If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough.
Do not imagine that your reason can grow to the knowledge of God.
To be receptive to the highest truth, and to live therein, a man must needs be without before and after, untrammelled by all his acts or by any images he ever perceived, empty and free, receiving the divine gift in the eternal Now.
Spirituality is not to be learned by flight from the world, or by running away from things, or by turning solitary and going apart from the world. Rather, we must learn an inner solitude wherever or with whomsoever we may be. We must learn to penetrate things and find God there.
Nothing in all creation is so like God as stillness.
Truly, it is in the darkness that one finds the light, so when we are in sorrow, then this light is nearest of all to us.
Wisdom consists in doing the next thing you have to do, doing it with your whole heart, and finding delight in doing it.
The price of inaction is far greater than the cost of making a mistake.
I tell you the truth, any object you have in your mind, however good, will be a barrier between you and the inmost Truth.
Theologians may quarrel, but the mystics of the world speak the same language.
There exists only the present instant... a Now which always and without end is itself new. There is no yesterday, nor any tomorrow, but only Now, as it was a thousand years ago and as it will be a thousand years hence.
To be full of things is to be empty of God. To be empty of things is to be full of God.
You may call God love; you may call God goodness. But the best name for God is compassion.
He who would be serene and pure needs but one thing, detachment.
When we are no longer able to change a situation?we are challenged to change ourselves.
Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lie our growth and our freedom.
Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms?to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way.
What is to give light must endure burning.
Live as if you were living a second time, and as though you had acted wrongly the first time.
The one thing you can’t take away from me is the way I choose to respond to what you do to me.
Those who have a 'why' to live, can bear with almost any 'how'.
Our greatest freedom is the freedom to choose our attitude.
For what then matters is to bear witness to the uniquely human potential at its best, which is to transform a personal tragedy into a triumph, to turn one’s predicament into a human achievement.
Dostoevski said once, "There is only one thing I dread: not to be worthy of my sufferings." These words frequently came to my mind after I became acquainted with those martyrs whose behavior in camp, whose suffering and death, bore witness to the fact that the last inner freedom cannot be lost. It can be said that they were worthy of the their sufferings; the way they bore their suffering was a genuine inner achievement. It is this spiritual freedom?which cannot be taken away?that makes life meaningful and purposeful.
Only when human beings are able to perceive and acknowledge the Self in each other can there be real peace.
There is no difference between the Creator and creation, just as there is no difference between the ocean and its waves.
If we focus on the eternal, we will remain unaffected by the changing experiences of life.
Keep the child within alive. A child never tires of hearing the birds sing, never gets bored looking at flowers.
See God in everything.
Instead of using a magnifying glass to look at others' faults, use a mirror to look at our own.
Stop identifying with the world created by your mind, and a new world will open up before you.
Fill your hearts with compassion, then alone God can shine within.
Finding fault in others, just for the sake of finding fault, will pollute our own minds.
The main purpose of education should be to impart a culture of the heart.
Get rid of the ego to know the reality.
Along with an understanding of the outer world, it is essential that we also come to know the inner world.
If we continuously maintain self-awareness, we will be able to experience peace and happiness.
Keep a close watch on the mind! It is a clever liar that stops you from being aware of your true nature, the Self.
The mind that is attached to a thousand different things, pulls you in all directions.
The past is like a cancelled cheque; it's futile to brood over it.
The real meaning of the scriptures can only be known in the silence of the mind.
While carrying responsibilities, never forget to smile.
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
He who knows others is wise; He who knows himself is enlightened.
To know that you do not know is the best. To pretend to know when you do not know is a disease.
Manifest plainness, Embrace simplicity, Reduce selfishness, Have few desires.
If you realize that all things change, there is nothing you will try to hold on to. If you are not afraid of dying, there is nothing you cannot achieve.
Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.
In dwelling, live close to the ground. In thinking, keep to the simple. In conflict, be fair and generous. In governing, don't try to control. In work, do what you enjoy. In family life, be completely present.
