With the start of the New Year, everyone is making New Year’s Resolutions. It may be that your thoughts turn towards spirituality. Let me ask you, are you spiritual?

I believe that everyone is spiritual because spirituality is a gift that comes with being human. We may have forgotten our spirituality along the way. However, if we take time to develop the three core experiences discussed below, we can learn to live in a way that supports and strengthens our spirituality.

Being Present
When we are completely ‘present’, without the mind dwelling on the past or guessing what the future holds, our experience changes in a significant way.
Several studies have found that athletes who are ‘in the moment’ experience being ‘in the flow’. This is a state in which you feel relaxed, focused, and confident with no sense of time passing. All actions seem effortless, with mind and body working in perfect harmony.

Learning to be ‘present’ is the basis of all spirituality and personal growth. For example, you can’t learn to be kind without being ‘present’. Why? Because when you’re preoccupied, you miss opportunities to help others in need.

Here is a simple way to find the ‘present’ moment right now. Take a slow, deep breath and you notice how the soles of your feet feel as they touch the ground. Stay with the experience for a few more breaths and notice what happens. When you open your awareness to the present moment, your preoccupation with life’s distractions disappears and spaciousness begins.

We are all interconnected
All of us experience moments when we feel deeply connected. It is as if the barrier that defines our body melts and there is no distinction between one being and another.

Can you remember moments when you experienced a sense of kinship with another human being or another being? Maybe there were moments when you hugged your loved one and the idea being separate melted away. Maybe there were moments of kindness when you felt an intense connection to another being, even though you might not have known them well.

We can enhance our natural capacity for connection by learning to be ‘present’, by learning to listen intently, by having a conscious relationship with ourselves and others, and by practicing love and kindness. These are all part of our natural spirituality.

A Life without Limits
You may say, “What do you mean by ‘a life without limits?’ A ‘life without limits’ means it has no boundaries. In our everyday life, the boundary between ‘self’ and ‘other’ seems quite distinct. We see ourselves as individual, separate beings: “I’m in here; you are over there”. We struggle and strive to make a better life for ourselves.

Natural spirituality shows a different way of living life. When we become ‘present’ to what is happening right now, we suddenly wake up and discover the vastness that we are.

Do you remember moments in time that offered spaciousness and ease? Maybe they were moments with nature when you witnessed the most beautiful sunset where you felt one with the universe. Or maybe it was moments of stillness during a time of meditation or introspection. Whatever the moments were, you may have noticed that the struggle of life stopped for a while.

Just imagine how your life would be if you could let go of the struggle and embrace ease and kindness instead! Each of us has the capacity to transform our life in that way. All we need to do is nourish our natural spirituality. The nourishment can come from simple changes to our everyday life and from traditional practices, such as meditation.

So I ask you again, are you are spiritual person or have you forgotten yourself along the way? Take back your natural spirituality by being present, develop your connections with others and allow yourself to live a life without limits.