Series: Evaluating Reality Rationally Written by Dr. Gleb Tsipursky, Intentional Insights Co-Founder and President. Graphics by Michael Riggs and Cerina Gillilan So imagine you are driving on autopilot, as we all do much of the time. Suddenly the car in front of you cuts you off quite unexpectedly. You slam your brakes and feel scared and indignant. Maybe you flash your lights or honk your horn at the other car. What’s your gut feeling about the other driver? I know... Read more

(cc) skagitrenee Near the end of Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, the character known simply as Granger, the leader of a band of intellectual exiles who have set the great books of mankind to memory in order to preserve them, says this: “Everyone must leave something behind when he dies, my grandfather said. A child, or a book or a painting or a house or a wall built or a pair of shoes made. Or a garden planted. Something your hand... Read more

(cc) Mike Sinko A spiritual experience can be emotionally powerful. Some have concluded from this that spirituality is primarily about emotion. That spirituality involves emotion is true enough — just about everything humans do involves emotions. That spirituality is primarily about emotions is more questionable. Here I want to explore the relationship of spirituality and emotion, at least as these have played out in my own experience. In the various spiritual traditions, spiritual growth requires a deepening of self-knowledge; an important... Read more

The yin-yang symbol is technically and more accurately called Taijitu, meaning “supreme ultimate diagrams.” The Taijitu is my favorite of all symbols. It is simple, yet illustrates profound truths. It is used by Taoism and Zen Buddhism. Yin originally referred to the “shady side” of a mountain. In the yin-yang symbol, it is represented as black. Yang originally referred to the “sunny side” of a mountain and is represented as white. This duality of sun and shade do not make... Read more

Episode 7: Professor of philosophy and author Donald A. Crosby has written many volumes on religious naturalism. Join us for a discussion with Dr. Crosby about the religious supremacy of nature, his definition of faith, and why naturalists should find the Religion of Nature well suited. Listen at www.SpiritualNaturalistSociety.org Click here to get Email notices of new episodes and SNS articles Learn about Membership in the Spiritual Naturalist Society See a full episode list at our main page for the... Read more

Wikimedia Fatalism. It is a broader attitude in life, of letting things take their own course by believing they are all predetermined anyway. But I think we can think better. We know we only have one life to live so we better make it count, live it to the best it can be. Let’s build the life we want by being intentional about our life choices. How do you lead the kind of life that gets you what you want? All it takes... Read more

I like lichens. So do many people. Descriptions of them are full of likeable achievements: their unique partnership arrangement, their preference for unpopular environments, and their huge biological success. (nowiknow.com) Almost certainly you’ve seen lichens—the grey or yellow growths on rocks, bark, concrete, gravestones, roofs, or any other surface that’s been exposed to the elements long enough. Lichens may look at first like rot or moss or something yucky. But what they are is a compound organism, made up of... Read more

Book Review: Pema Chödrön is an American ordained nun of Tibetan Buddhism. At nearly 70 years old, she is the director of the Gampo Abbey in Nova Scotia, Canada and has authored several books. I first learned of her from one of the many YouTube videos available, showing interviews and teachings on Buddhism. In The Places That Scare You, Chödrön gives us a remarkably rich, eye-opening, practical, moving, and genuine overview of the kind of training designed to help us... Read more

Spirituality is about knowing and connecting with reality, a reality of nature and human beings. Of course, humans are a part of nature, and therefore, naturalists are humanists. As Spiritual Naturalists, we believe in nature. We evolved from nature and are a part of it. Science is beginning to show just how interconnected all of nature is. Therefore, it is only natural that our spirituality would have its roots in nature. Fascinated with Nature Are you fascinated with learning about... Read more

Episode 6, Part 2: What is secular Buddhism and how does it relate to spiritual naturalism? In this two part interview with Ted Meisner, the founder of the Secular Buddhist Association, we discuss secular Buddhism. We talk about its origin, it’s meaning, and how it applies to life. Listen at www.SpiritualNaturalistSociety.org Click here to get Email notices of new episodes and SNS articles Learn about Membership in the Spiritual Naturalist Society See a full episode list at our main page for... Read more