Any special consideration with regards to how to overcome the fear of
knowing ourselves?
Yes. There is nothing bad about seeing ourselves as we really are, with
our virtues and defects. Let us accept ourselves as we really are. Admit
that we are in a process of improvement and this way we will not suffer
disappointment when we discover something about ourselves that we
do not like. Although bringing our dirty laundry out into the light, being
conscious of our own defects can initially be painful or unpleasant, it is
worth the trouble, because it is the first step in the path of spiritual
progression and it is essential in order to secure both the elimination of
egoism as well as the development of feeling. We must not be afraid
of feelings, of showing them, expressing them or feeling happy when
we do. It is enough to be scared of the bad things without being
scared of the good things too.
I would like to ask some questions that I have probably already asked
you, but I need to ask again in order to summarise everything that we
have talked about regarding defects and their manifestations, ego-
feelings.
Go ahead, ask.
What should be done in general to overcome the defects and their
manifestations?
The first step is recognition. People who have been alcoholics know
that the first step to overcoming their addiction is to recognise that
they are alcoholics. In the same way, in order to overcome vanity,
pride or arrogance, the first step is to recognise egoism itself, through
identifying its manifestations in each of us. To do this we need to know
in detail what each defect is and its manifestations, which we have
been engaged in up until now.
I see this as being difficult.
It is not so difficult. Egoism itself makes it difficult for us to see. Why if it is
so easy to see the errors and defects of others, does it cost so much to
admit our own to ourselves (we see the mote in other people’s eye
and not the beam in our own)? If we understand that we are here to
admit to ourselves what we are like and from there on try to improve,
we have achieved a great deal.
And how do you recognise a manifestation of the defect, if the defect
itself sets out to confuse us?
One tactic to follow is to analyse a certain action done by us as if it
had been done by others, and we had been the receivers. That is to