How To Cultivate Spirituality In Person

Many of us grew up going to a house of worship with our families, sometimes regularly or sometimes only on special holidays. Humans are fond of rituals. Ceremonies or actions performed to honor an occasion or to reaffirm a belief are pervasive in our culture. There’s good reason for this – there’s power in repetition and routine. That’s why forming your own personal practices, apart from any spiritual or religious groups that you may be a part of, is an important component of spiritual growth.

Grounding

One great practice to cultivate is grounding. It’s easy to tell when grounding may be useful-- you may not feel like yourself, you may feel overwhelmed, out of touch, or a little more sensitive than usual. Any time you feel like you’ve been spinning your wheels without getting anywhere is a good time to slow down, check in, and ground. Grounding can take many forms, but all grounding practices are meant to form a bridge between spirit and matter and can help to increase your sense of balance and stability.

How to Ground Yourself

When forming personal practices, it’s best to start by paying attention to your own experiences. Spend some time thinking about your past experiences in religious or spiritual settings. What made you feel more in tune with your understanding of a higher power? Was it singing? Praying with hands held? If you don’t have experience in religious or spiritual settings, think about times when you felt most connected. Maybe it was time spent around a campfire with friends or hiking to the top of a mountain trail alone. Give yourself a few minutes to journal about what comes up.

When you feel like you’ve thoroughly explored your past experiences, consider whether there were any patterns. Not everyone is called to the same kind of practices. So consider the common elements in what came up for you-- do you feel most connected when you’re with other people or when you’re alone? When you’re in nature? At night, during the day? Is it physical or intellectual? Now get creative. How can you incorporate these elements into a practice. There are endless possibilities. Think of your grounding practice as a constant bell that you can tune into. Here are some suggestions:

Use your breath. Your breath is always with you, making it the perfect tool for getting centered and grounded. Take some time to close your eyes and follow your breathing. Don’t try to change the way you’re breathing at first, just observe. Then, as it feels comfortable, slow down your breathing. You can add grounding words to aid the practice. For example, breath in “love”, breathe out “fear”.

Visualize. A simple grounding practice for someone who feels connected to nature but may work in an office or live in a city is visualization. In this case, take a few minutes with eyes closed to visualize yourself in your favorite park or forest. See yourself standing in nature, interacting with the world around you. Explore the area with your senses – what does it sound like, smell like? Where is the source of light? How is it falling on your path? Maybe nature isn’t your thing. This practice also works for those who feel connected to particular spaces. Visualizing a safe space, like a sanctuary full of candles, can be a very beneficial practice when you feel out of sorts.

Express gratitude. One simple way to get grounded is to express gratitude. Require yourself to list 10 things that you’re grateful for on a piece of paper or in a journal. Items on this list can be as simple as “sunlight” and as exciting as “my recent promotion”. The point is to call yourself back to your reality. This is a practice that can quickly change your perspective. If you happen to be someone who feels most connected when in touch with other people, start a gratitude text or email chain with a group of friends. Grounding practices should be available to you at any time of the day, in any space. Challenge yourself to get connected in a way that works for you.