Who Is the Misogynist, and Who Is the Misandrist?

When we talk about misogyny or misandry, we usually look at other people’s behavior and speech. We rarely examine the inner roots of these two attitudes.

It seems that both misogyny and misandry are the fruit of false identities that have taken shape within us — identities that paper over unmet needs and hide a poverty of spirituality.

A man who is misogynist has probably not yet made peace with the woman within himself. A woman who is misandrist has probably not yet made peace with the man within herself. In both cases the issue is not about outward gender; it is about inner shadows.

When self-knowledge becomes serious, the boundary between “man” and “woman” fades. What remains is the human being — a human being in search of God, of love, of peace.

Self-knowledge is the most practical cure for both misogyny and misandry.