Hello dear warrior sisters. What a sweet meditation and time of sharing last night, thanks much. I feel like we are all doing so well moving forward with our spiritual goals – so much healing taking place! It occurred to me that humility and compassion go hand in hand, blended together with gratitude. So the post this week is to explore the topic of humility. The dictionary definition of humility is the quality or of being humble: marked by meekness or modesty in behavior, attitude or spirit – not arrogant or prideful – showing differential or submissive respect – unpretentious or lowly. I also want to mention the word pride. Not the kind that arises from personal growth or joy over achievements or the value we have in self respect or family. In this case I am referring to the feeling of arrogance or disdainful conduct, haughtiness, the harmful kind of pride. The thinking that you are the ‘best’ of a group or class; or holding an exceedingly high &/or unrealistic opinion of oneself. And we all know the blessings of gratitude.
My new favorite author, Michael Beckwith says, “Humility is the fulcrum (an agent through which vital powers are exercised) of power.” He adds that it is in knowing how extremely blessed we are and how much we have to share as Divine agents in this world. We are true reflections of God’s compassion, grace, beauty, abundance, ability, creativity and more.
Below are a few quotes I’ve discovered in other books:
St. Francis believed that pride inflates the ego and desires making us insist on getting what we want; and basically ignoring and disrespecting our Divine purpose. He says “Nothing keeps one humble like self awareness”. He believed that humility leads to obedience which he says is a prerequisite for knowing and doing the will of God. He states “Holy
Humility puts pride to shame, and all the inhabitants of this world and all that is in this world.”
George MacDonald puts it like this, “I find that find that doing the will of God leaves me no time to disrupt His plans.”
St. Vincent de Paul is quoted as saying “What was the life of Christ but a perpetual humiliation.”
We have shared so much lately on how moved we are to pray for this planet and we feel called to help all manner of people and animals who are suffering. I believe that if we truly want to bring world peace to this Earth’s experience we must have the courage to speak the truth in love and action. We ourselves are in the process of becoming peaceful people, willing to serve, to go the extra mile for others even when it is not convenient or easy. It is up to us to radiate the light and pleasant behavior to try to regain goodwill towards all creation with simple humility. So how do we accomplish this lofty goal? You don’t need to scourge your body or enter a monastery – the opportunities to learn are all around you. How we treat others, particularly others we view as somehow less important than ourselves is a crucial test of our humility. So I would implore you to see where you fit into the bigger picture with regards to your personal goals.
Is there any false pride that needs to be released so that your efforts are more fruitful?
What are you willing to do to humble yourself in order to usher in world peace for all mankind?
Please just consider these thoughts shared tonight and bring any insights that may have surfaced in regards to humility to our sacred circle.
This one is difficult for me. I have pride and confidence. Not the pride of the feeling of arrogance or disdainful conduct, haughtiness – the harmful kind of pride. I do not feel arrogant, or treat others badly. But, my confidence and pride are a type of armor for me to make my way through the world. I MUST feel pride in the way that I try and live my life; I MUST act with confidence to forge ahead. The world can be a hurtful place, and if I take things too personally, I will not survive.
From what I understand, the Budda says that life is suffering. I understand this so much more after the last few years of loss. Day to day, life is beautiful, but there is the underlying sense of suffering; loss, impermanence, the unknown. These things keep me humble as I struggle to live fully every day.
If humility opens us up to suffering, it can also open us up to love and compassion. As Salee says, we must speak the truth in love and action. We must take down our armor to feel our lives truly; to radiate love and compassion are the tools.