New Year, Fuller You

It’s the new year. We all know that this time of year is a push to become a new you. We crave to be more productive, develop new and healthy habits, or long to lose some weight and gain some muscle. 

Did you make a list of resolutions? Have you already failed at your resolutions, like I have? The prospects of me keeping any of my resolutions are slim. However, this year, I think I am OK with that because I have been thinking a lot about the ideas of buddha nature and imago dei from the Buddhist and Christian tradition. 

In the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, every being has a Buddha nature. This means that each person has within them the seed and potential to become fully awake and enlightened. When we become aware of our Buddha nature, we become more present, aware, and mindful of the here and now. This seed of Buddha nature can grow and sprout within us leading us to a fuller life. 

In many Christian traditions, every person has the imago dei or is made in the image of the Divine. This is the belief that the fingerprint of the Divine is upon every person. Therefore, by being with a diversity of humans we not only see the beauty of creation but a reflection of God as well. 

Both of these principles remind me that within each person is inherent worth, value, and sacredness. Each person, simply because of their existence, is holy, good, and beautiful. A new year’s resolution cannot change this truth. 

So this year, instead of being a ‘new’ me, I want to become a fuller me. One that connects with my Buddha nature and the image of the Divine. 

My hope for you, too, is that you don’t become a new you, but you become a fuller and truest you; the you you are meant to be; the sacred, good, and beautiful person you already are.