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Invoking the spiritual in campus life and leadership
DEFINING SOUL AND SPIRITUALITY
The soul is defined as the immortal part of human beings. It is our essence, our core, our emotional and moral center. "It is the vital part of us that transcends our temporary existence" (Secretan, 1997, p. 28). The soul is the seat of our spirituality. Briskin (1998) offered an additional perspective on the idea of soul. He perceived the soul as representing the multiplicity of selves within each of us and their interactions and struggles are the threads that weave the self together. "The soul represents the mysterious, multifaceted dimension of our personality, never fully known, yet a source of vital influence" (p. 5). He described the soul's journey as the need to mediate the opposites within ourselves; that is, the capacity for courage, compassion, and personal insight as well as the ability to act with timidity, malice, and distorted perception. The inward journey is a discovery of our multiple selves and, in tandem, the recognition of our potential for casting shadow as well as for shedding light in our interactions in the world.
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Spirituality, which emanates from the human soul, is experienced as the sense of being connected with one's complete self, others, the entire universe, and a higher power (Mitroff & Denton, 1999). It is an ongoing process of meaning-making about one's purposes in life and the belief that one should give one's mind and heart to something greater than oneself. It is a drive to create "a meaning that transcends the self and the tribe" (Nash, 2000, p. 175). Spirituality is distinct from religion. Organized religion is an outward, public process; spirituality is an internal, private one. Palmer (1996) argued further that spirituality is an awareness of the complex interactions of the internal world with the external world. "It denies that the outer world is an absolute reality. Spirituality affirms that what is inside of us has a profound impact on what is out there" (p. 3). Humans act on the world and in doing so we cocreate reality. Spirituality manifests in our search for wholeness, meaning, interconnectedness, and values.
An individual's spiritual intelligence is one of the four levels of the self: the physical, the mental, the emotional and the spiritual. One's physical self-one's body or kinesthetic intelligence-is the ability to use the body to express emotion, to play a game, or to create a new product (Lazear, 1991). One's mental functions comprise logical, rational, analytical thought. An individual's cognitive intelligence (labeled IQ), along with one's physical capabilities, have traditionally been considered the levels of the self that are most relevant to the workplace.
The emotional level of the self consists of the ability to be self-aware, that is, to know one's feelings, to manage one's feelings, to motivate oneself, to recognize emotions in others and to handle relationships (Mayer & Salovey, 1997). In the last 15 years research has demonstrated that emotional intelligence is a critical factor for one's success in life and for effectively working in organizations. In fact, emotional intelligence has been found to be one of the most significant elements in good leadership (Coleman, 1998).
