Transcript Care of the Soul for Effective Leadership

Living a Spiritual Life:
Purpose of life and
Soul
Dr. Rodney H. Clarken
Copyright © 2011
Module Objective
 This module discusses how the purpose of
life is to live a spiritual life, how
spirituality is related to the soul and how
we can use the spiritual qualities of the
soul to live a spiritual life.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
2
Write brief answers to these
questions.
1. What does the purpose of life have to do with
living a spiritual life?
2. How is the soul related to spirituality? To the
body? To the mind?
3. How can we develop our souls to be healthier
and happier?
Save your answers to compare to the final slide.
© Rodney H Clarken 2009
What is the purpose of life?
Read and reflect
 Read The Purpose of Life at
http://info.bahai.org/article-1-4-0-6.html
 Reflect on what the purpose of life has to
do with living a spiritual life.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
4
From your reading and
reflection,
 Explain how spirituality and the purpose of
life are related using the excerpts that
follow.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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Excerpts from the reading.*
1. Life should be seen as an eternal process
of joyous spiritual discovery and growth
2. The evolution or development of the soul
and its capacities is the basic purpose of
human existence. This evolution is
towards God and its motive force is
knowledge of God and love for Him.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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Excerpts from the reading.*
 The purpose of God in creating man hath
been, and will ever be, to enable him to
know his Creator and to attain His
Presence. (Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of
Bahá'u'lláh, p. 70)
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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Excerpts from the reading.*
 Bahá'u'lláh teaches that the only true and
enduring happiness for human beings lies
in the pursuit of spiritual development.
 In summary, the spiritual reason for our
life on earth is to provide us with a training
ground; our life is a period of growth
during which we focus on the development
of our innate spiritual and intellectual
capacities.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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Write a short statement.
What is the purpose of life?
1.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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Possible answers to “What is the
purpose of life?”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
To know and love God.
To reflect the attributes of God.
Individual and social development.
To develop the soul for eternal life.
To live a spiritual life, grow spiritually.
Other…
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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What is the essence of humans?
 The need is very great, everywhere in the
world, in and outside the Faith, for a true
spiritual awareness to pervade and
motivate peoples' lives. No amount of
administrative procedure or adherence to
rules can take the place of this soulcharacteristic, this spirituality which is the
essence of Man.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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What is the chief goal?
 Its [Bahá'í Faith] chief goal is the
development of the individual and society,
through the acquisition of spiritual virtues
and powers. It is the soul of man which has
first to be fed.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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What has turning away from
religion produced?
“This turning away from religion has been
powerfully reinforced by the growth of
materialism, and has produced a
combination of physical well-being and
spiritual aridity that is having catastrophic
results, socially and psychologically, on
the population.” (Universal House of Justice, 9/1/83)
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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What is the need for spirituality
today?
 "Indeed, the chief reason for the evils now
rampant in society is the lack of
spirituality. The materialistic civilization of
our age has so much absorbed the energy
and interest of mankind that people in
general do no longer feel the necessity of
raising themselves above the forces and
conditions of their daily material existence.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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What is the crisis and spirit of
the age?
 "The universal crisis affecting mankind is,
therefore, essentially spiritual in its causes.
The spirit of the age, taken on the whole, is
irreligious. Man's outlook on life is too
crude and materialistic to enable him to
elevate himself into the higher realms of
the spirit.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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What is a spiritual life?
 Spiritual practices, including meditation,
prayer and contemplation, are intended to
develop an individual's inner life; such
practices often lead to an experience of
connectedness with a larger reality,
yielding a more comprehensive self; with
other individuals or the human community;
with nature or the cosmos; or with the
divine realm.[3] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirituality)
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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What are two phases of
spirituality?
 Spirituality is also described as a process in
two phases: the first on inner growth, and
the second on the manifestation of this
result daily in the world. [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
[15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21]
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirituality)
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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Why live a spiritual life?
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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Then what does soul mean?
1. The animating and vital principle in
humankind credited with the faculties of
thought, action and emotion and
conceived as forming an immaterial
entity.
Go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul to
read more about soul or search online.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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What are the 3 faculties of the
soul from the above definition?
1.
2.
3.
