God and the devil are the two extreme poles of the ego. One
represents perfection, the other limitation.
The moment man realizes when to speak, and when to keep silence,
he takes his first step in the path of wisdom.
Living in the world without insight into the hidden laws
of nature, is like not knowing the language of the country in
which one was born.
A continual pursuit after the impossible is the chronic disease
of man.
Seeking after that which is beyond one's reach is the oil
which feeds the flame of hope.
The surface of the human intelligence is the intellect; when
it is turned outside in, it becomes the source of all revelation.
Nothing is impossible; all is possible. Impossibility is
only a boundary of limitation which stands around the human
mind.
Facts lose their color in the face of truth, as stars pale
before the sun. It is not difficult at all to please the saint;
he can most easily be pleased. The difficulty is in pleasing
the other, who is the opposite of the saint.
So few in this world discriminate properly between their
want and their need.
A responsible person is worth more than a thousand men who
labor.
It is true that the light of wisdom must continually be kept
alight, but it is difficult always to act rightly.
Either you must pass from all things that interest you in
this life, or else they will pass you; for the nature of this
unstable life is changing.
Through every condition, agreeable or disagreeable, the soul
makes its way towards the goal.
The lover who leans upon the beloved's response, his love
is like the flame that needs oil to live; but the lover who
stands on his own feet, is like the lantern of the sun that
burns without oil.
A simple statement often takes away the charm of something
which may be left unsaid.
If people do not come up to your mark, do not become annoyed,
but rejoice, knowing that your mark is high.
The sense of discretion is instinctive, and it is the life
one lives that either shapes or deforms it.
There is no gain without sacrifice; if there be any, sacrifice
must follow.
Are you looking for an ideal soul? Such a person has never
been born. But if you still seek after him, then you will have
to create one of your own imagination.
When you have learned all there is to be learned, then you
will realize that there was nothing to be learned.
The moment a prisoner feels that he will no longer remain
in the prison, the prison bars must break instantly, of themselves.
Contentment raises man above the strife of worthless things
and beyond the limitation of human nature.
It is seldom that too little is said and too much is done,
but often the contrary.
The motive power is creative and constructive, yet it is
motive that limits the power which is limitless.
All pain is significant of change; all that changes for better
or worse must cause a certain amount of pain, for change is
at once birth and death.
All conventionality, that has limited the life of man and
has removed it far from nature, comes from sex distinction.
Man was sent into the artificial world that he might meet
every conventionality, in which lies all tragedy of life.
One who lacks imagination, and is of little faith, is unable
to tread the spiritual path.
Faith and imagination are wings of the bird that flies in
the spiritual spheres.
If the owl of Sophia had been as wise as she, it would not
have sat in her presence so spellbound.
Kindness which is not balanced with firmness may prove to
be weakness.
People are not only ready to profit by your wisdom, power,
and greatness, but they are also eager to take advantage of
your ignorance, weakness, and inability.
Being able to trust others apart, if you have learned to
trust yourself, you have accomplished something.
Every person has a place in life, and no one can hold a place
long that is not his own. By trying to look upon life not only
from one's own point of view but also from the point of view
of another, one loses nothing, but on the contrary widens the
horizon of one's view.
To express an impulse gives relief, but to control it gives
strength.
Perfection is attained by five achievements: life, light,
power, happiness, and peace.
By creating happiness, one fulfills one's life's purpose.
If dogs bark at the elephant, it takes no notice and goes
on its way; so do the wise when attacked by the ignorant.
There are many wrong paths, but there is one right way that
leads to the goal.
You will find reasons, whether you want to be pessimistic
or optimistic, to support your view.
The seer distinguishes between the real and the unreal, until
he arrives at a point where all to him becomes the reality.
When you do not concern yourself with the consequences, then
alone you may freely express your impulse.
One cannot be wise and foolish at the same time, for light
and darkness cannot dwell together.
Illuminated souls do not seek after occult powers; but occult
powers, by themselves, come to them.
It is not the heart of earth in which to confide, for it
brings forth all that is given to it in simple trust; it is
the soul of heaven which is trustworthy, for it assimilates
all in its own being.
Why? is an animal with a thousand tails. At every bite you
give it, it drops one of its curved tails and raises another.
Its hunger is never satisfied so long as its mouth is open.
Life is the longing of every soul; the one who seeks life through
death becomes immortal.
Those whom you have lost here, you will find in some other
place.
In the friendship, as well as in the hostility of the worldly,
there is pain.
"Yesterday I was not wise enough, today I understand, tomorrow
I will do better!" So man thinks and life goes on.
The prophet is the painter of that ideal which is beyond
man's comprehension.
What does it matter if Krishna was Christ, or Brahma was
Abraham? One thing is true: that there was, there is, and there
always will be a knower of God, a lover of souls, a server of
humanity.
The man who tries to prove his belief superior to the faith
of another, does not know the meaning of religion.
When a person argues on a problem, it does not always mean
that he knows it. Most often he argues because he wants to complete
his knowledge without admitting his ignorance.
The light illuminates the path of those who are distant from
it; those who are near are dazzled by it.
There can be no comparison between art and nature; for art
is as limited as man, but nature is as perfect as God.
Self-effacement does not in any way lessen; it only makes
one limitless.
