Are video games destroying spirituality?

Come on guys, let’s not get all heavy and philosophical just yet... honestly, I was recently out near the Appalachian Mountains for this robotics meetup, and man, between working hard, staring at the stars, and playing a few rounds of ping pong, we ended up hitting the UT several times... getting ten random people to join you at a UT on such short notice... there's nothing quite like it... who could even put a price on that feeling? It’s pure euphoria... and yeah, okay, maybe "wow" is a bit much, but once you realize how intense it is, you'll probably find yourself hooked... then you're left with something most people living "clean" lives will never understand... you have to decide if you're going to follow that path toward ruin or try to rise above it... spiritually speaking, I guess... it’s basically an addiction withdrawal, but if you can push through that, you come out the other side stronger than ever... every cloud has a silver lining, right? Just go for it, the high is insane... seriously, it hits somewhere right between cocaine and heroin 😬

casualeagle82 said:quote: Just because someone lives off the grid, stays awake 24/7, and spends their time on things most people would call useless, doesn't mean they aren't spiritual or following what others call "the heart." You have to separate the essentials from the noise. It's about knowing the right time, the right place, and the right way to act.

I’m 100% with this. If our quirks—no matter how weird, pointless, or even messy they seem to outsiders—are what actually make us happy and fulfilled, why shouldn't we lean into them? Ignore the judgment and the confusion from everyone else. The whole point of being alive isn't just existing; it's finding the stuff that actually makes life worth living.

My post was written from the perspective that there is no inherent "point" to existence, which I know most people find impossible to wrap their heads around.

P.S. Hey, when you're quoting someone, it's way easier to read if you include the full block. That means you shouldn't strip out the parts with the angle brackets. For example:

casualeagle82;29708752 said:. Also, to make sure the quote actually works, you can't forget to include the closing tag at the end:

If you want to quote someone without including their name, just highlight the text you want and hit the quote icon in the toolbar right next to the bold and italic options. It's the 15th icon in the row. You can also just manually type

before the text and

after it.

Gregory Jackson said:So, yeah, that’s just my way of paraphrasing the general vibe of it. But, man, I see people just don't get it, so let me try explaining again: the quality of your consciousness—which is, I mean, a pretty undeniable sign of someone's personal growth—doesn't actually depend on specific actions or things you're doing in the moment. Most of the time, we're just unconscious, or we aren't really "there," just kind of running like machines following some pre-set program. And when we're in that state, we end up creating all this psychological mess, tension, and pain for ourselves. If you can actually maintain awareness—that state of expanded consciousness where your thoughts, mechanisms, or reactions don't cloud what's actually happening—then you can do that in any situation. Just... I don't know, try playing a video game for four days straight without stopping, or try working at full capacity with total awareness for that long. It's a brutal spiritual challenge. And just so I don't have to deal with anyone else misunderstanding me: honestly, staying conscious for even fifteen solid minutes is a huge feat, let alone trying to do it for four days while doing anything at all.

What you're talking about now is a different beast entirely. It might not be a direct pivot from my original point, but the subject matter is definitely different.

I'll weigh in on that, too. Playing a game for four days straight while being "conscious" is not the same thing as what you're describing. You're assuming that how "deep" someone is is directly tied to how much awareness they have, which ignores intention or motivation—and those are massive factors. In fact, they're everything.

Playing games consciously for four days is mostly just a reflection of having too much free time, nothing more. On the flip side, killing people while being fully conscious for four days would be a reflection of pure malice, not "spiritual depth."
Being a spiritual person through your actions requires more than just being aware. There's a whole element of love involved, but since people seem to miss the mark on that, I won't dive into it right now.

wearyhawk83 said:My post was written from the perspective that there is no inherent "point" to existence, which I know most people find impossible to wrap their heads around.

P.S. Hey, when you're quoting someone, it's way easier to read if you include the full block. That means you shouldn't strip out the parts with the angle brackets. For example:

If you want to quote someone without including their name, just highlight the text you want and hit the quote icon in the toolbar right next to the bold and italic options. It's the 15th icon in the row. You can also just manually type after it.

What you're talking about now is a different beast entirely. It might not be a direct pivot from my original point, but the subject matter is definitely different.

I'll weigh in on that, too. Playing a game for four days straight while being "conscious" is not the same thing as what you're describing. You're assuming that how "deep" someone is is directly tied to how much awareness they have, which ignores intention or motivation—and those are massive factors. In fact, they're everything.

Playing games consciously for four days is mostly just a reflection of having too much free time, nothing more. On the flip side, killing people while being fully conscious for four days would be a reflection of pure malice, not "spiritual depth."
Being a spiritual person through your actions requires more than just being aware. There's a whole element of love involved, but since people seem to miss the mark on that, I won't dive into it right now.

We keep talking past each other, like we're arguing about nothing important, so maybe it's better if we just leave it at that.

