In Reflectors and Reflections Reveal Yourself, I presented the simple concept of sensual and spiritual reflectors in terms of shaping your consciousness of yourself.

One of the most powerful reflectors in your life is your parents. The word of a parent can make or break a child. No matter how old you are, the words of your parents to you in your childhood will continue to play back in your mind. They invariably contribute to forming your self-image.

Recently, someone shared an experience with me that bordered on this subject. He said that while growing up, his father always shouted at him, abused him and called him all sorts of names. According to this person, things got so bad that he never believed he was good for anything anymore; and his father confirmed it for him by calling him an idiot on one occasion.

Now, as you would imagine, as such a person grows up, his self-image would be affected adversely. The authority figure over his life damaged his psyche. His parent reflected an image of his soul back to his mind that showed him as an idiot.

Unfortunately, a lot of individuals can identify with this story. A lot of parents have wrecked untold damage on the self-image of their children.

So, the words of parents, the words of teachers, and the words of significant authority figures constitute reflectors to you, in more ways than you are aware of. In your childhood, the way your parents spoke to you contributed to shaping your self-image. The way your teachers spoke to you had a hand in forming your self-image. All these have shaped how you treat yourself and other people; your self esteem, and how you generally look at yourself.