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TEACHINGS | EASTERN HORIZON 19

illusions and mental constructs and labels associated with the ego. Buddhism refers to this as
“emptiness” - empty of the contents of an illusory ego. On an in-depth psychological level, when
one realizes that one is nothing, one is also everything. That means that through unconditioned
love and compassion, one is now connected with all things and all beings. There is no more “I”
and “mine.” We are all one.

Some Buddhist practitioners place so great an emphasis on humility that they are prepared to
yield to others in any situation that involves a dispute or contention. A Buddhist master writes
that he always considers himself to be the least knowledgeable and capable as compared with
other people. This approach is seen as a way to “humble” the ego so that spiritual liberation can
be facilitated. Whether this is the right way of practice is open to questions. Within the Chinese
cultural milieu, such a humble attitude is doubtless regarded as a virtue commensurate with
the Confucian ethics of social order. Chinese Buddhism accepts it as a norm rather than an
anomaly.

In fact, the Buddhist principle of “no contention” (wu-cheng) requires that a practitioner refrain
from quarreling or contending for personal interests, including intellectual interests. “No
contention” implies a humbled ego through which the light of enlightenment may shine. In this
connection, a parallel can be drawn between the Buddhist approach and the Christian teaching
that one who is humble before God is exalted by Him.

Outsiders, however, may dispute the validity of such an approach. For instance, a junior lama
from Tibet once told me that it was wrong to behave humbly because humility suggests that one
is “smaller” than he/she really is. He thought that self-depreciation was as counter-productive
as self-aggrandizement when it came to mental cultivation. He did not touch upon psychological
repression, but I think that would be a relevant point to make if humility becomes a moral norm
superimposed by social institutions, whether religious or otherwise.

Some spiritual masters such as Osho argue that a repressed ego makes it difficult for a
practitioner to be liberated from the ego. Psychologist and Buddhist meditation teacher
Jack Kornfield makes the point that only when one develops a healthy self along with a deep
realization of the empty nature of the self identity can one fully discover “true self,” which shines
through our whole being with all its divine spiritual qualities.

Humility or modesty as practiced in traditional Chinese society is often criticized as being
less than honest or even bordering on hypocrisy. A morally cultivated person is supposed to
refrain from talking about his/her own merits and strengths, or to talk about them in a round-
about way that suggests modesty. Furthermore, the norm of humility demands that one use
stereotyped language that depicts oneself as being worthless but is nevertheless understood to
be mere ceremonial courtesy. Even today, a scholar is supposed to refer to his/her publications
as “my clumsy works”, and an entertainer would beg “excuse” for a “homely and plain” feast and
“less than satisfactory hospitality,” even though deep down he feels very proud of what he has
offered to the guests. Such superficial courtesy appears to be a strong value in societies on which
Confucianism has left its mark, including Japan and Korea.