In religion and politics people’s beliefs and convictions are in almost every case gotten at second-hand
You look at it, but it is not to be seen; Its name is Formless. You listen to it, but it is not to be heard; Its name is Soundless. You grasp it, but it is not to be held; Its name is Bodiless. These three elude all scrutiny. And hence they blend and become one.
The modern habit of doing ceremonial things unceremoniously is no proof of humility; rather it proves the offender’s inability to forget himself in the rite, and his readiness to spoil for everyone else the proper pleasure of ritual.
Do you become spiritual by performing ceremonies and rituals…? Ceremonies and rituals sometimes give a certain sensation, so-called uplift. But they are repetitious, and every sensation that is repeated soon wearies of itself.
