I heard a non-dual teacher say, “to treat another as an other is blasphemy.”

This rattled me to my core, because how many countless times in my life have I treated another as an other? Not with malice, and rarely with lack of caring, but still… as separate.

I went directly to the dictionary and looked up blasphemy. The Merriam-Webster dictionary definition is “the act of insulting or showing contempt, or lack of reverence for God.” That was the beginning of a new and different kind of awareness and care with supposed others. The known experience of their not-twoness now rides in the forefront of experience, not the background. It’s undeniable, and I have no excuses.

Reverence is no longer limited to special places, objects, ceremonies, or times. Reverence is now, every moment, every object, every being. Anything less is blasphemous.

© Amrita Skye Blaine, 2013
the quote was most likely from Rupert Spira, but I’m not sure.
photo credit