presentation about spirituality for a high school class

[LoveandPurpose]

I am a student in high school and I will give a talk about spirituality lasting no longer than 20-30 minutes. 

I want them to understand how much this could improve their lives and that this answers the most fundamental questions there are ("What is existence?").

I think experiencing it, not only talking about it, is important for them. I want them to get really interested in it, so they want to inform themselves about it on their own. 

 

How would you structure this presentation? How would you explain spirituality? And how would you let them get a little glimpse of it? Through a guided meditation?

Thank you in advance

Edited February 8, 2019 by LoveandPurpose

[cetus]

@LoveandPurpose It's up to you but I wouldn't use the word sprituality. Maybe self realization or something  but ppl hear the word spirituality and right away they think religion. Even using the word God you could be saying one thing but they will hear something completely different b-c they already have a fixed idea of what God is. The guy in the sky so to speak. You could do a totally amazing presentation but just be really careful how you approach it or it could fall on deaf ears or even worse.

[Salvijus]

Ohhhh... I think you're out of your league here. Explaining spirituality is simple but the listeners are very complex. You say one wrong word and their egos will resist you, deny you and demonize you. You say one thing that doesn't make sense to them you're finished.

It's not about explaining the spirituality. Actually you want to intetvene in their life, you want to influence them. This is a very delicate process. It takes a lot of time to build the trust. To prepare the receptivity and then intervene in their life only to the extent one is ready.

However i don't want to discoure you maybe it's good for you idk. Many people go on talking nonsense about spirituality and accidentally make good influence on the people your intention is good that's what matters

42 minutes ago, LoveandPurpose said:

How would you structure this presentation? How would you explain spirituality? And how would you let them get a little glimpse of it? Through a guided meditation?

Thank you in advance

If I were you i'd just put sadhguru's video and let him do all the work. Be just a vehicle for grace to function. Or do you want to be the main guy who saves the world? careful there could be some ego arrogance in this desire.

 

 

Edited February 8, 2019 by Salvijus

[cetus]

49 minutes ago, LoveandPurpose said:

I want them to understand how much this could improve their lives

 

49 minutes ago, LoveandPurpose said:

 I want them to get really interested in it

That's a bit of a wrong approach. I know your intentions are good but very careful here.

[bejapuskas]

@LoveandPurpose  I did the exact same thing that you are trying to do, so I can help  

3 minutes ago, cetus56 said:

That's a bit of a wrong approach. I know your intentions are good but very careful here.

 

17 minutes ago, Salvijus said:

If I were you i'd just put sadhguru's video and let him do all the work. Be just a vehicle for grace to function. Or do you want to be the main guy who saves the world? careful there could be some ego arrogance in this desire.

This is very important for you to understand. If you fall into this trap of telling everyone about your progress and walking around with your nose up, your growth will just stagnate, be humble, open, objective, don't exaggerate. 

Also ask yourself, if you genuinely want to do this out of a good intention - are you not pushing them to come, are they interested? Are you actually listening to your intuition and good intention or are you just trying to climb the social ladder / immitate Leo?

30 minutes ago, cetus56 said:

@LoveandPurpose It's up to you but I wouldn't use the word sprituality. Maybe self realization or something  but ppl hear the word spirituality and right away they think religion. Even using the word God you could be saying one thing but they will hear something completely different b-c they already have a fixed idea of what God is. The guy in the sky so to speak. You could do a totally amazing presentation but just be really careful how you approach it or it could fall on deaf ears.

This is also good advice, don't start by pointing at people like Jesus, Buddha, Mohammed and trying to explain the similarities in their religions, it's no good for your first speech, only the most open people might consider that and the others might just stop paying attention straight away.

Instead, propagate people like Wim Hof, Morihei Ueshiba... the people that look like heroes to anyone and are obviously doing their job well  So many more people resonate with these kind of guys. Ramana Maharshi is a legit sage, but an orange teenager won't resonate with him. 

