Spirituality is the quest to understand and connect with the invisible realm. It’s about finding answers to our most pressing questions and making sense of the world around us. It can be helpful when trying to find peace of mind, especially during troubling times.
There are many different ways to define spirituality, but it’s a quality that goes beyond religious affiliation and strives for inspiration, reverence, awe, meaning and purpose. It often comes into focus in times of emotional stress, physical (and mental) illness, loss and death.
Several studies have found that people who experience moments of transcendence in their lives have higher levels of psychological resilience and positive emotions, as well as improved immune response. They also report a sense of belonging and being able to trust others, even in challenging situations.
However, defining spirituality scientifically is difficult because it can be confusing and unclear. This is exacerbated by the high variability of items contained in measures of spirituality.
