Meaning pride Feelings of one’s own worth and respect. insidious Proceeding in a gradual, subtle way, but with very harmful effects. self-conceit Undue pride in oneself, the state of being too proud of yourself and your actions. passion Strong and barely controllable emotion.
Interpretation Abhimāna-Pride, Insidious, Self-conceit, Passion is pride. It is “mada” (conceit), a “sense of self-intoxication”, false pride or even self deception.It is a result of association of material possessions to oneself, a sense of security because of things one “owns”. Abhimāna is another of the 6 passions or the 6 weaknesses that embody the manifested self.
Why is abhimāna a bad thing or a weakness? “Self-pride” should be an important aspect of one’s personality, one’s identity. What is the negative aspect of this abhimāna? Like all other passions, abhimāna also has a “tendency to veil” and hence affects our capability to take decisions or act in accordance with dharma. The player instinctively defends and protects her pride and therefore interprets her world through the perspective of keeping her pride intact.
There are many stories that discuss and elucidate different aspects of abhimāna. The story of Kubera,the lord of wealth and Ganesha has been widely told to children.
Story Kubera, the treasurer of all the Devas of Heaven lived in a beautiful palace. This palace was in a city called Alakapuri. Kubera was proud that he was very rich. One day, he hosted a lavish dinner party. He invited Śiva, Parvati and their children Ganesha and Karttikeya to the party. Ganesha was very hungry. He started eating food immediately. Ganesha ate so much food that no one else had anything left to eat. But, Ganesha was still hungry. So, after all the food was finished, Ganesha started to eat the utensils, the furniture and everything else in the Palace.
When nothing was left, Ganesha threatened to swallow Kubera himself. Now Kubera became very scared. He ran to Bhagavān Śiva and fell at his feet, asking for his help as Ganesha’s voracious hunger had no limit. Kubera said that he was very sorry for being so proud of his riches. But now he had realized that all of his money was not enough to feed even a child!
Śiva then gave Ganesha a handful of roasted grain, which he ate hungrily. Immediately, his hunger was gone. Ganesha was not hungry anymore!
On the gameboard The story teaches us that when we give food to others, we should do so with love and affection and not with pride.Kubera was very proud of his wealth. He made a big show of all his gold and silver. But if Kubera had given even a little food to Ganesha with love,Ganesha’s hunger would have satiated. This is the “veiling effect”(the “right” no-longer seems “right” and “wrong” no-longer improper) that abhimāna has on the player as well.
The game board reveals different aspects of abhimāna. The cell of ịrṣyā above reveals the nature of envy within self-pride. The cell of moha on the left reveals the subtle aspect of attachment inherent within pride. The cell of mithyā to the right reminds the player of the aspect of fallacy in this experience. Six places ahead lies antarikṣa which reveals that “she dwells within herself” as William Hazlitt reminds – Pride erects a little kingdom of it’s own and acts as a sovereign in it. This also reveals the aspect of “loneliness” in the experience of pride which is characteristic of antarikṣa.
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