To appreciate oneself, what does this mean? Does it mean to pamper oneself with gifts, becoming narcissistic, self-considering oneself when people are not treating you the way you would like, or perhaps feeling negative towards them as the way to affirm your pride? With above mentioned things we are not really appreciating ourselves, but rather falling deeper into the pit of the self-loving drives and impulses that will not make our lives more happy, but rather feeling more and more miserable.

It may sound unusual what I just said, but that is because of the social conditioning that wants us to believe that the only way to happiness is through acquiring more things, or by living a life according to a (trendy) script, or by self-love, self-consideration etc.

Self-consideration is a subconscious ego-centric process that seems to be always present, often time behind our radars, bringing about thoughts of how great we are, how others are unjust towards us, how we are not being given sufficient opportunity to prove ourselves, how things would be better if others would see that good side within us….in short, it makes us see ourselves in a very illusory way. These type of thoughts and emotions can further open up the way to narcissistic inner impressions that can puts us in even deeper illusion, which sooner or later is broken by the reality of life, and then we suffer. Nevertheless, many people confuse such thoughts and mindset as the path to appreciating oneself, to love oneself, to do what is best for oneself.

However from esoteric point of view, to appreciate oneself, to love oneself, is to be in touch with your own soul. It is to take care of her, loving her, doing things that are good for her and your inner development. The more you are aware of your soul and her needs, the more will you appreciate yourself.

For example, when you take care of your body, treating it as a temple in which a spark of divinity dwells, you are appreciating yourself, your true self, which is that spark of divinity within you, your essence. Taking in correct nourishment and doing daily movements/exercises that are not too strenuous for the body, such as QiGong, yoga stretches, or going for a walk etc., gives that basic fuel for the body to function well, which is like an upkeeping of the bodily temple so that the essence has its basic strength needed to perform the inner work.

The appreciation of oneself then extends to that which is even more important – the development of that divine spark herself. This is done through daily meditation, feeding consciousness with appropriate impressions, listening to inspiring music, participating in spiritual activities, connecting with ones own inner Being and other divine beings, and the most important is the continuous psychological work, which means to reduce that which is taking you away from the state of self-remembrance, into mechanical thinking, feeling and acting.

By so doing you are appreciating yourself, you love yourself truly, you love your own essence and your Being, and like that your love extends to other people as well. This is because your essence will shine like a glowing sun within your bodily temple, and its innate divine qualities will enable you to feel for other people more, because you will perceive more the unity of life, and so by appreciating and loving yourself in a true way, you will also appreciate other people more.

In reality, this is where someone’s life enters a higher state of living – the type of living that has shifted from being egocentric and self-considerate, to that which embraces life as it unfolds, by knowing how to act in accordance with the principles of the inner Being, which in themselves encompass a true appreciation of oneself.

HDP, April 2020.