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Thread: The pitfalls of 'Sathweega ahamkara'.

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    The pitfalls of 'Sathweega ahamkara'.

    Namaste,

    The more we spiritually ascend, the more tolerant, patient and humble we become............. no doubt about it.

    But in majority of cases, including my own 'bettering self', a certain degree of a gentler form of egotism settles down. That is, feeling empowered by overwhelming sense of 'goodness' - feeling that one is 'good', 'dignified', etc... eventually leading to a sense of being better than others!

    This situation is an trap for the spiritual progress, imho, because, the more good we tend to do, the higher is the sathweega ahamkara (gentle egotism).

    A person with sathweega ahamkara does not overtly react on being provoked. However, he has a tendency to express his anger in a gentler way because he feels his goodness has been abused or is not amply rewarded.

    1. Have you been a victim of Sathweega ahamkara and how did you escape from its clutches?

    2. How will a person, not a saint or a yogi, but having a truly humbler disposition with minimal sathweega ahamkara, respond when being provoked? Is it ok for such a person to express anger as is? Your thoughts?

    Many thanks.
    jai hanuman gyan gun sagar jai kapis tihu lok ujagar

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    Re: The pitfalls of 'Sathweega ahamkara'.

    Namaste Viraja,

    Quote Originally Posted by Viraja View Post
    But in majority of cases, including my own 'bettering self', a certain degree of a gentler form of egotism settles down. That is, feeling empowered by overwhelming sense of 'goodness' - feeling that one is 'good', 'dignified', etc... eventually leading to a sense of being better than others!

    This situation is an trap for the spiritual progress, imho, because, the more good we tend to do, the higher is the sathweega ahamkara (gentle egotism).

    A person with sathweega ahamkara does not overtly react on being provoked. However, he has a tendency to express his anger in a gentler way because he feels his goodness has been abused or is not amply rewarded.

    1. Have you been a victim of Sathweega ahamkara and how did you escape from its clutches?

    2. How will a person, not a saint or a yogi, but having a truly humbler disposition with minimal sathweega ahamkara, respond when being provoked? Is it ok for such a person to express anger as is? Your thoughts?
    Actually, identifying myself as better placed spiritually, in itself, is nothing but "ahamkaar". If you ask me, personally, I do have feelings sometimes like "I don't belong to that category of people and it is better if I maintain a distance". I cannot say if that is Sathweeka ahamkaar as you name it but such feelings arise and I honour such feelings. Why ? I would tell you :

    My experience with this world has been mostly disappointing. People who I trusted, I sacrificed my little / more comforts and for whom I didn't care for my own discomforts or loss of my money etc., turned their backs when the time came when I needed their worldly support to a very minuscule level (to my understanding). People, at my back, called my a fool who didn't understand the ways of the world ... they tried to cheat me thinking that I was gullible enough to be fooled.
    What was my reaction in such situation ? ---> I have developed a thick skin towards such behaviour of such people. I help with firm belief that I won't get any help from those people when I need. In fact, I believe that the help comes from God and I have experienced it all through my life. Whenever I was in need, I have always got help even from most unexpected quarters ! So, why regret if it is not coming from those who got help from me ? The help at the right time is important and it is not important that it must come from the same people who I helped. Yes, when the time comes, I don't hesitate to narrate to them what they did ( and may be that is not a good trait in me but this is what I do. I am not a saint.).

    Usually I try to cut off my relations from such people as I don't want to get deceived again and I don't want my mind to get poisoned by their thoughts. I believe, "You tend to become like the company you keep". Actually, against all untoward behaviour against me (as I feel), my response is "go silent and cut off the relationship". If relationship is of such a nature that it cannot be cut off, I reduce the interactions to barest minimum.

    Actually, this world values money and worldly achievements so much that we keep getting such shocking "surprises" which hurt (yes, I am not a saint who cannot be hurt). You cannot rely on any relationship (when I say "any", it is really "any"). But we cannot reject everyone ! So, my philosophy is "Do your part and leave the results to God". Live with people, enjoy with people fully understanding that their nature drives them towards their selfish actions and that we cannot change. It is Nature at work. No one is bad. Their behaviour is not under their control. They are tools in the hands of three gunas of nature. We have to develop right strategy to safeguard ourselves from pains that may come to us because of such highly expected but unwanted behaviour of people but we still have to live them, love them, laugh with them and weep with them until someone proves too selfish and there arises a need to "cut off".

    Am I suffering from "Sathveeka Ahamkar" ? May be but that is how I have found my way of living !

    OM
    "Om Namo Bhagvate Vaasudevaye"

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    Re: The pitfalls of 'Sathweega ahamkara'.

    Nice answer, Devotee ji! Thank you!
    jai hanuman gyan gun sagar jai kapis tihu lok ujagar

  4. #4

    Re: The pitfalls of 'Sathweega ahamkara'.

    Namaste,

    In 14tha chapter Sri Krsna speaks how all the gunas are binding but puts sattva as the highest. Sattva according to Bhagavad Gita binds one to sense of happiness. Many times our sense of happiness is via the dualistic relative observation of people who are less fortunate than ourselves. Or we may artificially feel superior to some people due to that same reflection of comparing dualities.

    I was just going through some of the dIpanIs ( exposition on light). In Abhidhamma sakkAya- dhitti of self view, personality view is the deepest form of our attachments. And only by the eradication of self, personality view are all good and bad karma or kusala ( Pali) wholesome and akusala unwholesome activities are put to an end. In abhidhamma sakkAya ditthi is considered the cheif of all delusions and the error of the dhitti-dristi, even if one is experiencing the results of kusala kammas wholesome deeds, because even in this state tanha trsna craving for becoming exists. Although kusala kammas and sattva state is required and encouraged as part of the mind training and cultivation.

    So how can being sattvic be delusion, as viraja said one may feel superior and in that motion others are felt to be inferior, so sattva although the highest mode can also be a cause of suffering to oneself and others.

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    Re: The pitfalls of 'Sathweega ahamkara'.

    Great reply, MD ji! Thanks.
    jai hanuman gyan gun sagar jai kapis tihu lok ujagar

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    Re: The pitfalls of 'Sathweega ahamkara'.

    For me it is simple, if I feel superior to anyone then I am not as spiritually advanced as I think I am. By reminding myself that the feeling of superiority is an out of control ego, the problem becomes self correcting.

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