Humility
Humility and simplicity are the characteristics
of greatness. The attitude that 'I am nothing.'
Instead, we walk around trying to exhibit our
abilities. The coconut feels, 'Because of me,
the dish was tasty.' The cook will say, 'It was
because of my skill that it was good.' The fire
would say, 'Because of me the dish was well cooked.'
But all ability is God's.”
~
“Humility is God's nature. He is the Servant
of everyone. In fact, He is the Universal Servant.
But it is a bit difficult to catch this Servant.
In order to catch Him, you must drive away the
many masters of lust, greed, anger and other
negative qualities to which you are a slave at
present. This Great Servant, the Lord, likes
to serve only one master, and he should be a
great master who is victorious over all these
demi-masters. To him the Lord will become a Servant.”
~
“A true devotee or disciple will have
great humility and because of this he will also
possess a certain spiritual beauty. The beauty
of spirituality lies in humility.”
~
"Humility will come as one progresses in
sadhana (spiritual practices). Humility means
seeing God in everything or perceiving one's
own Self everywhere. Humility means accepting
the will of the Supreme. Humility means self-surrender,
surrendering our will to the will of God. Once
that is done, one can only be humble because
one sees that whatever happens in his life, whether
positive or negative, is His will. In this state,
all reactions disappear. There are no more reactions,
only acceptance. Therefore, humility can also
be interpreted as total acceptance.”
~
“Children, you should develop an attitude
of bowing down to anything and everything. Keep
the plate of food in front of you and bow down
to the food before eating, and bow down to the
plate after eating. An attitude to prostrate
to anything at any time should come. In this
way, an awareness, 'for what am I doing this?'
will arise. Thus we should build up good character.
Prostrate to the cloth you will wear. Bow down
to the water with which you will take a shower.
During these occasions of bowing down, you will
have a pure resolve to see the same Consciousness
in everything whether with form or without. While
doing so, you are in fact remembering God.”
~
“Children, however much rainwater falls
on the mountain top, it will not remain there.
It will flow down to the river below. The low-lying
ditch receives the water from all sides. This
is the greatness of humility. This is what is
needed. Everything will come running to the place
where there is humility. We should know that
everything is within us. For that, humility is
needed.”
~
“When death comes, we are helpless. The
constant remembrance of the possibility of death
is the best way to learn humility. Humility is
surrender; surrender is bowing low to all existence.
Then there can be no ego. Once you become egoless,
there is no more death. An egoless person cannot
die, because he is not a body anymore. He is
Consciousness. Only people who are identified
with the body will die.”
~
“A disciple should learn to be humble;
for it is through humility that true discipleship
is born. Unless this quality is awakened, the
Guru cannot really enter into your life. It is
this awakening of the disciple within you that
brings the Guru to you. Your intense thirst to
know the Truth gives birth to the disciple within.
The lover within you awakens, and once the lover
is awakened, the beloved appears. Without the
lover, there is no beloved; without the disciple,
there is no Guru-the Guru will still exist, but
not in your life.”
~
"As soon as we take on the attitude of
a beggar, the ego largely disappears. We will
feel that we have no refuge other than God, and
then the negative vasanas (tendencies) will fall
off by themselves. Only by trying to become smaller
than the smallest, does one become greater than
the greatest. By developing the attitude of being
everyone's servant, one becomes the master of
the world. Only he who bows down even to a shava
(corpse) becomes Shiva.”
~
“If the seed has to sprout, it should
go beneath the soil with the attitude, 'I am
nothing.' It cannot grow into its real nature
as a plant if it haughtily thinks, 'Why should
I bow down to this dirty earth' When the button
on the handle is pressed down, the umbrella opens.
Similarly, if we cultivate and develop humility,
when our ego is made to bow low in front of the
Supreme and His creation, visualising everything
as Him, only then will our real nature unfold.”
~
“If you can stop insisting that others
should respect and honour you, honour and respect
will come to you unasked. Just try to be humble
and patient and you will see how things around
you change. Just try to be yourself. When you
stop demanding, others will start honouring and
worshipping you, even if you don't care, even
if you don't want it.”
~
“Life is a mystery. You cannot understand
it unless you surrender, for your intellect cannot
grasp its expansive and infinite nature, its
real meaning and fullness. Bow down low and be
humble; then you will know life's meaning.”
~
“Nowadays everybody wants to become a
leader. No one wants to become a servant. In
reality, the world is badly in need of servants,
not leaders. A real servant is a real leader.
A real leader is one who really serves the people
without ego and egocentric desires. In fact,
greatness is not in dress, and lordship is not
in acquiring wealth. Real greatness lies in humility
and simplicity.”
