Self-love - Love yourself for who you are

            Where there is self-love there is no room for fear and rivalry. By self-love we do not mean conceit or egoism. For this, one primarily needs to recognize the Self within him – the Self, which is seated in the heart in all its purity. Know that this Self is your divine identity – the spark of God. With this realization comes the divine understanding of the reality of the higher life and the emptiness and the superfluousness of the matter world. This revelation ushers in a deep sense of peace and knowingness. You become unaffected by the influence exerted by the forces of the world upon you. You know that you are perfect and have no need to impress those who live by the dictates of their lower selves. There is, on the contrary, a deep sense of satisfaction, gratification and fulfilment; you feel detached and unconcerned by what the other is doing; you know that your success is not hinged upon another person’s success and well-being. You are no more rankled by inner restlessness when you see the others around you abounding in wealth and success. When you have love and respect for yourself, you radiate this love and respect out to the world. Your selfishness is replaced by selflessness. You are no more trapped in the fears and insecurities of life; you stand apart from the pettiness of the world around you where you are willing to help others to become successful in life in all humility; where the joys of other people become one with yours.