The words spirit and spiritual are terms used to identify almost anything unseen. Jung brings up a good point about their usage in a lecture delivered to the literary Society of Augsburg, 20 October 1926, on the theme of “Nature and Spirit”:
The connection between spirit and life is one of those problems involving factors of such complexity that we have to be on our guard lest we ourselves get caught in the net of words in which we seek to ensnare these great enigmas. For how can we bring into the orbit of our thought those limitless complexities of life which we call “Spirit” or “Life” unless we clothe them in verbal concepts, themselves mere counters of the intellect? The mistrust of verbal concepts, inconvenient as it is, nevertheless seems to me to be very much in place in speaking of fundamentals. “Spirit” and “Life” are familiar enough words to us, very old acquaintances in fact, pawns that for thousands of years have been pushed back and forth on the thinker’s chessboard. The problem must have begun in the grey dawn of time, when someone made the bewildering discovery that the living breath which left the body of the dying man in the last death-rattle meant more than just air in motion. It can scarcely be an accident onomatopoeic words like ruach (Hebrew), ruch (Arabic), roho (Swahili) mean ‘spirit’ no less clearly than πνεύμα (pneuma, Greek) and spiritus (Latin).[13]
The unseen world exists or we would not have all the words for it we do. I know the following is lengthy, not only to illustrate how it all gets lumped up and interchanged, but also in effort to find words for in ineffable, the unseen, but felt and known. The language itself enfolds proof for the unseen. These terms are as old as the roots of our languages are.
spir·it
/ˈspirit/
noun
noun: spirit; plural noun: spirits
Spirit – Latin
Breath, breathing; breeze, air; inspiration; character; arrogance
From <http://latindictionary.wikidot.com/noun:spiritus>
Spirit – Etymology
The English word “spirit” comes from the Latin spiritus,but also “spirit, soul, courage, vigor”, ultimately from a Proto-Indo-European *(s)peis. It is distinguished from Latin anima, “soul” (which nonetheless also derives from an Indo-European root meaning “to breathe”, earliest form *h2enh1-).[4] In Greek, this distinction exists between pneuma (πνεῦμα), “breath, motile air, spirit,” and psykhē (ψυχή), “soul”[1
From <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit>
Definitions
Spirit:
the nonphysical part of a person which is the seat of emotions and character; the soul.
“we seek a harmony between body and spirit”
| synonyms: | soul, psyche, inner self, inner being, essential being; More
pneuma; anima, ego, id; ka; atman “we seek a harmony between body and spirit” |
| antonyms: | body, flesh |
the nonphysical part of a person regarded as their true self and as capable of surviving physical death or separation.
“a year after he left, his spirit is still present”
| synonyms: | life force, animating principle, vital spark, breath of life;
élan vital “the spirit of nature” |
the nonphysical part of a person manifested as an apparition after their death; a ghost.
| synonyms: | ghost, phantom, specter, apparition, wraith, shadow, presence; More
bodach; Doppelgänger; duppy; spook; phantasm, shade, revenant, visitant, wight; eidolon, manes “local people say that his spirit walks among the hills” |
a supernatural being. “shrines to nature spirits” short for Holy Spirit.
those qualities regarded as forming the definitive or typical elements in the character of a person, nation, or group or in the thought and attitudes of a particular period.
“the university is a symbol of the nation’s egalitarian spirit”
| synonyms: | ethos, prevailing tendency, motivating force, animating principle, dominating characteristic, essence, quintessence; More
atmosphere, mood, feeling, temper, tenor, climate; attitudes, beliefs, principles, standards, ethics “the spirit of the nineteenth century” |
a person identified with their most prominent mental or moral characteristics or with their role in a group or movement. “he was a leading spirit in the conference”
a specified emotion or mood, especially one prevailing at a particular time. “I hope the team will build on this spirit of confidence” a person’s mood.