[Forestluv]

@LoveandPurpose

Most people have had a glimpse of no-self, a form of nonduality. To bring this forth in one's direct experience, one may have the audience try to remember the following mind states:

1. "Flow state". Most people have had glimpses of "flow". For example while playing a sport or playing an instrument. Here, the person is completely aware and present - perhaps playing soccer. Perhaps there is a minute in the game they were hyper-present and aware. They were not thinking about the score, how good they look, impressing their parents or themself. They mind-body is completely being - just playing soccer. Someone might ask later "What were you thinking about when you scored that goal?". For an athlete in flow, it's a weird question. They would probably say "I wasn't really thinking anything. I was just playing in the moment. . . Similarly, people who play instruments get into improvisational flow. For example, a trumpet player may let go of everything and go into flow. It's like their person dissolves and the trumpet is playing itself. Others get into flow with creativity. For example, a writer in which they dissolve and the creativity just flows - as if the story is writing itself.

2. A sense of awe. Most of us have had a no-self glimpse when overcome by beauty and awe. Imagine your first glimpse of the Grand Canyon or an amazing starlit night sky. There is a moment when the person is just being. There is just beauty. There is no "me" here and that "there". Thoughtless speechless oneness. Then, the personality might snap back and the person might return. Thoughts like "Wow! I need to get a great picture of that to post on Instagram!!!"

3. Transcendent connection with others. Many of us have had moments of such deep love and connection that the ego/personality momentarily dissolves. For example, a loving moment with a boyfriend/girlfriend when the two people "melt" together and there is just the experience of love. This could also happen with a pet. 

I like to bring forth one's own direct experience as "taste" of different conscious states. It is a deeper understanding than trying to figure it out with logic. As well, this gets people's attention, because these glimpses are the juice of life. Everyone LOVES it. It is home. The whole "story" about what's right and wrong, how things should be, I should do this and that. . . is all work. We love those glimpses into the beyond - we are highly attracted to flow states, awe states and moments of transcendent love. 

[TheAvatarState]

1 hour ago, LoveandPurpose said:

this answers the most fundamental questions there are ("What is existence?").

Be VERY careful to not give out answers in such a short talk... This will lead to much confusion and have the opposite effect of what you want. You are not here to save people! The only thing you can successfully accomplish with this talk is to introduce them to spirituality (in a positive light). Do not claim you have the answers to the universe and that you can help people!! Even if that may be true to some extent...

In preparation, watch Leo's "No Bullshit guide to spirituality" and take notes. Dispel some myths at the beginning, but don't make that the focus of your talk. The focus should be about what spirituality means TO YOU (don't make it about who's watching, because highlighting all the benefits for the viewer actually comes off like a Oxiclean TV add, while talking about your benefits fees genuine and interesting). 

Say what true spirituality is, which is just observing actuality. Tell them about meditation, self-inquiry, Journaling, etc. Radiate your interest in life-long learning and discovery! That could really resonate with kids who've been programmed to only learn through high-school and college and that's it. I know it did for me. 

If you want to have a great talk, be really light on the concepts, and just be excited and happy. You can't tell someone what existence is... Your job is to show them the door, they have to walk through it, and only if they want to.

Good luck and have fun!  

[cetus]

Personally i don't even like the word "sprituallity" and hardly ever use it. Enlightenment is simply discovering a natural aspect of ourselves that has always been true but just hidden from the ignorant human ego/mind. Could you imagine a race of beings in another part of the universe that are far more advanced then humans that are totally awakened. It would be a given that they exist as what we refer to as "GOD". But it would'nt be anything "special" to them. That would be a duality = ignorance. Where as for most humans to be enlightened or awakened is something very rare so we give it a special name. But it's nothing more then discovering the full truth of what "is" and has always been true.

