Can spirituality exist without God?

Is believing in something greater than ourselves—a deeper purpose behind our existence—merely the initial spark that sets us on a spiritual journey, or is it a constant companion along the way? Can spirituality truly exist without God, regardless of how one defines Him? Is it possible to be spiritual without being a believer? Furthermore, if you feel you "know" something for certain, how do you distinguish actual knowledge from simply having faith in what you know?

Is there anything out there without God?

has it in her husband🙄

Creative life energy doesn't need to take a physical form to exist.

mistybison said:Is believing in something greater than ourselves—a deeper purpose behind our existence—merely the initial spark that sets us on a spiritual journey, or is it a constant companion along the way? Can spirituality truly exist without God, regardless of how one defines Him? Is it possible to be spiritual without being a believer? Furthermore, if you feel you "know" something for certain, how do you distinguish actual knowledge from simply having faith in what you know?

For those who view people primarily as souls merely wearing physical bodies while walking this Earth, spirituality isn't just an option; it's baked right into the core of who you are, making it pretty much impossible to ignore... though whether that ties back to faith depends entirely on how we define faith—specifically, if we define it as believing in a non-material reality and our own non-physical essence. Whether we decide to call that higher dimension God, a creator, a universal force, pure energy, or just love, it doesn't really change the mechanics of it...
So, I'd say if we don't believe there's some kind of non-material source out there, it's going to be incredibly hard to follow any spiritual path at all, mostly because we wouldn't even realize such a path exists in the first place. So, my take would be: you can't have spirituality without God, though I should add that this "God" doesn't necessarily have anything to do with religious definitions or the traditional ways people depict Him...

rustymaker5 said:For those who view people primarily as souls merely wearing physical bodies while walking this Earth, spirituality isn't just an option; it's baked right into the core of who you are, making it pretty much impossible to ignore... though whether that ties back to faith depends entirely on how we define faith—specifically, if we define it as believing in a non-material reality and our own non-physical essence. Whether we decide to call that higher dimension God, a creator, a universal force, pure energy, or just love, it doesn't really change the mechanics of it...
So, I'd say if we don't believe there's some kind of non-material source out there, it's going to be incredibly hard to follow any spiritual path at all, mostly because we wouldn't even realize such a path exists in the first place. So, my take would be: you can't have spirituality without God, though I should add that this "God" doesn't necessarily have anything to do with religious definitions or the traditional ways people depict Him...

I get where you're coming from, but that raises a massive question: does it even make sense to talk about God if that entity lacks any actual personality or traits? Let me clarify my own position and try to address the core issue from the original post. Personally, I see humans as souls—meaning we possess an immaterial, immortal component. I wouldn't call it "belief" in the sense of blind faith used to mask ignorance; I remember things from previous lives, which means I "know" death isn't the end. Broadly speaking, I believe there is an invisible, spiritual dimension to this world. It’s something you can feel and connect with, even if science can't pull out a ruler and measure it.

I can believe in the existence of various entities—good and bad, let's call them angels and demons—without viewing them through a strictly Christian lens, nor am I claiming to be an expert on them. It just feels logical and probable to me. Depending on our behavior, our nature, our history, and our goals, these forces influence us.

So, where does God fit into this mess? Suppose I believe the soul is a fragment of God, a piece that always remembers its origin and tries to find its way home, no matter how many layers of ego are covering it up. But do I believe there is a conscious, sentient personality out there that can be called God? I honestly don't know. When things go wrong—whether it's a personal crisis or global chaos—I tend to think we are the ones responsible. As a collective of souls, we are the ones who have to fix what we broke. No external consciousness, no God, is going to step in and do it for us. Non-material entities might help us or hinder us, but they don't hold ultimate authority. Whether there exists an omnipotent being with total power and infinite knowledge is the question Enchi posed, but I don't have an answer for that. I've chewed on it, but I'm still stuck.

Grace Bennett4 said:I get where you're coming from, but that raises a massive question: does it even make sense to talk about God if that entity lacks any actual personality or traits? Let me clarify my own position and try to address the core issue from the original post. Personally, I see humans as souls—meaning we possess an immaterial, immortal component. I wouldn't call it "belief" in the sense of blind faith used to mask ignorance; I remember things from previous lives, which means I "know" death isn't the end. Broadly speaking, I believe there is an invisible, spiritual dimension to this world. It’s something you can feel and connect with, even if science can't pull out a ruler and measure it.

