I remember my first year in middle school. I admired the older kids in their third year and aspired to be like them one day, but I also felt intimidated. They often looked down on us first-year students and subjected us to bullying. They were physically bigger and seemingly more knowledgeable. Then I grew older, became like them, and looked down on the new, naive, and clueless kids entering their first year.
And life is like school, isn't it? Some people are more advanced than you, intellectually, spiritually, emotionally, and physically, while others are less advanced than you.
You have to be careful with any type of pride. It happens everywhere, even in spiritual circles. People start valuing themselves based on their level of consciousness. You've probably heard people say things like, 'Oh, I'm an old soul,' and 'those poor beings, they're young souls.' Right there, that's an example of how pride, the pride of spiritual attainment, can creep in. This pride is very subtle, but it can eventually possess you. It can cause you to look down on other people, and then you'll have to learn the lesson all over again.
The Yogis warn us of such pride, one of the most dangerous of the lower qualities of the mind. Pride is one of those things that will come back over and over when you advance through life. Pride will be there when you've mastered your body and become stronger than other people. Pride will try to get to you when you become more spiritually awakened. Pride will be there when you educate yourself and feel more intelligent than the people around you.
Avoid the holier-than-thou attitude. It might be true that you have a higher level of consciousness than other people, that you are smarter, that you are stronger. But that doesn't mean you're better than other people. Remember, there are many others who are far more advanced than you are. You will eventually be like them. And there are many others who are less advanced than you are. You were once like them.
“All that you think is superiority is merely a little more age— a little more experience on this plane of existence.”
You've got to take part in your daily responsibilities and mingle with everyone around you - people with a higher level of consciousness and people with a lower level as well. Love everyone the same. It is good to be proud of your accomplishments, of your advancement. But avoid looking down condescendingly on other people. Avoid the feeling of superiority. Beware of that subtle pride that will creep in over and over again.
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