Great Throughts Treasury

"We've replaced nearly all our emotions with fear… But I like all the others, I see this world as I would like to be, not as they really are… But not knowing which to do is the worst kind of suffering… But now I knew that true love was above all that and that it would be better to die than to fail to love… The greatest wisdom could be blinded by the glare of vanity… We see the evil in others because we know the evil in ourselves. We never forgive those who wound us because we believe that we would never be forgiven. We say the painful truth to others because we want to hide it from ourselves."

"Faith is not Desire. Faith is Will. Desires are things that need to be satisfied, whereas Will is a force. Will changes the space around us… Evil had to manifest itself and fulfill its role, so that ultimately Good could prevail... Evil needs to manifest itself, for them to understand the value of Good."

"No one should ever ask themselves that: why am I unhappy? The question carries within it the virus that will destroy everything. If we ask that question, it means we want to find out what makes us happy. If what makes us happy is different from what we have now, then we must either change once and for all or stay as we are, feeling even more unhappy."

"Generally speaking, these meetings occur when we reach a limit, when we need to die and be reborn emotionally. These meeting are waiting for us, but more often than not, we avoid them happening. If we are desperate, though, if we have nothing to lose, or if we are full of enthusiasm for life, then the unknown reveals itself, and our universe changes directions… Dreams mean work… Go further than you planned. Ask for the moon: you will be surprised how often you get it. "

"True love never keeps a man from pursuing his destiny… Because when everyone dreams, but only a few realize their dreams, that makes cowards of us all… Wherever your heart is, that is where you will find your treasure… Before a dream is realized, the Soul of the World tests everything that was learned along the way. It does this not because it is evil, but so that we can, in addition to realizing our dreams, master the lessons we’ve learned as we’ve moved toward that dream. That’s the point at which most people give up. It’s the point at which, as we say in the language of the desert, one dies of thirst just when the palm trees have appeared on the horizon. "

"Whatever the thing observed, one could find a connection with his experience of the moment."

"There are three things a child can teach an adult: To be happy for no reason; to be always busy doing something; And to know how to demand - with all one's might - what one wants."

"In theory, every loss is for our own good; in practice, though, that is when we question the existence of God and ask ourselves: What did I do to deserve this? …In the world around us. Merely be attentive to what happens in your life, and you will discover where, every moment of the day, He hides His words and His will. Seek to do as He asks: this alone is the reason you are in the world."

"You can become blind by seeing each day as a similar one. Each day is a different one, each day brings a miracle of its own. It's just a matter of paying attention to the miracle."

"Any given thing on the face of the earth could reveal the history of all things."

"We all prepare ourselves to slay dragons, but end up instead being devoured by the ants of the details that we never bothered to look at."

"We are responsible for everything that happens in this world. We are warriors of the light. With the strength of our love and of our will, we can change our destiny, as well as the destiny of many others."

"Only the following items should be considered to be grave faults: not respecting another's rights: allowing oneself to be paralyzed by fear; feeling guilty; believing that one does not deserve the good or ill that happens in one's life; being a coward. We will love our enemies, but not make alliances with them. They were placed in our path in order to test our sword, and we should, out of respect for them, struggle against them. We will choose our enemies."

"Every time you wish something, keep your eyes wide open, focus and know exactly what you want. No one hits the target with eyes closed."

"In any activity, we have to know what to expect, how to reach our objectives and what capacity we possess for the proposed task. The only people who can say they have renounced the fruit are those who, thus equipped, feel no desire for the results of the conquest, and remain absorbed in combat. You can renounce the fruit, but this renunciation does not mean indifference toward the result."

"Face your path with courage, don't be scared of people's criticism. And, above all, don't let yourself get paralyzed by your own criticism."

"No one lights a lamp in order to hide it behind the door: the purpose of light is to create more light, to open people's eyes, to reveal the marvels around."

"I discovered that searching can be as interesting as finding."

"Thousands of years ago, weren't we capable of building enormous structures like the pyramids? Weren't we capable of worshiping gods, weaving, making fire, finding lovers and wives, sending written messages? Of course we were. But although we've succeeded in replacing slaves with wage slaves, all the advances we've made have been in the field of science. Human beings are still asking the same questions as their ancestors. In short, they haven't evolved at all."

"We can never judge the lives of others, because each person knows only their own pain and renunciation. It's one thing to feel that you are on the right path, but it's another to think that yours is the only path."

"Our imagination is larger than the world around us; we go beyond our limits. This used to be called 'witchcraft,' but fortunately things have changed, otherwise we would both already have been burned at the stake. When they stopped burning women, science found an explanation for our behavior, normally referred to as 'female hysteria.' We don't get burned anymore, but it does cause problems, especially in the workplace. But don't worry, eventually they'll call it 'wisdom.'"