I can believe in the existence of various entities—good and bad, let's call them angels and demons—without viewing them through a strictly Christian lens, nor am I claiming to be an expert on them. It just feels logical and probable to me. Depending on our behavior, our nature, our history, and our goals, these forces influence us.

So, where does God fit into this mess? Suppose I believe the soul is a fragment of God, a piece that always remembers its origin and tries to find its way home, no matter how many layers of ego are covering it up. But do I believe there is a conscious, sentient personality out there that can be called God? I honestly don't know. When things go wrong—whether it's a personal crisis or global chaos—I tend to think we are the ones responsible. As a collective of souls, we are the ones who have to fix what we broke. No external consciousness, no God, is going to step in and do it for us. Non-material entities might help us or hinder us, but they don't hold ultimate authority. Whether there exists an omnipotent being with total power and infinite knowledge is the question Enchi posed, but I don't have an answer for that. I've chewed on it, but I'm still stuck.

Yeah... honestly, trying to wrap your head around a complex understanding of God isn't easy, not even for oneself, let alone when you're trying to explain it to anyone else... I don't really view God as a "person," or a distinct entity, or some being with physical traits like we describe things in our material reality here in the States.

The explanation that feels most straightforward and actually makes sense to me is this: God is the Absolute. And as such—as the apsolutan—He is simply pure Knowledge, Cognition, the ultimate outcome of all understanding... He is pure Love, Goodness, Light, Perfection—things that are incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to grasp from a purely material perspective... He is quite simply EVERYTHING.
And where does that leave us? Well, we are the medium through which God expresses Himself. And why would He bother expressing Himself? Well, if He is the apsolutan, pure Love, and possesses all knowledge, how can He actually experience those qualities? To do that, He needs an opposite... because you just can't recognize good without the absence of good, or beauty without the lack of beauty, or light without the presence of darkness, and so on... That’s why He created this material world, a world defined by relativity that allows for the coexistence of good and evil, beauty and ugliness, light and shadow... that's why He placed His fragments—which I recognize as souls—into material bodies, so that through us, the concept of sebe is transformed into the experience of sebe.
I don't know if you follow what I'm getting at... I have a tendency to oversimplify things, but personally, this is the most coherent way I can think of to reflect on God and the reason—the actual purpose—of our existence... 🤷

Can God exist without spirituality?

casualtiger2 said:Can God exist without spirituality?

And can you have both God and spirituality without the mind?
🙂

Yeah.

I honestly can't wrap my head around spirituality without God. Whether it's Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, or Buddhist, it all seems tied back to God or some kind of deity.

casualmaker13 said:Yeah.

What makes you say that?

Keith Parker2 said:I honestly can't wrap my head around spirituality without God. Whether it's Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, or Buddhist, it all seems tied back to God or some kind of deity.

If Jesus really had such a gentle and humble heart, he wouldn't have flipped those tables outside the temple, right?

Reading through your posts, I get the impression that most of you view the spiritual journey as being synonymous with personal religion. If we were to set aside faith entirely—even one's own private beliefs—could we still speak of spirituality? What would a spiritual path look like without faith? Is it even possible for such a path to exist?

mistybison said:Reading through your posts, I get the impression that most of you view the spiritual journey as being synonymous with personal religion. If we were to set aside faith entirely—even one's own private beliefs—could we still speak of spirituality? What would a spiritual path look like without faith? Is it even possible for such a path to exist?

It’s just not possible. I mean, without faith, there isn't even a path to walk on.
I guess you have to ask yourself: who would bother walking a spiritual path if they didn't believe it actually existed?😁

Joseph Ramos11 said:What makes you say that?

The flesh dies, but God doesn't.😍

mistybison said:Reading through your posts, I get the impression that most of you view the spiritual journey as being synonymous with personal religion. If we were to set aside faith entirely—even one's own private beliefs—could we still speak of spirituality? What would a spiritual path look like without faith? Is it even possible for such a path to exist?

