Prickly Pride

Pride comes in many forms and in many flavors; however it is very predictable when it is in a form of any resistance in our lives. Pride may come in a gross way, very evident to the seeker. It is evident in the attitude or internal conversations that entertain the idea of “I am better than any one and I will do anything to prove it; I am number one”. When you enter into this type of pride you tap into competition, effort, blame and criticism.

This type of pride likes to select one thing you are good at and make it the “ living proof” you are better than others. For example, if you are smart you may accumulate knowledge to display your intelligence and cleverness to others. If you are creative you may display amazing ideas at the cost of overriding others input. If these efforts are not fulfilled you perceive injustice towards you.

Another type of pride is the “sweet pride” with this type selecting a mask either of service or availability. “I can do anything for you” so I can prove to you I am able, superior and better because of my service and sacrifice. This type of pride wants to change others, coming from the intention of “making things better”. This type of pride overrides life and it wants personal and forceful outcomes.

With any form of pride, in the end what it wants is to win. It wants to shine and it wants to be number one. It is natural to have the desire to thrive but what is not natural is to do it at the cost of making other as rivals, enemies and the opposition.

Pride is the force that put resistance in your surrender. It is stubborn, opinionated and fixed in one point of perception. Pride fears to be discovered and fears that others see the reality of its construction. It is devastating for pride to be seen, naked and dismantled. It will do anything to keep its cover and will become angry, like a beast defending it territory.

As we try to play God through pride, God is smiling in front of its futility. We over extend our energy, we lie, we display ourselves and we remain in our isolated bubble of superiority. Although pride obscures the perception of pure consciousness, it does not really affect it.

Pride arises from the lack of the expansive mind, from lack of knowledge of your role in the divine order and the mysteries of the divine play. The divine sooner or later slaps your pride in the face and teaches you to be humble and to be in the real position of who you are. All your faults, your entire short codes and all the things about you that you so carefully hiding are on display. You then have a choice to surrender or keep fighting your way.

In the end, pride sabotages our true confidence, our true fearlessness and our true display of what we really are. Pride is immature and does not allow us to mature our natural tendencies of service and usefulness. The bigger the pride the more insecure you are.

To lessen pride one needs to understand the paradox of our existence. On one hand you are nothing and nobody, like a spot of dust in the cosmic map. On the other hand you are everything and contain everything. You create this universe and the universe creates all you are. You are very important and at the same time you are totally irrelevant.

To understand the paradoxical nature of our existence is not something that our ego likes or can grasp. It is out of your ego that you truly and sincerely accept what you are. By this acknowledgement you tap into humbleness, simplicity and authenticity. These 3 qualities are the ones that truly manifest a relevant impact on the whole, and sustain the true nature of the heart.