Please define what the word spirit means.

[PlasmaSphere]

Could someone please define what the word spirit means. Everyone uses it like loose change falling off of their tongue, but what does it buy?

 

[Moridin]

'to breathe' (Sagan, Carl; The Demon-Haunted World). It does not have to be something non material. It is really about feeling wonder and awe about nature and a connection to it and other humans.

Unfortunately, in modern world, it has gotten all sorts of pseudoscientific connotations in areas that are completely wrong and nonsensical.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

in modern world

Why this?

 

[Anttech]

spirit over here is hard liquor like vodka or whiskey

 

[Ivan Seeking]

noun: a fundamental emotional and activating principle determining one's character
noun: any incorporeal supernatural being that can become visible (or audible) to human beings
noun: the vital principle or animating force within living things
noun: the general atmosphere of a place or situation and the effect that it has on people
noun: an inclination or tendency of a certain kind
noun: the state of a person's emotions (especially with regard to pleasure or dejection) (Example: "He was in good spirits")
noun: animation and energy in action or expression
noun: the intended meaning of a communication
verb: infuse with spirit (Example: "The company spirited him up")

http://www.onelook.com/?w=spirit&ls=a

 

[Anttech]

Must be American English

 

[Anttech]

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=76626&dict=CALD

voila

 

[PlasmaSphere]

Unfortunately, in modern world, it has gotten all sorts of pseudoscientific connotations in areas that are completely wrong and nonsensical.

completely agree with that statement. Even if there such a thing as a persons spirit
(whatever that may be, I'm still a bit mystified about what exactly a spirit is) the amount of con-men out there trying to make moeny out of people by claiming they are psychic, or they have a sort of spiritul connection, is staggering, making it hard to test in any way.

I think that your spirit is every aspect of you that is intangible. Such as your good aspects, your bad, your love, these are all things that are not physical in any sense, but they affect the world through us in a very real way.

 

[Moridin]

Why this?

Not sure, to be honest. I was thinking of all the new age nonsense that has spiraled up and the word came to me. Perhaps I should have used "for the average Joe".

 

[Moridin]

completely agree with that statement. Even if there such a thing as a persons spirit
(whatever that may be, I'm still a bit mystified about what exactly a spirit is) the amount of con-men out there trying to make moeny out of people by claiming they are psychic, or they have a sort of spiritul connection, is staggering, making it hard to test in any way.

I think that your spirit is every aspect of you that is intangible. Such as your good aspects, your bad, your love, these are all things that are not physical in any sense, but they affect the world through us in a very real way.

Oh. I was referring to the term "spiritual" without any connections to the supernatural, spirits, psychic or in any other sort of random pseduoscientific sense.

(Ivan Seeking, this was sort of what I meant; this is the sort of things that comes to most peoples minds when they hear the term "spirituality").

 

[PlasmaSphere]

Oh. I was referring to the term "spiritual" without any connections to the supernatural, spirits, psychic or in any other sort of random pseduoscientific sense.

(Ivan Seeking, this was sort of what I meant; this is the sort of things that comes to most peoples minds when they hear the term "spirituality").

No, no, spiritual is what i meant. Forget all of the psychic's and cranks, i shouldn't have mentioned them, i did mean spiritual, not a 'spirit', as such.

If a person is spiritual, what exactly does it mean? how are they different from someone who would be considered a non spiritual person? i often hear people say there are a very spiritual person, but they seem just like eveyone else to me.

Everywhere i look i see a different definition for spirituality, and although everyone uses the word quite frequently, no-one seems to really understand what spirituality is, or how it effects us.

 

[PlasmaSphere]

I think the reason why science has not really explored spirituality are twofold. One is that there has been a significant conflict between spirituality, religion and science over the last century, where people have come to look at religion and spirituality as some kind of falsehood, or delusional, in a very negative way from a scientific perspective.

But i think that people are staring to realize that science does has something to do with spirituality, and that we can utilize science to help us understand what the spiritual side of us are as human beings. Thats one thing, the other thing is as our science gets better we are able to ask more interesting and complex questions. Twenty years ago we would not know what happens to a person when they meditate, but now we actually have the techniques to actually explore that issue.

So on one hand, science is developing to the point where we are able to ask these very complex questions about why people have these seemingly strange spiritual experiences, but by its very nature science makes it near impossible to study these phenomenon as every aspect of science has to be scientifically absolute, and not based on the intangible emotions and feelings that make up the spirit of a person.