Daily quotes

[The Blue Lotus]

Howdy folks,

I'm new around here.

I've had the good fortune to travel in India and I have also been initiated into the ambrosial mysteries of India's vast treasure trove of spiritual wisdom.

So I'll be posting daily quotes from my favorite classics such as: Bhagavad-Gita, Srimad-Bhagavatam and Niti-shastra.

Feel free to contribute to this thread with your own spiritual quotes or questions/comments on posted quotes.

I'll start off with a classic:

"It is lust only Arjuna, which is born of contact with the material mode of passion, and later transformed into wrath, and which is the all devouring sinful enemy of this world" BG 3.37

[The Blue Lotus]

Lord Ṛṣabhadeva told His sons: My dear boys, of all the living entities who have accepted material bodies in this world, one who has been awarded this human form should not work hard day and night simply for sense gratification, which is available even for dogs and hogs that eat stool. One should engage in penance and austerity to attain the divine position of devotional service. By such activity, one's heart is purified, and when one attains this position, he attains eternal, blissful life, which is transcendental to material happiness and which continues forever.
S.B. 5.5.1

[The Blue Lotus]

My dear King, the chanting of the holy name of the Lord is able to uproot even the reactions of the greatest sins. Therefore the chanting of the sańkīrtana movement is the most auspicious activity in the entire universe. Please try to understand this so that others will take it seriously.
SB 6.3.33

[NikolaiI]

When thus I lose myself in Thee, my God,
Then do I see, and know,
That all Thy universe reveals Thy beauty,
All living beings, and all lifeless things,
Exist through Thee.

This whole vast world is but the form
In which Thous showest us Thyself,
Is but the voice
In which Thyself Thou speakest unto us.

What need of words?
Come, Master, come,
And fill me wholly with Thyself.

- Tukaram

[The Blue Lotus]

When a person considers sense gratification the aim of life, he certainly becomes mad after materialistic living and engages in all kinds of sinful activity. He does not know that due to his past misdeeds he has already received a body which, although temporary, is the cause of his misery. Actually the living entity should not have taken on a material body, but he has been awarded the material body for sense gratification. Therefore I think it not befitting an intelligent man to involve himself again in the activities of sense gratification by which he perpetually gets material bodies one after another.
SB 5.5.4

[The Blue Lotus]

The Personality of Godhead is perfect and complete, and because He is completely perfect, all emanations from Him, such as this phenomenal world, are perfectly equipped as complete wholes. Whatever is produced of the Complete Whole is also complete in itself. Because He is the Complete Whole, even though so many complete units emanate from Him, He remains the complete balance.

Iso. Invocation

[The Blue Lotus]

Everything animate or inanimate that is within the universe is controlled and owned by the Lord. One should therefore accept only those things necessary for himself, which are set aside as his quota, and one should not accept other things, knowing well to whom they belong.
Iso. Verse 1

[The Blue Lotus]

One may aspire to live for hundreds of years if he continuously goes on working in that way, for that sort of work will not bind him to the law of karma. There is no alternative to this way for man.
Iso. Verse 2

[The Blue Lotus]

The killer of the soul, whoever he may be, must enter into the planets known as the worlds of the faithless, full of darkness and ignorance.
Iso. Verse 3

[The Blue Lotus]

Although fixed in His abode, the Personality of Godhead is swifter than the mind and can overcome all others running. The powerful demigods cannot approach Him. Although in one place, He controls those who supply the air and rain. He surpasses all in excellence.
Iso. Verse 4

[The Blue Lotus]

The Supreme Lord walks and does not walk. He is far away, but He is very near as well. He is within everything, and yet He is outside of everything.
Iso. Verse 5

[NikolaiI]

I've been without internet for a couple of days, but I wanted to thank you for making and all your posts on this thread! I've been meaning to read Srimad Bhagavatam, now maybe I shall begin it online.

Anyway, thank you so much! Please keep up the quotes, they're much appreciated. :) I'll ask you a question in a few days and I'll also try to post quotes also.

[The Blue Lotus]

I'm going to visit my mom for a week where there is no internet connection.

Nikoli, you're welcome to take over the helm in my absence.

:-)
:-)
:-)

Quote #12

One who always sees all living entities as spiritual sparks, in quality one with the Lord, becomes a true knower of things. What, then, can be illusion or anxiety for him?
Iso. Verse 6

[NikolaiI]

WITHIN this earthen vessel are bowers and groves, and within it is the Creator:
Within this vessel are the seven oceans and the unnumbered stars.
The touchstone and the jewel-appraiser are within;
And within this vessel the Eternal soundeth, and the spring wells up.
Kabîr says: "Listen tome, my Friend! My beloved Lord is within."

- Kabir

[NikolaiI]

He who sees everything in relation to the Supreme Lord, who sees all living entities as His parts and parcels, and who sees the Supreme Lord within everything never hates anything or any being.
Sri Isopanisad Verse 6

One who always sees all living entities as spiritual sparks, in quality one with the Lord, becomes a true knower of things. What, then, can be illusion or anxiety for him?
Iso. Verse 7

Such a person must factually know the greatest of all, the Personality of Godhead, who is unembodied, omniscient, beyond reproach, without veins, pure and uncontaminated, the self-sufficient philosopher who has been fulfilling everyone's desire since time immemorial.
Iso. Verse 8

[NikolaiI]

Those who engage in the culture of nescient activities shall enter into the darkest region of ignorance. Worse still are those engaged in the culture of so-called knowledge.
Iso. Verse 9

[NikolaiI]

The wise have explained that one result is derived from the culture of knowledge and that a different result is obtained from the culture of nescience.
Iso. Verse 10

[NikolaiI]

Only one who can learn the process of nescience and that of transcendental knowledge side by side can transcend the influence of repeated birth and death and enjoy the full blessings of immortality.
Iso. Verse 11

[weltanschauung]

this is excellent. im new too, so i'll throw william blake in, for cool points

he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.

[El Viejo]

Of all I've read in the Bible, this is the only verse that would actually give me a thrill whenever I read it.

Rev 19:16 "And he hath on [his] vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."

[NikolaiI]

Those who are engaged in the worship of demigods enter into the darkest region of ignorance, and still more so do the worshipers of the impersonal Absolute.
Iso. Verse 12

[NikolaiI]

It is said that one result is obtained by worshiping the supreme cause of all causes and that another result is obtained by worshiping what is not supreme. All this is heard from the undisturbed authorities, who clearly explained it.
Iso. Verse 13

[NikolaiI]

As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live.
Johann Goethe

[The Blue Lotus]

Back in action folks. :yawnb:

By associating with persons for whom the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Mukunda, is the all in all, one can hear of His powerful activities and soon come to understand them. The activities of Mukunda are so potent that simply by hearing of them one immediately associates with the Lord. For a person who constantly and very eagerly hears narrations of the Lord's powerful activities, the Absolute Truth, the Personality of Godhead in the form of sound vibrations, enters within his heart and cleanses it of all contamination. On the other hand, although bathing in the Ganges diminishes bodily contaminations and infections, this process and the process of visiting holy places can cleanse the heart only after a long time. Therefore who is the sane man who will not associate with devotees to quickly perfect his life?
SB 5.18.11

[NikolaiI]

The true lasting quietness... comes from a complete consecration to the Divine.
The Mother

[The Blue Lotus]

I offer my respectful obeisances at the feet of Sri Krishna who is eternal, full of knowledge and bliss, who is the subject matter of the Vedanta, who is the absolute cause of creation, maintenance and destruction, who destroys the five types of miseries of his devotees, who is our spiritual master and the source of our intelligence.

Sri Gopala Tapani Upanishad

[NikolaiI]

ALL things are created by the Om;
The love-form is His body.
He is without form, without quality, without decay:
Seek thou union with Him!
But that formless God takes a thousand forms in the eyes of His creatures:
He is pure and indestructible,
His form is infinite and fathomless,
He dances in rapture, and waves of form arise from His dance.
The body and the mind cannot contain themselves, when they are touched by His great joy.
He is immersed in all consciousness, all joys, and all sorrows;
He has no beginning and no end;
He holds all within His bliss.
Kabir

[NikolaiI]

The transcendentalists desire to avoid everything godless, for they know that supreme situation in which everything is related with the Supreme Lord Vishnu. Therefore a pure devotee who is in absolute harmony with the Lord does not create perplexities, but worships the lotus feet of the Lord at every moment, taking them into his heart.
SB 2.2.18

[NikolaiI]

When one is completely cleansed of the impurities of lust and greed produced from the false identification of the body as "I" and bodily possessions as "mine," one's mind becomes purified. In that pure state he transcends the stage of so-called material happiness and distress.
SB 3.25.16

[NikolaiI]

Lord Krishna is the supreme absolute controller, whose form is pure immortality, omniscience and bliss. He is without beginning, the origin of all, the cause of all causes and the source of the eternal Vedas.

Brahma Samhita, Chapter 5, Verse 1

[NikolaiI]

Srimad Bhagavatam 4.7.27, and puport by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada;

"The priests addressed the Lord, saying: O Lord, transcendental to material contamination, by the curse offered by Lord Śiva's men we have become attached to fruitive activities, and thus we are now fallen and therefore do not know anything about You. On the contrary, we are now involved in the injunctions of the three departments of the Vedic knowledge under the plea of executing rituals in the name of yajña. We know that You have made arrangements for distributing the respective shares of the demigods."

