Etymology: humility early 14c., "quality of being humble," from Old French umelite "humility, modesty, sweetness" (Modern French humilité), from Latin humilitatem (nominative humilitas) "lowness, small stature; insignificance; baseness, littleness of mind," in Church Latin "meekness," from humilis "lowly, humble," literally "on the ground," from humus "earth"

Humility is a disposition, an attitude that arises chiefly from a constellation of intricate factors. Broadly speaking, it stems from a recognition of the world as an interconnected whole, in which every individual forms merely a part and every element serves its purpose. From this perspective, the folly of arrogance—of deeming oneself superior to others—becomes starkly apparent. Consider the liver: were it to proclaim its own supremacy over the heart or lungs and demand everything for itself, what havoc it would wreak. Humility, then, may be regarded as the outgrowth of a deeper comprehension of reality, expressed through human conduct. Yet it tends to fade once we fully grasp the context that envelops us; like all things, it fulfils a specific role. For this reason, it is not inherently a virtue. “It is just a ladder to climb and then be thrown away” (L. Wittgenstein-Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus).

Given that I regard humility as an attitude inherent to a journey, and thus a transient state, I should like to highlight the eminent figure of George Ivanovitch Gurdjieff.....