1 Corinthians 3:21 Meaning Therefore Let No One Boast in Men

Māna: Conceit Conceit measures the self against others. "I follow Paul" carries a silent second half: therefore I stand a little above whoever follows Apollos. Boasting in a man is boasting in oneself at one remove, the way pride in a winning team is pride in one's own good taste.

Diṭṭhupādāna: Clinging to views One of the four clingings, this one grips an opinion the way a hand grips a rope. A teacher's name becomes a banner, and defending the banner starts to matter more than the field that was planted and watered. Corinth split over whose name to wear, and clinging asks for no better material than that.

Kalyāṇamitta: Admirable friend The admirable friend helps another onto the path. Paul and Apollos worked that field as hired hands, one planting and one watering, and thanks is the right wage for such work. Honor of that kind keeps the road open to everyone, since a signpost belongs to every traveler who passes it.

Anattā: Not-self All things are not-self, ownable by nobody in the way possession usually means. "All things are yours" turns the inheritance upside down: the world, life, death, the present, come to you at the moment you quit staking a claim on any of them. An open hand holds more than a fist.

Muditā: Gladness at another's good Gladness at another's good is joy in a gift that landed somewhere else. If all things are yours, then Apollos's eloquence counts as your gain even when you never sat under him, and party spirit loses the grudge it was feeding on. Nothing has to be taken from anyone for this kind of joy, which is why it never runs short.