Though you become famous and many bow to you, and you gain riches to equal Vaishravana’s, see that worldly fortune is without essence, and be unconceited. This is the practice of Bodhisattvas. 

The Buddha warned about all the ego problems and power trips that can arise if we become rich, famous and well-respected through our worldly careers. Even if we are monastics, when we become well-known and respected and are the recipient of lots of offerings, it is very tempting for the worldly mind to show up and convince us that we are a big shot, that people should do things for us, that we should be more famous and powerful than we are. 

To prevent this from happening, it is important to see that worldly fortune is without essence — it comes and goes, goes and comes very quickly in this life, and when we die it is gone. Worldly fortune does not mean we are good people or good practitioners. Unlike good karma, renown and wealth cannot follow us to our future lives. It is important not to get hung up on these things or see them as indicative of being a good practitioner, which could make us conceited or too lax and complacent in our practice. 

We need to be meditating on the essence-less nature of worldly fortune way before we become famous, rich and respected because afflicted mental states are more likely to arise first. It is important to be humble and to always see ourselves as a student. His Holiness the Dalai Lama views himself in this way and as a servant of others despite his status, wealth and fame. This is exactly the kind of behaviour and attitude that we should cultivate. 

“365 Gems of Wisdom” First Volume (January — March) e-book is out now!