PURPORT

The Vedas are known as traiguṇya-viṣayā vedāḥ (Bg. 2.45). Those who are serious students of the Vedas are very much attached to the ritualistic ceremonies mentioned in the Vedas, and therefore these veda-vādīs cannot understand that the ultimate goal of the Vedas is to understand Lord Kṛṣṇa, or Viṣṇu. Those who have transcended the qualitative Vedic attractions, however, can understand Kṛṣṇa, who is never contaminated by the material qualities. Therefore Lord Viṣṇu is addressed here as anañjana (free from material contamination). In Bhagavad-gītā (2.42) the crude Vedic scholars have been deprecated by Kṛṣṇa as follows:

yām imāḿ puṣpitāḿ vācaḿ
pravadanty avipaścitaḥ
veda-vāda-ratāḥ pārtha
nānyad astīti vādinaḥ

"Men of small knowledge are very much attached to the flowery words of the Vedas, and they say that there is nothing more than this."

SB 4.7.28: The members of the assembly addressed the Lord: O exclusive shelter for all who are situated in troubled life, in this formidable fort of conditional existence the time element, like a snake, is always looking for an opportunity to strike. This world is full of ditches of so-called distress and happiness, and there are many ferocious animals always ready to attack. The fire of lamentation is always blazing, and the mirage of false happiness is always alluring, but one has no shelter from them. Thus foolish persons live in the cycle of birth and death, always overburdened in discharging their so-called duties, and we do not know when they will accept the shelter of Your lotus feet.

PURPORT

Persons who are not in Kṛṣṇa consciousness are living a very precarious life, as described in this verse, but all these circumstantial conditions are due to forgetfulness of Kṛṣṇa. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is meant to give relief to all these bewildered and distressed persons; therefore it is the greatest relief work for all human society, and the workers thereof are the greatest well-wishers, for they follow in the footsteps of Lord Caitanya, who is the greatest friend to all living entities.

[planet earth]

Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The similitude of His light is as a niche wherein is a lamp. The lamp is in a glass. The glass is as it were a shining star. (This lamp is) kindled from a blessed tree, an olive neither of the East nor of the West, whose oil would almost glow forth (of itself) though no fire touched it. Light upon light. Allah guideth unto His light whom He will. And Allah speaketh to mankind in allegories, for Allah is Knower of all things.

Holy Quran (al Nur Chapter- verse 35)

[NikolaiI]

SB 4.7.29: Lord Śiva said: My dear Lord, my mind and consciousness are always fixed on Your lotus feet, which, as the source of all benediction and the fulfillment of all desires, are worshiped by all liberated great sages because Your lotus feet are worthy of worship. With my mind fixed on Your lotus feet, I am no longer disturbed by persons who blaspheme me, claiming that my activities are not purified. I do not mind their accusations, and I excuse them out of compassion, just as You exhibit compassion toward all living entities.

SB 4.7.30: Śrī Bhṛgu said: My dear Lord, all living entities, beginning from the highest, namely Lord Brahmā, down to the ordinary ant, are under the influence of the insurmountable spell of illusory energy, and thus they are ignorant of their constitutional position. Everyone believes in the concept of the body, and all are thus submerged in the darkness of illusion. They are actually unable to understand how You live in every living entity as the Supersoul, nor can they understand Your absolute position. But You are the eternal friend and protector of all surrendered souls. Therefore, please be kind toward us and forgive all our offenses.

[planet earth]

And if my worshippers inquire to you about me, so I am close, I respond to the supplicant upon his supplication, so let them respond to me and believe in me to be led right (chatpter 2 : THe cow - verse 186)

[NikolaiI]

Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
Bible, I Corinthians 10.31

[planet earth]

Who found Allah, what has he lost, and who loses Allah what has he found

Ali bin Abi Taleb

[mercy_mankind]

Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The similitude of His light is as a niche wherein is a lamp. The lamp is in a glass. The glass is as it were a shining star. (This lamp is) kindled from a blessed tree, an olive neither of the East nor of the West, whose oil would almost glow forth (of itself) though no fire touched it. Light upon light. Allah guideth unto His light whom He will. And Allah speaketh to mankind in allegories, for Allah is Knower of all things.

Holy Quran (al Nur Chapter- verse 35)


And if my worshippers inquire to you about me, so I am close, I respond to the supplicant upon his supplication, so let them respond to me and believe in me to be led right (chatpter 2 : THe cow - verse 186)

Subhan Allah! I wanted to post those verses, I love reciting them all the day. They touch something inside me, Thanks Planet:).

"Hasten ye then (at once) to Allah. I am from Him a Warner to you, clear and open! " (chapter 51:50).

[planet earth]

Subhan Allah, I want to post another one I love too, tomorrow Inshallah

[planet earth]

Thus did we show Abraham the Kingdom of the
Heavens and the earth that he might be of those possessing certainty: when the night grew dark upon him he saw a star. He said: This is my Lord, But when it left, he said: I love not things that go away. And when he saw the moon uprising, he exclaimed: This is my Lord. But when it left he said: Unless my Lord guides me, I would be among those who go astray. When the sun shone he said: This is my Lord; This is greater But when the sun set, he said: Oh my people, I am innocent from what you attribute with Allah. I have directed my face towards Him who created the heavens and the earth, as one by nature upright, and I am not among the idolaters

The Holy Quran (6:76-79)

[mercy_mankind]

" Allah. There is no god but He,-the Living, the Self-subsisting, Eternal. No slumber can seize Him nor sleep. His are all things in the heavens and on earth. Who is there can intercede in His presence except as He permitteth? He knoweth what (appeareth to His creatures as) before or after or behind them. Nor shall they compass aught of His knowledge except as He willeth. His Throne doth extend over the heavens and the earth, and He feeleth no fatigue in guarding and preserving them for He is the Most High, the Supreme (in glory). "
The Holy Quran (2:255).

[NikolaiI]

Srimad Bhagavatam 7.13.4

paśyed ātmany ado viśvaḿ
pare sad-asato 'vyaye
ātmānaḿ ca paraḿ brahma
sarvatra sad-asan-maye

The sannyāsī should always try to see the Supreme pervading everything and see everything, including this universe, resting on the Supreme.

[planet earth]

Goodness is to worship Allah as if you see Him, for if you do not see Him, He sees you

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

[NikolaiI]

SB 7.13.5:
supti-prabodhayoḥ sandhāv
ātmano gatim ātma-dṛk
paśyan bandhaḿ ca mokṣaḿ ca
māyā-mātraḿ na vastutaḥ

During unconsciousness and consciousness, and between the two, he should try to understand the self and be fully situated in the self. In this way, he should realize that the conditional and liberated stages of life are only illusory and not actually factual. With such a higher understanding, he should see only the Absolute Truth pervading everything.

[mercy_mankind]

(Say: "Truly, my prayer and my service of sacrifice, my life and my death, are (all) for Allah, the Cherisher of the Worlds) [The holy quran 6:162]

[mercy_mankind]

"Muhammad was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels." by Michael H. Hart.

[weltanschauung]

the parrot and the carrot one may easily confound
they're very much alike in looks and smilar in sound
we recognize the parrot by his dear articulation
for carrots are unable to engage in converstation

[NikolaiI]

In human society there are various activities performed for the protection of one's wealth and life by one's words, one's mind and one's actions, but they are all performed for one's personal or extended sense gratification with reference to the body. All these activities are baffled because of being separate from devotional service. But when the same activities are performed for the satisfaction of the Lord, the beneficial results are distributed to everyone, just as water poured on the root of a tree is distributed throughout the entire tree.
SB 8.9.29

[mercy_mankind]

(Say: "In the bounty of Allah. And in His Mercy,- in that let them rejoice": that is better than the (wealth) they hoard.)
(The holy quean, 10:58)

[NikolaiI]

One should be satisfied with whatever he achieves by his previous destiny, for discontent can never bring happiness. A person who is not self-controlled will not be happy even with possessing the three worlds.
SB 8.19.24

[mercy_mankind]

"Oppression will turn into darkness on the Day of Resurrection." (Prophet Muhammad Peace Be Upon Him)

[planet earth]

Unto Allah belong the East and the West, and whithersoever ye turn, there is Allah's Countenance. Lo! Allah is All-Embracing, All-Knowing. . The Holy Quran (2:115)

[weltanschauung]

"He is morose, gloomy, proud and haughty, and of late - and perhaps for a long time before - has been suspicious and fanciful. He has a noble nature and a kind heart. He does not like showing his feelings and would rather do a cruel thing than open his heart freely. Sometimes, though, he is not morbid, but simply cold and inhumanly callous; it's as though he were alternating between two characters. Sometimes he is fearfully reserved! He says that he is so busy that everything is a hindrance, and yet he lies in bed doing nothing. He doesn't jeer at things, not because he hasn't the wit, but as though he hadn't time to waste on such trifles. He never listens to what is said to him. He is never interested in what interests other people at any given moment. He thinks very highly of himself and perhaps he is right."

[mercy_mankind]

"Yet of mankind are some who take unto themselves (objects of worship which they set as) rivals to Allah, loving them with a love like (that which is the due) of Allah (only) - those who believe are stauncher in their love for Allah - Oh, that those who do evil had but known, (on the day) when they behold the doom, that power belongeth wholly to Allah, and that Allah is severe in punishment!" (the holy quran 2:165).

[weltanschauung]

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c224/facist_jockitch/sh/skajhfkhfkjdf.jpg

william blake :thumbs_up

[NikolaiI]

If the doors of perception were cleansed everything would appear to man as it is, infinite.
William Blake

[MattNickson]

juss hate Religion n Religious stuff .
why do we need nethin like religion ? :S juss bein gd to everione is enough init?




Check Grammar, Spelling or Style and Enhance It!
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[mercy_mankind]

" Verily Allah will not deal unjustly with man in aught: It is man that wrongs his own soul." ( The Holy Quran 10:44).

