The Infinite is the source of joy. There is no joy in the finite. Only in the Infinite is there joy. Ask to know the Infinite
– Chandogya Upanishad..
The time of business does not with me differ from the time of prayer,
and in the noise and clatter of my kitchen, while several persons are at the same time calling for different things, I possess God in as great tranquility as if I were upon my knees at the blessed sacrament.– Brother Lawrence
Don’t mentally review any problem constantly.
Let it rest at times and it may work itself out; but see
that you do not rest so long that your discrimination is
lost. Rather, use these rest periods to go deep within
the calm regions of your inner Self.–Paramahansa Yogananda, “The Law of Success”
The East has lived religiously — that is one pole — and because it has lived religiously it
has not been able to produce science. The West has lived scientifically, and because of its
science it has lost track of religion. Now for the first time, the East is no more East and
the West is no more West. The earth is becoming one: the earth is becoming one. global
village. This is the time when the reconciliation can be seen, can be understood.
Man is entering into a new phase; a new consciousness is to dawn. For at least ten
thousand years, as far as consciousness is concerned, nothing new has happened. There
have been Buddhas and there have been Albert Einsteins, but we are still waiting for a
Buddha who is also an Albert Einstein or an Albert Einstein who is also a Buddha. The
day is coming closer and closer. Albert Einstein in his last days was very much interested
in meditation, in religion. His last days were full of wonder. He said in his old age, “I
used to think when I was young that sooner or later all the mysteries of existence would
be solved, and I worked hard. But now I can say that the more we know, the more
existence turns out to be mysterious. The more we know, the less we know and the more
we become aware of the vastness….”Osho Rajneesh
Twelve Words of Wisdom by Baba Fareed
1. Do not follow a truth which resembles a lie
2. Do not degrade yourself to achieve a rank
3. If you want the position of a saint, remain away from the kings family
4. Always find an excuse to do something good
5. Do not fight with anyone in a way leaving no chance to come back
6. Do not quit your activities because of other’s cold shoulder
7. Look the way you are, otherwise your true face will be unveiled automatically
8. Beware of a wise looking foolish man
9. Don’t buy a slave who is ready to be sold
10. A person should perform such deeds which keep him alive for ever
11. Truthful in love is a person who has only love and nothing else in his heart
Loghman of Sarrakhs cried: “Dear God, behold
Your faithful servant, poor, bewildered, old–
An old slave is permitted to go free;
I’ve spent my life in patient loyalty,
I’m bent with grief, my black hair’s turned to snow;
Grant manumission, Lord, and let me go.”
A voice replied: “When you have gained release
from mind and thought, your slavery will cease;
You will be free when these two disappear.”
He said: “Lord, it is You whom I revere;
What are the mind and all its ways to me?”
And left them there and then — in ecstasy
He danced and clapped his hands and boldly cried:
“Who am I now? The slave I was has died;
What’s freedom, servitude, and where are they?
Both happiness and grief have fled away;
I neither own nor lack all qualities;
My blindness looks on secret mysteries —
I know not whether You are I, I You;
I lose myself in You, there is no two.”Farid ud-Din Attar
From the Conference of Birds,
Lost in myself
I reappeared
I know not where
a drop that rose
from the sea and fell
and dissolved again;
a shadow
that stretched itself out
at dawn,
when the sun
reached noon
I disappeared.
I have no news
of my coming
or passing away–
the whole thing
happened quicker
than a breath;
ask no questions
of the moth.
In the candle flame
of his face
I have forgotten
all the answers.
In the way of love
there must be knowledge
and ignorance
so I have become
both a dullard
and a sage;
one must be
an eye and yet
not see
so I am blind
and yet I still
perceive,
Dust
be on my head
if I can say
where I
in bewilderment
have wandered:
Attar
watched his heart
transcend both worlds
and under its shadow
now is gone mad
with love.Farid ud-Din Attar
English version by Peter Lamborn Wilson and Nasrollah Pourjavady
Original Language Persian/Farsi
Do not lament if you see no lights or images in
meditation. Go deep into the perception of Bliss; there
you will find the actual presence of God. Seek not a
part but the Whole.—Paramahansa Yogananda, “Sayings of Paramahansa
Yogananda”
Not through a desultory life but through a regular
and balanced life will you receive the blessings of the
Masters. Then evil will never use you as an instrument.—Paramahansa Yogananda, in a talk to disciples
Christ came and lived among men to awaken the Christ-consciousness within them. Christ should be born in each one of you. Then alone you will understand spiritual life. Then alone you will try to live a perfect, divine life. Then alone you will realize the spirit of Christ, which is within each one of us. Every day should be a Christmas Day for us. So bring the spirit of Christ into your daily life. Behold Christ in everything, in all beings. Cultivate sympathy and mercy for all beings. Expand your heart and embrace all. Greet the Christ everywhere. Remember, Christ is in the saint and the sinner. Christ is in the dog and in the laborer. Christ is in all. And Christ is in you!
