Happy Atheist Forum

While religion above all else has been a shackle to progress and a cause of untold suffering in humanities history, there are some things that have arisen from it that the Atheist can find useful.

I'm talking about things like meditation, yoga, certain philosophies, etc. Things that, while they may have originally been intended as a spiritual practice, they can be useful to us for their physical or mental value.

I even pray from time to time, but it's to Robin Williams.

Anything you guys take part in despite being fellow heathens?

I want to start meditating. I wouldn't say that is a spiritual practice, as it has real benefits.

I've also heard people theorize that praying can be a good thing.

I've been doing Ashtanga (Power) Yoga for a while. I'm not interested in it spiritually, it's just a great workout.

The closest I get to spiritual has to do with spirits... The ethanol variety  

I tried meditation once or twice, but for me it was a waste of time (unlike posting on here ).

Quote from: "Cecilie"I tried meditation once or twice, but for me it was a waste of time (unlike posting on here ).

I think it's one of those things where you have to keep doing it until you get better at it and it starts to work.

Quote from: "LegendarySandwich"

Quote from: "Cecilie"I tried meditation once or twice, but for me it was a waste of time (unlike posting on here ).

I think it's one of those things where you have to keep doing it until you get better at it and it starts to work.

I consider myself a pretty patient person, but it was so goddamn boring.

The closest I get is when playing my guitar. It takes lots and lots of patience and concentration. Never ending things to learn and you have to pace yourself. It frees the mind, sooths the soul, allows one to express their emotions or even experience emotions that are foriegn to them. I certainly think hobbies like this are well worth it, intellectually and emotionally and in the long run you pick up a neat skill that others can also enjoy.

QuoteThe closest I get to spiritual has to do with spirits... The ethanol variety

I  like you man.  :D But, like weed, it's not for everyone.

QuoteThe closest I get is when playing my guitar. It takes lots and lots of patience and concentration. Never ending things to learn and you have to pace yourself. It frees the mind, sooths the soul, allows one to express their emotions or even experience emotions that are foriegn to them. I certainly think hobbies like this are well worth it, intellectually and emotionally and in the long run you pick up a neat skill that others can also enjoy.

Agreed. Completely. I've played piano for around 12 years, and I get more of what you could call a spiritual experience from that than any church service I ever attended.  

5-10 minutes of meditation a night can be pretty helpful.
It gives you time to reevaluate your priorities and short term goals.

I do yoga for the stretching sometimes....I could do without the spiritual instructors that are on some videos.

Quote from: "Cecilie"I consider myself a pretty patient person, but it was so goddamn boring.

I also found it boring...I randomly day dream which I'm pretty sure achieves the same effect.

I focus my Chi every time I sit on the toilet...

Quote from: "Whitney"

Quote from: "Cecilie"I consider myself a pretty patient person, but it was so goddamn boring.

I also found it boring...I randomly day dream which I'm pretty sure achieves the same effect.

I'm a huge day dreamer, so I guess I'm all set then.

I consider my sewing machine a tool for achieving 'zen'.  Seriously, if I'm stressed out I can sit at that thing for hours on end, working the whole time, and my BP goes down, heart rate goes down, my head clears, I can think.  I come up with my best creative thoughts right there in front of it along with all sorts of solutions to things I'm dealing with around the house and with other people.  Shit I designed the chicken coop sitting at the sewing machine.  I was able to draw up plans for an incubator after 2 hours on the machine.  

Other days I merely have to fondle my massive stash of beads for a few seconds before I can think clearly, and be filled with tons of creativity.  It's almost like the beads start talking to me.

But then I'm an imaginative/inventive/creative type person, doesn't take much to remove the fog from my mind most days

Quote from: "Cecilie"

Quote from: "Whitney"

Quote from: "Cecilie"I consider myself a pretty patient person, but it was so goddamn boring.

I also found it boring...I randomly day dream which I'm pretty sure achieves the same effect.

I'm a huge day dreamer, so I guess I'm all set then. :). It's a great workout and not a stretching routine.

Quote from: "DirtyLeo"That's why Ashtanga or Power Yoga is the best . It's a great workout and not a stretching routine.

we were actually talking about meditation being boring....but ya, hatha yoga can be boring too (I turn off the sound and listen to a podcast).

For more active workouts I prefer pilates if using a video otherwise I'd rather walk/run.

Quote from: "Whitney"

Quote from: "DirtyLeo"That's why Ashtanga or Power Yoga is the best . It's a great workout and not a stretching routine.

we were actually talking about meditation being boring....but ya, hatha yoga can be boring too (I turn off the sound and listen to a podcast).

For more active workouts I prefer pilates if using a video otherwise I'd rather walk/run.

Anything beats Tai-Chi, though.

I did a Wordweb check on "spiritual" and I couldn't find a usable usage.
So I'm left with sensual which isn't so bad.

Quote from: "The Magic Pudding"I did a Wordweb check on "spiritual" and I couldn't find a usable usage.
So I'm left with sensual which isn't so bad.

Can you be more specific?  Why can't you use "spiritual" and so are left with "sensual"?

Quote from: "AnimatedDirt"

Quote from: "The Magic Pudding"I did a Wordweb check on "spiritual" and I couldn't find a usable usage.
So I'm left with sensual which isn't so bad.

Can you be more specific?  Why can't you use "spiritual" and so are left with "sensual"?

Sensual spirituality... Kama Sutra, anyone?

