Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 38-minute meditation on pride, Ven Lobsang Namgyel explores a bodhisattva’s commitment to regard themselves as the lowest of all while holding others supreme. He examines why pride is so destructive: how it obliterates genuine compassion, replaces cherishing with judgment, generates constant comparison and fear, and blocks real learning from everyone around us. Through investigative reflection, he guides practitioners to recognise that every being—even those we consider harmful or worthless—possesses qualities, experiences, or talents we lack, and that pride alone prevents us from discovering this. He concludes by connecting freedom from pride to authentic spiritual progress and genuine happiness, offering a dedication of this realisation to all beings.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 21 Meditation on Pride.mp3
UUID: 37479a6a-55c6-49c0-b8f0-8bb3f51606eb
Teacher: Ven Lobsang Namgyel
Collection: VenNamgyel Thought Transformation (Ven Lobsang Namgyel)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 38.1 minutes
Words: ~1,174
So how we can perhaps look at this second verse? We can think that this a prayer or a commitment that a bodhisattva makes. A being that have made the purpose of his or her existence the happiness of others, all others. And what he or she does is trying and working all the time constantly towards attaining enlightenment for the sake of all other living beings. Whatever can become an obstacle or is dangerous or harmful or can become an obstacle for this attainment?
He or she will find a way and try to overcome This great being also have recognized how dependent he or she on others and how precious all other beings are. So in that attempt to achieve enlightenment for the sake of all sentient beings. A bodhisattva recognized how dangerous pride is for his mind or her mind. A bodhisattva will want to be completely free of that. So then the bodhisattva offers this prayer.
When in the company of others, I shall always consider myself the lowest of all. And from the depths of my heart, hold others dear and supreme. So we can try and think why is it that pride is so harmful. Why is it so unhealthy for our mind? We want to train ourselves in cherishing, in cherishing all other beings.
We want to be able to do it all the time. So we can check what happened to us, what happens to our mind when strong pride arise. Is it that when we have pride, suddenly we have somebody opposite to us? Try to think of situation when you experience pride in relationship to someone that is quite equal to yourself. Some kind of competition arise.
Did you have space to cherish that person? To wish that person well, to want happiness for that person. How difficult it is to generate that those positive thoughts and emotions when we are under the control of pride. We can think in the same way in relationship to somebody that is considered to be higher than us. Doesn’t it give rise to feelings, emotions such as contempt or dislike?
And towards somebody who we think of as lower than us. When we think we feel compassion but somehow this compassion is mixed with pride. Try to investigate into different situations that you had in your life. Maybe with beggars or somebody that was very sick. And try to discriminate between feeling of compassion or merely feeling sorry for that person.
When our compassion is mixed with this feeling of superiority. Is that compassion really feel that nice? Try to find out if there can be anything good about pride. If there can be freedom, real freedom as long as we are not separated from pride. Try to recognize all the fears that come from pride.
How much proving ourselves to others. How often our prides get us into fights. Try to see if you can find a relationship between pride and judgmental mind. A mind that constantly looks to find where others are wrong. Where others are worse compared to us.
And how difficult it is to find rest and peace with such a mind. All those beings we’re supposed to benefit and love. And what such a mind is doing is constantly shooting arrows. Constantly shooting poisonous arrows at other beings without them being aware of that. How wonderful it would be to be free from such a mind.
To have only pure compassion all the time in pure love. You can take a moment to stretch your legs if you like. And then we can think also of pride as a great enemy, a great obstacle for us. When we want to learn from others or we have the opportunities to learn from others. When we think we know so much or when we think we already know that.
How much do we really listen and how much our mind is open at that time? Is it possible that every being, every person, and every type of being have some quality or knowledge, even just one that we don’t have. Some life experience. Some talent, interesting characteristic or useful characteristic from which we can learn. What if we were able to walk around and always try to find where others are, or in what others are better than us?
And what we can learn. Think how free and light our mind would be. And how quick our progress can become. Try to take a few different examples from your life, beings, peoples that you think have nothing to offer to you. Perhaps even animals, insects, and see if you can find something that they have and you don’t have.
Something that especially can be useful for you in your progress development, improving your mind. Just few example maybe to think of that can help you out. It’s possible that even very evil people, harmful people have a great charisma and influence, ability to influence that we don’t have, that we could have used on a spiritual path. Maybe some animals can live in harmony, naturally in harmony. Either with nature or with each other.
How many that for us it’s not so easy to find? Some that are very determined, very enthusiastic, very persevering. Just try to think along these lines and search, really search. Also with people in your personal life. And there is a chance that if we fail to recognize anything beneficial in this other being, something that we can learn from.
It is very possible that it is only because we don’t know this being well enough. And most probably, it is a pride that stop us from giving this being a chance, giving ourselves a chance to really get to know this being, this person. So you can think how wonderful it would be to gain freedom from such a mind. To genuinely feel that there is nothing special about us. And when we look around to have this feeling that all those beings are most amazing.
There is so much that they gave, they are giving and will still give to us. If we will be able to recognize that they are the source of all our happiness in the past, present and future lives. So if we feel it’s very important and crucial to find a way to liberate ourselves from pride in order to have the most healthy relationship with others. With others in order to progress quickly on the spiritual path. Then we can make strong dedication to be able to overcome pride.
Completely to overcome pride. May we be able to soon experience the freedom that comes from that. And then trying to hold a sense of the preciousness of others and how important they are, our family members and friends, other beings as well. We can dedicate this session for them. Try to imagine you offer, you send to them the best happiness you can think of, you can imagine, the greatest happiness.