Knowing Others

July 24, 2023

Join us for this week’s Daily Reflections on “Knowing Others.”

We recently finished a Daily Reflections series on “Knowing Ourselves.” As we have explored, self-knowledge is essential for those on the spiritual journey. The Greek philosopher Socrates said, “To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom.” Shakespeare took that idea a step further in his play Hamlet when the character Polonius said,

“This above all: to thine own self be true,

And it must follow, as the night the day,

Thou canst not then be false to any man...”

I add to Polonius’s thoughts on being true to ourselves. I believe in being true to ourselves, we act from our true nature, not out of our false selves, also known as our ego. Many of us who are identified with the ego are false to ourselves; therefore, we live in a delusion, anesthetized to reality and therefore absent, instead of present. But when we are true to ourselves, we embrace the whole of us and therefore do not put up a false front.

With this, we return to another thought of Socrates, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Socrates takes a pejorative view on being unaware of our purpose, meaning and actions, etc. But I beg to differ with Socrates. Many are asleep to life and do not examine their purpose, intentions and state of being. But once they become conscious, theirs is a powerful awakening. Therefore, the unexamined life can leverage greater consciousness, just like prolonged hunger can prompt greater satisfaction once we eat. Sadly, the unexamined life, without an awakening, misses the completeness and wholeness life.

Consciously knowing ourselves can be described as a two-sided coin. One side knows ourselves consciously, the other side consciously knows others. These two sides are on the same coin because we understand others only to the degree we know ourselves. With this in mind, I would make a companion speech for Polonius. It would go something like this:

“This also, above all: to thine own self be true,

And you will love yourself for who you are,

And it must follow as night follows day,

you will know the truths of others,

and you will love them more deeply.”

Inquiry: How do you know others?

Dear God,

Allow me to continue knowing myself. Forgive me when, in my unawareness, I dismiss, judge or punish myself. In doing that, I am more likely to hurt myself and others. I pray for self-awareness, self-acceptance, the awareness of others and the ability to love us all. Amen.

Make peace with your ego and discover your true path today. We will share Dr. Howell's full daily reflection and prayer on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. To receive the full week, please complete the form below to begin your journey into who God has made you to be. The path to wholeness starts now!