“Hurry to your own ruling reason, to the reason of the Whole, and to your neighbour’s. To your own mind to make it just; to the mind of the Whole to remember your place in it; and to your neighbour’s mind to learn whether it’s ignorant or of sound knowledge – while recognising it’s like yours.”
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations.
Learning to be objective and to see things from another side is a skill that is tremendously useful in calming your own mind in times of distress and uncertainty. To see another person’s point of view does not mean you have to agree with them. To have empathy with someone is not the same as having sympathy for them: you do not have to experience the same emotions as them. The needs and values you have are yours – that’s your choice and no-one can take that away from you. And yet you are a part of a bigger system and so is your neighbour.
Whatever you do – even from the depths of isolated self-interest – has an effect on the whole. Stay connected – to yourself, your neighbour and the whole. We’re all in this together.
