Many assume religion and spirituality as one and the same thing, as both leads to God. But, the two are quite different from one another. Here are some of the basic differences between religion and spirituality.

1. Past vs Present - Religion is known to take a lot of inspiration from the past. It considers all the ancient religious texts, as the course to achieve salvation. Whereas, spirituality is not so dependent on the past. It is more focused in the present. You can't attain liberation by living in the past or the future.
2. Fear vs Love - At times, people assume religion as a approach of fearing God. It is mainly a reminder to people do the right thing or else they might suffer in the future. Spirituality, on the other hand, approach to God is through the path of love. It teaches people not to fear God, but come close to him through the path of love.
3. God – In religion, God is considered as someone who is high in the heavens. But, in spirituality, God is seen as omniscient and omnipresent. Moreover, you can reach God and attain the inner realization of God.
4. Universality - The primary goal of every follower in a religion is to attain salvation. Certain religious people think that other religions are wrong and cannot lead a seeker to God. Whereas, in spirituality everyone is encouraged to believe that all religions are valid. It preaches that there are many paths to the same goal. It embraces all forms of religion and is not constrained by any religious dogmas or forms.

In short, both religion and spirituality differs from one another but at the same time religion is known to embrace spirituality.