Meaning in Life - the Essential Internal Compass & Life Force

     When parents, religious organizations, & schools fail to teach-by-embodying the meaningfulness of life, who will shine a light on & nurture this critical life force within each human being?
     Mindfulness (MBSR) is an evidence-based method / way of being, through which we EXPERIENCE the fact that meaning in life is independent of external forces. 

     "cross-sectional studies indicate that people who report greater meaning in life show less distress following stressful events such as terrorist attacks, cancer diagnoses, and bereavement.
     ... despite the toxic effect of bullying, meaning in life may prevent a young person from internalizing the victimization and/or provide a young person with additional reasons to live. 

     counselor, school or family-based interventions designed to bolster meaning in life & teach students that meaning in life should not be tied to external forces could be effective at helping students maintain a strong meaning in life, regardless of external circumstances that are perhaps beyond her control."

       Henry KL et al. The potential role of meaning in life in the relationship between bullying victimization and suicidal ideation. Journal of Youth and Adolescence 2013 DOI 10.1007/s10964-013-9960-2.

Pan Ice by Don Pentz   http://www.fogforestgallery.ca/bios/bio_pentz.html

Spirituality, Religiousness & Faith - Controversial, Essential & Universal

     We must learn to reconnect with the core of our own being & learn to communicate with each other at this very same deepest, most meaningful universal level. "Namaste" means the perfection within me recognizes & greets the perfection in you.
     An exclusivist's ego projects itself onto & judges "the other" inferior. Exclusivism is found in most if not all religions, as well as in "scientism". A civilized, educated, multicultural, multiethnic society is de facto inclusive - not exclusivist ("that only the members of one religion or sect will reach heaven ... while others will be doomed to eternal damnation..." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_exclusivism). Exclusivism is characteristic of an early psychosocial developmental stage. All major religions (as well as science) have psychosocially-mature members, who have more in common with similarly mature people of other religions, than with immature members of their own religion. Immaturity breeds divisiveness & conflict, not religion per se.

     "spirituality ... the search for sacred or existential aspects of life ‘such as finding meaning, wholeness, inner potential, & interconnections with others’

     religiousness ... ‘a personal or group search for the sacred that unfolds within a traditional sacred context’"
       Beaumont SL, Scammell J. Patterns of spirituality and meaning in life related to identity. Identity: An International Journal of Theory and Research 2012; 12(4): 345-67.

     Some use "faith" to encompass both of the above concepts - see: http://healthyhealers.blogspot.ca/2012/03/faith.html 

     Despite the fact that these words, for many, ring of violence, ignorance, divisive fear & guilt, nevertheless they do point towards absolutely essential universal components of a deeply-lived, fully conscious human life: "matters of truth, reality, & ultimate importance. … personal, affective, visceral, & passional dimensions of being & knowing ... meaning-making in its broadest sense."          Parks SD. Big questions, worthy dreams. Mentoring young adults in their search for meaning, purpose, and faith. John Wiley & Sons, San Francisco, 2000.  

     We must learn to work wisely with this double-edged sword - the more powerful the medicine, the more powerful its adverse effects.