Quote: I wrote my post from the perspective that there is no point to existence, which is just my personal take. Most people don't get it.

Are you kidding me with this sentence???? Are you guys actually trying this hard to sound deep, or are you just illiterate? "The nonexistence of the point of existence." Seriously, you're starting to overdo it with this stuff (if I can even call it a thesis)...

Just talk like a normal person. Stop acting so high and mighty.

casualeagle82 said:Quote: I wrote my post from the perspective that there is no point to existence, which is just my personal take. Most people don't get it.

Are you kidding me with this sentence???? Are you guys actually trying this hard to sound deep, or are you just illiterate? "The nonexistence of the point of existence." Seriously, you're starting to overdo it with this stuff (if I can even call it a thesis)...

Just talk like a normal person. Stop acting so high and mighty.

Maybe you didn't catch my drift, so let me break it down simply. When I mentioned writing from "the perspective of the nonexistence of the point of existence," maybe the wordplay just rubbed someone the wrong way.

Basically, I was saying my stance is that life doesn't have an inherent meaning. That definitely doesn't mean I haven't found my own purpose. I added that second sentence specifically to shut down the idea that I'm just being pretentious or playing philosopher—it's not some shallow attempt to act smart.

Look, it’s not cool to tell people how to act unless they’re actually causing trouble, but it’s also worth pointing out when certain phrasing comes off as disrespectful to the person you're talking to.

Look, my bad, maybe I went too far. But you're basically contradicting yourself here: you claim life has no meaning, yet you act like you’ve actually found some. If there's truly no point to any of this, then how—and why on earth do you think you've stumbled upon one?

casualeagle82 said:quote: I want to develop my spirituality so much that I won't even need a computer.

How can you even know if you've actually reached that level or not? And what's your definition of spirituality anyway?

For the five hundredth time!!
I never claimed to be a spiritual guru, nor did I suggest that I have already reached some state of enlightenment!
All I said was that I am merely at the beginning of this journey.
Do you honestly believe you hold a monopoly on wisdom here?
What would your solution be then? Should one simply sit there staring at a screen all day and do nothing else??
My point was quite simple: if I succeed in my pursuit of spiritual growth, the distractions of materialism and the physical world will naturally lose their grip on me.
There.👋

Quote: The 500th time!!
I never claimed to be some spiritual guru or said I’d already reached enlightenment.
I’m just saying I’m at the starting line.
Do you really think you've got it all figured out?
What’s your solution then? Just stare at a computer screen all day and nothing else??
My point was, if I actually focus on spiritual growth, then material stuff won't carry nearly as much weight.

This conversation drifted away from the actual topic a long time ago. Nobody is telling you to *only* play games. Even if you don't play at all, you aren't missing much in life. Your question was whether gaming destroys spirituality (whatever version of that you're trying to find, learn, or buy). My answer is NO—and I think that's the third time I've said it, so I'm nowhere near my 500th attempt. Games provide one way to interact with a medium. It's up to you whether you take it too far and neglect everything else. My posts are just pointing out that, first and foremost, we exist in the PHYSICAL world. We eat physical food, drink physical liquids, trade physical goods for other physical goods, wear physical clothes, and drive vehicles made of matter—you know, substance and physical fields.
You claim that once you develop spirituality, the material world won't matter. Well, try depriving yourself of any of those basics and see how much "spirituality" helps when you're starving or trying not to freeze to death in a Chicago winter.

casualeagle82 said:Look, my bad, maybe I went too far. But you're basically contradicting yourself here: you claim life has no meaning, yet you act like you’ve actually found some. If there's truly no point to any of this, then how—and why on earth do you think you've stumbled upon one?

Apology accepted!

As for the whole "meaning vs. meaninglessness" debate, let's save that for another day in a different thread. Honestly, I wasn't even trying to convince anyone else—I just wanted to be real about how arrogant and contradictory I can be sometimes. Better to be honest about it than to pretend otherwise, right?

Catch you guys in the next discussion! 🙂

It isn't that I have any intention of renouncing the comforts of life or refusing to enjoy a good meal 🤣 rather, my perspective is simply shifting; I find that material possessions—things like wealth, luxury vehicles, or the size of one's estate
are becoming increasingly secondary to me.

Arthur White37 said:For the five hundredth time!!
I never claimed to be a spiritual guru, nor did I suggest that I have already reached some state of enlightenment!
All I said was that I am merely at the beginning of this journey.
Do you honestly believe you hold a monopoly on wisdom here?
What would your solution be then? Should one simply sit there staring at a screen all day and do nothing else??
My point was quite simple: if I succeed in my pursuit of spiritual growth, the distractions of materialism and the physical world will naturally lose their grip on me.
There.👋

The material world is basically just a classroom. Is school unimportant? Not at all. You have to go through the curriculum first if you ever want to graduate and move on. Everything happens when it's supposed to.

casualeagle82 said:Quote: The 500th time!!
I never claimed to be some spiritual guru or said I’d already reached enlightenment.
I’m just saying I’m at the starting line.
Do you really think you've got it all figured out?
What’s your solution then? Just stare at a computer screen all day and nothing else??
My point was, if I actually focus on spiritual growth, then material stuff won't carry nearly as much weight.

