There Are No Others

This is the famous answer that the Indian sage Ramana Maharshi gave to the question: How are we to treat others? In its simplest form, it is a riddle of oneness. Which is the essence of many spiritual teachings: We are all waves on the same ocean.

The concept of oneness goes back further in time than we can see. It was encoded in the Bhagavad Gita in the second century BCE. But that was not the origin of the idea.

Oneness is also reflected in our most revealing discoveries of science, in quantum entanglement, and in phenomenology. Even in the concept of karma. What we do and say to others matters. And not just to them, directly to ourselves.

We are not separable from one another. And oneness does not mean only entanglement with others. For example, it is inaccurate to speak of the mind-body-spirit connection. There is no bright line between them.

That we know this, and have known it for thousands of years, makes the current state of society even more unfathomable. And it makes it all the more essential that we are mindful of our own words and deeds in these times. As Nietzsche taught: Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster... for when you gaze long into the abyss. The abyss gazes also into you.

I guess my point today is this. Try to remember that when we demonize others, the little part of us that is a demon also gets hurt. And that when we love others, the part of us we love also feels loved. Try to keep some beauty in your heart as you walk this crooked path. And light candles for others as you go.