistic being, oneself, humanity, all living beings, or
nature. This notion is not exclusive to Christians,but even rooted from
about 300 B.C namely; Plato’s spirituality.
 Mixture of philosophy and religion defines Plato's tradition of
spirituality known as Platonism. The view of God as a First Principle
or Supreme Good rather than a person is based on platonistic
doctrine that anything that have personality is changeable and
belongs to Lower Realm, while God is an eternal principle who
emanates unchangeable unintelligible Forms in the Upper Realm.
 According to Plato, ascent to heaven from the„cave“ or world of
shadows could happen only after the conversion of inverted soul
through "intellectual vision" or "ascetic paradigm". The very concept
of spirituality in the West as we know it today comes from Plato and it
is still an integral part of all three monotheistic religions today .
 In the „Republic“ (authored by Plato)we learn about Allegory of the
Cave; in „Meno“ Theory of the Recollection; in „Phaedo“ Theory of
the Immortality of the Soul; in „Phaedrus“ Theory of Division and the
Fall of the Soul; and finally in „Symposium“ we learn about doctrine
of Platonic Love. Platonic love means a supremely affectionate
relationship between human beings in which sexual intercourse is
neither desired nor practiced.
Kenneth I. Pargament (born November 3, 1950) is an emeritus

professor of psychology at Bowling Green State University (Ohio, USA).
 The term “search” refers to the process of discovering,

maintaining, and at times transforming a relationship with the
sacred. People can search for the sacred within traditional
religious contexts as well as nontraditional contexts. Moreover,
pathways to the sacred can take the form of spiritual practices,
such as meditation and prayer; spiritual beliefs, such as beliefs in
an afterlife or karma; spiritual relationships with family, friends, or
institutions; and spiritual experiences such as mystical encounters
and sacred moments (Pargament et al., 2013b).
 Asserting our Christian spirituality as far better than that of pagan
Plato, we must have to all the more strengthen our spirituality and
be the source of others’ strength. (Lisud na’ng huna-huna ra). It
should be the Latin’s “Adequatio rei et intellectus,” the
correspondence of mind and reality.
 It is important to add that spirituality has demonstrated a potential
to bring out both the best and the worst in human nature
(e.g., Pargament, 2002). We will predominantly focus here on the
brighter side of spirituality.
 The next item will be spiritual trap. But before going thru it, let us
have a side trip on the pagan’s understanding of the soul in view of
the spiritual one.
 Soul is consist of intellectual soul, spiritual soul, appetitive soul.
Appetitive soul is a faculty which is responsible for our emotions
and desires (such as joy, grief, hope and fear). To Aristotle, the
seat of control should lie within intellectual soul.
 But for Plato, balance between intellectual soul, spiritual soul, and
appetitive soul with emphasis of intellect as leading and should
ensure balance, not spiritual (i.e.,to Plato’s mind more of emotion),
nor the appetitive (desire of the flesh). Here, we are being lead to
understand the necessary synergy between intellect and spirit in
every human person, or intellect and emotion working together for
a healthy spiritual growth. Remember, reasoning is intellectual
enterprise, faith is spirituality.
 The possibility of landing to Mars is an intellectual endeavour. But,
the belief in the purification of the soul and the belief in the
communion with the Divine is spiritual. With this synergy, we
cannot be deceived saying for instance that we are “in-loved, when
the truth is that we just sufficed the desire of the flesh.
Spiritual Traps: False Signs of Spiritual Awakening
So before we go into authentic symptoms of spiritual awakening, let’s

review common false signs.
 Trap #1: Thinking You’re “Good” and Others Are “Evil”
 This belief is deeply rooted in most of us as it’s a typical program

taught in all Western religions.
 To uproot this belief requires shadow work. You’ll know you’ve

undone this limiting belief when you stop judging others and instead
see yourself in everyone you meet.
 Trap #2: Identifying Yourself as a “Spiritual Person”
 This false identification is universal in both religious and new age

circles. You are neither spiritual or material. You transcend and
include them both.
 Identifying yourself as being spiritual is a sign of a spiritual ego or
inflation (discussed below). Again, shadow work will help you see
that you’re no different or better than anyone else.
 Trap #3: Seeking “Love and Light”
 Pursuing “love and light” or “goodness” is another deep-rooted

program in religious and new age teachings that block authentic
spiritual development. Acting “spiritual” creates a persona or social
mask that gives others the impression that we’re “good people.”
While this persona might elevate our status and increase our self-
esteem, it does not promote psychological or spiritual growth.
 In truth, spiritual awakening comes from the opposite direction where

