The Importance of Having a Spiritual Community

Spiritual community is one of the most important aspects of the spiritual path. In Buddhism and some other yoga traditions it is known as “Sangha” and is a central part of meditation practices.

Meditation is fairly simple. We sit and focus on our breathing and bring the mind back when it wanders. But there are also many opportunities to make mistakes and take idiosyncratic paths. It’s simple, but not always easy!

More advanced meditators can give you advice, demonstrate techniques and answer your questions. This helps you refine your process and improve it over time. It helps you stay on the right track.

Spiritual practitioners do not spend much time on superficial chatter or idle gossip. They go straight to the heart and talk about deep issues.

This helps raise your consciousness to higher thinking and spiritual ideals. It also takes your mind away from the trivial concerns of everyday life.

On the spiritual path, it can feel a bit isolated early on. You may find that some of your friendships begin to fall away. Some people even experience feelings of isolation.

When you go to meditation meetings, you will probably meet people with whom you have a relationship. You can share your experiences and enjoy each other’s company. It gives you the feeling of being part of something bigger. Moreover, it is nice to have like-minded people around you.

You may find that your practice becomes more consistent and disciplined. Your motivation increases when you see other people who are on the same path as you.

I’ve saved the most important thing for last. Sharing energy with advanced meditators is very powerful. When you are in their presence, you may immediately notice that your meditations are deeper.

Try to find classes near you. You can search online, especially by Meetup.com

to find something that looks good.

It can be a little scary the first time, which might put some people off. But you might make great friends and get the support you need. So it’s worth facing those fears.

Facebook has many groups where you can find a spiritual community. In these groups you can join, have conversations and share your journey.

Maybe you already know someone who enjoys meditation or yoga. You can message them on Facebook to see if they can help you. When people are interested in something, they usually like to share their knowledge.

Ask them if they would like to meet each other or if they are going to a fun group you can join. This is a quick and easy way to make a spiritual friend.

There are many online classes and guided meditations these days. They are often shared on Facebook groups. You can find some on the Way of Meditation Community.

Live classes can take place on Facebook Live. If they are on Zoom or another webinar platform, you may need to enter your email address. But it’s a small price to pay for attending a live meditation. Some may also ask for donations or payment.

Everything of
The course of the path of meditation have interactive forums to ask questions and leave comments. But some courses do have a community aspect online.
Taking a course tends to put you in the ‘inner circle’ of a meditation teacher and help you connect with other practitioners. This is a great way to deepen your practice and means you have a direct link to ask them questions and seek help.

For me, this is perhaps the most powerful and effective way to find spiritual community. It’s throwing yourself into the deep end.

When you go on retreat, you will be with many spiritual seekers, some of whom will be much more advanced than you. You will have the opportunity to spend time with professional spiritual teachers who will help you on your path.

Moreover, meditating for a whole week or more will not do any harm. Try to make some friends and keep in touch. Checking out
Chad Foreman’s regular one-day meditation retreats on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia.

Going on a sacred journey

can be a powerful way to meet people. You will spend a lot of time with others, as a pilgrimage can last several weeks.

If there are no spiritual groups in your area, why not start your own? It only takes two or three people to form a group. If you can find a few people interested in meditation, you can get together and practice.

This is how I actually started on the path. My friend Ryan and I used to meditate together in Thailand, and often a few other people would join us. Then we talked about the spiritual path. There is powerful energy in people coming together to grow spiritually. You could even advertise if you’re feeling brave.

Be active in the community. If you’re a member of a Facebook group, make sure you ask questions, answer questions, and participate. It’s easy to join in and then take a backseat. You can ask more questions in the beginning. But as time goes on, you will become more of an authority and people may start asking you questions and asking you for advice. Your answers to questions can even be included in a blog post on The Way of Meditation, like this one – Ordinary people answer the question: What is meditation?

Within the spiritual world there are different paths and a range of opinions. Always try to respect the opinions of others.

There’s nothing worse than when someone’s comment turns into a nasty, heated debate. It helps no one and only serves to boost the ego. Let other people have their say and be polite and respectful. You may not agree, but that doesn’t mean you have to be unkind. If you need to correct someone, do it kindly.

For some reason people seem to think that everything related to meditation should be free. Free meditation stuff is okay, but like everything in this world, you get what you pay for. If you are willing to pay for courses, retreats and lessons, you will get more out of your practice. You also come into more contact with the teachers and students in that community. Start with low-cost, high-quality courses such as The 21 Day Meditation Challenge

and go from there.

Nick is a certified meditation teacher and owner of Two Steps From Bliss. He has been studying and practicing meditation for 8 years, mainly through the lineage of Paramahansa Yogananda.