the attitude or intentions with which someone undertakes or regards something. “he confessed in a spirit of self-respect, not defiance”
| synonyms: | temperament, disposition, character, nature, personality, temper, makeup, humor, cast/turn of mind, complexion;
mind, heart “this thought dampened even my optimistic spirit” attitude, frame of mind, way of thinking, way of looking at it, state of mind, point of view, outlook, thoughts, ideas “she’s got the right spirit” mood, frame of mind, state of mind, emotional state, humor, temper “she was in good spirits when I left” |
the quality of courage, energy, and determination or assertiveness. “his visitors admired his spirit and good temper”
| synonym: | morale, team spirit; esprit de corps “the spirit of the team is high”
courage, bravery, courageousness, braveness, pluck, pluckiness, valor, strength of character, fortitude, backbone, spine, mettle, stout-heartedness, determination, firmness of purpose, resolution, resoluteness, resolve, fight, gameness; guts, grit, spunk; bottle; sand, moxie animation, enthusiasm, eagerness, keenness, liveliness, vivacity, vivaciousness, energy, verve, vigor, dynamism, zest, dash, elan, panache, sparkle, exuberance, gusto, brio, pep, go, sap, fervor, zeal, fire, passion; pizzazz, oomph, zing, zip, zap, vim, get-up-and-go
|
the real meaning or the intention behind something as opposed to its strict verbal interpretation. “the rule had been broken in spirit if not in letter”
| synonyms: | real/true meaning, true intention, essence, substance
“we must be seen to keep to the spirit of the law as well as the letter” |
British – strong distilled liquor such as brandy, whiskey, gin, or rum.
| synonyms: | strong liquor, liquor, strong drink; More
gin, vodka, whiskey, brandy, rum; shorts, firewater, hooch
|
a volatile liquid, especially a fuel, prepared by distillation. “aviation spirit”
archaic
a solution of volatile components extracted from something, typically by distillation or by solution in alcohol. “spirits of turpentine” a highly refined substance or fluid thought to govern vital phenomena.
Spiritual – Metaphysical terms
An incorporeal but ubiquitous, non-quantifiable substance or energy present individually in all living things. Unlike the concept of souls (often regarded as eternal and sometimes believed to pre-exist the body) a spirit develops and grows as an integral aspect of a living being.[9]
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- A daemon, sprite, or ghost. People usually conceive of a ghost as a wandering spirit from a being no longer living, having survived the death of the body yet maintaining at least vestiges of mind and consciousness.
- In religion and spirituality, the respiration of a human has for obvious reasons become seen as strongly linked with the very occurrence of life. Spirit, in this sense, means the thing that separates a living body from a corpse—and usually implies intelligence, consciousness, and sentience.[citation needed]
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- Latter-day Saint prophet Joseph Smith Jr. taught that the concept of spirit as incorporeal or without substance was incorrect: “There is no such thing as immaterial matter. All spirit is matter, but it is more fine or pure, and can only be discerned by purer eyes.”[10]
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- Various forms of animism, such as Japan’s Shinto and African traditional religion, focus on invisible beings that represent or connect with plants, animals, or landforms (kami)[citation needed]: translators usually employ the English word “spirit” when trying to express the idea of such entities.
- Individual spirits envisaged as interconnected with all other spirits and with “The Spirit” (singular and capitalized).[citation needed] This concept relates to theories of a unified spirituality, to universal consciousness and to some concepts of Deity. In this scenario all separate “spirits”, when connected, form a greater unity, the Spirit, which has an identity separate from its elements plus a consciousness and intellect greater than its elements; an ultimate, unified, non-dual awareness or force of life combining or transcending all individual units of consciousness. The experience of such a connection can become a primary basis for spiritual belief. The term spirit occurs in this sense in (to name but a few) Anthroposophy, Aurobindo, A Course In Miracles, Hegel, Ken Wilber, and Meher Baba (though in his teachings, “spirits” are only apparently separate from each other and from “The Spirit.”)[11] In this use, the term seems conceptually identical to Plotinus’s “The One” and Friedrich Schelling’s “Absolute“. Similarly, according to the panentheistic/pantheistic view, Spirit equates to essence that can manifest itself as mind/soul through any level in pantheistic hierarchy/holarchy, such as through a mind/soul of a single cell (with very primitive, elemental consciousness), or through a human or animal mind/soul (with consciousness on a level of organic synergy of an individual human/animal), or through a (superior) mind/soul with synergetically extremely complex/sophisticated consciousness of whole galaxies involving all sub-levels, all emanating (since the superior mind/soul operates non-dimensionally, or trans-dimensionally) from the one Spirit.