Well, it all comes down to how you define spirituality.
For some, maybe it’s just "self-realization."
If that's the case, you don't really need a God (unless you happen to bump into one along the way—or at the end of the road).
What you actually need is a certain level of trust in your own cognitive abilities—broadly speaking—your senses, your soul, your intuition. Plus, you have to trust that what those senses are picking up is actually real. A hardcore nihilist doesn't stand a chance at being spiritual—they'd logically have to just end it all—and someone who doubts everything is basically paralyzed.
Beyond that, I’d say having some degree of confidence (not necessarily "faith") in the fundamental goodness of human nature isn't a bad idea either.
PS
Faith can be a technique—a way to reach spirituality—but very few people ever hit the intensity or clarity needed to bridge that gap into true spirituality, or whatever you want to call reaching God.
Usually, though, it’s just an obstacle. It tends to be lukewarm and muddy—an emotional or mental pigeonholing into a specific camp, tradition, or folklore.

God is the Source of all spirituality.
Realizing God's existence is what births faith—trying to go the other way is just a circular, futile exercise. True spirituality, if we’re being honest about what the word actually means, is nothing more than the daily affirmation of that realization of God (whether you call Him the Tao, Buddha, Allah, Christ, the Unmoved Mover, or simply Energy/Consciousness).

Faith itself? That's basically just standing behind your own convictions. It’s an act of will—like when you're absolutely certain that your actions are going to succeed and you don't flinch.

So, to answer the inevitable question: "Can spirituality exist without God?"--
The kind of spirituality you're asking about emerges within a community of people who actually live out divine principles—performing good works so genuinely beneficial that they leave no room for guilt or cause anyone harm—without needing to wrap themselves in philosophical jargon to prove it.

Since the question of God is often just a matter of terminology, in a society defined by its actions rather than its empty rhetoric, then yes—spirituality without God exists.

edit/bibliomancy based on timestamp
Galatians 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

mistybison said:Is believing in something greater than ourselves—a deeper purpose behind our existence—merely the initial spark that sets us on a spiritual journey, or is it a constant companion along the way? Can spirituality truly exist without God, regardless of how one defines Him? Is it possible to be spiritual without being a believer? Furthermore, if you feel you "know" something for certain, how do you distinguish actual knowledge from simply having faith in what you know?

Look, I agree it’s there at the start, and yeah, it acts like a guide for a while... until you hit that wall where you're just like, "Wait a second, what's going on here? I'm just believing blindly and nothing is happening." You start demanding proof.

mistybison said:Is believing in something greater than ourselves—a deeper purpose behind our existence—merely the initial spark that sets us on a spiritual journey, or is it a constant companion along the way? Can spirituality truly exist without God, regardless of how one defines Him? Is it possible to be spiritual without being a believer? Furthermore, if you feel you "know" something for certain, how do you distinguish actual knowledge from simply having faith in what you know?

Sure it can. Just look at Zen, Buddhism, or Taoism, for example...

mistybison said:Is believing in something greater than ourselves—a deeper purpose behind our existence—merely the initial spark that sets us on a spiritual journey, or is it a constant companion along the way? Can spirituality truly exist without God, regardless of how one defines Him? Is it possible to be spiritual without being a believer? Furthermore, if you feel you "know" something for certain, how do you distinguish actual knowledge from simply having faith in what you know?

Hell yeah, they can...

mistybison said:Is believing in something greater than ourselves—a deeper purpose behind our existence—merely the initial spark that sets us on a spiritual journey, or is it a constant companion along the way? Can spirituality truly exist without God, regardless of how one defines Him? Is it possible to be spiritual without being a believer? Furthermore, if you feel you "know" something for certain, how do you distinguish actual knowledge from simply having faith in what you know?

It isn't enough to just read books, talk about it, or watch from the sidelines. You have to actually do the work. You need to practice spiritual exercises, and I don't mean half-heartedly either... you need to do it with total intensity. That's when things actually start moving. That's when God starts answering.

How does a person know God is answering? They just know. They just know...

casualmaker13 said:The flesh dies, but God doesn't.😍

But how did you come to that conclusion?...