Many different images come to mind when one hears the word spiritual. Some think of heaven complete with angels and harps. Others may imagine a mountain retreat high in the Himilayan mountains where monks sit in lotus position chanting "om."

According to Dicitionary.com spiritual is defined as:

1. Of, relating to, consisting of, or having the nature of spirit; not tangible or material.

2. Of, concerned with or affecting the soul.

3. Of, from or relating to God; deific.

4. Of or belonging to a church or religion; sacred.

5. Relating to or having the nature of spirits or a spirit; supernatural.

There are several other definitions that can be found in various dictionary sources but I will not bother to list them all here.

Although a person can be both religious and spiritual, it is not necessary to be religious in order to be spiritual. It may take many years or even lifetimes to truly get in touch with our spiritual nature. For years, I sought my own spirituality. It was only once I had stopped searching that I actually began to find what I had been so desperately seeking. I finally realized that I had been trying too hard to be what I already was. There are many paths that lead inward where we need to focus our attention yet many of us search every material source we can find rather than turnining within.

I read every book I could get my hands on, took up yoga, did daily meditation and researched various religious practices. I went even further, studying dream interpretation, numerology and trying to develop psychic powers. I wrote down daily affirmations and repeated them until I was actually saying them in my sleep. What I didn't realize was that while I was so emerged in trying to achieve a higher level of self, I was ignoring my natural intuitive abilities. Even though I studied various methods, my most difficult task was in learning to let go and trust my inner self. At times I still find this difficult to do. From my point of view, it is a feeling of inner peace that allows you to know that you are on the spiritual path.

Although spirituality isn't easy to define and can be seen as chameleon-like depending on one's perspective, I believe one has found their spiritual side when they feel a sense of inner calm and acceptance, feeling compassion yet remaining slightly detached from the world around them. By detachment, I don't mean some sort of obscure aloofness or indifference to the world or others but rather an inner knowing that there is much more beyond our material lives and this material world.

When we realize that the outer world is simply a manifestation of the inner, then we are on the right track. It is when we begin to understand that love, patience, strength, wisdom and more can be found within us rather than outside of ourselves that we are on the path of reconnecting with the true self. Someone once said that we are spiritual beings having a human experience. But how many of us have actually pondered the depth of such a profound statement?

We are conditioned to label that which we do not understand as supernatural or paranormal. From that which we've been taught such things do not fall into the category of what we consider normal. We have become so steeped in our material existence that we cannot always see what lies in perfect view. Only when we realize that it is not necessary to analyze everything with our rational minds that we begin to trust our higher being which is the true self.

Religion teaches us faith. We are taught to have faith in God, a higher being, the Universe itself but what most of us don't understand is that we are to have faith in ourselves also. One must have faith by learning to trust one's intuition. What we refer to as intuition is the higher self. It is our inner voice that serves to provide us with proper guidance. It is faith in the inner self that allows us to receive and respond to this guidance. While it is not necessary to have faith in the intuitive self to hear its voice, it does take faith to live by its guidance. Most of us brush away the spiritual self, unknowingly, in favor of the analytical, logical self.

Some are more in touch with their spiritual self than others are. Many of us remain engrossed in the experience of our material world. One common bond that we all share is that we are all on a journey toward recognizing our spirituality and reclaiming our true inner being, even though we may be at different places along that path.

Darlene Zagata is a freelance writer and author of two books, "Aftertaste: A Collection of Poems" and "The Choosing." She is also a monthly columnist and editor for the print publication Moon Shadows Magazine. Visit Darlene's website at http://darlenezagata.tripod.com or contact Darlene at darzagata@yahoo.com