Hinduism
What was and is and is yet to be, All of it is Om; And whatever else the three times transcends, that too is Om.
Realization means nothing but pure and selfless service of all living creatures... Realization of truth is impossible without a complete merging of oneself in and identification with this limitless ocean of life... hence, for me, there is no escape from social service; there is no happiness on earth beyond or apart from it.
Than this yet more exalted is that which has no form, no imperfection: Whoso knows this becomes immortal, The rest must suffer misery.
1. R. C. Zaehner. Hindu Scriptures (London: J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1968), 201. 2. Jordens, J.T. F. Gandhi’s Religion (London: Macmillan Press Ltd. 1998), 243. 3. R. C. Zaehner. Hindu Scriptures (London: J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1968), 208.
Taoism
The Tao is like an empty bowl, which in being used can never be filled up. Fathomless, it seems to be the origin of all things.
Only he who is willing to give his body for the sake of the world is fit to be entrusted with the world. Only he who can do it with love is worthy of being the steward of the world.
Tao can be talked about, but not the Eternal Tao. Names can be named, but not the Eternal Name.
1. Tzu, Lao. Tao Teh Ching (Boston: Shambhala Publications 2003), 9. 2. Tzu, Lao. Tao Teh Ching (Boston: Shambhala Publications 2003), 27. 3. Tzu, Lao. Tao Teh Ching (Boston: Shambhala Publications 2003), 3.
Tibetan Buddhism
With continued contemplation and practice in letting go, we come to uncover in ourselves “something” we cannot name or describe or conceptualize, “something” that we begin to realize lies behind all the changes and deaths of the world.
What need is there to say more? The childish work for their own benefit, The buddhas work for the benefit of others. Just look at the difference between them.
In the West, people tend to be absorbed by what I would call the “technology of meditation.” The modern world, after all, is fascinated by mechanisms and machines, and addicted to purely practical formulae. But by far the most important feature of meditation is not the technique, but the spirit: the skillful, inspired, and creative way in which we practice.
1. Sogyal Rinpoche. The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying (San Francisco: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. 2002), 40.
2. Shantideva, A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life (Bodhicaryavatara), Translated by Stephen Batchelor (Dharmasala: Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, 1979), 120.
3. Sogyal Rinpoche. The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying (San Francisco: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. 2002), 65-66.
Zen
The world is neither inner nor outer. It is vital and complete in any object of contemplation -the breath, the tip of the nose, a kung-an, or anything else, as tiny as a speck of dust or as huge as a mountain. Whatever the object, it is not fragmented from ultimate reality. In fact, it contains the vast totality of reality.
True love is possible only with real understanding. Buddhist meditation -stopping, calming, and looking deeply- is to help us understand better.
All sutras and Dharmas are wonderful pictures for showing a hungry man what a banana actually looks like. If not attached to these pictures, he will learn from them what a banana looks like, go buy one himself, and eat it. Only eating the actual banana will take away his suffering; the pictures cannot do this.
1. Thich Nhat Hanh. The Sun My Heart (Berkeley: Parallax Press, 1988), 63.
2. Thich Nhat Hanh. Living Buddha Living Christ (New York: Riverhead Books, 1995), 84. 3. Seung Shan. The Compass of Zen (Boston: Shambhala Publications, Inc., 1997), 223.
Judaism
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6: 4 & 5
Hear O Israel: The Lord our God is One. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy spirit, and with all thy might.
Vayiqra (Leviticus) 19:18
Thou shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but shall love thy neighbor as thyself.
Yirmyah (Jeremiah) 2:7-9
The priests said not: “Where is the Lord?” And they that handle the Law knew Me not, and the rulers transgressed against Me; the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.
“Wherefore I will yet plead with you,” saith the Lord, “And with your children’s children will I plead.”
1. The Holy Scriptures According to the Masoretic Text (Chicago: The Lakeside Press 1917), 221. 2. The Holy Scriptures According to the Masoretic Text (Chicago: The Lakeside Press 1917), 143. 3. The Holy Scriptures According to the Masoretic Text (Chicago: The Lakeside Press 1917), 562.
Christianity
John 14:20
A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. At that day you will realize that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you.
Matthew 7:12
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 23:23
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.
1. The Holy Bible, The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1985), 1215.
2. The Holy Bible, New International Version (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Bible Publishers, 1978), 1298.
3. The Holy Bible, The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1985), 1116.
Islam
Āl ‘Imrān (Surah 3):2
Allah, there is no God but He, the Living, the Everlasting.
Al Balad (Surah 90):17
Then, being one of those who believe, command steadfastness to each other and command compassion.
Āl ‘Imrān (Surah 3):144
Muhammad is but a Messenger, messengers (the like of whom) have passed away before him. Will it be that, when he dies or is slain, you will turn back on your heels? He who turns back does no hurt to Allah, and Allah will reward the thankful.
1. Fakhry, Majid. An Interpretation Of The Qur’an (New York: New York University Press, 2004), 54.
2. Fakhry, Majid. An Interpretation Of The Qur’an (New York: New York University Press, 2004), 623.
3. Pickthall, M. M. The Meaning Of The Glorious Qur’an, An Explanatory Translation (Beltsville: Amana Publications, 2002), 61.
Physics
The “world” is in this sense also a continuum; for to every event there are as many “neighboring” events (realized or at least thinkable) as we care to choose, the coordinates x1, y1, z1, t1, of which differ by an indefinitely small amount from those of the event x, y, z, t, originally considered.
A human being is part of a whole, called by us the “Universe,” a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated from the rest-a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circles of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.
In a very real sense, once the field of physics went beyond its traditional task of describing macroscopic reality and attempted to create maps for other realities, it became as much the study of knowledge per se as the study of things. Physics also becomes, in this way, a study of ourselves: how we know things, what the limits are on what we can know, and how we know when we have reached those limits.
1. Einstein, Albert. Relativity (New York: Crown Publishers, 1961), 55-56.
2. Albert Einstein, Ideas and Opinions, translated by Sonja Bargmann (New York: Crown Publishers, 1954), quoted in Weber, ed., Dialogue with Scientists and Sages, 203.
3. Tavel, Morton. Contemporary Physics and the Limits of Knowledge (New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 2002), 23.
Algonquin
The wisdom of the creator is in all things at all times, not like a hand forcing things where they do not want to go, but a natural gravity of the spirit.
There are no selfish or unselfish acts, only foolish and wise ones.
You don’t need a temple or church to see God, God is all around us. You don’t need any kind of building or book to worship God, because the open air of nature is the highest and most sacred place to find God.
1. Pritchard, Evan T. No Word for Time (Tulsa: Council Oaks Books, 1997), 112.
2. Pritchard, Evan T. No Word for Time (Tulsa: Council Oaks Books, 1997), 50.
3. Pritchard, Evan T. No Word for Time (Tulsa: Council Oaks Books, 1997), 141.