[Forestluv]

I would agree with @cetus56 regarding buzzwords such as "god" and "spirituality". These are highly used terms and the audience will be filled with pre-conceived notions about those terms. I wouldn't spend half the talk explaining what I mean by "god" or "spirituality". I think people are more open to exploring new areas when using terms like "raising one's consciousness", "flow state", "awareness", "nonduality", "oneness", "presence", "existence", "beingness", "ISness" etc.

[cetus]

@Serotoninluv "The Expanding Consciousness of the Human race". That would get their intrest without the preconcieved ideas of spirituality/God getting in the way. Who doesn't want to expand their awareness?

[Forestluv]

1 hour ago, cetus56 said:

@Serotoninluv "The Expanding Consciousness of the Human race". That would get their intrest without the preconcieved ideas of spirituality/God getting in the way. Who doesn't want to expand their awareness?

Oooh, I like that phrase. . . I've noticed the term "collective consciousness" is slowly gaining popularity. It still catches most egos off-guard and stimulates an openness and curiosity. "oooohhh, collective consciousness, what's that?". . . I think it can help a mind consider there might be a consciousness beyond their own personal consciousness. Yet over time, I can see it getting over-used and spoiled by that darn rational thinking. . . I'm also seeing it with terms like "enlightenment". 

[cetus]

3 minutes ago, Serotoninluv said:

"collective consciousness"

I was contemplating that myself along with the thought experiment of there being more advanced civilizations somewhere in the universe. Imagine a race of beings that shared one collective conscionseness. Millions of beings but of one collective mind through the realization of there being just one uniting consciousness.

[Elisabeth]

1 hour ago, TheAvatarState said:

Say what true spirituality is, which is just observing actuality. Tell them about meditation, self-inquiry, Journaling, etc. Radiate your interest in life-long learning and discovery! That could really resonate with kids who've been programmed to only learn through high-school and college and that's it. I know it did for me. 

If you want to have a great talk, be really light on the concepts, and just be excited and happy. You can't tell someone what existence is... Your job is to show them the door, they have to walk through it, and only if they want to.

 

@LoveandPurpose I agree. If you dare, being personal and authentic could really do the trick. 

Why and how did YOU get into spirituality? Tell them.

Do you have a favourite meditation technique? Give it 5 minutes. 

Don't go blatantly against the rationalist's paradigm, just take their attention to their sensual and emotional experience. 

I think "how am I feeling in this moment" is way more relatable then "what is reality". 

You don't have to take them all the way up to talking about enlightenment ... or do you wont to do that? You 'just' need to spark their curiosity, have them talk to you later one on one, maybe check out a teacher. 

Regardless of the result, I think you are being very brave.  

[AlwaysBeNice]

Given it's not about 'knowledge' but about direct experience or 'knowing-insight', I would talk about people who've done a very good job at living this, like Ramana Maharshi and do meditation(s) yeah

Don't 'own it' , as long as you are not fully enlightened you are as ignorant as everyone else fundamentally, if you try to use this info to one-up your ego, that may ensure a backlash. There are actually a lot of people in this field who try to take this info and walk around with it, understand-able, but I pity their souls, for when they may have to face a layer of their un-enlightenment, they may drag others into their crisis, be more ashamed, or create an even more subtle bs ego mask.

AH maybe I'm talking too much trash myself again, peace

 

[bejapuskas]

@Serotoninluv  These terms get misused even on this forum, there is no way they will use it correctly after on speech, I don't think many of them will be interested, but maybe 1 or 2 might start researching  

[Forestluv]

13 minutes ago, bejapuskas said:

@Serotoninluv  These terms get misused even on this forum, there is no way they will use it correctly after on speech, I don't think many of them will be interested, but maybe 1 or 2 might start researching  

That's why I suggested trying to get the audience to relate through their own direct experience (e.g. flow states during sports or playing an instrument).

Would you be interested in learning about how to enter "The Zone" when you want to? Heck yea!!

[bejapuskas]

Hope it works for him  

[Aaron p]

Be sure to follow the spiritual rules. Include phrases like "you shouldn't assume anything I'm saying is true, infact this would hinder your growth." 

