Oleg Torsunov: «The first result from working on oneself is pride that completely destroys a person's life. leaves no stone unturned.
We continue to talk about the topic of pride. In previous article we analyzed this quality in fragments from the perspective of the ancient Vedic epic “Mahabharata”, which lists 54 signs of pride. Today we will talk about how pride manifests itself in spiritual life.
In fact, we are all very proud of ourselves, even if we do not think so and never considered ourselves a proud. But if in your environment someone's pride, arrogance or arrogance are striking to you, then do not doubt: this quality is also in you. As the famous lecturer and student of Oleg Gennadievich Vladimir Sleptsov says: «Airplanes always collide at the same height.» This means that if we had no pride, then we would not be cling to the words and actions of people in which we see the manifestation of this quality.
How can I check if I'm a proud person or not? If someone looks at you with faith and listens to what you say, know that pride has already crept into your heart. One look with faith on a person is enough to be proud of himself. That is why Oleg Gennadievich says that it is impossible for public people to get rid of pride. Too many enthusiastic words and adoration from the public! Therefore, pride is inherent in all famous people, and Oleg Gennadievich also admits that he is sometimes proud of himself. Because absolutely everyone has pride, it’s a different matter to what extent and whether a person is working on it.
It is noteworthy that if you set yourself a goal to work out your pride and get rid of it, then your life will become a real test. The Lord will put you in situations where your pride will not be easy. Your false ego will flare up every time with renewed vigor, and the realization that this situation came to me because I myself asked for it, unfortunately, comes with a delay. Therefore, very often people who work on themselves are forced to constantly be in the school of life and pass the exams of fate, despite the fact that it can be very unpleasant and painful.
However, a person who works on himself will be able to withstand the onslaught of negative manifestations from the outside. In the Vedas, the holy man is compared to a serene water surface into which even if a stone is thrown, not a single circle will be visible on it. But we are not holy people and we cannot imitate it, so we suffer from our pride. But how to understand that pride has crept into our consciousness?
If you pray to the spiritual master or the holy man in the morning and cannot mentally bow, this means that you have already gained pride. But if you continue to bow, then at a certain moment relief will come. This means that today you will be able to defeat your pride if such a case turns up. And he always comes as a test work to assimilate the material covered.
Therefore, so that our pride does not swell day by day, Oleg Gennadievich advises to bow to the holy man during prayer and imagine himself as a grain of sand at his feet, because our soul is of this size, and even less. But how do we usually think about ourselves? As for someone significant and worthy of respect, right? Yes, we all sin with what we want honors and glory, the only question is what will happen to us if we get it? Will we be happy or, on the contrary, will we become even more proud than now? After all, all our suffering comes from our wounded ego, that is, pride.
It is noteworthy here to recall the parable of the Tower of Babel. Why did the grandest structure of ancient civilization collapse? Because people became proud of themselves, and God divided them according to their languages. They stopped understanding each other, and construction stopped. The scriptures have a good saying about this: “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”
Therefore, if you work on yourself, know that the first thing that comes into your life is pride. Pride from early rise, pride from spiritual knowledge, pride from a more sublime way of life. After all, when a person's standards of life change, and he objectively understands that such a life is really better than the one he lived before, his function automatically turns on: he begins to consider himself better than others.
Better than your friends because they drink, but he doesn't. Better than their parents, because they made mistakes in my upbringing, but I won't, because I have knowledge. Better than your colleagues, neighbors, relatives, etc. D. Over time, such a person can believe that around him are all the degradants. It will be difficult for him to understand that he himself degraded in the process of his self-improvement. And even if he is among sublime people, he tries to serve in the temple, but it is difficult for him to wash the floors there once again, this means that the sprouts of pride still grow in his soul. The very thought «Why should I wash the floors? I already did it yesterday» means that pride has not gone away. She simply adapted to a more blissful life.
- The first result from working on oneself is pride, which completely destroys a person's life. Leaves no stone unturned. Suppose I pray in the morning, I'm almost holy, and my husband was a bastard, and remained so. But, my good ones, working on myself means a completely different thing. It means that you can invest more in a loved one. If you are engaged in self-improvement, but at the same time do not improve relationships in the family, it means that the energy of self-improvement goes into your pride, and not into your strength, because pride is always a weakness, not strength, - Oleg Gennadievich notes.
So, most of the listeners complain to Oleg Gennadievich that close people do not allow them to listen to his lectures. Why is this happening? Because mostly people listen to understand what their loved one is to blame for, and not what I myself am to blame for. And this destroys the family. Therefore, if you work on yourself, but criticize loved ones for not being as sublime as you, then do not expect anything good.
Whether it is a transition to vegetarianism, prayer or a desire to serve in the temple - these things do not work from a position of pride. Who is successful in self-development? Anyone who applies the acquired knowledge to himself and works on his character tries to be modest and strives to calmly respond to the shortcomings of others. After all, it often happens that a person who is already in faith and considers himself sublime enough still behaves inappropriately. He is intolerant of other people's mistakes, looks down on everyone, makes sharp remarks to those who are just embarking on the path to God, and moreover, criticize other faiths and exalt his own.
There are more than enough such examples, and when people see such people in passion, they think: «Why believe in God? if his followers are such fools. In fact, this is a very common opinion. It is only necessary to understand that, despite the fact that a person classifies himself as some kind of faith and puts on religious clothes, he still remains a man. with their character and shortcomings. This does not mean that this faith is bad, it means that this person is simply proud of himself and does not see his mistakes in behavior. It's just that his pride took on more subtle forms that he could not distinguish it.
Therefore, the Vedas argue that pride is the most terrible enemy of man. out of - For pride, we cannot accept the fact of the existence of God and admit our mistakes. out of - For pride, we cannot receive knowledge from elders. Pride deprives us of many opportunities. out of - For it, we lose families, work, children. It is difficult for us to understand this, because the mind, saturated with pride, cannot adequately perceive the events taking place. But if we begin to work on ourselves, do not attach great importance to our successes, but slowly move forward, do not torture our loved ones so that they follow our path, forgive those around them and do not measure their piety with them, then we will gradually begin to notice how pride manifests itself in our fate, and over time we will cease to succumb to its influence.
