Humility and Lowering the Mind

A comparison of humility in the Bible and lowering the mind (下心) in Buddhist scriptures. We explore together the wisdom of self-abasement taught by both traditions and how it is practiced.

The Teaching of Humility

Bible

עֵקֶב עֲנָוָה יִרְאַת יְהוָה עֹשֶׁר וְכָבֹוד וְחַיִּים׃

“Humility is the fear of the Lord; its wages are riches and honor and life.”

Sutra

勿自卑下，不知己利。當知自歸，常守正行

“Lower yourself, but do not deprecate yourself. Know your own benefit. You should take refuge in yourself and always keep to right conduct.”

Comparison

The humility of Proverbs and the lowering of the mind in the Dhammapada both make clear that humility is not self-deprecation. In Christianity, humility is recognizing one's status as a creature before God; in Buddhism, lowering the mind is the practice of setting down the affliction of arrogance. Both traditions teach that true humility arises not from servility but from the wisdom of knowing one's true place.

Lowering Oneself

Bible

ὃς ἐν μορφῇ θεοῦ ὑπάρχων οὐχ ἁρπαγμὸν ἡγήσατο τὸ εἶναι ἴσα θεῷ, ἀλλὰ ἑαυτὸν ἐκένωσεν μορφὴν δούλου λαβών, ἐν ὁμοιώματι ἀνθρώπων γενόμενος·

“Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.”

Sutra

常不輕菩薩。凡有所見，皆悉禮拜，而作是言：我不敢輕於汝等，汝等皆當作佛

“The Bodhisattva Never Disparaging bowed to everyone he encountered and said: I dare not hold any of you in contempt, for you are all destined to become Buddhas.”

Comparison

Christ's kenosis (self-emptying) and the Bodhisattva Never Disparaging's universal bowing are the most dramatic expressions of humility. Christ voluntarily descended from the high place of God to the place of a servant, while the Bodhisattva Never Disparaging lowered himself before all, venerating the Buddha-nature within them. Both models show that true humility consists of relinquishing one's own status and recognizing the worth of others.

The Humble Leader

Bible

εἰ οὖν ἐγὼ ἔνιψα ὑμῶν τοὺς πόδας ὁ κύριος καὶ ὁ διδάσκαλος, καὶ ὑμεῖς ὀφείλετε ἀλλήλων νίπτειν τοὺς πόδας· ὑπόδειγμα γὰρ ἔδωκα ὑμῖν ἵνα καθὼς ἐγὼ ἐποίησα ὑμῖν καὶ ὑμεῖς ποιῆτε.

“Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.”

Sutra

忍辱仙人。於爾所世。無我相、無人相、無衆生相、無壽者相

“The sage of patience at that time had no notion of self, no notion of a person, no notion of a sentient being, and no notion of a soul.”

Comparison

Jesus's foot-washing and the sage of patience's selflessness (無我) both show how far a leader's humility can extend. Jesus set aside the authority of a teacher and served his disciples from the servant's place, while the sage of patience felt no stirring of the self-notion even when his limbs were cut off. Both traditions unanimously teach that true leadership lies not in elevating oneself but in emptying and lowering oneself.