Balance between humility and self confidence

Hare Krishna mata ji,

I really like Tukarama das prabhu ji's reply. he is absoloutely right!!!

I will add some points more to what prabhu ji explained.Just an other angle of looking at things.

In spirituality we need to be humble that is absolutely right! we must feel lower than the lowest and serve our seniors and acharyas and ask questions and learn from them. Learning phase never dies in spirituality.

Even in your academic studies you are humble towards your teacher who taugh you ABC's isn't it. Though you may have become a doctor or Engineer or any big person in life. If you come across your 1 grade teacher who taught you ABCs' and numbers you will be thankful to her and be humbled down isn't it? Krishna also was like that. Krishna went to learn from guru Sandipani in the gurukula. Was Krishna HIMSELF Not Jagad guru? But He went to gurukool to show us all the path that even thought You maybe God also. The position of a guru is more then God. Even Sri Chaitanaya Mahaprabhu went to a Guru to get HIS diksha. Guru Keshava Bharati said what can I teach you prabhu? Why you give me this status? That is the status of a guru be it in spiritual life or in material worldly acedamics. Guru is always respected and we are always a learner in front of our guru's. It doens't mean you are still learning. Humbleness is not that you lose self confidence and ask and learn from others. Humbleness means to show respect internally that even if become somday more great than your guru also. You are going to be always in a lower position. There is no lack of self confidence at all here. In fact you are more confident in the presence of a guru.

Because you know you have some strong support to lean on!!!!.

Let us say for suppose you are small kid and you are alone in a room. You know that it is your own room and it is your own home. But don't you feel lonely without your mother? If mother is there. You are carefree. You are more confident when your mother is at home than being alone isn't it?? So also when you are having some guru or seniors to support you. You should feel actually more confident .. Where is the question of lack of confidence?? Yes, You love ur mother so you are humble and respect her. So also you love ur guru so you respect him and show humility. Not just acting humbly but feeling confident that my guru my mother is there to protect me even if I go wrong anywhere. Humbleness isn't a cage it is liberating actually.

Lack of confidence only comes in when you lose faith in Krishna and guru.

I can crack this exam or get this job it is nice to have this idea but overall. One must always think in terms of Krishna's preaching in Bhagwad gita.

You must do your work and give ur 100% and leave results to Krishna. "I" can do " I" will crack the exam.. this is not at all needed.

You simply do ur hard word and leave results to Krishna.

कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन।
मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि॥ २-४७

Karmanye vadhikaraste Ma Phaleshu Kadachana,
Ma Karmaphalaheturbhurma Te Sangostvakarmani ( 2. 47 BG)

You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of action. Never consider yourself to be the cause of the results of your activities, and never be attached to not doing your duty.

How are you going to be the cause of the result of ur action?

See even if you are 100% confident that you can crack the exam or get this job also ..sometimes something happens you may not be able to even give the exam on that day or you may fall sick or some hurricane came and you couldn't go to school or attend interview. It is your fate. You are not supposed to even think about that result.

YES all you can do is give ur 100% by working hard and doing all that is needed for cracking the exam and getting the job and leave rest of all to Krishna. It is upto Him if He thinks you are eligble he will give otherwise He will postpone and when things get postponed and you are not successful don't blame Krishna. It was not in ur fate something more good is yet to come for you. Krishna planned something else for you think positively like this.

There are people I seen who toiled day and night for exam or job and they didn't get the result they expected they committed suicide or went into depression. They didn't think in another angle. THat maybe this is exam or job was not in their fate let me try business or some other line. Krishna had different plans maybe for me. They didn't think like this. Because their actions were attached to the results more. They worked for success in exam or job only. they didn't see nothing else.

That is what Krishna said in Bhagwad gita to don't get attached to the results of the war Arjuna. Just do your prescribed duty. You are a worrier/ kshetriya Arjuna. So your duty is to fight against injustice. Give your 100% don't think what will happen if I win or what will happen if I lose. Winning and losing are not in your hands said Krishna!!!!

Now Arjuna was super duper confident after listening to Krishna's words .. He was more humble and accepted humble position by surrendering ego to Krishna. Though surrendered and humble did Arjuna lose self confidence in the presence of Jagaguru Sri Krishna? Did Arjuna leave his humility or did he lose his self confidence?

