SELF PITY LIKE SELF PRAISE ARE INJURIOUS

SELF PITY LIKE SELF PRAISE IS INJURIOUS
Some 20 years ago, a sudden Heart Attack turned a happy go lucky man turtle. Each day was a day of self pity. It was my fault, I should have cut down on my happy go lucky way of living, I should have had regular medical checks-ups, physical activities, and exercise routine and so on. Because of my fault, my family is suffering and God forbid may suffer the worst if I am dead. The savings are not enough. Both girls are still in school, wife is not trained for a good paying job. No big Insurance policy. How would they survive? How would they fulfill their dreams? These and many such questions were tormenting me. This brought a total personality change in me. No more drinks, no more smoking, no more late parties, no more of this any more of that etc. Fortunately my employers were helpful and so were my colleagues in office. My long association, hard work, dedication and loyalty helped.
But the agony of self pity continued until this friend of mine told me ‘SELF IS INJURIOUS’. He said we should not forget that there are people in worse conditions as there are people more happy, intelligent, handsome, wealthy, and influential. I did not understand at first but when I grossed over these words, I realized how miserable I had become by continuously inflicting myself with self pity. Instead of self pity, I should learn a lesson and moved on and that is exactly what I did. Rest, as they say, is history.
There are many people who become victim of self pity and literally destroy themselves and their families. They go in depression, have low esteem and some turn to drugs and bottle.
I also feel that like self pity, self praise is equally self inflicting. I was the first example. Before that I had very high estimate of myself. I Thought I was most efficient, most effective. Similarly there are people who never tire of praising themselves for this or that achievement, their success, their wealth, their physical features, their overall personality, their family and so on. Success goes into their heads. There is this saying that “Oonth KO apani oonchai ka pata tab chalta hai jab WO kisi pahad ke neeche aata hai” (A camel comes to know of its false pretention of height, when it comes under a hill-lock”) similarly we also have false notions about ourselves. Failures test such people which they cannot stand. They too go into depression or turn to drugs or bottle. If they are lucky they meet a person who tells them “SELF PRAISE IS INJURIOUS’.
So it seems self- pity and self praise are twin sisters.