“Judge me not by the language I speak,
by the clothes I wear,
by the way I live my life.
Judge me not as you cannot possibly know
who I am and what I have been through
by one look or
by one conversation.
Judge me not as you are showing me
your own jealousy and insecurities,
more than your opinion of me.
How foolish of you to judge me
when you do not even know me.” Rania F. E.

Many times I get judged by certain individuals based on superficial indications. At times even insulted because I do not conform to what is expected of me. And after the initial shock wears off, I realize this judgment is not really about me personally. The way people react and attack others is simply a cover for deeper issues that run deep within these individuals. It can be as simple as being closed-minded to as dangerous as being jealous and envious. It is not easy to figure out the real reason but a combination of many factors are usually behind this kind of behaviour.

Sometimes people are, the way they are because of the culture they were raised in. They got influenced by the wrong crowd. Maybe even lived their whole life deprived of certain pleasures and with time, hatred grew internally without intention. However, it will show in the way they speak to others. And as far as they are concerned, they see no wrong in their doing or in their manners or in their judgment towards others.  They take freedom of speech to a whole new level. And their use of criticism is highly misguided. Their views are extremely hypocritical. They justify their way of thinking and feel they have every right to judge you because they feel righteous in their opinion of you. We can blame this type of behavior on lack of education and ignorance. However, if we continue to excuse these types of behaviors, we will never have a civilized nation.

In many instances, cultural and religious influences causes the “brain wash state”. Yes, I do refer to it as brain wash simply because people stop using their brain. They follow blindly what they have been taught without questioning at any point the origin of those ideals and habits as well as the circumstances around that time and the conditions of living. The traditions were passed on from generation to generation. And somehow along the way, the traditions that people created, became related to God’s teachings. Now you can’t dispute it because if you did, then you don’t believe in God and you have no merit in your words. These days if you talk with common sense and question the things that don’t make sense; you are the one with the problem; because they are all right and you are wrong. And so the cycle continues. The few who question versus the many who just follow blindly.

Time has passed, the world around us changed, but some people are still trapped in the old centuries. They want to live their lives today as they did back then. Instead of moving forward, they go ten steps backward. And what’s worse is that they do not even see it. They believe they are right because that’s what their ancestors were doing. Just that answer alone tells you – people are not using their brains.

So before you judge someone, think first. Don’t judge a homeless person because you have no idea what happened that led him to this point. Don’t judge a thief because you have no idea what pushed him to do wrong. Don’t judge a woman for going down the wrong path by selling her body to survive because you have no idea the circumstances that put her there. Simply; don’t judge anyone in good or in bad. You really do not know their story. There is a reason why people do the things they do, why they take certain decisions, why they end up in bad situations. This is not to excuse bad or criminal behavior and say it is ok. No, it is not ok. However, before you point the finger at someone else, look at yourself in the mirror. Are you perfect? Have you done no wrong? Better yet, instead of passing blame, help the needy if you can by any means necessary. Give your time to the lonely maybe that’s all they needed to get back on the right track. Give hope to those who lost it. Give love to everyone, because we all deserve it. It is not easy to do, but if you can’t give anything, at least don’t take away. So please don’t judge. You never know, the day may come and you may wish; you don’t get judged and hope you will be understood. Be human again.