have not done it with the intention of using this to discriminate or
marginalise anybody, but merely so that you are aware of this
manifestation of egoism and that you use this knowledge for your
improvement.
And how do we become conscious of our own egoism, in this case
manifested in the form of vanity, and overcome it?
Generally by suffering first-hand the egoistic attitudes of others, similar
in egoism to yourself. The law of spiritual justice confronts you with your
own acts, even though it may be through the acts of others, so that
from then on you benefit the most regarding your evolution. Your own
suffering sensitises you, making you acquire greater sensitivity in order
to perceive suffering in others, especially that of those who have gone
through similar circumstances to your own. It arouses in you a feeling of
solidarity towards them, which is the seed of love.
And is it always the case that we have to experience first-hand the
suffering of our own acts in order to learn that these acts are harmful to
others?
No. You can do it through comprehension, because you have realised
the harm that your own actions cause to others, or because you have
learnt from the errors and experiences of others. But for that you must
have grown sufficiently in sensitivity, in love, because, as I say, only
where there is love are you receptive to feeling for others as for
yourself, including their suffering. Consequently, in the first stages spirits
advance more through suffering, through experiencing in themselves,
egoistic attitudes which they generated themselves, whereas once
they have developed love they advance more through
comprehension, comprehension of their own past experiences or of
the experiences of others.
And what can be done to conquer vanity through comprehension?
The first step is to be conscious of the defect and the second step is
the modification of the attitude. By merely being conscious of our
defect we are not going to prevent it from manifesting itself. If we are
capable of recognising and admitting it, but at the same time we
avoid acting according to how it wants, in other words, we do not
allow ourselves to be dragged down by it when making decisions in
our life, but rather we act more according to what our feelings dictate,
the defect will go on losing strength, until it is finally conquered.
Becoming conscious occurs through knowing in depth what vanity
consists of, how it manifests itself in us and what feeds it. Vanity feeds
on the belief that in order to be happy it is important to be in the