A fasting person is in a state of worship even if asleep in bed. Every breath he takes while asleep is ‘tasbih’, and his sleep itself is worship.
He who trusts in God and makes an honest living to share with others and injures no one, nor harbours ill will against another need perform no other rituals.
To exercise forgiveness is a great act. Forgiveness is equal to ablutions at all places of pilgrimage. Forgiveness ensures your salvation. There is no virtue equal to forgiveness.
Those who read books cannot understand the teachings and, what’s more, may even go astray. But those who try to observe the things going on in the mind, and always take that which is true in their own minds as their standard; never get muddled.
Mankind is a great, immense family… This is proved by what we feel in our hearts at Christmas.
A human being has so many skins inside, covering the depths of the heart. We know so many things, but we don’t know ourselves!
The ornament of the night is the moon, that of the day is the sun. The ornament of the devotee is devotion, that of devotion knowledge. The ornament of knowledge is meditation, and that of meditation is renunciation. The ornament of renunciation, says Tulsi, is pure, unalloyed peace.
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.
Since you alone are responsible for your thoughts, only you can change them. You will want to change them when you realise that each thought creates according to its own nature. Therefore, start now to think only those thoughts that will bring you health and happiness.
Many teachers will tell you to believe; then they put out your eyes of reason and instruct you to follow only their logic. But I want you to keep your eyes of reason open; in addition, I will open in you another eye, the eye of wisdom.