[NikolaiI]

In my opinion, this is all due to inevitable time, under whose control everyone in every planet is carried, just as the clouds are carried by the wind.
SB 1.9.14

[abzu]

"It's almost as if the pleasures of the flesh at first cause us to forget Who We Are, then become the very avenue through which we remember." "There you have it. You've just said it. The use of physical pleasure to remembering Who We Are is achived through raising up, through the body, the basic energy of all life. This is the energy that you sometimes call "sexual energy", and it is raised up along your being, until it reaches the area that you call the third eye." Only problem is that flouride is used heavily in the west which calcifies the pineal gland which is assiciated with the third eye in eastern thought. I can't help but wonder how well a calcified pineal gland works? Might I refer you to the "Gitanjali" by Rabindranath Tagore, most inspiring.

[NikolaiI]

May there be good fortune throughout the universe, and may all envious persons be pacified. May all living entities become calm by practicing bhakti-yoga, for by accepting devotional service they will think of each other's welfare. Therefore let us all engage in the service of the supreme transcendence, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, and always remain absorbed in thought of Him.
SB 5.18.9

[NikolaiI]

Krsna who is known as Govinda is the Supreme Godhead. He has an eternal blissful spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin and He is the prime cause of all causes.
Brahma Samhita Text 1

[NikolaiI]

SB Canto 1, Chapter 1, Text 1

oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
janmādy asya yato 'nvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijñaḥ svarāṭ
tene brahma hṛdā ya ādi-kavaye muhyanti yat sūrayaḥ
tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ yathā vinimayo yatra tri-sargo 'mṛṣā
dhāmnā svena sadā nirasta-kuhakaṁ satyaṁ paraṁ dhīmahi

Translation

O my Lord, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, son of Vasudeva, O all-pervading Personality of Godhead, I offer my respectful obeisances unto You. I meditate upon Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa because He is the Absolute Truth and the primeval cause of all causes of the creation, sustenance and destruction of the manifested universes. He is directly and indirectly conscious of all manifestations, and He is independent because there is no other cause beyond Him. It is He only who first imparted the Vedic knowledge unto the heart of Brahmājī, the original living being. By Him even the great sages and demigods are placed into illusion, as one is bewildered by the illusory representations of water seen in fire, or land seen on water. Only because of Him do the material universes, temporarily manifested by the reactions of the three modes of nature, appear factual, although they are unreal. I therefore meditate upon Him, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who is eternally existent in the transcendental abode, which is forever free from the illusory representations of the material world. I meditate upon Him, for He is the Absolute Truth.

Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 8, Chapter 14, Text 8

jñānaḿ cānuyugaḿ brūte
hariḥ siddha-svarūpa-dhṛk
ṛṣi-rūpa-dharaḥ karma
yogaḿ yogeśa-rūpa-dhṛk

TRANSLATION

In every yuga, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, assumes the form of Siddhas such as Sanaka to preach transcendental knowledge, He assumes the form of great saintly persons such as Yājñavalkya to teach the way of karma, and He assumes the form of great yogīs such as Dattātreya to teach the system of mystic yoga.

PURPORT
(by Srila Prabhupada.. http://srimadbhagavatam.com/8/14/8/en)

For the benefit of all human society, not only does the Lord assume the form of Manu as an incarnation to rule the universe properly, but He also assumes the forms of a teacher, yogī, jñānī and so on, for the benefit of human society. The duty of human society, therefore, is to accept the path of action enunciated by the Supreme Lord. In the present age, the sum and substance of all Vedic knowledge is to be found in Bhagavad-gītā, which is personally taught by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and the same Supreme Godhead, assuming the form of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, expands the teachings of Bhagavad-gītā all over the world. In other words, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, is so kind and merciful to human society that He is always anxious to take the fallen souls back home, back to Godhead.

[LostPrincess13]

Cool!:D We took up Bhagavad-Gita in Lit class once... But it was such a short discussion that I wasn't able to appreciate it much...

[NikolaiI]

Well, it looks like the discussion on here may pick up a little. :)

daily quote... :)

Volume 46: Inconceivable Qualities of Buddhas, the 1st section

Buddha's Child, all Buddhas, the Bhagavans, have ten things that pervade the infinite and boundless Dharma-Realm. What are these ten? All Buddhas have unbounded bodies, with pure forms, entering into all categories of beings without defilement or attachment. All Buddhas have unbounded, unobstructed eyes that can clearly see all things. All Buddhas have unbounded, unobstructed ears that can understand all sounds and utterances. All Buddhas have unbounded, unobstructed noses that can reach the other shore of freedom of the Buddhas. All Buddhas have universal tongues that utter sublime sounds pervading the Dharma-Realm. All Buddhas have unbounded bodies that appear to sentient beings in accord with their Hearts. All Buddhas have unbounded minds that dwell on the unobstructed impartial body of reality. All Buddhas have unbounded, unobstructed liberation, manifesting inexhaustible great sacrosanct supernatural powers. All Buddhas have unbounded pure worlds, manifesting Buddha-lands according to the pleasures of sentient beings, replete with infinite adornments, yet without giving rise to any obsession or attachment to them. All Buddhas have unbounded practices and vows of Bodhisattvas, having perfect wisdom, freedom of playing [in all worlds], and ability to master all Buddha-Dharmas. Buddha's child, these are the ten phenomena of Buddhahood that pervade the Dharma-Realm without bound, which the Thus Come Ones, Worthy of Offerings, Correctly Awakened Ones have.

http://www2.fodian.net/old/English/0279_46.html

[NikolaiI]

dehas tu sarva-sańghāto
jagat tasthur iti dvidhā
atraiva mṛgyaḥ puruṣo
neti netīty atat tyajan

"There are two kinds of bodies for every individual soul — a gross body made of five gross elements and a subtle body made of three subtle elements. Within these bodies, however, is the spirit soul. One must find the soul by analysis, saying, "This is not it. This is not it." Thus one must separate spirit from matter."

SB 7.7.23

[NikolaiI]

The light of one candle being communicated to other candles, although it burns separately in them, is the same in its quality. I adore the primeval Lord Govinda who exhibits Himself equally in the same mobile manner in His various manifestations.
Brahma Samhita 5.46

[NikolaiI]

Just as the fruits and flowers of a tree in due course of time undergo six changes — birth, existence, growth, transformation, dwindling and then death — the material body, which is obtained by the spirit soul under different circumstances, undergoes similar changes. However, there are no such changes for the spirit soul.
SB 7.7.18

[NikolaiI]

"When the mind begins to become still, we then begin to truly see it. When you first try to stabilize and pacify the mind, initially it will become very busy because it’s not accustomed to being still. In fact, it doesn’t even necessarily want to become still, but it is essential to get a hold of the mind to recognize its nature. This practice is extremely important. ... Eventually you will find yourself in a state where your mind is clear and open all the time. It is just like when the clouds are removed from the sky and the sun can clearly be seen, shining all the time. This is coming close to the state of liberation, liberation from all traces of suffering. ... The truth of this practice is universal. It isn’t necessary to call it a religion to practice it. Whether one is a Hindu or a Moslem or a Christian or a Buddhist simply doesn’t matter. Anyone can practice this because this is the nature of the mind, the nature of everyone’s mind. If you can get a handle on your mind, and pacify it in this way, you will definitely experience these results, and you will see them in your daily life situation. There is no need to put this into any kind of category, any kind of "ism." Venerable Gyatrul Rinpoche

[NikolaiI]

The Prajna Paramitam Sutra, or Heart of Perfect Wisdom Sutra

When Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara was practicing the profound Prajna Paramita, he illuminated the Five Skandhas and saw that they are all empty, and he crossed beyond all suffering and difficulty.　　　　　Shariputra, form does not differ from emptiness; emptiness does not differ from form. Form itself is emptiness; emptiness itself is form. So too are feeling, cognition, formation, and consciousness.

　　Shariputra, all Dharmas are empty of characteristics. They are not produced, not destroyed, not defiled, not pure; and they neither increase nor diminish. Therefore, in emptiness there is no form, feeling, cognition, formation, or consciousness; no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or mind; no sights, sounds, smells, tastes, objects of touch, or Dharmas; no field of the eyes up to and including no field of mind consciousness; and no ignorance or ending of ignorance, up to and including no old age and death or ending of old age and death. There is no suffering, no accumulating, no extinction, and no Way, and no understanding and no attaining.

　　Because nothing is attained, the Bodhisattva through reliance on Prajna Paramita is unimpeded in his mind. Because there is no impediment, he is not afraid, and he leaves distorted dream-thinking far behind. Ultimately Nirvana! All Buddhas of the three periods of time attain Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi through reliance on Prajna Paramita. Therefore know that Prajna Paramita is a Great Spiritual Mantra, a Great Bright Mantra, a Supreme Mantra, an Unequalled Mantra. It can remove all suffering; it is genuine and not false. That is why the Mantra of Prajna Paramita was spoken. Recite it like this:

Gaté Gaté Paragaté Parasamgaté

Bodhi Svaha!

[NikolaiI]

Thanissaro Bhikkhu taught:
"If you think of goodwill
as a billowing pink cloud of cotton candy
covering the world in all directions,
what you're really doing
is covering up your actual attitudes,
which is of no help at all in gaining insight into the mind.
Goodwill is meant as a challenge,
as a way of searching out and working through
your small-hearted attitudes
one by one
so that you can examine them,
uproot them,
and really let them go.
Only when you work through the particulars like this
can goodwill become more and more limitless."

[NikolaiI]

(metta means kindness)

Burmese Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi:

"You see, we've got to make metta grow.
We've got to make people see
that love is a strong, positive force
for the happiness of oneself, not just for others.
A journalist said to me,
"When you speak to the people you talk a lot about religion, why is that?"

