If you ask most people what it means to be spiritual, they'll tell you that it means to believe in God. They'll tell you that it means to pray in times of desperation and need. They'll tell you that it means to talk to angels. They'll tell you that it means to be in contact with the 'other side'.

I used to spend time meditating and visualising and drawing 'Angel Cards' and muttering mantras in an effort to 'be in touch with my spiritual side'. I read books on the soul, love, angels, etc. I referred to myself as a spiritual person. I fooled myself, with the aid of the books, into believing that by being in touch with my spiritual side in this way, I was laying the foundation for a solid and moral philosophy that would lead me into a life of integrity.

But after years of living in this way, at the end of it all, I was left looking into a vacant hole where a little thing called happiness should have been - and with it the stark realisation that the stuff doesn't work. It's literally just a waste of time. It's just an alternative for action. Intelligent action. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not completely condemning any form of introspection.

On the contrary, it's intelligent contemplation of my thoughts, feelings and direction that lead me here, to the discovery and undertaking of a life purpose that consumes my entire soul. But there's a big difference between intelligent, rational thinking and reasoning - and the emptying of one's mind or the conversation between invisible fairies and your soul.

So what IS the soul? The soul is not just some ghost that flits from one incarnation to another. But at the same time, we're not simply lumps of flesh. In that respect we, as humans, are no different to any other animal on earth; a butterfly is not simply a lump of flesh. Where we DO differ is the fact that we have a mind capable of choice, or free will. The soul is really the composite of your mind, body and emotions. When one of these dies - you die. End of story.

As I've grown as a person, I've come to realise that, actually, everyone is spiritual. Everyone sane, that is. The reason for this is that to be spiritual is to be in touch with your soul. Your soul - you, your self - can tell when it's happy or not. When you do something wrong by your mind, body, or emotions - it makes you feel bad.

When you do something right by your mind, body or emotions - it makes you feel good. And every sane human seeks to be happy - it's their number one goal. To live otherwise is insane. Everyone seeks to be happy by pleasing themselves - everyone is therefore selfish.

Anyone who practises a life of selflessness - that apparently lives to ignore their soul (mind, body, emotions) - i.e., who lives to deny their own happiness, is either a liar or masochistic (and hence won't live long). These types of people are not spiritual, no matter how adamant they wail that they are.

So, then, if everyone sane is spiritual and lives to be happy, then they welcome - they strive for that which makes them feel good. Anything that makes them feel good. Laughing, good sex, rollercoasters, football matches, fast cars, beachfront properties, a good book, the theatre, sky diving, etc.

With that said, being spiritual does not mean going to a haunted house every Sunday to kneel on a mat and pray to ghosts. It does not mean sleeping on the floor in a mud hut, wearing a loincloth and swatting flies. It also does not mean living in world where money doesn't exist. The mystics would have us believe that to be spiritual is to denounce money and the 'material' as evil. But what is the 'material' exactly? The dictionary definition of 'material' is:

Composed of or relating to things that occupy space and can be perceived by the senses.

So, then, the material is anythin that can be touched with your fingers, smelt with your nose, heard with your ears, seen with your eyes, and tasted in your mouth. Anything material you wish to own costs money - clothes, fast cars, good books, beach front properties, mobile phones, cutlery, etc.

So to denounce the 'material' is to denounce not only those things which make you feel good, but also those things that make your life comfortable. To denounce the 'material' is to opt out of a life of comfort and advancement, and in to a life of the Neanderthal. And there's nothing spiritual about that.

Ideally, the solution to a rewarding, spiritual life is to figure out exactly what it is you want to do with your life, shut out everything else that detracts from that, and just do it. So why not just live ideally? Well, if you're anything like I was, you may have qualities, traits and beliefs that you know are not congruent with your purpose, yet are proving just too damn hard to shake-off.

I've shaken-off some of mine. I still have some - sometimes the programming goes deep. But I reasoned that burying my head in an angel book, or meditating, or repeating affirmations until I'm blue in the face - are all not the answer.

No. The answer is smart work. Just like anything in life that you want to become good at. You work out what's holding you back from becoming who you want to become, and you go to work on improving these weak areas. With action. I physically work on my fears everyday, and I can honestly say they are disappearing. No angels. No 'ohm'-ing. No closing my eyes and picturing that which is invisible to me. No tricks. No gimmicks.

Sure, I have pictures and images of my dreams and goals in my line of vision at my desk, but these merely serve to constantly remind me of the prizes waiting for me during my journey. Their attainment will be realised by nothing other than intelligently conceived hard work. Not meditation or affirmations.

It's good to be spiritual. Just not in the way you were thinking.

To freedom,

Scotty Stevens