People on the spiritual path understand that all the best in them is a gift of the Creator. How can we take praise and criticism, as the philosophy of yoga teaches, without losing balance of mind?
From time to time we are praised. We can accept a compliment or not, react to it or sidestep the praise. People who walk the spiritual path understand that all the best in them is a gift of the Creator. How should they act in such situations according to the philosophy of yoga, without contradicting themselves?
Receiving a compliment is a pleasant event that comes at a certain price. Today you are praised for your beauty, intelligence and good sense of humor. You take this as your own achievement and rejoice. Tomorrow you are scolded, and it hurts, because you believe that all your personal qualities belong to you alone. You have appropriated them and treat them with tender care. But suddenly someone comes along and judges them differently from how you would like. You find it unpleasant.
By becoming indifferent to praise, you will shield yourself from the pain of criticism. This is what balance of mind consists in: when you are scolded, you do not fall into negativity; when you are praised, the balance of your mind is not disturbed.
How should we react?
Your outward reaction is very important for the person who has praised you. Answer them: "Thank you, that's very kind."
But creating the right inner reaction is much harder. Often you take the praise personally and gradually begin to feel special, unique. Star sickness is a terrible thing. If you leave its sprouts unattended, it easily takes root and later bursts into riotous bloom. You have come to believe that there is something in you that others do not have. And this will immediately show in the outer sphere: people will begin to sense your arrogance.
If you let your mind lose its balance as a result of criticism, over time you may develop an inferiority complex. Those around you will also sense your complex right away.
Thus the wrong perception of praise and of criticism is one and the same problem of an unbalanced mind, showing itself in different forms.
It is important to understand that everything good in you, including inspiration, beauty and various abilities, is given from above.
And it is foolish to claim it for yourself. Remember who the author is, the Creator of this world, and leave all the laurels to Him. Then you will keep your inner balance and develop strength of mind.
Why does egoism kill talent?
The spiritual current passes easily through a person with good "conductivity," free of egoism, who has neither an inferiority complex nor a sense of superiority. Such a person creates unique and beautiful things in this world, because the Creator can easily bring His designs to life through them.
When a person's mind falls out of balance, the spiritual current flowing through them is blocked and cannot break through the high frequency of the mind's vibrations.
The following story illustrates our theme very well:
Once upon a time there lived a talented sculptor. Everyone liked his work. One day he carved a statue of an Indian deity of incredible beauty, loaded it onto a donkey and set off to sell it at the market. The people of a neighboring village saw the statue and gathered around the donkey, expressing their admiration. The donkey drew himself up and thought, "Hmm…"
In the next village it was the same; people there already knew that the sculptor was bringing an image of the deity of unusual beauty. They came to look at it and brought flowers and fruit. The donkey ate some of the fruit. Then the people made offerings to the deity fastened on the donkey's back, and the donkey felt he was in seventh heaven. On arriving in town, the sculptor took the statue and carried it to the market, and let the donkey go to graze. The donkey thought, "I'll go to the people and meanwhile shower my grace on them." But no one paid him any attention. The donkey thought, "Oh well, these are ignorant people. I'll give them a hint of who I am." He went into a temple. But there, too, no one paid him any attention. Then the donkey jumped onto the altar. Seeing this, the people took switches, drove him out of the temple and gave him a good beating.
The story tells us that all the good in you does not belong to you. It belongs to the one who gave it to you. In a single second you can lose everything or gain everything, because nothing belongs to you, and you do not control it.
Always remember that all the qualities you possess have been given to you from above. You are only using them. And it may happen that you suddenly lose them.
But to the person who has paid you a compliment, answer modestly: "Thank you, that's very kind."