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The ascetic lifestyle departs from conventional beliefs equating personal happiness with purchasing material possessions and consumption. These beliefs enslave the self in the perpetual pursuit of the shadows of grace and condemns the mind to a path of inevitable surprise. Enlightenment releases the divine (enduring) sense of grace within and frees the mind from the self induced delusion.

The monastic branch of Natural Spirituality is known as a Collective. Joining a collective means making a solemn commitment to religious vows. Natural Spirituality has no traditional figures like gods or gurus, scripture or "his"-story or narrative, it is not psychology or have anything supernatural about it. We see all cultures as our heritage.Conventional Religion is a culture of belief. It provides a story and a reason to believe it. It uses faith to validate and make sense of the experience of life. Natural Spirituality is different from the ground up. You could say that it is a religion of disbelief. Natural Spirituality has no story and it has nothing old or new to believe in. Natural Spirituality uses reason not faith as it’s means of knowledge.

Ancient religion sees the body as something the condemned soul is imprisoned in. The body is therefore vile, sinful, offensive and in its natural form, obscene. Natural Spirituality sees the body as the vehicle of life. It is the source of perception and therefore all there is. The human body is therefore the ultimate expression of beauty in the universe. The human body is a sacred aesthetic in its natural form and there can be nothing higher.

The vows of Natural Spirituality, while they are the same in principle as those typical of religious orders, they are naturally different in practice. In order to be accepted into a Collective, you must be Que, undergo the rite of initiation, and take four religious vows; poverty, fidelity (chastity), obedience and sobriety.

THE VOW OF OBEDIENCE

The Vow of Obedience may initially seem contradictory to the principles of Natural Spirituality, which places a high value on self-determination—a fundamental aspect of being Que. However, this vow is not about the unquestioning obedience to an authority but about a commitment to heed and follow guidance. As a life of service, obedience forms the bedrock of all vows within the Que Collective. In our tradition, obedience means to listen attentively and willingly follow direction, embracing the discipline of self-correction. The rationale is straightforward: one cannot act on what one does not know, so there must be a temporary suspension of disobedience in order to learn and so eventually make informed choices. You can't do what you are not able therefore the first step is to become able.

The Vow of Obedience also has a very practical application: Everyone shares the responsibility as well as the privileges of the Collective equally with fraternity as the binding clause.Members are expected to fulfill their duties with a sense of conscience, attentiveness, and respect. If we fail to give ourselves to our learning, without conditions, then we become a chaotic system that occasionally cooperate and must therefore be coerced. If we do that then we abdicate our liberty by placing the burden of coercion on" that which must" compel us. Natural Spirituality was forged for the love of liberty. If obedience is experienced as the imposition of the will of the superior, without the search for conscience and learning, then your vow is without merit.

The Que are not sheep in that they have a shepherd. In fact to trying to shepherd Que would be like trying to herd cats. Obedience is about a commitment to honor the process, to keep your word and to the discipline of being self-correcting. Natural Spirituality fosters a culture of consent. The promise to listen and obey is fundamental because it is through this process that self-knowledge is attained. Thus, consider the vow of obedience as a principle of acceptance, a rule that supports the journey of self-discovery and personal growth.

THE VOW OF FIDELITY

There is no chastity vow in our monastic tradition. The Fidelity Vow is a promise to give up romance and attachment, as they detract from the path. Abstaining keeps one focused. Unlike ancient religions, the Collective holds that women and men have equal rights to self-determination. Your body is yours alone; we teach you how to operate it, not dictate its use. From a pracitcal perspective, as your marriage is to the Collective, the vow means abstaining from intimacy with outsiders.

We don’t view sex as wrong. Nudity need not imply sex. For consenting adults, sex can be a natural, joyful even spiritual activity. However, using it for emotional or financial security warps its purpose. Pop culture notions of sex for security cause harmful attachments and suffering, degrading life’s sanctity. While old religions spurn the physical, Natural Spirituality celebrates our humanity and embraces bodily wisdom to anchor in the present.

Natural Spirituality embodies a more sophisticated concept of love, sex and intimacy. It asserts reproduction actuates life; to disavow it would pervert our nature. Reproduction is a choice members of the Collective can make when able to be taken responsibily. Joining a collective means giving up romance. Romantic fantasy breeds unhealthy attachments - the very definition of perversion. Unconditional love fosters lasting, unencumbered devotion. As the saying goes, “Qmystics succeed where others cannot, because they sleep alone.” Though individual, none are ever alone within the Collective. The vow is to abandon the search for romantic love and instead dedicate your life to a higher purpose.

THE VOW OF SOBRIETY

The vow of sobriety within the Que Collective isn't just about avoiding alcohol or drugs; it's a deeper commitment to moderation in all things and a total abstention from recreational drugs. Sobriety means having the strength not to let addictions dictate actions. Addiction is the drive to keep doing something, regardless of the negative outcomes, driven by an almost uncontrollable impulse. This impulse often comes from a deep craving for the sensations that certain activities or substances provide, which can feel like a type of self-imposed bondage.

Craving is the intense desire to possess something or the wish to avoid it, stemming from the mistaken belief that fulfilling these desires will lead to lasting happiness or well-being. This is a cycle that can lead to more cravings, repeating behaviors to achieve the same satisfaction, and eventually, to addiction — a relentless need to act.

Natural Spirituality values the concept of liberty highly, advocating that individuals who wish to be free can do so without external pressure. Sobriety is central to this idea. It recognizes that the notions of "me," "mine," and "I" are illusory, and the pursuit of self-centered desires is a sign of a mind deceived by these illusions. Members of the Que Collective vow to be free from such self-deception.

And to be clear, yes, this means abstaining from substances like weed and alcohol, forgoing the ownership of pets, and no, it does not exclude the use of medicine when necessary.

THE VOW OF POVERTY

A vow of poverty in theology, means a renunciation made by a member of a religious order of the right to own property. At first glance, the concept of poverty might seem at odds with Natural Spirituality, especially in the context of the Que Collective. Poverty is not a word that one would associate with being Que. A vow of poverty means making a solemn promise to abandon pursuing the acquisition of wealth for your personal gain.

As a general rule, Members of the Collective have a high quality of life because Natural Communities value teachers above entertainers. The economics of the Collective work a little differently because quality of life is one of its primary function.

Qmystics aren't seen on street corners asking for money or selling products. They use their cognitive skills and enterprising spirit to create value within their community. There is nothing "supernatural" motivation behind this vow. The logic is simple. The only thing a human being can truly own is the knowledge and experience that is stored in their memory. Everything else you have you can only make use of. It just makes common sense to pool your resources with others who have the same values and work together to secure a quality of life.

The Vow of Poverty means to depart from conventional belief that the purpose of life is to acquire material possessions. The Vow is an acknolwedgement that The "Natural" purpose of life is to thrive and affirms the realization that you do that best by being of service and contributing to the lives of others.

Taking vows is like getting married. As a nun, you are now the bride of the collective. You are literally publicly making a binding agreement to live your life by certain rules and keep your word.

Living a vowed life means making a complete surrender and a total commitment. You have to give up everything and everything means everything. You have to give up your cat, dog, lifestyle, sex, you phone, literally everything. You have to give up everything and everything means everything. You literally show up at the door naked seeking nothing but knowledge. For the first two weeks spend most of your time nude, sitting silently, meditating and doing activities designed to help you have a clear mind and get comfortable in your own skin. You have to be ready to surrender everything and that means everything and never look back. You have to be "done" with the world. If that process terrifies you then you should not consider joining a collective until you are ready to surrender your life to your own convictions without regret.