- Christian spiritual theology can use the term “Spirit” to describe God, or aspects of God — as in the “Holy Spirit“, referring to a Triune God (Trinity) (cf. Gospel of Matthew 28:19).
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- Pneumatology is the study of spiritual beings and phenomena, especially the spiritual aspect of human beings and the interactions between humans and God.
- Christian Science uses “Spirit” as one of seven synonyms for God, as in: “Principle; Mind; Soul; Spirit; Life; Truth; Love”[12]
- Psychical research, “In all the publications of the Society for Psychical Research the term ‘spirit’ stands for the personal stream of consciousness whatever else it may ultimately be proved to imply or require” (James H. Hyslop, 1919).[14]
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- In mysticism: existence in unity with Godhead.[citation needed] Soul may also equate with spirit, but the soul involves a certain individual human consciousness, while spirit comes from beyond that. Compare the psychological teaching of Al-Ghazali.
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From <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirit>
Then we have the word Science which comes from Latin and means:
sci·ence
Latin – Scire
To know, understand http://latindictionary.wikidot.com/verb:scir
noun: science
the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behaviour of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment.
“the world of science and technology”
| synonyms: | branch of knowledge, body of knowledge/information/facts, area of study, discipline, field “the science of criminology” |
a particular area of science.
“
Archaic – knowledge of any kind.
“his rare science and his practical skill”
The thought of the day is that science and spirituality, or spirit are not opposites, like todays general idea of them would have you think. And science doesn’t just study the physical side of life, it also studies the energetic, or spirit side of life too. (air is unseeable so are may gasses, not to mention the quantum side of things or what we do with sound….etc.) So this current idea of a split between science and spirit and not being able to use science to study, describe or quantify spirit is irrational. It is also a piece of programming that has held back the study of things unseen for about two thousand years (except in some circles) and stunted our knowledge base on purpose.
Science can study spirit the same as it studies all other matters and in some circles it has, thus we have our breakaway civilizations, and secret societies and mystery schools. Knowledge is power, and until the Guttenberg press was invented, regular society never even knew what the bible said. Now with the internet, we all have the opportunity to know anything…except those facts that science has discovered about spirit.
So my next question would be WHY? The only answer I have been able to come up with is that it would equalize the world too much such that those in power wouldn’t be able to stay in power. When you listen to fellows like Joe McMoneagle talk (who swears we are all spiritually endowed) and Russell Targ, or Rupert Sheldrake or Stewart Hameroff you realize there have been some real trailblazers out there as of late. Then you listen to people like Garry Nolan (who is working with Kit Green et al) in an interview on Phenomenon Radio try so very hard to use the ‘correct’ words to describe the intersect between spirit and science and his research in order not to incur the wrath of ‘normal science professionals’ and, well, I feel very sorry for the man. It’s obvious that he has such a passion for the research and yet, like Jung said in the paragraph above, the words become a tangle and a weapon which could be turned back against him if he is not scrupulous with them. Yet, you hear the passion he has for his work, and his hopes and expectations in the tone of his voice that says as much if not more than his words – all aspects of the unseen and spirit…
You see my point? It’s not so much what the unseen is, as it is that we have been taught that we mustn’t ever, ever, ever look at it square in the face. (but what is more fun than sticking your nose in where is doesn’t belong??? Lol)
Whether is it timing (the procession of the earth and the Yugas) or it is knowledge (the availability of information) causing a tipping point, the intervention of cosmic forces (ET’s, ID’s and the like, both benevolent and malevolent: bene-good mal-bad) or all of the above, the tipping point has been reached. But instead of only one direction, there are many, and when this is through, this opening up, it will be billions of directions, not just one, creating a singularity of unimagined proportions that will truly become the new human – the new identity that when we look back on this world, it will seem only a tiny grain of sand in a whole new ocean.
We don’t have the words, but we soon will. The question is, will we still need them, words, that is?
In the Mind's Eye 