Love thy Neighbour and Thyself
For some time I have thought upon the commandment given by Jesus and recorded in the New Testament (John 13.34) which states “A new commandment I give you, Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another” and the additional admonition given by Jesus and recorded in the Book of (Luke 10.27) “Love thy neighbour as Thyself “ and have pondered the question.
What does this look like, for each of us, in our daily lives?
For many this poses no problem at all, however, for many it presents many issues, in that they may have no concept of what Love even looks or feels like, and worse, may have no sense of Love for themselves.
It is this concept of “Self Love” that I wish to address in this writing.
To begin, and to give some foundation to the subject, my research has led me to the following material, which is taken from a book by Michael J. Gelb, titled Da Vinci Decoded and the Chapter is titled “Practical Love and Self Assessment”
1. I feel connected to something greater than my own ego.
2. I consciously nurture my connection to something greater than myself every day.
3. I practice conscious loving kindness with my colleagues and associates.
4. I practice conscious loving kindness with the people I interact with on an incidental basis (waiters, salesclerks, attendants of whatever kind, and so-called strangers.
5. I allow myself to experience the fullness of love, giving and receiving, in my life every day.
When I read this “Self-Assessment” and began applying it to myself I started to realize just how difficult these standards can be and how, in my opinion, few people could honestly give themselves high marks to all five of the questions being posed.
In addition, and in the hope to make this subject more understandable, I have chosen, for this reading audience of brothers and sisters, to link the words LOVE and RESPECT as being synonymous.
As I see it, in order to be even able to begin to live our lives we must have LOVE and RESPECT for those with whom we are interacting and, above all, for our creator.
Continuing on this line of thought, it has been my experience through my association with family, friends, associates, employers, employees etc. that many people, for whatever reason, have little or no LOVE or RESPECT for themselves.
For them this presents a huge problem, in that, in my opinion, without LOVE and RESPECT for ones self, a person finds themselves constantly seeking love and validation and, by being a constant SEEKER, cannot ever get themselves to the point of being able to GIVE and SHARE.
For me this realization came about recently when through, what some would call a coincidence, I came into possession of a recording titled “Learning to Live and Love” and authored by Dr Wayne Dyer.
Since that time, I have been researching much of what Dr Dyer has written and I am in the process of collecting his Books, and other materials for future reference. I do know that they are invaluable to the many readers.
All of this material is geared to assist the individual in his own self development and value of self and it is here that I see their value to us all, and especially to us as members of The Mystical Court who are dedicated to making ourselves as good as we could possibly be.
I perceive the smoothing of our personal ashlar (stone) to be a, never ending, objective for us all.
Thought for Today
Every day is a Reason for Giving AND Giving is a reason for Living!!!
So let us give “Ourselves” away, Not just today but every day….
And remember a kind and thoughtful deed Or a hand outstretched in time of need
Is the rarest of gifts, for it is a part Not of the purse by a loving heart……
And he who gives of himself will find True Joy of heart and mind.
Have a wonderful day and May God Bless You and Yours
Sir Godfrey Gregg VGCO
Research Author (The Mystical Court)
