We all need a sense of self-worth. And we frequently seek it in horizontal terms. That is, we look at the people around us to see if we have something they don’t have. And that special feature – such as a possession, a connection, a talent or a quality – becomes the basis of our self-worth.

However, that speciality won’t last forever. Moreover, we will sooner or later encounter someone who has that speciality more than us. Additionally, if we feel that we don’t have any distinctive speciality, we end up with inferiority complex. Overall, if we base our self-worth on our speciality, we sentence ourselves to insecurity and misery.

Bhakti wisdom urges us to seek our self-worth spiritually – in our relationship with the supreme spiritual reality, Krishna. We are souls, who are his eternal parts. And he is our omni-benevolent Lord. He loves us always, irrespective of our abilities or lack of abilities. The Bhagavad-gita (15.15) states that Krishna is always present in our hearts; he is closer to us than our closest loved one can ever be.

When we understand Krishna’s enduring love for us, we feel inspired to shift our focus – instead of seeking to become special in the world’s eyes, we seek to reciprocate with his love by practicing bhakti-yoga. He then mercifully reveals his all-attractiveness more and more to us, and we become increasingly attracted to and absorbed in him.

Within such devotional reciprocations, we re-envision our speciality as a valuable but non-essential resource for serving Krishna. Even if our speciality diminishes or disappears with time, we still stay secure in our loving relationship with Krishna.

Thus, we can best fulfill our need for self-worth not so much by displaying our specialty, but by deepening our spirituality.

Think it over:

  • How does seeking self-worth through our speciality sentence us to insecurity?
  • How does bhakti wisdom change our understanding of our speciality?
  • How can we best fulfill our need for self-worth?

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