How Kindness Views Being Different
We Are Supposed to be Different
No matter how genetically identical we are, no two of us look the same.
Have you ever wondered why that is?
Same building blocks. Same physical laws. Same species.
And yet, every face, every fingerprint, every voice; unique.
It’s easy to call it random variation. We’re known to take the path of least resistance.
But what if there’s more to it?
A Unique Point of Awareness
From the point of non-duality, a perspective I have been investigating for years, reality isn’t built from particles inward.
It’s built from consciousness outward.
In this view, we are not separate individuals moving through a shared objective world.
We are unique points of awareness in a single larger field.
Each of us perceives reality through the lens of our own experiences,. Then, we interpret it through conditioning and biology.
That’s why, even when we share the ‘exact’ same moment with another person, it will never feel exactly the same to them.
We aren’t designed to be copies.
We’re designed to be expressions.
From this perspective, your “you-ness” isn’t just a quirk of genetics or chance.
It’s the natural consequence of consciousness viewing itself from 8.24 billion different angles.
Where Kindness Fits
And this is where kindness becomes so useful. Not as sentiment, but as realization.
If every person is a unique aperture of awareness,
then every interaction matters.
The way we speak. The way we listen. The way we show up.
Kindness couldn’t be about getting approval or agreement.
It has to be about honouring the fact that what’s true for you
might never feel the same to someone else. Isn’t that beautiful?
It allows us to Let GO of the expectation that others “should” see as we do.
It gives us permission to stop arguing with ourselves, others and reality.
Kindness as Alignment
When we begin from this perspective, kindness looks more like energy than performance. It becomes more about who we are and less about what we do.
We stop trying to mold others into reflections of ourselves.
We stop abandoning our own clarity to keep peace as someone else defines it.
Instead, we let kindness hold the space where difference lives.
It does not mean condoning harm or losing yourself to someone else’s truth.
It means meeting others, (yourself included) as equally valid expressions of life.
The Practice
So what might this look like in real life?
When someone disagrees with you, pause. Remember they are seeing the world from an entirely different experience. They are not you and they never will be.
When your inner critic grows loud, consider: what do I, as a unique point of awareness, need in this moment?
When you’re tempted to dismiss or judge, as often as possible ask: can I allow this perspective without abandoning my own?
Each act of kindness, in this sense, is an act of alignment with the deeper truth of how reality works.
You Are Not a Copy
You are not a carbon duplicate of 8.24 billion others.
You are a unique way life experiences itself.
And so is every other person you will ever meet.
Kindness isn’t extra here.
It’s essential.
Because when we stop resisting difference,
we create space for something else to arise:
Connection. Clarity. Creativity.
And maybe, even peace.
I found myself rereading this line several times: "Kindness couldn’t be about getting approval or agreement. It has to be about honouring the fact that what’s true for you might never feel the same to someone else. Isn’t that beautiful?" This really nails it for me. It’s a radical redefinition of kindness, stripping away the performative layers and getting to the core of genuine acceptance.
It's a beautiful truth because it frees us from the exhausting game of trying to convince or convert others to our point of view. Instead, it invites us into a space of mutual respect, where we can stand firm in our own truth while simultaneously allowing others the same dignity. It’s a powerful invitation to let go of control and simply exist, respectfully, alongside different realities.
Mark, what you wrote is completely in alignment with my own values and what I try to write about here on Substack.
Recently, a friend sent me a short video about how connection isn't about consensus, and I appreciated that language. Basically, we don't have to agree with others in order to truly connect with them in a meaningful way. That's essentially what I gleaned from what you wrote here.
It's wonderful finding others here on Substack who are exploring non-duality when what I see more often than not is the incredibly divisive binary containers we like to categorize people into.