Self-denial

By denying one's own personality, emptying one's personal self and refusing to gratify personal inclinations, one starts to achieve [unselfishness]

. There is no denial or rejection of self-worth as would occur in self-contempt. Self-denial celebrates the intrinsic value of the self in each individual and reaches out to others from confident self-love. Particular exercises of self-denial are undertaken as a discipline in order to become closer to God and, in Christian terms, to help nullify the effects of original sin. The greater the sanctity of a person's life, the greater self-denial is necessary - although most teachings require the more extraordinary measures of mortification and denial to be carried out with the approval and advice of a spiritual guardian.