we face the fear, anger, guilt, and grief stored in us since childhood.
Coming to terms with these experiences paves the way for authentic
spiritual development.
 Trap #4: Acting Nice
 Acting nice and being innocent isn’t a spiritual awakening sign but an
indication of psychological immaturity. We are told by our parents and
various institutions (school, religion, etc.) to “be nice” and behave
ourselves. And we comply with this demand, to varying degrees,
thereby reinforcing the shadow side.
 If you’re acting nice, it’s a sure sign that someone is manipulating
you. (The original manipulator or Trickster is usually a parent, but
now it’s in you.) In contrast, a mature adult acts assertively without
seeking the approval of others.
 Trap #5: Secretly Believing You’re Better Than Others
 Perhaps you see a pattern here: all of these traps points to ego
inflation. Spiritual awakening grounds us in our humanity, and yet,
more often, spirituality becomes another tool for disassociation,
judgmentalism, and grandiosity.
 This trap often occurs when you:
 Read a lot of spiritual texts
 Join a spiritual or religious group
 Start a spiritual practice
 Find a spiritual teacher
 Specialness is yet another ego game.
 When you think you’ve “found it,” be on high alert. This belief is a
symptom of a specific early stage of psychological development, not
a spiritual awakening sign.
 All of these subconscious signs also point to emotional vampirism.
 Beware of the Spiritual Bypass
 Perhaps the biggest trap in the spirituality game is called the “spiritual
bypass.”
 Here, we use spiritual ideas and practices to avoid unresolved

emotional or psychological wounds. These wounds must be
addressed to proceed in our psycho-spiritual development.
Martin Heidegger was a German philosopher who is best known for

contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism.
 We often resist this process because addressing these wounds

requires going through the discomfort they represent.
 These wounds are mainly childhood traumas. In fact, virtually every

emotional trigger you have in your present environment is likely from
your past.
 As Heidegger puts it, “The Dreadful has already happened.”
 A great many individuals in various Eastern and Western religions fall

into the spiritual bypass trap. I did too for most of my 30s.
What are the symptoms of spiritual distress?
 Feelings of anger or hopelessness.

 Feelings of depression and anxiety.
 Difficulty sleeping.
 Feeling abandoned by God.
 Questioning the meaning of life or suffering.
 Questioning beliefs or sudden doubt in spiritual or religious beliefs.
 Asking why this situation occurred?
 To conclude, inscribe this in your heart and mind. Man inasmuch that
he is a metaphysical dichotomy between body and soul should
endeavour a synergy between both realm in his being for that is the
totality of his being. Inseparable so to speak. And both are needing to
be nourished: One, is corporeal nourishment (biological needs i.e.,
food, etc.); the other one spiritual nourishment (requiring spiritual
exercises i.e., prayer, meditation, contemplation, constant spiritual
consultations and directions, and thoughts or spiritual sharing),
guided with the light of that great sense of openness.
 And that, whenever you have trouble, psychological,

spiritual/emotional do not allow yourself to just keep it within
yourself----open it up to any trusted one. Share to someone you trust!
That, if you find yourself as withdrawing already, that you think no
one is trusting, that you no longer trust anybody, that’s the time you
should consider yourself as needing immediate spiritual attention.
Because while it may be true that it is so hard to find someone to trust
to, it is not true that no one deserve a trust.
Seek and certainly you shall find.

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THE DECODING OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT

 A Synergy of Spirituality and Character Strengths Toward Wholeness

 Spirituality is a significant and universal aspect of human experience.

Kenneth I. Pargament (born November 3, 1950) is an emeritus

 The term “search” refers to the process of discovering,

Spiritual Traps: False Signs of Spiritual Awakening

So before we go into authentic symptoms of spiritual awakening, let’s

 Trap #1: Thinking You’re “Good” and Others Are “Evil”

 This belief is deeply rooted in most of us as it’s a typical program

 To uproot this belief requires shadow work. You’ll know you’ve

 Trap #2: Identifying Yourself as a “Spiritual Person”

 This false identification is universal in both religious and new age

 Trap #3: Seeking “Love and Light”

 Pursuing “love and light” or “goodness” is another deep-rooted

 In truth, spiritual awakening comes from the opposite direction where

 Trap #4: Acting Nice

 Trap #5: Secretly Believing You’re Better Than Others

 This trap often occurs when you:

 Read a lot of spiritual texts

 Join a spiritual or religious group

 Start a spiritual practice

 Find a spiritual teacher

 Specialness is yet another ego game.

 Beware of the Spiritual Bypass

 Here, we use spiritual ideas and practices to avoid unresolved

Martin Heidegger was a German philosopher who is best known for

 We often resist this process because addressing these wounds

 These wounds are mainly childhood traumas. In fact, virtually every

 As Heidegger puts it, “The Dreadful has already happened.”

 A great many individuals in various Eastern and Western religions fall

What are the symptoms of spiritual distress?

 Feelings of anger or hopelessness.

 Feeling abandoned by God.

 Questioning the meaning of life or suffering.

 Questioning beliefs or sudden doubt in spiritual or religious beliefs.

 Asking why this situation occurred?

 And that, whenever you have trouble, psychological,

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