Values and Our Spiritual Journey

A Sunday New York Times piece on “the new allure of sacred pilgrimages” suggested “one in three tourists worldwide is on a spiritual journey.” Even if you’re tempted to quibble with that estimate, anything even close to that is quite amazing. So what’s new in there, in particular related to our interest in values shifts?

The article makes the point we’ve discussed here about the distinction between religion and spirituality – the formal doctrine versus the individual interpretation of some sense of higher power. The boom cited in the piece notes that there is still, of course, plenty of religious journeying going on, but that the boom is being fueled by the spiritual path. The ease of international travel is the lubricant (okay, “ease” in the sense of more affordable and accessible).

It’s a really interesting read! You will notice the “search for meaning” – our shorthand for the postmodern quest, and a bit of “make a difference” – our shorthand for the integral quest. This quote really captured it for me: “It’s the feeling of taking control over one’s life that most affected the pilgrims I met.” Yep, we’re on point here. So, as we approach New Year’s Resolution time, perhaps it’s time to consider a spiritual journey (if you haven’t already)?

Related side note: A reviewer of a values-relate piece I’m writing on several occasions noted a connection between traditional and postmodern values. Indeed! The first similarity is the “outer-directed orientation.” As we learned from Spiral Dynamics, the values/worldview shifts on the development path alternate between inner- and outer-directed orientation. A second point is that ConsumerShift suggested the “morphing” of related values over time – a reinterpretation. Granted, this was speculative. It makes intuitive sense, but not empirically supported. Third, a key insight for me on the values shifts is the “why” of the value – not just “what” it is. For instance, one can say that traditionals value “community” as do postmoderns. The distinction in the “why.” I would argue is that traditionals valued their community because it was the right thing to do. It was less about a lifestyle choice than a matter of where one happened to be brought up or living. The postmodern sense of community is about making a deliberate choice to select a community compatible with their values and to actively support that community – it’s connecting to a community of choice rather than a sense of duty. Andy Hines