Reverence Does Not Mean Submission
Scene
There are moments when someone praises you and the instinct is to shrink —
to prove you’re humble, to deflect the light so no one thinks you crave it.
I used to bow too deeply.
Not from grace, but from fear.
Then one day, a teacher lifted my chin.
He said, “Look me in the eye.”
And in that gaze, I understood: reverence is not submission.
It’s meeting truth without kneeling.
Reflection
True reverence is equality witnessed through love.
It’s the circle where both stand upright, aware of their own light while honoring another’s.
Submission belongs to fear — the need to appease, to survive.
Reverence belongs to truth — the capacity to recognize sacredness without hierarchy.
Every time we bow too low, we break the circuit of connection.
Every time we raise someone above us, we silence our own song.
The highest honor we can give another being is to remain whole while seeing their wholeness too.
Nuances
The energetic geometry of reverence is reciprocal gaze — not vertical.
When reverence becomes hierarchy, it mutates into worship.
When it flows horizontally, it becomes communion.
In art, reverence looks like devotion without imitation.
In love, it’s admiration without dependency.
In spirit, it’s bowing inward before bowing outward.
This balance keeps power fluid and relationships sovereign.
HUEMUNS walk this path: equal flame, equal clarity, shared breath.
To honor another’s brilliance without dimming your own is the signature of maturity.
Practice
When someone you admire enters your space, pause before you shrink.
Breathe, soften your shoulders, and meet them as you are.
Inside, say: I see you, and I am seen.
If you want to offer gratitude, do it from your spine — upright, calm, alive.
Let your bow be a wave, not a collapse.
You’ll feel the field shift: respect becomes resonance.
HUEMUN Code:
Love does not kneel; it meets eye to eye AND gently bows.
About the Artist–Author
Binä Jō Suhé Gōnz Meji is the creator of HUEMUNS of PARADISE — a living artwork that bridges clarity, sound, and devotion.
A multidisciplinary artist, writer, and creative strategist, Binä explores what it means to live as art: to let every breath, meal, movement, and relationship become part of creation itself.
Through essays, sonic altars, and participatory rituals, Binä’s work transforms everyday life into ceremony — blending embodied spirituality with grounded creative practice.
Their writing invites readers to move beyond inspiration and into integration: where discipline becomes devotion, and clarity becomes beauty.
Binä also serves as the founder of GoodBread Inc., a creative agency dedicated to vision-driven storytelling and brand clarity for conscious organizations.
Their art, teachings, and reflections have been shared across exhibitions, digital experiences, and intimate gatherings around the world — from Miami to Kauaʻi to New York.
Current Focus: the HUEMUNS Lifestyle Journal — a field guide for living artists, seekers, and lil HUEMUNS learning to turn life itself into art.
