Spirituality is a brain state we can all reach, religious or not
Neuroscience shows that spiritual experiences are correlated with brain states that we can all aim for, religious or not
by Tal Dotan Ben-Soussan
Spirituality and religion
To be more tech-savvy, borrow these strategies from the Amish
With their focus on values and intentionality, the Amish offer a lesson in thinking critically about digital technology
by Alex Mayyasi
Your consciousness has been completely transformed. Now what?
Awakening experiences are spiritual states often believed to unlock life’s mysteries – but sacred knowledge comes at a cost
by Kevin Berryman
Religion gives life meaning. Can anything else take its place?
Religious faith promotes a sense of meaning in life – and it might take more than ‘social glue’ to duplicate the effect
by Michael M Prinzing
To experience Zen-like awakening, try going the headless way
Try to point to your true self as you’d point to a brick wall, and other experiments in Zen-like awakening
by Brentyn J Ramm
Why religion without belief can still make perfect sense
Meet the practising agnostic and the religious fictionalist: people for whom religion can work well without sure belief
by Philip Goff
This is not the end. Apocalyptic comfort from ancient Iran
Faced with the collapse of their empire, Zoroastrians sought comfort in the apocalyptic – and their literature flourished
by Domenico Agostini & Samuel Thrope
How to find new spiritual practices
Even if religion isn’t for you, there’s a world of rituals and tools to lift yourself up and connect to something greater
by Morgan Shipley
Near-death experiences have long inspired afterlife beliefs
Through time and across cultures, near-death experiences share common themes and have inspired beliefs about the afterlife
by Gregory Shushan
How an intense spiritual retreat might change your brain
Whether through daily meditation or on a week-long retreat, the experience of spiritual enlightenment transforms the brain
by Andrew Newberg
There has never been a time when this article didn’t exist
The root of time itself is in fertile nothingness: how ancient Chinese Daoism shatters our illusions about time and being
by David Chai
From sexual union to the divine – the teachings of Ibn al-‘Arabi
The Sufi scholar Ibn al-‘Arabi was a divine lover who saw the initial act of creation mirrored in the male-female union
by Heba Yosry
Sikh ethics sees self-centredness as the source of human evil
Sikhism places unity over individualism, offering a different perspective on the big questions of Western moral philosophy
by Keshav Singh
Modern mindfulness meditation has lost its beating communal heart
Ancestral blessings in meditation are not premodern residue. Attachment theory suggests they’re vital for compassion
by Paul Condon & John Makransky
How to thrive after leaving your religion
It can be distressing, but liberating too. Use these tips from clinical practice and personal experience to emerge stronger
by Micah Rees
Why the first Buddhas in art wore finely folded Greek tunics
How the iconography of Greek art influenced the development of an increasingly standardised image of the Buddha in India
by Garrett Ryan