"When we step out of our normal world and leave behind us all the usual barriers and prejudices, we tend to become more adventurous."

"Everything is worship if your mind is focused on the present moment."

"The power of storytelling is exactly this: to bridge the gaps where everything else has crumbled."

"Omens are a language, it’s the alphabet we develop to speak to the world’s soul, or the universe’s, or God’s, whatever name you want to give it. Like an alphabet, it is individual, you only learn it by making mistakes, and that keeps you from globalizing the spiritual quest."

"A disciple... can never imitate his guide's steps. You have your own way of living your life, of dealing with problems, and of winning. Teaching is only demonstrating that it is possible. Learning is making it possible for yourself."

"A divided kingdom cannot defend itself from its adversaries. A divided person cannot face life in a dignified way."

"A flower is not better when it blooms than when it is merely a bud; at each stage it is the same thing ? a flower in the process of expressing its potential."

"A boy and a girl were insanely in love with each other, my mother?s voice was saying. They decided to become engaged. And that?s when presents are always exchanged. The boy was poor?his only worthwhile possession was a watch he?d inherited from his grandfather. Thinking about his sweetheart?s lovely hair, he decided to sell the watch in order to buy her a silver barrette. The girl had no money herself to buy him a present. She went to the shop of the most successful merchant in the town and sold him her hair. With the money, she bought a gold watchband for her lover. When they met on the day of the engagement party, she gave him the wristband for a watch he had sold, and he gave her the barrette for the hair she no longer had."

"A fall from the third floor hurts as much as a fall from the hundredth. If I have to fall, may it be from a high place."

"A boy was watching his grandmother write a letter. At one point he asked: ?Are you writing a story about what we?ve done? Is it a story about me?? His grandmother stopped writing her letter and said to her grandson: I am writing about you, actually, but more important than the words is the pencil I?m using. I hope you will be like this pencil when you grow up.? Intrigued, the boy looked at the pencil. It didn?t seem very special. ?But it?s just like any other pencil I?ve ever seen!? ?That depends on how you look at things. It has five qualities which, if you manage to hang on them, will make you a person who is always at peace with the world.? ?First quality: you are capable of great things, but you must never forget that there is a hand guiding your steps. We call that hand God, and He always guides us according to His will.? ?Second quality: now and then, I have to stop writing and use a sharpener. That makes the pencil suffer a little, but afterwards, he?s much sharper. So you, too, must learn to bear certain pains and sorrows, because they will make you a better person. ?Third quality: the pencil always allows us to use an eraser to rub out any mistakes. This means that correcting something we did is not necessarily a bad thing; it helps to keep us on the road to justice.? ?Fourth quality: what really matters in a pencil is not its wooden exterior, but the graphite inside. So always pay attention to what is happening inside you.? ?Finally, the pencil?s fifth quality: it always leaves a mark. in just the same way, you should know that everything you do in life will leave a mark, so try to be conscious of that in your every action"

"A great thing to argue, when we want to convince ourselves that what we say."

"A Gift is your way of serving the world."

"A journey is an adventure. Henry Miller said that it is far more important to discover a church no one has heard of, than go to Rome and feel obliged to visit the Sistine Chapel, with two hundred thousand tourists shouting all around you. Go to the Sistine Chapel, but also get lost in the streets, wander down alleyways, feel free to look for something, without knowing what it is. I swear you will find it and that it will change your life."

"A life is never useless. Each soul that came down to Earth is here for a reason."

"A live spent resisting temptations is a wasted life."

"A lot of people are prisoners of their own history, everyone believed that the goal of life is to follow the basic outline what... do not ask that this was never planned plot? they accumulate experiences... memories... stuff... and the ideas of others... and this exceeds what they can live up to their dreams and forget this"

"A life without a cause is a life without effect."

"A love that asks for nothing and gives nothing in return; it is simply there. I will never be yours and you will never be mine; nevertheless, I can honestly say: I love you."

"A lot of people think something is right, and so that thing becomes right."

"A man called Ali is in need of money and asks his boss to help him. His Boss sets him a challenge: if he can spend all night at the top of a mountain, he will receive a great reward; if he fails, he will have to work for free. When he left the shop, Ali noticed that an icy wind was blowing. He felt afraid and decided to ask his best friend, Aydi, if he thought he was mad to accept the wager. After considering the matter for a moment Aydi answered, Don't worry, I'll help you. Tomorrow night, when you're sitting on top of the mountain, look straight ahead. I'll be on top of the mountain opposite, where I'll keep a fire burning all night for you. Look at the fire and think of our friendship, and that will keep you warm. You'll make it through the night, and afterward, I'll ask you for something in return. Ali won the wager, got the money, and went to his friend's house. you said you wanted some sort of payment in return. Aydi said, Yes, but it isn't money. Promise that if ever a cold wind blows through my life, you will light the fire of friendship for me"

"A man doesn't prove he's a man by getting an erection. He's only a real man if he can pleasure a woman. And if he can pleasure a prostitute, he'll think he's the best lover on the block."

