never be sufficient to fill our empty interior. And we will never
appreciate what has been given to us, but rather we will only see what
we have not yet received. Any small obstacle in life will be a motive for
complaint. If it dawns cloudy we will complain because it is cold, if it
dawns sunny we will complain because it is hot. And all of this
because we seek incorrectly. That emptiness that we feel can only be
filled with the love that we ourselves are capable of generating, in an
active way, for ourselves and for others. Therefore to be happy, it is just
as necessary to give love as to receive it.
Going back to the topic of vanity, I say that not everybody who finds
themselves in the vanity stage will have the same characteristics.
No. Within vanity different grades exist. In an initial stage of vanity are
found the most primitive and materialistic manifestations of egoism,
such as greed (not wanting to share with others what you have),
covetousness (wanting to possess more and more, even hurting
others), envy (rejection of those who have something material that you
covet). In a second stage, when spirits advance in the knowledge of
feelings, this materialistic egoism begins to transform itself into spiritual
egoism. In this stage spirits continue to cling to egoism, but at the same
time they have begun to develop feeling. Although they are still
unwilling to give, they are capable of recognising the presence of love
and the wellbeing that it produces and they seek to receive it. It is then
when greed transforms into attachment (not wanting to share with
others the affection and love that you receive from particular people)
and covetousness transforms into absorbency (wanting everybody to
care for you, to give you affection) whereas envy takes on a more
subtle aspect and is transformed into aversion against those who have
any spiritual virtue that you do not have but would like to have. Spirits
in this stage, through being more sensitive, have a more developed
sense of justice, but when the matter concerns them, they frequently
act unfairly favouring themselves knowingly, in order to continue
clinging on to their egoism, for which they are guiltier, through being
more conscious.
What fundamental advancement have these spirits gained in order to
be able to say that they have overcome the vanity stage?
The main achievement and that which marks the boundary between
vanity and pride, is the awakening of our own spiritual love. Whereas
vain spirits are eminently receivers of love, proud spirits are givers of
love. This means that they have acquired the capacity to truly love
through their own initiative in a considerably steadfast way.