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 most 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 doesn’t 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
other people permission to do the same. As
we are liberated from our own fear, our
presence automatically liberates others.
* It's a
mystery...
The quote above has been commonly attributed to Nelson
Mandela's Inaugural Speech in 1994 - even, until
recently, by this website. Thanks to the
diligent efforts of John Finlayson (to whom I am
eternally grateful), it can be confirmed that this
quote was definitely not in either of the speeches
Nelson Mandela made at his inauguration (9 & 10
May 1994) and was, most likely, NEVER said by the
great man.
The quote is from a book entitled 'A Return to Love'
by highly successful American author and lecturer,
Marianne Williamson. The book was released as
an audio book in 1992 with the printed version not
released until 1996 - two years after the speech it
is (mis)attributed to.
How did it happen? Who knows. It will probably
forever remain a mystery.
But, it's not fair to Marianne Williamson that she
doesn't get credit for such brilliant, inspirational
words. If you decide to use this wonderful quote, do
the right thing and give Marianne the credit.
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