JOIN USAll of us are capable of becoming victims of pride. This is caused by an excess of ego in the firm of fame, position, wealth, power, strength or intellectual accomplishment. Even the Gods were influenced by it and our epics are replete with instances of the Gods who are enveloped by pride and are eventually humbled by a power that has conquered it.
There is any number of examples. Indra, the king of the Gods took pride in his ability to induce rain but forgot the fact that it was Lord Krishna who had granted him that power. The Lord lifts the Govardhan hill to protect his devotees from the rain unleashed by Indra until Indra realizes his folly. Other examples include Ravana (his ten heads symbolized an uncontrollable ego), Hiranyakashipu and Mahishasura. All these demons derived their sense of security from the boons they had elicited from Lord Brahma and were intoxicated by the thought that nobody could vanquish them. But they were wrong.
Drunk with delusions of immortality, all of them met their doom at the hands of the Lord. Hiranyakashipu was slain by Lord Vishnu in the form of the man-lion Narasimhadeva. Ravana, who thought no man could ever be a threat to him, was slain by Lord Rama and Mahishasura, who thought no woman would dare come near him, was killed by the Goddess Durga.
All these stories contain deep lessons and invite reflection. We are cautioned to be humble and receive life as a gift of grace from the Almighty. When we receive life with humility and grace, that grace is returned to us in manifold ways.
The same applies to the twin principles of dharma or righteousness and satyam or truth. When we protect dharma, the same dharma turns to protect us. If we receive life by defying it, then we must be prepared to what life will offer us. But, if we surrender to life, then life will protect us. This perhaps explains why humility above everything else is the most enduring characteristic hallmark of genius. It is advisable to shun reacting to life from the ego and instead respond to life from the heart.