our fundamental nature is not personal—it

"What distinguishes faith in ourselves from conceit is the fact that conceit lays claim to specialness, while our fundamental nature is not personal—it's universal, it's shared. When we look at the Buddha or a great teacher, we can see our own potential for happiness, for vibrant wisdom and sustained compassion—a potential that all beings share. However, if we stop at faith in another, admiring him or her and overlooking ourselves, our faith remains incomplete."

I was thinking about the above passage of Sharon Salzberg and recognizing teachings of Kathy Oddenino…to “Know Thyself” as energy and matter. When we know who we are then we live our potential as a human through the patterns of the ethical values. The more we consciously live them the more they become us. This is living our expansive potential. We have to live them to learn them. I see our human potential as dynamic and expansive with no end to be had. This is exciting! When we know thyself we are “of self.” This is our shift in consciousness and we feel the internal buoyancy of love and know truth of the inseparability of All. When we are living “for self” we are self absorbed, egotistical and living out the external negative patterns of fear, untruth and inequality. When we are in this externalized space we live in a state of hunger for love and attempt to grab it from others any which way we can. We cant give away what we do not have.

While at a 3 day conference (Institute of Metaphysical Studies) we did an exercise of looking into another’s eyes. I was heart touched by this experience. I paired up with a woman closer to 80 than 70 years old and I felt my mind move as I saw the universality of us and it was at that moment that I recognized we are all one. It was, as Sharon Salzberg say…”…our fundamental nature is not personal---it’s universal.”