With pride, there are many curses. With humility, there come

The words of Ezra Taft Benson, “With pride, there are many curses. With humility, there come many blessings,” strike like an oracle, echoing wisdom as old as the earth itself. Pride is a fire that blinds the heart and makes men think themselves greater than their fellows, greater even than the laws of heaven. It isolates, corrupts, and leads the soul down a path of ruin. Yet humility is the gentle water that nourishes life, softening the heart, opening the mind, and drawing down the favor of gods and men alike.

The ancients often told of the downfall of the proud. In Greece, they spoke of Narcissus, destroyed by love of his own reflection. In Rome, generals returning from conquest were reminded by slaves whispering in their ears: “Remember, you are mortal.” They knew that pride was the seed of curses, for it turned victories into arrogance, and blessings into poison. Conversely, the humble, though often overlooked, became beloved by both gods and people, and their memory endured long after the tyrants fell.

History offers clear testimony. Consider Mahatma Gandhi, a man of no throne, no army, no crown of jewels. Through humility, he walked among the poorest of his nation, spinning his own cloth, eating simple food, living as one of them. And through that humility came many blessings: he moved millions, broke the chains of empire, and reshaped the destiny of India. His life shows that humility does not weaken—it empowers, drawing strength from truth rather than pride.

On the other hand, history has also revealed the curses of pride. The fall of Napoleon Bonaparte, who once ruled nearly all of Europe, came not only from the armies that opposed him but from his inability to temper his ambition. His march into Russia, driven by overconfidence, led to catastrophe. His pride cursed him, undoing years of triumph in a single winter. Thus, Benson’s words remind us that pride devours even the greatest, while humility preserves even the lowliest.

Let the generations remember: pride is a chain that binds the soul in darkness, but humility is a key that opens the gates of blessing. He who exalts himself will be brought low, but he who lowers himself in service, truth, and love will be lifted higher than he ever dreamed. For the curses of pride are many, and their weight unbearable, but the blessings of humility are infinite, and they flow like rivers from the eternal heart of wisdom.