Thought

"Miser do not go to heaven;

Fools indeed do not praise liberality

But the wise rejoice in giving

And thereby gain happiness thereafter"

Dhammapada 177

Truth

Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.

Unknown source

Chetan Bhagat's Reminder

The Other Truth

The thrashing truths, the scorching pains,
The mounting losses, the skimpy gains,
The misty dream, the distant call,
The flimsy mirage, the silent fall,
Reminds whoever you may be
Life is karma, life is destiny.

lopamudra

Debt

One midnight, deep in starlight still,
I dreamed that I received this bill:
“( . . . . . . . in account with Life):

Five thousand breathless dawns all new;
Five thousand flowers fresh in dew;
Five thousand sunsets wrapped in gold;
One million snow-flakes served ice-cold;
Five quiet friends; one baby’s love;
One white-mad sea with clouds above;
One hundred music-haunted dreams
Of moon-drenched roads and hurrying streams;
Of prophesying winds, and trees;
Of silent stars and browsing bees;
One still night in a fragrant wood;
One heart that loved and understood.”
I wondered when I waked at day,
How- how in God’s name- I could pay!

~ Cortland Sayres

The Brick

Faith

When you walk to the edge of all the light you have and take that first step into the darkness of the unknown, you must believe that one of two things will happen:

There will be something solid for you to stand upon, or, you will be taught how to fly.

© Patrick Overton
The Leaning Tree, 1975
Rebuilding the Front Porch of America, 1997

Pilgrim

Pilgrim, how you journey
On the road you chose
To find out why the winds die
And where the stories go.

All days come from one day
That much you must know,
You cannot change what’s over
But only where you go.

One way leads to diamonds,
One way leads to gold,
Another leads you only
To everything you’re told.

In your heart you wonder
Which of these is true;
The road that leads to nowhere,
The road that leads to you.

Will you find the answer
In all you say and do?
Will you find the answer
In you?

Each heart is a pilgrim,
Each one wants to know
The reason why the winds die
And where the stories go.

Pilgrim, in your journey
You may travel far,
For pilgrim it’s a long way
To find out who you are.

Buddha Quote

The Alchemist

Lessons Learnt

I've learned....
That the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.
I've learned....
That when you're in love, it shows.
I've learned....
That just one person saying to me, "You've made my day!" makes my day.
I've learned....
That being kind is more important than being right.
I've learned....
That you should never say "no" to a gift from a child.
I've learned....
That I can always pray for someone when I don't have the strength to help him in some other way.
I've learned....
That no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with.
I've learned....
That sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold and a heart to understand.
I've learned....
That simple walks with my father around the block on summer nights when I was a child did wonders for me as an adult.
I've learned....
That life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes.
I've learned....
That we should be glad God doesn't give us everything we ask for.
I've learned....
That money doesn't buy class.
I've learned....
That it's those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular. I've learned...
That under everyone's hard shell is someone who wants to be appreciated and loved.
I've learned....
That the Lord didn't do it all in one day. What makes me think I can?
I've learned....
That to ignore the facts does not change the facts.
I"ve learned...
I have the power to attract all the good things in my life NOW and thats a FACT!!!

Quote

It's only when we truly know and understand

that we have a limited time on earth -

and that we have no way of knowing

when our time is up,

we will then begin to live

each day to the fullest,

as if it was

the only one we had.

The Lotus Dance

Messages from The Masters

Live in the present, not the past or the future. The past is over; learn from it and let go. The future is not yet here. Plan for it, but do not worry. Worry only wastes your time and energy.

The Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh describes enjoying a good cup of tea. You must be in the present moment, mindful and aware, to enjoy the tea, to savor the sweet aroma, to taste the flavor, to feel the warmth of the cup. If you are ruminating about past events or worrying about the future ones, you will look down at your cup and the tea will be gone. You drank it, but you do not remember, because you were not aware.

Life is like that cup of tea.

The Winner Stands Alone

A seagull was flying over a beach, when it saw a mouse. It flew down and asked the mouse:
‘Where are your wings?’

Each animal speaks its own language, and so the mouse didn’t understand the question, but stared at the two strange, large things attached to the other creatures body.
‘It must have some illness,’ thought the mouse.

The seagull noticed the mouse staring at its wings and thought:
‘Poor thing. It must have been attacked by monsters that left it deaf and took away its wings.’

Feeling sorry for the mouse, the seagull picked it up in its beak and took it for a ride in the skies. ‘Its probably homesick,’ the seagull thought while they were flying. Then, very carefully, it deposited the mouse once more on the ground.

For some months afterwards, the mouse was sunk in gloom; it had known the heights and seen a vast and beautiful world. However, in time, it grew accustomed to being just a mouse again and came to believe that the miracle that had occurred in its life was nothing but a dream.

Stepping Stones

The Lord came to me like a dream one day and asked, why do you sorrow?
I answered, Lord my life is so full of pain, I can’t face one more tomorrow.

The Lord sat down beside me, and gently took my hand.
He said, Let me explain to you and then you’ll understand.

Each sorrow is a stepping stone you must surmount each day,
And every stepping stone you climb is a sorrow that’s passed away.

The road of life is a mountainside, with crevices in which to be caught,
But as you struggle on your way, I, the Rock, will lend support.

Every stepping stone you climb, makes spirit and heart grow strong.
Exercising character and faith this road seems painful and long.

The way is paved with stepping stones, to uplift your heart and soul,
Though difficult they aid your way, to a City paved with gold.

I know that you are tired, for I too have walked this way,
My sorrows did they multiply, but I cleared the stones away.

I left my rock to lift you up, I left behind my story.
To give you strength to make your climb, to that special place in glory.

And never fear, the Rock is here, you’ll never climb alone
Surmount life’s sorrows, continue on, for they are but stepping stones.

Please Forgive Me

"Forgive me for I don't know what I gain
Alone in this garden of pain.
Enchantment has but one truth:
I weep to have what I fear to lose."

Have you ever felt lonely? Lonely amidst plenty? Lonely when the kingfisher cries on a lazy summer afternoon? Lonely when a cloud caresses the moon and just drifts away? Lonely in so many undefinable moments?

You must have... even though nobody else might think so...some may laugh, some may find you weird and just some may understand.... but there's always one who will definitely know... YOU.

I sometimes wonder were we born lonely? Or do we feel lonely only when something is dead inside us... something dead inside of me?

Who was it that was trying to find answers by questioning and questioning? Socrates, perhaps? Yes, Socrates!

I am not talking about being lonely without parents or siblings or lover or spouse or friends... being lonely within, even though you are surrounded by them and the objects that can distract you from thinking like this.

Loneliness is a luxury few people enjoy. I say luxury because in this world of rat-race and show offs and noise who has the time to feel lonely anyway! But do you know it can actually help you take a journey inside of you? Just sit on loneliness and fly, fly away to that distant land from where you can observe all that you want to - about you and anything.

Its the call of the unseen, call of the unheard, call of the higher self. Higher Self? Soul - to put it simply.

OK! Have you ever felt torn apart? Torn apart between this and that? Who and what? How and when? Why and why not? Soul and body? You might ask what loneliness has to do with this! Don't you think this dilemma itself - this frustration of not getting an answer or seeming to get one but unable to put a finger on it - gives rise to loneliness? Otherwise why would you feel so? Everything and everybody is around you! Every imaginable material thing on earth is available for you! THEN? What is missing?

To quote an old song - "The answer is blowing in the wind, my friend, the answer is blowing in the wind."

"Forgive me for I don't know what I gain
Alone in this garden of pain
Enchantment has but one truth:
I weep to have what I fear to lose"

--- Tuomas Holopainen