Women’s Spiritual Lives
This article covers the spiritual lives of women.
Those occasional doubts, the internal dialogue, and the constant nagging: these are the days when we ask ourselves, “Who am I? What am I supposed to be?” I don’t know if there is a “one-size-fits-all” answer.
I also don’t know if the answers I’ve found — and continue to find — are the final versions. We are continuously evolving, and this evolution requires many years of soul searching, studying, and experiencing. What I know to be true is that regardless of what I learn today, yesterday, or tomorrow, the answer is the right one for that specific moment — now.
Understanding our own existence and purpose as women is often difficult. We have a natural tendency to constantly question our identity, our purpose. We fall into the darkness of depression more frequently than men, but we are also able to bounce right out of it when our service is needed. We are multi-taskers, able to handle life’s complexities and simultaneously manage all of society’s pressures of having it all: a career, a family, and a spiritual life. Often, it is the spiritual life that suffers from neglect and malnutrition. Our quest to connect with the divine drives us to wondering, “Is this really all worth it? Is there really a God?”
Like all women, I struggle to balance my work, time with family, and time to reconnect with Higher Power. I have fallen into “dark nights of the soul” more often than I can count. The fast vibrations of the new millennium do not help matters, either. I am caught in the never-ending game of “catch-up.”
It is very easy to fall into the “victim” trap. The feeling that the efforts we put forth to keep things running smoothly in our work and our homes are unrecognized surfaces like a tsunami. These are the times when we feel unloved, unattractive, and unsatisfied with who we have become, and when we forget our true selves. It is also during these times that we isolate ourselves and think that if left alone, all will come to pass as it should and life will go on. Life does go on; however, the cavern gets deeper, and the cord that connects us to our higher self gets thinner and thinner.
Becoming spiritual does not mean that we need to seclude ourselves from our daily lives, nor does it mean that we become holy or righteous. Spirituality means that we pay attention to our spirits and let them be a part of our everyday lives. Like anyone or anything that we love and cherish, it is important that we feed and nourish our spirits. This may mean learning to meditate, taking time to be alone or with nature, participating in a women’s group, keeping a journal, or going to a tarot reader or psychic. These activities are dedicated to our spirits. They become the mechanism or avenue of communication.
The path to spiritual growth cannot be walked alone. We need the strengths of others to guide us and assist us in moving forward. It is in these times of loneliness and self-doubt that women need to seek the comfort and friendship of other women who share the same beliefs and feelings. It is in these friendships we are able to open up and allow the doubts and unworthiness be discussed, analyzed, and intuited. It is in the sharing of our deepest thoughts and desires that we as individuals reconnect with who we truly are. It is in these relationships that we see and experience unconditional love as Higher Power intended.
Women need each other not because we are codependent but because we are of one Source. It is the same Source we share with the rest of the world. As we develop and strengthen our relationships with other women, we are able to reach out and touch the hand of our Creator.