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Spas and Spiritual Health
12/30/2014
Some people go to a spa simply to relax and have their skin treated. They see it as a type of care for their bodies only. Others, however, see spas as a place to care for their bodies, minds, and spiritual centers. Yes, they enjoy the massages, skin treatments, and pampering their bodies get, but they also take the time to unwind, release stress, and connect with their spiritual side. It doesn’t matter what the person believes in or worships—spirituality at a spa is often done on an individual level, so it’s very private.
Using spas as a type of spiritual retreat is nothing new. People used to travel for days just to go to a spa, similar to how people would make pilgrimages to shrines and other holy places. They would often fast or go through cleansing programs designed to help remove toxins from the body and bring the body and mind into sync.
While some religions do focus on moving past the physical and even on denying the body, others believe that the body must be maintained so that a person is free to focus on the spiritual. A failing body is a distraction. By pampering the body, many believe they’re also pampering the soul. The chance to unwind, relax, and release all of their earthly cares, desires, stresses, and pains allows them to transcend the physical.
Some spas have even started making spiritual counselors available to clients or including workshops designed to help people become more connected to whatever it is they worship. There’s generally no focus on any particular deity or branch of religion. Everyone is welcome at these types of spas, and people of every type of faith may find that a spa does bring them closer to the higher power they believe in.
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