– Swami Sivananda
Glory to God in highest heaven,
Who unto man His Son hath given;
While angels sing with tender mirth,
A glad new year to all the earth.-Martin Luther
If this is to be a Happy New Year, a year of usefulness, a year in which we shall live to make this earth better, it is because God will direct our pathway. How important then, to feel our dependence upon Him!
– Matthew Simpson
Told to Sarada Devi: Just as Chanda Mama (`uncle’ moon) is the uncle of all children, so God is everybody’s Own. Whoever calls on Him will be blessed with His vision. If you call on him, you also will see Him
– Ramakrishna Paramhans
God can be realized; one can see and talk to Him as I am seeing and talking to you. But who cares? People shed torrents of tears for their wife and children, for wealth or property, but who does so for the sake of God? If one weeps sincerely for Him, He surely manifests Himself.
Swami Ramakrishna Paramhans
Even if it is agreed that Radha was not a historical personality and that the episode is imagined by some lover of God, why not fix your mind on the intense yearning of Radha and the Gopis for the Supreme? Why dwell on the expression? This may appear human to you, but the yearning and vision you must take as divine.
Swami Ramakrishna Paramhans
Anything that is secret and mysterious in these systems of yoga should be at once rejected. The best guide in life is strength. In religion, as in all other matters, discard everything that weakens you, have nothing to do with it.
Swami Vivekananda
All who have actually attained any real religious experience never wrangle over the form in which the different religions are expressed. They know that the soul of all religions is the same and so they have no quarrel with anybody just because he or she does not speak in the same tongue.
Swami Vivekananda
Be empty of worrying…. Why do you stay in prison when the door is so wide open?
Move outside the tangle of fear-thinking.~Rumi, (as interpreted by Coleman Barks)
The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, not to worry about the future, or not to anticipate troubles, but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly.
– The Buddha
Parvardigar the Preserver and Protector of all!
You are without Beginning, and without End,
Non-dual, beyond comparison, and none
can measure You.
You are without colour, without expression,
without form, and without attributes.
You are unlimited and unfathomable,
beyond imagination and conception,
eternal and imperishable.
You are indivisible; and none can see You,
but with Eyes Divine.
You always were, You always are, and
You always will be;
You are everywhere, You are in everything;
and You are also beyond everywhere
and beyond everything.
You are in the firmament and in the depths;
You are manifest and unmanifest, on
all planes and beyond all planes.
You are in the three worlds, and also
beyond the three worlds;
You are imperceptible and independent.
You are the Creator, the Lord of lords,
the knower of all minds and hearts;
You are omnipotent and omnipresent.
You are Knowledge Infinite, Power Infinite,
and Bliss Infinite.
You are the Ocean of Knowledge, all-knowing,
infinitely knowing, the Knower of the past,
the present, and the future, and You are
Knowledge Itself.
You are all-merciful and eternally benevolent;
You are the Soul of souls, the One with
infinite attributes.
You are the Trinity of Truth, knowledge, and
Bliss,
You are the Source of Truth, the Ocean of Love;
You are the Ancient One, the Highest of the High;
You are Prabhu and Parameshwar, You are the
Beyond-God, and the Beyond-Beyond God also,
You are Parabrahma, Allah, Elahi, Yezdan,
Ahuramazda, and God the Beloved.
You are named Ezad the only One
worthy of worship.– Meher Baba (Universal Prayer )
The friendship that exist between guru and disciple
is eternal. There is complete surrender, there is no
compulsion, when a disciple accepts the guru’s training.—Paramahansa Yogananda, “Man’s Eternal Quest”
The ability to exercise constant control over one’s low desire s is no mean achievement. Success in establishing a lasting sublimation of all desires is indeed a greater one. But the greatest is the burning away of all one’s desires once and for all, which divine love alone can do.
– Meher Baba (God Speaks)