Mirror of the Self

“When the mirror reveals the truth, it’s not sight you need—but courage.”— Dr. Shakira Nandni

O human, who are you? And what is your connection to this moment you believe you're passing through—when in truth, it is the moment that is passing through you?

When a fleeting instant revives an old memory, or a stranger’s voice brushes against your soul, do you pause and ask yourself a question? Or does it all dissolve into a hazy dream buried deep within?

This essay is a reflection of lines never written in any book, never fully spoken in any language. It is a chronicle of those moments humans often forget—those rare encounters with their own truth.

Imagine a time when man had no color, race, religion, or nation. He was simply a “call”—a voiceless cry dissolving into the silence of the cosmos. That cry carried thirst, a yearning, a restlessness. Perhaps that same thirst remains even now, wrapped in vocabulary, systems, and cloaks of identity.

When we’re startled by a sound, halted by a sight, or see our own sorrow mirrored in a stranger’s pain—are these mere coincidences? Or does our soul call out from a depth we’ve long ignored in the rush of everyday life?

Have you ever cried over something that didn’t directly belong to your personal life? Ever felt a grief that wasn’t yours, but lived in you? If yes, then you are still alive—not merely in flesh, but on a deeper, spiritual plane.

Time is a mirror—one that shows you your truest form, moment by moment. But the mirror is fogged, covered in the dust of years. It needs no ritual cleansing, no incantation—just one honest moment of seeing.

Have we ever considered that the "memories" we think of as past are, in truth, our real life? All else is illusion, metaphor, smoke. The children who were slaughtered, the women left to survive, the seas that split—these are metaphors for our inner world. Each day, we slaughter a memory, let a dream survive, and drown an emotion in our ocean.

If today someone comes to you and says, “I am your inner thirst,” — what would you say? Would you offer water—or a question? Would you recognize it—or ignore it the way you ignored yourself?

This essay wants to descend into you as a question, not deliver an answer.
The question: Have you glimpsed the salvation within yourself?
Do you know that your greatest enemy is the fear that keeps you from meeting yourself?

Time still stands.
The mirror is still waiting.
Will you dare… to look into it?