All is Vanity - (1844)

Vanity is Concerned with what Others Think of Us and About Us!

The “I’s” of vanity are primarily concerned with what others think of us and about us, which is slightly different.

They are not so much concerned with how others feel towards us or about us but what they think. For example, the vanity of an attractive lady will be concerned that all the other women and men think that she is attractive but her vanity will not mind they the other women despise her or are envious of her and that the men fear her or feel lust towards her. As long as they all think that she is intelligent, sophisticated and beautiful.

I remember a Gnostic person saying once that he didn’t mind if his fellow chefs hated him but as long as they thought that he was a good cook. That is the vanity of a chef at work.

How is our vanity? Are there aspects to ourselves that behave like this? If there are, then they are vanity!

Perhaps within we have both, being concerned with what others think and feel. In the case of being concerned what others feel it is the “I” of self-importance at work.

"All is Vanity" is the name of this Picture. Vanity hides everywhere. I'm trying 
to be aware of it in what I write. 
If you don't really know what you write about, it is vanity, and if you think
that you know when you don't it is vanity.

Different Kinds of Vanity

There is intellectual vanity, physical vanity and mystical vanity. We Gnostics can have all three kinds. People generally only exhibit the first two.

Mystical vanity is quite awful actually. It leads most definitely to problems and failure. To feel that you have the right to impose your teachings, ideas, abilities or way because of what you think you know is vanity.

More on Vanity

Vanity always likes to show off. It needs people and it can’t be quiet.

Basically, it is a feeling that we derive benefit from. We derive benefit from feeling others think a certain way about us. It is a very strong belief.

It does not mind to derive this benefit at the expense of others either. It does not even mind to derive this benefit even if the comments are all false.

It is mortally hurt when others do not think about us what we are expecting them to. There is much pride and esteem in our vane beliefs, enough to be able to hit another person if they violently go against our vanity.

Vanity has much to do with the image we have of ourselves. If we work our self-image we will cripple vanity. By work on our self-image I mean transform it to the real image of ourselves and dissolve all that is false.

End (1844).