Namaste. My soul recognizes your soul. I honor the love, light, truth, beauty and kindness within you because it is also within me. In sharing these things, there is no difference or distance between us. We are the same. We are one. Namaste.
I pray that this word isn’t so bandied about that it loses its beauty, complexity and significance. At its most essential – the Divine in me honors the Divine in you. Perfection, really.
This word, when used with understanding is meant to dissolve judgment. It’s meant to scrape away our armor and allow us to stand before one another emotionally naked. I see you. Do you see me? Will you allow me to show up as myself, vulnerable, and will you do the same?
This takes great courage. And it is a practice.
It takes practice to look someone in the eye upon meeting and show them your insides when you shake their hand. It takes practice to simply allow yourself to be seen, authentically without your inner public relations worker telling you to cover some things up because those things are in some way not acceptable.
And, conversely, it takes practice to SEE people. To allow yourself to really see people is tougher than it sounds – because the filters and judgments that we have set up don’t allow for it. Instead, often what happens is we don’t see, listen, we get irritated, frustrated, shut down when the person we’re interacting with doesn’t meet whatever standards we’ve set up. Or if they don’t agree with our politics, views, lifestyles. Heck, sometimes it’s how they wear their hair that will repel us…
Hm. That’s not really Namaste of us is it?
Another part of the meaning of the word that I like is that you are to recognize the truth, beauty, light and love within yourself. It’s sometimes almost easier to see it in others instead of seeing it in ourselves. It’s hard to accept that we are simply.beautiful. Just as we are. That we are filled with light and love and goodness…all of the time. Not just some of the time – all of the time. Truth.
Seeing that light and beauty and love in others DESPITE the differences between us?? THAT is Namaste. THAT is seeing and seeking connection instead of turning away from it.
And finally…if we start to see that beauty in ourselves and each other, we start to see that WE ARE ONE. That we aren’t separate from each other. We are of the same space. We are leaves on the same tree. As different as each leaf is, we are of the same tree…connected and beautiful both separately and as a whole. Even if we’re different. Even if we don’t have anything in common. Even if we disagree on just about everything! Still, we are leaves on the same tree. Connected. Needed…to make the whole.
I read a quote that changed how I interact with people. Or…it started me down the road of changing how I interact with people.
“The way of the miracle worker is to see all human behavior as one of two things: either love or a call for love.” – Marianne Williamson
Holy crappers! You mean we’re all just out there wanting to give and receive love? Could that be right???
Yes. At its most simple. Yes. What do we all want? To connect. To be seen. To interact authentically. To be accepted. To be acknowledged.
To.Be.Loved.
Once I started seeing that in people (even the people I disagree with and want to push away) I could be more accepting, more loving, and more vulnerable. To be able to say, live and breathe Namaste and really mean it.
It reads like a poem:
My soul recognizes your soul.
I honor the love,
light,
truth,
beauty
and kindness within you
Because it is also within me.
In sharing these things,
there is no difference
or distance between us.
We are the same.
We are one.
Namaste friends.
If you would like to put Namaste into practice take Making a Change for Good: Compassionate Self-Discipline.
*Sarah Turino is a 200 hr graduate of Yoga North International SomaYoga Institute and currently enrolled in the 500 hr program. Sarah teaches at Tula Yoga & Wellness in St. Paul