Spiritual Immortality
Introduction
Beyond strictly religious belief, a more generally spiritual belief in something eternal within the human spirit was clearly present in the responses of many esteemed writers. The nature of this immortality varied from response to response. At times, this immortality took the shape of the memories of a person being passed down to future generations. At other times, this immortality became the immortal spirit residing in every person. Whatever the mechanism or explanation, a belief in something beyond the physical was present in enough responses to suggest a shared understanding by these writers of human nature as inherently spiritual.
What separates spirituality from religion in this instance is the presence of a higher being outside of humanity. Religion necessitates a belief in something greater than mankind that has origins outside of the known world, and relies on traditions and rules concerning worship, behavior, and society. Spirituality, in this instance, is more devoted to the understanding of something greater than mankind that often has origins from within humanity, or from something more nebulous than a religious perspective would normally allow.