Hey all!
It’s Good Friday today, so I decided to write about something with a similar theme.
Recently, I watched the first episode of this documentary film on Netflix about Moses, the guy most famously known in the Bible for parting the Red Sea and stuff…
Anyway, one of the things that struck me in this film was how no people are without flaws.
See, O great Moses was actually a Hebrew by birth and adopted by a princess and that actually made him murder a man who beat up this vulnerable Hebrew slave guy he saw. A bloodline call or the like.
At first glance, murder is wrong and it seemed kind of a super overreaction for him to actually beat the guy to death over one measly kick.
But anyway, to cut a long story short, Moses ran away to hide in the desert and started a family there and only returned decades later when God asked him to save his people.
Another thing that struck me later on was how God got the brother of Moses, Aaron, to help him to speak to and convince his people because Moses himself was not a very good orator.
And anyway, this is the very same Moses that was a prophet and chosen one of God.
Like, this very same man was a freakin’ murderer yo!
But without him, how would his people have been liberated?!
So Christianity is a bit more niche for some, so let’s go to a more pop culture example shall we.
So, Albus Dumbledore, the head professor of Hogwarts from Harry Potter.
So recently I watched some of a trilogy related to him, and there seriously were some not-so-good things about him there.
Like for one, Dumbledore was romantically infatuated with a really dangerous dark wizard of his time, Grindelwald. And, because of that…
Dumbledore entered an argument with his brother or something like that and they began fighting, young and brash as they were. And in said process, no one knew whose spell exactly it was, but his sister unfortunately perished.
Well obviously, that was something which Dumbledore could not but greatly regret!
But hey! Is this not the same man who was instrumental in the fall of the later greatest dark wizard of all time, with the Horcruxes if not anything else?
So please, just think about it this way for a moment.
Everyone, even the greatest heroes of all time, start out with the hero’s journey from their adolescence.
In the process, they may even make a couple of mistakes, such as Moses rage-killing a man or Dumbledore entering a fight, and sort of causing the death of sister.
Still, who can say that they are any lesser because of what they did?
In fact, some might even say that they could not help but act in the ways they did. For instance, the act of Moses can also be in part attributed to his bloodline, that caused him to feel an inexplicable sense of kinship towards a fellow Hebrew.
As for Dumbledore, hey! He was young and hot-blooded! Surely he cannot be expected to be wise and mature from a young age, really!
As for those things which some even might consider character flaws, are they, really?
Yeah, maybe Moses wasn’t that great an orator and needed his brother to help speak for him. So what? Is everyone a great orator? No! Everyone has their own strengths!
Yeah, maybe Dumbledore was into men rather than women and that’s deviated from the mainstream, but so what? Similarly, this is just an innate part of him!!!
Who can say that they are any lesser for those things! Hell no, in fact, the world would be much, much less had these greats not existed, ok!
From their stories, we can tell two things about how we should live in this world. Number one, accept yourself fully and unapologetically as you are, and live that way. Nothing ever makes you any lesser as your existence itself is a blessing and a gift. And then comes number two: Be understanding and realistic about your situation. Don’t be overly critical.
For one of the most important things in this world is authenticity. Think about it this way: Could you have acted in any way other than what you did at the time? Well if not, it’s wholly, thoroughly off yer shoulders, yo!
We can only live true to ourselves in the best way we can at the time. Sure, as we mature and life imparts us lessons, we realise that hey, we could, even should have acted differently at the time, shouldn’t we! But hey! We should love ourselves and know!! that we were only ever honestly, truly, doing our very best. That itself is invaluable.
As smart people would say, what you cannot control is nothing to do with you. Live by adjusting the perimeters of what you can control.
Just think of Paralympians, for example. They are disabled in some form or shape. Still, what do they do? Do they live their days in a crippling depression? No!!! Rather, they achieve their max in spite of these unsavory conditions, and some might say they even surpass us ordinary people in the resplendence of their lives.
And this does not apply to them only but to all groups to whom the banner of inclusivity falls under. For instance, given the example of Dumbledore, those people who do not comfortably fall under gender norms…
Hey, friend. So what?!!! Like, seriously?
Think about it.
Moses, Dumbledore, etcetera. Do their past actions diminish their future resplendence and make anyone think the lesser of them? No!!! Instead, their achievements cannot be questioned, even.
And thus we arrive at the conclusion: No one is defined by their past, imperfections and such in any shape or form. Instead, one could say two things: First, their past acted as a chrysalis through which they bloomed into a magnificent butterfly. Two, some things are subjective and really dependent on others’ perceptions and interpretations; on their own they can say nothing about the person whatsoever.
Spiritual people would say that the external world we see is but a reflection of the internal world we live. Like, for example, if you’re self-conscious about how other people see you, as you move through the world around you, you’ll be seeing their judgments all! the time.
In that case, should all of us not love and embraces ourselves, quirks and all, in all their fullness? Let us live to the fullest what the creator has made of us. Let us not see what is not necessary for our lives and aspire towards the highest version of ourselves that we could ever be!
A term sometimes used in spirituality is oneness. Like, everything, literally everything is derived from the one creator. Everything is encompassed within that One…
Like, just what is that if not a call for Inclusivity! above all else?
So, everyone, please. How about we stop judging and subconsciously viewing the mainstream as somehow being holier than thou? Rather, simply embrace everything you see as being a facet of that Creator! Like, even if you’re not spiritual, think of everything you see like amazingly sketching a possible configuration of the Universe itself!
Like in quantum physics, is it not the case that all particles exist in a potentiality only unless they are actually observed?
So, similarly, think of all that you see as specks of potentiality manifested in the physical world and look on in wonder!
No, of course, this is not handing free rein to people to be selfish and evil and go do whatever they want to anybody. On the contrary!
This is calling for a respect and acceptance of all! forms of being amidst a world of diversity! And if others don’t upkeep it, you can rightly smite ’em if you so wanna! Like hate and separation is no good everyone!
So, let us all tolerate and embrace one another as is actually the way our universe actually works, if you think about it – aren’t all of us allowed to live here, as the Sun shines on all of us? So hmm, why don’t we emulate Mother Nature itself more in that regard, in non-judgmental acceptance?
Alright, I’m feeling that what I am writing is getting a bit on the mushy side so I wanna stop that. I feel that this is enough material for an article already! Makes me think of all the times I used to write reviews on fiction works, haha! But anyway! Everyone! Live true to you!!!
Try to achieve your resplendence everyone! With your circumstances, in spite of whatever!
Happy Good Friday, and all the best!!! 🙂