We may confuse the concepts humility and humiliation and feel shame if we experience a failure or minimize our successes in the guise of humility. Other times, we go in the opposite direction and exaggerate our accomplishments to build ourselves up to impress others. But true humility is an accurate evaluation of our strong points and limitations and modest candor in acknowledging them. Such spiritual detachment is possible only through the realization of our human-ness and interconnection with all beings. When we receive compliments for an outstanding performance, we are expressing humility by acknowledging them with the simple words "Thank you." Instead of making excuses for times when we have not excelled, we can express real humility by saying, "I did the best I could."
May I have the humility
to mindfully and accurately
assess my strengths
and my weaknesses
so that I may recognize
my spiritual interrelatedness
with all other beings.