I said, "Because politics is about people, and you can't separate people from their spiritual values."
And he said that he had asked a young student
who had come to the weekend talks about this
"Why are they talking about religion?"
The student replied, "Well, that's politics."
Our people understand what we are talking about.
Some people might think it is either idealistic or naive
to talk about metta in terms of politics,
but to me it makes a lot of practical good sense.
I've always said to the NLD (National League for Democracy)
that we've got to help each other.
If people see how much we support each other
and how much happiness we manage to generate among ourselves,
in spite of being surrounded by weapons, threats and repression,
they will want to be like us.
They might say, well, there's something in their attitude —
we want to be happy too."

[NikolaiI]

O Living Lord, help me train the truant children of my senses not to wander away from perceptions of Thee.

Direct my gaze to Thy wondrous world within, to watch Thine ever changing beauty.

May I hear the lilt of Thy secret lyre.

Teach me to feel Thy presence in me, above me, beneath me, and around me.

Bless me, that I catch the scent of Thy breath of bliss.

Let me drink forever from the sourceless river of Thine inexhaustibility.

Orientwise, with sacred rites I offer at Thine altar the candles of my senses. May their spiritualized light mingle with Thine in the first pale shaft of dawn, the brash noon brightness, the muted glow of dusk, and the night's moon silver.

O Guardian of my being, keep ever burning before Thee the fivefold taper of my love.


Quoted from Whispers From Eternity.

[NikolaiI]

Evolution, by Sri Aurobindo, written in 1944.

I PASSED into a lucent still abode
And saw as in a mirror crystalline
An ancient force ascending serpentine
Of the ascending spirals of the aeonic road.
Earth was a cradle for the arriving God
And man but a half-dark half-illuminous sign
Of the transition of the veiled Divine
From Matter's sleep and the tormented load
Of ignorant life and death to the spirit's light.
Mind liberated swam Light's ocean-vast,
And life escaped from its grey tortured line
I saw matter illumining its parent Night.
The soul could feel into infinity cast,
Timeless God-bliss the heart incarnadine.

[NikolaiI]

The most beautiful and most profound experience is the sensation of the mystical. It is the sower of all true science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead. To know that what is impenetrable to us really exists, manifesting itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty which our dull faculties can comprehend only in their primitive forms - this knowledge, this feeling is at the center of true religiousness.
( Albert Einstein - The Merging of Spirit and Science)

[NikolaiI]

"Like the bee, gathering honey from different flowers, the wise man accepts the essence of different scriptures and sees only the good in all religions."
Srimad Bhagavatam

[Silas Thorne]

By oneself the evil is done, by oneself one suffers; by oneself evil is left undone, by oneself one is purified. Purity and impurity belong to oneself, no one can purify another.
from the Dhammapada.

We used to recite this for each training in the martial art I used to practice, although the lines were slightly different:

By doing evil, I contaminate myself. By not doing evil, I purify myself.

[Silas Thorne]

A new monk came up to the master Joshu. “I have just entered the
brotherhood and I am anxious to learn the first principle of Zen,”
he said. “Will you please teach it to me?”

Joshu said, “Have you eaten your supper?”

The novice answered, “I have eaten.” Joshu said, “Now wash your
bowl.”
http://spiritualinquiry.com/zen-stories/wash-your-bowl/

[NikolaiI]

O Buddha, the gold vein of thy sermon of mercy ran through gloom-gorged, rocky hearts, and illumined their darkness.

Thou loftiest soarer of renunciation's skies, beneath thy God-lifted eyes, the kingdom of sense-comfort, the rivers of gross greed, the vast and lust-scorched deserts of desire, the tall trees of temporal ambition, the cactus plants of prickly world-worries—all melt into invisible smallness.

Buddha, the arc-light of thy sympathy sought to melt the hardness of cruel hearts. Once thou didst save a lamb by offering thyself in its stead.

Thy solemn thoughts still silently roam through the ether of minds, searching for ecstasy-tuned hearts. Seated beneath the banyan bodhi tree, thou didst make a solemn tryst with the Spirit:

"Beneath the banyan bough,
On the sacred seat I take this vow:
Let derma, bones, and fleeting flesh dissolve;
Until the mysteries of life I solve,
And receive the all-coveted Priceless Lore,
From this place I shall stir, never, nevermore."

Thou symbol of sympathy, incarnation of mercy, give us thy determination, that we may seek truth as doggedly as thou didst. Bless us, that we may be awakened, like thee, to seek remedy for the sorrow-throbs of others as we seek it for ourselves.


- P.Yogananda, Whispers from Eternity

[NikolaiI]

"When you are compassionate with yourself and others, your world
becomes compassionate. "

~ Gary Zukav, "Seat of the Soul," as quoted in Science of Mind
magazine, May, 2006, Vol. 79 No. 5.

[NikolaiI]

May I never use cruel sarcasm, which, like flies, alights on the open wounds of man and thus swells his troubles. I would emulate Thy lovable bee, attracted by the nectar of sweetness in the heart hives of others.

[NikolaiI]

"Ill will refers to the desire to punish, hurt or destroy. It includes sheer hatred of a person, or even a situation, and it can generate so much energy that it is both seductive and addictive. At the time, it always appears justified for such is its power that it easily corrupts our ability to judge fairly. It also includes ill will towards oneself, otherwise known as guilt, which denies oneself any possibility of happiness. In meditation, ill will can appear as dislike towards the meditation object itself, rejecting it so that one's attention is forced to wander elsewhere.
The Lord Buddha likened ill will to being sick. Just as sickness denies one the freedom and happiness of health, so ill will denies one the freedom and happiness of peace.
Ill will is overcome by applying Metta, loving kindness. When it is ill will towards a person, Metta teaches one to see more in that person than all that which hurts you, to understand why that person hurt you (often because they were hurting intensely themselves), and encourages one to put aside one's own pain to look with compassion on the other. But if this is more than one can do, Metta to oneself leads one to refuse to dwell in ill will to that person, so as to stop them from hurting you further with the memory of those deeds. Similarly, if it is ill will towards oneself, Metta sees more than one's own faults, can understand one's own faults, and finds the courage to forgive them, learn from their lesson and let them go. Then, if it is ill will towards the mediation object (often the reason why a meditator cannot find peace) Metta embraces the meditation object with care and delight. For example, just as a mother has a natural Metta towards her child, so a meditator can look on their breath, say, with the very same quality of caring attention."
http://www.buddhanet.net/budsas/ebud/ebmed051.htm
From: The Five Hindrances (Nivarana) by Ajahn Brahmavamso

[NikolaiI]

"The second aspect of true love is karuna,
the intention and capacity
to relieve and transform suffering and lighten sorrows.
Karuna is usually translated as "compassion"
but that is not exactly correct.
"Compassion" is composed of
com ("together with")
and passion ("to suffer").
But we do not need to suffer
to remove suffering from another person.
Doctors, for instance,
can relieve their patients' suffering
without experiencing the same disease in themselves.
If we suffer too much,
we may be crushed and unable to help.
Still, until we find a better word,
let us use "compassion" to translate karuna."

From: "The Four Immeasurable Minds"
in "The heart of the Buddha's teaching:
transforming suffering into peace, joy and liberation:
The Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path
and other basic Buddhist teachings"
by Thich Nhat Hanh, Parallax Press, 1998

[NikolaiI]

This earth is higher than all the heavens; this is the greatest school in the universe.

Vivekananda

[NikolaiI]

Transliteration

Anandena jatani jivanti
Anandam prayantyabhisam visanti

Translation

From Delight we came into existence.
In Delight we grow.
At the end of our journey’s close,
Into Delight we retire.

[NikolaiI]

"All that we are is the result of what we have thought.
If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, pain follows him.
If a man speaks or acts with a pure thought,
happiness follows him, like a shadow that never leaves him. "

- Lord Buddha

[NikolaiI]

"You see many stars in the sky at night, but not when the sun rises. Can you therefore say that there are no stars in the heavens during the day? Friends, similarly you cannot see God because of your ignorance, but say not that there is no God."
Sri Ramakrishna

[NikolaiI]

"The ideal of Vedanta is that all wisdom and all purity are in the soul already, dimly expressed or better expressed--that is all the difference. The difference between man and man, and all things in the whole creation, is not in kind but only in degree. The background, the reality, of everyone is that same Eternal, Ever Blessed, Ever Pure, and Ever Perfect One. It is the Atman, the Soul, in the saint and the sinner, in the happy and the miserable, in the beautiful and the ugly, in men and in animals; it is the same throughout. It is the shining One. The difference is caused by the power of expression. In some It is expressed more, in others less, but this difference of expression has no effect upon the Atman."

Vivekananda

[NikolaiI]

If it is true that you cannot do good without doing evil, and whenever you try to create happiness there will always be misery, people will ask you, "What is the use of doing good?" The answer is in the first place, that we must work for lessening misery, for that is the only way to make ourselves happy. Every one of us finds it out sooner or later in our lives. The bright ones find it out a little earlier, and the dull ones a little later. The dull ones pay very dearly for the discovery and the bright ones less dearly. In the second place, we must do our part, because that is the only way of getting out of this life of contradiction. Both the forces of good and evil will keep the universe alive for us, until we awake from our dreams and give up this building of mud pies. That lesson we shall have to learn, and it will take a long, long time to learn it.

