Quote:
|
Being strong, imperious, bold, audacious, proud, aggressive.
|
Take any typical example of a "good" person - say Gandhi.
There is hardly another man in history who was stronger, more bold, more audacious, more aggressive. Physical nonviolence while breaking laws, to the point where you're thrown in prison, is hardly cowardice. That takes far more strength than running and hiding in a nuclear fallout shelter with an AK-47 when challenged.
You're equating "people who fear" with the powerful, but the truly powerful don't fear others because they don't need to fear others - they are powerful.
You can be a ruler and still be totally shackled in a prison of ego and pride. That isn't freedom nor is it power.
Pride is just the inverse of shame. Neither give you power, neither represent freedom. The powerful entity, whether good or evil, will have conquered pride and shame.
I think what it comes down to with you is you are latently suffering from bad the aspects of popular Christianity. You've probably had a lot of shame in your past, induced by being raised in that atmosphere, and so now are trying to learn how to get beyond the shame and guilt that unevolved Christian communities use to manipulate their children.
Getting beyond that doesn't mean throwing out the basic principles of humility and compassion, it just means learning to master them in a useful way that actually gets results. Humility doesn't mean self-debasement and compassion doesn't mean slavery.