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SECULAR SPIRITUALITY

Don’t disconnect from reality to feel connected to life.

Spirituality does not have to pull you away from science, evidence, or common sense. At its best, it can help your personal journey through spirituality keeping your feet firmly on the ground.

The key? Sorting thoughts. It sounds simple, even boring, but it is the key to the future of spirituality and religion.

I recently joined Allen Rice on the Audible River podcast for a conversation about secular spirituality.

Listen here:

Secular Spirituality with Michael Alan Prestwood In this conversation natural philosopher Michael Alan Prestwood tal...

What is the difference between ontology and spirituality?

Ontology asks: What exists? What kind of thing is reality? What does it mean to be? It explores questions like whether the universe is only material, whether mind is part of reality, whether numbers exist, whether the self is real, and what kind of thing a person is. It is philosophy at the foundation level.

Spirituality starts from a different place. It asks: How should I relate to existence? What does life mean? What feels sacred, precious, or larger than myself? It may include religion, but it does not have to. It can show up as awe under the stars, gratitude for life, or reverence for nature. It surfaces with grief, enters our minds with meditation, and feels right with service. It's the feeling that this life matters.

They overlap because existence itself can feel spiritual. When ontology reminds you that you are here now—aware, temporary, embodied, and responsible—it can deepen spirituality. Whether this life is all we have or part of something larger, the fact of existence is not casual. You are here. You are conscious. You can choose. You have agency. That alone is enough to make life feel precious.

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What is the difference between ontology and spirituality? | TouchstoneTruth.com Ontology studies what exists. Spirituality explores what existence means.

What is Eastern “chee,” or qi?

Qi is the Eastern idea of vital flow: the breath-like energy of life moving through body, nature, and reality. It has deep roots in Eastern philosophy, and the idea is similar to a general life-force concept. It is not identical to Aristotle’s entelechy or Spinoza’s conatus, but all three circle the same mystery: what makes life move, strive, and unfold?

Qi, entelechy, and conatus are not the same idea, but they belong in the same philosophical family. Qi focuses on life as flowing energy, Aristotle’s entelechy on fulfilled potential, and Spinoza’s conatus on the drive to persist. Each gives us a different way to see life as active, unfolding, and alive.

What is Eastern “chee,” or qi? | TouchstoneTruth.com Qi is the Eastern idea of vital flow: the breath-like energy of life moving through body, nature, and reality.