EXPANSION BEYOND SELF TO UNIVERSAL SERVICE
Many people view most things from their own perspective, believing their
personal viewpoint is a valid way to determine what is right and how to
act. Yet this approach can lead us to assume that just because something
feels easy or obvious to us, or we already hold a strong opinion about
it, it must be the right path for everyone. It can be very freeing,
however, to step back from that habit and begin to notice how often our
choices are shaped by how our own “self” perceives a situation. When we
consciously look beyond that limited frame and consider how something
may appear from another person’s position and experience, our
understanding broadens. We begin to see that what feels effortless or
unimportant to us may be a genuine struggle or a meaningful issue for
someone else. Such awareness naturally opens the heart, bringing greater
compassion, love, and empathy.
Our lives can change profoundly when our focus shifts from our own goals
of what
we want to do or achieve on our path, toward what those
around us might need. This doesn’t mean ignoring our intuition or
denying our own path; it means living in tune with both, doing what
feels right for us while remaining quietly aware of others.
For example, imagine sitting at dinner with a friend and their family.
You’re in the middle of telling a story when you notice the elderly
mother struggling to open the lid of a mustard jar. Without interrupting
the flow or seeking attention, you reach over and say gently, ‘Let me
give you a hand with that, these lids can be tricky.’ You help, without
fuss, without the need for recognition or for it to be noticed. That
small, graceful act reflects a consciousness attuned to others.
It’s easy to assume that if we’re already doing good things - helping
people, volunteering, or supporting causes, we must automatically be in
touch with others’ needs. And of course, to a degree, we are. Yet even
noble actions can still arise from the perspective of “self.” For
instance, someone tells us they love whales, so when we see a book or CD
about whales, we buy it for them. It’s a thoughtful gesture, and it may
encourage us to think we are really helping them, but it may still stem
from our own idea of what is helpful, based on ‘logic or experience’,
rather than a deeper intuitive sense of what that person truly needs in
that moment.
While our acts of kindness hold genuine
value, expanding our awareness allows us to enter a higher and more
refined level of consciousness. This shift of focus can be immense and
mark an important stage in the soul’s growth, a transition where it
moves beyond the perspective of the individual self and its personal
direction, toward a broader and more inclusive state of being. From this
expanded view, life naturally becomes an expression of genuine care and
Service to Others.
Love,