"A man runs into an old friend who had somehow never been able to make it in life. I should give him some money, he thinks. But instead he learns that his old friend has grown rich and is actually seeking him out to repay the debts he had run up over the years. They go to a bar they used to frequent together and the friend buys drinks for everyone there, ehen they ask him how he became so successful, he answers that until only a few days ago, he had been living the role of the Other. What is the Other? they ask. The 'Other' is the one who taught me what I should be like, but not what I am. The Other believes that it is out obligations to spend our entire life thinking about how to get our hands on as much money as possible so that we will not die of hunger when we are old. So we think so much about money and our plans for acquiring it that we discover that we are alive only when our days on earth are practically done. And then it's too late. And you? Who are you? I am just like everyone else who listens to their heart: a person who is enchanted by the mystery of life. Who is open to miracles, who experiences joy and enthusiasm for what they do. It's just that the Other, afraid of disappointment, kept me from taking actions. But there is suffering in life, one of the listeners said. And there are defeats. No one can avoid them. But it's better to lose some of the battles in the struggle for your dreams than to be defeated without ever even knowing what you're fighting for. That's it?, another listener asked. Yes, that's it. When I learned this, I resolved to become the person I had always wanted to be. The Other stood there in the corner of my room, watching me, but I will never let the Other into myself again - even though it has already tried to frighten me, warning me that it's risky not to think about the future. From the moment that I ousted the Other from my life, the Divine Energy began to perform its miracles."

"A man is also a woman; he wants to find someone, to give meaning to his life."

"A man only has a soul to be won or lost; apart from his life, he has nothing."

"A man spent hours watching a butterfly struggling to emerge from its cocoon. It managed to make a small hole, but its body was too large to get through it. After a long struggle, it appeared to be exhausted and remained absolutely still. The man decided to help the butterfly and, with a pair of scissors, he cut open the cocoon, thus releasing the butterfly. However, the butterfly?s body was very small and wrinkled and its wings were all crumpled. The man continued to watch, hoping that, at any moment, the butterfly would open its wings and fly away. Nothing happened; in fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its brief life dragging around its shrunken body and shriveled wings, incapable of flight. What the man ? out of kindness and his eagerness to help ? had failed to understand was that the tight cocoon and the efforts that the butterfly had to make in order to squeeze out of that tiny hole were Nature?s way of training the butterfly and of strengthening its wings. Sometimes, a little extra effort is precisely what prepares us for the next obstacle to be faced. Anyone who refuses to make that effort, or gets the wrong sort of help, is left unprepared to fight the next battle and never manages to fly off to their destiny."

"A man who fights for his dream suffers far more when something doesn?t go well, because he cannot use the famous excuse: oh, well in fact that wasn?t exactly what I wanted anyway."

"A man who seeks only the light, while shirking his responsibilities, will never find illumination. And one who keep his eyes fixed upon the sun ends up blind... It doesn't matter what others think -because that's what they will think, in any case. So, relax. Let the universe move about. Discover the joy of surprising yourself. The master says: Make use of every blessing that God gave you today. A blessing cannot be saved. There is no bank where we can deposit blessings received, to use them when we see fit. If you do not use them, they will be irretrievably lost. God knows that we are creative artists when it comes to our lives. On one day, he gives us clay for sculpting, on another, brushes and canvas, or a pen. But we can never use clay on our canvas, nor pens in sculpture. Each day has its own miracle. Accept the blessings, work, and create your minor works of art today. Tomorrow you will receive others. You are together because a forest is always stronger than a solitary tree, the master answered. The forest conserves humidity, resists the hurricane and helps the soil to be fertile. But what makes a tree strong is its roots. And the roots of a plant cannot help another plant to grow. To be joined together in the same purpose is to allow each person to grow in his own fashion, and that is the path of those who wish to commune with God. If you must cry, cry like a child. You were once a child, and one of the first things you learned in life was to cry, because crying is a part of life. Never forget that you are free, and that to show your emotions is not shameful. Scream, sob loudly, make as much noise as you like. Because that is how children cry, and they know the fastest way to put their hearts at ease. Have you ever noticed how children stop crying? They stop because something distracts them. Something calls them to the next adventure. Children stop crying very quickly. And that's how it will be for you. But only if you can cry as children do. If you are traveling the road of your dreams, be committed to it. Do not leave an open door to be used as an excuse such as, 'Well, this isn't exactly what I wanted. ' Therein are contained the seeds of defeat."

"A man's dignity isn't measured by the people he has around him when he's at the peak of his success, but by his ability not to forget those who helped him when his need was greatest."

"A man?s message of Faith lies in the way he lives his life and not in the words he says."