WEDNESDAY MEDITATION

You Can’t Honor Both Individuality and Individualism

One speaks with love and kindness; the other speaks of self-reliance

Created in Canva by Nancy Blackman, MASF

Spirit, thank you for welcoming us here, just as we are. Thank you for giving us gifts and talents. May we use them well and with abundance.

Individuality, not individualism, is the cornerstone of community. . . . (It) can flourish and survive only when each member flourishes, living in the full potential of her or his purpose. To honor and support its members is in the self-interest of any community.

— Malidoma Patrice Some

First, let’s get a better understanding of the differences between these words.

Individuality is defined in the dictionary as “the quality or character of a particular person or thing that distinguishes them from others of the same kind.”

Individualism is defined as “the habit or principle of being independent and self-reliant; self-centered feeling or conduct; egoism.”