In my mind, humility is an essential virtue necessary to progress in studies.
Imagine the study of Mathematics. The more earnestly you pursue the more you find what you don’t know.
This can be a agonizingly intimidating and disorienting experience. Those are the times when you realize that if just understanding what is already known is difficult, how more would it be to contribute to the unknown. Do I, with my modest abilities, even have a place in the tall order of the truly gifted people ? What good can be a student if he has lost the motivation to proceed.
So, I have come to understand that a student must have the essential humility to accept his place in the bigger scheme of things.
That, however, begs the question – why then should someone even attempt if he doesn’t stand much chance in contributing something ?
Well, that is the wrong question to ask ! Why give in to our egos and always want ourselves to think that we are the center of the universe ! What’s truly worthy of thought is: despite that, God loves us as though we are the center of His universe !
So, my fellow students, let’s make a prayer of humility each time we sit down to study.