If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.
Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them?that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.
Silence is a source of great strength.
To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders.
The key to growth is the introduction of higher dimensions of consciousness into our awareness.
Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.
It is better to travel well than to arrive.
Have compassion for all beings, rich and poor alike; each has their suffering. Some suffer too much, others too little.
In a controversy the instant we feel anger we have already ceased striving for the truth, and have begun striving for ourselves.
You will not be punished for your anger; you will be punished by your anger.
The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.
When you realize how perfect everything is you will tilt your head back and laugh at the sky.
The mind is everything. What you think you become.
The way to Peace lies in the remembrance of Him and of Him alone.
Just as one does not water the leaves of a tree but its roots, so also one has to grapple with man’s disease at its root. Man’s root lies in the brain. Therefore the remedy for all ills is to still the mind. When man’s mind has been stilled, all will be well with him, both physically and psychologically.
Reality is beyond speech and thought. Only that which can be expressed in words is being said. But what cannot be put into language is indeed that which IS.
There are two kinds of pilgrims on life’s journey: the one, like a tourist, is keen on sight-seeing, wandering from place to place, flitting from one experience to another for the fun of it. The other treads the path that is consistent with man’s true being and leads to his real home, to Self-knowledge. Sorrow will of a certainty be encountered on the journey undertaken for the sake of sightseeing and enjoyment. So long as one’s real home has not been found, suffering is inevitable. The sense of separateness is the root cause of misery, because it is founded on error, on the conception of duality.
Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.
I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become.
You are what you do, not what you say you'll do.
The privilege of a lifetime is to become who you truly are.
There's no coming to consciousness without pain.
It is often tragic to see how blatantly a man bungles his own life and the lives of others yet remains totally incapable of seeing how much the whole tragedy originates in himself, and how he continually feeds it and keeps it going.
Only if we know that the thing that truly matters is the infinite can we avoid fixing our interests upon futilities, and upon all kinds of goals that are not of real importance.
It all depends on how we look at things, and not how they are in themselves.
The wound is the place where the Light enters you.
Sell your cleverness and buy bewilderment.
Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.”
Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.
Silence is the language of God?all else is poor translation.
This being human is a ‘guest house’. Every morning is a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor...Welcome and entertain them all. Treat each guest honorably. The dark thought, the shame, the malice.. meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in. Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.
Two there are who are never satisfied: the lover of the world and the lover of knowledge.
Suffering is a gift. In it is hidden mercy.
Start a huge, foolish project, like Noah?it makes absolutely no difference what people think of you.
Be melting snow. Wash yourself of yourself.
Sorrow prepares you for joy. It violently sweeps everything out of your house, so that new joy can find space to enter. It shakes the yellow leaves from the bough of your heart, so that fresh, green leaves can grow in their place. It pulls up the rotten roots, so that new roots hidden beneath have room to grow. Whatever sorrow shakes from your heart, far better things will take their place.
In Silence there is eloquence. Stop weaving and see how the pattern improves.
What hurts you, blesses you. Darkness is your candle.
These pains you feel are messengers. Listen to them.
Put your thoughts to sleep, do not let them cast a shadow over the moon of your heart. Let go of thinking.
You have to keep breaking your heart until it opens.
Let silence take you to the core of life.
Learn the alchemy true human beings know. The moment you accept what troubles you've been given, the door within opens.
This place is a dream. Only a sleeper considers it real. Then death comes like dawn, and you wake up laughing at what you thought was your grief.
Look past your thoughts, so you may drink the pure nectar of This Moment.
You have forgotten the One who doesn't care about ownership, who doesn't try to turn a profit from every human exchange.
Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.
Move outside the tangle of ‘fear-thinking’. Live in silence.
Let go of your mind and then be mindful. Close your ears and listen!
The intelligent desire self-control; children want candy.
Hear blessings dropping their blossoms around you.