Swami Vivekananda

[NikolaiI]

The teachers of the science of Yoga, therefore, declare that religion is not only based upon the experience of ancient times, but that no man can be religious until he has the same perceptions himself. Yoga is the science which teaches us how to get these perceptions. It is not much use to talk of religion until one has felt it. Why is there so much disturbance, so much fighting and quarrelling in the name of God? There has been more bloodshed in the name of God than for any other cause, because people never went to the fountainhead; they were consent only to give a mental assent to the customs of their forefathers, and wanted others to do the same. What right has a man to say he has a soul if he does not feel it, or that there is a God if he does not see Him? If there is a God we must see Him, if there is a soul we must perceive it; otherwise it is better not to believe. It is better to be an outspoken atheist than a hypocrite. The modern idea, on the one hand, with the "learned" is that religion and metaphysics and all search after a Supreme Being are futile; on the other hand, with the semi-educated, the idea seems to be that these things really have no basis, their only value consists in the fact that they furnish strong motive powers for doing good to the world. If men believe in a God, they may become good, and moral, and so make good citizens. We cannot blame them for holding such ideas, seeing that all the teaching these men get is simply to believe in an eternal rigmarole of words, without any substance behind them. They are asked to live upon words; can they do it? If they could, I should not have the least regard for human nature. Man wants truth, wants to experience truth for himself; when he has grasped it, realised it, felt it within his heart of hearts then alone, declare the Vedas, would all doubts vanish, all darkness be scattered, and all crookedness be made straight. "Ye children of immortality, even those who live in the highest sphere, the way isf ound; there is a way out of all this darkness, and that is by perceiving Him Who is beyond all darkness; there is no other way."

Swami Vivekananda

[NikolaiI]

All love is expansion, all selfishness is contraction. Love is therefore the only law of life. He who loves lives, he who is selfish is dying. Therefore, love for love's sake, because it is law of life, just as you breathe to live.

-Swami Vivekananda

[La Amistad]

"The ink of the scholar is more sacred than the blood of the martyr" -

[NikolaiI]

I was searching for this and it took me a little while to find it

The Buddha said, "I consider the dignities of kings and lords as a particle of dust that floats in the sunbeam. I consider the treasure of precious metals and stones as bricks and pebbles. I consider the gaudy dress of silk and brocades as a worn-out rag. I consider this universe as small as the holila fruit. I consider thelake of Anavatapa as a drop of oil which one smears the feet. I consider the various methods of salvation taught by the Buddhas as a treasure created by imagination. I consider the profound doctrine of the Buddhas as precious metal or priceless fabric seen in a dream. I consider the teaching of the Buddhas as a flower before my eyes. I consider the practice of Dhyana as a pillar supporting the Mount Sumeru. I consider Nirvana as awakening from a day dream or nightmare. I consider the struggle between the heterdox and orthodox as the antics of the six (mythical) dragons. I consider the doctrine of equality as the absolute ground of reality. I consider all the religious works done for universal salvation as like the plants in the four seasons."

[NikolaiI]

It took me a while to find this one, too.

"Often and often, we see that the very best of men even are troubled and visited with tribulations in this world; it may be inexplicable; but it is also the experience of my life that the heart and core of everything here is good, that whatever may be the surface waves, deep down and underlying everything, there is an infinite basis of goodness and love; and so long as we do not reach that basis, we are troubled; but having once reached that zone of calmness, let winds howl and tempests rage."

-Swami Vivekananda

[NikolaiI]

If you cannot find the truth right where you are, where else do you expect to find it?
-Dogen Zenji

[JuniperWoolf]

"Because our entire universe is made up of consciousness, we never really experience the universe directly. We just experience our consciousness of the universe, our perception of it, so right: our only universe is perception."
-Alan Moore

[lichtrausch]

"Because our entire universe is made up of consciousness, we never really experience the universe directly. We just experience our consciousness of the universe, our perception of it, so right: our only universe is perception."
-Alan Moore

He could have said all of that in one word: Solipsism

[NikolaiI]

This one took me a while to find, too :lol: :)

Herein lies the whole secret of Existence. Waves may roll over the surface and tempest rage, but deep down there is the stratum of infinite calmness, infinite peace, and infinite bliss.
-Swami Vivekananda

[NikolaiI]

When you realize where you come from,
you naturally become tolerant,
disinterested, amused,
kindhearted as a grandmother,
dignified as a king.
Immersed in the wonder of the Tao,
you can deal with whatever life brings you,
and when death comes, you are ready.
-Laozi

[NikolaiI]

The next qualification required is Shraddhâ, faith. One must have tremendous faith in religion and God. Until one has it, one cannot aspire to be a Jnâni. A great sage once told me that not one in twenty millions in this world believed in God. I asked him why, and he told me, "Suppose there is a thief in this room, and he gets to know that there is a mass of gold in the next room, and only a very thin partition between the two rooms; what will be the condition of that thief?" I answered, "He will not be able to sleep at all; his brain will be actively thinking of some means of getting at the gold, and he will think of nothing else." Then he replied, "Do you believe that a man could believe in God and not go mad to get him? If a man sincerely believes that there is that immense, infinite mine of Bliss, and that It can be reached, would not that man go mad in his struggle to reach it ?" Strong faith in God and the consequent eagerness to reach Him constitute Shraddha.

The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda
Volume 1, Lectures And Discourses

[NikolaiI]

Bhagavad Gita 6.19
As a lamp in a windless place does not waver, so the transcendentalist, whose mind is controlled, remains always steady in his meditation on the transcendent self.

[jekan blazer]

"the more you fight with someone them more you care about them..."

[NikolaiI]

"All the strength you need is within you. Therefore make your own future. The infinite future is before you, and you must always remember that each word, each thought, and each deed, lays up a store for you, and as the bad thoughts and bad deeds are ready to spring upon you like tigers, so also are the good thoughts and good deeds ready with the power of a hundred thousand angels to defend you always and forever."

- Swami Vivekananda

[NikolaiI]

Ascent

1 - The Silence
Into the Silence, into the Silence,
Arise, O Spirit immortal,
Away from the turning Wheel, breaking the magical Circle.
Ascend, single and deathless:
Care no more for the whispers and the shoutings in the darkness,
Pass from the sphere of the grey and the little,
Leaving the cry and the struggle,
Into the Silence for ever.

Vast and immobile, formless and marvellous,
Higher than Heaven, wider than the universe,
In a pure glory of being,
In a bright stillness of self-seeing,
Communing with a boundlessness voiceless and intimate,
Make thy knowledge too high for thought, thy joy too deep for emotion;
At rest in the unchanging Light, mute with the wordless self-vision,
Spirit, pass out of thyself; Soul, escape from the clutch of Nature.
All thou hast seen cast from thee, O Witness.
Turn to the Alone and the Absolute, turn to the Eternal:
Be only eternity, peace and silence,
world-transcending nameless Oneness,
Spirit immortal.

2 - Beyond the Silence
Out from the Silence, out from the Silence,
Carrying with thee the ineffable Substance,
Carrying with thee the splendour and wideness,
Ascend, O Spirit immortal.
Assigning to Time its endless meaning,
Blissful enter into the clasp of the Timeless.
Awake in the living Eternal, taken to the bosom of love of the Infinite,
Live self-found in his endless completeness,
Thy heart close to the heart of the Godhead for ever.

Vast, God-possesseing, embraced by the Wonderful,
Lifted by the All-Beautiful into his infinite beauty,
Love shall envelop thee endless and fathomless,
Joy unimaginable, Ecstasy illimitable,
Knowledge omnipotent, Might omniscient,
Light without darkness, Truth that is dateless.
One with the Transcendent, calm, universal,
Single and free, yet innumerably living,
All in thyself and thyself in all dwelling,
Act in the world with thy being beyond it.
Soul, exceed life's boundaries; Spirit, surpass the universe.
Outclimbing the summits of Nature,
Transcending and uplifting the soul of the finite,
Rise with the world in thy bosom,
O Word gathered into the heart of the Ineffable.
One with the Eternal, live in his infinity,
Drowned in the Absolute, found in the Godhead,
Swan of the supreme and spaceless ether wandering winged through the universe,
Spirit immortal.


1930, revised 1942

Sri Aurobindo

[NikolaiI]

Those favored by God find their paths set by thorns.
-Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur

[blazeofglory]

Ascent

1 - The Silence
Into the Silence, into the Silence,
Arise, O Spirit immortal,
Away from the turning Wheel, breaking the magical Circle.
Ascend, single and deathless:
Care no more for the whispers and the shoutings in the darkness,
Pass from the sphere of the grey and the little,
Leaving the cry and the struggle,
Into the Silence for ever.

Vast and immobile, formless and marvellous,
Higher than Heaven, wider than the universe,
In a pure glory of being,
In a bright stillness of self-seeing,
Communing with a boundlessness voiceless and intimate,
Make thy knowledge too high for thought, thy joy too deep for emotion;
At rest in the unchanging Light, mute with the wordless self-vision,
Spirit, pass out of thyself; Soul, escape from the clutch of Nature.
All thou hast seen cast from thee, O Witness.
Turn to the Alone and the Absolute, turn to the Eternal:
Be only eternity, peace and silence,
world-transcending nameless Oneness,
Spirit immortal.

2 - Beyond the Silence
Out from the Silence, out from the Silence,
Carrying with thee the ineffable Substance,
Carrying with thee the splendour and wideness,
Ascend, O Spirit immortal.
Assigning to Time its endless meaning,
Blissful enter into the clasp of the Timeless.
Awake in the living Eternal, taken to the bosom of love of the Infinite,
Live self-found in his endless completeness,
Thy heart close to the heart of the Godhead for ever.

