Humility, Humility, Humility

The way to God is firstly humility, secondly humility and thirdly humility. Again, unless humility precedes, accompanies and follows every good action we perform, pride wrests wholly from our hands any good work on which we are congratulating ourselves.
_{Maharaj Sawan Singh, Philosophy of the Masters, Vol. III}

All spiritual paths advocate humility as a requirement for spiritual growth and development. Why is this so? In the course of cultivating this trait, one sheds the biggest obstacle on the spiritual path – our ego. Our ego is the love we have for ourselves, the self-consciousness we carry as we navigate through this worldly existence. The more we are consumed by love for ourselves, the less we have for the Lord. This then is the primary reason why saints consider humility a prerequisite of spirituality.

One could argue that we need our egos to survive in this world and that our intelligence, confidence and motivation keep us afloat in this competitive environment. It is almost unimaginable to subsist without them.

Arguably, the existence of our ego is a matter of survival. Factors such as our family background, physical appearance, education, career, spouses and the properties we own are examples that add to the growing ego. Its sum total is what defines our worldly existence, and we stand before everyone with pride.

In this situation, is it possible to be conscious of the Lord if our awareness is one-pointedly directed at ourselves? Even if our demeanour is quiet and meek and even if we involve ourselves in religious activities, that pride and ego remain at the forefront.

How then can we love the Lord and acquire humility?

Though the world does seem like a hostile environment for learning to love the Lord and developing true humility, it is not an impossible task.

It is the practice of meditation that is the game changer in managing our ego. There is no substitute for it. We simply must sit in meditation for the prescribed time. While we sit in meditation, the mind is slowly cleansed and its downward direction towards the world is reversed and focused upward, towards the divine source. The process is long and arduous, but this is how our love for the Lord is developed. As we love the Lord more and more, love for the self is lessened.

When our whole body is filled with love, the ego is gone and only humility and meekness remain. When that love and devotion is not in us, the whole body is full of ego. We have to detach ourselves from the world and attach ourselves to him. Only by the spiritual practice, only by that meditation, can we kill the ego.
_{Maharaj Charan Singh, Spiritual Perspectives, Vol. III}

Meditation makes us realize how insignificant we are in the vast universe, and how, in the grand scheme of things, we are nothing and the Lord’s hand is guiding everything. Likewise, it makes us understand that all that we are and all that we have has come through the grace of the Father rather than our efforts.

We may have some accomplishments where we put in time and effort, but we have to acknowledge the unseen power that created opportunity and orchestrated events. As for material wealth, meditation helps us realize that one is merely a custodian.

Realizing this, we start to lose our so-called pride and vainglory. We learn to give what we can without egotism and fanfare. We become more and more conscious of the Lord and gradually the ‘I’, ‘me’ and ‘myself’ – the manifestations of our ego – decrease. We care less about being the centre of attention; we fade into the background doing good for others without the need for recognition.

The ego is powerful. It is only meditation that can sustain us and reduce its hold on us. Great Master says that humility, humility and even more humility is required on the path to the Lord and our only hope of achieving this is our meditation. There is no other way.