Duty is not necessarily the purpose of life; still, in duty
one finds a road which leads one to the purpose of life.
No sooner is the God-ideal brought to life than the worshipper
of God turns into truth. Then truth is no longer his seeking;
truth becomes his being; and in the light of that absolute truth
he finds all knowledge.
It was not the Lord who was crucified, it was his limitation.
If an idol made of rock is made God by its worshippers, why
then should a personality not become Divinity for the devotees?
The one who makes fun of another, seldom knows that there
is something laughable in himself also.
Every man has his own reason; therefore, two persons cannot
always understand each other.
There is one thing to be said against the kind-hearted: that
they never can be kind enough.
Whether a small person loves you or hates you, in either
case he will pull you down to his own level.
To delve into a matter which matters little, is like raising
dust from the ground.
It is belief which in its perfection becomes faith.
Even a plain thought gets tangled when told to a person who
has a knot in his head.
When a thoughtful person risks falling at each step he takes
in the path of life, what about a thoughtless person?
Despair not if your friend has taken advantage of you, but
be contented, knowing that it was not your enemy.
There are habits which can best be prevented before one has
formed them. Once you have taken to a habit, then it is difficult
to give it up.
Rules of the world are different from the law of the path
that the mystics tread.
He who fights for justice in the affairs of this world, may
fight forever, for he will never find it; justice is only manifest
in the sum total of life.
When you stand on this earth and look at life, there is all
injustice and chaos everywhere; but when you rise above and
look below, it is all just and perfect, and everything appears
to be in its proper place. When man arrives at God-knowledge
from self-knowledge, he makes God as small as his little self;
but when he comes to self-knowledge through the knowledge of
God, he becomes as large as God.
The supreme law is that all is just and all is right. But
is this law to be proclaimed? No, it is to be understood.
The attribute is not important; it is the possessor of the
attribute who is important.
If someone can discover, with any authority, the true source
of happiness, he can find it only in pain.
Faith is the culmination of belief. It is that faith which
is the mystery of life, the secret of salvation.
It is not evidence which gives belief. Belief which stands
above evidences is that belief which, in the end, will culminate
in faith.
Belief is the food of the believer; it is the sustenance
of his faith. It is on belief he lives, not on food and water.
By learning to think, one develops dignity in nature. The
more one thinks, the more dignified one becomes, because dignity
springs out of thoughtfulness.
Reason belongs both to earth and heaven. Its depth is heavenly,
its surface earthly; and that which fills the gap in the form
of reason, between heaven and earth, is that middle part of
it which unites it. Therefore reason can be most confusing and
reason can be most enlightening.
The reason why man seeks for happiness is not because happiness
is his sustenance, but because happiness is his own being; therefore,
in seeking for happiness, man is seeking for himself.
Religion is not in performing a ceremony or a ritual; true
religion is the feeling, or the sense, of duty. Woman, whom
destiny has made to be man's superior, by trying to become his
equal, falls beneath his estimation.
What virtue is that, O righteous man, which gives no happiness?
If you have lost something, it means that you have either
risen above it or fallen below it.
Man expects another to place him in a higher position, but
the place to which he is equal, he takes himself.
The dead can give nothing living, nor can the living give
anything dead.
It is better that your enemy stands before your house rather
than that he should live under your roof.
White forces or dark forces, all will surrender to you with
the waxing of the moon of your life; but in the waning moon
they will show their influence.
It matters little whether you are on the top of the mountain
or at the foot of it, if you are happy where you are.
If you feel your thoughts, your thoughts will become your
being.
The one who is not moved to dance by the movements of an
innocent babe, has not yet risen from his grave.
One cannot praise God unless one makes of Him an ideal.
Watching with interest the winning ways of a little child,
is a wonderful love-making.
Every thing and every being is placed in its own place in
life, and each is busy carrying out that work which has to be
done in the whole scheme of nature.
A religious ritual, for a spiritual person, is but a recreation.
To find appropriate words to express an idea is more complicated
than painting a picture. Destiny can take your best friend as
an instrument to cause you harm, and your worst enemy to do
you good.
Power is utilized to its best advantage when it is used for
a good purpose.
If one lacks understanding, one is poor with all the goods
of the world one possesses; it is understanding which is the
true riches.
The man who complains about everything certainly has a complaint
somewhere in his head.
Sensation and exaltation are two things: pleasure comes from
sensation, happiness from exaltation.
No sooner do you begin to see the bad side of man's character
than you automatically throw a cover over the good side of his
nature.
Man, however great, must not claim perfection; for the blind
world can only see the limitation of his external being.
There are some souls who, if you do not make them your friends,
will become your enemies.
The one who wants to become a master must first pass through
an examination as a servant.
God cannot be good and perfect at the same time; it takes
good and bad both to make perfection.
Fools are not entitled to know the mystery which the wise
are supposed to possess.
The knowledge of truth does not suffice for imparting it
to others; one must know the psychology of human nature.
The purpose of life is fulfilled in rising to the greatest
heights and in diving to the deepest depths of life.
Peace will not come to a lover's heart so long as he will
not become love itself.
All things pertaining to spiritual progress in life depend
upon peace.
The most beautiful form of the love of God is His compassion,
His divine forgiveness.