The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem

by Nathaniel Branden

If, in any culture, children are taught, “We are all equally unworthy in the sight of God”— If, in any culture, children are taught, “You are born in sin and are sinful by nature”— If children are given a message that amounts to “Don’t think, don’t question, believe”— If children are given a message that amounts to “Who are you to place your mind above that of the priest, the minister, the rabbi?”— If children are told, “If you have value it is not because of anything you have done or could ever do, it is only because God loves you”— If children are told, “Submission to what you cannot understand is the beginning of morality”— If children are instructed, “Do not be ‘willful,’ self-assertiveness is the sin of pride”— If children are instructed, “Never think that you belong to yourself”— If children are informed, “In any clash between your judgment and that of your religious authorities, it is your authorities you must believe”— If children are informed, “Self-sacrifice is the foremost virtue and noblest duty”— —then consider what will be the likely consequences for the practice of living consciously, or the practice of self-assertiveness, or any of the other pillars of healthy self-esteem.