Embodied Spirituality—Essence in Presence

Elsewhere in my posts, articles, and essays I have referred to the false self and the true Self, the lower self and the higher Self, the egoic self and the soul-self, and similar terminology to draw distinction to these aspects of identity. From a certain perspective, this makes sense. In truth, there is only one self. This is a different perspective, that of wholeness. We are each a package deal that includes all aspects of our being—the soul, the body, the mind. When the soul incarnates and inhabits what some call a meat sac (carne means meat), there is something new and unique created. It doesn’t make sense to separate the different parts of the self as though they are separate. My left hand is part of me. It is not more or less a part of me than an ear or my heart—they are all parts of the same me. From a holistic perspective, it is clear there is only one self. Perhaps this is better called oneself.

It should come as no surprise that wholeness and holiness share a common root. They both derive from the Old English word “hāl.” This Old English “hāl” is the ancestor of our modern English words: “whole” (complete, entire), “hale” (healthy, robust), “heal” (to make whole or healthy again), “health” (state of being whole or well), “holy” (set apart, sacred).

The semantic connection between “whole” and “holy” reflects an ancient conceptual link between completeness/integrity and sacredness. Something that was “holy” was considered to be perfect, complete, and set apart–qualities related to wholeness. This connection appears in other Indo-European languages as well. For example, in Greek, the words for “holy” (ἅγιος/hagios) and “whole/healthy” (ὅλος/holos) share similar roots, suggesting this connection between wholeness and holiness was widespread in ancient Indo-European thought.

“Holistic” embodies the concept of considering entire systems rather than just their component parts. When we embrace this holistic perspective, we can appreciate the integration of body, mind, and soul into a unitary whole being. A human being is not just the human part, it is the divine essence that is also present within that human form. The complete integration of matter and spirit is represented by the concept of embodied spirituality.

Here, I think it is important to distinguish between present and presence. We can be present in the now moment in different ways. Physically, somatic awareness centers us into the now moment. If you stub your toe or get something in your eye, your attention is drawn into the physical sensations you are experiencing. Past or future are not relevant in these moments. Breath exercises that ask you feel the movement of air in your nostrils, or focus on feeling your feet, then your legs, etc. are ways of bringing you into the now moment through physical awareness.

When you mentally focus on a task at hand such as taking an exam, making a foul shot, or finishing an important report, you filter out the past and the future and are focused in the now moment. Being fully focused and engaged in a task is sometimes recognized as being in a type of “flow state” in work or creative activity. This is at the cognitive level.

Emotionally, when you comfort a dear friend who just lost a loved one, or hold a newborn infant, or listen to children playing in the schoolyard and hear their squeals of delight, you are in the now moment. This is yet another way of being present. Being immersed in feeling rather than thinking, as with empathy or joy, this way of being present takes us beyond our analytical mind into deeper connection with ourselves and others.

At the soul level, witnessing something deeply profound and awe-inducing takes us into the now moment and we are fully present.

Learning that your child who was in an accident was not killed, witnessing a spectacular triple rainbow, watching a mare birth a foal, fully reaching the heights of sexual expression with your partner—these are moments of being fully present in the now. Often, we experience not just a sense of awe, but of reverence and gratitude at these moments. This spiritual experience represents a transcendent awareness that connects us to source consciousness, characterized by awe, peace, and a sense of unity with all creation. This goes beyond both thinking and feeling into a more profound state of being.

All of these ways of being present are associated with a state of being here, now, in this moment rather than dwelling in the past or future. Being present is the foundational act of showing up and paying attention. It’s temporal and spatial—you are physically and mentally in the current moment and location.

Presence, on the other hand, suggests a quality or essence that emanates from within—it’s about how you inhabit the moment and the impact of your being. Presence has depth, substance, and radiating power. It speaks to the quality of awareness you bring and how that quality affects both your experience and potentially those around you. Presence carries with it a sense of fullness, authenticity, and completeness.

In the context of embodied spirituality, being present is the conscious choice to fully inhabit this moment. Presence is the divine essence manifesting through that choice. Presence describes the quality of divine essence that becomes accessible through each of these forms of engagement–physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually.

We are told that Jesus Christ was fully human and fully divine. I think he is the role model for embodied spirituality. In this sense, I think he represents the complete integration of matter and spirit in the full embodiment of spirit-made flesh. In Christian theology, this concept is known as the hypostatic union—the belief that in Jesus, divine and human natures are united completely in one person, without diminishing either nature.

I close with an evolutionary perspective on embodied spirituality. Our species is collectively evolving, but what are we evolving toward? The New Human embodies divine essence and fully integrates matter and spirit. This is what St. Paul meant when he encouraged us to “walk in the spirit.”

Spirituality isn’t separate from our human experience—it flows through it. Divine essence expresses itself through our human form.

This spark of divinity within imbues our human experience with our spiritual nature. This allows us to experience the unity of our humanity and divinity in everyday moments simply by being present with presence.

This awareness and this way of being throughout the day represents embodied spirituality not as some idea or concept but as a way of living life by walking in the spirit. The New Human fully integrates all aspects of self into one self—oneself—who walks fully and completely in the spirit. This honors and gives full expression to our full potential as human beings.

We are on a journey to wholeness. The path is made by walking. Presence underlies every step. Walk with me.