They may have parallel attributes but are distinctly different. One may enhance the other but either can stand alone. More about that later.

Spirituality is an individual phenomenon that is the essential part of each human being, making up the complex psycho-emotional true self that is sometimes called the soul.

An understanding of spirituality is really a simple thing, but we humans make the process so complex, that it is quite difficult to whittle away the excesses and find the true base of the spirit of oneself.

"Pure Spirit, one hundred degrees proof— that’s a drink that only the most hardened contemplation-guzzlers indulge in. Bodhisattvas dilute their Nirvana with equal parts of love and work." Aldous Huxley (1894–1963), British author. Susila, in Island, ch. 15 (1962).

It appears that nearly every person, either consciously or unconsciously, mask spirituality with religion.

Many western religions call themselves spiritual, but are filled so deeply with contradictions and dogmas that, they are not aware of the true miraculous nature of their spirit.

Many never find their true spirit, but believe to the death that they are the spirits itself. Religion is a worldwide phenomenon that has played a part in all human culture and so is a much broader, more complex category than the set of beliefs or practices found in any single religious tradition.

An adequate understanding of religion must take into account its distinctive qualities and patterns as a form of human experience, as well as the similarities and differences in religions across human cultures.

In all cultures, human beings make a practice of interacting with what are taken to be spiritual powers. These powers may be in the form of gods, spirits, ancestors, or any kind of sacred reality with which humans believe themselves to be connected.

Sometimes a spiritual power is understood broadly as an all-embracing reality and sometimes it is approached through its manifestation in special symbols.

It may be regarded as external to the self, internal, or both.

People interact with such a presence in a sacred manner—that is, with reverence and care.

Religion is the term most commonly used to designate this complex and diverse realm of human experience.

"Our systems, perhaps, are nothing more than an unconscious apology for our faults— a gigantic scaffolding whose object is to hide from us our favorite sin." Henri-Frédéric Amiel (1821–81), Swiss philosopher, poet. Journal Intime, (1882; tr. by Mrs. Humphry Ward, 1892), entry for 13 Aug. 1865.