When I was 5 years old,
my mother always told me
that happiness was the key
to life.When I went to school,
they asked me what I
wanted to be when I
grew up.I wrote down “happy”.
They told me I didn’t
understand the assignment,
and I told them they didn’t
understand life.– John Lennon
First They Came
First they came for the
socialists, and I did not speak out
because I was not a socialist.Then they came for the
trade unionists,
and I did not speak out
because I was not
a trade unionist.They they came for the Jews,
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Jew.Then they came for me,
and there was no one left
to speak for me.– Martin Niemöller
Self Importance
Don Juan speaking to Carlos Castaneda.
“Self-importance is our greatest enemy. Think about it — what weakens us is feeling offended by the deeds and misdeeds of our fellow men. Our self-importance requires that we spend most of our lives offended by someone.”
“Self-importance is not something simple and naive,” he explained. “On the one hand, it is the core of everything that is good in us, and on the other hand, the core of everything that is rotten. To get rid of the self-importance that is rotten requires a masterpiece of strategy. Seers, through the ages, have given the highest praise to those who have accomplished it.”
Letting go of impulses
When I let go of all the impulses to get away, to defend, to impress, to avoid, to get things, to acquire, to be someone, then there was a sense of being with things as they are — a sense of peace, a sense of completeness, a sense of perfection.
– Gil Fronsdal
When you understand
When you understand, you will see that you are nothing.
And being nothing, you are everything.
That is all.
– Kalu Rinpoche