It is very difficult to get rid of Egotism

A person who has given up all desires for sense gratification, who lives free from desires, who has given up all sense of proprietorship and is devoid of false ego--he alone can attain real peace. B GITA 2 - 71


The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself to be the doer of activities, which are in actuality carried out by nature. GITA 3 - 27

When we see something significant in our selves, it is a major flaw. If we see smartness in our self (such as - I know the Gita by heart, I have an in-depth understanding of the meaning and expressions of the Gita etc), or if we see spiritual goodness in us, (e.g. I worship God, I meditate, I chant devotional songs, I repeat His holy name etc), or anything great that we see in our self, it is all egotism. By whatever means we find something special in our self, that is egotism.

This egoism can come due to one's caste, color, creed, stage in life, knowledge, intelligence and many other forms of arrogance and conceit. It is different forms of pride that can lead to one's downfall. Thinking that we have - good qualities, desirable abilities, knowledge, smartness, articulation etc. is egotism. Such egotism coming from goodness is dangerous and difficult to get rid off.

With respect to "Egotism" it has been said in Ramayana -
"Sansrut mool soolprad naanan, sakal sauk daayak abhimaana." (Manasa 7:74:3)
All devilish tendencies, bad qualities, evil actions, operate under the umbrella of "Egotism." (arrogance, conceit).

The more effort we put into getting rid of this egotism, the more it becomes firmly established. The more ways that we find to wipe out the pride and arrogance, the solutions themselves will increase our egotism. It is truly very difficult to get rid of Egotism.

A spiritual aspirant must keep in mind that whatever good qualities he has, are not his own, rather they have come from God. Being a part of God, the Self (Atma) is flawless and without qualities. Therefore those great qualities should be understood as being God's, not ours. By believing and understanding with a firm resolve that these good qualities are all God's, there will be no egotism. This pride and arrogance cannot be rooted out by our self, it needs the grace of God. On this subject a spiritual aspirant must remain very vigilant.