This silence, this moment, every moment, if it’s genuinely inside you, brings what you need. There’s nothing to believe. Only when I stopped believing in myself did I come into this beauty.
Sit quietly, and listen for a voice that will say, “Be more silent.” Die and be quiet. Quietness is the surest sign that you’ve died. Your old life was a frantic running from silence. Move outside the tangle of ‘fear-thinking’.
If you look too closely at the form, you'll miss the essence
No one can tell if I’m laughing or weeping. I wonder myself. How can I be separated and yet in union?
I looked in temples, churches, and mosques. But I found the Divine within my heart.
There is the Music of Heaven in all things and we have forgotten how to hear it until we sing.
Underneath all the texts, all the sacred psalms and canticles, these watery varieties of sounds and silences, terrifying, mysterious, whirling and sometimes gestating and gentle must somehow be felt in the pulse, ebb, and flow of the music that sings in me. My new song must float like a feather on the breath of God.
You are the living light in every respect. From You all light shines.
Every element has a sound, an original sound from the order of God; all those sounds unite like the harmony from harps and zithers.
The earth that sustains humanity must not be injured; it must not be destroyed.
When the words come, they are merely empty shells without the music. They live as they are sung, for the words are the body and the music the spirit.
Live each present moment completely and the future will take care of itself. Fully enjoy the wonder and beauty of each instant. Practice the presence of peace. The more you do that, the more you will feel the presence of that power in your life.
Forget the past, for it is gone from your domain! Forget the future, for it is beyond your reach! Control the present! Live supremely well now! This is the way of the wise...
The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.
Stillness is the altar of spirit.
The power of unfulfilled desires is the root of all man’s slavery.
Millions of people never analyze themselves. Mentally they are mechanical products of the factory of their environment, preoccupied with breakfast, lunch, and dinner, working and sleeping, and going here and there to be entertained. They don’t know what or why they are seeking, nor why they never realize complete happiness and lasting satisfaction. By evading self-analysis, people go on being robots, conditioned by their environment. True self-analysis is the greatest art of progress.
Learn how to play the various parts of your life-movie without identifying your role with your Self. It is important to remember, whenever pain or anger or any kind of mental or physical suffering comes, look upon them as a spectator would. Dissociate yourself from your experiences. Looking upon them as though they were happening to another person is the best way.
Before you go to bed each night, sit for a short time and review the day. See what you are becoming. Do you like the trend of your life? If not, change it. By self-analysis and constant watching of all your actions and thoughts and moods, you will gradually learn your true nature and how to express if flawlessly.
Nothing may truly be said to be a ‘miracle’ except in the profound sense that everything is a miracle. That each of us is encased in an intricately organized body, and is set upon an earth whirling through space among the stars?is anything more commonplace or more miraculous?
Suffering is a good teacher to those who are quick and willing to learn from it. But it becomes a tyrant to those who resist and resent.
Desire is what holds you in mortal bondage. If you want a big home on a hill with a view, a nice income, a good marriage and family, you may wear yourself out striving to get these things, then perhaps your spouse leaves you for somebody else, or you get sick, or your business fails?that is the nature of human happiness.
Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.
If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
If you are humble nothing will touch you, neither praise nor disgrace, because you know what you are.
Love to be real, it must cost?it must hurt?it must empty us of self.
God is the friend of silence. See how nature?trees, flowers, grass?grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence. We need silence to be able to touch souls.
We too are called to withdraw at certain intervals into deeper silence and aloneness with God, together as a community as well as personally; to be alone with Him?not with our books, thoughts, and memories but completely stripped of everything?to dwell lovingly in His presence, silent, empty, expectant, and motionless.
The trees, the flowers, the plants grow in silence. The stars, the sun, the moon move in silence. Silence gives us a new perspective.
Some people come in our life as blessings. Some come in your life as lessons.
God doesn't ask that we succeed in everything, but that we are faithful. However beautiful our work may be, let us not become attached to it. Always remain prepared to give it up, without losing your peace.