November 22, 2011 | In: Knowledge
Humility Means Honesty
Humility really means honesty. Humility simply means being truthful. What do we have to brag about? If God does not make the sun rise, what would you do? Did you create your brain? Did you create your eyes to see? Did you create your heart to beat? Did you create your arms to act? As they say in British parlance, “Do not be proud of borrowed plumes.” Whatever we have is not ours. We have the free will to use what God gives us in a good way or in an evil way or in a spiritual way. We have that free will and, according to what we do and what we say, the karma is going to come back on us. But still all the facilities we have are coming from a power way beyond our own. Even if you are young and strong now, but by the power of time, how long will you remain young and strong? The body is under the control of nature, the mind is under the control of nature. So humility really means to be honest.
nityo nityanam chetanas chetananam eko bahunam yo vidadhati kaman (Katha Upanisad 2.2.13)
The above verse explains that there is one supreme eternal and all others are subordinate to that one supreme eternal. So the fact is that we are always subordinate to the supreme.
Hitler was subordinate to the supreme. The Lord gave him a mind and a body and he totally misused it and exploited it. He tortured and killed others and accumulated oceans and oceans, mountains and mountains of horrible karma upon himself, but ultimately he is dead and gone and his soul has to go to the next place to get his karma. Alexander, the great, came and conquered so many parts of the world, but where is he now? He was conquered by time. So everyone is subordinate to the power of God. So to be humble means to be realistic and honest. To be proud is to be simply dishonest, ungrateful and unrealistic. To be proud is an illusion. Of course in the world today to be proud is a very cool situation. People like proud people, but the fact is that pride is an illusion and it is a miserable condition for the heart. Humility means to have enough integrity to be honest with the reality of our life before God.
13 Responses to Humility Means Honesty
nandkishordas
December 23rd, 2011 at 8:12 pm
great
Tallam Sita Ramaiah
December 25th, 2011 at 9:40 am
“There is one Supreme eternal and all others are subordinate to that one Supreme eternal. So the fact is that we are always subordinate to the Supreme.” This instruction of H.H Radhanath Swami Maharaj can give eternal peace if understood properly and realised so.
siddhesvari priya
December 29th, 2011 at 3:16 pm
Thank you Maharaji for such a nice article.
Viraj
December 30th, 2011 at 10:06 am
“But still all the facilities we have are coming from a power way beyond our own.” : something we can meditate upon regularly.
Sundar
December 31st, 2011 at 6:40 pm
Wow, actually there is nothing to brag about if one thinks about it after reading this article
mahesh.kohale
January 19th, 2012 at 4:21 am
nice way of becoming humble
Biswajit
January 23rd, 2012 at 10:43 am
Hare Krishna
Sumit Sharma
February 5th, 2012 at 10:17 am
Amazing article on humility. Radhanath Swami is humility personified.
raju
February 10th, 2012 at 7:45 am
Amazing…! really amazing article…Thanks you so much..
Chandrika
February 10th, 2012 at 8:19 am
Thank you for this article.
Citra Gopi DD
February 14th, 2012 at 6:14 pm
Great article.
Rajaruban
February 14th, 2012 at 6:31 pm
Inspiring message.
VP Singam
February 14th, 2012 at 6:46 pm
Profound message.