“What is tolerance? It is the consequence of humanity. We are all formed of frailty and error; let us pardon reciprocally each other’s folly – that is the first law of nature.” ~ Voltaire
Embracing Our Humanity
With the many crazy things happening in the world at the moment, it can feel quite challenging not to blame outside circumstances for how tormented, anxious, and scared we might feel at times. And even though pointing the finger and putting the blame on forces outside of us might feel like the right thing to do, it’s so important not to fall into this trap.
Blaming outside forces for how we feel is nothing but a trap that’s meant to make us feel small, powerless and quite helpless. And we are far from that.
We can’t always understand why horrible things happen to good people, and why do we have to put up with the madness of certain people (often called, “world leaders”). But if we look back in history, we discover a pattern, a tendency for people to harm one another and to inflict pain on their fellow human beings…
I guess that’s all part of our humanity. All part of who we are.
We are humanity
“My humanity is bound up in yours, for we can only be human together.” ~ Desmond Tutu
To be human is to have both the Light and the dark in you. To be capable of love but also of hating and harming your fellow human beings in ways that make you cringe.
But that doesn’t mean we can’t evolve past our darkness. It doesn’t mean we can’t move past our own madness.
It’s true that we humans can be quite cruel and brutal with one another, but it’s also true that we are capable of loving each other with a love so strong, so deep, and so pure, that can actually dissolve all darkness and turn it into Light.
Take Gandhi and Mother Teresa for example.
You might think they were special and that’s the only reason they were capable of living and loving as much as they did. But that’s just a lie. These people were made from the same material that you and I are made of. And the only difference between us and them is that they believed that love could conquer all, and we don’t. That’s the only difference. Marianne Williamson was right,
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be? It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone.” ~ Marianne Williamson
We are afraid to claim our own strength and power. Afraid to embrace all of ourselves. And since we give fear so much power over us, we shrink and we perceive ourselves as being small, powerless and insignificant.
But there is no need to fear. No need to hate. And no need to perceive ourselves as victims. Because we aren’t!
This world we live in is nothing but a mirror, a reflection of who we ourselves are. And if we want to live in a better world; if we want to have peace and harmony, we first need to learn to live in peace and harmony with our own humanity, our own darkness, and our own imperfections. Because just as the wise Carl Jung once said it,
“Knowing your own darkness is the best method for dealing with the darknesses of other people.” – Carl Jung
I know you might think that there is no darkness in you and that darkness is only present out there. But the only reason you perceive darkness in the world is that there is darkness in you.
You are a human being and you have in you all that you see out there in the world – good, bad, beautiful, and ugly – it’s all in you. It’s all part of being human. And by learning to accept, embrace, and make peace with all that you are, you will be able to forgive the world for being the way it is. And through your forgiveness, the veil will be lifted from your eyes and you will realize that by forgiving the world, you were, in fact, forgiving yourself.
Luminita, the Founder of PurposeFairy, is an enthusiastic student of the arts, psychology, and spirituality. Her acclaimed blog post, 15 Things You Should Give Up To Be Happy , was shared by over 1.3 million people on Facebook. Later on, it became the heart of her book, 15 Things You Should Give Up To Be Happy., book that was published by Penguin Random House. For more details check out the 15 Things You Should Give Up To Be Happy Book Page.
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