© Rodney H Clarken 2009
What are the faculties of the
soul?
1. Thought
2. Action
3. Emotion
© Rodney H Clarken 2009
Reflect and share with others.
 How might the faculties of the soul be used
to develop a more spiritual life?
 Note: There are many ways to answer this
question. What is important here is that
you take some time to think about it.
Answers to this question will be found
throughout the course. We will be using
the faculties of our souls to develop
spirituality. © Rodney H Clarken 2011
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Some clues on how the faculties
of the soul relate to spirituality.
Thought: Knowing (Mind)
Thinking Truth
Action: Willing
(Will)
Doing
Justice
Emotion: Loving
(Heart)
Feeling Unity
© Rodney H Clarken 2009
Using the above faculties and
concepts, write a short statement
on how to develop the soul.
1.
Share that statement with the class online or
with someone else.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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For important foundational
knowledge of developing
spirituality
 read Hatcher’s Concept of Spirituality
 Also, view Clarken’s Model of Human
Development
 Each of these activities will take over an
hour. Please allow yourself time to absorb
these resources.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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What is a Bahá'í definition of
soul?
 The Bahá'í Faith affirms that "the soul is a
sign of God, a heavenly gem whose reality
the most learned of men had failed to
grasp, and whose mystery no mind,
however acute, can ever hope to
unravel.[21] Bahá'u'lláh stated that the soul
not only continues to live after the physical
death of the human body, but is, in fact,
immortal.[22] © Rodney H Clarken 2011
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Heaven can be seen partly as the
soul's state of nearness
 to God; and hell as a state of remoteness
from God. Each state follows as a natural
consequence of individual efforts, or the
lack thereof, to develop spiritually.[23]
Bahá'u'lláh taught that individuals have no
existence prior to their life here on earth
and the soul's evolution is always towards
God and away from the material world.[23]
(source and read more)
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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To read more on the Bahai
concept of soul, go to:
 http://info.bahai.org/article-1-4-5-1.html
 http://info.bahai.org/article-1-4-0-5.html
 http://info.bahai.org/article-1-4-6-1.html
 http://www.investigatereality.org/RealityS
oul.htm
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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By what means can man acquire
these [spiritual] things?
 How shall he obtain these merciful gifts
and powers? First, through the knowledge
of God. Second, through the love of God.
Third, through faith. Fourth, through
philanthropic deeds. Fifth, through selfsacrifice. Sixth, through severance from
this world. Seventh, through sanctity and
holiness. 1
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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List the 7 qualities given for
spirituality or soul development.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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List the 7 qualities given for
spirituality or soul development.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
knowledge of God.
the love of God.
faith.
philanthropic deeds.
self-sacrifice.
severance from this world.
sanctity and holiness.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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How do these 7 qualities relate
to the 3 faculties of the soul?
1.
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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How do these 7 qualities relate
to the 3 faculties of the soul?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
knowledge of God  thought (knowing)
the love of God  emotion (loving)
faith knowing + action (willing)
philanthropic deeds willing + loving
self-sacrifice  willing + loving
severance from world  willing + loving
sanctity and holiness  willing + loving
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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What is the relationship of soul
and body?
 The soul lives on when the body dies and
is our true identity and reality.
 The body is like a horse and the soul is like
the rider. The body (horse) should be cared
for as it is a vehicle for the soul (rider), but
it can not bring us true happiness.
© Rodney H Clarken 2009
What is the relationship of soul
and body?
“The soul of man is the sun by which his
body is illumined, and from which it
draweth its sustenance, and should be so
regarded.” (Gleanings from Writings of Baha’u’llah, p. 155)
© Rodney H Clarken 2009
What is the relationship of soul
and mind?
 “The temple of man is like unto a mirror,
his soul is as the sun, and his mental
faculties even as the rays that emanate
from that source of light.” (Abdu’l-Baha’s Tablet to
August Forel, p. 24)
© Rodney H Clarken 2011
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Compare your answers to these
question to those given at the
beginning of this module.
1. Define spiritual?
2. How is the soul related to spirituality? To the
body? To the mind?
3. How can we develop our souls to be healthier
and happier?
© Rodney H Clarken 2009