Introduction

What Is Religion . . . Your Way?

Have you ever wondered if religion could be more personal, more flexible, and more meaningful to you? What if it wasn’t just a top-down system with pre-approved rules for happiness, success, and salvation? What if you could create your own path—your way—by choosing the steppingstones that feel right for you? This isn’t about rejecting tradition but about embracing a deeper understanding of what religion really is and your role in it. Let’s take a look.

Religion isn’t just an institution. At its core, it comes from within, born of individual human needs pushing outward into collective expressions--what we call religions. Integral theory shows that religions couldn’t exist as a social structure unless it first arose from personal, internal needs. That’s why religion is everywhere: it’s humanity’s shared attempt to meet common needs.

Dr. Abraham Maslow’s famous hierarchy of needs reminds us that our highest priority is survival. From the moment we’re born, we depend on family and community to care for us, teach us, and help us grow. As we and our responsibilities grow, we face an increasing need to make better sense of the world. And since much of the world is unseen, unknown, or downright confusing, we rely on beliefs to act as the truth when we don’t yet know what’s true. Sometimes, that’s all there is to go on.

At its simplest, religious faith is about meeting those needs, surviving and thriving. First, we need people to take care of us--community. Next, we need to make sense of our place in the world so we don't make fatal mistakes. That’s where religion begins; to tie things together. (Fun fact: the “lig” in “religion” comes from the same root as “ligature,” meaning to bind or connect. Cool, right?) The faith part happens because we’re all born into overwhelming uncertainty, so we build beliefs--things we think are true--to navigate the unknown. These beliefs, whether traditional or personal, true or false, help us find safety, connection, meaning and purpose. 

But here’s the twist: while our needs feel personal, survival is always a relational project. We need the environment and each other--and the best overall understanding of it that we can get. So, community, connection, and shared understanding are essential. That’s where religion as an organized collective effort comes in. It’s a way to weave together our individual needs and knowledge into something bigger—something that can be shared for the benefit of all.

Religious faith isn’t about blindly following rules, but it is about trusting in what you can’t see, being brave enough to act even when you aren't certain, and being willing to learn as you go. This process of learning, growing, and adapting is what religions call a “journey of faith.”

And here’s where forgiveness comes in. Releasing what no longer serves you—whether it’s harmful beliefs, an idea, a grudge, or a fear, and replacing it with something that does, is an act of growth. That’s forgiveness. We certainly are saved by forgiveness, as much that we can forgive as that we are forgiven. It’s as much about grace for yourself as it is about grace for others. Growth and grace go hand in hand.

The ancient masters of the past understood that human consciousness grows in stages. But times being what they were, they could only teach this wisdom to small, devoted groups. Now the world is different. With better education, access to more and better information, mass communication, and the sciences, this previously constrained trove of information is now available to everyone. Past meets future. East meets West. Spirit meets science. And you’re invited.

Modern tools, like scientific mapping and interdisciplinary studies, are leading a massive rediscovery of the mystical teachings--the perennial wisdom--at the core of all great religious traditions. The esoteric teachings, once hidden in dusty scrolls is now accessible to anyone with the curiosity and determination to explore. Want to find your own way to the divine? You don’t need to follow--or ignore--someone else’s dogma. You can explore all of it on your own terms—no permission required.

Religion isn’t one-size-fits-all, and it never was. We can embrace its wisdom and reject the exclusivity that keeps people from it. Think of it like ice cream: there are endless flavors to choose from. You can keep your favorites, but you don’t have to stick with just one. It’s all delicious.

And what about the endless, exhausting arguments over God? Here’s a game-changer: people don’t argue about God. They argue about their competing ideas of God. Big difference. No idea—yours, mine, or anyone’s—can fully capture the unfathomable. So why not skip the argument and focus on what’s real?

Here's what’s real: being exists. Non-being doesn’t. If being is real, there is a Totality of All Being—something vast enough to include all existence, awareness, energy, and movement. Call it whatever you like, but you don’t have to imagine it. You’re living it right now.

The question isn’t whether it exists. It’s how deeply you want to know and experience it.

Intentionally using an integral approach to your growth, Religion Your Way can bring together the best of all worlds—individual and collective, internal and external, traditional and innovative. You don’t have to choose between science and spirituality, or East and West. You can embrace all of what fits together--and make it your own.

So, start today. Explore your beliefs. Forgive what doesn’t work. Find and keep what does. Connect the dots and build a path that fits with your way of being and becoming.

Click here to start making your own religion—and make religion your own!

Integral Theory in a Nutshell

Integral theory is a metatheory developed by Ken Wilber that allows EVERYTHING to be mapped. It recognizes that structurally, everything has internal, external, individual and collective aspects, so the integral (AQAL) map always has four quadrants, representing the Individual-Interior; Collective-Interior; Individual-Exterior; and Collective-Exterior. Most past and present-day theories and maps use only one of these quadrants, which can't include the other aspects and their important considerations. The four quadrant AQAL (All Quadrants, All Lines) map allows comparing and INTEGRATING multiple one-quadrant theories on one map.