Break-Through

As long as you are convinced that you have to defend yourself, you will never be at peace. As long as you continue to compare your imaginary self with others' imaginary selves, you live in your own shadow and you deal with the shadow-figures of others. You trade in unrealities. And there is no joy in that.

When you think that you are virtuous you are tempted to take yourself seriously. You come to think that your virtues are important. And you are convinced that they are important because they are yours. But you are in fact blind and deceived. Which makes it all the more important, and indeed necessary to judge the faults of others. And you become a tyrant, building up this self-purifying ideal of your self as you increasingly tear down the lives of others.

Virtuous people are often miserable inside because they gauge their own virtue based on how much more virtuous they are than others.

Joy comes when we forget ourselves.

Freedom comes when we lay aside our reputation.

Break-through! Serving others. For God's sake alone.