The 28th Step: Openness to Criticism
Some people in the world are qualified in the four levels of patience. They are:
1) Patience in the face of physical hardship: working on as if everything is normal despite any weather conditions.
2) Patience in the face of physical suffering: working on as if everything is normal despite illness or pain.
3) Patience in the face of conflict: working on as if everything is normal despite having to endure caustic remarks.
4) Patience in the face of temptation: working on as if everything is normal despite the ever-present temptation of defilements, no matter how strong they may be.
However, those who are impatient are not tolerant when taught or given advice by others. They resent the person who gives them advice and immediately wants to criticize them for doing so. The reason is that this type of person is stubborn, and resists learning and changing. As a result, self-improvement is impossible.
For people who are stubborn because of stupidity, it is useless to train them in patience and openness towards criticism. However, people who are stubborn because of false views are even worse. These people are categorized as those who are paralyzed by their own stubbornness and lack the ability to see the picture as a whole.
For example, a stubborn person who has been paralyzed, although there may be many useful things all around him, because that person is unable to pick them up, they are all useless to him. Likewise, if a person is paralyzed by stubbornness, even though he may have a wise teacher, he is unable to absorb any of the goodness of that person (A manual of peace 318).
And so, we should all become someone who is open to criticism.
