On Spirituality as a Way of Life in India

Hinduism is a way of life and not a religion – this is an oft repeated statement by Hindus. For a change a non-Hindu discovers spirituality as a way of life in India. Susan L. Smalley, Ph.D., a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, writes in her column in The Huffington Post about her discovery of Spirituality as a Way of Life in India during her first journey to India.

Let me define spirituality as 'a sense of connection to something larger than oneself' and in India this attention to spirituality is pervasive. It is evident in every aspect of the culture -- there is a constant integration of reminders that we are part of something larger than the self.

It is evident in the shrines that are present on every street corner, created on sides of houses, roadside stops, hilltops, alleyways, the back of tractor trailers, and beyond. Shrines are big, small, colorful, bland, dedicated to Shiva, Ganesh, Hanuman, or thousands of other manifestations of our shared nature, to Hindus the manifestations of a Oneness or God or an Ultimate Reality.

It is evident in the pervasive Namaste -- a greeting with hands folded in a prayer position accompanied by a bow that means something like "I see the Oneness in you." It is evident in the pervasive 'bindi,' the smudge of color between the eyebrow -- a reminder that we are part of something larger than the self -- visible by a 'third eye' if you will.

You can read more of the article here at Huffington Post.