Vast, God-possesseing, embraced by the Wonderful,
Lifted by the All-Beautiful into his infinite beauty,
Love shall envelop thee endless and fathomless,
Joy unimaginable, Ecstasy illimitable,
Knowledge omnipotent, Might omniscient,
Light without darkness, Truth that is dateless.
One with the Transcendent, calm, universal,
Single and free, yet innumerably living,
All in thyself and thyself in all dwelling,
Act in the world with thy being beyond it.
Soul, exceed life's boundaries; Spirit, surpass the universe.
Outclimbing the summits of Nature,
Transcending and uplifting the soul of the finite,
Rise with the world in thy bosom,
O Word gathered into the heart of the Ineffable.
One with the Eternal, live in his infinity,
Drowned in the Absolute, found in the Godhead,
Swan of the supreme and spaceless ether wandering winged through the universe,
Spirit immortal.


1930, revised 1942

Sri Aurobindo

Reading what you quoted really sublimates our mind immensely. And I really hold with the man who reads Aurobindo, a man who is the tome of idealism. His book Sabitri is really a magnum opus, a book that can transform people if they read it with no preoccupation with anything. I have read some of his works but to read Sabitri demands of us great assiduousness and of course one needs first of all the level of knowledge, devotion and purity of mind. I have no that quality till now. And that said I do not mean I do not try reading him.

He is an epitome of virtue, someone who came from a background that opened to him a world of materialism and wanted to take him far away from eastern philosophy. This man was kept from even speaking Hindi, the language of his country and was insisted to read and speak in English and his father, a westernized medical professional wanted his son to be indoctrinated into western values and cultures and he had schooling oriented in western values but he deified them thinking that he cannot kind of remain complacent with materialistic acquisitiveness in life. He read Sanskrit, a very scientific language and found in it an ocean of knowledge, called Gyan, in fact there is no synonym for Gyan in any European languages. He, realizing that acquisitic things do not suffice in life and man needs to know his origin and his relationship with the world he lives in and he discovered for himself the cosmos he is in and why he has come here. This is called enlightenment and he remained enlightened in life.

Nikolai's reading covers vast and pervasive domains and of course he must be a man who is close to enlightenment if he has hitherto not summated.

[NikolaiI]

Savitri, by Sri Aurobindo;

http://savitribysriaurobindo.com

[NikolaiI]

Do not believe anything
because it is said by an authority,
or if it is said to come from angels,
or from Gods,
or from an inspired source.

Believe it only if you have explored it
in your own heart
and mind and body
and found it to be true.

Work out your own path,
through diligence.

- Shakyamuni Buddha

[NikolaiI]

“The scope of service is not limited to great gestures like giving big donations to public institutions. They also serve who express their love in little things. A word that gives courage to a drooping heart or a smile that brings hope and cheer in the midst of gloom has as much claim to be regarded as service as onerous sacrifices and heroic self-denials. A glance that wipes out bitterness from the heart and sets it throbbing with a new love is also service, although there may be no thought of service in it. When taken by themselves, all these things seem to be small; but life is made up of many such small things. If these small things were ignored, life would be not only unbeautiful but unspiritual.”

Meher Baba

[NikolaiI]

"We can practice loving-friendliness on anyone - parents, teachers,
relatives, friends, unfriendly people, indifferent people, people who
cause problems. We do not have to be close to people to practice
loving-friendliness toward them. In fact, sometimes it's easier not
to know people. Why? Because if we don't know them, we can treat
all people alike. We can look at the many, many beings in the
universe as if they were specks of light in space and wish them all
to be happy and at peace. Though merely wishing may not make this
so, cultivating the hope that others might enjoy loving-friendliness
is a skillful thought that fills our own minds with contentment and
joy."

~ Bhante Henepola Gunaratana, "Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness:
Walking the Buddha's Path," Wisdom Publications, 2001.

[spookymulder93]

Do not believe anything
because it is said by an authority,
or if it is said to come from angels,
or from Gods,
or from an inspired source.

Believe it only if you have explored it
in your own heart
and mind and body
and found it to be true.

Work out your own path,
through diligence.

- Shakyamuni Buddha

That quote stuck with me so much that I had to look it up and now have the Dhammapada: Essential Teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha in my Amazon cart.

Thank you.

[NikolaiI]

"At this point it is fair to recognize that, as with all other good qualities, cheerfulness can be overdone and inappropriate. Life holds serious situations, heavy suffering, human problems, individual and collective, which cheerfulness cannot solve. They must be considered and faced with due earnestness, but such earnestness //should be reserved only for them//. We are apt to take so many things seriously which do not warrant it. We fritter away, so to speak, our capital of seriousness so that there is not enough for the truly important things. So the rule is: Seriousness in everything that deserves and demands it, and for the rest, //cheerfulness/ /."
http://groups. yahoo.com/ group/CheerfulVo ice/message/ 18
http://www.psykosyn tese.dk/a- 178/
From: Cheerfulness (A psychosynthesis technique), by Roberto Assagioli
1973 Psychosynthesis Research Foundation, Issue No. 33


That quote stuck with me so much that I had to look it up and now have the Dhammapada: Essential Teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha in my Amazon cart.

Thank you.

Cool. You're welcome. :) I wouldn't have thought that this is what stood out for you but that's cool.
With the Dhammapada, there are very, very many translations. The one I read which I thought was great was... "All deeds are led by mind, created by mind, etc..." (the first line of the Dhammapada) but there are many variations on this in other translations.

[NikolaiI]

"As you stop creating suffering for yourself, you'll find it easier to be skillful and helpful with other people as well. This is why this is not a selfish practice. The principle of goodwill is not just an idle wish, saying, "May all living beings be happy," and then leaving it at that. It also means actually being kind to yourself, not creating the unnecessary suffering that you've been piling on yourself all the time. When you find that your mind is less piled-on like this, it's easier to feel sympathy for other people who are piling burdens on their minds, too. When you're unburdened, it's easier to help them in a genuine way. That's why the benefits of the practice go not only inward but outward as well.

Still, the real work has to be done right here inside, finding where those unnecessary burdens are — the burdensome ideas, the burdensome notions the mind piles on itself, saying that it has to react like this, has to think like that. Once you find them, figure out how to let them go. That's the kind of battle you want to take on, the kind that's really worth winning. And when you can win it, your victory is a gift not only to yourself, but also to everyone around you."

[NikolaiI]

We shall not cease from exploring,
And the end of our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
~T.S. Eliot

[NikolaiI]

The same stream of life that runs through the world
runs through my veins night and day in rhythmic measure.
It is the same life that shoots in joy through the dust
of the earth into numberless waves of flowers."
~Rabindranath Tagore

[NikolaiI]

"The development of the four Sublime Attitudes is especially beneficial in connection with the performance of meritorious acts. You should give alms with an attitude of good will, observe the precepts with an attitude of good will, and practice meditation with an attitude of good will. When done in this way, your activities will bring powerful rewards. Thoughts of good will are like clean drops of rain that fall from the sky, refreshing and nourishing the grasses and trees. Such thoughts are desired by all human races. Thus if you hope to develop merit, you should examine your heart at all times to see whether or not it is benevolent, so that whatever merit you may perform in thought, word, or deed will be truly conducive to future happiness."

From: On the Four Immeasurable Sublime Attitudes
The Craft of the Heart
by Ajaan Lee Dhammadharo

[NikolaiI]

"[Regarding Metta,] friendliness doesn't mean dealing with others on
a superficial level, saying yes all the time and telling others what
they want to hear so as to suggest friendliness. Rather, it means
communicating from the heart, through recognizing that we are all
fundamentally the same, our differences only apparent. Friendliness
from the heart demonstrates understanding of the universal nature of
being, all human beings and everything that surrounds us."

~ Ayya Khema, "Come and See For Yourself: The Buddhist Path to
Happiness," Windhorse Publications, 2002

[NikolaiI]

There's music in the sighing of a reed; There's music in the
gushing of a rill; There's music in all things, if men had ears:
Their earth is but an echo of the spheres.
~Lord Byron

[NikolaiI]

Do everything with a mind that lets go. Don't accept praise or gain or anything else. If you let go a little you will have a little peace; if you let go a lot you will have a lot of peace; if you let go completely you will have complete peace.
Ajahn Chan

[aliengirl]

Quite True!!! A few days ago I was very upset by my friend's behavior. But then I recalled that if you expect nothing from others in return you will have peace of mind. Let go and you will get the greatest thing... PEACE.

[NikolaiI]

"The Buddha mentioned [the eight worldly dharmas - pleasure and pain,
gain and loss, praise and blame, fame and disrepute] as a pathway
towards equanimity. Equanimity is the highest of all emotions. It's
one of the seven factors of enlightenment, and we certainly will only
get it in its complete form if there has been enlightenment. But,
just as with the defilements we can work on them; we can also work on
equanimity. These eight give us an excellent opportunity to work on
our inner equanimity, which not only means not to get irate when
there is blame, but also not to get all excited when there is
praise. It means both. And not to get all upset when there is loss,
but not to get really high when there is gain. They are just
happening. We perfect this path toward equanimity, and they are very
worthwhile remembering because of that, because we all confront all
of them alternately in our lives again and again and again. And if
we haven't learned that there is a pathway to equanimity we will
respond to them in the old familiar way. I like it; I don't like
it. This one I'll have, this one I want to get rid of. As long as
we do that, we are guaranteed to be caught in samsara, the round of
birth and death, which actually means the round of duality."

~ Ayya Khema, online lecture

[NikolaiI]

"We know we have a lot of capacity (in our culture) to develop the
intellect, to develop skills, you know, technical skills; but we
don't think we can change our hearts at all. We think, 'Well, I was
born with that amount of anger, that amount of love, that amount of
generosity, this amount of jealousy, this amount of depression. What
to do?' We're not really given many techniques. We don't go to
courses, you know - how to get rid of depression, like this, you
know. We seem to think, 'This is the way I am. This is the way I am
made.' And so we sort of think we have to make the most of it.

