What Is Spiritual Guidance?
3/13/2017
In the words of our founders:
Janice Lundy: Spiritual guidance (often known as spiritual direction) is an ancient practice found in many of the world's wisdom traditions. I often think of it as a holy encounter with a trustworthy guide who lovingly and gently points you back to "the Sacred." If you are a seeker who longs to explore and deepen your unique understanding of life from a spiritual context with an experienced, well trained, and compassionate guide, spiritual guidance may be for you.
Jeanette Banashak: Spiritual guidance is the art and science of guiding and nurturing the human soul. It is empathetic listening within the context of a caring relationship. According to Lisa Fullam and John Mabry, a spiritual guide may be a coach, confessor, guru, soul friend, companion, or saint, among many other roles or archetypes.
Jan: I use the term, the "Sacred", in spiritual guidance to denote our cross-cultural and interspiritual understanding of Ultimate Reality (God, Presence, the All, Spirit, Creator, Brahma, Essence, Truth, Love, etc.) This encompasses, in my view, any term each of us might use to describe our knowing of transcendent experience of life and of true self. We must each find our unique way of expressing and connecting with this. Spiritual guidance helps us navigate this process.
Jeanette: Spiritual guides walk with individuals and groups who are working through a process of discernment, which is a sifting through or division of interior movements that results in making wise and conscious decisions. The guide may ask a question as simple and profound as, “Do you see?” which allows the seeker to watch, observe, and interact with their life, and to ultimately companion them as they wander through each season and find their way home.
Jan: Spiritual guidance serves to help you reclaim your spiritual health. Inner calm, enhanced well-being, personal and spiritual insights, healing, and a deeper connection to self and Spirit can be yours through consistent spiritual guidance. The guide will encourage you to explore contemplative practices that will help you slow down, notice and pay attention so you can see the whole of your life more clearly; to see how the Sacred is present in the dailyness of life.
Jeanette: Spiritual teacher, Adyashanti, writes about a day that he awoke and returned to his Self, which was enlightened and ordinary; this Self was Spirit, was breathing, was free. The spiritual guide journeys with individuals and groups as they practice together the ordinary act of living in freedom.
