Sport and Spirituality: Mastery and Failure in Sporting Lives
2012; Routledge; Volume: 5; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1558/prth.v5i2.131
ISSN1756-0748
Autores Tópico(s)Doping in Sports
ResumoAbstractThe spiritual dimension of sport is examined from the point of view that it is a unique human experience per se; no association with any religion needs to be made. How does sport serve as spiritual practice in the life of the individual, especially for the person who may not actually have any religious affiliation? Explored is the function of sport in the life of the person who says, "Okay, I am NOT religious, but I AM spiritual, and my sporting life has bearing on this." The argument is that lives are empowered not by brute strength and tenacity alone, but also by sustaining personal coherence within the lived experience of one's sporting activities. Such coherence is not only about being masterful and victorious in what one does, but also about doing so on a conscious backdrop of an ever-present possibility of failure and defeat. Falling short of the mark (even humiliation and injury playing sport) serves as a valuable counter-point to what otherwise would merely be human hubris. A focus is on whether the technological enhancement of sporting performance plays a constructive role in the formation of human character, an issue that has for a long time enlivened debate in studies of sport, religion and human spirituality. Consideration is given to recognizing human possibilities in the light of physical limitations; how comfort zones in sport may expand and/or collapse; and whether sport is an imprecise craft, an engineered achievement, or a combination of both.Keywords: spiritual practicesport and religion
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