Grandiose self assessment is as detrimental to living fully as low self assessment. They are both faulty and cause decision making that brings the person to misery. There is no harmony when we operate from our self-esteem. Self-esteem is just a set of ideas that we have identified with; we have allowed our actions and decisions to be informed by these ideas. We judge our actions as good or bad based on these ideas. We relate with people and reject others based on these ideas.
So self-esteem gets in the way of who we really are and prevents us from changing to a happy, healthy life. If I believe, “I am a good person”, then I can do no wrong. I will be unable to see the actions I perform that cause harm. If I believe, “I am a bad person”, I will be unable and unwilling to see the positive actions I perform. In other words, my view of life is a fantasy. There is no clarity.
As we practice and are able to detach from these self-esteem characteristics, we can assess each moment with a clear or critical eye and begin the process of seeing things as they really are. We accept the diversity and see it clearly, not pretending it to be something it is not. And we see the unity where it really is, under all of the ever changing matter.
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