Recognizing a Master
“The Master is one with the spirit. He exemplifies the final attainment. He is what is as yet only a partially realized potential in your own being. You can “recognize” him only to the extent that you can feel the responses in your essence when like answers to like.”
–Sri Madhava Ashish (a.k.a. Alexander Phipps, British-born Hindu Mystic, Writer and Teacher 1920-1997)
The Fruits of Enlightenment
“Enlightenment – the awakening of insight that happens in yourself and is independent of others – makes it possible to create an everlasting world of beauty and harmony, the home of nirvana.”
–Yrjö Kallinen (Finnish Educator, Politician and Pacifist 1886-1976)
Finding Enlightenment
“We cannot win enlightenment for ourselves unless we are seeking it for all. Equally, however, we cannot be loving and kind to others, unless we are the same to ourselves.”
–Hugh l’Anson Fausset (English Writer, Literary Critic, Biographer,Poet and Scholar, 1895-1965)
The Value of the Quest
“But the important thing is not the finding, it is the seeking, it is the devotion with which one spins the wheel of prayer and scripture, discovering the truth little by little. If this machine gave you the truth immediately, you would not recognize it, because your heart would not have been purified by the long quest.”
–Umberto Eco (Italian Writer and Semiologist, 1932- )
The Fruits of the Divine Vision
“When the divine vision is attained, all appear equal; and there remains no distinction of good and bad, or of high and low.”
–Sri Ramakrishna (a.k.a. Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa, Indian Hindu Mystic and Promoter of Universal Religion, 1836-1886)
Realization
“It is false to speak of realization. What is there to realize? The real is as it is always. We are not creating anything new or achieving something which we did not have before. The illustration given in books is this. We dig a well and create a huge pit. The space in the pit or well has not been created by us. We have just removed the earth which was filling the space there. The space was there then and is also there now. Similarly we have simply to throw out all the age-long samskaras [innate tendencies], which are inside us. When all of them have been given up, the Self will shine alone.”
–Ramana Maharshi (Indian Hindu Mystic and Spiritual Teacher, 1879-1950)
Everyday Enlightenment
“God realization does not begin in a cave high atop the Himalayas. It begins in the pots and pans of the kitchen. treat all your tasks, however small, as opportunities to see God and serve him.”
–Sri Swami Sivananda (Indian Physician and Spiritual Teacher, 1887-1963)
Enlightened by Your Questions
“It is not the answer that enlightens but the question.”
–Eugène Ionesco (Romanian-born French Playwright, 1912-1994)
Enlightenment In A Flash
“Enlightenment, when it comes, will come in a flash. There can be no gradual, no partial, Enlightenment.”
–Huang Po (a.k.a. Huangbo Xiyun, Chinese Zen Buddhist Teacher and Poet, c.A.D.770-c.849)
An Empty Mind WIth A Body Full of Light and Heat
“Always keep your mind as bright and clear as the vast sky, the great ocean, and the highest peak, empty of all thoughts. Always keep your body filled with light and heat. Fill yourself with the power of wisdom and enlightenment.”
–Morihei Ueshiba (Japanese Martial Artist and Founder of Aikido, 1883-1969)
