A New Spirituality: Find Your Inner Dog – DogTime

(Picture Credit: Drazen Zigic / Getty Images)
There are a lot of different ideas out there about spirituality and how to find inner peace and happiness. While some people turn to religion, others stake out their own spiritual paths. For many, the answers to life’s questions are found all around us in nature. Interestingly, one person believes finding your inner dog may hold the key to spiritual bliss.
Diane Owens Prettyman is a church parishioner and lector. Recently, she wrote in the Austin American-Statesman about how living life more like our dogs can help us find true meaning and purpose in life.
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Prettyman says her past experience as a home health physical therapist showed her how selfless dogs are. As per usual, her patient’s dogs gave love and affection freely to their parents. In turn, her patients grew to rely on their dogs. Many have said they depended on their dog’s presence for their well-being.
Specifically, Prettyman mentions how easily dogs give love unconditionally. She cites Josh Billings—the 19th-century humorist—with this quote: “A dog is the only thing in the world who loves you more than he loves himself.”
With that in mind, Prettyman discusses how all of the world’s major religions describe this same type of love. From Christianity and Islam to Sikh teachings, Prettyman says we should aspire to love openly and without reservations.
On top of that, Prettyman mentions how living with dogs and understanding their capacity for relationships is a metaphor for how humans should exist with nature. Prettyman mentions her own experiences going outside with her own dogs, saying,“ when I’m outside with my dogs, nature becomes real and personal. I notice a flower I might otherwise have missed. I feel the breeze like a cleansing spirit.”
Continuing on, Prettyman says, “ Dogs ground me to the rhythm of the day and the seasons. With their love of the outdoors, dogs remind me how my relationship with the Earth is necessary for both physical and spiritual health.”
Essentially, Prettyman teaches us that dogs have lessons for us; lessons that can fill our lives with more gratitude and mindfulness. In poetic fashion, Prettyman distills this dog-centric philosophy:
“Whether they live in a Fifth Avenue apartment and eat fresh meat, or dine on food scraps under a bridge, they are always eager to show their affection. They spend their lives eating, drinking, and playing with gratitude and joy.”

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