Arjuna didn't neither lose his self confidence or lose his dignity or lose his capablities or lose anything by surrendering to Krishna and accepting the humblest position. Infact Arjuna was empowered and had got more and more confidence.

So What I want to emphasize here is even in Spirituality or in Academics when you accept humble position and surrender to your superiors there is no loss of dignity or self confidence .. They is only empowerment!!!!!!!!!

Hare Krishna.

There is a difference between being puffed up with self importance, and being honest about your abilities.

If you listened to your teacher in class, and studied the provided lessons, when you take an exam you should be ready. Taking what you learned in school and applying it to a job, you should be ready. When you are going in for a job or an exam, and you know you are qualified, there is nothing wrong with being confident. Don't be cocky about it, but be honest with yourself about your abilities. I heard a guru say in class that we need to see ourselves as Krishna sees us. Look at ourselves honestly. (simple concept, not so easy to do)

Srila Prabhupada gave us examples of pretty much everything. He goes to a new country, not knowing anyone, having no money, and starts preaching. In 10 years he has 100 temples, thousands of devotees all around the world, and translated & published 80 books. He could have gotten very puffed up with how 'he did it all', but he did not. He always said his only qualification was that he followed his gurus order, he left everthing to Krishna, and the nice devotees did so much work. He stayed very humble about his part in spreading ISKCON (we give him the credit he deserves).

While staying humble, if Prabhupada were to go take an exam on Sanskrit, I think he would be pretty confident that he would do well.

Replies

Punkech Patel April 23, 2022 at 12:44am

Humble means for the soul. It have nothing to do with body or exams.
- g sreedevi > Punkech Patel April 23, 2022 at 6:41pm
  
  Thank you Prabhuji
  
  Hare Krishna
Sevak

Bharat April 22, 2022 at 2:21pm

Hare Krsna

how to not lose the self confidence in ourselves? - like yeah I can crack this exam or get this job.

By endeavouring for Krsna and by depending on Krsna

Hare Krsna
- g sreedevi > Bharat April 22, 2022 at 10:16pm
  
  Ok prabhuji
  
  Thank you. Hare Krishna
Gayatri April 22, 2022 at 11:44am

Hare Krishna mata ji,

I really like Tukarama das prabhu ji's reply. he is absoloutely right!!!

I will add some points more to what prabhu ji explained.Just an other angle of looking at things.

In spirituality we need to be humble that is absolutely right! we must feel lower than the lowest and serve our seniors and acharyas and ask questions and learn from them. Learning phase never dies in spirituality.

Even in your academic studies you are humble towards your teacher who taugh you ABC's isn't it. Though you may have become a doctor or Engineer or any big person in life. If you come across your 1 grade teacher who taught you ABCs' and numbers you will be thankful to her and be humbled down isn't it? Krishna also was like that. Krishna went to learn from guru Sandipani in the gurukula. Was Krishna HIMSELF Not Jagad guru? But He went to gurukool to show us all the path that even thought You maybe God also. The position of a guru is more then God. Even Sri Chaitanaya Mahaprabhu went to a Guru to get HIS diksha. Guru Keshava Bharati said what can I teach you prabhu? Why you give me this status? That is the status of a guru be it in spiritual life or in material worldly acedamics. Guru is always respected and we are always a learner in front of our guru's. It doens't mean you are still learning. Humbleness is not that you lose self confidence and ask and learn from others. Humbleness means to show respect internally that even if become somday more great than your guru also. You are going to be always in a lower position. There is no lack of self confidence at all here. In fact you are more confident in the presence of a guru.

Because you know you have some strong support to lean on!!!!.

Let us say for suppose you are small kid and you are alone in a room. You know that it is your own room and it is your own home. But don't you feel lonely without your mother? If mother is there. You are carefree. You are more confident when your mother is at home than being alone isn't it?? So also when you are having some guru or seniors to support you. You should feel actually more confident .. Where is the question of lack of confidence?? Yes, You love ur mother so you are humble and respect her. So also you love ur guru so you respect him and show humility. Not just acting humbly but feeling confident that my guru my mother is there to protect me even if I go wrong anywhere. Humbleness isn't a cage it is liberating actually.

