November 9

Self-love is a nascent pride. Pride is a self-love that has not been prevented from blossoming.

1

Anyone who does not feel repulsed by his selfishness, by the quality that compels him to place himself above everything in the world, has become utterly blind, because it is contradictory to both justice and truth. It contradicts justice because everyone desires the same thing, i.e. to be above others, and it contradicts truth because one cannot be higher than everything in the world.

— Pascal

2

There are two types of people: some are righteous but consider themselves sinners; others are sinners but consider themselves righteous.

— Pascal

3

A human being is a fraction. The numerator is his external physical and mental qualities in relation to others; the denominator is his own evaluation of himself. It is not in a human being’s power to increase his numerator—his qualities—but it is within everyone’s power to decrease their denominator—their opinion of themselves—and thereby bring themselves closer to perfection.

4

The lighter and less dense a substance is, the more space is takes up. The same can be said about the qualities that a proud person ascribes to himself.

5

There are many people who think themselves fit to teach others when they themselves are only ready to begin learning.

— Eastern wisdom

6

The bad wheel always squeaks the loudest. The empty ear of grain stands the tallest. And the same is true of pride.

7

Base human nature is repulsed by humility, the human heart resents the mere thought of contempt, of humiliation, and so we meticulously try to hide everything that could humiliate us in the eyes of others, trying to conceal our failings even from ourselves; we do not want to see ourselves as we really are. The stronger this tendency is within us, the more necessary it is for us to fight it.

The chief task of life is self-improvement. And what improvement is possible when a person, like a braggart, is full of himself?