Humility is to act, speak, or think of yourself in such a way as to put yourself in a posture of letting go of selfish pride. Not only this, humility also has the attitude of serving something greater than one's self. Also when we are humble, have humility, we are not taking esteem as an indulgence. Rather we give all esteem to a purpose greater than merely our own satisfaction. For example, if someone is a leader of a business or organization, they can lead with pride and self-indulgent force, bossing everyone around, or they can have humility and a sense of deep service to a collective cause, inspiring his employees or co-workers to follow his lead because it is something that everyone can believe in.
Another moment when we are humble is when we have a guest over to our home. Even though it is our place they are visiting, we serve our guest as if it is theirs, taking their coat, serving them tea or food, putting the needs of our guest before our own. This is humility. Humility and service go hand in hand. True service is never without humility. This is not to say you feel lower or less than, or judge yourself to be inferior to the ones you serve, but rather, you chose to come from love, and in love we serve each other by putting other's needs before our own needs and our own image or ego.
Humility is also a prerequisite for spiritual development. Without humility, without putting yourself in a position of service, you can never overcome your ego and self-indulgence. With selfish pride you take up all the room in your heart, saying “I, me, and mine is most important.” But with humility you surrender your ego to something greater, you make space in your heart for God, or the Spiritual Reality. May you come to know the sweetness of humility, that you may make room in your heart for something greater than yourself.
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