He who has been granted divine knowledge and has through love acquired its illumination will never be swept hither and thither by the demon of self-esteem. But he who has not yet been granted such knowledge will readily succumb to this demon. However, if in all that he does he keeps his gaze fixed on God, doing everything for His sake he will with God's help soon escape. (Maximos the Confessor)

I wonder if Maximos is writing of kenodoxia. It only appears once in the New Testament, "Do nothing from from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves." (Philippians 2:3)

St. John Cassian describes kenodoxia as a "multiform, various, and subtle form of pride." A synonym is vainglory. It is an empty, meaningless yet nonetheless overarching sense of self. For Aquinas kenodoxia is the particular sin of imagination, worshiping an unholy trinity of fame, glory, and vainglory.

I have a vigorous imagination. My earliest and, perhaps, most earnest prayer, asked for this imagination to be preserved. I recognize the demon Maximos describes.