~
“Once a seed becomes a big tree with an
abundance of fruit, it doesn't have to declare
to the world, 'Look everyone, look at me. I am
a beautiful tree, laden with fruit. Come, people,
come! Rest in the shade of my limbs! Enjoy the
cool breeze that filters through my leaves! Enjoy
my delicious fruit!' Even without any kind of
announcement, people will flock to the tree to
enjoy its fruit, its shade, and the breeze. But
first, like the seed coming out of its shell,
you must come out of the hard shell of the ego.
Just as the seed bows low beneath the soil in
order to grow into a tree, so you, if you are
to evolve into the Self, must bow low to all
of existence in utter humility.”
~
“One day when the three gods Brahma, Vishnu
and Shiva came to see Saraswati, the Goddess
of Learning, they saw her sitting holding a book.
When they asked, "What are you doing?" Devi
replied, "I am studying." That is how
infinite knowledge is. Won't humility come when
we remember that? Never let go of humility.”
~
“Only the knowledge or realisation that
you know nothing can really help you to grow
internally. Only a person with this knowledge
is truly wise. Greatness lies in humility, not
in claiming to be great.”
~
“Only when you are aware of your ignorance
can you remain with the attitude of a beginner.
A beginner is always ignorant and he knows that
he is ignorant. Therefore, he listens intently.
He is open and receptive. Once you think that
you know, then you do not listen anymore; you
only speak. Your mind and intellect become full.
The beginner is able to bow down to humility,
and because of this, true knowledge flows into
him. But a knowledgeable person is merely full
of information and tends to be egoistic. He therefore
cannot bow down and be humble.”
~
"Real humility comes only when we are able
to see everything as God. Humility means to become
smaller and smaller. There are two ways to realise
God. One is to grow bigger and bigger and become
bigger than the world. This means to become aware
that, 'Everything is in me, I am everything.'
But this is not easy. This will easily inflate
the ego because we don't know how to grow big.
It is not the ego that should be made big but
the real 'I.' The mind should be expanded to
embrace and accommodate the whole universe within
it. On the other hand, to become small is much
easier. Consider ourselves to be the servants
of God. God is not sitting in a particular place
or on a throne. He is everywhere, in every object
of the world. Therefore, when you think and discriminate
properly, you can see that you are the servant
of the world. Being a servant of God means being
a servant of the world.”
~
“The deepest knowledge is available only
when you learn how to participate with your whole
being, only when you learn the art of bowing
down before all of creation in utter humility.”
~
“The ego, or the mind, is that which makes
you feel that you are something. Unless it is
eliminated, you cannot dive deep into your own
consciousness. You have to become nothing. Not
even a trace of, 'I am something' should remain.
If you are something, there is no entry into
the realm of Pure Consciousness.”
~
“To be able to penetrate the surface and
go beyond the external form of the mahatma (great
soul) one needs to bow down and surrender to
him with complete humility. It is like taking
a deep plunge into the ocean. Once you completely
surrender, the mahatma will reveal his inner
nature to you.”
~
“To be truly humble is to bow down, not
just with your body, but with your entire being.
You should feel with your whole being that you
are nothing, not just before the Master or a
few selected souls, but before all of creation.
Recognise the Master's Supreme Consciousness
shining in and through everything.”
~
“Try to be like a child. Only then will
you be able to learn and grow. The feeling that
you are grownup or great will not help you to
learn. Only humility will help you to grow. A
child grows emotionally and intellectually because
there is no ego to protest and create blocks.
Knowledge flows into the child unimpeded. But
once your adult ego comes creeping in, the feeling
of 'I and mine' appears and any possibility of
inner growth is obstructed.”
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Humility and the Guru
“If you wish to know God, you have to eliminate the ego by taking refuge
in a Guru, and by obeying the Guru with humility and surrender.”
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"When you make a canoe, you heat the wood
to make it bend. Only if the wood bends can you
shape the canoe. Likewise, we change for the
better when we 'bend' out of reverence and devotion
for the Guru. Otherwise, only the ego will grow,
and we won't develop spiritually at all. Humility
and obedience are essential for a sadhak's development.”
~
“We have nothing to offer those who are
willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake
of the world. It is only because of their grace
that we may receive the unique gift of God-realization.
Isn't such an immeasurable gift far more than
anyone could ask for? We can only bow down to
them with great humility, and be immensely grateful
to them for coming down to us and helping us
evolve to the plane of supreme bliss where they
themselves dwell eternally.”
~
“It is much better if you think, 'It is
only because of my Master's grace that I am here
with him. It is not my right. It is his gift.
It was the Master who found me. I was useless,
I was completely lost and without hope, but due
to his grace and compassion I am here now. I
don't deserve anything, but he is showering me
with his divine grace anyway.' This attitude
will make you humble, and is very helpful in
eradicating the ego.”
~
“Amma does not see any greatness in your
showing respect only towards Her. What Amma looks
for is whether you children respect others or
not, whether you children are selfless, or whether
your attitude is egoistic towards others, whether
you have humility or whether your attitude is,
'I cannot bow down.' These are the things which
Amma cares about.”
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