Author Jay Cradeur shares his views on the subtle power of the feminine that is rarely acknowledged by the masculine.

I wrote the following words several years ago. At the time, all of my experiences with women were in America. Having spent the last 15 months in Southeast Asia, I have now also experienced women from different cultures (Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore). I made many friends during my travels, with women in their twenties to women in their late sixties. I am even more convinced that what I wrote then is still accurate and represents a fundamental truth between men and women. Check it out and see what you think.

“It is a challenge to find a man who truly respects the wisdom of women. Most men, mired in the pathology of patriarchy, can’t see clearly through the darkened lens. Until a man surrenders to the power/divine connection/creative force of a woman (any woman, not necessarily his partner) and is humbled by the living goddess within the feminine form, he will hold women as a second-class citizen. Social conditioning makes it so.

Women, on the other hand, in order to warrant said respect, must do the heavy lifting to find and nurture the goddess within. European women do this better than our American sisters. Sadly, many women simply do not know of the power they wield. Therefore they invite the patriarchal dismissal, unaware that a man in their life is a choice and not a result of need.

Women living fully within their power are the most beautiful beings in creation. Only a humble man will ever experience the joy of co-creating with the feminine in a true organic partnership.”

I used the word Goddess is another post I recently wrote and received some masculine backlash. Many men don’t seem to want to acknowledge the divinity that lies within both men and women. I saw this dynamic on powerful display in Thailand. The Thai men I met and observed showed very little respect to the women. They do not see what you or I may see. There is a massive undercurrent of powerful feminine energy that lies dormant and unrecognized in the world. It is for this reason, I believe, many Thai women prefer to find a ‘farong’ or westerner as a life partner. To the Thai women, we the westerners offer a far more appreciate, loving and nurturing relationship. While it is true that many Thai women have finances as their primary motive for a farong, this does not denigrate the authentic attraction to and human need for love and adoration from one’s partner.

I wrote the original piece for I had been guilty of objectifying women. I still objectify women from time to time. I see this in myself, and work to remember that we are all equal, and that when I am seeing things clearly and in truth, the feminine in my life show up with a splendor and grace and generosity that still takes my breath away. I am inviting a mutual respect back and forth across the sexual divide. Men are put on a pedestal from birth just for being born a man. The invitation is to bring all of us up onto the pedestal where we all deserve, as a matter of birthright, to be.

The article originally appeared on the Good Men Project Website.