I am YOU and you are ME

I remembered something that I do in my mind to curb judgments, "otherness", division of people, etc. The normal tendency is to react and treat people differently who you don’t know or are not part of your family. We tend to be less compassionate and understanding to these "outsiders".

Guru Nanak taught us about God being in every thing and every person. So how do we start to see the sameness, the human-ness of everyone around us, rather than finding the differences. No matter what the person is like, I always try to think of the other person as a mirror of myself. Like they are a different cell in a larger body (God). Just as in your own body there are trillions of cells that are different, and work together to be a whole person and create the miracle of the human body. Every human around us has it’s own role and path. I think we merely need to start recognizing that the other person is YOU and you are THEM (even though we are different!). This helps me to not look at the other person as something other than me/God…and gives me more compassion and understanding towards others, no matter what they do.


When I see another person I say to myself "I am YOU…and you are ME". So if I am driving my car to work and the person in front of me is going really slow and frustrating me because of this or some other random thing, I visualize myself actually as that person imagining myself in their life. Try it the next time you see someone else…or something angers or frustrates you!

Too often we have a one sided perspective and only see from our own ego and perspective. This makes us more critical and judgmental of others. As soon as you open things up and see the person as you and part of God, you start to see a much wider view. With this wider view you are able to be less reactive and more compassionate, servicefull, humble, and in the end more happy in your life! So the next time you feel/think something about a person give it a try! Imagine that they are you…and you are them. Feel how they might be feeling. Become one, and feel yourself as part of this Universal Organism (God), each serving it’s own function.