Great Throughts Treasury

This site is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Alan William Smolowe who gave birth to the creation of this database.

Related Quotes

Billy Graham, formally William Franklin "Billy" Graham

The foundations of civilization are no stronger and no more enduring that the corporate integrity of the homes on which they rest. If the home deteriorates, civilization will crumble and fall.

Civilization | Integrity | Rest | Will |

Bhagavad Gītā, simply known as Gita NULL

A man's own self is his friend, a man's own self is his foe.

Friend | Man | Self |

Ramana Maharshi, fully Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi

Self-enquiry leads directly to Self-realization by removing the obstacles which make you think that the Self is not already realized.

Self | Self-realization | Think |

Bhagavad Gītā, simply known as Gita NULL

He who has conquered himself by the Self, he is a friend of himself; but he whose self is unconquered, his self acts as his own enemy like an external foe.

Enemy | Friend | Self |

Brihad-aranyaka Upanishad

As a goldsmith, taking a piece of gold, turns it into another, newer, and more beautiful shape, even so does the Self after throwing away this body and dispelled its ignorance, making unto himself another, newer and more beautiful shape like that of the gods.

Body | Gold | Ignorance | Self |

Charles Caleb Colton

It has been shrewdly said that when men abuse us, we should suspect ourselves, and when they praise us, them. It is a rare instance of virtue to despise censure which we do not deserve, and still more rare to despise praise, which we do. But that integrity that lives only on opinion would starve without it.

Abuse | Censure | Despise | Integrity | Men | Opinion | Praise | Virtue | Virtue |

Brihad-aranyaka Upanishad

The Self is to be described as not this, not that. It is incomprehensible, for it cannot be comprehended.

Self |

Chandogya Upanishad

This body is mortal, forever in the clutch of death. But within it resides the Self, immortal, and without form. This Self, when associated in consciousness with the body, is subject to pleasure and pain; and so long as this association continues, no man can find freedom from pains and pleasures. But when the association comes to an end, there is an end also of pain and pleasure. Rising above physical consciousness, knowing the Self as distinct from the sense-organs and the mind., knowing Him in his true light, one rejoices and one is free.

Association | Body | Consciousness | Death | Freedom | Knowing | Light | Man | Mind | Mortal | Pain | Pleasure | Self | Sense | Association |

Charles Caleb Colton

No man can purchase his virtue too dear, for it is the only thing whose value must ever increase with the price it has cost us. Our integrity is never worth so much as when we have parted with our all to keep it.

Cost | Integrity | Man | Price | Virtue | Virtue | Worth | Value |

Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Humility is to have a right estimate of one's self - not to think less of himself than he ought. The higher a man is in grace, the lower he will be in his own esteem.

Esteem | Grace | Humility | Man | Right | Self | Will | Think |

Christopher Marlowe

Hell hath no limits, nor is circumscrib'd in one self place, for where we are is hell, and where hell is, must we euer be.

Hell | Self |

Charles T. Tart

The development of the Observer can allow a person considerable access to observing different identity states, and an outside observer may often clearly infer different identity states, but a person himself who has not developed the Observer function very well may never notice the many transitions from one identity state to another.

Dag Hammarskjöld

A task becomes a duty from the moment you suspect it to be an essential part of that integrity which alone entitles a man to assume responsibility.

Duty | Integrity | Man | Responsibility |

Confucius, aka Kong Qiu, Zhongni, K'ung Fu-tzu or Kong Fuzi NULL

The perfecting of self implies virtue; the perfecting of others, wisdom. These two, virtue and wisdom, are the moral qualities of the hsing, or nature, embodying the Tao, or Right Way.

Nature | Qualities | Right | Self | Virtue | Virtue | Wisdom |

Dag Hammarskjöld

Humility is just as much the opposite of self-abasement as it is of self-exultation. To be humble is not to make comparisons. Secure in its reality, the self is neither better nor worse, bigger nor smaller, than anything else in the universe. It is – is nothing, yet at the same time, one with everything.

Better | Humility | Nothing | Reality | Self | Time | Universe |

Confucius, aka Kong Qiu, Zhongni, K'ung Fu-tzu or Kong Fuzi NULL

What is God-given is called nature; to follow nature is called Tao (the Way); to cultivate the way is called culture. Before joy, anger, sadness and happiness are expressed, they are called the inner self; when they are expressed to the proper degree, they are called harmony. The inner self is the correct foundation of the world, and the harmony is the illustrious Way. When a man has achieved the inner self and harmony, the heaven and earth are orderly and the myriad of things are nourished and grow thereby.

Anger | Culture | Earth | God | Harmony | Heaven | Joy | Man | Nature | Sadness | Self | World | Happiness |

Dag Hammarskjöld

To let oneself be bound by a duty from the moment you see it approaching is part of the integrity that alone justifies responsibility.

Duty | Integrity | Responsibility |

Dennis Genpo Merzel, aka Genpo Merzel Roshi

The whole world is created from Mind. How we perceive it is the whole story. If we see everything from our ego-centered view, everything is too much to handle. Always we feel limited, unable to cope with situations. We feel small, helpless, and out of control. If we go beyond the egoistic view of the self as separate, then we can enjoy a more magnanimous, panoramic perspective that we call Limitless Mind (dai shin), infinite capacity and complete faith in things just the way they are. It all depends on how we choose to view life. Dropping the ego-centered self we discover the real self, which is none other than no fixed self, completely open to each moment of life.

Capacity | Control | Ego | Faith | Life | Life | Mind | Self | Story | World |

Tacitus, fully Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus NULL

There are odious virtues; such as inflexible severity, and an integrity that accepts of no favor.

Integrity |