Quote from: "ForTheLoveOfAll"Sensual spirituality... Kama Sutra, anyone?

Crappy drawings, but... Somewhat inspiring  

Sex is the closest thing to a spiritual practice for me.

Quote from: ForTheLoveOfAll on February 28, 2011, 02:26:07 PM
While religion above all else has been a shackle to progress and a cause of untold suffering in humanities history, there are some things that have arisen from it that the Atheist can find useful.

I'm talking about things like meditation, yoga, certain philosophies, etc. Things that, while they may have originally been intended as a spiritual practice, they can be useful to us for their physical or mental value.

I even pray from time to time, but it's to Robin Williams.

Anything you guys take part in despite being fellow heathens?

Yeah.  I used to be a very devout Catholic.  So just running through my rosary makes my mind much calmer, more focused, and more contemplative. 

I practice superstition in sports.  In my bowling league, I forgot socks one night and wound up bowling a 635 series.  The next week I intentionally did not wear socks.

Quote from: Stevil on March 01, 2011, 07:29:59 AM
The closest I get is when playing my guitar. It takes lots and lots of patience and concentration. Never ending things to learn and you have to pace yourself. It frees the mind, sooths the soul, allows one to express their emotions or even experience emotions that are foriegn to them. I certainly think hobbies like this are well worth it, intellectually and emotionally and in the long run you pick up a neat skill that others can also enjoy.

It's true. When you put aside all of the horror that has been done to the image of the instrument by popular culture (e.g. soft rock, nu metal, "singer-songwriters"), it really is a great way to hear yourself think without intellectualizing your thoughts. A few jazz chords in the dark makes for a brand of introspection that is comparable to being talked down by a close friend – which is especially useful when all of your friends become acquaintances during the transition into adulthood.

Quote from: Ihateyoumike on March 04, 2011, 06:56:55 PM
Sex is the closest thing to a spiritual practice for me.

I envy you. To me, sex is usually just theatrical cardio tethered to an orgy of social obligations – albeit, I've had some experiences that I thought were incredible at the time, in retrospect I have fonder memories of loitering, lol.

Quote from: Squid on March 02, 2011, 02:40:51 AM
I focus my Chi every time I sit on the toilet...

I know it is just your monicker, but I couldn't help envisioning a squid expressing these sentiments in a New Jersey accent.

Quote from: original_gender on May 27, 2011, 05:18:25 AM

Quote from: Squid on March 02, 2011, 02:40:51 AM
I focus my Chi every time I sit on the toilet...

I know it is just your monicker, but I couldn't help envisioning a squid expressing these sentiments in a New Jersey accent.

Squid has forever tainted Chi for me...

Quote from: ForTheLoveOfAll on February 28, 2011, 02:26:07 PMI'm talking about things like meditation, yoga, certain philosophies, etc. Things that, while they may have originally been intended as a spiritual practice, they can be useful to us for their physical or mental value.

Honestly, I find that a hobby takes care of all that.

Quote from: Gawen on June 03, 2011, 03:00:58 PMHonestly, I find that a hobby takes care of all that.

Absolutely.
I might shout "Odin" with my pals as we clambour down the cliffside with our flaming torches, but make no mistake, I'm worshipping society, specifically the viking re-enactment society.
http://www.amlwchhistory.co.uk/angleseywalker/anglesey7.htm

I do ashtanga yoga for about two hours every other morning, wouldn't really consider it to be spiritual though (don't do any of the mantras) as I do it purely for exercise and to offset the amount of time I spend sitting at a computer, every now and then I will do bikram yoga.

I talk about "energy" a lot, which I guess could be interpreted as sort of spiritual. I don't literally believe that I have twirling disks of coloured light in my body, or that, if I'm feeling ill, I have a chi blockage, but I find using the term "energy" is useful for describing some intangible elements about people/places/experiences. Sometimes I can't quite put my finger on what I like or dislike about something, so I'll just say something about its "energy" (yeah, I'm a bit of a hippie sometimes).

Plus, in a literal quantum sense everything does have energy, so it's a kind of "big picture" descriptor that I feel a bit more comfortable with.

Quote from: ForTheLoveOfAll
I'm talking about things like meditation, yoga, certain philosophies, etc. Things that, while they may have originally been intended as a spiritual practice, they can be useful to us for their physical or mental value.

  I'm willing to bet that these so called "spiritual practices" were referred to as something else before a religion was assigned.

removed

 ::)

Quote from: Willow on June 09, 2011, 11:04:05 PM

Quote from: Gawen on June 03, 2011, 03:00:58 PMHonestly, I find that a hobby takes care of all that.

Absolutely.
I might shout "Odin" with my pals as we clambour down the cliffside with our flaming torches, but make no mistake, I'm worshipping society, specifically the viking re-enactment society.
http://www.amlwchhistory.co.uk/angleseywalker/anglesey7.htm

Viking re-enacting sounds pretty damn awesome.

As for me, I just love to read fantasy novels, play survival horrors and RPGS,  as well as eat ice cream.  Yum, perfect ways to relax.


I don't need spiritual anything, since I believe in no superstitions.

My most "spiritual" ( do not like the word actually).... the best...most calm centering practice I have is to go out to either my garden or local markets ....pick out something amazing to cook...prepare it with the best of intentions...appropriate music....put it on a nicely garnished plate... serve it to someone...watch them enjoy...and savor that moment

If I were to tell you I could reach some kind of nervana..it would be over a good meal I prepare and serve to someone I like