"But the Buddhist idea is that absolutely we have to make the most of
it, but it's not fixed in space . . . The implication of the [idea of
karma] is that I can change. I can learn to develop even more my
love, my kindness, my compassion. It hasn't got a lid on it, you
know? Buddha says we can develop it infinitely to degrees that we
would think are insane, if we've heard some of the examples; and that
we can get rid of jealousy, anger, fear, or depression - which is
almost a shocking idea for us."

~ Ven. Robina Courtin, excerpt from "Changing the Mind"
Broadcast Live at Women at Wisdom Lectures, San Francisco, CA
September 3, 2002

[NikolaiI]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This then, is the human problem; there is a price to
be paid for every increase in consciousness. We
cannot be more sensitive to pleasure without being
more sensitive to pain.

~Alan Watts

[NikolaiI]

In order to be successful in your quest for Freedom, it is imperative
that you unconditionally abandon every idea that you have about
Enlightenment. As long as you think that Enlightenment is something that
can be understood by the mind, the cycle of blindly perpetuating your own
ignorance will never cease.

from "Enlightenment is a Secret" By Andrew Cohen

[NikolaiI]

Good are friends when need arises;
good is contentment with just what one has;
good is merit when life is at an end,
and good is the abandoning of all suffering.

Dhammapada 331

[NikolaiI]

As a human being related to all living beings we must first be
related to ourselves. We cannot understand, love and welcome
others without first knowing and loving ourselves.

~Jean Klein
'Who am I?'

[NikolaiI]

May all beings have happiness and the cause of happiness.
May they be free of suffering and the cause of suffering.
May they never be separated from the supreme happiness without suffering.
May they remain in the boundless equanimity free from both attachment and hatred ,
knowing the equality of all that lives.
The Four Immeasurables, Traditional Tibetan Buddhist Prayer

[NikolaiI]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You and I and everything in the universe
exist as a part of the endless flow of God's Love.
Realizing this, we recognize that all creation
is bound together with the same benevolence.
To harmonize with life is to come into accord
with that part of God which flows through all things.
To foster and protect all life
is both our mission and our prayer.

~ Morehei Ueshiba

[NikolaiI]

"Now we realise the reason why these qualities (Metta and Karuna) are called beautiful qualities, why they are divine qualities, because they help us to do something about our own suffering and they help us to do something about the suffering of others. And here again, as with loving-kindness, when you develop this quality of Karuna and when you can see that whatever help you have given is having the desired effect, you can be very happy about it. And when you can see that you can do something about your own suffering this can develop lots of self-confidence, and you can be happy that you have found a way to work with your suffering and have also found a way to eradicate the suffering of others."
http://www.godwin-home-page.net/Living-Meditation-HK-98/Basics-03.htm
From: The Basics of Buddhist Meditation
by Godwin Samararatne
Talks in Chi Lin Nunnery, Hong Kong
Day 3: 9th October 1998

[NikolaiI]

"Brahma Vihara. This is the place of the divine heart, the divine
dwelling place, of care. So it's interesting. . . Sometimes we have
this Western perspective and conditioning on 'God' [Brahma] that is a
judging, condemning God. From this perspective the Buddha is saying,
you know, 'You want to know what God is like? Compassionate; loving
and kind and friendly; appreciative of joy, of your own happiness and
the happiness of others; and equanimous, understanding the balance,
understanding that which we have power over and that which we don't
have power over. Understanding powerlessness. . . So curious, from
such a different perspective than what most of us think of as 'God.'

"But this is one way to think about what [is] the Buddhist
perspective on 'God'? The Buddha is saying that the Brahma Vihara,
the 'God Realm,' the 'God Home,' is that of being compassionate. That
place of being divine is that place of being friendly and kind,
loving and kind, towards your experience, towards others, other
beings."

~ Noah Levine, "The Four Brahma Viharas," Seattle Insight Meditation
Society

[NikolaiI]

Fill the brain with high thoughts, highest ideals, place them day and night before you, and out of that will come great work.
-Swami Vivekananda

[NikolaiI]

This life is a hard fact; work through it boldly, though it may be adamantine; no matter, the soul is stronger.
-Swami Vivekananda

[NikolaiI]

Someone asked Amma, "Why should one follow the spiritual path?"

Amma replied, "This is like the seed asking, "Why should I go beneath the soil, sprout and grow upward?"

[cafolini]

Someone asked Amma, "Why should one follow the spiritual path?"

Amma replied, "This is like the seed asking, "Why should I go beneath the soil, sprout and grow upward?"

I find Amma's response extremely naive and irrelevant. It is impossible to link the meaning of spirit to the scientific parameters of seed growth and development. And the seed does not seek going underneath the soil through any motivational means.

[NikolaiI]

'The vast majority of men are atheists. I am glad that, in modern times, another class of atheists has come into existence in the Western world — I mean the materialists. They are sincere atheists. They are better than the religious atheists, who are insincere, who fight and talk about religion, and yet do not want it, never try to realise it, never try to understand it. Remember the words of Christ: "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." These words are literally true, not figures or fiction. They were the outflow of the heart's blood of one of the greatest sons of God who have ever come to this world of ours; words which came as the fruit of realisation, from a man who had felt and realised God himself; who had spoken with God, lived with God, a hundred times more intensely than you or I see this building. Who wants God? That is the question. Do you think that all this mass of people in the world want God, and cannot get Him? That cannot be. What want is there without its object outside? Man wants to breathe, and there is air for him to breathe. Man wants to eat, and there is food to eat. What creates these desires? The existence of external things. It was the light that made the eyes; it was the sound that made the ears. So every desire in human beings has been created by something which already existed outside. This desire for perfection, for reaching the goal and getting beyond nature, how can it be there, until something has created it and drilled it into the soul of man, and makes it live there? He, therefore, in whom this desire is awakened, will reach the goal. We want everything but God. This is not religion that you see all around you. My lady has furniture in her parlour, from all over the world, and now it is the fashion to have something Japanese; so she buys a vase and puts it in her room. Such is religion with the vast majority; they have all sorts of things for enjoyment, and unless they add a little flavour of religion, life is not all right, because society would criticise them. Society expects it; so they must have some religion. This is the present state of religion in the world.

'A disciple went to his master and said to him, "Sir, I want religion." The master looked at the young man, and did not speak, but only smiled. The young man came every day, and insisted that he wanted religion. But the old man knew better than the young man. One day, when it was very hot, he asked the young man to go to the river with him and take a plunge. The young man plunged in, and the old man followed him and held the young man down under the water by force. After the young man had struggled for a while, he let him go and asked him what he wanted most while he was under the water. "A breath of air", the disciple answered. "Do you want God in that way? If you do, you will get Him in a moment," said the master. Until you have that thirst, that desire, you cannot get religion, however you may struggle with your intellect, or your books, or your forms. Until that thirst is awakened in you, you are no better than any atheist; only the atheist is sincere, and you are not.'

-Swami Vivekananda

[usman.khawar]

"In the name of God, most Gracious, most Compassionate".

Has there [not] come upon man a period of time when he was not a thing [even] mentioned?
Indeed, We created man from a sperm-drop mixture in order to try him; and We made him hearing and seeing.
Indeed, We guided him to the way, be he grateful or be he ungrateful.Indeed, We have prepared for the disbelievers chains and shackles and a blaze.

Indeed, the righteous will drink from a cup [of wine] whose mixture is of Kafur.
A spring of which the [righteous] servants of Allah will drink; making it flow in unstinted abundance.
They fulfill vows and fear a Day whose evil will be widespread.
And they give food in spite of love for it to the needy, the orphan, and the captive,
[Saying], "We feed you only for the countenance of Allah . We wish not from you reward or gratitude.
Indeed, We fear from our Lord a Day austere and distressful."
So Allah will protect them from the evil of that Day and give them radiance and happiness
And will reward them for what they patiently endured a garden( paradise whose width is more than the width and length of earth and skies) and silk [garments].
Reclining therein on raised thrones. They will not see therein any [burning] sun or [freezing] cold.
And near above them are its shades, and its [fruit] to be picked will be lowered in compliance.
And there will be circulated among them vessels of silver and goblets of crystal,
Crystal-clear [made] from silver of which they have determined the measure.
And they will be given to drink there of a Cup (of Wine) mixed with Zanjabil,-

A fountain within Paradise named Salsabeel.
There will circulate among them young boys made eternal. When you see them, you would think them scattered pearls.
And when you look there [in Paradise], you will see pleasure and Magnificent dominion.
Upon the inhabitants will be green garments of fine silk and brocade. And they will be adorned with bracelets of silver, and their Lord will give them a purifying drink.
"Indeed, this is for you a reward, and your effort has been appreciated."
Indeed, it is We who have sent down to you, [O Muhammad], the Qur'an progressively.
So be patient for the decision of your Lord and do not obey from among them a sinner or ungrateful [disbeliever].
And mention(Remember/celebrate) the name of your Lord morning and evening.
And during the night prostrate to Him and exalt Him a long [part of the] night.
Indeed, these [disbelievers] love the immediate (worldly life) and leave behind them a grave Day.
We have created them and strengthened their forms, and when We will, We can change their likenesses with [complete] alteration.
Indeed, this is a reminder, so he who wills may take to his Lord a way.
And you do not will except that Allah wills. Indeed, Allah is ever Knowing and Wise.
He admits whom He wills into His mercy; but the wrongdoers - He has prepared for them a painful punishment.

