Browsing by Subject "meditative practices"

Recent research shows that religion is transforming in Finland. The interest in institutional religion has decreased and more people identify themselves as non-religious while they are also interested in spirituality. Thus, it seems that religion is not disappearing, but rather transforming. This thesis aims to produce in-depth knowledge about the non-religious Finns and their understanding and pursuits of spirituality through meditative practices. This thesis investigates the interplay between non-religious spirituality and meditative practices in Finland. This study has two interconnected aims: 1) it investigates how selected Finnish women and men understand their self-identification as non-religious, and 2) how they pursue spirituality through different meditative practices. This thesis employs a qualitative interview method to study the perspectives and experiences of the participants. The research data was collected through in-depth interviews with nine individuals, six expert interviews, and one focus group interview with five participants. The data was analyzed by using the method of thematic analysis. The results how that self-identifying as non-religious means rejecting certain aspects of organized religion such as authority, dogma, exclusionary teachings, and anti-equality stances. Two participants who identify as religious espouse non-conventional and non-dogmatic understanding of being religious. The results of this study, on the whole, corroborate the findings of existing literature. This study suggests that the oppositional binary of religious and non-religious is limiting. Also, participants view spirituality as being free from an institutional authority, dogma, restriction, and offering a liberal view of life. In other words, spirituality in some ways is seen as the alternative to religion. Participants pursue spirituality primarily through different meditative practices, which provide multi-dimensional benefits that extend to many aspects of their lives. As this study found a connection between spirituality and meditative practices, and also sexuality and intimate relationships, it would be worthwhile for further research to examine how certain spiritual worldviews shape understanding about sexuality and gender norms. Another area for further research would be how class, gender, race, and religious background shape meditative practices.