Make sure to talk very materialistically...I agree with cetus, using words like "spirituality" or "god" would definitely cause the listeners to assume all kinds of wrong ideas and concepts about what your talking about. Honestly, these words only make sense from looking back, whilst in a hightened state of awareness and even then it's very confusing.

Use words like "you can try it yourself" and "you are encouraged to do the practises to see if I am lying." Paradoxically, the more you try to disarm your presentation, the stronger it becomes. Use analogies and keep it simple. My favorite analogy (because of its simplicity) is the analogy of words. Before words are interpreted by the human mind all there are, are random black markings and yet the reader does not see it as "hard", the reader doesn't even consider it "easy" it's automatic. So the reader does not see random black markings (what is truly there) they see the illusion of words. Point out how automatic this is and how your mind wraps concepts around reality in real time, all the time. And so when the observer looks at reality they do not see reality, but their meet interpretation. 

Drive home the sense of "literalness." Differentiate thoughts and the actual object the thought it of...for example, if I look at your face then close my eyes (whilst still looking at the memory of your face) when I'm looking at this memory, even though it looks like your face it is absolutely not...it's a thought. 

Reality is not what you think it is, because what you think it is, is a thought. 

The question will then rise "well ok, but why the hell should anyone care...language and concepts are very useful." You need to answer the "why." At this point you will have proven that there is actually something to this. Then you can [gently] introduce examples of enlightened people. I *do not* recommend using the word "enlightened" for me, the term enlightened is known as a stupid thing. Like fairy dust. 

You know I'm not enlightened yet, I only have limited knowledge of this. Talk about self enquiry. The analogy of the cake. If you really want to bring the message to them, you can buy a cake and bring it in (then give it out after). But use it for an example of how concepts wrap around reality in real time.

Step one: present cake

Step two: confirm that there is a *singular* "cake" that exists in *one location*. (This will probably be accepted, but the wording is important here).

Step three: remove slice 1 (out of view) and ask bluntly "is the cake still here, on this table?" Recap on how the "cake" is supposedly *one* object in one location...so it either here or not here. (They will probably think the cake is still there, since only one slice has been removed) 

Step four: explain that, logically, "slice one" and the "cake" can co-exist separate from eachother and that therefore the "cake" is not slice one. 

Step five repeat this until all slices have been confirmed to not be the "cake" individually.

 

Then explain that the "cake" is a concept that exists, only in your imagination and the *actual* thing (the thing that matches your concept of "cake") is something entirely different to the concept. 

(Since you only have 20 minutes you might not have time.) 

Really press in on the "why" the results are tremendous. This is...a hard task. I would use purely testimonies. You can I troduce words like "spirituality" or "meditation" near the end. Describe self enquiry, and how the same principals apply to *you*. Says "somehow the results of daily spiritual practises, are staggering. Stepping beyond the limitations of the human. The entire human is being observed, no? By whom is the human being observed? 

Weights cannot weigh themselves, fire cannot burn itself, light cannot shine on itself. The unique attribute of pure "being" or "observing" is that the observer, logically cannot be observed...which means you have never once observed yourself. Pick and choose from these points, try to predict how your audience will react and don't just state random facts and points...take them on a journey, a 25 minute journey. What it is, why is it important, how to do I get there. Be clever

[LoveandPurpose]

@cetus56 @Salvijus @bejapuskas @Serotoninluv @TheAvatarState @Elisabeth @AlwaysBeNice @Aaron p

Thank you all very much! Unfortunately, I don't have the time to respond to each answer, but I took everything you said into consideration and it helped me a lot!

[bejapuskas]

@LoveandPurpose  It also depends on your age, if you are first year of high school like me, your approach should probably be different, than if you were graduating, at least if you want to succeed  Also be aware of their level of development on the Spiral, it can certainly help. Don't expect, that an orange person will trust some yellow/turquoise information, not even green sometimes.