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Soulful writing > Shine -- Nelson Mandella

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Inaugural Speech of Nelson Mandela (South Africa, 1994)

Shine -- Nelson Mandella

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness that frightens us.

We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant,
gorgeous, talented and fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.

Your playing small does not serve the world.
There's nothing enlightened about shrinking
so that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It's not just in some of us, it's in Everyone.

And, as we let our own light shine,
we unconsciously give others permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our fear,
our presence automatically liberates others.