You Are My Other Me: The Ancient Truth the Internet Buried

You Are My Other Me: The Ancient Truth the Internet Buried

World religions agree on one thing: living beings deserve respect. “Love thy neighbor as thyself” and “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” are found from the Bible to the ancient Greek code of hospitality that Christopher Nolan refers to as “the law of Zeus” in the Odyssey.

Yet giving instructions only goes so far. When respect and compassion become rules, we risk losing their true essence. The core of these principles is not that we should do these things because someone said so. The core of respect and compassion is in the very nature of life, and its interconnected nature.

That’s why Spiritual Playdate loves In Lak’ech—a call and response with roots in Mayan philosophy. 

First articulated by Mayan studies Professor Domingo Martínez Paredes at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, In Lak’ech was translated into English by Chicago poet Luis Valdez as part of his poem Pensamiento Serpentino.

This is how Spiritual Playdate’s Motherfounder Edwina Cowell, and many other global organizations, became aware of the poem.

You are my other me.

When I do harm to you, 

I do harm to myself.

When I love and respect you,

I love and respect myself.

Upon encountering this poem’s use as a call and response at an indigenous circlekeeping ceremony, Cowell was immediately hooked.

“This is what the world needs right now,” Cowell says. “It articulates why we need respect and compassion. It’s not a ‘thou shalt’ command. It’s an explanation of our nature as living beings.”

Cowell reached out and received permission to use In Lak’ech to promote respect and compassion through Spiritual Playdate’s work. 

In 2024, watching ragebait and disrespectful behavior go viral on social media, Cowell had an idea. 

What if people and organizations countered the trend of disrespect with videos spreading respect and empathy? The idea for the Respect Challenge was born.

Now, any two people can make a video reciting In Lak’ech to each other—and enter to win prize money in the process. Learn more here.