Pride

Pride

“Pride is not ego.  Ego is something without content.  For example, a man who cannot even draw a straight line thinks himself a great painter – that is ego, there is no content.  But if Picasso thinks he is a great painter, that is simply a fact, and if he is proud of his genius there is nothing wrong in it.  In fact, people should be helped to find some pride in their individuality because that pride will make their eyes shine, their faces luminous; that pride will make them unique individuals, with no more question of inferiority and superiority.”

“And secondly, anybody who is proud is always grateful.  Because the genius of Picasso or Yehudi Menuhin is not their own; they are only vehicles.  It is the beyond that comes through them – in music, in dance, in painting, in scientific research, in poetry, in thousands of ways, but the real genius will know it for sure, that it is coming from the beyond.  He is proud that he has been chosen, he is not proud in comparison to you.”

“The man of pride has a deep feeling of gratitude that existence has chosen him, although he is not worthy.  It is a strange phenomenon.  The more worthy you are, the more you feel you are not worthy enough.  You have been given so much and you cannot do anything in return.”  - Osho “Sermons in Stones” pg. 223-224

Before reading this passage from Osho, I would always associate pride with ego, but after reading the passage, I understand that is not necessarily always the case.  You can still have pride and be humble towards existence.  You can still be proud that you were the chosen one.  You were chosen by existence to be who you are, to possess the talents that you possess, to be in your life circumstance.  You were born to be who you are; you were born at a certain time, at a certain place.  Some people are born to be Artists; some people are born with unique talents and skills.  It is ok to be proud that you were chosen to be in your position in life, this pride is a showing of gratitude and appreciation.