Sri Sri Ravi Shankar · 206 pages
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“Faith is realizing that you always get what you need.”
“Today is a gift from God - that is why it is called the present.”
“When you share your misery, it will not diminish. When you fail to share your joy, it diminishes. Share your problems only with the Divine, not with anyone else, as that will only increase the problems. Share your joy with everyone.
Listen to others; yet do not listen. If your mind gets stuck in their problems, not only are they miserable, but you also become miserable.”
“In always wanting to be comfortable, you become lazy.
In always wanting perfection, you become angry.
In always wanting to be rich, you become greedy.”
“Activity and rest are two vital aspects of life. To find a balance in them is a skill in itself. Wisdom is knowing when to have rest, when to have activity, and how much of each to have. Finding them in each other - activity in rest and rest in activity - is the ultimate freedom.”
“Wise is the one who learns from another´s mistakes. Less wise is the one who learns only from his own mistakes. The fool keeps making the same mistakes again and again and never learns from them.”
“But joy is never tomorrow; it is always now.”
“More tiring than the work itself is the memory of hard work, just thinking you have worked hard interferes with the quality of rest. Some people take pride in working hard without any results. And there are others who crave for a long rest without knowing that true rest is in non-doership. Thinking you need rest makes you restless. Thinking you have to work hard makes you tired. Thinking you have worked hard brings self-pity.”
“If there is fear or confusion in your life, it is because you lack commitment. The very thought, "I am here in this world to do seva," dissolves the "i" and when the "i" dissolves, worries dissolve. Seva is not something you do out of convenience or for pleasure. The ultimate purpose of life is to be of service. An uncommitted mind is miserable. A committed mind may at times experience rough weather but it will reap the fruits of its toil. When you make service your sole purpose in life, it eliminates fear, focuses your mind and gives you meaning.”
“I say, drop all your defenses. Anyone can make a mistake — even you. Do not defend your mistakes; just accept them and move on. When you are totally defenseless, that is when you will be completely strong.”
“TOLERANCE Neither accept people as they are nor tolerate them. Many people think tolerance is a virtue but tolerance is actually a negative term. If you like something, you do not have to tolerate it. Tolerance indicates a deep sense of dislike that can at any time turn into hatred. It indicates a sense of separateness, small-mindedness, a limitation of consciousness. When you tolerate, it is a temporary state. Tolerance is a potential volcano. If you are tolerating, it means you are just holding on. Acceptance is also negative. You accept that which is not lovable. Tolerance and acceptance come with judgment and separation. Question: "But aren't we supposed to accept people as they are?" If you do not love them, then you have to accept them. I tell you, do not accept people as they are. Just love them as they are.”
“Dissolving the name is awareness. Dissolving the form is meditation. The world is name and form. Bliss transcends name and form. Bangalore Ashram, India September 24, 1997”
“Forgetfulness of the infinite is misery. Forgetfulness of the trivial is ecstasy.”
“If someone blames you directly, do not believe it. Just know that they are taking away your bad karma and let it”
“In science knowledge comes first and then faith follows. In spirituality faith comes first and then knowledge follows. The knowledge that pesticides and chemical fertilizers are good for plants came through science. Based on this knowledge, people had faith in pesticides and fertilizers and they were used all over the world. Then a different knowledge came and faith shifted to organic farming. Knowledge brought faith, the knowledge changed, and then faith changed. The knowledge and faith of science is of "happening." In spirituality, faith is first and knowledge comes later.”
“Bonds are made to be broken," he said. "Just like rules.”
“I don't want awards, I want my daughter. I wouldn't exchange a single eyelash of my daughter for the whole world.”
“- Que ondas enormes... - exclamou Thomas Buddenbrook.- Repara como se aproximam e rebentam, se aproximam e rebentam, uma atrás da outra, sem fim, sem propósito, mecânica e desordenadamente. E, no entanto, o seu marulhar é tão tranquilizador e reconfortante, como todas as coisas simples e necessárias da vida. Aprendi a gostar cada vez mais do mar... dantes, talvez preferisse as montanhas, porque ficavam mais longe daqui. Agora já não me atraem nada. Creio que apenas sentiria medo e vergonha. É que elas são muito caprichosas, tão irregulares, tão diversas... de certeza que me iria sentir muito pequeno ao pé delas. Que espécie de pessoas serão essas que preferem a monotonia do mar? Tenho a impressão de que são as que observaram por demasiado tempo- e com demasiada profundidade- as teias do seu mundo interior e que a única coisa que exigem agora, pelo menos do mundo exterior, é simplicidade... Não se trata de comparar as escaladas audazes pela montanha com o descanso sereno na areia da praia. Adiferença reside no olhar que se dirige numa e noutra direcção. Olhos seguros, obstinados e felizes, transbordantes de iniciativa, determinação e vitalidade, erram de cume em cume, ao passo que sobre a imensidão do mar- e das ondas que, conduzidas por um fatalismo místico e hipnótico, dançam e volteiam- repousa um olhar sonhador e velado, sábio e desalentado, o olhar de quem já alguma vez espreitou as profundezas e vislumbrou o triste caos da existência... Saúde e doença, é essa a grande diferença. Intrépidos, escalamos a extraordinária diversidade das montanhas denteadas e acidentadas, das alturas que rasgam os céus, a fim de pormos à prova a nossa vitalidade, intacta ainda. Repousamos, contudo, na ampla simplicidadedo mundo exterior, quando estamos cansados do caos que reina no interior.”
“The ability to imagine is the largest part of what you call intelligence. You think the ability to imagine is merely a useful step on the way to solving a problem or making something happen. But imagining it is what makes it happen.
This is the gift of your species and this is the danger, because you do not choose to control your imaginings. You imagine wonderful things and you imagine terrible things, and you take no responsibility for the choice. You say you have inside you both the power of good and the power of evil, the angel and the devil, but in truth you have just one thing inside you--the ability to imagine.”
“Just know that it’s fear that keeps most people working at a job. The fear of not paying their bills. The fear of being fired. The fear of not having enough money. the fear of starting over.
That’s the price of studying to learn a profession or trade, and then working for money. Most people become a slave to money… and then get angry at their boss.”
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