012. On Projection

(n): a sense of fluidity between your body and mind, where you are totally absorbed by and deeply focused on something, beyond the point of distraction.

This one takes you on a journey and I may lose you somewhere in the middle but bare with me as I speak to some of the things that have been on my mind lately.

I hope this isn’t you at the end of this post:

I saw something about myself the other day. I saw that sometimes, I get jealous of other people — specifically people who are living their authentic lives. It’s really interesting that over the past year, as I’ve been coming into my own authentic power and discovering my gifts, I realized that before I went on this journey, I would feel a small ping of envy when I came across someone who seemed to be living their highest passion and expression. This led me to contemplation around the idea that the universe uses projection as a mirror. Every time I feel triggered, jealous, or judgmental toward someone else, it’s not really about them — it’s something within me asking to be seen.

I started to wonder if the reason I experienced envy was because I saw something in them that I knew was for me — something my soul was craving. It was like holding up a mirror for what I ached for. I’m starting to notice that the universe does that often — holding up mirrors in the form of relationships, friendships, challenges, or situations that help us transmute lessons. When I step back and see things from a wider lens, I start to understand the lesson that’s before me. Jealousy and judgment are closely linked. Every time we judge, we’re seeing a piece of our own soul — just as jealousy shows us what we long for but haven’t yet embodied. Neither is wrong; both are invitations to notice what within us seeks wholeness.

Jealousy and judgment are really two sides of the same coin. Jealousy shows me what I desire but haven’t yet embodied, while judgment shows me what I’ve rejected or disowned within myself. Both are reflections of the same energetic pattern: projection. Both are mirrors guiding me toward self-awareness.

Projection appears in many forms — jealousy, judgment, admiration, resistance, desire. Jealousy shows what we long for but haven’t yet embodied. Judgment shows what we’ve disowned. Admiration reflects our light, qualities we haven’t fully claimed yet. Resistance highlights our fears or attachments. Every projection is a mirror, inviting self-awareness. Life keeps showing me where I’m still asleep and where I’m ready to wake up. An invisible language of the soul. And when you begin to notice how the soul and the universe are always in dialogue with you, you realize this is just another way they communicate.

There are lessons to be learned in every living moment. Sometimes it feels like everything has been placed perfectly to help us see what needs to be seen. I’m realizing that the key is inquiry. When I approach it with inquiry and curiosity and I bring awareness to that which is being projected, it dissolves it. When I ask, ‘What is this relationship, situation, or challenge here to show me?’ I notice a shift. I move from attachment to awareness. I stop seeing myself as ‘in the drama’ and start seeing myself as the witness. That perspective unlocks a quiet freedom — the knowing that everything is temporary, and that life itself is a teacher.

This understanding of projection isn’t new — it has been seen, explored, and taught by mystics across time and traditions.

🧘 Zen / Mahayana Buddhism
This is about shifting awareness from outward phenomena back toward awareness itself — essentially turning outward projections inward to see what is animating them.

💖 Sufi Tradition
The heart is like a mirror. Everything you see ‘out there’ reflects your inner state. Polishing the mirror — clearing it of ego, jealousy, judgment, or unawareness — allows it to reflect light more clearly.

🌌 Hermeticism
“As above, so below; as within, so without” reminds us that the outer world always reflects the inner world. Every relationship, emotion, and circumstance is a projection of our state of consciousness — a mirror inviting us to remember that nothing is truly separate.

🕊️ Kabbalah
Focuses on the idea that the material world reflects spiritual truths. What you see in the external world can reveal imbalances, lessons, or hidden aspects within your own soul.

🌿 Indigenous wisdom (various lineages)
Many indigenous traditions view nature, animals, and relationships as mirrors of ourselves. What we encounter externally often holds a lesson or reflection for personal growth.

🔬 Modern Parallel — Quantum Insights
Interestingly, modern physics offers a parallel to these timeless teachings. Quantum entanglement shows that particles, once connected, remain linked across distances — a reminder that nothing in the universe is truly separate. Symbolically, this mirrors how our inner states are reflected in the world around us. People, situations, and experiences can be seen as “entangled” reflections of our own consciousness, offering opportunities to notice, learn, and awaken.

Quantum field theory goes even deeper: everything — matter, energy, even empty space — arises from a single, unified field vibrating in different ways. Separation is an illusion. Projection isn’t something traveling outward; it’s the field showing another frequency of yourself. Every judgment, desire, or admiration is a ripple in the same universal fabric, inviting you to see, understand, and integrate the self.

Together, these ideas echo what sages and mystics have always pointed to: life is a mirror. Whether through ancient wisdom or modern quantum theories, the message is the same — nothing is separate, and everything we encounter is an opportunity to meet ourselves.

As I begin to shift into a new season where I’m following my highest excitement, I’ve seen that feelings of envy, judgement, or admiration can be keys to unlocking the door to my next chapter. Being my own boss, and shifting my career to one that takes a heart-centered approach is what I’ve always secretly wanted for myself, but didn’t have the courage to do, and the envy I felt for others, was just an invitation for me to step into my full authentic self.

Can I just say how happy I am about the fact that writing has given me real access to insights that sometimes I need to keep reminding myself of. It feels like past Dina is speaking to future Dina. I am literally finding solace in the words I’ve written to you in past newsletters and it’s been a wonderful experience of observing myself from a different perspective. Writing has been the most cathartic expression of my self and has been an incredible tool to look back on and use my own words as ways of seeking solace in life.

So, I appreciate everyone who’s followed along. I get messages of encouragement from you all the time and I’m just so thankful to have you in my tribe. If you’re more curious about how you can use writing as a way of healing, I highly recommend this book. Writing as a Way of Healing by Louise DaSalvo beautifully explores how writing can help us process pain, find meaning, and move towards wholeness.

Until next time! 👋