Lack of confidence only comes in when you lose faith in Krishna and guru.

I can crack this exam or get this job it is nice to have this idea but overall. One must always think in terms of Krishna's preaching in Bhagwad gita.

You must do your work and give ur 100% and leave results to Krishna. "I" can do " I" will crack the exam.. this is not at all needed.

You simply do ur hard word and leave results to Krishna.

कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन।
मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि॥ २-४७

Karmanye vadhikaraste Ma Phaleshu Kadachana,
Ma Karmaphalaheturbhurma Te Sangostvakarmani ( 2. 47 BG)

You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of action. Never consider yourself to be the cause of the results of your activities, and never be attached to not doing your duty.

How are you going to be the cause of the result of ur action?

See even if you are 100% confident that you can crack the exam or get this job also ..sometimes something happens you may not be able to even give the exam on that day or you may fall sick or some hurricane came and you couldn't go to school or attend interview. It is your fate. You are not supposed to even think about that result.

YES all you can do is give ur 100% by working hard and doing all that is needed for cracking the exam and getting the job and leave rest of all to Krishna. It is upto Him if He thinks you are eligble he will give otherwise He will postpone and when things get postponed and you are not successful don't blame Krishna. It was not in ur fate something more good is yet to come for you. Krishna planned something else for you think positively like this.

There are people I seen who toiled day and night for exam or job and they didn't get the result they expected they committed suicide or went into depression. They didn't think in another angle. THat maybe this is exam or job was not in their fate let me try business or some other line. Krishna had different plans maybe for me. They didn't think like this. Because their actions were attached to the results more. They worked for success in exam or job only. they didn't see nothing else.

That is what Krishna said in Bhagwad gita to don't get attached to the results of the war Arjuna. Just do your prescribed duty. You are a worrier/ kshetriya Arjuna. So your duty is to fight against injustice. Give your 100% don't think what will happen if I win or what will happen if I lose. Winning and losing are not in your hands said Krishna!!!!

Now Arjuna was super duper confident after listening to Krishna's words .. He was more humble and accepted humble position by surrendering ego to Krishna. Though surrendered and humble did Arjuna lose self confidence in the presence of Jagaguru Sri Krishna? Did Arjuna leave his humility or did he lose his self confidence?

Arjuna didn't neither lose his self confidence or lose his dignity or lose his capablities or lose anything by surrendering to Krishna and accepting the humblest position. Infact Arjuna was empowered and had got more and more confidence.

So What I want to emphasize here is even in Spirituality or in Academics when you accept humble position and surrender to your superiors there is no loss of dignity or self confidence .. They is only empowerment!!!!!!!!!

Hare Krishna.
- g sreedevi > Gayatri April 22, 2022 at 11:54am
  
  Thank you mataji for making it more clear with examples
  
  Hare Krishna
Tukaram Das April 22, 2022 at 7:37am

There is a difference between being puffed up with self importance, and being honest about your abilities.

If you listened to your teacher in class, and studied the provided lessons, when you take an exam you should be ready. Taking what you learned in school and applying it to a job, you should be ready. When you are going in for a job or an exam, and you know you are qualified, there is nothing wrong with being confident. Don't be cocky about it, but be honest with yourself about your abilities. I heard a guru say in class that we need to see ourselves as Krishna sees us. Look at ourselves honestly. (simple concept, not so easy to do)

Srila Prabhupada gave us examples of pretty much everything. He goes to a new country, not knowing anyone, having no money, and starts preaching. In 10 years he has 100 temples, thousands of devotees all around the world, and translated & published 80 books. He could have gotten very puffed up with how 'he did it all', but he did not. He always said his only qualification was that he followed his gurus order, he left everthing to Krishna, and the nice devotees did so much work. He stayed very humble about his part in spreading ISKCON (we give him the credit he deserves).

While staying humble, if Prabhupada were to go take an exam on Sanskrit, I think he would be pretty confident that he would do well.
- g sreedevi > Tukaram Das April 22, 2022 at 7:52am
  
  Thank you Prabhuji
  
  Hare Krishna

This reply was deleted.