Kardec on Selfishness

(From the Wednesdays in Chicago Spiritism Classes - June 14, 2017)

Chapter VII of Allan Kardec’s The Spirits Book (Moral Law) is a chapter about moral perfection. Our attempts to achieve an honest excellence in this (our current) lifetime is often blocked by one simple word - selfishness. It's only one word, but it covers a lot - starting with not wanting to give, to not wanting others to succeed, all the way to corruption and crime in our desire for more. The topic of selfishness begins at question 913: 

913. Which, among the vices, may be regarded as the root of the others?

“Selfishness, as we have repeatedly told you; for it is from selfishness that everything evil proceeds. Study all the vices, and you will see that selfishness is at the bottom of them all. Combat them as you will, you will never succeed in removing them until, attacking the evil in its root, you have destroyed the selfishness which is their cause. Let all your efforts tend to this end; for selfishness is the highest social poison. Whoever would make, even in his earthly life, some approach towards moral excellence, must root out every selfish feeling from his heart, for selfishness is incompatible with justice, love, and charity; it neutralizes every good quality.” 

Kardec suggested that we not only let go of our own selfish behavior, but that we also actively discover and remove those feelings and thoughts that dominant our daily thoughts and lead us to selfishness. How do we go about it? A clue is given in the next question: 

914. Selfishness having its root in the sentiment of personal interest, it would seem that, to remove it entirely from the human heart, it must be a very difficult matter. Is it possible to do so?

“In proportion, as men become enlightened in regard to spiritual things, they attach less value to material things; and as they emancipate themselves from matter, they reform the human institutions in which selfishness is fostered and exalted. 

(What are some examples of material world matters that we use to define who we are as a human?) 

Change "selfishness" into personal interest and it's easier to understand. We all realize that we need to have some personal interest in our own life. In order to survive, we must work to earn a salary so we may live and eat. We must save for difficult periods or for retirement. Personal interest only means that we are not a burden on others, as we are able to support ourselves. Beyond that interest in survival, to avoid being selfish, we need to examine our motives when we act. The word "moral" comes from the Latin word "mores" - which means "the customs, conducts, behaviors, or a way of acting that fits the rules of a culture." 

(What are some examples of behaviors that we may have previously adjusted to fit better into another culture or situation? In other words, do we act the same at our first day of work as we do at a family picnic?) 

Allan Kardec knew how difficult it would be to erase selfishness, so he asked: 

915. Selfishness being inherent in the human race, will it not always constitute an obstacle to the reign of perfect goodness upon the earth?

“It is certain that selfishness is your greatest evil; but it belongs to the lower ranks of the spirits incarnated upon the earth, and not to the human race as such. Those spirits, in purifying themselves by successive incarnations, get rid of their selfishness as they do of their other impurities. Have you, upon the earth, none who have divested themselves of selfishness, and who practice charity? There are more than you think, but they are little known, for virtue does not seek to display itself in the glare of popularity. If there is one such person among you, why should there not be ten? If there are ten, why should there not be a thousand? and so on.” 

Next, Allan Kardec hoped to understand how selfishness could be conquered: 

917. By what means can selfishness be destroyed?

“Of all human imperfections, the most difficult to root out is selfishness, because it is connected with the influence of matter, from which man, still too near his origin, has not yet been able to free himself. His laws, his social organization, his education, all tend to maintain and enhance selfishness. It will be only be gradually weakened as your moral life obtains predominance over your material life. Spiritism gives you of the reality of your future state, stripped of allegoric fables. Spiritism, when it is rightly understood, and identified with the beliefs and habits of the human race, will transform all your customs, usages, and social relations. Selfishness is based on the importance you attribute to your own personality. Spiritism, on the contrary, when rightly understood, causes you to look at everything from a point of view so elevated that the perception of personality is lost, as our contemplation of immensity intensifies. In destroying that sentiment of self-importance, Spiritism combats selfishness.” 

Only when we elevate ourselves, to look at our need for material and emotional pleasures from a higher vantage point, can we acknowledge the trivial nature that a fleeting moment of desire is when compared to everything else. To achieve that goal for the world at large, we must understand that the path of our life is mostly predetermined - and we may have had played a role in mapping out our own road. We are here on this earth by the grace of the spirit world to learn and to improve, and selfishness does not help us accomplish that task. 

It sounds so easy - elevate ourselves! But Kardec wondered how we could start to steer ourselves towards elevation instead of falling into the material world routines:

 (from the Gospel According to Spiritism, Chapter 10, Item 10) 

"One of the problems of humanity consists in seeing wrong-doing and evil in others before seeing it in ourselves. In order to be able to judge ourselves, it is first necessary that we see ourselves intimately reflected - as in a mirror. To be permitted to look at oneself from the outside; as if we were someone else, we can ask ourselves what we would think if we saw someone doing what we do. Pride is what causes us to hide all of our faults, both moral and physical, even from ourselves." 

(Can you think of any examples of selfish behavior and how it could be adjusted as one moves forward?)