When meeting someone for the first time it is common to ask, “What do you do for a living?” or “Do you have kids?” We do this because it helps us to form a mental image or judgment of who this person is in our minds that in turn helps us to relate to the person in either a positive or a negative way, depending on our belief system. So for example, if someone says that they are a police officer, your immediate response to him or her will be positive if you respect authority or negative if you dislike authority. But when have you ever really known someone based on the descriptive facts about their life? “Well she said that she was a hospice nurse so I just assumed that she’d be kind.” It is a commonly held belief that who we are, as individuals, is the accumulation of the descriptive facts and experiences of our life, that is, who are parents are, where we grew up, are we type “A” or type “B” personalities etc.
Who you are and what you experience, however, are not one and the same. Experiences and the personality change over time, you on the other hand are eternal, vaster than the sky and deeper than any ocean. The goal of every life and lifetime then is to discover or realize our vast eternal nature while embodied in a temporal human form. Humans such as we are, are evolving into a balance between matter and spirit, heaven and earth. So the next time you have the opportunity to meet someone for the first time, don’t ask them what they do for a living right away. Notice instead how you feel when you look into their eyes or when they smile. Can you feel their spirit? Your body language will tell you infinitely more about a person’s level of consciousness than facts anyway. Do you lean in when you meet him or her, or do you cross your arms in front of your stomach or chest? Does the person look you in the eye when you meet? Do you feel relaxed or tense when in their presence?
With practice you’ll be able to feel or sense whether or not this is someone who is loving and trustworthy (conscious). However, no matter what vibes you pick up from a person, try not to confuse behavior and personality characteristics with who the person really is. Allow the person to be just who they are and remind yourself that who you’ve just met is another aspect of divine consciousness, whether they know it or not.
Namaste.
Photo Credit: charlotte Ljones