Namaste

In our new socially-distanced reality, how to greet someone when we do meet them poses a conundrum. I’ve seen people experimenting with the elbow bump, the nod. I’ve also seen many people advocating the Hindu “namaste” — hands pressed together, palm-to-palm as in prayer, held at the level of your breastbone and often accompanied with a small bow or nod.

I fully support this gesture, as it comes from a tradition of peace and respect. It’s unobjectionable, ubiquitous throughout Asia, and already familiar to any Westerners who have studied yoga or meditation. (As well as to anyone who has seen those jokey faux-yoga slogans on loungewear, like “Nama-stay in bed.”)

What I particularly like about namaste as a greeting, though, is that its purpose in Eastern traditions is to say “the divine spark in me honors the divine spark in you.” It is a gesture of connection and equality; it honors our shared humanity. Perhaps along with adopting namaste for its respect at a distance, we can reflect on it as an opportunity to bring us together in a common human moment.