This conversation drifted away from the actual topic a long time ago. Nobody is telling you to *only* play games. Even if you don't play at all, you aren't missing much in life. Your question was whether gaming destroys spirituality (whatever version of that you're trying to find, learn, or buy). My answer is NO—and I think that's the third time I've said it, so I'm nowhere near my 500th attempt. Games provide one way to interact with a medium. It's up to you whether you take it too far and neglect everything else. My posts are just pointing out that, first and foremost, we exist in the PHYSICAL world. We eat physical food, drink physical liquids, trade physical goods for other physical goods, wear physical clothes, and drive vehicles made of matter—you know, substance and physical fields.
You claim that once you develop spirituality, the material world won't matter. Well, try depriving yourself of any of those basics and see how much "spirituality" helps when you're starving or trying not to freeze to death in a Chicago winter.

I think your perspective is a bit flawed because it’s overly idealistic. I mean, you could argue the internet is a drug, but it's also a school. Video games? They're pure addiction and a drain on resources. Though, I suppose school can be a situation you find yourself stuck in sometimes.

Arthur White37 said:So, here is my situation. I am quite fond of PC gaming, and there are times when I find myself lost in it for hours on end—honestly, I don't know where I would be if my parents didn't set some boundaries on my screen time 😢....
I have spent a significant amount of time delving into various conspiracy theories, and I frequently immerse myself in books regarding spirituality. I also make a conscious effort to practice meditation 😢, as I am truly striving toward a deeper level of spiritual growth.
My question is this: does my passion for computer games somehow undermine my spiritual journey? Should I consider giving it up entirely? If I were to stop, I suspect it would be an incredibly difficult transition for me to navigate.
👎 😠

It really depends—your age, what you’re actually playing, how your life is set up, all that stuff.

When you're looking at those deep, existential levels of being, mindless entertainment doesn't really cut it—you wouldn't even feel the urge to play, most likely. But if you're just navigating day-to-day life and trying to find some happiness in the world, games can actually be great. They help you unwind, they lift your mood, and if you're playing team-based stuff, they can even be a way to socialize.

There's also a massive difference between types of games; I mean, Tetris and a hardcore first-person shooter are both "games," but they serve completely different purposes.

If you're building a life where your goal is simply to find contentment in this world, then gaming can be a tool to help you get there. Just make sure you aren't becoming dependent on it—don't take the digital stuff too personally, and definitely don't use it as an excuse to avoid the real world. That imaginary landscape can easily pull you away from actually perceiving reality if you let it.

quote Paul Jones7: your take sucks because you're just wishful thinking. - what on earth was the poet trying to say there?div>

casualeagle82 said:quote Paul Jones7: your take sucks because you're just wishful thinking. - what on earth was the poet trying to say there?div>

What they meant is... well, wishful thinking usually implies you're just trying to protect your own ego—you know, twisting things so the truth fits your own little narrative instead of just facing the facts for what they really are.

I’m just standing up for common sense here. It just so happens that my logic aligns with what I believe...

Morgan Ramirez30 said:A healthy, well-adjusted person isn't going to suffer any "consequences" from playing a video game, no matter how violent it might be, simply because a sane individual can easily tell the difference between reality and a digital simulation.

Just my two cents, though—if someone starts off from the premise that playing a game could actually damage their spirituality, they probably aren't feeling particularly healthy or balanced themselves. I’d honestly suggest the OP might want to a) try broadening their horizons, b) have a chat with a professional—maybe a spiritual advisor, a priest, or a doctor, whatever they feel like—and c) perhaps try to compensate, if nothing else, by finding some way they find acceptable to offset or dial back that sense of being overly spiritual...

👍 Exactly. Once you shut down the PC, the real world starts staring back at you. Video games might be a quick escape from the grind, but they shouldn't—and honestly, they can't—mess with who you are or how you function, especially when it comes to actually interacting with real people and finding some kind of soul in the middle of it all.

Video games are such a massive time sink when there are so many better ways to spend our lives. Kids especially have zero sense of boundaries these days; they get hooked and just won't
stop. I’m all for playing in moderation—it isn't inherently bad—but people are losing control
of the situation. And honestly, how much is this eroding our spiritual side? 🤷
It's pretty clear that when you're glued to a screen, there's simply no room left for anything spiritual.

The more we lean on this global internet technology, the less we engage with our own inner-net technology 😉