Much thought about humility, and how to instill it, is wrong. True humility   
   comes from a realization that other people have valuable qualities, not from   
   the belief that one does not have valuable qualities himself. When defined and   
   practiced this way,    
   humility becomes a virtue that creates interactions among people based on   
   mutual respect.   
      
   What we see in many situations is a totally different approach to the matter.   
   People think that through violence and abuse they will make other people be   
   humble. That does not create humble people, that creates broken people. This   
   results in vast and    
   unneeded loss as well as vast violation of people's rights.   
      
   Real humility therefore does not come from abuse. If anything, the abusive   
   practices bring on a revolt against themselves and everything of which they   
   are a part, resulting in a creation of rebels. Whereas true humility does not   
   do any such thing. It    
   simply brings on a recognition that there are other people with worthwhile   
   qualities; and that results in more intelligent, more respectful, and more   
   wholesome social interactions and ways of life.   
      
   Thinking oneself to be trash is not true humility; it is false humility. A   
   person who thinks that is likely to also become abusive to others, which a   
   genuinely humble person will never do. So when Luther refers to humanity as   
   "maggots" and "filth," he is    
   not being humble; he is being an abuser. We see a lot of similar conduct among   
   many practicioners of Christianity and Islam, as well as among many people who   
   are not religious.   
      
   If you really want to know what humility actually means, it is best to learn   
   it from the Buddhists. I went to see a very famous Buddhist teacher speak, and   
   he was not abusive at all. He was speaking convincingly of a better way to be   
   and he showed it in    
   his actions. He was respectful to his students while making a very strong case   
   for better conduct, which conduct he demonstrated in his own behavior. Here   
   was someone who was not a hypocrite and who was not an abuser. Here was   
   someone who knew something    
   that people need to know and was willing to share it with them.   
      
   Genuine humility means respect, compassion and tolerance for others. It does   
   not mean thinking poorly of oneself or thinking that the next person is   
   better. It does not mean having no positive regard for oneself. It means   
   having positive regard for    
   others also, and it means recognizing the virtues in other people.   
      
   For a long time I was against humility because of how it was taught. I realize   
   now that the problem is not with humility but with false humility and abusive   
   practices that are used to bring it about. With genuine humility, world   
   actually does stand to be    
   a better place. And this means that it has to be taught right - by explaining   
   what true humility actually means and making a case for a better world we   
   stand to have if people choose to practice it.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)