"A man wrapped up in himself makes a very small bundle." - Benjamin Franklin
The notion of humility as a virtue brings numerous images to mind. We tend to
envision those rare individuals who humbly bear life's struggles while
downplaying their own strengths. Yet humility is also often associated with
people whose insecurities compel them to judge themselves unfavorably as a
matter of course. The true definition of humility, however, does not correspond with either of these images.
True humility means to let go of all your own problems, desires,
attachments and fears. Someone with a lot of humility will see every moment as an
opportunity to learn and will welcome the criticism and input of others in order
to change. This is because they have also let go of their ego that used to be
protected before. You could call a humble person any of the worst curse words you can
think of and it would not hurt them because they are not
concerned with protecting anything about themselves. In fact, here is nothing left to
protect. Those with humility can thus flow with any
situation and be able to relate to others better than most people.
And the best part of humility is - ANYONE can be humble if they only choose to
let go.
"Humility is having the attitude of being a receptive little valley.
Nature wears down the great mountain, and fills the valley with rich topsoil,
lakes,
and abundance. Therefore, a person who is truly humble cannot be passed
by, and is made great by God." - The Lost Teachings of Atlantis
Humility in Religion
BUDDHISM
In Buddhism, humility is equivalent to concern of how to be liberated from the
sufferings of life and the vexations of the human mind. The ultimate aim is to
achieve a state of enlightenment through meditation and other spiritual
practices. Of course, humility is also a result of achieving the liberation of
Nirvana, but it's simultaneously the means to get there in the first place. When one experiences the ultimate Emptiness and non-self, one is free from
suffering, vexations and all illusions of self-deception. Humility, compassion
and wisdom characterize this state of enlightenment.
Chan (Zen) Master Li Yuansong states that enlightenment can come only after
humility - the wisdom of realizing one's own ignorance, insignificance and
lowliness, without which one cannot see the truth.
For
more information on Buddhism go to ourBuddhism
page.
CHRISTIANITY
Humility as a virtue is a major theme of both the Old and New Testaments. Why do
qualities such as courtesy, patience and deference have such a prominent place
in the Bible? It is because a demeanor of humility is exactly what is needed to
live in peace and harmony with all people. Humility dissipates anger and heals
old wounds. Humility allows us to see the dignity and worth of all God's people.
Humility distinguishes the wise leader from the arrogant power-seeker. A good
example of this difference can be found in the movie “The Ten Commandments” by
Cecil B. DeMille (Ramses II vs Moses). See our
Spiritual Movies page for more movie
recommendations.
Humility is defined as, "A quality by which a person considering his own defects
has a humble opinion of himself and willingly submits himself to God and to
others for God's sake." St. Bernard defines it as, "A virtue by which a man
knowing himself as he truly is, abases himself.”
As illustrated in the person of Moses, who leads the nation of Hebrews out of
slavery in Egypt and to the “Promised Land”, humility is a sign of Godly
strength and purpose, not weakness. It is much harder to let go of your own
anger, fear and doubt than it is to get angry, be fearful and doubt yourself and
others. Of this great leader, the Bible states, “Moses
was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth" (Numbers
12:3, NIV).
Also in 1 Peter 2:23, concerning Jesus Christ's behavior in general and
submission to unjust torture and execution in particular: "When they hurled
their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats.
Instead, he entrusted himself to Him who judges justly." (1 Peter 2:23 NIV).
For
more information on Christianity go to ourChristianitypage.
ISLAM
In the Qur'an, Allah uses Arabic words conveying the meaning of "humility."
Among these are "tawadu' " and "khoshou' ":
"Before thee We sent messengers to many nations, and We afflicted the nations
with suffering and adversity, that they call Allah in humility. When the
suffering reached them from Us, why then did they not call Allah in humility? On
the contrary, their hearts became hardened, and Satan made their sinful acts
seem alluring to them." (Al-Anaam 6:42-43)
"Successful indeed are the believers, those who humble themselves in their
prayers." (Al-Muminoon 23:1-2). "Has not the time arrived for the believers that
their hearts in all humility should engage in the remembrance of Allah and of
the Truth which has been revealed to them."(Al-Hadid 57:16).
For
more information on Islam go to ourIslampage.
SIKHISM
Humility is a deep aspect of Sikhism preached as Nimrata. According to Sikhism,
All have to bow in humility before god. The fruit of humility is intuitive peace
and pleasure. With Humility they continue to meditate on the Lord, the Treasure
of excellence. The God-conscious being is steeped in humility. One whose heart
is mercifully blessed with abiding humility. Sikhism deal Humility as begging
bowl before the god. Guru Nanak, First Guru Of Sikhism said,
“Make contentment your ear-rings, humility your begging bowl, and meditation the
ashes you apply to your body. ” (Page 4,Guru Granth Sahib)
”Listening and believing with love and humility in your mind” (Page 6,Guru
Granth Sahib).
”In the realm of humility, the Word is Beauty.” (Page 8,Guru Granth Sahib).
”Modesty, humility and intuitive understanding are my mother”. For
more information on Sikhism go to ourSikhismpage.
Humility in work & leadership
The dictionary defines humility as modesty, lacking pretence, not believing that
you are superior to others. An ancillary definition includes: “Having a lowly
opinion of oneself, meekness”. Jim Collins mentioned humility in his seminal work Good to
Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't. In this book,
Collins examined companies that went from good to great by sustaining 15-year
cumulative stock returns at or below the general stock market, and after a
transition point, cumulative returns at least three times the market over the
next 15 years.
Among the many characteristics that distinguished these companies from others is
that they all had a Level 5 leader. Level 5 leaders direct their ego away from
themselves to the larger goal of leading their company to greatness. These
leaders are a complex, paradoxical mix of intense professional will and extreme
personal humility. They will create superb results but shun public adulation,
and are never boastful. They are described as modest. An example of such a
leader who epitomized humility is David Packard, the co-founder of
Hewlett-Packard, who, in Jim Collins’ words, defined himself as a HP man first
and a CEO second. He was a man of the people, practicing management by walking
around. Shunning all manner of publicity, Packard is quoted as saying: “You
shouldn't gloat about anything you've done; you ought to keep going and find
something better to do.”
Another great leader is Patrick Daniel, CEO of North American energy and
pipeline company Enbridge, who espouses two leadership attributes: determination
to create results and humility, shifting the focus away from himself and
continually recognizing the contributions of others. “I have learned through the
lives of great leaders,” he said, “that greatness comes from humility and being
at times, self-effacing.”
When you practice humility, you want to become as accomplished and evolved as
you can possibly be, yet you are willing to submit to the expertise of others to
do so. You understand the scope of your aptitudes yet you choose to eradicate
arrogance from your attitude, and you can distinguish the value you possess as
an individual while still acting in the interests of your fellow human beings.
Humility, simply put, is a form of balance in which you can celebrate your own
worthwhile sincerely believing that every other person on the planet is just as
worthy as you.
