Mental Fitness vs. Spiritual Fitness

Hi, and welcome back to your Daily Mindfulness. In today's session we're going to talk about mental fitness versus spiritual fitness. Before going into that, let's just define the difference between the two. When talking about mental fitness were often talking about our capacity to use our mind more intentionally. Perhaps to reduce stress, improve focus, think more positively, be more resilient.

When talking about spirituality, even though that can feel like a woo-woo kind of word, we're really just discussing what it means to connect to who we are on a bigger level. Who are we beyond our sense of I or me or the ego? Since we can get so caught up in and even diluted by our ideas of who we are, spirituality, spiritual pursuits are often interested in dropping beneath those narratives to see a bigger sense of interconnectedness. Fortunately, meditation can help us in both our pursuits toward mental fitness and spiritual fitness. And I'll give you two analogies to think of it. From the perspective of developing mental fitness, we can look at meditation as a bicep curl for the mind, strengthening our capacity to focus and be present, and really be here.

From the perspective of developing spiritual fitness, we can look at meditation as a sauna, evaporating layers of story and judgment that prevent us from seeing our innate wholeness and interconnectedness. So, regardless of what brings you to meditation, I believe there is something here for you and maybe this framing will inspire your practice or give you a new way to think about it or to feel into it. As always thanks for your practice and let's settle in for today's meditation.