[NikolaiI]

Oh boy. Aren't there enough threads where you post the Koran, page by page?

[usman.khawar]

saying of God

" I (The self Existing One) was a Hidden treasure i wish to be recogonize so i created."

[NikolaiI]

We reap what we sow. We are the makers of our own fate. None else has the blame, none has the praise. - Swami Vivekananda

[cafolini]

We reap what we sow. We are the makers of our own fate. None else has the blame, none has the praise. - Swami Vivekananda

Ridiculous. People don't live in vaccuo. It's all relationship and a person or persons could be ruined by an infinity of natural, circumstantial situations, including crimes of all sorts. The crimes of men are as natural as anything else. Progress can only be made with good, well published laws.

[Alexander III]

Ridiculous. People don't live in vaccuo. It's all relationship and a person or persons could be ruined by an infinity of natural, circumstantial situations, including crimes of all sorts. The crimes of men are as natural as anything else. Progress can only be made with good, well published laws.

You are right I guess, in truth most of the bad that happens is not because of solely us; but as far as I am concurred, The blame may not be solely mine, but if I am the only one suffering I shall consider the blame as all mine. Otherwise everything shall be lost in the wind.

[cafolini]

You are right I guess, in truth most of the bad that happens is not because of solely us; but as far as I am concurred, The blame may not be solely mine, but if I am the only one suffering I shall consider the blame as all mine. Otherwise everything shall be lost in the wind.

I think most cultures have been trained in responsibility and irremediably in guilt. Catholicism and Christianism in general are very good examples. But I agree with you that if you were the only one suffering, whatever blame would be yours.
Anything is lost in the wind nevertheless. It's a good thing. Just try to imagine what would happen if it weren't the case. Can you imagine if BS could not go away? Can you imagine if the wind and silence did not clean and devour the vogue? How much room do you think there would still be available for new speeches?

[NikolaiI]

A few heart-whole, sincere, and energetic men and women can do more in a year than a mob in a century. - Swami Vivekananda

[paulanderson114]

The most difficult phase of your life is not when no one understands you, it's when you don't understand yourself... :wave:

[usman.khawar]

Chapter 50, Book Quran, Author : God (Allah)

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.



1. Qaf: By the Glorious Qur'an (Thou art Allah.s Messenger..
2. But they wonder that there has come to them a Warner from among themselves. So the Unbelievers say: "This is a wonderful thing!
3. "What! When we die and become dust, (shall we live again?) That is a (sort of) return far (from our understanding)."
4. We already know how much of them the earth takes away: With Us is a record guarding (the full account).
5. But they deny the Truth when it comes to them: so they are in a confused state.
6. Do they not look at the sky above them?- How We have made it and adorned it, and there are no flaws in it?
7. And the earth- We have spread it out, and set thereon mountains standing firm, and produced therein every kind of beautiful growth (in pairs)-
8. To be observed and commemorated by every devotee turning (to Allah..
9. And We send down from the sky rain charted with blessing, and We produce therewith gardens and Grain for harvests;
10. And tall (and stately) palm-trees, with shoots of fruit-stalks, piled one over another;-
11. As sustenance for ((Allah)'s) Servants;- and We give (new) life therewith to land that is dead: Thus will be the Resurrection.
12. Before them was denied (the Hereafter) by the People of Noah, the Companions of the Rass, the Thamud,
13. The 'Ad, Pharaoh, the brethren of Lut,
14. The Companions of the Wood, and the People of Tubba'; each one (of them) rejected the apostles, and My warning was duly fulfilled (in them).
15. Were We then weary with the first Creation, that they should be in confused doubt about a new Creation?
16. It was We Who created man, and We know what dark suggestions his soul makes to him: for We are nearer to him than (his) jugular vein.
17. Behold, two (guardian angels) appointed to learn (his doings) learn (and noted them), one sitting on the right and one on the left.
18. Not a word does he utter but there is a sentinel by him, ready (to note it).
19. And the stupor of death will bring Truth (before his eyes): "This was the thing which thou wast trying to escape!"
20. And the Trumpet shall be blown: that will be the Day whereof Warning (had been given).
21. And there will come forth every soul: with each will be an (angel) to drive, and an (angel) to bear witness.
22. (It will be said:) "Thou wast heedless of this; now have We removed thy veil, and sharp is thy sight this Day!"
23. And his Companion will say: "Here is (his Record) ready with me!"
24. (The sentence will be:) "Throw, throw into Hell every contumacious Rejecter (of Allah.!-
25. "Who forbade what was good, transgressed all bounds, cast doubts and suspicions;
26. "Who set up another god beside Allah. Throw him into a severe penalty."
27. His Companion will say: "Our Lord! I did not make him transgress, but he was (himself) far astray."
28. He will say: "Dispute not with each other in My Presence: I had already in advance sent you Warning.
29. "The Word changes not before Me, and I do not the least injustice to My Servants."
30. One Day We will ask Hell, "Art thou filled to the full?" It will say, "Are there any more (to come)?"
31. And the Garden will be brought nigh to the Righteous,- no more a thing distant.
32. (A voice will say:) "This is what was promised for you,- for every one who turned (to Allah. in sincere repentance, who kept (His Law),
33. "Who feared ((Allah)) Most Gracious Unseen, and brought a heart turned in devotion (to Him):
34. "Enter ye therein in Peace and Security; this is a Day of Eternal Life!"
35. There will be for them therein all that they wish,- and more besides in Our Presence.
36. But how many generations before them did We destroy (for their sins),- stronger in power than they? Then did they wander through the land: was there any place of escape (for them)?
37. Verily in this is a Message for any that has a heart and understanding or who gives ear and earnestly witnesses (the truth).
38. We created the heavens and the earth and all between them in Six Days, nor did any sense of weariness touch Us.
39. Bear, then, with patience, all that they say, and celebrate the praises of thy Lord, before the rising of the sun and before (its) setting.
40. And during part of the night, (also,) celebrate His praises, and (so likewise) after the postures of adoration.
41. And listen for the Day when the Caller will call out from a place quiet near,-
42. The Day when they will hear a (mighty) Blast in (very) truth: that will be the Day of Resurrection.
43. Verily it is We Who give Life and Death; and to Us is the Final Goal-
44. The Day when the Earth will be rent asunder, from (men) hurrying out: that will be a gathering together,- quite easy for Us.
45. We know best what they say; and thou art not one to overawe them by force. So admonish with the Qur'an such as fear My Warning!

--------
I(Usman) testify that there are no gods but Allah and there is no partner for Him. And I testify that certainly Muhammad (is) His (Man)worshipper and His Messenger.

[usman.khawar]

Oh boy. Aren't there enough threads where you post the Koran, page by page?

These are quotes for me.. :)

[usman.khawar]

Al-Balad (The City, This Countryside) Author :God

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.



1. I do call to witness this City;-
2. And thou art a freeman of this City;-
3. And (the mystic ties of) parent and child;-
4. Verily We have created man into toil and struggle.
5. Thinketh he, that none hath power over him?
6. He may say (boastfully); Wealth have I squandered in abundance!
7. Thinketh he that none beholdeth him?
8. Have We not made for him a pair of eyes?-
9. And a tongue, and a pair of lips?-
10. And shown him the two highways?
11. But he hath made no haste on the path that is steep.
12. And what will explain to thee the path that is steep?-
13. (It is: ) freeing the bondman;
14. Or the giving of food in a day of privation
15. To the orphan with claims of relationship,
16. Or to the indigent (down) in the dust.
17. Then will he be of those who believe, and enjoin patience, (constancy, and self-restraint), and enjoin deeds of kindness and compassion.
18. Such are the Companions of the Right Hand.
19. But those who reject Our Signs, they are the (unhappy) Companions of the Left Hand.
20. On them will be Fire vaulted over (all round).

[MANICHAEAN]

Most Englishmen, if forced into analysing their own creeds - which Heaven forbid - are convinced that God is an Englishman, probably educated at Eaton.

E.M. Delafield.

[MANICHAEAN]

Prayer must not be answered: if it is, it ceases to be prayer and becomes correspondence.

Oscar Wilde.

[MANICHAEAN]

I have always envisaged death and the Resurrection of the body as like finding your motorcar after a party.

Nancy Mitford.

[NikolaiI]

"It is a glorious destiny to be a member of the human race, though it is a race dedicated to many absurdities and one which makes many terrible mistakes: yet, with all that, God Himself gloried in becoming a member of the human race. … As if the sorrows and stupidities of the human condition could overwhelm me, now I realize what we all are. And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people they are all walking around shining like the sun. … it was as if I suddenly saw the secret beauty of their hearts, the depths of their hearts where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach, the core of their reality, the person that each one is in God’s eyes. If only they could all see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time. There would be no more war, no more hatred, no more cruelty, no more greed. . . . I suppose the big problem would be that we would fall down and worship each other."

-Thomas Merton

(italics mine)

[NikolaiI]

Your self-partiality is the root of all your illusions. There aren't any illusions when you don't have this preference for yourself.
-Bankei

[NikolaiI]

"Creativity springs from the yearning to be the fullness of who you are."
-Ram Dass

[NikolaiI]

a Native American planting initiation song

I have made a footprint, a sacred one.
Through it the blades push upward.
Through it the blades radiate.
Over it the blades float in the wind.
Over it I bend the stalk to pluck the ears.
Over it the blossoms lie.
Grey smoke arises from my house.
There is cheer in my house.
I live in the light of day.

[NikolaiI]

"You live an illusion in the appearance of things. You think you're this wave, or that wave, or this thought. When you see it, you will discover you are nothing, and being nothing, you are everything. That is all."
Kalu Rinpoche