Oprah Winfrey believes in a lot of things. She believes that there are no "ordinary" moments. She believes in the importance of recognizing that you're more than your body and your mind. And she believes that spirituality -- that which nourishes the spirit, or the heart and soul -- is a beautiful, profound and empowering part of life.
In Oprah's own life, spirituality and faith have played important roles, helping shape her both as a child and as an adult. Growing up in the church provided a strong foundation for Oprah's beliefs, and her spirituality has seemed to evolve and grow even stronger over the years.
"I feel the fierce love of all that is God so deeply, so strongly and so purely in my heart that it lifts and carries me," she says. "Sometimes, I actually feel weightless in the love that is God. I feel it in all things."
Even something as routine and, often, overlooked as birds chirping in the morning can be a moving experience for the media mogul, who now strives to live a life of being full present in each moment. "I've reached a point in my life where I actually pay attention to every breath," she says.
This deliberate focus begins the moment Oprah wakes up, which she does each morning filled with a sense of gratitude. She considers this morning ritual a big part of her spiritual practice.
"My spiritual practice is that I awaken and the first thought is, 'Thank you,'" Oprah says. "The next thought is, 'I'm still here, in this body.'
"My heart's desire is to want to live and be in this body, fully present," she continues. "To everything. To all beings. To all things. To not miss this experience of being here, now, on the planet we call Earth."
This month, Oprah Winfrey presents "Belief," a seven-night series that journeys to the far reaches of the world and to places cameras have rarely been, exploring of the origins of diverse faiths and searching for the heart of what really matters. "Belief" premieres Sunday, Oct. 18, at 8 p.m. ET.
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