Well, since I began this Q, I need to weigh in on it.
Yes, it has been more practical in my life than anything else. Yes, I've learned other skills. Yes, I work, I live in the 'real' world. I must say that any and all success I have had in the world, I attribute to my spirituality. When I let my ego lead on my journey, it led me to more frustration than anything else. However, when I let go, and began consciously maintaining a contact with that aspect of myself that is more than ego, and contemplated the completeness of God, things changed in my worldly experience. Sometimes miraculously so.
As for the need to go live in a cave, and chant ommmm all the time. Perhaps in other cultures that works. In my culture, I've needed to find the ommmm inside of my normal workday, and family experience. I think it is actually more challenging, but it is, IMHO, definately doable.
The birth of so many potential paths to the experience of oneness, in our culture right now, provides sooooo many opportunities to find that connection. The free exchange of information without sensorship has disabled the religious majority from hiding the other views from us -- for that I truly thank God. Even 100 years ago there were witchcraft laws on the books in England. Even 50 years ago, so much of this information that is available now would be deemed highly threatening to those in power.
Bridle our ability to investigate alternative viewpoints on spirituality, and you hold people back from real exploration of what spirituality means to them.
From a mainstream perspective, that is good. Because folks who live spiritually just aren't very much like cattle; they have their own opinions and perspectives, and do not subscribe to typically mainstream theologies.
Ohhhh, got long-winded again. Sorry. Nutshell answer; nothing has been MORE practical from an earthly perspective than my spiritual investigation and growth. Blessings from Belle,
