Faith is, above all, open-ness—an act of trust in the unknown..

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Many Organised Religions are divisive and quarrelsome. They are a form of one-upmanship because they depend upon separating the “saved” from the “damned,” the true believers from the heretics, the in-group from the out-group. Even religious liberals play the game of “we’re-more-tolerant-than-you.” Continue reading

Owning one’s own inner flaws

Image result for spiritual humilitySpiritual humility should not be confused with its social interpretation as ‘humiliation’. Continue reading

“Drop the Rock!”

Our fear of change, our fear of stepping into new realities, is so deep that we desperately cling to the world we know. We often mistake familiarity for safety. The perceived comfort we derive from what is familiar keeps us living in the illusion of our stories. But the question we should ponder is, Are we really safe inside our stories? Instead of risking change, we hold on for dear life and resist the uncertainty of the unknown.drop the rock mantra Continue reading

Three Steps to Success: What one ‘has’, ‘does’ and ‘is’

Related imageThe ladder of success seems to have three main steps:

(1) Initially, it’s what one “has” that counts-that is, status depends upon visible signs of material wealth; Continue reading

Insight is enough

Related imageYou have to see what I am saying, you are not to learn what I am saying. Here, sitting with me every day, listening to me, don’t start collecting knowledge. Here, listening to me, don’t start hoarding. Listening to me should be an experiment in insight. You should listen with intensity, with totality, with as much awareness as is possible for you. In that very awareness you will see a point, and that very seeing is transformation. Continue reading

Great Mother Questions

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“WHAT ON EARTH HAVE YOU DONE?” This is one of the great Mother Questions. The second great question mothers ask is the theological one: “WHAT IN THE NAME OF GOD ARE YOU DOING?” Another Mother Question anticipates the future: “AND WHAT WILL YOU THINK OF NEXT?” (My father rolled all these questions into one—only the tone changed: “WHAT THE HELL . . . ?”) Children know these questions have no reasonable answers. Any child who has half a brain will go mute or mumble, “Nothing. Nothing.” Or resort to pity-invoking sobs that plead innocence, ignorance, and helplessness: “I don’t know (snork) I don’t know (snork) . . .” And the child is telling the truth. Most of the time a kid doesn’t think about what he’s doing, or why. This is the privilege of childhood………

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man is a budding buddha

There is a very famous saying of Emerson: “Man is a God in ruins.” I agree and I disagree. The insight has some truth in it – man is not as he should be. The insight is there but a little upside down. Continue reading

Create the energy to act against cruelty

To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. Continue reading