All created beings are unmanifest in their beginning, manifest in their interim state and unmanifest again when they are annihilated. So what need is there for lamentation?
You may control a mad elephant; You may shut the mouth of the bear and the tiger; Ride the lion and play with the cobra; By alchemy you may earn your livelihood; You may wander through the universe incognito; Make vassals of the gods; be ever youthful; You may walk on water and live in fire; But control of the mind is better and more difficult.
Familiarity with books is not knowledge. One’s entire life is a continuous process of learning.
What parents inculcate in the child is permanently there because childhood is the most impressionable time of life.
Fasting in the monastic community is considered an ascetic practice, a “dhutanga” practice. Dhutanga means “to shake up” or “invigoration”. The Buddha, as is well known, emphasized moderation, the Middle Way that avoids extremes, in all things. Fasting is an additional method that one can take up, with supervision, for a time.
Universal religion has no location in time or space. Its area is infinite, like the God it preaches. It is an experience. It is God-consciousness… All religions are challenged today by a common enemy: the rising tide of skepticism and secularism.
