Unlike nature, which has its distinctive 4-seasons of Summer, Winter, Spring and Fall, man is uni-seasonal in at least one–that of ego-tripping.
This seemingly harmless folly, constantly compounding many times over however, has become increasingly devastating throughout every segment of modern society. The grave danger here is that this societal malignancy is so obvious in others, yet remains so obscure within each of us. Subsequently our reformation efforts and energies are usually misspent on changing the obvious–others over whom we have no control) while failing to exercise any restraints on the only one over whom we do have control–ourselves.
Once acknowledging our inability to have any lasting control upon our general surroundings, our wisest move should then be to work diligently upon our attitude toward that which we can change and tenaciously on that which we must!
Remember the immortal Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi: “God, grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change; Courage to change the things I can, and Wisdom to know the difference.”
It has been said that the mind cannot fathom what a Paradise this world would be if we were not so obsessed with who gets credit for what. The magnitude of this statement far exceeds our wildest imagination in the politics of science, medicine and technology as well as on corporate, organizational and even individual scale. One must wonder how many drugs and other lifesaving scientific discoveries may have been or are still being withheld because the wrong ones may get the credit–and/or subsequent control.
Another dangerous pastime, disguised as altruism, is doing right things for wrong reasons which, according to most holy writings, spiritually “nullifies the act” before God and man. How many the individuals and agencies that have become prosperous off of poverty. How many pharmaceutical giants have emerged from the perceived necessity of many “lifesaving or life-altering” drugs? Especially in the game of politics, how frequently do we become so obsessed with political figures and rhetoric that often do more to confuse than to convince.
Egos on the individual level run basically in two categories–Pride which Biblically “rideth before the fall;” and Wounded, the most detrimental of all while having to perpetually provide excuses for it.
As we pass through the ever-changing seasons of life, may we conscientiously give more consideration to those attitudes and subsequent actions that will distinguish us among others. It has been clearly written: “Glory in MY NAME, not in thine own! Not through arrogance and/or egotism but by reason of our sincere demonstration of loving and faithful service to others as best described in the Baha’i Hollow Reed Prayer that begins:
“O God , make me a Hollow Reed from which the pith of self hath been blown that I may become a pure channel through which THY Love may flow to others..”Investigate!
