The thing we have in common with everyone in the whole entire world (and, indeed, with every plant or animal) is life. Life binds us all, connects us all, strings us together no matter how different our forms and functions, no matter how varied our motives and methods. The value, the meaning of what we are is in the life we hold. The life goes, and the value goes with it. The meaning slips away. The identity fades into mist,... Read more
The Riddle of Life Annie Besant The divine life is the spirit in everything that exists, from the atom to the archangel; the grain of dust could not be were God absent from it; the loftiest seraph is but a spark from the eternal fire, which is God. Sharers in one life all form one brotherhood. The immanence of God, the solidarity of man, such are the basic truths of theosophy. [Source] The Splendour of God: The Seven Valleys Eric... Read more
We depend on our senses to give us accurate information about the world. More and more, though, we’re learning that our senses, and then our brains, might filter things out. Might neglect to give us important messages. Might not present a complete view of reality. Might distort and skew to match our expectations and our priorities rather than showing us what is. The Buddhist Bible: Chapter I. Discrimination Ed. Dwight Goddard All that is seen in the world is devoid... Read more
Bible: Genesis 1:1-5 King James Version (KJV) 1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. 3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light Day,... Read more
To see the beauty in the world, and in others, you have to start by seeing the beauty in yourself. You have to start by learning to love yourself, even with all the flaws and mistakes and errors. You learn to love yourself, even as broken as you might be, by realizing that the brokenness is not you. The errors are not you. The mistakes are not you. The flaws are not you. They are signs of your struggle to... Read more
You ever have those days when all you feel and see are your own failures? I hate those days. The mistakes leer at me, big and small, overwhelming any sense of worth or accomplishment. The tiny things, like how the house isn’t clean and we ate fast food again and all the way up from there, every failure and mistake, every omission and error. And standing there, seeing only my failures, I see myself reflected back from them as worthless,... Read more
Darkness is lack of light, as sin is lack of love. It has no unique properties of its own. It is an example of the "scarcity" fallacy, from which only error can proceed. Truth is always abundant. Read more
When you’re not afraid, you don’t have to be ashamed. You don’t have to defend. You don’t have to control. Fear involves internal torment: the anticipation of failing, of not meeting the standard, of incurring wrath, of receiving punishment, of being rejected, of experiencing pain. Torment comes from the unknown, the uncontrollable, the anticipation of pain in one way or another. Pagan and Christian Creeds: Their Origin and Meaning Edward Carpenter The immense force and domination of Fear in the first self-conscious... Read more
The Kingdom of God Is Within You Leo Tolstoy Besides, apologies for violence used against one’s neighbor in defense of another neighbor from greater violence are always untrustworthy, because when force is used against one who has not yet carried out his evil intent, I can never know which would be greater—the evil of my act of violence or of the act I want to prevent. We kill the criminal that society may be rid of him, and we never... Read more
The Cloud Upon the Sanctuary by Karl Von Eckartshausen God alone is substance, absolute truth; He alone is He who is, and we are what He has made us. For Him, all exists in Unity; for us, all exists in multiplicity. All disputes, all controversies, all the things belonging to the false cares of this world, fruitless discussions, useless germs of opinions which spread the seeds of disunion, all error, schisms, and systems are banished. Neither calumny nor scandal are... Read more
Sacred Readings
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