For most of us, the idea of being publicly shamed and humiliated can be a fate worse than death. When we are shamed, we become disempowered. We are afraid to show up fully and play it small. When we have experienced shame and humiliation, in this life or in past incarnations, it sets up a pattern where we begin to withhold who we are out of fear of repercussions from others. When we engage in shaming or humiliating others, we are coming from a place of fear, impotence, and we are typically feeling a lack of control within our lives that make us want to control and disempower others.Maybe your teacher shamed you in front of your classmates when you were growing up, so you concluded it would be better not to speak your mind. Maybe you had body issues growing up, and family members or kids from school teased you our made you feel wrong about being yourself. The majority of cultural and religious programming is designed to make us feel ashamed and wrong for being who we are. Many of us have had past lives where we were persecuted for our beliefs and views, and these experiences still make us feel wrong for being ourselves to this day. In modern times, we as a culture have begun to rely on public shaming and humiliation on social media to control outspoken members of society.
Whether you have shamed others, or been shamed yourself, it’s time to get to the root of this destructive pattern. When we get to the core wound inherent in this cycle, we can free ourselves from the fear that has been keeping us hidden and we can start showing up fully in all aspects of our lives!