Gnosis: Self Actualization vs. Spirituality
Gnosis is not a spiritual process. In fact we decry any notion of “spirituality” as being a supernatural concept, which has no place in the psychological process of gnosis. Gnosis is self-actualization. Spirituality is a religious concept, such as good, evil and sin, and therefore has no meaning for the self-actualized man or woman.
The word spirituality is derived from the Latin spiritus meaning “breath.” In the language of the religionist we are speaking of the animating breath of god that creates, gives life and sustains all things. To be spiritual is to be of the spirit or of god. To be “inspired” is to be directed and motivated by this breath of god.
The Gnostic as we understand him or her is a child of the earth. We arise from nature and when we die we return to nature. The sum total of our parts thus breaking down in the rotting process to be recycled into other things; the religionist, of course, “expires” the breath of god having gone out of him and therefore is no longer animated and sustained.
The Gnostic is of psyche. Even though psyche means “soul” in Greek, it is not necessarily in keeping with the Judeo-Christian concept of soul which owes itself to the spiritus of god. Rather the soul of the Gnostic arises out of the psychological process created by the spark of consciousness.
The origin and development of this consciousness is still quite a mystery to modern science and the Gnostic offers no trite explanation for it as the Christian does for soul. Rather than filling in the gaps where our knowledge is absent the Gnostic treads onward in search of it rather than being content with fairy tales and therefore forgoes the consolation of religious delusion in search of actualization